Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi participated on Sunday in a tripartite summit with Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir in Addis Ababa to discuss the issue of Ethiopia's Renaissance Dam, a statement by Egyptian presidential spokesperson Bassam Rady read. The tripartite summit was an extension of meetings that took place between the three leaders after the African Summit in January 2018. The aim of the meetings is to support the technical negotiations on Ethiopia's Renaissance Dam and overcome any obstacles in this regard. Ethiopia has been constructing the Renaissance Dam since 2011 on the Blue Nile, the main tributary to the River Nile in Egypt. Egypt has repeatedly voiced concerns that the dam's filling process would reduce its share of Nile water, which currently stands at 55.5 billion cubic metres per year. Addis Ababa insists that the dam is no threat to Egypt's water supply. During the summit, President El-Sisi stressed the importance of working to ensure a balanced and cooperative vision to operate the Renaissance Dam and fill its reservoir in a way that serves the interests and objectives of all three countries without violating any of their rights. The three leaders stressed the need for a shared vision regarding the dam based on the Declaration of Principles signed in Khartoum, and ensure that none of the countries' interests are harmed. Rady said that the three leaders agreed that negotiations should be based on the agreement that the interests of their peoples are not to be harmed, and that they should work together to achieve development in the three countries by working to reach consensus on all outstanding technical issues. The tripartite summit also discussed enhancing cooperation between the three countries while continuing intensive consultation and coordination on various issues of common interest. In October, the Ethiopian government announced that the construction of its 6,450-megawatt dam was 62 percent complete. Sisi to speak at international food safety conference El-Sisi will be among the speakers at an international conference on food safety to be held in Addis Ababa on 12-13 February. The First International Food Safety Conference is hosted jointly by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the African Union (AU). The conference will bring together heads of state, senior policy makers, and representatives from international organisations, civil society and the private sector, the African Union said on its website. El-Sisi will participate in the gathering as the African Union chairman. Many other African leaders are also expected to attend. The conference will identify key actions and strategies to address current and future challenges to food safety globally, and to strengthen commitment at the highest political level to scale up food safety in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Some of the key issues to be addressed include the benefits of investing in safe food; safe and sustainable food systems in the context of a changing climate; science, innovation and digital transformations for food safety; and empowering consumers to make healthy choices and support sustainable food systems. Short link: Swiss watch brand Longines had the pleasure to present its Record collection in presence of actress Bhumi Pednekar at Longines Point of Sale (POS) in CT Pundole and Sons, MG Road. In the purest watchmaking tradition of Longines, this collection combines classic elegance and excellence, aspiring to become the spearhead of the brand. The very well known film actress Bhumi Pednekar visited on 7th February the Longines POS at CT Pundole and Sons located in one of the most popular locations in Pune, MG Road. This POS features the latest Longines collections, including the most iconic timepieces of the brand as well as its new models. Speaking on this occasion, Bhumi said, "I am extremely happy to be a brand friend of Longines, a brand known for its world class watch making expertise. I think this Record collection will do exceptionally well especially during Valentines as it reinstates the ethos that defines any strong relationship - classic and timeless." Ranjini, who was once one of the top heroines in Malayalam, has expressed her concern over certain trolls that are evidently sexist and in bad taste. Ranjini made her entry into Malayalam with Swathi Thirunal and attained big success with Chithram. She has acted in films like Mukundetta Sumithra Vilikkunnu, Kauthuka Varthakal, Mukham, Paavakkoothu, Thoovalsparsham and Sandram among others. She made a comeback with the 2014 hit Ring Master. The actress has expressed her displeasure over certain trolls where her pictures during her Chithram times with Mohanlal and the current ones were mocked by some. She has called for action by superstars to control their fans. Egypts parliament has approved in principle a new law introducing an amnesty on building violations and giving those convicted of them the opportunity to come to an agreement with the state. The House of Representatives Housing Committee said the new law could address the problems of millions. The state also stands to benefit from lands seized in violation of construction law 119/2008. The new law corrects building violation and puts an end to court battles over construction violations while also helping to bring in revenues to overcome problems created by building violations and maintain arable land. However, Hussein Sabour, head of Al-Ahly for Real Estate Development, a private company, said the fines introduced by the new law were not big enough to deter people from committing building violations. A minimum fine of LE50 and a maximum fine of LE2,000 per square metre is included in Article 5 of the new law covering violations, which also states that each governorate should form a committee made up of two representatives of the authorities concerned, two evaluators accredited by the Egyptian Financial Regulatory Authority, and a representative of the Ministry of Finance. This committee will then be tasked with dividing the governorate into zones and pricing each according to the planning of the area and the availability of facilities. The committee will also set the price per square metre to be paid by violators, with fines payable in installments according to rules decided by the executive regulations of the law. The law applies to buildings constructed on agricultural land on condition that the buildings are fully constructed, complete with infrastructure, inhabited, and erected on land that has lost its agricultural potential as a result. Baseline conditions will be based on aerial images taken in July 2017. But Sabour said it was incomprehensible for a law issued in the 1950s to sentence an owner to jail for taking down payments from tenants while at the same time another introduced only moderate penalties for building-code violators. In the end it will be the buyer who will bear the cost of any fines, he said. The new law treats violations committed over the past 30 years, and penalties will apply to violations committed before the law was issued as well as future violations. No amnesty will be available for dilapidated buildings, buildings constructed on state-owned land or land owned by the Ministry of Antiquities, or buildings constructed in areas not designated for urban planning. The government said the new law had not been drafted to collect extra revenues, as any fines will be paid to the state treasury to be distributed to administrative bodies in the districts where the violations were committed for development projects. Fifteen per cent of the fines will go to the Social Housing Fund and service projects, 30 per cent will go to infrastructure projects such as sewage and potable water, seven per cent will go for parking lots, 10 per cent will go to bodies in charge of handling construction violations and squatters, and three per cent will go to the construction committees in different governorates and employees in bodies handling violations. Alaa Al-Wali, chair of the parliaments Housing Committee, said the law had been drafted to right wrongs and to protect peoples assets. If someone buys a unit that has been built without a permit, no good end will be served by tearing it down, he said. There are 2.8 million lawsuits on construction violations in the courts, and resolving them amicably would mean lifting a huge burden from judges shoulders. It would also add to the national housing stock, since the buildings would be preserved, Al-Wali said. Buildings not in violation of the law would benefit because a portion of the revenues raised under the new law will be directed to infrastructure projects and social housing. Ahmed Gamal Al-Zayat, a member of the Construction Committee at the Egyptian Businessmens Association, said the state expected to collect LE4 billion in fines. The new law was an important step forward in the governments endeavours to put an end to sporadic construction and shantytowns, he said. *This article was first published in Al-Ahram Weekly under the title Building amnesty in question Search Keywords: Short link: Press Release February 10, 2019 Automatic PhilHealth membership for PWDs up for President's signature All persons with disability (PWDs) will soon be provided with automatic health insurance once a bill seeking to amend Republic Act No. 7277, otherwise known as the Magna Carta for Persons with Disability, will be signed into law. The bill, also known as the Mandatory PhilHealth coverage for all Persons with Disability (PWDs), was transmitted to Malacanang last January 24. It will automatically lapse into law within 30 days if the President fails to act on it. Senator Risa Hontiveros, who shepherded the passage of the bill in the Senate, said the national government would shoulder the contributions for all PWDs unless the PWDs are working, in which case, the national government will share equal payments of the premium with the employer. She said the funds necessary for the implementation of the act would be sourced from sin tax collection. "PWDs are one of the most vulnerable segments of the population. It is doubly difficult when you have a disability and you become sick," she said. Once approved into law, Hontiveros said PhilHealth would be required to develop exclusive packages for the PWDs, taking into account their specific health and development needs. She said the approval of the bill will provide much needed aid to sustain PWDs medical needs, including treatments and medicines which they were compelled to take and undergo because of their disabilities and sickness. Under the bill, the Department of Health (DOH), in coordination with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DWSD), the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), the National Council on Disability Affairs (NCDA), the local government units (LGUs) and other concerned agencies shall conduct periodic monitoring and evaluation of the implementation of the act. The DOH shall also maintain an updated database on PWDs and their health and development needs. A Cairo criminal court has ordered the conditional release of satirist and video blogger Shady Abu Zeid after nine months in pre-trial detention, his lawyer said on Sunday. Abu Zeid was arrested at his Cairo home in May 2018 and questioned over charges of "spearing false news" and "joining an outlawed group." "The court has decided to replace his pre-trial detention with probationary measures under police supervision," defence lawyer Mokhtar Mounir told Ahram Online on Sunday. The conditions will require Abu Zeid to report to a police station on certain days for a specified number of hours, Mounir said. The lawyer added that the prosecution will appeal the court's decision in a hearing on Monday and that the court will either accept the prosecution's appeal and order Abu Zeid's detention or uphold Sunday's conditional release. "Everything will depend on the court's ruling tomorrow," he said. Abu Zeid is a video blogger who produces a satirical news show "The Rich Content", which he had published on YouTube and Facebook since mid-2015 until his arrest. In 2016, he sparked public outrage after releasing a video showing him and young actor Ahmed Malek handing balloons made of inflated condoms to police officers in Tahrir Square during the fifth anniversary of the uprising against longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak. The comedian was also a correspondent for popular satirical television programme Abla Fahita before he was suspended following the condom video. Last month, prosecutors allowed Abu Zeid to attend his father's funeral after numerous requests made by his family to allow him to briefly see his father before his death were rejected by authorities. His family had said he does not have any political affiliation or belong to any political group, describing the charges against him as "not real." Short link: Rwandan President Paul Kagame, who led an active, reformist tenure as African Union chair, on Sunday passes the baton to Egypt, seen as more likely to focus on security issues than expanding the powers of the body. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi will officially take over the post of ceremonial head of the AU which rotates between the five regions of the continent at the start of a two-day summit in Addis Ababa. While multiple crises on the continent will be on the agenda of heads of state from the 55 member nations, the summit will also focus on institutional reforms, and the establishment of a continent-wide free trade zone. The Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA) was agreed by 44 nations in March 2018, but only 19 countries have ratified the agreement, with 22 needed for it to come into effect. The single market is a flagship of the AU's "Agenda 2063" programme, conceived as a strategic framework for socioeconomic transformation. Cairo is backing the initiative, but analysts say it will be less likely to focus on the financial and administrative reforms pushed by Kagame. Sisi is however expected to focus more on security, peacekeeping and post-war reconstruction, issues closely tied to the AU's 2019 theme of "Refugees, Returnees and Internally Displaced Persons". "Egypt has an interest in Africa, they want to strengthen their position on the African continent and they don't want to be seen as a country only focused on the Arab world," said Liesl Louw-Vaudran, an analyst at the Institute for Security Studies. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Saturday that peaceful elections in DR Congo, Mali and Madagascar, as well as peace deals in South Sudan and Central African Republic and the truce between Ethiopia and Eritrea, were signs of a "wind of hope" on the continent. Resisting AU power Kagame, who has been leading institutional reforms since 2016, pushed for a continent-wide import tax to fund the AU and reduce its dependence on external donors, who still pay for more than half the institution's annual budget. But member states have resisted this along with reform of the AU Commission, its executive organ. In November 2018, most states rejected a proposal to give the head of the AU Commission the power to name deputies and commissioners. Like other regional heavyweights Nigeria and South Africa, Egypt is not keen on a powerful AU, an African diplomat told AFP. Especially because Cairo has "never forgotten" its suspension in 2013 after Egypt's army deposed president Mohamed Morsi, who in 2012 became the country's first democratically elected president, the diplomat said. "Traditionally, leaders of big powers have not really helped the position of AU chairperson, as they don't want an AU which is too strong or too intrusive," said Elissa Jobson of the International Crisis Group. "The AU and the AU commission are only as strong as its members want them to be. Unlike the EU, African countries have not transferred some of their sovereignty to the AU." Kagame suffered a crushing blow from the AU after expressing "serious doubts" about the results of Democratic Republic of Congo's recent presidential election, which was officially won by Felix Tshisekedi. While also disputed by the Catholic church, the results were validated by DRC's constitutional court and saluted by continental heavyweights South Africa, Kenya and Egypt. "This whole thing was an embarrassment for the AU, it showed the limitations of what the AU chairperson can do," said Jobson. Search Keywords: Short link: The Egyptian-Kuwaiti military drills "Sabah-1/Yarmouk-4" concluded on Sunday after several days of exercises in Kuwait. Kuwaiti Armed Forces Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Mohammed Khaled Al Khadher attended the final exercises. Units of Egyptian navy forces, Egyptian air forces and Egyptian special forces participated in the drills. "Sabah-1" naval drill included theoretical and practical lectures on coordinating operations while "Yarmouk-4" included a number of exercises in defense and attack. "Sabah-1" is considered the first naval exercise between Egypt and Kuwait. The "Yamouk-4" drills are the fourth time the two countries have exchanged expertise on military challenges in the Middle East region. Short link: Yuan Gao was quick to say yes when a message arrived from UC San Diego offering him admission to a campus 7,000 miles from his home in southeast China. It has a supercomputer, said Gao, a freshman who studies data science. Not many schools have that. Itll help me become what I want to be. Gao arrived in La Jolla last year as part of a huge, historic reshaping of the student body, one that favors the global over the parochial. In the past decade, the number of international students has soared by almost 7,200 and now accounts for almost 25 percent of the schools enrollment. The figure was 6 percent in 2008. Advertisement Reeling from reduced state funding, UC San Diego decided to heavily recruit international students, primarily because they pay at least twice as much as California residents in tuition and fees. The university says the money helps subsidize the cost of educating Californians, bolsters research and eases the need for tuition increases. The influx of foreign students also broadens everyones cultural experience. UC San Diego also has added more California residents. But their overall share of the student body has dropped by 20 percent in 10 years. School officials estimate that this fall, for the first time, the campus will collect more money from undergraduates who come from outside California than from the Golden State. The projected bounty: $275 million. Much of the revenue comes from the United States chief economic and political rival China. It sent the campus roughly 5,300 students last fall, close to the same number that was drawn from greater San Diego. The majority of the students study engineering, science or mathematics, contributing to UC San Diegos rise as a mecca for STEM programs. The same enrollment strategy is being used throughout the University of California system, which used to receive 25 percent of its revenue from the state. The figure is now 6 percent. Advertisement But the change is particularly noticeable at UC San Diego. The school now has a total of 8,792 international students, more than any other UC campus. The university also shot on to the list of the 10 American universities with the most foreign students. UC San Diego has turbo-charged its international recruiting, said Walter Hutchens, a professor of global business at the University of Redlands. Advertisement Some might view this as a diminution of what is essentially American a changing of the California ethos. I do not. This is globalization, especially as it involves China. California is famous for being forward-looking. Were on the Pacific Rim. Students need to be prepared to deal with the world economy. And the strategy makes financial sense, said Gaurav Khanna, an economics professor at UC San Diegos School of Global Policy and Strategy. The tuition and fees basically allow universities to recoup lost appropriations, preventing the need to cut expenditures on things like research and faculty, Khanna said. Advertisement The strategy has critics, notably the California State Auditor, who issued a harsh critique of the practice in 2016. Auditor Elaine Howle said UC campuses pursued high-paying out-of-state and international students to the exclusion of California residents. She also said that the UC system relaxed admission standards for non-residents, making it harder for Californians to compete. And Howle claimed in her audit that the UC system could have taken additional steps to generate savings and revenue internally to mitigate the impact of its admissions and financial decisions on residents. The UC challenged the audit, saying Howles figures were wrong. But the university system later placed caps on non-resident undergraduates. Advertisement It hasnt slowed UC San Diegos growth. The campus added 319 international students in September, and it could do the same this fall. The school has received more than 23,000 applications from foreigners who want to enroll as freshmen or transfers. Out-of-state and international students who enroll as undergraduates will pay $53,682 for tuition, fees, housing, food and related expenses. California residents will pay an estimated $24,690, the campus says. UC San Diego did not make admissions and enrollment officials available for interviews about the reshaping of the student body. But its long been obvious that the campus could mine Asia for enrollment. Advertisement Roughly one-third of the nearly 1.1 million foreigners enrolled in U.S. colleges are from China. The number has grown as Chinas middle class has expanded, putting a pricey American education within reach of many. Theres an assumption among Chinese parents that they should send their children abroad for an education because there are so many great schools in the U.S., said Terry Crawford, co-founder of InitialView, a Beijing company that helps students seek college admissions. They know that UCSD is part of the UC system and is well-regarded in areas like the life sciences. They might not know much about UCSDs name. But they know where it stands in the academic rankings. Many identify a school by its ranking number. Gao pored over the rankings last year from his home in Nanchang, a city of 5 million in southeastern China. Advertisement Berkeley, UCLA, San Diego I read about them all, said Gao, 18. I thought San Diego has what I wanted. Gao also turned his attention to the U.S. because he wasnt sure he could get a spot in one of Chinas top universities. The country has far fewer elite schools than the U.S., and getting into one requires passing the Gaokao, a mandatory entrance exam thats famously difficult. A students performance on the Gakoa determines which school theyll get into, and greatly influences what they will be able to study. Many Chinese students forego the Gaokao and follow the international track, preparing for entrance into schools in the United States, Canada, Great Britain and Australia. Advertisement Schools in the UC system hold special appeal. Other countries dont fund their research facilities as well as they do here, said Reem Mohanty, an engineering student from Doha, Qatar, who is in her senior year at UC San Diego. Here, people believe in project-based learning and experiencing things in the real world whereas in other countries its more theoretical. One of her classmates, Kevin Monsanto, a senior from Jakarta, Indonesia, has a similar outlook. Advertisement My family works in the automotive industry and they wanted me to come here because, basically, everything comes from the United States, Monsanto said. The work ethic here is so different from my culture. My mom wants me to understand how I can implement that back home. Gaining entrance to an American university can be relatively pain-free, even at a school as competitive as UC San Diego. Dealing with culture shock can be an entirely different matter. Advertisement Ive been studying English since childhood, but I didnt know American slang, said Yulia Wilson, a graduate student in public policy from Kharkiv, Ukraine. It was hard, overwhelming. But I got over it. UCSD really helps international students to integrate with the campus, to assimilate. There are unknowns for many of the U.S. schools as well, including future relations with China, given the current political tensions. In 2017, the University of Illinois bought an insurance policy that would partially cover the loss of tuition if Chinese students were restricted from the U.S. due to some type of geopolitical event. Advertisement InsideHigherEd.com said the event could involve anything from visa restrictions to a major trade war. Crawford hopes that the student pipeline between places like China and UC San Diego remains wide open. We attract the best and brightest of Chinas students, Crawford said. They get a great education here and go back home and use it. ICYMI Advertisement Famed UC San Diego oceanographer-explorer Walter Munk dies at 101 UC San Diego opens bridge over I-5, linking main campus, health sciences Crowded UCSD receives record number of applications for fall enrollment 3 San Diegans elected to the National Academy of Engineering Egypt is expected to take over the presidency of the African Union Sunday during the opening ceremony of the 32nd African Union Summit. During the closed summit, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi along with African leaders have discussed issues of mutual concern, reported state TV. It is the first time an Egyptian leader has chaired the AU since it was established in 2002, spokesperson to the Egyptian Presidency Bassam Rady said. Rady said the chairmanship is a coronation of Egyptian efforts led by the president in the last few years to boost relations with African states on both the bilateral and multilateral levels, marking a restoration of Egypts pivotal role in the continent. Egypt was one of the founding countries of the Organisation of African Unity, the AU's predecessor, in the 1960s. Rady said Sundays summit will be held under the theme of Year of Refugees, Returnees and Internally Displaced People," which he said was chosen due to Africas efforts to stem human trafficking and forcible displacement. The summit will also see discussions related to issues of sustainable development that fall under the AUs 2063 Agenda; regional integration and complementarity through developing the continents infrastructure and continental connectivity projects; and efforts to activate an African free trade zone. The summit cover coordinating with international financing institutions and strategic partners to mobilise the funds and support needed for Africa's development, while also pushing efforts to formulate innovative solutions to overcome the negative impacts of climate change. Health, education, innovation and localising technology will also be discussed, Rady added. African leaders will also review the efforts of reviving African policy for reconstruction and development in post-conflict phases, as well as activities on combating terrorism and extremism on the continent. Talks on resolving conflicts in notable hotbeds, and on the implementation of the AUs Silencing the guns in Africa by 2020 initiative, are on the agenda, Rady added. Short link: Re San Diegan hopes to reunite with mother despite Muslim ban (Jan. 31): Thank you for Dhaha Nurs eloquent piece. The Muslim ban has unfairly delayed his mothers reunion with her children in the United States. The Declaration of Independence states that we are created equally and have the unalienable right to pursue happiness. Our First Amendment insures our ability to express our religion. President Trump is acting illegally in banning legal migration from Muslim countries, and his policy will be proven wrong. Meanwhile, too much suffering ensues. Our country was built by immigrants willing to unite with others and stand up for what is right to shape and transform our future. Americans have peacefully enacted many changes in our history to expand our freedoms, ensure our economic and physical safety, and pave the way for happiness. All were led by immigrants. Doris Bittar President, Advertisement American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee San Diego Chapter As a refugee myself, I deeply sympathize with Nurs experience of family separation. Preventing his mother from joining him after she has fulfilled the legal requirements contradicts all the values our country holds dear. George Khoury Board member, American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee Advertisement San Diego Chapter 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. You can email letters@sduniontribune.com or leave a comment below. Follow @UTLetters on Twitter and UTOpinion on Facebook. South Korea and the United States struck a new deal Sunday that increases Seouls contribution for the cost of the American military presence on its soil, overcoming previous failed negotiations that caused worries about their decades-long alliance. The development comes as President Donald Trump is set to hold his second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vietnam in late February. South Korea last year provided about $830 million, covering roughly 40 percent of the cost of the deployment of 28,500 U.S. soldiers whose presence is meant to deter aggression from North Korea. Trump has pushed for South Korea to pay more. On Sunday, chief negotiators from the two countries signed a new cost-sharing plan, which requires South Korea to pay about 1.04 trillion won ($924 million) in 2019, Seouls Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Advertisement The statement said the two countries reaffirmed the need for a stable U.S. military deployment amid the rapidly changing situation on the Korean Peninsula. The ministry said the U.S. assured South Korea that it is committed to the alliance and has no plans to adjust the number of its troops in South Korea. South Korea began paying for the U.S. military deployment in the early 1990s, after rebuilding its economy from the devastation of the 1950-1953 Korean War. The big U.S. military presence in South Korea is a symbol of the countries alliance, forged in blood during the war, but also a source of long-running anti-American sentiments. About 20 anti-U.S. activists rallied near the Foreign Ministry building in Seoul on Sunday, chanting slogans like No more money for U.S. troops. No violence was reported. The United States government realizes that Korea does a lot for our alliance and peace and stability in the region, chief U.S. negotiator Timothy Betts said Sunday in Seoul. We are very pleased our consultations resulted in agreement that will strengthen transparency and deepen our cooperation and the alliance. The deal, which involves the spending of South Korean taxpayer money, requires parliamentary approval in South Korea, but not in the United States, according to Seouls Foreign Ministry. The allies had failed to reach a new cost-sharing plan during some 10 rounds of talks. A five-year 2014 deal that covered South Koreas payment last year expired at the end of 2018. Some conservatives in South Korea voiced concerns over a weakening alliance with the United States at the same time as negotiations with North Korea to deprive it of its nuclear weapons hit a stalemate. They said Trump might use the failed military cost-sharing negotiations as an excuse to pull back some U.S. troops in South Korea as a bargaining chip in talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Trump told CBS Face the Nation on Feb. 3 that he has no plans to withdraw troops from South Korea. During his election campaign, Trump suggested he could pull back troops from South Korea and Japan unless they took on greater a share of the financial burdens of supporting U.S. soldiers deployed there. Advertisement South Korean media earlier reported that Trump demanded South Korea double its spending for the U.S. military deployment, before his government eventually asked for 1.13 trillion won ($1 billion). Seouls Foreign Ministry said the U.S. had called for a sharp increase in South Korean spending but didnt elaborate. Trump announced last week that he will sit down with Kim for their second summit. Their first summit in Singapore last June resulted in Kims vague commitment to the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, a term that his propaganda machine previously used when it argued it would only denuclearize after the U.S. withdraws its troops from South Korea. Trumps top envoy for North Korea, Stephen Biegun, visited Pyongyang last week to work out details of the upcoming summit. After being briefed by Biegun about his Pyongyang trip, South Koreas presidential office said Sunday that U.S. and North Korean officials plan to meet again the week of Feb. 17 in an unidentified Asian country. The U.S. military arrived in South Korea to disarm Japan, which colonized the Korean Peninsula from 1910-45, following its World War II defeat. Most U.S. troops were withdrawn in 1949 but they returned the next year to fight alongside South Korea in the Korean War. Advertisement Associated Press journalists Chang Yong Jun and Lee Jin-man contributed to this report. For nearly a century the Junior League of San Diego has sought to improve its community through service, and its 90th anniversary doubled down on that effort. Throughout the weekend and into late Monday night, members of the Junior League of San Diego are commemorating their anniversary by donating 90 hours of continuous community service. From packing food at the San Diego Food Bank and cleaning up parks to serving meals at Father Joes Villages and sewing tote bags for rehab patients, members are working in-person with community partners and during the middle of night at home as they try to make a positive impact and celebrate the work the group and its partners have already done. The Junior Leagues claim to fame is training volunteers to do really great work in the community, and we wanted to do something big that would also really showcase the community partners we work with on a regular basis, said Joni Flaherty, president of the Junior League of San Diego. Advertisement Although the first Junior League was founded in 1901, San Diegos league officially joined the Association of Junior Leagues of America now the Association of Junior Leagues International in 1929. Inspired by the nearby Pasadena Junior League, the group started with only a handful of members but quickly grew and thrived in its mission of promoting volunteerism, developing women and improving the community. Now the all-women group is more than 1,000 members strong, with members ranging from age 21 on up, and has made an impact in a variety of focus areas over the years including domestic violence, literacy and now transition-age foster youth. That service took a variety of forms Saturday during the groups 90 Continuous Hours as members cleaned up Torrey Pines State Beach, prepared bagged lunches for homeless people and partnered with St. Pauls Seniors Services to help senior residents make Valentines Day cards. During the event at St. Pauls a longtime partner of the group seniors bundled in cardigans and sweaters sat side-by-side with volunteers and conversed while crafting pink, purple and blue cards. The cards, playfully decorated with hearts, drawings and a variety of stickers, were often intended for family, friends and St. Pauls staff, and one senior shared how a Valentines card she gave last year helped strike up a new friendship. I think of myself as fairly creative, and I like the fact they provided the supplies I needed and let me go ahead in my own way, said one of the seniors, Marilyn, who preferred not to share her last name. The woman from the Junior League was very friendly. I enjoyed talking with her. Leah Wetchler, 28, a member of the league for a year and a half, said she chose to volunteer at St. Pauls because she had fun with her previous volunteer experience there and enjoys talking with the seniors. My grandparents passed away when I was young so being able to come and interact with the senior citizens here is great, and if they have family who is far away and cant visit Im glad we can come do that, said Wetchler, who would next be volunteering at Ronald McDonald House. At the same event Saturday, Emily Lake, president-elect of the league, also expressed a similar attitude about the Valentines activity, saying that over the years it has been a popular event among members. Advertisement You sit there and you make cards, but its so much more than that, said Lake. Youre hearing stories from an older generation and its just a fun event that feels really like socializing. Lake also shared how beyond volunteering, the league overall can have huge impact on developing women. As a restaurant owner, I dont think I would have had the confidence or the training to open my own business without a lot of the training I received from the Junior League, and Ive also got a support structure, said Lake, whos opening a restaurant in Hillcrest. A 56-year-old Vista Jail inmate who fell unconscious in a cell and later died was identified by authorities Saturday as Joseph Castiglione. Sheriffs officials said jail deputies who looked into a holding cell Thursday morning saw Castiglione in apparent medical distress. The deputies went into the cell and the inmate became unresponsive, sheriffs homicide Lt. Michael Blevins said in a statement. Deputies started CPR on Castiglione, who then was taken to a hospital, where he died. The cause of death was not released. Advertisement Castiglione, a Vista resident, was arrested Thursday by sheriffs deputies on Smilax Road and booked on charges of possessing a controlled substance and drug paraphernalia, according to an arrest log. Officials said he also faced a charge of violating parole. The sheriffs homicide unit investigates all jail deaths. Blevins said there was no indication of suspicious circumstances or foul play surrounding Castigliones death. pauline.repard@sduniontribune.com Twitter: @pdrepard In 2014, months before he was arrested on suspicion of murder, Charles Chase Merritt told a CNN reporter he was definitely the last person that Joseph McStay saw. Now, jurors tasked with deciding whether Merritt killed McStay and his family who lived in North County may be allowed to see that television interview for themselves. Last week, San Bernardino Superior Court Judge Michael Smith gave prosecutors the OK to play the recording for the panel, so long as prosecutors can get someone on the stand to authenticate it as a true representation of the interview. Merritt, 61, is charged with killing business partner McStay, 40, as well as McStays wife Summer, 43, and couples young sons, Gianni, 4, and Joey Jr., 3. Advertisement The Fallbrook family vanished in February 2010, their whereabouts a mystery. Then in November 2013, a dirt-biker happened across a childs skull during a ride in the desert outside Victorville, not far of Interstate 15, in November 2013. It was Joey Jr.s remains. The bones of the rest of the McStay family were found in shallow graves near where the skull was found more than 100 miles from the familys home. A year later, in November 2014, San Bernardino County sheriffs detectives arrested Merritt. Prosecutors there charged him with four counts of murder. Merritt who has described Joseph McStay as his best friend has pleaded not guilty and remained jailed in the four years it took to get the case to trial. McStay sold indoor water features and often hired Merritt, a welder, to craft them. On Feb. 4, 2010, the two men had lunch in Rancho Cucamonga to discuss upcoming projects. Its the last known sighting of Joseph McStay. In 2014, after the family had been found but before Merritts arrest, CNN reporter Randi Kaye sat down with Merritt for a documentary on the missing family. In a portion of the interview, Merritt told her that McStay might have spoken to others later that day, after their lunch. Advertisement But you were the last person he saw?, Kaye asked Merritt. Im definitely the last person he saw, Merritt said. After Merritts arrest, Kaye told CNN host Don Lemon that she and a crew spent about two hours with Merritt on the day of the interview in January 2014, and that he had been friendly and direct in his answers. The courtroom discussion regarding the interview came during a week in which jurors saw less than two full days of testimony Wednesday and some of Thursday. Advertisement The San Diego Union-Tribune has monitored the trial by watching livestream coverage from Law & Crime, a website specializing in live trial coverage. Testimony continues this week. Feb. 4 marked nine years since the family disappeared. Advertisement teri.figueroa@sduniontribune.com (760) 529-4945 Twitter: @TeriFigueroaUT Sheriffs officials on Saturday released the name of the man shot by Escondido police in an exchange of gunfire near Hidden Meadows. Jose Martin Torres, 36, of Oceanside, was wounded in one foot while he was running from police and shooting at them, sheriffs homicide Lt. Michael Blevins said in a statement. Torres is being held in jail without bail on three counts of attempted murder. He is scheduled to be arraigned on Monday. Authorities said Escondido police went to Rincon Villa Drive about 1:30 a.m. Thursday to check reports of a man shooting at a house. As officers got there, the gunman drove off and led police on a pursuit north on Interstate 15. Advertisement Police spiked his tires on Deer Springs Road, an unincorporated area north of Escondido. He stopped on Mesa Rock Road, got out and ran, and fired at the officers who chased him. They were not hit by his gunfire, but two officers suffered minor injuries, authorities said. pauline.repard@sduniontribune.com Twitter: @pdrepard South Korea and the United States struck a new deal Sunday that increases Seouls contribution for the cost of the American military presence on its soil, overcoming previous failed negotiations that caused worries about their decades-long alliance. The development comes as President Trump is set to hold his second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vietnam in late February. South Korea last year provided about $830 million, covering roughly 40% of the cost of the deployment of 28,500 U.S. soldiers whose presence is meant to deter aggression from North Korea. Trump has pushed for South Korea to pay more. On Sunday, chief negotiators from the two countries signed a new cost-sharing plan, which requires South Korea to pay about $924 million in 2019, Seouls Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Advertisement The statement said the two countries reaffirmed the need for a stable U.S. military deployment amid the rapidly changing situation on the Korean Peninsula. The ministry said the U.S. assured South Korea that it is committed to the alliance and has no plans to adjust the number of its troops in South Korea. South Korea began paying for the U.S. military deployment in the early 1990s, after rebuilding its economy from the devastation of the 1950-53 Korean War. The big U.S. military presence in South Korea is a symbol of the countries alliance, forged in blood during the war, but also a source of long-running anti-American sentiments. About 20 anti-U.S. activists rallied near the Foreign Ministry building in Seoul on Sunday, chanting slogans like No more money for U.S. troops. No violence was reported. The United States government realizes that Korea does a lot for our alliance and peace and stability in the region, chief U.S. negotiator Timothy Betts said Sunday in Seoul. We are very pleased our consultations resulted in agreement that will strengthen transparency and deepen our cooperation and the alliance. The deal, which involves the spending of South Korean taxpayer money, requires parliamentary approval in South Korea, but not in the United States, according to Seouls Foreign Ministry. The allies had failed to reach a new cost-sharing plan during some 10 rounds of talks. A five-year 2014 deal that covered South Koreas payment last year expired at the end of 2018. Some conservatives in South Korea voiced concerns over a weakening alliance with the United States at the same time as negotiations with North Korea to deprive it of its nuclear weapons hit a stalemate. They said Trump might use the failed military cost-sharing negotiations as an excuse to pull back some U.S. troops in South Korea as a bargaining chip in talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Trump told CBS Face the Nation on Feb. 3 that he has no plans to withdraw troops from South Korea. During his election campaign, Trump suggested he could pull back troops from South Korea and Japan unless they took on a greater share of the financial burdens of supporting U.S. soldiers deployed there. Advertisement Trump announced last week that he will sit down with Kim for their second summit. Their first summit in Singapore last June resulted in Kims vague commitment to the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, a term that his propaganda machine previously used when it argued it would denuclearize only after the U.S. withdraws its troops from South Korea. An Egyptian-Sudanese-Ethiopian summit kicked off Sunday with the presence of Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi, Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abi Ahmed Ali at the latter's headquarters in Addis Ababa. The tripartite summit will discuss the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam issue and cooperation between the three countries. Also on the agenda are the challenges facing the African continent as Egypt assumes the presidency of the African Union for the first time since its establishment in 2002. Egypt has maintained that its main concern over the construction of the Renaissance Dam is its potential negative impact on the country's water share. The leaders of Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia are holding the summit on the sidelines of the 32nd African Union Summit. Short link: A man who was charged Sunday with killing a Milwaukee officer during a drug raid on his home told investigators that he didnt realize it was police trying to break down his door, authorities said. Jordan P. Fricke, 26, is charged with first-degree intentional homicide and other crimes in the fatal shooting of 35-year-old Officer Matthew Rittner, who was part of a tactical unit trying to serve a warrant to search the home for illegal drugs and weapons on Wednesday morning. According to the criminal complaint, police announced their presence several times and said they had a search warrant, and an officer yelled police right before Fricke fired four rounds through a hole in the door that Rittner had made with a battering ram. Rittner died of a gunshot wound to the chest. Fricke was in bed with his girlfriend when they were awakened by loud noise and yelling. He told investigators that he never heard anyone yell search warrant. He said he thought he heard someone say police but didnt think it was actually the police trying to break into his home, the complaint states. Advertisement Frickes girlfriend said she saw him shoot at the kitchen door and that she knew police were at the door because she heard them identify themselves, according to the complaint. A $1 million cash bond was set Sunday for Fricke, who remained in jail. A court commissioner found probable cause to hold Fricke for further proceedings, and a preliminary hearing was set for Thursday. Frickes attorney, Michael L. Chernin, declined comment. Rittner, a 17-year veteran of the force, was the third Milwaukee officer killed in the line of duty in eight months. The department had previously gone more than two decades without such a death. Rittners funeral is scheduled for Wednesday at Oak Creek Assembly of God Church in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. One caravan of more than 1,800 migrants has been camped out by the Texas border in Piedras Negras. A second caravan numbering 2,000 has been moving this week through southern Mexico. Several hundred other migrants remained at a stadium in Mexico City earlier this week, preparing for the next step of their journey. Four months after more than 6,000 Central American migrants arrived in Tijuana, the exodus continues. Many have been making their way through Mexico and are heading for the U.S. border, in less numerous but still sizeable caravans or smaller, lower-profile groups that pass undetected. The issue of Central American caravans who joins them, how large they are, where they are going, if more are forming has been a pressing one for both the U.S. and Mexican governments and for communities along the way. In recent days, social media sites have been spreading word of a new caravan scheduled to leave San Pedro Sula, Honduras, on Feb. 16. Caravans form as a means of protection for undocumented Central American migrants on their way to the United States as they flee violence and poverty in their home countries. By moving jointly across Mexico, the idea has been that they can more easily fend off kidnappers or corrupt law enforcement officials in Mexico. But the massive movements have had their challenges. Advertisement I think that people will continue to leave as they traditionally have, even as they have found protection in caravans, to travel as a community, especially women and children, said Mariana Zaragoza, who heads the Program for Migrant Matters at the Iberoamerican University in Mexico City. In the end, caravans have allowed the migrants to be seen, to shed their clandestine status. The caravans make up a small fraction of the overall flow of Central Americans estimated to pass through Mexico. The Colegio de la Frontera Norte, a government think tank based in Tijuana, estimates anywhere from 350,000 to 400,000 annual crossings of Central Americans through Mexico on their way to the United States. In one recent survey at Mexicos southern border, only 35 percent of nearly 1,000 people interviewed at the Ciudad Hidalgo Port of Entry said they were traveling as part of a caravan. Seventy percent said violence was a factor in their decision to leave their countries. Less than one third 30 percent said they were heading for another country, most of those to the United States. Those who said they intended to remain in Mexico gave Mexico City and Baja California as their top destinations. The survey, by the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, took place last month as thousands of migrants applied for one-year humanitarian visas being offered for the first time by the Mexican government. The pilot program, which ran from Jan. 17 to 29, offered migrants who presented themselves at the port of entry the chance to live and work anywhere in Mexico. By late last week, Mexicos National Migration Institute had issued more than 12,000 of these visas on the Guatemalan border in the southern state of Chiapas. Another 900 had received visas in Mexico City. Even though the process had formally concluded, on Friday authorities began registering members of a caravan camped in a factory compound near the U.S. border in Piedras Negras. The program was a necessary temporary measure to try to handle a large flow of people, said Andrew Selee, president of the Migration Policy Institute in Washington, D.C. The thinking was were not able to implement the kind of border control or visa control policy that we want. Lets at least make sure that things are above-board and according to law, Selee said. By giving the Central Americans legal status, they took the market away from smugglers and any corrupt authorities that were smuggling with them, he said. With the conclusion of the program, Mexican authorities announced they were entering a new phase that allows the Central American migrants to apply for the visas in their home countries. They said that Mexico also will begin offering residents of El Salvador and Honduras the same benefits accorded to citizens of neighboring Belize and Guatemala through regional visitor and visiting border worker visas in southern Mexico. Advertisement Thats the way it needs to be done, not only in Mexico, but in the world, migration flows need to be done in an organized and humane manner, said Alejandra Castaneda, a migration researcher at the Colegio de la Frontera Norte. I think its a success, the other way doesnt work, you cant stop people by repressing people. These efforts have been part of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obradors push to document Central American migrants transiting through Mexico and bring them out of the shadows. But experts say enormous challenges persist and changes cant happen overnight. They want to have a humane treatment of migrants at the southern border, but you cant do that without some sort of control, said Selee of the Migration Policy Institute. The administration has to find a way of controlling the southern border, where there are legal visas theres also a humane way of deporting people who dont come through legal channels, because otherwise, theyre incentivizing a massive migration flow into Mexico. As one incident showed last week, migrants continue to be subject to abuses by criminal groups. In Veracruz on Thursday, state police officials reported the detention of 10 suspected smugglers after they found 239 Central Americans crammed inside a large truck, most of them Guatemalans. Advertisement While last years caravan brought much attention to Tijuana and to the San Diego border, the new focus for U.S. and Mexican authorities has been Piedras Negras, a border community of some 200,000 residents in the northern Mexican state of Coahuila, across from Eagle Pass, Texas. Press reports have been telling of more than 1,800 people being held inside the enclosed grounds of a former maquiladora. They have been provided with sleeping areas, food and bathrooms but not allowed to leave the facility as officials from Mexicos National Migration Institute register them for humanitarian visas that allow them to work and travel anywhere in Mexico. A group of 48 unaccompanied minors in the group, many with parents in the United States, were sent to a shelter, according to the newspaper Reforma. Local authorities have said the community is not equipped to host such a large group. Miguel Angel Riquelme, the governor of Coahuila, won applause from business leaders when he said the state would turn away future caravans. We dont have the capacity, nor should we have to carry a responsibility thats not ours, the governor was quoted as saying. Meanwhile in southern Mexico, another caravan has arrived in Oaxaca, estimated in size from 1,500 to 2,000 people, many of whom reportedly have the humanitarian visas. Advertisement Earlier in the week, in Chiapas, authorities detained an activist with the group Pueblo sin Fronteras, David Cueva Ramirez, and deported him to Honduras. Mexican authorities have not confirmed the detention, but Cueva, who said he had legal residency in Mexico, told Mexicos La Jornada newspaper that he was detained Monday while traveling with a group of 400 to 500 migrants, and interrogated by Mexican authorities as well as Interpol agents before being flown to San Pedro Sula. One persistent question in recent days has been the location of the thousands who were processed legally last month and have not joined any caravan. We think that many people at the moment they processed their visas went ahead on their own, they looked for a place to rent, said Zaragoza of the Universidad Iberoamericana. Theres been no follow-up, and thats worrisome, she said. In Honduras, a new caravan departure date has been spreading through social media. Announced for next Saturday, the group is scheduled leave from the same bus depot in San Pedro Sula as previous groups. Advertisement Karen Valladares, executive director of the National Forum for Migrations in Honduras, said conditions continue to push people out. As long as there are no structural changes in Honduras, were going to continue seeing Hondurans fleeing the country, she said. For those people who make the decision to migrate, it matters little or nothing if they open the border, if they close the border, she said. What they want to do is arrive, period, arrive in the United States. sandra.dibble@sduniontribune.com Twitter @sandradibble This weeks In Depth explores the effect that Proposition 64, which legalized marijuana in California, has had on the black market. Reporter Kristina Davis discusses what she learned reporting the story. Q: This isnt your first stab at this topic, is it? A: In 2016, before Proposition 64 was set to be voted on, I asked the same question of experts and law enforcement, although of course all they could do at that time was offer their best guesses of how legalization might affect the black market. Looking back at their answers now is a mixed bag, but I think things have progressed pretty much as anticipated. Early on, San Diego police visited Colorado, the first state to fully legalize, and prepped for what might come down here. So they werent surprised by the explosion of illegal storefronts and now the proliferation of delivery services. Q: Why do the story now? Advertisement A: While Proposition 64 passed in November 2016, recreational sales werent fully legal until the beginning of 2018. I wanted to wait for at least a full year to pass to take stock of the situation. That being said, I think this is a situation that is going to continue to change as the state gets its head around a legal market, and as the nation moves toward a more unified approach to marijuana. Canada recently legalized, as well, and Mexico is heading that direction, so that will also put a unique spin on the broader supply and demand. Q: Did anything surprise you in your reporting? A: Even though Mexican cartels have been sending less marijuana north a trend Ive been aware of for a while I was surprised to learn just how involved they still in the market in California. They havent given up their cultivation in the U.S., and law enforcement reports that there is still a consumer demand for it on the very low end of the market. Q: You compare a licensed Mission Valley dispensary to a high-end beauty counter. Can you explain? A: Walking into March and Ash and browsing the shelves with all the little eye-catching packaging reminded me of a cool, boutique version of Sephora. You have staff asking what your needs are, and a personalized consultation that reminds of me asking for help picking out an anti-oxidant serum or perfume. It makes for such a normalized shopping experience and shows just how normalized cannabis has become. But that shopping experience comes at a price, and it appears the legal industry as a whole has some economic and regulatory adjustments to make to significantly compete with the black market. kristina.davis@sduniontribune.com Twitter: @kristinadavis When California voters passed Proposition 64 allowing recreational marijuana, they likely imagined a place like March and Ash. Stepping into the licensed Mission Valley dispensary is reminiscent of a high-end beauty counter. Stylish yet approachable, the shop is staffed with friendly budtenders on hand to answer questions about vetted, tested product lines. The sales, in turn, bolster city and state coffers through taxes. Yet, a year after legalized sales, thats not how much of the marijuana in California is being sold. Advertisement A black market for marijuana continues to thrive, with illicit storefronts and delivery services cashing in while defying orders to close and Mexican drug cartels not ready to completely abandon their foothold. And its not just Californians who are the customers. Some of the states growers have continued to tap into a national demand for the potent, craft cannabis the region has become known for, exporting it illegally often through the mail to the East Coast for top dollar. Part of the problem, industry analysts say, is only about 25 percent of cities and counties in California have allowed marijuana businesses to operate in their jurisdictions. Until there is greater access to the regulated market more dispensaries, more cultivators, manufacturers, distributors as well as lower taxes, we are going to continue to see the black market, said Michael Cindrich, a San Diego attorney representing marijuana businesses. And in many cases, its still currently winning. Another glaring issue, licensed owners say, is the lack of incentive for many already operating in the states long established industry to go legal. There are virtually no consequences for running an unlicensed operation, said Lincoln Fish, chief executive of Outco, a wholesale cultivator and manufacturer that also runs two medical dispensaries. Many agree, however, that it is unrealistic to expect legalization would stifle the black market right away. Gov. Gavin Newsom, who lobbied for Proposition 64 as lieutenant governor, told The San Diego Union-Tribune Editorial Board last year that he expected it would take five to seven years to substantively address the black market, to see a maturation on tax revenue, as we transition from something old to something new. Advertisement Mexican marijuana isnt dead Marijuana used to be the cash crop of Mexican drug cartels. But the slow spread of legalization across the U.S. has taken a serious bite out of business. In the past seven years, Border Patrol has seen an 82 percent drop in marijuana seizures from 2.4 million pounds in fiscal 2013 to 439,500 pounds last year, most of it believed to be Mexican. Only 7,700 pounds of that were confiscated along the border and at nearby vehicle checkpoints in the San Diego sector, while most moves through Texas and Arizona. The bulky and smelly nature of marijuana make the drug better suited to smuggle through more remote areas of the border or tunnels rather than ports of entry, as harder drugs most frequently are. Last year, more than 283,000 pounds of marijuana were seized at ports of entry. Advertisement While there is no way to accurately measure how much of the drug is smuggled across the border, the seizure data strongly indicates the Mexican marijuana is slowly becoming a disappearing trade. It hasnt been that important for a decade or more for the overall income stream, said Alejandro Hope, a former top security official in Mexico and a partner at GEA, a Mexico City-based consulting firm. But any hope that legalization might limit the influence of powerful drug trafficking organizations would be wishful thinking. A member of the Mexican Attorney Generals Office stands guard during the incineration of more than 3 tons of marijuana and other narcotics, in Zapopan, Jalisco State, Mexico, on Feb. 1, 2019. (Ulises Ruiz/Getty Images) Advertisement Ever nimble, the cartels have shifted to harder drugs methamphetamine, cocaine, heroin and fentanyl some of which are extremely cheap to manufacture and hold high value in small amounts. Criminal organizations have also turned to kidnappings, fuel theft, extortion and human trafficking to make up for loss in revenue. The notion that this is going to cripple the finances of Mexican criminal syndicates is ludicrous, Hope said of legalization. Still, Mexican traffickers have not entirely released their grip on the American marijuana market. For example, when authorities pulled over a semi-truck in Calexico in May, they found brown bundles stacked floor to ceiling inside. The haul a whopping 23,000 pounds of marijuana turned out to be the Imperial County Sheriffs Offices biggest drug bust of 2018. Advertisement The Imperial County Sheriffs Office seized 23,000 pounds of marijuana in a semi-truck in Calexico in May. (Courtesy of Imperial County Sheriffs Office) A month later, officers seized 15,000 pounds of marijuana hidden in cargo at San Diegos Otay Mesa Port of Entry. We are continuing to see more marijuana production in Mexico than we might expect with legalization, said David Shirk, a professor at the University of San Diego and head of the schools Justice in Mexico project. In fact, some farmers in the fertile mountains of Mexicos Guerrero state are actually abandoning their poppy crops which, when processed into heroin, helped feed the U.S. opioid crisis and are turning again to marijuana, which is easier to cultivate, according to a June report by the Associated Press. The farmers say they are adjusting to the explosive rise in fentanyl synthetic heroin that is much easier and cheaper to produce and the resulting drop in opium prices. Advertisement Theres still clearly some market for it, Shirk said. Experts say most of what comes through California is bound for states that havent legalized it yet, or to regions with a less favorable growing climate. Ten states and the District of Columbia have legalized recreational use, while 33 allow medicinal use. However, some of the Mexican product stays in California. Its still very common, a Sheriffs Department spokesperson said. Advertisement For those under 21 the age limit set for legal adult recreational use it may be easier to procure marijuana from traditional street dealers. Most of the stuff coming Mexico is not quality product. It sells for very, very cheap, said Fish. They are trying to serve the very low end of the market with that. A lot of cartel-grown marijuana is actually being cultivated in the United States, on remote pockets of public forest land where they divert water supply, use toxic chemicals and poach wildlife, authorities said. Advertisement Of the 1.5 million plants seized from public lands nationwide in 2017, 1.4 million of them were in California, according to the U.S. Forest Service. Much of that is in the so-called Emerald Triangle region Humboldt, Mendocino and Trinity counties in northern California. In San Diego County, the Cleveland National Forest, south of the Riverside County line, is a popular growing area, as is Fallbrook and beyond. For the agents of the DEAs Narcotics Task Force Team 9, many of the campsites occupied by crop tenders and guards offer clues that point back to Mexico. A common indicator are the bottles of Mexican pesticides that are banned in the U.S. Some of those pesticides have also been found in marijuana being sold in illicit dispensaries, a sheriffs official said. Last year, the county task force seized 75,000 plants and 91,000 pounds of processed marijuana, as well as eradicated 33 grow sites mostly on public land. Advertisement While law enforcement can wipe out a grow site, prosecuting the people behind it is another matter. These grow locations, our guys have to hike in or be flown in and dropped, explained DEA Assistant Special Agent in Charge Steven Woodland, who oversees the task force. Its hard to do a true criminal investigation when you cant do surveillance on these people. Dangerous concentrates When it comes to public safety, law enforcement points to illicit THC extraction labs as the biggest threat the black market brings to the region. Extraction labs take the leafy parts of marijuana and separate out the THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol the main active ingredient in marijuana that causes the high. The concentrate becomes a wax or oil that can be smoked, known as dabbing, or turned into high-demand products including edibles, tinctures, creams and vape pens. Advertisement Its for the high, its the potency, Woodland said. The average concentrate is 82 percent THC four times more potent than the average traditional leafy marijuana. It is also gold. On the black market, hash oil goes for $40 to $100 a gram, according to DEA estimates. A common extraction method uses butane. It is a volatile process prone to explosions similar to meth labs of the past and endangers not only the participants but also their neighbors. One mega bust last year involved a complex of industrial buildings in Kearny Mesa with an indoor grow operation and four extraction labs, two using carbon dioxide and two using butane. Team 9 agents seized tens of thousands of vape cartridges there, along with 150 gallons of concentrate, 3,000 plants and 7,000 pounds of processed marijuana. The operation was tied to two dispensaries and a delivery service, Woodland said. Advertisement In March, an explosion rocked a Vista home, where authorities found hundreds of butane cans and signs of an extraction lab. DEA intelligence suggests some illicit labs are buying Mexican marijuana to process into concentrate. Mexican marijuana is not as potent as domestically grown cannabis, so you may have to use four or five times the amount of marijuana to do extractions to get the THC concentrations you want, Woodland said. But it could pencil out financially. As of July, illicit wholesale domestic marijuana was going for $2,700 to $4,500 per pound, compared to the Mexican variety at $300 to $500 a pound, Woodland said. Advertisement Industry professionals said while it may be possible that some labs are using Mexican pot, the supply would not be steady, and the end product would still be inferior. Concrete evidence has been hard to come by in San Diego. When the DEA task force seizes illegal labs, the plants are not usually tested to determine their origin. And with the decriminalization of marijuana, suspects have much less incentive to cooperate with investigators by spilling secrets. Law enforcement is waiting to see if the Mexican cartels will become interested in producing their own concentrate to smuggle north, as they have done with meth in their superlabs and now fentanyl. They have the equipment and know how to do it down there. I think its just a matter of time, Woodland said. Advertisement Open for business Where the cartels operate in secret, thousands of businesses operate in the open, under the guise of legitimacy. Illicit storefronts across the county advertise in free weeklies and online, including the go-to guide Weedmaps.com. They operate websites, listing products and prices, and often sell what appear to be big brand names at lower prices. What they sidestep are testing requirements, taxes and high start-up costs keeping the price point low. To the casual consumer, it can be difficult to discern whats legal and whats not. Investigators suspect many of these owners were selling illicitly before legalization and are now capitalizing on the increased interest that has been put on recreational use of the drug. Advertisement They see easy money, said San Diego police Lt. Matt Novak, chief of narcotics. Even if they stay in business two, three months and make $200,000, $300,000 or $400,000 and get out, its very lucrative. Unlike the licensed stores, the supply chain is opaque and likely comes from illicit growers, distributors and manufacturers, especially from the Humboldt area, Novak said. Some industry insiders say there is growing suspicion that some licensed brand names are selling to illegal shops, possibly under pseudo labels. Other products purporting to be legitimate brands are suspected of being counterfeits from China. Its this fake legal marketplace that really rubs licensed business owners raw. Advertisement California has spent a lot of time and effort creating a framework making sure we are treating this like a controlled substance, said Fish, who is headquartered in unincorporated El Cajon, near Gillespie Field. He said thats good, even if some of the regulations seem onerous, as long as the state holds up its end of the bargain and goes after the bad actors. Bottom line, they arent going after you. I can walk to five dispensaries from here that are illegal. Going after the illegal dispensaries have become a frustrating game of whack-a-mole for the various jurisdictions across the county and state. Pop one unlicensed store and it either reopens in the same spot later, or it moves to another location under a new name. Owners hide their tracks, making it difficult to take civil or even criminal action against the shot-callers. High fines levied against illicit dispensaries are accepted as a cost of doing business because the earnings are just that good. For instance, in Chula Vista, illicit businesses can be fined $10,000 a day. Advertisement There also isnt much bite when criminal charges are filed; possession of marijuana for sale is now a misdemeanor. Many landlords happily accept above-market rates and lack the incentive to kick tenants out. Now, county officials are giving landlords that incentive. In a strategy started last spring landlords are given notice and allowed 10 days to kick out their marijuana-selling tenants, or face losing access to their buildings. The tactic has had some success in the Spring Valley area. The latest effort is in Valley Center, where on Wednesday sheriffs officials raided two dispensaries, seizing merchandise before boarding up at least one of the businesses. Advertisement Any person found inside the property after the County secures the building is subject to arrest, the Sheriffs Department warned. Fish said going after the landlords makes the most sense to deal with the issue effectively and questions why more cities havent tried. Start fining the landlords $50,000 a day and this problem would be over, he said. Lincoln Fish, CEO of OutCo, operates Outliers Collective, a legal medical cannabis business, holds a marijuana bud grown at their facility. (Howard Lipin/U-T) Advertisement The city of San Diego has found the combination of enforcement and prosecution a successful formula, one that has pretty much taken care of the storefront problem, Novak said. But it is labor intensive and takes manpower. In 2018, the City Attorneys Office prosecuted 69 cases of possession of marijuana with intent to sell, all tied to either storefronts or delivery services, the office said. Now, the problem is illicit delivery services that offer to bring a range of marijuana products to your doorstep. About 90 are suspected of operating in the city and prove a different kind of challenge. Only licensed dispensaries are allowed to operate as delivery services based out of the city. But adding to the complexity is a new rule that allows services licensed in one jurisdiction to deliver anywhere in the state, even in jurisdictions that have banned sales. Advertisement Marijuana farmers markets offer another illicit shopping experience. Two that had been operating in Ocean Beach and North Park were busted last month by San Diego police. Even with the bustling California market for marijuana, the state is only consuming a fraction of whats being grown here. The state Department of Food and Agriculture estimated in 2017 that the state was producing between 13 and 15.5 million pounds of marijuana per year and consuming just 2.5 million pounds. That kind of supply has created a booming illegal export business across the country. Much of it is sent through the U.S. Postal Service or private parcel such as FedEx using false sender information. I was speaking at an agriculture conference, recalled Fish of Outco, and I met a guy who was talking about making a few thousand vape cartridges a week and shipping them to New York. He was talking openly about it in a roomful of licensed people. Advertisement The long game In the end, none of these challenges really come as a surprise to many in the profession. I think its a lot of first-year growing pains, said attorney Cindrich, who specializes in marijuana law. Some cities and counties passed laws quickly in the wake of Proposition 64 prohibiting legal business not because they are necessarily against it, but because they wanted to take the time to regulate the industry their own way, said Fish. So far, San Diego is the only city locally with legal adult-use dispensaries, with 14 currently open and another 19 in the works. However, many other jurisdictions statewide are beginning to open up the application process, including Chula Vista, which has been plagued by illegal storefronts. Many other cities in the county are exploring or already allow medical sales but havent expanded to recreational. Advertisement Once there is greater legal access, Cindrich said, the ultimate impact will be on the black market. Business owners say the state and local governments also need to step up a promise to crack down on the illicit operators. The state warned Weedmaps to stop listing illegal services, but the website countered that it is not selling marijuana and therefore is not subject to the Bureau of Cannabis Controls regulations. Then there will always be those who prefer to buy on the black market. The states longstanding medical marijuana tradition has created informal collectives that would rather do things the way they always have. For others, especially professionals or public figures, the public nature of buying cannabis can be too nerve-wracking. Advertisement Some are just loyal to their dealers. It goes back to If its not broke, dont fix it, said a 30-year-old North Park resident who did not want be named. Though he is an infrequent buyer, he said he has always had hassle-free transactions with people in his social circle. You build a connection with someone and this person is easy to work with, professional, drama free. Advertisement He said he visited a Joshua Tree dispensary once out of necessity and was unimpressed. I spent $85 when I didnt want to spend more than $30, he said. At March and Ash the Mission Valley dispensary that opened in September with an appearance by actor Tommy Chong of Cheech and Chong fame co-founder and CEO Blake Marchand said he understands the industry frustration over the black market, but ultimately doesnt see it as affecting what he and his partner are trying to accomplish. We offer safe access and education, Marchand said during a recent interview in the stores back office, as staff helped a steady flow of customers on the sales floor. Advertisement The black market is not a concern for us, he added. We stay in our lane. Were selling California-tested products, ones we stand behind. kristina.davis@sduniontribune.com Twitter: @kristinadavis The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is turning to the San Diego Regional Task Force on the Homeless and similar groups nationwide to look at why some minority groups are overrepresented among the homeless. Task force board member Pat Leslie, director of the Social Work Program at Point Loma Nazarene University, wrote a response to HUDs request last year for data on the racial and ethnic breakdown of the local homeless population. The request was part of the application forms for HUD funding in 2019. For the record: This story has been updated to correct an error in the interpretation of data. On a national level, it does show theres a disparity of minorities who are homeless, Leslie said. That disparity also exists in San Diego, where it is slightly higher than the national disparity for homeless black or African Americans. Advertisement As reported last year in HUDs annual report to Congress, people who identify as black or African American made up about 13 percent of the general population in 2018 but represented about 40 percent of the homeless population nationally. Black people make up 5.5 percent of San Diego Countys population but about 28 percent of the local homeless population, according to the task force. While the 28 percent local figure is significantly less than the national 40 percent figure, the local disparity is more pronounced. The percent of homeless black people in San Diego County is five times greater than the percent of black people in the county, while the percent of black homeless people nationwide is about three times greater than the percent of black people in the national population. Leslie said the request for the data was a surprise to the Regional Task Force on the Homeless, and she speculated that HUD could follow-up the request with ways to address the disparity in the future. HUD spokesman Brian Sullivan said the agency historically has collected data on the homeless, but didnt say what would come from it. We ask a lot of questions so we can better understand who is out there and homeless, he said about the new data requests. Its really probably just a variation on a theme. Advertisement HUD works nationwide with about 400 organizations called Continuums of Care, including the San Diego Regional Task Force on the Homeless, and Sullivan said the federal agency would not mandate any of them follow a particular program. But Leslie said HUD does base its funding allocations, such as the ones released Friday, on a complex formula that includes how it responds to requests for data. Requesting Continuums of Care to look into possible disparities in their own communities has raised awareness of the issue, which she said can lead to action. Just like we noticed the number of homeless veterans and said, We need to do something about this, she said. Data was not compiled from the annual Point-in-Time Count but rather was gathered from service providers throughout the county who tracked how many homeless people needed help in one year. At 15,000, that number is significantly higher than the 2018 point-in-time total, which was about 8,600 homeless people. Advertisement The data showed people who identify as white made up about 62 percent of the homeless population in 2018, while countywide they made up about 76 percent of the homeless population. Hispanic and Latino populations were identified by ethnicity rather than race in the report. In San Diego County, 34 percent of the population identifies as Hispanic or Latino, while the data compiled by the task force showed they were mathematically underrepresented in the regions homeless population at 28 percent. Nationally, that group is overrepresented in the homeless population. About 22 percent of homeless people nationwide identified as Hispanic or Latino, while the 2010 Census showed Hispanics and Latinos made up 16 percent of the population. Advertisement The percentage of homeless Asian people is less than both the local and national general population numbers. In San Diego, Asian people make up 12.5 percent of the countys population but only 2 percent of the county population. What does it all mean? Leslie, who has led studies on homelessness at Point Loma Nazarene University, said finding out could be the next step. Id like to see us do a deeper dive, she said. Looking at the disparity of black or African American people who are homeless compared to the general population, Leslie speculated that one cause could be access to housing. She said there also could be lessons in exploring the relatively small percentage of homeless people who identify as Asian. Advertisement Homeless Playlist On Now San Diego hepatitis outbreak continues to grow: 481 cases On Now Homeless entrenched in booming tent city along Santa Ana River On Now San Diego mayor agreed to homeless hub, then delayed, advocates say On Now Homeless outreach in San Diego On Now Video: Street Art: Portraits of San Diego's Homeless #8 On Now In poverty himself, 'Water Man Dave,' is the fearless saint of San Diego's homeless 5:41 On Now Video: Homeless living in cars find safe havens 2:21 On Now Street Art: Portraits of San Diego's Homeless #7 On Now Pitching a tent plan for San Diego's homeless On Now Homeless efforts get $80M boost for various services Advertisement gary.warth@sduniontribune.com Twitter: @GaryWarthUT Advertisement 760-529-4939 Off the coast of La Jolla, kelp beds shifted in the surf, their mossy gold fronds twisting down to thick stalks in an underwater grove. This is Californias other forest, an aquatic counterpart to the states storied redwood groves. Like the old growth stands, giant kelp stretch from lush canopies to luminous understories, brimming with life. And like those ancient groves, they face an uncertain future in a changing world. On a sunny Saturday last month, Ed Parnell, a researcher with Scripps Institution of Oceanography, dove down to take stock of their condition. His conclusion: for the moment, theyre better than expected, and better than other parts of the state. It looked a little beat up from the storms, but not as bad as I thought it would be, said Parnell, who studies kelp ecosystems. Not as bad as it was a few years ago. Advertisement In Northern California, armies of sea urchins have clear-cut most of the kelp forest, forming urchin barrens on the denuded sea floor. Giant kelp off San Diego have fared a bit better, and are recovering from damage wrought by strong storms and abnormally warm water in recent years, Parnell said. With another El Nino in the works, and ocean temperatures on the rise, however, they could face renewed threats. The California Current definitely has changed, and its going to continue to change with global warming, Parnell said. What that will mean is that well probably lose our kelp forest, and it will change from a forest, to patches that appear and disappear. San Diego kelp started dying back around 2014, when The Blob, a mass of stagnant warm water, squatted off the Pacific Coast. Kelp rely on upwelling of nutrients from cold water to sustain their stratospheric growth rate, so they withered in the sluggish bath. The Blob rolled into an El Nino weather pattern in 2015 and 2016, bringing more warm water, along with pounding storms that ripped kelp strands from their holdfasts on the seafloor. During strong El Ninos, its a double whammy for kelp, Parnell said. You have warm water with low nutrients, so the kelp cant grow. Then you get strong waves that come and wash it out. Kelp evolved with those cycles, and has adapted to rugged coastal conditions by maintaining extraordinary productivity, growing up to two feet per day to a maximum length of about 175 feet. A single kelp can live eight to 10 years, but most are torn from their riggings within a year, Parnell said, and quickly replaced by new growth. It came back fast, he said of the kelps recovery off La Jolla. It makes its living by growing fast. Advertisement Scripps Institution of Oceanography Researcher Ed Parnell inspects the kelp forest off the San Diego coast during a dive to check on the current conditions of the local kelp. (Andrew Roe) On the sunny afternoon, giant kelp floated in greenish-brown masses on the waters surface, so thick that they tangle around a swimmer. Unlike its terrestrial counterparts in California forests, giant kelp isnt a plant. Scientifically called Macrocystis pyrifera, its a protist, part of the algae kingdom, and the very largest among its clan. Viewed from underneath, the blades form a gilded canopy on the waters surface. Gazing down, the stems descend through layers of shimmering blue to the holdfast, which anchors the organism to the sea floor. The water was a bracing 62 degrees Fahrenheit at the surface, and in the mid-50s on the ocean floor, so Parnell donned a dry suit to insulate himself from the chilly water. Only a few creatures stirred at the surface; a surf perch flitted through the kelp, while an orange Norrisia norrisii snail and a large barnacle clung to the blades. Advertisement The bottom, however, was full of big fish and other organisms. The divers saw kelp bass, sheephead and a four-foot giant seabass, listed as critically endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Natures Red List of threatened species. Seeing a big one off San Diego is a good sign, Parnell said. One of his diving companions, his former colleague Cleridy Lennert-Cody, spotted a seven-gill shark, as well. Giant kelp is a keystone species that forms the basis for an entire ecosystem, creating one of the most diverse marine habitats. Steve Schroeter, a research ecologist at UC Santa Barbara, who works in San Diego County, has tallied that diversity while monitoring the kelp bed off of San Dieguito Lagoon. Our crew counts about 350 species of invertebrates that live in the kelp forest: starfish, sea urchins, snails, cup corals, Schroeter said. The kelp forest supports a whole host of fish. So starting the food chain from plants to invertebrates to fish, thats the kelp forest. Sea stars, anemones, crabs, and jellyfish dwell in kelp forests, and sea birds swoop in to feed on small crustaceans, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Commercial species including bass and rockfish use kelp for cover, and rockfish larvae take shelter in the upper water column. Fish, in turn, are food for seals, sea lions and others mammals. Sea urchins devour the kelp. And sea otters eat urchins, while lounging and playing in kelp beds. Advertisement Its a characteristic community, Parnell said. Diving in the kelp forest is like taking a walk through a terrestrial rainforest. Ten feet below the surface, its like youre flying in the canopy. When youre on the bottom, youre shaded by this wonderful forest, and you feel protected. You feel like youre pretty much inside, rather than outside the house. This Norrisia norrisii snail clinging to a kelp leaf, was observed during a dive to check on the current conditions of the local kelp. (Andrew Roe) The divers returned to the surface with lustrous abalone shells, as well as sea urchins, snails and cowries. They found some unwanted things, too, including weedy clumps of sargassum, an invasive seaweed that competes with kelp. Despite that intruder, Parnell was pleased by what he saw. Last months winter storms didnt wreak as much damage as he expected, and regrowth is replacing kelp lost to the warm water die-offs. Advertisement The kelp forest is looking a lot better than it was a few years ago, Ill tell you that much, he said, peeling off his drysuit. Thats not to say that San Diegos kelp forests are out of the woods. While their condition is good, their coverage isnt as extensive as it was before. Theres kelp missing in many areas that it used to be, Parnell said. In the areas that its now present, it looks very healthy and its growing rapidly. Fundamentally, theyre missing from some of the other areas where they typically grow. They basically havent recovered from the last El Nino in some areas. They have been spared the destruction of urchin barrens, however. Thats partly because urchins died off during the warm water episodes, as well. Although there is some urchin overgrazing on San Diego kelp beds, particularly near Point Loma, its not on the scale seen in Northern California, Parnell said. Advertisement You had two different warm water events, and the kelp virtually died off, he said. Sea stars and urchins (also) died off. Its lucky for Southern California kelp forests that their most voracious predators declined under the same conditions as the seaweed beds. But the long-term prospects for kelp in a warming world are troubling, researchers say. Australian kelp forests off Tasmania have all but disappeared, declining by 95 percent as the water of that region has warmed faster than the global average, researchers report. Although the continents coral reef decline has been widely publicized, its kelp loss could be just as calamitous. San Diegos situation is not that dire, but it may be in coming decades. The Tasmanian kelp story is probably the southern California kelp story over the next century, Parnell said. Advertisement An ocean temperature time series taken from Scripps Pier over the past century shows an unsettling pattern. While ocean temperatures rise and fall in annual cycles, the average temperature began rising in the late 70s, creeping up by several degrees. Last year, San Diego saw some of the warmest water temperatures on record, spiking to a record 78.6 degrees last August. Its unclear, Parnell said, if thats simply a new record, or a new normal for the region. Paul Dayton, a professor emeritus of oceanography at Scripps, began diving in San Diego kelp beds as a graduate student in the 1960s, and continued that research after joining the faculty in 1970. My first dives were one of wonder at this habitat as I floated around looking at the different structures in the kelp forest, and all the different animals, he said. At that time, he said, kelp forests were still recovering from strong El Ninos in the 1950s. They bounced back from those blows, but Dayton isnt confident we can count on that in the future. Advertisement Right now, it looks bad to me, because the ocean warming is continuing. Even though we have a break in the El Ninos, the macro kelp will be in trouble if the nutrients in the water diminish with global warming, he said. Right now, theres a lot of kelp out there, so I cant say were in the middle of a disaster, but it doesnt look good for the next 10 years. Scripps Institution of Oceanography Researcher Ed Parnell places abalone shells on a pile of invasive Sargassum horneri sea weed, a kelp competitor, after taking a dive to check on the current conditions of the local kelp. (Andrew Roe) If they decline, or disappear, he said, theyll take a host of ecological communities with them. Kelp provide food and shelter for marine animals not only while theyre growing offshore, but also after they wash away. On the beach, decomposing kelp provides food for small animals such as sand worms, arthropods and other invertebrates, which are prey for seabirds, Dayton said. You might not care much about sand worms, he acknowledged, but everyone loves the birds. Advertisement Kelp paddies can also detach and float out to sea, where they provide food and shelter for rockfish larvae. Its sort of a condominium of young animal people out there in the kelp paddies, he said. The paddies are really important to these populations for rockfish that were trying to recover. The massive algae also sink to the bottom of the sea, creating a submarine smorgasboard for deep sea creatures, he said. And they can drop into San Diegos offshore canyons, where juvenile kelp bass and hake dine and hide in the disintegrating seaweed, Dayton said. If we were to lose Macrosystis, which it looks like its likely, its not only the divers that lose the structure and the beauty of our kelp forests, its the whole ecosystem, Dayton warned. Advertisement deborah.brennan@sduniontribune.com Twitter@deborahsbrennan Deputy City Atty. Elizabeth Greenwood was at work in City Hall East last fall when her shin began to hurt. I looked down and there were a couple of insect bites, Greenwood recalled. She thought little of it at the time, she said, but within weeks she was gravely ill with what doctors would ultimately diagnose as the flea-borne illness typhus. It was absolutely terrifying, Greenwood said, describing symptoms that included a 102-degree fever, the worst headache I have ever had in my life, and dizziness so severe that she needed help walking to the bathroom. Greenwoods experience and her willingness to speak publicly about it was a driving factor in this weeks admission by city officials that Los Angeles iconic seat of government is infested with vermin. Advertisement In the wake of media reports about her condition, City Council members and staffers stepped forward with their own accounts of office flea bites and rats skittering down hallways, over official documents and into ceiling panels. City officials are now pursuing a full-court press to eradicate rats and fleas. Crews are to clean up the entire Civic Center area in coming weeks, including stepped-up street sweeping and removal of vegetation that may provide animals with shelter or food. Employees are being told to empty the trash each night and put away food and water that may attract animals. There is discussion of ripping out office carpets to get rid of droppings and fleas. Greenwood, who works in a unit that defends the LAPD in lawsuits brought against the department, is the only City Hall employee who has said publicly that she contracted typhus. The disease, which has been around since medieval times, is carried by rats. Fleas become infected when they bite rats and then spread it to humans either through bites or when the insects feces are rubbed into a cut or scrape in a persons skin. Typhus has been a growing problem in L.A. The disease is associated with overcrowding and unsanitary conditions, and last year, after a half dozen homeless people came down with typhus, county officials declared an outbreak in downtown L.A. At the time, they urged residents to steer clear of rats and other wild animals. Typhus symptoms include a rash, fever and fatigue. Jeffrey Klausner, a professor at UCLAs David Geffen School of Medicine, said that the severity of the disease varies widely and some people recover without ever realizing they had typhus. Unless doctors are well aware of the signs and symptoms, it may be misdiagnosed, said Klausner, an infectious disease expert. He said that if people see fleas in their work environment, they need to be aware that one of the infections they could have is typhus. Greenwoods doctor initially diagnosed her with meningitis. She said that as she lay in bed one day wondering why she wasnt getting better, she recalled Mayor Eric Garcettis email last October warning of the typhus outbreak. Advertisement I googled typhus and all of my symptoms were included on the list, she said. A blood test later confirmed her diagnosis, she said. Greenwood said she notified the City Attorneys office that she had typhus, but supervisors did not alert co-workers. It was clear they just didnt believe me, she said. Spokesmen for the office did not respond to messages seeking comment. Greenwood said she saw herself as the canary in the coal mine of the problem and decided to go to the media to protect other civil servants and members of the public who visit the City Hall complex. KNBC first reported on her condition. Advertisement Three and a half months after she became ill, Greenwood describes herself as 98% better. She suffers from occasional bouts of vertigo, but eventually plans to return to work. If they fumigate, I will come back, she said. harriet.ryan@latimes.com As an undergraduate archaeology student, Brian Williams volunteered with the San Diego Archaeological Center. Today, hes vice president for the centers board of trustees, where hes responsible for the planning and development committee, helping to find speakers and coordinate annual tours, among other responsibilities. I fell in love with the center (as an undergraduate) and after leaving to complete graduate school and getting to do archaeology at locations around the world, I came back to San Diego and was approached about joining the board of trustees, he says. The center is more than just a curation and research facility; its an accessible, public offering that educates people on archaeology and provides critical services to archaeologists in the region. Part of that commitment to public education can be found in the centers San Diegos First Peoples Tour Series on Saturday and March 2. A component of the centers By Land and By Sea exhibit, the tour series will take people to the physical locations that the first people to live here inhabited. Williams, 35, lives in Poway with his wife, Megan, and their three children. Hes an archaeologist himself and a director with ASM Affiliates, a cultural resources management firm. He took some time to talk about his passion for archaeology and history, the First Peoples tour series, and how surprised people are to learn about the field of underwater archaeology. Advertisement Q: Tell us about the San Diegos First Peoples Tour Series. A: Our last tour series followed the autobiography of Delfina Cuero and was a great success, so we wanted the follow-up series to build upon the idea of immersing participants in the environments that people lived in. The field trip series will explore the physical locations and landscapes that the first people in the Americas lived in. But we did not want to hear from just archaeologists, so we are providing a venue for people outside the cultural resources community to hear from the descendants of these First Peoples and understand how they came to be and thrive in this beautiful but harsh area. Q: The first trip is along the coast on Saturday? What can people expect if they attend? A: Our first scheduled trip will be led by Timothy Gross, who started his archaeological career more than 50 years ago as a high school volunteer. Dr. Gross is a master storyteller, so attendees can expect a nice blend of high-level research and discussion with 50 years of anecdotal experiences. This first venture will set up our following trips in the series by providing a baseline archaeological understanding of the earliest inhabitants of San Diego as they lived along the coastal bluffs and lagoons. Q: And this tour series is tied to the By Land and By Sea exhibit that opened last month? What can you tell us about what the exhibit is about? A: To build on previous tours, the San Diegos First Peoples Tour Series became a supplemental program to the new exhibit. To protect the sensitive resources that are still present in San Diego, we cannot bring tours to locations and show them actual artifacts and living spaces. As such, the new By Land and By Sea exhibit allows people to see the actual archaeology of the region and examine the various theories of how people came to be in San Diego, while the tour series explores the physical locations people lived in and discusses early survival strategies and ceremonial practices. What I love about Poway ... Poway is an amazing neighborhood. I have lived in several places across San Diego, but the community feel in Poway cannot be beat. Q: What are some of the theories about who, how, and when the first people arrived in what is now known as Southern California? Advertisement A: That is a very loaded question. If you ask archaeologists, we have evidence for the first peoples along the coast, inland valleys and deserts in San Diego around the beginning of the Holocene Epoch (about 12,000 years ago). These dates and locations generally support the larger schools of thought that believe people came over to the Americas at the end of the Paleolithic, as the glaciers receded. On the other hand, if you ask the descendants of the First Peoples, they have been here since time immemorial and their oral traditions and practices confirm that belief. Archaeologists (and paleontologists) continue to push the earliest occupations in San Diego further and further into the past and our second field trip in the tour series will explore where we may be able to find even older, intact occupations underwater on the coastal shelf. Q: How is this kind of information helpful or relevant to people today? A: Something a Native American friend always points out to me when we discuss the early people is that they lived in harmony with the environment for over 10,000 years without destroying it. There does not appear to be an over-exploitation of any resources, so that plant and animal species naturally replenished. While I am not advocating a return to a hunter-gatherer way of life, I think the most relevant thing people of today can learn from the past is to find that balance with the environment. Q: What do some of the descendants of first people say about how their ancestors came to this area? Advertisement A: It varies, but predominantly they know they have always been here with many of their oral traditions telling that they were created from the earth below them, and everything they ever needed was right here and there was no reason to ever leave. I will leave it that simple because I do not want to be another person to tell their story for them. Q: Youre also an archaeologist. What led you to study this subject? A: I fortunately (unfortunately?) am a stereotypical archaeologist that saw Indiana Jones (movies) as a kid and said, I want to do that. While I dont wear a fedora or fight Nazis, I have found the discovery and exploration themes to be fairly accurate, and have had several Indiana Jones-esque adventures while doing fieldwork. Truthfully, I have always had an interest in history and mythology, so I followed that passion into a career in archaeology. Q: Whats been challenging about your work? Advertisement A: Changing perceptions. When I was young and first getting into archaeology, it was always, Lets go dig something then Lets go dig some more. I was working in Australia and Italy, so most of the locals supported archaeology; when I came back to California, it was a rude awakening that living descendants of the people I wanted to learn about didnt want their ancestors disturbed. My perception needed to change, and it grew into excavation only as a last resort with avoidance being the primary goal. Q: What is the best advice youve ever received? A: My dad has a saying that, If God wanted you to kick yourself in the butt, he would have hinged your leg differently. Ive always taken that to mean that our failures and shortcomings shouldnt keep us down. Get up and go try again. Q: What is one thing people would be surprised to find out about you? Advertisement A: Most people are surprised to find out that I actually went to graduate school for underwater archaeology. Most people do not realize how much history there is under the sea. That, and I am a closet Star Wars fanatic. Q: Describe your ideal San Diego weekend. A: My ideal weekend in San Diego is a day on the beach with my family, a cooler, and some quality ocean time. Advertisement Email: lisa.deaderick@sduniontribune.com Twitter: @lisadeaderick Elizabeth Letts revels in revealing a little-known San Diego historical fact about L. Frank Baum, author of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz series. One thing that not everybody knows is that many of the Oz books were written in San Diego. Once Baum became successful, after the publication of his first book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz he and his wife Maud wintered at the Hotel Del Coronado, says Letts, a bestselling author whose new historical novel, Finding Dorothy, takes a look at The Wizard of Oz through the eyes of the authors wife, Maud. He even designed special light fixtures for the Hotel Del Coronado dining room, she adds. Eventually, he and his wife decided to live in California year-round. They bought a property and settled in what was then a tiny town near Los Angeles Hollywood. Finding Dorothy traces the story behind the iconic Oz books, the hard scrabble years of their marriage and culminating in the meeting of a young Judy Garland on the 1939 movie set of The Wizard of Oz. Advertisement Letts whose nonfiction books include 2012s The Eighty-Dollar Champion: Snowman, The Horse That Inspired a Nation and 2016s The Perfect Horse: The Daring U.S. Mission to Rescue the Priceless Stallions Kidnapped by the Nazis divides her time between Southern California and Northern Michigan. On Wednesday, Letts will be in town for a discussion and signing at Warwicks. Q: Why does The Wizard of Oz movie still enchant us today? A: L. Frank Baum invented an all-American story so true, so archetypal, that we feel as if weve always known those characters Dorothy and the Scarecrow, the Tin Man and the Lion. They are so familiar and timeless that it seems they couldnt possibly be the product of one mans imagination and yet they were. And why has this story, a simple childrens fable on its surface, had such staying power? I think its because of how well it reveals the American character our fascination with modernity and technology, our skepticism about show-offs and shams, our devotion to our small town and agrarian past, our questing spirit of adventure and our love of home, and more than anything our abiding belief that hard times are temporary. Ultimately, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is a story about about hope, and so is Finding Dorothy. Q: What is the heart of your new novel? A: The heart of Finding Dorothy is without question a love story: the deep love between Frank Baum and his wife Maud. It was a lifetime of love that was strong enough to see them through hard times. Its also the love of Maud for the character of Dorothy, a love that her guides to nurture and protect the vulnerable, including the young Judy Garland. Q: What was Mauds impression of Judy Garland? A: I was lucky enough to have an insiders view of what it might have been like to see Judy Garland on the set at MGM. When my mother was a little girl, she lived in San Diego because her father was in the Navy. At one point, they visited Los Angeles where a friend invited them onto the set of MGM to see a film being made. My mother told me about being ushered into the studio, climbing up onto a platform in the rear of the soundstage and watching the incredible young Garland rehearse a scene. It was from her memories that I drew the portrait of Judy on the set. When Maud first meets Judy, she soon senses her extraordinary talent in song and she feels something of her late husband Frank in the girl, but she also quickly begins to realize just how very vulnerable and young she is in the male-dominated studio system of the 1930s. Q: How was Maud a unique woman for her time? Advertisement A: Mauds upbringing was entirely unique for her time because her mother (suffragist Matilda Joslyn Gage) was one of the most famous advocates for the rights of women in the 19th century. Her mother raised Maud to be independent and educated and groomed her to take up the fight for the rights of women. The result was that Maud was just as independent-minded as her mother had hoped. She was so independent that she defied her mother to follow her heart and marry Frank against her mothers wishes. Q: What was Mauds most important role in life? A: When Frank Baum died in 1919, he left behind an important legacy. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz series was a giant phenomenon, akin to the Harry Potter series today. Not only were there multiple books, but also the original book was turned into a hit Broadway musical. Frank had signed all of the copyrights to his works over to Maud because he knew he was a bad businessman so managing the Oz legacy was a full-time job for Maud. But in spite of all of the success of Oz, family was always the most important thing for both Frank and Maud, so I think for Maud, her most important role was mother. Q: Please describe the Baums store that they ran in the Dakota Territories. Advertisement A: Frank and Maud moved to Aberdeen, Dakota Territory now South Dakota in 1888. At the time, the town was only seven years old, a real frontier town just barely carved out of the prairie. For reasons that only Frank understood, he decided that what the town needed was a fancy goods store. Now mind you, most of the people in that area were small farmers just trying to scratch out a living on homesteads perhaps not so much in the market for Japanese lanterns, silver tongs and crystal vases but that was what the store offered. Baums Bazaar was filled to the rafters with fancy bric-a-brac especially hundreds of toys! Q: Who was Matilda Joslyn Gage, and why is she important? A: Matilda Joslyn Gage was Frank Baums mother-in-law, and she was an extraordinary woman in her own right. In 1876, she wrote the Declaration of the Rights of Women of the United States along with Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony, and walked uninvited onto the dais of Americas centennial celebration, handing the declaration to a startled vice president who was giving a speech. Later in her life, she protested the installation of the Statue of Liberty on the grounds that liberty should not be celebrated in the form of a woman when women in the United States did not have the right to vote. Frank, Maud and Matilda were all very close, and I have no doubt that it was Matildas scholarship on the subject of witchcraft that inspired the inclusion of the witches in Baums story. Q: What are two interesting facts that you found in the L. Frank Baum Collection? Advertisement A: One of the most fun parts of researching this book was my visit to Aberdeen, South Dakota, where Frank, Maud and their family spent some pivotal years. It was unbelievable to sit in the library in Aberdeen looking through their extensive collection of memorabilia. My two favorite things that I found were Mauds stationery from her days as a consultant on The Wizard of Oz movie and a beautiful lace handkerchief embroidered by Maud. As you learn in the book, when the family fell on hard times, sometimes Maud had to help support the family with her sewing, so it was incredible to see a piece of her work close up a physical object that brought me close. Q: Whats your personal story about Dorothy when you were a child? A: I have a very vivid memory of seeing The Wizard of Oz for the first time. I was 4 years old and my family lived in Houston, Texas. We didnt have a color television, so the neighborhood TV store opened its doors and invited the neighborhood families in to watch the movie on one of their brand-new color TV sets. Ive never forgotten that first time I saw The Wizard of Oz, and Ive since found out how many people share fond memories of that showing of The Wizard of Oz on TV. I was not surprised to learn that because of those annual TV screenings, The Wizard of Oz is considered the most-watched movie of all time. Finding Dorothy by Elizabeth Letts, Ballantine Books, 368 pages. Advertisement Conversation with Elizabeth Letts When: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 13 Where: Warwicks, 7812 Girard Ave., La Jolla Phone: (858) 454-0347 (reserved seating) Online: warwicks.com Advertisement Davidson is a freelance writer. The leaders of Egypt, Sudan, and Ethiopia will hold a trilateral summit in Addis Ababa on Sunday on the sidelines of the 32nd African Union Summit, state-owned MENA agency reported on Saturday. According to MENA, Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi, Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed will discuss issues of mutual interest. It will be the first trilateral meeting between the leaders of the three countries since Ahmed became prime minister in April last year, succeeding predecessor Hailemariam Desalegn. The foreign ministers and high state officials of the three countries have met in the past year to discuss issues related to the construction of the Ethiopian Rennaisance dam. El-Sisi will officially assume the 2019 chairmanship of the AU on Sunday. The Egyptian President is also set to meet with the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who is attending the summit, and he will request more coordination and cooperation between Egypt and the UN on a number of issues. He will also meet on Saturday with the President of Democratic Republic of Congo Felix Tshisekedi. Short link: CITY COUNCILS CARLSBAD The Carlsbad City Council met Wednesday for a workshop on preventing workplace harassment, discrimination and retaliation. ENCINITAS Advertisement The Encinitas City Council met in special joint session Wednesday with the Housing Authority to discuss a notice from the state Housing and Community Development about its Housing Element. The city directed staff to come up with options to continue to try to address the citys affordable housing shortfall. ESCONDIDO The Escondido City Council met in closed session Wednesday to discuss litigation and property negotiation. In regular session, the council discussed changing its meeting times. The council voted 3-2 to move closed session meeting time to 5 p.m. instead of 3:30 p.m., and regular session meeting time to 6 p.m. instead of 4:30 p.m. OCEANSIDE The Oceanside City Council met in closed session Wednesday to discuss labor negotiations. In regular session, the council approved a draft Master Plan for the Arts. The council introduced an ordinance updating regulations for wireless communication facilities and establishing provisions in compliance with federal and state laws. The council discussed streamlining the citys Accessory Dwelling Unit applications. The council also directed staff to develop a Homeless Work Program within 90 days that would fund up to 25 Oceanside homeless persons. POWAY The Poway City Council met Tuesday and discussed a proposal to build a wireless communication facility on city-owned property at 13875 Kirkham Way. The facility proposes installing a pole or tower that would be roughly 85 feet tall, or it could be disguised as a faux eucalyptus tree nearly 90 feet tall. None of the options were completely acceptable, but the faux tree was slightly favored, and it was noted that the installation would be in a business park. The council held a hearing and approved a request to operate a gym teaching gymnastics, tumbling and competition cheer at 12115 Paine St. Mayor Steve Vaus put forward a proposal for the city to build affordable housing as accessory dwelling units (granny flats) on private property. Rents would be divided among the city, the property owner and the property manager; and the house could revert to the homeowner after a number of years. The council agreed to investigate the idea more thoroughly. SCHOOL DISTRICTS Advertisement CARDIFF The Cardiff School District met Thursday and approved the Cardiff School Modernization and Reconstruction Project and associated environmental findings and programs. CARLSBAD The Carlsbad Unified School District board met Wednesday and approved an amendment to its construction agreement for the Carlsbad Cultural Arts Center and Carlsbad High Schools Lancer Arena re-roof to decrease the final price because of reduced scope of work. The board then met in closed session for the superintendents mid-year evaluation. The board also met Friday for a self-evaluation and governance team workshop. Advertisement ESCONDIDO The Escondido Union High School District board met Tuesday in closed session to discuss student discipline. In open session, the board held a workshop and discussion on budget and goals. FALLBROOK The Fallbrook Union Elementary School District board met in closed session Monday to discuss litigation. In regular session, the board held a hearing and approved a resolution to adopt election map No. 103. The change to trustee-area district elections will take effect at the next general election in November 2020. The board also reviewed its Comprehensive School Safety Plans and School Accountability Report Cards. Advertisement The Fallbrook Union High School District board held a special community meeting Monday to receive an overview of the Draft Trustee Area Boundary Maps for community input. OCEANSIDE The Oceanside Unified School District board met Wednesday for an asset management workshop that identified five properties for evaluation as potential revenue sources. The properties are Ditmar Elementary, Ocean Shores Alternative High School, Pacifica Elementary, District Office South and District Office North. RAMONA Advertisement The Ramona Unified School District board met in special session Tuesday and approved seeking a waiver from the state to avoid holding a special election as the district transitions to by-trustee-area elections. SAN DIEGUITO The San Dieguito Union High School District board met in closed session Thursday to discuss litigation and labor negotiations. In regular session, the board adopted revised board policies on Education for English Language learners. SOLANA BEACH Advertisement The Solana Beach School District board met Tuesday and approved advertising a request for qualifications to architecture firms and a request for proposal for architectural services for its modernization project. The board then held a governance workshop. VISTA The Vista Unified School District board met Thursday for a budget workshop to discuss possible cuts. The board needs to reduce the district budget by $14.7 million for the 2019-2020 school year. The board will vote on whether to cut all items listed as Priority 1 except for the proposed merger of Alta Vista High School and Major General Murray High School at a meeting set for Wednesday. Advertisement laura.groch@sduniontribune.com New Englanders like to brag about the canopy of color that carpets the Northeast in the fall. But when conditions are right, as they appear to be this year, theres little that rivals the bloom of millions of wildflowers on the floor of the Anza-Borrego desert. And just like back East, where the hordes take to the road to view the turning of the leaves, visitors from throughout Southern California will come by the thousands to the small desert community of Borrego Springs to witness the so-called Super Bloom. But unlike two years ago, when the town was overwhelmed and unprepared for the nearly half-million people who descended on the states largest park, officials say this year they are ready to handle the crush of beauty-seeking visitors. There will be no Flowergeddon 2, they insist, referencing the term used to describe the chaos that erupted the first couple weekends in March 2017, the most spectacular bloom of wildflowers in a decade. Advertisement A traffic jam nearly 20 miles long stretched from Lake Henshaw all the way down Montezuma Valley Road (County Highway S-22) to the desert floor that first big Saturday. View looking east over Borrego Springs with the open desert that is starting to bloom with wildflowers in the background. It is shaping up to be a banner year with a bumper crop of wildflowers in the local desert. (John Gibbins / San Diego Union-Tribune) Once people finally got to town, confusion ruled. Many didnt know where the flowers were and they couldnt find a place to go to the bathroom, or eat, or purchase water, or park, or get gas. It was that first weekend in March 2017 that took us totally by surprise, said Betsy Knaak, the executive director of the Anza-Borrego Desert Natural History Association. This time, there is a real sense of preparedness, added Bri Fordem, the executive director of the Anza-Borrego Foundation. People should feel comfortable coming here. The two women and about a dozen other business owners and managers have formed what could be known as the Flowergeddon Prevention Committee, though they dont really call it that. Officially theyve been meeting as part of the Borrego Village Association. They are ready for what is to come, they say. The latest flower forecast predicts flowers should start popping in as little as two weeks and last through much of March. But experts say nothing is for sure until it happens. Advertisement Two years ago, we had an absolutely fantastic bloom, said Jim Dice, the reserve manager at the Steele/Burnand Anza-Borrego Desert Research Center. I dont know if were going to meet that. Its likely going to be a very good bloom, but a strong freeze right now could be very bad and a prolonged hot spell could hurt things. Dice said an initial bloom has already begun in spots throughout the 630,000-acre park, but not close to Borrego Springs. Still, he and other experts say, it appears a great bloom is quickly approaching. Brianna Puzzo, foreground, assistant executive director of the Anza-Borrego Foundation, and Bri Fordem, rear, executive director, sort through some of the extra merchandise that they have stocked up on at the gift shop for the upcoming wildflower season. (John Gibbins / San Diego Union-Tribune) Its impossible to say how many people drove from Los Angeles and San Diego not to mention other parts of the country and even the world to view the flowers from late February to early April two years ago. Advertisement Most estimates place the number at 250,000 to 500,000. Weekends were insane. Even weekdays were at times uncomfortably crowded. Despite the chaos, the Super Bloom was tremendous for business in the town that is home to only about 3,500 permanent residents. Some business owners said they made as much money in about 45 days as they did the rest of the year. Patrick Sampson, the general manager of La Casa del Zorro Resort and Spa and the current president of the Borrego Springs Chamber of Commerce, said his resort was booked for 34 days, doing more than $1 million in revenue during that span. This time around, the group, along with state park officials, have contracted for dozens of portable toilets to be spread throughout the area, both in town and near the flower fields. A dozen Dumpsters are on order. Advertisement There are plans to pass out thousands of maps as people drive in showing where the fields, the toilets, the restaurants (there are 12 in town) and the gas stations are located (there was just one gas station in 2017; there are two now). To view maps go to borregoblooms.org. Park rangers and the California Highway Patrol are getting ready and there should be far better traffic control in the area. More parking has also been provided with a lot near The Mall in the center of town having opened. The restaurants are ramping up. Two years ago, the food establishments were overwhelmed. Some ran out of food altogether and at some, a few overworked and frustrated employees quit on the spot. Now I think we may be overly prepared, said Andy Macuga, the owner of Carlees Restaurant and this years honorary mayor of Borrego Springs. Advertisement I know Ive hired more staff than ever out of fear, he said. Im hiring people non-stop. You have a pulse? Love you. Come on in. Thomas Hildebrandt, the executive chef/restaurant manager at Keslings Kitchen across the street from Carlees, said they had just opened for business when the Super Bloom hit in 2017. He said for a month people were lined up outside. It was like amusement park lines and there was an amusement park feeling in the air, he said. It never ended. Hildebrandt said they know much more now and have devised a plan in which people can quickly purchase prepacked sandwiches and salads. Advertisement The committee urges people to come prepared. Bring water and sunglasses, and close-toed shoes for walking amid (but not on) the flowers. They suggest planning their driving routes ahead of time and stress that Montezuma Valley Road isnt the only way into town. But dont worry about bringing a sack lunch, they say with a smile. There will be plenty of food for sale. Its suggested that visitors view several websites ahead of time because when hordes of people are in the valley, cellular phone service is spotty as the carriers systems get overwhelmed. Some of the sites include: theabf.org; parks.ca.gov/anzaborrego and abdnha.org. There is also a Wildflower Hotline phone number with a tape-recorded message that is updated every few days: (760) 767-4684. Advertisement Fordem and others said one of the communitys hopes is that wildflower visitors will fall in love with the desert and come back to visit at other times of the year. We want them to embrace the beauty of the desert and its lifestyle, she said. Advertisement jharry.jones@sduniontribune.com; 760/529-4931; Twitter: @jharryjones Beginning in May, Escondido City Council meetings will begin at 6 p.m. rather than at 4:30 p.m. on the first four Wednesdays of each month, the council decided in a split vote last week. Since 1990, meetings have started either at 4 p.m. (1990-2010) or at 4:30 (2011 to present). Councilwoman Consuelo Martinez made the motion for the time change, saying that for years she has been hearing that the earlier meeting times often prevented residents from attending and speaking because they couldnt get away from work. She said as a resident she also had to skip meetings in past years because they were being held when she couldnt attend. Advertisement I know many of us on the council really value public input and want to hear from the community, Martinez said. I believe this is one of the ways we can do that. The council voted 3-2 to change the times following 45 minutes of debate. Technically, they only gave direction to start the process of changing the times, which is why it wont go into effect until May. Opposed were Councilmen John Masson and Mike Morasco, both of whom said they have never received an official complaint about meeting times and noted that when big issues have come before the council the chambers are always packed. The big thing for me is family time...getting home and being able to tuck my kids in and even get a bite to eat with them, Masson said. If theres something important enough on an agenda and they want to speak, theyre going to make and find a way to get here and say their piece. Martinez was joined by Councilwoman Olga Diaz and Mayor Paul Mac McNamara in voting for the time change. The 3-2 vote is becoming familiar since the balance of power on the council shifted in last Novembers election. Meanwhile, McNamara has scheduled a series of monthly community meetings in different locations throughout Escondido where people can meet him in an informal setting. The first three: Feb. 20, 10-11 a.m., Cute Cakes, 345 W. Grand Ave. March 20, 10:30-11:30 a.m., Interfaith Community Services, 550 W. Washington April 17, 5:30-6:30 p.m., East Valley Community Center, 2245 E. Valley Parkway Advertisement jharry.jones@sduniontribune.com; 760/529-4931; Twitter: @jharryjones In the recent antitrust trial attacking Qualcomms business model, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission drilled down on how the San Diego company leveraged its market power in certain cellular chips to gain the upper hand in patent licensing negotiations with smartphone makers. Its textbook economics that this type of strong-arm behavior leads to bad things, such as fewer competitors in the smartphone chip market and reduced research and development spending. In theory, the result over time should be higher smartphone prices, fewer choices and lower quality devices. But that hasnt happened. In fact, the opposite occurred from 2006 to 2017 in the smartphone market roughly the period during which the FTC alleges Qualcomm abused its market dominance in 3G CDMA and premium 4G LTE cellular processors to overcharge for patents. Advertisement Smartphone shipments grew from 124 million in 2007 to 1.5 billion in 2017, according to industry research firm IDC. The total value of those shipments jumped from $52 billion in 2007 to $452 billion in that time frame. Adjusted for better cameras, faster download speeds and other features found in todays smartphones, prices have fallen. And the average price of transferring a megabyte of wireless data has plummeted from $8 in 2006 to one cent in 2016. Today, Samsung, MediaTek, Huawei and Intel have significant market share for cellular modem processors. Qualcomms piece of the overall market is below 40 percent. And research and development spending by chip design firms not only Qualcomm but its competitors ranks among the highest youll see anywhere outside of pharmaceuticals, said Jonathan Barnett, a professor at the University of Southern California Gould School of Law. The anti-competitive effect of Qualcomms business practices is a hurdle the FTC must clear to prove the company violated monopoly laws. It likely will be front and center when U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh eventually makes a ruling in the case. The FTC seems to argue that no license, no chips is inherently anti-competitive, and they believe they have economic textbooks backing them up . and look at all these examples of people complaining that they paid too high a royalty rate, said David Reichenberg, a lawyer who specializes in antitrust cases with the Cozen, OConnor firm in New York. Qualcomm counters that it has a robust smartphone market, lower prices and burgeoning competition to back up its contention that its business model didnt harm anyone. According to Qualcomm, an anti-competitive effect is higher prices, lower choice, reduced quality or actual impact to consumers, Reichenberg continued. Did the FTC prove that no license, no chips increased the cost of cell phones or reduced the number of cell phone transactions? Qualcomms very legitimate point, should the court accept it, is that you just dont have any evidence of bad market outcomes when you look at what happened in these markets. Advertisement Qualcomm CEO Steve Mollenkopf defended Qualcomms business model at FTC trial. Testimony in the 10-day trial, which strikes at the heart of Qualcomms patent licensing business model, wrapped up last month. While Koh is known for making rulings relatively quickly, she cautioned that the complex legal issues and massive amount of evidence in this case will take some time to sift through. She is expect to provide an update this week on the timing of her decision. Patent royalties have been a leading driver of Qualcomms success in the smartphone era. Theyve delivered on average $6.3 billion per year in revenue to Qualcomm over the past decade funding a good portion of the companys profit, and research and development efforts. Advertisement If Koh rules in the FTCs favor, it could result in the dismantling of the business model and jeopardize the companys financial incentives to continue to invest in cutting-edge mobile technologies on the cusp of new 5G mobile networks rolling out next year. Qualcomm probably would appeal a finding in the FTCs favor. Still, an adverse decision could lead patent licensees to stop paying, putting significant financial stress on the company. The outcome of the FTC litigation also could bleed over into other upcoming legal actions, including Apples lawsuit against Qualcomm in San Diego federal court, where Qualcomm claims Apple owes $7 billion in unpaid patent royalties. Apples $1 billion demand Advertisement The FTC trial pulled back the veil on the complex, rough and tumble negotiations between giant tech companies with bombshell testimony coming from Qualcomm Chief Executive Steve Mollenkopf and Apple Chief Operating Officer Jeff Williams. Mollenkopf testified that Apple approached Qualcomm in 2010 about using its chips in upcoming iPhones, which had previously used cellular modems from Infineon. So essentially they wanted to use our chip in 100 percent of their iPhones, and they wanted to see if we were interested in it, said Mollenkopf. But they wanted us to pay them, I think it was $1 billion, to get that opportunity. Apple refused to provide a volume guarantee, which would have protected Qualcomm from getting into a situation where it paid Apple but didnt get enough orders to make the deal profitable. Advertisement So the companies entered into a de facto exclusive agreement where if Apple used another chip supplier in any of its devices during the term of the agreement, it would forfeit payment from Qualcomm. The FTC alleges this exclusive deal was one of a handful of anti-competitive practices by Qualcomm. It prevented Intel from winning a chip deal to supply a cellular modem for an Apple iPad in 2014. But Qualcomm countered that Intels chips did not meet Apples technical requirements for iPhones until 2016. And when they did, Apple began using them despite the agreement with Qualcomm. Apples Williams testified that various agreements between Apple and Qualcomm resulted in Apple paying an effective patent royalty rate of $7.50 per iPhone for access to Qualcomms mobile patent portfolio. Advertisement That is lower than the estimates of Apple payments by some Wall Street analysts, who pegged the royalty rate at around $10 per phone. It likely raised the eyebrows of other smartphone firms paying royalties to Qualcomm. Expert witnesses may be key While the testimony of top executives grabbed headlines, it probably wont be as important to Kohs final decision in the case as the testimony of expert witnesses on both sides all of whom faced tough cross examination aiming to poke holes in their conclusions. When you have a case like this, the basic question is did the defendant achieve its position in the market because it is just the best at doing that, in which case it is free to charge what it wishes, said Barnett, the USC law professor. Or is a part attributable to taking exclusionary actions, which are generally defined as actions in which there is no legitimate business justification other than to exclude competitors. Advertisement The FTC anti-trust case against Qualcomm is very similar to arguments made by Apple in a separate lawsuit in San Diego federal court. (Associated Press) According to the FTC, Qualcomms monopoly in CDMA and premium LTE chips enabled it to negotiate higher patent royalty rates than it otherwise would have achieved without the chip leverage. The FTC and Apple call this a tax on the industry, and the result was delaying Intel and MediaTek from entering the CDMA and premium LTE markets, forcing Broadcom and others to abandon cellular modems and reducing research and development spending by rivals, among other things. The FTC contends these are anti-competitive effects. Advertisement While they are the type of things that are considered, it is tough to say whether they are, by themselves, sufficient proof that competition overall and consumers were harmed, said Reichenberg. When you think of anti-competitive effects, you usually think of overall market outcomes, he said. If you pick to sue in a growing technology market, you should ideally have a case proving that as great as this market was, here are all the tangible ways it could have been even better. For example, phones would be $100 less. The iPhone X would be $30 less. You didnt see that here. Qualcomm put on testimony on how Intel, Ericsson, Broadcom and others made strategic missteps that led to them being behind or leaving the cellular chip market. According to the company, it achieved its success through innovation, better engineering and better products that have driven the industry from 2G to 3G to 4G and now 5G over the span of three decades. Advertisement Qualcomm also contends it negotiated royalties at the same rate when it didnt have market power even before it had a chip business. The FTC never asserted that Qualcomm had market power in so-called WCDMA chips, where there were several solid competitors. But Qualcomm patent royalty rates for WCDMA customers are the same as those that the FTC claims were coerced from smartphone makers who relied on Qualcomms CDMA and premium LTE chips. The FTC put on an expert who testified that Qualcomms royalties were significantly higher than all other standard essential patent holders in the industry combined. But his models were strongly challenged as flawed by Qualcomm lawyers in cross examination. With his own experts, Qualcomm worked to show that its royalties are based on the market value of its intellectual property, not coercion though their methodology also was contested by the FTC. Advertisement The role of antitrust The case highlights the tension around the legal rights of wireless technology patent holders and efforts by smartphone makers such as Apple to lower patent royalties. I think history will show that this is an important case for setting the legal structure for the industry, said Barnett, the USC law professor. The FTC sued Qualcomm under Section 5 of the FTC Act, which has broader latitude to find an unfair methods of competition violation than the Sherman Act, where well developed case law sets the bar on whats anti-competitive. Advertisement While regulators should target bad practices, they also should be careful about bringing lawsuits against policies that either arent harming consumers or have good economic justification, said Barnett. Given the fact that the evidence doesnt match this particular theory, that raises concerns that the regulators are targeting a practice that is either harmless or actually beneficial to the market, he said. Parade of litigation: Qualcomm and Apple are fighting a legal war in courts worldwide. Here are some upcoming dates for U.S. legal disputes. Advertisement March 4: Patent infringement trial where Qualcomm has accused Apple of infringing on three non-essential patents and seeks damages. The proceeding will be held in U.S. District Court in San Diego. March 26: The U.S. International Trade Commission is set to review an administrative law judges finding that Apple infringed on a Qualcomm patent but shouldnt face an iPhone import ban. The review was delayed because of the government shutdown. April 15: The wide ranging breach of contract and antitrust lawsuit between Apple and Qualcomm kicks off in before U.S. District Judge Gonzalo Curiel in San Diego. Business mike.freeman@sduniontribune.com; Advertisement Twitter:@TechDiego 760-529-4973 SEOUL, South Korea (AP) South Korea and the United States struck a new deal Sunday that increases Seoul's contribution for the cost of the American military presence on its soil, overcoming previous failed negotiations that caused worries about their decades-long alliance. The development comes as President Donald Trump is set to hold his second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vietnam in late February. South Korea last year provided about $830 million, covering roughly 40 percent of the cost of the deployment of 28,500 U.S. soldiers whose presence is meant to deter aggression from North Korea. Trump has pushed for South Korea to pay more. On Sunday, chief negotiators from the two countries signed a new cost-sharing plan, which requires South Korea to pay about 1.04 trillion won ($924 million) in 2019, Seoul's Foreign Ministry said in a statement. The statement said the two countries reaffirmed the need for a "stable" U.S. military deployment amid the "rapidly changing situation on the Korean Peninsula." The ministry said the U.S. assured South Korea that it is committed to the alliance and has no plans to adjust the number of its troops in South Korea. South Korea began paying for the U.S. military deployment in the early 1990s, after rebuilding its economy from the devastation of the 1950-1953 Korean War. The big U.S. military presence in South Korea is a symbol of the countries' alliance, forged in blood during the war, but also a source of long-running anti-American sentiments. About 20 anti-U.S. activists rallied near the Foreign Ministry building in Seoul on Sunday, chanting slogans like "No more money for U.S. troops." No violence was reported. "The United States government realizes that Korea does a lot for our alliance and peace and stability in the region," chief U.S. negotiator Timothy Betts said Sunday in Seoul. "We are very pleased our consultations resulted in agreement that will strengthen transparency and deepen our cooperation and the alliance." The deal, which involves the spending of South Korean taxpayer money, requires parliamentary approval in South Korea, but not in the United States, according to Seoul's Foreign Ministry. The allies had failed to reach a new cost-sharing plan during some 10 rounds of talks. A five-year 2014 deal that covered South Korea's payment last year expired at the end of 2018. Some conservatives in South Korea voiced concerns over a weakening alliance with the United States at the same time as negotiations with North Korea to deprive it of its nuclear weapons hit a stalemate. They said Trump might use the failed military cost-sharing negotiations as an excuse to pull back some U.S. troops in South Korea as a bargaining chip in talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Trump told CBS' "Face the Nation" on Feb. 3 that he has no plans to withdraw troops from South Korea. During his election campaign, Trump suggested he could pull back troops from South Korea and Japan unless they took on greater a share of the financial burdens of supporting U.S. soldiers deployed there. South Korean media earlier reported that Trump demanded South Korea double its spending for the U.S. military deployment, before his government eventually asked for 1.13 trillion won ($1 billion). Seoul's Foreign Ministry said the U.S. had called for a sharp increase in South Korean spending but didn't elaborate. Trump announced last week that he will sit down with Kim for their second summit. Their first summit in Singapore last June resulted in Kim's vague commitment to the "complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," a term that his propaganda machine previously used when it argued it would only denuclearize after the U.S. withdraws its troops from South Korea. Trump's top envoy for North Korea, Stephen Biegun, visited Pyongyang last week to work out details of the upcoming summit. After being briefed by Biegun about his Pyongyang trip, South Korea's presidential office said Sunday that U.S. and North Korean officials plan to meet again the week of Feb. 17 in an unidentified Asian country. The U.S. military arrived in South Korea to disarm Japan, which colonized the Korean Peninsula from 1910-45, following its World War II defeat. Most U.S. troops were withdrawn in 1949 but they returned the next year to fight alongside South Korea in the Korean War. Local farmers have also expressed concerns at the increase in rats in Samoa and the high cost involved to eradicate them. Their concerns come on the back of similar sentiments expressed recently by Papalii Grant Percival of Natural Foods International Limited. A local farmer, who didnt want to be identified, said they were starting to feel the effects as the rodents are eating their harvest. Even the farmers are feeling the impact. My farmer came to me and said as soon as the fruits start to ripen, they are eaten by the rats, he said. The cost of eradicating rats is too high for ordinary farmers, added Papalii. Most farmers cant afford it. There is too much extra cost but we know rats have an impact on the environment. You have to get a license to have rat poison and that increases the cost of doing it, he said. They should look at that and review the need for it because obviously they (rats) would have more impact on the environment and Samoan plants than the poisons coming in. But the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries Assistant Chief Executive Officer (quarantine), Vui Pelenato Fonoti, said the farmers should understand that the rats existed in Samoa before the arrival of man. Farmers should understand that rats long existed in Samoa before we were born. They are one of the major pests of ground peanuts, he said. Vui said the cost of registering a rat poison when approved by the Pesticide Committee under the auspices of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries is $345 for a five-year license as well as $230 annual renewal fee. Some of the registered rat poisons already approved and registered in Samoa are: Talon 50, D-con, Pest Off, Storm and Difenacoum, he added. When the product is approved by the committee, added Vui, its up to the importer to determine the volume of poison. The permit provides the conditions as stipulated by the Pesticide Committee. Both Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (quarantine division) and Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (conservation division) from time to time provide awareness programs via Samoa National Invasive Task Team. And even eradication exercise to eliminate rats from various areas, MAF Extension Officers also include in their farm trainings advise to farmers on how to control several pests including rats for their benefits, he added. Prime Minister Tuilaepa Dr Sailele Malielegaoi says only stupid village mayors can be manipulated by the Samoa Solidarity International Group. He also praised the decision by the Ministry of Women Community and Social Development to terminate any village mayor who didnt deliver on his or her mandate as the Governments representative. Tuilaepa did not name the village mayor or the village but emphasised that the Ministry should do what is right. His comments were made during his weekly press conference at his residence last Thursday. Maybe they receive $100 from the group and they fall for their stupid cause and continue to criticize the Government, and not implement Government projects in the villages, which was the purpose he was appointed by village. And yet these people were appointed by the village to serve them as the Government representative (village mayor) for the benefit of the village, he said. Last month the Pulenuu of Nofoalii, Otemai Liu Ausage who joined the SSIG in a protest over land alienation concerns in Samoa was sacked by the Government. According to the Prime Minister, the Ministry and the Minister are cautious over the lack of implementation of Government programs and projects in the village if the village mayor is not on board. If this person is not working in accordance with his duties as a Government Representative then they must be replaced. And the Government will wait for the village to appoint another worthy candidate to carry on programs and projects that will benefit the village as a whole. The village should not appoint an idiot to be a Government representative. Also the Government will not sit idle, when such issues occur, said Tuilaepa. A letter dated January 31, 2019 which was signed by the Ministry of Women Community and Social Development CEO, Afamasaga Faauiga Palepua-Mulitalo, questioned the commitment of Otemai to the Governments agenda. The role of being the Village Representative (in Government) in accordance to the law means the person is an employee of the Government who communicates and informs villagers about the Governments plans, especially developments for the well being of everyone, a translation of the letter reads. However, Samoa and the whole world are now aware of your allegations and objections to Government policies as was printed in the Samoa Observer edition of Monday 28 January 2019. You have taken the lead, as the Governments representative in the village, to object and badmouth the Government with wrongful allegations, to mislead members of the public, and yet these developments are for the betterment of lives in the country and your villages. The CEO further told the village mayor in writing that he was careless in the performance of his duties. Your objection and unfounded accusations against the Government is negligence on your part in carrying out your duties in accordance to the law, the letter stated. This is why the Ministry has decided that it is no longer appropriate that you are employed as a Government representative in the village, as you are being paid by the Government. The Government is yet to indicate what will become of the land that currently hosts the Tafaigata Prison. The Ministry of Police says the site will accommodate the Samoa Police Academy, with discussions with Chinese government officials and project financiers already at an advance stage. But Tupa'i Bruno Loyale, CEO of The Magic Circus of Samoa, has told the Samoa Observer that the Government has agreed to give his company the land to build Samoas first amusement park. The proposed Police Academys design plan was unveiled in September last year in Shanghai, China with the construction scheduled for mid-2019 and completion two years later. But Prime Minister Tuilaepa Dr. Sa'ilele Malielegaoi is yet to advise who will get the land. When he was last asked to comment on the issue, he said: A Police Academy is a Government project. The proposed zoo is a private project when these projects finally take off, a release will be issued. In October last year the Ministry of Police hosted a delegation from the Agency for International Economic Cooperation of China, who were in Samoa to discuss plans for the construction of the Police Academy. They also went on a site visit to Tafaigata Prison. According to Tupa'i, the amusementA park will cater for families and offer a number of services. It will have a small zoo with zebras, camels, beautiful birds from around the world. The small amusement park will be where families on the weekends can have barbecues or picnics, and at the same time enjoy riding the Ferris wheels, different kinds of rides, opened on weekends and holidays, he added. The Minister of Prisons and Correction Services, Tialavea Tionisio Hunt, has announced that work on the new prison will be completed this year when the inmates from Tafaigata Prison will be transferred. Prisoners Tagaloasa Filipaina and Ovaleni Vaili have filed an application in the Supreme Court asking that they are moved back to Tafaigata Prison. The two convicted criminals are currently detained at the Central Police Station in Apia, which they say is unlawful. Appearing before Supreme Court Justice Tafaoimalo Leilani Tuala-Warren last Friday, Unasa Iuni Sapolu asked for an adjournment of to March 7. We are seeking an adjournment 7th of March as indicated in chambers, there is an exchange of documents, and applicants need to peruse and respond if needed to the respondents (Police) response, she said. According to the lawyer, the respondent has one more affidavit to submit and that it should be to the applicants. The Attorney Generals Office did not oppose the application. Justice Tafaoimalo granted the motion and ordered that Tagaloasa Filipaina and Ovaleni Vaili remain where they are pending the outcome of the proceedings. Also make sure the witnesses that are to be crossed examine should be ready to give evidence, the Justice added. The Supreme Court application is the two prisoners second attempt. In February last year, Tagaloasa and Poli were moved to the Central Police Station after a mass prison breakout plot at Tafaigata was uncovered. Their lawyer at that time filed a similar application and asked for the two prisoners to be relocated to Tafaigata. However, the Court ruled that the police station isnt a prison, unless declared so by the Minister of Prisons and Correction Services. The Minister, Tialavea Tionisio Hunt, subsequently used his powers to make a declaration to that effect, thereby nullifying their first attempt. The Samoa Meteorological Service on Saturday night upgraded a tropical depression south of the country into a Category 1 Tropical Cyclone. According to the Meteorological Service, Tropical Cyclone Neil posed no direct threat to the Samoa islands apart from heavy rain and gusty wins forecast for Savaii. Tropical Cyclone Neil continues to remain to the south of Samoa and it is expected to track south of Tonga today (yesterday). An active convergence zone, which lies to the west of Savaii will continue to bring rainfall activities, fresh and gusty winds for both the islands. The system however, will not pose a direct threat to Samoa. Impacts for Samoa will be heavy rain with gusty winds and poor visibility, stated the MET Service advisory. Tropical Cyclone Neil gradually weakened overnight Saturday with Apia continuing to experience heavy rain and winds yesterday. Chronograph chronology Chronograph chronology Since the acclaimed premiere of the Datograph 16 years ago, the Saxon watch brand has continuously leveraged its expertise in this domain... Since the acclaimed premiere of the... It is that time of the year again with school fees and other expenses associated with our childrens education taking center stage. In yesterdays edition of the Sunday Samoan, there was an article titled Universitys tuition fees and payment deadline under fire, which quoted a parent and two students and highlighted the difficulties that they were facing paying fees owed to the university. A mother of two National University of Samoa (NUS) students who did not want to be identified spoke of her struggles as a single parent and simultaneously supporting two children. It was the greatest news for me when I found out that my youngest son made it to UPY (University Preparatory Year) this year. My daughter graduated Foundation last year. Talking from a single mothers perspective, the time given to us to pay for school fee is just so unreasonable. Just last month they had the enrollment and it cost me $644 to pay for both my children, she said, in an interview. The university has given parents and guardians a March 15 deadline to pay the course fee, which the single mother described as a greater disappointment. She appealed to the NUS administration to reconsider their deadline for the payment of the tuition fees. Foundation Year students Julie Atopau and Tafuaina Maligi echoed similar sentiments, when questioned by the Samoa Observer. They said not all families come from privileged backgrounds and will be without financial challenges. The deadline for school fee is just around the corner, and its putting a lot of pressure on most families, especially that our fee cost more than a $1000. Late last month we paid an amount of $322 for registration fee. After that we had to pay for all our stationery and our course reader for all five courses. Now mind you, five course readers altogether cost about $80 to $90 and that is just too much, they added. The two students said their parents have a month to pay the fees, which will be difficult as they are paid on a fortnightly basis. But speaking to the aggrieved parents and the students, you get the feeling that the issue is only the tip of the iceberg. In fact, it appears a lot of parents and guardians dont know the true cost for a student undertaking an undergraduate study program, at a tertiary institution like the NUS. While we appreciate that tertiary institutions such as the NUS require a substantial amount of financial assistance to run and continue to improve their course content, inline with international trends and standards, what is the average yearly unit cost for a university student in Samoa? A lot of times, the fees charged are below the unit cost, with the Government paying the balance. But then, again, what is the average yearly unit cost for a university student in Samoa? And how much does the Government give in terms of subsidizing the cost of education for ordinary citizens who lack the resources and finances to privately sponsor their children? There could be a lot of parents and students out there who have similar concerns but are not comfortable knocking on doors to seek answers. It is time for tertiary-level educational institutions such as the NUS to sit down with parents to give them a breakdown on the average yearly unit cost for a university student. Parents and guardians should be given the university fee regime, to enable them to plan for the future and or to seek Government or private sector support, if they have to. Listening to the concerns expressed by the single parent (or anyone else for that matter), it appears she lacks knowledge on how expensive tuition fees in universities around the Pacific such as the NUS have become in recent years. If students are asked to pay tuition fees of between $1000-$5000 annually to enroll in an undergraduate degree program, then it is likely that the full cost of educating your child is being subsidized by the State. Which brings us back to the point that a tertiary institution like the NUS should meet with parents and guardians and give them a breakdown of the fees. They need to know the true cost of an undergraduate study program. And due to the differences in the socio-economic background of people, there are parents and guardians who will need the assistance of the State, to pay for their childrens university tuition fees. Perhaps a university fee assistance program, which could be tailored to support Samoas impoverished families, could be created in a partnership funding arrangement between the Samoa Government and a donor partner. We believe the children of all Samoans regardless of their socioeconomic background should be given an opportunity to access quality education. No child should be left behind, even if they have limited financial resources. Have a fabulous Monday and a wonderful working week. God bless. The ability of the Samoa Police Service to respond effectively to natural disasters is still a work in progress. Speaking on the sidelines of the recent launching of the National Emergency Operations Center (NEOC), Police Commissioner Fuiavailiili Egon Keil, said the Police still had a long way to go and need training and equipment. Our part is the front liners so when there is a natural emergency, Police and Fire Emergency is the first front liners and of course assisted by Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment through Disaster Management Office and other organisations like Red Cross so its a collaborative effort, he said in an interview with the Samoa Observer. We are primary agencies that respond to these types of disturbances at a national level. But its a work in progress, I think it needs building up, I cant say we are 100 per cent that we are ready to encounter anything that comes along we need more training, more equipment. The Police Commissioner also acknowledged the significant role that the NEOC will play in mitigating the effects of natural disasters. There is a lot of work that needs to be done and it can be done, with this center (NEOC) here and everything will blend in. I am looking forward to this collaboration through the technology and bringing all the different ministries that are relative to this and work collaboratively to achieve that goal. It is very important for all the frontline agencies to come together in sharing information, and provide that service to protect Samoa respond to not only civil disturbances but also natural disturbances, he added. To assist parents and students, Samoa Stationery and Books awarded 19 prizes for their Back to School Promotion Draw yesterday. Among the prizes given were laptops, school bags, flash drives, hard drives and much more. S.S.A.B. Marketing Manager, Asomua Asia Stanley, this is one of the biggest campaigns ever. This is an annual event for the S.S.A.B. and every year it gets better and bigger. The campaign sets out to assist parents and students by ensuring they have access to affordable stationery and educational needs. As the company continues to carry literacy banner, this is one way of promoting education around the world. The S.S.A.B. Company wishes to acknowledge the support of their major sponsor overseas: Croxley Suppliers. And also acknowledge their overseas partnership with: Staedtler, ACCO and Warwick for the continuous assistance. Back to School Promotion winners: 1st: Talalelei Lalomilo, Falefa Marist Primary School 2nd:Ngelta Filipo, Tuifuiopa Apia Primary Dear Editor, Your editorial in the 27th January 2019 Sunday Samoan which included among other things your front page article, Editor rejects P.Ms claim, seems to criticize the Prime Minister for not verbally answering your papers questions. And it seems clear its because of his distrust of your papers reporting and eventual publications, no doubt based on his long dealings with your paper over many years and I will return to that later. But first your editorial says, Now listen up folks. Lets talk about our Prime Minister, Dr. Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi, and why hes screaming all the time, even though there is really nothing of real consequence, to scream about. What a terrible thing to say about the Head of the Government and people of Samoa we revere and hold dear. He doesnt scream all the time, does he? So that statement is false. And there are definitely numerous things of consequence that he has spoken about, hasnt he? You yourself have praised him many times and have chosen him as recipient of many awards. You will find all that in your papers files and records. And you have only look at the development of this country as irrefutable evidence of the significance of what he has said and done. Since he has been a leader of Government, tar sealed roads, drinking water, electricity, affordable vehicles, wide availability of affordable goods, quality Government offices, many new and better homes for our people, more scholarships to educate our people, more jobs than ever before, more businesses, first class sporting facilities, Samoa has become a leader in technological advancement, and newer, better & safer education facilities for our children, and so forth, have become a reality. So why have you made such a terribly meaning statement unbecoming of you? What is wrong with the Prime Minister requesting written questions? Its his right prerogative. If he doesnt want to answer any question, thats his right as well. But you lashed out at him forgetting you are not perfect yourself, and despite the fact that he is the most open and transparent Prime Minister this country has ever had. It seems that your aim was to embarrass, belittle, insult, and hope to destroy the Prime Ministers credible, a sad state of affairs indeed. The Prime Minister has an excellent memory and he remembers history, hence his current distrust of your reports and publications, which situation has been proved further by your editorial. I challenge you to show that you still have credibility by apologizing and publishing details of the many times your paper has published wrong information for which you then published apologies, to show that you too and your newspaper make mistakes. Yours and your papers credibility hangs somewhat on whether you publish your mistakes and apologies or not. I look forward to reading your response in your paper soonest. Tau Puiaitu A Regular Reader China on Saturday opposed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Arunachal Pradesh and said such actions would "escalate" and "complicate" border dispute. Modi on Saturday inaugurated several developmental projects during his one-day visit to Arunachal Pradesh, which China claims as its own and dubs South Tibet. "China's position on the Sino-Indian border issue is consistent and clear. The Chinese government has never recognised the so-called Arunachal Pradesh and resolutely opposes the activities of Indian leaders to the eastern section of the Sino-Indian border," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said here. Beijing said such actions would also hurt the progress made by both sides, especially after the pathbreaking meet between Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Wuhan last year. "China urges the Indian side to bear in mind the common interests of the two countries, respect the interests and concerns of the Chinese side, cherish the momentum of improvement in bilateral relations and refrain from any action that may lead to the escalation of disputes or complicate the boundary question," she added. Beijing resents and slams visits by Indian leaders and foreign dignitaries to Arunachal Pradesh, a state in India's northeast at the heart of Sino-Indian border dispute. In 2017, Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama's visit to Arunachal Pradesh infuriated China, prompting it to rename some towns in the Indian state. China and India, who fought a brief but bloody war in 1962, have a 3,444-km long boundary dispute. The two sides, which have seen several skirmishes since then, almost came to blows in 2017 over building of a road by the Chinese at Doklam, an area claimed by Bhutan and close to an arterial Indian highway. However, New Delhi and Beijing have tried to repair the damage and the ties have been on the upswing after Modi and Xi had an icebreaking meet last year. Both the leaders pledged to keep the border quiet and peaceful. Trinamool Congress legislator Satyajit Biwsas was shot dead by unidentified assailants at a Saraswati Puja programme in West Bengals Nadia district on Saturday evening, police said. The Trinamool accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of being involved in the murder, but it denied the charge and called for a Central Bureau of Investigation enquiry, if needed. Biswas, 37, the lawmaker from Krishnaganj (SC), was fatally shot while attending the puja inauguration programme in Phulbari along with state minister Ratna Ghosh and Trinamool district president Gourishankar Dutta. The newly-married legislator was fired upon multiple times from close range when he was coming down the stage after the programme. Biswas, a popular scheduled caste leader, was rushed to a local hospital where he was declared dead. The Trinamool alleged a BJP hand behind the crime. "BJP and (its leader) Mukul Roy harboured a deep grudge against him as Biswas became an MLA at a time when Roy had betrayed us. The killing is the result of that conspiracy. We will see its end. There will be an inquiry by the police. "But whoever has murdered, has done it with the blessings of Mukul Roy. This aspect cannot be glossed over.," Dutta alleged. BJP state president Dilip Ghosh called the murder "unfortunate", and said it was Trinamool's habit to link his party to every such killing of its leaders. "This is a very unfortunate incident. Last month, the MLA of Joynagar had a close brush with death. Now the BJP is being made the sacrificial lamb. "Earlier, lot of murders had taken place in Birbhum district, their workers were also killed . They tried to implicate us in all these killings also. But the victims' families pointed fingers at the factional feuds with within the Trinamool. "We want the truth to come out. Whoever is guilty, should be punished. This politics of murder should stop in West Bengal," said Ghosh. He said murderers and anti-social elements have now taken up the Trinamool flag. "These people are committing such murders," he said. Kolkata Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar was on Saturday questioned for eight hours by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) here in the chit fund scam, and has been asked to appear again on Sunday for further examination. Former Trinamool Congress MP Kunal Ghosh, who was arrested in November 2013 in connection with Saradha and Rose Valley chit fund scams and granted interim bail by Calcutta High Court in 2016, has also arrived in Shillong after the CBI summoned him. "He (Kumar) was questioned for almost eight hours since 10.45 a.m. He has been asked to appear again tomorrow (Sunday) for further questioning into the matter," a CBI official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told IANS. "We cannot say if Ghosh will be asked to appear before the team tomorrow (Sunday)," the official said. Kumar arrived in Shillong on Friday evening from Kolkata via Guwahati after the Supreme Court, while hearing the matter on Tuesday, directed him to join the CBI probe at a neutral place in Shillong. He was accompanied with three other senior state police officers - Additional Police Commissioner Javed Shamim, STF chief Murulidhar Sharma and CID chief Praveen Kumar Tripathi. "There is no question of not cooperating. He has cooperated before and is doing now too. We are here because of the Supreme Court order," Kumar's legal counsel, Biswajit Deb told journalists after emerging out of the CBI office. Meghalaya Police is providing adequate security cover to Kumar while the CBI office at Oakland has turned into a fortress with the Meghalaya Police Special Force (SF) 10 guarding it. Meghalaya Police chief R Chandranathan walked by the CBI office with his bodyguard while his Kolkata counterpart was being grilled by the interrogators but refused to speak to some journalists there. "The DGP came to see the security arrangement but he did not speak to anyone," a Meghalaya Police official said. A CBI team was allegedly roughed up and detained for a few hours when it went to question Kumar at his residence in Kolkata last Sunday in connection with its probe into the Saradha and Rose Valley chit fund cases. Following the face-off between the CBI and Kolkata Police, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee staged a sit-in protest for over 45 hours. The matter went before the Supreme Court which asked Kumar to appear before the agency in a neutral place but restrained it from arresting him. Meanwhile, Meghalaya Governor Tathagata Roy, in a tweet, welcomed both the Kolkata Police Commissioner and the CBI team to Shillong. "Pity I'm out of town! Welcome to Meghalaya,the abode of the clouds. Happy questioning,happy answering," Roy tweeted. Citing "short notice" period, top Twitter officials, including its Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Jack Dorsey, have declined to appear before a parliamentary committee on Monday. The panel is deliberating the issue of safeguarding citizens' rights on social media platforms. "Given the short notice of the hearing, we informed the committee that it would not be possible for senior officials from Twitter to travel from the United States to appear on Monday," a Twitter spokesperson said in a statement on Saturday. The Twitter officials were earlier asked to appear before the panel on February 11 for alleged bias against "nationalist" accounts. However, Twitter's letter has not gone down well with the panel members and is perceived as "lack of seriousness". "We have suggested that we work with the Lok Sabha Secretariat to find mutually agreeable dates for this meeting so that a senior Twitter official can attend," the Twitter spokesperson said. "We have also offered representatives from Twitter India to come and answer questions on Monday. We await feedback from the government on both of these matters," said the statement. The parliamentary committee on information technology, headed by Anurag Thakur (BJP), had issued summons to Twitter through a letter on February 1. It had said the head of the organisation has to appear before the panel and may be accompanied by another representative. The 31-member parliamentary panel had also summoned representatives from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. The meeting will go ahead as scheduled, sources said. "We want to reiterate that we not only have deep respect for India's parliamentary process and we are also committed to serving the people who use Twitter in the Indian market," the statement by the microblogging site added. Twitter had said on Friday it was proactively working with political parties to verify candidates, elected officials and relevant party officials whose accounts will be active in public conversation. HOUSTON, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- Local audience were enthralled when the Puppet Troupe of the Henan Opera and Dance Theater performed Snow White, along with its traditional repertoire, Friday night at the Asia Society Texas Center in Houston as part of its celebration of the Lunar New Year. Little puppets, controlled by nine performers, danced and jumped on the stage like real people, drawing applause and cheers for the troupe's rich collection of Chinese folk legends and historical tales. "Performing in the United States is a good way to protect, pass on and promote the unique traditional Chinese heritage, and to introduce this Chinese art treasure to the American audience," Zhao Fei, head of the puppet troupe, told Xinhua. Besides Houston, the puppet troupe will perform in the states of Georgia and Oklahoma. The puppetry on show dated back to the Han Dynasty, which requires master manipulation to tell classic stories well-known in China, such as The Butterfly Lovers and Wu Song Fights the Tiger. The puppet troupe from China's central province of Henan was founded in 1958 to promote traditional Chinese culture. As the main puppet show company of the province, it has produced a variety of popular puppet plays in the past six decades. Many of them have won national awards. Greenville, NC (27833) Today Partly cloudy skies. Low near 55F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight Partly cloudy skies. Low near 55F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph. BEIJING, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- China may see a rapid growth in the number of people aged 80 or above from 2025 to 2050, according to a recent report issued by Peking Union Medical College and Chinese Aging Well Association (CAWA). As of 2017, the number of people aged 80 and above had totaled 26 million in China, accounting for 1.8 percent of the country's total population. The proportion may rise to 2 percent in 2025 but rocket to 8 percent in 2050, the report said, citing a United Nations publication titled "World Population Prospects: The 2017 Revision." The country will be an "aged society" by 2026, with more than 14 percent of the total population aged 65 and above. By 2018, China had 249 million people aged 60 and above, accounting for 17.9 percent of its total population, becoming a country with the largest and fastest-growing aged population in the world. The fast-growing aging population will pose challenges to the country's economic development, as the country's expenditure in healthcare, pension and other areas related to elderly citizens is projected to rise from 7.33 percent of the country's GDP to 26.24 percent from 2015 to 2050, according to the report. The country should further improve its healthcare and other social security systems to address the rapid aging of the population, said Liu Yuanli, director of CAWA and chief editor of the report. China's National Health Commission has released a work plan with 12 other government departments to boost the health of the elderly. Certainly, one race or sex is not superior to another. To ignore systemic oppression and its impact on the past and present policies, however, is to put ones head into the sand. I was struck by the fact that even recently, most white Americans were unaware of the Tulsa Race Massacre of June 1, 1921 when mobs of white residents attacked black residents and destroyed homes and businesses in the Greenwood district in Tulsa. Thirty-five plus square blocks of the neighborhood at the time the wealthiest black community in the United States, known as Black Wall Street was decimated, with up to 300 people dead. Ten thousand black people were left homeless and property damage of black businesses and homes was an estimated at $1.5 million in 1921 dollars. It is precisely the omission of this kind of event in local, state, and national histories that establishes the need to examine systemic problems. Arlene Violet on critical race theory. She is a Republican who served as RI Attorney General Trump says 2nd U.S.-DPRK summit to be held in Hanoi, Vietnam on Feb. 27-28 WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump said Friday that he will meet for the second time with Kim Jong Un, top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), on Feb. 27-28 in Hanoi, Vietnam. "My representatives have just left North Korea after a very productive meeting and an agreed upon time and date for the second Summit with Kim Jong Un. It will take place in Hanoi, Vietnam, on February 27 & 28," Trump tweeted, referring to the DPRK trip of Stephen Biegun, U.S. special envoy for DPRK-related issues. "I look forward to seeing Chairman Kim & advancing the cause of peace!" he added. "North Korea, under the leadership of Kim Jong Un, will become a great Economic Powerhouse," he later tweeted in a separate post. "He (Kim) may surprise some but he won't surprise me, because I have gotten to know him & fully understand how capable he is. North Korea will become a different kind of Rocket -- an Economic one!" the White House host noted. Earlier in the day, the State Department said in a statement that during his stay in the DPRK, Biegun had "met with Special Representative for U.S. Affairs of the State Affairs Commission of the D.P.R.K. Kim Hyok Chol February 6-8, in Pyongyang." The two officials "discussed advancing President Trump and Chairman Kim's Singapore summit commitments of complete denuclearization, transforming U.S.-D.P.R.K. relations, and building a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula," the statement read. It added that they "agreed to meet again in advance of President Trump and Chairman Kim's second summit." In his State of the Union address delivered on Feb. 5, Trump said that he will meet with Kim Jong Un on Feb. 27-28 in Vietnam, but did not disclose the specific location. Thank you for reading the Philadelphia Tribune. You have exhausted your free article views for this month. Please press the "subscribe" button below and see our introductory price of $0.25 per week for 13 weeks. Otherwise, we look forward to seeing you next month. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin walks after inspecting a new Russian fighter jet after its test flight in Zhukovksy, outside Moscow, Russia, on June 17, 2010. New Russian moves in the Arctic have renewed debate over that country's intentions and Canada's own status at the top of the world. Late last month, the Russian newspaper Izvestia reported that country's military will resume fighter patrols to the North Pole for the first time in 30 years. Those patrols will be in addition to regular bomber flights up to the edge of U.S. and Canadian airspace. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP, RIA Novosti, Alexei Druzhinin, Government Press Service Davido is certainly not in support of the re-election of President Buhari. According to him, he wonders why anyone will want to re-elect President Buhari. See what he wrote on his instastories below- Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Popular Ghanaian Lawyer, Mr. Ampaw, has said that the prostitution should be legalized in the country since politicians are patronizing university and senior high school girls. Our big men are patronizing these girls, the politicians, the ministers go to our Unis and our SHS campuses and see how these our so-called big men are going after and chasing these girls and using them free and even sometimes deceiving them. So should we sit down and fold our arms? he said in an interview on Hitz FM. Mr Ampaw also added that foreigners, especially Nigerians are taking advantage of our women by paying as low as 10 cedis to have sex with them. Look I went to Cape Coast as low as two cedis, those girls were given and look at what these Nigerians guys are doing to our ladies in Ghana, they will come and give ten cedis they dont respect our women, our Ghanaian women think they know money, they dont know money, as low as ten cedis, twenty cedis even kenkey with shito they having sex with a girl, he added. Lawyer Ampaw also advised the government to look into sex tourism. According to him, when institutionalized properly and regulated, it could generate some revenue to the country. Source: Hitz FM Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The host of Good Evening Ghana on Metro TV, Paul Adom Otchere has been taken to the cleaners as Builsa North lawmaker, Hon. James Agalga has sounded a word of caution to him to stay away from his hard won reputation. The host of Good Evening Ghana on Metro TV, Paul Adom Otchere, has condemned the Minority in parliament for their highest level of disdain in welcoming Lydia Seyram Alhassan, the newly elected Member of Parliament (MP) for Ayawaso West Wuogon, with placards inscribed Bloody Widow. Paul Adom Otchere was of the view that walking out of parliament in registering a protest is something that is acceptable as normal parliamentary practice, but to put out a poster to call a colleague MP bloody widow is uncalled for. The honourable James Agalga should be ashamed of himself, he stated on his Good Evening Ghana show on Metro TV. But reacting to the comment on Radio Golds Alhaji and Alhaji political talk show, Hon. Agalga replied Let me use this medium to remind my good friend Paul Adom Otchere that I am not ashamed of myself. In fact, if there is anybody who should be ashamed of himself, it is the NPP government, it is President Akufo-Addo. It is Bryan Acheampong and the entire national security set up who should bow down their heads in shame for unleashing brutality on the innocent Ghanaians who poured out on 31st January to cast their votes. They are the ones who should apologise to the good people of Ghana. He entreated Paul Adom Otchere to take time to study parliamentary practice and procedure to know that their behaviour to Hon. Lydia Seyram Alhassan is part of their tools that they can deploy at anytime they think things have not gone right. After all, brandishing placards is normal parliamentary practice and so if Paul Adom Otchere is not aware, I will entreat him to take time of his busy schedule and study parliamentary practice and procedure and when he has done that he would come to the realisation that what we did on that occasion is part of our tools that can be deployed at anytime to register our decent whenever we think things have not gone right, he chided. He insisted that Parliamentary history is replete with instances when members felt agitated and brandish placards to drum home messages; warning that let Paul Adom Otchere seize that opportunity to denigrate my hard won reputation and image. I will like to send those words of caution to my good friend Paul Adom Otchere. He however wondered why people are quick to single the Minority in Parliament out and attack them for brandishing the bloody widow placard of the newly sworn-in MP for Ayawaso West Wuogon, Hon. Lydia Seyram Alhassan, without first condemning the brutality meted out to innocent Ghanaians in the constituency. He justified the action of the Minority in Parliament by saying the Hon. Lydia Alhassan was the beneficiary of the brutality that was meted out to the innocent Ghanaians who came out to vote; hence their inscription bloody widow. Source: Daniel Adu Darko/Peacefmonline.com/[email protected] Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Former General Secretary of the Christian Council of Ghana says the involvement of masked vigilante groups by political parties to protect ballot boxes must be condemned. According to Rev. Dr. Kwabena Opuni-Frimpong, if strict measures are not taking by the state security heads to ban these vigilante groups, Ghana will be plunged into chaos. Where are these Kaakaa motobi [masked] vigilante groups coming from? he questioned in an interview with Asempa FMs Ekosii Sen Programme Friday, February 8, 2019. His comment follows the violence in the Ayawaso West Wuogon by-elections which led to about 17 sustaining gunshot wounds and a Member of Parliament for Ningo-Prampram, Sam George assaulted. The task force, masked and heavily armed, stormed a polling station at La Bawalashie and shot at persons engaged in the electoral process. It is not yet known what may have prompted the armed security personnel to shoot and injure at least six persons, but police have launched a full-scale investigation. Government has also set up a commission of inquiry to investigate the incident - A former Commissioner at the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), Justice Emile Short is the Chairperson of the Commission while former Dean of the Faculty of Law of GIMPA and private legal practitioner, Mr. Ernest Kofi Abotsi has been appointed as Secretary to the Commission. Other members of the Commission are Henrietta Mensah Bonsu and Patrick K. Acheampong. Rev. Dr. Kwabena Opuni-Frimpong who is unhappy of what happened at Ayawaso blamed the NDC and NPP for giving legitimacy to such hoodlums to perpetrate violence during elections. Both President Akufo-Addo and former President John Mahama are beneficiaries of the action of such group but ahead of 2020 elections, they must allow Ghanas democracy to work he bemoaned. Source: King Edward Ambrose Washman Addo/Peacefmonline.com/ Twitter: @Washman5/ Instagram: Ambrose_wash Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources, Cecilia Abena Dapaah, has announced in Parliament that the government has secured credit facility of $30 million from the Exim Bank of India for the commencement of the Yendi Water Expansion Project, which has been on the drawing board for a very long time. The minister said the agreement would soon be put before Parliament for scrutiny and approval before the project commences. The minister made the announcement in Parliament yesterday when the Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Habibu Tijani Mohammad, who is also the New Patriotic Party Member of Parliament for Yendi asked her about when the Yendi Water Expansion Project would start. She indicated that the Yendi Water Supply System which supplies water to the Yendi Municipality and other surrounding towns and communities was built in 1961. She added: Three boreholes were constructed and mechanized in 2015 to supplement the surface water supply system. According to her, the combined average production is 0.3MGD against an assessed demand of 1.6 MGD which has necessitated the rationing of water supply to the area by the Ghana Water Company Limited. The ministry wishes to assure the House that it will follow the laid-down processes after securing approval from Parliament to ensure the commencement of the Yendi Water Expansion Project as soon as possible, she promised. 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. Featured Video Five pictures said to have been painted by Nazi leader Adolf Hitler have failed to sell at auction in Germany. Weidler auction house had set a starting price for the watercolours of 45,000 (40,000; $51,000). The auction was held in Nuremburg, the German city once notorious for Hitler's mass rallies where leading Nazis were later tried for war crimes. Accusations of forgery marred the auction and city mayor Ulrich Maly described it as being in "bad taste". The sale also included items said to have been owned by the dictator, including a vase and a wicker chair with a swastika on its arm. Under Hitler's rule (1933-45), Nazi Germany began World War II, pursuing a genocidal policy that resulted in the deaths of some six million Jews, and tens of millions of other civilians and combatants. Public displays of Nazi symbols are against the law in Germany - except in some contexts, such as for educational or historical reasons. The auction house got around the law by pixelating the symbols within their catalogue. What problems did the auction face? Dozens of artworks, including some set for sale, were seized from the auction house last week by German police. Prosecutors said a total of 63 items bearing the signatures "AH" or "A Hitler" were confiscated over forgery concerns. An investigation was opened into unidentified individuals "on suspicion of falsifying documents and attempted fraud", Nuremberg-Fuerth chief prosecutor Antje Gabriels-Gorsolke told AFP. She confirmed the auction house had co-operated and handed the works over voluntarily. Source: BBC Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video An office for Nigeria's election commission has been burned down just six days before the country is due to vote in a general election. The fire in Plateau State has destroyed everything needed to vote, including ballot boxes and voting slips. A spokesperson called it a setback for the preparations for the election but is quoted in This Day as saying that it is too early to suspect sabotage. The general election is due to be held on Saturday. On Sunday President Muhammadu Buhari warned of potential electoral fraud. "The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has raised concerns over laundered money being funnelled into vote buying," he said an editorial published in the Pulse newspaper. He is running for re-election in Saturday's poll where more than 84 million people are registered to vote. Although there are many presidential candidates, analysts say Mr Buhari's main contender is former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar. Source: BBC Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Chinese Ambassador to the United States Cui Tiankai (L) shakes hands with former U.S. Under Secretary of State Nicholas Burns at Grand Rapids, the United States, Feb. 8, 2019. Cui Tiankai said on Friday that China and the United States need to develop even stronger ties in the future despite their differences. (Xinhua/Wang Ping) GRAND RAPIDS, the United States, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Ambassador to the United States Cui Tiankai said on Friday that China and the United States need to develop even stronger ties in the future despite their differences. Cui made the remarks while addressing a public event held by a non-profit organization in the Midwestern U.S. state of Michigan. "We need to develop even stronger relationship on the basis of coordination, cooperation and stability" between the two countries, the Chinese envoy said. Noting that China and the United States are "two very different countries" in terms of history and culture among other areas, Cui said it was important for the two sides to "have much better mutual understanding" for each other's intention and policy and identify common grounds to stabilize the relationship. "We have so many global issues that we have to work together on," including climate change, terrorism, poverty, pandemics and natural disaster, the veteran diplomat noted. "No country can handle it all by itself," he added. More than 400 guests, including former U.S. Under Secretary of State Nicholas Burns, attended the luncheon held by the World Affairs Council of Western Michigan, which aims to provide forums for conversation on international topics. This year marks the 40th anniversary of the establishment of the China-U.S. diplomatic relations. Bilateral trade grew from less than 2.5 billion U.S. dollars 40 years ago to more than 580 billion dollars in 2017. Over the same period, the stock of two-way investment rose from practically nil to more than 230 billion dollars. The Minister of Education, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh has admitted that the double-track system which was introduced to resolve some challenges associated with the flagship Free Senior High School Policy is one of the complex killer problems his Ministry is currently facing. According to him, he does not get headaches from the problems associated with the Free Senior High School as they are technical which require a good manager to handle, but the same cannot be said of the double track, TVET Reforms and 19 Bills which are about to be piloted in Parliament. People will see education as very complex but you have to break it down to management decisions, if you have to deal with the technical problems and then really complex killer problems like double-track and TVET Reforms and about 19 bills we are about piloting in Parliament; those are the complex killers, he admitted. He stressed that the Free SHSs are technical problems and they dont give me headaches; the double-track is a complicated problem, I have to think, but the Free SHS is a technical one which any good manager can do. Addressing a gathering at the Danquah Institute's Leadership Series as the main speaker on the theme World Class Education An Imperative For The Next Generation Of Leaders, Dr. Opoku Prempeh disclosed that the double-track is a complicated problem which advanced planning is required and infrastructural building needed to start. The double-track is a complicated problem which you need to plan ahead and start the infrastructural building, and the TVET Reform is a killer; we are still even negotiating with donor partners for their support. So that is when you are entrusted in education field, he confessed. He however mentioned that in spite of the complicated nature of the double track, the Akufo-Addo government is determined to make quality education accessible to all Ghanaian children irrespective of their socio-economic backgrounds. Double-track system modalities Education Minister, Dr Mathew Opoku-Prempeh, at the beginning of the programme said that only 400 out of the estimated 670 SHSs would run the double-track system for the 2018/2019 academic year, with the system expected to ease congestion in classrooms. It is believed that over 8,000 teachers are being recruited to handle the sandwich classes so that teachers would not be deprived of their holidays. Under the new system, teaching hours are due to increase from six hours per day to eight hours per day. Teaching hours are expected to increase from 1,080 hours per year under the current trimester system to 1,134 hours per year under the proposed double-track system. The new system is expected to cost GH323 million for the full implementation. Accordingly, about GH267.2 million of this amount would cover teaching costs and GH55.8 million for academic interventions. The controversial double-track system, which seeks to ease congestion in public senior high schools (SHSs), commenced on September 1, as first-year students reported to their various schools. Source: Daniel Adu Darko/Peacefmonline.com/[email protected] Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video As we see from the menswear runways of this fashion month, and some shows from fashion weeks past, menswear is no longer just for men. All the biggest shows and labels have been creating chic, gender-neutral looks for everyone, and small independent fashion brands are no different. Untitled Collective, a New York-based contemporary menswear brand focuses on comfort and function specifically for artists. Their fall 2019 line takes inspiration from the Art Workers' Coalition, which was founded in 1969 as artists began to demand reforms within their communities, to end discrimination and inequality. And so Untitled's intention was to ground their pieces in this historical context, and to take it a step further from there. The garments were displayed in a gallery exhibit-style showing on February 3, with the models sitting on one side of the room, a perimeter of tape surrounding them like artwork. Part of the questioning the designers wanted to encourage among artists, as creatives themselves, was to ask questions regarding the commodification of art, societal issues, and also about the purpose and definition of art and artists as well. Each look from the collection is futuristic in its clean simplicity and functional in terms of its design, yet channels the '60s with classic cuts worn by American workers. The silhouettes are generally boxy and wide, and made with flexible, breathable material. The added tailor-made bonus for the brand's specific demographic are the sleekly-placed fabric patches, utility pockets, and gussets. See the entire look book below, and shop Untitled Collective fall 2019 here. People perform dragon and lion dances during a Chinese Lunar New Year celebration in The Hague, the Netherlands, on Feb. 9, 2019. Various activities featuring Chinese culture were held here to celebrate the Chinese Lunar New Year. (Xinhua/Zheng Huansong) Do you appreciate the work we do as the only independent media outlet dedicated to serving OU students, faculty, staff and alumni on campus and around the world for more than 100 years? Then consider helping fund our endeavors. Around the world, communities are grappling with what journalism is worth and how to fund the civic good that robust news organizations can generate. We believe The OU Daily and Crimson Quarterly magazine provide real value to this community both now by covering OU, and tomorrow by helping launch the careers of media professionals. If youre able, please SUPPORT US TODAY FOR AS LITTLE AS $1. You can make a one-time donation or a recurring pledge. "It's obvious from what happened this week that we still have a lot of work to do. There are still some very deep wounds in Virginia, and especially in the area of equity," he said. "There are ongoing inequities to access to things like education, health care, mortgages, capital, entrepreneurship. And so this has been a real, I think , an awakening for Virginia. It has really raised the level of awareness for racial issues in Virginia. And so we're ready to learn from our mistakes." The proposals would ban that practice, known as chumming. They would require that sharks be left in the water with their gills submerged, rather than dragged ashore. They would require a free shore-based shark fishing permit. And they would mandate the use of circle hooks, which tend to catch on the side of the mouth, rather than J hooks, which can hook a shark in the gut. The Orlando Police Department is asking for the publics help in identifying a man police say has committed two robberies at the same bank in just more than a month. ATHENS, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- A new Hellas Sat satellite was successfully launched this week strengthening Greece's presence in space, as the country is exploring economic benefits in all sectors, after experiencing an acute debt crisis. "Hellas Sat 4 satellite is the largest satellite for commercial use Lockheed Martin has constructed so far. It has a capability of 20 KW and weighs about 6.5 tons. It uses very innovative systems," Thomas Kalamaris, Technical Director of satellite operator Hellas Sat, told Xinhua on Friday. During a tour at the company's ground facilities in a suburb of Athens, he explained the significance of the project for Greece. Hellas Sat is a satellite communications solutions provider founded in 2001 when Hellas Sat 2 was launched into space. The company was acquired in 2013 during the crisis by Saudi Arabia's Arabsat, the 6th largest satellite operator in the world. On Feb. 5 this year Hellas Sat 4 satellite was launched from the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana, to be positioned at 39 degrees East providing coverage over Europe, the Middle East and the Southern Africa. The satellite is expected to commence service in the third quarter of 2019, according to a company press statement. Hellas Sat 4 will serve as a back-up to Hellas Sat 3 satellite which is located at the same orbital slot and was launched in 2017, extending the company's capacity. "I have to pay our tribute to the engineering team who worked together for four years for this very special project ... We will be in touch for the next 23 years," Christodoulos Protopapas, CEO of Hellas Sat, said shortly before the launch. Hellas Sat 4 has a design life of 23 years and its launch was a key part of Hellas Sat's plan to offer more and better services to its clients, Kalamaris told Xinhua, underlining the important economic benefit for Greece. "The Greek state and Hellenic Space Organization can receive services, they are already getting services, from Hellas Sat's satellites in the context of compensating benefits for the use of the 39East orbital slot by the company," he said. State entities do no longer have to pay for satellite communications solutions other providers, but get access to Hellas Sat's services free of charge. As part of efforts to rebuild the ailing Greek economy, the Greek state launched last year also the country's first space agency, the Hellenic Space Organization. The goal is to try to make the most in following years of Greece's participation in the European Space Agency (ESA). Greece is a member of ESA since 2005 and has invested millions of euros in ESA's research programs, but was one of the few member states lacking a national institution which could exploit to the full the results, Minister of Digital Policy, Telecommunications and Media Nikos Pappas has explained. Given that the space sector generates a sevenfold return on investment worldwide in recent years, as the Greek official has stressed, Greece is making steps also in this field. SNL was sharp and topical in a sketch set at the Virginia capitol. The chair of an ethics committee (Thompson) asked white officials if any had worn blackface in college. The sketch made the point that its never right, but the whites just didnt understand, even if the blackface was part of a costume in the 1980s. A sign of the sketchs effectiveness: Thompson was increasingly amused. Hotel Business News and Analytics Important! This article is written by orangesmile.com editors and is protected by copyright law. The article can only be re-used with a direct link to www.orangesmile.com NEWS BLOCKS: Major Hotel Companies are Interested in Portugal With the growing popularity of Portugal as a travel destination, hotels in Lisbon and Porto enjoy higher occupancy and, therefore, higher profits. Naturally, international hotel groups become more interested in increasing their presence in these top city break destinations and opening more hotels across the country. Many of them are interested in smaller boutique hotels that are converted from historic buildings. For example, Hilton will soon open the first Curio Collection property in Portugal the Emerald House hotel in Lisbon. Other major players in the hospitality market do the same. The Wyndham Group is opening a 300-room Ramada branded hotel in Lisbon, and Barcelo Hotel Group is preparing for a grand opening of the 124-room Allegro Madeira that will also become the groups first property in the country. Such cities as Lisbon and Porto get the most of attention, but smaller destinations also attract both tourists and investors. A growing number of Europeans chooses Portugal as a long weekend destination, and travelers from America and Asia consider it a fashionable destination perfect for a holiday. Such popularity is easy to understand. Wonderful Mediterranean climate, rich history, and amazing cuisine with lots of fresh seafood make Portugal very attractive in the eyes of modern travelers. The popularity is skyrocketing, and so Portugal even won in the top destination category in the 2018 World Travel Awards. The number of tourists in Portugal has almost doubled since 2013. The revenues added fantastic 64% between 2013 and 2017. In 2017 alone, the hospitality industry created more than 50,000 new jobs, contributing to the development of the country. In 2018, the number of foreign guests surged by 12% to 12.7 million. Together with domestic tourists, Portugal enjoys almost 21 million tourists a year. Primarily known as a beach destination, Portugal has reinvented itself as a trendy gastronomic country. Currently, there are 26 restaurants in Portugal mentioned in the 2019 Michelin Guide. For many companies, hotels in Portugal are an important source of income. For example, it is the third-largest market in Europe for Melia Hotels International. The hotelier will open its fourteenth hotel in Portugal in 2021. It will be a business-friendly hotel in Porto. That being said, it is now harder for hoteliers to find suitable buildings in the centers of Porto and Lisbon. Due to space constraints, hoteliers need to convert existing buildings that often require a lot of changes to fit the requirements of international chains. 10.02.2019Stay in touch with the latest news of a worldwide hotel industry. All up-to-date analytics, reports , and news about hotel business trends on OrangeSmile.com. The Oculus of the World Trade Center, a new landmark in New York City, presented a dynamic symphony concert on Friday night in its atrium to celebrate the Chinese New Year. Photo taken on Feb. 8, 2019 shows a symphony concert for Chinese New Year at the Oculus of the World Trade Center in New York City, the United States. [Photo: Xinhua] During the free one-hour concert, a number of famous Chinese music pieces such as "Jasmine Flower," "Ode to the Yangtze River," and popular western songs including Frank Sinatra's "New York, New York," were performed by the Asian Cultural Symphony, a local ensemble of nearly 100 artists of various ethnic groups and backgrounds. The orchestra, which sat in the middle of the Oculus, was repeatedly greeted with warm applause from hundreds of commuters, tourists and shoppers. The event was organized by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and the Asian Cultural Center (U.S.A.), an organization which was established in New York City in 1998 and has branches in Boston, Chicago and Washington D.C. Musicians perform during a symphony concert for Chinese New Year at the Oculus of the World Trade Center in New York City, the United States, Feb. 8, 2019. [Photo: Xinhua] A man who identified himself as Wang was traveling with his family from China said he was surprised to hear a few familiar melodies in the U.S. metropolis. "I'm amazed that the Chinese New Year is also celebrated here in New York at such a famous venue. The festivity here feels almost like the same back in China," he said. Completed in 2016 beside the 9/11 terrorist attacks memorial site, the "Oculus" functions as a train station, plaza and shopping mall at the current World Trade Center area and is famous for its unique architecture. It serves 250,000 daily commuters and receives millions of annual visitors from around the world, covering an area of some 74,322 square meters. What's Included With a Digital Only subscription, you'll receive unlimited access to our website and e-edition. Our digital products are available 24/7 and are accessible anywhere, anytime. If you have any questions or need further assistance, please call our customer service team at 716-372-3121 or email nfinnerty@oleantimesherald.com. Students from the Asian American Student Association serve food at the International Bazaar on Saturday. Googles parent company Alphabet, which is building its own beta city inside Toronto, was also the grandparent of the company that provided those LinkNYC kiosks with free wifi and charging and calls, and that often attract camps of gutter punks and junkies including right around Googles Chelsea campus. The kiosks can provide all that at no cost to New York or New Yorkers because they extract information from each of us walking by with a device connected to the free wi-fi. Officials refused to let Ray, a Muslim, have an imam to accompany him in his final moments. The Supreme Court, 5 to 4, refused to intervene. That was wrong. And while we have no qualms whatsoever about the goal of delivering a job with a family-sustaining wage, adequate family and medical leave, paid vacations and retirement security to every American, its exceedingly easy to do so in a nonbinding resolution, which is what this is. And exceedingly hard to get from here to there through concrete legislation that costs... oh yeah, we have no idea how much. The Duke of Edinburgh, who turns 98 in June, was driving a Land Rover on Jan. 17 near the Sandringham estate in Norfolk when he crashed into another car. Although uninjured, Philip needed assistance getting out of his overturned vehicle. Two women in the other car were injured but didnt suffer serious injuries and a 9-month-old boy was unharmed. GRAND RAPIDS, the United States, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Ambassador to the United States Cui Tiankai said on Friday that China and the United States need to develop even stronger ties in the future despite their differences. Cui made the remarks while addressing a public event held by a non-profit organization in the Midwestern U.S. state of Michigan. "We need to develop even stronger relationship on the basis of coordination, cooperation and stability" between the two countries, the Chinese envoy said. Noting that China and the United States are "two very different countries" in terms of history and culture among other areas, Cui said it was important for the two sides to "have much better mutual understanding" for each other's intention and policy and identify common grounds to stabilize the relationship. "We have so many global issues that we have to work together on," including climate change, terrorism, poverty, pandemics and natural disaster, the veteran diplomat noted. "No country can handle it all by itself," he added. More than 400 guests, including former U.S. Under Secretary of State Nicholas Burns, attended the luncheon held by the World Affairs Council of Western Michigan, which aims to provide forums for conversation on international topics. This year marks the 40th anniversary of the establishment of the China-U.S. diplomatic relations. Bilateral trade grew from less than 2.5 billion U.S. dollars 40 years ago to more than 580 billion dollars in 2017. Over the same period, the stock of two-way investment rose from practically nil to more than 230 billion dollars. French police would not confirm that the cause of the bloodied protesters hand was a grenade. The victim was reportedly receiving medical treatment at a hospital. While skirmishes initiated in front on the parliamentary building, cops responded with tear gas. Amid the panic in front of the National Assembly gates is where paramedics responded to the protester. Here's how I see it: Donald Trump is not the only problem we've got. Yeah. Donald Trump is the symptom of a badly broken system, she said. So, our job as we start rolling into the next election is not just to respond on a daily basis. It's to talk about what we understand is broken in this country, talk about what needs to be done to change it and talk about how we're going to do that, because that is not only how we win, it's how we make the change we need to make. McGovern, who was working in the mortgage business in Long Island, heard about the company from a friend during a backyard barbecue. She wasnt looking forward to the commute from, but her friend, who worked in the IT department at the company, convinced her that it would be worth it. Diaz, a Pentecostal minister who has repeatedly ruffled feathers with his right-leaning stances on city and state issues, said during the interview with radio show El Desahogo earlier in the week that he felt unwelcome when he first joined his fellow electeds at City Hall because of his less-than-progressive views. The call-center bill, introduced in the Senate by Sen. Tim Kennedy (D-Buffalo), would include penalties for companies that move call center jobs to foreign countries and make them ineligible for state loans, grants or tax breaks. It would also require companies to notify the state 100 days before they intend to relocate jobs to a foreign country. If a company fails to inform the state, it could face penalties of up to $10,000 a day. Im not so particularly happy about the deal. Just with the rents and everything happening, she said, adding that there are other issues shed like to see addressed. I dont know how were going to give money to them when were not even helping our own people, (and) the MTA is a mess. The Presidents choice to capitalize the word TRAIL was seen by many to be a reference to Native American history. As reported by ABC News, social media quickly exploded with speculation the President was referencing the 20-year Trail of Tears massacre that saw more than 10,000 Native Americans murdered when they were moved off their land following the Indian Removal Act of 1830. American Media believes fervently that it acted lawfully in the reporting of the story of Mr. Bezos, the company said. Nonetheless, in light of the nature of the allegations published by Mr. Bezos, the Board has convened and determined that it should promptly and thoroughly investigate the claims. Upon completion of that investigation, the Board will take whatever appropriate action is necessary. I want to caution, I don't know this family. I don't know the history of this family, de Blasio declared when asked about The News revelation of the citys potential $60 million deal with the Podolskys, which would have involved the city financing the purchase of 17 buildings in the Bronx and Brooklyn now being used as cluster-site homeless units so the buildings can be converted into permanent, affordable housing. The arrest of hip hop star 21 Savage by Immigration and Customs Enforcement stunned his fans. Thought to have been born in Atlanta, he is in fact a citizen of the United Kingdom. He came here on a temporary (nonimmigrant) visa then stayed longer than the law allows. Can he stave off deportation? Maybe. Here are the answers to some questions in the 21 Savage case. Thailand on Friday launched a Huawei Technologies 5G test bed, the tech giant's first such platform in Southeast Asia, amid rising scrutiny some Western countries set on the company. The test site is located in Chonburi, the heart of Thailand's 45-billion-U.S.-dollar economic project, the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC), about 90 km (55.92 miles) southeast of capital city Bangkok, Reuters reported on Friday. Huawei, the world's top producer of telecoms equipment and second biggest maker of smartphones, claimed that it is currently the industry's only vendor that can provide end-to-end 5G systems. The company said it has secured more than 30 commercial 5G contracts globally. In addition to the test bed, Huawei is in talks with local telecoms operations, such as Advanced Info Service Pcl and TRUE, to secure local partnerships ahead of a national rollout scheduled for December 2020, Reuters reported, citing anonymous industry sources. Backlash faced by Huawei The U.S. has been pressuring its allies to resist Huawei for what is a claimed security reason although the company has repeatedly denied the allegation from the U.S. of spying for the Chinese government. We keep a close watch on the allegations worldwide. However, this 5G test bed project is a testing period for the country, Thailand's Minister of Digital Economy Pichet Durongkaveroj was quoted as saying by Reuters. We can make observations which will be useful to either confirm or disconfirm the allegations. In a rare interview last month, Ren Zhengfei, founder of Huawei, said his company would never damage the interests of clients, and the Chinese government has never asked for inappropriate information. Cybersecurity has been made into a political and maybe ideological issue which is not fair for a technology company, Huawei Thailand said in a statement to Reuters on Friday. The Chinese government has called for open and fair competition for Chinese tech companies, including Huawei. When Australia banned Huawei from supplying equipment for a 5G mobile network last August, China described the move an ideological prejudice and urged Australia to provide a fair competitive environment for Chinese companies' operations. Thailand's 5G plan Thailand's 5G technology alliances in test bed laboratories and field trials was established to promote 5G infrastructure adoption by 2020, which has been a critical national agenda to achieve the Digital Thailand vision, Bangkok Post reported in November. In addition to Huawei, the alliance includes Ericsson, Qualcomm, Intel, Nokia, major local telecom operators and the Thai Federation of ICT Technology Association, the report said. Vendors like Nokia, Ericsson and Thai telecoms operators have also set up 5G labs at the test site in Chonburi, Reuters reported. Pichet said that the government believes that 5G tech adoption will be 40 percent cheaper through infrastructure sharing, Bangkok Post reported. Girl Scouts is a wonderful program with similar missions, but the primary difference young girls are yearning for is they want to have that outdoor experience and you can if you have the right makeup of troop leaders. But its not a required experience, said Sarah Noblett, Lauras mother and founding member of Troop 2019. The New Jersey-born, 24-year-old musician Halsey performed double duty as host and musical guest and more than held her own. She appeared in the first two skits: as President Trumps flack in another installment of Them Trumps, in which Trump (played by Thompson) is African-American and in a parody of the Virginia blackface scandal. The Democratic House majority is seemingly more open to considering proposals to ease federal restrictions on marijuana and the House has an upcoming hearing on a bill intended to make banking services more widely available for marijuana companies. I think the uptick youve seen is the direct result of some of the dangerous policies that some of our county sheriffs have put into place, and it really forces my officers to go out on the street and conduct more operations out in the community, at courthouses, at residences, doing traffic stops, he said. This is a direct correlation between the sheriffs dangerous policies of not cooperating with ICE and the fact that we have to continue executing our important law enforcement mission. You need to face the consequences of the criminal behavior that you were sentenced for on the 18th of January and now you certainly need to be held accountable for the brutal murder of our mother, brother Robert Merritt told ABC News on Saturday. The officer said he had locked his gun in the glove compartment of his vehicle, but at one point Rivera asked him for his keys so she could remove a charger from the car, according to Turn to 10. A day later, the 24-year-old New Yorker failed to show up for her job at Barnes & Noble and stopped responding to phone calls and text messages. She was last seen alive in surveillance footage leaving a bank in New York City on Jan. 30 the same day she was reported missing to New Rochelle Police. Justice would have come 34 years ago, she said. The people who are accused of doing this were able to live their lives, have kids, have grandkids, see the joys of that. And thats something Timothy never got the chance to do. A woman was taken to Kings County Hospital after she fell on the tracks and was struck by a train at the Utica Avenue/Fulton Street stop in Brooklyn on Sunday. (Theodore Parisienne for New York Daily News) At the same time, the city EMS teams have been absorbed into its network of first responders. EMTs and paramedics are now trained to participate in active-shooter situations, terrorist attacks, biohazard incidents and more on top of responding to all the fires, car accidents, shootings and other traumas that occur around the five boroughs day to day. In addition, EMS crews are constantly taking antibiotic cocktails to combat their frequent exposure to contagious diseases yet they are only given 12 sick days a year by the city. A team of Chinese Tai Chi masters Friday started their tour to the United States to promote Chinese Tai Chi culture to overseas Chinese and American Kung Fu fans. Chinese Tai Chi master Chen Zhenglei demonstrates Tai Chi in Fremont, California, the United States, Feb. 8, 2019. [Photo: Xinhua] The delegation, led by Chen Zhenglei, noted Chinese Tai Chi masters and successors of the national intangible cultural heritage in China, consists of five masters representing Chen-style and Yang-style Tai Chi and former champions of Tai Chi competition both at home and abroad. "Tai Chi is a national treasure of China that has a profound and long history, and practicing benefits both physical and mental health," Chen said at the opening ceremony launching the 12-day America tour of the China Tai Chi Culture World Tour, which aims to promote Chinese culture and Tai Chi culture outside China. The masters from the Chinese Tai Chi team will run two days' training courses for Tai Chi fans and lovers in the United States, and teach them in person the skills and expertise of how to best practice Tai Chi. Around 150 Tai Chi lovers, both overseas Chinese and Americans, from the Bay Area will attend the training. San Francisco is the first stop of the team's 12-day Tai Chi Culture World Tour. The trip will also take them to two other U.S. cities of Las Vegas and Los Angeles. ABC News(WASHINGTON) -- Donald Trump Jr. echoed his father on Saturday, applauding a joke about Native American genocide and referring to his father's crack on Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren's heritage as "savage." Warren officially announced her run for president on Saturday, which drew Donald Trump's usual racist taunt of "Pocahontas" to the Massachusetts senator. He also added, "See you on the campaign TRAIL, Liz." It's unclear why he capitalized "trail," though internet speculation immediately centered on the "Trail of Tears." The "Trail of Tears" was a forced relocation of the Cherokee, Chicksaw, Choctaw, Muscogee and Seminole tribes in the wake of the Indian Removal Act of 1830. Tens of thousands of Native Americans were removed from their lands and forced to march to Oklahoma, with thousands dying as a result. ABC News reached out for comment from the White House on the apparent reference, but did not receive a response. Trump Jr. compounded his father's racist joke with an Instagram post showing a response to Donald Trump's Warren joke saying, "The Native American genocide continues with another murder by the president." Trump Jr. responded, "Savage!!! Love my President." The nonprofit United to End Genocide estimates that there were about 10 million Native Americans before European settlement and just 300,000 left by 1900. The president's taunts of Warren's ethnicity center around her claims of holding Native American ancestry. The senator took a DNA test last year that showed she was overwhelmingly European, but it did support the existence of an unadmixed Native American ancestor in her pedigree six to 10 generations ago. She apologized last week after The Washington Post reported she registered for the State Bar of Texas in 1986 as an "American Indian." The 41-year-old president's son, now officially running his father's businesses while he is commander-in-chief, often retweets or amplifies questionable material on his social media accounts. Mixed among the Instagram photos of his daily life and praise for his father are dozens of memes attacking liberals. He mocked Christine Blasey Ford during the controversy over her allegations of abuse by Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, compared immigrants to zoo animals in a post in January and joked Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's socialist economic beliefs would lead to people eating dogs. Trump Jr. has also defended his father against charges of racism, saying he has taken photos with "all the rappers, all his African-American friends." Copyright 2019, ABC Radio. All rights reserved "With the passage and signing of Act 8155, the Virgin Islands becomes the first territory and the University of the Virgin Islands now becomes the first historically black college and university that provides comprehensive free tuition to students within its state or jurisdiction," said University of the Virgin Islands President David Hall. "This is one of the few programs in the nation that provides free tuition for baccalaureate degrees." The mold for one of her creations came through a collaboration with the 3D printing lab at the State University of New York New Paltz. The Love is Dead chocolate skull, originally commissioned by actress Emily Deschanel for a Bones wrap party, is covered in charcoal cocoa butter to give it a matte black finish. When cracked open, caramels and chocolates are revealed. Everyone appears to be your best friend today, but it's hard to tell whether or not your perceptions are real. You may wonder if people want to be around you because of what you do or who you are. You might stop to consider if your generosity is the reason you are so popular. It's doubly hard to make this distinction now if you're at the top of your game. Ironically, it doesn't matter why your social world is buzzing as long as you are fearless in the pursuit of what sets your soul on fire. One dead, 12 injured by fallen rocks at ice lantern show in Beijing's outlying district One person was killed and 12 others were injured by falling rocks Friday evening while they visited an ice lantern show at Longqing Gorge in Beijing's Yanqing District, the local authority confirmed. None of the injured are in life-threatening conditions. Seven slightly injured people have been discharged from the hospital, according to a source with the Yanqing District government. The incident occurred at 8:07 p.m. Friday when rocks broke through the ceiling of the exhibition area. Visitors were immediately evacuated after the accident, and starting Saturday, the scenic area was shut down for a comprehensive investigation. Adams Oshiomhole, national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), says those who stay away from a debate are stammerers. ... Adams Oshiomhole, national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), says those who stay away from a debate are stammerers. Oshiomhole said this in Zamfara state during the presidential rally of the All Progressives Congress (APC), on Sunday. Only a person who stammers that runs away from a debate. We are not stammerers so we do not run away from debate, he said. He asked the people of the state not to vote for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), alleging that its presidential candidate has promised to enrich his friends at the expense of his masses. Atiku has promised to enrich his friends and if he enriches his friends, he will pauperise the masses. In Buhari, we have a man who has integrity, who cares for masses and who has your interest at heart. Vote for Buhari so that the country can make progress. Oshiomholes comment is coming weeks after President Muhammadu Buhari was severely criticised for boycotting the presidential debate for the 2019 poll. In protest, Atiku Abubakar, his main challenger, made a last-minute decision to withdraw from the exercise and challenged Buhari to another debate, saying it could take place, anywhere, anytime. Abdulaziz Yari, governor of Zamfara state, says elections will not take place in the state if candidates of the ruling party are e... Abdulaziz Yari, governor of Zamfara state, says elections will not take place in the state if candidates of the ruling party are excluded. Speaking at the All Progressives Congress (APC) campaign rally in Talata Mafara local government area of the state, the governor maintained that the party conducted primaries which produced candidates for the forthcoming elections. He added that it will be a huge mistake and threat to national security for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to exclude APC candidates in the state from contesting. INEC had barred the ruling APC from fielding candidates for elective positions in the state over the partys inability to conduct primaries as a result of intra-party crisis. There is no way elections will be conducted in Zamfara state without APC candidates, despite Zamfara High Court judgment which confirmed that APC conducted primaries in the state, INEC is saying we cant field candidates Yari said. All our actions are based on Zamfara High Court Order, we are therefore advising INEC to obey the order and include the names of Zamfara APC candidates list submitted to the commission. Senate President Bukola Saraki, says it is time for Nigerians to choose competent leadership over outdated one. Saraki, who is als... Senate President Bukola Saraki, says it is time for Nigerians to choose competent leadership over outdated one. Saraki, who is also the director general of the PDP presidential campaign council, said this on Sunday, in a statement signed by Yusuph Olaniyonu, his special adviser on media and publicity. The senate leader called on Nigerians to come out en masse and vote for candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the general elections, saying they are ready to make Nigeria work again. We have all seen how the last four years have gone. It is time for Nigerians across the nation to choose economic growth over poverty; choose security over the growing and fast spreading insecurity; and choose competent leadership over leadership that is outdated, the statement read. If you have ever questioned if Nigeria can be better, coming out to vote with your friends and relatives who have PVCs next Saturday will be your answer. It is not enough to tweet about this government or share WhatsApp broadcasts, the time has come for all Nigerians to take their future in their hands and vote for visionary leaders, Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, and the PDP slate of candidates who are promising a Better Nigeria and are ready to make Nigeria work again. Danladi Umar, chairman of the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT), says he is not answerable to any institution aside the presidency. A... Danladi Umar, chairman of the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT), says he is not answerable to any institution aside the presidency. According to PUNCH, he said this while responding to a petition against him by the Incorporated Trustees of the Centre for Justice and Peace Initiative, a non-governmental organisation. Umar said he and members of the tribunal are not judicial officers, hence they cannot be subjected to disciplinary actions by the National Judicial Council (NJC) or the Federal Judicial Service Commission (FJSC). In the petition signed by Grace Wogor, the group asked the FJSC to take legal actions against the CCT chairman over an abuse of court processes for granting the order to suspend Walter Onnoghen, former chief justice of Nigeria (CJN) without due process. In a letter dated February 6, 2019 to the acting chairman of the FJSC, Umar responded that he didnt breach the judicial oath as members of the CCT only take official oaths and not judicial oaths during inaugurations. The CCT chairman said he granted the ex parte order because it was within his power, adding that he would not comment further on the matter, to avoid subjudice, since it was already before the appellate court. With regard to the prayer of the petitioner for an appropriate sanction against the chairman, it is important to note that the chairman and members of the tribunal, not being judicial officers, are not constitutionally subject to any disciplinary proceedings by either the National Judicial Council or the Federal Judicial Service Commission but the Presidency, Umar wrote. The petitioner alleged that judicial oaths were breached and that the National Judicial Council should consider appropriate sanctions. It is to be noted that the chairman and members of the Code of Conduct Tribunal are not judicial officers. This is predicated on the fact that the chairman and members of the tribunal, during swearing-in, only subscribe to official oaths and not judicial oaths. Therefore, not being a judicial officer, I did not subscribe to judicial oaths as alleged. Edwin Clark, convener of Pan-Niger Delta Forum, has taken a swipe at those who said he and other south-south group collected money to ... Edwin Clark, convener of Pan-Niger Delta Forum, has taken a swipe at those who said he and other south-south group collected money to endorse Atiku Abubakar, presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Ohanaeze Ndigbo, an apex Igbo socio-cultural group; Afenifere, a socio-cultural organization of the Yoruba, Middle Belt Forum (MBF) are among the five groups which endorsed Atiku last week. Festus Keyamo, spokesman of President Muhammadu Buhari campaign, had described the endorsement as a fraud while some of the presidents supporters said it was based on financial inducement. But speaking at a meeting with some south-south leaders who paid him a visit at his Abuja residence at the weekend, Clark said he could feed the family of those claiming he was bought over. Our message is that if you want to restructure Nigeria you are our man, if you dont want to restructure then you not a man. Those who said we have taken money from Atiku to take this position, fail to realise I can feed them and their households, he said. Our salvation is with the restructuring of this country. President Buhari said if we dont kill corruption, corruption will kill us but I am saying If we dont restructure this country, this country will not survive Without restructuring, we are endangered species, we are dying out. This country belongs to all of us and the moment we begin to feel we are not important in this country, it means we are slaves. The Ijaw leader said the former vice-president was sincere about pursuing the restructuring course. Clark said the report of the committee on restructuring chaired by Aminu Tambuwal, Sokoto governor, and the one of the All Progressives Congress (APC) chaired by Nasir el-Rufai, governor of Kaduna, are similar to report of the 2014 national conference. He said nothing fruitful came out of the reports because of the presidents stance on restructuring. We also noted that the APC, the political party at the centre equally set up a similar powerful committee on restructuring under the chairmanship of the governor of Kaduna state, mallam Nasir el-Rufai at the end, the committee submitted its report, he said. As a matter of fact, the reports of both committees were similar to that of the 2014 constitutional conference. The Spring Festival holiday is seeing a tourist boom in some of China's top destinations, reports the CCTV. Over the past five days, more than 330,000 tourists have visited the Terracotta Warriors in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, with over 110,000 of whom made their tours to the famed attraction on Friday. Mount Hua, also in Shaanxi Province, has welcomed more than 80,000 visitors from Monday to Friday. The famed Shaolin Temple in Henan Province welcomed around 250,000 tourists from both home and overseas during the first five days of the week-long holiday, with an annual increase of 20%. Official statistics show that Yunnan Province is estimated to have received 29 million travelers from February 4 to 8, 2019. Known for its diverse cultures of ethnic minorities and picturesque scenery, the province saw around 7.3 million tourists on Friday, with year-on-year growth of over 22%. In properly dealing with the tourist boom of the ongoing Lunar New Year holiday, various top destinations in China have reportedly been enhancing security measures, strengthening information service, and even controlling the visitor numbers if necessary. The office of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Quaan Pan Local Government Area of Plateau State has been engul... The office of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Quaan Pan Local Government Area of Plateau State has been engulfed by fire. This is coming less than one week to the 2019 presidential election. Plateau State INEC Head of Department, Voter Education and Publicity, Osaretin Imahiyereobo, confirmed the incident to Daily Trust in a statement on Sunday. It was gathered that the incident was caused by a drunken security man. Imahiyereobo described the incident as a setback for the preparations for the general elections in the Local Government Area. The statement read: The INEC office is completely burnt with all its content i.e Ballot Boxes, Generators serviced and filled with fuel, cubicles, newly printed electronic and manual Voters Register, uncollected PVCs, materials for the preparations of RAC and other materials yet to be identified. President Muhammadu Buhari says corruption poses a big threat to the general election and the countrys democracy. The president s... President Muhammadu Buhari says corruption poses a big threat to the general election and the countrys democracy. The president said this in a piece titled Corruption Threatens Nigeria And Its Election. Buhari said while his administration is devising ways to tackle corruption, the social vice innovates to resist the law. He added that he shares the same desire with Nigerians who wish to see the speedy execution of projects and end results of his anti-corruption fight but that due process must be followed to ensure allegation never takes the place of evidence. He urged Nigerians to re-elect him while promising to continue forward on this testing path against corruption. A Yoruba proverb states that only the patient one can milk a lion. Likewise, victory over corruption is difficult, but not impossible. We must not flounder in our resolve, he said. I know many Nigerians would like to see faster action. So do I. But so too must we follow due process and exercise restraint, ensuring allegation never takes the place of evidence. For that is not the Nigeria we should wish to build. This is the challenge of our generation: the variable on which our success as a nation shall be determined. But the vested interests at play can make this fight difficult. By way of their looting, the corrupt have powerful resources at their disposal. And they will use them. For when you fight corruption, you can be sure it will fight back. There is no doubt that this Administration has changed the way we tackle corruption. The choice before voters is this: Do we continue forward on this testing path against corruption? Or do revert to the past, resigned to the falsehood that it is just the-way-things-are-done? Or that it is just too difficult too pervasive to fix? I know which one I would choose. It is why I am asking Nigerians for another four years to serve them. Read the full statement below On February 16th, Nigeria will hold a general election. Four years ago, the country experienced its first democratic transfer of power to the opposition since 1999. The vote in a few days will be no less significant. As president, I have tried to judiciously exercise the trust vested in me to combat the problems of corruption, insecurity and an inequitable economy. All are important. But amongst them, one stands above the others as both a cause and aggravator of the rest. It is, of course, corruption. A policy programme that does not have fighting corruption at its core is destined to fail. The battle against graft must be the base on which we secure the country, build our economy, provide decent infrastructure and educate the next generation. This is the challenge of our generation: the variable on which our success as a nation shall be determined. But the vested interests at play can make this fight difficult. By way of their looting, the corrupt have powerful resources at their disposal. And they will use them. For when you fight corruption, you can be sure it will fight back. It even threatens to undermine Februarys poll and by extension our democracy. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has raised concerns over laundered money being funnelled into vote buying. This is the problem of corruption writ large. It illustrates how it lurks in all and every crevice of public life, manipulating due process in pursuit of self-preservation and perpetuation; protecting personal political and economic interests at the expense of the common good. Indeed, those who have criticised my administrations anti-corruption drive are those who oppose its mission. And though their lawyers may craft expensive alibis, they cannot escape that which binds them together: a raft of documents and barely legal (some clearly illegal) mechanisms whether that be the Panama Papers, US Congress reports, shell companies or offshore bank accounts. Corruption corrodes the trust on which the idea of community is founded, because one rule for the few and another for everyone else is unacceptable to anyone working honestly. But as we have intensified our war on corruption, so we have found that corruption innovates to resist the law. This is not the sole domain of those Nigerians, but the international corruption industry: the unsavoury fellow-traveler of globalisation. Once the enablers are let in as they have been in the past the greed of those they collude with grows. We have closed the door on them, but unfortunately there still remain individuals who are willing to open windows. Concrete progress has been made, but there is still much to do. We have repatriated hundreds of millions of dollars stowed away in foreign banks. These funds have been transparently deployed on infrastructural projects and used to directly empower the poorest in society. More is still to come from our international partners in France, the United Kingdom and the United States of America. Yet the hundreds of billions sifted out of the country for the best part of this century promise more. We have secured high profile convictions, but greater cases remain. Lawyers table endless objections to obstruct court proceedings, whilst their clients hope it lasts until a friendly president is voted into office. We must continue to tighten the legal framework and ensure the authorities have the investigative powers at their disposal to secure sentences. Only then will we begin to neutralise the advantages the corrupt have. More ghost workers must be removed from government payroll (almost $550 million has been saved from identifying phantom employees). More can be recovered through our whistle-blower policy ($370 million has been returned since its launch in 2016). More is still to come. But, together, we shall prevail over corruption. A Yoruba proverb states that only the patient one can milk a lion. Likewise, victory over corruption is difficult, but not impossible. We must not flounder in our resolve. I know many Nigerians would like to see faster action. So do I. But so too must we follow due process and exercise restraint, ensuring allegation never takes the place of evidence. For that is not the Nigeria we should wish to build. The Department of State Services (DSS) has arrested Ben Bako, director, media and publicity of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) camp... The Department of State Services (DSS) has arrested Ben Bako, director, media and publicity of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) campaign organisation. TheCable reports that the secret police had earlier invited Bako over inciting comments he made at a PDP rally in Kafancha, earlier in the week. Bako had told party members to deal with those who go against the PDP during the election. The DSS invited him yesterday over the comments he made during the PDP campaign in Kafanchan, a top member of the party who did not want to be quoted, said. The source criticised the security agency, describing the act as an attempt to muzzle opposition. Abraham Catoh, spokesman of the PDP in the state, told newsmen on Sunday morning that Bako was arrested when he honoured the invitation and was flown to Abuja after two hours of grilling by the DSS in Kaduna. We are addressing a press conference on this issue this morning, he said, declining further comments. Peter Afunnaya, spokesman of the DSS, could not be reached as of the time this report was filed. The Buhari administration had warned against hate speech, saying it will no longer tolerate such. At a retreat in Aso Rock, two years ago, Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo had described it as an act of terrorism, saying the government intended to take the matter seriously. As I have said, we have drawn a line against hate speech, it will not be tolerated, it will be taken as an act of terrorism and all of the consequences will follow, he had said. When leaders in communities that speak in such a manner to create dissension or intimidate the population are quiet, they do a great disservice to our unity, they do a great disservice to our nation. President Muhammadu Buhari on Sunday assured that he respects the constitution of Nigeria. He said he was a honourable person who ... President Muhammadu Buhari on Sunday assured that he respects the constitution of Nigeria. He said he was a honourable person who would not go against the laws of the land after winning a second tenure in office. Buhari spoke at a meeting with the royal fathers in the Government House, Zamfara, on Sunday, The President said he was contesting this election as his fifth and the last. A second term is what the constitution allows, and I will not abuse the constitution, Garba Shehu, Senior Special Assistant on Media & Publicity quoted him as saying. He thanked the royal fathers for the support he enjoyed so far and appealed to them to back his re-election. The Chairman of the council of traditional rulers and Emir of Anka, Alhaji Attahiru Ahmed and the Governor, Alhaji Abdulaziz Yari Abubakar, praised the efforts of the President in changing the unwanted security situation in the state. According to the governor, From the presence of an ammunition depot manned by just 30 men when you took office in 2015, Zamfara State today boasts of the presence of 4,700 combined security personnel who are assisted by 8,500 State Joint Task Force, SJTF members. We also have the 223 Battalion, the 607 Quick Response Battalion and the 1 Brigade in Gusau. The Coming events listings are for meetings that occur Monday through the following Sunday. These are published as a public service. The deadline for submitting items is noon Wednesday. Items may be mailed to Coming Events, St. Joseph News-Press, Box 29, St. Joseph, MO 64502 or e-mailed to leanna.murphy@newspressnow.com. The News-Press reserves the right to edit items as space requires. The Thai Raksa Chart (Thais protect country) Party on Saturday accepted the remarks by King Maha Vajiralongkorn, who said involving the princess in politics is "inappropriate." In a statement issued on Saturday, Thai Raksa Chart Party expressed its allegiances to the monarch and accepted his disapproval of Princess Ubolratana Mahidol's candidacy for prime minister. Ubolratana on Friday accepted the nomination to run for prime minister in the March 24 general election under the tickets of the Thai Raksa Chart Party. But in a royal statement broadcast on Friday night, King Maha Vajiralongkorn voiced his disapproval, saying members of the royal family should stay neutral and cannot take any political positions, otherwise it would be against the constitution and constitutional monarchy. The Thai Raksa Chart Party said it will follow the rulings of the Election Commission, the election law, the constitution as well as royal custom and tradition. The Election Commission is yet to verify all electoral candidates including those running for post-election prime minister. It is scheduled to officially announce the names of all candidates on Feb. 15. Meanwhile, Ubolratana said on her Instagram page on Saturday that she sincerely wished to see the country step forward and be admired and recognized by the international community. She maintained that she is contesting the election as a commoner with the rights and freedom given by the constitution and that she had relinquished herself of royal titles. She thanked all her supporters, especially the netizens who regularly follow her online. Armacell, a manufacturer of flexible foam for the equipment insulation market and engineered foams, officially opened their state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Bahrain. Under the Patronage of Zayed R. Alzayani, the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, Undersecretary of Industry Affairs Osama Mohammed Alorrayedh officially opened the facility in the Bahrain International Investment Park (BIIP) in the presence of the Executive Director of Business Development Manufacturing, Transport & Logistics from Economic Development Board Husain Rajab. Zayed R. Alzayani, Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism said: Bahrains government is committed to creating an environment that can attract and support the leading companies in the world. We will continue to collaborate with leading companies to anchor high value-added manufacturing, adopt advanced manufacturing technologies and equip our people with the requisite skillsets. Our partnership with Armacell is a good example of how we are doing this. Armacells state-of-the-art manufacturing facility went into production in 2018 and exports a comprehensive range of products from BIIP, including high-density acoustics materials and elastomeric insulation for heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems, across the GCC. The 11,000sq.m. manufacturing facility in Bahrain International Investment Park will initially provide approx. 100 jobs. Patrick Mathieu, President and CEO of the Armacell Group, commented: This state-of-the-art manufacturing facility strengthens our commitment to the Gulf region and will serve as our regional trading hub. Khalid Al Rumaihi, Chief Executive of the Bahrain Economic Development Board, said: We are delighted to see Armacell take advantage of the tremendous business incentives and cost efficiencies of doing business here, and as we pursue another key strategy of shaping a digital economy, modernising manufacturing with a solid technology infrastructure is top of mind for many companies. National Bank of Kuwait-Bahrain (NBK Bahrain), the branch of NBK Group in Bahrain, announced yesterday a 26 per cent jump in its 2018 net profits to US$313 million (BD118.096m) from US$248m (BD93.488m) in 2017. As of the end of 2018, NBK-Bahrains total assets increased by 9pc y-oy to US$16.740 billion, compared with US$15.350bn in 2017. While total shareholders equity increased 14pc y-oy to US$1.813bn. Customer deposits reached US$8.612bn, up by US$584m or 7pc y-oy. Isam Al-Sager, NBK Group Chief Executive Officer said, The Banks strong results affirm the success of NBK Groups regional expansion strategy that is built on a culture of prudence and strict risk management practices. Al-Sager pointed out that the strength of NBK-Bahrains profits stems primarily from being operational. Al-Sager added: The strong growth achieved by NBK-Bahrain is a testament to the success of its vision aimed at affirming its position in the Bahraini market, which is one of the main growth markets for NBK Group, given its promising growth opportunities and positive prospects. Our diversification extends to the product and service offering, growth in existing geographies, our approach to new business opportunities, and our commitment to a digital transformation that will position the Bank for future growth, Al-Sager added The Bahrain Real Estate Investment Expo 2019 (BREIX19), held under the patronage of the President of the Survey and Land Registration Bureau (SLRB) and Board of Directors Chairman of the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA), Shaikh Salman bin Abdulla bin Hamad Al Khalifa, concluded yesterday on a high note. Organized by the Expressions Marketing Communication at the City Centre Mall, BREIX19 attracted key real estate companies in Bahrain, as well as key personalities, guests, officials and a great number of visitors. More than 40,000 visitors from Bahrain and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries attended the three-day expo, in which 15 real estate companies participated. During the expo, the latest distinguished real estate projects had been showcased. In addition, the Municipal One-Stop-Shop highlighted the new system for municipal permits which saves time and grants permits easily. The CEO of Expressions Marketing Communications, Aseel Al Muhandes, expressed thanks and appreciation to Shaikh Salman bin Abdulla for patronising the event, and paid similar tribute to the Bahrain Real Estate Association, lauding the support provided by Tamkeen, the Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI), the relevant public and private sector institutions and media outlets. She pointed out that the second edition of the Bahrain Real Estate Expo has achieved outstanding success, with the number of visitors exceeding expectations. She added that BREIX19 is in line with the Bahrain Economic Vision 2030, which supports economic investment in non-oil sectors. Bahrain International Design Week (BIDW), a platform dedicated to gathering artists, creators and designers, offering the latest in a unique style and design spanning personal, architecture, interiors design, and services design concluded yesterday. Held at the Avenues Bahrain, the International Design Week is a touring exhibition that includes accompanying events, workshops and sessions hosting expert speakers from and outside Bahrain. The event, held under the patronage of Capital Governor Shaikh Hisham bin Abdulrahman Al Khalifa, was organized by All In One Services, a leading company in exhibition and conference services as well as Gallure and Twiser Management Company and 1A Services. Speaking to Tribune, All In One Services Chief Executive Ali Hamad Abdulla Abul said, One of the objectives of the Bahrain International Design Week was to show the latest trends in the design of jewelry, fashion, architectural design, decoration and graphic design by international and local designers. The exhibition provided a forum for designers and creators to show the latest designs of global and regional designers. This exhibition offered an opportunity to promote Manama as the capital of design among the Gulf States. It will also serve as a platform for activating and developing the creativity and exchange of ideas that characterize modern and successful cities. Cabinet Affairs Minister, Mohammed Al Mutawa, participated in the opening session of the conference of high-level Arab leaders, at the invitation of the Arab Parliament. Bahrains Ambassador to Egypt and its Permanent Representative to the Arab League (AL), Shaikh Rashid bin Abdulrahman Al Khalifa, also attended the session, held yesterday at the ALs headquarters here. The minister stressed the importance of the conference which, he said, aims to issue the Arab Document to Strengthen Solidarity and Face Challenges in the midst of the political, economic and security challenges currently facing many Arab countries, and constitute a direct threat to the Arab national security in its various aspects. Minister Al Mutawa highlighted the firm stance of the Kingdom, under the leadership of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, in support of everything aimed at consolidating joint Arab action and strengthening inter-Arab relations in a way that would strengthen the Arab Nations capabilities and solidarity in dealing with various threats. The Daily News-Miner encourages residents to make themselves heard through the Opinion pages. Readers' letters and columns also appear online at newsminer.com. Contact the editor with questions at letters@newsminer.com or call 459-7574. Community Perspective Send Community Perspective submissions by mail (P.O. Box 70710, Fairbanks AK 99707) or via email (letters@newsminer.com). Submissions must be 500 to 750 words. Columns are welcome on a wide range of issues and should be well-written and well-researched with attribution of sources. Include a full name, email address, daytime telephone number and headshot photograph suitable for publication (email jpg or tiff files at 150 dpi.) You may also schedule a photo to be taken at the News-Miner office. The News-Miner reserves the right to edit submissions or to reject those of poor quality or taste without consulting the writer. Letters to the editor Send letters to the editor by mail (P.O. Box 70710, Fairbanks AK 99707), by fax (907-452-7917) or via email (letters@newsminer.com). Writers are limited to one letter every two weeks (14 days.) All letters must contain no more than 350 words and include a full name (no abbreviation), daytime and evening phone numbers and physical address. (If no phone, then provide a mailing address or email address.) The Daily News-Miner reserves the right to edit or reject letters without consulting the writer. The 50th Anniversary logo is projected onto the floor of the main arena during the 2016 annual Alaska Federation of Natives Convention Thursday afternoon, October 20, 2016 at the Carlson Center. This year marks the 50th anniversary of the convention, with the theme "50 Years: Reflect, Refresh, Renew." The convention continues through Saturday. Russia aims to land astronauts on moon in 2031 Russia plans the country's first manned mission to the moon in 2031, RIA Novosti news agency reported Saturday, citing a document by the Russian Central Research Institute of Machine Building. The crew members are expected to conduct astronauts' activities on the moon and implement tasks set by the Russian Academy of Sciences. Russia plans to send a rover to the moon to transport astronauts in 2032. The second expedition team will test the vehicle. A year later, astronauts are expected to take long-distance trips on the lunar rover to carry out scientific experiments and test robotic systems. Russia aims to start the construction of a lunar base in 2034 and it will continue into 2035. Russia is actively implementing a lunar program through 2030, aiming to send astronauts to the moon, President Vladimir Putin said in April 2018. The Federatsiya spacecraft was nearing completion, while work had begun on creating a rocket for the moon projects, he said. Let us know what you're seeing and hearing around the community. Submit here (Newser) A former Georgia attorney is on the run after allegedly cutting off his ankle monitor, murdering his mother, and fleeing in her Lexusall while facing 30 years behind bars for other crimes, Fox News reports. Richard Merritt, 44, was about to surrender to authorities Feb. 1 and serve his time when police say he stabbed his mother, Shirley Merritt, in DeKalb County and hit the road, per WSB-TV. "He probably knows people all over the country, being a lawyer," says a US marshal who's hunting the fugitive. "He could be anywhere. We think he may be anywhere in the country." story continues below Merritt pleaded guilty in January to stealing from his clientsseems he settled civil suits behind their backs and kept the money for himself, per the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Sentenced to 15 years in prison and 15 years' probation and told he owed $454,706, Merritt asked for time to arrange his affairs but didn't turn himself in. A day later, officers went to his mother's home in Planters Row near Stone Mountain and found her body. "This has the earmarks of someone who is desperate," says a defense attorney. "And desperate people can do desperate things." Authorities are offering a $5,000 reward in the case and say the disbarred lawyer may be armed, dangerous, and altered in appearance. He could be driving a silver Lexus RX350 with the Georgia tag CBV 6004. (Read more murder stories.) (Newser) Attorneys for a woman who has accused Virginia's embattled lieutenant governor of sexual assault say their client is "prepared to testify at impeachment proceedings and to cooperate with law enforcement in any investigation." Attorneys Debra S. Katz and Lisa J. Banks released the statement Saturday night on behalf of Vanessa Tyson, a California college professor, who said Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax forced her to perform oral sex on him at a Boston hotel in 2004, reports the AP. A second woman, Meredith Watson, has accused Fairfax of rape in 2000. Her attorney, Nancy Erika Smith, says Watson also is willing to testify in front of the state legislature if an impeachment hearing takes place. story continues below Fairfax says the encounter with Watson was consensual. The two were students at Duke University at the time. Smith says Watson will provide investigators at least two witnesses who she told about the alleged assault the day after it occurred. Fairfax issued a statement Saturday again denying the allegations. He made clear he is not immediately resigning and called for "space in this moment for due process." He's also calling for authorities, including the FBI, to investigate. As for whether an impeachment hearing could happen, the AP separately reports Democratic Del. Patrick Hope said he wants to introduce articles of impeachment against Fairfax on Monday. But Hope is not a powerful figure in the House and there's little sign there's a broad appetite for impeachment with lawmakers set to finish this year's legislative session by the end of the month. (Read more Justin Fairfax stories.) (Newser) The world's most valuable public company may not bring 25,000 new jobs to New York City after all, the Washington Post reports. Amazon.comwhich chose to split its upcoming second headquarters between New York and Arlington, Virginia, after a highly publicized yearlong searchis said to be reconsidering the New York move. "The question is whether it's worth it if the politicians in New York don't want the project, especially with how people in Virginia and Nashville have been so welcoming," an insider tells the Post (Nashville will get a smaller, 5,000-job campus). At issue is the election of New York State Sen. Michael Gianaris, a vocal Amazon critic, to a state board where he might nix the deal. Gianaris isn't thrilled about the $3 billion in city and state incentives promised to the mega-retailer. story continues below "We can't find two nickels to rub together to make the subways run on time or to build affordable housing or to build enough schools for our kidsin this very neighborhood, mind youand yet we're showering Jeff Bezos with all this money that he clearly doesn't need," Gianaris tells CNN. Not to mention that City Council has twice confronted Amazon executives at hearings where activists booed them, and officials including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are strident critics of the Amazon move. So far Amazon brass is mulling whether to delay initial New York investments but hasn't decided to choose another city, per the Wall Street Journal. That said, other cities are salivatingas these Miami Herald and Chicago Tribune pieces make clear. (Meanwhile, Bezos is involved in a much more salacious public battle.) (Newser) What looked like a shipment of speakers leaving for Australia contained so much morea record-high 1.7 tons of methamphetamine, ABC News reports. Customs and Border Protection also uncovered nearly 60 pounds of cocaine and 11.5 pounds of heroin in the Jan. 11 seizure at Los Angeles/Long Beach seaport. Total street value: $1.29 billion, say Australian officials. Two Americans and four Australians, all linked to a US-based transnational crime syndicate, have been arrested in what authorities are calling a "significant blow" to the crime group, the LA Times reports. (US authorities have also made their biggest-ever fentanyl bust.) China voices strong opposition to Modi's visit to region on east section of its border with India The Chinese Foreign Ministry on Saturday expressed strong opposition to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to a region on the east section of the China-India border. Spokeswoman Hua Chunying's remarks came in response to a query about news reports saying that Prime Minister Modi visited the so-called "Arunachal Pradesh" earlier in the day. "China's position on the China-India border issue is consistent and clear-cut," said Hua, stressing that the Chinese government has never recognized the so-called "Arunachal Pradesh." While urging the Indian side to bear in mind the common interests of the two countries, Hua called on the neighboring country to respect interests and concerns of the Chinese side, cherish the momentum of improvement in bilateral ties and refrain from "any action that may lead to an escalation of disputes or complicate the border issue." He Went to China to Play Basketball, Was Locked in Room for 8 Months 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). Tim Stenger has been homeless for nearly nine years. See how he navigates Champaign and tries to stave off hunger, poverty and boredom. Stick around until the end for ways you can help. "My representatives have just left North Korea (DPRK) after a very productive meeting and an agreed upon time and date for the second Summit with Kim Jong-un. It will take place in Hanoi, Vietnam, on February 27 & 28," Trump said on Twitter. Earlier in the day, the State Department said in a statement that during his stay in the DPRK, US special envoy for DPRK-related issues of Stephen Biegun had "met with Special Representative for US Affairs of the State Affairs Commission of the DPRK Kim Hyok Chol February 6-8, in Pyongyang." The two officials "discussed advancing President Trump and Chairman Kim's Singapore summit commitments of complete denuclearization, transforming US-DPRK relations, and building a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula," the statement read. It added that they "agreed to meet again in advance of President Trump and Chairman Kim's second summit." One of Editor & Publishers 10 That Do It Right 2021 By PTI ISLAMABAD: A Christian woman acquitted of blasphemy after spending eight years on death row in Pakistan has been transferred from a secret location near the capital to another in Karachi but is still unable to leave the country to join her daughters in Canada, a friend said on Saturday. Aman Ullah, who spoke to Aasia Bibi by telephone on Friday, said the 54-year-old Bibi is being held in a room in the southern port city. He said Bibi, who faces death threats by radical Islamists, is frustrated and frightened, uncertain of when she will be able to leave Pakistan. "She has no indication of when she will leave. They are not telling her why she cannot leave," said Ullah, who fled the country Friday after receiving threats from extremists angered by his assistance to Bibi, which began while she was on death row. Ullah has been a liaison between Bibi and European diplomats, who have sought to assist her. The Associated Press spoke to Bibi by telephone with Ullah's assistance following her October acquittal, which was upheld last month. Bibi's ordeal began in 2009 when two fellow farmworkers refused to drink from the same container as a Christian woman. There was a quarrel and the two Muslim women later accused Bibi of blasphemy. The Supreme Court judges said there were widespread inconsistencies in the testimony against Bibi, who has steadfastly maintained her innocence. The acquittal should have given Bibi her freedom, but Ullah said diplomats were told that her departure from Pakistan, where she feels her life would be in danger, would come not in the short term, but "in the medium term." He said Bibi told him she is locked in one room of a house. "The door opens at food time only," said Ullah, and she is allowed to make phone calls in the morning and again at night. ALSO READ: Aasia Bibi can travel anywhere inside Pakistan or abroad: Foreign Office He said she usually calls her daughters. Bibi's husband is with her, he said. "She is living with her family and given requisite security for safety," Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said in an email. He said the government was responsible for taking "all possible measures" to protect her and her family, adding that "she is a free citizen after her release from jail and can move anywhere in Pakistan or abroad." Bibi told Ullah the security detail assigned to her refuses to explain why she is still confined. Bibi's case has brought international attention to Pakistan's blasphemy law, which carries an automatic death sentence for a conviction of insulting Islam. There have been widespread complaints that the law is used to settle scores and intimidate religious minorities, including Shiite Muslims. The mere suggestion of blasphemy can incite mobs to kill. After Bibi's October acquittal the radical Tehreek-e-Labbaik party called its followers onto the streets, where they protested for three days demanding Bibi's immediate execution as well as the death of the judges who acquitted her. The party leadership also advocated overthrowing Prime Minister Imran Khan's government and incited the military against the army chief. Since then the party's leadership has been arrested along with dozens of their supporters for inciting violence. Ullah, a rights activist, first began aiding those falsely charged with blasphemy when his wife was wrongly accused and has since helped several people gain their freedom. Bibi's case brought him to the attention of religious radicals. In recent months, he has been physically assaulted, gunmen have opened fire on his home, and several religious radicals attacked his home. Ullah said he fears being attacked again or charged with blasphemy. Bibi hopes to be able to join her daughters in Canada, where they have been granted asylum. By PTI ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan will meet IMF chief Christine Lagarde in Dubai on Sunday to discuss the conditions of the bailout package for his cash-strapped country. Khan is paying a day-long trip to the UAE to take part in the 7th edition of the World Government Summit on the invitation of Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE Sheikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum. Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry told Dawn newspaper that the premier will meet Lagarde on the sidelines of the World Government Summit in Dubai. The report quoted a senior official involved in the negotiations as saying that Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have narrowed their positions on the scale of adjustments over the past few weeks of continuous engagements. The IMF is asking for an adjustment of around Rs 1,600-2,000 billion over three to four years. It also wants some corrective measures to put Pakistan's economy on the right track after witnessing the highest-ever current account deficit. But the stumbling issue in the talks is the pace of adjustments in the current expenditure. The emphasis on current expenditures comes as a result of a focus on what is known as a "primary balance" in the parlance of public finance. According to the official, there is some space for cut in certain expenditures where Pakistan is in a comfortable position. "This agreement in cut will pave way for accession to the programme," the official claimed, adding that it will be a politically difficult decision. A cut in the current expenditures still seems to put the government in awkward position by making adjustments in subsidies and other special grants. The IMF has been demanding that the burden of any expenditure cuts should fall on current expenditures that include debt service, defence and subsidies. Finance Division's Spokesperson Khaqan Najeeb said that productive dialogue continued with the IMF on all areas including fiscal, energy, structural reforms and monetary policy. The two sides continue to exchange views on data and a reform framework to move forward. Discussions are part of a regular ongoing interaction between the government and the IMF and will continue in coming weeks, Najeeb said. "In addition, technical level subject-specific discussions also support the process of overall dialogue," he said. The IMF has also asked for further monetary tightening as well as a complete free float of the exchange rate. "We are already towards target in these areas," the official said, adding that the IMF has acknowledged these measures. According to the official, Finance Minister Asad Umar has already conveyed to the IMF during the recent parleys that only those measures will be taken which are favourable for the country's economic growth. Although the government has secured a breathing space from Saudi Arabian and the UAE loans, an IMF programme is essential to unlock access to resources from other multilateral lenders like the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, as well as the global capital markets. Cash-strapped Pakistan has received USD 1 billion each from Saudi Arabia and the UAE, as part of the bailout package by the two Gulf nations to help shore up Islamabad's dwindling foreign currency reserves. Saudi Arabia's assistance was part of the USD 6 billion bailout package - USD 3 billion balance-of-payments support and another USD 3 billion in deferred payments on oil imports - which Riyadh had agreed in October last year. Pakistan, which is in talks with the IMF for a bailout package, has also reportedly received financial assistance from China. Earlier, officials said that Pakistan would seek around USD 8 billion from the IMF which would be the biggest package by the Fund for Islamabad. By PTI JERUSALEM: Noted Indian historian Sanjay Subrahmanyam has won Israel's prestigious Dan David Prize for this year for his work on inter-cultural encounters between Asians, Europeans and people of North and South America during the early modern era. Subrahmanyam, son of strategic analyst K Subrahmanyam and brother of former foreign secretary S Jaishankar, won the award in the category of 'past time dimension' for his work in macro-history. He shares the USD 1 million award in this category with Prof Kenneth Pomeranz of the University of Chicago. The international Dan David Prize is awarded annually to those who have made outstanding scientific, technological and humanistic accomplishments in fields representing the past, present and future of human achievement. Three Dan David Prize are given every year. The recipients in the "Past" category are generally drawn from the fields of history, archaeology, palaeontology and biography; the "Present" from arts, media, policy and economics; and the "Future" from one of the exact or natural sciences. Delighted that my college contemporary Sanjay Subrahmanyam has won the Dan David Prize. Our teacher Dharma Kumar said when he was a student: Sanjay will be Indias first truly world-class historian. And so it has proved. Ramachandra Guha (@Ram_Guha) February 9, 2019 This year's winners were chosen from the three categories for their work in macro history, defending democracy and combating climate change, respectively. Subrahmanyam, an alumni of University of Delhi, holds the Irving and Jean Stone Endowed Chair in Social Sciences at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), which he joined in 2004. He is also the recipient of the Infosys Prize for humanities for his "path-breaking contribution to history". The eminent historian, who did his doctorate from Delhi School of Economics, began as an economic historian but later branched out to work on political, intellectual and cultural history. The Dan David Prize is a joint international enterprise endowed by the Dan David Foundation headquartered at Tel Aviv University. The award ceremony is likely to be held at the university in May. The prize, now in its 18th year, was established by late Dan David, an international businessman and philanthropist who envisioned a project that would extend beyond traditional academic categorisations. The winners in the "Present" category for "Defending Democracy" this year has been won by Reporters without Borders, an organisation that works for the freedom of the Press and Prof Michael Ignatieff. Ignatieff is a Canadian author, academic and former politician who headed Liberal Party of Canada and was also the leader of the official opposition for almost three years. Christina Figueres, a Costa Rican diplomat has been awarded the prize in the "future" dimension for her role in combating climate change. Subrahmanyam, with this honour, joins the elite group of other prominent Indian laureates of the Dan David Prize which includes author Amitav Ghosh, music conductor Zubin Mehta, renowned chemist CNR Rao and astronomy professor Shrinivas Kulkarni. In order to encourage and foster new generations of scholars, the laureates are required to donate 10 per cent of their prize money towards scholarships for graduate or post-graduate researchers in their respective fields. Other prominent recipients of the award include former US vice president Al Gore, former British premier Tony Blair, cellist Yo-Yo Ma, novelist Margaret Atwood, Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales and filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen. Meanwhile, reacting to Subrahmanyam's achievement, eminent Indian historian and writer Ramachandra Guha tweeted, "Delighted that my college contemporary Sanjay Subrahmanyam has won the Dan David Prize. Our teacher Dharma Kumar said when he was a student: "Sanjay will be India's first truly world-class historian. And so it has proved." He further said, Subrahmanyam "is a true polymath; in his command of languages and sources, his brilliant analytical mind, his interdisciplinary framework, his literary flair. Incidentally, all his degrees are in economics, all from the University of Delhi." By AFP WASHINGTON: A second woman has accused Virginia's lieutenant governor Justin Fairfax of sexual misconduct, US media reported on Friday, further adding to the political turmoil in the eastern US state. Fairfax is next in line for the governorship if Governor Ralph Northam - who faces intense pressure to resign over a racist yearbook photo - decides to step down. The Washington Post reported that a Maryland woman accused Fairfax of a "premeditated and aggressive" attack when the two were undergraduate students at Duke University in 2000, while CNN said the woman had accused Fairfax of rape. The allegation comes after another woman accused Fairfax of misconduct over a sexual encounter they had in a hotel room 15 years ago, one that he insists was "100 per cent consensual". Fairfax, a 39-year-old Democrat, won the election in November alongside Northam, who has been fighting for his political survival since a 1984 yearbook surfaced that features a racist photo on a page dedicated to him. After initially saying he was in the photo -- which pictures one man in blackface next to another wearing a Ku Klux Klan robe and hood -- Northam now denies appearing in the image and has so far declined calls to step down. Their first product, MicroDragon, has been launched into space, bringing with it the intellect and space conquest aspiration of young Vietnamese people. Following the launch of MicroDragon in January 2019, Vietnam plans to launch the NanoDragon satellite in 2020. The 50-kilogram MicroDragon was sent into orbit aboard a Japanese rocket and is tasked with observing, taking photos and monitoring the quality of coastal water to serve the fishery industry. The satellite is also designed to detect cloud coverage to help with atmospheric correction, and receive and transmit signals between two distant locations on earth. With MicroDragon, Vietnam can improve its capacity in natural disaster prevention and climate change mitigation. In the meantime, the under-10-kilogram NanoDragon is being developed by the VNSCs engineers and experts in Vietnam. The satellite will be given the task of testing the technology to control the direction of satellites in orbit and receive automatic vessel identification signals. The design, manufacture, launch and operation of NanoDragon is part of the national space technology programme during the 2016-2020 period. The VNSC already had experience in designing the 1-kilogram PicoDragon in 2013 but the manufacture of a larger satellite such as the 50-kilogram MicroDragon was nevertheless a long step. In order to fulfil this important mission, during the entire project duration from 2013 to 2017, students and instructors met roughly every three months to evaluate their designs at alternating universities. The evaluation method and content strictly follow the European Space Agencys satellite development system procedures. The students were able to participate directly in the process from research and design to the manufacture, assembly and testing of MicroDragon. The entire manufacturing process took place in Japan with training as the main purpose. So it is safe to say that this is a satellite manufactured by Vietnamese people, said VNSC Deputy Director Vu Viet Phuong. MicroDragon is equipped with a multispectral imager camera that can function across 12 different spectral ranges. However, its resolution is only approximately 70 metres, meaning only objects larger than 70 metres can be distinguished, appropriate for observing ocean colours for research and the evaluation of plankton in the ocean. Phuong said The greatest meaning of successfully manufacturing MicroDragon lies in the purpose of training, that is mastering satellite technology and our young engineers have made it. MicroDragon passed all ground tests and has been approved by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency for launch in mid-January. After introducing the Japanese-funded MicroDragon project, Dr Le Xuan Huy from the VNSC shared about the difficulties facing the young Vietnamese engineers during the time they took part in the satellite research, design and manufacture in Japan. MicroDragon consists of many components, structures and stages, and they are very complex. The research and development tasks were assigned to each group of engineers studying at five universities based on the professional competency of each group at these institutions. Because the working conditions and methods are different between these universities, and they are scattered across Japan, the engineers encountered quite a lot of difficulties when integrating and testing the entire system, said Dr Huy. The optical sensor of the satellite is an extremely important part, considered as the eye of the satellite. The interesting thing is that the eye was designed by the first female engineer of the VNSC, Nguyen Thi Thao, who was born in 1989. Sharing the enthusiasm and passion for space science like Thao, the other young Vietnamese scientists who were sent to Japan all made great efforts to overcome numerous difficulties and fulfil the mission successfully. The time when 36 young engineers of the VNSC concluded their education programme in Japan was also when MicroDragon - a product of Vietnamese intellect and spirit - was completed and stored in Japan, ready for launch. Thao and the other young scientists of the VNSC have returned to Vietnam and continue to work hard in laboratories to pursue their passion of space research with a vow to devoting their youth to the Vietnamese peoples dream of space exploration. The launch of MicroDragon, manufactured by Vietnam under Japanese guidance and assistance, is a step in realising the Vietnamese dream of mastering satellite technology and conquering space. Mudita Girotra By NEW DELHI: In April last year, a fire gutted a refugee camp which sheltered about 50 Rohingya families in south Delhis Kalindi Kunj area. Meenara Begum along with her husband and four children had to start afresh. Three months later, fresh tragedy befell Meenara as she lost her husband. Till date, the 30-year-old is confused about what went wrong with Jahid. He must have died of depression, she thought then. Meenara regrets that she did not get a post-mortem examination done. All kinds of thoughts come to my mind now. Maybe, someone killed him...I cant say. Maybe, he had a disease we didnt understand. He was quite plump and healthy but used to complain about some pain in his left thigh. I should have got his post-mortem (examination) done, she told this newspaper. At that time, I was so shaken by his demise that I couldnt think of anything else. Also, I was sure that his was a natural death and that there was no foul play. Nobody ever bothered us, unlike our own people, who threw us out. We got this space to live, Meenara said. The family had fled Myanmar in 2012 and found shelter in Kalindi Kunj. Jahid had started working at a mens hostel run by Zakat Foundation of India. She said, He used to remain quite tense after our hutment and his shop in the basti (slum) were gutted in the fire. It was a huge loss. Our shop had confectionary items worth Rs 3 lakh. One day, I got a call from a neighbour saying that he was terribly sick and a few boys from the hostel took him to a private hospital. Unfortunately, he didnt return, Meenara said The couples 5-year-old son Sheikh Abdullah has no knowledge about the tragedy. He tells me Papa has gone to the hostel and will come back soon, she said. Now, Meenara has to fend for herself and her three four children, including a daughter. As one of the few widows in the basti, Meenara is one of the five or six women who have found menial jobs in nearby areas. She works at a madarsa. Ours is not an advanced community. Women dont work. But I dont have a choice. I need to earn for my children, she said, adding, Women must work. Why shouldnt they? I want my daughter to grow up and do a respectable job and not end up like me. No wonder Meenara is sceptical about the life ahead. People from United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) come to check on us from time to time, but theres little help from their side. This land belongs to the government. I dont know what we will do and where we will go if evicted, she said. According to Rohingya Human Rights Initiative founder Sabber Kyaw Min, there was not enough support from the International community. We are very grateful to the Indian government for letting us stay in this country. The condition of the Rohingyas living here is still better than what it was back home. We lived in detention in our own country and felt shackled. However, Ive heard theres an order to deport Rohingyas living here. It has put fear in our minds, Min said. Krishna P By Express News Service SANGAREDDY : Once known for being a haven of the lesser-grown millet crop, Zahirabad has seen a record-decrease in millet production in recent years. The lack of government support for the millet crop has led to an overturn in sowing practices of the region in the last decade.In 2008, farmers in Zahirabad area irrigated millets in 4,359 hectares against 310 hectares of cotton. At present, farmers have irrigated cotton in 5,890 hectares against millets in a meagre 150 hectares. Small-scale scale farmers of over 75 villages of Jharasangam, Raikode, Nyalkal and Zahirabad mandals were engaged in cultivating millet. In particular, the Deccan Development Society (DDS) encouraged the dalit women farmers of the area to cultivate millets and was quite successful initially. DDS also tried to tell the outside world about the importance of millets by inviting celebrities to various festivals organised to celebrate the crop. Farmers are struggling because the government neither announces a minimum support price for millets nor allots purchasing centres for the crop. In addition, farmers dont get seeds on credit from the traders, says Cherukuri Jayasree, director of the DDS. She also said that millets are much more rich in nutrients and the government should set up purchase centres. Mohammad Akhtar Hussain from the area told Express, Only few farmers began to cultivate millets in the village and rest of the farmers sowed cotton. As a result, birds would often eat up the grains.The cultivation of millets and cotton in Raikode mandal was equal and currently, cotton is being irrigated in 10,787 hectares against 98 hectares of millets. Farmers irrigated millets in 2,960 hectares against 473 hectares of cotton in Nyalkal mandal in the past and now, farmers irrigate cotton in 6,640 hectares against 400 hectares of millets. By Express News Service COIMBATORE: BJP State unit President Tamilisai Soundararajan stated that Prime Minister Narendra Modis participation in a public meeting at Tirupur would be the turning point for the saffron party in Tamil Nadu. Speaking to media persons at the Coimbatore International Airport on Saturday before heading to Tirupur for Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit on Sunday, she said that the BJP will not go it alone this polls, but form a strong alliance to capture power. We have already started our campaign for the general election. Prime Minister Modis visit to Madurai had a tremendous impact on the State as far as the party is concerned. His Tirupur visit would be a significant moment for us and the State. Not only the cadre of BJP, but also the people are anticipating his arrival. By Express News Service BHUBANESWAR: After commercial operations were shut at Veer Surendra Sai (VSS) airport in Jharsuguda in October last year following arbitrary suspension of flights by Air Odisha, SpiceJet is all set to launch its services under Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik (UDAN) scheme from March 31. VSS airport officials said SpiceJet was awarded the tender in January to start its operations at the airport. The officials of the airlines conducted the safety assessment of the airport today. The airlines will most likely start its operations from March 31, VSS Airport Director S K Chauhan told TNIE. The airline is set to resume operation on three routes in both directions - Delhi to Jharsuguda, Kolkata to Jharsuguda and Hyderabad to Jharsuguda. Besides SpiceJet, three other airlines have also been awarded tenders to operate at VSS under UDAN scheme. Jet Airways will most likely start its operations in both directions from Mumbai to Jharsuguda, sources said. Air Odisha had bagged the permission to operate flights from Jharsuguda to Bhubaneswar, Ranchi and Raipur under UDAN. However, after the agreement with Air Odisha was cancelled, one of the four airlines is expected to operate on the same route. VSS Airport was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on September 22 last year. The States second airport was built 56 years after Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA) came up in Bhubaneswar. VSS airport was set up at an estimated cost of `210 crore with a contribution of `75 crore from the State Government. It has state-of-the-art passenger facilities on a par with other domestic airports in the country. By Express News Service KENDRAPARA: Acute shortage of sunflower seeds has hit farmers of Kendrapara district ahead of the rabi crop season. Distressed farmers have resorted to buying the seed at exorbitant prices from open market. Farmers usually begin groundwork for sunflower cultivation after harvest of paddy in December and reap oilseed by March-end.This year, farmers had set a target to raise sunflower over 1200 hectare (ha) of land which requires 12,000 quintals of seeds. But short supply of seeds and lack of Government support have hit the farmers hard, delaying the cultivation. Prafulla Nayak, a farmer of Patarapur village, alleged that the district agriculture officials are not making efforts to supply sunflower seeds on time. The planting season has sparked off a rush for sunflower seeds but its acute shortage has affected the farmers, he said. Taking the advantage of the situation, unscrupulous traders are selling sub-standard sunflower seeds at `250 to `300 to farmers in local markets. They fear that if the issue is not tackled soon, it will severely damage the sunflower prospects in the district, said Tapan Sahoo, a farmer of Marsaghai. Sunflower cultivation is a suitable alternative to paddy crop in riverside areas of Aul, Rajkanika, Garadapur, Mahakalapada, Rajnagar and Kendrapara blocks in the district. Large number of farmers prefer sunflower over paddy as it is a short duration crop. Farmers can earn more profit from this cash crop which yields a minimum 15 quintal per ha while its market price is `5000 per quintal, said Bijaya Parida, a sunflower farmer of Patkura. Sunflower is one of the most sought after edible oils in the country. Thus, there is a huge demand for the oil seeds and oil mills are ready to pay good price for the produce. Many paddy farmers have switched from the traditional crops to sunflower for better returns, said a farmers leader and demanded the State Governments intervention into the matter. Deputy Director of Agriculture Mitradoya Das said the official price of sunflower seed is `205 per kg. The Odisha State Seeds Corporation (OSSC) will soon supply the seeds to the farmers, he said. By PTI KOTTAYAM: Rape-accused Bishop Franco Mulakkal, who was relieved of his pastoral responsibilities by Pope Francis, still interferes with the administrative matters of Jalandhar diocese of the Roman Catholic Church, nuns protesting against him alleged here Sunday. "We believe that Bishop Angelo is the apostolic administrator of Jalandhar diocese. But when we see the kind of letters (being issued by the diocese PRO and Missionaries of Jesus congregation head), we doubt whether Bishop Franco still wields power in the diocese," Sister Anupama, a representative of the protesting nun, told reporters at Kuravilangad near here. Their statement comes a day after Jalandhar diocese PRO Fr Peter Kavumpuram, who is allegedly close to Bishop Mulakkal, issued a clarification statement countering an e-mail issued to nuns by its apostolic administrator Bishop Angelo Ruffino Gracias. READ HERE: Church withdraws transfer order of five Kerala nuns protesting against Bishop Franco In his e-mail, Bishop Angelo had assured the five nuns, who are staying with the rape survivor nun, that "there will be no move from the diocese of Jalandhar to oust" them from the Kuravilangad convent in Kottayam district as long as they are needed for the court case. The Bishop wrote to the nuns after they complained to him against the head of their congregation, Missionaries of Jesus under the Jalandhar diocese, for issuing transfer orders to four of them who took part in the protest demanding the arrest of the bishop. Bishop Franco Mulakkal | PTI Another nun, Sister Neena Rose, who is staying with the rape survivor, was asked to report to the Missionaries of Jesus congregation's Jalandhar convent and meet its Superior General Sr Regina Kandamthottu on January 26. Kavumpuram, issued a clarification statement countering Bishop Angelo hours after his e-mail communication was made public, saying even though the congregation of Missionaries of Jesus is of diocesan right, the internal running of the congregation is left to the Superior General and her council. READ HERE | A Christmas in solitude for Kerala nuns who protested against rape-accused Bishop "The Bishop of Jalandhar does not normally interfere unless the overall interests of the church demands such interference. By this clarification the Apostolic Administrator has not interfered in the internal affairs of this congregation, therefore the order to return to their rightful communities by the Mother General is not cancelled but stands," the statement quoting Fr Kavumpuram had said. The protesting nuns stay with the survivor nun in the convent in Kuravilangad. Talking to reporters on Sunday, Sister Anupama rejected the clarification statement issued by Kavumpuram, saying they would not move out of the convent in Kuravilangad. ALSO READ: Church trying to suppress dissenting voices? "Clarification statement (issued by Kavumpuram) is not acceptable for us. We will continue to stay in this convent till the case is over," she said. The congregation of nuns -- Missionaries of Jesus -- had directed the nuns to join their previously-assigned convents, according to the transfer orders issued between March and May last year. The nuns Alphy, Anupama, Josephine and Ancitta were served notice by the superior general, urging them to take up their assigned responsibilities as befitting members of the congregation. The four nuns had earlier written to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan seeking his intervention to ensure that their transfer orders were not effected till the trial of the case was over. The survivor nun had also written a separate letter to the chief minister, seeking his help in the matter. "Their aim is to single me out and to harass and torture me. My life will be in danger if such a situation arises," she said in her letter. The nuns on Saturday had joined 'Save our Sisters' forum to stage a protest against the transfer orders issued by the congregation. A tense situation prevailed at the protest site when a group of people opposing the nuns' protest reached there and raised slogans against them. ALSO READ | Kerala nun rape case: Sister Anupama heckled, asked to leave key witness' funeral The group was removed from the spot, police sources said. The protest led by the nuns and the Catholic reformist forums in Kochi in September last year had led to a public outrage and demands for action against the bishop. Bishop Mulakkal, a senior member of the Roman Catholic clergy in India, was arrested last year following allegations by a nun that he repeatedly raped and sexually assaulted her at the Kuravilangad convent between 2014 and 2016, a charge denied by him. By Express News Service KOCHI: A day after Express ran an interview with former defence secretary G Mohan Kumar, he clarified the following points: 1 Even members of the negotiating committee will have differences, but they get resolved. 2. The Rafale deal was for 36 aircraft against 126 as planned earlier. To meet the additional requirement the Ministry of Defence proposes to manufacture another 112 in India through the strategic partnership route. There is no reduction of numbers. ALSO READ | No scam in Rafale deal: Former Defence Secretary Mohan Kumar 3. There will be differences of opinion at every stage of discussion, (which was published verbatim) was a generic statement. He elaborated on his earlier answer to the query, Defence Minister had noted that you (Def Sec) may resolve issue in consultation with Principal Secretary to PM. Was it resolved? How?, saying the issue was resolved, but declined to divulge any details saying he would reserve that for another occasion. Toby Antony By Express News Service KOCHI: The Customs Department is looking to deploy its unit in Lakshadweep considering the rising importance of the islands recently. Customs officers believe if a unit is deployed at the island, its surveillance and enforcement activities can be enhanced on the western side of the nation. A proposal in this regard has been sent to the Central Government a few months ago. For this, the ports in Lakshadweep have to be declared as Customs area. We have sought a unit to be deployed at Lakshadweep. The government after considering the proposal has sought a clarification whether there are enough vessels reaching Lakshadweep to start a unit there. A clarification about the importance of having a unit in Lakshadweep was given to the government again, sources said. Cargo vessels from Kerala and other states reach Lakshadweep on a regular basis. We dont have any unit that can check whether any smuggling of contraband is taking place. There are several small boats operating from smaller ports in Kerala. Search at mid-sea with available manpower is not possible now. If our men are deployed at Lakshadweep, they can ensure no such illegal activity is taking place, an officer said. Customs Commissioner Sumit Kumar confirmed a request was sent to the Central Government for having a Customs unit in Lakshadweep. We are carrying out discussions in this regard. The matter was taken up at the highest level to expedite the procedures, he said.Recently, the Customs Preventive unit had seized a Swiss yacht that entered Lakshadweep without permission. Already, the Customs receives frequent information that foreign vessels are entering Indian territorial waters, especially at Lakshadweep,without permission. Additionally, Customs preventive wing will get a new marine unit at Kollam. The marine unit will be deployed at Kollam and will operate in the coastline from Thiruvananthapuram to Kollam. By PTI KOTTAYAM: Days after nuns protesting against rape-accused Bishop Franco Mullakkal were asked to move out of their convent, the Jalandhar Diocese of the Roman Catholic Church has assured them that there will be no move to oust them as long as they as they are needed for the court case. An e-mail in this regard was sent to five nuns, who are staying with the rape survivor nun, by current apostolic administrator of Jalandhar diocese Bishop Angelo, one of the nuns said here Saturday. ALSO READ: Swami Agnivesh writes to Pope Francis against transfer of four Kerala nuns The Bishop has assured the nuns that "there will be no move from the diocese of Jalandhar to oust" them from the Kuravilangad convent in Kottayam district as long as they are needed for the court case, she claimed. Copies of purported e-mail sent by the Bishop was made available to the media. Earlier, the head of their congregation, Missionaries of Jesus under the Jalandhar diocese, had issued transfer orders to four nuns who took part in the protest demanding the arrest of the bishop. Another nun, Sister Neena Rose, who is staying with the rape survivor, was asked to report to the Missionaries of Jesus congregation's Jalandhar convent and meet its Superior General Sr Regina Kandamthottu on January 26. ALSO READ: Sister Anupama heckled, asked to leave key witness' funeral The congregation of nuns -- Missionaries of Jesus -- had directed the nuns to join their previously-assigned convents, according to the transfer orders issued between March and May last year. The nuns Alphy, Anupama, Josephine and Ancitta were served notice by the superior general, urging them to take up their assigned responsibilities as befitting members of the congregation. Meanwhile, Peter Kavumpuram, PRO of the Jalandhar diocese, issued a clarification statement late in the evening, saying even though the congregation of Missionaries of Jesus is of diocesan right, the internal running of the congregation is left to the Superior General and her council. ALSO READ: Kerala nun's brother opposes bail granted to Bishop Mulakkal "The Bishop of Jalandhar does not normally interfere unless the overall interests of the church demands such interference. By this clarification the Apostolic Administrator has not interfered in the internal affairs of this congregation, therefore the order to return to their rightful communities by the Mother General is not cancelled but stands," said the statement quoting Fr Kavumpuram. The statement, however, did not have mention of the purported email sent to the nuns by Bishop Angelo. The four nuns had earlier written to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan seeking his intervention to ensure that their transfer orders were not effected till the trial of the case was over. The survivor nun had also written a separate letter to the chief minister, seeking his help in the matter. ALSO READ: Protest against bishop enters 12th day, demands his arrest "Their aim is to single me out and to harass and torture me. My life will be in danger if such a situation arises," she said in her letter. In her letter to Rose, the superior general had warned that failure to comply with the advice to report in person as instructed would be construed as a deliberate refusal to abide by the legitimate order of her Mother General, thereby challenging the authority canonically bestowed on her. Meanwhile, the nuns Saturday joined 'Save Our Sisters' forum to stage a protest against the transfer orders issued by the congregation. A tense situation prevailed at the protest site when a group of people opposing the nuns' protest reached there and raised slogans against them. The group was removed from the spot, police sources said. The protest led by the nuns and the Catholic reformist forums in Kochi in September last year had led to a public outrage and demands for action against the bishop. Bishop Mulakkal, a senior member of the Roman Catholic clergy in India, was arrested last year following allegations by a nun that he repeatedly raped and sexually assaulted her at the Kuravilangad convent between 2014 and 2016, a charge denied by him. Sunil Patil By Express News Service BELAGAVI: Netizens of Belagavi have taken up the cudgels for the Visvesvaraya Technological University (VTU), Belagavi, a day after Chief Minister Kumaraswamy announced in the state Budget to bifurcate the university.Condemning the CMs budget announcement of setting up a new VTU campus at Hassan, they urged him to first resolve the allegations of corruption reported in VTU and take steps to strengthen the varsity, while tagging him in their posts on Twitter and Facebook. VTU was established by the state government to provide technical education and it has 218 affiliated colleges, one constituent and 17 autonomous colleges. Now, shock and disappointment has spread among people of North Karnataka over the CMs decision to divide it, instead of conducting inquiry into corruption and strengthen the varsity. In Twitter, netizens have started an online campaign with the hashtag Save VTU. Various entities, individuals and prominent personalities from Belagavi,and even Member of Parliament Suresh Angadi have supported this campaign with their tweets. Rohan Juvali, President of Belagavi Chamber of Commerce and Industries, though his Facebook account appealed to the state government, If you dont have anything to give to North Karnataka, its fine, but please dont take anything from here, #SAVE VTU. In his comment section, he has also asked people to come together to protest. Similarly, many have used Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp to condemn the decision. Kannada forum writes to CM Belagavi District Kannada organisations action committee has condemned the Chief Ministers decision. In a e-mail to the Chief Minister, Ashok Chandaragi, committee president, said this move is an insult and injustice to North Karnataka. People of NK are highly shocked and disappointed by your decision.... Please take back this decision of bifurcating VTU, he said. At a reception for Permanent Representative of Vietnam to FAO Ambassador Nguyen Thi Bich Hue in Rome, on February 7, Da Silva spoke highly of the effective cooperation between the Vietnamese Government and the organisation, considering it as an example of collaboration that has significantly contributed to the implementation of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). He also welcomed Vietnams participation in the Agreement on Port State Measures (PSMA) and agreed with Vietnams proposal for enhanced cooperation in this regard, covering technical support and high-tech application. For her part, Hue applauded FAOs collaboration and support to Vietnam over the past few years, saying Vietnam will contribute more to the organisations activities in the future, especially in the areas where the country has strengths and experiences such as rice cultivation and aquaculture, as well as South-South cooperation. Despite the marked achievements in poverty reduction, Vietnam has still faced various challenges, especially in the context of adverse impacts of natural disasters and climate change, and complex commercial ties, she said. Given this, Vietnam hopes to receive more assistance from FAO in building green, smart agriculture that is competitive and adaptive to climate change, thus helping to ensure food security, develop the national economy and improve the livelihood of local people, Hue added. Hue also pledged to do her utmost to promote cooperation between FAO and Vietnam during her term of office. By PTI BENGALURU: Hours before Prime Minister Narendra Modi launches BJP's campaign in Karnataka for the Lok Sabha polls, the Congress Sunday questioned the saffron party over its alleged bid to topple the coalition government is the state. The Prime Minister is scheduled to address a rally at Hubballi in northern part of the state later this evening. Speaking to reporters here, Pradesh Congress President Dinesh Gundu Rao posed a few questions to Modi and demanded answers from him. READ: Dinesh, Siddaramaiah at odds over Operation Lotus threat "Your (PM's) popular slogan has been, 'Na khaoonaga, na khaane doonga' (I will neither indulge in corruption, nor let others indulge in it). Then how did you let horse-trading and bribing of MLAs by your party leaders take place in Karnataka? Are you willing to take any unethical action in order to attain power?" he questioned. "How do you justify statements of your party leader (B S) Yeddyurappa in an audio clip that surfaced, where Yeddyurappa offered money to MLAs to switch sides and spoke about your illegitimate control over the judicial system," he asked. READ HERE: Voice is mine but audio tape is doctored, admits Yeddyurappa; blames Kumaraswamy for 'third class politics' "Please make it a point to answer these very legitimate questions during your visit to Hubballi. These questions aren't political in nature. These are quintessential questions of public importance, especially to the people of Karnataka," he said. Amid the turmoil in the ruling coalition that has cast a shadow over the stability of his government, Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy had Friday released the audio clip in which Yeddyurappa was purportedly trying to lure JD(S) MLA Naganagouda through his son. The state BJP strongman had, however, said the audio clip was 'fake' and a "concocted story". The KPCC chief also alleged discrimination by the Centre against the state, saying Karnataka was reeling under drought and had requested Rs 2,400 crore to deal with it, but the Centre has released only Rs 900 crore. On the other hand the central government's assistance to NDA-ruled Maharashtra stood at Rs 4,714.28 crore, he claimed. READ: Will take political retirement if audio clip is proven fabricated, says HD Kumaraswamy He said mandatory payments of MGNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act) workers to the tune of Rs 2,000 crore is still pending, and hit out at the Modi government for claiming credit for establishing an IIT in Dharwad, without acknowledging the state government's contribution for allotting a 500-acre prime land. Ahead of the BJP rally, the PM is scheduled to lay the foundation stone of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT-Dharwad) on Sunday. Alleging that the Karnataka Chief Minister was not officially invited to the event, Rao termed it an 'insult' to the state. He also targeted the PM on Rafale deal and alleged "sidelining" of Bengaluru-headquartered HAL. By Express News Service GUNTUR: Terming the TDP government in Andhra Pradesh as `baap-beta sarkar' (father-son rule) Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on his maiden visit to Andhra Pradesh after the BJP snapped its ties with the ruling TDP, launched a no-barriers frontal attack on the State Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu for joining `Maha Milawat' (Maha Adulteration coalition) and leaving development to air and focussing on making accusations against him and his government. ALSO READ: Black balloons, 'Go back Modi' slogans welcome PM in Andhra Pradesh Modi, who referred Naidu as `father of Lokesh' in an apparent bid to give `naamdar' (dynast) party tag to the TDP, said the AP CM had deviated from his party's ideology as the 'Chowkidaar' had started asking him the 'hisaab' (accounts) of the money spent by his government. "He had lost his sleep as the Chowkidaar started asking questions about the central funds spent by his government. There never used to be accountability till now. Now, I am asking details for each penny spent by the state government and he is not in a position to reply,'' Modi said. Modi also raised the issue of alleged corruption in the State. Referring to Naidu's remarks that the PM does not know how to create wealth, Modi remarked, "Lokesh's father knows how to create wealth. Yes, it it true and he is working hard for it. From Amaravati (capital city construction) to Polavaram project, he is in the process of creating his own wealth and that is why he is facing trouble with Chowkidaar.'' On fulfilment of AP Reorganisation Act assurances, an issue that had been a bone of contention between the ruling TDP in the State and the BJP at the Centre, Modi said the Centre, in the 55 months, had done everything possible for the truncated State. "The only problem is that the State government is hiding facts and figures and I am here to expose the lies of the ruling party here,'' Modi said adding Naidu had now bowed himself in front of the Congress which had bifurcated the state for its political gains. "In 2014, when we came into power, we formulated Special Finance Assistance Package and ensured AP gets all the funds that it would had got by Special Category Status. The package was announced in September 2016 and Naidu, on the floor of State Assembly, passed a resolution accepting it and congratulating the Centre. We are in the process of fulfilling every assurance made under the package,'' Modi said but the TDP, which failed to deliver, had taken a U-turn. Modi went on to add that the Centre had extended three lakh crore projects to the State and several government establishments, manufacturing clusters, hubs, institutions were extended to AP. Modi said though the AP Reorganisation Act 2014 had specific mention that all the projects should be grounded in 10 years, his government had grounded them in less than five years. ``I know the regional aspirations. I was the CM of a state for several years. After bifurcation of AP in 2014, I worked with dedication for developing AP and we will continue to do it,'' Modi said. "Babu garu, Your father-son sarkar, though you have been levelling baseless allegations and abusing me, the people of AP have reposed confidence on me and the tremondous success of the meeting is an indication to it,'' Modi said added that the corrupt 'baap-beta sarkar' in AP will get defeated in the coming elections. Modi's Praja Chaitanya Sabha went off peacefully as the ruling TDP decides to observe Black Day protesting the denial of Special Category Status to the State by AP government and gave a call to its cadre to stage protests. Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and his son, IT minister Nara Lokesh, attended official programmes in Vijayawada and Tirupati respectively, in a black dress as a mark of protest against Modi's visit. By Express News Service VIJAYAWADA: Objecting to Narendra Modis visit to Andhra Pradesh without according Special Category Status and implementing various provisions of AP Reorganisation Act, TDP and other political parties staged protests in different forms across the state. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi lays the foundation stone for Krishnapatnam Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd (BPCL) coastal terminal project in Guntur. Sporting black dress, carrying black flags and flexis, protestors took out rallies shouting Modi Go Back slogans. BJP leaders accuse the TDP government of stopping over 100 buses, ferrying party activists, from reaching the #PrajaChaitanyaSabha venue where PM @narendramodi would address a pre-poll meeting. They are making repeated appeals to the police to allow the buses and workers. #Guntur Jayanth P (@Jayanth_TNIE) February 10, 2019 TDP activists staged demonstrations at Jinnah Tower Centre in Guntur, Benz Circle Vijayawada, several places in Visakhapatnam. Minister for Water Resources Devineni Umamaheswara Rao, TDP Gadde Rammohan Rao and others wearing black shirts participated in protests. They decried injustice done to the state by Narendra Modi Government. Film actor Shivaji and his supporters resorted to Jala Deeksha in Krishna River at Vijayawada carrying placards with the slogan Go Back Modi. Some others staged a protest by blindfolding themselves and carrying pots with clay and water. At a few places, Modi was burnt in effigies. Left Parties and Congress leaders also staged protest at various places. TDP MP Galla Jayadev, who was to participate in Narendra Modis visit as per protocol, boycotted the event in protest. READ | Hoardings with Modi No Entry slogans lined up ahead of PM visit Earlier in the day, BJP state president Kanna Lakshminarayana was not allowed into Gannavaram Airport to receive the Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Security at the airport said the name of Kanna was not there in the list of the persons for receiving the Prime Minister. Expressing his ire over the police department, the BJP leader returned. Governor ESL Narasimhan, Chief Secretary Anil Chandra Punetha, some BJP leaders received the Prime Minister, who arrived in a special flight to Gannavaram Airport. Prabhu Chawla By The seat of imperial power during British rule was Calcutta until it was shifted to Delhi in 1931. History is resonant with reverse parallels: BJP, Indias ruling power, is sure that the road to Raisina Hill starts this time from Kolkata nee Calcutta. The partys loquacious luminaries, like Prime Minister Narendra Modi, organization chief Amit Shah and over half a dozen mantris have laid siege to the citadel of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her Trinamool Congress. Their objective is to win 22 out of the 42 Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal as against just two at the moment. The BJPs trademark strategy of Polarize and Pulverize is being unleashed on Mamataland to force voters to choose between minority-positive TMC and pro-Hindutva BJP. Bengal is perhaps the only state where the fight is not primarily party versus party but between the two political leviathans, Modi and Mamata. By concentrating its firepower there, the BJP has sensed a fecund ground for sowing saffron seeds. Concerned over the possible loss of seats in the west and the north, it had foraged for a fertile electoral environment in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Kerala. Extensive research indicated they were not ripe for the plucking. But it did find a granary of promise in West Bengal. With Muslims at 30 per cent of the population, the BJP estimated the state as an ideal receptacle for the divide and rule philosophy: a matrix perfected over a century ago in Calcutta. This binary belief is charging the partys batteries as it tries to stop Didi from influencing the formation of the next Central government and kill her prime ministerial ambitions. Currently, with 32 MPs, she leads the third-largest party in the Lok Sabha. The battle lines are well-defined. Didi is determined to prevent saffron satraps such as Amit Shah and Central ministers from paradropping on Bengal and addressing election rallies at a time and venue of their choosing, suspicious of their strategy to focus on communally sensitive areas to split the electorate. The BJP has drafted prominent figures of hardcore Hindutva in its Bengal campaign. With a combat team led by Modi-Shah comprising Rajnath Singh, Smriti Irani, Shivraj Chouhan, Biplab Deb and Yogi Adityanath, it is attempting a third partition of Bengalthis time on religious lines. Supported by a resurgent RSS cadre and workers from across India, it has planned over 100 rallies in Bengal. For the past six months, not a day has gone by without a senior mantri or party leader being spotted in some corner or the other of West Bengal attacking the TMC government. Saffron has missed few opportunities to paint Didi black, alleging corruption and minority mollification. Late last year, the BJP decided to take out a 40-day-long Rath Yatra covering 10,000 kilometres through Bengal. Three air-conditioned raths had been ordered to carry Amit Shah and other netas to various Lok Sabha constituencies. Didi promptly imposed a blanket ban on their tour de force. The party scuttlebutt is that the BJP has identified seats where it expects over 50 per cent chances of victoryit is no coincidence, perhaps, that they are located in communally sensitive areas such as parts of north and south Bengal and tribal-dominated Jungle Mahal, Purulia, Murshidabad, Malda, Cooch Behar and West Midnapore districts. With few minority leaders under its banner, it is betting on middle-class professionals and the trading community to deliver a grand slam in West Bengal. It has no local leaders with statewide mojo either; hence it is hoping for mass defections from TMC. It seeks to dictate the election narrative by putting the TMC on the defensive over corruption and communal distress. The inescapable irony is the BJPs reliance on the personal image and oratory of outside leaders. It scored well in 2014, polling 16 per cent of the Bengal vote in the wake of the Modi tsunami. With the CPM and Congress gasping for breath in an ultra-polarized election environment, the BJP is expecting to grab the space likely to be vacated by the Congress. Its lead campaigners have been briefed to target the migrant population from Bihar and other states. Therein lies the significance of Irani and Yogi. Irani has an added advantage over Yogi since she is not only a well-known face but also speaks fluent Bangla, Hindi and English. She has already made half a dozen visits to the state and addressed as many election meetings. When Shah fell ill and had to fly back to Delhi, she was the stand-in at his rallies. Expectedly, she launched a vitriolic attack on Didi, accusing her of histrionics. Mamata, the stormy petrel of secularism, refused Yogi permission to land his helicopter, as she had done previously with Shah. The maverick monk was forced to land in Jharkhand and drive down to Purulia for his public meeting. The mascot of his rhetoric of the day was Vivekananda, the sacred son of Bengal. Vivekananda had said, Garv se kaho hum Hindu hain. Mamata allows Muharram processions but not Durga Puja. This government creates obstacles for Saraswati Puja and Janmashthami, too, he told a cheering crowd. Muslim mollycoddling is not the BJPs only cause celebre against Didi. Amit Shah is disparaging of her opposition to the Citizenship Bill. The TMC government has done nothing for the refugees. But we will give citizenship to all Bengali Hindu refugees, announced Shah. Despite such provocations, Didi has so far refrained from playing the communal card. She has converted the fight into an issue of protecting federalism and democracy from a communally belligerent BJP. With her agitational tactics, she has proved to be more than a match for the BJP. She has set an example for other beleaguered non-BJP chief ministers to adopt while dealing with a bellicose Centre. Minimum Mamata equals Maximum Modi defines the BJPs law of political physics. The magic of history has a dark side, too. Over three centuries ago, British soldiers were imprisoned in the Black Hole of Calcutta that eventually led to war, causing the fall of Bengals ruler. However, the BJPs eastern strategy shows it is a captive of its own ideology. The political minimization of Mamata is essential for it to liberate Bengal from her iron grip and achieve the maximization of the prime ministers political stature. prabhu chawla prabhuchawla@newindianexpress.com Follow him on Twitter @PrabhuChawla T J S George By Unlike father Rajiv Gandhi and brother Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi has to wear two crossesthe Gandhi dynastic cross and the Vadra controversies cross. The second hurts more. The haste with which the government has opened the Vadra can of worms points to the viciousness of todays politics. But the worms cannot be wished away. We have a tradition of leaders allowing family and friends to influence policy. It began with Jawaharlal Nehru, whose private secretary, M O Mathai, was the source of much evil. Prime Minister Morarji Desai, considered a paragon of virtue, allowed son Kanti to sit in the PMO and influence decisions. P V Narasimha Rao hit a new low, lending his ears to the international fraudster Chandraswami. AB Vajpayee was supposed to usher in a new era, but he had a foster son-in-law who enjoyed official protocol status even when the prime minister went on foreign visits. There are sons and relatives getting special status under the present BJP rulers as well. The problem, therefore, is not confined to one party or one leader. It looks like an implant in the DNA of the Indian politician. K Chandrashekar Rao and N Chandrababu Naidu, sworn enemies, have both installed their sons as key Cabinet ministers. Deve Gowda, with a son as chief minister, is grooming a grandson for prime ministership. Even singles like Mayawati and Mamata Banerjee have nephews throwing their weight around. For us, politics is a blood thickener. In such a situation, it is perhaps unfair to single out Robert Vadra for special mention as an offender. Besides, the present governments hypocrisy is too blatant to be missed. Accusations against Vadra were publicly aired during the BJPs election campaign back in 2014. Though the party came to power, they took no follow-up action against Vadra for five years. Suddenly, the day Priyanka took charge as Congress secretary, the government got into action. What explains the coincidence? The people know even if the ruling party thinks they are dumb. And, pray, who is looking into the misdeeds of Vadra? The Enforcement Directorate, one of the many supposedly independent agencies that have lost their credibility in toto. This, of course, is not a new development; all parties in power have made a mockery of all agencies. But no one has done it with the rascality, the sinfulness and the in-your-face arrogance of the present regime. Things have reached a stage where an investigation by RAW, IB, CBI, ED etc. spreads the impression that the citizen investigated is innocent and is merely being harassed for political purposes. This would be ironic in Vadras case. Transgressions attributed to him stretch from family affairs (his father was disowned by him and a few years later was found dead in what was first described as a heart attack and later as a suicide) to his posturing as a political leader. He led a farcical motorcycle rally in Rae Bareli in 2004 and declared, even more farcically, If people want, I can join politics. On the day Priyanka went to take charge at the Congress office, a poster appeared there featuring him with her. It was quickly removed by an embarrassed Congress. A smart ED will leave him alone so that he can continue embarrassing his wife and her party. Evidently this guy is an untamed horse. The first rule about wild horses is that one must approach them with caution. The texts say: Ritual posturing and snorts often resolve a confrontation, but fighting does occur. By interfering, the agencies of a spiteful government can achieve nothing and lose much. Perhaps the governments strategists think that a Vadra hullabaloo will divert public attention from issues that matter, such as rising joblessness, farmers distress, destruction of small business through demonetisation, the rise of fringe elements with freedom to lynch, and so on. This may be true up to a point. But the desperation with which such tactics are resorted to also suggests that the ruling dispensation will stop at nothing. The suspicions over voting machines, for example, may not be out of place. In the 2014 elections, the present prime minister had acknowledged the importance of the Election Commission. With full responsibility, he told a rally in UP then, I am accusing Indias Election Commission of discrimination. The rest of India has been making the accusation from the opposite side of the ring this time. Hullabaloo about Vadras vagaries and Priyankas looks is a way to outshout others. Clearly this is going to be an anything-is-possible election. Politics has never been this dirty in India. By PTI HUBBALI: In a stinging attack on the JDS-Congress coalition in Karnataka, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday said Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy heading a "helpless" government had become a "punching bag" and mocked opposition efforts to impose the same model on the country. Addressing a massive rally here in north Karnataka and virtually launching his Lok Sabha campaign, Modi said there was not even a single day "when the country doesn't see the Natak of the government" as he took potshots at the ruling coalition over turmoil within it for the past few weeks. "Everyone is involved in saving their seat," Modi said, adding that for the sake of power "MLAs are fighting at hotels and breaking their heads. Several Congress leaders are fighting for their supremacy." Modi's attack on the coalition government comes amid the politically fluid situation in Karnataka, with BJP allegedly making aggressive attempts to topple the government and both ruling and opposition camps having kept their MLAs in resorts and hotels to stall the poaching bid. ALSO READ: Not invited for Modi's programmes in Hubli-Dharwad on central projects, says Kumaraswamy In an ugly turn to the resort politics, two Congress MLAs Anand Singh and J N Ganesh, who were reportedly on BJP's radar, had an alleged brawl, causing serious injuries to the former. "The Chief Minister here is everyone's punching bag. Every day he is getting threatened. His whole energy is spent on saving his seat from big Congress leaders," Modi said referring to Kumaraswamy, who, facing coalition pressures, has often openly expressed his 'helplessness.' "Publicly, he weeps about his helplessness (mazboori). Such a helpless government, such a helpless Chief Minister who is being challenged by anyone and everyone. Who is the in charge of the government.? There is confusion about it." Setting the "mazboor versus mazboot" narrative, Modi said "Karnataka's helpless model" was being sought to be imposed on the country and scoffed at the efforts of opposition parties to cobble up a "mahaghatbandhan" (grand alliance) against him. ALSO READ: Karnataka Congress chief Dinesh Gundu Rao lashes out at PM Modi over Operation Lotus "They want to impose it on the country. Such a helpless model, where the head of the government keeps weeping at the corner and decisions are taken in naamdaar's palaces...they want confusion and fight for power to continue and the world to laugh at the country. They want to impose this model on the country," he said. Modi said the "New India" wanted a model that was strong and not a model that was helpless. "Every single vote of yours will decide whether there will be honesty or dishonesty, progress(vikaas) or dynasty (vanshwaad), whether there will be positivity or negativity. Whether you want clarity or confusion. The answer to these questions will decide our destiny" he said. Modi's visit came amid an escalating political war over charges of horse trading with Kumaraswamy releasing the audio clip of a purported conversation of state BJP chief B S Yeddyurappa over his alleged bid to lure a JDS MLA through his son. Yeddyurappa, at the vortex of the row over his alleged bid to poach the ruling coalition MLAs for the past few weeks, had dismissed the clip as "fake" and a "concocted story". ALSO READ: Siddaramaiah tells missing MLAs to either fall in line or be disqualified "This Pradhan sevak (himself), this chowkidar (ensures) that the benefits meant for poor are going directly to their accounts. That is why the honest have trust on Modi while the corrupt have a problem, Modi said. "You are witnessing in Delhi who all are falling in line... About whose income people used to fear talking... they are made to make their appearances before court and agencies and answer questions. They are giving an account of their benami properties in the country and abroad," he said, apparently referring to Robert Vadra. Vadra is facing a probe by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with an alleged money laundering case. "Whether it is the ration of the poor of the country, and of poor farmers, or deals relating to defence of the country, whoever has taken commission, their numbers are coming down one after other," Modi said. The Prime Minister also criticised the ruling coalition's loan waiver scheme for farmers. "These are the people who did not leave even farmers. People of Karnataka have experienced it. Ahead of elections big promises of loan waivers were made. What happened to it? How many loans were waived off?" ALSO READ: Former Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah issues another notice to four MLAs for skipping Congress meet Modi said a promise was made that loans of 43 lakh farmers would be waived, but till now they had waived loans of only 60,000 farmers. "This is the truth about their loan waiver. For decades these people have been playing this game. They come with a 10 year plan of loan waiver for the sake ofvotes. They lie to people, but in reality loan waiver happens to about 25-30 farmers out of 100 and even in that most of it goes to middle men." Modi also launched Rs 5,000 crore projects, including the Strategic Petroleum Reserve Facility that includes 1.5 million metric tonnes reserves at Mangaluru (Rs 1,227 crore) and 2.5 MMT at Padur (Rs 1693 crore) at Padur in Udupi district to ensure energy security. He laid the foundation stone for Indian Institute of Technology at Dharwad near Hubballi, a 470 acre "green, smart campus" with state-of-the-art infrastructure with provision for UG and Doctoral programmes in multiple stream. Modi also laid the foundation stone for the Indian Institute of Information Technology at Dharwad, which willcome up on 60 acre land with public-private partnership for UG and doctoral programmes in IT and related areas. By PTI GUWAHATI: Former Union finance minister Yashwant Sinha Sunday said the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill is "wrong" in all aspects and claimed there is no chance of getting it passed in the Rajya Sabha as the government is "unlikely" to introduce it in the Upper House. Delivering a lecture on 'State of the Nation and the way forward' here, Sinha, who had quit the BJP last year, appealed the people "not to give a single seat" to the party during the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. "You are concerned whether Citizenship (Amendment) Bill will be passed in the Rajya Sabha. I think it is the biggest concern of North East at this moment. All those people I spoke to, they are determined not to pass the Bill. So I do not think the government will dare to pass the Bill. ALSO READ: Women protesting against Citizenship Bill refuse to return home "That's why I believe it will not be passed in this session. So no chance that it will be passed by this government," he said. Sinha claimed that "this government is not coming back to power again. So there is no need to worry about the Bill." He said "This Bill should not be passed because it is wrong from all aspects. It is a question of sheer existence for Assam and the North East people. If anyone tried to eliminate your existence, then people will obviously protest and fight against it. That is why the entire North East is protesting." The former Union minister said the Bill is "wrong" from Constitutional, moral, legal and equality aspects as well as "against the country's ethos". "There is nothing positive in the Bill for which it should be passed. I am firmly standing with you in opposition of the Bill. I will always come and stand with you in protesting against the Bill," he said. ALSO READ: Amidst protests, PM Modi defends Citizenship Bill, says will not harm interests of North East people Sinha opined that when an agreement is signed by a government, it should not be changed by the next government because "if it is done, then the trust and faith on the country and its people will be lost". "That is why, we do not have the right to change an accord which had been solemnly arrived at by a previous government, even if it is very unpopular for the present dispensation. It is a national commitment, which has to be maintained at all cost," he added. Attacking the NDA government at the Centre over various issues, Sinha said: "Should such a government come back in this country? So, please make sure that you do not give a single seat (to the BJP) in the North East. We all should try for this." The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, which was passed by the Lok Sabha on January 8, seeks to provide Indian citizenship to Hindus, Jains, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan after six years of residence in India even if they do not possess any document. Aishik Chanda By Express News Service KOLKATA: Four people including Trinamool Congress founder turned BJP leader Mukul Roy were booked for the murder of TMC MLA Satyajit Biswas on Sunday. The Krishnaganj MLA in Nadia district of West Bengal was shot at point-blank range during a Saraswati Puja programme on Saturday evening. Accused local residents Sujit Mondal and Kartik Mondal have been arrested whereas another accused local incident Abhijit Pundari is absconding. Locals vandalised Pundari's house on Saturday night after the murder. TMC has accused that the three accused are BJP workers which the saffron party denied. Speaking at a press conference here on Sunday, Mukul Roy said: "Naming me in the FIR is a political conspiracy of TMC. There is a tendency to blame BJP for every incident in the state because Mamata Banerjee is scared of BJP. There is no democracy in the state. There should be an independent and fair inquiry into the murder and I will face it. But CID is a stooge of Mamata Banerjee and we can't expect free and fair inquiry from it. If Mamata Banerjee has reservations against CBI, she can ask her friend Chandrababu Naidu to send any inquiry agency from his state." Meanwhile, Hanskhali police station SHO Anindya Bose was suspended and removed from his post for not maintaining enough security arrangements in the function attended by local MLA and minister Ratna Ghosh (Kar). He was on leave on Saturday. On the other hand, Biswas's personal bodyguard Prabhas Mondal was suspended and an inquiry initiated against him for taking leave on Saturday without applying for official leave and without arranging for an alternative bodyguard in his place. "BJP is stooping to new lows. Those involved in the murder will not be spared," said TMC secretary general and education minister Partha Chatterjee while visiting the area, 120 km from Kolkata, on Sunday. Preliminary investigation has found that the assailants were local residents aware of the locality because of which they could slip after shooting at the MLA's forehead. The murder weapon - a single shooter - was found 200 metres from the crime scene. Also, the function site witnessed power shutdowns seven times in 30 minutes prior to the murder. It is being suspected that the assailants had deliberately shut down the power several times to distract attention and gain entry into the function without being noticed. Eyewitnesses have also claimed to have seen accused Sujit Mondal and Kartik Mondal rush out of the function area after the killing. However, both the accused and their family members have claimed that they were at their respective residences during the killing. While there has been infighting among Trinamool Congress factions, BJP has also seen organisational growth in the region in recent past. The rivalry between the two parties is being investigated. "My husband had told a few days ago that a local TMC cadre has joined BJP recently. I suspect his involvement in the murder," Roopali Biswas Haldar, the slain MLA's wife said. However, another vital angle is also been looked into. Being near the Indo-Bangladesh international border, the region has a strong presence of organised cow smuggling gangs against whom the local MLA had spoken up and taken action recently. Their hand in the murder is also not being ruled out. By IANS LUCKNOW: What could be more ironic than the fact that while distressed farmers in the state are clamouring for protection from stray cattle, a problem that has assumed menacing proportions with crops worth crores of rupees being lost due to it, the Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh has set aside an unprecedented over Rs 600 crore for the protection and welfare of cows in the State Budget for 2019-20. It's a different matter that top government functionaries mouth sympathies for farmers as Lok Sabha elections are round the corner and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has already paid a price in terms of three state governments in the recent polls for ignoring farmers' issues. With the growing trouble among farmers in Uttar Pradesh over stray cattle ruining their harvest, the spectre could result in a possible backlash in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Naturally, there is anxiety in the state's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leadership. Old and abandoned cattle that are being set free because they are no longer of any use, have become a terror for people as they destroy crops and fields and add to the agony of already distressed farmers. As for the government that had vowed to protect the 'gau mata' and banned slaughter houses, it appears to have given farmers a short shrift. The budget also proposes Rs 247.60 crore for maintenance and construction of gaushalas in the rural areas. Malkhan Chauhan, a small farmer in Darveshpur (Barabanki), some 55 km from here, told IANS how his 3-bigha farm land had been devastated by stray cattle. "I spent a lot of money for seeds and fertilisers, and now the cattle menace have forced me to shell out another Rs 10,000 to fence the field to protect the crop," said an upset Chauhan. A frustrated Ranjeet Maurya (40) in neighbouring Kanhaipur who lost his crop to the menace criticised the Yogi Adityanath government for his troubles. "Yogi ordered closure of slaughterhouses, now see what's happening," he said and added cow vigilantes and Hindu outfits should "adopt ten cows each". Crops of potato, wheat and mustard have been destroyed by the stray bulls and cows in his village, he said. Many cattle has also been abandoned due to growing mechanisation of farming. Rizwan Ahmad, a dairy owner in Hariharnagar, said once the cows go dry (stop giving milk) they are thrown out by farmers. "What else do we do of them?" he asked. Many Muslim milk sellers like Ahmad Ali, a dairy owner in Chinhat, said his community is scared. "We hear stories about members of the community being roughed up for transporting cows," he said. They can neither keep a large number of animals nor abandon them, he added. That the cattle menace has taken centre-stage for many farmers can be gauged from the fact that in many parts of the state, angry farmers have locked up cattle in schools, hospitals, community health centres. Their demand: fix this menace. Their threat: face music at the hustings. The government has expedited building cattle shelters and 'gau shaalas' but the bureaucratic inertia seems to have retarded the pace. Thus the state missed the January 10 deadline set by the Chief Minister Adityanath for district magistrates to shift stray cattle to these shelters. Penal action has also been sought against cattle owners who abandon or lock them up in public properties. "The chief minister is serious about the issue. Many steps are being taken to tackle the problem", additional chief secretary (Information) Awanish Kumar Awasthi told IANS. There are 510 registered cow shelters in the state. According to a 2012 government data, there were around two crore cows in the state. Adityanath has also called for a fresh census and allocated funds for that. Animal Husbandry Minister S.P. Singh Baghel agrees that there is a problem, but claimed "a solution is on the way". However, he pointed out that the number of stray cattle was also a reflection of the staggering number that was being slaughtered before the ban." Samajwadi Party (SP) spokesman Abdul Hafiz Gandhi said the BJP government has "misplaced priorities" and predicted that farmers' anger "would cost them dear" in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The state government has also levied a 0.5 per cent tax Cow Protection Cess on eight government departments, including the cash-rich excise department. By PTI KOLKATA: St Xavier's University Vice Chancellor Father Felix Raj has said the new university will never allow politics inside the campus to protect the academic atmosphere of the institution. We have a tradition in St Xavier's.....we discouraged politics inside the campus to maintain the academic atmosphere," Raj told PTI here Friday on the sidelines of university foundation day programme. He was asked about students' agitation rocking many higher educational institutions in recent times but the St Xavier's having been freed from such activities. Observing the students and their parents are very much in favour of the stance of the St Xavier's management on this issue, he said, "if you allow politics, if you allow parties, if you allow all these things coming into the campus...there will be no academic atmosphere." ALSO READ: St Xavier's alumni slam college for inviting ex-student Aaditya Thackeray Claiming students are not in favour of being divided, Raj said, "you ask students, they are not in favour of being divided." Raj, who had earlier been the Principal of St Xavier's College, was asked to comment on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Education minister Partha Chatterjee having praised the St Xavier's College and St Xavier's University in recent times. He said, "the CM cited the St Xavier's example for discipline and for quality education and suggested this type of students council be promoted in other institutions." "I urge to make the campus a sacred place, there cannot be agitation and violence inside the campus....we must forget all differences, keep our differences outside and focus on our academic research and studies so that quality cannot suffer....we have to protect our institution and maintain the academic atmosphere," he said. To another question, Raj said in another five year's time the new St Xavier's University will be able to "fully functionally well." He said while a sum of Rs 185 crore has already been spent for building and other facilities of the new institution, another Rs 160 crore would be used in the coming three years. Asked about the support of alumni, he said they have been very supportive. Reporter: Sir, would you please share how the multi-faced cooperation between Vietnam and South Africa has been effectively implemented in 2018? Mr. Mpetjane Kgaogelo Lekgoro: 2018 was the year in which the two countries celebrated their 25 year of diplomatic relations. The Mission jointly with the Vietnam Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) organised a reception in December to mark and celebrate the moment. The two countries continued to work on the trade barriers that impede exports and imports. The work has resulted in Vietnam allowing for experts to inspect South African grapes and oranges in February 2019. The SA Mission in Hanoi and MOFA have agreed on the dates for the sitting of the Fourth Partnership Forum in South Africa. South Africas export of food products has almost doubled in 2018. Mr. Mpetjane Kgaogelo Lekgoro, South African Ambassador to Vietnam. (Photo: VOV) Mr. Mpetjane Kgaogelo Lekgoro: The pace of development and the consistent GDP growth is something to admire about Vietnam. South Africa continues to explore ways and means of growing its footprint in the Vietnamese manufacturing and tourism sectors Reporter: As an Ambassador, what do you wish to contribute to promoting bilateral relations between the two countries in the future? Mr. Mpetjane Kgaogelo Lekgoro: I wish to encourage interaction and visits between the two countries at high level; Strengthen the Partnership Forum which is a consultative mechanism between the two countries; and to grow SA exports to Vietnam where it is possible Reporter: On the occasion of the lunar New Year 2019, what message do you want to send to readers of the Communist Party of Vietnam Online Newspaper? Mr. Mpetjane Kgaogelo Lekgoro: Chuc Mung Nam Moi. May all the lovely people of Viet Nam have a joyous and prosperous new year as we enter the year of the Pig. May this year bring you more wealth and happiness. Reporter: Thank you very much! Anand ST Das By Express News Service PATNA: Serial party-hopper and former minister Nagmani on Sunday quit former Union minister Upendra Kushwahas Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP) two days after praising him Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar at a public programme and indicating his tilt towards the ruling JD(U). RLSP chief Upendra Kushwaha had issued Nagmani, who also hails from the electorally significant Koeri (Kushwaha) community, a show-cause notice over his anti-party activities and stripped him of the post of working president in the six-year-old party. Upendra Kushwaha was a goat before I joined his party. He used to bleat like a goat. I and my supporters made him wear a tiger skin and turned him into a tiger before Bihars people. We will once again turn him into a goat and he will bleat, said Nagmani while announcing his resignation from RLSPs primary membership. Nagmani, who was a minister in the central government led by Atal Behari Vajpayee in 2003 and also served as agriculture minister in Bihars Nitish Kumar-led government, accused Kushwaha of accepting money for allotting party tickets for the Lok Sabha. There was no lathi-charge on him (Kushwaha). It was all planned by him. He had asked some close aides to create confusion (during RLSP workers protest march) so that he would pretend to fall on the ground, said Nagmani about the February 2 incident in which Kushwaha was injured. Nagmani, who is the son of firebrand socialist leader Jagdeo Prasad, had earlier dubbed the lathi-charge as the state governments conspiracy to kill Kushwaha. RLSP leaders described Nagmanis allegations against Kushwaha as baseless and strongly denied that money exchanged hands for allotment of party tickets. Nagmani was lobbying hard for tickets in the Lok Sabha polls for both himself and his wife (former minister Suchitra Sinha). He was putting high pressure, but Kushwaha rebuffed him. That is why he is levelling such baseless charges against the party chief, said RLSP general secretary Satyanand Dangi. Although Nagmani did not reveal his next political abode, sources said he may join Bihars ruling JD(U). In the past, Nagmani has changed parties nearly 15 times in as many years, having been in BJP, Congress, JD(U) and RJD, among others. The former MP from Chatra in Jharkhand had joined RLSP in July 2017. By IANS KOLKATA: Two people were arrested on Sunday in connection with the murder of Trinamool Congress legislator Satyajit Biswas from West Bengal's Nadia district, police said. Biswas, a popular Dalit leader and an MLA from Nadia's Krishnaganj constituency, was shot dead by unidentified assailants while attending a Saraswati Puja programme in Nadia on Saturday evening. READ | Trinamool Congress MLA Satyajit Biswas shot dead; party accuses BJP of murder Locals revealed that there was "constant load shedding during the programme" and they smelt a conspiracy behind the outages. "Two accused, Kartick Mondol and Sujit Mondol, have been arrested," a senior police officer said. The TMC and the BJP have been engaged in a bitter war of words since the killing. While the TMC has alleged a BJP hand behind it, the latter had blamed the murder on the TMC's internal feud. Fayaz Wani By PTI SRINAGAR: At least 11 persons including seven security men were injured in grenade attack by militants at heavily guarded Lal Chowk area of Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, on Sunday evening. Militants lobbed a hand grenade towards CRPF personnel of 132 bn near now defunct Palladium cinema in the city centre Lal Chowk at around 6.45 pm. The grenade exploded with a big bang, causing splinter injuries to three CRPF men including a Sub Inspector, four policemen and four civilians. The injured were referred to SMHS hospital, where doctors were attending on them. Immediately after the grenade attack, police and paramilitary personnel and officials rushed to the spot to take stock of the situation. The security officials collected samples of the explosive device from the spot. A police official said they are going through the footage of CCTV cameras installed in the area."We are trying to identify the attackers," he said. Meanwhile, Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) militant outfit claimed responsibility of the grenade attack. A spokesman of the outfit identifying himself as Mohammad Hassan claimed that the attack was carried out by Afzal Guru squad of the outfit. The Valley yesterday observed complete shutdown on the 6th hanging anniversary of Afzal Guru. Guru, who was convicted for his alleged role in 2001 parliament attack, was secretly hanged and buried in Delhi's Tihar jail on February 9, 2013. By PTI NAGAPATTINAM: Seven fishermen from Nagapattinam were arrested by the Sri Lankan Navy Saturday and taken to Trincomalee in the island nation for allegedly fishing in its territorial waters, an official said. Joint director of fisheries (Nagapattinam) A Xavier told reporters here that the Indian fishermen in a country boat had set out to sea on Friday and had allegedly crossed maritime boundary this morning when the navy apprehended them. Recently, four fishermen from Kottaipattinam in Pudukottai district were arrested by the Lankan navy for fishing in its waters and taken to Karainagar in the island country. PTI COR Sir, It is reported that Nagai based for vallam bearing registration number IND-TN -06-MO 5033 with 7 crew members were apprehended by Srilankan navy near Triconamalai . The owner of the boat is Srinivasan s/o Sivalingam , Akkarpettai. Detailed report will be submitted soon. Harpreet Singh Bajwa By Express News Service CHANDIGARH: There will be no change in the seat-sharing arrangement between the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), while SAD will fight on ten seats and saffron party on three out of the total of thirteen Lok Sabha seats in the state. Also, the two alliance partners are will not swap the two parliamentary seats Amritsar with Ludhiana and Hoshiarpur with Jalandhar. Sources said that in the first coordination committee meeting of the alliance partners yesterday evening which went on for two hours and was attended by SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal, state BJP chief Shwait Malik and BJP in-charge of Punjab affairs Capt Abhimanyu Singh the saffron party demand it wants to fight from five Lok Sabha seats in the state instead of three and asked it's senior alliance partner Akali dal to accept it' demand on this they had detailed decision and even were ready that if the number of seats are increased then they can consider swapping of seats which SAD out rightly rejected. Then SAD asked the BJP for swapping of the seats which the saffron party rejected, thus later consensus was reached the present seat-sharing arrangement which has been going on years will continue without any change. The BJP will now fight from the three seats it has been fighting in the past that are Amritsar, Gurdaspur and Hoshiarpur. SAD has been raising the demand to contest from the Amritsar Lok Sabha seat keeping in mind with the holy city being the religious capital of Sikhs. While the Jalandhar (reserve) seat, hitherto contested by SAD as per coalition formula, has a large chunk of urban voters, traditionally considered the saffron vote bank. The party has never won the Jalandhar seat after forming an alliance with the saffron party. In the BJP, a group led by Union Minister Vijay Sampla was backing the idea of swapping the seats. Sampla, who won from the Hoshiarpur Lok Sabha segment in 2014, hails from Jalandhar and has nurtured his political career in the industrial town before contesting from Hoshiarpur which has fewer urban voters as Hoshiarpur and Phagwara are the only two urban assembly seats in the parliamentary segment. By PTI PATNA: RLSP leader Nagmani, who was sacked from the post of national executive president two days back, resigned Sunday from the primary membership accusing party chief Upendra Kushwaha of "selling" Lok Sabha tickets. "I am announcing my resignation in front of journalists since the RLSP did not observe the courtesy of providing me with a copy of the letter removing me from the top post, the contents of which I came to learn only through the media," Nagmani told reporters here. Nagmani was sacked from the post of national executive president for indulging in anti-party activities. "The party had held that my presence at functions attended by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar was tantamount to indiscipline. Both such functions were held in the memory of my father Jagdeo Prasad, who is extolled by our Kushwaha community as an icon. Can I be accused of anti-party activities in such a backdrop," Nagmani asked. READ: Bihar opposition alliance offers RLSP four seats - twice the number given at NDA The former Union minister in Atal Behari Vajpayee's government also alleged that Upendra Kushwaha and his "cronies" were upset with him since February 7 when he flagged the issue of a party ticket being given from Motihari to Madhaw Anand, who hails from Madhubani and is based in Delhi. "I told him that there is considerable resentment in Motihari over this decision of the party," Nagmani, who was himself an aspirant for party ticket from Chatra in Jharkhand, said. He alleged that Kushwaha tried to silence him by saying that Anand had used his corporate connections to get Rs 9 crore for the party. "I reminded Kushwaha that people like me had joined his party and offered him support since we strongly felt that our community, despite being sizeable, has not got its due in Bihar's politics. He was compromising on our cherished goal by putting tickets on sale. He did not say anything then but I sensed that I had ruffled many feathers. Kushwaha bared his fangs the very next day," he added. Asked about the Rashtriya Lok Samta Party's (RLSP) contention that it was unacceptable to see him beside Nitish Kumar when the party was accusing the chief minister of having conspired to get Kushwaha killed in the lathi charge of February 2, Nagmani quipped "Kushwaha is a big 'nautankibaaz' (One who indulges in drama). He stayed in hospital for two days without having received a single blow on his body". Reacting to Nagmanis allegations, the RLSP office here shot off a release dismissing his claims about the Motihari Lok Sabha seat. READ: RLSP national executive president praises Nitish Kumar, Kushwaha removes him from post Ir said RLSP was yet to formally announce candidates for any seat. "The fact is, he (Nagmani) wanted the ticket for himself from Chatra in Jharkhand which he has represented in the past, besides a ticket for his wife. He has been bitter since he was given no assurance," the statement said. The statement, signed by state RLSP general secretary Satyanand Prasad Dangi said, it is ridiculous that on the one hand Nagmani is accusing Kushwaha of putting up party tickets for sale and on the other he is also upset that after removing him from the national executive president's post, Kushwaha refused to talk to him. Nagmani had won the Chatra seat in 1999 on an RJD ticket but engineered a split in the party headed by Lalu Prasad and joined the BJP-led NDA, becoming a minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government at the Centre. After the NDA lost power at the Centre, Nagmani switched over to Ram Vilas Paswan's LJP before crossing over to the JD(U). His wife got elected to the Assembly on a JD(U) ticket and became a minister in the Nitish Kumar government while Nagmani himself got a berth in the legislative council. He subsequently joined the NCP but left the party ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha polls hoping to join the BJP, which fought the polls in alliance with Kushwahas RLSP. He joined the RLSP in 2017, calling Kushwaha the next chief minister of Bihar, and was made the national executive president. Fayaz Wani By Express News Service SRINAGAR: The PDP chief and former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Sunday praised Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan for taking steps to name a forest reserve in the country after first Sikh Guru, Guru Nanak Dev, and hit out at the Centre for prioritizing "renaming ancient cities and building Ram temple in Ayodhya". "How times change. Centre's top priority is seemingly renaming historic cities and building Ram Mandir. On the other hand, heartening to see that Pakistan PM Imran Khan has initiated steps to name Baloki forest reserve after Guru Nanak ji and create a university under his name," Mehbooba tweeted. The PDP chief was reacting to Imran Khan's announcement that he was taking steps to name the wildlife reserve in the country after Guru Nanak Dev, the founder of Sikhism. "The Baloki Forest Reserve and a new University in Nankana Sahib will be established and named after Baba Guru Nanak. Pakistan belongs to all citizens equally and we will ensure that Sikh pilgrims are facilitated for the 550th anniversary of Guru Nanak," Khan had said. In response to a question by netizen whether she will meet "her friend Imran to have talks about the Kashmir issue", Mehbooba responded, "It's quite magnanimous of you to even suggest it". "It would have been productive if GoI (Government of India) was on board. But with election season close by, it might defeat the purpose. But collective efforts by people like you can help in reconciliation between India and Pakistan," she added. By PTI AIZAWL: Special mass prayer was held in churches across Mizoram for the defeat of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill in the Rajya Sabha, Presbyterian church's Mizoram Synod sources said on Sunday. Members of 16 major churches of different denominations held prayers on Saturday night. The appeal made by the Mizoram Kohhran Hruaitute Committee (MKHC), a conglomeration of leaders of major churches, had asked the local churches of all the denominations to pray so that the bill gets stalled in the Rajya Sabha. The MKHC had earlier appealed to members to hold mass prayer on the night of February 16, but issued another circular on Friday last to conduct the mass prayer on February 9 or February 10. A press statement issued by the MKHC said that the bill is "harmful" for Mizoram and Christians. READ HERE: Amidst protests, PM Modi defends Citizenship Bill, says will not harm interests of North East people The bill, being vehemently opposed in the Northeast, was passed in Lok Sabha on January 8 and the Centre has said it will try to get the Rajya Sabha nod in this budget session. The bill seeks to provide Indian citizenship to Hindus, Jains, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan after six years of residence in India even if they do not possess any document. "Passage of the amendment bill can result in suppression of the freedom of religion and is against the spirit of secularism," the MKHC statement said. It appealed to the church members to pray for religious freedom in India so that the people can continue to worship God freely. Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a public meeting at Changsari in Assam Saturday assured the people of the region that the bill will in no way cause harm to their interests. By PTI SHILLONG: The CBI will continue the questioning of Kolkata Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar for the second day on Sunday and former TMC MP Kunal Ghosh will appear in person at the investigating agency's office here for interrogation in connection with the Saradha chit fund scam, officials said Saturday. Three senior CBI officers questioned Kumar for nearly nine hours on Saturday about his alleged role in the tampering of crucial evidence in the scam, the officials said. There was no briefing by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on the questioning which began at around 11 am at its highly secured office at Oakland here as per the directions of the Supreme Court. Kumar's counsel Biswajit Deb, who is also the TMC coordinator for Meghalaya, said Kumar is "cooperating and complying" with the CBI. "He (Kumar) has come here on the orders of the Supreme Court. He has complied earlier and he is complying now as per the orders," he told reporters outside the CBI office. Kumar led the special investigation team (SIT) formed by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to investigation the chit fund scam before the probe was handed over to the CBI by the apex court. He will be present at the CBI office for the second day tomorrow, said Deb, who met Kumar along with two senior IPS officers from West Bengal -- Javed Shamim and Murlidhar Sharma -- thrice during the day for brief periods. The agency may confront him with Kunal Ghosh who has also been called on Sunday, but a final call will be taken by the investigating officer present in Shillong, agency sources said. The CBI is relying on a 91-page letter from Ghosh, who was expelled by TMC, to the Enforcement Directorate, detailing the role of Kumar in handling the ponzi scam probe after the main accused, Sudipta Sen and Debjani Mukherjee, both promoters of Saradha Group of companies, had fled to Kashmir, officials said in Kolkata. Sen and Mukherjee were arrested in 2013 from Kashmir. Ghosh had implicated BJP leader Mukul Roy, who was once the right-hand man of Banerjee and 12 others in the Saradha scam. The Supreme Court had directed Kumar on Tuesday to appear before the CBI and "faithfully" cooperate in the investigation of cases arising out of the Saradha chit fund scam. The apex court had also directed Kumar to appear before the investigating agency at a neutral place in Shillong "to avoid all unnecessary controversy" and made clear that he would not be arrested. The CBI had moved the Supreme Court after its officials were thwarted by Kolkata Police when they had gone to Kumar's official residence in Kolkata to question him on February 3. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had rushed to the spot and had staged a three-day 'Save the Constitution' dharna against the CBI move and accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP national president Amit Shah of plotting a 'coup'. The central investigating agency had said that its officials had wanted to question Kumar to plug the holes in the Saradha investigation case as he was supposed to be in possession of certain key documents as a member of the special investigation team. By Express News Service After the Kartarpur Corridor, demands are gaining ground for construction of other such corridors in Punjab and Kashmir so that people on both sides of the border can visit religious shrines and pay their obeisance. In December 2018, Kashmiri Pandits had held a protest in Anantnag demanding that a corridor on the lines of Kartarpur be opened to the Sharda Peeth in Neelam Valley in Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK) from Teetwal in north Kashmir. Mehbooba Mufti and Omar Abdullah, both former chief ministers of Jammu and Kashmir, had also requested the PM to look into this matter. The abandoned Sharda Devi temple across the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir was once a major centre of learning and was regarded as one of the 18 highly-revered temples in South Asia. Sunny Raina, secretary of the All-Party Migrant Coordination Committee, said, Our Shankaracharya prayed at this temple which is 22 km inside PoK from the LoC in Baramulla on the Indian side. In 2000, an indefinite hunger strike was held over this issue in Gujarat by our chairman Vinod Pandit. At that time, Narendra Modi, then the Chief Minister of Gujarat, gave us an assurance that a corridor will be made for the temple. Now that he is the Prime Minister, we want that he should fulfill the promise, said Raina. Similarly, devotees from Pakistan want passage to the historic dargah of Sufi saints Hazrat Khidmat Ali Shah and Hazrat Azmat Ali Shah at Raja Tal on Khemkaran border in Punjab. The devotees from Pakistan cannot visit the dargah, where locals are keeping the Sufi tradition alive. The people of Kasoor in Pakistan have been demanding a corridor to this dargah, which is right on the International Border. Before 1980, people from Pakistan used to visit the dargah and religious fairs were held. Once the border fencing was done and the relations between both countries deteriorated, they were stopped. Chaudhary Manzoor Ahmed, the former member of Pakistans National Assembly, has been raising the issue in his country, said Ramesh Yadav, president of the Folklore Academy. Bone of contention Hazrat Khwaja Nizamuddin Auliya Dargah: In December 2017, 192 Pakistani pilgrims were denied visas to participate in the death anniversary celebration of Hazrat Khwaja Nizamuddin Auliya in Delhi, a major Sufi shrine in India. This was despite the dargah being included under Protocol on Visits to Religious Shrines between India and Pakistan Katas Raj: The temple dedicated to Lord Shiv, located in Pakistans Punjab, holds major significance for Hindus. At the time of the 1965 Indo-Pak war, Indian pilgrims were barred from visiting the temple. In 2005, then BJP chief L K Advani was invited to the inauguration of the restoration work at Katas Raj. Next year, 300 Hindus from India visited the temple for Shivratri. But in February 2018, Pakistan refused visas to 173 Katas Raj temple pilgrims Hong Kong: Bridge construction quality assured The late submission of Request for Inspection & Survey Checking (RISC) forms for works relating to the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridges link road does not involve quality issues, the Highways Department said. The department added that before the bridge opened to traffic, it was confirmed that the works were carried out according to contract requirements, and the works technical and safety requirements were met. Responding to media enquiries today, the department said the project concerned is the Hong Kong Link Road section between Scenic Hill and Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities, with Ove Arup & Partners Hong Kong Limited as the engineering consultant and China State Construction Engineering (Hong Kong) Limited the main contractor. The department said in end-July last year, the engineering consultants resident site staff reported that the contractor had not submitted over 10,000 RISC forms in time according to contract requirements. This accounted for about 28% of such required forms. At the departments request, the resident site staff filed site construction records in last August. Such records were then scrutinised by an independent consultant appointed by the department. The independent consultant found the resident site staff were able to provide ample evidence in a short time, showing the engineering consultant had all along kept systematically a large number of photo records. The staff interviewed were familiar with details of the supervision works. During the scrutiny, no forgery of documents was found, the department added. It also said according to contract requirements, the contractor filed the concerned RSIC forms with the dates indicating when the forms were signed - instead of the construction dates - to show they were submitted late. The department has reflected in quarterly reports the unsatisfactory performances of the engineering consultant and the contractor, and urged them to improve. This story has been published on: 2019-02-10. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. By PTI PANAJI: Taking a swipe at the opposition parties' proposed "grand alliance", BJP president Amit Shah said if it wins the Lok Sabha polls, every leader of the coalition would take turn to be prime minister for a day on six days of a week and the "country would be on holiday on Sunday". Addressing BJP workers near Panaji as part of the party's 'Atal Booth Karyakarta Sammelan' he asked them to ensure that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is re-elected in the Lok Sabha polls and the party's government would "flush out infiltrators from Kashmir to Kanyakumari to Kolkata". Shah asserted that the National Register of Citizens (NRC) was aimed at identifying the "infiltrators" and said that he wanted to ask Congress president Rahul Gandhi whether the NRC exercise should be held in Goa as well. The BJP national president said booth-level workers will help the party win the Lok Sabha polls expected to be held in April. Taunting the opposition parties for trying to cobble up an alliance to oust the BJP from power, Shah said, "The 'mahagathbandhan' will have Mayawati as PM on Monday, Akhilesh (Yadav) on Tuesday, H D Deve Gowda on Wednesday, (Chandrababu) Naidu on Thursday, (M K) Stalin on Friday and Sharad Pawar on Saturday. The country will be on holiday on Sunday." Earlier, speaking at a party workers' meet in Pune, Shah challenged Pawar to share and compare figures of farm produce procured during the UPA rule and Modi government. Hitting out at West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for denying permission to BJP leaders to hold rallies in the eastern state, the BJP chief claimed that in a sting operation an "intelligence officer" had said meeting were disallowed not because of law and order apprehension but because Banerjee was "scared" of the BJP. He reiterated that the BJP is committed to building the Ram temple in Ayodhya and downplayed the apprehensions regarding the impact of the SP-BSP alliance in Uttar Pradesh saying his party would win 74 seats (out of 80) in the country's most populous state. By PTI PUNE: NCP president Sharad Pawar said Saturday that he was "worried" about Union minister Nitin Gadkari as he is being projected as a possible alternative to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Gadkari, a senior BJP leader, was recently in news when he was seen as taking swipes at his party's top leadership after the Assembly poll losses in three states. Talking to reporters at Solapur in Maharashtra, Pawar said to a question, "Gadkari is my friend. We have worked together. There is talk about his name being pushed (as an alternative to Modi) and because of that I am worried about him." He did not elaborate further. Talking about alliances in the state for Lok Sabha polls, Pawar said his party was not engaged in any talks for a tie-up with Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS). "Raj Thackeray has a great deal of support from the youth. But we have not had any talks regarding any agreement pertaining to elections with his party," said Pawar. He discusses public issues with the MNS chief often, but there has been no discussion about working together in the election, he added. By Express News Service NEW DELHI: Giving a boost to the strategic lift capability of the Indian Air Force (IAF), four US made heavy lift helicopters arrived in India on Sunday.The twin rotor Chinook helicopters reached Mundra port in Gujarat where they will be assembled before being sent to Chandigarh for their formal induction into the IAF, later this year. As per a contract signed in September 2015 with Boeing, USA, 15 Chinook double rotor helicopters worth K8,000 crore were to be delivered to the IAF. The four which have arrived, mark the delivery of the first batch of the contracted helicopters. Chandigarh will be their permanent location from where they will operate. The Chinooks will be part of the Chandigarh-based 126 Flight, which currently operates the MI 26 heavy lift helicopters made in Russia. In a statement Boeing said, The CH-47F (I) Chinook is an advanced multi-mission helicopter that will provide Indian armed forces with unmatched strategic airlift capability across the full spectrum of combat and humanitarian missions. The helicopter can lift about 10 tonnes at a time, which includes troops, artillery guns, light armoured vehicles, ammunition, supplies and battlefield equipment. Apart from the US forces, 18 other defence forces use Chinooks. By PTI KOLKATA: BJP leader Mukul Roy was among the four people booked on Sunday in connection with the killing of Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA Satyajit Biswas in West Bengal's Nadia district, police said. Roy, on his part, said the decision to name him in the FIR was "politically motivated". A West Bengal Police officer told PTI that two of the four people named in the FIR have been arrested. "So far, we have arrested two persons in this case and detained another three. A country-made revolver used to shoot the MLA has also been recovered." "As per our primary findings, it seems that the victim was fired from behind and the act was the result of a well-planned plot," he said. Asked about the chances of the assailants fleeing the area, the officer said the state police has been put on a high alert. "Nadia shares border with Bangladesh and there could be a possibility of them (assailants) trying to escape to the neighbouring country. Police have been put on high alert to check the movements along the border," he said. Biswas (41), who represented Krishnaganj constituency in the Assembly, was shot from pointblank range by unidentified assailants Saturday evening inside a Saraswati puja marquee at Phoolbari area in the district, bordering Bangladesh. He was immediately taken to a local hospital where doctors announced him "brought dead". His body was brought home from the hospital Sunday morning for last rites, amid a blame-game between the ruling party and opposition BJP leaders over who was responsible for the death. A large crowd gathered to pay last respects to the deceased MLA at his residence, a few metres away from the Saraswati Puja marquee where he was shot. Roy, a former TMC member of Parliament, said the legislator's killing could be a result of infighting within the TMC. Roy joined the BJP last year after his relations with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee soured. "Naming me in the FIR is absolutely a politically motivated move. I am sorry about Satyajit's death, but the manner in which they (TMC leaders) are trying to hold the BJP responsible is nothing but a dirty conspiracy," Roy told PTI. Roy said Biswas was surrounded by TMC party workers and activists when he was shot dead. "You have to think about it. Satyajit was surrounded by his partymen when he was shot. How did the killers manage to go near him. It is quite clear as to what happened." TMC secretary-general Partha Chatterjee, however, alleged that those who killed the MLA belonged to the saffron party. Along with party's Nadia district observer Anubrata Mondal, who asserted that the "none of the perpetrators will be spared", Partha Chatterjee accompanied the MLA's hearse to his residence from the hospital. Partha said the chief minister was shocked to learn about the incident. "Those who think that they will gain by eliminating Satyajit, are living in a fool's paradise," he said. Urban Development Minister Firhad Hakim also squarely blamed the BJP for the killing of Biswas, who belonged to the Matua community - deemed vital as a support base in Bengal. "The prime minister came to woo the Matua community in Thakurnagar last week. Now the local BJP leaders are resorting to criminal activities to gain political turf," he said. Denying allegations of BJP's involvement, thh party's state president, Dilip Ghosh, demanded a CBI investigation into the killing. An independent probe will reveal the truth, he said. Ghosh echoed Roy's sentiments saying Biswas was a victim of internal feud within the ruling party. "If an MLA gets killed like this, how can the common feel safe?" he asked. By PTI MUMBAI: Veteran actor-director Amol Palekar, who was last week interrupted during his speech by some members of the National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) here, on Sunday said he was only trying to seek reasons behind the cancellation of retrospectives of two senior artists. A retrospective is an exhibition or compilation showing the development of an artist's work over a period of time. At the opening of an exhibition in the memory of artist Prabhakar Barwe on Friday evening, Palekar was repeatedly interrupted during his speech by some NGMA members. A video available on social media showed Palekar criticising the Ministry of Culture for reportedly scrapping the advisory committees at the gallery's Mumbai and Bengaluru centres. The actor-filmmaker told reporters in Pune on Sunday that the artistes' advisory committee at NGMA had approved the holding of retrospectives of three artists, of whom Prabhakar Barwe's work was inaugurated. NGMA officials insulted Amol Palekar and did not let him speak after inviting him. Their rude behaviour, suppressing freedom of speech of artists shows the govt's reluctance to face the truth.Time to ponder why artists&intellectuals are turning against govt. #StandWithAmolPalekar pic.twitter.com/UxqdDsRzye @LutyenHack (@RaisinaLore) February 10, 2019 "But I came to know that without any communication to the committee, the next two retrospectives have been cancelled by Mumbai NGMA's new director Anita Rupavataram. I wanted to raise these issues. How and when these decisions were taken, we wanted to know," he said. Palekar said he was told that as per the new director, four floors of NGMA would be used for displaying the works and the dome (fifth floor) will showcase only fresh exhibitions. Why does the BJP want to police peoples thoughts and opinions and control what they eat, wear, say and do? They want to make India monochrome and colorless. Telling Mr. Palekar to stop speaking shows the nervousness of the govt. Lets say #NeverAgain to #GolmaalBJP pic.twitter.com/JKEB7lSZqi Akhilesh Yadav (@yadavakhilesh) February 10, 2019 "It is shocking. The propriety of my comments is being objected to by NGMA. As I was talking about NGMA at their own venue and invited by the gallery itself, how can it be improper?" he wondered. Despite being interrupted during his speech on Friday, Palekar had refused to stop. He went on to mention that writer Nayantara Sahgal was invited to speak at the Marathi literary convention recently but at the last minute the invitation was withdrawn because what she was going to say "was slightly critical of the situation around us." This is so shocking, veteran actor Amol Palekar being disrupted, not allowed to speak. Veteran actor Palekar retorted: Are you trying to stop me from speaking and applying censorship on my speech? pic.twitter.com/m5IxmRr8In MumbaiCongress (@INCMumbai) February 9, 2019 Meanwhile, Maharashtra Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant said this was not an isolated incident and that it was being "deliberately" done for last five years. He sought to draw a parallel between the incident involving Palekar and several earlier alleged attacks by right-wing organisations on artists, social thinkers and public personalities who had criticised the BJP-led government. "For the last five years, this government could not tolerate any criticism from various sectors of society. Their priority has been towards suppressing the dissent and threatening those who follow a different school of thought," Sawant said. By Express News Service MUMBAI: Bharip Bahujan MahaSangh (BBMS) President and Dalit leader Prakash Ambedkar on Sunday reiterated that there won't be any alliance with Congress unless it gives a written proposal on disciplining RSS. However, he clarified that he is not in favour of banning the organisation but wanted to register it either as a social or a political organisation and follow the Constitution. Meanwhile, Ambedkar leading Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (alliance outs), scheduled a public rally on February 23, in Mumbai on Shivaji Park ground, in the presence of AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, one of the partners of Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi. ALSO READ | BBM chief Prakash Ambedkar gives six-day ultimatum to Congress over seat-sharing Ambedkar said that he will announce official candidates of the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) contesting upcoming Lok Sabha polls. "We are ready to wait for Congress' response over the proposal of disciplining RSS till the last moment of the election nomination process, however, will not compromise on the issue. If Congress fails to give a written proposal on RSS issue, we will go ahead with our own candidates and contest LS elections with the same RSS agenda," said Ambedkar who believes that the RSS is an unconstitutional organisation. "We do not want RSS to be banned, but it should work as per the constitution of India. It's a fascist organisation, dictator which and do not believe in the constitution. Our demand is, what Congress has a plan to bring RSS under the constitutional," he added. About LS seats, Ambedkar said that his VBA will fight LS polls includes Mumbai, Thane, Bhiwandi, Raigadh, Maval, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg area. "The original residents of Mumbai such as Koli (Fishermen), Aagri, Mali and East Indian community (Converted into catholic religion) and tribals have joined the VBA. Representatives of these communities would be our candidates for LS polls," Ambedkar said. While slamming Shiv Sena Ambedkar said, "These communities are the real Mumbaites and not the so-called self-proclaimed 'Marathi manoos'. About 200 Gaothans are located in Mumbai on 2000-odd acre land. Now the ruling party is trying to throw them out of the city by putting SRA scheme into Gaonthans." (EOM) Anand Neelakantan By In the great Tamil epic of Silappatikaram, the hero Kovalan is accused of stealing the queens anklet. A hasty trial is conducted in the court of the Pandyan ruler Nedunjeliyan, who orders Kovalans execution, which is promptly carried out. Kannagi, the wife of Kovalan, storms into the Pandyan court and proves that her husband was innocent. The anklet that Kovalan was trying to sell was in fact hers and not the queens. Tormented by the guilt of killing an innocent man, the king commits suicide. Kannagi burns down the city of Madurai, as not a single soul of this famed city of culture and refinement had raised their voice against the gross injustice done to her husband. The epic, among many other things, warns against the hasty conclusion of trials. In modern times, though no ruler shows remorse for any acts committed voluntarily or otherwise, we have taken to our heart to never conduct any hasty trials. What else would explain the 3.3 crore cases pending in our courts? There are litigations that are going on for many decades. When Justice Dipak Misra was the Chief Justice of India, he had mentioned in a speech that there were 2.84 cases pending in subordinate courts. The high courts had 43 lakh cases pending while the Supreme Court had 58,000 cases. According to the National Judicial Data Grid, Uttar Pradesh (61.58 lakh), Maharashtra (33.22 lakh), West Bengal (17.59 lakh), Bihar (16.58 lakh) and Gujarat (16.45 lakh) had the maximum number of pending cases. Our jails are brimming with undertrials. Most of them cannot afford bail or a lawyer. The high and mighty get away without much difficulty while the inhuman system crushes the poor and the marginalised. Some have spent more time behind bars than the maximum sentence they might have served on conviction. The most infamous of these cases is that of Machal Lalung. He was from Tiwa tribe of Assam. He was arrested in 1951 for causing grievous harm. He couldnt speak Assamese, Hindi or English. Most probably, he didnt even know why he was arrested. He spent the next 54 years in a jail without facing a trial. After the intervention of human rights groups, he was released in 2005. In any country that values life and dignity of its citizen, in the unlikely event of such a case, the authorities concerned would have been taken to task and made to pay a hefty compensation. In India, life is cheap, especially if you are poor and dont speak the dominant languages. So, you have undertrials such as Lalung, who are caged up and forgotten. The authorities got away by paying a monthly allowance that barely covered his meagre ration. Lalung died seven years later, impoverished and uncared for, except by some kind souls in his village. The Amnesty International had found that there are more than 2.8 lakh undertrials in our jails who havent got a single hearing. Two out of three prisoners in India are awaiting trials; 40 percent of the criminal cases pending before the court are more than five years old; in the SC, more than 30 percent of pending cases are more than five years old; some state high courts have the dubious distinction of having more than 15 percent pending cases from 1980s. Many civil cases and property disputes are languishing for more than a century. All the parties, the advocates representing either side and the judges who were sitting on the cases, have died long ago, only to be replaced by a new set. One wonders whether the scenes out of Charles Dickens Bleak House are being played out every day, like a cult ritual. It is unfair to blame only the judiciary. India has 19.66 judges per 10 lakh population. Among democratic countries, this is the lowest. Developed countries have 50 judges per 10 lakh population. To add to the woes, more cases are filed every year than they are disposed of, adding to the humongous pile of pending cases. The courts dont have enough support staff. Budgetary allocation by respective state and the Central Government for the judiciary is a pathetic 0.1-0.4 percent. Now, add to this the incongruous colonial era practice of adjourning the courts for a fortnight to two months of summer vacation. In 1866, while inaugurating the Allahabad High Court, Lord Chelmsford, the then Governor General of India, said, My Lords, yours is a strange world indeed. Your year comprises five months, your week comprises five days and your day comprises five hours. Nothing much has changed, except that we have added another century of pending cases. The courts dont have time to tackle burning issues, while bizarre judgments like banning shaded glasses in car windows get passed with lightning speed. It seems that the courts are overwhelmed by the sheer number of cases and the honourable judges, knowing the futility of tackling the Himalayan pile, have started resorting to giving judgements on cases that would hog the headlines. Courts spend time deciding who should sleep with whom, imposing Victorian era morals on homosexuality and then reversing it or deciding how one should pray in a temple or dargah. Unless we overhaul the judiciary, our future as a law-abiding democracy is in danger. Already, people have started losing their faith in a judicial recourse. Business cannot thrive where contracts cannot be imposed. Given the multiple adjournments and the sheer number of pending cases, any powerful man can break the law with impunity. It is time to recruit enough judges, make all the courts work in three shifts, 365 days a year and restrict the number of adjournments. Else, the burden of pending cases and justice delayed, thus denied, would sink our democracy. Anand Neelakantan Author, columnist, speaker mail@asura.co.in G Parthasarathy By President Donald Trump appears determined to continue bewildering the world by his propensities, priorities and unpredictability in the conduct of Americas foreign and security policies. He has not only surprised foreign leaders and confused his own people, but also stunned his countrys military, diplomats and legislators. No one appears to understand the rationale for Trumps frequent and inexplicable policy changes, which he publicises in late evening tweets, without prior consultations, or spelling out the rationale. Even his exceedingly discreet intelligence establishment has started to articulate assessments and views that differ from Trumps thinking. Trump has, for example, made it clear that he believes that after his talks with North Koreas Kim Jong-Un, the country will move to end its nuclear weapons programme. Trump is expected to soon meet Kim Jong-Un again. Trump also maintains that he had re-imposed sanctions on Iran, because Teheran was not implementing measures it had agreed to earlier on curbing its nuclear programme. Americas European allies refused to impose any sanctions on Iran, while categorically asserting that there was no evidence to substantiate Trumps allegations. Trumps Intelligence Chief Daniel Coats also disagreed publicly with Trumps views on Iran, stating: We do not believe that Iran is currently undertaking the key activities we judge necessary to produce a nuclear device. The Intelligence also disagrees with the Presidents optimism on North Korea. Reversing earlier statements, Trump suddenly declared that US forces were soon leaving Syria, because they had eliminated the ISIS, thereby placing the lives of their Kurdish allies at risk. Disagreeing with Trumps statement, Coats declared that the ISIS still commands thousands of fighters in Iraq and Syria. The US Security has also refused to back Trumps arguments for urgently building a Wall across the US-Mexican border to prevent drug smuggling. Drug smuggling is largely routed through Americas shores and not across its land borders. Such ill-advised actions by Trump, which have severely strained US relations with its allies, inevitably led to his highly respected Defence Chief, General Mattis, resigning in disgust. India has developed a process of extensive consultations with the US, which has resulted in expanding cooperation with Washington, on several issues of mutual interest. This primarily arises on issues such as the rapid growth of Chinese power across Indias land and maritime borders. China deliberately backs anti-India political parties with financial and military support, in countries ranging from Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Maldives to Nepal and Bhutan. Moreover, Beijings string of pearls strategy involves making Indian Ocean countries so dependent on it, that they are unable to resist pressures to provide naval bases to China. Trumps policies to ignore ground realities are inevitably creating new security challenges for India. New Delhi will have to work subtly and imaginatively together with partners such as Japan and Vietnam, to see that a vigilant US Congress and media keep an effective check on Trumps excesses. G Parthasarathy Former diplomat dadpartha@gmail.com Express News Service By Some years are memorable. Others, just passe. 2013 was certainly a year that can lay claim to the former. Especially if you were a student in Chennai. Courtesy the pro-Tamil Eelam protests, colleges were shut, cops were called in by the bucketload and Things were burnt, broken or bandied about. Students wont forget that in a hurry. But there was another thing that they arent likely to forget. It was the year that we set the ball rolling on what was, is and has been Indias biggest education conclave The New Indian Express ThinkEdu Conclave. And the disruption of ideas that it brought to the city of thinkers, Chennai, the Queen of the Coromandel, has been unparalleled. In the land where education has always commanded reverence and knowledge prized beyond all measure, the two-day symposium has been an event to look out for in the social calendar of academics. While other summits have sought to pit Indias greatest minds against each other for the sake of the odd viral video, The New Indian Express Groups flagship conclave has stood apart asking the men and women who matter to leave their political differences at the door and talk about the one thing that can shape for the future - education. If it was the late former President of India, Dr A P J Abdul Kalam who kicked off that first edition, that also featured four sitting Chief Ministers and a host of Union Ministers, perhaps it is only fitting that in its seventh edition, the conclave will host another dynamic former inhabitant of the Rashtrapati Bhavan: Bharat Ratna Pranab Mukherjee. And with him, 46 other movers and shakers from across the spectrum will debate, discuss, ponder and ruminate over Ideas for a New India, which happens to be the theme this year. In the six years since ThinkEdu began, the landscape has changed. Elections have come. Governments have risen. Leaders have fallen. Unlikely, younger ones have scripted new narratives. While our journey through these years has chronicled those changes through the varied speakers we have hosted, we also pride ourselves on our foresight. As India inches closer to a new education policy which is set to be debated this year by key players like AICTE chief Anil Sahasrabudhe and Education Secretary R Subrahmanyam we started this discussion at our inaugural conclave all those years ago. And every year since, the students and academics of Chennai have been given ringside seats to what goes into the making of the policy by getting to interact with the people who have steered the MHRD Textiles Minister Smriti Irani and MHRD Minister Prakash Javadekar. As a media group that holds free speech dear, our conclave has always asked tough questions of our leaders about a space for dissent, about secularism and about a misplaced sense of nationalism. This time, we ask these questions of seasoned politicians like Subramanian Swamy and Farooq Abdullah while also putting the student unionists behind Indias biggest protests on the same stage. One significant enhancement to this years edition - one thats going to bring a lot of cheer to the sizeable reading population of the city - is the addition of bestselling authors Amish Tripathi and Ashwin Sanghi to our speaker roster. Top that. Medha dutta yadav and Dolly Raj By Ashok Ahuja discovered the aesthetical possibilities of a personal computer in 1985 when the obsession with emails and websites was yet to catch on. The Delhi-based digital artist, who moved on to his first notebook in 1991, picked up a digital camera in 1998. Finally, an A3 printer followed in 2002, after which he procured several other tools to chase his pixel passion. Today at 67, Ahuja believes digitisation is the most natural way to express himself. Limitations force you to be creative. I am an artist. Improvising is my second nature, he smiles. New York-based artist Chitra Ganesh began to unlock the mysteries of art software by herself in 2001. Now at 43 years of age, she uses the computer to plot her art on both video and canvas. Inspired by the graffiti on the NYC subway and streets, large-scale figurative sculptures in and around temples and heritage monuments and hand-painted Bollywood posters of the 1980s, her practice now includes several rounds of storyboarding and editing while giving primary consideration to camera movement and angles on how to best integrate multiple visual vocabularies into one frame. The world of art has undergone a paradigm shift and digital art has got its place in the sun. Some time back, Puducherry hosted a month-long digital art exhibition. The Life Cycle of an Idea was held by The Gentlemans Enterprise, a Chennai-based company owned by art connoisseur Bipin JG. How different is digital art from other kinds of art? Bipin says, Any art work that requires digital technology as a part of the creative process is digital art. It is vast and entails everything from animation, digital painting, 3D-printed sculptures, video art, digital photography to participatory art etc. It could even be a mixed-media masterpiece, made by combining various digital techniques. What started in 1966 with an initiative named Experiments in Art and Technology in New York that paired artists such as Robert Rauschenberg, John Cage and Yvonne Rainer with engineers from Bell Laboratories, has evolved into a new genretravelling from Andy Warhol and culminating with Banksy. In India it came to the forefront with established painters such as Anjolie Ela Menon, who experimented with the medium long before the rest of the artists community in the country caught up. Menon would print out her works and superimpose them on furniture or layer them with extra colours, thereby creating a Brave New Canvas altogether. Says the grande dame of art in India, I did this at a time when computers were unheard of. People had no clue to what digital meant. Soon, Menon was followed by Kolkatas eccentric genius Suvaprasanna and of course, the very versatile Atul Dodiya. The Mumbai-based Dodiya says, I was never one to stick to a single style. I believe artists should allow themselves to create freely rather than be bound by a particular style. The journey that started in the 1990s in India with Menon has now surged ahead and boomed into a much-recognised and appreciated form. The 11th edition of the annual India Art Fair saw The Art Projects, a tent with experimental large-scale projects and interactive experiences. Introduced last year, The Art Projects space is still a work in progress, believes director of the fair, Jagdip Jagpal. The stress is on interactive works and showcasing some of the art forms that dont often get as much attention, such as sound installation and video works, she says. One of the works is an immersive, sound installation titled Change Room by Delhi-based visual artist Baaraan Ijlala constellation of audio recordings of anonymous voices confessing intimate thoughts. The art fair also witnessed German photographer Thomas Ruff showing his brand new work created using photographic negatives. The Shalini Passi Art Foundation presented a dedicated video art booth on-site titled Conundrums: Video Art from India, showcasing significant video work of eight Southeast Asian artists such as Anita Dubes Kissa-e-Noor Mohammed, Jitish Kallats Forensic Trail of the Grand Banquet, Mithu Sens Icarus, Pushpmala Ns Rashtriy Kheer & Desiy Salad, Ranbir Kalekas Man with Cockerel-2, Raqs Media Collectives Strikes at Time, Sonia Khuranas Head-hand and Surekhas Line of Control. That is not all. With its second appearance at the India Art Fair, Museum of Art & Photography (MAP) is also seeking to create fresh ways of looking at art and hopes to interact with a younger audience. It aims to look at how digital technologies enhance the experience of a museum visit, says associate director Nathaniel Gaskell. Google is known to partner with cultural institutions to help digitise their collections. Simon Rein, Programme Manager at Google Arts & Culture, says, As technology becomes more and more ingrained into everyday life, it also seems to become a more natural part of the creation of art. But digitisation is only the first step. You also need to think about how you bring what has been digitised to people in a way that is fast, engaging and insightful. Google interestingly has a mobile app that helps selfie lovers take an Art Selfie. You take a picture of yourself, and the app matches your features with the portraits from various museum collections. You can share the results with your friends, but more importantly, you can also learn more about the portraits, Rein says, and adds, Or think about Augmented Reality. There are only 36 paintings by Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer, and they have never been brought together in one place. The app presents a virtual museum in Augmented Reality that brings these 36 masterpieces together for the very first time. At the ongoing Kochi-Muziris Biennale, artist Michelle Poonawalla opened her multi-media installation titled Introspection. The installation takes the audience through a sensory journey that starts with sound, using fragments of audio clips from the news combined with ambient sounds, which transition into a dramatic 360-degree projection of torrential blood-raina symbolic representation of the violence and trauma. As the viewer walks through the projection space, strategically placed motion sensors trigger a dramatic cacophony of butterflies, signifying the final liberation of the soul, that wash over the surface of the screen, creating a visceral, cathartic experience for the viewer. Granddaughter of iconic artist, Jehangir Vazfidar, Poonawallas strength lies in blending the technique of the masters with digital advancements in the field. The artist says, I began my journey with projection mapping in 2017 when I was working on my show What if You Fly, which opened at Vis a Vis gallery, New Delhi, in early 2018. The curator of the show pushed me to explore the possibility of including technology in my art practice. I didnt find simple projections to be dynamic enough and so I started exploring digital mapping. This technology really caught my interest and I began to look at my work through an entirely new prism. The response was great. By incorporating technology into my practice, an entirely new dimension of possibilities has opened up. This has become an integral part of my artistic process and technique. Poonawalla believes that India is slowly accepting the marriage of technology and art. Technology allows the artist to create experiential art, encouraging viewer interaction. It also allows for a static piece to come to life; the possibilities of communicating ideas and experiences become endless with technology, she says. Delhi-based Nilanjan Das ventured into digital art in 1999. It was anything but easy, he says. The canvases had to be arranged from Austria, and demanded a waiting period of three months. The ink was imported from France. Das remembers how his first exhibition in 1999 was a huge flop. People didnt understand digital art and werent receptive to this new technological medium. Some even called it a photocopy. They termed my efforts redundant, he reminisces. In 2003, when he showcased his exhibitionDreamsthe narrative had changed. All the 33 works on display received a phenomenal welcome and were sold out. India had begun to log in. People had acquired more exposure to the medium given the technological advancements. Now, digital is everywherefilmmaking, photography and graphics. Its become a special part of the creative processes and is dynamic and futuristic, Das adds. The 46-year-old artists last digital work was inspired by the 15th century mural by Leonardo da VinciThe Last Supper. Das used images of pizzas, fried chicken, doughnuts, burgers and hot dogs while giving shape to Jesus and his apostles. Keeping the digital definition in mind, the art of photography is the most ubiquitous form of digital art. Instagram, selfies, citizen reportagein the age of social media, photography reflects the fast-forward momentum of the hyper-digital age and also drives and shapes it. The new technology available to photographers has changed the way photographs are presented. Raghu Rai might not agree, but almost anyone carrying a smartphone is a photographer in todays world. Bipin says, While digital art through photography has been an established concept internationally, it is only slowly growing in India, courtesy social media. The provision of collaborative projects such as music videos, album covers, and posters etc, both within the country and outside, has provided quite a boost. With the growing relevance of social media, quite a few works are making their way via crossover events into more mainstream media. As far as the market size in India is concerned, a lot of high-end buyers are slowly showing great interest towards such art today. Celebrated artist Rini Dhumal, who is a painter, sculptor, ceramist and a print-maker, says, I have been able to indulge in various mediums with ease simply because every medium has its own language. But the digital art commerce at present is scattered and not regulated. However, Poonawalla is optimistic. The digital art market is certainly growing and its being supported by an increasingly aware audience, who understand technology-driven art, both for residential and commercial spaces. Commercial spaces, in particular, realise that immersive, experiential digital art makes them attractive to the next generation. At Kochi, I found that the younger audience was more responsive to my work. She adds that art schools, galleries and collectors need to support younger artists who want to experiment with technology but may not have the means. Providing infrastructural and moral support is the need of the hour and she believes corporates can also support artists by commissioning interesting work, which will raise the bar across the board. Today, a work of digital art, according to the Saatchi gallery could be priced between `1.5 lakh to over `20 lakh. Baiju Parthan, known for marrying the virtual and real in his works, which include 3D graphics, agrees, The earlier misgivings about art produced using computers as something that is made instantaneously with the pressing of a button have more or less vanished today. It has become evident to art lovers that digital technology is just a tool like any other, and requires quite a lot of focused work and time spent to produce art worthy of attention. And it has also become clear to the viewership that what the artist says or does is more important than the medium used. Art has become a gateway for new experiments. It is more than what was academically divided as drawing, painting, sculpture or photography. Todays artist studios have become a laboratory. There is a link between science and art. Parthan, who produces works containing references from both virtual and real domains to make the message come through, says when he started producing art using digital technology in 1999 in the time of dial-up internet and land phones, there was a fair amount of unease and scepticism. With the burgeoning cellphone and internet usage in the country, the audience has grown comfortable with the fact that digital technology is very much a part of everyday life and also art-making, he says, and continues, In terms of the evolution of digital art, today there are a significant number of younger artists who have grown up in an environment of computers, producing interesting art that get showcased mostly on internet forums. Listed among the top 20 digital artists, Brisbane-based Ankur Patar believes a digital artist approaches art the same way a traditional artist does. Just as traditional painters are acknowledged as connoisseurs of colours and brushes, a digital artist follows the same process; but on a computer. Back in 1990, some thieves broke into the Gardner Museum and stole 12 masterpieces, and one of them was the 17th century magnum opus The Storm on the Sea of Galilee by Rembrandt Van Rijn. Infamous as one of the biggest art thefts in history, the case still remains unsolved. In an attempt to bring back these long lost works of art, Patar was tasked by Adobe to entirely recreate Rembrandts missing painting. The future looks bright for artists who have immersed themselves in this fantastical quest of smudging the lines between art and technology. For those who have had intense training in art to those who boast of no formal training, this genre is letting amateurs and experts explore a different side of their creativity. And with these wondrous explorations, its the audience that stands to gaina zillion pixels at a time. Ankur Patar Brisbane He was tasked by Adobe to entirely recreate Rembrandts missing 17th century magnum opus The Storm on the Sea of Galilee (right) A digital artist approaches art the same way a traditional artist does, but on a computer. Baiju Parthan Mumbai One of the few Indian artists who uses lenticular printing extensively in his creations. It involves using lenticular lenses to produce printed images with an illusion of depth, so that they appear different when they are viewed from diverse angles. Technology is just a tool like any other. Chitra Ganesh New York Inspired by the graffiti on the NYC subway, large-scale figurative sculpture in and around heritage monuments, and the hand-painted Bollywood posters of the 1980s. Digital art is all about self-teaching. Michelle Poonawalla Pune Her strength lies in blending the technique of the masters with digital advancements By incorporating technology into my practice, a new dimension of possibilities has opened up. Atul Dodiya Mumbai Passionate about art history, he blends the East and the West with consummate ease Artists should allow themselves to create freely. Nilanjan Das Delhi His last digital work was inspired by the 15th century mural by Leonardo da VinciThe Last Supper Its become a special part of the creative processes and is dynamic and futuristic. (Inputs by Kaushani Banerjee and Ayesha Singh) By Express News Service THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Lack of reliable data on public assets and resources created problems during the post-flood relief operations, IT Secretary M Sivasankar has said. Creating a comprehensive and reliable database on public assets and resources is vital in preparing and implementing development plans, he said while delivering the inaugural address at the FOSS Young Professional Meet 2018-19 (FYPM), organised by the International Centre for Free and Open Source Software (ICFOSS) at Kovalam here. The two-day meet will discuss ways to make the state emerge as a hub for talents in FOSS and related technologies.Its highly essential that every public infrastructure in the state gets mapped, in terms of the type of investment, technology included in it and vulnerability of the particular public asset, Sivasankar said. Once the data is available on the public domain, then various analysis will start happening from the side of individual researchers, institutions and groups, who will all look into this and will come out with specific analytical framework, and perhaps, successful policy recommendations, he said. In his address, Jayasankar Prasad C, director, ICFOSS, said FYPM is an avenue to reach out to the student community. The annual event brought together students, fresh graduates, young professionals and startup companies interested in FOSS-based tools and technologies. Rajeev R R, programme head, ICFOSS, welcomed the gathering. R Srinivasan, programme head, ICFOSS, presented the report of FYPM 2016. Sampath Kumar of ICFOSS proposed a vote of thanks. By Express News Service KOCHI: Though it has been a year since the Kerala Metropolitan Transport Authority (KMTA) Bill was passed in the Legislative Assembly, the entity continues to remain a non-starter. And even as the delay may affect the implementation of the Kochi metro's expansion, the structural deficiencies in the proposed plan is the most worrying, according to experts. Lack of clarity in the role of the authority is the biggest roadblock, experts point out. "Though the focus is on the city's transport management, the state government has now proposed to constitute the authority at a state-level, instead of a city-level. There is no clarity about this in the proposed bill," said D Dhanuraj, chairman Centre for Public Policy Research (CPPR). Conflict of interest According to experts, it is contradictory that the heads of all major transport bodies in the city will be helming the KMTA when instead their sectors should be regulating by the authority. "KMTA is a regulatory body; not an operational one. In that sense, the executive board of the authority should be free from everyone who is part of the system. As per the current plan, managing directors of Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL), Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC), among others will constitute the core team which will raise the conflict of interest," said Dhanuraj. Unstabilised power equation Despite being a city-specific body which is aimed at regulating intracity transportation, the Kochi Corporation has the least representation in the board. The municipal body's secretary is the 'ex-officio' member. "If we consider successful unified metropolitan transport bodies like London and Singapore, it is the city mayor who heads the body. But here, the mayor has no role in the decisions. Though many recommended the corporation secretary to head the board, the issue of a junior IAS officer regulating the senior officials of bodies like KMRL and KSRTC will definitely make problems," said a transport expert. A former councillor of Kochi Corporation rendered a similar view. "We have raised the issue in the last KMTA sitting at Kochi and the absence of elected representatives' affects its major functions like management and facilitation. The unavailability of full autonomy is another problem as it reduces the authority to a mere wing in the bureaucratic structure," he said. Confusion over structure Despite having the power to execute a comprehensive mobility plan for the region, the need for approval of state government for decisions like re-alignment of road transport services didn't get a space in the bill. "There are many structural deficiencies in the bill. There is no mention of integrating the Motor Vehicle Department which gives permits for the new bus services. It is the body which plays a vital role in the realignment of services. So, KMTA should not be an advisory body to the government. Instead, it should be a powerful regulatory body whose decisions are binding to everyone," said Dhanuraj.Echoing a similar sentiment, a top-level KSRTC official said "The lack of a clear idea over the structure of the body will prevent the body from achieving its objectives. If it remains to be a mere recommendatory body to the state government, there won't be much difference in the ground. As many Kochi roads have already been nationalised, regulating and re-routing the KSRTC services will be a major impasse before the authority," he said. By Express News Service KOCHI: 74th Annual Conference of the Association of Physicians of India (API), APICON 2019 at the Lulu Bolgatty International Convention Centre has come to an end. The four-day event had six parallel tracks with deliberations and interactive sessions on all latest updates on research and developments in the field of medicine. Occupational health and safety issues among the medical professionals and health care workers received special focus in the closing address by API president Dr K K Pareek. "It needs to be given the highest priority given the work environment and magnitude of occupational hazards," said Pareek. The lack of a safe work environment which results in the loss of lives and misery to families became a debate point at the event. "These are fundamental issues affecting the fundamental right to life of everyone who works in the health sector. The countrys health sector needs comprehensive occupational health legislation, policies, the enforcement of strict safety standards, surveillance methodologies and safety training programmes to protect health workers. The sector is not insurance covered, risks and hardships are not compensated," he said. The conference witnessed various scientific sessions held on emerging antidiabetic drugs, diabetes education, infection management and adult vaccination, hypertension management, technological advancements in cardiovascular disease diagnosis and treatment, osteoarthritis, rheumatology, neurological problems in elderly, sleep disorders, updates on H1N1, prevention of chronic renal failure, hepatitis, tuberculosis, HIV medicine, critical care medicine, poisoning and toxicology and gastroenterological issues. Dr A P Mohanty mentioned the health problems in health care workers like handling medical waste, exposure to airborne, waterborne and blood-borne diseases, and lack of safety device. Work-related stress and orthopaedic problems are also the causes which demand serious attention. On the other hand, Dr K G Sajeeth Kumar spoke about the health concerns caused by the Nipah virus outbreak in Kerala, steps taken to contain it and its vulnerability on health care workers who attended to the infected patients. Commenting on the summit, Dr Sujit Vasudevan, organising chairman said that the conference was successful in giving effect to the theme Blending Research and Clinical Practices. API, as the Professional body of consultant Physicians, established in 1944 has been instrumental in advancing medical knowledge and research and laying down standards of professional conduct and care. Around fifty international faculty and experts from the US, the UK, Australia, Netherland, Middle East, Bangladesh, Nepal and Srilanka led the important scientific sessions. A medical exhibition with 250 stalls was also held as a part of the conference. The mega event, attended by more than 10,000 physicians was hosted by Kochi Branch of API. By Express News Service KOCHI: Nikita Mallya wants to be a writer someday. And, probably that is why she is incredibly thrilled to be selected to the HPAIR Harvard College Conference which is being organised at the Harvard campus from February 15-18. The fourth-year engineering student from Model Engineering College, Thrikkakara believes the conference is the ticket to her dream. "Though I have specialised in the computer science field, I always had a creative streak within me. The selection is quite tough and they challenge you by asking your literary and cultural interest. Even though there was an opportunity for me to choose the technology track, I preferred the arts and media stream," she said. Nikita believes this will give her a great opportunity to network among some of the best brains in the world. "The conference is being held at Harvard itself. Some of the earlier delegates and guests at the HPAIR include former UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon, president of Thailand among others. In India, though we have a lot of skill and opportunities, our networking, especially for women, continues to be an issue. We still are not as open to forming bonds and relationships that can help us build a career path. This is especially true for women and I believe we need to grab hold of such opportunities which will help us," said Nikita. She goes on to say how there are hassles for women in choosing a job, especially related to arts which won't provide a stable source of income. "This is where I believe my conversations with the people I will meet at the three-day conference will help me in setting my career path straight," she said. The knowledge she procures from the conference will also be utilised to help other students. "I presently run a blog where I use the platform to inform people about the latest technology and current issues. I hope to continue with the blog in the future and use the information I receive in helping others who want to follow on their dreams," says Nikita, who is probably one among the very few Malayalis to secure a place in the conference. Incidentally, this is not Nikita's first time attending a world conference. "I had earlier attended the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing conference where I got the opportunity to talk to a lot of women who have reached echelons of power and knowledge using their acute skills. That was a fully sponsored programme. The amount I received through the event is being used by me to participate in the Harvard conference. The college has also helped me tremendously," said Nikita who currently freelances for social media sites including techstory.in where she writes about artificial intelligence and blockchain technology. By Express News Service NEW DELHI: "The issue of increasing margin money for the ration dealers in Delhi from the existing Rs 70 per quintal to Rs 200 per quintal of foodgrains, in offline mode, is under active consideration of the Delhi government," Food and Civil Supplies Minister Imran Hussain said on Saturday. An increase in margin money has been a long pending demand of Fair Price Shop (FPS) owners in order to enable them to run these in a sustainable and viable manner. The minister said that the proposal will be placed before the Cabinet for its approval at the earliest. The announcement came after the ministers meeting with the office-bearers of Delhi Sarkari Ration Dealers Sangh, which was also attended by the Commissioner, Food & Supplies (CFS), Special Commissioners, Food & Supplies and other senior officers of the department. The proposal is being made keeping in view all relevant factors in mind such as daily wages of fair price holders, storage cost, shortage incurred during retail distribution, electricity charges and reasonable commission or profit, Hussain said. In deciding the increase in margin money, due consideration is also being given by the government towards the cost of owning/hiring space for FPS in various parts of Delhi and the payment of wages by the FPS owners as applicable to the skilled worker, a statement by the government said. The Delhi government had earlier decided to increase payment of margin money to ration dealers from Rs 70 per quintal to Rs 200 per quintal of foodgrains, while introducing electronic Point of Sale (PoS) system of distribution of foodgrains under the National Food Security Act, 2013. However, due to severe deficiencies noticed in the e-PoS-based distribution of foodgrains, the government was forced to suspend the operation of e-PoS devices for the distribution of foodgrains. By Express News Service NEW DELHI: Delhi Chief Secretary Vijay Dev on Saturday convened a meeting with members of a panel formed for the restoration of the Yamuna. The Monitoring Committee was formed on the direction of the National Green Tribunal (NGT). The panel members include former chief secretary Shailaja Chandra and former NGT member BS Sajwan. The meeting was also attended by Principal Secretary Rajiv Yaduvanshi, Commissioner of Industries and Managing Director, DSIIDC, Madhup Vyas, commissioners of the north, south and east civic bodies, Chief Executive Officer of Delhi Jal Board Anil Kumar Singh, secretary of Irrigation and Flood Control department, Delhi Development Authority (DDA) and officials of other departments. The meeting was held to take stock of the action being taken and will be taken, in line with the action plan of the Monitoring Committee, to control the extent of pollution of the river. It also came in the backdrop of the chief secretary issuing an order on January 9 to stop dumping solid waste, sewage and industrial refuse into the river. The chief secretary urged all departments concerned to take urgent steps in line with this objective. He also said all officials, field officers and engineers concerned would held accountable with regard to strict compliance with the order on preventing dumping of solid waste and industrial waste into the river. Officials to be held accountable The chief secretary said all officials concerned will be hauled up if his order to prevent solid and industrial waste from being dumped into the Yamuna is not complied with. By PTI NEW DELHI: All unorganised sector workers up to 40 years of age can subscribe to the Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maandhan (PMSYM) scheme, which entails a minimum monthly pension of Rs 3,000, from February 15, a Labour Ministry notification said. The scheme, announced by Finance Minister Piyush Goyal in the Budget for 2019-20, is targeted at unorganised sector workers with a monthly income of up to Rs 15,000. Goyal had said that it would benefit 10 crore workers in the next five years. The scheme would provide them with an assured pension of Rs 3,000 from the age of 60 years on a monthly contribution of a small amount during their working life. "This Scheme may be called the Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maandhan, 2019. It shall come into force on the 15th day of February 2019. The unorganised workers have the option to become the members of the Scheme, on and from the 15th day of February 2019," the notification issued by the Labour Ministry said. The monthly contribution by the worker joining the scheme would be Rs 55, with matching contributions from the government. The contributions would rise at a higher age. The worker joining the scheme at the age of 40 years would contribute Rs 200, while workers at the age of 29 years would pay Rs 100. The scheme will cover unorganised workers who are working or engaged as home-based workers, street vendors, mid-day meal workers, head loaders, brick kiln workers, cobblers, rag pickers, domestic workers, washermen, rickshaw pullers, landless labourers, agricultural workers, construction workers, among others. However, informal workers will not be eligible for the scheme if they are covered under the National Pension Scheme, the Employees' State Insurance Corporation Scheme or Employees' Provident Fund Scheme. Workers who are income-tax assessees are also not eligible. The unorganised sector worker who wishes to join the scheme shall be not less than 18 years of age and not exceeding 40 years, the notification said. The worker should also have a savings bank account in his/her name and an Aadhaar number. The scheme has been brought under the Unorganised Workers' Social Security Act, 2008. The Central government will establish a pension fund to be administered for this scheme. The scheme also provides that if a subscriber has given regular contributions and died due to any cause, his spouse shall be entitled to continue with the scheme subsequently by payment of regular contributors. The spouse can also exit the scheme by receiving the share of contribution paid by the deceased subscriber along with accumulated interest. In case of permanent disablement of a subscriber, his or her spouse will be entitled to continue with the scheme or exit by receiving the share of contribution, with interest. In case of death of a pensioner, his or her spouse shall be only entitled to receive 50 percent of the pension. Dr Sandeep Goyal By Express News Service Last weeks been pretty busy in Indian ad-land. WPPs Ogilvy launched a new agency called 82.5, to meet a key need in the creative services market for an agency that is tailored to help realise the aspirations of emerging Indian companies, entrepreneurs and brands as well as MNCs who want to Indianise their brands and forge a connect with Indian audiences. Interesting. But even more interesting (and intriguing) is the name of the agency. 82.5? Well, 82.5 is the longitude that defines Indian Standard Time. So, the new agency will be a creative agency that specifically caters to the Indian entrepreneurship landscape. I dont know how much to read into this much-hyped announcement because it seems more like the re-branding of Soho Square, a second agency that Ogilvy has had for some years and which has remained a kind of laggard, a distant country cousin to the parent brand. But if 82.5 has really been set-up to address Indian entrepreneurs and Indian start-ups, then it surely is a step in the right direction. A similar agency, The Dining Table, was launched by Creativeland Asias Sajan Raj Kurup and ad film-maker Prahlad Kakkar about a year ago to cater to SMEs and FOBs (Family-Owned Businesses). Both Kurup and Kakkar got themselves a lot of media coverage at launch saying all the right things about partnering entrepreneurs and families, but I really havent heard of or seen much of The Dining Table in the last few months. No showcase clients, no great marketing successes, no real case studies. Which brings me back to 82.5. Positioning an agency is one thing; delivering value to small businesses is something else. It demands a different DNA, a different mindset, which most ad executives in large multinational agencies find very difficult to do. Small budgets, nascent businesses, insufficient resources, too much of family interference, lack of size and scale SMEs are tough customers to have. So, it will be interesting to watch how 82.5 rises to the challenge, evolves and delivers. If it does. Last week also saw the launch of a new identity by Bajaj Auto edging out the three decades old Hamara Bajaj positioning, and now proclaiming itself as The worlds favourite Indian. Through a film shot across half a dozen countries or more, a new campaign conceptualised by Leo Burnett tries to convey how Bajaj is now sold in 70 countries around the world. To be honest, I didnt know (and frankly didnt care). But the film made me sit up. For one, it is well shot and slickly edited. Two, the journey from the Himalayas to Mount Killiminjaro, from Moscow to Mexico, and many more geographies is kind of pacey, yet seamless. Three, it is the music that is the biggest turn-on. Especially the haunting return of yeh zameen yeh aasmaan. The connect to the past. The bridge to the future. In a strange kind of way, the Bajaj film reminded me of an old Majrooh Sutanpuri couplet, main akela hi chala tha janib-e-manzil magar, Log saath aate gaye aur karwaan banta gaya. Conquering overseas markets is not easy. Country by country, city by city. Tough, demanding, exacting. When Indian brands do retail worldwide, we just never grant them their due recognition. If Bajaj actually is sold in 70 countries, then it really is a stellar achievement, worthy of both admiration and praise. Congratulations guys! But yes, I am not sure if Bajaj really is the worlds favourite Indian. That claim may be a bit of an exaggeration. Well, PM Narendra Modi could well lay claim to that descriptor, so could Captain Virat Kohli! Bajaj may have market presence in a large part of the globe; but it still has miles to go on many fronts. There is still much to be achieved on building brand recognition and brand preference. The company may want to compare itself with famous Japanese and European competitors, but Bajajs global brand stature is still work in progress. So, we are happy for Bajaj. But it has still to do much much more before earning itself the epithet. (The writer is an advertising veteran) By PTI CHENNAI: Trade bodies - Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI)- have termed the Tamil Nadu budget presented by deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam Friday a 'comprehensive and balanced budget benefiting all stakeholders.' "The budget 2019 is a 'pragmatic' and an 'inclusive' one aimed at achieving 8 percent economic growth. The CII-Tamil Nadu congratulates the Deputy Chief Minister for presenting such a budget", chairman of CII southern region R Dinesh said in a press release here. The allocation of Rs 28,757 crore for education, Rs 18,274 crore for rural development and Rs 10,550 crore for agriculture was in the right direction as it would supplement the growth of the economy and job creation, the release quoted Dinesh as saying. Chairman of CII-Tamil Nadu state council M Ponnuswami said in the release that the proposal on the Centre of Excellence would promote skill development and create more employment opportunities. Chairman of FICCI-Tamil Nadu Kavitha Dutt, in a separate press release, said the proposal of the government to introduce electric buses as a 'futuristic move.' "Even though there were great expectations that new schemes may be announced keeping an eye on the general elections, the Deputy Chief Minister has submitted a balanced budget," she said in the release. She too welcomed the proposal to set up a centre of excellence that would harness artificial intelligence, big data and machine-learning. By PTI NEW DELHI: Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu on Saturday said there is a need to create a conducive environment and bring changes in old regulations to promote budding entrepreneurs. "Had a fireside chat with the startups from Maharashtra and regulators on one platform. As entrepreneurship blooms, we need to create a conducive environment for our young entrepreneurs and bring changes in old regulations to catch up with technological changes," he said in a tweet. Had a fireside chat with the startups from Maharashtra & regulators on one platform. As entrepreneurship blooms, we need to create a conducive environment for our young entrepreneurs and bring changes in old regulations to catch up with technological changes. #SaafNiyatSahiVikas pic.twitter.com/Qq5yALXSe9 Suresh Prabhu (@sureshpprabhu) February 9, 2019 The statement assumes significance as the government is working on support measures for startups that are raising concerns over angel tax issues. The government is contemplating a hike in the investment limit for availing income tax concessions by startups and provide a more clear definition for the purpose. Giving relief to budding entrepreneurs last year, the government allowed startups to avail tax concession only if total investment, including funding from angel investors, does not exceed Rs 10 crore. Officials of the department for the promotion of industry and internal trade (DPIIT) and Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) are holding series of meetings to find a solution of the angel tax issue being raised by startups. Though startups are demanding complete exemption from this tax, the government is considering to increase the investment limit for tax exemption to Rs 25-50 crore. The discussions for support measures come against the backdrop of various startups raising concerns on notices sent to them under the Section 56(2)(viib) of the Income Tax Act to pay taxes on angel funds they have received. The section provides that the amount raised by a startup in excess of its fair market value would be deemed as income from other sources and would be taxed at 30 per cent. Touted as an anti-abuse measure, this section was introduced in 2012. It is dubbed as angel tax due to its impact on investments made by angel investors in startup ventures. Last month, the government eased the procedure for seeking income tax exemption by startups on investments from angel funds and prescribed a 45-day deadline for a decision on such applications. New Castle, PA (16103) Today Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 53F. Winds light and variable.. Tonight Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 53F. Winds light and variable. Regional CAB will not be passed, says Yashwant Sinha Guwahati, Feb 10 (Agencies) | Publish Date: 2/10/2019 11:31:10 AM IST Terming the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016 as wrong from all aspects and against the ethos of the country, former union finance minister Yashwant Sinha on Sunday said that the Bill will not be passed in the Upper House even as the veteran politician predicted that the BJP government will never come to power again. According to Northeast Now, Sinha said this while delivering a talk on the topic of State of the Nation and the Way Forward organized by Asom Nagarik Samaj in Guwahati on Sunday and urged the people of the Northeast to be united to ensure that the saffron party does not get a single seat in the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls in the region. Both the Houses of Parliament are being stalled. Besides that, I have been interacting to different people before coming here. I understood that except BJP, other political parties are firmly against the Bill. I doubt that the ruling party will dare to pass the Citizenship Bill in Upper House amid ruckus. As the ongoing session is the last Parliament session of this government, there is no chance that the Bill will be passed, he said while adding that there is nothing to worry as this government is not coming to power again. I can tell you with confidence that this government is not coming to power for a second time. So there is nothing to worry. In case you are still worried, just wait for another two days with patience, he said while addressing a packed house at the ITA Pragjyoti Cultural complex in Guwahati. He said that the entire north-eastern states are facing an existential question due to the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016. If someone tries to end someones existential, people will object and protest. The people of the north-eastern states are objecting and protesting as they are facing an existential threat due to this Bill, he said extending his support to the agitation against the Bill. Yashwant lambasts Modi, says PMO dictates everything Meanwhile, Launching a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi led BJP government at the Centre, former BJP leader and Union Minister Yashwant Sinha on Sunday said that the current BJP government at the Centre has been challenging all the constitutional conventions and destroying all democratic institutions of the country. You all know that we have a written Constitution. There are some constitutional conventions in the country which needs to be respected. But the government is hardly following any constitutional conventions these days, he said. Referring to the status of the current Cabinet, Sinha said that in the current dispensation everything is decided from the Prime Ministers office. The BJP and PDP formed the government in Jammu and Kashmir. However, Amit Shah visited Kashmir one day and announced that the BJP is pulling out support from the PDP in the state. The Home Minister who was sitting in his office in North Block came to know about this through television channel, said Sinha. When the Prime Minister signed the Naga Framework Agreement with NSCN (IM), the Home Minister came to know about it only when he was rushing to the press conference convened by the PMO the same evening. The Raksha Mantri was not aware when Prime Minister finalized the Rafale deal in Paris, said Sinha. ORELAND -- Alex Stevers-Radtke of Wyndmoor and Michael Mathews of Oreland recently reached the rank of Eagle Scout announced Orelands Troop 1. A ceremony will be held at the troops Hawk Mountain Camp in New Ringgold to recognize Alexs and Michaels accomplishments and to celebrate with fr Major League Baseball has apparently decided that there are 42 too many minor league baseball cities and, according to Commissioner Rob Manfred, after the 2020 season, that will change. There will be a new agreement between the majors and the minors signed and a lot of cities will lose their We attempted to send a notification to your email address but we were unable to verify that you provided a valid email address. Please click here to update your email address if you wish to receive notifications. Otherwise, you may click here to disable notifications and hide this message. They dont have a say court procedures are the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court but the Senate on Tuesday passed a resolution asking the court to delay action until the Legislative Budget and Finance Committee studies the issue. It will look at how the location of malpractice lawsuits impacts access to medical care, costs of liability insurance, determination of negligence and compensation for it. The aim was to keep McDougal's story secret. "Catch and kill" appears to be a long-standing practice at the Enquirer, but it is only coming to light because of the tabloid's close association with Trump, whom it relentlessly boosted during the 2016 presidential campaign. In turn, Pecker was able to take a close adviser of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to meet Trump at the White House, thereby facilitating AMI's attempts to seek deals with Saudi investors. AMI subsequently published and distributed a glossy propaganda magazine featuring the crown prince on its cover. A post on the chairs Facebook page about the illegal dumping garnered nearly 300 comments from fans willing to chip in for the cost of removing the garbage and imploring the Klavers not to take the chair away. Danielle Klaver said if the chair is removed from the overlook, it would probably will be permanently dismantled and not moved to another location. Mankato, MN (56001) Today Partly cloudy this evening, then becoming cloudy after midnight. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 73F. Winds S at 10 to 20 mph.. Tonight Partly cloudy this evening, then becoming cloudy after midnight. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 73F. Winds S at 10 to 20 mph. The date May 23, 2017 will go down in infamy as it marked the beginning of the first-ever urban battle in the Philippines between government security forces and militants affiliated with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, including the Maute and Abu Sayyaf Salafi jihadist groups, leaving Marawi City in destruction and rubbles. For five months, Marawi residents lived in evacuation centers, while the fighting continued. But on October 17, 2017, President Rodrigo Duterte announced the liberation of Marawi City. Following the complete destruction of their city, the people of Marawi are starting from scratch in the aftermath of the battle. Good thing they have the government, along with nongovernment organizations, private companies, and foreign aids coming in to their aid to help them stand up on their feet.It was June 28, 2017 when President Duterte created an inter-agency task force through Administrative Order No. 3 that will focus on all the concerns of Marawi Citys rehabilitation after the siege. This is called Task Force Bangon Marawi (TFBM), which consists of sub-committees focusing on different sectors, namely reconstruction, housing, health and social welfare, business and livelihood, and peace and order. It was first headed by Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and co-chaired by Public Works and Highways Secretary Mark Villar. With members from various departments of the government, TFBMs task was to work with them hand in hand and be the governments solution to guide, supervise and rebuild the city of Marawi. Through Administrative Order no. 9 that was made by President Duterte on October 27, 2017, the Secretary of Defense was replaced by the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) Chairman, while the two heads became the vice-chairpersons of the TFBM. Helping the governments efforts, NGOs inside and outside of our country also created ways to reach out and raise funds to support their cause. The NGOs are the following, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) that aims to provide shelter and humanitarian assistance to the displaced families; Sinagtala Center for Women and Children in Conflict (TALA PH), an organization that aids women, children and displaced persons by providing workshops like weaving and therapy sessions; Teach Peace Build Peace Movement (TPBP Movement), a group that has a mission to assist people and children to learn and improve their knowledge, skills, and positive values in order to create a culture of peace.Others pitching their support were the Maranao People Development Center (MARADECA), Duyog Marawi, Red Cross Philippines, Balay Mindanaw and Youth Peer Education Network (Y-PEER Pilipinas). When the Philippine Business for Social Progress, Philippine Disaster Resilience Foundation (PDRF), Makati Business Club, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and CODE NGO organized a summit in 2017 for the United for Marawi consortium, several companies extended their assistance to the displaced families in Marawi City. The construction of houses and schools all the way to addressing the concerns in education, health, and livelihood and even fixing the water and electricity connection in the city were some of the efforts and pledges that these private companies promised. The companies were PLDT Smart Voyager, Udenna Corporation, Front Learners Inc., FF Cruz and Co. Inc., Pacific Global One Aviation, Aboitiz, Jollibee Foods Corp, BFBCI, Pepsi Cola Philippines, World Vision, Cebuana Lhuilier, Ayala Foundation, Gabay Guro of PLDT, Meralco, Coca-cola, Manila Water, Maynilad, LBC Foundation, SM Foundation, Oxfam, US Philippine Society, San Miguel Corporation, Philippine Institute of Environmental Planners, Bangsamoro Business Council, Community and Financial Services International, and ASSURE. On the other hand, foreign aids poured into the rehabilitation of Marawi. In a Department of Finance (DOF) report last November, 2018, the country received P35.1 billion worth of pledges from countries such as the United States, Australia, China, Germany, Japan, Korea, and Spain and also the United Nations (UN). The United States Government committed in 2017 a sum of P3.2 billion to aid Marawi City through the US Agency for International Development (USAID), which assisted the Philippine Government to improve the situations and conditions of the affected people. USAID also helped installing water and sanitation amenities, provided health clinics with supplies that aimed to solve the problems of tuberculosis (TB) and also gave support to those with maternal, newborn, and child health needs. They also improved the livelihood and economic situations of Marawi folks, along with the health and education systems in the city, while encouraging peaceful talks, and restoring the water and electricity services. In addition, to secure food requirements of the families affected in Marawi, USAID partnered with the World Food Programme to donate at least 4 million pounds of rice that can cater up to 45,000 people in four months. It is still a long way to go before Marawi City can reclaim its lost glory. But the rehabilitation has been fast-paced and the healing, noble. For now, that is all you could ask for. The challenge of how to improve understanding of intellectual property was discussed by Manny Schecter, chief patent counsel at IBM, at the Second Annual Intellectual Property Awareness Summit in New York on November 29. Increasing awareness is one thing; increasing understanding something else entirely, Schecter said. He believes the general level of awareness is higher than before. "In my mind we have a kind of conundrum," he said. "I think awareness about IP is in many ways increasing but I don't think real literacy and real understanding is on the same trajectory. It might be increasing but it isn't keeping up, that's for sure. That confusion, that lack of understanding, isn't the sole cause but it enables the lack of respect for intellectual property." Importantly, however, Schecter noted: "I don't think awareness and understanding are the same thing. We can be aware that there is such a thing as patents, trade marks and copyrights and have a sense of what they do but not really understand them, and not be literate in them. A lot of the public are aware but not really literate." This lack of understanding is a result of a variety of reasons. "Intellectual property is hard," said Schecter. "It is not an intuitive subject to many people. Every one of us has seen articles where the types of intellectual property are used confusingly where patents, trade marks and copyrights are used interchangeably, incorrectly so, because it is obvious the author didn't really understand fully what he or she was writing about." On the patent side, people often get confused about various aspects of patents, such as the difference between filing and grant date. "All understandable," noted Schecter. Those who are intimately familiar with IP do not necessarily help the situation: a second area of confusion, according to Schecter, comes from the public debate around IP. "We argue vigorously for positions in the intellectual property world, and we have a tendency to use a lot of rhetoric and take a lot of extreme positions in trying to make our point," said Schecter. "Sometimes we actually want that extreme position and sometimes we are just trying to get our point across." Schecter urged the audience to close the gap between awareness and understanding by increasing the level of understanding. "We have to figure out how to optimise the benefit of intellectual property," he said. Schecter believes that people who say that intellectual property is somehow hurting innovation are really saying is it is not achieving its optimum promotion of innovation. "If we are actually going to get people understanding intellectual property we have to overcome confusion, we have to overcome misinformation, we have to overcome our own rhetoric and we have to overcome pressure from our clients. Just speak honestly and respectfully. Our innovation economy, our national security, frankly our everyday creature comforts may depend on it," he said. "Those of us that really understand IP should feel an obligation to teach the others that need to know about IP but don't, to help them learn. If we want our competition to respect our IP, we need to respect theirs. And for other countries to respect US IP, they should see us in the United States behaving the same way towards each other. That sounds like something a parent would tell a child but I mean it sincerely." Michael Loney Managing editor The material on this site is for law firms, companies and other IP specialists. It is for information only. Please read our Terms and Conditions and Privacy Notice before using the site. All material subject to strictly enforced copyright laws. 2021 Euromoney Institutional Investor PLC. For help please see our FAQs. Share this article Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2019 > Whirligig Politics EDITORIAL One had known for quite sometime that the 2019 Lok Sabha elections would witness a no-holds-barred campaign with PM Narendra Modi firmly resolved to stay on in power and the combined Opposition determined to oust him from the office he currently holds. The PMs speech in the Lok Sabha and Congress President Rahul Gandhis address outside Parliament today provided ample testimony of that possibility. Observers anticipate not just that, but increasing prospects of sharp deterioration of the level of debates. Already some leaders from the Treasury Benches have fired the salvo to this effect while attacking TMC supremo and West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee for her uncompromising struggle against Narendra Modi of late. One of thema Union Ministereven called her anarchist thereby signalling a new low in todays politics. Meanwhile, Mamata herself has withdrawn her dharna in Kolkata over the tussle between the citys Police Commissioner and the CBI after the Supreme Courts ruling on the subject, but warned of similar action in the Capital in the coming days. The Kolkata events have resulted in varied reactions, with some publications (like The Times of India) castigating Mamata in no uncertain terms while simultaneously asserting that the caged parrot, an euphemism for the CBI, must be freed in public interest and even in the executives own interest, adding that the BJP needed to introspect why parties across the spectrum have joined hands against it and underscoring the fact that the CBIs enthusiasm in booking Opposition politicians is not matched by its ability to take high-profile cases to their logical conclusion. Incidentally, one positive development of late has been the VHPs publicly stated decision to hold back its agitation through mass mobilisation for the construction of a Ram temple at Ayodhya for the next four months. That means that in all probability the scenario prior to the Lok Sabha polls would not experience any escalation of the Ram temple dispute that could threaten peace and communal harmony as had happened immediately following the demolition of the Babri Masjid at the end of 1992. That good sense has finally prevailed to await the Supreme Courts decision in the matter is indeed a welcome sign. One fervently hopes there would be no change in the mentality of those desiring the temple at Ayodhya in the days ahead. However, the cow problem seems to act as a great equaliser, as The Indian Express has opined. In ten years (2007-2016) the BJP Government of Madhya Pradesh had booked 22 persons under the National Security Act for suspected cow slaughter. Since then the BJP has lost the State Assembly elections and currently there is a Congress Government in the State. But the Congress is pursuing the same policy as the BJP in the matter. Reflecting on this development, which does illustrate the Congress soft-Hindutva approach and needs to be unequivocally deplored, the same newspaper makes a pertinent observation: In seeking to electorally encash the cow, the Congress may fail to distinguish itself from its main opponent. And anyway, it must know that the cow is not an infallible investment. (Shivraj Singh) Chouhan had announced the establishment of a Cow Ministry days before the model code of conduct for the Assembly election kicked in, but it did not appear to help his prospects. Are the Congress leaders, and party President Rahul Gandhi in particular, listening? February 7 S.C. Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2019 > Mamata emerges as a Focal Point of the National Opposition by Nityananda Ghosh The sordid drama that started unfolding with a carload of CBI officials appearing out of the blue in front of the Kolkata Police Commissioners residence in the city on February 3, 2019, with the attempt to barge into the building turned out to be a massive confrontation between the Centre and the State as well as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) vs the entire Opposition except the CPI-M which chose to isolate itself from the Opposition ranks. The Supreme Court on Tuesday (February 5, 2019) directed the Kolkata Police Commissioner, Rajeev Kumar, to appear before the CBI and faithfully co-operate in the investigation of cases arising out of the ponzi scam, while making it clear that he will not be arrested. The Supreme Court issued the following directives on a petition linked to the standoff between the CBI and West Bengal Government. Kolkata Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar should appear before the CBI and fully cooperate with the investigating agency. No coercive steps, including arrest, shall be taken against the Commissioner. In order to avoid all unnecessary controversy, the Police Commissioner should appear before the CBI in Shillong, Meghalaya (a neutral territory) on such date(s) as may be fixed. The West Bengal Chief Secretary, Director General of Police should file replies on or before February 18 pertaining to the contempt petition against them. On the basis of the replies, the officers will be informed on February 19 whether their presence is required in the Court on February 20. The conspiracy to topple the West Bengal Government using Section 355 or 356 of the Cr.P.C. by the Central Government for violation of constitutional norms initially jolted public opinion before the Supreme Court rose to the occasion to give a verdict in favour of neither the CBI nor the State Government. Although the Court order was welcomed by both sides (the WB Government and Central Government), political circles think that the battle was won by the West Bengal Chief Minister at least in the first round. The biggest gain for Mamata Banerjee is that she has positioned herself as a national trend-setter who struck back with ferocity when the Narendra Modi Government tried to browbeat her with an instrument called the CBI. On the other side, Union Minister Smriti Irani said that the West Bengal Chief Ministers political histrionics have been brought to a screeching halt by the Supreme Court after the Court directed the Kolkata Police Commissioner to fully cooperate with the CBI in the ponzi scam probe. Union Minister Ravishankar Prasad too welcomed the order and said it was a blow to the Mamata Banerjee Government and a victory for the CBI. He further added that it also showed nobody was above the law, including the Police Commissioner. Arun Jaitley too accused Mamata Banerjee of assaulting federalism and claimed that the real motive of her disproportionate reaction to the CBI action in Bengal was to project herself as the nucleus of Indias Opposition. The truth has come out from Jaitleys reaction. The proponents of Mamatas moral victory on the issue of the CBIs intervention in the State opine that she has united the split Opposition in the battle against the Modi Government. Earlier on January 19 of this year she had assembled 23 Opposition leaders in her Brigade Parade Ground rally in Kolkata. This time she has consolidated her position by uniting all those leaders who came to Calcutta to show their solidarity and at the same time to launch a bigger anti-Modi Government campaign which will be held with a sit-in demonstration in New Delhi. The 70-hour dharna, which began at Esplanades Metro channel in the heart of Kolkata following confrontation with the CBI that had sent a team to question Kolkata Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar on February 3 in connection with the Sarada scam probe, was lifted hours after the Supreme Court directed the officer to faithfully co-operate with the CBI but restrained the agency from taking any coercive steps, including arrest against him. It is interesting to note that Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav has issued an open letter in English to reach out to the national audience. Excerpts from the letter applauding Mamata Banerjee and addressed to all my fellow Indians read as follows: I write to you today because two-and-a-half menand a media that has been corrupted by their sycophantic portrayal of these menare on the brink of destroying our nation and everything it stands for... Today the attack on the State of Bengal is not only an attack on the values and tenets of the Constitution but also on the dreams of our founding fathers... In the last 24 hours, it is clear that the democratic republic ... is being systematically hollowed out and destroyed... The formula is simpleunfriendly politicians in power are to be embroiled in legal battles, buried under false charges, attacked as anti-national, accused of sedition and their States set aflame using whatever sectarian methods are at the disposal of this government that dreams of staying (in) power for 50 years. In attacking Mamata Banerjee, these two-and-a-half men forget her past. Here is a woman who was dragged from Jyoti Basus office by the hair for demanding an end to the patriarchy of the Communist Party in their bastion... I believe it is time for all Indians, regardless of their politics, their religion, their caste or the region to which they belong, to agree to two things: that the rule of law requires strong institutions, not weak officers who are weaponised against political opponents; and that elections should be fought at the polling booths, not by midnight raids, trumped up charges and lies. I call on our judiciary, the CBI, the IAS, the IPS and all our national institutions to prevail against the constant attacks on them and to fight back with integrity. I call on them to stand up for the process so that they do not act as the election agents for a particular party... Meanwhile in a statement, CPI-ML General Secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya too said his party strongly opposed the conspiratorial intervention in the State by the Narendra Madi-led Government at the Centre. Dipankar said: Ahead of the crucial 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the Modi Government has launched a conspiratorial attack on the West Bengal Government on the pretext of a CBI probe in the Sarada scam. The growing clamour by the BJP leaders for imposition of Presidents Rule in the State provides a clear pointer to the Modi Governments ominous design against the Constitution and the federal framework. We strongly condemn this design and appeal to the democracy-loving people of West Bengal to oppose this criminal Central intervention using the CBI. The people of West Bengal have long been fighting for justice against the Sarada and Rose Valley chit fund scams. By co-opting scamtainted leaders like Mukul Roy, the BJP cannot claim to be fighting against this scam. Indeed, today there are much graver allegations of corruption against the Modi Government, ranging from the demonetisation disaster to the controversial Rafale deal. Anti-corruption rhetoric by a government which has proved itself to be the biggest promoter of crony capitalism can only be treated as hypocrisy of Himalayan proportions. He, however, said the Left Front in Bengal was committed to resist every conspiracy of the BJP and the Central Government, while carrying forward its own battle against the growing corruption and tyranny of the Trinamul regime in the State. Meanwhile the Polit-Bureau communique of the CPI-M called upon the people to fight against the BJPs evil design. But its West Bengal counterpart still believes in the setting theory between the Trinamul Congress and BJP. In this precarious condition observers are watching with bated breath how things develop and what shape they take in the next few months. The author is a retired lecturer in Botany at the Cannning Bankim Sardar College, West Bengal and a social activist. Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2019 > Street-fighter Mamata MUSINGS Mamata Banerjee is indeed a fighter. The latest political developments taking off from West Bengal, where she came up with that piercing shrill cry to halt the BJP-RSS moves, is only a continuation of her determined effort to keep the Right-wing at bay, away from wrecking communal strife and havoc in her State. In fact, in the recently launched book on her, DidiThe Untold Mamata Banerjee (Penguin), author Shutapa Paul focuses on the political graph of Mamata Banerjee writ large in her determination to be a political fighter. Also, her firm resolve to remain secular, trying her utmost to halt any of the divisive tactics of the Hindutva brigades. Yes, she comes across as a formidable force. Not to be bullied by any of the Right-wing tactics. To quote from this bookTwo years since her second conquest in 2016, today, Mamata is sure she that she has a new adversary. The growing influence of the BJP in the State has been bothering her. The national party has conquered almost the entire North-East and it greedily eyes States such as Bengal. Didi knows that the next election will not be a cakewalk. However she is not new to enemies. She has fought formidable political adversaries all her life. West Bengals only woman Chief Minister and for that matter the States sole woman politician of repute, toppled thirty-four years of Left Front rule in 2011, and brought an entire regime to its kneesan unthinkable feat a few years ago. Perhaps, Mamata Banerjees childhood paved the way for her to be drawn towards politics as her father, Promileshwar, was an active Congress supporter, who allowed his office to be used for party meetings. Local Congress leaders would come home regularly for tea, much to Mamatas delight. She would listen to endless tales of the Indian freedom struggle and their revolutionary ideas. She would willingly prepare home-made glue to paste their posters. It was during this impressionable age that Mamata learnt about both the Congress and the Communists. And along the expected strain right from the student days Mamatas activism paved the way for political battles. In her memoirs she says that she would often take her books to the protest sites, and if arrested, study in the police lock up. Mamata has famously been referred to as a street fighter, a nomenclature that is not unjustified. Fighting for our lives on the streets of Calcutta was something we did, 330 out of 365 days in a year. Everyday there were protests, meetings and slogan-shouting. Everyday there was violence, she says. Under Subrata Mukherjees leadership, the Chhatra Parishad organised a slew of protests between 1978 and 1983; Mamata played a central role in almost all the agitations whether it was against Jayaprakash Narayan or Farooq Abdullah. And now, in 2019, she could well play the kingmaker. This latest book on her bares out, in an uncomplicated way, why chances are strong of her going strong! Mamata knows that winning West Bengal was only a battle; she must prepare for war if she wants to retain power. The general elections of 2019 can see her play kingmaker, she is aware. She is the only regional leader who can claim to have that kind of clout. Jayalalitha is no more and Nitish Kumar has changed over to the NDA. 2018 also witnessed the demise of another pedagogue of Dravidian politics, K. Karunanidhi. With the Congress showing signs of resurgence, and regional parties agreeing to forge a Federal Front, Mamata is more than aware that if she gets her electoral mathematics right, she could play a decisive role in the next Lok Sabha polls... And as we talk and write and discuss the upcoming elections, I wonder why we seem to bypass the hue and cry about the EVMs. Can they be manipulated? And if yes, then the extent of damage they can heap on the very democratic structure and on all our hopes to get rid of the Right-wing rule! Why are cries to get back the ballot papers not getting shriller and louder by the day? They should! Leaving you with this verse of Mohammad Iqbal Mans weapons in lifes battles are three;/ Conviction that his cause his just/ Courage to fight for it till eternity/ Compassion that embraces all humanity. Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2019 > Why North-East Citizens Rebel IMPRESSIONS Imagine all South Indian States uniting on a platform of ethnic difference from the North, as C.N. Annadurai briefly contemplated once upon a time. Something similar is happening in the North-East. Ethnically, culturally and historically, the North-Eastern States have been different from the rest of India. North-Easterners often talked about going to the mainland when they meant going to India. The mainlanders, for their part, often referred to the North-Easterners in terms and tones of racial superiority. Elections last February signalled what looked like a sea-change in this scenario. The Congress was unseated and so was the Communist Party that had ruled Tripura under one leader for 20 years. A triumphant BJP formed a one-party government in Tripura while it formed alliances with other parties to take control of the remaining States. It was a clean sweep for the BJP, which had no presence in the North-East till then. In political terms, it was the equivalent of a coup detat. But suddenly last week, the gears slipped into reverse. An ideology-driven initiative by the BJP ignited resentment among its allies across the region. Protestors have taken to the street with mass demonstrations, burning of effigies, and hunger strikes. Six of the regions seven Chief Ministers have suspended their BJP links and formed a united front to fight the BJP-sponsored move to enforce a new legislation in the region and across the country. What is the BJP move that has provoked so much resentment? Outwardly it looks noble: promoting a Citizenship Amendment Bill that will give the persecuted minorities in Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan the right to become Indian citizens. The phrase persecuted minorities does not mean what it means linguistically. Shias and Ahmediyas, Islamic minorities routinely persecuted in Pakistan, qualify to be covered by the phrase, but that must be farthest from the minds of the BJP strategists. Everyone knows that the BJP is referring only to the Hindu minorities in neighbouring countries. The proposed amendment means that Hindus in Bangladesh who migrate even illegally to the North-Eastern States and to West Bengal will get citizenship rights. Such migration/citizenship will alter the demographics of the North-Eastern Statesa consummation the BJP wants and the local people dont. The powerful student organisations of Assam and the Asom Gana Parishad were the first to rise in protest. One leader put it bluntly: Assamese and other indigenous peoples feel betrayed by the Modi Government, which seems hell-bent on making Assam a dumping ground for foreigners thereby threatening our existence. The AGP has ended its two-year alliance with the BJP. Meghalayas Chief Minister has warned that the North-East will seek support from across the country, including the Congress. Thirteen local parties have said they would pull out of the BJP-led NDA if the amendment Bill is taken up in the Rajya Sabha (it is already passed in the Lok Sabha). Actually, there are issues involved here that concern the whole country. The existing laws do not take religion or ethnicity into account in determining citizenship. The right of birth is the accepted norm. If this is enlarged to include the right of blood, it will mean the acceptance of religion as a determining factor. That is precisely the BJPs aim as its lead strategist in the region, Himanta Biswa Sarma, made clear when he said: We have to decide who our enemy isthe 1.5 lakh people or the 55 lakh people. (That is, Bengali Hindu illegals or Bengali Muslim illegals in Assam). Note also that the 55 lakh are automatically considered enemy. Make no mistake, ethnic cleansing is the idea. China is paying heavily for its cleansing drive in Xinjiang, its vast autonomous province with 12 million Turkic-speaking Muslims. This region has more in common with Turkmenistan and the people of Central Asia than with the Chinese, which term, in the lexicon of Beijing, principally means the Han people. Beijings policy of integrating Xinjiang has been relentless. Military repression, re-education camps, Sinicisation of religion and officially-sponsored relocation of thousands of Han Chinese families from the eastern heartland have not yet succeeded in changing the face and demography of Xinjiang. India does not even have Chinas luxury of a one-party dictatorship. Worse, it has a Constitution, a Parliament, a judiciary with its own mind and a media that defies discipline. But there may be a way out. China used the camouflage socialism with Chinese characte-ristics to grow into a capitalist success story. If the BJP goes for Hindutva with Indian characteristics, perhaps it may yet help India grow into a modern state. Vanuatu turns the Corner LETS USE THIS AS A SPRINGBOARD FOR THE FUTURE Today Scattered thunderstorms early, then becoming mostly clear after midnight. Low 74F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%. Tonight Scattered thunderstorms early, then becoming mostly clear after midnight. Low 74F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%. Tomorrow Scattered thunderstorms in the morning, then mainly cloudy during the afternoon with thunderstorms likely. High near 90F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 60%. For three decades, Liu Hong-chengs family has peddled apples, oranges and cherries at a morning market in Kaohsiung, Taiwans second-largest city. During that time, the Lius consistently voted for the party of President Tsai Ing-wen, who has resisted Chinese pressure to bring the island under Hong Kong-style unification. In November, fruit seller Liu, in search of an economic jackpot, changed sides. He voted for the winning candidate in the citys mayoral election, Han Kuo-yu, a member of the opposition Nationalist Party which embraces dialogue with Beijing. Hans slogan: Sell things out, bring people in, make Kaohsiung super rich. Its not about getting close to China, Liu, 50, explained of his change in thinking. Its about getting close to cash. For decades, Taiwans economy has been beset by stagnant wages, low growth, and a lack of consumer or foreign investor confidence. Tsais Democratic Progressive Party suffered major losses in Novembers midterm election amidst the economic woes, compounded by Tsais unpopular pension and labor law reforms. Advertisement Some Taiwanese believe that Taiwan can revitalize its economy by tapping into Chinas markets. Hans viral campaign for mayor played on popular frustration with Kaohsiungs stagnation. He branded himself as a bald-headed vegetable seller who would sell Taiwanese fish and vegetables to the Chinese market, inspiring rap videos with refrains of lets get that money and drawing tens of thousands of supporters to rallies. Others say that Chinese business cant be trusted. One of Taiwans biggest civil protests, the Sunflower Movement of 2014, drew more than 100,000 protesters into the streets against a trade pact that would open Taiwan and Chinas service sectors to one another. Since Tsai took office in 2016, Taiwans government has pushed policies of industrial innovation and turning to South and Southeast Asian markets, in hopes of reducing reliance on China. Either way, China looms large in any effort to revitalize Taiwans economy: Move too far from China, and the economic giant could cut Taiwan out of supply chains and regional trade agreements, not to mention the second-biggest market in the world. Grow too dependent, and Taiwans political future could end up in Chinas hands. Kaohsiung has tried to rebrand itself as a tourist hub, with little success so far. Here, a few tourists take pictures in front of Kaohsiung ports industrial skyline. (An Rong Xu / For The Times) Cargo ships and oil rigs face the harbor at Sizih Bay in Kaohsiung, a heavy industry-centered city in southern Taiwan. (An Rong Xu / For The Times) Kaohsiung, once one of the worlds top 10 shipping ports, has tried but failed to rebrand itself as a tourist hub. On a hazy winter morning, only a handful of tourists took selfies at the industrial harbor, posing against a skyline of cargo ships and oil rigs. Rusted signs hung over storefronts downtown, metal screens pulled shut over many of the front doors. Kaohsiung has invested in a world-class performing arts center, a river with romantic boat cruises, and a metro station with a fluorescent seven-minute light show. But none of these efforts has had a major impact. Manufacturing and shipping once brought jobs and wealth to Kaohsiung, especially as Taiwan transitioned from agriculture to industry and domestic to foreign export markets. But in the 1990s, China began to open up, just as Taiwans labor costs were rising. Taiwanese factories moved en masse to China, bringing expertise and much-needed investment while many foreign investors shied away in response to the jarring Tiananmen Square massacre of pro-democracy protesters. Advertisement Thirty years later, China is shifting to a consumption-based economy. Labor costs are rising, so much that many factory owners are moving to nearby nations of Southeast Asia. In heavy industry-centered Kaohsiung, businesses never caught on to Taiwans other strong suit, information and communications technology. Young adults leave cities like Kaohsiung in droves to seek jobs in the capital, Taipei, or overseas, in China or elsewhere. One-tenth of working-age Taiwanese now live in China, according to the Economist, many because the salaries there are much higher. Young people are getting more practical. Its not about identity, but about making use of Chinese resources, said Zhang Teng-chi, professor of political science at National Taiwan University. Theyre balancing their belief system versus their practical needs. For some small-business owners, Chinese engagement is welcome as long as it means more business. Lin Zheng-xiong, a 55-year-old fruit seller, said hed been selling bushels of 70 to 80 guavas to hotels back when Chinese tourists came to Kaohsiung. Now he is only selling a few pieces of fruit at a time. Advertisement We just hope for the economy to get better, Lin said, adding that he didnt think that Chinas unification rhetoric was anything more than talk. If they wanted to fight us, they would have attacked us a long time ago. Others, though, worry that Chinas business is a trap. Shih Te-lung, chair of a Kaohsiung labor union, said the decrease in Chinese tourists in response to Tsais policies showed that Chinese business is dangerously political. When tourists disappeared, this let a lot of people know that dependence is a problem, Shih said. We want a good economy, but we dont want to be controlled. Economists say Taiwans problems cant be solved by tourism, agriculture or short-term interest in a politician. Taiwan, they say, needs a structural shift away from its traditional place on the lower end of manufacturing supply chains. More than 40% of Taiwanese exports and more than 70% of its outbound investments go through China. But 79% of those exports are low-value-added midstream components, such as parts for shoes, clothes, and electronics. Those products are then put together in China before theyre exported, with low returns for the Taiwanese manufacturers. Advertisement We are always making things for other people, but we dont have our own brands, said Liu Da-nien, director of the Regional Development Study Center at the Chung Hua Institution for Economic Research. A few Taiwanese brands have competed well on the global stage, including HTC mobile phones, ASUS computers, Giant bicycles, and 85 Degrees C, a bakery-cafe with several branches in Los Angeles. But they are the exception, and Taiwans tech companies have fallen far behind regional giants including Samsung in South Korea and Huawei in China. Scooters and motorists share the road in Kaoshiung, Taiwan, where a new mayor was recently elected on a platform of economic revitalization. (An Rong Xu / For The Times) Let politics stay in Taipei and the economy stay in Kaohsiung, read another of Hans slogans. But anything that crosses the Taiwan Strait is inherently political, business included. Advertisement No one wants to fully rely on China, said Wang Chun-chieh, professor of political economy at National Sun Yat-sen University in Kaohsiung. China doesnt use market mechanisms. Today, if cross-strait relations are good, they send tourists. If not, they dont. China can strangle you politically. The U.S.-China trade war has increased pressure on Taiwan, especially with growing global distrust of Chinese technology, the field in which Taiwanese companies are most integrated into Chinas supply chain. Taiwans government has forbidden government agencies and state-controlled companies from using Huawei products or even having WeChat on their mobile phones, citing cyber-security concerns. Private businesses are still free to deal with Chinese tech, but may soon have to choose sides between a Chinese or American supply chain. Taiwan is already a democracy and the businessmen here in Taiwan have their own business instinct. If they feel that China is still a good market, they will continue to go, said Joseph Wu, Taiwans minister of foreign affairs. But Taiwans government wants to provide business alternatives wherever possible, he said, with an emphasis on the United States. Advertisement Some worry, though, that Taiwans political future may wind up as a bargaining chip in the trade war. [President] Trump is a very transactional person. If he sees a deal to be made, I think he will quickly cave in and do things that jeopardize our good will. said Jason Hsu, a Kuomintang legislator. After a speech by Chinese President Xi Jinping last month on cross-strait unification, Kaohsiungs new leaders have been changing their tone. We wont just depend on Chinas market. China is not the focus, said Pan Heng-hsu, director of Kaohsiungs tourism bureau. Advertisement Even fruit seller Liu remains concerned about China as an existential threat. They can just make you disappear if they want, he said. Taiwanese people dont accept that. Yet over time, Liu added, Taiwans economic interests could eventually lead to voluntary unification. If the political situation gets better, he said, I think well end up jumping over there on our own. alice.su@latimes.com Advertisement @aliceysu Anderson Silva vs. Israel Adesanya live round-by-round coverage Anderson Silva is one of a handful of fighters who receives consideration for title of the greatest fighter of all time. The longtime middleweight champion is now 43 and has largely struggled since losing that championship. Israel Adesanya, dubbed the Last Stylebender, is 15-0 in MMA with a similar creative striking style to Silva. There are big hopes for what he can accomplish in the sport as he moves to its top level. Round 1. Adesanya opens with a couple of low kicks. Adesanya continues to be more active with his kicks while Silva looks to measure as he often does early in a fight. Silva chases and gets wobbled with a counterpunch. Adesanya follows cautiously and lands a few additional punches but Silva is fine. Silva charges again and lands one punch in the process. Silva lands a nice right hand. Adesanya answers with one of his own. Adesanya throws a big head kick but Silva ducks his head out of the way. Adesanya throws it again and again Silva ducks under it. 10-9 Adesanya. Round 2. Adesanya moves in and eats a hard counterpunch that elicits a big reaction from the crowd. Adesanya lands two punches right on the chin of Silva as Silva has his hands down. Silva responds with a nice counter right hand and then pursues with some punches that connect. Silva follows with another solid punch. Silva pursues yet again and lands a right hook in the middle of it. 10-9 Silva. Round 3. Adesanya lands a hard leg kick and Silva goes down but he appears to have been playing it up. Silva goes for a flying knee but Adesanya moves out of the way. Silva stands up against the cage and encourages Adesanya to come in. Adesanya stays at distance as the crowd boos. They return to the center. Adesanya lands a number of low kicks there. Adesanya lands a strong straight left hand. 10-9 Adesanya, 29-28 Adesanya. Winner: Israel Adesanya, unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28). That proved to be a tougher fight for Adesanya than many expected it to be. With his style so similar to Silva, he was forced to fight the sort of fight that Silva likes and Silva was still quite dangerous in his own preferred zone. Adesanya still earned the win and now the question is whats next for the UFC middleweight title. The Newport Beach City Council will consider a zoning change Tuesday that would allow a large senior care facility near John Wayne Airport. The proposed Harbor Pointe Senior Living would house up to 120 senior citizens in assisted living and more-complex and secure memory care units on a 1.5-acre campus at 101 Bayview Place, currently the site of a Japanese restaurant that would be demolished. For the developer to build the facility, near Bristol Street and Jamboree Road, the council would need to rezone the lot from general commercial office to private institution. Harbor Pointe would be three stories, reaching about 40 feet tall and covering about 85,000 square feet. It would be staffed around the clock with up to 30 employees at a time. During Planning Commission discussions preceding the councils planned vote, opponents of the proposed facility shared their anxieties about how it might affect traffic, area property values, future land uses and the safety of neighbors and facility residents. Residents of the nearby Bayview Court neighborhood have been among the most vocal critics. The Planning Commission, however, recommended in December that the City Council approve the project, saying it would address a local need. Because a senior care facility likely would require more emergency medical services compared with the existing Kitayama restaurant, the developer, Centerpointe Senior Living, has agreed to pay a $1-million public benefit fee to add an ambulance based at the nearest Newport Beach fire station about a mile and a half away. The city would keep any funds left after the purchase of the ambulance. The developer also proposes chipping in $150,000 for nearby groups, including homeowners associations and the Newport Bay Conservancy, to spend on programs and improvements. Tuesdays council meeting starts at 4 p.m. with a study session, followed by the regular session at 7 p.m. at City Hall, 100 Civic Center Drive. Ten years ago this week, California lawmakers stared into the deepest fiscal abyss the state had ever faced and lived to tell the tale in part by pretending part of the hole didnt really exist. Now, the current crop of state leaders must decide whether theyll finally stop telling themselves the state spends almost $1 billion less every year just by putting off that spending for a single day. The budgetary sleight of hand in question, part of a 2009 spending plan, was both brilliant and preposterous. It ordered that $1.6 billion in state worker salaries and benefits scheduled for payment June 30 the final day of Californias fiscal year should instead be paid a day later, on July 1. The result was a net decrease in spending, a cut without actually cutting anything. But for the trick to never actually cost the state money, officials had to keep using it. And so they did: Every year, that month of payroll costs is moved from the final day of one fiscal year to the first day of the next. To do differently would mean that the money would again be considered an extra expense, one likely to be paid by reducing costs somewhere else. Advertisement Were getting rid of that gimmick, Gov. Gavin Newsom said last month when he laid out his $209 billion budget plan for legislators to consider. Newsoms budget calculates the current value of the one-day payroll scheme at $1 billion a year and proposes scrapping it by using some of the states one-time tax revenue windfall. Undoubtedly, he sees that move as a win-win: Ceasing a practice that just keeps pushing a problem forward would also earn him points for being transparent and trustworthy. Gov. Gavin Newsom embraces an untested idea on how Californias rainy-day fund should work Hes not the first to lament the gimmicks of Californias gloomy budget days gone by. Former Gov. Jerry Brown erased billions in costly borrowing started between 2004 and 2011 that he nicknamed the states wall of debt. Newsom hopes to finish off those payments in the coming year. But other monetary schemes remain. In 2009, the same year in which the 24-hour payroll shift was enacted, state lawmakers tinkered with deadlines for taxpayers who make estimated payments. The system previously parceled out those payments every 90 days. But it was retooled so more money would arrive in Sacramento early enough to be counted toward a cash-depleted state budget. Californians whose income taxes come from their paychecks were hit with changes in withholding that meant many paid more sooner and got the money back as a tax refund in effect, a loan to the state. That system remains enshrined in state law. Neither Newsom nor lawmakers have proposed ending those budget gimmicks. Nor is it certain his payroll plan will happen, either. Last week, the nonpartisan Legislative Analysts Office suggested shouldering the one-time cost about $973 million from the states general fund might not be worth it. Instead, the Legislature could use these resources to build additional reserves to protect against future deficits, the analysts wrote. Advertisement That the gimmick has lasted so long is a testament to how hard it can be to undo something that, truth be told, isnt hurting anything other than the publics perception of the Legislature. And Newsom, even as he champions the change, doesnt deny that desperate times can lead to desperate measures. If I use it in six years, in a recession, forgive me, he said with a smile during his Jan. 10 budget press conference. john.myers@latimes.com Advertisement Follow @johnmyers on Twitter, sign up for our daily Essential Politics newsletter and listen to the weekly California Politics Podcast Last week, no fewer than six committees of the House of Representatives were investigating potential grounds for impeaching Donald Trump as president of the United States. They dont use the word impeachment. Their instructions from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) are to describe their work in narrower, less inflammatory terms. But the question is never far away: Does Trumps record of norm-busting, rule-bending and apparent law-breaking, from conflicts of interest to murky connections with foreign governments, justify removing him from office? We have to see what the facts are, Pelosi said recently. We shouldnt be impeaching for a political reason, and we shouldnt avoid impeachment for a political reason. So well just have to see how it comes. Advertisement Call this phase pre-impeachment. Pelosi and her committee chairs, all Democrats, are doing what they need to do to make impeaching Trump possible. The speaker and her allies describe a two-step process before any impeachment can succeed. Step one is gathering conclusive evidence of misconduct high crimes and misdemeanors, the Constitution says serious enough to warrant articles of impeachment. That may be the easy part. Step two would be convincing the public that impeachment is warranted and building bipartisan support in Congress, especially in the Republican-controlled Senate. Thats tougher. If only one party is involved, Democrats risk the kind of disaster Republicans faced when they impeached President Clinton in 1998, saw him acquitted in the Senate, and watched their own popularity plummet. The House Democrats have held their majority for little more than a month, so step one is only beginning in Congress, at least. But they lost no time in getting underway. It will be hard to keep the probes separate. A Pelosi aide convenes a weekly meeting just to keep track of the overlapping lines of inquiry. The House Intelligence Committee, under Rep. Adam B. Schiff (D-Burbank), will investigate whether Trump or his family have been compromised by Russia, Saudi Arabia or other foreign actors. Advertisement Financial Affairs, under Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Los Angeles), will help Schiff look into potential money laundering by the presidents family-run company. Judiciary, under Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), is probing possible violations of campaign laws. Oversight, under Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.), is investigating foreign payments to Trumps businesses. Foreign Affairs, under Rep. Eliot L. Engel (D-NY), is probing White House attempts to relax sanctions on Russian oligarchs. Ways and Means, under Rep. Richard E. Neal (D-Mass.), may seek Trumps tax returns, which the president has refused to release. The investigative flurry got the presidents attention. Advertisement PRESIDENTIAL HARASSMENT! he roared on Twitter last week. The Dems and their committees are going nuts. The Republicans never did this to President Obama. (Actually, they tried.) Trump chiefly targeted Schiff, whom he castigated for looking at every aspect of my life, both financial and personal, even though there is no reason to be doing so. Never happened before! Trump has long argued that his financial dealings and his family-run business empire should be off-limits. The special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, appears to have avoided that red line; Schiff says Congress isnt bound by it. We need to know that the president is acting in our national interest and not in some family financial interest ... [and] not because Russia or someone else has leverage over him, Schiff told me. Advertisement He described his probe as a counterintelligence investigation to determine whether foreign regimes have undue influence over the president. There are a lot of disturbing allegations out there, he said. But, like Pelosi, he argued that its too early to propose a resolution of impeachment. I think we should review the whole record before making that decision, he said. Theres a lot of work we need to do to flesh out the facts. Like Pelosi, he insisted that any move to impeach the president must have bipartisan support or it will fail. Advertisement Some Democrats are more impatient. California billionaire Tom Steyer has vowed to spend money in next years Democratic primaries to punish members of Congress, including committee chairs, who dont move as quickly as hed like. But thats short-sighted. An impeachment resolution now would surely backfire. It would create a zero-sum fight between the two tribes of American politics. It would make winning Republican support almost impossible and could help reelect Trump. And, as Pelosi knows, it would divert attention from every other priority, from healthcare to climate change the raw material for the campaign Democrats hope to wage in 2020. For anyone rooting for impeachment, the House is already doing what it needs to do: investigating. It is putting Trump in more danger than before something he seems to understand, judging from his frantic tweets. Advertisement Any impeachment is traumatic, but a failed impeachment can be worse. Steyer and others who want history to move faster should be careful what they wish for. Doyle McManus column appears on Wednesday and Sunday. As Democratic candidates leap into the presidential fray, many have latched onto a catchy political rallying cry: Medicare for all. But dont assume theyre all talking about the same thing. The pithy slogan has driven the first major policy debate of the budding Democratic primary. When Sen. Kamala Harris of California breezily pledged at a nationally televised town hall to eliminate private insurance in favor of a federal health plan last month, many of her rivals hurriedly distanced themselves from that prospect. Others in the partys left flank, largely aligned with probable candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), embraced the concept as essential to achieving true healthcare overhaul. Advertisement The divergent responses underscored the knotty politics behind the seemingly simple motto. Democratic presidential hopefuls now face the delicate task of explaining how, exactly, each of them interprets Medicare for all. When youre hearing a politician speak, youve got to know the politician to know what they mean by Medicare for all, said Michael Lighty, a fellow at the Sanders Institute, a think tank founded by the senators wife. The public appears increasingly receptive to a broad government healthcare system. A January poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that 56% of respondents and 81% of Democrats backed a national health plan, sometimes called Medicare for all. Thats a 16-point increase in support since the group first tracked public opinion on the proposal in 1998. An inflection point, said Liz Hamel, director of public opinion and survey research at the foundation, was in February 2016, in the heat of that years Democratic primary in which Sanders centered his insurgent campaign on Medicare for all. For the first time, public approval of the policy hit 50%. 2020 Democratic presidential candidates: Whos in and whos on the fence? In 2017, Sanders introduced a Medicare for all bill that would dramatically expand and revamp Medicare, the federal health insurance for people aged 65 and older. Under the proposal, all United States residents would be enrolled in a national health plan that would offer wide-ranging benefits, including hospital services, doctor visits and prescription drugs. Multiple studies estimated the proposal would increase federal spending by $32 trillion over 10 years. The bill was politically dead on arrival, with Republicans controlling Congress and the White House. Still, 16 Democratic senators signed on as co-sponsors, including 2020 contenders Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, Cory Booker of New Jersey and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts. Advertisement Harris, a first-term senator, announced that shed be a co-sponsor weeks before it was introduced. She touted her support in a CNN town hall after she launched her presidential run. Asked if that would mean doing away with private insurance companies, Harris responded bluntly: Lets eliminate all that. Lets move on. In theory, this was not a surprise. Sanders bill plainly states it would ban commercial or employee-based coverage that duplicates the federal benefits envisioned in his plan. Nonetheless, her remark led to a minor maelstrom. Howard Schultz, the former Starbucks chief now mulling an independent campaign for president, denounced it as not American. Some of Harris Democratic rivals rejected the eradication of commercial insurance. Advertisement Even countries that have vast access to public healthcare have private healthcare. So, no, said Booker, despite co-sponsoring Sanders bill. When Warren, another co-sponsor, was asked during a Bloomberg television interview if she supports doing away with private insurers, she simply didnt address the question. The role of insurance companies is an unavoidable flashpoint. While the Kaiser Family Foundation found nearly 60% of the public said they support a Medicare for all plan, that approval plummets to 37% if it would eliminate private insurers. Many are confused by how such a proposal would affect them. More than half of the respondents believed they could keep their employer-sponsored plan under Medicare for all, which is not the case under Sanders bill. Advertisement Even the vocabulary surrounding the issue can be baffling. Universal coverage, for example, is not the same thing as single-payer. The former is a goal for everyone to have some form of health insurance; the latter is a specific type of system where one entity usually the government pays for everyones medical care. Universal coverage is definitely something that gets a positive reaction from people, as does the general concept of the federal government doing more to provide health insurance for people, Hamel said. People agree on the goals and dont agree on the ways to get there. Single-payer advocates have seized on Medicare as an easily recognizable symbol of government healthcare, albeit one with significant reliance on private insurers. Advertisement The branding of Medicare for all is so important because the vast majority of Americans know Medicare, they like it, they have family members that are on it, said Topher Spiro, a health policy expert at the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank. Other Democrats have sought to take up the healthcare reform banner without going all in on Sanders plan. The Center for American Progress suggests a national insurance program that would allow those who get coverage through an employer, Veterans Affairs or other federal benefits to keep their existing plans. Other ideas include creating a public insurance option to compete with private insurers or letting people buy into Medicare or Medicaid, the subsidized healthcare program for the poor. I believe we should protect and strengthen the Affordable Care Act, not repeal it, said Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), who is weighing his own White House bid. And one of the best ways to do that is to open up Medicare to people starting in their 50s and give them the option to buy in if they want to. Advertisement Popular support for these more incremental options far exceed approval of a sweeping Medicare for all, according to the foundation poll. But while proponents say such an approach is more pragmatic, it risks coming off as settling for half-measures to those in the Democratic base eager for more ambitious reform. So far, some Democratic candidates have tried to take multiple tacks, signing onto healthcare bills that have a narrower scope while also backing a broader Medicare for all concept. The all-of-the-above approach can require some delicate maneuvering. Harris, for example, was accused of backing away from her vow to eliminate private insurance when in the days following her town hall, her campaign noted her long-held support for other healthcare bills. Advertisement Medicare for all is the plan that she believes will solve the problem and get all Americans covered. Period, said Ian Sams, a Harris campaign spokesman. She has co-sponsored other pieces of legislation that she sees as a path to getting us there, but this is the plan she is running on. But for all its messiness, liberal activists are hoping the Medicare for all parsing in the primary could end up paving the way for some version of the policy to come to fruition. Theres historical precedent that it might. The 2008 Democratic primary was marked by the top three contenders Hillary Clinton, John Edwards and Barack Obama wrangling over healthcare reform. Without that debate, we wouldnt have reached the full set of policies that became the Affordable Care Act, said Ben Wikler, Washington director of the grass-roots group MoveOn.org. Thats the kind of debate were hoping for. Advertisement Times staff writer Janet Hook contributed to this report. As he lays ground to run for president, Montana Gov. Steve Bullock looks back with regret at his failure to recognize the gravity of a top aides sexual harassment of a colleague. After he was fired, the advisor went to work for New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and was soon accused of harassing two more women. Bullock now says hes deeply sorry he never told de Blasio about his aides misbehavior. I was wrong and naive to think I did enough, Bullock, a Democrat, wrote Feb. 2 in a blog post. Kamala Harris has similar regrets. So does Bernie Sanders. And so does Joe Biden. Advertisement The 2020 presidential race is the first to occur since the #MeToo movement changed the nations cultural and political climate. Democratic contenders are already struggling to control the damage from their own shortcomings in policing sexual harassment in the workplace. You can say you support #MeToo, and you can say you support women, but you have to be able to demonstrate that in your own organization and in your own behavior, said Kelly Dittmar, a political scientist at Rutgers Universitys Center for American Women and Politics. I dont think were going to see all of a sudden a wholesale overturning of the allowances that weve given to folks for this type of behavior, or not acting significantly to stop this behavior in the past. But I do think the bar is higher. Cold political math is at least part of whats drawing heightened attention to sexual misconduct: Women consistently turn out to vote in greater numbers than men. Women have also strongly preferred Democrats in recent elections, driving the partys takeover of the House in the November midterm. In the White House race, Democrats face pressure to nominate a candidate who can draw a strong contrast with President Trump. A Democrat who is perceived as not dealing with sexual harassment seriously could have a hard time attacking the president over allegations by multiple women that Trump sexually assaulted them. The accusations, which Trump denies, have not caused die-hard supporters to desert him, but the president remains highly unpopular among women in general. For Harris, the U.S. senator from California, the issue has become fraught since the Sacramento Bee revealed in December that the state paid $400,000 to settle a lawsuit over alleged sexual harassment by Larry Wallace, one of her closest aides for 14 years. When Harris was state attorney general, she named Wallace as chief of the Division of Law Enforcement. He was in charge of her personal security detail, and he was a crucial figure in her political life: He led Harris successful drive to win endorsements from dozens of police groups that had once roundly opposed her. Advertisement In September 2016, Wallace and at least four others on her staff at the attorney generals office were notified of the initial complaint filed by Danielle Hartley, Wallaces executive assistant. Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) says nobody told her about a $400,000 settlement of a sexual harassment suit filed against one of her top aides when she was state attorney general. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times) Three months later, Hartley sued the state, alleging Wallace had harassed and demeaned her in his Sacramento office. He kept a printer on the floor beneath his desk, she claimed, and ordered her every day to get on her knees to put paper in it or replace the ink, at times with him and male co-workers watching. Harris successor, Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra, approved the settlement in May 2017. Harris said she was not told about the case until the Bee asked about it two months ago. The inquiry led Wallace to resign as a senior advisor on her Senate staff in Sacramento. Advertisement It was a very painful experience to know that something can happen in ones office of almost 5,000 people, granted, but I didnt know about it, Harris told CNN. That being said, I take full responsibility for anything that has happened in my office. Critics have attacked the credibility of Harris, one of the Senates most pointed interrogators of Brett M. Kavanaugh when he faced sexual assault accusations at his Supreme Court confirmation hearing. A Bee editorial called her denial of any knowledge of the Wallace settlement far-fetched. And if shes to be believed, it said, she isnt a terribly good manager. Larry Gerston, a political scientist at San Jose State, said Harris was facing the conundrum of many politicians: How do they justify actions they took or didnt take prior to the #MeToo movement shifting public attitudes? Its very hard for those folks to go back and undo what they did at a time when it wasnt viewed as terrible as it is now, he said. Advertisement For Sanders, the Vermont senator preparing to launch his second campaign for the Democratic nomination, the politics are messier. Multiple women have gone public with accusations of sexism, sexual harassment and pay discrimination by male supervisors in his 2016 campaign against Hillary Clinton. His initial apology last month in a CNN interview was widely seen as dismissive toward the accusers. Explaining why hed been unaware of their complaints, he said: I was a little bit busy running around the country trying to make the case. Sarah Slamen, who worked for his campaign in Texas, said that comment gave her no confidence that Sanders cares enough about sexual harassment to keep it from recurring. She suggested another Democrat would be a more effective champion of his agenda. I dont think that Sen. Sanders has changed much of his mindset, she said. Advertisement In a second apology days later at a news conference, Sanders was more forceful in denouncing the discrimination against women who worked on his campaign. What they experienced was absolutely unacceptable and certainly not what a progressive campaign or any campaign should be about, he said. Sanders and some of his top aides later met privately with some of the women to hear their accounts of mistreatment. We were trying to identify some concrete strategies and action steps for any future Sanders campaign, said Jenny R. Yang, a sexual harassment expert who joined the meeting. Advertisement Toni Van Pelt, president of the National Organization for Women, called sexual misconduct on the Sanders campaign a very big deal. She, too, cast doubt on whether any adjustments he might make to prevent harassment in the campaign ahead reflect a better understanding of the damage it causes. I think hell do it because its part of the political equation, she said. In Bidens case, the former vice president has been struggling for nearly three decades to overcome the fallout from his leadership of the all-male Senate Judiciary Committee when Anita Hill accused Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas of sexual harassment. Witnesses were blocked from testifying on Hills behalf at the confirmation hearing, and senators pelted Hill with aggressive and embarrassing questions. Advertisement Anita Hill was interrogated by the all-male Senate Judiciary Committee at the 1991 confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas. (Samuel Goldwyn Films) My one regret is that I wasnt able to tone down the attacks on her by some of my Republican friends, Biden told Teen Vogue in late 2017. I mean, they really went after her. Biden, who co-sponsored the Violence Against Women Act in 1994, said he wished hed been able to do more for Hill. I owe her an apology, he said. If Biden joins the race for president, as expected, he will inevitably be called to account again for Hills treatment in the 1991 hearing. Advertisement Its hard for me to forgive him, Van Pelt said. Hes done a lot of good with the Violence Against Women Act, theres no question of that. But I just think maybe its time for new thinking. As for Bullock, his admission that he fell short in preventing sexual harassment has made for an awkward introduction to a national audience as he prepares his likely announcement that hes running for president. When he was chairman of the Democratic Governors Assn., Bullock dismissed his longtime Montana aide Kevin OBrien for sexual harassment. He said he felt sick and heartbroken when he recently learned OBrien had gone on to sexually harass two women at his next job. De Blasio has attacked the governors association for failing to alert him to OBriens history. Nan Whaley, a longtime Democratic Party activist who is mayor of Dayton, Ohio, said the #MeToo movement has changed the rules in politics, elevating the importance of troubles like Bullocks. Advertisement I think what has been acceptable in the past is not going to be acceptable in this cycle, she said. And youre seeing that bear out. Sen. Amy Klobuchar doesnt have much star power in a Democratic primary packed with it. She cant compete with several of the other presidential hopefuls in social media presence, fundraising aptitude, or even ability to fire up the base with big, ambitious policy plans. But the Minnesota pragmatist who joined the race Sunday brings with her a different asset: the promise of credibility with Midwesterners like those who soured on the Democratic Party in 2016 and could prove crucial in determining whether President Trump gets reelected. I dont have a political machine. I dont come from money. But what I do have is this: I have grit, Klobuchar declared as a persistent snowfall pelted down on the rostrum at her outdoor announcement rally in a park along the Mississippi River near downtown Minneapolis. Temperatures stood in the mid-teens, made colder-feeling by a stiff breeze as she spoke, her voice occasionally stuttering from the cold. We are tired of the shutdowns and the showdowns, the gridlock and the grandstanding, she said. Today, we say enough is enough. Advertisement The fifth senator and the sixth woman to enter the rapidly growing Democratic field, the 58-year-old former prosecutor and three-term senator enters the race an unknown to many voters outside her native state. A veteran lawmaker, Klobuchar is more a behind-the-scenes deal maker than soapbox orator. Whos in the race, and whos still on the fence? Klobuchars congressional calling has been bipartisan coalition building in the dwindling number of policy areas where that remains possible, focusing on consumer protection, agriculture and other topics that dont often grab national headlines. She offered a taste of that in her announcement, talking of issues such as digital privacy and worker training initiatives that have been largely eclipsed in other candidates speeches. And although she also hit many of the same themes as other Democrats expanded access to healthcare, for example, and stronger action against climate change she avoided the language that several of her rivals have used to appeal to activists on the partys left. She said, for example, that the country needs to invest in green jobs and infrastructure but did not utter the words Green New Deal that many progressives use. Similarly, she called for getting to universal healthcare but did not endorse Medicare for all, which has become a litmus test for some Democrats. In the Senate, she has supported a more modest overhaul of the healthcare system and has focused her energy on efforts to lower the cost of prescription drugs. Klobuchar landed in the national spotlight during the confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Brett M. Kavanaugh, keeping her cool as he lashed out at her when she asked whether his drinking might have affected his memory of the night Christine Blasey Ford says he sexually assaulted her. Kavanaughs condescending response asking whether the senator had ever blacked out from drinking was a galvanizing moment for opponents of the nomination. He later apologized. Advertisement The buzz about Klobuchars potential to break out as an alternative to better-known coastal Democratic presidential contenders began to increase after that hearing. It intensified with her commanding reelection victory in November, when she cruised to victory with 60% of the vote in a state Trump almost put in the Republican column in 2016. Klobuchar won many of the rural counties Trump carried. A poll in October by the Minneapolis Star Tribune and Minnesota Public Radio found her with a 57% approval rating in her home state -- nearly double Trumps. Hers was an impressive showing at a time Democratic senators in states Trump carried failed to win reelection. Also impressive is the senators skill at projecting an image on the stump and on the Senate floor as Minnesota Nice self-deprecating, folksy, relatable. The announcement for her launch rally promised hot cocoa would be served, offsetting the subfreezing Minneapolis winter temperature. Advertisement Her reputation among Capitol Hill denizens is different. The senator churns through staff at a rate few lawmakers match, and the Capitol is littered with stories of people who have fled her office, several of which have been grist for critical articles in recent days. Asked by reporters after her speech about the issue, Klobuchar said she had high expectations for myself. I have high expectations for the people who work for me. But I have high expectations for this country, and thats what we need. For now, Klobuchar has the Midwestern label mostly to herself in the Democratic field. She could find her lane crowded, however, if another Democrat whose reelection was arguably even more meaningful to Democrats than her own joins the race. Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown, who is mulling a presidential run, was reelected in a state Trump won, albeit with a victory significantly less sweeping than Klobuchars. Advertisement The two senators are very different politicians: Brown is a vocal union supporter whose political message is focused on the dignity of work, while Klobuchar takes a more moderate stance, both rhetorically and in her votes on some issues. But they would be selling primary voters a similar path to winning back the White House through the industrial Midwest. Regardless of who else joins what is expected to be a crowded field, Klobuchar will likely run as a fence mender, not a firebrand. I will focus on getting things done, she said in Sundays speech. Her candidacy highlights the challenge Democrats face in trying to address the anxieties of white, working-class voters while aggressively pursuing racial-justice issues and the big-ticket progressive policies that energize activists in the partys coastal strongholds. Advertisement Whether Democrats can be convinced Klobuchar-style moderation is a better path to the White House than unyielding embrace of the anti-Trump resistance will become clearer as the campaign wears on. As the other presidential hopefuls in the Senate Sens. Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren, Kirsten Gillibrand and Cory Booker boast that roughly five or more out of every six votes they cast on legislation went against Trump, Klobuchar, according to statistics compiled by FiveThirtyEight, has voted with the president nearly a third of the time. Two dozen bills with her name on them were signed by Trump in the last Congress, a point of pride for the Minnesotan. The issues involved were as varied as opioid addiction, water infrastructure and elder abuse. That bipartisanship has won her plaudits from Republican colleagues and a dose of derision from critics who accuse her of spending too much time sweating the small stuff, building her career in Washington around playing small ball. Advertisement Yet in this chaotic political era when voters are unnerved by the chronic instability and dysfunction in Washington, Klobuchar will aim to stake out a place for herself in the race as a reassuring, steady hand who can build consensus and steer the federal government away from crisis. More stories from Evan Halper evan.halper@latimes.com | Twitter: @evanhalper To the editor: In To overcome its housing crisis, California needs YIMBY to become the new NIMBY, Bill Boyarsky never says he is OK with a 10-story apartment building rising next to his house. He says it makes sense to rezone single-family neighborhoods to higher-density apartments when they are located within a quarter-mile of bus stops or a half-mile from train stations, as Senate Bill 50 proposes. Los Angeles already has this policy in place through Transit Oriented Communities. In my Mid-City neighborhood, nine multistory projects are going up. Our ethnically diverse single-family homeowners now find that their hard-earned lifetime investments may abruptly lose value. The Yes In My Backyard movement who is paying for this lobbying effort? Ordinary working people, or well-heeled developers and their political allies? Rachel Dominguez, Los Angeles Advertisement .. To the editor: Boyarskys piece arrived like a fresh breeze, scattering away dried-up arguments against any new housing in Los Angeles and bringing a bracing moral clarity to a murky issue. Hes right that older, whiter people have benefited from rising home values, while poorer and non-white folks have paid the price of excruciating housing costs. More housing especially around transit could make a major dent in the affordability crisis, even while leaving most single-family areas largely intact. How uplifting at last to hear such a prominent and eloquent voice suggesting that those of us who have lived the California dream could make space for those who are now embracing it. Fred Zimmerman, Santa Monica .. To the editor: Boyarsky presents an incomplete view of SB 50, which would allow large apartment buildings to be built near transit corridors as defined by the act. Such buildings could have as few as half a parking space per unit. The act defines a transit corridor as one with bus service every 15 or 20 minutes during peak periods. But nowhere in the act is there any requirement that the local transit authority maintain that bus service for any specified period. Advertisement A developer, then, could convince a transit authority to increase bus service to serve future residents. But if ridership failed to meet the authoritys expectations, bus service could be curtailed, leaving residents car-dependent and with grossly inadequate parking. Boyarsky argues that allowing denser housing along transit corridors would provide additional housing without changing the basic character of many neighborhoods. I dont know if that would be true anywhere, but it certainly would not be where I live. Mary-Lynne Fisher, La Crescenta Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook. In American political life, the right and the left exist in largely separate spheres. But there is at least one place where the two sides of the divide overlap: the anti-vaccination movement. Despite overwhelming evidence that vaccinations are safe and protect against dangerous disease, small groups of Americans, on both the left and right, have chosen to reject vaccines for themselves and their children. Their decisions have consequences, as we have seen in Washington states Clark County recently. A measles outbreak there has already infected 50 people with no end in sight. For rational people who look to science for answers, the evidence-free conclusions of the anti-vaxers are frustrating. With anti-vaccine paranoia spreading, the number of vaccine-preventable disease outbreaks is likely to grow. Advertisement Take my recent conversation with Becky Johnson, a left-of-center, 65-year-old mother of three in California, who attributes her chronic health issues, including migraines and the skin condition vitiligo, to the vaccines she received as a child. When she and her husband had children, I felt bullied by our pediatrician to vaccinate, she said. But she resisted. Her husband, frightened by the thought of tetanus, whisked one child off secretly for his DPT shot, Johnson said. The boy, grown now, has health issues, which Johnson blames on that one vaccination. The recent measles outbreak doesnt bother Johnson. Im not afraid of measles, she says. What she and many of her fellow anti-vaxxers in California fear is state-enforced vaccination because of SB 277, a California bill jointly written by state Sens. Richard Pan (D-Sacramento), a pediatrician, and Benjamin Allen (D-Santa Monica). The bill, signed into law in 2015, abolished personal choice exemptions from vaccination requirements for children in public schools, although medical exemptions remain. The law has so far withstood court challenges. I see that as medical fascism, says Johnson. Im the one who is going to make medical decisions for my kids. And then theres Philippe Lecoin of Georgia, a Ted Cruz supporter with a degree in engineering. He might not agree with Johnson on a range of political issues, but shares her belief that vaccines are being pushed by greedy pharmaceutical companies and physicians. He told me he trusts in natural immunity; his daughter was vaccinated until age 3, but not after that because of his evolving beliefs. Its strange that Lecoin and Johnson fear vaccines, but not measles. The disease is both deadly and the most contagious virus known. When measles-infected foreign sailors landed on Fiji in 1875, they sparked an epidemic that killed a third of the population the same mortality rate as the plague Black Death in 14th century Europe. Advertisement Before the vaccine was introduced in 1963, according to the World Health Organization, this benign childhood disease killed approximately 2.6 million children worldwide each year. In the United States alone, nearly 50,000 people a year were hospitalized with the virus, and 400 to 500 a year died, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Measles can lead to pneumonia, encephalitis, blindness and a rare brain inflammation that can kill 10 to 15 years after the initial measles infection. In 2017, despite the existence of a safe and effective measles vaccine, 110,000 children across the world still died of the disease. But those issues, as pediatrician Paul Lantos of Duke University says, remain a distant abstraction to anti-vaccine parents. My baby in front of me is the most basic and concrete thing that people have, he says. Children dying of measles in Africa is not close enough. Advertisement Parents who reject vaccination often begin by questioning why a foreign substance should be injected into a healthy child. Their questions quickly lead them to horror stories on the internet: of children regressing into autism after vaccinations, or becoming crippled, paralyzed, dead. The mystery is why they choose to believe such anecdotal evidence instead of the vast amount of scientific research that has found vaccines to be safe. One paper still cited by vaccine skeptics was published in 1998 by British physician Andrew Wakefield and colleagues. The article, which suggested a link between the measles vaccination and autism, has since been retracted and repeatedly disproved, and Wakefield has lost his British medical license. Yet his discredited autism hypothesis still resonates in the superheated atmosphere of anti-vaccine websites. Peter Hotez, dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine and father of an autistic daughter, has watched the anti-vaccine movement closely. What surprises him, he said, is how activists fine-tune the appeal to the local political environment. In Texas, anti-vaxxers use terms like medical freedom and personal choice, while in the Pacific Northwest, they talk about purity and toxic ingredients, said Hotez, author of Vaccines did not Cause Rachels Autism: My Journey as a Vaccine Scientist, Pediatrician and Autism Dad. Some parents who vaccinate their kids have a laissez-faire attitude toward those who dont. My kid is safe, they tell themselves, even if you choose not to protect yours. But its not that simple. Advertisement Enter the Fray: First takes on the news of the minute The goal of vaccination is so-called herd immunity, the protection conferred on an entire community in which a high level of people have been vaccinated, limiting the possibility of a widespread outbreak even if one person gets sick. But herd immunity is waning across America. Since measles is so transmissible, and since, in rare cases, the vaccine doesnt take, or produce immunity, some 95% of people must be vaccinated to prevent an outbreak. In Clark County, where the latest outbreak is raging, only 77.4 % of public school students are vaccinated. With anti-vaccine paranoia spreading, the number of vaccine-preventable disease outbreaks is likely to grow. And while many of those who fall sick will be those whose families chose to opt out of vaccinating, there will be other victims as well: those who because of immune-system issues could not be vaccinated, and also those whose vaccines simply didnt take. Thats why we need laws like Californias and its the responsibility of all of us to see that they are passed and then enforced. Advertisement Wendy Orent is the author of Plague: The Mysterious Past and Terrifying Future of the Worlds Most Dangerous Disease and Ticked: The Battle Over Lyme Disease in the South. Amid contentious talks on border security, President Trump sought Sunday to preemptively cast blame on Democrats if an impasse over his demand for a border wall leads to a second partial government shutdown this week. Stopgap funding for about one-third of the government is due to expire at midnight Friday, and congressional negotiations over border security and other immigration-related issues have stalled, according to participants. The snag, if it lasts, could presage another shutdown, although a degree of posturing by both sides is not unusual under such circumstances, as neither side wishes to appear overly willing to make major concessions. Trump in December publicly said he would be proud to shut down the government. That remark dogged him throughout the 35-day closure that followed until he was ultimately forced to temporarily abandon his demand for $5.7 billion for his desired border wall. Advertisement Sunday, he took to Twitter to paint Democrats as the responsible party this time around. I actually believe they want a Shutdown, he tweeted. He suggested that Democrats wanted to deflect attention from issues like the messy fight in Virginia over whether Gov. Ralph Northam and Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, both Democrats, should resign over scandals involving racist behavior and accusations of sexual misconduct. They want a new subject! tweeted Trump, whose own week was marked by a widely derided congressional appearance by his acting attorney general, Matthew Whitaker, who evaded questions about whether Trump attempted to quash some of the multiple investigations surrounding him. Also this past week, the president delivered a combative State of the Union speech during which House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) greeted his seemingly incongruous call for compromise and the common good with sarcastic clapping. Trumps acting chief of staff, Mick Mulvaney, said in an interview aired Sunday on NBCs Meet the Press that another shutdown absolutely cannot be ruled out, although many of Trumps GOP allies in Congress have made it clear they hope to avoid such a scenario. Speaking on Fox News Sunday, Mulvaney suggested another way out, saying the president would take whatever money Congress agrees to allocate for border barriers and then go off and find the money someplace else, legally. Trumps promised border wall is going to get built, with or without Congress, he said. One of the leading GOP congressional negotiators, Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama, described the talks as stalled right now. Advertisement Im hoping we can get off the dime, he added, also on Fox, because time is ticking away. Negotiators have said that given the time required under House and Senate rules to pass legislation, they need to have an agreement finished by Monday to guarantee passage by Friday. The president has remained insistent in his demand for $5.7 billion for border barriers, while Democrats, who now control the House, have said they will not offer more than $2 billion. The two sides also disagree over the number of beds at immigrant detention centers. Republicans are contesting a Democratic effort to reduce the number of detentions by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Advertisement A cap on ICE detention beds will force the Trump administration to prioritize deportation for criminals and people who pose real security threats, not law-abiding immigrants who are contributing to our country, Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-Downey), one of the lead Democratic negotiators, said in a statement. Democratic Sen. Jon Tester of Montana, another member of the conference committee, said he remained very hopeful that negotiators could arrive at a common sense agreement. Its a negotiation negotiations seldom go smooth all the way through, he said on Fox. Its give and take, its compromise, its the way government is supposed to work. On Twitter, the president implied that Democratic congressional negotiators were being prevented by their leadership, Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer of New York, from making concessions on what he called a desperately needed Border Wall. Advertisement I dont think the Dems on the Border Committee are being allowed by their leaders to make a deal, Trump tweeted. Prior to the previous shutdown, the two parties did have an agreement, only to have it scuttled by Trump. Democrats taking part in the negotiations are saying aloud what their Republican counterparts cannot: that Trumps fealty to the notion of a wall, which he made into a central campaign issue, remains the principal wild card in the talks. Underscoring that, Trump was to travel Monday to El Paso for a campaign-style rally expected to focus on his demand for a border barrier. Advertisement Rep. John Yarmuth, a Kentucky Democrat, said on ABCs This Week that he believed talks convened by Mulvaney at the presidential retreat of Camp David could have reached an accord in less than a day if the acting chief of staff were president. I think the big problem here is this has become pretty much an ego negotiation, said Yarmuth. This really isnt over substance. Republicans also continued to suggest that Trump might move to circumvent Congress with an emergency declaration on the wall, a step that would be certain to face a strong legal challenge. Rep. Tom Graves, a Georgia Republican, said on ABC that Trump was right to have contingency plans for moving ahead in the event of a continued stalemate. Advertisement Hes going to have some plans in place, Graves said. laura.king@latimes.com @laurakingLAT Months before he was arrested on suspicion of murder in 2014, Charles Chase Merritt told a CNN reporter he was definitely the last person whom Joseph McStay saw. Now, jurors tasked with deciding whether Merritt killed McStay and his family who lived in San Diego County may be allowed to see that television interview for themselves. Last week, San Bernardino Superior Court Judge Michael Smith gave prosecutors the OK to play the recording for the panel, so long as prosecutors can get someone on the stand to authenticate it as a true representation of the interview. Merritt, 61, is charged with killing business partner McStay, 40, as well as McStays wife Summer, 43, and the couples young sons, Gianni, 4, and Joey Jr., 3. Advertisement The Fallbrook family vanished in February 2010, their whereabouts a mystery. Then in November 2013, a dirt biker happened across a childs skull during a ride in the desert outside Victorville, not far from Interstate 15, in November 2013. It was Joey Jr.s remains. The bones of the rest of the McStay family were found in shallow graves near where the skull was found more than 100 miles from the familys home. A year later, in November 2014, San Bernardino County sheriffs detectives arrested Merritt. Prosecutors there charged him with four counts of murder. Merritt who has described Joseph McStay as his best friend has pleaded not guilty and remained jailed in the four years it took to get the case to trial. McStay sold indoor water features and often hired Merritt, a welder, to craft them. On Feb. 4, 2010, the two men had lunch in Rancho Cucamonga to discuss upcoming projects. Its the last known sighting of Joseph McStay. In 2014, after the familys remains were found but before Merritts arrest, CNN reporter Randi Kaye sat down with Merritt for a documentary on the missing family. In a portion of the interview, Merritt told her that McStay might have spoken to others later that day, after their lunch. Advertisement But you were the last person he saw?, Kaye asked Merritt. Im definitely the last person he saw, Merritt said. After Merritts arrest, Kaye told CNN host Don Lemon that she and a crew spent about two hours with Merritt on the day of the interview in January 2014, and that he had been friendly and direct in his answers. The courtroom discussion regarding the interview came during a week in which jurors saw less than two full days of testimony Wednesday and some of Thursday. Advertisement The San Diego Union-Tribune has monitored the trial by watching livestream coverage from Law & Crime, a website specializing in live trial coverage. Testimony continues this week. Feb. 4 marked nine years since the family disappeared. teri.figueroa@sduniontribune.com Benjamin Franklin High School has won the 2018-19 Academic Decathlon for the Los Angeles Unified School District, officials announced Saturday. Today you shined the brightest with your skill, hard work and determination, the district tweeted in its announcement. The academic tournament took place last weekend, but the awards ceremony was held Saturday afternoon at Hollywood High School, where the winner was announced. Nine-student teams from each of 55 participating schools competed in speech, interview and essays contests, while also demonstrating their knowledge in the arts, economics, language and literature, mathematics, music and social science. The scores of all sessions are tallied together to name an overall winner. Advertisement Other school districts participate in a separate competition managed by the L.A. County Office of Education. The 2019 county winner, announced last week, is West High School in Torrance. It, too, will move on to the state competition March 22-24 in Sacramento. The state champion will then advance to the national competition April 25-27 in Bloomington, Minn. Schools from L.A. Unified have won 18 national titles since 1987. carlos.lozano@latimes.com (CNN) Billions of dollars in allegedly misappropriated funds. Millions spent on luxury handbags and jewelry. One hit movie, two mediocre comedies, a swanky New York condo, a $250 million yacht and a Picasso. Leonardo DiCaprio, Paris Hilton, Miranda Kerr and Lindsay Lohan. It's a scandal bursting with juicy details, celebrity cameos and webs of confusing information. On February 12, prosecutors in Malaysia will begin unraveling some of it when the country's former Prime Minister Najib Razak appears in court on charges of abuse of power, criminal breach of trust and money laundering. Other alleged players in the scandal -- chief among them the international financier Jho Low -- remain at large, out of the reach of Malaysian and US authorities. Genesis of a scandal In early 2009 Najib, weeks into his premiership, ordered the creation of a state investment fund initially worth $1.2 billion, which would later be renamed 1Malaysia Development Berhad, or 1MDB. Its stated purpose was to lead "market-driven initiatives to assist the government in propelling Malaysia towards becoming a developed nation that is highly competitive, sustainable and inclusive." Instead, according to U.S. prosecutors, 1MDB was used as a slush fund by Najib, Low and other high-ranking officials at the fund, who allegedly embezzled more than $3.5 billion over six years. Swiss prosecutors would later put that figure at over $4 billion. "(These funds) were intended to grow the Malaysian economy and support the Malaysian people. Instead, they were stolen, laundered through American financial institutions and used to enrich a few officials and their associates," said Attorney General Loretta Lynch in 2016, after the US Department of Justice launched a case against 1MDB. From the beginning, those in charge of the fund were allegedly siphoning off cash for themselves and allies, misappropriating more than $1 billion in 2009 alone. Both Low and Najib have repeatedly denied the charges laid against them. They accuse Malaysian authorities of pursuing a politically motivated prosecution. Celebrity hound Born in Malaysia to a wealthy Malaysian Chinese family and educated in the UK and U.S., Low burst onto the international financial scene in the late 2000s thanks in part to a friendship with Najib's stepson Riza Aziz, whom he met while they were at Britain's elite Harrow School. "Harrow had lots of children of prominent European, Asian and Middle Eastern families. That's when I met the former King of Jordan's son, among others," Low told Malaysia's The Star newspaper in 2010. While studying at the Wharton Business School in Pennsylvania, Low launched an investment company with an initial capital injection of $25 million, which he said was "mainly provided by my family and close Middle Eastern and South-East Asian friends." By 2010, Low claimed, the value of his investments had grown to upwards of $1 billion. However, prosecutors allege the source of most of his money was the 1MDB fund. In Malaysia and New York, where Low spent much of his time, the financier became a regular presence in gossip columns courtesy of friendships with celebrities including Hilton and Lohan. In the same Star interview, Low denied widely circulated reports that he had spent more than $2 million during a trip to St Tropez. "I think there is a pattern of trying to paint me as this person who orders a lot of champagne excessively," he said. Through Aziz, who ran a Los Angeles-based movie production company called Red Granite Pictures, Low expanded his celebrity network, palling around with the likes of DiCaprio and former Victoria's Secret model Kerr. According to U.S. prosecutors, Low laundered money from 1MDB through Red Granite, which used it to fund movies including "The Wolf of Wall Street," "Dumb and Dumber To," and "Daddy's Home." "This is a case where life imitated art," a US official said in 2016. "The associates of these corrupt 1MDB officials are alleged to have used some of the illicit proceeds of their fraud scheme to fund the production of 'The Wolf of Wall Street,' a movie about a corrupt stockbroker who tried to hide his own illicit profits in a perceived foreign safe haven." DiCaprio is working with U.S. prosecutors to return any funds he or his charities received from 1MDB. Kerr has handed over jewelry worth $8.1 million which was given to her by Low to the Justice Department. How it all came crashing down In early 2015, Clare Rewcastle-Brown, a British journalist and founder of the Sarawak Report website which reports on corruption in Southeast Asia, received about 227,000 leaked documents relating to 1MDB. After months of investigation, Rewcastle-Brown published a story alleging more than $700 million had been transferred from the fund to the personal bank accounts of Prime Minister Najib. The Wall Street Journal also published several groundbreaking reports on the scandal, based partly on the same leaked documents. Following the reports, Malaysian officials raided 1MDB's offices in Kuala Lumpur and investigations were also launched in Hong Kong, Australia, Singapore, Switzerland and the US. Najib told reporters the wrongdoers would be brought to justice. However many observers were skeptical of Najib's willingness to investigate the scandal thoroughly, given he was the main person implicated in it. In January 2016, Malaysia's attorney general cleared Najib of any wrongdoing regarding the $700 million transfer, saying the money in his accounts had been freely given to the Prime Minister by the Saudi royal family. Even as reporting on the scandal continued, and US authorities launched an investigation and began seizing assets in early 2017, it seemed unlikely Najib would face prosecution -- he had an iron grip on Malaysian politics and had passed several laws seemingly designed to stymie discussion of 1MDB. All that ended on May 9, 2018, when 92-year-old Mahathir Mohamad -- a former prime minister and onetime ally of Najib -- secured a shock general election victory. As Malaysians celebrated in the streets, Najib was turfed out of office -- the start of a dramatic fall from grace. In the weeks after the election, he and his wife, Rosmah Mansor, were barred from leaving the country and police raided the couple's home, seizing millions of dollars' worth of jewelry, handbags and other luxury goods. In July 2018, Najib was formally charged with multiple counts of corruption and faces upwards of 20 years in jail if convicted. He accused the new government of pursuing a politically motivated prosecution but said he welcomed a trial as "my best opportunity to clear my name." On February 12, that opportunity will present itself as Malaysia's trial of the century begins. Of the main alleged conspirators, however, only Najib will be in the dock. Low is believed to be hiding out in China, defying attempts by Malaysia to extradite him. "Mr. Low will not submit to any jurisdiction where guilt has been predetermined by politics and there is no independent legal process," said a statement on his website. "It is clear that Mr. Low cannot get a fair trial in Malaysia, where the regime has proven numerous times that they have no interest in the rule of law." This story was first published on CNN.com, "From Hollywood to Saudi Arabia, Leonardo DiCaprio to Paris Hilton: The scandal that enveloped the world." For Staff Sgt. Jennifer Pineda, a 15-year veteran of the California Air National Guard, the military was a family calling. She followed her older sister and brother-in-law into the guard, where she now holds an administrative position at the elite 144th Fighter Wing in Fresno. On a March morning four years ago, Pineda was about to dress into a uniform she had stored overnight in a stall in the womens bathroom when she made a foul discovery. Someone had urinated in her boots. The incident left Pineda humiliated and frightened and would trigger a series of behind-the-scenes investigations whose scope has come to extend beyond what happened that day at the Fresno base. Advertisement The defiling of Pinedas boots has led to allegations that high-ranking officers tried to bury the incident, including by destroying evidence that could have potentially identified a suspect through DNA, and retaliated against a male pilot who supported her efforts to find the perpetrator, according to interviews and guard records obtained by The Times. Some in the wing have begun calling the ongoing saga Pissgate. After The Times began asking questions about the Pineda episode, the California Military Department, which oversees the guard, asked the U.S. Air Force Inspector Generals Office to conduct an investigation. In the backdrop of the #MeToo movement, guard leaders are concerned about the degrading nature of the act aimed at a woman, according to two sources close to the investigation, who requested anonymity because they are not authorized to publicly speak about the matter. Only about 20% of the officers and enlisted members in the guard are women. The inspector generals inquiry is the third investigation into the Pineda affair and part of a broader probe into whether whistle-blowers at the 144th wing suffered reprisals for questioning the actions or conduct of their superiors on a range of matters. At least five guard members from the 144th wing, including a pilot who was killed in October in a crash during a training mission in Ukraine, filed formal complaints. The guard recently suspended a 144th commander for reasons it said were unrelated to the Pineda incident. This boils down to just unprofessional leadership and cronyism, said Maj. Dan Woodside, a retired 144th fighter pilot who is a witness in the inspector generals Pineda investigation and has complained about how she was treated. If anybody had urinated in their boots, they would have done everything they could to find the perpetrator, even if it involved calling the FBI. Two of the guards top officers held key leadership positions at the 144th at the time of the Pineda incident: Maj. Gen. Clay Garrison, who has since become head of the air guard, and Col. Sean Navin, now one of its five wing commanders. Neither responded to requests for interviews. Maj. Gen. Clay L. Garrison was the head of the 144th Fighter Wing when Staff Sgt. Jennifer Pineda discovered someone had urinated in her boots. (Tech. Sgt. Charles Vaughn / U.S. Air National Guard) Maj. Gen. David S. Baldwin, who heads the Military Department, declined through a guard spokesman to be interviewed. Baldwin said in a written statement to The Times that in order to protect the integrity of that ongoing investigation, we cannot disclose additional details. Advertisement The California air guard is the second largest, after New Yorks, in the Air National Guard, which is a force of more than 100,000 pilots, other officers and enlisted people. Many of the pilots are part-time reservists, signing up after careers in the U.S. Air Force, and some fly in their civilian lives for commercial airlines. The guards function as state militias whose leaders report to the governor. They patrol state airspace and stand ready to respond to natural disasters and large-scale terrorist attacks. In California, the air guard helped fight recent wildfires, flying drones over the blazes to feed intelligence to fire crews on the ground. Its fighter pilots are regularly deployed to assist the Air Force in combat and other operations overseas. The 144th is the biggest wing in the state. It is home to roughly 115 officers, including about two dozen fighter pilots, and more than 1,000 enlistees in support units. For every officer in the wing, there are about nine enlistees in roles that are essential but carry much less clout. Advertisement Pineda, 34, is one of them. After joining the guard in 2004, she spent several years in the wings command post as a dispatcher before moving to the operations group, according to interviews with guard colleagues. Pineda declined to comment for this story. Soon after she reported that someone had urinated on her boots, members of the 144ths security forces, who police the base, arrived at the location, attempted to lift fingerprints and had photos taken of the scene, according to an internal investigative record obtained by The Times. The security airmen collected the urine from the floor and reviewed hours of security camera footage, the document states. Investigative records describe the incident as vandalism. If committed by someone with a rank of second lieutenant or higher, legal experts said, the act could also be considered the more serious crime of conduct unbecoming an officer. The perpetrator, they said, could be prosecuted and jailed in a court martial, forced to retire in an administrative proceeding at a reduced rank and pension, or handed a lesser punishment such as a reprimand. Advertisement The investigators asked Pineda, then a single mother of two, who she thought could have had a motive to target her, according to the report. Pineda named two women who have had issues with her in the past, and her supervisor later suggested one more, the report says. It states that all three women were questioned. The results of the investigation were inconclusive, the report says. About two months after the investigation began, the commander of the fighter squadron at the time, Navin, called Pineda and her supervisor into his office to share the results, according to May 2015 memos that Pineda and the supervisor wrote to document the conversation. Navin apologized that the investigation did not find the perpetrator, according to the memos. In Pinedas memo, she wrote that Navin said killings go unsolved every day and these things just happen. Advertisement I started to ask him how I was supposed to come to work and feel OK in a work environment where I have been violated like this, Pineda said in her memo. Pineda said in the document that she had begun securing her uniform in a locker, parks where she can see her car from her work desk window and keeps the desk locked up each night. Soon after the first investigation was shelved, a second was opened when new information revealed that pilots had been drinking in a nearby break room the evening before the discovery and may have information regarding the incident or may have possibly been involved in the incident, according to a guard report and interviews. Navin, the commander who had shared the results of the first investigation with Pineda, had been in the break room as well that evening, the report says. Col. Sean Navin was the commander of the 194th fighter squadron at the 144th wing when Staff Sgt. Jennifer Pineda discovered someone had urinated in her boots. (Staff Sgt. Christian Jadot / U.S Air National Guard) Advertisement Investigators questioned 18 people, including Navin, Woodside and four other guard members who said they had been in the break room, called The Merge. The two investigators told at least some of the pilots that they might be asked to undergo polygraph tests and that the urine collected from the scene would be tested for DNA, Woodside said. Some were also questioned about how much Navin had to drink, he added. In a second interview with investigators, Pineda said a couple of pilots told her they suspected Navin of urinating on her boots, the report says. She said she felt that Navin doesnt trust her work abilities, according to the report. Navin denied being involved, guard records show. He told investigators that he had no conflicts with Pineda and was never inside the womens bathroom where she left her boots and clothing. Advertisement The investigator who authored the report wrote that the interviews did not lead to any new conclusions or identify any suspects. In August 2015, Pineda filed a whistle-blower complaint. She wrote that the main investigator told her that the evidence showed that a woman could not have urinated in the boots, but that she heard that officers speculated that she urinated in them for attention. In the complaint, Pineda said that makes me want this investigation to be complete and legit to prove that I did not do this to myself. She added that she feared she could be forced to leave the guard. The guard declined to comment about the status of Pinedas complaint. Last year, Lt. Col. Rob Swertfager, a 144th pilot, filed a complaint alleging that commanders punished him including by withholding his pay on occasion for going to bat for Pineda by telling a superior that the first investigation might have been mishandled. His complaint is part of the inspector generals investigation. He declined to comment for this story. Advertisement Woodside said the head of base security, then-Lt. Col. Dave Johnston, told him that 144th leadership ordered him to shut down the investigation and destroy all the evidence after investigators zeroed in on Navin. The evidence included Pinedas boots and a vial of urine that was never tested. Woodside said he believes there was a cover-up. Retired Maj. Dan Woodside said the head of base security told him that he was ordered by 144th leadership to shut down an investigation into who urinated in Jennifer Pinedas boots and destroy all the evidence. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) Johnston, since promoted to colonel, did not say who gave him the order, Woodside said. He said Johnston informed him about the destruction of the evidence during a 32-minute telephone conversation on Dec. 7, 2017. He produced phone records that showed such a call to Johnstons number. Advertisement In interviews with The Times, four current and former guard members confirmed that Woodside told them about his phone conversation with Johnston shortly after it occurred. Johnston declined to be interviewed. He said in two statements provided to The Times that no one ordered him to dispose of the evidence. Johnston said he had consulted with Garrison, who ran the base at the time of the incident, about destroying the evidence. Garrisons only guidance, Johnston wrote, was that he first confer with the 144ths judge advocate general at the time, who did not respond to interview requests. Johnston said he authorized the destruction because the second investigation had been closed for several months and the evidence was no longer needed. He declined to discuss why a DNA test was never conducted. The lead investigator, Daniel Mosqueda, offered no explanation for not testing the urine. Advertisement The way the investigation went, it didnt happen, he told The Times. Woodside said he confronted Garrison about the investigation at a colonels retirement party in March 2017, after the evidence had been destroyed. He said Garrison told him that there was no actual crime here and that it would have been inappropriate to spend thousands of dollars on a urine test that wouldnt produce usable information. Depending on the condition of the specimen, a DNA analysis of the urine could have determined the perpetrators sex and perhaps identified him or her definitively through a comparison test, forensic experts told The Times. Typically, it would cost about $1,000 to $1,300, they said. Experts on military and criminal law questioned the decision to destroy evidence without conducting a DNA analysis. Southwestern Law School Professor Rachel E. VanLandingham, who served as a prosecutor and criminal defense attorney during a U.S. Air Force career, said if evidence was destroyed to impede an investigation or protect someone, a case could be made for obstruction of justice. Advertisement That needs to be looked into, she said. About a year after the incident, Navin was promoted to colonel and is now commander of the 163rd Attack Wing in Riverside County, overseeing more than 900 people and the deployment of the MQ-9A Reaper military drone. A guard spokesman declined to say what prompted the recent suspension of the 144th commander, Col. Victor Sikora. Shortly after the suspension, Sikora called a meeting of pilots and support personnel at the Fresno base. He told the gathering that he had been informed he was suspended due to the amount of investigations the guard leadership was dealing with, according to a recording of the meeting The Times reviewed. He did not elaborate. Sikora did not respond to requests for comment about the suspension. Advertisement Among the other complaints under investigation by the inspector general is one filed by Lt. Col. Seth Nehring shortly before he was killed in October in a crash during a training mission in Ukraine. No details of his complaint were available. The investigator leading the inspector generals probe, Lt. Col. Shawna Pavey, did not respond to interview requests. Dave Bakos, a retired general who served in the guard for 32 years and was deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, said Garrison should have demanded a more thorough investigation from the start. Morale at the 144th has suffered, Bakos said. There are a lot of people unhappy up there, he said. They need a change at the top. The 144th wing in Fresno is the biggest wing in the state, home to more than 100 officers and roughly 1,000 enlistees. (Staff Sgt. Christian Jadot / U.S Air National Guard) It started with a few bites of ice cream with cashew and ended with a ride in an ambulance run by an Orthodox Jewish emergency medical service. In 2017, 2-year-old Rus Amster was on her way home with her family after Shabbat lunch in Baltimore when she began throwing up. Within minutes, her stomach was swollen with puffy blotches, and she had difficulty breathing. Her parents called Hatzalah, a volunteer-driven ambulance company in Baltimore whose name in Hebrew means rescue. Within two minutes, there were several first responders at their door. They injected Rus with an EpiPen and gave her oxygen before rushing her to the hospital, where she was treated for a severe allergic reaction. Those volunteers are spread throughout the communities that they serve in a way that theyre able to respond unbelievably quickly, said Rabbi Chaim Amster, the girls father. For my daughter, thats really the reason why shes alive. Advertisement Across the United States, independent chapters of this type of Jewish emergency response service have formed agreements with city agencies to respond, free of charge, to emergencies. But Hatzolah, as the organization is sometimes alternatively spelled, has long struggled to gain traction in Los Angeles, where the city fire department is the exclusive provider of emergency ambulance services. The organization has applied to Los Angeles County for an ambulance license that would allow it to transport patients during non-emergencies, said Cathy Chidester, director of the Los Angeles County Emergency Medical Services Agency. Rabbi Shmuel Manne, center, joins Hatzolah supporters at an ambulance license hearing in Santa Fe Springs. Manne is chairman of the Jewish volunteer emergency medical service. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) If Hatzolah receives a license, she said, it will be able to transport patients during non-emergencies anywhere in the county except Los Angeles, which requires that it apply for a second permit first. The county license would allow Hatzolah to transport non-critical patients to or from a medical facility but would prohibit it from performing more than basic life support, like CPR, or responding and transporting patients during medical emergencies, like a stroke, heart attack or shooting. Hatzolahs ultimate goal is to be permitted by the city to transport patients and respond with ambulances to emergency calls using lights and sirens a practice called Code 3 just like the fire department. But this has been met with strong pushback from the Los Angeles Fire Department and its firefighters union, which both point to their agencys jurisdiction and argue that allowing another entity to respond to emergencies creates a public safety issue. State law says county emergency medical services agencies can create exclusive operating areas, like the city of Los Angeles, where ambulance providers can operate. The county can either conduct a competitive process to select providers or select existing providers such as city fire departments that have provided these services consistently for decades. While there are 31 licensed ambulance companies in the city of Los Angeles, the Department of Transportation says only the local fire department can respond Code 3 to 911-type calls. At Hatzolahs licensing hearing last month at the countys Emergency Medical Services Agency office in Santa Fe Springs which was packed with some 80 Jewish community members one of the hearing officers, Capt. Terry Millsaps of the Los Angeles County Fire Department, said Hatzolahs dispatch manual would need significant revisions before Hatzolah is granted an ambulance license. He said that most of the manual is written as if Hatzolah is operating as a 911 provider, and that Hatzolahs current practice of alerting 911 to emergencies and simultaneously sending its own responders to a scene without authorization is in violation of the county code. Advertisement Were looking for an exception for a unique business model, said Daniel Wiesel, a Hatzolah volunteer. Hatzolah of Los Angeles, a nonprofit that began in 2001, operates in areas including Pico-Robertson, south Beverly Hills, Hancock Park, La Brea, Fairfax, West Hollywood, North Hollywood and Valley Village. Its dispatchers relay more than a thousand calls annually from its hotline to its approximately 60 volunteer EMTs, who race to reported incidents. The EMTs do respond to medical emergencies in non-ambulance emergency vehicles, and they transfer care to the fire department if a person must be transported by ambulance. Hatzolah has several ambulances but is not using them. Chidester said the city will not give up its jurisdiction to respond to emergencies. Doing so, she said, may create confusion and competition between ambulance providers. They will lose that exclusivity, and the system will have a significant change to it that we would not be able to adapt to, Chidester said. If you have a company like Hatzolah that is responding to 911 calls, whats to stop another ambulance company from going in and responding to 911 calls? Advertisement But Hatzolah is intent on finding a way. Volunteers who speak Hebrew, Yiddish or Farsi sometimes act as translators for firefighters. All are trained on how to apply Jewish law when responding to emergencies on the Sabbath, when observant Jews do not work or drive, and can explain why a person is allowed to break one of that days rules in a life-threatening situation. Simcha Mandelbaum, a member of Hatzolah, said that people sometimes turn to us and say, I dont know if Im sick enough to go on a Sabbath to a hospital. Many, many times we have encouraged people to get adequate care follow-ups that they are afraid to do on one of the [Jewish] holidays, he said. On Jan. 17, LAFD Chief Ralph Terrazas sent a letter to Chidester that said allowing Hatzolah to dispatch its own ambulances to emergencies without permission from the city fire department creates a significant public safety risk. Advertisement In a separate letter, Freddy Escobar, president of United Firefighters of Los Angeles City, said the union has received many complaints from its members about unauthorized Code 3 responses by groups like Hatzolah. Asst. Chief Ellsworth Fortman said that Hatzolah does not currently meet his agencys standards for responding to medical emergencies. One day it might get there, he said. To be OK with anyone else stepping in and doing it, at the minimum, they would have to provide the same level of service. But Rabbi Shmuel Manne, Hatzolahs chairman, said the California Highway Patrol, which has certified Hatzolah as an ambulance company, allows them to currently drive Code 3 to a call. In a statement, CHP said it has licensed three ambulances and nine other vehicles that can respond Code 3. It said its license authorizes private ambulances to transport patients but that each city and county may institute additional regulations. Advertisement Manne said the ability to transport patients to hospitals is important partly because people may be reluctant to pay for a city ambulance. In those cases, he said, We could get them to the hospital and get them seen. Obviously, we dont want to replace the fire department Other cities have worked it out, he said. Hatzolah members also say theyre trying to bridge the gap between the fire departments response time and what they can do as responders who live minutes away from their calls. Were getting resistance to something that is totally benevolent, said Mandelbaum. Advertisement Hatzolah volunteers currently use some of the vehicles licensed by the California Highway Patrol. Letters dating back to 2005 from Mayor James Hahn and City Councilman Jack Weiss backed Hatzolahs application for licenses from the CHP to respond Code 3 to emergencies. Hahn wrote that Hatzolah volunteers in Hancock Park had been instrumental in capturing a sexual predator, and Weiss described how Hatzolah was on scene when a small plane crashed into an apartment building in Fairfax. Chidester explained that Hatzolah is in a unique spot because it has not been licensed yet by the county. Nothing stops it from responding to emergencies like any private citizen. They found this little niche in the system where they have people call them and they call their volunteers and have the volunteers respond, she said. Theyre very confusing because of that. Nothing addresses that in the law. Hatzolah has tried to apply for ambulance permits from the city before. In 2008, the Department of Transportation told Hatzolah that private ambulance companies must charge people for their services, which the group does not want to do. In a subsequent letter, the agency said the LAFD is the citys recognized 911 provider and that it could not approve any private ambulance company providing that same service. At the time, then-Fire Chief Douglas Barry wrote a letter supporting Hatzolahs application. Advertisement At last months hearing, Danielle Zemel, a mother of four, said she has Hatzolahs number saved on her cellular and house phones. Several years ago, her daughter Nina, then 3, severed her finger after getting it stuck in a folding chair on Shabbat. The fire department, which arrived after Hatzolah, told her she needed to take Nina to the hospital, but they did not have an ambulance available. Zemel, who was not home at the time of the incident, ended up borrowing a car from a friend. Hatzolah came within minutes, but they couldnt transport us, she said. Rabbi Eliezer Gross, dean of Yeshiva Gedolah of Los Angeles, an all-boys Orthodox Jewish high school, said theres a certain sense of security that comes with seeing a member of ones own community arrive to provide emergency services, as Hatzolah has done at his school. When Hatzolah volunteers respond to calls on their two-way radios, they know they may soon find themselves in the home of a close friend, a member of their synagogue, or someone they have greeted before with a Shabbat Shalom. Advertisement That was the case with Aharon Sabbagh when he responded over a year ago to an incident in a Pico-Robertson home where a friends baby was choking. After doing chest thrusts, he partially unblocked the 6-month-year olds airway and told the city paramedics who arrived later that they needed a tongue depressor. A little red plastic ball flew out of the boys mouth. That kid is like my nephew, Sabbagh said. The call comes out and we respond. All of a sudden its your friends kid or someone that you know. Bradley Cooper can add something new to his resume: Grammy winner. The actor enjoyed the victory when Shallow the breakout hit from his directorial debut A Star Is Born won the award for best pop duo performance. For the record: An earlier version of this post stated that the Writers Guild Awards are on Saturday, Feb. 16. They are being held on Sunday, Feb. 17. The Grammy victory for the film comes after several surprising losses for the actor-turned-director and his acclaimed reboot. He was nominated for lead actor in a drama, best director, best screenplay and best motion picture drama at the Golden Globes but went 0 for four. Shallow, however, won for original song. He and his fellow Star Is Born producers lost at the Producers Guild awards to the team behind Green Book in January. A week later, he went 0 for 2 at the SAG Awards when he lost the lead actor award to Rami Malek and when A Star Is Born lost best ensemble to Black Panther. Advertisement Most recently, Cooper left the Directors Guild Awards empty-handed after losing to Alfonso Cuaron for Roma. FULL COVERAGE: 2019 Grammys Coopers wins for A Star Is Born include the Collateral Award from the Venice Film Festival, the director award from the National Board of Review and his recognition as director of the year by the Palm Springs International Film Festival. Cooper, unfortunately, was not in attendance to accept his Grammy. He was across the pond at the BAFTAs, where he also won an award for the original music of A Star Is Born. In addition to his Grammys triumph, Cooper has a few more shots at victories this awards season. Along with his co-writers Eric Roth and Will Fetters, hes up for adapted screenplay at the Writers Guild Awards taking place on Sunday. At the Oscars, hes nominated for adapted screenplay, lead actor and best picture for the film. Cooper is also set to perform Shallow at the Oscars where the tune is nominated for original song with his costar Lady Gaga. In his lauded career as a sound engineer, the Oslo-based producer Morten Lindberg has overseen dozens of immersive sound recordings, many in the classical realm. His acclaimed record label, 2L, describes itself as a purveyor of the Nordic sound. He records his projects with a sophisticated system designed to capture sound as if in three dimensions to envelop a room like listeners are awash in sound waves. Lindberg also holds a somewhat dubious Grammy Award distinction. After being passed over Sunday in two engineering categories, his career win-to-loss ratio is a devastating 0-26. Not once since his first surprise nod in 2006 has the Norwegian ferried a trophy home with him. More impressive, 2Ls overall record, which includes Lindbergs nominations, is now 0-34. FULL COVERAGE: 2019 Grammys Advertisement On Sunday, Lindberg was nominated in the immersive audio category for the contemporary classical song cycle Sommerro: Ujamaa & the Iceberg, and for the Norwegian folk album Folketoner. He lost to Alan Parsons, Dave Donnelly and P.J. Olsson, for their Eye In The Sky - 35th Anniversary Edition. Since his first nomination, Lindberg has been up for a total of 25 Grammys across 11 straight years. Last year was rough: He earned four nods and lost four times. Weve had years where Ive had three of the five nominations in a category, Lindberg said matter-of-factly last week over the phone from Oslo about his experience with Grammys. He said he was too busy to come this year. Hes made the trip every few years, and always returned empty-handed. To fully appreciate Lindbergs work, and all immersive audio recordings, requires a pretty sophisticated setup. Eligible recordings must be commercially available on formats including DVD-Audio, Blu-ray or SACD. From a practical perspective, to be fully enveloped in music calls for a surround-sound system. Headphones hardly convey the same sensation, and technology has advanced to the point where sound can be directed high, low, left, right and in-between. In fact, this was the first year for the Best Immersive Audio category, which for reasons too boring to go into here replaced the Surround Sound category responsible for so many of Lindbergs defeats. Whether this affected the outcome isnt known. Still, in Norway theres been talk. People have had questions about potential anti-European biases. They say, Oh, this is because this is an American award, and youre European, so its to keep us at arms length, Lindberg said. But, honestly, I dont feel that way at all. Asked if hed be relieved to finally have his work validated with a Grammy Award, Lindberg replied unequivocally: No, no -- the opposite. Getting an award now would actually ruin my record my track record would be completely blown away. Advertisement So, congratulations? For tips, records, snapshots and stories on Los Angeles music culture, follow Randall Roberts on Twitter and Instagram: @liledit. Email: randall.roberts@latimes.com. UK students created almost 100 valentines for veterans at the Veterans Affairs hospital on Cooper Drive on February 8, 2019, in the White Hall classroom building. Photo provided by Sheri Pass. In this Saturday, July 4, 2015, file photo, Uighurs living in Turkey and their supporters, some carrying coffins representing Uighurs who died in China's far-western Xinjiang Uighur region, chant slogans as they stage a protest in Istanbul, against what they call as oppression by Chinese government to Muslim Uighurs in the province. AP Turkey has called China's treatment of its minority Uighurs ''a great cause of shame for humanity.'' In a statement Saturday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy said it's ''no longer a secret'' that China has arbitrarily detained more than a million Uighurs in ''concentration camps.'' He said the Turkic Muslim population faced pressure and ''systematic assimilation'' in western China. Aksoy said Turkey has shared with China its position on ''all levels'' and urged authorities to close the detention facilities and respect human rights. The minister said Turkey had also learned of the death in prison of famed Uighur musician and poet Abdurehim Heyit, who had been sentenced to eight years over one of his songs. ''This tragedy has further reinforced the reaction of the Turkish public opinion toward serious human rights violations committed in the Xinjiang region,'' Aksoy said. ''We expect this legitimate response to be taken into account by the Chinese authorities. We respectfully commemorate Abdurehim Heyit and all our kinsmen who lost their lives defending their Turkish and Muslim identity,'' Aksoy said. Heyit was a master of the dutar, a type of two-stringed instrument with a long neck that is found in Iran and throughout Central Asia. His detention was considered indicative of China's determination to crack down on Uighur intellectuals and cultural figures in an effort some say to eradicate a separate Uighur language and identity. Heyit's death could not be independently confirmed. China had no immediate response to the minister's remarks. Beijing has intensified a security clampdown on Uighurs in the northwestern region of Xinjiang that was put in place after a bloody 2009 riot. Droves of Uighurs have fled, many traveling to Turkey, where the language and culture are similar to that in Xinjiang. After months of denying their existence, Chinese authorities under increasing outside pressure acknowledged the system of camps, terming them vocational training centers. They have provided little or no information on how many are interned within them and how long they are being held. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had once accused China of ''genocide'' but has since established closer diplomatic and economic relations with Beijing. (AP) By Jung Min-ho Consumer Reports, a U.S. magazine published since 1936 by the Consumers Union, has removed all Dyson models from its list of recommended stick vacuums over reliability concerns. According to its recent , which was revealed last week, the British company's vacuums break at a higher rate than those of any other brand in the magazine's tests. In September 2016, Consumer Reports called Dyson's V8 Absolute the "best stick vacuum" it had tested, which helped boost its sales. But now Dyson stick vacuums are positioned in the "bottom tier" when it comes to reliability ratings. "Close to half of Dyson stick vacuums will break or stop working as they should within five years, compared with around a quarter of the stick vacuums from Shark, the most reliable brand for this type," Consumer Reports said. South Korea's auto production tumbled for a third consecutive year in 2018 amid weaker domestic and global demand, data showed Sunday. According to the data by the Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association (KAMA), South Korea produced 4.03 million vehicles last year, down 2.1 percent from the previous year. The figure has been decreasing over the past three years from 4.56 million in 2015 to 4.23 million in 2016 and 4.12 in 2017. The 2018 figure put South Korea as the seventh-largest car manufacturing country in the world, down one notch from the previous year, according to the association. South Korea became the world's fifth-largest maker of cars in 2005 and retained the ranking until 2015. But India edged out South Korea to stand at the world's sixth in 2016 and 2017. Last year, South Korea fell behind Mexico. China was found to produce the largest number of vehicles in 2018, with 27.81 million followed by the United States, Japan, Germany and India. South Korea's total car exports also fell to 2.45 million vehicles last year from the previous year's 2.53 million, the KAMA said, adding that the country accounted for 4.1 percent of the world's car production in 2018, down 0.1 percentage point from a year earlier. "Contentious labor-management relations, as well as stiff labor market conditions, among others, appear to negatively affect local carmakers' competitiveness," the association said in a release, calling for state support and business innovation. (Yonhap) 'LG Uplus decides to acquire CJ Hello' By Jun Ji-hye SK Telecom, KT and LG Uplus are in heated competition to acquire cable television operators to find future growth engines in media and content amid saturation of the telecom sector. According to industry sources, Sunday, LG Uplus has decided to take over CJ Hello, the nation's largest cable television operator, to expand its share in the subscription TV market. SK Telecom and KT are moving to acquire T-Broad and D'live, respectively, adding fuel to the M&A competition aimed at the convergence of broadcasting and telecommunications. Subscription-based TV refers to services provided by cable, satellite TV and IPTV operators. LG Uplus' takeover plan will be finalized during the firm's board of directors meeting this week at the earliest, sources said. But a LG Uplus official said: "There is nothing to confirm yet." The moves come as both mobile carriers and cable TV operators seek M&A deals. Mobile carriers are desperate to expand their presence in the rapidly growing media market to make up for the declining profitability of their wireless services business, while cable TV operators have recently lost customers to video streaming service providers that operate over-the-top (OTT) platforms, such as Netflix, which entered the Korean market in 2016. OTT services deliver films or TV dramas over the internet. From the point of view of cable TV operators, it is more advantageous to be bought before their value falls further. Eyes are on whether LG Uplus' attempt to take over CJ Hello can pass the Fair Trade Commission's (FTC) examination. In 2015, the FTC did not approve SK Telecom's bid to acquire CJ Hello on concerns over a monopoly and oligopoly in the subscription TV market. Market observers say LG Uplus is likely to get approval from the FTC this time, citing the corporate watchdog's changing attitude to the combining of different sectors. FTC Chairman Kim Sang-jo said earlier during an interview with a vernacular newspaper: "We will be more forward-looking in examining the combination of enterprises regarding CJ Hello." Data provided by the Ministry of Science and ICT showed that KT had a 20.67 percent share in the subscription TV market in the first half of last year, while SK Broadband and CJ Hello had 13.97 percent and 13.02 percent, respectively. LG Uplus and KT Skylife had an 11.41 percent and 10.19 percent market share. Once LG Uplus completes the acquisition of CJ Hello, it will become the No.2 pay TV service provider with a 24.43 percent share after KT Group that encompasses KT and KT Skylife. Amid the takeover news, LG Uplus' share price soared 6.12 percent to 15,600 won Friday, while CJ Hello's increased 15.12 percent to 11,800 won. Han Jong-hee, president of the visual display business at Samsung Electronics, speaks during a media conference at the firm's headquarters in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, Friday, announcing the firm's vision to lead the 8K television market. / Courtesy of Samsung Electronics By Jun Ji-hye The large-screen, premium television market with 8K resolution will expand at an explosive pace in 2019, despite a gloomy forecast by a global electronics market researcher, according to the head of Samsung Electronics' visual display division. In January, IHS Markit forecast that the 8K TV market would grow at a slower than previously-expected pace, slashing the sales forecast for this year to 338,000 from the previous 430,000. Skepticism toward 8K TVs is mostly centered on concerns that the products are too expensive while there is not much content currently available. But Han Jong-hee, president of Samsung's visual display business, showed confidence, saying, "Sales of 4K TVs accounted for more than 60 percent of the total TV sales in five years since its release. Sales of 8K TVs will reach that level faster as technological advancements accelerate." He made the remarks at a media conference held Friday at Samsung Digital City, the firm's headquarters in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province. An 8K TV has four times more pixels than a 4K UHD TV, and 16 times more pixels than a full HD TV, bringing pristine colors and images to life. Samsung Electronics said it will expand sales of 8K quantum-dot light-emitting diode (QLED) TVs to 60 countries this year. A Samsung Electronics researcher gives a demonstration of the firm's new 8K QLED TVs to reporters at the firm's headquarters in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, Friday. / Courtesy of Samsung Electronics (CNN) A crowd of hands reaching desperately to the sky, like those of people drowning. This is the striking art installation created in the Italian coastal city of Pescara by a local network of charities and NGOs that work to integrate migrants, in protest at Italy's hardline Interior Minister, Matteo Salvini. The drowning hands are a stark reminder of those migrants and refugees who died while crossing the Mediterranean Sea, according to Rete Oltre il Ponte, the network behind the installation. In 2018, an estimated 2,275 people died or went missing while trying to reach Europe's southern shores, according to the UNHCR. Salvini, who is planning to visit the city Thursday, spearheaded a series of anti-immigration policies since becoming Interior Minister last year. These include refusing to give permission to ships carrying rescued migrants to dock in Italy and a decree abolishing Italy's "humanitarian protection" for migrants who don't meet the country's strict asylum criteria or are waiting for a response to their application, and made it easier to expel them. Rete Oltre il Ponte told CNN that the artwork, which has been placed without official permission in the city's main square, in front of the town hall, is intended to remind Salvini "that the lives of the people are close to our hearts and we want nobody to die at sea anymore." This is the second time "drowning hands" have been installed in protest at Salvini. Earlier this week, police removed a similar installation in Atri, in the Abruzzo region, La Repubblica reported. This story was first published on CNN.com, "'Drowning hands' guerrilla artwork protests Italy's hard line on migrants." By Jung Min-ho U.S. President Donald Trump is preparing to ban Chinese telecoms giant Huawei from selling its equipment to U.S. wireless carriers, sources told . Trump is expected to sign an executive order banning Chinese telecoms equipment from U.S. wireless networks as early as this week or, at the latest, by the end of this month. "There's a big push to get it out before MWC (Barcelona)," said an industry source familiar with the matter. The event is scheduled to be held from Feb. 25 to 28. By pre-empting the world's largest exhibition for the mobile industry, the White House plans to send a signal that future contracts for new technology must prioritize cyber security. The move will likely worsen the Trump administration's already tense relations with Beijing. The order would have a profound impact on the future of Huawei and ZTE, the two Chinese companies accused by the U.S. government and others of posing national security risks. This comes after a report that the U.S. State Department is discouraging European countries from using equipment made by Huawei in their 5G rollouts. Meanwhile, the University of California, Berkeley, has decided to halt a new research project with Huawei. The school announced on Jan. 30 that it banned new funding or gifts by Huawei or any of its affiliates "after careful internal review and consultation with peer institutions" because of the "serious allegations" in the U.S. Justice Department's 13-count indictment. "U.C. Berkeley holds its research partners to the highest possible standards of corporate conduct, and the severity of these accusations raises questions and concerns that only our judicial system can address," Randy Howard Katz, the school's vice chancellor for research, said in a letter to its deans and other senior directors. Last month, Oxford University also said it would forgo further funding from Huawei in "light of public concerns raised in recent months surrounding U.K. partnerships with Huawei." A woman sits next to a salesperson at a Huawei shop in Bangkok, Thailand, Jan. 30. Reuters New laws on foreign investment in the UK will block Chinese firm Huawei from sensitive UK tech projects, The Sun newspaper reported on Friday. Many are concerned that allowing Huawei an inside track on the rollout of the 5G mobile network in the UK would let China spy on private lives and hack UK companies, The Sun said. By John Burton Speculation is growing that North Korea might emulate Vietnam's economic development model after its capital Hanoi was chosen as the location of the second Washington-Pyongyang summit. One of the rare points of agreement when it comes to North Korea is that Pyongyang appears serious in its intention to modernize its economy. The selection of Vietnam as the site of the upcoming summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korea leader Kim Jong-un reinforces this message. Last year, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited Vietnam just after a trip to Pyongyang and noted that Vietnam's market reforms, known as "doi moi," served as a model of prosperity for North Korea. Kim is believed to be interested in studying authoritarian capitalist countries, including China, Vietnam and Singapore, the site of the last Trump-Kim summit, for lessons on how to revive the economy while keeping political control. China, of course, has long urged North Korea to undertake economic reforms, including creating Shenzhen-style special economic zones. Kim has visited China four times within the past year. What has been said at those meetings with the Chinese leadership has not been disclosed, but they likely involved discussions on how Beijing could help support Pyongyang's economic modernization efforts in return for denuclearization. The main sticking point is how this could be achieved. North Korea is unlikely to begin the denuclearization process until the U.S. agrees to ease international economic sanctions. But Washington hawks, including National Security Adviser John Bolton, want the reverse: denuclearization before easing sanctions. Trump, who appears desperate for a foreign policy win, may be willing to compromise by a phased lifting of sanctions in return for North Korea's destruction of some nuclear and missile weapons facilities. China could play a useful mediator role in this process. The possibility that North Korea might soon embrace economic reforms would help South Korea's economy as the two Koreas become integrated through transportation links and investments. North Korea's neighbors would strongly support Pyongyang's economic reforms. They worry that North Korea's continued economic weakness could eventually lead to a collapse of the state, sending a flood of refugees across borders and forcing Seoul, Beijing and Tokyo to pay billions of dollars in reconstruction funds. The possibility that North Korea might soon embrace economic reforms would help South Korea's economy as the two Koreas become integrated through transportation links and investments. China, South Korea, Japan and Russia would welcome North Korea's economic liberalization since it would allow the country to be included in regional development schemes such as the China's Belt and Road program and a Eurasian railway corridor. So can North Korea follow in the footsteps of Vietnam's market reforms? There are several similarities between the two countries. Both have well-educated and hardworking populations, although Vietnam has almost four times the number of people as North Korea. Both countries also have a strong sense of nationalism that has allowed them to maintain considerable geopolitical independence. Probably the most appealing aspect of Vietnam to Kim is that Hanoi has successfully navigated a massive economic transformation and opening to the global economy while maintaining stable, one-party rule. Vietnam's communist rulers have been able to hold onto power because the introduction of economic reforms has been gradual, an approach that also seems to be favored by Kim. It has taken Vietnam more than 30 years to achieve its economic success. Kim might also view the dramatic improvement in U.S.-Vietnamese relations after the two nations fought a bitter war as another template to follow in his policy toward Washington. North Korea will need U.S. support if it hopes to receive funding from the IMF, the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank,and join the World Trade Organization. What could bring Washington and Pyongyang closer together is a shared interest in curbing the rise of China even as the two countries maintain economic trade and investments with Beijing. North Korea can also emulate Vietnam by forging ties with Japan and India. The upcoming Trump-Kim summit will thus not only be a key test of North Korea's willingness to denuclearize but its eagerness to pursue economic reforms. Pyongyang's agreement to meet in Vietnam is a hopeful sign. John Burton (johnburtonft@yahoo.com), a former Korea correspondent for the Financial Times, is now a Washington, D.C.-based journalist and consultant. Opposition lawmakers hit for defiling May 18 movement Three lawmakers of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP) have come under criticism for denigrating the pro-democracy movement in the southwestern city of Gwangju in May 1980. They appear to have crossed the line in their apparent bid to rally supporters behind the conservative party. The episode took place Friday when two of the LKP legislators organized a public hearing on the May 18 Gwangju Uprising in a National Assembly building on Yeouido, Seoul. The organizers ere Reps. Kim Jin-tae and Lee Jong-myeong. Another LKP lawmaker, Kim Soon-rye, attended the event. In every respect, the hearing was designed to defile the bloody and violent pro-democracy movement. The organizers invited Jee Man-won, a controversial far-right political commentator, to talk about the movement. During the hearing, Jee repeated his reactionary view that North Korean troops were sent to Gwangju to incite the uprising. Jee claimed that around 600 North Korean regular and special troops were deployed to Gwangju in May 1980 to lead the uprising. He even said that it was guerilla warfare to overthrow the South Korean government. It is ludicrous to make such a claim. Scholars, officials and civic activists have already conducted numerous investigations and concluded that the Gwangju incident was a pro-democracy movement against the Chun Doo-hwan-led military junta. Chun seized power through a military coup after the Oct. 26, 1979, assassination of then President Park Chung-hee. First, it was wrong for the organizers to invite such a commentator as Jee to the hearing and let him harp on his anachronistic view. The LKP legislators' real intention was certainly to raise their conservative voices against the May 18 movement well ahead of general elections scheduled for next year. But they should realize that they went too far in pursuing their own political gain. How could they even denounce the pro-democracy movement, which claimed more than 200 lives, as a "riot"? They did not even hesitate to describe the pro-democracy activists as a group of "monsters." The LKP made it clear that the lawmakers' views were not the party's official stance on the May 18 movement. Instead of finding an excuse, the opposition party should take stern action against the three for defaming the movement and its participants. Real progress depends on how to denuclearize North The United States and North Korea have agreed to hold their second summit in Hanoi, Vietnam, Feb. 27 and 28. The venue of the summit was finally set over the weekend after the U.S., which favored the Vietnamese central seaside city of Da Nang, made a concession to the North which preferred Hanoi. We welcome the agreement, hoping that the upcoming summit will mark a turning point in the stalled nuclear talks between Washington and Pyongyang. It is meaningful that the summit will be held in the Vietnamese capital, a symbol of the Southeast Asian country's economic reforms better known there as "doi moi." On North Korea's part, the selection of Hanoi as the summit location may make it easy for its leader Kim Jong-un to make a state visit to Vietnam before or after meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump. If everything goes well for Kim, he can maximize the effects of his summit diplomacy. He is reportedly seeking to have a summit with Vietnamese President Nguyen Phu Trong. Some pundits speculate Kim may adopt the Vietnamese development model to revive the moribund North Korean economy, which has been hit hard by international sanctions. In fact, he will become the first leader of the North to land in Vietnam in 54 years. His grandfather and founder of the North, Kim Il-sung held summits with then Vietnamese President Ho Chi Minh in 1958 and 1964. In this regard, Kim Jong-un's planned visit to the country has significant ramifications, on top of the nuclear negotiations with Trump. He may seek to portray himself as a "normal" leader, shedding his hostile image. He may also want to strengthen ties with Vietnam and other ASEAN countries for economic cooperation after denuclearization talks with the U.S. For these reasons, we express cautious optimism that the second Trump-Kim meeting may produce a real breakthrough, though not a perfect solution, in the nuclear issue. The new summit should be a starting point in a real sense for the denuclearization of and peace process on the Korean Peninsula. However, much work remains to be done to ensure the success of the summit. There are tough negotiations underway to narrow differences over how to denuclearize the North. That's why we cannot shake off skepticism over Kim's real intentions. During the second summit, Trump should get Kim to agree on concrete and substantive steps toward nuclear disarmament and the shelving of the country's missile development program. These steps may include a detailed timetable for "final, fully verifiable denuclearization." Kim needs to present a list of his regime's nuclear stockpile and agree to destroy plutonium and uranium enrichment facilities including the Yongbyon nuclear complex. He should also allow international inspections and verification. As for "corresponding" steps for this, the U.S. may make a formal declaration to end the Korean War and provide security guarantees to the Kim regime. The Trump administration can open a liaison office in Pyongyang, a preparatory step toward diplomatic normalization. However, Washington should be careful in accommodating Kim's demand for sanctions relief, although it can take a flexible attitude toward it. It should not risk undermining the denuclearization process by easing sanctions before Pyongyang makes observable progress in dismantling its nuclear arsenal. Facebook celebrated its 15th anniversary last Monday in all-too-familiar fashion: another privacy scandal. This one crosses the line. Since 2016, Facebook has been paying minors as young as 13 to download an app that tracks nearly everything they do on their phones. Taking a cue from tobacco companies, the Menlo Park-based social media company advertised the app on Snapchat and Instagram, where today's teens routinely hang out. The outrageous practice is as creepy as it is greedy. The notion that young teenagers can give informed consent is ludicrous, as any responsible parent or business leader knows. As a parent with two children, CEO Mark Zuckerberg should know better than to profit by preying on children. The revelation destroys whatever remaining credibility he had on privacy issues. The fact that Facebook is willing to pay teens $20 a month for access to their private data _ where they go, what web sites they visit and what they purchase is another indicator of how much the company is profiting from consumers' data. This isn't the first time Zuckerberg has ignored basic business ethics standards. Remember the 2011 Federal Trade Commission investigation that revealed Facebook had falsely promised customers that it would not share their data with advertisers? Or Facebook's 2014 secret mood-manipulation scandal, in which the company altered 700,000 users' news feeds to see if viewing more positive or negative posts would have an impact on their own posts? Or the revelation last year that Facebook was aware of a massive theft of users' personal data but failed to tell the public? A day of reckoning awaits Zuckerberg and other tech companies. The more users distrust Facebook, the more likely they are to reconsider their online habits. And the more likely Congress will crack down on companies who flaunt calls for self-regulation on basic privacy-rights issues. Indeed, congressional action is overdue. Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Santa Clara, has proposed an internet bill of rights that's a good starting point for legislative action. At least California is taking action. The Legislature in 2018 passed what is regarded as the nation's toughest online privacy law. It's unclear whether the law's "opt-in" requirement for children younger than 16 would prevent Facebook's disgusting ploy. If it doesn't, the Legislature has work to do. The California law doesn't take effect until 2020. In the meantime, consumers are having to rely on companies such as Apple to police Facebook. Apple blocked an internal Facebook app on iPhones and iPads for violating Apple's policies. Right now, Zuckerberg is laughing all the way to the bank. Despite the public outrage, Facebook's earnings per share jumped 65 percent from a year ago. The social media company's net profit for the last quarter totaled $6.88 billion, a record profit for the company. Zuckerberg's actions prove that his public apologies are meaningless. Nevertheless, the United States remains the only major developed nation without fundamental online user protections. Congress shouldn't wait another day to pass Khanna's internet bill of rights and give users the basic privacy rights they deserve. The above editorial appeared in the Mercury News (San Jose, Calif.) It was distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Candidates of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party's (LKP) leadership race prepare to make a joint announcement to boycott the party's national convention in Seoul, Monday. From left are Rep. Ahn Sang-soo, former Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, Rep. Joo Ho-young, Rep. Shim Jae-cheol and Rep. Chung Woo-taik. / Yonhap By Park Ji-won The leadership race at the main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP) is being thrown into chaos after six out of eight contenders pledged to drop out Sunday. The six former LKP leader Hong Joon-pyo, former Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, Reps. Shim Jae-cheol, Ahn Sang-soo, Chung Woo-taik and Joo Ho-young agreed to withdraw from the race unless the interim party leadership postpones a national convention for at least two weeks. They are demanding a delay of the convention, scheduled for Feb. 27, due to it clashing with a second summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, which is to be held on Feb. 27 and 28 in Vietnam. However, the leadership, led by Kim Byung-joon, decided to go ahead with the convention as scheduled, Friday, drawing criticism from the candidates for being in favor of former Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn, who has been leading in recent polls. "The Feb. 27 national convention should be postponed for more than two weeks. Otherwise, we will not register as candidates on Feb. 12. If the party finds it difficult to secure a place to hold the venue as a result, it is okay with us for it to be held outside," the six said in a joint statement. "The party's election commission unilaterally decided election rules without consultations with candidates, which is unfair and not based on democratic process. We consider the party to be running the election in favor of a certain candidate." They demanded a delay in the election as it could fail to attract people's attention due to the summit. Meanwhile, the remaining candidates, Hwang and Rep. Kim Jin-tae, do not want the election to be postponed. Hwang, the most favorable conservative candidate for the 2022 presidential election in recent polls, has had his eligibility as a candidate for the conservative party questioned, and has been criticized for his "deep" connections to convicted former President Park Geun-hye. Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon, right, speaks at a Seoul movie theater, Saturday, after watching "Underdog," an animated film about abandoned dogs. / Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan Government By Kim Jae-heun Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon said, Saturday, the city government will shut down all dog butcheries in the capital as the nation as a whole struggles over whether to eliminate the dog meat business. His remarks came after watching "Underdog," an animated film about abandoned dogs that find themselves in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). "In the past, we had several dog butcher shops in Cheongnyangni, but I closed almost all of them down through various measures," Park said. "Currently, one or two dog slaughterhouses remain. I cannot force them to go out of business, so I will put pressure on them to move." Of five shops selling dog meat in Gyeongdong Market in Jegi-dong the main market for the trade in the capital three only sold meat while two also slaughtered dogs on the premises. The mayor's plan was announced as local animal rights groups are pitted against dog farm owners who are protesting to protect their livelihoods. Some Koreans have traditionally eaten dog meat in the summer. Park also raised the issue of the growing number of abandoned dogs. "Every year, 8,500 dogs are abandoned in Seoul and a quarter of them are euthanized because they are not adopted. I believe in building a peaceful world that is also a safe place for animals," Park said. The mayor said he went to see the film to "find a way to raise the adoption rate for stray dogs" and promote a campaign encouraging people not to abandon animals. "I heard there are wild dogs on Mount Bukhan. I feel responsible for them, and this was a burden while watching the film," Park added. "I published a thesis about animal rights when I was studying in England in 1991. Back then, I was a human rights lawyer and people condemned me for talking about animal rights when human rights are still not guaranteed. However, human rights are guaranteed in a society where animal rights are secured." Park's visit to the theater and subsequent are seen as a move to keep awareness of animal rights in the wake of the recent CARE scandal that grabbed headlines. Park So-yeon, the chief executive of Coexistence of Animal Rights on Earth (CARE) was recently accused of euthanizing more than 200 stray dogs without noting the organization's staff and members. The chief executive argued that she did this for "humanitarian" reasons as most of them were suffering from a deadly illness or had a very low chance of being adopted. However, the staff called for her resignation as she did not seek consent before euthanizing the animals. By Yi Whan-woo Korea and Spain will open talks this month at the earliest over a proposed deal to trade trainer jets for transport planes, according to defense ministry officials, Sunday. If realized, the deal will mark Korea's first export of aircraft to Europe. The officials said the Ministry of National Defense and Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) have been reviewing Spain's proposal to trade some of its A-400M transport planes, made by Airbus, for KT-1 and T-50 trainer jets produced by KAI. Spain made the offer "through an unofficial route" in July 2018 at the Farnborough International Airshow in the United Kingdom. It issued an official proposal in November during a joint defense industry cooperation committee meeting in Madrid. "Since then, we've been conducting a feasibility study concerning Spain's offer and also outlining our negotiations," a ministry official said, adding Korea plans to send officials to Spain. Spain has reportedly ordered 27 A-400Ms from Airbus. But has decided to sell 13 of them and received consent from Airbus. It is reportedly hoping to deliver four to six A-400Ms to Korea in return for 30 KT-1s and 20 T-50s. Korea has a fleet of C-130 Hercules cargo planes, which can fly more than 5,200 kilometers with a maximum load of 74.3 tons. The A-400M can carry 141 tons with a range of roughly 8,700 kilometers. The Air Force has said it needs larger cargo planes for more efficient disaster relief and peacekeeping operations. (CNN) Her face covered by a black veil, with just a slit for her eyes, Dura looks like dozens of other black-clad women clustered on blankets with their children, all former subjects of ISIS's crumbling caliphate in Syria. But this woman is a long, long way from home. When I address her in Arabic, she replies in English with a distinctly North American accent. "I'm sorry, I don't speak Arabic very well," she says. On this nondescript patch of ground on the vast plains of eastern Syria, hundreds of people from all around the world are being identified, questioned, sometimes detained. More arrive every day, as they flee ISIS's last enclave, the besieged town of Baghouz Al-Fawqani. I spoke to people from Canada, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Iraq and Syria, as coalition warplanes roared overhead looking for targets. With the exception of Dura and a fellow Canadian woman, nearly everyone denied any connection with ISIS. Each had ended up in this desolate corner of Syria by sheer chance, they said. The college student from Toronto Dura Ahmed, 28, is originally from Toronto, Canada. She arrived here like the others on the back of a pickup truck driven by fighters with the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). I switch into English. "How did you end up in Syria?" "My husband came here first in 2012," she says. "He tried to convince me for two years to come, but I said no, no, I don't want to. Then finally he said you have to come, but I was studying." I ask her what she was studying. "English and Middle Eastern studies. I didn't know anything about ISIS or anything. He said just come and see. Come and see." "You were studying the Middle East and didn't know anything about ISIS?" I asked, puzzled. "I didn't really watch the news. No one liked to talk about it. I was really oblivious to what was going on. In the end I said fine, if I don't like it, I'll come back," she said. So to Raqqa, ISIS' de-facto capital, she came in 2014. What she saw, she liked. "It was an easy life. It was a city. It was stable," she said. "You're there and you're eating Pringles and Twix bars. You're just there. You don't feel like you're in a war." "But hadn't you heard all the stories of people having their heads cut off, of mass executions?" I asked. "No," she replied, and then adds, as if talking about the weather: "Briefly, just briefly, I heard about some executions taking place." "Did you hear about the slaughter of Yezidis, of Yezidi women being enslaved?" I asked. "When I came here, I heard. I haven't seen one, but..." Her answer trailed off with a nervous laugh. "Well, having slaves is part of Sharia," she finally ventured. "I believe in Sharia, wherever Sharia is. We must follow whoever is implementing the way, the law." Did she regret coming to Syria, I asked, wondering if she felt disillusioned with the Islamic State, after years of being forced back by a US-led coalition, moving from place to place, and ultimately ending up in a "caliphate" of just 1.5 square miles under frequent airstrike. "No. I had my kids here," she replied. Her two young boys, Mohammed and Mahmoud, were at her feet. Their faces and clothing were caked with dust, their noses running. The younger one, Mahmoud, had no shoes. The graphic designer from Alberta Sharing Dura's blanket, apart from the other women, was a 34-year-old graphic designer from Alberta. She declined to tell us her name, but described her life in Syria in detail. She, too, came to Syria at her husband's bidding. "He's like, 'it's obligatory for you to come here. You have no choice, and as your husband I'm telling you to come here.' And as a Muslim wife you have to obey, even though it was really hard for me to do it." She takes a deep sigh. "I had to." Like Dura, she claims she knew nothing about ISIS or Syria before she made the journey here. "I'm not the kind of person who watched the news," she said. "I didn't follow any of this kind of stuff. I used to be a graphic designer and I used to work from home and just take care of the kids. I was never interested in what was going on in the world." Her first husband was Bosnian, and left Canada to join ISIS "as a cook, not a fighter," she says -- a common description from ISIS wives. Cook or not, he was eventually killed in the fighting, she says. For two years she was single, and then re-married, this time a fellow Canadian. He, too, was killed in the fighting. She is pregnant. Through both marriages, she lived a cloistered life in Raqqa, attending to her two sons. She didn't send her children to school, she says. "It was too dangerous and there were too many bombings. They don't speak Arabic. So I taught them myself," she replied. When I tried the most basic of Arabic out on her son, Yusif, he stared at me blankly. The middle-aged man visiting 'a dear friend' Every adult who arrives is questioned by intelligence officers with the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Force. All adult males, and foreign women, are also questioned by American, British and French personnel who have parked their armored vehicles on a low bluff overlooking the assembled civilians. Our SDF escorts made it clear we were not to approach or take images of the American staff and their colleagues. The U.S. military had questioned Fattah Al-Khatib, a man in his 50s with a thick white beard, originally from Idlib Province in Western Syria. Fattah told me he made the journey east to visit a "dear friend." When fighting broke out, he and his family were forced to follow the retreating ISIS fighters. "Do you or any or your family have any connections with ISIS?" I asked him. "No," he answered, adding "that's exactly what the American intelligence people asked me. No, I don't." I asked him about the situation inside Baghouz Al-Fawqani, where food and supplies are known to be running low, and people are living in tents. "It's normal," he said. "People have set up stalls and are selling and bartering food and other goods. There are people from all over the world. There are many people from Chechnya." "It's strange," I said, "that you find a Chechen in Baghouz Al-Fawqani, isn't it?" I ask. Baghouz Al-Fawqani, even in the best of times, has never been on the tourist circuit, and SDF commanders say there are many Chechens among the 500 ISIS fighters holed up in the town. "I don't know if it's suspicious or not," he replied, shrugging off my question with complete nonchalance. The last survivors of an airstrike Abdul Rahman, a young man in his 20s, and his extended family were on the receiving end of an airstrike in the town. When I met him, he was sitting upright with a blanket on his lap. His face, hands and arms were severely blistered. A bandage wound round his head above bloodshot eyes. Next to him sat his kid sister, with burns on her face as well. Abdul Rahman's house in Baghouz Al-Fawqani took a direct hit at about three in the morning, a few days ago. Asked if anyone died, he responded quickly: "My mother, my brother, his wife, his son, my sister, my wife, my daughter, my uncle, his wife and their two children," he says. His father, Salam, 45, listened. He has a bandage on his left hand and his face is severely scarred. Another bandage winds around his neck and over his chin; he says his jaw was broken in the airstrike. "I'm afraid," he told me, his voice shaking. "Do you understand? I'm afraid. All I have left is my daughter and my son." He covered his face and broke down in tears. By mid-afternoon, two white buses arrived. Women and children climbed onboard for a five-hour drive north, to an already overcrowded camp for the displaced near the town of Al-Houl. Men believed to be ISIS members are sent to a separate camp for further questioning. This includes more than 800 foreign fighters. But for the crying of babies, the passengers are subdued. Willing or otherwise, these former subjects of the once-feared Islamic State have lost everything. Their so-called caliphate has been reduced to a tiny dot on the map, soon to be erased all together. While they lived under ISIS rule, state preachers and propagandists doubtless argued that the terror group would resurge to defeat its enemies against all odds. Some might still believe it. But on the bus, it seemed, reality had sunk in. The caliphate is on the brink of death. This is the end. This story was first published on CNN.com, "Canadian women emerge from ISIS's crumbling caliphate." RTHK: Coalition forces in final push against IS in Syria US-backed forces were locked in fierce fighting on Sunday as they pressed the battle against the last shred of the Islamic State group's "caliphate" in eastern Syria. The jihadists overran large parts of the country and neighbouring Iraq in 2014, but various military offensives have since reduced that territory to a patch on the Iraqi border. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), supported by a US-led coalition, announced a final push to retake the jihadist pocket late on Saturday, after a pause of more than a week to allow civilians to flee. An SDF field commander said his fighters were battling their way forwards on Sunday morning. "There are heavy clashes at the moment. We have launched an assault and the fighters are advancing," he told the AFP news agency. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor group said the SDF advanced across farming land, backed by coalition air strikes and artillery fire. "The battle is ongoing. There were heavy clashes this morning, with landmines going off," said Rami Abdel Rahman, the head of the Britain-based Observatory. The SDF launched an offensive to expel IS from the oil-rich eastern province of Deir Ezzor in September. The Kurdish-led alliance has since whittled down jihadist-held territory to a scrap of just four square kilometres between the Euphrates and the Iraqi border. Up to 600 jihadists could still remain inside, most of them foreigners, according to SDF spokesman Mustafa Bali. Hundreds of civilians are also believed to be inside, he said. But Bali added the extremist group's elusive leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was likely not in the last pocket. "We do not think he is in Syria," Bali said, without adding further details about the whereabouts of the man who declared a cross-border IS "caliphate" in 2014. On the Iraqi side of the border, French members of the coalition on Saturday stood ready to pour fury on any jihadists trying to escape. Dozens of 155-mm shells were lined up ready to be loaded onto three green-and-black Caesar gun-howitzers with a range of 40 kilometres. Coalition deputy commander Christopher Ghika last week said Iraqi forces had sealed their border with Syria. Since September, more than 1,270 IS militants, more than 670 SDF fighters, and around 400 civilians have been killed in the fighting, the Observatory says. At the height of their rule, the jihadists imposed their brutal interpretation of Islamic law on a territory roughly the size of Britain. But military offensives in both countries, including by the SDF, have since retaken the vast bulk of that "caliphate". On Saturday, Bali said he expected the battle for the last patch of IS territory to be over in days. The jihadists, however, retain a presence in Syria's vast Badia desert, and have claimed a series of deadly attacks in SDF-held areas. Since December, more than 37,000 people, mostly wives and children of jihadist fighters, have fled out into SDF-held areas, the Observatory says. That figure includes some 3,400 suspected jihadists detained by the SDF, according to the monitor, which relies on sources inside Syria for its information. The SDF holds hundreds of foreigners accused of belonging to the extremist group in its custody, as well as members of their families. They have urged Western governments to repatriate their nationals, but politicians abroad have been reluctant. Relatives at home fear alleged foreign jihadists may end up facing tough justice in Iraq, where Human Rights Watch warned they could face "torture and unfair trials". On Sunday, a Russian diplomatic source says Russia was repatriating 27 children whose mothers are being held in Iraq for belonging to IS. The issue of jihadist repatriation from Syria has come into sharper focus since the United States in December announced its military withdrawal from Syria. That announcement has seen the Kurds warn they may struggle to keep jihadists in jail, and pushed them to seek a new ally in the Damascus regime to prevent a long-threatened Turkish offensive. While the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) have been a key US ally in the fight against IS, Ankara views them as "terrorists". Syria's Kurds have largely stayed out of the country's civil war, instead building semi-autonomous institutions in northern and northeastern regions they control. The conflict has killed more than 360,000 people and displaced millions since starting in 2011 with a brutal crackdown on anti-government protests. The regime has made a military comeback with Russian military support since 2015, and now holds almost two-thirds of Syria. (AFP) This story has been published on: 2019-02-10. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. By Kim Hyun-bin Chung, 35, is in her fourth year of marriage and hopes to give birth to her first child this year. However, worries are on the rise as she was recently deemed to be in the high-risk pregnancy category. The Korean government places women over 35 in this category and more prenatal tests are recommended. In this year of the golden pig, many couples are hoping to have their first child. But pregnancies do not always go as planned, more so for women over 35. Experts advise women to follow healthy regimes to increase the chances of becoming pregnant. Conduct prenatal tests to find right pregnancy period Prenatal tests check a woman's health and for any diseases that could cause birth defects, and can indicate the right time to become pregnant. Women also usually receive cervical cancer tests, ultrasounds and blood and urine tests. If the results show the woman does not have rubella or hepatitis B immunity, doctors urge them to get vaccinated. "When a woman is over 35, there tends to be higher risks and poor pregnancy results, including fetus chromosome problems, high blood pressure, diabetes, premature birth and a low birth weight infant, so prenatal tests are a must," Seol Hyun-ju, professor of gynecology at Kyunghee University Hospital at Gangdong, said. "Not all mothers over 35 need special treatment or are considered high risk. However, there are many cases where high blood pressure, diabetes and other chronic diseases start to form around that age without the patient knowing." Take folic acid and prepare in advance Preparations are key to reducing birth uncertainties and the best way to enhance pregnancy prognostics. When a couple is preparing for pregnancy, experts advise women to take folic acid. This reduces the chance of neural tube defects in the embryo. If a woman has a normal menstrual cycle, they can check if they are pregnant through a pregnancy test kit. Take extra care during early pregnancy When a woman gets pregnant, the gynecologist checks the health of the woman and her embryo as most miscarriages occur during the early stage. Even healthy mothers can develop high blood pressure and diabetes from pregnancy. Experts say it is important to speak to a professional starting from the early stages and set up a systematic prenatal care plan. "Up to 10 weeks into pregnancy is crucial as the baby's organs are developing," Seol said. "Some drugs might increase the risk of birth defects, so the woman needs to consult with a doctor and set up a systematic prenatal care plan." Quit drinking and smoking Smoking is especially bad for the fetus. Infants exposed to smoke, during pregnancy and after birth, are more at risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) due to increased levels of nicotine. And infants exposed to smoke during pregnancy are up to three times more likely to die of SIDS than children born to non-smoking mothers. Cigarette smoke contains more than 4,000 chemicals, including cyanide, lead and at least 60 cancer-causing compounds. Experts say that when you smoke during pregnancy, that toxic brew gets into your bloodstream, which is the baby's only source of oxygen and nutrients. Two compounds are especially harmful: nicotine and carbon monoxide. According to experts, these two toxins account for almost every smoking-related complication in pregnancy. Drinking alcohol is another hazard, especially in the first three months of pregnancy as it increases the risk of miscarriage, premature birth and the baby having a low birth weight. Drinking heavily throughout pregnancy can cause your baby to develop a serious condition called fetal alcohol syndrome. Light regular exercise helps you stay healthy Maintaining a regular exercise routine throughout your pregnancy can help you stay healthy. Regular exercise can improve your posture and decrease some common discomforts such as backache and fatigue. Physical activity may prevent gestational diabetes, relieve stress and build more stamina needed for labor and delivery. If an expecting mother was physically active before pregnancy, they should be able to continue the exercise in moderation. However, they should not try to exercise at former levels. Low-impact aerobics, walking, swimming and yoga are recommended instead. The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology recommends 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise a day on most if not all days, unless there is a medical or pregnancy complication. If an expecting mother has an illness, such as asthma, heart disease or diabetes, exercise may not be advisable. Exercise may also be harmful if you have a pregnancy-related condition such as spotting, low-lying placenta, previous miscarriages or a weak cervix. Waris Dirie talks about her activity to eradicate female genital mutilation, during an interview with The Korea Times at a lounge in the Lotte Hotel World in eastern Seoul, Thursday. / Courtesy of Sunhak Peace Prize Model-turned-activist Waris Dirie receives Sunhak Peace Prize in Korea By Lee Suh-yoon Over the years, former supermodel Waris Dirie has received many awards for her work on eradicating female genital mutilation (FGM) in East Africa. But she says the Sunhak Peace Prize, which she received in Korea on Saturday, is special. "It's a peace prize. Peace means a lot to my life," Dirie said in an interview with The Korea Times in Seoul, Thursday. "Also, I'm receiving it in Korea, a conflict zone just a few miles from North Korea which needs freedom and peace." Dirie, 54, a supermodel who has starred in Chanel ads and a Bond movie, started her fight against FGM in 1997, after publicly disclosing she had undergone it as a child in Somalia, her birth nation. Her activism led her to become a writer, a film producer and the first U.N. Special Ambassador for the Elimination of FGM from 1997 to 2003. FGM involves partial or total removal of a female's external genitalia like the clitoris and labia. The U.N. estimates some 200 million girls and women in the world today mostly in East Africa have been subjected to the brutal procedure as a means of preserving their virginity, thus making them "marriageable" partners in the local community. Dirie set up the Desert Flower Foundation in 2002 to prevent FGM practices and help victims who are often subject to a lifetime of psychological distress and physical complications after the procedure. The organization allows sponsors to enter into an indirect contract with parents funding them on the condition the girls are sent to school and not subjected to the inhumane operation. There have been clear signs of progress. FGM rates for young girls in East Africa have dropped from around 70 percent to 7 percent over the last 20 years. "We're almost there," Dirie said with a smile. "There is awareness, there is education, and young women in Africa know through the internet and social media that this (FGM) is wrong." Dirie says her activism hinges on a philosophy of respect, which she developed in her personal interaction with nature while growing up in a nomadic tribe. "We had to chase water. We could not just go get it, we had to pray and ask. We learned respect from nature," Dirie said. "So I cannot intentionally hurt or disrespect anything with life. And FGM it is the worst cruel thing you can do to disrespect a woman." Once the practice of FGM is stamped out for good, Dirie says she will focus on education. She plans to use the prize money to build more schools for girls in Africa. "They (girls) need to know their rights and be able to fight and stand for them without relying on anyone," she said. "And be free and whatever they choose to be." The other recipient of the Sunhak Peace Prize this year was Akinwumi Adesina, the former Nigerian minister of agriculture and rural development and the current president of the African Development Bank, for aiding food security in the region. The Sunhak award was set up by Han Hak-ja and her husband Moon Sun-Myung, founder of the Unification Church, well known for its controversial mass weddings. Since 2015, the biennial prize has awarded $1 million to individuals who advance sustainability, human rights and peace. Lee Cook-jong, a renowned surgeon who heads the trauma center at Ajou University Hospital in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, mourns the death of Yoon Han-deok, the chief of the National Emergency Medical Center, during his funeral service at the center in Seoul, Sunday. Yoon was found dead in his office, Monday, due to a sudden heart attack caused by overwork. His death cast a light on the poor working conditions at emergency centers. / Yonhap National Security Office chief Chung Eui-yong shakes hands with U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun at Cheong Wa Dae, Saturday. Yonhap In this June 12, 2018, file photo, U.S. President Donald Trump shakes hands with North Korea leader Kim Jong-un at the Capella resort on Sentosa Island in Singapore. As they prepare to meet again, Trump is replaying many of the same moves, with a suspenseful buildup, make-or-break stakes and dramatic rendezvous in a far-flung locale. AP The top U.S. envoy for North Korea returned from three days of talks in Pyongyang and will meet again with his North Korean counterpart before the second summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Hanoi later this month, the U.S. State Department said. Stephen Biegun, the U.S. special representative for North Korea, met with South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and Seoul's chief nuclear envoy Lee Do-hoon on Saturday to brief them on his negotiations with North Korea. ''Our discussions were productive,'' Biegun said while meeting Kang. ''President is very much looking forward to taking next steps. We have some hard work to do with DPRK between now and then. I am confident if both sides stay committed we can make real progress here,'' he said, referring to North Korea by its formal name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. In Pyongyang, Biegun and Kim Hyok Chol, North Korea's special representative for U.S. affairs, discussed ''advancing Trump and Kim's Singapore summit commitments of complete denuclearization, transforming U.S.-DPRK relations, and building a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula,'' the State Department said in a statement. It said that Biegun and Kim agreed to meet again before the leaders' second summit, scheduled for Feb. 27-28 in Hanoi, Vietnam. Trump tweeted the venue on Friday in Washington, saying Biegun had just left North Korea after a ''productive meeting'' on the summit. Trump added: ''I look forward to seeing Chairman Kim & advancing the cause of peace!'' The president had previously announced Vietnam as the summit location, but the city hadn't been identified. Biegun is thought to have discussed specific disarmament steps that North Korea could promise at the Vietnam summit and what corresponding measures the United States is willing to take. U.S.-led negotiations aimed at stripping North Korea of its nuclear weapons program has made little headway since the first Kim-Trump summit in Singapore last June, when Kim pledged to work toward the ''complete denuclearization'' of the Korean Peninsula, without providing a clear timetable or roadmap. Experts say Kim is determined to win relief from U.S.-led sanctions to help revive his country's troubled economy, while Trump, faced with domestic problems such as the Russian investigation, needs foreign policy achievements. If the second summit fails to produce a breakthrough, skepticism about the current nuclear negotiations will grow. Some experts say North Korea is trying to use the negotiations to weaken the sanctions and buy time to perfect its weapons program. Trump also tweeted: ''North Korea, under the leadership of Kim Jong Un, will become a great Economic Powerhouse. He may surprise some but he won't surprise me, because I have gotten to know him & fully understand how capable he is. North Korea will become a different kind of Rocket - an Economic one!'' (AP) JLL Korea CEO Chang Chae-hun poses in front of the company's entrance before an interview with The Korea Times at the IFC on Yeouido, Jan. 15. / Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk By Jhoo Dong-chan Last year was a rollercoaster ride for Korea's housing market. Home prices, especially in the Seoul metropolitan area, skyrocketed in the first half thanks to massive real estate speculation, but started declining suddenly in the second half after a series of government measures to crack down on this. Investor sentiment in the market was discouraged to a degree never seen before. A number of domestic and foreign research centers now claim global housing prices are also likely to dip following Korea's lead. Despite the gloomy outlook on the future of the real estate market, JLL Korea CEO Chang Chae-hun displayed confidence in his firm's future business. JLL Korea is a regional corporate body of Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL), a Chicago-based global services firm specializing in real estate and investment management. "JLL deals with commercial real estate, not residential. Of course, not only Korea but also the global commercial real estate market is highly correlated to current economic fluctuations, but JLL has boasted solid earnings regardless of downturns," Chang said during an interview with The Korea Times. "JLL has a strong global network in more than 80 countries around the world. We have a business presence even in the Middle East and Africa as well as Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) region. Thanks to its global network platform, JLL can provide differential commercial real estate services that go beyond country borders." A large number of global corporations have used Korea as a test bed for their new products and technologies. Since each firm is engaged in different types of business, they also require a different type of venue for their businesses in Korea. "For example, if a global automaker starts a business in Korea, it probably needs a sizable warehouse for imported vehicles and auto parts. If it wants to produce cars in Korea, it might need a production plant with cheap labor costs," Chang said. "Thanks to its vast network across the globe, JLL can provide an ideal commercial real estate solution wherever a firm goes. JLL Korea has already accommodated a number of global giants that have entered Korea." Chang added he is not allowed to name global firms due to nondisclosure agreements, but dozens of global corporations have already entered the country under commercial real estate deals with JLL. With its excellence in commercial property services across the world, JLL has won 11 awards in the five-star category for Thailand, China, India, Hong Kong, Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and Korea at the International Property Awards Asia Pacific last May. "JLL Korea's operation is currently heavily centered in foreign firms that entered or will enter Korea, but we can offer similar services to domestic companies that want to make inroads into foreign countries with a JLL presence," Chang said. "Korean firms, even conglomerates, still open a local office to study and purchase property in a foreign country before they launch a business abroad. I don't think the practice is professional. JLL already has its presence in almost every major economy in the world. It will be more efficient and cost-saving to entrust a firm with expertise." A number of Korean firms are moving their production bases in China into other countries with a cheaper labor cost since the country's business environment is becoming more hostile to foreign companies. The exodus has been accelerating as the Chinese government shows no signs of easing economic retaliation against Korean firms and their products because of Seoul's decision to deploy a U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense battery here two years ago. JLL Korea CEO Chang Chae-hun speaks during an interview with The Korea Times / Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk Employing more than 83,000 employees at 300 offices in 80 countries across the world, JLL opened its Korea office in April 2000. Utilizing its expertise in the commercial real estate market, JLL Korea is involved in various related sectors such as capital markets, tenant representation, leasing, property and facility management. Chang stressed the importance of flexibility, especially for a firm like JLL. "Since JLL works with various firms in different industries, I believe it's important for the firm to feature workers with diverse backgrounds," he said. "I have spent almost my entire career in the real estate business. Of global companies that are working with us, I am not fully aware of business trends in certain industries. I have a number of employees with diverse background. Some of them have unique hobbies. They are great assets to satisfy client firms' demands." Graduating from Wentworth Institute of Technology in Boston, Chang received a master of science in real estate development from Columbia University. He joined JLL in 2000, and has since worked in various posts in the U.S. Prior to joining JLL Korea in 2013, Chang was head of asset management for LaSalle Investment Management in Korea, an investment subsidiary of JLL, from 2004 through 2013. Cast members of JTBC's new series "Legal High" gesture during a news conference previewing the drama at the Imperial Palace Hotel in southern Seoul, Thursday, a day before its first episode aired. "Legal High" follows hit drama "SKY Castle" that wrapped up its last episode with a record-high cable network viewership of 22 percent earlier this month. Courtesy of JTBC 'Legal High' tries to break out of shadow of 'SKY Castle' By Kang Aa-young JTBC's new series "Legal High" had a smooth start, attracting an average 3 percent viewership for the first two episodes that aired on Friday and Saturday. The courtroom comedy-drama, a remake of Japanese Fuji TV's same-name hit drama, drew much attention when it was previewed, mainly because of its highly successful predecessor, "SKY Castle," which created much buzz. "Legal High" revolves around two lawyers young, greedy trial lawyer Go Tae-rim, played by Jin Goo, who would do anything to win his cases, and fearless, righteous paralegal Seo Jae-in (Seo Eun-soo). Director Kim Jeong-yeon admitted he and cast members have been under pressure while shooting the series. During a news conference at the Imperial Palace Hotel in southern Seoul on Thursday, Kim said he has been asked many times if he faced pressure because of "SKY Castle." "Those who were involved in the TV series and my acquaintances asked me if I felt pressure because of the highly successful drama, so I am familiar with this kind of question," Kim said. "To be honest, I don't care much about it. 'SKY Castle' and 'Legal High' are two very different dramas." He was cool on the unprecedented success of "SKY Castle." "We just did our best to make ours work and appeal to viewers," Kim said."The high viewership of the previous drama was not a factor that added any pressure on me. It may sound rude to those who were involved in 'SKY Castle,' but we are trying our best to keep focusing on our drama, rather than being distracted by the previous one's success." Kim said the real pressure was about how he could differentiate the Korean remake from its Japanese original series that was very successful there. "Yes, I felt enormous pressure in the beginning," he said. "We decided to remake the Japanese series because it was very successful there. So the question was how we could make ours as successful as the original drama." Kim said he met fellow producers who have experience in remaking TV series to get inspiration and changed scripts several times before reaching the conclusion that he and cast members would do it their way. Veteran actor Lee Soon-jae, who plays a legal assistant for the young lawyer Go Tae-rim, was confident "Legal High" would break out of the shadow of "SKY Castle" and the original Japanese series. "I think viewers had better not see the original series," he said. "Cast members of the Korean series are great and I think we can outperform the original series. I am positive that we can create a whole new drama." Lee's role is drawing much attention. He plays Goo Se-jung, who has extensive experience across the world. "At the moment, I don't know why he is being an assistant for the young lawyer in the law office," he said."This is a mystery. I think the secret will be untangled soon and his role will be much greater than simply serving the lawyer." For Jin Goo, best known for his role in the SBS mega-hit series "Descendants of the Sun," it is the first time he has played in a comedy-drama. He said he is a fan of the original series and happy to work with other great cast members in the show. "In the Korean remake version, there's some seriousness, unlike the original comedy," he said."I hope you can focus on differences, and I hope viewers can find what it is." It is also the first time Seo Eun-su has taken a lead role. Shehas played some great supporting roles, including in KBS drama "My Golden Life," which once surpassed 40 percent in viewership ratings. "I'm very passionate in my first lead role," Seo said."I will do my best to show some difference." Aiming to shine a spotlight on the reality of the Korean legal system, the remake comedy-drama successfully took its first step over the weekend. "Legal High" airs on Friday and Saturday at 11 p.m. The Veatbox theater hall at CGV Cheongdam Cine City in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, features Seulgi from Red Velvet on its elevator doors and wall next to the entrance. Korea Times photos by Ko Dong-hwan By Ko Dong-hwan Visit the Veatbox screening area on the ninth floor of the CGV Cheongdam Cine City theater in Seoul's Sinsa-dong and you will be intrigued to discover that the one who welcomes you is not the admissions person it is a giant poster of Seulgi from K-pop girl band Red Velvet. And its four elevator doors are covered with the SM Town star showing off her cuteness and glamour with the help of dark, puffy bears, her lookalike animal according to fans. The theater hall's decoration congratulates Seulgi on her 25th birthday on Sunday. According to the giant poster, the screening hall is named the "CGV Kang Seulgi Hall," referring to the star's full Korean name. Red Velvet's first North American tour began in Los Angeles on Feb. 8 and runs through Feb. 21 in Vancouver. Korea Times file Register Voters have until April 8 to register to vote. That day is the deadline to register or transfer registration at Howard County's voter registration office, 104 N. Buckeye St., Room 104B, in the courthouse. Voters also have until midnight April 8 to complete and submit a voter registration application online at www.indianavoters.com. Uh-oh! It could be you, or it could be us, but there's no page here. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 10) President Rodrigo Duterte vetoed the bill reconstituting the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) in order for Congress to "re-craft" it with more "safeguards to protect the taxpayers' money and shield the levy funds from irregular and unlawful use," Malacanang said Sunday. In a statement, Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said vetoing the amendments to Presidential Decree 1468 or the Revised Coconut Industry Code will give Congress more time to improve the PCA and the distribution of coco levy funds. Among the reasons Duterte vetoed the measure is the similarity of the bill's set-up of the PCA to the Road Board, which Duterte had ordered abolished amid corruption allegations. "The PCA is set up like the Road Board which is heavily criticized for allegations of corruption and misappropriation of funds. The PCA Board, like the Road Board which disburses the Motor Vehicle User's Charge, is given full authority to disburse P10-Billion every year in perpetuity without a terminal date, and subject only to review by Congress after six years," Panelo said. Panelo added that the PCA's oversight functions under the bill are placed only with Congress, excluding the executive branch. "The PhP10-Billion in annual appropriation for the development of an industry whose implementation is placed on an agency not required to seek approval from the Executive Branch is susceptible to corruption akin to creating pork barrel funds," he said. Duterte also opposed the composition of the reconstituted 15-member PCA board under the vetoed bill will include seven members from the private sector, according to Panelo. "A receipt of PhP10-Billion by the board from taxpayers' money therefore translates to permitting private persons to influence the disbursement of public funds," he said. The coconut levy fund was taken from a tax imposed on coconut farmers by former President Ferdinand Marcos for the development of the coconut industry. Part of the funds was allegedly siphoned to corporations of alleged cronies of the late President. There are currently two proposed laws on coco levy: the recently vetoed bill that would strengthen the PCA which was the consolidated bicameral conference report on Senate Bill 1976 and House Bill 8552, and the bill that would create the Coco Levy Trust Fund which is the consolidated bicameral conference report on Senate Bill 1233 and House Bill 5745. Both bicameral conference reports were ratified by both houses of Congress on November 28, 2018. Islamabad, Feb 9 (PTI) The Pakistan government on Saturday rejected prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his daughter and son-in-law's requests seeking removal of their names from the Exit Control List (ECL), which is preventing them from flying abroad. In October last year, Sharif, his daughter Maryam and son-in-law Mohammad Safdar had separately applied to the Interior Ministry seeking removal of their names from the ECL, the Geo News reported. In their petitions, the trio argued that the Exit From Pakistan Rules 2010 did not apply to them as they were not involved in corruption, misuse of authority, terrorism or any conspiracy and thus their names should be removed from ECL. The Ministry of Interior rejected the petitions of Nawaz, Maryam and Capt (retd) Safdar, the report said quoting sources. The decision to place the names of the Sharif family on ECL was taken on August 20 last year during a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan. In July 2018, an accountability court in Islamabad convicted Sharif, Maryam and Safdar in the Avenfield properties case and sentenced them to prison terms of 11 years, eight years and one year, respectively. On September 19, Sharif, Maryam and Safdar were released from jail after the Islamabad High Court suspended their sentences in the Avenfield case. In December last year, the Accountability Court in Islamabad sentenced 69-year-old Sharif to seven years of rigorous imprisonment in the Al-Azizia Steel Mills graft case, but acquitted him in the Flagship Investments case. The former premier is serving the jail term in Kot Lakhpat prison since then. London: UK-based Indian doctors and healthcare professionals are campaigning against what they describe as an 'unfair' doubling of a health surcharge imposed on professionals from outside European Union (EU) living and working in Britain. The Immigration Health Surcharge was introduced in April 2015 and from December last year it was hiked from GBP 200 to GBP 400 per year. It is imposed on anyone in the UK on a work, study or family visa for longer than six months in order to raise additional funds for the country's state-funded National Health Service (NHS). The British Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (BAPIO), the UK's largest representative body for Indian-origin doctors, is lobbying the UK Home Office for a rethink over the charge, arguing that it would have an adverse impact on their attempt to recruit more healthcare professionals from India to meet staff shortages in the NHS. "Clinicians wishing to work in the UK are already facing burdensome processes relating to regulation and immigration, and this surcharge is only going to see UK losing out on quality healthcare professionals from non-EU countries," notes a letter from BAPIO president Ramesh Mehta and secretary Parag Singhal, sent to UK home secretary Sajid Javid last week. "The current policy adversely affects the attraction of working in the NHS and will sabotage our own requirements of providing quality health services to our patients. Therefore, in the interest of patient safety and improved morale of the immigrant workforce, we request that this unfair and highly discriminatory health surcharge for NHS-employed professionals should be reversed with immediate effect," the letter states. According to the organisation, one in 11 NHS clinical posts are currently unfilled, rising to one in eight for nursing vacancies, and the severe shortage is likely to grow to around 250,000 by 2030. Doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals from countries like India are often referred to as the ?backbone? of the UK's healthcare system as they take up critical posts across hospitals and clinics in the country, the BAPIO pointed out. BAPIO has been at the centre of organising fellowship programmes for doctors from India to fill NHS shortages while completing their training in Britain as a ?win-win? arrangement. But it fears these efforts would be hit as a result of the additional financial burden imposed by the health surcharge. "These professionals are paying their taxes, including National Insurance (NI) contributions, in addition to providing quality health services in over-stretched hospitals. Such an additional burden will make them feel demoralised and discriminated," said Prof. Singhal. The health surcharge is payable by nationals from countries like India if they are seeking to live in the UK for six months or more, or to extend their stay. The payment is made at the time the immigration application is made and is payable annually until such time as the person is granted indefinite leave to remain (ILR) in the UK, or returns to their home country at the end of their visa period. Short-term migrants, including tourists on visitor visas, are charged differently for secondary care treatment by the NHS at the point of visa access.? Other groups have also questioned the extremely high surcharge on the grounds that it amounted to ?double taxation? for long-term migrants, who are already expected to make tax contributions towards the care system. "Most people who do move here will work and they will pay tax. So doubling this charge is a form of double taxation. People are going to be ending up paying for the NHS twice," said Satbir Singh, chief executive of the Joint Council for the Welfare of Migrants. The UK government says since the surcharge was introduced in 2015, it has raised over GBP 600 million, which has been ploughed back into health budgets. It expects to raise an estimated GBP 220 million in extra funding with the doubling of the surcharge, with the funds aimed at "sustaining and protecting" the country's healthcare system. "We welcome use of the NHS by long term residents who still need leave to remain, but we believe it is right that they make a fair and proportionate contribution to its long-term sustainability," a UK Home Office spokesperson said. "Parliament agrees and has approved the order we proposed to increase the immigration health surcharge so it better reflects the actual costs to the NHS," the spokesperson added. ISLAMABAD: IMF chief Christine Lagarde said that the global lender stands ready to support Pakistan as she met the cash-strapped country's Prime Minister Imran Khan in Dubai on Sunday. Khan is paying a day-long trip to the UAE to take part in the 7th edition of the World Government Summit on the invitation of Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE Sheikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum. Lagarde in a statement said that her meeting with the Pakistani leader about an International Monetary Fund (IMF)-supported programme was constructive. "I reiterated that the IMF stands ready to support Pakistan. I also highlighted that decisive policies and a strong package of economic reforms would enable Pakistan to restore the resilience of its economy and lay the foundations for stronger and more inclusive growth," she said. "As emphasized in the new government's policy agenda, protecting the poor and strengthening governance are key priorities to improve people's living standards in a sustainable manner," Lagarde further said. Khan also tweeted about his meeting with Lagarde. "There was a convergence of our views on the need to carry out deep structural reforms to put the country on the path of sustainable development in which the most vulnerable segments of society are protected," he said. Earlier, Dawn newspaper quoted a senior official involved in the negotiations as saying that Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have narrowed their positions on the scale of adjustments over the past few weeks of continuous engagements. The IMF is asking for an adjustment of around Rs 1,600-2,000 billion over three to four years. It also wants some corrective measures to put Pakistan's economy on the right track after witnessing the highest-ever current account deficit. But the stumbling issue in the talks is the pace of adjustments in the current expenditure. The emphasis on current expenditures comes as a result of a focus on what is known as a "primary balance" in the parlance of public finance. According to the official, there is some space for cut in certain expenditures where Pakistan is in a comfortable position. "This agreement in cut will pave way for accession to the programme," the official claimed, adding that it will be a politically difficult decision. A cut in the current expenditures still seems to put the government in awkward position by making adjustments in subsidies and other special grants. The IMF has been demanding that the burden of any expenditure cuts should fall on current expenditures that include debt service, defence and subsidies. Finance Division's Spokesperson Khaqan Najeeb said that productive dialogue continued with the IMF on all areas including fiscal, energy, structural reforms and monetary policy. The two sides continue to exchange views on data and a reform framework to move forward. Discussions are part of a regular ongoing interaction between the government and the IMF and will continue in coming weeks, Najeeb said. "In addition, technical level subject-specific discussions also support the process of overall dialogue," he said. The IMF has also asked for further monetary tightening as well as a complete free float of the exchange rate. "We are already towards target in these areas," the official said, adding that the IMF has acknowledged these measures. According to the official, Finance Minister Asad Umar has already conveyed to the IMF during the recent parleys that only those measures will be taken which are favourable for the country's economic growth. Although the government has secured a breathing space from Saudi Arabian and the UAE loans, an IMF programme is essential to unlock access to resources from other multilateral lenders like the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, as well as the global capital markets. Cash-strapped Pakistan has received USD 1 billion each from Saudi Arabia and the UAE, as part of the bailout package by the two Gulf nations to help shore up Islamabad's dwindling foreign currency reserves. Saudi Arabia's assistance was part of the USD 6 billion bailout package - USD 3 billion balance-of-payments support and another USD 3 billion in deferred payments on oil imports - which Riyadh had agreed in October last year. Pakistan, which is in talks with the IMF for a bailout package, has also reportedly received financial assistance from China. Earlier, officials said that Pakistan would seek around USD 8 billion from the IMF which would be the biggest package by the Fund for Islamabad. KABUL: Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on Sunday offered the Taliban the possibility of opening an office in Afghanistan but the proposal was swiftly spurned by the group that is determined to keep his government out of accelerating peace talks. Ghani has expressed alarm at the Taliban shutting his administration out of negotiations with the United States as well as recent Moscow talks with Afghan opposition politicians, and repeated earlier offers to give the group a secure official address to aid any future diplomacy between the two sides. "If the Taliban want an office, I will give it to them in Kabul, Nangarhar or Kandahar by tomorrow," Ghani said while visiting the province of Nangarhar, a hotbed of insurgent violence on the border with Pakistan. "We will bring a lasting and honourable peace to the country," he said. Nangarhar is a stronghold of the Taliban, the hardline Islamist movement that now controls or contests districts across nearly half the country, more than 17 years since they were toppled from power. Taliban officials in Moscow last week stressed the importance of a formal office among a string of demands that included the removal of Western sanctions and travel bans on Taliban members, prisoner releases and an end to "propaganda" against the group. Taliban spokesman Sohail Shahin later told Reuters that the focus was international recognition of their existing site in Doha, Qatar. On Sunday he said Ghani was trying to harm the peace efforts with his latest offer. "Our demand about having an official political office is clear, we want that our office in Doha is recognised by the international community and the United Nations," Shahin said. "By this, Ghani is trying to change the topic and harm the on-going peace efforts." Taliban negotiators are due to meet U.S. peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad for another round of talks in Qatar on Feb. 25. The talks are expected to centre around a ceasefire to end America`s longest war and the withdrawal of foreign troops. Some 14,000 U.S. troops are based in Afghanistan as part of a U.S.-led NATO mission to train, assist and advise Afghan forces. Some U.S. forces also carry out counter-terrorism operations. Kolkata: Invigilators will not be allowed to carry mobile phones inside the examination hall during the Madhyamik examination that begins Tuesday, the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education has said. Teachers, who have been assigned the duty of invigilators, will have to hand over their mobile phone 30 minutes before the start of examination to the venue-in-chage who will be a government official, Board president Kalyanmoy Ganguly told reporters Saturday. He said the move was aimed at preventing malpractices. Disciplinary action, including suspension, will be taken against those violating the rule, he said. Students were barred from carrying mobiles in the earlier editions of the exams. Ganguly said the centre officer in charge, centre secretary, venue supervisor, venue in charge and additional venue supervisor have been permitted to use cellphones. The Madhyamik examinations will conclude on February 22. Last year, the headmaster of a high school in Jalpaiguri district was suspended for leaking the question papers of the Madhyamik examination. Kolkata: Popular Bengali writer Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay has called for introspection as to why the Bengali language is "not getting" the respect and recognition in West Bengal as it does on the other side of the border. Speaking at the 'Dui Desh Ek Bangla: Stories From Across The Borders' session at the Kolkata Literature Festival here on Saturday, Mukhopadhyay compared the love and passion for the language among people in West Bengal and Bangladesh. "The respect and passion for their mother tongue Bengali remains more intense among the people of Bangladesh," Mukhopadhyay said at the discussion on the third and concluding day of the Kolkata Literature Festival. Mukhopadhyay said Bengali is the sixth largest spoken language in the world and one of the largest spoken language in India. The 83-year old Sahitya Akademi winner for 'Manabjomin' said, "There is nothing to feel embarrassed and awkward to proclaim your identity as a Bengali." Describing the readers in Bangladesh as 'more literary-minded' than in West Bengal, Mukhopadhyay said, "If 50 copies of a particular title of mine is sold in West Bengal, in Bangladesh the number will be 500." Asserting that partition had not been able to cause mental barriers among the Bengali-speaking people, the writer said that national anthem of both countries have been composed by Rabindranath Tagore. The partition was done for political reasons but that could not divide the minds, he said. Poet Srijato Bandyopadhyay said the geographical divide has been bridged by social media which has made him more aware how people in Bangladesh are updated about the latest works of Bengali writers and poets. "Even before people of West Bengal start asking me about my new title in poetry, I get queries from my friends in Bangladesh about when and where they will get the new book. The social network gives me that feel of immediate response," the poet said. Endorsing Mukhopadhyay's views, Srijato said, "In Kolkata when I have to write my name in the visitor's book at any building, the guard is taken aback when I write in Bengali and even ask me the reason and say everyone else writes in English. That is not the situation in Dhaka where writing in Bengali is the norm." Bandyopadhyay said he was looking for the day when there will be more sense of pride, sense of belonging, sense of comfort to speak, write and communicate in one's mother's tongue and not in any other language. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will on Monday visit Vrindavan in Uttar Pradesh where he will unveil the plaque to mark the serving of 3rd billionth meal by Akshaya Patra Foundation at Vrindavan Chandrodaya Mandir. The Prime Minister will then serve the 3rd billionth meal to underprivileged children from schools. He will also address a gathering on the occasion. The occasion is to commemorate the serving of 3 billion meals by the foundation. Akshaya Patra serves as an implementing partner of Mid-Day Meal Scheme. In its 19-year journey, Akshaya Patra foundation has served mid-day meals to 1.76 million children in twelve states covering 14,702 schools. In 2016, Akshaya Patra commemorated the serving of 2 billion cumulative meals in the presence of the then President of India, Pranab Mukherjee. The Foundation works closely with the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) and state governments to serve quality, hygienic, and nutritious food to millions of children. Mid-Day Meal Scheme is considered to be the largest of its kind programme in the world. The program aims to boost enrolment, attendance, and retention in schools and to improve the health profile of children in the age group of 6-14 years. PM mentioned about Akshaya Patra Foundation on October 24, 2018, during the launch of Self4Society App in New Delhi. He said, "Akshaya Patra is a social start-up, which has turned into a movement that provides food to school children." New Delhi: Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Sunday expressed hope that the Uttar Pradesh government will take strict action against the culprits in the hooch tragedy. She added that the Yogi Adityanath government should provide compensation and state government jobs to the families of the deceased. "I hope that the state government takes strict action against culprits and provide compensation & govt jobs for the families of the deceased. I express my condolences to bereaved families," the eastern UP Congress general secretary said. Calling the incident condemnable, she further said it could not have been imagined that the trade of illicit liquor flourished at such a large scale both in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. "Sad and stunned by the death of more than 100 people in Uttarakhand and UP due to illicit liquor. This is condemnable. It couldn't have been imagined that the trade of illicit liquor flourished at such a large scale in the two states," Priyanka said. Former Uttar Pradesh chief minister and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav too slammed the ruling BJP government in the state over the deaths of several people after consuming illicit liquor. "Opposition has been notifying the government about such activities, but they didn't wake up as govt is also involved in it. Truth is that without government, such businesses can't be carried out. The government should accept that they can't run the state," Akhilesh said. At least 56 people have lost their lives, so far, after consuming spurious liquor in Kushinagar and Saharanpur in the state. Anand Kumar, Additional Director General, Uttar Pradesh said that 46 people have died in Saharanpur, while 10 people died in Kushinagar after consuming illegal liquor that was formulated from smuggled substances. Kushinagar SP, Rajeev Narayan Mishra, said that two people have been arrested in connection with the deaths in Kushinagar. A beat constable, police station in-charge and area officer have been suspended while the Circle Officer has been sent to the police line. (With inputs from ANI) Lucknow: Former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Sunday slammed the ruling BJP government in the state over the deaths of several people after consuming illicit liquor. Hitting out at the Yogi Adityanath government, Yadav said, "Opposition has been notifying the government about such activities, but they didn't wake up as govt is also involved in it. Truth is that without government, such businesses can't be carried out. The government should accept that they can't run the state." At least 56 people have lost their lives, so far, after consuming spurious liquor in Kushinagar and Saharanpur in the state. Anand Kumar, Additional Director General, Uttar Pradesh said that 46 people have died in Saharanpur, while 10 people died in Kushinagar after consuming illegal liquor that was formulated from smuggled substances. "Some people who went to Haridwar, consumed the illicit liquor and they distributed it to their relatives in Saharanpur when they returned to Uttar Pradesh," he had said. Kumar pointed out that police suspect that spurious liquor was illegally brought from Kushinagar to Bihar. "The police and excise team across the state are running a coordinated search to track the culprits," he said on Saturday. (With inputs from ANI) Jaipur: The quota agitation by the Gujjar community was marred by violence after a clash broke out between the police and protesters at Rajasthan's Dholpur Highway on Sunday. The protesters blocked the road and set vehicles ablaze. Rajasthan: A clash broke out between police and protesters at Dholpur Highway today where the latter had blocked the road and set vehicles ablaze. The protesters were supporting the ongoing reservation movement by Gujjar community. pic.twitter.com/bq8U2JBCpe ANI (@ANI) February 10, 2019 The Gujjar community members continued their sit-in protest on rail tracks in Swai Madhopur district for the third day on Sunday to press for their quota demand, forcing authorities to cancel three trains and divert one. The blockade by Gujjar Arakshan Sangarsh Samiti chief Kirori Singh Bainsla and his supporters began on Friday evening and has forced the West Central Railway (CWR) to divert, cancel or partially terminate nearly 200 trains in the last two days. Meanwhile, the Western Railway deployed special trains to clear the rush and offer alternate routes to stranded passengers. On October 26, 2018, the Rajasthan government had passed a bill which increased Other Backward Classes (OBCs) quota from 21 per cent to 26 per cent. In December 2018, the state government had also approved one per cent reservation for Gujjar and four OBCs. At present, these communities are getting one per cent separate reservation under the legal limit of 50 per cent quota meant for the most-backwards category in addition to OBC reservation. (With inputs from agencies) New Delhi: Bollywood actress Katrina Kaif is often in limelight owing to her stunning Instagram post. Kat joined the social media app in 2017 and since then has been treating her fans with breathtaking pictures. She has over 18.4 million followers on Instagram her pics and videos go viral in no time. Katrina's latest post has her posing in a yellow-coloured suit and the actress looks ethereal! Check out the post: She shared another pic through Instagram stories. We grabbed a screenshot before the pic disappears. Check it out here: We love how those earrings compliment the entire outfit! Fans are already going gaga over Kat and the post has received more than 300,000 likes. On the work front, Katrina will next be seen in Ali Abbas Zafar's 'Bharat' opposite Salman Khan. The film is slated to release on June 5 this year and re-unites the 'Tiger Zinda Hai' trio of Ali, Salman and Katrina. Ever since the film has been announced, it has been high on the buzzword. Talented actors like Disha Patani, Sunil Grover, Nora Fatehi, Varun Dhawan and Aasif Shaikh to name a few have important roles in the film. Katrina's last outing 'Zero' received mixed reviews from the audience but the actress's performance was praiseworthy. Audience showered Kat with compliments post the release of 'Zero' and it will be interesting to see what the actress has to offer in 'Bharat'. HUBBALI: Launching a scathing attack on the JDS-Congress coalition in Karnataka, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy heading a 'helpless' government in the state. The Prime Minister mocked Karnataka Chief Minister and said that he had become a "punching bag" of everyone and Opposition is planning to impose the same model on the country. Addressing a rally in Hubbali, said the ongoing 'natak' in the state is witnessed by people across the country on a daily basis, PTI reported. "Everyone is involved in saving their seat," Modi said, adding that for the sake of power "MLAs are fighting at hotels and breaking their heads. Several Congress leaders are fighting for their supremacy." "The Chief Minister here is everyone's punching bag. Every day he is getting threatened. His whole energy is spent on saving his seat from big Congress leaders," Modi said in a direct attack on Kumaraswamy, who has often openly expressed his 'helplessness' in running the government. "Publicly, he weeps about his helplessness (mazboori). Such a helpless government, such a helpless Chief Minister who is being challenged by anyone and everyone. Who is the in charge of the government.? There is confusion about it," the PM was quoted as saying by PTI. The PM once again harped on the 'mazboor versus mazboot narrative and said that Opposition parties are making efforts to impose "Karnataka's helpless model" on the country. "They want to impose it on the country. Such a helpless model, where the head of the government keeps weeping at the corner and decisions are taken in naamdaar's palaces...They want confusion and fight for power to continue and the world to laugh at the country. They want to impose this model on the country," he said. Modi said the "New India" wanted a strong model and would completely reject the Opposition. "Every single vote of yours will decide whether there will be honesty or dishonesty, progress(vikaas) or dynasty (vanshwaad), whether there will be positivity or negativity. Whether you want clarity orconfusion. The answer to these questions will decide our destiny" he said. The Prime Minister also took a potshot at the ruling coalition for its loan waiver scheme for farmers. "These are the people who did not leave even farmers. People of Karnataka have experienced it. Ahead of elections big promises of loan waivers were made. What happened to it? How many loans were waived off?" he asked. PM: Since decades they've been playing the same game. For votes, they come up with a 10-yr plan to waive off farm loans. They lie&in reality loan of only 25-30 out of 100 farmers are waived off. There too, farmers get only a few hundred rupees&rest goes into pockets of middlemen. pic.twitter.com/UEj6HxC7n5 ANI (@ANI) February 10, 2019 Before starting his public address, Modi launched Rs 5,000 crore projects, including the Strategic Petroleum Reserve Facility that includes 1.5 million metric tonnes reserves at Mangaluru (Rs 1,227 crore) and 2.5 MMT at Padur (Rs 1693 crore) at Padur in Udupi district. He also laid the foundation stone for the Indian Institute of Information Technology at Dharwad. Hubli, Karnataka: Prime Minister Narendra Modi lays the foundation stone of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) and Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) Dharwad. He also witnessed the E-Griha Pravesh of 2350 houses constructed under PMAY(U) at Dharwad. pic.twitter.com/ugVMqoRR4q ANI (@ANI) February 10, 2019 (with agency inputs) Amaravati: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday hit out at Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu and said even though the latter had assured new projects for the poor, he ended up replicating the Centre's schemes. "AP CM Chandrababu Naidu assured new projects for the poor but has only replicated NDA govt's programmes," PM Modi said. Addressing a rally in Guntur, the Prime Minister took a swipe at the TDP chief and said, "Chandrababu Naidu has claimed he is senior to me, but he is senior in switching sides and deceiving his father-in-law (NT Rama Rao)." PM Modi hailed the NDA government's work and said that they have been building oil reserves at different locations to meet oil and gas requirements in difficult times. "Our government continuously working to make India a clean fuel economy and several projects have been initiated in this direction. NDA government is building oil reserves at different locations to meet oil and gas requirements in difficult times," he said. The Prime Minister is on a visit to Andhra Pradesh to address rallies ahead of the Lok Sabha polls. Later in the day, he will visit Tamil Nadu's Tiruppur and Karnataka's Hubballi. ALLAHABAD: Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya on Sunday remarked that the adoption of policy of 'soft Hindutva' by Opposition is an 'ideological victory' for the BJP and he would not be surprised if the BJP manages to win all 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state. In a direct attack on Congress President Rahul Gandhi, the senior BJP leader said that Rahul's party was once against the idea of construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya but he is now talking about his janeu (sacred thread) and chanting Om Namah Shivay, PTI reported. "As far as the Samajwadi Party is concerned, its founder Mulayam Singh Yadav had once ordered firing on innocent, unarmed and harmless Ram devotees (kar sevaks). And today, his son Akhilesh is coming to the Sangam and taking a dip (during Kumbh)," he told PTI. Maurya also took a dig at West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, saying even she has to say 'Jai Mata Di' in her state. "And I feel the day is not far when you will hear (BSP chief) Mayawati chanting Jai Shri Ram," the UP Deputy Chief Minister said. "All these indicate our (BJP's) ideological victory," he asserted. Maurya noted that the ideology of his party is based on the idea of national unity and integrity. "It talks of Sabka Sath, Sabka Vikas (together with all, development for all). It talks of justice to all and appeasement of none, and it does not differentiate people on the basis of caste or religion." The UP Deputy Chief Minister also slammed the proposed anti-BJP alliance and said that those who are trying to forge an alliance with an aim to defeat Prime Minister Narendra Modi must remember that the people of the country have already decided to give one more term to PM Modi. Maurya expressed confidence that the vote share of BJP will increase by at least 10 per cent in the upcoming General Election. (with PTI inputs) Lucknow: Enthused by the appointment of new leaders to steer them into the coming Lok Sabha election, Congressmen have planned a grand welcome to the party's general secretary in-charge of eastern Uttar Pradesh, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, and others when they arrive in the state capital on Monday. Congress workers, led by Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee (UPCC) chief Raj Babbar, have made elaborate arrangements to welcome their leaders, including Congress president Rahul Gandhi and in-charge of the state's western region, Jyotiraditya Scindia, who will accompany Priyanka Vadra as she makes her first public appearance in the state after her new assignment. The trio, who will arrive at the Lucknow airport, will pass through the main areas of the state capital to reach the Nehru Bhawan office of the UPCC. They will be welcomed by party workers and leaders at nearly 37 points in the city between the airport and the UPCC office, Congress spokesman Anshu Awasthi said. Before reaching the Congress office, the Congress leaders are expected to garland the statues of Mahatma Gandhi and former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi on the route. Hoardings of Congress leaders, including Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Vadra, have been put up along the route they are proposed to take. Banners on the route read, "Waqt Hai Badlav Ka". Workers of Congress and its grassroots organisation Sewa Dal have been giving final touch to the preparations since early Sunday. Babbar held a meeting of Congress workers Saturday evening to review the preparations for the road show, which will also be attended by All India Mahila Congress chief Sushmita Dev and general secretary Anupama Rawat. Elaborate security arrangements have been made for the visit. Special Protection Group personnel, who provide security to the Gandhis, on Thursday visited the UPCC office, party sources said. The Congress is expecting the visit to become a virtual launch of its campaign in Uttar Pradesh, ahead of Lok Sabha elections due by May. Priyanka Vadra will meet leaders and office-bearers from 42 constituencies of Uttar Pradesh (East) during her visit till February 14. "Congress workers are excited about the visit of party leaders and we are awaiting to give them a rousing welcome... We hope that with her (Priyanka Vadra) joining active politics, the state will also get a new energy," chief state Congress spokesperson Rajiv Bakshi said. "This is a very auspicious time for us and a good omen for the party," he said. Anti-Modi posters emerged across Andhra Pradesh ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the state on Sunday. Some of the posters had slogans of 'No More Modi' 'Modi Is A Mistake', 'Modi Never Again', among others. It has not yet been ascertained who has put up the posters. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu has called the Prime Minister's visit a 'dark day' and asked party workers to hold Gandhian protests during the visit to the state. While speaking to his party leaders through a teleconference, Naidu said: "Tomorrow is a dark day. Prime Minister Modi is coming to witness the injustice that was done to Andhra Pradesh by him. Modi is weakening the states and constitutional institutions. PMO's intervention in Rafale is disrespect to the nation. We will do peaceful Gandhian protests with yellow and black shirts and balloons." The Chandrababu Naidu-led Andhra Pradesh government since long has been demanding implementation of special category status for the state. Telugu Desam Party (TDP) Andhra Pradesh president Kimidi Kala Venkat Rao also attacked the Prime Minister over a number of issues, including special category status. In a strong-worded letter to PM Modi, Rao claimed that the former shared "friendship" with Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP) chief Jagan Mohan Reddy. He alleged that PM Modi was behaving "more revengeful" towards Andhra Pradesh since its bifurcation in 2014. Congress and left parties are also planning protests against the PM's visit. They have announced that they will be protesting across the state with empty vessels. During his visit, the PM will address a public meeting titled 'Praja Chaitanya Sabha' at Etukuru bypass road near Guntur city on February 10. To boost energy security of the country, he will dedicate to the nation 1.33 MMT Visakhapatnam Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) facility of the Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserve Limited (ISPRL). He will also inaugurate ONGCs Vashishta and S1 development project located in the Krishna-Godavari (KG) Offshore Basin and lay the foundation stone for setting up a new terminal of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) at Krishnapatnam. Former Karnataka chief minister SM Krishna on Saturday asserted that he quit the Congress due to the 'constant interference' of Rahul Gandhi even when he wasn't the party chief. "Due to the constant interference of Rahul I quit congress. He was constantly interfering even though he was not party president. It had become unbearable," he said. Krishna, who was the external affairs minister in the Manmohan Singh government, also said that he got to know Rahul's views that people aged around 80 years should not hold any position of office. "After I heard that I quit the party," he added. Recalling the time when he held the External Affairs portfolio, he said: "From 2009 to 2014 when I was the External Affairs Minister, there was a suffocating environment in the party. I was handling the portfolio efficiently for three and a half years. But Rahul issued an order that leaders who reached 80 years should not hold any ministry. I was disappointed and resigned." SM Krishna alleged that when Dr Manmohan Singh was the Prime Minister, Rahul interfered in several matters even though he was just a member of Parliament. "Ten years ago, Rahul was an MP and didn't hold any party post but would interfere in all matters. Even though Manmohan Singh was the Prime Minister, many subjects were taken up without bringing it to his notice," he said. He asserted that Congress did not have any control over alliance parties. "It was then that all major scams like 2G spectrum, Commonwealth and coal were reported. Such situations arise when there's no able leadership in the country," Krishna said while addressing BJP workers. He added that he sincerely felt that the country needs five more years of scam-free and corruption-free administration under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership. Krishna had joined the BJP in March 2017 after ending his decades-long association with the Congress. He was first elected an MLA on Praja Socialist Party (PSP) ticket before switching over to the Congress. Hubballi-Dharwad: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will unveil development projects in Karnataka`s twin cities of Hubballi and Dharwad northwest region and address a BJP convention on Sunday, a party official said. "Modi will fly to Hubballi from Tiruppur in Tamil Nadu later in the day to participate in 2-3 public programmes and address our state leaders and cadres from all the state," party official S. Shantaram said. The twin cities are about 400km from the state capital Bengaluru. Modi will first lay the foundation stone of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT-Dharwad) and dedicate the city distribution project in Dharwad and 1.5-tonne Mangaluru strategic petroleum facility (SPR) and the 2.5-tonne Padur SPR facility of the state-run Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Ltd (ISPRL). The Prime Minister will also dedicate doubling of 18km Chikjajur-Mayakonda section railway line for passenger and freight services, and initiate the electrification work of 346-km Hospeta-Hubballi-Vasco da Gama line in this region. The electrification of the broad gauge will reduce travel time and emission of greenhouse gas with lower diesel consumption. Before addressing the party convention in Hubballi, Modi will witness the e-griha pravesh (house warming) of 2,384 houses built under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana in Dharwad. "Modi will launch the BJP`s campaign for the ensuing Lok Sabha elections, due in April-May, as the party will contest in all the 28 parliamentary constituencies in the southern state," added the official. The party had won 17 Lok Sabha seats in 2014 general elections. Union Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday lashed out at the grand alliance of the opposition parties claiming that they are the new emerging breed of 'institution protectors' who are shedding crocodile tears for democracy. "They criticise the Government the maximum and simultaneously argue that the free speech is in danger. They shed crocodile tears for democracy and make every effort to convert the worlds largest democracy into a dynastic one," he said in a blog on Facebook hours after returning to the country after his treatment in the US. Calling Congress chief Rahul Gandhi a failed student, Jaitley hit out at him for constantly attacking Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "If we analyse Rahul Gandhis two speeches on Rafale, they are based on a personal hatred for the Prime Minister emanating from envy. A failed student always hates the class topper," he said. Jaitley's blog titled - 'Institutions Under Attack' The Latest Fabrication, is in response to the allegations levelled on the government by the Opposition parties on several counts including Rafale deal, EVM, and the latest being the standoff between West Bengal Police and the Central Bureau of Investigation. Here is the full text of the blog: The past two months have witnessed several fake campaigns. Each one of them has failed to cut much ice. Falsehood doesnt have longevity. The compulsive contrarians continued to jump from one falsehood to another. The Rafale deal not only strengthens the combat ability of the Indian Air Force but saved thousands of crores for the exchequer. When its falsehood collapsed, a half document was produced to perpetuate the falsehood. Little did the creators of this falsehood realise that the cost of producing half a document is loss of full credibility. Those who organised loot on the banks between 2008-2014, started alleging that industrial loans had been waived. Not a single rupee was waived. On the contrary, the defaulters have been thrown out of management. The falsehood that the Government and its Ministers were colluding to allow the economic offenders to escape was exposed when one after the other the investigative agencies were succeeding in bringing back many of the key defaulters and middlemen. The campaign against the GST fizzled out since in just eighteen months of implementation it became a consumer friendly measure reducing taxes, exempting small businesses and ending corruption/ harassment by eliminating interface of the assesse and the officials. The attack has now shifted to a new ground. Institutions are under pressure the charge comes from none others than those who have a history of having subverted institutions all their lives. Illustratively little did the authors of the PMLAs harsh provisions realise that the provisions could haunt the authors themselves. It is, therefore, necessary to analyse this argument of institutions under attack. Parliament History will record that Pt. Jawaharlal Nehrus great grandson has singularly damaged Indias Parliament as an institution more than anyone else. Attempts are made at 11.00 AM every morning by the Congress Party to disrupt both Houses. The Rajya Sabha once known for the quality of its debates has become non-functional. If we analyse Rahul Gandhis two speeches on Rafale, they are based on a personal hatred for the Prime Minister emanating from envy. A failed student always hates the class topper. Additionally, the context of the speeches points more to college-level lumpenisation in content. It has been left to two opposition members namely Bhartruhari Mahtab of the BJD and N.K. Premachandran of the RSP to fill up the intellectual vacuum that the Congress has created. Judiciary One of the key points being made in regard to the judiciary is that the Government referred back one of the recommendations to the Supreme Court to the collegium for reconsideration. The Government under the present constitutional procedure, is entitled to refer back a recommendation of the collegium by recording reasons in writing. If after reconsideration the collegium re-recommends the case, the Government implements the recommendation. This was done in the present case. Regarding delay in implementing the recommendations, the last five years have seen more appointments each year than done in any of the UPA years. The ill-advised press conference of four judges of the Supreme Court last year has more to do with intra-Court affairs than with the Government. On the contrary, what is the track record of the Governments opponents with regard to their attitude in relation to the judiciary? The impeachment motion filed by the Opposition on unsustainable grounds was only an attempt to intimidate the then Chief Justice of India and set an example for other judges - youtoe our line or we can create an embarrassing situation for you. That was the loud and clear message. Lawyers opposed to the Government have consistently used intimidation of judges as a court room tactic. Walk out of court hearings, to social media campaigns against the judges was unprecedented but today a reality. Using the instrument of falsehood they have preferred several petitions where facts have actually been found to be false inviting severe strictures from the court. The glaring examples in this regard are the falsehood with regard to Judge Loyas death, the Rafale issue, the fake voter list scam in Madhya Pradesh and the Vyapam case. In each of the cases, the facts stated were found to be false. Notwithstanding the judgements of the Court, many opposition leaders continue to still rely on the same falsehood. Adverse judgements have led to a campaign against the court. We witnessed a social media campaign against the judgement in the Judge Loya case. After the recent Rafale judgement, one of the petitioners (a former career nationalist) announced that the Supreme Court had lowered its credibility by deciding the Rafale case. Election Commission The Government has consistently maintained an arms length distance with the Election Commission. There have been no significant issues between the Government and the Commission. The attack on the EVMs is not merely to allay defeat, it is an attack on the Election Commission. The EVM were introduced into the election process when BJP was nowhere close to power. Multiple parties have won and lost elections held through the EVM. Without producing a shred of evidence, the EVMs are being attacked. The campaign became farcical when a fraudulent press conference was held by an invisible man through video in London claiming to have knowledge of the alleged 2014 rigging. Armed Forces The Government and the BJP have consistently stood by our Armed Forces whether we were in Government or in opposition. It is the Opposition which questioned first the existence of the surgical strike and then played it down as a routine action which has also taken place in the past. The Army Chief was described as a Sadak ka Gunda. Serious doubts have been raised on the Air Force led choice of the combat aircraft Rafale and its negotiation process. In the face of all this, they allege that institutions are under attack by the Government would be a mockery. Reserve Bank of India Congress Governments in the past have been liberal in asking Governors of the RBI to quit. Pt. Nehru, Mrs. Indira Gandhi and subsequently Mr. Yashwant Sinha had asked Governors to quit. During the UPA Government, two Governors were barely on speaking terms with the Finance Minister. Nothing of this kind has happened in the recent past. The Government legitimately flags the issues relating to liquidity and credit availability with the RBI. They were raised at the highest level of the Government and through all processes statutory and consultative. The issues were legitimate. The Government is the principal manager of the nations economy. How can raising legitimate issues relating to credit and liquidity availability be an interference with the RBI. The Government consistently maintained communications with the RBI Governors during its tenure. The CBI The Government does not interfere in any investigative function of CBI or any other investigative agency. Once the Government received the recommendation of Central Vigilance Commission with regard to transferring two squabbling officers of CBI asking them to go on leave, the Government in the larger interest of restoring the credibility of the CBI acted. The Governments stand has been vindicated with regard to the cleansing of a key investigative agency when based on the CVCs report, the three member High Powered Committee decided to recommend the transfer of the CBI Director. Restoring the credibility of an investigative agency is strengthening the institution and not assaulting it. In fact, it is the Opposition which has maintained a two-way approach to the CBI - on a daily basis the CBI should be attacked when it investigates corruption but if the Government takes action to restore the credibility of the CBI, the Government should be put in the dock. There are two critical features of these new emerging breed of institution protectors. They criticise the Government the maximum and simultaneously argue thatthe free speech is in danger. They shed crocodile tears for democracy and make every effort to convert the worlds largest democracy into a dynastic one. The number of BJP-RSS workers killed in the Left Front ruled Kerala and the TMC Ruled West Bengal should shock the conscious of a nation. In West Bengal, democracy is seriously under peril. BJP leaders cant land, public meetings are being prevented and the Rath Yatra was disallowed. The Congress Partys stand on multiple issues is self-contradictory. It slaughters a cow before the cameras in Kerala, and invokes the National Security Act against the cow killers in Madhya Pradesh. More than any institution it is the country whose interest is paramount. These institution protectors support the legitimising of illegal infiltrators into India. They readily jump to the support of those who want to dismember India. The Congress aligned with the Maoist in the recent Chhattisgarh elections. Rahul Gandhi stood shoulder to shoulder with the Tukde Tukde gang at the Jawaharlal Nehru University. The Congress was in the forefront of defending the urban naxals in court. And yet it claims to be friend of both, the idea of India and its institutions. It is about time that India and its institutions are protected from these institution wreckers. KOLKATA: The daylight murder of TMC MLA Satyajit Biswas was the first time during TMC rule in West Bengal that the sitting MLA of the party was murdered in full public view. The incident which took place on Sunday in Krishnagunj of Nadia district shook the political circles of the state. The TMC wasted no time in blaming the BJP for the murder of its MLA Satyajit Biswas. The party lodged an FIR and police also booked senior BJP leader Mukul Roy in connection with this murder. The BJP, however, has rejected all the allegations stressing that this murder has happened because of a factional fight in the TMC due to land syndicate issue. It is interesting to note that the deceased MLA represented Matua community, which holds sway in the region. For its part, the BJP is also trying its best to attract the votes of Matua community. Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently addressed a rally in Thakurnagar only to garner the votes of Matua community. The TMC is claiming that Satyajit Biswas was face of Matua community and BJP tried to bring Satyajit in their camp but he refused and this ultimately prompted the BJP to kill Biswas. In FIR too, the popularity of Satyajit among Matua voters has been mentioned. The FIR also mentions how he was a hindrance in the BJP's plan to grab Matua votes. But BJP has rejected all claims made by the TMC leaders and has repeatedly maintained that the late TMC MLA used to deal with land and this may be outcome of faction fight on some land issue. Meanwhile, BJP leader Mukul Roy has demanded that an independent agency should probe this case and truth should come out as soon as possible. The Jaguar ground attack deep penetration fighter aircraft will roar in the skies at the Indian Air Force's exercise Vayushakti 2019 on February 16. With over-wing missile pylons, multi-purpose nose radar, anti-shipping weapons, night sensors, photo reconnaissance, laser range finder, the aircraft is a mean fighting machine. A recent report had stated that the IAF has launched a new drive to revamp its Jaguar fighters with new engines, airframes and spares from overseas grounded fighters. Currently, the IAF Jaguar fleet is powered by Adour Mk811 engines, made by the British firm Rolls-Royce. #Vayushakti2019: Jaguar--The Jaguar is a ground attack deep penetration fighter aircraft. With over-wing missile pylons, multi-purpose nose radar, anti-shipping weapons, night sensors, photo reconnaissance & laser range finder, the aircraft is a mean fighting machine. pic.twitter.com/D4GjJ9Ge9l Indian Air Force (@IAF_MCC) February 10, 2019 At the IAF exercise, the Mi-17 V5 medium-lift attack helicopter will also unleash its firepower. The Mi-17 V5 helicopter is an upgrade of the Mi-17 helicopter. It is equipped with state-of-the-art avionics and on-board navigation systems. The agile machine carries substantial and effective firepower. It can carry up to 36 troops or up to four tons of freight. It can go up to a maximum speed of 260 km/hr and has a range of 950 km. It is powered by two Isotoc TV3-117VM turboshaft engines. Vayushakti will also witness Asia's top fighter jet Sukhoi Su-30MKI in action. The Su-30 MKI is a modern multi-role, air superiority fighter aircraft of Indian Air Force. The aircraft is capable of decimating adversaries in air or on ground with the wide array of air to air & air to ground weapons, tweeted IAF. IAF's Vayushakti 2019 is scheduled to be held on February 16 at Pokhran Air to Ground Armament range near Jaisalmer in Rajasthan. At the exercise, there will be a firepower demonstration to showcase the ever-increasing potential of IAF's combat platforms and to assure the citizens its ability to safeguard Indias national interests. ''Many Air Forces around the world display their might and aerial firepower through such demonstrations. Indian Air Force also conducts the demonstration to showcase the ever-increasing potential of its combat platforms over the years and to assure the citizens, its ability to safeguard Indias national interests,'' the IAF said in the Facebook post. The IAF post further stated, ''These exercises are also vital for operators, planners, and the leadership. It provides an opportunity for forces to operate in near realistic scenarios.'' ''Aerial displays, formation flypasts and Fire Power Demonstrations are various facets of training in Indian Air Force. They are also a great source of morale-boosting for participants and an assurance for viewers,'' the post said. A wide array of fighters, transport, helicopters, remotely piloted vehicle and combat equipment will be part of the exercise. "The wide array of Fighter, Transport, Helicopters, Remotely Piloted Aircraft and Combat ground equipment will paint a vivid canvas. It will demonstrate the capability of our brave air-warriors. The spell-binding machines and their employment during Vayushakti 2019 will showcase the story of IAF's ability to influence any situation, to dominate, destroy or to rescue," the IAF said. PUNE: Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari on Sunday said in a lighter vein that there was no place for casteism in his area because of his "warning" that anybody talking about caste will be "thrashed" by him. Speaking at a programme organised by the Punaruththan Samarasta Gurukulam in Pimpri Chinchwad township here, the senior BJP leader said the society should be brought together on the basis of the economic and social equality, and it should not have any scope for casteism and communalism. "We do not believe in any casteism...I do not know what do you have but there is no place for castiesm in our five districts because I have warned everybody that if someone talks about caste, I will thrash him," said Gadkari who represents Nagpur Lok Sabha seat. Gadkari further said: "the entire society should be brought together on the basis of economic and social equality and unity and it also should be free from casteism and communalism". Gadkari, who is known for speaking his mind, had kicked up controversies over his public statements in the past. He had said in December last year that leadership should have the tendency to own up defeat and failures. The remarks had come days after the BJP's loss in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh assembly polls. Gadkari later clarified that his remarks were taken out of context. Last month, Gadkari had advised fellow politicians against interfering in "other fields". He had made the remarks at the valedictory function of the annual Marathi literary meet at Yavatmal in Maharashtra which was embroiled in a controversy after an invitation to noted writer Nayantara Sahgal was withdrawn. SRINAGAR: A grenade was lobbed by terrorists on a CRPF party near Palladium lane at Lal Chowk in Jammu and Kashmir's Srinagar district on Sunday. ANI reported that three CRPF personnel, four J&K police personnel and four civilians have been injured in the attack. #UPDATE: Three CRPF personnel, four J&K police personnel and four civilians have been injured in the grenade attack on CRPF party near Palladium lane at Lal Chowk, Srinagar. #JammuandKashmir https://t.co/8Kl6BSwKmw ANI (@ANI) February 10, 2019 The area has been cordoned off. The attack took place hours after five terrorists were gunned down in an encounter with security forces in Kulgam district. Jammu and Kashmir police said that the five terrorists killed were identified as Waseem Ahmad Rather, Aqib Nazir Mir, Parvaiz Ahmad Bhat, Idrees Ahmad Bhat & Zahid Ahmad Parray. The police added that the terrorists were from a combined group of Hizbul & LeT but their exact affiliations are being ascertained. Police have recovered incriminating material such as arms & ammunition from thee site of encounter. "Pertinently no collateral damage took place during encounter. Bodies of the killed terrorists were handed over to their families after completion of medico-legal formalities," a police officer told ANI. MUNDRA: In a big boost for Indian defence forces, the first batch of four Chinook helicopters for the Indian Air Force (IAF) arrived at the Mundra airport in Gujarat on Sunday. ANI reported that 15 Chinook helicopters are procured by Indian government from the United States. The first batch of four Chinook helicopters for the Indian Air Force arrived at the Mundra airport in Gujarat. India has procured 15 of these helicopters from the United States. pic.twitter.com/B3voBlZSPk ANI (@ANI) February 10, 2019 These helicopters are manufactured by Boeing and Indian Air Force will induct these helicopters in its arsenal after thorough flight tests. The Indian Air Force is currently using Mi-17 and Mi-26 helicopters, which are manufactured by Russia. It is to be noted that Indian government has already spent USD 3 billion to buy 15 Chinook and 22 Apache attack helicopters and New Delhi has also the option to buy six more Apaches already approved by the US. The Chinook helicopters will be stationed at Chandigarh air base, which takes care of providing necessary items to Siachen and Eastern Ladakh sectors. The Chinook helicopters are the newest models of the aircraft and their arrival will defintiely help in modernizing the helicopter fleet of IAF. The Chinook helicopter is also used by 18 other defence forces around the world. In October of 2018, 4 pilots and 4 flight engineers of IAF were trained by Boeing for operating Chinook helicopters. The pilots and flight engineers were trained in Delaware USA. On February 2, India was officially handed over first of the Chinook helicopters during India-Chinook Transfer Ceremony at Boeing's facility in Philadelphia. The handover took place in the presence of Indian ambassador to US Harsh Shringla. BENGALURU: BJP's Karnataka unit president B S Yeddyurappa on Sunday accused Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy of blackmailing him,stressing that voice in the audio tape are doctored and not his. "I met Sharanagouda, son of JD-S` Gurmitkal legislator Nanganagouda Kandakur, at Devadurga in Raichur district on February 7 and discussed many things. But the content in the audio tape Kumaraswamy released in Bengaluru on February 8 is fabricated and its voice doctored," Yeddyurappa told reporters at Hubballi. Talking to IANS, BJP spokesman S Shantaram said that Yeddyurappa would address the issue of audio tape in the state Legislative Assembly on Monday. "For your kind information, Kumaraswamy had sent Sharanagouda to the circuit house at Devadurg to meet me and discuss certain things last Thursday as I was staying there. But the audio tape he released to the media is manipulated. The Chief Minister is indulging in a blackmail politics," Shantaram said quoting Yeddyurappa. Recalling what transpired between him and the MLA's son, Yeddyurappa said he would retire from politics if Karnataka Chief Minister proved that I told Sharangouda money (Rs 50 crore) was given to Assembly Speaker K.R. Ramesh Kumar for not invoking the anti-defection law if he decides to ditch the JD-S for the BJP. The senior BJP leader stressed that he was open for an inquiry into the purported audio tape. Yeddyurappa added that it was Kumaraswamy who had demanded Rs 25 crore from a JD-S leader in order to make him a member of the Legislative Council. The former Karnataka Chief Minister remarked that he wull submit proof in this regard to Assembly Speaker on Monday. (with IANS inputs) KOLKATA: Hours after the West Bengal Police booked Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Mukul Roy in the FIR regarding the murder of Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA Satyajit Biswas, the senior BJP leader has slammed the TMC saying that when anybody is killed in West Bengal, the state government tries to implicate BJP leaders. Mukul Roy, a former TMC MP, demanded that the probe, in this case, should be done by an independent agency. Mukul Roy,West Bengal BJP on TMC MLA Satyajit Biswas shot dead in Nadia y'day: In the entire state of West Bengal, when anybody is killed by their own ppl or by other miscreants,TMC&govt try to implicate it that it is by leaders&workers of BJP.I demand probe by independent agency pic.twitter.com/rdqtjUwLNL ANI (@ANI) February 10, 2019 "In the entire state of West Bengal, when anybody is killed by their own ppl or by other miscreants,TMC&govt try to implicate it that it is by leaders&workers of BJP.I demand probe by independent agency," he told ANI. Mukul Roy, West Bengal BJP on TMC MLA Satyajit Biswas shot dead in Nadia yesterday: Mamata (West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee) is scared of us. It is on orders of Mamata that allegations are being levelled against BJP for this murder. https://t.co/uq7rsXzFf3 ANI (@ANI) February 10, 2019 Mukul Roy also attacked West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and said that she is scared of BJP's rising popularity in the state and he has been named in the FIR for this murder only on orders of Mamata. "Mamata (West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee) is scared of us. It is on orders of Mamata that allegations are being levelled against BJP for this murder," Roy remarked. Biswas was shot dead in Nadia district of West Bengal by some unidentified assailants on Saturday evening. Biswas was shot at point blank range when he was at a Saraswati Puja inaugural event. He represented TMC from the Krishnaganj constituency in the state assembly. TMC leader SK Guha said, "He (Biswas) was a very nice person and a popular leader. According to eyewitnesses, he was killed by two to four assailants at a Saraswati Pooja programme in his village." Shimla: The Kullu and Shimla district administrations on Sunday declared two days holiday for primary and senior secondary schools due to heavy snowfall in the region. The schools will reopen on February 13. Winter vacations in Shimla schools have been extended by two days, a district official said. The vacations in all primary and senior secondary schools have been extended by two days, Shimla district magistrate said. In an official order issued by the district administration on Saturday, the magistrate said the schools in Shimla district would now reopen on February 13, instead of February 11. The decision to extend winter vacations has been taken in the interest of the safety of the students as several roads are still blocked after heavy snowfall on February 7. Meanwhile, the meteorological department predicted that more snowfall and rain are expected to lash Himachal Pradesh in the coming week. The weather department has forecast snowfall and rain at some places in mid and high hills while thundershowers in low hills and plains from February 12 to 15. (With inputs from agencies) New Delhi: India's economic growth will get a boost from the gold industry which has a great potential to create and provide employment opportunities to the burgeoning population of youngsters entering the job market every year. Department of Economic Affairs Additional Secretary K Rajaraman on Saturday said that gold industry can provide jobs and contribute towards economic growth but for that to happen, a sound policy framework with a systematic structure is required. A systematic gold policy framework will align the interest of different stakeholders with the objectives of policy, Rajaraman said while addressing the inaugural session of the Conference on Gold and Gold Markets 2019, organised by the India Gold Policy Centre (IGPC) of the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad (IIMA). He emphasised on the need for more research on consumer behaviour related to gold, as well as on product design, spot exchange and how banks could include gold in their options. The panelists were prominent personalities from the bullion industry including PR Somasundaram, MD, World Gold Council India; Prof. Arvind Sahay, Professor of Marketing and International Business and Chairperson of IGPC; and Brian M Lucey, Professor of International Finance and Commodities, Trinity College Dublin. New Delhi: A 10-year-old girl was allegedly raped by a sweeper inside a civic body-run school in Shahdara district of Delhi, following which the accused was arrested on Saturday, police said. According to the victim's complaint, she was leaving the school on February 5 when the accused asked her to sit at a place. He then moved her to another seat, then forced her to a wall and raped her, a senior police officer said. The accused then threatened the girl of dire consequences if she reported the matter to anyone, the officer said. However, the victim later narrated the incident to her relatives following which they approached the police on Saturday and filed a complaint, he said. A case was registered under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and other relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Shahdara) Meghna Yadav said. The 38-year-old accused has been working as a sweeper in the EDMC-run school for the last three-to-four months. The victim's parents live in Bihar and she stays with her relatives in Shahdara, the DCP said. The manager of late highlife musician Anokye Supremo, Isaac Kobina Zakk, has revealed that he gave him his last words before dying in India. According to Zakk, those words were delivered by Anokye Supremo just before he was taken to the theatre to be operated on. The manager said the words were: Take your country Ghana, a country that does not offer support. The late Anokye Supremo. Photo credit: Suplied Source: UGC READ ALSO: Ken Agyapong drops video of Who Watches the Watchman Part 2; Sheik exposes Anas He explained that Anokye had hinted of writing a new song after he has had a successful surgery, and those words were part of the lyrics to be used in that song. I want to disclose to you and your listeners today, before Anokye was taken to the theatre that day, he told me he has a song he wants to sing so I should record and the message in the song says Take your country Ghana, a country that does not offer support, Zakk said. According to him, he asked Anokye Supremo why he sung that song and he responded that he does not know if he would make it after the surgery. Zakk said he encouraged Anokye that he would definitely make it. READ ALSO: Moesha steps out without makeup and fans cant stop talking about her real face in latest photos He added that Anokye gave him a message to be given to two young Ghanaian musicians, and so he would do that when he finally touches down. Zakk was reportedly speaking in an interview with Onua FM about the arrangements made so far to bring Anokye Supremos body to Ghana. He disclosed that through some benevolent Ghanaians, he has been able to pay for the hospital bills, mortuary bills, and the airline fare to bring the mortal remains of Anokye Supremo to Ghana. READ ALSO: Tima Kumkum vows not to open her legs for any man again until marriage The rising hiplife star died while undergoing a brain tumour surgery in India. He started with the name Daddy Lumba (DL) Junior but later changed to Anokye Supremo after his mentor Daddy Lumba filed a lawsuit against him for claiming to be his son and also impersonating him to take gifts from people. Anokye Supremos tumor in the head made him lose his sight in his left eye. READ ALSO: Beautiful video of Wendy Shay and Ebony chilling together before her death proves they were good friends The doctors in Ghana recommended that he be taken to India for a surgery but it took a lot of time for money to be raised before he was taken to India. Probably, it was because of this experience that Anokye Supremo wanted to write a song with the lyrics Take you country Ghana, a country that does not offer support. The manager said he would be in Ghana with Anokyes body in the afternoon on Monday, February 11, 2019, and so Ghanaians should expect them. READ ALSO: Person behind her death, 9 more striking facts gathered so far 1 year after Ebonys death Yenkasa: Fond Memories of Ebony Reigns a Year After Her Death | #Yencomgh READ ALSO: Beautiful video of Wendy Shay and Ebony chilling together before her death proves they were good friends Have national and human interest issues to discuss? Know someone who is extremely talented and needs recognition? Your stories and photos are always welcome. Get interactive via our Facebook page. Click here to get the latest exciting English Premier League news. Get match highlights, reports, photos & videos all in one place. Source: Yen The Ghana Police Service is set to reshuffle some senior officers and many others from the Criminal Investigation Department. In a report that YEN.com.gh sighted on Myjoyonline.com, a total of 91 top police officers will be reassigned to new positions. According to the report, the move is strategic and also has to do with some officers who have worked for so many years at their current location. READ ALSO: A country without systems lacks practical wisdom - Mensa Otabil DCOP/Mr. Edward Oduro-Kwarteng, the 2I/C in the Brong Ahafo Region, has been elevated to a regional commander for the Volta Region as DCOP/Mr. Samuel K. Nkrumah Akumiah, 2i/c Atebubu Division heads for the Brong Ahafo Region as DG/Welfare. DCOP/Mr. Osei Asibey Ahenkan, i/c Kibi Division goes to the MTTD as Deputy Director General in Accra, while DCOP/Mr. Moses Asabagna Atibillah, i/c Dansoman Division heads the Inspectorate Unit at the National Headquarters, Accra. ACP/Mr. Afful Boakye-Yiadom, i/c Obuasi Division, moves to Brong Ahafo Region as 2i/c Brong Ahafo Region, while ACP/Mr. David Agyemang Adjem, i/c Kasoa Division heads for Baatsona Division as the i/c. ACP/Mr. Peter Baba Atianak, Regional Crime Officer Ashanti moves to Donkorkrom as the i/c, while ACP/Mr. Emmanuel Twumasi Ankrah i/c Techiman Division goes to Kibi as the Divisional Commander. READ ALSO: NDC skeptical about the seriousness of Emile Short Commission ACP/Michael Awumey, i/c Asokwa Division goes to the Volta Regional headquarters as ACP/Mr. James Amoako Acheamfour, Regional Crime/WR heads to PID/Hq/Accra. ACP/Mr. Laar Barman, i/c Ejisu Division goes to head the Weija Division. With the announcement for the new regional capitals, the takeoff of these administrative divisions are expected early next week. However, the IGP would make fresh appointments of regional commanders and the accompanying officers such as regional crime officers and 2i/cs. There are definitely plans to make further announcements of fresh movements in the coming days. Recently, the Ghana Police administration has come under some criticism for the violent incident that occurred at La-bawaleshie during the Ayawaso by-election. Prior to reports that some persons had died during the chaos, the police in a statement revealed that no one had died. Meanwhile, the police are still investigating the incident so as to arrest perpetrators of the violence leading to the amputation of one young man. READ ALSO: Gov't to reduce the duration of University education Richie Mensah and I are Just Besties: Veana Negasi - Star Gist| #Yencomgh Click here to get the latest exciting English Premier League news. Get match highlights, reports, photos & videos all in one place. Source: Yen The President of UT Holdings, Prince Kofi Amoabeng, has opened up on the Bank of Ghana's decision to close down the UT Bank, a bank he founded. According to Amoabeng, the defunct UT Bank could have survived if the Bank of Ghana had given them time to turn around its operations. Though the UT Holdings boss admitted there were some challenges with the banks corporate governance structures, believed there were other ways to solve the problems than closing down the bank. Kofi Amoabeng and BoG Governor Dr Ernest Addison Source: Original In an interview on the KSM Show on Accra-based Metro Television which was first reported by Citinewsroom.com, Amoabeng said the decision to close down the bank cost the country more. READ ALSO: Dumelo and wife dance happily as celebrities attend their son's outdooring (Photo, Videos) "The government found us in that situation, [but] was this the best route to take because we had investors who were ready with some proposals. They decide that the best thing is to close down UT Bank which I find really difficult to take but from where they are sitting, they decide that was the best thing for the country. "I dont bear grudges but the point is, if UT Bank we owed GH800 million and an investor comes and he says Im ready to pay GH400 million [so] Bank of Ghana write off the [other] GH400 million, but BoG takes a decision to close down the bank which will cost the nation at least GH 2.2 billion, it doesnt make sense to me, he reportedly said. The President of UT Holdings, however, said he does not bear grudges over the situation, and the defunct bank takes responsibility for the failure of the financial institution. READ ALSO: Becca dances excitedly with her big belly in video from her baby shower We had run our company down therefore we were vulnerable and therefore the government had to step in as it deemed fit.UT must take the blame first. On August 14, 2017, the bank of Ghana announced that it had revoked the license of UT Bank and that it was being taken over by GCB Bank because it had a severe capital impairment. Mr. Amoabeng who refrained from commenting about the development in a statement a year later expressed regret about the happenings surrounding the collapse of the bank and promised to cooperate with investigations into the collapse of the bank. READ ALSO: Beautiful photos drop as son re-marries parents after 32 years of separation More importantly to me today though, is the inability of several workers who once prided themselves as UT staff and now have little or nothing to show for their years of dedication and service; the negative impact on the other UT companies in the eyes of investors who believed in us and our vision to see a Ghanaian owned company become a successful global brand. I will continue to co-operate with all state agencies probing the development for finality to be brought to this matter, he said. Yenkasa: Fond Memories of Ebony Reigns a Year After Her Death | #Yencomgh: Do you have a story to share with us? Inbox us on our Facebook/Instagram page and we could feature your story. Click here to get the latest exciting English Premier League news. Get match highlights, reports, photos & videos all in one place Source: Yen Shenandoah, IA (51601) Today A mix of clouds and sun with gusty winds. High near 90F. Winds S at 20 to 30 mph.. Tonight Partly cloudy this evening. Scattered thunderstorms developing after midnight. A few storms may be severe. Low 72F. Winds S at 15 to 25 mph. Chance of rain 60%. Today A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Partly cloudy skies. Low around 80F. Winds SSE at 10 to 15 mph. Tonight A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Partly cloudy skies. Low around 80F. Winds SSE at 10 to 15 mph. Tomorrow A mainly sunny sky. High around 105F. Winds SSW at 5 to 10 mph. Arizona News Phoenix, Arizona - In his 2019 State of the State address, Governor Doug Ducey called for a bill to provide universal recognition for occupational licenses in Arizona. On Friday, Arizona Representative Warren Petersen introduced a bill to do just that. If passed, the bill would make Arizona the first state in the nation to allow for such broad recognition of out-of-state occupational licenses, reducing barriers to employment for people who move here. If youve been licensed to work in another state and want to move here, let it be known: Arizona will not stand in your way, said Governor Ducey. Our state is growing and we now have more jobs than people to fill them. As people move here, we want them to be able to work from day one. This bill helps ensure that, and I look forward to working with members of the legislature to pass it as soon as possible. Im proud to sponsor Governor Duceys plan to make Arizona first in the nation to offer universal occupational licensing recognition, said Representative Petersen. Arizona is one of the fastest growing states in the nation, with hundreds of people moving here every day. HB2569 will allow those people who held an occupational license in their state, to come to Arizona, get licensed and get right to work. For qualified professionals who move to our state looking to work, lets get government out of the way and let them get to work. 100,000 people are projected to move to Arizona in the coming year. New residents often face unnecessary and burdensome obstacles keeping them from starting a new job in Arizona, even if they were previously licensed for the same occupation in another state. With year-end unemployment projected to reach the lowest level since 2007, Arizona has more jobs than people to fill them. Universal licensing recognition will take the next step in ensuring new residents can get to work faster. The practice is already in place for spouses of military personnel deployed to Arizona. News Baltimore, Maryland - Remarks by Vice President Pence to DHS and CBP Personnel: THE VICE PRESIDENT: Well, thank you, Deputy Commissioner Perez. Thank you for your leadership and thank you for your kind words, and thank you for your service to the nation. Will you all join me in thanking the Deputy Commissioner of Customs and Border Protection for the United States of America, Mr. Robert Perez? (Applause.) Thank you for all you do. To Director Rottman, Director Durst, to my friend Congressman Andy Harris, to all of you serving here at the Port of Baltimore in Customs and Border Protection: It is a great, great honor to be here with all of you today to say a very simple thank you. Thank you for your service. Thank you for all you do every day to ensure the flow of commerce and ensure the safety and security of the American people. Lets give CBP a round of applause here at the Port of Baltimore. (Applause.) It is remarkable to think about how long the Port of Baltimore has played a role in the life of this nation since even before this nation was founded. And it continues to play a vital role in the commerce of our nation today. And all of you involved in Customs and Border Protection here at the Port of Baltimore play a vital role in ensuring that that commerce happens happens in a way that protects the interests and the wellbeing of the American people. And before I get started, let me bring greetings for all the good words that the Deputy Commissioner said about me let me bring greetings from a friend of mine, a great admirer of Customs and Border Protection, and a man who is absolutely committed to ensuring the safety and security of the American people and protecting the homeland and standing with all who protect it. I bring greetings from the 45th President of the United States of America, President Donald Trump. (Applause.) The work you do here every day saves lives. But we also recognize that youre on the frontlines. And the risk that you take in enforcing our laws sometimes comes with the ultimate price. And let me say, with the Deputy Commissioner here, we today join our hearts and our prayers with the family of Border Patrol Agent Donna Doss. Shell be laid to rest this afternoon in Taylor County, Texas. The tragic accident that claimed her life on duty is a reminder that all of you who serve, all of you who wear the uniform of Customs and Border Protection, do so in no small way that reflects that youve put our lives ahead of your own. And so we remember her and we remember her family today. As I said, Im here to say thank you. But Im also here to learn more about the work that each and every one of you do. The briefing that I just received from the senior leadership here was very impressive and a reminder of how you bring state-of-the-art technology and time-honored tried and true methods to ensure that the commerce that flows here flows here legally and flows here in a way that doesnt threaten the wellbeing of the American people. President Trump laid out a vision this last Tuesday before the Congress of the United States and the American people. He laid out a vision that we might choose American greatness. And let me say, each one of you have already made that choice. And Im here to recognize that the state of our union is strong, the state of our union is safe because of the work of Customs and Border Protection. And you have our thanks. (Applause.) You know, the President and I and, frankly, all of the American people couldnt be more grateful for the work that you do every day. And you dont hear that thanks often enough, I expect. The character of all of you who wear the uniform came into high relief, particularly over the last month, when the President took such a strong stand for border security and we saw a government shut down for 35 days. Were grateful to all the federal employees and their families who continued to work during this difficult time. But standing before all of you, let me say, were particularly grateful today to the men and women of CBP, DHS. You all stood tall, you stayed on your watch in the midst of that shutdown, you stayed on mission. And I want to say thank you to you and your families for standing your post and never letting down during those days. (Applause.) And as the Congress continues to negotiate, even at this very hour, its about funding our Department of Homeland Security, this very agency, and your efforts. I want to promise you: The President and I are going to continue to work tirelessly to get you the resources and the support that you need to accomplish that mission for the sake of all of the American people. The men and women of DHS know firsthand how vitally important this mission is, and particularly those of you who work every day in Customs and Border Protection. You see firsthand the transnational criminal organizations in Mexico and Central America. The drug cartels that fuel their deadly trades represent unquestionably one of the greatest national security and public health threats in the United States of America. Last year, Customs and Border Protections seized more than 827,000 pounds of illegal drugs entering our country just at our southern border alone. Mexican and Central American drug cartels are the main wholesale providers of drugs to street gangs and dealers. And their deadly trade brings suffering to millions of American families. As the President said this past Tuesday, as you know full well, tens of thousands of innocent Americans are killed by illegal drugs that cross into our border, flood into our cities. Three hundred Americans die every week from heroin, 90 percent of which comes across our southern border. But all told all told, in the efforts reflected here nevertheless, nearly 200 people in America lose their lives to drug overdose every single day. The mission that you perform here and the Presidents determination to secure our southern border has an enormous impact on the wellbeing of the American people, the safety and security of our communities and our families. And I have to tell you, seeing the work that you do here, and seeing the cutting-edge technology that you utilize, gives me great confidence that, as we continue to support your work, we will continue to confront the flow of illegal drugs into America as never before. Cutting-edge technologies that I just was briefed on that detect and seize contraband brought into the country. Its remarkable to think of that non-intrusive inspective technology I just looked over; large-scale X-ray and gamma ray imaging, allowing you to look into shipping containers and commercial trucks. And I have to tell you, I just mentioned to the director, I was so impressed that your training is so precise that youll look at the manifest, and if the X-ray scan doesnt actually look like the vehicle thats described on the manifest, youll begin the inspection. Now, thats an attention to detail that would inspire any American. Portable and handheld devices that allow you to make sure that smaller contraband in cars and on individuals is caught as well. These technologies, we know, are force multipliers. And last year, they helped you stop nearly a quarter of a million pounds of narcotics from entering the country, as well as a million dollars in foreign currency. That is a record of success the Port of Baltimore CBP should be proud of, and so are we. Now, we also are impressed that by the time-honored tradition just diligence, carefulness. And I also witnessed the highly trained canine teams that are utilized here. I even got a playing card from Zombie. And I have to tell you, seeing the way that these canines are capable of detecting even the faintest signs of deadly drugs, radioactive materials, and stowaways is impressive indeed. And Customs and Border Protection has been in the forefront of canine training and detection from the very beginning. In fact, CBP just announced the largest fentanyl bust in history at the Nogales port of entry in Arizona. Thanks to CBPs canine team, weve prevented more than 250 pounds of fentanyl from entering our country and flooding our streets. That would be enough fentanyl to kill nearly one third of the population of the United States. I think thats worth a round of applause for Customs and Border Protection. (Applause.) You know, the Old Book says, if you owe debts, pay debts; if honor, then honor; if respect, then respect. And I hope, if you hear nothing more from me today, you hear us youre here to pay a debt of honor and a debt of respect to all of you who put in the long hours and do the tireless work that is saving lives. Whether it makes the front page of the newspaper or not, I want you to know, from the President on down, we know that your work here is vital to the safety and security of the American people, even as you facilitate the flow of commerce in our growing economy. And were truly grateful. The truth though is, today, your jobs are as difficult and dangerous as ever with the security and humanitarian crisis that we face at our southern border. Every day that our southern border remains unsecured, it gives the very criminal syndicates and drug traffickers that you confront literally in the form of contraband and illegal drugs every day here in the Port of Baltimore it gives them more resources and more ability to peddle their poison and destroy American lives and families. Now, I want to assure you I want to assure you that you have the support of this President and our entire administration, and of the American people, as you go about your task. And I want you to make you a promise. I want to make you a promise that were going to continue were going to continue to work to secure our border north, south, east, and west. When it comes to our southern border, as the negotiations continue, we will not rest, we will not relent until our Customs and Border Protection have the technology, the personnel, and the barriers required to secure our border. Were going to build that wall, one way or another. I promise you. (Applause.) So thank you for the work you do here today. Thank you for taking time away from your busy workday to give me such a warm welcome. I look forward to being able to meet as many of you as time permits. But I really came here to learn more but also to say thanks and assure you of our ongoing support. And Ill assure you of one other thing: You know, each and every day, you put on that uniform we know its no ordinary job. You come here at the Port of Baltimore, and the nation is safer because of your diligence and your commitment. And so I want you to know that you have the gratitude and, Im confident, the prayers of the American people as you stand in the gap for the safety and security of our people and our families and our communities. And on behalf of our President and on behalf of a grateful nation, I want to say to all of you who work so diligently every day here at the Port of Baltimore: Keep up the good work. Stay focused on your task at hand. Know that the American people are with you, and were going to continue to fight to give you the resources you need to accomplish that mission. And we will confront illegal drugs and all of its consequences as never before. And with your help, and with Gods help, we will make great progress in this nation. We will save lives. And America will be safer than ever before. Thank you very much. God bless you and your work. And God bless the United States of America. News Washington, DC - Thursday, President Donald J. Trump announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key positions in his Administration: Rodney K. Brown of California, to be a Member of the Farm Credit Administration Board for a six-year term beginning October 14, 2018. Mr. Brown previously served as President and CEO of the California Bankers Association. Prior to this, he served as President and CEO of Montecito Bank & Trust in Santa Barbara, California, and held positions with First National Bank of Kansas City and Bank of America in San Francisco, California. Christopher Scolese of New York, to be the Director of the National Reconnaissance Office. Mr. Scolese currently serves as the Director of NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center. Previously, he served as the associate administrator at NASA headquarters in Washington, D.C., and as NASAs chief engineer. Mr. Scolese is the recipient of the Presidential Rank Award of Meritorious Executive, the NASA Distinguished Leadership Medal, the Goddard Outstanding Leadership Medal, two NASA Outstanding Leadership Medals, and the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) National Capital Section Young Engineer/Scientist of the Year award. President Donald J. Trump today announced his intent to appoint the following individual to a key position in his Administration: James Michael Kulikowski of Virginia, to be the Coordinator of the Support for East European Democracy (SEED) Program and without additional compensation to serve concurrently as Coordinator for Overall Assistance and Economic Cooperation Strategy for the Independent States of the Former Soviet Union. Mr. Kulikowski currently serves as a Senior Advisor in the Office of Foreign Assistance Resources at the Department of State. Previously, he served as Deputy Staff Director for the Appropriations Committee in the United States House of Representatives. Additionally, Mr. Kulikowski served in the Office of Management and Budget as Chief of the State Department Branch, working in the Office of Global Health Affairs in the Secretarys Office at the Department of Health and Human Services. He assisted with the start-up of the Global Fund to Fight AIDs, Tuberculosis and Malaria, and served at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), where he was the highest ranking American and a part of the Director Generals senior management team. Mr. Kulikowski earned undergraduate, law, and public health degrees from Harvard University. Venice, FL (34285) Today Isolated thunderstorms during the evening. Mostly cloudy skies after midnight. Low 74F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 30%.. Tonight Isolated thunderstorms during the evening. Mostly cloudy skies after midnight. Low 74F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 30%. Hamas escalated its struggle against Israel on Sunday night with the resumption of night time clashes on the Gaza border, months after stopping them. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook STRONG> and Twitter Dozens of Palestinians launched firecrackers and fireworks at IDF forces east of Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip. The Israeli forces used crowd dispersal measures to keep the rioters away from the border fence. Night time clashes east of Jabalia The night time rioting stopped after Israel and Hamas reached an arrangement that allowed Qatari funds to enter the Gaza Strip. However, changes made to the Qatari grantwith the funds transferred through the UN rather than directly to Hamasand the terror group's violations of the quiet have led to the resumption of violence on the border. Night time clashes east of Jabalia Hamas is planning to resume regular night time clashes on the border, starting with once a week and escalating over time. At the same time, Hamas returned Tuesday's clashes in the northern part of the Strip to the Zikim area, where a flotilla of boats from Gaza's port would try to enter Israeli waters. Two Palestinians were killed in clashes on the Gaza border on Fridayan 18-year-old youth and a 14-year-old teen, the grandson of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh's sister. The teen's body was later brought into a classroom at the school he attended, and the students had to go and kiss it, which led to Palestinian criticism against Hamas. The House also passed the Pacific Northwest Earthquake Preparedness Act (H.R. 876), to direct the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to carry out a plan for the purchase and installation of an earthquake early warning system for the Cascadia Subduction Zone; the Fairness For Breastfeeding Mothers Act (H.R. 866), to provide a lactation room in public buildings; a bill (H.R. 543), to require the Federal Railroad Administration to provide appropriate congressional notice of comprehensive safety assessments conducted with respect to intercity or commuter rail passenger transportation; and the Open Book on Equal Access to Justice Act (H.R. 752), to require the maintenance of databases on awards of fees and other expenses to prevailing parties in certain administrative proceedings and court cases to which the United States is a party. TROOPS IN SYRIA AND AFGHANISTAN: The Senate has passed a cloture motion to end debate on an amendment sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., to the Strengthening Americas Security in the Middle East Act (S. 1). The amendment would express the sense of the Senate cautioning that a rapid withdrawal of U.S. troops from either Syria or Afghanistan could put at risk hard-won gains against terrorist groups and U.S. national security improvements achieved in the two countries. McConnell said it sought to put the Senate on the record about what our country should be doing in Syria and Afghanistan at a time of debate over the extent to which the U.S. should intervene there. An opponent, Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., questioned whether the U.S. mission in Syria and Afghanistan was turning from protecting national security to the difficult and costly goal of nation-building. The vote to end debate, on Jan. 31, was 68 yeas to 23 nays. The Shin Bet domestic security service said Sunday the murder of Ori Ansbacher in Jerusalem on Thursday night was nationalistically motivated. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook STRONG> and Twitter Earlier, Arafat Irfayia, 29, a Palestinian suspected of brutally killing the 19-year-old woman, reenacted the murder in the woods at Ein Yael on the outskirts of Jerusalem. He will be brought in front of a judge for a remand extension on Monday. In addition, Border Police officers retraced Ansbacher's steps in the forest before she was murdered. Border Police officers retrace Ansbacher's steps in the forest (: ) X The Shin Bet said Irfayia left his home in Hebron carrying a knife, saw the victim in the forest, attacked and killed her. A gag order has been placed over other details from the investigation. Ori Ansbacher (Photo: Courtesy of family) Irfayia, a resident of Hebron, is believed to be affiliated with the Hamas terror group and was previously imprisoned for possession of a knife and illegally residing in Israel. He was arrested by Israeli forces on Saturday night in raid near a mosque Ramallah. Security camera footage led the Border Police's counterterrorism Yamam unit to a building adjacent to the mosque, where the suspect was hiding, and where he was eventually captured without resisting arrest. Neither the knife with which he reportedly killed Ansbacher nor any other weapon were found in his possession. Hundreds of people gathered on Saturday night at a candle-light vigil for the victim at Tel Aviv's Rabin Square. In Tekoa, dozens of local residents also attended a memorial at the settlements main square. In addition, some 100 people gathered at Jerusalem's Zion Square and called on the government to avenge the murder. Dozens of demonstrators also blocked the entrance to Jerusalem, chanting: The people demand revenge. Vigil at Tel Aviv's Rabin's Square (Photo: Dana Kopel) "We came here to express our pain ... The way she was murdered is shocking, and the entire country must tremble in the face of this atrocity, said Yamit Abramov, a friend of the victims family. Ori walked the earth confidently, having faith in the world, when an evil force came and took her from us, said Oris mother, Noa Ansbacher, in a statement from the family home in Tekoa. She was a noble soul, beautiful inside and out. Early Sunday morning, security forces mapped Irfayia's home ahead of a possible demolition. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife pay a condolence visit to the Ansbacher family On Sunday afternoon, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara paid a condolence visit to the Ansbacher family in the settlement of Tekoa in the West Bank. Dozens of Palestinians on Sunday are clashing with Israel Defense Forces' soldiers in the northern Gaza Strip. The skirmishes come after several months of relative quiet in the enclave following the understandings reached with Israel and the Qatari cash infusion into the strip. An Iranian nuclear scientist was reportedly smuggled out of the Islamic Republic to the UK in a joint operation of the British Intelligence Agency MI6, the American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and Israel's Mossad intelligence agency, according to the Sunday Express. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook STRONG> and Twitter According to the newspaper, the British agents took advantage of the migrant crisis plaguing Europe in order to smuggle the Iranian scientist on a dinghy on New Year's Eve to the town of Lydd in Kent. The 47-year-old scientist and 12 additional Iranian migrants crossed the English Channel in an inflatable boat, sources told the paper. A boat of migrant crossing the English Channel (Photo: AFP) The scientist, who apparently has information about Iran's nuclear program, reportedly helped orchestrate the assassination of Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, another Iranian nuclear scientist who was killed by a bomb placed on his car by a motorcyclist in Tehran in 2012. Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan's funeral The Mossad reportedly managed to smuggle the scientist from Iran to Turkey, after being questioned he was passed on to MI6 to begin his journey to Britain. A boat of migrants crossing the English Channel (Photo: AFP) The UK remained in the Iran nuclear accord, from which the US had withdrawn in September 2018, which meant MI6 had to hide their involvement in the operation to get the 47-year-old to Britain. "This wasn't without its challenges," a source was quoted by the Sunday Express as saying. "His absence was noted quickly, and we were informed that a special unit of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had been dispatched." A boat of migrants crossing the English Channel (: ) X "Once in France, the question of how to get him into Britain remained. We couldn't simply fly him in," the source said. "Though unusual, it was determined that infiltrating him into a group of fellow migrants preparing to cross the Channel by boat offered one solution." Upon his arrival to England, the Iranian nuclear technician was taken for questioning by American and British intelligence before being flown to the US. PARIS -- Police are investigating anti-Semitic graffiti that was found sprayed across a bagel shop in the old Jewish quarter of Paris. Police in the French capital said Sunday the word "Juden", which is German for Jews, was discovered Saturday as anti-government protesters and police forces clashed in other parts of the city. The French League Against Racism and Anti-Semitism showed a photograph of the bagel shop graffiti alongside a photo of a Berlin shop that was marked in a similar way in 1938 Nazi Germany. The Representative Council of Jewish Institutions in France, or CRIP, expressed "indignation and anger after the discovery of a revolting anti-Semitic tag on the window of a Bagelstein shop." The group says it was an "act that recalls the darkest hours of history." More than 30 swastikas were found daubed around the Bondi neighborhood of Sydney, Australia on Sunday, in what the local Jewish community has said is a growing trend of racism throughout the country. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook STRONG> and Twitter The Australian newspaper reported that the graffiti was sprayed repeatedly along the Bondi Beach promenade and at a shopping center. Australian Jewish Association president Dr David Adler called the incident a "disturbing" attack that targeted the area's sizeable Jewish community, according to the local media. The attack, Adler said, was part of a extremely worrying trend of anti-Semitism in the country. Swastikas graffitied in the Bondi neighborhood We see it very much on social media, on Facebook in particular, where we have reported a number of antisemitic pages, a number of antisemitic comments, Holocaust denial and related comments, Adler said. Leaflets were dropped last year in letter boxes in the Bondi area and posters have been put up at university campuses in Sydney that have very ugly antisemitic messages. OUTRAGEOUS! ANTISEMITISM AT BONDI BEACH - DEFACED WITH SWASTIKAS Sunday morning 10 Feb. The murals at the beach walk along Australia's most iconic beach now bear numerous swastikas!! Bondi & Bondi Beach are home to an orthodox Jewish community, synagogues and Sydney Yeshiva. pic.twitter.com/HC1ocPMm9e Australian Jewish Association (@AustralianJA) February 9, 2019 Adler pointed out that the Bondi area is home to Holocaust survivors who were particularly upset by the incident, and said that the Bondi police investigating the attack. "Anti-semitism, racism, and hatred in all its forms has no place in our community," wrote former Australian ambassador to Israel Dave Sharma on Twitter. What an abominable, intolerant and shameful act. Anti-semitism, racism, and hatred in all its forms has no place in our community. https://t.co/pY8AXn7KPc Dave Sharma (@DaveSharma) February 9, 2019 The people of Bondi and indeed all Australians of goodwill will stand together in condemning this shocking display, Vic Alhadeff, the CEO of the New South Wales Jewish Board of Deputies told The Australian newspaper. The paper quoted the Executive Council of Australian Jewry as saying that anti-Semitic incidents in Australia had grown by an "unprecedented" 60% in 2018, as compared to the year before. Police have urged anyone with any knowledge of the incident to come forward. A preliminary police investigation found that a deadly road accident on Route 443 on Sunday morning, which claimed the lives of Rachel Gutman, 29, from Modi'in Illit, and Ruchama Rosen, 27, from Jerusalem and left another 51 people injured, occurred as a result of a collision between a rescue vehicle and a bus that crashed into it and overturned. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook STRONG> and Twitter The incident occured close to the West Bank settlement of Beit Horon. The bus, belonging to the Kavim company, was heading from Modi'in Illit to Jerusalem. According to the police, the driver of the rescue vehicle stopped near the safety barrier in order to help those involved in a separate minor traffic accident on the opposite lane. The bus that was closely following the rescue vehicle crashed into it prompting it to tip over, sliding into a ditch and hitting a safety railing. Scene of Route 443 accident (Photo: Israel Police) The two drivers involved in the accident were called in for questioning under caution by police. The road was reopened after being closed off to traffic for up to five hours. The police said that despite some conflicting eyewitness reports, the driver of the rescue vehicle, who was left lightly injured, stopped his car in an orderly manner and its not clear why the bus driver lost control of the wheel. The scene of the accident The Magen David Adom rescue service said large numbers of its emergency personnel rushed to the scene to treat the injured. Fire and police rescue workers used specialist equipment to free a number of people trapped in the wreckage, including a crane that tipped the bus off its side and back into an upright position. "It was a shocking sight. We saw the bus upside down on the side of the road," said Fadi Dakidak, an MDA paramedic who arrived as part of an intensive care unit. It was chaotic, some of the bus passengers came out on their own and some with the help of our paramedics and soldiers who were in the area Two women, about 30 and 50 years old, were trapped in the middle of the bus and showed no signs of life. Deputy Health Minister Yaakov Litzman arrived at the scene shortly after the accident, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the incident at the weekly cabinet meeting. I was updated a short while ago on the accident on Route 443, said Netanyahu. I lend my support to the rescue forces who are engaged in rescuing and treating the injured. We are all praying for the victims. BEIRUT - Iran is waiting for Lebanon to show a desire to accept its military assistance, Iran's foreign minister said on Sunday, reiterating an offer of support to the U.S.-backed Lebanese military. Jawad Zarif, whose government backs the powerful Lebanese Shi'ite group Hezbollah, was speaking at Beirut airport at the start of his first visit to Lebanon since its new government was formed late last month. Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said last week he was ready to secure air defence systems for the Lebanese army from Iran to confront Israeli warplanes and to secure "everything it wants to be the strongest army in the region". Asked if Iran was ready to offer military aid, Zarif said: "We always have this type of readiness and we announced on other occasions that this tendency exists in Iran but we are waiting for this desire to exist on the Lebanese side." Benny Gantz can be criticized for many things he said or did throughout his long military career, but until his recent interview, he had never had a problem with credibility. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook STRONG> and Twitter In the interview, Hanoch Daum questions Gantz about the fact tthat the state comptroller determined the IDF was not prepared for 2014's Operation Protective Edge in Gaza, and the man who led the army at the time replies: "It's not like we said, 'okay, there are 30 tunnels there, we don't care about them, we're not gathering intelligence, we're not preparing defensive plans, we're not preparing offensive capabilities, we're not looking for technological solutions.'" L-R: Shlomo Artzi, Hanoch Daum and Benny Gantz (Photo: Tomeriko) With this answer, Gantz the politician appears to believe that Israelis have short memories and that history can be rewritten. The thing is, they havent and it can't. The report by State Comptroller Yosef Shapira , as well as the internal IDF debriefings, presented a different reality, one with which I was personally familiar as a reporter closely covering the war. Then-IDF chief of staff Gantz knew about the dozens of tunnels dug across the Gaza border by Hamas, but he along with then-head of Military Intelligence Aviv Kochavi (now IDF chief) and then-defense minister Moshe Ya'alon (now Gantz's political partner) did not explain the true gravity of the threat to the cabinet. Then-IDF chief of staff Benny Gantz on the Gaza border during the 2014 war (Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit) Gantz also failed to properly meet this threat with an operational plan of action for the IDF Ground Forces, who were forced to come up with a way to deal with the tunnels on the fly. The cabinet was not informed of these gaps. Furthermore, the quality of the objectives provided by the intelligence services was poor and this led to the IDF's list of targets quickly depleting. According to the testimony of former deputy chief of staff Yair Golan, the IDF fired 1,200 times at empty targets in the Gaza Strip. Even during the operation, it was clear that the senior military echelon - Ya'alon, Ganz, Kochavi and Shin Bet chief Yoram Cohen failed to correctly read the conduct of Hamas leaders, and stuck to their original assessment that Gaza was not interested in a confrontation. Eight days into the initial aerial operation, Ya'alon and Gantz continued to pass on Hamas requests for a cease-fire even though they knew about the threat from the tunnels and despite the fact that then-GOC Southern Command Sami Turgeman had already appeared before the cabinet to warn that Hamas had an attack tunnel ready for use and which already contained terrorists from the group. Benny Gantz and Sami Turgeman during the 2014 Gaza war (Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit) On the recommendation of Gantz and Ya'alon, Israel opted for a cease-fire, and less than 24 hours after Turgeman's warning, the terrorists emerged from the tunnel into Israeli territory. At this stage, the political echelon had no choice but to accept the recommendation of the GOC Southern Command backed in the cabinet by then-economy minister Naftali Bennett - and embark upon a ground offensive to destroy the tunnels. But even when it comes to technological solutions to the tunnel threat, the message Gantz sends is also faulty. The truth is, that since the threat was not at the top of the IDF's priorities, it was not given the necessary resources, and only after the Gaza war were huge sums diverted to build a subterranean barrier around the Gaza Strip and to set up a technological lab in the Gaza Division, which proved itself by locating and destroying more than 15 tunnels using innovative measures. Gantz could have been better prepared for his interview, or should simply have told the truth: "We could have prepared better for Protective Edge, and performed better. Part of this is my responsibility, and I do not shy away from that, and part of the responsibility lies with the politicians who significantly cut the IDF budget during my tenure. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyhau said Sunday during a weekly cabinet meeting that the law on terrorists' salaries deduction will be implemeted in the near future. "By the end of the week, the staff work necessary for implementing the law on deducting terrorists' salaries will be completed. Next Sunday I will convene the Security Cabinet and we will approve the necessary decision to deduct the funds. Let nobody doubt, the funds will be deducted, at the start of next week," said the prime minister. Inspired in part by Iran's Islamic Revolution, a young Egyptian army lieutenant emptied his machine gun into President Anwar Sadat in 1981, killing a leader who made peace with Israel and offered the shah a refuge after his overthrow. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook STRONG> and Twitter The assassination carried out by Khalid al-Islambouli and others from a Sunni Islamic extremist group showed the power of Iran's Shiite-led revolution across the religious divides of the Muslim world. Islamists initially saw Iran's revolution as the start of an effort to push out the strongman Arab nationalism that had taken hold across the Middle East. Egyptian soldiers tend to wounded after an attack on the reviewing platform which killed Egyptian President Anwar Sadat in Cairo, Egypt It may seem as though the Middle East has always been divided between Sunni Islam, which represents about 85 percent of the world's more than 1.8 billion Muslims, and Shiite Islam. But that divide, stemming from a disagreement centuries ago over who should succeed the Prophet Muhammad, owes much to the political rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Iran after 1979. Long before the Islamic Revolution, Islamists had wanted to wed governments to their faith. One of the most prominent was the Muslim Brotherhood, a Sunni group founded in 1928 in Egypt that spread across the Arab world. Another was the Iranian Shiite Islamist group "Devotees of Islam," who assassinated pro-Western Prime Minister Ali Razmara in 1951. The aftermath of World War II instead saw the rise of pan-Arab nationalists, chief among them Egypt's Gamal Abdel Nasser. Military strongmen took power, pushing for rapid modernization that shunted religion aside. The nationalists "see themselves often as critical of religion because religion is 'backward.' It's what's been holding the Arab world back," said Daniel Byman, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and a professor at Georgetown University. "That's kind of the dominant divide, and Islamists of all stripes are pushing back against this." Iranian school girls attend an annual demonstration in front of the former U.S. Embassy in Tehran, Iran, commemorating the 30th anniversary of the seizure of the U.S. Embassy by militant students "The Iranian revolution in the beginning was portraying itself as the start of a pan-Islamic revolution," said Toby Matthiesen, a senior researcher at St. Anthony's College at the University of Oxford who is writing a book on Sunni-Shiite relations. "It was even seen like that by a lot of the Sunni Islamic movements." Khomeini also made a point to embrace the Palestinians in their fight against Israel. Yasser Arafat, the leader of the overwhelmingly Sunni Palestinians, returned the favor by becoming the first leader to visit Khomeini. "The Iranian revolution gave us a strong belief that the tyrants can be brought down," said Ahmed Yousef, one of the founders of Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic political party and armed wing that has controlled the Gaza Strip since 2007 with Iran's backing. "Following that big victory, the Islamic Jihad was established here in Palestine and few years later Hamas was founded too." The pan-Islamic Iranian inspiration perhaps reached its height on October 6, 1981, as Islambouli and his co-conspirators rushed out of a truck at a Cairo military parade and assassinated Sadat, who had made history by signing the first Arab peace deal with Israel. At trial, Islambouli famously clutched a Quran and shouted: "It was I who killed the Pharaoh!" Iran venerated Islambouli, naming a street in Tehran after him and issuing a postage stamp in his honor. Khalid al-Islambouli, left, and Abdel Hamid Abdel Aal hold up open Qurans during the second day of their trial in Cairo, Egypt, Monday, Nov. 30, 1981 "The Saudis really put a lot of money into the 'Dawah' machine to try to out-compete Iran around the world," Byman said, referring to the kingdom's proselytizing efforts. "There's a real panic and concern then." Pan-Islamic admiration for Iran waned as it supported destabilizing attacks across the region, such as a failed 1981 militant coup in Bahrain and a 1985 car bombing targeting the emir of Kuwait. Iran's eight-year war with Iraq deepened that rift. Iran at the same time found perhaps its greatest success in helping create the Shiite militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon, which still holds sway over much of the country decades later as both an armed group and a political party. In October 1983, a bombing at the US Marine barracks in Beirut killed 231 American troopsthe bloodiest day for the armed forces since World War IIand a US federal judge blamed Hezbollah and Iran for the attack. Iran has long denied any involvement. Sectarianism exploded in the region with the US invasion of Iraq in 2003. Iran backed Shiite militants implicated in deadly roadside bomb attacks against US forces and sectarian assaults on Sunnis. Sunni extremists repeatedly targeted Shiite civilians, and when the Islamic State group rampaged across Syria and Iraq in 2014 it massacred Shiites and other minorities. Iran intervened again, reactivating the militias to help Iraqi forces eventually defeat the extremist group. Syria's civil war further fueled the split, as Iran and Hezbollah provided crucial military aid to President Bashar Assad, who comes from the Alawite religious minority, while Sunni Gulf countries and Turkey supported the mainly Sunni opposition. A gunman, wearing an Egyptian army uniform, fires an automatic Kalashnikov rifle into the reviewing stand during an attack that took the life of President Anwar Sadat and five others in Cairo, Egypt "The Iranian revolution played a significant role in the birth and the growth of the jihadist movements in the Arab World, as it raised the awareness of the role of religion in political change in the region," said Adnan Milhem, a Palestinian historian at al-Najah University. "The Iranian revolution affected the political thinking in the region in terms of introducing religion as a changing tool to fight oppression and corruption." Two people were killed and 51 more were hurt Sunday morning, when a public bus overturned near the central city of Modi'in. Follow Ynetnews on and Twitter Two people were seriously hurt in the incident, including a man in his 20s; another five were moderately hurt and the rest sustained minor injuries. The scene of the accident The incident occured on Route 443, close to the settlement of Beit Horon. The bus, belonging to the Kavim company, was heading from Modi'in to Jerusalem. The Magen David Adom rescue service said large numbers of its emergency personnel rushed to the scene to treat the injured. Fire and police rescue workers used specialist equipment to free a number of people trapped in the wreckage, including a crane that tipped the bus off its side and back into an upright position. Airlifting the wounded The initial assessment was that the bus had collided with a car in front, but Avi, an eyewitness at the scene, gave a different version of events. Getting the bus upright "I was on the road and was one of the first to arrive at the scene," he said. "There was (an initial) accident on the opposite lane in the direction of Modi'in Illit. A rescue vehicle ... in the opposite lane had apparently stopped to help with the accident. He stopped suddenly with the bus behind him travelling at about 80kmh. The bus driver instinctively swerved to the right and collided with the safety barrier, and that is what caused it to tip over. Some of the passengers climbed out of the bus themselves, and then the resuce services and army arrived." Bus overturns on Route 443 Two helicopters were deployed to airlift some of the injured to hospital: 14 people were taken to Shaare Zedek Hospital in Jerusalem, including one person in serious condition and three with moderate injuries; 11 people were taken to Assaf Harofeh Medical Center near Tel Aviv; and six people were taken to Hadassah Medical Center, Mount Scopus in Jerusalem. Evacuating the injured to Shaare Zedek Hospital in Jerusalem (: ) X Following the accident, Route 443 was closed in both directions and police were directing traffic away from the scene. Israel Police urged motorists to stay away from the area of the crash and seek alternative routes. Rescue personnel at the scene (Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg) According to data from the Israel National Road Safety Authority, 33 people were killed in 2018 as a result of traffic accidents involving buses. On Saturday, 19-year-old motorcyclist was killed in a collision between two motorbikes and a car in Nazareth. Israeli security forces mapped early Sunday morning the home of a Palestinian suspected of brutally killing 19-year-old Ori Ansbacher in Jerusalem, ahead of a possible demolition. The suspect, 29-year-old Arafat Irfayiaa resident of Hebron in the West Bankwas arrested by Israel Defense Forces on Saturday and is believed to be affiliated with the Hamas terror group. He was previously imprisoned for possession of a knife and illegally residing in Israel. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook STRONG> and Twitter The naked body of the Jewish teenfrom the West Bank settlement of Tekoawas found two days ago, with multiple stab wounds, in the woods at Ein Yael on the outskirts of Jerusalem, police said. Shin Bet said the suspect left his home in Hebron carrying a knife, saw the victim in the forest, attacked and killed her. It was still investigating the motive. 19-year-old Ori Ansbacher (Photo: Courtesy of family) Earlier on Saturday, Shin Bet domestic security service and police said in a statement that the 29-year-old Palestinian suspect was seized over the killing of the 19-year-old woman during a raid in the Palestinian city of Ramallah in the West Bank. IDF maps home of Israeli teen's killer (: ") X Hundreds of people gathered on Saturday night at candle-light vigil for the victim of the horrific murder at Tel Aviv's Rabin Square. In Ansbachers home town of Tekoa, dozens of local residents also attended a memorial at the settlements main square. Vigil at Tel Aviv's Rabin's Square (Photo: Dana Kopel) In addition, some 100 people gathered at Jerusalem's Zion Square and called on the government to avenge the murder. "We came here to express our pain ... The was she was murdered is shocking and the entire country must tremble in light of this atrocity, said Yamit Abramov, a friend of the murdered teens family. Dozens of demonstrators also blocked the entrance to Jerusalem, chanting: The people demand revenge. Demonstration at Jerusalem's Zion Square (Photo: TPS) Ori walked the earth confidently, having faith in the world, when an evil force came and took her from us, said Oris mother, Noa Ansbacher in a statement at the family home in Tekoa. She was a noble soul, beautiful inside and out. Palestinian authorities did not immediately comment. Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan said he viewed it as a terrorist attack. Were talking about a wide phenomenon of terrorism were dealing with here, he told Reshet TV. Dozens of Jewish residents of Hebron held a protest Saturday night not far from the Abu Sneineh home of the Palestinian suspected of the murder of Ori Ansbacher. Will Bamba, the famous, all-times favorite Israeli peanut snack reduce American peanut allergies? The Osem companys snack will soon be on its way widespread distribution in the US, in a a deal brokered by the international food giant Nestle. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook STRONG> and Twitter Bamba is planned to be adopted by Nestle's baby snacks section, and a new commercial aired recently already shows the Bamba icon a red headed baby walking the streets of New York City. Bamba, Israel's all time favorite peanut snack (Photo: Shutterstock) Osem started selling Bamba independently in the US a year ago, under an agreement with the Costco and Trader Joes supermarket chains. Before that, the snack was sold sporadically, mostly within the US ultra-Orthodox community. Working with the powerful Nestle company, Bamba could be on its way to becoming a huge hit. In the European market, Nestle has already taken over the marketing and distribution of another Israeli product Tivall, a vegetarian schnitzel and burger brand. With the giant corporate on its side, Tivall quickly became the second best selling meat substitute in the continent. More peanuts, less allergies The American market is fond of savory snacks, making Bamba a strong candidate to get the publics attention. It already made headlines when US health authorities recommended exposing babies and children to foods that contain peanuts in order to prevent them from developing peanut allergies. Bamba is an ideal candidate since it doesnt contain actual peanut pieces and dissolves in the mouth, making it baby-friendly. In fact, research showed that Israeli children are far less likely to develop peanut allergies thanks to the popularity of Bamba, in comparison to American children. The discovery made headlines in the American media. New factory, new beginning The venture in this new market by Osem is no coincidence. The company recently set up a new factory in the southern Israeli city of Kiryat Gat, costing NIS 200 million and allowing Osem to produce double what it could produce in its older factory. It was especially designed to fit the growing international demand. Nestle is the largest food company in the world. Some 25 percent of food sales in the US are of Nestle products. Osems long-term revenues are expected to increase by hundreds of millions of shekels, after Nestle starts distributing Bamba in approximately a year's time. BENGHAZI, Libya (Reuters) - A jet from Khalifa Haftar's east Libyan military forces intercepted a civilian plane on Sunday as part of its push to control the oil-rich south of the riven nation, the faction said. Libya has been in turmoil since the NATO-backed toppling of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, with parallel administrations and armed groups carving the nation into swathes of control. Haftar's Libyan National Army (LNA) began an offensive in the south last month to fight militants and take control of oil installations, and this week banned flights without its permission. In a statement, the LNA said it scrambled a jet after a plane took off from the El Feel oilfield without permission, and forced it to land near Sabha, the largest town in south Libya. It was allowed to continue to Tripoli, seat of the internationally-recognised government, after inspection. The Tripoli government protested against the interception, saying the Libyan Airlines plane was carrying oil workers. The LNA, which is allied to a parallel government in the eastern city of Benghazi, wants to secure the El Sharara oilfield, Libya's largest, and occupied a pumping station 20km (12 miles) away on Wednesday, according to a field engineer. The Tripoli government, striving to reassert its former control of El Sharara, has sent troops there, a source from the administration said. El Sharara has been shut since December when local tribesmen and state guards seized it. (reporting by Ayman Werfali and Ahmed Elumami; writing by Maher Chmaytelli and Ulf Laessing; Editing by Elaine Hardcastle and Andrew Cawthorne) TUNIS (Reuters) - A Tunisian court jailed seven people for life on Saturday for their involvement in two deadly militant attacks in 2015, one on a museum in Tunis and the other on a hotel in a Mediterranean resort. Other defendants received jail sentences ranging from 16 years to six months, state news agency TAP quoted court spokesman Soufiane Sliti as saying. In all, 51 suspects stood trial, of whom 27 were acquitted, in hearings that lasted 18 months. The assault on the Bardo National Museum left 21 people dead, while 38 were killed in the beach resort of Sousse, some 150 kilometers (90 miles) south of the capital. Islamic State claimed both attacks. The twin massacres, which took place within three months of each other, devastated Tunisia's economy - tourism is a major earner of foreign currency that accounts for about 8 percent of gross domestic product - as major European tour operators took flight. The attacks also acted as a brake on political reforms hailed as a model of democratic transition following its 2011 'Arab Spring' uprising. Tunisia remains one of the most secular countries in the Arab world, but authorities estimate about 3,000 of its citizens have joined Islamic State and other jihadist groups in Iraq, Syria and Libya. Tourists have gradually returned as security has been stepped up, and Tunisia attracted a record 8.3 million visitors in 2018 as hotels were filled with holidaymakers from Algeria, Russia and other parts of Europe. (Reporting by Mohamed Argoubi; Writing by Ahmed Eljechtimi; Editing by John Stonestreet) The Daily Beast Screenshot/YouTubeA massive country music festival in Kentucky this past weekend started off on rocky footing: Police found meth, marijuana, and an open bottle of alcohol in the first vehicle they stopped at a traffic checkpoint. One of the people in the car had two active warrants out for their arrest.We were like, Well, this doesnt bode well for the weekend, Edmonson County Sheriff Shane Doyle told the Lexington Herald-Leader.Police said that by the end of the five-day bash, dubbed the R KHARTOUM (Reuters) - Sudanese security forces used tear gas on Sunday to break up a crowd of hundreds of people, mostly young women, demonstrating against the detention of women arrested at previous protests, witnesses said. The protesters chanted: "Long live the struggle of Sudanese women", and "Down, that's it", one of the main slogans calling for the fall of President Omar al-Bashir during protests that have swept Sudan since Dec. 19. Security forces at the protest, in Omdurman, Sudan's second-largest city which faces the capital Khartoum on the other side of the River Nile, were seen arresting young women and taking them away in at least four pick-up trucks. The protesters were trying to march towards a large women's prison before security forces moved in. The protests that have spread across Sudan were triggered by a worsening economic crisis and have built into the most sustained period of unrest since Bashir came to power three decades ago. Bashir and senior officials have adopted more conciliatory language about the demonstrations, including promises to release jailed protesters, but security forces have continued to break up rallies and arrest people. In Omdurman's Wad Nubawi neighborhood on Sunday, protesters blocked a road, setting fire to branches and throwing stones before security forces fired tear gas to disperse them. Dozens of doctors also protested inside the state hospital in El-Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan state, about 360 km (220 miles) southwest of Khartoum, calling for Bashir to step down, witnesses said. (Reporting by Khalid Abdelaziz; Writing by Aidan Lewis; Editing by Robin Pomeroy) Kris Osborn Security, The service anticipates having aircraft and fighter jet-fired lasers in operation as soon as the early 2020s, as mobile power systems and other integral technologies continue to evolve rapidly. Stealth Assassins: Could the Air Force Arm F-35s with Laser Weapons? Defensive laser weapons are bringing great promise to the US military as well. Given that laser can also perform a sensor function, they might be able to acquire and knock out an incoming enemy missile. The US Air Force is refining its combat strategy, tactics and concepts of operation to accommodate the rapid emergence of laser weapons, technologies which promise to alter the landscape of modern warfare and substantially expand the envelope of attack possibilities for fighter jets. (This first appeared last month.) The service anticipates having aircraft and fighter jet-fired lasers in operation as soon as the early 2020s, as mobile power systems and other integral technologies continue to evolve rapidly. Not only do laser weapons bring increased precision attacks at the speed of light to incinerate targets, but they can be scaled or adjusted to achieve a desired effect - such as total destruction, partial damage or an even smaller, more measured impact, depending upon the threat. Laser weapons offer warfighters opportunities for quick and precise target engagement, flexibility and lighter and more responsive support logistics, Eva Blaylock, spokeswoman for the Air Force Research Laboratory, told Warrior Maven in a written statement. The Air Force Research Lab, which has been leading the effort from Kirtland Air Force Base, has been working on laser weapons development for many years now. They have already conducted several ground-fire tests and are now preparing for initial air-launched demonstrations. The next test, according to AFRL information, includes a fighter-jet configured laser pod to be fired from the ground, in anticipation of airborne integration. Story continues The two major ARFL programs include an air-to-air weapons program called the Self-Protect High Energy Laser Demonstrator (SHIELD) and a ground-fired Demonstrator Laser Weapon System. AFRL is working with Lockheed Martin on SHIELD in anticipation of having operational lasers within the next few years. Solid-state laser weapons rely purely upon electricity, and do not need to draw upon certain specific chemicals as other lasers do. Essentially, they can disable or, if needed, incinerate a target with tremendous heat. Given the advent of laser weapons, fighter pilots are preparing for new tactical possibilities, such as an ability to attack multiple targets at once and rapidly retarget, Air Force Research Laboratory papers explain. While current fighters, such as the F-35, are able to launch simultaneous air-to-air attacks on enemy targets such as planes and drones, pilots preparing to fire lasers will have an even greater ability to engage multiple targets concurrently. This, among other things, will enable fighter jets to engage in close-combat in higher risk scenarios where they might encounter multiple enemy aircraft. Perhaps of greatest significance, laser weapons are entirely scaleable, Blaylock added. Scalablilty is achieved in many instances by combining or merging several beams into one, AFRL states. The type of gradual effects a 30kW laser can deliver includes the denial, degradation, disruption, and destruction of a range of targets from UAS to small boats at a range of several kilometers. More powerful lasers have counter-air, counter-ground, and counter-sea applications against a host of hardened military equipment and vehicles at significant range, Blaylock added. An attack option such as this might give pilots an ability to degrade rather than destroy targets, a possibility potentially not afforded by conventional weapons such as air-to-air or air-to-ground missiles and bombs. Perhaps, for instance, an aircraft might wish to disable an enemy asset such as a plane, vehicle or enemy fixture of some kind without killing people, should civilians be in close proximity. As developers advance miniaturization of mobile, on-board power system, fighters and cargo aircraft will increasingly operate with an ability to carry a deep magazine without adding large amounts of weight to a plane. This brings a number of distinct advantages, such as greater fuel efficiency, speed and maneuverability. A transportable arsenal of laser weapons might remove the need for a fighter jet to travel with large amounts of heavy bombs and missiles, allowing the aircraft to operate with increased air-to-air maneuverability and extended mission time. A lighter-weight aircraft, naturally, will have increased dwell time to seek emerging targets by virtue of not having to refuel as often. As something able to operate with a decreased logistical footprint, a laser-armed fighter jet may also operate for longer periods of time without needing to re-arm, generating yet another avenue through which to extend missions. For a 30 kW laser system, the batteries could weigh on the order of 300 pounds and fit within a volume of half of a cubic meter, the AFRL essay states. All of this means pilots and ground-weapons operators will need to employ new tactics and concepts of operation as they prepare for longer, faster missions and prepare for the ability to launch scalable attacks. Laser power is increased, AFRL developers explain, by use of a two-color fiber amplifier. Alongside these known advantages, laser weapons development also faces a number of substantial hurdles as it comes closer to operational status, according to AFRL information. Not only do laser weapons need to be further ruggedized for war, but various beam controls need to be integrated to optimize precision and preclude the impact of aero-mechanical jitter." Beam control systems must be adequately advanced so as to enable precise aiming, tracking, and pointing amidst the aero-mechanical jitter induced by vibrations during flight, an AFRL paper states. If system weight and heat are properly managed, there will be much less beam attenuation or dispersion of the laser impact. High-speed aerodynamic flow must be mitigated to avoid aero-optical disturbances, AFRL data states. Effective thermal management systems can drastically increase the rate of fire, either through traditional liquid cooling loops or through two-phase cooling, wherein heat is transferred to and melts a solid, the resulting liquid of which is then cooled. Defensive laser weapons are bringing great promise to the US military as well. Given that laser can also perform a sensor function, they might be able to acquire and knock out an incoming enemy missile. They could operate as "interceptors" traveling at the speed of light, offering a quick way to destroy enemy attacks, which could include anti-ship missiles, air-to-air missiles and even space-based weapons such as ICBMs. This is attractive to weapons developers for tactical and financial reasons, as lasers are extremely low cost to fire and could be equally effective against an incoming attack as compared to an expensive interceptor missile. The Army and Navy are also moving aggressively to develop and deploy offensive and defensive laser weapons. Osborn previously served at the Pentagon as a Highly Qualified Expert with the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army - Acquisition, Logistics& Technology. Osborn has also worked as an anchor and on-air military specialist at National TV networks. He has a Masters in Comparative Literature from Columbia University. This first appeared in Warrior Maven here. Read full article Madrid (AFP) - Tens of thousands of people waving Spanish flags joined a rally on Sunday in Madrid called by right-wing and far-right parties against Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who they accuse of treachery over his negotiations with Catalan separatists. Police said around 45,000 people packed Colon Square and surrounding streets for the event, which came just two days before the high-profile trial of Catalan separatist leaders opens in Madrid over their role in Catalonia's failed 2017 independence bid. Organisers said over 200,000 people took part on the rally held under the slogan "For a united Spain. Elections now!". Under the shadow of Colon Squares huge Spanish red and yellow flag, demonstrators bussed in from all over the country heard speakers call for the defence of Spanish unity. Many waved Spanish and European Union flags or held up signs reading "Stop Sanchez. Elections now!". The rally was called by centre-right Ciudadanos, the conservative Popular Party (PP) and far-right Vox, which has only recently burst onto Spain's political scene, as well as a handful of smaller far-right groups. They are angered by Sanchez's decision to take a more conciliatory tone with pro-independence parties, whose votes are crucial to the legislative agenda of his eight-month-old minority government, saying it amounts to "treason". - 'Time is up' - Polls show that between them the PP, Ciudadanos and Vox would win a majority if a general election were held today, giving them the combined parliamentary clout to drive Sanchez from office. The three parties won a majority in a regional election in the southwestern region of Andalusia in December, ousting the Socialists from power in the region after 36 years. "The government of Sanchez's time is up," PP head Pablo Casado told reporters before the start of the rally. "We are here to say no to separatism and yes to Spain," added Ciudadanos leader Albert Rivera. Story continues Sanchez, who came to power in June with the support of Catalan nationalist parties, defended his government's attempts at dialogue with Catalonia. "The government of Spain is working for the unity of Spain," he told a party rally in the northern city of Santander. Elena Navarro, who attended the anti-Sanchez rally in Madrid with her teenaged son, said Sanchez was "a traitor". "He is making pacts with our enemies, with people who have caused us great harm and want to divide Spaniards," the 45-year-old told AFP. - 'Last hope' - Former French prime minister Manuel Valls, who was born in Barcelona and is running for mayor of Spain's second largest city, and Peru's Mario Vargas Llosa, a Nobel Prize-winning author who became a Spanish citizen in the 1990s and has spoken out in favour of conservative Spanish causes, were among those who attended the Madrid protest. Conservative parties called the rally after Sanchez's government last week accepted the presence -- as requested by Catalan separatists -- of an independent "rapporteur" in future talks. Despite the government's concession, Catalan separatist parties still refused to back the government's 2019 budget and both sides on Friday called off their talks, with each side blaming the other for ending their dialogue. If Sanchez is unable to approve his budget, he could call elections before his term is over in 2020. Spain will hold municipal, regional and European Parliament elections in May. Ana Guisasola, a 50-year-old who works for a motor lubricants firm, said she had voted for the PP and Ciudadanos in the past, but now plans to vote for Vox, which she called Spain's "last hope". "I want someone who will grab a broom so that Spain can move forwards," she told AFP at the rally. Washington (AFP) - US budget talks have hit another impasse over immigration, a key Republican negotiator said Sunday, raising the prospect of a second government shutdown if no agreement is reached by this week's deadline. "I think the talks are stalled right now," Richard Shelby, the chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said on Fox News Sunday. The deadline for an agreement on funding to keep the government open is Friday, raising the specter of a repeat of the 35-day partial shutdown that ended January 25 -- the longest in US history. Negotiators had been optimistic Friday an agreement would be reached that includes some funds for a border "barrier," although less than the $5.6 billion US President Donald Trump has demanded. Shelby blamed Democrats for the latest snag, saying they wanted to cap the number of beds at immigration detention centers. "Time is ticking away but we got some problems with the Democrats dealing with ICE," he said, referring to Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Trump himself, who Monday hosts a rally of supporters on the Texas border at El Paso, said Democratic negotiators were being hamstrung by their party leadership. "They are offering very little money for the desperately needed Border Wall & now, out of the blue, want a cap on convicted violent felons to be held in detention!," he tweeted. He went on to suggest Democrats were ready to let talks collapse to distract from unfavorable headlines including a racism scandal engulfing the party leadership in Virginia. "I actually believe they want a Shutdown. They want a new subject!," Trump said. Senator Jon Tester, a Democrat, expressed cautious optimism that a government shutdown would be averted. "We need to keep our eyes on this but I'm very hopeful, not positive, but very hopeful we can come to an agreement," he said. White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, meanwhile, said a government shutdown is "still technically on the table." "There's going to be a lot of different moving pieces so I'm not in a position to say the president will absolutely sign or will not sign," he said. Trump "cannot sign everything they put in front of him, if there will be some things that simply we couldn't agree to," he said. By Ginger Gibson (Reuters) - U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar entered the 2020 presidential race on Sunday, becoming the first moderate in an increasingly crowded field of Democrats vying to challenge Republican President Donald Trump. Klobuchar becomes the fifth U.S. senator to announce her candidacy, and the fourth woman in the chamber. Klobuchar, 58, now in her third six-year term as a senator for Minnesota, will seek to position herself as a contrast to Trump, who is expected to be the Republican candidate in the November 2020 election, focusing on both policy differences but also style and tact. "I stand before you as the granddaughter of an iron ore miner, the daughter of a teacher and a newspaperman, the first woman elected to the United States Senate from the state of Minnesota, to announce my candidacy for president of the United States," Klobuchar said. A large crowd assembled in Minnesota on an island in the middle of the Mississippi River, despite a heavy snowfall and 14 degree Fahrenheit (minus 10 Celsius) temperatures. Klobuchar's announcement came amid several news reports of high staff turnover in her Senate office with workers complaining of having to do personal chores, making it difficult to hire high-level campaign strategists. A former prosecutor and corporate attorney, Klobuchar joins a list of Democratic hopefuls that includes fellow Senators Cory Booker of New Jersey, Kamala Harris of California, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts. Warren went to Iowa to campaign on Sunday after formally launching her bid on Saturday. Booker also spent the weekend in the Midwestern farm state. "I'm tired of a government that works for a thin slice at the top and nobody else," said Warren, appearing at the University of Iowa. "It's pretty straightforward to me, not much fancier than that." Booker also spent the weekend in the Midwestern farm state. Klobuchar gained national attention in 2018 when she sparred with Brett Kavanaugh during Senate hearings on his Supreme Court nomination. Her questions earned her recognition in Democratic circles for working to advance the #MeToo movement against sexual harassment and assault. But the senator will have work to do to build a national profile. She barely registers in early opinion polls of potential Democratic candidates. Klobuchar won her most recent Senate race in November with more than 60 percent of the vote. But she raised only about $7.4 million, a relatively small amount compared with Senate candidates in more competitive races. By comparison, Warren raised $35 million in the same period. Klobuchar hopes her moderate policies and strong electoral record in Minnesota will help her win back states Trump took from Democrats in the 2016 White House contest, including nearby Iowa, Wisconsin and Michigan, Wisconsin, as well as Pennsylvania. Klobuchar was the first 2020 Democratic presidential hopeful to use her launch speech to vow action on digital issues like privacy, saying "big tech companies" are misusing personal data. "Our laws need to be as sophisticated as the people who are breaking them," she said. "We must revamp our nations cybersecurity and guarantee net neutrality." Klobuchar began her foray into Minnesota politics by advocating for better access to healthcare for babies and new mothers after her own daughter was born with health complications, a personal narrative she is likely to use in the debate about the future of the nations healthcare system. Klobuchar endorsed universal healthcare in her announcement speech, an issue that will be heavily debated during the Democratic nominating race. She said she supports increasing "shared prosperity," adding, "We won't get there if people can't afford their health care and that means getting to universal health care and bringing down the costs of prescription drugs." Klobuchar's legislative efforts have focused on antitrust oversight, agriculture and voter security. She recently pushed for Senate investigations into whether Facebook Inc broke the law when it resisted oversight on how Russians used its platform to meddle in the 2016 presidential election. She has been measured in her criticism of Trump, attacking the effects of his trade tariffs on farmers but avoiding more explosive issues like immigration and gun control. Klobuchar is expected to focus her early presidential campaign on Iowa, which borders Minnesota and holds the nation's first nominating contest in February 2020. An aggressive push in Iowa and a win there in 2008 helped catapult Barack Obama from underdog status to the Democratic nomination and eventual victory in that year's presidential election. (Reporting by Ginger Gibson; Additional reporting by Amanda Becker in Iowa City, Iowa; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Jeffrey Benkoe) There has been a small victory in the battle for reproductive rights. Yesterday, February 7th, the Supreme Court temporarily blocked a restrictive abortion law from taking effect in Louisiana. According to The New York Times, SCOTUS voted 5-4 to issue a temporary stay (aka block) in the case. Chief Justice John Roberts, who has previously voted in favor of restricting abortion access, sided with the courts four liberal judges. Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaughboth appointed by President Donald Trumpwere among the four judges who voted to enact the law, with Kavanaugh publishing the dissenting opinion (because of course). The courts ruling does not permanently strike down the Louisiana law. The Times notes that starting in October, the court will be able to hear appeals on its decision. Other than Kavanaughs dissent, none of the justices have publicly explained their votes. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. CNN reports that if the Louisiana law had taken effect, it would have required abortion providers to have admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles of a clinic. This would leave just one doctor in the entire state able to perform abortions. Laws that require abortion providers to have hospital admitting privileges have grown more common over the years, and reproductive rights advocates argue that they place an undue burden on clinics. As the Washington Post reported in 2014, it can be hard to obtain admitting privileges if doctors live too far away or if hospitals refuse on the basis of their religious affiliations. In fact, according to NBC News, in 2016, SCOTUS struck down an admitting privileges law in Texas. The ruling came after the Texas law had forced half of the states abortion clinics to close their doors. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Were breathing a sigh of relief that SCOTUS blocked Louisianas abortion law for now. We just hope it eventually gets struck down for good. A Saudi Arabian foreign affairs official claimed Sunday that journalist Jamal Khashoggis murder was a mistake committed by Saudi government officials who had acted outside their scope of authority. Adel al-Jubeir, the countrys minister of state for foreign affairs, a top official in the foreign ministry, continued to claim Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) had no involvement in the October slaying of Khashoggi, despite the CIAs determination that he was behind it. The death of Jamal Khashoggi was a massive tragedy, al-Jubeir told CBS Face the Nation on Sunday. It was a mistake. It was committed by officials of the Saudi government acting outside their scope of authority. He continued: We have said we will investigate. We will hold those responsible accountable and we will punish them. The crown prince had nothing to do with this. There was no order given to murder Jamal Khashoggi. And the whole country is shocked by this. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. President Donald Trump, rejecting his own intelligence officials findings, has apparently chosen to believe MBS claim that he played no role in the gruesome murder of Khashoggi, a critic of the Saudi royal family who was killed after entering a Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2, 2018. Both the CIA and Turkish investigators say MBS personally ordered the assassination, yet Trump announced in November that the U.S. would not end its alliance with the Middle Eastern kingdom. Saudi Arabia purportedly conducted an investigation into Khashoggis murder which resulted in the arrests of 18 Saudis, including 15 operatives who had allegedly acted as the hit squad. What I tell people is wait until the legal process plays out and then judge us, al-Jubeir told CBS. Dont judge us before the process is complete. But Saudi Arabia has a long history of detaining and murdering dissidents. More than 60 people, many of whom are believed to be human rights activists, were arrested in May 2017 alone by the Saudi government during a wave of detentions, according to a January 2018 report released by two leading international human rights lawyers. Story continues The New York Times on Friday published a report that alleged MBS had told an aide in 2017 that he would use a bullet on Khashoggi. Asked about the report Sunday, al-Jubeir declined to comment. Im not going to comment on reports based on anonymous sources, he said. I dont know the background. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Al-Jubeir claimed Saudi investigators still dont know the location of Khashoggis body. Turkish officials have said Khashoggis attackers dissolved his body in acid in an attempt to hide evidence of his murder. We are still investigating, he told CBS. We have a number of possibilities, and were asking what [the alleged murderers] did with the body, and I think this investigation is ongoing. Al-Jubeir previously served as Saudi Arabias foreign minister from 2015 until December 2018, when he was demoted to the rank of minister of state for foreign affairs as part of MBS sweeping overhaul of his cabinet. Ibrahim al-Assaf, formerly a longtime finance minister, took over the position. Clarification: Language in this story has been amended to clarify that al-Jubeir is not Saudi Arabias foreign minister but its minister of state for foreign affairs. Related... Saudi King Overhauls Cabinet, Names New Foreign Minister After Khashoggi Murder Pompeo Discusses Jamal Khashoggi Murder With Saudi King Salman, MBS Saudi Prince Said He Would Use 'A Bullet' On Jamal Khashoggi A Year Before Killing: Report Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today. This article originally appeared on HuffPost. 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Govt jobs cannot be applied online here. Error & omissions excepted. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 10) The country's top diplomat met with his Japanese counterpart in Davao City Sunday. The country's top diplomat met with his Japanese counterpart in Davao City Sunday. Department of Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro "Teddy Boy" Locsin Jr. met with Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono who is on his first bilateral official visit to the country. The two officials held a joint press conference where Locsin said the meeting is "an opportunity for stocktaking and for advancing our cooperation to more mutually-beneficial outcomes." Locsin mentioned Japan was the country in the lead when it comes to helping President Rodrigo Duterte "achieve his transformative agenda - in infrastructure, social inclusion, and securing peace and progress in Mindanao." The talks focused on achieving peace in Mindanao, Locsin said. "We emerge from this morning's meeting freshly confident about prospects for realizing Mindanao's promise in the wake of positive, indeed striking developments, in bringing Bangsamoro to reality. The inauguration of the Japanese Consulate-General later this evening demonstrates Japan's enduring commitment to Mindanao, especially with the ratification of the Bangsamoro Organic Law," he said. In his remarks at the meeting, Locsin said both countries reaffirmed the strategic partnership, and discussed issues concerning defense, maritime security, infrastructure and human resource development, and health, among others. "In each case," Locsin said they were "reaching understandings and making commitments to specific undertakings." No details on the commitments and undertakings have been released yet. "The two of us come from a productive meeting this morning with a single mind - that our two countries must sustain the effort to keep and to grow the gains of our Strategic Partnership. Building on past achievements, and seizing opportunities offered by the future, this partnership will flourish and endure," Locsin said. A large storm will threaten to disrupt travel and daily routines as it unleashes heavy snow and gusty winds across the midwestern United States through Tuesday. This storm follows a snow event to end this past weekend, which unleashed as much 5-7 inches of snow in portions of Minnesota and Wisconsin. An expansive winter storm will take shape across the northern Plains into Tuesday, according to AccuWeather Storm Warning Meteorologist Billy Clark. Snow is expected to fall and create slippery conditions from Bismarck, North Dakota to Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Minneapolis; Des Moines and Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Madison, Milwaukee and Green Bay, Wisconsin; and Traverse City and Marquette, Michigan. Midwest snow 2.11 AM The highest snowfall totals and worst travel conditions are expected to focus on the upper Mississippi Valley from late Monday to Tuesday night. The heaviest snow will fall across Iowa and into southern and eastern Minnesota and central Wisconsin, according to Clark. Heavy snow will spread into northern Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan Tuesday into Tuesday night. In these areas, there can be 6-12 inches of snow with an AccuWeather Local StormMax of 18 inches. "Disruptions to logistical operations are expected due to heavy snowfall causing hazardous travel conditions," Clark said. School closures are likely. Stretches of interstates 29, 35, 80, 90 and 94 are expected to be difficult and dangerous to travel on during the height of the storm. In addition to snow-packed, slippery roadways, blowing and drifting snow can create whiteout conditions as winds strengthen around the storm. "There may be several hours of wintry precipitation and wintry travel conditions from I-80 to Chicago and Detroit," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said. NC Monday 2.11 AM Snow is forecast to transition to an icy mix in this corridor from late Monday through Monday night. Once snow or ice changes to plain rain, most of the time the air dries out as the storm moves away. However, there may be a burst of snow several hours after the change to rain has taken place in part of the Midwest on Tuesday. Story continues "This quick change to accumulating snow can occur around St. Louis during Tuesday morning, Indianapolis during Tuesday midday and Detroit in time for the Tuesday evening rush hour," Sosnowski said. Thunder and lightning may accompany the burst of snow in some areas. Download the free AccuWeather app to see exactly what to expect in your area. The storm's broad nature will bring snow, ice and slippery travel to much of the Northeast from Monday night to Tuesday. In the mid-Atlantic and central Appalachians this storm may blend in from leftover snow and ice from a weak storm that affected the region from Sunday night to Monday. Meanwhile, enough rain may fall to aggravate the flooding situation from Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky, to the southern Indiana and much of Ohio. Flooding Thru Tuesday There can be a rapid freeze-up in the lower Ohio Valley later Tuesday as temperatures plunge behind the rain, causing any lingering wet areas to turn to ice. The Central states will then have to brace for yet another winter storm at late week. Paris (AFP) - Lawyers for French carmaker Renault have criticised their Japanese alliance partner Nissan for its handling of an internal probe into the Carlos Ghosn scandal, a Sunday newspaper has reported. In a letter to Nissan dated January 19, the lawyers said they had "serious concerns about the methods used" by the company and its legal team, including the way they treated some Renault employees, according to France's Le Journal du Dimanche. Former head of the alliance Ghosn is being held in Japan on charges he under-reported millions of dollars in pay as head of Nissan. "Renault has gathered sufficient evidence to understand and regret the methods used by Nissan and its lawyers to seek interviews with Renault employees through the Japanese public prosecutor's office," they said. Nissan was seeking "evidence to support allegations against Carlos Ghosn after his arrest" and failed to consult its French partner, according to the newspaper. The firm also tried to search Ghosn's apartments in Brazil, Lebanon and the Netherlands without informing Renault, the letter added. A Nissan spokesman told AFP on Sunday that the letter which they received weeks ago has "already been reviewed and fully addressed in a series of verbal and written responses from Nissan's external attorneys." "The communications in question do not reflect the current state of discussions with Renault and its lawyers," said Nissan spokesman Nicholas Maxfield. "Nissan... has always welcomed an open and direct dialogue with its partners to help uncover relevant facts", he added. The executive's arrest in November has exposed rifts between Renault and Nissan, which some analysts say was bristling at Ghosn's efforts to bring the two automakers' operations even closer together. Ghosn was the linchpin of the three-way alliance, which also included Mitsubishi Motors, earning industry plaudits for driving together a sometimes fractious threesome with headquarters 10,000 kilometres apart. Much of the tension between the partners stems from a complex ownership structure that gives Renault 43 percent of Nissan, whereas Nissan owns just 15 percent stake in the French company -- and no voting rights. Khartoum (AFP) - Police used tear gas to disperse hundreds of Sudanese protesters who marched on a women's prison calling for the release of detainees in Omdurman on Sunday, witnesses said. "We are fighters, we will complete our mission," protesters had chanted as women ululated and men flashed the victory sign, according to the witnesses. The protesters called for the release of women arrested in ongoing demonstrations against President Omar al-Bashir's three-decade rule, the witnesses said. Marchers also called for the "overthrow" of Bashir, as they approached the prison in Omdurman -- the twin city of the capital Khartoum -- before they were dispersed. The march was called by the Sudanese Professionals Association (SPA), which is spearheading the protest campaign. Initial demonstrations erupted on December 19 against a government decision to triple the price of bread, and quickly escalated into calls for Bashir to step down. The SPA, an umbrella body of doctors, engineers and teachers, called Sunday's march a "Rally for Women Detainees". "Women are taking the lead in the protest movement," a female protester taking part in Sunday's rally told AFP without revealing her name for security reasons. "The SPA has called today's march in honour of female detainees and this will inspire us to continue until we achieve success." Bashir on Wednesday pinned the unrest in part on Sudan's decades-old public order law, and also acknowledged that growing economic hardships have angered youths and sent them out into the streets. Activists say the law targets mainly women, often accusing them of "indecent dressing and immoral behaviour". More than 1,000 people, including protesters, activists, opposition leaders and journalists have been arrested since the protests began. Officials say 30 people have died in protest-related violence, while Human Rights Watch says at least 51 people have been killed. On Friday night, President Trumps physician said the President is in very good health and is expected to remain so. The details of Trumps health were announced after the Presidents annual exam in a memo written by Dr. Sean Conley. Dr. Conley is a Navy officer and current director of the White House medical unit. He also serves as the Presidents personal physician. I am happy to announce the President of the United States is in very good health and I anticipate he will remain so for the duration of his presidency, and beyond, Dr. Conley said in the memo. On Friday, the President spent four hours being examined by more than 11 board-certified specialists at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Dr. Conleys memo states. Last year, the physical was led by Trumps previous personal physician Rear Admiral Ronny Jackson, who was forced to withdraw from consideration to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs in April 2018 after allegations of professional misconduct. During a press conference, Jackson said last year that the President, who at 72 is the oldest elected president, weighed 239 pounds and could stand to lose 10 to 15 pounds. Jackson also said Trump has incredibly good genes. DETROIT (AP) In the brightly lit Vintage Barbershop in northwest Detroit, Thomas Carter carefully trimmed the graying hair of a customer as he was asked about photos that depict whites wearing blackface. He paused and slowly scanned the shop where about a half-dozen black men of various ages awaited their turn. "It's not funny to me. It's not funny to me at all," he said. From police shootings of black men, to white supremacy rallies, to efforts to remove Confederate Civil War monuments, the nation has lurched from one racial controversy to another in recent years. The latest is blackface in which someone darkens their face and adds bright red lipstick to create stereotypes and caricatures. The disclosures have angered and frustrated many black people, who say it is mocking and demeaning. The practice took hold in New York City in the 1830s and became immensely popular among post-Civil War whites. In fact, the Jim Crow laws that enforced racial segregation in the South took their name from a character played by blackface performer Thomas Dartmouth Rice. He said his act "Jump, Jim Crow" (or "Jumping Jim Crow") was inspired by a slave he saw. On the first day of Black History Month a week ago, a photo emerged from Virginia Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam's 1984 medical school yearbook page that showed someone in blackface and another person in a Ku Klux Klan hood and robe. Northam at first admitted he was in the picture, then denied it a day later, but acknowledged he once blackened his face with shoe polish to imitate Michael Jackson for a dance contest in 1984. The disclosure roiled Virginia politics and prompted widespread calls for Northam to resign . He has so far refused. Days later, Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring who is second in line to succeed Northam if he resigns admitted to wearing blackface to look like a rapper during a party when he was a 19-year-old at the University of Virginia in 1980. Story continues The Virginia disclosures drew intense attention but are hardly unusual. Just in recent months, Florida's Republican secretary of state resigned in disgrace after a 2005 photo showed him wearing blackface and dressing as a "Hurricane Katrina victim." Clothing label Gucci said it was pulling a blackface-themed sweater from stores. A Snapchat video shows two Connecticut high school students wearing what seems like blackface. A similar incident was reported last month at the University of Oklahoma, when a man walked around campus in blackface. An old photo has popped up of "The View" co-host Joy Behar wearing makeup to darken her skin for a Halloween costume in the 1970s. Carter said white people wearing blackface is a painful reminder of America's history of racism, hate and exploitation. "It's just a huge form of disrespect. I'm kind of upset with a lot of people allowing it to be done. It's acceptable in a lot of circles, even with our own people," he said. Education consultant and travel writer Fernanda Meier took to Twitter Wednesday to express her disgust. "Dear white people," she wrote, then retweeted: "Don't wear blackface. Don't think about wearing blackface. To be safe, don't even say the word blackface, except to say 'don't wear blackface.'" "My skin, hair, lips are a costume to non-black people," Meier told The Associated Press from Bogota, Colombia, where she currently resides. "There is nothing flattering about using shoe polish or dark makeup to paint one's skin like mine, when the very same thing is the source of my oppression." The Northam yearbook photo was even worse because the person in blackface was standing next to another person dressed in a white robe and mask like the Ku Klux Klan, said Korey Garibaldi, an assistant professor in American Studies at the University of Notre Dame. "With that, you have a literal reference to racial terrorism," Garibaldi said. "It's never just blackface. There's always something that makes this just that much more frightening the Klan, exclusion from school, a job. It's a whole kind of comprehensive white supremacy, not just a particular sort of image or remark. It's a structure that needs to be challenged." Carter said the person in Klan garb in Northam's yearbook photo angered him as a black man. "When you see the Klan ... these people took pictures next to bodies, hanging out of a tree," he said in reference to lynchings. "The brutality that we face on a mental, physical and spiritual level is a lot. Hate is taught. You're not born a racist. So, you have households teaching ... kids. It's inbred. How are you going to stop that?" Taj Muhammad, a black man from Detroit, said the incidents show there is still racial hatred. "I'm disappointed that more black people don't know the history (of blackface) and know it's very insulting," Muhammad said. "I'm not disappointed in people of European descent. Historically, most Europeans never have been embracing of people of African descent." The number of hate crimes reported in the United States has risen in recent years to more than 4,100 motivated by race or ethnicity in 2017 compared to just under 3,500 the year before, according to Justice Department data . Chicago-area pastor Eric Dorsey said it springs from systemic cultural bias. "It's kind of funny in a way where stuff like this comes out and the public has this outrage and this outcry of, 'Oh my God! I can't believe this happened,'" Dorsey said. "When if you really study the history of this nation, why are you surprised?" He said the publicity around the incidents could be a good thing. "I look at that as an opportunity to discuss issues that this country has swept under the rug," he said. "We as a society have a chance to address them and heal from these wounds." __ Associated Press writer Alina Hartounian in Phoenix contributed to this report. Hebron (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) - Palestinians in the occupied West Bank city of Hebron walked children to school Sunday, saying protecting them from Israeli settlers was necessary following the withdrawal of international monitors. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced last month he would not renew the mandate of the Temporary International Presence in Hebron (TIPH), accusing it of bias. The mission left on January 31. It was established after a massacre of Palestinians in 1994 and Palestinian officials warned the withdrawal of the international monitors could increase abuses by settlers in the city. Palestinians from the Youth Against Settlements organisation accompanied children to schools in vests with the word "observer" written in English, Arabic and Hebrew, an AFP photographer said. "Today we started a local campaign to document violations that children going to school are subject to in this area where there are always settlers and the occupation army," Issa Amro from the organisation told AFP. "We will not replace the international observers, but we try as much as we can to make sure that the children go to school." Small scuffles broke out between Israeli settlers, the Palestinians ands Israeli soldiers during the walk, the AFP journalist said. TIPH was created after 29 Palestinian worshippers in a mosque were gunned down by an American-born Israeli settler. Observers carried out daily patrols and document rights abuses they witness, although they were not allowed to intervene. The mission reported its findings to its member countries -- Italy, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and Turkey -- as well as the Israeli and Palestinian authorities. Hebron is holy to both Muslims and Jews and has been a flashpoint in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. At least 600 Jewish settlers live under heavy military guard in the city, which is home to around 200,000 Palestinians. Israeli settlements are seen as illegal under international law and a major obstacle to peace, as they are built on land the Palestinians see as part of their future state. https://www.flickr.com/photos/nato/17165047842/in/photolist-s9PmGJ-rSvxBD-s5cHwJ-rSnkyW-rQCGVz-rSnk8W-rda9jD-nHn4AC-nBJByg-nxUT7s-s9XBDe-c1Snj1-nsV7Ed-nMbYXx-9ReqHe-nit35W-nK7upi-9YvMV3-nsV9zL-nKpAiT-nMbYUX-nit1Tr-pQRjk7-nit4sf-pbrYpH-aDrxTa-q8jFkq-pQNkFh Michael Peck Security, Europe Will it happen? Official: Europe Needs Its Very Own Space Force Europe should create its own military space force, just like America is planning to do, says a European Union lawmaker. The U.S. have created a Space Force, said Elzbieta Bienkowska, former Polish deputy prime minister and now European Commissioner for the Internal Market, speaking at a recent European space conference. We need, on the medium to long-term, a European Space Force. I hear some spoke about an orbital society: Why not? I hear others targeting the moon and the moon village: Why not? I hear also that Europe should have the capacity to have human space flights and not depend on others: Certainly yes! We need to set in motion a process to define Europes vision for space. Bienkowska said that several member states are considering just now ways to strengthen their defense doctrine in the space dimension. They are talking about space forces, said Bienkowska. However, Jorge Domecq, chief executive of the European Defense Agency, told the EUobserver news site that he was unaware of the space force idea, and no EU state has so far called for it. Bienkowskas proposal comes after French president Emmanuel Macron called for the creation of a European army. While an EU army shows no signs of coming to fruition, it is seen as a potential European response as the Trump administration appears to be disengaging from Europe and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Yet interestingly, Domecq suggested that a European space force would actually complement the proposed U.S. Space Force, which would absorb the space capabilities of the various U.S. military branches. The U.S. is an important ally, he said. If your main partner is developing its space capabilities, its space policies in a direction, you have to take note of them when you are developing further your space defense programs. One EU source told the EUobserver that while an EU space force was unlikely, European militaries could take advantage of the EUs civilian space projects, notably the Galileo navigational satellite system, which is Europes counterpart to Americas GPS. Story continues There will be member states using it for military purposes, and there will be others states using it for emergency services and what have you. the source said. This is a decision of the individual member state. The concept of a European space force illustrates the potentialand the problemsof pan-European defense. The EU as a whole comprises one of the worlds largest economies, with its twenty-eight states including several with technologically advanced and powerful militaries, including Britain, France and Germany. The EU even has its own space program, though its dwarfed by Americas NASA and Chinas space agency. On the other hand, a European space force would suffer from the same obstacles and limitations that a European army would face. It would have to accommodate nations with different languages, cultures and economic and technological capacity. Consensus would be needed among countries with different strategic interests: France, which has a space program that has developed rockets and satellites, may have different priorities than Bulgaria and Greece. Financially, if only four out of twenty-nine members of NATOwhich has been the de facto European armyhave met the recommended threshold of spending 2 percent of their GDP on defense, then reliable funding for an EU space force would be questionable. Nonetheless, space is becoming the next battleground, and the United States, Russia and China are devoting vast resources to prepare for a conflict where the communication, navigation and surveillance satellites that high-tech armies depend on will be targets. The question is whether Europe can rely on America to provide these capabilities. And if not, can Europe remain militarily relevant without its own space force? Michael Peck is a contributing writer for the National Interest. He can be found on Twitter and Facebook. Image: Flickr Read full article MINNEAPOLIS (AP) Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar on Sunday joined the growing group of Democrats jostling to be president and positioned herself as the most prominent Midwestern candidate in the field, as her party tries to win back voters in a region that helped put Donald Trump in the White House. "For every American, I'm running for you," she told an exuberant crowd gathered on a freezing, snowy afternoon at a park along the Mississippi River with the Minneapolis skyline in the background. "And I promise you this: As your president, I will look you in the eye. I will tell you what I think. I will focus on getting things done. That's what I've done my whole life. And no matter what, I'll lead from the heart," the three-term senator said. Klobuchar, who has prided herself for achieving results through bipartisan cooperation, did not utter Trump's name during her kickoff speech. But she did bemoan the conduct of "foreign policy by tweet" and said Americans must "stop the fear-mongering and stop the hate. ... We all live in the same country of shared dreams." And she said that on her first day as president, she would have the U.S. rejoin an international climate agreement that Trump has withdrawn from. Trump responded to Klobuchar's announcement with a tweet mocking her stance on global warming, a phenomenon he has disputed in the past. He wrote that Klobuchar talked proudly "of fighting global warming while standing in a virtual blizzard of snow, ice and freezing temperatures. Bad timing. By the end of her speech she looked like a Snowman(woman)!" Trump often overlooks evidence of record global warming and conflates cold spells and other incidents of weather with climate, which is long-term. Klobuchar also spoke of the need to "heal the heart of our democracy and renew our commitment to the common good." Asserting Midwestern values, she told a crowd warmed by hot chocolate, apple cider, heat lamps and bonfires: "I don't have a political machine. I don't come from money. But what I do have is this: I have grit." Story continues Klobuchar, who easily won a third-term last year, has pointed to her broad appeal across Minnesota as she has discussed a 2020 run. She has drawn support from voters in urban, suburban and rural areas, including in dozens of counties Trump won in 2016. She has said that success could translate to other Midwestern states such as Michigan and Wisconsin, reliably Democratic in presidential races for decades until Trump's victory over Hillary Clinton. She said the country's "sense of community is fracturing" today, "worn down by the petty and vicious nature of our politics. We are all tired of the shutdowns and the showdowns, the gridlock and the grandstanding." The list of Democrats already in the race features several better-known senators with the ability to raise huge amounts of money Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Kamala Harris of California, Cory Booker of New Jersey and Kirsten Gillibrand of New York. The field soon could expand to include prominent Democrats such as former Vice President Joe Biden of Delaware and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. A Des Moines Register/CNN/Mediacom poll conducted by Selzer & Company in December found that Klobuchar was largely unfamiliar to likely Iowa caucus-goers, with 54 percent saying they didn't know enough about her to have an opinion, while 38 percent had a favorable opinion and 8 percent had an unfavorable opinion. "She starts out perhaps with a better understanding of Midwestern voters, but I think she faces the same hurdles every one of them face, which is: Are Iowans going to find them either the best candidate to defeat Donald Trump or the candidate that most aligns with their ideologies and issues?" said John Norris, a longtime Iowa-based Democratic strategist. "I don't know that coming from Minnesota gives her any advantage with Iowans." Klobuchar, 58, is known as a straight-shooting, pragmatist willing to work with Republicans, making her one of the Senate's most productive members at passing legislation. The rally took place not far from the Interstate 35W bridge over the Mississippi. The span was built after the previous bridge collapsed in 2007, killing 13 people. Klobuchar had worked with then Sen. Norm Coleman, R-Minn., to help fund the new bridge and get it completed at a faster-than-usual pace. "We worked across the aisle to get the federal funding and we rebuilt that I-35W bridge in just over a year. That's community. That's a shared story. That's ordinary people doing extraordinary things," she said. Klobuchar's focus in recent months has included prescription drug prices, a new farm bill and election security. She supports the "Green New Deal," a Democratic plan proposed this past week to combat climate change and create thousands of jobs in renewable energy. But her legislative record has drawn criticism from both the GOP and some fellow Democrats. Some Republicans say Klobuchar is able to get things done because she pushes smaller issues. Some progressives say she lacks the kind of fire and bold ideas needed to bring significant change and excite voters. Klobuchar on Sunday also responded to reports in BuzzFeed and HuffPost that she has mistreated staff, saying she "can be tough" but has many staff members who've worked for her for many years. "I can push people. I know that," she told reporters after the event. "I have I'd say high expectations for myself, I have high expectations for the people who work for me, but I have high expectations for this country. And that's what we need. We need someone who is focused on getting things done for this country." Klobuchar, a lawyer and the former prosecutor in Minnesota's largest county, raised her national profile during a Senate Judiciary Committee last fall for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, who was accused of sexually assaulting a woman when they were both in high school. When Klobuchar asked Kavanaugh whether he ever had had so much to drink that he didn't remember what happened, he turned the question around. He asked Klobuchar, "Have you?" Unruffled, Klobuchar continued as Kavanaugh asked again. Kavanaugh later apologized to Klobuchar, whose father is an alcoholic. "When you have a parent who's an alcoholic, you're pretty careful about drinking," she said. "I was truly trying to get to the bottom of the facts and the evidence." Among the other Midwestern lawmakers who could also seek the nomination are Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio, who has been visiting early voting states, and Pete Buttigieg, the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, who established an exploratory committee last month. Klobuchar campaigned with Democrats in Iowa last fall, and in December spoke to progressive farmers and activists about the importance of bridging the divide between urban and rural areas. She said the lesson learned after the 2016 election was "we are not going to leave the Midwest behind." "This is the moment for the Midwest," she said, "and we don't want to be forgotten again in a national election." ___ AP Polling Editor Emily Swanson in Washington contributed to this report. ___ This story has been corrected to show the bridge Klobuchar referenced is the Interstate 35W bridge, not the Interstate 35 bridge. Reuters Chas Goldman Security, Eurasia Imagine the advantages that Russia could reap from the political and economic instability caused by climate change and a global refugee crisis. The Kremlin's Key to World Dominance: Climate Change Its 2018 but youd think it was 1951. Pundits talk of a new Cold War between Moscow and Washington and Americans level of concern vis-a-vis Russia has hit its highest level in the postCold War I era. Back in 2014 Paul Saunders argued that a new Cold War would look quite a bit different from the conflict that defined the latter half of the twentieth century. At the core of Saunders argument is a fact that security analysts largely agree on: Russia is weak. Ben Heineman, Jr. at Harvard Law and the Center for Strategic and International Studies has emphasized that Russias fertility rates (death rates currently exceed birth rates) will create dire economic and cultural repercussions for the Kremlin. Ashleigh Garrison and Kelly Song at CNBC have characterized Russias sluggish and oil-dependent economy as Putins Achilles heel. Andrew Kramer has highlighted that Russian economic deterioration is likely to accelerate as the ruble is choked by the tightening noose of U.S.-led economic sanctions. These trends are striking, and Americans would do well to remember the fragility of the Russian state and Putins regime when gorging on wall-to-wall coverage of malicious Kremlin-sponsored activities. However, Saunders analysis adds that twenty-first century geopolitical dynamics (namely the acceleration of globalization and technological advancement) have made it easier for comparatively weak states to have an outsized effect on international affairs - potentially giving the Kremlin an edge. But theres a long-term security dynamic that Saunders and many other experts overlook: climate change. I remember thinking about this last fall when I was sweating bullets in Moscow on an October day that was hotter than any October day anyone could have imagined in 1951. I was in Moscow to see the sites, but as a young congressional staffer and researcher focused on long-term security dynamics, I couldnt help but notice that the Moscow Marriott was playing host to a conference of nuclear-security experts from around the globe. The gathering of (almost exclusively white and male) experts to talk about an increasingly antiquated issue perfectly illustrates the global security establishments continued reluctance to grapple with the geopolitical challenges of the future. Story continues Politicians and the experts that advise them are often focused on security in the short-term. What is threatening now? What do I need to look tough on now? How can I prove that I have more tact than my opponent before the next election? But as a college-student Im focused on how long-term dynamics will affect me, my kids and my country fifty years down the road. These issues are my issues; in 2050 (when many of the decision makers of today are six feet under and my kids are graduating high school) 150 million peoplealmost 10 percent of the world's populationare estimated to be displaced by climate change. The experts in the Moscow Marriott would have been better off talking about the weather and my sweaty forehead. The changing climate will wreak havoc on the international system and while the United States and its allies face tremendous potential economic and political damage, Russia is likely to be insulated from these dire effects and, in fact, it may benefit as the world warms. Propelling the Kremlins comeback wont be a Cold War mentality. Instead, heat, specifically climate change, may drive a Russian resurgence. First of all, most Russians will be shielded from the primary effects of climate change because of the countrys geography. Many of Russias major urban centers are inland, decreasing its exposure to coastal flooding while adversarial superpowers are far more susceptible. The countries at highest risk are islands and low-lying nations in Southeast Asia but coastal areas in Europe and North America will be hit hard, too. Even a modest 18-inches of sea-level rise is estimated to displace 14.2 million people in the United States alone, more than 4 percent of the current U.S. population. On the other hand, only 1.86 million Russians are expected to be displaced under the same conditions, less than 1.3 percent of that countrys population. Some people would argue that the strength of the American economy will allow Washington to better respond to climate disasters compared to the meager response Moscow will likely be able to muster from its significantly smaller pool of resources. Fair. But Russia may soon have many more resources to work with. The thawing of the Arctic Sea could also create tremendous benefits for the Kremlin. A study by the U.S. Geological Survey estimated that 30 percent of the worlds untapped natural gas and 13 percent of untapped oil reserves are trapped in the Arctic, right in Putins backyard. As the ice thaws and research and development improves, the cost needed to extract those materials will shrink significantly and offer a potential economic boom for Russia. In addition, as ice melts in the Arctic Sea, a shipping route from Russias Northern coast to East Asia will develop. The implications of this new global trade route are hard to understate; Chinese exports to Europe would likely travel through Russia, giving Moscow currently unimaginable economic leverage over NATO adversaries in Eastern and Western Europe. The new route could also be a central tool for Russia as it attempts to diversify its ailing economy that has struggled to transition from oil and arms dependence. This threat is having a tangible impact now: in 2017, a Russian tanker completed its first pass through the Arctic Sea without an icebreaker. As Giuseppe Agliastro at the Italian daily La Stampa has noted, climate change has the potential to transform Russia into an agricultural superpower as huge swaths of Russian territory morph from uninhabitable frozen tundra to fertile land. The warming climate could also make Russia a more attractive tourism destination, further aiding the Kremlin in its quest to diversify the domestic economy. These economic boons may give Moscow the means to muster a robust response to the negative effects of climate change. Other analysts who are skeptical of the changing climates effect on the United States ignore the fact that migration is an instigator of political instability. Take Syria. The refugee crisis stemming from that horrific conflict has polarized European and American political parties. Russian interests are bolstered by the destabilization of Western political institutions because domestic political squabbling draws attention and resources away from combatting the Kremlins activities. Russia also benefits from its authoritarian political system because, as a de facto single-party state, its not subject to the kind of polarization that plagues its adversaries. These dynamics will intensify as global climate displacement accelerates. Russia has proven that it is able to exploit domestic divides to weaken Western institutions and further its own agenda. Western democracies have been dramatically weakened by a few hundred million dollars worth of unsophisticated cyber-weapons. Imagine the advantages that the Kremlin could reap from the political and economic instability caused by a global refugee crisis. Rising seas could also spell catastrophe for the United States ability to project power around the world and may force Washington to deprioritize containment of Russian aggression. A 2018 Department of Defense analysis found that nearly half of Americas more than three thousand military installations are in danger of significant damage from extreme weather. Rebuilding or relocating those bases would be exorbitantly expensive and domestic spending is already predicted to soar (Americas debt-to-GDP ratio is expected to double in the next thirty years and it is already sky-high). Strategists need to accept the reality that the United States is likely to be forced to reduce its military commitments abroad, creating long-term opportunities for Russia. It is possible that the international community will step up to the plate on climate change. But it is very difficult to build the global political capital needed to take meaningful action because of the diffuse, slow-developing, intangible and long-term nature of the problem. Even if world leaders had a kumbaya moment on climate, many of the costs for the world and benefits for the Kremlin are locked in because of the changes that have already occured. As the world grows warmer and the global political sea churns with instability, many ships teeter on the verge of sinking, but the Kremlin is well-positioned to ride the high tides to economic revitalization and strategic resurgence. That should be enough to cause anyone to sweat through a (warming) Russian winter. Chas Goldman studies International Politics in the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. He has written previously about U.S.-Russia relations and political dynamics in the former Soviet-Republics. Image: Reuters Read full article Punjab Constabulary Farooqabad Jobs 2019 Latest Punjab Constabulary Security Posts Sheikhupura 2021 Punjab Constabulary Farooqabad requires the services of experienced and strong persons for the posts of Dhobi, Mali, Sanitary Worker, Sweeper, Cook, Barbar in District Sheikhupura. How to Apply on Punjab Constabulary Job Advertisement Apply as per details in job advertisement. In some cases, you may apply online at vacancies after registering at https://www.jobz.pk online. Note: Beware of Fraudulent Recruiting Activities. If the employer asks you to pay money for any purpose including processing to shortlisting, do not pay at all and report us using our contact us form. Apply as per instuctions & dates mentioned in official job ad. Govt jobs cannot be applied online here. Error & omissions excepted. Addis Ababa (AFP) - Rwandan President Paul Kagame, who led an active, reformist tenure as African Union chair, on Sunday passed the baton to Egypt, seen as more likely to focus on security issues than expanding the body's powers. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi officially took over the rotating post of ceremonial head of the AU at the start of a two-day summit in Addis Ababa. The meeting highlighted the "links between the Mediterranean and Lake Victoria," as a metaphor for sub-Saharan Africa. "Egypt has an interest in Africa, they want to strengthen their position on the African continent and they don't want to be seen as a country only focused on the Arab world," said Liesl Louw-Vaudran, an analyst at the Institute for Security Studies. Kagame's leadership of the AU focused on institutional and administrative reforms. Sisi however is expected to focus more on security, peacekeeping and post-war reconstruction, issues closely tied to the AU's 2019 theme of "Refugees, Returnees and Internally Displaced Persons". "The road is still long" in terms of reaching the AU's goal of "silencing the guns" by 2020, Sisi told delegates on Sunday. He announced he would hold a "forum for peace and development" in the town of Aswan, southern Egypt, in 2019. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Saturday that peaceful elections in DR Congo, Mali and Madagascar, peace deals in South Sudan and Central African Republic and the truce between Ethiopia and Eritrea, were however signs of a "wind of hope" on the continent. Guterres also hailed the solidarity shown in Africa, where countries house nearly a third of refugees and displaced people in the world. "Despite the continent's own social, economic and security challenges, Africas governments and people have kept borders, doors and hearts open to millions in need," he said. Story continues "Unfortunately, this example has not been followed everywhere." The chairmanship of the AU rotates between the five regions of the continent, and South Africa will take over from Egypt next year. - Reforms and resistance - While multiple crises on the continent will be on the agenda of heads of state from the 55 member nations, the summit will also focus on institutional reforms, and the establishment of a continent-wide free trade zone. While the Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA) was agreed by 44 nations in March 2018, only 19 countries have so far ratified the agreement. It requires 22 to ratify it for it to come into effect. The single market is a flagship of the AU's "Agenda 2063" programme, conceived as key to transforming the continent's economies. Cairo is backing the initiative, but analysts say it will be less likely to focus on the financial and administrative reforms pushed by Kagame. Kagame, who has been leading institutional reforms since 2016, pushed for a continent-wide import tax to fund the AU and reduce its dependence on external donors, who still pay for more than half the institution's annual budget. But member states have resisted both this and moves to strengthen the powers of the AU Commission, its executive organ. In November 2018, most states rejected a proposal to give the head of the AU Commission the power to name deputies and commissioners. Egypt, like fellow regional heavyweights Nigeria and South Africa, is not keen on a powerful AU, one African diplomat told AFP. Cairo has "never forgotten" its suspension in 2013 after Egypt's army deposed Islamist president Mohamed Morsi, who had in 2012 became the country's first democratically elected president, the diplomat said. "Traditionally, leaders of big powers have not really helped the position of AU chairperson, as they don't want an AU which is too strong or too intrusive," said Elissa Jobson of the International Crisis Group. Kagame suffered a setback after expressing "serious doubts" on behalf of the AU about the results of the Democratic Republic of Congo's recent presidential election, which was officially won by Felix Tshisekedi. The country's Catholic church had also questioned the result. But the DRC's constitutional court validated the results anyway and continental heavyweights South Africa, Kenya and Egypt acknowledged Tshisekedi's victory. "This whole thing was an embarrassment for the AU, it showed the limitations of what the AU chairperson can do," said Jobson. Amnesty International expressed fears that Egypt's chairmanship could undermine human rights in the AU. "During his time in power President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has demonstrated a shocking contempt for human rights," said Najia Bounaim, Amnesty's North Africa Campaigns Director. "Under his leadership the country has undergone a catastrophic decline in rights and freedoms," she added. Amman (AFP) - A Jordanian court sentenced two brothers to death on Sunday in connection with a 2016 attack claimed by the Islamic State group, overturning a life sentence handed to the men last year. The shooting attack in Karak, home to one of the region's largest Crusader castles, killed seven policemen and two Jordanian civilians as well as a female Canadian tourist, and wounded 34 other people. The head of the kingdom's state security court, a military tribunal, ordered Khalid al-Majali and Hamza al-Majali to be "hanged to death". Jordan's cassation court, the kingdom's highest judicial body, reversed a November ruling which sentenced the two to life behind bars. "The actions of the defendants caused chaos, panic and horror among Jordanians and foreign tourists and threatened the country's security and stability," a judicial source told AFP. The two brothers were initially charged, along with eight others, with "terrorist acts", illegal possession of arms and producing explosives. Three were sentenced to 15 years in prison and five others to serve three years in jail. Courts in Jordan, the target of several deadly attacks, regularly put on trial suspected jihadists. A close ally of Washington, the desert kingdom is part of a US-led coalition fighting IS in neighbouring Syria and Iraq, and it allows coalition forces to use its bases. Palma (Spain) (AFP) - A German migrant rescue ship which operates in the Mediterranean was renamed Sunday after Alan Kurdi, a three-year-old Syrian refugee boy whose body washed up on a Turkish beach at the height of the migrant crisis, sparking global outrage Alan's father, Abdullah Kurdi, and aunt, Tima Kurdi, attended the renaming ceremony held in Palma on Spain's Balearic Island of Mallorca. The event was organised by German charity Sea-Eye which operates the boat formerly known as the Professor Albrecht Penck. "We are happy that a German rescue ship will carry the name of our boy. My boy on the beach must never be forgotten. Our grief for the loss of my wife and sons is shared by many, by thousands of families who have so tragically lost sons and daughters this way," Abdullah Kurdi said in a statement released by Sea-Eye. Kurdi paid smugglers to take him and his family from Turkey to Greece after the Turkish government would not grant them the exit visas they needed to enter Canada where Tima lives as refugees. Their September 2015 journey across the Mediterranean ended in tragedy after the flimsy inflatable boat sank in rough seas. Eleven refugees died, including Kurdi's wife Rehanna and their two young boys, Ghalib and Alan -- or Aylan as his name was widely transcribed in the anglophone press at the time. The images of Alan, wearing a red T-shirt, blue shorts and black shoes, and lying face-down in the surf, sparked outcry around the world and led to demands that more should be done to protect those making the perilous journey from North Africa to Europe. But the rise of anti-immigrant movements across Europe in response to the spike in arrivals in 2015 has seen governments seek to stem the numbers amid continuing rows over who should take those who do make it. Sea-Eye says it has saved more than 14,000 people from drowning in the Mediterranean in more than 60 missions since it started operating in 2016. WASHINGTON (AP) The head of the Food and Drug Administration is questioning whether electronic cigarette maker Juul and its new partner Altria are following through on pledges to help reverse the boom in underage vaping. FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb on Friday posted letters he sent to Juul and Altria, the maker of Marlboro cigarettes and other tobacco products. He called for a joint meeting to discuss what he calls "inconsistent" statements from the companies. Gottlieb and other government officials have been scrambling to contain a surge in underage vaping. Under federal law, people must be at least 18 years old to purchase vaping products yet the latest federal survey found 1 in 5 high school students used e-cigarettes. Last year's uptick coincided with the rise of Juul, a small vaping device that accounts for about three-quarters of the U.S. e-cigarette market. In December, Altria paid nearly $13 billion to purchase a 35 percent stake in Juul, a Silicon Valley startup which has portrayed its products as a less harmful alternative for adult cigarette smokers. E-cigarettes heat a nicotine solution into a vapor that's inhaled. The acquisition came after Altria told the FDA it was pulling some of its own flavored e-cigarettes off the market to be "part of the solution." The company said specifically that cartridge-based products, which include Juul, "significantly contribute to the rise in youth use of e-vapor products." But since investing in Juul, Altria has announced plans to use its vast supply chain to expand Juul's footprint to some 230,000 convenience stores and retailers across the U.S. Altria is the parent company of Philip Morris USA, the nation's largest tobacco company. Gottlieb said the company's recent actions don't match its previous statements. "I want to understand what's changed from a public health standpoint that their posture has changed," Gottlieb said Friday. Story continues In response, the two companies said they remain committed to stopping teens from getting their products. "Both Altria and Juul have taken significant steps that exceed what others in the industry have done," said Altria spokesman Steven Callahan, in an emailed statement. In November, the FDA proposed but hasn't yet implemented tighter restrictions on the e-cigarette industry, including limits on sales in convenience stores and online. Juul and Altria took steps to limit youth access ahead of the FDA's announcement. Juul voluntarily shut down its Facebook and Instagram accounts and pulled several of its fruit and candy flavors out of retail stores. Despite those voluntary measures, Gottlieb said he doubts youth vaping will decline this year. That could require regulations that would force some or all e-cigarettes off the market, he said. "If the rates of youth use continue to increase sharply we're going to have to take additional steps there's no question about that," he said. After taking charge of FDA in 2017, Gottlieb outlined a mostly hands-off approach toward vaping, delaying FDA reviews of Juul and other e-cigarettes until 2022. Gottlieb still says he doesn't want to over-regulate an industry that could provide a safer option for adult smokers. Several anti-smoking groups are suing the FDA to immediately begin reviewing e-cigarettes. ___ The Associated Press Health & Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content. ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) Egypt's President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has been elected chairman of the African Union at the continental body's summit in Ethiopia. Also at the African Union meeting Sunday, a statue of Ethiopia's last emperor was unveiled. Afterward a scuffle erupted between security guards for some African leaders and African Union guards, causing a delay in the entry procession of the heads of state into the main meeting. El-Sisi addressed the summit after being elected the new chairman, saying he would focus on security on the African continent. "Our work must continue to improve peace and security in Africa in a holistic and sustainable manner," el- Sisi said. "Mediation and preventive diplomacy will remain one of the priorities of the African Union." The new African Union chairman said that "counter- terrorism requires the identification of those who support and finance it and combating them collectively. While we are aware of the difficulty and complexity of the struggle, this remains the only appropriate way to uproot terrorism and eradicate it." The rights group Amnesty International warned that el-Sisi's chairmanship might undermine the African Union's human rights mechanisms. "During his time in power President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has demonstrated a shocking contempt for human rights. Under his leadership the country has undergone a catastrophic decline in rights and freedoms," said Najia Bounaim, Amnesty's North Africa Campaigns Director. "There are real fears about the potential impact his chairmanship could have on the independence of regional human rights mechanisms and their future engagement with civil society." The rights group said Egypt since 2015 has orchestrated a sustained political attack against the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights, the body that aims to monitor African states' human rights records. "Dozens of cases alleging serious human rights violations have been lodged against Egypt at the ACHPR," it said. Story continues Egyptian leaders have been absent from African Union meetings since 1995 when an assassination attempt was made on the life of former leader Hosni Mubarak. El-Sisi's election brought to an end the one-year chairmanship of Rwanda's President Paul Kagame. African Union chairmen set agendas of issues to be addressed during their one-year tenure. During his tenure, Kagame dramatically challenged the election results in the Democratic Republic of Congo. NEW YORK (AP) -- First it was a heart-wrenching tweet that he and his wife were getting a divorce after 25 years. Then a tabloid revealed that he'd been having an affair, releasing texts and photos of him and his mistress. As if either of those weren't distracting enough, now Jeff Bezos the world's richest man and CEO of Amazon is accusing The National Enquirer in a blog post of trying to blackmail him by threatening to release more intimate photos of him unless he calls off an investigation into how that information was obtained in the first place. But despite the all-consuming personal drama, analysts and experts don't expect it to make much difference to Amazon itself, the company Bezos has steered from an online bookstore two decades ago to a worldwide juggernaut. Michael Pachter, an analyst at Wedbush Securities, estimates the impact on the company to be "0.000 percent." "I'm certain investors won't care," he said. Others point out that Bezos has been able to balance his responsibilities at the helm of the world's largest online retailer while also juggling his other pursuits: running a space exploration company and owning the Washington Post, one of the nation's most influential newspapers. "He's extraordinarily driven," says Chris McCabe, who used to work at Amazon and now runs ecommerceChris, a consultancy for Amazon sellers. "He knows how to delegate." Amazon has a steady line of longtime executives who are running each of its businesses, likely keeping investors calm. Jeffrey Wilke, oversees the retail business, and Andrew Jassy runs the company's fast-growing cloud computing business Amazon Web Services. Both of them have been at the company since the 1990s. And unlike other CEOs, Bezos doesn't speak at conference calls with analysts and investors after the company releases its financial reports, leaving that to Chief Financial Officer Brian Olsavsky, who has been at the company since 2002. Still, that hasn't stopped the Enquirer from casting doubts over whether Bezos can effectively oversee his company. Story continues "All of these (text) messages raise serious questions about Bezos' judgment as the CEO of the most valuable company in the world," the tabloid said in a Jan. 24 article. Seattle-based Amazon.com Inc. declined to comment on Bezos. The company's stock did not take a big hit, slipping 1.6 percent at Friday's close. Meanwhile, the Enquirer's publisher, American Media Inc., is disputing Bezos' claims that it used extortion and blackmail in reporting its story, saying that it "acted lawfully." In his blog post Thursday, Bezos defended his ability to lead Amazon: "I founded Amazon in my garage 24 years ago, and drove all the packages to the post office myself. Today, Amazon employs more than 600,000 people, just finished its most profitable year ever, even while investing heavily in new initiatives, and it's usually somewhere between the #1 and #5 most valuable company in the world. I will let those results speak for themselves." He also said he wants to focus on work, noting that the person he hired to handle the investigation into how his texts were leaked to the Enquirer will also be tasked with "protecting" his time. "I have other things I prefer to work on," Bezos wrote. Bezos' indiscretions are seen more as a personal matter rather than one to do with the company, unlike Tesla's CEO Elon Musk, for example, whose behavior has caused the electric automaker's stock to rise and fall. Musk was recently stripped of his chairman title and forced to pay a $20 million penalty to the Securities and Exchange Commission for allegedly duping investors with tweets about a plan to take the company private. "This is very much a matter of Jeff Bezos," says Neil Saunders, the managing director at GlobalData Retail, of Bezos' affair. "It's not really anything to do with running with the company." David Larcker, a professor at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, says it's up to shareholders and the board of directors to decide just how engaged a CEO is in their work, and whether they should go. Bezos is both chairman of the board and the largest shareholder, owning a 16 percent stake in the company. Amazon's shoppers, meanwhile, are not likely to take notice. "I think as long as people can get their Nespresso pods within 48 hours, they don't care," says Scott Galloway, a marketing professor at NYU Stern School of Business. ____ Rachel Lerman in San Francisco contributed to this report. Arkansas grocery store Macs Fresh Market put off some of its customers this week with its weekly ad circular. (Credit: Macs Cash Saver via Facebook) A family-owned Christian grocery store is facing questions from some customers who felt it crossed a line with a political message on immigration in a recent ad. Macs Fresh Markets store circular typically includes a religious or political message at the top, but this particular assessment on the U.S.-Mexico border wall appears to have set off shoppers. The store posted the controversial ad on its Facebook page as well. It reads: Heaven has a wall, a gate and a strict immigration policy. Hell has open borders. Let that sink in. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Macs Cash Saver also sent this specific ad book to stores in Arkansas and Louisiana, according to Little Rock, Ark., news station KARK. It just doesnt make any sense, Tyler Reede, who saw the ad while shopping, told KARK. Why would they put that on there? Some took to Facebook to express disappointment with the store. Bad move. I hope you go out of business one person wrote on Macs Cash Savers post. Check out our weekly ad for great xenophobia! another added. Others had no issue with what the circular said. I didnt have a problem with it, Logan Reede told KARK. If [immigrants] want to come here, they can come here legally. This ad circular went out to four Macs Cash Saver stores in Arkansas, as well as others in Louisiana, according to KARK. (Credit: Macs Cash Saver via Facebook) Some praised Macs Fresh Market on its Facebook page for the message. One person wrote Absolutely agree and support you 100%. How can folks be mad at this? The Bible does say there is a gate and wall. And while my service in the Army for 21 years help protect everyones right to freedom of speech it meant everyones! Great job. Love the message. Spot on!!! Please stand strong! Im behind you and feel the same way. Dont be intimidated by the ones who yell and scream the loudest. Thank you for stating the facts! another added. Jack Digby, who is the manager at a Macs Cash Saver store in Camden, Ark., told KARK hes been taking calls from customers who read about the ad online. He told the outlet the store owner was aiming for a Christian message and didnt mean to wade into politics. Story continues Theyre just making a political spin out of it and getting the wrong idea of what it really means, he said of those put off by the circular. I am for this company and I am for God. Theres nothing wrong with what that statement says. Macs Fresh Market owner Reggy McDaniel told Alexandria, La., news station KALB the message on the circular was about faith. Thats my meaning of the whole thing is are people prepared to go to heaven or are they not, said McDaniel. I thought it was a perfect time because everybody is talking about the border, some people want it, some dont want us to have one. The only thing I was shocked about was that its racist. I have never in my life been accused of being a racist, Im 70 years old I havent evolved into one. McDaniel told KALB that if patrons no longer want to shop at his store, this is America, they have the privilege of shopping where they want to. All I can do is tell them my case. The company told KARK it stands by its note and has no plans to discontinue putting out ads with messages each week. Yahoo Lifestyle has reached out to Macs Cash Saver and will update this post when we hear back. Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle Follow us on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day. When Ebonee Davis decided to head to Ghana late last year, she could not have guessed how much it would change her. Prior to landing, I really had no idea what to expect, she shared on the phone from her New York home. I had no idea what Accra would look like or how it might be. The model is a familiar figure in fashion circles, having walked the runway for Pyer Moss and appeared in ads for behemoths like Fendi and Calvin Klein. But her most important work has taken place farther afield: Through personal writing and impassioned TED Talks, the activist has repeatedly spoken up about discrimination in the fashion industry and the many challenges models of color must face. It makes perfect sense that she would use a rare period of rest to engage in something meaningful. When an invitation arrived from Very Temporary, an Accra-based artists community, she eagerly accepted. Photo: Kofi Dua / @kofmotivation For Davis, whose ancestors were taken to the U.S. by the Atlantic slave trade, this trip offered the chance to connect with her roots and reclaim the heritage her family had been denied. As a black person living in America, Ive often felt disconnected from a sense of identity, or Ive felt like Ive had to take on an identity that was given to me, she said. Our culture prior to slavery was unknown to me; it was erased. I wanted to go back to the motherland, so I could begin to put the pieces together and discover for myself. Her journey coincided with a painful anniversary: 400 years since the first recorded landing of a slave ship, in Point Comfort, Virginia, which began the Middle Passage, the forcible transport of enslaved Africans and the start of a shared and tragic history that would change the lives of millions. In Ghana, the event was marked as the Year of Return, an initiative endorsed by the countrys president, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, that gave those connected with the diaspora a chance to address their past head-on, while experiencing the nation and its singular beauty. Story continues Photo: Kofi Dua / @kofmotivation Photo: Kofi Dua / @kofmotivation Though she had visited the continent before, traveling to South Africa in 2011, Davis regarded Ghana with special significance. [Cape Town] is gorgeous and I love it there, but you dont really get the sense that youre in Africa, she said. In West Africa, you very much feel like, okay, now Im here. Upon arriving in Accra, Davis was immediately struck by a powerful sense of community that compelled her to dive in head-first. First up: the citys thriving food markets. Wherever I go in the world, I want to know what they eat; thats a huge part of their culture and what I love about traveling, she said. Local specialties like kelewele, banku, and grilled tilapia struck the deepest chord; so did the ebullient optimism surrounding her. One of the most beautiful things I saw was the dancing, constant nonstop dancing, said Davis. Youre driving down the street and you see groups of kids or whole families having what looks like a dance party, in front of their houses or a church or [even] just on the side of the road. Its pretty remarkable to see the happiness. The joyful energy lay so at odds with the negative messaging that defines Africas portrayal across Western media. Were often fed these images of African children with swollen bellies and flies buzzing around their heads, which is not an accurate representation of the culture and what is actually happening, she said. Granted, there are places where there is famine, but in Accra theres such a rich sense of spirit and happinessand a lot of development, too. On the ground, Davis linked up with Very Temporary, which is dedicated to connecting African-American creatives with their West African counterparts. A full tour of Accras flourishing arts landscape ensued; Davis spoke on the groups panel sessions and created stunning visuals of her own. Photo: Amarachi Nwosu / @amaraworldwide Photo: Amarachi Nwosu / @amaraworldwide Over the course of two weeks, Davis turned each day into its own adventure, as she and photographers Amarachi Nwosu and Kofi Dua captured each moment, as in the gorgeous images seen here. A pit stop at an open-air market, where a wealth of locally handmade textiles and Ghanaian craft traditions sat on proud display, gave Davis the chance to put her modeling skills to work with an impromptu photoshoot. I bought an outfit in the market and then I was like, You know, I wish we had more, so I went back to the shop and the owner just let us change and shoot as many as we wanted, said Davis, who was moved by the generosity. Its one thing to show up with your own clothes and stuff that you brought from home, but to actually be in that space and represent in something that came from there was incredibly impactful. Photo: Kofi Dua / @kofmotivation Photo: Kofi Dua / @kofmotivation Even more profound was her trip to Cape Coast Castle, one of the many forts used to hold enslaved people before their painful voyage across the ocean. These were horrific structures, enclosed spaces where captives were forced to stay for months at a time. It was a place of suffering that Davis needed to see for herself. That was a powerful, full-circle moment, she said. It was intense for me. I couldnt imagine what it would be like to sit in that darkness. I was uncomfortable being down there for 10 or 15 minutes, and I couldn't imagine what it would be like to sit in that darkness for three months and have no idea what was going on. Her walk through those infamous dungeons, past signs bearing the words Door of No Return, was deeply emotional, but the experience only underscored her trips purposeto follow in the footsteps of her forebears, no matter how difficult the path they traveled. I went back as not only a free person but as an empowered person, said Davis. Im free and not just because Im not in [physical] chainsI dont have the mental chains, either. I [visited] with a sense of self, and a sense of who I am beyond social structures and the narratives that dominate the ideas around blackness. Photo: Kofi Dua / @kofmotivation Now back in New York, Davis intends to visit every year, returning to Ghana and venturing to other West African nations. If her stunning travel photos encourage others to visit, all the better. More than anything, I want to be a catalyst for healing, and I think these images are a start, said Davis. They show a lot of the truth of [modern] Africa. You get to see that it isnt the way things are depicted in movies or television. Even the images of me on the beach, [in the West] you never get to see Africa as a place with beaches and culturesomewhere youd want to spend time, but why not? Its gorgeous! Photo: Amarachi Nwosu / @amaraworldwide Clinique is starting off this month with a bang, announcing its first-ever U.S. standalone store, just in time for New York Fashion Week. The store, located at 132 Prince Street in NYCs Soho neighborhood, is a virtual reality-infused, pop-up experience centered around the customizable Clinique iD moisturizer that launched in December 2018. Clinique iD, which allows customers to create their very own personalized moisturizer based on skin type and major skin concerns, is available in 15 customizable blends. And for a short time, youll get to make yours while partaking in a unique VR experience. The Clinique iD moisturizer will be the only product available for purchase in-store, but the virtual reality experiences are not to be missed. When you first enter the Clinique pop-up shop, your journey begins with a virtual consultation that snaps a photo of your skin to reveal underlying skin concerns. Based the assessment, you are matched to your personalized moisturizer. Each of the five skin concerns has an individual path (marked on the floor) that leads you to your perfect blend of moisturizer, but the journey and customization doesnt stop there. After you sample your blend, you have the opportunity to grab a bottle to take home and make it Insta-ready with fun sticker add-ons and custom labeling. Your customizable moisturizer will figuratively and literally have your name written all over it. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Once you get the important skin care stuff out the the way, the real games begin. Visitors have the opportunity to throw on VR goggles to take a trip across the world to Iceland. And no trip or pop-up is complete without a good photo-op, so before you leave, make sure to head to the green-screened photo booth to take a selfie with Morocco, Japan, Spain, Bali, and Iceland as your backdrop. Each country corresponds to the five available Clinique iD cartridges: Fatigue, Lines & Wrinkles, Irritation, Pores, and Uneven Skin Texture, along with the origin of key ingredients that Clinique has infused into every cartridge. Throw on a silk rope in Japan, or a ski suit with Iceland as your backdropthe choice is yours. If you havent gotten a chance to check out the Clinique iD moisturizer, the pop-up is the perfect excuse to create your own with a truly inventive experience. The Clinique iD pop-up shop will be open now until February 17th from 12 p.m. to 7 p.m. You absolutely dont want to miss it. Chief Engineer Job 2019 in Lahore Latest Real Estate Company Engineering Posts Lahore 2021 Experienced, qualified and technical person for the position of Chief Engineer required urgently for a leading and well known Real Estate Group in Lahore Punjab 2019. How to Apply on Real Estate Company Job Advertisement Apply as per details in job advertisement. In some cases, you may apply online at vacancies after registering at https://www.jobz.pk online. Note: Beware of Fraudulent Recruiting Activities. If the employer asks you to pay money for any purpose including processing to shortlisting, do not pay at all and report us using our contact us form. Apply as per instuctions & dates mentioned in official job ad. Govt jobs cannot be applied online here. Error & omissions excepted. An American Airlines flight was canceled shortly before takeoff on Thursday after the pilot allegedly showed up visibly intoxicated. Flight AA735 from Manchester in the U.K. to Philadelphia was canceled shortly before 11 a.m., according to CNN. The flight was scheduled to take off at 11:05 a.m. local time. A statement from the Greater Manchester Police said that a 62-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of performing an aviation function when over the prescribed limit of alcohol." According to police, the pilot was bailed pending further inquiries. "The employee was detained and the flight, AA735 to Philadelphia, has been canceled," the airline said in a statement, according to USA Today. "We have rebooked (passengers) on alternative flights." The airline said that it is "fully cooperating with local law enforcement" on the investigation. According to CNN, pilots in the U.K. are allowed to have up to 20 milligrams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood, or about 0.02 percent blood alcohol content (BAC). Recently, there have been a string of high-profile incidents involving pilots showing up drunk to fly. Last month, according to The Independent, a pilot for All Nippon Airways delayed five flights after he showed up to work after drinking within 12 hours of takeoff (which is against company policy). In December, Japan Airlines asked all employees to refrain from drinking until the end of the year after several employees, including a pilot, were found to have been drunk while working flights. According to CNN, The pilots blood alcohol content was 10 times the legal limit shortly before his scheduled takeoff (the flight never left the airport). He was sentenced to 10 months in prison. Last year, an Alaska Airlines pilot was sentenced to one year in federal prison after admitting that he operated a flight with more than 80 passengers aboard while intoxicated. According to the American Society of Plastic Surgery, in 2016, seven million Americans received Botox injections and 2.6 million got soft-tissue filler. Botox was 4% more popular than the previous year, and the latter rose by 2%. It's been two years since these stats were recorded, and given the rise of dermal fillers in the age of Instagram, we're assuming it's safe to bet these numbers have steadily risen. What's perhaps more shocking than the sheer number of people getting injectables is the money that's being shelled out for them: One syringe of Juvederm Voluma (a type of dermal filler) runs $700 to $1200 in New York, and for Botox, each unit costs around $22, so if you need 25 units to treat forehead creases, you'd be out $550. It's a steep price to pay, especially since both dissolve over time and you'll need to continuously make appointments to maintain the effects. (Filler can last anywhere from six months to two years depending on whether you opted for semi-permanent or permanent injections, and Botox lasts three to six months.) While injectables will certainly deliver the most noticeable results in the name of hiding wrinkles and filling out the skin, the good news is there are products you can use to plump, firm, and even prevent muscle contraction for similar results to what you'd get in the doctor's office. We spoke with plastic surgeon Melissa Doft, MD, and Michele Farber, MD, of Schweiger Dermatology Group in NYC to learn more. Read More from Byrdie Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax calls on FBI to investigate sexual assault claims as pressure mounts to resign originally appeared on abcnews.go.com Virginia's lieutenant governor called on the FBI to investigate two claims by women who say he sexually assaulted them, defying pressure to resign from most leading state and national Democrats. In a statement issued Saturday night Justin Fairfax restated that he would not resign and again denied both allegations. On Friday, a woman named Meredith Watson claimed Fairfax had raped her. Days earlier another woman, Vanessa Tyson, said Fairfax had sexually assaulted her. Fairfax said the claims -- separate incidents in the early 2000s -- should be investigated. "I am asking that no one rush to judgment and I am asking for there to be space in this moment for due process," Fairfax said in the statement. "Consequently, I call on all appropriate and impartial investigatory authorities, including the FBI, to investigate fully and thoroughly the allegations against me by Ms. Watson and Dr. Tyson. "I say again without reservation: I did not sexually assault or rape Meredith Watson, Vanessa Tyson or anyone else," Fairfax said. "The one thing I want to make abundantly clear is that in both situations I knew at the time, and I know today, that the interactions were consensual. I heard from Dr. Tyson after the 2004 Convention, and she never said or otherwise indicated that our interaction was not consensual or caused her any discomfort." "Regarding Ms. Watson, I knew Ms. Watson in college both before and after the encounter, and she never said to me that our interaction was not consensual or caused her any discomfort." By Saturday evening, Watson's attorney, Nancy Erika Smith, issued a new statement saying there was "nothing consensual" about her client's interactions with Fairfax. Watson said Fairfax raped her while the two were students at Duke University, Smith said, adding that Watson would be willing to testify at any future impeachment hearing. Story continues My client may contact North Carolina authorities about a possible criminal prosecution, Smith added. Smith volunteered to produce two witnesses whom she said Watson told of the assault the day after Fairfax raped her as well as "documentary evidence of Ms. Watson revealing to others the fact that Fairfax raped her. Fairfax, 39, has experienced a dizzying reversal of fortune in his career in the last week -- from rising star and potential governor-in-waiting to fighting for his political survival after the accusations of rape and of sexual assault. Last weekend, Fairfax seemed poised to be the next governor of Virginia after photos of Gov. Ralph Northam's medical school yearbook page emerged showing two men in a racist photo: one in blackface, one in a Ku Klux Klan robe. After initially apologizing for appearing in the photo, Northam then said it was not him in the yearbook photo but admitted he had worn blackface in the past. With Fairfax poised to lead Virginia, Vanessa Tyson, a political science professor came forward to claim that Fairfax had forced her to perform oral sex in his hotel room at the Democratic National Convention in Boston in 2004. Fairfax denied the allegation. U.S. Rep. Robert C. Bobby Scott, a revered elder statesman in Virginia Democratic politics, weighed in to say Fairfax should resign if guilty. The recent allegations against Lieutenant Governor Fairfax are disturbing and extremely serious. Both allegations must be investigated immediately. If either is found to be true and there appears to be significant corroborating evidence then the Lieutenant Governor should resign immediately, Scott said in a statement. Aides to Congressman Scott confirmed to ABC News that he knew of Tyson's allegations against Fairfax a year ago. The staffers said they did not know what the congressman did with that information, but that he told Tyson that he agreed to speak with The Washington Post. Tyson had already given her account to The Post. (MORE: Woman accuses elected Virginia official of sexual assault) Early Saturday, the Virginia Democratic party issued a statement calling for Fairfax to resign, echoing the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus' call on Friday to step down. "Given the credible nature of the sexual assault claims against Lieutenant Governor Fairfax, it has become clear he can no longer fulfill the duties and responsibilities of his post," the state party said in a statement. "It is in the best interest of the Commonwealth that he goes through this process as a private citizen. PHOTO: Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax speaks during an interview in his office at the Capitol in Richmond, Va., Feb. 2, 2019. (Steve Helber/AP, FILE) (MORE: 2nd woman accuses Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax of sexual assault, as calls for his resignation grow) On Friday, Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine, a Democrat, had also urged Fairfax to step down. The allegations against him detail atrocious crimes, and he can no longer effectively serve the Commonwealth. We cannot ever ignore or tolerate sexual assault, Kaine said in a statement. By Saturday, most of the presumptive Democratic nominees for president in 2020 had issued strongly-worded statements calling for Fairfax to resign, including Kirsten Gillibrand, Elizabeth Warren, Amy Klobuchar, Kamala Harris, Bernie Sanders, and Cory Booker. Former Vice President Joe Biden, who last week called for Northam's resignation and for Fairfax to lead Virginia, has not weighed in publicly. Virginia House Delegate Patrick Hope said he will introduce articles of impeachment on Monday if Fairfax does not resign over the weekend. I believe these women, Hope said. He needs to resign immediately. ABC News' Desiree Adib, Justin Weaver and Katherine Faulders contributed to this report. Cory Booker pitches unity to Iowa voters, reminding some voters of Obama originally appeared on abcnews.go.com Sen. Cory Booker crisscrossed the state of Iowa for first time as a presidential candidate on Saturday -- promising to pull a divided nation back together and eschewing negative campaign rhetoric. At times Booker, a New Jersey Democrat, discouraged crowds who would "boo" at the mention of Republican leaders. With his fresh campaign slogan Together, America, We Will Rise, Booker encouraged his followers them to practice compassion and work together with their political opponents to find common ground. Im not running to beat Republicans, but unite Americans," he said. The statement is reminiscent of former President Barack Obama, who memorably told crowds, Dont boo. Vote!, during his 2012 presidential campaign. As Booker traveled to campaign events that stretched from the rural sections of Iowa to the states capital, many residents said they felt that his rhetoric mirrored Obamas 2008 and 2012 campaign messages of Hope and Change." I think when they look at him they will see Barack Obama and theyll think...Oh my God, remember what it was?, said Rita Robinson, Cedar Rapids resident. Robinson, a black woman, was on hand for Bookers campaign forum at the African American Museum of Iowa in Cedar Rapids. She said she was astonished by how few blacks were sprinkled throughout the crowd, but said she believed that it isnt about color, its about the man and the integrity he has. Robinson said she is putting her support behind Booker, in part because she believes hes the only candidate who can beat Trump. When asked about the other black candidate in the race, including presidential hopeful and Democratic Senator Kamala Harris, Robinson questioned her viability as a presidential candidate because of the combination of her race and gender. I dont think were ready for black and female," Robinson told ABC News. "I wish, but I dont, she said. Story continues PHOTO: Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., speaks during a meet and greet with local residents, Feb. 9, 2019, in Marshalltown, Iowa. (Charlie Neibergall/AP) Iowa is 90 percent white, with blacks accounting for about four percent of the states population, according to the U.S. Census. Regardless of the makeup of the crowds, at some events the turnout exceeded the space available -- as attendees gathered close together to escape the often-single digit temperatures outside. Booker's largest event at the Des Moines Social Club drew 500 people, according to campaign aides. Even in front of a mostly white audience, Booker called for social justice in Iowa and referenced the civil rights movement. Iowa is a key state in presidential elections -- it holds the first caucus in the nation and in turn sets the tone for the rest of the nation. Its not unusual for residents to bump into a presidential candidate at a local coffee shop or restaurant -- vying to pitch voters on why they deserve to represent the country. But for Booker, Iowa is much more personal. The senators maternal grandmother was born in Iowa and he has several relatives that live in the state. Booker's family ties took center focus in his campaign speech to voters. He mentioning that in Buxton -- a coal mining town where his grandmother lived -- people of all races worked together to fuel America. (MORE: Virginia Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax shunned by Democrats as pressure mounts to resign) At every stop, Booker fell back on his central theme of unity, even calling this election a test to see how we can unite America. While the message resonated with many, others werent so impressed. I thought he talked too much about himself and [didn't tell] us the plans for the future and [how he would put] those plans into action now, Allen Max Richards said after attending Bookers forum in Marshalltown. (MORE: Warren brings her populist message to campaign) When asked how he would confront possible cynicism from President Trump, Booker fell back on the golden rule promising to not fight fire with fire. I dont want people to think in order to be tough you have to be mean; in order to be strong, you have to be cruel," " the senator said during a campaign event in Des Moines. "I want to campaign how I want to govern." Still, the senator did not shy away from taking on Trump. We have a president that has a real problem relationship with the truth, he said. (MORE: Beto O'Rourke to join El Paso rally opposing Donald Trump appearance at border) Booker also spotlighted issues that will be at the center of his campaign: supporting the Green New Deal, championing criminal justice reform, including ending private prisons, and allowing the Department of Health and Human Services to negotiate down drug prices on behalf of millions of Medicare recipients. Vowing to the never take money from pharmaceutical companies or corporate political action committees, Booker concluded the first campaign stop in Iowa with selfies and hugs as Iowans waited a few hours just to meet the next presidential hopeful who stops by - Sen. Elizabeth Warren. Within just a few hours of Bookers first event, the Iowa Republican Party quickly released a statement criticizing him. Cory Booker will say just about anything to stand out in the Democrats crowded field of coastal liberals, Iowa GOP Chair Jeff Kaufmann said in a statement. Iowans can see through his theatrics and still reject his policies - like his embrace of trillion dollar government programs, burdensome regulations for Iowa farmers and his plan to eliminate private health insurance," Kauffman said. Editor's note: A previous version of this story incorrectly quoted Cory Booker saying, "I have to beat Republicans, but unite Americans. That quote has been corrected to the following: Im not running to beat Republicans, but unite Americans. Zebra Freezes to Death After Getting Stuck in Fence During Extreme Cold Weather in Indiana A zebra living at an Indiana farm died this week after the animal got trapped outside amid the freezing temperatures. Carroll County Sheriff Tobe Leazenby confirmed that the zebra froze to death after his back hooves got stuck in a nearby fence on Wednesday, according to WTHR. Because the zebra was trapped during the frigid weather conditions, the cold air eventually crystalized in its lungs, causing fatal internal damage, the outlet said. Indiana resident Sonya Kendall witnessed the zebras lifeless body on the snowy farm and snapped two photos to bring attention to a potential case of what she described as mistreatment of their animals, which officials are currently investigating. In one shot, another zebra appears to be by the dead zebras side, in efforts to help the trapped animal but sadly, it was too late. WARNING: Graphic photo below may be distressing to some readers The dead zebra RELATED: Husky Dog on the Loose Kills Close to 30 Farm Animals on Early Morning Spree After receiving the call on Wednesday, the Carroll County Police Department consulted with a veterinarian from the State Board of Animal Health, who confirmed that the zebra died after the animal was unable to escape the cold and find warm shelter, WTHR reported. Sheriff Leazenby also made a visit to the site and did not believe that the animals were being mistreated, according to WLFI. He was able to determine that the farm which also has another zebra on the property who survived the cold temperatures had proper resources available for their animals, including shelter, food, and water, WLFI said. RELATED VIDEO: Northern White Rhino Dies Leaving Only 3 Of Her Kind However, some other animals on the property, such as the kangaroos, were inside a shelter. The police department is currently filing a report with the Carroll County Prosecutors Office to determine whether the zebras death was accidental or by neglect, according to WLFI. The other zebra has been moved to a different location and the owners of the farm are currently taking more measures to ensure the rest of their animals remain safe during this arctic outbreak. At this time, it is not clear whether the owners will be charged. Representatives at the Carroll County Police Department did not immediately respond to PEOPLEs request for comment. As Virginia continues to reel from allegations that both Governor Ralph Northam and the states attorney general donned blackface in the Eighties, a Saturday Night Live sketch mocked the states clueless representatives. Alright, so were all in agreement that the lieutenant governor should be encouraged to step down? Okay, so its settled, Kenan Thompsons chair of the ethics committee told the representatives, addressing yet another scandal roiling Virginia politics before turning his attention to the blackface issue. Thompsons character then polled the white representatives to see who else might have worn blackface in the past. Tell me now so we can get ahead of this, he said. One by one, the representatives admitted to wearing blackface. I have a question: What if the blackface was just part of your costume of a black person, Beck Bennetts Tom asked. Cecily Strongs Barbara added, Does it count if you did it all the way back in the Eighties? People, we are elected state officials, we cant keep having this pop up, Thompsons character said. Instead of diffusing the situation, the representatives inquiries become increasingly over-the-top; guest host Halseys politician asked whether it is okay to don blackface if youre half-black, then clarified that she meant she once dressed up as both Michael Jacksons for Halloween. An exasperated Thompson finally told the representatives, Id advise you all to delete any Facebook photo labeled Halloween and hope for the best. Nurses Jobs 2019 For Hospital in Jeddah Saudi Arabia Latest Tufail International Overseas Employment Promoters Medical Posts Saudi Arabia 2021 Medical, health and technical female candidates for the positions of Nurses required urgently for a well known and reputed Hospital in Jeddah Saudi Arabia 2019. How to Apply on Tufail International Overseas Employment Promoters Job Advertisement Apply as per details in job advertisement. In some cases, you may apply online at vacancies after registering at https://www.jobz.pk online. Note: Beware of Fraudulent Recruiting Activities. If the employer asks you to pay money for any purpose including processing to shortlisting, do not pay at all and report us using our contact us form. Apply as per instuctions & dates mentioned in official job ad. Govt jobs cannot be applied online here. Error & omissions excepted. Helaine Fendelman and Joe Rosson have written a number of books on antiques. Do you have an item youd like to know more about? Contact them at Joe Rosson, 2504 Seymour Ave., Knoxville, TN 37917, or email them at treasures@knology.net. If youd like your question to be considered for their column, please include a high-resolution photo of the subject, which must be in focus, with your inquiry. 2019 Tribune Content Agency, LLC Staff Writer JoAnn Snoderly can be reached at 304-626-1445, by email at jsnoderly@theet.com or on Twitter at @JoAnnNCWV. You must be logged in to react. Click any reaction to login. Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 KFC Fast Food Restaurant Company Jobs 2019 in Malaysia Latest Life Link Consultant Overseas Employment Promoters Hotel Posts Malaysia 2021 A well known and reputed KFC Fast Food Restaurant Company requires the services of experienced and professional persons for the posts of General Worker & Cook in Malaysia. How to Apply on Life Link Consultant Overseas Employment Promoters Job Advertisement Apply as per details in job advertisement. In some cases, you may apply online at vacancies after registering at https://www.jobz.pk online. Note: Beware of Fraudulent Recruiting Activities. If the employer asks you to pay money for any purpose including processing to shortlisting, do not pay at all and report us using our contact us form. Apply as per instuctions & dates mentioned in official job ad. Govt jobs cannot be applied online here. Error & omissions excepted. Jake Jarvis can be reached by phone at 304-935-0144, on Twitter at @JakeJarvisWV or by email at jjarvis@statejournal.com. Business Editor Conor Griffith can be reached by at 304-395-3168 or by email at cgriffith@statejournal.com You must be logged in to react. Click any reaction to login. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Bahria Model Schools & Colleges Jobs 2019 in Karachi Latest Bahria Model College Education Posts Karachi 2021 Bahria Model Schools & Colleges requires the services of highly qualified individuals for the posts of Principal, Vice Principal, English Teacher, Maths Teacher, Physics Teacher, Chemistry Teacher, Zoology Teacher, Pakistan Studies Teacher, Urdu Teacher, Islamiat Teacher, Primary Teacher, Secondary Teacher, Montessori Teacher, PTI, Physical Training Instructor, Accountant, Accounts Assistant, Computer Lab Attendant, Science Lab Attendant, Librarian, Library Assistant, Aya, Naib Qasid, Chowkidar in Karachi. How to Apply on Bahria Model College Job Advertisement Apply as per details in job advertisement. In some cases, you may apply online at vacancies after registering at https://www.jobz.pk online. Company Address: Pakisan Navy Education Trust Headquarter Karachi Telephone: 021-48506740 Note: Beware of Fraudulent Recruiting Activities. If the employer asks you to pay money for any purpose including processing to shortlisting, do not pay at all and report us using our contact us form. Apply as per instuctions & dates mentioned in official job ad. Govt jobs cannot be applied online here. Error & omissions excepted. The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here: http://theconversation.com/3-ways-to-improve-education-about-slavery-in-the-us-110013. Please purchase a subscription to continue reading. If you have a subscription, please Log In . Your current subscription does not provide access to this content. If you believe you've gotten this message in error, please Log In. Aligarh Public School Teaching Jobs 2019 in Lahore Latest Aligarh Public School & College Teaching Posts Lahore 2021 Aligarh Public School requires the services of highly qualified and well educated individuals for the posts of Physics Teacher, Pakistan Studies Teacher, Urdu Teacher, Botany Teacher & Librarian in Lahore. How to Apply on Aligarh Public School & College Job Advertisement Apply as per details in job advertisement. In some cases, you may apply online at vacancies after registering at https://www.jobz.pk online. Company Address: 38-47/C II Ghalib Road Gulberg-III Lahore Telephone: 042-35754957 Note: Beware of Fraudulent Recruiting Activities. If the employer asks you to pay money for any purpose including processing to shortlisting, do not pay at all and report us using our contact us form. Apply as per instuctions & dates mentioned in official job ad. Govt jobs cannot be applied online here. Error & omissions excepted. HUMPHREYS COUNTY, TN (WSMV) - The Humphreys County Sheriff's Office needs your help finding 37-year-old Christopher Chad Wiles. Wiles is described as 6 feet tall weighing 190 pounds with brown hair and blue eyes. He was last seen wearing blue jeans and a white shirt. Sheriff's deputies are going door to door with a flyer trying to see if anyone has seen Wiles. "Right now, every effort that we've got is just trying to make sure this young man is okay," Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said. The sheriff said Christopher Wiles' car broke down on Old Highway 13 on Thursday. He called someone at a friend's house then left and hasn't been seen since then. "It's horrible not knowing because obviously we hope and pray for the best, but with the weather we're having, the temperatures, you can't but think in the back of your mind the worst," Ann Wiles Burcham, Wiles' aunt said. The bad weather just a few days ago brought flooding and cold temperatures. That has Wiles' family and the sheriff concerned. "If there's somebody out there that knows his whereabouts, knows that he's at least alive and somewhere, please contact us," Sheriff Davis said. The search hasn't stayed in one place. It's spanned 10 miles, but so far no sign of Wiles. He hasn't shown up for work either or picked up his paycheck. "He's made mistakes in his past. Who hasn't? He's a good person. He is loved by so many. There are so many people looking for him right now. We just want to know that he's okay," Burcham said. Right now, the sheriff doesn't believe anyone is behind Wiles' disappearance. He and the family are staying positive Wiles is alive. "We can only hope. That's what our hope is," Sheriff Davis said. The sheriff said he's going to go over all the information he has for this case and decide what to do next. That could mean using drones or bringing in THP's helicopter. If you have any information regarding the whereabouts of Wiles, you're asked to contact the Humphreys County Sheriff's Office at (931) 296-2301. Kim Divan, 66 years old, of Woodward, OK passed away at his home on Saturday, June 12. He was born in Nebraska but spent his childhood and most of his adult life in Palmdale, CA until moving to Oklahoma in 2005. Kim liked to have a good time and enjoyed his motorcycles and fishing. He will b Lindsay Manriquez is accused of leaving her three young children alone in an abandoned home while she worked -- one of the children so sick first responders thought he was dead. (Source: WITI) WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) Right now, there is no consequence for revenge porn in Indiana. ''They can do so today by Indiana law without any kind of penalty whatsoever, said Republican State Sen. Ron Alting. He's talking about pictures. Which can say a lot and after you've sent one. The story, is no longer yours. ''It's something unfortunately taking place in all fifty states, said Atling It's kind of being popular'' Proposed legislation would make revenge porn a civil offense. So, there will be a hefty, $10,000 fine for violators. Alting said this type of blackmail has become more prevalent, especially on social media. ''That is when people in relationships take nude pictures, said Atling. Even of themselves or of their spouse, or their girlfriend or boyfriend and then, later on, decide to put that out public'' Millennials News 18 spoke with are on board with this bill. ''Laws like this need to come about in order to protect our citizens, said millennial Mark Menciano. The way we are communicating is changing as we speak'' Young millennials like Liwam Beraki hope this bill will pass, not only to protect citizens, but to protect young women as well. ''I think people often do body shame women in particular, said Beraki. I think this will force people to not post something without someones consent. Especially if it's intimate or revealing'' The bill is in the beginning stages, but lawmakers hope it passes soon. LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) Pride Lafayette hosted a question and answer session with Republican State Senator Ron Alting on Saturday to discuss a proposed hate and bias crimes bill. Indiana Lawmakers are currently working on the bill. Right now, there isn't a clear definition of hate and bias crimes in Indiana law. Alting and co-author State Sen. Mike Bohacek created this bill to change that. You don't want to be a state that shows that you don't stand for inclusion, Alting said. Alting told audience members exactly what he told other lawmakers, that this bill will have a great impact on the state. You will never, ever see another bill before you, the rest of your career ever, that you will have such a great impact on the people of the state of Indiana, said Alting. The bill specifically deals with hate crimes due to race, religion or sexual orientation. This will help victims seek justice. Pride Lafayette President Ashley Smith said the session with Alting was timely. It's a very important issue that's happening right now, and we want to get our seat at the table," said Smith. "We want to help out in any way we can, said Smith. Smith, like many others in attendance, will see the benefit of this bill. News 18 spoke to SJ Houston, Meredith Richmond, and John Burns, who attended the question and answer session. They said theyre ready to see it move forward. I think it only means good things for every person in the state of Indiana to have this bill passed and have the bill passed with the full list, including sexual orientation and gender identity, said SJ Houston. It's so needed, said Meredith Richmond. "We have to be able to distinguish between a regular crime and a crime that's committed to someone because of a characteristic that they cannot change. This is something that all state senators and all state representatives need to be pressed on the issue," said John Burns. "We have support in a patchwork of ways but we need to solidify it." Alting said a decision for the bill will be made mid-February. He's encouraging communities to support the bill by writing letters to their state senators. UPDATE: Missing Verona man has been found. Police want to thank the public for all their help. VERONA- New York State police are asking for the public's help in locating a missing Verona man. Eugene A. DiFondi III, 49 of Verona was last seen on Friday, February 8. Police said family members reported him missing on Saturday afternoon, and are concerned for his welfare. He is 5 foot 8 inches tall, 200 pounds with light brown, balding hair and facial hair. Police are asking anyone with information to contact them at (315) 366-6000. UTICA, NY Raising awareness and raising funds. That was the goal of the Pink Goes Red for Love Gala, held at the Delta Hotels by Marriott on Saturday. The Nu Psi Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated hosted an evening of dinner and dancing to raise money for the American Heart Association. Just as important, they helped raise awareness about heart disease. Cardiovascular disease is the number one disease that affects women. 1 in 3 women die from heart disease annually says sorority president Cheryl Minor. Besides raising money for the Heart Association, they also raised money for their scholarship fund. 15 hours ago | June 23rd | 2021 5:00 AM You Quit Your Job Good for You! But How Does that Impact Your Investments? As companies make plans to return employees back to the office, millions of workers have made a decision not to go back at all. In fact, the number of people who quit their jobs increased to four million in April and increased 2.7%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The largest increases in employees leaving their jobs occurred in retail trade and professional and business services. TelefAnica Brasil S.A., together with its subsidiaries, provides mobile and fixed telecommunications services to residential and corporate customers in Brazil. Its fixed line services portfolio includes local, domestic long-distance, and international long-distance calls; and mobile portfolio comprises voice and broadband internet access through 3G, 4G, and 4.5G, as well as mobile value-added services and wireless roaming services. The company also offers data services, including broadband and mobile data services. In addition, it provides pay TV services through direct to home satellite technology, IPTV, and cable, as well as pay-per-view and video on demand services; network services, such as rental of facilities; other services comprising internet access, private network connectivity, computer equipment leasing, extended service, caller identification, voice mail, cellular blocker, and others; wholesale services, including interconnection services to users of other network providers; and digital services, such as entertainment, cloud, and security and financial services, as well as sells wireless devices and accessories. Further, the company offers multimedia communication services, which include audio, data, voice and other sounds, images, texts, and other information, as well as sells devices, such as smartphones, broadband USB modems, and other devices. Additionally, it provides telecommunications solutions and IT support to various industries, such as retail, manufacturing, services, financial institutions, government, etc. It markets and sells its solutions through own stores, dealers, retail and distribution channels, door-to-door sales, and telesales. The company was formerly known as TelecomunicaAAes de SAo Paulo S.A. - TELESP and changed its name to TelefAnica Brasil S.A. in October 2011. The company was incorporated in 1998 and is headquartered in SAo Paulo, Brazil. Read More The Charles Schwab Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides wealth management, securities brokerage, banking, asset management, custody, and financial advisory services. The company operates in two segments, Investor Services and Advisor Services. The Investor Services segment provides retail brokerage and banking services, retirement plan services, and other corporate brokerage services; equity compensation plan sponsors full-service recordkeeping for stock plans, stock options, restricted stock, performance shares, and stock appreciation rights; and retail investor, retirement plan, and mutual fund clearing services. The Advisor Services segment offers custodial, trading, banking, and support services; and retirement business and corporate brokerage retirement services. This segment provides brokerage accounts with cash management capabilities; third-party mutual funds, as well as proprietary mutual funds, plus mutual fund trading, and clearing services to broker-dealers; and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), including proprietary and third-party ETFs. It also offers advice solutions, such as managed portfolios of proprietary and third-party mutual funds and ETFs, separately managed accounts, customized personal advice for tailored portfolios, and specialized planning and portfolio management. In addition, this segment provides banking products and services, including checking and savings accounts, first lien residential real estate mortgage loans, home equity lines of credit, and pledged asset lines; and trust services comprising trust custody services, personal trust reporting services, and administrative trustee services. The company serves individuals and institutional clients in the United States, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, and Singapore. The Charles Schwab Corporation was incorporated in 1971 and is headquartered in Westlake, Texas. Read More Opinion Policies Editorials are longer opinion pieces that are written by a group of community members recruited across campus who address relevant issues on a local, national and international level. Editorials are research-based. The purpose of the Editorial Board is to promote discussion concerning relevant issues in the community while advising on possible solutions. Topics are chosen via relevancy and interests of the members, which are then discussed by the Editorial Board in order to reach a general consensus concerning the topic or issue. Feedback policy If you have a grievance concerning the content or argument of the Editorial Board, please contact either Opinion Editor Peyton Hamel (peyton.hamel@iowastatedaily.com) or the Editorial Board as a whole (editorialboard@iowastatedaily.com). Those wanting to respond to editorials can also submit a letter to the editor through the Iowa State Daily website or by emailing the letter to Opinion Editor Peyton Hamel (peyton.hamel@iowastatedaily.com) or Editor-in-Chief Sage Smith (sage.smith@iowastatedaily.com). Column Policy Columns are hyper-specific to opinion and are written by only columnists employed by the Iowa State Daily. Columnists are unique because they have a specific writing day and only publish on those writing days. Each column undergoes a thorough editing process ensuring the integrity of the writer, and their claim is maintained while remaining research-based and respectful. Columns may be submitted from community members. These are labelled as Guest Columns. These contain similar research-based content and need to be at least 400 words in length. The following requirements should be met: first and last name, email and relation or position to Iowa State. Emails must be tied to the submitted guest column or it will not be accepted or published. Pseudonyms are prohibited and the writer will be banned from submissions. Read our full Opinion Policies here. Updated on 10/7/2020 Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 10) Malacanang on Sunday called on Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) founder Jose Maria "Joma" Sison to "step down from his ivory tower" and work on peace talks, after President Rodrigo Duterte made an offer to continue negotiations on Friday. Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo claimed that Sison's later tirades against the President is just "his usual incoherent rant." "Instead of welcoming the President's softening of his hardline stance on no peace talks with the local communists unless it puts a stop to their collection of revolutionary taxes which is a euphemism for extortion, he considers it as an insult to them," he said. Sison in a Facebook post slammed Duterte's offer of paying for communist rebels' trip home for the negotiations, as well as his call to stop alleged extortion activities," he said. "The main thrust of Duterte's statement is more to insult the revolutionary movement than to express willingness to resume negotiations. He should not call the tax system of the people's democratic government extortion and should not precondition the negotiations with any demand for said government to commit suicide by giving up a vital governmental function," he said. Sison said the people's government needs financial resources for its administration and social programs such as "public education, land reform, raising production, health and sanitation, people's self-defense, and cultural work." Duterte had repeatedly said he was "open" to peace negotiations, but he has pushed for localized versions of these talks. The CPP had said it will never take part in these. The government and the rebels previously accused each other of violating ceasefires. This prompted Duterte to terminate talks geared towards ending the five-decade long insurgency. A bid seeking to tag the CPP and its armed wing the New People's Army as a terrorist group is still pending before the court. Do You Trade Options? (Ad) 10 million people started trading in 2020 alone... But most people arent even aware of the five secrets to making winning trades... Get the list of all five now. Flexible Solutions International, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and markets specialty chemicals that slow the evaporation of water in Canada, the United States, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Energy and Water Conservation Products, and Biodegradable Polymers. The company offers thermal polyaspartates (TPAs) for oilfields to reduce scale and corrosion in various water systems; and for the agricultural industry to reduce fertilizer crystallization before, during, and after application, as well as to prevent crystal formation between fertilizer and minerals present in the soil. It also provides TPAs for irrigation to prevent early plugging of drip irrigation ports, reduce maintenance costs, and lengthen the life of equipment; and TPAs as additives for household laundry detergents, consumer care products, and pesticides. In addition, the company offers nitrogen conservation products for agriculture that slow down nitrogen loss from fields. Further, it provides HEATSAVR, a chemical product for use in swimming pools and spas that forms a thin and transparent layer on the water's surface; and WATERSAVR to reduce water evaporation in reservoirs, potable water storage tanks, livestock watering ponds, aqueducts, canals, and irrigation ditches, as well as for lawn and turf care, and potted and bedding plants. Flexible Solutions International, Inc. is headquartered in Taber, Canada. Read More Penske Automotive Group, Inc., a diversified transportation services company, operates automotive and commercial truck dealerships. The company operates through four segments: Retail Automotive, Retail Commercial Truck, Other, and Non-Automotive Investments. It operates dealerships under franchise agreements with various automotive manufacturers and distributors. The company engages in the sale of new and used motor vehicles, and related products and services comprise vehicle and collision repair services, as well as placement of finance and lease contracts, third-party insurance products, and other aftermarket products; and wholesale of parts. It also operates a heavy and medium duty truck dealership, which offers Freightliner and Western Star branded trucks, as well as a range of used trucks, and maintenance and repair services. In addition, it imports and distributes Western Star heavy-duty trucks, MAN heavy and medium duty trucks, buses, and Dennis Eagle refuse collection vehicles with associated parts in Australia, New Zealand, and portions of the Pacific. Further, the company distributes diesel and gas engines, and power systems. The company operates 304 retail automotive franchises, including 142 franchises located in the United States and 162 franchises located outside of the United States; 17 used vehicle supercenters in the United States and the United Kingdom; and 25 commercial truck dealerships in Texas, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Georgia, Utah, and Idaho, the United States, as well as Canada. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. was incorporated in 1990 and is headquartered in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. Read More New York Community Bancorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for New York Community Bank that provides banking products and services in Metro New York, New Jersey, Ohio, Florida, and Arizona. The company accepts various deposit products, such as interest-bearing checking and money market, savings, non-interest-bearing, and individual retirement accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. Its loan products include multi-family loans; commercial real estate loans; specialty finance loans and leases; and commercial and industrial loans; acquisition, development, and construction loans; one-to-four family loans; and consumer loans. The company also offers annuities, life and long-term care insurance products, and mutual funds; cash management products; and online, mobile, and phone banking services. It primarily serves individuals, small and mid-size businesses, and professional associations through a network of 237 community bank branches and 340 ATM locations. The company was formerly known as Queens County Bancorp, Inc. and changed its name to New York Community Bancorp, Inc. in November 2000. New York Community Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 1859 and is headquartered in Westbury, New York. Read More The following companies are subsidiares of Illinois Tool Works: A V Co 1 Limited, A V Co 2 Limited, A V Co 3 Limited, ACCU-LUBE Manufacturing GmbH - Schmiermittel und -gerate -, AIP/BI Holdings Inc., Accessories Marketing Holding Corp., Advanced Molding Company Inc., Allen Coding GmbH, Allen France SAS, Alpine Automation Limited, Alpine Engineered Products, Alpine Holdings Inc., Alpine Systems Corporation, Anaerobicos S.r.l., AppliChem GmbH, AppliChem Inc., Arylux Hungary Elektromechanikus Alkatreszgyarto Kft, Avery Berkel France, Avery India Limited, Avery Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Avery Weigh Tronix, Avery Weigh-Tronix (Suzhou) Weighing Technology Co. Ltd., Avery Weigh-Tronix Finance Limited, Avery Weigh-Tronix Holdings Limited, Avery Weigh-Tronix International Limited, Avery Weigh-Tronix LLC, Avery Weigh-Tronix Limited, Avery Weigh-Tronix Properties Limited, Azon Limited, B.C. Immo, Beijing Miller Electric Manufacturing Co. Ltd., Berkel (Ireland) Limited, Berrington UK, Brapenta Eletronica Ltda., Brooks Instrument, Brooks Instrument (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, Brooks Instrument B.V., Brooks Instrument GmbH, Brooks Instrument KFT, Brooks Instrument Korea Ltd., Buell Industries Inc., CAPMAX Logistica S.A. de C.V., CCI Realty Company, CFC Europe GmbH, CS (Australia) Pty Limited, CS (Finance) Europe S.a.r.l., CS Mexico Holding Company S DE RL DE CV, CSMTS LLC, Calvia Spolka z Ograniczona Odpowiedzialnosci, Capital Ventures (Australasia) S.a r.l, Capmax Logistica S.A. de C.V., Celeste Industries Corporation, Cetram Pty Limited, Coeur, Coeur (Shanghai) Medical Appliance Trading Co. Ltd, Coeur Asia Limited, Coeur Holding Company, Coeur Inc., Compagnie Hobart, Compagnie de Materiel et d'Equipements Techniques-Comet, Constructions Isothermiques Bontami C.I.B., Crane Carrier Company, Densit Asia Pacific Sdn Bhd, Despatch Industries, Diagraph Corporation Sdn. Bhd, Diagraph ITW Mexico S. de R.L. De C.V., Diagraph Mexico S.A. DE C.V., Dongguan Ark-Les Electric Components Co. Ltd., Dongguan CK Branding Co. Ltd., Dorbyl U.K. (Holdings) Limited, Duo Fast de Espana S.A.U., Duo-Fast Korea Co. Ltd., Duo-Fast LLC, E.C.S. d.o.o., ECS Cable Protection Sp. Zoo, ELRO (Holding) AG, ELRO Grosskuchen GmbH, ELRO-WERKE AG, Elga Skandinavian AS, Elro Group, Eltex-Elektrostatik-Gesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, Envases Multipac S.A. de C.V., Eurotec Srl, FEG Investments L.L.C., Fasver, Filtertek, Filtertek De Mexico Holding Inc., Filtertek De Mexico S.A. de C.V., GC Financement SA, Gamko B.V., Gun Hwa Platech (Taicang) Co. Ltd., HOBART Gesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, Hartness International, Hobart (Japan) K.K., Hobart Andina S.A.S., Hobart Brothers International Chile Limitada, Hobart Brothers LLC, Hobart Dayton Mexicana S. de R.L. de C.V., Hobart Food Equipment Co. Ltd., Hobart Foster Belgium, Hobart International (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., Hobart Korea LLC, Hobart LLC, Hobart Nederland B.V., Hobart Sales & Service Inc., Hobart Scandinavia ApS, Hobart Techniek B.V., Horis, ILC Investments Holdings Inc., ITW (China) Investment Company Limited, ITW (Deutschland) GmbH, ITW (EU) Holdings Ltd., ITW (European) Finance Co. Ltd., ITW (European) Finance II Co. Ltd., ITW (Ningbo) Components & Fastenings Systems Co. Ltd., ITW AEP LLC, ITW AOC LLC, ITW Aircraft Investments Inc., ITW Airport Ground Equipment (Beijing) Co. Ltd., ITW Alpha Sarl, ITW Ampang Industries Philippines Inc., ITW Appliance Components EOOD, ITW Appliance Components LLC, ITW Appliance Components S.A. de C.V., ITW Appliance Components S.r.l.a, ITW Appliance Components d.o.o., ITW Australia Holdings Pty Ltd, ITW Australia Property Holdings Pty Ltd., ITW Australia Pty Ltd, ITW Automotive Components (Chongqing) Co. Ltd., ITW Automotive Components (Langfang) Co. Ltd., ITW Automotive Japan K.K., ITW Automotive Korea LLC, ITW Automotive Parts (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, ITW Automotive Products GmbH, ITW Automotive Products Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., ITW Bailly Comte, ITW Befestigungssysteme GmbH, ITW Belgium, ITW Brazilian Nominee L.L.C., ITW Building Components Group Inc., ITW CER, ITW CP Distribution Center Holland BV, ITW CS (UK) Ltd., ITW Canada Inc., ITW Celeste Inc., ITW Chemical Products Ltda, ITW Chemical Products Scandinavia ApS, ITW Colombia S.A.S., ITW Construction Products (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., ITW Construction Products (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., ITW Construction Products AB, ITW Construction Products AS, ITW Construction Products ApS, ITW Construction Products CZ s.r.o., ITW Construction Products Italy Srl, ITW Construction Products OU, ITW Construction Products OY, ITW Contamination Control (Wujiang) Co. Ltd., ITW Contamination Control B.V., ITW Covid Security Group Inc., ITW DS Investments Inc., ITW DelFast do Brasil Ltda., ITW Delta Sarl, ITW Denmark ApS, ITW Dynatec, ITW Dynatec Adhesive Equipment (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., ITW Dynatec GmbH, ITW Dynatec Kabushiki Kaisha, ITW EF&C France SAS, ITW EF&C Selb GmbH, ITW Electronic Business Asia Co. Limited, ITW Electronic Components/Products (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., ITW Electronics (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., ITW Epsilon Sarl, ITW Espana S.A., ITW FEG Hong Kong Limited, ITW FEG do Brasil Industria e Comercio Ltda., ITW Fastener Products GmbH, ITW Finance Designated Activity Company, ITW Finance Europe S.A., ITW Fluids and Hygiene Solutions Ltda., ITW Food Equipment Group LLC, ITW GH LLC, ITW GSE ApS, ITW GSE Inc., ITW Gamma Sarl, ITW German Management LLC, ITW Global Investments Holdings LLC, ITW Global Investments Holdings Y Compania Sociedad en Comandita por Acciones, ITW Global Investments II Inc., ITW Global Investments LLC, ITW Global Tire Repair Europe GmbH, ITW Global Tire Repair Inc., ITW Global Tire Repair Japan K.K., ITW Graphics (Thailand) Ltd., ITW Graphics Asia Limited, ITW Graphics Italy S.R.L. in liquidazione, ITW Great Britain Investment & Licensing Holding Company, ITW Group France (Luxembourg) S.ar.l., ITW HLP Thailand Co. Ltd., ITW Holding Quimica B.C. S.L. Sole Shareholder Company, ITW Holdings Australia L.P., ITW Holdings I Limited, ITW Holdings II Limited, ITW Holdings III Limited, ITW Holdings IV Limited, ITW Holdings IX Limited, ITW Holdings Inc., ITW Holdings LP, ITW Holdings UK, ITW Holdings V Limited, ITW Holdings VI Limited, ITW Holdings VII Limited, ITW Holdings VIII Limited, ITW Hungary Finance Beta Kft, ITW ILC Holdings I Inc., ITW IPG Investments LLC, ITW Imaden Industria e Comercio Ltda., ITW India Private Limited, ITW International Holdings LLC, ITW International Intellectual Property LLC, ITW Invest Holding GmbH, ITW Ireland Holdings Unlimited Company, ITW Ireland Unlimited Company, ITW Italy Finance Srl, ITW Italy Holding Srl, ITW Japan Ltd., ITW Korea LLC, ITW LLC & Co. KG, ITW Limited, ITW Lombard Holdings Inc., ITW Lys Fusion S.r.l., ITW M FILMS II LLC, ITW MH LLC, ITW Marking & Coding (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., ITW Medical Group de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., ITW Meritex Sdn. Bhd., ITW Metal Fasteners S.L., ITW Mexico Holding Company S. De R.L. de C.V., ITW Mexico Holdings LLC, ITW Morlock GmbH, ITW Mortgage Investments II Inc., ITW Mortgage Investments III Inc., ITW Mortgage Investments IV Inc., ITW Netherlands Beta B.V., ITW Netherlands Finance Alpha BV, ITW New Universal LLC, ITW New Zealand, ITW Novadan Sp. Z.o.o., ITW PPF Brasil Adesivos Ltda., ITW Participations S.a r.l., ITW Pension Funds Trustee Company, ITW Performance Plastic (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., ITW Performance Polymers & Fluids Japan Co. Ltd., ITW Performance Polymers & Fluids Korea Limited, ITW Performance Polymers & Fluids OOO, ITW Performance Polymers (Wujiang) Co. Ltd., ITW Performance Polymers ApS, ITW Performance Polymers and Fluids Group FZE, ITW Peru S.A.C., ITW Philippines Holdings LLC, ITW Poly Mex S. de R.L. de C.V., ITW Polymers Sealants North America Inc., ITW Pronovia s.r.o., ITW Pte. Ltd., ITW Qufu Automotive Cooling Systems Co. Ltd., ITW Real Estate Germany GmbH, ITW Residuals III L.L.C., ITW Residuals IV L.L.C., ITW Rivex, ITW SMPI, ITW SPG Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., ITW Simco-Ion (Shenzhen) Co. Ltd., ITW Slovakia s.r.o., ITW Spain Holdings S.L., ITW Specialty Film LLC, ITW Specialty Films France, ITW Specialty Materials (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., ITW Spraytec, ITW Sverige AB, ITW Sweden Holding AB, ITW Test & Measurement Equipment (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, ITW Test & Measurement GmbH, ITW Test and Measurement Italia Srl, ITW Test and Measurement Services Industry and Trade Ltd., ITW Texwipe Philippines Inc., ITW Thermal Films (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., ITW UK, ITW UK Finance Beta Limited, ITW UK Finance Delta Limited, ITW UK Finance Gamma Limited, ITW UK Finance Limited, ITW UK II Limited, ITW Universal II LLC, ITW Welding, ITW Welding AB, ITW Welding GmbH, ITW Welding Products B.V., ITW Welding Products Group FZE, ITW Welding Products Group S. DE R.L. De C.V., ITW Welding Products Italy Srl, ITW Welding Products Limited Liability Company, ITW Welding Produtos Para Solgdagem Ltda., ITW Welding Servicios Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., ITW Welding Singapore Pte. Ltd., ITW de France, ITW do Brasil Industrial e Comercial Ltda., ITW haubold Paslode GmbH, Ideal Molding Technologies LLC, Illinois Tool Works (Chile) Limitada, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) Nederland B.V., Illinois Tool Works Norway AS, Impar Comercio E Representacoes Ltda., Industrie Plastic Elsasser GmbH, Inmobiliaria Cit. S.A. de C.F., Innova Temperlite Servicios S.A. de C.V., Innovacion y Transformacion Automotriz S.A. de C.V., Instron (Shanghai) Ltd., Instron (Thailand) Limited, Instron Brasil Equipamentos Cientificos Ltda., Instron Foreign Sales Corp. Limited, Instron France S.A.S., Instron GmbH, Instron Holdings Limited, Instron International Limited, Instron Japan Company Ltd., Instron Korea LLC, International Leasing Company LLC, International Truss Systems Proprietary Limited, Isolenge - ITW Sistemas de Isolamento Termico Ltda., KCPL Mauritius Holdings, Kester, Kester Components (M) Sdn. Bhd., Kleinmann GmbH, Krafft Argentina S.A., Krafft S.L., Lock Inspection Systemes France Sarl, Loma Systems (Canada) Inc., Loma Systems BV, Loma Systems sro, Lombard Pressings Limited, Lumex Inc., Luvex - Industria De Equipamentos De Protecao Ltda., Lys Fusion Poland Sp. z.o.o., M&C Specialties (Shenzhen) Co. Ltd., M&C Specialties Co., MAGNAFLUX GmbH, MEHB Holdings Limited, MGHG Property LLC, Magna Industrial Co. Limited, Manufacturing Avancee S.A., Meritex Technology (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., Meurer Verpackungssysteme GmbH, Miller Electric Mfg. LLC, Miller Insurance Ltd., NDT Holding LLC, NOVADAN APS, Norden Olje AB, North Star Imaging Europe, North Star Imaging Inc., Nova Chimica S.r.l., Odesign Inc., Orbitalum Tools GmbH, PENTA-91 OOO, PR. A. I. Srl, PT ITW Construction Products Indonesia, Pacific Concept Industries Limited (Enping), Panreac Quimica S.L., Paslode Fasteners (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Peerless Machinery Corp., Penta Dnepr LLC, Penta Sever OOO, Penta Volga OOO, Polyrey, Premark FEG L.L.C., Premark HII Holdings LLC, Premark International, Premark International LLC, Prolex Sociedad Anonima, QSA Global Inc., Quimica Industrial Mediterranea S.L., Ramset Fasteners (Hong Kong) Ltd., Rapid Cook LLC, Refrigeration France, S.E.E. Sistemas Industria E Comercio Ltda., ST Mexico Holdings LLC, Salter India Limited, Sealant Systems International Inc., Sentinel Asia Yuhan Hoesa, Shanghai ITW Plastic & Metal Co. Ltd, Simco (Nederland) B.V., Simco Japan Inc., Societe de Prospection et dInventions Techniques SPIT, Speedline Holdings I Inc., Speedline Holdings I LLC, Speedline Technologies GmbH, Speedline Technologies Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Speedline Technologies Mexico Services S. de R.L. de C.V., Stokvis Celix Portugal Unipessoal LDA, Stokvis Danmark ApS, Stokvis Holdings S.A.R.L., Stokvis Promi s.r.o, Stokvis Prostick Tapes Private Limited, Stokvis Tape Group B.V., Stokvis Tapes (Hong Kong) Co. Limited, Stokvis Tapes (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Stokvis Tapes (Shenzhen) Co. Ltd., Stokvis Tapes (Taiwan) Co. Ltd., Stokvis Tapes (Tianjin) Co. Ltd., Stokvis Tapes BVBA, Stokvis Tapes Benelux B.V., Stokvis Tapes Deutschland GmbH, Stokvis Tapes France, Stokvis Tapes Italia s.r.l., Stokvis Tapes Limited, Stokvis Tapes Limited Liability Company, Stokvis Tapes Norge AS, Stokvis Tapes Oy, Stokvis Tapes Polska Sp Z.O.O., Stokvis Tapes Sverige AB, Stolvis Holdings II S.A.R.L., Tarutin Kester Co. Ltd., Technopack Industria Comercio Consultoria e Representacoes Ltda., Teknek (China) Limited, Teknek (Japan) Limited, Teksaleco Ltd., The Miller Group Ltd, Thirode Grandes Cuisines Poligny, Tien Tai Electrode (Kunshan) Co. Ltd., Tien Tai Electrode (Qingdao) Co. Ltd., Tien Tai Electrode Co. Ltd., Tregaskiss Welding Products, US Finance Gamma LLC, Unichemicals Industria e Comercio Ltda., VR-Leasing Sarita GmbH & Co. Immobilien KG, VS European Holdco BV, Valeron Strength Films B.V.B.A., Veneta Decalcogomme S.r.l., Versachem Chile S.A., Vesta, Vesta (Guangzhou) Catering Equipment Co. Ltd, Vesta Global Limited, Viltronics Soltec, Vitronics Soltec B.V., W Packaging Technology (China) Co. Ltd., Wachs Canada Ltd., Wachs Subsea LLC, Weigh-Tronix Canada ULC, Weigh-Tronix UK Limited, Wilsonart International Holdings LLC, Wujiang Advanced Cleaning Co. Ltd., Wynn Oil (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd., Wynn's Automotive France, Wynn's Belgium BVBA, Wynn's Italia Srl, Wynn's Mekuba India Pvt Ltd, ZF TRW (Engineered Fasteners and Components), and Zip-Pak International B.V.. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides various property and casualty insurance products and services in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Commercial Lines, Personal Lines, and Other. The Commercial Lines segment offers commercial multiple peril, commercial automobile, and workers' compensation insurance products, as well as management and professional liability, marine, specialty industrial and commercial property, monoline general liability, surety, umbrella, fidelity, crime, and other commercial coverages. The Personal Lines segment provides personal automobile and homeowner's coverages, as well as other personal coverages, such as personal umbrella, inland marine, fire, personal watercraft, and other miscellaneous coverages. The Other segment offers investment management and advisory services to institutions, pension funds, and other organizations. The company markets its products and services through independent agents and brokers. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. was founded in 1852 and is headquartered in Worcester, Massachusetts. Read More Ad Legacy Research 1,192 Interested This Week Wall Street Legend Who Picked Bitcoin in 2016 Shares #1 Pick for the 2020s Picking the right investment of the decade can transform your life Microsoft in the 80sAmazon in the 90sApple in the 2000sBitcoin in 2016... Any one of these could have made you a millionaire many times over. Today, the Wall Street legend who picked the last investment of the decade APC National Leader and former Governor of Lagos state has sparked reactions from all quarter of the country following his jibe at ex-president Obasanjo today. The Senator representing Bayelsa East Constituency in the upper chamber, Ben Murray Bruce, otherwise known as the common sense senator, while reacting faulted Tinubu for insulting Obasanjo. Nigerians meanwhile have come out to say that Tinubu did not err in slamming the elder statesman. What he said: President Olusegun Obasanjo is an icon. He ended the Nigerian Civil War. The first military head of state to voluntarily hand over to an elected President in Africa. He stabilised the democracy we are now enjoying. It is rather unfortunate that the beneficiaries now insult him! Ben Murray-Bruce (@benmurraybruce) February 9, 2019 Nigerians Reaction: https://twitter.com/naztyfl/status/1094251331009896449 How did Obasanjo stabilize the democracy we are enjoying today. Remember he did not fight for it. He was imposed on us by his military boys after we have fought to push the military away.When he took over, he did not work to stabilize our democracy, he foisted the worst impunity. Tonero (@Tonero74564469) February 9, 2019 He into the arena and openly took sides. Why are Shagari, Gowon and Abdulsalam not insulted? Simple, they stayed neutral, at least in public, and play the elder statesmen role and can relate with anyone who wins. He who comes home with ant infested wood should expect lizards. Mike Eko (@mikeko1234) February 9, 2019 Enbridge Inc. operates as an energy infrastructure company. The company operates through five segments: Liquids Pipelines, Gas Transmission and Midstream, Gas Distribution and Storage, Renewable Power Generation, and Energy Services. The Liquids Pipelines segment operates pipelines and related terminals to transport various grades of crude oil and other liquid hydrocarbons in Canada and the United States. The Gas Transmission and Midstream segment invests in natural gas pipelines, and gathering and processing facilities in Canada and the United States. The Gas Distribution and Storage segment is involved in natural gas utility operations serving residential, commercial, and industrial customers in Ontario, as well as natural gas distribution and energy transportation activities in Quebec. The Renewable Power Generation segment operates power generating assets, such as wind, solar, geothermal, and waste heat recovery facilities; and transmission assets in North America and Europe. The Energy Services segment provides energy marketing services to refiners, producers, and other customers; and physical commodity marketing and logistical services in Canada and the United States. The company was formerly known as IPL Energy Inc. and changed its name to Enbridge Inc. in October 1998. Enbridge Inc. was founded in 1949 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada. Read More DIC Asset AG is one of Germany's leading listed property companies, and specialises in commercial real estate. With around 20 years of experience on the German real estate market, the company maintains a regional footprint on all major German markets through six branch offices, and has 169 assets with a combined market value of c. EUR 5.6 billion under management. DIC uses a hybrid business model to manage its business divisions Commercial Portfolio, Funds and Other Investments. Taking an active asset management approach, DIC employs its proprietary, integrated real estate management platform to raise capital appreciation potential in its business divisions and to boost its revenues. In its Commercial Portfolio division (EUR 1.7 billion in assets under management), DIC acts as proprietor and property asset holder, and thus generates revenues both from the management of the assets and through the value optimisation of its own real estate portfolio. The Funds division (EUR 1.6 billion in assets under management) generates its revenues by acting as issuer and manager of special real estate funds for institutional investors. Gathered in the business unit Other Investments (EUR 2.3 billion in assets under management) are strategic financial investments, the management of properties in which the company holds no equity stakes, equity investments in property developments and joint venture investments. DIC Asset AG has been included in the SDAX(R) segment of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange since June 2006. The Company's shares are also included in the EPRA index, which tracks the performance of the most important European real estate companies. Read More Hannover RAck SE, together with its subsidiaries, provides reinsurance products and services worldwide. It operates through Property & Casualty Reinsurance, and Life & Health Reinsurance segments. The Property & Casualty Reinsurance segment offers specialty lines comprising marine, aviation, facultative and direct business, credit, surety, and political risks reinsurance products; and treaty, catastrophe XL, and structured reinsurance, as well as insurance-linked securities. This segment also provides risk solutions for agricultural, livestock, and bloodstock businesses; aviation and space business; and marine and offshore energy business. The Life & Health Reinsurance segment offers group and individual credit life, enhanced annuities, group life and health, and Sharia-compliant Takaful reinsurance products. This segment also provides risk solutions in the areas of critical illness, disability, health, longevity, long term care, and mortality and morbidity, as well as underwriting services. In addition, it offers various financial solutions, including new-business financing; monetization of embedded value; reserve and solvency relief; and divestiture of non-core businesses. The company was formerly known as Hannover RAckversicherung AG and changed its name to Hannover RAck SE in March 2013. The company was founded in 1966 and is headquartered in Hanover, Germany. Hannover RAck SE is a subsidiary of Talanx AG. Read More Federal lawmaker, Ben Murray Bruce has said that all political actors must remain in cordial accord, no matter the outcome of the Saturdays election. The presidential election of the country will take place next Saturday, February 16th and the two major political parties are the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC(Muhammadu Buhari) and the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP(Atiku Abubakar). Speaking via Twitter on Sunday, the lawmaker who represents Bayelsa East at the senate said the country existed before political parties and elections and the country will continue to strive after them Therefore In his words: No matter who wins this Saturday, we must still remain brothers and sisters born from the womb of one mother Nigeria. We will never become enemies because of elections or politicians. Nigeria existed before these political parties and Nigeria will survive and thrive after them. Concord Medical Services Holdings Limited, through its subsidiaries, operates a network of radiotherapy and diagnostic imaging centers in the People's Republic of China. The company operates in Network and Hospital segments. The company's services comprise linear accelerators external beam radiotherapy, gamma knife radiosurgery, head gamma knife systems, body gamma knife systems, and diagnostic imaging services. It also offers other treatments and diagnostic services comprising electroencephalography for the diagnosis of epilepsy; thermotherapy for pain relief after radiotherapy and chemotherapy; ultrasound therapy for the treatment of cancer; stereotactic radiofrequency ablation for the treatment of Parkinson's disease; and refraction and tonometry for the diagnosis of ophthalmic conditions. In addition, the company provides clinical support services, including developing treatment protocols for doctors; and organizing joint diagnosis between doctors in its network and clinical research. Further, it offers radiotherapy and diagnostic equipment leasing and management services to hospitals, as well as tele-consulting services; and sells medical equipment. Additionally, the company establishes the Beijing Proton Medical Center that provides radiotherapy treatment options to cancer patients; and other specialty cancer hospitals, which offer radiotherapy services, diagnostic imaging services, chemotherapy, and surgery. As of June 30, 2019, it operated a network of 30 centers based in 20 hospitals in 20 cities across 13 provinces and administrative regions in China. Concord Medical Services Holdings Limited was incorporated in 2007 and is headquartered in Beijing, the People's Republic of China. Read More Chubb Limited provides insurance and reinsurance products worldwide. The company's North America Commercial P&C Insurance segment offers commercial property, casualty, workers' compensation, package policies, risk management, financial lines, marine, construction, environmental, medical, cyber risk, surety, and excess casualty; and group accident and health insurance to large, middle market, and small commercial businesses. Its North America Personal P&C Insurance segment provides affluent and high net worth individuals and families with homeowners, automobile and collector cars, valuable articles, personal and excess liability, travel insurance, and recreational marine insurance and services. The company's North America Agricultural Insurance segment offers multiple peril crop and crop-hail insurance; and coverage for farm and ranch property, and commercial agriculture products. Its Overseas General Insurance segment provides coverage for traditional commercial property and casualty; specialty categories, such as financial lines, marine, energy, aviation, political risk, and construction risk; and group accident and health, and traditional and specialty personal lines for corporations, middle markets, and small customers through retail brokers, agents, and other channels. The company's Global Reinsurance segment offers traditional and specialty reinsurance under the Chubb Tempest Re brand to property and casualty companies. Its Life Insurance segment provides protection and savings products comprising whole life, endowment plans, individual term life, group term life, medical and health, personal accident, credit life, universal life, and unit linked contracts. Chubb has collaboration with Marsh to secure insurance coverage for the COVAX no-fault compensation program. The company was formerly known as ACE Limited and changed its name to Chubb Limited in January 2016. Chubb Limited was incorporated in 1985 and is headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland. Read More The following companies are subsidiares of Waste Management: 635952 Ontario Inc., 8242348 Canada Inc., Acaverde S.A. de C.V., Access Computer Products, Advanced Environmental Technical Services L.L.C., Akron Regional Landfill Inc., Alliance Sanitary Landfill Inc., Alpharetta Transfer Station LLC, American Landfill Inc., American Oil Recovery LLC, Ameriwaste LLC, Anderson Landfill Inc., Anderson Rubbish Disposal, Antelope Valley Recycling and Disposal Facility Inc., Arden Landfill Inc., Atlantic Waste Disposal Inc., Automated Salvage Transport Co. L.L.C., Avalon South LLC, Azusa Land Reclamation Inc., B&B Landfill Inc., Big Dipper Enterprises Inc., Bluegrass Containment L.L.C., Burnsville Sanitary Landfill Inc., CA Newco L.L.C., CR Group LLC, CWM Chemical Services L.L.C., Cal Sierra Disposal, California Asbestos Monofill Inc., Canadian Waste Services Holdings Inc., Capels Landfill LLC, Capital Sanitation Company, Capitol Disposal Inc., Carolina Grading Inc., Cedar Ridge Landfill Inc., Central Disposal Systems Inc., Chadwick Road Landfill Inc., Chambers Clearview Environmental Landfill Inc., Chambers Development Company Inc., Chambers Development of Ohio Inc., Chambers of Georgia Inc., Chambers of Mississippi Inc., Chemical Waste Management Inc., Chemical Waste Management of Indiana L.L.C., Chemical Waste Management of the Northwest Inc., Chesser Island Road Landfill Inc., City Environmental Services Inc. of Waters, Cleburne Landfill Company Corp., Coast Waste Management Inc., Coastal Recyclers Landfill LLC, Connecticut Valley Sanitary Waste Disposal Inc., Conservation Services Inc., Coshocton Landfill Inc., Cougar Landfill Inc., Countryside Landfill Inc., Curtis Creek Recovery Systems Inc., Cuyahoga Landfill Inc., DHC Land LLC, Dafter Sanitary Landfill Inc., Dauphin Meadows Inc., Deep Valley Landfill Inc., Deer Track Park Landfill Inc., Deffenbaugh Disposal Inc., Deffenbaugh Group Holdings Inc., Deffenbaugh Industries Inc., Deffenbaugh Recycling Company L.L.C., Deffenbaugh of Arkansas LLC, Del Almo Landfill L.L.C., Delaware Recyclable Products Inc., Dickinson Landfill Inc., Disposal Service Incorporated, Dolphin Services & Chemicals LLC, Dolphin-One LLC, ELDA Landfill Inc., Earthmovers Landfill L.L.C., East Liverpool Landfill Inc., Eastern One Land Corporation, Eco-Vista LLC, Elk River Landfill Inc., Energy Injection Services of Mississippi LLC, EnviroSolutions Dulles LLC, EnviroSolutions Holdings Inc., EnviroSolutions Real Property Holdings Inc., Envirofil of Illinois Inc., Evergreen Landfill Inc., Evergreen Recycling and Disposal Facility Inc., Finch Waste Co LLC, Firetower Landfill LLC, Fred J. Eckert Sanitary Service Inc., Furnace Associates Inc., G.I. Industries, GA Landfills Inc., Gallia Landfill Inc., Garnet of Maryland Inc., Gateway Transfer Station LLC, Georgia Waste Systems Inc., Giordano Recycling L.L.C., Glades Landfill LLC, Glen's Sanitary Landfill Inc., Grand Central Sanitary Landfill Inc., Greenbow LLC, Greenleaf Compaction Inc., Greenstar Allentown LLC, Greenstar Georgia LLC, Greenstar LLC, Greenstar Managed Services - Connecticut LLC, Greenstar Managed Services - RLWM LLC, Greenstar Mid-America LLC, Greenstar New Jersey LLC, Greenstar Ohio LLC, Greenstar Paterson LLC, Greenstar Pittsburgh LLC, Greenstar Recycled Holdings LLC, Greenstar Recycling LLC, Guadalupe Mines Mutual Water Company, Guadalupe Rubbish Disposal Co. Inc., Ham Lake Haulers Inc., Harris Sanitation Inc., Harwood Landfill Inc., Hedco Landfill Limited, High Mountain Fuels LLC, Hillsboro Landfill Inc., Holyoke Sanitary Landfill Inc., IN Landfills L.L.C., Illini Disposal, International Environmental Management Inc., Jahner Sanitation Inc., Jay County Landfill L.L.C., K and W Landfill Inc., Keene Road Landfill Inc., Kelly Run Sanitation Inc., King George Landfill Inc., King George Landfill Properties LLC, Kirby Canyon Holdings LLC, L&K Group Holdings LLC, LCS Services Inc., Lakeville Recycling L.P., Land South Holdings LLC, Landfill Services of Charleston Inc., Laurel Highlands Landfill Inc., Liberty Landfill L.L.C., Liquid Logistics, Liquid Waste Management Inc., Longleaf C&D Disposal Facility Inc., Looney Bins Inc., Mac Land Disposal Inc. II, Mahoning Landfill Inc., Mass Gravel Inc., Mc Ginnes Industrial Maintenance Corporation, McDaniel Landfill Inc., McGill Landfill Inc., Meadowfill Landfill Inc., Michigan Environs Inc., Midwest One Land Corporation, Modesto Garbage Co. Inc., Moor Refuse Inc., Mordell, Mountain Indemnity Insurance Company, Mountainview Landfill Inc., Nassau Landfill L.L.C., National Guaranty Insurance Company of Vermont, New England CR L.L.C., New Milford Landfill L.L.C., New Orleans Landfill L.L.C., North Manatee Recycling and Disposal Facility L.L.C., Northwestern Landfill Inc., Nu-Way Live Oak Reclamation Inc., OAKLEAF Waste Management LLC, OGH Acquisition Corporation, Oak Grove Disposal Co. Inc., Oakleaf Global Holdings Inc., Oakleaf Waste Management Inc., Oakridge Landfill Inc., Oakwood Landfill Inc., Okeechobee Landfill Inc., Ozark Ridge Landfill Inc., P & R Environmental Industries L.L.C., Pacific Waste Management L.L.C., Pappy Inc., Peltz H.C. LLC, Pen-Rob Inc., People's Landfill Inc., Peterson Demolition Inc., Phoenix Resources Inc., Pine Grove Landfill Inc., Pine Tree Acres Inc., Prime Westport LLC, Quail Hollow Landfill Inc., Questquill Limited, R & B Landfill Inc., RAA Colorado L.L.C., RAA Trucking LLC, RCI Hudson Inc., RTS Landfill Inc., Recycle America Co. L.L.C., Recycle America Holdings Inc., Redwood Landfill Inc., Refuse Inc., Refuse Services Inc., Reliable Environmental Transport, Reliable Landfill L.L.C., Remote Landfill Services Inc., Reno Disposal Co., Resco Holdings L.L.C., Resource Control Composting Inc., Resource Control Inc., Richland County Landfill Inc., Riverbend Landfill Co., Rust Engineering & Construction Inc., Rust International Inc., S & J Landfill Limited Partnership, S & S Grading Inc., S&T Materials LLC, SC Holdings Inc., SF Land Acquisition LLC, Sanifill de Mexico (US) Inc., Sanifill de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Shade Landfill Inc., Shawnee Rock Company, Sierra Estrella Landfill Inc., Southern Alleghenies Landfill Inc., Southern One Land Corporation, Southern Waste Services L.L.C., Spruce Ridge Inc., Stony Hollow Landfill Inc., Suburban Landfill Inc., Summit Energy Services Inc, Swire Waste Management Limited, TN'T Sands Inc., TX Newco L.L.C., Texarkana Landfill L.L.C., Texas Pack Rat - Austin #1 LLC, Texas Pack Rat - Dallas #1 LLC, Texas Pack Rat - Houston #1 LLC, Texas Pack Rat - Houston #2 LLC, Texas Pack Rat - Houston #3 LLC, Texas Pack Rat - San Antonio #1 LLC, Texas Pack Rat Service Company LLC, The Peltz Group LLC, The Waste Management Charitable Foundation, The Woodlands of Van Buren Inc., Thermal Remediation Solutions L.L.C., Trail Ridge Landfill Inc., TransAmerican Waste Industries, Transamerican Waste Central Landfill Inc., Trash Hunters Inc., Twin Bridges Golf Club L.P., USA South Hills Landfill Inc., USA Valley Facility Inc., USA Waste Geneva Landfill Inc., USA Waste Landfill Operations and Transfer Inc., USA Waste Services of NYC Inc., USA Waste of California Inc., USA Waste of Texas Landfills Inc., USA Waste of Virginia Landfills Inc., USA Waste-Management Resources LLC, USA-Crinc L.L.C., USB LIHTC Fund 2010-1 LLC, UWS Barre Inc., United Waste Systems Leasing Inc., Valley Garbage and Rubbish Company Inc., Vern's Refuse Service Inc., Vickery Environmental Inc., Vista Landfill LLC, Voyageur Disposal Processing Inc., WM Avon Inc., WM Bagco LLC, WM Billerica Inc., WM Biloxi Hauling LLC, WM Biloxi Transfer Station LLC, WM Boston CORE Inc., WM CCP Solutions LLC, WM Conversion Fund LLC, WM Corporate Services Inc., WM Curbside LLC, WM DC 1 LLC, WM Emergency Employee Support Fund Inc., WM Energy Resources Inc., WM Energy Services Holdings LLC, WM Energy Services of Ohio LLC, WM Energy Solutions Inc., WM GTL Inc., WM GTL JV Holdings LLC, WM GTL LLC, WM Green Squad LLC, WM GreenOps LLC, WM Healthcare Solutions Inc., WM Illinois Renewable Energy L.L.C., WM Intellectual Property Holdings L.L.C., WM International Holdings Inc., WM KS Energy Resources LLC, WM LNG Inc., WM LampTracker Inc., WM Landfills of Ohio Inc., WM Landfills of Tennessee Inc., WM Leasing Services of Texas LLC, WM Leasing of Arizona L.L.C., WM Leasing of Texas L.P., WM Logistics India Private Limited, WM Logistics LLC, WM Mercury Waste Inc., WM Middle Tennessee Environmental Center L.L.C., WM Mobile Bay Environmental Center Inc., WM ND Energy Resources II LLC, WM ND Energy Resources LLC, WM Nevada Renewable Energy L.L.C., WM North Broward Inc., WM Organic Growth Inc., WM PA Holdings LLC, WM PRG L.L.C., WM Pack-Rat LLC, WM Pack-Rat of California LLC, WM Pack-Rat of Illinois LLC, WM Pack-Rat of Kentucky LLC, WM Pack-Rat of Maryland LLC, WM Pack-Rat of Massachusetts LLC, WM Pack-Rat of Michigan LLC, WM Pack-Rat of Nevada LLC, WM Pack-Rat of Ohio LLC, WM Pack-Rat of Rhode Island LLC, WM Partnership Holdings Inc., WM Phoenix Energy Resources LLC, WM Propane LLC, WM Quebec Inc., WM RA Canada Inc., WM Recycle America L.L.C., WM Recycle Europe L.L.C., WM Recycling Latin America LLC, WM Refined Coal LLC, WM Renewable Energy L.L.C., WM Resource Recovery & Recycling Center Inc., WM Resources Inc., WM Safety Services L.L.C., WM Security Services Inc., WM Storage II Inc., WM Storage Inc., WM TX Energy Resources II LLC, WM TX Energy Resources LLC, WM Texas Pack Rat LLC, WM Trash Monitor Plus L.L.C., WM WY Energy Resources II LLC, WM WY Energy Resources III LLC, WM WY Energy Resources LLC, WM of North Dakota Energy Disposal Solutions LLC, WMI Mexico Holdings Inc., WMNA Container Recycling L.L.C., WMRE of Kentucky LLC, WMRE of Michigan LLC, WMRE of Ohio LLC, WMRE of Ohio-American LLC, WMSALSA Inc., WTI Air Pollution Control Inc., WTI Rust Holdings Inc., Warner Company, Waste Away Group Inc., Waste Management Arizona Landfills Inc., Waste Management Buckeye L.L.C., Waste Management China Holdings Limited, Waste Management Collection and Recycling Inc., Waste Management Disposal Services of Colorado Inc., Waste Management Disposal Services of Maine Inc., Waste Management Disposal Services of Maryland Inc., Waste Management Disposal Services of Massachusetts Inc., Waste Management Disposal Services of Oregon Inc., Waste Management Disposal Services of Pennsylvania Inc., Waste Management Disposal Services of Virginia Inc., Waste Management Energy Services of Texas LLC, Waste Management Holdings Inc., Waste Management Inc. of Florida, Waste Management Inc. of Tennessee, Waste Management Indycoke L.L.C., Waste Management International Inc., Waste Management National Services Inc., Waste Management National Transportation Services Inc., Waste Management Partners Inc., Waste Management Recycling and Disposal Services of California Inc., Waste Management Recycling of New Jersey L.L.C., Waste Management Service Center Inc., Waste Management of Alameda County Inc., Waste Management of Alaska Inc., Waste Management of Arizona Inc., Waste Management of Arkansas Inc., Waste Management of California Inc., Waste Management of Canada Corporation, Waste Management of Carolinas Inc., Waste Management of Colorado Inc., Waste Management of Connecticut Inc., Waste Management of Delaware Inc., Waste Management of Fairless L.L.C., Waste Management of Five Oaks Recycling and Disposal Facility Inc., Waste Management of Georgia Inc., Waste Management of Hawaii Inc., Waste Management of Idaho Inc., Waste Management of Illinois Inc., Waste Management of Indiana Holdings One Inc., Waste Management of Indiana Holdings Two Inc., Waste Management of Indiana L.L.C., Waste Management of Iowa Inc., Waste Management of Kansas Inc., Waste Management of Kentucky Holdings Inc., Waste Management of Kentucky L.L.C., Waste Management of Leon County Inc., Waste Management of Londonderry Inc., Waste Management of Louisiana Holdings One Inc., Waste Management of Louisiana L.L.C., Waste Management of Maine Inc., Waste Management of Maryland Inc., Waste Management of Massachusetts Inc., Waste Management of Metro Atlanta Inc., Waste Management of Michigan Inc., Waste Management of Minnesota Inc., Waste Management of Mississippi Inc., Waste Management of Missouri Inc., Waste Management of Montana Inc., Waste Management of Nebraska Inc., Waste Management of Nevada Inc., Waste Management of New Hampshire Inc., Waste Management of New Jersey Inc., Waste Management of New Mexico Inc., Waste Management of New York L.L.C., Waste Management of North Dakota Inc., Waste Management of Ohio Inc., Waste Management of Oklahoma Inc., Waste Management of Oregon Inc., Waste Management of Pennsylvania Gas Recovery L.L.C., Waste Management of Pennsylvania Inc., Waste Management of Rhode Island Inc., Waste Management of South Carolina Inc., Waste Management of South Dakota Inc., Waste Management of Texas Holdings Inc., Waste Management of Texas Inc., Waste Management of Tunica Landfill Inc., Waste Management of Utah Inc., Waste Management of Virginia Inc., Waste Management of Washington, Waste Management of West Virginia Inc., Waste Management of Wisconsin Inc., Waste Management of Wyoming Inc., Western One Land Corporation, Western Waste Industries, Western Waste of Texas L.L.C., Westminster Land Acquisition LLC, Wheelabrator Technologies, Wheelabrator Technologies International Inc., White Lake Landfill Inc., Willow Oak Landfill LLC, and eCycling Services L.L.C.. Vanguard The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has threatened to bar some political parties from fielding polling agents in Saturdays elections over their inability to meet the deadline and requirements for the submission of particulars of their agents. Daily Sun President Muhamadu Buhari has said that his administration would focus more on the economy and fight against corruption if re-elected for a second term in office during next Saturdays presidential election. Daily Times The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr Adams Oshiomhole, on Saturday urged Nigerians not to believe the promise of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to create massive jobs. Oshiomhole gave the advice in Lagos while addressing the mammoth crowd at the partys presidential campaign rally. He said the promise was a calculated ploy by the opposition party to deceive Nigerians and get their votes. Leadership About 10 cars were yesterday burnt to ashes when supporters of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and that of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) clashed in Dei-Dei, in Bwari area council of the Federal capital Territory (FCT). Tribune African leaders and politicians have been advised to refrain from labelling opponents as liars, looters and enemies as such unsubstantiated name-calling could trigger violent reactions. The Nation The National Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, yesterday told the people of Lagos State that the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, is undeserving of their votes in Saturdays election for working against their wellbeing during his tenure as Vice President. New Telegraph Governor Abdulazeez Yari Abubakar of Zamfara State has raised the stakes ahead of the elections warning the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) that should candidates of the All Progressive Congress (APC) not be on the ballot; then there will be no elections in the state. Daily Independent Any sitting government at the centre cannot afford to undermine the economic importance of Rivers State to the national economy. The state is rich in oil and gas resources and is currently the assumed headquarters of one of Nigerias six geo-political zones, the South-south region. It also has beautiful flora and fauna, which could be tapped for tourism revenues. A man has been arrested in connection with an interstate accident Friday in Columbia County. Columbia County Sheriff Roger Brandner said Saturday night that a Wisconsin State Patrol trooper located and arrested Robert E. Wright, 47, of Reedsburg, on Smokey Hollow Road in Columbia County. Wisconsin State Patrol troopers and sheriffs deputies from Columbia and Sauk counties had sought the driver after he allegedly fled an accident scene Friday night when his truck hit with a barrier in the median on interstate 90/94. Support Local Journalism Your membership makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} State Patrol Sgt. Gary Helgerson said the southbound driver crashed his 2001 Chevrolet Silverado at 5:56 p.m. Friday into a barrier along the interstate in Columbia County. The driver then fled over a fence and ran into a wooded area. Brandner said his deputies deployed a K-9 team Friday night and tracked the suspect through some fields to a hotel, but he was not immediately found. No other vehicles were damaged in the crash. It was unclear whether the driver had any injuries. Helgerson said there were no indications of alcohol use in the crash. Follow Brad on Twitter @BradMikeAllen or call him at 608-745-3510. Sign up for our Crime & Courts newsletter Get the latest in local public safety news with this weekly email. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed has dismissed claims that abducted Dapchi School girl, Leah Sharibu has been killed. Speaking at a press conference in Ilorin, Kwara state on Sunday, the minister described as absolute fake the report that Sharibu, who has been in Boko Haram captivity since she was kidnapped last March, alongside 100 of her schoolmates, has now died. According to Mr Mohammed, the presidential election, is only days away and the death rumour of Sharibu is just another ploy by the opposition party to spread falsehood and bring discredit to the Muhammadu Buhari government and reelection bid. In his words: It is part of the oppositions strategies to throw everything at the administration and at the President. I think every day they are realising the hopelessness of their position. Every day they are amazed by the support Mr President is receiving from every part of the country and they have decided that they are going to spread falsehood. They have also decided to inflame passion and make this election a Muslim-Christian affair or North-South affair, but people are not listening to them, he said. Two plus two equaling four is really hard to get to if youve got an achy tooth or an empty belly, said Craig Sweet, community liaison at the school, which serves about 640 kids from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade and is part of Achievement Plus, a partnership between the St. Paul Public Schools and the nonprofit Wilder Foundation. That partnership tries to meet the needs of needy kids at school, where they are most of the day, most of the year. At St. Paul Music Academy, one of three Achievement Plus schools in St. Paul, nearly all the kids come from low-income homes and more than half dont speak English as a first language at home. Sweet helps find community partners or services that already exist in a school neighborhood, and get them to co-locate inside the school. That includes Kymberly Miller from East Side Learning Center, who coordinates the schools literacy tutoring where volunteers come in and spend time at kid-sized desks with picture books, helping students learn to read. Sometimes its not about reading. Miller said when she notices a student who needs help like a student she recently noticed who didnt have warm winter boots shes able to go to the family resource center and ask for help or grab a pair of boots in the storage area. Cryptosporidiosis (KRIP-toe-spor-id-ee-osis) is a rather common small bowel infection caused by a rather widespread microscopic protozoan parasite named cryptosporidium (kryptos, Greek for concealed and sporos for seed). According to the Centers for Disease Control, during the past two decades, Crypto, as it is commonly referred to, has become recognized as one of the most common causes of waterborne (recreational and drinking water) disease in people. Different species of crypto also cause diarrheal disease in other vertebrate animals. We can share theirs, too. (Consider what follows as cryptic information from the crypts?) Crypto is found in every region of the U.S. and throughout the world. The organism is detected in 65 to 97 percent of the U.S. surface water supply. It is spread by a person swallowing some of the crypto cysts from the stool of an infected human or other animal. One bowel motion from an infected person can discharge millions of cysts. They can by found in recreational water like swimming pools, lakes, streams, hot tubs, Jacuzzis without knowing how they got there. To acquire the infection you need only consume a few cysts, which lodge and infect your small intestine primarily. On occasion it may spread to liver, pancreas, bile ducts, or even be inhaled into respiratory airways and lungs. You may not be able to detect by looking or smelling if something has been contaminated with stool. FDSCHANG, Cameroon The battle lines of the conflict in this Central African country are drawn by language. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 10/2/2019 (864 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. FDSCHANG, Cameroon The battle lines of the conflict in this Central African country are drawn by language. Around 80 per cent of the country speaks French; the rest speaks English. For decades, francophones and anglophones lived in relative harmony. But over the past two years, violence spurred by this linguistic split has brought Cameroon to the brink of civil war. Hundreds have died, close to 500,000 have been displaced and activists have been rounded up and jailed. The government claims armed English-speaking separatists who want to create a new nation called Ambazonia have terrorized civilians and attacked government forces, prompting the military to retaliate against them. But, in more than a dozen interviews, English speakers displaced by military raids on their villages recounted how Cameroonian troops opened fire on unarmed civilians and burned down their homes. Soldiers often arrived at anglophone villages early in the morning, they said. But instead of looking for armed independence fighters, they fired indiscriminately, at times leaving the bodies of young men piled in the streets. Witnesses and victims say the governments use of force has driven a growing number of moderate Cameroonians to throw their support behind the armed separatists, a shift that threatens to intensify the government crackdown and deepen divisions between French and English speakers in the once-peaceful nation. If this conflict spreads beyond the anglophone regions, it could destabilize the whole country, which is a key U.S. partner in fighting terrorism. "I dont want Cameroon anymore," said Daniel, a civilian who fled to Dschang, a French-speaking city close to the border of one English-speaking region after government forces attacked his village and shot an old woman dead. He spoke on the condition that his last name not be used out of fear of retribution for his comments, as did the other English-speaking Cameroonians in this story. "I want to fight for a new country." Late this past year, the United Nations warned there had been a surge of violence on both sides. At least 400 civilians were killed in the preceding year, Amnesty International reported in September. Col. Didier Badjeck, spokesman for Cameroons military, disputed that estimate and said that around 170 Cameroonian troops had been killed as of November 2018. Among the hundreds of thousands of Cameroonians displaced are around 30,000 who fled to Nigeria as refugees, according to United Nations estimates. Human-rights groups have also accused separatists of attacking security forces and burning down schools, among other abuses. The African Union has called for dialogue, but affirmed its "unwavering commitment to the unity and territorial integrity of Cameroon." Cmdr. Candice Tresch, a spokeswoman for the Defence Department, said that the United States had received assurances from the Cameroonian government that U.S. assistance would not be diverted from its intended purpose, which includes fighting Islamist extremists in the north. She said the U.S. closely monitors "units serving in the northwest and southwest against whom credible allegations of gross violations of human rights have been lodged to ensure they do not receive additional training or equipment if and when they are transferred to areas dealing with the Boko Haram menace." "We will consider suspending or reprogramming additional assistance when and as necessary," she said. Tibor Nagy, U.S. assistant secretary of state for African Affairs, said America takes allegations of human-rights violations in Cameroon seriously. "The last thing we would want is (if) units that we were training to fight against terrorism are then used against populations in the anglophone regions," Nagy said. The Cameroonian government denies that it is targeting civilians or burning down anglophone villages. Issa Tchiroma Bakary, who served as communications minister until January, said that the military is defending civilians from the secessionists, and that most Cameroonians living in English-speaking regions "are hostages of the separatists." Badjeck said the military is burning only secessionist camps, not civilian villages. Civilians who have fled anglophone areas and advocates working with them tell a different story. Survivors and advocates say violent government attacks on villages have prompted an exodus from Cameroons two English-speaking regions in the northwest and southwest of the anglophone region. The Washington Post was unable to independently verify civilian testimony of military abuse, but the accounts given by displaced English speakers are similar to reports by human-rights groups from the regions. The Cameroonian government denied Post reporters access to the countrys anglophone areas. "This has been the cause of a lot of displaced people who are actually homeless now," said Ernest Folefack, a human-rights lawyer running a census of displaced people in Dschang. "The majority are running from the government." As with other countries in Africa, Cameroons modern-day, bilingual identity was shaped by European colonial powers. Even its name, a derivative of the Portuguese camaroes or "shrimp," hints at Europes centuries-old control over the countrys identity. In 1916, France and Britain seized the territory from Germany, and it was later divided between them. Then, in 1960, French-speaking Cameroon won independence and established a new nation: La Republique du Cameroun. The following year, English speakers in part of the British territory opted to join Cameroon, and a bilingual country was born. Cameroon is home to more than 200 local languages, making it one of the most linguistically diverse countries in Africa. But French and English are its official languages, unifying its many ethnic groups. French speakers largely control Cameroons government and its elite circles, and some anglophones have long felt marginalized by the central government. President Paul Biya, a francophone, has held office since 1982 and was re-elected for another seven-year term in October, after a widely contested election. Many English speakers did not participate in the vote. Todays conflict can be traced to late 2016, when English-speaking lawyers and teachers organized peaceful protests, a movement born of frustrations that the government had assigned French-speaking judges and teachers to English-speaking courts and schools. English speakers claimed that officials in Yaounde were essentially forcing the minority anglophones to assimilate into francophone legal and educational systems. Siobhan OGrady / washington post Women in Yaounde, Cameroon, carry umbrellas they received as campaign handouts featuring President Paul Biya, whose government forces have been criticized for reportedly attacking unarmed citizens in the countrys anglophone villages. The government claims to have initially agreed to some reforms, but also cracked down on the activists, jailing a number of moderate leaders and killing some protesters. The original activists watched from prison as more-extreme voices, those calling for full separation from Cameroon, drowned out what had started as less-aggressive demands. Those arrests were "the turning point in the struggle," said Felix Agbor Nkongho, an anglophone human-rights lawyer who helped organize protests and then was jailed. "The movement now had to fall in the hands of people who were more extremist, who were not only clamouring for the rights but wanted independence." Fighting escalated in spring 2018. Separatists ramped up their attacks against the military, and the Cameroonian troops retaliated, leaving civilians caught in the crossfire, according to English speakers who fled from the military during that period. Early on a clear April morning this past year, Amkemngu, a local government official from the southwestern village of Azi, woke to the sound of heavy machine-gun fire. Government troops had come to the village, he said, to look for armed separatists. He fled to the top of a hill, clambering through thick brush until he found a clearing. It was from there that he watched as soldiers below opened fire on an elderly woman who was trying to escape. Hours later, Amkemngu, 64, softly trudged down the hill to dig a hole and bury the womans body. "You can only ask Biya why he is sending his army to come attack his own people," he said. A member of Cameroons ruling party, he even decorated his home with photos of the leader whom his brother, a soldier, died protecting decades earlier. Now, hes willing to fight and die for Ambazonia. "Theres no turning back," he said. Amkemngu is one of a growing number of English-speaking Cameroonians who, after surviving government attacks on their villages, have grown disillusioned with a unified Cameroon and believe the separatist cause is the only path forward. Akole, a 45-year-old father from Menji in the southwest, said that when the government "realizes that you are from the English-speaking part of the country, you dont deserve being alive." He said one of his nephews was shot dead by the military, and two of his sons went missing after troops opened fire on their village in April. In the chaos, soldiers set fire to houses and shops, he said. Losing family members during the military attacks made him lose all faith in the government and pushed him into the arms of the separatists, who he said do not target innocent people. "Civilians love the way the Amba-boys are behaving with them," he said, using a local nickname for the secessionists. Aaron, who retired to his village, Oshie, in the northwest, was living quietly, tending to his small cocoa farm for a modest living. Then, in June, soldiers opened fire on his village, and Aaron hid in a hole behind his house. When the 76-year-old emerged close to dusk, the home he had spent his life savings to build was on fire. Nearby, a relative, a young man with disabilities, had been shot dead. He took one look at his surroundings and fled on foot, eventually reaching the French-speaking port city of Douala. The military crackdown has caused so much damage, he said, that he now sees no future for a unified Cameroon. If he goes back to his village one day, he wants it to be in Ambazonia. "I dont want to be here," he said about Douala. "I dont feel free here." Witnesses to government attacks said the militarys aggressive approach to the conflict, including indiscriminate violence against civilians, has eroded English speakers trust in the government and made them fearful of military intervention. Monique, a seamstress who also fled to Douala, said troops reached the village of Angwi in April and ordered everyone in the main square to lie flat on their stomachs. When her pregnant friend said she couldnt, a young soldier lifted his rifle and shot her dead. The soldier who shot her friend was wearing a black vest emblazoned with the letters BIR, she said, the French acronym for the Rapid Intervention Battalion, an elite unit that U.S. troops have trained to fight the Boko Haram extremist group in the countrys far northern region. Badjeck, the military spokesman, denied allegations of human-rights abuses in these villages, saying the accounts amounted to "propaganda." In an earlier interview, he acknowledged that there have been cases of human-rights abuses, but said that they are appropriately investigated and that misbehaviour is "not our code of conduct." He also acknowledged that troops have faced difficulties distinguishing civilians from separatists. "The enemy is inside the population," he said. "They go in one door and theyre normal citizens, they come out the back door and they have an arm and are secessionists. Thats what makes this combat difficult." Many English speakers who fled the military still live in fear that they will be targeted in the French-speaking areas where they sought refuge. In Dschang, Daniel, 40, who fled from Azi in April, is sharing two small rooms with a dozen family members. His house in Azi was burned, and he ran through the bush with his children, avoiding the military along the way. "Even now," he said, "the military is searching for us, the youths." Washington Post As calls to action go, Climate Action Team Manitobas first climate jam got off to a resounding start Saturday. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 10/2/2019 (864 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. As calls to action go, Climate Action Team Manitobas first climate jam got off to a resounding start Saturday. "You can see theres a diverse group here. Weve got young people, the retirement set, students, professionals, environmentalists. Thats encouraging," said organizer Curt Hull as he surveyed the sold-out crowd of 150 people packed into the University of Winnipegs downtown Richardson College for the Environment with a sense of satisfaction. Hull is a project manager for Climate Change Connection, one of half a dozen non-profit agencies and community organizations that formed a coalition to organize the event, dubbed Peg City Climate Jam, Resilience on the Red. The day featured more than half a dozen workshops to discuss what happens if the world fails to rise to the climate change challenge and how to prod Canadian politicians into taking action to cut greenhouse gas emissions. "The intention of this event is awareness," Hull said. "Theres an understanding of climate change as an issue but there is not as clear an understanding of what action people can take and need to take. An event like this allows people to discuss actions they can take." The event was wrapped around the warnings issued by the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report in October. The exhaustive document concluded the world had 12 years left to come to terms with global warming of 1.5 C or court the consequences in extreme weather events, floods, fires, droughts and poverty. "This is an issue that affects all of us," Hull said. In addition to Hulls Climate Change Connection, the other organizations behind the forum included the Green Action Centre, the Wilderness Committee, Manitoba Energy Justice Coalition, the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives-Manitoba, and the Manitoba Eco Network Water Caucus. "Climate change is happening much faster than previously predicted," warned the print on stacks of pledge sheets and petitions addressed to Canadas Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister and Winnipeg Mayor Brian Bowman. They asked all levels of government to declare a climate change emergency and adopt measures to stabilize global warming to within the 1.5 C cap. A list of to-dos probed lifestyle adjustments from bulk food store shopping with your own cloth bags and putting on a sweater before turning up the heat to selling the family car, joining the Peg City Car Co-op and limiting vacations outside of Manitoba to once a year. Molly McCracken says people need to prepare for change without leaving anyone behind. Clayton Thomas-Muller, an organizer with environmental advocacy group 350.org, as well as a media producer and a member of the northern Manitoba Mathias Colomb Cree Nation in Pukatawagan, served as the events MC. The role of the Indigenous people could be key to finding a route through the maze that a resource-rich country such as Canada is caught in right now, Thomas-Muller said. "First Nations in this country, our fight to protect our lands and natural resources against Canadas economic paradigm places us in a crazy, crazy geopolitical position, at the whims of Russia, China, the United States, the superpowers and their thirst for energy. We have an impact on that," Thomas-Muller said. "Going through an intense process like that? And redesigning our economy. Its good to have some know-how, some applied knowledge and thats where I think Indigenous people sit in the forefront as a force for reconciliation and climate change. Were the least removed from the natural world literally a generation, in most cases, from our traditional way of life." As a child, Thomas-Muller remembers dogs sleds were the way he got around. He remembers the shift to a more consumer society, too. "I remember when my uncle got his first Ski-Doo. He was the richest Indian on earth because he had a motorized dog sled," Thomas-Muller recalled. "The role of Indigenous knowledge is we have the how-to of how to take care of ecosystems, and we have a connection with the sacredness of place People want to be connected to the sacredness of the place where they live and Indigenous people, our worldview and our cosmology, is exactly that connection were able to facilitate (for others)," the climate campaigner said. No surprise then that Thomas-Muller told the forum this is the first of several leading up to the federal election expected to be called for October. "We were very concerned with the IPCC report that came out," said forum co-organizer Molly McCracken, director of the think-tank Centre for Policy Alternatives. "In Manitoba, preparing for the future will mean new infrastructure and alternatives to the use of fossil fuels," she said. "Were focusing on food, shelter and transportation, how do we move ourselves around, how do we heat our homes, how do we feed ourselves and how do we preserve the natural world around us," she said. "Resilience on the Red is about resilience. It means preparing for change in a way that doesnt leave anybody behind," McCracken said. alexandra.paul@freepress.mb.ca Recent Russian moves in the Arctic have renewed debate over that country's intentions and Canada's own status at the top of the world. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 10/2/2019 (864 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin walks after inspecting a new Russian fighter jet after its test flight in Zhukovksy, outside Moscow, Russia, on June 17, 2010. New Russian moves in the Arctic have renewed debate over that country's intentions and Canada's own status at the top of the world. Late last month, the Russian newspaper Izvestia reported that country's military will resume fighter patrols to the North Pole for the first time in 30 years. Those patrols will be in addition to regular bomber flights up to the edge of U.S. and Canadian airspace. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP, RIA Novosti, Alexei Druzhinin, Government Press Service Recent Russian moves in the Arctic have renewed debate over that country's intentions and Canada's own status at the top of the world. The newspaper Izvestia reported late last month that Russia's military will resume fighter patrols to the North Pole for the first time in 30 years. The patrols will be in addition to regular bomber flights up to the edge of U.S. and Canadian airspace. "It's clearly sending strategic messaging," said Whitney Lackenbauer, an Arctic expert and history professor at the University of Waterloo. "This is the next step." Russia has been beefing up both its civilian and military capabilities in its north for a decade. Old Cold-War-era air bases have been rejuvenated. Foreign policy observers have counted four new Arctic brigade combat teams, 14 new operational airfields, 16 deepwater ports and 40 icebreakers with an additional 11 in development. Bomber patrols have been steady. NORAD has reported up to 20 sightings and 19 intercepts a year. Commercial infrastructure has kept pace as well. A vast new gas field has been opened in the Yamal Peninsula on the central Russian coast. Control and development of the Northern Sea Route Russia's equivalent of the Northwest Passage has been given to a central government agency. Russian news sources say cargo volume is expected to grow to 40 million tonnes in 2020 from 7.5 million tonnes in 2016. Canada has little to compare. A road has been completed to the Arctic coast at Tuktoyaktuk in the Northwest Territories and work for a port at Iqaluit in Nunavut is underway. The first Arctic patrol vessel has been launched, satellite surveillance has been enhanced and a naval refuelling station built on Baffin Island. But most northern infrastructure desires remain unfilled. No all-weather roads exist down the Mackenzie Valley or into the mineral-rich central N.W.T. Modern needs such as high-speed internet are still dreams in most of the North. A new icebreaker has been delayed. Nearing the end of its term, the Liberal government has yet to table an official Arctic policy. Global Affairs Canada spokesman Richard Walker said in an email that the government is "firmly asserting" its presence in the North to protect Canada's sovereign Arctic territory. Walker said Canada cooperates with all Arctic Council members, including Russia, to advance shared interests that include sustainable development, the roles of Indigenous peoples, environmental protection and scientific research. "Given the harsh environment and the high cost of Arctic operations, Canada believes that cooperation amongst Arctic nations is essential," Walker wrote. "While we perceive no immediate military threat in the Arctic region, we remain vigilant in our surveillance of our Northern approaches." Canada needs to keep pace if only because it can't count on the current international order to hold, said John Higginbotham of the Centre for International Governance Innovation in Waterloo. "If the globalized system fragments, we're going to get a world of blocs. The blocs will have power to close international shipping channels. "It's a dreadful strategic mistake for Canada to give up our own sea route." Arctic dominance would also give Russia a potent card to play, said Rob Huebert of the Centre for Military and Strategic Studies at the University of Calgary. "It gives you presence," he said. "Whenever there's issues that happen to occur elsewhere, we've already seen the behaviour of the Russians they start doing overflights of other countries to bring pressure." Norway, the Baltics and the United Kingdom have all reported increased airspace violations, Huebert said. Few expect Russian troops to come pouring over the North Pole. The country is sticking with a United Nations process for drawing borders in Arctic waters and is a productive member of the eight-nation Arctic Council. "There's vigorous debate over whether their posture is offensive-oriented," Lackenbauer said. "The Russians insist this is purely defensive. It also offers possibilities for safe and secure shipping in the Northern Sea Route. "They're not doing anything wrong." Canada would be mistaken to ignore the awakening bear, said Ron Wallace of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute in Calgary. "It's important for Canadians to be aware of their Arctic and the circumpolar Arctic and what's going on in the North," he said. Canada is unlikely to take much from Russia's command-and-control style of development, Wallace said, but there are lessons to learn. Combining civilian and military infrastructure is one of them. "That's the kind of thinking I haven't seen here, but that's the thinking the Russians are using," he said. "They see the northern trade route as an excuse to put up military bases at the same time they're working with the Chinese to open up trade routes for the export of their resources." That would also help fulfil federal promises to territorial governments, said Wallace. "Somewhere in the middle there is a better policy for northern Canada." Follow Bob Weber on Twitter at @row1960 Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 10/2/2019 (864 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Unifor National President Jerry Dias speaks during press conference in Toronto on January 25, 2019. Jerry Dias is fed up.At labour rallies, press conferences, anywhere people might listen, the head of Unifor has for more than two months been expressing a deep frustration about how General Motors has broken one promise too many with its plan to close its Oshawa Assembly Plant. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette TORONTO - Jerry Dias is fed up. At labour rallies, press conferences, anywhere people might listen, the head of Unifor has for more than two months been expressing a deep frustration about how General Motors has broken one promise too many with its plan to close its Oshawa Assembly Plant. "There's nobody on the face of this earth that lies more than General Motors," said Dias in a recent interview. "That's why we're so furious, that's why we're running this campaign, and that's why we're slamming them every single day." Last weekend's Super Bowl ad against GM, a walk-out at a parts supplier Friday, and the union's call for a partial boycott of GM vehicles are just the latest efforts to pressure the company financially, and to try and keep the looming closure of the storied plant in the eyes of the government and public. GM, however, has shown no sign of wavering in its decision, maintaining that the shutdown is part of a needed effort to become more efficient, and that it has already committed to generous retraining and retirement packages. With the two adversaries dug in, the dispute is likely to be a drawn out affair as Unifor looks to protect unionized jobs and its reputation amid a fast-evolving auto sector. "It's really understandable why Unifor is all-in on this one," said Steven Tufts, an associate professor at York University who studies labour. "For Unifor as a union, to make them more relevant, even to members outside of the auto sector, they have to show they can fight." The union, however, is fighting against a shrinking company. In 2007 General Motors was the world's largest automaker, a titan of industry built on a century of development. But high-profile stumbles including its bankruptcy, bailout, and efforts to right the ship have left the company's production at about half of its peak. Production cutbacks have had a direct effect on Canadian autoworkers, who have already endured closures or layoffs at several Ontario operations over the past decade. Dias maintains that several rounds of cuts have arrived not long after assurances from GM that they weren't coming. GM declined an interview request for this story. The fight has an added level of tension for Unifor, since the share of unionized autoworkers has been shrinking for the past two decades as the Detroit three cut back, even as non-unionized Toyota and Honda have added volume in Ontario. "For Unifor this is significant, because if the industry is shifting away from unionized to non-unionized, that's a big deal," said Charlotte Yates, an expert on auto industry labour issues at the University of Guelph. The campaign also raises questions about priorities and focus at the union itself. Autoworkers only make up about 13 per cent of the membership following the mega-merger between the Canadian Auto Workers and the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada in 2013 to create 315,000-member strong Unifor. "It's really about them fighting for the definition of what is the union based upon, and where is it going in the future," said Tufts. Dias, however, said members understand the need to fight GM, and would expect nothing less. "The only chance you have is rolling up your sleeves and getting at it. And that's who we are as an organization. We're a fighting union." While the union has been pulling out all the stops on this fight, it says governments have not been following suit. Dias cajoled Ontario Premier Doug Ford and federal Economic Development Minister Navdeep Bains into raising the issue with GM, but apart from brief meetings in January with the company both have been largely silent on the issue. "When governments say nothing, it's almost as if it's a passive acceptance of the company's right to make the decision," said Dias. "They need to know that if in fact you're going to walk away and betray Canadians, there's going to be a hell of a price to pay." According to Yates, governments in Canada do have levers to influence industry, just as U.S. President Donald Trump has tried to do. "This isn't posturing by Unifor, what they're telling government is this industry is vital, and you've got to fight for it," said Yates. She said the government's response has been to express some disappointment and then move on, but they need to understand that auto jobs aren't like other jobs. As Dias has been at pains to emphasize, each of the 2,600 union jobs being lost at Oshawa support between seven to 10 spin-off jobs. The closure is also part of a longer term decline in Canada's auto sector, which has seen production numbers fall from a peak of almost three million vehicles in 1999 and 17 per cent of North American auto production, to under two million vehicles and 12 per cent of production last year. The closure of GM's Oshawa plant won't kill the industry, and doesn't portend the end of GM in Canada, but it is another step towards it, said Yates. "When you lose an assembly plant, it feels like you're tugging on that thread that could it unravel the whole sweater." Meanwhile, Dias has promised a fight to the end. "The fight that we're waging is a fight that's going to continue and we're not going to slow down. This isn't about the labour movement retreating or somehow the labour movement accepting the decisions of raw capitalism as inevitable," said Dias. "From a leadership point of view we're all in, and we always have been, because losing is not an option." TORONTO - Five things to watch for in the Canadian business world in the coming week: Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 10/2/2019 (864 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Daniel Schwartz, Chief Executive Officer of Restaurant Brands International, poses during an interview with The Canadian Press in Oakville, Ont., on June 5, 2017. Restaurant Brands International Inc. releases its fourth-quarter results and holds a conference call with analysts on Monday. RBI subsidiary Tim Hortons announced Feb. 6 that it is close to settling two class-action lawsuits brought against it by an association representing some of its frustrated franchisees. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn TORONTO - Five things to watch for in the Canadian business world in the coming week: RBI earnings Restaurant Brands International Inc. releases its fourth-quarter results and holds a conference call with analysts on Monday. RBI subsidiary Tim Hortons announced Feb. 6 that it is close to settling two class-action lawsuits brought against it by an association representing some of its frustrated franchisees. Shopify update Shopify Inc. will announce fourth-quarter results on Tuesday. The Ottawa-based tech giant recently announced it was launching a venture called Shopify Studios that will involve developing, producing and financing projects for both streaming platforms and traditional networks. Bomber Bombardier Inc. reports fourth-quarter earnings on Thursday. The Quebec-based plane and train maker said on Feb. 6 that it was "pleased" to learn that European antitrust authorities blocked a plan by manufacturing giants Siemens and Alstom to merge their rail operations. The deal would have created a large rival to Bombardier's train unit. CPPIB reports Canada Pension Plan Investment Board releases third-quarter financial report on Thursday. The board said in November that it is "embracing disruption" and looking to cash in on emerging shifts in the global economy, such as a move towards autonomous cars and a growing, aging population. TransCanada earnings TransCanada Corp. will discuss its fourth-quarter results on Thursday. The Calgary-based company recently announced it has hired RBC to help it sell as much as a 75 per cent stake in the Coastal GasLink pipeline project designed to supply natural gas from northeastern B.C. to the LNG Canada facility on the West Coast at Kitimat. President Muhammadu Buhari in a press release on Sunday, analysed how corruption threatens Nigeria and its election. See statement below On February 16th, Nigeria will hold a general election. Four years ago, the country experienced its first democratic transfer of power to the opposition since 1999. The vote in a few days will be no less significant. As president, I have tried to judiciously exercise the trust vested in me to combat the problems of corruption, insecurity and an inequitable economy. All are important. But amongst them, one stands above the others as both a cause and aggravator of the rest. It is, of course, corruption. A policy programme that does not have fighting corruption at its core is destined to fail. The battle against graft must be the base on which we secure the country, build our economy, provide decent infrastructure and educate the next generation. This is the challenge of our generation: the variable on which our success as a nation shall be determined. But the vested interests at play can make this fight difficult. By way of their looting, the corrupt have powerful resources at their disposal. And they will use them. For when you fight corruption, you can be sure it will fight back. It even threatens to undermine Februarys poll and by extension our democracy. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has raised concerns over laundered money being funnelled into vote buying. This is the problem of corruption writ large. It illustrates how it lurks in all and every crevice of public life, manipulating due process in pursuit of self-preservation and perpetuation; protecting personal political and economic interests at the expense of the common good. Indeed, those who have criticised my administrations anti-corruption drive are those who oppose its mission. And though their lawyers may craft expensive alibis, they cannot escape that which binds them together: a raft of documents and barely legal (some clearly illegal) mechanisms whether that be the Panama Papers, US Congress reports, shell companies or offshore bank accounts. Corruption corrodes the trust on which the idea of community is founded, because one rule for the few and another for everyone else is unacceptable to anyone working honestly. But as we have intensified our war on corruption, so we have found that corruption innovates to resist the law. This is not the sole domain of those Nigerians, but the international corruption industry: the unsavoury fellow-traveler of globalisation. Once the enablers are let in as they have been in the past the greed of those they collude with grows. We have closed the door on them, but unfortunately there still remain individuals who are willing to open windows. Concrete progress has been made, but there is still much to do. We have repatriated hundreds of millions of dollars stowed away in foreign banks. These funds have been transparently deployed on infrastructural projects and used to directly empower the poorest in society. More is still to come from our international partners in France, the United Kingdom and the United States of America. Yet the hundreds of billions sifted out of the country for the best part of this century promise more. We have secured high profile convictions, but greater cases remain. Lawyers table endless objections to obstruct court proceedings, whilst their clients hope it lasts until a friendly president is voted into office. We must continue to tighten the legal framework and ensure the authorities have the investigative powers at their disposal to secure sentences. Only then will we begin to neutralise the advantages the corrupt have. More ghost workers must be removed from government payroll (almost $550 million has been saved from identifying phantom employees). More can be recovered through our whistle-blower policy ($370 million has been returned since its launch in 2016). More is still to come. But, together, we shall prevail over corruption. A Yoruba proverb states that only the patient one can milk a lion. Likewise, victory over corruption is difficult, but not impossible. We must not flounder in our resolve. I know many Nigerians would like to see faster action. So do I. But so too must we follow due process and exercise restraint, ensuring allegation never takes the place of evidence. For that is not the Nigeria we should wish to build. There is no doubt that this Administration has changed the way we tackle corruption. The choice before voters is this: Do we continue forward on this testing path against corruption? Or do revert to the past, resigned to the falsehood that it is just the-way-things-are-done? Or that it is just too difficult too pervasive to fix? I know which one I would choose. It is why I am asking Nigerians for another four years to serve them. MUHAMMADU BUHARI, PRESIDENT, FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA Australasia's largest commercial printing and marketing company has confirmed it will consolidate its portfolio of more than 20 unique businesses under a new brand name: Ovato. The company says the name comes from the word 'ovation.' As reported in November 2018, the rebrand follows a tough year in which PMP posted a net loss of $43 million after losing contracts for Coles catalogues and Pacific Magazines to IVE Group. It has also been forced to deal with "critical integration issues following its 2016 takeover of Independent Print Media Group (IPMG). The company still managed to generate total revenue of $756 million in 2018. The rebrand will see a reorganisation of the companys core competencies, around four pillars of print, distribution, agency and production, to support the businesss vision of turning audiences into customers and driving growth, according to a press release. The Ovato brand will unify all companies across the group, including PMP Print, Australias largest printing group; PMP Distribution, a residential delivery company covering almost seven million Australian homes weekly; Gordon and Gotch, a magazine and retail distribution group; SBM, a full-house creative and production business; Traction Digital, which provides digital marketing and engagement services; Spectrum Group, a PR, digital and content marketing agency; and Griffin Press, Australias oldest book printing business. Kevin Slaven, CEO Ovato Our rebrand gives us the opportunity to focus on our clients and their needs directly, around our promise of turning audiences into customers, says Kevin Slaven, CEO, Ovato. While each of our businesses will come under the single brand, our work and commitment with all our clients will remain constant. Every day we deliver content across print and digital channels to millions of people in Australia, New Zealand and around the world. Our change to a unified brand unlocks new value for our clients, through greater collaboration, increased efficiency, and investments in innovative new technologies. One significant new capability is our exclusive partnership with Quantium, a best-in-class data and analytics business. This will link our residential distribution capabilities and household data with their extensive data-cloud and AI platform. For the first-time, this will allow us to deliver enhanced targeting and measurability to our print channels and campaigns, enabling our customers to see analytics and ROI metrics that are more akin to digital advertising. Ovato is investing in a new $20 million, 80-page press which is expected to be commissioned at its Warwick Farm facility in Sydney later this year. This will enable us to reduce our underlying cost base by retiring older less efficient presses and also improve our fleets overall productivity, says Slaven. The company has a long history in the printing and marketing industries that stretches back more than 150 years. A multi-company merger in 2017 combined printing and distribution specialists PMP Limited with fellow printing and marketing services giant IPMG. The merger united PMP Limiteds stable of business, which include leading newspaper and magazine distributers Gordon and Gotch, with IPMGs Hannan Print, Offset Alpine Printing and Inprint. Ovato operates across Australia, New Zealand, the UK and India, and employs 2000 people across 21 sites. Its ASX listing code will change from PMP to OVT. Kabul, Feb 10 (IBNS): Taliban terrorists attacked a check-post in Afghanistan's Bala Baluk district and killed at least seven security officials, media reports said on Sunday. Dadullah Qane, a member of the provincial council, told Pajhwok Afghan News the militants stormed the security check-post on the Farah-Kandahar highway in Chakaw area at 8pm. Seven policemen were killed, he told the news agency, adding the rebels also took away weapons and ammunition from the post. The Taliban has claimed responsibility for the attack. Taliban spokesman Qari Yousuf Ahmadi told Pajhwok Afghan News that the fighters overran the post, killing seven policemen and seizing 11 weapons. At stop lights or freeway on and off ramps, youve probably seen people holding signs and asking for money. It can be tempting to hand over your spare change, but next time you may want to think twice. GREENWICH A plan to reimagine the Greenwich Library is much more than the next chapter for the grand institution. Its a whole new story. The library is ready to embark on a $17 million project to transform the main branch for the 21st-century patron looking to do more than just check out a book. The plan calls for really reimagining, renewing and repurposing the space, Greenwich Library Director Barbara Ormerod-Glynn told Greenwich Time in an exclusive interview. Changes will be made on how space is used on every floor all without increasing the size of the landmark building on West Putnam Avenue or losing the grand style found throughout the interior. And the Cole Auditorium will be directly connected to the main building. The town of Greenwich could sign off on the improvement project as soon as the next month. The goal is to start work on the 15- to 18-month project by summer to turn the vision into reality. Library officials vow to keep the building open throughout the work. This is more than a face lift this is a major renovation, said Nancy Klein, Greenwich Librarys director of development. Much of the work will be done on the buildings lower level, which is now mostly staff-only space. A new entrance for the public will be added on that level, which will better connect the parts of the building and allow different types of activities. Significant improvements will be made at the Cole Auditorium, including new seats and LED lighting, with an interior entrance added on the librarys redesigned lower level. The auditorium will be renovated completely. There will be some fewer seats, but aisles that will allow much easier access, Ormerod-Glynn said. People will be able to get access through the entrance on the lower level, and it will be very useful for people with strollers or people who are handicapped in any way. Theyll be able to use the elevator down there or there will be a beautiful new staircase that will mimic the current grand staircase going to the second floor. A learning center and a 100-seat multipurpose room will also be added to the lower level, joining the existing technology training center. This area will be known as the Center for Education and Culture, Klein said, which will allow the library to hold new types of programming. And the lower level will provide direct access to a new cafe, which will be by the Baxter Courtyard with lots of natural light, Ormerod-Glynn said. The first floor will see new additions as well, including group meeting rooms and five soundproof phone booths. The second floor will also have two phone booths. It takes what is wonderful space and repurposes it because times have changed, Klein said. There will be a dedicated area for teens on the first floor, as well as a new reading room with lots of natural light from the windows that look onto West Putnam Avenue and Dearfield Drive. The popular study carrels there will remain in that area. There will be few changes on the second floor, but the librarys art, architecture and photography materials will be brought up to a new home outside the Flynn Gallery. Additionally, some of the CD shelves will be phased out to enhance the reading gallery. The final part of the construction plan focuses on the childrens room on the third floor. The programming room will be doubled in size, and bookshelves will be installed at kid-friendly levels, Ormerod-Glynn said. The lower shelves will also be safer and make it easier for parents to watch their children. All of the work will be completed without increasing the footprint of the existing building, the former Franklin Simon department store. It opened on March 14, 1960, and the Cole Auditorium was added in 1969. In September 1981, the second floor above the Cole was completed and the east mezzanine was redesigned to add nine study rooms and a quiet reading area. In 1983, a mezzanine was added to the main reading room. The plan for the renovations, which has been in the works since 2015, includes input from numerous surveys and feasibility studies. We spent a lot of time with a lot of people making sure that we had the plan right, Ormerod-Glynn said And, by virtue of spending that much time on it, we really came to consensus. Everyone weve shown the plan to really found it very sensible, logical, functional and with great connectivity and adjacencies. She pointed to the results of a 2015 user survey completed by the library. The things the people asked for were more meeting rooms and a nicer cafe, Ormerod-Glynn said. Those were two of the key takeaways from that, and weve been very responsive to what we heard in the survey. Construction work is expected to begin in July and take about 16 months, putting the completion date at the end of 2020. The library will remain open throughout construction, with plans in place to minimize disruptions. But the Cole Auditorium will be closed for 12 months starting in July. The building committee discussed how to best approach the work, said its leader, attorney Thomas Heagney of Greenwich, a veteran of nine town building committees. Closing each floor during the work would have sped up the process, but that will not be done, Heagney said. Theres too much activity going on here to be able to close a whole floor at one time, he said. Instead, the library will do the project in phases, with the third floor completed last. Heagney said the committee is working with the towns Building Department, the construction firm and project architects on how to implement the project in the safest and least disruptive way. Core programs will continue, Ormerod-Glynn said. We have some areas we know we can still hold programming, just not the Cole. ... We are working on ways to still hold much of the programming. In some cases, we may look outside the building to some of our partners who might host us and to use our branches (in Byram and Cos Cob) as well. Some of the librarys materials will be placed in storage on a staggered basis for a couple of months at a time, Ormerod-Glynn said. But the staff will work with the other libraries to get what patrons need, she added. The new book section will be largely untouched through much of the construction. The construction management firm for the project will be the Gilbane Building Co., which also constructed the new home for the New Lebanon School. Peter Gisolfi Architects is handling the designs. Michael Tribe from the firm also designed the highly praised addition to the Byram Shubert Library. Michael has met dozens of times with every single department in the library, and hes put together a plan thats very responsive to not only what the public wants but to what the staff needs to be able to provide services to the town, Heagney said. According to town Director of Planning and Zoning Katie DeLuca, the project still needs approval from the Planning and Zoning Commission. Heagney said the library expects to go before the commission in March and get a building permit for the interior renovations that month. The library has kept quiet on plans for the reimagining and the capital campaign to pay for it. But that changed Friday, when library officials went before the towns Board of Estimate and Taxation to present its budget for the 2019-20 fiscal year and requested some public funding. The vast majority of the projected $17 million budget is coming from private contributions and the state. The library is also requesting $980,000 from the town as part of the 2019-20 budget to cover items such as new carpeting, furniture and locks. Weve had great response on fundraising because this really touches every part of the community, library Board of Trustees President Robert Marks said. It enhances the library for everyone in many ways, I think. On Monday, a website will be launched with in-depth information on the construction and how to donate to the capital campaign. kborsuk@greenwichtime.com Index-Journal Careers PART-TIME POSITION available in our packaging area. Job responsibilities include putting inserts into the newspaper. Must have a positive attitude and be a team player. Applicants must be able to: lift up to 20-lbs; stand for long periods of time; be available to work Sunday thru Friday, late evening to early morning hours; pass drug screen. Crowds headed to the Kentucky Home Improvement Expo that's being held at the Triple Crown Pavilion this weekend. District Attorney Andrea Harrington spent more than an hour with the NAACP discussing her vision for the future of criminal justice. Harrington Chats Vision With Local NAACP Helen Moon, director of special projects, outlined the vision for a juvenile diversion program that is currently being developed by the office. PITTSFIELD, Mass. District Attorney Andrea Harrington doesn't see her job as simply tossing people into jail cells. Instead, she is seeking to create a culture and environment where causes such as drug or mental health problems are addressed in the community so the crimes don't happen again. "My vision, and it is a big vision, is for structural change and to reallocate resources from a system of prosecuting people, processing through the courts, and incarcerating people to a system that is more of a social safety net, holistic health-based system," Harrington told the local branch of the NAACP Wednesday evening. "But that is big. I can't do that by myself." The Berkshire County branch of the NAACP had already brought criminal justice to the top of its priorities two years ago. Now with a new district attorney, the organization invited Harrington to a meeting to talk about the system moving forward. It is just the latest event the NAACP has put on to better connect with officials in the community. Harrington outlined the vision she had campaigned on, one of changing to a system that focuses more on diverting people from jail and finding alternative methods to rectify behavior than chalking up conviction numbers. She hopes to move the low-level crimes into diversion programs and focus prosecutorial resources and efforts on violent criminals. "I do not believe the House of Correction should be the drug treatment provider, or any kind of treatment provider, of choice. I think that jail is appropriate for people who are dangerous but I don't think people should go to jail to get drug treatment or to get therapy," Harrington said, "My goal is to divert people into programs that part of the community." The most logistical issue facing such efforts is a lack of resources. While there are professional providers of such service, the Berkshires doesn't have enough for the demand. That is a problem that is out of Harrington's hands for the most part. But she told the crowd at the Berkshire Athenaeum that she has been setting the framework by meeting with local organizations doing that work and state and federal lawmakers on getting grant funding to expand. "I'm working for more resources but that is a big challenge," Harrington said. While resources may be needed for better access to programs, the district attorney is currently creating the pathways to get there that hadn't existed before. One of the first actions teed up is the development of a juvenile diversion program. Helen Moon, a city councilor and Harrington's campaign manager, has taken a newly created job in the office as director of special projects. Moon's first task is to build that juvenile diversion program. Moon told the audience that she currently developing a model, particularly looking at the Middlesex model, as one that will treat juveniles as juveniles. She said she is also looking to develop task forces consisting of prosecutors from the office, school administrations, police, and state Department of Children and Families in each of the three areas of the county -- North, Central, and South -- to focus on at-risk youth. "We want to make sure [we find] people who believe in this model of treating juveniles like juveniles and the role it can play in the DA's office. We are going to invite people to create that task force," Moon said. Harrington hopes to create similar programs for those who struggle with addiction or mental health as well. But, she admits she has a bridge to cross with police officers. "They feel like they do their job and arrest people that are committing crimes, that are not getting along in the community, and bring them to court and they are just let go. They call it 'catch and release.' They are very frustrated," Harrington said. "My pitch to them is that these people don't belong in jail. We have to come up with the programming to address whatever the underlying issues are." She said she has brought in training programs for the assistant district attorneys who serve as the "front line" of the office. They will be reflective of the ideals of the office. "I hold everybody in our office to a high standard," Harrington said. Internally, she is also tightening up policies. Auditor Suzanne Bump presented a series of recommendations to improve operations that Harrington said she is implementing. Harrington also created a director of operations position, being filled by Dina Guiel, who worked on the Harrington campaign as well, to tighten up the organization's policies and procedures. One such task is to tighten up how drug forfeiture money is handled so it goes back to the office in a timely manner, which was cited by Bump. "I created a new position, chief of operations, who is going to help make sure that kind of things doesn't slip through the cracks," Harrington said. The district attorney added that she is also limiting what the office goes after for forfeiture. She is working with the attorneys and with defense attorneys to stray a bit from cash bail, which she says hurts poor people. She is looking to be more creative with conditions of release to ensure that the person returns to court to answer to charges and doesn't get jailed just because of financially unreasonable demands. While there are many ways Harrington is looking to keep people from jail, there are some crimes she won't tolerate. She said she will "aggressively" prosecute cases of domestic violence and pledged to do more on that subject. "I've heard from so many women who have tried so hard to get justice, tried to get restraining orders, tried to get help from law enforcement, and it hasn't been there. We have a disconnect," Harrington said. "The police officers I am working with, I know want to help and want to do the right thing. We need to figure out where that disconnect is and to make sure that people who are victims are heard and we are protecting them." She promised to review 15 years worth of unindicted cases of sexual assault and contact the victims and see if they want to move forward and to bring charges in cases where it is warranted. "I have heard from victims who felt that their cases were not prosecuted and they should be. My intention is to review those cases, to contact the victims and determine what cases have probably cause and what victims want to seek justice," Harrington said. When asked about marijuana, Harrington said that is trickier. She said the office is developing a policy around marijuana cases now. "We are working on developing our marijuana policy. It is my belief that people who are involved in retail sales of marijuana on the black market certainly do not belong behind bars. But I am a mom. I am concerned about protecting young people from marijuana. Marijuana is devastating on developing brains," Harrington said. She added, "we have had some really violent crimes in our community that came about starting as marijuana deals. It is not without its danger. It is a complicated issue. I don't want people in jail because of marijuana but we are also working on how we can protect the public." Harrington spoke and answered questions with members of the NAACP for more than an hour Wednesday night. Local NAACP President Dennis Powell thanked Harrington for having the conversation and said it is important that the NAACP has a continual dialogue with elected officials moving forward. "It is really important in really changing the narrative at the state house as well," Powell said. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 10) Metro Manila police are recommending an "undesirable alien" status for the Chinese national who threw "taho" at a Metro Rail Transit (MRT-3) cop enforcing the liquids ban. In a statement, Metro Manila Police Chief PDir. Guillermo Eleazar said this status will be the basis of the Bureau of Immigration to process the deportation of Jiale Zhang. Zhang had reportedly "shown disrespect" to P01 William Cristobal when she threw the cup of the Filipino soft tofu snack at him on Saturday afternoon. "Hindi lang naman sa kanya isinasagawa ito kundi sa lahat. Kahit sino sa atin na nandito, pag ganyan ang gagawin mayroong corresponding action na dapat gawin ang ating mga pulis," Eleazar said. [Translation: We're not just doing that to anyone but to everyone. Whoever does this, our police must employ the corresponding action.] Among the cases police will file against Zhang are direct assault, unjust Vexation and disobedience to authority. They will also file a deportation case against Zhang in the following week. "We have policies here; when we are in other countries, we also follow their existing rules and law," he said. The photo of Zhang's altercation with the incident went viral Saturday. MRT's stricter ban on liquids come amid security threats, following the Jolo bombings which left 23 people dead and more than a hundred injured last January 27. PH-China 'friendship' affecting treatment of Chinese nationals? Vice President Leni Robredo echoed Eleazar's statements on respecting police officers. However, she also raised the issue of giving Chinese workers jobs supposedly for Filipinos in line with the Philippines' closer ties with China. "Wake-up call iyon sa ating lahat. Ano ba talaga? Maraming reklamo na iyong mga trabahong dapat sana sa Pilipino, nabibigay pa sa Intsik Tapos ito pa, parang kinakalinga natin sila tapos binabastos nila tayo," she said. [Translation: It's a wake-up call for everyone. What's going on? There are complaints about jobs for Filipinos given to Chinese nationals. And then we take care of them and yet they disrespect us.] The Department of Labor and Employment earlier admitted an upward trend in Chinese workers in the Philippines, citing 51,000 Chinese nationals were granted Alien Employment Permits (AEPs) from 2015 to 2017. President Rodrigo Duterte, amid his warmer ties with China, had warned of disadvantages against overseas Filipino workers should we deport the illegal Chinese workers. Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size Mariana, Brazil: Eliene Geralda dos Santos' words are punctuated by pauses, as if to stem her tears. The feeling I had was that we were going to die. It was a Thursday three years ago at around 4.10pm when her pupils - about 60 teenagers - were in class for the afternoon shift at Bento Rodrigues middle school. Principal Eliene, as she is known, was in the front office with the school secretary talking archiving, of all things, when her husband came rushing through the gates, screaming for everyone to get out. A tsunami of iron ore waste was coming from the Samarco plant co-owned by Australian miner BHP and Brazilian giant Vale in the heart of Brazil's mining country, and the school in the village of 600, just 1.5 kilometres downstream, was about to be decimated. Eliene Geralda dos Santos, Bento Rodrigues' school principal, at the school's temporary premises in Mariana, in Brazil's Minas Gerais state in November. In the background a student's drawing depicts "The Bento we wish for". Credit:Lia Timson Now it has happened again. On January 25, another dam, this one solely owned by Vale, collapsed in the mining state. Advertisement It's a little over three years since Eliene's school was destroyed, but the brutal lessons from the first mudslide were clearly not heeded. The disaster this time has cost 150 lives, with some 182 still missing. In both fatal mudslides there was no warning a dam was bursting. This prompts serious questions about the companies' commitment to safety and care for the communities in which their mines dominate social and economic life. 'You could feel the despair' For Eliene, her experiences are as vivid today as they were that frightening afternoon. My husband ran in to tell us to leave. The mud was already arriving in the district. He said the dam had burst and we had to run, she says in her office in temporary school accommodation in nearby Mariana. Along with teachers and staff, the pair shocked the kids into action and got everyone to safety up the hill. But on their way they saw houses being crushed, animals and cars being washed away. In just 12 minutes, everything was gone. It was hard. You could feel the despair, she says. For some time, Eliene did not know the fate of her own son. Such was the shock her husband Wisley was in, he could not tell her that the toddler was at home higher on the hill and likely - hopefully - safe. Advertisement In this first mudslide, in Samarco, the residents of Bento, like the residents of the nearby Paracatu de Baixo and Gesteira settlements, had only their instincts to guide them. Contingency plans and community escape drills had been recommended two years earlier, as part of the mine's operating licence renewal, but still none were in place at the time the tailings dam wall turned to liquid and collapsed. A siren warning system was only installed in Bento Rodrigues, Brazil, by Samarco, the BHP-Vale joint-venture, after the 2015 dam disaster. Credit:Lucas Godoy Rather than the sound of a district-wide siren to warn people of an oncoming avalanche, they heard the sound of more than 40 million cubic metres of mud and tailings eating their way towards their homes. They also heard the screams of people they loved, and the warnings of people they did not know, like Samarco contractor Paula Geralda Alves, who jumped on her motorbike and drove towards the danger, honking her horn. Nineteen people died that day: 16 were Samarco workers or third-party contractors, two were children, and one an elderly lady from a nearby village, on holiday, and fishing. If it had not been for Paula and for Elienes husbands efforts, more would have perished. Flood lines: the senior school at Paracatu de Baixo, downstream from the BHP-owned Samarco Fundao Dam, was engulfed in mud up to the second storey. Credit:Lucas Godoy One of Elienes students, a young mother on a catch-up class, lost her five-year-old daughter Emanuelle, known as Emanuely. She was doing what children do after school, playing and mucking around with her brother, her father nearby. Advertisement I saw when they pulled him out, Eliene says of Emanuelys dad, whose clothes were ripped off by the force of the mud. He was unrecognisable, nude, holding on to his younger son, also nude. He kept screaming Emanuelys name. He wasnt able to hold her. The little girl's body was later found. 'It was going to be a fantastic week' After the Fundao dam burst in Mariana in 2015, a siren was installed for the first time along the river and in the now deserted village of Bento Rodrigues. Escape routes were worked out and signs erected ready for a request to resume operations at the mine. Even so, the only residents now are wild horses. Wild horses now roam the deserted Bento Rodrigues, where brand new emergency warning sites and escape route were installed last year. Credit:Lucas Godoy Three years later, when Vale's tailings dam burst in Brumadinho, near Belo Horizonte, the capital of the state of Minas Gerais, on January 25, once again, no warning sirens sounded. Advertisement Australian-based architect Luiz Taliberti was there that day, having travelled from Sydney to Brumadinho with his five-month pregnant fiancee Fernanda Damian to visit family, reveal the sex of their baby and set the date for the wedding. The couple had planned to visit the nearby world-renowned outdoor art museum, Inthotim, and were staying at a B&B downstream from the mine. "It was going to be a fantastic week," his father Valter Diniz told Associated Press. But Taliberti died, as did his sister Camila. His wife-to-be and two other relatives are still missing. Sydney residents Luiz Taliberti and Fernanda Damian. Credit:Facebook Diniz said there was no warning of the dam breach or the mud rushing down the valley. "Vale killed my son," he says. After the disaster, Vale chief executive Fabio Schvartsman said a siren did exist but was engulfed by the mud before it could ring. "Something unusual happened: the dam ruptured very quickly," he told journalists. Advertisement Wellington: An Air New Zealand flight to Shanghai has turned back several hours into its journey after discovering it did not have permission to land in China. Flight NZ289 carrying about 270 passengers left Auckland shortly before midnight on Saturday only to return about 8am AEDT on Sunday. It turned around several hours into the flight. "A technicality meant the particular aircraft operating this service did not have Chinese regulatory authority to land in China," the airline said. Air New Zealand said forward bookings had dropped off. Credit:AP China's foreign ministry did not make any immediate comment when contacted by Reuters. Calls to the civil aviation administration were not answered. London: The British government has cancelled a contract to ship goods to the country after it leaves the European Union with a company that turned out to have no boats and no experience running a ferry service. Authorities had been criticised for the 13.8 million pound ($25 million) deal with Seaborne Freight, part of plans to keep trade flowing if Britain leaves the EU without a divorce deal. Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May at the European Council headquarters in Brussels last week. Credit:AP The UK Department for Transport said on Saturday that it had ended the contract because an Irish firm that was backing Seaborne Freight, Arklow Shipping, had withdrawn its support. The department said no taxpayer money had been transferred to the company. It said the government was "in advanced talks with a number of companies to secure additional freight capacity" if there is a no-deal Brexit. London: Prince Philip has decided to stop driving at the age of 97, less than a month after he was involved in a collision that left two women injured, Buckingham Palace said on Saturday. The palace said in a statement that "after careful consideration," Queen Elizabeth II's husband "has taken the decision to voluntarily surrender his driving licence". The Duke of Edinburgh was behind the wheel of a Land Rover near the royal family's Sandringham estate in eastern England when he smashed into another car on January 17. He had to be helped out of his overturned vehicle but wasn't injured. Two women in the other car were injured, though not seriously, and a nine-month-old baby boy was unhurt. Prince Philip has given up his driver's licence.. Credit:AP The Duke was photographed driving again two days later, without a seatbelt. Police said they offered him "suitable words of advice" after that. Next week Parliament will resume for two short weeks before it rises, and it likely wont sit again until the second half of the year, when we will probably have a Labor government. As one prominent Liberal MP said to me recently: There is not a single member of the government who thinks we are going to win the election, and such fatalism can be freeing. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison. Credit:ROB BLAKERS In the face of electoral failure, there is nothing stopping you from pursuing naked tribal and self interest. If you know you soon have to vacate the joint, you may as well trash it. When minorities do speak out, they can be made to feel that no one in power listens. Many Aboriginal Australians, for example, took umbrage with the Turnbull governments rejection of the Uluru Statement from the Heart in 2017. The culmination of extensive dialogues with Indigenous communities, conceived by Indigenous people and conducted by the Referendum Council on constitutional recognition, the Uluru Statement proposed a guaranteed voice for Indigenous people in the form of an advisory body to parliament. It was an eloquent blueprint for Indigenous reconciliation. The government, though, summarily dismissed it, arguing that such a body would be seen as a third chamber of parliament, which couldnt possibly win endorsement at a referendum. The result was another abortive attempt to secure constitutional recognition of First Australians. Pat Anderson from the Referendum Council with the Uluru Statement from the Heart in 2017. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen The voices of minorities can be aggressively policed, as well. Ive detected this whenever Ive taken part in public debates about race issues. Its that old notion of Go Back to Where You Came From. Almost without fail, an opponent somewhere will resort to saying that Ive somehow as an Australian of Asian heritage who came here as an immigrant displayed a lack of gratitude to the nation in offering an opinion that may challenge something about Australian society. Its as though the right to express ones opinion in our democracy is meant to exist for some only in theory. Some will always believe their claim to being heard is superior. To be an Australian citizen doesnt mean that others will believe you are an equal, or believe you truly belong. It doesnt guarantee that others will see you as really Australian. A racialised sense of nationhood doesnt always involve hate. When people draw lines about who is Australian and who isnt, there can be multiple forces at play. It could merely reflect a failure of imagination or a narrowness of experience with racial diversity. Indifference and ignorance can overlap with racial hatred, but arent always themselves expressions of it. Whiteness becomes an active hatred, however, when its channelled as anger. When anger is directed at people like Adam Goodes or Yassmin Abdel-Magied people turned into figures of hate its because some find it intolerable for an Aboriginal Australian or a person of colour to question aspects of the national identity. Hate is when an opinionated member of a minority comes to be regarded as an uppity ingrate who doesnt know their place. Within hours, Fire and Rescue HAZMAT crews recorded toxic and "extremely hazardous" levels of hydrogen sulphide on the vessel; a suspected gaseous byproduct that can occur from sewage waste in the holding tanks of a cruise boat. The Lady Rose is among a fleet of boats owned by All Occasion Cruises, of which Mr Elias is the sole shareholder and a co-director. The Lady Rose party boat. Credit:Seven News Sources have told the Herald the woman may have been overcome by the toxic gas while she was in the toilet cubicle. Police investigations are continuing and a report will be prepared for the coroner. HAZMAT crews arrive at the All Occasion Cruises moorings to conduct further testing on Tuesday. Credit:Lucy Cormack It prompted a raid by Roads and Maritime Services compliance officers on Tuesday, on five other vessels moored at 37 Bank Street, Pyrmont. It is understood they identified issues with "sewage disposals" on some of the vessels, giving the company two weeks to rectify the problems. A spokesperson for All Occasion Cruises declined to comment until all facts are known. There is no suggestion Mr Elias had any involvement in the operation of the boat on the day or was responsible for the womans death. Both events have sparked fresh calls from residents for the state government to reconsider the approved proposal for Mr Elias' Blackwattle Bay Marina Pty Ltd (All Occasion Cruises) to relocate to 5-11 Bank Street. It was the one topic on the lips of locals in Pyrmont's pubs this week. "They're basically saying the marina at Bank Street cannot go ahead," said Mary Mortimer, Pyrmont local and convenor of the Ultimo and Pyrmont associations and community group Save Blackwattle Foreshore. "The minister for planning has to overturn the decision to allocate that space to Blackwattle Bay Marina Pty Ltd (All Occasion Cruises) for a commercial marina." The history behind the proposed marina dates back to 2009, when All Occasion Cruises was controversially awarded a $15-20 million tender to build a marina at 100 Pyrmont Bridge Rd, Blackwattle Bay, by then-Labor ports minister Joe Tripodi. Clockwise from top ... The Wildboys Afloat website, Joe Tripodi and Joe Elias. Credit:Andrew Quilty, Dallas Kilponen Mr Elias, a friend of Mr Obeid's son Eddie Obeid jnr, had grand plans for the site, including a large function centre. He won what should have been a two-stage tender at the first hurdle, when NSW Maritime's then-chief executive Steve Dunn (since found to have acted corruptly on an unrelated matter) dismissed all other bidders. But the development never happened and by 2016 Mr Elias had a windfall in his sights. A $250 million redevelopment of the new Sydney Fish Market was announced, forcing Mr Elias, who held both a lease and a tender over the Blackwattle Bay site to find a new home, and 5-11 Bank Street quickly became the offering. As a local Ms Mortimer spent 11 years working on plans for a promised community parkland area at the very same Bank Street site. Then in 2014 plans were approved for a publicly accessible foreshore walkway and a marina at the site, to be used by the Sydney Heritage Fleet. An artist's impression of the eastern entrance of the new Sydney Fish Market. "But the boats were to be small, used infrequently and only during the day. Then, because the government had already approved the water base part of the development ... they simply extended that approval for All Occasion Cruises," Ms Mortimer said. The deadline for All Occasion Cruises to leave the Pyrmont Bridge Road site was June 30 last year. Since then the companys fleet has been moored at 37 Bank Street, after its owner offered to take them in, due to a shortage of commercial berths. Another Pyrmont resident, Neville Monk, said the community felt the decision "was orchestrated just to get Joe Elias out of Blackwattle Bay ... to make way for the new fish market". "When it was the heritage fleet it was an advantage, it was to have a museum, and the boats rarely left the dock ... this is an entirely different proposal, done on the basis of a modification rather than a new development application." NSW Planning and Environment finalised the approval for the development, subject to conditions, shortly before Christmas last year. Under the agreement All Occasion Cruises would have exclusive use of the site for five years. Should it go ahead, Ms Mortimer said the community would be robbed of the parkland it was promised, only to be left with "noise, traffic and excessive waste". "Large boats so close to the Glebe Island Bridge would endanger other shipping and passive boats, particularly dragon boat racers," she said. Chair of The Glebe Society environment committee Asa Wahlquist said locals only needed to remember the company's former site at 100 Pyrmont Bridge Road. The original 100 Pyrmont Bridge Road site where All Occasion Cruises was based. "It was an absolute tip. [Mr Elias] made all these promises ... he never delivered. And yet the government runs around and asks us to help the company relocate to a place where the community does not want them," she said. "Is this the sort of company that deserves that kind of patronage from the government?" Last week newsfeeds started filling up with stories about a bomb scare at Brisbane airport. Police were quick to reassure the public that it was not terror related and the incident quickly dropped out of the news cycle. It was widely reported that the man chased a woman (a family member) through the food court with two large knives and a device he claimed was a bomb. Another woman and two young girls, also thought to be family members, were involved in the incident. A child inspects an anti-domestic violence installation in which shoes represent abused women. Credit:AP The man was subdued by police and charged with contravening a domestic violence order, stalking with a weapon, stealing, making a bomb hoax and assaulting police. The public, however, could be reassured it was not terror related. Already this year, five women have been killed in Australia. One was Palestinian student Aiia Maasarwe, one was a suspected murder-suicide involving the womans husband and the partners of all the other dead women have been charged over their killing. Ultimately I didnt see more than two choices: kill myself or leave, one former trainee said. I seriously considered driving my car off the road. Twice, said another. Being discouraged from getting pregnant or derided for having children were also crucial reasons women left training, according to the research, which was published in medical journal The Lancet. One former female trainee told researchers: "Bosses have said to them, to their face, 'I dont think theres any point in me training you because youre going to get married and have kids and then what use are you going to be to this surgical service?' Women make up roughly 60 per cent of medical students in Australia and New Zealand, yet just 11 per cent of consultant surgeons are female. Women are also leaving mid-surgical training in greater numbers than men, despite evidence that they may be more able applicants. Lead author Gold Coast general surgeon Dr Rhea Liang said the myriad stresses on female trainees accumulated like a towering stack of blocks that would eventually topple. The reason past interventions had not been successful, she said, was because they focused on just one of those blocks. Dr Yumiko Kadota. Look at Dr Kadotas story. There was a combination of fatigue, bullying, and sexism, plus the demands of her physical and mental wellbeing, Dr Laing said. Kadota, 31, resigned from her unaccredited registrar position at Bankstown Hospitals plastic and reconstructive surgery department after being made to work up to 24 consecutive days on-call. She was dismissed as an emotional female and her pleas for support were ignored. Kadota crashed her car at the end of her last shift and was hospitalised for six weeks for sleep deprivation. Addressing the inequities is a personal crusade for Liang, who almost quit surgical training for similar reasons. Its just abysmal, she said. How can this still be happening? Female trainees also feared reprisal if they spoke up, the study found. And the inability to take leave because their reasons were deemed invalid, and the lack of support, opportunities and female role models, were also driving women out of surgical training. General surgeon Dr Rhea Liang said the stressors on trainees were like the blocks of a tower about to topple over. Credit:Gold Coast Health Liang said interventions designed specifically for women could do more harm than good. They other women and give the impression that they didnt get to where they are on merit, and can make them the target of further discrimination and harassment, she said. Kadotas case did more than highlight surgery's gender problem. It exposed the vulnerability of unaccredited trainees, who do not enjoy the protections of specialist colleges. Several unaccredited male registrars who contacted the Herald described being similarly exploited. Liang said a more sophisticated, multifactorial approach would improve surgical training for both women and men, considering several stressors, such as long working hours (and increasingly child-rearing), affected all trainees. Loading Liang is also deputy chair of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons Operating Respect Committee, an initiative created in the wake of damning reports of sexual harassment in the specialty and an investigation by RACS that exposed an endemic, toxic culture. Some surgeons claim the problem is the feminisation of the specialty and believe the new generation of surgeons should man-up as previous generations have done. But several senior surgeons - male and female - have rubbished that claim, saying the inclusion of more women in surgery was modernising the profession. Approximately 96 per cent of RACS fellows completed a mandatory respectful workplace online training modulewithin the past year. Very few surgeons can argue they dont know what inappropriate behaviour is, Liang said. Roughly 600 fellows in leadership positions are also expected to attend face-to-face workshops, which cover advanced training and how to manage testing scenarios. The Herald understands several surgeons have resented being forced to attend the workshops and many are yet to do so. In 2017, RACS received 81 complaints related to discrimination, bullying harassment and sexual harassment. More than one-third of the complaints were about RACS fellows. NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard has vowed to crack down on hospitals forcing doctors work untenable hours, putting themselves and patients at risk. But Hazzard says RACS and other medical colleges needed to hold their members to account to ensure they did not perpetuate the demand for junior doctors to work themselves into the ground. Just because it has been done for 40 years doesnt mean it should continue," he said. Los criticos del plan para hacer que Bitcoin sea moneda de curso legal en El Salvador dicen que la extrema volatilidad de la criptomoneda podria traer devastacion a uno de los paises mas pobres del hemisferio. Australia's carer and disability start-up space is enjoying unprecedented momentum, and AbleFinder co-founder Summer Elizabeth is ready for action. "Were quite confident about having 100,000 families globally using our platform, and we are the first platform like this for children with disabilities," she says. The co-founders of AbleFinder, a social media platform for families of children with disabilities. Credit:Suppllied Along with co-founder Andrius Petrosius, she has spent the past year speaking to hundreds of families across the world to build a dedicated tech offering to connect families of young people with disabilities with others facing similar experiences. Having taken part in the Remarkable accelerator program, the duo have bootstrapped efforts by pouring their free time into the business, set to formally launch in two months. Aside from $35,000 in seed funding from Remarkable, no other cash has gone into the start-up. Trusted local news has never been more important, but providing the information you need, information that can change sometimes minute-by-minute, requires a partnership with you, our readers. Please consider making a contribution today to support this vital resource that you and countless others depend on. I think the response so far has been quite positive, she told Betts. Of course there are some points of criticism as well, and we will have to deal with them, but I think at this point we were able to close the gap on the total amount. In 2015, more than 100 people died in Mumbai, Indias financial capital, after consuming illegal liquor. The victims were mostly laborers with daily wages who lived in one of the citys slums and who bought small plastic packets of bootleg alcohol for less than 10 cents, according to media reports. It was the worst such tragedy to hit the city in a decade. It is hard to send a child into the streets, but Mansour is a rock for us, said his father, Wahidullah, 40, who has no job and has never been to school. Our life has passed in hard times, and we want our children to have a normal life, if peace ever comes. For now, we tell him, Dont steal, dont fight, just find something out there and come home early. Uighur activists applauded Turkey for speaking out, but many question why it is only now coming to their defense. Tahir Imin, a Washington-based activist, said he and others provided documentation of Chinas incarceration of Uighurs to the Turkish government for more than a year without response. At a Saturday morning town hall in Marshalltown, Iowa, Booker had an exchange with a voter who said she wanted a candidate tough enough to beat Trump. The New Jersey Democrat replied that he was ready for the fight but that he was unsure whether the president would be on the ballot. Stacey Abrams, the Democrat chosen by party leaders to deliver the response to Trumps State of the Union address becoming the symbol of the party at a key moment merged two of the most politically potent identities. An African-American woman who narrowly lost her campaign for governor of Georgia last year, she used the speech to showcase a multicultural display of Americans behind her, and argued forcefully against Trumps policies. She represented newly energized parts of the party that seek to reckon with historical racism, sexism and xenophobia by bringing it to the center of the political debate. Now what Democrats are saying is, If you like your insurance, were going to take it away from you, from 180 million people that get their insurance from their employer and like it, where 20 million Americans who are on Medicare Advantage, and love it. That seems like a bad opening offer for me, he said. Keith and Kristyn Getty will be setting the Psalms to music with their brand new release Sing! Psalms Ancients and Modern on March 15. Recorded live at last year's Sing! conference, the new album will find special guests such as Cindy Morgan, Matt Boswell, Matt Papa, Matt Redman, Shane and Shane, Phil Keaggy and others. The Sing! conference exists to help pastors musicians and leaders build a Biblical understanding and creative vision for the congregational singing in their churches. Bringing together speakers and artists from many traditions and walks of life their desire is to encourage churches towards a deeper more dynamic view of theology artistry and mission in congregational singing. Keith and Kristyn Getty are renowned modern hymn writers from Northern Ireland. One of Keith's most popular compositions In Christ Alone " (co-written with Stuart Townend) is the #1 most-sung hymn in the UK since 2006 (CCLI) Songs from the Getty catalogue are sung by an estimated 100 million people annually in churches around the world. The duo has released multiple albums and performed at notable venues as diverse as London's Royal Albert Hall Carnegie Hall and the Grand Ole Opry. The Gettys met in Belfast Northern Ireland when they began songwriting together. They were married in 2004 and two years later they recorded their first project as a couple in the United Kingdom and Nashville TN. In 2006 they made the journey overseas to America and lived in Ohio for three years as they began their professional career. They moved to Nashville in 2010." Tracklist: 1.I Will Wait for You (Psalm 130) 2.Magnificent, Marvelous, Matchless Love 3.All Creatures of Our God and King 4.Lord from Sorrows - feat. Matt Papa 5.May the Peoples Praise You 6.My Dwelling Place (Psalm 91) - feat. Phil Keaggy 7.Psalm 51 - feat. Cindy Morgan 8.His Mercy Is More - feat. Matt Boswell and Matt Papa 9.The Lord Is My Salvation - feat. Shane and Shane 10.The Lord is My Shepherd (Psalm 23) 11.Is He Worthy - feat. Andrew Peterson and Sing!ConferenceChoir 12.10,000 Reasons - feat. Matt Redman 13.Holy Spirit, Living Breath of God - feat. Sing! ConferenceOrchestra 14.Instrumental (Psalm 150) 15.All People That on Earth Do Dwell (Psalm 100) 16.Psalm 23 - feat. Stuart Townend Tags : Keith and Kristyn Getty keith and kristyn getty new album Sing! Psalms Ancients and Moder Matt Redman Phil Keaggy Cindy Morgan matt papa Stuart Townend Sleep architecture the stages and depth of sleep also changes with age. Older adults take longer to fall asleep, and they wake up more often. They tend to linger in the deepest phases of sleep for less time than younger adults, and they get less rapid eye movement sleep, too. While the exact purpose of REM sleep is still unclear, it appears to be important for memory and learning. Less restorative sleep at night can lead to a tendency to nap during the day. (As long as naps arent so long that they interfere with falling asleep at night, theyre considered part of a normal sleep pattern.) Hope backed down from the impeachment resolution during a late Sunday conference call of House Democrats, according to two lawmakers who were on the call who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations. They said legislators raised concerns, including whether the House could conduct an investigation, whether offenses predating public service in different states are grounds for impeachment and whether it was unfair to target Fairfax for impeachment without doing so for Northam and Herring. The first Africans brought to Virginia were captured in Angola and brought in a slave ship, but Virginia did not have a formal legal system for slavery in 1619. There appears to have been some ambiguity over their legal status, with some still forced to work for life while others had a path to freedom, according to the National Park Service. Asked to clarify Northams remarks, a spokeswoman for the governor pointed to news accounts that said Africans were treated as indentured servants before slave laws were written. But privately, Democrats are divided, particularly about whether ousting Northam is best for their party. Some want to talk about how far Virginia has come from its painful, racist past. Others are uncomfortable about offering redemption to the two white men but not the African American man, who has vehemently denied the allegations. No one seems to know how to live by the rules their party has set on race and gender, or how to take the first step toward whatever comes next. THE DISTRICT 6-year-old boy among three shooting victims A 6-year-old was shot in the hand in the District on Friday evening one of three victims in three separate shootings in the city between Friday night and early Saturday morning, according to police. The boy was in the 2400 block of Alabama Avenue SE at 10:06 p.m. when shots were fired, according to a police report of the incident. A witness told police she heard the boy scream in pain as the shots were fired. People at the scene transported the child, who was conscious and breathing, to a hospital. Police recovered 10 shell casings, according to the report. Earlier, at 6:30 p.m., a man was shot in the 2300 block of Green Street SE. And at 1:30 a.m. Saturday, police said they found a man, the third victim, on the 1000 block of Michigan Avenue NE. That shooting occurred on the 4100 block of 13th Street NE. The two men had injuries that werent considered life-threatening and were found conscious and breathing, according to D.C. police. Police have not made any arrests in the shootings. Perry Stein MARYLAND Man found dead in apartment building Prince Georges County police are investigating the death of a man whose body was found Saturday in the hallway of an apartment building in Suitland. Police were called around 10:40 a.m. to the apartment in the 3400 block of Parkway Terrace Drive. The unidentified man was pronounced dead at the scene. Authorities say the man suffered trauma to his upper body. Keith L. Alexander VIRGINIA Body discovered in fire at Alexandria home Alexandria officials are investigating a fatal fire at a townhouse Saturday. Firefighters were called to the initial block of Arell Court, near the intersection with Duke Street, just after 9 a.m. As firefighters were extinguishing the blaze, they discovered the body of an unidentified victim. The fire marshal was en route to the building, an Alexandria fire spokeswoman said. Keith L. Alexander THE DISTRICT Residents near former hospital report odor Dozens of residents in Northwest Washington near the former Walter Reed Army Medical Center say they have noticed a foul-smelling odor emanating from the facility for more than a week. Patrick Richardson, a block captain in the Brightwood neighborhood, said he has received dozens of complaints from residents, who reported that the odor has set off the carbon monoxide detectors in their homes. Richardson said many of his neighbors complained of headaches and nausea. Doug Buchanan, a D.C. fire spokesman, said officials have also received calls and referred questions to the Districts Department of Energy and Environment. Efforts to reach department officials Saturday were unsuccessful. The 66-acre property is now managed by The Parks at Walter Reed. Two charter schools, the D.C. International School and the Latin American Montessori Bilingual Public Charter School, are located on the property. A spokeswoman for the schools said their buildings and students have not been affected by the smell or gas. A meeting has been scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Monday at the D.C. International School, where residents are expected to discuss the odor. Keith L. Alexander Read more: Local newsletters: Local headlines (8 a.m.) | Afternoon Buzz (4 p.m.) Like PostLocal on Facebook | Follow @postlocal on Twitter | Latest local news The four men piled into a white Pontiac and drove around parts of Northeast and Northwest Washington scanning the streets, Cyheme Hall, who said he was one of them, testified in court. Three of the men had guns, Hall said. They found their first victim on Eastern Avenue, someone who was dressed as a woman, but had facial features like a man, he said. It was somebody that was gay. Todays Headlines The most important news stories of the day, curated by Post editors and delivered every morning. By signing up you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy In our nation today children and families all too often come last, and the social barriers to providing a better quality of life for our nations children have become almost insurmountable, he wrote in a 1976 New York Times essay. Too many Americans either will not or do not want to hear the well-documented facts concerning our nations massive shortcomings in regard to children. Parham, who said he has not heard from residents about the controversy, said he hoped the governor would stick it out and turn the scandal into a moment of racial reckoning. Theres so much talk about the new Virginia and the melting pot, but when you drive up and down [Interstate] 95 in this part of the state, you see more Confederate flags than anywhere, Parham said. He has work to do, and I want him to stay and do it. I cant promise the families of [D.C. Public Schools] that we will never make mistakes, but I can promise you that when we do, we will tell the community and work quickly to fix the situation, Deputy Mayor for Education Paul Kihn said in a statement. As soon as we discovered the mistake related to the School Without Walls admission process, we acted quickly to communicate with students and families; still, though, I regret any disappointment we may have caused. Now, I can focus on school, my goal is to earn a 4.0 for this semester, and with this gift I can now put all my energy toward that goal and not worry about paying bills to graduate, she said. Rollins has relied on financial aid and assistance from family and friends to pay her tuition, but theres always a gap between the aid she receives and what she owes the university, she said. But this was his job digging a hole, irrigating the tooths precious insides, and restoring it and hes one of animal dentistrys best. (He has worked on Secret Service dogs and more than 50 tigers.) And Nikita deserved the best. Shes part of the Amur tiger subspecies, an endangered population that lives mostly near the Amur River in Siberia. Poaching and habitat loss have reduced their numbers dangerously. As few as 360 are left, according to the National Zoo, but conservation efforts in Russia promoted by President Vladmir Putin have helped slow down the decline. Sometimes concepts of things holds our attention and we dont go deeper Waco and Mart police worked together on an investigation that led to the arrest Friday of a 30-year-old man on a first-degree felony charge of continuous sexual abuse of a child. Waco police got a report Jan. 22 that Justin Randall Sauceda had sexually assaulted a 13-year-old girl multiple times at a home in Mart, an arrest affidavit states. The girl gave a very detailed, traumatizing, but consistent story of sexual abuse by Sauceda to (Child Protective Services,) law enforcement, nurses, doctors and counselors, according to the affidavit. The affidavit states the girl was assaulted multiple times but does not give a timeline. She told officials Sauceda also sexually assaulted another girl, and Mart police are continuing to investigate the claim, according to the affidavit. Sauceda remained in McLennan County Jail on Saturday with bond listed at $150,000. China Spring fire A fire destroyed a rural China Spring-area home early Saturday morning after the occupant escaped with two pet dogs, Waco Assistant Fire Chief Patrick Kerwin said. Bipartisan bail-reform legislation introduced in the Texas Legislature offers two worthy provisions all of us should get behind: First, it addresses growing societal inequality and, specifically, poor folks who cool their heels in jail on minor charges while the more economically blessed among us buy their way out of any wait behind bars. Second, this legislation takes into greater account whether the accused has a violent history before allowing his or her release. You might well think: How can such legislation lose? A couple of ways proved sufficient last session: lateness of the legislation reaching the House after Senate passage and opposition of the bail-bond industry. State Sen. John Whitmire, Houston Democrat, and Rep. Andy Murr, Junction Republican, say they believe the public is better educated two years later. And while Gov. Greg Abbott might have helped by adding this to his list of emergency legislative items last week, he did hold a press conference in Waco last year to tout elements of bail reform in this bill. As a comparison, lets look at the other case the Supreme Court handed down yesterday, concerning a Muslim death row inmate in Alabama who requested to have an imam present at his execution. The state denied his request, telling him that he could have a Christian chaplain or nothing. This is not even a close call; you could look far and wide and not find a clearer and more egregious violation of the establishment clause of the Constitution. But John Roberts, along with Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, and Brett Kavanaugh, ruled that the inmate had waited too long (five whole days) to file his claim, and therefore he can be executed without a representative of his faith in attendance. These two cases are about very different subjects, but theres something else important that distinguishes them: The religious freedom case is unlikely to get much attention. Thats in part because the plaintiff is unsympathetic, but also because the only people criticizing the decision will be legal scholars and the occasional liberal pundit. There will be no organized outcry from those on the right who claim to believe deeply in religious freedom, because what those people actually believe in is a sectarian version of religious freedom that actually means little more than that special privileges should be granted to conservative Christians. By a 5-4 vote Thursday night, the U.S. Supreme Court blocked a Louisiana law that would have made abortion all but impossible in the state at least until the court can hear the merits of the case. The most important fact about this result is that Chief Justice John Roberts cast the deciding vote to stop the law from taking effect. That doesnt tell you how hell ultimately vote on whether the law is constitutional. But it does tell you that Roberts cares about a fair process. Under recent Supreme Court precedent, the Louisiana law is pretty clearly unconstitutional, and Roberts doesnt want to overturn that precedent until the court has considered the case, June Medical Services LLC v. Gee, in detail. Yet the decision contains another extremely important piece of evidence. Justice Brett Kavanaugh, the newest addition to the court, wrote a four-page explanation of why he thought the law should go into effect. Kavanaugh is the only justice to write anything in the case thus far. His explanation tells us a great deal about how heis going to approach abortion cases much more than we could have known previously. The growth of prescription-drug tiers is a prime example. Whereas insurance firms used to charge one co-pay for generics and a slightly larger one for brand-name medications, theyve recently added a third and even a fourth tier, with much higher co-pays for some innovative drugs. In 2017, 83 percent of Americans insured by their employer had a plan with at least three prescription-drug tiers. The average co-pay for the highest tier was $110. Co-insurance is another example. Under these arrangements, beneficiaries pay a fixed percentage of a drugs price at the point of sale. Co-insurance rates are often based on a drugs initial list price not what the insurer actually pays after the discounts secured by PBMs. Then theres the pharmacy gag clause, in which PBM contracts prohibit pharmacists from telling a customer the out-of-pocket price for a drug was less than the persons co-pay. I ran into this personally a few years back. My co-pay for a generic drug would have been $15. I asked the pharmacist how much it would cost if I paid out of pocket. $11.50, she replied. She was likely contractually prohibited from volunteering the information but not from answering my question. Fortunately, Congress recently passed legislation ending this practice. Thats a great start, but theres more to do. The president needs to shine a light on middlemen and insurer practices. Theyre the ones who decide what patients actually pay for the latest medicines. Merrill Matthews is a resident scholar with the non-profit, non-partisan Institute for Policy Innovation in Dallas. He rode the famed Red Ball Express and served in the Battle of the Bulge. Hes one of the remaining members of the Greatest Generation, but Hamilton resident Leamon Carl Wagner, 96, would more likely consider himself a simple farmer. Like many children of his day, farming was a typical way of life, and Wagner was no exception. The Priddy, Texas, native helped his father on the farm when he was old enough to do so. By this time, the family had moved to Hamilton County. When he was in fourth grade, the family was able to borrow money and purchase a farm (at $7 per acre) in Springdale. Wagner was often absent from school, working on the farm. He attended when it rained or there was bad weather. By the 10th grade, Wagner left school altogether to help his sick father on the farm. He worked there until he was drafted into the U.S. Army in 1942. He went to Camp Howze in Gainesville. He had his choice of occupations and chose the motor pool, where he trained to be an ambulance driver. His first duty station was in Alexandria, Louisiana. He was there a year in training before he was sent by ship overseas to join the war in Europe. They went across Scotland and into England, where Wagner served with the 84th Infantry Division. It costs an average of about $65 per day to house an inmate at McLennan County Jail, compared to an average of about $200 per day for inmates with mental health needs, Armstrong said. We have teams that work with inmates with therapy, talk therapy and exercises, and I do see a lot of requests for help, because medication is not going to do all of it, said Deborah Santanna, a psychiatric nurse practitioner at the jail. They do have to learn how to cope with the anger and have simple things of distraction in the moment they feel they are getting angry. Mental health officials and jail administrators said mental illnesses can be hard to diagnose but have become a key concern for the care of people in custody. Armstrong said years ago, there was little education about mental illness and the beset approaches to treating unruly inmates. You never know when something minor may escalate to something much worse when you have to factor in things with mental health, Sheriff Parnell McNamara said. It is a real concern to us to be able to provide safety, not only to our citizens, but for our inmates and try to get them proper help, medical or psychological help. Its very important to recognize what the issues are so we can address them for the safety of everyone. Having joined the Navy at age 30, Church was older than most of his shipmates. They would confide in him, share their insecurities about living up to the expectations of deployment, and he would respond with advice. I would try to get them to think beyond their situation, to get it out of their mind as much as possible, Church said. I think they were just having a hard time coping with everything. I was at a different stage in my life, and I guess you might say I was the level-headed older sailor giving advice and mentoring, although what I said you may not want to repeat. Upon his return to the United States, Church continued to struggle finding a job in his field. The Dallas Morning News turned him down for an internship, so he worked as a picture framer to help put Karen through nursing school, he said. A desire to leave the big city brought the couple to Waco, where Church secured a graduate degree in journalism from Baylor University, then signed on to teach media writing and to serve as an adjunct lecturer. When he is not fulfilling his teaching obligations, he is traipsing off to small towns. Expenses include meals and fuel for a gas-guzzling Jeep. Some projects require multiple trips. Production includes his DSLR camera equipment, a laptop computer and his expertise. A fire destroyed a rural China Spring-area home early Saturday morning after the occupant escaped with two pet dogs, Waco Assistant Fire Chief Patrick Kerwin said. Waco fire crews were called at about 5:30 a.m. to 141 Cedar Drive, about 13 miles north of downtown Waco, to assist the China Spring Volunteer Fire Department. When Waco firefighters arrived a garage attached to the main structure was engulfed in flames, and a strong northeast wind was pushing the fire into the main part of the home, Kerwin said. A woman was the only person home at the time and escaped uninjured with two pet dogs, he said. Five cats were unaccounted for late Saturday morning. The fire grew quickly, prompting a request for more help, Kerwin said. Firefighters from the Speegleville Volunteer Fire Department and Valley Mills Volunteer Fire Department also responded. The fire was contained in about two hours, Kerwin said. Two cars parked in the driveway were destroyed, and the house was determined to be a total loss, he said. The State Fire Marshal's Office likely will investigate the cause of the fire, he said. Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. The initiative also discovered one in 10 grocery store jobs is the result of food assistance programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Everett said he jokes with his economist friends that this is trickle-up economics because money for low-income families actually creates jobs. Everetts team also learned that just half of all students eligible to receive free breakfast at school were eating that food. They found that a simple change to the location of breakfast service from the cafeteria to the classroom dramatically increases participation, as well as grades. That is the kind of work Craig Nash does these days as the regional manager for the initiatives child hunger outreach division. He works in the Greater Waco area to expand access to child hunger programs, collaborating mostly with school districts, churches and nonprofits. The organizations know the community well but often do not have the expertise of running a food service program, Nash said. He helps them establish meal programs and find the best sites to serve food to children, including during the summer. I use my community connections to find volunteers for those sites, he said. Thats really what this role is. Im a connector. Ali Shepard starts each weekday at 8:30 a.m. with a free breakfast at G.W. Carver Middle School, preferring to eat the popular breakfast pizza or Pop-Tarts if he does not have enough time to eat a hot meal. The 11-year-old goes about the rest of his day, moving from class to class, until 4 p.m., when school lets out. Then he ambles toward the school cafeteria, the third time in a day he will enter the room, for the campus after-school program, where he receives another hot meal before tackling homework, playing games or doing Zumba with the other students. But Alis favorite activity is on Wednesdays when the students get to cook. The sixth-grader loves to cook. I like the smell of food when its cooking, he said, smiling and sitting at a gleaming white cafeteria table. I mostly like being in the kitchen because I want to be a chef. Perhaps that is why Ali likes the food served at Carver Middle School so much. He appreciates the effort that goes into making it, and he reaps the benefits of a school district striving to provide every child with free breakfast, lunch and dinner. I could have written a second volume, equally long, with what I left out, Roberts said, admitting that one of the hardest parts of the biography was distilling some five million words of notes into one book. It was hellish, like chopping your fingers off. Compress, compress, compress was a constant consideration. At the same time, writing narrative history and biography is well suited for a story-telling author, he said. The reader wants to turn the page to see what happens next, he said. The throughline for the biographer, as it was for Churchill himself, is in the title: destiny. The British leader felt he was destined for great things from an early age, and Roberts work finds how Churchills early years and career shaped him for his role as the leader Great Britain needed during its fight for survival against Nazi Germany. Virtually he alone had the moral courage to take a stance very different from those of his age and background, Roberts said. He said Americans sometimes have a clearer understanding of Churchill than the British. Theres the advantage of distance, he said. Employees of Ft. Payne Public Works got their first look on Saturday after a devastating fire ravaged the historic building. "It wasn't good," employee Ronnie Hairen said. If you look inside, you can see puddles on the floor, insulation on the ground, and walls that used to be white now covered in black soot. People who walk by the building can even smell the smoke lingering from last night's fire. But, that won't stop the city's public works employees from serving their community. "I want to assure them that its not going to affect what we do for the community, and we will still operate it as usual," the public works supervisor Tim Williams said. "It's going to be different, but we're going to make it," Hairen added. People in the community were also heartsick to see the ruins. "It's sickening, very sickening. I just can't believe it burned," Donald Gann said. Gann was one of the people who stopped by to look at the damage. He says the fire was a sad situation because of the building's history. The building used to be a National Army Reserve, and Gann used to work there back when he was in high school. "I hate to see this thing burn down. I didn't think it would," Gann said. But, workers say they'll do their best to restore the building back to its former glory. "There's a lot of background here, so we are going to try our best to save the most we can. That's for sure," Hairen said. Ft. Payne Public Works employees will return to work Monday. They say they're all thankful for all the firefighters work and that nobody got hurt. The fire marshal will investigate on Monday to figure out the cause of the fire. A Zimbabwean man claims that the ruling Zanu PF party gave party supporters army uniforms during recent public protests over the high cost of living sparked by fuel price increases of 150 percent announced by President Emmerson Mnangagwa. According to the privately-owned Standard newspaper, Shepherd Magorimbo, who was arrested in Harare while dressed in an army camouflage after allegedly robbing some people in Harare, is facing charges of armed robbery. The newspaper reports that the Zanu PF Youth League member told prosecutors that we were given the uniforms at the party office. Zanu PF spokesperson Simon Khaya Moyo was not available for comment. State security agents claimed recently that some protesters stole arms and uniforms at army barracks, which they allegedly used to gun down at least 12 people in some parts of Zimbabwe. But the opposition dismissed the remarks as misleading and designed to protect the army. The Movement for Democratic Change led by Nelson Chamisa says latest reports pinning the army to some atrocities committed by state security agents, some of the in army uniforms, indicates that the Zimbabwe Defence Forces are now an extension of the ruling party. There has always been a conflation between Zanu PF and the state agencies. And this is something that we have been crying about as opposition and also as citizens of this country that we need to separate the state from the party that is called Zanu PF. But what we have been witnessing for a long time is that you cant separate Zanu PF from the army, which makes the military not so professional at all. It is true that what we have been witnessing in the last four weeks was not only being perpetrated by the army but by Zanu PF youth too. At times Zanu PF youth were actually commanding the people that were causing all the confusion in the country. However, Believe Gaule of the ruling Zanu PF partys powerful Central Committee, said his party had nothing to do with the distribution of army uniforms. Zanu PF is not part of that rubbish. I think those (claiming to have received uniforms from the ruling party) are being used by the opposition. They have a hidden agenda. Zanu PF does not distribute army uniforms. We did not do that and we wont do that at any time. The U.S. government is facing a Friday deadline for funding about a quarter of its operations, struggling to avert another shutdown after a record 35-day closure was ended last month. Construction money for a barrier at the U.S. southern border with Mexico remains at the center of the dispute, with President Donald Trump asking for $5.7 billion in funding and opposition Democrats apparently ready to offer some money, but much less than the president wants. Several lawmakers said late last week they were close to reaching a deal, even as it remained unclear what Trump would agree to. But on Sunday, Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama, the lead Republican on a 17-member congressional panel trying to reach agreement on border security funding, told Fox News, I think the talks are stalled right now. Im not confident were going to get there. Acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney told NBC News another shutdown "absolutely cannot" be ruled out. He said whether lawmakers are close to reaching a deal on border security funding "depends on who you listen to." Mulvaney added, "The president really does believe that there is a national security crisis and a humanitarian crisis at the border and he will do something about it. He is going to do whatever he legally can to secure that border." He said if Trump does not win approval for as much money as he wants he is likely to say, "I'll go find the money someplace else,'" by tapping other government funds, a move sure to draw a legal challenge from Democrats. Trump is set to travel to the border at El Paso, Texas, for a rally Monday night to focus on his demands for a wall to curb illegal migrants from entering the U.S. When the five-week closure ended Jan. 25, a bipartisan group of 17 Republican and Democratic lawmakers was created to hammer out details of what border security operations would be funded and how much money would go toward Trump's demand for a wall, perhaps his most popular pledge from his successful 2016 campaign for the White House. Democrats initially offered no funding for a wall, but now lawmakers familiar with the negotiations say Trump's opponents appear ready to agree to some border barrier funding, perhaps as much as $2 billion, along with provisions for heightened controls at ports of entry to thwart drug smuggling and increased use of drones and other technology to try to halt illegal entry into the country. Lawmakers have often said since the shutdown ended that a second closure would be prevented, but Trump has refused to rule it out if he does not like the border security agreement they present him. He has not publicly stated what level of funding he would accept as a compromise to build a barrier along a relatively small portion of the 3,200-kilometer U.S.-Mexican border. "The Democrats just dont seem to want Border Security," he said Saturday on Twitter. "They are fighting Border Agents recommendations. If you believe news reports, they are not offering much for the Wall. They look to be making this a campaign issue . The Wall will get built one way or the other!" Trump has signaled that he could declare a national emergency to build a wall without congressional approval, by tapping funds approved for other projects. But key Republican lawmakers have warned the president not to, fearing the next time a Democrat is in the White House, he could declare an emergency to combat some problem at odds with the views of many Republicans, such as banning the use of some types of guns. Democrats are also certain to file suit against any emergency that Trump declares, which could lead to months of court fights over the wall. SYDNEY - Ten years ago, Australia suffered its worst bushfire disaster when 173 people died in the state of Victoria. Thousands of homes were destroyed as fires tore through the southern state. The tragedy led to sweeping changes in emergency warning systems. Black Saturday is how Australians refer to the February 2009 bushfire that killed 173 people and left hundreds more injured. The blaze left more than 2,000 homes in ruins, and thousands of people displaced. Authorities estimate that up to 1 million animals died. There were not just a handful of fires, but hundreds. About 400 blazes burned across Victoria state. Most were sparked by lightning and faulty power lines, but others had been set deliberately by arsonists. Australia's Wild Weather Floods Sydney; Fans Deadly Bushfires Australia's Bureau of Meteorology said within just a few hours Sydney received more than 100mm of rain, a level that country's most populous city would normally receive throughout the whole of November Carol Matthews son Sam was killed when the family home burned down. She recalls the last time she spoke with him on the phone as the flames moved closer. We only had a 30 second conversation, she said. When he started, he was anxious but not panicked. A tree blew up and then there was fire all around him and then I heard this pop, pop, pop, and I said, What is that? and he said, All the windows have blown in. In my heart, as soon as the windows had blown in, I knew there was not much hope for him and although I tried about 15 to 20 times to ring him back, we never heard from him again. The disaster was caused by a deadly cocktail of record temperatures, unusually strong winds and a long-running drought conditions that affect Australia today. Virtual Reality Helping Australians Protect from Catastrophic Bushfires Emergency authorities in Australia have released a virtual reality program recreating potentially catastrophic bushfire scenarios. The project aims to encourage residents in the state of Victoria to prepare for extreme danger. Emergency authorities in Australia have released a virtual reality program recreating potentially catastrophic bushfire scenarios. The project aims to encourage residents in the state of Victoria to prepare for extreme danger. Earlier this month, the Australian Bureau of Meteorology reported that January was the hottest month ever recorded in the country, with a mean temperature that exceeded 30 degrees Celsius. An official inquiry into the 2009 tragedy resulted in sweeping changes to the way Australia prepares for and fights bushfires, including better early warning systems for residents. New homes in vulnerable areas are also subject to stricter building regulations. Southeastern Australia is one of the worlds most fire-prone regions. Between 1967 and 2013, major bushfires in Australia have caused about 8,000 injuries and more than 430 deaths. WASHINGTON - Some 6,000 languages are spoken in the world, and nearly half of them are endangered, according to the UNESCO Atlas of the Worlds Languages in Danger. One of them is Theron Musuweu Kolokwe's native tongue, Subiya, a Bantu language spoken by more than 30,000 people along the Zambezi River in Namibia, Zambia and Botswana. I think in my language," he said. "I dream in my language. Its the language that I was born into. I didnt have the choice to speak it. That's because, like other educated young people in Windhoek, the 33-year-old speaks a number of other languages on a daily basis, especially English and Afrikaans. Two years ago, Kolokwe started documenting Subiya. The idea came to him while he was watching YouTube. Randomly, a video of someone speaking their native tongue popped up, he recalled. Then, when I opened it, it caught my curiosity. Then, I was like, I want to also hear my tongue and languages from my country and southern Africa in particular. Kolokwe is one of dozens of volunteers working with Wikitongues, a nonprofit in New York City that helps people from around the world preserve native languages that have been disappearing. ?Colorful vs. gray When a language becomes extinct, says Wikitongues co-founder Daniel Bogre Udell, a culture disappears and a community loses its identity. Thats happening more often than many can imagine. Udell, however, says language loss is not a natural culmination of progress. Thats really not an accident of history, he explained. Its because, over the 1800s and 1900s, roughly every country in the world relentlessly worked to forcefully assimilate minorities cultures. I think no one would suggest that we need to be religiously or culturally or ethnically homogeneous. So, why would we be linguistically homogeneous? Its a question about what kind of a world we want to live in: a colorful one or a gray one? The volunteer-based group began in 2016 as an open internet archive of every language in the world. Nearly 1,000 volunteers have submitted videos in more than 400 languages and dialects on Wikitongues YouTube channel. Some, like English, Farsi and Mandarin, are spoken by hundreds of millions of people. Others are unfamiliar, like Bora, spoken by a few thousand people in the Amazonian regions of Peru and Colombia, and Iraqw, spoken in Tanzania. Inspiration and hope The vision behind Wikitongues is simple and clear. Its all about providing the tools and support people need to save their languages. Language revitalization at the end of the day is something that has to be done by the community, from the ground up, Udell said. There is no way an outsider organization can save someones language for them. Weve had over 1,500 contributors and videos from 70 different countries. We have people from India who record dozens of languages, which is beyond their own. We have another volunteer from Scotland who is one of the last speakers of a variety of Scottish dialects. Hes in the process of reclaiming them, revitalizing, (and) building a dictionary for them. Wikitongues is also where volunteers from around the world can be inspired by the proof that reviving disappearing indigenous languages is possible. Hebrew is a good example. Hebrew went extinct in the 4th century BC, and was revived in the 1800s and now once again its the mother tongue of half of the worlds Jewish population," Udell said. One of our tribe partners here in the U.S., the Tunica-Biloxi tribe in Louisiana, has over the past couple of years built a really lively language revival on their community. Their language went extinct in the 1940s. Weve had contributors from the Cornish community whose language went extinct in the 1700s and was brought back in the 1900s. Their movement really got geared up when the internet arrived and new generations of Cornish speakers find each other online and use the language on a daily basis. Such revival success stories give volunteers like Theron Musuweu Kolokwe hope that his efforts can save Subiya and other African languages from extinction. Kolokwes goal is to create a dictionary, and a curriculum so it can be taught in school. I want the world to know about my language, he sais. I want to promote it, so that generations to come can speak it fluently because there is a huge influx of Western languages around here, especially in Namibia. We all learn [English] in school. Its the business language, the language of government, and people are neglecting their native languages. So, I want to promote it so more and more people can speak it. And children can be proud of where they come from. With awareness and technology, Wikitongues puts people in a better position to save and revive their native languages, making the world more colorful and culturally diverse. WASHINGTON - The U.S. government is facing a Friday deadline for funding about a quarter of its operations, struggling to avert another shutdown after a record 35-day closure was ended last month. Construction money for a barrier at the U.S. southern border with Mexico remains at the center of the dispute, with President Donald Trump asking for $5.7 billion in funding and opposition Democrats apparently ready to offer some money, but much less than the president wants. Likely Deal Would Give Trump Fraction of Desired Wall Money Congressional bargainers are working toward a border security deal amid indications that the White House is preparing to accept a bipartisan agreement that would give President Donald Trump a fraction of the money hes demanded for his proposed southern border wall.Participants said they expect money for physical barriers to end up well below the $5.7 billion that Trump has sought to begin construction of the wall, which has attained iconic significance for him and his conservative supporters. Congressional bargainers are working toward a border security deal amid indications that the White House is preparing to accept a bipartisan agreement that would give President Donald Trump a fraction of the money hes demanded for his proposed southern border wall.Participants said they expect money for physical barriers to end up well below the $5.7 billion that Trump has sought to begin construction of the wall, which has attained iconic significance for him and his conservative supporters. Several lawmakers said late last week they were close to reaching a deal, even as it remained unclear what Trump would agree to. But on Sunday, Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama, the lead Republican on a 17-member congressional panel trying to reach agreement on border security funding, told Fox News, I think the talks are stalled right now. Im not confident were going to get there. Acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney told NBC News another shutdown "absolutely cannot" be ruled out. He said whether lawmakers are close to reaching a deal on border security funding "depends on who you listen to." Mulvaney added, "The president really does believe that there is a national security crisis and a humanitarian crisis at the border and he will do something about it. He is going to do whatever he legally can to secure that border." FILE - In this Jan. 2, 2019, file photo White Hous In this Jan. 2, 2019, file photo White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney listens as President Donald Trump speaks during a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington. In this Jan. 2, 2019, file photo White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney listens as President Donald Trump speaks during a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington. He said if Trump does not win approval for as much money as he wants he is likely to say, "I'll go find the money someplace else,'" by tapping other government funds, a move sure to draw a legal challenge from Democrats. Trump Makes Final Push for Border Wall in State of Union Speech President Donald Trump used the State of the Union address Tuesday night to make a final push for a wall along the southern U.S. President Donald Trump used the State of the Union address Tuesday night to make a final push for a wall along the southern U.S. Trump is set to travel to the border at El Paso, Texas, for a rally Monday night to focus on his demands for a wall to curb illegal migrants from entering the U.S. When the five-week closure ended Jan. 25, a bipartisan group of 17 Republican and Democratic lawmakers was created to hammer out details of what border security operations would be funded and how much money would go toward Trump's demand for a wall, perhaps his most popular pledge from his successful 2016 campaign for the White House. Democrats initially offered no funding for a wall, but now lawmakers familiar with the negotiations say Trump's opponents appear ready to agree to some border barrier funding, perhaps as much as $2 billion, along with provisions for heightened controls at ports of entry to thwart drug smuggling and increased use of drones and other technology to try to halt illegal entry into the country. Lawmakers have often said since the shutdown ended that a second closure would be prevented, but Trump has refused to rule it out if he does not like the border security agreement they present him. He has not publicly stated what level of funding he would accept as a compromise to build a barrier along a relatively small portion of the 3,200-kilometer U.S.-Mexican border. "The Democrats just dont seem to want Border Security," he said Saturday on Twitter. "They are fighting Border Agents recommendations. If you believe news reports, they are not offering much for the Wall. They look to be making this a campaign issue . The Wall will get built one way or the other!" The Democrats just dont seem to want Border Security. They are fighting Border Agents recommendations. If you believe news reports, they are not offering much for the Wall. They look to be making this a campaign issue. The Wall will get built one way or the other! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 9, 2019 Trump has signaled that he could declare a national emergency to build a wall without congressional approval, by tapping funds approved for other projects. But key Republican lawmakers have warned the president not to, fearing the next time a Democrat is in the White House, he could declare an emergency to combat some problem at odds with the views of many Republicans, such as banning the use of some types of guns. Democrats are also certain to file suit against any emergency that Trump declares, which could lead to months of court fights over the wall. PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA - Almost half a century ago, the U.S.-backed Gen. Lon Nol led a coup in March 1970, overthrowing Cambodias King Norodom Sihanouk while the monarch visited Moscow. Sihanouk took refuge in Beijing until 1975, when brutal Khmer Rouge guerrillas leading a resistance movement against Lon Nols Khmer Republic captured Phnom Penh on April 17 and took over the country. Sihanouk initially supported the Khmer Rouge regime and was installed as head of state by the communists but resigned in 1976. He spent the rest of the regime as a de facto prisoner of the Khmer Rouge, which wreaked havoc on the country, killing or starving to death an estimated 1.7 million people from 1975 to 1979. FILE- Cambodia's King Norodom Sihanouk in Vichy, J FILE- Cambodia's King Norodom Sihanouk in Vichy, Jan. 11, 1980. Cambodia's former King Norodom Sihanouk, whose life mirrored the turbulent history of his nation where he remained a revered figure, died in Beijing, Oct. 15, 2012, at the age of 89. FILE- Cambodia's King Norodom Sihanouk in Vichy, Jan. 11, 1980. Cambodia's former King Norodom Sihanouk, whose life mirrored the turbulent history of his nation where he remained a revered figure, died in Beijing, Oct. 15, 2012, at the age of 89. ?Echoes of the Cold War Today, that sequence of events reverberates in a diplomatic face-off in Phnom Penh that echoes the Cold War even as it has gone viral in Cambodia. The online skirmish began when the U.S. Embassy posted a statement on its Facebook page, Jan. 30, saying the Khmer Rouge ignorantly depended on a superpower, an apparent reference to China. The embassy later issued comments claiming Washington was not involved in the coup led by Lon Nol that ousted Sihanouk. Instead, there is a lot of evidence showing that [the] Chinese government actively supported [the] Khmer Rouge from 1975 to 1979 and after that, read a post by the U.S. Embassy. In response, the Chinese Embassy posted a statement on its Facebook page, Feb. 1, mocking the idea that the coup was not related to the U.S., but the CIA. Elizabeth Becker, author of When the War was Over: Cambodia and the Khmer Rouge Revolution, said the current tit-for-tat was a distorted argument started by the Hun Sen government. The subject is too serious for these propaganda potshots, she wrote VOA Khmer in an email. Both China and the U.S. have blood on their hands. FILE - A photo taken in the 1970 outside of Cambod FILE - A photo taken in the 1970 outside of Cambodia, shows China's chairman Mao Ze Dong, left, greeting top Khmer Rouge official Ieng Sary, right, also known as " brother number three," while Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot, center, looks on. FILE - A photo taken in the 1970 outside of Cambodia, shows China's chairman Mao Ze Dong, left, greeting top Khmer Rouge official Ieng Sary, right, also known as " brother number three," while Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot, center, looks on. ?War of words Chheang Vannarith, president of the Asian Vision Institute (AVI), an independent think tank based in Phnom Penh, said the current war of words is another indication that the U.S.-China competition in Cambodia will continue to intensify. I think Cambodia has become the proxy of U.S.-China geopolitical rivalry, he said in an email. The winner writes history. It is real politics. Meas Nee, a political analyst who holds a doctorate in sociology and international social work from La Trobe University in Melbourne, Australia, said Cambodia should be cautious of falling into a trap if a new Cold War emerges. Those two superpowers can take advantage of a vulnerable country like Cambodia, he said, adding that Phnom Penhs closeness with Beijing makes it unlikely to take a stand. China is Cambodias largest aid donor. Although many consider the U.S. involvement to be a matter of historical record, Emily Zeeberg, U.S. Embassy spokeswoman, told VOA Khmer that there was no evidence that the United States was involved in the coup that brought Lon Nol to power. Lon Nol FILE - President Lon Nol in Cambodia in 1972. FILE - President Lon Nol in Cambodia in 1972. The United States has addressed its war legacy by long-standing and substantial efforts for humanitarian demining and removing unexploded ordnance (UXO), including the removal of hundreds of thousands of Chinese-made mines, which have injured and killed people for decades, she said in an email. We hope the Chinese government will acknowledge its legacy in Cambodia and make amends to all the Cambodians its policies affected, Zeeberg added. Repeated efforts to reach the Chinese Embassy in Cambodia were unsuccessful. Phay Siphan, a Cambodian government spokesman, could not be reached for comment. Cambodias Ministry of National Defense said in a statement issued last week that Cambodia had suffered from a civil war that arose from a coup supported by United States in 1970. Cambodia doesnt want to see the same history, as Cambodia has full peace, it read. Supporting the Khmer Rouge Sophal Ear, associate professor of diplomacy and world affairs at Occidental College at Los Angeles, said: It looks like the U.S. Embassy simply reminded Cambodia of who was supporting the Khmer Rouge at their height of power-1975-1979. Indeed, with the withdrawal of the U.S., the Khmer Republic collapsed, he added. China and the Khmer Rouge were brothers in arms, he said. Cambodia has always been a sideshow to the great powers. Just because some Facebook posts and statements have been made does not amount to a hill of beans. Lets not get delusional here. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen speaks to reporte Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen speaks to reporters during a joint press briefing with his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Xuan Phuc in Hanoi, Vietnam, Dec. 7, 2018. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen speaks to reporters during a joint press briefing with his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Xuan Phuc in Hanoi, Vietnam, Dec. 7, 2018. ?Prime Minister Hun Sen, who is a close ally of Beijing, has said several times that the United States backed Lon Nol to topple Sihanouk from power, leading to a bitter civil war. A staunch anti-communist, Lon Nol ruled over what was declared the Khmer Republic, presiding over the buildup of the Cambodian army from a force of 37,000 to more than 150,000. U.S. aid funded the expansion as American aircraft resumed bombing Cambodia, and ground troops entered the country in a covert war, assisted by South Vietnamese forces. On April 1, 1975, two weeks before the Khmer Rouge overran Phnom Penh, Lon Nol boarded a helicopter, escaping with his family to Thailand before settling in the U.S. He lived quietly in Hawaii, before moving to Fullerton, Calif., where he died in 1985. Sihanouk called on Cambodians to fight against the U.S.-backed Lon Nol regime to bring him back to power, but the regime that sprang up from this conflict was more brutal than Cambodian soldiers could have imagined. FILE - Khmer Republican Party of Cambodia Presiden FILE - Khmer Republican Party of Cambodia President Lon Rith, son of Lon Nol who ruled Cambodia from 1970 to 1975, talks to reporters on his arrival at Phnom Penh International Airport, Phnom Penh, Cambodia, April 20, 2008. FILE - Khmer Republican Party of Cambodia President Lon Rith, son of Lon Nol who ruled Cambodia from 1970 to 1975, talks to reporters on his arrival at Phnom Penh International Airport, Phnom Penh, Cambodia, April 20, 2008. In an interview with VOA Khmer, Lon Rith, Nols son and the president of the Khmer Republic party, defended his father, saying, It was a collective decision to remove the king and it was not really a coup. I dont take sides with Lon Nol because he is my father. But I wanted to say it is the truth for our history, he said. He said the ouster was to protect Cambodia by getting the North Vietnamese out of Cambodia. They asked the king to return and negotiated to ask the Vietcong to leave the country, but he didnt come, he said. Superpowers involved Diep Sophal, a history lecturer who wrote The Causes of the Cambodian War in 2018, said the superpower countries were trying to not to take any responsibility, both legally and ethically. I think [American support] was a kind of psychological approach and encouragement. Becker, whose reporting from Cambodia led to her being called to testify for the prosecution at the international criminal tribunal of the Khmer Rouge for genocide, cut through the factions. Here is the truth: The U.S. did not engineer the 1970 overthrow of Prince Norodom Sihanouk. However, the U.S. did favor his overthrow and then did underwrite the government of Lon Nol throughout the 1970-1975 war. With U.S. money and military support, including the saturation bombing, the Lon Nol government fought the North Vietnamese and the Khmer Rouge. China supported the Khmer Rouge during the 1970-1975 war and was the sole critical supporter throughout the 1975-1979 Democratic Kampuchea period of genocide. With Chinese money and support, Pol Pot carried out the period of murder, starvation and brutality. U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces say they have recaptured 41 positions held by Islamic State militants as they seek to clear the last enclave the militant group controls in eastern Syria. Mustafa Bali, an SDF spokesman, tweeted Sunday that SDF forces had destroyed fortifications in the Village of Baghuz, but that heavy fighting continued. "#SDF have advanced on northern and western axis into Baghuz since 19:00 yesterday evening, capturing 41 positions of ISIS and destroying fortifications. IS counterattack was foiled at 4 am this morning. Heavy fighting is going on inside the last village at the moment," he wrote. After saving more than 20K civilians from IS-held area and ensuring their safety in nearby camps, #SDF started to move on to the last village remaining under jihadists control in N. Syria. Village of Baghuz, which is the only remaining #ISIS pocket, will be cleared soon. Mustafa Bali (@mustefabali) February 9, 2019 "There are heavy clashes at the moment. We have launched an assault and the fighters are advancing," an SDF field commander told AFP Sunday. The SDF, backed by U.S.-led coalition airstrikes, is fighting IS in a 4-square-kilometer area that includes Baghuz and is near the Iraqi border. US-backed Fighters Launch Final Push to Defeat IS in Syria U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces said Saturday that they had begun an assault against Islamic State to clear the last enclave the militant group controls in eastern Syria. Mustafa Bali, an SDF spokesman, tweeted Saturday, "#SDF started to move on to the last village remaining under jihadists' control. ... Village of Baghuz, which is the only remaining #ISIS pocket, will be cleared soon." "The battle is very fierce," Bali told The Associated Press. U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces said Saturday that they had begun an assault against Islamic State to clear the last enclave the militant group controls in eastern Syria. Mustafa Bali, an SDF spokesman, tweeted Saturday, "#SDF started to move on to the last village remaining under jihadists' control. ... Village of Baghuz, which is the only remaining #ISIS pocket, will be cleared soon." "The battle is very fierce," Bali told The Associated Press. SDF officials and the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights estimated there were about 3,000 battle-hardened IS jihadists, mostly foreigners, in the region. The observatory also estimated several hundred civilians remained in the area as well. Baghuz, Syria More than 23,000 Syrian civilians and foreign nationals fled eastern Syria this past week as the SDF, which includes Kurdish YPG militia fighters, prepared to move on IS in Deir el-Zour governorate, according to local officials and activists. The displaced residents, mostly women and children, have been placed in the Kurdish al-Hol camp in al-Hasakah governorate, in northeast Syria. The administrator of the camp, Nabil Hassan, told VOA that many of the women and children from the new wave of displacement this week were foreign nationals and family members of IS. Deir el-Zour SDF began an operation in September to rid Deir el-Zour of IS militants. The U.S.-backed fighters' advance has been slowed by fierce fighting from the IS militants. The civil war that has engulfed Syria began with Arab Spring protests in 2011. The United Nations estimates more than 400,000 Syrians have died since fighting began in 2011. More than 6 million Syrians have been displaced internally and about 5 million have sought refuge outside the country, with Turkey hosting nearly 3.5 million of them, according to the Brookings Institution. Rikar Hussein contributed to this report. UNITED NATIONS - The United States has presented a draft resolution at the United Nations Security Council calling for international aid deliveries and a presidential vote in Venezuela, triggering a Russian counter-proposal. While no date has yet been set for a vote on the American draft, and negotiations are ongoing, Russia is likely to use its veto power to block it as part of its support of Nicolas Maduros regime, diplomats said. The text, a copy of which was obtained Saturday by AFP, expresses full support for the National Assembly as the only democratically elected institution in Venezuela. The legislative bodys chairman, Juan Guaido, has declared himself interim president of Venezuela, challenging Maduros rule. Deep US concern The draft resolution stresses deep concern with the violence and excessive use of force by Venezuelan security forces against unarmed, peaceful protesters. It also calls for the immediate start of a political process leading to free, fair and credible presidential elections, with international electoral observation, in line with Venezuelas constitution. The text also requests that U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres utilize his good offices to obtain such elections. It also stresses the need to prevent further deterioration of the humanitarian situation in Venezuela and to facilitate access and delivery of assistance to all in need in the entirety of the territory of Venezuela. A man signs a petition during a campaign to collec A man signs a petition during a campaign to collect signatures against the interference of the United States in the internal politics of Venezuela in Caracas, Venezuela, Feb. 9, 2019. A man signs a petition during a campaign to collect signatures against the interference of the United States in the internal politics of Venezuela in Caracas, Venezuela, Feb. 9, 2019. ?Russia offers alternative On Friday, Moscow proposed an alternative resolution to the American one, diplomats said. It expresses concern over the threats to use force against the territorial integrity and political independence of ... Venezuela, according to a draft seen by AFP. The draft also criticizes attempts to intervene in matters which are essentially within the domestic jurisdiction of ... Venezuela. Calling for a peaceful resolution of the stalemate in Venezuela, it supports all initiatives aimed at reaching a political solution amongst Venezuelans to the current situation ... through a genuine and inclusive process of national dialogue. However, a diplomat told AFP that if put to a vote, the Russian text would fail to obtain the minimum of nine votes to pass without another veto-wielding country blocking it. Humanitarian aid sent by the United States recently arrived in the Colombian city of Cucuta at the border with Venezuela, but Maduro has refused to let in the shipments. Guaido said Friday he was ready to take any necessary measures, including authorizing a U.S. military intervention, to force Maduro from power and alleviate the humanitarian crisis. TORONTO - The U.S. ambassador to Canada said Saturday that her country was "deeply concerned" about China's "unlawful" detention of two Canadians. Ambassador Kelly Craft said in a statement to The Associated Press the arrests of ex-diplomat Michael Kovrig and entrepreneur Michael Spavor were "unacceptable" and urged China to end the arbitrary detentions. They were her first public comments on the cases. China detained the two Canadians on Dec. 10 in an apparent attempt to pressure Canada to release Chinese executive Meng Wanzhou, who was arrested Dec. 1 at the request of U.S. authorities. Meng is the chief financial officer of the Chinese tech giant Huawei and the daughter of its founder. The U.S. wants her extradited to face charges that she committed fraud by misleading banks about Huawei's business dealings in Iran. FILE - Huawei Technologies Chief Financial Office FILE - Huawei Technologies Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou is pictured as she exits the court registry following a bail hearing at British Columbia Superior Court in Vancouver, Dec. 11, 2018. FILE - Huawei Technologies Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou is pictured as she exits the court registry following a bail hearing at British Columbia Superior Court in Vancouver, Dec. 11, 2018. Craft said the U.S. Department of Justice's criminal case against Meng was based solely on the evidence and the law. "The United States appreciates Canada's steadfast commitment to the rule of law," she said. Awating execution Craft made no mention of China's planned execution of a third Canadian. China resentenced a convicted Canadian drug smuggler to death after the Meng arrest as part of an apparent campaign of intimidation and retribution against Canada. Some analysts have said the U.S. response to China's arrests of the two Canadians has been muted. President Donald Trump himself has not commented on the Canadians. But U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has, saying China ought to release them. White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders and the State Department have also issued statements of support. "We urge China to end all forms of arbitrary and unlawful detentions and to respect the protections and freedoms of all individuals in accordance with China's international commitments," Craft said. Robert Bothwell, a professor at the University of Toronto, called Craft's statement "tepid." "It doesn't bespeak ringing support," Bothwell said. Threat of consequences Beijing threatened grave consequences for America's neighbor and ally after Meng was arrested at Vancouver's airport. Canada has embarked on a campaign with allies to win the release of Kovrig and Spavor and many countries have issued statements in support. The two were detained on vague allegations of "engaging in activities that endanger the national security" of China. They remain locked up without access to lawyers. Meng is out on bail in Canada and living in one of her two Vancouver mansions awaiting extradition proceedings. Despite the escalating frictions resulting from the detentions, trade talks between Beijing and the Trump administration remain ongoing. Chinese Vice Premier Liu He, center, accompanied b FILE - Chinese Vice Premier Liu He, center, accompanied by other Chinese officials, begins talks with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer at the Executive Office Building on the White House Complex, Jan. 30, 2019. FILE - Chinese Vice Premier Liu He, center, accompanied by other Chinese officials, begins talks with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer at the Executive Office Building on the White House Complex, Jan. 30, 2019. The U.S. has taken pains to emphasize that their trade talks are entirely separate from the U.S. case against Meng. They have been doing so since Trump said in an interview that he might be willing to drop the charges against Meng as part of a trade deal with China. Trump's comment frustrated Canadian officials who have been adamant Canada is following the rule of law and that Canada has an extradition treaty it must respect. A Canadian judge could deny the extradition request if the charges were deemed political. "The next time the U.S. asks, Canada will be hard of hearing," Bothwell said. "Trouble with Trump and company is that they are entirely transactional. They don't think ahead. And in this case, Trump's own words will probably be enough to get the U.S. extradition request denied." ANKARA, TURKEY - Turkey on Saturday condemned China's treatment of its Muslim ethnic Uighur people as "a great embarrassment for humanity," adding to rights groups' recent criticism of mass detentions of the Turkic-speaking minority. "The systematic assimilation policy of Chinese authorities toward Uighur Turks is a great embarrassment for humanity," Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy said in a statement. The northwest Xinjiang region of China, where most Uighurs live, has been under heavy police surveillance in recent years, after violent inter-ethnic tensions. Nearly 1 million Uighurs and other Turkic language-speaking minorities in China have reportedly been held in re-education camps, according to a U.N. panel of experts. Beijing says the "vocational education centers" help people steer clear of terrorism and allow them to be reintegrated into society. FILE - Supporters of the mostly Muslim Uighur mino Supporters of the mostly Muslim Uighur minority and Turkish nationalists burn a Chinese flag during a protest to denounce China's treatment of ethnic Uighur Muslims during a deadly riot on July 2009 in Urumqi, in front of the Chinese consulate in Istanbul, on July 5, 2018. Supporters of the mostly Muslim Uighur minority and Turkish nationalists burn a Chinese flag during a protest to denounce China's treatment of ethnic Uighur Muslims during a deadly riot on July 2009 in Urumqi, in front of the Chinese consulate in Istanbul, on July 5, 2018. But critics say China is seeking to assimilate Xinjiang's minority population and suppress religious and cultural practices that conflict with communist ideology and the dominant Han culture. "It is no longer a secret that more than 1 million Uighur Turks who are exposed to arbitrary arrests are subjected to torture and political brainwashing in concentration centers and prisons," Aksoy said in the Turkish Foreign Ministry statement. "Uighurs who are not detained in the camps are also under great pressure," he added. Turkey called on the international community and U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres "to take effective steps to end the human tragedy in the Xinjiang region." Most mainly Muslim countries have not been vocal on the issue, not criticizing the government in China, which is an important trading partner. President Donald Trumps planned trip Monday to the border city of El Paso, Texas comes days before U.S. government funding is due to lapse once again and as suspense builds over Trumps vague but persistent threat to declare a national emergency if Congress declines to pay for wall construction along the U.S.-Mexico border. The president really does believe that there is a national security crisis and a humanitarian crisis at the border, and he will do something about it, White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney said Sunday on NBCs Meet the Press program. Hes going to do whatever he legally can to secure that border. I do expect the president to take some kind of executive action, a national emergency is certainly part of that if we [lawmakers] dont reach a [border security] compromise, North Carolina Republican Rep. Mark Meadows said on CBS Face the Nation program. This president is going to build a wall one way or another. Democrats insist there is still time for a politically divided Congress to forge and pass a spending bill that strengthens Americas southern border. Nobody wants a shutdown, nobody wants the president to use some kind of emergency powers, Montana Democratic Sen. Jon Tester said on Fox News Sunday. We just need to do our job, and we can do it. President Donald Trump reviews border wall prototy FILE - President Donald Trump reviews border wall prototypes, March 13, 2018, in San Diego. FILE - President Donald Trump reviews border wall prototypes, March 13, 2018, in San Diego. Ill get it built Trump was resolute at last weeks State of the Union address to Congress. Where walls go up, illegal crossings go way down, the president said. Ill get it built. So far, no deal has been reached by a bipartisan bicameral conference committee tasked with finding a compromise on border security before U.S. government funding expires on Friday. But Trump holds a wildcard - his authority as commander-in-chief to declare a national emergency and bypass Congress altogether. I don't think anybody questions his legal authority to declare a national emergency, Republican House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California said late last week. That would be a gross abuse of power, in my view, Maryland Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen told VOA. Its pretty clear you cant declare an emergency just because you cant get your way 100 percent in the Congress. So lets try and work this out through the normal process. In the abstract, the presidents authority to declare a national emergency is not in question. It turns out that the federal statute books are actually littered with hundreds of places where a president can declare national emergencies in various contexts, George Washington University law professor Paul Schiff Berman said, who added that some statutes do allow a president to move around money within the federal budget to address the emergency. FILE - Children observe the movements of the US Bo FILE - Children observe the movements of the U.S. Border Patrol agents from the Mexican side where the border meets the Pacific Ocean, in Tijuana, Mexico, Nov. 16, 2018. FILE - Children observe the movements of the U.S. Border Patrol agents from the Mexican side where the border meets the Pacific Ocean, in Tijuana, Mexico, Nov. 16, 2018. The catch But there is a catch: the very concept of an emergency as a sudden and dire situation. All of these statutes were written it appears with the idea that every once in a long while, there would be a true crisiscould be a natural disaster, could be a foreign invasion, something like thatwhere the need to act quickly was so important that the president would need these national emergency powers because there just wouldn't be enough time for Congress to convene, Berman said. None of those [envisioned situations] would apply in a case like building a wall which is going to take many, many years, if it ever happens at all. A national emergency declaration from Trump would almost certainly trigger swift lawsuits as well as congressional action to overturn it. There is, within the law, the ability of Congress to stop a national emergency, political analyst John Hudak of the Washington-based Brookings Institution said. It requires both houses of Congress to vote to say that the national emergency is over. Now Democrats can certainly do that alone in the House. They cannot, however, do it alone in the Senate; it would require several Republican votes. Serious constitutional question Already, some Republicans have expressed unease about Trump suggesting he might act on his own. The whole idea that presidents -- whether it's President Trump, [hypothetically] President [Elizabeth] Warren or [hypothetically] President [Bernie] Sanders - can declare an emergency and somehow usurp the separation of powers and get into the business of appropriating money for specific projects without Congress being involved, is a serious constitutional question, Texas Republican Sen. John Cornyn told reporters last week. Lauren Rees holds up a sign during a rally against FILE - A protester holds up a sign during a rally against a scheduled visit by President Donald Trump, in San Diego, California, March 13, 2018. FILE - A protester holds up a sign during a rally against a scheduled visit by President Donald Trump, in San Diego, California, March 13, 2018. By contrast, Florida Republican Senator Rick Scott warmed to the prospect. [House Speaker] Nancy Pelosi said there is not going to be funding for a wall. I think the president ought to use his emergency power to try to secure the border and, if hes going to do that, I think he ought to look at trying to get a permanent fix to DACA [protections for undocumented immigrants brought to America as children] and TPS [protected status for refugees and others fleeing hardship]. Democrats, meanwhile, are united in opposition. Declaring a national emergency, particularly when there is no national emergency, would be a significant mistake. It is clear that a growing number of Republicans share that view, and I hope the president doesnt go that route, Oregon Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden told VOA. Trump appeared undeterred, tweeting on Saturday, The Wall will get built one way or the other! Urgency questioned The president has argued that Americas safety is imperiled as a result of illegal narcotics and migrants entering the United States. Some observers note that Americas border security deficiencies are hardly new or sudden. I think a lot of Americans look at this skeptically and say, What has changed between the beginning of the presidents term and now that makes this such a dire emergency? Hudak said. Some see grave potential risks if Trump goes forward with an emergency declaration. [I]f it is misused, it essentially becomes like a president declaring martial law and taking over the powers of Congress. Its the sort of thing that we would look at another country doing and say that's a big problem, Berman said. Nevertheless, the president faces intense pressure to deliver on his border wall promise, according to Brookings Institution political analyst William Galston, who says, politically, Trump is in a box. The president has used the issue of the wall to cement the bond between himself and his core supporters and he would probably incur significant political damage if he were seen by them to be standing down, surrendering, or accepting a compromise that they don't think he should, Galston said. SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA - Officials signed a short-term agreement Sunday to boost South Koreas contribution toward the upkeep of U.S. troops on the peninsula, after a previous deal lapsed amid U.S. President Donald Trumps call for the South to pay more. The new deal must still be approved by South Koreas parliament, but it would boost its contribution to 1.03 trillion won ($890 million) from 960 billion won in 2018. Unlike past agreements, which lasted for five years, this one is scheduled to expire in a year, potentially forcing both sides back to the bargaining table within months. It has been a very long process, but ultimately a very successful process, South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha told reporters before another official from the foreign ministry initialed the agreement. South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and T South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and Timothy Betts, acting Deputy Assistant Secretary and Senior Adviser for Security Negotiations and Agreements in the U.S. Department of State, shake hands before their meeting at Foreign Ministry in Seoul, S South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and Timothy Betts, acting Deputy Assistant Secretary and Senior Adviser for Security Negotiations and Agreements in the U.S. Department of State, shake hands before their meeting at Foreign Ministry in Seoul, S ?Domestic criticism While acknowledging lingering domestic criticism of the new deal and the need for parliamentary approval, Kang said the response had been positive so far. U.S. State Department senior adviser for security negotiations and agreements, Timothy Betts, met Kang before signing the agreement on behalf of the United States, and told reporters the money represented a small but important part of South Koreas support for the alliance. The United States government realizes that South Korea does a lot for our alliance and for peace and stability in this region, he said. "We reached agreement through close consultation and fair negotiations. The U.S. commitment to the ROKs security and its people is ironclad." DAS Timothy Betts visited Seoul and initialed a preliminary deal on sharing defense costs for this year with South Korea. #SMA pic.twitter.com/2LpauNqSHn U.S. Embassy Seoul (@USEmbassySeoul) February 10, 2019 In this file photo taken on June 29, 2018, US sold US soldiers salute during a grand opening ceremony, June 29, 2018, of the new headquarters building for the United Nations Command and US Forces Korea at Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek. US soldiers salute during a grand opening ceremony, June 29, 2018, of the new headquarters building for the United Nations Command and US Forces Korea at Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek. ?28,500 US troops About 28,500 U.S. troops are stationed in South Korea, where the United States has maintained a military presence since the 1950-53 Korean War. The allies had struggled to reach a breakthrough despite 10 rounds of talks since March, amid Trumps repeated calls for a sharp increase in South Koreas contribution. South Korean officials have said they had sought to limit its burden to $1 trillion won and make the accord valid for at least three years. A senior South Korean ruling party legislator said last month that negotiations were deadlocked after the United States made a sudden, unacceptable demand that Seoul pay more than 1.4 trillion won per year. But both sides worked to reach a deal to minimize the impact of the lapse on South Korean workers on U.S. military bases, and focus on nuclear talks ahead of a second U.S.-North Korea summit, Seoul officials said. The disagreement had raised the prospect that Trump could decide to withdraw at least some troops from South Korea, as he has in other countries like Syria. But on Sunday, South Korean officials told Yonhap news agency that the United States had affirmed it would not be changing its troop presence. Trump said in his annual State of the Union address to Congress he would meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Feb. 27-28 in Vietnam, following their unprecedented meeting in June in Singapore. Military exercises suspended After the June summit, Trump announced a halt to joint military exercises with South Korea, saying they were expensive and paid for mostly by the United States. Major joint exercises have been suspended, but some small-scale drills have continued, earning rebukes from North Koreas state media in recent months. About 70 percent of South Koreas contribution covers the salaries of some 8,700 South Korean employees who provide administrative, technical and other services for the U.S. military. Late last year, the U.S. military warned Korean workers on its bases they might be put on leave from mid-April if no deal was agreed. GENEVA - The U.N. refugee agency says it is worried by reports of people fleeing escalating violence in Myanmar's southern Chin State and Rakhine State, adding to growing instability in these regions. The U.N. refugee agency says it cannot assess the scale of the current humanitarian situation in these volatile areas because it has little access to these and other regions in Myanmar. But the UNHCR says reports it has received of the deteriorating security situation in southern Chin State and Rakhine State are very worrying. It says it does not know how many people have fled their homes and have become internally displaced since violence flared up there in December. Additionally, in Rakhine State, UNHCR spokesman Andrej Mahecic said a number of Rohingya Muslims have fled to Bangladesh in search of asylum. "We understand from some of the reports that some 200 people have sought shelter, have sought safety. This is reportedly in a very remote area where we do not really have access," he said. More than 720,000 Rohingya refugees have fled to Bangladesh since August 2017 to escape persecution and violence in Myanmar. Because of previous refugee crises in Myanmar, Bangladesh currently is home to nearly one million Rohingya refugees. The UNHCR praises the country's generosity and appeals to the authorities to continue to allow people fleeing violence in Myanmar to seek safety in Bangladesh. Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, is a predominantly Buddhist country. It has a long history of tension with its ethnic minorities, much of it based on religion. Southern Chin State is the only State in Myanmar with a Christian majority. It also is the poorest and least developed region in the country. The large Rohingya Muslim population in Rakhine State continues to suffer discrimination and repression from the majority Buddhist community. Though they have lived in Myanmar for generations, the Rohingya are denied citizenship and remain stateless. GENEVA - A joint study by the International Labor Organization and U.N. Childrens Fund finds the vast majority of the worlds children lack effective social protection coverage. It says this dooms them to a life of extreme poverty, with negative implications for society. The study finds only one third of children between zero and 14 years of age have any social protection. That means two-thirds, or 1.3 billion children live without a social safety net. International Labor Organization Social Protection Department Director Isabel Ortiz says just slightly more than one percent of GDP is allocated to social protection for children. She says this huge under-investment gap needs to be covered. And, of course, the numbers worsen as we go by region. In Africa, for instance, children represent 40 percent of the African population overall. However, only 0.6 percent is actually invested in social protection for children, she said. The report finds children fare best in Europe and Central Asia where 87 percent have social protection coverage, followed by children in the Americas with 66 percent. Asia and Africa have the worst records. The report says no data is available on the Arab States. The report highlights the impact extreme poverty has upon the lives of children and the societies in which they live. Chief of the U.N. Childrens Fund Child Poverty and Social Protection Unit, David Stewart, says 385 million children are living on under $1.90 a day. I think one of the most striking statistics, which emerges is that children are two times as likely to be living in poverty as adults," he said. "Now, for children it is particularly concerning because poverty can have a lifetime implication for children. You do not have a second chance at nutrition, at health care, and education. Stewart says this has negative implications for children, and for societies and economies as well. The ILO and UNICEF recommend the rapid expansion of social protection for children including the consideration of universal cash grants to children. Authors of the report say evidence clearly shows cash transfers play a vital role in breaking the vicious cycle of poverty and vulnerability. Another candidate has entered the crowded Democratic 2020 presidential sweepstakes. Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar formally announced her candidacy Sunday at a freezing and snowy rally in Minneapolis. "I don't have a political machine. I don't come from money. But what I do have is this: grit," Klobuchar said, seemingly proving it by speaking for nearly a half hour in a snowstorm with the temperature at minus 9 degrees Celsius. While she did not mention President Donald Trump by name, she said the country is tired of what she called foreign policy by tweet" and said Americans are "worn down by the petty and vicious nature of our politics. We are all tired of the shutdowns and the showdowns, the gridlock, and grandstanding." A young person holds a sign as Democratic Sen. Amy A young person holds a sign as Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota announces she is entering the race for president during a rally, Feb. 10, 2019, at Boom Island Park in Minneapolis, Minnesota. A young person holds a sign as Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota announces she is entering the race for president during a rally, Feb. 10, 2019, at Boom Island Park in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Klobuchar is a three-term senator known for her generally centrist demeanor and ability to negotiate with opposition Republicans. She said she hopes a successful presidential campaign would bring Midwestern states that Trump won in 2016 back into the Democrats' column in 2020. Who Is Amy Klobuchar? The latest Democratic candidate to enter the presidential race, Amy Klobuchar, is a third-term senator who overwhelming won re-election last year in her home state of Minnesota. Klobuchar, 58, is known for putting partisanship aside to pass legislation, a fact that has earned her a large following in Minnesota. The latest Democratic candidate to enter the presidential race, Amy Klobuchar, is a third-term senator who overwhelming won re-election last year in her home state of Minnesota. Klobuchar, 58, is known for putting partisanship aside to pass legislation, a fact that has earned her a large following in Minnesota. Klobuchar is entering a very crowded race for the Democratic nomination. According to a count by The New York Times, 11 candidates have so far announced that they are running. The newspaper says former Colorado governor John Hickenlooper is almost certain to declare his candidacy, and three others - former vice president Joe Biden, Montana Governor Steve Bullock, and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders - are listed as likely to run. TEHRAN - The victory of the Islamic Revolution in Iran was an earthquake that upended the political order in the Middle East, and the aftershocks are still being felt 40 years later. When Shi'ite cleric Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini ousted the shah's last government in February 1979 it was a moment that for many was completely "unthinkable, unexpected", said Clement Therme, a researcher on Iran at the International Institute for Strategic Studies. "The victory was an immense surprise for the Middle East and the world," Therme told AFP. Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi had been a seen as a pillar of stability and bulwark of U.S. influence in a region where Cold War tensions were playing out with the Soviet Union. But the tumult of the revolution soon ended that spectacularly. "One of the founding events for the foreign policy of the new regime was the taking hostage of American diplomats," said Therme. The saga at the U.S. embassy in Tehran ran for 444 days from November 1979 and ruptured ties between Washington and its one-time regional ally. And events in Iran did not just reverberate on the global stage: across the region it fired up political Islam that represented a major threat to monarchies and ruling elites. "For Sunni Islamist movements and for the Shiite minorities in the region", the message of the Iranian Revolution was "a source of inspiration", Therme said. According to the official narrative of the Islamic Republic, the revolution did not stop in 1979 with the overthrow of the monarchy but remains a process that is still going on. "The Islamic Revolution has three levels in the view of the Imam (Khomeini); one is Iran, the other is the Islamic world and the last one is the world of the oppressed," said Abdullah Ganji, editor-in-chief of ultra-conservative Javan daily. War and isolation "We did not have any plans at the beginning for the Islamic Revolution to go beyond Iran's borders," Ganji told AFP, drawing a distinction with Soviet military interventions abroad. But he said the changes in Iran inspired a string of startling events in the Middle East: attacks against U.S. embassies, protests by Shi'ites in Saudi Arabia and the assassination of Egyptian president Anwar Sadat in 1981. The convulsions rattled rulers around the region and fears of Tehran were "among the reasons that led to the invasion of Iran by Iraq" in September 1980, said Therme. The bloody conflict with Saddam Hussein's forces ended in 1988 after hundreds of thousands of lives had been lost. While it strengthened Islamic rule at home in Iran, it left the country cut off from most of the rest of the world. Except for some key allies: most notably Syria and the Shi'ite movement Hezbollah that arose after Israel's invasion in 1982. "There was a division in the Arab world between supporters and opponents of the 'axis of resistance' promoted by the Islamic Republic," said Therme. People hold a banner and wave former Iranian flags People hold a banner and wave former Iranian flags during a demonstration of the exiled Iranian opposition to protest against the celebration in Iran of the 40th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution, Feb. 8, 2019 in Paris, France. People hold a banner and wave former Iranian flags during a demonstration of the exiled Iranian opposition to protest against the celebration in Iran of the 40th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution, Feb. 8, 2019 in Paris, France. 'New strategy' Ganji said that after the war with Iraq, Tehran developed a "new strategy" aimed at confronting U.S. influence around the region. "The strategy of the Islamic Republic over the last 30 years has been preventing America from having a foothold in the Middle East," he said. From Syria to Yemen to Lebanon, the standoff between Washington and its allies and Tehran continues to shape events. The U.S., Israel and Saudi Arabia see Iran's hand pulling the strings in a raft of hotspots. Tehran has helped prop up Syria's President Bashar al-Assad during nearly eight years of civil war, is accused of aiding Shi'ite Huthi rebels in Yemen and maintains Hezbollah as a major threat against Israel. But Iranian officials insist the U.S. is really responsible for the conflicts and that allegations of regional meddling are used as an excuse to target the Islamic Revolution. Last year, the U.S. pulled out of a landmark 2015 accord on Tehran's nuclear program and reimposed sanctions, citing in part Iran's role in regional conflicts. Conservative Iranian politician and analyst Amir Mohebbian said the West's "massive arms sales" to Arab monarchies in the Gulf are justified because "Iran remains a danger" to U.S. designs in the Middle East. Analyst Therme said that "militant anti-Zionism" has been one of the constants of Iranian foreign policy since Khomeini transformed the country. But now the current geopolitical aims of Tehran seem focused mainly on one goal, he said: "First and foremost to ensure that (the Islamic Republic) endures." BEIRUT - Iran's foreign minister says his country is ready to cooperate with the new Lebanese government, offering support in all sectors. Mohammad Javad Zarif spoke to reporters Sunday at Beirut's airport shortly after his arrival in the Lebanese capital. The two-day visit comes days after the leader of the Iran-backed Hezbollah group urged Lebanon's government to accept anti-aircraft weapons from Iran, as well as electricity and medicine. Lebanon formed a new government last week after a nine-month vacuum that exacerbated the country's economic woes. Hezbollah has three ministers in the new government. Zarif congratulated Lebanese politicians and said Iran is ready to support the government in any way possible. He is scheduled to meet with the Lebanese president, prime minister and foreign minister during his visit. WASHINGTON - When French fighter jets bombarded 40 pickup trucks of suspected insurgents last week in Chad, the former colonial power signaled an unprecedented willingness to engage openly in joint military operations in Northern Africa. Backing Chad's Deby, French Warplanes Stop Rebel Advance from Libya French warplanes struck a rebel convoy in northern Chad on Sunday, helping local troops repel an incursion across the border from Libya, a sign France's support for President Idriss Deby goes beyond fighting Islamist militants. Mirage jets struck a column of 40 pickups carrying armed groups from Libya deep into Chadian territory, the French army said in a statement. "This intervention at the request of Chadian authorities helped hinder this hostile advance and disperse the column," it said. The French warplanes struck a rebel convoy in northern Chad on Sunday, helping local troops repel an incursion across the border from Libya, a sign France's support for President Idriss Deby goes beyond fighting Islamist militants. Mirage jets struck a column of 40 pickups carrying armed groups from Libya deep into Chadian territory, the French army said in a statement. "This intervention at the request of Chadian authorities helped hinder this hostile advance and disperse the column," it said. The But observers, including Chadian opposition leaders, are questioning whether the airstrikes were intended to fight terrorism or prop up President Idriss Deby, who has led Chad for nearly 30 years. The French launched the airstrikes themselves, and they did not even try to make it seem as if they were not interfering with Chadian politics, said Marielle Debos, an associate professor at Paris Nanterre University. Debos, who has researched the country for more than a decade, told VOA in the past the French armys support has been more discreet. On February 3, French jets attacked a convoy of heavily armed pickup trucks that had entered Chad from neighboring Libya. The strikes lasted four days. Chad-Libya border map France said it had responded to a request for assistance from the Chadian government, calling the country an essential partner in the fight against terrorism. Chadian officials said the attacks were legal and necessary to prevent terrorist activity. Both the French and the Chadian governments were portraying this as a decision that they undertook together, said Alex Thurston, an assistant professor in political science and comparative religion at Miami University, in Oxford, Ohio. Joint operation The planes flew from NDjamena, Chads capital, where France headquarters its 4,500-person anti-terror mission, Operation Barkhane. There are agreements between states. Operation Barkhane covers a number of countries, and their role is precisely to fight terrorism, said Mahamat Zen Bada, the secretary general of Chads ruling party, the Patriotic Salvation Movement, or MPS. If a column [of fighters] enters Chad, and that column is not a column of the Chadian army, it is normal for people to intervene, VOAs French-to-Africa Service reported Bada as saying. But others are questioning why France would attack a rebel group on behalf of Chad, an ally with a spotty record on human rights and democracy. The opposition party denounced the airstrike. We condemn the intervention of France in the internal affairs of Chad, said Celestin Topona, the first vice president of the National Union for Development and Renewal. We want a truly inclusive dialogue to know why, 30 years after the MPS took power, the instability continues, Topona added. Historical ties France has intervened on behalf of Deby before. FILE - Chads President Idriss Deby shakes hands with Frances Minister of Army Forces Florence Parly before their meeting at the Presidential Palace in NDjamena, Chad, July 31, 2017. In 2006 and 2008, when rebels based in Sudan advanced to the capital, France helped the Chadian Army repel the attacks with logistics and intelligence support. Its possible highly possible that without French support that he wouldve been overthrown at the time, Thurston said. I think the French government sees a strong interest in keeping him in power. FILE - A soldier of Frances Barkhane mission holds a weapon as he patrols in central Mali, in the border zone with Burkina Faso and Niger, Nov. 01, 2017. Although Barkhane has been operational since 2014, France established another military operation in Chad, Epervier, in 1986, under former President Hissene Habre. At the time, France was backing Habre, before Deby and his supporters removed him from power. What is striking in this history is the fact that the French, for the most part, never left Chad, Debos said. There has been a succession of military interventions in Chad, and Barkhane is the latest of this military intervention. French interests After years of instability, Chad has gained a newfound stature as an important regional player, especially in joint security operations. Chad has long been considered as a very unstable and conflict-ridden country, but for the past eight years, it has acquired a new regional and global status, Debos said. It is now considered as a regional power. Thats raised the stakes for France. The French tend to point to issues of border security and stability and so forth and to say that the Chadian regime should not be overthrown by rebels and that its a key partner for them, Thurston said. This does raise questions about what is the French governments understanding of so-called counterterrorism in the region, and what are the French interests in Chad, he added. Andre Kodmadjingar of VOAs French-to-Africa Service contributed to this report from NDjamena. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 10) The Department of Agriculture (DA) has placed a temporary ban on the importation of pork and pork-based products from Japan, as swine fever spreads in the East Asian country. In a statement Sunday, DA Secretary Manny Pinol said he had issued a verbal directive to the Bureau of Animal Industry to "immediately impose" the ban, following reports about the spread of the swine fever in Japan. "A written formal directive will be issued shortly on the imposition of the Temporary Ban against the entry of pork and pork products from Japan which will be in effect while our Quarantine Officials are validating the reports with the OIE or the World Animal Health Organisation," the secretary said. Pinol added that quarantine officers in entry ports across the Philippines are also directed to immediately impose the ban and review quarantine protocols, including foot baths and the monitoring of meat products brought by tourists. News reports say the epidemic is affecting several prefectures in Japan, with over 100 wild boars testing positive for the virus and some 15,000 pigs expected to be culled. The BIA in January also banned the entry of pork and pork-based products from countries affected by African swine fever such as China, Hungary, Belgium, Latvia, Poland, Romania, Russia, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Moldova, South Africa, and Zambia. In 2007, classical swine fever spread in Pampanga and Bulacan, affecting about 4,000 pigs. Though the fever poses no direct and immediate danger to human health, its spread may threaten the hog industry, with major potential impact on supplies and prices. The disease, which has no vaccine or cure, was first detected in Asia in 2018 in an area in Siberia, according to the UN. MARSHALLTOWN, IOWA - U.S. Senator Cory Booker made the nation's complicated history with race relations and racial disparities a focal point at events in the key state of Iowa during his first 2020 presidential campaign swing over the weekend. Booker, 49, a former Democratic mayor of Newark, New Jersey, frequently discussed incarceration and employment disparities, while also telling his parents' story of trying to buy a house in an unintegrated New Jersey suburb in the late 1960s with the help of a volunteer civil rights lawyer. Booker's focus was an overture to the coalition of young, diverse voters that twice elected former Democratic President Barack Obama, while also differentiating his style from that of the first black U.S. president, who rarely discussed race during his campaign. Booker's emphasis on his personal and mayoral past, as well as his work as a senator on criminal justice issues, may also set him apart in a crowded field of Democratic candidates aiming to take on Republican President Donald Trump in what could be an historic election. In White House Bid, Harris Plans Tour of Early-Voting States In the first full month of her presidential campaign, Democratic Sen. Kamala Harris is planning a tour of the nation's four early-voting states. Harris' schedule announced Tuesday includes two days each in South Carolina, New Hampshire, Iowa and Nevada, states where support will be key to building momentum in a crowded 2020 Democratic field. The first-term senator from California will make her first visit to New Hampshire and then her first stop in Nevada since she officially declared her candidacy In the first full month of her presidential campaign, Democratic Sen. Kamala Harris is planning a tour of the nation's four early-voting states. Harris' schedule announced Tuesday includes two days each in South Carolina, New Hampshire, Iowa and Nevada, states where support will be key to building momentum in a crowded 2020 Democratic field. The first-term senator from California will make her first visit to New Hampshire and then her first stop in Nevada since she officially declared her candidacy There are already four Democratic candidates vying to be the country's first woman president, including U.S. Senator Kamala Harris, a former top prosecutor in the city of San Francisco and the state of California, who would also be the first black woman. "Right here in Iowa, people meeting in barns white folk and black folk built the greatest infrastructure project this country has ever seen: the Underground Railroad," Booker told a packed crowd at a brewery in Marshalltown, Iowa, on Saturday, referring to a network of safe houses used to assist black Americans fleeing slavery states to free states ahead of and during the U.S. civil war in the 1860s. In Iowa, which hosts the first presidential party-nominating contest, African Americans make up just 3.8 percent of the population, according to government statistics. But black voters are a crucial Democratic bloc in states like South Carolina, which also hosts an early nominating contest. Booker's trip to Iowa occurred as prominent Democratic officials in Virginia faced calls to resign due to past racist photos and sexual assault allegations. Booker is set to campaign in South Carolina on Sunday. At a roundtable in Waterloo, Iowa, on Friday, two-thirds of the panelists Booker's campaign assembled were African-American community leaders. A subsequent forum at the African American Museum of Iowa in Cedar Rapids included Iowa City Council member Mazahir Salih, a Sudanese refugee. Diane Lemker, 64, attended the Marshalltown brewery event and plans to participate in next year's Democratic nominating caucuses for the first time. She liked Bookeras message of unity and inclusivity. "Obama won the caucus in Iowa in 2008 and that's what set him off people couldn't believe that a primarily white state would launch his candidacy and it did," Lemker told Reuters. Andrew Turner, an up-and-coming Democratic activist and strategist in Iowa who managed successful Des Moines City Council and state auditor races, said he thought Booker hit the right notes on his first trip to the state. "He really got the rising leaders in the party," Turner said of Booker's campaign roundtables. "They crushed this." ADDIS ABABA - Rwandan President Paul Kagame, who led an active, reformist tenure as African Union chair, on Sunday passes the baton to Egypt, seen as more likely to focus on security issues than expanding the powers of the body. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi will officially take over the post of ceremonial head of the AU which rotates between the five regions of the continent at the start of the two-day summit in Addis Ababa. The meeting got underway after a ceremony inaugurating a commemorative statue of the late Ethiopian emperor Haileselassie I at the AU headquarters, in honor of his role in the formation of the continental body. While multiple crises on the continent will be on the agenda of heads of state from the 55 member nations, the summit will also focus on institutional reforms, and the establishment of a continent-wide free trade zone. The Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA) was agreed by 44 nations in March 2018, but only 19 countries have ratified the agreement, with 22 needed for it to come into effect. The single market is a flagship of the AU's "Agenda 2063" program, conceived as a strategic framework for socioeconomic transformation. Cairo is backing the initiative, but analysts say it will be less likely to focus on the financial and administrative reforms pushed by Kagame. Sisi is however expected to focus more on security, peacekeeping and post-war reconstruction, issues closely tied to the AU's 2019 theme of "Refugees, Returnees and Internally Displaced Persons". "Egypt has an interest in Africa, they want to strengthen their position on the African continent and they don't want to be seen as a country only focused on the Arab world," said Liesl Louw-Vaudran, an analyst at the Institute for Security Studies. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Saturday that peaceful elections in DR Congo, Mali and Madagascar, as well as peace deals in South Sudan and Central African Republic and the truce between Ethiopia and Eritrea, were signs of a "wind of hope" on the continent. Resisting AU power Kagame, who has been leading institutional reforms since 2016, pushed for a continent-wide import tax to fund the AU and reduce its dependence on external donors, who still pay for more than half the institution's annual budget. But member states have resisted this along with reform of the AU Commission, its executive organ. In November 2018, most states rejected a proposal to give the head of the AU Commission the power to name deputies and commissioners. Like other regional heavyweights Nigeria and South Africa, Egypt is not keen on a powerful AU, an African diplomat told AFP. This is especially because Cairo has "never forgotten" its suspension in 2013 after Egypt's army deposed Islamist president Mohamed Morsi, who in 2012 became the country's first democratically elected president, the diplomat said. "Traditionally, leaders of big powers have not really helped the position of AU chairperson, as they don't want an AU which is too strong or too intrusive," said Elissa Jobson of the International Crisis Group. "The AU and the AU commission are only as strong as its members want them to be. Unlike the EU, African countries have not transferred some of their sovereignty to the AU." Kagame suffered a crushing blow from the AU after expressing "serious doubts" about the results of the Democratic Republic of Congo's recent presidential election, which was officially won by Felix Tshisekedi. While also disputed by the Catholic church, the results were validated by DRC's constitutional court and saluted by continental heavyweights South Africa, Kenya and Egypt. "This whole thing was an embarrassment for the AU, it showed the limitations of what the AU chairperson can do," said Jobson. Amnesty International expressed fears that Egypt's chairmanship could undermine human rights mechanisms in the AU. "During his time in power President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi has demonstrated a shocking contempt for human rights. Under his leadership the country has undergone a catastrophic decline in rights and freedoms," said Najia Bounaim, Amnesty's North Africa Campaigns Director. Click here to log in and see all of our other subscription options for the Mesabi Tribune, including online only & auto-renewal subscriptions. Trump says 2nd US-N.K. summit to be held in Hanoi Trump confirmed this in a Twitter message. His message came after Stephen Biegun, the US Special Representative for North Korea, held pre-summit talks with his North Korean counterpart Kim Hyok-chol in Pyongyang from Wednesday to Friday. "My representatives have just left North Korea after a very productive meeting and an agreed upon time and date for the second Summit with Kim Jong Un," Trump wrote on Twitter. "It will take place in Hanoi, Vietnam, on February 27 & 28. I look forward to seeing Chairman Kim & advancing the cause of peace!" Trump announced on Tuesday that his second meeting with Kim would be held in Viet Nam but didnt reveal the host city. There were reports that the United States favoured a Nang, while North Korea wanted the summit to be held in Ha Noi. While the first US-North Korea summit in Singapore last year was somewhat symbolic in that it merely laid the foundation for headway to be made, many believe that the second summit should produce more tangible results. Screenshot Photo Washington has been pressuring Pyongyang to take concrete, substantive steps for its nuclear disarmament, while North Korea has been demanding the United States corresponding measures for its denuclearisation steps that may include partial sanctions relief. Although nothing has been confirmed as to what the two nations will agree upon at the upcoming summit, Trump hinted that the US. may help North Korea revive its economy if they reach a deal. "North Korea, under the leadership of Kim Jong Un, will become a great Economic Powerhouse," Trump wrote on Twitter. "He may surprise some but he wont surprise me, because I have gotten to know him & fully understand how capable he is. North Korea will become a different kind of Rocket - an Economic one!" YONHAP Nguyen Thi Kim Tien, Minister of Health What are the highlights of the Ministry of Healths (MoH) activities in 2018? The year was a very special one for the healthcare sector, with many breakthrough achievements made, thus contributing to increasing access to healthcare for rural people, increasing the quality of examinations and treatment, developing the public-private partnership (PPP) model, and further facilitating business activities. It was the first year that the MoH implemented Resolution No.20/NQ-TW on strengthening grassroots and primary healthcare towards universal health coverage, and Resolution No.21/NQ-TW on population work in the new period. Universal health coverage reached the rate assigned by the National Assembly. During the year, the sector also began to strongly develop local clinics by creating family medical practices in 26 communes before expanding to all communes nationwide in line with the model being developed in other countries. The sector achieved many scientific achievements. For example, we produced a WHO-standard flu vaccine and a measles-rubella vaccine applying Japanese technology. In terms of examination and treatment, Vietnam made great achievements in laparoscopy surgery, and for the first time, Vietnamese people successfully carried out lung transplants. The quality has also been much improved, with more hospitals winning high satisfaction ratings of over 90 per cent, including Can Tho General Hospital, Quang Ninh General Hospital, Bac Ninh General Hospital, and the National Geriatric Hospital, among others. Remarkably the sector, for the first time, successfully completed a very hard task: connecting drugstores with authorised management agencies, thus enabling them to control their prices, expiry dates, as well as quality and origin of drugs. Also for the first time, price negotiation of drugs at tenders was carried out, thus helping lower costs. It was also the year that the MoH built and submitted a decree on self-control at health clinics. In terms of administrative reforms, the MoH is one of the ministries that rank high, by cutting over 72 per cent of business conditions and 72 per cent of administrative procedures. Notably, many procedures for specialised checks at border gates for food products were removed, with 95 per cent of imported food packages exempted from specialised checks, thus saving over VND3 trillion ($130.43 million) a year for businesses. Regarding the PPP model development, the MoH urged hospitals to enter partnerships with the private sector by forming joint ventures and other forms to be equipped with advanced technologies and new buildings. What shortcomings need to be solved to improve the sectors performance in the time to come? Besides the achievements, there do remain shortcomings that we are trying to improve. The sector has yet to pay due attention to taking care of healthy people, and the programme to fight non-communicable diseases (NCDs) remains limited. At present, 70 per cent of deaths come from chronic NCDs such as heart attacks, cancer, chronic respiratory diseases, and diabetes, along others. Local clinics do not meet quality standards yet due to underdeveloped infrastructure, under-trained staff, and lack of finances, thus failing to win the confidence of locals. There remain gaps in the health index and health access among regions. This is a problem for not only Vietnam but also other countries but of course we are trying to narrow it. Training and improving the capacity of medical workers remain weak, while infrastructure has yet to meet the growing demand. We will continue to take measures to improve the quality of commune- and district-based hospitals. In general, the height and physical strength of Vietnamese people remains low. Thus, we will develop nutritional programmes to improve the situation, and build healthy Vietnamese programmes this year. We plan to launch these to increase health access among people, especially those in remote areas. We also aim to vaccinate the population to prevent diseases, to help rural people regularly check their blood pressure, and to screen liver cancer. A number of multi-national corporations have shown interest in PPP projects in the sector. Is the PPP regulatory framework bankable enough? What projects is the MoH planning to carry out? The country now has a regulatory framework for PPP investment. This includes Decree No.63/2018/ND-CP on PPP and Decree No.151/2017/ND-CP on the management and use of public property. We encourage PPP projects that benefit people and all involved parties, aiming to attract private funding, management capacity, and service supply to increase the sectors quality. Currently, we are working on a circular guiding the development of PPP projects in the sector in line with Decree 63, and we expect to issue it within this year. An outstanding example of public-private co-operation is the establishment of the Health Evaluation and Promotion Centre at Cho Ray Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City in 2018 between the hospital and Japans International University of Health and Welfare. We are considering and appraising procedures for some PPP projects in healthcare infrastructure and medical equipment. We are willing to welcome private investors to join. This year will be a challenging one for the sector with many tasks ahead. What are the priority tasks in 2019 to further increase efficiency and to aid investment attraction? The first priority is to improve local clinics in line with family medical practice, control infectious diseases, and intensify and make changes to the management and control of NCDs. The second is to further increase examination and treatment quality, reduce hospital overloads, and develop green hospitals. The third is to focus on promoting financial self-control at health units, increasing universal health coverage, encouraging private investors in PPP projects, and ensuring the quality, supply, and cost of medicine. The local healthcare sector has become more attractive thanks to improved healthcare quality and low costs. We know that Vietnamese people spend billions of dollars on overseas treatments, but now the trend looks to be changing. And the sector is now winning the confidence of more foreign people. Statistics show that last year, around 300,000 non-Vietnamese had examinations and treatments in the country, with over 50,000 being inpatients. We are trying to reduce the number of Vietnamese people going abroad for examinations and treatments, while attracting more foreigners who work and live in Vietnam. Frank Bochmann, general manager of Sheraton Grand Danang Resort Sheraton Grand Danang Resort proudly hosted the APEC Gala Dinner in 2017. After a year in operation and having served many other large-scale meeting, incentive, conference and exhibition (MICE) events, what have been the highlights so far? The year saw large MICE events and was overall a successful year for the hotel business. For example, the 6th GEF Assembly in June hosted a total of 1,000 international VIP guests and delegates for a sit down-dinner and buffet. Also, corporate MICE event Unicity Korea in October involved 1,000 guests from different South Korean cities using the ballroom, and featuring a gala dinner with a beautiful stage built across the beach, and a runway down our infinity pool. Why is the Sheraton Grand Danang Resort ideal for large-scale MICE events in Danang and Vietnam as a whole? With the largest hotel ballroom in Danang we are a natural choice. Our location, only 20 minutes from the airport, enables Sheraton Grand Danang Resort to provide direct access to Danangs most prestigious beaches, tourist and cultural attractions, and it is in close proximity to UNESCO Heritage landmark towns such as Hoi An and Hue. We are the first Sheraton Grand Resort in Southeast Asia and the newest five-star property in Danang. Our location on the white sandy beach of Non Nuoc encompasses two hotel blocks - 130 rooms with the vice presidential suite in one, and 128 rooms and luxurious presidential suite with private lift and helipad access in the other six distinctive restaurants and bars at the resort provide a rich array of international cuisine, ranging from authentic Vietnamese to Asian favourites. Event planners enjoy the dedicated convention centre spanning over 3,300 square metres, which has some wonderful attributes including very impressive MICE facilities, such as Vietnams largest luxury grand ballroom for large-scale exhibitions and events. There are also many breakout rooms, plus a selection of outdoor venue options, including our stunning beach area and pool lawn. In 2019, what new attractions can guests look forward to at the resort? We will be adding a number of wonderful childrens facilities, such as a dedicated childrens playground, and water castles added to the already-popular kids club and to the infinity pool, which at 250 metres is the longest infinity pool in the country. What makes you so enthusiastic about the resort in particular and Vietnam in general? I think Vietnam is still undiscovered for many tourists and exotic for many seasoned travellers, and on the bucket list of many who have seen most parts of the world. For MICE groups, the Mekong River area of Vietnam and Cambodia is still unexplored. With the right convention services being offered, there is much more that can be achieved. Tet is a very special occasion in Vietnam. What message would you like to convey to readers and potential resort guests at this time? I would like to take the opportunity to wish everyone Chuc Mung Nam Moi and stay safe, travel carefully, and enjoy the time with your family under the peaceful and sunny sky of Danang and beyond. More and more people from around the world are uncovering the sheer amount of different experiences one can have while exploring Vietnam Stretching along the S-shaped strip of land, a harmony of magnificent natural landscapes and ancient architectural structures which have been in being for centuries make up one of the worlds most attractive destinations, Vietnam. In 2018, the country welcomed a record number of more than 15.4 million international visitors, compared to 13 million in 2017. This rise is a testament to the efforts made to promote the countrys tourism industry. This development shows that the nation is gradually making the right strategic moves, continuing to harness and develop modern tourism products, yet retaining its untouched, uniquely beautiful natural landscape. Upon arriving, alongside the opportunity to contemplate some of the natural wonders of the world, visitors can also experience diving into an authentic world of Asia with warm people and exotic food. Experiences that will forever linger in the mind of visitors. Almudena Hernandez and Sara Sanchez Spain Its our first time in Hanoi and Vietnam, we love it because it is so authentic, and its different from other parts of the world. As it is our first day in Vietnam, we havent done much apart from experience a tour around the Old Quarter and we are on our way to visit some pagodas around the city centre. We love to learn about the culture and the local lifestyle. We love Vietnamese food, its so interesting and different for the unique blends. We love to see how local people are living, and we have already been to a local market, its perfect with a lively atmosphere and freshness all around. The streets of Hanoi are also very interesting, we love how small and narrow the alleys are before opening up into a very big temple or the very quiet corners where houses are close to each other that you can hardly see the light. You cannot believe that you are right in the city centre. We love it. We would love to visit the mountainous areas of Vietnam and we are planning a trekking trip to Sapa and Ha Giang. Zachariah Fletcher England This is my second time in Vietnam, this country is really beautiful. I love the food, I love the people, they are accommodating, welcoming, kind, and polite. Vietnamese food is amazing, it is delicious and unique. I like spice and I really like the flavours. My favourite dish is banh mi, its brilliant, inside it has all the Asian flavours that I love. When I came five years ago, I only spent two days here so I didnt have a lot of time to explore. This time, I can spend longer getting to know more about Vietnam. My next destination for this year will be Danang, then Hoi An, Cambodia, Chang Mai, Bangkok, Berlin, and then to Ibiza. Ali Gencer Turkey I am impressed by Vietnamese people as they are really kind, hospitable, and helpful. But I dont really like Vietnamese food because its too different compared to traditional Turkish food. But for me, Vietnam has the best coffee in the world. I have been to Germany, France, Italy, Greece, and Bulgaria, but I couldnt find the same special flavour. In 2019, I am planning to visit Danang and Ho Chi Minh City, and later onto Thailand. Dimitri Telebar Germany This is my first time in Vietnam and we have not seen many things yet. I have just been to Phu Quoc Island and everyone there is Russian, the menu and brochures are all written in Russian. I just went to Hanoi and the streets are crowded with a lot of vehicles, especially scooters. Anyway, it is so nice here. I would really love to go back to Vietnam and see some nice places with mountains and nice views. The place I really want to visit is Halong Bay. Everyone has been telling me about Halong Bay and how beautiful it is, how great the view is, and there are also nice beaches. I would also like to visit Sapa, but maybe not in the winter time because they say it will be foggy and snowy. Oscar Molde Mangmang The Philippines One of my favourite things in Vietnam may be the traditional hats, Im in love with its conical shape and how impressive they are made out of real leaves, which makes it so unique and special. When people wear it, they look so lovely. I also like Vietnamese foods very much, especially when there are thousands of types of green vegetables that I have never tried in other countries. Moreover, I love the people of Vietnam because they are friendly and hospitably, when Im here, I feel like Im home. For me, the perfect holiday is to spend my time laying down on the beach for some relaxation, seeing the sunrise, and sunset. Lee Da Hee South Korea I have been living and working as a research and development manager in Hanoi for four years. I like the lifestyle here as the people are very nice and the food is so tasty. For me, it is enough. This year, I would like to visit the cities of Dalat and Danang because I have heard a lot of people saying that they are very nice places worth visiting. Louie Neil Nociallado The Philippines I cant say what I love more about Vietnam, the stunning natural landscapes or the warm-hearted people. Everywhere I go, I always find them smiling and willing to help me if I need. One more thing that I love here is that you can easily have a tour guide absolutely for free, which is pretty amazing. As I am going to stay in Vietnam for a long while, I would like to spend my time exploring this beautiful country. I would like to visit the majestic caves of Quang Binh, Pygmy, and Hang En. Wu Yuelin Taiwan I have visited Hanoi, Cat Ba Island, and Phu Quoc Island. I love the country for its delicious foods, stunning beaches, and islands. The best thing is that it does not cost me a lot to journey in Vietnam. For me, the ideal holiday, besides an interesting destination, would be staying in a nice, pleasant hotel, enjoying facilities. In addition, there should be convenient transportation so it is simple to travel around. If there is one thing Vietnam should do to improve the countrys tourism quality, I would say is to improve the transport system, for example, developing the MRT or updating more modern means of transportation. Yoon Kim, CEO of Schneider Electric Vietnam, Cambodia and Myanmar How is Industry 4.0 changing the way energy is produced, distributed, and consumed in Vietnam? Energy is one of the key enablers for Industry 4.0 in Vietnam and it offers a wide spectrum of opportunities and challenges to both the economy and our company. In the context of Industry 4.0, the demand for energy in Vietnam is increasing significantly, and there will be higher demand for efficient energy management as well. Vietnam has a young population and dynamic economy whose growth, at 7.08 per cent in 2018, is much higher than the global average. However, to catch up with other developed countries around the world to maintain its competitiveness, we believe that energy management would be one of critical factors for Vietnams growth. Infrastructure and energy management will be a great incentive for foreign investors as it promises safety, reliability, efficiency, and sustainability for their projects in the country. I noticed that country is also promoting the concept of smart buildings and smart cities. The smart city concept includes a lot of segments, ranging from commercial and residential buildings, schools, hospitals, hospitalities, data centres, to power generation and water treatment. There are lots of different technologies that varies from building management system, grid management, waste water, waste treatment, energy management and much more. I think everyone agrees that digitalisation will be essential and help Vietnam reach the next stage of becoming one of the key players in the global context. What is the role of Schneider Electric in promoting energy efficiency in Vietnam during the 4.0 era? Are you partnering with domestic businesses in this mission? We are committed to helping Vietnam with its development agenda, particularly as a provider of digital solutions for energy efficiency. In 2018, we continued to develop our digital platform called EcoStruxure, which is our architectural Internet of Things (IoT) technology platform for optimal energy management in buildings, data centres, factories, and power grids. Our platform is open and interoperable with different structures and systems, making it highly competitive in the market. We continuously research and produce international-standard products with an accessible price tag in Vietnam. For example, we are planning to move our entire manufacturing line in Malaysia to Vietnam, which means we will double the production capacity at our Saigon Hi-tech Park (SHTP) factory, which opened in 2017. Most of our premium switches, sockets and home automation products are now manufactured in Vietnam both for the domestic market and exports to global markets. In 2018, we also signed numerous agreements with Vietnamese industry leaders, helping transfer our technology to domestic partners. For example, our partnership with FPT Corporation aims to develop and implement EcoStruxure in Vietnam and our co-operation go global in the software development, with a focus on Artificial Intelligence, analytics and augmented reality. With An Cuong Wood Working JSC, we will provide smart building management solutions for An Cuongs clients. Other manufacturing partners such as A Chau Industrial Technology JSC and Dat Vinh Tien Company will work with us to produce Prisma iPM. Our domestic partners have deep understanding of the Vietnamese market and customers, while we have the modern and integrated technological solutions, resulting in a win-win partnership. Schneider Electric will celebrate its 25th anniversary in Vietnam this year. What are your greatest achievements and contributions to the Vietnamese economy so far? We are very proud of our 25-year journey in Vietnam, as we can say that we have been here since Vietnam first opened its economy to foreign investment. In the past 25 years, we have contributed greatly to Vietnams development agenda, while growing our business here. For example, from 1991 to 1993, we contributed in the very first north-south 500 KV electric line between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. Then, in 1996 we opened Clipsal Factory and between 2011 and 2014 we integrated with Telvent and Invensys. In 2017, as mentioned earlier, we opened our high-technology factory in SHTP. It was also a landmark year as we launched EcoStruxure for the first time in Vietnam. Throughout our journey and in whatever activity we do in Vietnam, Life Is On has always been our motto. We want to ensure that energy is safe, reliable, efficient, and sustainable by providing qualified products and efficient solutions, especially the EcoStruxure platform to enterprises and end-users in Vietnam. At last years Industry 4.0 Summit in Hanoi, we participated in a panel discussion about industrial automation and digitalisation, which we believe is the next step for Vietnams development. This motto is also embedded in our corporate social responsibility (CSR) projects. We support young people around the world with the Go Green in the City competition for sustainable and innovative urban areas. We are pleased to see many outstanding projects from Vietnamese students. Another cross-country programme is Light it Up, which helps unprivileged people in 18 countries improve their livelihood by selling Mobiya lamps. In 2018, Vietnam had the largest number of lamps donated. To us, sustainable growth also means investing in future generations. We have partnered with technical colleges in Vietnam to support the development of young electricians and engineers through vocational training. Following this milestone, what is next for Schneider Electric? How will you continue contributing to Vietnams economic growth? In the future, Schneider Electric will continue to enhance energy efficiency, safety, reliability, and productivity in various business fields. With our flagship technology, EcoStruxure platform, we will keep on offering comprehensive technical solutions and services for smart building management, as well as optimising their application to Vietnamese businesses. We are proud to receive very positive feedback from customers about EcoStruxure platform, and in the years ahead, we will continue to work with domestic customers and partners to improve the use of analytics in the energy management. We would also want to increase our presence in rural and remote areas, as we see that Vietnamese provinces has been growing with lot of potential. Some possible areas of focus for us in the coming years include the building segment, which encompasses hospitality and hospitals. Energy management at data centres is another highly potential segment as tech firms move their data servers into the country. Automation, AI and augmented reality at factories are also part of our development strategy. Last but not least, we will continue to promote our global CSR programmes in Vietnam, especially those that push innovation and sustainability such as the Go Green in the City competition or the Light it Up campaign. We have been in Vietnam for 25 years, and we hope that we will be able to contribute to Vietnam in next quarters of century to come. England midfielder Jadon Sancho shows his frustration. (Photo: AFP/Patrik STOLLARZ) Dortmund could have gone 10 points clear of Bayern Munich, who host Schalke later on Saturday, with victory. Sancho opened the scoring, set up two goals and hit the post as the hosts dazzled over 70 minutes at Signal Iduna Park. However, with the leaders cruising at 3-0 up thanks to goals by Sancho, Mario Goetze and Raphael Guerreiro, Hoffenheim came off the ropes with Algeria forward Ishak Belfodil netting twice. Despite the draw, Dortmund are eight points clear at the top of the table. The result will give Mauricio Pochettino food for thought before his Tottenham team host Dortmund on Wednesday at Wembley in the Champions League, last 16, first leg. In the absence of top-scorer and playmaker Marco Reus, sidelined with a thigh injury, Sancho stepped up with one of his best performances since joining Dortmund from Manchester City in August 2017. The 18-year-old looked to have scored a fortuitous opener when the ball bounced off him and into Hoffenheim's net with 11 minutes gone, but the video assistant referee spotted the ball had hit his upper arm. Undeterred, Sancho scored on 32 minutes, taking a return pass from Lukasz Piszczek and fired home from a tight angle. He helped double Dortmund's lead two minutes before the break when Axel Witsel found him with a long-range pass and although Sancho's shot was parried, Goetze tapped in the rebound. The pair combined for Dortmund's third, Goetze sprinting after Sancho's audacious backheel to square for Guerreiro to make it 3-0 on 67 minutes. However, just after Sancho then hit the post, Hoffenheim fought back, Belfodil tapped home his first goal from a cross by Pavel Kaderabek. The Czech midfielder made it 2-0 with a bullet header eight minutes from time. Belfodil completed the comeback and claimed a point for Hoffenheim when he launched himself at a free-kick and his header beat goalkeper Roman Burki on 87 minutes. Elsewhere, Borussia Moenchengladbach slipped to third after losing 3-0 at home by Hertha Berlin as Salomon Kalou, playmaker Ondrej Duda and Davie Selke scored. In the basement battle, Hanover climbed off the bottom with a 2-0 home win at Nuremberg, who took their place as last in the table, with former Germany striker Nicolai Mueller scoring both goals. Fourth-placed RB Leipzig were held to a goalless draw at home by Eintracht Frankfurt, who are just one place behind them. Mid-table sides Freiburg and Wolfsburg shared a point in an entertaining 3-3 draw as Gian-Luca Waldschmidt equalised for hosts Freiburg two minutes from time as his side came back from 2-1 down. By Eberhard Scheuer and Quy Vo-Reinhard HIT Foundation, Switzerland According to PwC, which focuses on audit and assurance, tax and consulting services, the global connected health market will be worth $61 billion by 2020 with an annual growth rate of 33 per cent. Meanwhile, according to Transparency Market Research, the global digital health market will be worth $536 billion by 2025. In a recent survey in Switzerland, 43 per cent of people would be willing to provide personal data to medical research, either for free or for a reduction of their health insurance premium. Over half of the Internet users are willing to share their health data with their health insurers if they receive incentives such as vouchers or premium reductions. In France, 99 per cent of Internet users would be willing to share their personal information if they received cash rewards in return. However, 79 per cent of German online users want the power to decide who can access their health data. Blockchain in healthcare A majority of decision-makers in healthcare expect the rapid adoption of blockchain-based applications. More than 80 per cent expect widespread blockchain adoption within five years, with research in the precision medicine field leading the way. Healthcare projects applying blockchain technology are proliferating, and they can be categorised into data infrastructure projects and specific applications. Blockchain in the healthcare market is expected to be valued at $5.61 billion by 2025 with a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 63.9 per cent from $176.8 million in 2018. Recently, there is a rising number of projects in the healthcare area that apply permission-based blockchain and execute centralised business models that do not necessarily need a blockchain. Moreover, some claim to put medical data on a blockchain violates the central pillar of data protection laws, which is the right to be forgotten. It is the very nature of a blockchain that it is immutable and persistent. We have to be aware that every transaction is stamped and recorded. Nevertheless, if implemented properly, this can be very useful in medical research. Blockchain-based contracts have the potential to reduce transaction costs dramatically when transactions are triggered once certain prerequisites are fulfilled. Smart contracts can be understood as software agents, which act deterministically and autonomously, within the scope of a given network, according to a predefined rule set. As a unit in Switzerland offering a decentralised marketplace that matches people seeking health information with those who provide it, Health Information Traceability (HIT) Foundation has used blockchain to seek to address three key issues plaguing healthcare. The first is monopolisation of health data leading to siloes and inefficiencies. The second is the lack of incentives for individuals to demand or record, digitise, and update their health data. The final factor is data privacy. HIT offers to put the individual in the centre of care. It is through the individual and the use of blockchain technology that a meaningful exchange of data can take place in a fair, secure, and transparent manner. Thanks to the appliance of blockchain in healthcare, researchers have direct access to potential study participants by searching their metadata that match the inclusion criteria; patient-generated health data on-demand; electronic informed consent; audit trails for the research data. These data cannot be altered or manipulated. Furthermore, insurers and industries get patient-reported outcome data to control the effectiveness of treatments and hence the reimbursement of the treatment. Additionally, all health data that is being generated without individuals knowledge and consent by connected devices is tracked. Therefore, a dramatic reduction of administrative time and costs can be achieved. Privacy can be maintained, which is very important to those whose health data may be of stigmatising nature, such as HIV or mental health issues. Health data tokenisation is the key towards a sustainable future of health, and such strategy and approaches are the key success factors for sustainable development. Applying blockchain in Vietnams healthcare system Vietnam is the next growing healthcare market in the ASEAN bloc due to a large population, rapid urbanisation, and increasing demands for quality healthcare. The average income of the middle-class population in Vietnam increased in recent years, which will lead the growth of the countrys healthcare market. Vietnam may become a research and development, vaccine development, and generic drugs manufacturing hub in the region due to low-cost production and a competitive environment. IT infrastructure development, collaboration with public and private hospitals, aged care services, and demand for private, affordable healthcare services are growing sectors in Vietnam. CAGR is forecasted to increase up to 13.4 per cent by 2020. By 2020, health insurance will cover more than 84 per cent of the population by the government to make it accessible and affordable to everyone. However, the current healthcare system in Vietnam has to deal with a lack of interoperability, incentives, and privacy for the individual. Tremendous amounts of data are generated by medical documentation, regulatory requirements, and patient care. Data, especially health data, has become a new currency of the future. The reality is that very often this data cannot be shared due to a lack of interoperability as it is being stored in one application or in a non-standardised format that cannot be utilised by other applications. In many cases in Vietnam, this still refers to paper, although it is acknowledged that digitally sharing data can save lots of money. Therefore, a decentralised market place without a central database like HIT Foundation is an ideal platform to meet the needs of the Vietnamese healthcare system. It provides the incentives for the citizen to use it and help the Ministry of Health to meet their targets. Each Vietnamese citizen will have an anonymous electronic medical record, and data with real value that they can exchange for healthcare or non-healthcare services. HIT Foundation has invested a five-figure amount in dollars so far, but will invest much larger sums depending on the success of the pilot projects. Since the middle of last year, HIT Foundation has been in partnership with several hospitals and partners in Vietnam. For example, in the tuberculosis programme, HIT Platform is used as an incentive for patients to follow adherence treatment. Reward tokens can be redeemed in medicine, community support, and other healthcare services. At the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases, HIT Foundation aim to incentivise patients to digitalise their health data and the rewarded tokens can be used in the loyalty programme or for priority appointments. As we do in airlines and other industries, it is the right time for the healthcare industry in Vietnam to participate fully in digital transformation and Industry 4.0. Sears Catalog Homes (sold under the Sears Modern Homes name) were catalog and kit houses sold primarily through mail order by Sears, Roebuck and Company, an American retailer. Sears reported that more than 70,000 of these homes were sold in North America between 1908 and 1940. More than 370 different home designs in a wide range of architectural styles and sizes were offered over the programs 33-year history.Sears homes can be found across the continental United States. While sold primarily to East Coast and Midwest states, Sears homes have been located as far south as Florida and as far west as California. Examples have also been found in Alaska. A handful of Sears homes have been identified in Canada.Sears Modern Homes offered the latest technology available to house buyers in the early part of the twentieth century. Central heating, indoor plumbing, and electricity were all new developments in house design that Modern Homes incorporated, although not all of the houses were designed with these conveniences. Primarily shipped via railroad boxcars, these kits included most of the materials needed to build a house. Once delivered, many of these houses were assembled by the new homeowner, relatives, friends and neighbors, in a fashion similar to the traditional barn-raisings of farming families. Other homeowners relied on local carpenters or contractors to assemble the houses. In some cases, Sears provided construction services to assemble the homes. Some builders and companies purchased homes directly from Sears to build as model homes, speculative homes or homes for customers or employees.Sears discontinued its Modern Homes catalog after 1940. A few years later, all sales records were destroyed during a corporate house cleaning. As only a small percentage of these homes were documented when built, finding these houses today often requires detailed research to properly identify them. Because the various kit home companies often copied plan elements or designs from each other, there are a number of catalog and kit models from different manufacturers that look similar or identical to models offered by Sears. Determining which company manufactured a particular catalog and kit home may require additional research to determine the origin of that home. National and regional competitors in the catalog and kit home market included Aladdin, Bennett, Gordon-Van Tine, Harris Brothers, Lewis, Pacific Ready Cut Homes, Sterling and Montgomery Ward (Wardway) Homes. In the months since Las Vegas-area brothel Sheris Ranch introduced Nuru erotic massage to America, the wet and wild offering has become a breakout success. Sheris opened the Nuru specialty room in October, when Nevada legalized the slippery body-on-body massage service, and the Ranch reports that customer interest in Nuru has far exceeded expectations, and is now the brothels most successful sex specialty launch to date. Nuru massage, where a fully nude masseuse glides her body over her clients nude body using seaweed-based, slippery warm Nuru gel for a uniquely stimulating experience, has been popular in Japanese bathhouses for several decades, and is now about to become popular in the US. Were pleased to offer our current and future guests this incredible new service, says Sheris Ranch owner Chuck Lee, a respected former law enforcement official who remodeled the resort into a fantasy playground for men, women and couples looking for pleasure in a safe, clean and comfortable setting.. We went to great lengths to ensure that Sheris provides the authentic Japanese NURU experience. Not only do our courtesans perform the only legal NURU massage in the USA, but they also practice the best, most sensual erotic massages available anywhere. In 2015, the brothels first quarter revenue has surpassed projections by 15% as a direct result of Nuru curiosity, resulting in an enormous traffic boost to Sheris Ranchs website and online reservation service. The brothels madam, Dena, believes that NURUs illicit nature has contributed to its skyrocketing popularity with Las Vegas visitors. Lets face it, Las Vegas tourists are the most sexually adventurous in the world. Our NURU room offers Sin City visitors the opportunity to participate in a sex act that is truly uncommon and perfectly suited for a Vegas-style romp, said Dena. NURU massage is exactly the sexual escapade that many Las Vegas travelers have been searching for. People visiting the Las Vegas area want to have a sexual adventure thats not only naughty and uniquely satisfying, but also safe, discreet, and worry free. Sheris Ranch is a trusted brand offering the hottest erotic encounters in a secure, STD-free environment, Lee said. SHARE NARUS 2019: How and Why to Petition for a Physician Assistant Las Vegas, Nevada (UroToday.com) Dr. Michael Stifelman gave a brief overview of why it is worthwhile to invest in a physician assistant for surgeons engaged in robotic surgical procedures, in any medical center. It is important to approach this as a business plan, as it will: 1. Increase the surgeons productivity 2.The physician assistant will generate their revenue 3. Improve operating theatre efficiency 4. Provide resident teaching 5. Increase patient satisfaction The physician assistant has been shown to increase revenue and increase the relative value units. Some important financial factors associated with physician assistant that must be remembered, include: First, the physician assistant can only bill for a follow-up appointment and not for new patients. If the physician assistant sees patients by himself, then only 80% of the bill is reimbursed and goes to the physician assistant. The physician assistant is a most valued team member and can contribute both in the clinic and in the OR. He/she can do several procedures as well, including cystoscopy, stent removal, complex catheter placement, voiding cystourethrogram, and video urodynamics. It is preferable to bill for a physician assistant for the complex cases, and it is always important to document why a physician assistant was required for the surgical case (for example the complexity of the procedure was beyond the ability of the resident). As opposed to common belief, having a physician assistant constantly, actually enables residency teaching. It maintains consistency, the physician assistant can teach the resident how to dock and perform bedside activities, and to assist appropriately and effectively. Most importantly, it allows the resident to sit at the console and learn, and not be engaged in bedside assisting. The physician assistant can even be in charge of the simulation lab and robotic in servicing. Dr. Stifelman concluded his talk stating that the physician assistant is also a positive factor in patient satisfaction. It provides a safety net, with a quicker return of calls and management of any pre and post-surgical issues. The physician assistant is also able to screen patients, perform pre-charting, and contribute to the continuity of care. In summary, the physician assistant truly increased the surgeon productivity, can generate his/her revenue, improve OR efficiency, provide resident teaching, and improves patient satisfaction. Presented by: Michael Stifelman, MD, Chair of Urology and Director of Robotic Surgery, Hackensack University Medical Center, Professor and Founding Chair of Urology, Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine at Seton Hall University, Hackensack, New Jersey Written By: Hanan Goldberg, MD, Urologic Oncology Fellow (SUO), University of Toronto, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre @GoldbergHanan at 2019 3rd Annual North American Robotic Urology Symposium (NARUS), February 8-9, 2018 - Las Vegas, Nevada, United States The first step is to apply compression The increase of the pneumoperitoneum to 20 mm hg this tremendously helps to reduce venous bleeding It is possible to use a rolled gauze sponge to tamponade or to grasp the arterial stump Have needle drivers ready, and rescue sutures on the table If possible improve the exposure and perform careful suction, as venous bleeding tends to increase with the loss of pneumoperitoneum. Las Vegas, Nevada (UroToday.com) Dr. Rene Sotelo provided some of his knowledge and expertise on vascular injuries during urologic robotic surgeries. These frightening scenarios can occur in any surgery, whether open, laparoscopic, or robotic and in any level of complexity. It is therefore critical not to take any surgery lightly.Words of wisdom were then presented by Dr. Sotelo. These included a discussion with the entire team to promote awareness of the procedural aspects in which complications are more likely to occur. Additionally, it is important to think outside of the abdomen and look for red flags, such as differences in opinions within the team, anxiety, fatigue, stress, and policy violation. It is critical to promote healthy communication in the OR. Lastly, the surgeon should know how to prevent and treat all relevant potential complications, even if he is not the general surgeon.Dr. Sotelo moved on to discuss practical management of intraoperative bleeding:In the next step, it is important to make a quick decision whether robotic/laparoscopic repair is still possible or not. If it is not possible, conversion to open surgery should be done as soon as possible. A hemorrhage tray should always be available at request. It should be comprised of rescue sutures, lapra-Ty and clip appliers, and Hem-O-Lock clips and applier, two needle holders, Klein bulldogs, and Klein applicator, satinsky clamp, surgical, and bolsters.Dr. Sotelo concluded his talk emphasizing how important the preparation for these scenarios are. It is essential to remain calm, take the surgeons ego out of the equation, and call for help when available.Presented by: Rene Sotelo, MD, Professor of Clinical Urology, Keck Institute of Urology, Los Angeles, CaliforniaWritten By: Hanan Goldberg, MD, Urologic Oncology Fellow (SUO), University of Toronto, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre @GoldbergHanan at 2019 3rd Annual North American Robotic Urology Symposium (NARUS), February 8-9, 2018 - Las Vegas, Nevada, United States (@FahadShabbir) MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 10th February, 2019) Sri Lanka is negotiating with Russia the purchase of a new batch of Russian Mi-17 helicopters, which the country will use in UN peacekeeping missions, Sri Lankan Ambassador to Russia Dayan Jayatilleka told Sputnik on Sunday. "There is a commission that discusses the purchase of Mi-17 helicopters," Jayatilleka said, specifying that the country was going to purchase the helicopters for taking part in UN peacekeeping missions. The ambassador recalled that Mi-17s were on the agenda of a Sri Lankan senior defense officials' visit to Moscow in early September 2018. While negotiations are underway, no specific document has been signed yet, and the number of helicopters that Sri Lanka is going to purchase has not been defined, Jayatilleka specified. Sri Lanka has been purchasing Mi-17 helicopters since early 1990s. The Mi-17 medium twin-turbine helicopter is manufactured in a variety of forms, including cargo, passenger, search and rescue, flying hospital and firefighting models. Over 100 countries worldwide have purchased Mi-17 helicopters. (@ChaudhryMAli88) NEW YORK (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 10th February, 2019) Working at the United Nations is an exciting and unpredictable mission, Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Vassily Nebenzia said on the occasion of Diplomats' Day, celebrated on Sunday, adding that he had no regrets about assuming the post. "The work at the United Nations is a microcosm, it is a miniature version of the globe, it is interesting and not boring," Nebenzia told reporters. The envoy noted that he did not regret his decision to assume the important post after the death of late Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Vitaly Churkin, who passed away in 2017. "I did not exactly doubt; I took a pause, which the minister [Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov] kindly provided me with, to reflect. I thought, consulted, came around and said that under different circumstances, I might have thought about that three times, but at that moment I had no right to refuse," the diplomat continued. Nebenzia also noted that Churkin's excellent reputation at the United Nations had helped him when he was assuming the post. Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree appointing Nebenzia as Russia's permanent representative to the United Nations and the UN Security Council on July 27, 2017. (@rukhshanmir) ADDIS ABABA (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 10th February, 2019) DDIS ADDIS ABABA (Pakistan Point news / Sputnik - 10th February, 2019) BADDIS ABABA (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th February, 2019) BADDIS ABABA (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th February, 2019) , February 10 (Sputnik), Sofya Grebenkina - Migrants from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), who had to leave their homeland due to the unrest, should return home from South ADDIS ABABA (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th February, 2019) frica as the situation in their country of origin has improved, Lindiwe Sisulu, the South ADDIS ABABA (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th February, 2019) frican minister of international relations and cooperation, told Sputnik on Sunday "When the environment in [migrants'] countries is settled, for instance there might have been problems in the DRC, the DRC is now peaceful, we will encourage [migrants] to consider going back home. It opens up possibilities for other migrants also to find space," Sisulu said on the sidelines of the African Union's 32nd summit. The Democratic Republic of Congo has been suffering from instability since the mid-1990s, when the country became mired in conflicts. Even though the Second Congo War, or the Great War of Africa, ended in 2003, clashes continued in the eastern areas of the country, where various rebel groups continue to operate. (@ChaudhryMAli88) ADDIS ABABA (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 10th February, 2019) The African Capacity Building Foundation will single out Rwanda, Ethiopia and Mauritius as an example of good leadership in its new report, which will be launched in early March, Emmanuel Nnadozie, the ACBF executive secretary, told Sputnik on Sunday. According to Nnadozie, the report will focus on fostering transformative leadership for achieving Africa's development. "We will talk about some countries where we feel that leadership has demonstrated ... transformative characteristics ... In this report we actually look at case studies of countries and see precisely how people perceive their leadership. Always people give examples of countries like Rwanda, like Mauritius, like Ethiopia ... We think a lot can be learned from that achievement. You can see Ethiopia in a few years has just transformed itself," Nnadozie said on the sidelines of the African Union (AU) Summit, which is currently underway in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa. Nnadozie added that it was "inadequate" leadership that prevented African countries from being able to "design good policies, implement them and achieve results, fight corruption and really move the agenda forward." He specified that the ACBF was planning to launch the report in the first week of March, at the ACBF board of governors meeting in the Cameroonian capital of Yaounde. The ACBF is an AU agency coordinating capacity development programs. Since its establishment in 1991, the foundation has been providing its expertise to facilitate the implementation of national, regional and continental agendas that promote economic growth. (@ChaudhryMAli88) ABU DHABI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 10th Feb, 2019) H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Ruler's Representative in Al Dhafra Region and Chairman of the Emirates Red Crescent, ERC, has directed the ERC to intensify its initiatives, development programmes and projects in Mauritania and Sierra Leone to support the stability of their peoples. He made this statement during a phone call to the head of an ERC delegation that is currently visiting the two countries to discuss the launch of several ERC development projects, which are in line with the directives of the wise leadership to improve the lives of locals in need. Sheikh Hamdan was briefed by Fahad Abdulrahman bin Sultan, Deputy Secretary-General for International Development and Cooperation Affairs at the ERC, on the ERCs efforts to respond to the humanitarian issues affecting the peoples of the two countries, while reviewing the progress of several ongoing development projects in the areas of health, education and clean water. He also stated that the UAEs initiatives will strengthen the development and stability of Africa, and the country is committed to helping Africans face their conditions caused by disasters and crises, by launching appropriate humanitarian and development initiatives. The ERC recently launched several development projects to provide water to five Mauritanian states, funded by a grant from H.H. Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak, Chairwoman of the General Women's Union, President of the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood, Supreme Chairwoman of the Family Development Foundation and Honorary President of the ERC. Sheikha Fatimas projects in Mauritania also include the reconstruction of the homes of poor families and the construction of two schools. In Sierra Leone, several projects are due to be launched that aim to provide water in areas suffering from water scarcity. A track of sessions titled Best Practices From Estonia Europes Digital Leader, held on the first day of the World Government Summit (WGS) 2019, brought together leading experts to discuss Estonias digitalization success journey to become one of the worlds leading e-societies, in a way that showcased the truly global incubator that the summit has become for the exchange of ideas in Dubai DUBAI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 11th Feb, 2019) A track of sessions titled Best Practices From Estonia Europes Digital Leader, held on the first day of the World Government Summit (WGS) 2019, brought together leading experts to discuss Estonias digitalization success journey to become one of the worlds leading e-societies, in a way that showcased the truly global incubator that the summit has become for the exchange of ideas in Dubai. Rene Tammist, Estonian Minister of Entrepreneurship and Information Technology, discussed the countrys need to rebuild its economy and the digitally led approach it has taken. He noted that an integrated government framework based on a close collaboration between the government and the private sector has allowed citizens today access to a realm of government services and information from their smartphones in a country where taxes are paid in less than five minutes, and voting is digital. Tammist said the uniqueness of the Estonian experience is driven by the digital ID, which accelerated processes and increased the readiness of the people to adopt digital services. He added that Estonias experience in this area differs from others in the decentralization of most services and limiting the need to visit government authorities for specific transactions. Tammist also discussed the adoption of blockchain technology across government transactions in a manner that protects the privacy of individuals against third-party threats. Touching upon artificial intelligence, he spoke about Estonias plans to enhance opportunities for future generations and launch a new strategy for artificial intelligence in early 2019. The strategy will focus on the public transport sector and take into account the ethical dimensions of AI and the privacy and rights of individuals. Marek Helm, General Manager of Nortal, introduced Estonias experience in information technology, an industry that is exporting innovations to 128 countries. He said that today, Estonian companies are radically changing the e-services sector of other countries and are supporting governments around the world with projects in electronic statistics, real estate registration, and facilitating business processes. Helm outlined nine criteria for the success of the Estonian digital transformation: data quality, political will, infrastructure, awareness, trust, internet access, laws, change management and government integration. He added that there are many opportunities for countries to follow the example of Estonia, which began its technological revolution only 20 years ago. He thanked the United Arab Emirates for providing experience-sharing platforms, such as the World Government Summit. In his presentation, Siim Sikkut, Chief Information Officer of the Government of Estonia, reiterated the role of Estonias e-residency in enabling entrepreneurs and business innovators to become digital citizens in Estonia without even having to come to the country. He noted that in four years, the e-residency initiative saw the registration of 52,000 digital residents from 167 countries, attracting 6,500 new companies, mainly from Finland, Russia, Ukraine, Germany and the United States. In closing, Sikkut highlighted the opportunity for countries to enhance their economic and development capabilities through adopting Estonias model in line with the rise of digitalization, financial technology and artificial intelligence. The three-day World Government Summit 2019 runs until February 12 at Madinat Jumeirah in Dubai. The landmark event has convened more than 4,000 participants from 140 countries, including heads of state and governments, as well as top-tier representatives of 30 international organizations. Memorial services will be held at Northridge Christian Church in The Link at 2 p.m. June 25, 2021. Lt. Col. Leeder was a native of Connellsville, Pa. and had made his home in Milledgeville for the past 25 years. He was predeceased by his parents, Laird Glenn Leeder Sr. and Hazel Mae Brooks L FINALLY, a fine summer, which we Minnesotans appreciate, having endured winters attempts to depress us, and just when we were about to go into therapy and talk about how emotionally unavailable our dad was, summer came along and here I am on a sunny day with relatives on a porch enjoying a Austin Beutner has been an investment banker, first deputy mayor of Los Angeles, and publisher and chief executive of the Los Angeles Times. But none of those jobs were tougher than the position he is soon leaving after the grueling COVID-19 year: superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified Sc For full access, please log in, register your subscription or subscribe. Try for 99 a month for two months, cancel or pause anytime. Since late August of 2018, German fighter jets have been guarding the skies over the Baltic countries. The German Air Force's Eurofighter jets will perform low-altitude training flights in Estonian airspace next week. Read alsoNATO jets able to confuse Russia's A2/AD systems Stoltenberg The German Eurofighter jets will be flying at an altitude of at least 152 meters and away from populated areas, the military said as reported by the Ukrainian media outlet European Pravda on January 10. Since late August of 2018, German fighter jets that are based at Estonia's Amari air base have been guarding the skies over the Baltic countries. The air forces of the NATO member states, on a rotational basis, have been protecting the airspace of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania since March 29, 2004, when the Baltic countries joined the Alliance, the publication wrote. A second air detachment of the NATO Baltic air policing mission is stationed at the Siauliai air base in Lithuania. The serviceman could be captured by Russia-backed militants, the report said. Ukraine's 128th Separate Mountain Assault Brigade "Zakarpattia Legion" deployed in the zone of the Joint Forces Operation in Donbas has reported one of their men has gone missing in the area of hostilities after he sustained a concussion. Read alsoMember of Ukraine's air assault brigade goes missing in Donbas "Yesterday [February 9], one soldier, probably due to the sustained concussion, lost terrain orientation and left his observation post in the direction of enemy positions," the Brigade's press service said in a statement on Sunday, February 10. The soldier could be captured by Russia-backed militants, the report said. "Zakarpattia Legion remains vigilant and alert. The search for our brother in arms by all means and methods available is under way," the press service added. It is also noted that another serviceman was wounded amid Russian mercenaries' attack on a Ukrainian stronghold. He was taken to a hospital and provided with medical assistance. As UNIAN reported earlier, Officer of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Anatoly Stefan had posted a footage showing Ukrainian troops destroy an infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) of Russian-backed militants at Svitlodarska Duha bulge in Donbas. According to intelligence reports, two invaders were killed and another two were wounded. Russia's hybrid military forces in the past 24 hours mounted 10 attacks on Ukrainian army positions in Donbas, with three Ukrainian soldiers reported as wounded in action (WIA). "On February 9, Russian occupation troops 10 times violated the cease-fire regime, including five times with the use of arms banned by Minsk accords," the press center of Ukraine's Joint Forces Operation (JFO) said in an update on Facebook as of 07:00 Kyiv time on February 10, 2019. Read alsoDay in Donbas: Militants attack Ukraine positions, suffer losses as Joint Forces return fire In particular, Russian-led forces used 120mm mortars to attack JFO positions near the village of Pisky in the Skhid (East) sector. The enemy also opened fire from 82mm mortars near the town of Avdiyivka, from automatic grenade launchers outside the village of Starohnanivka, from tripod-mounted man-portable antitank guns and small arms near the village of Pavlopil, as well as from heavy machine guns and small arms near the village of Chermalyk. Ukrainian positions near the village of Novotoshkivske in the Pivnich (North) sector came under fire (twice) from 120mm and 82mm mortars, cannons of infantry fighting vehicles (BMP-1), automatic grenade launchers, heavy machine guns and small arms. Ukrainian strongholds near the village of Krymske were attacked with the use of 82mm mortars, automatic grenade launchers, and large-caliber machine guns, while those near the village of Travneve came under fire from grenade launchers of various systems and small arms. Joint Forces suppressed enemy fire. According to intelligence reports, two invaders were killed and another two were wounded. Ukrainian military on February 8 also destroyed an armored vehicle of the Russian proxy forces in Donbas. "Since Sunday midnight, Russian mercenaries haven't attacked Ukrainian positions yet," the press center said. As UNIAN reported earlier, Russian occupation forces continue neglecting the norms of international law, using banned weapons, in particular, lasers, against the Ukrainian troops in Donbas, according to the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine. A relevant report on the signs of Russian proxies using banned lasers was provided to international and human rights organizations. Russian occupation forces continue neglecting the norms of international law, using banned weapons, in particular, lasers, against the Ukrainian troops in Donbas, according to the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine. Last night, border guards that are part of Ukraine's Joint Forces, once again recorded signs of the use by Russian mercenaries of laser weapons, according to the agency's press service. From 22:00 Feb 8 to 4:00 today, border guards on duty who monitored the road corridor near the Stanytsia Luhanska checkpoint recorded every 2-3 minutes light purple beams on the side of the temporarily occupied territory. Because of the peculiarities of the terrain where the occupiers are positioned, as well as the risk of applying optical and thermal imaging devices, it was impossible to determine the exact location where the beams were launched," the report says. Read alsoRussian occupation forces in Donbas employ lasers to blind Ukrainian border guards The press service recalled that the border guards had earlier reported similar incidents. In 2016-2018, five servicemen of the Kramatorsk border detachment, who were monitoring the enemy activity using optical devices, suffered eye damage. Information about the possible use of prohibited special-purpose laser weapons by the Russian occupation forces has been submitted to international and human rights organizations, the State Border Guard Service added. Metropolitan Vissarion is distributing leaflets of provocative content. The Zhytomyr Diocese of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU) says Metropolitan Vissarion of Ovruch and Korosten, Hierarch of the Russian Church in Ukraine, is putting pressure on priests who joined the newly created OCU since the unification council and the creation of the local OCU, independent from Russia's Orthodox Church. Read alsoOver 200 parishes of former UOC-MP join new Orthodox Church of Ukraine MP In particular, Vissarion is sending SMS messages to the clergy with threats and calls for repentance. "Metropolitan Vissarion is also warning that Russian priests and people who 'can help repent' will arrive in the [religious] communities that have left his diocese. The Ovruch diocese [in Zhytomyr region] of the Russian Church also campaigns in the parishes, distributing leaflets of provocative content, and calling for repentance of all who have joined the Orthodox Church of Ukraine," the Zhytomyr Diocese of the OCU said on its website on February 10. It is noted that such actions have already affected the religious communities in the villages of Hranitne, Maklayivka, and Fedorivka in Zhytomyr region's Malyn district, as well as other areas of the region. "The Zhytomyr Diocese of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine states that all transitions of parishes and clergymen [of the former Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) to the new church] are taking place in line with the current legislation of Ukraine and the canons of the Orthodox Church. Therefore, any intimidation and threats are unacceptable as they contradict the foundations of the Christian faith," the diocese added. Considerable avalanche danger is expected in the mountains of Ivano-Frankivsk region. Weather forecasters have warned of a high risk of avalanches in the Carpathian Mountains in the western Ukraine. Read alsoUkraine issues another snowstorm alert, this time for Dec 26-27 (Photo) "On February 11, a considerable (3) level of avalanche risk is expected in mountainous areas of Ivano-Frankivsk region due to a thaw," the State Emergency Service (SES) of Ukraine reported on February 10, referring to the Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Center. As UNIAN reported earlier, on January 30, in Zakarpattia region, traffic was blocked on the Mukachevo Rakhiv Ivano-Frankivsk Rohatyn Lviv highway (H-09) as a result of an avalanche. The UEFA Champions League is back after the winter break, and that also means the return of #UCLfantasy. With four different gamedays within matchday seven, #UCLfantasy managers are now offered four opportunities for double points from your captain, so UEFA.com has picked out a leading candidate from each day for you to consider. TUESDAY 12 FEBRUARY Marcus Rashford (6.8m) vs Paris (H) Yes, it is a tough draw against Paris, but Manchester United have been a different animal since Ole Gunnar Solskjr replaced Jose Mourinho at the helm, winning ten of their 11 games (and drawing the other) under the Norwegian. Rashford has become the first-choice striker at Old Trafford and has been one of the chief beneficiaries of Solskjr's tutelage. Rested in the Premier League at the weekend, the Englishman will be raring to go and is a strong candidate in the captaincy debate. WEDNESDAY 13 FEBRUARY Heung-Min Son (7.9m) vs Dortmund (H) Spurs have been hit by some notable injuries in attacking areas of late, with both Harry Kane and Dele Alli currently on the sidelines. The onus has therefore fallen on Son to deliver and the South Korean has more than been up to the task. With ten goals in his last 11 Premier League outings, Son's captaincy credentials bear considering as Mauricio Pochettino's men host Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund. TUESDAY 19 FEBRUARY Lionel Messi (11.6m) vs Lyon (A) A near permanent fixture in the Captain Marvel articles when available, Messi is always one of the first names on #UCLfantasy teamsheets, and for good reason. The Argentinian only played in four of Barcelona's six group games, but still returned six goals and an assist. Domestically, he continues to be pivotal and is currently the top goalscorer in the top five European leagues. An inviting tie against Lyon means it will be behind-the-sofa time if you have a Messi-less Fantasy squad. WEDNESDAY 20 FEBRUARY Sergio Aguero (10.3m) vs Schalke (A) As Manchester City continue their quest for four trophies, Josep Guardiola will be relying on his most trusted players to perform, and that means Sergio Aguero is likely to figure prominently. City's all-time top scorer only started twice in the group stage but scored on both occasions and appears to be guaranteed a starting berth as his side to travel to Germany for the first leg with Schalke. This fixture comes on the last day of matchday seven, so if you've not managed to nail the armband up until that point, Aguero could be your #UCLfantasy saviour. Sport England finish on top post Sterling show against Czechs At least England now know they can rely on Raheem Sterling for goals. The scoring touch missing at his last three tournaments has been rediscovered on home territory, and it gave his team first place in their group. It was Sterlings second goal at Euro 2020 and it The Legislative Black Caucus has called for the University of Oklahoma to diversify its governing board as an avenue for an inclusive campus. We agree and believe that same policy should be extended to the Oklahoma State University regents, the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education and others. The state regents and the OU and OSU boards dont have a single black or Latino member. Of the 25 total seats on the boards that govern the top ranks of Oklahoma higher education, only six are held by women. This is in contrast to the diversity found among students. About 40 percent of OU students and 34 percent at OSU identify as nonwhite. Women make up about 49 percent on each campus. A more concerted effort is needed to better represent the student populations the boards serve. Two recent incidents involving blackface at OU thrust the university into an embarrassing spotlight, again. Four years ago, a fraternitys racist chant captured on video made national headlines. The latest incidents triggered campus-wide discussions and rallies around the issues of race, ethnicity and inclusion. The OU regents have publicly supported President James Gallogly, who has been criticized for his handling of the situation. Oklahoma was warned that it needed to resume funding its medical schools as other states do without the special federal supports to residency programs. The state responded by proposing a new waiver for the extra funding. The federal government declined. At that point, the Oklahoma Medicaid program sounded the alarm; the Legislature would have to appropriate funds for our medical schools again. Clearly, this was not a case of the federal government snatching away funding that had been promised as permanent. The waiver started as a demonstration project. It was renewed once. Oklahoma received over $1 billion before the federal government caught the mistake. The GME funding example that some point to today cannot be used credibly to reject Medicaid expansion under the argument that the federal government may change its mind. Oklahoma has had its original Medicaid program in place since 1964. The federal funding for that program floats based on the states economy, but typically carries a 6-to-4 federal-to-state match. In over 54 years, the federal government has never pulled its support for Medicaid funding to provide health care services to beneficiaries. Today, we are offered 9-to-1 funding to expand Medicaid to reach the 150,000 Oklahomans whose health care costs are absorbed by the rest of us who pay premiums for private insurance and by hospitals and physicians who provide their care. I know a man from Texas who grew up poor, living in a trailer park. No one in his family had ever been to college. Then, in high school, he met a girl (whom he would eventually marry) from a much more educated family; she helped open his eyes to greater possibilities. He started studying hard for standardized tests, and discovered that he was actually really good at them. Now, hes about to graduate from a prestigious law school. That man is my brother-in-law. This tale illustrates something larger: The U.S. is filled with talented people, too many of whom are hidden, overlooked, left behind and waiting to be discovered. For example, take Hadiyah-Nicole Green. She grew up as a poor orphan in St. Louis, and like my brother-in-law, no one in her family had ever been to college. But after attending a summer program at Xavier University and going to college at Alabama A&M University, she became a physicist doing research in the medical industry. She went on to develop a pioneering treatment for cancer using lasers and nanoparticles. Child marriage still exists in America, and paradoxically so. On the one hand, The U.S. State Departments Global Strategy to Empower Adolescent Girls calls for a reduction of child marriage in other countries, citing harms such as interrupted education. Yet child marriage persists throughout the nation in significant, albeit decreasing, numbers. This disconnect has not escaped notice of foreign observers. It pushes for bans abroad, but the practice is allowed at home, muses the Economist in a headline. So how prevalent is it? In 2017, PBS Frontline analyzed marriage records from 41 states not including Oklahoma and found that more than 200,000 minors were married between 2000 and 2015. Child marriages occurred across all racial, ethnic, religious and socioeconomic lines. State laws determine what age a child can be married and under what circumstances. Delaware and New Jersey have outlawed all marriages of people under 18. The other 48 states and the District of Columbia set the legal marriage age at 18 but carved out various exceptions for minors, such as parental consent or pregnancy. Like many other Oklahomans who have a criminal conviction, Lena Chatmon has struggled to rebuild her life since pleading guilty to motor vehicle-related and larceny charges in 2017. Chatmon, 21, who lives in Tulsa, is unemployed and said many employers are reluctant to hire her because of her criminal record. But as she continues to look for a job while on probation, she faces a new worry: the risk of losing her health insurance if a state proposal is approved that requires many Medicaid recipients to work at least 20 hours a week. I go to the doctor almost every month, and if I cant meet the 20 hours, I dont know what I would do, she said. If that happens, I might have to neglect my health needs just so I dont go into debt. Thousands of Oklahomans could find themselves in Chatmons situation if the federal government accepts Oklahomas request to link a work requirement to eligibility for SoonerCare, the states Medicaid program. Former Gov. Mary Fallin and the Legislature requested the rule last year in an effort to reduce Medicaid costs and ensure the program is serving only those who need it the most. A Tulsa church that has been in at least four different locations with the same pastors for 60 years will mark its anniversary Feb. 17. Century Cathedral Church, 1212 S. 129th East Ave., will mark 60 years of its existence with services at 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. Pastors Bob and Jeri Alsup have been at the church since the beginning. In 1959, Bob Alsup started the church, then called Camp Meeting Tabernacle, on East Apache Street. We rented an old bakery building on East Apache and outgrew this facility in four months, moved outside that summer in a brush arbor on North Cincinnati, and in the fall moved to Turley into the old Grotto theater, according to a news release from church members. In 1963, the church moved to a new building at 844 E. 46th St. North. Over 500 people of all denominations were filled with the Holy Ghost, including many pastors in Tulsa, with many healings, according to the release. In 1973, the church moved to its present location with doors opening in 1974. The churchs phone number is 918-437-8400. Johnson, who grew up in Fort Smith, Arkansas, before moving to Tulsa in the 1980s after a brief stint in Cambridge, Mass., always had an interest in black history. His father, Johnson recalled, was a history buff himself and influenced his dogged research and future study on black history and race. What struck Johnson about the race massacre upon first diving into it were not all the varying details of the occurrence, but that few were aware it even happened at all. I think thats what strikes most people, said Johnson, an event of this magnitude, and importance in the context of American history, is not known. Its not known locally. Its only relatively recently that people in this community really know about the history. If you talked about this 30 years ago, most people would be oblivious to this history. Jamaal Dyer, project director of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre Centennial Commission, explained that many Tulsans because of the devastation of the event wanted it erased out of their history. People were ashamed of it and wanted to act as if it didnt happen, said Dyer. There are still some who believed it didnt happen. People felt like if they dont talk about it, it will go away. Tulsa police arrested a suspect in a shooting after the victim drove his bullet-riddled car to the Saint Francis Hospital emergency room on Saturday night. Officers arrived at the hospital about 8:30 p.m. after staff told police the victim had arrived and security held the victims car at the ER entrance, according to a news release issued Sunday. The cars drivers side door reportedly had at least seven bullet holes. The victim was reportedly not totally cooperative with officers, but said the suspect was on the other end of a reported love triangle. The victim had dated a woman who previously dated the suspect in the shooting, police said. The woman and suspect then started dating again, but the victim was still talking to the woman, according to a police news release. The suspect reportedly called the victim and asked to talk with him about the issue at a park near Admiral Boulevard and Mingo Road. When the suspect arrived, he reportedly opened fire on the victims car. Police later located the suspect, who was not named in the news release, and he was arrested on a complaint of shooting with intent to kill. Stetson Payne 918-732-8135 stetson.payne@tulsaworld.com Twitter: @stetson__payne Some call it a unique tradition. And in many ways, it is, but it is also a fun adventure. And I would add, it is also quite an honor. If you ever have the opportunity, please consider participating in an eagle watch. I know many have and several, like myself, have attended numerous times. I am still in awe of watching an eagle majestically dancing through the air, soaring with grace and beauty both thrilling and magnificent. Just watching one resting in a tree is exciting. This time of the year, eagles migrate from Canada and the northern states searching for warmer climates. But eagles seem to be drawn to Oklahomas lakes and rivers. During a seasons peak time, a typical winter can bring anywhere between 800 and 2,000 eagles to Oklahoma. For your convenience and information, here are some of the best places in the state in which to go eagle watching: Lake Wister State Park in southeast Oklahoma is one of my favorite locations for eagle watching. Lake Wister State Park is truly one of the states hidden gems but to be next to that beautiful lake and catch a glimpse of an eagle soaring above in the Oklahoma sky is quite spectacular. Kaw Lake in north Oklahoma is an extremely popular location to see eagles. Those plans, Gray said, were in place despite Bridges awareness of the risks to his relationship with his wife, who did not like Coffelt, and the couples children. He had some kind of chain, Bridges said of Coffelt during his first police interview, referencing an attachment on a wallet that Coffelt kept in a pocket of his jeans. I thought he was gonna whip me with it. I was scared and I shot him. Later in the interview, Bridges said of his wife: She told me Never, ever let him in the house again. I should have listened. Prosecutors dismissed the case against Bridges last fall for further investigation after learning a witness told a Gang Unit officer Coffelt knew Bridges had a large amount of cash and planned to rob him. They re-filed the case in December, and Gray said authorities who did follow-up work didnt find anything that changed their view Bridges committed a crime. District Judge William Musseman, who presided over the trial, denied a previous request for immunity from prosecution under Oklahomas Stand Your Ground laws after finding there wasnt evidence to demonstrate Coffelt was an intruder or armed. However, he said then that Bridges could still present a theory of self-defense in trial. The Oklahoma State Medical Society and the Oklahoma Society of Anesthesiologists launched a campaign last week to legislation that proponents say would improve access to medical care, especially in rural areas, but that doctors say will diminish the quality of care. For several years, including this one, legislation has been introduced to allow advanced practice registered nurses to practice without the supervision of doctors. APRNs have received graduate education and advanced training and in Oklahoma are considered primary care providers. In many cases they are licensed to prescribe medication and treat patients for relatively routine conditions. Oklahoma is one of about 25 states that require APRNs to work under practice agreements with a supervising physician. Advanced practice nurses and some health care experts say freeing APRNs to practice independently would expand the availability of basic primary care. Doctors and others counter that APRNs do not have the same level of training as physicians, and that some APRNs receive their advanced degrees on-line. University of Oklahoma Board of Regents member William "Bill" Burgess died Friday, according to multiple reports. He was 62. Former Gov. Mary Fallin appointed Burgess to a seven-year term on the Board of Regents in 2014. His death creates a second vacancy on the board, which will be filled by the Gov. Kevin Stitt. "Burgess legacy will live on through the vital projects he supported and advocated for to advance Oklahomas military installations, to mentor young Oklahoma entrepreneurs, and to promote higher education," Stitt said in a news release. Click here to link to the article on NewsOK. Some stories require an Oklahoman subscription to read. On his campaign Facebook account, mullinforcongress, the Westville Republican asked: When Speaker Pelosi is saying there wont be another shutdown, does that mean shes finally coming to the table with funding for the wall? We have to protect our country and put national security as a top priority. On his congressional Twitter account, @repmullin, he complained about a report on Ocasio-Cortez Green New Deal. Funny how they bury this part all the way at the bottom, Mullin tweeted after a Bloomberg story about the controversial proposal quoted him last. The Green New Deal, just like proposals for free college or Medicaid for All, is nothing but an empty promise that leaves American taxpayers on the hook, Mullin said in the story. The Democrats radical agenda items like Medicare-for-all and free education for all are not only outrageous, but dangerous, Mullin wrote in a column circulated to news outlets in his district. The socialist Democrats are all in. They have fully embraced socialism and favor taking power away from the American people in order to give it to the federal government. The 1937 Baldwin model F grand piano often sat covered in a closet in the Will Rogers High School auditorium, save for lunch hours when a boy then known as Russell Bridges had impromptu concerts. Eighty years after the piano arrived at the high school, and 60 years after Bridges left Tulsa for Los Angeles and world-renowned stardom as Leon Russell, friends, bandmates and Tulsa musicians got together Saturday to dedicate that since-refurbished piano the only way appropriate: by bringing the house down. In front of a sold-out crowd of 1,406 in the auditorium, nearly 20 performers played some of Russells greatest hits and christened the grand piano for another generation of students. From Paul Benjaman leading off with Tight Rope, to Ann Bell taking the crowd to church singing Joe Cockers rendition of With a Little Help from My Friends, an audience of alumni and Leon Russell fans kept the legacy alive. Benjaman, who took the stage channeling his inner Russell complete with a top hat and bandana, helped rally the performers for the dedication concert. Having played three Russell tributes before, Benjaman said Saturdays performance was different from previous concerts because of the venue and dedicating the piano. It is with mixed emotions we announce that after 41 years of exemplary service, Walt Haskins will leave the firm on May 31, 2021. While it is never easy to bid farewell to a colleague, we wish Walt all the best. You will receive full, ad-free access to TullahomaNews.com.com as well as full access to the Electronic Edition of the newspaper. ONLY $3.99 per month for the first 3 months! Only $5.99 per month after promotional period. Or ONLY $39.99 per year for the 1st year Only $44.99 per year after promotional period. - The authority (REA) is charged with extending power connections to rural areas with schools being biggest beneficiaries - Gicharu has served in the same capacity since 2014 after he was moved from Geothermal Development Company - His appointment has been interpreted as a sign of the president's confidence in his ability to deliver in the role President Uhuru Kenyatta has reappointed Mount Kenya University (MKU) founder Simon Gicharu as the chair of Rural Electrification Authority (REA) board. This was made public in a special Gazette notice dated Friday, February 8, which also contained other fresh appointments Uhuru executed. Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens READ ALSO: Govt launches door-to-door search for 100,000 students who failed to join Form One Gicharu has served in the same capacity since 2014 after he was moved from Geothermal Development Company. Photo: UGC Source: UGC READ ALSO: Meet a man whose mother and father were brother and sister on TUKO TV videos Gicharu's appointment has been interpreted as a sign of Uhuru's confidence in him. It is the second time he is extending his term for another 3 years. In 2014, the don was first deployed in REA from Geothermal Development Company (GDC) where he served in the same capacity. READ ALSO: Gusii leaders assure Fred Matiang'i of support, urge him to perform new duties without fear This followed a sharp wrangle that pitted between him and the then GDC Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Silas Simiyu. Through a Gazette notice in June 2015, Uhuru extended Gicharu's term with three years which recently came to a close. He is there fore expected to serve for another three years with effect from Friday, February, 8, 2019. Do you have a hot story or scandal you would like us to publish, please reach us through news@tuko.co.ke or WhatsApp: 0732482690 and Telegram: Tuko news. Nandi Governor Vs Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho | Tuko TV. Source: Tuko.co.ke ON Sunday morning, just like Saturday morning, there was a lot of loud talking coming from the back of a mini- mart in Santa Cruz. A mini-bar that has no bar licence (because it is in the middle of a residential community) but is a liming spot that has some great ties that apparently keep their loose practices untouched. Caribbean Airlines plan to cut 450 jobs is a dramatic curtain-raiser on the economic bleakness that awaits the country on the other side of Covid-19. The post-pandemic shake-out in the job market will only intensify in the coming months as public utilities and State enterprises grapple with the twin challenge of declining income and reduced support from the Treasury. CONSPIRACY theorists with too much time on their hands were the ones who created an issue over the arrival of 80 vials of Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine that came to the country last week for use by officials at the National Security Ministry. So said Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley yesterday at the Covid-19 media conference at the Diplomatic Centre in St Anns. The total cost of Caribbean Airlines (CAL) severance payment is estimated to be in the vicinity of $110 million, Finance Minister Colm Imbert revealed yesterday. Imbert said CAL did not have the required finances for the severance payment and therefore the payments would be financed by the Ministry of Finance. shalender@tribune.com Washington, February 9 US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will meet for a second much-anticipated summit in Hanoi, as preparations kick into high gear for the peace talks. Trump announced the exact location on Twitter-only the country, Vietnam, was previously known-for the follow-on to the leaders summit in Singapore last year as he hailed very productive preparatory talks between diplomats from the two countries. My representatives have just left North Korea after a very productive meeting and an agreed upon time and date for the second Summit with Kim Jong Un, Trump said. It will take place in Hanoi, Vietnam, on February 27 & 28. I look forward to seeing Chairman Kim & advancing the cause of peace! The US State Department said the special US envoy for North Korea will meet again with Pyongyang officials ahead of the Trump-Kim talks-hours after he returned to Seoul from talks in the North on the summits agenda. In a statement, the State Department said talks during Stephen Bieguns three-day trip explored Trump and Kims commitments of complete denuclearisation, transforming US-DPRK relations and building a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula. The State Department confirmed Biegun agreed to meet his North Korean counterpart Kim Hyok Chol again before the leaders talks. North Korea has yet to provide any official confirmation of the summit and Kim appeared to make no mention of it during a meeting earlier with the top brass of the Korean Peoples Army. As reported by state media, the meeting focused on the need to modernise the military while maintaining party discipline in the ranks. Biegun is expected to share details of his Pyongyang meetings with his South Korean counterpart Lee Do-hoon and Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha on Saturday. Attention will focus on whether the US team have offered to lift some economic sanctions in return for Pyongyang taking concrete steps toward denuclearisation. Discussions on declaring an end to the 1950-53 Korean War could also have been on the table, with Biegun last week saying Trump was ready to end this war. The three-year conflict ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty, leaving the two Koreas still technically at war, with the US keeping 28,500 troops in the South. At their landmark summit in Singapore last year, the mercurial US and North Korean leaders produced a vaguely worded document in which Kim pledged to work towards the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula. But progress has since stalled, with the two sides disagreeing over what that means. Experts say tangible progress on Pyongyangs nuclear weapons will be needed for the second summit if it is to avoid being dismissed as reality TV. AFP North Korea, under the leadership of Kim Jong-un, will become a great Economic Powerhouse. He may surprise some but he wont surprise me, because I have gotten to know him and fully understand how capable he is. North Korea will become a different kind of Rocket an Economic one! Donald Trump Hard work still needed before summit shalender@tribune.com Bangkok, February 9 Thai Princess Ubolratanas unprecedented attempt to become the countrys next prime minister was abruptly nixed Saturday after her party agreed to comply with a command from the king opposing the plan. The partys announcement effectively blocking Ubolratanas candidacy came after an extraordinary rebuke by her brother King Maha Vajiralongkorn, and removes a hurdle for the ruling junta to hold onto power after the March 24 vote. The Thai Raksa Chart party, affiliated with the powerful Shinawatra political clan, had announced the princess as their candidate on Friday. The move rattled the status quo and threatened the ambitions of the Generals who have controlled Thailand since they toppled the administration of Yingluck Shinawatra. But the Thai king torpedoed his sisters bid in a sharply worded statement the same day that said bringing senior royal family members into politics was against tradition and highly inappropriate. Thai Raksa Chart responded swiftly, cancelling a campaign event on Saturday and issuing a statement saying it complies with the royal command. Thailand has some of the most severe lese majeste laws in the world and the kings word is seldom challenged. Royalist Thais and celebrities praised the intervention on social media after the order, writing long live the king. AFP shriaya.dutt@tribuneindia.com Bangkok, February 10 The Thai political party that nominated a Princess as its candidate for prime minister could be banned from a general election in March after an activist said on Sunday he would file a petition seeking its dissolution. Thailand's Election Commission is to meet on Monday to consider the candidacy of Princess Ubolratana Rajakanya Sirivadhana Barnavadi, 67, who stunned the nation on Friday when she said she would be the prime ministerial candidate for a populist party loyal to ousted ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra. Her announcement drew a swift rebuke from King Maha Vajiralongkorn, the princess's younger brother, who issued a statement hours later saying it was "inappropriate" for members of the royal family to enter politics. The March 24 election is the first since a military coup in 2014 toppled an elected pro-Thaksin government. The current junta leader, Prayuth Chan-ocha, is also contesting the race for prime minister, as the candidate of a pro-military party. The nomination of the king's elder sister, who has starred in soap operas and an action movie and gave up her royal titles after marrying an American, was a shocking move by forces loyal to Thaksin, who face an uphill battle in the election. The Election Commission has until Friday to rule on the princess's candidacy. It is unlikely its members would disregard the wishes of the king, who while a constitutional monarch, is considered semi-divine in Thai society. On Sunday, an activist said he would file a petition to disqualify the Thai Raksa Chart party, which nominated the princess. "The royal announcement made it clear that the party violated electoral law," Srisuwan Janya, secretary-general of the Association for the Protection of the Constitution, told Reuters. Srisuwan said his complaint to the Election Commission would ask it to recommend that a Constitutional Court dissolve the party. Thai Raksa Chart's executive chairman Chaturon Chaisaeng declined to comment on the request to disband it. The party said it would accept the king's message and "move forward into the election arena to solve problems for the country". The royal family has a long-standing tradition of staying out of politics, and electoral law forbids parties from using the monarchy in campaigns. Parties loyal to former telecommunications tycoon Thaksin have defeated pro-establishment parties to win every election since 2001, but every time have been removed by court rulings or coups. The gambit to nominate a member of the royal family could backfire on Thai Raksa Chart, said Titipol Phakdeewanich, dean of the faculty of political science at Ubon Ratchathani University. "Things are now more unpredictable, Titipol told Reuters. If the party is dissolved, it could give more seats to anti-Thaksin affiliated parties like the pro-junta, Phalang Pracharat and progressive Future Forward party, he said. Thaksin, who was ousted in a 2006 coup, lives in self-imposed exile after being convicted of corruption in absentia. He responded to the events on Twitter late on Saturday telling supporters to "keep moving forward" and "learn from past experiences but live for today and the future". Reuters shalender@tribune.com Tunis, February 9 A Tunisian court has sentenced seven jihadists to life in prison over attacks at a museum and on a beach in 2015 that killed 60 persons, many of them tourists, prosecutors said on Saturday. Dozens of defendants faced two separate trials over the closely linked shootings, which occurred just months apart in Tunis and Sousse, but many were acquitted. Three were given life sentences for homicide over the first attack in March 2015 at the capitals Bardo museum, in which two gunmen killed 21 foreign tourists and a Tunisian security guard. Four received the same term for the shooting rampage at a Sousse tourist resort in June that year, which killed 38 persons, mostly British tourists. Other defendants were sentenced to between six and 16 years, said prosecution spokesman Sofiene Sliti on Saturday. The court heard that the two attacks, both claimed by the Islamic State group (IS), were closely linked. AP uttara@tribuneindia.com Islamabad, February 10 The Afghan Taliban has said that despite the ongoing talks with the US and other regional powers, it had not yet reached any conclusion that would entail an immediate end to hostilities against America and its allies, according to a media report. We are forced to wage war. Our enemies are attacking us; therefore, we are also combating them, Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid was quoted as saying by DawnNewsTV. The Taliban control nearly half of Afghanistan, and are more powerful than at any time since the 2001 US-led invasion after the 9/11 terror attacks in 2001. In a series of tweets after six days of talks with the Taliban representatives in Doha last month, Special US Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad said the US has made significant progress in its peace talks with the Taliban. We have a draft of the framework that has to be fleshed out before it becomes an agreement, Khalilzad said at the time. The Taliban have committed, to our satisfaction, to do what is necessary that would prevent Afghanistan from ever becoming a platform for international terrorist groups or individuals. Since being appointed in September, Khalilzad has met with all sides in an attempt to end Americas longest war in which the US has lost over 2,400 soldiers in more than 17 years. But Mujahid said that, even in Moscow talks, nothing concrete was achieved that would compel them to end the war and military pressure, the channel reported. He insisted that the Taliban are holding talks with the United States on their own initiative. Responding to a question regarding the timing of the talks, the militant commander explained that, even prior to the US invasion, the Taliban had asked Washington to engage in dialogue instead of war, the channel said. He said that they had eventually even opened a political office in Doha, Qatar in 2013 for this purpose, but Washington had been unwilling to negotiate at the time. The spokesperson said that now that the US is willing to talk, they have decided to engage with them. When asked about Pakistans role in bringing the Taliban to the negotiating table, Mujahid said: There is no role being played by any outside country. This has always been our own initiative and policy. He, however, said that if the Taliban do end up having a say in the Afghan polity one day, they will approach Pakistan as a brother and a neighbour, seeking comprehensive ties based on mutual respect. He acknowledged that Pakistan had remained the most important hub for Afghan refugees during the Soviet invasion. Mujahid said that while the Taliban do not have a codified manifesto, their clear objectives were the end of the occupation of Afghanistan, establishment of an Islamic government, establishment of peace and security, reconstruction of Afghanistan and the provision of administrative services. He also said a new constitution will be drafted and implemented in light of the teachings of (the) Shariah. On a question regarding the possible formation of an interim government in Afghanistan, he said that the Taliban had neither held any discussions regarding an interim government nor had they proposed such an idea. Explaining the Taliban position on refusing to talk to the government in Kabul, Mujahid said that any talks with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani regime would have symbolic ramifications. If the Taliban were to hold talks with the Kabul government, it would mean that they had accepted this stooge regime as a legitimate government (even though it was) imposed upon us by aircraft and (the) bombing of invaders, he said. He said that talks between two opposing powers are meant to achieve a mutual resolution to outstanding issues and the re-establishment of peace and stability. This process does not mean [a] partnership with anyone, he said. Mujahid added that the Taliban believe that as long as Afghanistan is occupied, ceasefires and intra-Afghan talks would not amount to much. We first and foremost have to put an end to the occupation and then focus on resolving our internal issues. Responding to a question regarding the Talibans support to the al-Qaeda leadership, which led to the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan, Mujahid said that: The Islamic Emirate sheltered those foreign Mujahideen (Al Qaeda operatives) that had arrived in Afghanistan during the period of jihad against the Soviet Union and remained behind as [an] inheritance. Their protection was a religious and cultural necessity. However, he said that currently there was no one that needed (the Talibans) shelter. The Islamic Emirate (Taliban government) shall never allow anyone to harm others from our soil, he asserted. PTI The Trump administration will cut military aid to Cameroon due to the country's human rights violations, White House officials report. This would include the building of new radar systems, nine armored vehicles, four defender-class patrol boats, and funding for various training programs and exercises. An offer for Cameroon to join the State Partnership Program (SPP) has also been withdrawn. The committee at the hearing also made it clear that funding for ongoing programs that included educational programs and other non-military training will still be continued. The State Department official said that the United States was still offering other assistance to Cameroon, crediting its contributions both in the fight against Boko Haram and in restoring security to the piracy-ridden Gulf of Guinea. English-speaking insurgents have been fighting Cameroon forces in an effort to start a breakaway country called Ambazonia. Biya has been accused by the opposition and rights groups of cracking down in the Anglophone Southwest region to root out armed separatists trying to end his grip on power. A State Department official said that the United States appreciated Cameroon's contributions in fighting Boko Haram extremists from neighboring Nigeria but had concerns about a deadly crackdown on a revolt at home. The commander of the United States' Africa Command, General Thomas Waldhauser, mentioned during the committee meeting that he felt that the alleged atrocities can not be neglected. Some 300 US troops are based in the northern town of Garoua to train and assist Cameroon's military, including in its fight against extremism. Since 2002 the United States has trained over 6 000 Cameroonian soldiers and provided millions of dollars' worth of military aid. "We continue to urge the Cameroonian government to take all credible allegations of gross violations of human rights seriously, investigate those allegations thoroughly, hold accountable the perpetrators of such abuses, and disclose the outcome of the investigations to the people of Cameroon", a State Department official told CNN. Hardware assistance included the delivery of two Cessna 208 Caravan intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft to Cameroon's Air Force to help it combat Boko Haram militants in the region. The United State's plans to upgrade Cameroon's Elite Rapid Intervention Battalion have also been scrapped. The decision will also impact training programs for vehicle operators, including Cameroonian soldiers who were meant to learn to pilot helicopters and C-130 airplanes. Saba Naqvi Saba Naqvi I recently ran into one of the few surviving councillors of the Congress in Delhi who told me that there is a complete disconnect between realities on the ground and the leadership's perception at the top. The ground reality is simple: if the Congress and the AAP do not join hands for the Lok Sabha poll, the BJP will, in all likelihood, get all seven seats in the Capital. A friend, who did an extensive countrywide survey, also shares that according to his findings, without an alliance, the BJP gets six seats and the AAP gets one. With an alliance, the tally is reversed to the BJP getting one or two. The AAP vote share is almost double that of the Congress and Delhis ruling party holds its base in the slums and ghettoes while it has lost the support of the more prosperous sections of the middle class. The Congress vote share in the 2015 Assembly elections in Delhi where it got zero seats was 9.7 per cent. My pollster friend notes a small improvement to 19 per cent before the 2019 national battle. According to my friend, the AAP still has 34 per cent of the vote share in the Capital a drop from the 54 per cent that the party had when it swept the Delhi Assembly in 2015. In the 2015 Assembly polls when the AAP made a historic sweep, the BJP still had 32 per cent vote share, just one per cent drop from its performance in the last Delhi Assembly poll. What is also worth remembering is that voters chose very differently for the Delhi Assembly and the Lok Sabha that had taken place six months earlier. The BJP vote share in Delhi in the course of the Modi-powered Lok Sabha win was 46.1 per cent, giving it an easy sweep of seven seats. But the closest contender was the AAP that had 33 per cent of the vote in Delhi in the 2014 Lok Sabha poll. The Congress in the 2014 General Election got just 15 per cent of the vote share in Delhi, the national Capital from where it had ruled the country for a decade. Lets presume that the BJP has a drop in performance from 2014 to 2019 and loses percentage points in vote shares in the upcoming poll. Even then, in the Lok Sabha elections, it would win most of the seats in Delhi. But an AAP-Congress alliance would be as formidable as the mahagathbandhan of Uttar Pradesh. But the Congress, till now, is not agreeable. Recently, former Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, now Delhi Congress chief, announced this and is basically of the view that the AAP is too untrustworthy for an alliance. So, what then is the Congress going to do in Delhi? Sit back on a high horse, refuse to mingle with the AAP, and give the BJP an easy win? Is the Congress, therefore, of the view that they can live with the BJP but not get into any arrangement with the AAP? Do we call this a political strategy or harakiri? The AAP, on its part, say sources in the party, would be ready for a 5-2 seat sharing with the Congress in Delhi that could be hammered into a 4-3 arrangement depending on the seats. Congress sources complain that the AAP is also demanding seats in Punjab and Haryana, which they are not inclined to give. And yes, we the people of India remember clearly why the Congress would hate the AAP so much. But all the quibbling apart, surely in the end, the AAP and the Congress know what is at stake here? The AAP is the smaller party and it is guilty of allowing individual members to make intemperate remarks on Rajiv Gandhi at a time when it is in need of an alliance. Yet, the Congress is the national party that needs to have a blueprint for the entire country. And that currently calls for eating some humble pie, getting over its recent bitter history with Kejriwal and company and getting down to doing what is the need of the hour. A Congress leader told me that if they allow the AAP to survive, they would never be able to rebuild their base in Delhi. Such statements smack of both arrogance and ignorance. Years ago, the Congress lost its base in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar to parties born in the churn that is referred to as the Mandal era. Today, the Congress is in alliance with some of these parties as the junior partner. The ship has sailed in Delhi as well where the AAP is the stronger force than the Congress. The national party needs to do a reality check and remember that an enemys enemy is a friend. Monica Sharma Monica Sharma IN December, Jatinder Singh Brar, 25-year-old from Faridkot in Punjab, was on cloud nine after completing masters in accounting in Australia. But his and his family's happiness was shortlived as Brar was killed in a road accident at Salisbury South, Adelaide, on January 4. Brar was driving a delivery truck, which was run off the road by a woman driver and he died on the spot. But his familys agony did not end here as it had to undergo the long and complex process of repatriation. The Indian community there raised funds and completed documentation to help Brars family. Despite this, his mother, in India, had to wait for 10 days to see the body of his beloved son. Brars case again points out that if a relative dies in a foreign country, the paperwork and expenses associated with repatriation can make a terrible event even worse. Bobby Sambhy says, Repatriation involves a specific procedure and a lot of paperwork. It is a tough time for any family that has to get the body back from overseas. Documents needed for repatriation include a medical report or death certificate and a police report in case of accidental or unnatural death. To send the body back home, a consent letter from the closest family member is required along with a copy of passport and visa of the dead. The family needs to inform the Indian consulate and clearances are also required from immigration departments. It is important that the one should check about insurance in the countries he/she is visiting to cover extreme situations. Manjit Singh Boparai, a social activist from Brisbane, has helped many in repatriating bodies. Since 2008, Boparai has assisted in the repatriation of 52 bodies from across different parts of Australia to India. He says, I dont want that anyone should suffer in the hour of grief. Losing the loved one is terrible...no one (body) should be left unclaimed in a foreign land. The task of repatriating mortal remains to the homeland is costly and complex. Generally, we reach out to the community to generate funds through gurdwaras, temples and social media. He says repatriating a body from an area which does not have an airport requires even more time and funds. A special coffin is arranged and embalming is done. The process on an average costs $7,000-$12,000. Repatriating a body from Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne is easier due to better frequency of flights. The delay adds up with some cities not having an Indian consulate as the procedure of cancellation of passport and issuance of a health certificate has to be followed before sending the body back home. Samandeep Singh Brar, Brars cousin, says, It was a tough time for the family. My cousin had come to Australia in 2012 and was doing well. We had never imagined that we would have to take his body back home. I thank the Indians in Australia who helped us in this hour of grief. They assisted us in completing the procedure. Lt Gen Raj Kadyan (Retd) Starting from Agartala on December 4, 1971, our unit 19th Battalion of the Rajputana Rifles had some 130 km to cover to reach the then East Pakistans capital Dacca (now Dhaka in Bangladesh). Fighting our way through Akhaura, Brahmanbaria, Bhairab Bazaar, etc, we could see the enemy resistance weaken at every successive position. The Pakistani air force having been knocked out by our valiant pilots and the Dacca runway having been put out of use, we had no worry about the enemy. Since our advance was along a linear railway line, the enemy air strafing could otherwise have been a major problem. The quest for a hot meal (not having a meal since December 3) was more than made up by hospitality of the locals they lined up with bananas and corn as we passed through the liberated villages. Our energetic Quartermaster did his best to bring forward whatever dry rations he could. He had got hold of a Pakistani railway wagon and loaded it with rations. He had it pushed by our tradesmen, along the tracks. It raised our morale several notches. It was December 13. Having advanced overnight in a wide encircling move, my company halted at a village for some rest. The enemy was no where in sight and for the first time, we felt relaxed. Some men indulged in the luxury of a bath, despite the cold weather. A Mukti Bahini detachment was accompanying us. Their commander asked me if he could impose a curfew in the village. Since no enemy threat apparently existed, I asked him the reason. The villagers wont let you rest sir. He was right. Locals kept coming to shake hands and take my autographs. Seeing happiness on their faces, I disallowed the curfew. Around midday, a gentleman, dressed in a suit (unusual in a village), approached me. He had worn it, as he explained, because he was meeting an Indian Army officer for the first time. My crumpled and soiled dress should have stood out in contrast. But given the significance of the occasion, I felt a sense of pride in what I was wearing. His gratitude showed in his long-drawn handshake. He held my hand for more than a minute, before he could speak. Sir, I know you are tired and having rest, but I have a request, he said in a pleading tone. My father is sick and does not have long to live. Before he dies, he has only one wish to meet an Indian Army officer. I could not have refused, and didnt. Later, he came to take me home. As we entered, his wife welcomed me and his two teenaged children stood overawed in a corner. As I sat down near the old mans cot, tears started rolling down his wrinkled cheeks. I waited for him to say something, but he kept crying in silence. I knew his tears were of thankfulness and relief. I could understand and empathise with him. I did not want to spoil the sanctity of the occasion and sat silent watching him cry. Later, I said, I understand what you are feeling. But, now is the time for rejoicing and forgetting the past. Forget? he asked in a voice that carried a mix of immense pain, anger and hate. No sir, we can never forget what we have gone through. I didnt know what to say and was at a loss for words. After a while, I repeated my message: There is always future to look forward to. Time is a great healer. Past is best forgotten. His voice was unusually firm in what he said next. I have seen the carnage committed by the Pakistani army. They raped my two daughters and shot them. I can never forget that scene. While one was generally aware of the atrocities committed by the Pakistani army, hearing it from a father left me disturbed. Soon, the son intervened and said: Thank you sir. You have indeed been very kind in accepting our request. I am sure my father will leave the earth feeling more at peace. Unable to say anything, I pressed the old mans feeble hand and left. As I walked back, I found myself feeling taller for wearing the Army uniform, known for its discipline, compassion and humaneness. sanjiv@tribunemail.com Sandeep Sinha Many contemporary politicians have displayed a delusional streak in many of their decisions. Men like Adolf Hitler, Pol Pot, Attila the Hun, Joseph Stalin and Maximilien Robespierre, among others, have exhibited tendencies in an otherwise perfectly rational personality that can only be described as delusional, leading to catastrophic outcomes for the rest of the world. Hardeep Singh Puri, a distinguished career diplomat-turned-politician, has included three countries which were affected as a result of such decisions by such leaders in this book the UK, the US and India because he was familiar with their internal dynamics. The author begins with the UK and the Brexit referendum. It was a decision taken over a pizza at Chicagos OHare International Airport in May 2012. David Cameron came up with the idea to undermine his colleagues as new challengers threatened his position within the Conservative Party. To smoke them out, he called for a referendum to put a check on the Euro-sceptics, not realising he was providing a platform to Brexiteers such as Nigel Farage, the leader of the UK Independence Party. It was a perfect example of delusional decision-making, which, the author says, only intensified the problem when Camerons successor Theresa May called for a snap poll even as the terms and conditions of Brexit were being negotiated. Puris understanding is that the UK is now descending into FUKEW or the Former United Kingdom of England and Wales with demand in Scotland growing over whether to remain a part of the UK or not. The two major parties in Northern Ireland have opposing views on the issue. With tremendous clarity, the author says the Brexit is a perfect example of delusional thinking. First, the referendum was not required. Secondly, the referendums outcome was allowed to be shaped by uncertainties of domestic politics, and finally, the election was called when it was not due, especially when the government held a comfortable majority. It was a decision taken on the basis of flawed analysis. Cameron had wanted to switch on to a new generation of social entrepreneurs and businessmen who would overlook his two silver spoons and see him as a man who sympathised with their struggles. But when their support was put to test, he failed. The Brexit results were followed by the election of Donald Trump in the US, who beat 16 other Republican candidates and two Democrats, to the top job who had far more experience. Puri says the basic factor that steered Trumps win was the angst of the white working class Americans who felt disadvantaged as a result of globalisation automation, off shoring and the growing power of MNCs. Trump built a narrative that struck a chord with them. He made them believe that their interests under President Obama had been short-changed. The author quotes sociologist Arlie Hochschild to explain what pushes the right further right. First, the right holds traditions and beliefs they think the government impedes. Secondly, these traditions, the foundation of their way of life, are increasingly shamed by the liberals. As a result, sections that had little claim to a liberal, internationalist America, created an ideological partition. Trump championed the people against an elite accused of coddling a third group, in this case, the immigrants and the minorities the takers while the people, the American right were the makers. The third major development is the 2014 General Election in India. The author asks who was delusional the Congress party that from its position of strength came down to less than 10 per cent seats in the Lok Sabha or the man who called for a Congress-mukt Bharat? The author believes 2014 elections have brought about a paradigm shift in the countrys politics and economic governance. Quoting Cambridge historian Angus Maddison, he says Indias contribution to global output in 1700 stood at 27 per cent. By 1950, it had come down to 3 per cent and is today at 13 per cent. The author, who can be accused of making this conjecture in keeping with his political predilection, says that under PM Narendra Modi India is poised to become a trillion-dollar economy by 2025. He discounts the Congress win in three Hindi heartland states in December 2018 and believes these will not pose any threat to the NDA at the Centre. There is praise for Pranab Mukherjee, who was External Affairs Minister and also the chairman of 95 Group of Ministers and Empowered Group of Ministers, a practice, Puri believes, undermined the authority of PM Manmohan Singh. He believes Mukherjee could have been the PM. Does this observation have anything to do with recent developments like Pranab Mukherjee visiting the RSS headquarters at Nagpur and the Modi government conferring the Bharat Ratna on him? Puri also gives an interesting account of how obsequious the Congressmen are towards Sonia Gandhi, not sitting beside her on the same sofa or car seat. The book is a fine example of studying contemporary history with tools of analysis. The theme is explained by saying that a delusional politician is at the heart of delusional politics, encouraged by self-expertise and self-serving, motivated advice. Puri also dwells on post-truth politics that moulds reality not by evidence but by whichever narrative that complements their pre-existing biases. The value of truth is in decline and political reality is being replaced by political narratives Brexit and Trumps election being its examples. The book is a wonderful read that helps understand recent developments, enriched in no small measure by the authors illustrious career and exposure to the charmed circles of diplomacy. editorial@tribune.com Our Correspondent Phagwara, February 9 Former Akali minister Bikram Singh Majithia congratulated the new Director General of Police (DGP), Dinkar Gupta, on Saturday and urged him to break the nexus between the politicians and the police. After addressing a rally of the Youth Akali Dal at Goraya, Majithia produced a farmer, Budh Singh of Gurdaspur, before mediapersons. Co-operation Minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa had called for an investigation by the Enforcement Directorate to find out from where the money being given by Majithia to him had come from. Majithia asked Randhawa to prove that the financial support given to farmer Budh Singh had come out of money generated from drugs. He challenged him to either prove his statement or quit his ministerial berth. editorial@tribune.com Ashok Kaura Phagwara, February 9 A day after a clash between two communities, tension prevailed in the town today even as business establishments functioned normally. Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Tayab and Kapurthala SSP Satinder Singh are camping here. Phagwara SP Mandeep Singh, ASP Sandeep Malik and DSP Manpreet Dhillon are monitoring the situation. Additional police force of more than 350 constables and six inspectors has been summoned from Kapurthala, Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar and Nawanshahr and deployed at sensitive places in the town. The clash had taken place between youths of the Valmiki community and Shiv Sena activists at Baba Gadhia locality here late last evening. Three youths, including Rahul Karwal, nephew of Shiv Sena leader Inderjit Karwal, and two Dalit youths, Nitin Kumar and Punit Kumar, sustained injuries. They were admitted to Civil Hospital. Dalit youths alleged that the Sena activists first attacked two Valmikis, while the former claimed that Rahuls shop was vandalised first. Later during a protest near city police station, Dalit youths pelted the DSPs Bolero vehicle with stones. A signboard of the police station was also damaged. The dharna was lifted after the intervention of senior police officers. SSP Satinder Singh said on a complaint by Valmiki youth Nitin Kumar, they had registered a case against 12 persons, including Rahul Karwal and Akshya Karwal, on the charges of attempt to murder and damaging a motorcycle. The SSP said in a counter-complaint, lodged by constable Sony Khan, they had registered a case against 80 Valmiki youths for damaging the DSPs vehicle and a Roadways bus, tearing uniform of cops, and blocking the Phagwara-Banga road. Panel formed To defuse tension between two communities, the two sides, in the presence of district authorities, on Saturday formed a panel and vowed to settle the matter amicably. A 14-member Saanjha Phagwara Parivar Committee, comprising seven members from each community, was formed in the presence of Kapurthala DC Mohammad Tayab and SSP Satinder Singh. The SSP said the committee would work to maintain peace and harmony in the town. editorial@tribune.com Tribune News Service Ludhiana February 9 The deployment of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) at state jails may soon be a reality. A joint team of the CRPF and the Jails Department has started a survey of six Punjab prisons to work out modalities for the same. The demand was raised by the state to strengthen security of jails and to break the alleged connivance of officials with prisoners. Jails Minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and ADGP (Jails) Rohit Chaudhary confirmed the development. Despite Tihar jail in Delhi being considered the most protected jail in India with three-tier security system, mobile phones are still being recovered from inmates. The first layer is of the CRPF, second Madras police and third Delhi police. Though three-tier security is not possible in Punjab, two-tier system will soon be in place, Randhawa said. Chaudhary said the CRPF and the department today started a survey of six jails Nabha, Patiala, two in Amritsar, Bathinda and Jalandhar where two CRPF companies are likely to be deployed after the survey was over. We have demanded four companies from the Centre, but we are likely to get two companies consisting 160 to 180 jawans, the ADGP said. Randhawa said 550 posts in the Jails Department would be filled in the next six months. It is sad that the Centre is ignoring demands of states, he claimed. amansharma@tribunemail.com Patiala, February 10 Ten people were injured on Sunday as police lathicharged a group of teachers that was marching towards Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh's residence to protest against conditions for their regularisation, police said. A superintendent of police-rank officer was also injured in the melee as police tried to disperse the protesters who wanted to gherao Singh's residence, they said. The protesters were demonstrating against the regularisation policy for 8,886 teachers of Adarsh schools, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) and Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA). Police also used water cannons to disperse the protesters. The protesters had gathered near the Patiala bus stand where barricades had been erected to stop them, the police said. However, as they insisted on marching ahead, towards the chief minister's residence here, a scuffle broke out between protesters and police personnel, they said. The teachers, most of whom are contractual employees, were protesting against a condition for their regularisation. According to the condition, the contractual teachers will have to work at a monthly salary of nearly Rs 15,000 for three years before being regularised in their jobs. Some teachers alleged that the state government has stopped paying salaries to the SSA and RMSA teachers for not accepting its condition for regularisation. Shun path of agitation, appeals Amarinder Meanwhile, Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh has appealed to the protesting teachers and other employees to shun the path of agitation and show some patience, as the state government was committed to finding an amicable solution to their pending demands. In a statement issued in Chandigarh, Amarinder said the employees must understand that despite the unprecedented financial crises being faced by the state, the government was doing everything in its power to resolve all pending issues of the employees. He said agitations will not lead to any constructive solution and talks will soon be held to find a way out. Underlining that all employees, including teachers, were the most intrinsic part of society, the Chief Minister assured them that the cabinet sub-committee formed under Health Minister Brahm Mahindra was already working to find a solution to their demands. The Chief Minister said that he too would soon meet the representative of various employees bodies to resolve their issues. TNS/PTI editorial@tribune.com Tribune News Service Chandigarh, February 9 Five Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) rebel MLAs today accused their party colleagues of spreading disinformation on the Delhi government providing electricity at Re 1 per unit to its consumers. In a press release, the MLAs Kanwar Sandhu, Nazar Singh Mansahia, Pirmal Singh Khalsa, Jagdev Singh Kamalu and Jagga Hissowal demanded that the Punjab government should drastically cut down the electricity tariff rates in Punjab and there was no need to resort to lies to buttress the claim, as state party president, Bhagwant Mann and others were doing. The rebel MLAs said for the first 100 units of electricity consumed while the domestic consumers in Delhi had to pay approximately Rs 4.50 per unit, the consumer in Punjab had to pay Rs 6.50 per unit. In both cases, besides the basic rate per unit (Rs 3 per unit in Delhi and Rs 4.91 per unit in Punjab), other charges include fixed charges, electricity duty or tax, meter charges and surcharge. Volunteers to hear peoples grievances Leader of Opposition Harpal Singh Cheema said one lakh party volunteers would reach out to people in the urban and rural pockets of the state to listen to their power-related problems and redress them. Cheema said to achieve this mission, experts/trainers from among those who had been active in the Delhi movement would train as many as 5,000 master volunteers in Punjab to lead the march against the menace. He said the movement had been kick-started in Sangrur by Bhagwant Mann. editorial@tribune.com Tribune News Service Mumbai, February 9 Continuing its attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the Rafale deal, the Shiv Sena wondered why he took personal interest in the negotiations. An editorial in party mouthpiece Saamna said, Modi will have to reply to the questions posed by Congress president Rahul Gandhi as these queries are in the minds of citizens as well. There is now documentary proof that the Prime Minister took a personal interest in the Rafale deal. Our Modi was personally making the deal keeping the Defence Minister and the Defence Secretary in the dark. Was this deal meant to empower the Indian Air Force or for rescuing a bankrupt industrialist? The edit went on to say that Modi was facing criticism from the opposition because all decisions on the Rafale deal were taken by the Prime Minister himself. Rahul Gandhis slogan Chowkidar Chor Hai.... is being repeated all over the country with various secrets of the Rafale deal coming out in the open, Saamna added. The newspaper also hit out at the BJP for labelling anyone questioning the deal as anti-national. Those who support the deal are patriots, but those who are questioning the deal are anti-national. Why is this so? the editorial asked. The BJP leaders today felt that the Shiv Senas latest attack on Modi would make it more difficult for both parties to stitch up an alliance for the LS elections. laxmi@tribune.com Tribune News Service New Delhi, February 9 Robert Vadra, husband of AICC general secretary in-charge of Eastern UP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, was on Saturday questioned for about eight hours by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with a probe into allegations of money laundering to purchase assets abroad. Vadra, who appeared before the ED for the third consecutive day, is understood to have been confronted with documentary evidences pertaining to his association with absconding arms dealer Sanjay Bhandari. He arrived at the agencys office at Jamnagar House here around 10.45 am and has reportedly been asked to come again on Monday as the Investigating Officer (IO) required him to answer more questions in connection with the case. Vadra was questioned for five-and-a-half hours on February 6 and for nine hours on February 7. Sources in the agency said today the investigators put to Vadra questions around his association with Bhandari and asked as to why the arms dealer had bought tickets for his travel to France and confronted him with documentary evidence. During the course of questioning today, Vadra shared a few documents with the investigating officer, who in turn asked him to submit some more papers, which Vadra assured to provide after receiving, sources said. The ED case against Vadra relates to allegations of money laundering in the purchase of a London-based property located at 12, Bryanston Square worth 1.9 million GBP (British pounds), which is allegedly owned by him. The agency has told a Delhi court that it has received information about various new properties in London, which belong to Vadra. These include two houses, one worth 5 million GBP and the other valued at 4 million GBP, six other flats and more properties. shriaya.dutt@tribuneindia.com Lucknow, February 10 Enthused by the appointment of new leaders to steer them into the coming Lok Sabha election, Congressmen have planned a grand welcome to the party's general secretary in-charge of eastern Uttar Pradesh, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, and others when they arrive in the state capital on Monday. Congress workers, led by Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee (UPCC) chief Raj Babbar, have made elaborate arrangements to welcome their leaders, including Congress president Rahul Gandhi and in-charge of the state's western region, Jyotiraditya Scindia, who will accompany Priyanka Vadra as she makes her first public appearance in the state after her new assignment. The trio, who will arrive at the Lucknow airport, will pass through the main areas of the state capital to reach the Nehru Bhawan office of the UPCC. They will be welcomed by party workers and leaders at nearly 37 points in the city between the airport and the UPCC office, Congress spokesman Anshu Awasthi told PTI. Before reaching the Congress office, the Congress leaders are expected to garland the statues of Mahatma Gandhi and former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi on the route. Hoardings of Congress leaders, including Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Vadra, have been put up along the route they are proposed to take. Banners on the route read, "Waqt Hai Badlav Ka". Workers of Congress and its grassroots organisation Sewa Dal have been giving final touch to the preparations since early Sunday. Babbar held a meeting of Congress workers on Saturday evening to review the preparations for the road show, which will also be attended by All India Mahila Congress chief Sushmita Dev and general secretary Anupama Rawat. Elaborate security arrangements have been made for the visit. Special Protection Group personnel, who provide security to the Gandhis, on Thursday visited the UPCC office, party sources said. The Congress is expecting the visit to become a virtual launch of its campaign in Uttar Pradesh, ahead of Lok Sabha elections due by May. Priyanka Vadra will meet leaders and office-bearers from 42 constituencies of Uttar Pradesh (East) during her visit till February 14. "Congress workers are excited about the visit of party leaders and we are awaiting to give them a rousing welcome... We hope that with her (Priyanka Vadra) joining active politics, the state will also get a new energy," chief state Congress spokesperson Rajiv Bakshi said. "This is a very auspicious time for us and a good omen for the party," he said. PTI laxmi@tribune.com Kolkata, February 9 Satyajit Biswas, 41, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA from Nadia district, was shot dead late Saturday evening. Biswas, an MLA from Krishnaganj, was at a puja function in Nadia when targeted. The TMC accused the BJP of being behind the murder, whereas the saffron party blamed it on TMC infighting. Biswas was rushed to a hospital where he was declared dead. A country-made pistol was found at the murder site. A probe has been ordered. TMCs Gaurishankar Dutta alleged a BJP leader, who was earlier with the TMC, had a role. Denying the charges, West Bengal BJP chief Dilip Ghosh said the probe must be carried out speedily so that the real culprits were nailed. TMC secretary general Partha Chatterjee alleged the BJP was trying to create disturbances ahead of the LS polls by targeting popular leaders. The state Congress alleged complete lawlessness. TNS editorial@tribune.com Lucknow, February 9 Newly appointed Congress general secretary in-charge of eastern Uttar Pradesh Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will have her hands full during her four-day visit to Lucknow as she will meet senior leaders and office bearers of the party. This will be Priyankas maiden visit to Uttar Pradesh after she formally entered politics last month. She will arrive in Lucknow accompanied by her brother and Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Monday. The party in Uttar Pradesh is seeing the visit as the virtual launch of the Congress campaign in the state, ahead of the LS elections. Incharge of 42 of the 80 Lok Sabha constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, Priyanka will meet senior leaders and office bearers of the party constituency-wise during her visit till February 14, Congress spokesperson Anshu Awasthi said. Lists of leaders, including former MPs, MLAs and other peoples representatives, have been sought from the district unit presidents. PTI editorial@tribune.com Guwahati, February 9 Prime Minister Narendra Modis second day in Assam saw nude protests, a bandh, raising of black flags and burning of effigies by agitators over the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Bill. Six Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS) activists were detained today when they stripped naked in front of Janata Bhawan the state secretariat here. The KMSS activists had arrived in cars and stripped naked before holding the protests. The Tai Ahom Yuba Parishad had called a 12-hour bandh in the state to protest the PMs visit and its impact was felt in the upper Assam districts of Tinsukia, Dibrugarh, Sibsagar, Lakhimpur and Jorhat with vehicles remaining off road and shops closed. The bandh was supported by the KMSS along with 70 other organisations jointly protesting against the Bill. The All Assam Students Union (AASU) claimed that the police resorted to mild lathicharge to disperse its activists who had assembled with black flags and black balloons at the Amingaon-Hajo Road, about 10 km from Modis rally at Changsari. The protesters burnt effigies of the PM and released black balloons into the air in different districts across the state. PTI amansharma@tribunemail.com Tribune News Service New Delhi, February 10 A day after the controversy around actor Amol Palekars speech being cut short at an event in the National Gallery of Modern Art branch of Mumbai, the Ministry of Culture said the NGMA committees in Mumbai, Bengaluru and Delhi had not been dissolved. Their terms had ended. Participating at an event at NGMA Mumbai yesterday, Palekar had described as disastrous the Ministrys decision to disband the advisory committees of local artists at NGMA galleries in Mumbai and Bengaluru and to take control of the gallery affairs. The Advisory Committees of NGMA Mumbai, Bengaluru and Delhi have not been dissolved. Their terms have ended recently Mumbai and Bengaluru committee terms ended on November 15, 2018 and of Delhi on January 27, 2019. The committees are in the process of being reconstituted, NGMA Director General Adwait Gadanayak said in a statement today. Reacting to Palekars remarks that the retrospective on late artist Prabhakar Barwe will be the last show decided by the committee of local artists, NGMA said the recommendations of previous Advisory Committees (which are up to December 2019 for NGMA Mumbai) will be honoured and exhibitions of artists will happen as proposed. The Ministry also clarified that the new advisory committee will take a decision relating to future exhibitions. On permanent collections, NGMA DG said, NGMA proposes to display its own collections, including artworks by great masters, initially over a two-year period. Some artists have expressed their apprehensions about availability of less space for temporary exhibitions and retrospectives. NGMA is deliberating on suggestions received from artists, and a final decision will be taken shortly in consultation with all stakeholders. Palekar had yesterday walked off the stage after Suhas Bahulkar, former chairman of NGMA Mumbai committee, and NGMA director Anita Rupavataram intervened and asked the actor to focus his speech on Barwes work. amansharma@tribunemail.com New Delhi, February 10 Judging is "under stress" in the digital era, a Supreme Court judge said on Sunday, lamenting that even before a case is taken up by the court, people start discussing on social media what the outcome "should be" which has an influence on the judges. Talking on "Freedom of press in the digital age" at the first Law Association For Asia and the Pacific (LAWASIA) conference here, Justice A K Sikri said the freedom of press is changing the paradigm of civil and human rights and the current pattern of media trials is an example of it. "Media trials were there earlier also. But today what is happening is that when an issue is raised, a petition is filed, (and) even before it is taken up by the court, people start discussing what should be the outcome. Not what 'is' the outcome, (but) what 'should be' the outcome. And let me tell you from my experience here that it has an influence on how a judge decides a case. "It is not so much in the Supreme Court because by the time they come to the apex court they are quite matured and they know how the case is to be decided on the basis of law irrespective of what is happening in the media. Today judging is under stress," Justice Sikri said. He said the power of contempt of court is not being used that much. "Few years ago, it has always been an opinion that once a judgment was rendered by the court, be it the Supreme Court, high courts or any trial court, you have every right to criticise the judgement. Now there is slander or defamatory speeches even against judges who gave that judgment. And still not much is said on this," Justice Sikri said. Additional Solicitor General Madhavi Goradia Divan, one of the speakers at the conference, also expressed her concurring views and said on social media, there is a huge blur between news and fake news, news and opinion, citizens and journalists. Divan said one of the challenges was that with the growth of Twitter, lawyers have become activists too. And in that quest for activism and stardom, she added, one should not eclipse one's professional duties as the casualty would be independence of the judiciary and matters would be decided for the "wrong" reasons. "It is all right to be an activist now and then. But when one has appeared on those cases, argued in those cases, tweeting immediately after (hearing) can conflict with your professional duties," she said. Divan said though the requirement is that one needs to be an accredited journalist to be able to report from the Supreme Court, "for the rest, there is Twitter". "It is true that you (a lawyer) have a much better understanding of the law and the justice delivery system than a journalist, but at the same time there is certain shallowness to Twitter which may distort the public understanding of how the justice delivery system works. "I think it can put the judge under pressure because the judges as much as they are trained to decide shorn of media reportage, we know they are as human as anybody else and we should not distract them from deciding independently shorn of all media pressures. The casualty would be independence of judiciary and matters would be decided for the wrong reasons. Justice Sikri said the media has undergone a complete transformation in the digital age and now "we are in the era of paid and fake news". "It is becoming very alarming but we are in the era of paid and fake news because of the digital era. Stories are created...and somebody puts it on any digital mode and these, in few hours time, become viral. The reach is a billion people," he said. He said though social media has become a watchdog, there was a challenge to human rights also as there is a real threat of surveillance by both private and public players. "How data is mined, how players like Facebook, WhatsApp etc collate data, how they can see what their consumers' choices and preferences are. If it affects the freedom of people, privacy of people, then it becomes a very dangerous instrument. And issues of dignity comes in," he said. Divan also emphasised on how people's dependence on social media for information have led tech titans and corporates to gather individual data and feed-curated information. "The more people depend on social media for news and information, we know that tech titans have allowed themselves to plant customised or curated news based on the social profiling of individuals," she said. She talked about how most journalists today gather information from social media platforms, rather than being on field. "This is definitely impacting the capacity of independent news gathering. It's not only the easy way out, I would say it is a great dereliction of duty on the part of the mainstream media because it is denying public access to credible, truthful information. There is absolutely no substitute to credible, accountable media. I think more than ever before we need that media now to be able to sift the truth from untruth and the grain from chaff," Divan said. - PTI laxmi@tribune.com Vijay Mohan Tribune News Service Chandigarh, February 9 Though the sanctity of the international border continues to remain a cause for concern, the number of intrusions has come down by almost a half over the past four years. In 2015, the number of intrusion incidents recorded was 1,098, which came down to 575 in 2018, Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju told Parliament on February 6. The numbers were 885 in 2016 and 629 in 2017. Till January 24, 27 incidents of intrusion were reported. India shares borders with Pakistan and China, parts of which are disputed, as well as with Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and Bangladesh. Owing to geographical vagaries and demography, the borders are vulnerable to illegal migration, infiltration by terrorists and smuggling, especially narcotics and fake currency. Peacetime management of the international border is the responsibility of the Home Ministry that oversees the functioning of four central border guarding forces Assam Rifles for Myanmar, Indo-Tibetan Border Police Force for China, Border Security Force for Pakistan and Bangladesh, and Sashastra Seema Bal for Nepal and Bhutan. Guarding the LoC with Pakistan and the Line of Actual Control with China is the responsibility of the Army and elements of the BSF and ITBP are co-deployed with the Army. To plug vulnerabilities along the border, several enhanced technological measures are being implemented. The envisioned Comprehensive Integrated Border Management System (CIBMS) has been kicked off with two pilot projects in the western sector. The CIBMS uses a number of different sensors for surveillance, communication and data storage, enabling round-the-clock surveillance on border under different weather conditions, be it in dust storm, fog or rain. Rijiju also told Parliament that the government has adopted the use of space technology in border management. Island development, border security, communication and navigation, Geographic Information System and border infrastructure development are the areas that have been identified for this. To execute the project, short, medium and long-term plans have been approved for implementation in five years. uttara@tribuneindia.com Our Correspondent Jaipur, February 10 The agitation launched by the Gurjar Aarakshan Sangharsh Samiti (GASS) demanding 5 per cent reservation in jobs and educational institutions turned violent in Dholpur district today as shots were fired, five cops sustained injuries and three police vehicles were torched. Agitators resorted to stone-pelting and firing while holding a protest on the Agra-Morena highway at Dholpur district headquarters. SP Ajay Singh said the police used teargas shells to disperse the protesters. Gurjars have been holding a sit-in on railway tracks in Malarna Dungar of Sawai Madhopur district since Friday evening. The agitation spread as Gurjar leader Kirori Singh Bainsla refused to call it off. Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, who returned after a two-day visit to Delhi, said Bainsla had said the protest would be peaceful. There might be some miscreants involved in the Dholpur incident, but a Gurjar delegation should come for talks with a ministerial panel, he added. Roadways buses remained off the Sawai Madhopur-Dholpur highway. Bus services have been suspended on the Hindon-Karauli sections of the highway covering Alwar, Bharatpur and Mathura since yesterday. Bainsla said, Congress minister Vishwendra Singh and IAS officer Neeraj Pawan had come for talks yesterday. They wanted us to send a delegation to Jaipur. Everything on quota would have to be solved in writing at this very spot. The Congress government is not serious. laxmi@tribune.com Tribune News Service New Delhi, February 9 Foreign Offices of China and India today engaged in a statement war over Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Arunachal Pradesh. Chinas reaction was elaborate while India restricted itself to reiterating that the state was an integral and inalienable part of India. The MEA also pointed out that the Chinese side had been frequently informed that in line with this approach, Indian leaders often visited Arunachal, as they did any other state for political stocktaking. China usually reserves its ire against the President, PM and the Dalai Lama visiting Arunachal. But in a break from the post-Wuhan summit bonhomie, it had also opposed Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharamans tour of military installations in the state. India never objects to visits of Chinese PLA generals to Aksai Chin, to which it lays claim. India, said the Chinese Foreign Office, should take into consideration bilateral ties by respecting Chinese interests and concerns, cherish the momentum of improving relations, and not take any action that will complicate the border dispute. Curiously, this sabre-rattling takes place at a time when Russia, India and China (RIC) are considering a trilateral ministerial in Beijing to coordinate positions and keep communication channels open while India enters the election mode. That meeting, planned for this month-end, could be in jeopardy after US President Donald Trump announced a summit meeting with the North Korean leader on one of the proposed RIC dates. Chinas opposition to high-level visits to Arunachal is treated as a rite of passage, but straws in the wind suggest the need to calm down tensions. In January, Chinese construction workers had transgressed into the Indian side in the Upper Siang border district. They went back after Indian forces asked them to do so. Modi, during his visit, inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of projects worth over Rs 4,000 crore. editorial@tribune.com Changsari (Assam), February 9 Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday assured the people of Assam and the North-East that the citizenship Bill will in no way cause harm to their interests. Addressing a rally in this Assembly constituency of Assam Health Minister and BJP-led NEDA convener Himanta Biswa Sarma, Modi said the NDA government is committed to protecting the language, culture, resources, hopes and aspirations of the people of Assam and the North-East. It is a national commitment to the people of the North-East that they will not be harmed in any way and citizenship will be only granted after due investigation and recommendation of the state governments, Modi said. It must be understood that there is a difference between those who forcefully entered the country and those who were forced to flee their homes to save their lives due to their faith. Both are not the same, he asserted. We have committed to provide shelter to those who are minorities in neighbouring countries and had to leave everything due to the atrocities inflicted on them. They have come to our country and embraced the idea and ethos of Mother India, he said. The Prime Minister also said that the BJP is committed to implementing the 36-year-old Assam Accord and a committee set up on the implementation of its Clause 6 is a step in that direction. The government wants to make Assam the oil and gas hub of the country and in the last four years projects worth Rs 14,000 crore have been completed, he said. The Prime Minister peppered his speech with sentences in Assamese, paid rich tributes to the states icons Srimanata Sankardeva, Madhavdeva, Azan Fakir, Chaolung Sukapha, Lachit Barphukan, Gopinath Bordoloi and Bhupen Hazarika. He said the previous governments failed to honour these icons and it was the BJP government which took the initiative of conferring the Bharat Ratna on Assams first Chief Minister Gopinath Bordoloi during Atal Bihari Vajpayees term and now to music legend Hazarika. Prior to the rally, the Prime Minister laid the foundation stone of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences to be set up at Changsari. He also laid the foundation of the six-lane bridge over Brahmaputra connecting Guwahati and North Guwahati. PTI pardeepdhull@gmail.com Kolkata, February 10 BJP leader Mukul Roy was among the four people booked on Sunday in connection with the killing of Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA Satyajit Biswas in West Bengals Nadia district, the police said. Roy, on his part, said the decision to name him in the FIR was politically motivated. A West Bengal Police officer told PTI that two of the four people named in the FIR have been arrested. So far, we have arrested two persons in this case and detained another three. A country-made revolver used to shoot the MLA has also been recovered. As per our primary findings, it seems that the victim was fired from behind and the act was the result of a well planned plot, he said. Asked about the chances of the assailants fleeing the area, the officer said the state police has been put on a high alert. Nadia shares border with Bangladesh and there could be a possibility of them (assailants) trying to escape to the neighbouring country. The police have been put on high alert to check the movements along the border, he said. Biswas (41), who represented Krishnaganj constituency in the Assembly, was shot from point-blank range by unidentified assailants on Saturday evening inside a Saraswati puja marquee at Phoolbari area in the district, bordering Bangladesh. He was immediately taken to a local hospital where doctors announced him brought dead. His body was brought home from the hospital on Sunday morning for last rites, amid a blame-game between the ruling party and opposition BJP leaders over who was responsible for the death. A large crowd gathered to pay last respects to the deceased MLA at his residence, a few metres away from the Saraswati Puja marquee where he was shot. Roy, a former TMC Member of Parliament, said the legislators killing could be a result of infighting within the TMC. Roy joined the BJP last year after his relations with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee soured. Naming me in the FIR is absolutely a politically motivated move. I am sorry about Satyajits death, but the manner in which they (TMC leaders) are trying to hold the BJP responsible is nothing but a dirty conspiracy, Roy said. Roy said Biswas was surrounded by TMC party workers and activists when he was shot dead. You have to think about it. Satyajit was surrounded by his partymen when he was shot. How did the killers manage to go near him. It is quite clear as to what happened. TMC secretary-general Partha Chatterjee, however, alleged that those who killed the MLA belonged to the saffron party. Along with partys Nadia district observer Anubrata Mondal, who asserted that the none of the perpetrators will be spared, Partha Chatterjee accompanied the MLAs hearse to his residence from the hospital. Partha said the Chief Minister was shocked to learn about the incident. Those who think that they will gain by eliminating Satyajit are living in a fools paradise, he said. Urban Development Minister Firhad Hakim also squarely blamed the BJP for the killing of Biswas, who belonged to the Matua community deemed vital as a support base in Bengal. The Prime Minister came to woo the Matua community in Thakurnagar last week. Now, the local BJP leaders are resorting to criminal activities to gain political turf, he said. Denying allegations of BJPs involvement, the partys state president, Dilip Ghosh, demanded a CBI investigation into the killing. An independent probe will reveal the truth, he said. Ghosh echoed Roys sentiments saying Biswas was a victim of internal feud within the ruling party. If an MLA gets killed like this, how can the common man feel safe? he asked. PTI pardeepdhull@gmail.com Naveen S Grewal Tribune News Service Hyderabad, February 10 Anti-Modi posters emerged across Andhra Pradesh ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the state on Sunday. Posters have come up across the state with the slogans "No more Modi" and "Modi never again. The Prime Minister is scheduled to visit Guntur, Tirupur and Raichur today. Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu has been accusing the BJP-led NDA of not living up to its promises made at the time of bifurcation of the state into Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. He has asked TDP workers to lead a Gandhian-type of protest, while the BJP has asked its workers to make the Modis visit a success. Protests have been reported from 13 districts so far with slogans like Modi go back. MP Ram Mohan Reddy has written an open letter to the Prime Minister reiterating states demands from the Centre. Meanwhile, security has been beefed up ahead of Modis first visit to the state after the TDP pulled out of the NDA. shalender@tribune.com Queen Anne costume romp The Favourite looks set to scoop more movie honours on Sunday as the awards season cavalcade swings into London for the BAFTAs. The British Academy of Film and Television Arts ceremony is the most esteemed event outside the United States during the annual awards season, further whipping up the fervour for films ahead of the Oscars on February 24. The Favourite leads the BATFAs race with 12 nominations. Britains Olivia Colman is tipped to win Leading Actress for her portrayal of the 18th century queen as frail, childish and tempestuous in a role that has won her several awards already. Co-stars Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz are in the running for their supporting roles in which they bid for the affection of the British monarch, director Yorgos Lanthimos has been nominated and the movie also received nods for Best Film and Outstanding British Film. Great going Netflix black and white family portrait Roma, Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody, musical remake A Star Is Born and space drama First Man each have seven nominations. Political comedy Vice has six. Bohemian Rhapsody could see Rami Malek win Leading Actor for his portrayal of late Queen frontman Freddie Mercury after bagging a Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Award for the role. For Supporting Actress, Margot Robbie, Claire Foy and Amy Adams respectively for Mary Queen of Scots, First Man and Vice join the race. The Supporting Actor winner will be among Richard E. Grant for Can You Ever Forgive Me?, Sam Rockwell for Vice, Mahershala Ali for Green Book, Timothee Chalamet for Beautiful Boy and Adam Driver for BlacKkKlansman. The nights biggest prize will be Best Film where alongside The Favourite, Roma, Green Book, set in the segregated U.S. South in the early 1960s, A Star Is Born and BlacKkKlansman are also nominated. The ceremony will be held at Londons Royal Albert Hall, where Britains Prince William and his wife Kate are also expected alongside Hollywood attendees. Reuters shriaya.dutt@tribuneindia.com Mumbai, February 10 Actor Mahesh Anand, who played negative roles in a number of Bollywood films in the '80s and '90s, was found dead at his residence in suburban Andheri, a police official said on Sunday. When the 57-year-old actor's maid came to work at his house on Saturday, she knocked at the door but there was no response. The maid then informed Anand's neighbours who alerted the police. Later, the police broke open the door and found him dead, the official said. According to police, the actor apparently died two days back. Versova police station's senior inspector Ravindra Badgujar said the exact cause of the death would be known after the post mortem. "Nothing suspicious has been found," he added. Anand acted in several films, including megastar Amitabh Bachchan-starrer "Ganga Jamuna Saraswati", "Shahenshah", "Lal Badshah", and also hit films like "Thanedaar", "Coolie No.1" and "Baaghi". He was last seen in the recently released film "Rangeela Raja", starring actor Govinda. PTI editorial@tribune.com Arteev Sharma Tribune News Service Jammu, February 9 Noted diplomats and national security experts of the country on Saturday favoured more people-to-people contact to ease the strained relations between India and Pakistan, saying it will sort out a lot of misgivings and misconceptions among the people on both sides of the Line of Control (LoC). The experts had gathered to deliberate on the theme, Transboundary Issues in South Asia-Indus Water Treaty (IWT) and Indo-Pak Relations, during a day-long seminar organised by the department of national security studies, Central University of Jammu (CUJ). In his address, former Ambassador and Chancellor, CUJ, G Parthasarthy advocated for youth-exchange programmes to clear the misgivings and misunderstandings on both sides of the LoC. I firmly believe that at some stage when things calm down, the best way for the youth on both sides of the LoC would be to meet. Having been on the other side of the LoC, I think a lot of misgivings and misunderstandings about India will be sorted out when we have youth-exchange programmes, Parthasarthy said. The former Ambassador said the aam aadmi (common man) on the other side of the LoC (Pakistan) wanted to live a peaceful life. We should be very clear as how we are going to deal with Pakistan. Dont treat every Pakistani as a bad guy, he said, adding that we (India) need to be upfront while dealing with Pakistan. Former Ambassador TCA Raghavan, who is also the director general of the Indian Council for World Affairs, said a holistic policy would help both nations to prosper. The inconsistencies in the bilateral ties will remain but there is an enormous potential for encouraging people-to-people contact and having a restricted visa policy is not a holistic approach to deal with Pakistan, he said. Raghavan said the encouraging contact between academicians, political class, scholars and journalists of the two sides had to be an intrinsic part of Indias policy. Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain, Chancellor, Central University of Kashmir, spoke on the military perspectives on the Indo-Pak relations, saying Pakistans aim is to prevent India from achieving its aspirations besides keeping India militarily and diplomatically imbalanced. Other key speakers included Balraj Joshi, chairman and managing director, National Hydroelectric Power Corporation, former Ambassador Phunchok Stobdan andAmitabh Mattoo. amansharma@tribunemail.com Tribune News Service Srinagar, February 10 Former chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Sunday praised Pakistani Prime Minister on pro-minority stance and criticised the Centre saying their "top priority is seemingly renaming historic cities and building Ram Mandir." She was reacting to tweet where Pakistani PM Imran Khan announced that he was taking steps to name the wild life reserve and a new university after Guru Nanak Dev. "How times change. Centre's top priority is seemingly renaming historic cities & building Ram Mandir. On the other hand , heartening to see that Pak PM has initiated steps to name Baloki forest reserve after Guru Nanak ji & create a university under his name," Mehbooba Mufti tweeted. PDP was in alliance with BJP in J&K till June last year before BJP pulled out. Mehbooba defended her stance on drawing parallels between India and Pakistan. "Whatever I have said is not wrong. All the old buildings and cities with Muslim names are being changed to Hindu names. Moreover, you have seen there is race between parties to construct temple over the place of martyred Babri mosque," Mehbooba told reporters in Handwara area of frontier Kupwara district. She added the politics in the country is being played over Hindutva. "Muslims are being lynched in the name of cow slaughter. Instead of taking action as you have seen in case of MP where Congress is in power it has booked three Muslims under NSA (National Security Act). The politics is being played over Hindutva and there is a competition between parties over it," she said. sanjiv@tribunemail.com Avneet Kaur Jalandhar, February 9 The district government schools are leaving no stone unturned to increase the enrolment of students in their respective government schools. The school heads and teachers are adopting one or the other innovative ideas to promote their schools. One such unique idea has come up from Government Girls Senior Secondary School, Bilga, wherein the girl students of the school have been made the brand ambassador and given the responsibility to interact with the locals and encourage them to enrol their wards at government schools. The school had also got pamphlets printed in which the detailed information of the brand ambassador ( the students) was given including the name, age, class, time period since she has been studying at the school, experiences she had, the changes that have come in after the implementation of Parho Punjab Parhao Punjab Project and impact of other activities. . Simran and Monika who are representing the school as brand ambassadors have addressed various facilities available at the school. Appealing residents to visit the school and enrol their wards. They had also shared their experience saying that environment in the school is no less than private school, said District Coordinator Parho Punjab, Varinderveer Singh. Divulging details on how this idea of making students the brand ambassador came from, one of the teachers said: The new activities, the revamped government schools and exposure to new technology everything is being done for the students. Therefore, they are the only one who can explain the changes brought at the school to the masses in the best way. Besides, being brand ambassadors they get an opportunity to interact with the public, have conversations, as a result of which they gain confidence and develop their personality as leaders, she added. Meanwhile, in the pamphlet, a brief detail of the activities going on at the school, various facilities like smart boards, generators, RO system, LEDs, e-content and revamp building have been mentioned. editorial@tribune.com Tribune News Service Ambala, February 9 Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal on Saturday sounded the poll bugle of his party in Haryana by urging Sikhs to unite under the banner of his party. Addressing a rally here, he kept his focus on the schemes his government had started in Punjab for the welfare of farmers and the poor. He promised to provide free power to Haryana farmers on the pattern of Punjab if voted to power. Communities that remain united are stronger. Sikhs are only 2 per cent of the population, but we have more representatives than Muslims in Parliament because they are divided. Sikhs can decide the fate of 40 legislators in the forthcoming Assembly elections in Haryana, he said. He called upon party workers to launch door-to-door campaigns. He refrained from making any critical comment on the state and Central governments, where SAD ally BJP was in power. His wife Harsimrat Kaur Badal is a Union Minister. Parties are getting divided in Haryana and the time has come to unite power of the Panth. When Bhajan Lal or Bansi Lal were in power, the police used to come to your deras, Sukhbir said. Accusing the Congress of being the biggest enemy of Sikhs, he said the SAD had fought for justice to the 1984 riot victims. Sajjan Kumar was incarcerated for life because of our efforts and Jagdish Tytler would meet the same fate, he said. editorial@tribune.com Saurabh Malik Tribune News Service Chandigarh, February 9 In a significant order with far-reaching repercussions, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has turned down a plea of the UT Administration that the posts of assistant medical officer could not be filled on regular basis as the corresponding cadre in Punjab was declared dying. A Division Bench of the High Court also virtually rapped the UT Administration for wrongly dubbing the posts of its doctors as contractual, since they underwent regular selection process before their appointment in 1997. The Bench of Justice Rajiv Sharma and Justice Harinder Singh Sidhu also made it clear that nomenclature of the post was wrongly marked as contractual, since the respondent-doctors had undergone selection process on a regular basis. The Bench asserted that the doctors had, in fact, gone through the same process required to be undergone while filling the posts on regular basis. The Bench also turned down the UT appeal against Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) ruling that the respondent-doctors should have been appointed on regular basis. The Chandigarh Administration had issued advertisements strictly in accordance with the recruitment rules and regulations before the respondent-doctors participated in the selection process. They were interviewed by a duly constituted committee before being offered appointment in 1997 on contractual basis. Taking into consideration the recruitment and promotion rules coupled with the fact that the doctors were found suitable, CAT gave a finding that the doctors should have been appointed on regular basis though they were chosen on contractual basis. The employer was directed to pass appropriate orders for treating them as regular employees from the date of their completing 10 years in service. Speaking for the Bench, Justice Sharma asserted that the stand taken by the Chandigarh Administration and other petitioners before the tribunal was that the corresponding cadre in Punjab was declared dying. As such, the posts could not be filled on regular basis. Dismissing the petition filed against Dr Anjali Gupta and other respondents on the grounds that it was devoid of merit, Justice Sharma asserted: This plea cannot be accepted as the Union Territory is a different entity. It was always open for it to fill posts on regular basis instead of filling the same on contractual basis. There is no illegality or perversity in the order of the tribunal. Justice Sharma also directed the UT and its authorities to grant all consequential benefits to the doctors, strictly as per an earlier judgment dated August 17, 2010, by counting their contractual period also for the purposes of seniority, promotion, arrears of salary, fixation of pay etc. editorial@tribune.com Ramkrishan Upadhyay Tribune News Service Chandigarh, February 9 After jumping two deadlines, the Municipal Corporation is all set to complete the work on phase 5 and 6 of the Kajauli water pipeline project by February 20. The project will pave the way for providing 24/7 water supply to the city residents. The work of desilting the water connecting tank along the Bhakra main line is being done on a war footing. Later, the engineering department will connect the tank with the two additional pipelines, which will carry additional 40 MGD water to Chandigarh. Panchkula and Chandimandir will also get their share from the additional water. Mayor Rajesh Kumar Kalia, accompanied by former Mayor Arun Sood and other councillors, reviewed the project at the site today. Harish Saini, Executive Engineer, said removing silt from the water connecting tank using a super suction machine would be completed by tomorrow. The Mayor said GMADA officials had been told to be prepared for testing of 16 pumping stations by February 14 as by then the work on intake connection of pipelines would be completed. On February 20, the final trial for supplying raw water from Kajauli and Jandpur to the Sector 39 waterworks would be held. The pumping machinery at Jandpur has been tested. Electricity connection has also been released. The pump house is fully functional. The work on a 15 MGD water treatment plant, raw water storage tanks and underground reservoir is completed at the Sector 39 waterworks. With the completion of the project, the city will get additional 29 MGD water. Presently, the city is receiving 87 MGD water supply. Out of this, 68 MGD comes from Kajauli canal. The rest is generated through tubewells. NP Sharma, Superintending Engineer, Public Health Department, said the additional water supply would meet the water demand of the city for the next 30 years. MC spent Rs 300 cr on project The MC has spent around Rs 300 crore on the project. While around Rs 196 crore were given to GMADA for laying the pipelines and other works, the civic body spent Rs 23 crore on setting up a water supply line from Kajauli to the Sector 39 waterworks and Rs 18 crore on a water treatment plant. Rs 45 crore have been spent at Jandpur. Deadlines missed pardeepdhull@gmail.com New Delhi, February 10 Japanese carmaker Honda has stopped production of its entry-level hatchback Brio in India, cutting short the vehicles over seventeen-year long stint in the country. Honda Cars India, the companys wholly-owned subsidiary, plans to maximise sales and visibility of its compact sedan Amaze which would now be its entry-level offering in the Indian market. Our entry car is now Amaze. We have stopped production of Brio and as of now we do not intend to bring next generation Brio into India, Honda Cars India Senior Vice President and Director (Sales and Marketing) Rajesh Goel said. Customer preference has started to shift towards comparatively bigger models, a trend similar to other global markets. A sedan was the top seller in India last year. It is a typical motorisation cycle followed in every country and its just that in India the upgradation pace is much slower than other countries, Goyal said. Theoretically, this change should have happened 6-7 years earlier, he added. When asked if the company would like to bring in any new entry-level model in Brios place, Goyal said: Amaze is gong to be our entry model in the Indian market. Jazz and WR-V are other two models which would cater to the small car requirements, he added. Honda had launched Brio in September 2001 and has sold around 97,000 units till date. In 2017, the auto maker had stopped selling its multi purpose vehicle (MPV) Mobilio in the country due to poor demand. Launched in July 2014 in India, Honda had sold a total of 40,789 units of Mobilio in the country. PTI editorial@tribune.com Our Correspondent Tarn Taran, February 9 Gurdev Singh Bara of Butala village in Kapurthala district, who was responsible for sending a couple to Armenia, has been arrested by the city police from Piddi village, 10 kms from here today. The accused was one of a three-member gang who sent the couple after taking an amount of Rs 4 lakh leaving behind them to face the hardships there. The issue was highlighted by AAP member of the Lok Sabha Bhagwant Mann through the social media which Sushma Swaraj, Union Foreign Minister, took seriously and helped in bringing back the couple to the country. The couple, Shamsher Singh and his wife Pinki of Ibrahimwal (Kapurthala), were sent to Armenia by the fake travel agents led by Gurdev Singh after taking an amount of Rs 4 lakh two months back. The couple was assured by the members of the gang to settle them there after getting them jobs but failed to do so. The couple was facing hardships which was brought to the notice of Bhagwant Mann by the relatives of the victims. The accused Gurdev Singh, besides his associates, Paramjit Kaur and Harpreet Kaur, have been booked under section 420 of the IPC and Section 13 of the Punjab Prevention of Human Smuggling Act-2012 by the Begowal police a few days back. Deputy Superintendent of Police Sucha Singh Bal said the accused had been absconding and the district police was informed today that Gurdev Singh was moving around in the area in an Innova car. The city police led by sub-inspector Sukhraj Singh got the information through information technology, the location of their mobile, following which the police nabbed him from Piddi village. A woman too was asked to be present in the car with the arrested accused but the police was refusing to give the details of the woman. DSP Sucha Singh said the accused Gurdev Singh had been handed over to DSP Bhulath for further proceedings. Mark Bennett has reported and analyzed news from the Wabash Valley and beyond since Larry Bird wore Sycamore blue. That role with the Tribune-Star has taken him from Rome to Alaska and many points in between, but Terre Haute suits him best. Follow Mark Bennett Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today AP fileSupreme Court overturned decision: Rev. Arthur Terminiello, assistant pastor of St. Stephens Catholic Church, reads a dispatch in Pensacola, Fla., on May 16, 1949 of the U.S. Supreme Courts ruling which cleared him of disorderly conduct charges growing out of a speech delivered in February, 1946. Stay up to date on COVID-19 Get Breaking News Sign up now to get our FREE breaking news coverage delivered right to your inbox. Sponsored By: Dorsett Automotive Students console each other as they weep during a Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018 candlelight vigil for the victims of the Feb. 14, 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, in Parkland, Fla. Nikolas Cruz, a former student, was charged with 17 counts of premeditated murder on Thursday. L.A. Parker is a Trentonian columnist. Find him on Twitter @LAParker6 or email him at LAParker@Trentonian.com. Government Virginia Democrats might want to just clean house featured Humor Jokes, good ones or bad ones, help get us through the day Jeff Edelstein is a columnist for The Trentonian. He can be reached at jedelstein@trentonian.com, facebook.com/jeffreyedelstein and @jeffedelstein on Twitter. Company donates $2M to KU for cryptocurrency technology LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) - A Silicon Valley company has donated $2 million to the University of Kansas to support research related to cryptocurrency and digital payments, such as Bitcoin. The university says in a news release that the donation from Ripple will provide $400,000 each year for five years. After, fans of this tech currency are eager to build up their credibility once more and now look to the NEXTGEN as their best potential customers.Read more: [February 10, 2019] Japan Rock Band CHAI Partners with PicsArt, #1 Photo & Video-Editing App, to Creatively Engage with Fans CHAI joins Gwen Stefani, Thirty Seconds to Mars, Maroon 5, and other music artists embracing PicsArt's mobile-native, creative community to launch fan art challenges SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 11, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- PicsArt , the world's largest creative platform and social editing app, today announced that it has partnered with Japanese rock band CHAI to launch a fan art challenge that asks fans to redefine the traditional concept of "Kawaii" ("cute" in Japanese). CHAI is the latest band to join other marquee music artists including Gwen Stefani , Thirty Seconds to Mars , Maroon 5 , DJ Snake and more who recognize PicsArt as a massive obile platform to reach millions of millennial and Gen-Z creators. CHAI, a rock band that originated in Tokyo, is launching a PicsArt edit challenge encouraging fans to "remix" their album images to redefine the concept of "Kawaii." CHAI defines themselves and their music as "Neo-Kawaii" (meaning "new-cute" in Japanese) and are aiming to break free from the conventional Japanese beauty standards of 'long legs, pale skin, and big eyes.' To promote this movement, CHAI will run an image challenge on PicsArt using creative, original, "Neo-Kawaii" edits, including use of PicsArt's stickers, image assets, photo-enhancing brushes, edit tools, and more. "Today's social media landscape offers artists unprecedented ways to communicate directly with fans; artists now want to go even further by enabling fans to join the process of creative self-expression," said Tammy H. Nam, COO of PicsArt. "CHAI acknowledges PicsArt as a true 'fandom app,' helping its global audience of young, socially savvy users create, share, and spread content that expresses their love for specific artists or bands. Fans can be fully creative, collaborate with a like-minded community, and engage directly with the artist, all in one place." The CHAI fan art challenge kicks off today and runs for one week, ending on February 18. Since late 2017, PicsArt has hosted dozens of fan art challenges for musicians and brands , including MTV, Swarovski, Capital Cities, Lindsey Stirling and more, which have generated hundreds of thousands of fan art submissions from the PicsArt community and hundreds of millions of social impressions on and off PicsArt. About PicsArt PicsArt is the world's largest creative platform, powered by more than 130 million monthly active users and influencers. Every month, the PicsArt community creates, remixes, and shares nearly one billion images and videos, making it the largest open-source content collection of its kind, with free-to-edit photos, images, stickers, and more. PicsArt is available in 30 languages for free and as a subscription on iOS, Android, and Windows devices. Headquartered in San Francisco with offices in Armenia, Los Angeles, Beijing, and Moscow, PicsArt is backed by Sequoia Capital, DCM Ventures, Insight Venture Partners, and Siguler Guff and Company. Download the app now or visit PicsArt.com or Picsart.com/brands/ for more information. Contact Info: Kristin Tinsley Director of Communications, PicsArt press@picsart.com PicsArt Press Kit Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/800051/PicsArt_Logo.jpg SOURCE PicsArt [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] Many of the not an inch Brexit commentators are very far removed from the reality that will face Irish farming and the wider agri-food sector on Monday 1 April, according to ICMSA president Pat McCormack. Their salaries and income will continue uninterrupted and not miss a beat, said the Tipperary-based leader. However, he said that it was very different for the farmers producing the milk, beef and other farm products who will be priced out of markets that we have held for decades, if not centuries. Theres a world of difference between an executive talking in abstract terms about the damage done to our dairy sector by a no deal Brexit and the farmer getting up to milk the cows to supply the milk to a co-op that made Cheddar for a UK retailer, he said. Its the difference between knowing that heart disease is a bad thing and feeling a severe thump in your chest, said the ICMSA president. Mr McCormack warned that there was an air of weary resignation beginning to grip the mood of Irish farming as attitudes and opinions around events in Westminster seemed to harden on all sides. Stressing that ICMSA was in no way diverging from the Irish position that there could not be any resumption of a physical border between north and south, the ICMSA president was nevertheless adamant that public statements and not an inch attitudes looked very different depending on how directly linked your family income was to our 5bn worth of food exports to the UK. While he was not questioning the right of Irish policymakers to decide our national interests, as a farmer and as the leader of a farm organisation, he was struck by how resolute and calm certain people seem to be about the prospect of a no deal Brexit. Mr McCormack said that the Government could count on farmers to stand with them in the national interest but, at the same time, it was time that the Government and the EU showed that they understood that for Irish farmers this was literally a matter of economic survival and not some marketing or passing economic hiccup. Let us be very clear. Farmers selling calves, weanlings, stores and finished cattle are already suffering Brexit-related losses and there isnt a word from our national or EU politicians on what they are going to do to support these farmers. Farmers need answers, and they need them now because they are already taking the Brexit hit, he said Andrew "Andy" J. Martin, 78, of Gastonia, NC formerly of Fairmont, passed away peacefully in the presence of his family on Tuesday, June 15, 2021. He was born on May 14, 1943 in Fairmont son of the late John and Mary Coughlin Martin. He is survived by his children: Vickie Lynn (John Raymond) Beirut U.S.-backed and Kurdish-led Syrian forces said Saturday they have launched a final push to defeat the Islamic State group in the last tiny pocket the extremists hold in eastern Syria. Syrian Democratic Forces spokesman Mustafa Bali tweeted that the offensive began Saturday after more than 20,000 civilians were evacuated from the IS-held area in the eastern province of Deir el-Zour. An SDF statement said the offensive was focused on the village of Baghouz. The SDF, backed by U.S. air power, has driven IS from large swaths of territory it once controlled in northern and eastern Syria, confining extremists to a small pocket near the border with Iraq. Scores of IS fighters are now besieged in two villages, or less than once percent of the self-styled caliphate that once sprawled across large parts of Syria and Iraq. In recent weeks, thousands of civilians, including families of IS fighters, left areas controlled by the extremists. "The decisive battle began tonight to finish what remains of Daesh terrorists," Bali said, using an Arabic acronym to refer to IS. "The battle is very fierce," he later told The Associated Press. "Those remaining inside are the most experienced who are defending their last stronghold. According to this you can imagine the ferocity and size of the fighting." The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor, said SDF fighters are advancing "cautiously" due to mines planted by IS gunmen. It said U.S.-led coalition warplanes are giving cover to advancing SDF fighters. U.S. President Donald Trump predicted Wednesday that IS will lose all of its territory by next week. "It should be formally announced sometime, probably next week, that we will have 100 percent of the caliphate," Trump told representatives of the 79-member, U.S.-led coalition fighting IS. U.S. officials have said in recent weeks that IS has lost 99.5 percent of its territory and is holding onto fewer than 5 square kilometers in Syria, or less than 2 square miles, where the bulk of the fighters are concentrated. But activists and residents say IS still has sleeper cells in Syria and Iraq, and is laying the groundwork for an insurgency. U.S. military warned the group could stage a comeback if the military and counterterrorism pressure is eased. The Observatory said that since the SDF began an offensive against IS in the area in Sept., 1,279 IS gunmen and 678 SDF fighters have been killed plus 401 civilians, including 144 children and teens, have been killed since then. Earlier Saturday, IS militants attacked SDF fighters near an oil field in the country's east, triggering U.S. airstrikes. How do you try to get people to attend an hour-long legal discussion on a cold winter morning? Make it about legalizing marijuana. On Tuesday, Albany Law School's Government Law Center is holding the event "Challenges in Legalizing Marijuana" in the Assembly parlor in the state Capitol from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. It is part of the school's 2019 Warren M. Anderson Breakfast Seminar Series, which it described as an annual, nonpartisan breakfast program at the Capitol to coincide when state lawmakers are in session. Anderson, the late Senate majority leader from 1973 to 1988 and namesake for Interstate 88, was an Albany Law School graduate and later a member of Government Law Center Advisory Board. The forums held in his honor feature a panel of experts who will talk about a policy issue pending before the state Legislature, of which the legalization of recreational marijuana is one. "As New York moves toward legalizing," a promo for event on the school website stated, "important questions arise, including how government regulators will oversee quality-control; what kinds of businesses will be licensed to distribute it and in what forms they will be allowed to distribute it; whether to expunge the criminal records of those convicted of past offenses; preventing sales to the underage; safe driving; and limits on locations where smoking is permitted. Our panel will shed light on these important questions." In January, Gov. Andrew Cuomo pushed his Cannabis Regulation and Taxation Act. Cuomo's plan would impose three taxes on adult use of the weed to generate roughly $300 million in state revenue within three years. Taxes from the pot would pay for, among other things, monitoring, data gathering and programs to prevent substance abuse. Just one day earlier, activists with SAM NY, known as Smart Approaches to Marijuana New York, will be on the Assembly staircase urging lawmakers to reject a rush to marijuana commercialization. The group will be led by Kevin Sabet, a former drug policy adviser in the Obama administration. "Opposition to creating a 'Big Pot' industry is rapidly expanding because of the significant consequences to young people, public safety and health, and the costs to governments across the state," stated a news release for the event, where organizers promised to address "common misperceptions and misinformation about commercialized weed as well as facts about the fiscal impacts of legalization." Race has another candidate The Times Union reported Tuesday that nine candidates were running to fill two pending judge seats in Albany County Family Court. Now there are 10 candidates, including the latest name Law Beat learned: Christine Napierski, 54, the founding partner of Napierski, VanDenburgh, Napierski & O'Connor in Albany and a former Guilderland town justice. The other candidates include: Amy Joyce, 49, the law clerk to state Appellate Justice Michael Lynch; Senior Albany County Attorney Bill Andrews, 53, Attorney Daniel McGinn, 54, of Albany; Family law attorney David Jon Levy, 44, of Loudonville; Family Court support magistrate Jennifer Corona, 48; Attorney and mental health advocate Joseph Glazer, 58; Family law attorney Margaret Tabak, 57; retired Albany police Lt. Michael Barone, 52, a law guardian; and Alternate Public Defender Sherri Brooks, 40 The vacancies are due to Judge Gerard Maney's pending retirement and the election to state Supreme Court of former Family Court Judge Margaret Walsh. Leaders of 19 liberal organizations, including leading national grassroots groups, are calling for New York to keep its unique "fusion voting" system, which allows candidates to run on multiple political party ballot lines. Some New York Democratic Party leaders have called for an end to fusion by the state Legislature this year, which critics says gives minor parties outsized influence. A letter provided to the Times Union was signed by leaders of national liberal groups Indivisible and Moveon, women's rights advocates from the groups NARAL and UltraViolet, large community organizing networks, including CPD Action and People's Action, and Our Revolution, the organization that grew out of Sen. Bernie Sanders' 2016 campaign for president, among a dozen others. The groups are primarily interested in preserving the ballot line of the liberal Working Families Party, a national organization that began in New York. "It's surely true that the WFP prods and pushes Democrats to the left in primaries, which we think is essential both politically and in terms of the policy gains we seek," the letter states. "But it is equally true that WFP has helped Democrats win tough general election races up and down the ballot. And we see the WFP as a vital piece of progressive organizational infrastructure in New York and the nation." Besides some state Democratic Party leaders, Staten Island Democratic State Sen. Diane Savino, a former member of the now-defunct Independent Democratic Conference, has also called for an end of fusion. In the 2018 elections, six of its eight former IDC members were defeated in primaries by WFP-backed challengers. The WFP also has a fraught relationship Gov. Andrew Cuomo, given that it backed actress Cythnia Nixon in the 2018 Democratic primary for governor. Nixon, however, was defeated handily by Cuomo. "Any ban on fusion will inevitably be seen as retaliation against the WFP for supporting the new progressive state senators who defeated the IDC, and for backing Cynthia Nixon's primary challenge to Governor Cuomo," the letter states. "Using governmental power in a self-serving way that injures or destroys political rivals can only be described as Trumpian. And practically speaking, for Democrats seeking to govern and hold on to or grow their majorities, banning fusion will accomplish precisely the reverse as the WFP would no longer be allowed to support Democrats in general elections." A main reason fusion voting is now in jeopardy, however, is because Republicans no longer control the state Senate. The Senate GOP had benefited from its candidates routinely landing the endorsements of other minor parties, like the Conservative and Independence parties. Many political observes believe ending fusion voting would provide an electoral benefit to Democrats over Republicans, although the Democrats now hold a substantial majority in the state Senate, anyway. "Now that the D-WF alliance has ended Republican control of the State Senate, New York has a golden opportunity to show how government can really function to serve people," the letter states. "By contrast, if Democrats turn their fire on one of the standard-bearers of the progressive movement in New York, it will send an entirely negative message, and force us to marshal our members in defense of New York's fusion voting system." Cuomo officials have downplayed the idea that ending fusion voting is a major priority this legislative session. Politico New York also recently reported that U.S. Sens. Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand of New York had signed on in support of keeping fusion voting and the WFP, along with 17 members of the state's congressional delegation. TROY What law enforcement officials initially considered an airtight case against four Mexican nationals who faced murder charges for a 2016 double homicide has now fallen apart with a March 18 trial scheduled for a lone defendant charged with slaying one of the two victims. The Rensselaer County District Attorneys Office made a deal Jan. 31 with Salomon Najera Hernandez to plead guilty to second-degree burglary in exchange for a 5-year prison sentence four days before time ran out on a fourth attempt to indict him for murder. Now, only Luis Alfredo Monge Guevara is left facing murder charges for allegedly killing Jaiver Gomez Bartolon on October 17, 2016, in the apartment he shared with Cristian Gonzalez Hernandez on Troy's East Glen Avenue. None of the four defendants faces trial for slaying Cristian Gonzalez Hernandez on October 16, 2016 and dumping his body in a creek in Brunswick. Both victims also were from Mexico. Guevara is scheduled for pre-trial hearings Monday before State Supreme Court Justice Andrew Ceresia at the Rensselaer County Court House. Guevaras attorney Jay Hernandez could not be reached for comment. None of the three Hernandezs are related. Guevara was left as the only murder defendant when Ceresia dismissed two second-degree murder charges, two burglary counts and a conspiracy charge against Salomon Najera Hernandez on Dec. 21, 2018. Ceresia pointed out in his ruling that former District Attorney Joel E. Abeloves administration had failed again to corroborate the grand jury testimony against Hernandez. Ceresia also dismissed a first-degree murder count, two second-degree murder counts and kidnapping and conspiracy charges against Guevara in connection with Cristian Gonzalez Hernandezs death. Ceresia ruled, however, that there was DNA evidence to bolster the accomplice testimony against Guevara, also known as "Alfredo" or "El Gordo" or "El Diablo." for killing Bartolon. That leaves Guevara facing two counts of second-degree murder, and one count each of first-degree burglary, second-degree burglary and fourth-degree conspiracy for Bartolon's death. District Attorney District Attorney Mary Pat Donnelly inherited the case from Abelove. Donnelly decided to strike a deal that will provide her prosecutors with a second accomplice to testify against Guevara. "Coming in in January, we took quite a hard look at the case," Donnelly said. "The whole case is very concerning. We did the best we could do with what we got." As a result, Donnelly said, the decision was made to reach a plea agreement and not seek a fourth indictment of Salomon Najera Hernandez. Donnelly said she is concerned about obtaining justice for both victims. The offer from the previous administration was in the double digits. This offer was five years which we felt was much more reasonable, Theodore G. Hartman, the Albany attorney representing Salomon Najera Hernandez, said Friday. Hartman said his client was satisfied with the deal. Hernandez has been in the Rensselaer County Jail for abut 27 months since he was arrested and first indicted. Hernandez, also known as The Player or Tocador joined Magdaleno Perez Calixto, known as "George," in accepting a deal. Calixto pleaded guilty in Dec., 2017 to first-degree burglary and second-degree kidnapping, according to court records. Calixto is expected to be sentenced to eight years in prison when he appears before Ceresia on March 31. Salomon Najera Hernandez has an April 2 sentencing date. Cresencio "Chucho" Salazar, identified as the ringleader by police investigators, escaped prosecution and was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Batavia to be deported to Mexico. Abelove indicted Salazar twice, but each time Ceresia dismissed the charges. The district attorney didnt make a third attempt. Ceresia ruled the two homicides were separate cases since they were not planned together. This meant the district attorney's office had to provide corroboration of each killing in order to use the accomplice's testimony against the defendants. The four defendants fled the Capital Region after the killings. They went to New York City, where Salazar was dropped off. The other three were later arrested in Virginia. While in custody, Guevara, Hernandez and Calixto gave statements to police implicating Salazar in the double homicide. They were first indicted November 4, 2016, for murder and other charges in the deaths of the roommates. When the indictments were dismissed by Ceresia, Abelove secured a second indictment on December 8, 2017, for Salazar, Guevara and Hernandez. Those indictments also were tossed, leading to Guevaras and Hernandezs third set of indictments on July 20, 2018. Albany The passage of the Reproductive Health Act has thrown gasoline on the national debate about abortion and late-term abortion especially. In a way, that's surprising. The RHA is just one law applying only in one very liberal state where the easy availability of abortion was never in doubt. With or without the RHA, abortion rights were as safe in New York as anywhere in the country. In other ways, though, the response isn't at all surprising. Abortion remains among the most divisive topics in American life, and when you light up towers and bridges in pink to celebrate abortion legislation, as Gov. Andrew Cuomo needlessly did, there's going to be a reaction. But let's move past the particular controversies of the RHA, at least for now, to talk instead about a problem that's both related to the bill and yet removed from the abortion debate. The issue is this: There is now no penalty in New York for the killing of an unborn child that the mother fully intends to deliver. The RHA removed abortion from the penal code, largely because abortion-rights advocates didn't want the taint of criminality attached to a woman's personal decision or a doctor's role within it. Fair enough. But the change also means a domestic abuser can successfully end a pregnancy and face no criminal charge other than, if it applies, assault on the woman. In New York law, the life of the fetus or baby, or whatever you prefer to call it is not just without humanity, but any value whatsoever. That certainly makes New York an outlier. Forty-six states offer special protection for pregnant mothers or their unborn children and many, including deep-blue California, allow a manslaughter charge when a fetus is killed without a mother's consent. There is pending legislation that would pull New York in from the extremes. The Liv Act, as it's known, would make an attack on a pregnant woman a class D felony, punishable by up to seven years in prison, even if the fetus was unharmed. The charge would apply only if the attacker knew the woman was pregnant. The bill is named for Liv Abreu, a military veteran from the Bronx who was 26 weeks pregnant when her boyfriend stabbed her six times, killing her child. Among the charges her attacker faced is abortion in the first and second degree crimes that have since disappeared from the criminal code, without replacement. Last month, during a visit to Albany, Abreu said she couldn't imagine a world where the killing of a wanted fetus is not a crime "where woman have to bury and mourn their unborn children, like I did with my daughter, and the person responsible is not held accountable." With all due respect to Abreu, that's a bit of an overstatement. As backers of the RHA have stressed, it isn't as if such attackers will get off scot-free. A man who attacked a pregnant woman and killed her fetus would likely face a first-degree assault charge. But victims and their relatives often want legal recognition of the baby's life. That's true of Nate Milligan, father of Vanessa and grandfather to unborn Alina, who were both killed in Troy in 2014. When I talked to Milligan last year, he wanted both deaths acknowledged by state law. "It was on the same level as killing my daughter," Milligan said of Alina's death. "We felt like it should have been double for everything." The Liv Act is sponsored by state Sen. Catharine Young, a Republican from western New York, and Assemblyman Marcos Crespo, a Democrat from the Bronx, and it is written to avoid the usual abortion controversies. It doesn't grant any sort of personhood to the fetus. It explicitly excludes abortion providers and pregnant mothers from the possibility of charges. "It makes it very clear," Young said, "that it would only apply in cases when a pregnant woman wanted to keep the baby." The legislation acknowledges a disturbing fact: Pregnancy increases the risk of domestic abuse. More than 300,000 women annually are violence victims during pregnancy in this country, according to the Journal of Women's Health. Studies of poor, single woman have found abuse rates of up to 50 percent. What the Liv Act does, really, is protect a woman's choice to have a child by making pregnant women a protected class in criminal law, just as they are in employment law. Who could object to that? Plenty of people can, because implicit in the Liv Act is the notion that a fetus has value, something that, in the hyper-sensitive environment around all things abortion, activists are loathe to admit. The Reproductive Health Act certainly doesn't acknowledge that. But that isn't how expectant families feel as they excitedly wait for a baby's arrival. Nor does it reflect the feelings of women who are attacked. In Queens last weekend, Jennifer Irigoyen, five months pregnant, was dragged from her apartment and murdered in the lobby of her building by a man who targeted her stomach. Neighbors said she pleaded that her child be spared. "He's going to kill the baby!" Irigoyen yelled. And that's exactly what he did. cchurchill@timesunion.com 518-454-5442 @chris_churchill Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading. Genpact Limited provides business process outsourcing and information technology (IT) services North and Latin America, India, rest of Asia, and Europe. It operates in three segments: Banking, Capital Markets and Insurance; Consumer Goods, Retail, Life Sciences and Healthcare; and High Tech, Manufacturing and Services. The company's finance and accounting services include accounts payable, such as document management, invoice processing, approval and resolution management, and travel and expense processing; invoice-to-cash services, including customer master data management, credit and contract management, fulfillment, billing, collections, and dispute management services; record to report services comprising accounting, treasury, tax, product cost accounting, and closing and reporting services; financial planning and analysis consisting of budgeting, forecasting, and business performance reporting; and enterprise risk and compliance services, including operational risks and controls. It also provides supply chain design, planning, inventory optimization, transportation and logistics management, and after-sales services; sourcing and procurement services comprising direct and indirect strategic sourcing, category management, spend analytics, procurement operation, master data management, and other procurement and supply chain advisory services; and sales and commercial services in the lead-to-quote, quote-to-order, and customer service areas. In addition, the company offers IT services, which include end-user computing support, infrastructure management, application production support, and database management services; and transformation services that include digital solutions, consulting services, and analytics services and solutions. It serves banking, capital market, insurance, consumer goods, retail, life science, healthcare, high tech, and manufacturing and service industries. Genpact Limited was founded in 1997 and is based in Hamilton, Bermuda. Read More British victims of 'romance fraud' lost over 50million last year, findings from Action Fraud warn as Valentine's Day approaches. In 2018, the average sum of money lost by a victim of romance fraud came in at 11,145, marking a 27 per cent increase on the year before. In one case, a woman lost around 10,000 to a man who claimed to be in the army needing money for a box of belongings to be returned to the UK. Be careful: Unsuspecting singletons can easily come across fraudulent crooks online (file pic) The online crook gained the woman's trust by talking about getting married and buying a house together, but she became suspicious and contacted the Foreign Office, which confirmed it was a scam. The woman had used a loan and her private pension to cover the money she had sent to the scammer. Romance fraud can happen to anyone, but the average age of victims last year was 50. Women also lost twice as much cash than male victims, according to Action Fraud. Victims of romance fraud are tricked into thinking they have met the perfect partner online via a dating app, social media or dating website. Online dating fraudsters often pretend to be someone they are not and may use fake photos, be reluctant to meet up face-to-face and typically come up with a far-fetched sob story as to why they need to be sent cash. Once an online dating fraudster gains the trust of their victim, they start scamming them for cash. Victims can also end up having their identities stolen if they provide the crook with personal details like their address or passport number. Don't be fooled: Victims of romance fraud are tricked into thinking they have met the perfect partner Victims are often swept along by the idea of their next big romance and are heavily pressurized by crooks to part with their cash. Over 40 per cent of victims told Action Fraud that romance fraud had had a 'significant impact' on their health or financial well-being. Help is widely available for people who think they may be about to or have already become a victim of romance fraud. Diana Fawcett, chief officer at Victim Support, said: 'These scams can be extremely sophisticated and victims should not feel ashamed or embarrassed and shouldn't blame themselves in any way.' Who are you really talking to? Online dating fraudsters may be unwilling to meet face-to-face Speak out: Help is widely available for people who think they may be about to or have already become a victim of romance fraud Action Fraud is currently working with the Date Safe working group to raise awareness of the risks of romance fraud in the UK. Report romance fraud It can be embarrassing to feel tricked into thinking youve formed a relationship online, but if you tell Action Fraud they can take a report in confidence. Report romance fraud to Action Fraud online or call 0300 123 2040. Date safe's members include Action Fraud and the City of London Police, Get Safe Online, the Metropolitan Police, Age UK, Victim Support, Scamalytics and the Online Dating Association. Commander Karen Baxter, head of City of London Police's economic crime department, said: 'Heartless fraudsters are cruelly targeting vulnerable victims and exploiting those looking for love online. 'Together with our partners, we are urging people to spot the signs of romance fraud and to follow the Date Safe advice this Valentine's Day and in the future. 'If you think you have been a victim of romance fraud, please report this to Action Fraud.' Stay safe: Action Fraud is currently working with the Date Safe working group to raise awareness of the risks of romance fraud in the UK Be cautious: Never give away your personal information to people on dating sites Meanwhile, Metropolitan Polices Detective Inspector Suzanne Grimmer said: 'This cruel fraud is one of the most devastating for our victims to deal with because they have suffered losses both financially and emotionally. 'The fraudster preys on the emotions of individuals looking for companionship for their own self-gain and profit. Please follow our Date Safe advice to ensure you are aware of how to protect yourself whilst dating online. 'If you believe you may have been victim of a romance fraud please come forward and report it to Action Fraud you are not alone and this action may help prevent others falling victim too.' Top 5 tips to avoid falling victim to a romance scam 1. Do not rush into an online relationship - get to know the person, not the profile and ask plenty of questions. 2. Analyse an online profile carefully and check the person is genuine by putting their name, profile pictures or any repeatedly used phrases and the term 'dating scam' into your search engine. 3. Talk to your friends and family about your dating choices. Be wary of anyone who tells you not to tell others about them. 4. Thwart scammers by never sending money to, or sharing your bank details with, someone you have met online, no matter what reason they give or how long you have been speaking to them. 5. Stay on the dating site messenger service until you are confident the person is who they say they are. If you do decide to meet in person, make sure the first meeting is in a public place and let someone else know where you are going to be. Source: Date Safe It is vital not to give away too many personal details when dating online, as revealing your full name, date of birth or home address may lead to your identity being stolen. Never send or receive money or give away your bank details to someone you have only met online, no matter how much you trust them or believe their story. Action Fraud says it is also crucial to use a reputable dating website and use the sites own messaging service. Fraudsters will want to quickly switch to social media or texting so there is no immediate evidence of them asking you for money. Warning signs posted along shoreline roads in Watch Hill and Misquamicut warn residents of the presence of coyotes. Police and state environmental officials said this week that a multifaceted approach has helped to curb coyote attacks to the point where no documented attacks have been reported in 13 months. Sun file photo Westerly, RI (02891) Today Clear skies. Low around 50F. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight Clear skies. Low around 50F. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph. The Chinese Foreign Ministry on Saturday expressed strong opposition to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to a region on the east section of the China-India border. Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying. [File Photo: fmprc.gov.cn] Spokeswoman Hua Chunying's remarks came in response to a query about news reports saying that Prime Minister Modi visited the so-called "Arunachal Pradesh" earlier in the day. "China's position on the China-India border issue is consistent and clear-cut," said Hua, stressing that the Chinese government has never recognized the so-called "Arunachal Pradesh." While urging the Indian side to bear in mind the common interests of the two countries, Hua called on the neighboring country to respect interests and concerns of the Chinese side, cherish the momentum of improvement in bilateral ties and refrain from "any action that may lead to an escalation of disputes or complicate the border issue." Jammu, Feb 10 (PTI) Three suspected drug peddlers were arrested following the recovery of charas and intoxicant tablets from their possession in two separate places in Jammu and Kashmir, police said Sunday. Ramesh Kumar Rahul and his cousin brother Anil Kumar were arrested after police recovered charas from their possession during a vehicle checking near village Sulla in Reasi district on Saturday night, a police spokesman said. A police party asked Rahul to stop his speeding car for checking but he claimed to be a mediaperson to influence the policemen to allow the vehicle to pass the check point, he said. However, the police party intercepted the vehicle and found the narcotics concealed between a co-passenger's legs, he added. Another drug peddler, Ramesh Kumar, was arrested with 110 intoxicant tablets at Kalyana Morh in Arnia area in the outskirts of Jammu on Saturday evening, the spokesman said. A case has been registered against the three under Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, he said. PTI TAS MAZ CK Jammu, Feb 10 (PTI) Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik held a detailed meeting here with regard to implementation of smart mobility in urban and hilly areas through ropeways in the state, an official spokesman said on Sunday. The Governor held the meeting with a team of WAPCOS limited, a Government of India undertaking, headed by chairman cum managing director R K Gupta at the Raj Bhavan Saturday. The team made a PowerPoint presentation on the occasion and detailed discussions were held on the advantages of putting in place ropeways facilities in the state, the spokesman said. The Governor observed that due to increasing traffic congestion on roads and also to minimise road accidents, the establishment of ropeways as urban transport solutions would prove to be highly beneficial. The Governor stressed upon the departments concerned to further convene meetings and identify the most feasible areas in the state for establishment of such ropeway projects, the spokesman said. During the meeting, he said the WAPCOS authorities briefed about various advantages of ropeways and said such systems can carry up to 12,000 people per hour and have the highest level of incremental scalability. Similar projects have already been initiated in other states such as Himachal Pradesh. PTI TAS CK 'Future of Kerala lies in the tourism sector' Thiruvananthapuram, Feb 10 (PTI) Union Minister Alphons Kannanthanam Sunday launched the Sivagiri spiritual tourism circuit with facilities like a craft bazaar, bus shelters and an audio-video virtual reality show and said that the future of Kerala lies in the tourism sector. The inauguration of the much-hyped spiritual circuit around the Sivagiri Mutt near here was marred by controversy as the state-central ministers sparred over the project. While Kannanthanam, the Minister of State for Culture and Tourism, asked the state government to change its approach towards the Centre, State Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran said that Kerala was 'ignored' in the project due to the involvement from certain quarters. "This (state) government had given a comprehensive proposal of Rs 99.09 crore for development projects at Sivagiri Mutt and temples related to Sree Narayana Guru. Just a few days before the sanctioning this amount, due to the involvement from certain quarters, the state government was ignored. The chief minister had criticised the same," Kadakampally said during his address in the event. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had earlier written to the Prime Minister against the Centre's decision to inaugurate the spiritual circuit without consulting the state government. The state government alleged that the Centre ignored its proposal to entrust the project with State Tourism Development Corporation. At present the project has been undertaken by the India Tourism Development Corporation. "The state's approach must change.We are now constructing walls around us. Instead of lighting lamps, people here are confining themselves inside the walls. This is a conservative thought process," Kannanthanam said, in an apparent reference to the Women's wall initiative by the state government. He, however, said that the state and the Centre should work together and praised Kerala's efforts in making the spiritual circuit around the Sivagiri Mutt a reality. Sivagiri sanyasis who spoke during the event said the Mutt does not have any kind of political affiliation and it wanted the ITDC to handle the spiritual circuit. Under the total project, Chembazhanti Narayana Gurukulam, Aruvippuram temple, Subramanya Sawmi temple and Mutt at Kunnumpara and the Sivagiri Mutt will be developed. The Sivagiri Mutt will have a tourist facilitation centre, enquiry room, waiting room, first aid, kiosks, cloak room, community dining hall with kicthen and audio-visual hall to be constructed at a cost of Rs 14.92 crore. Kannanthanam said that Ministry of Tourism has sanctioned seven projects in Kerala under the Swadesh Darshan and PRASHAD schemes for approximately Rs 550 crore. "Kerala's future lies in exploring the possibilities in the tourism sector," he said. Sree Narayana Dharma Sangham President Swami Vishudhananda presided over the function. The project was sanctioned in January 2019 for Rs 69.47 crore. Other facilities to be developed under the project include tourist facilitation centres, beautification and landscaping, meditation/yoga centre, public conveniences, battery operated vehicles, drinking water facility, multimedia show, wayside amenities, parking, CCTV and Wi-Fi facilities, cafeterias, open air theatre. PTI RRT UD APR APR APR Modi taunts Chidambaram, calls him "recounting Minister" Tirupur (TN), Feb 10 (PTI): In an apparent reference to senior Congress leader P Chidambaram, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday taunted him as a "recounting Minister' of the UPA regime, describing him as 'arrogant'. Citing his government's step of offering tax exemption for those with incomes upto Rs five lakh, he told a public rally here that it was a reflection of genuine concern for the middle class, unlike the previous UPA regime. After referring to this step , Modi said he wanted to recall the state of affairs during the UPA regime. "There was a very wise Minister from Tamil Nadu," he said and told the audience, "you know whom I am talking about." When the people responded loudly, he said,"right, the recounting Minister," without directly naming the former Union Finance Minister. Chidambaram, now a Rajya Sabha MP, won the 2009 Lok Sabha election from Sivaganga constituency in Tamil Nadu by a slender margin of 3,354 votes after a see-saw battle. Confusion had prevailed then as election officials delayed the declaration of the result due to a dispute in the counting of votes in respect of the final round. Chidambaram, then Home Minister, was declared elected later after the votes were tallied again vis-a-vis the final round. Modi had made the same "recounting Minister" remark during his 2014 Lok Sabha election campaign. Continuing his attack on Chidambaram, Modi said described him as "the man who thinks all the knowledge in the world resides only in his brain. In his typical arrogance, he says why is the middle class so worried about price rise when they buy such expensive ice cream and mineral water." "Mr recounting minister, the middle class does not need the taunt by you and Congress. They have rejected you and will continue to do so." Chidambaram, highly critical of the Modi government, had days ago targeted it on the row over the "National Sample Survey Organisation's data on high unemployment," (as per the report of a business daily) and related developments. Taking forward his attack against the Congress, Modi said the good work of the NDA government has made some people very unhappy. "Those who thought power was their divine right, those who thought only they are bound to rule are disturbed. Because here is a government that is working. Their unhappiness has turned into desperation and abuse," the Prime Minister said. Taking potshots at the opposition for blaming him at the drop of a hat, he said their answer for any question posed to them targeted him. Be it "agriculture or MSME," the answer will invariably be "Modi, Modi, Modi." He said it was the NDA government which took the initiative to shut fake companies,remove fake beneficiaries and ensure that middlemen no more roamed the corridors of power. Without naming anyone, he said that only in the services or products like mobile recharge or ice creams, was the idea of a "family pack" seen. But now it applied for bail too. "Those who thought they could never be questioned, who lorded over the nation are now having to give an account for the loot. This is what a change in India today." Mocking at the grand opposition against his party,he said "our friends in the opposition are very funny." Though the opposition called his government a failure and claimed it did nothing for the people and that he would be badly defeated, "still they have to form a big alliance to defeat Modi." However, "what is the agenda of the so called alliance, what are the issues they fight for, nobody knows. Because their guns are only aimed at me. This is 'maha milavat, or adulteration." He asked if the people of Tamil Nadu and the rest of the country would ever accept an adulterated product? "Never," he said. The people of Tamil Nadu and the entire nation are seeing through this game, Modi said. The "Mahamilvat" or "adulterated alliance" is a club of rich people trying to promote their dynasties. They neither understand poverty nor have a vision to serve the poor, he said. "The opposition is good at one thing and that is to spread panic. Time and again they have tried to mislead farmers, workers and youngsters." While the opposition talked of a "poorly thought out loan waiver" only during election, his government took the step of announcing Rs 6,000 assistance annually to farmers to support them, he said. PTI VGN SA APR TVS APR APR Hyderabad, Feb 10 (PTI) The BJP Sunday took a swipe at Congress President Rahul Gandhi for his remarks against the Prime Minister on the Rafale deal, accusing him of playing with the country's security in the most "irresponsible manner". Dismissing Gandhi's allegations, Union Law Minister and BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad said he was "lying shamelessly" on the fighter jet deal and has got "Rafale phobia". "Rahul Gandhi has Rafale phobia...The kind of language he is using against the Prime Minister does not behove him," Prasad told reporters here. Citing cases of alleged corruption involving members of the Gandhi family, Prasad said, "How many corruption charges were levelled against his father (Rajiv Gandhi) in the Bofors case?...What has been the corruption record of Indiraji (former prime minister), his grandmother? We have never used the kind of language he has used against Prime Minister Narendra Modi." The Union Minister for Law, Electronics and Information Technology charged the then Congress-led UPA government with not finalising the Rafale deal, alleging it again went for review because the party never inked any agreement unless it received "commission" (kickbacks). "As they did not get commission, therefore they kept it (deal) pending," Prasad said. After coming to power in 2014, Modi decided to go ahead with the Rafale deal as IAF needed fighter aircraft. Reiterating the NDA government's claim that the basic price of Rafale negotiated by it was cheaper than what the UPA had agreed to, the senior BJP leader said, "Modi government's price is 9 per cent cheaper than UPA's and with all weapons loaded, it is 20 per cent less." The previous UPA government was negotiating with Dassault Aviation for procurement of 126 Rafale jets under which 18 jets were to supplied in a fly-away condition and 108 were to be manufactured in India by the French company along with HAL. However, the UPA could not seal the deal. "The Supreme Court had examined it thoroughly and found there is no commercial interest...," Prasad said, adding the Centre had no role in picking the offset partner. "Rahul Gandhi please don't play with the security of India... What he says in India is picked up by the Pakistani press the next day." "Rahul Gandhi in the most irresponsible manner is playing with the security of India," Prasad added. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced the procurement of a batch of 36 Rafale jets after holding talks with then French president Francois Hollande on April 10, 2015 in Paris. Opposition Congress has accused the government of choosing Reliance Defence over state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) as offset partner to benefit the private firm though it did not have any experience in the aerospace sector. Hollande's reported comments that New Delhi had proposed Reliance Defence as the Indian partner for the contract has escalated into a major political row, even as the French government said it had no say in the choice of the Indian industrial partner for the multi-billion dollar deal. However, Dassault Aviation refuted Hollande's claims and said that it was their decision to partner with Reliance. In December last year, the Supreme Court had given the Narendra Modi government a clean chit on the procurement of 36 Rafale fighter jets from France and dismissed all the petitions seeking a direction to the CBI to register an FIR for alleged irregularities in the deal. PTI VVK ROH SMN SMN Bengaluru, Feb 10 (PTI) Imploring industry bodies to weed out "black sheeps" who give a bad name to the business community, Vice-President Venkaiah Naidu Sunday asked various nations to reach a consensus to not provide shelter to fugitives involved in economic offences. "In the wake of the economic offences by some individuals, I implore industry bodies to weed out black sheeps who give a bad name to the business community," he said at "The Huddle," a thought conclave held by 'The Hindu' here. "Time also has come for various nations to arrive at a consensus in not providing shelter to economic fugitives," he added. These remarks come in the wake of industrialist Vijay Mallya's possible extradition to India from the United Kingdom. A UK court on December 10 last year had ordered extradition of Mallya, who is wanted in India for alleged fraud and money laundering involving an estimated Rs 9,000 crore. "It should be remembered that such economic offences pose a direct challenge to a nation's health and wealth," Naidu said. Voicing concern about the disruptions in the functioning of Parliament and legislatures, Naidu said the time has come for political parties to evolve a code of conduct for their MPs and MLAs and ensure effective functioning if these Houses have to fulfil the aspirations of people. "It is truly unfortunate that disorder and disruptions have become the order of the day," he said. He said he also felt that political parties should not resort to populist, impractical and short-term promises to win elections as the country's economy would suffer in the long-term due to unproductive schemes. "We need to empower people to stand on their feet, rather than making them increasingly dependent on governments," Naidu said. The vice-president said the delicate balance between the executive, legislature and judiciary should be maintained at all times and nobody should encroach into the domain of the other. "The wheels of democracy will run smoothly as long as each wing functions within its demarcated domain and not overstep into other's jurisdiction," he added. Naidu said the other major challenge the country needs to address on a war footing is the deficiencies in infrastructure development and the central government is already addressing the issue by building road and highway networks, developing ports and promoting regional air connectivity. The Public-Private Partnership projects have to be scaled up for accelerating the pace of infrastructure development and need to promote massive infrastructure projects for the country to compete with other countries, Naidu said. On the media scenario in India, he said some of the news stories are slanted to suit the views of the management and media outlets are being started for commercial and political considerations, not for providing pure and unadulterated news to the people. Mindless sensationalism and paid news are some of the concerns that media professionals themselves need to address, he added. Media associations should also come out with a code of conduct for journalists to ensure professional integrity, the vice-president said. PTI BDN SS ABH ABH Modi slams Naidu, says he has failed to use Central funds (EDS: Updates with more quotes) Guntur (AP), Feb 10 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday launched a scathing attack on Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and TDP supremo Chandrababu Naidu, saying he has made a "U-turn" on promises of development to the state and only trying to replicate NDA government's schemes. "Our government gave to Andhra Pradesh much more than what was mentioned in special status. CM of Andhra Pradesh acknowledged this package but took a U-turn as they failed to use the funds in the appropriate way and were not able to develop the state," Modi said, addressing a public rally. Modi lashed out at Naidu for aligning with the Congress, saying the former chief minister NT Ramarao (NTR) had launched the party to make Andhra Pradesh "congress-mukt" after he was a victim of its 'arrogance.' Naidu was indeed a senior to him, but only in losing elections, switching alliances and ditching his father-in-law NT Rama Rao, Modi said at a public rally here. "He keeps reminding me he is senior. There is no debate in this. I have never shown any disrespect to you since you are a senior. You are a senior in changing alliances. A senior biting the back of your own father-in-law. A senior in losing one election after the other, where as I am not," the Prime Minister said. Further, Naidu was senior in embracing tomorrow those whom he would abuse today, Modi said. Modi alleged Naidu was taking him on since the Centre had sought details of every paise given to Andhra Pradesh. Naidu had promised walking in the footsteps of NTR, Modi said and asked if the Chief Minister had lived by it. "The arrogance of Delhi (during the Congress rule) has always insulted states. And NTR that is why decided to make AP Congress-mukt and floated the TDP. The TDP leader who has to resist the arrogance of the Naamdaars (famous and powerful people) and crush their arrogance is siding with them," he said in an apparent swipe at Naidu joining hands with the Congress. "This chowkidar (watchman) has disturbed his sleep.. wanted to know the details of every paise given to Andhra Pradesh," Modi said. Naidu promised the sunrise of Andhra Pradesh but is fixated with the rise of his own son N Lokesh, Modi charged. The Chief Minister promised the redevelopment of Amaravati but is now engaged in his own development, the Prime Minister alleged. He said Naidu had not initiated any new programmes for the poor but was only putting his stamp on the NDA government's development schemes. On providing clean fuel in the country, Modi said while in 60 years, only 12 crore gas connections were given, the NDA government had given 13 crore gas connections in just four years. Earlier, the Prime Minister dedicated two major petroleum and gas projects--a strategic petroleum reserve facility at Visakhapatnam and a gas field at Amalapuram to the nation through remote control system. He also laid the foundation-stone for the construction of a coastal terminal of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited at Krishnapatnam in SPS Nellore district. Addressing the rally, Modi said "Our aim is to have a New India that is clean and pollution-free. Such projects are the key to the nations energy security," Modi said. The Centre was building oil reserves at various locations across the country to ensure there was no shortage of oil and gas in times of crises, he said, referring to a similar facility he inaugurated in the north-east on Saturday. "Our government has been working continuously to make India a clean fuel economy and several projects have been initiated in this direction," he added. Referring to the strategic petroleum reserve facility of Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserve Limited (ISPRL) at Visakhapatnam and the ONGCs Vasishta S1 gas field in the Krishna-Godavari Basin at Amalapuram, the Prime Minister said they would not only help create jobs but also aid in the development of gas-based industries in the region. Earlier, when Modi arrived at Gannavaram airport in Vijayawada, TDP workers staged protests. This is Modi's first visit to the state after the ruling Telugu Desam Party severed ties with the NDA in March last year. The Chandrababu Naidu-led party quit the BJP-led alliance protesting the "injustice" done to the state post-bifurcation. Giving the protocol a go-by, none of the state ministers turned up at the Gannavaram airport to formally receive the Prime Minister. BJP leaders alleged that people were "thwarted," from reaching the venue in large numbers and said countdown would start for Naidu with Modi's rally at Guntur. Commenting on the black balloon protests against him by TDP workers, Modi quipped he welcomed it recalling the tradition of smearing black to ward off evil designs.PTI DBV VGN SA SS BN TVS BN BN New Delhi, Feb 10 (PTI) Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu Sunday slammed some activists for either "defending" or "maintaining silence" regarding violation of human rights by some groups and said "ballot is more powerful than bullet". Giving a valedictory address in the closing ceremony of the first Law Association For Asia and the Pacific (LAWASIA) conference here, Naidu said violence is one of the "worst forms" of human rights violations and urged the international community to work towards achieving peace. "Violence is one of the worst forms of human rights violations because democracy essentially is all about protection of fundamental rights of individuals. Ironically some activist groups tend to adopt paradoxical attitude towards human rights. They either defend or maintain silence regrading the violation of human rights by violent groups and ready to condemn law enforcing, peace promoting firm action by the state," Naidu said. "Democracy is the best form of government. We are a parliamentary democracy. We have elections... We can change the rulers however mighty they may be because it has been proved beyond doubt that ballot is more powerful than bullet," he said. He also said that the perpetrators of violence can claim no human rights. "You cannot follow this theory of power through gun and take the gun and then when you are arrested, claim human rights violation," said Naidu, in an apparent reference to left-wing extremism. He also said that "some people" have taken it up as a "fashion" these days to defend such forces. "We have seen some people they have taken it as fashion to defend such forces, such people. This is not acceptable at all in a democracy. Any violation of the right of any individual is not acceptable either by the government of other citizens also," said Naidu. Agreeing with the vice president, senior advocate Shyam Divan, who was also one of the dignitaries, said, "Eventually as the vice president very clearly said as they are all very keen on endorsing human rights there is a counter balance over there, with the problems which were faced by violence and terrorism." Speaking on how the international community should fight terrorism together, Naidu said, "Terror is the enemy of humanity. If there is terror, you cannot have attention towards anything. Peace is the prerequisite for progress. We must work together to achieve peace." "Violence by anybody is condemnable. I would like the international community to seriously ponder over all these activities that are being carried out and the problems of terror and challenges". Naidu also condemned people who have evaded the country. He said, "You escape and (take) shelter there. Some people wonderfully were saying I am worried about my safety in India. You have been born in this country, brought up in this country. Then you go outside and make a statement that you have a threat to your life. You created threat to the lives of people by disturbing the economy and system." Naidu hailed the Supreme Court for being a "fierce guardian" of human rights throughout. "The contribution of the Indian Supreme Court as a guard of human rights in the country has pushed jurisprudence in the country...The court has been a fierce guardian of human rights. The Supreme Court has made great strives in human rights, jurisprudence, in this country," said Naidu. PTI LLP SJK RKS SMN Won't allow politics inside the campus : St Xavier's VC Kolkata, Feb 10 (PTI) St Xavier's University Vice Chancellor Father Felix Raj has said the new university will never allow politics inside the campus to protect the academic atmosphere of the institution. "We have a tradition in St Xavier's.....we discouraged politics inside the campus to maintain the academic atmosphere," Raj told PTI here Friday on the sidelines of university foundation day programme. He was asked about students' agitation rocking many higher educational institutions in recent times but the St Xavier's having been freed from such activities. Observing the students and their parents are very much in favour of the stance of the St Xavier's management on this issue, he said, "if you allow politics, if you allow parties, if you allow all these things coming into the campus...there will be no academic atmosphere." Claiming students are not in favour of being divided, Raj said, "you ask students, they are not in favour of being divided." Raj, who had earlier been the Principal of St Xavier's College, was asked to comment on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Education minister Partha Chatterjee having praised the St Xavier's College and St Xavier's University in recent times. He said, "the CM cited the St Xavier's example for discipline and for quality education and suggested this type of students council be promoted in other institutions." "I urge to make the campus a sacred place, there cannot be agitation and violence inside the campus....we must forget all differences, keep our differences outside and focus on our academic research and studies so that quality cannot suffer....we have to protect our institution and maintain the academic atmosphere," he said. To another question, Raj said in another five year's time the new St Xavier's University will be able to "fully functionally well." He said while a sum of Rs 185 crore has already been spent for building and other facilities of the new institution, another Rs 160 crore would be used in the coming three years. Asked about the support of alumni, he said they have been very supportive. PTI SUS RG RG Jaipur, Feb 10 (PTI) Dignity March, comprising rape and sexual violence survivors, reached Rajasthan's capital city Sunday after striding through several states to raise awareness about sexual violence. The 10,000-kilometre march is in its 54th day after starting off from Mumbai on December 20 last year. Over 5,000 survivors of sexual violence are participating in the 65-day-long march. It will culminate in Delhi on February 22 after covering 200 districts of 24 states of the country. The march has been organised by the Rashtriya Garima Abhiyan, a group of NGOs. Ashif Shaikh, Abhiyan's convenor, said, "It is unfortunate that victim-shaming by the society has created an atmosphere where victims of sexual violence fear to even report the crime and hence very less FIRs are filed. "The march is an appeal to the collective humanity to put an end to victim-shaming and create fear among the culprits that their crime won't go unpunished." PTI AG AQS New Delhi, Feb 10 (PTI) The Election Commission Sunday asked the Delhi Police to take "necessary action" against people making "misleading" phone calls to people about the city's electoral rolls. On Saturday, Delhi's Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) had cautioned people about such calls claiming deletion of their names from electoral rolls. The poll official had made it clear that no one but the electoral registration officer can add or remove names from electoral rolls. Now, the CEO has asked the Delhi Police Commissioner to investigate the matter to ascertain the correct position. "...Various written complaints received in this regard are being enclosed herewith. Prima facie, it appears that the matter needs to be thoroughly investigated in order that the factual correctness of the averments made in the aforementioned complaints are ascertained and necessary action under relevant extant laws is taken," the complaint to the police said. The CEO's statement on Saturday came a day after a BJP delegation met the Chief Election Commissioner and alleged that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had been making such phone calls. The statement from the poll panel drew sharp reaction from AAP national convener and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who said the Election Commission "must not be allowed to become agent of a political party". PTI NAB SMN Banihal/Jammu, Feb 10 (PTI) The strategic Jammu-Srinagar national highway, the only all weather road linking Kashmir with rest of the country, remained closed for the fifth consecutive day on Sunday as fresh landslides at different places hit the restoration work, officials said. However, they said efforts are on and a decision to allow traffic on the highway would be taken later in the day after reviewing the progress of the ongoing debris clearance operation. The highway was closed for traffic on Wednesday following heavy snowfall and incessant rains which triggered avalanches and landslides at various places especially between Qazigund-Banihal-Ramban stretch including Jawahar Tunnel - the gateway to Kashmir valley. "Over a dozen landslides were cleared despite frosty conditions and intermittent shooting of stones from the hillocks on Saturday but fresh landslides had occurred at Kela Morh, Battery cheshma, Digdole, Panthiyal and Khuni Nallah overnight leaving the road once again blocked," Ramban Deputy Superintendent of police, Traffic, Suresh Sharma told PTI. He said continuous shooting of stones at Panthiyal and frosty condition of the road in the snow-bound areas are posing a major challenge to the agencies involved in the clearance operation. "The men and machinery are on the job and if the hills get stabilised and there will be no fresh landslide, the road stretch from Ramban to Banihal will be cleared for the traffic by late afternoon," he said. Sharma, who inspected some of the landslide hit areas, said the snow clearance operation is almost complete including at Jawahar Tunnel where an avalanche had also struck on Thursday, blocking one of the tunnels on Qazigund side besides killing eight persons including six police and fire and emergency services personnel. In view of the closure of the highway, the Indian Air Force (IAF) launched special sorties of C17 Globemaster, airlifting 538 persons including 319 GATE aspirants between Jammu and Srinagar on Friday and Saturday. "A total of 319 students appearing in Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) on February 10 onwards were airlifted from Srinagar airport to Jammu airport on Friday and Saturday," a defence spokesman said. He said while 179 students were airlifted from Srinagar to Jammu, 180 civilians struck in Jammu were airlifted to Srinagar on Friday. Similarly, he said 179 persons comprising of 140 students and 39 locals and tourists were airlifted to Srinagar to Jammu on Saturday. Meanwhile, the minimum temperature across Jammu division marked an appreciable increase due to overcast conditions, though some snow-bound parts of the region continue to reel under sub-zero temperature. The night temperature in Jammu city marked an increase of over three notches to settle at 7.1 degrees Celsius, three notches below normal, against the previous night's 4.0 degrees Celsius, a spokesman of the MeT department said. The highway town of Banihal and Batote recorded a low of minus 1.0 and minus 0.6 degrees Celsius, respectively, while Bhaderwah town in Doda district was reeling under minus 1.8 degrees Celsius. Katra town, the base camp for the pilgrims visiting the famous Vaishno Devi Shrine in Reasi district, recorded a minimum of 6.5 degrees Celsius, the spokesman said. PTI CORR TAS RCJ Lucknow, Feb 10 (PTI) Issuing a threat to the BJP, one of its allies in Uttar Pradesh the Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party said Sunday it will part ways with the saffron party if the recommendations of the Social Justice Committee are not implemented by February 24. "If the BJP does not agree to the demands raised by us, we will definitely part ways with them. If the saffron party does not implement the recommendations of the Social Justice Committee by February 24, then our path would be separate, and subsequently, we will contest all 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state," Arun Rajbhar, general secretary of SBSP, told PTI. He also said, "We can even go with the anti-BJP alliance (of SP and BSP) if the need arises. A number of rounds of talks have been held with them." Hitting out at the BJP, Arun Rajbhar said, "It is the last warning, and after February 24, there will be no agreement with the BJP." He said the BJP had promised that the recommendations of the Social Justice Committee would be implemented six months before Lok Sabha polls, but there has been no headway on this. The committee, constituted in May last year, had in its recommendations to the state government, favoured division of backward castes in three categories 'pichda' (backward), 'ati picchda' (very backward) and 'sarvadhik picchda' (most backward). Backward classes account for about 44 per cent of the electorate in the state and play a crucial role in making or marring political prospects of any party. The recommendation of the committee to classify various OBC and Dalit sub-castes into three broad categories and provide quota within quota to them is likely to spice up the political scene ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha election in caste-riddled Uttar Pradesh. In 2017 UP Assembly elections, BJP had bagged 312 out of 403 seats, while SBSP had won 4 seats. Another ally of the coalition, Apna Dal (Sonelal), had won nine seats. On February 6, SBSP said it was "open" to going with SP-BSP alliance in the general election that must be held by May this year. SBSP chief and senior Cabinet minister Om Prakash Rajbhar said, "In case there is no headway with the BJP, the option of going along with SP-BSP alliance is open to us." PTI NAV SMI ABH ABH Jaipur, Feb 10 (PTI) The Rajasthan government Sunday pasted a notice at the residence of Gujjar leader Kirori Singh Bainsla, who is leading a protest by the community that turned violent in some areas and saw rail and road traffic being disrupted, warning him against violation of court directives on agitation. In the notice pasted by the Karauli district administration at Bainsla's Hindaun residence, it has been stated that Supreme Court and different high courts have on several occasions directed that no public or private property be damaged and rail or railway traffic be disrupted during any agitation. "If the Supreme Court and high court directives are not followed, you will be held responsible for contempt of court," the notice said. District Collector Nannu Mal Pahadia said the notice was issued by the state's Home Department. The notice said the protesters have squatted on the railway track on the Delhi-Mumbai route and they have blocked the Karauli-Hindaun road on Bainsla's orders. The Gujjar community agitation demanding five per cent quota in jobs and education turned violent Sunday with shots being fired and police vehicles torched in Dholpur district and protesters blocking road and rail traffic in many areas. As a precautionary measure, authorities have imposed prohibitory orders under CrPc section 144 in Dholpur and neighbouring Karauli districts, police said. At least 20 trains were cancelled and seven diverted during the day as the protesters, led by the Gujjar Arakshan Sangharsh Samiti chief Bainsla, continued their sit-in on railway tracks in Sawai Madhopur district for the third day on Sunday, officials said. The sit-in began on Friday evening and has affected the movement of over 250 trains through the region since. The agitators also blocked highways connecting major cities on Sunday. PTI AG TIR TIR New Delhi, Feb 10 (PTI) The National Gallery of Modern Art on Sunday denied Amol Palekar's allegation that the advisory panel of the gallery's Mumbai and Bengaluru centres have been scrapped, as a controversy erupted over the veteran actor's speech at a Mumbai event being repeatedly interrupted by some NGMA members. A video available on social media purportedly showed Palekar criticising the Ministry of Culture at the opening of an exhibition in memory of artist Prabhakar Barwe on February 8 for reportedly scrapping the advisory committees at the gallery's Mumbai and Bengaluru centres. The veteran actor-director on Sunday said he was only trying to seek reasons behind the cancellation of retrospectives of two senior artists. However later, NGMA's Director General Adwaita Gadanayak said, "Regarding recent reports in media pertaining to NGMA Mumbai, it is clarified as under - The Advisory Committees of NGMA Mumbai, Bangaluru and Delhi have not been dissolved. Their terms have ended recently and they are in the process of being reconstituted." "The recommendations of previous advisory committee will be honoured and exhibitions of artists will happen as proposed. The new advisory committee will take a decision relating to future exhibitions," he said. Palekar told reporters in Pune on Sunday that the artists' advisory committee at NGMA had approved holding of retrospectives of three artists, of whom Prabhakar Barwe's work was inaugurated. "But I came to know that without any communication to the committee, the next two retrospectives have been cancelled by Mumbai NGMA's new director Anita Rupavataram. I wanted to raise these issues. How and when these decisions were taken, we wanted to know," he said. At the opening of the exhibition "Inside The Empty Box" in Mumbai on Friday, Palekar said, "Many of you may not know that this retrospective will be the last show decided by the advisory committee of local artists and not by some bureaucrat or an agent of the government with an agenda of either moral policing or proliferation of certain art commensurate with an ideological incline. "As of November 13, 2018, the artistes' advisory committees at both regional centres Mumbai and Bangalore -- have been abolished, is what I have learnt," he said. Palekar added that he was "in the process of verifying the hearsay". At this point, an NGMA member on the stage interrupted, saying that Palekar should talk about the event. To this, Palekar responded, "I am going to talk about the same. Are you you applying censorship to that?" He then said as per his information, after the abolition of local artists' committee, decisions as to whose work should be exhibited would be taken from Delhi by the Ministry of Culture. Palekar was again interrupted by a woman, who said, "This is not needed at the moment, sorry... The function is about Prabhakar Barwe, please stick to that." However, he refused to stop, and went on to mention that writer Nayantara Sahgal was invited to speak at the Marathi literary convention recently but at the last minute the invitation was withdrawn because what she was going to say "was slightly critical of the situation around us. Are we creating the same situation here?" Several came out criticising the NGMA which is under the Ministry of Culture. "Why does the BJP want to police people's thoughts and opinions and control what they eat, wear, say and do? They want to make India monochrome and colourless. Telling Palekar to stop speaking shows the nervousness of the government," Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav said. Maharashtra Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant claimed this was not an isolated incident and it was being "deliberately" done for last five years. He sought to draw a parallel between the incident involving Palekar and several earlier attacks allegedly by right-wing organisations on artists, social thinkers and public personalities who had criticised the BJP-led government. "For the last five years, this government could not tolerate any criticism from various sections of society. Their priority has been towards suppressing the dissent and threatening those who follow a different school of thought," Sawant said. PTI ASG NSD Jaipur, Feb 10 (PTI) Seven trains were cancelled and two partially cancelled whereas nine trains were diverted on Sunday due to the ongoing Gujjar agitation in Rajasthan's Sawai Madhopur district, officials said. According to a North Western Railway (NWR) spokesperson, the cancelled trains include Hazrat Nizamuddin-Udaipur and Udaipur-Hazrat Nizamuddin while Bayana-Jaipur and Jaipur-Bayana were partially cancelled between Bayana and Swai Madhopur. The agitation has affected the train movement in NWR and West Central Railway (WCR) zones of the Indian Railways causing inconvenience to common people. In the WCR region, nearly 200 trains were cancelled, partially cancelled or diverted on Friday and Saturday. Members of the Gujjar community are holding a sit-in on railway tracks in Malarna Dungar of Sawai Madhopur district from Friday evening to press government for their demand of 5 per cent quota to five communities, including Gujjars in jobs and educational institutes. PTI AG CK Police seize huge amount of cartridges, arrest 3 persons Patna/Purnea, Feb 10 (PTI) The Police have seized a huge amount of cartridges, unassembled parts of AK-47 rifle and arrested three arms smugglers from Bihar's Purnea district, a senior officer said Sunday. A police patrolling team stopped a vehicle in Baisi area on Thursday during routine checking and found 600 live cartridges and arrested three arms smugglers, Additional Director General of Police (Headquarters) Kundan Krishnan told reporters here. After a thorough checking of the vehicle the police recovered various parts of firearms and 1000 additional cartridges which were hidden in specially built boxes inside the vehicle. The police found that there were three AK 47 rifles after assembling the various firearms parts seized, the ADGP said. During interrogation, the three arrested persons confessed that they used to supply arms and weapons to Mukesh Singh of Patna and Santosh Singh of Bhojpur, Krishnan said. The police raided Mukesh Singhs house in Patna on Saturday and seized 50 cartridges, he said adding that Mukesh has been absconding since then. Police are also considering to hand over the case to Central agency as arms bore the 'MA' mark which shows that the arms are of Myanmar Army and have been smuggled into India, the ADGP added. PTI AR RG RG Kolkata, Feb 10 (PTI) BJP leader Mukul Roy was among the four people booked on Sunday in connection with the killing of Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA Satyajit Biswas in West Bengal's Nadia district, police said. Roy, on his part, said the decision to name him in the FIR was "politically motivated". A West Bengal Police officer told PTI that two of the four people named in the FIR have been arrested. "So far, we have arrested two persons in this case and detained another three. A country-made revolver used to shoot the MLA has also been recovered. "As per our primary findings, it seems that the victim was fired from behind and the act was the result of a well-planned plot," he said. Asked about the chances of the assailants fleeing the area, the officer said the state police has been put on a high alert. "Nadia shares border with Bangladesh and there could be a possibility of them (assailants) trying to escape to the neighbouring country. Police have been put on high alert to check the movements along the border," he said. Biswas (41), who represented Krishnaganj constituency in the Assembly, was shot from pointblank range by unidentified assailants Saturday evening inside a Saraswati puja marquee at Phoolbari area in the district, bordering Bangladesh. He was immediately taken to a local hospital where doctors announced him "brought dead". His body was brought home from the hospital Sunday morning for last rites, amid a blame-game between the ruling party and opposition BJP leaders over who was responsible for the death. A large crowd gathered to pay last respects to the deceased MLA at his residence, a few metres away from the Saraswati Puja marquee where he was shot. Roy, a former TMC member of Parliament, said the legislator's killing could be a result of infighting within the TMC. Roy joined the BJP last year after his relations with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee soured. "Naming me in the FIR is absolutely a politically motivated move. I am sorry about Satyajit's death, but the manner in which they (TMC leaders) are trying to hold the BJP responsible is nothing but a dirty conspiracy," Roy told PTI. Roy said Biswas was surrounded by TMC party workers and activists when he was shot dead. "You have to think about it. Satyajit was surrounded by his partymen when he was shot. How did the killers manage to go near him. It is quite clear as to what happened." TMC secretary general Partha Chatterjee, however, alleged that those who killed the MLA belonged to the saffron party. Along with party's Nadia district observer Anubrata Mondal, who asserted that the "none of the perpetrators will be spared", Partha Chatterjee accompanied the MLA's hearse to his residence from the hospital. Partha said the chief minister was shocked to learn about the incident. "Those who think that they will gain by eliminating Satyajit, are living in a fool's paradise," he said. Urban Development Minister Firhad Hakim also squarely blamed the BJP for the killing of Biswas, who belonged to the Matua community - deemed vital as a support base in Bengal. "The prime minister came to woo the Matua community in Thakurnagar last week. Now the local BJP leaders are resorting to criminal activities to gain political turf," he said. Denying allegations of BJP's involvement, thh party's state president, Dilip Ghosh, demanded a CBI investigation into the killing. An independent probe will reveal the truth, he said. Ghosh echoed Roy's sentiments saying Biswas was a victim of internal feud within the ruling party. "If an MLA gets killed like this, how can the common feel safe?" he asked. PTI AMR RMS TIR TIR Nagpur, Feb 10 (PTI) Mohammad Hanif Syed, one of the three convicts sentenced to death in the 2003 Mumbai twin bomb blasts and currently lodged in the Nagpur Central Jail, died at a hospital, a prison officer said Sunday. Syed's health suddenly deteriorated Saturday evening, following which he was shifted to the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) where he died one and half hours after admission, Jail Superintendent Rani Bhosle told PTI Sunday night. "The exact cause of his death will be known after post-mortem which will be conducted Monday in the presence of his relatives who have arrived in the city Sunday," she said, adding that Syed's body will be handed over to his relatives after autopsy. As per preliminary information and symptoms, he could have died of a cardiac arrest, Bhosle said. Syed, his wife Fehmida and third conspirator Ashrat Ansari were convicted by a POTA (Prevention of Terrorist Activity) court in 2009 of planting powerful bombs in two taxis which exploded at the iconic Gateway of India and Zaveri Bazaar on August 25, 2003, leaving 52 people dead and 244 injured. Syed was shifted to the Nagpur Central Jail from Yerwada jail in 2012, after the Bombay high court upheld his death sentence. The Lashkar-e-Toiba's role in the twin blasts was revealed by an accused-turned-approver. It was for the first time that the LeT had used a family to carry out bomb blasts in the country. PTI CLS NSK KRK AQS Centre committed to resolve Goa mining crisis: Shripad Naik Panaji, Feb 10 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi has briefed the Union Cabinet about the mining crisis in Goa and asserted the need to resolve the issue on priority, Union AYUSH Minister Shripad Naik said on Sunday. A delegation of mining dependents and MPs from Goa had last Wednesday met Modi in New Delhi over their demand for resumption of the iron ore extraction operations in the coastal state. "After the delegation of Goa leaders and mining dependents met the prime minister, he chaired a Cabinet meeting where he briefed the members about the mining issue and asserted that we need to find a solution to it," Naik told reporters on the sidelines of a government event near Panaji. The mining operations, a key source of revenue to the government, came to a standstill in March last year following a Supreme Court order which quashed 88 mining leases. The BJP-led state government has requested the Centre to amend the existing mining laws during the ongoing session of Parliament so that leases get extended. Naik said a speedy solution to the mining crisis was not possible as the issue was "not within the Union government's purview". "But, the government is on it and we will be able to find a solution by February 15, after the budget session of Parliament ends on February 13," he said. Reacting to a statement by Goa Mining People's Front (GMPF) that it does not have much hope from the BJP, Naik said leaders of mining dependents should "stop misguiding the people". The minister also ruled out the possibility of the mining issue impacting BJP's prospects in the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls. "Goa's people know what we have done for them. We are indebted to the people of Goa who are responsible for the party's growth. They will surely stand by the BJP during the Lok Sabha elections," he said. The GMPF, an umbrella group of mining dependents - whose livelihood has been affected - had in December last year staged three-day protests in New Delhi demanding resumption of mining activities in the state. GMPF president Puti Gaonkar had last week claimed that an amendment to the Goa, Daman and Diu Mining Concessions (Abolition and Declaration as Mining Leases) Act could revive the mining leases till 2037. PTI RPS GK GK February 8th, 2019 - Saint Etienne, France Indie French developer COWCAT is pleased to announce that "Riddled Corpses EX" is coming to Nintendo Switch! This old school twin-stick shooter will be available in America and Europe on the Nintendo E-Shop on March 2nd, 2019 for a recommended price of 9,99 . Pre-order is available right now! Trailer : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYKisPJszWk Nintendo Switch features : Joy-Con and Pro Controller supported Coop play possible with a single joycon for each player TV and handheld modes 17 in-game achievements to unlock Riddled Corpses EX is a twin-stick shooter reminiscent of 80/90's arcade games with fast action and fun gameplay. This is a remaster by COWCAT of Diabolical Mind's first game exclusively for consoles. The new version features many improvements, including 60 FPS, a whole new story mode with cutscenes, a clearer interface, much less grinding, characters with stats, new enemies AI, a new soundtrack... It features old-school gameplay, pixel art and quality chiptune music. ### Contact information : ----------------------- COWCAT is a one-man company owned by Fabrice Breton. Official site : http://www.cowcatgames.com/ Email : [email protected] Don't have hope on BJP to solve Goa mining impasse: GMPF Panaji, Feb 10 (PTI) A day after BJP chief Amit Shah said his party would try its best to find a solution to the mining impasse in Goa, an organisation comprising those dependent on the sector Sunday said they did not have much hope from the ruling party. Shah made his one-line mention of the state's mining woes while addressing BJP workers at 'Atal Booth Karyakarta Sammelan' here on Saturday. "We will make all possible efforts to resume mining which has stopped in Goa," Shah had said Saturday. The mining sector in the state came to a standstill in March last year after a Supreme Court order quashed 88 leases and banned the extraction of iron ore. Reacting to the BJP chief's statement, Puti Gaonkar of the Goa Mining People's Front said, "We don't have much hope from BJP now after Amit Shah's action of dodging the mining issue during his Goa visit (on Saturday)." "The way Amit Shah addressed the issue in only one sentence clearly indicates they are not serious about such a major problem," Gaonkar told PTI. He said the GMPF had called for a public meeting in Usgao village in north Goa on February 14 to decide on the future course of action for the mining sector's resumption. A shutdown would also be observed by the GMPF in the mining belt on February 28, Goankar added. Bicholim, Quepem, Sanguem and Dharbandora talukas comprise the mining belt in the state. PTI RPS BNM BNM Court's role is limited in Ayodhya dispute: Swamy Mumbai, Feb 10 (PTI) Courts have a "limited" role to play in the resolution of the Ayodhya dispute, BJP leader Subramanian Swamy said here Sunday. Speaking at a public function here, the Rajya Sabha MP also claimed that Pakistan will disintegrate in the next decade. Talking about the Babri Masjid-Ram temple issue, which is currently before the Supreme Court, Swamy said, "Court's role is limited in this case. "The non-disputed land can be taken into possession and the temple can be constructed within two years," he said. Last month, the Narendra Modi government asked the Supreme Court to allow it to return the "non-disputed" surplus land acquired around the disputed structure in Ayodhya to a Hindu trust and other original owners. Swamy also predicted that Pakistan will split up and cease to exist as a country. "Between 2020 and 2030, Pakistan will disintegrate into four provinces, and Pakistan as a country will cease to exist," he said. PTI ND KRK KRK Four foreign nationals held with cocaine worth Rs 39 crore Mumbai, Feb 10 (PTI) The police have arrested three Nigerian men alongwith a Brazilian woman and seized cocaine worth around Rs 39 crore from their possession,a senior official said here Sunday. The accused were about to send the drug to South Africa, police said. A team of Amboli police nabbed the accused from the Maurya Estate road in suburban Andheri Saturday night and recovered drugs worth Rs 38.95 crore, the official said. The accused were identified as Neras Pokhogo (35), Michael Hop (29), Simon Agobata (32), all Nigerians; and Karle Ires (41), a woman from Brazil. The cocaine allegedly seized from their possession was supposed to be sent to Johannesburg in South Africa. The accused were held when they were heading for the office of a courier companyto dispatch the consignment. Additional Commissioner of Police Manoj Kumar Sharma said the accused concealed narcotic drugs in rings and pipes of curtains. These drug-loaded consignments of curtains would be then sent abroad through courier companies. The police were probing whether courier company officials were aware of this racket, Sharma added. The accused were booked under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act. A local court remanded them in seven-day police custody. A police official said that Pokhogo was already facing a drug case in neighbouring Thane, while Ires, the Brazilian national, had come out of prison recently after serving a jail term in an NDPS case. PTI AVI KRK KRK Once under ISIS influence, men in Maha make a new beginning By Dnyanesh Chavan Mumbai, Feb 10 (PTI) Jamil Ansari (name changed) runs a mobile phone repair shop in Maharashtra's Beed district. But, nobody would imagine that only two years ago, he was on the verge of joining the dreaded terror outfit ISIS by travelling to Iraq, thousands of kilometres away. Thanks to an initiative of the Maharashtra Anti- Terrorism Squad (ATS), Ansari changed his mind and underwent an employment training programme after escaping clutches of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria's (ISIS) online 'recruiters' who had almost radicalised him. He is not the only one. There are many such young men in Maharashtra, mainly in the industrially backward Marathwada region, who had once fallen victim to ISIS' propaganda but are now leading a normal life with the help of the employment training programme, a senior ATS official told PTI. Ansari, a 35-year-old graduate, lost his job as a salesman in 2016 and began spending a lot of time surfing online, where he came in contact with some ISIS sympathisers and soon got radicalised. "His online activities brought him under our scanner," the official said. The ATS sleuths realised that Ansari had become a victim of ISIS propaganda and he was counselled in a bid to de-radicalise him, he said. The official said the ATS runs a de-radicalisation programme for such people to once again join the mainstream with the help of religious leaders and clerics. But the real problem was that Ansari had no job, and there were many more like him, he said. In Marathwada, the ATS in the last two years identified as many as 400 young men who were suspectedly under the influence of ISIS. In all the cases, the recruiter started chatting with his target about "atrocities" on Muslims in India to gauge the person's views, the official said. After the person was successfully radicalised, he would be taught how to make Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) or other weapons, he said, adding that some were also encouraged to join the ISIS in Iraq, where the militant outfit once controlled large swaps of territory. Notably, the ATS last month arrested nine men from Aurangabad and Thane districts for allegedly planning chemical attacks with an intent to cause mass casualty at public events by contaminating food and water, he pointed out. In 2018, the ATS had arrested a 36-year-old man from Parbhani district who came in contact with ISIS and received instructions on how to make IEDs. He made bombs and even carried out trials, the official said, adding that he was arrested along with four others before he could use the IED for a terrorist act. ATS chief Atulchandra Kulkarni said they realised that unemployment was one of the major reasons for such men from the Muslim community most of whom were from Marathwada -- getting radicalised online and falling into ISIS' trap. "The challenge was to bring these people back to normal life, and we found a solution in the Rural Self-Employment Training Institutes (RSETIs), run by the Union rural development ministry," said Kulkarni. As many as 239 such men were imparted training at these institutes last year. Besides, the anti-terror cells formed at police station-levels identified 15 men who were also trained in self-employment, another police official said. Thirty such men secured bank loans after undergoing training and started their own businesses, Kulkarni said. Appreciating the initiative, RSETI authorities agreed to train the candidates short-listed by ATS on priority basis. The ATS also approached the Syndicate Bank and the Bank of Maharashtra, which agreed to offer loans to the short-listed men after they underwent training, he said. The initiative began with some 270 young men, who were trained in mobile phone repairing. Another batch is now receiving training in fitting electric wires, a police official said. Ansari is one of the examples of this initiative's success. After being imparted counselling, he was recommended for a short training course in mobile repairing at an RSETI, he added. Now, he runs a small mobile repair shop of his own, far away from Iraq. PTI DC GK GK New Delhi, Feb 10 (PTI) Following are the top foreign stories at 2000 hours: FGN1 UK-DOCTORS Indian doctors protest UK's 'unfair' health surcharge London: UK-based Indian doctors and healthcare professionals are campaigning against what they describe as an "unfair" doubling of a health surcharge imposed on professionals from outside European Union (EU) living and working in Britain. By Aditi Khanna FGN6 TALIBAN-TALKS Despite talks, 'not yet reached' any conclusion to end hostilities: Af Taliban Islamabad: The Afghan Taliban has said that despite the ongoing talks with the US and other regional powers, it had "not yet reached" any conclusion that would entail an immediate end to hostilities against America and its allies, according to a media report. FGN4 AFGHAN-LD AIRSTRIKES Afghan lawmaker says airstrikes kill 21 civilians Kabul: Airstrikes in Afghanistan's southern Helmand province have killed 21 civilians, including women and children, a lawmaker from the region said Sunday. (AP) FGN5 CHINA-LD ACCIDENT 13 killed in highway accidents amid China travel rush Beijing: Accidents on icy highways in central China left at least 13 dead and dozens injured this weekend as millions of families were heading home from the Lunar New Year holiday. (AP) FGN3 SKOREA-US-NKOREA-MILITARY S Korea announces hike in payment for US troops Seoul: Seoul said Sunday it agreed to hike its payment for maintaining American troops on its soil, settling a dispute with its longtime ally ahead of a second summit between the US and North Korea. (AP) MRJ RUP Dubai, Feb 10 (PTI) Pakistan has the Mecca and Medina for the Sikhs and the country is opening up those sites for the minority community, Prime Minister Imran Khan said in the UAE on Sunday. Prime Minister Khan in November last year laid the foundation stone for the corridor linking Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan's Kartarpur - the final resting place of Sikh faith's founder Guru Nanak Dev - to Dera Baba Nanak shrine in India's Gurdaspur district to facilitate visa-free movement of Indian Sikh pilgrims. Khan is paying a day-long trip to the UAE to take part in the 7th edition of the World Government Summit on the invitation of Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE Sheikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum. "We have the Mecca and Medina of the Sikhs... and we are just opening up those sites for Sikhs," Khan said. Mecca and Medina are the two holiest sites in Islam. "We have opened our visa regime. For the first time in Pakistan, we have 70 countries from where people can come and get visas at the airport," the prime minister said. Khan said Pakistan has the best tourist potential even though at the moment it hardly has any tourism. "Half the world's highest peaks are in Pakistan," he said, adding that the country has 1,000 kilometers of coastline. Khan also said that Pakistan has the oldest historical monuments, probably as old as anywhere in the world. "We have Indus Valley Civilization, which is 5,000 years old. We have Peshawar, the oldest living city in the world, 2,500 years old. Lahore and Multan are ancient cities. "We have the Gandhara civilization, which was the cradle of Buddhist civilization, in the north of Islamabad. The biggest sleeping Buddha, 40 feet, is in Haripur. We have some of the greatest and highest number of Sufi shrines all over Pakistan," he said. Khan said they are opening up the country for tourism. Kartarpur Sahib in Pakistan is located across the river Ravi, about four kilometres from the Dera Baba Nanak shrine. It was established by the Sikh Guru in 1522. The first Gurdwara, Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib, was built here, where Guru Nanak is said to have died. The Kartarpur Corridor, which will facilitate the visa-free travel of Indian Sikh pilgrims to Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur, is expected to be completed soon. Thousands of Sikh devotees from India visit Pakistan every year to celebrate the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak. India had proposed the corridor to Pakistan around 20 years back. PTI CORR CPS AKJ CPS Mumbai, Feb 10 (PTI) John Abraham, Anil Kapoor, Paresh Rawal and Nana Patekar are set to star in the third and fourth installments of "Welcome" franchise and the makers have already started working on the projects. The 2007 comedy film "Welcome", directed by Anees Bazmee and produced by Firoz A Nadiadwala had Akshay Kumar, Katrina Kaif, Feroz Khan, Kapoor, Patekar, Rawal and Mallika Sherawat. The film was a blockbuster. The makers came with "Welcome Back" in 2015 with Abraham. The sequel saw Kapoor and Patekar reprising their roles of underworld dons - Majnu and Uday. "We are planning to do 'Welcome 3' and 'Welcome 4' back-to-back. We will start shooting soon. The actors will remain same - John, Anil, Nana, Paresh bhai. The third one will be directed by Ahmed Khan (the first two were helmed by Bazmee)," source close to the makers told PTI. The producers are planning to release the third part in 2020 and the fourth one in 2021. "This time we will have lot of action. We will have fun and stylised action, like how it was in 'Mission Impossible' series. So, there will be laughter and action both. First time we will incorporate the action thing in 'Welcome' series," the source added. Shooting for the third instalment will commence this year abroad. "The moment 'Welcome 3' will get over in two month's time we will start 'Welcome 4'. It will be the first Indian franchise to have a movies back-to-back. We had planned this four-five months ago." PTI KKP SHD SHD New Delhi, Feb 10 (PTI) Tata group firm Voltas Sunday said it will invest over Rs 500 crore to set up a manufacturing facility in Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh. "This facility will initially manufacture and assemble air conditioners and related cooling products with a total capacity of more than 1 million units to start with," the company said in a BSE filing. Voltas said it aims to create technologically advanced products which are expected to start rolling out from the second half of 2020. The company plans to invest over Rs 500 crore while putting together an OEM (original equipment manufacturer) base for home appliances, and simultaneously creating local employment opportunities in the region. The manufacturing facility, spread over 65 acres, will be one of the first cooling appliances unit in Andhra Pradesh. The choice of Andhra Pradesh as the destination for the new manufacturing unit was due to the state's ease of doing business and growing focus on 'Make in India', it said. The chosen location provides dual benefits of superior market access and cost effective connectivity via road and port, it added. Voltas will cater to the south, west and east markets through this manufacturing facility. "We are delighted to have laid the ground for the Voltas manufacturing plant here in Tirupati. This facility helps us in expanding our manufacturing capabilities while increasing our reach in the Southern market," said Pradeep Bakshi, managing director and CEO, Voltas Ltd. Voltas, among the top ten companies within the Tata group, provides air conditioning and engineering solutions. PTI KKS ABM ABM Polish tech support for Deocha Pachami coal block in Bengal Kolkata, Feb 10 (PTI) Deocha Pachami coal block in Birbhum, the largest in Asia, is set to get technical support from mining experts in Poland, who have assured to remove all operational hurdles that might come in the way of mining the black gold. West Bengal Power Minister Shobhandeb Chattopadhyay said Polish companies have expressed interest to study the coal block, which has a 500-metre-thick layer of overburden (an outer surface covering the coal seams). "A high-level Polish delegation was in city to attend the fifth Bengal Global Business Summit. I had a detailed meeting with a team and they have agreed to study the Deocha Pachami block. "They claimed that they would be able to handle the problems and begin work as soon as possible," he told PTI. Bengal is the sole allottee of Deocha Pachami, which has an estimated reserve of 2.1 billion tones. The overburden above the coal assets turned out to be one of the key reasons for six shareholder states - Bengal, Karnataka, Bihar, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh - and public sector undertaking Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited to exit the block, questioning its viability. However, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee recently said that despite the allotment, the Centre was reluctant in handing over the block to Bengal. According to the state government estimates, investments worth Rs 12,000-15000 crore would be required in developing the block, which may help create one lakh jobs and usher in a rapid economic development in the area. An SPV (special purpose vehicle) - - Bengal Birbhum Coal Company Ltd - - is already in place to execute the project. PTI BSM RMS RMS This blog covers software patent news and issues with a particular focus on wireless, mobile devices (smartphones, tablet computers, connected cars) as well as select antitrust matters surrounding those devices. TDP workers staged protests against Prime Minister Narendra Modi as he arrived on his first visit to the state after the ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP) severed ties with the NDA. The Chandrababu Naidu-led party quit the BJP-led alliance protesting the "injustice" done to the state post-bifurcation. Giving protocol a go-by, none of the state ministers turned up at Vijayawada airport to formally receive the prime minister, who is on an official-cum-political visit. BJP leaders alleged that people were "thwarted," from reaching the venue in large numbers and said countdown would start for Naidu when Modi commences his rally. This is Modi's first visit to Andhra Pradesh, a year after the ruling TDP walked out of the BJP-led NDA. The ruling party organised protests in various cities and towns in the state Sunday in protest against Modi's visit. At Vijayawada and Guntur, TDP workers donned black shirts and took out rallies demanding that "Modi go back". In his daily teleconference with the party leaders, the chief minister dubbed Modi as the modati drohi (first betrayer) of Andhra Pradesh. "Modi is coming for a war on AP. They have done all injustice to the state, destroyed the systems and ruined the country." "Modi is facing protests wherever he is going in the country. He has come to AP to mock at us," Naidu said. Elaborate security arrangements had been made in and around the Gannavaram airport in the wake of the call given by the chief minister for protests against the prime minister's visit. After the reception on the airport tarmac, the prime minister flew to Guntur by a special IAF helicopter. Protests were also organised on Saturday in some parts of the state against the visit. The Congress called for observance of black day on Sunday over Modi's 'failure' to honour the promises made to Andhra Pradesh post-bifurcation, party sources said. In Vijayawada, the CPI and the CPI(M) organised a demonstration Saturday protesting Modi's visit. Reports said similar protests were held in Kadapa and Kurnool districts as well. BJP leader Mukul Roy was among the four people booked on Sunday in connection with the killing of Trinamool Congress MLA Satyajit Biswas in West Bengal's Nadia district, a senior police officer said. Of the four people named in the FIR, two have been arrested, an officer of the West Bengal police told PTI. Biswas (41), who represented Krishnaganj constituency in the state assembly, was shot from point blank range by unidentified assailants Saturday evening inside a Saraswati puja marquee at Phoolbari area in the district bordering Bangladesh. ALSO READ: Trinamool Congress MLA Satyajit Biswas shot dead He was immediately taken to a local hospital where doctors announced him "brought dead". "So far, we have arrested two persons in this case and detained another three. A country-made revolver used to shoot the MLA has also been recovered." "As per our primary findings, it seems that the victim was fired from behind and the act was the result of a well-planned plot," the officer said. Asked about the chances of the assailants fleeing the area, the police officer said the state police have been put on a high alert. "Nadia shares border with Bangladesh and there could be a possibility of them (assailants) trying to escape to the neighbouring country. Police have been put on high alert to check the movements along the border," he said. Roy, a former TMC member of Parliament, joined the BJP last year after his relations soured with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Claiming that the attack was a conspiracy by the BJP, TMC secretary general Partha Chatterjee said Saturday that those involved in the killing will be punished after a full- fledged inquiry. He also said the saffron party was trying to create disturbances ahead of the Lok Sabha polls and resorted to "politics of murder" by singling out leaders having mass bases. The allegations were termed "baseless" by Roy and BJP state president Dilip Ghosh. Brenda Darlene (Burnett, Witt, Bollmer) Curtin, 52, of Cincinnati, Ohio passed away June 21, 2021. She was born November 13, 1968, in Cincinnati, Ohio to the late Gladys (Jones) Napier and the late Wilburn Burnett. Brenda was preceded in death by a daughter, Jennifer Witt and sisters Alta Ru GLEN CARBON A Holistic Approach (AHA) in Glen Carbon provides the community and surrounding areas with methods to improve lives through stress reduction. Holistic means focusing on the client as a whole. It utilizes teamwork and taking a comprehensive look at how to support each individual through massage, oils, wellness education, yoga and meditation. New owner Kendra Sweezey-Errar is a registered nurse and massage therapist, and is currently working as a hospice nurse. She is motivated to continue the mission and values of previous owner Kayci Combs-Lueker. A Holistic Approach will have its grand reopening from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 16. Throughout the day, they will be offering several mini-sessions on toxin-free living, tarot readings, massages and more. There will be other holistic vendors attending, and there will be raffle drawing for attendees. The Illinois Small Business Development Center (SBDC) for the Metro East at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) has been able to assist Sweezey-Errar in managing her new business and providing guidance for all of her business needs. SBDC Director Jo Ann DiMaggio May provided no-cost, one-on-one counseling to Sweezey-Errar on registering her business as an LLC and provided an outline to efficiently complete the process. Jo Ann has been extremely helpful by answering any questions I have had, Sweezey-Errar said. She was there to ensure I did everything correctly and was able to shorten the process in a timely manner. As an entrepreneur, the dream of owning ones own business never truly goes away. When Combs-Lueker spoke about pursuing other options and her desire to get out of the ownership role, Sweezey-Errar jumped on the opportunity. With Sweezey-Errars background, she is eager to understand how both eastern and western medicine can work together as appropriate for an individuals well-being. A community health and wellness center located at 88 S. Main Street in Glen Carbon, AHA offers services ranging from acupuncture, massage therapy, yoga and meditation to educational classes such as essential oils 101 and more. Its goal is to assist the community in incorporating more holistic options by offering services and wellness classes. Kendra is motivated and excited to pursue her entrepreneurial dream, said DiMaggio May. We will be here to support and assist A Holistic Approach every step of the way. Combs-Lueker will still be involved at AHA as a resident teacher, LMT, and partner in wellness, but will now have more time to pursue her radio career at SIUEs WSIE 88.7 F.M. and teach massage therapy. A Holistic Approach can be contacted through its Facebook page. The Illinois SBDC for the Metro East assists start-up ventures like A Holistic Approach as well as existing businesses headquartered in the nine-county region of Calhoun, Jersey, Madison, Bond, Clinton, St. Clair, Washington, Monroe and Randolph. It is funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration, Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, and SIUE as a service to Illinois small businesses. By aiding entrepreneurs and companies in defining their path to success, the SBDC network positively impacts the Metro East by strengthening the business community, creating and retaining new jobs and encouraging new investment. It enhances the regions economic interests by providing one-stop assistance to individuals by means of counseling, training, research and advocacy for new ventures and existing small businesses. When appropriate, the SBDC strives to affiliate its ties to the region to support the goals and objectives of both the SIUE School of Business and the University at large. To learn about the SBDC, contact the IL SBDC for the Metro East at SIUE at (618) 650-2929. VANCOUVERFederal New Democrat leader Jagmeet Singh questioned Justin Trudeaus commitment to rule of law Sunday over allegations the Prime Ministers Office attempted to influence former attorney general Jody Wilson-Raybould into abandoning the prosecution of a Quebec-based engineering giant. The Liberal government was broadsided by allegations last week first reported by the Globe and Mail on Thursday that officials in the Prime Ministers Office, after repeated lobbying by SNC-Lavalin Group Inc., tried to convince Wilson-Raybould to strike a mediation deal instead of pursuing fraud and corruption charges against the company. The multinational corporation faces a slew of corruption and fraud charges laid by the RCMP in 2015. The company is alleged to have doled out millions of dollars in bribes to officials in Libya to secure work on government contracts. The federal government evoking what amounts to solicitor-client privilege to prevent Wilson-Raybould from speaking on the matter suggests Trudeau would prefer to dominate the narrative with spin rather than offer any sort of transparency on the bombshell report, Singh said. Mr. Trudeau and his office are speaking about what happened, but the former attorney general is not able to speak about what happened, Singh told reporters in Vancouver on Sunday. If the government's going to speak about what happened, it should be only appropriate that Ms. Wilson-Raybould be able to respond and say what actually happened. On Saturday, newly-appointed federal Justice Minister and attorney general David Lametti told CTVs Question Period he felt both the Prime Ministers denial of the allegations and a lack of any corroborating evidence meant a committee investigation was unwarranted. But in that same interview, Lametti said he had not spoken to Wilson-Raybould himself, nor did he plan to do so. Singh, himself a lawyer, said the apparent lack of interest from government in showing any sort of transparency or pursuing any kind of followup on an issue which casts Canadas democracy in such a grim light calls into question whether the Prime Minister still puts people before politics. Nothing about this passes the smell test, he said. Fundamentally the question is whose side is this Liberal government on? Are they on the side of people? Or are they on the side of multinational corporations trying to drop criminal charges? Although The Star spotted Wilson-Raybould in attendance at the same, closed-door meet and greet Sunday from which Singh had emerged just before speaking with reporters, the NDP leader said he had not gotten the chance to speak with her directly. But, he said, he believes she exhibited great integrity in refusing to bow to pressure to intervene in a judicial matter. I think she took a courageous stand, he said, drawing a line between Wilson-Rayboulds defiance of political pressure and a statement she released last month following a cabinet shuffle that saw her reassigned to the Ministry of Veterans Affairs. The role of the Attorney General of Canada carries with it unique responsibilities to uphold the rule of law and the administration of justice, and as such demands a measure of principled independence, Wilson-Raybould wrote in her letter. It is a pillar of our democracy that our system of justice be free from even the perception of political interference and uphold the highest levels of public confidence. As such, it has always been my view that the Attorney General of Canada must be non-partisan, more transparent in the principles that are the basis of decisions, and, in this respect, always willing to speak truth to power. Singh lauded her for what he suggested was a reprimand of the politicking shed been subject to as attorney general. She took the right stand in her letter, made it clear she spoke truth to power, and she believed that there should not be even the perception of political interference in the administration of justice, which is absolutely the right stance to take, he said. The question now, he added, whether Trudeau will show the same respect for due process, and whether the shadow of this story will be cast over the impending Burnaby-South byelection, which will determine whether Singh can win a seat in Parliament. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... I think the people of Burnaby-South want to know, whose side is [Trudeau] on? he said. And that's what he should answer Is he on the people's side or is he on the side of this corporation? With files from Alex Ballingall Read more about: OTTAWAThe Liberal government appears likely to block opposition efforts to probe allegations of political interference in the criminal prosecution of SNC-Lavalin, while insisting that discussions on the matter with former justice minister Jody Wilson-Raybould were above board. Justin Trudeaus government will not yet waive solicitor-client privilege, which would give Wilson-Raybould latitude to speak about the allegation, nor will it permit a parliamentary committee to proceed with its own investigation, the Star has learned. Wilson-Raybould has remained silent since the Globe and Mail reported Thursday that senior officials in the Prime Ministers Office pressed her to seek mediation instead of pursuing criminal charges against SNC-Lavalin. The former justice minister who was moved from her post in January has refused to confirm or deny the allegations, saying she is bound by solicitor-client privilege. A senior government official, speaking to the Star on the condition they not be named, said Saturday that the government will not waive the privilege as demanded by opposition MPs because SNC-Lavalins potential criminal trial remains before the courts. A second government source confirmed that the potential criminal trial, as well as SNC-Lavalins appeal of prosecutors denial of a mediation deal, makes waiving privilege unlikely. Nor will the government agree to demands by the Conservatives and New Democrats for an emergency meeting of the Commons justice committee to summon Wilson-Raybould and Trudeaus top political aides to testify publicly on the affair, the senior source said. Read more: Jody Wilson-Raybould maintains silence on SNC-Lavalin allegations Opinion | Hebert: Jody Wilson-Raybould owes Canadians some answers Opinion | Delacourt: Jody Wilson-Rayboulds silence over Trudeaus SNC-Lavalin woes speaks volumes Justice Minister David Lametti told CTVs Question Period that he believes nothing about the affair so far merits an investigation. The prime minister has said that these allegations are false. We havent had any corroborating evidence there. There hasnt been anything to my mind that justifies a committee investigation, said Lametti, who is also on the listed of proposed witnesses. Lisa Raitt, deputy Conservative leader, said she was horrified by Lamettis claim that he had satisfied himself there was no improper influence based solely on the prime ministers public statements. Thats insane thats not upholding the independence of the attorney generals office, Raitt said in an interview. Any hint that of political interference in criminal prosecutions should spark an investigation into what the hell happened, she said. Its a serious enough issue that this needs to have clear light on it and we need to understand exactly what happened, said Raitt, MP for Milton and a lawyer. She said the Conservatives will seek to pressure the Liberals to agree to the committee hearings, though she conceded the effort will likely be voted down. Lametti was not available to speak Saturday. His spokesperson, David Taylor, said the minister will appear before the committee if called to testify. Wilson-Raybould, through a spokesperson, said she was unavailable for an interview. From the initial hours after the allegations broke, Lametti has echoed the prime ministers denial that no direction was given to Wilson-Raybould on the issue. We dont know what evidence or facts he has. Maybe he has spoken to the people in the PMO. Maybe he has facts such that he is very confident in what he is saying, said former Ontario attorney general Michael Bryant. Or he sees this as part of his political role and he doesnt need to be quasi-judicial and independent, Bryant said. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... The justice minister also serves as Canadas attorney general. The ministerial guide sets out the two roles for the cabinet post: The justice minister is responsible for federal laws and development of new policies and programs. The attorney general is chief law officer for the federal government and has responsibility to uphold the Constitution, the rule of law, and respect for the independence of the courts. Trudeau has denied allegations that PMO officials put pressure on Wilson-Raybould to abandon criminal charges against SNC in favour of whats called a deferred prosecution agreement a new tool introduced by the Liberals last year that allows corporate wrongdoers to avoid a criminal trial in favour of fines and corporate governance reforms. Montreal-based engineering company SNC-Lavalin has been facing criminal fraud and corruption charges based on allegations it paid millions in bribes to win government business in Libya between 2001 and 2011. It has argued that the individuals behind the charges have left the company and that punishment to the firm, resulting in a ban on government infrastructure contracts, would result in major job losses in Canada and Quebec in particular. Wilson-Raybould was involved in the internal debates about how to deal with the SNC situation last fall, the Prime Ministers Office confirmed Saturday. A government source would not say at what level those discussions were held whether with Trudeaus entire cabinet, with a subcommittee, or informally between ministers. Its not clear who initiated the discussions. The PMO also confirmed that Gerald Butts, Trudeaus principal secretary and close friend, discussed the matter with Wilson-Raybould in December 2018, but said Butts suggested Wilson-Raybould bring it up with Michael Wernick, the clerk of the Privy Council and Canadas top bureaucrat. The question of undue influence and political interference hinges on the nature of the discussions Wilson-Raybould had on the options for the prosecution of SNC-Lavalin. Some discussions are permitted. The Privy Councils rules for Open and accountable government state the attorney general may consult cabinet colleagues in order to fully assess the public policy considerations relevant to specific prosecutorial decisions. Craig Forcese, a law professor at the University of Ottawa, says that clear political advice is one thing. But a political executive direction to the (attorney general) in a criminal justice matter would exceed judicial standards and dictate that the attorney general refuse and resign, Forcese said. The murk lies where discussions fall short of direction, he wrote in a blog post. Bryant said the involvement of the prime ministers aides the very people he said have power over a ministers political future in such discussions would not be appropriate. It creates the perception and the reality that if she doesnt do what they tell her to do, then there will be political consequences for her, and that means that you are politicizing the prosecution, Bryant said in an interview Saturday. These are the most political animals in the country, the PMO They advise the prime minister, who controls the fate of a cabinet minister, said Bryant, who is now the executive director and general counsel for the Canadian Civil Liberties Association. With files from The Canadian Press Read more about: With Paul Dewars way-too-soon death, on Wednesday evening, Canadians lost a giant. A gentle, principled, passionate giant. A giant who dedicated his very life to the service of others. There will be no shortage of epithets for Paul, but he would likely choose to be remembered for his honest and authentic engagement with his constituents, and for his commitment to their priorities; a commitment that never once wavered. He will also be remembered as that rarest of parliamentarians: one who, while holding firm to his beliefs and loyalty to his party, set an example of civility and multi-partisan co-operation. Many a Sunday, for example, I would hear from him about this column. Dewars political career was forged in the long shadow of his mother, Marion Dewar, who served as Mayor of Ottawa from 1978 to 1985. Marion led Project 4000, which saw the establishment across Canada of over 7,000 private sponsorship groups for refugees of the Vietnam War. Her initiative influenced the federal government to increase Canadas refugee acceptance quota from 8,000 to 60,000. Paul often spoke of how his mother shaped his view of politics, so it is unsurprising that Dewars career was marked by a commitment to social activism and a belief in the potential of politics as a force for good. Read more: Opinion | Paul Dewar: A good man in life and death Paul Dewar, former NDP foreign-affairs critic, dies of cancer Former MP Paul Dewar says his brain cancer is terminal After graduating from Queens University, Paul taught Ottawa students with special needs, and then worked as an organizer for the Ottawa-Carleton Elementary Teachers Federation. In 2006, he ran as the NDP candidate for Ottawa Centre, and was elected to the House of Commons. His colleagues always commented on Dewars commitment to his constituency, noting that he would attend community meetings even when they did not directly pertain to his responsibilities. He had a collegial working relationship with his provincial counterpart, Liberal MPP Yasir Naqvi, another instance of his pragmatism over party. In his role as foreign affairs critic, Dewar was a loud voice for social justice around the world, and a champion for human rights. He pushed the Harper government to denounce nations with homophobic agendas, as in the cases of Russias anti-LGBT legislation, and Ugandas 2014 Anti-Homosexuality Act. Dewar also criticized the downsizing of Canadas role as peacekeeper, which he saw as crucial to our countrys engagement with the international community. At the time of his appointment as critic, foreign affairs discourse in the House was dominated by John Baird and Bob Rae. It is a testament to Dewars graciousness and decency as a politician that he established strong working relationships with both men. It is not often that a friendship of this kind develops between a minister and a critic. And yet, Minister Baird made a point of inviting Dewar to travel with him to the Middle East. The two also worked together on issues facing their neighbouring Ottawa ridings. When Paul found out, in 2018, that his cancer was terminal, he did not retreat into his own problems. Instead, he devoted himself to Youth Action Now, an initiative that supports and provides funding for youth-led initiatives. Thanks to his work, a new generation will be introduced to the principles which drew him to public service. In November, Dewar accepted the Macleans Parliamentarian of the Year Lifetime Achievement award, and in his acceptance speech he struck a tone of collaboration. Speaking to the assembled politicians and journalists, he asked the crowd to remember the moment that first drew them to political work. He then asked them to turn to their neighbours and spend two minutes sharing their initial aspirations and ideas of what can be accomplished through public service. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Is it not time, he asked, to take off the armour of our political party and work together as people representing citizens to build a better country for everyone? Pauls message has never been truer than it is today. As we reflected when George H.W. Bush died earlier this year, there is no limit to what we can accomplish when we put differences aside and work together. We could offer Paul no better final mitzvah, as our Jewish friends would say, than to heed this lesson as we go into the next election. Jaime Watt is the executive chairman of Navigator Ltd. and a Conservative strategist. He is a freelance contributor for the Star. Follow him on Twitter: @jaimewatt Read more about: Dont sweat health-care changes, says Raes former health deputy, Feb. 7 I see that Michael Decter is reverting to the typical government response of dont panic over proposed transformational changes to Ontarios health-care system. Just relax and be happy. I have spent more than 40 years working with government and have had many experiences of too early, too early, too late. It never seems to be the right time to be heard or to panic. It may already be too late, given the legislative majority held by the Conservatives. The problem is not with a system that needs transformation. I do not want to be treated by any system transformed or otherwise. I would rather be treated by competent professionals who have the time and the inclination to deal with me as a person. Alex Hukowich, Cobourg Greg Sheehan, Mississauga Read more about: PARKLAND, Fla. - The massacre that left 17 dead at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School pushed students, parents, officials and others into the national limelight, something most never sought. A look at where some of the most prominent are today: STUDENTS EMMA GONZALEZ -- Gonzalez, 19, became known for her We Call B.S. speech criticizing politicians who accept money from the National Rifle Association, which she gave days after the shooting during a Fort Lauderdale rally. She, David Hogg and other March for Our Lives founders were featured on the cover of Time magazine. They spent the summer as part of the Road to Change tour, which registered young voters around the country. She is attending Floridas New College. DAVID HOGG -- Hogg, 18, became the most prominent spokesman for March for Our Lives, a group he and other Stoneman Douglas students founded that is pushing for stronger gun laws. It won the International Childrens Peace Prize. His activism led to significant criticism, including death threats. He and his younger sister, Lauren, wrote a book, #NeverAgain: A New Generation Draws the Line. He will be attending Harvard in the fall. KYLE KASHUV -- The Stoneman Douglas senior has become the most prominent conservative voice among the students, meeting with President Donald Trump, Republican members of Congress and Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. Kashuv was a member of Gov. Ron DeSantis transition team and is high school outreach director for Turning Point USA, a conservative group. PARENTS ANDREW POLLACK -- Pollack, whose 18-year-old daughter Meadow died in the shooting, became the most outspoken critic of school and law enforcement officials among the victims parents and a force in Florida conservative politics. He has met with Trump, and was on DeSantis transition team. He is pushing for the removal of Broward school Superintendent Robert Runcie and is suing suspect Nikolas Cruz, the Broward school district and sheriffs office and former Broward sheriffs Deputy Scot Peterson, who was on duty at the school during the shooting but did not enter the building to confront the shooter. FRED GUTTENBERG -- Guttenberg, whose 14-year-old daughter Jaime was killed, has become an outspoken advocate for gun control and liberal causes. He drew national attention when he approached new Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh during his confirmation hearing and extended his hand, only to have Kavanaugh walk away. Guttenberg was part of the transition team for new state Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, Floridas only statewide Democratic officeholder. RYAN PETTY -- Petty, whose 14-year-old daughter Alaina died, was appointed to the state commission investigating the shootings causes. His comments tended to hit at police and school system failures he perceived. He lost a bid for the Broward County school board, but was also part of DeSantis transition team. MAX SCHACHTER -- Schacter, whose 14-year-old son Alex died, became the emotional voice of the parents as a member of the state commission and founder of the group, Safe Schools for Alex. He has travelled extensively looking at school security systems. LORI ALHADEFF -- Alhadeff, whose 14-year-old daughter Alyssa was killed, won a school board seat representing Parkland in August. She tried hiring a Runcie critic as her secretary, but the superintendent said the woman, a college instructor who holds a doctorate, was unqualified because she didnt have related experience. Alhadeff has pushed Runcie to set a timeline for implementing school security projects. TONY MONTALTO -- Montalto, whose 14-year-old daughter Gina was killed, is president of Stand with Parkland, a group of parents and spouses of the victims. The group has pushed for enhanced school security measures, better mental health screening programs and universal background checks for gun purchases. MANUEL OLIVER -- Oliver, whose 17-year-old son Joaquin died, is an artist who has created projects honouring his son and condemning gun violence. He recently took on comic Louis CK, who mocked the victims during a December performance. At his website, changetheref.org, Oliver poses as a standup comedian and in the form of a joke he tells about dropping his son off the day he died. No one laughs. OFFICIALS ROBERT RUNCIE -- The Broward County school superintendent remains in office over the objection of the victims families, as he has the backing of a majority of the nine-member school board. DeSantis has hinted he would like to suspend Runcie, but state law wont allow it as Runcie is an appointed official, not elected. SCOTT ISRAEL - DeSantis suspended the Broward County sheriff on Jan. 11, saying he repeatedly failed and has demonstrated a pattern of poor leadership. Before the shooting, Israel had changed his departments policy to say deputies may confront shooters from shall. Critics say that gave eight deputies an excuse for not confronting the gunman when they arrived during the shooting but stayed outside. Israels attorneys say he intends to challenge the suspension. He intends to run again next year. SCOT PETERSON -- Peterson, a longtime Broward sheriffs deputy assigned to school, retired shortly after the shooting. Security video showed he drew his gun but did not enter the three-story freshman building where the killings took place. Instead, he took cover nearby and stayed there for about 50 minutes. In interviews with the Today show and The Washington Post, he said he did not know where the shots were coming from. He was subpoenaed to testify before the state investigative commission, but invoked his Fifth Amendment right to silence after it was announced he is under criminal investigation. The commission concluded that he lied about not knowing the location of the shooter, and several members called him a coward. He is collecting a pension of more than $100,000 annually. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... SUSPECT AND FAMILY NIKOLAS CRUZ -- Cruz, 20, remains jailed in Broward County, charged with 17 counts of first-degree murder. His attorneys have said the former Stoneman Douglas student would plead guilty in exchange for a life sentence, but prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. No trial date has been set. In November, he was charged with attacking a jail guard who investigators say told him not to drag his sandals while walking. The guard fended off the attack, investigators said. ZACHARY CRUZ -- The suspects 18-year-old brother pleaded no contest in March to trespassing at the school 33 days after the shooting. He was re-arrested weeks later for violating probation for driving without a license and for driving near a school, but was quickly released. He has moved to Virginia, and has shown up at some of his brothers court hearings. WASHINGTON - The Trump administrations special envoy for Afghanistan is returning to the country after stops in Europe and the Middle East for an extended diplomatic tour aimed at pushing a U.S. peace initiative. The State Department said in a statement Sunday that Special Representative for Afghan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad would spend the rest of February travelling to Belgium, Germany, Turkey, Qatar, Afghanistan and Pakistan. It said the trip is intended to facilitate a peace process that protects U.S. national security interests and brings all Afghan parties together in an intra-Afghan dialogue through which they can determine a path for their countrys future. Khalilzad recently finished a similar trip during which his talks with the Taliban produced a tentative framework agreement, but he warned last week that the negotiations are far from finished. Khalilzad told an audience at the U.S. Institute of Peace on Friday that he hopes a final deal can be clinched before Afghanistans presidential election in July. He stressed, however that many issues remain to be resolved and that it must be a package deal. We are in the early stage of a protracted process, he said. We have a long way to go. The former U.S. ambassador to Kabul also called for direct talks to begin as soon as possible between the Taliban and the Afghan government, which thus far has not been involved in Khalilzads talks. So far, though, he noted that the Taliban have been unwilling to take this step, arguing that the government is illegitimate. The U.S. has about 14,000 troops in Afghanistan, and President Donald Trump has indicated he wants a substantial withdrawal this year, although no such orders have been given, according to U.S. military officials. Khalizad, who was appointed to his current post in September, said although he and the Taliban have made progress on the issue of a U.S. troop withdrawal, that is just one among many issues and none has been fully resolved. He said the U.S. is not seeking permanent military bases in Afghanistan and will leave if Kabul does not want U.S. troops there, provided that there is no threat to U.S. national security from Afghanistan, particularly from terrorist groups. U.S. troops invaded in October 2001 and toppled the Taliban government within weeks after Osama bin Ladens al-Qaida network launched the 9-11 attacks from Afghanistan. The U.S. military turned its attention largely to Iraq in 2003, and eventually the Taliban were able to regenerate enough combat power to contest key battlefields, mainly in the south. The war is now considered a stalemate. While the U.S. talks with the Taliban have focused on troop presence and assurances that terrorist networks would not be given haven, Khalilzad said intra-Afghan talks could also deal with human rights, freedom of the press and the role of women, who were harshly oppressed under Taliban rule. RICHMOND, Va. - The Latest on the blackface and sexual assault allegations involving Virginias top three Democrats (all times local): 7:30 p.m. Virginia lawmakers on Monday will reluctantly face the unprecedented prospect of impeaching the states second-most powerful leader as they struggle to address allegations of sexual assault levelled against the lieutenant governor. At least one lawmaker says he will try to pursue impeachment of Democratic Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax after two women accused Fairfax of sexual assault in the 2000s. Fairfax has vehemently denied the claims and called for authorities, including the FBI, to investigate. Theres little sign of broad appetite for impeachment, with lawmakers set to finish this years session by the months end. But the Legislature is swirling with questions about lines of succession and the political fallout for Democrats should the governor, lieutenant governor or attorney general leave office, willingly or not. ___ 12:05 p.m. A Democratic Virginia congressman says Gov. Ralph Northam has lost too much credibility to remain in office after admitting that he wore blackface as a young man. Rep. Don Beyer called Northams initial admission, and then denials, that he was in a racist photo very bizarre. Northam later acknowledged he wore blackface at a separate event in the 1980s. Beyer tells CBS Face the Nation that Northam has sacrificed too much of his ability to govern. Beyer also says he believes the two women who have accused Democratic Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax of sexual assault. Beyer says if you believe the women, there is no choice but to call for Fairfaxs resignation. The congressman says Democratic Attorney General Mark Herring, who also admitted to wearing blackface, has been very responsible in owning up to his mistake. ___ 11:25 a.m. A Democratic Virginia congresswoman is standing by her call for Gov. Ralph Northam to resign after he admitted to wearing blackface in the 1980s. Rep. Jennifer Wexton spoke on CBS Face the Nation after the network aired clips of an interview with Northam in which he expressed regret and said he wouldnt step down. Wexton says Northam, also a Democrat, has lost the confidence of Virginia voters and no longer can serve as an effective governor. Wexton also says she expects that Democratic Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax will do the right thing for Virginia and resign, calling the allegations of sexual assault against him by two women extremely credible. Wexton is withholding judgment on Democratic Attorney General Mark Herring, saying he came forward proactively in acknowledging that he, too, had worn blackface as a young man. ___ 11:10 a.m. After ignoring calls for his own resignation, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam is declining to weigh in on whether the states embattled lieutenant governor or its attorney general should step down. Northam said Sunday on CBS Face the Nation that its up to Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax and Attorney General Mark Herring to make their own decisions. All three Democrats are embroiled in controversies involving race or sex. Northam said he supports Fairfaxs call for an investigation into allegations of sexual assault by two women. Fairfax has vehemently denied the allegations. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Herring admitted to wearing blackface in college. Northam said of Herring, that, just like me, he has grown. The governor has ignored calls to resign since a racist photo from his 1984 medical school yearbook surfaced. He denies being in the photo. But he admitted to wearing blackface in 1984. ___ 10:50 a.m. Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam says he thought about resigning in the days after a racist yearbook photo surfaced. The embattled Democrat told Gayle King of CBS Face the Nation on Sunday that Yes, I have thought about resigning. But he said hes in a position to lead and that Virginia needs someone that can heal. He added: Thats why Im not going anywhere. Northam said now is the time to take action and to employ government policies to address racial inequalities in the state. Northam has been ignoring widespread calls to resign. A photo of a man in blackface standing next to someone in Ku Klux Klan robes surfaced in his 1984 medical school yearbook. He denies hes in the photo, but has admitted to wearing blackface as part of a Michael Jackson costume that same year. __ 1 a.m. Virginias embattled lieutenant governor is urging authorities to investigate sexual assault allegations made against him, but he is not heeding calls to resign and its unclear what comes next for the once-rising star of the state Democratic Party. Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax on Saturday issued a statement repeating his strong denials that he had ever sexually assaulted anyone. He also made clear he does not intend to immediately resign. At least one state lawmaker is calling for impeachment proceedings to begin, but theres little sign of a broad appetite for impeachment. Lawmakers are set to finish this years legislative session by the end of the month. If an impeachment hearing does occur, though, an attorney for one of Fairfaxs accusers says her client is willing to testify that Fairfax raped her while they were college students in 2000. BOISE, Idaho - The Latest on the arrest of a Boise State freshman guard (all times local): 3:30 p.m. Police say a Boise State University freshman guard is charged with battery after he entered a 21-and-over bar and fought with an employee who asked him to leave. Online arrest records for the Ada County Sherriffs Office arrest show 19-year-old Jaycson Bereal was booked early Sunday and charged with two misdemeanours. In addition to battery, he faces a loitering-related charge. Police say when an employee found out Bereals age, he asked him to leave. Police say Bereal began physically fighting with the employee, ultimately batting him. Police say he was also cited for possession and/or consumption of alcohol by a minor. His father, Jaycson Bereal Sr., tells the Idaho Press that details are unclear, but its a misunderstanding they hope gets worked out soon. The schools athletic department says in a statement its aware of the incident and will handle appropriately per department policy. ___ 12 p.m. A Boise State freshman guard has been arrested and charged with two misdemeanours. Online arrest records for the Ada County Sherriffs Office arrest show Jaycson Bereal was booked early Sunday and charged with battery and a loitering charge involving a minor loitering at premises that sell alcohol. His father, Jaycson Bereal Sr., tells the Idaho Press that details are unclear, but its a misunderstanding they hope gets worked out soon. The 19-year-old Bereal is redshirting this season. He hasnt attended the past few games to focus on schoolwork. The schools athletic department says in a statement that Boise State is aware of last nights incident, and will handle appropriately per department policy. The 6-foot-6 guard was a touted prospect out of Booker T. Washington High School in Tulsa, Oklahoma. ___ Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... More AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/Collegebasketball and http://www.twitter.com/AP_Top25 ___ Information from: Idaho Press, http://www.idahopress.com YUCAIPA, Calif. - Authorities say two girls ages 14 and 15 were arrested in Arizona in connection with the killing of a man found shot in Southern California. The San Bernardino County Sheriffs Department says deputies looking for a 14-year-old runaway on Friday found 24-year-old Reuben Franco dead at a home in Yucaipa, California. Detectives determined a 15-year-old girl was missing from the home and believed to be with the 14-year-old. Francos car was also gone. Police in Buckeye, Arizona, detained the girls after they crashed the car into a pump at a gas station. They were returned to California and could each face a murder charge. Officials say both girls are residents of Yucaipa. No other details, such as a motive for the shooting, were immediately released. MILWAUKEE - A man who was charged Sunday with killing a Milwaukee officer during a drug raid on his home told investigators that he didnt realize it was police trying to break down his door, authorities said. Jordan P. Fricke, 26, is charged with first-degree intentional homicide and other crimes in the fatal shooting of 35-year-old Officer Matthew Rittner, who was part of a tactical unit trying to serve a warrant to search the home for illegal drugs and weapons on Wednesday morning. According to the criminal complaint, police announced their presence several times and said they had a search warrant, and an officer yelled police right before Fricke fired four rounds through a hole in the door that Rittner had made with a battering ram. Rittner died of a gunshot wound to the chest. Fricke was in bed with his girlfriend when they were awakened by loud noise and yelling. He told investigators that he never heard anyone yell search warrant. He said he thought he heard someone say police but didnt think it was actually the police trying to break into his home, the complaint states. Frickes girlfriend said she saw him shoot at the kitchen door and that she knew police were at the door because she heard them identify themselves, according to the complaint. A $1 million cash bond was set Sunday for Fricke, who remained in jail. A court commissioner found probable cause to hold Fricke for further proceedings, and a preliminary hearing was set for Thursday. Frickes attorney, Michael L. Chernin, declined comment. Rittner, a 17-year veteran of the force, was the third Milwaukee officer killed in the line of duty in eight months. The department had previously gone more than two decades without such a death. Rittners funeral is scheduled for Wednesday at Oak Creek Assembly of God Church in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. WASHINGTON - The Senates top Democrat is introducing legislation to hold China accountable and sanction laboratories and other traffickers who export fentanyl to the United States. The bill, which will be introduced by Sen. Charles Schumer, of New York later this week, is likely to add to growing tension between the U.S. and China, days before Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer will lead high-level trade talks in China. In December, China agreed to label fentanyl, the deadly synthetic opioid responsible for tens of thousands of American drug deaths annually, as a controlled substance. Schumers legislation known as the Fentanyl Sanctions Act would direct U.S. officials to publicly identify foreign opioid traffickers, would deny the traffickers visas in the U.S. and would prohibit them from doing business using American banks. The bill aims to hold accountable fentanyl manufacturers in China and other countries that illegally drugs to the U.S., Schumer said. It could also be used to target transnational gangs and cartels involved in fentanyl trafficking, as well as banks that help those organizations, he said. For years, Chinese laboratories have been cooking-up formulas of death and freely exporting lethal fentanyl across New York, and to many other places across America, where it is killing tens-of-thousands of people_and it has to stop, Schumer said in a statement to The Associated Press. The legislation would also require the U.S. to create a commission to oversee synthetic opioid trafficking, which would monitor efforts to combat fentanyl trafficking from China and Mexico and issue reports on its findings. It also provides additional funding for law enforcement agencies that are trying to combat synthetic opioid trafficking. Schumer expects the bill will receive bipartisan support, according to his spokesman, Angelo Roefaro. Schumer said the bill is necessary because Congress hasnt been provided with a signed and enforceable agreement, a solid plan or genuine commitment since China has agreed to label fentanyl a controlled substance after a meeting between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping during the G-20 summit in December. U.S. officials have been pressing the Chinese government for years to take a tougher stance against fentanyl, which is 50 times more powerful than heroin. Most U.S. supply of the drug is manufactured in China. We must present China with a tough but fair consequence when it comes to the wave of fentanyl flowing into the United States, Schumer said. Preliminary data released by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration in November showed that about 49,060 people died from opioid-related overdose deaths in 2017, a rise from the reported 42,249 opioid overdose deaths in 2016. Fentanyl and other related opioids, which tend to be cheaper and much more potent than heroin, remain one of the biggest concerns for federal drug agents. A bill signed by the president in the fall requires the U.S. Postal Service to screen overseas packages for fentanyl. MINNEAPOLIS - With snow falling steadily and the temperature well below freezing, Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar said shes joining the group of Democrats running for president and would take her campaign and her Midwest sensibilities directly to parts of the region Donald Trump won and that her party wants to recapture in 2020. For every American, Im running for you, she told an exuberant, snow-covered crowd gathered Sunday at a park along the Mississippi River with the Minneapolis skyline in the background. And I promise you this: As your president, I will look you in the eye. I will tell you what I think. I will focus on getting things done. Thats what Ive done my whole life. And no matter what, Ill lead from the heart. Klobuchar, who easily won a third-term last year, is the most prominent candidate from the Midwest to enter the race. Shes pointed to her broad appeal across Minnesota where shes drawn support from voters in urban, suburban and rural areas, including in dozens of counties Trump won in 2016 and says that success could translate to other Midwestern states such as Michigan and Wisconsin, reliably Democratic in presidential races for decades until Trumps victory over Hillary Clinton. Klobuchar said she would travel next weekend to Iowa, home to the nations first caucus, joking its a place where we in Minnesota like to go south for the winter. That trip will be followed by stops in Wisconsin, where Clinton was criticized in 2016 for not spending enough time. Were starting in Wisconsin because as you remember there wasnt a lot of campaigning in Wisconsin in 2016. With me, that changes, Klobuchar told reporters after the event, noting her mother grew up in the state. Im going to be there a lot. Klobuchar, who has prided herself for achieving results through bipartisan co-operation, did not utter Trumps name during her kickoff speech. But she did bemoan the conduct of foreign policy by tweet and said Americans must stop the fear-mongering and stop the hate. ... We all live in the same country of shared dreams. And she said that on first day as president, she would have the U.S. rejoin an international climate agreement that Trump has withdrawn from. In this Jan. 15, 2109 file photo, Senate Judiciary Committee member Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington. Trump responded to Klobuchars announcement with a tweet mocking her stance on global warming, a phenomenon he has disputed in the past. He wrote that Klobuchar talked proudly of fighting global warming while standing in a virtual blizzard of snow, ice and freezing temperatures. Bad timing. By the end of her speech she looked like a Snowman(woman)! Trump often overlooks evidence of record global warming and conflates cold spells and other incidents of weather with climate, which is long-term. Asserting her Midwestern values, she told a crowd warmed by hot chocolate, apple cider, heat lamps and bonfires: I dont have a political machine. I dont come from money. But what I do have is this: I have grit. She said the countrys sense of community is fracturing today, worn down by the petty and vicious nature of our politics. We are all tired of the shutdowns and the showdowns, the gridlock and the grandstanding. The list of Democrats already in the race features several better-known senators with the ability to raise huge amounts of money Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Kamala Harris of California, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and Cory Booker of New Jersey, who welcomed Klobuchar to the race during a campaign stop in South Carolina. The field soon could expand to include prominent Democrats such as former Vice-President Joe Biden of Delaware and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. A Des Moines Register/CNN/Mediacom poll conducted by Selzer & Company in December found that Klobuchar was largely unfamiliar to likely Iowa caucus-goers, with 54 per cent saying they didnt know enough about her to have an opinion, while 38 per cent had a favourable opinion and 8 per cent had an unfavourable opinion. She starts out perhaps with a better understanding of Midwestern voters, but I think she faces the same hurdles every one of them face, which is: Are Iowans going to find them either the best candidate to defeat Donald Trump or the candidate that most aligns with their ideologies and issues? said John Norris, a longtime Iowa-based Democratic strategist. I dont know that coming from Minnesota gives her any advantage with Iowans. Klobuchar, 58, is known as a straight-talking pragmatist willing to work with Republicans, making her one of the Senates most productive members at passing legislation. Cindy York, a retired teacher who attended the rally, said shes always respected Klobuchar for her ability to get at the hard questions in a polite and respectful way, adding I think we need a lot more of that in this country. She said she has friends of all political leanings who have supported Klobuchar, and she sees that as an advantage over the rest of the Democratic field. Many of the others are probably a little too liberally perceived or left-leaning, York said. I think Amy is perceived as more of a centrist, always has been, and I have tremendous respect for that. Shes a consensus builder and we need that. The rally took place not far from the Interstate 35W bridge over the Mississippi. The span was built after the previous bridge collapsed in 2007, killing 13 people. Klobuchar had worked with then Sen. Norm Coleman, R-Minn., to help fund the new bridge and get it completed at a faster-than-usual pace. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... We worked across the aisle to get the federal funding and we rebuilt that I-35W bridge in just over a year. Thats community. Thats a shared story. Thats ordinary people doing extraordinary things, she said. Klobuchars focus in recent months has included prescription drug prices, a new farm bill and election security. She supports the Green New Deal, a Democratic plan proposed this past week to combat climate change and create thousands of jobs in renewable energy. But her legislative record has drawn criticism from both the GOP and some fellow Democrats. Some Republicans say Klobuchar is able to get things done because she pushes smaller issues. Some progressives say she lacks the kind of fire and bold ideas needed to bring significant change and excite voters. Klobuchar on Sunday also responded to news reports that she has mistreated staff, saying she can be tough but has many staff members whove worked for her for many years. I can push people. I know that, she told reporters after the event. I have Id say high expectations for myself, I have high expectations for the people who work for me, but I have high expectations for this country. And thats what we need. We need someone who is focused on getting things done for this country. Klobuchar, a lawyer and the former prosecutor in Minnesotas largest county, raised her national profile during a Senate Judiciary Committee last fall for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, who was accused of sexually assaulting a woman when they were both in high school. When Klobuchar asked Kavanaugh whether he ever had had so much to drink that he didnt remember what happened, he turned the question around. He asked Klobuchar, Have you? Unruffled, Klobuchar continued as Kavanaugh asked again. Kavanaugh later apologized to Klobuchar, whose father is an alcoholic. When you have a parent whos an alcoholic, youre pretty careful about drinking, she said. I was truly trying to get to the bottom of the facts and the evidence. Among the other Midwestern lawmakers who could seek the nomination are Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio, who has been visiting early voting states, and Pete Buttigieg, the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, who established an exploratory committee last month. ___ AP Polling Editor Emily Swanson in Washington contributed to this report. WASHINGTON - U.S. fears about China and Russias growing influence in Central Europe will top Secretary of State Mike Pompeos agenda as he heads to the region this week, Trump administration officials say. Pompeo leaves Sunday on a five-nation tour of Europe that will begin in Hungary and Slovakia where he will raise those concerns and the importance of promoting democracy and the rule of law to counter Beijing and Moscows efforts to pull the countries away from the West and sow divisions in the European Union and NATO. The centerpiece of the trip will be a conference on the future of the Middle East in Poland on Wednesday and Thursday that is expected to focus on Iran and will also be attended by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Vice-President Mike Pence and President Donald Trumps Mideast peace team of senior adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner and special envoy for international negotiations Jason Greenblatt. But in Budapest and Bratislava on Monday and Tuesday, Pompeo will specifically point to issues related to Central Europes reliance on Russian energy and the presence of the Chinese high-tech telecom firm Huawei, particularly in Hungary, according to the officials, who were not authorized to publicly discuss Pompeos travel and spoke on condition of anonymity. U.S. officials are deeply troubled by Huaweis expansion, especially in NATO member states where they believe it poses significant information security threats. The officials said Pompeo hoped to reverse what they called a decade of U.S. disengagement in Central Europe that created a vacuum that Russia and China have exploited. Over the course of the past 10 years, the officials said Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leaders have become much more aggressive in the region and making inroads. One official said Pompeo would look for areas of shared interest that have been neglected in the recent past in order to wrong-foot the Wests rivals in places where they have gained bridgeheads. The administration has made a point of reaching out to Hungarys nationalist Prime Minister Victor Orban, who shares Trumps strong stance on limiting migration and has adopted increasingly authoritarian measures, including cracking down on the opposition, labour unions, independent media and academia. The Obama administration had largely steered clear of Orban, who won a third consecutive term last year in a campaign based on anti-immigration policies and whose policies have been met with street protests and deepening concern within the EU. Last month, Orban said he wanted anti-immigration forces to become a majority in all European Union institutions, including its Parliament and the EUs executive Commission and predicted that there would soon be two civilizations in Europe one that builds its future on a mixed Islamic and Christian coexistence and another in Central Europe that would be only Christian. Orbans government has been targeted for criticism, including from the U.S., for forcing a Budapest-based university founded by billionaire philanthropist George Soros to move most of its programs to Vienna. His fiery rhetoric against migrants and refusal to join a new European Union public prosecutors office focusing on fraud and corruption have also raised concerns. Human rights groups and others have lamented Pompeos plans to meet with Orban and urged him to take a strong stance against his worrisome policies. Secretary Pompeo needs to treat this trip not as a friendly meeting between allies, but as an opportunity to have a frank conversation with a state increasingly at odds with both American interests and its human rights obligations, Human Rights First said in a statement. At the same time that hes rolling back Hungarys post-Cold War democratic gains, Orban is making increasingly clear where his strategic affinities lie by cozying up to the Kremlin. The U.S. officials defended the Budapest stop, saying it is impossible to press the U.S. positions and interests in Hungary effectively without meeting Orban. We have to show up or expect to lose, one official said. The official added that the administration has seen the results of lack of U.S. engagement in the region and we want to step up that diplomatic engagement. The official also noted that Putin had visited Hungary twice last year and that Pompeo would meet civic leaders, some of whom have been critical of Orban. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... In Bratislava, Pompeo will meet Slovak officials on similar issues and also to pay his respects to the hundreds of people who died attempting to escape from the communist former Czechoslovakia to Austria during the Cold War, the officials said. In addition, the State Department said Pompeo will also address students about the importance of the legacy of Western democratic freedom and its triumph over Communism. After the Mideast conference in Warsaw, Pompeo will wrap up his trip with brief stops in Brussels and Rekjaivik, Iceland, on Friday. KODIAK, Alaska - Sightings of mink are increasing around Kodiak, Alaska wildlife biologists said of the animal a species not native to the area. The first sighting was several years ago, the Kodiak Daily Mirror reported . Alaska Department of Fish and Game wildlife biologist John Crye said the sightings began after he got a call from an individual who was interested in raising and farming the animals. The mink sightings started a year later, Crye said at a recent meeting of the Kodiak Fish and Game Advisory Committee. So, I think thats where they came from, Crye said. They might be here to stay. Theres quite a few. Nathan Svoboda, another Fish and Game wildlife biologist, said the mink farm idea was rejected. Svoboda said the agency is increasingly getting reports of mink in the area. We are getting more sightings every year. Were also getting more trappers bringing them in every year, he said. Fish and Game officials say most of the sightings have been around the city of Kodiak, particularly in nearby St. Herman Harbor, which is located on Near Island. But that doesnt mean the animals arent elsewhere, too, according to Svoboda. Invasive species can be detrimental to Kodiak Islands ecosystem and could even replace native species, he said. ___ Information from: Kodiak (Alaska) Daily Mirror, http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com FULLERTON, Calif. - Witnesses and emergency responders lifted a pickup truck off people trapped when a driver plowed into a crowd on a sidewalk in Southern California early Sunday, injuring at least nine, authorities said. Police arrested a 22-year-old man on suspicion of driving under the influence of drugs after the truck crashed into a popular area of Fullerton filled with people leaving bars and restaurants shortly before closing time. It was a very chaotic scene, police Lt. Jon Radus said. The Toyota Tacoma jumped the curb, struck people and then crashed into a tree, Radus said. Some of the victims were trapped under the truck. One of the girls was screaming, Help, help! bystander Sohrab Gill said. I saw some blood coming out of her nose. Injuries ranged from moderate to critical and the victims are between 18 and 49 years old, the Orange County Register reported. Authorities say a suspected drunken driver was arrested after his pickup truck plowed into a crowd on a sidewalk, injuring multiple people, including some victims who were trapped under the vehicle. Christopher Solis of Anaheim was arrested on suspicion of felony DUI causing great bodily injury. It wasnt known if he has an attorney. ___ This story has been clarified to show police believe the suspect was under the influence of drugs, not alcohol. ___ Information from: The Orange County Register, http://www.ocregister.com FONTANA, Calif. - Police searching the Southern California home of an alleged motorcycle gang member uncovered a manhole that led to an underground shooting range. The Fontana Police Department said on Facebook that officers seized numerous weapons and thousands of rounds of ammunition during the search Thursday night. The suspect, 45-year-old Charles McMillian, was taken into custody and booked for several counts, including illegally possessing firearms. He was released on bail. When reached at his home, McMillian said he was a proud American and denied he was a gang member before abruptly hanging up the phone. CLAYTON, Calif. - Authorities say a body has been found in the wreckage of a plane they believed crashed Friday night two miles southwest of the peak of Mount Diablo in Northern California. Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Ian Gregor says the single-engine Mooney M20 crashed into the hillside in Contra Costa County. Gregor says the exact time of the crash hasnt been determined yet. He says the aircraft burned after crashing. California State Parks spokeswoman Gloria Sandoval says the body was found at the crash site and that the Contra Costa County coroners office is at the scene. KGO-TV in San Francisco reports that authorities say the pilot was believed to be the only one on the plane. The pilots name was not released. Gregor says the pilot was flying from Hayward to Lincoln. He says that on Saturday, a family member of the pilot reported the aircraft was overdue after it had not landed as scheduled. The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate. BEIRUT - Irans foreign minister extended an offer for Iranian military assistance to the U.S.-backed Lebanese army on Sunday, saying Iran is ready to assist in all sectors should the Lebanese government want it. Mohammad Javad Zarif spoke to reporters Sunday at Beiruts airport shortly after his arrival in the Lebanese capital for a two-day official visit. We are always ready (to support Lebanon militarily) and we have announced that on many occasions. This tendency does exist in Iran, but we are waiting for this desire to be there on the Lebanese side, he said. The comments came a few days after the leader of the Iran-backed Hezbollah group urged Lebanons government to accept anti-aircraft weapons from Iran to confront Israeli warplanes. He also said Iran was ready to provide Lebanon with electricity and medicine. Will the Lebanese government be brave enough to accept an Iranian offer? Why should Lebanon be afraid to co-operate with Iran? Nasrallah asked during a speech marking the 40th anniversary of Irans Islamic Revolution this week. The United States, which lists Hezbollah as an armed terrorist group, backs the Lebanese army through a program that aims to strengthen the military as the sole military force defending the country. Lebanons Western-backed Prime Minister Saad Hariri formed a government late last month, after a nine-month vacuum that exacerbated the countrys economic woes. Hezbollah has three ministers in the new cabinet, reflecting the gains made by the powerful group in parliament elections held in May last year. The group named the health minister, marking the first time it controls a ministry with a large budget. Zarif is the first senior official from the region to visit Lebanon since the new government was formed. He was met at the airport by a minister from Hezbollah and other officials from the Shiite group, which is deeply ingrained in Lebanese politics in addition to its role as an anti-Israel armed group. In his comments, Zarif congratulated Lebanese politicians and said Iran is ready to support the government in any way possible. Mahmoud Qomati, a Hezbollah member and state minister for parliamentary affairs, said later that his group appreciates there is international pressure on Lebanon but that shouldnt stand in the way of accepting Irans offer to help the countrys struggling economy. He urged the government to take a brave stand and accept the offer extended to it. Zarif is scheduled to meet with the Lebanese president, prime minister and foreign minister on Monday. ROME - Voters in one of Italys least populated regions are casting ballots in an election that was regarded as a limited indicator of national parties popularity ahead of European Parliament elections. The governorship and regional assembly of Abruzzo, central Italy, were at stake Sunday. The anti-migrant League party allied with former Prime Ministers Silvio Berlusconis Forza Italia for the regional election. The League is the junior partner in Italys populist government, while the Forza Italia is in the opposition in the national Parliament. The Leagues leader, Interior Minister Matteo Salvini, has ruled out teaming up with the relatively moderate party for Mays European Parliament elections. Opinion polls have seen the League steadily eclipse the popularity of the governments senior partner, the anti-establishment 5-Star Movement. The 5-Stars also fielded candidates in Abruzzo. The Canadian government is aware of Canadian citizens being detained in Syria, said Global Affairs Canada. The confirmation comes after a CNN reporter interviewed two women identified as Canadians fleeing Daesh territory. Richard Walker, a spokesperson for Global Affairs Canada, said the government is working on providing assistance to the limited extent possible. Canadian diplomats have established a communications channel with local Kurdish authorities in order to verify the whereabouts of some Canadian citizens, said Walker. On Saturday, CNN published a report with international correspondent Ben Wedeman interviewing two women passing through a nondescript patch of ground in eastern Syria, after fleeing the Daesh town, Baghouz Al-Fawqani. One of the women described herself as a Toronto native and said she had come to Syria after her husband asked her to, four years ago. But when you come to Raqqa, it doesnt look like a war, she said after Wedeman asked her if she was aware of the war. Youre there, youre eating Pringles and Twix bars and youre just singing you dont feel like youre in a war. The other woman said she was a former graphic designer from Alberta, who also came to Syria at her husbands urging. Both women spoke with North American accents and were dressed in black with their faces covered. They were both accompanied by their children. When asked if she regretted coming to Syria, the Torontonian said, No I dont, in the sense that I had my kids here. Last week, the U.S. State Department issued a statement calling upon other countries to repatriate and prosecute citizens from their country that have been detained by the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces. Walker said that it would be extremely difficult for Canadians in Syria to leave the region given the security situation. He said even if they do find a way out, they are likely to be detained in neighbouring countries. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Premila D'Sa is a breaking news reporter, working out of the Star's radio room in Toronto. Follow her on Twitter: @premila_dsa Read more about: The U.S. ambassador to Canada said Saturday her country is deeply concerned about Chinas unlawful detention of two Canadians. Ambassador Kelly Craft said in a statement to The Associated Press the arrests of ex-diplomat Michael Kovrig and entrepreneur Michael Spavor are unacceptable and urged China to end the arbitrary detentions. It is her first public comments on the cases. China detained the two Canadians on Dec. 10 in an apparent attempt to pressure Canada to release Chinese executive Meng Wanzhou, who was arrested Dec. 1 at the request of U.S. authorities. Meng is the chief financial officer of the Chinese tech giant Huawei and the daughter of its founder. The U.S. wants her extradited to face charges that she committed fraud by misleading banks about Huaweis business dealings in Iran. Craft said the U.S. Department of Justices criminal case against Meng is based solely on the evidence and the law. Read more: Detained Canadian Kovrig gets third consular visit in China since his arrest Opinion | Diplomatic challenges in an undiplomatic world who do you trust? Detained Canadian Michael Spavor gets third consular visit in China since his arrest The United States appreciates Canadas steadfast commitment to the rule of law, she said. Craft made no mention of Chinas planned execution of a third Canadian. China re-sentenced a convicted Canadian drug smuggler to death after the Meng arrest as part of an apparent campaign of intimidation and retribution against Canada. Some analysts have said the U.S. response to Chinas arrests of the two Canadians has been muted. President Donald Trump himself has not commented on the Canadians. But U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has, saying China ought to release them. White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders and the State Department have also issued statements of support. We urge China to end all forms of arbitrary and unlawful detentions and to respect the protections and freedoms of all individuals in accordance with Chinas international commitments, Craft said. Robert Bothwell, a professor at the University of Toronto, called Crafts statement tepid. It doesnt bespeak ringing support, Bothwell said. Beijing threatened grave consequences for Americas neighbour and ally after Meng was arrested at Vancouvers airport. Canada has embarked on a campaign with allies to win the release of Kovrig and Spavor and many countries have issued statements in support. The two were detained on vague allegations of engaging in activities that endanger the national security of China. They remain locked up without access to lawyers. Meng is out on bail in Canada and living in one of her two Vancouver mansions awaiting extradition proceedings. Despite the escalating frictions resulting from the detentions, trade talks between Beijing and the Trump administration remain ongoing. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... The U.S. has taken pains to emphasize that their trade talks are entirely separate from the U.S. case against Meng. They have been doing so since Trump said in an interview that he might be willing to drop the charges against Meng as part of a trade deal with China. Trumps comment frustrated Canadian officials who have been adamant Canada is following the rule of law and that Canada has an extradition treaty it must respect. A Canadian judge could deny the extradition request if it the charges are deemed political. The next time the U.S. asks Canada will be hard of hearing, Bothwell said. Trouble with Trump and company is that they are entirely transactional. They dont think ahead. And in this case Trumps own words will probably be enough to get the U.S. extradition request denied. Read more about: From humble Alberta roots, Vicki St. Denys has danced her way to the academic top as head of Ryerson Universitys performance dance program. Its been an interesting journey. I was a hyperactive child and I guess I was driving everybody crazy so my grandmother said to my parents, I think you should put her in dance, said St. Denys, a tenured professor of dance since 2006 a rarely conferred honour in the field and director of the program, considered to the countrys finest, since 2014. But Red Deer, Alta. population 25,000-ish in the 1960s had only one dance school and one teacher, Arlene Bain, so at the age of 5, St. Denys started learning highland dance and tap, a combination she laughingly acknowledges as bizarre. St. Denys didnt study jazz dance her passion until she was 13. She was 14 before making her first foray into ballet, getting her folks to make the 90-minute back and forth journey to Edmonton on weekends until she was old enough to drive. A stop in town during that time by the acclaimed Les Ballets Jazz de Montreal, best known as BJM, was a revelation. They (BJM) were one of the more prolific touring companies in Canada ... and for some strange reason, they came to Red Deer. We only had this tiny community theatre but for some reason, they performed in Red Deer and I saw that company and I said, ah, thats what it looks like, I dont know how its going to happen but thats what I want to do, she recalled. A mentor urged St. Denys, then 17, to make the trip to Los Angeles to audition for the dance academy founded by the late Roland Dupree, best known as the reference model for Peter Pan in the 1953 Disney classic. Her parents scraped the money together for the plane trip and a stay at a cheap motel near the school. What followed was a gruelling two-day audition against more than 1,000 other competitors. They (judges) would just call me Canada, they didnt even know my name. They would just say, Canada, come back tomorrow. At the end of the second day, I was one of 13 people chosen, she said. I didnt know very much given my background and I hadnt had the same kind of high-level professional training that others had. But I was brave and I was passionate. So I got this scholarship and I phoned my parents and said, Im not coming home, St. Denys said. Her grandmother the same one who got St. Denys into dance in the first place located some distant relatives, an elderly Mormon couple, who lived in Camarillo, outside of L.A., who drove her back and forth to school six days a week until they just couldnt do it anymore. I said, no, no, dont worry, Ive got a place, St. Denys said she assured them, although she didnt, and began living secretly in the dance schools locker room for a few months until a fellow student caught on and let her move in with her temporarily. St. Denys soon found her own place with roommates and lived a Bohemian life for two years during the heady days of the 1980s, which saw the popularity of movies such as Flashdance (1983) and music videos starring the likes of Madonna and Prince. So we starved and lived on popcorn and tuna. It was an exciting and crazy time and I was very, very young and super naive. But a couple of years in L.A. will teach you a thing or two, she recalled, adding she took on a couple of strange, crazy under-the-table jobs to make ends meet. Post-graduation, St. Denys lived a nomadic life, touring as a dance performer throughout Canada and abroad, including Europe, Australia and the Middle East, spending a year in Japan. I was a (nomad) for a long time. I did everything and kind of said no to nothing. I took every kind of dance job, she said. I was kind of homeless. I didnt have an apartment for a long time but I didnt need one. I didnt have anything but I didnt need anything, St. Denys recalled. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... In 1990, St. Denys got a job at the Deerhurst Resort in Huntsville where among the performers was a young Shania Twain (then known as Eilleen) who launched her career there with a three-year stint. St. Denys decided to end her itinerate days and settled in Toronto soon after. But the citys dance scene especially the jazz scene was still relatively modest. But St. Denys soon made connections with some of the key players in the dance scene such as George Randolph, founder of the Randolph Academy of the Performing Arts where she worked for a while Stelio Calagias of Metro Movement, Toronto Dance Theatre co-founder David Earle and Danny Grossman of the Danny Grossman Dance Company. I always wanted to stay a performer ... but I kept getting asked to teach and asked to choreograph. So in keeping with my outlook on things, I always said yes, even when I didnt know what I was doing, which was often, she said. Most importantly, she met former National Ballet of Canada principal dancer Nadia Potts, who served as director of the Ryerson performance dance program for 27 years, the job St. Denys now occupies. So I taught a class and she watched about 15 minutes of it and said, OK, if you want a job, its yours. Nadia was somebody who mentored and supported me very strongly. She believed in me, said St. Denys, who began teaching and choreographing at Ryerson in 1991. (St. Denys eventually managed to find time to complete a masters degree before becoming director.) St. Denys has applied the life lessons shes learned to the Ryerson program, which requires students to study four disciplines of dance ballet, modern, contemporary and jazz throughout the four-year program. We have really maintained the conservatory training approach. Its a very rigorous program. Our students train in four disciplines of dance. No other program does that. I dont even know that there are American programs that do all four disciplines in the way that we do. Its the top program in the country, without question, the top university program, St. Denys said. The program, which has moved into a new modern space at 345 Yonge St., also teaches students the skills they need in a job market that remains difficult and competitive, she noted. The reality for a dance artist is most dancers are going to have independent careers now, in Canada anyway. The days of big dance companies where they hire dancers for full time jobs are gone, they just dont exist anymore, St. Denys said. (Students) have to know how to market themselves, how to produce themselves, how to find some money to get things going. They have to wear a lot of hats. Theyre armed with a lot when they graduate, she said. They have to be patient, they have to have courage, they have to have drive. Its tough out there, but its exciting too, she added. Read more about: MONTREALConservative Leader Andrew Scheer met with the head of SNC-Lavalin in May 2018 to discuss criminal charges facing the Quebec construction giant. Scheers office confirmed the Conservative leader discussed the deferred prosecution agreement sought by SNC-Lavalin to avoid criminal fraud and corruption charges. The meeting with SNC-Lavalin CEO Neil Bruce took place last May 29, months after the Liberal government introduced so-called DPAs in its omnibus budget bill. Mr. Scheer met with a representative from SNC-Lavalin and was briefed on the companys position with regards to deferred prosecution agreements, wrote Brock Harrison, Scheers director of communications, in a statement. The meeting was one of several SNC-Lavalin sought out and held with MPs from all parties during the budget debate. But when asked if Scheer had a position on whether SNC-Lavalin should get such a deal, Harrison would only say that Scheer is opposed to politicians interfering to get charges dropped for accused corporate criminals. Harrison was referring to allegations first reported by the Globe and Mail that officials with Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus office attempted to pressure former Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould to push for a deal for SNC-Lavalin. Read more: NDP leader challenges Trudeau to let former attorney general speak on SNC-Lavalin Top prosecutor defends independence and decision to prosecute SNC-Lavalin Liberals to block opposition attempt to probe SNC-Lavalin affair The independent Public Prosecution Service has refused SNC-Lavalins appeal for a DPA. But the justice minister can overrule that decision, which neither Wilson-Raybould nor her successor, David Lametti, has done. Trudeau has called elements within the Globes report false, although has not specified which elements. Wilson-Raybould has remained silent on the report. Opposition parties have demanded formal investigations into the allegations, including hearings by the House of Commons Justice Committee involving Trudeaus senior political staff, the Clerk of the Privy Council, and Wilson-Raybould herself. The Star reported Saturday that the Liberals plan to prevent that particular probe. While the political battle lines have been drawn, its less clear where each party stands on the greater question of whether or not SNC-Lavalin should be granted a DPA. If convicted, SNC-Lavalin would be barred from bidding on federal contracts for a decade a serious and perhaps fatal blow to a business that employs thousands. A DPA would likely come with stiff fines and corporate reforms, but would not ban the company from competing for public contracts. The opposition New Democrats, however, are unequivocal in their position. Asked if SNC-Lavalin should get a deal, NDP ethics critic Charlie Angus said hell no. SNC has a long and very disturbing history of corruption and political interference, and there has to be consequences, Angus said in an interview. When asked what that would mean for the workers at SNC, Angus said that federal work SNC bids on are jobs that must and will get done. The fact is SNC is bidding on jobs. The work is going to be done. Theyre bidding on many federal buildings where there are public civil servants doing these jobs, Angus said. They have to set themselves to proper corporate standards, otherwise they shouldnt be in business. NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh is also listed as having met with SNC-Lavalin CEO Neil Bruce last year, but Angus said the meeting was actually an event with the Quebec Chamber of Commerce where Bruce asked Singh a question about DPAs from the floor. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Speaking to reporters in British Columbia Sunday, Singh said nothing about this passes the smell test. Weve got a government thats been lobbied by a multinational corporation to effectively drop criminal charges. Then it looks like the Attorney General was pressured to drop charges, Singh said. There are so many questions here, and fundamentally the question is, whose side is this Liberal government on? Are they on the side of the people? Or are they on the side of multinational corporations trying to drop criminal charges? With files from Perrin Grauer, Star Vancouver Read more about: OTTAWACanadas top public prosecutor is staunchly defending her prosecution of Quebec engineering giant SNC-Lavalin on corruption charges, saying her office must remain independent from political interference and judicial supervision. As a political storm rages over whether the Prime Ministers Office pressured former attorney general Jody Wilson-Raybould to cut a deal with SNC-Lavalin, a judicial battle to force the Crowns hand is also unfolding. The company wants the Federal Court to order Kathleen Roussel, the director of public prosecutions and deputy attorney general, to issue an invitation to negotiate a mediation deal one that would spare it from a trial that could lead to a potentially business-killing corporate criminal conviction. But Roussel is resisting the high-profile effort to change her mind about prosecuting the Quebec company. In Federal Court documents obtained by the Star, Roussel responds to SNC-Lavalin, saying that it has no legal right or entitlement to any deal; that prosecutors are independent with broad discretion on how to proceed with charges; and that under the Constitution, prosecutors are free from political or judicial interference. SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. and two of its subsidiaries have pleaded not guilty to two criminal charges bribing a foreign public official and fraud connected to bribes allegedly paid between 2001 and 2011 to the Libyan regime of Moammar Gadhafi. It says any wrongdoing was carried out by two former employees without the companys knowledge or consent. Read more: Liberals to block opposition attempt to probe SNC-Lavalin affair Jody Wilson-Raybould maintains silence on SNC-Lavalin allegations Heres your primer on the SNC-Lavalin drama in Canadian politics The company enlisted legal heavyweight and former Supreme Court of Canada justice Frank Iacobucci of Torys law firm, along with fellow Torys litigator William McNamara, to overturn Roussels decision to prosecute the company. In an Oct. 9 letter to Iacobucci and McNamara, Roussel rejected the companys written pleas and request for an in-person meeting with them and SNC-Lavalin CEO Neil Bruce, saying a remediation agreement is not appropriate in this case. She does not say why in the letter, a copy of which is in the court record. SNC-Lavalin then went to Federal Court seeking judicial review of her decision. The company says Roussel is required by law to consider the public interest in a mediated settlement that would spare it a conviction. It argues Roussel did not provide the company any reasons for her refusal, which it called unreasonable, incoherent, and threatening the livelihoods of many thousands of employees, customers and pensioners who did not engage in wrongdoing. Thats because if found guilty, the company would be barred from bidding on government contracts for a decade. SNC-Lavalin essentially argues it is too big to fail. It has launched an all-out effort, lobbying the Trudeau government, Opposition Leader Andrew Scheer and others to plead its case, and now wants a Federal Court judge to weigh in. But in her reply, Roussel tackles the issue head on. She says the law passed last year allowing for what is called deferred prosecution agreements (a new regime that was stuffed into an omnibus budget bill) is explicit about what factors prosecutors must not consider in corruption cases: The prosecutor must not consider the national economic interest, the potential effect on relations with a state other than Canada or the identity of the organization or individual involved where an organization is charged under the Corruption of Foreign Public Officials Act, as in SNC-Lavalins case. In other words, the director of public prosecutions is arguing that, while the law sets out other criteria Roussel could consider when weighing the public interest, shes not allowed by law to consider whether a company is too big to fail. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... The company, on the other hand, says it has complied with all the laws prerequisites for entering into negotiations that could see it pay a heavy fine but avoid a criminal conviction: It says it has overhauled its ethics and corporate governance regime, under the guidance of independent monitors. It has had a complete turnover of the SNC-Lavalins senior management and board of directors. It says it has fired senior officers who could be considered as having been even remotely associated with the activities in question, instituted anti-corruption training of its employees and made permanent transformative changes to its business practices. It says the RCMP has levied criminal charges against only one individual regarding the same allegations, who SNC-Lavalin says left the company seven years ago. The company says it has sued that employee civilly for a massive related embezzlement. And it refers to the extremely negative, unfair and dramatic consequences on the company and its employees if it were eventually convicted and subsequently forbidden from bidding on contracts, especially in a business environment where its unnamed competitors can and have availed themselves of deferred prosecution agreements in other jurisdictions. SNC-Lavalin notes the alternative to a negotiated agreement (that it says could allow the Crown to directly monitor the company for a reasonable period) is a long, expensive and contentious criminal proceeding whose outcome is uncertain for both sides. But Roussel is unswayed. In a written arguments on her behalf, she says a court may only intervene where there is evidence of egregious misconduct by Crown attorneys that amounts to an abuse of process. Otherwise, she says, it is not up to the court to second-guess whether the decisions made every day across the country by prosecutors are reasonable because it could lead to paralysis of the system. The written brief also takes a strong stand against any political interference in prosecutorial decisions, saying it could erode the integrity of our system of prosecution. Allegations of political interference made for blockbuster headlines recently when the Globe and Mail reported that former attorney general Wilson-Raybould was shuffled out of her job after she refused pressure by unnamed senior PMO officials to direct Roussel to cut a deal with SNC-Lavalin. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau denies anyone in his office directed Wilson-Raybould to take any decision whatsoever. Over the weekend, senior government officials have reportedly defended robust discussion on the matter, and denied any pressure was exerted on the former justice minister. But Roussel makes clear her office must be immune from political pressure. Her brief says the 2006 law that created her office explicitly states that the director of public prosecutions is an independent organization, separate from the department of justice, and its objectives are to be carried out in a non-partisan manner. The directors written brief, filed by lawyers David Migicovsky and Andrew Lenz, says although the attorney general (formerly Wilson-Raybould, now David Lametti) has power to direct the director of public prosecutions, in the exercise of these powers he (the attorney general) is not subject to direction by his ministerial colleagues or to control and supervision by the courts. Migicovsky said in an interview Sunday that SNC-Lavalins challenge of Roussels decision was heard by Federal Court Justice Catherine Kane on Feb. 1 in Montreal. Kane has not yet rendered her decision. The Star has not received answers to requests for comment sent to Roussels office, nor from lawyers for SNC-Lavalin. Read more about: REGINALegal experts, government officials and industry leaders will all watch this week as Saskatchewan and Ottawa head to court over the constitutionality of a federally imposed carbon tax. The federal government is set to impose a carbon levy on provinces that do not have one of their own starting in April. Ottawas price on pollution starts at a minimum of $20 a tonne and rises $10 annually until 2022. The Saskatchewan Party government has always been opposed to the idea. The province says the tax would hurt the economy and feels its own plan for emissions reductions is sufficient. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has promised that most of the money from a national carbon price will be returned to Canadians through rebates and that its a necessary mechanism to fight climate change. The Saskatchewan government has asked the provinces Appeal Court to rule on whether a federally imposed tax is constitutional and two days of hearings are to begin Wednesday. Read more: Ottawas carbon pricing plan faces opposition, uncertainty, poll reveals Doug Ford pushes recession threat from carbon tax Higgs says Trudeau meeting produced no progress on carbon tax and other issues Theres no question that its a monumental decision in the life of the Canadian Constitution, said University of Alberta law professor Eric Adams. The court hasnt yet grappled explicitly with climate change as the background context to a constitutional question. In court filings, both Canada and Saskatchewan point to the Constitution to show that neither the province nor the federal government has explicit control over the environment, but that it overlaps both jurisdictions. But Saskatchewan argues a federally imposed carbon tax is constitutionally illegitimate because it only applies to some provinces. Under our Constitution the federal government has no authority to second-guess provincial decisions with respect to matters within provincial jurisdiction, court documents filed by the province say. It also cites part of a 2017 legal opinion released by Manitoba, which last year pulled out of the federal plan. Legal expert Bryan Schwartz concluded that theres a strong chance the Supreme Court of Canada would uphold a federal carbon tax. But the law professor from the University of Manitoba said a credible yet untested argument could be made about how such a measure is applied. Schwartz wrote that a case could be made that Ottawa would be arbitrarily denying Manitoba authority to deal with emissions reductions in its own way. Ottawa argues climate change is a national concern and the federal governments power to impose a carbon tax comes from Section 91 of the Constitution, which states laws can be made for the peace, order and good government of Canada. Adams said that branch of jurisdiction is not often cited in constitutional disputes because its difficult for courts to define the limits of a national concern. Arguments are to be heard before a panel of five judges. There are also submissions from 16 interveners representing both sides of the dispute. Applicants in support of Canadas position include the government of British Columbia, The David Suzuki Foundation and the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation. Amir Attaran, lawyer for the northern Alberta First Nation, argues a federal carbon price is a constitutional necessity because the effects of climate change have an impact on northern Indigenous peoples rights to hunt, fish and trap. Interveners on Saskatchewans side include anti-carbon-tax allies such as Albertas United Conservative Party and the government of Ontario, which has filed its own legal challenge. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Todd Lewis, president of the Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan, which also has intervener status, said he supports the provinces position because he feels a carbon tax would disproportionately affect farmers. Adams said its inevitable the dispute will not be settled in Saskatchewans highest court and will ultimately be decided by the Supreme Court. I think everybody understands that we are not in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup final yet. Were in a preliminary round of the playoffs. Read more about: MONTREALA Quebec judges unusual decision to modify the Criminal Code as he sentenced six-time murderer Alexandre Bissonnette to a life sentence with no possibility of parole for 40 years highlights the ongoing legal debate over consecutive life sentences in Canada, according to legal experts. On Friday, Quebec Superior Court Justice Francois Huot rejected the Crowns call to sentence Bissonnette to 150 years with no chance of parole, arguing a sentence of 50 years or more would constitute cruel and unusual punishment under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Sentences that exceed an offenders life expectancy and offer no reasonable hope of release are grossly disproportionate and totally incompatible with human dignity, he wrote in his 246-page decision. But instead of sentencing Bissonnette to serve his six sentences concurrently, Huot rewrote the 2011 consecutive sentencing law, section 745.51 of the Criminal Code, to give himself the discretion to deliver consecutive life sentences that are not in blocks of 25 years, as had been the case. (First-degree murder carries an automatic sentence of life in prison with no possibility of parole before 25 years.) In the end, Huot decided Bissonnette will serve at least 40 years in prison. Bissonnette, 29, pleaded guilty last March to six counts of first-degree murder and six of attempted murder after he walked into the mosque at the Islamic Cultural Centre during evening prayers on Jan. 29, 2017 and opened fire. Read more: Sentence for Quebec mosque shooter a strong message against violent extremism Quebec City mosque shooter Alexandre Bissonnette sentenced to life with no parole for 40 years Mosque killer Bissonnette could receive longest prison term ever in Canada Kent Roach, a law professor at the University of Toronto, described Huots decision as innovative. Charter challenges to the 2011 provisions had previously been denied on the basis that the judge was not forced to increase parole ineligibility for multiple murders, he wrote in an email. It may very well be appealed by both the Crown (who wanted far more than 40 years) and the defence, which may argue that if the judge thought the provision violated the Charter he should have imposed only 25 years of parole ineligibility. But Renald Beaudry, a criminal lawyer who was at Bissonnettes sentencing, doesnt think the sentence would be easy to overturn. He noted that Huots lengthy decision included a comprehensive overview of worldwide jurisprudence on the issue of consecutive sentences, the philosophy behind the fundamental principles of Canadian law, and a summary of House of Commons debate on the issue. He really backed himself up, to use the expression, he said. On Friday, lawyers for both the Crown and defence said they would study the decision before deciding whether to appeal the sentence. A spokesperson for the Quebec Justice department also indicated its lawyers were studying the possibility of appeal. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Lisa Silver, a law professor at the University of Calgary, said the decision reflects the ongoing conversation in Canada surrounding the law that allows judges to stack life sentences for multiple murders instead of serving them concurrently. (The decision) does seem unusual, but its also very consistent with what some judges are saying, not just about this section, but about sentencing and the larger discussion about these sections in the Criminal Code, she said. Recent high-profile sentencing decisions across Canada have reflected different judicial approaches to the idea of multiple life sentences. The longest prison sentence in Canada to date is 75 years without parole, which has been given to at least five triple killers including Justin Bourque, who murdered three RCMP officers in a shooting spree in New Brunswick in 2014. But other judges have rejected calls for consecutive sentences, including the Toronto judge who on Friday sentenced Bruce McArthur to life in prison with no parole for 25 years for murdering eight men with ties to Torontos gay village. Silver said the difference in sentences can be problematic because it leads to comparisons, such as the perception that a gay or Muslim persons murder isnt worth as much as that of an RCMP officer. But she said people should understand that a sentence isnt about putting a numerical value on a persons life. We need to remember that sentencing is individual, it takes in a number of factors, and those include the circumstances of the crime, the severity, the impact on the community, but it also has to reference the circumstances and background of the offender, she said. Silver agreed that the Bissonnette sentencing is also likely to be appealed, and she believes thats a good thing. She said she believes the consecutive sentencing law needs to be reviewed in order to provide more guidance for judges and avoid the harm caused by the perception of inconsistent sentencing. The difficulty in the street level is, these are communities that need to have some closure, she said. And when you have appeals and decisions that, in a public view dont seem consistent, its difficult for people to move on with their lives. Read more about: CALGARY The president of a conservative-leaning legal advocacy group who was widely criticized for comparing Nazi and communist symbols to the rainbow flag in a speech last November said the symbol of inclusion can still represent an attack against our fundamental freedoms in a speech on Saturday. John Carpay, president of the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, was scheduled to speak on parental rights in the GSA era at the Economic Education Association of Albertas annual conference in northeast Calgary. Carpays organization has challenged Bill 24, which strengthened protections for gay-straight alliance clubs in the provinces schools and prohibits school staff from telling parents if their children have joined one, unless there are concerns about their safety. But during his speech, he paraphrased some of the comments he made at a conference hosted by The Rebel, a far-right web site, although claimed on Saturday that he was simply repeating them. So, what did I say at The Rebel speech on November the 10th? Im going to say it again this morning, he told the conferences audience of roughly 70 people. That the attacks against our fundamental freedoms can come from any source, any direction, any banner, any flag, any colour, any political symbol can be the banner under which our fundamental freedoms are attacked. The audience responded with applause. His original comments in November explicitly suggested the pride flag the rainbow flag used by the LGBTQ community internationally shared characteristics with those used by Nazism and communism; namely, a hostility towards an individuals freedom. Read More: Lindsay Shepherd joins controversial Calgary group to promote free speech on campuses United Conservative Leader Kenney regrets comments on gay hospital visitation rights Nomination hopeful ditches UCP for Alberta Party after recent controversies How do we defeat todays totalitarianism? Carpay said in a livestream video of Novembers event viewed by Star Calgary. Because again, youve got to think about the common characteristics. It doesnt matter whether its a hammer and sickle for communism, or whether its the swastika for Nazi Germany, or whether its the rainbow flag, the underlying thing is a hostility towards individual freedoms. Carpay apologized for Novembers comments roughly a day after he made them. In a statement posted to the Justice Centres website, he said it was not my intention to broadly equate the rainbow flag with the evils of Communism and Nazism, and I again offer my apology to anyone who may have interpreted my remarks in such a fashion. However, Carpay spent a good portion of his speech on Saturday criticizing news outlets, and CBC specifically, for making this very interpretation of his previous remarks. He described a story published by CBC about his appearance at the conference as a smear piece, said it violated journalistic ethics and even suggested he was mulling the possibility of legal action against news outlets whod reported on his past comments. Ill give it some thought, he told an audience member who asked about the possibility of legal action. I mean, its not likely that Im going to start a court action over it. But there is a compliance process. Ive used it before. I dont have a lot of faith in it. Kristopher Wells, associate professor of health and community studies at McEwan University, said Carpay never made a proper apology to the LGBTQ community following his comments in November. He believes Carpays latest comments are simply a means to convey the same sentiments in a more subdued fashion. This kind of cloaked messaging is simply a dog whistle to a particular segment of society to say We hear you and were going to continue to do the work that we believe in, Wells said. Unfortunately, that work is harmful to the LGBT community and needs to stop. Politicians from all sides of the aisle including Conservative MP Michelle Rempel, Liberal MP Randy Boissonnault, and Alberta Premier Rachel Notley denounced Carpays comments on social media last November. United Conservative Party Leader Jason Kenney said comparing the gay rights movement in any way to genocidal totalitarianism is vile, particularly given the violent persecution of LGBT people under such regimes. I acknowledge that John Carpay apologized for his offensive remarks, Kenney wrote on Twitter at the time. However, Kenney refused to remove Carpay from the UCPs membership in November, saying that decision was beyond his control. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms was established in 2010 to defend the constitutional freedoms of Canadians through litigation and education, according to its website. Its clients include an anti-abortion student group at the University of Alberta, a small business in southern Alberta fighting the Canada Summer Jobs attestation requirements, and 26 faith-based schools in Alberta opposed to Bill 24. Carpay refused to elaborate on his remarks when he was approached by Star Calgary at Saturdays conference after his speech. I stand by my comments this morning, he said. Read more about: Recent Russian moves in the Arctic have renewed debate over that countrys intentions and Canadas own status at the top of the world. The newspaper Izvestia reported late last month that Russias military will resume fighter patrols to the North Pole for the first time in 30 years. The patrols will be in addition to regular bomber flights up to the edge of U.S. and Canadian airspace. Its clearly sending strategic messaging, said Whitney Lackenbauer, an Arctic expert and history professor at the University of Waterloo. This is the next step. Russia has been beefing up both its civilian and military capabilities in its north for a decade. Old Cold-War-era air bases have been rejuvenated. Foreign policy observers have counted four new Arctic brigade combat teams, 14 new operational airfields, 16 deepwater ports and 40 icebreakers with an additional 11 in development. Bomber patrols have been steady. NORAD has reported up to 20 sightings and 19 intercepts a year. Commercial infrastructure has kept pace as well. A vast new gas field has been opened in the Yamal Peninsula on the central Russian coast. Control and development of the Northern Sea Route Russias equivalent of the Northwest Passage has been given to a central government agency. Russian news sources say cargo volume is expected to grow to 40 million tonnes in 2020 from 7.5 million tonnes in 2016. Canada has little to compare. A road has been completed to the Arctic coast at Tuktoyaktuk in the Northwest Territories and work for a port at Iqaluit in Nunavut is underway. The first Arctic patrol vessel has been launched, satellite surveillance has been enhanced and a naval refuelling station built on Baffin Island. But most northern infrastructure desires remain unfilled. No all-weather roads exist down the Mackenzie Valley or into the mineral-rich central N.W.T. Modern needs such as high-speed internet are still dreams in most of the North. A new icebreaker has been delayed. Nearing the end of its term, the Liberal government has yet to table an official Arctic policy. Global Affairs Canada spokesman Richard Walker said in an email that the government is firmly asserting its presence in the North to protect Canadas sovereign Arctic territory. Walker said Canada cooperates with all Arctic Council members, including Russia, to advance shared interests that include sustainable development, the roles of Indigenous peoples, environmental protection and scientific research. Given the harsh environment and the high cost of Arctic operations, Canada believes that cooperation amongst Arctic nations is essential, Walker wrote. While we perceive no immediate military threat in the Arctic region, we remain vigilant in our surveillance of our Northern approaches. Canada needs to keep pace if only because it cant count on the current international order to hold, said John Higginbotham of the Centre for International Governance Innovation in Waterloo. If the globalized system fragments, were going to get a world of blocs. The blocs will have power to close international shipping channels. Its a dreadful strategic mistake for Canada to give up our own sea route. Arctic dominance would also give Russia a potent card to play, said Rob Huebert of the Centre for Military and Strategic Studies at the University of Calgary. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... It gives you presence, he said. Whenever theres issues that happen to occur elsewhere, weve already seen the behaviour of the Russians they start doing overflights of other countries to bring pressure. Norway, the Baltics and the United Kingdom have all reported increased airspace violations, Huebert said. Few expect Russian troops to come pouring over the North Pole. The country is sticking with a United Nations process for drawing borders in Arctic waters and is a productive member of the eight-nation Arctic Council. Theres vigorous debate over whether their posture is offensive-oriented, Lackenbauer said. The Russians insist this is purely defensive. It also offers possibilities for safe and secure shipping in the Northern Sea Route. Theyre not doing anything wrong. Canada would be mistaken to ignore the awakening bear, said Ron Wallace of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute in Calgary. Its important for Canadians to be aware of their Arctic and the circumpolar Arctic and whats going on in the North, he said. Canada is unlikely to take much from Russias command-and-control style of development, Wallace said, but there are lessons to learn. Combining civilian and military infrastructure is one of them. Thats the kind of thinking I havent seen here, but thats the thinking the Russians are using, he said. They see the northern trade route as an excuse to put up military bases at the same time theyre working with the Chinese to open up trade routes for the export of their resources. That would also help fulfil federal promises to territorial governments, said Wallace. Somewhere in the middle there is a better policy for northern Canada. Follow Bob Weber on Twitter at @row1960 Well Ill be damned! A short history of meaningful coincidence In the spring of 2018 I was feeling rather sorry for myself. I was in London, living out of a suitcase and working for a cause with which I had become particularly disillusioned. Cynical of the wily workings of the West and armed with a whimsical flight of fancy to head east I sent my resume to The Phuket News. Whilst polite about my unsolicited advances, there was of course no position available for this random chancer. Culture By David Jacklin Sunday 10 February 2019, 03:00PM Three weeks later I received an email out of the blue that the Lifestyle Editor position had unexpectedly become available, and within two months I was living on this exhilarating island, interviewing the mad, bad and dangerous to know and revelling in the incredible turn of events. It may all seem like a lucky coincidence and favourable timing. But is there more to this tale than good fortune? Could there be a universal law which connects events by more abstract ideas such as conscious intent? This concept has been developed into a principle known as synchronicity. Synchronicity can be described as the simultaneous occurrence of events which appear significantly related but have no discernible causal connection. It proposes a higher intelligence in nature, which, one assumes, must work for some wider and unexplainable evolutionary benefit. Synchronicity was first introduced by analytical psychologist Carl Jung. Jungs belief was that just as events may be connected by causality, they may also be connected by meaning. He introduced the concept in the 1920s, but further researched and developed the idea into his book Synchronicity: An Acausal Connecting Principle, published in 1960. For those that are interested, I must warn you its a heavy going and rather scientific read. The idea of synchronicity as a law that extends beyond mere coincidence is widely rejected in the academic community. But is that short-sighted in their understanding? The sceptics and scientific minds amongst you may be more intrigued to learn that Jung developed the theory after several discussions with Albert Einstein and the pioneering quantum physician Wolfgang Pauli. Why the relation to these eminent scientists? Because this exact phenomenon, known as entanglement, is observed in quantum physics. Two physical particles that have previously come in contact with each other have later been found to interact instantaneously, despite now being separated by vast distances. So is the idea of an interconnected universe really so strange? If it can be observed in the behaviour of subatomic particles, surely it stands to reason that the same principle can become manifest higher up the sentient chain of life as more conscious and fantastical events. Perhaps such ideas are just science that has yet to be discovered? After all, 400 years ago it was heresy to believe in heliocentrism (thats a fancy way of saying that the Earth is round and revolves around the Sun). There are, of course, great examples advocating the potential for synchronicity. Such stories entertain the human spirit, but just think about the scientific probability of the following events occurring. In 1805, French writer Emile Deschamps was treated to some plum pudding by the stranger Monsieur de Fortgibu. Ten years later, he encountered plum pudding on the menu of a Paris restaurant and wanted to order the dessert, but the waiter told him the last dish had already been served to another customer who turned out to be de Fortgibu. Many years later in 1832, Emile Deschamps was at a dinner and was once again offered plum pudding. He recalled the earlier incident and told his friends that only de Fortgibu was missing to make the setting complete and in the same instant the now senile de Fortgibu entered the room, having gone to the wrong address. In another incident, American novelist Anne Parrish was browsing bookstores in Paris in the 1920s and came upon a book that was one of her childhood favourites Jack Frost and Other Stories. She picked up the old book and showed it to her husband, telling him of the book she fondly remembered as a child. Her husband took the book, opened it, and on the flyleaf found the inscription: Anne Parrish, 209 N. Weber Street, Colorado Springs. It was Annes very own childhood book. Before you think such bizarre scenarios only occur to writers with inventive imaginations who just happen to find themselves in the French capital, consider this tale of a German woman from Strasbourg who in 1914 took her son to be photographed. She bought a film plate, and after the photo was taken said she would return in a few days when the portrait was ready. Unfortunately, World War I broke out, and she was not able to collect the photo. Two years later she was now living in Frankfurt and gave birth to a daughter. She was still disappointed that she didnt possess any photos of her children. The mother again bought a film plate and another photo was taken, this time of her daughter. When the new photo plate was developed it turned out to be a double exposure. Her daughters image was superimposed on the earlier picture of her son. Incredibly her original film plate was never developed and had somehow ended up in Frankfurt 100 miles away. She had bought the same plate with the original photo still on it. Its easy to see why synchronicity has mass appeal; it provides meaning and order in an otherwise random universe. And theres comfort in that. Its the same principle of how organised religion manages to attract a mass and dedicated following despite being unable to provide a shred of indisputable evidence. Sceptics and statisticians may point to the law of truly large numbers, or Littlewoods law which states that a person can expect to experience events with odds of one in a million (defined as a miracle) at the rate of about one per month. Either way, the only thing we can truly be sure of is that life, despite being particularly bizarre, is also surprisingly grand. I think Im about due another miracle. Hallelujah. Sarasin Love mass wedding event invites all to mark Valentines Day PHUKET: People from all walks of life are invited to be married or receive an Afficrmation of Love certificate at the Love Story @ Sarasin being held at the Sarasin Bridge on Valentines Day, this coming Thursday (Feb 14). culturetourism By Chutharat Plerin Sunday 10 February 2019, 01:00PM The invitation for people wanting to register their marriage is open to Thais only, and free, but the invitation to receive certificates as an Affirmation of Love is open to everyone The invitation for people wanting to register their marriage is open to Thais only, and free, but the invitation to receive certificates as an Affirmation of Love is open to everyone The invitation for people wanting to register their marriage is open to Thais only, and free, but the invitation to receive certificates as an Affirmation of Love is open to everyone The invitation for people wanting to register their marriage is open to Thais only, and free, but the invitation to receive certificates as an Affirmation of Love is open to everyone. The event, called Love Story @ Sarasin Nuan Rak Sarasin (Love Story @ Sarasin or The legend of Sarasin love) is being organised by the Thalang District Office Couples taking part in the event will receive many gifts of special privileges and rewards, including luxury honeymoon packages. We hope this event will promote Phuket tourism and local people and tourists will learn the history of the Sarasin Bridge, said Thalang District Chief Adul Chutong. The Sarasin Bridge is renowned throughout Thailand for its sad tale of two star-crossed lovers choosing to end their lives by leaping into the fast-flowing waters below instead of facing life without each other. We are looking for 14 couples to be married at the event, Mr Adul said. Arrangements have been so that the brides and grooms can receive their marriage certificates on the day, he added. And we hope many more couples will come to show their love for each other and promise to take care of each other forever, he said. The invitation for people wanting to register their marriage is open to Thais only, and free, but the invitation to receive certificates as an Affirmation of Love is open to everyone, Mr Adul noted. Everyone, every gender, every age and every nationality can apply for a Love Certificate, he said. Among the gifts to be given away by lucky draw at the event are luxury honeymoon packages, pre-wedding photo -gift vouchers and souvenirs We will have free makeup and hairdressing services. All couples have to do is come in their wedding dress and suits, said Thalang District Deputy Chief Sukanda Huangrattanakorn. "We intend to give gifts and to all couples. However, if the prizes from the sponsors are not enough, we will make sure everyone gets something, she added. The event, which Phuket Governor Phakaphong Tavipatana is scheduled to attend will also include a light-and-sound show, live performances and even a wedding fashion show highlighting modern, traditional Thai, Baba-Nyonya Peranakan style and traditional local Muslim style wedding costumes. To join the event call the Thalang District Office on 076 313 992 before 4:30pm on Wednesday (Feb 13). Patong bike rental shop fined B2k after death of British 17-year-old PHUKET: The rental operator in Patong that rented out the motorbike that 17-year-old British tourist Anthony Ryan was riding when he crashed and died late last month was fined only B2,000, Kamala Police have confirmed. tourismtransportdeathpolice By The Phuket News Sunday 10 February 2019, 11:00AM Rescue workers at the scene of the accident in Kamala that killed 17-year-old British tourist Anthony Ryan late last month. Photo: Kamala Rescue Young Mr Ryan was on holiday with a friend when he lost control of his motorbike and drove into the oncoming lane and straight into a minivan on the coastal road between Kamala and Patong on Jan 24. (See story here.) Lt Col Yossaphat Suwannasit of the Kamala Police who has been leading the case told The Phuket News, The rental shop owner was fined B2,000 last week. Vehicle rental companies that rent vehicles to people who do not hold a valid driving licence must be fined B2,000. However, Col Yossaphat also added, The operator explained that they had rented the motorbikes to a second man who was older and presented a valid driving license to rent the two bikes for himself and for 17-year-old Ryan. Considering the rental shops explanation, it was not explained exactly what the shop was fined for. When asked for information about the shop and whether it is still open, Col Yossaphat said, It is not closed. It is only a small shop in Patong. I cant remember the shops name. The issue of vehicle rental operators hiring out motorbikes to tourists who do not possess a valid motorcycle driving licence even in their home countries was addressed several times by high-ranking officials and even a Tourist Police Major General last year, to no avail. In February, April and November campaigns were launched specifically targetting motorbike rental operators that were renting out motorbikes to tourists without a valid driving licence. Operators are to be fined B2,000 for the offence, while repeat-offenders would have their permit revoked through the Department of Business Development. (See story here) Capt Eakkachai Siri of the Phuket Tourist Police told The Phuket News that a meeting was held on Wednesday (Feb 6) to address key issues concerning Mr Ryans case. Also in attendance were Phuket Vice Governor Supoj Rotreuang Na Nongkhai and Phuket Land Transport Office officials. First, the shop rented out the motorbikes after having only seen a driving licence and no passport. Both documents should be a requirement for renting a vehicle, Capt Eakkachai insisted. Second, the shop raised the issue of claiming for damages to the motorbike a grey area that allows tourists to escape liability. Vice Governor Supoj said at the meeting that in order to reduce accidents, vehicle rental operators must ensure that tourists understand the traffic laws and know the importance of following them. The issue around the requirement of rental operators having specific rental insurance on their vehicles was not addressed. This subscription will allow curernt subscribers of The News Guard to access all of our online Subscriber-Only content, including the E Editions area. NOTE: To claim your access to the site, you will need to enter the Last Name and First Name that is tied to your subscription in this format: SMITH, JOHN If you need help with exactly how your specific name needs be entered, please call us at 1-541-994-2178 or email admin@countrymedia.net. Six Tech Stocks That Could Double (Ad) 5G blockchain electric vehicles There are enough tech opportunities out there to make your head spin! But which ones should you own for the coming tech boom? Louis Navellier the analyst who found Microsoft at .38 cents just released a new report detailing six tech stocks to own today. Dont miss your chance to get his latest picks ticker symbol and all completely free of charge. Click here to get your free report today. The Mission of China to the European Union (EU) on Saturday denied groundless allegations about Chinese espionage in Brussels. Flags of the EU wave in the wind outside the European Commission headquarters in Brussels, July 1, 2013. [File photo: IC] Responding to reports by Germany media that a large number of Chinese spies are active in Brussels, a spokesperson of the Chinese mission said the Chinese side is "deeply shocked by such unfounded reports." "China always respects the sovereignty of all countries, and does not interfere in the internal affairs of other countries," the spokesperson said in a statement. "We attach great importance to the EU and China-EU relations, and are committed to maintaining and promoting the healthy and stable development of China-EU relations," said the statement. The mission urged relevant parties "to treat China and China-EU relations in an objective and fair manner, and not to make irresponsible remarks." 14 hours ago | June 23rd | 2021 5:00 AM You Quit Your Job Good for You! But How Does that Impact Your Investments? As companies make plans to return employees back to the office, millions of workers have made a decision not to go back at all. In fact, the number of people who quit their jobs increased to four million in April and increased 2.7%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The largest increases in employees leaving their jobs occurred in retail trade and professional and business services. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Fachrul Sidiq (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, February 11 2019 Sky high: The Sarinah shopping center as seen from a pedestrian bridge on Jl. MH Thamrin, Central Jakarta, on Sunday.(JP/Iqbal Yuwansyah) When Jakartas first retail center Sarinah was inaugurated by Indonesias founding father and first president, Sukarno, in 1967, it made headlines for being the first high-rise building in Jakarta. Standing 74 meters high with 15 stories in Menteng, in the heart of Jakarta, the state-run high rise was expected to serve as a stimulator of economic growth and means for the distribution of goods to the public to advance the interests of societys lower class amid the countrys then-abysmal macroeconomic condition. Named after Sukarnos nanny, who came from a modest socio-economic background, Sarinah symbolizes support for the poor. In its opening days, the store provided various kinds of household needs as wel... Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Yulia Savitri (The Jakarta Post) Palembang Mon, February 11, 2019 09:46 863 ab327006fac3d4a4e8af45a51b24614e 1 National death-penalty,drug-abuse,narcotics Free The Palembang District Court in South Sumatra sentenced nine people to death on Thursday after finding them guilty of transporting 80 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine. According to the hearings of the trial, the convicts, all of whom originally come from Surabaya, East Java, were caught transporting drugs from Palembang to Java between March and April of 2018. They transported them using a truck that was loaded with cassava as a cover. The police first arrested three who had left 3.5 kilograms of the crystal meth at a Palembang airport, which led to the arrest of five others at a hotel in Surabaya, where they were found with 5.8 kilograms of meth and 4,950 ecstasy pills. The leader of the group, Letto, is 25 while most of the other members are in their 20s. What the defendants have done is they have damaged the youth and the government is currently waging a war on drugs, said jugde Efrata Tarigan. They were all sentenced to death despite prosecutors' earlier demand of a life sentence. South Sumatra Police narcotics unit deputy director Adj. Sr. Comr. Amazona Pelamonia said the sentence should serve as a warning to other drug dealers operating in Palembang. They are a syndicate from Surabaya that was caught after a lengthy investigation, Amazona said on Friday. The death penalty will create a deterrent effect and serves as a warning to other [drug traffickers]. Amazona added that South Sumatra had potential routes for drug syndicates because of its developed land transportation infrastructure and the availability of interprovincial flights. Arif Rahman, a lawyer of the defendants, said he would appeal the verdict, saying that the convicts were victims of a drug syndicate. Maybe the judges had other considerations that pushed them to sentence all of my clients to death, Arif said. (mai) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Sun, February 10, 2019 13:13 864 ab327006fac3d4a4e8af45a51b242974 1 Business pertamina,fuel-price,cuts Free State energy holding company Pertamina announced on Sunday that it would lower the prices of non-subsidized gasoline by up to Rp 800 (6 US cents) per liter, following a drop in the global crude oil price and the rupiah strengthening against the US dollar. Under the new policy, the price of non-subsidized Pertamax Turbo (RON 98) gasoline in Greater Jakarta has been set at Rp 11,200 per liter, Pertamax (RON 92) at Rp 9,850 per liter, while Pertalite gasoline (RON 90) remains at Rp 7,650 per liter. The price of non-subsidized diesel fuel has been set at Rp 11,700 per liter for Dex and Rp 10,200 per liter for Dexlite. The company also lowered subsidized Premium gasoline to Rp 6,450 per liter in Java, Madura and Bali (Jabali) from Rp 6,550 per liter. Pertamina retail marketing director Mas'ud Khamid said the price adjustment took effect on Sunday. We will continue to periodically evaluate the fuel prices," he said, adding that the two main factors that affected fuel prices were global crude price and the rupiah exchange rate. The company explained fuel prices could differ in each region, depending on regional fuel taxes. The Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry previously announced that any fuel price adjustment would have to wait for the ministry's approval. (ars/bbn) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Dian Septiari (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, February 11, 2019 09:46 863 ab327006fac3d4a4e8af45a51b245f28 1 World #election,election,2019-elections,#2019-elections,2019-legislative-election,#diaspora,diaspora Free Being far from home, the Indonesian diaspora continues to be the disengaged electorate, especially ahead of the legislative election. According to a recent survey, many of them admitted to not being aware of who the legislative candidates were, let alone who they were going to vote for in the upcoming election. A survey released by Indonesian Diaspora Network-United (IDN-United) on Friday showed that 56 percent of Indonesians living abroad said they were "not aware" of the legislative candidates, while 29 percent said they were less aware" of the candidates competing in the 2019 legislative election. The survey polled 541 Indonesians living in 41 countries on five continents -- who filled out online questionnaires distributed through mailing lists, periodic newsletters and online networking platforms between Nov. 12 and Jan. 31. The results were in stark contrast to their knowledge of presidential and vice presidential candidates, with only 4 percent and 11 percent of respondents saying either they were not aware of or less aware of these candidates. While 85 percent of respondents said they would vote in the coming presidential election, only 69 percent said they would vote in the legislative election -- even though this years elections would be held simultaneously for the first time. The same phenomenon was evident in past elections, with voter turnout in the 2014 legislative election having stood at 22 percent, far lower than the 83 percent turnout in the presidential election in the same year, according to data from General Elections Commission (KPU). In the survey, about 60 percent of respondents said they were not aware of those who currently were representing them at the House of Representatives. It shows a lack of outreach to overseas voters by legislative candidates, IDN-United president Herry Utomo said. These candidates are expected to be proactive in presenting their visions and missions to the diaspora through social media, online media and other technology. An Indonesian graduate student at Penn State University in the United States, Agus Surachman said that while he was excited to vote in the 2019 presidential election, he did not know who to vote for in the legislative election. I just learned that voters abroad will have to vote for candidates from the Jakarta 2 electoral district, Agus said. The Jakarta 2 district, which also covers votes from Central Jakarta and South Jakarta, is known to be a tough electoral district where dozens of big names are competing for seven House seats. Eighty-four candidates are on the list, including incumbents such as the Prosperous Justice Partys (PKS) Hidayat Nur Wahid and the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggles (PDI-P) Masinton Pasaribu, as well as new faces such as Indonesian Solidarity Party (PSI) politician Tsamara Amany and the United Indonesia Partys (Perindo) Liliana Tanaja, who is the wife of media mogul Hary Tanoesoedibjo. The KPU said 2.05 million registered voters overseas were expected to either vote at about 3,500 polling stations set up worldwide or through absentee voting between April 8 and 14, just days before the scheduled voting day on April 17. Compared to around 800,000 registered voters from Central Jakarta and 1.6 million registered voters from South Jakarta, overseas voters could be a determining factor in winning the Jakarta 2 electoral district. However, many members of the Indonesian diaspora have long demanded for the formation of an overseas electoral district for better representation, particularly on issues that are different from those of most voters at home, such as legal protection abroad, consular assistance and migrant worker protection -- the first two of which were also highlighted in the survey. According to the Overseas Election Committee (PPLN), countries with large populations of migrant workers topped the list for the largest registered Indonesian voters, with 558,873 voters registered at the Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, followed by the Indonesian Economic and Trade Office in Taiwan with 277,065 and the Indonesian Consulate General in Hong Kong with 180,232. The survey, however, did not receive many responses from citizens living in Malaysia and Saudi Arabia and Taiwan, thus making the poll more reflective of the aspirations of the non-migrant worker diaspora. Arya Fernandes of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) said legal protection abroad and [diaspora] capacity building should [nevertheless] be among the main concerns of candidates aiming to lure overseas voters because the majority of Indonesians living abroad were low-skilled workers, not professionals. PSI candidate Tsamara said she would pay attention to migrant worker protection and human trafficking prevention if she was elected to the House. I will have a conference call with voters in Hong Kong, and by the end of this month I will visit the Netherlands [to campaign]. (ipa) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Ivany Atina Arbi (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Sun, February 10, 2019 09:19 864 ab327006fac3d4a4e8af45a51b23dfc5 1 National mosque,millennials,UIN,abdul-somad,hanan-attaki Free For centuries, mosques have served as places where Muslims deepen their knowledge of Islamic teachings. The influence of mosques, however, is waning as a result of social media-based preaching. A 2018 study by the Center for the Study of Religion and Culture (CSRC) at Syarif Hidayatullah Islamic State University (UIN) Jakarta has revealed that young Muslims are losing interest in studying religion in mosques. The study, which surveyed Muslims aged between 17 and 24 in 18 regencies and cities across the country, also found that social media-based sermons had reduced the influence of religious education in family, organizations or other formal educational institutions. Twenty-five-year-old Muslim Fitria Jamal, 25, said she was more likely to use YouTube to learn about Islam than go to a mosque to join a kajian (learning forum). On YouTube, I can choose topics and preachers that I want to learn and listen to, said the bank staffer, who said social-media savvy preacher Abdul Somad, dubbed the preacher with 1 million viewers, was one of her favorites. Fitria said it was challenging to find a forum that catered to her preference of discussing fitrah (original nature) of women in Islam. Another curious Muslim, Faridah Zahra, 25, said she liked to watch Abdul Somad and other famous young preachers like Adi Hidayat and Hanan Attaki on YouTube and Instagram because they provided her with interesting sermons, such as the relationship between Islam and science. Once I was exposed to such scientific knowledge, I became increasingly curious, said the account manager who lives in Bandung, West Java. Faridah said she liked the idea of visiting mosques more but maintained she would only do it if the mosques presented engaging topics. Scholars and Muslims gathered in Jakarta recently to discuss how to attract the youth to mosques amid the increasing influence of social media in the proliferation of Islamic teachings. A lecturer at UIN Jakarta, Masdar F. Masudi, said abandoned mosques were prone to being used by radical groups to disseminate their views. At least thats whats happening in some mosques in Bogor, West Java, where I studied the phenomenon some years ago, he said recently. He said mosques needed to enliven themselves to stop the spread of radicalism. Recent reports disclosed that a number of mosques in the country had been infiltrated by groups affiliated with the Islamic State (IS) movement to recruit members for the terrorist network. We dont want this to happen again so we need to empower our mosques, Masdar said. Meanwhile, CSRC UIN Jakarta director Irfan Abubakar said millennials needed to go to mosques to get a thorough understanding of Islam. Often times, Irfan said, low religious literacy leads to absolutism, which he defined as an attitude of regarding ones own beliefs as the absolute truth. Absolutism is a threat to the countrys pluralistic society, he said, adding that Muslims with good religious literacy were likely to be open-minded, tolerant and have a positive perception of diversity. Irfan Amalee, a founder of Peace Generation and activist, said a transformation at mosques was needed to attract millennials. Changes, he said, could take place through fresh and relatable sermon topics, the retraining of mosques takmir (managers) and preachers and the renovation of mosque buildings to create a fresh ambiance and inspire ideas. We shall use new and innovative approaches to create a magnet effect at our mosques, he said, citing several mosques in Bandung that found success in bringing in worshipers by providing free Wi-Fi and developing Instagrammable spots. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Kay Armin Serjoie and Marc Jourdier (Agence France-Presse) Tehran Sun, February 10, 2019 21:03 864 ab327006fac3d4a4e8af45a51b248426 2 World Iran,Tehran,revolution,IranianRevolution,Middle-East Free The victory of the Islamic Revolution in Iran was an earthquake that upended the political order in the Middle East, and the aftershocks are still being felt 40 years later. When Shiite cleric Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini ousted the shah's last government in February 1979 it was a moment that for many was completely "unthinkable, unexpected", said Clement Therme, a researcher on Iran at the International Institute for Strategic Studies. "The victory was an immense surprise for the Middle East and the world," Therme told AFP. Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi had been a seen as a pillar of stability and bulwark of US influence in a region where Cold War tensions were playing out with the Soviet Union. But the tumult of the revolution soon ended that spectacularly. "One of the founding events for the foreign policy of the new regime was the taking hostage of American diplomats," said Therme. The saga at the US embassy in Tehran ran for 444 days from November 1979 and ruptured ties between Washington and its one-time regional ally. And events in Iran did not just reverberate on the global stage: across the region it fired up political Islam that represented a major threat to monarchies and ruling elites. "For Sunni Islamist movements and for the Shiite minorities in the region", the message of the Iranian Revolution was "a source of inspiration", Therme said. According to the official narrative of the Islamic Republic, the revolution did not stop in 1979 with the overthrow of the monarchy but remains a process that is still going on. "The Islamic Revolution has three levels in the view of the Imam (Khomeini); one is Iran, the other is the Islamic world and the last one is the world of the oppressed," said Abdullah Ganji, editor-in-chief of ultra-conservative Javan daily. War and isolation "We did not have any plans at the beginning for the Islamic Revolution to go beyond Iran's borders," Ganji told AFP, drawing a distinction with Soviet military interventions abroad. But he said the changes in Iran inspired a string of startling events in the Middle East: attacks against US embassies, protests by Shiites in Saudi Arabia and the assassination of Egyptian president Anwar Sadat in 1981. The convulsions rattled rulers around the region and fears of Tehran were "among the reasons that led to the invasion of Iran by Iraq" in September 1980, said Therme. The bloody conflict with Saddam Hussein's forces ended in 1988 after hundreds of thousands of lives had been lost. While it strengthened Islamic rule at home in Iran, it left the country cut off from most of the rest of the world. Except for some key allies: most notably Syria and the Shiite movement Hezbollah that arose after Israel's invasion in 1982. "There was a division in the Arab world between supporters and opponents of the 'axis of resistance' promoted by the Islamic Republic," said Therme. 'New strategy' Ganji said that after the war with Iraq, Tehran developed a "new strategy" aimed at confronting US influence around the region. "The strategy of the Islamic Republic over the last 30 years has been preventing America from having a foothold in the Middle East," he said. From Syria to Yemen to Lebanon, the standoff between Washington and its allies and Tehran continues to shape events. The US, Israel and Saudi Arabia see Iran's hand pulling the strings in a raft of hotspots. Tehran has helped prop up Syria's President Bashar al-Assad during nearly eight years of civil war, is accused of aiding Shiite Huthi rebels in Yemen and maintains Hezbollah as a major threat against Israel. But Iranian officials insist the US is really responsible for the conflicts and that allegations of regional meddling are used as an excuse to target the Islamic Revolution. Last year, the US pulled out of a landmark 2015 accord on Tehran's nuclear programme and reimposed sanctions, citing in part Iran's role in regional conflicts. Conservative Iranian politician and analyst Amir Mohebbian said the West's "massive arms sales" to Arab monarchies in the Gulf are justified because "Iran remains a danger" to US designs in the Middle East. Analyst Therme said that "militant anti-Zionism" has been one of the constants of Iranian foreign policy since Khomeini transformed the country. But now the current geopolitical aims of Tehran seem focused mainly on one goal, he said: "First and foremost to ensure that (the Islamic Republic) endures." Heavy rains in Bandung, West Java and its surrounding areas on Saturday night caused the dam holding the Cinambo River in Pasar Jati, Bandung regency to burst, resulting in flooding that claimed three lives. The flooding hit residential areas in Cigending subdistrict, Ujungberung district and several houses in the Endah regency complex, where eight people were dragged away by the strong currents. The Bandung search and rescue (SAR) office said three people, including a baby, had been declared dead, while five people had been rescued. The victims were identified as Phida, 40, Hani, 25 and Raifan, 1. The joint SAR team has moved all residents affected by the flooding to a safer location, Bandung SAR spokesperson Joshua Banjarnahor said on Sunday. He added that the flooding had receded and that evacuations had been completed. Therefore we suggest that the SAR operations be closed, he said. Meanwhile in Bandung municipality, a flood carried away a resident and killed the man. Joshua said the body was found in drainage about 3 kilometers from where he was carried away. The body has yet to be identified. (kmt) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Bekasi Sun, February 10, 2019 13:11 864 ab327006fac3d4a4e8af45a51b241c18 1 City ATM,Bekasi,police,crime,thief Free Two ATM technicians were arrested in Bekasi, Java for allegedly stealing Rp 12 million (US$859) from an ATM inside a store. Jatiasih Police chief Comr. Ili Anas said the suspects had been identified as Edwin Tri Hendrawan and Ferdian Susanto. They allegedly abused their access to open the ATM [and take the money], he said as quoted by tempo.co on Saturday. Ili went on to say that the incident took place on Nov. 14, 2018 at 2:30 a.m. The alleged perpetrators arrived at the store in their employer's car and got permission to enter the store from security officers by claiming to have been sent to repair an ATM. They managed to open the cash dispenser using a code they had saved on their phone, Ili added. They then allegedly took out and carried the money in their jacket pockets. Soon after, they closed and locked the machine, got into their car and left the building and divided the money. Bank Mandiri, which owned the ATM, reported that it had lost Rp 12.2 million. The police identified the thieves using footage from the ATMs CCTV camera. Edwin and Ferdian were caught in two different places. They have been charged under Article 363 of the Criminal Code on theft, which carries a maximum punishment of seven years in prison. (vla) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Sun, February 10, 2019 10:07 864 ab327006fac3d4a4e8af45a51b23e313 1 National corruption,KPK,ICW Free Antigraft watchdog Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) has released a report that details cases of corruption within local administrations in 2018, revealing that there has been a decrease in such cases over the past four years. Despite the decrease, however, ICW researchers noted that incompetence among lower-level local leaders was a worrisome fact that explained the rampant level of corruption at the subnational level. The report documented 454 graft cases involving 1,087 suspects, including two governors and 35 district heads and mayors, in 2018, compared to 576 cases involving 1,298 suspects, including 29 local leaders the previous year. East Java topped the list of provinces with the most cases, followed by Central Java. Last year, corruption cost the government almost Rp 5.6 trillion (US$401.45 million), down 13.8 percent from Rp 6.5 trillion in the 2017. About 89 percent of cases occurred at the district and village level, while 11 percent of cases occurred at the national level, ICW researcher Wana Alamsyah said during the launch of the report at the antigraft watchdogs office recently. He said 52 percent of all cases in 2018 were handled by state prosecutors, 36 percent by police and 13 percent by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK). Corruption in Indonesia is a major concern for the public, although hard data on such crimes is difficult to collect. Corruption has remained one of the countrys most persistent problems since the end of the New Order regime. While Indonesias score on Transparency Internationals Corruption Perception Index (CPI) has shifted to 37thposition in 2017 from 20thin 1998, graft remains rife, and the country still ranks below former province Timor Leste. Two key areas of the public sector in which corruption remain prevalent are the judiciary and civil service sectors. The ICW said that cases in regional governments typically involved abuse of the local or state budget, corruption in procurement projects, illegally obtaining permits for infrastructure projects, or bribery to secure promotions. There were more cases in East Java in 2018 than anywhere else, with 52 cases that caused a total of Rp 125.9 billion in state losses. Next in line was Central Java and then South Sulawesi, Wana said. He added that the ICW had identified East Java as the province with the most number of cases in the last four years. Last year, the KPK named 41 of Malangs 45 councilors suspects, along with then-Malang mayor Mochamad Anton, in an alleged bribery case related to the citys budget deliberation for 2015. Half of the councilors were seeking reelection, while one was running in the mayoral election. As for villages, the watchdog said it recorded 104 cases, costing the state Rp 1.2 trillion, across the archipelago last year. A number of cases were related to village funds, which is among the top five sectors most prone to corruption. The reports on the misallocation of funds and corruption are due to a lack of participation from villagers and poor monitoring, Wana said. He said further that the village heads were incompetent in handling large amounts of money. The village funds program, which has become a flagship policy of President Joko Jokowi Widodos administration, has provided between Rp 800 million and Rp 1 billion to each of the 73,670 villages across the archipelago to stimulate infrastructure development. KPK commissioner Agus Rahardjo has called on the government to strengthen the role of local administrations internal monitoring bodies to reduce corruption at the local level. KPK deputy chairman Saut Situmorang also encouraged other local leaders to remain confident in leading their areas, while maintaining integrity amid a crackdown on corruption across the country. So long as they maintain their integrity, theres nothing to worry about, he said. (das) Are you a millennial who prefers to listen to the oldies but goodies music of The Beatles, Bob Dylan, The Rolling Stones? You are not alone, as your generation may be more familiar with the music of that era, a new study found. Researchers from New York University found that the people of today are more familiar with the music released from the 1960s to the 1990s than those of today. The research, released on Wednesday, is published in the journal PLOS One. For the study, researchers gathered 643 respondents, with the majority ranging from 18 to 25 years old living in the New York metropolitan area. They were asked to listen to a random selection of seven songs to gauge their familiarity with them. The songs used in the study were No. 1 hits from the Billboard Top 100 from 1940 to 1957, and from those topping the Billboard Hot 100 from 1958 to 2015. Read also: YouTube driving global consumption of music The study found that the respondents had more recognition of music released from the 1960s to the 1990s. Meanwhile, their memory of songs released from 2000 to 2015 was found to have a steep-linear drop-off in recognition. As for songs released in the 1940s and 1950s, it was found that their recognition from this era was characterized by a more gradual drop-off. The 1960s to 1990s was a special time in music, reflected by a steady recognition of pieces of that eraeven by todays millennials, said Pascal Wallisch,clinical assistant professor in New York Universitys Department of Psychology and the studys senior author. However, researchers also acknowledged that the results may be rooted in self-selection, as they observed a considerable correlation between the likelihood of recognizing a given song and its corresponding play count on Spotify. Spotify was launched in 2008, well after nearly 90 percent of the songs we studied were released, which indicates millennials are aware of the music that, in general, preceded their lives and are nonetheless choosing to listen to it, Wallisch added. Lawless Jakarta does more than just building charming custom motorcycles. The workshop has morphed into a dynamic hub for the growing motorcycle community in Jakarta. The crew at the Lawless Jakarta workshop in Kemang, South Jakarta, has brought back the glory of the 1950s classic boardtracker through its one-of-a-kind design. The boardtracker design is supported by a bespoke stainless-steel frame, developed by Lawless and DodiChrome Cycles, and boasts a full chromed body with a blue accent. Fittingly, the bike will house an engine of the legendary Royal Enfield Bullet 500 the longest running motorcycle in history to be in continuous production. Building a Royal Enfield Bullet 500 into a custom broadtracker is estimated to cost Rp 100 million (US$7,126). Into the future: Lawless Jakarta gives a cafe racer treatment to Honda Win. (Lawless Jakarta/-) Lawless Jakarta had never built a classic boardtracker before. This was our first time rebuilding a Royal Enfield this way, said Roni Pramaditia of Lawless Jakarta. The five months it took to develop the bikes design has paid off. Lawless boardtracker design was chosen as one of the winners of custom motorcycle design competition RE BUILD, held in conjunction with Royal Enfield Indonesias third anniversary on Jan. 26. Lawless, along with three other winners, outclassed more than 70 workshops across Indonesia. Indonesia is one of the biggest, and also one of the most engaged and evolved two-wheeler markets in the world, as Royal Enfields country manager, Irvino Edwardly noted. And in Jakarta, Lawless has become an integral part of the capitals vibrant motorcycle culture scene. Since its establishment in 2011, Lawless has strategically diversified its business at a fast pace. Its Kemang shop not only offers a classic motorcycle garage but also houses a record and clothing store, tattoo shop and most recently a burger bar. Lawless burger bars walls are covered with stickers and band posters. The speakers blast songs by Iron Maiden and Black Sabbath, and you can hang out and eat burgers named after icons of rock and metal, such as The Lemmy burger named after the Motorhead front man. Lawless burger joint and tattoo has helped Lawless expand its customer base beyond male gearheads. When we opened the store it was mostly young men with black T-shirts hanging around. Ever since we opened the burger bar, women have come in, said Ucup, one of Lawless founders. Interestingly, women make up 80 percent of Lawless tattoo parlor customers. Youthful energy: Lawless Jakarta has captured the attention of young riders with its innovative custom garage, record and clothing shop, burger bar and tattoo parlor. (Lawless Jakarta/-) Ucup founded Lawless eight years ago with Sammy Bramatyo, Arian Arifin and Gofar Hilman. Here [at Lawless] we dont have strict roles, Roni said. We sort of do anything, except for Ucup, who is the man with bikes. Ucup and Gofar found their passion for motorcycles in 2002 when they were in high school. My parents bought me a Honda s90 and I took it to a welding workshop and customized it into a drag racing, cafe racer-style bike, Ucup said. In 2008, the two made their hobby into a business, establishing a workshop called Piston Motorcycles. Ucup and Gofar started with lower-powered motorcycles and eventually worked their way up to the big, high-powered classics. They later merged their bike workshop with Arian and Sammys music merchandise store, Howling Wolf, under the Lawless Jakarta flag. Ucup and Gofar naturally handle the workshop side of the business, while Arian and Sammy both members of metal band Seringai manage a lot of the store side of things but are into motorcycles themselves. Lawless Jakartas classic design approach has won the hearts of bike enthusiasts across the country. The workshop has produced between 30 to 50 unique custom motorcycles since 2011, Ucup estimates. The bikes will often be torn down and remade from the ground up, with a custom frame and body. Custom classic motorcycles from Lawless generally cost anywhere from Rp 50 million to Rp 100 million, depending on the extent of the modification. The boys have a good set up. Beyond their Kemang store and a custom workshop in Depok, on the outskirts of Jakarta, they hold yearly motorcycle events, such as the Sekepal Aspal meet-up event and Cinemotor, Indonesias first motorcycle-themed film festival. The Fab Five: Lawless Jakarta was founded by (from left to right) Arian Arifin, Gofar Hilman, Sammy Bramatyo, Ucup and Roni Pramaditia. (Lawless Jakarta/-) The five Lawless founders have a lot on their plate, working on bike projects aside from managing their stores in Kemang. However, they will soon need to allocate time to build bikes based on their winning boardtracker design. As the competition winner, Lawless Indonesia will receive a Royal Enfield motorcycle and a cash prize from Royal Enfield Indonesia to materialize the design. However, it appears Roni has more plans with their boardtracker design. We will produce and sell the motorcycle frame and will continue to build other custom bikes based on that frame, Roni said. The writer is an intern at The Jakarta Post One of the fashion's most enduring trends is to draw inspiration from other cultures' traditional arts and crafts. But the extent to which fashion houses profit from these designs without acknowledging their origins has sparked accusations of cultural appropriation in recent years. Amid this growing backlash, luxury outdoor brand Canada Goose is paying homage to the Inuit, who originally created the fur-lined cold-weather parka coat that the company has become famous for selling. This week it launched a new business venture, Project Atigi, which aims to acknowledge and support Inuit communities in Northern Canada. In Inuktitut, the traditional word for parka is atigi. And thats what Project Atigi is: a collection of parkas handmade in Canadas north.We commissioned 14 Inuit seamstresses to create a bespoke piece, #ProjectAtigi #HonouringtheNorth https://t.co/mqVoWu2gO6 pic.twitter.com/onlVLtY5jw Canada Goose (@CanadaGooseInc) February 1, 2019 Canada Goose commissioned 14 Inuit seamstresses to each make a coat of their own design, using fabrics selected by the company. The seamstresses own the copyright for their coats, rather than Canada Goose. "As we're moving forward into modern times, indigenous cultures are being acknowledged for their ingenuity and their craft," Mishael Gordon, one of the Project Atigi seamstresses, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. "I felt like this was an example of appreciation of indigenous culture, not appropriation," she said. Canada Goose set up Project Atigi as a social enterprise, which is a business that seeks to do good as well as make profit, so it would benefit the Inuit directly. The seamstresses were paid for their work and all the profits will go to a charity that works to improve the health and wellbeing of Inuit in Canada. Read also: NCT 127 accused of cultural appropriation after sampling Maori haka $900 coats Dani Reiss, president and chief executive of Canada Goose, said the company had a responsibility to help the northern region of Canada, where the company originates from, to prosper. "We know that 'the north is open for business' and this is our way to create social entrepreneurship in the region," he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation in an email. Canada Goose, which was founded in Toronto 62 years ago, sells coats for about $900. The Inuit designs are on display in its New York store and will be sold online this month at between $5,000 and $7,500. It is the company's first foray into social enterprise and follows protests by animal rights activists over the use of fur and duck feathers in its coats. Gordon explained animal fur was still widely used in Inuit culture to protect them from the cold. She said she believed Project Atigi was not motivated solely by good publicity and would benefit the Inuit people. "They are making themselves look great, but they are making Inuit seamstresses look great as well, because they are showcasing our artwork," she said. But Riley Kucheran, an expert on indigenous fashion design, said the contribution to charity amounted to "a drop in a very large bucket". "The partnership does some good work in bringing attention to the brilliancy of Inuit design, but I think Canada Goose could do more," said Kucheran, who is studying for a PhD at Ryerson University in Toronto, in an email. "We'll have to wait and see if it's truly a reciprocal relationship." Read also: U.S. teen praised for prom cheongsam after online dressing down Beg, borrow or steal? Awareness of cultural appropriation is growing, but big brands still trip up. Designer Isabel Marant was accused of copying an indigenous Mexican design for a dress in 2015. Two years later, Chanel was accused of appropriating Aboriginal culture when it started selling at luxury boomerang for $1,930. Because social enterprises typically reinvest profits back into the business or a cause, they are in a position to address this wrongdoing by directly giving back to the workers or communities that build them. When fashion house Dior was accused in 2017 of copying a traditional design from Romania's Bihor region, it prompted a local fashion magazine to set up a company to help traditional artisans and keep their techniques alive. Bihor Couture employs local artisans to make the traditional garments and has also raised money to support a craft school in the region. Australian social enterprise Kirrikin prints Aboriginal designs on luxury silk. It employs Aboriginal artists, who receive a percentage of the profits from sales of their designs. There are also social enterprises taking a similar approach in beauty. Shea Yeleen sells shea butter, supporting the women cooperatives that produce it in West Africa by paying a living wage, offering training and access to healthcare. Indonesia's e-commerce scene is surely an exciting one. Last year, its online market transactions were recorded as the highest in Southeast Asia, with sales volumes reaching US$2.7 billion. During the national online shopping day (Harbolnas) on Dec. 12, 2018, up to Rp 6.8 trillion (US$486.5 million) of sales were booked, an increase of Rp 2.1 trillion from last year. The various offers of cashback using e-wallets from Indonesian e-commerce firms have also increased customers' enthusiasm toward e-wallets, which have seen usage increase from 11 percent in 2017 to 15 percent in 2018. Amid this growth, the top three regional e-commerce firms, Lazada, Shopee and Tokopedia, have successfully expanded their market sevenfold from 2015. As compiled by Kuala Lumpur-based online shopping aggregator iPrice, below are some interesting data regarding e-commerce competitions in the archipelago based on Q4 2018 data: 1. Tokopedia remains most visited website Tokopedia continued to attract the most website visitors on average, with up to 168 million visits, which is an increase of almost 10 percent from the previous quarter. Among the reasons for its popularity boost were a collaboration with mobile app payment system OVO, which allows users to conduct transactions using OVOcash and OVOpoints, and a $1.1 billion investment from SoftBank at the end of 2018. Trailing behind Tokopedia are e-commerce firms Bukalapak (116 million visits), Shopee (67.7 million Lazada (58.3 million, Djarum and BCA-owned e-commerce firm Blibli (43.1 million). 2. Shopee wins in mobile apps Shopee Indonesia ranked highest on the App Store and Google Play throughout Q4 2018, according to app analytics provider App Annie. All thanks to its two strategies: an attractive year-end promo themed Harbolnas 11:11 and 12:12 Birthday Sale, which offered a flash sale and cashback up to 120 percent, as well as free delivery promo and flash sale offers that successfully lured many Indonesians to shop on the platform. Following behind Shopee on the App Store and Google Play were Tokopedia (#2) and Lazada (#3). Read also: Indonesias e-commerce sales predicted to reach US$65b in 2022 3. Zalora tops local fashion e-commerce Operating since 2012, Zalora recorded the most website visitors during Q4 2018. It saw an increase of visits by up to 2 million, way ahead of Sophie Paris in the second spot, which recorded an increase of only 100,000 visits. The third, fourth and fifth spots were taken by Islamic fashion e-commerce firm Hijup, Berrybenka and male fashion e-commerce firm Bro.do, respectively. 4. Instagram most effective as promotion platform Brands promoting their products on Instagram successfully reached 100 percent of their followers, far more than Facebook, which only influenced around 6 percent of brands' total followers. 5. Sociolla gains more trust E-commerce firm Sociolla, which focuses on beauty, makeup and perfume products, saw an increase in website visits of 35 percent from the previous quarter. Its strategy of providing discounted coupons in collaboration with beauty influencers and bloggers has been quite successful in attracting customers' attention. Buyers and product users could also be found actively reviewing and sharing their experience after shopping on the platform. 6. iLotte shows amazing growth Launched in 2017, iLotte made it into the country's top 10 e-commerce firms, recording up to 3.5 million website visitors in the last quarter of 2018, reportedly due to its free concert ticket promo. 7. Elevenia goes down Compared to the previous quarter, Elevenia saw its rank go down from 9 to 8, with website visitors decreasing from 4 million to 3.9 million. No more discount cuts and free delivery subsidy are said to be among the causes behind it. (kes) ____________________ Editor's note: Paragraph five in this article has been corrected. For a man who spent nearly three decades in prison, the passage of time was no doubt important to Nelson Mandela. So it is perhaps fitting that an exhibition opening in London on Friday about his life and legacy features his watch, which was always kept on South African time wherever he traveled in the world as the country's first black president. The interactive exhibition takes a journey though Mandela's life including his upbringing in rural Eastern Cape as the son of a chief, his 27-year incarceration and the end of apartheid when he became president in 1994. Mandela died in 2013 aged 95. It features previously unseen footage alongside more than 150 artifacts such as clothes, campaign posters and travel documents on loan from the family of the Nobel Peace Prize winner and museums and archives worldwide. Read also: Key dates in the life of Nelson Mandela "My grandfather, during his presidential years, he wore a watch, a Philippe Patek watch, and I've made that watch available because he gave me that watch and I think because he was such a committed person and always on time," grandson Mandla Mandela told Reuters. "Even when he traveled abroad his watch remained on South African time which we found hilarious as a family, but that watch is also here on display." London is the first city to host the touring show "Mandela: The Official Exhibition" before it is permanently mounted in Mandela's birthplace Mvezo. "It's our generation's responsibility to ensure that we record history for generations to come to understand the character and to understand the glorious human achievement of Nelson Mandela," Zelda La Grange, his personal presidential aide and the exhibition's guest curator, said. Since October last year, Google has been on high alert following security flaws that gave unauthorized access to some users profile data. The company announced plans to shut down Google+. However, there was another data leak shortly after, which prompted Google to fast-track the shutdown of its social network to April. The timeline for termination of Google+ has been officially announced, so users know when their data will be officially erased from the network. According to The Verge, as of Feb. 4, users are no longer able to create new Google+ profiles, pages, communities or events. Comments generated by Google+ on external websites were removed from Blogger on Feb. 4 and from other sites by March 7. All website comments made using Google+ will be deleted starting on April 2. All users Google+ content will be deleted on April 2 (except for Google notes content that must be kept for legal reasons), including photos and videos on Google+ and Google+ pages. Photos and videos backed up to Google Photos are safe and will not be deleted. Read also: New bug prompts earlier end to Google+ social network Current Google+ users will be unable to sign into sites and apps, which in some cases will be replaced with a Google sign-in. In these instances, users can sign in with a Google account in lieu of Google+. If you are a G Suite customer, Google+ for your G Suite account will remain untouched. However, users can expect a refreshed app with additional features soon. According to Google, the removal of all Google+ data will take some time. As a result of this, portions of user data might still be visible until April 2. As the deadlines approaches, be sure to take necessary steps to preserve your Google+ data before it becomes inaccessible. You can find guides on how to download your data here. (geo/wng) Elisabeth Koja, 33, a housewife and mother of three in Mbapo village in Flores, East Nusa Tenggara, has suffered from mental illness since 2006. Elsa, as she is called by her husband Maksimilianus Gano, began suffering the illness after giving birth to her first child Bela. Now Bela is in fifth grade at Rende state elementary school (SDN) in the village. Elsa also has two sons with Gano, one in third grade at the same school and another in early childhood education (PAUD). Gano said his wife fell ill 13 years ago. Since then, her mental condition would experience ups and downs. Sometimes she has bad phases, while other times she gets better herself. When Elsa relapses, she chases people around the house, especially the children, throwing things and breaking the walls. Gano recounted, upon seeing the symptoms of the disease, the family and locals decided to shackle her inside the house. His wife has been shackled inside the house four times. On the fifth time, he said, Elsa was shackled in a cocoa plantation hut behind their home. Since December, Elsa has relapsed again. This time it was more severe. In January she threatened to burn down the house. Her family and the locals decided to tie Elsa down in a 3 by 2.5 meter hut with a tin roof behind the house, where her feet were tightly locked by a wooden block. "I am very sad that my wife has a mental illness. Sometimes it is better and sometimes she relapses. Four times, my family and the residents decided to shackle her in the house to allow us to take care of her," Gano said. "The sign that Elsa has recovered is when she falls silent, no more rampaging. When I see the sign, I dismantle the fitting beam. However, when Elsa relapses, she often damages the walls of the house, rebels, chases the children around the house and speaks to herself. If my family and I see the symptoms again, we take the solution to put her in shackles in the house," he added. Gano said sometimes his wife would be shackled in the house for three to four months. While Elsa was relapsing, he said he would split his time between taking care of the three children and working in the plantation. In addition, Gano's parents would also help cook rice and other necessities for the children and his wife. "I have been looking for a way to treat my wifes mental disorder for a long time. Because, as a husband, I can't bear to see my wife experience this kind of illness," Gano said. He said that a few days ago a medical officer from the Rende Assistant Health Center (Pustu), Adrys Harapan, had come to register the ill for the Healthy Indonesia Card (KIS) program. "At that time, the officer saw the condition of my wife who was shackled in the hut and informed me that there was an institution that deals specifically with mental disorders in Ende and East Manggarai regencies. The name of the institution was Kasih Insanis Group (KKI) in Ende, led by Pastor Avent Saur and a number of volunteers on Flores island," Gano said. The officer had asked to take pictures to inform the institution in Ende, and asked whether the family was able to bring Elsa to the KKI to be treated at the Panti Mose Ruteng Renceng institution in Manggarai regency. "At that time I said that my family and I were ready to bring my wife to the panti [institution]. Then within the next three days, the officer informed me that there was a room in the panti to care for her along with patients from Ende regency," he explained. Gano said he had always taken care of his wife when she was shackled, bringing her food and drink. He said sometimes his wife would even ask for water at night that he would attend to. In addition, he also installed mosquito nets so that she would not be bitten by mosquitoes. Read also: Less than 1,000 psychiatrists for 260 million Indonesians Uninstalling the shackling block On Feb. 2, Avent arrived in the village, where dozens of locals had also waited to witness Elsas unshackling. Once the pastor arrived, he went straight to the hut to talk with Elsa. Everyone was puzzled and surprised to see the way the pastor greeted the shackled psychiatric patient; many whispering that the pastor held a special charisma to free the person in shackles. The pastor has never been afraid of dealing with people who suffer from psychiatric disorders. Avent explained that people with psychiatric disorders throughout Flores could recover with regular medication. He said people with psychiatric disorders could cured by taking routine medication, not by other means hinting at fears mental illness was caused by the supernatural. "Patients with psychiatric disorders experience disruption in the brain, not because of spirits, as has been perceived by the people of Flores," Avent said. "If we experience a disturbance in a part of the brain, emotions and everything else is disturbed. For this reason, if there are families and residents who experience symptoms such as talking to themselves, singing alone, rebelling and chasing people or throwing things at houses, immediately inform the health agency or local medical staff to get treatment," he added. (liz/kes) Forget chocolate, flowers or a romantic dinner. A zoo in Texas is offering singles the chance to name a cockroach after their ex and see it fed to a meerkat live on camera on Valentine's Day. In a campaign dubbed "Quit Bugging Me!!!" the El Paso Zoo says the roach is a perfect Valentine's gift for those needing closure on a past relationship that didn't make the grade. It said a cockroach would be assigned to each nominee and the bugs would be fed to meerkats in an event streamed on the zoo's website and Facebook page on February 14. Read also: New York is most popular Valentines Day destination for lovebirds Zoo officials said Madagascar hissing cockroaches would likely be used for the feast. "They do actually hiss, they are a very large species of cockroach, definitely not the largest, but it is one that we actually do breed here at the zoo for feeding purposes," Sarah Murphy, an education specialist at the zoo, told the local ABC station. Famed French fashion house Dior launched its eloquent Spring-Summer 2019 collection with fluidity and grace, inspired by dance and expression of the body. The collection is set to hit stores in Jakarta at the end of February. The Spring-Summer 2019 womens collection features an array of bodysuits, tanks and light jumpsuits in different shades of nude, and a multitude of variations that correspond to the bodys movements, designed to complement the looser pieces in the collection. The remainder of the collection features full and airy skirts, as well as short and long tutus, designed to be matched with the nude base items. The collection takes a new approach to Diors renowned style, barring the corsets and figure-hugging dresses this time around. Dior has replaced dresses with pieces ethereal as a layer of tulle and corsets replaced by a simple tank. The fashion house conceptualizes dance to be at the heart of the collection, inspired by a story that comes from inside the body. I think that dance and fashion are very close, for they both speak about the body, said Maria Grazia Chiuri, creative director of Dior womens collections to Vogue. The experience of dance, its most intimate truth, the fact that it is a means of universal expression, and the radicality of the gestures of contemporary dance have all stimulated my imagination, Chiuri was quoted as saying in a press release. Read also: Saint Laurent walks on water at Paris fashion week The dance-inspired Spring-Summer 2019 collection by Dior was first presented in Paris leafy 16th Arrondissement. Celebrity guests and fashion gurus such as Blake Lively, Camille Rowe and Chiara Ferragni were seen among the audience, dressed flawlessly in past Dior collections. The Parisian fashion show commenced with a conceptual dance piece, choreographed by Tel Aviv-based Sharon Eyal and performed by Eyal herself and eight dancers from her company. The cunning use of skylights and floor covered in flower petals transformed Diors black box into an exhilarating platform before the collection hit the runway. Chiuri expresses freedom throughout the collection, and for the first time, jersey material is featured on the runway, alongside a dress of macrame, braided entirely from tulle. Charming floral tulle is also featured alongside, drawing together pale-washed shades of khaki, beige and charcoal. Every piece in the collection focuses on the sense of the hand: hand-beaded embroidery, Shibori dyed scarf prints and butterflies created from feather. Even down to the minimal, androgynous style black tunic that opened the show it had been cut and draped exquisitely. Alongside selected looks that would be available in its Jakarta stores, Dior also presented a host of accessories from the Spring-Summer 2019 collection. This season's shoes, sandals and sneakers take cue for instance from ballet slippers with its shapes, ribbons and nude hues. (geo/mut) Amazon is rethinking its decision to create an additional headquarters in New York City amid opposition from key political leaders and protests in the community, The Washington Post reported Friday. The Post, which is owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, cited two sources familiar with the company who spoke on condition of anonymity. The report comes after the appointment of an Amazon critic to an oversight board with the potential to veto the deal for one of two locations selected by Amazon for its "HQ2", along with a site near Washington. Several local officials and newly elected Democratic Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, whose district borders the New York site, opposed the Amazon deal. They voiced concerns that the promised 25,000 jobs could inflate an already overpriced housing market and strain infrastructure. The plan announced last year was backed by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and the city's Mayor Bill de Blasio, but has been the object of demonstrations in the following weeks. Critics claim the deal offers too many subsidies to one of the world's largest companies, led by the world's richest man. Some surveys meanwhile have suggested the Amazon HQ plan is supported by residents. Read also: Scores protest against new Amazon HQ in Queens, New York Amazon did not directly address the report but said it was focused on engaging with its future neighbors. "Whether it's building a pipeline of local jobs through workforce training or funding computer science classes for thousands of New York City students, we are working hard to demonstrate what kind of neighbor we will be," the company told AFP. It's not clear what Amazon would do if it dropped the plan for New York. It has won approval for a location in the Virginia suburbs of the US capital as it outgrows its headquarters in Seattle, Washington. At a news conference Friday, Cuomo said opposition is led by "a very small group of politicians who are pandering to the local politics" and repeated his support for the Amazon deal. "We need Amazon," the governor said. "There is no (other) business that brings 25,000 jobs." But Stuart Appelbaum of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, said Amazon had failed to address concerns voiced about the plan. "If the Amazon deal falls apart, they will have nobody to blame but themselves," Appelbaum said. "A major problem is the way the deal was put together shrouded in secrecy and ignoring what New Yorkers want and need." EDWARDSVILLE Southern Illinois University Edwardsvilles commitment to service was again on display as the School of Nursing took a nine-person team comprised of students, faculty and an alumna to Costa Rica Jan. 5-12, where they saw nearly 1,000 patients in four clinic days at four locations. Valerie Griffin, DNP, assistant clinical professor and director of the Family Nurse Practitioner Program (FNP), led the team that traveled in partnership with Central America Mission Projects (CAMP). In seven days, they visited La Carpio, Pavas, Alajuela and Coco, fed children in the street at Infiernillos and played with children at Ninos con Carino Orphanage. Joining Griffin and her daughter Hannah were Leah Baecht and Whitney Heischmidt, who are both post masters doctor of nursing practice students and faculty in the Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNA) program. CRNA students Alexis Tewell, of Freeburg, Michael Perkins, of Worden, and Megan Reynolds, of Hamel, were team members, along with FNP students Amanda McDannald, of Rochester, and Marissa Mahan, of Chatham. Rounding out the group was SON alumna Mackenzie Schutt, who was master of ceremonies at the Schools October 2018 Gala that focused on global service. CAMP President Dan Whitlock and SIUE Chancellor Randy Pembrook convinced her to join the group. Griffin describes the most challenging aspect of these visits. Global service requires flexibility and the ability to critically think about the assessment data in order to develop a plan of care appropriate to the patient, as well as using the limited resources available, she said. We saw 978 patients in four clinic days and were able to host a new clinic for the first time in that region. Previous experience allowed the SON team to strategically structure patient visits for efficiency. Having been to some of these sites previously allowed us to re-evaluate the process and make improvements, Griffin said. When Pastor Elmer informed us that he had 400 people coming to get a new pair of shoes and he wanted to send them all through the clinic, I honestly thought to myself that this was going to be difficult to accomplish. But at the end of that particular clinic day, we saw 495 individuals! The team dealt with some serious issues such as diabetes, hypertension, cellulitis, skin cancer, tuberculosis and a wound requiring stitches. Griffin points to a positive learning experience, because students are taken out of their comfort zone. In the United States, we have many resources available in order to care for patients, she said. In Costa Rica, these resources are limited. Students acknowledge this and care for their patients using more than just clinical skills. They are utilizing a level of cultural competence that exceeds what we expect from nurses in America. This level of compassion becomes the focus of the care we provide and reminds the students of their calling to be a nurse. Hostler, Anderson and Ihry hired by Archer Credit Union Amy Hostler, Jesse Anderson and Ruth Ihry have joined the staff of Archer Cooperative Credit Union as member service representatives. After training in all offices, Hostler will serve as the first point-of-contact for members in the St. Paul location that is scheduled to open in the fall of 2019. She will perform accounting duties, product/service assessments, and will assist all areas of credit union operations. She is the daughter of Steve and Elaine Hostler and was raised on a farm near Alda. She graduated from the University of Nebraska at Kearney with a bachelor of arts degree in business administration, with an emphasis in management. Prior to joining Archer Credit Union, she was with Platte Valley State Bank and Trust and Equitable Bank in Grand Island. Anderson is working at the Archer location and Ihry, after training in all offices, will work at the St. Paul location this fall. They perform accounting duties, product/service assessments and provision of quality service. Both assist all areas of credit union operation. Columnists Small goals with big rewards You wouldnt think it would be such a big deal to me, but riding my bicycle from home to the elementary school was certainly rewarding. I am an avid cycler on flat ground but hills remind Upping my game at work and home It never seems to change, and I always seem to forget. Now that school is out for the summer, I seem to have more time on my hands than I thought I would have. That did not seem to last very A fiery tongue or a helping hand Curt Hineline Editor The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of ones life on fire, Teaching children to have fun Fun. I have always had the understanding that fun was something that a person didnt have to learn. If someone was forcing you to have fun a certain way then they were in the wrong. But now More Columns Schleichardt and Obermiller have experience as private business owners before starting their own business. That brings them an understanding and knowledge of the needs of small businesses when it comes to taxes, bookkeeping and payroll services. We know their needs, what their expenses are and what they need to look for in operating their business, Schleichardt said. She said that intimate knowledge and experience with tax law from the perspective of a small business owner brings security to their clients when dealing with the government. These things become very personal to us because we can research and know and understand that business so we can help them identify what expenses, what records they need to keep, and what they can use, Schleichardt said. What makes their partnership strong, according to Schleichardt, is that We say the same things, react the same way too so many things that it can become very comical at times. We are both hunters, so we talk hunting, guns and enjoyment. We both love people so much that already our new clients come in and leave us with hugs because they are so pleased that we took a personal interest. Since starting their business, Schleichardt and Obermiller said they have kept busy. Kasia Piercy of Aurora, Katherine Cumpston of Central City and Katelin Buss of Grand Island were named to the fall deans honor roll at Wichita State University in Wichita, Kan., for earning a grade point average of at least 3.5. Two Central Nebraska students have been named to the honors list at Missouri University of Science and Technology in Rolla for the fall 2018 semester. They are Matthew Lamb of Doniphan, a junior majoring in chemical engineering, and Talon Clay of Grand Island, a freshman majoring in physics. To be included on the honor list, students must have carried a minimum of 12 hours and had grade point averages of 3.2 or above out of a possible 4.0. NORWALK A teacher will soon receive a $5,000 grant for a project that will ask elementary school students to tell human rights and social justice stories through the lens of a camera. Gifted and talented teacher Jessica Stargardter came up with the idea in 2018 while working in Cos Cob. After the gifted and talented students there responded favorably to the project she decided to continue it, this time, at Tracey and Cranbury elementary schools in Norwalk. My project will be focused on human rights and social justice and kids can choose a topic theyre interested in and that impacts their lives, she said. Theyll document an issue they see in their own community and hopefully be inspired to take action. Part of the grant money will purchase disposable cameras for 30 fourth- and fifth-graders, a deliberate decision on Stargardters part. Students are forced to shoot intentionally as they use disposable cameras, something they might take for granted with digital equipment. The University of Connecticuts Neag School of Education has named Stargardter its 2019 Rogers Educational Innovation Fund Award recipient. Designed by Neag School of Education professor Vincent Rogers, the grant supports innovative projects led by Connecticut teachers at elementary or middle schools. Rogers, who spent 40 years teaching and writing about education, led the Neag Schools Department of Curriculum and Instruction and served on its faculty before retiring in 1990, according to UConns website. Its the second year the award will be presented. Students need access to resources that present multiple viewpoints and narratives in order to become effective, empathetic members of our global society, Stargardter wrote in her project proposal. Students will gain access to books and technology to research social issues such as racism, sexism, climate change, food insecurity and so on. Additionally, they will be given the skills to recognize and analyze problems within their own community. Suzanne M. Wilson, department head of curriculum and instruction at the Neag School of Education and one of the three judges that selected Stargardters work, said the committee looks for projects that are timely, compelling, innovative, untraditional and rigorous. The fact Stargardter taught a similar project in Cos Cob helped her advance in the competition, Wilson said. You could see that she had worked on it for a while, that these were ideas that were bubbling up and had been evolving over time, Wilson said. Thats often the case with teaching. It takes you a while to shape it into something productive. Theresa Rangel, principal at Tracey Elementary School, said that by noticing what problems exist, students can become empowered to make a difference. Any time students can be aware of whats going on in the world and can have real life things to explore it just makes an authentic learning experience for them, she said. I think in general were working on creating good global citizens. Im super excited for her, she said of Stargardter. Stargardter, a class of 2016 and 2017 graduate of the Neag School of Education, will receive the grant at Neag School Alumni Awards Celebration on March 16. The funding is to be used during the 2020-21 school year. tatiana.flowers@thehour.com Well-Known Georgia Businessman Shot Dead, Carjacking Suspect Sought A well-known Georgia businessman and philanthropist was shot and killed in an apparent carjacking attempt, and police are searching for a suspect, according to officials. Jack Hough, 73, was sitting in his vehicle on Feb. 7 while his wife was inside a pharmacy near Atlanta when the suspect approached him, reported the Gainesville Times. She goes in the store to make a purchase, and he stays in the vehicle, Gainesville Police Chief Jay Parrish said, according to the newspaper, which also reported that he was gunned down at around 8 p.m. local time at the parking lot of the CVS Pharmacy on Park Hill Drive. Jack Hough has been a friend, supporter and mentor since I came to Gainesville. I will miss him terribly. Such a senseless loss. Scott's Downtown fka Scott's on the Square 201928 Hough, an Air Force veteran who later founded MSE Branded Food Systems, was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital, the news outlet also reported. Its senseless. Im numb. I mean, my wife last night said she couldnt cry anymore, close friend Andy Piucci said, reported Fox News. He was a great friend and just a wonderful person. Its just horrible. Police havent yet identified a suspect, but witnesses said that a black man wearing all black was seen leaving the scene on foot. Jack Hough was a great friend. I will miss him dearly Hunter Fleming 201928 There are people who know who attacked this man. I hope they cant sleep until they come and let us know what they know, Parrish said of the incident, WSB-TV reported. The police chief also offered his condolences to Houghs widow. I cant imagine what it would be like to walk out of that business and find citizens rendering aide to my spouse. Thats what breaks my heart and keeps me up and driven to find this man, he added. In this work, we are invited into the lives of families who struggle. It is a humbling privilege to work side by side Janet Gloeckner Walden 201928 Ed Jones, vice president of MSE Branded Foods, said Hough was the most outgoing person you would ever meet, while another person who knew him, Connie Stephens, described him as compassionate. I think not only was he successful as a business person in the community, but he really cared, and thats what stuck out the most, Stephens said. Jack Hough has been a friend, supporter and mentor since I came to Gainesville. I will miss him terribly. Such a senseless loss, wrote Scotts Downtown fka Scotts on the Square on Facebook. Gainesville, located 55 miles north of Atlanta, has seen a surge in gun-related crimes in recent days, Fox reported. Jack Hough, you will be missed by so many. Thank you for your kindness, being a philanthropist and having one of the Tiffany Johnston 201928 We understand youre alarmed and concerned for your safety in this city. We know that random acts of violence are not the norm for Gainesville, Parrish said. Friends said theyre setting up a $25,000 reward for information that could lead to an arrest in the case. Violent Crime Down Despite the recent spike in gun crime in Atlanta, violent and property crimes have seen a downward trend, according to statistics collected by the FBI. Some areas, however, have significantly deteriorated and others, despite improvements, still need attention. The violent crime rateincluding offenses such as murder, robbery, and aggravated assaultdropped by almost one percent and is still about 4 percent above the 2014 rate. The murder rate dropped by 0.7 percent. The decline in crime, albeit small, cut short a worrisome spike in violence in previous years. Between 2014 and 2016, the murder rate had increased by more than 20 percent, to 5.4 per 100,000 residents, from 4.4. The last two-year period that the rate soared so quickly was between 1966 and 1968. The rate of property crimes, such as theft and burglary, has declined 3.6 percent since 2016 and is down more than 26 percent since a decade ago. Petr Svab contributed to this report. US Is in Contact With Venezuelan Military, Urging Defections, Official Says The Trump administration is ramping up pressure against embattled Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro by directly communicating with members of Venezuelas military and urging them to desert his regime, as the United States also prepares new sanctions against the Latin American country. Although only two high-ranking military members have broken with Maduros regime to date, the United States believes there will be more defections in the future, a senior official told Reuters. The Trump administration has been a staunch supporter of opposition leader Juan Guaido, who invoked a constitutional provision and declared himself the countrys interim president last month. Following the United States formal recognition of Guaido, nearly all Latin American countries, major European nations, and dozens of other major powers have followed suit. We believe these to be those first couple of pebbles before we start really seeing bigger rocks rolling down the hill, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Were still having conversations with members of the former Maduro regime, with military members, although those conversations are very, very limited. Further details on the level of discussions being held werent provided by the official. Venezuelas military, which consists of four main branchesthe national guard, army, navy, and air forcehave been crucial to the socialist dictators grip on the country, which, in recent years, has weakened as newly obtained documents show that thousands of soldiers have deserted him. Despite both escalating international and local pressure, Venezuelan military officials continue to remain loyal to Maduro, because of the wealth they have gained largely from corruption, drug trafficking, petroleum revenue, and business revenue. A U.S. admiral said at a recent Senate Armed Services Committee that Venezuela has about 2,000 generals. Eric Farnsworth, vice president of the Council of the Americas think tank in Washington, said Venezuelan security forces fear their families might be targeted if they defect. He said the U.S. would need something to counter those concerns. It depends on what theyre offering, Farnsworth told Reuters. Are there incentives built into these contacts that will at least cause people to question their loyalty to the regime? The U.S. official said the Trump administration is readying more possible sanctions on Venezuela after previous rounds targeted dozens of Venezuelan military and government officials, including Maduro himself. Last month, the government placed sanctions against Venezuelan state-owned oil firm PDVSA, which the Treasury Department said has long been a vehicle for corruption for Venezuelan officials and businessmen. So far, the Trump administration hasnt imposed so-called secondary sanctions that would punish non-U.S. companies for doing businesses with the Venezuela government or their oil firm. Maduro was inaugurated Jan. 10 amid worldwide condemnation that his leadership is illegitimate and that the elections were a sham. He first gained power in 2013 and is now in his second term. Guaido, in the meantime, has promised fair and democratic elections and is offering amnesty to Maduros military forces. Almost 90 percent of Venezuelas population live below the poverty line and over half of families are unable to meet their basic food needs, according to the humanitarian group Mercy Corps. The UN estimates that by the end of 2019, there will be 5.3 million Venezuelan refugees and migrants. Socialist policies introduced by Maduro and his predecessor, Hugo Chavez, have crippled the oil-rich nations once-thriving economy and driven millions out. Maduro, meanwhile, accused Guaido of staging a U.S.-directed coup, while appearing defiant in a string of recent video posts on Twitter, where Maduro was seen training with his armed forces and visiting air force grounds to quell talk of military defection. Humanitarian Blockage Food and medical supplies from the United States have failed to enter Venezuela after the regimes military blockaded some highway links. The Tienditas bridge, linking Colombia and Venezuela, is blocked by a fuel tank and cargo containers, but to the south, the Simon Bolivar international bridge between the two the neighboring countries remains open. A group of Venezuelans on Feb. 9 protested on the Colombian side of the Simon Bolivar bridge to call on Maduro to allow the humanitarian aid to pass. Venezuelas government has rejected the aid. Guaido on Feb. 8 warned military officers against blocking the arrival of aid as the country struggled with disease and malnutrition. He called those who are blocking the supplies miserable and said he would see to opening up access if he had to. Maduro, one day after the supplies arrived in Cucuta, ridiculed the United States for offering small amounts of assistance while, at the same time, maintaining sanctions that block some $10 billion of offshore assets and revenue. On Twitter, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Venezuelans desperately need humanitarian aid and urged Maduros regime to let the aid in. A demonstrator wearing a mask painted with the colors of the flag of East Turkestanhow some separatist Uyghurs refer to the region of Xinjiangand a hand bearing the colors of the Chinese flag, attends a protest denouncing China's treatment of ethnic Uyghur Muslims, in front of the Chinese consulate in Istanbul, on July 5, 2018. (OZAN KOSE/AFP/Getty Images) Turkey Calls on China to Close Internment Camps for Uyghur Muslims ISTANBULTurkey called on China to close its internment camps for Muslims, saying the camps, which reportedly hold a million ethnic Uyghur people, are a great shame for humanity. Last week, rights activists urged European and Muslim nations to take the lead in establishing a United Nations investigation into Chinas detention and forced indoctrination of Uyghurs, who speak a Turkic language, and other Muslims in the far-northwestern region of China known as Xinjiang. The policy of systematic assimilation against the Uyghur Turks carried out by the authorities of China is a great shame for humanity, Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy said in a statement on Feb. 9. It is no longer a secret that more than 1 million Uyghur Turks incurring arbitrary arrests are subjected to torture and political brainwashing in internment camps and prisons, Aksoy said. Former detainees have recounted human-rights abuses inside the facilities, such as torture, drugging, and rape. Turkeys response follows the death in detention of Uyghur poet and musician Abdurehim Heyit, which Aksoy said was a tragedy that had reinforced the reaction of the Turkish public opinion toward serious human rights violations committed in the Xinjiang region. We expect this legitimate response to be taken into account by the Chinese authorities. On this occasion, we invite the Chinese authorities to respect the fundamental human rights of Uyghur Turks and to close the internment camps, he said. Chinas embassy in Ankara posted a lengthy response on its website that said Aksoys accusations were false and urged the government to retract them. Allegations that the Chinese government is attempting to eliminate the ethnic, religious, and cultural identity of Uighurs and other Muslims are completely groundless, it said. Beijing faces growing international pressure as it continues to use the excuse of fighting terrorism and radicalization to persecute Uyghur Muslims. Ankara called on the international community and the U.N. secretary-general to take action. Most recently, Xinjiang residents have told media that some local officials were inviting Uyghurs to a Lunar New Year dinner where pork and alcohol were being served, and threatened to send the invitees to the re-education centers if they refused. The consumption of both are strictly forbidden in Islam. Dilxat Raxit, spokesman for the World Uyghur Congress, an organization for Uyghurs in exile, recently told Radio Free Asia that the recent efforts are the Chinese regimes latest attempts to force Uyghurs to surrender their culture and customs. According to our information, the Chinese government is stepping up its campaign to assimilate Uyghurs into Han Chinese culture, he said. Han Chinese are the majority ethnic group in China. By Ezgi Erkoyun. The Epoch Times contributed to this report. Supporters of increased security along the U.S.-Mexico border make a human wall to demonstrate their support for a border wall, at Sunland Park, N.M., on Feb. 9, 2019. (Hericka Martinez/AFP/Getty Images) Supporters of Border Security Form Human Wall Along US-Mexico Border A group advocates of President Donald Trumps vision for increased security along the U.S. southern border joined hands in New Mexico along the U.S.-Mexico border. They were physically showing their support for the construction of a border wall. The demonstrators waved flags and held signs such as STOP the drugs destroying our youth at a location along the partially fenced border in Sunland Park, New Mexico, just across the line from Ciudad Juarez in Mexicos Chihuahua State, Fox News reported. Footage shared by True Conservatives Minutes (TCM) featured an organizer addressing the crowd through a megaphone, asking Do you feel its right that these gentlemen have to kiss their families every night potentially it being their last night for them because of this? referring to border patrol agents working along a section of the border without a barrier. The crowd replied No! One of the demonstrators cited by Reuters said the reason we are here is to call attention to the problems caused by a lack of border security. We are here to bring attention to that fact that there isnt a wall here, said Anthony Aguero, a resident from El Paso, Texas, adding, We have to secure our nation and at the same time we are securing the nation, all of these people will be able to live in peace because all the drug and human trafficking that passes through here wont happen here. They will have to find somewhere else. Build the Wall The demonstrators also chanted USA! USA! and Build the wall! Build the wall! They then assembled their human wall in an apparent reference to a Feb. 5 message shared by Trump in a tweet saying his administration was prepared to build a Human Wall if necessary to protect the nation from illegal immigration. Were all going to meet hand in hand, were all going to stand for about 45 minutes next to each other in honor of our 45th president and leading the efforts of securing the wall, an organizer featured in the TCM report said, as footage showed people forming a human wall. Trump cited Tremendous numbers of people entering the United States through Mexico as the reason for his human wall pledge, noting that additional troops have been deployed to deal with the situation. Tremendous numbers of people are coming up through Mexico in the hopes of flooding our Southern Border. We have sent additional military. We will build a Human Wall if necessary. If we had a real Wall, this would be a non-event! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 5, 2019 The human wall demonstration comes just days ahead of Trumps expected first campaign rally of the year Monday at the El Paso County Coliseum, a Texas arena in close proximity to the U.S.-Mexico border. Pentagon Pledges 3,750 More Troops The Pentagon said last Sunday it would be sending 3,750 additional troops to the southwest border with Mexico for three months to support border agents. The deployment will raise the total number of active-duty forces supporting Customs and Border Protection agents there to about 4,350, said the Department of Defense. The Pentagon said the military will operate mobile surveillance cameras in Arizona, California, New Mexico, and Texas, a mission scheduled to run through Sept. 30. Some of the additional troops will also string up 150 more miles of concertina wire. Congress has been at loggerheads over Trumps demand for $5.7 billion to build a border wall. The physical barrier is part of a larger border security package requested by experts at the Department of Homeland Security. The impasse over border wall funding led to a partial government shutdown that went on for 35 days. Trump reached a deal with Democrats on Jan. 25 to reopen the government for three weeks so that lawmakers could negotiate a deal that includes funds for the wallthe presidents landmark campaign promise. With Caravans marching through Mexico and toward our Country, Republicans must be prepared to do whatever is necessary for STRONG Border Security. Dems do nothing. If there is no Wall, there is no Security. Human Trafficking, Drugs and Criminals of all dimensions KEEP OUT! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 3, 2019 Congress is reportedly nearing a deal that would include far less money for the wallabout $1.6 billion. It is unclear what the position of the administration might be with respect to the significantly lower figure. Trump has said he may declare a national emergency to avoid another shutdown when the resolution ends on Feb. 15. Asked if he will definitely declare a national emergency, the president said on Feb. 1, I think theres a good chance well have to do that. We will be looking at a national emergency because I dont think anythings going to happen, Trump said. I dont think Democrats want border security. And when I hear them talk about the fact that walls are immoral and walls dont workthey know they work. The Barrier Is the Backbone A border fence with technology and access roads is the recipe for making an effective border wall system, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials say. Every situation will be different. No one area along the border is the same, so the system will look different in different locations, a CBP official said at a press briefing on Jan. 16. But it will, at a minimum, include sensor technologyso it will be a smart wallbarriers and roads, and infrastructure. If you think of it in terms of a system, the barrier itself is the backbone. The official suggested that a wall isnt a magic bullet to stop all illegal border crossingsbut the critical factor is that it slows illegal incursions and buys agents time to respond. Reuters and Epoch Times reporter Charlotte Cuthbertson contributed to this report. Zakaria Al-Jaber was allegedly killed in an act of sectarian violence in Medina, Saudi Arabia, on Feb. 7, 2019, according to reports. (Sajid Hussain/Twitter) Six-Year-Old Boy Beheaded in Saudi Arabia in Alleged Act of Sectarian Violence A 6-year-old boy in Saudi Arabia was beheaded with a piece of broken glass in front of his screaming mother, a campaign group has claimed. *Warning: Graphic content. Shia Rights Watch, an NGO research entity and advocacy group headquartered in Washington, said in a press release that in an unprecedented incident the child, Zakaria al-Jaber, was killed after the perpetrator identified the boy as a Shiite Muslim. TMV, which has posted footage of the murdered boys funeral on its website, claims the child was killed in broad daylight in the city of Medina on Feb. 7 by a taxi driver. Saudi officials were cited by the broadcaster as saying the taxi driver was suffering from mental health problems. Local residents cited by TMV claimed the killing was an act of sectarianism because the boy was from a Shia Muslim background. What Happened? Multiple sources provide conflicting reports regarding the details of the boys murder, but all are consistent in the claim that the child was beheaded using broken glass in front of his mother. According to Shia Rights Watch, Zakaria Al-Jaber and his mother had taken a taxi to a shrine in Medina, and when they arrived an unknown man approached them and asked if they were Shiite Muslims. The mother reportedly said yes. Activists report that minutes after this conversation a car stopped by the woman and pulled the child away from her and attacked him with a broken piece of glass. Witnesses report the child was beheaded from behind his head as mother watched and screamed. The nonprofit claims that no bystanders intervened. According to TMV, citing sources close to the family, the perpetrator was the taxi driver who stopped the car and forced the boy out near a coffee shop in the Al-Tilal neighborhood. The driver then allegedly smashed a glass bottle to obtain a shard of glass, which he then used to slash the boys throat, and stab him. The traumatized mother is said to have tried to stop the driver from attacking the boy but fainted. Witnesses cited by TMV said that a policeman stationed nearby also tried to stop the man from attacking the child, but he was unable to save the boys life. He reportedly restrained the driver until other officers arrived. The Epoch Times has been unable to independently verify the reports. First Pictures Emerge The first pictures have reportedly emerged of the murdered boy. Smallest coffins are the heaviest wrote Sajid Hussain on Twitter in a post that features two images of the child and calls for Justice For Zakaria. Thats barbaric how that Saudi driver beheaded 6years old Zakariya. You dont need to be a Shia or Sunni. Try to be a Human first. Justice Delayed means Justice Denied. He concluded the caption with the phrase hashtag #JusticeForZakaria. Smallest coffins are the heaviest That's barbaric how that Saudi driver beheaded 6years old Zakariya. You don't need to be a Shia or Sunni. Try to be a a Human first. Justice Delayed means Justice Denied. #JusticeForZakaria pic.twitter.com/GXa0LHovMd Sajid Hussain (@Sajid14hussain) February 8, 2019 While it is not known why the boy was targeted, Saudi officials have reportedly claimed it an isolated incident. Shia Rights Watch claims the slaying was an act of sectarian violence. The Saudi Shia community came together today in mourning and to show solidarity with the parents, adding, The community also reported this incident is a result of ongoing violations and lack of protection by the Saudi authority toward its Shia population. Shia Rights Watch, which on its website says it achieves its objectives through strategic investigations supported by targeted advocacy in order to bring about informed action, said the beheading must be addressed as a matter of urgency. Shia Rights Watch, other human rights NGOs, and activists have long advocated for the rights of this minority through campaigns, the U.N., and other entities. However, the population still suffers because of the lack of international commitment to end such violations. The group said that Saudi Shiites have been under a military crackdown by their government and many Shiite activists are in prisons and [sentenced to] death. Beheading of a young child in such manner must be addressed as soon as possible, the group said in the press release. Shiite-Sunni Schism The Shiite-Sunni tensions in Saudi Arabia broadly reflect the deep suspicion and simmering hostility between Iran (about 95 percent Shiite) and the Saudi kingdom (over 90 percent Sunni). The mutual enmity between the current two regional powerhouses goes back to the seventh century, wrote David Kilgour, a human-rights activist, author, former lawyer and Canadian politician, in a special analysis for The Epoch Times. At times, outright war has loomed because Riyadh and Tehran also hold fundamental differences over Syria, Yemen, Iraq, and other corners of the Middle East, deploying various proxies to gain any advantage, often by force. Analysts said Iran and Saudi Arabia are currently fighting a proxy war in Yemen, a crisis that has sparked a widescale humanitarian calamity. PHILADELPHIABy telling stories through music and dance, Shen Yun Performing Arts seeks to shine a light on Chinas sprawling and vibrant cultural history. The stories, however, do not merely entertain. They seem to also provoke the audience to think about deeper issues that they may not usually ponder after watching a typical stage performance. Dean McAlister, SVP at a healthcare consultancy, was one of those people. He was stirred to self-reflection after viewing Shen Yun. Youll be challenged about your own beliefs and youll be challenged to have a greater appreciation for people in China, McAlister said after watching Shen Yun Performing Arts at Philadelphia Merriam Theater on Feb. 9. The New York-based company, whose mission is to revive 5,000 years of traditional Chinese culture, is in the midst of its 2019 world tour, in which six equally-large contingents are traveling to over 130 cities across four continents. Faith For McAlister, who works at STEM Healthcare, it was the stories portraying suppression of faith that prompted deep reflection. Shen Yun depicts the persecution of practitioners of Falun Dafa, in modern-day China. Falun Dafa, also known as Falun Gong, is a spiritual discipline that incorporates a set of meditation exercises and a set of teachings centered upon the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance. The practice grew in popularity in China in the 1990s, leading to around 70 million practicing by the end of the decade. This was unacceptable to the Chinese Communist Party, which banned the practice in 1999, launching a sweeping crackdown on adherents of the faith. People who are found to practice Falun Gong are arrested, detained, imprisoned, and subject to torture and even death. [It] leads each person watching it to be challenged to say what do you believe, and why do you believe it, and would you believe it if you faced opposition? McAlister said. The SVP said the message he received from the performance was that [religious] tolerance always wins over persecution. The Creator McAlister also appreciated the role of dance in telling the history and the stories of the Chinese people. In particular, he saw how the dances were also an expression of belief in the Creator. For millennia, stories of the Creator has passed down among Chinese people, a divine figure who would come down to Earth and offer salvation to humankind. He said that the performance made him think not just about how people should be free to choose their own beliefs, but also about how people should able to express them. I think it is important for people to realize that religious faith cant just be practiced in a vacuum, he said. It has to be expressed publicly, and it has to go beyond just religion to relationship, and what is your relationship with that Creator? What do you choose to do? Another theme that inspired McAlister was perseverance amidst hardship. I think it is very evident that the Chinese people in their long history are very patient. And they have outlasted a number of things that werent done right, he said. They have outlasted people. Theyve outlasted despots. Eventually the power of the people wins, and the power in a Creator wins. With reporting by Janita Kan and Cathy He. The Epoch Times considers Shen Yun Performing Arts the significant cultural event of our time and has covered audience reactions since the companys inception in 2006. Margarita Morales and Manuel Bravo attended Shen Yun Performing Arts at California Center for the Arts in Escondido, Calif., on Feb. 9, 2019. (Jane Yang/The Epoch Times) ESCONDIDO, Calif.To first-time audience members, everything about Shen Yun Performing Arts can seem larger than life. For example, Shen Yuns highly-trained dancers often seem like they can float across the stage, leap effortlessly high into the air, or even fly off into the horizon. For Margarita Morales, the assistant principal at Empower Carter School in San Diego, and her husband Manuel Bravo, a physician, who attended the performance at California Center for the Arts on Saturday, Feb. 9, Shen Yuns dancers seemed to defy gravity itself. Theyre floating. Its true, they do defy gravity, said Morales. It was a phenomenal show. I had never in my life ever seen such a performance where all the dancers are in sync. It was amazing, agreed Bravo. I have seen shows like ballet and everything, but I have never seen such synchronicity. Everything was so perfect. I couldnt detect one single mistake. Based in New York, this is Shen Yuns 13th year touring the globe, with a total of six companies visiting more than 130 cities, according to the company website. A Shen Yun performance focuses heavily on classical Chinese dance, but its not complete without the live orchestra with both Chinese and Western instruments, stunning costumes, an interactive backdrop, musical soloists, and the bilingual emcees who introduce the audience to the 5,000 years of traditional, divinely-inspired Chinese culture. All the combination of the colors, its so amazing, said Bravo. It was like watching a rainbow in movement. It was so beautiful. While lovely to watch, Shen Yun is also educational and spiritual as well, said the couple, and good for all ages. I would actually like to teach the dances to my students, said Morales, who enjoyed learning about Chinese history and culture during the performance. Authentic Chinese Culture China was once known as The Land of the Divine, and the Chinese people lived in harmony with the natural universe. However, just decades ago, when the Communist Party took over the country, Chinas rich history was nearly destroyed. Shen Yun aims to bring back that authentic traditional Chinese culture and share it with the world through the universal language of music and dance. It was very magical, said Morales. Very spiritual. Theres something else unique about Shen Yuns performers. They share a spiritual journey, meditate together, and find inspiration in the divine to deepen their self-discipline and enhance their creativity, states the website. Its food for the soul, said Bravo of Shen Yun. Bravo and Morales said they were very happy they made the drive to Escondido to see the performance. They were glad to hear that the company produces an all-new program every year. When you have new choreography next year well be back, said Bravo. We really enjoyed it. We will be here next year, agreed Morales. With reporting by Jane Yang and Sarah Le. The Epoch Times considers Shen Yun Performing Arts the significant cultural event of our time and has covered audience reactions since the companys inception in 2006. MELBOURNE, AustraliaLuke Donnellan, a minister in the Victorian state government, said Chinas ancient history was beautifully told through the performance presented by New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts World Company. Donnellan, the minister for Child Protection and Disability, appreciated the authentic Chinese culture that he and his family experienced during the matinee performance at the historic Regent Theatre, on Feb. 9. Lovely, lovelya beautiful way of telling a story, he said. The history of China is a long history. There are many influences over that period of time. So, its really giving a greater understanding of that, I guess the development of the culture, the dancingits helping me to understand all that, Donnellan said. The company is one of six touring the world simultaneously on a mission to revive traditional Chinese culture, performing in over 130 cities around the world. Shen Yun showcases five millennia of Chinese traditions and cultural values, and these were once almost lost under 70 years of communist rule. For many, the China Shen Yun presents is a new and different side of China. Donnellan said it was important the audience got the opportunity to see this history, and make their own judgement. I think thats the important part, that people have that opportunity, more than anything else, he said. Its really saying, this is the history we want to present of China, and we leave it to you to make those assessments. Donnellan concluded that Shen Yuns performance was colorful, vibrant, incredibly skilled and incredibly disciplineda beautiful way of telling a story. Keeping Authentic Chinese Culture Alive Kevin Bailey, a senate candidate for the Conservatives Party, said he found Shen Yun a magnificent, breathtaking cultural performance. Its wonderful to see that theyre able to showcase so many different aspects of Chinese culture, he said. Bailey, a former member of the Australian Army SAS and a former consul general for East Timor, is no stranger to other cultures. He realized what he was watching was the authentic history of Chinese culture, its spirituality, and its values, which continue to be suppressed in China by the communist party. The fact that the cultural expression of a lot of the Chinese culture that cant be displayed [in China] today is very sad. One of the greatest civilizations that the Earths seen and to actually keep that alive is something Im very pleased with, he said. The Shen Yun program includes stories passed down over the millennia. These include themes such as faith in the divine, the idea that good will be rewarded and evil punished, and having courage to speak the truth. Bailey was impressed with a piece set in 21st century China about people practicing meditation. I think obviously the persecution of Falun Dafa is particularly poignant, Bailey said, referencing the meditation practice banned in China by the communist party. What its portraying is that whole triumph of good over evil, and the fact that people can continually push to hold down truth and beauty and goodness, but that ultimately, force cannot overcome the truthultimately, truth will prevail. Bailey was happy to recommend Shen Yun, saying, What Id say is that its spectacularthe beauty of the whole experience is really something thats worthwhile seeing. With reporting by NTD Television and Raiatea Tahana-Reese. The Epoch Times considers Shen Yun Performing Arts the significant cultural event of our time and has covered audience reactions since the companys inception in 2006. Scheer Demands PM Let Wilson-Raybould Talk About Snc-Lavalin Discussions OTTAWAConservative Leader Andrew Scheer has written directly to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asking him to waive solicitorclient privilege so former attorney general Jody WilsonRaybould can publicly talk about what happened with SNCLavalin. The request is contained in an open letter dated Feb. 10, in which Scheer says he also wants all communications to or from the prime minister or members of his staff about the criminal prosecution of SNCLavalin to be opened up to public scrutiny. Solicitorclient privilege and the duty of confidentiality are important values in our legal system, Scheer wrote. But in the present situation, they must be subordinated to a higher value: the confidence of Canadians in the integrity, fairness and impartiality of our criminal justice system. The request follows a Globe and Mail report last week that members of Trudeaus office leaned on WilsonRaybould to have federal prosecutors negotiate a remediation agreement with SNCLavalin rather than move ahead with a criminal prosecution. The Quebec engineering and construction giant has faced legal trouble over allegations it paid millions of dollars in bribes to get government business in Libya, which would be a crime under Canadian law and threaten its ability to win future federal work. WilsonRaybould, who was demoted from her role as justice minister and attorney general last month, has said she cannot comment because in her role as the governments top lawyer, she is bound by solicitorclient privilege. Government officials have acknowledged to The Canadian Press that WilsonRaybould was involved in extensive, internal discussions last month about whether SNCLavalin should be allowed to avoid criminal prosecution. But they maintain there was nothing wrong with that, while Trudeau has publicly denied he or anyone in his office directed the minister on the matter. WilsonRayboulds refusal to comment publicly, however, has added fuel to the political fire. In his letter, Scheer said Canadians deserve answers as the allegations surrounding it strike at the very heart of fair and impartial law enforcement and prosecutorial functions, themselves vital to the rule of law and to our democracy. While the Prime Ministers Office did not immediately respond to questions on Feb. 10, a Toronto Star report cited unnamed senior government officials as saying the privilege would not be waived because the case against SNCLavalin remains before the courts. One senior official also reportedly told the newspaper that the government would not agree to Opposition demands for an emergency meeting of the House of Commons justice committee to hear from WilsonRaybould and members of Trudeaus staff. Parliamentary committees are supposed to be masters of their own domain because of their role in holding the government to account. The chair of the committee, Liberal MP Anthony Housefather, stated on Twitter on Sunday that nobody has attempted to influence me about the oppositions attempts to hold hearings on SNCLavalin. I intend to independently determine whether committee study of the issue will be useful for Canadians (and) colleagues will do same, Housefather wrote. Liberal MPs nonetheless have a majority of members on the committee, meaning they could move to block any opposition request to conduct a probe. Current Justice Minister and Attorney General David Lametti, who replaced WilsonRaybould, told CTVs Question Period in an interview broadcast Sunday that he did not believe there was any justification for a committee hearing into the matter. All weve heard are allegations in a newspaper, said Lametti. The prime minister has said that these allegations are false. We havent had any corroborating evidence there. There hasnt been anything to my mind that justifies a committee investigation. WilsonRaybould, now veterans affairs minister, released a statement on Friday saying she is bound as the former attorney general by solicitorclient privilege and cannot publicly talk about aspects of the case. SNCLavalin has been charged with bribery and corruption over its efforts to secure government business in Libya and wants a deal, allowed under the law, to pay reparations rather than be prosecuted. A guilty verdict on bribery and corruption charges would result in SNCLavalin being barred from government contracts in Canada for 10 years. Officials have told The Canadian Press that would in turn likely cause foreign government contracts to dry up as well, potentially putting SNCLavalin out of business. Consequently, they said, it was natural that internal discussions would have taken place after the director of public prosecutions, Kathleen Roussel, informed SNCLavalin last October that a remediation agreement would be inappropriate in this case. The company is challenging her decision in court. SNCLavalin has taken out newspaper ads and heavily lobbied ministers, government officials and even Scheer and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh to make its case for avoiding a prosecution. Quebec Premier Francois Legault has also pressured Trudeau directly to intervene on the companys behalf. Under the law, the attorney general may issue a directive to the director of public prosecutions on how to handle a specific case, provided the directive is in writing and made public. Given the jobs at stake, officials said, the government would have failed in its duty had there not been discussion about whether to intervene in the SNCLavalin case. A polar bear named Wolodja playing inside his enclosure at the Tierpark zoo in Berlin, Germany, on March 4, 2018. (Paul Zinken/AFP/Getty Images) Russia Declares Emergency as Over 50 Polar Bears Invade Town and Chase Terrified Residents A remote Arctic region of Russia has declared a state of emergency over a polar bear invasion that has left residents afraid to go outside. The unruly bears have entered homes and public buildings in the remote Novaya Zemlya archipelago, where officials have warned of a mass invasion. Around 3,000 people live on the Novaya Zemlya islands, with the BBC reporting that some residents have been attacked. Local administration head Vigansha Musin was reported by the British news outlet as saying that the local military garrison, where air and air defense forces are based, has had over five bears come onto the base. Ive been on Novaya Zemlya since 1983, he said in an official press release cited by BBC. Theres never been such a mass invasion of polar bears. The main settlement on the archipelagoBelushya Gubahas reported a total of 52 bears in its vicinity, with some displaying aggressive behavior. People are afraid to go outside and daily life is in turmoil, said the deputy head of the local administration, Aleksandr Minayev, according to the Daily Mail. Parents are wary of letting children go to schools and kindergartens, he said. There are cases of aggressive behavior of wild animalsattacks on people, penetration into residential and office buildings. There are constantly 6 to 10 bears inside the settlement, he said. The bears literally chase people and make their way into the entrances of apartment buildings, another official was cited by the Daily Mail as saying. Mulling a Cull Polar bears in Russia are classed as an endangered species. Hunting the animals is banned and Novaya Zemlya residents have been warned that if they shoot the bears, they could face prosecution. Yet despite the creatures incursion, the federal environment agency has refused to issue licenses to shoot the bears. Rather, a team of specialists has been dispatched to Novaya Zemlya to work with residents on nonlethal ways to end the infestation. Officials were cited by the BBC as saying that the bears had lost their fear of police patrols and signals used to scare them away. They said that if the currently deployed measures are unable to drive the bears away, they may need to be culled. Changing weather patterns and associated melting of Arctic ice have forced polar bears to spend more time on land in search of food. This sometimes puts them at odds with humans. Scientists Under Siege The BBC reported that in 2016 five Russian scientists stationed at a remote weather station on the island of Troynoy, east of Novaya Zemlya, spent several weeks under siege by polar bears. Station head Vadim Plotnikov was cited as saying that 10 adult bears and four cubs had surrounded the station. The scientists were unable to perform some of their duties due to the siege, Plotnikov said, and the bears had killed a dog belonging to one of the staff. The scientists reportedly requested flares to scare off the bears. Vassiliy Shevchenko, who works for the state monitoring network that owns the weather station, told the BBC that the requested supplies had been sent in by helicopter. They told us there was a female polar bear with a cub, which spent its evenings under the stations windows, Shevchenko said, according to the BBC. We asked them to be extremely careful and to stay inside. The helicopter also airlifted in two dogs to help the scientists keep the bears at bay. Rob Lowe Deletes Elizabeth Warren Tweet After Social Media Backlash Actor Rob Lowe had to delete a tweet regarding Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) after backlash from other celebrities. Elizabeth Warren would bring a whole new meaning to Commander in Chief, Lowe wrote in a now-deleted Twitter post in a reference to the controversy over Warrens claims about Native American heritage. Warren officially launched her 2020 campaign for president over the weekend. I deleted my Elizabeth Warren tweet. It was a joke and some peeps got upset, and thats never my intention. On the GOOD side: I just got to use the Oxford comma! Rob Lowe (@RobLowe) February 10, 2019 Lowe was blasted on social media by other celebrities. What a raw blow! Star Wars star Mark Hamill tweeted. Thats not funny, actor Vincent DOnofrio stated. Dont. Jesus, Valerie Bertinelli also said. Defense Thanks for saving and sharing. That is hilarious. Because faking to be a Native American is what is really offensive trollkillah (@trollkillah1) February 10, 2019 Later, Lowe sent a tweet, I deleted my Elizabeth Warren tweet. It was a joke and some peeps got upset, and thats never my intention. On the GOOD side: I just got to use the Oxford comma! The Oxford comma, or serial comma, is a comma that is used after a list of three or more items, coming before the word and or or in a sentence, which means that Lowes first sentence didnt use it. Other users defended him over his commander chief tweet. Rob Lowe was just joking, one user said on the social media website. Everybody is so sensitive these days. Just a bunch of snowflakes! #ElizabethWarren2020 is the person who lied about her race for votes. You shouldnt apologize for a joke (a funny one at that). Giving in to the outrage mob only encourages them to continue their farcical outrage at every perceived microaggression. Warren walked into this with her own actions. Nobody would bat an eye if it was a joke about Trump. Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) February 10, 2019 Rob Lowe has no [expletive] rights, another commented. he isnt protected under the constitution. i said what i said. Warren Launches Campaign On Feb. 9, in announcing her candidacy for the highest office in the land, Warren called for a fight against economic inequality in the United States and to build an America that works for everyone. This is the fight of our lives. The fight to build an America where dreams are possible, an America that works for everyone. I am in that fight all the way. And that is why I stand here today to declare that I am a candidate for president of the United States of America, she said. The Massachusetts Democrat chose Everett Mills to declare her candidacy, saying that everyone in the country should be able to work hard, play by the same set of rules, and take care of themselves and the people they love. President Trumps 2020 campaign manager Brad Parscale hit out at the Native American controversy surrounding Warren. Elizabeth Warren has already been exposed as a fraud by the Native Americans she impersonated and disrespected to advance her professional career, he said while pillorying her perceived socialist ideas such as the Green New Deal that will kill jobs and raise taxes. The first public presentation of the "Dresden Mars," at the Stadtmuseum Freiberg on Jan. 23. 2019. (Oliver Killig/Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden) Rare Giambologna Statuette Returns to Germany Behold the Beauty The small bronze Mars first came to Dresden, Germany, in 1587 as a gift from the Late Renaissance sculptor Giambologna (15291608) to Elector Christian I of Saxony. (Electors were German princes with the power to elect the Holy Roman Emperor.) The Dresden Mars is thought to be the only surviving bronze that Giambologna produced for a royal sovereign. For 300 years, the statuette was part of the Saxon electors art collection. Then, in 1924, the bronze went into private ownership as part of the Furstenabfindung, when the personal property of the dethroned princes was confiscated by the German state. Now, Giambolognas Mars returns to the region of Saxony, where it has embarked on a regional tour before it is put on permanent display at the Gemaldegalerie Alte Meister (Old Masters Picture Gallery) in Dresdens Semper Gallery when it reopens in December 2019. Giambologna and Mannerism Giambologna was considered the greatest sculptor of the Mannerist era (15201600), which was a transition stage at the end of the Renaissance, and his reputation was felt for two centuries after his death, second only to Michelangelos. His small bronze statuettes continued to be reproduced until the 20th century. Although definitions of mannerism differ, mannerist art usually shows complex compositions made up of elegant, and sometimes exaggerated, artificial poses, purely to show an artists ability. Mars as Man Giambolognas Mars is the epitome of traditional masculinity. As the archetypal hero, the warrior-god Mars is poised, ready to attack, or to protect in order to secure peace. This statuette strikes a powerful pose: Mars is captured mid-stride, without his helmet, shield, and spear that are so often shown in antique depictions of him. Giambolognas Mars is nude, perhaps to show fearlessness in the face of danger, a common device used by Renaissance artists. The only indication that this figure is the mythological god of war is the sword hilt that Mars holds in his right hand. The palpable, primal instinct of the warrior runs throughout the sculpture, alongside an overarching elegance and the sheer beauty of man. Obviously, a warrior needs strength, but strength here is not merely the physical strength that is seen in Marss beautifully defined musculature. Marss thoughtful, yet commanding gaze shows a mental strength, a needed skill in battle, and also in time of peace, when wisdom and courage have to come together to discern the right action. To find out more about the Dresden Mars, visit SKD.museum An earlier version of Giambolognas Mars can also be seen at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Ibrahim Hooper (R), Corey Saylor (C), and Gadeir Abbas (L), of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), speak to the media about the executive order U.S. President Donald Trump signed today about middle east travel, on March 6, 2017 in Washington, DC. Mark Wilson/Getty Images Pro-Iran Socialist Yasmine Taeb Runs for Virginia State Senate Commentary Muslim socialist attorney Yasmine Taeb is challenging Virginia Senate Minority Leader Dick Saslaw (D-Va.) for the seat representing Northern Virginias 35th District that hes held since 1980. While a longshot (Saslaw usually wins with more than 70 percent of the vote), Taeb may have powerful allies in her camp. Currently, she is seeking the endorsement of a group she formally joined last fall: the countrys largest Marxist organization, the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). DSA activists from Northern Virginia and Washington pulled off a major upset in November 2017 when their comrade in the DSA, Lee J. Carter (another socialist running as a Democrat), unseated Republican House of Delegates Majority Whip Jackson Miller in the 50th District. The local Democrats did little to help Carter in what they thought was an unwinnable race. However, an army of DSA door-knockers, phone-bankers, and donors (including many from outside the district and out of state) helped deliver the victory for Carter. This time, opponent Saslaw is a moderate Democrat, a type increasingly being targeted by the DSA as the organization accelerates its takeover of the Democratic Party in several key states. If Taeb secures the DSA nomination, she will have a ready-made army of helpers for her June primary against the 78-year-old Saslaw. Taebs battle against the popular incumbent may cause division in Northern Virginia Democratic Party circles. Endorsements Taeb has been active in the local Democratic Party and in progressive Virginia politics for more than a decade. She is close to many local power players, including U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, U.S. Rep. Don Beyer, and Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam. She has also worked for the Democratic Partys think tank, Center for American Progress, and has visited the White House several times to lobby for progressive and Muslim causes. In 2016, Taeb became the first Muslim woman ever elected to the Democratic National Committee (DNC). She was endorsed by several prominent Virginia politicians and leftist Congress members from out of state, including U.S. Reps. John Conyers (D-Mich.), Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.), and Andre Carson (D-Ind.), former Rep. Mike Honda (D-Calif.), Minnesota Attorney General and former Rep. Keith Ellison, and Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring. Larry Cohen, president of the DSA-controlled organization Our Revolution, also supported Taebs successful race. Our Revolution was a major factor in Carters shock victory in 2017. So far in this race, Taeb has racked up an impressive range of endorsements from national leaders of MoveOn.org, Indivisible, Progressive Change Campaign Committee, and Demand Progress. Taeb has also been endorsed by the Falls Church, Virginia, branch of Our Revolution. Taeb will likely also get significant support from local and national Muslim communities. Activism Taeb worked for several years for James Zogbys Arab American Institute (AAI), which used to bill itself as the only national organization that promotes Arab American participation in the U.S. electoral system. Zogby has been a decades-long fixture on the Democratic Party far-left. After playing a leadership role in Jesse Jacksons Rainbow Coalition in the 1980s, he served on the Ethnic Coordinating Committee, an umbrella organization of Democratic Party leaders of European and Mediterranean descent, and on the executive committee of the Democratic National Committee. According to the AAI website: Dr. Zogby and AAI have led Arab American efforts to secure political empowerment in the United States. Through voter registration, education and mobilization, AAI has moved Arab Americans into the U.S. political mainstream. Taeb is also close to the Council for American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and the National American Iranian Council (NIAC). CAIR, the largest Muslim civil rights group in the country, has roots in pro-Soviet and pro-Palestine Middle Eastern terror networks, as well as the Muslim Brotherhood spin-off Hamas. Most CAIR supporters follow the majority Sunni branch of Islam. Taeb has worked with CAIR for several years. As recently as December 2018, she was in San Diego with CAIR and the Marxist-led Poor Peoples Campaign attending the Love Knows No Borders rally in support of the so-called immigrant caravan from Honduras. In October 2018, Taeb appeared on a CAIR-sponsored panel: Cultivating Promising Muslim Leaders to Run for Office alongside former Michigan gubernatorial hopeful Abdul El-Sayed. Former CIA officer and Iran expert Clare Lopez says NIAC is part of a pro-Islamic Jihad network. Spearheaded by a de facto partnership between the National Iranian American Council (NIAC), the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) and other organizations serving as mouthpieces for the mullahs party line, the network includes well-known American diplomats, congressional representatives, figures from academia and the think tank world, Lopez wrote on the Center for Security Policy website. Since at least 2006, Irans state-run media have referred to NIAC as Irans lobby in the United States. In October 2018, Taeb wrote on her Facebook page: Thank you to NIAC for giving me the opportunity to join your annual DC Summit to discuss the challenges of being Iranian-American during this administration and the importance of running for office. Im tired of others speaking for our community. We can speak for ourselves and need more Iranian-Americans running for office all across the country who can lead on the issues impacting our community. Im so grateful for the immense amount of support weve gotten from NIAC members and the broader Iranian-American community just in the past week THANK YOU! A month later, Taeb wrote another Facebook post relating to NIAC: It was great to join so many friends last night to celebrate the advances of our Iranian-American community & to support NIAC (National Iranian American Council). Its incredible what my friend Trita Parsi has accomplished as founder and president of NIAC. Looking forward to continuing to support NIACs great work under Jamal Abdis leadership. According to Lopez, there has been a major push in the last two years by CAIR, NIAC, and allied groups to run candidates for public office. Lopez said in an interview that female candidates, particularly non-hijab wearing Westernized-looking candidates, are becoming more and more common. CAIR is a Sunni Muslim organization, aligned with Hamas. Iran is a majority Shia Muslim country that supports the Lebanese-based terror group Hezbollah. In the Middle East, Sunni and Shia terrorist groups used to be regarded as sworn enemies who would never cooperate. That seems to no longer be the case, certainly not in the United States, where Sunni CAIR works happily alongside Shia NIAC. Taeb clearly also straddles the Sunni/Shia divide. She is also apparently very comfortable in both the mainstream Democrat and socialist camps. If Taeb ends up with backing from all four quartersDemocrat, DSA, CAIR, and NIACshe could be the best-funded and staffed state Senate candidate in Virginia. Taeb is clearly backed by some rich and powerful organizations. Win or lose in District 35, Taeb likely is being groomed for higher office. Trevor Loudon is an author, filmmaker, and public speaker from New Zealand. For more than 30 years, he has researched radical left, Marxist, and terrorist movements and their covert influence on mainstream politics. Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo onstage during the 2018 Global Citizen Festival: Be The Generation in Central Park, on Sept. 29, 2018 in New York City. (Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Global Citizen) New York Governor Blames State Budget Shortfall on Republicans in Congress New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced a projected $2.3 billion budget shortfall on Feb. 4, in what looks to be the beginning of a long-term revenue challenge for the high-tax state. Cuomo, a Democrat, blamed New Yorks revenue woes on congressional Republicans and President Donald Trump. More specifically, a provision in the Republican-led Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, known as the state and local tax deduction, or SALT. Previously, SALT allowed residents in high-tax cities and states to deduct those taxes from their federal income tax liabilities. But under the new tax law, which takes effect for the 2018 tax year, those state and local deductions will be capped at $10,000. Last year, New York states average SALT deduction was $22,000. SALT was an economic civil war, Cuomo said gravely on Feb. 4. It was a diabolical political maneuver, he added. It literally restructured the economy to help red states at the cost of blue states. Thats exactly what it did, said Cuomo. Grover Norquist, president of the conservative Americans for Tax Reform, disagreed and said Cuomos reasoning is exactly backward. He said we started a war. No, we ended a war, Norquist said in a Feb. 5, FOX Business interview. For the past 50 years, high-tax states like New York have been looting the rest of the country and getting subsidies in the form of tax loopholes, he said. Now, all 50 states can play on the same flat playing field. Economic studies tend to support the conclusion that wealthier individuals living in high-tax cities and states disproportionately benefit from SALT deductions, thus putting more of the federal tax burden onto lower-earning individuals living in low-tax states, or those with no state income tax at all. According to the Washington-based Tax Foundation, the disparity among those who benefited from the previously uncapped SALT deduction is significant. The benefits of the SALT deduction overwhelmingly go to high-income taxpayers, particularly those in high-income and high-tax states, a Tax Foundation analysis states. In 2016, 77 percent of the benefit of the SALT deduction accrued to those with incomes above $100,000; only 6.6 percent went to taxpayers with incomes below $50,000. In the study, New York had the highest benefit of any state, with its residents receiving an effective tax deduction of 9.4 percent of adjusted gross income. The average across all 50 states and the District of Columbia was just 4.6 percent. California, another high-tax state, was responsible for 20.7 percent, or one-fifth, of all SALT deductions. Norquist predicted that House Democratsmany of whom hail from high-tax cities and stateswill try to repeal the $10,000 SALT cap. But that puts them in the position of allowing the rich to go back to offloading a large portion of their tax liabilities, often onto working peoplewhich is normally anathema to progressives. Compounding the problem is the steady migration of residents from high-tax states to low-tax states, which has been occurring for years. Cuomo acknowledged the issue during his Feb. 3 press conference, though he again blamed the recent tax reform law. SALT encourages high-income New Yorkers to move to other states. If even a small number of high-income taxpayers leave the state it would harm state revenues, he said. According to the Foundation for Economic Excellence, a libertarian think tank, people are already leaving high-tax states as part of a nationwide trend. And that spells long-term trouble for states like New York. People move between states for many reasons, including climate, housing costs, and job opportunities. But when you look at the detailed patterns of movement, it is clear that taxes also play a role, said FEEs Chris Edwards, also the director of tax policy studies at the Cato Institute. Of the 25 highest-tax states, 24 of them had net out-migration in 2016. Most of the fleeing residents are relocating to economic growth-friendly states, such as Utah, Arizona, Texas, and Florida. In 2014, Florida surpassed New York in total population, which has continued to increase. New York, however, ranked dead last among all 50 states in population growth in 2018. New York also faced an even steeper budget shortfall last year, but was able to balance its budget by reigning in spending. According to Cuomos fiscal year 2019 executive budget, the state faces nearly twice its current shortfall. From the outset, this was going to be a difficult year for New York states budget. We face a $4.4 billion shortfall driven by declining revenues, expounded by a $2 billion cut in federal funding for health care that could rise to $5 billion in the out years, the governors executive budget stated. Norquist was unforgiving following Cuomos newly bleak fiscal announcement. All [Cuomo] has to do is reduce state taxes and high-income earners would stay, he said. In New York City that means a reduction in income and property taxes. Hero Dog Breaks Out of House, Leads Police Back To Save Owner From Gas Leak A Westchester County dog is being hailed a hero after breaking out of her house to save her owners life. On Wednesday, Feb. 6, the 60-pound pit bull named Sadie was found wandering the streets of Tuckahoe barking incessantly. At 3:45 p.m., the police received a call about a loose, barking dog. We got a call of a loose pit bull, police Lieutenant Lawrence Rotta of the Tuckahoe Police Department said, according to WCBS. GOOD GIRL! A dog in Westchester County, New York is being hailed a hero after breaking out of her home to save her owners life. At first police thought she was a dog on the loose, but then realized the pit bull was on a mission to get help. https://t.co/ecQDim2y3B WNDU (@WNDU) February 9, 2019 Upon arriving at the scene, police tried to catch the dog but she bolted. The dog then ran and took the officers through several streets, and then lead them back to the dogs residence into the backyard, Lt. Rotta said. When the officers followed Sadie to her home on Fairview Avenue, they noticed the homes sliding glass door was open, and the fence was open. When they went to investigate they noticed an odor of gas emanating from the doorway, Lt. Rotta told WCBS. As police walked around the perimeter of the house, they discovered the smell of gas coming from an open basement window. When Eastchester Fire Department and Con Edison responded to the scene, they confirmed there was indeed a gas leak coming from the basement, reported WABC. The dog saved the house from a potential gas explosion and gas leak, Lt. Rotta said. GOOD GIRL!! Amazing story about how Sadie, an old pit bull, saved a family from a potential gas explosion in Westchester Countyhttps://t.co/V1H9pfPPdY https://t.co/V1H9pfPPdY NYRAD (@NewYorkRAD) February 9, 2019 Further investigation revealed claw marks and blood on the back of the door, leading Sadies owner to believe the dog sensed there was danger and somehow knew to seek help. Sadies owner said she believes Sadie smelled the gas and started scratching frantically at the front door, before somehow managing to open the sliding door in the kitchen on her own. She went from being in time out to being my girl, Sadies owner Serena Costello told WABC. It looks like she was trying to get out this window.She was determined to get out. Somehow, Sadie chewed and dug her way out of a wooden blocker used to keep the sliding door shut and managed to run out into the backyard. In all 11 years, Sadie has never once run out of the house, Costello said. How Sadie managed to figure out how to open the sliding door, Costello said she has no idea. This is my contraption I built so she never got out, which always worked since I been here, Costello said. But she nestled through here and escaped through the fence. At the time, Costello was at work and had no idea what was going on. She didnt find out what had happened until a friend called her to let her know that police, firefighters, and utility workers were at her home. She credits Sadie for saving her life and the life of her 4-year-old daughter. She is a hero, she said. She is our hero. Its just so out of character for her to do. She saved our lives. Yeah. Emotional. However, the matter with the police wasnt quite resolved yet. They had to write me a summons, which they didnt want to, but I guess its the law for having an unleashed dog in the area, Costello said. But one of the police officers, I guess after ConEd said that [it] was a gas leak, took the summons and ripped it up. You saved us, Costello said, while hugging her dog. Emporia, KS (66801) Today Partly cloudy skies early will give way to cloudy skies late. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 78F. Winds S at 15 to 25 mph.. Tonight Partly cloudy skies early will give way to cloudy skies late. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 78F. Winds S at 15 to 25 mph. A burning command car belonging to France's anti-terror 'Vigipirate' squad, dubbed 'Operation Sentinelle', is pictured during a demonstration as yellow vests protesters keep pressure on French President Emmanuel Macron's government, for the 13th straight weekend of demonstrations, in Paris, France, on Feb. 9, 2019. (Kamil Zihnioglu/AP Photo) French Yellow Vest Anti-Government Protests Turn Violent in Paris PARISA French yellow vest protesters hand was ripped apart on Feb. 9, during violent clashes in Paris as demonstrators tried to storm the French National Assembly in a 13th consecutive week of unrest. Police said the injured protester lost four fingers as police swooped in to stop protesters from breaching the parliaments exterior. Police could not confirm French media reports that the hand of the demonstrator, who is now being treated in the hospital, was blown up by a grenade used to disperse unruly crowds. As scuffles broke out in front of the National Assembly and French police responded with tear gas, paramedics huddled around the injured protester at the National Assembly gates. Police used batons and fired tear gas in Paris to disperse demonstrators, some of whom threw debris at riot police. Cars, motorbikes, and trash bins were set ablaze as the protest moved toward the citys Invalides monument and onto the Eiffel Tower. French Interior Minister Christophe Castaner went to Twitter to express his disgust as protesters set alight an anti-terror military car. Its yellow smoking plumes, against the backdrop of the Eiffel Tower, made for a powerful image of rejecting authority. Such vehicles have been a common sight in Paris since deadly extremist attacks in 2015. Every day the military protects our compatriots from the risk of terrorism. These attacks are intolerable, Castaner said. Police said 31 demonstrators had been arrested in the unrest. But Frances Interior Ministry said this weeks protest was significantly smaller than last weeks. The yellow vest activists, who have brought hundreds of thousands onto the streets over the past three months, are now trying to achieve electoral success but the movement is politically divided and has no appointed leader. French President Emmanuel Macronthe target of many demonstrators angertried to claw back support from the public by addressing the movements anger with a national political debate on economic injustice. Earlier Saturday, activists in Latvia staged a picket in front of the French embassy in Riga, the capital of the small Baltic EU country, to support the yellow vest movement and urge Latvians to demand higher living standards. The activists waved Latvias red-and-white flag, shouting slogans like the French have woken up, while Latvians remain asleep. By Thomas Adamson For many seniors, having some help to do daily-living activities can be the difference between living at home and spending their final days in an expensive institution. (Elien Dumon/Unsplash) Frail Seniors Find Ways to Live Independently New program saves money and keeps seniors out of nursing homes by aiming at capability Pauline Jeffery had let things slide since her husband died. Her bedroom was a mess. Her bathroom was disorganized. She often tripped over rugs in her living and dining room. I was depressed and doing nothing but feeling sorry for myself, said the 85-year-old Denver resident. But Jefferys inertia faded when she joined a program for frail low-income seniors: Community Aging in PlaceAdvancing Better Living for Elders (CAPABLE). Over the course of several months in 2018, an occupational therapist visited Jeffery and discussed issues she wanted to address. A handyman installed a new carpet. A visiting nurse gave her the feeling of being looked after. In short order, Jeffery organized her bedroom, cleaned up her bathroom, and began to feel more upbeat. Theres a lot of people like myself that just need a push and somebody to make them feel like theyre worth something, she said. What they did for me, it got me motivated. New research showed that CAPABLE provided considerable help to vulnerable seniors who had trouble with activities of daily livingtaking a shower or a bath, getting dressed, transferring in and out of bed, using the toilet, or moving around easily at home. Over the course of five months, participants in the program experienced 30-percent fewer difficulties with such activities, according to a randomized clinical trialthe gold standard of researchpublished this month in JAMA Internal Medicine. If someone found a drug that reduced disability in older adults by 30 percent, wed be hearing about it on TV constantly, said John Haaga, director of the Division of Behavioral and Social Research at the National Institute on Aging, which provided funding for the research. Positive findings are especially notable given the population that was studied: 300 poor or near-poor older adults, nearly 90 percent women, over 80 percent black, with an average age of 75 and multiple chronic medical conditions such as heart disease, arthritis, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. While about one in three older adults in the United States needs help with one or more daily activities, rates of disability and related health care costs are higher in this challenged population. Half of the older adults in the trial received the CAPABLE intervention, which includes six visits by an occupational therapist, four visits by a registered nurse, and home repair and modification services worth up to $1,300. The control group received 10 visits of equal length from a research assistant and were encouraged to use the internet, listen to music, play board games, or reminisce about the past, among other activities. Both groups experienced improvements at five months, but older adults who participated in CAPABLE realized substantially greater benefits. Eighty-two percent strongly agreed that the program made their life easier and their home safer. Nearly 80 percent said it enabled them to live at home and increased their confidence in managing daily challenges. Sarah Szanton, who developed CAPABLE and directs the Center for Innovative Care in Aging at the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, attributes positive results to several program elements. Instead of telling an older adult whats wrong with them, a mainstay of medical practice, CAPABLE staff ask older adults what theyd like to be able to do but cant do now. Seniors often say they want to cook meals for themselves, make their beds, use the stairs, get out of the house more easily, walk around without pain, or go to church. The focus then turns to finding practical solutions. For someone who wants to cook but whose legs are weak, that could mean cutting vegetables while sitting down before standing up at the stove. A bed may need to be lifted on risers and a grab bar positioned between the mattress and box spring so a person can push herself up to a standing position more easily. Or, a nurse may need to go over medications and recommend potential changes to a persons primary care doctor. Why does it work? Because were guided by what people want, and in order to get better, you have to want to get better: It has to be important to you, said Amanda Goodenow, program manager for CAPABLE at the Colorado Visiting Nurse Association, the agency that assisted Jeffery. In Colorado, CAPABLE has been funded by a local foundation and Habitat for Humanity, which supports the program in six markets. Hattie Ashby, 90, who has lived in the same two-story house in Aurora, a city adjacent to Denver, for 43 years, told Goodenow last summer that she wanted to get up and down the stairs more easily and walk around outside the house. Ashby has high blood pressure and COPD. They gave me a walker and made arrangements for me to put my oxygen tank on it so I could go to the mall, she said, recalling some of what the CAPABLE staff did. They fixed the wall in my bathroom and put something I could hold onto to get in and out of my bathtub. And going up and down my stairs, they put another rail on the wall where I would be able to hold onto. It is a remarkable service for a senior citizen to be encouraged, to be helped, to be supported that way, Ashby said. It also turns out to be a cost-effective investment. For every dollar spent on CAPABLE, nearly $10 in combined savings accrues to Medicare and Medicaid, largely because of hospitalizations and nursing home placements that are prevented, research by Szanton and others has shown. (Many CAPABLE participants are eligible for both government health insurance programs because of their low incomes.) The average program cost per person is $2,825, far below the average $7,441 monthly cost of a semiprivate room in a nursing home in 2018. With a new grant of nearly $3 million from the Rita & Alex Hillman Foundation, Szanton is turning her attention to expanding CAPABLE across the country. Currently, the program is available at 26 locations in 12 states, and Medicaid programs in Massachusetts and Michigan have adopted a version of it for some members. A major challenge is securing funding since public and private insurers dont typically pay for these kinds of services. So far, foundation and grant funding has been a major source of support. Szanton hopes to persuade Medicare Advantage plans, which cover about 19 million Medicare recipients and can now offer an array of nonmedical benefits to members, to adopt CAPABLE. Also, Johns Hopkins and Stanford Medicine have submitted a proposal to have traditional Medicare offer the program as a bundled package of services. Accountable care organizations, groups of hospitals, and physicians that assume financial risk for the health of their patients are also interested, given the potential benefits and cost savings. Another priority will be looking at how to extend CAPABLEs impact over time. Since benefits diminished over a 12-month period in the just-published clinical trial, additional program elementsphone calls, extra visits, and follow-up assessmentswill probably be needed, said Dr. Kenneth Covinsky, a professor of geriatrics at the University of CaliforniaSan Francisco and co-author of an editorial on CAPABLE that accompanied the study. Hes optimistic on CAPABLEs prospects. As clinicians, when we see older patients with conditions we cant reverse, we need to understand we havent run out of things we can do, Covinsky said. Referring patients to a program like CAPABLE is something that could make a big difference. Were eager to hear from readers about questions youd like answered, problems youve been having with your care, and advice you need in dealing with the health care system. Visit khn.org/columnists to submit your requests or tips. Judith Graham is a writer for Kaiser Health News where this article was originally published. Willie Shorter, 58, was arrested on Feb. 6, 2019, years after the child was born. (Brevard County Sheriff's Office) Florida Caregiver Arrested After Disabled Woman He Was Looking After Has Baby, Say Police A caregiver in Florida was arrested after an intellectually disabled woman had his baby at a group home, according to reports. Willie Fred Shorter, 58, was taken into police custody on Feb. 6 on a charge of committing lewd and lascivious battery on a disabled person, People magazine reported. It is a really tough case, Rockledge Deputy Chief Donna Seyferth told the publication before adding that its almost hard to find words when you have a case like this. Your first initial reaction is your heart really goes out to the victim and family. It just does, Seyferth said. Willie Shorter Sr., a caregiver, was arrested after a mentally disabled woman at the group home where he worked gave birth and a DNA test indicated hes the father, officials sayhttps://t.co/Ud5095njQb pic.twitter.com/0VEb4GGCzR KTLA (@KTLA) February 8, 2019 Shorter was at the group home managed by the Bridges Foundation when he impregnated the woman, who, according to police, has the mental capacity of that of a small child. The facility discovered that the unnamed woman was pregnant in January 2015 and told the police. The woman then gave birth to a baby boy in May 2015, according to reports. Shorter denied the allegations and refused to provide a DNA sample when he was questioned, said officials. At the time of the initial investigation, there was not enough evidence to obtain DNA from [Shorter], and that when he was questioned, denied the allegations, an affidavit said, People reported. In April 2018, he eventually provided a DNA sample after the woman made a statement about the incident. We request it and he denied it of course, added Seyferth. So we said, You can clear yourself if you want to give us DNA. He voluntarily gave the investigator DNA and we got the results back and here we are. Unfortunately, forensic science doesnt always move as quickly as we like, she also told Florida Today. Were glad to be able to have some closure in the case. Police received the results of the test on Feb. 6, and Shorter was arrested at another group home, reported Florida Today. Shorter was direct support staff in charge of caring for the disabled woman and other people with developmental disabilities. He was released on $15,000 cash bond on Feb 7, the Brevard County District Attorneys Office told NBC News. Bridges president and CEO David Cooke told Florida Today that he remained a staff member after the initial investigation in 2015 because he was not charged with anything, but we decided he should not work at the same home. Shorter is no longer working at the facility. Weve been in Brevard for 62 years serving people with disabilities, he said. We are absolutely devastated. This is devastating for the client, for the family. Its devastating for the staff who work so hard every day, working for our clients with Shorter was arrested and charged with misdemeanor battery in 1997. Those charges were later dropped, according to Florida Today. Arizona Update The Arizona health care facility where an incapacitated woman was impregnated will remain open amid reports that it would close down. The state said that keeping Hacienda HealthCare in Phoenix open will protect its vulnerable patients. This is good news and the best immediate outcome as it means Hacienda patients and families would be allowed to stay in the home theyve known for years while ensuring new and enhanced protections and oversight are put in place, Patrick Ptak, a spokesman for Gov. Doug Ducey, told The New York Times. Due to the medically fragile condition of this community, keeping patients where they reside was always our preferred choice and the safest option for patients. Jessy Paola Moreno Cruz is accused of jumping 330 feet from the La Variante Bridge in Tolima with her son, on Feb. 6, 2019. (Instagram selfie) Colombian Mom Jumps From Bridge Holding Onto Her Son: Reports A Colombian mother jumped 300 feet to her death last month as she was holding her son, according to reports this week. Jessy Paola Moreno Cruz reportedly jumped 330 feet from the La Variante Bridge in Tolima with her 10-year-old son, May Ceballos, in her arms. The psychologists and the police could not do anything to prevent this woman from throwing herself into the void, said a local official about the incident, as reported by La Gran Epoca. The woman threw herself off the bridge with the child after desperate pleas from onlookers and emergency responders. Police attempted to coax Moreno Cruz to come down off the edge but were unsuccessful. Emergency responders and community members were seen on video pleading with the mother not to jump. They begged her not to do it and tried to convince her to stop but sadly, she took the fatal decision, firefighter Rafel Rico said, reported the Daily Mail. Mum jumps 330ft to her death from bridge with son, 10, after being made homeless Jessy Paola Moreno Cruz, 32, was holding her son when she jumped The incident took place on the La Variante Bridge in the community of Ibague in the central-western Colombian area of Tolima. pic.twitter.com/3ComClqda8 Lilian Chan (@bestgug) February 8, 2019 Another responder was seen crying and dropped to his knees after seeing the incident. This ends up hurting or even costing the life of the person, Ibague Mayor Guillermo Alfonso Jaramillo was quoted as saying by the Mail. This lady, who was a single mother, unfortunately was desperate at the pressure of [paying back] debts, he added. The murder-suicide is still under investigation. They were both killed instantly. Daily Mirror 201927 I think that many people who watched this video felt their soul hurt, said witness Andres Valencia, adding that its even harder for people with children and love them with their souls, according to La Gran Epoca. Moreno Cruz and her child were apparently homeless after being evicted from home after she did not have enough money for rent, reported The Mirror, citing local news outlets. Other details about her case are not clear. El alcalde de Ibague revelo detalles que motivaron la fatal decision. Seguimiento.co 201926 Suicide Hotlines If you are in an emergency in the U.S. or Canada, please call 911. You can phone the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 1 800 273 8255. Youth can call the Kids Help Phone on 1800 668 6868. In Australia, the suicide prevention telephone hotline at Lifeline is 13 11 14. You can also visit the Lifeline website at lifeline.org.au. Youth can contact the Kids Helpline by phoning 1800 551 800 or visiting headspace.org.au/yarn-safe 25,000 Venezuelans Cross into Colombia Every Day There has been a constant flow of Venezuelans coming into Colombia amid crippling socialist policies. People come to buy food, medicines, hygiene items, and basic goods, or to sell jewelry and other small technological goodsmany women are even selling their hair, said Luis Fernando Ramirez, the head of Action Against Hunger in Norte de Santander, according to ReliefWeb. We are also talking about an area where armed groups continue to operate, so it is a doubly affected area, Ramirez added. He noted there were about 189 cases of young children under the age of 5 suffering from malnutrition in the area. In addition to the problems of malnutrition and anemia, there is a desperate need for basic sanitation and hygiene facilities, as well as cash to rent a room or buy food, said Benedetta Lettera, who is the regional manager for Action Against Hunger in Latin America. Our teams, present in Colombia since 1998, are redoubling their efforts to address the crisis in the departments of Guajira and north of Santander, as well as in Peru, and we are finalizing a humanitarian response to support migrants in other places such as Narino and Bogota, she added. U.S. Army soldiers take part in a military exercise at a training field near the demilitarized zone separating the two Koreas in Paju, South Korea, Feb. 7, 2016. (Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters) After Trumps Demand, South Korea Signs Deal to Pay More for US Troops South Korea will pay $60 million more for the upkeep of U.S. troops on its territorythis after President Donald Trump demanded that Seoul boost its contribution. The two nations inked a short-term deal on Feb. 10 increasing South Koreas annual bill by 6.75 percent to $890 million. On the campaign trail, Trump promised U.S. voters that he would fight to secure fair deals for the United States on the world stage. Americas NATO allies have boosted military spending by $100 billion after similar demands from Trump. The South Korean Parliament has to approve the agreement before it becomes final. Unlike prior deals, which have lasted five years, the one signed on Feb. 10 expires in one year. Bargaining for 2020 funding is likely to restart in months. It has been a very long process, but ultimately a very successful process, South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said at a meeting before another official from the foreign ministry signed the agreement. The U.S. State Departments senior adviser for security negotiations and agreements, Timothy Betts, met Kang before signing the agreement on behalf of the United States and told her the money represented a small but important part of South Koreas support for the alliance. The United States government realizes that South Korea does a lot for our alliance and for peace and stability in this region, he said. About 70 percent of South Koreas payment funds the salaries of some 8,700 South Korean workers who provide administrative, technical, and other services for the U.S. military. Late last year, the U.S. military had warned the South Korean employees on its bases that they may be put on leave from mid-April if no agreement was reached. Seoul and Washington have held 10 rounds of talks since March, amid Trumps calls for South Korea to pay more. South Korean officials pushed for a three-year deal keeping their annual contribution around $864 million. U.S. officials demanded as much as $1.2 billion per year. The allies worked to finalize an agreement in order to minimize the impact on South Koreans working on U.S. military bases, and focus on nuclear talks ahead of a second U.S.North Korea summit, Seoul officials said. On Feb. 10, South Koreas Foreign Ministry said that the United States had affirmed it would not be changing the scale of its troop presence. During his annual State of the Union Address on Feb. 5, Trump announced that he will meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for a second time on Feb. 27-28 in Vietnam. The two leaders held their first unprecedented meeting in June last year in Singapore. The Singapore summit resulted in a joint agreement in which Kim committed to denuclearize his nation, pursue peace with South Korea, establish relations with the United States, and repatriate the remains of American soldiers. After the meeting, Trump suspended major joint military exercises with South Korea. Since the summit, Pyongyang has not tested any nuclear weapons or ballistic missiles. South Korean President Moon Jae-in plans to discuss the upcoming summit with Trump soon, according to a spokesman from the Blue House. The spokesman, Kim Eui-kyeom, also confirmed that officials from Pyongyang and Washington plan to meet next week in an unspecified Asian country. Reuters contributed to this report. A construction crew installs new sections of the U.S.-Mexico border barrier replacing smaller fences on January 11, 2019 as seen from Tijuana, Mexico. (Mario Tama/Getty Images) 42 Million Latin Americans Want to Move to US Permanently, Poll Finds The chief executive of a major polling organization suggested that open-border laws currently in effect in the United States could attract up to 42 million Latin Americans to migrate to the United States. Jim Clifton, chairman and CEO at Gallup, made the suggestion in a commentary about the results of the pollsters global migration survey, which found that 42 million people in Latin America and 158 million adults worldwide want to permanently move to the United States. Forty-two million seekers of citizenship or asylum are watching to determine exactly when and how is the best time to make the move, Clifton said. This suggests that open borders could potentially attract 42 million Latin Americans. A full five million who are planning to move in the next 12 months say they are moving to the U.S. The results of the poll drew the attention of President Donald Trump, who is at an impasse with Democrats in Congress over funding for a wall on the southwest border and comprehensive immigration reform. Trump is demanding $5.7 billion for construction of a border wall as part of a larger border security package requested by experts from the Department of Homeland Security. Democrats so far have blocked the president from securing any funds. This would be a disaster for the U.S. We need the Wall now! Trump wrote on Twitter on Feb. 10. Gallup Poll: Open Borders will potentially attract 42 million Latin Americans. This would be a disaster for the U.S. We need the Wall now! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 10, 2019 Late last year, Trump triggered a partial government shutdown by following through on a warning that he would not sign a government funding bill unless it included funds for a border wall. The shutdown stretched into the new year and became the longest in U.S. history. Trump ended the shutdown by agreeing to a three-week government reopening, during which lawmakers from both parties would work on a compromise bill. The three-week window ends Feb. 15. In a pair of follow-up messages on Feb. 10, the president said that Democrats are offering a small sum for the border wall. Trump also said the Democrats are making last-minute demands. I dont think the Dems on the Border Committee are being allowed by their leaders to make a deal. They are offering very little money for the desperately needed Border Wall & now, out of the blue, want a cap on convicted violent felons to be held in detention! Trump wrote. I dont think the Dems on the Border Committee are being allowed by their leaders to make a deal. They are offering very little money for the desperately needed Border Wall & now, out of the blue, want a cap on convicted violent felons to be held in detention! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 10, 2019 It was a very bad week for the Democrats, with the GREAT economic numbers, The Virginia disaster and the State of the Union address, the president added. Now, with the terrible offers being made by them to the Border Committee, I actually believe they want a Shutdown. They want a new subject! It was a very bad week for the Democrats, with the GREAT economic numbers, The Virginia disaster and the State of the Union address. Now, with the terrible offers being made by them to the Border Committee, I actually believe they want a Shutdown. They want a new subject! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 10, 2019 The United States remains the most popular destination for people who want to permanently leave their countries. The second most popular destination, Canada, was more than three times less popular, according to Gallup. Overall, the number of people who want to permanently leave their countries rose to 15 percent in the period 2015-2017, from 13 percent in 2010-2012. What is the message to those millions who will seek entrance either legally or illegally? What should we tell them? Clifton said. Keep in mind that its not only 330 million Americans who are wonderingso are 42 million seekers from Latin America. It was still unclear on Feb. 10 whether lawmakers could reach a compromise acceptable to both Trump and Democrats. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said that she is against any measure that includes funds for the presidents landmark campaign promise. Trump has suggested that he would use his executive power to fund the walls construction if lawmakers fail to come up with a bill that includes it. Officials said they discovered a 3-year-old girl wandering the streets of Cleveland, on Feb. 10, 2019. (Google Maps) 3-Year-Old Found Wandering Streets of Cleveland; Police Looking for Parents Officials said they discovered a 3-year-old girl wandering the streets of Cleveland, Ohio, according to reports. The girl told police her name is Destiny, NewsChannel5 reported. Destiny was discovered at East 124th Street and Locke Avenue by Cleveland police, who added that they were trying to find the girls guardians. Do you know who this 3-year-old is? News 5 Cleveland 2019210 They said she wasnt wearing winter clothing when they found her. Temperatures in Cleveland dropped to below freezing on Feb. 10. Destiny was taken in by social workers of the Cuyahoga County Division of Children and Family Services. The girl was taken to a nearby hospital for an examination before she was released, WKYC reported. People with information about the girl are being asked to call the kids hotline at 216-696-5437. Other details about the girl were not provided. Cleveland Police seek help identifying guardians of 3-year-old girl | https://t.co/uI3PKniiaE https://t.co/Hl1GaZfjZe Russ Mitchell (@RussWKYC) February 10, 2019 She was discovered just a few blocks from Lake Erie. It comes weeks after a 4-year-old girl was discovered wandering around the streets of Detroit while searching for her parents. The temperature was about 38 degrees Fahrenheit on the night of Jan. 4 in Detroit when she was located by two good Samaritans. Police are asking for the public's help in identifying and locating the family of a 4-year-old child found wandering Friday night. WDIV Local 4 / ClickOnDetroit 201914 The Detroit Free Press later reported that the parents of the girl were found, but child protective service officials were investigating. Her name wasnt released to the public, but police posted photos of her on social media. Missing Children in the United States There were 464,324 missing children reported in the FBIs National Crime Information Center (NCIC) in 2017, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Under federal law, when a child is reported missing to law enforcement authorities, they must be entered into the database. In 2016, there were 465,676 entries. This number represents reports of missing children. That means if a child runs away multiple times in a year, each instance would be entered into NCIC separately and counted in the yearly total. Likewise, if an entry is withdrawn and amended or updated that would also be reflected in the total, the center said. In 2017, the center said it had assisted officers and families with more than 27,000 missing children. In those cases, 91 percent were endangered runaways and 5 percent family abductions. Nancy McBride, the executive director of Florida Outreach at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, said most of the runaways involve technology. [Technology] has great benefits and some potential risks, McBride told USA Today in 2017. Its important to stay plugged into their lives. Tech is utilized by online predators, McBride said, who exploit gaps when the childs relationship with their parents is not the best. About one in seven children reported missing to the center in 2017 were likely to be victims of child sex trafficking, the center said. Whitehead took 15 years to write the book, not only carefully plotting the novel but making use of significant research, such as the many slave narratives held by the Works Progress Association. The conception for the novel first arose in the year 2000 when the author reflected on his childhood experience of being disappointed to learn there was not a real railroad involved with the complicated process of helping people escape slavery. At first, Whitehead backed away from completing the novel due to the daunting research and demanding structure. He turned instead towards other books that he wrote. Eventually, struggling with the research and structure necessary for the novel, he returned to the book in 2014 and achieved his creative goals. The Underground Railroads structural trajectory follows the progress of Cora, a 15-year-old who escapes slavery in Georgia, as she moves from state to state trying to evade the slave catchers. Whitehead has compared his novel to Jonathan Swifts Gullivers Travels because of how the book is rebooting every time the person goes through a different state. Readers are not mere tourists on a train passing through states, such as Georgia, North Carolina and Tennessee; they encounter the courage and cruelty of an era of American history that haunts us all too clearly to the present day. With its well-developed characters, thorough immersion in the habits of thought and behavior of the American middle 19th century, and suspenseful plot that confronts trauma with unflinching focus and resilience, The Underground Railroad offers a powerful and fresh experience that is deeply relevant and rewarding to readers of literature. She has no idea the lives that we affect on daily basis. She will never ever know the amount of people who have been saved from abuse because of the money and awareness that she has raised, Parsons said. I thank her for the seeds that she is sowing into Phoebes Home, because other people are reaping that harvest, other people know about Phoebes Home, and my guess is if they could thank her, they would. Boegners work across more than 20 community organizations in the past decade has been recognized time and again. In 2016, she was honored as a Woman of Distinction by the Girls Scouts of Central Texas as well as Volunteer of the Year by the Bryan-College Station Chamber of Commerce. She was also awarded the Voices Against Violence Award in 2018 by the Brazos County Coalition Against Domestic Violence, and she will be recognized as a Youre the Tops honoree from The Prenatal Clinic on April 27. The award recognizes outstanding women in the community. She has twice received Wells Fargos Star Performer Award, which is given to the top 3 percent of employees companywide. In separate interviews, three prominent area agriculture experts independently made the same case: Every person who likes to eat from meat lovers to vegans ought to pay attention to local, state, national and global trends and news in agriculture. If you eat, youre involved in agriculture. The core of it is that all of us have a vested interest in agriculture, said Cheramie Viator, marketing manager at Westway Feed Products in Tomball and a part-time beef producer. Were producing the food, the fiber and the fuel that feeds, clothes and powers the world, said Kelley Sullivan, co-owner of Santa Rosa Ranch in Navasota and Crockett. On Friday, Texas A&M agricultural economist David P. Anderson said with a laugh that my favorite answer to that is that we all like to eat, when asked why non-ag industry people ought to pay attention to agriculture news. Anderson said he and other industry experts anticipate a record high year for beef, pork and chicken production in 2019 and that exports of meat from Texans and other U.S. producers have grown substantially since the 1990s. Click the image to the left and log in to get your exclusive reader perks. JEFFERSON - Patricia VanHoesen, 88, passed away on Saturday, June 19, 2021, at Robinson Terrace in Stamford. Born on Feb. 7, 1933, in Oneonta, Patricia was the daughter of the late Maurice and Loretta (Kelly) Nichols. She was married to the love of her life, Richard E. VanHoesen of 68 year o This is the temporary subscription pass for users returning from the Vision Data subscription process. Your subscription will be updated within 24 hours, after your information is verified. Please click the button below to get your pass. "They are two fundamentally different approaches to similar problems," said Ryan Holiday, author of "Conspiracy: Peter Thiel, Hulk Hogan, Gawker, and the Anatomy of Intrigue." When Thiel's involvement in the Bollea case was revealed, Bezos was less than enthusiastic about his fellow tech titan's actions. At a conference in June 2016, Bezos was asked about the Thiel-Gawker slugfest. He responded with an old saying: "Seek revenge and you should dig two graves, one for yourself." "Is that really how you want to spend your time?" Bezos went on to say. "As a public figure, the best defense to speech that you don't like is to develop a thick skin." Those remarks came to mind for Bezos watchers after his posting on Medium, a self-publishing website. "It did make me think he was reconsidering that position," said Holiday, who also works as a media strategist. But was he? In the first paragraph of Bezos' post, he frames his decision to publicise letters he had received from the National Enquirer as evidence of wrongdoing - a step beyond berating the tabloid for publishing details of his private life. "Rather than capitulate to extortion and blackmail, I've decided to publish exactly what they sent me, despite the personal cost and embarrassment they threaten," Bezos wrote. The front page of the January 28, 2019, edition of the National Enquirer featuring a story about Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos' divorce. Credit:National Enquirer via AP The saga is drenched in a hailstorm of theories and counter-theories. Bezos' team, headed by famed security consultant Gavin de Becker, has cast a suspicious eye on Michael Sanchez regarding the leak of the texts and photos. Sanchez is the brother of Bezos' girlfriend, former TV host Lauren Sanchez. Michael Sanchez is a Trump supporter, and his potential involvement is part of a theory that the leak is a political hit. Michael Sanchez has denied involvement and suggested that de Becker might be involved, supposedly in an effort to destroy the relationship between Bezos and his sister and repair the Amazon founder's marriage to MacKenzie Bezos. Both Sanchez and de Becker have, at times, explored the possibility that the text messages were obtained by a foreign government or a business competitor, according to interviews and a Post review of emails and text messages. Sanchez has even posited that Israel's Mossad, British intelligence or the US National Security Agency might be involved. (De Becker ultimately concluded that hacking was not involved.) Jeff Bezos and his wife MacKenzie Bezos pictured last year, before the publication of salacious details of his affair. Credit:AP The Post's reporting on the private leak investigation seemed to have played a role in National Enquirer's decision to approach Bezos. According to one of the letters Bezos posted on Medium, Dylan Howard, a top editor at the tabloid, cited The Post's examination of the political hit-job theory and said he was prepared to publish additional photos of Bezos and Lauren Sanchez. Publishing the letters, without redacting the detailed list of images, was a move by Bezos that fits into one of the credos of the crisis management business: Get out in front of a negative story. "It's always better to define yourself than let the other side define you," Diana Banister, a veteran Washington crisis communications specialist, said in an interview. It may have been a smart strategy, Banister said, but the execution wasn't perfect. Banister thought Bezos' tone, at times, dripped with "snarkiness". She also thinks Bezos' letter was overly complex, noting his decision to raise the possibility that the National Enquirer's relationship with Saudi Arabia might have something to do with the sequence of events. The Post has reported that the CIA has concluded that Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ordered the brutal murder of Post contributing columnist Jamal Khashoggi. The Enquirer had raised eyebrows by publishing a glowing special edition about the crown prince. The Enquirer has adamantly denied being motivated by politics to publish the Bezos texts and photos. Bezos, de Becker and an Amazon spokesman declined to comment for this article. Bezos and Thiel both see their battles as achieving some greater good. Hulk Hogan, whose given name is Terry Bollea, centre, looks on in court in 2016 moments after a jury returned its decision. Hogan sued Gawker for invasion of privacy and, bankrolled by tech billionaire Peter Thiel, won a $US140 million judgment that led to Gawker's bankruptcy filing. Credit:AP Thiel has decried the fact that even a wealthy person, such as Bollea, needed his financial help to take on a tabloid. Bezos struck a similar note in his Medium post, writing, "If in my position I can't stand up to this kind of extortion, how many people can?" As described by Holiday, Thiel considered various approaches, including hiring a lobbyist, after Gawker's piece outing him. "He settled on a legal strategy in secret as a way of settling the score," Holiday said. Thiel thought he needed an "element of surprise", Holiday said, and figured funding Bollea's lawsuit was the "best way to put an end to what he felt was someone acting outside the bounds of human decency". Thiel's covert assault on Gawker has drawn criticism that cites the dangers of wealthy individuals dictating who is allowed to produce news. But Thiel has rejected those broadsides, saying that Gawker was a unique case. "It is ridiculous to claim that journalism requires indiscriminate access to private people's sex lives," Thiel wrote in an August 2016 column in The New York Times. "A free press is vital for public debate. Since sensitive information can sometimes be publicly relevant, exercising judgment is always part of the journalist's profession. It's not for me to draw the line, but journalists should condemn those who willfully cross it." Loading Less than a week after that column was published, a notice appeared on Gawker's website. "Gawker.com is shutting down today, Monday 22nd August, 2016, some 13 years after it began and two days before the end of my forties," wrote editor Nick Denton. "It is the end of an era." Beirut: US-backed forces in Syria have begun what could be the final battle for the last village controlled by the Islamic State. In a brief statement posted on its website, the Syrian Democratic Forces said the push began on Saturday night and was focused on the village of Baghouz, on the eastern bank of the Euphrates River in the south-eastern Syria province of Deir al-Zour. The statement gave no indication of how long it could take to capture Baghouz, but President Donald Trump said last week he had been told that the full territorial conquest of the Islamic State could be completed in the coming week. US President Donald Trump speaks at the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS meeting at the State Department in Washington on February 6. Credit:AP That would herald an end to the nearly five-year-old war aimed at pushing the Islamic State out of its self proclaimed "caliphate", the once vast stretch of territory spanning Syria and Iraq that at its peak was roughly the size to Britain. Dubai: Saudi Arabia had "absolutely nothing to do" with the National Enquirer's reporting on an extramarital relationship involving Amazon.com Chief Executive Jeff Bezos, the kingdom's minister of state for foreign affairs said. Jeff Bezos, founder and chief executive officer of Amazon.com and owner of The Washington Post. Credit:Bloomberg Bezos last week accused the Enquire's owner, American Media, of trying to blackmail him with the threat of publishing "intimate photos" he allegedly sent to his girlfriend unless he said in public that the US tabloid's reporting on him was not politically motivated. In a blog post, he alluded to Saudi Arabia's displeasure at the Bezos-owned Washington Post's coverage of the murder of its columnist and Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. He also referenced media reports about alleged links between AMI and Saudi Arabia. Bangkok: A Thai political party swore loyalty to the king after its stunning decision to nominate the monarch's sister as its candidate for prime minister backfired when the king called the move inappropriate and unconstitutional. The statement of fealty comes as the country ponders a whirlwind Friday in which Princess Ubolratana Mahidol broke with tradition proscribing the monarchy's involvement with politics to become a candidate for the Thai Raksa Chart Party, only to have her brother, King Maha Vajiralongkorn, invalidate her action with a late night order. Thai Princess Ubolratana Mahidol waves outside the Grand Palace in Bangkok last year. Credit:AP Thai Raksa Chart's statement said the party loyally accepted the king's order and expressed deep gratitude to Ubolratana for her kindness toward the party. Ubolratana, who is active on Instagram, did not directly mention the king's order in a Saturday message, merely thanking people for their support and encouragement and insisting on her sincere desire to see Thailand progress with rights and opportunities for all its people. Trucks will be banned from a section of one of Melbourne's busiest bayside roads. The new 24-7 ban will begin on February 25, stretching from Bay Street in Port Melbourne, along Beach Road to the Nepean Highway in Mordialloc. A truck on Beaconsfield Parade. Credit:Daniel Pockett Minister for Roads Jaala Pulford said the new ban would ease congestion on local roads and improve traffic flow. Were leaving local roads for cars and moving freight onto freight routes, which will improve traffic flow and increase safety for the hundreds of visitors to the area as well as the local community, she said. A day after the NSW opposition announced a rebate to support households installing rooftop solar power, the Berejiklian government has countered with a scheme offering no-interest loans for solar energy and battery storage systems. Premier Gladys Berejiklian, Treasurer Dominic Perrottet and Energy Minister Don Harwin travelled to the Gaudry family home in Casula, in south-west Sydney on Sunday, to make a bid for voters worried about high power bills at the state election next month. Premier Gladys Berejiklian talks solar power to Casula residents Adam and Leanne Gaudry with daughter Mia, 8, while Treasurer Dominic Perrottet chats to son Liam, 4. Credit:Jessica Hromas The government's plan is to offer interest-free loans of up to $14,000 for a solar-battery system for up to 300,000 owner-occupants of households with an annual income of up to $180,000 over the next decade. "We know many families look at putting on solar panels or storage battery facilities but the upfront costs and the costs of installing those are so expensive," Ms Berejiklian said. Conflicts of interest and a lack of transparency and accountability have corroded community confidence in bedrock institutions including banks, churches, law enforcement, unions and professional sport. But perhaps the least trusted and respected cohort is mainstream legislators. Politicians rhetorical championing of the public interest can so often ring hollow, with the reality found to reflect the pursuit of party-political, vested and personal interest. The pub test has become an important indicator, and there is less patience for decisions, actions and announcements that fail to pass. Tim Wilson has committed a community disservice. Credit:Andrew Meares Such trumping of enlightenment by entitlement has coincided with a plunge in support for both traditional sides of politics. The disenchantment with politics as usual is echoed by Defence Minister Christopher Pyne in our pages today. It is also being fuelled by the extraordinary behaviour of prominent Victorian Liberal Party MP Tim Wilson, whose position as chair of the powerful economics committee of the House of Representatives should be untenable. The pre-eminent principle that positions of public office are positions of public trust has been trashed by Mr Wilsons misuse of a key parliamentary committee to pursue a political agenda. That agenda involves agitating against the ALPs policy of ending cash refunds on some company dividends paid to investors who have engineered their finances to produce zero taxable income. It is an important debate with multibillion-dollar implications, and Mr Wilsons usurping of the committee is a community disservice. Committees are required to run bipartisan, substantial inquiries into government policy proposals and mooted law changes. Mr Wilsons actions are unwarranted also because there is genuine concern already about Labors proposed changes. He did not need to whip up dissent, because it already existed, and this has threatened to overshadow the substance of the issue. The comprehensible desperation of the minority Coalition government, which polls suggest is likely to lose the looming election, is indicated by the readiness of Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Treasurer Josh Frydenberg who ordered the hearings in the first place to stand by a man who has brazenly breached parliamentary and community standards. One can only imagine what outrage these leaders might express were the perpetrator from the other side. Mr Wilson has a financial and familial interest in a one of the companies organising protests against Labors policy. While he disclosed his shareholdings on the parliamentary interests register, he did not publicly declare them at committee hearings. He scheduled fundraisers to coincide with the hearings. He garnered support for a website partly funded by his investment company executive relative, and carrying the Commonwealth emblem that initially required those registering to sign a petition against the ALP policy. His relative boasted that he had asked Mr Wilson to convene hearings to coincide with the financial companys meetings. This facilitated protests at nearby committee hearings. Royal Commissioners Richard Tracey and Lynelle Briggs. Credit:AAP The Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety is expected to uncover some ugly truths when it starts on Monday, with commissioner Richard Tracey calling it a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to create a better system of care for elderly Australians. "The hallmark of a civilised society is how it treats its most vulnerable people and our elderly are often amongst our most physically, emotionally and financially vulnerable," Commissioner Tracey said at the formal opening of the commission in January. "Frail and elderly members of our community deserve to, and should, be looked after in the best possible way and we intend to do our best to see that happens." HMAS Melbourne showing the damage to her bow. Credit:SMH Archives The Prime Minister (Sir Robert Menzies) announced in Canberra yesterday that a judicial inquiry into the Melbourne-Voyager collision would begin at once. Sir Robert said: "It is a shocking disaster, unparalleled in the peace-time history of Australia. The Government and the Naval Board extend their very deep sympathy to the bereaved families. R.A.A.F. Neptunes searched the disaster area yesterday and last night without sighting survivors or bodies. The first Neptune, recalled from a torpedo-dropping exercise, searched from 12.45 p.m. to 4 p.m. The second Neptune took over the search at 4 p.m. with orders to stay in the area until about 11 p.m. The search area as about 20 miles wide and extended 50 miles out to sea in a south easterly direction off Point Perpendicular. The Neptunes got their instructions from the Royal Australian Navy frigate Stuart which was in control of the search. The Navy had in the search area seven surface ships including Stuart, the Royal Navy submarine Tabard, two R.A.A.F. Gannet anti-submarine aircraft and two Wessex helicopters. The heavily damaged bow of H.M.A.S. Melbourne. Credit:SMH Archives BETTER WEATHER Melbourne left the collision scene at 9.30 a.m. and only late yesterday was able to build its speed up from three to eight knots as the weather improved. It is expected to enter Sydney Heads about 5 a.m. today and pull alongside at about 6 a.m. Survivors will be brought ashore and taken to H.M.A.S. Watson, where they will be re-equipped and sent on survivors' leave for seven days. In Canberra, yesterday, Sir Robert Menzies had an early morning conference on the disaster with the Minister for the Navy (Dr. Forbes), the Navy Minister - designate (Mr. Chaney) and the Chief of the Naval Staff (Vice-Admiral Sir Hastings Harrington). Later both Sir Robert Menzies and Dr. Forbes issued statements on the disaster. In a statement explaining the position Dr. Forbes said: "At 9 p.m. last night Melbourne and Voyager were conducting flying operations about 20 miles off Jervis Bay. Voyager was acting as a rescue ship and her function was to stand by to pick up the crew of any aircraft which might fall into the sea in the process of landing on or taking off from Melbourne. "Voyager was roughly half a mile astern of Melbourne so that when the carrier reversed her course it was necessary for her escort to transfer her position from ahead to astern. It appears that in carrying out this manoeuvre, Voyager cut across the bows of Melbourne and was cut in half. "The forward part appears to have sunk almost immediately, the after part remaining afloat for about three hours. H.M.A.S. Voyager. Credit:Royal Australian Navy "Melbourne suffered damage to her bows but this is repairable and she is proceeding to Sydney where she will arrive tomorrow morning, Wednesday. "No injury was sustained by any of Melbourne's personnel, but 85 officers and men of the ship's complement of 324 are missing from Voyager. Next of kin are in the process of being informed. NORMAL WATCHES In reply to a question, Admiral Harrington said the two ships had their full complements of men and were able to operate the normal watches. Admiral Harrington said that naval regulations provided that at least one officer the officer of the watch had to be on the bridge of a ship at all times. More officers would be on the bridge of any ship engaged in an exercise. The normal position of an escort vessel in a night flying exercise was 20 degrees on the port quarter and between 1000 and 1500 yards behind the escorted ship. RADIO, RADAR Normally R.A.N. ships in an exercise would maintain both a radar watch and a visual watch, Admiral Harrington said. Survivors picked up by naval rescue craft prepare to board the aircraft carrier. Credit:Royal Australian Navy A correspondent for "The Age" asked Dr. Forbes: "When a carrier reverses its course as the Melbourne did, is it normal for the escort vessel in trying to take up it assigned position astern to go across the course of the carrier, or should it go around in the wake of the carrier?" Dr. Forbes consulted Admiral Harrington, then replied ''I don't think we should answer that question. The Minister declined to answer other questions which, he said, should be left to the judicial inquiry. A reporter pointed out that the collision between the Voyager and the Melbourne was the third serious mishap involving R.A.N. ships in less than a year. He asked whether Dr. Forbes saw any need for an inquiry into naval procedures and conditions generally to ascertain whether the incidents stemmed from any common cause. HEARD TRAPPED MEN YELLING ... These quotations from navy men give a vivid picture of the tragedy. "It was terrible I could hear people still trapped yelling out for help." Petty Officer Geoff Worth (Voyager). "The forward section of the ship split and turned turtle." Lieutenant C. J. Nisbet (Voyager). "I was under water - and then I saw the stars." Lieut.-Commander P. W. Coombs (Chief Engineer, Voyager). STOP PRESS - Tuesday February 11, 1964, first mention of the disaster in The Age. Credit:The Age Archives "Without the helicopters few lives would have been saved." Sub-Lieutenant A. D. Vodic (search-rescue boat). "We were upside down and under the water in 10 minutes." Petty Officer Norman Swinnerton (Voyager). "The rear of Voyager was still afloat but sinking slowly into the depths with her screws in the air." Lieutenant Kerry Stephen (commander, search-and-rescue boat). There are few things as honourable as the philanthropic pursuit of ocean research, and for entering that field we salute Fortescue Metals boss Andrew Forrest. But we couldnt help but wonder exactly what type of ocean science was being conducted recently on his 56-metre Pangaea Ocean Explorer deepwater marine research vessel, launched at great fanfare six months ago as part of a $100 million research funding announcement by the billionaire. Credit:Golding Twiggys luxury research craft was last spotted late last month off the coast of Dunsborough, in Geographe Bay south of Perth, fully equipped with a very scientific four-storey slide. Was it, as one Sydney-based funds manager asked, in aid of an important study into the velocity of extremely wealthy mining magnates descending into shark-infested waters? The prominent Perth criminal barrister who was accused and acquitted of murdering his wife has had his bid for millions more in damages for defamation stayed while he appeals findings of professional misconduct in Western Australia. Lloyd Patrick Rayney, a former public prosecutor, was awarded a record-breaking $2.6 million defamation payout in 2017 after a judge ruled he had been defamed when a police officer said he was the "prime" and "only" suspect in his wife Corryn Rayney's 2007 death. Lloyd and Corryn Rayney in happier times. Credit: But the Supreme Court of Western Australia stayed his appeal for more money in January as Mr Rayney fights findings in the State Administrative Tribunal that he acted in a way that could "reasonably be regarded as disgraceful or dishonourable". The tribunal found Mr Rayney had unlawfully recorded conversations with his wife before she died and knowingly gave false evidence about the recordings to the Magistrates Court of Western Australia. Leann Manunui was one of about five families to move her children kids out of the school this year due to safety concerns. Credit: Jamila Toderas Here's what's making the news in the bush capital this morning: The week begins with it what seems to be a return to the capital's trademark weather: cool nights and bright, sunny days. The Bureau of Meteorology is forecasting a top of 29 degrees today with sunny skies and some light winds. Parents of children at Theodore Primary School have told The Canberra Times they are too afraid to send their kids to school amidst escalating violence between students. Parents have complained of harrowing incidents dating back to 2017, including a child choked into unconsciousness, another cornered into a toilet and swung around by a broken arm, young girls followed into toilets by older boys or children being hit in the face with rakes. Despite the complaints, parents feel the government is ignoring their concerns. Sherryn Groch has the story. Developer told to 'address issues' for $50m Constitution Ave project Telstra chief executive Andy Penn says a change of government could bring cheaper broadband to customers by delivering cost savings to big telecommunications companies if Labor brought a "more sensible" approach to the National Broadband Network. Mr Penn believes the upcoming federal election could be a boost for Telstra, which has regularly criticised the government-controlled NBN Co for charging telcos too much to access the network for internet services. Telstra chief executive Andy Penn. Credit:John Davidson Shadow Communications Minister Michelle Rowland has signalled Labor would examine NBN pricing if it wins government, which could trigger a write-down of the $50 billion project. A write-down is significant because the NBN would not be required to provide the same level of financial returns and could therefore charge less to telcos whose margins have been under pressure since the roll out began. Any write-down would also have a negative consequence for the federal budget. National Australia Banks new leadership must stick to outgoing boss Andrew Thorburns plan to slash thousands of jobs while boosting technology spending if the bank is to lose its tag as the laggard of the big four, say investors. Amid market fears the shock resignations of Mr Thorburn and chairman Ken Henry last week could lead to a period of management instability at NAB, institutional investors say NAB's future chairman and CEO will need not only to regain the public's respect, but also push ahead with a complex restructuring plan. Phil Chronican, who will be NAB's acting CEO from next month, has backed the bank's current strategy. Credit:Louie Douvis Phil Chronican, who will act as CEO from next month until a replacement is found, last week told top managers he was committed to Mr Thorburn's strategy, which involved slashing 6000 jobs over several years; hiring 2000 high-tech staff; and investing in automation to replace work done by people. But analysts say the looming appointments of a new CEO and chair, after Dr Henry and Mr Thorburn fell on their swords last week following blistering criticism from the royal commission, raises the possibility of a change in approach from NAB. A new federal program pitched as a way to aid low-income communities is ramping up across Louisiana, but after a political scramble to make various struggling areas eligible for the tax break, it's investors and real estate developers who are starting to reap the benefits. Last year, more than 150 census tracts in Louisiana were designated as Opportunity Zones under a provision in the 2017 tax-cut bill designed to encourage investment in economically hard-hit areas. With Gov. John Bel Edwards responsible for selecting from the nearly 600 eligible census tracts in Louisiana, public records show local officials, small-town mayors, businesspeople and even U.S. Rep. Cedric Richmond lobbied the governor via the state's economic development office on which areas should be chosen. The designation from the office of Louisiana Economic Development was highly sought after because it could translate into potentially millions of dollars in tax savings for anyone who recently purchased or is willing to invest in properties or businesses in these areas. The local surge in interest echoes a national boom. Louisiana supporters of the initiative are touting early successes, while financial firms are creating investment funds and figuring out rules that are still under development. At the same time, even some business-minded observers worry that the program wont help people in poor areas so much as accelerate gentrification or add additional tax savings to projects that would have happened anyway. New Orleans' booming Freret Street corridor is now an Opportunity Zone, as are the struggling streets just a few blocks away. Investing in either spot will offer the same tax break. Will it be a results-blind tax haven? asked Rob Lalka, head of the Lepage Center for Entrepreneurship at Tulane University. Or will it be an opportunity to really move capital toward key projects that are going to matter for the community? Opportunity Zones were added to the $1.5 trillion 2017 tax cut bill by South Carolina Republican Sen. Tim Scott, based on a plan developed at a think tank funded by tech investor Sean Parker. The idea was to create tax benefits for investors to help fund businesses in areas skipped over during the current economic expansion. Under the program, instead of paying capital-gains taxes when selling a high-flying stock or a hot piece of property, investors can defer taxes on their profits by reinvesting into a property or business located within an Opportunity Zone. By holding onto the investment for several years, they can receive a discount on those deferred taxes when the bill eventually comes due. And if they hold the investment for more than 10 years, there are no capital-gains taxes on the profits of that new investment. The tax break has no cap on the amount of benefits allowed each year. There are also currently no reporting requirements. Skepticism said 'justified' Investors and developers are jumping at the opportunity, and while many advocates for low-income areas are optimistic, they worry whether the benefits will accrue to neighborhoods and communities in need of investment. Chris Tyson, the head of the East Baton Rouge Redevelopment Authority, said during a recent panel discussion that many efforts have been made to redevelop poor areas in the past, but they didnt necessarily transform the areas as intended. If youre skeptical, its justified, Tyson told the group of officials and business owners. We want to know whats going to be different this time. The program is expected to cost the federal government $1.6 billion in the first decade, but most of the tax breaks are expected in the years after that, meaning the cost to the government could rise. Another potential hiccup, according to tax-law analyst Samantha Jacoby of the left-leaning Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, is that the program does not include any requirements that local residents benefit from the investments. Wealthy people, not poor people, are the ones who have capital gains, she noted. And areas that are already attractive to investors are getting the benefit, such as the New York City neighborhood where Amazon has announced its intention to build a new headquarters. "While the new tax break enables investors to accumulate more wealth, it includes no requirements to ensure that local residents benefit," said Chuck Marr, a colleague of Jacoby at the CBPP, where he focuses on federal tax policy. When the law was being crafted, Tulanes Lalka said it was pitched as a way of enticing people to invest in start-ups and small businesses. But since its been enacted, real estate has dominated the activity surrounding the program. Influx of recommendations In Louisiana, the nominating process was a mad dash that included lobbying from countless economic development agencies, politicians and businesspeople across the state, all hoping to get their land or their district included. Developer Buckner Barkley, owner of Marrero Land & Improvement Association, made several recommendations on where to put the zones, requesting that the Edwards administration put them in areas where the company owns property. After the governor picked two of his nine recommendations, Barkley has more than 300 acres of land in an Opportunity Zone near the former Avondale Shipyard site. Barkley, whose company has made several donations to state Senate President John Alario of Westwego, requested that Alario support his request. Our company has real estate holdings in each of the nine census tracts shown on the plans, said his letter. I would appreciate it if John could bring this matter to the attention of the governor. Alarios office sent it on to the governor. "Marrero Land is a major landowner in the West Bank," Alario said in an interview, adding that the request was the only one his office received. "We hoped if they were selected it would create jobs." Alario said that if anyone else had contacted him requesting a tract be included, he would have passed it along to the governor's office also. Richmond, who represents most of New Orleans and parts of Baton Rouge in Congress, lobbied for a host of tracts in his district. Top stories in New Orleans in your inbox Twice daily we'll send you the day's biggest headlines. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up James Bernhard, a staffer for Richmond, wrote to the governors office in March that Richmond had personally compiled a list of census tracts for the program. He also talked with Edwards about it, according to the email. "Because of my knowledge of the creation of Opportunity Zones, as well as my familiarity of the neighborhoods in my district, I wanted to ensure that I had input in the selection of the census tracts," Richmond said in a statement. "It is important to me that programs like this one best meet the needs of my district. The legislation was written with congressional input in mind. I also believe that the governor and I were on the same page with this issue." After the nominations were over, LED Secretary Don Pierson wrote back to Richmond, notifying him that the tract that encompasses Louis Armstrong International Airport in Kenner, which Richmond recommended, was not eligible. However, he wrote, the tract directly north of the airport was eligible and made the list. Wide-ranging zones Sidney Torres III, who is part of a group of investors who own the old Ford plant in Arabi, is hoping the fact the property is now located in an Opportunity Zone will help attract someone to redevelop the 225,000-square-foot building. Torres, an Edwards campaign donor, said he did not lobby for the tract to be included. Pierson said the administration solicited multiple rounds of public comment when picking the zones, and it studied which areas were likely to see economic activity if nominated. Zones are also designated in Walker, on land that includes a 127-acre tract that local economic development officials are trying to sell to investors; an area in Terrebonne Parish where the Isle De Jean Charles community is being relocated from its sinking coastal home; and tracts in Caddo and Jackson parishes. Much of New Orleans Central Business District is now an Opportunity Zone. So too is the largely undeveloped area upriver from the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, where tourism officials and local developers Joe Jaeger and Darryl Berger hope to build a $558 million, 1,200-room hotel. Land adjacent to that proposed development, the site of a massive defunct power plant owned by Jaeger, is also in the zone. Records show it is not a low-income area, but it was designated as an Opportunity Zone anyway under a provision of the law that allows some areas contiguous to low-income areas to receive the designation. Troy Villafarra, managing director at the New Orleans-based investment firm Crescent Growth Capital, recommended those areas get the designation. His firm has already raised $16 million for an opportunity fund and plans to raise as much as $60 million annually. While he isnt involved in the hotel project, he hopes to piggyback off the development via nearby properties. In Baton Rouge, all of downtown and parts of the citys Mid City corridor, which has in recent years attracted a rush of investment, are enveloped in Opportunity Zones. Anthony Kimble, one of the developers of the Electric Depot redevelopment in the fast-growing Mid City area, said he hopes to use the new tax break for part of the project. A few blocks west of Electric Depot, on the corner of 3rd and Florida streets downtown, real estate broker Jim Allen is marketing the State National Life building for sale; he is touting the Opportunity Zone designation of the area. A fruitful real estate deal Among early movers, perhaps no one timed things better than Baton Rouge developer Mike Wampold. Last February he purchased the 21-story Chase South Tower in downtown Baton Rouge with a plan to turn portions of the office tower into luxury apartments. Three months later, he sold 144 Elk Place, a former office building in New Orleans CBD, for $27.6 million to a Florida company that sells timeshares and manages vacation properties. Both properties are in areas recently certified as Opportunity Zones. We basically took the gains to sell that building and created our opportunity fund, Wampold said. It just so happened we acquired the Chase South Tower in 2018, and it just so happened we were selling a building in New Orleans in 2018, he said. Wampold said it remains to be seen if this program will differ from the many existing tax incentives out there. More distressed areas will likely see some Opportunity Zone projects, he added, but its not going to change the face of real estate development. I think youll see more activity in areas that have the ability to support new construction, Wampold said. Villafarra said the Opportunity Zone program probably wont be geared solely toward those types of projects, even though his firm has looked at things like affordable housing developments. Its hard for Opportunity Zones to purely focus on community-type projects, he said. You need to have some expectation of appreciation. But it is projects like high-end condos that have advocates for poor and working-class areas concerned. In New Orleans, some worry the program will fuel gentrification and displacement of residents, who are already dealing with issues of housing affordability. They (investors and developers) could bring mixed-income buildings with some affordable and some market-rate housing in areas where some residents are being displaced, said Maxwell Ciardullo, policy director at the Greater New Orleans Fair Housing Action Center. They could also bring luxury apartments, he said. Change is messy. This, it seems to me, is what lies beneath the ongoing war of words over Louisianas 80-year-old Industrial Tax Exemption Program. Gov. John Bel Edwards put ITEP under scrutiny as part of an overdue revisitation of the states convoluted taxing system. It is therefore, almost by definition, all caught up in election-year politics, and one of Edwards Republican challengers, Baton Rouge businessman Eddie Rispone, is sounding some very loud alarms. So is the powerful Louisiana Association of Business and Industry. But Edwards initiative, launched in 2016 and revised with input from affected parties in 2018, has much to recommend it. Previously, companies could receive a 100 percent exemption on local property taxes for up to 10 years for specific projects. Now the max is down to 80 percent. Also under the new procedures, local taxing authorities can reject an application, as the East Baton Rouge School Board did recently when ExxonMobil, the parishs biggest taxpayer but also the recipient of generous breaks in the past, sought two exemptions. EBR school board rejects controversial requests for industrial tax breaks, a rare defeat for ExxonMobil The East Baton Rouge Parish School Board on Thursday voted just before midnight Thursday to reject two controversial requests for industrial t Together Baton Rouge, the community organization thats been pushing for change, hailed the school boards decision as a victory for grassroots democracy and a way to help fund badly needed education priorities. LABI cranked up the rhetoric as well. The groups president, Stephen Waguespack, called the program broken and warned that uncertainty could ward off future investment. Yes, it might, although it's not as if Louisiana doesn't have plenty else to offer manufacturers, from natural resources to port access to a friendly regulatory structure. On the other hand, there are strong arguments for reconsidering a system developed in an era in which industrial expansion was synonymous with jobs. Now, its just as likely to lead to job-reducing automation, which is one good reason to take another look at the program. The strongest argument for change, of course, is that the affected jurisdictions should have a say in whether they must give up tax revenue that could fund local services. Such local control is a bedrock conservative principle in theory, anyway, even if it runs up against the interests of big business. The demands in given communities may vary because leaders decide they have different needs. In New Orleans, for example, the City Council recently approved new rules requiring any companies seeking relief through the program to pay at least $18 an hour, be located in economically struggling neighborhoods and not have started construction before requesting the tax break. "I stand with those who are tired of New Orleans not getting its fair share," the measures sponsor, Councilwoman Helena Moreno, said. Might companies avoid Orleans and look at less demanding neighboring parishes? Could be, and local officials will have to live with the consequences of someone else scoring a big economic development deal at their expense. And perhaps, if that happens, the council will sing a different tune. +12 Louisiana's costliest incentive program allowed manufacturing companies to cut jobs while saving billions in taxes Over the past 20 years, Exxon Mobil has been exempted from paying almost $700 million in property taxes that would have otherwise helped pay f Thats the thing about changing major, deeply ingrained policies. There will be trial and error. There will be unintended consequences. There will be deep philosophical debates over the value of these business investments versus the value of what local government must forego to get them. There will be winners and losers. If officials are smart, there will be adjustments along the way. There already have been. And eventually, there will be a new form of predictability. In the future, companies can bank on paying at least 20 percent from the beginning, and on having to appeal to local authorities, not just the Louisiana Board of Commerce and Industry. Thats something they can surely work into their planning processes. Getting there wont be fun, or easy. But simply avoiding the journey because its too disruptive is a sorry excuse to stick with the status quo. Stephen Waguespack, president of the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry, outlines changes to the state's Industrial Tax Exemption Program the group is seeking. To win re-election, Gov. John Bel Edwards hopes to get by with a little help from his friends. If, that is, their efforts dont draw much scrutiny. Having governed as a liberal in a red state, the Louisiana Democrat faces a choppy path in October to another four years. Even when watered down by a Republican-led Legislature, his policies over the past three years have produced tax hikes and 40 percent higher state spending. Louisiana has one of the worst economies in the country with almost no net new jobs created. Fortunately for him, some sympathetic interest groups have stepped up to distract voters from his record and vulnerability. Better still, the mainstream media seems willing to echo these messages without digging deeper into their validity. One of the groups is Education Reform Now Advocacy, which advocates for charter schools, an ironic pairing since as a legislator and governor Edwards has attempted to rein in those schools. The group usually supports Democrats and recently released poll results showing Edwards leading his two announced challengers, Republican businessman Eddie Rispone of Baton Rouge and GOP Rep. Ralph Abraham from North Louisiana. Gannett news outlets reported Edwards grabbing 47 percent of the vote, with Abraham at 17 percent and Rispone at 4 percent, leaving almost a third of respondents undecided. On the surface, those numbers show that Edwards is more than holding his own except that 53 percent of the sample identified as Democrats. The story didnt mention that registered Democrats comprised about 47 percent of the electorate in the past six statewide elections, and only 43 percent of total registrants. Plus, registered voter statistics overestimate Democrat support in Louisiana. Many of them identify as Republicans and vote consistently for GOP candidates. Reweighting the results for a sample of just 47 percent Democrats, willingness to vote for Edwards falls into the low forties. Thats notable, because historically in American politics few statewide incumbents polling at that level win re-election. Democratic former U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu polled similarly when she attempted reelection in 2014 and lost handily. But you wouldnt know that from the story, which neglected to infuse this greater context. Also, at the end of January the leftist political action committee American Bridge, which specializes in attack ads on Republicans, issued a digital advertisement claiming Abraham should show up for work because he missed votes in Congress over the past couple of months. Jeff Sadow: Court mandates not right way to remedy public defender woes Court mandates shouldnt reshape Louisianas indigent defense system. Instead, public defender agencies and legislators should make it work as The video seems not to have wide viewership. As of the middle of last week, it was viewed outside of the ad fewer than 40 times. The video said Abraham lacked the desire to resolve the partial federal government shutdown. Despite the narrow viewership internet algorithms suggest that only strong partisans would have seen the ad, and few who view these typically venture to click on them the ad piqued The Advocates interest, which reported on it. The story included comments by spokesmen from American Bridge and a party organization as well as by Edwards, all implying that Abraham would abandon Louisianans when it suited him. Yet Abraham, as his spokesman said and as was reported in the article, has one of the better voting attendance marks over his four years in Congress. He missed only 1.2 percent of roll call votes, although since the start of 2018 that rate jumped to just under 5 percent. And if this means not doing your job, consider that Edwards didnt show up for 5.1 percent of his legislative votes in 2015 while running for governor, but the story didnt delve into that level of detail. With the contest a high priority for both Democrats and Republicans nationally, supporters for Edwards will seek to divert attention from his disappointing tenure. Backers of his opponents must find ways to cut through that noise. Swarms of bats have taken up unwelcome residence at Zachary High, the University of Louisiana at Monroe and Vermilion Parishs Gueydan High in recent weeks. The animals are currently migrating north from Mexico to reach their breeding grounds by spring, said Kevin Koski, owner of United Bat Control. State public health veterinarian Gary Balsamo said Louisiana doesnt have a lot of caves, so bats that dont like trees take up in large buildings with high ceilings a school gym or cafeteria, an apartment complex, a church or even a hospital. Bat infestations are a very common problem, he said. Koski said school infestations tend to grab the most attention because of disruptions to classes, concerns from parents and worries that a youth could be injured. Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries biologist Keri Lejeune said the state doesnt have enough staff to respond to infestations so contracts the work out to private companies like United Bat Control. To catch the creatures, wildlife removal specialists close all the doors and windows where a colony is hiding. Then the dusk-time stakeout begins, Balsamo said. Crews wait for the bats to wake up for their nocturnal foraging and look to see where the small mammals may have found a hole or fissure to wriggle in and out of the building. While the bats are out, the team tries to seal all those entryways so they cant get back in, the veterinarian said. Then health officials help make sure a building is safe. Bats themselves can transmit rabies, and their guano contains a fungus that can lead to a respiratory infection known as histoplasmosis, Balsamo said. The fungus occurs naturally in some soil and animal droppings, but large quantities of guano could give a person a cough and fever,. In rare cases, he said, it can be fatal for patients with weakened immune system. Top stories in Baton Rouge in your inbox Twice daily we'll send you the day's biggest headlines. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up UL-Monroe Public Relations Director Hope Young said the school is still cleaning the ventilation systems in Sugar Hall a week after the arrival of the bats. Classes in parts of the science building have been moved temporarily. No one was hurt during the event, and the campus is taking it in stride. Theres even been a tongue-in-cheek push to change the mascot from the Warhawk to the Warbat, Young said. The university played host to an indeterminate number of Brazilian free-tailed bats, also known as Mexican free-tailed bats. Its the usual suspect when Koskis company gets called in to clear an infestation. Though his business didnt respond to any of the most recent incidents, Mexican free-tailed bats tend to travel in colonies ranging from a couple hundred to a couple thousand, Koski said. Vermilion Parish school officials told KATC-TV they estimated they had about 600 bats and shared photos of dozens of the animals huddling in tight masses in corners of the ceilings at Gueydan High. The school closed for two days while the bats were ushered out. Zachary school officials did not respond to requests for comment but posted on social media in late January that they were able to keep holding classes in some areas while others were closed for cleaning because they had separate HVAC systems. Professionals must remove or chemically treat air ducts so the fungus from the guano doesnt spread, Balsamo said. Companies use various sterilizers and deodorizers, Koski added. A typical school treatment might cost $10,000 to $25,000, depending on multiple factors, Koski said. He heard of an unusual Utah case where a school system paid about $350,000, though they had been plagued by problems, including recent infestations of 1,000, and 5,000 bats at a pair of high schools, according to the Deseret News. Three separate federal lawsuits by Louisiana inmates with Hepatitis C claim prison officials denied them available, life-saving medicine for more than a year amounting to a policy to "let them die." While the three inmates named in the lawsuits are still alive, the latest filing alleges that multiple other inmates with advanced cases of Hepatitis C died in the time period between when the new drugs were federally approved and when the state Department of Corrections began prescribing the medicine. The drugs were much more effective than prior treatments, yet astronomically more expensive. "The guys that didnt file suit died waiting for the state to do the right thing," said Joseph Long, the attorney representing the three inmates in their suits. Long filed a motion in January to make public the autopsies and death reports of inmates who died during the waiting period, when the groundbreaking medicine was not provided to Louisiana prisoners. He said the reports he has reviewed provide "damning evidence" in those cases. "This evidence is critical to prove ... that the State and its actors, defendants in this case, allowed prisoners similarly situated as plaintiff to die rather than pay for the (treatment) that would have saved their lives," Long wrote in his motion asking that the autopsies be unsealed. The autopsies were turned over by the corrections department through discovery, but were filed under seal. "Plaintiff believes that a jury, seeing what happened to these other prisoners, would realize that there was a policy at Elayn Hunt to let them die," Long wrote in the motion. "It is the essence of cruel and unusual punishment to have the cure for a dying man available and let him die rather than spend the money to save his life." Department of Corrections officials have denied making any medical decisions on the basis of cost, and dispute claims that they have failed to properly treat incarcerated Hepatitis C patients. "We've never refused medical treatment or care because of cost," said Jimmy LeBlanc, the secretary of the department, in a recent interview. Corrections officials declined to address the specific claims made in the lawsuits, because they remain ongoing. However, in court filings, they opposed making the autopsies public and denied any delay in care for those diagnosed with the infectious disease. These lawsuits, however, address an issue that has not just challenged Louisiana, but states across the nation as governments have tried to balance proper care with the price of the new drugs, called Direct Acting Antivirals. The drugs are about 95 percent effective at curing Hepatitis C completely transforming treatment methods, which used to be only about 50 percent effective but initially costed upwards of $100,000 when first approved in 2014. Since that time, the price has since dipped to about $10,000. Louisiana moves ahead with subscription model to pay for hepatitis C drugs for thousands Louisiana is on track to become the first state to adopt a new method of obtaining normally pricey hepatitis C drugs a move that health offi Hepatitis C patients relying on Medicaid and in prison have filed lawsuits in several states over this treatment, and in many of these cases, courts have forced states' hand to provide more patients with the costly drugs. States like Indiana, Colorado and Pennsylvania have recently added millions to their budgets for these treatments following litigation. But ahead of a ruling on the ongoing Louisiana lawsuits, state officials announced in January their plan to to implement a subscription payment model to expand access of the pricey drug to more Medicaid recipients and prisoners. According to the Louisiana Department of Health, nearly 35,000 people in Louisiana's Medicaid program had the Hepatitis C virus in 2018, but only 384 Medicaid patients were treated last year. Another 4,000 prisoners have Hepatitis C, and a similar fraction received medication in 2018. That planned improvement, however, does not directly affect any of these lawsuits. All three named inmates have either started the new treatment or are scheduled to, a change Long said came only once they filed suit. And while he is aware similar cases have been litigated in other states, he said that does not get Louisiana officials off the hook. Can we really justify letting people die?" Long said. Top stories in Baton Rouge in your inbox Twice daily we'll send you the day's biggest headlines. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up The three lawsuits allege that corrections officials and their medical staff knew about the groundbreaking drugs years before they began prescribing it to inmates, even in the most serious cases. Hepatitis C slowly damages the liver, often leading to severe scarring, called cirrhosis. It wasn't until October 2016, according to statements by prison medical staff, that the corrections department instituted a policy to determine which Hepatitis C patients would get the new treatment and then began administering the drugs. A Louisiana Department of Health spokeswoman confirmed that some Hepatitis C patients on Medicaid received the treatment as early as 2014. Louisiana considering new method for increasing access to Hep C drugs Louisiana could soon become the first state well on its way to ridding its residents of the nation's most deadly infectious disease, under an Nurse Practitioner Elizabeth Britton, who is contracted to provide care at the liver clinic at Elayn Hunt Correctional Center where inmates with the most serious Hepatitis C cases receive care, talked about how inmates were handled differently than others. As early as the beginning of 2015, Britton said, her Medicaid patients with the virus outside of the prison were receiving the treatment but she was not yet given the go-ahead by the prison. In 2014, 2015 and 2016 the years from when the drug was federally approved and when it was first prescribed for inmates in Louisiana state prisons 15 inmates died of complications associated with Hepatitis C at Elayn Hunt Correctional Center, according to records from the Department of Corrections. However, data from 2017 and 2018 showed that in those years after the prison's policy took effect for administering the new Hepatitis C treatment to some of the sickest patients 10 inmates died at Elayn Hunt of complications that appear to be linked the virus, corrections data showed. Corrections spokesman Ken Pastorick noted that no one dies directly of Hepatitis C, so their medical staff had to determine which cases were due to complications that may be associated with the virus. It is unclear how many inmates housed at other prisons died of Hepatitis C during this time period. State corrections officials declined to provide the names of the inmates who died of complications associated with Hepatitis C, and therefore The Advocate could not request their autopsies. Plaintiff strongly believes that the defendant would rather let Plaintiff continue to suffer until some affordable treatment is made available which clearly means that this defendant has chosen to save the State money rather than to save plaintiffs life," one of the lawsuits says. Inmates Richard Henderson, Tony Cormier and Levell Doughty, who are all housed at Elayn Hunt Correctional Center in St. Gabriel for treatment at their Liver Clinic, each claim the corrections department violated their 8th and 14th amendments, by making medical decisions based on cost and neglecting their care. This callous disregard for the health and safety of Henderson was not a negligent act but a deliberate indifference to his health and safety," the first lawsuit, filed in 2015 states. This egregious failure caused Henderson to be in constant fear of organ failure. The state's response in the cases of both Henderson and Cormier says both received care and medical treatment up to the standards that were in place in 2014. The response does not detail any further care they got until 2017,when they became candidates for the new, expensive treatments. In between those years, prison officials reported that they were monitoring the conditions of the two inmates and that they remained stable, according to motions filed on behalf of prison medical officials. In a deposition, Raman Singh, the former medical director for the Department of Corrections, said that cost was only "one of the many concern" in this decision, including medical research, availability and operational policies. Singh was fired in 2017 after an investigation found he sexually harassed another employee. A settlement conference in Henderson and Cormier's cases is scheduled Monday, where Long said he's hopeful of reachingan agreement between his clients and the prison agency. Doughty's case remains in discovery. Purchases made via links on our site may earn us an affiliate commission Town of Telluride Program Director Lance McDonald explains the tailings mitigation and river rechanneling project that will take place on the Valley Floor this summer. (Photo by Suzanne Cheavens/Telluride Daily Planet) U.S. President Donald J. Trump's proposed border wall could cut a SpaceX facility in half, Democratic lawmakers said. A launchpad meant to propel rockets carrying humans to space sits in the middle of the U.S.-Mexico border. Representative Lucille Roybal-Allard who heads the Homeland Security spending committee raised concerns over the 50-acre facility after she had seen the map showing a barrier running through a launchpad. She promised to ask for the area to be exempted from the planned wall. "This issue with SpaceX is that the fence cuts right through their property and that's a problem," she said. SpaceX's South Texas Launch Site The facility in contention is a launch site located in Boca Chica, Texas. It sits on the Gulf of Mexico near Brownsville. The launch site is intended to be used exclusively by the private spaceflight company. SpaceX is currently using Cape Canaveral in Florida and the Vandenberg Air Force Base in California to launch rockets into space. According to NASA Spaceflight, the Boca Chica launch site will initially support the test hopper a prototype vehicle of the Starship, the company's giant rocket that will ferry passengers to the Moon and Mars someday. Eventually, the Boca Chica launch site, as well as the Cape Canaveral launch site, will be used for operational Starship missions. Deciding The Fate Of The SpaceX Launch Site The private spaceflight company founded by billionaire Elon Musk has not commented about the possibility of a border wall cutting through the launch site but, in a statement to the times, SpaceX denied that it has lobbied Congress on the border on the property or asked any lawmaker to do so on its behalf. "The Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Customs and Border Protection recently requested SpaceX permit access to our South Texas Launch site to conduct a site survey," explained James Gleeson, spokesman of SpaceX. "At this time, SpaceX is evaluating the request and is in communication with DHS to further understand their plans." Negotiators continue to work out details of the border wall, including where the structure will be placed and how much will be allotted to build it. They are hoping to complete an agreement over the weekend so that the House and Senate can vote before the government funding runs out by next Friday, Feb. 15. 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. | BY Ricki Green | CHE Proximity has welcomed Vanessa Nicol back to Australia as managing director of its Sydney office. As a single agency across two locations, Nicol will also be a member of the agencys leadership team, responsible for all aspects of its operation. A key focus of her role will be leading CHEPs Telstra relationship, which spans across Melbourne and Sydney. Nicol is no stranger to executive roles and is an expert in telecommunications. Prior to joining CHEP, Nicols career has spanned both client and agency sides in business, creative and media roles. Most recently Nicol led Spark relationship for Clemenger Group in Auckland. And prior to this OMDs Telstra relationship and M&C Saatchis Optus relationship. Says Chris Howatson, CEO, CHE Proximity: Vanessa is intelligent, charismatic and full of energy. She brings a balanced perspective thanks to her creative, media and client side experience, making her a perfect leader at CHEP, as we transform more business with our connected creativity offer. Says Ant White, CCO, CHE Proximity: Vanessas reputation for understanding the value of ideas in solving real client problems is well recognised. The conversations we are already having promises a great year ahead. South Africa: Police portfolio committee to evaluate anti-gang strategy Parliaments Portfolio Committee on Police will on Tuesday evaluate the current anti-gang strategy of the South African Police Service (SAPS) at its first meeting of 2019. Committee chairperson Francois Beukman on Sunday said SAPS's ability to deal with organised crime, specifically organised gangs, is key to ensuring that the recommendations of the National Development Plan about the re-establishment of specialised units is fully implemented. Civil society groups and community leaders from Gauteng, the Western Cape, Eastern Cape and Free State have been invited to the meeting to give testimony on their experiences and concerns about law enforcement in gang infested areas. The groups include Community Police Forums, civil society and religious leaders. The committee remains of the view that police stations in gang-infested areas should have competent and experienced station commanders and the necessary resources to deal with the challenges that they encounter daily, said Beukman. He said the committee is of the view that the input of community members, community leaders, trade unions and religious leaders is key to dealing with gang criminality. "We are looking forward to listening to their input and contributions. Beukman said the committee is concerned about reports of more than 185 people having been killed in gang related violence on the Cape Flats since March 2018. The number of young children who have been maimed and killed in the cross-fire of gang groups is totally unacceptable. All role players ranging from parents, schools, business, religious groupings and the different levels of government should work shoulder to shoulder to address the root causes. It is not a mere law and order issue but inter alia a socio-economic matter due to the legacy of apartheid spatial planning and lack of economic and social investment in the specific affected areas. The availability of illegal firearms in gang infested communities is also a major concern and needs non-stop intervention by Crime Intelligence and the Specialised Unit of the DPCI (Hawks), said Beukman. The committee is equally concerned about the support given to Community Police Forums in hotspot areas. This follows the shooting of CPF member, Ms S Daniels in Eastridge, Mitchells Plain, on 28 January this year. Mr A Peyper, a CPF member from Hercules, was also shot in a targeted business robbery last week. The committee will seek assurances from the National Police Management and Civilian Secretariat on Police on Tuesday to ensure that Community Police Forums in hotspot areas receive the necessary support, Beukman said. SAnews.gov.za This story has been published on: 2019-02-10. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. More than 50 cases of measles have been reported in Washington but on Friday, Feb. 8, hundreds gathered to preserve a law that allows parents now to vaccinate their children. Washington Lawmakers Push For Legislation Revision Washington is one of 17 states that have legislation that gives citizens the right to refuse vaccination for philosophical reasons. Right now, a parent or a guardian can choose not to vaccinate a child for non-medical reasons. An unvaccinated child can still attend school. However, there is now a greater push to change the current legislation. Lawmakers have recently proposed a bill that would make measles vaccine an exemption. With the provision, each child at a public school will have to be vaccinated to protect them against measles, mumps, and rubella. "Right now, my city is the hotbed for this outbreak," said Monica Stonier, the state representative for Clark County, Washington and a co-sponsor of the bill. "It certainly has reached a critical state in my county." Measles is a highly contagious disease. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the virus lives in the nose and throat of the infected and is spread through sneezing and coughing. There is a 90 percent chance that an unvaccinated person who comes close to someone who has measles will catch the virus. Measles can be dangerous, especially to children ages 5 years and below. It can lead to serious complications including pneumonia, encephalitis (swelling of the brain), and death. Washington has already confirmed 54 cases of measles, the majority of which were reported in Clark County. People on both sides of the debate were allowed to speak at a hearing on Friday, Feb. 8. The lawmakers hope to get the bill passed by April this year. Fighting For The Right Not To Vaccinate Despite the outbreak, however, hundreds marched to keep the right not to vaccinate their children. Parents believe that vaccine is a bigger threat to their children than measles. "I don't feel I'm putting my child at risk," said a protester. "There's nothing that's going to change my mind on this on that specific vaccination." The CDC insists that the two doses of the measles vaccine are safe and effective. 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A mother in Tennessee decided to carry her baby to full term even after doctors told her that the baby would live only for about 30 minutes. She made the decision so that her babys other organs may be donated to other children in need. Birth Defect Diagnosis Krysta Davis was 18 weeks pregnant when she was told by doctors that the daughter she was carrying had an abnormality called anencephaly, which means that the unborn baby has missing parts of her skull and brain. They told her that the baby would likely not last for over 30 minutes after her birth, and gave her the choice of either having labor induced immediately, or to carry on with the pregnancy and eventually donate the baby's organs. It was naturally difficult for Davis to take the news given that she had previously miscarried, but in the end, she decided to carry her baby full term. According to Davis, even if they would not be able to take their baby home, they would be able to spare a mother from going through their ordeal. Baby Organ Donor Amazingly, however, their baby Rylei survived for an entire week after she was born on Christmas eve. After she died on New Years Eve, her heart valves were donated to two children, and her lungs were donated to a childrens hospital. As hard as the ordeal was, Davis says that it was still great that they got to share Ryleis story, and to know that she has given two other babies a chance to live. Anencephaly As mentioned, anencephaly is a serious birth defect wherein the baby is missing parts of the brain and skull. It is a neural tube defect that happens when the neural tube does not close all the way and results in parts of the brain not being covered by skin or bone. About three in 10,000 pregnancies in the United States are affected by anencephaly, and in some cases, it is not even diagnosed until the baby is born. Almost all of the babies born with it die shortly after birth. So far, the causes of anencephaly are unknown, although some babies have it due to factors such as changes in their genes or chromosomes, or medications taken during pregnancy. 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A team of experts from Germany, Canada, and the United States worked together in order to diagnose a 240 million-year-old Pappochelys rosinae, the oldest known turtle. Upon analysis, they found that the ancient creature suffered from a type of rare bone cancer called periosteal osteosarcoma. A fossilized tumor was found in the hind legs of the animal, a similar symptom that is also seen in humans diagnosed with the disease. "This is one of the oldest cases of cancer in the fossil record of vertebrates, and the oldest case in an amniote, which is the group that encompasses reptiles, birds and mammals," stated Florian Witzmann, a co-author of the study. The findings appear in JAMA Oncology. A 240 Million Year Old Tumor The tumor was an incredible find not because cancer in ancient creatures were unusual. In fact, scientists believe that the disease was as common back in the day as it is now. The problem is, cancer in fossils is difficult to identify. The disease is the abnormal growth of cells in the soft tissues as well as the hard tissues (like the bone). However, soft tissues very rarely appear in the fossil record. Therefore, the diagnosis of diseases from ancient times is limited to what is left behind: the hard tissues. To diagnose the ancient turtle, the researchers used microscopy and computerized tomography, a type of X-ray. The process revealed a mass in the layer of the bone called the periosteum. The researchers eliminated the possibility that it was an infection due to the absence of pores where puss would have oozed out. They also noted that periosteal osteosarcoma has previously been reported in an amphibian that lived during the Triassic period. "Our finding provides further evidence that cancer is not restricted to the modern human physiology," stated Yara Haridy from the Museum fur Naturkunde Berlin and lead author of the study. "Instead, the susceptibility to this disease roots far back in the evolutionary history of vertebrates, hundreds of millions of years before the origin of humans." Shell-less Turtle The Pappochelys is an ancestor of modern-day turtles. They walked the Earth around the Triassic period when the first dinosaurs started to appear. The discovery of the Pappochelys provided crucial information about the evolution of turtles. Millions of years ago, the creatures had broad trunk ribs, but no shell. Remains of the ancient turtle were unearthed at the Schumann Quarry in southwestern Germany in 2015. 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Johnson & Johnson has announced on Thursday, Feb. 7 that it will begin showing product prices on television advertisements this year. J&J To Include Medicine Pricing In TV Ads The company stated that it will communicate relevant cost information, including the list price of the product before any rebates or discounts and out-of-pocket costs that the patients will have to pay to their direct-to-consumer (DTC) TV ads. The first product that will get this treatment is Xarelto, a popular oral anticoagulant, which the company said is its most frequently-prescribed medicine. Xarelto costs about $450 to $540 a month. "We're starting with our most widely prescribed medicine so we can assess how the price and cost information is received by a broad range of people," Scott White, J&J's chairman, wrote in the public announcement. "We will take into account patient and consumer feedback in guiding roll-out to additional medicines we advertise on TV." Transparency In Advertisements The healthcare conglomerate is the first to offer pricing information on DTC TV ads. This was a response to U.S. President Donald J. Trump's call for greater transparency of drugs advertised directly to consumers on television. Alex Azar, the secretary of the U.S. Health and Human Services, praised J&J for the move. "We commend Johnson & Johnson for recognizing the value of informing consumers about list prices and for doing so voluntarily," he stated. "We call on other manufacturers to follow their lead." Azar's office authored the American First Blueprint in May last year, which aims to reduce the cost of pharmaceutical products in the United States as well as propose the disclosure of prices in ads for drugs on advertised television. J&J also stated that the effort is in accordance of the PhRMA's Direct to Consumer Advertising Principles, which, in October, required member companies to direct consumers to an online platform where they can find pricing information for products advertised on television. The pharmaceutical giant also promises to provide more relevant information about efforts to achieving a more sustainable healthcare system that "delivers greater access to care at a more manageable cost" via the annual Janssen U.S. Transparency Report. 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued a warning against breast implants, linking it to a higher risk of rare cancer. In a statement, the public health agency provided an update on the number of cases of anaplastic large cell lymphoma, a type of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma associated with breast implants. As of September 2018, the number of unique cases in the United States has increased to 457 women, with 9 patients dying. "I know there are many choices of breast implants available to patients, including the size, implant fill and surface texture," said Binita Ashar of the FDA's Center for Devices and Radiological Health in the statement released on Wednesday, Feb. 6. " We want to provide patients with the most up-to-date information about the variety of breast implants available so that patients and providers can have thorough and thoughtful discussions weighing the benefits and risks of different products." Breast Implants Linked To Cancer The FDA has already warned about the risk of anaplastic large cell lymphoma associated with breast implants (BIA-ALCL) for years. In 2011, the public health agency first identified a possible link between breast implants and this rare cancer but admitted that they need to gather more evidence. In 2016, the World Health Organization recognized anaplastic large cell lymphoma as a T-cell that can develop with breast implants. ALCL is not breast cancer. Rather, it is a type of blood cancer that develops when T-cells, the subtype of white blood cells that plays a key role in the immune system, become abnormal. The increased risk of developing the disease was linked with both smooth and textured breast implants. However, on its website, the FDA noted that more cases were associated with textured breast implants. The disease is also linked to both silicone-filled and saline-filled breast implants. BIA-ALCL often develops in the fibrous capsule that develops around the implant, separating it from the breast. Treatment of the disease involves the removal of the implants and sometimes, radiation and chemotherapy. Current estimates claim that 1 in between 3,817 and 30,000 patients with breast implants will develop ALCL. Symptoms And Diagnosis In its letter to Health Care Providers, the FDA shared that patients who were diagnosed with BIA-ALCL experienced pain, lumps, swelling, and asymmetry that developed after the surgical sites fully healed. To check for BIA-ALCL, health care providers are instructed to examine the collection of fluid (seroma) and the capsule surrounding the breast implant. 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Scientists have identified that a common protein known as clusterin can increase the risk of heart problems and diabetes. Clusterin was previously linked to Alzheimer's disease. According to a new study, overproduction of the protein clusterin can increase blood pressure, sugar and cholesterol levels together known as Cardiometabolic Syndrome. The researchers at The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Houston Methodist Research Institute and Houston Methodist Cancer Center conducted a study that linked clusterin to different aspects of the cardiometabolic syndrome. The study that spanned almost 10 years also revealed that the risk is higher in people who smoke and are physically inactive. Clusterin Linked To CMS "Our goal was to discover new factors produced by the cells in fat tissue that have an impact on cardiometabolic disease. In particular, we wanted to identify those important to maintaining the framework of fat tissue, called the extracellular matrix, which becomes dysfunctional in obesity," said lead author Dr. David Bradley, assistant professor at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. The research indicates that clusterin, an extracellular protein mass produced from the fat cells of obese patients, is linked to insulin resistance. It is also associated with elevated risk of cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, fatty liver disease, and mortality based on the research findings published in Diabetes Care. It is common for obese patients to suffer from metabolic and cardiovascular issues. Their bodies also become resistant to insulin, which is the leading cause of Type 2 Diabetes. Clusterin And Alzheimer's The research, which regards the importance of clusterin in the development of cardiometabolic syndrome, may help scientists to develop new treatments for this fatal combination of high blood pressure, diabetes, and obesity, explains Dr. K Craig Kent, dean of the Ohio State College of Medicine. Previously, clusterin's role was mostly studied in the context of neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's. However, this is the first time that its wider role in human diseases and physiology has come to light. According to the World Health Organization and American Society of Endocrinology, CMS affects 25 percent of the world's population and is now recognized as a disease. People suffering from CMS are twice as likely to die from coronary disease and thrice more likely to have a heart attack or stroke compared to those who do not have this condition. 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Why it matters: If theres one thing Intel has been struggling with lately, its pumping out their CPUs. Not only has the 10nm fabrication process been delayed three years so far with no guarantee it will make it this year, but lately Intels 8th gen and 9th gen parts have suffered from low yields that have increased prices, reduced availability, and even forced them to return to 22nm in some cases. Intel has unveiled new plans to expand a previously planned 90,000m2 manufacturing plant in Co Kildare, Ireland by another 110,000m2 with a budget of $8 billion. Itll take four years and 3,000 construction workers to build and will employ 1,600 staff. The new facility is an add-on to their existing Leixlip campus, which currently employs 4,500 people. While much of the new construction is raw manufacturing, a good portion of it is designed to increase the efficiency of the current manufacturing line. In addition to several gigantic buildings, therell also be eight huge water tanks reaching up to 63m, 50m towers, backup generators, and wastewater treatment plants. Itll need them, too: its expected to consume 37 million liters of water every day. To help the local community take the blow from the massive and sudden growth, Intel has proposed plans to widen roads and set up buses and bike paths and parking spaces for new employees. They will also plant 6,000 trees and 12,000 shrubs on campus to mitigate environmental impact. While this will be Irelands largest-ever private investment, theres some doubt that Intel can pull it off. Weve been here before with other companies, which didnt get over the line, said an anonymous council member that is reviewing the blueprints. Apple, in particular, has announced large expansions in the country which it backed out from at the last minute. Intels situation is different though. Theres no doubt that theyre in dire need of some expansion, and they must get 10nm sorted soon to compete with TSMCs 7nm process, which will be arriving on Ryzen in less than six months. While this plant wont arrive in time for that, it will no doubt give them a sorely needed boost down the line. ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) A civil rights group representing families of four 12-year-old girls who claim they were strip searched for drugs in school is demanding an apology and other measures from an upstate New York school district. The NAACP Legal Defense Fund sent a letter to the Binghamton City School District on Thursday. It says actions by a middle school principal and nurse on Jan. 15 violated the constitutional rights of the girls, who are black. The district has said the girls had a medical evaluation but weren't strip searched. It has hired a law firm to investigate independently. Gov. Andrew Cuomo has asked the state Education Department for a probe. The School Administrators Association of New York State is asking the community to reserve judgment until the investigations are completed. The feud between New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and President Donald Trump went from merely unhelpful to downright toxic last week. Both are scoring political points at the expense of their New York constituents. Cuomo blamed Trump for creating a $2.3 billion shortfall in tax revenue for the current budget year. Trump responded by urging Upstate New Yorkers to flee the state for lower taxes and better jobs elsewhere. Neither Trump nor Cuomo has the facts on his side. First, Cuomo: The governor announced Monday that tax receipts for December and January were coming in $2.3 billion below projections, a deficit as serious as a heart attack to the states finances. Its all Trumps fault, Cuomo said, because the presidents signature tax reform legislation no longer allows New Yorkers to deduct more than $10,000 of their state and local property taxes on their federal returns. SALT was an economic civil war against blue states like New York, Cuomo railed, using the overheated rhetoric he has adopted since Trumps election. Citing anecdotal evidence, the governor claimed that wealthy New Yorkers are leaving the state because they cant deduct their high property taxes anymore. Without hard data, that is a supposition that happens to fit the governors Trump resistance narrative. A more likely explanation is the stock markets dive in December, its worst monthly performance since the Great Depression. That dented a lot of rich peoples portfolios in New York, the nations financial capital. Wall Street bonuses also could take a hit, further reducing state tax collections. Or the shortfall could be a quirk in how taxpayers are adjusting to the new rules, and the deficit will narrow as the April 15 deadline nears and tax payments flow in. New York City also is facing a nearly $1 billion shortfall in tax revenues, but Mayor Bill de Blasio blamed the market, not SALT. The governors singular focus on SALT ignores the other changes in the federal tax law a higher standard deduction and bigger child tax credits, for example that will reduce federal taxes for the majority of Upstate New Yorkers. Blaming Trump also diverts attention from the spending that is in the governors control. Albany has long relied on taxing the few to benefit the many. It has the luxury of wealthy taxpayers to feed its spending habits. If the wealthy are indeed moving away, the governor should stop whining about Trump and SALT and get to work on reining in spending and adjusting New York state tax policy. Now, Trump: The president punched back at a meeting Wednesday at the White House with regional reporters, including one from Albany. Trump swiped at Cuomos management of the states finances, with little regard for the facts. Those people are my voters, said the president, a reminder that he considers himself president of his political base, and not the whole country or even his home state. Theyve been treated very badly, Trump continued. If that was meant as a critique of New York tax policy, the president should get in line. But without policy specifics, its just more Trumpian noise. The problem is that states that have been really well run and dont have debt, those states have a big advantage over states that have been poorly run, like New York and others, and have a tremendous amount of debt, he continued. Thats rich, coming from the president who is on track to run up the greatest non-recession, non-war federal debt in the nations history. If New York isnt gonna treat them better, I would recommend they go to another state where they can get a great job, Trump said. Here the president really doesnt know what hes talking about. Syracuses 4 percent unemployment rate in December was the lowest in 18 years. The lack of people to fill thousands of available jobs is holding back the regions economy, according to a recent economic forecast. Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon pointed out that hundreds of high-paying engineering jobs are going begging. The presidents glib statement undercuts the hard work of McMahon, Mayor Ben Walsh, the Cuomo administration and other business and nonprofit groups to revitalize Syracuse and Central New York. Abandoning Upstate is no solution. The federal government should be a partner with state and local government, not an antagonist. It could do a lot more for Upstate on infrastructure, poverty relief and affordable housing especially given that New Yorkers get back less than 90 cents for every dollar they send to the federal government. Trump seemed genuinely surprised to learn that the cap on the SALT deduction was hurting Upstate New Yorkers, who voted for him in great numbers in 2016. In an offhand comment, the president said he was open to talking about revisiting the cap. Well see if hes serious about that. As the first tax filing season under the new federal tax law rolls out, the president and Congress must be alert to unintended consequences, especially on middle-class taxpayers. They must be willing to address them. The SALT cap may be one of those issues. In the meantime, Cuomo would be wise to heed advice attributed to Mark Twain: Never argue with a fool, onlookers may not be able to tell the difference. Syracuse.com editorials Editorials represent the collective opinion of the Advance Media New York editorial board. Our opinions are independent of news coverage. Read our mission statement. Members of the editorial board are Tim Kennedy, Trish LaMonte, Jason Murray and Marie Morelli. To respond to this editorial: Post a comment below, or submit a letter or commentary to letters@syracuse.com. Read our submission guidelines. If you have questions about the Opinions & Editorials section, contact Marie Morelli, editorial/opinion leader, at mmorelli@syracuse.com President Donald Trump delivered his State of the Union address on Tuesday before a joint session of Congress. The president called for unity, but warned Congress that investigations of him or his administration will impede progress. The other big story was the scandals enveloping the top levels of state government in Virginia. Gov. Ralph Northam, a Democrat, was confronted with a photo on his medical school yearbook page of a man in blackface and another in a Ku Klux Klan hood. The governor at first apologized, then later said he was not either of the men in the picture. As calls grew for Northam to resign, Democratic Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax faced allegations of sexual assault and rape, and Democratic Attorney General Mark Herring admitted that he, too, wore blackface while in college. Democrats who lambasted Trump for his racial attitudes and treatment of women are under pressure to take some of their own medicine. Other topics in the cartoons include Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos turning the tables on the publisher of the National Enquirer, accusing American Media Inc. of extortion; the unveiling of the Green New Deal by progressive Democrats in Congress; the ramping up of Congressional oversight committees looking into the Trump campaigns ties to Russia; and word that Amazon might be reconsidering its New York City headquarters due to local opposition. Cartoons were drawn by Bill Bramhall, Chan Lowe, Dan Wasserman, Dana Summers, Drew Sheneman, Scott Stantis, Walt Handelsman, David Horsey, Phil Hands and Joel Pett of Tribune Content Agency; Tim Campbell, Mike Lester, Signe Wilkinson and Jeff Danziger of the Washington Post Writers Group; and Tom Toles of Andrews McMeel Syndication. More editorial cartoon galleries DEWITT, N.Y. -- If Saturdays two-hour town hall in DeWitt is any indication, Central New York residents are far from a consensus on what should come of a 1.4-mile stretch of elevated highway in Syracuse. And to many supporters of the community grid option who attended U.S. Rep. John Katkos event, consensus also isnt desirable if it means building a tunnel under the city. At least 500 people packed in to the St. Matthews gymnasium on Saturday morning. It was the second town hall event held by Katko ahead of the release of a draft environmental impact statement, which will get the ball rolling for the biggest and most expensive construction project in the region in decades. The draft statement, prepared by the New York State Department of Transportation, will consider the many implications of either rebuilding the I-81 viaduct, building a tunnel along the viaducts current path, or a community grid option, which entails tearing the highway down and diverting through traffic onto what is now Interstate 481. Its unclear when the draft statement will be released. DOT officials have repeatedly said early 2019. At the meeting were labor unions, anti-"grid" group Save81, Community For the Grid, and residents of Syracuse and many of its outlying towns and villages. The meeting at times erupted in contentious exchanges between speakers and the audience, which Katko would try to diffuse by stressing the need for all sides to listen to each other. Theres only going to be one final version (chosen)," Katko said. So the more we can listen to each others concerns, maybe something will crystallize. Also, officials from the Federal Highway Administration, which will advise the state on the draft statement and ultimately affirm the states decision, were in attendance and listening closely, Katko said. Katko opened his remarks before the packed audience by discussing the federal budget realities for a project this big. Billions of dollars make their way from the federal government to New York state for projects like this from the Federal Highway Trust Fund, which has a shortfall of about $12 billion, Katko said. He said hes encouraged by House Democrats efforts to pass a better-funded infrastructure bill, but time will tell if it passes. Now that the Democrats are in charge in Congress theres probably a better chance to move a larger infrastructure bill, said Katko, a Republican, which drew loud cheers from a section of the audience: I hope youre clapping for the bill and not just Democrats." And he stressed the money for the project should not be the only consideration in what gets built. A tunnel option could cost $3.6 billion, while a grid would be $1.3 billion and rebuilding the viaduct would be $1.7 billion. DeWitt and suburban residents who oppose the grid option described concerns over noise and vehicle emission pollution that could occur if more vehicles driving past Syracuse are diverted onto I-481. The DOTs estimates from July 2013 are that 12 percent of current I-81 traffic is through traffic, meaning those drivers do not stop in Syracuse. Anti-"grid" advocates spoke of the tunnel option as a way to satisfy the many competing interests between the suburbs, the trucking industry and city residents. Building a tunnel would keep high-speed traffic moving roughly along its current footprint while allowing a grid to be built on top of it, they argue. Proponents of this have called it a hybrid option. DeWitt town councilor Karen Rigney, a "grid" supporter, spoke after the town hall event As for today, there is no evidence of any benefit to solely the option of the community grid for our town, said DeWitt town board member Karen Docter, who warned of increased traffic, noise, emissions and other issues. Another grid opponent, Don Doerr, who works in Syracuse but lives in DeWitt, likened tearing the highway down with building a high-speed option to severing a major surgery. Youre cutting a major artery and youre hemorrhaging it all across city streets," Doerr said. Doerr also said he is concerned about the impact on I-481 of increased traffic and loss of sales tax revenues for the city if access to Destiny USA and other nearby businesses is impeded. After hearing from residents on all sides of the topic, Katko suggested that finding consensus is the best way to ensure the project is fully funded and moves forward. He warned that Cuomo might throw his hands up if faced with loud, competing factions and not move the project forward. The practical reality is the governor wants a consensus, Katko said. Members of a local labor union hold Save81 signs during a town hall Saturday. The existing highway will need to be fixed, state officials have said. It has a higher-than-average accident rate and does not conform to modern highway standards. Its unclear how real a hybrid" option is, at least as far as state engineers are concerned. The state hasnt released details of how such an option would work. We right now do not have a compromise option, said architect Bob Haley, who is a grid supporter. The DOT has not shown us that. Engineers previously rejected the tunnel from consideration, but they are now studying the option in detail after a request from Gov. Andrew Cuomo. The additional study includes taking soil samples to determine how a tunnel could feasibly be built. Grid supporters who spoke at the meeting said a tunnel is not the right solution, regardless of the cost. One reason is that the tunnel option recommended by an independent firm would require the destruction of 12 buildings in the city. City officials also have said they oppose the tunnel because of the potential maintenance costs, concerns over where the air will be vented out of the tunnel and land required for its entrances and exits. Other grid supporters at the meeting said the concerns of suburban residents could be mitigated, especially if the state saves money on the grid" option, freeing up funds for noise abatement, for example, along I-481 or to make sure suburban arteries can handle the increased traffic if it occurs. Grid supporters urged Katko to consider the price tag for a tunnel and the impact the elevated highway had on residents of the old 15th Ward, a predominately black neighborhood that was uprooted to make way for the highway. This is a chance to right a historical wrong, advocates said. Yusuf Abdul-Qadir, director of the local New York Civil Liberties Union, said hes been disappointed to hear from suburban residents about potential impacts on their commutes when residents of the Pioneer Homes housing complex deal with emissions, water runoff and other adverse effects of living alongside the highway. The facts are people who live in that area dont have a car, Abdul-Qadir said. ... You talk about those community members as if they dont exist, as if they dont have concerns. Katko will have two more town halls on the I-81 topic, one in Syracuse and one in Salina. The dates havent been announced yet. VERONA, N.Y. - New York State Police is asking for the publics help finding a Verona man. Police say Eugene A. DiFondi III, 49, was last seen at his residence on Kelly Avenue in Verona on Friday. Family members, concerned about his welfare, reported him missing this afternoon. Police described DiFondi as 5-feet-8-inches tall and weighing around 200 pounds. He has blue eyes and light brown balding hair and facial hair. Those with information on DiFondis whereabouts are asked to contact state police at (315) 366-6000. The Floyd County School Board meets Monday at 5:00 p.m. at the School Board Administration Office, the Floyd/Floyd Parks & Recreation Authority board has its meeting Monday at 6:00 p.m. at the rec office, and the Supervisors meet Tuesday at 8:30 a.m. at the County Administration Building. Do you already have a paid subscription to any of the SWNewsMedia newspapers? If so, you can Activate your Premium online account by clicking here. Activation will allow you to view unlimited online articles each month. To activate your Premium online account, the email address and phone number provided with your paid newspaper subscription needs to match the information you use in setting up your online user account. If you are having trouble or want to confirm what email address and phone number is listed on your subscription account, please call 952-345-6682 or email circulation@swpub.com and we'll be happy to assist. Click the image above to watch the video In todays weather forecast we are expecting a fine day with light winds and sea breezes. Its a one-clothing layer day today with a high of 29 and an overnight low of 16 degrees. Humidity is 73 per cent. High tide is at 12.10pm and low tide at 6.30pm (Tay St). Theres a sea swell of 2m and sea temperature is 22 degrees. Sunset tonight is at 8.16pm. If youre going fishing the next best fish bite time is between 5 and 7pm. On this day in NZ history in 1864 Charles Heaphy earned a Victoria Cross. Recommended for a Victoria Cross after rescuing a soldier under fire at Waiari, near Pirongia, Charles Heaphy was given the decoration in 1867. On this day in world history in 660 BC marks the traditional founding of Japan by Emperor Jimmu Tenno. In 1531 Henry VIII was recognized as the supreme head of the Church of England. In 1809 Robert Fulton patented the steamboat. In 1953 Walt Disneys film Peter Pan premiered. In 1954 a 75,000-watt light bulb was lit at the Rockefeller Center in New York, to commemorate the 75th anniversary of Thomas Edisons first light bulb. In 1975 Mrs Margaret Thatcher became the first woman to lead the British Conservative Party. In 1990 South African political leader Nelson Mandela was released from prison in Paarl, South Africa, after serving more than 27 years of a life sentence. Today is the birthday of William Henry Fox Talbot, photography pioneer; he produced the first book with photographic illustrations. Born in 1800, he once said I do not claim to have perfected an art but to have commenced one, the limits of which it is not possible at present exactly to ascertain. To get involved in activities around the Bay of Plenty, please check out our Whats on page. Have a great day! Theyre a dynamic young double act, and their weekly gigs are pulling increasing numbers of punters to the citadel on Cameron Road. The citadel is the Salvation Army fortress of faith, and the double act is the bi-cultural Vemoas Salvation Army Captain Corryn Vemoa, the new corps officer in Tauranga, and husband Francis, the new director of community ministries, social services - the work end of the army here. Theyve been in town for a few weeks and probably wont believe stories about Taurangas growth pangs. Shes from Hamilton, him from deepest West Auckland and they come here via Kilbirnie in suburban Wellington. We can now drive 10 kilometres to work in 10-to-15 minutes, says Corryn. Thats a blessing. But they dont travel along Hewletts Road at 8am. Its nowhere near the stresses of living in West Auckland, says Francis. And still easier than Kilbirnie. At the Army church services on a Sunday morning, they share the spotlight and the pulpit the Palagi one week and the Kiwi born Niuean the next. We have different styles, says Francis. Shes academic and I speak from experience. Thats not quite how Corryn sees it though. I bring an empathy. I do feel for people. Francis, in his role, is probably more strategic. They dont critique or assess each others performance. But we listen and we notice things because we are both skilled in that area, she adds. And we listen because we want each other to be better, to grow those skills. I love that he is quite honest when he shares his stories and things he has learned, especially when he is passionate about it. However, they do employ some techniques, like a little sign, a subtle - or not so subtle - cough, to remind each other if they blather on or have strayed from the point. Francis is a walker, and wanders away from the microphone. A cough brings him back to the lectern. The Vamoas arrived in town with their two pre-schoolers, Solomon (a king of Israel), Malachi (a prophet of the Old Testament) and baggage more than an airport carousel. From the very beginning the Salvation Army has been involved in the messiness of life, explains Corryn. Messy being The Weekend Suns word, not theirs. Thats when Corryn gives Francis a nudge, because its his story. And he has no trouble sharing his messy story. I have two other children, he says. I was very interested in girls at a young age and I had my first child, my daughter, when I had just turned 16. Now, this neat as a pin, gleaming advertisement for the Army is 37. His daughter, 21, and son, 15, are living in Australia with their Mum. I traded gold for silver. I put work before family. The relationship did endure. Fortunately, God has given me more gold. I look after this gold. I learned an important lesson ten years ago. Messy? Yes very messy. But as Corryn explains, the Army deals consummately with mess. Its their business. The best Salvationists, or people that work for or serve in the Army, are usually the ones with the background and have learned the lessons the hard way. They are a little more empathetic because they have been in those situations. And Corryn, a generational Salvationist, hasnt had a life of roses either. But they have been different types of challenges, such as illness and death. A pretty stable family, but I have epilepsy and my brother got quite sick. They are their own special stories, and experiences they share with others. Nothing goes to waste in Gods kingdom, says Corryn. He is always using what he has. So dont be fooled by the uniforms. Because we are just like you. And they still make mistakes, they say. They havent learned all the lessons yet. I think because of his background, and his relationship with his older kids, his ex and our boys now, we see all the benefits and blessings that come with raising kids, being a healthy family unit and teaching our kids a good way to live, says Corryn. She is fifth generation Salvation Army. Francis, on the other hand, had his first taste on the rough, tough streets of West Aucklands Glen Eden. The Salvation Army Sunday school bus was parked up on a street and we were invited aboard, he explains. A few of us Pacifica boys thought how hard would that be? Girls got in Francis way, but 10 years ago, a Salvation Army girl got in his way and life changed for the New Zealand Niuean and the Palagi girl. Francis did his training and, after his graduation and commissioning, the couple set about William Booths work. We are opposites that were attracted says Corryn. It benefits our ministry because we complement each other. They like to think we are part of the holistic healing of people. A big part of that is the spiritual side. Were really passionate about introducing people to a relationship with Jesus. Then theres the physical side. William Booth, the Methodist preacher who founded the Army, talked about soup, soap and salvation. You cant worry the spiritual if the physical isnt taken care of. And the 30 something-year-olds were taking care of the physical as they spoke to The Weekend Sun this week. They had bought some peace for the interview by bribing Solomon and Malachi with a McDonalds cheeseburger. Some secular things work well alongside faith. National Leader Simon Bridges has launched the final Have Your Say campaign, calling for young New Zealanders to put forward their ideas for the future of New Zealand, as part of Nationals 2020 election policy development process. Todays young New Zealanders are tomorrows leaders and its important we get their feedback and allow them to put forward their ideas about the future of our country and about how we ensure it remains a place where they want to live, work and raise their families. We want National to embody the type of New Zealand that our future doctors, teachers, tradespeople and farmers want to see, and we want to ensure they see the opportunities for them and their families here. National have launched our Have Your Say listening campaigns last year so we could hear from New Zealanders about what matters to them and about their ideas for their future. This is the first step in our policy development process we are doing the work now so that should we earn the right to govern in 2020, we are ready to hit the ground running, says Simon. Simon says its clear that the Government didnt do the work in opposition and thats why its had to launch more than 200 reviews and working groups and why its flagship policies are descending into farce and taking New Zealand backwards. Its spending $2.8 billion on a fees free scheme which has attracted no extra students. The number of 18-24 year olds receiving a benefit has increased by 10 percent when its this age group which needs the most encouragement to get into work now to avoid a lifetime of benefit dependency. Its also set to break its promise to build 100,000 affordable houses as KiwiBuild descends into farce while its making it harder for private sector developers to build by restricting the foreign investment needed to fund housing developments. We wont make the same mistake, says Simon. We will do the work now to give New Zealanders the choice in 2020 of a government in waiting that has done the work, has the fresh ideas and is ready to combat some of New Zealands most significant challenges. Our final Have Your Say campaign is about ensuring young Kiwis are listened to. We want to make sure our policies reflect their input, are meaningful and will improve lives, says Simon. It was a feast of micro grom action on the first day of the Billabong Grom Series presented by Oceanbridge event held at Whangamata on Saturday with conditions testing the fortitude of the surfers in the Under 14 Boys and Girls Divisions. The surf remained contestable all day with a solid 1.0m 1.5m of swell and moderate onshore winds. With sixty surfers alone across the boys and girls divisions, they occupied the best part of seven hours of action as they were whittled their way down to the final four surfers in the girls division and eight surfers in the boys division. Sophia Brock (Mnt) surfed to the highest heat total in the girls division on her way to the final with a 12.33 point heat total. A slick 8.5 point ride for a cleanly-surfed lefthander in the semifinals saw her top event one winner, Asia Braithwaite (Gis), who advanced in second place. In the second semifinal it was Brocks older sister Anna who advanced out of a low scoring heat with a 6.77 point heat total which was enough to win her heat over Amanda Gouldsbury (Tara) who advanced to her first ever national final in the division. Whangareis Tai Erceg Gray continued his good summer form on day one of the event. After winning the first leg of the series at Mount Maunganui, he kept his hopes alive for back-to-back wins today advancing through to the semifinals posting an 11.0 point heat total. Erceg - Gray had a close tussle but got the nod over Bill Byers (Piha) in his quarterfinal with the two surfers set to match up again in the semifinals on Sunday where they will meet Kalani Louis (Tara) and top performing local surfer Daniel Cox. The first semifinal of the Under 14 Boys Division will see National Champion Navryn Malone (Rag) face off against Ryder Pennington (Tara), Mathias Thompson (Piha) and Cooper Roberts (Mnt). Late in the day the event advanced through to the Under 16 and 18 Divisions. The first major upset of the day occurred in the Under 16 Girls Division when current rankings leader Natasha Gouldsbury (Tara) found herself on the wrong side of a tight heat which saw Auckland surfers Alice Westerkamp and Summer Carkeek advance. Liv Haysom (Auck) and Ava Henderson (Chch) also advanced through to the semifinals of the division with heat wins. Raglans Jayden Willoughby got the Under 16 Boys Division off to a flyer with the highest single scoring wave of the day a 9.6 point ride as he pushed through to the Quarterfinals alongside Te Kauwhata Kauwhata (Whngrei). Jacob Buckle (Whngrei) and Jacob Saunders (Mnt) advanced out of the second semifinal. Heats are expected to run through until 8pm tonight to get through as much of the event as possible. Navryn Malone. Image courtesy of Col / Surf2Surf.com. Results from day one of the second event of the Billabong Grom Series presented by Oceanbridge held at Whangamata: Under 14 Boys Division Round of 48 Heat 1 Tiger West-Hill (Gis), 7.83, 1, Otis Baxter (WGM), 6.2, 2, Jacob Walker (Auck), 1.9, 3, Jimmy Cleland (Auck), 1.67, 4 Heat 2 Ryder Pennington (Tara), 9, 1, Noah Camburn (Ohope), 5.9, 2, Levi Waller (Pauanui), 3.83, 3, Tom Curteis (Auck), N/S Heat 3 Tava Santorik (Mnt), 12.17, 1, Dale Cromhout (Hbay), 7.23, 2, Luke Mitchell (Auck), 5.7, 3, Mali Millen (Tai), 4, 4 Heat 4 Braedon Webster (Ohope), 6.67, 1, James Charlesworth (Auck), 4, 2, Taylor Mainwaring (WGM), 2.6, 3 Heat 5 Tyce Schumacher (Mnt), 4.03, 1, Noah Jakich (Auck), 3.6, 2, Lucian Martin (Auck), 1.8, 3 Heat 6 Tana Clapham (Rag), 11, 1, Daniel Cox (WGM), 5.23, 2, Taj Dal Bosco (WGM), 4.3, 3, Hunter Ussher (WGM), 2.1, 4 Heat 7 Riku Gordon (Mah), 6.1, 1, Rory Bathhurst (WGM), 5.57, 2, Harley Waller (Pau), 3.6, 3 Heat 8 Bill Byers (Piha), 13.5, 1, Marcus Fraser-McKenzie (Mnt), 7.54, 2, PJ Klein - Ovink (Auck), 5, 3, Kaden Littlejohn (Katikati), 3.4, 4 Under 14 Boys Division Round of 32 Heat 1 Tiger West-Hill (Gis), 12.3, 1, Beau Woods (Mnt), 11.3, 2, Jack Tyro (Chch), 7.64, 3, Noah Camburn (Ohope), 5, 4 Heat 2 Ryder Pennington (Tara), 13.4, 1, Mathias Thompson (Piha), 9.77, 2, Theo Morse (Orewa), 3.97, 3, Otis Baxter (WGM), 1, 4 Heat 3 Tava Santorik (Mnt), 10.57, 1, Cooper Roberts (Mnt), 6.53, 2, Ben Milne (WGM), 5.2, 3, James Charlesworth (Auck), 2.57, 4 Heat 4 Navryn Malone (Rag), 15.7, 1, Dale Cromhout (Hbay), 5.53, 2, Charlie Harris (Mnt), 3.07, 3, Braedon Webster (Ohope), 2.33, 4 Heat 5 Tai Erceg-Gray (Whngrei), 9.5, 1, Daniel Cox (WGM), 3.57, 2, Lachie Cruikshank (Auck), 2.93, 3, Tyce Schumacher (Mnt), 0, 4 Heat 6 Will Hardie (Piha), 11.1, 1, Eden Mainwaring (WGM), 7.94, 2, Tana Clapham (Rag), 6.9, 3, Noah Jakich (Auck), 2.43, 4 Heat 7 Kalani Louis (Tara), 7.93, 1, Marcus Fraser-McKenzie (Mnt), 7.3, 2, Riku Gordon (Mah), 4.56, 3, Leo Hobson (Auck), 2.6, 4 Heat 8 Rory Bathhurst (WGM), 6.16, 1, Bill Byers (Piha), 4.33, 2, Indica Corcoran (Mnt), 3.4, 3, Tao Mouldey (Mnt), n/s Under 14 Boys Quarterfinals Heat 1 Cooper Roberts (Mnt), 8.33, 1, Ryder Pennington (Tara), 8.23, 2, Tiger West-Hill (Gis), 8.07, 3, Dale Cromhout (Hbay), 4.6, 4 Heat 2 Navryn Malone (Rag), 8.93, 1, Mathias Thompson (Piha), 4.6, 2, Beau Woods (Mnt), 2.57, 3, Tava Santorik (Mnt), 2.37, 4 Heat 3 Tai Erceg-Gray (Whngrei), 11, 1, Bill Byers (Piha), 10.3, 2, Marcus Fraser-McKenzie (Mnt), 8.93, 3, Will Hardie (Piha), 3, 4 Heat 4 Kalani Louis (Tara), 7.16, 1, Daniel Cox (WGM), 2.77, 2, Eden Mainwaring (WGM), 2.2, 3, Rory Bathhurst (WGM), 0, 4 Under 14 Girls Division Round 1 Heat 1 Sophia Brock (Mnt), 7.16, 1, Amanda Gouldsbury (Tara), 4.77, 2, Ariana Walker (Mnt), 3.96, 3, Chloe Groube (Pau), 3.03, 4 Heat 2 Asia Braithwaite (Gis), 8.03, 1, Mahia Braithwaite (Gis), 6.6, 2, Alani Morse (Orewa), 4.3, 3, Lily Honeycombe (WGM), 2.04, 4 Heat 3 Anna Brock (Mnt), 10.3, 1, India Kennings (WGM), 3.5, 2, Coral Woods (Gis), 2.43, 3, Lola Groube (Pau), n/s Heat 4 Jess Haysom (Piha), 5.9, 1, Amelie Brady (Mnt), 4.26, 2, Pia Rogers (WGM), 2.9, 3, Naobi Nishida (Auck), 2.2, 4 Under 16 Girls Division Round 1 Heat 1 Liv Haysom (Piha), 8.93, 1, Brie Bennett (Rag), 7, 2, Ava Smith (Gis), 5.77, 3, Alice Webb (WGM), 2.23, 4 Heat 2 Alice Westerkamp (Auck), 4.5, 1, Summer Carkeek (Auck), 2.67, 2, Natasha Gouldsbury (Tara), 2.5, 3 Heat 3 Ava Henderson (Chch), 10.43, 1, Hannah King (Gis), 8.76, 2, Daizee Rawles (Gis), 2.63, 3 The 2019 edition of the Billabong Grom Series presented by Oceanbridge is split into three divisions for boys and girls ranging from Under 14 through to Under 18 in two year increments. It is the fourteenth year that Billabong has sponsored the series in partnership with Oceanbridge who have been a proud long-time supporter of surfing in New Zealand Click the image above to watch the video Eight of the Bay of Plentys top young growers are being tested to the limit today as they take part in a series of skills events at the Te Puke A&P Show. In the specially designed Horticultural Village site at the show, they are competing in practical and theory events in the first stage of their endeavours to win the title of 2019 Bay of Plenty Young Grower of the Year. The final test will be presenting a speech at the awards dinner in Tauranga on Wednesday February 13. Vying for the top title and a range of awards are; Alex Ashe, technical advisor, Farmlands; Andrew Jenkins, orchard cadet, Seeka; Dylan Wadsworth, orchard manager, Baygold; Emily Crum, orchard manager, Prospa (EastPack); Georgia Guy-Williams, laboratory manager / inventory assistant, Apata Group; Hamish McKain, avocado manager / production manager, DMS Progrowers; Megan Fox, orchard technical advisor, Southern Cross Horticulture and Ranjit Singh, orchard manager, Weskco. Today, under the watchful eye of judges, the contestants are demonstrating their knowledge and abilities in skills vital to the management of a successful orchard, including tractor proficiency, orchard profitability, and plant nutrition. On Wednesday night, at the gala dinner, compared by entertainer Jackie Clarke, each contestant will present a speech on the topic of Future disruptors to horticulture before an audience of 420 guests, including industry leaders. The 2019 Bay of Plenty Young Growers prize package includes sponsorship to attend the annual Horticulture New Zealand Conference, a media and presentation development course, and an all-expenses paid trip to compete for the national 2019 Young Grower of the Year title in October as well as cash prizes. Now in its 12th year, the competition is organised by the Bay of Plenty Young Fruit Grower Upskilling Committee with support from New Zealand Kiwifruit Growers Inc. Andrew Dawson, Chair of the Bay of Plenty Young Fruit Growers Upskilling Committee, says, "The avocado and kiwifruit industries are booming in the Bay of Plenty and we want to ensure that there are leaders with scientific, commercial and technical backgrounds to continue its success into the future. The Young Fruit Grower competition is a great way to promote and build the young and upcoming talent that our industry has." Horticulture New Zealand chief executive Mike Chapman agrees that these competitions are an excellent showcase of the potential opportunities in the horticulture industry. "The Young Grower competition doesnt just show what you can accomplish with a career in horticulture, but how to develop the skills and experience to get there. Horticulture is a growing industry, and there are amazing opportunities for everyone willing to put the work in. "The Bay of Plenty competition, and similar competitions held around the country, showcase the amazing talent we have working in our industry." Event organiser Renee Fritchley says, "This year we have had a record number of contestants apply to compete, and for the first-time tickets to the gala dinner have sold out well in advance. This is a reflection of how dedicated our industry is to encouraging future talent, and the level of drive and commitment we are seeing from our future leaders coming through. The original MC for the gala dinner was actress and comedian Madeleine Sami. Since accepting the role to moderate at the dinner, Madeleines movie the Breaker Upperers has been picked up by Netflix and she will attend the launch in Hollywood so is unable to be at our dinner. However, Jackie Clarke will be the new MC of the evening. She is a great entertainer and we are very pleased to be able to secure her for this important evening. The champion of the Bay of Plenty competition will progress to the Young Grower of the Year national final, to be held in Tauranga in October. There, they will join the winners of the Nelson, Hawkes Bay, Gisborne, and Central Otago regionals, as well as a Young Vegetable Grower, to compete for the national title of Young Grower 2019. For more information on the competition, visit: www.bopyoungfruitgrower.co.nz. Stay up to date on COVID-19 Get Breaking News Sign up now to get our FREE breaking news coverage delivered right to your inbox. Sponsored By: Arvest Bank INTRODUCTION The case that will be documented here is that Venezuelas people are suffering from a tragic national situation which actually cannot be reversed by anything thats within the power of Venezuelas Government to do or to block. In order to understand this very unfortunate reality (if one wants to understand it), one must first understand the relevant parts of the broader situation in the world that affects Venezuela. Whats dooming the country isnt merely a local situation, but instead is global and environmental. It also is economic, pertaining to the role that Venezuela is playing in the global economy. But the economic factor is definitely not of the kind that it's commonly assumed and alleged to be. It is instead very different. Here, this very different reality will be both described and documented (instead of just founded upon assumptions many of which are false such as the standard, basically local, economic explanation of Venezuelas troubles is, which focuses on Venezuelas socialism, or the economys being not sufficiently capitalist). What it all comes down to, stated in its briefest terms, is that no nation can do anything but lose money by selling the worlds dirtiest oil, tar-sands oil, which costs $100+ to clean and produce, into a global oil market thats paying less than $100 (currently around $65) per barrel. Venezuela was able to sell it profitably when oil-prices were high, but is getting crushed now, because its oil is no longer profitable to produce and sell. But 95% of Venezuelas export-earnings come from oil. Unless and until oil-prices are again above $100 (which probably wont happen again, except perhaps for very brief periods), Venezuela is doomed. Venezuelas only chance to diversify its economy away from the natural resources curse (from which it especially suffers) was long ago, decades before the current Government came into power. That chance was missed. This ship is now sinking, and no one can save it. (And the US Government and its allies have no actual interest in saving it, but only in exploiting it, parasitically.) So, here the real history and context for what is happening in and to Venezuela will be presented, and the reader will be able easily to verify any detail of it (by means of the links) on ones own, (not accepting anything on mere authority, which, in such a politically charged matter as this, is almost invariably propaganda). The reader can verify any allegation here simply by clicking onto the given link, at any point in the presentation that might seem to be questionable. These links are directly to the items of evidence, in the specific case of: why Venezuelas people are suffering. Here is that case the realistic case, without any propaganda, but with only credible news reports and source-documents as constituting its basis regarding this question. THE CASE The two lands that produce the worlds highest-cost-to-produce oil are Canada and Venezuela. Both extract their oil overwhelmingly from tar-sands, which is the dirtiest of all oil and thus (by far) the costliest to refine. (Thus, its called extra-heavy crude, and that is the least desirable type. Its also the type that, in a global-warming world, should remain in the ground, never be burned at all, as will also be explained here.) An accurate summary statement in Wikipedia is that, With present technology, the extraction and refining of heavy oils and oil sands generates as much as three times the total CO2 emissions compared to conventional oil,[20] primarily driven by the extra energy consumption of the extraction process. That reference at [20] also states: As the price of oil rises and as conventional hydrocarbon resources become scarcer, increased exploration and production activity is occurring in heavy oil, tar sands, and bitumen deposits. While these contribute significantly to the global energy , they also contribute a greater share to the detriment of the global environment. (Thats referring to a greater share of detriment than normal crude does.) As another source phrased this matter in more explicit terms: 85 gallons of water, two tons of soil, 700-1200 cubic feet of natural gas, and 170 pounds of greenhouse gases make one barrel of crude oil from tar-sands. That oil is simply not usable as-is to go into refining, like, for example, the standard Brent crude is. Furthermore, to produce that barrel of tar-sands-derived oil requires also the production of tons of sheer waste, none of which is left behind from producing normal oil. The cost of dealing with that waste is not factored into the cost of the barrels of oil. For examples, the future impact upon water supplies, and that "this water is polluted by toxic substances, are not counted in. Therefore, the full cost of such oil has never been calculated. And yet, even so, everyone recognizes that tar-sands-derived oils are the costliest to produce. On 25 January 2013, HSBC Global Research issued a landmark report, Oil & Carbon Revisited: Value at risk from unburnable reserves. It defined the key concept of Unburnable reserves: The IEA's World Energy Outlook (2012 edition) estimated that in order to have a 50% chance of limiting the rise in global temperatures to 2C, only a third of current fossil fuel reserves can be burned before 2050. The balance could be regarded as unburnable. The oil in Canada and in Venezuela is the worlds least burnable, the most heavy, and therefore its not only the costliest to produce, but its also the worst environmentally. There is consequently increasing pressure upon large investment funds such as Harvards 39-billion-dollar endowment fund, to disinvest in fossil fuels. Because of interlocked boards of directors or trustees, and the needs that such charities have to appeal to wealthy donors, these public pressures are often (as in Harvards case) ignored, but the movement toward divestment is gradually gaining strength in the less corrupt investment funds. On 13 December 2018, the environmental organization 350.org headlined "Landmark fossil fuel divestment reached! 1000+ institutions are withdrawing investments from coal, oil and gas companies", and announced: The 1000th institution to divest was the Caisse des depots et consignations (CDC), which manages Frances public sector pensions, savings, and investments worth 173 billion (USD$196 billion). It recently announced that from 2019 it will no longer invest in companies that make more than 10% of their business from coal this implies that the top 200 companies in the coal-industry are now effectively blacklisted. On the momentum for divestment since 2013 Nicolas Haeringer, an organiser who supports divestment groups globally, at 350.org said: This is a moral movement as well as a financial one. Just five years ago we had 181 divestment commitments and USD$50 billion shifted away from polluting industries and today were over 1000 and approaching USD$8 trillion dollars. This has already helped to drive many coal companies out of business. Though coal-mine owners and employees might lose from that, the entire world gains vastly more from it. Such a transition is called progress. Transition in the opposite direction toward more bad than good is called regress, or, simply, harm. Some people call it conservatism, but whatever it is, certainly isnt progress. Not in any way. But thats what the US Government and the Canadian Government want: extreme conservatism not conservation. And they view Venezuelas tar-sands oil as being a prize that they could profit from if Venezuelas Government could be persuaded to reduce their environmental regulations on extracting it. However, in 2012, Venezuela strengthened, instead of weakened, its environmental laws. That strengthened the motivation for the US and Canada to take over Venezuela. Hugo Chavez died in 2013, and Nicolas Maduro replaced him. Then, in 2016, Maduro instituted a new policy, to weaken environmental enforcement in Venezuela. Perhaps he was hoping that this would reduce the US-and-allied efforts to overthrow him. Venezuelas economy was already on the ropes. The US continued its efforts to overthrow Maduro. Now desperate, he started selling off 12% of the land to international mining companies. Environmental enforcement at PDVSA also plunged, and on 24 November 2018, Bloomberg News bannered Venezuela Is Leaking Oil Everywhere. Apparently, the weaker Maduro gets, the worse he becomes. He had entered a doomed office as the president, and seems willing to do anything not to drown in it. Apparently, the weaker he gets, the more that US-allied billionaires want to take over the country, entirely on their own terms. Itll be like what had already happened in Greece, when the Syriza Party there capitulated to the international financial firms in 2015, and the Government stripped pensions, education, social services, etc., and privatized the infrastructure. But the path toward that end is quite different in Venezuela. With the worlds increasing move toward renewables, the disinvestment in oil companies will increasingly be targeted toward selling the stock in the ones that have invested the most in oil fields in Canada and Venezuela. However, the situation is radically different for Venezuela than it is for Canada. Here is why: The biggest market for Canadian oil is just next door, the United States. Most of the oil thats imported into the US comes from Canada. And, because most of the oil companies that are producing oil in Canada are US owned or allied (such as in UK), the US Government isnt sanctioning Canada and trying to bring its Government down by reducing Canadas oil-sales via sanctions, such as is the case with regard to Venezuelas oil-sales. The US Government doesnt need to do that in order for Americas corporations to become enabled to sell the oil that comes from Canada: theyre already selling that oil, and Canadas Government (as well as Americas Government) is already helping Americas companies to do this. Americas and Canadas aristocracies are allied not only with Venezuelas aristocracy (which wants to replace Venezuelas existing Government), but also with each others aristocracy. Furthermore, unlike Venezuela, Canada isnt nearly 100% dependent upon its oil-sales in order to support its economy, such as Venezuela tragically is. Venezuela receives around 95% of its export-income from its oil. Thats ridiculous and, for geostrategic and geoeconomic reasons, should never have been tolerated by Venezuelas Government, but it nonetheless has been tolerated by them and, for many decades, not only by Venezuelas present Government. Indeed, Oil&Gas Journal headlined on 8 February 2010, All about Orinoco and reported that there had been early efforts to produce heavy crude from the [Orinoco] belt and these efforts led PDVSA predecessors to output by the early 1980s of 93,000 b/d. Furthermore, Petroleos de Venezuela SA estimated 1.18 trillion bbl of oil in place in the Orinoco in 1987 and revised that in 2006 to a median of 1.3 trillion bbl, a maximum of 1.4 trillion bbl, and a minimum of 900 billion bbl. At that time, Richard Turcotte, of Peak Oil Matters, warned about this report, by headlining A Look at Venezuela, and pointing out that: Unlike the light sweet crude oil produced by the US and the light oil which has made Saudi Arabia such a force, the Orinoco oil is heavy oil found in oil sands similar in characteristics to the tar sands bitumen found in Alberta, Canada. (See my prior post here.) The Venezuela oil is thus much harder to extract and refine, making it more costly. Significant investments of time and money are required to provide adequate refinery capabilities. Needless to say, extracting this heavy oil is a much more energy-and time-intensive effort than is the process for extracting the more familiar light crude. It is not anyones answer in the next few years. Lead researcher and USGS geologist Chris Schenk admitted that their report is not asserting that the technically recoverable oil is in fact economically recoverable. Thats a significant distinction, and one that needs to be emphasized. All the presumed underground reserves in the world wont mean much if it makes no sense to invest the time, effort, and money to try and extract them. The USGS nonetheless estimates that a stunning 40 45% of that resource will be ultimately recoverable. One prominent geologist (and a former board member of Petroleos de Venezuela SA Venezuelas state oil company) is already on record as doubting anywhere near that amount can be recovered, and stated that much of what might actually be recoverable would in fact be too expensive to produce. Perhaps Venezuelas President Hugo Chavez and his predecessors were thinking that if the US Government says that this oil is an asset, then it is reasonable to consider it to be an asset; but if the US Government was instead merely aiming to get Venezuelans to think that its an asset so as to keep that country accepting its existing oil-monoeconomy (its over-dependence upon oil), then ultimately as the disappointment hits when the Venezuelan people experience the poverty after having hoped and tried to develop that asset, the US Government will become welcomed in, to take over Venezuelas failing Government. Anyway, that would be a conceivable reason why the US Government would be promoting the economic potential of the Orinoco belt. The aristocracys agents (in this case the petroleum industry) tend to be very clear-eyed about whats of benefit to their paymasters. For whatever reason, the actual fact that this oil was no asset has remained hidden from the Venezuelan public. It still isnt publicly acknowledged by Venezuelas Government. Nor is it publicly recognized by Americas. So, this tragic error (of presuming that tar-sands oil should be developed) goes back even to well before the time of Hugo Chavez. Moreover, its worth pointing out that the actual source of the error is the petroleum industry itself, which, like the tobacco companies before it, constantly propagandized for increased production and sales, regardless of what the science says. A good example of that propaganda is the Editorial in Oil&Gas Journal on 24 January 2019, headlining Costs, energy needs discredit keep it in the ground agenda. It says: Preemptive opposition to oil and gas projects by keep it in the ground activists promises needless hardship in two broad areas. This is a denial of the entire concept of unburnable reserves. They want, instead, to burn it all and even to keep prospecting to find yet more oil and gas (at this time of already greatly excessive inventories of cleaner reserves that should be burned before any of Canadas or Venezuelas filth is). They could lay off their entire teams of oil-explorers, who are wasting their time to find yet more dirty energy sources that wont ever need to be used by anybody. Either these people are stupid and insane, or else they are psychopaths who care only about keeping their existing jobs and dont care at all about the world that future generations will be experiencing. If their children knew, then what would they think of what their parents had done to the world that they will be living in? Consequently (perhaps after for whatever reason listening too much to self-interested advisors), Venezuelas Government has allowed itself to become trapped by its addiction to selling its extraordinarily filthy oil. There was no Governmental demand, no sufficient priority placed upon Venezuelan firms, for them to diversify the economy away from petroleum. Neither the present Government, nor any previous Government of Venezuela, did. Hugo Chavez and Nicolas Maduro didnt create this problem; but, now, and especially on Maduros watch, the oil-market transformations that result from the global-warming phenomenon are accelerating; and, unlike Canada, which is part of the US empire, Venezuela isnt receiving US Government protection of its investors, and so there is no helping hand from the US Government (i.e., from Americas aristocracy) to assist Venezuelas oil sales (such as the US does provide regarding Canada). There is, instead, to the contrary as Venezuelas Government has become weaker and weaker, and has less and less public support while global oil prices have plummeted the grabbing hand, of both the US and Canadian Governments, to take over Venezuelas Government, whose biggest sin, actually, was to have left itself open to such a take-over, by its having failed to diversify its economy away from the countrys doomed, and dooming, extraordinarily costly-to-refine, and undesirable to refine, oil. Its now just a coffin in the ground, but its nonetheless still the source of virtually all of Venezuelas export sales. No government could sustain supporting such a zombie. Its a deadweight thats dragging Venezuela down and economically suffocating all Venezuelans. And the documentation that this situation exists is incontrovertible: The current WTO report on Venezuela indicates that 96.9% of the countrys exports are of Fuels and mining products, and that over 98% of this 96.9% consists of oils. Also shown is that the biggest five importers from Venezuela account for only 1.9% of Venezuelas exports, and therefore all other countries account for 98.1%. So, when Venezuela loses its US market, that would mean loss of only 0.6% of its total export market. However, Americas sanctions will additionally cause some US vassal nations such as in Europe to stop importing from Venezuela. So, Maduro is very vulnerable, indeed. Diversifying the markets (to that 98.1%) isnt what was needed by Venezuelans; diversifying the economy was; and neither he nor his predecessors did any of that. On February 2018, Petroleum Science headlined "Analysis of Venezuelas oil-oriented economy: from the perspective of entropy and reported that, the current breakeven price has achieved to over $100/bbl in Venezuela. Right now, oil is selling at around $65 per barrel. So, how can Venezuela make money selling its $100+ oil into the global $65 oil market? Its just not possible, at least not sustainably. The Petroleum Science article therefore said that it is unwise for Venezuela to count on selling raw oil to support the countrys economy, because any per-barrel price thats lower than Venezuelas $100+ per barrel production cost will produce a loss on the sale of that barrel of oil, and because there will be very few if any future days when the per-barrel oil-price will again be above $100. The more that the world cuts back on petroleum and increases non-carbon energy-sources, the lower that the price of oil will become. And the more that investment funds steer clear of high-carbon firms, the lower the corporate stock of those companies will sink in value. Both investors and consumers are therefore going to be turning away from them. When global oil prices were high, Venezuela could sell even its costly-to-refine oil profitably, but those times are now long gone and probably will never return, as the world increasingly switches away from fossil fuels. Especially tar-sands oils, such as from Canada and from Venezuela, should stay in the ground, and not only because todays oil prices are too low to sustain selling them, but also because those extra-heavy oils are the worst to burn, from the standpoint of causing global warming. As an example of this economic reality, a major US corporate investor in Venezuelan oil is Chevron Corporation, and Zacks Investment Research headlined on 5 October 2011, Chevron Sees Carabobo Oil in 2012. It stated: According to a company executive, US energy behemoth Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX News) may see the start-up of an oil field in Venezuelas Orinoco Belt next year. The super-major is confident that it can commence production from Orinocos Carabobo Project 3 which has estimated reserves of 66 billion barrels in the third quarter of 2012. Chevron holds a 34% interest in Carabobo Project 3, while Venezuela's national oil company Petroleos de Venezuela S.A. (or PDVSA) controls 60%. The remaining stake is owned by Venezuelan and Japanese firms. Following the first production of 50,000 barrels per day, [Chevron] is looking to boost volumes by an additional 50,000-100,000 barrels per day every two years. Carabobo 3, one of several Orinoco projects, is estimated to reach a maximum output of approximately 400,000-480,000 barrels of crude oil per day by 2016. There is no public indication, at least not online, that even the first production of 50,000 barrels per day has been yet achieved, though it had been expected to occur within a year. Chevrons 2017 Annual Report (covering the year 2016) is the latest online, and it doesnt so much as even mention Carabobo. And this was after the 5 October 2011 prediction that Carabobo 3, one of several Orinoco projects, is estimated to reach a maximum output of approximately 400,000-480,000 barrels of crude oil per day by 2016. Clearly, thats a poorly performing investment. Chevrons current web-page on Venezuela says Chevron has a 34 percent interest in Petroindependencia, S.A., which includes the Carabobo 3 Project, but it provides no number of barrels of oil being produced there (if any) not even now, in 2019. Bad investments die in silence and in obscurity, but good investments get trumpeted everywhere and this one is being trumpeted nowhere. Any oil sales from those fields will not only be delayed until when oil prices are again high enough to sell those dirty oils at a profit (which is increasingly unlikely ever to happen again). The investment values of those companies will likewise be especially hard hit as the problem of unburnable reserves becomes increasingly widely recognized and understood by the public. The public wont remain ignorant and deceived about these matters forever. This is like a Ponzi scheme. Russias Government seems determined never to accept this US coup imposing Americas regime-change upon the sovereign nation of Venezuela, and has made the decision to send military assets, and to invest both in Venezuelas Government and in the oil company. On January 29th, Russias Interfax News Agency headlined in Russian, The Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation hopes to get external debt payments from Venezuela. The neoconservative Jamestown Foundation remarked about that on January 31st by saying that These debts may eventually be written off by a new opposition Venezuelan government led by the self-proclaimed interim president, Juan Guaido, if it manages to push Maduro out (see EDM, January 28, 2019). Yet, even if Maduro somehow succeeds in clinging to power with Russian help, he will hardly have the resources to service the loans. That, unfortunately, happens to be true. The only sensible reason why Russia would be committing itself to protecting Venezuelas sovereignty would be in order to say to Washington that Americas long string of foreign regime-changes (Iraq, Libya, Syria, Honduras, Ukraine, etc.) has now ended to establish the principle (as Russia has recently done in Syria) that no longer will Washingtons invasions and coups be tolerated, no more conquests (additions to its empire) will be allowed. Somebody has to draw the line, finally, and the other nuclear superpower could be the one to do it. Other than that, however, Russia, like other investors, can only experience losses from investments in Venezuela. Venezuela is now an asset only in The Great Game. Russias protecting in Venezuela the principle of national sovereignty no coups, no conquests, at all is as moral as Americas repeatedly rejecting that principle is immoral; but, as an investment, Venezuela simply is a loss. If The Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation hopes to get external debt payments from Venezuela, then Russias Ministry of Finance should be expecting to be disappointed in that hope. But that hope wouldnt, in any case, be a sound reason for what Russia is doing there. The only asset to be won in Venezuela is protection of the most basic principle of international law: the independence and sovereignty of each nation. Hitler and his fascist allies, and Stalin and his communist allies, violated that principle; but now fascist America and its allies routinely violate it. Venezuelas allies (unlike Neville Chamberlain) are supporting the foundation-stone of international law: national sovereignty and independence. For the US and its allies to reject the results of Venezuelas (or of Syrias or of Irans) elections is no basis for invalidating those results, and the US Governments stooge Juan Guaido is simply a Venezuelan traitor, and should be treated as such, by an appropriate trial for treason. Certainly, there is no Constitutional basis for Guaidos power-grab, despite the lies to the contrary by the putchists such as in America and its allied regimes. All oil-exploration should therefore now stop, and existing tar-sands oil fields should simply be abandoned altogether. Only the easiest-to-refine (the lighter) oils should be sold and burnt right now. There is going to be a rush for the exits in the stocks of those extra-heavy oil companies, and the only question is when it will happen. Regarding that rush, the situation is very different in Venezuela than it is in Canada, because the US Government will delay as long as possible the collapse of Canadas oil-sales, but the US (and Canada) want to expedite the collapse of Venezuelas at least until and unless the current Venezuelan coup succeeds. (And Canadas Foreign Minister, Chrystia Freeland, did the key preparatory work for US President Trump to pull the plug on Venezuela's Government; so, both of those governments have actually led in overthrowing and replacing Venezuelas non-US-allied Government.) Venezuela became addicted to selling its filthy oil, but now can only lose money with every barrel it sells of its oil. Each day of the companys operations is simply eating the companys seed-corn and there is nothing like Canada has, to soften the blow. Thats not only unsustainable, it has already become a crisis, and Washington is exploiting it. PDVSAs latest online financial report is for 2016 and it shows that Profit before income tax was $16,317,000 in 2014, then $1,469,000 in 2015, and then $955,000 less than a million dollars in 2016. During the three-year period, Current assets declined from $55.2 billion to $54.6 billion, and Current liabilities declined from $55.7 billion to $50.0 billion. Financial debt declined from $40.0 billion to $33.9 billion. Total assets declined from $217.4 billion to $189.7 billion; and Total liabilities declined from $127.7 billion to $102.6 billion. Probably the company is already operating in the red now, but with every year of deteriorating infrastructure, just wearing out, with more and more and longer deferred maintenance, and with a bad long-term prospect for profitability, could the Government even sell the company? If Trump succeeds and PDVSA and every other state-owned asset in Venezuela becomes privatized, Venezuelas citizens will be left with nothing, and the only beneficiaries will be the international bankers, even as international investors will need to take haircuts on their existing Venezuelan loans. The oil that PDVSA sells shouldnt even be bought; it should simply remain in the ground. According to the latest public information, PDVSA showed less than a million dollars of profit in 2016 and the trend was downward. Anyone in Venezuela who thinks that the country can be sustained in the future, as it was in the past, from the sale of Venezuelas exceptionally costly-to-produce oil, isnt taking into account the broader picture, and the impact that the global-warming phenomenon will inevitably have upon the fossil-fuels industries. There may be ways to jiggle the books to make PDVSA fool some investors into buying the company, but only the international bankers would be profiting from a sale of that firm. Foreign Policy magazine, which represents Americas aristocracy, headlined on 5 June 2018, Its Time for a Coup in Venezuela, but even if that turns out to be the final solution to the Venezuelan problem for Americas aristocrats, it wont solve anything for the Venezuelan public basically like Hitlers final solution did nothing to benefit Germanys Jews. Germanys aristocracy did nothing for Jews then, and Americas aristocracy will do nothing for Venezuelans now. Theyre all on their own. The leaders of the US-allied nations dont want to save them, and instead follow in the fascist and Nazi tradition. The leaders in Venezuelas current Government, who want to save them, simply cant save them. Its far too late for them to start now, to do what needed to start back in the early 1980s of 93,000 b/d from Venezuelas Orinoco belt which would have been for them to stop what ought never even to have been started there: extraction of that oil. CONCLUSION The poverty and violence that now rack Venezuela result from a broader situation in which selling what shouldnt even be bought has run its miserable course until the final act, which is a Government that has reached the stage where it can produce income only for international bankers and for the aristocrats who control them. Any oil company now that would want to buy those assets would merely be adding to its assets chiefly the dirty oil in the ground assets (oil reserves) that can never even be used (unless the propaganda becomes even more effective in the future than it has always been until now, which might be impossible to achieve). Oil companies already have lots more of that dangerous filth than anyone except people in finance will ever be able to benefit from buying or selling. For Venezuelans, this is a great tragedy. The US and its allies are (and have been) doing everything they can to exploit the tragedy. Its like a hungry lion chasing a fleeing exhausted deer, who now is finally trapped. Thats the ugly reality. Mike Pompeo, the current American Secretary of State, gave a speech at the American University in Cairo on January 10, 2019. He started the speech identifying himself an evangelical Christian, that is also a Christian Zionist, and said, In my office, I keep a Bible open on my desk to remind me of God and his Word and the Truth and he referred to Israel as our [United States] ally, a distinction not granted to any Arab country in his speech. A white, Christian Zionist, American Secretary of State gave a speech in Egypt a conservative Muslim country, where the Muslim Brotherhood was born, where some of the most conservative Muslim thinkers are from and the home of Al Azhar University; the internationally renowned and recognized Islamic academic center where he celebrated his countrys resounding support for Israel. To add insult to injury, the Secretary of State proudly noted that President Trump campaigned on the promise to recognize Jerusalem the seat of Israels government as the nations capital. In May, we moved our embassy there. Pompeo went on to use this platform in Egypt to lambast President Obama, the first American president of African, Muslim heritage; bashing him and holding him responsible for ills in American foreign policy and in the Middle East. The whole event is incongruous, to say the least; a black comedy! Pompeo assured us that It is a truth that isnt often spoken in this part of the world America is a force for good in the Middle East. An example of this honorable American force for good in the Middle East, he noted, is the presence of US military personnel stationed in Saudi Arabia and major bases in Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and the Emirates. They are there at the invitation of the host country. This raised two points: First, why are American military personnel in the Gulf countries? Trump had answered this question, regarding Saudi Arabia specifically, at a rally in October 2018 in Southaven, Mississippi. He clarified the US role in Saudi Arabia, saying We protect Saudi Arabia. Would you say theyre rich? And I love the King, King Salman. But I said: King were protecting you you might not be there for two weeks without us you have to pay for your military This is NOT a force for good. Second, Pompeo stated that Americans are in the Gulf countries at the invitation of the host countries which makes it legitimate and legal. However, Pompeo declared that In Syria, the United States will use diplomacy and work with our partners to expel every last Iranian boot. It is kosher for America to be in a country at the invitation of the host country to protect its political system, but is it not kosher for Iran to be in Syria at the invitation of the host country to protect its political system? Thus, America in the Middle East is not a force for good, but a force to protect oppressive and expansionist authoritarian regimes on the one hand and exploit the resources of the host country on the other. Pompeo came up with another curious assertion: We learned that when America retreats, chaos often follows. Vietnam descended into total chaos following the American invasion and started the process of recovery after the American retreat. Iraq descended into total chaos following the 2003 American invasion and so did Syria, following the American and American allies invasion during the recent civil war. Both countries are on the way of recovery with the reduction of American military involvement. A notion is developing in the Middle East, and to some degree worldwide, that Israel and, its closest ally the US, threaten international peace and security. In another part of the speech, Pompeo said that America, along with allies and partners, dismantled the Islamic States caliphate, liberating Iraqis, Syrians Arabs and Kurds However, he ignored the fact that it was the US, and particularly its allies in the region, who recruited and encouraged terrorists from all over the world to come to Syria and opened their borders to these terrorists to gather in Syria. Once in Syria, these terrorists were provided money and weapons to establish the Islamic States Caliphate. Wittingly, or unwittingly, Pompeo gave the green light to Israel to wage a war against Iran. He said, We strongly support Israels efforts to stop Tehran from turning Syria into the next Lebanon. This is another example of America not being a force for good, but a force for war and destruction. Another curious assertion by Pompeo: America has always been, and always will be, a liberating force, not an occupying power. This brings back to memory the tragic Vietnam War and the American My Lai Massacre: It became necessary to destroy the town to save it. The low point in Pompeos speech, and there were several, was when he said with a straight face that Saudi Arabia and Gulf countries contributed towards stabilization efforts in Syria. Tell that to the Syrians who, in this brutally cold winter, are facing shortages of heating fuel, cooking fuel and electric power. President Abraham Lincoln is often credited for having said: You can fool all the people some of the time and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time. It is loud and clear that Pompeo, and beyond him the American administrations in recent decades, have forgotten Lincolns admonition and try to fool all the people all the time. Photo: Flickr Who and where From left: Dan Gould and Pamela Hodge of St. Louis and Kathleen and Wayne Rutter of Overland Park, Kan., on a stateroom balcony on the Island Princess cruise ship. They were docked in one of the Gatun Lake locks in the Panama Canal. The trip The ship left Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and stopped at ports in Ocho Rios, Jamaica; Cartagena, Colombia; Limon, Costa Rica; Colon, Panama; and Grand Cayman. Travel tip Carry a copy of your passport in a bag that does not have your passport. Contribute Email your photo to stlpost@gmail.com. Include the full names of everyone in the photo, including where they are from and where you are standing in the photo. Also include your address and phone number. Please also tell us a little about the trip and a travel tip. Were looking for interesting, well-composed, well-lighted photos. GET OUT OF TOWN with our weekly newsletter full of tips, tales and reviews. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Top letters: Reactions to Better Together and pictures of dead hogs Which would be more shocking: appointing a former coal lobbyist to head the Environmental Protection Agency, or appointing a former oil lobbyist to the Department of the Interior? Its a trick question. President Donald Trump last week did both. This continues a long history of top Trump picks with fox/henhouse problems. The Senate should start pushing back on appointees who appear likely to undermine the very missions of the departments they would run. Trump last Monday appointed David Bernhardt as Interior secretary. Bernhardt has been deputy secretary since 2017 and has led the agency on an interim basis since January. Thats an adequate resume; the issue is what came before. As an oil lobbyist, Bernhardt once led a lawsuit attempting to weaken the Endangered Species Act on behalf of corporate clients. Enforcing the act is a key Interior responsibility, yet Bernhardt has continued attacking it from within. As Interior secretary, he may be more dangerous to wildlife than any oil lobbyist. The Associated Press has won 32Pulitzer prizes for photography since the award was established in 1917. Each day we offer a curated collection In the cold open, the show's actors, playing "some of the leading journalists in the world" discussed Jeff Bezos and his battle with The National Enquirer. The focus wasn't on the possible blackmail, Bezos' reaction to it, the president's connections to the tabloid. It was on Bezos' personal ... attributes. In a later sketch, Kenan Thompson faced a roomful of Virginia politicians, and asked if any of them wore blackface before. The answer, to be quick, was yes: "... It was funny and cool back in the '80s." (Thompson quickly shoots that down.) Police believe somebody intentionally set fire to a Planned Parenthood clinic early Sunday in Columbia, Mo. Firefighters first arrived at Planned Parenthood-Columbia Health Center, at 711 North Providence Road, around 4 a.m., according to a press release. An investigation showed that a sprinkler system put out the fire. Officials said the "small fire" was suspicious. Other details of the fire were not released, and authorities did not discuss a possible motive. The clinic no longer offers abortions after new requirements went into effect last year. It provides birth control, testing for sexually transmitted diseases, and the morning after pill. Authorities asked anyone with information about the fire to contact the Columbia Police Department at 573-874-7652. Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. WASHINGTON Tangunikia Ward, a single mom of two who has been unemployed for the past couple of years, was shocked when her St. Louis family was kicked off Missouris Medicaid program without warning last fall. She found out only when taking her son, Mario, 10, to a doctor to be treated for ringworm. When Ward, 29, tried to contact the state to get reinstated, she said it took several weeks just to have her calls returned. Then she waited again for the state to mail her a long form to fill out attesting to her income and family size, showing that she was still eligible for the state-federal health insurance program for the poor. Mario, who is in third grade, missed much of school in December because Ward could not afford a doctor visit without Medicaid. His school would not let him return without a doctors note saying he was no longer infected. In January, with the help of lawyers from Legal Services of Eastern Missouri, she was able to get back on Medicaid, take her son to a doctor and return him to school. It was a real struggle as it seemed like everyone was giving me the runaround, Ward said. I am upset because my son was out of school, and that pushed him behind. KANSAS CITY, Mo. Newly released records for a Kansas City police unit that failed to properly investigate 149 cases of crimes against children shows that the mishandled cases included reports of sodomy, rape and child abuse. The Kansas City Star reports that police released the heavily redacted incident reports for the cases on Thursday, about a month after Police Chief Rick Smith announced the conclusion of the internal review of the failed crimes against children unit. The mishandled cases generally took place from 2011 to 2016. The reports about them reveal little about the suspects or what measures detectives in the former Crimes Against Children unit undertook to investigate the allegations. Seventeen officers who formerly worked in the unit have been disciplined, with seven of the officers no longer working in the department. Information from: The Kansas City Star, http://www.kcstar.com Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Destroying a cluster of restaurants and taverns and killing 21 people the tornado also toppled the KTVI TV tower and left more than 300 people injured. It knocked down one of the towers on the old Arena on Oakland Avenue, and did heavy damage around Boyle and Olive. Pro Romania Party Chairman Victor Ponta says the state budget for 2019 is a "fake," not a realistic and serious one, and the manner in which it is attempted to be passed through Parliament proves there is no desire for "a real debate and analysis." "In the form this budget was presented the days before, it is a fake, it is not a realistic, serious budget, and the manner in which it is attempted to be passed through Parliament, to file the amendments in 24 hours, it is very clear that in Parliament there will be no desire and we won't be allowed to have real debate and analysis. The first call on the Government is to take the draft back and try to improve it here and there, in its essential parts, so that it should be an as realistic as possible budget. Otherwise, the revisions that will follow - a revision cannot be done before July - will actually be entirely different budgets from what is hastily and forcedly adopted in the days to come," Ponta told a press conference on Sunday. Must see: Tariceanu, on possible criminal complaint against Iohannis:Let's not take political debate to very low level In his opinion, the 5.5 percent economic growth forecast, which the budget was built on, is an exaggerated one. "Absolutely all analysts - the European Commission, the Monetary Fund, the World Bank - all those who are in charge with these things, have assessed the evolution of the Romanian economy in an optimistic manner at somewhere between 3.5 and 3.8 percent. There are also less optimistic predictions. Nowhere, in no variant is there the 5.5 percent projection which the budget was built on, a projection probably made by Mr. Darius Valcov. The thing that happens with these projections is that the economic growth is inflated so that you can inflate the deficit, so that you can inflate the expenditure," Ponta maintained. In context, former PM Mihai Tudose said that this budget cannot be amended in any way, because it is only one of "consumption, without setting the grounds for a sustainable development with absolutely nothing." "We are certain that 10 percent are expenses for state employees from an inflated GDP. On a real GDP, they will be much higher. This also means a useless spending and an excessive bureaucracy, in the context in which we promised during the election campaign that we would perform a state reform. The reform has been done now, in the sense of decentralising some expenses, namely the local authorities were assigned 10 lei expenses with 5 lei funding. The current Government claims that it increased the local budgets, but for each leu coming in addition to the budget, other two lei have come as additional spending. There is an entire list with letters to Santa Claus, they are fake, because the budget will come into force in March, if we don't manage with all responsible political forces to prevent this budget and this Government from going further. In fact, it is only a consumption budget, without setting the grounds for a sustainable development with absolutely nothing. What should we amend? The Government must be taken down or they should draw up a realistic budget," Tudose said. Must see: Jourova on CVM: Keeping dialogue with Romania could help it return to path of changes in correct direction In his opinion, it is not possible that 30 percent of the budget revenues come from what the National Agency for Fiscal Administration (ANAF) collects. "This is impossible. The adjustment will come from cutting expenses, failing to observe the external commitments, failing to observe the investment programmes, probably further manipulating the figures. You cannot take loans forever. If things perpetuate, if we keep digging a big hole to cover a smaller one, we'll end up with a huge hole with Romania on the edge, one step away from falling in," the former PM underscored. Senate Speaker Calin Popescu-Tariceanu said on Saturday about the possibility of filing a criminal complaint against President Klaus Iohannis that he heard "all kinds of rumors" and does not want the political debate to be taken "to a very low level". "I have heard all kinds of rumors to which I have no desire to answer, so as not to take the political debate to a very low level. I have noted the communication made by the President, the answer in the case, the refusal and I am convinced that it will be analyzed by the Prime Minister, who is responsible for the good functioning of the Government and for the appointment and dismissal of the ministers," said Tariceanu, asked if the coalition was discussing the filing of a criminal complaint for high treason against Iohannis following the rejection by the president of the appointment of Olguta Vasilescu at the helm of the Ministry of Development. Deputy Lia Olguta Vasilescu announced on Thursday that she was preparing a criminal complaint against President Klaus Iohannis for the abuse of office, after he rejected her appointment as the Minister of Development."As it is not about any legal justification for rejection but only personal hatred, I believe that Mr Klaus Iohannis perfectly fits the crime of abuse of office provided for by Article 297 (1) and (2) of the Penal Code, reason for which I have already started drafting a criminal complaint in this respect," Vasilescu wrote on Facebook.President Klaus Iohannis sent a letter to Prime Minister Viorica Dancila on Thursday announcing the rejection of the appointment of Lia Olguta Vasilescu as Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Regional Development and Public Administration. Michael H. Hart took on a task most of us interested in history would try to avoid: making a list of 100 most influential people in world history and ranking those listed. His resulting book, cleverly titled, The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History, was first published in 1978. The well-thumbed but still serviceable paperback copy I recently picked up at the Statesville Habitat for Humanities Re-Store was the 1992 revised and updated for the 90s edition. About the size of the old Charlotte telephone book anyone remember telephone books? and the cover price was $18.95. The Re-Store price was a buck and change. Hart, born in 1932, holds an A.B. in mathematics from Cornell, an L.L.B. from New York Law School, a M.S. in physics from Adelphi University and a Ph.D. in astronomy from Princeton. He worked for NASA. He writes well, summarizing the careers of his chosen 100 and explaining why he selected them. Please notice that the books title was not The 100 Best Persons in History or The 100 Most Popular Persons in History. There are some people listed whom you would not invite to your home, much less your continent. Im referring to Hitler, Stalin, Genghis Khan and a few others. President Trump was on target during much of his State of the Union address. He said our nation is at a moment of unlimited potential. He said, Millions of our fellow citizens are watching us now gathered in this great chamber hoping that we will govern not as two parties but as one nation. And he said, Victory is not winning for our party. Victory is winning for our country. Many Americans were longing to hear just those words. But now comes the hard part putting words into action. As another great American, Benjamin Franklin, said, Well done is better than well said. For our leaders to govern as one nation rather than two parties, both sides must understand that compromise is vital. If President Trump is all-in on a border wall, he must recognize that he will have to work with Democrats on, for example, providing a clear path to citizenship for people here under DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals). Democrats who want to raise the national minimum wage or expand voting rights will have to work with President Trump and the Republicans on, for example, tax reform. Melody Hager has grown up around crowns and sashes and music, all of which have played a large role throughout her life and continue to do so From character commitments to senses of grand adventure, Troop 314 in Statesville looks just like any other Boy Scout troop. Except its full of girls. I wanted to do something different, said Trinitee Gillion of her decision to join Scouts BSA, formerly Boy Scouts of America. It was called Boy Scouts, and Im a girl. And I went. Trinitee and her friend Peyton Adams are fifth graders at East Iredell Elementary School. They are two of 14 girls who met at Landmark Church of God last week. They will become the first all-girl troop to don the numbers 314 on their Scout shirt sleeves. Right now, several of the girls in the meeting are still in Cub Scouts, but in coming months, they will cross over with their Arrow of Light awards, joining the five current members of the all-girl Scouts BSA Troop 314. Not just for boys Peyton once a Girl Scout said the decision to join Scouts BSA was an easy one for her. We get to do a lot more things, she said. In addition to camping, hiking and cooking, she said she and her friends are able to build cool things like bat boxes. The second-grade students at Lake Norman Elementary School in Mooresville were running, jumping, and hopping in class exactly what they were all instructed to do by their teacher. On Wednesday, the school celebrated its annual Jump Rope for Heart, and students enjoyed the various stations set up by their physical education teacher Beth Kersten. Students rotated from one station to the next during their class time, enjoying activities ranging from an obstacle course to jump ropes and hula hoops, hippity hop balls and more. In addition to the fun day at school, the Jump Rope for Heart event includes a heart challenge that involves drinking more water and less sugary drinks, playing at least 60 minutes a day and stepping out and helping somebody. This could be helping someone they see struggling with a job or helping with a chore at home without being asked to do so, Kersten said. The annual event also includes fundraising with the money going to the American Heart Association. The students can either ask for donations in person or create a heart page for online giving. Iredell hospitals implemented visitor restrictions Friday in an effort to curtail the spread of influenza. An Iredell Memorial press release said there have been more than 50 flu cases since the beginning of February. According to a Davis Regional Hospital press release, the hospital has also seen an increase in patients with flu-like symptoms and more of those have tested positive for the flu than they did last year. In response to the uptick of flu cases, both hospitals began restricting who could visit patients. Children under 17 as well as anyone with a cough, cold, fever or sore throat are not allowed. Restrictions like this are necessary to help protect our patients as well as our staff and visitors, said Pam Gill, director of infection prevention for Iredell Health System. We also encourage all visitors to use the masks, hand sanitizer and tissues available at public entrances of Iredell Memorial. Hospitals elsewhere in the state, including Wake Forest Baptist Health Centers and hospitals in Catawba County, have also put these restrictions into place. All schools in Ashe County Schools closed Friday because of the rise in flu cases, according to the Ashe County school system. 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With this subscription you will get: Digital access to ElPasoInc.com and archives (value $45) Print subscription home or business delivered (value $65) Book of Lists (annual rate only, value $50) El Paso Inc. Magazine (value $20) El Paso Kids Inc. Special sections - OR - Get 15% off of the regular $45 annual Digital-only rate. With this subscription you will get: Complete digital access to ElPasoInc.com. This bill is to start a conversation, Stinner said in a phone interview. The conversation needs to be what we really need to do to keep H3 jobs here. Under LB 639, state colleges and universities would be incentivized to put together a funding mechanism to provide scholarships including tuition, books and fees for H3 eligible students. Stinner said he hopes the scholarships would be funded one third by the state, one third by the colleges and universities, and one third by the private sector. Over time, we want to create a big pool of funding for H3 scholarships, he said. The first year is a $10 million ask, so if the numbers work there should be $30 million available to students that score high on their ACT tests and want to go into these high-end jobs. In addition to maintaining a 3.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale, scholarship recipients would be required to complete a one-semester internship in Nebraska in their chosen field. Stinner said he hopes the funding mechanism morphs into a loan program, where students who take employment in the state after graduation can have their loans forgiven over a period of time. She has also met a man who lives near North Bend who has been documenting the braiding of his black and white pinto mare for the last six years. His does not live near any town, but he does have a spring running through his property, providing plenty of water for horses, and Bigfoot. The North Bend gentleman has documentation of dates, times, weather, phases of the moon and other important data to see if there is any pattern. There is speculation that braiding occurs during a full moon and possibly during eclipses, but McFeely wants to know more. In Macy, Nebraska, another person has had three horses turn up with their manes braided. McFeely is now looking for people willing to help her out on a new project that she hopes to run for five years. I am looking for people across Nebraska who can document this to see if we can find any other horses that have been braided, McFeely said. If so, we would add that to our research project. Cryptozoology While this may all seem amusing to those who do not believe, cryptozoology is the study of creatures we dont know anything about. McFeely said she believes Bigfoot are a lot like humans. High property taxes have created soaring financial stress for Nebraska farmers and ranchers, who have seen a 45 percent decrease in earnings from 2013 through 2017 while absorbing a 34 percent increase in property taxes. That makes it harder for Nebraskas farmers to compete, he said. About 33 percent of funding for K-12 education in Nebraska comes from state sources, the second-lowest among adjacent states (South Dakota is lower). If Fair Nebraskas plan was implemented, state sources would fund 59 percent of that cost, thus lowering the pressure on local property taxes. Nebraskas property taxes are the highest among its neighboring states, with the exception of Wyoming. By contrast, state sales taxes in Nebraska, as measured as a percentage of the gross domestic product, are the lowest compared with the six adjacent states. Increasing the state sales tax to 6.25 cents and doing away with the exemption on groceries would generate about $460 million in new revenue a year by 2023, which would be used as increased state aid to offset lower property taxes. Adjusting the state aid formula for K-12 education is a big part of the solution, Goss said. Three of the states largest school districts got 40 percent of the total state aid in 2016, while 200 of the states school districts get less than 1 percent. By contrast, Iowas three largest school districts get about 16 percent of all state aid there. (The latest figures from the Nebraska Department of Education indicate that Nebraskas three largest districts, Omaha, Lincoln and Millard, educate about 37 percent of the states students.) They didnt talk me out of anything, she said of the centers staff and volunteers. They just listened, and they supported me. They tell you want your other options are. Nowadays, she and her second husband, Kevin Bradford, are raising Cherokee, 12, and Honey, 9. Children are a blessing, she said. Im so happy I have my Honey. She is pregnant with what she calls her miracle baby, after suffering a traumatic miscarriage last year. She wants todays teen moms to know that many people will support them spiritually, emotionally and financially, she said. There is assistance to help them if theyre afraid of what could come of having a child at a young age. There are other resources out there, versus getting rid of a pregnancy. Sometimes, there isnt family you can talk to, she noted. Everyone needs someone we can talk to. In recent months, after suffering a miscarriage last year, Bradford has gone by the center time and again to find a sympathetic ear and talk over her fear of miscarrying again. Bradford said she is upset about the vandalism to the center. Jamison takes dedication to the highest level, and is referred to as the backbone of the Culpeper Service Unit. She is well known, and looked up to by girls and adults in the area, according to the news release. Charity Revutin is always willing to help when needed, and was a parent volunteer for her daughters troop years ago, which then turned into leadership of the troop. A few years later, she started another troop for her second daughter. Later, when the Culpeper Service Unit cookie program manager stepped down, Revutin stepped up to fill that vacancy. She has been a troop leader for over nine years and cookie program manager for at least three years in the Culpeper Service Unit. Carrie Waltz is a popular troop leader in Culpeper and gets requests from girls wanting to join her troops. She is co-leader of two troops, and prior to these troops was leader of two other troops. In addition, Waltz has been a service unit finance facilitator and event planner for the Culpeper Service Unit for several years. She coordinates the service units annual Operation Christmas Child event, for which girls pack more than 160 boxes with supplies donated from troops to send to children overseas who are less fortunate. Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription, or activate your access, to continue reading. Ogden jazz icon Joe McQueen may be gone, but his memory and legacy live on. One physical reminder of his life, McQueen's lifelong home at 3158 Grant Ave., has now become available for sale. The house received extensive remodeling, but as investor Richard Casperson has said, "Joe's energy is S now and ice are expected to hit the UK tonight as the country recovers from deadly Storm Erik that wreaked havoc over the weekend. The Met Office has warned snow is expected to fall in hilly areas on Sunday evening as temperatures drop overnight to hover above freezing by Monday morning. Earlier on Sunday, snow flurries were reported in Devon but forecasters said it had not settled. A northerly wind will bring colder air to the country later today, meteorologist Sophie Yeomans told the Standard. There will be rain and hill snow arriving in Northern Ireland later today and in Scotland in the evening, she said. A yellow ice warning is in place for parts of northern Scotland. There have been a few reports of snow across parts of Devon, a few flakes in the air, she said. Large waves crash against the seawall during Storm Erik as a train passes through Dawlish in southwest Britain. / REUTERS Theyre seeing it falling from sky but it's melting as soon as it hits the ground. The Met Office said there will be rain with some hill snow moving southeastwards across central and southern England and Wales with strong winds. There will also be some wintry showers in the north with risk of frost and ice. After a cold start to Monday, Ms Yeomans said temperatures are expected to become more mild, reaching double figures by the middle of the week. A kitesurfer died after an incident on a beach in north Devon on Saturday morning, police said. A tree fell onto a bus in Poole, with no reported injuries, as Storm Erik brought strong winds to parts of the country. / PA On Friday morning, a man in Devon died after 70mph gale winds blew a huge tree onto his car as he was driving near the Dartbridge Inn. Hours later, shortly before 10am, another man driving a van on the B4306 between Pontyberem and Llannon, West Wales, was killed by a large tree that fell across the road. S ome of the film industrys biggest names are set to descend upon the Royal Albert Hall and do battle with the perennially awful British weather for the 72nd annual BAFTA ceremony. The likes of Olivia Colman, Glenn Close, Christian Bale and Bradley Cooper are all slated to put in an appearance on the biggest night in British film, which will once again be hosted by the absolutely fabulous Joanna Lumley. Some of this years hopefuls will be stepping onto the BAFTA red carpet for the very first time. Closes appearance, for example, will mark her debut at the event, despite having worked in the industry for decades, and though Colman has previously netted BAFTA TV awards, tonights film awards are her first. Sadly, well have to wait another year to see Lady Gaga cross paths with the Duchess of Cambridge: the Best Actress nominee is thought to have chosen the Grammys over the BAFTAs, where shes in with a chance of picking up a handful of awards for A Star Is Borns standout track, Shallow. 2019 BAFTAs: what to expect Others have a long history with the ceremony as scrolling back through the archives proves. The Favourites Rachel Weisz has been a BAFTA mainstay since 2001 (when she attended with Kate Winslet), while Richard E Grant has been on the awards circuit since the Nineties. TODO: define component type apester Here are some of our favourite BAFTA debuts from this years nominees. Bradley Cooper Windswept: Bradley Cooper's BAFTA debut / ANDREW COWIE/AFP/Getty Images Cooper was caught in a very British downpour at the 2013 ceremony. Here's hoping he learns from his mistakes and packs an umbrella this time around. Rachel Weisz Throwback: Rachel Weisz in 2001 / PA Archive/PA Images Is it just us, or has Weisz barely aged a day since her 2001 BAFTA debut? We'll give her extra points for the quintessentially Noughties outfit, too. Richard E. Grant Partying: Richard E. Grant and Alex Kingston / PA Archive/PA Images Grant has been everyone's favourite awards show guest since the Nineties - though he'll almost certainly manage to take more selfies at this year's event. Claire Foy Debut: Claire Foy at the 2011 BAFTAs (Ian Gavan/Getty Images) / Getty Images Before she was crowned Netflix's Queen, Foy made an understated but stylish BAFTA debut in 2011. She was accompanied by her then-partner, Stephen Campbell Moore. Emma Stone Red carpet: Emma Stone at the 2011 BAFTAs / Ian Gavan/Getty Images Looking back, Emma Stone is hardly recognisable without her trademark red hair. She attended her first BAFTAs as a Rising Star nominee in 2011, and has since notched up a further three nominations - with a win for La La Land in 2017. P resident Donald Trump "may not even be a free person" by the 2020 presidential election, according to a Democratic senator hoping to run against him. Democrat presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren took aim at President Trump on Sunday, having officially announced herself as a presidential candidate the day before. During a campaign event in eastern Iowa, she said: "Every day there is a racist tweet, a hateful tweet - something really dark and ugly. "What are we as candidates, as activists, as the press, going to do about it? "We're going to chase after those every day?" Elizabeth Warren hit out at the president at an event in Iowa / AFP/Getty Images After expressing her thoughts that the 2020 campaign should not be dominated by some of Mr Trump's comments, she continued: "Here's what bothers me. "By the time we get to 2020, Donald Trump may not even be president. "In fact, he may not even be a free person." Ms Warren did not explain her comment in regards to him being a "free person". However, it would appear she was referring to the multiple investigations that have shadowed Mr Trump's presidency. In the race for the presidency, Ms Warren will battle at least five fellow senators for the nomination and chance to challenge President Donald Trump in 2020. Donald Trump has frequently criticised Elizabeth Warren / AP Prior to her comments on Sunday, she has largely avoided talking about Mr Trump since she began testing the waters for a campaign more than a month ago. The Massachusetts senator has has been a frequent target of the president though. He has criticised her past claims to Native American heritage and did so in a tweet on Saturday night. Although there have been investigations into the 2016 elections, Mr Trump has not been charged with any crimes. However, several of his former advisers have been pleaded guilty to a variety of charges. Shortly after Ms Warren officially entered the race, the president went on Twitter: "Today Elizabeth Warren, sometimes referred to by me as Pocahontas, joined the race for President. "Will she run as our first Native American presidential candidate, or has she decided that after 32 years, this is not playing so well anymore? See you on the campaign TRAIL, Liz!" Mr Trump's tenure in office has been dogged by controversy surrounding the Mueller investigation into possible Russian interference with the 2016 election campaign. F orest fires blazing across New Zealands South Island have forced thousands of people to flee their homes with more expected to follow suit. So far up to 3,000 people have been forced to leave the Wakefield and Pigeon Valley areas, NZ Civil Defence Controller Roger Ball said during a news conference on Saturday. High winds on Sunday have been set to cause further issues as they fan the flames and more evacuations are expected. The ferocious Pigeon Valley fire currently covers 5,700 acres with a 15 mile perimeter, NZ Civil Defence said in a statement on its website. No deaths have been reported and only one home has been destroyed so far but people are still leaving areas in droves as a precaution. Smoke has billowed through the forests as fires blaze / REUTERS Early on Sunday, 155 firefighters were battling the blaze on the ground, They had air support from 23 helicopters and three fixed wing planes. This made it the largest aerial firefight on record in New Zealand. A firefighter battles flames / REUTERS New Zealand Red Cross Communications Manager Ellie van Baaren said evacuees were tired and frustrated. "When you have to leave your home and in some cases your livestock and animals and you don't know what's become of them, and you're staying with friends and family, then it's an uncertain situation for everybody," she said. Much of the affected area south of Nelson was used for forestry. It also has many small farms and some livestock has had to be moved to safety. Fires started on Monday and Tuesday and quickly spread. On Wednesday, authorities declared a state of emergency. T housands of pupils across the UK are set to walk out of lessons next week in protest over climate change. Young people from more than 30 cities and towns including London, Glasgow, Oxford and Manchester are set to join the mass demonstration on Friday, the Guardian reported. The movement started in August when 16-year-old schoolgirl Greta Thunberg held a solo protest outside Sweden's parliament. Now tens of thousands of young people are taking to the streets all over the world to demonstrate. The coordinated day of action in Britain known as Youth Strike 4 Climate, organised by the UK Student Climate Network, will see pupils down books for three hours from 11am. Organisers of the London event have urged activists to gather in Parliament Square. A Facebook event page reads: "The Worlds Youth are waking up. Millions of young people are realising its now or never and are now taking direct action on the climate crisis and ecological catastrophe. "Whether you are at school, college or uni, go on strike on the Friday 15th February. For some this falls on half term; join the protest anyway, with youth from across the world. "Tell the Government youre prepared to break the rules to make change happen." Jake Woodier, of the UK Youth Climate Coalition, which is helping to coordinate the strikes, said Ms Thurnberg's actions had struck a chord with hundreds of thousand of young people in the UK. The images of what Greta did and then the huge strikes by schoolchildren in other countries have been widely shared by young people on social media and have really inspired people, he told the newspaper. A large blaze spread through a science building at the University of St Andrews on Sunday. Fire crews raced to the scene after the alarm was raised just before 5pm on Sunday and police were also at the scene. The building is in the North Haugh area of the Fife town and images showed flames in the windows of the building. It was extinguished shortly before 11pm. The university tweeted a statement saying: "The Biomedical Sciences building at the University of St Andrews has suffered a serious fire late this afternoon." A statement from the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said: "More than 30 firefighters worked to extinguish a large fire at a St Andrews University building. "The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service was alerted at 4.58pm on Sunday, February 10 to reports of a fire involving suspected hazardous materials on North Haugh Street, St Andrews. "At its height, Operations Control mobilised eight fire engines including a height appliance and specialist resources. "The building was fully evacuated and there were no casualties. S ir Philip Green is facing fresh calls to be stripped of his knighthood following allegations of sexual harassment and racist behaviour against him by employees. Details of the allegations against the businessman involving five employees were revealed by the Daily Telegraph after his legal action against the paper ended at the High Court. Sir Philip has denied his behaviour was criminal or amounted to gross misconduct. Theresa May's former policy adviser George Freeman has called for the businessman to be stripped of his knighthood if the allegations against him are true. When asked by the Sunday Times if Sir Philip should lose the honour, the MP for Mid Norfolk said: "Honours like knighthoods and peerages are granted to people in good faith on the basis of what seems at the time a distinguished public record. "If it transpires that there was indeed some fraud or misconduct or wilful misleading of people or abuse of office, then yes." Labour chairman Ian Lavery has also called for the Topshop owner's knighthood to be removed if the claims are accurate. "If the allegations are true, then Philip Green should be stripped of his knighthood," he said. "The honours system is clearly flawed and the Prime Minister should take steps to remove honours from people who bring their office into disrepute." The calls joined those from Liberal Democrat leader Sir Vince Cable. He previously said Sir Philip only "narrowly" escaped losing his honour amid the furore over the shortfalls in the BHS pension scheme. The Telegraph fought a lengthy battle to report the allegations, after being banned by a court injunction sought after Sir Philip and an executive at the Arcadia firm were contacted for comment in July. In all five cases, the employees had agreed to keep the details of their complaints confidential under NDAs. Sir Philip's lawyers told the Telegraph: "It is further denied that any of Sir Philip's conduct towards employees amounted to any type of crime, or anything that would amount to gross misconduct, or a serious risk to health and safety." Treasury Chief Secretary Liz Truss said NDA laws need changing to prevent their abuse. "I do think it is disgraceful that he (Sir Philip) has been able to use non-disclosure agreements to effectively silence victims of sexual and racial abuse," she told Sky's Ridge On Sunday. T he Duchess of Sussex has reportedly penned an emotional letter to her estranged father Thomas Markle telling him her heart was broken into a million pieces after he failed to attend her wedding. In the letter Meghan begs her father to stop lying and accuses him of giving interviews to the press, fabricating stories and attacking her new husband Prince Harry. The duchess also hits out at her father for siding with her half-sister Samantha Markle while she "silently suffered at the hand of her vicious lies". The existence of the letter, published today in the Mail on Sunday, emerged last week after five close friends of the duchess gave an anonymous interview to US People magazine calling out Mr Markles behaviour. The Duchess of Sussex / Getty Images The friends said Meghan wrote to her father in August last year to reconcile their differences privately following her wedding to Harry. Mr Markle has responded by giving the five page letter to the newspaper, saying that it was not an olive branch but a dagger to the heart that left him devastated. In the handwritten note, Meghan addresses her father as "Daddy" before accusing him of lying to the press and publicly attacking her husband. She wrote that Mr Markle had caused her unwarranted pain and never tried to get in contact with her despite offering help when he suffered two heart attacks and pulled out of attending the wedding. Meghan and Harry at the Endeavour Fund Awards 1 /14 Meghan and Harry at the Endeavour Fund Awards Meghan and Harry are hand in hand as they arrive at the annual Endeavour Fund Awards at Drapers Hall AFP/Getty Images Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, laughs with a guest at the Endeavour Awards AP Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, meet guests during a pre-ceremony reception before the Endeavour Fund Awards REUTERS Harry and Meghan pose with nominees and guests AFP/Getty Images Harry and Meghan pose with nominees and guests AFP/Getty Images Hand in hand: Meghan and Harry arrive for their latest engagement PA The Duke and Duchess of Sussex speak to guests during the annual Endeavour Fund Awards PA Meghan speaks at the podium AFP/Getty Images Meghan cradles her bump as she heads to speak at the podium AFP/Getty Images Meghan cradles her bump AFP/Getty Images The Duchess of Sussex presents the Celebrating Excellence Award to Nathan Forster, a former soldier of the Army's Parachute Regiment AFP/Getty Images All smiles: Meghan and Harry PA Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, arrive to attend the Endeavour Fund Awards in the Drapers' Hall in London REUTERS Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, meet guests during a pre-ceremony reception as they attend the annual Endeavour Fund Awards at Drapers Hall in London AFP/Getty Images Mr Markle, a former Hollywood lighting director who now lives in Mexico, has repeatedly told news outlets he has been shunned by his daughter and her husband. The duchess wrote: I begged you to accept help we sent someone to your homeand instead of speaking to me to accept this or any help, you stopped answering your phone and chose to only speak to tabloids. She added: If you love me, as you tell the press you do, please stop. Please allow us to live our lives in peace. She also hit out at the other "manufactured" lies by Mr Markle's "other daughter", who the duchess said she "barely" knows. In his response to his daughter, Mr Markle denied publicly attacking the royals and signed off by asking if she and Harry would pose with him for a photo. T om Watson has said a Labour Party branch is being investigated after he accused it of "bullying" their local MP by moving a motion of no confidence in her. The party's deputy leader said some members are "trying to drive out" Luciana Berger in the latest row over anti-Semitism within Labour. Liverpool Wavertree Constituency Labour Party (CLP) planned to hold a meeting to discuss two confidence motions which accused her of "continually using the media to criticise" Jeremy Corbyn. But after a backlash it was called off, with Mr Watson calling on Labour's General Secretary Jennie Formby to suspend the CLP. Speaking on The Andrew Marr Show, he said of his colleague Ms Berger: "She's being bullied. That motion should never have been moved in her local party, the meeting to hear it should never have been scheduled." He said Mr Corbyn had "made it clear these things are not done in his name", and they "are not helping him, they are harming the reputation of the Labour Party". Mr Watson added: "I don't want any MP or any member of the Labour Party to feel they're being bullied and driven out, and what's happening to her is completely unacceptable, which is why I called for the local party to be suspended." Luciana Berger / PA After Mr Marr said Ms Formby had suggested she did not have the constitutional power to suspend them, Mr Watson said she had confirmed she is "investigating members in that constituency". In response to the fallout, Wavertree CLP's executive put out a statement saying they "strongly reject the media inaccuracies and the accusations of political bullying, for simply adhering to party rules and doing our jobs". They said they had "no control over motions submitted by CLP members", and defended scheduling the special meeting, saying it was "to give our MP the maximum opportunity to take part when the motions were debated". In a statement released on Sunday morning they added: "Furthermore, we as an executive have always and continue now to express total solidarity with Luciana as a victim of misogyny and of anti-Semitism - coming mostly from the far right. "Our chair is himself Jewish and the suggestion that the CLP Executive is in any way a party to bullying and anti-Semitism is a false and slanderous accusation." Health Secretary Matt Hancock accused Labour of not sticking up for their own MP, saying she would be "very welcome" to join the Tories instead. He tweeted: "I've worked with Luciana Berger and she is a force for good as an MP. "Shame on Labour for not doing more to protect and support her. "If the Labour Party doesn't want Luciana, as far as I'm concerned she'd be very welcome to stand as a Conservative." It comes after a senior member of Mr Corbyn's shadow cabinet said Labour must "go further and faster" in tackling anti-Semitism. Jon Ashworth was responding to comments from Tony Blair, former Prime Minister and the party's leader for 14 years, who said the current boss had had not been "robust" enough in dealing with it. The shadow health secretary also appeared to contradict Ms Formby, who is alleged to have said it was "impossible" to completely eradicate anti-Jewish hatred from Labour. He spoke to Sky News' Ridge On Sunday shortly after an interview with Mr Blair was broadcast, in which he said: "Of course we should eradicate anti-Semitism from the Labour Party. Labour must "go further and faster" in tackling anti-Semitism, Jon Ashworth has said. / PA "We are supposed to be a progressive political party, how can we say it's tolerable to have a certain level of anti-Semitism in the party? "Would we say more generally it is tolerable to have a level of racism within the Labour Party? No. Of course you can't have that." He added: "There are parts of the left that do have a problem with anti-Semitism and you see this in their attitudes towards the state of Israel. "Their continual focusing on Israel all the time, over a long period you are left with the feeling that they are - in a sense - targeting it because it is a Jewish state." Asked if the current leadership had been robust enough he said it had not, explaining: "The fact that someone like Luciana Berger - who is a smart, capable, active Member of Parliament doing her best for her constituents - the fact that she should even be subject to a no-confidence motion with this type of allegation swirling around is shameful for the Labour Party." Responding to Mr Blair's comments, Mr Ashworth said the issue "breaks my heart", adding: "It's clear we need to go further and faster on dealing with anti-Semitism in the Labour Party. "One anti-Semite in the Labour Party is one too many." On the comments attributed to Ms Formby, the frontbencher added: "No, it's not impossible to eradicate it from the Labour Party, and John McDonnell has said that as well so there's no disagreement between me and John McDonnell and Jeremy Corbyn on this." He said Labour was "making progress" on the issue, with more staff and resources dedicated to it, adding: "But I do think we need to go faster and further on this, and kick it out. I don't want to be in any party with any anti-Semite." On Ms Berger, he said he was a "big fan" and described her as Parliament's "most persuasive campaigner" on on mental health. T heresa May is promising MPs further Brexit votes before the end of February amid claims she is trying to run down the clock ahead of the UK's departure from the European Union. But there is no commitment to hold a binding "meaningful" vote on the deal itself by the end of the month, a minister indicated today. Shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer told the Sunday Times that Labour will seek to force Mrs May into a decisive second Commons showdown on her Brexit deal by February 26. The Prime Minister is instead offering MPs a further chance to vote on amendments to her Brexit strategy on February 27 in order to avoid a potential Cabinet split this week. She is expected to ask MPs this week for more time to get concessions on the deal in talks with Brussels. Shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer / PA The Government is stepping up efforts to persuade the European Union to accept changes to the Irish border backstop in the Withdrawal Agreement. Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay is meeting EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier on Monday and Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt will visit Paris and Warsaw for talks this week. On Thursday - Valentine's Day - MPs will consider a motion on Brexit and a series of amendments, likely to include Sir Keir's attempt to impose a new deadline for a vote on the deal. But in an effort to see off attempts to bind the Government's hands, Downing Street is promising another opportunity to table amendments - which are likely to include measures aimed at taking a no-deal Brexit off the table - on February 27. The move is aimed at postponing a rebellion by ministers who are committed to removing the possibility of the UK crashing out of the EU without a deal on March 29. However MPs may not be given a vote on a revised version of Mrs May's deal this month. Communities Secretary James Brokenshire said: "I think that gives that sense of timetable, clarity and purpose on what we are doing with the EU - taking that work forward and our determination to get a deal - but equally knowing that role that Parliament very firmly has." He acknowledged that more work was needed to get the UK ready for Brexit on March 29, telling the BBC's Andrew Marr Show there are "still steps that are currently being put in place" but "there is steady work that is going on, 10,000 civil servants that are now focused on this" and the Border Force was "ramping up" its staff. TODO: define component type apester Sir Keir earlier said his plan was necessary to put a "hard stop" to Mrs May "running down the clock" before the March 29 deadline. He told the Sunday Times he fears the Prime Minister is "pretending to make progress" but actually intends to return to Parliament after the March 21/22 European Council summit the week before Brexit and offer MPs a "binary choice" - her deal or no deal. "We can't allow that to happen," Sir Keir said. "There needs to be a day when Parliament says that's it, enough is enough." Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn during a speech at a Labour local government conference in Coventry on Saturday / PA In the interview Sir Keir described Mrs May's approach as "reckless" and "blinkered" and blamed her "tunnel vision" for the devastating defeat suffered last month when MPs threw out her Brexit deal by a record 230 votes. "It's this blinkered approach that's got us to where we are, with her never wanting to see where the real majority is in Parliament," Sir Keir said. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has written to the Prime Minister setting out five demands that would have to be met for his MPs to support a deal, including a permanent customs union and close alignment with the single market. Corbyn: Option of second referendum remains open if Brexit deal rejected Deputy Labour leader Tom Watson told the Andrew Marr Show that if those conditions were not met then his party could move to supporting a second referendum. "It seems to me we're now at the point where we can have meaningful talks to get a deal between the main political party leaders," he said. "Or the only way to break the impasse is to have a public vote, and that remains our policy." Treasury Chief Secretary Liz Truss (Photo by Jack Taylor/Getty Images) / Getty Images Treasury Chief Secretary Liz Truss refused to rule out quitting if Mrs May did accept the demand for a customs union. She told Sky News' Sophy Ridge On Sunday: "I appreciate Jeremy Corbyn has come to the table but the reality is what he is proposing does not deliver on what we want as a country." Ms Truss said the UK must have an "independent trade policy" and questioned whether a customs union could command a majority in Parliament. Asked if she could stay in office if the Government backed a customs union she said: "I absolutely do not think that should be our policy." Ms Truss also rejected calls for Brexit to be delayed to allow further time for negotiations. "As the deadline approaches, minds get focused and a deal gets done," she said. "I think by extending the deadline that doesn't create any new information, all that does is delay things and I think that would be a very bad idea." L ittle red post boxes are popping up across London in the run-up to Valentines Day to give people the chance to send a letter to a lonely person. Gift company Red Letter Days has launched a campaign to help combat loneliness in the capital ahead on February 14. Figures show one fifth of the UKs population, nine million people, admit that they are always or often lonely. Post boxes are also being set up in cities across the country, including Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham. Cards will be delivered to people who may not otherwise receive one on Valentines Day. Primary school children from Potters Bar in Hertfordshire have already made and posted cards. One letter written by a Primary School pupil from Wroxham School in Herfordshire Red Letter Days Alison Vickery, said: For many people, Valentines Day is a fun and joyful occasion centring on love, affection and kindness. But for others, Valentines Day can exacerbate feelings of isolation and loneliness. This is why were encouraging members of the public to write a heartwarming message to a complete stranger this year, to help make Valentines Day an uplifting occasion for all. It only takes a minute to write a card and spread some love; so wed be delighted to see people taking the time to get involved by sending message to somebody who might not otherwise enjoy the day. Daniel Patterson, from the Campaign to End Loneliness, added: "We hope that these cards can give older people a feeling that theyre a little less alone, and get to us to all think more about people who are isolated or lonely. T he chief executive of an Orthodox Jewish housing association has said she "never gave a moment's thought" to the possibility of losing a discrimation case launched against it. Agudas Israel Housing Association, who are based in Stamford Hill, were accused of breaking equality laws after listing a property which was specifically for members of their religious community. A family who wanted to bid on new flats, which were purpose-built for the Orthodox population, were told they were unable to because consideration was only given to Orthodox Jews. They took the housing association to court on the grounds that housing should be provided on the basis of need, not religion. The family's lawyer said they plan to appeal the decision. They argued that it was "direct discrimination of a very scarce resource, public housing" and that the case "concerned the question of whether or not it is lawful for housing to be allocated on the basis of religion, not need." The Orthodox community has a particular need for larger properties, as they have more children than average, and need to live close to Kosher shops, synagogues and Jewish school. Ita Symons has been chief executive of AIHA for over 30 years / Henry Jacobs Chief executive of the housing association, Ita Symons, said she never gave a moments thought to the idea of the organisation losing their battle. Mrs Symons, who founded the charity in 1986, said: Our lawyers said we had a clear case, because of two things we are a charity, and the community has such particular needs that it is proportionate that we use the development for our needs. Luckily we were successful, because it means that we can continue our work and continue to fulfil our mission statement. I never gave a moments thought to the idea of us losing, because that would have been awful, it would have been unbearable. I dont understand why they would want to live in this project there are Hasidic men, with their sidelocks and beards, speaking in a language which they wouldnt understand. Why would you want to enter such a different culture? Only New York has a larger community of Hasidic Jews outside Israel / Oli Scarff/Getty Nothing like this has happened before, and Ive been doing this for over 30 years. Mrs Symons said the charity has a waiting list of over 1,000 families, and the London housing crisis has made it far more difficult to find suitable homes." The charity is now relocating families to Canvey Island, where an Orthodox community was established in 2017, and Manchester. Ms Tamur, 31, is on AIHAs waiting list. She currently lives in a small flat with her seven children, aged between seven weeks and 12-years-old. Their home has two bedrooms, but one of those used to be a large room which has been split in half to create three bedrooms. The blocks were built specifically to house Orthodox families / Google Maps She said: Ive been on the AIHA waiting list for about 14 months, but have lived in this place for six or seven years. We dont have enough space, it is very difficult. My room is very small and has no storage space at all, we only have one toilet and bathroom between all of us and the kitchen is very small. Im hoping we will find something soon Im entitled to a five bedroom property but would take four. I dont know how long well have to wait. Ive lived in Stamford Hill my whole life, and I did think about moving away, but my kids are so young and they are settled at school here. Elliot Lister, solicitor at Asserson who acted for Agudas Israel Housing Association, said: This is a landmark case in many respects, but for the Orthodox Jewish Community and AIHA in particular, it is profoundly important. The community has very specific housing needs, including being close to Kosher shops and synagogues / REUTERS The court found that what AIHA does and how it allocates properties is a proper response to the needs of the Orthodox Jewish Community. This is not about self-ghettoisation and AIHA does not look to exclude others. That suggestion is frankly offensive. The court recognised that AIHA was set up for a purpose and accepted that that purpose was to alleviate the special housing needs of the Orthodox Jewish Community which are compounded by overt and increasing anti-Semitism. Solicitor Rebekah Carrier, from Hopkin Murray Beskine, represented the family who launched the challenge in court. She said: This case arose when we saw advertisements for a newly built block of flats on the website Hackney Council use to decide who gets social housing which said: consideration to the Orthodox Jewish Community only. Elliot Lister represented the housing association in court / Asserson This was very shocking because it meant that my clients, whose need for safe and appropriate housing was so overwhelming that Hackney Council had given them the highest possible priority for a new home, would be overlooked for this property and others like them in favour of Orthodox Jewish applicants. This is direct discrimination in the allocation of a very scarce resource, public housing. There can be no doubt at all that there are high levels of poverty, overcrowding and housing need in the Orthodox Jewish community, in the same way that other communities across Hackney are desperately in need of affordable safe housing. The law requires Hackney to have a set of rules which decide who gets social housing. Hackney has carefully crafted scheme for deciding who gets housing, and it is based on an assessment of need. "This case concerned the question of whether or not it is lawful for housing to be allocated on the basis of religion, not need." The Claimants are very disappointed by the judgment, and we think the Court made a number of errors in the way it approached the case. We intend to appeal against this judgment. H uge crowds of people today descended on the streets of London to join its vibrant Chinese New Year celebrations marking the Year of the Pig. The occasion, characterised by colourful parades and delicious food, is celebrated by millions in China and all over the world. On Sunday, thousands of people lined the streets of the West End to watch a vibrant parade make its way to Chinatown. In pictures: Chinese New Year in London 2019 1 /22 In pictures: Chinese New Year in London 2019 Spectators watch as performers move a traditional Chinese dragon through the crowd as they take part in the Chinese New Year parade through central London. REUTERS Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats, during Chinese New Year celebrations in Chinatown, London, which marks the Year of the Pig. PA Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats for London's Chinese New Year celebrations, in central London. PA Spectators watch as performers move a traditional Chinese dragon through the crowd as they take part in the Chinese New Year parade through central London. REUTERS Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats, during Chinese New Year celebrations in Chinatown, London, which marks the Year of the Pig. PA Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats for London's Chinese New Year celebrations, in central London. PA Spectators watch as performers move a traditional Chinese dragon as they take part in the Chinese New Year parade through central London. REUTERS Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats, during Chinese New Year celebrations in Chinatown, London, which marks the Year of the Pig. PA Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats, during Chinese New Year celebrations in Chinatown, London, which marks the Year of the Pig. PA Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats, during Chinese New Year celebrations in Chinatown, London, which marks the Year of the Pig. PA Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats for London's Chinese New Year celebrations, in central London. PA Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats for London's Chinese New Year celebrations, in central London. PA Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats, during Chinese New Year celebrations in Chinatown, London, which marks the Year of the Pig. PA Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats, during Chinese New Year celebrations in Chinatown, London, which marks the Year of the Pig. PA Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats, during Chinese New Year celebrations in Chinatown, London, which marks the Year of the Pig. PA Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats, during Chinese New Year celebrations in Chinatown, London, which marks the Year of the Pig. PA Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats, during Chinese New Year celebrations in Chinatown, London, which marks the Year of the Pig. PA Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats, during Chinese New Year celebrations in Chinatown, London, which marks the Year of the Pig. PA Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats, during Chinese New Year celebrations in Chinatown, London, which marks the Year of the Pig. PA Spectators watch performers dance dressed in traditional costumes as they take part in the Chinese Lunar New Year parade through central London. REUTERS Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats, during Chinese New Year celebrations in Chinatown, London, which marks the Year of the Pig. PA Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats, during Chinese New Year celebrations in Chinatown, London, which marks the Year of the Pig. PA Last year, 700,000 people descended on Soho to bring in the Lunar New Year. London Mayor Sadiq Khan said: "Londoners of Chinese origin have been contributing towards our city for decades, contributing economically, socially and culturally. "They make a massive contribution to our city being the greatest city in the world." Flying dragons and dancing lions whirled around large handcrafted floats that made their way down Charing Cross Road and Shaftesbury Avenue. Lawrence Lee, of the London Chinatown Chinese Association, said the first celebrations in the 1970s centred around a single stage in Chinatown and attracted a few thousand people. This year crowds braved the wet weather to be entertained by dancers, musicians and performers in traditional dress. Spectators watch as performers move a traditional Chinese dragon through the crowd as they take part in the Chinese New Year parade through central London. / REUTERS Chinatown bulged with visitors as restaurants and shops set up stalls selling Chinese cuisine and paper dragons. The streets constantly crackled to the sound of small snaps that pop when thrown to the ground. Traditional Chinese dragons moved through the crowd on Sunday and performers took part in the parade involving flamboyant costumes, lion dances and floats. British childrens cartoon character Peppa Pig even made an appearance. One Twitter user described it as a riot of colour. Another said: For sheer colour and noise, its hard to beat Chinese New Year celebrations, even on a cold, wet London day. Chinese and British dignitaries, including the mayor, gathered on a stage in Trafalgar Square to give speeches, join in a traditional ceremony and watch an acrobatic flying lions performance. Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats, during Chinese New Year celebrations in Chinatown, London, which marks the Year of the Pig. / PA Mr Khan said it was "absolutely crucial" that London showed itself to be a "tolerant" city through the event. "And our open-mindedness and outwards looking approach is not going to change even if we do leave the European Union," he said. "One of the reasons why I support Chinese New Year celebrations in Trafalgar Square is to make sure those Londoners of Chinese origin feel welcome in our city. Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats, during Chinese New Year celebrations in Chinatown, London, which marks the Year of the Pig. / PA "It's an auspicious time of year and we should celebrate the Chinese New Year with our friends, our neighbours and our family of Chinese origin." A woman has suffered "life-changing" leg injuries after a suspected hit and run in Walthamstow. Officers were called to the scene at around 5am on Sunday and found the woman in Selborne Road, Scotland Yard said in a statement. She had suffered serious injuries believed to be the result of a collision. The woman, in her 40s, was taken to hospital where her condition was deemed to be life-changing. A statement from the Metropolitan Police said: "She had suffered serious leg injuries that are believed to be the result of a collision with a vehicle. "The womans condition has been assessed as life-changing." No vehicle stopped at the scene. Police are urging any driver who may have been involved in a collision or anyone who witnessed the incident to contact them. Ive got two registers in my head, one for the living and one for the dead. These are the words from a line of a poem written by a London school teacher who frequently sees his pupils affected by knife crime in some way. Poet and teacher Christian Foley works across schools in London as a spoken word educator for children aged four to 18. The 27-year-old, who lives in east London and has worked in London's schools for six years, told the Standard teachers are almost becoming desensitised to violence because it is happening so frequently across the city. He said he has seen children bleeding in classrooms from stab wounds they have suffered the night before. Mr Foley said: I had a boy who turned up with his arm just gushing blood, he said he had fell on a knife the night before. The scene of a fatal stabbing in Battersea this week / PA The schoolboy had not shown anyone the wound until arriving to school, where he felt it safe, Mr Foley added. They [students] have not shown anyone their wounds and they havent told anyone, so teachers are having to change their wounds when they arrive to school. Were their one safe space in their lives, school is the one thing thats constant, he said. As well as students coming to school after being attacked, Mr Foley said he has encountered pupils being knifed on GCSE Results Day and on school grounds. He said: At one school I worked in, we had to have security guards for a long time because a gang tried to break in to our school and they tried to kill a kid in school. The boy, Mr Foley added, was 14 at the time of the attack and had been targeted when he was alone, away from staff. Part of Mr Foleys work includes encouraging youngsters to open up and speak about their emotions. As a spoken word educator, Mr Foley has taught and helped children to write poetry, or music, about their experiences which has led to the creation of a number of student-written anthologies of work. A London student's poem I come from I come from seeing tears shed I come from people being misled I come from people thinking that Because I can articulate myself And have a formal debate That I didn't come from Seeing issues resolved by fists Getting thrown on the estate. But I come from a good upbringing I still had a mother and a father I come from dumb arguments with mates But we can make up after I come from disaster I come from being a hazard I come from being expected to be a hero I come from being expected to carry The courage of a bear. Polar. I come from being expected to never blow My composure Be a soldier But it's not just because I'm starting to get older That my back is starting to arch The persistent weight of the world On my shoulder I come from putting dedication Over procrastination Trying to be the richest in my generation Starting conversations and encouraging a dialogue with young people, Mr Foley said, was key. He added: Particularly with boys, they dont speak about their emotions much. I can help them express themselves but they really struggle talking. We are having children coming into school with PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) and many face issues. During one session, Mr Foley said a child told him he was a civilian, implying he was safe away from knife-related violence. I said to them Does that mean youre soldiers then? "And they said no, then you could kind of see their faces working it out and thinking about it. Last year, Londons murder rate was the highest in a calendar year for a decade, with many of the deaths being knife-related. In 2018, 72 deaths involved a knife and 13 included a gun. Just over a third of victims, 44, were aged 16 to 24, of whom 10 were shot, 32 were stabbed and one was killed in an attack involving a knife and gun. And 25 of the victims were 19 and under, six of whom were shot and 16 of whom were stabbed. Mr Foley said there were a number of factors which led to knife crime, but said: Theres one factor that unites them all and thats poverty, its as simple as that. Theres a direct correlation and the more deprived an area is, the more problems it has. A London student's poem War in my Heart I told my mumma don't cry I'm only grinding till I die Because I want to see you live Before you die No one ever gets rich from a 9 to 5 When she asks how I am I say don't worry, I'm fine But there's a war in my heart And a fire in my eyes Social media is a massive problem, but the people trying to police social media dont use it as much as people who are young. Mr Foley said education and starting conversations with young people was the most important thing, looking forward but admits more needs to be done. A 23-year-old man is fighting for his life after being stabbed in north-west London last night. Police were called to Carnfield Avenue in Neasden shortly before 11pm on Saturday to reports of a stabbing. Officers and paramedics scrambled to the scene and the young man was rushed to a central London hospital. The victims remained in a critical condition on Sunday, Scotland Yard said in a statement. A 29-year-old man was arrested at the scene on suspicion of attempted murder, while a 24-year-old woman was also arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender. Both remain in custody, the Metropolitan Police said. The North West Command Unit are investigating the incident. Detectives are appealing for anyone with information to come forward. A 30-year-old man died at the scene on Lordship Lane, East Dulwich. Anyone with information is asked to call police on 101 and quote CAD 8293/9Feb or tweet @MetCC. A man was shot in the leg in Hampstead Heath on Sunday evening. The incident occured at around 9.24pm in an area near Mansfield Road and Roderick Road. Met Police officers attended the scene. The man's condition is not thought to be life threatening. A statement from Camden Police, on Twitter at 10.45pm, said: "Officers are in the Mansfield Rd/Roderick Rd area of #HampsteadHeath #NW3 after a man was shot in the leg earlier this evening. We were called at 21:24hrs and remain on scene." A man has died following a stabbing in south-east London in the early hours of this morning. Police were called at around 2.35am on Sunday to reports of a man stabbed in Lordship Lane, near the junction with East Dulwich Grove. The victim, believed to be in his 30s, died at the scene, Scotland Yard said. No arrests have been made and enquiries into what happened are ongoing, the Metropolitan Police said in a statement. Formal identification and a post-mortem examination will take place in due course, the force added. Road closures remain in place at the scene. Detectives from the Homicide and Major Crime Command are investigating the incident. D etectives investigating the murder of 39-year-old mother Aliny Mendes have been given more time to quiz a suspect. Ms Mendes died following a stabbing in London Road near Cheam on Friday evening, Following this, police have been given more time to question a man on suspicion of murder. A statement from Surrey Police said: "A man in his 40s from Epsom remains in police custody after detectives were granted more time by Guildford Magistrates' Court to complete inquiries following his arrest on Friday. The incident happened on Friday evening / Guy Walker Previously another man in his 50s from London was arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender but they have since been released with no further action being taken against them. Detective Chief Inspector Mark Chapman added: "We are working incredibly hard to piece together what happened during this shocking incident, and are doing all we can to support Aliny's family. He stated that more officers and PCSOs have been deployed in the area following the incident and appealed for witnesses or anyone with further information to contact the force. On Saturday evening, Ms Mendes sister paid tribute to her and said: My sister was lovely, always thinking about everyone but mostly her children. She had a wonderful heart and there was no one else like her. She was a caring sister and worried about everyone. "She was always making sure everyone was ok. She tried to help everyone where she could. She loved to cook and would organise surprise parties for friends and family giving cakes and presents she was loved by everyone. Everything she did was for the love for her children. A fundraiser set up to support her children and also to have her body repatriated to be with her friends in Brazil has raised more than 35,000. Miss Aliny was described on this page as a dear friend, colleague and mother of four adored children. Her friends, church community, colleagues and her family in Brazil and other parts of the world are in total shock at the loss of this wonderful person, a statement on the page added. Ms Mendes was stabbed just yards from Meadow Primary School. London Road and the adjoining Sparrow Farm Road were cordoned off as police investigated. The area where the attack took place is a village on the south-west London and Surrey border. Los Angelenos like to say you should dress for the weather you want, which could be the reason Hollywood stars often find the British weather a bit of a shock to the system when they venture to the BAFTAs each year in February. While the bulk of awards season takes place in balmy LA temperatures, where bare shoulders and open-toed shoes are ideal, the timing of the BAFTA ceremony over in the UK can make the red carpet a gauntlet of rain, wind, and some pretty icy temperatures. The BAFTAs are happening on Sunday at the Royal Albert Hall, with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in attendance (the Duke is President of BAFTA) and Graham Norton hosting. Kristin Stewart appears cold during the 2010 awards / Getty Images In past years, superstars have paired their glittering gowns with umbrellas (clear of course, to show off their outfits) when it rained, and even snowed. People. Fashion. Power. Delivered weekly. Email Sign up Sign up I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice {{message}} {{permutiveUid}} {{message}} An emergency coat or wrap is generally a good option. When Kristen Stewart attended the awards in a mini dress in 2010 she braved the temperatures coat-free, but in 2013 Jennifer Lawrence ended up throwing an oversized black coat over her Dior gown - the wet look hairdo she had on the night also worked brilliantly in the rain. Jennifer Lawrence wears a coat to brave the cold for the 2013 awards / Getty Images Back in 2002, the rain reacted to flame-retardant chemicals on the red carpet, making a strange foam cover the feet of BAFTA guests. At the time, pundits joked it was caused by years of sycophantic comments washing out of the floor. Before this year's ceremony, weve rounded up a few of our favorite shots of celebrities looking a little put out by the weather - shout out to Jessica Chastain for smiling her way through it all. Sunday's forecast? A less than balmy 49F. London rolled out the red carpet on Sunday night for the 72nd British Academy Film Awards. The event, hosted by Joanna Lumley at the Royal Albert Hall, marked the last major awards show before the Oscars in Los Angeles. And with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in attendance, the celebs pulled out all the sartorial stops for the big night. While last years ceremony saw the majority of attendees opt for black ensembles in a show of solidarity with the Times Up movement, the red carpet at this years event witnessed a return to colour. Leading this years best dressed was the Duchess of Cambridge, who opted for a one-shouldered etheral white gown, paired with glittery pointy courts by Jimmy Choo and a pair of pearl and diamond drop earrings that once belonged to Princess Diana. People. Fashion. Power. Delivered weekly. Email Sign up Sign up I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice {{message}} {{permutiveUid}} {{message}} Duchess of Cambridge attends the 2019 BAFTA awards / EPA Kate's floaty dress reflected a broader trend towards light, chiffon dresses on the BAFTAs red carpet this year. BAFTAs 2019: Letitia Wright wins EE Rising Star The Favourite star Rachel Weisz opted for a similarly feminine gown with layered tulle bardot neckline and a silver sequin-embellished waistband. Rachel Weisz attends the 2019 BAFTA awards / PA Millie Macintosh meanwhile opted for a dreamy pastel pink gown with ruched taffeta sleeves, corset top and frothy tulle skirt. Millie Macintosh / Rex Features Also thinking pink was English actress, playwright and director Zawe Ashton, who opted for a loose-fitting bright fuchsia gown with a flowing train. She accessorised the look with slingback flats from cool brand Yuul Yie and a Times Up ribbon tied around her wrist. Zawe Ashton / Rex Features Strasbourg, January 17, 2019 (SPS) - The Frente Polisario strongly condemns the illegal and shortsighted decision by the EU Parliament to extend the EU-Morocco trade deal to the occupied territories of Western Sahara. The vote taken today was upheld in an environment devoid of scrutiny and transparency. Its result represents a direct blow not only to human rights defenders and international law, but to the very UN-led peace process that the EU says it supports. We urge Member States of the European Union to reconsider todays nonbinding vote and change course immediately. After 40 long years, a credible UN-led peace process is underway. Thanks to the stewardship of the Personal Envoy for the Secretary-General and the leadership of the United States, we have at last a real possibility to tackle the difficult challenge of forging a sustainable peace. But todays decision undermines such progress and prejudges the outcome of political negotiations. It is absurd that the EU regularly asks us to avoid steps that would undermine or prejudge the peace process - and yet the EU willingly takes such a clearly destabilising step itself against the rulings of its own court. Rather than undermine the political process as todays decision does we urge the European Union to develop a consistent policy to peace in our region. The EU should explicitly delay implementation of this trade deal and instead articulate a plan for using trade as an incentive for a negotiated peace agreement. In the meantime, the Frente Polisario, acting on behalf of the people of Western Sahara, will pursue every legal avenue to reverse todays illegal decision. We will launch an immediate legal challenge to this agreement. We have a high degree of confidence, backed up by legal advice, that the European decision will not survive legal scrutiny. While we regret that we have to go to such lengths, because we firmly believe that our energies are better invested in the UN-led process, we will not hesitate to uphold international law and the rights of the Sahrawi people. The EU must now contemplate its posture. Peace requires everyone to play a constructive role. The UN is exercising its responsibility. And the Security Council has made its position clear, as has the United States and African Union. As a party to the peace process, the Frente Polisario is giving negotiation a real chance. Regrettably, the EU, with this decision, is exerting a negative influence on the collective international effort, and reinforcing an unsustainable status quo. We demand that the EU rethink this position, and use trade as a positive incentive for peace.SPS 125/090 MOSCOW With the collapse of a major U.S.-Russia arms treaty last week, much attention is being paid to new Russian rockets. In Moscow, the Kremlin has ordered its generals to begin crash development of an array of intermediate-range missiles. But while all of this was going on, President Vladimir Putin has also been reviewing other ambitious rocket programs. On Feb. 4, Roscosmos Director Dmitry Rogozin went to the Kremlin to sit down with Putin for a check-in on the state of the Russian space program. Much of the meeting focused on Roscosmos financials, which are bleak. But toward the end of the publicized portion of their discussion, Rogozin provided an update on three key rocket projects. The first was Soyuz-5, which is being promised as the future flagbearer of the Russian crewed space program. Everything is in position to move forward with the project, he said, and promised a first flight by 2022. That flight, he added, will feature Russia's long-promised next-generation Federation spacecraft, a replacement to the solid old Soyuz capsule. [Top 10 Soviet and Russian Space Missions] Rogozin also reported that Russia's other major rocket program, the Angara family of boosters, will see another test flight this year again demonstrating the heavy A5 variant with four strap on boosters. But of greater interest was a super-heavy rocket for missions to the moon, one that will fuse Soyuz-5 with Angara to save countless rubles in development costs. "The general schedule has been endorsed for building the ground-based space infrastructure," Rogozin told Putin of the moon rocket, "and the exterior design of this rocket has practically been chosen." Not much else was said of the rocket during the Kremlin meeting, at least according to the public transcript. Perhaps Rogozin did not want to get too far ahead of himself in Putin's presence. After all, as noted later this week by one of Rogozin's subordinates, the government is not set to award any additional funding for a moon program before April. But on Twitter just hours before his meeting with Putin, Rogozin posted a photo of a large binder that he claimed was the in-depth development schedule for the super-heavy rocket. 2028 is the target date, he said, and even gave it a name: Yenisei. The primary contractors for the project will be Energia and Progress, and Khrunichev which will be responsible for the third stage. See more The list of contractors corresponds with what little we know of the proposed Russian lunar rocket. Over the past several months, reports have surfaced in the Russian press about Roscosmos design studies and decisions on architecture for missions to the moon. Depending on the day, these are to be either entirely Russian efforts, or cooperative efforts with NASA. In December, Roscosmos reported as part of an early draft proposal that "under tight budgetary constraints, all parts of the super-heavy rocket should have the ability to fly independently and go into serial production [independently]," TASS quoted a Roscosmos statement as saying at the time. In practice, this means a fusion of Soyuz-5 and Angara. The first stage of the Yenisei rocket, according to these reports, will be comprised of clustered Soyuz-5 boosters or some modification thereof while the third stage will be taken from Khrunichev's Angara rocket line. Energia is the developer of Soyuz-5, and Progress is set to be the manufacturer. The two work together on the current Soyuz family of rockets. According to the proposal cited by TASS in December, the Yenisei booster will be designed to throw 70 tons into low-Earth orbit and will lift off from Russia's new Vostochny Cosmodrome in the Far East. First flights are envisioned by 2028, but given the apparent reliance on Soyuz-5 development and the future of Angara, this date is likely overly-optimistic. Money is also the salient issue. There should be little doubt Russian engineers can design a super-heavy rocket. But Roscosmos is already facing tough budget constraints and, beyond the political utility of keeping Russia in space and keeping the missile industry healthy, it is not clear whether the Kremlin truly values its space program. The price tag of such a project will be steep. According to Russian reports, Roscosmos has estimated the cost of developing Yenisei and building infrastructure for it at 1.5 trillion rubles ($22.7 billion). These do not take into account any of the other facets of a potential lunar expedition, as noted by Yury Koptev, head of Roscosmos scientific and technical council. "When the theme of the moon arises, everything is reduced to the issue of creating a super-heavy rocket, and this is simply not the case," Koptev said Feb. 6. "We are talking about complex flights to circumlunar orbit, to the lunar surface, conducting various experiments there, combining manned flights with probes." These are the issues currently being weighed by the Russian government, Koptev said. And by April, they should weigh in. And if past actions by the government on Roscosmos funding are any indication, proponents of a Russian lunar program shouldn't get their hopes up. This story was provided by SpaceNews, dedicated to covering all aspects of the space industry. Jeff Parrott South Bend Tribune AMES, Iowa South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigiegs four campaign stops in central Iowa on Friday his first in this early battleground state since declaring a run for president included a college town coffee shop, a university campus building, a small-town library and a suburban senior housing complex. Different venues with different crowds. There was a common thread that wove through them all: People liked what they heard, but with the Iowa caucuses still a year away, most said its far too early to pick a favorite from the crowded field of 2020 Democratic hopefuls. And some said theyre waiting to hear more detailed policies from Buttigieg. Another common thread: No one interviewed by The Tribune thought that either South Bends relatively small size or Buttigieg being openly gay would derail his path to the Democratic nomination. Thats not to say Buttigieg doesnt face long odds in his quest for the White House. He has acknowledged himself that he doesnt have the name recognition, national profile or proven fundraising ability of other Democratic candidates. Jan Bauer, chair of the Story County Democratic Party, host of the Ames coffee shop event, perhaps came closest to identifying Buttigieg as her choice. She first saw him at the Democratic National Committee winter meeting in Atlanta in 2017, where Buttigieg ran for party chair before withdrawing when it became clear he didnt have the needed support to win. Hes certainly someone I watch in the field because of that connection to Atlanta, said Bauer, who recalled first noticing the Mayor Pete signs in Atlanta and then having lunch there with Buttigiegs husband, Chasten. You look for the policies and the issues to be right. But it certainly takes more, and he has the ability to connect with people that you really need to have. Buttigieg has discussed many of those policies and issues on national television, on Twitter, in online and newspaper interviews, or in his book, Shortest Way Home, which goes on sale Tuesday. Some of the key themes hes focusing his campaign around include: The time is ripe for a mayor to be president because a mayor must pragmatically solve problems daily and is held accountable if he doesnt. Democrats must discuss politics in terms that show how policies affect peoples everyday lives. Conservatives talk about freedom from things, such as too much government regulation and taxes. Democrats talk about freedom to do things, such as the freedom to sue your credit card company for ripping you off, to marry the person you love regardless of gender, or to start a new business without worrying that youll lose your health care coverage. But many of the Democrats in the combined audiences in Iowa either hadnt heard his platform planks, or were impressed anyway to hear how he delivered them in person. At the cafe, the first stop of the day, Carol Williams, a retired county park ranger, said she follows Buttigieg on Twitter but hadnt yet heard him speak. She said the 37-year-old mayor checks off two critical boxes for her: hes young and he called climate change a national emergency. After the event, Williams placed him in her top five Democratic candidates, along with Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar who was scheduled to visit Ames on Saturday, California Sen. Kamala Harris, New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker and former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julian Castro. It will be a very hard decision for me, she said. Williams recalled keeping a spreadsheet in 2008 to track the candidates policy positions, before ultimately throwing it out when her gut told her to go with Barack Obama. My gut was very positive with Mayor Pete, she said. I didnt feel like hes made this stump speech a million times. We need more From the Ames cafe, Buttigieg and his staff drove across town for a brief on-campus appearance before the College Democrats at Iowa State. The group has about 50 active members, many of whom usually end up volunteering or interning for candidates leading up to the caucuses. About 50 students came to hear Buttigieg, a strong turnout for a candidate who doesnt have good name recognition yet and who came during the day when most students had classes, said the groups president, Taylor Blair. He has a completely different perspective, Blair said. Hes young. Hes a mayor. I was a little, hows that going to work as president, and the way he explained it was really cool. You have to be there for the citizens of your city. You live with them. Thats something we need more in national politics, where people talk about how this is actually going to impact people. You cant hide if youre the mayor. The Buttigieg team next drove about an hour east through farm country to Grinnell, population 9,210, for an appearance at the Drake Community Library. The crowd was standing-room-only, but Garold Nelson, a retired wind blade factory worker, and John Clayton, a Poweshiek County Soil and Water Conservation District commissioner, arrived early enough to get front-row seats. By the time Buttigieg finished, Nelson called him a very good candidate that he might vote for. I love Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders but I dont want to see either of them jump in the race, Nelson said. Id like to see somebody younger get into office, somebody who has a stake in the future, not the past. I hate to give him the kiss of death so early though because I have never supported the eventual nominee other than the incumbent. Clayton called Buttigieg a lot better than what I expected. This guy, hes smooth, hes quick in his thinking, his policy, he knows all of the details, Clayton said. Im going to wait a little to see if he does stumble before I commit, but if he can keep this up, I like him. Sitting a row behind Clayton and Nelson, Donna Winburn, a farmer who would only say shes in her 80s, reminded Buttigieg during a question-and-answer session that a lot of good things happened in the 1950s. He did not mention either the (higher income) tax rates or labor unions and those were two things that made America great in the 50s, she said. Thats been changing since at least the 80s. Winburn said Buttigieg has a lot of good ideas and is very smart but she wont make any decisions until she hears all of the candidates. Sizing up the issues There were several times during the day when Buttigieg either declined to say he supported policies advocated by the partys far left wing or said its too early in the campaign to commit to detailed positions on some policies. For example, he acknowledged that income inequality, exacerbated by automation and globalization, is a critical problem facing the country. But Buttigieg wasnt ready to commit to supporting a universal basic income, saying Im not there yet but Im intrigued by it. Similarly, he said he supports Medicare for all who want it, an option in which the government would fund insurance provided by private companies, as a compromise between the free-market system favored by many conservatives and the socialized medicine advocated by the far left. In yet another example, he was asked at each of the four events his views on the Green New Deal, a resolution recently introduced by New Yorks liberal U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. She has advocated for a set of environmental policies aimed at achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, a year that many scientists say will bring irreversible environmental damage if action isnt taken quickly. Repeatedly, Buttigieg called the Green New Deal a set of goals rather than policies, but said its moving in the right direction. Nat Jordan, co-chair of the Grinnell College Campus Democrats, said he liked the values he heard Buttigieg espouse, but he will need to see more details on some policies before knowing whether to vote for him in the caucuses. He has more experience really interacting on the ground with people rather than engaging in classic D.C. politics, Jordan said. But I want to see more clear policies from him so that I can evaluate him side-by-side with the Senate candidates. Its important for a sort of outer-fringe candidate like him to put his ideas out there and try to get known. The final event of the day, which C-SPAN carried live, drew the biggest crowd. It was held at the Vintage Cooperative, a senior housing complex in Ankeny, one of Iowas fastest-growing suburban communities. Seniors occupied only one table in the room, with a broad mix of people comprising the rest of the crowd of about 90 in a room with a fire code capacity of 81. Like most other Iowa Democrats interviewed, event organizer Mary McAdams, chair of the Ankeny Area Democrats, said it was too early to pick a nominee. At least 10 other candidates are scheduled to visit Iowa in February alone. But she wants to see more of Buttigieg. You believe what he says is coming from his heart and from his gut, and you can trust him, she said. That resonates with the people of Iowa. I think he has an equal shot. Marc A. Thiessen South Bend Tribune Great nations do not fight endless wars, President Donald Trump declared in his State of the Union address. It was a line that could have been delivered by President Barack Obama, who in 2015 memorably said, I do not support the idea of endless war. Just a few days before Trumps address, his own party delivered the president a stinging rebuke when Senate Republicans passed a resolution opposing his Syrian and Afghan withdrawals by an overwhelming bipartisan 68-to-23 vote. Trumps defenders say: Thats just the foreign policy establishment advocating forever war. When, they ask, will these wars end? When will we be able to declare victory and go home? These are fair questions, and they deserve serious answers. In traditional wars, defining victory is easy. Victory comes when the enemy surrenders and lays down its arms. But this is not traditional war. We are not fighting nation-states with defined borders and armies, navies and air forces. We are fighting radical Islamist terrorists who are engaged in what Osama bin Laden called a war of destiny between infidelity and Islam. There will be no signing ceremony on the deck of the U.S.S. Missouri. They will never lay down their arms. In this war, victory for the United States is every day that passes without a terrorist attack on American soil. And that daily victory is made possible because the men and women of the U.S. military are hunting the enemy in faraway lands. Americas enemies have a very clear definition of victory. For them, victory comes when we give up the fight before they do. We know this because they have told us so. The 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed told his CIA interrogator 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. That is how the terrorists see Obamas withdrawal from Iraq in 2011 and Trumps planned withdrawals from Syria and Afghanistan: America defeating itself by quitting. It is understandable that, after 18 years, Americans want the war to end. But what we want is irrelevant. We dont get to decide unilaterally that the war is over. The enemy gets a vote. Just because we have tired of fighting doesnt mean that they have. Here is the hard truth: We dont get to choose when the war ends, but we do get to choose where it is fought. It can either be fought over there, in the deserts of Syria and the mountains of Afghanistan, or it can be fought over here on American streets and in American cities, as it was on Sept. 11, 2001. Its up to us. Trump deserves enormous credit for taking the gloves off in the fight against the terrorists. He was absolutely correct when he declared in the State of the Union address, When I took office, ISIS controlled more than 20,000 square miles in Iraq and Syria. Today, we have liberated virtually all of that territory from the grip of these bloodthirsty monsters. But the Islamic State is not defeated. It still has tens of thousands of fighters under arms and, according to one estimate by the Institute for the Study of War, as much as $400 million it smuggled out of Iraq, money that can be used to sustain its movement and plan attacks across the world. In Afghanistan, U.S. intelligence estimates there are about 20 terrorist groups including al-Qaeda and the Islamic State affiliate known as Islamic State Khorasan, or IS-K who would immediately gain an uncontested sanctuary from which to plan new attacks if America withdraws. On Jan. 28, the New York Times reported that a 2017 intelligence assessment, renewed last year, says a complete withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan would lead to an attack on the United States within two years. Right now, the U.S. military has its boot on the terrorists necks. They are focused on survival, not on launching faraway attacks. Take that boot away, though, and the terrorists will get up, dust themselves off, regroup, rebuild and go back to trying to kill Americans in the United States. In his address, Trump praised the heroism of the men who stormed the beaches of Normandy on D-Day. They did not know if they would survive the hour, he said. They did not know if they would grow old. But they knew that America had to prevail. The same is true today. Great nations do not quit before they prevail. Jack Colwell South Bend Tribune Vice President Mike Pence and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, sitting behind President Trump at the State of the Union address, sought to present just the right expressions, reactions. We dont know what they really were thinking. But lets guess. No right or wrong answers. 1. When the Sergeant at Arms shouted arrival of the president of the United States. Pence thought: a. Next year that could be me. b. Probably have to wait til after my second term as vice president. c. Bet he didnt even pray over his speech. Pelosi thought: a. Ha. With him its Un-United States. b. Will he even wait for my traditional intro? c. Gotta be ready to shush any of my misbehaving freshmen reps. 2. When the president began, I stand here ready to work with you. Pence thought: a. Gotta stand a lot, too. Cant look like a potted plant again. b. Darn. Hes wearing a red tie, and here I am with blue. c. Those women in white dont look ready to work with us. Pelosi thought: a. Liar! Liar! Pants on fire! b. At least he didnt look up at me and say Lock her up. c. His weird hairdo looks even sillier looking down on him. 3. When the president said of his cherished wall, I will get it built. Pence thought: a. Glad he stopped saying Mexico will pay for it. b. Walls work. I wanted one at the Indiana-Michigan line. c. Got to organize another caravan to scare the voters. Pelosi thought: a. Not while Im speaker. b. Feels like theres a wall between me and Pence. c. If he claims were for open borders, Ill scream. Wait. Not proper. 4. When the president said, If there is going to be peace and legislation, there cannot be war and investigation. Pence thought: a. Way to go, boss. b. Right. No investigation. Take that, Mueller. c. The four horsemen trampling peace and legislation are Death, Famine, War and Mueller. Pelosi thought: a. House investigations will be fair. Wont prejudge the impeachable jerk. b. Told my members not to even suggest impeachment until we do it. c. No legislation if theres investigation? So much for infrastructure. 5. When the president said, America will never be a socialist country. Pence thought: a. Right. Thats why wed love to have Bernie as their nominee. b. Gonna play well in all the toss-up Midwest states. c. Glad he didnt call Social Security socialism. Pelosi thought: a. They wanna paint us as socialists, communists. Cant let em. b. Gotta keep our candidates from using the S-word. c. Wish Trump would call for privatizing socialistic Social Security. 6. When the president said, My relationship with Kim Jong Un is a good one. Pence thought: a. Better that Kim sends love letters rather than missiles. b. At least he didnt talk of his relationship with Putin. c. Wish I knew what he agreed to in talks with Kim and Putin. 7. When the president said, We have more women serving in Congress than at any time before. Pence thought: a. Almost all of em are on the Democratic side, wearing threatening white. b. I wont give Democrats a chance to cheer like that when I deliver the address. c. Im afraid what Stephen Colbert will say about all this. Pelosi thought: a. Wow, thanks for the plug. b. They cant figure why female voters like us so much. Wish we could figure how to get male voters to like us more. c. Cant wait to hear what Stephen Colbert says about all this. Victoria St. Martin South Bend Tribune SOUTH BEND Theres a red plastic mail bin that routinely gets rolled into a corner of Rachel Raska Selles classroom. The inside is not filled with letters its filled with musical instruments. This week its all about the percussion, and a snare drum is tucked inside. The bins are South Bend school systems answer to the loss of musical instruction for fifth-graders this school year. As a result of the systems massive redistricting plan called Focus 2018 fifth-graders moved from intermediate centers into elementary schools where musical instrument instruction is not offered. The plan also extended the school day for elementary students, and the shift helped make recess longer at all the elementary schools, something experts have said is a positive move. But, district officials have said parents expressed concern about the music program and worried students would face delays in getting a chance to learn an instrument. So as a solution, they instituted a four-wheeled red bin called a music cart that gets rolled from school to school. Raska Selle, a music teacher at Swanson Traditional School, calls it an instrument petting zoo. The collection of instruments percussion, woodwinds, brass and strings makes its way to fifth-graders at 16 of the districts 17 elementary schools. With the strings, they get to touch them and draw the bow across. They cant put their mouths on the woodwinds but they get to see the different reeds, Raska Selle said. Its nice instead of watching a video or seeing someone play it its like, here it is. There used to be an abbreviated version of this instrument petting zoo. Now theres a two-week lesson, and each student chooses an instrument to research. But, because of the redistricting plan, they wont get a chance to learn to play until sixth grade. Starting this month, district officials are beginning to introduce the traveling cart to fourth-grade students. Wendy Folk, director of South Bends elementary schools, said there will also be a free summer band camp this year for all soon-to-be middle schoolers. Folk said because the school system cant offer fifth-graders band or orchestra, its important for them to at least have an introduction to these instruments. We wanted them to have a better understanding of what theyre even choosing, she said, and to build that excitement for being a part of band or orchestra. What about recess? Folk said the redistricting plan also extended the school day and with that shift, she built in a longer recess for all elementary school students. Before this school year, a 15-minute recess was baked into the lunchtime hour. This school year, Folk said, all schools have a 15-minute recess monitored by teachers. Then theres a second lunchtime recess if cafeteria staff is available and if theres enough space on the playground. She said the hope is that all children are outside for 25 to 30 minutes. We have a longer day, and kids need to be moving, she said. They need that opportunity for free play. School board members and administrators said theyre examining the changes in recess because parents have raised concerns about the shifts in time. Administrators are also asking teachers to incorporate movement into lesson plans in lieu of going outside. Folk said some educators get help in the form of colorful, animated videos called GoNoodle. In one, students stretch, close their eyes and pretend theyre walking on an imaginary tightrope with a character named Maximo, who speaks both English and Spanish. But one school decided to take it a step further. Elizabeth Willkom decided lets have two recesses one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Were one of the first schools in South Bend to do it, said Willkom, the principal at Nuner Fine Arts Academy. And its really a good outlet. Willkom said her kindergartners and first-graders already had two recesses. And at some point, parents started coming in and saying that extra time outside would be good for all students, and she thought: Why not? As of January, all students at Nuner have two 15-minute recesses. I feel like the building is a little less stressed, she said. You get a brain break, get some movement outside and then go on about your day. The experts say ... One local pediatrician said theres been drastic increase in childhood obesity and childhood diabetes and that recess along with physical activity is essential. We are in a time-crunch society, said Matt Misner, who practices at Beacon Health Medical Group. Everything is going by the wayside. Kids need to play. Misner added that play is not only important for a childs physical health, but for their mental health, too. He pointed to a research paper on recess and physical exercise for children with ADHD and how it could reduce over-activity. Theres a direct link between ADHD and psychiatric disorders, and lack of physical education, said Misner, who is working on a paper about this issue. Children when they are exercising are getting a chance to not only be children, but its also a stress release. Its only the first year of the shift for the system, and officials say theyre still examining the pros and cons, but so far redistricting has saved the district $8 million. In the meantime, administrators said, they are surveying teachers and parents about the modifications. Raska Selle, who said all elementary teachers had a summer training about the instruments in the carts, said parents tend gush to her about it. When I see them at car pickup or a concert, they say their child came home and was so excited because they got to hold a violin today or they got to hold a bow, she said. They got to hold a trumpet. She said some classes have around 28 students in them, and theres not enough trumpets for everyone to play one. It would be great in an ideal world, she added. But if you think about it, some of the things that kids remember the most are experiences. This brings it a step closer. Ken Milani is a Professor of Accountancy at the University of Notre Dame. His email is milani.1@nd.edu. Claude Renshaw, an Emeritus Professor of Business Administration at Saint Marys College, can be reached at renshaw1040@gmail.com. Email either to submit a question. Roy Chapman, 73, of Nancy, passed away Tuesday, June 22, 2021 at his residence. Arrangements are pending and will be announced later by Morris & Hislope Funeral Home. Condolences may be expressed to the family at: www.morrisandhislope.com Dear @IlhanMN, I hear you plan to go on a fact-finding tour of Israel. In fact, Israel is doing pretty well. Its, Somalia, your native country, that could truly use your formidable skills. Maybe you could use your frequent flyer miles and swing by. File Those who wish to attend Monday's council meeting and cannot get into the chambers will be able to watch live in the lobby of the Energy Center. Alternately, they can go to the community room of Rocky Hollow Recreation Center. Submitted The Center for Rural Development is now accepting applications for the 2019 Entrepreneurial Leadership Institute summer youth leadership program. If you would like to be a part of this exciting program, like these 2018 ELI Alumni, from left Caitlyn Patterson, Cumberland County; and Madison Webb, Lawrence County; go to www.centeryouthprograms.com and fill out an online application. The deadline to apply is March 1, 2019. GREAT BAY/MARIGOT:--- St. Martin poets are taking up the challenge of a global protest reading, For A World Without Wallsat Le Lime Snack, Wednesday, February 13, at 7:30 pm, said Lasana M. Sekou, projects director at House of Nehesi Publishers (HNP). The public is invited to come and hear our poets at this free reading. About 12 poets from both parts of the island are already confirmed to read, said Shujah Reiph, coordinator of St. Martins contribution to the international poetry project. The recital is also a feature of the popular Black History Month Celebration program of Conscious Lyrics Foundation (CLF). The manager of Le Lime Snack, located near the Cul-de-sac roundabout (between French Quarter and Grand Case), generously offered to host the cultural event at her restaurant, said Reiph, president of CLF. The St. Martin poets and spoken word artists scheduled to perform poetry on the essentially freedom and justice theme, include Tamara Groeneveldt, Fabian Badejo, Faizah Tabasamu (Rochelle Ward), Sigma Defence, Sarina Alexander, Melissa Fleming, Marianne Tefft, Sjorensly Valies, and Roberto Arrindell, said Reiph. Internationally, the readings against physical and psychological walls that separate and oppress peoples and nations, are confirmed for over 400 cities, in some 150 countries and territories, from all continents, throughout February, said Fernando Rendon, General Coordinator of the World Poetry Movement (WPM). wpm2011.org. Considering that dividing walls are emerging to segregate people: concrete walls, barbed wire walls, or more invisible walls built by money and inequality, the WPM members took the decision to call for a planetary poetic action to be carried out in February 2019, said Rendon, himself a poet and director of the International Poetry Festival of Medellin, Colombia. Rendon contacted Sekou to inquire whether St. Martin poets would participate with fellow poets from around the world in the poetry action. Over the last two weeks Sekou has been contacting poets on the island by email and social media, said Reiph. With the initial responses HNP and CLF started organizing the reading, which is happily free and open to the general public, said Reiph, who is also coordinator of the annual St. Martin Book Fair. St. Martin poets, aspiring poets, and spoken word artists can participate in the international poetry protest action by contacting Shujah Reiph, at (590 690) 30-7366. The worldwide recitals for A World Without Walls can be seen at the Facebook page of the World Poetry Movement. The WPM Coordinating Committee members hail from India, Ghana, USA, Panama, Colombia, Cuba, Greece, Turkey, Kuwait, Nepal, China, Kenya, Morocco, France, Sweden, and Chile. PHILIPSBURG:--- From February 9-15, 2019 delegations from the Parliaments of Aruba, Curacao, Sint Maarten, and Suriname will be meeting in Suriname for Parliamentary discussions between the Parliaments of the four countries. The four parliamentary delegations will meet to discuss a number of issues, among others: restart of the contact plan between Aruba, Curacao, Sint Maarten, and Suriname, and cooperation in areas such as agriculture and fisheries, ecotourism and trade. The program also includes different courtesy visits as well as several work visits of which among others: work visit to fish company SAIL, plant propagation company InVitroplants of NV Grassalco, and Bergendal Eco & Cultural River Resort. The Parliamentary consultations will conclude on Thursday, February 14, 2019, with a press conference and the signing of the draft contact plan. The Sint Maarten delegation participating in the Parliamentary consultations consist of the following members: Mrs. Sarah A. Wescot-Williams, President of Parliament, Delegation leader; Mr. Claude, A.H. Peterson, Vice Chairman Committee Kingdom Affairs and Interparliamentary Relations; Ms. Silveria E. Jacobs; Mr. Rolando Brison; Mrs. Ann A. Groen-Gumbs, LL.M., Act. Secretary General. The Democratic Party is in a bind, one that became excruciatingly clear last week as the top three officials in Virginia a former Republican stronghold that is becoming reliably Democratic have become embroiled in controversies around racism and sexual assault. These incidents have sparked calls for resignation from across the Democratic Party. The events in Virginia have been so cataclysmic because in recent years the party has developed a base that is far more diverse than any in American history. And that base is starting to hold party leaders accountable. That reckoning with racism and sexism in the party is challenging enough. But it has been made even more so as Republicans, who have shown little interest in a reckoning of their own, have figured out how to weaponise the Democratic Partys new politics. Events in Virginia illustrate how that weaponisation works. A few weeks ago, Virginian Governor Ralph Northam weighed in on late-term abortion. A doctor, Northam offered a clinical assessment of these abortions, which are performed in rare and devastating circumstances, usually involving the discovery, late in pregnancy, of a fatal fetal abnormality. Washington: The White House has not ruled out another federal government shutdown, even as it signalled a willingness to obtain funding for US President Donald Trump's proposed border wall by other means. Donald Trump talks to the media on the South Lawn of the White House. Credit:Bloomberg In appearances on NBC's Meet the Press and Fox News Sunday, Acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney said "you absolutely cannot" eliminate the possibility of another shutdown this coming Friday if a deal is not reached over the wall. The White House had asked for $US5.7 billion ($8 billion), a figure rejected by the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives. The mood among bargainers has soured, according to people familiar with the negotiations. Mandana and her mother with Mandanas 4-year-old dog at the vet clinic in Tehran, Iran. Credit:New York Times Dogs "create fear and anxiety" when they are seen in public, Rahimi said in an appearance at the Young Journalist Club, part of Iranian state television. "The police will take measures against the owners." He did not say exactly what measures. His comments were echoed in the semi-official Fars news agency, where people complained that dogs take away all the fun in public parks. "Dog owners ignore the commands of Islam, and influenced by Western satellite channels bring their pets to the park causing distress for the other visitors," one user wrote. "We call upon the authorities to firmly deal with these dogs," someone else wrote. Hamidreza Taraghi, a hard-line politician, said in an interview, "Religiously speaking, wherever a dog sits or walks, we cannot pray." Taraghi said increasing numbers of people were complaining to police about dogs. Furthermore, he added, dog ownership is adding fuel to the American sanction effort. Hoda Sedghi Shamir breeds dogs and also looks after stray dogs and ones who need medical treatment in Tehran. Credit:New York Times "We are experiencing economic difficulties but the dog lovers are spending billions of dollars each year for dog food," he said. "We need that money for more important things." Walking dogs in public is by no means the only activity off-limits to Iranians, as their clerical leaders seek to help the citizenry avoid sin. To achieve this goal, they are prohibited, among other things, from dancing and drinking alcohol and, for women, appearing in public without the compulsory Islamic head scarf. In reality, however, the give and take between Iranians and their Islamic guardians is a constant work in progress. So there is dancing, some people drink and headscarves tend to fall off with surprising frequency. But punishments can be harsh, and every so often perpetrators are fined, and at times even flogged. Nevertheless, flouting the official rules is so routine that few people consider it an act of rebellion. Time was in Iran that religious hard-liners would inform on violators. These days, the enforcement of unpopular laws is left almost entirely to the police, with neighbors, friends and others determined to look the other way. Like many previous edicts of this sort, the ban on dog walking is not being taken very seriously, Bahrierad said. A young woman walks her dog on a snowy day in Tehran, Iran. Such activity is frowned upon by conservative hard-liners who see it as a symptom of Western influence. Credit:New York Times "Teddy and I walk in a park in the Shahram neighborhood everyday, and the police are actually very friendly to us," she said. The number of dogs and cats, though they are more acceptable under Islam is growing rapidly, if a recent explosion in pet clinics in Tehran is any measure. Two decades ago the only place to take a pet for treatment was Tehran University, which ran a clinic staffed by veterinarians in training. Now, there are dozens of pet clinics. Loading Still, dog owners need to learn some things, said Damoon Ansari, a veterinarian at the Paytakht Pet Clinic in Tehran's Shahrak-e Gharb neighborhood. "We need to educate dog-owners," he said. "They should have rights, but also responsibilities." Larger dogs need training, droppings need to be scooped, and children should be taught how to deal with animals and dogs, he explained. And when it comes to dog-walking there is no middle way, he said. "Dogs need to walk outside. Period." Near the Imam Khomeini International Airport on Thursday, Hoda Sedghi Shamir, 37, was busy feeding the 23 dogs she is sheltering. Some are paralysed, others are blind, most are strays that she found roaming around. "I never had children, so these are my kids," she said. Shamir said she has helped dogs hurt when stones were thrown at them, and others shot by air rifles. "I spend around $US600 a month on all of them, for their food, vaccinations and training sessions," she said. Istanbul: The death toll from the collapse of an eight-storey building in Istanbul has risen to 21 while 14 other people were injured, Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu has told Turkey's Demiroren news agency. The residential building, in the Kartal district on the Asian side of the city, collapsed on Wednesday. It was not immediately clear what caused the collapse. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, centre, carries a coffin as he joins hundreds of mourners at the funeral of nine members of one family killed in the collapsed apartment building in Istanbul. Credit:AP "An estimated 35 people were in the building according to the information we received. Twenty-one bodies were pulled out of the rubble including a person of central Asian origin," Soylu said late Saturday. Fourteen apartments were registered at the site but the top three floors of the building had been built illegally, the city's governor Ali Yerlikaya has said. A textile workshop was also operating without a licence at the entrance. Kiev: Ukraine must join the European Union and NATO to protect itself from Russia's expansionist actions, Ukraine's president said on Saturday as he officially launched his re-election campaign. President Petro Poroshenko, who is seeking a second five-year term in the March 31 vote, accused Russia on Saturday of planning to meddle in the election. He charged that Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to destroy Ukrainian independence and described the nation's presidential election as a "general battle for Ukraine". "Only full-fledged membership in the European Union and NATO can decisively and irrevocably guarantee our independence, national security, freedom and well-being," Poroshenko told supporters in Kiev, the Ukrainian capital. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko gestures during a parliament session in Kiev last week. Credit:AP Opinion polls show Poroshenko trailing behind comedian Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who plays the nation's president in a hugely popular TV series, and former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko. London: British Prime Minister Theresa May will pledge this week to give lawmakers another chance to voice their opinions on Brexit by February 27 as she tries to buy more time to negotiate a new deal with the European Union. As the clock ticks down to Britain's scheduled exit on March 29, May is trying to persuade the EU to change a deal that was agreed between London and Brussels late last year but overwhelmingly rejected by the British Parliament in January. May wants to win over lawmakers in her Conservative Party with changes relating to the Northern Irish border, but the EU has refused to reopen the deal and instead wants May to pursue a compromise with the main opposition Labour Party by agreeing closer UK-EU ties. The impasse has left the world's fifth largest economy facing an uncertain future, rattling financial markets and businesses about the prospect of a disorderly exit from the bloc that could damage the economy. Budapest: Hungary's anti-immigration Prime Minister said the government would increase financial aid and subsidies for families in a bid to boost the country's population. The measures announced during Prime Minister Viktor Orban's annual state of the nation speech are designed to encourage women to have more children and to reverse Hungary's population decline. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban delivers his annual 'State of Hungary' speech in Budapest on Sunday. The inscription on the podium reads: "For us Hungary is the first!" Credit:MTI They include a lifetime income tax exemption for women who give birth to at least four children. Orban said such policies and not immigration were "Hungary's answer" to downward demographic trends 'A challenge' to hold on Niall Blair, the deputy Nationals leader and Primary Industries Minister, has had to crisscross the electorate to deal with fish kills at Menindee or elsewhere. Retaining Barwon "is a challenge, that's for sure", he said. Polling by the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party in early December put the Nationals first at 33.1 per cent, ahead of their party's support at 19.3 per cent and Labor's 12.6 per cent. Andrew Schier - the Nationals candidate picked to replace Kevin Humphries, who is retiring after three terms - is hoping the Berejiklian government's "good financial track record" will cut through. Andrew Schier, the Nationals candidate for Barwon, hopes to extend his party's grip on the state's largest seat. "We're here to create opportunity, prosperity and [economic] diversity," Mr Schier said. That upbeat message may struggle to get traction in a seat that straddles the Barwon-Darling River and includes many towns wilting in a drought Mr Schier says has lasted about six years, save for a six-month wet spell about three years ago. The summer from Hades, though, has only heightened water concerns. Bourke - which is drilling a second bore to ensure supplies as its weir pool on the Darling shrivels into an algal stew - clocked 21 days in a row above 40 degrees last month. That eclipsed the previous NSW record of 17, also at Bourke, in 1939. Other towns have also baked. Enter the vegetarian Shooters candidate Roy Butler, the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers candidate who works for the police after stints in corrective services and disabilities, is aware how sharp water restrictions are biting. His home in Mendooran is on Stage 6 water restrictions, so severe that even the evaporative air-conditioners - known as "swampies" - can only run for four hours each evening. Roy Butler, the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers candidate for the seat of Barwon, has water issues clear in his sights. Mr Butler breaks the typical mould of a shooters candidate, not least because he is a vegetarian. Loading "I did it for health reasons...it's not some religious fanaticism," he is quick to add. "I don't want to see any animal suffer unnecessarily." Water will be central to his campaign because voters are "cranky, white hot with anger" about it, Mr Butler says. The lack of a government response to the Murray-Darling Basin Royal Commission in South Australia means that over-extraction, particularly by big irrigators, will continue. "The rules allow it to happen," he says. Walgett's saline woes Wendy Spencer, a project manager at the Dharriwaa Elders Group in Walgett, says Mr Butler has "jumped on the water issue and he's probably winning quite a few votes here". Walgett, the town that notably briefly ran out of water earlier this year, needs a desalination plant because of the high salt content in the bore water, Ms Spencer said. The health of the Darling River is likely to feature prominently in March's state election in the seat of Barwon. Credit:Kate Geraghty The indigenous population is particularly at risk of extended exposure. Low incomes typically preclude buying bottled water and the community's relatively high incidence of chronic health issues adds to the risks, Ms Spencer said. Barwon has perhaps the highest proportion of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islanders of any electorate, at 16.5 per cent compared with 2.5 per cent across NSW, according to the 2016 census. Getting their vote may be difficult. "A lot of Aboriginal people have given up," Ms Spencer says. "They think it's another world and it doesn't apply to them." Phil Naden, one of two independents running for Barwon, says stopping CSG is a priority issue. Phil Naden, one of two independent candidates, is an Indigenous former Queensland policeman, working in regional health from a base in Balladoran. He hopes to reach a broad audience with his "people before the party" pitch. "My motivation [to run] is not driven by my Aboriginality but by the community and the need to hold the government to account," Mr Naden said. Anti-CSG block Opposition to the $3 billion Narrabri Coal Seam Gas project planned for the Pilliga is one stance Mr Naden shares with Labor's Cr Turley and the Shooters' Mr Butler - but not the Nationals. Loading Labor has opposed CSG for years, and hopes that policy will chime in with rising angst about the project's feared impact on a recharge zone of the Great Artesian Basin. At the last election, Broken Hill booths voted about two-thirds for Labor, compared with more than three-quarters in favour of the Nationals in towns in the east of Barwon such as Narrabri. "Broken Hill is very solid," Ms Turley said, adding the party's promotion of renewable energy should also appeal to those seeking an alternative to CSG. Defence Minister Christopher Pyne has dismissed Labor's call for Parliament to sit for an extra two weeks in March to deal with the recommendations of the banking royal commission. Mr Pyne said the government's response to commissioner Kenneth Hayne's 76 recommendations would require at least 40 pieces of legislation and the Coalition wanted to get them right. "We won't be rushing legislation into the parliament for a feverish, two-week sitting just to please Bill Shorten and the Labor Party," he told the Insiders program on Sunday. Taking time to prepare the laws properly will prevent the Parliament from having to fix them later, he added. The Australian government gave over $1 million to research projects involving Chinese technology giant Huawei and contributed funds to student trips to Huawei's facilities in China even as it has barred the company from building next-generation 5G mobile infrastructure for security reasons. The Australian Research Council (ARC), a top government research funding body, paid out the $1 million in grants over the last four years to projects involving several Australian universities and Huawei for work on subjects from wireless communications to road infrastructure. Under fire: Huawei still has partnerships with the Australian government despite being banned from working on some projects. Credit:AP Huawei has also been supported by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade's New Colombo Plan (NCP) in an ongoing project called "Seeds for the Future" to send students to China for a cultural and computer science exchange, including a visit to Huawei facilities. The company is also still listed as a member of the Australian government's advisory 5G working group. A teenager has died after a car crash in WA's South West. The man, 19, had been driving a white Toyota Landcruiser ute in Collins, near Pemberton, on Saturday when the car left the road, travelled down an embankment and hit a tree. Collins, WA. Credit:Google Maps The 19-year-old died at the scene. Two passengers, aged 18 and 23, both received minor injuries. When Brisbane man Hazem Hamouda landed in Egypt for a dream holiday with his Australian-born family, he never imagined it would land him in prison. The devoted father of six was whisked away by Egyptian security minutes after touching down. More than a year later, Mr Hamouda, 55, still languishes in a Cairo jail, where his mental and physical health are rapidly deteriorating. Loading Egyptian authorities accuse him of being associated with the banned Muslim Brotherhood and spreading false information but no charges have been laid. Sydney's Bondi Beach mural has been vandalised with a row of swastika symbols in what has been described as an "expression of blatant racism". Police are appealing for any witnesses to come forward after attending Queen Elizabeth Drive at Bondi early Sunday morning, following reports of malicious damage. Over 20 swastika symbols appeared around the Bondi area in Sydney's east overnight. A section of the mural wall was defaced with approximately 20 swastika symbols, according to NSW Police, while three more were later located around Ebley St in Bondi Junction. Vic Alhadeff, CEO of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies, condemned the graffiti. A Building Commissioner will have responsibility for auditing people who work in the industry, the NSW government says in its long-awaited response to a major review of regulation of the building and construction sector. The government will also tighten protections for homeowners and owners corporations, to help ensure they receive compensation if builders or engineers have been negligent. In the wake of the Opal Tower debacle, in which design and construction failures contributed to faults in the 36-storey building, NSW Fair Trading Minister Matt Kean on Sunday released the governments response to a national report into compliance and enforcement in the building industry. Tradesmen working on the Opal Tower at Sydney Olympic Park Credit:Dominic Lorrimer Mr Kean described the response as the biggest shake-up in building and construction laws in our state's history. The tumbling Australian dollar is likely to put even more pressure on local retailers already facing another year of challenges, according to a new report. The local edition of Deloitte's 2019 Global Powers of Retailing report, released on Monday, said declining property prices hit consumers' willingness to spend in the second half of last year, meaning retailers in Australia have little room to manoeuvre if import costs keep rising on the falling dollar. Wesfarmers and Woolworths were both in the top 25 global retailers. Credit:Peter Rae "Retailers' heavy reliance on imports has many watching the value of the Australian dollar closely," said David White, Deloitte's retail, wholesale and distribution leader for Australia. "Any major decline in the currency could result in significant cost pressures at a time when there is little room to increase consumer prices." Swarthmore, PA (19081) Today A few passing clouds. Low 56F. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight A few passing clouds. Low 56F. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph. To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account. We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription. A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means youre helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much! STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Sen. Charles Schumer (D-New York) announced Sunday that construction of the East Shore seawall will move forward, pending a vote on a bill. The seawall is going to get built and were going to be a lot safer God forbid another storm like [Hurricane] Sandy occurs, Schumer said. Schumer made the announcement on the Franklin D. Roosevelt Boardwalk in South Beach, joined by Borough President James Oddo, Rep. Max Rose (D-Staten Island) and Assemblyman Michael Cusick (D-Mid-Island). The plan calls for the seawall -- which was first proposed in 2015 -- to be built from Fort Wadsworth to Oakwood Beach on the East Shore. The seawall project would provide protection for Staten Island homeowners from disastrous storm surges and rising tides, similar to storms like Hurricane Sandy. The bill will allow the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the city to gain access to Gateway National Park to allow future operation and maintenance of the seawall. Without access, also known as an easement, construction would be delayed indefinitely. Schumer inserted the bill into a federal lands package to prevent delays and ensure construction. This legislative fix will force the National Park Service to grant the Army Corps and New York City the site access needed to officially construct and maintain the seawall, but weve got to bring it to a vote so that can all happen, and happen fast, Schumer said. If the bill is passed by the Senate, it will then go to the House, which Schumer said is certain to pass. This is the last step, Schumer said. Within a few weeks after this legislation passes, the Army Corps will be starting to survey and build. The plans are all done. ... Flood insurance will go down, property values will increase, but most of all, people will be a lot safer. Once the Army Corps begins construction, it will take two to three years for the seawall to be completed, Schumer said. Rep. Max Rose reintroduced legislation -- originally crafted by Schumer and former Congressman Dan Donovan -- to enhance the authority of the Interior Secretary within the Gateway National Recreation Area to grant easements and rights-of-way for projects like the seawall that prevent flooding and shoreline erosion. Its not just about building this seawall, its about eliminating stress for people and its certainly about making peoples flood insurance go down, said Rose. FUNDING SECURED LAST YEAR Schumer secured $730 million in funding last year for the Army Corps. It was transferred into the then-recently passed federal budget deal for storm mitigation projects. The transfer of federal funding better positioned the Army Corps to fulfill its mandated 65 percent of construction for storm mitigation projects. Along with the seawall, the Army Corps also plans to build a flood wall and levee, replacing one that was built in 2000 in Oakwood Beach. FOLLOW ANNALISE KNUDSON ON FACEBOOK AND TWITTER. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Sea View Hospital Rehabilitation Center and Homes new CEO said hes hit the ground running since his appointment in January and is prepared to continue to enhance the facilitys community-based reputation on Staten Island. NYC Health and Hospitals named Jay Russel, 30, as CEO of the 304-bed nursing facility, located at 460 Brielle Ave., on Jan. 14. Russel has never called Staten Island home but said hes frequented the borough often to visit family and is extremely aware of the tight-knit community and family atmosphere that Staten Island prides itself on. Sea View has been number one for a reason and we will continue to be the center of excellence on Staten Island, Russel said, adding that hes excited to be a part of the Sea View community. Since 2008, Sea View has maintained its five-star rating from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and has the highest rating from U.S. News and World Report in its list of Best Nursing Home Short-Stay Rehabilitation Centers. We welcome Jay to our team at NYC Health and Hospitals/Sea View, said Maureen McClusky, senior vice president for post-acute care at NYC Health and Hospitals. Many consider Sea View the jewel of our public health system and we are fortunate to have found someone with the leadership skills and experience like Jay to entrust with that jewel. COMPLAINTS HANDLED AS OPEN DOOR POLICY When asked about complaints that have surfaced regarding patient care and staffing at Sea View, Russel said the family atmosphere of the facility often helps mitigate complaints once a more in-depth conversation occurs. Since my appointment, what Ive noticed is that most of the people here and their family are Staten Islanders. They know the staff and just having that familiar setting and having a connection it creates a family atmosphere and helps us mitigate complaints, Russel said. The closeness is the main contributor to Sea Views success, he said. However, he said he plans to handle all future complaints with an open-door policy. All complaints will be addressed immediately, he said. Because hes held his position for less than one month, he said he is unfamiliar with the severity of any past complaints but plans to handle whatever arises. Healthcare changes every day what happens today wont happen tomorrow or even the next day. Keeping 304 people happy all day, every day, realistically its very difficult, but I do really think that Sea View does an excellent job of that, he said. CONTINUOUS PROGRESSION HAS LEAD TO THIS POSITION Russel holds a bachelors degree in human biology from the University at Albany, State University of New York, and holds a masters degree in healthcare administration from Hofstra University, where he graduated with distinction. He also lectures hospital administration and health care leadership at his alma matter. Russel previously served as a licensed nursing home administrator and lead the daily operations at Mills Pond Nursing and Rehab, a 252-bed facility; Long Beach Skilled Nursing Facility, a 150-bed facility; and Peninsula Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, a 200-bed facility. All of that experience has geared me towards taking on this role at Sea View, Russel said, noting that the Staten Island facility has the most beds of any facility hes managed. Its been a continuous progression towards more responsibility, he said. What all of the facilities have in common, Russel explained, is theyre all based in patient care. Its all tied back to patient care and knowing the needs of your community and the individuals that you serve. Its an integral part, he said. He said he knew that early in his career and has been honing in on that skill since. While working at Peninsula Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, he oversaw the development of in-house renal dialysis and adult health programs. When asked if he plans to bring dialysis services to Sea View, he said, NYC Health and Hospitals has been growing its presence on Staten Island and through that, we will be looking to add a dialysis piece to the community of Staten Island. We want to be the main point of care and weve been tied to the community for years and we to be the full continuum of care services, he said. You are now listening to the sounds of the New Generation. A podcast created for those who desire a new way of gaining information rather than reading a traditional newspaper. In our show we will discuss everything from sports, pop culture, politics, and local news. To stay up to date on our latest episodes every week be sure to follow us on your favorite podcast service. And dont worry, we keep it short. SEOUL South Korea and the United States struck a new deal Sunday that increases Seouls contribution for the cost of the American military presence on its soil, overcoming previous failed negotiations that caused worries about their decades-long alliance. South Korea last year provided about $830 million, covering roughly 40 percent of the cost of the deployment of 28,500 U.S. soldiers whose presence is meant to deter aggression from North Korea. President Trump has pushed for South Korea to pay more. On Sunday, chief negotiators from the two countries signed the new cost-sharing plan, which requires South Korea to pay about 1.04 trillion won ($924 million) in 2019, Seouls Foreign Ministry said in a statement. The statement said the two countries reaffirmed the need for a stable U.S. military deployment amid the rapidly changing situation on the Korean Peninsula. The ministry said the U.S. assured South Korea that it is committed to the alliance and has no plans to adjust the number of its troops in South Korea. The development comes as Trump is set to hold his second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vietnam in late February. South Korea began paying for the U.S. military deployment in the early 1990s, after rebuilding its economy from the devastation of the 1950-1953 Korean War. The big U.S. military presence in South Korea is a symbol of the countries alliance, forged in blood during the war, but also a source of long-running anti-American sentiments. The United States government realizes that Korea does a lot for our alliance and peace and stability in the region, chief U.S. negotiator Timothy Betts said Sunday in Seoul. We are very pleased our consultations resulted in agreement that will strengthen transparency and deepen our cooperation and the alliance. The deal, which involves the spending of South Korean taxpayer money, requires parliamentary approval in South Korea, but not in the United States, according to Seouls Foreign Ministry. The allies had failed to reach a new cost-sharing plan during some 10 rounds of talks. A five-year 2014 deal that covered South Koreas payment last year expired at the end of 2018. South Korean media reported that Trump demanded South Korea double its spending for the U.S. military deployment, before the U.S. eventually asked for 1.13 trillion won ($1 billion). Hyung-Jin Kim is an Associated Press writer. JERUSALEM Former military chief Benny Gantz has burst onto Israels political scene as the great hope of the countrys shrinking peace camp with a message that is anything but dovish. The retired general, who wants to topple Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in April 9 elections, boasts of killing Palestinian militants and aligns himself with political hard-liners. He fires back at Netanyahus criticism with scathing counterattacks. In todays Israel, Gantzs ready-to-rumble rhetoric appears to be the only way to bring down the long-serving Netanyahu. Thats turning him into an unlikely source of hope for Israelis who view ending their countrys rule over the Palestinians, now in its 51st year, as a priority. Yossi Beilin, an architect of the 1993 interim peace accords with the Palestinians, said fear of another Netanyahu term is driving much of the support for Gantz. He called Gantz a black dove an imperfect but tolerable alternative to Netanyahu. Not that I agree with everything he says, but many of the things he is saying are OK from my point of view, Beilin said. Opinion polls forecast victory for Netanyahus Likud Party. But since Gantzs recent maiden political speech, his new Israel Resilience party has emerged as No. 2. The race could swing in the challengers favor. Netanyahu faces possible indictment in a series of corruption investigations, perhaps before the elections. Meanwhile, Gantz is reportedly exploring mergers with other centrist parties. Gantz appears to be modeling himself after Ehud Barak and the late Yitzhak Rabin former military chiefs-turned-prime ministers. Both used military credentials to lead security-obsessed Israel to peace negotiations with the Palestinians. Wary of being branded a leftist, considered a put-down by many Israelis, Gantz has said little about his vision of peace with the Palestinians. He dresses his rhetoric in security terms as he tries to win support from Netanyahus nationalist base. Without giving details, Gantz has vowed to strive for peace and if that is impossible to shape a new reality. He said hed strengthen West Bank settlement blocs and retain control of the Jordan Valley, a strategic section of the occupied West Bank the Palestinians seek as the heartland of a future state. Gantz said hes currently re-reading Machiavellis The Prince. Asked how many militants he has killed, he said: Personally, quite a few times, and as a commander, many times. In Israel, the 2014 Gaza war is generally seen as having dealt a blow to Hamas, and Gantzs military record an electoral asset. Driving home the point, he appointed Moshe Yaalon, another former military chief with hard-line political views, as his deputy. Opinion polls show Gantz neck and neck with Netanyahu when it comes to fitness for prime minister and handling security. About one quarter of Gantzs supporters formerly backed Likud or the allied Kulanu party. Josef Federman is an Associated Press writer. SOFIA, Bulgaria The nation plans to investigate reports that a third suspect in the nerve agent poisoning of a Russian ex-spy in England allegedly was involved in a 2015 poisoning in Bulgaria, a party official said Sunday. Tsvetan Tsvetanov of the ruling GERB party said the probe was being coordinated with foreign partners. He told Bulgarias bTV channel that intelligence officials plan to present evidence on the topic Thursday to a parliamentary homeland security committee. I am certain that the necessary coordination has already been set up between the Bulgarian, British and European authorities on the case and they are working actively on it, Tsvetanov said. Britains Foreign Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Investigative group Bellingcat has reported an alleged Russian military intelligence agent arrived in Bulgaria in April 2015, a few days before Bulgarian businessman Emilian Gebrev was poisoned by an unidentified substance. Gebrev, an arms industry executive, survived but authorities still dont know who poisoned him. Bellingcat said on its website the 45-year-old Russian agent traveled under the alias Sergei Vyacheslavovich Fedotov and had been conclusively identified as an agent of Russian military intelligence, or GRU. Bellingcat said Fedotov also was suspected of being involved in the Novichok nerve-agent poisoning of Russian ex-spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Yulia, in the English city of Salisbury. He arrived in Britain two days before the March 2018 attack. Both Skripals survived after weeks in the hospital and after their release were taken to an undisclosed location for their safety, the British government has said. Britain says Russian intelligence agencies had been spying on Skripal and his daughter for at least five years. British officials have blamed the attack on the GRU and charged two Russian suspects. The men traveled under the names Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov. Russian authorities denied involvement and Moscow refused to extradite the men to Britain. The Skripal poisonings set off a wave of recriminations between Britain and Moscow, prompting dozens of envoys to be expelled. Veselin Toshkov is an Associated Press writer. TravelSkills on SFGate is brought to you by Visa . See More Collapse Last week, a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-800 took off from Oakland International Airport and landed safely in Honolulu, Hawaii five hours later. The successful test flight, with only Southwest crew and FAA inspectors on board, paves the way for the carrier to announce fares and schedules for its new Hawaii service, which could come as soon as this week. Southwest already has employees on the ground in Honolulu and they all turned out to welcome the flight, and even created a lei to welcome the new bird. Take a look at the slideshow at the top of this post to see the festive photos! Don't get us wrong, we love Ikea furniture. Who doesn't?! It's trendy, affordable, and versatile enough to suit nearly every decor style. But the reasons we love it are also the reasons why nearly every other household has a Billy bookcase or a pair of Lack tables. And the thought of having the same furniture as everyone else makes these pieces far less appealing. But that's where #ikeahacks come in. We searched Instagram for examples of Ikea furniture transformations from handy DIYers eager to show off their ingenious projects. Being able to indulge your habit for flat-pack furniture without having to worry that your living room will match your neighbors? Priceless. So take a look at these #ikeahacks below for inspiration, pack your day bag, and plan your trek through your local Ikea store. You're going to be there a whilebut don't worry, you can tuck into some Swedish meatballs. 1. Hunt for new hardware The Besta storage cabinet is nothing but slick textures and clean lines, but if you're looking to create something a little more interesting, this might be the perfect project for you. Using prefabricated overlays, a bit of paint, and some shiny new hardware, you'll have a piece of furniture that's much more interesting than what you started with. 2. Go for the gold There's nothing at all wrong with the Vittsjo shelving unit. The metal-framed glass shelves are sleek and ready to display whatever you've got to show off. But a can or two of gold spray paint takes them from merely modern to ultraglam. 3. Choose your own 'route' The Tarva dresser from Ikea is about as basic as it gets, but that also means it's full of potential. Rather than dropping a huge chunk of change on an apothecary cabinet, you can put in some elbow grease and turn this simple dresser into a piece that looks like it was purchased from a flea market. This is still a six-drawer dresser, but a router tool and some extra hardware make it look much busier than that. A fresh wood stain gives it an aged look that will fool everyone who comes into your home. Watch: 5 Secret Tricks to Make Your Living Room Look Luxe 4. Make it shine with marble The Vittsjo glass nesting coffee table set can be rearranged to fit your needsbut it looks even better when it gets a total makeover to fit your home's aesthetic. Here, gold spray paint and marble contact paper completely transform this set, making it look like something straight out of a high-end showroom instead of the Ikea catalog. 5. Revamp it with a coat of paint Basic white Billy bookshelves are a cult favorite thanks to their slim profiles and movable shelves. But do you know what would make them stand out? Color! Stark-white shelving is a bit harsh if you're trying to create a cozy spot in your living room. But a coat or two of calming blue paint can make those shelves look custom-built. 6. Give it a leg up The Karlstad sofa looks like something you'd find in a dorm roomand with a $400 price tag, it's perfect for that. But by simply replacing the generic peg legs with legs that are a bit more elegant, this piece of furniture grows up real fast. 7. Make a place for your plants Your living room isn't complete without a few plants, but it's not always easy to find the shelf space for your greenery. Enter the Sunnersta utility cart. Straight out of the box, it's just a boring old cart. But with a bit of copper paint to give it a one-of-a-kind look, it's a gorgeous plant station. Bonus: You can move it to wherever the light is. 8. Curb clutter with barn doors This Kallax shelf unit is nice, but the stark-white shelves leave it lacking in personality. That is, until you turn it on its side and add sliding barn doors. Voila! Suddenly it's a gorgeous, modern farmhouse statement piece that can also hide your clutter. 9. Give it a custom cover The Soderhamn sofa is ultramodernin fact, it's so modern that it doesn't really look all that inviting. Luckily, the sofa's dimensions accommodate a variety of slipcover options (and we're not just talking about the covers they sell at Ikea). Suddenly, you have a sectional sofa (for under a grand!) that's practically begging your guests to come sit down. The post 9 Ikea Hacks to Take Your Living Room Furniture From Basic to Beautiful appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com. The Texas Tech Law School hosted the regional rounds of the National Trial Competition, the most prestigious law school mock trial competition in the nation on Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019, at the Texas Tech Law School. The first woman approached the Washington Post in 2017 which Mr. Fairfax as described as being consensual and the newspaper was unable to corroborate her account. It did not publish a story until after the allegations against Mr. Fairfax became public last week. "I had a specific recipe that we worked out to feed the pigs. If we gave them too many peanuts, the hams were soft and flabby," said Edwards, who sent a shipment of peanuts to the Midwest along with detailed instructions. "But the farmer just started driving across the pasture with these peanuts. I was thinking, 'Howd he measure out 30 percent?' He didnt." PETALUMA (BCN) A suspect who spun a doughnut with his truck in front of Petaluma police and then led them on a chase was arrested Saturday morning, authorities said. William Calderon, 29, of Petaluma was taken into custody on suspicion of evading police, reckless driving and possession of a controlled substance. An officer first noticed Calderon driving a small truck without its headlights on, at 2:14 a.m. in the area of Washington and Keller streets, according to police. The officer pulled up behind the truck with emergency lights on and the truck stopped at a red light at the intersection of Washington and Kentucky streets, according to police. When the light turned green, however, the suspect's vehicle spun a doughnut in front of the officer and then headed eastbound on Washington Street. The officer pursued the truck eastbound on Washington, then southbound on Lakeville Street. Calderon finally yielded on southbound U.S. Highway 1, police said. Officers conducted a high-risk stop, ordering the Calderon out of the vehicle, but he refused to get out of the car for several minutes, police said. When he finally got out of the truck, Calderon was arrested without incident. A small amount of suspected methamphetamine was found in Calderon's wallet, according to police. Inside his vehicle, police found a pellet gun that resembled a .40 caliber Smith and Wesson M&P Pro handgun. Calderon was booked into the Sonoma County Jail. Copyright 2019 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. The pilot of a small plane that took off from Hayward Executive Airport is dead after that plane crashed and burned on Mount Diablo on Friday night, a Federal Aviation Administration spokesman said Saturday. FAA spokesman Ian Gregor said a single-engine Mooney M20 aircraft crashed into a hillside two miles southwest of the peak of Mount Diablo near Summit Road at an unknown time Friday night. The pilot was flying from Hayward to Lincoln, in Placer County. On Saturday, a family member of the pilot reported the aircraft was overdue after it had not landed as scheduled. The wreckage was spotted about 2:30 p.m. Saturday. The Contra Costa County coroner was called to the scene that is within Mount Diablo State Park in unincorporated Contra Costa County, state parks police spokeswoman Gloria Sandoval said Saturday. The name of the pilot was not made public as of late Saturday night. The National Transportation Safety Board will lead the subsequent investigation. Gregor said it typically takes the NTSB a year or more to determine a probable cause of an accident. A 71-year-old Pescadero man has pleaded no contest to multiple counts of lewd and lascivious acts with minors, and has agreed to a 10-year prison sentence, San Mateo County Sheriff's officials said. Sheriff's spokeswoman Rosemerry Blankswade said Daniel Miranda molested and victimized numerous girls over at least 20 years. Within the past few weeks, additional victims have come forward accusing Miranda of sexual assault, Blankswade said. The charges were accompanied by an enhancement for using violence. Sheriff's investigators believe there may be more victims who have not yet come forward. Anyone who may have had contact with Miranda, or whose children may have been in contact with him, is urged to call San Mateo County Sheriff's Detective Sgt. Joe Cang at (650) 363-4008 or email him at jcang@smcgov.org A Contra Costa County Superior Court judge on Friday blocked a move by five county police departments and a sheriff's office to resist the potential release of pre-2019 records of officer shootings and potential misconduct. Friday's hearing in a Martinez courtroom was the first legal defense of SB 1421, a new law that took effect Jan. 1 that makes public through the California Public Records Act previously secret information about incidents in which officers who shoot, kill or engage in serious misconduct like falsifying evidence or committing sexual assault while on the job. A dozen or more other cases are being heard throughout the state, but Contra Costa Superior Court Judge Charles Treat made the first ruling. However, Treat gave the unions representing police officers in Antioch, Concord, Martinez, Richmond and Walnut Creek, as well as the Contra Costa County Sheriff's Department, 10 days to appeal Friday's ruling. Attorneys for the police unions argued the bill shouldn't be retroactive, and should apply only to police records since Jan. 1. The bill was authored by state Sen. Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, and signed by former Gov. Jerry Brown in September. The American Civil Liberties Union, the First Amendment Coalition and news organizations are all part of this case, which may eventually end up in the state Supreme Court. The ACLU Foundation of Northern California lauded Friday's ruling. The nonprofit organization represents Richard Perez, who is seeking records related to the killing of his 24-year-old son Pedie Perez in 2014 by a Richmond police officer. "Mr. Perez deserves to know what happened to his son on that fateful night," said Kathleen Guneratne, a senior staff attorney with the ACLU in a statement. "This law was passed to lift the veil of police secrecy." One man has died and another detained after a stabbing reported Saturday night near the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds, San Jose police said. Police were called about 6:35 p.m. to the 2700 block of Monterey Road, where they found a man who had been stabbed at least once. Police Sgt. Enrique Garcia said the victim was taken to a local hospital, where he died a short time later. The man's identity was being withheld Saturday night pending notification of family, Garcia said. A male suspect has been detained for questioning, and the investigation continues. Anyone with information about this killing is asked to contact Detective Sgt. Jesus Mendoza or Detective Todd Jennings of the San Jose Police Department's Homicide Unit at (408) 277-5283. Persons wishing to remain anonymous may call Crime Stoppers at 408-947-7867. This was San Jose's sixth homicide of 2019. A 22-year-old Concord man was arrested on suspicion of several weapons violations early Saturday morning after two illegal weapons, and ammunition, were found in his car, Martinez police said. Police said Oscar Esparza-Cabello got the attention of police when officer saw Esparza-Cabello doing doughnuts at the intersection of Pacheco Boulevard and Howe Road, police said. Police arrested Esparza-Cabello on suspicion of reckless driving, and then found a concealed 9mm pistol, a short-barreled assault rifle (unregistered and illegal) and an illegal 40-round magazine. Esparza-Cabello was booked into the Contra Costa County Jail in Martinez on suspicion of possession of illegal weapons and suspicion of reckless driving. A firefighter suffered minor injuries and four people were displaced following a fire that damaged a mobile home in north San Jose early Sunday morning, according to fire officials. The blaze, first reported at 12:27 a.m. at the residence located at 587 Hermitage Drive, was extinguished around 1:10 a.m., San Jose Fire Capitan Kevin Stidham said. The occupants inside the home were able to evacuate safely thanks to a working smoke detector. The cause of the blaze is under investigation. Those displaced are staying with family or friends. No further information on the extent of the firefighter's injuries was released. Copyright 2019 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. SAN JOSE (BCN) One man has died and another detained after a stabbing reported Saturday night near the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds, San Jose police said. Police were called about 6:35 p.m. to the 2700 block of Monterey Road, where they found a man who had been stabbed at least once. Police Sgt. Enrique Garcia said the victim was taken to a local hospital, where he died a short time later. The man's identity was being withheld Saturday night pending notification of family, Garcia said. A male suspect has been detained for questioning, and the investigation continues. Anyone with information about this killing is asked to contact Detective Sgt. Jesus Mendoza or Detective Todd Jennings of the San Jose Police Department's Homicide Unit at (408) 277-5283. Persons wishing to remain anonymous may call Crime Stoppers at 408-947-7867. This was San Jose's sixth homicide of 2019. Copyright 2019 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. Caltrans engineers made more temporary fixes Friday night to the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge and say permanent repairs will start next week, weather permitting. Concrete fell on the bridge's lower deck on Thursday and the bridge was closed much of the day, snarling traffic around the North Bay and East Bay. A six-foot steel plate was initially installed as a temporary repair. On Friday night, engineers replaced it with an eight-foot plate to better protect the deck and improve the ride for drivers, California Department of Transportation officials said Saturday. The bridge is safe and open to the public, Caltrans District 4 Director Tony Tavares said. No further closures are expected on the span Saturday or Sunday. "Out of an abundance of caution, Caltrans engineers continue to monitor the bridge until the permanent repair is made," Tavares said. The repairs next week are contingent upon the weather, and expected to take place between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m. to accommodate commuters, officials said. The failure of an expansion joint on the upper level of the span caused a large chunk of concrete to fall Thursday morning on a Mercedes Benz, and the bridge was closed. More concrete fell in the afternoon, when vehicles started crossing the bridge again and the bridge was closed again around 4 p.m. It reopened later at 8 p.m. Police are investigating after a body was found Saturday morning in San Francisco Bay near Pier 43, police said. The body, described only as female, was reported in the water about 7:10 a.m., according to San Francisco police. The San Francisco Medical Examiner took custody of the body. No information on whether foul play is suspected was released. Northbound lanes on state Highway 1 in Pacifica have reopened, five hours after a deadly crash Saturday morning caused by a wrong-way driver, the California Highway Patrol said. Two people died in the wreck, reported about 4:15 a.m. in the northbound lanes of the freeway near Clarendon Road, according to the CHP. A Toyota Prius headed southbound in the northbound lanes collided head-on with a Chevrolet Silverado, the CHP said. Two passengers in the Prius died and the driver was taken to a hospital in critical condition. Two people in the Silverado were taken to a hospital with non-life threatening injuries, according to the CHP. All northbound lanes were closed after the crash. The freeway reopened about 9:20 a.m. Police in San Jose on Tuesday arrested a suspect in connection with a shooting death that occurred last month. Ramon Fletes, 35, of San Jose was arrested on suspicion of murder, according to the San Jose Police Department. On Sunday, Jan. 13 at 1:16 a.m., police responded to a report of a person shot in the area of Parkmoor Avenue and Race Street. Officers located a man suffering from at least one gunshot wound. The victim, identified as Matthew Cintas, 41, of Santa Clara, was transported to a hospital and died a short time later, according to police Investigators were able to identify Fletes as a suspect in the shooting, and he was taken into custody on Tuesday. A deadly explosion near Concord and a subsequent mutiny trial at Naval Station Treasure Island 75 years ago was remembered Saturday afternoon at the Treasure Island Museum. The Port Chicago explosion on July 17, 1944, killed 320 people, 202 of whom were young black sailors ordered to load and unload explosives with no training and inadequate equipment. The explosion and the subsequent mutiny trial helped lead the way to desegregation of U.S. armed forces and was also an early step for Thurgood Marshall, then chief counsel for the NAACP, toward becoming one of the most respected Supreme Court Justices in U.S. history, organizers said. In recognition of Black History Month, the Treasure Island Museum will commemorate the 75th anniversary of the disaster and trial on Saturday by presenting a special program titled "Lighting the Fuse to Civil Rights: The Port Chicago Trial at Treasure Island." An exhibition on Port Chicago will be on view in the Building One lobby on Treasure Island through July 9, presented by the S.F. Public Library and the Port Chicago Naval Magazine National Memorial. Copyright 2019 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. SANTA CRUZ (BCN) Fire crews rescued two kayakers who fell into the San Lorenzo River in the area of Paradise Park in Santa Cruz on Saturday evening, according to authorities. The fire department was contacted around 5:26 p.m. by a person who said he and a friend had fallen out of the kayak and his friend trapped underwater, according to a Santa Cruz Fire Department news release. The caller said he was able to free the victim and was performing CPR. Fire crews arrived in the area and began searching for the kayakers, but they were hampered because the caller's cellphone call was dropped several times. GPS technology was used to pinpoint the location and guide rescuers to the kayakers. "Extricating both patients presented multiple challenges with steep mountain sides, rapidly moving water and darkness," battalion chief Daniel Kline said in the news release. "The crews used several technical rope-rescue systems and patient-packing equipment to complete the extrication as safely as possible." The victim was taken to a hospital for treatment. No other injuries were reported. Kline said CPR may have played a significant role in "what we hope will be a positive outcome for this patient." Copyright 2019 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. MARTINEZ (BCN) A Contra Costa County Superior Court judge on Friday blocked a move by five county police departments and a sheriff's office to resist the potential release of pre-2019 records of officer shootings and potential misconduct. Friday's hearing in a Martinez courtroom was the first legal defense of SB 1421, a new law that took effect Jan. 1 that makes public through the California Public Records Act previously secret information about incidents in which officers who shoot, kill or engage in serious misconduct like falsifying evidence or committing sexual assault while on the job. A dozen or more other cases are being heard throughout the state, but Contra Costa Superior Court Judge Charles Treat made the first ruling. However, Treat gave the unions representing police officers in Antioch, Concord, Martinez, Richmond and Walnut Creek, as well as the Contra Costa County Sheriff's Department, 10 days to appeal Friday's ruling. Attorneys for the police unions argued the bill shouldn't be retroactive, and should apply only to police records since Jan. 1. The bill was authored by state Sen. Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, and signed by former Gov. Jerry Brown in September. The American Civil Liberties Union, the First Amendment Coalition and news organizations are all part of this case, which may eventually end up in the state Supreme Court. The ACLU Foundation of Northern California lauded Friday's ruling. The nonprofit organization represents Richard Perez, who is seeking records related to the killing of his 24-year-old son Pedie Perez in 2014 by a Richmond police officer. "Mr. Perez deserves to know what happened to his son on that fateful night," said Kathleen Guneratne, a senior staff attorney with the ACLU in a statement. "This law was passed to lift the veil of police secrecy." Copyright 2019 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. Still, Warren must compete against other popular Democrats who should be able to raise substantial money. A recent CNN poll found that fewer Democrats said they'd be very likely to support Warren if she runs than said the same of former Vice President Joe Biden or Sens. Kamala Harris of California and Bernie Sanders of Vermont. Still, about as many Democrats said they'd be at least somewhat likely to support Warren as said the same of Harris or Sanders. The Think Tanks and Civil Societies Programme (TTCSP) of the Lauder Institute at the University of Pennsylvania ranked worlds leading think tanks in a variety of categories. TTCSP has documented and studied these institutions for more than 27 years with the help of more than 1,796 peer institutions and experts from all over the world. In 2018, Institute of National Security Studies Sri Lanka, think tank under Ministry of Defence, ranked 101st in the Asia Pacific category. To mark the global release of the Global Think Tank Report 2018, TTCSP requested the major cities around the world including Paris, Beijing, Washington DC, New York and 150 other cities to conduct a discussion on Why Facts and Think Tanks Matter in 2019. INSSSL was invited to conduct this discussion from Colombo on 31st January 2019 with the participation of scholars and representatives of other think tanks. Director General Asanga Abeyagoonasekera of INSSSL chaired the discussion. The panelist who shared their inputs were Professor Chandra Embuldeniya, distinguish fellow of INSSSL, Dr. Ranga Jayasuriya, journalist and senior fellow, Ms. Kasuni Ranasinghe, Research Analyst and Ms. Natasha Fernando, Research Assistant who highlighted the importance of the role of think tanks play in government and civil societies around the world. In the introductory remarks Director General Abeyagoonasekera spoke of the value of think tanks has been appreciated by many societies in todays volatile geopolitical environment, specially think tanks could assist to design better policy and for predicting future trends. As such, he stressed the importance of think tanks in providing reliable, well researched information to make appropriate decisions on complex and challenging issues. To this effect, he highlighted how Sri Lankas think tanks are underfunded; primarily through lack of attractive wages to researchers is a key challenge. The Director General compared Sri Lanka to countries like India and Singapore, whose policymakers both invest and consult more extensively with think tanks. He said that with his experience working at foreign policy think tank and security think tank, Sri Lankan government has miserably failed to recognize and invest in research and in think tanks. Ms. Fernando emphasized that think tanks should act as a bridge between academic and policy making communities, serving in public interest as independent voices and disseminating knowledge to wide audiences. To enhance the quality of research outcomes, Ms. Fernando accentuated the importance of facts and the fact tank approach for more informed decision making. Ms. Ranasinghe, highlighted the importance of factual based evidence in decision making and the role of think tanks as shadow leaders providing guidance to the political leaders. Leaders should utilized think tanks to identify the priority needs of a country and then to convince the public about the priorities. For these developments, Ms. Ranasinghe emphasized that think tank should come out from its traditional role of researcher to the position of Strategic advisers, having potentials to predate future circumstances. "To achieve these objectives, he explained that think tanks needed to be depoliticized and provided more autonomy" Dr. Jayasuriya spoke about the vital roles which think tanks play in predicting future political events, and providing the expertise for governments to achieve their objectives. Regarding the latter, from a Sri Lankan context, he spoke of how think tanks could have played a role in helping the government come up with an effective strategy to counter baseless allegations of war crimes levelled against the Sri Lankan military. To achieve these objectives, he explained that think tanks needed to be depoliticized and provided more autonomy. Dr. Jayasuriya argued that this would increase the possibilities of policy makers receiving objective, high quality - advice. Finally, Prof. Embuldeniya spoke about how think tanks can help solve problems and serve as an asset to state resources. Addressing the issue of think tank proposals largely not being adopted by policymakers, Prof. Embuldeniya suggested establishing a committee that can convey the proposals presented by think tanks to policy makers who can then implement it. He introduced a performance evaluation framework for think tanks and requested INSSSL to work with other local think tanks to develop the proposed framework. ri Lanka celebrated its 71st Independence Day last week. We remember this day with pride as the day we regained our political autonomy. Indeed, that is surely something to be celebrated. However, where are we as a nation? What kind of imagination do Sri Lankans have for their state? What kind of political system, economic policy, socio-cultural norms and foreign policy do Sri Lankans desire? A survey conducted by Social Indicator, the survey research arm of the Centre for Policy Alternatives, provides some interesting insights into the Sri Lankan psyche on many important issues. This descriptive piece shares some interesting findings of the survey to stimulate a candid discussion among the public, advocating a new social contract that will not only prepare the nation for new economic challenges but one that will preserve freedom and equality within a decent society. Some 2,300 citizens from all major ethnic groups across the 25 districts were interviewed for the survey. Field work was conducted last year from August 10 to October 10. The survey questionnaire captures public opinion on many important issues such as the status of governance, democracy, political ideology, international relations and peace and reconciliation in Sri Lanka. People want new development priorities The survey findings reveal that the development priorities of people are somewhat different to the policies espoused by politicians be they nationalist, right-wingers or conservative neo-liberalists. Sri Lankans believe that the government, in their budget allocation, should give top priority to the education sector (39.9%), agricultural sector (23.1%) and health sector (16.9%). Irrespective of their age, ethnicity or gender people chose education as the top sector that should be given priority in the budget. Interestingly, youth who are below the 29-year age bracket state that health should be the second priority while those who are above the 29-year age bracket think agriculture should be the second priority. Despite certain political forces emphasising nationalist rhetoric, only 14% of men and 13.6% of women believe national security should be given priority in government budget allocations. Since the introduction of neo-liberal economic policies to the country, successive governments have overtly and covertly supported private sector involvement in many sectors including education and health. At present, private sector involvement in these two sectors is very significant and continues to expand, shrinking the scope of the welfare state. Currently many groups including university academics have come forward to fight a losing battle to defend state universities and free education. Reflecting this state of affairs, 52% of Sri Lankans disagree with private sector involvement in education, while only 27% agree. Agreement with the private sector involvement in education is four percent higher among the youth (29.8%) than when compared to the adults. However, a significant majority of Sri Lankans (83.2%) believe that in order to achieve better employment opportunities in the future, a greater focus should be on the English language in the school curriculum. This opinion is shared by all ethnic and age groups from both urban and rural localities. Therefore, it seems that people not only want state education to be preserved but to be reformed as well. On Reconciliation The yahapalana government came to power mainly based on the support of progressive liberalist forces in the country. While people had high expectations of meaningful reconciliation, President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe also categorically promised prompt action and policies in this regard. Although the government has taken many commendable steps in this direction, it has failed on many other fronts. According to the survey findings, a majority of Sri Lankans (53.3%) indicate that they are not satisfied with the current governments progress on reconciliation in post-war Sri Lanka. It is important to note that it is mostly the youth population (60%) who hold this view, in comparison to the age group above 29 years (49.5%). Dissatisfaction is high among the Sinhala, Tamil and Up-Country Tamil communities. Despite harassment against the Muslims, a majority (61%) of the of the Muslim community states that they are satisfied with the current governments progress on addressing reconciliation in post-war Sri Lanka. On truth-seeking in post war reconciliation, an overall majority (72.4%) of Sri Lankans believe that it is important, while 18.2% believe that it is not important.It is important to note that it is mostly the youth population (54.8%) and the minority communities who believe it important. On accountability in post-war reconciliation, a significant majority of Sri Lankans (71.8%) believe that as a means of seeking redress for victims affected by civil unrest in the past, it is necessary to investigate into and hold those accountable before the law. While a majority from the youth population (55.7%) also indicates that it is necessary, it is mostly the minority communities who hold this view. "Since the introduction of neo-liberal economic policies to the country, successive governments have overtly and covertly supported private sector involvement in many sectors including education and health" Place of Religion On the status of religion in the constitution of Sri Lanka a majority of Sri Lankans believe that it is okay for the majority religion to be given the foremost place in the Constitution, while 36.5% believe that to maintain every citizens right to equality, no religion should be given the foremost place in the Constitution. It is important to note that it is mostly the Sinhala community that indicates that it is okay for the majority religion to be given the foremost place in the Constitution while it is the minority communities who believe that to maintain every citizens right to equality, no religion should be given the foremost place in the constitution. Electoral Democracy that sympathises with authoritarian rule Sri Lanka is one of the oldest democracies in Asia. Like in many mature democracies, Sri Lankans (74%) too believe that democracy is preferable than to any other form of governance. Despite this strong commitment to democracy, a sizable proportion of Sri Lankans are prepared to accept a ruler who may exhibit an authoritarian, military/technocratic or religious character as long as that person is elected through a free and fair election. According to the findings of the survey, a significant majority (84.2%) believes that the country should be governed by those elected by the people via a free and fair election. However, while 59% supports having a strong leader who can make decisions without having to worry about Parliament and elections, 55% support having an expert governor and make decisions according to what he/she believes is best for the country, without having to worry about Parliament and elections. It is alarming that nearly one-third of Sri Lankan voters support the idea that, All major decisions about the country should be taken by religious leaders, rather than politicians while a quarter of them think the military should come in to govern the country. These results demonstrate the risk of Sri Lanka backsliding into an illiberal form of government. Unlike in the past, especially at Presidential and Parliamentary elections, the emergence of candidates outside of party structures has become a common phenomenon. On the one hand parties, especially main parties, hardly organize themselves as institutions to mobilize grassroots membership or support bases,while on the other, many non-party institutions the media, business organizations, religious institutions and military leaders -are actively promoting their candidates at elections. The survey suggests that not only has the political system started shifting towards a weak liberal democracy, but the people have already started embracing these emerging realities. Social Media Across the world Social Media has become a power tool of political articulation and attracted progressive as well as extremist social groups alike. New technological innovations, emerging economic realities and transforming lifestyles have gradually rendered traditional media less effective, especially in political articulation. The survey asked people to indicate as to how often they use various social media platforms. For the benefit of those who were unfamiliar with the term, examples were listed such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Viber and Whats App. The survey shows that about half of Sri Lankans claim that they use various social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Viber and Whats App -- about one third of Sri Lankans state that they use such media on a daily basis. The findings of the survey show that usage of social media is significantly higher among the youth who are in the age bracket of 18 to 29 years. The usage of social media is not very different between urban (58%) and rural (47%) residents. Although this survey does not examine social media in great detail, these findings demonstrate its massive potential in influencing public opinion on various socio-political issues at times of elections as well as in between elections. This article presents only a selected set of findings of the survey to introduce the study to a wider audience. The discussion here provides a brief sketch of Sri Lankans imagination about their country and future. The authors intend to produce a more rigorous analysis that would allow a much closer look at the psyche of Sri Lankans after 70 years of independence. A 42-year-old man was killed and a 22-year-old injured in a shooting at Thanamalvila this afternoon. Police said the gunmen had arrived on two motorcycles. The deceased was identified as Suduhakuruge Sumith alias Wasantha, a resident of Thanamalvila. Preliminary investigations had revealed that the deceased was the main suspect in a murder case. The gunmen are yet to be identified.(DS) WASHINGTON Numbers released by the Trump administration show an 80 percent drop in some penalties levied against polluters, the latest sign that the Environmental Protection Agency has become a less aggressive watchdog. Injunctive relief the amount of money polluters commit to pay to correct problems and prevent them from recurring fell from $20.6 billion in fiscal 2017 to $3.95 billion in fiscal 2018. That is a 15-year low for the agency. Southern Baptist Convention leader Russell Moore weighed in on the Houston Chronicle's exclusive investigation into sex abuse in the Southern Baptist church Sunday. "Nothing is worse than the use of the name of Jesus to prey on the vulnerable," Moore tweeted. Moore, the president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the SBC, added that the report uncovered "alarming and scandalous" stories of abuse. EXCLUSIVE: Abuse of Faith, Revealing 700 victims of Southern Baptist sex abuse Moore continued, "This is nothing short of a scandal and a crisis." Other church leaders have also weighed in on the devastating toll the past 20 years have taken on victims. Click through the gallery above to see reactions from church leaders to the Houston Chronicle's exclusive investigation. Michael Criner, Senior Pastor of the First Baptist Church of Bellville, Texas, tweeted, "May there be peace upon the victims & may we do our part to make necessary changes as a convention." MORE REACTIONS: Nassar victim, 'Brooklyn Nine-Nine' star react to investigation Pastor Marty Duren tweeted, "The lack of coordination in establishing a way for Southern Baptist churches to avoid hiring convicted or credibly-accused offenders is surpassed only by the lack of creativity in finding a way to do so." NEWS WHEN YOU NEED IT: Text CHRON to 77453 to receive breaking news alerts by text message | Sign up for breaking news alerts delivered to your email here. Twelve suspects, including Shanaka Madushanka alias ' Olu Mara,' were arrested on possession of heroin at Lunuvila in Wennappuwa last night. Police said drug smuggler, Olu Mara was arrested at his house with 2.3 grams of heroin, following a tip-off. They said the eleven other suspects were in the house to purchase heroin from Olu Mara when the time of the raid carried out by the Wennapuwa Police. They would be produced in the Maravilla Magistrates Court. WASHINGTON Lawmakers of both parties, advocates and business and tech industry lobbies all say this session of Congress may be the best chance in years to pass meaningful data privacy legislation. That still might not be giving it the greatest odds. There is widespread consensus that California lawmakers passage last year of a data privacy law, paired with a similar measure enacted by the European Union, has strongly motivated members of Congress to create a federal privacy protection regime. And the fall from grace of some of Silicon Valleys biggest firms after scandals including the misuse of social media during the 2016 election has given advocates and lawmakers cover to take on tech giants. Under Californias law, which takes effect next year, web users can demand that a business tell them what personal information it is collecting about them and whether it is selling or sharing it, and if so to whom. Consumers can also demand that a company delete their information. The law will allow people to sue companies whose negligence leads to breaches of personal data. While some companies pushed for the bill, others whose business model relies on collecting and selling user data would like to see a federal law scale it back. Many businesses also want to avoid having to deal with a patchwork of state laws as well as the EUs regulations, which include obtaining peoples informed and unambiguous consent for processing personal data, and requiring data collectors to report breaches. Privacy advocates, meanwhile, are eager to seize the moment and pass a strong bill at the federal level, setting a minimum nationwide standard that would match or exceed Californias. But even with the desire across the board to come to agreement, a number of sticking points including how to deal with state laws like Californias threaten to derail any effort. And when it comes to Congress, the safe bet is always on inaction. Still, lawmakers working on the project as well as lobbyists and advocates see a real opportunity. I think that its one of the bipartisan, bicameral issues that can land on the presidents desk and should land on the presidents desk, said Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., who chairs the Senate Commerce Committee. I think we can do it, and we need to do it. Its an imperative. Wicker is working with fellow Republican Sen. Jerry Moran of Kansas and Democratic Sens. Brian Schatz of Hawaii and Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut to draft bipartisan legislation on the Senate side of the Capitol. By all accounts, the group is making substantive progress. Data privacy protections California lawmakers approved a bill last year designed to increase people's control over how companies use their personal data. The law takes effect in 2020. Among its provisions: Web users can demand that a business tell them what personal information it is collecting about them and whether it is selling or sharing it, and if so to whom. Consumers can tell a company to delete their personal information. Parents must give permission before a website, online service or mobile app directed toward children can sell the youths' user data. Consumers can sue companies that fail to adequately safeguard their personal data, resulting in a breach. The rules apply to any for-profit business that collects customers' personal information - from Google and Facebook to retail stores. Many large global companies already comply with similar restrictions under a European Union digital privacy law that took effect in May, called the General Data Protection Regulation. Among its provisions: Personal data includes names, internet protocol addresses or identification numbers. People have a "right to be forgotten" - they can ask for the complete removal of their personal data when a company no longer has reason to keep it. The burden of proof is on the company. Companies must obtain people's "informed and unambiguous" consent for processing personal data. Data collectors must report breaches. Penalties for violations are $24 million or 4 percent of a company's global revenue for the previous year, whichever is higher. See More Collapse The path is less defined in the House, though Democrats are expected to pass something. Palo Alto Rep. Anna Eshoo, a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee, said she is working on draft legislation with a fellow Bay Area Democrat, Rep. Zoe Lofgren of San Jose, who is on the Judiciary Committee. Leading members of both panels are also expected to have a key role in crafting a bill. Skeptics have reason to be pessimistic, beyond Congress perpetual difficulty in passing almost any legislation. Several years ago, as breaches of personal data became more common, Congress considered passing a bill requiring consumers and authorities to be notified of such events, as dozens of states were doing independently. In the end the effort failed, and every state passed its own law. Several state attorneys general at a recent privacy conference in Washington predicted that the same thing could happen in the data privacy arena, with Californias new law ultimately serving as a model for other states. Vermont Attorney General T.J. Donovan is among those who doubt that federal lawmakers can agree on a unified approach. Until they do, you will have states act on this issue, Donovan said. I dont think youre going to see state (attorneys general) abdicate their responsibility to address their consumer protection responsibilities. Some experts, however, see more momentum for privacy legislation in Congress because of the issues existential nature to many companies. The handling of users data is essential to the fabric of most companies, from the way their websites are designed to the way a business model works. Complying with different state laws would be virtually impossible for companies that operate online, the industry fears, bringing them to the table for action. Democrats and privacy advocates, though, want to ensure that the end result isnt weakening states abilities to enact strong regulations. Ive been involved in this over the 20 years when I was attorney general of Connecticut, Blumenthal said. When I did a bill on toy safety, the toy industry opposed it in our Legislature, then they opposed it in the court. Eventually, they lost, he said. Then they got religion, Blumenthal continued. Thats what typically happens. An industry faces a patchwork of different state laws and goes to Congress to try to preempt them with a weaker measure. Weve seen this movie before. There are several approaches being circulated in Washington for a federal privacy law. Privacy advocates want more responsibilities placed on companies than on consumers. That means banning some practices, including using data to discriminate against users, and giving people the right to sue over misuse. Consumers should own their data in most cases, advocates argue, which would include the right to delete it, change it or take it back. Proposals from groups including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Information Technology Industry Council would require companies to be more transparent about how they use data and collect consumers consent. The groups also argue that some uses of data may not require consent or disclosure, depending on the circumstances. One of the major sticking points will be how to treat state laws. Republicans and industry representatives are pushing for anything Congress passes to override such measures. Democrats and privacy advocates say thats acceptable only if the federal law is as strong as Californias. I dont think that weakening a strong law should be the pathway in Congress, Eshoo said at the recent privacy conference. Her district includes several of the biggest companies in the tech industry. She said Californias law should be the model for Congress. Theres a saying: As California goes, so goes the nation, Eshoo said. Congress work should not be to chip away at what California did in its consumer protection law, but rather have it be instructive to us. And I think if we come up with something thats strong, then we can avoid a 50-state patchwork of laws. Veterans of the California fight say they are not going to wait on Washington. Jim Steyer, founder and CEO of Common Sense Media, an advocacy group that seeks to help families navigate media and technology, called Californias privacy law a landmark bill that could be replicated in Congress. He said lawmakers working on the issue are serious and that he has advised many of them. But he still doubts that anything can pass these days, much less strong legislation. The question is, can Washington overcome its dysfunctionality? Steyer said. We are skeptical as to whether or not Congress can get its act together, and our bottom-line position is if there is federal privacy legislation, it has to be stronger than the California privacy law. If its not, he said, then advocates will have no trouble focusing on the state level. The entire tech industry is not going to agree with this, and some of the companies will spend hundreds of millions of dollars trying to water down the legislation, like Facebook and Google, maybe, Steyer said. San Francisco housing developer Alastair Mactaggart, who spearheaded a ballot effort that spurred the California bill, visited Washington last week to meet with key senators including Blumenthal, privacy hawks like Democratic Sens. Ron Wyden of Oregon and Ed Markey of Massachusetts, and Trump administration officials. He said repeated missteps by the tech industry, like the recent revelation that Facebook had created an app to collect personal data and was paying people, including teenagers, to use it, couldnt offer a better wind at my back. The models there: California leads, the others follow, Mactaggart said. With Congress tendency toward inertia, it will be easy for either side of the debate to pull support if a bill becomes worse in its eyes than the status quo. Still, supporters of action hope that even debating and advancing ultimately unsuccessful legislation could amount to progress. Wyden, who helped organize opposition to online anti-piracy bills that failed in 2012, isnt ready to predict this will be the Congress that unites behind privacy legislation. But hes not giving up hope, either. I dont think the country is there yet on a tough privacy bill, Wyden said. But I sure think its coming. Tal Kopan is The San Francisco Chronicles Washington correspondent. Email: tal.kopan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @talkopan California is seriously tough on gun safety, piling up 109 state restrictions and rules over the decades. Gov. Gavin Newsom came to office proclaiming hell enhance that record and eager gun control forces are urging him on with a batch of suggested bills. But overshadowing this promising picture is another reality. After nearly a decade of silence on the topic, the U.S. Supreme Court is poised to rule on a gun control case with the only doubt being how far the new conservative majority will go in widening Second Amendment gun rights. Its an instance of opposite coasts and opposite approaches. California may be the toughest gun control state in the country with a political lineup ready to go even further. The high court, which sensed it didnt have the votes for a change-making decision until the arrival of Justice Brett Kavanaugh, is ready to go the other way. The looming clash could doom many of Californias landmark restrictions on ownership, gun designs and sales. But the Supreme Court could also temper its ruling as it has in the past by limiting the extent of gun rights. Newsom campaigned for governor partly on his record as a prime supporter of Proposition 63, a measure that limited gun magazines, required background checks to buy ammunition, and fined owners who failed to report lost or stolen weapons. Though part of it is tied up in lawsuits, its passage has encouraged control-minded lawmakers to press other changes. Former Arizona Rep. Gabby Giffords, a shooting victim, presided at a recent gathering of legislators backing a batch of stricter measures. They include a one-gun-a-month purchasing limit, rules on parts that can be used to make homemade guns, a 10-year ban on firearm possession for a repeat drug or alcohol offender, a lockup requirement for guns stored at home when the owner is away, and a gun sales tax to pay for violence prevention. This gusher of ideas is because of the changeover in governors. Gov. Jerry Brown signed a wave of firearms restrictions, building Californias reputation as tough on guns. But he also vetoed measures that he thought went too far. Case in point: San Francisco Assemblyman Phil Ting, a Democrat, is retrying a bill rejected by Brown that would widen the circle of people who could petition to restrict gun access for a person considered dangerous. The Supreme Court justices may want to listen to this surge in legislative concern. A wave of mass shootings is one aspect, but gun violence is a much bigger problem in a nation awash in some 300 million firearms. Before the court is an obscure-sounding case from New York City. On appeal is a challenge to a law that limits gun owners to taking their firearms to ranges in the five boroughs only. Transporting the weapons outside the city is restricted for safety reasons, a justification upheld by lower courts. Control groups are worried, predicting a possible ruling to allow open and concealed carrying of weapons without restrictions. The last major high court case in 2010 guaranteed the right to possess a handgun in the home for the purpose of self-defense. It left in place some gun restrictions, though. The pending New York case could widen this stance, saying New York gun owners are free to take their guns anywhere, a ruling that would please pistol-packing gun rights groups. Or it could take a wider whack at gun restrictions, an outcome that would diminish Californias rightful concern for safety. This commentary is from The Chronicles editorial board. We invite you to express your views in a letter to the editor. Please submit your letter via our online form: SFChronicle.com/letters. Constitutional Framework for the Election Commission (EC) Article 3 of our Constitution declares our sovereignty: In the Republic of Sri Lanka sovereignty is in the People and is inalienable. Sovereignty includes the powers of government, fundamental rights and the franchise. It provides in Article103(2) for an independent EC to oversee the exercise of our franchise: The object of the Commission shall be to conduct free and fair elections and referenda. It adds in Article104B (2) that It shall be the duty of the Commission to secure the enforcement of all laws relating to the holding of any such election or the conduct of referenda. An obstacle to the free exercise of the peoples franchise is election violence. Associated closely with it is bribery of the law enforcement machinery. During the last local government elections, the EC faced several problems of cheating by nearly all parties. The worst offender is an old party of Tamil Cheats (TC). It takes the position that the EC is being partial when it charges the TC when it cheats that neutrality demands that the EC should not charge the TC! The police rarely prosecute TC for their election offences, and reduce charges when they do. In one egregious case, they suppressed the evidence given by EC for a year without marking it and as a result that evidence was excluded. In effect, the corrupt TC gets away, and the police probably make good money; but the people cannot freely exercise their franchise. It would have been more justice -friendly to ask the Police Commission to inquire against the errant police officials and allow the evidence to be used. That would punish the TC and the Police for cheating the people rather than the people whose fundamental right to franchise is violated. The EC therefore feels a dire need to eliminate violence and cheating from our elections. Non-violence A reserved day for the youthMahatma Gandhi whose birthday falls on October 2, is a well-known apostle of nonviolence. The United Nations therefore celebrates October 2 as International Day of Non-Violence, promoting non-violence through education and public awareness. With children moreover, drugs and gang violence threaten their idyllic world. In Sri Lanka, the crescendo-like news reports of drugs being interdicted like never before, drugs being freely available in our prisons despite guards, and youth joining gangs even in conservative communities, have all combined to cause alarm bells to ring. When President Maithripala Sirisena from January 21, 2019 launched a drug eradication week in all national schools, in Kilinochchi District, a poor schoolboy took it seriously and reported activities in his village of Konaavil to the police. The gang responsible turned up at his home to harangue the family. Subsequently motorcyclists rammed into him as he bicycled at night. When he was hospitalized, the police told him he had no lights nor brakes and he would land in trouble if the matter was pursued. The father was told he would have to come to court several times. Unable to contemplate loss of his daily masons wage, the father signed a letter drafted for him by the police in Sinhalese, and the DIG told the press it was a road accident. When former NPC Leader of the Opposition Thavarasa raised it with the Police Commission and Governor Suren Raghavan. "The EC attempts sincerely to do good through this UN-advocated programme, the programme does not invite the natural self-criticism that any programme deserves" Dr. Raghavan ordered a new inquiry on February 6, 2019 which laid the facts bare. The police are part of the nexus of drugs, violence and our loss of rights. On January 30, the anniversary of the Gandhis death therefore, the International School Day of Non-Violence and Peace is commemorated specially for children. Entreculturas, by the Jesuits of Spain, plays a major role in this. It reminds [us of] the importance of living in a peaceful context to guarantee quality education among the youth. A family situation with violence, an education system unable to cope with youth problems and the need to look for protection are some of the reasons why the youth join the gangs, according to Chiqui, the Jesuit coordinating the project in Lima: The gang becomes their home. Election Commissions Work with Ministry of Education We in Sri Lanka have much to learn from the Jesuits project. Faced with obstacles to upholding the peoples franchise, the EC, ever trying to ensure fulfillment of our mandate, launched a new programme with the Ministry of Education to educate our children on nonviolence through workshops. We executed a national event in Ratnapura at the Sabaragamuwa Provincial Council Auditorium on Jan. 30, 2019, led by Chairman Mahinda Deshapriya, accompanied by the Ratnapura Acting Deputy Commissioner of Elections Suranga Ambagahathenne. Our three Chief Guests were Governor of Sabaragamuwa - Dr. Dhamma Dissanayaka and Chairman Kanchana Jayarathna, and Chief Secretary D.M. Malani from the Sabaragamuwa PC. 500 students and 200 teachers participated. The essence of what Mr. Deshapriya spoke is to instill empathy among students. To engage with and challenge our primitive biases we used guest lectures and thematic competitions in street drama and art. In addition to what we did, the UN stresses, as it sees it, that all religions share the values of nonviolence, and advocates multi-faith prayer. To prove shared values, advocates quote The Dhammapada (Danda Vagga: All fear punishment; all fear death; comparing oneself with others, one should neither kill nor cause to kill); The Bible ( Luke 6:27ff: But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also); The Dharmasastras (The Manusmriti 6.60: By not killing any living being, one becomes eligible for salvation); Al Quran (Surat Al-Maidah 5:32: Whoever kills an innocent life, it is as if he has killed all of humanity). In the other 24 districts we picked a school from each to do a special event. For example at Vavuniya, the workshop was conducted by the Election Commissions Denicius Canute Aravindaraj, our Assistant Commissioner there. The 100 students invited were at Grade 10 or above who would soon be voters. He kept off religion and focused on the relationship between elections and violence, violence in schools and the importance of registering as a voter. Similarly the workshop in Kandy was conducted by our Deputy Commissioner there, Namal Thalangama. Jan. 30, 2019: The International School Day of Non-Violence and Peace being celebrated by Assistant Commissioner of Elections Vavuniya, D. C. Aravindaraj. At all other schools the principal or a teacher was asked to give a 15-minute talk on nonviolence, bullying, teasing, multiculturalism, etc. at the daily assembly. The news headline 90% of the bars owned by politicos, in the Daily Mirror of Jan. 29 had two important messages for us that our politicians will want to profit from making drunkards of our children, and there is a special need to focus on children, especially if they are to grow up as responsible citizens who exercise their franchise and elect representative unlike our liquor dealers. We felt redeemed by the headline in launching these workshops. Caution on multi-faith Worship Our well-intended programme is certainly timely when many MPs have an interest in corrupting our children. But does it need fine-tuning the UNs shared-faith emphasis? I think so. Comparing religions, even if to show common themes, is dangerous territory. Our religions are diverse and often mutually exclusive. We as a country are still not mature enough to discuss religion dispassionately. When common worship is engaged in, those from monotheistic backgrounds will find themselves pushed into polytheistic worship forms. The fact is that most Sri Lankans cannot see that when we offer prayers to the Buddha by a priest from a caste-based Sangha, to Allah and to Jesus, and then a pooja to Siva by a Brahmin, that we are practising polytheism and endorsing caste. It reveals a thickheaded hegemony and promotes majoritarianism in religion, leaving out egalitarian monotheists. We are in a very religiously prejudiced country where some demand that their religion is owed state patronage. Their attitude does not let them see how wrong that demand is. There is also widespread prejudice against Muslims. We all hear the insults within our communities it does not help to repeat them. As I point out in my textbook Ethics for Professionals: A Human Rights, Internationalist Perspective (San Diego: Cognella Press, 2018): "We as a country are still not mature enough to discuss religion dispassionately. When common worship is engaged in, those from monotheistic backgrounds will find themselves pushed into polytheistic worship forms" According to Princeton Universitys Bernard Lewis, Islam from the first denounced aristocratic privilege, rejected hierarchy, and adopted a formula of the career open to the talents. The Prophet Muhammads Charter of Medina of 622 was a formal agreement between him and the significant tribes and families of Medina, including Muslims, Jews, and pagans, to bring peace between the warring people of Medina. The Charter instituted a number of rights and responsibilities for the signatories which covered security, religious freedom, and the safety of women, and made Medina a sacred place free of weapons and violence. He introduced a tax system for supporting the community in time of conflict, and providing food and clothing to prisoners without regard to their religion. He was far ahead of India in his thinking. Most of us do not know this. When we ask for one religion to be given primacy and look down on other religions, especially Islam, is multi-faith worship not a mockery? Furthermore, since EC attempts sincerely to do good through this UN-advocated programme, the programme does not invite the natural self-criticism that any programme deserves. Sharp children, however, will see that for everything quoted from a religion as above, another line may be found to suggest the opposite. For instance many meat eating Buddhists deny, despite the above Dhammapada quotation, that Buddhism demands a vegetarian life. Indeed, the sentences quoted may likewise be dissected to the detriment of what we want to say. For example, Whoever kills an innocent life it is as if he has killed all of humanity, it may be argued, permits non-innocent lives to be killed. Fine-tuning activities The required fine tuning of the UN programme requires selecting carefully those service activities that truly are shared by most religions the alleviation of poverty, caring for the sick, taking care of the destitute, orphans and widows, and giving political equality to citizens, etc. If we can get people from all religions to work together to make ours a kindlier world, it would be a useful fine tuning of the activities of the next International School Day of Non-Violence and Peace. In November, the world watched with horror as residents of Paradise tried to escape from an oncoming wildfire on clogged roads, some so desperate that they abandoned their vehicles and fled on foot. The state can do more to reduce the risk from wildfires. The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection should enforce its firesafe road regulations to stop new development in fire-prone areas and better enable emergency access and evacuation. Cal Fire regulations require minimum standards for development in State Responsibility Areas that are accessed by long, narrow and often dead-end roads. Standards include minimum 20-foot-road widths, periodic turnouts, no one-lane roads unless no more than half a mile long and connect with a two-lane road at both ends, and dead-end roads only if 20 feet wide and no more than 1 mile long. Thirty years ago, in an instance of prescience, the Legislature became concerned about development in fire-prone locations. It directed the Department of Forestry to issue regulations to require firesafe roads for development. And it did so in 1991. But where we live, Sonoma County has chosen to exempt from the state regulations most roads built before 1992. This decision irresponsibly allows new development in most of rural Sonoma County in remote fire-prone areas. Yet a 1993 opinion by the attorney general clearly says that state law pertains to all roads, not just those built after 1992. Sonoma Countys approach may be rare, but Cal Fire should ensure that its firesafe road regulations are properly applied throughout the state. Our lawyer, Kevin Block, a land use attorney, has informed Sonoma County that any permits issued in violation of Cal Fire standards are invalid, but what is Cal Fire doing about this? Our interest began when Sonoma County started allowing commercial cannabis cultivation in unsuitable rural areas, impacting residents and attracting growers from Los Angeles, San Francisco and Sacramento counties, as well as from out of state. But the regulations govern all new development in State Responsibility Areas, including new homes and wineries. Counties may have their own standards, but they must be at least as stringent as the Cal Fire rules. Sonoma County has allowed inappropriate cannabis cultivation projects for two years under its amnesty (penalty relief) program on roads that do not even approach meeting state regulations. These include at least five dead-end roads over 1 mile long, some of which are under 12 feet wide. How can a one-lane or dead-end road provide the same degree of emergency access and evacuation as a two-lane road? The October 2017 fires burned through many of these areas and destroyed homes. This is not a theoretical issue. PG&E has declared bankruptcy because it may be liable for damages caused by large destructive fires. But some of the blame also lies with county governments that allow development in remote areas with inadequate roads. PG&E is obligated to service those areas once a county allows development, but should the county allow development there at all? In December, retiring 30-year Cal Fire Chief Ken Pimlott suggested that California consider going beyond the firesafe regulations to ban new home construction in all areas prone to fires. Why does Cal Fire look the other way when some counties exclude most pre-1992 roads from its regulations and issue development permits on unsafe roads? Deborah A. Eppstein is a scientist and a retired biotech entrepreneur. Craig S. Harrison is a retired lawyer. Both live near Santa Rosa in unincorporated Sonoma County. Access to broadband fundamental right for all in NC Two weeks ago, Paul Perrotta, a retired tech executive, found himself in a predicament now familiar to many Americans older than 50. His doctor strongly recommended that he get the new shingles vaccine Shingrix, but said his office had run out and he wasnt sure when the supply would be replenished. He told Perrotta that hed probably have to drive 30 miles from his Riverside County home of Rancho Mirage to find it, or wait. At our age, we have met many people who have had shingles, some of them multiple times, said Perrotta, 58, whose husband, Curtis Scott, 62, also had problems getting the vaccine last year because it was too new for his health insurer to pay for. Its a slam dunk to know we want the vaccine. Perrotta had put off getting the shot because hes heard the side effects leave some people sidelined for a few days, and hasnt had the time yet. Months into a nationwide Shingrix shortage, pharmacies and doctors offices around the state are no closer to knowing when they will be able to meet patients demand for the vaccine, which is more than 90 percent effective in preventing the painful and debilitating rash caused by shingles. Pharmacies have waiting lists of hundreds of patients. Distribution of the vaccine is sporadic and unpredictable: Some pharmacies are receiving just one or two doses a week, and many dont know when their next shipment is coming, making it hard to tell patients when to come back. The vaccines manufacturer, GlaxoSmithKline, says its planning to ship more doses this year in the high teens millions compared with the 9 million doses it sent out in 2018 but many pharmacists are expecting the shortage to continue for several more months. Experts say demand is exceeding supply for a few reasons: Shingrix, which retails for $170 to $250 per dose, is much more effective than the previous shingles vaccine, Mercks Zostavax, and is recommended for more people everyone older than 50 instead of everyone older than 60. Shingrix is more than 90 percent effective at preventing shingles, whereas Zostavax reduces the risk of developing shingles by 51 percent, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Im frustrated and disappointed, said Dr. Jeffrey Silvers, medical director of infectious diseases at Sutter Health. We just have to do the best we can and make sure patients understand just because we say we dont have it today doesnt mean they should stop looking for it and give up. Its a great vaccine, they just have to pay attention and keep in touch. GlaxoSmithKline maintains a shingles vaccine locator website where people seeking the shot can enter a ZIP code to find pharmacies that have Shingrix but the website is not updated every day, and many of the listed pharmacies are actually out of stock. Who should get the new vaccine and how to find it The CDC recommends that everyone over age 50 get Shingrix, which is given in two doses, two to six months apart. Call your doctor's office and pharmacies periodically to ask when their next shipments are expected, because GlaxoSmithKline's online vaccine locator is updated only once a week. If you can't find Shingrix right away, experts recommend that you wait and do not get the older, less effective Zostravax vaccine, because Shingrix is more effective in the long term. If you've had the first Shingrix shot and can't find anywhere that can give you the second, just wait - getting the second even after the recommended six-month period should still be effective. See More Collapse Silvers recommends that patients call their doctor and pharmacies regularly to ask when their next shipment of Shingrix is coming in. The vaccine is administered in two doses, with the second being a booster shot. The second shot, ideally, is given two to six months after the first, but Silvers says people should get the second one even if they have surpassed the six-month mark. Amid the shortage, those who have gotten the first shot and are waiting for the second are given priority over those who are seeking to get the first. Those who have had shingles before can also get Shingrix to lower the likelihood of recurrence. The bottom line is, work with your provider, try to get on a list, keep checking the news, and you will get it, Silvers said. Vaccine shortages and delays are not unheard of in the past few years, there have been shortages of vaccines for hepatitis A and the flu but the Shingrix shortage is particularly acute. It happens from time to time, Silvers said. This one is out of proportion than what you usually see. Thats partly because this vaccine is such an important improvement over the previous vaccine, which was an improvement over nothing. So this is a major change in what we can offer. Vaccines to prevent shingles are relatively new. The older vaccine, Zostavax, was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2006. Shingrix was approved in 2017. The U.S. has about 1 million cases of shingles each year, with most affecting people who are 50 or older. One in 3 people will get it sometime in his life, according to the CDC. Anyone who has had chicken pox has the shingles virus, zoster, dormant in the body, and it tends to be reactivated during times when ones immune system is weakened. The blistering, painful rash is much more severe than chicken pox and can cause vision loss if the outbreak is near the eyes. GlaxoSmithKline reported $1 billion in sales of the vaccine in 2018, which surpassed the companys projections. The unexpectedly high demand for Shingrix helped propel a 14 percent jump in Glaxos vaccine sales in 2018, the company reported last week. Shingrix has 98 percent of the shingles vaccine market. Interactive Vaccine Tracker: Latest developments Detailed information about the coronavirus vaccines as it becomes available. Glaxo says part of the delay in getting more doses out to the public is because it takes six to nine months to make Shingrix. It is not unusual for vaccines, which are more complex than many drugs to manufacture, to take months to produce. We are deeply committed to Shingrix and are working to ensure that the vaccine will be available to individuals who need it, Glaxo spokesman Sean Clements said in a statement. Patients could ask for Zostavax if they wish to be vaccinated immediately and Shingrix is unavailable, the CDC says. But many pharmacies have stopped buying Zostavax, and experts generally advise against this, saying it is better to wait for Shingrix, which is more effective in the long term. Even if you get the old one, youd presumably still in the near future be looking to get the new one, said Dr. Lisa Winston, an epidemiologist at San Francisco General Hospital. In general, we dont think of being vaccinated for shingles as an emergency. Wed certainly like to get people vaccinated, but were mostly thinking about lifetime risk, not immediate risk. ... In general for most people, it probably makes more sense to wait. Shingrix costs $170 to $250 per dose at pharmacies, but patients out-of-pocket costs depend on their insurance. Most commercial insurance plans and Medicare cover Shingrix. Glaxo estimates that the average out-of-pocket cost for those on commercial plans is $5 or less per dose, and the average cost for Medicare recipients is $50 per dose. Glaxo offers financial assistance for some people who earn less than $30,000 a year, but its unclear how much that assistance might be. A prescription is not needed, except for those younger than 50 who may want it because their immune systems are compromised. Shingrix has more pronounced side effects, including sore arm, fatigue and muscle aches, usually lasting no more than a few days, Winston said. It was those potential side effects that made Perrotta, the retired Southern California executive, delay seeking the vaccine. Last week, though, a nearby grocery store posted a promising sign: We have Shingrix. Catherine Ho is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: cho@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @Cat_Ho Jay Fulcher wants people to know that the Zenefits of 2019 isnt the regulation-skirting, sex-in-the-stairwell type of place that turns up in the companys Google results. Now two years into the job his anniversary was Feb. 6 the CEO, Zenefits third in its short history, says hes focusing on how the companys software can help small businesses. Fulcher has some experience here, having sold a company to PeopleSoft some 20 years ago. But he wasnt actively in the job market, he said, when he was approached by partners at Andreessen Horowitz to lead Zenefits after the company, one of their prize investments, was caught circumventing insurance regulations. Zenefits, once touted as one of the fastest-growing companies in tech, was founded by Parker Conrad in 2013. Investors, who poured more than half a billion dollars into the startup, loved its business model: It gave away software to businesses for free and made money through commissions from selling them employee health insurance plans. Conrad resigned from his position as CEO in February 2016 after it was revealed that some of the companys brokers used a software script he wrote to skip past hours of mandatory training. Several states charged Zenefits with selling insurance without the required licenses and the Securities and Exchange Commission accused it of misleading investors. Parker was replaced by then-Chief Operating Officer David Sacks, who left after a year dominated by dealing with Zenefits legal problems. The company paid $11 million to settle the state charges and $450,000 to the SEC; Conrad personally paid $534,000 to settle the SEC charges. To appease investors, the company kept their cash but slashed its value, effectively giving them a bigger stake in the company. I think we were a company that grew so quickly in such an unfettered way that in many ways, that was part of why we had to do a reset, Fulcher said. The turnaround Fulcher engineered included firing more than 400 employees nearly half of the companys workforce. He hired a new management team, got out of the business of selling health insurance to businesses and started charging for its human resources software, which helps companies sign new employees up for benefits. (Zenefits basic pricing starts at $5 an employee a month, plus other fees; payroll, time tracking and other features cost more.) Zenefits is now adding an average of 200 new customers a month, Fulcher said. More than 70 percent of Zenefits existing customers who were getting the software for free started paying, he said. He wouldnt discuss details of the companys finances, but said recently introduced products like payroll are doing well. The interview has been edited for length and clarity. Q: Were you nervous about coming in as the CEO of Zenefits after what happened with the insurance scandal? And did David Sacks short tenure concern you? A: Davids tenure was always intended to be temporary. I wasnt necessarily nervous about the situation. The company was really forthcoming about what it had been through. And so I felt like I had a pretty good handle on that. The other thing is I spent a fair amount of time talking to the marketplace industry analysts, the banking community, hundreds of customers. So that made it pretty easy for me to understand that aside from all the drama, you know there was a lot of support for the company and a lot of loyalty to it. So that kind of dispelled any kind of concern that I might have had as I first stepped in. Q: What is Zenefits up to now? A: First and foremost, it was really important for us to right-size our operating costs and expenditures. We made some decisions about changing our business model from being an insurance broker to being a technology (company) that works with the brokerage community. And that was a really fundamental shift. My first week on the job, we took more than 400 employees out of the company at that time. It was a hard thing to do but it was very necessary. Q: Were those insurance brokers? A: It was mostly folks who were in and around that part of the prior business model. So when we made that shift we were able to streamline the company to some degree. So the business pivot was one thing. The second thing was we really spent some time thinking about and frankly beginning to formalize the sort of culture that we wanted to build into the company. Q: Whats your workforce now? A: Were at roughly 500 employees. Q: And at the height? A: At its height, I think the company was around 1,500 or so. When I came into the business it was around 1,100. Weve added new dimensions and new skill sets and new people in pretty much every part of the business, from engineering to customer care and customer support to marketing to sales. Q: Are you still selling insurance? Your website disclosures suggest you are. A: We took this very large book of insurance business and transitioned that to OneDigital, which is the fastest-growing insurance broker in the country. And we chose OneDigital by the way because of how tech-savvy they are and how much they appreciate how to use technology like ours. We learned a bunch of lessons as a result of trying to balance between being a broker and a tech company. Its really very difficult to deal with all the compliance and regulatory issues around being a broker while also selling software and implementing software. We went back to those customers and said, You know, for anybody that wants to continue on with our products were now going to charge you, whereas before we were not charging you. And we had hoped that maybe half the customer base might be persuaded (to do that). We had almost 70 percent of our customers transition to the pay model. Q: So more than 70 percent of the existing customers? A: Thats right. We transitioned more than 6,000 customers who were previously not paying us for the technology and started paying us a subscription fee. Interactive Vaccine Tracker: Latest developments Detailed information about the coronavirus vaccines as it becomes available. Q: Was it difficult? A: I think for me it was a sense of relief to just see that people in really clear ways saw the value of the software. Q: Does Zenefits employ any licensed brokers now? A: We have brokerage licenses and we do have lots of insurance expertise here, but we do no insurance brokerage work of any kind. Q: Have you raised any money since 2015, when Zenefits famously raised $500 million and became a unicorn? A: We havent. Q: How much of the $500 million is left? Have you turned a profit? A: We dont disclose anything about our financials as a private company, which Im sure is not a surprise to you. Were really fortunate in that weve raised a fair amount of money. Weve become a lot more efficient with our capital in the last two years, so thats created even more runway for the company. So were fully capitalized. Were not profitable today and were not focused on profitability, at least not in the near term. Right now weve got the pedal down on our investments. Q: What do you want people to know about Zenefits today? A: I think one thing we would certainly want small businesses to understand is that you no longer are cut off from sophisticated technology that can help you run your business more efficiently, more seamlessly, where you can drive the kind of results you want more easily. I think the other thing that is exciting to us is were seeing really clear growth across our business. Q: What advice would you give to startups that are growing fast? A: Its really important to recognize that growth at all cost or at any cost is not a good idea. A cautionary tale around the Zenefits story was that we were a company that grew so quickly in such an unfettered way that was part of why we had to do a reset. That said, we live in a world where enough is rarely enough. Managing growth and being smart and responsible about it is really a critical thing, especially for explosively high-growth companies. Were trying to apply those lessons here all the time. Sophia Kunthara is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: sophia.kunthara@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @SophiaKunthara While bankruptcy will help Pacific Gas and Electric Co. address its immediate financial challenges, it may do little to alleviate longer-term headwinds posed by Californias relentlessly devastating wildfires and the strict liability the state imposes on utilities whose power lines cause them. Thanks to a once-obscure legal doctrine known as inverse condemnation, PG&E can be held liable for damage caused by its equipment, even if the company wasnt negligent. Rooted in the U.S. and state constitutions and imposed on utilities by California courts with fairness in mind, inverse condemnation is seen by many as an increasingly insurmountable barrier to PG&Es future one that could remain after the utility and its parent company complete a bankruptcy reorganization. But any reform effort would encounter stiff opposition from politicians, wildfire victims and others who could see it as yet another attempt to help the embattled utility avoid responsibility for disasters its equipment caused. PG&E told investors when it announced its intent to seek protection from creditors last month that the strict liability doctrine was one of many factors its board weighed before deciding to proceed with a filing under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. Specifically, directors considered the unique nature of Californias doctrine of inverse condemnation and whether it is possible for PG&E to continue to own and operate all of its current assets as an investor-owned utility subject to that doctrine, the companys filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission said. Compounding the challenge, courts have determined the doctrine applies regardless of whether utility regulators let PG&E recover costs from a specific wildfire from its customers, the company has said. PG&E says that means it could find itself in a situation where a court determines the company is responsible for a wildfire because of inverse condemnation, but regulators dont allow it to pass costs along to customers to help finance the huge bill. The point of inverse condemnation law was to spread liability across essentially all of society when something that is used by all of society causes a problem, said Severin Borenstein, a UC Berkeley energy economist. But when you do that and then say, And no, you cant spread the costs, there is a bit of tension there. Its a tension PG&E will probably continue trying to reconcile, through either changes to how California applies inverse condemnation or other measures. PG&E still believes that imposing strict liability on the company without taking fault into consideration is a flawed legal doctrine and bad for our customers, our economy and our state, spokeswoman Lynsey Paulo said in an email. However, we understand and appreciate that there are diverse opinions on this subject and we remain open to any and all solutions and paths that would potentially mitigate the impacts of wildfires, Paulo said. One alternative PG&E is open to is a possible statewide wildfire insurance fund that would assist in the event of catastrophic wildfires, Paulo said in the email. PG&E tried unsuccessfully to get freedom from the doctrine through state lawmakers in the wake of the 2017 Wine Country wildfires. But inverse condemnation has proved to be a stubborn political problem for PG&E. State Sen. Bill Dodd, D-Napa, wrote a wildfire bill that created a new process for PG&E to pass 2017 fire costs along to its customers without reforming inverse condemnation. In an interview, he said he would have a hard time backing any legislation to give PG&E or the states other investor-owned utilities flexibility around the doctrine now. The only way I could support any movement on that is if I saw not anecdotal evidence hard evidence that PG&E finally has a culture of safety, Dodd said. Until thats done, its a very hard discussion to have. The wildfire fund alternative Paulo identified could be evaluated by a new committee focused on wildfires and utilities that was authorized by Dodds bill, SB901. Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed his three members to the committee just last month, and Dodd said it absolutely makes sense for them to study the issue. Such a fund could accomplish the same goal as inverse condemnation by providing a source of funds for a utility to draw on to make victims whole when power lines cause fires through no negligence on the companys part. The express goal of inverse condemnation is to put the owner back into the financial condition they would have been in had the inverse condemnation not occurred, said Robert Thomas, a Hawaii lawyer who writes a blog on the topic at www.inversecondemnation.com. Its simply a cost-spreading device. ... Insurance seems like, if it were to achieve that same thing, then at least in theory it sounds like something that could be workable. PG&E might even find a way to bring up inverse condemnation in bankruptcy court, Thomas said. He pointed to a recent opinion from a Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel in a case involving an inverse condemnation claim and the city of Stocktons bankruptcy. Interactive Vaccine Tracker: Latest developments Detailed information about the coronavirus vaccines as it becomes available. In a 2-1 decision, the appeals court in San Francisco held that Stockton could treat a certain inverse condemnation claim just like any other unsecured claim in its bankruptcy case, putting it toward the back of the line and allowing the city to jettison the debt. Thomas said the case, which involved a land dispute, has some parallels to PG&Es situation. But Douglas Baird, a law professor at the University of Chicago, said he doesnt think the case will prove decisive on how wildfire victims are treated in the PG&E bankruptcy. The effect of the Ninth Circuits majority opinion is theyre just saying these are ordinary, unsecured claims in bankruptcy that can be discharged, Baird said after reviewing the opinion. But theyre not saying that somehow theyre unusually low priority. The facts of that complicated case also differ in key ways, mostly because the plaintiff no longer had any interest in the property in question, according to Steve Campora, an attorney who has sued PG&E. The only issue was whether or not he was entitled to more money, Campora said in an email. The city could not be liable for taking property which he had no interest in. Regardless, any effort to weaken Californias interpretation of inverse condemnation whether in court or the Legislature would inevitably face resistance from wildfire victim advocates. That train has left the station, said Frank Pitre, another lawyer suing PG&E on behalf of victims of the 2017 and 2018 wildfires. Inverse condemnation is not the source of PG&Es problems, Pitre said. PG&Es issues are created by the lack of prudent management, he said. And I dont say that lightly. J.D. Morris is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jd.morris@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @thejdmorris Lauren Kahn was a sophomore at Oakland Technical High School in November 2016 when she watched students stand up and walk out of class to protest the election of our president. That was the first Lauren had heard of a walkout. Two years later, the 17-year-old senior, who is in her final semester of high school, is helping plan the protests that are emptying her schools classrooms. Quite honestly, its not the most difficult thing to convince students to skip school, Lauren told me last week during a break from planning a recent protest. Students have been pretty eager, especially if you can give them a really solid justification why theyre doing it. This week marks a year since a gunman killed 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., on Valentines Day. The heartbreaking tragedy sparked student activism across the country. In recent weeks, Oakland Tech students have been protesting to support the Oakland Unified School District teachers. Teachers are threatening to strike if the school district doesnt meet their contract demands for higher salaries and smaller classrooms. On Jan. 18, teachers who called in sick or took a personal day gathered in front of Oakland Tech on their way to the school districts offices. Hundreds of Oakland Tech students walked out and joined the protest. On Feb. 1, Oakland Tech students organized another walkout. And just a week later, dozens of students skipped school for a sickout. And they were joined by students from other Oakland schools. For almost a year, Ive been watching a fantastic trend brew at Oakland Techs protests: The protests are being organized and led by teen girls. As students marched along Broadway on Friday, girls held the giant banner at the front of the march. Girls held megaphones used to lead the chants as people stepped out of offices, car dealerships and construction sites on Broadway to watch the students pass. No matter how many teachers you dont like or how many bad experiences youve had, you cant deny everything teachers do for students, Caroline Pers told me. Its so much more than just a day job. I met Caroline, a sophomore, while reporting on the national walkout against gun violence in the wake of the Parkland shooting. As a freshman, she helped organize the March protest. Last week, Caroline and Ivelisse Diaz, a junior, met me at a coffee shop across the street from campus. Their Mock Trial team had won the night before, and they proudly pointed out that five of the eight attorneys on the team are girls. Right now, theres a record number of women serving in Congress. I asked Ivelisse and Caroline, both 16, if their activism is a response to the policies and actions of the demagogue who invaded the White House. One hundred percent, Caroline said without hesitation. November of 2016 was a really big eye-opener for a lot of people. It definitely sparked something. Seeing the Parkland students share their stories in front of large crowds inspired Ivelisse to do the same. Lauren, Caroline and Ivelisse are girls who understand their power. I support them tapping into it. People like ourselves are seeing the kind of damage that men like Trump do, the kind of ignorance that makes him do terrible things, Ivelisse said. We have to make more of an effort to try and undo the wrongs of the past, because theres so many. Last week, Oakland teachers voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike. The vote allows union leaders to call a strike after a neutral fact-finder presents their report, which is expected Friday. The fact that they dont get more fairly compensated is outrageous, Ivelisse said. For Fridays sickout, Lauren recruited students from other schools using social media apps including Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter to spread the word. She told me students from Oakland High School, Skyline High School, Madison Park Academy, MetWest High School and Coliseum College Prep Academy marched with Oakland Tech students. The state of California funds school districts in part based on student attendance, also known as average daily attendance. If a student is marked absent, the district loses money. The sickout is going to demonstrate, not just to the district but to the state government, that students actually do have significant power in these negotiations and that were willing and able to use it, Lauren said. What we want to do with that momentum is establish ourselves in the negotiating process and even help the district appeal to the state for more funding. San Francisco Chronicle columnist Otis R. Taylor Jr. appears Mondays and Thursdays. Email: otaylor@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @otisrtaylorjr Jacom Stephens/Getty Images A man died Friday while he was being detained by police at a homeless shelter in Concord, authorities said. The mans name and the cause of death were not immediately provided by the Concord Police Department. But the agencys Facebook page said the incident occurred around 4 p.m. after officers responded to 911 calls about a disturbance at the Concord Homeless Shelter at 2047 Arnold Industrial Way. Kathleen Fraser, a poet and former professor at San Francisco State University, died last Tuesday at age 83. Her death from natural causes was confirmed by her publisher, Nightboat Books. Fraser wrote more than 15 books, including poetry, essay collections and collaborations with artists. Her first book, Change of Address, was published in 1966. She was a professor of creative writing at San Francisco State from 1972 to 1992. She directed the Poetry Center at SFSU and founded the schools American Poetry Archives. She also taught at the California College of the Arts, the University of Iowa and Reed College in Portland, Ore. Fraser was born in Tulsa, Okla., and graduated from Occidental College in Los Angeles before moving to New York City to work as an editorial associate for Mademoiselle magazine. While in New York she studied with poets Stanley Kunitz and Kenneth Koch and came into contact with poets associated with Black Mountain, the Objectivists and the New York School. Fraser absorbed aspects of the various schools of poetry but never wanted to be pigeonholed, according to Nightboat Books Publisher Stephen Motika, who described the poet as a live wire with a completely flexible mind. She was ageless, and so disinterested in being staid or settled, said Motika. She was restless as a writer and thinker. Starting in the early 1980s, Fraser split her time between San Francisco and Rome and would often stop in New York, where she had many artist friends. She liked the rich street life she found in Romes piazzas and became fluent in Italian. She had an amazing ear. She was a great lyric poet. She had poetry in her, said Motika. She is a little hard to contain because her career is so varied. There are so many different modes. That is rare in American poetry. Her final posthumous volume of collected poems will be published by Nightboat Books in 2020. Susan Gevirtz, a poet who is co-editing the collection with Motika, said Fraser was just extremely grateful to us for taking the project on. Gevirtz and Motika have been going through more than 60 years of Frasers papers she was a prolific letter writer and essayist in addition to the verse and still have to sift through whatever unpublished work she left behind on her computer. The most exciting thing about working on the collection is discovering work we had no idea existed, she said. Fraser is survived by her husband, Arthur Bierman; son, David Marshall; sister, Anne Bagwell; brother, Jim Fraser; and niece, Beth Bagwell. Staff writer Roland Li contributed to this report. J.K. Dineen is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jkdineen@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @sfjkdineen San Francisco Mayor London Breed is readying legislation to eliminate thousands of dollars in fees the city charges when 100 percent affordable housing projects and accessory dwelling units are built or renovated. The ordinance which could be introduced at the Board of Supervisors meeting Tuesday meeting or next week is Breeds latest effort to chip away at what she sees as the administrative forces that make it harder to build housing. We have to remove the barriers and bureaucracy that get in the way of building more housing, Breed said. This means not only streamlining how we build housing, but also cutting fees so our dollars can go toward building more affordable housing and so more people will come forward to build in-laws, allowing us to add new rent-controlled units throughout city. Breeds proposal wouldnt expedite projects but would make them less expensive to get moving. Jessica Christian / The Chronicle The ordinance would prevent the city from moving money from one pocket to another. In San Francisco, the Mayors Office of Housing and Community Development is the main source of funding for affordable housing projects. Sam Moss, executive director of the Mission Housing Development Corp., said it was fairly ludicrous for another city agency, the Department of Building Inspection, to then take a portion of that money back for permit reviews and inspection services, which is how the process currently works. Why would we do that? Its common sense not to do that, Moss said. We have a crisis right now, and if we dont exercise all the tools in the toolbox, then what are we doing? This is something I applaud, he said of the mayors proposal. Michael Macor / The Chronicle The fees the inspection department assesses are proportional to the overall construction cost of a given project, said Bill Strawn, a spokesman for the agency. Larger, more complex and expensive projects generally require more time and staff resources, which translate to higher fees for those services. Moss said the building inspection permitting fees alone dont usually make or break new affordable housing developments or renovations of existing ones. But relief from some of the costs would allow his nonprofit to reinvest money into the early planning stages of new projects. The Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corp. and the Mission Economic Development Agency are just a few weeks away from breaking ground on a 143-unit, 100-percent affordable housing complex at 1990 Folsom St. in the Mission District, a project the two organizations developed jointly. According to the Mayors Office of Housing, the building inspection permitting fees alone for that project were about $150,000. Im really enthused about this, said TNDC Executive Director Don Falk. Lifting the building inspection fees on affordable projects will aggregate into a fair sum of money over time that MOHCD will be able to use to fund more projects. This is a big deal. Jessica Christian / The Chronicle The ordinance is also meant to encourage the development of accessory dwelling units, or ADUs, often called in-law or granny flats. In August, Breed instructed city departments to clear within six months the backlog of some 900 ADUs stuck in the approval pipeline a deadline that will expire at the end of the month. She also mandated that the city speed up the review of new requests to build ADUs. On top of making it easier to get an ADU built, Breeds proposed ordinance would also make them less expensive. City officials said the building inspection permit fees for ADUs range from $7,000 to $10,000, on average. The Department of Building Inspection collected nearly $1.4 million in permit fees from 100 percent affordable housing projects in the last fiscal year and just over $568,000 from ADUs. Dominic Fracassa is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: dfracassa@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @dominicfracassa Tom Stienstra / Tom Stienstra / The Chronicle A small plane crashed on the slopes of Mount Diablo on Friday, killing the pilot, who is believed to have been the only person on board, authorities say. The downed single-engine Mooney M20 aircraft was discovered Saturday 2 miles southwest of the Contra Costa County peak, said Ian Gregor, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration. The plane crashed and burned sometime Friday night. Thank you for reading! You have reached your 30-day limit of free access to SentinelSource.com, The Keene Sentinels website. If you would like to read two more articles for free at this time, please register for an account by clicking the sign up button below. We hope you find The Sentinels coverage of the Monadnock Region valuable. We rely on our subscribers to bring you strong local journalism and hope you will consider supporting our work by taking advantage of this special subscription offer here. Surrounded by thousands of acres of forest, minutes to Mount Rainier National Park and Alder Lake, this tiny cabin is a converted trailer big on quirky charm, asking just $134,500. The cabin With its trailer siding still intact, and the interior mostly original, the 288 square feet of 119 Winthrop Place evoke the feeling of a retro caravan. The wood used to convert the trailer is old barn lumber, which explains its nostalgic warm patina. Inside is one bed and one bath, a small but fully equipped kitchen, and a breakfast bar that faces the forested setting. Built in cabinets help offset limited space, offering clever places to stow belongings. RELATED: Report: Seattle experienced slowest home price growth in 5 years A deck wraps around one whole side of this main structure (there are two structures on the property). Plenty of room here for taking in views of the creek and Osborn Mountain. Down the custom path from the cabin is a covered outdoor sitting area with fire pit. Two wood benches and a bar-height counter top offer the perfect spot for barbecuing and singing songs around the fire. There's also a small shed for tools and vacation gear. The lot The property measures .48 acres, but such figures don't really matter when the lot backs up on thousands of acres of public forest and trails leading to the Nisqually River. RELATED: Eastlake floating home offers two-level deck, next level views For those in need of still more nature, Mount Rainier National Park is a five minute drive from this cabin, and Alder Lake is just ten minutes. Perfect little escape? For Seattleites, the drive to Paradise Estates in Ashford, WA is just under three hours, but seems more like a world away from the city. RELATED: Winter wonderland getaways listed around Washington In snow or sunshine, this tiny getaway is both unique and affordable, asking $134,500. See the complete listing here. Anna Marie Erwert writes from both the renter and new buyer perspective, having (finally) achieved both statuses. She focuses on national real estate trends, specializing in the San Francisco Bay Area and Pacific Northwest. Follow Anna on Twitter: @AnnaMarieErwert. America's enemies have a very clear definition of victory. For them, victory comes when we give up the fight before they do. We know this because they have told us so. The 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed told his CIA interrogator "Americans don't realize we do not need to defeat you militarily; we only need to fight long enough for you to defeat yourself by quitting." That is how the terrorists see Obama's withdrawal from Iraq in 2011 and Trump's planned withdrawals from Syria and Afghanistan: America defeating itself by quitting. It is understandable that, after 18 years, Americans want the war to end. But what we want is irrelevant. We don't get to decide unilaterally that the war is over. The enemy gets a vote. Just because we have tired of fighting doesn't mean that they have. Here is the hard truth: We don't get to choose when the war ends, but we do get to choose where it is fought. It can either be fought over there, in the deserts of Syria and the mountains of Afghanistan, or it can be fought over here on American streets and in American cities, as it was on Sept. 11, 2001. It's up to us. One farmer who is adding produce to his operation is Marion cattle producer Thomas Jones. Currently, Jones Spear T Cattle buys stocker calves, backgrounds them and sells them to feed lots. This spring, the farm also will grow vegetables and sell them to the Pee Dee Food Hub, a local wholesaler. Although he plans to continue focusing on cattle, Jones said, he is adding another option to increase farm revenue. I wont rule out any option that allows me to support my family with the farm, and this produce looks like a good fit, Jones said. Growing produce has a smaller land requirement than cattle, and he is considering vegetable crops with low input costs to avoid tying up large portions of his operating capital. Also, selling wholesale means he does not have to spend entire days marketing product to individual consumers, he added. Row crop and cattle farmer Matt Stevens of Loris said he marketed his own small-scale produce directly to customers for several years. However, he is also looking to diversify the operation by growing produce on a larger scale. Surrounded by salty water, sea snakes sometimes live a thirsty existence. Previously, scientists thought that they were able to drink seawater, but recent research has shown that they need to access freshwater. A new study published in PLOS ONE on Feb. 7 and led by Harvey Lillywhite, professor of biology of the University of Florida, shows that sea snakes living where there is drought relieve their dehydration as soon as the wet season hits, and do so by obtaining freshwater from "lenses" that form on the surface of the ocean during heavy rain -- events in which the salinity at the surface decreases enough for the water to be drinkable. The yellow-bellied sea snake (Hydrophis platurus) is the only reptile in the order Squamata that lives on the open sea. It has one of the largest geographic ranges of any vertebrate species. Given its broad range and seafaring existence, during the dry season (6-7 months at the study site in Costa Rica) it has no access to freshwater. How they survive in regions of drought seems to hinge upon access to freshwater lenses, but little is known about how marine vertebrates react to or consume rainfall. "This study contributes to a fuller understanding of how pelagic sea snakes, and possibly other marine animals, avoid desiccation following seasonal drought at sea," said Lillywhite. The researchers captured 99 sea snakes off the coast of Costa Rica (interestingly, the snakes have never been observed in estuaries) and offered them freshwater in a laboratory environment. The team happened to be there just as six months of drought broke and the rainy season began. They found that only 13 percent of snakes captured after the rainfall began accepted the offer, compared to 80 percent of those captured before. The rainfall must have quenched their thirst. The study continues many years of work by Lillywhite. The present paper was coauthored by Mark Sandfoss, Lillywhite's current PhD student, Coleman Sheehy, his former student who is now the Collections Manager in Herpetology at the Florida Museum of Natural History, and then-Fulbright visiting scholar Jenna Crowe-Riddell. "How these animals locate and harvest precipitation is important in view of the recent declines and extinctions of some species of sea snakes," said Lillywhite. The question remains: How will climate change and its effects on precipitation impact the sea snakes? The higher a person's immunity to dengue virus, the lower their risk of Zika infection, an international team of scientists led by the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health, Yale School of Public Health and University of Florida report today in the journal Science. The study -- which followed nearly 1,500 people living in a poor neighborhood at the heart of the 2015 Zika outbreak in Brazil -- also provides evidence that Brazil's Zika epidemic has largely petered out because enough people acquired immunity to reduce the efficiency of transmission. "Take that with a grain of salt, though," said co-senior author Ernesto T.A. Marques, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor in Pitt Public Health's Department of Infectious Diseases and Microbiology and public health researcher at Fundacao Oswaldo Cruz in Brazil. "Our study was in a very small urban area, and it is likely that in other parts of Brazil, even different neighborhoods within the same city, people are still susceptible to Zika infection." The discovery relied on tests for dengue and Zika developed by Marques and his team and patented by Pitt. Marques is scientific director of Cura Zika, an international alliance to spur research into Zika, microcephaly and other congenital conditions it causes in babies. The research team tapped into a long-running study of the health of people living in urban slums in Salvador, a city in northeast Brazil, led by co-senior author Albert Ko, M.D., chair of epidemiology at the Yale School of Public Health. Study participants gave multiple blood samples before, during and after the Zika epidemic. Samples collected in October 2014 and March 2015 were almost entirely negative for Zika, but by October 2015, 63 percent showed evidence of Zika infection. Before the Zika outbreak, a subset of 642 participants also had been tested for previous dengue infection, and 86 percent were positive. Specifically, the test assessed the level of antibodies the participants had in their blood against dengue. The team found that each doubling of dengue antibody levels corresponded to a 9 percent reduction in risk of Zika. "This means that there are some cross-protective antibodies that dengue provides against Zika," said Marques. "Future study may be warranted to assess whether the new dengue vaccines could be useful in preventing Zika infection." Paradoxically, computational models by co-senior author Derek A.T. Cummings, Ph.D., professor of biology at the University of Florida, revealed that participants who had a very recent dengue infection were actually more susceptible to Zika. The scientists suspect several possible explanations: It could be that protective antibodies haven't developed yet or there's something about these people's immune systems that increases their risk of contracting Zika. And the mosquitoes that transmit dengue also transmit Zika, so a recent dengue infection could simply mean they are in a place where Zika transmission is active as well. Additional study also is needed to determine how these findings could prove useful to clinicians, Marques said. Developing reliable, commercially available tests for women of child-bearing age to assess their previous dengue and Zika exposure is of immediate concern, along with evaluating recommendations so clinicians know what to do with that information, noted Marques. Testing could help clinicians determine whether vaccinating women against dengue could help protect them from Zika during pregnancy. It also would give a baseline, so obstetricians would know how closely to monitor a pregnant woman's fetus for microcephaly, based on her susceptibility to Zika. Ongoing studies also are following babies born to women who contracted Zika during pregnancy to assess the effect of the mother's immunity to dengue on the degree of Zika-related congenital conditions in the babies. As self-driving cars continue to develop, there will be plenty of data amassed through cars' navigational technologies. Questions regarding privacy, ownership, cybersecurity and public safety arise, as heavily guarded mapping data is collected and leveraged by companies. The geospatial data can be used to draw new maps identifying the spaces where we live and travel. That information is currently housed in technological and corporate black boxes. Given the social relevance and impacts of such information, these black boxes require greater transparency, according to a Dartmouth study posted in Cartographic Perspectives. As autonomous cars strive to make sense of the world around them, they collect massive amounts of data, including traffic and congestion patterns, where pedestrians cross the street, which houses and businesses have Wi-Fi, and other details, which could be monetized. While companies may have intellectual property and other economic interests in protecting geospatial data, local governments, private citizens and other actors also have a vested interest in using that data to inform decisions on managing traffic, urban planning, allocating public funds and other projects, all of which may be of public interest. "Self-driving cars have the potential to transform our transportation network and society at large. This carries enormous consequences given that the data and technology are likely to fundamentally reshape the way our cities and communities operate," explains study author, Luis F. Alvarez Leon, an assistant professor of geography at Dartmouth. "Right now, the geospatial data obtained by a self-driving car exists in technological and corporate black boxes. We don't know who can see the data, appropriate it or profit from it. With insufficient government regulation of data from self-driving cars, this raises significant concerns regarding privacy, security and public safety," Alvarez Leon adds. The author discusses how legislation, open source design and hacking are avenues that can be leveraged to help open the black box, enabling consumers and the government to gain access to this corporate collected information. While each of these three approaches has potential risks and rewards, they can help frame the public debate on the ownership and use of geospatial data from self-driving cars. Autonomous cars rely on computerized systems to run. User access to this data proves difficult when they are locked in closed networks controlled by automobile manufacturers. The study looks at how legislation could help make this data more accessible. Car manufacturers typically consider themselves the sole arbiters of the information pertaining to their vehicles, claiming that they "own the data" but legislation has provided pushback and the author cites examples, such as debates around the right to repair. When autonomous cars, including their components, assembly, operation and data, are designed through an open source framework, data might be more easily available to the public and inform greater understanding about its potential uses and implications, the author suggests. Companies such as Udacity, an online education company, offers a Self-driving Car Engineer Nanodegree program in which students learn, develop and refine code for autonomous systems. Although there may be economic and intellectual property tradeoffs for the manufacturers, open source design plays an important role in allowing for greater transparency, according to the study. In addition to legislation and open source design, hacking is both a systemic risk for autonomous vehicles and an approach that has been deployed to make car data and automated systems more transparent while holding self-driving car companies more accountable. In 2013 and 2015, two security experts remotely hacked into a 2014 Jeep Cherokee, and a Toyota Prius and Ford Escape, respectively, demonstrating the security flaws in vehicles that were not autonomous. Security vulnerabilities are likely to run much deeper with fully autonomous vehicles. Precisely because hacking is a generalized risk for autonomous vehicles, certain instances of hacking in the context of research and advocacy have shown the importance of building secure systems. Recent security breaches with Equifax and Facebook illustrate the many security risks relating to consumers' digital information. "If we're going to adopt self-driving cars, then we should really make absolutely sure that they are as secure as they can be. This requires input from parties outside of the corporations who are building those very systems, such as government, advocacy groups and civil society at large." says Alvarez Leon. In the U.S., Arizona, California and Michigan are currently some of the most hospitable states for self-driving vehicles, serving as testing areas for companies such as Waymo, which started as Google's Self-Driving Car Project. While there are local regulatory battles, and often pushback from citizens and advocacy groups, other states may open their doors to this new mode of transportation in the future. Two weeks ago, Waymo announced that it will be building a manufacturing facility in southeast Michigan, as it looks to grow its fleet. As the study points out, oversight of the self-driving car industry cannot be left to the manufacturers themselves. It is up to the public and government to help define how this new technology and subsequent mapping of our communities will affect our society. You asked. We listened. Your daily crossword, Sudoku and dozens of other puzzles are now available online. Play them or print them here. Play now New Delhi, Feb 10: Robert Vadra, who was questioned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for three consecutive days last week in connection with a probe into allegations of money laundering to purchase assets abroad, said on Sunday that truth will always prevail. "Morning, Just want to say thank you to all my friends and acquaintances who have reached out in support from all over the nation, at this time," Vadra said in a Facebook post. Vadra, the brother-in-law of Congress president Rahul Gandhi and husband of AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi, was questioned for about eight hours by the ED on Saturday as he appeared before the agency for the third consecutive day. "I'm fine, good and disciplined to deal with anything, I'm put through. 'Truth will always prevail'. Wishing you all a happy Sunday and a healthy week," he said. He also faced two sessions of questioning on February 6 and 7. Congress chief Rahul Gandhi While Vadra was quizzed for about five-and-a-half hours on Thursday, he was grilled for about 9 hours the next day. Vadra has denied the allegations against him. The ED case against Vadra relates to allegations of money laundering in the purchase of a London-based property located at 12, Bryanston Square worth 1.9 million GBP (British pounds), which is allegedly owned by him. The agency has told a Delhi court that it has received information about various new properties in London which belong to Vadra. These include two houses, one worth 5 million GBP and the other valued at 4 million GBP, six other flats and more properties. Vadra has denied the allegations of possessing illegal foreign assets and termed them a political witch hunt against him. He said he was being "hounded and harassed" to subserve political ends. Priyanka Gandhi He is also expected to depose before the ED on February 12 in Jaipur in an another money-laundering case related to an alleged land scam in Bikaner. The Rajasthan High Court has directed him to cooperate with the agency in the case. Guntur (AP), Feb 10: Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday launched a scathing attack on Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and TDP supremo Chandrababu Naidu, saying he has made a "U-turn" on promises of development to the state and only trying to replicate NDA government's schemes "Our government gave to Andhra Pradesh much more than what was mentioned in special status. CM of Andhra Pradesh acknowledged this package but took a U-turn as they failed to use the funds in the appropriate way and were not able to develop the state," Modi said, addressing a public rally. Modi lashed out at Naidu for aligning with the Congress, saying the former chief minister NT Ramarao (NTR) had launched the party to make Andhra Pradesh "congress-mukth" after he was a victim of its 'arrogance.' Naidu was indeed a senior to him, but only in losing elections, switching alliances and ditching his father-in-law NT Rama Rao, Modi said at a public rally here. "He keeps reminding me he is senior. There is no debate in this. I have never shown any disrespect to you since you are a senior. You are a senior in changing alliances. Chandrababu Naidu A senior biting the back of your own father-in-law. A senior in losing one election after the other, where as I am not," the Prime Minister said. Further, Naidu was senior in embracing tomorrow those whom he would abuse today, Modi said. Modi alleged Naidu was taking him on since the Centre had sought details of every paise given to Andhra Pradesh. Naidu had promised walking in the footsteps of NTR, Modi said and asked if the Chief Minister had lived by it. "The arrogance of Delhi (during the Congress rule) has always insulted states. And NTR that is why decided to make AP Congress-mukth and floated the TDP. The TDP leader who has to resist the arrogance of the Naamdaars (famous and powerful people) and crush their arrogance is siding with them," he said in an apparent swipe at Naidu joining hands with the Congress. "This chowkidar (watchman) has disturbed his sleep.. wanted to know the details of every paise given to Andhra Pradesh," Modi said. Naidu promised the sunrise of Andhra Pradesh but is fixated with the rise of his own son N Lokesh, Modi charged. The Chief Minister promised the redevelopment of Amaravati but is now engaged in his own development, the Prime Minister alleged. He said Naidu had not initiated any new programmes for the poor but was only putting his stamp on the NDA government's development schemes. On providing clean fuel in the country, Modi said while in 60 years, only 12 crore gas connections were given, the NDA government had given 13 crore gas connections in just four years. On the occasion, the Prime Minister dedicated two petroleum and gas projects to the nation. Earlier, when Modi arrived at Gannavaram airport in Vijayawada, TDP workers staged protests. This is Modi's first visit to the state after the ruling Telugu Desam Party severed ties with the NDA. Narendra Modi The Chandrababu Naidu-led party quit the BJP-led alliance protesting the "injustice" done to the state post-bifurcation. Giving the protocol a go-by, none of the state ministers turned up at the Gannavaram airport to formally receive the Prime Minister. BJP leaders alleged that people were "thwarted," from reaching the venue in large numbers and said countdown would start for Naidu with Modi's rally at Guntur. Commenting on the black balloon protests against him by TDP workers, Modi quipped he welcomed it recalling the tradition of smearing black to ward off evil designs. Panaji, Feb 10: BJP president Amit Shah said Bengal and Odisha would be added to the list of the states being governed by his party after upcoming elections. Addressing a convention of the booth level workers near here, Shah said the BJP has made inroads into the North-East. Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar, who is not keeping good health, was also present at the 'Atal Booth Karyakarta Sammelan', which was attended by around 10,000 workers. "Today we have gathered here for the 2019 elections. We are here to resolve that Goa will again give both the seats (South Goa and North Goa) to PM Narendra Modi," Shah said. He said the upcoming elections are important not only for the BJP but also for the entire country. "The BJP has now reached up to North East. We are already in 16 states, but after the coming elections we will also be there in Bengal and Odisha," he said. Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar Lok Sabha elections are due in April-May this year while assembly polls are slated to be held in Odisha during the same period, and in West Bengal in 2021. The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and the Trinamool Congress (TMC) are ruling parties in Odisha and West Bengal, respectively. Shah said: "If we want to spread the BJP in the South till Hind Mahasgar, till Vivekananda memorial, then we will have to win the polls and reelect Modi as the Prime Minister". "The BJP is the only party which keeps the borders safe and take countrys culture across the globe," he added. The BJP has emerged as a major political force in the northeast since its victory in Assam in the last three years. The BJP has since formed governments in four of the region's eight states including Tripura, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, and Manipur. Besides spearheading the White Paper last year, Colin Shah, Vice Chairman of the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) has been actively involved in the initiatives of the Council like MyKYCBank and many more A first generation jeweller and an astute businessman who learnt the ropes of the diamond business at age 17, Colin Shah went on to establish his own company Kama Jewellery in the year 1996. Today, Colin Shah is the Managing Director of Kama Schachter Jewelry Pvt. Ltd. His recent foray into jewellery retail is another step to pursue his passion for diamond jewellery. His offline and online retail presence go by the parent companys name Kama Jewellery. In an Interview with Rough & Polished, Colin Shah- GJEPCs Vice Chair, talks about the initiatives by the GJEPC; and on the current challenges before the Indian G&J industry. You took up the responsibility of GJEPCs Vice Chair, albeit during trying times, but do you think the resilient Indian Gems & Jewellery industry can overcome the umpteen hurdles to regenerate itself, like in the past? Exports too seem to be going downhill for quite some time now Currently, there are many challenges before the Indian gems & jewellery industry. But, the Indian industry is known for its resilience over the past few decades. In the past, it has overcome many a hurdle and rose like the Phoenix and witnessed immense growth. In a similar way, the Indian G&J industry will survive whatever challenges that it has to face now or in the future and return to a healthy and fast-growing industry. GJEPC, as the apex body, has been taking proactive steps combating various issues like those of undisclosed mixing of synthetic with natural diamonds. This problem has been tackled by the industry to an extent now by making affordable detection machines and also through opening detection centres across the country. In addition, the trade organisations have come forward and formed the Natural Diamond Monitoring Committee (NDMC). Diamond financing has been an acute problem for a few years now. But of late, finance to the sector has been cut down by 10%, which has affected the industry leading to the downfall of gem & jewellery exports. The GJEPC is working with the Government and Banks to resolve this issue at the earliest. Besides, to strength the industry, on the whole, we are on the verge of finalizing a diamond and jewellery policy. We are working with DPA closely to improve the demand for diamonds globally. Bank finance for the industry, especially SMEs, has been declining by the day. In this scenario, many private financial companies/lenders may come to the rescue. Is it prudent for industry players to depend on them at this stage? Your opinion. The Indian gem & jewellery export accounts for $41 bn annually. The trade majorly depends on finance offered by the banks to run its business. Any reduction in bank finance to the traders will affect the exports. In such a scenario if the private financial companies are offering finance at a price that is affordable and profitable for the business, there is no harm in approaching them. You spearheaded GJEPCs White Paper last year. Also, Dubai Diamond Exchange & AWDC have signed on to the MyKYCBank initiative as well. Do you see these initiatives bringing some respite to the industry in the long run? Yes, these self-regulation measures would definitely help the industry in the long run. Through the White Paper, we offered a series of recommendation to banks to make sure the genuine players continue to get finance from banks. These recommendations included that GJEPC will provide critical data analysis at regular intervals, on key observations of the trade that will facilitate banks to assess industry scenario; formation of an informal arbitration body consisting of bankers, GJEPC and BDB members to be formed to find fair resolutions for NPA management, recovery and disputes; insisted all members register under MyKYCBank for better information facilitation and transparency for the banks. More and more trade associations joining the MyKYC Bank initiative will create credibility for the platform. So far, GJEPC, Bharat Diamond Bourse, Antwerp World Diamond Centre and DMCC has joined the MyKYC Platform. Were any steps taken recently by the GJEPC to convince lending banks to be reasonably stringent and not ask for higher collateral security for financing? Is the government helping out to ease the situation? According to reports, SBI, the biggest bank in diamond financing, has made it more difficult for G&J industry players to get finance The diamond and jewellery business is in excess of Rs.5 lakh crore but the banking finance extended is just around Rs. 70,000 crore. It is estimated that the banking sector has under 1 per cent of their total lending as exposure in the gems and jewellery sector. Any further decline in bank finance would adversely affect the gem and jewellery export business. Through White Paper we had presented the self-regulation measures and other processes that the industry would take to make sure that genuine players continue to get bank finance. GJEPC has been constantly working with the Govt. and banks to resolve this issue and we are hopeful that banks will continue to support this industry as they have done in the past. Whats your take on the much-discussed lab-grown diamonds? While mixing is just one problem, demand and prices for smalls are said to go down in the future. Should India be concerned, being the largest manufacturers of small diamonds? I believe that both--natural diamonds and synthetics-- are 2 different products appealing to different emotional needs of the consumer. Synthetics are a function of technology and we all know the products made from technology gets better by the day and prices fall over time as technology gets better and better. Natural diamonds, on the other hand, are made over billions of years and available in finite quantities and are unique. Therefore, we dont see how synthetics will influence the demand and price of natural diamonds which are rare, finite and unique and therefore precious. Undisclosed mixing of synthetic with natural diamonds has been a concern but the industry has been successfully tackling it. GJEPC has also set up detection machines at major gem and jewellery clusters in India, offering detection services at affordable prices. We have also set Diamond Detection & Resource Center in Bharat Diamond Bourse in Mumbai and in Surat, the diamond hub of the world. We have also been organising seminars for retailers and manufacturers, making them aware of the various products available and detection facility available in the market. We are conducting a survey to make sure that there is no undisclosed mixing of synthetics with natural diamonds happening. Also, we are sensitising the Govt. of any issues arising in the industry. The industry has become more vigilant and taken all self-regulatory measures for the sustainable development of the industry here in India. For the natural diamond industry to survive the onslaught of lab-grown diamonds, getting into manufacturing larger, quality stones have been suggested. Is it possible for India, with the current manufacturing infrastructure and the restricted financing available to the industry? Your comments. India is the largest diamond producer in the world. 14 out of 15 diamonds set in jewellery across the world are processed in India. We export diamonds worth $23 bn annually. Today apart from cutting and polishing small size diamond we have also developed the skills to cut and polished large size diamonds. Synthetic diamonds and natural diamonds are very different products, and each will have their own market and consumers. We also have products such as Cubic Zirconia and imitation jewellery in the market but this has never been a threat to the natural diamonds. However, all our efforts should go into keeping both products separately, natural and synthetic diamonds. What is your take on the status of Indian industry currently; where is it heading to right now; and what do you envisage for the industry going forward? The year 2018 has been a challenging one for business with demonetization and introduction of GST for every sector. In addition to this, for the gems and jewellery sector, the banks and financial institutions have tightened their lending norms which have affected the exports adversely. Indian gem & jewellery manufacturers have the skill and capabilities to cater to any market in the world. And over the years we have established a good rapport with buyers across the world. Internal issues like finance crunch should be resolved so that we can meet the ever-growing demand from the international market or else India will lose business to competitors. The US which is Indias major market accounts for half of Indias gem and jewellery exports. We see an improved macroeconomic condition in the US. The demand from this market will rise in the future and India will be ready to deliver the demands of the international market. Aruna Gaitonde, Editor in Chief of the Asian Bureau, Rough & Polished When segregation finally fell, Virginia considered itself at the forefront of that generations iteration of the new South. Gov. Linwood Holton used his inaugural address to declare the era of defiance is behind us. Thats the famous line by which Holton broke from the past. He used this one to set Virginia on a new course: As Virginia has been a model for so much else in America in the past, let us now endeavor to make todays Virginia a model in race relations. Holton did so, too. His term was defined by a single image the famous photograph of the governor escorting his daughter to a predominantly black school in Richmond. That came just seven years after another Southern governor had stood in a schoolhouse door to deliver a very different sort of message. Virginia was by no means perfect in its racial relations, but the state did seem to aspire to be better. In 1981, when a former segregationist used racially-charged language to support his partys candidate for governor, the result was a voter backlash that saw the other partys candidate elected instead. In 1985, Virginians elected Douglas Wilder as lieutenant governor. In 1989, they elected him as governor the first African-American elected governor of any state. Twice Tom Bradley had run for governor of California in the 1980s and lost each time. When Virginia did what trendy California had twice failed to do, Virginians considered themselves rightly proud of their accomplishment even if they didnt necessarily agree with Wilders politics. By the time Justin Fairfax was elected as the states second African-American lieutenant governor in 2017, his race seemed only an interesting footnote. Weve had an African-American preside as chief justice of the Virginia Supreme Court, something most other states cant claim. Economically, Virginia is building the Silicon Valley of the East, its reputation as a cutting-edge state seemingly validated by Amazons decision to locate half of its HQ2 in Arlington. Its probably worthwhile to start by defining biomedical research. It is the scientific enterprise that contributes to our fundamental understanding of the physical, chemical, and functional mechanisms of human life processes and diseases. It includes three major levels of investigation and discovery basic, translational, and clinical research. Translational research (largely what we do at the institute) bridges the discoveries made in basic research laboratories to the outside world by inventing, developing, and testing new ways to prevent, diagnose, treat and cure disorders in humans and animals. The biomedical research pipeline is the wellspring of many innovations of the last century that have enhanced the length and quality of our lives and also contributed to the U.S. innovation economy. Currently housed in a 154,000 square-foot building at 2 Riverside Circle on land provided by Carilion Clinic, the 104,000-square-foot research institute and the adjoining 50,000-square-foot medical school were paid for by the Commonwealth with bipartisan support led by the late Virginia Del. Lacey Putney. Virginia Tech and Carilion Clinic also provided substantial funding for the startup and ongoing operational support for the research institute and medical school, respectively. Newman said assistance for construction of a bridge, dam removal and lakebed restoration at College Lake was one of the citys highest legislative priorities this year because of the potential environmental impact and high overall cost. Therefore, I wanted to make sure that we put in an amendment that represented the entire amount that they had asked for, he said. I am very pleased that the Senate was able to get the $5 million and also Im very pleased that the House also placed $1.5 million into the budget. Newman noted this is the only special funding item included in the budget amendments for the Office of Natural Resources, which shows good progress. He said because both budgets include some funding for the city, there is a good chance the final version submitted to the governors office will include it. However, members of the General Assemblys budget conference committee must first review all conflicting budget requests between the House and Senate, including the College Lake funding amounts for Lynchburg. Newman and Garrett will sit on that committee, which begins meeting next week to align the two budgets and make final recommendations to the legislative bodies. Peake said he also is optimistic the final budget will include some level of state funding for the flood restoration. With that type of surgery, she would have never had any kind of up/down or side-to-side motion in her neck, Amanda Petrylak said. However, she said, Dr. Hasan Syed at the University of Virginia recommended a more recently available treatment that installed a halo-like brace that would allow Claire to heal without fusing her vertebrae. The treatment worked, Petrylak said, but because Claire did not sustain permanent injury, the man who caused her harm could not be charged with more than a misdemeanor. Seeing your 8-year-old lying in the middle of the road wrapped up in a strangers jacket leaves you feeling powerless, John Petrylak said at the Jan. 30 subcommittee hearing. Seeing the person who did this receive a menial charge leaves us feeling completely powerless. According to Haislip, who also testified at the hearing, cases like this pop up occasionally in the commonwealth. Often, as in the case of the Petrylaks, these cases can be delayed for months until doctors can determine if the victims injuries will be permanent. HB 1941 will allow the commonwealth to charge these drivers with a felony immediately, Haislip said in an interview after the hearing. Along the way, she found many of the missing pieces from the puzzle of Arthurs life: His youth on Isle Madame, a small island off Cape Breton; his time as a U.S. soldier in France; his return to Canada after the Great Depression derailed his American engineering career; his struggles to provide for his family in post-World War II Nova Scotia; and perhaps most hauntingly, his lyrical prose. A Nova Scotian expatriate and U.S. citizen herself, Poirier-Bures shares much in common with her dad, from her dedication to the craft of writing to his love of travel and literature. I still feel that he was a man who was very talented and who missed his vocation, Poirier-Bures said. I think he would have made a wonderful professor. He was certainly an intellectual. His daughter would go on to teach writing at Virginia Tech for 24 years and publish fiction and memoir professionally. Much of her work explores her family and Acadian life. For me, a lot of it has to do with where I came from, and pouring through my own experiences looking for connections and meaning, she said. Poirier-Bures told parts of Arthurs story in her previous novel, Candyman, a fictional account of her childhood time riding with him on his rounds selling penny candy to corner stores. 99 cent introductory offer Includes everything we offer online for 24-7 news. This option allows you to read unlimited stories at ctnewsonline.com, and access our e-Edition (digital replicate of the daily newspaper). $7.99 per month after the introductory offer. This service comes with a complimentary CT Select Card allowing for local discounts. Rates are subject to change. Rogers said the letter was meant to gauge whether parents would be interested in enrolling their students in FCPS if the division paid for an online program for them. Students would earn a diploma from Franklin County High School, and would be required to take the state Standards of Learning tests. By enrolling in the virtual school, students would have the opportunity to participate in extracurricular activities like sports, band and clubs at the middle and high schools. They could also take career and technical education classes. Some parents have talked to me saying, Is there any way my child could just take an agriculture course or could they just be in band? Rogers said. So I was trying to think about how could we engage them in some of the things they want to do on campus but still give them that flexibility with home school. The virtual school would help the division to achieve multiple goals: increasing its enrollment, and giving home-school families access to the parts of public school that they may want to engage in, Rogers said. In my mind it was a win-win, Rogers said. But, she acknowledged, it appears the bulk of homeschoolers didnt feel the same way. BRISTOL More than 100 charges have been filed against two men accused of stealing peoples credit card information using skimmers at gas pumps and spending thousands of dollars after creating fake cards. Uvar Alexander Valera Esquenazi, age unknown, of Sarasota, Florida, and Renier Ramirez Rodriguez, 20, of Louisville, Kentucky, have each been charged with 77 felony charges and 41 misdemeanor charges by the Bristol, Virginia, Police Department. They face charges of credit/debit card forgery, credit/debit card fraud, obtaining money by false pretense and conspiracy to commit a felony. The White Pine Police Department in Tennessee arrested the men on Wednesday after a gas station clerk recognized them, authorities said. The pair has been wanted in multiple jurisdictions, including both Bristol, Virginia and Tennessee; Washington County, Virginia; Knoxville, Tennessee; and White Pine, Tennessee. Beginning on Jan. 24, Bristol, Virginia, detectives began to investigate debit card fraud incidents reported by 18 different victims. Detectives said the men charged apparently placed skimmers on the pumps at different gas stations in the city. Developers of the Constitution Pipeline sued the state of New York on two fronts: that the states denial was arbitrary and capricious, and that it failed to act within a reasonable period of time, which constituted a waiver of certification. The first claim went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court and failed; the second one is pending before the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. FERC has granted Constitution Pipelines request for a two-year extension of a deadline to complete construction, giving it until the end of 2020 to continue its legal battle. Meanwhile, the Trump administration is considering steps to limit the ability of states to block interstate gas pipelines and other energy projects, Bloomberg News reported in January. The effort, possibly done through an executive order, would be aimed at states in the Northeast, where opposition to pipeline projects has helped prevent abundant shale gas in Pennsylvania and Ohio from reaching customers in New York and other large cities, according to Bloomberg. Should Virginia revoke Mountain Valleys certification, the company might argue in the courts that it has a vested interest in completing a project already approved by FERC. The new owners of the Ivy Market Shopping Center in Roanoke announced a new restaurant in the works in the vacant space next to First Watch. Kentucky-based BC Wood Properties confirmed last week that CoreLife Eatery will open this summer. CoreLife opened its first location in Syracuse, New York, in 2015 and has since expanded to more than 50 restaurants in 11 states along the East Coast, according to its website. It primarily serves very healthy fare, featuring a variety of bowls green bowls, grain bowls and broth bowls all appear on the menu. The food is all designed to be "clean, healthy and great tasting," its website said. The bowls are complete meals and all ingredients are free of GMOs, transfats, artificial coloring, sweeteners and other artificial additives. This style of restaurant is in friendly company in Ivy Market, which is also home to Earth Fare, a natural- and organic-focused grocery. CoreLife is going into a 3,400-square-foot-space right next to First Watch, a breakfast-focused eatery that opened last year. Even silly movies about Lego bricks are not immune from the shifting sands of time and a turbulent cultural climate. In 2015, the song was Everything Is Awesome, but in 2019, the chorus goes, Everything Is Not Awesome. As the meme-creators might say, Big Mood. Thats not to say that The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part, falters in any way. But rather that the sequel to Phil Lord and Chris Millers The Lego Movie manages to keep up with the times, which is pretty impressive for an animated film about toys in space. The sequel may not be as fresh and surprising as the original Lego Movie, which burst onto the scene with far more smarts and pizazz than any film based on a set of building blocks should. The success spawned The Lego Batman Movie one of the best Batman movies of all time and The Lego Ninjago Movie the weakest of the franchise but nevertheless entertaining. With Lego Movie 2, we know the drill. We expect the catchy tunes and the ruthless roasting of the Justice League. We know the jokes will be dense and tropes will be parodied. And yet, writers Lord and Miller, with director Mike Mitchell, actually make a film that could be a definitive piece of cinema for the Trump era. Yes. About Legos. Heavy snow, rain, fog and sandstorms can obstruct the view of cameras. Light beams sent out by laser sensors can bounce off snowflakes and think they are obstacles. Radar can see through the weather, but it doesnt show the shape of an object needed for computers to figure out what it is. Its like losing part of your vision, says Raj Rajkumar, an electrical and computer engineering professor at Carnegie Mellon University. Researchers are working on laser sensors that use a different light beam wavelength to see through snowflakes, said Greg McGuire, director of the MCity autonomous vehicle testing lab at the University of Michigan. Software also is being developed so vehicles can differentiate between real obstacles and snowflakes, rain, fog and other conditions. But many companies are still trying to master the difficult task of driving on a clear day with steady traction. Once we are able to have a system reliably perform in those, then well start working toward expanding to those more challenging conditions, said Noah Zych, Ubers head of system safety for self-driving cars. Pavement lines and curbs On Thursday, the exciting, young Democratic legislator from New York, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, debuted her ambitious plans to transform the American economy into a weapon of sorts that is supposed to win the war on global warming. What kind of weapon and exactly how it is supposed to work we arent sure. We suspect it may have something to do with the total collapse of manufacturing, automobile travel, and economic prosperity that would ensue were her initiative to pass. The ambitious 14-page plan, released by Ocasio-Cortez (who has come to be called AOC) in conjunction with Democratic Sen. Ed Markey of Massachusetts, is merely a nonbinding resolution. But it lays out a framework full of initiatives that many progressives hope will eventually become actual legislation. The Green New Deal would enlist the federal government in a 10-year mobilization effort involving infrastructure and industrial projects as well as promoting social and economic justice and security requirements. Her plan would leave no area of the U.S. economy untouched. For starters, the agenda calls for a complete transition by the end of the decade to 100 percent clean and renewable energy sources. It calls for every building in the U.S. to be either torn down or upgraded to meet state-of-the-art energy efficiency. It would create acres of solar farms and build miles of high-speed rail while banishing auto and air travel. And it doesnt stop there. Del. Mark Keam, D-Fairfax, who is Asian-American, said he continues to believe Northam has lost the credibility to lead but said there is no way for me as a legislator to force him out of office at this stage, and if the governor is willing to put this out there as his agenda for the upcoming, foreseeable future, I as a legislator am certainly willing to work with him. Keam said it was better late than never for Northam to realize there are people who dont have white privilege as fellow Virginians that their lives are completely different. Discussions on racial inequality should focus not just on whites and blacks but also Latinos, Muslims, Arab-Americans, Asian-Americans and Native Americans, Keam said. He has had and he continues to have opportunities where we have offered opportunities for him to step up and be a leader on racial issues and he has completely ignored them until now, Keam said. Del. Hala Ayala, D-Prince William, said she believes in redemption and forgiveness but continues to stand with the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus in calling for Northams resignation. Fairfax said he knows his encounters with both women were consensual. I am asking that no one rush to judgment and I am asking for there to be space in this moment for due process, he said. Late Saturday, Watsons lawyer responded to Fairfaxs statement, saying Watson is willing to testify at an impeachment hearing and produce more corroborating evidence. We will provide at least two witnesses whom Ms. Watson told of the assault the day after Fairfax raped her, said a statement from Nancy Erika Smith. We will also produce documentary evidence of Ms. Watson revealing to others the fact that Fairfax raped her. The statement also said Watson may seek a criminal case against Fairfax in North Carolina. Tyson's attorneys also confirmed she'd be willing to testify at an impeachment hearing and cooperate with any law enforcement investigation. Establishing a housing clinic will equip UConn Law School to better live its mission to engage in community outreach that serves the unmet legal needs of residents of our city, region and state. Our most vulnerable citizens will have greater access to legal representation, along with the personal and social benefits of a stable home made more widely available. A housing clinic will also provide future generations of state lawmakers and attorneys necessary experience in, and exposure to, housing law. We cannot address problems that we are ignorant of. Without a doubt, he saved lives of his tactical team members, Settle said. He went in with his team, said Settle, pausing as he tried to compose himself. And it was his team that carried him out. Dowells sister Erica spoke during the service on behalf of the family. She recalled attending a funeral last year with her brother in Chilhowie for a close friend. After the viewing, they returned home to talk about life. Lucas said, I want to do a better job of making the people I love know and feel how much I loved them, Erica Dowell said. Looking out over this crowd and thinking about all the love that has just been poured out over my mom, my dad and I for Lucas in the last four days, I believe even more strongly now that what I said to him then was the truth. I said, Lucas, you already do that. Dowells body was transported in a tactical vehicle to St. James Church Cemetery. State troopers, deputies and police officers from numerous Virginia agencies, as well as troopers from across the country, including as far away as Utah, Arizona, California and Washington, also attended the services. The kids in Oakland come from over 30 countries and speak over 30 languages, she said. Theyll get to practice their English with Richmond teenagers. In March, Quill Theatre will be doing a performance of Jack & the Beanstalk inside the portal for Milwaukee and Oakland. There will be discussions with Berlin and Kigali, Rwanda, where citizens can talk about what monuments in their cities mean to them. Manning is also planning a class with Mexico City where visitors on both sides of the portal can draw from a live model. Organizers describe the portal experience as similar to running into someone on the street and stopping to have a deep, unexpected conversation. The experience is different from Skype or Chatroulette, Stefanovich said, because its intentional. It is a full body-to-body experience. Youre in a blank space where you come face to face with a stranger from another country or city, and the whole point is to connect. The Richmond portal will be in the city for a year. Stefanovich expects it will move to different locations after April 30. He hopes to move it to places such as Gilpin Court and Richmonds North Side and South Side. Entrepreneurs from two Richmond startups are temporarily working in other cities while they partake in two different national accelerator programs. Hatchify, which created a proprietary platform to help companies improve sales, is in Silicon Valley as part of the highly-regarded Y Combinator program. And Brandefy, which developed an app that gives shoppers quick and accurate quality and ingredient comparisons between name-brand and generic products, was accepted into the Brandery program in Cincinnati. The placement in Y Combinator, one of the nations best-known business accelerators that has mentored more than 1,900 startups since it was founded in 2005, comes with a $150,000 investment. Companies in the program give up 7 percent of their equity in return for the cash. Hatchify started there in January. It runs through demo days March 18-19. The founders of Tenant Turner, a Richmond-based startup that makes software to help property managers lease apartments and homes, spent three months in Silicon Valley in 2015 to be part of the Y Combinator. Brandefy has been in Cincinnati since late November and will finish there on March 21. The U.S. ambassador to Germany says the European mechanism designed to facilitate trade with Iran and avoid U.S. sanctions is counterproductive to Washington's efforts to force Tehran back to the negotiating table over its nuclear program and other matters. Ambassador Richard Grenell made the comments about the financial mechanism called INSTEX (Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges) in an interview published on February 10 in the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung. Grenell labeled U.S. policy as the "Trump Doctrine," explaining that "we use the strongest possible sanctions, while at the same time offering talks to see if that changes the behavior of certain states." Germany, France, and Britain on January 31 launched a mechanism to allow financial flows to be sent to Iran that would not violate U.S. sanctions in an attempt to keep alive the landmark 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran. The special-purpose financial vehicle will allow European firms with legitimate business interests to use barter techniques to conduct business in Iran. The plan focuses on areas not targeted by U.S. sanctions and in the beginning centers on the sectors most essential to the Iranian population such as pharmaceutical, medical devices, and agri-food goods, foreign ministers from the three countries said. Germany, France, and Britain -- which signed the nuclear deal along with the United States, Russia, and China -- have been working hard to keep the accord alive after Trump announced in May he would withdraw from the deal and reimpose sanctions on Tehran. Based on reporting by Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung, dpa, and Tiroler Tageszeitung *This article has been amended to clarify comments in the first sentence and to change the headline accordingly. Turkey has condemned China's treatment of its Turkic Muslim Uyghur minority population as "a great cause of shame for humanity." "It is no longer a secret that more than 1 million [Uyghurs] incurring arbitrary arrests are subjected to torture and political brainwashing in internment camps and prisons," Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy said in a statement late on February 9. Aksoy also said that Turkey had learned of the "tragic" death in custody of Uyghur poet and musician Abdurehim Heyit, who had been sentenced to eight years over one of his songs. China's Embassy in Ankara called Aksoy's comments "completely unacceptable." Beijing faces growing international pressure over its policies toward Uyghurs and members of other Muslim Turkic language-speaking communities in the northwestern region of Xinjiang. A report by a UN panel of experts last year said that an estimated 1 million of them were being held in "counterextremism centers." They said millions more had been forced into reeducation camps. China says that the facilities are "vocational education centers" aimed at helping people steer clear of terrorism and allow them to be reintegrated into society. The Uyghurs -- of whom there are some 15 million in China -- have long complained about their treatment under Beijing's rule. In a show of support, a bipartisan group of U.S. senators in late January nominated Ilham Tohti, a jailed Chinese academic of Uyghur origin, for the Nobel Peace Prize. "This nomination could not be more timely, as the Chinese government and Communist Party continue to perpetrate gross human rights violations with over a million Uyghurs and other ethnic minority Muslims detained in 'political reeducation' camps," Republican Senator Marco Rubio said on January 30. Based on reporting by AP, dpa, and AFP Participants in an unsanctioned march in St. Petersburg demonstrated solidarity with an activist who faced numerous obstacles when trying to see her dying daughter in a hospital. Police called on the protesters to disperse and reportedly detained seven of them. Rallies were held in several Russian cities on February 10 to condemn the conduct of authorities toward activist Anastasia Shevchenko. Shevchenko's daughter died on January 31, hours after authorities allowed her mother to be temporarily released from house arrest. While we must name and resist white supremacy, we can also recall that we are never alone in this work. In the 19th century, there were anti-racist abolitionists black and white who worked to subvert and transform a system that considered some people chattel. In the new dawn of Reconstruction, black and white men worked together in statehouses across the South to reimagine democracy. In the 20th centurys movements for labor unions, womens suffrage, and civil, human and environmental rights, fusion coalitions of black, white, brown, Native and Asian worked together to pursue a more perfect union that both acknowledges our original sin and holds onto the hope that we might yet live up to the better angels of our nature. Whenever we ask what repentance means, we dont have to start from scratch. We have a long tradition to draw on, full of examples of what true repentance must look like. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has called on Pakistani authorities to release and drop all legal proceedings against television reporter Rizwan Razi, who is accused of making defamatory comments against the countrys authorities. "Expressing opinions, even critical opinions, should not be a crime, in Pakistan or anywhere," the New York-based media watchdogs Asia Program Coordinator Steven Butler said in a statement on February 9. "Justice -- and Pakistan's constitutional guarantee of freedom of the press -- can only be served by Rizwan Razi's immediate release," Butler added. Razis arrest comes as media workers and activists face unprecedented pressure from Pakistani authorities. Dozens of rights activists and journalists critical of authorities have been detained, arrested, or fled the country out of fear for their safety in recent years. Razi -- a TV host for Din News, a privately owned Urdu-language news station -- was taken from his home and placed in custody in the eastern city of Lahore on the morning of February 9. His son, Osama Razi, said that unknown men attacked his father and then dragged him into a car. Federal Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said that Razi had been arrested for social-media postings that allegedly violated Pakistan's Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act. Razi was being investigated for alleged "defamatory and obnoxious posts" on his Twitter account against Pakistans "judiciary, government institutions, and intelligence agencies," according to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA). The agency also said that the journalist had "confessed" to uploading the posts, apologized, and promised to refrain from posting similar material in the future. It was unclear what specifically led to Razis arrest. Earlier this month, he criticized extrajudicial killings in Punjab Province at the hands of security forces, according to screenshots of Twitter postings provided to the CPJ, the media watchdog said. The journalists Twitter account appeared to be offline on February 9. Pakistan is ranked 139th out of 180 countries in RSF's 2018 World Press Freedom Index. With reporting by AP and Reuters Russia has repatriated 27 children from Iraq where their mothers are imprisoned for being members of Islamic State (IS). The Emergency Situations Ministry said on February 10 that the move comes after 30 children in a similar situation were sent back to Moscow in December. "Late in the evening on February 10, an Emergency Situations Ministry plane flying from Iraq will land and deliver 27 children between the ages of 4 to 13, from 10 regions of Russia, a spokesperson for the ministry said in a statement. Russias Foreign Ministry has said that the childrens fathers died during battles over the past three years between jihadists and Iraqi troops. Last month, the Kremlin said 115 Russian children below the age of 10, and another eight between 11 and 17, were still in Iraq. Based on reporting by Interfax and AFP Participants in a February 10 march held in Moscow in solidarity with a prosecuted activist were attacked by supporters of the South East Radical Block (SERB), a radical pro-Kremlin group. The video shows a female participant in the rally as SERB supporters snatch a picket from her, grab a hat from her head, and drag her to the ground. Police arrested two march participants and the SERB leader. Rallies were held in Moscow and other Russian cities in support of activist Anastasia Shevchenko, who faced obstacles to be released from house arrest in time to see her critically ill daughter in a hospital. Her request was only granted on January 31, shortly before her daughter died. KHUJAND, Tajikistan -- Police in this northern Tajik city are looking for the people who vandalized the "I Love Khujand" sign, a popular local landmark. The so-called "monument of love" that was put up in downtown Khujand just three months ago is now covered with peoples names, initials, and heart signs scratched in with sharp objects. The city administrations Cultural Affairs Department on February 6 called the defacing of the monument regrettable and asked law enforcement agencies to find and fine the culprits. Similar "I Love My (City)" signs are a new trend in towns and villages in Tajikistan, with a bright-red heart emoji replacing the word love. The "I Love Khujand" sign was installed by the private Megafon telecom company as a tourist attraction in a popular area that overlooks a historic fortress, a city theater, and an upmarket hotel. The sign became an instant landmark and a popular spot with the citys young people to meet and take selfies. Some of them climb on the sign to take selfies. We always yell at them for that, says a cleaner. But Im not here all the time, so I dont know who vandalized the sign. A young couple who were taking a joint selfie with the monument in the background say many Khujand residents see it as a somewhat romantic place because of the heart sign. Its a bit misunderstood. Its seen like there's 'love in Khujand' or something, the woman says. In an apparent declaration of love, there are many initials, like "B + A = Love" or "G + E = Love," scratched on the metal surface of the monument. It looks so bad. They should know better how to keep our city clean, says Khujand resident Mumina Shamsova. Its embarrassing. Its wrong. They shouldnt do it, says passerby Firdavs Zubaidzoda. Meanwhile, the Megafon company says it is hiring workers to repaint the sign in the coming weeks, leaving a fresh canvas for the next bunch of loving couples to express their amour for each other. Written by Farangis Najibullah in Prague based on reporting by RFE/RL Tajik Service correspondent Masum Muhammadrajab in Khujand U.S.-backed forces in Syria were locked in fierce fighting as they pressed the battle against the last enclave held by the extremist group Islamic State (IS) near the Iraqi border. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported heavy clashes between both sides on the morning of February 10, as planes of the U.S.-led coalition and artillery bombarded militant positions. After a pause of more than a week to allow some 20,000 civilians to leave the area, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said they were launching the "final battle to oust IS from the last scrap of territory it holds in eastern Syria. An SDF spokesman later said that the battle was "very fierce" as the most experienced" militants were defending their last stronghold. Two years ago, the IS group controlled large swaths of Syrian and Iraqi territory, but they are now holed up in a tiny pocket in Syria's eastern province of Deir al-Zor. On February 6, U.S. President Donald Trump said: "It should be announced, probably some time next week, that we will have 100% of the caliphate." Trump said in December that IS militants were "mostly gone" and announced the United States would withdraw all of its 2,000 troops from Syria. Based on reporting by AFP, AP, and the BBC Bulgarian officials say they will investigate reports that a third suspect in the 2018 nerve-agent attack on a former Russian spy in Britain may have also been involved in a 2015 poisoning in Bulgaria. A parliamentary committee on February 9 said it will next week request information from the Bulgarian intelligence services following a report published on February 7 by the British-based open-source investigation group Bellingcat. The investigation centers on the poisoning of local businessman Emilian Gebrev, said Tsvetan Tsvetanov, the parliamentary leader of the ruling GERB party. He said the probe would be coordinated with foreign partners. "I am certain that the necessary coordination has already been set up between the Bulgarian, British, and European authorities on the case and they are working actively on it," he said. Bellingcat, along with its Russian partner, The Insider, said the suspected Russian security agent arrived in Bulgaria in April 2015, just days before Gebrev and his son became seriously ill after being poisoned by an unidentified substance. Bellingcat said the 45-year-old agent, who traveled under the alias Sergei Vyacheslavovich Fedotov, had been "conclusively identified as an agent of Russian military intelligence," known as the GRU. According to Bellingcat, Fedotov flew from Moscow to Burgas, a resort on Bulgaria's Black Sea coast, on April 24, 2015, just days before Gebrev collapsed at a reception on April 28, 2015, and fell into a coma with symptoms of severe poisoning. Gebrev, a veteran of the Bulgarian arms industry, and his son survived, as did a company executive who was treated with similar symptoms. RFE/RL's Bulgarian Service quoted Bulgarian government sources as saying a foreign intelligence service had contacted its counterparts in Sofia when suspicions arose that Fedotov had traveled to Bulgaria. The Kremlin immediately cast doubt on the findings of the new Bellingcat investigation and earlier reports of a third suspect in the nerve-agent attack on Sergei Skripal and his adult daughter in Salisbury, England, in March 2018. "How is it possible that the use of some chemical warfare agent in Europe goes unnoticed in 2015? Why did we find this out only now?" Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on February 8, referring to the Bulgarian case, while not completely denying it. Moscow has denied it had any involvement in the Skripal poisoning, which led to a series of sanctions against Russia by the West and tit-for-tat diplomatic actions. Skripal and his daughter were discovered unconscious on a Salisbury park bench after they had been poisoned by the highly toxic nerve agent Novichok in an attack the British government says was "almost certainly" approved by the Russian state. Both survived after weeks in critical condition, but Dawn Sturgess, a woman who authorities said came in contact with the poison after her boyfriend found a fake perfume bottle containing it, died in July. On September 5, British authorities announced they had charged two Russian men -- identified by their presumed aliases of Aleksandr Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov -- with carrying out the poisoning on March 4. Bellingcat later identified the two as Aleksandr Mishkin and Anatoly Chepiga, both of whom work for Russia's GRU intelligence services. Despite Russian denials that they were involved, both men are now the subject of EU sanctions. Bellingcat's latest report stated that Fedotov is also suspected of being involved in the British attack, having arrived in Britain two days before the Skripals were poisoned. With reporting by AFP, RFE/RLs Tony Wesolowsky, and RFE/RL's Bulgarian Service MOSCOW -- Protesters have taken to the streets of several Russian cities in solidarity with an activist who had been refused permission to visit her sick daughter in the hospital until the girl was in a critical state. Reports said at least nine participants had been detained during the February 10 Marches Of Maternal Anger held in Moscow and St. Petersburg, which were not sanctioned by the authorities. Similar rallies and pickets were also held in Yekaterinburg, Yaroslavl, Oryol, Kazan, Makhachkala, Kirov, and Rostov-on-Don. Moscow politician Yulia Galyamina, who organized the events, told RFE/RL's Russian Service: "Our system has reached such a stage that it is fighting against single mothers with multiple children, against children. Hundreds of people gathered in the Russian capital, chanting, "Freedom to political prisoners." During the demonstration, scuffles erupted between protesters and members of a radical pro-Kremlin group, the South East Radical Block (SERB), who attempted to block the march. Police detained two march participants -- including an activist of the Solidarnost (Solidarity) movement, Mikhail Kriger -- and SERB leader Gosha Tarasevich. In St. Petersburg, police called on at least 150 people who had gathered for a similar march to disperse. At least seven participants were detained after the crowd refused to comply, according to the nongovernmental organization Open Russia. Anastasia Shevchenko from the southern city of Rostov-on-Don was placed under house arrest on January 23, awaiting trial, because of her work for Open Russia. She is the first person to face criminal charges under a new law against "undesirable organizations" introduced in 2015. On January 30, her 17-year-old daughter was transferred from the care home where she had lived into the intensive care unit of a local hospital after suffering cardiac failure. Shevchenko requested that she be released to see her daughter, but she says she was not let go until late in the evening and reached the hospital only hours before her daughter passed away. Her lawyer, Sergei Badamshin, has said that the hospital took a long time to issue confirmation that the teenager had been admitted. Shevchenko has two other children. "Many of my female friends who decided to go out to the streets with me this Sunday have the very same feeling: anger that we, too, have children and we, too, can be arrested at any moment, Galyamina said. This is not only a question of being involved in politics. Anyone can be oppressed by the state or simply be harmed by the state, which meddles in people's lives instead of helping them," she added. At least 21 people, including women and children, have been killed in air strikes in Afghanistans southern Helmand Province. Mohammad Hashim Alkozai, a senator from Helmand, said on February 10 that the strikes, carried out two days earlier, occurred in the Sangin district, which has seen heavy fighting recently between NATO-backed Afghan troops and Taliban militants. "Innocent people, women and children, are the only victims of the air strikes," he said, noting that 13 people were killed in one air strike and eight in another. Afghan forces are battling to defeat the Taliban, which has influence over nearly half the country and consistently carries out attacks on security forces. On January 24, 16 civilians from the same extended family were killed in an air strike on a home in the same district. Eight children and three women were among the dead. Based on reporting by AP and Al-Jazeera The Armenian Defense Ministry says Yerevan has sent a team of demining experts and other personnel to war-ravaged Syria as part of a Russia-backed mission. Ministry spokesman Artsrun Hovhannisian said a team of 83 mine-clearing sappers, medical personnel, and security officers arrived on February 8 and will focus on the city of Aleppo, in northern Syria. He stressed that the personnel will not be involved in the fighting taking place in the Middle East country. Syria's seven-year civil war has left more than 400,000 people dead, displaced millions, and devastated many historic sites across the country. "Armenian specialists will carry out humanitarian activities related to humanitarian demining, mine awareness of the population, provision of medical assistance in Aleppo, exclusively outside the zone of combat operations," Hovhannisian wrote on Facebook. More than 100,000 ethnic Armenians lived in Aleppo prior to the war. Many have fled, including thousands to Armenia. Syrian government forces regained control of Aleppo in December 2016 after a long, devastating campaign of siege and bombardment against rebels who had held the eastern side of the ancient city for more than four years. The Syrian conflict began with a government crackdown on protesters in March 2011. Russia and Iran have given crucial support to President Bashar al-Assad, while the United States and Turkey have backed differing antigovernment fighters. Russia will transport the Armenian team to Syria and provide logistical support, Hovhannisian said. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu on February 8 thanked his Armenian counterpart, Defense Ministry Davit Tonoyan, for deploying the personnel to Syria. "You were the first to respond to our call to provide assistance to the Syrian people," he said. Some Armenian politicians, however, criticized the move, with the Sasna Tsrer All-Armenian Party warning that too close military ties with Russia in Syria could hurt Armenia's interests and undermine its security. Yerevan has traditionally had close ties with Moscow, and the Russian military has a base in Armenia. But with the ouster of pro-Russian Armenian leader Serzh Sarkisian and the assumption of power of former opposition leader Nikol Pashinian, some questions have arisen about Yerevan's commitment to Moscow. Pashinian has vowed to retain good relations with Russia, but he has also spoken of desires to increase the South Caucasus state's ties with the United States and Europe. Yerevan has also contributed personnel to U.S.-backed missions in Kosovo, Afghanistan, and elsewhere. With reporting by RFE/RL's Armenian Service, AP, and Interfax Ukraine has failed to prevent or investigate numerous human rights violations committed last year against rights activists, political opponents, and ethnic minorities, according to Amnesty International. 2018 was marked by a sharp surge of violent attacks against a range of individuals and groups, often in the name of patriotism and traditional values, the London-based human rights watchdog said on February 8. Amnesty said that those subjected to violence included journalists; human rights activists -- in particular those defending the rights of women and members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community; members of ethnic minorities, especially Roma; and those whose political views the attackers regarded as pro-Russian." In almost all instances, the law enforcement authorities have been slow to react and perpetrators were rarely, if ever, brought to justice, Amnesty said, perpetuating a feeling of impunity among members of violent groups. Independent journalists and media companies, especially those who are accused of disseminating pro-Russian views, have increasingly come under pressure by both the authorities and members of violent groups, Amnesty also said. The attacks have come in the form of threats and physical violence from extremist groups to the canceling of broadcasting licenses of specific media outlets by the authorities. Amnesty said that in Russia-occupied Crimea and territories held by Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine, the human rights situation continued to deteriorate, with the rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly, and association under serious threat. People who speak out to challenge the de facto authorities in Crimea have been either chased out of the peninsula or imprisoned under trumped-up charges, the group said. With presidential and parliamentary elections set for later this year, Amnesty International said, politically motivated violence and prosecutions against independent media and human rights activists are likely to rise further unless and until the authorities fully and in earnest commit to ensuring and protecting all human rights for every person in Ukraine, without discrimination on the basis of ethnicity, gender, or political views. Ukrainian authorities should take decisive steps to stop the surge of violent attacks by ensuring effective, impartial, and transparent investigations of all cases, Amnesty also said. Amnesty added that those who are suspected of involvement in violent attacks should be brought to justice in fair trial proceedings. The authorities should also unequivocally recognize the important role played by civil society activists, and fully respect the right to freedom of expression, including media freedom, the human rights watchdog also said. ALTON BAY, N.H. A single-engine Piper struck a snowbank upon landing at the Alton Bay Seaplane Base in Alton Bay, N.H., on Saturday at about 11:40 a.m., the Federal Aviation Administration said. No one was injured. Mary Catherine Brooks/The Wyoming County ReportWyoming County Board of Education joined the growing list of counties across West Virginia Friday that have signed a resolution against Senate Bill 451, an omnibus bill that anchors teacher pay raises to education reform. Pictured, in front from left, are Superintendent Deirdre Cline, board president Mike Prichard with the resolution, board vice president Allan Stiltner, Wyoming County WVEA co-president Tina Adams, Wyoming County AFT president Jaquetta Lester, Wyoming County WVEA co-president Lisa Collins; in back, assistant superintendents Robin Hall and Rebecca Cooke, board members Mike Davis and Betty England, along with Wyoming County School Service Personnel president Mary Wykle. Mary Sue Hesselberg, 86, of Beckley, WV, passed away Friday, June 18, 2021. Services will be 11:00 a.m. Friday, June 25, 2021, in the Calfee Funeral Home Chapel. Friends may visit with the family from 10:00 a.m. until service time. Burial will follow in the Donel C. Kinnard Memorial State Ve Source: February 10, 2019 17:21 IST Rape-accused Bishop Franco Mulakkal, who was relieved of his pastoral responsibilities by Pope Francis, still interferes with the administrative matters of Jalandhar diocese of the Roman Catholic Church, nuns protesting against him alleged in Kottayam on Sunday. "We believe that Bishop Angelo is the apostolic administrator of Jalandhar diocese. "But when we see the kind of letters (being issued by the diocese PRO and Missionaries of Jesus congregation head), we doubt whether Bishop Franco still wields power in the diocese," Sister Anupama, a representative of the protesting nun, told reporters at Kuravilangad near Kottayam. Their statement comes a day after Jalandhar diocese PRO Fr Peter Kavumpuram, who is allegedly close to Bishop Mulakkal, issued a clarification statement countering an e-mail issued to nuns by its apostolic administrator Bishop Angelo Ruffino Gracias. In his e-mail, Bishop Angelo had assured the five nuns, who are staying with the rape survivor nun, that 'there will be no move from the diocese of Jalandhar to oust' them from the Kuravilangad convent in Kottayam district as long as they are needed for the court case. The Bishop wrote to the nuns after they complained to him against the head of their congregation, Missionaries of Jesus under the Jalandhar diocese, for issuing transfer orders to four of them who took part in the protest demanding the arrest of the bishop. Another nun, Sister Neena Rose, who is staying with the rape survivor, was asked to report to the Missionaries of Jesus congregation's Jalandhar convent and meet its Superior General Sr Regina Kandamthottu on January 26. Kavumpuram, issued a clarification statement countering Bishop Angelo hours after his e-mail communication was made public, saying even though the congregation of Missionaries of Jesus is of diocesan right, the internal running of the congregation is left to the Superior General and her council. 'The Bishop of Jalandhar does not normally interfere unless the overall interests of the church demands such interference. 'By this clarification the Apostolic Administrator has not interfered in the internal affairs of this congregation, therefore the order to return to their rightful communities by the Mother General is not cancelled but stands,' the statement quoting Fr Kavumpuram had said. The protesting nuns stay with the survivor nun in the convent in Kuravilangad. Talking to reporters on Sunday, Sister Anupama rejected the clarification statement issued by Kavumpuram, saying they would not move out of the convent in Kuravilangad. "Clarification statement (issued by Kavumpuram) is not acceptable for us. We will continue to stay in this convent till the case is over," she said. The congregation of nuns -- Missionaries of Jesus -- had directed the nuns to join their previously-assigned convents, according to the transfer orders issued between March and May last year. The nuns Alphy, Anupama, Josephine and Ancitta were served notice by the superior general, urging them to take up their assigned responsibilities as befitting members of the congregation. The four nuns had earlier written to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan seeking his intervention to ensure that their transfer orders were not effected till the trial of the case was over. The survivor nun had also written a separate letter to the chief minister, seeking his help in the matter. 'Their aim is to single me out and to harass and torture me. My life will be in danger if such a situation arises,' she said in her letter. The nuns on Saturday had joined 'Save our Sisters' forum to stage a protest against the transfer orders issued by the congregation. A tense situation prevailed at the protest site when a group of people opposing the nuns' protest reached there and raised slogans against them. The group was removed from the spot, police sources said. The protest led by the nuns and the Catholic reformist forums in Kochi in September last year had led to a public outrage and demands for action against the bishop. Bishop Mulakkal, a senior member of the Roman Catholic clergy in India, was arrested last year following allegations by a nun that he repeatedly raped and sexually assaulted her at the Kuravilangad convent between 2014 and 2016, a charge denied by him. "Although we handled many of the cases involving diocesan priests, we know there were others handled by other firms that resulted in additional settlements. We believe the diocese should follow the lead of the Archdioceses of Hartford and Bridgeport in conducting an independent investigation to bring the entirety of this problem to light. We also strongly believe that the statute of limitations for civil sexual abuse claims should be eliminated once and for all to allow all victims to receive just compensation for the heinous crimes committed upon them and perpetrated by the Church. Source: Last updated on: February 10, 2019 20:10 IST 'He keeps reminding me he is senior. There is no debate in this. I have never shown any disrespect to you since you are a senior.' 'You are a senior in changing alliances. A senior biting the back of your own father-in-law. A senior in losing one election after the other, where as I am not.' IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses a BJP rally in Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, on Sunday. Photograph: PTI Photo Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday launched a scathing attack on Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and Telugu Desam Party supremo Chandrababu Naidu, saying he has made a 'U-turn' on promises of development to the state and only trying to replicate National Democratic Alliance government's schemes. "Our government gave to Andhra Pradesh much more than what was mentioned in special status. CM of Andhra Pradesh acknowledged this package but took a U-turn as they failed to use the funds in the appropriate way and were not able to develop the state," Modi said, addressing a public rally. Modi lashed out at Naidu for aligning with the Congress, saying the former chief minister N T Rama Rao (NTR) had launched the party to make Andhra Pradesh 'Congress-mukt' after he was a victim of its 'arrogance.' The prime minister said Naidu had been saying he was his senior and he had no problems with it. "He keeps reminding me he is senior. There is no debate in this. I have never shown any disrespect to you since you are a senior. "Babu garu is senior in jumping parties, senior in switching to new alliances and in backstabbing own father-in-law (NTR). "He is a senior in losing every other election. He is a senior in sitting in the lap of the same person whom he criticises. He is senior in destroying the dreams of (people of) AP. I am certainly not a senior in that respect," Modi said, amid peals of laughter. Modi, who was on his first visit to the state after the TDP walked out of the National Democratic Alliance government at the Centre in March last year, came down heavily on Naidu, whom he repeatedly referred to as 'father of N Lokesh'. Modi alleged Naidu was taking him on since the Centre had sought details of every paise given to Andhra Pradesh. Naidu had promised walking in the footsteps of NTR, Modi said and asked if the chief minister had lived by it. "The TDP leader who has to resist the arrogance of the naamdaars (famous and powerful people) and crush their arrogance is siding with them," he said in an apparent swipe at Naidu joining hands with the Congress. "This chowkidar (watchman) has disturbed his sleep.. wanted to know the details of every paise given to Andhra Pradesh," Modi said. Naidu promised the sunrise of Andhra Pradesh but is fixated with the rise of his own son N Lokesh, Modi charged. "Chandrababu Naidu rightly said that he is a 'wealth creator' and Modi has no idea about wealth creation. From Amaravati to Polavaram, they are busy in creating wealth for themselves and thats why are scared from this 'Chowkidar'. "One must admire Chandrababu Naidu Garus honesty. He says he is a wealth creator! Hes obviously creating lots of wealth for him and his son while AP suffers." The chief minister promised the redevelopment of Amaravati but is now engaged in his own development, the prime minister alleged. He said Naidu had not initiated any new programmes for the poor but was only putting his stamp on the NDA government's development schemes. On providing clean fuel in the country, Modi said while in 60 years, only 12 crore gas connections were given, the NDA government had given 13 crore gas connections in just four years. Earlier, the Prime Minister dedicated two major petroleum and gas projects--a strategic petroleum reserve facility at Visakhapatnam and a gas field at Amalapuram worth Rs 6,825 crore to the nation through remote control system. Modi said his government was working towards ensuring energy security for the country while simultaneously building a clean fuel economy. He also laid the foundation-stone for the construction of a coastal terminal of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited at Krishnapatnam in SPS Nellore district. During the rally, Modi said, "Our aim is to have a New India that is clean and pollution-free. Such projects are the key to the nations energy security." The Centre was building oil reserves at various locations across the country to ensure there was no shortage of oil and gas in times of crises, he said, referring to a similar facility he inaugurated in the north-east on Saturday. "Our government has been working continuously to make India a clean fuel economy and several projects have been initiated in this direction," he added. Referring to the strategic petroleum reserve facility of Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserve Limited (ISPRL) at Visakhapatnam and the ONGCs Vasishta S1 gas field in the Krishna-Godavari Basin at Amalapuram, the Prime Minister said they would not only help create jobs but also aid in the development of gas-based industries in the region. Earlier, when Modi arrived at Gannavaram airport in Vijayawada, TDP workers staged protests. The Chandrababu Naidu-led party quit the Bharatiya Janata Party-led alliance protesting the 'injustice' done to the state post-bifurcation. Giving the protocol a go-by, none of the state ministers turned up at the Gannavaram airport to formally receive the prime minister. BJP leaders alleged that people were 'thwarted', from reaching the venue in large numbers and said countdown would start for Naidu with Modi's rally at Guntur. Commenting on the black balloon protests against him by TDP workers, Modi quipped he welcomed it recalling the tradition of smearing black to ward off evil designs. The ruling party organised protests in various cities and towns in the state Sunday in protest against Modi's visit. At Vijayawada and Guntur, TDP workers donned black shirts and took out rallies demanding that 'Modi go back'. In his daily teleconference with the party leaders, the chief minister dubbed Modi as the 'modati drohi' (first betrayer) of Andhra Pradesh. "Modi is coming for a war on AP. They have done all injustice to the state, destroyed the systems and ruined the country. "Modi is facing protests wherever he is going in the country. He has come to AP to mock at us," Naidu said. Elaborate security arrangements had been made in and around the Gannavaram airport in the wake of the call given by the chief minister for protests against the prime minister's visit. After the reception on the airport tarmac, the prime minister flew to Guntur by a special Indian Air Force helicopter. Protests were also organised Saturday in some parts of the state against the visit. Commenting on the black balloon protests against him by TDP workers, Modi quipped he welcomed it recalling the tradition of smearing black to ward off evil designs. Modi said: "In the last four and a half years, whatever had to be done to ensure justice for my sisters and brothers of Andhra Pradesh, we have done. We stand with Andra Pradesh and its great people." The Congress called for observance of black day on Sunday over Modi's 'failure' to honour the promises made to Andhra Pradesh post-bifurcation, party sources said. In Vijayawada, the Communist Party of India and the Communist Party of India-Marxist organised a demonstration Saturday protesting Modi's visit. Reports said similar protests were held in Kadapa and Kurnool districts as well. Source: Last updated on: February 10, 2019 20:55 IST The SP said the protesters also pelted stones, injuring four jawans, adding that police had to lob tear gas shells to disperse the crowd. IMAGE: Gujjar community members block national highway 58 in support of their demand for reservation, in Ajmer on Sunday. Photograph: PTI Photo The Gujjar community agitation demanding five per cent quota in jobs and education turned violent on Sunday with shots being fired and police vehicles torched in Dholpur district and protesters blocking road and rail traffic in many areas in Rajasthan. As a precautionary measure, authorities have imposed prohibitory orders under Code of Criminal Procedure section 144 in Dholpur and neighbouring Karauli districts, police said. At least 20 trains were cancelled and seven diverted during the day as the protesters, led by the Gujjar Arakshan Sangharsh Samiti chief Kirori Singh Bainsla, continued their sit-in on railway tracks in Sawai Madhopur district for the third day on Sunday, officials said. The sit-in began on Friday evening and has affected the movement of over 250 trains through the region since. The agitators also blocked highways connecting major cities on Sunday. According to police officials, three cases have been registered in connection with the blocking of traffic. Violence broke out in Dholpur district as unidentified miscreants fired 8-10 rounds in the air while a blockade on the Agra-Morena Highway was in place, Superintendent of Police (SP) Ajay Singh told PTI. The protesters set afire three police vehicles -- two jeeps and a bus, he added. The SP said the protesters also pelted stones, injuring four personnel, adding that police had to lob tear gas shells to disperse the crowd. The Hindoli-Uniyara state highway was blocked in Bundi district, where hundreds of people demonstrated throughout the day. As traffic movement came to a halt, vehicles were diverted to other routes. The demonstrators, however, allowed the passage of ambulances and vehicles with patients or pregnant woman. Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot called the stone pelting and the torching of vehicles unjustified. "Holding protest is justified but sitting on railway tracks is not. Protesters should come forward for talks. The government is open for dialogue and has constituted a committee," he said. Referring to the violence in Dholpur, Gehlot said, "Anti-social elements have joined the protest. "Administration and police will investigate the reasons of the incident. Gujjar leader Kirori Singh Bainsla has appealed to maintain peace so people should listen to him." According to the Northern Railways, trains like 12953 Mumbai Central-Hazrat Nizamuddin August Kranti Rajdhani Express, 19022 Lucknow Jn.-Bandra Terminus Express, 12059/12060 Kota-Hazrat Nizamuddin-Kota Jan Shatabdi Express and 12909 Bandra Terminus-Hazrat Nizamuddin Garib Rath Express were among those which were cancelled. At least 13 trains were running late in the zone. The 22405 Bhagalpur-Anand Vihar Garib Rath Express, Mumbai-New Delhi Rajdhani Express, Howrah-New Delhi Poorva Express were delayed by around three hours while the Raxaul-Anandvihar Sadbhavna Express was running late by seven hours, it said. The Northern Railways said 19024 Firozepur-Mumbai Central Janata Express, Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra, 12472 Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra-Bandra Terminus Swaraj Express, 12450 Chandigarh-Madgaon Goa Sampark Kranti Express and 12904 Amritsar-Mumbai Central Golden Temple Mail had been diverted. On Saturday, a state government delegation, including Tourism Minister Vishvendra Singh and senior IAS officer Neeraj K Pawan, had met Bainsla and his supporters to hold talks, but no agreement could be reached. Bainsla has said that the community will continue their protest demanding five per cent reservation to the Gujjars, Raika-Rebari, Gadia Luhar, Banjara and the Gadaria communities in government jobs and educational institutions as promised. "We will remain on dharna. We do not want to talk with the government. We are waiting for the government to give the order for five per cent reservation," Vijay Bainsla, son of Kirori Singh Bainsla, said. He said an appeal had been made for maintaining peace but it was the angst of the people which have come out during the protests. Source: February 10, 2019 21:43 IST Photograph: Umar Ganie for Rediff.com IMAGE: Terrorists hurled the grenade at the security personnel near Palladium Cinema at Lal Chowk around 6.45 pm. Eleven people, including seven security personnel, were injured in a grenade attack by terrorists at Lal Chowk area here on Sunday. The terrorists hurled the grenade at the security personnel near Palladium Cinema at Lal Chowk around 6.45 pm, resulting in injuries to 11 people, a police spokesperson said. "Four policemen, three Central Reserve Police Force personnel and four civilians were injured in the terror attack," he said. The wounded include two women, he added. The injured were taken to a hospital, where their condition was stated to be stable, the police spokesperson said. Police have registered a case in this regard and an investigation is underway, he said. ***** Five Hizb, LeT terrorists killed in encounter in Kulgam IMAGE: Army soldiers near the site of an encounter in which top five Hizbul Mujahideen terrorists including Ph.D. Scholar-turned-Commander Wasem Rather were killed, at Kellam Devsar in Kulgam district of south Kashmir, on Sunday. Photograph: PTI Photo Five terrorists belonging to Hizbul Mujahideen and Lashkar-e-Tayiba were killed on Sunday in an encounter with security forces in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district , police said. The gunbattle broke out after terrorists opened fire on a search party of the security forces in Kulgam's Kellem village this morning, a police official said. He said five terrorists were killed in the encounter and weapons and warlike stores were recovered from the spot. The gunned-down terrorists were identified as Waseem Ahmad Rather, Aqib Nazir Mir, Parvaiz Ahmad Bhat, Idrees Ahmad Bhat and Zahid Ahmad Parray, the police official said. "As per police records, it was a combined group of proscribed terror outfits HM and LeT and their (terrorists') exact affiliations are being ascertained. "They were wanted by the law for their complicity in a series of terror crimes, including attacks on security establishments and civilian atrocities," a police spokesperson said. Waseem, Aqib and Parvaiz were involved in killings of a civilian, Mohd Iqbal Kawa, and local Army jawan, Mukhtar Ahmad, he said. He said this group of terrorists was also involved in various grenade attacks across Anantnag and Kulgam districts. Source: February 10, 2019 21:16 IST IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses at a BJP rally in Tiruppur, on Sunday. Photograph: R Senthil Kumar/PTI Photo Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday attacked the Congress, saying for the opposition party the defence sector was only about brokering deals. Modi's comments came after party president Rahul Gandhi recently upped the ante on the Rafale row by quoting a media report saying the Prime Minister's Office conducted 'parallel' negotiations on the deal. "From the seas to the skies, the Congress has several scams associated with the defence and in the process the party did not allow the modernisation of defence forces for long years that they were in power," Modi said. Addressing a party rally at Perumanallur about 13 km from in Tirupur, he said the National Democratic Alliance's work culture was different from that of the previous governments. Targeting the Congress, he said 'those who had got opportunity to rule the nation for years did not bother about India's defence sector. For them this sector was only about brokering deals and helping their own set of friends'. "The NDA's approach to national security is different," he said and outlined that it was the dream of his government that India be self-sufficient in defence production and where 'our forces have all possible support they require in keeping our nation safe'. He referred to the 'pathbreaking' step of creating two defence corridors one of which is in Tamil Nadu. He said a defence corridor will bring industry and investment options and opportunities for the State's youth. On the opposition attack on him, the prime minister said their 'political culture of abusing Modi may give them some space in television but the elections are fought on ones vision for the nation, not slander and attack'. The good work of the National Democratic Alliance government has made some people very unhappy and their unhappiness has turned into desperation and abuse for Modi, he said. Remembering Congress stalwart and former chief minister of Tamil Nadu, the late K Kamaraj, he said the 'great' leader always wanted a government in power which has zero tolerance towards corruption. "You have placed a government in Delhi who is putting a lock on corruption," Modi said. He recalled the NDA government had brought a legislation for providing 10 per cent reservation for the poor in the general category and this was done without altering the existing reservation system in the country. On the PM Kisan Yojana scheme, he said it was a yearly benefit and will ensure Rs.7.5 lakh crore goes to the bank accounts of the farmers in 10 years. For the first time in India's history, a government has spoken about doubling of farmer's income rather than giving them loan waivers as promised by Opposition as a part of their 'election propaganda'. "Our goal is to improve ease of living for all Indians," he said referring to foundation stone laying for several projects including those related to ESIC hospitals. This also included new aviation infrastructure at Chennai and Tiruchirappalli and crude oil pipline from Chennai Port to Chennai Petroleum Corporation Limited's Manali refinery. Modi began his speech in Tamil by saying 'Vanakkam', and added that he bowed to the 'land of Tirupur', which is known for its bravery. Modi referred to freedom fighters including Tirupur Kumaran for their sacrifices. He said Namo merchandise like T-shirts were made in Tirupur and praised the region's enterprising spirit. He also lauded a Jain guru for his peace initiatives. Speaking on the occasion, Tamil Nadu unit Bharatiya Janata Party president Tamilisai Soundararajan hit out at the main opposition Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and lauded the Prime Minister for his welfare initiatives. Even as Modi arrived at the venue of the meeting, slogans like 'Vendum Modi', (we want Modi), rent the air. Farmers representatives presented him a silver coconut for announcing the maximum support price for copra. Modi's Sunday rally here was the second such BJP event in less than a month in Tamil Nadu. On January 27, he addressed a grand party rally at Madurai after laying a foundation stone for the AIIMS hospital there. Modi had in the recent past held a slew of video conferences based interactions with party workers of Tamil Nadu. In an apparent reference to senior Congress leader P Chidambaram, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday taunted him as a 'recounting minister' of the United Progressive Alliance regime, describing him as 'arrogant'. Citing his government's step of offering tax exemption for those with incomes up to Rs 5 lakh, he told the public rally that it was a reflection of genuine concern for the middle class, unlike the previous UPA regime. After referring to this step , Modi said he wanted to recall the state of affairs during the UPA regime. "There was a very wise Minister from Tamil Nadu," he said and told the audience, 'you know whom I am talking about'. When the people responded loudly, he said,'right, the recounting minister', without directly naming the former Union finance minister. Chidambaram, now a Rajya Sabha MP, won the 2009 Lok Sabha election from Sivaganga constituency in Tamil Nadu by a slender margin of 3,354 votes after a see-saw battle. Confusion had prevailed then as election officials delayed the declaration of the result due to a dispute in the counting of votes in respect of the final round. Chidambaram, then home minister, was declared elected later after the votes were tallied again vis-a-vis the final round. Modi had made the same 'recounting minister' remark during his 2014 Lok Sabha election campaign. Continuing his attack on Chidambaram, Modi said described him as 'the man who thinks all the knowledge in the world resides only in his brain. 'In his typical arrogance, he says why is the middle class so worried about price rise when they buy such expensive ice cream and mineral water. 'Mr recounting minister, the middle class does not need the taunt by you and Congress. They have rejected you and will continue to do so.' Chidambaram, highly critical of the Modi government, had days ago targeted it on the row over the 'National Sample Survey Organisation's data on high unemployment', (as per the report of a business daily) and related developments. Taking forward his attack against the Congress, Modi said the good work of the NDA government has made some people very unhappy. "Those who thought power was their divine right, those who thought only they are bound to rule are disturbed. Because here is a government that is working. Their unhappiness has turned into desperation and abuse," the prime minister said. Taking potshots at the opposition for blaming him at the drop of a hat, he said their answer for any question posed to them targeted him. Be it 'agriculture or MSME', the answer will invariably be 'Modi, Modi, Modi'. He said it was the NDA government which took the initiative to shut fake companies,remove fake beneficiaries and ensure that middlemen no more roamed the corridors of power. Without naming anyone, he said that only in the services or products like mobile recharge or ice creams, was the idea of a 'family pack' seen. But now it applied for bail too. "Those who thought they could never be questioned, who lorded over the nation are now having to give an account for the loot. This is what a change in India today." Mocking at the grand opposition against his party,he said 'our friends in the opposition are very funny'. Though the opposition called his government a failure and claimed it did nothing for the people and that he would be badly defeated, 'still they have to form a big alliance to defeat Modi'. However, 'what is the agenda of the so called alliance, what are the issues they fight for, nobody knows. Because their guns are only aimed at me. This is 'maha milavat, or adulteration'. He asked if the people of Tamil Nadu and the rest of the country would ever accept an adulterated product? "Never," he said. The people of Tamil Nadu and the entire nation are seeing through this game, Modi said. The 'maha milvat' or 'adulterated alliance' is a club of rich people trying to promote their dynasties. They neither understand poverty nor have a vision to serve the poor, he said. "The opposition is good at one thing and that is to spread panic. Time and again they have tried to mislead farmers, workers and youngsters." While the opposition talked of a 'poorly thought out loan waiver' only during election, his government took the step of announcing Rs 6,000 assistance annually to farmers to support them, he said. ***** 'Honest trust me, the corrupt have a problem' Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the honest trusted him and the corrupt had a problem as he ensured the benefits meant for the poor reached them directly. Modi said those who had worked as middlemen in areas, including deals concerning national security for illegal gratification were facing the music now. "This Pradhan sevak (himself), this chowkidar (ensures) that the benefits meant for poor are going directly to their accounts. That is why the honest have trust on Modi while the corrupt have a problem," he said at a public rally in Hubbali, Karnataka. In an apparent reference to Robert Vadra and former Union Minister P Chiadmbaram's son Karti appearing before probe agencies like the Enforcement Directorate, he indicated this could have hardly happened earlier. "You are seeing in Delhi what is happening.. those whose incomes people dared to talk about earlier, are now appearing before courts (and) agencies," he said. "Such persons were giving details of their domestic and foreign benami properties". He said Karnataka chief minister H D Kumaraswamy was being used as a 'punching bag' due to coalition pulls in that state. Source: February 10, 2019 16:38 IST Accusing the Congress party of launching 'fake campaigns' against the defence forces, judiciary and Reserve Bank, Union Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday said it is time to protect the country as well as its institutions from 'institution wreckers'. In a hard-hitting Facebook post, the minister recalled how the Congress-led governments used to interfere with institutions like the Reserve Bank of India, judiciary and the Central Bureau of Investigation. "It is about time that India and its institutions are protected from these 'institution wreckers'," said Jaitley, who on Saturday returned from the United States after medical treatment. In the post titled 'Institutions Under Attack - The Latest Fabrication', Jaitley said the past two months have witnessed several "fake campaigns" which failed to cut much ice as falsehood does not have longevity. The 'compulsive contrarians' continued to jump from one falsehood to another, he said. Jaitley said in West Bengal, democracy is seriously under peril. "BJP leaders can't land, public meetings are being prevented and the Rath Yatra was disallowed. The Congress Party's stand on multiple issues is self-contradictory. It slaughters a cow before the cameras in Kerala, and invokes the National Security Act against the cow killers in Madhya Pradesh," he said. There are two critical features of these new emerging breed of institution protectors'. They criticise the government the maximum and simultaneously argue that the free speech is in danger, Jaitley said. "They shed crocodile tears for democracy and make every effort to convert the world's largest democracy into a dynastic one," he said. "The Congress aligned with the Maoist in the recent Chhattisgarh elections. Rahul Gandhi stood shoulder to shoulder with the 'Tukde Tukde' gang at the Jawaharlal Nehru University. "The Congress was in the forefront of defending the urban naxals in court. And yet it claims to be friend of both, the idea of India and its institutions," Jaitley said. He said these 'institution protectors' support the legitimising of illegal infiltrators into India. They readily jump to the support of those who want to dismember the country, he said. Accusing Congress president Rahul Gandhi of stalling functioning of Parliament, Jaitley said his two speeches on Rafale are based on a personal hatred for the Prime Minister emanating from envy. "History will record that Pt Jawaharlal Nehru's great grandson has singularly damaged India's Parliament as an institution more than anyone else," he said. The minister said the Congress attempts at 11 am every morning to disrupt both houses of Parliament. "If we analyse Rahul Gandhi's two speeches on Rafale, they are based on a personal hatred for the Prime Minister emanating from envy. A failed student always hates the class topper. Additionally, the context of the speeches points more to college-level lumpenisation in content. "It has been left to two opposition members namely Bhartruhari Mahtab of the BJD (Biju Janata Dal) and N K Premachandran of the RSP (Revolutionary Socialist Party) to fill up the intellectual vacuum that the Congress has created," he said. On Rafale, Jaitley said the deal not only strengthens the combat ability of the Indian Air Force but saved thousands of crores for the exchequer. "When its falsehood collapsed, its creators by producing half a document lost their full credibility. They forgot that truth always prevails," he said. Accusing the Congress of organising loot on the banks between 2008-2014, Jaitley said the party is now alleging that industrial loans had been waived. "Not a single rupee was waived. On the contrary, the defaulters have been thrown out of management & Congress's falsehood was exposed," he said. Stating that the government has consistently maintained an arm's length distance with the Election Commission, he said the attack on the EVMs is not merely to allay defeat, it is an attack on the commission. He also said it is the Opposition which questioned first the existence of the surgical strike and then played it down as a routine action which has also taken place in the past. "The Army Chief was described as a 'Sadak ka Gunda'. Serious doubts have been raised on the Air Force led choice of the combat aircraft Rafale and its negotiation process. In the face of all this, they allege that institutions are under attack by the Government would be a mockery" he said. On RBI, Jaitley said Congress governments in the past have been liberal in asking governors of the central bank to quit. "Pt Nehru, Mrs Indira Gandhi and subsequently Mr Yashwant Sinha had asked Governors to quit. During the UPA government, two Governors were barely on speaking terms with the Finance Minister. Nothing of this kind has happened in the recent past," he said. The government legitimately flags the issues relating to liquidity and credit availability with the RBI, Jaitley said. "The Government is the principal manager of the nation's economy. How can raising legitimate issues relating to credit and liquidity availability be an interference with the RBI. "The government consistently maintained communications with the RBI Governors during its tenure," Jaitley said. Stating that the government does not interfere in any investigative function of CBI or any other investigative agency, Jaitley said restoring the credibility of an investigative agency is strengthening the institution and not assaulting it. February 10, 2019 09:04 IST Siddhartha's knack for value investment dates back to 1995 when he infused capital in Kshema Technologies, which was acquired by MphasiS. He also took an early exposure in Mindtree way back in 1999. Since 1995, he had invested in more than 15 technology companies including chip-designing firm Ittiam Software, and GlobalEdge Technologies, among others, says Debasis Mohapatra. IMAGE: V G Siddhartha, founder-owner of the chain of Cafe Coffee Day outlets. Photograph: Shailesh Andrade/Reuters In the winter of 1993, when Infosys, now India's second largest IT services company, was getting a cold response to its IPO on Dalal Street, it was V G Siddhartha who, apart from Vallabh Bhansali of Enam Securities and Morgan Stanley, underwrote a fair chunk of the float. It is another matter that Siddhartha didn't hold on to his investment and divested quite early. With Mindtree, he doesn't want history to repeat itself. As a patient value investor, Siddhartha has intermittently raised his stake in Mindtree for 20 years. "He's not the kind of investor who will just leave in a huff, giving in to the prospective buyers at the price point they want. It's true that he needs to monetise his holdings to fund the expansion of his other businesses, but he won't compromise on the price band what he thinks is the best," said a leading investor who knows Siddhartha personally and professionally. As the impending Mindtree stake sale makes headlines, this astute and media-shy investor is playing his cards close to his chest. He has held his belief that investment is a mind game since his 20s, when he left the comfort of his home to travel to Mumbai in pursuit of his dreams in 1983. Migrating to a big city for a job is common enough, but for a young man with an inheritance of around 350 acres of coffee estate in Chikmagalur, the coffee-growing region in Karnataka, it was an unusual decision. His initial days in Mumbai are movie script-worthy. Arriving in his dream city, Siddhartha walked into a Dhaba Hotel and rented a room with a shared toilet for Rs 120 a day in south Mumbai's Fort area. The next day, armed with a one-point agenda to meet legendary investor Mahendra Kampani of JM Financial, Siddhartha trespassed into his office without an appointment. Unfamiliar with elevators, he climbed six floors to meet Kampani. After a short wait and a healthy discussion, he got the lifetime opportunity to join Naveen Bhai Kampani as an intern. After a two-year stint with JM Financials during which he learnt the nuances of trading, Siddhartha returned to Bengaluru in to launch Sivan Securities -- a stock trading company (now operates as Way2Wealth). Subsequently, his childhood association with coffee prompted him to launch Amalgamated Bean Coffee Trading Company in 1992, which emerged as a leading exporter of coffee. Later, he replicated the Starbucks model in India with the launch of his signature coffee retail business, Cafe Coffee Day, in 1995. People familiar with Siddhartha vouch for his simplicity and self-depreciating style. "As a person, he is amicable and down-to-earth. As an empathetic leader, he personally connects with people," said a person who has seen him from close quarters. His knack for value investment dates back to 1995 when he infused capital in Kshema Technologies, which was acquired by MphasiS. He also took an early exposure in Mindtree way back in 1999. Since 1995, he had invested in more than 15 technology companies including chip-designing firm Ittiam Software, and GlobalEdge Technologies, among others. Other than the coffee retail chain and his investment in tech firms, the Coffee Day Group has now forayed into diverse fields in its bid to emerge as a business conglomerate in coming years. The group has forayed into real estate through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Tanglin, which develops technology parks and Special Economic Zones for the IT industry. Its logistics arm, Sical, provides end-to-end solutions in port handling, road and rail transport areas. The group has also ventured into hospitality through Coffee Day Hotels & Resorts. Way2Wealth is a leading financial service provider from Coffee Day's stable. Siddhartha's impending stake sale efforts in Mindtree is linked to his need for capital to grow his businesses. Brokerage firm reports suggested that Coffee Day Enterprises, with a consolidated debt of around Rs 3,500 crore, wants to pare debt. This decision is driven by the fact that the Coffee Day Enterprises' share price continues to trade below its listing price. While speculation is rife about multiple suitors for Siddhartha's Mindtree stake, his relationship with the IT major's founders remains sound, a testimony to his leadership. "While as founders of the company, we have a lot more emotional and intensity in the company, Siddhartha also has an equal level of commitment because in a way, he has also grown with the company," said Mindtree's Executive Chairman, Krishnakumar Natarajan. With relationships considered the most valuable currency in business, Siddhartha is the corporate leader to watch out for. Athens, GA (30605) Today Some clouds. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 66F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight Some clouds. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 66F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph. Commission approved rezoning changes near The Varsity Redevelopment ranging from construction to demolition is in the cards after a plan for the area surrounding The Varsity passed the Athens-Clarke County Mayor and Commission on Feb. 5. The Gordy family, which owns The Varsity, owns most of the properties on the block intersected by Milledge Avenue and Broad, Chase and Reese streets. The plan gives the Gordys more liberty to redevelop the area. In exchange, the Gordys will donate four historic homes located on the property to the Athens Land Trust so they will be preserved. No redevelopment plan was attached to the zoning change request, so it is still unclear what the future holds for The Varsity and the surrounding buildings. Provost candidates began giving speeches on campus The UGA provost is the second highest administrative position in the university. UGAs last provost, Pamela Whitten, left in July to become president of Kennesaw State University. The final two candidates will speak during the upcoming week. Jack Hu will present on Feb. 11 and Elizabeth Spiller will give her talk on Feb. 13. Circumcision protest came to Athens Protesters with blood stains on the crotches of their white pants demonstrated near the Arch in downtown Athens on Feb. 5. The group, Bloodstained Men, gathered to protest the circumcising of babies, since they cannot give consent. The group gathered in Atlanta over Super Bowl weekend and stopped in Athens as part of a tour across Georgia. The group typically protests in about 60 cities per year, Bloodstained Men press director Harry Guiremand said. Monica Pearson discussed race in Hunter-Holmes Lecture Retired WSB anchor Monica Pearson carried on the tradition of UGAs Hunter-Holmes Lecture on Feb. 7 at the Chapel. The talk, named after the first African-American students to desegregate the university, typically focuses on topics of race and civil rights. Pearsons speech was no exception. She stressed the importance of communication and discussion around race, as well as self-reflection about internal bias. The more we become honest with each other, were going to get past this racist mess, Pearson said. You cant just talk the talk, you gotta walk it, and it means changing the way you talk to people, thinking about how you describe people, think about the jokes you tell. A tour of the cemetery, opened in 1808 just outside of downtown, figures prominently in a lecture series now being headlined by Hosley and others at Capital Community College in downtown Hartford. The series, now in its second year, is an offshoot of the colleges Hartford Heritage Project," which seeks to tie curriculum to places of historical and cultural significance in the city. This article originally appeared in RECOIL Issue 40 Photos by Lukas Lamb The Defensive Edge 338 Terminator Ups the Ante for Big-Bore Ballistics A rifle case and a large cardboard box arrived for me in the mail. I opened the cardboard box and found two monstrous ammunition containers with 50 rounds each of what looked like 338 Lapua ammo on steroids slightly larger case capacity with a long, 300-grain Berger bullet sticking out. I then opened the rifle case and found a bullpup single-shot bolt-action rifle with a very beefy 32-inch barrel in a pistol-grip chassis. Before I even picked up the rifle, my phone was already in my hand, and I was waiting for our fearless editor to answer. Cleckner: What in the world did you send me to test? Harrison: (laughter with a British accent, of course) Cleckner: Have you seen this thing? Harrison: I saw pictures. Figured itd be right up your alley. Cleckner: You expect me to put my cheek on top of the chamber while I torch-off a 300-grain bullet out of ammo hand-loaded by someone else in a wildcat cartridge that is pushing a modified 338 Lapua Magnum to the extreme? Harrison: Well, you didnt expect me to do it, did you? Cleckner: Im heading to the range. If you dont hear from me in a few hours, you know what happened. Harrison: Make sure someone else is taking the photos. All likely outcomes will be interesting. I hung up, loaded up the rifle and ammunition, and headed to the range. First Shots At the range, I set up the rifle and my chronograph and prepared to confirm the rifles zero at 100 yards. I noted ammunition headstamp, 338 Terminator, and the rifles marking, Defensive Edge LRKM (which I later found stands for Long Range Killing Machine). A quick Google search on my phone showed me that I should expect the velocity of the 300-grain bullet to be just over 3,000 feet per second! For those of you who dont geek-out on ballistics, this is very fast for such a heavy bullet. Great. A 338 Lapua Mag will launch the same bullet at around 2,800 fps, and that extra 300 fps is a big difference and should result in some very high pressures. Knowing that Id be tempted to flinch when shooting this rifle, I dry-fired a few times to get used to the trigger and confirm my position. And heres where I found my first pleasant surprise. The trigger was phenomenal! As you may know, bullpup-style rifles are generally known for having poor triggers (the linkage required usually results in poor trigger feel, slop in the system, and higher pull-weights). However, its worth noting again: the Defensive Edge LRKM has an amazing trigger and it happens to be a bullpup-style rifle. Theyve clearly figured out the bullpup linkage problem, and others should take note. I loaded up and fired my first shot out of the LRKM. It was exactly where I was aiming and my chronograph read 3,071 fps. The next two shots registered at 3,074 fps and 3,072 fps and were within a 1/2 MOA group. I inspected the brass and noted no pressure signs. This was unexpected. A 338 Lapua Mag wouldve likely blown a primer, long before that speed was reached. More on this later. I moved out to 600 yards and then quickly worked my way out to 1,000, where I placed three rounds in a 6-inch group on a steel gong. Shooting 0.6 MOA at 1,000 yards is doable for me, but I surely dont do it every time. The other long-range shooters at the range and I were pleasantly surprised with the rifles accuracy. As a note, I offered to let them shoot the rifle, but they were happier watching me from a safe distance. Cowards. OK, now Im impressed. Perhaps I shouldnt have been so quick to judge the system. The ammunition was extremely consistent, and the rifle seemed to be very accurate, especially for that large of a round. The rifle shipped with two test targets showing 1/3 MOA groups, and while I shot multiple 1/2 MOA groups, I never quite got them as small as the test targets. Thats likely shooter error. The ammunition loading was some of the best Ive seen. The brass is gorgeous and the extreme spread (ES) of the velocity was 6 fps for the first 10 rounds impressive indeed. The 11th round dropped to 3,045 fps, opening the ES up to 30 fps, but all but one other round out of 50 stayed within a 10 fps spread. When youre looking for good long-range performance, consistent velocities are necessary. As an example, a loss of 10 fps for this round is almost a foot more drop at 2,000 yards. And yes, this round is capable at 2,000 yards. A 40-fps decrease is almost a 4-foot difference at 2,000 yards enough to miss a target completely. The Rifle Belying its shorter overall length due to the bullpup design, is the rifles weight at just under 16 pounds with the Nightforce ATAC-R that arrived with it, (13.5 pounds for the rifle alone). It was, however, easier to hold off-hand than a similar-weighted rifle and it was very stable on a bag due to much of its weight being distributed toward the rear. Im not a fan of a pistol-grip chassis on bolt-action rifles. My bias stems from operating the rifle and stability/height issues due to the stock being high enough to make room for the pistol grip. A standard rifle stock allows me to run the bolt easier and faster. When possible, I shoot rifles with my firing-side thumb on the same side as, and near, my trigger finger. This not only allows for easier manipulation of the safety, it also prevents over gripping or torquing the rifle, while placing my thumb near the bolt knob for fast reloads. I know Im in the minority here theres nothing wrong with pistol grip chassis, I simply prefer standard-style rifle stocks. The rifle functioned well. As mentioned before, the trigger was great. It was a crisp and light single-stage trigger. The bolt was smooth (it would get smoother as the cerakote burnished in) and it extracted and ejected as it should. Above all, the rifle was dead nuts accurate. I returned to the range for a second trip and experienced similar results I was able to get MOA groups out to 1,250 yards. I did struggle a bit with anticipating the recoil on my 100-yard groups. My worst at that distance was just over 1 MOA, and I attribute much of that to a poor fit for me and the rifle. Im a bigger guy and my large head usually requires a scope mounted further forward and a longer length of pull. I wasnt a fan of the bullpup design. Dont get me wrong the actual design of the LRKM was great for a bullpup rifle. I just didnt like bullpup bolt action rifles in general. Yes, the design did save over a foot off the overall length but it introduced too many issues for me. First, the rifle was difficult to operate. I am a big believer in quickly running the bolt and getting the rifle back into the fight for a quick follow-up shot if needed. This is a problem with the LRKM. Due to the linkage required for the bullpup design, the LRKM is a single-shot rifle. A new round must be manually loaded into the rifle before closing the bolt. Defensive Edge, the rifles manufacturer and designer, did include a kydex holder for two rounds forward of the ejection port so that a couple of spares were readily available. Second, I needed to change my position between each shot. Yep, thats right I couldnt operate the bolt while staying in position on the rifle. In addition to being very awkward to grab the bolt so close to my body, once the bolt was about 1/3rd of the way back, it ran into my shoulder and stopped. I needed to completely remove my shoulder from the rifle in order to operate it. This is less than ideal. Consistency is the key to accuracy. Modifying your position between every shot, and then having to re-settle on the rifle and re-find the target, is what most instructors (me included) would strongly advise against. The Cartridge The 338 Terminator is a monster. Its effectively a 338 Lapua Mag Improved +P. The brass is custom made for Defensive Edge, and it carries the 338 terminator headstamp. The brass starts out as extremely high-quality 338 Lapua brass, and then its fire-formed by Defensive Edge to push the shoulders forward a bit for its improved design. They sell the brass for $400 for 100 pieces. This improved design with the shoulders pushed forward, and at a steeper angle, allows for more case capacity, which in turn allows for more powder. After seeing the high velocity and learning that the brass started as 338 Lapua Mag brass, I couldnt figure out how it was able to handle the performance without showing signs of pressure. A conversation with the rifles designer cleared it up and this is, in my opinion, the most novel part of the entire system It has a unique chamber that allows for a more powerful round while minimizing the chamber pressure. More on this after some ballistics of the round. The 338 Terminator has some impressive stats. The 338 Lapua Mag has been king for a while in the big-boy long-range cartridges. Then 300 Norma Mag came along and our military really started to like it because it outperforms the 338 Lapua Mag with less recoil. The 338 Terminator handily outperforms both (on paper). I shot 1,000 yards with 5.9 Mils of elevation above my 100-yard zero and 1,250 yards with 8 Mils of elevation. Thats a heavy bullet, traveling very flat, and packing a wallop on the target. How did they get a 300-grain bullet traveling over 3,000 fps without serious over-pressure issues? The special chamber. The Chamber Defensive Edge has a patented chamber design wherein they use a special throat to handle the power of these monster rounds without dangerous pressures. Instead of simply having an elongated throat and thereby having too much free-bore with a consequent adverse effect on accuracy (Im looking at you, Weatherby), they have the rifling start at the throat, but they dont have the bore down to its final diameter yet. Theres a step wherein the bullet engages the rifling as it should, however, it isnt under full pressure yet because it isnt necked down to its final bore size until it can travel a bit. I described this as a graduated throat (to the dismay of the designer). This really is novel it allows the bullet to be controlled and start spinning without the abrupt start normally incurred with a standard chamber. My money is on this helping to increase barrel life too. After all, the throat is usually what goes first on a barrel because of intense heat and pressure generated by powder particles and friction from the bullet. This unique throat design lowers pressure so much that a standard cartridge/load will not meet its normal performance expectations in this chamber. The reduced pressure prevents a cartridge from reaching the velocity it would normally, so this throat/chamber design is best suited for monsters like the 338 Terminator. So Whats the Verdict? Both the cartridge and the rifle have some merits and impressive performance. However, I personally recommend neither for most shooters. The LRKM rifle is extremely accurate but the bullpup design, although executed as well as it could be, is clumsy on a bolt-action rifle. And the cartridge, although very accurate with impressive ballistics, is too monomaniacal for the majority of applications. This rifle and cartridge are built for one purpose: launching a monster projectile a long way from a static position. The bullpup design isnt practical for any use that I have for a rifle, but is required in order to keep the OAL somewhat manageable because of the humongous 32-inch barrel needed for the cartridge to perform. This system is only useful if you have the money for it ($4 per piece of brass is pricey), you hand-load ammunition (and are willing and capable of making extremely accurate rounds), and mostly want to shoot one round at a time from one location (the weight, function, and recoil of this rifle dont match with on the move shooting). But, if youre that guy who really wants to shoot a 300-grain bullet that stays supersonic out to 2,000 yards and doesnt mind reconfiguring between each shot because you want a long barrel, but short overall length, then the LRKM and the 338 Terminator are for you. This rifle and cartridge are surely novelties. I had a wonderful time testing them and learning about them. However, for the vast majority of shooters looking for an extreme long range rifle and cartridge, Id recommend something like a Barrett MRAD in 338 Lapua Mag or even the new 300 PRC. As a note, the rifle is billed as a solution for long-range hunting. Heres my opinion on the matter not that you asked. If your biggest risk of failure is spooking an animal, then youre hunting. However, if your biggest risk of failure is missing the target, then youre target shooting. You may not agree, but you dont have to as for me, Ill extend the stalk and not the shot. Visit http://www.defensiveedge.net/ ABOUT THE AUTHOR Ryan Cleckner is a former special operations sniper and sniper instructor. Currently, hes a firearms law attorney, best-selling author, RECOIL/Carnivore contributor, university lecturer, Trigger Words podcast host, and entrepreneur. He runs both RocketFFL which helps people get an FFL and stay compliant and RocketCCW which gets people qualified for a CCW online. His newest project is focused on family and organizational safety at Mayday Safety. Also check out GunUniversity.com. Website: RyanCleckner.com Instagram: @Cleckner FaceBook: facebook.com/ryan.cleckner/ , We're sorry, this article is not currently available At least six senators running for president or considering White House bids backed the Green New Deal put forth by freshman Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and veteran Sen. Ed Markey of Massachusetts. The nonbinding resolution calls for a "10-year national mobilization" on the scale of the original New Deal to shift the economy away from fossil fuels such as oil and coal and replace them with renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power. It sets a goal to meet "100 percent of the power demand in the United States through clean, renewable and zero-emission energy sources," including nuclear power. Find a great selection of commercial real estate, manufactured homes, timeshares and more for Sale Buy real estate. Find a great selection of commercial real estate, manufactured homes, timeshares and more for Sale in US and Canada. Search Real Estate RICHMOND, Va. (AP) Virginias embattled lieutenant governor has urged authorities to investigate sexual assault allegations made against him, but hasnt heeded calls to resign and it is unclear what comes next for the once-rising star of the state Democratic Party. Two women have made allegations against Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax. But on Saturday, Fairfax issued a statement repeating his strong denials that he had ever sexually assaulted anyone and made clear he does not intend to immediately step down. Democratic Del. Patrick Hope said he wants to introduce articles of impeachment against Fairfax on Monday, but Hope is not a powerful figure in the House and theres little sign theres a broad appetite for impeachment with lawmakers set to finish this years legislative session by the end of the month. If an impeachment hearing does occur, though, attorneys for both of the women Meredith Watson and Vanessa Tyson say they are willing to testify. The Associated Press does not generally name victims of alleged sexual assault, but both women have come forward voluntarily. Watson alleges that Fairfax raped her while they were students at Duke University in 2000, her attorney said in a statement. Tyson, a California college professor, alleges that Fairfax forced her to perform oral sex on him at a Boston hotel in 2004. Fairfax has denied both allegations and on Saturday asked that no one rush to judgment. Our American values dont just work when its convenient they must be applied at the most difficult of times, he said. Fairfax has urged the FBI to conduct a full investigation, but it was not clear on what basis. The FBI has jurisdiction over federal crimes, but sexual assault allegations such as the ones Fairfax is facing are traditionally regarded as state offenses handled by local police and prosecutors. One way the FBI could potentially become involved is if Fairfax were to allege that he is the victim of extortion which is a federal crime but he has not made that claim. Frankly, we really want any entity with comprehensive investigative power to thoroughly look into these accusations, Fairfax spokeswoman Lauren Burke said. There needs to be verification of basic facts about these allegations. It feels like something bigger is going on here. After the second allegation against Fairfax was made Friday, he was hit with a barrage of demands to step down from top Democrats, including a number of presidential hopefuls and most of Virginias congressional delegation. Fairfax is the second African-American to ever win statewide office. Meanwhile, Gov. Ralph Northam pledged to work at healing the states racial divide and made his first official appearance a week after a racist photo on his 1984 medical school yearbook page surfaced and he acknowledged wearing blackface in the 1980s. Northam has also defied calls from practically his entire party to step down. In his first interview since the scandal erupted, a chastened Northam told The Washington Post on Saturday that the uproar has pushed him to confront the states deep and lingering divisions over race, as well as his own insensitivity. But he said that reflection has convinced him that, by remaining in office, he can work to resolve them. Its obvious from what happened this week that we still have a lot of work to do, Northam said in the interview, conducted at the Executive Mansion. There are still some very deep wounds in Virginia, and especially in the area of equity. On Saturday, Northam made his first official public appearance since he denied being in the photo, attending the funeral for a state trooper killed in a shootout. But he made no public comments. The lieutenant governor did not make any public appearances Saturday and released his statement late in the day, after Republican state House Speaker Kirk Cox and the Democratic Party of Virginia joined a chorus of other calls for Fairfax to resign. Since the two allegations against Fairfax were made, many top Democrats running for president in 2020 have called for Fairfaxs resignation, including Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts. Virginias Democratic congressional delegation was split. If Fairfax were to leave, its unclear who could replace him. Northam may try to appoint a Democrat, while Republicans could mount a legal challenge with the goal of having Sen. Steve Newman, the Senates pro tem, serve as both a voting senator and temporary lieutenant governor. The tumult in Virginia began Feb. 1, with the discovery of the photo on Northams yearbook profile page. Northam at first admitted he was in the picture, then denied it a day later, but acknowledged he wore blackface to look like Michael Jackson for a dance contest in 1984. Attorney General Mark Herring has since acknowledged wearing blackface at a college party in 1980. Herring who would become governor if both Northam and Fairfax resign had previously called on Northam to resign and came forward after rumors about the existence of a blackface photo of him began circulating at the Capitol. Although the Democratic Party has taken almost a zero-tolerance approach to misconduct among its members in this #MeToo era, a housecleaning in Virginia could be costly to them: If all three Democrats resigned, Republican Cox would become governor. Democrats are also despondent about what the scandals have done to their chances of flipping control of the General Assembly. ___ Associated Press reporters Steve Helber in Chilhowie, Virginia; Ben Finley in Norfolk, Virginia; Julie Pace and Michael Biesecker in Washington; Jonathan Drew in Durham, North Carolina; Michael Kunzelman in College Park, Maryland; Alanna Durkin Richer in Boston; and Thomas Beaumont in Mason City, Iowa, contributed to this report. US President Donald Trump's recent statement about the role of US troops in Iraq to keep an eye on Iran has caused a strong backlash among Iraqi politicians who see this statement as an interference in Iraqi matters. Award and red carpet season is in full swing and A-list favorite Still Standing Foot Comfort Spray has a starring role in the official 61st GRAMMY Gift Bag given to all Presenters and Performers. Hosted by Alicia Keys and broadcasted on CBS, those receiving Still Standing Foot Comfort Spray at the GRAMMY Awards in Los Angeles will include H.E.R., Miley Cyrus, Brandi Carlile, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Post Malone, Camila Cabello, Cardi B, Dan + Shay, Shawn Mendes, Janelle Monae, Kacey Musgraves and Lady Gaga, among many others. A go-to red carpet favorite for Hollywood fashion stylists and their A-list celebrity clients, Still Standing is sprayed on feet as a final touch before they slip into their Louboutins, Sophia Webster, Giuseppe Zanotti and Manolo flats and high heels, to relieve stiletto suffering without numbing the feet. Some sage advice James Corden, a former Grammy host, shared with Alicia Keys regarding hosting the show this year was to wear comfortable shoes. Still Standing Spray is delighted that it will let her and others wear any footwear comfortably when used. New Still Standing Spray unisex works for men as well as women, especially for those wearing luxury Italian loafers or thin-soled dress shoes, or standing for extended periods. Created by fashion solutions expert and former award-winning TV producer Lyn Butler, Still Standing Foot Comfort Spray is made with Certified Organic Eco-Distilled Arnica, Aloe, Ilex and cooling menthol, to help prevent swelling and keep feet feeling great all night long. Best of all, its natural, drug-free and paraben-free. The Still Standing Total Comfort Set ($39.99) includes one large size spray (100 mL) and one mini spray (15 mL). The Still Standing Double On the Go Set ($39.99) includes four travel sized mini sprays (15 mL each). In celebration of the Grammys, anyone who uses the code GRAMMY on the website will get $10 off their order. Still Standing Foot Comfort Spray is available at http://www.stillstandingspray.com, http://www.amazon.com and can also be found on Facebook: @StillStanding, Twitter: @bystillstanding and Instagram: @bystillstanding About the Recording Academy The Recording Academy represents the voices of performers, songwriters, producers, engineers, and all music professionals. Dedicated to ensuring the recording arts remain a thriving part of our shared cultural heritage, the Academy honors music's history while investing in its future through the GRAMMY Museum, advocates on behalf of music creators, supports music people in times of need through MusiCares, and celebrates artistic excellence through the GRAMMY Awardsmusic's only peer-recognized accolade and highest achievement. As the world's leading society of music professionals, we work year-round to foster a more inspiring world for creators. For more information about the Academy, please visit http://www.grammy.com. 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Hummingbird Loans is a financial company with origins in the Native American tribal community who have built a remarkable reputation for their transparent and ethical services. They see this new scholarship program as a way of giving back to their community in a positive way, a drive that is sure to continue well into the future. The feedback for the Hummingbird Loans University Scholarship has been very positive across the board. Janine S., from Nevada, recently said in a five-star review, I just found out about the Hummingbird Loans scholarship and immediately started working on my essay. I am a University business student so this is perfect for me and I know winning a $1000 towards my education expenses would be really amazing. It's great to see a financial company helping out normal people like this. For more information about the scholarship and applying be sure to visit https://www.hummingbirdloansz.com/scholarship.html. The new Appalachian Trail Wild East poster art is designed by Tyler Nordgren. . The Wild East brings greater attention to the Appalachian Trail (A.T.) and the lands surrounding the 2,192-mile footpath. Both the Wild East and South Mountain landscapes are efforts to secure access to open, natural spaces and the historic, cultural, and aesthetic assets they bring. The new Franklin County 11/30 Visitor Center was the site of the 8th Annual Power of the Partnership" breakfast, coordinated by the South Mountain Partnership in early February. Franklin County Commissioners David Keller, Robert Thomas, and Robert Ziobrowski welcomed over 130 attendees from Adams, Cumberland, Franklin, and York Counties, highlighting the historic, agricultural, and recreational value of the county they represent. The South Mountain Partnership is one of seven landscape initiatives in Pennsylvania, which support investment and action around sustainability, conservation, community revitalization, and recreational projects. Cindy Dunn, Secretary of PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR), spoke to the value of the states conservation landscape efforts and the success of the South Mountain Partnership (SMP), often a model of the effort. Suzanne Dixon, CEO and President of the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC), shared ATCs new initiative--the Wild East. The Wild East brings greater attention to the Appalachian Trail (A.T.) and the lands surrounding the 2,192-mile footpath. Both the Wild East and South Mountain landscapes are efforts to secure access to open, natural spaces and the historic, cultural, and aesthetic assets they bring. The breakfast program focused on profiles of action along the South Mountain landscape, including Franklin Countys collective actions to oppose a 230KV, double line transmission project, proposed by Transource PA and slated to traverse more than 29 miles of the county. Speaking were Lori Rice of the Franklin County Stop Transource community group. Lori, a business owner and farm wife, discussed the impacts on the watershed, karst system, agricultural land, and the community culture of Franklin County. Mike Ross, president of Franklin County Area Development Corporation, addressed Franklin Countys balanced approach to development and the reasons FCADC did not support the project, noting the county approach to economic development and citing the zero-value of the project to PA. The South Mountain Partnership awarded six 2018 Mini Grants, totaling $50,000. The grant program commenced in 2009 and has supported more than 60 projects, awarding $440,000 in funds and leveraging just under $900,000 in matching investment. Mike Eschenmann, DCNR Internal Lead of South Mountain Partnership, awarded Karen Lutz, recently retired as the Mid-Atlantic Regional Director of ATC, with the Spirit of South Mountain award. The award recognized Lutzs long-standing efforts to advance the Partnership. Throughout our 13-year history, SMP has consistently relied on diverse partners to be the Power that positively impacts the South Mountain landscape of Adams, Cumberland, Franklin, and York Counties. The gathering is invaluable as the region seeks to better conserve and manage agricultural, natural, recreational, and historical assets, said Katie Hess, director of South Mountain Partnership. The Franklin County Visitors Bureau invites all to explore history, arts and architecture, recreation, natural beauty, fresh foods and the warm hospitality of communities like Chambersburg, Greencastle, Mercersburg, Shippensburg, and Waynesboro. Franklin County PA is located just north of the Mason Dixon Line and is an easy drive to Washington DC, Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh. Plan a visit at ExploreFranklinCountyPA.com, contacting 866.646.8060, or stopping by the new Franklin County 11/30 Visitors Center in downtown Chambersburg. Dental CPA Allen M. Schiff, CPA, CFE has continued to make philanthropy a priority in his community after providing financial support to the Maryland State Dental Association Foundation (MSDAF). The donations made by Schiff & Associates to the MSDAF in 2018 helped bring dental care to over 1,300 Marylanders in need. The MSDAF has dedicated itself to improving the oral health of Marylanders through education and support of programs that improve access to dental care. Through donor participation and volunteer support, the MSDAF helps thousands of Marylanders overcome barriers of care, connecting them with the treatment they need but may be unable to afford. By supporting the MSDAF, Allen hopes to give back to his Maryland community and improve the education and level of care for those around him. As a Dental CPA, Allen has committed himself to helping empower not just dentists, but the communities they serve as well. Allen Schiff is the managing member of Schiff & Associates, LLC and also serves as President of the Academy of Dental CPAs (ADCPA). He has over 35 years of experience in dental practice management and has received the SMART CEO award six out of the last seven years as one of the top CPAs in Maryland. In addition, Allen is an active speaker on a national level, helping dental practices achieve top success. He has presented to the American Dental Association (ADA), the Academy of General Dentistry (AGD), the American Academy of Pediatric Dentists (AAPD), local Mid-Atlantic societies, as well as various dental study clubs. Allen has also taught dental practice management at a local dental school for over 30 years. For more information on Allen Schiff or to request a consultation, please call Schiff & Associates, LLC at (410) 321-7707 or visit https://www.schiffcpa.com/. Schiff & Associates, LLC 100 West Road, Suite 410 Towson, MD 21204 (410) 321-7707 http://www.schiffcpa.com "Primrose & West's Big Minstrels" circa 1896. Source: Library of Congress It's easy for people to forget how prevalent racism like this has been, even after the civil rights movement of the 1960s. BackStory, an American history podcast produced by Virginia Humanities, releases The Faces of Racism: A History of Blackface and Minstrelsy in American Culture. Nathan Connolly talks with historian Rhae Lynn Barnes about Virginia Governor Ralph Northams 1984 yearbook page and its link to a long and disturbing history of blackface minstrelsy. They discuss how white civic organizations used minstrel shows for fundraising, why the era known as Jim Crow is named after a minstrel character, and what must happen to prevent people from donning blackface going forward. THIS EPISODE CONTAINS SOME LANGUAGE THAT PEOPLE MIGHT FIND OFFENSIVE. Barnes is an assistant professor of history at Princeton University specializing in the globalization of American popular culture. She is co-founder and editor of U.S. History Scene, a provider of open-access teaching resources to U.S. public schools and the author of the forthcoming book Darkology: When the American Dream Wore Blackface. The Faces of Racism: A History of Blackface and Minstrelsy in American Culture, is available now. Find it and every episode of BackStory on the website (http://www.BackStoryRadio.org) or on popular podcatchers including iTunes, Spotify and Google. BackStory publishes every week at noon and is available for free. Axislayer has officially begun the Axislayer promotional discount. Any new web hosting customers will receive an incomparable 75% discount on the world renowned Axislayer's web hosting services. AxisLayer, the front-runner in the web hosting industry, has just declared the Feb 2019 discount offers. As it turns out, at AxisLayer, Feb 2019 will be a massive sales day, with flat 50% discount on all hosting packages. After the huge success of their Axislayer Feb Sale, they are all set to break sales records with a stellar 50% discount offer yet again. For those who missed out on the 50% off Feb Sale discount, here is a second opportunity to lock in the discounts. 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The Australian Banking Association CEO Anna Bligh said Australias banks stood "ready to help" farmers, including cattle farmers, who have been devastated by floods over the last few days and urged anyone needing assistance to contact their bank directly. After suffering through an extensive drought, many Queensland Cattle farmers have now been cruelly devastated by these floods, Ms Bligh said. Banks stand ready to help cattle farmers and others affected by these floods and other natural disasters through deferred loan repayments, waiving fees and other arrangements. Banks have dedicated hardship teams ready to assist, however its important that customers contact their bank directly to flag they are experiencing hardship, she said. Services on offer to customers who have been affected by natural disasters or other circumstances beyond their control can include: He recalled when they answered a call at an apartment where a man had hanged himself from a door and was only discovered after the decomposing body raised a stench. The body blocked entry to the rest of the apartment, so they had to wait for a representative of the Chief Medical Examiners Office to respond before searching the place. London, Feb 11 : Yorgos Lanthimos's "The Favourite" registered early wins at the 2019 British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Awards, scooping away the Outstanding British Film, production design, make-up and hair honours, besides bagging the Best Supporting Actress trophy for Rachel Weisz. The period drama around Queen Anne has a maximum of 12 nominations at the 72nd BAFTA Awards, and it took the lead from the start. "This film took 20 years to make, I contributed to the last 10," said Lanthimos upon winning the Outstanding British Film award, reported variety.com. The film then scored its second win in the production design category. Weisz beat Emma Stone, her own co-star from "The Favourite", to win the Best Supporting Actress. "I had the most extraordinary luck in that I played opposite two of the most glorious women Olivia Colman and Emma Stone," said Weisz, who has bagged her first BAFTA. Among other early winners included "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse" (Animated Film), "Free Solo" (Best Documentary), "Bohemian Rhapsody" (Sound), "Vice" (Editing), "A Star Is Born" (Best Original Music) and "BlacKkKlansman" (Best Adapted Screenplay). British-Guyanese actress Letitia Wright won the EE Rising Star Award, the only award voted for by the public, variety.com reported. "I want to thank everybody who gave me a chance," said Wright. Saying she had previously considered giving up acting but that her faith had helped her through, she encouraged "anybody that is going through a tough time" to know that "God made you and loves you. Let your light shine". The ceremony at the Royal Albert Hall is being hosted for the second consecutive year by Joanna Lumley, who mocked the Oscars with her opening joke. "Thank goodness BAFTA actually has a host. But I suspect that may h ave something do to with the fact I'm not on Twitter," said Lumley, taking a dig at how a series of old homophobic tweets resulted in comedian Kevin Hart to step down as host of the 2019 Oscars. Gaza, Feb 11 : Tensions have escalated between activists of rallies and protests, better known as the marches of return, and Israeli soldiers on the border between eastern Gaza Strip and Israel, eyewitnesses and local radio stations reported. The eyewitnesses said that dozens of Palestinian activists gathered close to the border fence between northeastern Gaza Strip and Israel and exploded sound bombs on Sunday night, Xinhua news agency reported. The Gaza-based al-Sha'b Radio station reported that several explosions were heard in the area after activists threw several sound and percussion bombs on the border, adding that Israeli soldiers fired tear gas and gunshots at them; no injuries were reported. Meanwhile, Palestinian sources in Gaza close to Hamas said that the movement informed officials in the Egyptian security intelligence that the movement intends to escalate the marches of return within the coming days. The sources added that the marches activists decided to use the tools and means they used to carry out before reaching the calm understandings, brokered by Egypt, between Hamas and Israel last November. The sources added that the decision to escalate the marches activities came after the Israeli occupation didn't show any commitments to implementing the understandings of calm and cease-fire that were reached in November. The marches of return and breaking the Israeli siege started on March 30 calling on Israel to end around 12 years of blockade that had been imposed on the Gaza Strip since 2007. Weekly anti-Israel rallies and protests had been organised since the start of the marches, where Gaza health ministry officials said that over 250 Palestinians, including 47 children, were killed and around 26,000 injured. Amaravati, Feb 10 : Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu will undertake a day-long fast in Delhi on Monday, seeking special category status for the state and fulfilment of other commitments made by the Centre at the time of state's bifurcation. Naidu will begin the 'Dharma Porata Deeksha' at the Andhra Pradesh Bhavan at 8 a.m. after paying tributes to Mahatma Gandhi at Raj Ghat. The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief is likley to be joined by his cabinet colleagues, MPs, state legislators, and leaders of students and employees groups and mass organisations. Leaders of various non-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) parties are likely to visit the Andhra Bhavan to express their solidarity with Naidu, the Chief Minister's Office said. A large number of protesters from Andhra Pradesh has already reached the national capital. The state government hired two special trains to ferry people to Delhi. Naidu will also submit a memorandum to President Ram Nath Kovind on February 12. The Chief Minister has participated in 'Dharma Porata Deeksha' in 11 districts of Andhra Pradesh so far. Jaipur, Feb 10 : Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot said here on Sunday that his government was ready to open talks with Gujjars, but condemned the violence and blocking of road and train traffic by protesters in the state. "The government is ready to open discussions with the agitating community," Gehlot said and added sitting on railway tracks as a part of protest was unethical. The agitation for reservation that entered its third day on Sunday turned violent as the protesters clashed with the police personnel near Dholpur, officials said. The police had to fire tear gas shells to disperse the protesters when they began pelting stones. Three police vehicles were also set on fire. Five policemen were injured in the stone pelting. No arrests have been made, so far, said Mohan Lal Lather, Director General of Police. Three separate cases have been registered and investigations are on. Those flouting norms shall be dealt with iron hand, the police officer said. The Chief Minister said the government would look into the issue and probe the violence that erupted in Dholpur on Sunday. The Gujjar Aarakshan Sangharsh Samiti (GASS) launched agitation on Friday and started blocking highways and traffic on the Delhi-Mumbai rail route. They are demanding five per cent reservation in government jobs and education institutions. The DGP said control rooms have been set up in the violence-hit areas of Rajasthan. On the Gujjars' threat to intensify the agitation on Monday, the DGP said: "We have deputed additional forces in the violence-prone areas to tackle any untoward incident." Early in the day, protesters tried to block the National Highway No. 3 near Dholpur but the police intervened resulting into clashes. On Saturday, Rajasthan Tourism Minister Vishwendra Singh and IAS officer Neeraj K. Pawan visited GASS chief, Col. Kirori Singh Bainsla (retd) near Malarna Dungar in the Sawai Madhopur district to hold negotiations. But these failed to make any headway. While the rail traffic on the Delhi-Mumbai route remained disrupted for the third consecutive day on Sunday, the Kota Railway Division has cancelled 28 trains till February 13, and diverted 37 trains. Around 18 trains scheduled to run on Sunday, 10 on Monday, 12 on Tuesday and 15 on Wednesday were cancelled, a Northern Railway official said. GASS chief Bainsla blamed anti-social elements, who have become a part of the protest, for the violence. According to the DGP, Gujjars have blocked National Highway 148D at Bundi, Bhilwara and Gulabpura. Agitators are sitting on rail tracks in Sawai Madhopur's Malarna Dungar. The Karauli-Hindon Highway was also blocked by Gujjars on Sunday. Gehlot said he was confident that Bainsla and his team will come forward to open discussions and vthe issues would be resolved the earliest. The Gurjars are classified as Other Backward Class (OBC) in some states and Union territories. In Jammu and Kashmir and some parts of Himachal Pradesh, they are categorised as a Scheduled Tribe. Mumbai, Feb 10 : T-series owner Bhushan Kumar said on Sunday that everyone in creative world should be blessed by goddess Saraswati as she is the goddess of creativity. Entire Bollywood celebrity brigade attended director Anurag Basu's annual Saraswati Puja on Vasant Panchami day at his residence in Mumbai on Sunday. Celebrities, such as Bhushan Kumar along with wife Divya Khosla Kumar, Katrina Kaif, Abhishek Bachchan and many more were present on the occasion. Talking about the annual puja, Bhushan Kumar said: "I am feeling quite happy as there are only few such functions that happen in Mumbai. We usually witness such things in Delhi during Navratri. Dada has been organising it and we have been coming here for almost five years now. Dada has been doing it for almost 25 years and I hope he keeps doing as long as he lives...it brings everyone together. It gives you such an amazing positive feeling." Bhushan Kumar further said that he believes that people working in a creative world should always seek blessings of goddess Saraswati. "She is the goddess of creativity and everyone who the creative world should be blessed by her. We're from creative world, so it is always better to have goddess Sarawati's blessings." Stunning and talented actress Katrina Kaif was seen in a traditional outfit. She was wearing a yellow suit. Actor Abhishek Bachchan also opted for the traditional outfit -- kurta pajama. Among other Bollywood celebrities present on the occasion to seek blessings at the pooja were Patralekhaa, Ishita Dutta, Sakshi Tanwar, Sumona Chakravarti and Asha Negi. Shillong, Feb 10 : Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma on Sunday flew to New Delhi to seek support of various political parties in opposing the Citizenship Bill, which is likely to be tabled in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday. "I am leaving for New Delhi to meet leaders of those political parties who have promised us of their support... to oppose the Bill if it is tabled in the Rajya Sabha," Sangma told IANS. He said the national general body meeting of his National People's Party (NPP) on Saturday had resolved to snap ties with the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance, if the bill is tabled in the Rajya Sabha. The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016, which was passed by the Lok Sabha on January 8, seeks to remove hurdles for eligible migrants from six minority groups from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan in getting Indian citizenship. "I have impressed upon the Central government about the northeast's people opposing the Bill. The party cannot go against the wishes of the people. Moreover, the citizenship bill, once it becomes a law, will change the demography of the region and ethnic communities in the region will be reduced to a minorities," Sangma said. He and his Mizoram counterpart Zoramthanga had earlier met Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh to express their opposition to the Bill. Sangma's NPP, along with other northeast-based regional parties including the Asom Gana Parishad - which had already severed ties with the BJP in Assam - had sought support of several political parties to prevent passage of the bill in the Rajya Sabha. Sangma had earlier hinted at snapping ties with the BJP if the latter goes ahead with the bill. The NPP is supporting the BJP-led government in Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh and the People's Democratic Alliance government in Nagaland and has the BJP's support in Meghalaya. New Delhi, Feb 10 : The Election Commission (EC) on Sunday said it has asked the Delhi Police to probe telephone calls made to voters claiming their names have been deleted from the electoral rolls. In a letter to the Delhi Police Commissioner, the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Delhi mentioned receiving several complaints alleging that certain unknown persons/entities/sources are making misleading phone calls to the citizens of Delhi, telling them that their names have been deleted from the electoral roll, and that the caller is trying to get the same restored. "The only authority to add or delete a name in the electoral roll is the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO). No other person can do so. Any person can apply to the ERO for including his name in the electoral roll," the CEO office said in a statement. "It appears that the matter needs to be thoroughly investigated in order that the factual correctness of the averments made in the complaints are ascertained and necessary action under relevant extant laws is taken," it said in the February 8 letter to the Delhi Police chief. Warning voters about such misleading calls, the poll panel asked them to check their names in the electoral roll either by calling Voter Helpline or by visiting the National Voter Service Portal. Lucknow, Feb 10 : Tata Motors said on Sunday that it will be supplying 40 air conditioned electric buses to the Lucknow City Transport Services Ltd (LCTSL) in a phased manner within the next four months. In a release here, the company said the first Ultra 9/9m AC electric bus was flagged off on Sunday here by Uttar Pradesh Urban Development Minister Suresh Kumar Khanna. "The order is part of the 255 electric buses to be supplied to six STUs (state transport undertakings) in the country, of which LCTSL is one," it said. According to Tata Motors, the electric bus will begin its journey from the Alambagh depot in Lucknow. "The Ultra electric buses will have a travelling range of up to 150 kilometers on a single charge. The company has installed a charging station at the Alambagh depot for fast charging of buses." The indigenously-developed, pollution-free vehicles offer superior design with the lithium-ion batteries placed on the rooftop to prevent breakdown due to water-logging, the statement added. Kolkata, Feb 10 : IIM Calcutta, one of the premier B-Schools of the country, has achieved 100 per cent placement on the first day, a statement from the institute said here. In all, 123 companies from diverse sectors participated in the placement process for the 54th batch of the institute's flagship Post-Graduate Programme in Management (PGP) with 441 students and made 501 jobs offers. According to the IIM release, 15 per cent of the batch received more than one offer. Also, 50 per cent of offers were from the consulting (29 per cent) and finance (21 per cent) sectors. Reputed consulting firms like AT Kearney, Bain & Co, The Boston Consulting Group and McKinsey & Co made offers in double digits. Other prominent names included EY-Parthenon, Alvarez & Marsal and PwC. Accenture was the largest recruiter with 24 offers accepted, the release said. Major finance recruiters like Goldman Sachs, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, CitiBank, JP Morgan Chase, Deutsche Bank and Avendus also joined the placement process. New-age companies in e-commerce, operations and product management also attracted a fair chunk (16 per cent) of the class of 2019 with 68 offers accepted. Amazon, Uber, Udaan, Media.Net, Flipkart, Microsoft and Salesforce were some of the top names among recruiters. A large number of students were hired in general management (14 per cent), sales and marketing (12 per cent) and IT-analytics (8 per cent) by big names like Aditya Birla Group, Mahindra, Wipro and Hindustan Unilever. The average CTC (cost to the company) was Rs 25.36 lakh and the median Rs 23.5 lakh, marking an increase of Rs 1.16 lakh and Rs 1.5 lakh, respectively. "At IIM Calcutta, we were not worried about 100 per cent placement. We focused on our preparation and learning. A hard-working student can easily secure an offer of choice," said a student. Ghaziabad, Feb 10 : Two unidentified men looted gold ornaments from a woman as she stepped out of a car to attend a wedding at a banquet hall in Avas Vikas Colony in Ghaziabad on Sunday, police said. The audacious robbery took place when the two robbers who were on a motorcycle moved towards the woman swiftly, snatched a gold chain and a necklace and escaped. The woman cried for help but it was too late. The locals called the police which directed the patrol car to chase the criminals. "We will track down the criminals at all costs," claimed Superintendent of Police Shlock Kumar. Last year, More than 800 employers in the region were invited to take part in the employee survey. To participate, a company, public agency, nonprofit or other organization had to have at least 50 employees in Hartford, Middlesex, New London, Tolland or Windham counties. There was no charge and The Courant did not learn the identities of companies that did not make the list of winners. Jammu, Feb 10 : The Indian Air Force (IAF) launched another special sortie on Sunday to airlift 186 people from Jammu to Srinagar, an official said. Defence ministry spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Devender Anand said here on Sunday: "At 4.15 p.m. today, the IAF launched a special sortie of C17 Globemaster to airlift 186 people, including children and 170 students, from Jammu to Srinagar. "These students had over the last two days been airlifted from Srinagar to Jammu for appearing in the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE)," he said. After appearing in the examination on February 10, the students were again airlifted from Jammu to Srinagar, the defence ministry spokesman said. Terming it a 'memorable exam', the students said they would never forget the efforts of the IAF. They could appear in the examination only due to timely and humanitarian assistance extended by the armed forces. Meanwhile, the Jammu-Srinagar national highway remained closed for the fifth consecutive day on Sunday after heavy snowfall and rains lashed the area. New Delhi, Feb 10 (IANS) At a time when there are a few or no takers for stalled residential projects, the public sector construction major NBCC is willing to take up such properties for completion, provided they are commercially viable and do not hurt the company's balance sheet. After agreeing to take up few incomplete projects of Amrapali Group, NBCC is now looking to take up the incomplete housing projects of Jaypee Infratech. In an interview to IANS, NBCC CMD Anoop Kumar Mittal said that the company is willing to take up any stalled realty project for completion if it seems profitable. He said that being a Board-governed company, it would take decisions based on commercial viability of the projects. "Wherever there will be some opportunity we can complete the stalled projects without compromising the balance sheet and profitability or whatever commercial interest we have... We are ready to take those projects," he said. Speaking of the Amrapali projects, he said that part of the work has started. The Supreme Court last month gave a go-ahead to NBCC for completing the construction of two projects of the Amrapali Group. Regarding upcoming redevelopment projects, he said that it is currently working on the design and Detailed Project Reports (DPR) of Air India's two land parcels at Baba Kharak Singh Marg and Vasant Vihar in the national capital. In September, the national carrier gave an in principle approval to NBCC for monetising or redeveloping the non-core assets in the city. The projects assume significance as the property at Baba Kharak Singh Marg in Connaught Place is likely to be another major commercial hub in the heart of the national capital. The plot at Baba Kharak Singh Marg is spread across 3.54 acres while that in Vasant Vihar which houses Air India's staff colony spreads across 30 acres. He also said that its bid for the bankrupt Jaypee Infratech at the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) is a major target ahead and if approved, it would be a "big work". Talking of the financial growth of the company, Mittal said the company aims a minimum growth of 30 per cent in its profit and revenue for the financial year 2019-20. "In 2019-20, our plan is that minimum 30 per cent growth in top line and bottom line in all our business verticals." On the issues faced by the real estate sector, he noted that although the there has been an uptick in sales in the past few months, demand still remains a concern. He observed that realty players along with the government should come up with a mechanism to maintain stock of unsold inventory in the local or district level and gauge the demand-supply parity. "I feel that there should be some mechanisms before local bodies allow any developer to start the project. They should also see whether that demand is still available in that areai There should be some mechanism," Mittal told IANS. "Before sanctioning the houses that kind of analysis should be done. There can be some variation in that, 5-20 per cent, but there should not be variation of 300-500 per cent," he said. (Rituraj Baruah can be contacted at rituraj.b@ians.in) New Delhi, Feb 10 : Air Chief Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa will begin a four-day visit to Bangladesh on Monday, the Defence Ministry said here on Sunday. It's part of the bilateral goodwill visit to a SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) nation, the ministry added. The Indian Air Force chief is scheduled to visit the operational and training units of Bangladesh Air Force. During his visit, he will also meet chiefs of the three defence services and Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. "The visit would provide further impetus towards increasing defence cooperation and pave the way for greater interaction. This would also strengthen relationships and enable engagement in productive exchanges between the two Air Forces," the ministry said. Lucknow/Dehradun, Feb 10 : The death toll in the moonshine tragedy in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand rose to 97 on Sunday even as 215 people were arrested in a sweeping police crackdown on illicit liquor in Uttar Pradesh, officials said. Simultaneously, as the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) blamed the ruling BJP in both states for the mass deaths, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said he smelt "a conspiracy" in which the SP may be involved. He said in Gorakhpur that a probe had been ordered. "Such incidents have happened in the past too where many times SP workers were involved. The guilty will not be spared." The death toll in Saharanpur district in Uttar Pradesh remained unchanged at 36, but 18 deaths were reported from the Meerut Medical College where many had been brought after consuming the illicit liquor on Thursday. Meerut's Superintendent of Police Ranvijay Singh confirmed the hospital deaths and said 14 others were still undergoing treatment at the medical facility and were in critical condition. A hospital doctor told IANS that 17-18 of the 22-24 people brought after taking the moonshine had died. Saharanpur District Magistrate Alok Kumar Pandey told IANS that post-mortem had confirmed 36 deaths due to consumption of spurious liquor. Eleven persons also died in Kushinagar district. A total of 32 people died in Roorkie and Haridwar in Uttarakhand. All the deceased had crossed over to Balupur in Roorkie in the neighbouring hill state on Thursday for an after-death ritual where they were apparently served the spurious liquor. In the crackdown following the deaths, a total of 9,269 litres of moonshine was seized in Uttar Pradesh and 1,066 litres in Uttarakhand. A total of 215 persons were arrested in Uttar Pradesh while cases against 297 others have been filed. In Uttarakhand, 49 cases have been registered. The Uttar Pradesh government has ordered a magisterial enquiry into the tragedy and many police and excise department officials have been suspended. Police raided many places in Banda, Gorakhpur, Hamirpur, Chitrakoot, Basti, Deoband, Maharajganj, Mathura, Bulandshahr, Ghaziabad and Meerut. In a joint raid conducted by the police and excise department, in Nagla Madhya village of Etah district, 50 litres of spurious liquor was seized on Sunday and three persons arrested. The deaths ignited a blame game. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav blamed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) governments in both the states ruled by it and said the BJP has to own up the responsibility for the tragedy. "BJP is in power in both these states. If anyone is responsible, it is the BJP," he said, and asked the state governments to hike the compensation announced to the bereaved families from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 20 lakh. He charged that so much trade in illicit liquor could not have been "done without government protection and patronage". BSP supremo Mayawati also come down heavily on the government over the deaths. "The tragedy is not only unfortunate but heart rending and shameful. These incidents are the result of a callous and unconcerned BJP governments," she tweeted. The four-time Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh demanded that Excise Ministers of both the states should be immediately relieved of their duties and a CBI probe ordered to ensure a fair investigation. Meanwhile, a press conference called by Uttar Pradesh Excise Minister Jai Pratap Singh on Sunday noon was called off at the last minute without any explanation. New Delhi, Feb 10 : Engineers India Ltd (EIL) on Sunday signed a project management consultancy contract for 1.5 million tonne greenfield refinery in Mongolia. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed by EIL and Mongol Refinery State Owned LLC in the presence of Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on the sidelines of the Petrotech 2019 that got underway at Greater Noida in the national capital region (NCR) on Sunday. "India extended a $1 billion line of credit to Mongolia during the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2015. The refinery is being built using that line of credit," Pradhan said. "It marks a new height in bilateral relations," he said. EIL has done a detailed feasibility study for the project, Pradhan added. Tiruppur : , Feb 10 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday launched a host of new as well as completed projects in Tamil Nadu from here as he kicked off his 2019 election campaign in the southern states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. This was his first visit to Tamil Nadu since the presentation of the Interim Budget for 2019-20. In his last stopover at Tiruppur -- a major export hub for knitted garments, about 470 km from Chennai, Modi laid the foundation of a 100-bed Employees State Insurance Corp (ESIC) health facility. The hospital will cater to the needs of over 100,000 workers and their family members in the hosiery town and nearby areas would be covered under the ESI Act. The brief function in Perumanallur village was also attended by Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit, Chief Minister K.Palaniswami, Deputy Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam, Union Minister of State for Finance Pon Radhakrishnan and others. The Prime Minister also laid foundation stones for a new integrated building of the Trichy Airport and for modernisation of the Chennai airport via video conference. Post expansion, the Trichy Airport would be able to handle 3,000 passengers in peak hours, up from 500 passengers now. The PM also dedicated to the nation, a 470-bed ESIC Hospital and the Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd's Ennore Coastal Terminal in Chennai. He also inaugurated a crude oil pipeline from the Chennai Port to the Chennai Petroleum Corp Ltd (CPCL)'s Manali refinery in Chennai. The pipeline, built with enhanced safety features, will ensure reliable supply of crude oil to Tamil Nadu and the neighbouring states. He also flagged off a passenger service between a 10-km section of the Chennai Metro Rail -- AG-DMS Metro Station to Washermenpet Metro Station. New Delhi, Feb 10 : The government on Sunday launched the third round of oil and gas auction under the Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP), which is expected to generate $600-700 million exploration work commitment. "It is expected that the OALP III would generate immediate exploration work commitment of around $600-700 million," the Petroleum Ministry said. Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan declared the third bid round open with the launch of the notice inviting offer and model revenue sharing contract at the three-day Petrotech 2019 global meet, which got underway at Greater Noida in the national capital region on Sunday. Under the OALP III, 23 blocks spread across 12 sedimentary basins, including 19 on-land, three shallow water and one deep-water blocks, covering over 31,000 sq km are on offer, according to the Petroleum Ministry. Bids can be submitted online from February 11 to April 10. According to the ministry, the bidding for the OALP Round II, started on January 7 with 14 blocks on offer, will continue till March 12. In October 2018, the government awarded 55 blocks to explorers under the OALP Round I. "We awarded 55 blocks, spread across 10 sedimentary basins, under the maiden bid round after a gap of six years, and 30 contract areas under the Discovered Small Field (DSF) Policy Bid Round I," Pradhan said at the launch. "The second bid rounds for both the DSF Policy and the Open Acreage Licensing Policy are underway and have witnessed encouraging response from investors," the minister said. Around Rs 5,900 crore investment has been committed for the exploration of 55 oil and gas blocks, awarded through the first round of auction. The OALP, under the new Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy (HELP), allows investors to carve out blocks of their choice and submit an expression of interest (Eol) throughout the year. Under the HELP, the competitive bidding will be continuous and blocks will be awarded twice a year. The HELP replaced nine earlier rounds held under the New Exploration Licensing Policy (NELP) wherein the government carved out areas for bidding. The HELP's main features are revenue-sharing contracts as opposed to the previous profit-sharing model, single licence for both conventional and unconventional hydrocarbon resources exploration and marketing and pricing freedom. New Delhi, Feb 10 : A day before submission of the audit report on military procurement, including the Rafale jet deal, by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India to the President, the Congress on Sunday citing a "conflict of interest" said the exercise is a cover-up of the "scam". Holding Prime Minister Narendra Modi "guilty" of compromising national security, the Congress also criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led central government for being "opaque, intransient, obscure and obstinate to cover up the layers of corruption in the Rafale scam". In a memorandum to CAG Rajiv Meharishi, the Congress accused him of committing "gross impropriety" by auditing the Rafale deal, saying as the Finance Secretary he was involved in the deal announced by Modi in April 2015. "You were the Finance Secretary from October 29, 2014 to August 30, 2015, including at the time of unilateral announcement for purchase of 36 Rafale aircraft. Even at the time of cancellation of the 126 aircraft MMRCA deal you were the Finance Secretary. "Consequently, you were directly involved in the Rafale deal on both these occasions as the Finance Secretary. Not only this, you were also involved in negotiations of the deal as a representatives of the Finance Ministry," the Congress said in the memorandum. It accused Meharishi of being "complicit in the irregularities" in the deal and questioned his propriety to audit the deal as the CAG. "The irregularities, bungling and corruption were happening at the highest level with your direct or indirect complicity and consent. This reflects your direct collaboration in the entire matter. "There is no reason or occasion for you to audit the 36 Rafale aircraft deal as you can neither be a judge in your own cause (case) nor can sit in audit over your own actions to which you were a party. "This conduct points to a direct conflict of interest, making you a judge in your own cause (case) and rendering you ineligible to conduct any audit on the Rafale deal as CAG," the party said. Addressing the media later, Congress leader Kapil Sibal said the CAG report was yet another attempt of the Modi government to cover up the "Rafale scam". "The CAG in his report, likely to be submitted on Monday, will not only defend his action in deal as then Finance Secretary but also do cover-up for the government. Despite all the irregularities happening before his eyes, the CAG will only come out defending the government and saying there is no corruption in the deal," said Sibal. "Being legally not entitled to audit the deal, the CAG should recuse and refrain from submitting a report on the deal," said Sibal. The Congress has repeatedly demanded a probe by a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) in to the "country's biggest defence scam". Tiruppur : , Feb 10 (IANS) Kicking off his campaign for the next Lok Sabha elections in the southern states here on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi came down heavily on the opposition parties. Modi was on a day-long visit to the states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh for the launch of several developmental projects as well as his poll campaign. He visited Guntur in Andhra Pradesh, Raichur in Karnataka and Tiruppur in Tamil Nadu. Addressing a public rally in Tiruppur, about 470 km from the state capital Chennai, Modi said, "For us, social justice is an article of faith and not a mathematical formula, the way it is for the opposition parties." He said it was the NDA government led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee that restored reservation in promotions for the SC/ST, a privilege that was scrapped by the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre earlier. Referring to his government's decision to provide 10 per cent reservation to the economically backward sections, Modi said the move aims at equality of opportunities to all. He said the 10 per cent reservation will not affect the existing reservation for SC/ST and Other Backward Communities. Alleging that the opposition was good at spreading panic and misleading the youth, farmers and other sections of society, the Prime Minister said that for a long time the opposition parties had created tension in society on the issue of social justice. Modi criticised the Congress' farm loan waiver scheme saying that it would not benefit anybody, but would result in an extra burden of Rs 50,000 crore. He said for the first time in India's history, his government had announced a Rs 6,000/pa income scheme for farmers' holding less than five acres of land. When the scheme was announced in Parliament the opposition parties were left shocked, he added. Modi disclosed that under the farmer income scheme, a sum of Rs 7,50,000 lakh crore would be deposited in banks over the next 10 years. The PM also announced the setting up of a department for fisheries in Tamil Nadu and laid the foundation stone of a 100-bed Employees State Insurance Corp (ESIC) hospital. The hospital will cater to the needs of over 100,000 workers and their family members in the hosiery town and nearby areas covered under the ESI Act. Modi also laid the foundation stones of a new integrated building at Trichy Airport and the new Chennai airport via video conferencing. To ensure a reliable supply of crude oil to Tamil Nadu and the neighbouring states, the PM also dedicated to the nation Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd's Ennore Coastal Terminal in Chennai. He also inaugurated a crude oil pipeline from Chennai Port to Chennai Petroleum Corp Ltd's (CPCL) Manali Refinery in Chennai. The pipeline has been built with enhanced safety features. Modi also dedicated to the nation a 470-bed ESIC Hospital in Chennai and passenger service on the 10-km stretch of the Chennai Metro Rail -- AG-DMS Metro station to Washermenpet Metro station. Earlier, Modi flew down from Andhra Pradesh to Tiruppur via Coimbatore. At Coimbatore airport, he was received by Governor Banwarilal Purohit. The visit met with a black flag protest led by Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK) leader Vaiko. Vaiko and his supporters were detained by the police as they released black balloons in the sky and shouted "Go back Modi" near the railway station. Kolkata, Feb 10 : Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Mukul Roy was named in a police complaint here on Sunday in the Trinamool Congress legislator Satyajit Biswas murder case, police said. Biswas, a popular Dalit leader, was shot dead by unidentified assailants while he was attending a Saraswati Puja programme in the Nadia district on Saturday. Biswas represented Krishnaganj constituency in the West Bengal Assembly. "Two accused, Kartick Mondol and Sujit Mondol, have been arrested," a senior police officer said. According to locals, there was several "load shedding during the programme" and they smelt a conspiracy behind the outages. The TMC and the BJP have been engaged in a bitter war of words since the killing. While the TMC has alleged a BJP hand behind it, the latter has blamed the murder on the TMC's internal feud. Police said all of the items they seized were related to purchases made by Hicks with company funds while she worked at Concrete Floors Company in Plainfield. Police said the company lost $500,000. Moscow, Feb 10 : The dismantling of arms control system by the United States might cause unpredictable consequences, Vasily Nebenzya, Russian Permanent Representative to the United Nations, said on Saturday. "Look what is going on in the disarmament field. The Americans tend to dismantle the arms control system, which will evolve into an absolutely unpredictable scenario," Nebenzya was quoted by Tass news agency as saying in an interview with Russian TV Channel One on Saturday. He said Washington was working on "an uncontrolled build-up of weapons," which would ratchet the threat of an unexpected conflict, Xinhua news agency reported. "It is extremely incomprehensible how this will end up," Nebenzya said. The diplomat said the world still faces disagreements stemming from the Cold War era, and that is one of the main reasons the West is disappointed that Russia has started to implement an independent foreign policy. "They cannot, like back in the 1990s, come to the Kremlin through the backdoor and dictate how we must behave and what we must do," Nebenzya said. On February 1, the US administration announced that Washington would withdraw from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty with Russia within six months. Following the announcment, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on February 2 Russia will also suspend its participation in the INF Treaty. Dhaka, Feb 10 : The Foreign Minister of Bangladesh on Sunday said prolonged Rohingya crisis would encourage formation of pockets of radicalism, which could destabilise the South Asian region. Speaking at a seminar on "Bangladesh and Human Rights" in Dhaka, A.K. Abdul Momen said Rohingya refugees needed to be sent home at the earliest, with safety and security, Efe news agency reported. "My fear is, if this (Rohingya) problem lingers for a longer time, it may encourage pockets of radicalism and create problems of uncertainty and instability not only for Myanmar and Bangladesh but for the entire region," Momen said. "Rohingya must go back to their homes, earliest the better. The global leadership must come forward to resolve the crisis at its root, not in Bangladesh," he said. Momen, a former Bangladesh permanent representative in the United Nations, became the Foreign Minister after a new government took charge in January. "Had Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina not sheltered the Rohingyas, it would have ended up in the gravest and worst genocide since World War II," said Momen. "Our Prime Minister, by allowing (in) the persecuted people of the Rakhine province of Myanmar, has saved the face of global leaders from ignominy and disgrace," he said. Rohingyas are ethnic Muslim minority concentrated in Rakhine State, and whom the Myanmar government refuses to recognise as citizens and allow basic rights. More than 738,000 Rohingya refugees have arrived in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, since the beginning of the crisis on August 25, 2017, following a wave of persecution and violence in Myanmar that the UN described as an attempt at "ethnic cleansing". The majority of Rohingyas -- more than 620,000 people -- live in just one area: Kutupalong, the largest refugee settlement anywhere in the world. "They need to be repatriated with safety and security at the earliest. Their exodus was created by Myanmar and it is their responsibility to solve it," said the Minister. The first phase of Rohingyas' voluntary repatriation to Myanmar was due to begin in November last year, as per an agreement between Bangladesh and Myanmar on November 23, 2017. However, it could not take off because none of the refugees volunteered to go home amid security concerns in Myanmar. Srinagar, Feb 10 : Jammu and Kashmir's former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti on Sunday praised Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan for deciding to name a forest reserve in Nankana Sahib district after Sikhism's founder Guru Nanak. "How times change. Centre's top priority is seemingly renaming historic cities & building Ram Mandir. On the other hand, heartening to see that Pak PM has initiated steps to name Baloki forest reserve after Guru Nanak ji & create a university under his name," she said in a tweet. Imran Khan had on Saturday announced that the Baloki forest reserve and a new university in Nankana Sahib will be named after the first Sikh Guru. "Pakistan belongs to all citizens equally and we will ensure that Sikh pilgrims are facilitated for celebrating the 550th anniversary of Guru Nanak," he had said at a function in Nankana Sahib. Shimla, Feb 10 : The Himachal Pradesh government is providing all possible assistance to entrepreneurs for establishing food and fruit processing units that will help provide employment and strengthen the economy, Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur said on Sunday. He was speaking through video conference from Shimla after inaugurating Cremica Food Park, set up with an investment of Rs 110 crore, at Singha village in Una district. Union Food Processing Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal was also present through video conference from New Delhi, a state government statement said. Thakur said this food park has been established under the Mega Food Park Scheme launched by the Union government and expected investments of Rs 300 crore, which would not only open new vistas of development in the area, but also strengthening the agricultural economy. The Chief Minister said the state's biggest advantages for the investors are the availability of quality power at most competitive rates and a peaceful environment. The state is making all-out efforts to attract investment and is holding a global investor summit in Dharamsala on June 10 and 11. In his budget speech on Saturday, the Chief Minister said Union Food Processing Ministry has included Pandoga industrial area in Una district, Kandrouri in Kangra district and Aduwal in Solan district in the list of approved food parks. Enterprises establishing food processing units in these areas will be eligible to get loans at concessional terms and will also be eligible for 50 per cent subsidy on additional investment under Kisan Sampada Yojna of the Union government, he said. Kabul, Feb 10 : Afghan forces stormed a Taliban detention centre in Helmand province and rescued seven detainees, an Army statement said on Sunday. The rescued detainees were civilians abducted by the militants, the statement said, adding the detention centre was destroyed on Saturday night, reports Xinhua news agency. It was the second crackdown on Taliban detention centres in the last five days. On February 7, security forces overran a centre in Chahar Dara district of Kunduz province, rescuing five persons. New Delhi, Feb 10 : Aerospace company Boeing on Sunday announced the arrival of the first four CH-47F (I) Chinooks -- an advanced multi-mission helicopter -- for the Indian Air Force (IAF) at the Mundra Port in Gujarat. The CH-47F (I) Chinooks will be ferried to Chandigarh, where they will be formally inducted into the IAF later this year, said a Boeing news release. "The CH-47F (I) Chinook is an advanced multi-mission helicopter that will provide the Indian armed forces with unmatched strategic airlift capability across the full spectrum of combat and humanitarian missions. The Indian Air Force currently has 15 Chinook helicopters on order," said the release. Wellington, Feb 10 : The New Zealand government said on Sunday that it will ban smoking in cars with children. Once the legislation is approved by Parliament, the police will be able to give people warnings or issue a fine of 50 New Zealand dollars ($33) to smokers including those who vape, reports Xinhua news agency. Associate Minister of Health Jenny Salesa said the amendment is expected to take effect by the end of this year. Islamabad, Feb 10 : Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid has said that they will approach Pakistan "as a brother and neighbour", seeking "comprehensive ties based on mutual respect", if they end up having a say in the Afghan polity one day. In an exclusive interview to Dawn news, Mujahid acknowledged that Pakistan had remained "the most important hub" for Afghan refugees during the Soviet invasion, and that it was even considered a "second home" by Afghans. In the interview, he also outlined the motivation for talks with the US, the conditions in which they are prepared to negotiate and their vision for a new political order, while insisting that the Taliban are holding talks with Washington "on their own initiative". "There is no role being played by any outside country. This has always been our own initiative and policy." Mujahid said that even prior to the US invasion in 2001, the Taliban had asked Washington to engage in dialogue instead of war. "But Washington had been unwilling to negotiate at the time," he told Dawn. The Taliban spokesperson said that despite the ongoing talks, the group had not yet reached any conclusion that would entail an immediate end to hostilities. "We are forced to wage war. Our enemies are attacking us; therefore, we are also combating them." The spokesman also spoke on the status of women in Afghanistan. He said the Taliban envisioned an "Islamic society" and wanted to prepare a framework of rights "that do not violate Islamic principles and are accorded to all male and female members". "The intellectual capacity of people has expanded and a lot of experiences have been gained; hence there shall be no problems in affording women and men all their rights in the future." Mumbai, Feb 10 : Veteran actor-director Amol Palekar was interrupted during a speech at an event at the National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) here when he criticised the government. Palekar addressed the audience at the opening of an exhibition in memory of artist Prabhakar Barwe on Friday. In his speech, Palekar expressed concern over policy changes that will give the Ministry of Culture at the Centre the sole right to decide the contents and themes of exhibitions to be held at the NGMA in Mumbai and Bengaluru. "As of November 13, 2018, the artistes' advisory committees operating at both regional centres, that is at Mumbai and Bangalore have been abolished, is what I have learnt. I am in the process of officially inquiring about the details so as to verify the hearsay," he said. "In 2017, we were happy to hear about the plan to open new NGMA branches at Kolkata and in the North East. News of the expansion of this Mumbai venue was also heartening. However on November 13, 2018, another disastrous decision was apparently taken namely, 'all future exhibitions of artworks...," he said before he was cut off by one of the event organisers, who asked him to stick to talk only about Barwe. At this point, Palekar said he was reminded of how writer Nayantara Sahgal's invitation to attend a Marathi literary event was withdrawn because her speech was "slightly critical of the situation around us". "Are we creating the same situation here?" he counter questioned on being stopped. Palekar could not deliver the full speech he had prepared. Seoul, Feb 10 : South Korea on Sunday signed a deal with the US to raise its contribution to the upkeep of American troops here by 8.2 per cent this year. Top negotiators of the two sides inked the agreement in Seoul, under which South Korea will pay 1.03 trillion won ($890 million) for the operation of the 28,500-strong US Forces Korea (USFK), up from 960 billion won in 2018, reports Yonhap News Agency. Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha met Timothy Betts, the top US delegate to the Special Measures Agreement (SMA) talks, minutes before the signing ceremony. Kang said the latest SMA negotiations were a "very long process but ultimately a very successful process". Betts emphasised the importance of the alliance for peace and stability in the region. The US has reaffirmed that there will be no change in American troop levels in South Korea. The previous agreement signed in 2014 expired at the end of 2018. South Korea has shared the financial burden for USFK since the early 1990s. The funds are used to cover the wages of South Korean workers at USFK bases, construction and logistical support. Meanwhile, a group of progressive activists staged a rally on Sunday in front of the Foreign Ministry against the deal, claiming it would increase Seoul's burden excessively. Vinton, IA (52349) Today Partly cloudy skies early followed by scattered thunderstorms overnight. Low near 70F. Winds S at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 50%.. Tonight Partly cloudy skies early followed by scattered thunderstorms overnight. Low near 70F. Winds S at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 50%. Islamabad, Feb 10 : Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Sunday left for a day-long visit to Dubai where he will participate in a global summit, the Foreign Office announced. The World Government Summit is an annual gathering of heads of states and governments, policy makers and experts. It provides an opportunity to discuss improvement in governance through reform, innovation and technology. Khan is expected to meet International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde on the sidelines of the summit to discuss the conditions that have held up the fund's bailout programme, a Foreign Office spokesperson told Dawn news. He will also meet United Arab Emirates Crown prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed bin Sultan Al-Nahyan. Khan is accompanied by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Finance Minister Asad Umar. In his key note address at the summit, the Prime Minister will highlight his vision for a strong and prosperous Pakistan and will encourage investment in different sectors of the economy, the spokesperson added. Regarding Khan's meeting with Lagarde, Foreign Minister Qureshi, while speaking to the media before their departure, said that Islamabad wanted to proceed with the bailout package under conditions that "will not add additional burden on the common man". The IMF is asking for an adjustment of around 1,600-2,000 billion Pakistani rupees over three to four years, reports Dawn news. It also wants some corrective measures to put Pakistan's economy on the right track after witnessing the highest-ever current account deficit. The Fund has also asked for further monetary tightening as well as a complete free float of the exchange rate. New Delhi, Feb 10 (IANS) The entry of Priyanka Gandhi into active politics will not impact the SP-BSP alliance in Uttar Pradesh, where the BJP has been rattled because of the coming together of the two parties, says Neeraj Shekhar, a Samajwadi Party MP. The son of late Prime Minister Chandra Shekhar says Prime Minister Narendra Modi was shaken by the alliance of opposition parties. This is why he was coining words like "mahamilawat" to target them. "In the nation's interest, our aim is to remove Modi and the voter and the workers know it very well. They also know what kind of situation may emerge if Modi wins again," Shekhar told IANS in an interview. He was asked whether keeping the Congress out of the SP-BSP alliance may cost the two parties after Priyanka Gandhi's entered active politics as Congress General Secretary in-charge of eastern Uttar Pradesh. The Rajya Sabha member and a close confidante of former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav expressed confidence that the SP-BSP alliance would confine the saffron party to a single digit. This, he said, would turn the 2019 Lok Sabha polls in favour of the opposition alliance as there was immense anger among the farmers and youth across the country against the Modi government which had failed to fulfil the promises made to them. "The PM is so rattled due to alliance of the opposition parties that he is using the words like 'milawat' and 'mahamilawat' against them. This shows his desperation. He has also sensed that countdown of his departure has begun," he said. "They (BJP) have done alliances with over 40 political parties. They allied with Peoples Democratic Party in Jammu and Kashmir, a party opposed to the BJP's ideology. But when we are forging alliance, it pains them," he added. He called as "farce" BJP President Amit Shah's claim that his party and its allies would not get less that 73 of the 80 seats they won in 2014. In reality, in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Uttar Pradesh will decide Modi's fate, Shekhar said. "Shah may be claiming he can win over 73 seats, but no one will believe it. They will be confined to single digit and their dream to retain power again will remain a dream," he said. Shekhar, a former Lok Sabha member from Ballia, he said if BJP thought that it can cover up the losses in Uttar Pradesh by winning more seats from West Bengal and Odisha, then "they are underestimating Didi (West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee) and Naveen Babu (Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik)". He also said that the BJP will not able to repeat its 2014 performance in Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Bihar and Jharkhand besides Uttar Pradesh. Asked about the lack of a Prime Ministerial face in the opposition, he said all opposition leaders were "very mature" and the issue would be resolved in a day. "They all are very mature and competent. They will take the decision in a day in the best interest of the country. What happened in 1977? All opposition parties fought together and decided their leader after elections," he said. He said that issues related to farmers and youth would take centrestage as the election approaches and claimed that the two sections "will take thier revenge from this government as the promises made to them by BJP in 2014 were not fulfilled. "The Prime Minister remained busy in giving speeches in India and abroad but has not done anything for farmers and the youth in five years. The farmers are in distress and youths are looking for jobs. Now, when they sensed the threat, they have come up with sops for farmers in the Budget. But this is not going to work," he said. He said when it comes to employment, the Prime Minister starts counting the numbers of trucks, autos and other vehicles being sold and says these have created jobs. "The youth voted Modi in 2014 expecting that his government would provide at least one crore jobs every year if it can't provide two crore but they failed. Unemployment has increased and the government has the numbers available with it. But they don't want to make them public. Shekhar, a member of the parliamentary Sanding Committee on Home Affairs, accused the government of failing on all fronts and misleading the countrymen by making false promises in 2014. "His (Modi's) term is going to end but still he is accusing the Congress for its deeds in last 55 years. He is raking up corruption charges which he raised in 2014. You were in power for last five years. Why did you not send them to jail? Now you are using CBI and ED against them. This is not going to deter us from opposing you," he said. The SP leader said that as Modi has "failed on every front, he would resort to Mandir and divisive politics to win the elections as he knows his tall claims of development is not visible on ground and can't gain votes for him". (Brajendra Nath Singh can be contacted at brajendra.n@ians.in) Abu Dhabi, Feb 10 : The Abu Dhabi Judicial Department (ADJD) has added Hindi as the third official language to be spoken in the city's courts, alongside Arabic and English. According to the ADJD, this step was aimed at helping foreigners to learn about litigation procedures, their rights and duties without a language barrier, in addition to facilitating registration procedures via unified forms available through the Department's website, The Khaleej Times reported. "The adoption of multilingual interactive forms for claim sheets, grievances and requests, aims to promote judicial services and increase the transparency of litigation procedures," Yousef Saeed Al Abri, undersecretary of the ADJD, said on Saturday. "This is in addition to facilitating registration procedures to the public through simplified and easy forms and raising litigants' legal awareness via interactive forms of the statements of claims, to ensure access to the legal materials related to the subject of the dispute." Al Abri explained that the adoption of new languages comes as part of the bilingual litigation system, the first phase of which was launched in November 2018, through the adoption of procedures requiring the plaintiffs to translate case documents in civil and commercial lawsuits into English, if the defendant is a foreigner. Of the United Arab Emirates' population of over 9 million people, 88.5 per cent are expatriate workers, according to official figures. Indians account for 38 per cent of the population. Panaji, Feb 9 : If the 'gathbandhan' wins the 2019 general elections, Mayawati will be the Prime Minister on Monday, Akhilesh Yadav will be the premier on Tuesday and so on and so forth, BJP national President Amit Shah said here on Saturday, mocking the efforts to cobble together a coalition against the Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). If the 'gathbandhan' wins the 2019 general elections, Mayawati will be the Prime Minister on Monday, Akhilesh Yadav will be the premier on Tuesday and so on and so forth, BJP national President Amit Shah said here on Saturday, mocking the efforts to cobble together a coalition againstutes left, Xisco had the best chance of equalising when second-half substitute Edmund Lalrindika teed off the Spaniard. But his shot was straight at Karanjit. In the end, it was three points and a much-needed win to savour for Chennaiyin FC in a season that has brought very little joy. Washington, Feb 10 : US President Donald Trump is preparing to sign an executive order next week, banning American carriers from using equipment from Chinese technology players, the media reported on Sunday. The decision is expected to be announced ahead of the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona from February 25, the Android Police reported. "Both the White House and Congress have been trying to ban networking infrastructure from Chinese companies for months," the report said. Chinese tech giant Huawei has been in bad light after the US Justice Department last month filed a host of criminal charges, including bank fraud, obstruction of justice and theft of technology against the company and its detained Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou. Apart from Huawei, ZTE has also been listed to be banned from being used by network operators in the US. The US has long suspected and often accused the Chinese government of encouraging trade secret theft as a way to build up its own industries which has reportedly prompted the US administration to take such drastic measures. "Government officials are mainly targeting Huawei and ZTE's network infrastructure business, so the sale of phones and tablets to US consumers would likely not be affected," the report said. Earlier in January, an Apple engineer of Chinese origin -- Jizhong Chen -- was found to have been attempting to leak confidential intellectual information about the company's secret autonomous vehicle programme to a China-based autonomous vehicle company where he had applied for a job as well. New Delhi, Feb 10 (IANS) At a time when there are a few or no takers for stalled residential projects, the public sector construction major NBCC is willing to take up such properties for completion, provided they are commercially viable and do not hurt the company's balance sheet. After agreeing to take up few incomplete projects of Amrapali Group, NBCC is now looking to take up the incomplete housing projects of Jaypee Infratech. In an interview to IANS, NBCC CMD Anoop Kumar Mittal said that the company is willing to take up any stalled realty project for completion if it seems profitable. He said that being a Board-governed company, it would take decisions based on commercial viability of the projects. "Wherever there will be some opportunity we can complete the stalled projects without compromising the balance sheet and profitability or whatever commercial interest we have... We are ready to take those projects," he said. Speaking of the Amrapali projects, he said that part of the work has started. The Supreme Court last month gave a go-ahead to NBCC for completing the construction of two projects of the Amrapali Group. Regarding upcoming redevelopment projects, he said that it is currently working on the design and Detailed Project Reports (DPR) of Air India's two land parcels at Baba Kharak Singh Marg and Vasant Vihar in the national capital. In September, the national carrier gave an in principle approval to NBCC for monetising or redeveloping the non-core assets in the city. The projects assume significance as the property at Baba Kharak Singh Marg in Connaught Place is likely to be another major commercial hub in the heart of the national capital. The plot at Baba Kharak Singh Marg is spread across 3.54 acres while that in Vasant Vihar which houses Air India's staff colony spreads across 30 acres. He also said that its bid for the bankrupt Jaypee Infratech at the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) is a major target ahead and if approved, it would be a "big work". Talking of the financial growth of the company, Mittal said the company aims a minimum growth of 30 per cent in its profit and revenue for the financial year 2019-20. "In 2019-20, our plan is that minimum 30 per cent growth in top line and bottom line in all our business verticals." On the issues faced by the real estate sector, he noted that although the there has been an uptick in sales in the past few months, demand still remains a concern. He observed that realty players along with the government should come up with a mechanism to maintain stock of unsold inventory in the local or district level and gauge the demand-supply parity. "I feel that there should be some mechanisms before local bodies allow any developer to start the project. They should also see whether that demand is still available in that area... There should be some mechanism," Mittal told IANS. "Before sanctioning the houses that kind of analysis should be done. There can be some variation in that, 5-20 per cent, but there should not be variation of 300-500 per cent," he said. (Rituraj Baruah can be contacted at rituraj.b@ians.in) Lucknow, Feb 10 (IANS) What could be more ironic than the fact that while distressed farmers in the state are clamouring for protection from stray cattle, a problem that has assumed menacing proportions with crops worth crores of rupees being lost due to it, the Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh has set aside an unprecedented over Rs 600 crore for the protection and welfare of cows in the State Budget for 2019-20. It's a different matter that top government functionaries mouth sympathies for farmers as Lok Sabha elections are round the corner and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has already paid a price in terms of three state governments in the recent polls for ignoring farmers' issues. With the growing trouble among farmers in Uttar Pradesh over stray cattle ruining their harvest, the spectre could result in a possible backlash in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Naturally, there is anxiety in the state's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leadership. Old and abandoned cattle that are being set free because they are no longer of any use, have become a terror for people as they destroy crops and fields and add to the agony of already distressed farmers. As for the government that had vowed to protect the 'gau mata' and banned slaughter houses, it appears to have given farmers a short shrift. The budget also proposes Rs 247.60 crore for maintenance and construction of gaushalas in the rural areas. Malkhan Chauhan, a small farmer in Darveshpur (Barabanki), some 55 km from here, told IANS how his 3-bigha farm land had been devastated by stray cattle. "I spent a lot of money for seeds and fertilisers, and now the cattle menace have forced me to shell out another Rs 10,000 to fence the field to protect the crop," said an upset Chauhan. A frustrated Ranjeet Maurya (40) in neighbouring Kanhaipur who lost his crop to the menace criticised the Yogi Adityanath government for his troubles. "Yogi ordered closure of slaughter houses, now see what's happening," he said and added cow vigilantes and Hindu outfits should "adopt ten cows each". Crops of potato, wheat and mustard have been destroyed by the stray bulls and cows in his village, he said. Many cattle has also been abandoned due to growing mechanisation of farming. Rizwan Ahmad, a dairy owner in Hariharnagar, said once the cows go dry (stop giving milk) they are thrown out by farmers. "What else do we do of them?" he asked. Many Muslim milk sellers like Ahmad Ali, a dairy owner in Chinhat, said his community is scared. "We hear stories about members of the community being roughed up for transporting cows," he said. They can neither keep a large number of animals nor abandon them, he added. That the cattle menace has taken centre-stage for many farmers can be gauged from the fact that in many parts of the state, angry farmers have locked up cattle in schools, hospitals, community health centres. Their demand: fix this menace. Their threat: face music at the hustings. The government has expedited building cattle shelters and 'gau shaalas' but the bureaucratic inertia seems to have retarded the pace. Thus the state missed the January 10 deadline set by the Chief Minister Adityanath for district magistrates to shift stray cattle to these shelters. Penal action has also been sought against cattle owners who abandon or lock them up in public properties. "The chief minister is serious about the issue. Many steps are being taken to tackle the problem", additional chief secretary (Information) Awanish Kumar Awasthi told IANS. There are 510 registered cow shelters in the state. According to a 2012 government data, there were around two crore cows in the state. Adityanath has also called for a fresh census and allocated funds for that. Animal Husbandry Minister S.P. Singh Baghel agrees that there is a problem, but claimed "a solution is on the way". However, he pointed out that the number of stray cattle was also a reflection of the staggering number that was being slaughtered before the ban." Samajwadi Party (SP) spokesman Abdul Hafiz Gandhi said the BJP government has "misplaced priorities" and predicted that farmers' anger "would cost them dear" in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The state government has also levied a 0.5 per cent tax Cow Protection Cess on eight government departments, including the cash-rich excise department. (Mohit Dubey can be contacted at mohit.d@ians.in) Srinagar, Feb 10 : Police said on Sunday they are probing the conduct of two policemen seen in a video clip misbehaving with a woman in Jammu and Kashmir's Shopian district. The clip went viral on social media. A police spokesman said a complaint was lodged by a 15-year-old girl's father saying the minor had been kidnapped by three persons. "During the investigation, a team from the Shopian police station went to the residence of the accused persons for recovering the kidnapped girl. "On reaching there, the police couldn't recover the girl but found two of the three accused persons, Mohsin Khan and Saleem Khan. "While trying to arrest them, the other family members including women attacked the police party... This led to the escape of one of the accused persons. "Family members of the accused, especially ladies, tried to block the policemen on duty. "The video surfaced on the incident is being probed and an inquiry is ordered to examine the conduct of the men on duty. "It is, however, clarified that the incident happened during the investigation of a serious crime of kidnapping of a minor girl," the spokesman said. Taipei, Feb 10 : Pilots in Taiwan continued their strike for a third day on Sunday after talks to end the logjam broke down without any headway. Around 400 of China Airlines' (CAL) over 1,300 pilots have been taking part in the strike since Friday which has so far led to the cancellation of 22 flights and another four delayed at the end of the Lunar New Year holiday -- the island's busiest period for air travel, reports Efe news. The biggest carrier in Taiwan announced the cancellation of 17 flights on Monday and one on Tuesday due to the strike. More than 5,000 passengers have been affected. Pilots union president Lee Hsin-yen said that no date has been set for resumption of talks over their various demands including concessions to prevent pilot fatigue. The union urged CAL to increase the number of pilots and co-pilots in flights longer than eight and 12 hours, as well as better pay and promotion process. Other demands include a guarantee for full year-end bonus packages for employees. The airlines, in which the government holds a 35 per cent stake, had initially responded to the strike by threatening to suspend the contracts of striking pilots but decided against going ahead with it on Saturday. In June 2016, CAL pilots had led a 24-hour strike leading to the cancellation of 76 flights, affecting more than 20,000 passengers. New Delhi, Feb 10 (IANS) While the Delhi government is trying woo them with a draft agricultural policy, farmers of the national capital do not seem to be very happy with the ruling Aam Aadmi Party on the issue of high electricity charges every month. "The Arvind Kejriwal government is being praised across the country for low electricity charges in Delhi. They claim to give the cheapest electricity to the Delhi people but farmers are made to pay higher rates," Naresh Kumar, a farmer from West Delhi's Hiran Kudna village told IANS. "The fixed charge on the electricity meters on our tubewells is very high. This is costing us a lot, despite the fact that we don't use the tubewells throughout the year. Any farmer will use the tubewell only during the harvest seasons, which account for a maximum of two months. But we have to pay high charges to the electricity department throughout the year," he said. The fixed electricity charge for agriculture use in Delhi is Rs 125 per kilowatt per month as per the tariff schedule. "So, if a farmer has a meter of 10 kilowatts to run a tubewell, he will have to pay a minimum of Rs 1,250 per month. The charge increase with the increase in the kilowatt. This is excluding the charges we have to pay for usage," said another farmer. "There are months when we have to have over Rs 4,000 for the electricity. This increases the overall cost of production and we are not getting any help from the government in this regard," he added. Echoing similar sentiments, 65-year-old Satbir Sharma said the profit margin of farmers has reduced because of this high charge. "The Kejriwal government came to power with a promise to give cheaper electricity and free water to people. But the opposite happened with the farmers. We have to pay so much in terms of fixed charge even though we hardly use the tubewells. Per acre, we get a profit of Rs 10,000 and of that if Rs 5,000 or Rs 6,000 is given for electricity, what is our benefit," Sharma said. Some farmers also said that they have to give the fixed charge even when they purchase meters on their own, while some others said they have to pay this charge for the electricity they use in their homes as well. Although no official data is available, at an estimate, there are about 20,000 families of farmers in the national capital. Agriculture in Delhi is being done on about 75,000 acres of land. When contacted, Delhi Development Minister, Gopal Rai, said the government has acknowledged the issue raised by the farmers and is discussing the matter. "We are having a discussion on the matter. We have got to know about the issue recently. Our government is working to make the life of a farmer easy. We will find a solution for this very soon," Rai said. While several farmers are demanding the reduction of the fixed charge, some others demand it free. "The farmers in the national capital are very less in number. The government can give us electricity free of cost," said 72-year-old Balbir Jatt. Apart from electricity, the farmers are also demanding a Delhi Agriculture Commission. "The Commission will help the farmers in the issues faced by them," another farmer Man Singh Dagar said, adding that the commission should be headed by a local farmer so that he understand ground level issues. In December last year, the Delhi government had formed an expert committee comprising a senior scientist from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, farmers representatives and officers of the Agriculture Department for drafting the Agricultural Policy for Delhi. The Committee has deliberated upon various issues pertaining to agriculture in Delhi, including the implementation of recommendations of the Swaminathan Committee Report on the Minimum Support Price (MSP). Apart from MSP, the government is also working and gathering inputs on the possibilities of organic farming and the problem of land shrinking. Impact of urbanization is also being worked out on in the policy, a senior official told IANS. (Nivedita Singh can be contacted at nivedita.singh@ians.in) Amaravati, Feb 10 : Protests were staged across Andhra Pradesh on Sunday as Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived here on a day-long visit during which he will unveil developmental projects and address a mass rally. Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan, senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders received Modi at the Gannavaram Airport at Vijayawada. He later flew in a helicopter to Guntur where he will launch the projects and address the rally. Wearing black dresses and carrying black flags, the protesters took to the streets since early Sunday morning. Raising slogans like "Modi go back", the activists of various political parties, student groups and mass organisations staged sit-ins or took out rallies. Leaders and activists of the ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP), Congress and Left parties also participated in the protests staged in all the 13 districts that called for a Special Category Status (SCS) to the state Barring the BJP, YSR Congress and Jana Sena of actor Pawan Kalyan, all parties backed the protests. Leaders of the Left parties held protests in Guntur. They threatened to disrupt Modi's rally over his "betrayal" to the state. Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu said Modi had no right to visit the state as he has not fulfilled his promise to accord the SCS and various other commitments the Prime Minister had made during the state's bifurcation in 2014. This is Modi's first visit to Andhra Pradesh after the TDP pulled out of BJP-led NDA last year. New Delhi, Feb 10 (IANS) Amid the controversy over the withholding of a report on the country's unemployment situation, the government has cited data from provident fund rcords, Income Tax filings and the National Pension System (NPS), besides a possible upswing in the informal sector to show generation of crores of new jobs. However, this does not mean there is an increase in the jobs, experts say. During his reply on the motion of thanks on the President's address in the Lok Sabha on Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said new jobs were created in the unorganised sector, which accounts for 80-85 per cent employment, citing an increase in the sale of commercial vehicles, infrastructure building and housing activities. He said about 1.8 crore people had enrolled in the Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) in the past 15 months, and 64 per cent of them, who were below the age of 28 were first-time employees. Modi also cited the data showing increase in the registration of employees under the National Pension Scheme (NPS) from 65 lakh in March 2014 to 1.2 crore till October 2018. Considering the EPF enrolments as a reflector of job creation is not correct as it can be formalisation of informal jobs, said Mahesh Vyas, Chief Executive Officer of Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), a think tank. "When a person enrols for the EPF, it does not necessarily mean that the person has got a job. It is quite likely that you have enrolled for the the EPF for the first time though you had a job for a long time," he said. "The law requires an employer with 20 people or more to register with the EPFO. If a firm has got 19 employees till yesterday and today 20th person joins in, then all 20 get enrolled for the first time. So it looks like employment has gone up by 20 when actually it is one." Another expert, who did not wish to be named, said there cannot be a correlation between EPF enrolment and job creation "since it has so many moving parts and variables, so one could interpret it differently". Modi also had said that new 6.35 lakh new non-corporate tax payers such as doctors must have provided jobs in past four years. The expert called it "incomprehensible" in the absence of the source of the data. In his speech, the Prime Minister said he expected over 1.25 crore people have got jobs in the transport sector with the sale of 36 lakh commercial vehicles and 27 lakh auto-rickshaws. He also cited setting up of two lakh service call centres, infrastructure building, hotel constructions and housing activities for the creation of employment in the country. Vyas said if a farmer takes up a labourer' job or moves to driving a truck, it cannot be considered a new job. According to the CMIE statistics, India's unemployment rate shot up to 7.4 per cent in December, 2018 and the number of unemployed increased by a substantial 11 million - the highest in 15 months. Modi had taken a dig at the past governments for failing to establish standard system to tally employment and said only 7-8 sectors were taken into account to arrive at the employment rate when, in reality, jobs were created in 100-odd sectors. Vyas said Modi was possibly referring to enterprise survey conducted by the Labour Ministry, which is one of the ways to estimate employment. "That is not the best way to estimate employment and unemployment in country like India. But what the Prime Minister did not mention was that India also conducted a large house-hold survey. It is the most appropriate way of computing it and will capture all sectors. He is partially right but selective in the kind of survey done," he said. "The traditional way, which is a good way of calculating employment and unemployment, is the NSSO household survey," he added. The National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) report, which the government has withheld, said the unemployment rate was 6.1 per cent in 2017-18, post-demonetisation and was at its highest level since 1972-73 - the period since when the jobs data is comparable. (Saurabh Katkurwar can be contacted at saurabh.k@ians.in) London, Feb 10 : A British rapper was killed in a car crash while he was en route to a concert, police said. The 28-year-old rapper called Cadet, whose real name is Blaine Johnson, was being driven to a gig at Keele University in Staffordshire on Saturday, CNN reported. A statement on Cadet's Instagram page, said: "We the family of Blaine Cameron Johnson known as Cadet (Underrated Legend) would like to share the sad news that during the early hours of February 9 he passed away as a passenger in a taxi, en route to a performance. "Right now we the family appreciate your patience and will share with you any information as and when we can. Thanks for your support in advance." Staffordshire Police said the rapper died at the scene following a collision between the taxi and a van. Lucknow, Feb 10 : The death toll in the twin hooch tragedies in Uttar Pradesh and neighbouring Uttarakhand has increased to 97, with over 200 people arrested in a police crackdown, officials said on Sunday. A total of 64 deaths were reported in Uttar Pradesh -- 54 in Saharanpur district and 11 in Kushinagar. Saharanpur District Magistrate Alok Kumar Pandey told IANS that of the 46 post-mortems conducted so far, 36 were confirmed to have died due to the consumption of spurious liquor. Meerut Superintendent of Police (SP) Ranvijay Singh said 14 people undergoing treatment at the Meerut Medical College, were in serious condition. Meanwhile, 32 deaths were also reported in Haridwar, Uttarakhand, according to Excise Department officials The Uttar Pradesh victims had visited Balupur in Roorkie, Uttarakhand, on February 7 for a funeral after which they consumed the illicit liquor, police sources said. In the police crackdown, 9,269 litres of hooch was seized in Uttar Pradesh while 1,066 litres was recovered in Uttarakhand. A total of 215 persons have been arrested in Uttar Pradesh, while cases against 297 persons have been filed. Forty-nine cases have been registered in Uttarakhand. The Uttar Pradesh government has ordered a magisterial enquiry into the tragedy and many officials of the police and the Excise Department have been suspended. Srinagar, Feb 10 : A gunfight erupted on Sunday between the security forces and militants in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district, police said. Upon receiving a tip-off about the militants, the security forces started a search operation in Kelam village. "As the cordon around the hiding militants was tightened, they fired at the security forces triggering the ongoing encounter," the police said. Authorities have suspended mobile Internet services in Kulgam as a precautionary measure. Washington, Feb 10 : Democrat Senator Elizabeth Warren has officially launched her 2020 presidential campaign at a rally, using the backdrop of Everett Mills -- the site of a historic 1912 labour strike led by women and immigrants. Over 44 minutes in sub-freezing temperatures in Lawrence, Massachusetts, Warren on Saturday issued a call for action against wealthy power brokers who "have been waging class warfare against hardworking people for decades", CNN reported. "The man in the White House is not the cause of what is broken, he is just the latest and most extreme symptom of what's gone wrong in America," Warren said of President Donald Trump. "A product of a rigged system that props up the rich and powerful and kicks dirt on everyone else. So once he's gone, we can't pretend that none of this ever happened." The formal start of the Massachusetts Senator's White House campaign comes as the Democratic primary intensifies by the day, with numerous candidates including Indian American Senator Kamala Harris, already in the race, and others, like Senators Bernie Sanders and Amy Klobuchar, expected to jump in soon. In a warning to rivals, Warren touted her refusal to accept donations from lobbyists, corporate PACs (political action committees) or the support of super PACs, and challenged "every other candidate who asks for your vote in this primary to say exactly the same thing". Warren was joined by family, including her husband, Bruce, two children and grandchildren. In the days leading up to Saturday's announcement, Warren had been weighed down by new questions over her past claims to Native American heritage. The Washington Post reported that Warren wrote in 1986 that her race was "American Indian" in a Texas state bar registration card, adding to the list of instances in which the Senator self-identified this way. The disclosure prompted yet another public apology from Warren, just days after she had expressed remorse to Cherokee leaders for using a DNA test last year to try to show her Native American ancestry. Warren is slated to begin a six-state tour on Sunday, CNN reported. After Lawrence, she will travel north to campaign in New Hampshire before flying to Iowa and then South Carolina, Georgia, Nevada and California next week. The campaign's decision to stage its first major rally in Lawrence, a former industrial mill town, was an appeal to the key constituency groups -- immigrants, women, working class families, union members -- Warren hopes to appeal to. "There'll be plenty of doubters and cowards and armchair critics this time around," Warren said. "But we learned a long time ago, you don't get what you don't fight for." In 1912, textile workers in Lawrence, many of them immigrant women, walked off the job and went on strike to protest wage cuts. In an email to supporters last week, Warren's campaign wrote: "Underpaid, overworked, and flat-out exploited workers from more than 50 countries gave Lawrence the nickname 'Immigrant City.'" In her speech on Saturday, she pledged to go further, to "break up monopolies when they choke off competition" and "take on Wall Street banks so that the big banks can never again threaten the security of our economy". Paris, Feb 10 : A "yellow vest" protester in France had his fingers ripped off during violent clashes at the Parliament building in Paris, as the anti-government protests entered its 13th week, the media reported on Sunday. According to French media reports, the incident took place on Saturday when the protester attempted to pick up a rubber pellet grenade and it exploded in his hand, reports the BBC. According to French government figures, 51,400 people joined the protests on Saturday, 4,000 of them in Paris. That was down from the previous week, when official figures put the number at 58,600, 10,500 in the capital city. In Paris, the protesters marched from the Champs-Elysees to the city's Parliament buildings, where a violent contingent broke down barriers and threw projectiles at police. The police responded with tear gas and anti-riot munitions. Tens of thousands of protesters turned out in other parts of France, including the port cities of Marseille and Montpellier and also in Bordeaux and Toulouse in the southwest. Eight police officers were lightly injured during clashes with protesters in Bordeaux. There was also an arson attack on the home of Richard Ferrand, the head of France's National Assembly, though it was not clear if the attack was linked to the protests, the BBC reported. Ferrand published pictures on Twitter of his scorched living room, writing: "Nothing justifies intimidations and violence towards an elected official of the Republic." What began as anti-fuel tax protests in November 2018, the yellow vests - who owe their sobriquet to the high-visibility jackets the protesters wear - have since morphed into catch-all demonstrations against the French government and President Emmanuel Macron. But since the government decided to delay the increase in fuel taxes and Macron announced measures favouring purchasing power, the number of participants has dropped radically. Their demands, however, have multiplied, with yellow vests carrying posters calling for "Frexit" - the exit of France from the European Union - while others were looking for "a better world" and some also requesting Macron's resignation. The law passed by the National Assembly this week that called for more measures to be taken against violence occurring on the fringes of the movement, which is attributed to far-right and far-left groups, was also one of the main targets of the yellow vests, who call it "freedomcide". Hubballi-dharwad : , Feb 10 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi will unveil development projects in Karnataka's twin cities of Hubballi and Dharwad northwest region and address a BJP convention on Sunday, a party official said. "Modi will fly to Hubballi from Tiruppur in Tamil Nadu later in the day to participate in 2-3 public programmes and address our state leaders and cadres from all the state," party official S. Shantaram told IANS. The twin cities are about 400km from the state capital Bengaluru. Modi will first lay the foundation stone of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT-Dharwad) and dedicate the city distribution project in Dharwad and 1.5-tonne Mangaluru strategic petroleum facility (SPR) and the 2.5-tonne Padur SPR facility of the state-run Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Ltd (ISPRL). The Prime Minister will also dedicate doubling of 18km Chikjajur-Mayakonda section railway line for passenger and freight services, and initiate the electrification work of 346-km Hospeta-Hubballi-Vasco da Gama line in this region. The electrification of the broad gauge will reduce travel time and emission of greenhouse gas with lower diesel consumption. Before addressing the party convention in Hubballi, Modi will witness the e-griha pravesh (house warming) of 2,384 houses built under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana in Dharwad. "Modi will launch the BJP's campaign for the ensuing Lok Sabha elections, due in April-May, as the party will contest in all the 28 parliamentary constituencies in the southern state," added the official. The party had won 17 Lok Sabha seats in 2014 general elections. Los Angeles, Feb 10 : Actor Charlie Sheen, who celebrated one year of sobriety in December 2018, has encouraged actress Lindsay Lohan to "stay the course" in her sobriety journey. "I always had tremendous affection for her. I can totally relate to some of the stuff she had gone through, was going through. (I'd) just tell her, just stay the course. You can't change the past, but they would not call it that if it was not, right?" he told usmagazine.com. Lohan had insisted she has put her partying ways behind her, and is now focused on running her own chain of nightclubs instead of spending her time partying in them. She said: "That was so in my past. Most of my friends (now), actually, who own nightclubs and stuff aren't drinkers or anything. "Because I'm running the show, I have to be on it and I have to keep myself busy. It's more fun to watch other people have their own fun with what they are doing. There's no judgment in it though. It has nothing to do with my past." Washington, Feb 10 : Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren has officially launched her election campaign to become the party's presidential candidate for the 2020 United States polls. Warren on Saturday made the announcement at an event in Lawrence in her home state of Massachusetts, where she took a shot at the current administration and the nation's politics, Xinhua news agency reported. "We need to take power in Washington away from the wealthy and well-connected and put it back in the hands of the people where it belongs," she said in her speech. The campaign of Warren, who's on the Democratic Party's left flank, will focus on economic equality, government accountability and reining in big corporations. She pledged on Saturday to "break up monopolies when they choke off competition" and "take on Wall Street banks so that the big banks can never again threaten the security of our economy." Warren has faced questions about her past claims of Native American ancestry. Her decision last year to release the results of a DNA test intended to prove her claims drew criticism from Native American groups. The senator apologized earlier this week for those claims, clarifying that she is not a member of any tribe. Brad Parscale, campaign manager for President Donald Trump's 2020 re-election, accused Warren of being a "fraud." "Elizabeth Warren has already been exposed as a fraud by the Native Americans she impersonated and disrespected to advance her professional career, and the people of Massachusetts she deceived to get elected," Parscale said in a statement on Saturday. Trump has called Warren "Pocahontas" and claimed that she benefited in schools and work from minority status. Warren, 69, has represented Massachusetts in the Senate since 2013. In November last year, she won re-election to the upper chamber for a second term. She's now officially joining a crowded field of Democrats seeking the party's nomination to take on Trump next year. Other prominent Democratic figures who have announced presidential bids include California Senator Kamala Harris, New Jersey Senator Cory Booker, and New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. "Vivo has evolved from a follower to a leader in the tech and lifestyle industry." said Spark Ni, Senior Vice President of Vivo. "Through the new branding, we hope to redefine the brand's positioning in technology and innovation and express our brand vision of 'enjoying the extraordinary' with young consumers around the world through Vivo's unique visuals and creative spirit." Vivo partnered with renowned Danish designer Bo Linnemann to design the new logo. The new logo features simplified lines and sharpened angles to reflect the forward-looking spirit of Vivo. The company has also revamped its "Vivo Blue" color by using a more saturated shade of blue as a result of a study by Vivo to better understand consumer visual habits and their visual receptiveness to digital displays. The new color is deemed more soothing to the eye and the color is the ideal visual backdrop for the company's creative and expressive character. Vivo has also revealed its English Language VivoType font, which comes with 6 weights and 2 widths, plus the Chinese Language VivoType font in 2 weights, to ensure that the fonts can be adapted seamlessly to different regions and languages. The new English Language and Chinese Language VivoType fonts are designed by Bo Linnemann and Chinese calligrapher Qiu Yin respectively. "Vivo is not only an industry leader in the smartphone technology, but also a brand that is willing and genuine in its communications with consumers. Building on Vivo's strong international visibility and influence, this new visual brand identity will better channel the brand's character and attractiveness." said Bo Linnemann, Contributing Designer to Vivo's branding project. The new branding will be updated to VI systems and rolled out to offline channels with immediate effect. About Bo Linnemann Bo Linnemann has influenced Danish design since the beginning of the 1980's. He has been awarded the Danish Design Prize for graphic design for 17 times and has also received a number of international design prizes such as Red Dot. He has designed the font for international brands including Carlsberg, Microsoft, Coca Cola and Ikea. About Qiu Yin Qiu Yin is a Chinese font design master and renowned hard-pen calligrapher. He won the 1985 National Chinese Pen Calligraphy Competition, and the first international hard-pen calligraphy competition in 1988. He designed the font for the 2010 Guangzhou Asian games emblem. About Vivo Vivo is a leading global technology company committed to creating trendsetting smart mobile innovations and services. Vivo is devoted to forming a vibrant mobile internet ecosystem, and currently owns and operates an extensive network of research operations, with R&D centers in the US (San Diego) and China (Dongguan, Shenzhen, Nanjing, Beijing and Hangzhou). These centers focus on the development of cutting-edge consumer technologies including 5G, AI, mobile photography and next-generation smartphone design. By the end of 2017, Vivo had over two hundred million users enjoying its mobile products and services around the world. Vivo is present in 18 markets globally and features offline retail stores in over 1,000 cities worldwide. SOURCE Vivo Partnership marks the first bank collaboration for Beehive in Asia Digitalized supply chain provides improved liquidity for SMEs First of a kind fintech partnership for Tbank in corporate space Mr. Anuwat Luengtawekul EVP, Chief Retail & Small Business Banking at Thanachart Bank, said, "It is our strategic direction to enhance our digital technology capability to deliver a better customer experience. The new Value Chain Financing Program will digitalize the traditional supply chain process and revolutionize SME access to finance." (Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/818540/TBank_and_Beehive_Partnership.jpg ) SMEs can experience challenges trying to find finance fast enough to maintain good working capital and ensure continued growth. The partnership with Beehive Asia, part of the global Beehive fintech group, will offer enhanced digital financial solutions to SMEs looking to improve liquidity through Invoice Finance. Beehive, a fintech pioneer, has considerable experience developing digital finance products for SMEs. "We look forward to co-operating with Sponsors (large and medium corporates) who have creditworthy SME suppliers that can access loans through the Value Chain Financing Program. This product is unsecured lending, low interest, maximum 90% of invoice value and has no-front end fee. It is also available for businesses that are not currently Tbank customers. "This is an exciting opportunity to combine synergies. Uniting Thanachart brand awareness with Beehive's innovative fintech capabilities, the Value Chain Financing Program will bring greater efficiency and value to customers and put Tbank at the forefront of Thailand's 4.0 digital economy," Mr. Anuwat Luengtawekul added. Mr. Justin Wright, Beehive's Head of Asia, said: "The Value Chain Financing Program offers significant potential for Tbank to strengthen their SME product portfolio. We look forward to a strong collaboration with a view to further expansion of the partnership in the future." Craig Moore, Beehive Founder and CEO, added: "This partnership marks an exciting step in our Asian expansion plans and is a great example of banking and fintech collaboration." About Thanachart Bank: Thanachart Bank Public Company Limited (TBANK) is Thailand's sixth-largest bank by assets size and the country's leading automobile lender. With more than 500 branches nationwide, Thanachart Bank offers a full range of financial services to over 4 million customers including Retail, Hire Purchase, Corporate and SME banking, Insurance, Life Assurance, Securities Brokerage and Fund Management. As of Mar 31, 2017, Thanachart Bank's total assets exceeded 1 trillion baht. About Beehive Asia: Beehive Asia, part of the global Beehive fintech group, is a digital platform providing smarter finance solutions to businesses, financial institutions and investors. Combining financial market experience with technology innovation, we accelerate efficiency and functionality to deliver new financial solutions to market. SOURCE Beehive Asia (Beehive P2P Ltd.) (Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/819972/Ajman_University.jpg ) Only 13 institutions in the Arab Region have been accredited by the ACCA; and, AU is the third university in the UAE to earn this prestigious qualification. Graduating from an accredited program means that AU's accounting alumni are eligible for exemptions when taking the professional examinations required for ACCA certification. Effective immediately and through December 2023, AU's accounting graduates are exempted from taking 6 exams out of a possible 9. AU is now listed on the ACCA website's "exemptions calculator" to inform students of the exemptions for which they qualify. "This positive outcome - awarded on the basis our accounting program's strengths - further increases the value and visibility of our University as a whole," commented Chancellor Karim Seghir. "Ajman University has now earned five international accreditations for academic programs. I continue to be incredibly proud of the great strides being made by our historic and global institution." SOURCE Ajman University Zero Hedge February 10, 2019 President Trumps 2020 campaign manager took a hatchet to Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) on Saturday ahead of her official presidential campaign kickoff. Elizabeth Warren has already been exposed as a fraud by the Native Americans she impersonated and disrespected to advance her professional career, and the people of Massachusetts she deceived to get elected, said Brad Parscale in a statement. The American people will reject her dishonest campaign and socialist ideas like the Green New Deal, that will raise taxes, kill jobs and crush Americas middle-class. Only under President Trumps leadership will America continue to grow safer, secure and more prosperous, he added. Parscales statement came shortly before Warren was expected to give a speech announcing her bid for the White House marking the first time the Trump campaign has issued such a statement blasting a political opponent. Warrens announcement comes days after Fauxcahontas was outed by the Washington Post for having listed her race as American Indian on a Texas State Bar registration in the mid-1980s. Meanwhile, lines for National Origin and Physical handicap were left blank. As WaPo explains, the card is significant because, for the first time, it shows that Warren directly claimed the identity. One spokeswoman said Warren was sorry for not more mindful of this(presumably referring to the risks that this would all blow up in her face later in life), when she was younger, and for falsely identifying as a Native American for more than two decades. I cant go back, Warren told WaPo. Earlier this month Warren apologized to the Cherokee Nation for her decision to take a DNA test to prove her Native American ancestry, a move that the NYT said had angered some tribal leaders and ignited a significant political backlash. Hilariously, Warren owned herself after releasing a DNA test confirming that shes as little as 1/1024th Native American about half the percentage of the average white person. So Elizabeth Warren is *possibly* 1/1024 (0.09%) Native American. Scientists say the average European-American is 0.18% Native American. (https://t.co/XU0l1JQO1L) That'd make Warren even less Native American than the average European-American. Michael Ahrens (@michael_ahrens) October 15, 2018 Whats more, the DNA expert she used, Stanford University professor Carlos Bustamente, used samples from Mexico, Peru, and Colombia to stand in for Native American as opposed to, say, DNA from a Cherokee Indian which Warren has claimed to be throughout her career. Elizabeth Warren has to go back 10 generations to find a non-white person in her family lineage. Warren is extremely, extraordinarily, almost completely white. Way whiter than the average whitey. That's the real headline here. Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) October 15, 2018 Elizabeth Warren edition of South Park. pic.twitter.com/fpjEkgffBZ Rita Panahi (@RitaPanahi) October 15, 2018 This article was posted: Sunday, February 10, 2019 at 8:25 am Print this page. Infowars.com Videos: Comment on this article Breitbart February 10, 2019 Five million Latin Americans plan to migrate to the United States in the next 12 months, and an estimated 42 million more say they want to enter the country. Those statistics were in a report from Jim Clifton, the chairman and CEO at Gallup: Forty-two million seekers of citizenship or asylum are watching to determine exactly when and how is the best time to make the move. This suggests that open borders could potentially attract 42 million Latin Americans. A full 5 million who are planning to move in the next 12 months say they are moving to the U.S. The poll came as Democrats began using their new political clout to try to widen the catch-and-release loopholes in President Donald Trumps border defenses. Breitbart News reported: Democrats say the DHS does not need so many detention beds but instead can release and track migrants or resident illegals by using Alternatives to Detention, such as monitors strapped to migrants ankles. Democrats also argue that migrants who bring children should not be detained. If that rule is adopted by Congress, all migrants who bring children to the border would be quickly released into the U.S. jobs market. Read more This article was posted: Sunday, February 10, 2019 at 8:13 am Print this page. Infowars.com Videos: Comment on this article Zero Hedge February 10, 2019 Chase Bank has notified Proud Boys Chairman Enrique Tarrio that they will no longer do business with him, and he has until April 1st to move his money out, according to a letter obtained by Big League Politics. Enrique Tarrio (left) While the bank hasnt stated why they are shutting Tarrios accounts, the letter comes just days after Chase Banks payment processor, Chase Paymentech, de-platformed him on a website he runs that allows groups and charities to sell merchandise, and raise money for causes, writes Big League Politics Waldo Crane. The website, 1776.shop, is most known for selling the famous Roger Stone Did Nothing Wrong shirts which Stone was spotted in during the late-night arrest at his home. Big League Politics Via Big League Politics Tarrio who is Cuban and Black, was prominently featured in a September article in the Daily Beast highlighting young men of color joining White-Supremacist groups. Of note, the Proud Boys a fraternal organization founded by Gavin McInnes, has been labeled a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, for which McInnes is currently suing them. A d v e r t i s e m e n t Since the Daily Beast report, Tarrio says he has been deplatformed by a number of services, including: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Airbnb, FirstData, Square, Stripe and PayPal. My political views pretty much mirror those of President Donald Trump, Tarrio tells Big League Politics. But the media, and groups like the Southern Poverty Law Center, smear me trying to tie me, an Afro-Cuban, to ideologies that would force me out of my own country if they went into effect. Its completely asinine and based completely outside of reality. Tarrio is worried that he wont be able to function in the 21st century if he continues to be blacklisted. How am I supposed to get food to feed my family? Are taking the directions of the Governor of Virginia and trying to abort me 34 years after birth, he said in a statement. They are essentially denying my existence, and trying to force me into homelessness, and ultimately death. Tarrio thinks President Trump should do something about the deplatforming. He needs to step in, not only because if he doesnt he will lose in 2020 with all of his supporters being kicked off social media, but because its the right thing to do. The Proud Boys made headlines last year after scuffling with Antifa during political rallies for which the fraternal organization had legally obtained permits. This article was posted: Sunday, February 10, 2019 at 8:00 am Print this page. Infowars.com Videos: Comment on this article The Prince William Times is honored to serve as your community companion. To say thank you, we are excited to offer 4 weeks FREE Digital & Print access to all subscribers new and returning alike. We are dedicated to continuing providing reliable, high quality journalism. This is possible with the trust and support of our subscribers in the community we are proud to serve. MIDDLE TOWNSHIP Melanie Collette knows racism is real, and said she has sometimes been treated unfairly by police. But more cops are helping than hurting, she said. For Collette, a pro-life Christian and conservative Republican, the liberal agenda which she said assigns victimhood to people isnt the answer. They are not speaking freedom, they are speaking bondage, she said of those who encourage black Americans to believe they need the Democratic Party and government programs to survive. And that puts her at odds with many people in the black community. According to the Pew Research Center, black voters remain overwhelmingly Democratic, with 84 percent identifying with or leaning toward the Democratic Party. Just 8 percent of black voters identify in some way with the Republican Party. To say the color of my skin is the single thing that determines my political beliefs is ridiculous and racist, said Collette. It assumes that all African Americans have the same level of education, the same references, the same beliefs. A tenet of racism is believing everything is determined by the color of your skin. The conflict over land ownership between the Yoruba community and their Fulani neighbours in some villages in Oyo State, South-west Nigeria, has claimed a life. This is as families displaced by the conflict since mid-January are yet to return to their villages over fear of reprisal attacks, PREMIUM TIMES has learnt. On Thursday, Tiamiyu Adeyanju, a Yoruba resident was killed as he tried to stop a herdsman who had brought cattle to drink from a communal stream, members of his family told this newspaper. They said the injuries that led to his death were inflicted by the herdsman who attacked him with a machete. AgoOyo, Mr Adeyanjus village, is a walking distance from the troubled villages in our previous story. Until the attack that led to the death of Mr Adeyanju on Thursday, AgoOyo was calm as people went about their businesses peacefully, said the head of the village, Abdulganiyu Odunewu, who confirmed the killing to PREMIUM TIMES. A leader in the Fulani community, Aliyu Usman, while admitting that there was a fight between the deceased and the herdsman, however, told PREMIUM TIMES, that Mr Adeyanju was not murdered but was killed by a fiery cow. He explained that the cow gored the deceased with his horn as he tried to prevent it from drinking from the stream. The man (suspected murderer) is nomadic herdsman from Ipapo near Iseyin, he said. He said the alleged assailant was not a resident of the area. Mr Usman added that he was helping the police to nab the fleeing herdsman Meanwhile, as of Friday night, the police had arrested six persons in their effort to arrest the suspect. Still Displaced Last week, PREMIUM Times reported that several Yoruba families were displaced from Agbegun, Monde and Oniyanrin three villages in Afijio Local Government Area of Oyo State. Three weeks after they became displaced, many them are still surviving on handouts from members of the public in the Jabata and Akesan areas of Oyo town, too scared to return home for fear of reprisal attacks by the Fulani neighbours. The displacement followed the razing of the Fulani homes, mid-January by members of the Yoruba community who resorted to self-help after a customary court upheld their right to the disputed land. Almost immediately, the Fulani retaliated and attacked the Yoruba men with machetes, forcing the entire Yoruba community to flee the villages for fear of further attacks. The police also arrested some Yoruba men for the attack on the Fulani community. We are yet to go back, a Yoruba, Alfa Rahman, said. PREMIUM TIMES gathered that all the Yoruba men arrested by the police following the razing of the Fulani homes have now been released. The release followed a deal that the Yoruba would compensate the Fulani and rebuild their homes. Mr Rahman said a delegation of the Yoruba are meeting with Mr Usman and a team of third-party negotiators, on the terms of their return and subsequent peaceful co-existence of both communities. He (Mr Usman) said they (negotiators) should come again tomorrow, Mr Rahman said. ADVERTISEMENT In an earlier conversation with him when PREMIUM TIMES visited the disputed land in January, Mr Usman said the Fulani were not planning to attack the Yoruba families. But his kinsmen made clear threats of attack in separate interviews with this newspaper in January. The spokesperson for the police in Oyo State, Adekunle Ajisebutu, suggested the Yoruba families have no reason to fear and that they should return to the villages. The Commissioner of Police has directed twenty-four-hour surveillance and intensive patrol of the areas as well as other parts of the state, said Mr Ajisebutu. No one should feel threatened. If anyone has a complaint about a threat to his life or property, they should report to the nearest police station for appropriate actions. Residents of neighbouring villages and commercial motorcyclists, however, said the police were yet to deploy officers to the area. There is no police anywhere, said a resident, Musbau Lamidi. When told that residents of the community said policemen were not deployed to the area, the police spokesperson, Mr Ajisebutu said: the fact that you dont see uniformed policemen doesnt mean absence of police in the area. We have our strategies and you dont expect to see presence of police in every home or village. He, however, admitted an acute shortage of manpower. ADVERTISEMENT The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Ogun State says a total number of 1,123,537 Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) have been collected by electorates in the state ahead of the general elections. The Resident Electoral Commissioner, Olayinka Raji, said this on Saturday at a one-day meeting for women groups and gender-focussed civil society organisations. The event was organised by a non-governmental organisation, Community Education Advancement for Peace and Development Initiative (CEAPDI) in Abeokuta The electoral commissioner, represented by Adenike Tadese, Head Voter Education and Publicity, also disclosed that as of February 1, 712,000 prospective voters were yet to collect their PVCs. The commission said it also engaged in voter education and awareness through media interaction, market outreach, and others. Mr Raji said other steps taken ahead of the poll include regular interaction with youth corp members, meeting with persons with disability, visits to workshops and tertiary institutions, attendance of seminars, workshops and rallies. The official disclosed that over 20,000 people have been recruited as ad-hoc staff, with 10,000 security officials required at three personnel per polling unit for the 3,210 polling units. He said electoral data was shared with security agencies for planning, coordination and effective security coverage Speaking on logistics, Mr Raji said 2,500 buses are required to lift about 30,000 personnel to various election centres. He said in this regard, a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) has been signed with the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW). He said non-sensitive materials have been received, card readers needed are already with the commission and vehicles and boats shall be tracked where and when necessary. The commission, therefore, seeks the cooperation of all stakeholders to enlighten and mobilise the citizenry to come out and vote, to be calm and eschew violence in order to maintain peace, before, during and after the election, he said. Earlier in his welcome speech, Executive Director of CEAPDI, Sina Adefolahan, identified some constraints militating against womens active participation in the politics. He said the factors include electoral malpractices such as rigging and violence as well as non-adoption of affirmative action in the constitution. He asked the National Assembly to put laws in place to encourage womens participation in politics. The Peoples Democratic Party PDP on Sunday called for the immediate and unconditional release of its campaign spokesperson in Kaduna, Ben Bako. PREMIUM TIMES reported how Mr Bako was arrested on Saturday night allegedly by officials of the State Security Service (SSS). Although the SSS is yet to state any official reason for the arrest, the politician was caught on video inciting PDP supporters to violence in Southern Kaduna. The Deputy Director-General, Ashiru/Mashal campaign Organisation, Danjuma Sarki, who addressed journalists in Kaduna on Sunday, said the Kaduna PDP will not be drawn into any violent conflict no matter the provocation. We are calling for the immediate and unconditional release of Ben Bako after being harassed and illegally detained without trial for over 24 hours, he said. He said no amount of intimidation, threat, blackmail and illegal use of state force will deter the PDP from winning the next general election in the state and the country. PDP Opposes Violence Although he refused to condemn Mr Bako for calling for violence, Mr Sarki said the PDP was against violence during the elections He said the Kaduna PDP is determined and totally committed to a violence-free poll and that no member or supporter of the PDP should be involved in breaking of the law. Mr Danjuma said the party will use every legal means to protect its votes in the next general election He said his party also wants the redeployment of the SSS Director General in Kaduna. The DSS has become compromised and partisan in Kaduna State and we say no to such development. We believe that Kaduna State Director of the DSS, Ahmadu Idris, will not be neutral in the 2019 general elections and we call for his immediate redeployment. We call on both local and international election observers to take special interest in Kaduna state elections, he said. Mr Danjuma said the PDP is serious about ensuring that every vote cast in the state counts. We are calling on our members and supporters to ensure that they come out in large numbers and vote. They must ensure that their votes are counted, recorded and securely moved to the next collation centre. On this, we are ready to use every legal means to protect our franchise. No amount of intimidation, threat, blackmail and illegal use of state force will deter us from this aspect. The PDP is the main opposition to the governing APC in Kaduna. The PDP governorship candidate, Isa Ashiru, seeks to replace Governor Nasir El-Rufai of the APC. ADVERTISEMENT The governorship and state assembly elections will hold on March 2, two weeks after the presidential and National Assembly elections which hold on February 16. ADVERTISEMENT The federal government on Sunday attributed trade politics amongst nations as one of the reasons why some of the countrys exports were facing challenges in their destination countries. Adeyemi Dipeolu, Special Adviser to the President on Economic Matters, Office of the Vice President, made this known at an interactive session with journalists in Lagos. Mr Dipeolu said that due to international politics, some destination countries opposed the countrys exports because Nigeria had taken a stand on imports from such countries. He said that in todays politics, it would be difficult for the present administration to harm its local industries for the benefit of a foreign nation. The presidential aide said that the present administration would not allow the importation of certain goods in which Nigeria had a comparative advantage. For instance, yams said to be grown in a neighbouring country are accepted by most advanced and developing countries, whereas the yams are grown in Nigeria. It is all trade politics that will eventually balance out. So, it is better to be self-sufficient in food production than to rely on the importation of such food items, he said. He added that it was not advisable for Nigeria to deplete its foreign reserves for food importation as this could make the people to spill over the borders in search of food. He explained that the federal government had not signed the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement in order to save Nigeria from being a dumping ground for foreign goods. Mr Dipeolu said that the country needed to carry out due diligence on such agreement to ensure that the agreement would not negatively affect the local industries. On the issue of power, he said the countrys power generation had reached 8,100 Mega Watts (MW), adding that the government was working on the transmission lines to end epileptic power supply in some parts of the country. The way to go is that the government is working on gas and other environmentally friendly means to provide adequate power to the people, he said. He told the journalists that the countrys economy was more than N100 trillion, adding that the government alone could not finance the economy, whose growth rate was on the rise. He urged the private sector to come to the aid of the government to provide an enabling environment for the economy to thrive. (NAN) The Nigerian government has proposed N50 billion for the completion of National Library headquarters in Abuja, 13 years after the project was first conceived. The Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, disclosed this on Friday at the seventh edition of the Weekend Ministerial Press Briefing in Abuja. PREMIUM TIMES reported how the Senate in October 2017 called on the government to prioritise the completion of the permanent site of the National Library in order to mitigate losses on the project, describing its delay as a national embarrassment. The Senate also frowned at the fact that 57 years after independence and with trillions of naira sunk into the development of Abuja, the National Library still operates from a rented building because it does not have a permanent site. The present national library headquarters is in a sorry state, as it is challenged by dilapidated facilities, outdated books and other anomalies. Mr Adamu said the National Library project-cost was N8 billion when it was first awarded in 2006 and was last reviewed upwards to N18 billion in 2013. You may have been aware that the project cost was awarded in 2006 at a total cost of N8 billion By 2013, the project cost was reviewed upward to N18 billion. Work was, however, stopped at the end of 2013 due to poor-funding, the minister said. When this administration come into power, the contractor submitted a new bill of N78 billion to complete the project and we set up a committee to evaluate the project. This committee has submitted a bill of N50 billion, he said. According to the minister, the National Library of Nigeria (NLN) is expanding its branches across the country as well as rehabilitating existing ones. Contracts for the renovation of the Lagos, Nasarawa, Benue, Imo, Adamawa and Plateau have been awarded while other will come on stream next year, he said. Mr Adamu said the renovation goes beyond replacing leaking roofs and painting walls but will involve providing reading spaces for children to promote a sound reading culture among school pupils. New branches are to be established in Delta, Anambra, Ekiti, Kebbi, Kogi and Jigawa state. We have completed permanent branch buildings in Gombe and Kaduna states, he said. Mr Adamu said the government is in the process of providing free internet access for our library users beginning with Lagos, Abuja and Enugu branches. We have requested Galaxy Backbone to increase our Internet bandwidth in these branches and the process is ongoing. We are also working with state governments and other relevant stakeholders to develop a public library policy for the country. A National Conference in this regard will come up between March 18-29 this year, he said. Speaking on mid-term break for school pupils, Mr Adamu said there is no plan by the Nigerian government to close both private and public schools ahead of the elections. Mr Adamu also announced that February 15 to 19 is the mid-term break for students of all the 104 unity schools across the country. Our students in unity schools are not of voting age, but we adjusted the mid-term break to make it fall within the elections period, he said . Also speaking, the Chief Librarian, Lenrie Aina, said it is essential for all schools to have a library in adherence to the policy of the National Council of Education. ADVERTISEMENT There are about 6000 libraries in Nigeria, although we just awarded a contract on Library directory so that we can have the data of the numbers of libraries, types of libraries and schools with libraries in the country, he said. Mr Aina said the national library charge for International Standard Book Number (ISBN) is N3000 for a book ISBN is a number that serves as a means of identification for a particular book for the purpose of commerce and supply. It is a unique international number and which means no two books have identical ISBN. ISBN is made of 13 digits, divided into five parts using either hyphen or spaces with the first three representing the international code followed by the next three digits which serve as country identifier, then the next three goes for the publisher identifier and the next three stands for title identifier. The last digit is the check digit. Guidelines and Requirements for the Assignment of ISBN A formal Letter of application for assignment of an ISBN made on the letter head paper of the Publisher/Author or Institution, and addressed to The Director (NBCD), National Library of Nigeria Headquarters, ISBN office, Abuja or processed through any of the State Branch offices. A photocopy of Certificate of Registration (in the case of private companies) obtained from the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) OR a National Identity card OR valid Drivers License for author publisher, should be attached for identification. Visual proof of the existence of the publication(s) should be shown. The publisher/Author must produce type-set copy(s) of the manuscript(s), or at least the preliminary pages of the publication(s) i.e preface, introduction, forward, content table, title page, verso, etc. Request for a block of ten (10) ISBN should present visual proofs of at least Seven (7) manuscripts or the preliminary pages of the work to be published. Evidence of full utilization of ISBN(s) earlier assigned in form of letter(s) of acknowledgement of receipt from National Library of Nigeria of having deposited the required number of copies of their previous publications to the National Library as required by Law i.e. Private Publishers -three (3) copies; State Governments and their Agencies-ten (10) copies, and Federal Government and their Agencies- twenty five (25) copies. Lassa Fever: Nigerias death toll rises to 57 The current Lassa fever outbreak in Nigeria has killed at least 57 people, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) said on Friday. According to the situation report released by the health agency, 275 cases of Lassa fever were confirmed in 19 states as of February 3. The situation report is a weekly update of the trend in the Lassa fever disease across the country. The latest report by NCDC is for week five: January 28 to February 03, 2019. Since the beginning of the year, 19 states Edo, Ondo, Bauchi, Nasarawa, Ebonyi, Plateau, Taraba, FCT, Adamawa, Gombe, Kaduna, Kwara, Benue, Rivers, Kogi, Enugu, Imo, Delta and Oyo have recorded at least one confirmed case across 51 local government areas Buhari renews appointment of FMC Yenagoas Medical Director The federal government has renewed the appointment of Dennis Allagoa as the Medical Director, Federal Medical Centre Yenagoa, Bayelsa State. Mr Allagoas reappointment is for a second and final four-year term. The reappointment will take effect from March 11 Lassa Fever: WHO increases response in Nigeria, four other West African countries With five West African countries reporting outbreaks of Lassa fever, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has scaled up its efforts to support the regions response. The countries in the region currently witnessing outbreaks of the disease are Nigeria, Benin, Guinea, Liberia and Togo. The countries are some of those in the Africa Lassa Fever belt. Nigeria is the most hit with 275 cases confirmed in 19 states as of February 3. WHO said while these outbreaks are occurring during the Lassa fever season in countries where the disease is endemic, the speed of escalation is of concern. FG inaugurates emergency medical treatment committee The federal government has inaugurated an Emergency Medical Treatment (EMT) Committee and National Emergency Medical Services and Ambulance Scheme (NEMSAS) to provide an effective and efficient emergency medical services to Nigerians. Inaugurating the committee, the Minister of Health, Isaac Adewole, said its main mission is to use available resources and mobilise other resources to provide efficient emergency medical services with full national coverage as part of the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) for Nigeria. Health Minister, Dr. Isaac Adewole He said EMT is an important component of an effective and comprehensive medical system which was long overdue. Kenyan health workers strike over pay ADVERTISEMENT Provision of healthcare services in 23 Kenyan counties was paralysed on Monday as nurses went on strike to protest a delay in the implementation of an agreement to pay them higher salaries. The nurses strike affected critical services in public hospitals where the bulk of Kenyas low-income earners seek treatment. Union officials said the strike would continue until a collective bargaining agreement negotiated with their employer in November 2017 is implemented in full. Male birth control pill passes safety test Scientists have been able to develop a daily capsule which can safely suppress reproductive hormones in men, making it an appealing candidate for male birth control pill, a study has shown. The new drug prototype dimethandrolone undecanoate, or DMAU, after a month treatment, reduces the level of hormones including testosterone that are necessary for sperm production. All contraceptives in the market are female contraceptives and scientist have been working on male contraceptives for decades. A reproductive endocrinologist, at Ann and Robert H Lurie Childrens Hospital Chicago, Monica Laronda, who is not involved in the research said DMAU shows great great promise. UN agencies call for new measures to end FGM The relevant agencies of the United Nations have called for new policies to end the practice of female genital mutilation across the world. The International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation is a United Nations-sponsored annual awareness day that takes place on February 6. It is part of the UNs efforts to eradicate female genital mutilation. It was first introduced in 2003. Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is a traditional practice of partially or totally removing the external genitalia of girls and young women for non-medical reasons. FGM leads to long-term physical, psychological and social consequences. It violates womens rights to sexual and reproductive health, physical integrity, non-discrimination and freedom from cruel or degrading treatment. CSOs campaign against tobacco Civil society groups working on tobacco control in Nigeria have called for firm enforcement of the National Tobacco Act which prohibits the sale of tobacco to minors. They made the call in Abuja at the public presentation of the Tobacco Sales Violation report. The report shows a worrying level of Tobacco sales to minors (people under the age of 18) in Nigeria. Cigarettes The report titled Tobacco vs the People by Gatefield found that 89 per cent of cigarette vendors in the states are unaware of the law banning cigarette sale in single sticks. Condom Day: NGO to distribute 600,000 condoms in Nigeria The AIDS HealthCare Foundation (AHF), a Non-Governmental Organisation, says it will distribute over 600,000 condoms across the country as part of activities to commemorate this years International Condom Day. Steve Aborisade, the Advocacy and Marketing Manager of the Foundation, said the day was set aside to promote the prevention of Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs), HIV and unwanted pregnancies. Condoms used to illustrate the story The commemoration is usually observed on February 13 in preceding Valentines Day. He said the condoms will be distributed in Abuja, and five other states of Benue, Kogi, Nasarawa, Anambra and Cross River. NHIS should cover cancer NMA The Nigerian Medical Association has raised the alarm over the high rate of mortality from cancer in Nigeria, saying that 70,327 died of the disease in 2018 alone. This made the association call on the federal government to include cancer diagnostics and treatment as part of ailments covered by the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) In a press briefing to mark the World Cancer Day, Francis Faduyile, National President of the NMA, attributed the deaths to low awareness. He said that out of the 9 million deaths across the world in 2018, Nigeria contributed over 70,000 to the number while the country recorded 115,950 new cases within the period under review. ADVERTISEMENT The Nigerian Army says no soldier or group of soldiers is attached to any politician or political party in any state in the South-east. Sagir Musa, Deputy Director, Public Relations of 82 Division of the Nigerian Army, made this known in a statement issued to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Enugu on Saturday. The statement was entitled: No soldier is attached to any politician in Abia state and the entire South-East geopolitical zone. Mr Musa said the army would remain apolitical, neutral and totally insulated from any form of politics. He further said they would have no attachment to any politician or political party before, during and after the general elections. According to him, the Nigerian Armys Code of Conduct and Rules of Engagement are unambiguous and did not include attaching soldiers to politicians. He said that at no time had any personnel of the Nigeria Army been attached to a prominent politician in Abia State or any other state in the South-east. The army spokesman challenged anybody with a contrary claim to produce photo or video evidence for further proof. Mr Musa was reacting to an online publication, in which the army was accused of having posted dozens of soldiers to a prominent politician in Abia. He said that the report further alleged that the politician was using the army personnel to instigate violence in the state. Based on this hollow allegation, the 14 Brigade and indeed the 82 Division Nigerian Army hereby restate that there is not a single soldier or group of soldiers attached to any political figure in Abia. Nigerian Army personnel will remain totally insulated from any form of politics, political party leaning or attachment to any politician before, during and after the 2019 general elections, Mr Musa said. He called on politicians to desist from associating army personnel with politicians, saying that it would no longer be condoned. (NAN) ADVERTISEMENT A former Chief of Army Staff, David Ejoor, is dead. Mr Ejoor was army chief between 1971 and 1975 during the Yakubu Gowon military regime. Mr Ejoor was Urhobo from Delta State. Already, Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta has expressed sadness over the demise of the retired major general. Mr Okowa in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Charles Aniagwu, on Sunday in Asaba, condoled with the family, the Urhobo nation and the people of Ovwor-Olomu in Ughelli South Local Government Area over the death of the former COAS. Mr Okowa added that the news of Mr Ejoors death had devastated him, especially as the nation is going into another round of elections but was consoled by the fact that the departed former Chief of Army Staff would remain immortal and never to be forgotten. According to the governor: As Deltans we are exremely proud of the outstanding contributions of Gen. Ejoor to the Nigerian Army where he first served as the Governor of Mid-Western Region State from January 1966 August 1967, first Nigerian Commandant of the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) from January 1969 January 1971 and later as Chief of Army Staff from January 1971 July 1975. Gen. Ejoor had an illustrious military career and served the nation with all his heart; with full dedication and commitment to duty. His contributions to the end of the Nigeria Civil War remains indelible in the minds of Nigerians. On behalf of my family, the government and the people of our dear state, I extend my deepest condolences to the Ejoors family, the Urhobo nation and the people of Ovwor-Olomu where he hails from. Governor Okowa prayed almighty God to grant the deceased eternal rest. ADVERTISEMENT The police in Enugu State have arrested a 55 years old woman, Edith Ewulu, for allegedly buying a five years old child stolen from her parents. PREMIUM TIMES learnt that the woman, who resides in Enugu State, bought the baby from one Chioma who claimed to be operating a social home in Abia State. A statement by the spokesperson of the Enugu police, Ebere Amaraizu, said the woman was arrested at a new generation church where she took the child for Thanksgiving and Dedication as her daughter. A 56 year old woman identified as one Edith Ewulu from Enugu Agidi in Anambra state but said to be residing in Emene Enugu state was arrested by the operatives of the Emene Division of the Nigeria Police Force, Enugu state command for allegedly being in possession of a five year old baby stolen from the mother on 5th of February at Emene Enugu, Mr Amaraizu said. She was arrested at one of the New generation churches located at Emene Enugu where she the child for Thanksgiving and dedication as her daughter after changing the name of the stolen child from little Miss Felicia as named by her parents. The spokesman said the suspect on interrogation confessed to the crime. The suspect confessed that she bought the said child from one Chioma, who claimed to be running a social home in Aba, Abia state, at the sum of N470,000 According to the spokesman, the suspect further said she bought the baby on February 7 from the seller at a renowned hospital in Umuahia which made her believe that the business was genuine. On her part, the biological mother of the child, Philomena Godwin, said that her baby was stolen on February 6 at Emene, Enugu. The statement by the police spokesman quoted Mrs Godwin as stating that she was having a headache on the said day and decided to go inside her room to have a nap while her baby was outside playing. But when she woke up, she could no longer see her baby and various attempt made to get her proved abortive hence she reported to the police. The woman and the stolen child She also appreciated the prompt action of the police that led to the recovery of her baby and the arrest of the alleged buyer. Mr Amaraizu said the recovered baby has been reunited with her parents while investigations are on to arrest members of the syndicate. He advised parents and guardians to always be security conscious about their wards to avoid running into the hands of such mischief makers. The command also advises members of the public to promptly report any suspicious movement within their environment to the police for prompt necessary action, he said. ADVERTISEMENT The Acting Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, has ordered a comprehensive, round-the-clock security in all offices and facilities of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The police spokesman, Frank Mba, stated this in a statement on Sunday. He said all commissioners of police in the 36 states and Abuja have been directed to put in place adequate, functional and purposeful security arrangements aimed at protecting all INEC offices and materials from all forms of crimes and mischief before, during and after the elections. The order was announced hours after INEC announced that it had reported to the police chief the fire in two of its offices in Abia and Plateau states. PREMIUM TIMES reported the fire in the two states that destroyed thousands of voters cards, ballot boxes and other materials. The statement by Mr Mba said the zonal Assistant Inspectors General of Police (AIGs) have also been mandated to monitor compliance level of commands under their jurisdiction with the directive. The IG also also directed the AIGs and CPs to ensure that no breach of security of any kind occurs within and around INEC facilities under their watch. Mr Mba said the order takes immediate effect. The Inspector General of Police assures Nigerians of the readiness of the Nigeria Police Force to deliver on its mandate of providing a safe and enabling environment for the conduct of the general election, Mr Mba said He also reiterated the commitment of the police to providing a level playing field for all political actors, while remaining professional and apolitical in the discharge of its responsibilities. The electoral commission, INEC, has expressed concern about fire incidents at two of its local government offices. PREMIUM TIMES reported the fire at the INEC office in Isiala Ngwa South Local Government office in Abia State. Another fire incident occurred late on Saturday at the Quaan Pan Local Government Area of Plateau State. Some of the items destroyed in Isiala Ngwa South Local Government include 2979 Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) and other materials. At the Quaan Pan office, items destroyed include 5987 uncollected Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs), 380 Voting Cubicles, 755 ballot boxes, 14 generators, election forms and official stamps, Festus Okoye, Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee of INEC, wrote in a statement late on Sunday. Mr Okoye said the commission has raised the matter with the police chief, Mohammed Adamu, of the emerging trend of the burning of the Local Government Offices of the Commission close to the conduct of the elections and at a period when the Commission is engaged in the massive movement of election-related materials nationwide. The Commission wishes to assure all Nigerians that it will not succumb to the antics of arsonists whose motive might be to create fear in the minds of voters and sabotage the conduct of the 2019 general elections, he said. Read the full statement by Mr Okoye below. THE FIRE INCIDENTS IN INEC LOCAL GOVERNMENT OFFICES The fire incident that occurred at the Quaan Pan Local Government office of the Commission in Plateau State on Saturday 9th February 2019 is the second of such incidents in less than a week. The first incident occurred in Isiala Ngwa South Local Government office of the Commission in Abia State on Saturday 2nd February. Some of the items destroyed in Isiala Ngwa South Local Government include 2979 Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) and other materials. At the Quaan Pan office, items destroyed include 5987 uncollected Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs), 380 Voting Cubicles, 755 ballot boxes, 14 generators, election forms and official stamps. The Commission has notified the Acting Inspector General of Police of the emerging trend of the burning of the Local Government Offices of the Commission close to the conduct of the elections and at a period when the Commission is engaged in the massive movement of election related materials nationwide. In view of these developments, the Commission has taken the following steps: 1. Notified the Inspector General of Police of this new trend and requested that additional security measures be provided to enhance security around INEC Offices and other critical structures of the Commission. 2. Directed the Resident Electoral Commissioner for Plateau State to open a register for all those in the affected Local Government Area who approach the Commission to collect their PVCs within the specified period. The Commission will print the PVCs and make them available for collection in good time before the elections. 3. Reprinted and delivered the Permanent Voters Cards of the affected registered voters in Isiala Ngwa South in Abia State. 4. Made temporary arrangements for the relocation of the burnt offices of the Commission. The said offices will be ready for the conduct of the February 16 and March 2, 2019 elections. 5. The Commission will proceed as planned in the affected Local Government Areas and all the burnt materials will be replaced in good time and as such will not affect the conduct of the elections. All relevant security agencies have been requested to arrest and bring to justice, persons or groups involved in the attacks on the offices of the Commission. The two fire incidents did not affect the Smart Card Readers that are presently being configured in the respective state offices of the Commission. ADVERTISEMENT The Commission wishes to assure all Nigerians that it will not succumb to the antics of arsonists whose motive might be to create fear in the minds of voters and sabotage the conduct of the 2019 general elections. At least eight people have been confirmed dead from a presidential rally held on Thursday in Taraba. PREMIUM TIMES reported the stampede at the rally due to what the presidency called overcrowding at the Jolly Nyame Stadium in the state capital, Jalingo. Three people were initially thought to have died from the stampede. The presidency in a statement on Sunday, however, put the death toll at eight. According to the statement by President Muhammadu Buharis spokesperson, Femi Adesina, the president dispatched a team to Jalingo to condole with the government and people of the state over the deaths. The team, led by Boss Mustapha, Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), included Governor of Adamawa (a neighbouring state to Taraba) Mohammed Jibrilla (Bindow); a Borno senator, Ali Ndume; Mohammed Bello, Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT); Ali Pantami, Director-General of National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA); and Femi Adesina, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity. At the Taraba Government House, where the team was reportedly received by Governor Darius Ishaku, Mr Mustapha, speaking on behalf of the president, lamented the sad loss of eight people during and after the rally, promising that they would not die in vain. President Buhari will continue to focus on public good and welfare of the people. The eight people would then not have died in vain, the SGF said. They represent the good of our people and country. They wanted good governance as symbolized by President Buhari, so they turned out to welcome him at the rally. As we go to the polls, lets exercise the civic responsibility with zeal, but also with decency and restraint. The country is our own, and we must preserve its oneness, he said. Responding, Governor Ishaku expressed sincere gratitude and thanks to Mr President for promptly sending a delegation to condole with us, adding that the people of Taraba were grateful for the show of concern. He prayed that the souls of the dead would rest in peace, stressing: Peace is my mantra. I stand by it any day. I am thankful that Mr President, who is firstly my elder brother before being my president, came to Taraba in peace, and left in peace. An official letter of condolence personally signed by the president was presented to the governor by the SGF. Mr Ishaku is of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on whose platform he is seeking re-election. The PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, is the main challenger to Mr Buhari. Visit Emir At the palace of the Emir of Muri, Abbas Tafida, the leader of the delegation condoled with the monarch and the people on behalf of the president, praying that God will give them the fortitude to bear the loss. In response, the emir said it was President Buhari that needed to be condoled since he lost his supporters, who loved him dearly. Promising not to forget the relations of the dead, Mr Tafida said he would do his best to cater for them. He also urged Nigerians to emulate President Buhari and copy his integrity and transparency. At the family home of one of the dead, where the relations of other victims had congregated, the names of the deceased were read out. Haruna Kawuwa, who lost his wife, Safiya, at the overcrowding that attended the rally, thanked President Buhari for remembering and condoling with them at their time of sorrow. The delegation also visited the Federal Medical Centre, Jalingo, where prayers were said for the quick recovery of the injured on admission. On hand during the visit, among many others, were Taraba APC chairman, Ibrahim El-Sudi, who also got a condolence letter from the president; the APC gubernatorial candidate, Sani Danladi, his running mate, and other party chieftains. ADVERTISEMENT A spokesperson of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) campaign in Kaduna State has been arrested. Ben Bako, the Director, Media and Publicity, Kaduna State PDP Campaign Organisation was arrested on Saturday, an official said. He was arrested by security operatives in Kaduna around 11 p.m. PREMIUM TIMES reported how Mr Bako was caught on video inciting violence in the elections in Kaduna State. It is not clear if the arrest is related to the video. Mr Bako was reportedly whisked to Abuja by security agents believed to be from the State Security Service (SSS) . Confirming the arrest, the deputy director of publicity of the PDP campaign, Yakubu Lere, said Mr Bako was taken by the SSS to Abuja. Yes, he was arrested on Saturday around 11 pm when some security agents came in their vehicles to whisk him away to Abuja, he told PREMIUM TIMES. He said the party will make its official position on the arrest known later on Sunday. Mr Bako was seen in the controversial video inciting violence against those who betray his party. Mr Bako, the immediate past information commissioner in Kaduna State, was seen in the video telling a crowd at a campaign rally to deal with whoever votes against the interest of the PDP. We gathered that Mr Bako made the threat while speaking in Hausa at a rally in Kafanchan, Southern Kaduna on Thursday. Mr Bakos inciting comments come despite the various calls for a violence-free election. The candidate of Mr Bakos party, Isa Ashiru, seeks to replace Nasir El-Rufai of the All Progressives Congress as Kaduna governor. The governorship and state assembly elections will hold on March 2, two weeks after the presidential and National Assembly elections which hold on February 16. Below is the full transcript of the video: Bako: If they touch your votes deal with them. They are now begging that the military should be brought on election day; we wanted Soldiers when our people were being killed, did they bring them? ADVERTISEMENT Crowd: No Bako: Did they bring the Police? Why should soldiers be brought during the election? Bako: Are we fighting? It is just an election. Why should they bring soldiers? To guard whose mother? The crowd: Their mothers Bako: Be watchful in your areas during the election; anyone you see voting differently is a betrayer. He is one of those being used by those in Kaduna. After the election and you come back what are you going to do? Crowd: Deal with them. Bako: What are we going to do with those who betray us? Crowd: Kill them. Bako: What are you going to do to them? Crowd: Kill them. Bako: What of those who collect money? Crowd: We kill them. Bako: That is it. With fake news gradually creeping into the Nigerian media, there have been several attempts by the federal government and some international organisations to help curb the spread, especially with the general elections approaching. In November 2018, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), published a report that showed that Nigerians usually fall prey to fake news because they are concerned about not falling behind on the news and being informed, among other reasons. Prior to that period, the federal government launched a campaign against fake news where the information minister, Lai Mohammed, likened the effects of fake news to a time bomb waiting to explode. He said the decision of the government to launch a campaign against fake news was linked to the possible effects of rumours that could cause crisis across the country. Despite the efforts made to completely eradicate fake news from the media, the menace still persists. With the general elections approaching, PREMIUM TIMES documented a trend of fake news being spread by supporters of several political parties as campaign strategies. Instances 1- President Muhammadu Buhari had taken his campaign trail to Kano State to solicit the support of the government and people of the state in the forthcoming general elections. Although he was received by an average crowd, the presidents special adviser on social media, Lauretta Onochie, posted a video of a large crowd in a stadium which she claimed were people of Kano who came out to receive the president. PMBinKano. Thank you Kano, she tweeted. https://twitter.com/Laurestar/status/1091052740430782464?s=19 Checks by PREMIUM TIMES showed the video was from an annual Islamic celebration, Maulud of Sheikh Ibrahim Inyass which took place at the Eagle Square in April 2018. 2- Prior to that, Ms Onochie took to Twitter to post a picture of food in packs with N500 attached to each of them. In her tweet, she claimed that the presidential candidate for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, had distributed the food when he went to campaign in Sokoto. She had written, Keep them in poverty, give them handouts Atiku in Sokoto yesterday. KEEP THEM IN POVERTY, THEN GIVE THEM HANDOUTS- ATIKU in Sokoto yesterday pic.twitter.com/JumaW5vi4A Lauretta Onochie (@Laurestar) December 4, 2018 Findings by the Centre for Democracy and Development showed that the photos dated February 2017, emerged when a Lagos-based Charity Organisation, Kokokun Foundation, distributed the food (and money) to the homeless and less-privileged in Lagos State. 3- Again, Ms Onochie posted a random picture of road construction. In her post, she claimed it was the Nasarawa-Jos road and hailed the president for infrastructural developments. Nasarawa-Jos Road. BUHARI AGAIN!!! Sai Baba, she wrote. ADVERTISEMENT Further checks revealed that the photos were in fact, from a construction site in Rwanda. After severe backlash from Nigerians on Twitter, she was forced to apologise, describing the initial photo as a big mistake. 4- In January, a former aide to ex-Presidents Goodluck Jonathan and Olusegun Obasanjo, Doyin Okupe, tweeted a fake picture to show massive turnout at the PDP campaign in Dutse, Jigawa State, the Guardian reported. The picture which he captioned, Pdp governorship campaign rally in Dutse Jigawa state 3rd Jan 2019 was used to distort the reality of what really happened during the campaign. According to the Guardian, the picture likely first appeared online on September 10, 2017, to illustrate the preparation of Ambazonia Independence Mr Okupe has since deleted the picture. 5- Festus Keyamo, the spokesperson of the Buhari Campaign Organisation, in October posted a picture of an abandoned rail track with a tree growing from it. This is how trees grew in-between rail tracks between 1999 and 2015. Those were the years of Initiation and Started, when they (PDP) swallowed all the money but never completed. Now, this is the Completion Era as the tracks are beginning to roar back to life, he wrote. https://twitter.com/fkeyamo/status/1056591170082627584/photo/1 A check by TheCable showed the picture was taken in the Middle East. However, Mr Keyamo later claimed he had used the picture as an illustration. 6- In December 2018, one of Atiku Abubakars support groups known as Atiku Abubakar 2019, posted a picture of U.S President Donald Trump holding up a poster with Mr Abubakars face on it allegedly endorsing him for the general election. In December 2018, one of Atiku Abubakars support groups known as Atiku Abubakar 2019, posted a picture of U.S President Donald Trump holding up a poster with Mr Abubakars face on it allegedly endorsing him for the general election. Although the group seems to have disappeared, it quoted Mr Trump as saying, Support AtikuObi presidency to reduce unemployment, poverty and lifelessness of the economy as my govt has done in America. I think America first. Atiku thinks Nigeria first. Findings by Crosschecknigeria, a coalition of several media houses, showed the picture was fake. The original picture was first used on September 3, 2015, when Mr Trump was the Republican presidential candidate for the U.S. presidential elections. 7- When reports of a Boko Haram attack on Metele, Borno State emerged, an All Progressives Congress (APC) publicity secretary, Joe Igbokwe, posted three photos on his Facebook page claiming they were from a Nigerian military offensive against Boko Haram. PMB President Muhammadu Buhari no dey carry last as a war time general, he wrote. Checks by AfricaCheck revealed two of the photos are not from Nigeria and one is three years old. A reverse image search showed that the picture of billowing smoke was taken on November 8, 2004, in Fallujah, Iraq, by a US Marine. The fighter jet is a Russian Sukhoi Su-25, snapped by news platform, AP while it took part in a joint military exercise with the army of Belarus in October 2008. The third photo seems to date from December 2015, when the Nigerian army tweeted it with the caption: Troops are continuing their advancement towards the main camp of the [Boko Haram] sect in Sambisa Forest. Allwell Okpi (30/11/18). 8 In January, a former aviation minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, took to his Twitter account to allege that operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had surrounded the home of suspended Chief Justice of Nigeria, Walter Onnoghen. The spokesman of the Yoruba Socio-Cultural Group, (Anifere), Yinka Odumakin, shared a video clip to further buttress Mr Fani-Kayodes claims describing the siege as desperation on the side of the ruling APC. Messrs Fani-Kayode and Yinka Odumakin are critics of the Buhari administration and supporters of Atiku Abubakar. Their claims turned out to be false as the embattled CJN and the anti-graft agency debunked the news. An enraged EFCC threatened to take the matter up. Mr Fani-Kayode has since deleted the tweet and apologised to the EFCC. Why Fake News Is On The Rise Hassan Idayat, the director of the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD), West Africa, believes the spread of fake news in an election season is typically geared towards garnering more votes. In a piece made available to PREMIUM TIMES on the trend, she said fake news can also be aimed at dividing the electorate or suppressing votes for ones rivals. Fake news, she said, is a huge concern ahead of the Nigerian elections and shows no signs of letting up or being tackled. She also blamed the proliferation of social media platforms for the quick spread of fake news. This is worrying as disinformation is provoking animosity along religious, ethnic and regional divides which are often already tense, she said. It is increasing distrust in both specific candidates and the process as a whole. She explains further: False information in Nigeria spreads through various channels, but social media provides the cheapest and quickest ways to access millions. Through Whatsapp and Facebook, people share propaganda videos, made-up quotes, and fabricated articles made to look like they are from the likes of the BBC or Al-Jazeera. Meanwhile on Twitter, bots and trolls working for both Buhari and Atikus camps amplify false stories and contribute to the polarisation of the discourse through bullying and intimidation. She said it is too early to assess the impact of fake information on the general elections. She, however, said earlier instances of false stories spreading may be instructive. With the increasing fear that the spread of fake news could mar the elections, Nigerians are advised to use fact-check mediums like Dubawa, Africa Check or tineye to confirm the authenticity of any picture. It is also advisable to confirm a piece of information on any social media platform before sharing. PR-Inside.com: 2019-02-10 14:31:42 NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / February 10, 2019 / On November 6th, 2016, Thompson Education Center attended the 3rd Annual Afternoon Gala hold by Cornell Cooperative Extension Sullivan County (CCESC). The public was invited to celebrate over 100 years of grassroots education for farmers, families, and youth. A farm-to-table lunch of locally-sourced cuisine, live music, and unique auction items entertained the guests. Three important past and present members of CCESC were honored with the Now & Then Awards, including Richard Schulman, Karen Mariner and Denise Frangipane. An array of live and silent auction items were on hand featuring opportunities to bid on "priceless" experiences and packages bursting with unique gifts for farmers, foodies.Since 1914, Cornell Cooperative Extension has been a valuable resource to the farmers, families, individuals in need, and young people of Sullivan County. Support for the Afternoon Gala fundraiser ensures that it continues to provide exciting, high-quality, and innovative programs that are vital to local economic and community development.On Monday, November 7th, 2016, Thompson Education Center attended the Critical Partners Brunch held by Monticello Central School District and hosted by Superintendent Mrs. Tammy Mangus. During the roundtable discussion, each group listed the key skills they feel are needed for Life Ready after high school. The seven key skills finalized at the end of the meeting were Communication, Awareness, Tenacity, Collaboration, Responsibility, Goal Getting and Integrity. Thompson Education Center is a project that plans to create a high-end education community. It is located in Sullivan County, Town of Thompson, covering 575 acres.The initial development of the ThompsonEducation Center would work with accredited colleges to develop a new high-end and modern comprehensive Education community in Sullivan County. It will include a Business School, a school of Film & Arts, Nurse/Medical Training, Culinary Training, High School Equivalent Diploma, Executive and Vocational Training program as well as related ancillary facilities. After completion, the project will include classroom buildings, student dormitory apartments, student group housing units & a recreational center. In addition there will be a faculty housing, a college Inn, a college library, museums, an art center, a student conference center and an indoor/outdoor recreational facility including play grounds and a stadium.Currently, ThompsonEducation Center has entered into agreements and signed letter of interests with high schools, colleges, education institutions and systems both in U.S. and China, each of them will provide a great number of students to Thompson Education Center. Also, TEC has already been working with several U.S. accredited colleges on Undergraduate Programs and ESL Programs.TEC will bring economic growth to the local community. Numerous construction professional firms have been retained for the project such as architects, engineers, land-use lawyers, local contractors. An increasing number of jobs will be created throughout the entire project, such as real estate agents, professors, instructors, librarian, cleaning, and maintenance workers amongst many others.Thompson Education Center is proud to be a community member and willing to support and to help our community and children. Together we can build a better, stronger and healthier community.Thompson Education Center - A High-End Education Community in Sullivan County, NY: http://thompsoneducationcenternews.com Thompson Education Center to Offer Classes and Programs to Alleviate Nursing Shortage: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/thompson-education-center-offer-classes-151000942.html Thompson Education Center Announces Plans for Performing Arts Center: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/thompson-education-center-announces-plans-215500406.html Contact Information:contact@ thompsoneducationcenternews.com SOURCE: Thompson Education Center They have worked carefully with administration bodies, exchange partnerships, news and magazine bodies, and furthermore with different bodies related to the Digital Utility Market. Digital Utility PR-Inside.com: 2019-02-10 20:26:48 Press Information Research N Reports Sunny Denis (Sales Manager), (Research N Reports) 10916, Gold Point Dr, Houston, TX, Pin 77064, +1-8886316977, sales@researchnreports.com, www.researchnreports.com Sunny Denis Sales Manager +1-8886316977 email http://www.researchnreports.com # 530 Words Sunny Denis(Sales Manager),(Research N Reports)10916, Gold Point Dr,Houston, TX, Pin 77064,+1-8886316977,sales@researchnreports.com,www.researchnreports.comSales Manager+1-8886316977 Due to technological advances, the digitization of businesses including the electric power industry is progressing. The power industry is increasingly aware of the importance of digital technology, which is expected to expand the market during the forecast period. Companies recognize the benefits of digitization and are now changing the way they do business in the power industry, focusing on two key areas: customer engagement and operational and productivity enhancement.According to a new study by Research, Inc., expanding at a CAGR of +11% during the forecast period.With some vital changes in the Worldwide Digital Utility Market, the need to contemplate its advancement has turned out to be prospective. Explores on this market have ended up being persuading. The methods utilized by experts amid the examination are question to layered approach as they reason to give fantastic and unrivaled outcomes utilizing the statistics they have gathered. They have worked carefully with administration bodies, exchange partnerships, news and magazine bodies, and furthermore with different bodies related to the Digital Utility Market. Both inward certification administration and web driven examines are utilized to go to a powerful statistical surveying finding.Get sample copy of this report at: https://www.researchnreports.com/request_sample.php?id=151407 Major Key Players in this report are: ABB Ltd., Accenture PLC, Capgemini SA, Cisco Systems Inc., Eaton Corporation PLC, General Electric Company, International Business Machine Corporation, Mircosoft Corporation, Oracle Corporation, SAP SE, Schneider Electric SE, Siemens AGThis exploration influences utilization of main and subordinate sources to extensively cover the state of Digital Utility to showcase. Industrialists, providers, temporary workers, dealers, end-clients and market pros and so on. Were alluded to authenticate the data of the examination. Other information gathered together incorporates inclinations, challenges and analyses, advertise drivers, showcase experience, strategies and developments of the business. This information demonstrated to have an impact on the development of the Digital Utility Market. Every one of these components are estimated and analyzed in detail to go to a reasonable presumption.Get discount at: https://www.researchnreports.com/ask_for_discount.php?id=151407 The report unveils advertise theories and conjectures which can help measure the present remaining of the Digital Utility Market in the worldwide plan. These outcomes can be utilized to anticipate the business sectors improvement in the five years. There is an almost no uncertainty that the examination results assume a dubious part in deciding the business abilities of the Digital Utility showcase, its present practices, sensible power and standard terms.The Worldwide Digital Utility Market's position is legitimize and fortified by various archives and studies. Regardless of whether it maintains its position or not, is to be solid disapproved by the market patterns and its Compound Yearly Development Rate (CAGR). Whatsoever be the situation, there's little difference against its achievement.For Enquiry OR Any Query? Ask to our Expert @ https://www.researchnreports.com/enquiry_before_buying.php?id=151407 Fundamentals of Table of Content:Executive summaryScope of the reportMarket research methodologyIntroductionGlobal construction marketMarket driversMarket trendsGlobal Satellite-Based Earth Observation marketMarket segmentation by productGeographical segmentationMarket challengesImpact of drivers and challengesFive forces modelKey vendor analysisKey vendor profiles Research Report Insights PR-Inside.com: 2019-02-10 18:47:15 Press Information Research Report Insights Research Report Insights 42 joseph street, Portcarling P0B 1J0, Muskoka, Ontario T: +1-631-721-4201 Vikas Bahurupi Manager 6317214201 email https://www.researchreportinsights.com # 647 Words Research Report Insights42 joseph street,Portcarling P0B 1J0,Muskoka, OntarioT: +1-631-721-4201Manager6317214201 Water treatment is a process that purifies water, turns it into its natural state and makes water suitable for drinking or other applications. Due to the massive water pollution, nowadays it has become a basic requirement to human being for both residential and commercial usage. In a published report by Research Report Insights(RRI), it is estimated that the global market for water treatment is likely to witness a robust expansion and a steady CAGR of 7.5% throughout the forecast period, 2027.DynamicsOwing to the rising global challenge for drinking water and pure water scarcity, the need for water treatment processes are growing at a high pace. Henceforth, the demand and requirement for zero liquid discharge technology is expanding in the market robustly due to its limited discharge of water during purification. Additionally, the stakeholders in the global water treatment market is forced to increase and develop the resources for supplying fresh water due to the growing rate of customers water consumption and other requirements. As desalination method of water treatment can increase the quantity of fresh water, the global market for water treatment is growing in North America and MEA regions robustly. Besides, nanotechnology is also used for testing and releasing carbon compounds, metals and bimetallic nanoparticles in waste water, which is also driving the market through 2027. Further detailed information is given in the report with explanations.Global Market for Water Treatment to Expand At a Steady CAGR Of 7.5% through 2027: A RRI StudyRequest For Report Sample with Table of Contents@ https://www.researchreportinsights.com/report/sample/110114883/Water-Treatment-Market Key SegmentationsThe global market for water treatment has four major segments on the basis of different applications, end-uses, systems and regions. Waste water treatment, zero liquid discharge, process water/ water treatment segment and desalination are the different segments of water treatment processes that comes into application type segment. It is estimated in the report that process water/ water treatment segment is likely to witness the highest market share and is expected to increase 390 BPS in the assessment period.Besides, the key end-uses of global market for water treatment analyze in the report include, commercial buildings, residential buildings, chemical & petrochemicals, industrial, thermoelectric power plants, mining & metals, oil & gas, municipality, pharmaceuticals, food & beverage and other industries. Among all the sub-segments, the industrial segment is estimated to be the largest revenue share segment in the market with an incremental dollar opportunity of approximate US$ 22 billion over the forecast period.Several systems, such as preliminary, membrane bio-reactor (mbr), sludge drying, reverse osmosis (ro),water treatment, disinfectants (uv, ozone), micro-filtration (mf), nano/ultra filtration (nf/uf), sludge thickening & dewatering, activated sludge, sludge treatment and other technologies, are included in the system type segment of global market for water treatment. The report has shared information about the estimated revenue share of nearly 40% from preliminary water treatment segment by 2016 and is also expected a consistency of sharing revenue in the approaching years.Request For Report Discount@ https://www.researchreportinsights.com/report/discount/110114883/Water-Treatment-Market On the basis of regions, there are seven major regions, include Eastern Europe, Japan, Middle East & Africa (MEA), Latin America, Asia-Pacific excluding Japan (APEJ), North America and Western America, where the global water treatment market has a growing demand.Key Players of Global Water Treatment MarketIn the global water treatment market, various key participants are STEULER - KCH GmbH, VA TECH WABAG LIMITED, Eureka Forbes Ltd, TIP TOP Oberflachenschutz Elbe GmbH, 3M, Voltas Limited, SUEZ S.A, Veolia Environnement S.A, Superior Products International II, Ecolab Inc., Pentair Plc., Hitachi, Aquatech International LLC. And WBG WasserBauGesellschaft Kulmbach mbH, among others. More companies are Thermax Ltd, Akzo Nobel N.V., Toshiba Corporation, Aquarion AG, Xylem Inc., Evoqua Water Technologies LLC, Bionics Advanced Filtration Systems (P) Ltd., EnviroChemie GmbH, BWT Aktiengesellschaft, METITO Holdings Ltd., IVRCL and Ion Exchange (India) Ltd, among others.Report Analysis@ https://www.researchreportinsights.com/report/rd/110114883/Water-Treatment-Market Test Data Management is very critical during the test life cycle. The amount of data that is generated is enormous for testing the application. Reporting the results, it minimizes the time spent for processing the data and creating reports importantly contributes to the efficiency of an entire product. Test Data Management Market PR-Inside.com: 2019-02-10 20:25:55 Press Information Research N Reports 10916, Gold Point, Dr, Houston, TX - 77064. Mr. Sunny Denis Sales Manager +1-888-631-6977 email https://www.researchnreports.com # 347 Words 10916, Gold Point, Dr, Houston, TX - 77064.Sales Manager+1-888-631-6977 Global Test Data Management Market report provides all-inclusive study offers a deep and extensive view of this market to all users looking to expand their business profiles in any feature. The report creates a solid foundation for all users observing to enter the market in terms of market trends, opportunities, limitations, and competitive situation analysis. Report defines emerging segments of the industry are covered in this section.Global Test Data Management Market is anticipated to grow at an approximate CAGR of +10% forecast to 2025.Request Sample Copy of this Report@:Global Test Data Management Market with top key vendors such as CA Technologies, Cigniti, Compuware, Datprof, Delphix, Ekobit, IBM, Informatica, Infosys, IRI, Mentis, Original Software, Solix.The Test Data Management Market report comprises the numerous drivers as well as the influences hindering the development of this market throughout the forecast period. The scope of the report includes detailed information on the most important factors that influence the growth of the market for simulation and test data management, such as drivers, limitations, challenges and opportunities.Global Test Data Management Market report provides development to the increase in demand. North America is prospective to be the foremost market on the basis of incidentals and adoption of market. Report analysis by region such as North America, Europe, Asia Pacific (APAC), and Rest of the World (RoW), along with their respective countries. Asia is also assessed to encourage at the extreme CAGR throughout the forecast period.Get Reasonable Discount on this Premium Report @:The Test Data Management Market report also covers a systematic overview of the competitive landscape and regulatory framework of the market. Report offers Sales revenue such as Market Share, Growth Rate, Current Market Analysis, Industry analysis. This report offers consumers a durable understanding of the major opportunities, and the major rules, regulations in the market. Report has been examined using tools such as SWOT Analysis and Porters Five Forces.For More Information: Product-As-A-Service is the perception of selling the services and outcomes a product can provide rather than the product itself. In all cases, the manufacturer uses the product as a platform for delivering additional services to the customer. Product-As-A-Service Market PR-Inside.com: 2019-02-10 20:26:14 Press Information Research N Reports 10916, Gold Point, Dr, Houston, TX - 77064. Mr. Sunny Denis Sales Manager +1-888-631-6977 email https://www.researchnreports.com # 397 Words 10916, Gold Point, Dr, Houston, TX - 77064.Sales Manager+1-888-631-6977 Global Product-As-A-Service Market Report study evaluates the market trends, leading market players, technical developments, important expansions, and imminent strategies for the existing players. The report purposes deliver an overview of the global market with detailed market segmentation per service, end user and geography. Report offers primary as well as secondary research techniques with key valuation and information about how radio system software supports in the dynamic selection of the communication channel and allow operators to have the flexibility to design and offer distinguished solutions.Global Product-As-A-Service Market is anticipated to grow at an approximate CAGR of +10% forecast to 2025.Request Sample Copy of this Report@:Leading Key Players of the Product-As-A-Service Market such as SAP, Tibco, Microsoft, SAS Institute, QlikTech, IBM, Oracle, MicroStrategy, Information Builders, Actuate, SAP SE, Oracle Corporation, Microsoft Corporation, IBM Corporation, Teradata Corporation, Google Incorporation.Product-As-A-Service Market establishes growth such as sheds light on the size and share of key segments, product developments and future growth opportunities in the near future. With the advent of the internet of things (IoT), product-as-a-service has gained more interest from manufacturers as a way to increase the profitability of their products. The worldwide product-as-a-service market report offers a multiple view of the market. The first approach focuses on an impression of the market. This section also contains a comprehensive study of the various development plans and government policies that affect the market.The Product-As-A-Service Market can be segmented due to the rise of big data, the market has generated a high turnover in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific. The market is predicted to be powered by the growing acceptance of the systems in the Asia Pacific region over the prediction period. North America, followed by Asia Pacific, is the main revenue manufacturing segment due to the availability of funds and lower cost of consumer equipment.Get Reasonable Discount on this Premium Report @:Global Product-As-A-Service Market Report analyze market with respect to individual development trends, prospects, and contributions to the total market. The report discusses key factors that influence market growth, opportunities, challenges and risks faced by major manufacturers and the market as a whole. The report also plots the qualitative impact of several market factors on market segments and geographies.For More Information: Data Center Strategy for a hybrid environment. Companies now use the public cloud as an extension of their own data center, combining public and private clouds with colocation and on-premises IT to become as efficient as possible. Data Center Strategy Market PR-Inside.com: 2019-02-10 20:23:01 Press Information Research N Reports 10916, Gold Point, Dr, Houston, TX - 77064. Mr. Sunny Denis Sales Manager +1-888-631-6977 email https://www.researchnreports.com # 472 Words 10916, Gold Point, Dr, Houston, TX - 77064.Sales Manager+1-888-631-6977 The essential purpose of the Global Data Center Strategy Market Research Report is to prediction the trends to increase traction over the next few years, as well as define the size of several segments and geographic locations. The market for this market worldwide is separated by this report on the basis of the most important player profiles, type, application and regions. This report discusses market growth factors, opportunities, challenges and key drivers that impact the risk facing key players and markets as an entire.Global Data Center Strategy Market is expected to grow at an approximate CAGR of +6% forecast to 2025.Request Sample Copy of this Report@:The manufacturers are focused on integrating intelligent processing technologies and AI with dimensional measurement software solutions. Global Data Center Strategy Market Report covers an overview of the companies, contact details, revenue generation and features of the companies. The Top companies are Cisco, Intel Corporation, IBM, Dell EMC, HPE SimpliVity, VMware, HCL Technologies, Mimecast and other.Global Data Center Strategy Market has the growth factors such as the growing need for data storage facilities for setting up their business activities in these regions is expected to drive the data collection colocation market. The companies are expanding their business activities to offer their innovative offering to customers in the global regions. Witnessing strong growth due to the rising demand for hosting services from large companies.The global Data Center Strategy Market has been separated across numerous regions like North America, Latin America, Asia-Pacific, Africa, and Europe. North America is estimated to adopt significant advances in estimating through acceptance of advanced technology and customer survey tools for enterprise feedback management. Latin America is expectable to contribute significantly over the forecast period.Get Up to 60% Discount on this Premium Report @:Global Data Center Strategy Market report observes market report also provides comprehensive information on important features such as key drivers and restrictions that define the future growth of the market. The analysis of this report is done based on a number of parameters, the report includes a comprehensive market and uber contractor landscape in addition to major vendor SWOT analysis.For More Information:Reasons for Buying this Report: This report provides pin-point analysis for varying competitive dynamics It provides a forward-looking perspective on different factors driving or restraining market growth It provides a six-year forecast evaluated on the basis of how the market is predicted to grow It helps in understanding the key product segments and their future It provides pin point analysis of varying competition dynamics and preserves you ahead of competitors It supports in making informed business decisions by having complete insights of market and by making in-depth analysis of market segments Earlier this week I retrieved Alexandria Ocasio-Cortezs Frequently Asked Questions about her Green New Deal resolution from the memory hole down which she had deposited it. I posted the document here via Scribd. I sarcastically observed that a close reading showed it to satirize the Democrats bold new project to save the planet from destruction. On Friday night AOC adviser Robert Hockett actually claimed that the document was the work of unfriendly hands (video below). He blamed it on the usual suspects. How did they post it on AOCs site? I dont know any Republicans this clever. Watch AOC advisor straight-up lie about the Green New Deal that was posted on her own website and then blame it on memes posted by me and Dice! Clown show! pic.twitter.com/AoVrFwJ47O Jack Posobiec (@JackPosobiec) February 9, 2019 You say Hockett. I say hack it. Lets call the whole thing off. Hocketts story harks back to the time Anthony Weiner claimed Lewd photo was hack, as the 2011 Politico headline had it. Reminder: It wasnt. The photo was Weiners. Team AOC appears not to have its story straight. Ocasio-Cortezs chief of staff acknowledges the document was posted by AOC (tweet below). The document, however, was allegedly posted in error. It was unfinished. It was, you might say, half-baked. AOC's chief of staff says that the FAQ published to the website two days ago was published by mistake. https://t.co/p9ujzEy6yf Emily Larsen (@emilyelarsen) February 9, 2019 In good journalistic style, the Washington Examiners Susan Ferrechio now relates The mysterious case of AOCs scrubbed Green New Deal details. Clown show, indeed. Quotable quote (Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez): When your #GreenNewDeal legislation is so strong that the GOP has to resort to circulating false versions, but the real one nets 70 House cosponsors on Day 1 and all Dem presidential candidates sign on anyway. UPDATE: Jonah Goldberg gets the last word here. Iran has been at war with the United States since the overthrow of the Shah and the ascent of the mullahcracy in 1979. The Iranians held American hostages for 444 days in 1979-81, until President Reagan was sworn in. On Reagans watch, however, the mullahs upped the ante, dispatching their Hezbollah subsidiary to murder 242 Marines in Beirut in 1983. The Iranians have kept right at it, murdering and maiming many of our fellow Americans in the Middle East and plotting to conduct terrorist operations on our doorstep in Washington, DC. Nevertheless, the Obama administration arrived at a farcical Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action with Iran that allegedly blocked its path to nuclear weapons. Obamas long march to this false climax included the suspension of sanctions and cash payments that funded the regimes continuing nuclear program, the regimes terrorism and the regimes other murderous efforts opposing the United States. You can understand why the mullahs might be upset with President Trump. As Fred Fleitz persuasively demonstrates in his February 7 NR column, Nine Months Later, Trumps Iran-Deal Withdrawal Is a Clear Success. If you havent caught up with Fleitzs column and have any interest in the subject, dont miss his column. Now Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khameni is is yearning for the good old days when he could take the money from President Obama and run. He wants it understood that he harbors no ill will to Democrats or the American people. In a speech celebrating the fortieth anniversary the Iranian catastrophe on Friday, Khameni explained that the whole Death to America thing referred to the Trump administration: As long as America continues its wickedness, the Iranian nation will not abandon Death to America, Khamenei reportedly said: Death to America means death to Trump, [National Security Advisor] John Bolton, and [Secretary of State Mike] Pompeo. It means death to American rulers. MEMRI reported on Khamenis Friday speech here, Reuters here. The Hill here, and the New York Times here. This has a certain plausibility. We cant doubt that Khameni years for the good old days of the Obama administration and wishes the death of President Trump along with the other named administration officials. They have worked hard to merit Khamenis antipathy. Nevertheless, a funny thing happened on the way to Obamas appeasement of Iran. Khameni and friends chanted Death to America from the first days of the Obama administration in 2009 through the consummation of the nuclear deal in July 2015. See, for example, Tim Shipmans March 2009 Telegraph story, MEMRIs February 2014 post, and Julian Hattems 2015 Hill story. Sections of the Mariner East 2 pipeline along Glendale Road in Uwchlan. The pipeline runs through parts of Chester and Berks counties. Cory Stegelmeier is an attorney practicing in Idaho Falls. This column is provided by the 7th District Bar Association as a public service. Submit questions to "It's the Law," P.O. Box 50130, Idaho Falls, ID 83405, or by email to rfarnam@holdenlegal.com. This column is for general information. Readers with specific legal questions should consult an attorney. A lawyer referral service is provided by calling the Idaho State Bar Association in Boise at 208-334-4500. Note: We've recently updated our online systems. If you can't login please try resetting your password. You must login with an email address. If you don't have an email associated with your account email circulation@postregister.com for help creating one. Writings on the Wall Over the last week, I have reviewed case law and various aspects of the FOIA process of the Guam Sunshine Law. Under this law, citizens have t Read more The Post and Courier provides a forum for our readers to share their opinions, and to hold up a mirror to our community. Publication does not imply endorsement by the newspaper; the editorial staff attempts to select a representative sample of letters because we believe its important to let our readers see the range of opinions their neighbors submit for publication. FILE - In this Jan. 18, 2017, file photo, smog covers Salt Lake City as an inversion lingers. When it comes to their views on climate change, Americans are looking at natural disasters and their local weather, according to a new poll. (Ravell Call/The Deseret News via AP, File) Syndicated and guest columns represent the personal views of the writers, not necessarily those of the editorial staff. The editorial department operates entirely independently of the news department and is not involved in newsroom operations. County election officials say the state's voting machines need to be replaced soon, as the legislature continues to debate what type of voting system they want. Lauren Petracca/Staff SC did not expand Medicaid under Obamacare, but cost and enrollment are growing anyway Get the SC business stories that matter. Our newsletter catches you up with all the business stories that are shaping Charleston and South Carolina every Monday and Thursday at noon. Get ahead with us - it's free. 389 SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard Advertising Democratic Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax is now asking for an FBI investigation into the sexual assault allegations against him according to the Washington Post. Fairfax has been accused of sexual assault by two women. Fairfax insists that his encounters with the two women who have accused him were consensual, while members of his own party are now calling upon him to resign. Just before midnight, Fairfax released a statement calling for all appropriate and impartial investigatory authorities, including the FBI, to investigate fully and thoroughly the allegations against me, according to the Post. In the statement Fairfax wrote: Advertising This has been a devastating week for my family. It has been an especially devastating time for the great Commonwealth of Virginia. The one thing I want to make abundantly clear is that in both situations I knew at the time, and I know today, that the interactions were consensual. I am asking that no one rush to judgment and I am asking for there to be space in this moment for due process. As an officer of the court and a former federal prosecutor, I have dedicated my life to the law and due process. Consequently, I call on all appropriate and impartial investigatory authorities, including the FBI, to investigate fully and thoroughly the allegations against me. Last week, Vanessa Tyson accused Fairfax of sexually assaulting her at the Democratic National Convention in Boston in 2004, saying he forced her to perform oral sex on him. What began as consensual kissing quickly turned into a sexual assault, Tyson, a college professor from California, said in a statement. A second woman, Meredith Watson, came forward on Friday, saying through her lawyer that Fairfax raped her in 2000 when they were both students at Duke University. Fairfax has denied the allegations, saying they were part of a smear campaign against him, and dismissed calls to resign from both state and national Democrats. Both women came forward after the possibility arose that Fairfax might become governor due to a blackface scandal surrounding Democratic Virginia Governor Ralph Northam. Northam has also rejected calls to resign after a blackface photo in his medical school yearbook surfaced. Northam says he does not believe he was in the photo, a reversal from his initial comments apologizing for the photo. Northam said Saturday that he does not plan to resign, and would focus on racial equity for the remainder of his term. Later Democratic Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring, who would become governor if both Northam and Fairfax stepped down, admitted to wearing blackface once in college. Last night was the first time Fairfax had asked a specific law enforcement agency to investigate claims against him. Until then he had been insisting that an independent inquiry would clear him of the charges. Right now the Democratic Party of Virginia is in turmoil, and it is not clear how the situation will be resolved. Republicans have been celebrating the turmoil, and are hoping this will allow them to take Virginia out of the blue state column, but that remains to be seen. 268 SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard Advertising President Donald Trump was on a roll last night. First, he mocked Democrats for turning the border wall into a 2020 campaign issue. Then, he skewered Sen. Elizabeth Warren with an apparent joke referencing the Trail of Tears. Now, it seems Trump is taking on the Democrats Green New Deal proposed by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and just how great it would be for the so-called Carbon footprint to eliminate among other things cows and the military. He tweeted: I think it is very important for the Democrats to press forward with their Green New Deal. It would be great for the so-called Carbon Footprint to permanently eliminate all Planes, Cars, Cows, Oil, Gas & the Military even if no other country would do the same. Brilliant! Advertising I think it is very important for the Democrats to press forward with their Green New Deal. It would be great for the so-called Carbon Footprint to permanently eliminate all Planes, Cars, Cows, Oil, Gas & the Military even if no other country would do the same. Brilliant! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 9, 2019 Trump in fact may have found a potent campaign issue. After her rollout, Ocasio-Cortez got some devastating publicity because she was forced to clarify details of the Green New Deal. She has made some big mistakes, and she may be playing into the hands of Trumps re-election committee, according to an op-ed in the Los Angeles Times. So this morning Ocasio-Cortez and her aides are still in damage-control mode and attempting to clarify details of the Green New Deal after an FAQ sheet it released sparked an uproar. Ocasio-Cortezs office sent a copy of the resolution this week as well as an FAQ sheet about the initiative to various media outlets, which was published. The FAQ sheet included provisions about eliminating air travel, guesswork surrounding cows flatulence and economic security for those who are unable or unwilling to work. The document immediately was attacked by conservatives who said some of the policies in the FAQ document showed the Green New Deal was not a serious proposal. The AOC tweeted in response: There are multiple doctored GND resolutions and FAQs floating around. There was also a draft version that got uploaded + taken down. Theres also draft versions floating out there. There are multiple doctored GND resolutions and FAQs floating around. There was also a draft version that got uploaded + taken down. Theres also draft versions floating out there. Point is, the real one is our submitted resolution, H.Res. 109: https://t.co/ZlgWmNQn57 Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) February 9, 2019 When I talk about the GND, this is what Im referring to nothing else, she added in another tweet, again linking to the legislation. Still, the Los Angeles Times editorial made some very cutting remarks about the GND proposal. The author wrote: When I hear Ocasio-Cortez and others describe dismantling the airline industry and replacing it with high-speed trains, abolishing the internal combustion engine, passing living-wage proposals and renovating every building in the U.S., I see a 4-year-old promising to make her mother the bestest cake ever. The best news for Republicans is that it looks like Democrats are going to craft their 2020 strategy around this lunacy, and Im going to be handing out cigars and brandy to celebrate President Trumps reelection. The 2020 presidential campaign is just getting started, and topics such as climate change, global warming, and rising sea levels are sure to be a part of it. There is no question that government needs to take action in these areas. The challenge for Democrats now is to come up with effective potential solutions to the problem that dont appear too extreme to American voters. That is a tough challenge, but if they dont do it they will be opening themselves up to being mocked by Trump and other Republicans. In fact, it is possible that if not handled correctly these issues could in fact help Donald Trump get reelected in 2020, which would be the worst disaster of all. 208 SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard Advertising The Washington Post is reporting this morning that congressional talks to resolve the border wall dispute have broken down. With wall negotiations at an impasse it will be more difficult to avoid another government shutdown on Friday. Talks to resolve border wall dispute and avert government shutdown on Friday have broken down, officials say https://t.co/32lj1ksjzu The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) February 10, 2019 Members of Congress had been fairly optimistic going into the weekend about reaching a deal border security. This would allow them to pass a bill funding the government past Feb. 15 that would be signed by the president. Advertising But with an agreement appearing increasingly unlikely, the negotiators are now reportedly discussing a stopgap Homeland Security bill. The temporary funding deal that ended Donald Trumps shutdown in January runs out on Friday. To prevent a repeat shutdown, the bipartisan conference committee must come up with a solution no later than Wednesday. This would give both the House and the Senate enough time to hold at least minimal debate on the legislation, take votes, and put the bill on Trumps desk. Senate Appropriations Chairman Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) said Sunday that negotiations have stalled and put the odds of getting a deal at 50-50. Weve got some problems with the Democrats dealing with ICE, Shelby said in an interview. Im not confident were going to get there, Im hoping we will get there. Members of both parties have been trying to agree on how much money could go to barriers along the border. Trump has demanded $5.7 billion, but lawmakers were discussing amounts between $1.3 billion and $2 billion that would be acceptable to both sides. Acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney said President Donald Trump ha not ruled out another government shutdown. The government shutdown is technically still on the table, Mulvaney said Sunday. We do not want it to come to that, but that option is still open to the president and will remain so. Then he added: Lets say that the hardcore left wing of the Democrat Party prevails this negotiation and they put a bill on the presidents desk with, say, zero money for the wall or $800 million, some absurdly low number. How does he sign that? He cannot in good faith sign that. According to the Post: Democrats were trying to limit the number of detention beds that the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency would have access to. Democrats want to cap detention beds as a way to limit aggressive detention activities by ICE. One of the people familiar with the situation said that was the issue that led to the impasse. Democratic members of the committee planned to have a phone conference this morning to discuss next steps. I would say all is not lost but its certainly not the place anybody wanted to be, said a congressional source familiar with the talks. The breakdown in talks has made a difficult situation even more uncertain. What a final agreement will look like is not known and it may never happen. Trump has threatened to declare a national emergency to circumvent Congress and build his wall with the military, but that option faces strong opposition within his own party, as well as many large legal hurdles. Since Democrats feel that they won the first shutdown, and that the vast majority of American voters agree with their positions, it is likely that they will not budge in their negotiating position. This puts the pressure to resolve the impasse right where it belongs: squarely on the shoulders of the president, who caused the current crisis in the first place. 284 SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard Advertising Saudi Arabias minister of state for foreign affairs Adel al-Jubeir said that his country had absolutely nothing to do with the National Enquirers reporting on or attempted blackmail of Amazon.com CEO Jeff Bezos. The Saudi official spoke during an extensive interview on the CBS show Face the Nation on Sunday morning. Talking with host Margaret Brennan, Adel al-Jubeir also expressed other provocative opinions concerning Saudi/American relations and the killing of exiled journalist Jamal Khashoggi. For example, he continued to maintain that the Saudis have done a thorough investigation of Khashoggis murder. We believe that we have the means to do the investigation ourselves, @AdelAljubeir told @margbrennan @AgnesCallamard had said Saudi Arabia seriously curtailed and undermined attempts to investigate #Khashoggis killing "We believe that we have the means to do the investigation ourself," @AdelAljubeir told @margbrennan @AgnesCallamard had said Saudi Arabia "seriously curtailed and undermined" attempts to investigate #Khashoggi's killing https://t.co/HoEsQIgd3A pic.twitter.com/2AWlCRhVfS Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) February 10, 2019 Advertising Bezos wrote a blog post on Thursday accusing the Enquirers parent company American Media Inc (AMI) of attempting to blackmail him. He said that they had threatened to publish intimate photos he texted to his mistress unless he announced in public that the Enquirers reporting on him was not politically motivated. In his posting he also mentioned Saudi Arabias unhappiness with the Washington Posts coverage of the murder of Khashoggi. At the time of his death he was a writer for the Post, which is owned by Bezos. Bezos also referred to various reports in the media about links between AMI, Saudi Arabia and Donald Trump. AMI is owned by David Pecker, a close friend of Trump. On Face the Nation Brennan asked Adel al-Jubeir if the Saudi government was involved in the Enquirer/Bezos controversy, and he responded by saying: This is something between the two parties, we have nothing to do with it. It sounds to me like a soap opera. Jubeir said he was not aware of any links between the Saudi government and AMI or its CEO David Pecker. AMI said on Friday its reporting on Bezos was lawful and it would investigate his claims. In the Sunday interview the Saudi official also said they were very unhappy with legislation being proposed in the U.S. Congress to sanction Saudi Arabia over Khashoggis murder. Basically what this legislation is doing is its providing ammunition to the death to America crowd. @margbrennan asked @AdelAljubeir about accusations by @SenatorCollins & others that Saudi Arabia committed unacceptable violations of human rights "Basically what this legislation is doing is it's providing ammunition to the 'death to America' crowd."@margbrennan asked @AdelAljubeir about accusations by @SenatorCollins & others that Saudi Arabia committed "unacceptable violations of human rights" https://t.co/L39FpQ9OnF pic.twitter.com/XwHZgkznDD Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) February 9, 2019 The murder of Jamal Khashoggi has seriously strained the relationship between Saudi Arabia and the United States. The comments by Jeff Bezos have further inflamed a very serious situation. Todays comments from the Saudi foreign minister are not surprising, but they will not resolve the controversy. The truth is it still appears that Saudi Arabia was involved in the killing of a journalist who criticized their government. And it also appears that they were involved in the disastrous attempt to blackmail Bezos who in addition to owning the Washington Post also is the worlds richest man. This will not end well for the Saudis, for David Pecker, or for Donald Trump. 791 SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard Advertising Its a new Democratic Party. As Republicans try to take down the Green New Deal proposal over a glitchy rollout with some missteps, Democrats are not backing down from the larger point. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) said on CNN Sunday that the Green New Deal is absolutely realistic. If we dont command this country to think big about saving our nation and our world from destruction, then I dont think were going to get close to meeting the mark, the Democrat who co-sponsored a resolution outlining the Green New Deal in the Senate said. Advertising Watch here via CNN: Sen. @ChrisMurphyCT says the Green New Deal is absolutely realistic: If we dont command this country to think big about saving our nation and our world from destruction, then I dont think were going to get close to meeting the mark. https://t.co/whl2tZGqtn #CNNSOTU pic.twitter.com/krkHZbDZm1 CNN (@CNN) February 10, 2019 Murphy explained, I think its absolutely realistic and I frankly think we need to set our sights high. I think there are a lot of people who said that it wasnt realistic for the United States to get a man on the moon by the end of the 1960s when President Kennedy initially outlined that goal. But we did it. And I think we have to set our sights high. I have a 10-year-old and 7-year-old. Global warming is an existential threat to the planet. And so if we dont command this country to think big about saving our nation and our world from destruction, then I dont think were going to get close to meeting the mark. The Point Of The Green New Deal Is To Set An Agenda, Not Pass A Bill It is common sense that the Green New Deal wont pass the Senate, or be signed into the law by Trump. The point is to set an agenda for when Democrats take back The Senate and the White House, they will have a proposal ready for January 2021. Democrats are laying the groundwork for major action on climate change. Thats the entire purpose of unveiling the Green New Deal in 2019. Instead of falling for the glitch attack, which might ring bells because its how Republicans and the media tried to take down Obamacare as if a glitch in the website somehow meant people no longer needed affordable insurance Democrats like Chris Murphy are staying focused on the big picture of saving our planet. The flap is over a published draft version of an outline and list of frequently asked questions (FAQ) about the Green New Deal that was posted on Ocasio-Cortezs official website, which mistakenly pledged to guarantee economic security even for those unwilling to work. Because the Right has so long caricatured the Left thusly, they fell over themselves pointing to it as proof that socialists (note: Democratic Socialists are not the same thing as Socialists; one seeks to achieve its ends through democratic means, the other through authoritarian means.) want to ruin America. Of course, this particular proposal is meant to actually save lives, much like Obamacare. But that is of little concern to the Right when theyve finally managed to find proof of their boogeyman version of Democrats. That version of the Green New Deal was a wrong draft version. It was mistakenly published. Yes, this is a misstep. But it does not dismiss the ideas in the proposal, anymore than a Trump misspelling in a tweet means automatically that his ideas are wrong. These are two different concepts. Conservatives and Republicans have been in full on hysteria mode since Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez came on the scene, and since she unveiled the Green New Deal with Sen. Edward Markey and other progressive leaders, theyve been in full-on socialists are taking over the country! mode. Weirdly, their cries arent doing much. As Ive repeatedly said, its very hard to fear-monger about socialism when theres a plutocrat with fascist tendencies in the White House. Bonus points for trying this while American working families are staring in horror at the amount their tax bill has gone up, thanks to Trump and the GOPs tax cuts for the rich. They couldnt make tax cuts for the rich work unless they hit the middle class, and so thats what they did, and now its tax time and Americans are discovering this first hand in a very visceral way. The bottom line is no matter how much Republicans try to paint the Green New Deal as extremist, and yes it has to be fleshed out but its meant as a vision, not specific bills, it seems more extremist to keep ignoring climate change and how our current policies allow grave and sometimes lethal social injustices like the water in Flint, Michigan. Ocasio-Cortez told NPR Morning Edition co-host Steve Inskeep in an exclusive interview about using her fame for political power that she is hoping to help the nation rediscover the power of public imagination: Im learning. I think that really what I hope were able to do as a party and as a nation is rediscover the power of public imagination. Ocasio-Cortez made the point that this is something Trump has done with his wall, in fact. And thats an idea that experts dont think will actually work, whereas experts are screaming at us to deal with climate change. The New Green Deal might be idealistic. It might be seen as extremist, but thats only because we have for so long normalized putting corporate profits above citizens health. We are talking about the life of not just our citizens, but of the planet. Its a BFD. Anything that takes aim at dealing with this problem is going to sound extreme and even nuts in relationship to how we currently do business for the elite only. But that doesnt make it so. Socialist was the attack Republicans used against Obamacare, which was based in part on Republican idea. That word has lost its ability to immediately turn people off quivering in fear, especially after Republicans tried to take Obamacare away from folks. In fact, earlier on CNN, the Mayor of South Bend, Indiana Pete Buttigieg said the word socialist had lost its meaning. So, I think the word has mostly lost its meaning. And its certainly lost its ability to be used as a kill switch on debate. Trump has given Democrats something they havent had for years not just a spine, but a willingness to be all in on ideas that help the least among us, including our planet, who has no billionaires routinely making a profit off protecting her. Next to Trump, who seemingly believes things he sees in movies are real, is it really that nuts to push a radical agenda to protect our lives? No. And that is the one thing Trump has done for us. He has made it okay to stretch the boundaries of imagination, as Ocasio-Cortez pointed out. Advertising LAWRENCE, Mass. (Reuters) U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren, struggling to move past criticism over her claims of Native American heritage, aimed for a fresh start on Saturday with the formal launch of her 2020 presidential campaign, saying that she is fighting for all Americans. The Massachusetts Democrat, a leader of the partys progressive wing, made her announcement from a historic site in Lawrence, northwest of Boston, that launched the U.S. organized labor movement. Warren, 69, has made worker rights, fair wages and access to health care central to her campaign. This is the fight of our lives. The fight to build an America where dreams are possible, an America that works for everyone, Warren said. And that is why I stand here today: to declare that I am a candidate for President of the United States of America. Warren is part of an increasingly crowded and diverse field of Democrats vying for the chance to challenge President Donald Trump, the likely Republican nominee. A year before any ballots are cast in a Democratic primary, many of those candidates are spending this weekend talking to voters in the early-nominating states of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. Advertising Warrens announcement will be followed on Sunday by U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar, who has said she will reveal her presidential plans in her home state of Minnesota. Warren picked up the endorsement of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee (PCCC) simultaneously with her launch a group that could pump millions of dollars behind her candidacy and provide an outside attack dog against her Democratic opponents. We believe that Elizabeth Warren is the most electable Democrat and the best person to be president to defeat Trump, Adam Green, the co-founder of PCCC, said. Warrens heritage claims have dogged her since her first campaign for the Senate in 2012, and Trump mockingly refers to her as Pocahontas. Her ancestry drew fresh scrutiny earlier this week with the discovery that she described her race as American Indian on a form to join the Texas legal bar in the 1980s. Warren has repeatedly apologized, saying the claim was based on family lore and she now understands tribal sovereignty dictates membership. Trumps campaign described Warren as a fraud. A statement from his campaign manager Brad Parscale said, The American people will reject her dishonest campaign. In addition to being a fierce Trump critic, Warren is an outspoken critic of Wall Street who gained national notoriety for her efforts to create the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to regulate large banks. Warren is one of four women so far seeking the Democratic nomination, an unprecedented number of female candidates vying to lead a country that has never had a woman chief executive. Warren and the other women running so far, among whom are Senators Kamala Harris and Kirsten Gillibrand, are hoping to build on the success of women candidates who played a significant role in Democrats regaining control of the U.S. House of Representatives in Novembers congressional elections. I like her anger, said Christiane Alsop, who has donated to Warrens previous campaigns and is backing her presidential bid. I like her fighting spirit. Warren heads next to Iowa, where fellow Democratic contenders U.S. Senator Cory Booker and Pete Buttigieg, the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, campaigned on Friday. I am running for president right now because I believe Americans have surrendered to cynicism, Booker said at an event in Waterloo, Iowa. I want to see a revival of civic grace. (Reporting by Ginger Gibson; additional reporting by Amanda Becker in Waterloo, Iowa; editing by Colleen Jenkins, Cynthia Osterman and Leslie Adler) WASHINGTON - The nation faces the real possibility of another government shutdown at the end of the week, after bipartisan talks aimed at averting that outcome broke down in a dispute over immigration enforcement, lawmakers and aides said Sunday. President Donald Trump's border wall demands, which precipitated the record-long 35-day shutdown that ended late last month, were a secondary issue in the impasse that developed over the weekend, according to officials in both parties. Instead, after looking promising for days, the delicate negotiations collapsed over Democrats' insistence on limiting the number of unauthorized immigrants who can be detained by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. The breakdown in talks made it unlikely that lawmakers will be able to finalize an agreement on Monday, as they'd hope to do so it could pass the House and Senate before Friday night's deadline. "I think the talks are stalled right now," Senate Appropriations Chairman Richard Shelby of Alabama, the lead Republican negotiator, said on Fox News Sunday. "I'm not confident we're going to get there." The stalemate left the path forward to keeping the government open unclear. There were some behind-the-scenes efforts to salvage the talks Sunday evening, but it was uncertain whether they would be successful. The Homeland Security Department along with State, Agriculture, Commerce and a number of other federal agencies are currently operating on a stopgap spending bill that Trump signed Jan. 25. There's little appetite for another short-term funding extension, but without some action by midnight on Feb. 15, those agencies will run out of money and begin to shut down again. Another funding lapse could affect many Americans within days, because one of the agencies that would go unfunded during the shutdown is the IRS, which is processing tax returns for millions of people. During the 35-day shutdown that began in late December, thousands of IRS officials refused to show up for work without pay, backlogging the tax filing process. The president, who is scheduled to hold a rally in El Paso, Texas, on Monday night that's likely to focus on his demands for more border security, referenced the disagreement in a tweet on Sunday. "I don't think the Dems on the Border Committee are being allowed by their leaders to make a deal. They are offering very little money for the desperately needed Border Wall & now, out of the blue, want a cap on convicted violent felons to be held in detention!" the president wrote. Lawmakers on the 17-member conference committee had been trading offers over how much money could go to barriers along the U.S.-Mexico border, and were looking at between $1.3 billion and $2 billion - far short of the $5.7 billion Trump had demanded. The White House had begun to signal flexibility on that issue, even though Trump would end up with much less money than he sought, and the enhanced fencing or other barriers agreed to by Congress would fall short of the 200-plus miles of steel walls he'd wanted. But throughout the talks, Democrats had also been focused on limiting ICE's ability to detain unauthorized immigrants, which has become a major issue for the party because of their opposition to the Trump administration's aggressive detention tactics. The Democrats' proposal included a new limit on detention beds for immigrants picked up not at the border, but in the interior of the country. Democrats wanted to cap that number at 16,500, which they said is around the level of interior detentions in the final years of the Obama administration, although it's fewer than the number currently detained under the Trump administration's enforcement policies. Republicans want to exclude a range of immigrants from the cap. These would be people convicted of, or charged with, a variety of crimes, ranging from violent felonies to misdemeanor drug offenses. But Democrats said that would make the cap toothless, because it would allow ICE to round up numerous people who don't have criminal records and hold an unlimited number of people who, in some cases, have been charged with misdemeanors. Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard, D-Calif., a member of the conference committee, defended the Democratic position on bed space. "A cap on ICE detention beds will force the Trump administration to prioritize deportation for criminals and people who pose real security threats, not law-abiding immigrants who are contributing to our country," Roybal-Allard said in a statement. Democrats, newly in control of the House, have faced pressure from some liberals in their ranks to draw a much harder line in their negotiations over the border. Liberals including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., have proposed entirely cutting funding to ICE, and refusing any additional money for border barriers whatsoever. Democrats on the bipartisan negotiating committee have resisted those demands. But Republicans quickly seized on the new dispute over detention beds to try to lump all Democrats in with the most liberal elements in the party. "Now, apparently, not only is it enough they want to abolish ICE. They want to abolish the bed spaces available to the country to house violent offenders, so they can be held and deported," Sen. Lindsey O. Graham, R-S.C., said on Fox News Channel. "I promise you this. Donald Trump is not going to sign any bill that reduces the number of bed spaces available to hold violent offenders who come across our border. He can't do that. He won't do that, and you can take that to the bank." The fight over how many immigrants can be detained at once became extremely problematic in recent days, just as the White House began signaling to negotiators that it would be more flexible on how much money Congress appropriated for a wall along the Mexico border. White House officials have become increasingly confident that by declaring a national emergency, Trump will be able to redirect billions of dollars in other federal funding to be used for a wall or barriers. One scenario they had prepared for was for Congress to pass a bill appropriating some money for border security and then use the national emergency declaration to loosen even more funds. This could draw legal challenges from Democrats, landowners and other groups, but White House officials and some external advisers have said it was the best way to proceed. A total breakdown in talks poses a new set of challenges, however. It dramatically increases the odds of another partial government shutdown beginning Saturday. This would prevent roughly 800,000 federal workers from being paid indefinitely. During the last shutdown, which began Dec. 22, the White House relied on hundreds of thousands of federal employees to continue coming to work unpaid for more than a month in order for key government services to continue, including Border Patrol agents, Secret Service officers, airport screeners, and air traffic controllers. Many of the federal employees, however, refused to show up for work and called in sick, including airport screeners and IRS officers, and it's unclear what they would do if there's another shutdown. Though the odds of a government shutdown have increased markedly in the past 24 hours, negotiators have not said for certain that one will occur. That's because even though there is less than one week left to complete a deal, they still have time to work something out, and often deadlines force legislators to compromise. "There are bumps in the road, but as long as we stay focused in a bipartisan way, bicameral way, to get this done, I'm hopeful we can get it done," Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., one of the negotiators, said on Fox News Sunday. "Is it a done deal? No it isn't, and we could end up in a train wreck, it's happened before. But I don't think anybody has an appetite for a government shutdown, and I think everybody wants to make sure our borders are secure." The impasse came as a coalition of sheriffs' groups began lobbying lawmakers against limiting detention beds, calling the proposed cap "artificial" and noted the vast majority of the current ICE detainees - 72 percent - are required to be detained because of convictions or other reasons that mandate detention. "Capping the number of detention beds utilized by ICE not only jeopardizes the integrity of the immigration system, but would cripple ICE's ability to detain criminal aliens and other aliens who pose a risk to public safety or are a flight risk," the National Sheriffs' Association and the Major County Sheriffs of America said in their letter to congressional appropriators. ICE has regularly exceeded the current quota set by Congress on immigrant detention, which is 40,520 beds - although that figure is treated generally as a floor, not a ceiling. For instance, the number of people detained as of Wednesday was 49,057, including 46,590 adults and 2,467 families, according to statistics released by the office of Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., a top congressional critic of the administration's immigration policies. On Jan. 30, it was 48,088 - up from 46,492 on Jan. 16. As of Sunday, a total of 48,747 were in ICE custody, according to an ICE official. Ray Zaccaro, a spokesman for Merkley, said the figures show that the Homeland Security Department is "working outside of the framework approved by Congress." He accused the administration of "not coming to the table with clean hands" as lawmakers try to hammer out a deal to avert another government shutdown. --- The Washington Posts Felicia Sonmez contributed to this report I first met Jack Bogle, who founded the Vanguard mutual funds, when I introduced him in October 2000 as the keynote speaker at the Baltimore Suns personal financial conference. His talk was riveting full of wisdom about the risks and rewards of Wall Street, the principles that guided Vanguard and a sobering, prescient note of caution for investors who had been mesmerized by the meteoric rise of dotcom stocks. Within a month of Jacks talk, the stock market was plummeting and a bear market was underway. Jacks address established him at least, in my mind as a stock market seer. But most importantly, it marked the beginning of an 18-year friendship that spanned the rest of his life. Jack died on Wednesday at the age of 89. About 18 months after first meeting Jack, I gave the commencement speech at the University of Maryland. I told the saga of the two Jacks Jack Bogle, who had issued his blunt warning about the dotcom bubble, and Jack Marimow, my Dad, an inveterate investor and a risk taker, who had purchased a dotcom stock at $12 a share, watched it soar to $232 and sold at $32 as it went into a long-term tailspin. I sent the talk to Jack Bogle, and he responded with an enthusiastic letter and sent me one of his books. When I returned to Philadelphia in 2006, Jack invited me to breakfast. That meal began an almost uninterrupted 12-year string of breakfasts where Jack regaled me with tales of his life in business, his family (six great children, a posse of grandchildren, and his charming wife, Eve), and the vicissitudes of his career at Vanguard, the $5 trillion group of mutual funds he created. At Vanguard, he was a hero to the crew, the Vanguard employees who worked in the trenches, but he was not always a welcome presence to the executives who followed him and refused to waive Vanguards mandatory retirement rules for their founder. Those long conversations with Jack provided insight into his values: He was dedicated and loyal to the institutions and the people who had helped him throughout his life first, as a scholarship student at Blair Academy and, later, on scholarship at Princeton University, where he supplemented the financial aid he received with campus jobs and full-time work every summer. At Blair, where he created the Bogle Brothers Scholarships, more than 150 students have benefited from his largesse, and he did the same for a generation of students at Princeton. Although he never told me, I know that Jack set aside one half of his annual income for philanthropy. Beyond his generosity, Jack radiated integrity. At Vanguard, he espoused an ineradicable commitment to Vanguards clients and the crew. Writing in his book, The Man in the Arena, Jack said, Over the years, I have come to love and respect the term human beings to describe both our clients and our crew members. He lamented the fact that he never encountered the words human beings in any books hed read on corporate strategy, and he once challenged a classroom of Harvard Business School students to prove him wrong. Jack also loved the affection of grateful investors, especially the Bogleheads, who gather yearly to discuss the benefits of investing in Vanguard index funds, which Bogle pioneered. One morning at breakfast where Jack gave his typical request that hed like his scrapple burnt to a crisp" another diner told Jack that he recognized his voice from listening to his interviews and speeches over the years. He thanked Jack profusely for how Vanguard had buttressed his family finances. I could never quite figure out why Jack and I became friends, but friends we were. His last email to me sent on New Years Day ended with the words peace and love to all. As I think about Jack today, what I know for certain is that Philadelphia and the world have lost a giant a financial visionary whose bedrock integrity, competitive grit, compassion, and contributions to millions of investors will endure. Bill Marimow, who received two Pulitzer Prizes as a reporter at the Inquirer, was the editor of the Inquirer for eight years. He is now the vice president of corporate strategy for the Inquirers parent company. It was the stuff of Saturday Night Live cold open legend the joke that wrote itself about the worlds richest man, selfie iPhone pictures of his genitalia, and an alleged blackmail plot orchestrated by a man with the tabloid-friendly surname of Pecker. After two-plus years when so much of the news was dominated by hard-to-follow allegations of Russian election interference and alleged collusion by an American presidential campaign, here finally! was a scandal that Joe Sixpack could really sink his teeth into. [Male sexual organ] pics! Endless Pecker jokes! The prurient details of this scandal surrounding Amazons Jeff Bezos, and foibles of a man worth $160 billion (before his looming divorce, anyway) sending sexts just like every horny 17-year-old, could fuel TV cable news and newspaper headlines for weeks and it probably will. But what if I told you that Bezoss smartphone self-portrait gallery is arguably the least sexy thing (heh) about this entire affair? That a billionaires racy texts are merely the tip of a global iceberg that as Bezos himself darkly hinted in his shocking Medium post exposing his alleged blackmail by the publishers of the National Enquirer potentially involves the oil billions of Saudi Arabia and the president of the United States? Or that it could tie into shadowy international hacking operations, and maybe even the high-profile murder of a U.S.-based journalist? And what if I told you something else: That the Bezos scandal is ripping away the curtain on a secret world thats been hiding in plain sight: That a nation founded in the ideals of democracy has been increasingly fallen prey to a new dystopian regime that melds the new 21st century dark arts of illegal hacking and media manipulation with the oldest tricks in the book: blackmail and extortion. Pull up a chair. You probably know by now the basics about Bezos and the National Enquirer: In January the Amazon mogul announced that he and his longtime wife MacKenzie are divorcing, hours ahead of a report in the National Enquirer laden with the content of racy texts between the billionaire and his mistress. On Thursday, Bezos whod hired a well-known investigator to find out how the supermarket tabloid got his private communications took to Medium with a post accusing the Enquirers parent company, AMI, whose CEO is David Pecker, of threatening to publish embarrassing photos of Bezos and his lover if he didnt drop his investigation and state (falsely, Bezos asserts) that its coverage was not politically motivated. Ironically, the Bezos-AMI affair sucked all the oxygen out of another big scoop published at almost exactly the same time. The New York Times reported American intelligence had learned that the de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, Crown Prince Muhammed bin Salman (commonly referred to as MBS) had railed to an associate against the Saudi dissident Jamal Khashoggi, whod moved to the United States and was writing anti-MBS op-ed columns for the Washington Post. MBS allegedly said hed personally put a bullet into Khashoggi. That was in 2017. A year later, the Saudis lured Khashoggi to its embassy in Istanbul, where he was brutally murdered by agents of the oil-rich regime and allegedly dismembered with a bone saw. Within days, the only major outstanding question about the brutal but clumsy killing was proving that MBS had personally ordered it. The Washington Post where the slain Khashoggi was a beloved colleague and where the political murder of a columnist was seen as a threat against all journalism vowed to stay on the story until the truth was revealed. In mid-December, the Post memorialized Khashoggi in a full-page ad and its publisher Fred Ryan said its reporters would push the Saudi regime until meaningful action is taken. Did I mention that the owner of the Washington Post is Jeff Bezos? Now lets take a step back and look at the National Enquirer, which over decades has wormed its way into Americas consciousness by confronting supermarket shoppers with headlines about flabby celebrity sightings or JFK assassination plots. Only now is the world figuring out that making up stories to sell papers may have been the least of the sins committed by the Enquirer, which was propped up in its 1950s infancy by Mafia money and which later forged a close relationship with Roy Cohn, the notorious New York fixer attorney who took an up-and-coming New York developer named Donald Trump under his wing while fighting off allegations including (wait for it) extortion and blackmail. Since Trump was elected 45th president of the United States, weve learned that a) Peckers AMI reached a deal with federal prosecutors in Manhattan to avoid prosecution and tell all about how it aided Trump by working with Trumps legal fixer, Michael Cohen, to pay Trumps mistress Karen McDougal $150,000 in a scheme to keep her out of the news right before the November 2016 election. b) AMIs Enquirer protected Trump in myriad other ways, from paying off a doorman with a salacious Trump rumor to publishing false stories that his opponent Hillary Clinton was gravely ill just as Trumps political fixer, Roger Stone, was suggesting that bogus line of attack. c) That while the Enquirer was aiding and protecting Trump it was also according to reports holding onto a remarkable source of protection: a safe containing damaging stories about the president it had buried over the years. The yeomans work that Peckers Enquirer had performed on behalf of Trumps election combined, possibly, with the treasure trove of dirt inside of that safe meant it was time to cash in on the newfound connections of the man who went in just a decade from scamming Trump Vodka and Trump University to running a global superpower. And no connection was worth more than the vast wealth of Saudi Arabia. What the public didnt know in the early months of Trumps presidency was that Donald Trump Jr. had secretly met in Trump Tower in early August 2016 with a longtime emissary for the Saudis and its closest ally, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), George Nader, and two figures from the world of intelligence: Erik Prince, founder of the notorious firm known as Blackwater, and an ex-Israeli intelligence agent named Joel Zamel. Nader, according to the New York Times, said the Saudis and the UAE wanted to help Trump win the election. Zamel proposed a covert social media campaign. Trump Jr. swears that nothing came of the meeting even though a sleazy social-media campaign exactly like the one Zamel proposed helped Trump narrowly win the Electoral College. When Trump became president, he could have gone anywhere for his first international trip: He went to Saudi Arabia. When the Saudis and UAE split with Qatar a key ally where American troops are stationed Trump baffled his own administration by trash-talking Qatar. In July 2017, the president invited his good friend David Pecker to the White House and after chatting with Trumps son-in-law Jared Kushner, who was developing close ties with MBS the two men had dinner with Kacy Grine, a French businessman whos a longtime adviser to MBS. Two months later, Pecker went to Saudi Arabia and met personally with MBS and Grine and pitched business opportunities. About six months later, shoppers in U.S. supermarkets, Walmart and other retailers might have been shocked to see a colorful piece of pro-Saudi propaganda at the checkout. The New Kingdom was a glossy publication with many color photos lauding MBS, overwrought text describing Saudi Arabia as a magic kingdom, no ads and a ridiculous cover price of $13,99. The magazine just ahead of an MBS visit to America where he met Trump, Pecker (and, ironically, Bezos) and other luminaries was of course published by AMI. During this same period, Team Trump and MBS grew even closer, with Kushner traveling to Riyadh in October 2017 for two days of secret meetings where, according to several unconfirmed reports, he may have shared U.S. intelligence a short time before MBS rounded up and detained some 200 high-ranking Saudis. At the same time, Trump fumed over the investigative journalism of the Bezos-owned Washington Post. Even though Bezos is by all accounts a hands-off owner with no say in the Posts journalism, Trump at one point reportedly demanded that the U.S. Postal Service hike the rates charged Amazon. Which brings us to Oct. 2, 2018, the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, and the Posts vow to get to the bottom of it. Three months later came the salacious Enquirer report on Bezos. Its publication was joyously celebrated by none other than President Trump, who sounded like a Mafia boss, albeit a dumb one, with a tweet about the troubles of Jeff Bozo. But Bezos didnt take the news lying down. He hired a well-known investigator, Gavin de Becker, to launch a detailed investigation of how the Enquirer obtained his private text messages. Early reports suggested a focus on the brother of Bezoss paramour, Michael Sanchez, who is a political supporter of Trump and a friend of Trump-Russia scandal figures such as Carter Page and (wait for it again) Roger Stone. And maybe the simplest explanation is the best explanation except that Bezos wrote on Thursday night that what apparently made Pecker apoplectic was questions about Saudi Arabia. Bezos, in his Medium post, noted some of the AMI-Trump-Saudi history chronicled in this column. He said that Trump has wrongly concluded that Bezos is an enemy and that the Posts Khashoggi journalism is highly unpopular in some circles. He added: For reasons still to be better understood, the Saudi angle seems to hit a particularly sensitive nerve with AMI, which then allegedly threatened Bezos, verbally and then (incredibly) by email, with publication of the photos. Is a Saudi role in the hacking plausible? Over the last two years, weve seen the fallout not just from the Russian hacking in the 2016 U.S. election thats been nailed down by special counsel Robert Mueller, but escalating hacking wars among the Middle East powers. Indeed, some of what we know about the Saudi-UAE effort to cultivate Trump comes from emails apparently hacked by Qatar and leaked to the press. In December, a Saudi dissident who lives in Canada and was close friends with the murdered Khashoggi filed a lawsuit alleging that an Israeli software company called the NSO Group which according to reports sold its spyware program called Pegasus to Saudi Arabia for $55 million had used its technology to hack into his smartphone and his communications with Khashoggi. Other dissidents have made similar allegations that the Saudis have used phone hacking to spy on them. (Meanwhile, the Saudiss close friends in UAE have allegedly used a different program called Karma to spy on the iPhones of dissidents.) Clearly, there is some kind of Hacking Incorporated thats on the rise in the Persian Gulf. Which brings us back to the question of why AMI was demanding not only that Bezos drop its investigation of the hacking but to state that the probe found no political motivation behind its article on the Amazon chief. Any link between the Bezos phone hack and the Saudis or their allies (UAE, Team Trump) would be devastating but what if de Gavin is on the trail of something darker? Like the truth behind Khashoggis murder? Or given the ties between Team Trump, the Saudis, UAE and ex-Israeli intelligence that go back to the summer of 2016 the truth behind the election of an American president? Remember, AMI signed an agreement with federal prosecutors to avoid prosecution in the Michael Cohen-Karen McDougal plot that included a promise to refrain from criminal activity for three years or else the deal was off and AMI, and presumably Pecker, could be charged in the Cohen case. Why, then, would they take the insane risk of opening that can of worms with a threat to Bezos that could meet the legal definition of blackmail? They must be hiding something very bad. Here Ill note that an attorney for AMI went on TV Sunday to insist that the source for the Enquirer story was not connected to the Saudis or Trump. Duly noted although AMIs past track record for honesty is not good. Meanwhile, Trump is ignoring a congressionally mandated deadline to find if the Saudis violated human rights in Khashoggis murder. And a top Saudi official just warned that linking MBS to Khashoggis murder would be crossing a red line. Again, what is everyone here so afraid of? Meanwhile, all this talk of blackmail and extortion is a reminder that two years into the Trump administration a president who promised America the art of the deal has instead tried to run the country the way he ran his business in the mobbed-up New York of the 1980s with bullying, bluster, and personal threats. But when forced to play that hand over the border wall and the government shutdown recently, it failed miserably. Would it be a surprise if Trump continues to fall back on the only tactic thats worked for him and his allies to get things done over the years, the dark art of the blackmailer? One thing thats become increasingly clear since the summer of 2016 is how unprepared we were for a world in which our beloved devices like our iPhones or our laptops have become tools to control us whether its the manipulation of fake news and dark ads on Facebook that helped Trump get elected, or the growing ability of both governments and big corporations to invade our privacy and spy on our activities. We know that what were experiencing now is not true democracy. And with the Bezos and Khashoggi revelations, its totally fair to ask: Are we increasingly ruled by blackmail and extortion? It would certainly explain a lot of things. For example, is Trumps former bodyguard Keith Schiller getting $15,000 a month from the Republican National Committee for his do-little-or-do-nothing job, or because he knows too many secrets? What are we to make of the fact that Michael Cohen and Roger Stone knew all about a hidden sex-abuse scandal involving then-New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and that the New York AGs office didnt investigate the Trump Foundation until after Schneiderman was forced out? Why do so many GOP senators who once brutally criticized Trump now support him? And then theres the biggest question of all, one that Mueller is tasked with getting to the bottom of. What if Americas new amateur blackmail regime is being blackmailed by a professional: Russias Vladimir Putin? Much like the governments kowtowing to the Saudis and MBS, there is too much about the administrations bending to Russias will on issues such as sanctions or Syria not to ask whether Putin has leverage over Trump. The most salacious version of kompromat that Putins spies have a pee tape of Trump will likely remain the stuff of legend. But its not unrealistic to think that Russias 2016 dealings with Team Trump over the election and a possible Trump Tower Moscow are leverage enough. In 1974, an American leader was toppled by the question, What did the president know and when did he know it? Shocking as it may seem, its not unreasonable to now ask: Who are the worlds leaders blackmailing, and who is blackmailing them? The future of democracy depends on the answer. Because kompromat should not be a word in Americas dictionary. WASHINGTON -- He presided over some of New Jerseys first same-sex marriages. He was a leader in the push to ease sentences for low-level drug offenders and has amassed a liberal voting record on nearly every major issue. And he tirelessly campaigned for fellow Democrats in 2016 and 2018. Yet as Sen. Cory Booker prepares to jump into the Democratic presidential race, some liberals still dont trust him. For the most part he votes the right way. He really went out there in 2018, went above and beyond, said Rebecca Katz, a progressive political strategist based in New York. But I do think progressives are wary of his record. Liberals have long questioned Bookers ties to wealthy interests, including Wall Street, Silicon Valley, and pharmaceutical companies; his coziness with former Gov. Chris Christie, a Republican; and his advocacy for charter schools. Now, as Booker prepares to launch a 2020 presidential campaign in the coming weeks, those issues could weigh on him as he competes with an array of contenders, including liberal champions such as Sens. Elizabeth Warren and, likely, Bernie Sanders. But the long-standing questions about Booker also arrive with some new context, after six years in the Senate in which he has embraced many of the lefts most ambitious ideas, including Medicare for all, a federal jobs guarantee, and a proposal to give every newborn a taxpayer-funded savings account. Even some critics have taken note, though interviews suggest they are not entirely convinced. "Its nuanced, and I hope that comes through, Katz said. I do think hes done a lot for the party, but I do think theres reason for progressives to be skeptical. Recent straw polls by the liberal Daily Kos and MoveOn found Booker at or near the bottom of the pack among big-name Democratic contenders, garnering less than 3 percent support. In MoveOns December survey he was even a step behind former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a onetime Republican. Few doubt that Booker supports liberal causes. But some progressives wonder if Booker is truly a progressive crusader at heart, or if he is just following where others, like Sanders and Warren, have led. Sen. Booker has admirably been proactive in making progress on issues related to big pharma and Wall Street, said Adam Green, cofounder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, which has supported Warren. But, Green added, I think voters will want to not just know [candidates'] on-paper positions, but also understand their worldview enough to reliably predict their positions on future unanticipated issues. Other Democrats also face a reckoning over past stances. Former Vice President Joe Biden recently admitted it was a big mistake when he backed a 1994 crime bill now blamed for mass incarceration. Sen. Kamala Harris (D., Calif.) has taken heat over her work as a prosecutor. And Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D., N.Y.) is answering for past stands on illegal immigration and guns. Many of the candidates that are going to announce are going to be tested and theyre going to have to answer for their record," said Karine Jean-Pierre, of the grassroots liberal group MoveOn. We have moved as a party and as a country." A Booker spokesperson pointed to his work to help boost economic opportunities in Newark, build new parks, and increase access to affordable housing, along with Senate initiatives on jobs, the environment, economic inequality, and prescription-drug costs. Senator Bookers progressive record is unimpeachable, Kristin Lynch wrote in an email. He has put forward groundbreaking proposals that have driven the national progressive agenda forward. Its unclear whether the skepticism about Booker is far-reaching, or limited to a vocal minority. He easily won a 2013 Democratic primary against three credible opponents, including two congressmen who had campaigned as liberal fighters. Democrats across the country have called on him to fly in and rally their supporters suggesting that they see only upside in standing alongside the New Jerseyan. But for some grassroots skeptics, suspicions about Booker crystallized during the 2012 presidential campaign, when, on NBCs Meet the Press he condemned Democratic attacks on Bain Capital, the firm once run by then-GOP nominee Mitt Romney. This kind of stuff is nauseating to me on both sides. Its nauseating to the American public. Enough is enough. Stop attacking private equity, stop attacking Jeremiah Wright, Booker said, referring to Barack Obamas former pastor. "This stuff has got to stop, because what it does is it undermines, to me, what this country should be focused on. Its a distraction from the real issues. Critics still fume at that defense of private equity firms, while Booker allies say he was making a broader point. Another flash point comes from Bookers work with Christie to reshape public education in Newark by vastly expanding charter schools, backed by a $100 million gift from Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. Booker allies say he was making a bold move to help at-risk children in failing schools a cause liberals should support. But many on the left believe charter schools undermine traditional public education, and reporters who analyzed school budgets found that much of the money went to consultants, not teachers. Education-wise, hes not far removed from a Betsy DeVos philosophically, said John Abeigon, president of the Newark Teachers Union, referring to President Donald Trumps education secretary. Its sad because we support him on most issues. But thats a major issue. Booker served on the board of DeVos Alliance for School Choice, which advocated public money for charter, private, and religious schools. Booker aides point to a Harvard study that found that after initial declines in achievement, Newark students had improved significantly in English, though not math. Most of the gains happened after Booker had left the mayors office and moved to the Senate. Bookers significant fund-raising from people who work on Wall Street or at major pharmaceutical companies, both major employers for New Jerseyans, has also fueled liberal concern. The Wall Street Journal recently reported that of all the major Democratic contenders for 2020, Booker has relied most heavily on those who can write massive checks rather than everyday people who give $20 or $30 at a time. Booker supporters bristle at questions about his core beliefs. They point out that after graduating from Stanford, Yale Law, and Oxford he moved into a Newark housing project to work on the difficult issues in a city racked by crime and poverty. They draw a distinction between him and DeVos by noting that the Newark charter schools remained public, not the private schools she favors. And they point out that he spoke out against DeVos' confirmation. The New Jersey Education Association, the statewide teachers' union, endorsed Booker in 2014. On the core issues like LGBT, abortion, and marijuana reform and criminal justice reform, hes like A-plus-plus-plus-plus-plus, said Jay Lassiter, a liberal activist from Cherry Hill who supported Sanders in 2016. Booker has used his fame to lead a rally on the Capitol steps to support the Affordable Care Act and help organize a filibuster for tougher gun laws. In 2017 he testified against then-Attorney General nominee Jeff Sessions, breaking Senate protocol by speaking out against a colleague. But two days later, Booker opposed a Sanders proposal to allow the importation of prescription drugs from Canada. It was a symbolic, nonbinding vote, but liberals were outraged, again concluding that Booker had sided with moneyed interests. Booker said he had concerns about the plans safety controls. Since then, he and Sanders have teamed up on several bills to lower drug costs. They introduced their latest earlier this month, with Booker standing next to his potential 2020 rival. Ice can be the color of a cloudy sky or a glittering diamond. But crystal-clear cubes dont just look prettier. They melt more slowly and they even taste better. To bartenders and beverage managers at some Philadelphia cocktail bars, ice is one of the most important ingredients, a crucial tool for bringing a spirit, mixed drink, or mocktail to the right temperature. The thought of making a drink with cubes from a regular freezer tray is almost cringeworthy. Well-made ice and ice that comes from, say, a hotel machine, is like the difference between cooking a meal using a cast-iron pan or a microwave," says Canyon Shayer, bar manager at Philadelphia Distilling, the Bluecoat gin headquarters and cocktail lounge just off Delaware Avenue. At R&D cocktail bar in Fishtown, the ice takes as much prep work as the syrups and other ingredients maybe more, says part-owner Aaron Deary. Thats because all drinks are made with glasslike cubes that were molded and cracked by hand from large slabs into smaller pieces. When Deary and others developed the bars first cocktail menu in the fall, Deary pushed for the emphasis on ice, even though he knew it meant customers would have to wait a few minutes more for each drink. If youre going to do a cocktail bar, you ought to do it properly, he said. You want to get the ice right. Experts say the key to clear ice is freezing it slowly from the top down, which forces impurities to settle at the bottom and leaves the rest transparent. Known to some as the lake method, the process also eliminates air bubbles, which can cause ice to melt faster and thus dilute a drink. Many bars make cubes from machines designed to produce clear ice, but R&D and Philadelphia Distilling have taken the obsession to the next level by buying frozen blocks from Franks Ice, a Runnemede company that supplies ice carvings for company parties and events such as weddings. Franks, which grew out of a family ice-delivery business founded more than 50 years ago, uses an ice maker that freezes water in a bathtub-like trough, with a pump that keeps the water circulating. Instead of top-down, Franks freezes from the bottom up, meaning impurities rise to the surface to be skimmed off before carving. It becomes this pristine piece of glass, owner Frank Class said. Its pure, and theres no taste to it." Those slabs are broken into manageable chunks, and later, at Philadelphia Distilling and R&D, into even smaller pieces. At R&D, the bars initials are melted in using a metal stamp that brands each cube. Some cocktail bars use one type of ice when mixing and chilling drinks, and another to garnish drinks when theyre served. At R&D, drinks are mixed using ice made from filtered water that is frozen in rectangular tubs, then cut with saws. Staff discard cloudy pieces, keeping only the clear. Many customers of the Chinatown cocktail bar Hop Sing Laundromat never see any of the hundred of pounds of ice the bar goes through each week, because most is used only for mixing drinks before straining them into glasses, owner Le said. For drinks served with ice, the staff makes separate large and column-shaped cubes from filtered water, storing them in a freezer that holds only ice so as to preserve the taste. Hop Sings Le is an evangelist for clean ice; he said his staff is there after closing every Saturday night until almost dawn, cleaning the insides of his Hoshizaki ice maker with toothbrushes until its spotless, then running water through it. A clean ice machine it makes a huge difference, Le said. Its just common sense. Otherwise, you get the ice taking on a bad taste, a bad smell. " Le's machine makes ice by pouring double-filtered water into a tray with a with metal mold, then freezing from the top, draining excess water from below. About half an hour later, a tray of fresh ice falls into the machines storage area in translucent one-inch cubes. To make clear ice at home, Shayer said you dont need fancy water, and you dont need to boil it, though boiling helps. What it really takes is a small insulated cooler filled with water and frozen, uncovered, until it becomes a solid block. Then it can be thawed on a counter or in a sink until the ice block pops out easily. Shayer suggested scoring the surface with lines using a serrated knife, which will create tiny fractures that feather out across the ice, then hacking it into pieces that should crack off easily. A large cube in a rocks glass will keep a drink the same temperature until its finished, Shayer said. A large cube will also make some shaken drinks taste better. A gimlet with gin, lime juice, and simple syrup takes on almost a whipped, meringue-like texture when shaken with a large piece of ice. When poured into a glass, a layer of tiny, effervescent bubbles forms on the surface a touch that the drink wouldnt get from regular ice cubes. Deary said shaking or stirring a drink with regular-size ice cubes can also give it a watered-down flavor. A drink stirred with the right ice, meanwhile, should taste silky and soft, no air in the liquid, just the ingredients. Asked whether customers can tell the difference, Deary recalled a recent Friday when his saw broke right before opening. Deary, who prides himself on serving old-fashioneds with a cube that is practically invisible, was forced to bring in precut ice. People noticed, he said. Someone said, Oh, the ice isnt that clear this week. As the Philadelphia Museum of Art prepares to host an extravagant ball on Friday, organizers are not stocking up on champagne or fancy hors doeuvres. This ball, a community project thats been a year in the works, was designed to celebrate Philadelphias ballroom scene an LGBTQ subculture anchored by performance, built by people of color. Instead of a parade of satin evening gowns, there will be a runway show, Fabulous Fashions of Ballroom, featuring original designs carefully crafted from sequins, leather, lace, and faux fur, inspired by the museums current fashion exhibit. The 25 creators of the designs will float down the Great Stairs in stilettos and velvet loafers, synced to a soundtrack curated by MikeQ, a New Jersey DJ who has spent a decade championing ballroom. And instead of waltzing, there will be voguing, a style of dance that flamboyantly imitates the poses struck by models on the catwalk. Dont know how? No worries. Ball-goers can sign up for a 20-minute session on the five elements of voguing hands, catwalk, duckwalk, spin and dip, and floor taught by the experts themselves in the Arms and Armor gallery. To bring Final Fridays: Werk It! to fruition, the Art Museum spent a year working closely with POSSE Project, a team of researchers studying behavioral-intervention methods in Phillys house and ballroom community. Funded by the National Institute for Mental Health and organized by the Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia, POSSE stands for Promoting Ovah-ness through Safer Sex Education. (Ovah-ness means amazing or fantastic in the ballroom community.) The team of researchers works with young African American men who have sex with men to devise a customized strategy for increasing sexual-health awareness, discouraging risky behavior, and developing mentors within the community. To reach the target audience, CHOP has organized several dance-driven gatherings (better known as Kiki lounges) and ballroom competitions. The Art Museum ball will be POSSEs most visible event to date, with roughly 1,000 people expected to attend. The citys ballroom community first floated the idea of collaborating two years ago, according to POSSE Project coordinator Bevin Gwiazdowski. They finally connected with the museum a year ago, when staff members recognized that the 2018-19 exhibit Fabulous Fashion: From Diors New Look to Now (through March 3) provided the perfect backdrop for a ball. The museum is a really outstanding place to have a ball, said Corey Ike Lanvin Jackson, a POSSE Project committee member who helped organize Fridays event. For the ballroom gay scene, its a really big accomplishment. Were really proud just to be able to display the fashion that we have alongside the [Fabulous Fashion] exhibit. Lanvin said the entire ballroom scene in Philadelphia rallied behind this event. Come Friday evening, he expects to see a wide range of the citys ballroom community from young teens to people in their 40s showing off their fiercest moves on the runway. We involved lots of people who have been with ballroom since the beginning and people who have just started, Lanvin said. Seeing them bridge that age gap has been really incredible. Ballroom culture first took root in the drag balls of the Harlem Renaissance in the 1920s, but it really flourished during the 1970s, when houses were created. Houses provided surrogate families for young queer people of color, who were typically estranged from their families and struggling to get by. The groups organized competitions, known as balls, where house members would walk or vogue for trophies and prizes. Ball culture found a foothold in Philadelphia during the late 70s and early 80s. Today, there are 12 active houses in the city, such as House of Prodigy and House of Blahnik; 10 of them will be represented at Fridays event, according to Lanvin. The groups meet up to compete for cash prizes at balls throughout the year. Last November, the popular Gayborhood bar Woodys started hosting a monthly series of vogue nights. Im hoping that [attendees] will get a little glimpse into the community and see how talented the people who are involved with this community are, Gwiazdowski said. Over the last year, POSSE Project members have joined forces with Art Museum staffers to figure out details for the runway show the centerpiece of the event such as lighting, staging, and sound. Besides the show and voguing workshops, event attendees can also tour the Fabulous Fashion exhibit with members of the ballroom community. But the ball is not just a fun, fashion-filled evening. Art Museum educators and members of POSSE Project also wanted to use this opportunity to educate attendees about the ballroom community. It was very, very important to us that this not simply be a spectacle, stressed Emily Schreiner, the curator of education and public programs at the Art Museum. As a large institution, we are not asking people to perform this identity. The extensive collaboration between POSSE Project and the museum led to an exhibit on Philadelphias ballroom history, which visitors can explore on Friday. It includes personal accounts from the ballroom community, videos of previous balls, and outfits and accessories worn while walking. There will also be a detailed handout on POSSE Project. Were giving the world a taste of our community at the museum, Lanvin said. Weve been underground for so long, so its cool that we get to show people a different community they might have not known about in the LGBTQ scene. 5 to 8:45 p.m. Friday. Philadelphia Museum of Art, 2600 Benjamin Franklin Pkwy. $18 for adults and seniors, $14 for students with valid ID and youth ages 13-18, free for children under 12. 215-763-8100. philamuseum.org Philadelphia City Council members are set to consider a bill on Tuesday that would ban cashless stores in the city. The bill proposes to prohibit retail locations from refusing to accept cash or from charging cash-paying customers a higher price. The proposal would not apply to transactions made by phone, mail, or online. Violators could be fined up to $2,000. The councils Committee on Law and Government is scheduled to hold a hearing on the bill at 10 a.m. Tuesday in room 400 of City Hall. The committee could then vote to advance the legislation for the City Councils consideration. As technology gives consumers more ways to pay, including with their smartphones, some businesses have gone cashless to improve efficiency and reduce the risk of robbery, among other reasons. A few businesses in Philadelphia have gone cashless in recent years, notably the salad chain Sweetgreen and Bluestone Lane, a coffee shop. Representatives for both businesses did not immediately return requests for comment on Monday. Councilman William Greenlee, who introduced the bill, said he is concerned that cashless stores are discriminating against those who dont have a bank account. Nearly 6 percent of the Philadelphia region was unbanked in 2017 and roughly 22 percent were considered underbanked because they have bank accounts but still use alternative financial services, such as check cashers, according to the Federal Insurance Deposit Corporation. Americans are less reliant on paper bills and coins, according to Pew Research Center survey released in December. The survey of 10,683 U.S. adults found that 29 percent said they made no purchases using cash during a typical week, up from 24 percent in 2015. Likewise, those who made all or almost all of their weekly purchases with cash dropped from 24 percent in 2015 to 18 percent today, according to the survey. New Jersey lawmakers overwhelmingly approved a similar bill last week, sending the legislation to Gov. Phil Murphy, who can sign of veto the measure. Tributes from around Philadelphia, and the country, have poured in for the late Vanguard founder John C. Bogle, who insisted everyone call him Jack. Heres a personal tribute: Around 2001 when I started covering mutual funds, Bogle took me to lunch at the Princeton Club (his college alma mater) in Manhattan to give me some tips. That was outrageously humble of him, given that hed created the index mutual fund, Hed also received a heart transplant in 1996, and yet I could barely keep up with the pace of his ideas for stories. He was then 70, and still worked from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. He died at his Bryn Mawr home last week at age 89. For those not familiar, Bogle launched what is todays Vanguard S&P 500 Index Fund in the 1970s, and pioneered low-cost investing. Knowledge@Wharton dubbed Bogle the father of indexing. Decades later, Vanguards funds charge an average of 0.11 percent in annual expenses for consumers. That is, if you invest $1,000, you pay $1.10 in fees annually. That expense ratio, the annual cost paid for money management, is much lower than the 0.52 percent industry average for funds and ETFs in 2017, according to Morningstar. The rest of Wall Street, including competitors BlackRock, Fidelity, and State Street, are now in an ongoing war with Vanguard to cut fees, and the effect has been to democratize investing. Who benefited? We did -- the retail investor. Bogle was seeking to help the small investor as recently a few months ago. At a June 2018 meeting with SEC chief Jay Clayton, which Bogle attended along with members of the Institute for the Fiduciary Standard, Bogle aired his views on a hoped-for fiduciary standard to protect investors. Bogle applauded the commissions attempt to ensure that the best interests of investors are not superseded by the interests of service marketers, calling the new rules the essence of fiduciary duty. Although we still lack a fiduciary standard on Wall Street, as an adviser, he was constant: Press on, regardless, the Institutes head Knut Rostad said of Bogle. SEC head Clayton last week chipped in too, saying "Jack Bogle had unwavering passion for America, our capital markets, and most of all our Main Street investors. The Bogleheads, a group of low-cost investing devotees who dubbed Vanguards founder Saint Jack, mourned him online, saying: He drove one of the greater transfers of wealth to the average person. An Inquirer reader wrote in: I am now retired, and in a way I owe my ability to retire without too many financial concerns to John Bogle," while another wrote, Jack Bogle gave us an idea and then made that idea into a reality. I wrote to him and got a personal note back about my efforts to help women learn The Bogle Way. The Bogle way meant buying the market instead of actively managed funds or individual stocks, which he believed rarely benefited amateurs, particularly in an era when few Americans still had pensions and directed their own retirement plans. Bogles cost crusade has permeated investor consciousness. Investors are demanding lower cost mutual funds and ETFs. As it turns out, costs matter! The investing marketplace has changed thanks to Jack Bogle and I doubt what he has done can ever be undone, wrote another Boglehead. You can read their tributes on the Bogleheads.org forum: . And a Collegeville, Pa., pizza shop hoisted a goodbye sign for Bogle: Collegeville Italian Bakery Pizzeria Napoletana at 3846 West Ridge Pike lit up a tribute to him on their outdoor billboard. Owner Steve Carcarey said he and his wife, Patrizia change their sign nearly every day, and wanted to honor the Vanguard founder out of respect, to Bogle and his family and what hes done for the community. And yes, the pizza shop owner invests in Vanguard funds. Third year a charm? The third year of a presidential term, on average, has been the best for the stock market. Traditionally the second year has been the worst. In 2018, the stock market lost 4.4 percent. But have hope: In the past 74 years, the S&P 500 fell for two years in a row only twice -- after the dotcom bubble burst in 2000 and 2001; and in 1939 at the beginning of World War II. In those periods there was an accompanying recession, which we do not expect this year, said Paul Tully, founder of Eagle Wealth Strategies in West Deptford, N.J. His conclusions mirror those of David Kelly, JP Morgans chief market strategist, who contends the U.S. economy is a healthy tortoise that "will slow but not stall. Jeremy Siegel, a Wharton School finance professor, estimates that stocks could rise as much as 15 percent in 2019. The average in a year-end Barrons survey totaled 2,975 for the S&P 500. Either would be a substantial improvement over the 2018 year-end value of 2,507. This market feels worse than it is, Tully added. The stock market decline in 2018 wasnt nearly the 36 percent decline in 2008, but it feels worse because the economy is doing fine. John C. Bogle, who died at 89 on Wednesday, was a great man. After 30 years as a newsman, I dont say great much. A master salesman, a smart persuader, a family man, Jack built an organization that became dominant in a tough industry, and a big Pennsylvania employer. He persuaded millions of successful Americans and their bosses to trust his Vanguard Group with their old-age savings. His low fees saved customers piles of cash. His frank, disarming, cheerful style made people who saw him, at live events and on financial TV, and who read his 12 books, articles, and testimony, believe that they could understand money and time. Jacks message worked at both levels, with finance students such as his admirer Warren Buffett and with the literate public, ever anxious about the future. His long marriage and large family and the way he worked at mending filial relationships were all admirable. So were the scholarships he gave young applicants to the elite schools that had aided him -- Blair Academy and Princeton University. His eagerness to listen to critics and to research their criticism -- so he could refute it, or concede a point -- would please his old teachers. Financial products are sold, not bought, as another marketeer who built another dominant Delaware Valley company, the late Charles M. Cawley of MBNA, liked to repeat. Jack had endless energy for talking, to individual investors and retirement-plan honchos, and to journalists. He charmed and praised in part because he was frank and blunt. He also had an eye for sharp, memorable phrases, and answered queries fast, making useful friends. He liked retelling the boardroom-rebel story of his creation of Vanguard in the wreckage of the 1970s bear market, and naming Wall Street villains he said enriched themselves at client expense. All this won Vanguard decades of glowing media coverage that persisted long after his retirement when Vanguard was no longer the upstart underdog. That is among the many remarkable parts of his career: Jack was Vanguard in the flesh -- the avuncular face of the firm that grew as its rivals shrank after the last financial crash -- long after he was medically discharged from boss duty, longer than he ran the place, and for years after he had to take mandatory retirement from the board, as I noted in my review of his final book last month. Im not sure what they will do without him. Maybe generate his hologram? I have written about Vanguard about as long as anyone. I worked there as a teenaged temp when it was a few years old and mostly employed recent college-grad women, answering phones. It wasnt always a happy place -- Jack batted down a union organizing effort, and threatened legal action against Dan Wiener and his Independent Adviser newsletter when Dan calculated Jacks pay from report fragments (no longer possible with Vanguards limited public reports). But the old Vanguard Crew" tend to remember him as an inspiring, loyal boss, and recall the camaraderie of those years as the good old days. Jack resurrected Temple University founder Rev. Russell Conwells old Acres of Diamonds speech, a favorite of insurance salesmen a century ago: He saw opportunity everywhere, especially in America, the greatest country in the world, for a person willing to watch, work, plan, and persist. Sounds simple. Of course he was born with a strong, smart, loving mother, and prep-social-class connections, as were the fellow Ivy Leaguers he recruited for top jobs, who now run the company, way off Wall Street in the leafy Great Valley. If he was bullish on America, Jacks message to savers is, in its cheerful wrapping, pessimistic: You cant beat the market. Those pros cant, either. The best you can do is capture broad market gains, while minimizing your fees. As rivals cut their fees to match, Jack said Vanguard should cut its fees more than it did, and never raise them, as it sometimes does, a bit. When I asked about Vanguards chief, Mortimer Tim Buckley, who cites his long-ago stint as the founders assistant, Jack was a bit dismissive of the question: He had built the company. Todays gang inherited his thriving operation. Jacks successors are less accessible, more self-protective, and even more on-message. Maybe its a function of scale or a sign of the times: Vanguard staff now writes loads of direct publicity. But Jack felt it was useful to personally test yourself, against sharp and blunt challenges, answer critics, and explain patiently. His praise of Vanguards fund-ownership structure has been so generally absorbed that I still hear from financial writers (and savers), who are surprised to learn it is, after all, a private, for-profit, insider-controlled company that does not disclose boss pay, marketing costs, or other basic information. When I wrote stories that Vanguard might not see as favorable, I would call him to review where the facts were taking me and ask what I was missing. He would call back, sometimes from routine heart-doctor visits, sometimes from the Bogle summer compound in the Adirondack High Peaks, and talk off the record, because hed agreed not to second-guess his successors publicly. We went round about Vanguards ex-tax expert, David Danon, who accused the company of using its unique structure to underpay U.S. and state taxes. Jack at last said Danon might or might not be right on the law, but he was disappointed that anyone who had worked at his company, which he felt had done good for customers, would not loyally defend its interests. Once, when a Vanguard principal denied something that Jack felt my column made clear was true, he called, laughing, to congratulate me. It was the best thing to happen to that person, and a good thing for Vanguard, he said, to know that outsiders were paying attention. I had hoped Jack would last at least as long as his old boss, Walter Morgan, who in his late 90s still went into the office a couple of times a week and told priceless cautionary tales from the 1920s. It may be a medical miracle that Jack with his weak heart was with us as long he was or less miraculous, given his relentless cheerful spirit. It was a full life, a good and generous one. Bless Jack and all the Bogles. You dont have to be female to feel empathy for a pure-hearted individual at the mercy of powerful, amoral bureaucratic forces. George Bernard Shaws 1923 satirical drama Saint Joan portrays the 15-century teenage heroine, who donned male attire and led the French army to victories against the English, as the spirit of Protestantism, heeding her convictions against the counsels of both church and state. To Shaw, Joan of Arcs voices -- angelic advisers or, to some observers, signs of madness -- are symbolic of conscience. In Chelsea Marcantels world-premiere adaptation of the Shaw play, in a vibrant Delaware Theatre Company production through Feb. 24, Saint Margaret (Mary Tuomanen) and Saint Catherine (Tai Verley) become actual white-robed, silver-spangled characters spurring Joan on. In another major change from the original, the English aristocrat Warwick, an antagonist who supports Joans death as a political necessity, becomes the imperious Lady Warwick (Mary Martello), no less committed to her destruction. Neither of these key alterations makes for a more feminist Saint Joan, if that was the point, though they do provide more roles for women. Arguably, Shaws portrait of a solitary, illiterate farm girl up against an entirely male power structure -- besides being truer to the history -- makes the feminist case more starkly. Marcantels own dialogue tends to slow the piece down, and introduces the questionable notion that Joan, for all her martial ardor, was prohibited from drawing blood. But the playwright has done a fine job of judiciously trimming Shaws talky text (the show runs 2 hours, including intermission) and consolidating his passel of clerics and other characters, so that the original cast of two dozen can be covered by just eight performers. With the aid of fight choreographer Sean Michael Bradley, Marcantel and director Bud Martin, the theaters executive director, have added scenes of swordplay to enliven the action. Quibbles aside, the virtues of this staging are considerable, including a beautiful physical production and a gifted ensemble, most of whose members play multiple roles with precision and, in the case of Michael Dohertys Charles the Dauphin, great comic brio. At the heart of the drama, of course, is Joan herself, portrayed with more vulnerability than usual by Clare OMalley. OMalley lacks the overwhelming charisma that one might have imagined for Joan, but she excels in the climactic trial scene, in which a pale, self-doubting Joan faces her accusers. (One Marcantel addition -- Joans lamentation, Is even my name to be taken from me now? -- evokes John Proctors complaint in Arthur Millers 1953 drama The Crucible.) Along with Martello and Doherty, Joans political allies and antagonists are ably played by Bradley, Charlie DelMarcelle and Dan Kern. They dont just double roles -- they triple or quadruple them -- and its to the credit of director Martin and the actors that we mostly keep the various personages straight. The physical production achieves a delicate balance between the traditional and the modern. Colin McIlvaines multilevel set includes two scrims, or curtains, of rope and a series of Gothic arches, and is enhanced by Thom Weavers radiant lighting and Nicholas Hussong and Joey Moros superb projections. Sound designer Michael Kiley supplies original music, and Millie Hiibels costume designs blend past and present, underlining the plays contemporary resonance. Saint Joan. Through Feb. 24 at the Delaware Theatre Company, 200 Water St., Wilmington. Tickets start at $25. Information: 302-594-1100, DelawareTheatre.org PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. Phil Mickelson struggled on the front nine. That gave him time to bounce back into contention. Jordan Spieth struggled on the back nine. That only gave him time to fume. The two past AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am champs each playing at Pebble Beach on Saturday -- appeared on the verge of making their presence felt at the top of the leaderboard during Saturdays third round. But while Mickelson will have a chance to chase his fifth tournament title on Sunday, Spieth appears to have too much ground to make up. Mickelson is at 12 under and in solo second; hell be in the final group with tournament leader Paul Casey (15 under). In making the cut Saturday, he becomes the 18th player in PGA TOUR history to make 500 cuts in his career. Spieth, the 2017 champ, is in a four-way tie for 18th after a bogey-double bogey finish left him at 7 under. Im very frustrated, Spieth said. If I just go par, par, Im essentially still in this tournament with whats forecasted tomorrow. I kind of threw myself out of this tournament. So yeah, it will affect me for awhile. Spieth was at 11 under through 12 holes and in prime chasing position of Casey. But a wayward drive at the par-4 13th he was heading back toward the teebox until his ball was located produced a double bogey. After a bogey at the 17th, a poor drive at the par-5 18th set up another double. MUST READS : Round 3, AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am Leader Paul Casey eyes final exam at Pebble Beach Choi, whose swing was talk of Pebble Beach, misses cut but leaves with smile My driver just didnt behave at all, said Spieth after his 2-over 74. It was a 150-yard spread on either side and thats not good around Pebble Beach. Mickelsons driver didnt always cooperate, either. On Thursday, he hit all 13 fairways while playing Monterey Peninsula, but in the last two rounds, hes 13 of 28 in fairways hit. A poor drive on the opening hole Saturday set up a bogey, but he bounced back with a birdie on the par-5 second. That was the start of a roller-coaster round that finally got untracked on his final eight holes, as he went bogey-free with a birdie at the 13th and his first career eagle (in 38 career rounds at Pebble Beach) at the par-5 14th. Making up three shots not only gave him a spot in the final group, it put him in a good frame of mind as he tries to chase down Casey. After missing the cut last week at the Waste Management Phoenix Open, Mickelson changed drivers and has been pleased with the results. He may still miss some fairways, but a 331-yard drive his distance on the 14th that set up a 4-iron from 238 yards that landed inside 4 feet for eagle confirmed he made the right decision in his equipment adjustment. I had been working on getting a different driver in play and I took a chance thinking I had figured something out at Waste Management and I ended up driving it awful, into the water, Mickelson said after his 2-under 70. I went back to the driver I played well with in Palm Springs and Ill stay with that all the way through Augusta. Staff reports The Petoskey News-Review PETOSKEY Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women. To prevent heart disease and increase awareness of its effects, Friendship Centers of Emmet County is participating in American Heart Month and is inviting the public to check out the Council on Aging during Love Your Heart week, Feb. 11-15, to take advantage of the heart healthy services. In addition to fitness classes, water aerobics, and a heart-healthy lunch daily, a variety of events, guest speakers, and demonstrations will take place throughout the week at the Petoskey Friendship Center: Tai Chi demonstration: Designed to promote a healthful state of being at any age, a Tai Chi demonstration will take place at 10:30 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 11. All are welcome to participate in this Wang and Yang Style method presented by Alta Roy. Drum aerobics will take place at 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 12 If you can clap your hands, you can participate in this free class led by Lynn Turner, executive director of Northern Michigan Drum Village. Heart innovations presentation: Dr. Jason Ricci, a Michigan heart and vascular specialist from McLaren Northern Michigan, will speak about heart innovations at 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 12. A free blood pressure screening will be offered for adults age 18 and mover from 10 a.m.-noon on Wednesday, Feb. 13. No appointment is necessary. Friendship Centers of Emmet County, Council on Aging will be offering a wide array of Love Your Heart Week events from 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m., Monday, Feb. 11 through Friday, Feb. 15. For a complete list of Love Your Heart events, visit www.emmetcoa.org or call (231) 347-3211 or toll-free at (888) 347-0369. Steve Foley (231) 439-9397 EAST JORDAN In just under a month, Dale Gee of East Jordan will celebrate his 96th birthday. The Grandvue Medical Care Facility resident recently received a gift hes extremely proud of, and grateful for. Gee served in the U.S. Army Air Force, and later the U.S. Air Force, for more than 20 years in all. A World War II veteran, he was presented a Quilt of Valor from the Little Traverse Bay Quilters Guild in recognition of his service and sacrifice to the country. The patriotic quilt was made by members of the Little Traverse Bay Quilters, who since the summer of 2014 have made 274 quilts for area veterans. The quilt was presented to Gee with a three-part message from the guilds volunteer members. This message honored Gee for his service; for leaving all he held dear to stand in harms way to protect the nation from effects of war; and, lastly, a recognition that freedom is not free. The cost of freedom is the dedication of lives of men and women like Sgt. Dale Gee, and this quilt was awarded to him for his sacrifice and courage, read a statement from volunteers of the Little Traverse Bay Quilters Guild. These quilts are considered to be a lifetime award and though we may never know the depths of his service to protect and defend the United States of America, we are forever grateful for his service. Gee, wholl turn 96 on March 3, was stationed in various parts of the country in his time with the Air Force, and also served several tours overseas during his 21 years of involvement. Hes a very loving father and he was in the military and had to abide to all the rules and regulations of the military, said Gees daughter, Barb Pluciennik. We were overseas for awhile. He was a good dad, and a very honest man, added Pluciennik, who now lives near San Diego, California. Ive never met someone who was so honest, as was my mom (Maxine). She was at Grandvue for 11 years and he went there every day to feed her lunch and dinner. I dont think he missed maybe 10 days in those 11 years, only maybe when he was sick. Hes a devoted father and a devoted husband. Gee was involved in the Berlin Airlift, Pluciennik added, and was stationed in Canada as well as in England, Japan and several Air Force bases in the United States before retiring and returning to his native East Jordan at the age of 55. He grew up in East Jordan and moved back when he was 55, Pluciennik said. Hes lived there for over 40 years and retired from Western Union. Ginny Carey, a family friend of the Gees, lauded the Little Traverse Bay Quilters Guild for presenting Gee with the quilt. Hes always got a smile for everybody, Carey said. I used to work at Lakeview Manor where he was and Im very proud of his service. I called his daughter (Barb) to find out how long hes been in the service and he knew exactly to the day. Thats the type of guy he is. He always has a hug or a smile for anybody he meets, Carey said. Little Traverse Bay Quilters volunteer Claudia Grutsch Libbey presented Gee with his quilt. The next Quilts of Valor work day for the Little Traverse Bay Quilters Guild is scheduled for 10 a.m. Wednesday, March 6, at Hearts to Holly Quilt Shop located at 207 Ferry Ave., Charlevoix. I look up to him and I hope I live as good a life as him, Pluciennik said of her father. Hes a good, honest man. You dont find too many like him anymore. Hes a gentleman all the way around. For more information regarding the Quilts of Valor program, or to recommend a service man or woman who is deserving of a quilt, call Tresa Keys, (231) 758-6530. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., is the latest Democratic senator to announce her candidacy for the White House in 2020. We highlighted the Minnesota senior senators work on education issues late last year. Klobuchar, the daughter of an elementary school teacher, has worked to boost science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) during her tenure in the Senateshe was first elected to her seat in 2006. She introduced legislation to double the number of STEM-focused secondary schools to 200 from 100 through a competitive grant program. In addition, she pushed to create a pilot program for districts to provide information about voter registration to high school seniors. Like every other Democrat in the Senate, Klobuchar opposed U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos when President Donald Trump nominated her more than two years ago. To explain her opposition to DeVos, the senator alluded to her familys background in education. During Neil M. Gorsuchs confirmation hearing to the Supreme Court, Klobuchar questioned the nominees handling of a case involving special education , Endrew F. v. Douglas County School District. She and others highlighted how the Supreme Court rejected a standard set by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit in Denver for special education that schools must provide a merely more than de minimis education program to students with disabilities. Gorsuch had added the phrase merely to the standard in his ruling in the case while serving on the Court of Appeals. Klobuchar registered her concern, along with Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Illinois, about what she called Gorsuchs decision to lower the legal bar for special education services. I think you actually took something that wasnt necessarily a precedent, you added the word merely to make it even more narrow, and so it is not a surprise to me, then, that the Supreme Court, 9-0, rejected that language, Klobuchar told Gorsuch. Gorsuch, who was later confirmed to the Supreme Court by the Senate, denied that he sought to degrade services for students in special education through his wording in the ruling. Photo: Senate Judiciary Committee member Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., questions then-Supreme Court nominee Neil M. Gorsuch in 2017. (Susan Walsh/AP) Follow us on Twitter at @PoliticsK12 . Steve Zucker (231) 439-9346 BOYNE CITY Community leaders will gather on Friday, Feb. 15, for the second in a series of meetings to discuss the shortage of affordable or workforce housing in Northern Michigan. The Boyne Housing Solutions community forum will take place from 1-2:30 p.m. Friday in the city commission chamber at the Boyne City City Hall, 319 N. Lake St., Boyne City. Organizers note the event will include discussion of housing goals for 2019, along with brief educational presentations by developers on projects being planned in the Boyne City area. The Boyne Area Chamber of Commerce, in conjunction with the City of Boyne City and surrounding townships, has organized Boyne Housing Solutions, a group focused on scouting solutions to the areas housing needs. As many are aware, the supply of housing options in the Boyne area is currently not keeping up with the demand. Some businesses are finding it difficult to hire employees, because potential employees cant find an affordable place to live within reasonable driving distance, organizers wrote in a release previewing the event. The agenda for the event includes introductions by Chip Hansen, president of the Charlevoix County Community Foundation, and Kim Akin, executive director, of the Boyne Area Chamber of Commerce. The program also will feature educational presentations by developers including Scott Gillespie, president, The Gillespie Company; Ted Macksey of Northern Michigan Properties; Kathy Johnson of Lakeview Village and Northern Properties Mobile Home Park; and Jane MacKenzie, executive director, Boyne City Housing Commission. Presentations are expected to take about 15 minutes each. Steve Zucker (231) 439-9346 BOYNE CITY The Boyne City City Commission will consider possible adoption of an opt-out ordinance for marijuana-related businesses in the city at its next regular meeting set for 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 12. During the meeting, the commission will conduct a second reading of an ordinance that would ban marijuana-related businesses and the use of marijuana on city-owned or controlled properties. The proposed ordinance, which was introduced at the commissions meeting on Dec. 11, would take advantage of a section of a new law approved by Michigan voters in November, which legalized the possession and use of limited quantities of marijuana for recreational purposes. The law, which was approved on the Nov. 6 ballot as Proposal 1, went into effect on Dec. 6. A section of the law allows municipalities governing bodies to choose whether they will allow businesses that sell or produce marijuana in their respective jurisdictions. The laws allows a person over the age of 21 to possess, use consume, purchase, transport or process 2.5 ounces or less of marijuana; have not more than 10 ounces of marijuana in the persons home; cultivate up to 12 plants at any one time, on ones premises; possess, produce, or sell marijuana-related accessories to people over the age of 21; and give away or otherwise transfer without payment up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana. Under the law marijuana may not be used in a public place, such as a street, sidewalk or parking lot, and the law allows the owner or person who is in control of a property to determine if marijuana use is allowed in that place. Many municipalities around Northern Michigan have already passed or are considering similar ordinances. In Boyne Citys case, as in many others, city officials have suggested that choosing the opt-out option at least for now is the most prudent course of action because much still remains to be determined at the state level about how recreational marijuana sales will be regulated. In his memo to the city commission, city planning director Scott McPherson notes that the city commissions decision to opt-in or opt-out can be reversed at any time, however he noted that it would be difficult for the city to create policies allowing for such businesses without knowing what the state-level rules will be. Further, he notes that if the city were to opt-in, and then later decide to opt out, that approach may pose challenges on how to deal with businesses that were legally established during the opt-in period. Under the law, the state has one year from Dec. 6, 2018 to start accepting licensing applications for businesses dealing in marijuana production and sales. In other business during Tuesdays meeting, the city commission is expected to consider a proposal to award an engineering contract for a street project expected to take place in 2020. The proposed 2020 work will be the second phase of a project to resurface a significant portion of North Lake Street. The first phase of the project, which will take place later this year, will involve grinding off the top 1.5-inch layer of pavement and replacing it with a new top course of asphalt. The work will include intersection improvement work only where there is existing sidewalk to meet Americans With Disabilities Act standards. The work slated for this summer will include the section of North Lake Street from State Street to the area of the main city boat launch. The second phase of the project, slated for 2020, will involve resurfacing North Lake Street from the boat launch to West Michigan Avenue. The proposed engineering work would also include design work for extending the non-motorized trail that currently ends at West Michigan, to roughly the center of the city. The meeting also will include continued discussion of a proposed amendment to the citys zoning ordinance, and potentially a vote on its adoption. The proposed revision would eliminate any references to story (floor) limits for buildings, leaving the height limitation to be determined by height alone. The ordinance currently has both height and story limitations in many zones. McPherson has said this can be both confusing and limiting to developers and property owners. The Supreme Court gave reproductive justice advocates an unexpected win on Thursday night when it voted 5 to 4 to stay a court of appeals decision that could have closed abortion clinics in Louisiana. The chief justice joined the four more liberal justices in voting to prevent the Louisiana law from going into effect. That small achievement underscores how much progressives stand to lose with the new court and how low our standards for victory have become. At issue in June Medical Services v. Gee is a Louisiana law that requires abortion providers to obtain admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles of where the providers perform abortions. Just two and a half years ago, the Supreme Court held that very same requirement unconstitutional when Texas enacted it. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit maintained that the burdens imposed by Louisiana's admitting privileges requirement are less severe than the burdens imposed by the same requirement in Texas. The Texas law would have shuttered some 20 clinics, whereas Louisiana's law would shutter only one or two of the state's three clinics. Similarly, the 5th Circuit acknowledged that it did not have any evidence that the Louisiana admitting-privileges requirement would help the health or safety of any women, even though it created a burden on providers and their patients. That is the standard the Supreme Court set in the Texas case for when a law is unconstitutional, but the court of appeals said that it could imagine how it might be plausible to think the requirement might benefit some women. But the court said that it could imagine how it might be plausible to think the requirement might benefit some women. It is easy to see how this kind of analysis will make safe, accessible abortions a thing of the past in many parts of the United States. If a law does not amount to an unconstitutional burden unless it does something as dramatic as close 20 clinics in a geographic area as large as Texas, almost every law would be constitutional. And if a law does not amount to an unconstitutional burden if courts can invent a justification for it, then laws would be upheld even when there is no evidence that they would help any woman, ever. That is how Roe v. Wade will die. Not with a bang, but with a million little distinctions that judges will draw to limit the impact of any cases that invalidate restrictions on abortion. By voting to allow the Louisiana law to go into effect, four justices gave the OK to states and lower courts to limit Roe by whatever means necessary. Today, reproductive justice advocates had reason for momentary celebration only because there were not yet five justices who were willing to allow the Louisiana law to go into effect at this moment. This reprieve may last mere months. The court is only one vote away from allowing the states and the lower federal courts to all but overturn a Supreme Court case that was decided as recently as 2016. That is not a cause for celebration; it is barely a reason to exhale. The only other breadcrumb for reproductive justice advocates was the bittersweet confirmation that they were right about Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh after all. The two newest justices voted to allow the Louisiana law to go into effect, despite repeatedly pledging in their confirmation hearings to respect existing Supreme Court precedent even when they think it is wrong. Kavanaugh alone chose to explain his vote, suggesting he has some modicum of shame. But what Kavanaugh said confirms what reproductive justice advocates warned about his tenure on the court of appeals: He will make flimsy distinctions with Supreme Court cases that favor access to abortion, and he will impose ostensibly procedural obstacles that may have the practical effect of denying women access to abortion entirely by making it prohibitively difficult to challenge restrictions on abortion. Kavanaugh insisted that the court did not have to block the Louisiana law because Louisiana had represented in its brief to the Supreme Court that it would not actually enforce the law. But a promise not to enforce a law is not a reason to allow that law to go into effect, particularly when the court has declared that same law unconstitutional just two years ago. And even a small risk that the law would be enforced would have drastic consequences, because if a clinic closes even temporarily, it may not ever reopen. This dissent makes clear how Kavanaugh will bend over backward to limit access to abortion, and allow restrictions on abortion to go into effect based on nothing more than a pinkie swear. The Louisiana law was the new court's first chance to gut Roe. Four justices would have taken it, and allowed Louisiana to enforce the very same law that the court had so recently invalidated. At this point, the question is how long will Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. stand between those four justices and an open season on Roe v. Wade, the rule of law and respect for precedent. - - - Litman is an assistant professor at the University of California at Irvine School of Law. This appeared Friday in the Washington Post. The State of the Union message was delayed this year, but the run-up to it was as high-pitched as ever. The media chatter about what the nation would see when the president addressed a joint session of Congress exceeded the talk leading up to the Super Bowl. The fixation with who would be sitting with whom and what colors members of Congress would be wearing sounded like a junior high prom. The pre-game leading up to the State of the Union address has usually exceeded the main event. Not much of what presidents say is long remembered. State of the Union messages arent the soaring rhetoric of inaugural addresses. In fact, for many years the message, required by Article II, Section 3, Clause 1, was a written report sent to Congress. George Washingtons 1790 address was only about 1,000 words. Jimmy Carter managed to clock in with the longest, more than 30,000 words, although it was written, not spoken. The modern media age has transformed the speech into the spectacle its become. Harry Truman was the first to have his speech televised and since then the television coverage has expanded to where more than 50 million viewers watch the annual speech. Once the sergeant-at-arms (previously the doorkeeper of the House) sonorous voice belts out, Madam speaker, the president of the United States, its all the presidents night. Its a speech only he can give, delivered in a setting tailor made for television. In front of all official Washington, except the designated survivor, a Cabinet member left behind in the event of a catastrophic incident, the president gets to talk for an hour or more, not only to the dignitaries in the room but to the American people watching at home. President Trumps second State of the Union message may have been the most important of his presidency. While there are few lines from previous State of the Union addresses that people can quickly recall and recite, President Trump gave us one: America will never be a socialist country. He delivered that clear, concise message to a thunderous ovation. Even Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi had to applaud. The fact that the president of the United States had to declare, before a joint session of Congress, that we would never fall to the lure of socialism is historic and startling. But thats the point at which we have arrived. Not applauding were some newly minted members of Congress like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the media darling of the far-left, and her cohorts who are openly advocating previously unthinkable policies because the American system, which has created the greatest nation in the history of the world, is immoral. Their craziest schemes, like the recently announced Green New Deal, are presented with a straight face. Their goal is to drive the discussion so far to the left that when the pendulum swings back, as it inevitably will, the center is decidedly more socialist-oriented. The Green New Deal is filled with promises of free stuff for everybody without any real mention of how the more than $40 trillion it will cost will be paid for. We should all know the answer to that. The only concessions the New Green Deal proponents seem willing to make is that they cant fully get rid of farting cows and airplanes within a decade. But thats their goal. You cant make this stuff up. Its in the report. Ocasio-Cortez won her seat after defeating Joe Crowley, a 20-year veteran of Congress and part of the Democratic leadership in the House (he served as the Democrat Caucus Chair). He wasnt liberal enough for her. Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer arent far enough to the left either, according to Ms. Ocasio-Cortez. Shes inveighed that radical conservatives in the Democratic Party are holding it hostage. Really? Its easy to see where the radicalism lives. And its the reason President Trump won the day with his simple, yet forceful, statement that we will never allow America to go down the path of Venezuela or any of the other socialist utopias Ms. Ocasio-Cortez envisions. The Democratic Party has always been a capitalist party. Sure, they wanted a bigger social safety net, more government spending and higher taxes. Those were all items for fair debate. Adopting socialist programs are not. Thankfully, even Nancy Pelosi was poo-pooing the New Green Deal. Pelosi, a San Francisco liberal of the first order, at least seems to have some vague understanding of how far to the left the American people can be pushed. Ordinary Americans overwhelmingly applauded President trumps speech. Polls showed better than 75 percent of us approved of the State of the Union message. There was a lot to cheer about with more than 300,000 new jobs created in the previous month, unemployment at record lows, the economy continuing to grow and the markets responding, and foreign affairs being well managed to make us safer. For all the optimism and calls for unity, the one galvanizing sentence was simply, America will never be a socialist country. -- PennLive Opinion contributor Charlie Gerow is the CEO of Quantum Communications in Harrisburg. His Donkeys & Elephants column appears this week opposite former Pa. Lieutenant Governor Mark S. Singel. After a brief reprieve, wintry weather is returning to central Pennsylvania with two approaching snowstorms that can make for rough morning commutes on both Monday and Tuesday. According to the National Weather Service at State College, today will be mostly sunny with a high reaching 33. Snow is expected to start tonight, mainly after 8 p.m., with 1 to 2 inches of accumulation falling through the night. Expect a low around 29. The chance of snow is 80 percent. That snow will continue into the Monday morning commute. Between 8 a.m. and 2 p.m., it will change into snow and sleet, and become a mix of rain, snow and sleet after 2 p.m. Less than a half inch of new snow and sleet accumulation can be expected. The chance of precipitation is 60 percent. Expect a high of 36. A more widespread storm is expected to move through starting Monday night with an 80 percent chance of rain, snow and sleet changing to snow after 8 p.m. Another half inch of accumulation can be expected with a nighttime low of 29. Snow and sleet will likely continue into the morning commute on Tuesday, turning into freezing rain between 8 a.m. and 2 p.m., then rain in the afternoon. Another three-quarters of an inch of precipitation can be expected with a high reaching 36. Expect the rain to continue through the night, turning into a chance of rain and snow showers after midnight, with a low of 33. Wednesday will see a 50 percent chance of rain and snow showers before 8 a.m. before becoming partly sunny with a high of 40 and a low of 25. Thursday will be mostly sunny with a high of 41 and a low of 31. Friday will see a 60 percent chance of rain during the day and rain and snow showers at night with a high of 46 and a low of 35. And on Saturday, expect partly-sunny skies and a 60 percent chance of rain and snow showers with a high near 43. Visit PennLive.com/weather for your latest weather updates. WILLIAMSPORT - The head of the Pennsylvania Grange is recovering from injuries suffered Saturday when a 12-by-12-foot section of flooring collapsed while he and others were removing equipment from a former grange hall that is being sold. Grange Master Wayne Crawford, 63, of Newport, fell about eight feet into a hole under the kitchen of former Bottle Run Grange 1301 in the 500 block of Sholder Road in Old Lycoming Twp., just north of Williamsport. It happened just before 10:30 a.m. Crawford and Clifford Bailey of the Shippensburg area were moving a commercial mixer from the kitchen area when the floor gave way, member Karen Williamson said. Only Crawford fell into the hole. A water heater fell onto Crawford, but Bailey got into the hole and pushed it off him, she said. Once township firefighters secured the floor to prevent a further collapse, a ladder was placed in the hole and Crawford climbed up on his own, Chief Matt Oldt said. He was taken to UPMC Susquehanna, where Williamson said he was admitted for observation. It took approximately 45 minutes to complete the rescue, the chief said. He attributed the floor collapse to rotted floor joists. A township codes officer has condemned the two-story wood structure because other sections of the floor are buckled, Oldt said. The main part of the structure, which contains large meeting rooms on both floors, was built in 1901, with the kitchen added later, Williamson said. Bottle Run had not met in the building for three years and is in the process of merging with Eagle Grange near Montgomery, she said. Crawford was helping with the cleanup because the state grange is responsible for the sale of the building, she explained. There is a crawl space under the building except for the kitchen area, she said. A memorial service is set for Monday for the Carlisle native turned Nashville musician who was gunned down outside of his home on Thursday. On the band Carvertons Facebook page, members announced a memorial service will be held in the chapel at Belmont University at 3:30 p.m. Monday for Kyle Yorlets. All are welcome to come and celebrate the life of Kyle, the band members said. Yorlets was attending Belmont University in Nashville in addition to being a member of Carverton and working at a local restaurant. Five juveniles have been charged as adults in connection with the robbery and fatal shooting of the 24-year-old Yorlets. The teens were trying to steal Yorletss car when they shot and killed him in his driveway, said Nashville Metro Police. Police say the teens were in a Chevrolet Colorado pickup truck that had been reported stolen from Kentucky, and were in an alley behind Yorlets home when they first saw him. The group interacted with Yorlets, took his wallet and at one point demanded that he give them the keys to his vehicle, police said. Police said they believe Yorlets was shot after he refused to surrender the keys. He was able to get inside his home, and his housemates found him when they returned home around 3 p.m. He was taken to a hospital, where he died. Under Tennessee law, three of the five juveniles involved can be identified because they are charged with homicide and are over the age of 13, police said. The three are Roniyah McKnight, 14, Diamond Lewis, 15 and Decorrius Wright, 16, police said. A 12-year-old girl and 13-year-old boy were also charged. Payson, AZ (85541) Today Isolated thunderstorms this evening. Skies will become partly cloudy after midnight. Low 64F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 30%.. Tonight Isolated thunderstorms this evening. Skies will become partly cloudy after midnight. Low 64F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 30%. Patna: Continue to reel with one political setback after another, largely due to some self-inflicted wound, Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP) chief Upendra Kushwaha, facing arrest in a case involving disturbing peace and inciting violence during his rally in Patna on February 2, surrendered in the Kotwali police station on Saturday in the presence of hundreds of his supporters. After completing the usual formalities, Kushwaha posted his bail and walked out of the police station amid chanting of anti-Nitish slogans by his followers. As reported, Kushwaha, who recently walked out of the BJP-led NDA over seat-sharing dispute and over Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party national president Amit Shahs refusal to give him a time to meet, had called for a rally against the Nitish administration to oppose the governments education policy. When he and his supporters tried to penetrate the police barrier at the Dak Bungalow crossing, they were faced with force during which many protestors, including Kushwaha himself, were said to be injured. The police had later filed a criminal case against the former Union Minister and nearly three hundred supporters of him urging them to surrender before the police or face non-bailable arrest warrant. Meanwhile, senior RLSP leader and former Lalu supporter Nagmani resigned from the party on Sunday while making some senior accusations against Kushwaha. Kushwaha has sold the Motahari seat for the coming Lok Sabha elections to an official of a company accused in the 2G scam for a price of Rs. 9 crore. When I asked him why he did that, he told me that he needed money to effectively run the party and the campaign, Nagmani, who has a checkered past of himself, said at a press conference in Patna. He further said that the RLSP chief was not injured in the lathi charge on February 2 and was faking the whole thing to score political points. Nagmani was also spotted hobnobbing with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar at a government event last week raising the ire of Kushwaha who issued him a show-cause notice or prepared to get expelled from the party. Kushwaha has denied the allegations saying when there had been no decision on seat-sharing in the Grand Alliance then how could he sell the ticket to someone else. Party state president Satyanand Dangi, refuting allegations, said that Nagmani wanted two tickets, one for himself and the other for his wife, and when Kushwaha turned down his request, he began a smear campaign against the party chief. Patna: Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader and the leader of the opposition in the state Assembly, Tejaswi Yadav, while attending a function organized by the Dhanuk community as Sri Krishna Memorial Hall in Patna on Thursday, once again batted for raising the reservation limit to 70%, a talking point he made last week during a similar function organized by the Nonia community. "Bihar should follow the example of Tamil Nadu that has raised reservation in jobs and education to 70% so everyone has a shot at employment and getting admission in good schools and colleges. If Nitish Kumar takes up this issue, we will support him all the way," the former Chief Minister of Bihar who has been entrusted to run the party by his father Lalu Prasad Yadav who remains behind bars in Jharkhand after being convicted in an offshoot of the fodder scam, said. Yadav wasted no time in training his gun on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat saying the Modi government was trying to modify the constitution so as to take voting rights from a large section of the society. He further said that the RSS chief was camping in Bihar for the past two weeks to promote end of reservation as we know it today. "They want to take away reservation from you and they want to take away your voting rights from you. With your support, we can get rid of this corrupt government," Yadav said adding he would be Bihar Chief Minister today had his party joined hands with the BJP. "But we are the party of policies and we do not compromise with our principles," the former Deputy CM thundered. Moving on to Nitish Kumar, Yadav said that 'some people' had insulted the mandate of the people in Bihar who had voted for the Mahagathbandhan in the last Assembly polls. "Those who were all up in arms earlier to free India from the Sangh Parivar are now sitting in the NDA lap vowing to make India Congress-free. Nitish Kumar is the Chief Minister of Bihar in name only, the real rulers are the BJP and the RSS who are pulling the strings of Nitish Kumar. The fact that Nitish Kumar is not fielding any Janata Dal U candidate at the three seats where by-polls are to be held should be enough indication of who is controlling whom," Yadav said. It is all knowing that healthy life is the foundation of a happy life. It is also said that children are the future of any society and the country. Data shows that school children constitute 20% of our population. That is more than 250 million. As such, it is absolutely necessary to educate our children properly and also keep them healthy. Then only they can really face the challenges of life well, shoulder the responsibilities like a responsible citizen of the country and also live happily. There is no denying the fact that more than 90% of our population including children primarily need health care and not medical care as they suffer from deficiency of protein, minerals, vitamins etc. which can be taken care of with minimum basic knowledge of how to live healthy despite some constraints. Even minor indisposition or ailments due to cough, cold, indigestion etc. can be cured by adopting well established traditional methods of health care. Interestingly, our country has been very rich in traditional health as well as medical practices which are thousands of years old. But the moot question is why it is not in practice in most of our families, particularly those living in cities. In fact, besides the negative social impact of market driven economy, the gradual collapse of joint family system together with fast adoption of nuclear family system due to multiple of socio-economic reasons has been the major cause in this regard. Truly speaking, the culture of natural transfer of health inputs from grandfather, grandmother, uncle, aunt and the likes to the younger generation is no more in vogue in growing number of families. The culture of fast and easy life has also been catching up fast. Undeniably, unregulated heavy and recurrent doses of advertisement of manufactured health products and drugs do play a defining adverse impact. Obviously, the children are the worst sufferer in the family. This affects their impressionable mind badly as well. The resultant effect is seen to be believed if we visit any hospital or nursing home or doctors clinic in any part of the country. The crowd there is increasing with every passing day- majority of them for treatment of normal health issues; self-curing minor ailments. To say in few words, we are required to initiate reversal of this trend through Awareness-Motivation Route and try consistently for re-establishing our age-old health knowledge and tradition by affirming our faith and commitment. Naturally, this process might take some time, but would definitely be accepted by the common people as the noble goal is to make the large disadvantaged population of the country fairly self-reliant as far as healthy living as well as treatment of normal indisposition is concerned. It hardly needs more emphasis that to set in motion this important task effectively as per the set goal, the role of educational institutions and social organisations is going to be very vital. To start with, a well-thought of and well-planned awareness and motivation campaign ought to be undertaken for students from class VII to class XII in a slow but steady and systematic manner. The campaign would focus on ways to enhance the existing knowledge about basic health care together with time tested ways of taking care of minor ailments by making them aware of effective methods of traditional health care having sound scientific base. The elders in the family or in neighbourhood may be impressed to encourage the children in their own way to follow and accept the remedial methods. Involving some teachers from each school for taking this campaign forward can catalyse the whole operation. Similarly, some active members of pensioners association in the area can be requested to join hands for further value addition in this regard. These simple initiatives, to begin with, would not only enrich the knowledge base of the children regarding various vital aspects of leading a healthy life but also provide them a golden opportunity to know about the countrys glorious past, its rich culture and above all natures great positive role in everyones life. In addition, this would give them an opportunity to interact and associate with the elders in the family, which is bound to help them in many ways. Stronger emotional and cultural bondage in the family and neighbourhood would be a big bonus. The elders would, in turn have the opportunity to revisit their health-related knowledge, update the same and get benefitted immensely in the process. On the whole, this exercise would result in a healthy and happy family and social situation - a win-win position for all. Finally, before signing off, let us just give a thought to what John Wesley says in these lines: Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can. Brief Introduction of Milan Sinha: Worked in senior positions in financial sector for three decades following three years of active writing in various newspapers and magazines. A post graduate in Chemistry from Patna University and also a graduate with Economics. Presently, besides being a freelance writer/a regular contributor to newspapers and magazines. Also engaged as a Stress Management, Lifestyle Management & Wellness Consultant, Motivational Speaker and Awareness campaigner. He can be contacted at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Being a regular reader (of news and stuff of social media, no books ha!), I happened to visit Quora. It is one of the best sites to pass your time on while grasping on some mind-blowing tales of history, politics and almost every topic under the sun. So yesterday somebody asked me a question: What are the places in Bihar which are worth traveling and to be learned about? Being from Bihar, this appeared to me as a great opportunity to repel some of the prejudices that are formed in the minds of the people regarding Bihar and its tourism. So here is the answer that I wrote on Quora: If you are travelling to Bihar, I am sure you would visit the Ruins of Nalanda University (above). Most definitely you have it in your 'to visit' list. But if you take my opinion, then before going to this place you should go here: This is Veer Kunwar Singhs Memorial in Jagdishpur, Ara. Here you would see the inspirational story of an 80-year old man fighting against the mighty British for his land and his people. You would see the true Bihari spirit of fighting against suppression. Again, with your preconceived mind, you would want to visit this famous Jain pilgrimage center commonly known as the Jal Mandir of Pawapuri. And surely you should visit it as most people would tell you about it. But I am going to ask you to visit a place which most people would not tell you about. This is the ancestral house of Jaya Prakash Narayan, or JP as he was famously known. This is located in the village of Sitab Diyara in Saran district. The house is now being converted into a Museum. Here you would come to know about a man who challenged the supreme authority that Indira Gandhi was at the time of Emergency in the '70s. The man who inspired students to join his movement and who threw Mrs. Gandhi out of power. It is places such as these that would inspire you to fight against all odds in your life. Now moving further, people would also suggest you to visit various places in Patna like the Buddha Smriti Park, Gol Ghar, Bihar Museum etc. No doubt that you should visit these places but again, I have an advice for you. Before you visit them, you should go to the Tomb of Sher Shah Suri located in the city of Sasaram. I think you would be interested to know about the man who, with his small kingdom and a small army, defeated Humayun and the Mughal army and sat on the throne of Delhi. Yes! This again is a place which introduces you to another fighting spirit. There are many more places which are immensely interesting and full of tales of inspiration like this. The next destination of yours should be the city of Munger. Currently the Yoga capital of the East, this city has witnessed history like no other. From being the Midlands of the Aryans to being the capital of Mir Qasims Riyasat to being the gun factory of the East, this city has seen it all. Surrounded by a lot of temples and even more by the tales of history, this is one of the tourists delight. Now take a right turn from Munger to Gaya. When you are in Gaya, first of all you should visit Thishiuen-Tsang Memorial Hall. This is the Tomb of Huan Tseng, the Chinese traveler who came to India. He was so impressed by the standard of education (Nalanda University) and ruling that when he got back to China, he wrote an entire book about it. You would definitely want to know more about him. And what better place than his own tomb! And finally, after seeing all this, you must be tired. So, to find that inner peace of mind and solace, make sure that you reach the Mahabodhi Temple. Are you impressed? Well. you should be. Bihar is not just what you see through your TV or social media spectacles; it is much more, rather totally beyond that image. But thats not all. It was just Central and South Bihar. There is entire North thats left to discuss. But we shall do that some other day. For now, pack your bags, get your stuff ready and come visit this historic land of inspirations. Our esteemed politicians have done it again! Unhappy with the Muslim referece in the name of one of the most historical railway stations in India that held a special place in the heart of many travelers on the Howrah-Delhi line, the Narendra Modi government, at the behest of one of the nation's most revered and well-respected historian Dr. Yogi Adityanath, who also moonlights as the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, on June 4, 2018 issued an order to change the name of Mughalsarai railway station to Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Junction. As we know, Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya (1916-1968) was a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh 'pracharak' (literal translation - propagandist) and also the co-founder of Bharatiya Jan Sangh, the grandfather of the current Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). He died under mysterious condition when his body was found lying beside a railway track at, you guessed it, Mughalsarai railway junction. Reports at the time suggested Upadhyaya was pushed from the train by two robbers when an attempt to snatch his belongings went awry. Days later, two men were arrested but later acquitted in the lack of sufficient evidence. UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath may not know one end of an economic or history book from the other but he sure knows how to appease radical Hindu nationalists and how to offend the minorities. That has been his schtick all his life. Like his predecessors in UP and his counterparts in Bihar, he remains woefully incapable of coming up with a strong development plan to attract investors, improving healthcare and education, or raising the standard of living of the farmers and other citizens of the state. So, like our very own avatar of Lord Ram, Buddha, Chanakya, and Gandhi all blended into one otherwise known as Nitish Kumar, our beloved leaders engage in stunts like renaming railway stations and other structures and monuments, hunting for those who are beef-eaters, love jihad, Ghar Wapasi, prohibition, dictating what to wear and not wear and what to celebrate and not celebrate. Ask them if any new hospital or educational institute of world standard has recently come up in the state, these 'gyani' leaders will point you to billions of inaugurations they have done during their regime to improve the lives of the people. Ask them to give a specific date when a proposed hospital would become a reality, they will invariably give you a date that is after the next election, whenever that may be. Very convenient, ain't it? Wonder why Mughalsarai was not named after Lal Bahadur Shastri, India's second Prime Minister who was born in Mughalsarai and, like Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya, also died under mysterious condition. Also, while I am still wondering, when will Taj Mahal rechristened as, um, say, Godse Bhawan? Or, Fatehpur Sikri be renamed as Dronacharyapuri? Or, Allahabad be renamed as Madan Mohan Malivya Nagar? Opened in 1883, Mughalsarai station, now considered to be in the top-ten busiest railway stations in the country, was set up along the Grand Trunk Road by the East India Company to link Howrah in West Bengal to Delhi, the seat of power, by rail. This is where travelers during the Mughal period used to camp overnight to take a break from their journey thus earning it the name of Mughal and Sarai (Inn). By changing its name, the UP government, and by extension, the BJP, has once again proven that its agenda, first and foremost, is to spread Hindutva, and everything else comes second when it should be just the other way round. And before I am taken to the woodshed for being a 'bleeding-heart liberal', I assure you I am a BJP supporter given the fact that there is no better alternative in India so I am sort of stuck with the saffron party. However, unlike most 'bhakts', I am just not into fundamentalism, or 'Talibanism' - Hindu or Muslim! These five words (The Government is Committed to) should be banned from the usage by any Indian politicians, more so by Bihari politicians like Nitish Kumar, Sushil Kumar Modi, other 'netas', and their minions. The truth is, after decades of abuse, this phrase has lost its sheen and does not mean anything. It is also designed to fool people, and is just a way to weasel out of making a real promise without bearing the risk of being held responsible for it in future. "Our government is committed to improve education in Bihar". "Our government is committed to improve health care in Bihar". "Our government is committed to improve employment situation in Bihar". "Our government is committed to eradicate dowry system in Bihar". "Our government is committed to improve law and order in Bihar". "Our government is committed to empower the women of Bihar". "Our government is committed to improve the condition of farmers in Bihar" blah blah blah! We get it, Mr. Chief Minister, that you are very committed to everything. Nothing wrong with that except for a teensy-weensy technicality you don't do anything about them; you just keep repeating it like a trained parrot. For 12 long years you have declared your 'commitment' to everything under the sun but besides banning alcohol, which, by the way, was not the part of your original commitments in the early years of your 'raj'; and holding rallies and yatras, your success in terms of economic development in Bihar still remains grim compared to 'your commitments'. Suggestion for you forget your maniacal obsession with social engineering. Social engineering like ban on alcohol or introduction of uniforms in schools don't do crap, pardon my French. Most people know you have given up on real and tangible development and so in order to hide your failures, you go on tangents like prohibition, dowry system, child marriage, school uniform, sanitary napkins for girls and other similar social issues that, though certainly good causes and worth taking up, do absolutely nothing to improve economic situation of Bihar. They do not generate employment and definitely don't bring revenue to the state that is required to improve the infrastructure in the state. And when there is no infrastructure, there is no investment. Take this for example - on February 1, 2018, you inaugurated the national Khadi Fair in Patna. Fine, I don't have any problem with that except for the fact that you keep organizing such 'melas' (Saras Mela, Vasant Mela, Mahila Udyog Mela, Hast Shilp Mela, etc. on a regular basis to avoid talking about the real issues facing Bihar and to cover up your failures. Your modus operandi is obvious to all except to your die-hard sycophants - "keep people occupied in these useless things so no one talks about your success, or the lack thereof, in areas of job creation, health care, education, law and order, and investment." In your inaugural speech at the Khadi Fair in Patna, you once again expressed your 'commitment' to promote Khadi nationwide and urged people to wear dresses made of Khadi at least once or twice a week. Yet another example of 'social engineering' that you hold so dear to your heart. Why do you care about what people wear, eat, drink, watch, or do in their spare times? Why such obsession with controlling mind, body, and soul of a human being? And who or what gives you the right to tell people how to live their lives? I say drop this fixation with controlling human behavior and concentrate only on creating jobs, inviting investment, making sure education in Bihar is second to none and healthcare is comparable to big cities of India. That's all you have to worry about; nothing else! Is that really too much to ask from you? Leave people of Bihar alone and just do your REAL job, not the ones that falsely gives the impression that Bihar is the land of milk and honey under your 'raj'. If this is too much for you, I say resign immediately and let someone else run the show who has some clue on how to generate employment, improve infrastructure, and bring real academic and healthcare changes in Bihar's schools, colleges and hospitals and someone who just not repeats the word 'commitment' as if it was some sort of magic wand. You obviously are not fit for the job. The Origin of Religion A Sermon Delivered at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Fullerton on the 10th February, 2019 James Ishmael Ford A couple of years ago I was in Connecticut to co-lead a Zen retreat. As the retreat ended one of my co-leaders, Mary Gates, who is both a fully authorized Zen teacher and an Episcopal priest excused herself. Mary explained she had to say mass for the small congregation she served as vicar. Being me, I asked if I could tag along. The service was held in a tiny stone chapel in West Cornwall. The town is a Norman Rockwell image of old New England. It even has a covered bridge. The chapel, well, built in New England or picked up and moved from some bucolic English countryside, it was picture perfect. There were eighteen of us in that little chapel, and we pretty much filled it. The service itself was Prayer Book Rite II with all that means for those familiar with the history of Episcopalian religious services. For me as a progressive its filled with awkward masculine by preference language and as a Buddhist with a full-on dualistic God out there and you and me, down here theology. Not my cup of tea. And. First, there were the people. I cant read hearts with any clarity, certainly not by outward appearances. But it felt the full range of who we are as we come to church on intimate display Young people maybe there on their own, maybe just to make family happy. Older people, some quite elderly, where the actions of the pews came from decades of practice. Maybe done out of rote, but it looked more like well-traveled paths toward something. Ill return to that. And a fair number in between, some probably happy to have a service that ends early in the morning. Others, well, hard to say. A large basket of life. Although it sure felt most everyone was fully present as they were. Sadness. Hope. Longing. Joy. You know, the human things. The things that we call religious, or, perhaps, today we might rather say spiritual. Lets stick with religion for a bit. Today I find myself concerned with the origins, or maybe its the origin of religion. What is the font from which it springs? Or, what tributaries gather to make it what it is? Admittedly, to try to understand what it is, or what our most distant ancestors religious or spiritual views were, are, frankly, more than elusive. What happened, what folk thought before writing, what five thousand years ago, a tad more, can only be inferred by rapidly fading collections of artifacts as we trace back to mother Africa. But they are compelling. Like that Venus of Willendorf figurine, maybe thirty thousand years old. It evokes feelings. And thoughts flow from looking at it, like Pentecost fires. But beyond that atavistic feeling of ancient recollection, what? I think of those ancient artifacts, and others, haunting evidences like ancient, ancient mountain trails used by our Neanderthal cousins as well as our direct ancestors. Trails that wind through mountains in ways that seem to include at some disadvantage to efficiency but allow enhanced views of distant beauty. There is a cave in Span with what appears to be a 40,000 years-old grave for a Neanderthal toddler. The grave site is surrounded by animal horns, including bison and red deer. Similar sites for homo sapiens with what appear to be intentional burials including grave goods and evidences of layers of flowers poured over the body that seem to range back at least fifty and maybe even a hundred thousand years. This said as far back as we know with any certainty, religion and culture are profoundly entangled. Any attempt at pulling specifically religious perspectives out of the cultural matrix seems to date no later than during the European Reformation. And no one has ever succeeded in fully untangling religion from the rest of the mess of human lives in specific cultural contexts. In fact, from my perspective, one of the less pleasant aspects of religion is assuring cultural conformity. It sure seems true that religions have always been tied up with the transmission of culture, reinforcing the various ways in which people identify themselves and, critically, separate themselves from others. That us and them thing has from ancient times been religiously reinforced. Much of what shapes what we usually think of as religion birthed at several places on the Eurasian continent in what is now called the Axial Age. Its a term coined by the philosopher Karl Jaspers for a culturally fruitful time roughly between the eighth and third centuries before our common era. Jaspers identified the religions that birthed in Greece, Judea, Persia, India, and China all fulfilled that culturally reinforcing, essentially conservative and conserving task within their differing cultures. Although, critically, with the birth of Buddhism, then a bit later Christianity, and lastly Islam, we find missionary religions. They no doubt carry with them cultural elements from their places of origin. Lots. But they mostly bring certain big ideas at their heart that are meant to be shared with the whole world. And with that the absolute connection between religion and given cultures would no longer be quite the same. That partial untangling has allowed us to notice religion as something not necessarily part of preserving a specific culture. And it has opened the possibility for us to look at that part of what it means to be human that we call religious or spiritual. And, it turns out, from the beginning its been a mess. Speculation on what this might be from some sense of a universal energy, to ancestor worship, to scapegoats and sacrifices, to averting natural disasters, to guaranteeing the planet doesnt simply spin into eternal darkness, to begin a list. The list of things that seem important in religions is very long. And, it doesnt really add up. Frankly, Ive found the Twentieth century Unitarian Universalist minister and theologian Forrest Churchs observation most helpful. Religion is our human response to the dual reality of being alive and (knowing we will) die. I suggest when people speak of being spiritual but not religious, they are continuing our uniquely modern, or, maybe thats post-modern, or, I have trouble keeping up with these things, perhaps its a post-post-modern stance of relentless untangling and examining of the parts in hope of understanding the whole. In this case they, okay, we are generally trying to jettison those aspects of religion concerned with preserving and transmitting culture, and most of all those unsavory parts defining who is in and who is out of the group. With that what we call spirituality emerges as a hopefully purer distillation at the heart of that matter. Although what that might be remains far from clear. One can certainly question the degree to which we can extract ourselves from culture. Me, I suspect not a whole lot. But, like the scholar and religious historian Karen Armstrong suggests, I also believe we may indeed be in a new Axial Age, for me starting with the European Enlightenment enriched by a comparative religious sense, particularly arising out of our modern interreligious dialogue. Its something where things have been taken apart sufficiently, and, surprisingly a new whole is emerging. Something totally unexpected. Like a new dawn, a world perspective. If you will a universalism. Not quite like the earliest forms of universalism, extending heaven to all. But, equally, maybe more deserving of the word universal. Of course, it is contending with those older views. And, in this moment, I certainly wouldnt put money on what view will prevail. Personally, I cant put money on our species surviving for a whole lot longer. Still. Also. Out of all this, my personal stab at defining religion: Religion is that part of culture where our hopes and fears regarding life and death are expressed through stories and symbolic actions. And, I think the spiritual at the heart of it, the secret truth that floats through all religions, that universalist current sometimes held up, sometimes scorned and suppressed, but always present is a knowing that within all our diversity there is some mysterious unity. And, frankly, I think it is our only hope for survival as a species. If there is a universalism emerging within a new Axial, it is this. Each thing as it arises, you, me, a rock, a star is precious and beautiful. And. It, that you, that me, that star arises out of a profoundly connected web of relationships. That web itself is simply the relationship of things, coming together, holding for a moment, falling away. But each thing as it presents is the universe itself. And, we human beings, blessed beyond all reason, get to notice this. So, back to that mass in that little Episcopal chapel in West Cornwall, Connecticut, on the eastern side of the North American continent, on a small planet spinning around a middling star at the edge of one of a million million galaxies. As the service worked its way through the story of Jesus and his disciples gathered at their meal. Finally, the consecrated bread and wine were offered to all who were present. Me, Ive been to many Episcopal services over the years. Episcopalians are without a doubt my favorite Christians. But, I never take communion. As lovely as that tradition is, I always felt just enough of a separation that partaking in that most intimate part of the service never felt appropriate. Not respectful. Not right. This time was different. Maybe in some degree it was my relationship with the priest. But that hardly would be enough. Something else happened in that little stone chapel. I saw. I noticed. The whole universe was present. All the angels of Western faith and all the devas of the East were present and circling around that little altar that somehow became the navel of the cosmos. And without thinking about it, without worry about theology or proper decorum, without any concern but a longing to come ever closer to the moment of creation, I stepped into that small circle. And I received communion. This is not the only time Ive had such a sense of invitation. I can offer a number of examples. But, Im a Zen teacher. So, when we retired and Jan and I returned home to Southern California a mutual friend made sure I met a local Japanese Zen priest, the Reverend Gyokei Yokoyama. He leads a Japanese-American congregation in Long Beach where he conducts services and preaches sermons and tends to the pastoral needs of the people he serves. As I noted mostly Japanese Americans. In addition to his ministerial duties he leads a Zen meditation group several mornings a week. Sadly, few in the congregation are interested in meditation. And his little group are mostly converts, mostly in the moment at least of European descent. And. While I am responsible for my own Zen group, I love going to the morning sits he leads. I love it for a couple of reasons. One, Im not in charge. I get to, as we say in the Zen way, just sit. And over these past couple of years Ive come to love that early morning schedule. The way the light comes up from the darkness as we begin, the mix of smells, particularly the slight hint of mildew mixed with sandalwood incense that instantly returns me to my youth sitting at the old Berkeley Zendo where I first began my practice many, many years ago. It is delicious. But, the main reason Im doing this is that I have committed myself to trying to relearn the sacramental functions of a Soto Zen priest. I first learned them pushing on fifty years ago. But after my time in the monastery I ended up practicing with a koan teacher who was not a priest, and well, that part of my Zen life more or less fell away. In my dotage Im on a path of integration and a part of that is more fully understanding the priestly part of my path. Ive found this in some ways just relearning to bow. Never a bad thing. Not a bad thing for any of us. And, so, Wednesday and Friday mornings, I at least figuratively put on the black robe of a novice priest, sit a bit, and then try to master the liturgical ropes presented by a kind and generous teacher. One day, not long ago, I found myself standing near the altar as the sensei approached the altar. The form is closely prescribed. Every motion has a thousand years of practice behind it, within it, as it. He walked up with his hands folded at his chest, as he stepped to the altar itself, he put his hands together palm to palm. He picked up a waiting stick of incense and held it to his forehead, bowing slightly. And, I realized in that moment as Gyokei offered that incense for the world it was the same moment as when Mary held up the chalice in an offering for the world. The truth has always been there. Hidden in plain sight. You want to know the origin of religion? To see a World in a Grain of Sand/And a Heaven in a Wild Flower/Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand. Just notice. Just be present. Just this. Just this. The origin of religion. Amen. This column appeared in the Deseret News on 15 November 2014: Jesus, of course, was born and raised in Palestine. Like his apostles and earliest disciples, he was a Middle Eastern Jew. Christianity emerged from a Hebrew matrix, drawing on stories of prophets and patriarchs firmly set in the Middle East. All Christians know this, as does anybody even slightly acquainted with the Christian story. Yet we sometimes fail to understand the historical implications of Christianitys Middle Eastern origins. An Egyptian friend relates an anecdote that illustrates our point. He once surprised a European visitor to his country by identifying himself as a Christian. Who converted your family? the European tourist asked. Was it the British, or the French? It was St. Mark, he replied. Who converted your family? Our European ancestors waited centuries, sometimes even a full millennium, to hear the message of Christianity. But Mark the Evangelist brought Christianity to Alexandria by about A.D. 49 in other words, within two decades of the resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ and his message took root among the huge Jewish community there and soon spread beyond it. Today, both the Coptic Orthodox Church and the Greek Orthodox Church of Alexandria claim him as their founder. And he likely was. The traditions of his early preaching in Egypt are very old, and had Egyptian Christians simply been inventing the story in rivalry with Rome, they probably would have chosen a more prominent figure, such as Peter, to be their founding father. Christianity is, and has always been, a Middle Eastern religion. Although nowadays its prominently associated with Rome, Marburg, Canterbury and, for some of us, Salt Lake City, that hasnt always been so. The rise and expansion of Islam have obscured the Christian faiths deep roots in what we today term the Near or Middle East. Saul, or Paul, grew up in Tarsus, in modern south-central Turkey, and eventually made Ephesus, nowadays a major tourist destination in western Turkey, his missionary headquarters for about three years. Later, Ephesus reputedly became the residence of the apostle John. Some traditions even say that John brought the Virgin Mary with him, in order to fulfill his pledge at the foot of the cross to care for the Saviors mother. Eventually, John was exiled to Patmos, a small island just off the Turkish coast. In the first centuries after the establishment of the Christian church, its most prominent leaders, saints and thinkers were overwhelmingly eastern, not western. Ignatius of Antioch served as a bishop in what is today Turkey. Clement, Origen and Athanasius were dominant figures Athanasius was the citys bishop in Alexandria, on Egypts Mediterranean shore. Eusebius of Caesarea, often described as the very first historian of Christianity (presumably after Luke and the authors of the other New Testament gospels), was the bishop of Caesarea Maritima, Herods once-flourishing port city whose spectacular ruins still attract many tourists to the northern Israeli coast today. Even Tertullian and the enormously influential bishop Augustine, two of the most important figures in the history of Latin or Western Christianity, came from North Africa from, respectively, Carthage, in what is now called Tunisia, and the city of Hippo Regius, located in modern Algeria. All of the first seven ecumenical councils of the Christian church, as theyre called Nicea I (A.D. 325), Constantinople I (381), Ephesus I (431), Chalcedon (451), Constantinople II (553), Constantinople III (680-681), and Nicea II (787) in the course of which the fundamental creeds of mainstream Christianity were hammered out during contentious and often raucous meetings, took place in what is today western Turkey. Of the roughly 318 delegates who participated in the first Nicene Council which was convened by Constantine, the Roman emperor who had just announced his intention to found a new capital city that, today, lies in Turkey and bears the name Istanbul only a small handful came from the Latin West. The vast majority of the attendees, including St. Nicholas, the original Santa Claus, represented northern Africa, the eastern Mediterranean and such distant places as Georgia, Armenia, Persia, even India. This was the famous council that, for most traditional Christians, defined the relationship of the Father and the Son (the fundamental issue of the Trinity), established a uniform procedure for setting the date of Easter, and promulgated some of the earliest canon law designed to regulate church government. Christianity is sometimes dismissed as a Western faith, the religious legacy of dead, white, European males. Such dismissals are, to be charitable, historically uninformed. Posted from Las Vegas, Nevada For specific reasons, Im reposting this blog entry, which first appeared here on 11 October 2018: There were times, particularly in my early graduate school days, when I thought that my having come from a completely non-academic family had worked against me. I have friends and colleagues, themselves with strong Ph.D.s from prestigious schools, who have fathers and grandfathers and multiple siblings with professional and academic doctorates in at least a couple of cases, with more than one doctorate and for them, I discovered, going into a doctoral program was just something you did. No big deal. Practically everybody in their families had a Ph.D., an M.D., a D.D.S., a J.D., a D.Phil, an Sc.D, or, at least, a masters degree. My family was not like that. My mother graduated from high school but never attended college. My father, caught up in the Great Depression, construction work in southern California, then Roosevelts Civilian Conservation Corps, followed by the pre-war Army, and then, for the duration of the Second World War, living on various military bases pending deployment to England and later, having been assigned to General Pattons Third Army, as a non-commissioned officer in France, Belgium, Germany, and Austria. He had managed a couple of years of part-time study at a forestry school in North Dakota and at Pierce College, in Los Angeles. When he was demobilized, he came out to California and eventually started a construction business of his own. My parents werent unintelligent, by any means. Quite the contrary, in fact. (A sign of this is that the Army sent my father to the University of Chicago to study German, as well as to Marylands famous Camp Ritchie.) But my mother came from a small town in Utah and my father grew up on a farm located quite a distance outside an even smaller town in North Dakota, they hadnt had the time or the leisure to obtain the kind of education that I was ultimately able to get, and they certainly couldnt be described as intellectuals. Given that background, going for a doctorate was uncharted territory for me. Nobody that I knew very well, certainly no one to whom I was related, had ever done such a thing. (My brother and I were about the only people that I knew of in the family up through our generation who earned bachelors degrees.) But Ive come more and more to appreciate a powerful benefit that my background conferred upon me: I worked construction just about every summer when I was in the United States, from high school through graduate school. (That was one of the reasons I chose to attend UCLA for my doctorate: It had, and has, a superb program in Near Eastern studies, but I could also work summers at the family business of which, by then, my brother had assumed control.) I cant say that I always enjoyed the work, but I really liked the men with whom I worked and whom I had known since I was a small boy men like Tino Beltran and his brother Frank, and Joe Esparza,and our company mechanic, Red Faler (about whom Ive written here on this blog). One of the men who sometimes worked for our company was actually a convert to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (I wont name him because I dont want to risk embarrassing his family, whom I knew.) He wasnt a well-educated man. His grammar was poor, and Ive sometimes joked, in recalling him to my wife and kids, that he had no idea at all where to locate 2 Nephi in the Old Testament. But even as a rather young boy, I noticed that he was the first to arrive at service projects and the last to leave, and that he was at every single one in which I ever participated. If there was a widows house to be fixed, he was there. Sometimes I was, too, but I had little to offer. I realized then that, while he was far from sophisticated or urbane, and while I aspired in those days to be at least somewhat more sophisticated and urbane than I was, he was worth at least two of me. I was convinced then, and Im convinced now, that he will occupy a wonderful place in the celestial kingdom. Me, though? Well, I can hope. I have many faults, but theres one that Im very grateful to have avoided: the arrogant elitism that sometimes afflicts academics. I just dont feel it. I never have. I can readily imagine that things might have been different for me. I have enormous respect for academia and my feelings for great colleges and universities border on religious awe. When Im at Oxford or Cambridge or Caltech or Harvard, I feel almost as if Im on holy ground. (Behold, said a friend and colleague as we stood one day by the statue of John Harvard in Harvard Square, the omphalos tes ges [the navel of the earth]! And may I be forgiven for it! I actually felt that way, just a bit.) Wherever I travel, if theres a good school nearby I always try to visit it. I might very, very easily have become an academic snob. However, having spent many of my formative years around manual laborers whom I considered friends and almost family it took me a long time, as a child, to realize that my Uncle Warren at the construction company wasnt even really a relative at all and belonging to an extended family replete with farmers and truck drivers, construction workers and welders, I have never been even remotely tempted to regard academics as a superior breed. Being a professor is an honorable trade, of course, but no more so than being a cement finisher or a dry land wheat farmer. This is on my mind because of some complacently elitist comments that Ive recently observed from certain former Latter-day Saint academics who, Im guessing, were not as lucky in this respect as I have been. Theyre disdainful of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, of course, and regularly sneer at its claims and its doctrine. But what has really appalled me, I confess, is the sheer contempt that Ive seen in them for ordinary members of the Church, whom they dismiss as rubes, fools, primitive bigots, uneducated and unreflective lowbrows, and, as one of them recently described Latter-day Saint temple-goers, as philistines. Not that I have anything against any particular member of the faculty at Harvard but, on balance, Ive always resonated to this 1963 statement from the Ivy-educated patrician William F. Buckley Jr.: I should sooner live in a society governed by the first two thousand names in the Boston telephone directory than in a society governed by the two thousand faculty members of Harvard University. I simply cant abide smug assumptions of class superiority. Much as I admire academic achievement and deep culture, I cannot see that such things make those who possess them better people or more valuable souls, let alone more pleasant to be around. Posted from Las Vegas, Nevada A Plaintiff by the name of Jay Brodsky has filed with a California court a formal complaint against Apple Inc. in an effort to get a class action approved. The nature of the action, according to the formal complaint, is based on Apple locking out Plaintiff from use of his personal devices by a business policy requiring two-factor authentication that cannot be disabled after a lapse of an initial fourteen (14) days. Once two-factor authentication is enabled either by default, on a software update or accidentally by a user and 14 days have lapsed, Apple does not allow any mechanism to disable two-factor authentication. Two-factor authentication imposes an extraneous logging in procedure that requires a user to both (i) remember password; and (ii) have access to a trusted device or trusted phone number to receive an additional six-digit code that needs to be entered at the time of logging in addition to the user set password. A user does not have an option to disable such doubled up security measures and is stuck with wasting time to log on to his own device. Two-factor authentication requires additional steps to access any third-party apps or services requiring passwords. Two-factor authentication is required each time you turn on a device. Apple does not get user consent to enable two-factor authentication. Apple does not get user consent to then remove the option forever to disable two-factor authentication, once it is enabled. An email with a long paragraph thanking the user and highlighting the good features of two-factor authentication followed by a simple single last line in an email saying that the link will expire on a given date is insufficient to put the user on notice of his options and make an informed decision as to whether to click the link to disable it. As a result of Apples coercive policies with regards to security of Plaintiff owned devices, Plaintiff and millions of similarly situated consumers across the nation have been and continue to suffer harm. Plaintiff and Class Members have suffered economic losses in terms of the interference with the use of their personal devices and waste of their personal time in using additional time for simple logging in. Plaintiff and the Class seek monetary damages as well as declaratory and injunctive relief to prevent Apple from continuing its practice of not allowing a user to choose its own logging and security procedure. Causes for Action Count 1: Trespass to personal Property Count 2: Violation of the invasion of privacy act Count 3: Violation of the Computer Crime Law Count 4: Violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act For more details on this case, review the full Class Action lawsuit filings below provided to you courtesy of Patently Apple Jay Brodsky vs. Apple Class... by Jack Purcher on Scribd General Case Information On behalf of the Transportation Security Administration officers at the Central Illinois Regional Airport in Bloomington, I would like to publicly acknowledge the amazing outpouring of support by individuals, businesses, organizations, and the traveling public during the partial government shutdown. Throughout this challenging time, we received verbal encouragement and tangible help from multiple sources. The donations of numerous lunches, store gift cards, and non-perishable food items affirmed our officers efforts and lifted their spirits as they diligently reported to duty each day. We are proud to serve a community of such caring and generous people. John Hursey, federal security director, TSA downstate Illinois Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 We're again inching to a partial government shutdown, and as Illinois residents who have been held hostage over political squabbling before, we think we have some some room to talk here. Our message to President Donald Trump and Democrats: This doesn't make any sense. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said there will be no money for the border wall Trump wants. A compromise bill is hung up in conference committee, and with talks just starting last week, there's a good chance we're going to have a repeat in February. Trump has signaled all along he's not patient. Game over. "We really have no choice but to build a powerful wall or steel barrier," Trump said after the government was reopened last month. "If we dont get a fair deal from Congress, the government will either shut down on Feb. 15, again, or I will use the powers afforded to me under the laws and the Constitution of the United States to address this emergency. We will have great security." Sound familiar? Illinois endured a painfully long period, from July 2015 to August 2017, with no budget. Only the barest of finances were covered, and our state slipped even further into a fiscal black hole that seemed to have no bottom. It was all so deeply embarrassing. The stalemate was principally over the Democrat-controlled General Assembly refusing to play ball on then-GOP Gov. Bruce Rauner's calls for reform a pledge in the famous "Turnaround Agenda" he campaigned on in 2014. We still think Rauner was on the right track with calling for fixes to pensions and workers comp, but he balked on compromising. Democrats, led by the powerful and intractable House Speaker Michael Madigan, D-Chicago, didn't go far enough in seeking structural fixes. They balked, too. Only after Republicans crossed over did a budget pass and the senseless quagmire lift. When the dust settled, $15 billion in late bills had been amassed. State services were severely cut. The long-term impact of careening off the cliff are still being felt. Rauner subsequently lost his seat in a Democratic wave. Game over. In the case of Trump's campaign promises, we're not here to debate the merits of the wall, and we will point out that Democrats of all stripes have proposed various border security policies over the years. But because the name "Trump" is so closely attached to this issue now, even a faint whisper of border security is a powder keg for the left. Without the possibility of budging, the shutdown option emerges. Politics aside, that's our bigger concern in all this. We don't think any president or governor Republican or Democrat or anything else ought to wield the shutdown for a piece of policy, however important it is deemed in the moment. Just the threat causes huge problems. And those in power know that. Trump and Rauner made their millions outside the political arena, by using all-in negotiation tactics that benefited them. This isn't that arena. Rather than personal wealth taking a hit, it is taxpayer money and public workers potentially caught in the cross-hairs. A total of 800,000 federal workers were furloughed during the last shutdown. Some didn't get paid at all. We strongly support efforts to drive down government spending and redundancies in the interest of financial responsibility, just as a business would. But not paying bills is fundamentally wrong. It's abhorrent to leave vendors out to dry. It's immoral to have someone work without being compensated. It can't be rationalized to have employees be a bargaining chip in some far-off political discussion. No other business would operate this way. The "slippery slope" argument is that you may agree with not compromising on this issue, but what about the next chief executive? What will the next president or governor shut down the government for? What will that issue be? Let the story of the 793-day Illinois budget impasse be a lesson. We don't have anything to show for it. Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 MERTZ, Ill. In a matter of seconds, Triston Walsh went from being really mad at his mom to thinking she was the best mother in the world. Julie Walsh had told the Millstadt teenager last month that she sold the 1990 Ford Bronco that belonged to his father, Nick Walsh, a Marine sergeant who was killed in Iraq 12 years ago. But she was actually conspiring with a local car dealership to have the vehicle restored for his 16th birthday. More than 100 people, including a military color guard, gathered in the Mertz Ford showroom on Saturday to see the staff present Triston with the shiny red vehicle with tan trim. They erupted in cheers when he climbed into the driver's seat and started the engine. "It just means so much to me," said Triston, who wiped away tears with his shirt sleeve. "I'm just really happy that I'm able to have a piece of my dad left with me." After the big surprise, family and friends celebrated Triston's birthday with a patriotic-themed dessert table at the dealership, which had red, white and blue stars hanging from the ceiling. Nick's official military portrait was displayed on an easel, along with his dress uniform. A sign listed all the automotive suppliers that donated parts for the restoration. "It was overwhelmingly sweet," said Julie's cousin, Karrie Vanhosser, 44, of Troy. "The look on his face was priceless. It makes me sad that his dad wasn't here to see it." Triston is a sophomore at Belleville West High School. He turned 16 on Saturday, but he won't be getting his driver's license until February. Triston was 4 years old when Nick was killed in a 2007 sniper attack in Fallujah. One of their last adventures was a road trip from Colorado to California in the Bronco, just the two of them. Triston and his brother, Tanner Walsh, now 12, had always expected to inherit the vehicle when they were old enough to drive. They were furious when it disappeared from the garage one day in December. "(Triston) said, 'Where's my dad's truck?'" said Julie, 39, a stay-at-home mom who also has two daughters. "And I was like, 'Well, kiddo, I had someone come out and look at it, and it's going to cost way too much to fix it, so I sold it, and I'm going to use the money to buy you a better car.'" Triston stormed upstairs to his room and spent the better part of two weeks giving his mother the silent treatment. In reality, Julie had contacted Mertz Ford to get an estimate on restoring the Bronco. The dealership sent a tow truck to pick it up while the boys were in school. "It was in pretty rough shape," said Service Manager Ricky Boyer, 34, of Granite City. "It was garage-kept, so it looked pretty good, but there were mechanical problems from it sitting around for so long." Boyer sprang into action. He contacted several automotive suppliers that agreed to donate parts. Mertz technicians Tim Jarrett and John McCall volunteered to work nights and weekends on the vehicle without pay. They installed a new radiator, suspension system, battery, rotors, brake pads, tires, rims and other parts. They rebuilt the intake manifold and rear differential, secured the sagging headliner and performed a tune-up. "We pretty much wanted to touch every nut and bolt on the vehicle because of its age," Boyer said. "We wanted it make sure it was safe and dependable for him." Mertz Ford is a 97-year-old family business owned by Don and Debbie Mertz. They gave their blessing to the Bronco project, as did General Manager Greg Castelli. "It started out as something small, and it just kept growing," Don said. "Everybody was chipping in, and our employees agreed to do the work on their own time. I'm so proud of them. It was all for someone who made the ultimate sacrifice." The former Julie Kilgore is a Millstadt native who met Nick in 2001 while tending bar at a Marine Corps ball in North Carolina. He was stationed at Camp Lejeune. At first, Julie slipped him a fake phone number (867-5309 from the Tommy Tutone song "Jenny"), but Nick wouldn't give up the idea of landing a date with her. He returned to the bar singing "Jenny" and begged for her real number. "He was charming, and he had this big smile," she said. "I just couldn't not give it to him." The couple fell in love and moved back to Illinois when Nick left the Marines. He worked construction, took classes at Southwestern Illinois College and joined the U.S. Navy Reserve. Then he served as a stay-at-home dad with Triston after Julie got a nursing job. The couple married in 2005, two days after Nick rejoined the Marine Corps. "He said, 'I just have this need. I just feel like this is my purpose,'" Julie said. "It was his calling to be in the military and serve his country." Nick was stationed at Camp Pendleton in California when he left for his first Iraq deployment, which lasted about six months. It was his father, Jerry Walsh, who bought him the Bronco in 2006. Nick wanted a retro truck with big tires to haul his gear. He flew to Colorado to pick up the vehicle and drove it back with Triston. "They took the scenic route through the mountains because Nick wanted Triston to see it," Julie said. "They slept in the truck and had kind of a bonding experience. Nick loved what he was doing (in the military), but he felt bad about missing some of Triston's milestones." Nick left for his second Iraq deployment on April 1, 2007, about three months after Tanner was born. Julie had her last conversation with him on the morning of May 26 his time. Nick complained of not being able to sleep. He cried and talked about how much he missed his family and wanted to come home. Julie found it odd because he was always the one who was strong and upbeat, insisting that everything was going to be OK. A few hours later, Nick's reconnaissance unit reportedly had to stop on the streets of Fallujah because of a flat tire on a Humvee. When help arrived, Nick got out of the vehicle and stood in a circle with about a dozen military personnel. Then came a loud bang. "His one friend said he felt a bullet whiz by him and then he heard Nick say, 'Oh, that hurts,' and then he just fell to the ground, and everybody ran to take cover," Julie said. A sniper's bullet had hit two of Nick's arteries and punctured his lung. He was 26 when he died. The next morning, Triston was watching cartoons and Julie was feeding Tanner when two Marines in dress uniforms knocked on her door in California and delivered the tragic news. "I thought, 'How can I tell his son, "Your dad is never coming home?'''" she said. "Triston was just so excited every time he called. He just couldn't wait. He was so attached to him." Julie and the boys lived in Chicago for two years before moving back to Millstadt in 2010 with Julie's partner, Nick O'Donnell, a history teacher at Belleville East High School. They now have two daughters, Tatum, 3, and Tinley, 8 months. The couple had to tell another little white lie on Saturday to get Triston to Mertz Ford. Supposedly, the dealership was selling a car that was suitable for him to test drive. When the family walked into the showroom, the Bronco was hidden behind a paper curtain that eventually was ripped away so the vehicle could pull forward. Triston seemed stunned and speechless. He slowly walked up to the passenger door and peeked inside. "Do you want to get in it?" his mother said. "Yeah," he answered, prompting laughter from the crowd. No one at the gathering looked happier than the Mertz staff. The Bronco's restoration had become a labor of love and an act of patriotism. Client and Community Relations Manager Amy Kern, 41, of Belleville, noted that both her grandfathers served in World War II, and one was a prisoner of war. In the past month, walking into the service department and seeing the Bronco gave her goosebumps. "This was a way of showing (Triston) that the community cares, that the country cares," she said. ___ Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 1 CHICAGO A judge has set a trial date for a man charged in the death of a 2-year-old boy whose dismembered remains were found in 2015 in a Chicago park lagoon. The Chicago Sun-Times reported Thursday that Cook County Circuit Judge Timothy Joyce set a May 15 trial date for Kamel Harris after talks between his attorneys and prosecutors about a plea deal fell apart. Harris was charged with first-degree murder in 2016, months after the remains of Kyrian Knox of Rockford were found in plastic bags in the Garfield Park lagoon on the city's West Side. Police have said Harris was working as caretaker for the boy when he allegedly "snapped" and killed him because the child was crying. NORMAL Its a challenging time to be a teacher. We live in a polarized society right now, said Sara Piotrowski, who works with the teachers of tomorrow in the history-social sciences program at Illinois State University. It seems to be youre either left or right theres kind of no center anymore. To learn how to navigate that society, 350 social studies teachers from across Illinois and a few from out of state spent the weekend at ISU to develop their educational tool kits and learn how to introduce controversial topics into their classrooms. During Saturdays workshop, Kristine Frailing, a teaching fellow from Brown University, led a discussion on Teaching about Contested Issues: The Choices Approach, immersing teachers in the issues about U.S. immigration policy and parts of the Civil War. The Choices Approach is getting students to kind of look at options and how could the history be seen in different ways and then students debate and discuss the different options, said conference organizer Monica Noraian, associate professor of history at ISU. About 25 high school, middle school and student teachers participated in the session. Noah Scholp, a social studies teacher at Ridgeview High School in Colfax, said discussing complicated issues with his students is essential to help them understand the world they live in. You have to talk about it and you have to understand what you might be facing as you go out there, he said. The students that you work with sometimes, they may have certain set ideas and you want to challenge those you want to get 'Oh my gosh, I had no idea about x, y or z.' Hunter Watts, an ISU student teacher who works at Normal Community West High School, said being able to deliberate over conflicting views is an essential lesson for students. "Its really important to teach (students) how to discuss these things and how to be open to new perspectives, how to build their own arguments and evaluate evidence so that they can make an informed decision, Watts said. Multi-faceted lessons that stick with students drew student teachers like Watts and Caitlin Smith, who works at University High School, into the discipline. Its not just a 50-minute lesson," Smith said. "Its something that theyre going to remember when theyre deciding their major in college, and then when theyre deciding their outlook on life after college. Its a bigger sense than just something to talk about in the classroom or what theyre going to have on their exam. Teachers practiced developing creative lesson plans at the workshop, using visuals, hashtags and social media or skits. (The Choices curriculum) kind of speaks to our two goals that we have. One is for our students or very young teachers to be successful now, but also we want them to be successful 25 to 30 years down the road. Were in many ways preparing them for schools that dont even yet exist, said Richard Hughes, an associate professor of history at ISU. The Choices program teaches students how to deliberate and how to weigh evidence and have a civil discussion and thats not something thats modeled very much in our society anymore, he said. Some teachers may shy from political or value-laden topics like diversity because they didnt learn that way as students, Noraian said. We know that the methods of the past do not reach every student learner so were hoping that by engaging different strategies and content, that were going to really reach the needs of all of our student learners and prepare them for this century, she said. Contact Kelsey Watznauer at (309) 820-3254. Follow her on Twitter: @kwatznauer. Love 2 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Want to see more like this? Get our local education coverage delivered directly to your inbox. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. BLOOMINGTON Two people are accused of possessing a stolen car and using a fake check to buy another vehicle. Marquies Emery and Kierra Emery, both 22, are charged with possessing or selling a stolen vehicle, a Class 2 felony; and forgery and theft by deception, both Class 3 felonies. Court documents say the pair met a man in order to buy his car and gave him a fake check. When police later pulled over both cars for speeding, they found the initial car to have been reported stolen from Indiana and Kierra Emery in possession of a glue stick. Meanwhile, a county deputy had determined the fake check had scissor marks on the edge and was in fact two pieces of paper glued together. Both were jailed in lieu of $5,035 each. Although racially segregated schools are associated with the Jim Crow deep south and the civil rights movement, northern communities such as Bloomington also maintained officially recognized separate schools for black and white children. In fact, Bloomingtons all-white school board and white city leaders only belatedly and hesitantly ended the citys racially segregated public school system when pressured to do so in the early 1870s by brave African-American schoolchildren and their supporters. According to available evidence, the first public school in Bloomington for black children opened in 1860. The school was located somewhere on South Madison Street, and its first teacher was a Mrs. Howard, said to be a missionary back from Burma. The Rev. P.H. Ward of the African Methodist Episcopal Church in Bloomington played a leading role in the fundraising effort for the Colored School, as it was known. He reports success, in subscriptions and donations among white folks, to the amount of near $100, which he hopes to greatly increase, noted the Jan. 9, 1860, Pantagraph after the good reverend visited the newspapers offices in supplication for aid. Although the state provided no funds for the instruction of African-American children (the landmark 1855 Common School Act of Illinois provided for the education of whites only), Bloomingtons colored school received a share albeit a very small and grossly unequal one of local property taxes. When it came to integrating its schools, Bloomington lagged behind Normal, which in 1867 rallied behind the admission of a black girl to the Normal University model school. Bloomingtons Colored School operated as a quasi-public institution, so in addition to receiving local tax dollars, the black community raised supplementary funds to keep the austere wood-frame schoolhouse open. In the summer of 1862, for instance, the school held a charity program at Phoenix Hall on the south side of the courthouse square. The Pantagraph managed to be both complimentary and condescending to the schools black students, noting that in the performance of their various exercises, consisting of music, dialogues and declamations, as well as in manners, we could see but little difference between them and a school of white folks of the same grade. After the Civil War, the Bloomington board of education dragged its heels and straddled the fence when it came to desegregating its schools. There was no such heel dragging or fence straddling, however, when it came to the citys frustrated and abused black community. At the Sept. 26, 1870, meeting of the school board, a committee of colored citizens requested that the directors discontinue the Colored School and admit children to neighborhood and grade-appropriate schools without distinction of color. One week later, at a special school board meeting, directors approved a resolution supporting the right of academically adept black students to enroll in white city schools, including the high school. Furthermore, on a motion of board member J.A. Jackman, it was voted to allow colored children living in extreme parts of the city and unable to attend the Colored School on account of distance to enter the school of the ward in which they live providing there are vacant seats and that the (school principals) have discretionary power to admit such pupils. Although the board fell far short of advocating full and immediate integration, its actions were still met with howls of disapproval. One detractor, identified only as A Citizen in the Oct. 19, 1870, Pantagraph, claimed that white children held a natural repugnance to racially integrated schools. Black children, A Citizen continued, necessarily feel humiliated and mortified in the presence of white children who refuse to accept them on equal terms of social intercourse. Three months after A Citizens open letter, during the second week of January 1871, The Pantagraph reported on the considerable excitement caused when an unknown number of black children attempted to enroll at the Sixth Ward School over a period of several days (which was serving as temporary quarters for Fifth Ward pupils while their new school was being built). The (colored) children continued to press their claims from time to time with a degree of firmness unusual to the race, but so far have been unable to gain admission; but on the other hand have been somewhat violently thrust from the (school)house by a special policeman, reported the Jan. 12, 1871, Pantagraph. The probability is that the difficulty will lead to a legal investigation of the matter, with a view of ascertaining whether colored citizens yet have rights that white men are bound to respect. Indeed, those supporting the sit-in demonstration staged by the bold black schoolchildren entered suit against the board of education. In addition, indictments were filed against Samuel M. Etter, city schools superintendent, and David K. Plumley, identified as the special policeman who forcibly removed the black students from the school. It appears both indictments were dropped, but the case ended up in the Court of Chancery. Judge Thomas F. Tipton ruled that the board of education had the right to say that the colored children shall occupy a separate building, and the only remedy for the people is to defeat the board at the polls, and not rely upon the courts. Yet the protests and the legal challenges helped deliver a grievous blow to the status quo of segregated schools. According to longtime city school superintendent Sarah Raymond, when she became principal of the new Fifth Ward (or No. 5) School at its opening in early 1872, it became the first in the city to admit colored children with white children. Even so, the Colored School remained open another two years. At the Dec. 29, 1873 meeting of the school board, the directors backed the dissolution of the school and the distribution of its pupils to their respective wards as soon as convenient room can be found. In 1882, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled that the state constitution and a subsequent state act prohibited the establishment and maintenance of separate black and white school districts. Yet officially segregated schools survived in Illinois well into the 20th century. Shocking though it may seem, as late as 1949, some 10,000 black children in southern Illinois attended all-black schools in officially segregated districts. Although Bloomingtons public schools were integrated by the 1874-1875 school year, District 87 did not hire its first African-American teachers until the 1960s. Bill Kemp is the librarian at the McLean County Museum of History in Bloomington. He can be reached at BKemp@mchistory.org. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 1 Angry 0 there's something of a standard phrase for business that a company's most valuable asset is its employees. Human resource management to attract and retain a high quality workforce keeps those revenue lines swinging in an upward direction. Everyone knows this, and along with this is a pillar of American law known as employment at will. This means an employee can be fired for cause or no cause. One of the most famous firings in business history is when Henry Ford fired long time employee and creator of the Mustang, Lee Iacocca. His reason: Lets just say I dont like you. As I'm sure Ford checked with the law department, it is a legal reason if you are the boss. We of course have laws on discrimination but the categories are narrow and dislike trumps race, sex and religion. I have long felt much firing is, as in the case of Ford, about personality conflict. Most fired people wind up on their feet and often with better jobs. But a tyrannical boss who fires good people is likely to have some real profit trouble. Our system works pretty well although it's more brutal than Europe, where termination is difficult. For a nation, as in business, the citizens are the most valuable asset and laws on immigration and citizenship are the heart of the human resource department. Lately there is talk of a great divide in America. There is noise for sure, but if we could just sit down, cool down and start talking in a civil manner we could forge strong and effective human resource policies. Citizenship first. All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof are citizens This is the 14th Amendment, which simply codifies the ancient English rule born under the protection of the crown. Diplomats and their families under international law live in a legal bubble. The French ambassador, although physically here, remains legally in France and not subject to our laws. Interpretation came in a famous 1894 case of Wong Kim Aek. He was born in San Francisco of legal resident parents who were still subjects of the Emperor of China. He visited China and was denied reentry on the ground that he was not a citizen, and thus subject to the Chinese exclusion act. His parents' allegiance was to the Emperor of China, thus not under our jurisdiction. The court reminds us that in our revolution we did not abolish English law but rather we took it with us. A foreigner in the realm owes allegiance to the crown insofar as they must obey the law and in return receive the crowns protection. Short of a constitutional amendment with the small exception, born here means citizen. It has worked well in our land of immigrants. Can you imagine the mess, especially in a political contest, with the opposition digging up some flaw in a candidates parents immigration status decades after the fact? Most of Europe has citizenship by blood. Now former East Germany brought laborers from Vietnam in the 1980s. We had a daughter of one of them as a guest student from our German partner. In spite of living her whole life in Germany, she was not German. Many came from Turkey in the 1960s. With exceptions, there is now a third generation of au slander or foreigners. These are not our ways. Immigration is next. I had not thought about it before but in my department colleagues come from Korea, China, Taiwan, India, Lithuania, France, around to the Philippines, and for an open position, finalist candidates from Germany and Poland. No qualified American is unemployed because of this. There is plenty of work in finance, insurance or law. It is reported that more than 30 percent of our physicians are foreign-born. The world can be unfair. Think of the work and cost of their education and they dump on their homelands for our fair shores. This part of our human resource policy is working well. The media reports that hate is running rampant in our country. I dont buy into this noise. I have just returned from an international convention in Miami and there was an interesting paper that interviewed foreign graduate students. In extensive questioning, not one mentioned experiencing hate. A number did feel there was too much free speech in America. They are, of course, free to picket city hall 24/7 demanding we amend our Constitution so we can start locking up those we find offensive, as they do in so many other countries. I deal with our foreign students all the time and not one has ever said America is anything other than a very welcoming country. There are of course hate groups that are free to speak. We also have groups that believe the Earth is flat or that we never actually went to the moon a half-century ago. Their numbers are small, but in our age of internet and social media their noise is greatly amplified. So where to go? Abolishing the border, letting everyone in, is noise on the left and wall us off and round up the 12 million or so illegal immigrants is noise on the right. Sit down and talk because we citizens make the rules. Our tradition is welcoming but we do good as human resource managers to choose the best. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 1 Angry 0 SPRINGFIELD Admitting it will take two years to see any new revenue from a progressive state income tax, Fair Economy Illinois has other ideas for raising money in the meantime. Joined by several lawmakers, including House Majority Leader Greg Harris, D-Chicago, the progressive advocacy group is laying out plans for raising $433 million in new state revenue. The first plan, sponsored as House Bill 2085 and Senate Bill 1115 by Rep. Harris and Sen. Heather Steans, both Chicago Democrats, would curb some loopholes in offshore tax havens. The group estimates this could bring in $318 million. Illinois right now is losing $1.3 billion in taxes that corporations or wealthy individuals have managed to shelter in other countries, Harris said. The bill Im introducing is a step toward reclaiming some of that revenue. The bills specifically address waters edge tax reporting, a way of shifting a domestic business or individuals' profits to an offshore entity where different taxes apply. According to Harris, 11 other states have closed similar loopholes. Fair Economy Illinois second plan is to eliminate the retailers discount tax break, which is estimated to bring in $115 million. Rep. Will Gazzardi, D-Chicago, is sponsoring another measure, House Bill 2079, which he says covers an obscure provision in Illinois law from more than 100 years ago that has gotten out of control. According to Gazzardi, Illinois collects sales tax dollars from retailers, but rebates a portion of those dollars to help cover a businesss cost of calculating the sales tax. This was passed (back) when calculating the sales tax was a very labor-intensive and difficult process, using slide rules and (an) abacus, Gazzardi joked. But the consequences of the law are serious. Walmart, according to Fair Economys release, retains more than $8 million a year through the provision. Big box retailers are doing hundreds of millions of dollars of business in our state, said Gazzardi, arguing they dont need millions in tax breaks for something that can be done by a computer with relatively affordable software. The bill would, however, keep the sales tax calculation rebate for small businesses up to $1,000. With this cap in place, the bill would not affect 85 percent of the businesses in Illinois, said Sen. Omar Aquino, D-Chicago, who is sponsoring the Senate version of the bill (SB1132). Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Its time for the leaders of Oregon Department of Transportation to step down, as they have no idea how to manage roads in winter. This has been an ongoing problem for at least 40 years. Its time to hire leaders who know what roads are like in Oregon winters. Someone who has common sense about winter driving and traction. A little salt goes a long way. Remember years past when the people abandoned their cars on U.S. 26? That mess was caused by ODOT. Step aside leaders and let in some common sense for the good of all Oregon. Leonard Hanley, Hillsboro By Billy J. Williams Williams is the United States Attorney for the District of Oregon For the second time in the history of the Joint Terrorism Task Forces existence in the city of Portland, city commissioners are considering a resolution to withdraw. This is a mistake and jeopardizes public safety. First, lets make sure everyone understands what the task force is and what it is not. There is a lot of misinformation circulating and false assumptions do not yield good decisions. The task force is a partnership between federal and local law enforcement officers. It has two primary goals: investigating threats of violence and protecting civil liberties. Threat investigations differ from just about every other type of case that law enforcement addresses. Threats of violence whether they come from an angry teenager who claims he wants to take a gun to school, or whether they involve an adult purchasing bomb components run the spectrum from genuine to confused and benign. Gathering information quickly is key to this process, and local law enforcement serves a vital role in ensuring only genuine threats are pursued. It is our local police officers who know this community best, and our local officers who can direct appropriate individuals in need of mental health resources away from continued criminal investigation. Withdrawing leaves Portland worse off than the other 103 major cities throughout the United States who are active participants in their own Joint Terrorism Task Force. The work of task force members averts disasters that no one ever hears about. Last year, our task force assessed and mitigated nearly 300 threats of violence, most of which originated in Portland. The partnership works. It just cannot publicize its accomplishments given the sensitive nature of much of its work and the privacy interests of those involved. Losing the Portland Police Bureau will mean that the task force will take longer to gather necessary information, impairing its ability to make accurate threat assessments, and the city of Portland will only hear about an investigation after the fact. Again, there is no upside for Oregonians if Portland Police, the states largest law enforcement agency, withdraws. Detractors base their criticisms on several false assumptions. The Joint Terrorism Task Force is not an immigration task force. Portland Polices participation in the task force is fully compliant with the states sanctuary law. Although a threat investigation may ultimately yield a criminal immigration charge, an individuals immigration status is not used to open or drive a task force investigation. The task force also does not target any individual or group based on race, religion, national origin or First Amendment protected activity. Any claim to the contrary is false. I recognize and understand why some Muslim and African American community members do not trust law enforcement. This is not limited to the Joint Terrorism Task Force. Building trust between law enforcement and all segments of our community is one of my top priorities as the chief federal law enforcement officer in Oregon. Trust must be earned. My office, along with the other task force members, has embraced that opportunity. For years, we have engaged with local community members and leaders to build bridges with one another centered on trust. We will continue to do so. Severing ties between Portland Police and the task force runs counter to that effort. After all, we share common goals. We all want safe neighborhoods. We want to be able to worship, go to school and attend public events without fearing an armed gunman, a vehicle driving into a crowd or a bomb. We also want law enforcement to exercise good, well-informed judgment that protects our civil liberties. A Joint Terrorism Task Force that includes Portland Police is our best opportunity to achieve those goals. We are stronger together than apart. Portland should not withdraw. By Ken Fairfax, Amanda Manjarrez, and Dillon Styke Portland City Hall is on the National Register of Historic Places.Michelle Brence/Staff (file) Fairfax is chair of the research committee for City Club of Portland; Manjarrez is the committee co-chair; Dillon Styke is the committee reports lead writer. Portland has been part of a national experiment for 105 years. In response to the corruption of the spoils system, the city adopted the commission form of government a new idea that percolated out of Texas in the early 1900s. In the century since, the rest of the country has realized what Portland refuses to see. The commission form of government is an instrument of exclusion that stifles our ability to govern effectively. The experiment has failed. We dont come to this conclusion lightly. Our view is rooted in more than a year of research for City Club of Portland. Together, we set out to answer: Does the current commission form of government equitably represent all residents? and What is the best form of government for Portland in terms of representation? In researching the commission form of government, we uncovered some remarkable bits of history. Portland is the only large city that still uses this system. Even Galveston, Tex., the founders of the commission model, abandoned it in 1960. Why are we the only ones? Its not because Portland is weird. Its because were in denial. The system is deeply inequitable. During the civil rights era, some cities in the Jim Crow South adopted the commission form of government because of its ability to minimize minority representation. An essential feature of the commission system at-large voting, rather than voting for district representation has repeatedly been struck down in some cities by federal courts. But Portlanders have never been forced to deal with the fundamental inequities embedded in our electoral system. But even before at-large voting was found to be discriminatory, U.S. cities abandoned the commission system because it is ineffective and vulnerable to corruption of many kinds. City commissioners are like bureau CEOs. They set the strategic direction for the bureaus they manage. The trouble is, Portland has five CEOs who historically have tended to micromanage their bureaus. As a result, dysfunction and power struggles are common in Portland government. For example, in 1914, the first year of Portlands commission government, Emanuel Mische, the visionary behind the Olmsted plan, quit the Parks Bureau. In his annual report, he complained that the new government lacked a general plan and a harmonious body to govern the plan. Hed lost hope in Portlands ability to develop a world-class park system. Or consider former commissioner Mike Lindbergs story about his attempt to add Chinatown designations to the street signs in that district. He got the ordinance passed, but the signs never went up. As Lindberg tells it, he went through all the layers of bureaucracy until he found the person responsible for making the signs. The guy told him that the signs were a bad idea and that he doesnt have to make them because Lindberg doesnt oversee his bureau. And former commissioner Steve Novick testified to our committee about a strange decision he witnessed while he was on the City Council. When the Bureau of Environmental Services attempted to stop paying the Portland Bureau of Transportation for street cleaning, the council, trying to please everyone, simply cut the payments in half. Amid all the turf wars and politicized management decisions, legislative responsibilities often get crowded out. The result is a City Council that is reactive, not visionary. Recently, Portland voters elected the most diverse city council in our citys history. Todays council is majority female, includes a person of color for the first time in almost three decades, and is not limited to members from close-in neighborhoods. We applaud voters for pushing back against structural barriers that make it difficult for historically underrepresented groups to win a seat on the council. But the fundamental inequities havent changed. In 2008, all four commissioners and the mayor were white men. Would anyone be surprised if city council were again all male and all white in 2028? Lets not go back. Its time to move forward. Our report, which City Club published today, makes the following recommendations for a more efficient and equitable city government: The mayor should delegate day-to-day operations of the city to a city manager. The city council should increase in size to at least eight councilors, plus the mayor. The mayor should serve as the permanent chairperson of the city council and cast tie-breaking votes when necessary. Portland should institute a district-based election system. Portland should explore alternative voting systems that reduce barriers to participation. These recommendations are not the end of the conversation only a beginning. To create a government that works well for all of us, were going to have to work on it together. Theres no other city in the world like Portland. Lets put our creative energy toward building a new government that an innovative, forward-thinking city like Portland deserves. -- Ken Fairfax, Amanda Manjarrez, Dillon Styke, Sarah Carlin Ames, Christopher Bacher, Tina McNerthney, Lynn Peterson, Vinay Prasad, Mona Schwartz, Thomas Worth, and Liang Wu researched and wrote New Government for Todays Portland: Rethinking 100 Years of the Commission System. The report is available at www.pdxcityclub.org. By The Oregonian/OregonLive Editorial Board The Portland City Council will yet again debate whether Portland police officers should remain on the FBIs Joint Terrorism Task Force. The city has cycled in and out of the group of local and federal law enforcement agencies numerous times since the task force was created in 2000, when partnerships focused on prevention were recommended by the 9/11 Commission. And while Portland has uneventfully been a full-time member since 2015, newly elected Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty is again pushing the issue to the forefront. She doesnt trust Portland police or the FBI, says she heard similar sentiments from constituents and promised voters that pulling Portland out would be one of her first official acts. The council plans to discuss the Portland task forces controversial history on Wednesday. Typically, a vote comes at least a week later, providing time for commissioners to have questions answered before making a final call. Yet Hardesty has pushed for a vote the next day. But theres no reason to rush. The council should have a full discussion and have all of their questions answered, both to benefit their own deliberations and to give residents hard data about the task forces actions. More important, commissioners can use that time to craft clear requirements that will address Portlanders concerns while still allowing officers to remain in a task force critical to our safety. Indeed, Hardestys criticisms are reasonable. Many Portlanders recall a few headline-grabbing cases over the past 15 years that raised valid questions about government overreach and the targeting of racial and religious groups. Fears have been amplified as residents feel a more strained relationship with Portland Police and are even more frightened by the race-baiting and other divisive rhetoric they hear from the Trump Administration. And living in a so-called sanctuary city, Portlanders are wary that Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigators are members of the task force. Its against city ordinance and state law for local law enforcement to assist federal agents if a person has only violated immigration laws. But its important to put those concerns in perspective. Among 100 similar partnerships in other large cities, Portlands task force includes two full-time Portland police officers who work with other local and federal officers, investigators and specialists, such as bomb technicians and international terrorism analysts. A Portland police sergeant is regularly updated on the local officers confidential work. Renn Cannon, the FBIs special agent in charge in Portland, makes a convincing case that while a persons immigration status may arise in some cases, its not the task forces priority or a violation that alone would launch an investigation. The task force focuses on threats of violence, whether a tip on a potential school shooter or the 2016 standoff at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. The task forces work faces various and broad checks and balances from federal judges who approve wire taps to local juries who consider their cases. And Portland does face safety risks. Commissioner Nick Fish, who supports the task force, has been regularly briefed by the FBI and told The Oregonian/OregonLive Editorial Board he has been surprised by the number of potential threats concerning the citys large port system. Walking away means wed lose the insight we have and eliminate the very oversight critics say is lacking. That said, Portland leaders should use this moment to make improvements in the agreement. Mayor Ted Wheeler, who is also the police commissioner, receives briefings along with any commissioners who request them on an as-needed basis. Portland Police Chief Danielle Outlaw should seek the top clearance, a move that would signal her commitment to the partnership and deepen her understanding of exactly how our officers are used. Portlanders also deserve more and better information even if generalized at times to address privacy concerns. Reports submitted so far by the FBI have been so incomplete as to be useless. The city should have a clear understanding how valuable local resources are being used. Cannon and U.S. Attorney for Oregon Billy Williams also told the editorial board that local officers help the task force connect with social services that they wouldnt otherwise be able to easily access. Theres one case often referred to in which the subject was well known to the Portland officers, who offered that insight and headed off a costly investigation in favor of connecting the person with local support. Such details illustrate why local officers are necessary. Sharing general data about cases referred to local mental health agencies helps build trust and backs up the growing understanding that police need more assistance from mental health specialists and places to take those in need other than jails. Its also important to remember that the Joint Terrorism Task Force is just one of many such partnerships local police have with the FBI, including the Metro Gang Task Force. Local police also rely on the Portland-based Northwest Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory, and are members of several other task forces focusing on child exploitation, sex trafficking and internet crimes partnerships that have helped many crime victims and led to dozens of convictions in recent years. And what about the millions in federal dollars used to fund various police functions and new programs? Would we consider pulling the plug on these various ventures, too -- simply because of FBI involvement? No. But city leaders should listen carefully to this debate and recognize that Portlanders distrust of law enforcement in general underlies their concerns. Theres work to be done on all levels to improve relations with communities of color and show residents that our police agencies deserve our trust. But stepping away from these conversations, partnerships and insight isnt the way to address these valid concerns and fears. Portland should stay in the task force, providing our officers on-the-ground experiences to the daily discussion and allowing local leaders a seat at the table so they can make clear what our communities need to be safe. And, just as important, to feel safe. -- Laura Gunderson for The Oregonian/OregonLive Editorial Board Editorial Agenda 2019 Transform education for students benefit Keep Oregon solvent Work toward more evenhanded justice in Oregon Put Portland on the right track ________________________ Read more about the editorial board's priorities for 2019. No new measles cases were announced Saturday amid an ongoing investigation into a measles outbreak linked to Vancouver, the Clark County Public Health Department said. The agency has identified 53 confirmed cases and two suspect cases since Jan. 1. The agency broke down the number of confirmed cases: Age o 1 to 10 years: 38 cases o 11 to 18 years: 13 cases o 19 to 29 years: one case o 30 to 39 years: one case Immunization status o Unimmunized: 47 cases o Unverified: five cases o 1 MMR vaccine: one case Three suspect cases identified earlier this week as possible measles were ruled out after specialized testing revealed the patients were experiencing vaccine rash. --Tom Hallman Jr. thallman@oregonian.com 503 221-8224 @thallmanjr Get out of Venezuela, Trump warns Russia; says all options open to make it happen Venezuela: Canada govt backs Juan Guaido but its biggest labour union supports Maduro International oi-Shubham Ghosh Ottawa, Feb 10: Canada stands a divided country over the ongoing political crisis in Venezuela. While the country's government has recognised leader of Venezuela's National Assembly Juan Guaido as its president, the North American country's biggest union has chosen to back the sitting president, Nicolas Maduro, who has come under increasing international pressure to step down in the wake of a devastating economic crisis. The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) published on its website a statement that has criticised Ottawa's support for Guaido who announced himself as the interim president of Venezuela on January 23, less than two weeks after Maduro took his second oath as the president. "..they (Justin Trudeau government) have chosen to side with a self-declared leader over President Nicolas Maduro, who was duly elected by the people of Venezuela. They have also chosen to side with Donald Trump and US foreign policy," said the CUPE statement. Explained: The ongoing crisis in Venezuela The labour body also said it rejected any attempt by Ottawa to "interfere with the democratic processes and sovereignty of the Venezuelan people". "Given the history of US involvement in the region, the actions of Guaido have all the signs of a coup d'Etat. We warn Prime Minister Justin Trudeau against playing any role in bringing about regime change in another country," it added. "CUPE believes Canada has an important role to play in the ongoing crisis in Venezuela, by providing humanitarian support. We also believe Canada should engage with the international community to foster dialogue and peace between the elected government and the opposition." Maduro won his second presidential election last May though it was widely condemned by the Opposition led by Guaido and a number of countries like the US, Canada and the European Union. Venezuela: Embattled President Maduro stops international aid to his country Maduro won a second term as president on January 10th, although the election process was widely condemned by the opposition under Guaido, and by several foreign countries like the U.S., Canada, and the European Union. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, February 10, 2019, 15:43 [IST] US: Connecticut becomes the 19th state to legalise recreational marijuana law, with sales aimed for May 2022 Miraculous recovery! Vets thaw cat frozen in polar vertex back to life International oi-Shubham Ghosh Washington, Feb 10: It's almost like bringing a frozen fast food out of the refrigerator and thawing it. Fluffy is a cat which found itself out in the extreme cold in the US during the polar vortex. The feline nearly froze to death a week ago near her home in Kalispell in northwest Montana. However, as they say cats have nine lives, she managed to cling on to life, thanks to the veterinarians' special effort. According to the doctors, Fluffy was unresponsive first and her body temperature was too low to be measured by the thermometers. Woman jailed for neglecting pet cats in Singapore Then the doctors took to 'thaw' the animal by using cage warmers, intravenous fluids to warm the animal and the ice that got stuck in its fur was carefully removed. The cat was found 'half-frozen' by her owners last Thursday, February 7. Doctors suspected Fluffy to be sitting on one place for a very long time as the drifting snow formed a crust around her body. After the three-year-old animal regained its consciousness and showed signs of movement, it was sent to the emergency ward to get its body temperature raised. Fluffy made it thereafter even as many people died in the extreme weather conditions that hit vast areas in Mid-west US. The Animal Clinic of Kalispell then posted Fluffy's pictures on Facebook that went viral with social media users expressing surprise over the furry animal's miraculous escape. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, February 10, 2019, 16:19 [IST] Vietnam is in the spotlight after its selection to host the second summit between Democratic People's Republic of Korea top leader Kim Jong-un and United States President Donald Trump. On Tuesday, Trump used his biggest speech of the year, the State of the Union address, to announce that his second summit with Kim will take place in Danang, Vietnam, on Feb 27-28. Analysts and observers said this summit is highly anticipated because it is likely to be a more pragmatic one. Although much work remains to be done toward peace on the Korean Peninsula, Trump said his relationship with Kim is a good one, citing the halt in DPRK nuclear testing and no new missile launches in 15 months as proof of progress. Some interesting facts you need to know about #MeToo movement Me too: No proof to prosecute Nana Patekar in Tanushree Dutta molestation case, say cops #MeToo movement icon Tanushree Dutta to speak at Harvard International oi-Shubham Ghosh Washington, Feb 10: Actress and former Miss India Universe Tanushree Dutta recently became a symbol of #MeToo movement in India as she took on patriarchy in the Indian film industry - Bollywood - setting it on fire. Now Dutta, 34, has been invited by the Harvard Business School in Boston, Massachusetts, to speak at one of its premier events. The actress, who recently returned to the US where she lives now, shared the news on her Instagram post: "Invited to speak at the Harvard Business School in Boston, Massachusetts. India Conference 2019 on February 16, a flagship event organised by the graduate students of Harvard Business school and Harvard Kennedy School." Last October, Dutta came out vocally against veteran actor Nana Patekar accusing him of sexually harassing her on the sets of a film "Horn OK Pleassss" in 2008. Nana Patekar responds to CINTAA notice, calls Tanushree's claims baseless She also accused other men of not coming to her aid even when she faced the ordeal and her revelations suddenly opened the floodgates whereby several women from other walks of life also opened up about their own dark experiences. Dutta also said in her complaint that Patekar had called members of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena who vandalised her car which had her parents inside apart from herself. She also accused choreographer Ganesh Acharya of siding with Patekar. The event in which Dutta is set to speak is an annual one organised by the students. This year, the participating speakers include activist Aruna Roy, journalist Barkha Dutt, politician Asaduddin Owaisi, among others, the Hindustan Times reported. Some interesting facts you need to know about #MeToo movement The #MeToo movement gained worldwide traction in 2017 when dozens of women came up with their shocking stories of getting harassed at the hands of Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, who is now facing probe. Shenzhou-12: China all set to launch manned mission with three astronauts for its space station Chinese student in US jailed for clicking photographs of Florida naval base International oi-Shubham Ghosh Beijing, Feb 10: The ongoing dispute between the US and China over matters of trade and geopolitics is not unknown but the impact of the tug-of-war between the two big economies has landed one young Chinese student in jail. Twenty-year-old Zhao Qianli has been sentenced to a year in prison in the US after he was caught taking photographs of an American naval base in Florida, Shanghaiist reported. Zhao pleaded guilty to a charge of clicking defence installations though he claimed that he had mistakenly done so. He said he was a tourist who lost his way before ending up inside the Naval Air Station Key West. Pakistan dismantled major foreign spy network, say local media reports The lawyers, however, refused to buy that Zhao was a lost tourist by pointing out that he had entered the secure facility through a water way and went around a fence that was marked with words "Restricted Area" and "Keep Out". The Chinese student's camera/smartphone also did not have any photo of tourists spots but those of installations like satellite dishes and antennae inside the base, the Shanghaiist report added. Zhao is a musicology student at the North University of China and he went to the US last year in a summer exchange programme. He went to Miami, Florida, after finishing studies and entered the naval base in Key West on September 26. CIA spy communication system faced 'catastrophic' compromise: 2018 spy-related report Zhao's sentencing came in the wake of the warning report issued by the US intelligence that China is using students as spies to steal secrets. Authorities have been alerting of late that some of the 3.5 lakh students from China are engaged in espionage work. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, February 10, 2019, 15:10 [IST] Former Uttarakhand CM and other Congress leaders stranded at Kedarnath due to heavy snowfall Kedarnath shrine all set to open on May 17; No restrictions on number of pilgrims Uttarakhand: Badhrinath shrine doors to reopen from May 10 after winter break India oi-Madhuri Adnal Dehradun, Feb 10: Sacred portals of Badrinath will be reopened in after their annual winter closure. Badrinath is the most visited of the four Char Dham shrines in Uttarakhand. The traditional ceremony for ascertaining the date of reopening of Badrinath temple was held in the palace of the erstwhile royal family of Tehri in Narendranagar. As per the tradition, the ceremony started in the palace of the erstwhile royal family of Tehri at 10:30 an on the occasion of Vasant Panchami. Modi's pet Char Dham road widening project gets SC nod Along with the erstwhile king of Tehri, the office bearers of Badrinath Kedarnath Temple Committee, priests and members of the Dimri Panchayat among others were present at the ceremony. On the same day, representatives of Dimri Panchayat will also arrive with Gadu Ghada- the pot containing sesame oil. The date of the Gadu Ghada yatra will also be declared on the occasion. Badrinath is the last of the four shrines of the Char Dham Yatra circuit, besides Gangotri, Yamunotri and Kedarnath in the hill state. Char Dham Yatra sees record footfall, 2.21 lakh pilgrims visit Kedarnath The gates of the shrine were closed on Nov 20, 2018 at 3.21 pm after special pujas were performed by chief priest Ishwari Prasad Namboodiri to the presiding deity Lord Vishnu in the presence of a host of temple committee officials. Soon after the temple gates were closed, an idol of Lord Vishnu, kept in a flower-laden palanquin, was taken to Narsingh Mandir, Joshimath, where the deity will be worshiped during winter. A total of over 10 lakh pilgrims visited the Himalayan temple this year with 5,237 paying obeisance on the last day The four Himalayan temples are closed every year with the onset of the winter when they remain snowbound. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, February 10, 2019, 12:16 [IST] "Truth will always prevail", says Vadra after 3 days of questioning India oi-Vikas SV New Delhi, Feb 10: Thanking his friends and acquaintances for supporting him, Congress president Rahul Gandhi's brother-in-law Robert Vadra on Sunday took to Facebook and wrote "Truth will always prevail", after three days questioning by the ED this week. "Morning, Just want to say thank you to all my friends and acquaintances who have reached out in support from all over the nation, at this time. I'm fine, good and disciplined to deal with anything, I'm put through. 'Truth will always prevail'. Wishing you all a happy Sunday and a healthy week," Vadra's Facebook post read. Vadra on Saturday appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for the third time in connection with a probe into allegations of money laundering in purchase of assets abroad. ['Stand by my family': Priyanka after dropping off Robert Vadra at ED office] Robert Vadra was questioned for 6 hours by ED on day 1. On day 2, he was questioned for 9 hours. Vadra was directed by a Delhi court on February 2, to cooperate with the probe being carried out by ED after he knocked at its door seeking anticipatory bail in the money laundering case. The court directed him to appear before ED on Wednesday on his return from London. [Robert Vadra granted anticipatory bail in money laundering case] Vadra has denied allegations of possessing illegal foreign assets and termed them a political witch hunt against him. Vadra has alleged he was being "hounded and harassed" to subserve political ends. The Patiala House Court had granted interim bail to Robert Vadra till February 16 in connection with his alleged overseas properties. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, February 10, 2019, 18:32 [IST] Explained: Can Mukul Roy be disqualified as MLA for jumping from BJP to TMC TMC MLAs murder: 'Allegations being levelled against BJP on Mamatas order', says Mukul Roy India oi-Vikas SV Kolkata, Feb 10: Amid allegations and counter-allegations over TMC MLA Satyajit Biswas' murder, BJP's Mukul Roy on Sunday said that whenever someone is killed in West Bengal, the Mamata Banerjee-led party points fingers at others. Roy said that TMC cadres are levelling allegations on the BJP for the murder on the orders of Mamata Banerjee. TMC MLA Satyajit Biswas was on Saturday evening shot dead while he was attending a programme on the eve of Saraswati Puja. The TMC has been accusing the BJP of murdering Biswas. Mukul Roy had in a tweet said he believes Satyajit Biswas was killed because of infighting within the TMC. TMC MLA Satyajit Biswas shot dead in Fulbari "In the entire state of West Bengal, when anybody is killed by their own people or by other miscreants, TMC and government try to implicate it that it is by leaders and workers of BJP. I demand a probe by an independent agency," Roy told ANI today. "Mamata is scared of us. It is on orders of Mamata that allegations are being leveled against BJP for this murder," he added. Two accused have been arrested and Officer-In-Charge (OC) of Hanskhali Police Station has been suspended following the murder of Satyajit Biswas. According to reports, TMC supporters on Saturday night also vandalised the residence of a BJP worker, suspecting his involvement in the murder. While the state government has already ordered a Criminal Investigation Department (CID) probe into the matter, the police administration in Nadia district suspended the MLA's bodyguard Prabhas Mondal and the officer in-charge of Hanskhali police station, Anidya Basu. FIR filed in TMC MLA Satyajit Biswas's murder case; two accused arrested Biswas, apart from being TMC's youth wing chief for Nadia district, was also in-charge of the party's organisation for the dalit refugee Matua community. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, February 10, 2019, 16:36 [IST] Explained: Can Mukul Roy be disqualified as MLA for jumping from BJP to TMC TMC MLA Satyajit Biswas' murder: BJP leader Mukul Roy booked India pti-PTI Kolkata, Feb 10: BJP leader Mukul Roy was among the four people booked on Sunday in connection with the killing of Trinamool Congress MLA Satyajit Biswas in West Bengal's Nadia district, a senior police officer said. Of the four people named in the FIR, two have been arrested, an officer of the West Bengal Police told PTI. Biswas (41), who represented Krishnaganj constituency in the state assembly, was shot from point blank range by unidentified assailants Saturday evening inside a Saraswati puja marquee at Phoolbari area in the district bordering Bangladesh. He was immediately taken to a local hospital where doctors announced him "brought dead". "So far, we have arrested two persons in this case and detained another three. A country-made revolver used to shoot the MLA has also been recovered. As per our primary findings, it seems that the victim was fired from behind and the act was the result of a well-planned plot," the officer said. Asked about the chances of the assailants fleeing the area, the police officer said the state police have been put on a high alert. [TMC MLA's murder: 'Allegations being levelled against BJP on Mamata's order', says Mukul Roy] "Nadia shares border with Bangladesh and there could be a possibility of them (assailants) trying to escape to the neighbouring country. Police have been put on high alert to check the movements along the border," he said. Roy, a former TMC member of Parliament, joined the BJP last year after his relations soured with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Claiming that the attack was a conspiracy by the BJP, TMC secretary general Partha Chatterjee said Saturday that those involved in the killing will be punished after a full- fledged inquiry. He also said the saffron party was trying to create disturbances ahead of the Lok Sabha polls and resorted to "politics of murder" by singling out leaders having mass bases. The allegations were termed "baseless" by Roy and BJP state president Dilip Ghosh. PTI Shah has huge expectations for BJP from Bengal and Odisha India oi-Oneindia Staff By Anuj Cariappa Panaji, Feb 10: BJP president Amit Shah said Bengal and Odisha would be added to the list of the states being governed by his party after upcoming elections. Addressing a convention of the booth level workers near here, Shah said the BJP has made inroads into the North-East. Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar, who is not keeping good health, was also present at the 'Atal Booth Karyakarta Sammelan', which was attended by around 10,000 workers. Amit Shah urges people to oust BJD from Odisha "Today we have gathered here for the 2019 elections. We are here to resolve that Goa will again give both the seats (South Goa and North Goa) to PM Narendra Modi," Shah said. He said the upcoming elections are important not only for the BJP but also for the entire country. "The BJP has now reached up to North East. We are already in 16 states, but after the coming elections we will also be there in Bengal and Odisha," he said. Lok Sabha elections are due in April-May this year while assembly polls are slated to be held in Odisha during the same period, and in West Bengal in 2021. The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and the Trinamool Congress (TMC) are ruling parties in Odisha and West Bengal, respectively. Shah said: "If we want to spread the BJP in the South till Hind Mahasgar, till Vivekananda memorial, then we will have to win the polls and reelect Modi as the Prime Minister". "The BJP is the only party which keeps the borders safe and take countrys culture across the globe," he added. Mamata dares PM to prove paintings charge, issues defamation notice to Shah The BJP has emerged as a major political force in the northeast since its victory in Assam in the last three years. The BJP has since formed governments in four of the region's eight states including Tripura, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, and Manipur. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, February 10, 2019, 10:05 [IST] RRB Group D results 2018 to be out soon, details here India oi-Madhuri Adnal New Delhi, Feb 10: The Railway Recruitment Board to release RRB Group D results 2018 soon. However, the date has not been confirmed, but reports indicate that the results will be declared in the second week of February. The results once declared will be available on the official website. The candidates are advised to visit the official and regional websites of the RRB to check latest update. After the result is declared for Group D CBT, RRBs will conduct Physical Efficiency Test for shortlisted candidates. Based on the merit in Group D computer-based test (CBT), candidates shall be called for Physical Efficiency Test (PET) twice the community wise total vacancy of the Posts notified against RRBs. RRB Group D results 2018 likely to be released on Feb 13 Those who clear the first level will have to appear for the Physical Endurance Test (PET). The dates of the same will be released soon. It may be noted that 1.89 crore candidates have appeared for the exam which was held from 17th September to 17th December 2018. RRB Group D Results 2018 date, full list of websites, document format RRB Group D Results: Full list of websites: RRB Group D results: List of official websites to check RRB Guwahati (www.rrbguwahati.gov.in) RRB Jammu (www.rrbjammu.nic.in) RRB Kolkata (www.rrbkolkata.gov.in) RRB Malda (www.rrbmalda.gov.in) RRB Mumbai (www.rrbmumbai.gov.in) RRB Muzaffarpur (www.rrbmuzaffarpur.gov.in) RRB Patna (www.rrbpatna.gov.in) RRB Ranchi (rrbranchi.gov.in) RRB Secunderabad (rrbsecunderabad.nic.in) RRB Ahmedabad (www.rrbahmedabad.gov.in) RRB Ajmer (rrbajmer.gov.in) RRB Allahabad (rrbald.gov.in) RRB Bangalore (rrbbnc.gov.in) RRB Bhopal (www.rrbbpl.nic.in) RRB Bhubaneshwar (www.rrbbbs.gov.in) RRB Bilaspur (www.rrbbilaspur.gov.in) RRB Chandigarh (www.rrbcdg.gov.in) RRB Chennai (www.rrbchennai.gov.in) RRB Gorakhpur (www.rrbguwahati.gov.in) RRB Siliguri (www.rrbsiliguri.org) RRB Thiruvananthapuram (rrbthiruvananthapuram.gov.in) Who is V G Siddhartha? Here's all you need to know about India's coffee king Today I gave up said V G Siddhartha in letter to Coffee Day family before he went missing 'Rahuls constant interference prompted me to quit Congress after 46 years', says SM Krishna India oi-Madhuri Adnal New Delhi, Feb 10: Senior BJP leader S.M. Krishna, former External Affairs Minister in Manmohan Singh's Cabinet, has claimed that it was due to Congress president Rahul Gandhi's constant interfering in governance during the UPA rule at the Centre had forced him to quit the party. Addressing the BJP workers in Maddur, Krishna said that he resigned as Rahul had issued an order saying that leaders who reached 80 years should not hold any ministry. He also blamed Gandhi scion of creating an unbearable environment in the party. Notably, he was external affairs minister from 2009 to 2014 during Manmohan Singh tenure. S M Krishna, the 'gentleman' politician's journey "There was a suffocating environment in the party. I was handling the portfolio efficiently for three and a half years. But Rahul issued an order that leaders who reached 80 years should not hold any ministry. I was disappointed and resigned, he said. One of the tallest leaders from Karnataka Congress, Krishna joined the BJP in 2017 after giving 46 years to the grand old party. The former Karnataka CM claimed that Congress had no control over alliance parties and it was during this time that all the major scams like 2G spectrum, Commonwealth and coal were reported as such situations arise when there's no able leadership. The 84-year-old was one of the close aides of Indira Gandhi and her son Rajiv and held key ministerial positions at both the Centre and state. The party also appointed him as the 19th Governor of Maharashtra from 2004 to 2008. However, the veteran Congress leader left the party as he was sidelined. 'Time to throw Siddaramaiah out', says S M Krishna Krishna continues to hold sway in the Mandya, Mysore and Tumkur region, which has remained a Vokkaliga stronghold. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, February 10, 2019, 14:12 [IST] Mehbooba Mufti arrives in Delhi to participate in all-party meeting to be chaired by PM Modi tomorrow PM in South India: Modi tears into opposition during his 3 rallies India oi-Madhuri Adnal Guntur, Feb 10: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday addressed three rallies in Southern India and unveiled development projects in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Modi left no stone unturned to launch scathing attack on the opposition in all three rallies. PM Modi began his day by landing in Vijaywada's Gannavaram airport, where he was received by the Governor. Breaking protocol, no one from Chandrababu Naidu's cabinet was present at the airport. Only the state Chief Secretary and the police chief were there. After a rally in Guntur, PM Modi visited Tiruppur, Tamil Nadu, and Hubbali, Karnataka, later in the day. Modi laid the foundation stone for Krishnapatnam Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd (BPCL) coastal terminal project in Guntur. In Karnataka, Pm Modi took a jibe at HD Kumaraswamy over the political turmoil in Karnataka and said during his Huballi rally that it is difficult to know who is in charge of the state. He also laid the foundation stone of IIT and IIIT to Dharwad. Here are the Highlights from 3 rallies: Prime Minister Narendra Modi's rally in Guntur in Andhra Pradesh on Sunday is part of the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) southern campaign where it faces a tall order to increase its footprints in four out of five states. Mehbooba Mufti slams politics in the name of Hindutva', praises Pakistan India oi-Vikas SV New Delhi, Feb 10: In a veiled attack at the BJP-led Centre, former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufti has said politics is being done in the name of Hindutva in India, while Pakistan has formed an act to save temples. Earlier, Mufti took to Twitter to praise Pakistan PM Imran Khan's initiative to name the Baloki forest reserve after Guru Nanak. Ever since the split between Mufti's PDP and the BJP, the former J&K CM has on multiple occasions lashed out at the BJP-led Centre. "Monuments and old cities with Muslim names are being given Hindu names. There's a race to build the temple. Muslims are killed in the name of cow vigilantism, instead of taking action govt puts them in jails under NSA like in MP. Politics being done in name of Hindutva," she was quoted as saying by news agency ANI. [Govt slams Mehbooba Mufti's remark against Army officer, calls it "selective condemnation"] "In Pakistan they formed an Act to save temples and want to name a forest reserve and a university after Guru Nanak ji. If you compare you will feel that there is some kind of exchange between our nation formed on foundation of secularism and Pakistan formed on basis of religion," Mufti added. [BJP entering 'our homes' by bringing Triple Talaq Bill: Mehbooba Mufti] She was reacting to Khan's announcement that he was taking steps to name the wild life reserve after Guru Nanak Dev. "The Baloki Forest Reserve and a new University in Nankana Sahib will be established and named after Baba Guru Nanak. Pakistan belongs to all citizens equally and we will ensure that Sikh pilgrims are facilitated for 550th anniversary of Guru Nanak," Khan said at a function. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, February 10, 2019, 22:09 [IST] Mehbooba Mufti arrives in Delhi to participate in all-party meeting to be chaired by PM Modi tomorrow Karnataka CM sheds tears in public about his alliance compulsions: Modi India oi-Vikas SV Hubbali, Feb 10: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday took a jibe at HD Kumaraswamy over the political turmoil in Karnataka and said during his Huballi rally that it is difficult to know who is in charge of the state. In a veiled reference to strain in Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) alliance government in Karnataka, the Prime Minister said that the grand old party has troubled Chief Minister Kumaraswamy so much that he has shed tears in public about his coalition compulsions. "Aaye din mukhyamantri (Karnataka CM) ko dhamkiyan milti rehti hain. Unki poori urja din raat Congress mein unke bade bade netaon se kursi bachane mein lagi rehti hai. Wo sarvjanik taur par apni majboori ka rona rote rehte hain (Almost everyday Karnataka CM is being threatened. His entire efforts are focused on saving his chair from the big Congress leaders. He publicly cries about his coalition compulsions)," he said at the rally. Earlier today, the Karnataka chief minister said he has not received an invite for the Prime Minister's official programme in Hubballi-Dharwad and accused the Modi government of indulging in "petty politics". Further highlighting the achievements of his government, Modi said that the BJP-led Centre has continuously worked for the poor and the middle class. [PM in South India: India wants Majbooti not Majboori] "The previous govt sanctioned 13 lakh houses in the urban areas, out of which only 8 lakh were completed. However, our govt sanctioned 73 lakh houses in 55 months, out of which 15 lakh have been completed," PM Modi said. "Opposition have no interest in the welfare of the farmers, youth and the poor. They are selfish and only works for their own interests," he added. Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed rallies and unveiled development projects in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka on Sunday. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, February 10, 2019, 21:18 [IST] J&K: Five terrorists killed in Kulgam encounter; Hizbul and LeT hand suspected India oi-Madhuri Adnal Kulgam, Feb 10: At least Five terrorists were killed on Sunday after an encounter broke out between security forces and terrorists in South Kashmir's Kulgam district. The forces have recovered weapons and warlike stores from the militants hideout, news agency ANI said. The gunfight erupted in the area in wee hours after a joint team of security forces launched cordon and search operation on the basis of specific information about presence of terrorists in the area. "The 5 terrorists killed, identified as Waseem Ahmad Rather, Aqib Nazir Mir, Parvaiz Ahmad Bhat, Idrees Ahmad Bhat & Zahid Ahmad Parray. As per police records, it was a combined group of Hizbul and LeT, their exact affiliations are being ascertained," news agency ANI quoted Jammu and Kashmir Police as saying. "Incriminating material such as arms and ammunition, was recovered from the site of encounter. Pertinently no collateral damage took place during encounter. Bodies of the killed terrorists were handed over to their families after completion of medico-legal formalities," the state police further said. J&K: Two terrorists killed in gunfight in Kulgam As the forces zeroed in on the suspected place, the hiding terrorists fired upon forces indiscriminately. Aim is to help govt says Rahul Gandhi while releasing white paper on COVID-19 Incompetence, arrogance and moral bankruptcy: Rahul's fresh attack on govt India oi-Vikas SV New Delhi, Feb 10: Firing a fresh salvo at the PM Modi-led government over the issue of unemployment, Congress president Rahul Gandhi cited a media report about an Uber driver and accused the government of being 'incompetent' and 'arrogant'. Gandhi on Sunday alleged that incompetence coupled with arrogance has made the government a "textbook case of moral bankruptcy". Gandhi cited a media report, which quoted an Uber driver as saying that the government has not given jobs and he found one after investing lakhs, to make his point. The driver had made the remarks when he was asked about NITI Aayog's reported statement that Ola/Uber have created two million jobs. "Incompetence coupled with arrogance has made this government a textbook case of moral bankruptcy," Gandhi said in a Facebook post. [Expose BJP's corruption, Rahul Gandhi tells state unit chiefs] Gandhi has been highly critical of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the issue of unemployment and has often accused him of not fulfilling the promise - made before coming to power - of creating two crore jobs per year. [My name is RaGa: A Rahul Gandhi biopic set to hit the screens] His attacks have escalated following a report by the National Sample Survey Office, carried by an English daily, which said the unemployment rate in the country is at the highest in 45 years. The government had said it has not finalised the survey on labour force which reportedly showed that unemployment rate in the country hit a 45-year high of 6.1 per cent in 2017-18. OneIndia News with PTI inputs For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, February 10, 2019, 17:44 [IST] UP elections: How RLD plans to counter the Love Jihad propaganda Gujjars in Rajasthan to go on rasta roko strike today Gujjar agitation enters day 3, continue to block railway tracks in Rajasthan India oi-Madhuri Adnal New Delhi, Feb 10: Gujjar protesters continued their sit-in on the rail tracks in Rajasthan's Sawai Madhopur district for the third day on Sunday, refusing to back off from their quota demand even after a government delegation met them there. The protesters are demanding five per cent reservation to Gujjars, Raika-Rebari, Gadia Luhar, Banjara and Gadaria communities in government jobs and educational institutions. The blockade by Gujjar Arakshan Sangarsh Samiti chief Kirori Singh Bainsla and his supporters has forced the West Central Railway (CWR) to divert, cancel or partially terminate nearly 200 trains in the last two days. Also Read | Gujjars in Rajasthan to go on rasta roko strike today A state government team, which included Tourism Minister Vishvendra Singh and senior IAS officer Neeraj K Pawan, met Bainsla and his supporters, but no agreement could be reached. "We will continue the dharna on the rail tracks. No compromise was made with the government delegation. We want a 5 percent reservation order," said Bainsla. Currently, the five communities are getting one-per cent separate reservation under the most-backward category in addition to the Other Backward Class (OBC) quota. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, February 10, 2019, 13:48 [IST] Temple in Srinagar that was closed due to militancy, reopens after 31 years on Panchami Grenade attack in Srinagar: 11 injured in attack including 7 security personnel, 4 civilians India oi-Vikas SV Srinagar, Feb 10: Suspected terrorists on Sunday hurled a grenade at a CRPF party in Lal Chowk area of Srinagar in jammu and Kashmir, said reports. The incident is said to have taken place near Palladium Cinema in Lal Chowk area. Three CRPF personnel, four Jammu and Kashmir police personnel and four civilians have been injured in the grenade attack on CRPF party near Palladium lane at Lal Chowk, Srinagar., ANI report further said. Earlier today, at least Five terrorists were killed after an encounter between security forces and terrorists in South Kashmir's Kulgam district. [J&K: Five terrorists killed in Kulgam encounter; Hizbul and LeT hand suspected] On February 2, the Jammu and Kashmir Police busted a Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) terror module. Three persons were arrested. Police claimed to have solved a grenade throwing module of Jaish-e-Muhammad. This module was responsible for the grenade attack at SBI camp of 179 BN CRPF in Sopore on January 25 evening. [J&K: JeM module busted, 3 arrested in connection with Sopore grenade attack] On Jan 31, terrorists hurled a grenade on security forces in Jammu and Kashmir's Anantnag district, injuring seven people, including three women and two CRPF jawans. On January 30, at least three persons were injured in a grenade attack by terrorists on a police station in Kulgam district of Jammu and Kashmir. Abhishek Banerjee gets key role in TMC; young leader says humbled by new role TMC ghar wapsi: Will Rajib Banerjee be the next to ditch BJP? More than 30 BJP workers killed in attacks made by TMC in West Bengal: Dilip Ghosh Do not come back: TMC slams West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar who is visiting Delhi FIR filed in TMC MLA Satyajit Biswass murder case; two accused arrested India oi-Madhuri Adnal Kolkata, Feb 10: Two accused have been arrested and Officer-In-Charge (OC) of Hanskhali Police Station has been suspended following the murder of TMC legislature Satyajit Biswas who was shot dead in West Bengal by unidentified assailants on Saturday evening. [TMC MLA Satyajit Biswas shot dead in Fulbari] An FIR was lodged by police in connection with assassination of TMC MLA Satyajit Biswas in Nadia. Biswas, a close aide of West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee who was an MLA from Krishnagunj in Nadia district in the state, was attending a Saraswati Puja inauguration at Phulbari in Jalpaiguri district when the incident occurred. The accused managed to flee from the crime scene. The Police Officials have initiated a probe and are looking for the assailants. Aim is to help govt says Rahul Gandhi while releasing white paper on COVID-19 Expose BJPs corruption, Rahul Gandhi tells state unit chiefs India oi-Oneindia Staff By Anuj Cariappa New Delhi, Feb 10: Corruption by governments in BJP-ruled states should be highlighted proactively, Congress president Rahul Gandhi told the party's state unit leaders. At a meeting of Congress state chiefs and leaders of Congress legislature party, Gandhi also discussed candidate selection and alliances for the Lok Sabha elections due this summer, party sources said. They said Gandhi was of the view that state leaders should proactively highlight cases of corruption of BJP-led state governments. PM Modi directly involved in scam, says Rahul Gandhi while addressing media on Rafale He felt that the achievements of UPA 1 and UPA 2 need to be highlighted to check the narrative that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government has done more for the people as compared to the previous regimes, they said. "Today I met with our CLP Leaders & PCC Chiefs from all over India to review our election preparedness & strategy in each state. We discussed a wide range of issues related to the upcoming elections," Gandhi said in a tweet. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, February 10, 2019, 10:36 [IST] Chandrababu Naidu hits back, says Modi forcing him to indulge in personal attacks India oi-Vikas SV Hyderabad, Feb 10: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday launched a bitter against Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu during rally in Guntur and described him as being a champion at backstabbing, citing the NT Rama Rao episode. Naidu hit back and Modi and said that the Prime Minister is forcing him to indulge in personal attacks. "I don't usually make personal attacks, but Modi is now forcing me to do so with his comments. He speaks about bringing about a triple talaq law to help Muslim women abandoned by their husbands, but he has no answer if anybody asks him about his own wife, Yashoda Ben," and NDTV report quoted Naidu saying. Taking exception to the Prime Minister addressing him as "father of Lokesh" at a rally in Guntur on Sunday, Naidu launched a counter-offensive by dragging Narendra Modi's wife into the row. [Time for Modi to go home says Naidu] "You have estranged your wife. Do you have any respect in the family system," Naidu asked Modi. The TDP president said he loved his family and respected it. "Why does he (Chandrababu Naidu) often claim that he is senior to me? Yes, he is senior to me in switching sides, forming new alliances and "backstabbing" his seniors - just the way he deceived his father-in-law (NT Rama Rao)," Modi had said during Guntur rally. Naidu is losing popularity in his state, alleged PM Modi. [Collective leadership need of the hour: Chandrababu Naidu] Naidu alleged the opposition YSR Congress mobilised crowds for the Prime Minister's public meeting at Guntur as the BJP totally "lost" public support in the state. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, February 10, 2019, 22:49 [IST] CAG Rajiv Mehrishi should recuse himself from Rafale deal audit: Congress India oi-Vikas SV New Delhi, Feb 10: Asserting that CAG Rajiv Mehrishi was the then Finance Secretary when the Rafale deal was struck, Congress on Sunday demanded that Mehrishi recuse himself from Rafale deal audit. Senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal said it will be improper for him to audit the Rafale deal as there would be conflict of interest. "Rafale Deal took place during current CAG Rajiv Mehrishi's tenure as Finance Secretary. Since it's a corrupt deal probe should be done. But, how will CAG investigate against himself? First he will shield himself and then the government. This is conflict of interest," ANI quoted Sibal as saying. Sibal further told reporters that Mehrishi is likely to present the report on the Rafale deal in parliament on Monday. Sibal said that Mehrishi was the finance secretary from October 24, 2014 to August 30, 2015 and in between Prime Minister Narendra Modi went to Paris on April 10, 2015 and announced the signing of the Rafale deal, an Indian Express report said. [Rafale: Report claims MoD protested against PMO undermining negotiations] Congress has been accusing the Modi government of corruption in the deal, alleging that the price of the aircraft was raised and the offset deal was taken from state-owned aircraft maker HAL and given to businessman Anil Ambani's newly formed Reliance Defence, which had no experience. The government and Anil Ambani have repeatedly refuted all allegations of irregularities and corruption. Amidst the negotiations over the Rafale deal between India and France, the Defence Ministry had raised strong objections to parallel negotiations, a report in the The Hindu had earlier claimed. ['Over-reaction': Manohar Parrikar reply to MoD dissent note on Rafale] Citing a Defence Ministry note dated November 24 2015, the report also stated that it was clear that such parallel discussions by the PMO had weakened the negotiating position of the Ministry of Defence and the Indian Negotiating Team. This was brought to the attention of then Defence Minister, Manohar Parrikar, the report also added. The Hindu report also makes note of the submissions that the government had made to the Supreme Court in October 2018. The government had said that the negotiations over the Rafale Deal were conducted by a seven member team headed by the Deputy Chief of Air Staff. There was no mention of any role for the PMO in these negotiations. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, February 10, 2019, 23:29 [IST] Husker Nation is invited to help the University of Nebraska-Lincoln celebrate its past, present and future Monday through Saturday during Charter Week. The week will include a lively lecture, a musical celebration and grand unveilings in honor of the universitys 150th anniversary. The universitys charter was signed Feb. 15, 1869. A highlight of the week is Glow Big Red on Thursday. Campus buildings and the Nebraska State Capitol will be illuminated in red. Nebraskans can show their Husker pride by placing a red glow stick in a window or breaking out holiday lights, flying a Husker flag, wearing Husker apparel and donating to the University of Nebraska Foundation. Other Charter Week events, which are free and open to the public unless otherwise noted, include: Tuesday, 4:30 p.m.: Chancellors Distinguished Lecture, Building Nebraska U: The Saga of University Hall and the Origins of the Modern University by Kay Logan-Peters, Nebraska Champions Club. Children played games and had their faces painted and their names written in Arabic. During these and other activities, we came together as a larger community of people concerned about new friends from faraway places and learned the value of our own diversity. One of our planning committee members remarked that it was crazy that her synagogue had never really done much with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints congregation that sits right next door. The success of the event has inspired us to begin planning for a similar event next year. We all hope this will be a tradition that will last far into the future. Rick Burns, Elk Horn, Iowa founder and president, Karadah Project International Horse racing machines a bad idea Jeff Koterbas Feb. 6 editorial page cartoon, Putting the slot before the race, hit the nail on the head. It also triggered a memory. In 1970, the last ad I sold was to a New Jersey company that wanted to market what looks exactly like the same kind of horse racing tapes being currently considered for use at Nebraska tracks. I dont know if the ad ran in the publication I was representing or not. Historically, only a minority of millionaire taxpayers earn over $1 million in consecutive years, and their millionaire status is mainly driven by their choice to realize capital gains, says Daniel Heil, an economist at the Hoover Institution at Stanford. So a 70 percent tax rate on capital gains would simply lead to deferring realizations until taxpayers are well below the new bracket. Or they could avoid the taxes forever by passing this property on to their children when they die. Its true that high rates probably wouldnt deter the typical business mogul from working and investing just as much as before. But in the long run, they would discourage activities that benefit the economy, workers and consumers. Over time, that effect can foster stagnation. As Hoover Institution economist John Cochrane writes, High tax countries do not immediately see people staying home from work. But they do not see vibrant business formation and human capital investment. If Steve Jobs had been deterred from building Apple into a tech giant, he would have made far less money, but the rest of us would have lost far more from innovations that would not have occurred. Nebraska lawmakers have an important choice to make this session on how the state should manage the next-generation telecommunications technology known as 5G. The Legislature should be wary of stripping Nebraskas elected town and city officials of the ability to assert basic control in this matter. The debate focuses on Legislative Bill 184, which would accede to wireless companies key demands on the approval process and fees for placement of 5G devices on utility poles and street lights. But approval of LB 184 as currently written would come at too steep a price: It would remove local municipalities control over the placement and fee-setting for 5G equipment in public rights of way. The best approach is to amend the bill and strike a prudent balance that retains a measure of local control while encouraging a sensible advancement of this wireless technology, soon to be the highest telecommunications standard here and worldwide. 5G small cells consist of antennas, radio equipment and support devices attached to existing structures such as utility poles or street lights. The antennas have a range of about three-quarters of a mile and can serve up to 3,000 users. The technology is used primarily in densely populated areas. The United States Cyber Command writes to me to say that what I am doing is wrong, that their job is to fight trolls, Zubarev told the Daily Beast in December. We are defending the motherland on the information fronts. But he denied he was part of any troll farm. A catalog of potential Russian operatives, who might be targets of similar Cyber Command warnings, came in an indictment unsealed in October describing a Russian bookkeepers role in managing a conspiracy to sow division and discord in the U.S. political system. A dozen fronts for this alleged political-interference operation, including FAN, are cited in the indictment, along with 14 companies that maintained bank accounts to finance operations. Prosecutors alleged that the bookkeeper prepared hundreds of financial vouchers, budgets and payment requests, and the indictment listed precise figures from a series of monthly budgets from February 2017 to June 2018. This was the covert worlds version of a gotcha. The implication was that U.S. intelligence had the names, dates, web addresses and other details of anyone touched by the bookkeepers electronic connections. Some of these operatives and contractors may have been among those pinged by Cyber Command. The message, in part, was that their ability to operate in secret had vanished. I havent seen them, Fischer said of the emails. Reps. Jeff Fortenberry and Adrian Smith also said they hadnt seen anything on the emails. Sen. Ben Sasse didnt respond to a request for comment. Nor did Dan Welch, the chairman of the Nebraska Republican Party, which has received Ricketts donations as well. Rep. Don Bacon said he had only read a news article about the controversy. I appreciate the fact that he apologized, Bacon said. I really dont have anything more to add other than that. I think he apologized and tried to make it right. Kara Eastman, a Democrat who ran against Bacon last year and hopes for a rematch in 2020, challenged Bacon to return the donations his campaign received from Ricketts $2,700 in 2016 and another $2,700 in September. Eastman said in a press release last week that she was sickened beyond words at the emails. About an hour after Robotham was killed, a Lincoln woman and her two daughters got a scare when another semi went out of control near the site of the crash that killed Robotham. That semi crossed the median and sideswiped Tiffany Hales pickup truck. Hale, 40, had already slowed down after seeing the first crash and was able to maneuver to avoid a more serious collision with the semi, investigators said. She and her daughters were treated at Lincoln hospital and released. A 39-year-old Omaha man told police he was struck by gunfire from a passing car early Sunday near 55th and Spaulding Streets. Antwon D. Williams went to the Nebraska Medical Center by private vehicle about 3:40 a.m. Williams and two witnesses said they were with a group of people when someone in a white sedan opened fire. Police said Williams injuries did not appear to be life-threatening. Police did not announce any arrests. Anyone with information about the incident is urged to contact Omaha Crime Stoppers at 444-STOP , at www.omahacrimestoppers.org or on the P3 Tips mobile app. Tipsters remain anonymous and may be eligible for up to $10,000 cash for information leading to an arrest in a shooting. Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. The Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce will induct the newest class of honorees into its Business Hall of Fame this spring. Its the 26th year of honoring leaders of industry. Eight people will be given the award on April 17 at a gala at the Holland Performing Arts Center. The honorees: Daniel J. Bishop, founder and chairman, The Maids International Bishop also founded Bishop Building Services and American Security Services. The chamber said he conceived the idea for a national home cleaning service while attending an entrepreneurship program at Harvard Business School. Gale L. Wickersham, founder and chairman, Wicks Truck Trailers Inc. Wickersham is the largest trailer dealer for Wabash National in terms of total volume, the chamber said. Starting from two offices and repair shops in Omaha, the company expanded to Springfield, Missouri, and South Sioux City, Nebraska. Its also added truck dealerships in Omaha and Lincoln. Gail DeBoer, president and chief executive, Cobalt Credit Union "The picture for 2018 makes it clear that the current pace of progress in raising immunization rates will be insufficient to stop measles circulation," Zsuzsanna Jakab, a Europe-focused senior official with the World Health Organization, was quoted as saying. The Western Pacific region, which includes China, Australia, Pacific islands and large parts of Southeast Asia, is the only part of the world where vaccination rates against measles are on the rise (Philippines being the exception), bucking the global trend. In many of those places, prior measles outbreaks have sharpened parents' minds to the risks of the virus, and have limited resistance against vaccinations. But in the wealthier countries where warnings of the virus are more likely to trigger a shrug of parents' shoulders than real concern, the virus is returning or becoming more common once again. World Health Organization official Martin Friede warned last November that "we are seeing sustained measles transmission in countries that had not previously seen measles transmission for many years." It could be said that flamboyance living large is an art form in the pop music biz. And if thats the case, Elton John is one of the venerable old masters. Newcomers like Beyonce, Katy Perry and even Lady Gaga yes, even considering the legendary Meat Dress dont hold a candle (in the wind) to his wild ways. That goes for his fabulous clothes, his outspoken opinions, his style at the piano, his accomplishments, his partnerships. Nobody lives larger than Sir Elton. We compiled a timeline of some notable (and sometimes outrageous) Elton moments and memories in light of his sold-out concert on Tuesday at the CHI Health Center. Theyre open to interpretation our definition of notable, yours and, undoubtedly, his might not mesh. Were including his 10 stops in Nebraska, for instance, and chances are theyre not entries in his diary. 1970: First hit single, Your Song, which peaked at No. 7 on the British charts and made the top 10 here and elsewhere. Betcha didnt know Three Dog Night did it first. (Elton wrote it, though.) 1971: First concert in Nebraska, at the Omaha Civic Auditorium. World-Herald reviewer Jim Bresette said he had magic stuff. Elkins has mostly found his niche in horror. He cut the box-office smash Annabelle, The Apparition and the Flatliners remake. He also directed his own scary movie: The Haunting in Connecticut 2: Ghosts of Georgia. (He thinks that title is bad, too.) He found a way to live in Omaha and work for Hollywood though sometimes hes away from home for long stretches. Hes been up in Vancouver cutting the reboot of Childs Play since September and wont be done until May. The film comes out in June. Each morning, he receives everything that was filmed the day before and goes about putting the film together. Its tough work, but also a blast. And he gets to make it back to Omaha every few weekends to see his family. Editing horror films has taught Elkins a lot about the DNA of a good scary movie. The timing of the cuts matters immensely. But like any genre, horror movies rely on the fundamentals of characters and storytelling. But Dorf still found the decision significant. "It does suggest that he is at least in a go-slow mode." Roberts may yet determine, as the divided U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit did in upholding the Louisiana law, that the Supreme Court's earlier decision requires a fact-intensive examination of conditions in the state. The appeals court discounted findings by a district court and assertions by the challengers that the law would force most abortion clinics to close and leave only one or two doctors eligible to perform the procedure. The chief justice so far in his tenure has never found an abortion restriction unduly burdens a woman's right to the procedure. In their first major test on the issue, Gorsuch and Kavanaugh met the expectations of the antiabortion groups that supported their nominations. Gorsuch joined Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito in saying the law should go into effect; none of the three provided their reasoning. Kavanaugh did, in a dissent that no other justice joined. He said Louisiana had offered the equivalent of a 45-day grace period, in which doctors could have redoubled their efforts to obtain admitting privileges. If that proved insurmountable, the challengers could come back to the court, he said. To secure an agreement to utilize the rights-of-way of Auburn, Schoonover explained his company wants to offer a service and setup similar to its competitors. That was filed Nov. 28, and we had a little bit of feedback that the city is stepping back to look at it globally, Schoonover said. Im not quite sure what that means, so we asked for some clarification. Weve been in touch with the mayor recently just to ask if he can shed some light on it. According to city manager Jim Buston, city lawyers and Point Broadband lawyers are working on an agreement as they study each franchise application. He said introducing another cable service provider entails permission to dig in specific properties and ensuring installations above ground are aesthetically hidden. As the mayor of Auburn, I am excited about any company that wants to serve our citizens, Auburn Mayor Ron Anders said. At this time, the city is using its due diligence to look over our franchise agreements for our cable providers for the citizens of Auburn. Buston, Anders and Ward 3 Councilwoman Beth Witten shared their approval for an additional service provider offering an internet, video or telephone options to Auburn residents, and Schoonover expressed a hope for Point Broadband to establish its network in Auburn sometime this year. Heres our visionyou cant come to the hiring event in March unless you graduated from the employment workshop on the 15th of February, Leikvold told the Opelika-Auburn News. We want there to be 100 percent hiring at the hiring event. You dont come to look around. You come to get hired. Wed rather do it with excellence and do it smaller, he added. Lets say we only have 30 or 40 veterans in the workshop on the 15th. Wed like each of those 30 or 40 to walk away from the hiring event in March with a career at minimum, a second interview onsite somewhere. Representatives from organizations including the Alabama Career Center, Rehab Services of Montgomery, Soldiers for Life and others have been involved with the organization of Fridays employment workshop, according to Leikvold. Matthew Long, the manager at Cookout on Opelika Road, is providing food for the event, he added. Veteran resources Southern Union president Todd Shackett said he hopes that veterans will see Southern Union as a place where they can sharpen their skill sets to prosper in their post-military careers. One in five American adults say they have seen someone wear blackface in person, a share that holds remarkably stable across generations, geographic divides, and partisan and racial identities, according to an online poll of 2,026 adults conducted for The Upshot by Morning Consult. In your life, have you ... worn blackface? ... seen blackface? Everyone 20% 5% Gender Men 25% 6% Women 15% 5% Age Age 18 to 29 20% 7% Age 30 to 44 19% 5% Age 45 to 54 19% 6% Age 55 to 64 16% 3% Age 65+ 23% 6% Party ID Dem. 19% 5% Rep. 21% 7% Education Non-college 19% 4% College 19% 6% Post college 23% 9% In your life, have you ... worn blackface? ... seen blackface? Everyone 20% 5% Gender Men 25% 6% Women 15% 5% Age 18 to 29 20% 7% 30 to 44 19% 5% 45 to 54 19% 6% 55 to 64 16% 3% 65+ 23% 6% Party ID Dem. 19% 5% Rep. 21% 7% Education Non- college 19% 4% College 19% 6% Post college 23% 9% In a poll of 2,026 adults Feb. 6 to Feb. 8 These answers, which were anonymous, suggest how prevalent the racist practice has been in American culture, far beyond the Virginia politicians whose careers have been upended this month by revelations involving blackface. Today it remains common not only in the memories of baby boomers, but in the experiences of millennials as well, around the country. Five percent of respondents acknowledged that they had worn blackface themselves, though behaviors that are rare are particularly difficult to measure since a small number of people who do not respond accurately or honestly can have a disproportionate impact on the results. When asked their views of politicians who have worn blackface, many Americans are more likely to forgive the offense if it occurred decades ago. Sixty percent of respondents said they would have a worse opinion of a politician if that person wore blackface within the last five years. Thats twice the share of people who say theyd think worse of a politician who did this 40 years ago. Most whites say their opinion of a politician would not change if that person wore blackface more than 10 years ago For African-Americans in the poll, however, the political cost of wearing blackface fades little with time. African-Americans remain far more likely than whites to hold negative views of politicians who have worn blackface, regardless of how long ago it was done. Liberals, too, are significantly more likely than conservatives to think worse of a politician who has worn blackface, regardless of when. The survey asked respondents about what kind of behavior by a politician would be considered offensive enough to warrant their leaving office. Survey respondents viewed wearing blackface as worse than cheating on a spouse, but not as bad as misuse of taxpayer money, sexual assault and a few other transgressions. Are there circumstances under which a politician who has done the following can continue to serve? Pct. who replied Yes Convicted of sexual harassment or assault 9% Misused tax dollars 9% Committed tax fraud 12% Committed a felony 15% Worn blackface 29% Accused of sexual harassment or assault 30% Cheated on their spouse 44% Pct. who replied Yes Convicted of sexual harassment or assault 9% 9% Misused tax dollars 12% Committed tax fraud Committed a felony 15% 29% Worn blackface Accused of sexual harassment or assault 30% Cheated on their spouse 44% Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site. 0108263 License for publishing multimedia online Registration Number: 130349 Registration Number: 130349 In February of 1979, Tehran was in chaos. A cancer-stricken Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, the Western-backed autocrat, had gone into exile in mid-January, leaving behind a rickety regency council. On Feb. 1, Grand Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the godfather of the revolution, returned from exile in Paris. And in the Iranian version of Ten Days That Shook the World, street demonstrations raged until the government collapsed on Feb. 11. Ecstatic Iranians danced in the streets, playing cat and mouse with soldiers as lingering pro-government sharpshooters fired from the rooftops. Families joined in mass protests, as vigilantes ransacked liquor stores and people kissed the foreheads of turbaned clerics leading the revolution. Forty years ago, Iranians swelled with pride, hope and the expectation of a better future. Dreams of freedom and independence from the United States fired up the revolutionaries. But great, rapid change can leave deep and lasting wounds. There were lashings, hangings, amputations and mass imprisonment. Thousands of people died and hundreds of thousands left the country, some fleeing for their lives, never to return. On June 21, Mr. Dragnea was found guilty of abuse of office for intervening to keep two of his partys employees, who performed no state work, on the public payroll from 2006 to 2013, when he was a local council leader. The anticorruption agency headed at the time by Ms. Kovesi was instrumental in his prosecution. Mr. Dragnea is appealing the verdict. The public has pushed back against the governments attempt to weaken the rule of law. In 2017, Romanians staged the largest street protests in a quarter of a century after an emergency decree was passed effectively decriminalizing low-level corruption. Antigovernment protests in Bucharest, the capital, last year turned violent when the police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse the crowds. Ms. Kovesi served as chief prosecutor of Romanias National Anticorruption Directorate from 2013 to mid-2018. The agency was created at a time when Romania wanted to show that it was making strong efforts to tackle graft. Since parliamentary elections in December 2016, however, the government has regularly attacked the agency and Ms. Kovesi in particular. Critics point to the agencys reliance on court-approved wiretaps and have suggested political motives behind some of its cases. What she was trying to do during her two mandates was to show that the prosecutors have no fear, that they are independent and that they can get final convictions and those convicted will pay, said Bianca Toma, program director at the Romanian Center for European Policies, a Bucharest-based think tank. Politicians will always, in any country, try to limit the power of those trying to investigate them. Ms. Kovesi is now in the running to lead the European Public Prosecutors Office, a new, independent agency tasked with investigating and prosecuting large-scale and cross-border crimes related to the European Union budget. The agency is expected to be operating by the end of 2020, with 22 of the blocs 28 member states signed up. LONDON Staff members at London Zoo were heartbroken after a high-risk matchmaking operation involving two rare Sumatran tigers went horribly wrong on Friday. The males deadly mauling of the female tiger soon after they met drew an outpouring of reactions on social media. But one question was paramount: Could the tragedy have been avoided? The animals had been paired as possible mates as part of a European-wide conservation effort for the critically endangered subspecies. Asim age 7, confident, handsome, playful had been shipped in from Demark to meet Melati, a fellow Sumatran who had lived for years at the renowned zoo in Regents Park in Central London. He courted her for 10 days in a separate enclosure, the zoo said chuffing at her and getting used to her sight and scent. Then he finally approached her. Melati, who had raised five cubs with another tiger, never survived the encounter. She died at 10 years old. PARIS In the 13th straight weekend of Yellow Vest demonstrations in France, protesters showed no sign of letting up pressure on the government and did not appear appeased by concessions by President Emmanuel Macron. There were scattered acts of violence as protesters and the police clashed in marches in Paris and southern French cities on Saturday. Scuffles broke out near the Avenue des Champs-Elysees and by the National Assembly in central Paris. Motorcycles and trash cans burned as throngs moved in a wave through Paris, and protesters set fire to a car belonging to an antiterrorism unit in front of the Eiffel Tower. One protester was severely wounded when he tried to pick up a sting-ball grenade used by the police to disperse crowds and it exploded in his hand. Officially, Mr. Adityanaths administrators have rejected accusations of misusing state resources or playing politics with the Kumbh. But privately, several called the display of largess a waste. Case in point is an enormous, festively painted plywood Kumbh Mela assembly hall that is closed most of the time. A peek through the door revealed a fantastically large space, home to 10,000 brand-new empty plastic chairs. The Kumbh Mela is one of the holiest events on the Hindu calendar, its date determined by astrology, its auspiciousness derived from a certain line up of Jupiter, the moon and the sun. It is celebrated in four different Indian cities, each on their own 12-year Kumbh cycle, and it usually lasts several weeks. The name Kumbh Mela comes from the Sanskrit word, kumbha, for pot or water pitcher, and mela, meaning festival. In a cherished myth, a Hindu god was carrying the nectar of immortality in a khumba and spilled drops in four different places the four cities where the Kumbh is held. But this years festival in Prayagraj, which started in January and runs until early March, is not even a full Kumbh it is considered a half Kumbh. The half Kumbh tradition started years ago when Hindu holy men would meet every six years, halfway between the full Kumbhs, to keep their dialogue going. But a few months ago, Mr. Adityanath declared that there is nothing incomplete in Hinduism, and the word half doesnt gel with this philosophy. So, with a stroke of his pen, he upgraded the celebration of this half Kumbh into that of a full Kumbh and went on to spend three times as much as on Prayagrajs last full Kumbh in 2013. He also recently led his cabinet of about 25 ministers in a ritual bath in the Ganges, which, longtime Kumbh watchers said, had never happened before. BEIJING Turkey has called Chinas mass repression of its Uighur Muslim ethnic minority a great shame for humanity and has urged the Chinese government to close detention camps estimated to hold a million people, a rare rebuke from a majority-Muslim country. In its statement on Saturday, the Turkish Foreign Ministry condemned Chinas reintroduction of concentration camps in the 21st century and the policy of systematic assimilation in its far western region of Xinjiang as a violation of the fundamental human rights of Uighurs and other Turkic Muslims. It is no longer a secret that more than one million Uighur Turks incurring arbitrary arrests are subjected to torture and political brainwashing in internment camps and prisons, said the statement from Hami Aksoy, the Foreign Ministry spokesman. He called on the international community and the secretary general of the United Nations to take action to end the human tragedy. The statement came in response to a question about recent reports that Abdurehim Heyit, a prominent Uighur folk poet and musician, had died in a Chinese internment camp. According to the Foreign Ministry, Mr. Heyit died while serving the second year of an eight-year prison sentence over one of his songs. KABUL At least 10 civilians were killed and several others were wounded over the weekend during American airstrikes in southern Afghanistan, local officials and residents in Helmand Province said on Sunday. Two residents of the Sangin district of Helmand said eight members of a single family were killed by airstrikes in one house and two more in a nearby structure, among them women and children. Mohammad Hasim Alokozai, a member of Parliament from Helmand, put the death toll higher, saying in an interview that 14 civilians were killed and six wounded in the two houses. A local resident, Aslam Khan, said the home of his brother, Assti Khan, in the Sangin district, was fired upon by a helicopter when he switched on a flashlight to find his shoes. The shots killed Assti Khans 10-year-old son and 3-year-old daughter and wounded his wife and 18-year-old daughter, his brother said in a telephone interview. An American military spokeswoman in Kabul said that American aircraft had conducted airstrikes in the province late Friday night and early Saturday morning, but that she could not confirm or deny that civilians had been killed. The spokeswoman, Sgt. First Class Debra Richardson, said military officials were looking into the episode. ALGIERS Algerias 81-year-old president, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who has been infirm since a stroke in 2013, is planning to run in Aprils presidential elections, the state news agency, APS, reported on Sunday. A record number of people are planning to run for president this year, amid growing uncertainty about whether Mr. Bouteflika is fit for another term after almost two decades in charge of the gas-rich North African nation. In the two weeks since the electoral process began, 186 people have requested the documents needed to declare their candidacy. That is more than double the number of potential candidates at this stage in the last presidential campaign, in 2014. Most are unlikely to get the signatures required to formally get on the April 18 ballot. But the range of candidates suggests wide frustration with the status quo. MIAMI For 60 years, the lifeblood of Miamis idiosyncratic politics has been Cuba, the communist governments countless sins denounced in street protests, dissected on the spirited Spanish-language airwaves and condemned at campaign rallies under the unifying cry of Viva Cuba Libre! But the focus of this citys freedom-loving fervor has recently moved further south. Venezuela, not Cuba, now dominates Miamis political conversation. A television anchor not long ago ended a somber segment with a promise to keep praying for the troubled South American country. Venezuelans in the city have gathered for demonstrations to coincide with protests back home. Even the Miami-Dade County Commission, a local body with no control over foreign policy, voted unanimously to recognize the opposition leader Juan Guaido as Venezuelas interim president. The shift has been coming on gradually for years, but it has accelerated in recent weeks as Venezuela has sunk further into crisis and its leftist president, Nicolas Maduro, has clung defiantly to power. The showdown in Caracas is reshaping Latino politics in South Florida, home to the highest concentration of Venezuelans in the United States. The change is not a mere demographic curiosity. In Florida, where major elections have repeatedly been decided by tiny margins, an inflection point around Venezuelas leadership could help define a generation of Venezuelan-American voters, who number in the tens of thousands in this state. President Trump is pushing Mr. Maduro to step aside, and if he succeeds, Democrats fear it could transform Venezuelan-Americans into loyal Republicans, much like Cuban-Americans. In Seattle, the muscle memory just isnt there for big snow whether in deploying salt spreaders and plows or in getting a snow-day reprieve from an algebra test so the responses, for better or worse, are sharpened by the novelty. Gov. Jay Inslee of Washington declared a state of emergency, and Seattles Emergency Management office urged people to be prepared to lose power if lines go down. Interstate 90 was closed on Sunday morning in both directions east of Seattle because of blowing and drifting snow. Kids and their parents commandeered city streets for sledding, sometimes blocking traffic with homemade signs. Then theres frozen pizza. Or perhaps more accurately, there isnt frozen pizza. The gene for nesting indoors in extreme weather appears to be connected to the gene for pepperoni, so the shelves in the freezer aisle were stripped bare in many stores. Tofu was still widely available. The National Weather Service said that Seattle, less than halfway into the month, has already had its snowiest February since 1949, after 7.9 inches were recorded at the airport on Friday and Saturday. And three more storms, backed up one behind the other on a slippery slope from Canada, are heading toward the region starting on Monday, said Jacob DeFlitch, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. Right now, we have two systems coming in later Sunday to early Monday, Mr. DeFlitch said. Then we have a system right on the heels of that system that will be late mainly Monday afternoon through early Tuesday morning. It looks like there could then be another system Thursday-Friday. The prospects of any one of Virginias top three leaders willingly resigning seemed to recede as the weekend wore on. Mr. Fairfax, who has denied the allegations and described the sexual encounters at the center of the claims as consensual, released a statement on Saturday night calling for an investigation and citing the need for due process. And on Sunday morning, the governor, Ralph Northam, remained firm in his intention to stay in office and stopped short of calling for the resignations of either of his fellow scandal-plagued Democratic leaders. In an interview with CBS This Morning, Mr. Northam said he was not going anywhere and instead would work as governor to take action with policy to address inequities in Virginia. Asked about his two besieged colleagues Mr. Fairfax and Mark R. Herring, the attorney general, who admitted to wearing blackface as a college student in the 1980s Mr. Northam said that they have all grown over the last week, and that the decisions on whether to resign would have to be made by the men themselves. The governor endorsed Mr. Fairfaxs proposal, made in a statement, to have the F.B.I. investigate the claims of sexual assault. I really think where we are now, we need to get to the truth, he said. In the interview, he also said he was dedicated to continuing the work of racial progress, pointing out that the state is 400 years from the moment the first indentured servants from Africa landed in Virginia. At that point the interviewer, Gayle King, chimed in: Also known as slavery. It has been more than a week since a photograph showing men in blackface and a Ku Klux Klan outfit on Mr. Northams medical school yearbook page came to light. Nearly every day since has provided an unforeseen twist. The wall or the steel barrier. They can have any name they want. But we have to have it. President Trump often repeats the same things when talking about why he wants a southern border wall. The crime. Drugs. American jobs. While there is little evidence these problems are caused by unauthorized immigration or that any of this will be helped by a wall, he has remained steadfast. I will build a great, great wall. You need that wall. We can do without a wall. But as the fight over border security has dragged on, heres how hes expanded his argument. Hes always said it was about securing the border. But recently, Trump has emphasized that he believes building the wall is the moral and compassionate thing to do. This is the cycle of human suffering that I am determined to end. And he says a wall will benefit people on both sides of the border, addressing what he is calling This is a humanitarian crisis, a crisis of the heart and a crisis of the soul. But Democrats say the current situation at the border was escalated by Trumps policies. A challenge that President Trumps own cruel and counterproductive policies have only deepened. So who does Trump think will benefit? Over time, Trump has named many groups that he says will benefit from a wall. It started as the American worker. And then expanded to Legal residents. And And our vets. Our immigrant communities. Asian-Americans. Hispanic-American communities. African-American workers. Its also what our professionals at the border want and need. How will Trump pay for the wall? After some discrepancies regarding the walls price tag $6 billion. Probably $8 billion. Maybe $10 or $12 billion. $18 billion. $5.7 billion for a physical barrier. Trump has modified his claim that Mexico is going to pay for the wall. Mexico will pay for the wall. 100 percent. Its gone from They dont know it yet, but theyre paying for it. To It may be through reimbursement, but one way or the other Mexico will pay for the wall. And The border wall would very quickly pay for itself. And finally, what will Trumps wall look like? Trumps vision for the wall itself has also changed over time. Early on, Trump said the wall would be Its going to be a Trump wall. Its going to be a real wall. An impenetrable, physical, tall, powerful, beautiful A serious wall. This is a wall thats a heck of a lot higher than the ceiling. Its going to be made of hardened concrete and its going to be made out of rebar and steel. Now, its sounding more like this: I never said Im going to build a concrete I said Im going to build a wall. Just so you know, because I know youre not into the construction business. Steel is stronger than concrete. Its a new design, highest technology. Walls that you can see through. It will be a steel barrier rather than a concrete wall. So, will his latest push end with a wall? Theres still a tough political fight ahead. Paul Manafort was once President Trumps campaign manager. By the fall of 2018, he was expected to face at least a decade in prison for 10 felony counts. Those counts included financial fraud and conspiracy to obstruct justice. Mr. Manafort is disappointed of not getting acquittals all the way through. He is evaluating all of his options at this point. In the hopes of getting a more lenient punishment, Manafort agreed to fully cooperate with the special counsel, Robert Mueller. Now, federal prosecutors are saying he violated his plea deal by repeatedly lying during their investigation. Manaforts lawyer also allegedly passed information to President Trumps legal team. But this isnt Manaforts first scandal. Controversy has trailed the veteran Republican adviser since his earliest work as an international lobbyist and consultant. In the 1980s, Manafort testified before Congress and admitted to using his political influence to win millions of dollars in contracts from federal low-income housing programs. The technical term for what we do and what law firms, associations and professional groups do is lobbying. For purposes of today, I will admit that in a narrow sense some people might term it influence peddling. That same decade, Manafort advised the Philippine dictator, Ferdinand Marcos, on improving his image in the U.S. Manafort allegedly received $10 million in cash from a Marcos confidante. It was apparently money intended for Ronald Reagans presidential campaign. But the campaign said it never received that money. Foreign contributions to U.S. presidential elections are illegal. Also in the 1980s, Manafort was linked to the prime minister of the Bahamas at a time when the island nation had alleged ties to drug traffickers. Manaforts company said that the goal of its work was to help the Bahamas obtain more U.S. aid to help curb the drug smuggling. Decades later, Manafort would run Trumps presidential campaign. We want America to understand who Donald Trump the man is. Not just Donald Trump the candidate. The composite of his career. Not just from a business standpoint or a political standpoint, from a human standpoint as well. But he resigned five months into the job in August 2016, in the wake of reports that he received more than $12 million from Viktor Yanukovich, the former Ukrainian president and pro-Russia politician. Yanukovich and his political party relied on advice from Manafort and his firm, which helped them win several elections. The Times uncovered that Manafort and others close to Trump met with the Kremlin-linked Russian lawyer in June 2016. That lawyer claimed to have damaging political information about Hillary Clinton. As for this latest brush with controversy, Manaforts lawyers insist that their client has been truthful. But they acknowledge that Manafort and Muellers team are at an impasse. A Minnesota senator known for her folksy style With my pork chop on a stick! whos not afraid of the cold beautiful snow storm, and ready to vote Senator Amy Klobuchar is joining the race for president of the United States. So, who is she? Klobuchar grew up in the Minneapolis suburbs, the daughter of a schoolteacher and a newspaper columnist. She became a corporate lawyer before transitioning to politics, and was elected district attorney for the states most populous county. Weve gone after scam artists, child abusers, murderers. Klobuchar ran for the Senate in 2006 and won. She has since earned a reputation as a worker bee. Trevor Noah: You have been ranked as first on a list of all 100 senators with the most bills that have been enacted into law. Shes also known for being a difficult boss and has one of the highest staff turnover rates in the Senate. Klobuchar gained national attention during the Kavanaugh hearings Drinking is one thing, but the concern is about truthfulness and even wound up being parodied on S.N.L. Did you ever drink too many beers? You mean was I cool? Yeah. [laughter] She isnt a centrist, but she hasnt embraced some of the partys most progressive ideas, either. Some recent priorities? Lowering the cost of prescription drugs, addressing sexual harassment and protecting online privacy. These companies have to do all they can to protect the information of the people that are part of their platforms. And President Trump? Klobuchar says he hasnt risen to the job. We need someone in the White House thats a hero for their time. So far she doesnt seem to really be on his radar. Thank you, as well, to Senator Amy Klo-bu-char. And the polls? Early numbers put her near the bottom of the pack, for now. But some Democrats hope Klobuchars Midwestern roots and track record of bipartisanship will have broad appeal. Courage is whether or not youre willing to stand next to someone you dont always agree with for the betterment of this country. In 2015, Ms. Sinclair reached out to Ms. Lilley, a friend, to start a Free the Nipple movement in New Hampshire. Ms. Pierros arrest got their attention, so on a Tuesday, the two friends, both topless, sat on their blanket and beach chairs. About 20 minutes later, the police arrived and asked them to cover up. Ms. Sinclair said that they refused, and that she pointed out that New Hampshire makes no mention of breasts or nipples in the states indecent exposure law. They were handcuffed and brought to a police car, she said. Inside, an officer covered her up with a towel. When we were driving in the car, there was a guy totally shirtless walking outside, she said. And I was like, Oh, are you going to get him? In the Supreme Court ruling, Associate Justice Anna Barbara Hantz Marconi, who wrote the majority opinion, accepted previous courts logic that female and male bodies come with different definitions for what constitutes nudity. In a 1975 case that she cited, a California appeals court judge wrote that nature, not the legislative body made that distinction. The New Hampshire attorney generals office, in defending the citys 1998 ordinance, argued that the law is applied fairly to men and women because the body parts expected to be covered up are based on social norms. The city is simply trying to prevent public disturbances, the office argued. Jane E. Young, a deputy attorney general, declined to comment apart from the states brief. The court ruling also held that the citys ordinance did not violate the womens freedom of speech. Dan Hynes, the lawyer who represented the three women, said that they had each been fined $124 for violating the ordinance, but that their fines were suspended for good behavior. In an interview Saturday, he said that although his clients were disappointed by the decision, they were encouraged by the dissenting opinion, which concluded that the citys ordinance was discriminatory. SAN FRANCISCO Technology start-ups worth $1 billion, once as rare as unicorns, are now plentiful enough and old enough that theres a new generation behind them one that looks very different. Silicon Valleys current crop of highly valued tech start-ups, which include now-household names like Uber and Airbnb, all benefited from the spread of smartphones and cheap cloud computing. Many of these companies built global empires by simply taking existing businesses like taxis, food delivery and hotels and making them mobile. Some of the start-ups became giants: Uber, for instance, may reach a $120 billion valuation this year. But as those companies have matured and prepare to go public, the easy opportunities for disrupting old-line industries are drying up. Now, many of the up-and-coming start-ups that may become the next unicorns have names like Benchling and Blend. And they largely focus on software for specific industries like farms, banks and life sciences companies. Thats according to an analysis for The New York Times by CB Insights, a firm that tracks venture capital and start-ups. CB Insights used a variety of data including financial health and the strength and size of the market a company serves to identify 50 start-ups that may be on a path to achieving a $1 billion valuation (though there is no guarantee they will get there). [What you need to know to start the day: Get New York Today in your inbox.] They brainstorm in conference rooms equipped with whiteboards, use high-end computers and equipment and are given free breakfast and lunch. Except these are no start-up workers. They are students at an unusual New York City public high school embedded inside a technology and manufacturing hub with more than 400 companies at the Brooklyn Navy Yard. It was developed with industry leaders to teach real-life job skills that would lay the foundation for the next generation of workers in a city where the tech industry is flourishing with the expanding presence of Google and Amazons plans to build a large campus in Queens. While classrooms in New York and elsewhere have increasingly focused on preparing children for jobs in a tech economy, the recently opened school, Brooklyn STEAM Center, has taken it one step further by locating itself next to companies where students might actually work. It is one of only a handful of programs in the country that are situated in a workplace. Our ambition is that it will be a next-generation model for career and technical schools here in New York City, said David Ehrenberg, the president and chief executive officer of the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation, a nonprofit that manages the city-owned, 300-acre waterfront site where battleships, like the U.S.S. Missouri, were once built. [What you need to know to start the day: Get New York Today in your inbox.] Jason Reeves, 32, struggled for years to find his way, frequently running afoul of the law and grappling with mental health issues. In spite of it all, his mother, Paulette, stood by him, trying to help her son climb out of his personal morass. This month, everything came crashing down. On Wednesday, detectives knocked on the door of the fourth-floor apartment Mr. Reeves shared with his 67-year-old mother in the Albany Houses, a public housing complex in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. Her co-workers had reported her missing after Ms. Reeves, who worked as a lunch aide at a nearby middle school, failed to show up for work. Mr. Reeves answered the door. He explained that his mother was away in Florida, but the detectives noticed an odor of rotting flesh, according to court documents, and entered the apartment. Inside a closet, they found Ms. Reevess charred, mutilated body. She had been stabbed several times in her chest, face and eyes, the documents said. Jennifer Rose Lefebvre and John Everett Thornton Jr. were married Feb. 9 at the Hilton Fort Lauderdale Beach Resort in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Judge Donald L. Graham of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida, officiated. The couple met in 2011 at the University of Miami, from which each received a law degree. The bride, 32, is an assistant public defender in Miami. She also serves as a board member at Riverside House, a residential prison re-entry facility in Miami. She graduated from Monmouth University in West Long Branch, N.J. She is a daughter of Lauren A. Bobby of Margate, Fla., and a stepdaughter of Michael E. Bobby. The bride's mother is the founder of Monarch Handcrafted Essentials, a company specializing in soy candles, wax melts and candle accessories in Margate. Her stepfather is a physical education teacher at Westglades Middle School in Parkland, Fla. The groom, 29, is a senior associate in Miami at Hogan Lovells, a law firm based in London and Washington, where he works with health insurance providers, energy companies and educational and financial institutions. He previously served as a judicial law clerk to Judge Graham. The groom is the president of the Gator Club of Miami, where he raises scholarship funds for Miami-Dade seniors matriculating at the University of Florida. He graduated from the University of Florida. King Vajiralongkorn also radically changed the composition of the Privy Council. And he has obtained amendments to both the Sangha Act, which governs the Buddhist monastic order, and the law that governs the Crown Property Bureau, the body that manages the royal familys huge wealth. All of these changes have strengthened his authority. Mr. Prayuth faces other challenges as well. Last month, King Vajiralongkorn named Gen. Apirat Kongsompong, a member of his personal guard, to the Crown Property Bureau this, after having already appointed General Apirat as the new army chief, even though such promotions traditionally are the preserve of the military. King Vajiralongkorn also delayed signing the juntas decree announcing the March election, publicly putting the generals in an uncertain and awkward position in the meantime . Perhaps more significant, he has deprived the military of one of its main tools of repression: Thailands extremely severe lese-majeste law. The junta had been using it in military courts operating under its control to prosecute political opponents. But the king instructed the army to stop, and no new case appears to have been filed in 2018. With these moves, King Vajiralongkorn isnt just putting in place his own version of his late fathers system of rule what some academics have called the network monarchy: an alliance of royalists, senior bureaucrats and business people loyal to the king. He is entrenching, through long-lasting legal changes, a deep monarchical state. The implications for the upcoming election are plain. The other pro-Shinawatra party on the scene, Pheu Thai, has won every election since 2001 and it may well win again in March (despite deciding not to field candidates who would compete with its ally Thai Raksa Chat whose own chances now seem slim after Ms. Ubolratanas attempted candidacy). But even if Pheu Thai then manages to form a government with or without other, minor, parties its fortunes will be in the hands of various oversight bodies dominated by the military. The Constitution empowers the National Strategy Committee, which oversees a 20-year strategic development plan, to challenge any government that fails to comply with the plans objectives. The constitutional court can also dismiss any government, as well as dissolve any political party, for even minor regulatory breaches: In 2008, it removed from office a popular prime minister for hosting cooking shows on television, deeming that petty payments he received in compensation violated a rule against cultivating extracurricular business interests. And there can always be a coup. The kings new army chief, a key player in the 2014 overthrow, hasnt excluded the possibility of another military takeover in the case of unrest read: should that be necessary to protect the monarch. In the past, the Shinawatras have seemed too popular, and perhaps too effective at delivering some public services . And so it is that on the eve of a long-awaited election, Thailands curious political system the military tutelage of civilian politics, but under royal command seems more entrenched than ever. Eugenie Merieau is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Gottingen, in Germany, and a former consultant for the Thai program of the International Commission of Jurists. The Times is committed to publishing a diversity of letters to the editor. Wed like to hear what you think about this or any of our articles. Here are some tips. And heres our email: letters@nytimes.com. Follow The New York Times Opinion section on Facebook, Twitter (@NYTopinion) and Instagram. It was never an intention of mine to make white paintings, he told Art News magazine in 1986. The white is just a means of exposing other elements. White enables other things to become visible. Robert Tracy Ryman was born on May 30, 1930, in Nashville. His father was an insurance salesman, his mother a schoolteacher and amateur pianist. He later said that he saw almost no paintings growing up. His first goal, which his parents reluctantly endorsed, was to be a jazz saxophonist. He studied music at Tennessee Polytechnic Institute and then the George Peabody College for Teachers for two years and then spent another two in the Army Reserve Corps, assigned to a band that toured bases in the South. Discharged from active service in May 1952, he went directly to New York, found a tiny apartment on East 60th Street, near Bloomingdales, and, supporting himself with odd jobs, began to study with the jazz pianist Lennie Tristano. He also began to visit the citys museums and found himself fascinated by painting. Mr. Ryman got a temporary job as a vacation relief guard at the Museum of Modern Art in 1953 and ended up staying seven years. He was especially inspired there by the economy and sureness of Matisses paintings, but it was the works of the Abstract Expressionist Mark Rothko, with their floating rectangles of color, that he found most startling. What was radical about Rothko, of course, was that were was no reference to any representational influence, Mr. Ryman later said. He was struck by what he called the nakedness of it. A few months after starting at the Modern, he went to an art-supply store near his apartment and bought some canvasboard and tubes of oil paint. I thought I would try and see what would happen, he said. I wanted to see what the paint would do, how the brushes would work. The scraps of paper swirled through the Guggenheim Museum in New York on Saturday night like confetti, thrown from an upper walkway into the central rotunda before floating to the ground. Designed to look like prescription slips for OxyContin, the powerful opioid painkiller, they were part of the latest protest targeting cultural institutions that accept donations from members of the Sackler family who own Purdue Pharma, the maker of the drug. Education facilities at the Guggenheim, including a theater and an exhibition gallery, are housed inside the 8,200-square-foot Sackler Center for Arts Education, identified by the museum as a gift of the Mortimer D. Sackler Family. The cloud of white slips, created by a group founded by the photographer Nan Goldin, was a response to a recently disclosed statement by Richard Sackler, the son of a Purdue founder, who said years ago that OxyContins launch would be followed by a blizzard of prescriptions that will bury the competition. What is gender inequality? I would say that gender inequality is the result of society having different standards for men and women. As kids we are taught that pink is a girly color and blue is a color for boys. We are taught that girls are supposed to play with dolls and princesses and that boys are supposed to play with trucks and superhero action figures. This is where gender inequality starts. Its harmless. When I was a kid and my parents would take me to McDonalds, every time I ordered a happy meal I would end up asking for the boy toy." Even as a 7-year-old, something about that didnt seem right to me. Id get weird looks from people because I wanted to get the cool new Spiderman toy that shot webs instead of the Barbie compact mirror that was only just a mirror. Then, in elementary and grade school, teachers would come in the room and say, I need three strong boys to help me carry stuff," and that would make me so mad. It felt like just because I was a girl, I wasnt capable of doing things that were shown as strong." More recently, as a teenager and being in high school, I feel like the majority of the inequality is either unintentional or its just simply whats conceived to be normal. Imagine if during the recent polar vortex cold spell, when large sections of the nations power grid were already operating under severe duress, a cyberattack was launched that shut off power. Today, many bad actors are plotting and capable of such destruction. And it will take a concerted push by utilities, utility regulators and the national security community to thwart these acts. Dan Coats, director of national intelligence, was clear about these dangers in a Jan. 29 report and related testimony to the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. China has the ability to launch cyber attacks that cause localized, temporary disruptive effects on critical infrastructure such as disruption of a natural gas pipeline for days to weeks in the United States, he said. Coats also said, Russia has the ability to execute cyber attacks in the United States that generate localized, temporary disruptive effects on critical infrastructure such as disrupting an electrical distribution network for at least a few hours. In November, Energy Secretary Rick Perry was even more blunt about the pending dangers, saying, The threat of cyberattacks is growing, its metastasizing. The warning lights are blinking, and theyre blinking red. While Gary was dealing with the polar vortex, I was shocked to hear about Councilwoman Lavetta Sparks-Wade being injured in an altercation at her home. My prayers are with Councilwoman Sparks-Wade, and I wish her a quick and speedy recovery. The altercation that is alleged to have occurred between her and former Lake County Councilman Jamal Washington is yet another allegation in a string of accusations that have resulted in two misdemeanor convictions for Washington. He is presumed innocent until proven guilty under our criminal justice system. While Ill make no comment on his innocence or guilt, something should be said about how the city of Gary will fare in the midst of all of this. Gary is a gem nestled in the Calumet Region. To be sure, the gem could stand some polishing. However, when looking at its natural resources, beaches, historic neighborhoods and its proud people, surely its a gem. I have found when people come and explore the city they are amazed with what they find. New development is coming into the city. Amazon has a facility on the east side, and the surge in voter turnout in last years mid-term election has created an energy long missing from Gary. Crossing the line separating Indiana and Illinois sometimes means dealing with different laws and customs. Readers are asked to share ideas for this weekly feature. This week: Relationship questions. Just ahead of Valentine's Day, CenturyLinkQuote analysts sorted through a year's worth of Google trend data to find the relationship questions and phrases most frequently searched by people in each of the 50 states. In Indiana, the top relationship question searched online between Dec. 1, 2017 and Dec. 1, 2018 was: "Does he love me?" Hoosiers aren't alone in wondering. Residents of neighboring Michigan, Ohio and Kentucky similarly searched most for answers about their mate's love status, according to the analysis. But Illinoisans, perhaps after answering the love question in the negative, most frequently searched: "I cheated on my boyfriend." Cheating confessions also were the top search in California, Florida, Georgia, New York and Pennsylvania, the analysis found. Popular questions asked in other states included: "How to kiss?;" "How to break-up?;" and "What to do on a date?" Though in Oregon and Rhode Island many residents apparently are searching for an "open relationship." Thank you! You've reported this item as a violation of our terms of use. Error! There was a problem with reporting this article. This content was contributed by a user of the site. If you believe this content may be in violation of the terms of use, you may report it. Report Abuse Log In to report Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. The House also passed the Further Additional Continuing Appropriations Act (H.J. Res. 28), making further continuing appropriations for fiscal year 2019; the Department of Homeland Security Clearance Management and Administration Act (H.R. 424), to improve the management and administration of the security clearance processes throughout the Department of Homeland Security; the Federal Information Resource to Strengthen Ties with State and Local Law Enforcement Act (H.R. 495), to require an annual report on the Office for State and Local Law Enforcement; and passed a motion to go to conference with the Senate for a bill (H.J. Res. 31), making further continuing appropriations for the Department of Homeland Security for fiscal year 2019. TROOPS IN SYRIA AND AFGHANISTAN: The Senate passed a cloture motion to end debate on an amendment sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., to the Strengthening America's Security in the Middle East Act (S.1). The amendment would express the sense of the Senate cautioning that a rapid withdrawal of U.S. troops from either Syria or Afghanistan could put at risk hard-won gains against terrorist groups and U.S. national security improvements achieved in the two countries. McConnell said it sought to put the Senate "on the record about what our country should be doing in Syria and Afghanistan" at a time of debate over the extent to which the U.S. should intervene there. An opponent, Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., questioned whether the U.S. mission in Syria and Afghanistan was turning from protecting national security to the difficult and costly goal of nation-building. The vote to end debate, on Jan. 31, was 68 yeas to 23 nays. While all residents made it out safely, some pets perished in the fire including two cats and a bird, Timmer said. The ice and the cold is a hard part of our work, he said. This is a hard part of our jobs, too. I've got dogs in my house so I'm sensitive to furry creatures. Before Marlow-Kelleman could even begin making calls to organize the response Friday, dedicated volunteers were reaching out to her because they had just seen news reports of the fire, she said. They were out the door before I could even call them, Marlow-Kellemen said. American Red Cross workers were on the job until 1 a.m. and were back at it later Saturday morning into the evening. The phone has been ringing off the hook with people wanting to donate food, clothing, shoes, furniture, household items and personal care items, said Chicago-based Blake Smith, who oversees nine churches for the Community of Christ, including the one in Highland. Smith has been working for the church 25 years and says this is about the fifth time he has seen a response of this magnitude in the wake of a disaster. It is a large number of people who have experienced complete devastation, he said. MERRILLVILLE Two residential development projects are getting a new look in Merrillville. A developer wants to finish the Savannah Ridge community, and construction of a new apartment complex might be on the horizon near the Broadfield community. Doug Homeier, a representative for the Savannah Ridge project, said the community started in the 1970s. Developer Wayne Welter wants to build 87 homes on 30 acres of property to complete the neighborhood. In addition to the homes created, the project would take five dead-end streets and tie them all together, Homeier said. That includes extending Grant Street so it would run from 73rd Avenue to U.S. 30. Town Councilman Shawn Pettit, president of the Plan Commission, said current residents in Savannah Ridge have been waiting a long time for this, and he encouraged Welter to meet with them to explain whats included in the project. This is kind of a big deal, Pettit said. Welter plans to work with multiple builders to create the new homes in the community. Designs of the structures havent yet been established. Sts. Peter & Paul Parish of Merrillville will present its farewell choral concert under the direction of Laura Monteen at 3 p.m. Feb. 24 at 5885 Harrison St. Monteen, the parish's liturgy and music coordinator, will retire later this summer. The concert is open to the public. Light refreshments will be served in the church vestibule following the concert. Call 219-793-1375. HOBART St. Mary Medical Center Cancer Care Center is offering a free, six-week Cancer Transitions class for survivors who are moving from treatment to the post-treatment phase at St. Mary Medical Center, 1500 Lake Park Ave. The classes will take place from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. beginning Feb. 28 and continue each Thursday through April 4. Cancer Transitions is a program of the Cancer Support Community and Livestrong. It is open to cancer survivors who have been out of active treatment for at least three weeks up to two years. Each class will focus on an important aspect of survivorship including exercise, emotional health and well-being, nutrition, medical management beyond cancer and other topics. Expert panelists include an oncology certified nurse, nutritionists and fitness experts who will discuss topics like stress management, training in relaxation and individualized approaches to exercise and fitness. Classes are two hours in duration and include a period of light customized fitness activity. Each participant will receive a free pedometer, workbook, educational brochures and handouts. To register, contact Roxy Karnes, Cancer Care Services manager, at 219-947-6060. Shelf Ice Brewfest Enjoy a fun wintery beer festival outside in the Uptown Arts District in downtown Michigan City from 1 to 5 p.m. Feb. 16. Sip on local craft beers, see ice sculptures and enjoy other snowy activities. General admission tickets are $45/person and available on Eventbrite.com. Corkscrew & Brew tickets available Tickets are available for the annual Corkscrew & Brew from noon to 4 p.m. March 16 in Chesterton's Thomas Centennial Park. The event will feature tastings from more than 20 wineries and breweries, live music by the Gerry Hundt Trio and food will be available for purchase. Tickets are $40/person for general admission and are available through Eventbrite.com. Savor the South Shore Restaurant weeks Restaurants throughout Northwest Indiana still have the opportunity to feature special menus for the annual Savor the South Shore Restaurant Weeks promotion. Discounted menu items will be available at participating restaurants from Feb. 18 through March 3. Submit menus and view participating restaurants at alongthesouthshore.com/savor. No coupons are needed for customers and the promotion is free to participate. Speros Batistatos is president and CEO of the South Shore Convention and Visitors Authority. The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer. Thank you! You've reported this item as a violation of our terms of use. Error! There was a problem with reporting this article. This content was contributed by a user of the site. If you believe this content may be in violation of the terms of use, you may report it. Report Abuse Log In to report Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Warren County Democratic Committee Chairman Steve Foreman opens up Saturdays meeting where members of the party expressed their frustrations with Gov. Ralph Northam and other leaders. Roseburg, OR (97470) Today A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Generally clear skies. Low around 55F. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Generally clear skies. Low around 55F. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph. I recently read a library book called Once Upon a Town by Bob Greene, which was published in 2002. As you know, it was all about the Nebraskans providing food for the train troops stopping at your Canteen during WWII. Those 10-20 minutes were a bit of heaven for them and provided a lot more than food and cigarettes. The memories these soldiers had were talked about for years and never forgotten. We can only imagine how much it meant to all of them. It is amazing that everyone could come up with enough food to feed that many trains coming through night and day! They sacrificed for the war effort in as many ways as they could. What special, special people! I personally dont know anyone who stopped at the Canteen, unless my dad would have. He was a Mercant Marine and traveled from New York to probably San Francisco, so its possible he was on a train. It makes me wonder what, at 74 years old, I can still do to help. I try to pay for a lunch if I see someone in uniform, and I always thank the military for their service when I see them. Ive sent care packages. It isnt enough, compared to what our servicemen and women do for us. It just isnt enough. What your town did was exceptional! I hope you are as proud of yourselves as you should be. On the whole, the abortion laws being enacted or considered in New York, Virginia, Vermont and Rhode Island are not at all revolutionary. In permitting abortions at any point of pregnancy, they would do practically nothing the U.S. Supreme Court has not permitted since Jan. 22, 1973. Roe v. Wade, which that day banned states from outlawing abortion, generally limited abortions to the first trimester. But a second decision that day, Doe v. Bolton written by the same justice, the late Harry Blackmun permitted abortions for a womans health, defined so broadly as to allow abortion at any point of pregnancy. For whatever reason, New York state which had legalized abortion through 24 weeks in 1970, three years before Roe and Doe had not rewritten its abortion laws to match what the Supreme Court allowed. There was, legally speaking, no need. Abortion rights supporters fear there might soon be a need (from their point of view), given Supreme Court appointments since 2016. Should Roe and Doe ever be overturned, abortion would not be outlawed throughout the United States. The question of whether to allow abortion, and in which circumstances, would return to the states. The Lincoln County commissioners on Monday will consider an agreement to house prisoners from Furnas County. The Lincoln County Detention Center houses prisoners for several other Nebraska counties and the state and federal governments. Commissioners will also consider seven special liquor license permit applications. Six were submitted by Pals Brewing Co. for North Platte Cornhole League events in March and April at the county fairgrounds. The seventh is for Callaway Market LLC for a wedding reception March 2 at Creekside Event Center. In other business, commissioners will: Receive and order filed the fee reports submitted by the county clerk and clerk of the district court. Adopt a resolution to enter into an agreement with Nebraska Department of Transportation on a project at Sutherland. Consider certificates of correction and refund, if any, as submitted by the county assessor. Consider motor vehicle tax exemptions submitted by the county treasurer. Consider the possibility of a road bond for additional maintenance on county roads. Shayna Mavis, Ms. Fire Safety, and Lisa Citta, Ms. Law and Order, worked together to organize a Battle of the Badges and Soup Cook-off to raise money for Habitat for Humanity. The women are two of the 11 contestants vying for the Ms. Habitat 2019 title. Mavis, a North Platte Fire Department firefighter, said its a fun competition and the money goes to a good cause. In the end, whoever raises the most money wins the battle today, Mavis said. And then whoever raises the most money overall wins the pageant. All proceeds from the Saturday event at the D&N Event Center were by donation and the various booths offered soups, there was a garage sale and several tables with items that could be purchased with the money going to the Habitat cause. Its good: we had a great turnout for the cornhole teams, Citta said. And we have a lot of soup teams that showed up, so I think we actually had a better turnout than we were expecting. The funds from Saturday will be split between Mavis and Citta to go toward their totals for the Ms. Habitat competition. Looking to celebrate and educate those in family-run businesses, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln College of Business and the Center for Entrepreneurship will host the inaugural Family Business Conference on March 1 at Nebraska Innovation Campus. Registration is $20 for students and $49 for professionals through Feb. 22; it is $60 the day of the conference. To register, visit business.unl.edu/familybusiness. The conference theme is The Challenge of Change, and workshops and presentations will address business and leadership topics central to family businesses. Established by a gift from the Abel family, the conference provides information useful for a variety of family businesses from farms to restaurants. Eighty-five percent of all businesses are family businesses, said Samantha Fairclough, associate director of the Center for Entrepreneurship. They face many challenges, such as succession, and this conference is a resource to share how to confront and deal with issues and learn tools they can utilize. Family businesses are an important part of the economic landscape of the state. February 8, 2019 Susan Cook , 402-223-3514 A special exhibit on Empire, Wyoming will be on display at Homestead National Monument of Americas Education Center from the end of January to the last week of March 2019. Part of the exhibit, a collection of standing banners, has been lent to the Monument by the Wyoming State Museum in Cheyenne, and part of the exhibit comes from the National Historic Trails Interpretive Center in Casper, Wyoming. Empire, Wyoming itself is no longer a town you can find on the map, but from 1908 until about the mid-1920s, Empire was a thriving agricultural community of African-American homesteaders in eastern Wyoming, near the present-day city of Torrington. In many parts of the Great Plains, African-American settlers, like so many others, found opportunity in the Homestead Act of 1862: A tremendously impactful land law that gave away more than 270 million acres of land across the United States from 1863 to 1986. Some of these settlements experienced strong partnerships with their neighbors, such as the amicable relationship between DeWittyNebraskas most successful African-American homesteading townand neighboring, mostly white Brownlee. In Empire, however, the black residents experienced hardship and discrimination. It was possible to homestead across thirty states, from as far east as Florida to as far west as Alaska, stated Homestead National Monument of America Superintendent Mark Engler. Each of these states has unique homesteading stories to share. Remember, Homestead National Monument of America has an exciting schedule of events planned for 2019. Keep up with the latest information by following us on Twitter (HomesteadNM) and Facebook (Homestead National Monument of America). Homestead National Monument of America is a unit of the National Park Service located four miles west of Beatrice, Nebraska. Hours of operation are 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. Admission is free of charge. For additional information, please call 402-223-3514 or visit http://www.nps.gov/home. There has been only one time in U.S. political history that more than one woman was a candidate for the same party's presidential nomination. It was during the 1972 campaign: Rep. Patsy Matsu Takemoto Mink, D-Hawaii, the first woman of color elected to Congress, ran against Shirley Chisholm in the Oregon primary as an anti-war candidate. She dropped out after receiving only 2 percent of the vote. The feeling could be the structure of the building and the geometric shapes that make it up or the weather or the time of day. If its the lighting, then I take pictures that really show that off, Lueck said. As he plans the drawing, he decides what things to take out of the scene that detract from the feeling he wants to convey. I am caught by the scene the area, he said, but my focus usually ends up being on one particular thing generally that is a building. He works to recapture his experience in the drawing. I look for the blackest blacks and the grays. I may want to make the shadows darker in a certain area, which will determine how the eye flows through the image, Lueck said. I want to control where the eye looks and hopefully that will help them experience what I experienced. He likes the Rapidograph pen because it is refillable. I have tried using other pens, but I go through them so fast, he said. I have to be conscious of how much Im spending on pens. District attorneys historically get elected and re-elected by putting people behind bars. No DA in Louisiana would be foolish enough to run on Blackstone's maxim that "It is better that 10 guilty persons escape than that one innocent suffer." The winning slogan is usually the opposite. Thats why a lot of people saw New Orleans District Attorney Leon Cannizzaros remarks at the Metropolitan Crime Commissions annual awards luncheon Tuesday (Feb. 5) as the unofficial opening of his 2020 re-election campaign, a gauntlet thrown at those trying to give tough on crime a bad name. That includes the folks who are looking to reduce jail and prison population by eliminating bail, reducing sentences and offering alternative forms of punishment. Cannizzaro isnt buying it. We have a crime problem," he warned the crowd. "We do not have an incarceration problem, and the notion that our jails are packed with low-level offenders and unlucky drug-possession arrestees is a complete falsehood. High-sounding claims of criminal justice reform, the DA suggested, are not what they appear to be. City officials wont come out and say it, but they are experimenting on us as a society to determine how much more violent crime we are willing to tolerate to enable them to boast a lower incarceration rate, Cannizzaro said. In a campaign setting, this would be the place to cue the chants of "Lock them up! ... Lock them up!" Signs of intelligent life at the New Orleans Sewerage & Water Board But its not clear how big or enthusiastic those crowds will be over the coming months as even many conservative politicians and think tanks have embraced the policy changes in bail, jail and sentencing that Cannizzaro denounces. The same day that the New Orleans district attorney was regaling the Metropolitan Crime Commission crowd with stories of how repeat offenders were being caught and released at cartoonish speed, President Donald Trump was using his State of the Union address to highlight the freeing of two former inmates. One of those was Matthew Charles, who was serving a 35-year federal prison sentence for a crack cocaine offense and ineligible for early release as a "career offender." But Charles was able to attend the State of the Union as the presidents guest after becoming one of the first people to receive a reduced sentence under the First Step Act, which Trump signed into law in December. The federal law was passed with strong bipartisan support (360-59 in the House and 87-12 in the Senate) and with the backing of conservative organizations like the advocacy partner of the American Legislative Exchange Council, the American Conservative Union and Americans for Tax Reform. It also had the backing of the Louisiana Family Forum and the Pelican Institute who has pushed a similar effort to overhaul Louisiana's criminal justice system. This legislation reformed sentencing laws that have wrongly and disproportionately harmed the African-American community, Trump said. The First Step Act gives nonviolent offenders the chance to re-enter society as productive, law-abiding citizens. Now, states across the country are following our lead. America is a nation that believes in redemption. Its not clear where Cannizzaro and Trump differ on issues of incarceration, although the district attorney is clear that he doesnt like whats happening in his jurisdiction. Look, I absolutely want to see fewer people locked up in New Orleans and throughout our state, Cannizzaro said. But we must get there because fewer people are committing crimes, not because of some grand social experiment espoused by sheltered academics and naive politicians. Assuming that he was not blasting Trump, Cannizzaro almost certainly was taking aim at City Council President Jason Williams, a defense attorney, who has already announced his intentions to run for district attorney in an election still 21 months away. Williams described the DA's remarks Tuesday as "fear mongering." Later in the week, Williams led a unanimous City Council in passing a resolution condemning Cannizzaros barbaric practice of jailing victims of domestic and sexual violence on material witness warrants based on reports from the advocacy group Court Watch NOLA. "Our DA is either disingenuous or willfully ignorant about how much harm is caused to the mission of a safer city by trying to shoehorn outdated methodologies in a system working to recover from centuries-long biased policies," Williams said. Cannizzaro said his office has used material witness warrants sparingly and only as a legal tool for pursuing justice. He accused Williams of launching a political attack In retaliation for my daring earlier this week to express deep reservations over the dangerous, experimental course of criminal justice policy in New Orleans." Does this blackface make me look racist? The DAs mission, Cannizzaro said, 'is not about convictions. It is about maintaining and improving public safety." Whether he ends up running for re-election or not, Cannizzaros convictions are going to be tested in the 2020 election. Tim Morris is a columnist on the Latitude team at NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune. Latitude is a place to share opinions about the challenges facing Louisiana. Follow @LatitudeNOLA on Facebook and Twitter. Write to Tim at tmorris@nola.com. The last time Daisha Matthews spoke with her father before he died at the end of 2018 was when he told her he will be looking fly in his suit at her high school graduation. Through tears she said on Friday (Feb. 8) she believes he is proudly watching her alongside her mother, who died a month before Matthews transferred to ReNEW Accelerated High School. I did this for me, but I also did this for him and my mom. It was hard getting through it, but I did it, Matthews said. Matthews was speaking as she accepted a special award moments before she and 26 of her peers received their high school diplomas at Loyola Universitys Roussel Hall. Orleans Parish School Board Superintendent Henderson Lewis, Jr. last December awarded the local ReNEW Schools organization a three-year charter renewal to operate the alternative school. He approved renewal for the F-rated school because its in a totally different set of circumstances from an average school, Lewis said Feb. 5. Alternative sites serve students who either enroll there by choice after falling behind, or after being expelled from their home schools. Students in these programs could also be awaiting trial or are convicted of a crime. A report released by the Louisiana Department of Education in October 2017 found a disproportionate amount of black youth attend these schools due to high rates of expulsion and suspension among Louisianas black students. More than 18,000 students in Louisiana are enrolled in one of more than 30 of the states alternative schools or 127 alternative programs, the report found. The report stressed that shortcomings in alternative education have resulted in students experiencing limited face-to-face teaching, a lack of appropriate technology, and a lack of career and technical options. Black youth disproportionately fill Louisiana's alternative schools, report says These statistics, however, didnt dissuade the auditorium of more than 100 attendees from celebrating at ReNEW Accelerateds graduation. The majority of its 233 students are black, and its total senior class size is 77, according to the latest enrollment data from the state Education Department. They call and consider us uneducated, black and ignorant, which is proven wrong through me and through all of us sitting here today, said JoeNajah Smith during her award acceptance speech. How can we be uneducated and we are graduates? ReNEWs valedictorian, Dakida Frank, told attendees she was kept back twice in school after being failed by the system before she failed again through her own actions. She nonetheless balanced her coursework and a job to earn college credits from Bard Early College. Top stories in New Orleans in your inbox Twice daily we'll send you the day's biggest headlines. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up ReNEWs salutatorian, Quasjay Selders, called her high school years a rollercoaster after she was expelled for fighting in school. She eventually ended her junior year with a 4.0 grade point average, and this year she was accepted into the University of Holy Cross nursing program. Graduates like Nichell Robinson balanced school with work, and shes set to enroll at Delgado Community College in the fall. Terry Gerdes spent several semesters working for unCommon Construction to earn internship credits and scholarship money. One graduates blue cap had the words LOL, BYE inscribed in gold letters. Another graduates cap had the words I winged it! written in purple letters with a gold background and a sparkling stone border. The diploma presentation occurred after former InspireNOLA Schools principal Angela Kinlaw delivered the keynote address. Kinlaw said she couldnt participate in her 8th grade graduation ceremony because she was suspended before her promotion to high school. The Take 'Em Down NOLA activist nonetheless succeeded academically and told the graduates they can overcome any challenges that feel impossible. The removal of four Confederate monuments in New Orleans illustrated that fact, she said. We are made up of those same things that made up those stars in the sky that shine brightly even in the darkest of night. We are those stars and we are brilliant, Kinlaw said. OPSB District 7 member Nolan Marshall, Jr. said prior to the event that hes always excited about the grit and perseverance shown by the graduates after everything theyve experienced. Although he retired from his photography business in 2013, Marshall could be seen taking pictures throughout the ceremony to document the moment. This to me is what we need to accomplish everywhere, Marshall said. With prison behind him, a ReNEW graduate looks to his future Wilborn P. Nobles III is an education reporter based in New Orleans. He can be reached at wnobles@nola.com or on Twitter at @WilNobles. Shocking exactly no one, earlier this week Cory Booker announced his intention to run for president in 2020. The fact that Booker would run was never in doubt, what is in doubt is where he fits in this current crop of Democratic candidates. In response to the electoral house cleaning of this past November, the myriad declared candidates for the democratic nomination have a noted progressive bent. There are position papers on medicare for all and green new deals being posted on candidate's websites with a furious regularity. Bucking the party's usual affinity for centrists, this years gaggle of hopefuls are now being vetted on wether they are progressive enough. We have Donald Trump and his rank incompetence to thank for that. According to the latest spate of polling the American people hate racist border walls, tax cuts for rich folks and having their health care taken away from them. That would seem to be a plus for the eventual democratic candidate. In the party writ large Booker's progressive bona fides wouldn't be in question. He's long advocated for climate action and programs like baby bonds, but in the current environment his relationships with Wall St. and the pharmaceutical industry will be an issue. Booker will have to answer for his past, and present, cozy relationship with Wall St. He's raised more campaign money from the financial sector than anyone but Mitch McConnell. In a campaign where a majority of candidates look set to eschew corporate dollars in favor of smaller donations, that's a bad look. Also at issue is his defense of the pharmaceutical industry and their strangle hold on the U.S. prescription drug market. He did them a big favor a while back by voting against a bill that would allow import of cheaper prescription drugs from our neighbors. He offered some platitudes about drug safety and such but nobody with an ounce of sense thinks that's why he defected from the party on the bill. Booker is from New Jersey. The pharmaceutical industry is a major source of campaign money in New Jersey. Booker needs to come up with a better excuse or better yet, stop doing pharma's dirty work for them. Most Americans agree that abortion should be legal, safe and as rare as we can make it. They are not extremists. They support Roe v. Wade, and federal funding for Planned Parenthood. But they support certain restrictions as well, like a 24-hour waiting period or counseling requirement. Public opinion hasnt budged on this. Yet we now find ourselves in a political uproar, again, over extreme cases that virtually never happen. President Trump just went on this attack, pouncing on clumsy and misconstrued comments by the governor of Virginia, and claiming that New York legislators cheered with delight about a new law that would allow a baby to be ripped from the mothers womb moments before birth. This is complete fiction, motivated purely by politics. Again, our president is doing his best to divide the nation in ways he believes might profit him politically. Again, hes making consensus harder to reach. Begin with this: There is no such thing as abortion moments before birth. Doctors do not deliver babies, and then kill them. The central conceit behind that claim is that women will seek out late term abortions for cavalier reasons, and doctors will perform them, with the indulgence of craven politicians. The moral impulse he is trying to manipulate is a valid one: At some point in a pregnancy, a fetus deserves protection. A fertilized egg that is deliberately expelled through the use of an IUD is one thing, and an abortion in the third trimester is another. Roe v. Wade drew the line at 24 weeks, guaranteeing the right to abortion before that point while allowing states to impose restrictions afterward, unless the mothers health is seriously threatened. A separate ruling on the same day, Doe v. Bolton, defined this to include both physical and mental health. Several states, like New York and Virginia, have been tinkering with their laws to ensure that, among other things, third trimester abortions are protected when the mothers mental health is threatened. That has inflamed the abortion debate, again. Our view is that its impossible to precisely spell out the conditions under which this should be legal, and that the decision should remain in the hands of women and their doctors. Yes, the fetus deserves protection. But it is the woman and doctor who are in the best position to provide it. Putting politics in the mix is a mistake. Consider these cases. Lindsey Paradiso, of Virginia, discovered that her fetus had a severe abnormality that was almost certainly lethal, but didnt want to abort until this was absolutely confirmed. Because she waited, she had a late-term abortion. Can you blame her? Or Darla Barar of Texas, who was devastated to learn that one of the twin girls she was carrying had a neural tube defect and brain matter was being leached out, Barar wrote, meaning she would be severely disabled if she wasnt a vegetable. Ending half the pregnancy meant the other baby would have a better prognosis. These choices are heartbreaking. But Danielle Deaver had no choice at all. The Nebraska woman was forced to watch her baby choke to death moments after giving birth, because of a strict law in her state that banned abortions after 20 weeks. If her doctor had been allowed to induce labor and analyze her condition earlier, she might have learned something to help her have a future healthy birth. Instead, she had to wait out a worsening infection, go through a painful delivery, then the agony of her babys death. It can cause a severe trauma to the patient, said Dr. Kristyn Brandi, a New Jersey OBGYN who provides abortions in cases like this. This is not something that should be in the political domain. Any time legislation tries to get into the weeds about these things, it doesnt really reflect what real care looks like. Opponents of abortion rights, like Marie Tasy of New Jersey Right to Life, counter that doctors can make mistakes. When Tasy was pregnant with her third child, a test showed what might be a very significant fetal anomaly, she recounted, but she chose to have her baby anyway. Thankfully, the child was born healthy. Because not everyone might have decided to continue the pregnancy, as she did, Tasy concludes that abortion should be illegal. But a law is a blunt instrument, one that cant account for every circumstance. Another woman facing an unmistakably dire prognosis might not want her baby to suffer and then die, or live in a vegetative state. And what sense does it make to put her own health at risk, or that of a twin fetus? Those who argue a woman could also seek a late abortion for trivial reasons point to a small percentage of women who get an abortion between weeks 21 and 24 for personal reasons. We dont know how many, exactly. Without good data, we wont know what were trying to regulate. But we do know this: They say they would have preferred to have had the procedure sooner. Most say they struggled to find money to pay for it. And we know this: Only 1 percent of abortions happen at or after 21 weeks, still well within the second trimester. Doctors set strict limits on when they will do them. And only a handful of doctors in the country will perform third-trimester abortions, which can cost more than $10,000. This is not a decision a woman makes lightly. If we want to prevent late-term abortions, the answer is to provide early, affordable and safe access to abortion, along with easy access to contraceptives. The irony is, thats exactly what the extremists like Trump are resisting. In Virginia and New York, legislators who favor abortion rights have been parsing the exact phrasing of laws intended to protect the right of women to have abortion in the third trimester. We wish them luck, but it seems a hopeless task. The better answer is to do exactly what New Jersey is doing today butt out. Let the law be silent. Let women and their doctors handle it, and respect the fact that they are more concerned about the fetus than any politician can be. It is best left in their hands, altogether. Bookmark NJ.com/Opinion. Follow on Twitter @NJ_Opinion and find NJ.com Opinion on Facebook. Brigid Callahan Harrison Ive watched Sen. Cory Bookers political career for decades. I know his strengths. I know his weaknesses. And I know that in 2020, he will be the best-poised Democrat to take down President Donald Trump. The path to the White House is a complex one, and for any Democratic candidate, it will necessarily mean attracting the support of several key constituencies to win the Democratic nomination. In 2020, that will mean winning over black voters, women and millennials. Booker is poised to be able to attract all of those groups better than any other candidate, declared or undeclared. There may be candidates who will appeal to one constituency its hard to envision millennials abandoning Sen. Bernie Sanders, for example, and some women may be drawn to Sen. Kamala Harris candidacy feeling that it is time for a female president (though the 2016 election taught us that being able to check the female box isnt enough to win a majority of womens votes). But Booker is uniquely poised to play well in all of the key demographics that will determine the Democratic nominee. Bookers bona fides in the black community are genuine: He is an ambassador of the black middle class from which he hails, but has also earned the respect of working-class urban blacks. Perhaps more important than the color of his skin is that he has spent a lifetime working on the issues that matter most to large portions of a black constituency: He is arguably the national leader on criminal justice reform (which significantly distinguishes him from Harris, D-Calif., who was seriously dinged in a New York Times op-ed describing her consistent opposition to numerous reforms of the justice system). Booker also has focused on issues of economic justice and education reform throughout his career. Bookers potential to mobilize black voters has been recognized by the party establishment throughout the country: He has campaigned for House, Senate and gubernatorial candidates in Mississippi (where blacks constitute 71 percent of Democratic primary voters), Georgia (blacks are 51 percent of the Democratic base there), Texas, Florida and South Carolina, where he had the crowd nodding, applauding and eventually roaring, according to an Associated Press report. One need only look at Bookers Twitter feed with his over 4 million followers to recognize his appeal among millennials. His persona his embrace of social media, his veganism, his energy, youthfulness and idealism all mesh with the values of millennials. But Bookers politics his reputation as a reformer, his policy work built on the foundation of the fundamental equality of everyone, his belief in a conspiracy of love that unites us are a natural fit for a generation frustrated with the toxicity of politics. Millennials also are the most diverse and most tolerant generation. And so Booker, as an African-American candidate whose mantra is centered on the ideal of tolerance (or, as Booker would Instagram, You cant lead the people if you dont love the people), will play well among millennials. Bookers appeal to female voters is more complex. After Booker declared his candidacy, I was interviewed by several reporters, some wanting to know whether his reputation for reaching across the aisle would hurt his chances. But data show us that the United States is ready for a grown-up politician who is willing to sacrifice his own ego in order to get things done. When asked to identify the most important problem facing the country, the most popular response in recent Gallup polls has been The government/Poor leadership. Delving deeper, we realize that what most Americans object to is the toxic, hyperpartisan gridlock that has defined Washington for decades. Female voters in particular are fed up with this intransigence. They are sick of watching issues that matter to them health care, race relations, immigration reform and the economy be back-burnered because of ego, demagoguery and an unwillingness to compromise. In particular, women find the divisive, hateful rhetoric offensive and counterproductive. And so while Bookers policies, built on that foundation of equal treatment, will appeal to women, it will be his leadership style positive and productive that will have great propensity to win over female voters. There are those who argue that Booker will make a great general-election candidate but that he is not progressive enough for the Democratic base. There is no doubt that some in the party will support the many left-of-center candidates, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., or Sanders, I-Vt., if he runs again. But on a recent trip to Iowa, I spoke with many past caucus-goers, and I noticed a new calculation among these loyal Democrats: Many acknowledged the need to nominate a Democrat who has the potential to beat Trump. Cory Booker cut his teeth in the hardscrabble world of Newark politics. His first campaign for mayor saw him do battle with a corrupt, racist bully (sound familiar) who used the media to demonize Booker (remember the charges that Booker was a white foil for the KKK and Jewish interests?), and Booker walked away from that race understanding a key tenet of politics today: Politicians need to communicate directly and passionately with voters. Booker has honed this skill over the past 17 years. And what we in New Jersey have seen is that when Booker woos voters, he wins them over. He is the Democrats best shot at unseating Trump. Brigid Callahan Harrison is professor of political science and law at Montclair State University, where she teaches courses in American government. A frequent commentator on state and national politics, she is the author of five books on American politics. Like her on Facebook at Brigid Callahan Harrison. Follow her on Twitter @BriCalHar. Bookmark NJ.com/Opinion. Follow on Twitter @NJ_Opinion and find NJ.com Opinion on Facebook. Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters. By Nancy Munoz If there were still questions about a need for the legislative investigation into the handling of allegations against a former administration official to continue, Gov. Phil Murphy answered them late Tuesday. Our work is far from finished. In a press release issued just hours after new testimony about how the allegations were handled, Murphy announced what he called sweeping revised policies and procedures. Those rules mostly expand the role of a little known government office, the states Division of Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action. These new corrective measures clarify existing procedures for handling complaints and expand the states jurisdiction to investigate. This might help some employees and applicants, but none of it addresses the issues brought forward by Katie Brennan. She had access to people in the highest positions of power in the Murphy administration and used that access. The problem was that those supposedly in charge didnt do anything about it or simply didn't take her sexual assault allegations seriously. What makes us think that a director in the states affirmative action office could have gotten a different result? These rules do nothing to prevent top administration officials from shrugging off their responsibility and denying knowledge. Policies only work to the extent they are followed. In this case New Jersey already has strict policies; it is just that the Murphy administration didnt follow them. This case involved two high level officials in the administration, and some responsibility needed to be taken by those in charge at the governors office. The question we all have is who was in charge? This is why the answer to the question of who hired Al Alvarez as chief of staff to the New Jersey Schools Development Authority is so important. We still dont know who. Even Murphys own investigation couldnt figure that out. Former Supreme Court Justice Peter Verniero, the man hired by Murphy to investigate, concluded that Alvarezs hiring seemed to be a foregone conclusion given his involvement in the Murphy campaign and association with the transition office. In hearings this week, Murphys director of personnel at the transition office told the lawmakers only three people had the authority to make hiring decisions. But, all three have testified under oath that they did not hire him. It seems no one can explain it. Perhaps, Alvarez, who previously turned down an invitation to appear but has denied the claim and was never charged, should finally come forward to provide us with real answers. If Murphy wanted to make a real change before we get the answers to this investigations lingering questions, he should sign the bill on his desk prohibiting secrecy under non-disclosure agreements, which just passed the Senate and Assembly. The agreements were used by his campaign and administration to thwart transparency. Change is desperately needed and it isnt just at one division in the governors office. Changes need to be made at every level of the administration starting at the very top. Assemblywoman Nancy Munoz is a co-chairwoman of the special legislative committee investigating allegations of sexual assault involving members of the Murphy administration. She represents parts of Union, Somerset and Morris counties in the 21st Legislative District. Bookmark NJ.com/Opinion. Follow on Twitter @NJ_Opinion and find NJ.com Opinion on Facebook. Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters. Christine Zuba lives in New Jersey near Philadelphia. On Nov. 29, she traveled north to Sacred Heart Cathedral rectory in Newark to dine with Joseph Cardinal Tobin, archbishop of Newark. Zuba, a Penn State graduate, works in TV and radio broadcast sales. The dinner conversation, she recalled, included the Catholic bishops conference in Baltimore, the abuse crisis, and the cardinals conversations with Pope Francis. But what piqued Zubas interest most was the churchs relationship with the LGBT community. She is transgender. He sought advice about how to move the conversation forward and how he can help, Zuba said of Tobin. Then the archbishop set a welcome tone for the future, she said. He said it might help if the church acknowledges what it does not know. Zuba was in Hoboken late last month with about 50 people from four states -- Connecticut, New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey -- who belong to the Interparish Collaborative, a network of 21 parishes that ministers to the LGBTQ community. Among them were members of the LGBTQ community, parents of LGBTQ children, and several priests and deacons. And they might agree that what they do in their parishes, in ministries and in life is to help the church know what they know. This is what Ed Poliandro knows: We cant be in the closet because we are fully out in the Eucharist, he said. This is what we all do. Poliandro is from St. Francis Xavier, the Jesuit parish in the Chelsea section of Manhattan, and is a founder of IPC. Back in 2004, Poliandro went to the U.S. Bishops conference in D.C. and just stood outside the meeting, trying to meet bishops. Many would not even look him in the face or give him the time of day, he recalled. But one stood out, the late Joseph Sullivan from the Brooklyn diocese, who turned out to be a great advocate for greater inclusion of gays in the church. Another man recounted the progress made since IPC started in Mt. Carmel Church, Brooklyn, in 2011. Today, the group has a website, retreats have been held, and Catholic gays marched in the 2012 Pride Parade and since. This years parade in Manhattan, on June 30, has been designated as the World Pride Parade in memory of the 1969 Stonewall riots and the IPC hopes to have large contingents of LGBT Catholics. Present at the Hoboken meeting were Catholics and clergy from each of the five dioceses in New Jersey as well as from Brooklyn, New York, Bridgeport, Hartford, Philadelphia and Harrisburg. Most people credit the growth and progress in New Jersey to David Harvie, the leader of the In Gods Image group at Sacred Heart Church in South Plainfield. Back in the 1980s he and his partner, Mark Nebus, worshipped at St. Aloysius in Jersey City, where I first met him. He also organized the historic pilgrimage to Sacred Heart Cathedral in May 2017. Harvie led the Hoboken meeting, which was at my churchs parish center, Our Lady of Grace. The somewhat gathering encouraged parish leaders to continue and expand their efforts by sharing good practices that work. Attendees also learned about regional events, retreats and workshops and had the opportunity to meet and socialize. Two filmmakers, Evan Mascagni and Shannon Post, described their work in progress on Jesuit priest James Martin, an AMERICA Magazine editor at large who authored a mild book, Building a Bridge. He has been a lightning rod for far right, anti-gay extremists, who have succeeded in getting him disinvited from some Catholic speaking engagements. They mentioned that John Petillo, a former priest of the Archdiocese of Newark, who is the president of Sacred Heart University in Bridgeport, is resisting calls to cancel Martins upcoming talk. They hope to complete their film by June and get it shown at some prominent film festivals. Faced with opposition, Poliandro offered a reflection that resonated: Darkness is not dispelled by more darkness, only light,'' he said, paraphrasing Martin Luther King Jr. "And hatred, not by more hatred, only love. IPC members know they still face enormous odds, but then Zuba never would have imagined her dinner with a cardinal of the Catholic Church. What a blessing, she told the group. God is good. The Rev. Alexander Santora is the pastor of Our Lady of Grace and St. Joseph, 400 Willow Ave., Hoboken, 07030, FAX: 201-659-5833; Email: padrealex@yahoo.com; Twitter: @padrehoboken. There is a scene in the movie Gallipoli in which two young lads from Australia trek across the Outback to enlist on the side of the British during World War I. They encounter a wizened old guy who asks them why they would want to go halfway around the world to fight. If we don't stop them there, they could end up here, one of the lads responds. The old guy looks around the barren landscape and responds, And they're welcome to it. I thought of that after President Trumps State of the Union speech in which he assailed foolish wars and also proclaimed that great nations do not fight endless wars. Of the cost of such wars, Trump has said, We have spent $7 trillion, trillion with a T, $7 trillion in the Middle East." In fact, we havent spent that all yet, but its a reasonable estimate of the cost over 30 years, according to PolitiFact. Those wars were certainly foolish. As for endless, were still bogged down in Afghanistan after 17 years and Syria after seven. Most normal human beings support getting out. But like lad in that movie, the Beltway intelligentsia can always find a justification for war. Typical was an appearance on National Public Radio by Tony Blinken, who held national-security posts in the Clinton and Obama administrations. After clearing his throat with I think the president reflects a desire across the board in the United States to pull back from what some people call forever wars, Blinken went on to warn against pulling out of Syria and Afghanistan too precipitously. In Syria, Blinken said, he's undercut the success of his own policy and the policy of President Obama by this impulsive withdrawal of the 2,000 Special Forces that we had in Syria precisely to keep a foot on ISIS' throat. Impulsive? Trumps been saying the Syrian intervention was a failure for four years, even though he increased the number of troops there after promising to wipe out ISIS. Hes made similar comments about Afghanistan, where the Taliban resurgence has inspired Trump to order a gradual withdrawal of the 14,000 troops there. The problem with having feet on throats is that you have to take them off sooner or later. Here again the story of Gallipoli is instructive. Gallipoli is in Turkey, which was the center of the Ottoman Empire. It was part of the Axis in World War I. The Australian and New Zealand Army Corps ANZAC for short was ordered by British officers to mount a suicidal charge into well-entrenched Turk machine guns. They were repulsed and suffered 10,000 dead and 25,000 wounded. More than a century later, the Aussies and the Kiwis still air their grudge against the Brits on ANZAC day, a national holiday. Meanwhile Turkey is once again controlled by Islamists and is back to what looks like an effort to restore the Ottoman Empire. Whatever else you think of Trump, you should appreciate his efforts to point out how both parties have cooperated in making a mess of the Mideast. Its true that he has some crazies in his administration. But as long as Trump takes his own advice hell be in good shape on the foreign-policy front. As for the Democrats, not so much. They are as divided on foreign policy as they were back in 2016, when peace activists by the thousands rallied outside the Philadelphia convention to protest Hillary Clintons foreign policy positions. That wars already breaking out on forums such as the Daily Kos website. A recent posting attacked New Jersey Senator Cory Booker, who has declared for the Democratic presidential nomination. The author slams Booker for his close ties to the AIPAC, the American Israeli Political Action Committee, which takes a hard line on the Palestinians. Peace activists prefer J-Street, a lobby that calls for a peaceful two-state solution to that particular endless war. The article notes that Booker is very close to Shmuley Boteach, the Bergen County rabbi who in 2016 r2n as a Republican against liberal Democratic U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell, charging that Pascrell was soft on the Palestinians. The author concludes with this: When the war hyenas are again circling, and again trying to foment war, against North Korea, against Iran, against Syria, we dare not allow the Democratic party, which should stand in opposition to those evil forces, to be co-opted and detoured by a smooth-talking wolf in sheeps clothing who sings the song of progressive ideals but hides an agenda of war and conquest. Booker is a skilled debater, and I cant wait to hear how he handles this in the Democratic primary debates. One of the participants will be the fervently antiwar U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii, an Iraq War vet who has outraged the pro-war lobby by visiting President Bashar al-Assad in Syria to discuss a peaceful settlement. Peace? But if we dont fight them over there, theyll be over here. Or the Outback. A Mickey Mouse balloon floated in front of the yellow-and-red Bridgeton City home. Beneath it, a small orange truck and two stuffed animals sat on dried leaves. The small memorial was a reminder of a tragedy that struck this quiet block of Woodland Drive over the weekend. On Saturday, the remains of 23-month-old Daniel Griner, Jr. were found in the yard of his home. His mother, Nakira M. Griner, 24, who had reported him missing hours earlier, was stunningly charged with his death. Were all trying to figure it out, said Cindy, a neighbor who declined to release her last name. Its a tragic situation. Everyone is shaking their head at it," Bridgeton Mayor Albert B. Kelly told NJ Advance Media Sunday. These are the type of things you read about in other cities, but you always think it wont happen in your city. A 6.2 square-mile city in Cumberland County, Bridgeton is home to about 24,000 residents. A GoFundMe that was set up to support the Griner family and various social media posts indicated that Daniel Griner Jr. was the oldest of two boys of Nakira and her husband, Daniel Griner Sr. Reach deep into your pockets and if you cant donate, please send a prayer for this man, the GoFundMe creator Heather Repp Wooton said on the site. I used to work with him, and he nor his son deserved this. Wooton and Griner Sr. did not immediately return calls. On Sunday, cars slowed down as they drove past the memorial along a residential street lined with one- and two-story homes. No one answered the door at the Griner home. Many neighbors declined to talk about the death, but one told NJ Advance Media that she didnt see the family much. "The family seemed really secluded and stayed inside a lot, said Cindy, who lives a few doors down. On Sunday, a spokesperson for the Cumberland County Prosecutors Office said the state had filed to detain Nakira Griner until her trial, and expected that hearing would take place later this week. Shes being held in Cumberland County jail. The details surrounding the death of the boy still remain largely unknown. On Friday evening, Nakira Griner told Bridgeton City Police that her son had been abducted, authorities said. Police search dogs found the childs remains at about 3 a.m. Saturday outside the Griners home on Woodland Drive, authorities said. Around 2:30 p.m. Sunday, police officers arrived at the home to continue their investigation. They told a reporter at the scene that they would not comment on the status of the case. Griner was charged Saturday with first-degree murder, second-degree endangering the welfare of a child, second-degree desecration of human remains and fourth-degree tampering with evidence for the death of her son. [The community] is doing their best to recover," Kelly said. Were working on supporting the family of the child right now and are working on trying to find other members of the family to make sure they are supported. Gianluca DElia may be reached at gdelia@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter@gianluca_delia. Paige Gross may be reached at pgross@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter@By_paigegross. Find NJ.com on Facebook. Have a tip?Tell us. nj.com/tips. Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters. SECAUCUS Hudson County flourishes with diversity, and that is thanks in part to one citys role in the Underground Railroad. On Saturday, Alvin Corbett, a historian and engineer, explained how Jersey City was one of the passageways of the Underground Railroad, a series of routes by which thousands of slaves traveling under the cloak of darkness 10 to 20 miles a night escaped intro free states during the mid-19th century. The Hudson County Genealogical & Historical Society hosted the event at the Secaucus Library in honor of Black History Month . Corbett great-great-grandson of a slave said slavery has been ingrained in the culture, but as time went on, people began to speak up about the injustice. The two-hour talk broke down the logistics of the railroad. As part of its route, it ran from South Jersey to Jersey City to help the escapees get to New York or Canada, which was dubbed the promise land because slavery was prohibited there. New Jersey was a gateway to freedom, he said. While Jersey City was part of a gateway in the 1800s, it was also the site of the first slaves in New Jersey, nearly 200 years earlier. The North Carolina native also shared how some slaves chose to stay in Jersey City instead of continuing to Canada. Other states that played a big role in the secret route was Pennsylvania and North Carolina. Corbett finished the talk by sharing his great-great-grandfathers life. Jack Sherrod escaped slavery at 22 years old and later enlisted to fight in the Civil War as part of a unit that was called the U.S. Colored Troops. Sherrods other notable descendants include Tupac Shakur a cultural icon and award-winning rapper and Fannie Corbett a civil rights leader, Corbett said. We are a nation of immigrants, said HCG&HS Vice President Patrick Cullen. We can understand our ancestors. (But) we must learn from our mistakes of the past so we dont repeat them. SECAUCUS What was once a childhood hobby that morphed into a small business has brought Gary Clark and Laura Zase to 49 of the 50 United States absent Hawaii. It started out as a hobby and grew into our business, Zase said who, with her partner, has been selling model trains for more than 25 years. Its been a lot of fun seeing the whole country. Zase and Clark, whose business is based out of Connecticut, were in Secaucus for the annual Greenbergs Great Train & Toy Show in the towns expo center. Hundreds of people, young and old, came out for the show on Sunday, which began in 1976 and is the largest traveling train show in the Northeast. It featured over 100 different exhibitors from across the country with over 400 tables with trains for sale. Its just such an endlessly fascinating subject, said Frank Hicks, the show manager who has been working with Greenbergs for 12 years. Im always learning something new I cant get enough of it. Hicks, like others at the expo center this weekend, turned a lifelong hobby into a job. "My father was into trains since he was a kid, so I was raised around them," Hicks said. "It started out as a hobby and then I had the opportunity to make it into my job as well." With his father, Hicks would spend time at a local railroad museum where "we would spend our time not just researching these things, but trying to restore them, replicate it and interpret it for the public." "There's a tremendously rich history," he added. The operating models on display seemed reflective of the history of American commerce, and included layouts of old industrial plants, with railroad tracks running through a countryside reminiscent of the 20th century American landscape. "There's absolutely a historical value," Zase said. "(The model trains) really reflect the history of manufacturing in the country." The exhibition featured plenty of fun for the kids as well, including a train ride of their own. On-site train repairs were also on available for those invested in the hobby, as well as free test tracks, interactive slot car racetracks and free door prize giveaways. A Newark man who police say stole thousands of dollars in lottery tickets in a spree across Hudson and Essex counties has been arrested, Bayonne police said. Authorities had been on the lookout for a man who was captured on surveillance video during one of his thefts in Bayonne last month. The mans photo ran in The Jersey Journal and on Facebook posts, too. Jason J. DeMatteo, 35, was finally charged by Bayonne police on Feb. 6 after they were alerted that he was in Essex County jail on multiple similar charges there, Bayonne Lt. Eric Amato said. The Newark man committed three thefts of quick draw lottery tickets where the numbers are randomly selected by the lottery machine from Bayonne businesses in different parts of the city in an 11-day span, Amato said. Police say: On Jan, 14, DeMatteo asked for $500 in lottery tickets at the Corner Store II on Kennedy Boulevard and fled. On Jan. 21, DeMatteo walked into the Broadway Care Pharmacy on Broadway and fled after getting $1,120 in tickets. Four days later, Jan. 25, DeMatteo fled with $743 in tickets from Broadway Deli. DeMatteo was charged with three counts of theft related to the Bayonne incidents. Information on the charges from other municipalities in Essex County was not immediately available. HOBOKEN A dead body was pulled from the Hudson River near the citys train terminal, according to the New Jersey Transit Police Department. Police were alerted that a man had jumped into the river at 12:45 p.m. on Sunday, according to NJ Transit police spokesperson Lisa Torbic. One officer attempted to rescue the man by jumping in himself, Torbic said, but the victim did not survive. The officer was not injured but was sent to Jersey City Medical Center for observation, she said. The Hoboken Police and Fire departments assisted in the incident, she said. BAYONNE Seven Bayonne police officers were promoted to the rank of sergeant during a ceremony in front of family, friends and fellow officers. Joseph C. Styles, Anthony J. Pelliccio, Mark Fabbricatore, Matthew Lindquist, Carmen J. Cutro, Chester Konopka and Steven M. Rhodes, Jr. wore sworn in by City Clerk Robert Sloan at City Hall Wednesday. Mayor Jimmy Davis, a former captain in the police department, applauded the efforts of both the police department and city fire department in battling last weeks Andrew Street fire, calling it the greatest public safety display. Styles joined the department in 2002 and been assigned to the Patrol Division. He has received three Police Service awards, two commendations and is one of the first two animal Control law enforcement officers for the town. Pelliccio joined the department in 2012. The U.S. Army veteran served from 2003 to 2011. He was deployed to Kosovo in 2005 and 2007, and Iraq in 2009. Fabbricatore joined in 2001 and has worked in the Community Orientated Policing Unit, the Cops In School Unit and the Patrol Division. Hes earned a commendation and two Police Service Awards, and is a former Hudson County sheriffs officer. Lindquist started his Bayonne police career in 1994 and worked in multiple divisions and units, such as the Patrol Division, the Vice Unit, and the Detective Unit. In addition to his commendations and Police Service awards, hes earned 11 awards for his investigative work with outside agencies. Cutro joined in 1995. Hes been assigned to the Patrol Division and Detective Bureau for the last 19 years. Hes earned 12 Police Service Awards, two commendations, and a Unit Citation. Konopka joined the department in 2002. Hes worked in Patrol Division where he has received a Departmental Valor award, a commendation and 14 Excellent Police Service awards. He was also the 2013 Police Officer of the Year. Rhodes joined the force in 1999. He has served in the Patrol Division, the Community Oriented Policing Unit, Narcotics Unit, the Detective Bureau and the Juvenile Aid Bureau. He has been recognized with more than a dozen awards. The title of the 21st entry in Charles Todd's Ian Rutledge series, "The Black Ascot" (William Morrow, 352 pp., $26.99), refers to the Royal Ascot, England's annual, iconic horse event, characterized by elegant, colorfully-dressed attendees. But as the 1910 race meeting followed the death of King Edward VII, when the nation's aristocracy was still wearing mourning attire, that year's event was informally dubbed The Black Ascot. A tip from an ex-con about the sighting of Alan Barrington, a murder suspect who has eluded police for a decade, prompts Rutledge to reluctantly relay the information to his boss at Scotland Yard. Assigned to reopen the cold case, he pulls out old files and begins by interviewing Harold Fletcher-Munro whose wife, Blanche, died in the car accident that seriously maimed him on the couple's return trip from The Black Ascot. It was concluded that Barrington tampered with the car with the intention of causing the accident, but he had fled the country before he could be arrested. Rutledge is driven to find out more about Barrington and whether he's really in England, going so far as to surreptitiously visit one of the man's estates in the western part of the country. Back in London, Rutledge is responding to knock on the door of his flat when a gun explodes in his face. He is rushed to the hospital, but when he regains consciousness he remembers nothing of the incident. While each book is a standalone, it's worth noting that Rutledge has never fully recovered from the shell shock he experienced during The Great War. He remains prone to depression, and his superiors at Scotland Yard seem aware of this. The Yard doesn't know about Hamish, however, a soldier Rutledge was forced to shoot for desertion during the war. But the ghost of Hamish accompanies Rutledge everywhere, chiming in with an opinion when he is pondering the facts of a case, warning him in covert situations seconds before Rutledge would be discovered, and the like. As the firearm that fired the shot was found at Rutledge's doorstep, coupled with their awareness of his shell shock history, the Yard assumes Rutledge failed in an attempted suicide. He is put on leave and sent away to recuperate while his boss decides the fate of his career. Rutledge knows the only possible way to restore his reputation and convince his superiors he did not try to take his own life is to find Barrington. But now, officially off duty, he must conduct his sleuthing under the radar. His investigation will take a number of twists and yield some surprises. Motoring around England is a significant part of Rutledge's investigative pursuits, resulting in a travelogue of the country's varied and bucolic countryside, its churches, cottages, country houses and small businesses, rendering the series a welcome change from London and other major cities that so often serve as the setting for many British novels. Fans of the Ian Rutledge series are well aware its author, Charles Todd, is a nom de plume for a mother and son writing team, but I note it for newcomers. The Todds' bailiwick is post-WWI England, and each of the Rutledge novels (as well as their Bess Crawford mystery series about a Great War nurse) confirms their wealth of historic knowledge of that war, particularly its effect on the British soldiers who fought it and on the country they fought for. For many readers, it takes only one book to send them off to the library in search of other titles. If you're a stranger to this captivating series, you're likely to be among them. Fran Wood, retired Star-Ledger op-ed columnist and former books editor, blogs at nj.com. The former owner of the failed Burlington Center Mall described the barren 97-acre property as a cancer on the community that needs to be treated. Steven Maksin, CEO of Moonbeam Capital, sold the mall to Texas-based real estate investment firm Clarion Partners on Thursday for just over $22 million. Moonbeam bought the property for $3.4 million in 2012 after mall owners defaulted on a $15 million mortgage. The cancer is the empty mall, Maksin said Thursday. Its not going to be used as a mall ever again. Its no longer viable. The cancer is the mall itself embedded in a beautiful body. The deal is expected to result in the demolition of the 38-year-old, 1.5-million square-foot facility but what happens next still appears to be up in the air. Moonbeam had proposed a mixed-use development featuring industrial use, primarily warehouses for e-commerce, and a much smaller footprint of retail. Now Maksin said the township should work with Clarion, which he said specializes in commercial warehouse development. The company redeveloped another former industrial site in the township into a four-warehouse complex near Route 130. They bought it for strategic reasons, Maksin said. They own warehouse properties. Thats what they specialize in. A request for comment Friday from Clarion was not immediately returned. Information in an internet brochure for Clarion sheds light on its development priorities. A typical e-commerce order can require three times more warehouse space than a traditional retail transaction, the brochure said. With every $1 billion in new e-commerce sales equating to 1.25 million [square feet] of new warehouse demand, an estimated 240 million [square feet] of new space will be needed for e-commerce alone over the next five years. Burlington Township Mayor Brian Carlin said Friday the ideal redevelopment for the site would be all retail but he said local officials are keeping an open mind. "I think it is incumbent upon us to listen to the new owners to see what fits best in the community, Carling said. Last year, local officials said they wanted a mixed-use redevelopment at the site to include some retail, perhaps some residential and industrial. But Carlin said Moonbeam had proposed putting 2 million square-feet of warehouses on the property which he said was unacceptable. They said that in order for it to work for them they needed four warehouses and up to 800 residences, Carlin said. Maksin confirmed Carlins assessment of what Moonbeam wanted. But he said Moonbeams decision to bail from retail property development on the site signals a shift of focus across his company with more than 800 million square feet of properties over 1,000 acres nationwide. We sold it as a land deal, Maksin said about Burlington. Nobody cared about the mall. Maksin said he believes retail development along the frontage of the site on Mount Holly Road with warehouses in the rear could be a viable plan. The site is located within two miles of Interstate 295 and the New Jersey Turnpike. He said he still thinks the property will have a bright and shiny new incarnation. Its the first step in transforming the old mall to something new and wonderful for the community, Maskin said. Bill Duhart may be reached at bduhart@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter@bduhart. Find NJ.com on Facebook. Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips. Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters. Ask Alexa for New Jersey news A 79-year-old woman died from injuries she suffered in a house fire that also killed her 81-year-old husband earlier this week in Burlington County, police said Saturday. Police were informed Friday night that Daveine Hewlett died after she was injured in the blaze Tuesday at her home in Maple Shade, according to township police. She was being treated at Jefferson Hospital in Philadelphia. Firefighters found the body of her husband, William Hewlett, in the blaze on Bailey Avenue the morning of the fire, police said. A GoFundMe page was launched to raise money for the Hewlett family earlier this week, police confirmed. Just about everyone born and raised in Maple Shade know the Hewlett family, the fundraising page said. This is very overwhelming for the family and most all people that know the Hewlett family. Lt. Jeffrey Hoch said Saturday he did not have more information about the fire. Authorities were investigating what sparked the blaze. Noah Cohen may be reached at ncohen@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @noahyc. Find NJ.com on Facebook. Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters. Niagara Falls, NY (14301) Today A few passing clouds, otherwise generally clear. Low 61F. Winds S at 10 to 15 mph.. Tonight A few passing clouds, otherwise generally clear. Low 61F. Winds S at 10 to 15 mph. Retired New Haven Police Capt. Joann Peterson said she knew cops who drank themselves to death and committed suicide, and now devotes her time to ensuring police recruits know they have other options. Peterson, who has a masters degree in communications and human relations, served as a New Haven cop for 22 years before she retired in Aug. 2013 and joined the statewide police training academy as a full-time instructor. As a training officer at the academy Peterson educates future cops on various topics, including suicide, substance abuse and officer wellness. I think were looking at a new generation of law enforcement, she said. Theyre not coming in with the mentality that they have to tough it out because theyre going to be cops. But still, she said, its important to make sure the recruits understand what their future holds. I dont think theres anything that can prepare you for the trauma that the officers are going to see, Peterson said. Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And, for the the third year in a row, police officer suicides in 2018 exceeded all line-of-duty deaths across the nation, according to Blue H.E.L.P., a nonprofit run by retired and active police officers that tracks police suicides. In 2018, the nonprofit found, at least 159 police officers died by suicide, while 144 were killed in the line of duty. The nonprofit reported 159 cop suicides in 2017 and 140 in 2016. As tragic as these duty deaths are, the single greatest cause of death for law enforcement officers each year is suicide, said Jeff McGill, one of the founders of Blue H.E.L.P., in a prepared statement. A 2017 study by the Ruderman Family Foundation, a private philanthropic foundation, found the suicide rate for the general population is 13 out of 100,000 and the rate for police officers is 17 out of 100,000. Jumping in More Information If you're thinking about suicide or worried about someone who might be, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) to connect with a local crisis center. You can also text the Crisis Text Line by messaging TALK to 741741. Police officers can text the word BLUE to 741741. See More Collapse On the second day of training at the police academy, recruits undergo a six-hour simulated stress exercise that mimics some of the realities theyll face as officers. It shows them that theyre not alone, that theyre able to talk about their feelings, Peterson said. And this is on day two. So theyre learning from the simulated stress exercise and learning to start talking. She said handling stress and talking about experienced trauma is helpful to keeping suicide and divorce rates down among police officers. The whole idea of police work is having a balance, Peterson said. If you dont take care of yourself, you cant help anyone else. Police and detective work can be physically demanding, stressful, and dangerous. Officers must be alert and ready to react throughout their entire shift. Officers regularly work at crime and accident scenes and encounter suffering and the results of violence, according to the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics. Peterson was one of many leaders behind a push for peer-support at police departments in Connecticut. She said a legislation mandate came down about a year and a half ago that required all police departments statewide to develop a peer-support team. Its completely non-judgmental, she said. Its people who have gone through shootings, people with children with development struggles, people who lost a child, people going through a divorce. You had probably somebody on that team that had been through something similar to what youre dealing with. We talk about not keeping their world really small, Peterson added. We often get into this mindset that the only person that can really understand us is another cop, but thats not true. More to be done Peterson said its important that recruits know about the suicide numbers for police officers even one is too many, she said. But another founder of Blue H.E.L.P., Karen Solomon, said she wants to see more done. There is very little money being spent to reduce the numbers of officer suicides, a prepared statement from Solomon said. Addressing officer wellness which includes spiritual, mental, social, and physical health should be the number one priority for each agency head in 2019. Peterson said police officers dedicate their lives to protecting and serving only to come away with trauma, stress and post traumatic stress. Im trying to plant the seed to know they dont have to go down that road, she said. I tell them to call me call somebody and talk it out. Despite all of this, Peterson still said she wouldnt change her time as an officer and as a captain for anything. Its still a phenomenal job, she said. Its a great career. Do you find yourself saying nice things about your employer? Oh, sure, we all like to complain, but if your workplace is actually pretty good and many of them are heres an idea. Nominate your employer in the annual Top Workplaces contest sponsored by Hearst Connecticut Media Group. The program is open for 2019 as of now, and were looking to honor the best places to work whether theyre privately owned companies, publicly traded corporations, subsidiaries, partnerships, nonprofits or even government agencies. The contest is open to any employer with 35 or more people in the area covered by Fairfield, New Haven and Litchfield counties. Recognition is given for small, midsize and large organizations, and the contest also rewards the best executives. Last year, Hearst Connecticut Media honored 50 employers from across the region, chosen from more than 900 that were nominated. A smaller number actually participated, by letting our partner Energage, a research and employee engagement company in Pennsylvania give their employees a 24-question survey. Nominations are due by March 15, so dont delay. Anyone can nominate an employer take the credit or do it anonymously! The Top Workplaces program is about more than just recognition, said Doug Claffey, founder and CEO of Energage. Our research shows organizations that earn the award attract better talent, experience lower turnover, and are better equipped to deliver bottom-line results. Their leaders prioritize and carefully craft a healthy workplace culture that supports employee engagement. Recruitment is key for many of the Top Workplaces winners. Connecticuts economy just hit 4 percent unemployment, which means its a market that favors employees. Theyre looking for companies with an edge and the Top Workplaces award is part of the package. Last years top winners were Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices New England Properties in the large employer division, over 500 people in the three counties; Norwalk-based Family & Childrens Agency in the midsize group, with between 150 and 499 employees; and debt-collector Eastern Account System among small employers with 35 to 149 people. OperationsInc, a Norwalk-based human resources consulting company with nearly 100 employees, has been recognized in the Hearst Connecticut Media Top Workplaces for the last six years. Founder and CEO David Lewis said his company allows employees tremendous flexibility. Do you want to get your kids on the bus and then come to work, or leave early to get your kids off the bus? We go to great lengths to work with our people, Lewis said. You need to lead by example and do things that are supportive of our employees. Our culture had so many facets to it. Lewis said OperationsInc differs from traditional workplaces with casual dress days, themed annual meetings, bowling nights, company outings to baseball games, flexible schedules and work-from-home options. The office also includes games such as Jenga and cornhole. Its an opportunity to take a break, have some fun and be a little competitive, he said. Hearst Connecticut Media Top Workplaces winners will be featured in the Connecticut Post, The News-Times of Danbury, Greenwich Time, The Stamford Advocate, The Norwalk Hour, New Haven Register and The Register Citizen of Torrington in September and will be highlighted on all of the associated websites. Energage , formerly known as WorkplaceDynamics, carries out the Top Workplaces surveys for more than 40 metro newspapers including some of the biggest. Last year, the company surveyed 2.6 million employees at more than 7,500 organizations. Employers can be nominated online at topworkplaces. com/hearstct or by calling 203-617-0727. Next year the world will have its first ExaFlop Supercomputer. This supercomputer will likely be built in China. The USA will follow about 12 months after with the A21 ExaFlop supercomputer in 2021. Ten researchers from Chinas National University of Defense Technology (NUDT) recently published a paper that describes pushing current technologies to 1000 times higher speeds by 2035. The paper is Moving from exascale to zettascale computing: challenges and techniques. They define a zettascale supercomputer as a system with peak zettaflops (1,000 exaflops or 1,000,000 petaflops) for 64-bit floating point operations. The current fastest supercomputer is the Summit supercomputer. It has reached 200 petaflops with 64-bit floating point operations. However, it has reached over 1000 petaflops using reduced mathematical precision. The NUDT researchers described other metrics for a zettascale system. Power consumption of 100 MW. A power efficiency of 10 teraflops/watt Peak performance per node of 10 petaflops Communication bandwidth between nodes of 1.6 terabits/second I/O bandwidth of 10 to 100 petabytes/second Storage capacity of one zettabyte Floor space of 1000 square meters They expect CMOS to hit the wall in 2025. Optical computing, quantum computing, and biological computing will have growing roles to accelerate traditional computing technology. Supercomputer centers will introduce optical computing, quantum computing, and biological computing accelerators or coprocessors. There will be increasing use of 3D integrated circuits. This has already begun for computer memory. Non-volatile memory and interconnects can be integrated into these 3D devices. This will improve performance and efficiency as the push for higher speeds will require super-high density. The speed of light will become an increasing factor in forcing higher density systems. Opto-electrical devices based on photonic crystals and carbon nanotubes will emerge during the next decade. This will make for more scalable and more balanced supercomputers. Interconnect speeds will reach 400 gigabits/second and chip throughput will reach hundreds of terabits/second. Superconducting Supercomputer Alternative In 2018, China invested $145-million into a five-year catch-up effort to fabricate their own superconducting computers by 2022. Superconducting supercomputers may be capable of 1 PFLOP/s for about 25 kW and 100 PFLOP/s for about 200 kW, including the cryogenic cooler. In the USA, IARPA began funding superconducting computers as a long-term solution to the power-cooling problem of supercomputers. Cryogenics make superconducting chips equipped with Josephson junctions 1,000 times more expensive to cool than CMOS, but they are 100,000 times more energy efficient in operation, yielding a 100-fold increase in overall energy efficiency. Superconducting computers could enable clock speeds that are 150 times faster. SOURCES: Top500, Frontiers of Information Technology & Electronic Engineering Written by Brian Wang. Nextbigfuture.com Wang Yunfei, a naval expert, told the South China Morning Post that China will have four nuclear-powered aircraft carriers with electromagnetic launchers by 2035. Those carriers are expected to be comparable in size and launch capability to US aircraft carriers. China would have two smaller diesel powered aircraft carriers. In 2018, China started building another conventional diesel-powered aircraft carrier, the Type 002. It will be their first with the electromagnetic launchers. Electromagnetic launchers boost fighter jets so that use less fuel launching. This enables jets to have longer range. Chinas navy will develop one of its fighter jets for use on its aircraft carriers. This will be either the FC-31 or the J-20. Currently, China is using the J-15. Chinese engineers are developing a next-generation carrier-based fighter that is a variant of the FC-31 stealth fighter. The next generation jet is still expected to be inferior to the US F-35c. US Will Have Twelve Large Nuclear Carriers The US has just placed an order to build two Gerald Ford aircraft carriers at the same time. The first Gerald Ford carrier is scheduled for operational deployment in 2022. The USS John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) will likely be commissioned in 2020. The third carrier will be the USS Enterprise (CVN-80). It is expected to join the fleet by 2027. The fourth is being built at the same time. The US Navy intends to deploy a total of 12 Ford-class aircraft carriers, up from the 11 carriers in service today. If the US Navy continues to build the carriers two at time, then they could complete four every ten years or so. This would mean all twelve carriers could be done by 2050. China Will Be a Clear Second Place Navy China has and will have far more naval ships than the USA other than aircraft carriers. Chinas ships will in be competitive but in general still inferior to US ships. Chinas Navy and military will be far ahead of the Navy and military of any other nation. In 2035, the third best world military could be India, UK or Japan. SOURCES- South China Morning Post, Navy Times Written By Brian Wang. Nextbigfuture.com Kentucky authorities arrested a woman after her 4-year-old daughter became unresponsive at school. Authorities said the child tested positive for cocaine, as did a 2-year-old sibling. Police said it started Thursday at Clark County Head Start. Staff said the child was lethargic and wouldn't wake up from a nap. The child was taken to a hospital, where police said she tested positive for cocaine. Police arrested the child's mother, Annquita R. Wright, 31, of Winchester. Police said she admitted she'd let a friend sell cocaine and crack at her home, right in front of her three kids, WKYT-TV reported. She's facing criminal abuse charges. NEW MILFORD Crews are battling a structure fire Sunday afternoon on Birch Road. An official at Water Witch Hose Company #2 confirmed the fire, but did not have further information. Firefighters from Sherman were called to assist just before 2 p.m., according to scanner reports. This story will be updated when more information is available. BETHEL More than $43,000 worth of grants will pay for reading, virtual reality and other programs in classrooms throughout the local schools. The Bethel Education Foundation on Friday surprised more than 20 teachers and administrators with checks for various projects in the schools. The Bethel Education Foundation grants allow our teachers to provide creative and innovative projects and programs, Superintendent Christine Carver said in a news release. The grants provide opportunities to enhance our students 21st-century learning skills as part of their educational experience within the Bethel Public Schools. The largest grant was for $9,700 and will pay for virtual-reality tools for the elementary schools. Students will use these tools for their English language arts classes. A $9,250 grant will cover virtual-reality tools for a classroom in the middle school. Bethel teachers strive to bring 21st-century learning opportunities to Bethel students, Heather Fortuna, vice president of the foundations board, said in a release. As the parent of a child attending Bethel public schools, I am thrilled to see this level of creativity and innovation brought to the classroom. Students at the high school will launch an Anti-Defamation League program called The Truth About Hate thanks to a $4,200 grant, increase student interest in reading through Audible book subscriptions funded by a $5,280 grant and increase an inclusive musical environment with the assistance of Beamz Laser Technology with a $515 grant. Meanwhile, students at Johnson Elementary school will use virtual-reality headsets with heart-rate technology in their physical education classes thanks to a $4,700 grant. A $1,660 grant will support computer science technology to teach Berry and Johnson students coding. Elementary-schools students will also use high-tech document cameras to interact with lessons and share their work with peers with a $1,000 grant to Rockwell and $600 grant to Berry. Middle school students will learn problem-solving thanks to a $1,750 grant for an Escape the Classroom program. St. Marys School also earned two grants, a $2,520 one for the Lexia reading program and a $2,160 grant to add an innovative engineering course from the Boston Museum of Science. Since 2007, the Bethel Education Foundation has given more than $461,000 to more than 134 teacher-initiated projects. Grants are paid for through donations from Bethel residents and businesses, as well as the annual Barnum Ball. Millions of Americans filling out their 2018 taxes will probably be surprised to learn that their refund will be less than expected or that they owe money to the Internal Revenue Service after years of receiving refunds. People have taken to social media, using the hashtag GOPTaxScam, to vent their anger. Many are blaming President Donald Trump and Republicans for their shrinking refund. Some on Twitter have even said they voted for Trump but won't do so again after seeing their refund slashed. The uproar comes after Trump and congressional Republicans passed a major overhaul of the tax code in December 2017, the biggest legislative achievement of the president's first year. While the vast majority of Americans did get a tax cut in 2018, refunds are a different matter. Some refunds have decreased because of the changes in the tax code made by the law, such as a new limit on property and local income tax deductions, and some have decreased because of how the IRS has altered withholding in paychecks. John Prugh of Ewing Twp., New Jersey, was irate when he completed his 2018 tax return this month and discovered his refund would be $3,000 less than what he received last year. Prugh considers himself "solidly middle class." The 39-year-old is a manager at a Barnes & Noble Bookstore, and his wife works for the state government. They have two children. Prugh said he had no reason to think their tax situation would change this year, since he and his wife have lived in the same house for years and have received about the same pay in their jobs and have two kids. "It totally feels like a scam," said Prugh, who did not vote for Trump. "I did still get a small refund, but compared to what I was expecting from previous years, it was shock." The average tax refund check is down 8 percent ($170) this year versus last, the IRS reported Friday, and the number of people receiving a refund has dropped by almost a quarter. An IRS spokesman said not to read much into this early data because it only reflects returns processed through Feb. 1, and the partial government shutdown caused some delays in processing filings. The early data can shift around a lot, tax experts say, but there's reason to believe frustrations could rise as more Americans complete their tax returns. The Government Accountability Office warned last summer that the number of tax filers who receive refunds was likely to drop for the 2018 tax year and the number of filers who owe money would rise. The GAO pointed to an IRS estimate that about 4.6 million fewer filers would receive refunds this tax filing season. Another 4.6 million filers were likely to owe money who hadn't had that experience in the past. There is no estimate for how many people will still receive a refund but a smaller one than before. Many Americans may confuse their small refund as a sign that they paid more in taxes as a result of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Generally, that is not true. According to the Tax Policy Center, 80 percent of filers received a tax cut and about 5 percent wound up paying more in federal income taxes. The tax cuts showed up in fatter weekly or biweekly paychecks for most Americans, but few people noticed, according to polling. "There's a difference between taxes and your refund," said Joseph Rosenberg, a senior research associate at the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center at the Urban Institute. "People generally got a piece of their tax cut last year gradually in the form of lower withholding on their paychecks." What happened to many families is they received a tax cut, but their refund is smaller this year because the IRS made major changes to the "withholding tables" - the amount the federal government recommends taking out of your paycheck for federal income taxes - because of the new tax law. The IRS was trying to set withholding levels so that more people would pay the correct amount of taxes, meaning they neither owe anything to the IRS at the end of the year nor receive a refund. "Getting a tax refund means that you gave the government an interest-free loan because you overpaid your taxes," said Nicole Kaeding, director of Federal Projects at the Tax Foundation, a right-leaning think thank. But many Americans prefer refunds, even though personal finance experts say it's not a wise idea to get one. "It's a mystery why taxpayers seem to be comfortable - and even happy - with getting refund checks," said Rosenberg. In recent years, about 75 percent of filers received refunds in recent years. Many Americans appear to like getting a refund because they feel that if they received an extra $20 to $40 a week, they would spend it. But when they get a one-time refund of $1,000 to $2,000, they put it toward paying off credit card debt, paying down a mortgage or saving for retirement. "I am really frustrated with my refund this year. I was expecting good chunk of change. I was going to put it toward buying a car," said Sal Ramirez, a 20-year-old packaging designer in San Gabriel Valley, California. He earns $45,000 and said he received a refund last year of over $1,200 because he puts zero withholding on his W-4 form at work. Ramirez just got his refund from the IRS and it's only $900 this year, likely because of changes to the withholding tables. He figures he'll need to save a few more months for the car. The refund situation marks the latest potential trouble for Republicans over their tax bill. They argued it would be a political winner, but it has consistently polled poorly. Ramirez, who didn't vote for Trump, couldn't remember whether his total tax bill went up or down. He was just focused on his refund. In New Jersey, Prugh appeared to be affected by both factors affecting refunds this year: His overall tax bill is higher and his withholding looks a little lower. His family was affected by the new law's $10,000 cap on state and local taxes (i.e. property taxes and state and local income taxes). He says in the past he normally deducted about twice that amount. He was also hit by the elimination of the ability to deduct mileage for work. The higher standard deduction under the new law did not counterbalance losing these other deductions. "I did not vote for Trump," Prugh said. "As active as I got in the last election cycle and as active as I plan to be in 2020, this put more urgency behind it than almost any other thing that has happened." New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka in the run-up to the Lok Sabha polls and address a couple of public rallies. Today is Bansant Panchami and lakhs of devotees are expected to take the holy dip on the third and final Shahi Snan at the Kumbh Mela 2019. Saraswati Puja, the goddess of learning, is also celebrated on this day. The questioning of Kolkata Police Commissioner Rajiv Kumar in connection with the Saradha chit fund scam by a CBI team in Shillong is to continue today. The Gujjar community in Rajasthan continues its protest demanding quota. The death count in the hooch tragedy that hit two adjoining districts in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh has risen to 110 with more people dying of consuming spurious liquor. India will play New Zealand in the third and final T20I in Hamilton. The death count from the collapse of an apartment building in Istanbul rose to 21 on Saturday, as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said authorities have "lessons to learn" from the incident. The eight-storey block in the Kartal district on the Asian side of the city collapsed on Wednesday but the cause is not yet clear. 19:50 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Rajasthan: 107 deaths have occurred between 1 January 2019 and 10 February 2019 due to swine flu in the state. Total positive cases are 2941. 16:57 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Mumbai: Fire broke out in two buses parked in Nehru Nagar area of Kurla. Fire tenders are present at the spot. No injuries have been reported. Fire extinguishing operation is underway. Mumbai: Fire has broken out in two buses parked in Nehru Nagar area of Kurla. Fire tenders are present at the spot. No injuries have been reported. Fire extinguishing operation is underway. pic.twitter.com/xBDlVp4KOG ANI (@ANI) February 10, 2019 11:44 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Akhilesh Yadav on deaths after consuming illicit liquor:Opposition has been notifying govt about such activities,but they didnt wake up as govt is also involved in it.Truth is that without govt,such businesses cant be carried out.Govt should accept that they can't run the state 11:39 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Winter vacations in Shimla schools extended after heavy snowfall Winter vacations in schools in Himachal Pradesh's capital Shimla have been extended by two days after heavy snowfall, a district official said. The vacations in all primary and senior secondary schools have been extended by two days, Shimla district magistrate said. In its order issued Saturday, the magistrate said the schools in Shimla district would now reopen on February 13, instead of February 11. The decision to extend winter vacations has been taken in the interest of the safety of the students as several roads are still blocked after heavy snowfall on February 7, it said adding that the work of clearing the roads is going on. 10:19 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Meghalaya: Former Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Kunal Ghosh outside CBI office in Shillong, says, 'I have been asked by the CBI to attend this office, so Im here. I have cooperated with the investigating agency.' He is to be questioned by CBI today. Meghalaya: Former Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Kunal Ghosh outside CBI office in Shillong, says, 'I have been asked by the CBI to attend this office, so Im here. I have cooperated with the investigating agency.' He is to be questioned by CBI today. pic.twitter.com/LmwIeyAXZo ANI (@ANI) February 10, 2019 10:07 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In NZ women score 161/7 against India in 3rd T20I at Hamilton. 09:49 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Western Railway(WR):To clear extra rush due to Gujjar agitation b/w Sawai Madhopur-Bayana in West Central Railway,WR will run special train from Bandra Terminus to Sawai Madhopur at 20.15hrs on 10,11,12,13&14 Feb. It'll depart from SWM at 13.45hrs for Bandra on 10,11,12,13&14 Feb 09:05 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In West Bengal: A chemical gas tanker caught fire on NH-31 near Bidhan Nagar, Siliguri early morning today. Fire under control now, no casualties reported. An investigation is on. West Bengal: A chemical gas tanker caught fire on NH-31 near Bidhan Nagar, Siliguri early morning today. Fire under control now, no casualties reported. Investigation is on. pic.twitter.com/x0Wli7fEbn ANI (@ANI) February 10, 2019 07:53 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Delhi: People take refuge at night shelters as cold weather conditions continue in the national capital; Visuals from a night shelter near Gurudwara Bangla Sahib Delhi: People take refuge at night shelters as cold weather conditions continue in the national capital; Visuals from a night shelter near Gurudwara Bangla Sahib pic.twitter.com/xxrJnuvY4A ANI (@ANI) February 10, 2019 07:12 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Devotees gather at Prayagraj to take holy dip on the festival of Basant Panchami, and the 3rd and the last 'shahi snan' at the Kumbh Mela 2019. 07:08 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Kathmandu: Nepal to import roses worth around 7 million rupees from India for Valentine's Day; Floriculture Association Nepal (FAN) President Shrestha says, "about 160,000 stems of roses would be imported. We will import these roses especially from Calcutta and Bangalore". Kathmandu: Nepal to import roses worth around 7 million rupees from India for Valentine's Day; Floriculture Association Nepal (FAN) President Shrestha says, "about 160,000 stems of roses would be imported. We will import these roses especially from Calcutta and Bangalore" pic.twitter.com/IZRA9UM0h4 ANI (@ANI) February 10, 2019 07:08 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In A fire broke out at a factory at the Kirti Nagar furniture market at 3:45 am on Sunday. As many as 10 fire tenders brought the fire under control. No injuries reported. Delhi: Fire broke out at a factory in Kirti Nagar furniture market at 3:45 am today; 10 fire tenders brought the fire under control. No injuries reported. pic.twitter.com/WgH7FMAEYf ANI (@ANI) February 10, 2019 07:07 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Mumbai: CISF (Central Industrial Security Force) constable Bhanwarsingh Nayak posted on guard duty at activist Teesta Setalvads residence in Santacruz allegedly committed suicide with his service weapon while on duty, on Staurday morning. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: On the occasion of Basant Panchami, crores of devotees are expected to participate in the third shahi snan at Kumbh Mela on Sunday. The festival of Basant Panchami heralds the arrival of spring and is dedicated to Goddess Saraswati, the Hindu goddess of knowledge and wisdom. 'Shahi snan' is the central highlight of the Kumbh Mela and the most important part of the celebration. It is only after the completion of 'shahi snan' that people are allowed to take the holy dip. The auspicious Panchami timing is till 2.09 pm and taking the holy dip during this period and also making offerings to the needy hold special significance. Prior to Basant Panchami, shahi snans were held on Makar Sankranti on January 15 and Mauni Amawasya on February 4. Shahi Snan by Akhada Sadhu like Niranjani Akhara and Juna Akhada is the centre of attraction in Kumbh Mela. Naked saints (naga sadhu) with their bodies smeared with ash take part in Akhada procession. Saints are given preference over common people. It is believed that when Garuda was carrying Immortal Nectar (Amrita) which was churned out from Kshir Sagar, fell at 4 places of Kumbh Mela from the pitcher. So, these places have immense importance and carry the value of immortality by removing sins. Shahi Snan or Ceremonial Bath in Rivers on Auspicious time is a way to get rid of sins and attain Moksha as per belief of Hinduism. Shahi Snan is a ritual carrying great faith and devotion of Hindu devotees. It is a symbolic ritual and has mythological significance. Shahi Snan makes Kumbh Mela Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO. Allahabad Mayor Abhilasha Gupta Nandi told PTI, "Basant Panchami is the third and last shahi snan of the Kumbh. By taking three dips on this day, a devotee gets the blessings of Ganga, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati rivers. Hence, it holds tremendous significance for people." Kumbh Mela Adhikari Vijay Kiran Anand said that more than two crore people from different walks of life are likely to arrive here to take a dip on the occasion of Basant Panchami. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: As many as five terrorists were killed by security forces in an encounter in the Kellam Devsar area of Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district on Sunday morning. Security forces cordoned the southern Kashmiri village during the night after getting a tip-off about the presence of terrorists in the area. As the military was closing in on the group, the terrorists fired on the forces resulting in an encounter. Even as the search operation is still on, heavy stone pelting is underway in the area, injuring 4 CRPF personnel. On February 6, The Pulwama district commander of terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba was killed in a brief gunbattle with a joint team of the Indian Army, CRPF and SOG at Chakoora area of Litter in south Kashmirs Pulwama. The slain was identified as Irfan Ahmad Sheikh of Chakoora village. Irfan was commander for district Pulwama and was active since last years, according to local reports. Sources said one more terrorist has escaped from the site. The area is still under cordon to trace out the remaining hiding terrorists. In another incident in Valley, two CRPF jawans were injured after unknown terrorists hurled grenades on the 18 battalion of the forces in Kashmir's Kulgam on Wednesday. The attack took place around 4.15 pm in which the constables sustained splinter injuries in leg and were immediately shifted to the government hospital in Kulgam. The condition of the jawan are reported to be stable. Following the blast, the government forces launched a hunt to nab the attackers. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Newly appointed Congress General Secretary (Eastern UP) Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Sunday demanded compensation and government jobs for the families of those killed in the hooch tragedy in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. Sad and stunned by the death of more than 100 people in Uttarakhand and UP due to illicit liquor. This is condemnable. It couldn't have been imagined that the trade of illicit liquor flourished at such a large scale in the two states. She added: I hope that the state governments take strict action against the culprits. I express my condolences to bereaved families. The hooch tragedy took a political hue on Sunday, with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath recalling the hands of Samajwadi Party in "such mischievous acts" and BSP chief Mayawati seeking a CBI probe into the matter. Adityanath, from his home turf Gorakhpur, warned of stern action against all those found involved in illicit liquor trade even if they were associated with any political party. "In the past too, such type of mischievous acts by SP leaders had come to fore. In Azamgarh, Hardoi, Kanpur and Barabanki, SP leaders were found to be involved in past hooch tragedies. We can't deny conspiracy this time too," Yogi told reporters Saturday night. Samajwadi Party (SP) president and former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government on Sunday over the deaths in the tragedy. He said, "The opposition has been notifying the government about such activities, but they did not act as some of its leaders are involved. The truth is that without the backing of the government, such businesses cannot be carried out. The BJP should accept the fact that they cannot run the state." The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), the SP's alliance partner for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, also blamed the BJP governments in UP and Uttarakhand for the deaths. BSP chief Mayawati in a statement said both the state governments were "callous" in their approach towards banning sale of spurious liquor and demanded a CBI probe into the tragedy. She said till the CBI probe was complete, excise ministers of both the states should be asked to step down to ensure free and fair inquiry. Mayawati said bootleggers who are running a parallel administration right under the nose of the authorities and selling spurious liquor. More than 90 people have died in the hooch tragedy that hit two adjoining districts in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh with more people dying of the spurious liquor they drank at a Haridwar village, officials said. (With PTI inputs) For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: From Parliament to the Election Commission to the CBI, the Congress has singularly damaged all the premier institutions of India, Union Minister Arun Jaitley said on Sunday while giving a clarion call to protect the country from 'institution wreckers'. Jaitley, who on Saturday returned to India after his treatment in the United States, put out a hard-hitting post on Facebook, accusing the grand-old party of launching 'fake campaigns' against the defence forces, judiciary and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in the last few months. Titled 'Institutions Under Attack - The Latest Fabrication', the post starts with the criticism of Congress president Rahul Gandhi for his significant role in disrupting the parliament proceedings at 11:00 am every morning and also accused the opposition of spreading lies over Rafale on a personal hatred for Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In a veiled attack at the Congress for organising loot on the banks between 2008-2014, Jaitley said the party is now alleging that industrial loans had been waived. "Not a single rupee was waived. On the contrary, the defaulters have been thrown out of management and Congress's falsehood was exposed," he wrote. Stating that the government has consistently maintained an arm's length distance with the Election Commission, he said the attack on the EVMs is not merely to allay defeat, it is an attack on the commission. READ | Arun Jaitley returns to India after treatment, says 'delighted to be back home' Moving on to the Opposition's attempt to raise serious doubts on the credibility of the Indian Armed Forces, the BJP leader said, "It is the Opposition which questioned first the existence of the surgical strike and then played it down as a routine action which has also taken place in the past". "The Army Chief was described as a 'Sadak ka Gunda'. Serious doubts have been raised on the Air Force led choice of the combat aircraft Rafale and its negotiation process. In the face of all this, they allege that institutions are under attack by the Government would be a mockery?" Jaitley went on to claim further. Jaitley, who is currently minister without portfolio, also gave a mention to the high-octane political drama over the appointment of new CBI director in the last few months. "Restoring the credibility of an investigative agency is strengthening the institution and not assaulting it," the Union Minister said. READ | What super emergency? Jaitley blasts Didi over dharna, dubs Opposition as Kleptocrats Club The blog, which is divided into sub-heads, in its last stanza, also accused the Opposition of maintaining a two-way approach to the CBI, saying "the CBI should be attacked when it investigates corruption but if the Government takes action to restore the credibility of the CBI, the Government should be put in the dock". On CBI vs Mamata face-off in Kolkata, Jaitley said, "In West Bengal, democracy is seriously under peril. BJP leaders cant land, public meetings are being prevented and the Rath Yatra was disallowed". Talking about the recently concluded Assembly polls in Chhattisgarh, Jaitley said the Congress had aligned with the Maoist in the Chhattisgarh elections and was always in the forefront of defending the urban Naxals in court. Jaitley ends his blog with an appeal to millions of Indians to protect India and its institutions from these institution wreckers. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. highlights Mukul Roy was booked in connection with the killing of TMC MLA. Satyajit Biswas was shot dead in West Bengal's Nadia district. BJP leader Dilip Ghosh termed allegations against Mukul Roy 'baseless'. New Delhi: BJP leader Mukul Roy was among the four people booked on Sunday in connection with the killing of Trinamool Congress MLA Satyajit Biswas in West Bengal's Nadia district, a senior police officer said. Of the four people named in the FIR, two have been arrested, an officer of the West Bengal Police told PTI. Biswas (41), who represented Krishnaganj constituency in the state assembly, was shot from point-blank range by unidentified gunmen on Saturday evening inside a Saraswati puja marquee at Phoolbari area in the district bordering Bangladesh. He was immediately taken to a local hospital where doctors announced him "brought dead". "So far, we have arrested two persons in this case and detained another three. A country-made revolver used to shoot the MLA has also been recovered. "As per our primary findings, it seems that the victim was fired from behind and the act was the result of a well-planned plot," the officer said. Asked about the chances of the assailants fleeing the area, the police officer said the state police have been put on a high alert. "Nadia shares border with Bangladesh and there could be a possibility of them (assailants) trying to escape to the neighbouring country. Police have been put on high alert to check the movements along the border," he said. Roy, a former TMC member of Parliament, joined the BJP last year after his relations soured with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Claiming that the attack was a conspiracy by the BJP, TMC secretary-general Partha Chatterjee said Saturday that those involved in the killing will be punished after a full-fledged inquiry. He also said the saffron party was trying to create disturbances ahead of the Lok Sabha polls and resorted to "politics of murder" by singling out leaders having mass bases. The allegations were termed "baseless" by Roy and BJP state president Dilip Ghosh. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Former Karnataka chief minister SM Krishna revealed that he had to quit the UPA government and Congress party because of "constant interference" from Rahul Gandhi. Krishna, who was the foreign minister in the Manmohan Singh cabinet, said that he had to resign from the post of external affairs minister as it had become unbearable to continue due to constant interference. He had also talked about this when he resigned in 2017. "Ten years ago, Rahul was an MP and didn't hold any party post but would interfere in all matters. Even though Manmohan Singh was the PM, many subjects were taken up without bringing it to his notice. Congress did not have any control over alliance parties. It was then that all major scams like 2G spectrum, Commonwealth and coal were reported. Such situations arise when there's no able leadership," said Krishna who later crossed over to BJP. "As I was in power in the UPA government from 2009 to 2014, I'm equally responsible for all good and bad things which happened then," he said, adding that the then PM did not have control over his cabinet and government as everything was being controlled by Rahul who acted like an extra-constitutional body. The 84-year-old was one of the close aides of Indira Gandhi and her son Rajiv and held key ministerial positions at both the Centre and state. The party also appointed him as the 19th Governor of Maharashtra from 2004 to 2008. However, the veteran Congress leader left the party as he was sidelined. Krishna continues to hold sway in the Mandya, Mysore and Tumkur region, which has remained a Vokkaliga stronghold. New Delhi: Congress General Secretary for Uttar Pradesh (UP)-East Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and General Secretary for UP-West Jyotiraditya Scindia will visit Lucknow on Monday. February 11, along with Congress President Rahul Gandhi. The tour is expected to last for four days. This will be Priyanka's first visit after being appointed as the general secretary. According to reports, the leaders are expected to carry out a 12-kilometre long road show. Senior Congress leader KC Venugopal said after the road show the leaders are expected to interact with the party workers at the Congress office in the Uttar Pradesh capital. According to officials, the party office in the state has been revamped and preparations are on in full swing to welcome the newly-appointed general secretaries. In an audio message, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said: "I am coming to Lucknow tomorrow, I wish that together we'll begin a new politics and you be a part of it. Youth, women and marginalised, everyone's voices will be heard. Let's establish a new future and politics." Priyanka Gandhi, 47, and Scindia, 48, took charge as AICC general secretary UP East and UP West respectively last week. Her formal entry into politics and being given the charge of Uttar Pradesh assumes significance as the state, where 80 out of 543 Lok Sabha seats are at stake, plays a crucial role in the formation of the central government. In boosting the party's prospects, Priyanka's challenge will involve taking on two formidable political formations - BJP-led NDA and SP-BSP alliance. About 42 Lok Sabha seats fall in the region whose charge will be under her. The major constituencies that fall in the region under her charge include Varanasi, Amethi, Rae Bareli, Gorakhpur, Lucknow, Azamgarh, Deoria, Basti, Allahabad and Chandauli. In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the Congress could win only two seats in the state -- Amethi and Rae Bareli seats -- while the BJP won 71 seats, its ally Apna Dal got 2 and Samajwadi Party bagged 5 seats. Not just the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the Congress challenge fell flat even in the 2017 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections for which Rahul Gandhi had formed an alliance with SP chief Akhilesh Yadav. The BJP heavily dominated the results with as many as 312 out of 403 Assembly seats, while the Congress and SP alliance won a total of 54 seats. In the 2009 Lok Sabha elections, the Congress had 22 seats, most of them from the eastern region. (With agency inputs) New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday launched a scathing attack on Andhra Pradesh CM and TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu, saying he has made a "U-turn" on promises of development to the state and only trying to replicate NDA government's schemes. Our government gave to Andhra Pradesh much more than what was mentioned in special status. CM of Andhra Pradesh acknowledged this package but took a U-turn as they failed to use the funds in the appropriate way and were not able to develop the state," PM Modi said, addressing a public rally. Modi lashed out at Naidu for aligning with the Congress, saying the former chief minister NT Ramarao (NTR) had launched the party to make Andhra Pradesh "congress-mukt" after he was a victim of its 'arrogance.' Naidu was indeed a senior to him, but only in losing elections, switching alliances and ditching his father-in-law NT Rama Rao, PM Modi said at a public rally in Andhra Pradeshs Guntur. "He keeps reminding me he is senior. There is no debate in this. I have never shown any disrespect to you since you are a senior. You are a senior in changing alliances. A senior biting the back of your own father-in-law. A senior in losing one election after the other, where as I am not," the Prime Minister said. Further, Naidu was senior in embracing tomorrow those whom he would abuse today, PM Modi said. PM Modi alleged Naidu was taking him on since the Centre had sought details of every paise given to Andhra Pradesh. Naidu had promised walking in the footsteps of NTR, Modi said and asked if the Chief Minister had lived by it. "The arrogance of Delhi (during the Congress rule) has always insulted states. And NTR that is why decided to make AP Congress-mukt and floated the TDP. The TDP leader who has to resist the arrogance of the Naamdaars (famous and powerful people) and crush their arrogance is siding with them," he said in an apparent swipe at Naidu joining hands with the Congress. "This chowkidar (watchman) has disturbed his sleep.. wanted to know the details of every paise given to Andhra Pradesh," PM Modi said. Naidu promised the sunrise of Andhra Pradesh but is fixated with the rise of his own son N Lokesh, PM Modi charged. The Chief Minister promised the redevelopment of Amaravati but is now engaged in his own development, the Prime Minister alleged. He said Naidu had not initiated any new programmes for the poor but was only putting his stamp on the NDA government's development schemes. On providing clean fuel in the country, Modi said while in 60 years, only 12 crore gas connections were given, the NDA government had given 13 crore gas connections in just four years. Earlier, the Prime Minister dedicated two major petroleum and gas projects--a strategic petroleum reserve facility at Visakhapatnam and a gas field at Amalapuram to the nation through remote control system. He also laid the foundation-stone for the construction of a coastal terminal of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited at Krishnapatnam in SPS Nellore district. Addressing the rally, PM Modi said "Our aim is to have a New India that is clean and pollution-free. Such projects are the key to the nations energy security," PM Modi said. The Centre was building oil reserves at various locations across the country to ensure there was no shortage of oil and gas in times of crises, he said, referring to a similar facility he inaugurated in the north-east on Saturday. "Our government has been working continuously to make India a clean fuel economy and several projects have been initiated in this direction," he added. Referring to the strategic petroleum reserve facility of Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserve Limited (ISPRL) at Visakhapatnam and the ONGCs Vasishta S1 gas field in the Krishna-Godavari Basin at Amalapuram, the Prime Minister said they would not only help create jobs but also aid in the development of gas-based industries in the region. Earlier, when PM Modi arrived at Gannavaram airport in Vijayawada, TDP workers staged protests. This is Modi's first visit to the state after the ruling Telugu Desam Party severed ties with the NDA in March last year. The Chandrababu Naidu-led party quit the BJP-led alliance protesting the "injustice" done to the state post-bifurcation. Giving the protocol a go-by, none of the state ministers turned up at the Gannavaram airport to formally receive the Prime Minister. BJP leaders alleged that people were "thwarted," from reaching the venue in large numbers and said countdown would start for Naidu with Modi's rally at Guntur. Commenting on the black balloon protests against him by TDP workers, PM Modi quipped he welcomed it recalling the tradition of smearing black to ward off evil designs. 12:38 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In People of Andhra Pradesh want corruption-free government, says PM Modi. 12:37 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Chandrababu Naidu has belittled the tradition of Andhra Pradesh, says PM Modi. 12:36 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Chandrababu Naidu has reserved all the slangs in the dictionary to use against Modi, says PM Narendra Modi in Andhra Pradesh. 12:33 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In My government is dedicated for the development of Andhra Pradesh, says PM Modi. 12:33 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In I understand the problems of the state government, their aspirations: PM Modi. 12:30 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In I would like to put a full stop on a series of lies. In the past 55 months, Central govt has released adequate funds for the development of Andhra. However, the state govt never utilised the funds allocated in an efficient manner: PM Modi. 12:26 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In When a chief minister keeps on lying then it is for all to believe that the later is losing the confidence of the people: PM Modi 12:22 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In It's our collective responsibility to work together for the development this country: PM Modi. 12:20 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In The leader of TDP who should have worked for Congress Free India is now supporting the Congress Party: PM Modi. 12:20 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Chandrababu Naidu promised to realize the dreams and also to follow the footsteps of NTR. But today is he giving respect to NTR?: PM Modi 12:18 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In At whose expense is Chandrababu Naidu going to Delhi tomorrow? The people of Andhra Pradesh should ask him: PM Modi. 12:24 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In I have heard that they are now planning to come to Delhi. I would insist that before coming to Delhi they should give the detail of his expenses to the people of Andhra: PM Modi. 12:14 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Because I ask the details of every penny sent, that is the reason why Chandrababu hates me: PM Modi. 12:13 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In CM of Andhra promised to develop the infrastructure of Andhra but took a U-turn. He promised the redevelopment of Amravati but is now engaged in his own development: PM Modi 12:12 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Your 'Chowkidaar' is creating a lot of difficulties for Chandrababu Naidu: PM Modi. 12:12 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Naidu is trying to establish his son in politics: PM Modi. 12:11 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Chandrababu Naidu is fearing loss in the upcoming elections: PM Modi. 12:11 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Chandrababu Naidu can't face hard facts, today, I will tell the truth: PM Modi 12:09 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Those who left the people of the country to live in smoke are now spreading the smoke of lies in the country. CM of Andhra Pradesh has also lost his vision of development and has joined them in their competition of abusing Modi: PM Modi. 12:08 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In It was NTR's dream to make country 'Congress Free', says PM Modi. 12:08 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Congress has always insulted senior politicians, says PM Modi. 12:07 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Chandrababu is senior to me when it comes to insulting people, says PM Modi. 12:07 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Chandrababu is senior to me when it comes to changing parties, says PM Modi. 12:07 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Chandrababu is senior to me when it comes to lossing elections, says PM Modi. 12:06 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Chandrababu is senior to me when it comes to backstabbing, says PM Modi. 12:04 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Chandrababu Naidu has stabbed his own father-in-law, says PM Modi 11:59 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Those who had pushed the country into pollution are now coming together to form Mahamilwat, says PM Modi. 11:57 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Our government is continuously working to make India a clean fuel economy and several projects have been initiated in this direction: PM Modi 11:56 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In We are providing gas connections to poorest of the poor people: PM Modi. 11:54 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Our aim is to make 'New India' pollution free: PM Modi 11:52 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Amravati is also called as the Oxford and the youth from different places come here to fulfill their dreams: PM Modi. 11:53 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In The Central government has selected Amravati as the heritage city under the Hriday Scheme: PM Modi. 11:46 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In The love of people from Andhra Pradesh has been giving me energy to work more for the development of the state: PM Narendra Modi 11:44 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In I congratulate the youngsters of Andhra Pradesh who will be casting their votes for the first time. 11:34 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Prime Minister Narendra Modi lays the foundation stone for Krishnapatnam Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd (BPCL) coastal terminal project in Guntur. New Delhi: A 25-year-old Indian Engineering Services (IES) officer allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in his room on Saturday in southwest Delhi's Munirka area. He was reportedly suffering from depression. According to a news agency PTI, the officer was identified as Pranav Tiwari, from the Rewa district in Madhya Pradesh. Reportedly, Tiwari was living with his three batchmates, who went by the names Dheeraj Pandey, Devender Patel and Vivek. On Saturday evening, Pandey and Patel had gone to Saket Mall and Vivek had left for his native place. However, Pranav was alone at the flat. The police said that when Pandey and Patel returned home around 9 pm, they found the door locked from inside. They arranged a ladder and climbed up from the balcony and saw Tiwari hanging from the ceiling. He was then taken down and rushed to the nearby Fortis Hospital. The hospital staff declared him brought dead on arrival. However, no external injury was found on the body, the police said as quoted PTI. During the interrogation, his flatmates told police that he was suffering from depression. The case is under investigation. Depression is seen as a major reason for people giving up on their lives. Last week, a 21-year-old student of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Hyderabad, allegedly committed suicide by jumping off the seven-storey hostel building on the campus. Initially, it was believed Anirudhya of Secunderabad had fallen off the building by accident while talking over the mobile phone, the police said. Later, an enquiry revealed the incident, which occurred early Thursday, was suicide as the student had mailed his friends that he was ending his life as he had been depressed, they said. His mail said he had contemplated taking the extreme step last week, the police said. In his mail, Anirudhya had said, The decision to end my life is purely logical, based on my estimation of what the future contains. Life holds no intrigue anymore and the daily grind is becoming more difficult with time. For all the Latest Crime News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. MANDATA State police have verified that the threat at Line Mountain School District is a " Please purchase a subscription read this premium content. If you have a subscription, please sign up for a digital website account or log in. A young woman told her mother she was afraid of being murdered days before her body was found in a suitcase on the side of the road. Valerie Reyes, 24, was reported missing on January 30 after she didn't show up to work at a book shop in Connecticut, New York. After a week-long search, on Tuesday (local time) road workers found a large red suitcase several metres off a road in the town of Greenwich. Inside was a horrific sight: the body of a woman with her hands and feet bound. The following day the body was identified as that of Ms Reyes. An autopsy has been performed but the cause of her death has yet to be released. Norma Sanchez, Ms Reyes' mother, said her daughter had become paranoid in the days leading up to her disappearance. She had suffered from anxiety and depression for some time, but it had recently worsened to the point where she was afraid to be alone in her own apartment. "She was very scared, very frightened," Ms Sanchez told The Journal News. She said that during their last phone call, her daughter made a chilling remark: "I'm afraid someone is going to murder me." Ms Sanchez tried to find out exactly what Ms Reyes was frightened of, but said she didn't mention anyone or anything specific. She had broken up with her boyfriend a few days earlier, but told her mother she wasn't scared of him. "We wonder, 'Who made her feel this way?'" Ms Sanchez said. No arrests have been made in relation to Ms Reyes' death, but an investigation is ongoing. Newshub. Air New Zealand has had a disastrous week after two of its flights failed to make it to their destinations. On Wednesday afternoon, Flight 623 left Auckland Airport at 2:20pm but never made it to Queenstown. Strong tailwinds prevented the plane from touching down on the notoriously difficult runway, and it had to be redirected to Christchurch. After 40 minutes of refuelling, during which time all passengers had to remain on board, the flight finally took off again - back to Auckland. Passengers were furious at the news and there were lengthy queues for the toilets on the A320 due to the unexpectedly long flight, NZME reports. Five hours after leaving the city, the plane landed back in Auckland. Passengers were given hotel accommodation and booked onto a flight back to Queenstown on Thursday morning. It was only the first turnaround drama for Air New Zealand. Flight 289 took off from Auckland Airport just before midnight on Saturday evening, bound for Shanghai. But halfway through the 12-hour journey, the pilot made an unexpected announcement: the plane had to turn back to New Zealand because Chinese authorities hadn't given the aircraft permission to land. Eric Hundman, an Assistant Professor at NYU Shanghai, was onboard the plane and tweeted about his experience, calling it "a new level of China Bad". The Minister of Agriculture says the Government will do all it can to help support farmers and growers affected by the Nelson fires. The massive blaze in the Tasman District is now into its sixth day with winds of up to 50km/h expected to fan the flames. Damien O'Connor told Magic Talk's Rural Exchange getting the blaze out is a challenge, describing it as a "big, mean fire". However, he praised the the work being done. "It's a very co-ordinated effort, alot of agencies are working together. It's impressive to watch, but sad to see," he said. He said the fulll extent of the damage to farms isn't known. "Some farmers have been affected, not too many big commercial operations, but there are some," said Mr O'Connor. "We've had fences bowled over to bring in fire breaks, so stock control is a big issue." "Once we have the fire under control we can talk about getting things up and running." Meanwhile latest information from MPI said crews have been working hard to rescue animals and stock. "Where possible, animals are being tended to in place, which is less stressful for them. Crews are working behind the cordon where they can, taking food and water and in some cases bringing animals back to the Richmond Showgrounds," MPI response manager Charlotte Austin said in a statement. "One of three farms in the area had its 150 cows and 50 calves moved to a less vulnerable part of the farm. From another property 10 pigs and piglets were rescued and taken to the Showgrounds, and household pets have also been taken there. MPI said donations of food to the Richmond Showgrounds have been plentiful and there is currently no urgent need for more. Vernon Tava has officially announced his new centrist environmentally focussed party, Sustainable New Zealand. The party promises to work with both National and Labour, unlike the Green Party, which has said any deal with the National Party is unlikely. "Instead of negotiating with both major parties, they have made a decision to always support the formation of a Labour Government meaning that Labour can take them for granted," the Sustainable NZ Party website says. "This is no way to get the best deal for the environment." Mr Tava first suggested the idea of a "blue-green" business friendly, environmentally focussed party in January. National Party leader Simon Bridges said at the time he had not been involved in planning the party, but said it could be a good idea. "I think in truth what you've got in the Green Party that's in Parliament is a party that's very much to the left of Labour - so that's not for everyone. "I think the idea of a party in the middle that wasn't about all the left-wing stuff, if you like, but was about the environment and doing something with that, could be quite powerful." But not everyone is on board. "There's a chance this party might be worse for the National Party," says political commentator Bryce Edwards said in January. "It might take votes away from the National Party, yet it may not get to 5 percent." At the same time Mr Shaw defended his party's stance of not working with National. "What they are saying is they want to be a party that works alongside the National Party," he told Newstalk ZB. "People who vote for the Green Party have shown time and time again that their vast preference is for us to support Labour-led Governments." Newshub. "We know that there is additional work that needs to be done though," she said. "We need to make sure that schools, that workplaces and our communities are inclusive places for particularly our LGBTI young people." One major issue the Government is taking aim at is conversion therapy, which Labour is working to end through a Bill from party member Marja Lubek. "Conversion therapy demonstrates that we have so much more work to do, and we have to make sure always that as a country we continue to strive for inclusion," Ms Ardern said. Also appearing at the event was National leader Simon Bridges, who said he was happy to celebrate the "fabulous" Rainbow community. "National really values all everything we see. It's been great fun to walk around, to chat with a whole lot of you and have an awesome time here," he said. "For me as leader of the National Party it's incredibly important that everyone knows National's about diversity, inclusiveness and of course making sure that New Zealand's a place you can be who you are and be who you want to be." Newshub. Simon Bridges believes an upcoming referendum on the personal use of cannabis could be New Zealand's own version of Brexit. Justice Minister Andrew Little announced in December a referendum on the drug will be held at the 2020 election, and it will be binding. The Green Party got an agreement to hold the referendum as part of its confidence and supply negotiations with Labour. There is yet to be an announcement on what question will be asked and it's not yet known what the detail of any proposed law change would be. Mr Bridges told The AM Show he's most likely to vote no, but wants to see what he's up against. "We've got so little detail, so little meat on the bones I think we need to see. "That's the work Paula Bennett's going to do, working out what is the legislation that would go with it, how will it affect police, what will it mean for methamphetamine, all of these things." He compared the current lack of clarity to Brexit, referring to the current crisis as the UK moves to formally exit the European Union without any plan. The NHS is currently stockpiling medicines and supermarkets are stockpiling tinned food due to fears of the fallout from leaving the EU. Mr Bridges said New Zealand could also be in for trouble if it votes without an idea of what the end result would be. "Take the example of Brexit, let's not have a vote and not know what the detail is going to be until afterwards," he said. "Let's work it out before, so we all know exactly what we're up for and what we're voting on." Newshub. New Zealand is in for more pain this week with little rain to combat the deadly fire risk. Around this time of the year, storms coming down from the tropics can often be a source of rain for New Zealand. But this time there's no indication of that happening anytime soon. "A couple of weakening fronts are expected to move over the country, but they are unlikely to bring any significant rain to places that need it," says MetService meteorologist Stephen Glassey. Arthur William Taylor, one of New Zealand's most high-profile prisoners, is free after spending almost 40 years behind bars. Taylor was granted parole in January 2019. He had been denied parole 19 times prior. He spent time in prison on 152 convictions, including fraud, burglary, aggravated robbery and drugs offences. While behind bars, Taylor became known as the "prison lawyer" for leading multiple fights for prisoners' rights. He has fought for the rights of prisoner to vote and smoke in prison during his time behind bars. On leaving Waikeria Prison this morning, Taylor yelled from the car he was travelling in that it felt "great" to be free. He told Newshub he was "sad to be leaving a lot of good guys behind". Newshub. Hundreds of people have rallied in Auckland on Sunday in support of a Ukrainian family facing deportation. Nataliya Shchetkova and her family thought New Zealand would be their home forever. After they arrived here six years ago, they bought La Vista, a popular restaurant in Auckland's St Helier. They now employ 17 full-time staff - up from nine when they bought it. But Immigration NZ says the business does not add enough benefit to New Zealand by creating sustained and on-going employment over and above the existing level of employment. The family of seven have been denied residency and told they should start planning to leave by July 1 - including selling their restaurant if necessary. But the community is doing what it can to keep them here. "I think they bring something very special to New Zealand," a member of the public told Newshub. "We'd love her to stay. She's part of the community and really adds to the colour of this place." ACT Party leader David Seymour has started a petition asking for the family to be granted residency by special direction, which now has over 13,000 signatures. It's one of the most popular in years. "The Government has declined their application for residency despite the family building a successful business as required by their visa requirements," it reads. "I believe it is simply wrong that upstanding citizens be sent to war-torn Ukraine when others of varying character are allowed to stay. Please show your support of the Immigration Minister intervening so they can stay." Jihee Junn for The Spinoff Back in all their misspelled, verbatim glory, we present 10 more of the most entertaining complaints made to and dismissed by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) from July December 2018. Read more: No grounds to proceed: this year's best TV ad complaints rubbished by the ASA How meaty is Meat Week really? (December 2018) What was the ad? Good ol' Stick Man is at it again, wearing a Santa hat and barbecuing various meats to promote Pak n Save's Meat Week sale. "We've got every kind of meat under the sun at low prices," he says. "Meat week: on now at Pak n Save." What was the complaint? The complainant, who apparently drove 45 minutes to get to Pak 'n Save Hastings specifically for its Meat Week deals, found that: "The ad on TV implied that all meat was on special but all we found was some chicken and mince and corned beef. We expected a lot more choice available than this but was bitterly disappointed. Is this false advertising we ask ourselves as they do say on the add ALL meat." What was the decision? 'Is this false advertising?' the complainant duly asks in what I imagine to be a 'Is this a pigeon?' type scenario. Ultimately, the Chair found that it was not, pointing out that the ad actually says "every meat under the sun at low prices" not "ALL meat" as per the customer's complaint. Therefore, the Chair ruled that there were no grounds to proceed. Either way, the next step for them and for all of us in Virginias white majority is to openly and with repentance continue the struggle against cultural and structural racism. We need to listen more attentively to the pain and push back of our African-American fellow citizens, to the justified anger of the womens movements and to the specific needs of the handicapped. In or out of office, this path ahead is clear for Northam and Herring. We must walk it together. PETER KJESETH Lynchburg A more perfect Union When is the time to end gerrymandering? Now is the time as the General Assembly is now reconciling the Senate SJ306 and House HJ615 redistricting resolutions. The Senates SJ306 is the stronger as it has citizen members on the proposed redistricting commission which the House resolution does not. Two years are required to amend the Virginia Constitution. The General Assembly must pass the amendments in two consecutive years with an election of all 140 seats in between 2019 and 2020 before the amendment is placed on the ballot for voters to approve. What he found was shocking. At last count, more than 60 percent of the states 2,030 schools were more than 40 years old, with a handful dating back to before World War I. In Virginia, the average cost of a new elementary school is in the vicinity of $20 million, while middle and high schools are significantly more costly at $40 million and $60 million or more, respectively. And the states more than 1,200 schools that are now beyond 40 years old? Even if they were all built to 50-year-lifespan standards, theyre nearing the end of their useful lives. Stanleys proposed solution was to place a $3 billion bond referendum on the November ballot to set up a funding mechanism for localities to pay for new, modern school buildings. The bond would be financed with a portion of the increased sales tax revenue Virginia anticipates collecting on internet sales, which were previously off-limits to states wishing to tax them. In mid-January, Stanleys bond proposal received the unanimous support of one of the two committees it needed to make it past to get to the Senate floor for a vote. The Privileges and Elections committees 14 members all voted in favor of the bill, signaling their desire that it receive a full debate and up-or-down vote from the full Senate. Britains preeminent position was challenged in 1890 by a unified Germany under Prussian control. Berlin decided to build a powerful navy to challenge Britains dominance of the seas and carve out a colonial empire in Africa. Meanwhile, costly wars in Crimea and South Africa had damaged Britains economic power as it was preparing to fight Germany on the continent when war broke out in 1914. The Great War of 1914 to 1918 produced a major drain on Britains economy, but London chose not to cut back on its vast empire obligations, especially in India. That enabled British leaders to postpone overseas retrenchment until World War II left their country all but bankrupt. A new Labour government, elected in 1945, decided to raise taxes on the wealthy, dismantle its far-flung empire and raise living standards of the British people. Pulling out of Greece and the Middle East and giving India its independence made Britain dependent on the United States for protection and economic support. The reality is that Britain could not sustain great power status because of its economic decline. Americas dilemma. Many of the countrys political leaders, both Republicans and Democrats, acknowledge that the United States is overcommitted militarily around the world and should cut back. AMHERST For Amherst residents looking for a place to grab a cup of coffee, Second Stage may soon have them covered. The nonprofit is pursuing a lease with a potential tenant to operate a coffee shop in the arts center at 194 Second St., said Suny Monk, the organizations president. A yoga class studio, a massage therapist and a jeweler are among nine full-time tenants bringing traffic through the former church, she said, and a coffee shop makes sense to reach those visitors and a broader audience throughout the county. A coffee shop is a suitable fit for Second Stage and could provide full WiFi wireless internet access and serve as a comfortable gathering place in a central spot in Amherst next door to the county administration building, the epicenter of local government. Were so excited about it, Monk said. Its a welcoming atmosphere, which is what were trying to provide in so many ways. In May 2015, the nonprofit entered into a lease agreement with Amherst County to use the vacant 11,000-square-foot facility. Last year it hosted roughly two dozen performances and special events and attracted more than 9,500 visitors, according to a 2018 annual report the nonprofit presented this week to the Amherst County Board of Supervisors. Hubballi: Taking a swipe at Karnataka chief minister HD Kumaraswamy, who has been upset over alliance partner Congresss legislators accusing him of poor governance and praising the works of his predecessor Siddaramaiah, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the Karnataka CM seems to have become everybody's punching bag. Speaking at a rally in Hubballi-Dharwad, the PM made an indirect reference to the growing differences between alliance partners Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) in Karnataka and said it is difficult to know who is in charge of the state. Making the Karnataka coalition upheaval his reference point, Modi said the Opposition wants to impose the same "majboor model" on the entire country. Karnatakas CM appears to be a punching bag for all. Everyone is challenging him and its difficult to figure out whos the in charge of the state. They want to impose the same Mazboor model on the entire country, said PM Modi. Reports of strains within the Congress-JD(S) alliance have been on the rise lately, prompting JD(S) supremo Deve Gowda to slam the Congress leaders for constantly taking potshots at his son Kumaraswamy. Kumaraswamy, too, in his most direct threat yet to Congress, warned that he was ready to step down if the party does not control its MLAs. His blunt statement came after Congress C Puttaranga Shetty, a minister in the state government, said that for him, Siddaramaiah was still the chief minister. But Kumaraswamy warning didnt stop the rebel Congress MLAs from going incommunicado on Friday when he presented the state budget. On Sunday, the Karnataka chief minister said he has not received an invite for the Prime Minister's official programme in Hubballi-Dharwad and accused the Modi government of indulging in "petty politics". "Today's Narendra Modi's programmes, till now no officials have come to invite me," he told reporters before the Prime Minister arrived at Hubballi. Thank you for reading! Please log in, or sign up for a new account to continue reading. To subscribe, click here. Already a subscriber? Click here. Former Starbucks CEO and Chairman Howard Schultz looks out at the audience during a book promotion tour in January 2019. Ohio New Secretary of State Frank LaRose discusses priorities during Lake County visit South Euclid Search and rescue training is focus of workshop Notre Dame College presenting search and rescue training workshop on Feb. 23 Courtesy of Rotary Club of New Milford The Rotary Club of New Milford recently presented its November Student of the Month Award to New Milford High School senior Mackenzie Antonucci. Mackenzie has been a part of the All-Conference Academic Team for three years, is a member of the National Honor Society, the Spanish Honor Society and captain of the NMHS volleyball team. She volunteers with the Girls in the Groove running club for students in third through fifth grade and at the Maureen Haas Cross Country meet in the school system, and works at All Aboard Pizza. Mackenzie will major in physical education/management with the goal of becoming a physical education teacher. Mackenzie, second from right, is shown above with, from left to right, Rotarian Tom McSherry, Mackenzie's mother Julie and NMHS phys ed teacher Victoria Murray. The Greater New Milford Chamber of Commerce hosted its 21st annual Crystal Winter Gala on Saturday night at the Amber Room Colonnade in Danbury. The black-tie optional dinner-dance featured an open bar, cocktail hour, dinner and dessert, as well as a silent auction, wine pull, balloon-pop fundraisers and music. The chamber offers free educational seminars and networking events, awards scholarships, donates to various organizations and hosts community events. Help support your local hometown newspaper/website. Independent local news reporting matters. Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription, for as little as $3, so we can continue to provide independent local reporting on our communities. Courtesy photo/Town of GrovelandState Department of Housing and Community Development Undersecretary Janelle Chan and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito awarded grants to officials from several towns, including Groveland, at a ceremony Thursday at Topsfield Town Hall. Pictured, from left, Chan, Polito, Groveland Town Planner Rebecca Oldham and Finance Director Denise Dembkoski. Our next storm will bring a blast of snow on Tuesday, followed by a change to a wintry mix and rain in much of Southern New England. TUESDAY MORNING The Tuesday morning commute will be fine, with the storm still back to the west. TUESDAY MIDDAY Snow will spread up from southwest to northeast during the lunch hour, arriving first in places like Western Massachusetts and Connecticut. TUESDAY AFTERNOON After school, and during the evening commute, the snow arrives from Worcester to Boston, and eventually into parts of Northern New England too. The snow will quickly become moderate, and even heavy at times. Some school districts may release a little early, and many after school activities will likely be cancelled. If you can leave work early to avoid the traditional commute time, youll avoid the worst of the traffic headaches in all likelihood. TUESDAY NIGHT Warmer air gradually works in after dark on Tuesday, so while everyone starts as snow, well go over to a wintry mix and then plain rain across most of Southern New England. Snow will continue to fall in Northern New England. WEDNESDAY MORNING While it snows in the mountains, the morning commute will be wet around Boston. Expect slushy roads with big puddles, since snow will be blocking some storm drains. WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON The rain in Southern New England gradually ends, while snow slowly winds down in the mountains. ACCUMULATIONS For now, were expecting 1-3 for much of Southeastern Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island before the change to rain. From Boston to Worcester and up into far Southern New Hampshire a widespread 3-6 is expected before changing to a mix and then rain. From the hilly terrain of Southwestern New Hampshire, across to Central New Hampshire and parts of interior Maine 6-9 will fall. Central and Northern Vermont, Northern New Hampshire, and much of Northern Maine will pick up a foot or more. Some spots may get closer to two feet. WHAT COULD CHANGE If the storm comes a little farther north, and more warm air gets involved, totals would decrease for many. A storm that tracks a bit farther south than currently anticipated would keep more cold in place, and would potentially bring more snow to parts of Southern New England. A man is in serious condition at a Boston hospital after he was rescued from an apartment fire in Fairhaven, Massachusetts. Firefighters received calls around 6:10 p.m. Saturday reporting a fire at McCormack Manor, located at 157 Washington Street. Crews found heavy smoke on arrival coming from the back of the multi-unit, 3-story building. A 66-year-old man was rescued from the first floor apartment, where the kitchen was on fire. The man suffered from burns and smoke inhalation and was rushed to St Lukes Hospital in serious condition. He was later taken to Massachusetts General Hospital by Boston Medflight. There is no update on his condition. The fire was contained to the single apartment on the first floor, but the second and third floor apartments suffered smoke damage. The fire is under investigation. On Saturday, people against a new the sign on Interstate 91 in North Haven advertising a weed dispensary in Massachusetts rallied for it to be taken down immediately. The billboard reads Weed is legal 60 miles away and is sponsored by a California-based app called Weedmaps. The app helps its users find pot dispensaries. Ken Welch of the Coalition for a Better Wallingford and others involved in community drug prevention efforts gathered in front of Outfront Media, the outdoor media company that put up the billboard in North Haven. I think putting a sign up is just wrong. You know, youre enticing people to go to a neighboring state and buy marijuana, which is illegal here, and bring it back, said Welch. We dont do it anywhere else. Why are we allowing it for marijuana? Just a mile north of the Weedmaps billboard, another one reads Treatment is closer, a response from Turnbridge, a nationally-recognized drug treatment provider based out of New Haven. But Seymour resident Cody Roberts says cannabis was his treatment. Roberts was at the rally making his case, with a big cannabis flag in hand. Ive been clean off pharmaceutical drugs since May 13, 2009, thanks to cannabis. Cannabis has saved my life, said Roberts. Its a safer alternative to a healthier way of lifestyle. Its a gateway to a better way of life. Its not a gateway to drugs. Its a better way to get off opiates. Samantha Welch from Wallingford isnt so sure about that. She says her 8-year-old sons health is the reason she is concerned about a billboard that could encourage drug use without enough research. His health, his wellness and being able to make an educated decision knowing what hes putting himself at risk for, said Welch. For me its not something you experiment with without the knowledge. You need to know what its going to do and how its going to affect you and without that, youre putting yourself at risk, as well as others. A pregnant woman from Massachusetts and her unborn child were killed in a snowmobile crash in Maine on Saturday, authorities say. Game Warden Corporal John MacDonald says Elizabeth Abelson, 30, of Gloucester, was snowmobiling along with her husband on a trail near Irish Neighborhood Road in Greenwood shortly after 11 a.m. when she lost control of her snowmobile, was ejected and struck trees. Abelson and her unborn child, due in early March, were pronounced dead at Stephens Memorial Hospital in Norway. It's unclear if Abelson's husband was injured in the crash. MacDonald said the couple had recently purchased a 2019 Ski-Doo Grand Touring snowmobile that Abelson was driving at the time of the accident, and that she was wearing a helmet. Bethel Fire and Rescue, the Greenwood Fire Department, PACE Ambulance and the Oxford County Sheriffs Office assisted in the crash. Game wardens are working with the State Medical Examiners Office to investigate the fatal crash. Two people were hospitalized with gunshot wounds after a fight allegedly broke out early Sunday morning in Lawrence, Massachusetts, according to local police. Police say the incident occurred near the intersection of Buswell and Lexington streets after a fight at a house party spilled out into the road. The gunshot victims, both 18-year-old males from Lawrence, sustained non-life threatening injuries in the shooting, authorities say. Officials do not believe the shooting was random and the investigation into the incident continues. It is unclear whether any charges have been filed. Police ask anyone with information about the case to contact them at 978-794-5900. Extremists stormed a luxury hotel in Kenya's capital on Tuesday, setting off thunderous explosions and gunning down people at cafe tables in an attack claimed by Africa's deadliest Islamic militant group. A police officer said at least 15 people had died. "It is terrible. What I have seen is terrible," said Charles Njenga, who ran from a scene of blood, broken glass, burning vehicles and pillars of black smoke. Al-Shabab the Somalia-based group that carried out the 2013 attack at the nearby Westgate Mall in Nairobi that left 67 people dead claimed responsibility for the carnage at the DusitD2 hotel complex, which includes bars, restaurants, offices and banks and is in a well-to-do neighborhood with many American, European and Indian expatriates. A Kenyan police officer said 15 bodies had been taken to the morgue. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to reporters. The U.S. State Department confirmed that an American citizen was among those killed, but did not disclose the identity of the person. On Tuesday, his mother Sarah Spindler, confirmed the American killed was her son, Jason Spindler. Spindler was a graduate of NYU Law and the University of Texas at Austin and had previously volunteered in the Peace Corps. Al-Shabab asserted that 47 people were killed but its Shahada news agency post gave no details. Authorities sent special forces into the hotel to flush out the gunmen. Late Tuesday night, about eight hours after the siege began, Interior Minister Fred Matiang'i said all of the buildings affected had been secured and that security forces were mopping up. "I would like to reiterate that the situation is under control and the country is safe," he said. However, more gunfire was heard about an hour later, Kenyan broadcaster NTV reported. Some family members said they had been in touch with loved ones still hiding inside the complex, waiting to be rescued. Early Wednesday, Kenya's Interior Ministry said a tweet that all buildings had been secured and there was no further threat to the public. "To God be the Glory. We have been rescued. Over 50 people in my group. No injuries Thank you all for the support and prayers. Thanks You KDF," tweeted a Kenyan businesswoman, Aggie Asiimwe Konde. KDF stands for the Kenya Defense Forces. Authorities did not say how many attackers there were or what happened to them though Kenya's Citizen TV aired security-camera footage that showed at least four heavily armed men in dark-colored, paramilitary-style gear. A police officer who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media said bodies were seen in restaurants downstairs and in offices upstairs, but "there was no time to count the dead." A witness who gave his name only as Ken said he saw five bodies at the hotel entrance. Other people were shouting for help and "when we rushed back to try to rescue them, gunshots started coming from upstairs, and we had to duck because they were targeting us and we could see two guys shooting," he said. The coordinated assault began with an explosion that targeted three vehicles outside a bank, and a suicide bombing in the hotel lobby that severely wounded a number of guests, said Kenya's national police chief, Joseph Boinnet. Survivors reported hearing a shattering blast and saw people mowed down by gunmen as they sat in a cafe. Victims were left slumped on tables. "We were changing our shifts, and that is when I heard a loud blast and people were screaming," said Enoch Kibet, who works as a cleaner at the cafe and managed to crawl out a basement gate. "I couldn't believe I was alive. The blast was so loud and shook the whole complex." Kenyan hospitals appealed for blood donations even as the number of wounded remained unclear. Associated Press video from inside the hotel showed Kenyan security officers searching the building and scared workers emerging from hiding while gunfire could still be heard. Some climbed out a window by ladder. One man got up from the floor where he appeared to be trying to hide under a piece of wood paneling, then showed his ID. As officers searched luxury fashion displays, wounded people were carried away on stretchers. Like the attack at the Westgate Mall, this one appeared aimed at wealthy Kenyans and foreigners. It came a day after a magistrate ruled that three men must stand trial in connection with the Westgate Mall siege. Al-Shabab has vowed retribution against Kenya for sending troops to Somalia to fight it since 2011. Tuesday's violence came three years to the day after al-Shabab extremists attacked a Kenyan military base in Somalia, killing scores of people. The al-Qaida-linked group has killed hundreds of people in Kenya. In the deadliest attack, al-Shabab claimed responsibility for an assault on Kenya's Garissa University in 2015 that killed 147 people, mostly students. The latest carnage demonstrated al-Shabab's continued ability to carry out spectacular acts of bloodshed despite a dramatic increase in U.S. airstrikes against it under President Donald Trump. Tourism an important source of revenue in Kenya, East Africa's largest economy has suffered because of the violence. Gunfire could be heard for hours after Tuesday's attack began. Some people ducked behind cars, screaming, while others took cover behind fountains and other features at the lush complex. A bomb disposal unit was called in, and police blew up a car they said had explosives inside. A grenade was seen in a hallway. Dozens of people were rushed to safety as plainclothes officers went from shop to shop in the complex. Some people held up their hands to show they were unarmed. A Kenyan intelligence official said the country had been on high alert since November, with information about potential attacks on high-profile targets in Nairobi. The official was not authorized to talk to the media and spoke on condition of anonymity. Despite the repeated attacks, the Kenya-Somalia border remains porous, with al-Shabab extremists able to easily bribe their way across, according to a U.N. panel of experts. The hotel complex, owned by Thailand's Dusit International chain in Nairobi's Westlands neighborhood, is about a mile (2 kilometers) from Westgate Mall on a relatively quiet, tree-lined road in what is considered one of the most secure parts of the city. The hotel's website says it is "cocooned away from the hustle and bustle in a secure and peaceful haven." On Monday, the hotel promoted its spa by tweeting: "Is your new year off to a rough start?" A 60-year-old Army veteran is fighting for his life after he was robbed and brutally beaten in suburban Hazel Crest, outside of Chicago. According to police, Keith Chamble, a U.S. Army veteran and a former correctional officer, is on life support after he was brutally assaulted during a robbery in his own driveway on Wednesday night. They couldnt tell if he was hit with a bat, kicked, or punched, Shanae Cross, Chambles goddaughter, said. The robbery occurred in front of Chambles home in the 16000 block of Orchard Ridge between 8 and 9 p.m. Wednesday night. A group of individuals, whom police are working to identify, assaulted Chamble and stole his car, cell phone, and other personal items. Chamble was then able to get back into his home and collapsed on his couch, where his 19-year-old daughter discovered him several hours later. The victims car was discovered several blocks away, and other personal effects have also been found, but police have been unable to identify a suspect in the case. This is someone who spent his whole life protecting other people, Cross said. Youve stolen some moments, and some memories, that we wont have. [NATL] Top News Photos: Pope Visits Japan, and More Police, and Chambles family, are asking anyone with information on the case, whether its video or an eyewitness account, to contact authorities. If youre scared of the police or you dont want to talk, we just want to kill this whole no snitching thing, Cross said. We dont have to tell people who you are. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Hazel Crest Police Department at 708-335-9640. What to Know Democrat and Republican leaders demanded Northam to resign after a 1984 medical school yearbook photo with racist imagery surfaced Gov. Ralph Northam has refused to resign, and polls show Virginians are split over whether he should leave office Two women have accused Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax of sexual assault, which he vehemently denies. AG Mark Herring admitted to using blackface Virginians are split over whether Gov. Ralph Northam should resign over a photo on his 1984 medical school yearbook page showing people in blackface and a Ku Klux Klan robe, a new Washington Post-Schar poll shows. When asked whether Northam should step down considering last week's news, 47 percent of respondents said he should step down. An equal number said he should not step down. But that doesn't mean that Northam, who has refused bipartisan calls to resign, faces an easy path forward with Virginians. Seven out of 10 Virginians polled said they disapprove of how Northam has responded to the photo's discovery. Pollers asked if respondents believed Northam when he reneged after admitting he was depicted in the photo, and a large majority 73 percent said they didn't believe the governor's explanation that he actually wasn't in the photo. His overall approval rating sits at 43 percent, with roughly the same number of people disapproving, according to the Post-Schar poll. Northam says he thought about resigning in the days after a racist yearbook photo surfaced and he admitted to wearing blackface at a dance contest in the 1980s. The embattled Democrat told Gayle King of CBS' "Face the Nation" on Sunday that "Yes, I have thought about resigning." But he said he's in a position to lead and that "Virginia needs someone that can heal." He added: "That's why I'm not going anywhere." Many Democrat and Republican lawmakers have publicly called for Northam to resign. In separate interviews on "Face the Nation" on Sunday, U.S. Reps. Jennifer Wexton on Don Beyer, both who represent Northern Virginia, reiterated their calls for resignation and said the governor has lost confidence. Northam said now is the time to take action and to employ government policies to address racial inequalities in the state. The governor also weighed in on the two other controversies that wracked the state, declining to call on Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax or Attorney General Mark Herring to resign. He told CBS it's up to Herring, who also admitted to blackface, and Fairfax, who is accused of sexually assaulting two women, to decide if they want to leave office. Northam said he supports Fairfax's call for an investigation into allegations of sexual assault by two women. Fairfax has vehemently denied the allegations. Herring admitted to wearing blackface in college. Northam said of Herring, that, "just like me, he has grown." This was Northam's first television interview since the photo resurfaced. On Saturday, he emerged back into public view after several days avoiding the spotlight. On Saturday, he gave his first post-scandal interview to the Washington Post. He also attended his first public event, the funeral of State Trooper Lucas B. Dowell, who was killed in the line of duty. Thousands of Spaniards joined a right-wing rally in Madrid on Sunday to demand that Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez step down. Many in the crowd gathered in the capital's Plaza de Colon, waving Spanish flags. They chanted slogans in favor of the nation's security forces and for Sanchez to resign. The conservative opposition Popular Party and the center-right Citizens party organized the rally, which was also backed by the upstart far-right Vox and other marginal far-right parties. They claim that Sanchez must resign for holding talks with separatists in the northeastern region of Catalonia. "The time of Sanchez's government is over," said Popular Party president Pablo Casado, who asked voters to punish Sanchez's Socialists in upcoming European, local and regional elections in May. The political tensions come as a highly sensitive trial at Spain's Supreme Court starts Tuesday for 12 Catalan separatists who face charges, including rebellion, for their roles in a failed secession attempt in 2017. Sanchez inherited the Catalan crisis from former Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, the then-leader of the Popular Party. Rajoy proved incapable of stopping support for secession from swelling in Catalonia to roughly half of the region's voters. Sanchez came to power in June promising to thaw tensions between central authorities in Madrid and the Catalan leaders in Barcelona. He has met twice with Catalan chief Quim Torra and members of both governments had several more encounters. Sanchez had said he would be willing to help Catalan lawmakers agree to a new Charter Law, which determines the amount of self-rule the region enjoys. But Sanchez's government broke off negotiations on Friday, when Vice President Carmen Calvo said the separatists wouldn't budge from their demand for an independence referendum. Sanchez is trying to cobble together support to pass a national budget and will need votes from the Catalan separatists to pass it. Even though Sanchez has said he wants to see out the legislative term through 2020, a failure to win a budget vote will crank up the pressure on him to call for an early election. A man has died after a fire burned through a three-story home in Alexandria. The man who lived on the second floor was killed, the Alexandria Fire Department said. Their identity has not been released. Firefighters rushed to the home on 19 Arell Court after the fire broke out at 9:10 a.m. Saturday. The fire department said that upon arrival to the scene, the fire had spread to all three floors of the home. The fire was accidental, the fire department said, and the most probable cause was an unattended candle. An autopsy investigation is underway. Virginia's embattled governor says he wants to spend the remaining three years of his term pursuing racial "equity." Gov. Ralph Northam told The Washington Post on Saturday that there is a higher reason for the "horrific" reckoning over a racist photograph that appeared in his medical school yearbook. The 59-year-old Democrat gave his first interview to the newspaper since the photograph surfaced. The image shows a man in blackface beside someone in a Ku Klux Klan robe. Northam denies being in the photo. He has admitted to wearing blackface at a 1984 dance party. He told the Post that he overreacted by apologizing for the photo. Northam has ignored widespread calls to resign. He said his experience puts him in a good position to explore the issue of "white privilege" and to pursue an agenda of racial reconciliation. Still, a local NAACP leader says that even if Northam stays in office, he should prioritize policy that advances racial equality. Phillip Thompson, the former president of the Loudoun County NAACP chapter, said that he does not expect Northam to resign. "At this point, we need to see something concrete out of Ralph Northam besides a bunch of lip service where he shows up to a couple churches and a couple events, Thompson told News4. "Let's see some policies." The man who would replace him, Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, is staring down his own career-threatening controversy after two women accused him of sexual assault. Many Democrats have called on him to resign. A car tied to the mysterious disappearance of a 6-month-old boy whose parents are incarcerated was found Friday, police said. Police began the search Thursday for the infant, whose incarcerated parents' last known address was a family shelter in Culver City. The Los Angeles County Department of Child and Family Services reported Jacsun Manson missing on Jan. 25, according to Culver City police Lt. Troy Dunlap. "Jacsun's parents were recently arrested by the Los Angeles Police Department," he said. "At the time of their arrest, the parents were not with Jacsun." According to witnesses, the infant was last seen on Dec. 31 with his parents, prior to when they were taken into custody, Dunlap said. The parents -- identified as Adam Manson and Kiana Williams -- were arrested Feb. 2 after being found in a stolen car and are jailed in Los Angeles County, he said. Investigators have questioned the pair -- who are both being held without bail -- but have not been able to locate their son, Dunlap said. Investigators suspect that the parents previously stole a different car that has not been recovered, the lieutenant said. The blue 2006 Chrysler PT Cruiser was missing a bumper and has likely had its license plates removed, he said. It wasn't immediately clear if the car found Friday afternoon was the suspected stolen Chrysler. "The family was seen in this vehicle, and are known to frequent (the area) of Slauson Avenue and Crenshaw Boulevard (in the Hyde Park section of South Los Angeles)," Dunlap said. Police said Manson has two aliases: Adam Owens and Adam Jackson. Anyone with information regarding the child's whereabouts was urged to call (310) 253-6318 to speak with Culver City police Detective Raya. After hours, calls should be directed to the watch commander at (310) 253-6202. One person died Saturday when a vehicle plunged about 200 feet off the North Angeles Forest Highway, authorities said. The crash was reported at 1:34 p.m. on the North Angeles Forest Highway at the Hidden Spring Picnic Ground in Monkey Canyon, Los Angeles County Fire Department Capt. Ron Haralson said. Firefighters and Urban Search and Rescue teams arrived at the scene at 2:07 p.m., Haralson said. Rescuers were lowered with ropes to the wreckage, where they found one person dead, he said. Rescuers waited for Los Angeles County coroner's officials before removing the body from the wreckage. When Gov. Tom Wolf took office, he told lawmakers that he had a plan to fix Pennsylvania's system of school funding. Four years and a couple of budget fights later, public school advocates say huge gaps still persist between poorer and wealthier districts, while the subject didn't rate a mention this past week in the Democrat's first budget speech to the Legislature after his re-election. That prompted grumbling among Democratic lawmakers, although some in the school-funding trenches say Wolf hasn't necessarily given up. Rather, his silence reflects the difficult politics in the Republican-controlled Legislature, they say. "I think in this particular budget, coming off of a new election with a Legislature that has been at least semi-productive in the last year or two, that the governor said, 'Look, I'm not going to stick a fork in anybody's eye to get started with,'" said Rep. Mike Sturla, D-Lancaster. For his part, Wolf's office says he remains open to a discussion with the Legislature on making school funding fairer. However, someone else may have to carry the torch. For years, Pennsylvania's school-funding system has stuck out nationally, occasionally flagged as one of the least equitable. Districts in the top half of average household income spent $673 more per student than districts in the bottom half, according to an Associated Press analysis of 2016-17 state data on school district spending, income and attendance, the latest available. The gap is wider on the farther ends of the income spectrum: The wealthiest 10 districts spent an average of $4,300 more per student, or more than a quarter above what the poorest 10 districts spent, according to AP's analysis. In 2015, Wolf advanced a couple of strategies to tackle those inequities. He proposed a big increase, $400 million, in state aid for general public school instruction and operations, but it came packaged with a tax increase that didn't fly with Republicans. He floated a $3.2 billion tax-shifting plan cutting property taxes, primarily in poorer districts, and replacing the money with state tax increases in a bid to boost Pennsylvania's state share of school funding to 50 percent. It stalled amid a winners-versus-losers debate and calls to completely eliminate school property taxes. In his new budget plan, Wolf proposed a $200 million increase the upper limit of what lawmakers approved in Wolf's first term and no tax-shifting plan. Then there are ideas to funnel more of the $6 billion-plus in general state aid through a four-year-old school funding formula. Only a fraction of that aid currently goes through the formula, designed to be fairer by reflecting changes in school district attendance and wealth that budget makers largely ignored for 25 years. Now, 70 percent of the state's 500 school districts receive a bigger share of state aid than they would under the updated formula. But proposals to expand the formula's use have fallen flat and became a leading Republican line of attack against Wolf in last year's campaign because they create more losing districts than winning districts. "Certainly you're not going to solve that problem in a single stroke," said Rep. James Roebuck, of Philadelphia, the House Education Committee's ranking Democrat. "We have a budget that's narrowly balanced between conflicting interests, and I don't see any way to quickly resolve that issue." Inequalities in school funding could be partly due to a quarter-century of herky-jerky formulas. Meanwhile, the Pennsylvania state government supplies less than 38 percent of total school revenue, according to federal data from 2016, making it 46 out of 50 states. States average 51 percent. Pennsylvania's relative imbalance leaves poorer school districts overly reliant on inadequate local tax bases and drives inequities between districts, the system's critics say. Dynamics like that are why the parents of six school children, six school districts, the NAACP and a rural schools group are suing the state. The four-year-old lawsuit is scheduled for trial next year, and has sowed concern among Republican lawmakers that the state Supreme Court could order a massive new investment in public schools. In the meantime, public school advocates are trying to build support for ideas to funnel a bigger share of money to districts that are suffering the most. Sturla recalled speaking with Wolf days before his budget speech to see if the governor would propose anything like that. The answer was "no." But, Wolf told him: "Everything is negotiable." Mexican filmmaker Alfonso Cuaron's "Roma," a darling of the 2019 award season with 10 Academy Award nominations and two wins in the Golden Globes, is an intimate story of Cuaron's childhood told through the eyes of an indigenous woman who works as a nanny to a middle-class family in Mexico City. The family drama also provides a gripping glimpse of Mexican society at the cusp of great social change in the early 1970s, a time of migration, urbanization and cultural transformation. "The movie is to a great extent a story about modernization," said Claudio Lomnitz, professor of anthropology at the Department of Latin American and Iberian Cultures at Columbia University. "We see two rural girls come from Oaxaca who have moved to the city. They are indigenous and they speak Mixtec, but they also speak Spanish, they go to the movies, they have sex." Almost 50 years have passed from the time in which the movie is set. How does today's Mexico compare with the Mexico of Cuaron's childhood with regard to the more disturbing social issues it portrays, like violence and social inequality? NBC spoke to four researchers on Mexico from the fields of history, sociology and anthropology. More Violence After the Drug War Begins "Mexico is a country that hurts," said Maria Amalia Gracia, sociologist at the Department of Society and Culture of Colegio de la Frontera del Sur, a research center located on the southern border of Mexico. For Gracia, violence in Mexico today has reached unimaginable levels. "It is surprising that people can continue to live in those conditions," she said. The Corpus Christi Massacre of 1971 is the backdrop to a frightening scene in "Roma," the moment when the film's pregnant protagonist, Cleo, discovers that the father of her child is part of a government paramilitary group. The massacre and the paramilitaries in the film represented the dominant form of violence of the day: centrally directed repressive violence, known as "The Dirty War" that took place under the orders of the presidency and the Ministry of Interior. It was a war that the country's authoritarian one-party regime was fighting, indiscriminately, against two enemies: a growing urban middle class demanding democratization, and a left-wing student movement featuring guerrilla groups, Lomnitz said. "Mexico is a much freer country today, but it is also a much more violent country," Lomnitz said. The new violence is "less heroic, less easy to romanticize." It is no longer about struggles for justice or freedom, against a repressive society and regime. The now prevalent drug-related spike in violence has its roots in 2006, the year Mexico's Drug War formally began. Between the early 1970s and the eve of the Drug War, violence in Mexico had decreased significantly, Lomnitz said. In 2007, homicide rates (9.3 per 100,000 people) were not much higher than in the United States (5.7 per 100,000). But by 2018, they reached 25 per 100,000. At the beginning of the Drug War, the government's official take was that the death toll was to a large extent, a result of organizations killing each other off in turf wars. But recent studies by Mexico's Center for Research and Teaching in Economics (CIDE) suggest that Mexico's military and federal police have executed a substantial proportion of the 150,000 Drug War-related killings. "Much of the violence today also comes from local governments, which are often in the control of criminal organizations," Lomnitz said. The Iguala Massacre of 2014, where 43 students from a rural teachers' college were taken and disappeared, is an example of this new type of violence, as is the fact that during the 2018 federal elections, more than 100 local candidates were assassinated. "The closing of the U.S.-Mexican border is an untold part of this story," Lomnitz said. As moving across the border became more difficult in the 1990s, the firepower and discipline of organized crime trafficking with Colombian cocaine grew. It triggered an increase in the concentration of criminal money, wealth and violence. More recently, powerful Chinese criminal organizations have partnered with Mexican ones to produce methamphetamine in Mexico, destined for the North American market. This development is furthering the concentration of violent criminal power. Tensions Over Land Dampened by Modernization Conflicts over land come up various times in "Roma." The government takes away land belonging to Cleo's mother. A man sitting in a bar has lost a family member due to a land dispute. A family of landowners exhibits on its farmhouse wall, the stuffed head of a pet dog that had been poisoned during another land dispute. And the New Year's party being held by that same family is eerily interrupted by arson in the surrounding woods. "Low-scale agrarian violence is very old in Mexico," Lomnitz said, adding that it goes back to colonial times. And after the land reforms of the 1920s and 1930s, when the countryside was made up of small scale farmers, conflicts sprung up between towns, between smallholders, and between smallholders and larger landowners. Conflict over land began to recede in the 1980s due to an increasing migration to the city, which led to fewer land disputes in the countryside. "Roma" shows the beginning of this migration. Cleo visits, in search of her baby's father, a shantytown located just outside of Mexico City limits that was beginning to be occupied by squatters, migrants from the countryside. Today, this place, known as Ciudad Nezahualcoyotl with a population of 1.1 million, is the 10th largest city in Mexico. A Continuing Racial Divide Yalitza Aparicio, the first indigenous woman to be Oscar-nominated for best leading actress, plays Cleo, the servant of a white family. She is treated with affection and care, but the difference in social status is enforced at all times, in both explicit and subtle ways. For example, while cuddling with the family in front of the TV, she is abruptly ordered to fetch tea for "the doctor." "She is very lucky," said Kevin Terraciano, professor of history and director of the Latin American Institute at UCLA. Indigenous servant women are not always treated well. Nobel Peace Prize winner Rigoberta Menchu has spoken of how vulnerable she felt living with a family as a young woman. Sexual advances and mistreatment is an underlying possibility. "Since that decade, there has been increased awareness of the problems faced by domestic workers," Gracia said, "but racism and behaviors underscoring inequality continue to exist. Results of our most recent research on domestic workers are eloquent on the problems of discrimination and abuse." Some progress has been made at the legislative level in recognizing the rights of the indigenous population. Laws protecting the right to their languages and culture, and to self-empowerment have been enacted since the turn of the century. A rebellion of indigenous people in the 1990s, known as the Zapatista rebellion, in which paramilitary death squads massacred indigenous people, marked the beginning of increased awareness. Since then, indigenous communities have also made progress in "the creation of autonomous communities, which give them more direct representation over their land and resources," Terraciano said. But it is still common to see indigenous women working as servants. And the indigenous populations remain extremely poor. "Here in Mexico being indigenous gives you a particular social status. There is a marginalization, a social discrimination that we Mexicans know by the social norms and social codes with which we are educated," said Jesus Ruvalcaba, a researcher at the Center for Research and Higher Studies in Social Anthropology (CIESAS) in Mexico City. "There has been some progress, but not much." Being "indio" in Mexico continues to be a stigma. And the indigenous people feel it and know it, Terraciano said. "After independence from Spain, the leaders of the new nation saw these traditional cultures as obstacles." Since then, governments have used laws and force to dissolve native communities and mainstream indigenous peoples. "Today, leaders continue to speak of the 'Indian problem.'" A school district on Long Island said it was investigating after a photo of nooses was allegedly displayed in a middle school classroom. "The Board of Education has zero tolerance for the display of racially offensive images," the Roosevelt Union Free School District said on its website. The board was made aware of the photo on Thursday and immediately started an investigation, the statement said. The Rev. Arthur L. Mackey Jr. sent a copy of the photo to NBC 4 New York. It showed two nooses with the words "back to school necklaces." Mackey said it was hanging in a classroom at Roosevelt Middle School as part of a photo collage. The Hempstead Town Supervisor said the teacher or teachers responsible to be immediately dismissed. This imagery that was on display in a Roosevelt Middle School classroom is undoubtedly racist and should not be tolerated in our Town, or any other community, Supervisor Laura Gillen said. The imagery is also deeply insensitive and troubling to anyone with mental health issues and those contemplating suicide. What to Know Activists protesting a prominent donor family's link to the opioid crisis littered the Guggenheim Museum with scraps of paper The scraps were meant to look like subscriptions. The protest targeted members of the Sackler family who own OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma The group wants museums to refuse donations from Sackler family members whose wealth comes from OxyContin Activists protesting a prominent donor family's link to the opioid crisis littered New York's Guggenheim Museum with scraps of paper designed to look like prescriptions. The New York Times reports that Saturday's protest targeted members of the Sackler family who own OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma. It was organized by a group founded by photographer Nan Goldin. The group wants museums to refuse donations from Sackler family members whose wealth comes from OxyContin. Videos posted on Twitter show slips of paper raining down the Guggenheim's central spiral. The Guggenheim's education facilities are housed in the Sackler Center for Arts Education. Goldin's group staged a similar protest last March at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Purdue officials have said that the company is working to fight opioid abuse. An influential Harlem designer says the Gucci CEO has agreed to meet him in New York City this week to discuss a sweater that resembled blackface. Dapper Dan, whose given name is Daniel R. Day, made the announcement on Instagram Sunday. "There is no excuse nor apology that can erase this kind of insult," he wrote. He said the CEO also agreed to meet with community members and industry leaders. "There cannot be inclusivity without accountability," Day wrote. Gucci apologized for the turtleneck black wool balaclava sweater, which covered the nose and included a red cut-out for the mouth. The fashion house pulled it from online and physical stores. Dapper Dan has had previous qualms with the brand which appeared to copy one of his designs in 2017, but more recently partnered with the fashion house to open the Gucci Dapper Dan Atelier Studio, an homage to his original Dapper Dan Boutique in Harlem. Gucci's parent company, Kering, didn't immediately respond to an email seeking comment. Director Spike Lee said he would no longer wear Gucci or Prada until the brands hire some black designers, following a pair of blackface fashion fails. Prada has apologized for a monkey bag charm resembling blackface in December. What to Know Three people died and two others were injured after a police chase ended in a crash on Long Island, authorities said The chase started after an officer spotted a 17-year-old driving a car that had been reported stolen, police said A 74-year-old driver and his 71-year-old wife were killed when the 17-year-old hit their car. A 16-year-old passenger also died A teenager in a stolen car drove away from police until he crashed with another vehicle, killing a couple in that car and one of his passengers, his half brother, police said Sunday. The couple that died in the Saturday night crash in Yaphank, Jerome and Randee Weingarten, was turning into their gated community after a Saturday night out when they were struck, police said. An officer spotted a Nissan Rogue that had been reported stolen after its driver failed to stop at a stop sign on Main Street in Yaphank around 11:45 p.m. Saturday, Suffolk County police said. The officer tried to pull the driver over, but the driver, 17-year-old Nahriek Belford, of Bellport, refused to stop, according to police. The officer called for backup and started following Belford, police said. Belford was driving west on Route 25 when he hit a Honda CRV that was trying to make a left turn onto Birchwood Park Drive, according to police. The Weingartens, ages 74 and 71, were pronounced dead at the scene, police said. Belfords half-brother Angelo Belford, 19, was also pronounced dead, police said. Nahriek Belford and another passenger in the Nissan, a 16-year-old boy, were hospitalized with serious but non-life threatening injuries, police said. Belford has been charged with one count of reckless endangerment but is expected to face additional charges, according to police. His attorney information wasnt immediately available. Police said the pursuit lasted for around five miles, but said the speed at which the vehicles were traveling hadn't been determined. Shia LaBeouf latest film was born in an unusual place court-ordered rehab. The actor spent time writing the script for his semi-autobiographical "Honey Boy" while he was being treated for substance abuse after a 2017 arrest. "He wrote this script in rehab and actually sent me an email from there with the script," said Israeli director Alma Har'el. "So it was pretty mind-blowing. I couldn't say no to that." LaBeouf premiered the film at the Sundance Film Festival on Friday in Park City, Utah. He didn't speak with the media but posed alongside his mother, Shayna Saide, and fellow actors. The former "Transformers" star plays an alcoholic and abusive father of a child actor, who is played at different ages by Noah Jupe (of "A Quiet Place") and Lucas Hedges ("Boy Erased"). "I think it was emotionally difficult for anybody to do what he did and I think nobody has ever done it before," Har'el said. "He stepped into his own trauma and played his father in it the most complicated relationship he's ever had, that defined his life more than anything else." LaBeouf had admired an early documentary by Har'el and they'd developed a working relationship over the years. "We did a music video. He was kind enough to finance my second film when nobody but nobody else would," she said. In 2017, LaBeouf pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of obstruction stemming from his attempt to elude police following a vulgar public outburst in Georgia. He was also ordered to pay $2,680 in fines and fees, perform 100 hours of community service, enroll in anger management counseling and complete a drug and alcohol evaluation. That's when he began on "Honey Boy." Har'el said the film shines a light on LaBeouf's private struggles. "It's a story about the things you inherit. Shia definitely inherited a lot of his passion towards acting from his father. But he also inherited other things that he has to deal with for the rest of his life. And he's trying to do it as best as he can. He had to do it in the public eye, unlike many of us. So it's been very challenging. And I think this film really kind of deals with that," she said. "Honey Boy" is seeking a distributor at Sundance. An incident where a South Florida woman's abduction was captured on camera has been determined by police to be related to domestic violence. According to Miami Police, the woman was found safe Sunday and is in good condition. Detectives are now following up on the investigation. Neither the woman nor the man in the video have been identified. According to officials, the incident happened Friday at a tire shop located at the 2300 block of Northwest 36th Street. "She asked us like, 'Hide me! Hide me! He's going to kill me! Call 911," said one witness on Saturday. "He was screaming a lot of times. Like, 'I'll give you five seconds! Five... four." Cameras caught the woman rushing toward two men standing outside of a tire shop. The men said she was visibly upset and ran inside to hide in a restroom. But less than a minute later, a man drove up to the scene. Thats when you see the woman being forcibly pushed towards the car. "It appears that in the video, he has his arms wrapped around her neck as he forces her inside the vehicle," said Officer Kiara Delva of Miami Police. Anyone with information on this incident that can help police with their investigation are urged to call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS. Hallandale Beach voted to condemn a city commissioner's controversial comments she said on social media toward a Muslim congresswoman. Commissioners voted 3-2 to condemn Anabelle Lima-Taub's comments in a meeting Wednesday night as critics and supporters of the Hallandale Beach commissioner held demonstrations outside City Hall ahead of the vote. Lima-Taub, who was elected to the Hallandale Beach commission in 2016, posted a petition calling for the removal of Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib saying she proudly signed it and called Tlaib an anti-Semite with no place in government." "She is a danger and (I) would not put it past her to become a martyr and blow up Capitol Hill, Lima-Taub added in the post, which was later removed. The commissioner later defended her comments in Wednesday's meeting. "I never ever mentioned Muslim or Islam. I repeat, I never ever mention Muslim or Islam," Lima-Taub said. Tlaib has been a lightning rod for conservatives after the Democrat made a comment the night of her inauguration in which she said she would help the party "impeach the motherf---er" in referring to President Donald Trump. Hallandale Beach city commissioner Michele Lazarow says she does not support the congresswoman from Michigan. But she also does not support the language that her fellow commissioner used about Tlaib online. "People what to hear a response. If I do not stand up to these comments and say this is not an official comment from the city, that the city does not support this racism, then I am just complicit," Lazarow said. Lima-Taub, who is Jewish, said she was standing by her words. Some of her supporters said they are standing by her. "We stand with her, we believe shes right. Theres freedom of speech, she can criticize people in Congress if she want to to," Diane Kay said. Others believe she should resign. "Those comments to me were personally hurtful. When I think back at what those comments turn into action, then turn into bullying for our school children, they turn into harassment to our small business owners," said Ammar Ahmed. Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren made her bid for the presidency official on Saturday in the working-class city of Lawrence, Massachusetts, grounding her 2020 campaign in a populist call to fight economic inequality and build "an America that works for everyone." This is the fight for our lives, she said. The fight to build an America where dreams are possible, an America that works for everyone. I am in that fight all the way. Warren delivered a sharp call for change at her presidential kickoff, decrying a "middle-class squeeze" that has left Americans crunched with "too little accountability for the rich, too little opportunity for everyone else." The rich and powerful use fear to divide us, Warren said. Were done with that. Bigotry has no place in the Oval Office. She and her backers hope that message can distinguish her in a crowded Democratic field and help her move past the controversy surrounding her past claims to Native American heritage. Weaving specific policy prescriptions into her remarks, from Medicare for All to the elimination of Washington "lobbying as we know it," Warren avoided taking direct jabs at President Donald Trump. She aimed for a broader institutional shift instead, urging supporters to choose "a government that makes different choices, choices that reflect our values." Trump "is not the cause of what's broken," Warren told an elated crowd without using the president's name. "He's just the latest - and most extreme - symptom of what's gone wrong in America." One thing missing from Senator Warrens speech was any mention of the ongoing controvery surrounding her claims of Native American heritage, an issue that re-emerged this past week. I just dont think its a big deal, said Denise OConnor of Billerica. I understand how many of the Native American tribes could take offense to it. In a tweet, Trump referenced the controversy over her Native American identity, once again using the insulting nickname he's given her. "Today Elizabeth Warren, sometimes referred to by me as Pocahontas, joined the race for President,'' Trump tweeted. "Will she run as our first Native American presidential candidate, or has she decided that after 32 years, this is not playing so well anymore? See you on the campaign TRAIL, Liz!'' Asked to explain the tweet's reference to "the campaign TRAIL,'' the White House didn't respond. Warren announced her campaign in her home state of Massachusetts at a mill site where factory workers went on strike in the early 20th century, a fitting forum for the longtime consumer advocate to advance her platform. Supporters turned out in below-freezing temperatures, many hoisting signs "Win With Warren," one read. A Massachusetts bakery created "Persist" cookies for the event to honor the candidate's slogan, "Nevertheless, She Persisted," words first spoken in the Senate to rebuke her. Warren's rollout rally was a potent motivator for longtime supporters such as Mo Malekafzaly and Carlos Garcia, two longtime backers who attended her rally from Shrewsbury, Massachusetts. The choice of Lawrence to start her campaign "shows who she's fighting for," Garcia said. Asked if fellow New Englander Sen. Bernie Sanders could pose a serious threat to Warren in New Hampshire's critical primary should he get into the race, Garcia said Warren is "such an effective communicator that I think that people will respond to that very well." Warren went straight from her kickoff to New Hampshire, home to the nation's first primary, where her campaign projected that 350 people turned out for an event in the city of Dover. She attended a town hall meeting with potential voters, giving a more informal version of her Lawrence speech and taking questions from those in the crowd. I think that her chances are very good, said Deborah Cebulski of Boston. I think that shes one of the strongest candidates out there. Warren plans to spend Sunday in Iowa, where the leadoff caucuses will be the first test of candidates' viability. Warren was the first high-profile Democrat to signal interest in running for the White House, forming an exploratory committee on New Year's Eve. She was endorsed and introduced Saturday by Massachusetts Democrats Sen. Ed Markey and Rep. Joe Kennedy III. Kennedy's backing could prove valuable for Warren, given his status as a rising young Democratic star and his friendship with one of her potential 2020 rivals, former Rep. Beto O'Rourke, D-Texas. Warren enters the race as one of the party's most recognizable figures. She has spent the past decade in the national spotlight, first emerging as a consumer activist during the financial crisis. She later led the congressional panel that oversaw the 2008 financial industry bailout. After Republicans blocked her from running the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, an agency she helped create, she ran for the Senate in 2012 and unseated a GOP incumbent. She has $11 million left over from her commanding 2018 Senate re-election victory that can be used on her presidential run. Still, Warren must compete against other popular Democrats who will be able to raise substantial money. A recent CNN poll found that fewer Democrats said they'd be very likely to support Warren if she runs than said the same of former Vice President Joe Biden, Sen. Kamala Harris of California and Sanders. Still, about as many Democrats said they'd be at least somewhat likely to support Warren as said the same of Harris or Sanders. That challenge is on display this weekend as Democratic presidential contenders or those considering a run fan out across the crucial early-voting states. New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker is in Iowa, while New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand is visiting South Carolina. Another possible presidential rival, Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown, planned to be in New Hampshire on Saturday, while Sen. Amy Klobuchar is announcing her bid Sunday in her home state of Minnesota. And Warren's launch comes at a challenging moment for the 69-year-old senator. She's apologized twice over the past two weeks for claiming Native American identity on multiple occasions early in her career. That claim has created fodder for Republicans and could overshadow her campaign. On Saturday, Trump's re-election campaign manager was quick to respond to her candidacy and called her "a fraud." "Elizabeth Warren has already been exposed as a fraud by the Native Americans she impersonated and disrespected to advance her professional career, and the people of Massachusetts she deceived to get elected," Campaign Manager Brad Parscale said in a statement. "The American people will reject her dishonest campaign and socialist ideas like the Green New Deal, that will raise taxes, kill jobs and crush America's middle-class. Only under President Trump's leadership will America continue to grow safer, secure and more prosperous." Warren got notable backup from Gillibrand, however, who called her Senate colleague "an extraordinary public servant." Speaking to reporters in South Carolina, Gillibrand said Trump's treatment of women, particularly women of color, was "outrageous." The campaign launch will test whether the controversy is simply a Washington obsession or a substantive threat to her candidacy. Doug Rubin, a Boston-based strategist who advised Warren during her first Senate run in 2012, said in an interview that most voters will respond to "the powerful message she's been talking about," in terms of battling social and economic injustices, rather than the back-and-forth over her personal identity. Another threat could come from a fellow senator who has yet to announce his own plans for 2020: Sanders. They're both leaders of the Democrats' liberal vanguard, but some Sanders supporters are still upset Warren didn't support him during his 2016 primary run against Hillary Clinton. And as a senator from Vermont who won the New Hampshire primary, he would likely go into the Granite State as an early favorite if he decided to run again. Sheri Clark Nadell, a Maine resident who traveled to Warren's New Hampshire event, said that while she likes Sanders and voted for him in his previous campaign, she is less inclined to do so now. "I'm not sure, at this point, that he could win,'' Nadell said. "And I feel sad saying that. But we need to win.'' Despite their similarities, Warren and Sanders have taken somewhat divergent paths in recent months as they prepare for the primary. After proposing an "ultra-millionaire tax" that would hit the wealthiest 75,000 households in America, Warren told Bloomberg News last week that she continues to "believe in capitalism" but wants to see stricter rules to prevent gaming the system a marked contrast with the self-described democratic socialism of Sanders. Associated Press writers Meg Kinnard and Jonathan Lemire contributed to this report. What to Know Calls are growing for Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax to resign after a second woman accused him of sexual assault Meredith Watson came forward on Friday, just a few days after Vanessa Tyson said Fairfax assaulted her in 2004 Watson and Tyson said through lawyers that they are willing to testify should impeachment proceedings against Fairfax begin Hours after Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax again denied two claims of sexual assault, the two women accusing him said they would be willing to testify at a possible impeachment hearing as the Virginia Democrat faces calls to resign and a threat of impeachment. A lawyer for Meredith Watson, a Duke University classmate of Fairfax, said in a statement Saturday that Watson would be willing to testify about the alleged assault when the two were college students should impeachment proceedings against Fairfax begin. And later Saturday night, lawyers for Dr. Vanessa Tyson, a college professor in California who claimed that Fairfax assaulted her at the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston, said Tyson is "fully prepared" to testify if impeachment proceedings were to begin. Watson's lawyer statement also said Watson could provide at least two people who could testify that Watson told them of the alleged assault the day after it happened. "We will also produce documentary evidence of Ms. Watson revealing to others the fact that Fairfax raped her," the statement said. Fairfax forcefully denied the allegations in a statement Saturday, saying "without reservation," that he did not sexually assault either Watson or Tyson. Fairfax said both interactions were consensual. "I heard from Dr. Tyson after the 2004 Convention, and she never said or otherwise indicated that our interaction was not consensual or caused her any discomfort," Fairfax said in the statement. "Regarding Ms. Watson, I knew Ms. Watson in college both before and after the encounter, and she never said to me that our interaction was not consensual or caused her any discomfort." Lawyers for Tyson said Saturday night that Fairfax has attempted to discredit Tyson's account, claiming Fairfax misrepresented a decision by The Washington Post to not run a story about the alleged assault in 2018. Virginia Del. Patrick Hope, who represents part of Arlington County, said he will move to impeach Fairfax on Monday if he hasn't resigned. "There's no question that violent sexual assault clearly qualifies as a high crime," Hope said in a news conference Friday night. "I believe these women. He needs to resign immediately." Hope also clarified why he believes Fairfax should be impeached, but not Gov. Ralph Northam or Attorney General Mark Herring, both of whom have faced calls to resign after admitting to wearing blackface in the 1980s. "The distinction between a sexual assault or a rape is clearly very different. The articles of impeachment under the constitution are very clear, high crimes and misdemeanor," Hope told News4. "This clearly meets that threshold, while the events that occurred 30 some years ago with the governor and attorney general, while they are heinous and clearly insensitive, they dont rise to the same level." Fairfax hasn't responded to the possibility of impeachment. Watson's lawyers said Fairfax's statement "re-victimizes" both Watson and Tyson. "Fairfax, now, for the first time admits sexual contact with Ms. Watson, but now claims that it was 'consensual.' There was nothing consensual about the rape of Ms. Watson and the only post rape interaction between them consisted of Ms. Watson confronting Mr. Fairfax of the assault," the statement said. Earlier Saturday Fairfax had called for an FBI investigation of the accusations. "Consequently, I call on all appropriate and impartial investigatory authorities, including the FBI, to investigate fully and thoroughly the allegations against me by Ms. Watson and Dr. Tyson. I ask that all three of us be respected during this process," Fairfax said. Several Virginia leaders have called for Fairfax to resign, including Sen. Time Kaine, former Gov. Terry McAuliffe and 2020 Democratic presidential hopeful Cory Booker. Most of Virginia's House and Senate Democrats have called for Fairfax to step down, including Northern Virginia Reps. Jennifer Wexton, Don Beyer, Abigail Spanberger and Gerry Connolly. But some African American leaders are concerned with how quickly Democrats have demanded for Fairfax to resign. Former Loudoun County NAACP President Phil Thompson said he and other African Americans are shocked that Fairfax is not receiving due process. "We want to see Justin Fairfax treated fairly. If he has done what they claim he has done he has to suffer the consequences, but right now that hasn't been proven," Thompson said. "To have the Democrats, the Democrats, say they are going to offer up articles of impeachment on a black lieutenant governor, a Democratic lieutenant governor, when they couldn't put that word in their mouth over Ralph Northam, is abhorent." These growing calls Fairfax to resign further complicate Virginia's future governance, as there are bipartisan calls for Gov. Ralph Northam to resign after he admitted, then denied, being shown in a 1984 medical school yearbook photo with people in blackface and a KKK robe. He later admitted to wearing blackface as a Michael Jackson costume. And the state's Democratic attorney general, Mark Herring, is also under scrutiny after saying he wore blackface at a college party in 1980. Parents who turned to the San Diego community for help raising funds for their toddler's $45,000 surgery say they now have enough to pay for it. NBC 7 and Telemundo 20 first introduced baby Malakai last Thursday. His parents, Stephany and Marco, said their insurance didn't cover a fifth -- and possibly final -- surgery their son needed to correct problems caused by a condition called Mercedez Benz Syndrome. The condition affects the skull's ability to keep up with the growth of the brain. The back of his head is flat. His head is growing [abnormally], Stephany explained. So this doctor, what he plans to do, is reshape his whole head, open up the skull bones in the back. He said that if everything goes well, this should be his last surgery." Stephany and Marco set up a GoFundMe account and held a community fundraising event last Friday in Chula Vista. After the event, they told NBC 7 they had enough money to make what can be considered a down payment on Malakai's procedure. Then on Tuesday their big break came. Someone who saw Malakai's story on NBC 7 made a $9,000 donation to put the family at their $45,000 goal. According to his mother, Malakai suffered Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy at birth due to lack of oxygen. Doctors had to resuscitate him in the delivery room. When he was in the NICU fighting for his life, I said OK, Stephany. You have to put whatever youre feeling aside, because you have to fight for your son, Stephany said behind teary eyes. "He came back, you know. I can cry, I can let go of these emotions, I can feel the strength inside me that he is giving me, Marco said. Together, Marco and Stephany have held Malakais hand through four surgeries, including three on his skull, and have had hands-on responsibilities in his care that are hard for most parents to imagine. Baby Malakai was given a feeding tube during his first surgery. His second left him with two screws protruding from the back of his head which his parents had to manually turn once a day. "It was scary when they told us, Stephany said. I cried because I was like, How am I going to turn screws coming out of my sons head once a day? That's crazy. But we got through it. The two screws were removed individually during his third and fourth surgeries. The pilot whose plane broke apart and crashed into a Southern California home, killing five people, was disciplined for dangerous flying years earlier, it was reported Friday. Antonio Pastini, 75, of Gardnerville, Nevada, was flying home after visiting his daughter and granddaughter on Sunday when his Cessna began coming apart and debris slammed into a Yorba Linda home, which caught fire. Four people inside the house died. The cause of the crash is under investigation. Years earlier, Pastini, then using the name Jordan Albert Isaacson, had his license twice suspended by the Federal Aviation Administration, the Los Angeles Times reported Friday, citing records kept by the Library of Congress. In 1977, Pastini had his pilot's license suspended for 120 days after he flew from Las Vegas to Long Beach, California, in cloudy and icy weather and falsely told an air traffic controller that he had "IFR clearance" that indicated he was capable of flying the route with instruments. Pastini disregarded airspace rules and posed "a potential threat to himself, his passenger and other users of the system," wrote an administrative law judge, Jerrell R. Davis. In 1980, Pastini lost his license for 30 days after Davis found that his plane was behind on inspections, carried only an expired temporary registration and was "unairworthy" because of a hydraulic fluid leak from a break and other problems, the Times said. The Times said the FAA confirmed that Isaacson was Pastini. The agency said he submitted two name changes to the FAA: first in 1991 from Jordan Albert Isaacson to Jordan Ike Aaron, then in 2008 to Antonio Peter Pastini. Pastini told friends, family and even newspapers that he was a retired Chicago police officer. But Chicago police have said he never worked for them and a Chicago police badge he was carrying when he crashed had been reported lost in 1978. It does not yet have office space, staff or even Republican members, but Florida Rep. Kathy Castor is confident that a special House committee on climate change will play a leading role on one of the most daunting challenges facing the planet. Castor, who chairs the new panel, says those early obstacles can be overcome as lawmakers move to reduce carbon pollution and create clean-energy jobs. "The Democratic caucus is unified under the belief we have to take bold action on the climate crisis," Castor said in an interview. While that can take many forms, the transition to renewable energy such as wind and solar power is "job one," she said. Castor, who's in her seventh term representing the Tampa Bay area, said Congress has a "moral obligation" to protect future generations from the costly effects of climate change, including more severe hurricanes, a longer wildfire season and a dangerous sea-level rise. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi named Castor to lead the panel in December, saying she brings experience, energy and urgency to what Pelosi called "the existential threat of the climate crisis" facing the United States and the world. The climate panel is similar to one Pelosi created when Democrats last controlled the House from 2007 to 2010. The panel was eliminated when Republicans took the majority in 2011. While the previous panel played a key role in House approval of a landmark 2009 bill to address global warming, Castor said the new panel is likely to focus on a variety of actions rather than a single piece of legislation. She and the eight other Democrats named to the panel "are ready to stand up to corporate polluters and special interests" as they press for action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and move toward a clean-energy economy, Castor said. "Climate deniers, fossil fuel companies and other special interests have had an outsized influence" in Congress in recent years, she said, promising to "stand up" to those forces to protect the environment and create green jobs. The climate panel is separate from an effort by Democrats to launch a Green New Deal to transform the U.S. economy and create thousands of jobs in renewable energy. Castor dismissed the idea that the Green New Deal put forth by freshman Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and veteran Sen. Ed Markey of Massachusetts will conflict with the climate panel. "My job and the committee's job is to take the general concepts (of the Green New Deal) and turn them into a real policy framework and legislative language and eventually law," she said. Pelosi agreed, saying in a statement that the climate panel will "spearhead Democrats' work to develop innovative, effective solutions to prevent and reverse the climate crisis." Pelosi invited Ocasio-Cortez, a social media star and the best-known member of the large class of freshman Democrats, to join the climate panel, but she declined, saying she wants to focus on the Green New Deal and other committee assignments. Three freshmen Sean Casten of Illinois, Mike Levin of California and Joe Neguse of Colorado serve on the panel, along with veteran lawmakers such as Rep. Ben Ray Lujan of New Mexico, the fourth-ranking House Democrat, and Californians Julia Brownley and Jared Huffman, both close Pelosi allies. "We need their passion and energy, and we need support from all corners all across the country," Castor said of the freshmen members. "It's all hands on deck right now." Republicans have not named anyone to the climate committee, but six GOP members are expected to join the panel this month. While she would have preferred that the committee be given subpoena power and legislative authority to draft their own bills, the panel's more limited power "is not going to hamper us," Castor said. Most invited witnesses will be eager to testify, she said, and those who resist including members of the Trump administration can be compelled to appear by other committees such as Energy and Commerce or Natural Resources. While the earlier climate panel focused on establishing the threat posed by climate change, Castor said the time to debate climate science is long past. "People understand the problems," she said. "They see the effects of sea rise and more dangerous storms. They understand it. They look at Washington and kind of throw up their hands and say, 'Why don't you guys do something?' " The committee's challenge, she added, will be "to restore the faith of people and show them Washington can do some things." Tenants at an Old East Dallas apartment complex were supposed to move out on Sunday, but have been given more time to find a new home. Residents at the Bryan Song Apartments were given notices on Dec. 10 that they had to be out of the complex by Feb. 10. However, residents said they now have about two extra months to move out. The Bryan Song Apartments are being torn down to make room for a new, high-end development. Many residents were moving out of the apartments Sunday when NBC 5 stopped by the complex. Chirstyal Rogers said she has lived at the apartment for about a year and a half. Rogers said most of the tenants are either low-income or have federal housing vouchers. She said she was relieved to have more time to move out, but said she still didn't know where she was going to live next. "I feel wonderful about it, because if not, a lot of people would be displaced right now," Rogers said. Rogers also said she wished she had more money to help her relocate. According to her, residents would receive $500 if they move out by April 1 and $250 if they move out later. She said she was working with the Texas Tenant's Association to try to get a bill in place to change current laws. "I'm at least trying to get it where it's at least 180 days notice, or at least $2,000 compensation before a person is uprooted from where they live," Rogers said. NBC 5 reached out the development company who bought the complex, and had not heard back as of 5 p.m. Sunday. To help make sure you stay informed on the most shared and talked about stories across North Texas, each Saturday and Sunday we'll revisit 5 stories from the previous week and capsulize them in this digest with the most recent updates. In our 5+5 format, we published the first 5 on Saturday morning, while you can find the second five below. Pedestrian Critically Injured in Downtown Fort Worth Scaffolding Collapse A pedestrian was critically injured Wednesday afternoon when scaffolding collapsed outside of a building in downtown Fort Worth. The woman was walking along West 2nd Street, between Throckmorton and Houston streets when the scaffolding collapsed outside a building undergoing renovations. Click here to read more about this story. A pedestrian was critically injured Wednesday afternoon when scaffolding collapsed outside of a building in downtown Fort Worth. Doctors Launch Task Force Into Breast Implant Illness A McKinney woman says she was feeling sick and immediately felt better after having her breast implants removed. Now, there's a new push to find out whether "breast implant illness" clinically exists. Click here to read more about this story. A McKinney woman says she was feeling sick and immediately felt better after having her breast implants removed. Now, there's a new push to find out whether "breast implant illness" clinically exists. New Non-Profit Helps Dogs Fight Cancer How much is your dog's life worth? Each year, six million dogs will be diagnosed with cancer. There is life-saving treatment, but sadly, many pet owners must say, "goodbye" because they simply can't afford it. Here in North Texas, that's changing, and the effort is starting with a dog named Sir Desmond. Click here to read more about this story. A new non-profit called Dog'sLife is helping dogs fight cancer by providing grants to help pay for treatment. Multigenerational Homes More Popular in DFW, US Multiple homebuilders in North Texas are responding to a growing demand in the national housing market: multigenerational housing. These homes feature fully-equipped suites built into them, designed to provide a private living space for an adult family member within the larger home. Click here to read more about this story. Multiple homebuilders in North Texas are responding to a growing demand in the national housing market: multigenerational housing. Candy From 'Candy's Dirt' Shows Us Adrian Beltre's Home Candy Evans, a real estate expert, is here to talk with us about how the DFW real estate market is doing so far this year and even a celebrity home for sale in Preston Hollow. Click here to read more about this story. Candy Evans, a real estate expert, is here to talk with us about how the DFW real estate market is doing so far this year and even a celebrity home for sale in Preston Hollow. South Korea and the United States struck a new deal Sunday that increases Seoul's contribution for the cost of the American military presence on its soil, overcoming previous failed negotiations that caused worries about their decades-long alliance. The development comes as President Donald Trump is set to hold his second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vietnam in late February. South Korea last year provided about $830 million, covering roughly 40 percent of the cost of the deployment of 28,500 U.S. soldiers whose presence is meant to deter aggression from North Korea. Trump has pushed for South Korea to pay more. On Sunday, chief negotiators from the two countries signed a new cost-sharing plan, which requires South Korea to pay about 1.04 trillion won ($924 million) in 2019, Seoul's Foreign Ministry said in a statement. The statement said the two countries reaffirmed the need for a "stable" U.S. military deployment amid the "rapidly changing situation on the Korean Peninsula." The ministry said the U.S. assured South Korea that it is committed to the alliance and has no plans to adjust the number of its troops in South Korea. South Korea began paying for the U.S. military deployment in the early 1990s, after rebuilding its economy from the devastation of the 1950-1953 Korean War. The big U.S. military presence in South Korea is a symbol of the countries' alliance, forged in blood during the war, but also a source of long-running anti-American sentiments. About 20 anti-U.S. activists rallied near the Foreign Ministry building in Seoul on Sunday, chanting slogans like "No more money for U.S. troops." No violence was reported. "The United States government realizes that Korea does a lot for our alliance and peace and stability in the region," chief U.S. negotiator Timothy Betts said Sunday in Seoul. "We are very pleased our consultations resulted in agreement that will strengthen transparency and deepen our cooperation and the alliance." The deal, which involves the spending of South Korean taxpayer money, requires parliamentary approval in South Korea, but not in the United States, according to Seoul's Foreign Ministry. The allies had failed to reach a new cost-sharing plan during some 10 rounds of talks. A five-year 2014 deal that covered South Korea's payment last year expired at the end of 2018. Some conservatives in South Korea voiced concerns over a weakening alliance with the United States at the same time as negotiations with North Korea to deprive it of its nuclear weapons hit a stalemate. They said Trump might use the failed military cost-sharing negotiations as an excuse to pull back some U.S. troops in South Korea as a bargaining chip in talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Trump told CBS' "Face the Nation" on Feb. 3 that he has no plans to withdraw troops from South Korea. During his election campaign, Trump suggested he could pull back troops from South Korea and Japan unless they took on greater a share of the financial burdens of supporting U.S. soldiers deployed there. South Korean media earlier reported that Trump demanded South Korea double its spending for the U.S. military deployment, before his government eventually asked for 1.13 trillion won ($1 billion). Seoul's Foreign Ministry said the U.S. had called for a sharp increase in South Korean spending but didn't elaborate. Trump announced last week that he will sit down with Kim for their second summit. Their first summit in Singapore last June resulted in Kim's vague commitment to the "complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," a term that his propaganda machine previously used when it argued it would only denuclearize after the U.S. withdraws its troops from South Korea. Trump's top envoy for North Korea, Stephen Biegun, visited Pyongyang last week to work out details of the upcoming summit. After being briefed by Biegun about his Pyongyang trip, South Korea's presidential office said Sunday that U.S. and North Korean officials plan to meet again the week of Feb. 17 in an unidentified Asian country. The U.S. military arrived in South Korea to disarm Japan, which colonized the Korean Peninsula from 1910-45, following its World War II defeat. Most U.S. troops were withdrawn in 1949 but they returned the next year to fight alongside South Korea in the Korean War. Associated Press journalists Chang Yong Jun and Lee Jin-man contributed to this report. Another Saudi woman has turned to social media for protection from her father, just days after Canada granted refuge to Rahaf al-Qunun, the 18-year-old Saudi who fled her family. Identified only as Nojoud al-Mandeel on Twitter, her case differs from that of al-Qunun. She has not fled the kingdom, has not revealed her face and has only made her pleas for help on Twitter in Arabic. While their circumstances are different, the claims of abuse by the two women mirror those of other female Saudi runaways who have used social media to publicize their escapes. There has been speculation that al-Qunun's successful getaway will inspire others to copy her. However, powerful deterrents remain in place. If caught, runaways face possible death at the hands of relatives for purportedly shaming the family. Saudi women fleeing their families challenge a system that grants men guardianship over women's lives. This guardianship system starts in the home, where women must obey fathers, husbands and brothers. Outside the home, it is applied to citizens, often referred to as sons and daughters by Saudi rulers who demand obedience. Hala Aldosari, a Saudi scholar and activist, said the male guardianship system replicates the ruling family's model of governance, which demands full obedience to the king, who holds absolute power in decision-making. "This is why the state is keen to maintain the authority of male citizens over women to ensure their allegiance," she said, adding that this "hierarchical system of domination" necessitates "keeping women in line." Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who's introduced social reforms loosening restrictions on women, told The Atlantic that doing away with guardianship laws has to be done in a way that does not harm families and the culture. He said abolishing these laws would create problems for families that don't want to give freedom to their daughters. The issue of guardianship is extremely sensitive in the kingdom, where conservative families view what they consider the protection of women as a man's duty. More than a dozen women's rights activists have been detained, many since May, after they campaigned against the guardianship system. Some had also wanted to create alternative shelters for women runaways. Regardless of their age, women in Saudi Arabia must have the consent of a male relative to obtain a passport, travel or marry. In the past, a travel permit was a paper document issued by the Interior Ministry and signed by a male relative. Today, Saudi men download a government mobile app that notifies them of a woman's travel. Through the app, men can grant or deny a woman permission to travel. Some young women who have fled the country had managed to access their father's phone, change the setting and disable its notifications. In a statement read to reporters in Canada on Tuesday, al-Qunun said she wants to be independent, travel and make her own decisions. "I am one of the lucky ones," she said. "I know there are unlucky women who disappeared after trying to escape or who could not change their reality." That's especially true for women from conservative tribal families, like al-Qunun's. Al-Qunun, one of 10 children, posted online that her father, Mohammed Mutliq al-Qunun, is the governor of the city of al-Sulaimi in the hilly hinterland of Ha'il a province where nearly all women cover their face in black veils and wear loose black robes, or abayas, in public. The family belongs to the influential Shammar tribe, which extends to Iraq, Syria and other parts of the Middle East. Her father has considerable clout as a prominent town official and member of a powerful tribe. Al-Qunun, who barricaded herself in an airport hotel room in Thailand last week to avoid deportation, said she was abused by a brother and locked in her room for months for cutting her hair short. She said she would have been killed if sent back to her family. According to government statistics, at least 577 Saudi women tried to flee their homes inside the country in 2015, though the actual number is likely higher. There are no statistics on attempted or successful escapes abroad. Shahad al-Mohaimeed, 19, who fled abuse and an ultraconservative family in Saudi Arabia two years ago, said fear is a powerful deterrent. "When a Saudi girl decides to flee, it means she's decided to put her life on the line and take a very, very risky step," said al-Mohaimeed, who now lives in Sweden. Al-Qunun's plight on social media drew international attention, helping her short-circuit the typically complex path to asylum. A little more than a week after fleeing Saudi Arabia, she was in Canada, building a new life, posting pictures of wine, bacon and donning a dress above the knees. Back in Saudi Arabia, the woman identified as Nojoud al-Mandeel posted audio on Twitter on Monday alleging her father had beaten and burnt her "over something trivial". She posted a video looking onto a neighbor's gated pool, where she says she jumped from her bedroom window before a friend picked her up and they escaped. "Don't tell me to report to police," she said, explaining that in a previous attempt, police just had her father sign a pledge saying he would not beat her again. After her story gained some traction online, she was promised attention by a protection hotline in Saudi Arabia for domestic abuse victims. Prosecutors also reportedly began looking into her allegations of abuse, according to Saudi news sites. She was placed in a domestic abuse shelter, but on Tuesday complained on Twitter about the shelter's restrictions over her movements. Al-Mohaimeed said Twitter is where Saudi women can share stories and be heard. She and two other Saudi women took over al-Qunun's Twitter account, writing messages on her behalf during the height of her pleas last week to avoid deportation. "I was not born in this world to serve a man," al-Mohaimeed said. "I was born in this world to fulfill my dreams, achieve my dreams, grow, learn and be independent to taste life as I hold it in my hands." Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar on Sunday joined the growing group of Democrats jostling to be president and positioned herself as the most prominent Midwestern candidate in the field, as her party tries to win back voters in a region that helped put Donald Trump in the White House. "For every American, I'm running for you," she told an exuberant crowd gathered on a freezing, snowy afternoon at a park along the Mississippi River with the Minneapolis skyline in the background. "And I promise you this: As your president, I will look you in the eye. I will tell you what I think. I will focus on getting things done. That's what I've done my whole life. And no matter what, I'll lead from the heart," the three-term senator said. Klobuchar, who has prided herself for achieving results through bipartisan cooperation, did not utter Trump's name during her kickoff speech. But she did bemoan the conduct of "foreign policy by tweet" and said Americans must "stop the fear-mongering and stop the hate. ... We all live in the same country of shared dreams." And she said that on first day as president, she would have the U.S. rejoin an international climate agreement that Trump has withdrawn from. Trump responded to Klobuchar's announcement with a tweet mocking her stance on global warming, a phenomenon he has disputed in the past. He wrote that Klobuchar talked proudly "of fighting global warming while standing in a virtual blizzard of snow, ice and freezing temperatures. Bad timing. By the end of her speech she looked like a Snowman(woman)!" Trump often overlooks evidence of record global warming and conflates cold spells and other incidents of weather with climate, which is long-term. Klobuchar also spoke of the need to "heal the heart of our democracy and renew our commitment to the common good." Asserting Midwestern values, she told a crowd warmed by hot chocolate, apple cider, heat lamps and bonfires: "I don't have a political machine. I don't come from money. But what I do have is this: I have grit." Klobuchar, who easily won a third-term last year, has pointed to her broad appeal across Minnesota as she has discussed a 2020 run. She has drawn support from voters in urban, suburban and rural areas, including in dozens of counties Trump won in 2016. She has said that success could translate to other Midwestern states such as Michigan and Wisconsin, reliably Democratic in presidential races for decades until Trump's victory over Hillary Clinton. She said the country's "sense of community is fracturing" today, "worn down by the petty and vicious nature of our politics. We are all tired of the shutdowns and the showdowns, the gridlock and the grandstanding." The list of Democrats already in the race features several better-known senators with the ability to raise huge amounts of money Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Kamala Harris of California, Cory Booker of New Jersey and Kirsten Gillibrand of New York. The field soon could expand to include prominent Democrats such as former Vice President Joe Biden of Delaware and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. A Des Moines Register/CNN/Mediacom poll conducted by Selzer & Company in December found that Klobuchar was largely unfamiliar to likely Iowa caucus-goers, with 54 percent saying they didn't know enough about her to have an opinion, while 38 percent had a favorable opinion and 8 percent had an unfavorable opinion. "She starts out perhaps with a better understanding of Midwestern voters, but I think she faces the same hurdles every one of them face, which is: Are Iowans going to find them either the best candidate to defeat Donald Trump or the candidate that most aligns with their ideologies and issues?" said John Norris, a longtime Iowa-based Democratic strategist. "I don't know that coming from Minnesota gives her any advantage with Iowans." Klobuchar, 58, is known as a straight-shooting, pragmatist willing to work with Republicans, making her one of the Senate's most productive members at passing legislation. The rally took place not far from the Interstate 35W bridge over the Mississippi. The span was built after the previous bridge collapsed in 2007, killing 13 people. Klobuchar had worked with then Sen. Norm Coleman, R-Minn., to help fund the new bridge and get it completed at a faster-than-usual pace. "We worked across the aisle to get the federal funding and we rebuilt that I-35W bridge in just over a year. That's community. That's a shared story. That's ordinary people doing extraordinary things," she said. Klobuchar's focus in recent months has included prescription drug prices, a new farm bill and election security. She supports the "Green New Deal," a Democratic plan proposed this past week to combat climate change and create thousands of jobs in renewable energy. But her legislative record has drawn criticism from both the GOP and some fellow Democrats. Some Republicans say Klobuchar is able to get things done because she pushes smaller issues. Some progressives say she lacks the kind of fire and bold ideas needed to bring significant change and excite voters. Klobuchar on Sunday also responded to reports in BuzzFeed and HuffPost that she has mistreated staff, saying she "can be tough" but has many staff members who've worked for her for many years. "I can push people. I know that," she told reporters after the event. "I have I'd say high expectations for myself, I have high expectations for the people who work for me, but I have high expectations for this country. And that's what we need. We need someone who is focused on getting things done for this country." Klobuchar, a lawyer and the former prosecutor in Minnesota's largest county, raised her national profile during a Senate Judiciary Committee last fall for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, who was accused of sexually assaulting a woman when they were both in high school. When Klobuchar asked Kavanaugh whether he ever had had so much to drink that he didn't remember what happened, he turned the question around. He asked Klobuchar, "Have you?" Unruffled, Klobuchar continued as Kavanaugh asked again. Kavanaugh later apologized to Klobuchar, whose father is an alcoholic. "When you have a parent who's an alcoholic, you're pretty careful about drinking," she said. "I was truly trying to get to the bottom of the facts and the evidence." Among the other Midwestern lawmakers who could also seek the nomination are Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio, who has been visiting early voting states, and Pete Buttigieg, the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, who established an exploratory committee last month. Klobuchar campaigned with Democrats in Iowa last fall, and in December spoke to progressive farmers and activists about the importance of bridging the divide between urban and rural areas. She said the lesson learned after the 2016 election was "we are not going to leave the Midwest behind." "This is the moment for the Midwest," she said, "and we don't want to be forgotten again in a national election." ___ AP Polling Editor Emily Swanson in Washington contributed to this report. Two masked suspects broke into a home Saturday evening in west suburban Naperville and robbed a resident at gunpoint. About 7:45 p.m., officers responded to a call of a home invasion in the 2600 block of High Meadow Road, according to Naperville police. When the officers showed up, they learned the masked males had broken into the home and held the female resident up with a handgun, police said. After stealing cash and various electronics, the suspects ran off from the home. The female wasnt injured during the robbery, police said. [NATL] Top News Photos: Pope Visits Japan, and More Officers from Plainfield and the Will County sheriffs office responded to the scene to help search for the robbers, who may have been heading west toward Route 59, police said. The officers were unable to locate the suspected robbers, who are described as black males, standing about 6-feet tall, police said. The suspects were last seen wearing dark clothing and ski masks. Anyone with information about the robbery or the suspects should call investigators at (630) 420-6666. A man was killed in an auto accident Tuesday evening in northwest suburban Palatine. Jasper Gaspar-Garcia, 41, was involved in a crash about 5:45 p.m. in the 1500 block of East Dundee Road, the Cook County medical examiners office said. He was taken to Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge, where he died two days later, the medical examiners office said. [NATL] Top News Photos: Pope Visits Japan, and More Gaspar-Garcia, of Palatine, died from multiple injuries he suffered in the crash, according to an autopsy released Saturday. His death was ruled an accident. Palatine police did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Two armed robberies were reported on Saturday morning that took place earlier this month in the Ukrainian Village and Wicker Park neighborhoods. In the incidents, the robber approached the victims on foot, displayed a handgun and demanded their property, according to Chicago police. The incidents happened about 8:10 p.m. Feb. 1 in the 2200 block of West Rice Street and about 8:40 p.m. that same evening in the 1200 block of North Hoyne Avenue. Police described the robber as a black man between the ages of 50-60, the heights of 5-foot-7 and 5-foot-10, and weighing anywhere from 180 to 220 pounds. He was said to be wearing a dark blue parka jacket and light pants. Anyone with information was asked to call Area Central detectives at (312) 747-8380. A medical emergency ruined their vacation and now a suburban family is suing Holland America, claiming the cruise line waited too long to help. Lila "Lisette" and John Gale were on one of several vacations theyve taken together. The two were just a few hours, and a few hundred miles into a Caribbean cruise on Holland Americas Zuiderdam Cruiseship, when Lisette suffered a stroke at dinner. "This was a brain hemorrhage," her husband said. "This was serious." The ships senior doctor diagnosed her with a severe stroke, saying she needed a cat scan and that her condition was deteriorating. Instead of contacting the Coast Guard for a medevac or turning back to the Fort Lauderdale port theyd just left, the ship continued toward the Bahamas. "They had a cat scan machine, but it was broken," Gale said. John says it was 17 excruciating hours until Lisette got adequate medical treatment. "They were allowing a cruise ship with 1,700 old people on it without good medical equipment," he said. John believes she will never leave the Highland Park nursing home where the formerly vivacious bilingual therapist is now struggling to walk and talk. "They were careless, inefficient and heartless," he said. Holland America declined to comment "out of respect for the family involved." A deadly explosion near Concord and a subsequent mutiny trial at Naval Station Treasure Island 75 years ago will be remembered Saturday afternoon at the Treasure Island Museum. The Port Chicago explosion on July 17, 1944, killed 320 people, 202 of whom were young black sailors ordered to load and unload explosives with no training and inadequate equipment. The explosion and the subsequent mutiny trial helped lead the way to desegregation of U.S. armed forces and was also an early step for Thurgood Marshall, then chief counsel for the NAACP, toward becoming one of the most respected Supreme Court Justices in U.S. history, organizers said. "They were the precursor to the desegregation of the U.S. Armed Forces. At the time, it did not seem that their work meant anything, but through their courage that we were able as a nation to see the situation at Port Chicago was a cause to desegregate," said Dr. Mary J Wardell, Vice Provost at the University of San Francisco. In recognition of Black History Month, the Treasure Island Museum will commemorate the 75th anniversary of the disaster and trial on Saturday by presenting a special program titled "Lighting the Fuse to Civil Rights: The Port Chicago Trial at Treasure Island." "The Port Chicago story is another one of those threads in history thats starts back in 1944 but continues into the concerns of the future with Black Lives Matter and Colin Kaepernick," said Treasure Island Museum President Walt Bilofsky. Saturday's event is free and open to the public, and will be held from 1 to 4:30 p.m. in Building One at Treasure Island. Reservations are suggested. An exhibition on Port Chicago will be on view in the Building One lobby on Treasure Island through July 9, presented by the S.F. Public Library and the Port Chicago Naval Magazine National Memorial. (Natural News) A shady organization of intelligence operatives, propagandists, and their pawns have come together to become the official judge and jury over the internets 7,500 most influential websites. This organization, called NewsGuard, will rate each and every news site and warn consumers about untrustworthy independent news sites. NewGuard propagandists analyze each site and stereotype its content by either writing an article to promote the site or writing a hit piece to demonize the site. Internet browsers can download the NewsGuard plug-in to be automatically updated on their devices, alerting them about the trustworthiness of news sites in real time. The sites that are approved are color coded green. Some sites may be colored yellow and others, like RT, are bathed in red. This color coding system has already been tested and found effective for averting consumer attention away from sites that authority figures dont want you to read while manipulating attention to the sites authority figures want your mind to be engaged with. NewsGuard operation to assert authority over the internet, dictating which sites are true and which ones are off-limits Already, NewsGuard has given CNN and FoxNews high ratings, while red-flagging independent news sites that dont parrot the script and narrative of establishment media. NewsGuard is a manipulative regulation over information, an attempt to control the narrative on important topics. By policing the internet in this way, NewsGuard tells the population what is true and what is off-limits conspiracy-thinking. One of NewsGuards advisors, Richard Stengel, publicly supported the need for domestic propaganda in the U.S. At the time, Stengel was working to force the publics compliance to former President Obamas political agenda. NewsGuard is lobbying state government and wants to incorporate their news site ratings within every school, library and on every smartphone and computer in the U.S. This organization is meeting with Big Tech executives to incorporate NewsGuards authority across social media. In this way, consumers will be herded to pay attention to official sources and ignore specific sites that have been essentially blacklisted. This is all happening in plain sight. The only force that is holding government and corporate officials accountable is the independent media. NewGuard is a tool to destroy the credibility and validity of important independent news sites. The authoritarian narratives of the elite mainstream media are often debunked by new facts, peer-reviewed science, and grassroots testimony that appear first in the independent media. In order to quash dissent and manipulate consumers, NewsGuard has been put in place. NewGuards advisors include intelligence and communications officials that have worked in government for the past three administrations. This organization has also created a service called BrandGuard, which directs advertisers to promote only on NewsGuard-approved news sites. Unapproved independent news sites will automatically lose advertising revenue, threatening their very survival. News sites that do not go along with official narratives will be cut off from funding and will be red-flagged by NewsGuards universal rating system. In this way, Twitter, Google and Facebook users will see the associated press official story first, while being manipulated to turn a blind eye to more authentic journalism from grassroots sources. Official sources such as CNN have had to retract countless misleading stories on the Russia-collusion narrative. Their liberal media bias and corporate agenda is evident, but this is exactly the news that NewsGuard wants people to be consumed with. News organizations such as FoxNews publish the most unfounded propaganda on natural medicine while promoting endless wars, but this is exactly the news that NewsGuards insiders want the population to be inundated with. Red-flagged independent media brings perspective to the same old left-right political topics. Red-flagged independent media links to peer-reviewed science to explain new facts and discoveries on topics that are usually controlled by pharmaceutical companies. As people learn to make sense of their own reality, they will turn to the red-flagged independent media to learn more about the waste, fraud, deceit, and abuse that occurs in high places. For more on this topic, read NewsguardWatch.com. Sources include: ZeroHedge.com CollectiveEvolution.com ZeroHedge.com There are numerous reasons the Deep State has provided to support the phony Trump-Russia collusion investigation and Mueller witch hunt. Here is a list of 19 reasons for the investigation to date none of which are sufficient enough to implement the investigation in the first place. (Natural News) (Article republished from TheGatewayPundit.com) Heres our list of the various reasons given for the Trump-Russia collusion investigation and the Mueller witch hunt: 1. The Mud Theory, throw enough mud at the wall to see what sticks. I dont care what he did, but hes guilty of something so just arrest him: Joshua Levy states that Steeles intention behind giving the dossier to law enforcement was for a criminal referral [source]. 2. Trump made too many trips to Russia: The reason Simpson gives for investigating Trump-Russian connections is this: the basis for the request was, he [Trump] had made a number of trips to Russia and talked about doing a number of business deals but never did one, and that struck me as a little bit odd (Specifically states it was not due to hacking events) [source]. 3. Carter Page dared to take a trip to Moscow: The dossier, compiled by former British spy Christopher Steele, portrayed Pages Moscow trip as seminal to a Trump-Russia conspiracy to hack Democratic email accounts and steal the election from Hillary Clinton [source]. 4. George Papadopoulos had a drunken encounter and bragged about something: It (genesis of Operation Russian Collusion) was not, as Mr. Trump and other politicians have alleged, a dossier compiled by a former British spy hired by a rival campaign. Instead, it was firsthand information from one of Americas closest intelligence allies (Downers barroom conversation with George Papadopoulos) [source]. [Papadopoulos has stated that he wasnt drunk and he doesnt recall discussing Hillarys emails with Downer.] 5. The DNC got hacked, so therefore, Trump is Putins lackey: The hacking and the revelation that a member of the Trump campaign may have had inside information about it were driving factors that led the F.B.I. to open an investigation in July 2016 into Russias attempts to disrupt the election and whether any of President Trumps associates conspired [source]. 6. Some people surrounding Trump dared to speak to Russians in the past: According to the Times story, the investigation seems to have been sparked by suspicions over some campaign members pre-existing connections with Russia before they joined the campaign [source]. 7. The dossier did NOT begin Operation Russian Collusion, but the DNC was most certainly NOT behind the dossier: New York Times reporter Ken Vogel at the time said that Clinton lawyer Marc Elias had vigorously denied involvement in the anti-Trump dossier [source]. It [dossier] wasnt part of the corpus of intelligence information that we had. It was not in any way used as a basis for the Intelligence Community Assessment that was done. Uh it was not [John Brennan denies before HPSCI that the dossier factored into the JAR. Also claims to not know who authored the Steele dossier] [source]. 8. Okay. Okay. You got us. We confess. The Russians only wanted to stir up hate and discontent like theyve always done: Law enforcement officials say that none of the investigations so far have found any conclusive or direct link between Mr. Trump and the Russian government. And even the hacking into Democratic emails, F.B.I. and intelligence officials now believe, was aimed at disrupting the presidential election rather than electing Mr. Trump [source]. 9. Trump said NATO must pay, so therefore, Trump is a Russian spy: New York Times: FBI opened counterintelligence probe on Trump to investigate potential of him working with Russia 10. Trump fired Comey, so therefore, Trump is Putins lackey: (Natural News) Solar-powered technology has indeed come a long way since it was first invented. These days, it has come to a point where it can finally be used in large-scale applications, the latest of which is a fully working road thats made to be used by motor vehicles. The road, colloquially referred to as a solar roadway, is steadily gaining ground: Cities around the world have either developed or started testing it. Thus, it comes as no surprise that China has also announced its plans to build its own solar roadway. For their version of the solar roadway, authorities are planning to use a 1.2 mile stretch of the Jinan City Expressway. The project, upon completion, will mark Chinas second solar roadway project in the country. The first solar roadway, which is also located in Jinan City, was just completed in September 2017. The construction of the new solar roadway is complete, according to a report published on the tech website Electrek.co. While grid connection is still pending, the project is expected to be finished and ready for public use very soon. The report also indicates that the solar roadway project is formed with three layers. The first layer is said to be made out of a transparent concrete material which offers similar structural properties with conventional asphalt. The second layer, which sits in the middle, is made out of solar panels. So far, the solar panels used still havent been specified, but it is said that they are weight bearing. The third and final layer, which is at the bottom of the roadway, is simply a layer that is used to separate the layer of solar panels from the soil that can be found underneath. This three-stack roadway is rated as durable enough to withstand vehicles as large as a medium-sized truck. In an interesting, forward-looking statement, engineers that worked on the solar roadway noted that wireless vehicle charging could be added as a secondary feature, adding that even automated car functions could be possible, as long as the proper wireless technology to facilitate it can be installed correctly. If so, then the roadway would easily be able to charge cars that are traveling on it and offer digital car assistance to automated vehicles. Turning this fantasy scenario into a reality would definitely be a highlight in case it ever happens. While all of this may sound like a pipe dream, its a lot closer to actual reality than you think, even for many countries aside from China. In fact, several European countries have already tried building their own solar roads many years ago. In 2014, the Netherlands was the first to try their hand at such a promising project when they built a solar-powered bicycle path. And then theres France, which also built their own solar roadway, reportedly spanning a 1 km stretch of road, and consisting of 2,800 square meters of energy-producing panels. Since then, France has set a goal for itself of installing more than 1000 km of solar roadways. Its worth noting that even if this new solar roadway in China gets completed successfully, it may be a while until the general public can really make the most of it. And thats even truer in many other countries, where the adoption rate of electric and autonomous vehicles is still seen as lower than that of normal cars. In any case, Chinas solar road project is definitely something to draw inspiration and one day, perhaps, learn many lessons from. Well see soon enough. Read NewEnergyReport.com for more news on new energy. Sources include: Electrek.co PopularMechanics.com Chimpanzees escape from Belfast Zoo enclosure using tree branch ladder Independent 3 philosophers set up a booth on a street corner heres what people asked The Conversation How to save a dragon in Indonesia Asia Times Unravelling a Havana mystery AFP. Missed this last month and it piqued my interest today, perhaps because Im reading a Leonardo Padura mystery Havana Fever. Prince Philip, 97, has voluntarily given up driving licence after crash Widespread Wells Fargo issues blamed on data center outage, cause disputed Data Center Dynamics Waste Watch Researchers Developed a Technique to Turn Nearly a Quarter of Our Plastic Waste into Fuel Motherboard Not sure addressing the plastics crisis by exacerbating climate change is all that hot an idea. Wiped out before our eyes: Hawaii offers bold plan to stop shark killings Guardian Climate change: Future proofing forests to protect orangutans BBC Australian court rejects coal mine on climate groundsChannel News Asia Health Care An Open Letter to Rep. Pramila Jayapal Regarding Medicare for All PNHP (Otis B Driftwood) Class Warfare Dont Let Door Hit You on the Way Out: People Power Credited as Amazon Reportedly Reconsiders New York HQ2 Common Dreams. Ratface Andy must not be happy. Wealth concentration returning to levels last seen during the Roaring Twenties, according to new research WaPo Alexndria Ocasio-Cortezs campaign to make the super rich pay higher taxes should inspire us all, even if its doomed to fail SCMP. Read this, despite the headline; AOC attracting notice in HK. By Chakravarthi Raghavan, Editor-emeritus of South-North Development Monitor SUNS, is based in Geneva and has been monitoring and reporting on the WTO and its predecessor GATT since 1978; he is author of several books on trade issues; and Jomo Kwame Sundaram, Senior Adviser with the Khazanah Research Institute, and was an economics professor and United Nations Assistant Secretary General for Economic Development. Originally published at Inter Press Service In Davos in late January, several powerful governments and their allies announced their intention to launch new negotiations on e-commerce. Unusually, the intention is to launch the plurilateral negotiations in the World Trade Organization (WTO), an ostensibly multilateral organization, setting problematic precedents for the future of multilateral negotiations. Any resulting WTO agreement, especially one to make e-commerce tax- and tariff-free, will require amendments to its existing goods agreements, the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) and the Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) agreements. If it is not an unconditional agreement in the WTO, it will violate WTO most favoured nation (MFN) principles. This will be worse than the old, and ostensibly extinct Green Room processes of a few major powers negotiating among themselves, and then imposing their deal on the rest of the membership. Thus, the proposed e-commerce rules may be WTO illegal unless legitimized by the amendment processes and procedures in Article X of the WTO treaty. Any effort to smuggle it into the WTO, e.g., by including it in Annex IV to the WTO treaty (Plurilateral Trade Agreements), will need, after requisite notice, a consensus decision at Ministerial Conference (Art X:9 of treaty) . It may still be illegal since the subjects are already covered by agreements in Annexes 1A, 1B and 1C of the WTO treaty. Consolidating Power of the Giants Powerful technology transnational corporations (TNCs) are trying to rewrite international rules to advance their business interests by: gaining access to new foreign markets, securing free access to others data, accelerating deregulation, casualizing labour markets, and minimizing tax liabilities. While digital technology and trade, including electronic or e-commerce, can accelerate development and create jobs, if appropriate policies and arrangements are in place, e-commerce rhetoric exaggerates opportunities for developing country, especially small and medium enterprises. Instead, the negotiations are intended to diminish the right of national authorities to require local presence, a prerequisite for the consumer and public to sue a supplier. The e-commerce proposals are expected to strengthen the dominant TNCs, enabling them to further dominate digital trade as the reform proposals are likely to strengthen their discretionary powers while limiting public oversight over corporate behaviour in the digital economy. Developing Countries Must Be Vigilant If digital commerce grows without developing countries first increasing value captured from production by improving productive capacities in developing countries, closing the digital divide by improving infrastructure and interconnectivity, and protecting privacy and data they will have to open their economies even more to foreign imports. Further digital liberalization without needed investments to improve productive capacities, will destroy some jobs, casualize others, squeeze existing enterprises and limit future development. Such threats, due to accelerated digital liberalization, will increase if the fast-changing digital economic space is shaped by new regulations influenced by TNCs. Diverting business through e-commerce platforms will not only reduce domestic market shares, as existing digital trade is currently dominated by a few TNCs from the United States and China, but also reduce sales tax revenue which governments increasingly rely upon with the earlier shift from direct to indirect taxation. Developing countries must quickly organize themselves to advance their own agenda for developmental digitization. Meanwhile, concerned civil society organizations and others are proposing new approaches to issues such as data governance, anti-trust regulation, smaller enterprises, jobs, taxation, consumer protection, and trade facilitation. New Approach Needed A development-focused and jobs-enhancing digitization strategy is needed instead. Effective national policies require sufficient policy space, stakeholder participation and regional consultation, but the initiative seeks to limit that space. Developing countries should have the policy space to drive their developmental digitization agendas. Development partners, especially donors, should support, not drive this agenda. Developmental digitization will require investment in countries technical, legal and economic infrastructure, and policies to: bridge the digital divide; develop domestic digital platforms, businesses and capacities to use data in the public interest; strategically promote national enterprises, e.g., through national data use frameworks; ensure digitization conducive to full employment policies; advance the public interest, consumer protection, healthy competition and sustainable development. Pro-active Measures Needed Following decades of economic liberalization and growing inequality, and the increasing clout of digital platforms, international institutions should support developmental digitization for national progress, rather than digital liberalization. Developing country governments must be vigilant about such e-commerce negotiations, and instead undertake pro-active measures such as: Data governance infrastructure: Developing countries must be vigilant of the dangers of digital colonialism and the digital divide. Most people do not properly value data, while governments too easily allow data transfers to big data corporations without adequate protection for their citizens. TNC rights to free data flows should be challenged. Enterprise competition: Developing countries still need to promote national enterprises, including through pro-active policies. International rules have enabled wealth transfers from the global South to TNCs holding well protected patents. National systems of innovation can only succeed if intellectual property monopolies are weakened. Strengthening property rights enhances TNC powers at the expense of developing country enterprises. Employment: Developmental digitization must create decent jobs and livelihoods. Labours share of value created has declining in favour of capital, which has influenced rule-making to its advantage. Taxation: The new e-commerce proposals seek to ban not only appropriate taxation, but also national presence requirements where they operate to avoid taxes at the expense of competitors paying taxes in compliance with the law. Tax rules allowing digital TNCs to reduce taxable income or shift profits to low-tax jurisdictions should be addressed. Consumer protection: Strong policies for consumer protection are needed as the proposals would put privacy and data protection at risk. Besides citizens rights to privacy, consumers must have rights to data protection and against TNC and other abuse of human rights. Competition: Digital platforms must be better regulated at both national and international level. Policies are needed to weaken digital economic monopolies and to support citizens, consumers and workers in relating to major digital TNCs. Trade facilitation: Recent trade facilitation in developing countries, largely funded by donors, has focused on facilitating imports, rather than supply side constraints. Recent support for digital liberalization similarly encourages developing countries to import more instead of developing needed new infrastructure to close digital divides. Urgent Measures Needed E-commerce has become the new front for further economic liberalization and extension of property rights by removing tariffs (on IT products), liberalizing imports of various services, stronger IP protection, ending technology transfer requirements, and liberalizing government procurement. Developing countries must instead develop their own developmental digitization agendas, let alone simply copy, or worse, promote e-commerce rules developed by TNCs to open markets, secure data, as well as constrain regulatory and developmental governments. DISCORD between Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) governor John Mangudya and Finance minister Mthuli Ncube over policy issues around currency reforms has delayed the presentation of the monetary policy statement (MPS) after the central bank chief was ordered to go back to the drawing board, this publication can report. Statutorily, Mangudya was supposed to present the much-awaited policy document at the end of January. On Monday, Mangudya told this paper that he was certain he would present his policy last Thursday as he was awaiting the Presidents approval. However, highly-placed sources told the Independent that Mangudya wanted to present the MPS on time, but he had not consulted any of the key stakeholders in open display of lack of congruency between Ncube and the RBZ. It is understood that Ncube was not in agreement with some of the policy issues in the MPS, especially those around currency reforms with Mangudya pushing through his 1:1 parity between the bond note and the US unit, a move Ncube feels is no longer sustainable. Sources say Ncube believes the country cannot remain in denial on the real value of the bond note. According to the same sources, government wants to ensure his policy pronouncements do not cause political mayhem as seen in the past few weeks characterised by massive demonstrations. The protests were triggered by governments decision to increase fuel prices by 150% in line with the parallel forex market rates. Mangudya wanted to present the monetary policy without consultations and given the recent upheaval that resulted in deaths of innocent civilians people were no longer sure what he would present and what the response would be. Anyway that was beside the point, the real issue is there appears to be lack of rapport between the RBZ and Ministry of Finance. Even as a governor consultation is key with stakeholders, the source said. Mangudya, among other things, fears that the exchange losses stemming from devaluation would be devastating. The huge exposures that the RBZ has will certainly backfire if the country goes the devaluation way. He has been borrowing in principle. The money would come and get dished out. The borrowed money needs to be repaid. Once he introduces an exchange rate, the exposure would go up in line with the rate. That is why he has been insisting on the 1:1 song, the source said. Mangudya only started consultations with the key stakeholders last week and a number of sources have confirmed that they had received notice to submit their input towards the MPS. Mangudya told a meeting of tobacco growers on February 5, 2019 that the economy would not be re-dollarised. He said increased local demand for full US dollar settlements of wages and investments would not be supported. Mangudya told the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) that the MPS would be presented by mid-month, adding it will spell out how much forex the farmers would receive from the tobacco auction proceeds. Yesterday, Tuesday February 5, 2019 growers associations and the TIMB met with the RBZ Governor. We prepared and presented, on behalf of all farmers, a Position Paper on a proposed settlement of farmers proceeds for the 2019 marketing season. In response the Governor stated that there will be NO re dollarisation of the economy. Increased local demands for full US dollar settlements of wages, investments, etc by various sectors will not be supported, Export Incentive was no longer attractive and other options will be explored . . . a monetary statement will be announced by the middle of the month and it will contain the settlement of tobacco farmers sales proceeds, noted TIMB. Another source said the headache was over currency reforms, adding Mangudya could no longer afford to remain silent on the issue. The issue of exposures of the Reserve Bank speaks to the delay. The headache is over currency reforms, I think he can no longer defer the currency issue anymore. He has to say something whether its devaluation or re dollarisation. Frankly, the only option is devaluation, the status quo no longer works. That is what upset the market the other time and continued denial will further destroy. Reading between the lines, he has acceded to devaluation, a source said. Finance Ministry permanent secretary George Guvamatanga said he would not comment on the issue as all issues to do with monetary policy are the governors responsibility. It would not be fair for me or even the minister to comment on the MPS, as all issues to do with it are the mandate of the governor in terms of the law. I cannot say anything, he said. Zimbabwe Independent Breaking News via Email Loading... Related Zimbabwe Latest News MDC leader Nelson Chamisa has demanded a credible, neutral, and recognisable mediator to present a plan for negotiations with President Emmerson Mnangagwa to end the worsening political and economic crises ravaging what was once Africas most promising nation. On Thursday, Mnangagwa rejected a conditional offer from the opposition party to enter into formal talks under a Southern African Development Community (Sadc) or African Union (AU) guarantor. Chamisa insists that he is genuinely willing to enter into formal negotiations if certain conditions were met by the Mnangagwa government. Among his demands are mediation by a neutral third party recognisable to Sadc and the AU, including a requirement that all prisoners of conscience be freed, and that there be an immediate return to the barracks by the military. Chamisa said any continued military offensive would take talks off the table. Through his spokesperson George Charamba, Mnangagwa rejected the conditions, saying talks were an internal matter and required local mediation or observation. Charamba said the State House meeting on Wednesday boycotted by Chamisa resolved that there should be no pre-conditions for dialogue, adding that negotiations would continue with the smaller parties even though political experts are of the view that these have no real power on the ground. But Chamisas spokesperson Nkululeko Sibanda told the Daily News on Sunday on Friday that the ball is now firmly in Mnangagwas court and it was up to the Zanu PF leader to make or break the talks. While Mnangagwa wants a broader multi-party initiative, Chamisa who disputes results of the July 30 polls prefers a dual engagement on the grounds that he is the only one among all the other presidential elections who is contesting results of last years elections. Charamba, who also doubles up as the deputy chief secretary to the President and Cabinet, said Chamisas decision to skip the meeting over his demands was self-defeating and claimed it was a result of foreigners whispering to him. But Chamisas spokesperson said: Why are they trying to dilute the problem? We cannot move on before we sit down. First, we must meet Mnangagwa, but eventually there must be inclusivity that brings all parties. The (MDC) president has no problem meeting with Mnangagwa any day. He said the issue of having the talks under the guidance of an impartial convener was fundamental. Among other things, the convener has to be credible, neutral, and recognisable, he must be somebody who is recognisable to Sadc and the AU and that is not too much to demand for. Of course, if a local person meets those requirements, then fine, but we do not see whats not local about somebody from the Sadc region, what they are asking for is not usual, when you have a conflict you need someone from outside. We want Sadc and the AU as the guarantors of such talks, said Chamisas spokesperson said. Charamba told the Daily News on Sunday that Chamisa cannot dictate terms when he decided not to attend last weeks meeting held at State House which he claimed was convened by the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission chairperson Sello Nare. The issue is not about the size of your constituency; that is why I spoke about the principle of parity. (Presidential candidate Brian) Mtekis intellect does not diminish because he didnt galvanise support on the ground. To the extent that he submitted his name for the elections means he has a view point on the nation, Charamba said. We expect that soon after the president returns from Addis Ababa, he should be convening the inaugural Presidential Advisory Committee, which is part of the dialoguing process and you will see us meeting with a number of other interest groups to deepen this ethic of negotiations and consultations within our body politic, Chamisa cannot window shop forums. It was agreed that the convener should be in Zimbabwe, said Charamba referring to Mnangagwas trip to the 32nd Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the AU in the Ethiopia capital on Friday. While Chamisa snubbed Mnangagwas State meeting on Wednesday, the Zanu PF leader returned the favour a day after. Charamba rejected widespread speculation that his boss absence at the prayer breakfast to launch a national dialogue, called by the churches was to spite Chamisa, claiming instead the president had other commitments. Information gleaned from authoritative Zanu PF officials revealed that the ruling party was distrustful of a western Scandinavian country that it claims has links to the MDC, sponsoring the church initiative. At the Thursday church meeting attended by government ministers, members of the opposition parties, and delegates from industry, the security sector, civil society, human-rights groups, trade unions, as well as international observers, including some ambassadors, the general secretary of the Zimbabwe Council of Churches (ZCC), Reverend Kenneth Mtata said national dialogue was the churchs answer to the crisis. He said the ZCC, which hosted the meeting together with the Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops Conference, the Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe, and the Union for the Development of Apostolic Churches in Zimbabwe Africa had recognised that the nation finds itself at the cross-roads, and said the churches had made their voices louder regarding the urgency and necessity of a national dialogue. There was an appetite across all sectors for dialogue, Mtata said. I was overwhelmed: we got more than we expected. We can move forward with so much confidence. He said Mnangagwa, who had been expected, but pulled out at the last minute and was represented instead by the chair of the Zanu PF party, Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri, who read out a speech by the president saying that he was ready for dialogue, would be briefed personally later in February. Analysts predicted that eventually, Zanu PF and MDC will reach a compromise, adding the present stand-off is largely posturing and political gamesmanship. Namibia-based academic Admire Mare said Mnangagwa and Chamisa must agree on a negotiator first and then meet to resolve the political and economic crisis. Eventually they will have to talk in order to unlock the political gridlock which has kept the country in limbo for the past seven months. Dialogue is a process which encompasses climbing down and up depending on the wider balance of forces, Mare told the daily News on Sunday. Its normal for the two to play hard ball at the formative stages of the process. Both sides are bringing their preconditions to the table, which is very normal. However, there is need for a mediator to help these parties to find each other and address issues like the military factor, human rights violations and the legitimacy question, said Mare. Professor of World Politics at the London School of Oriental and African Studies, Stephen Chan, said even if Mnangagwa and Chamisa were to agree on some power sharing arrangements, the economy will remain a source of problems. Basically, all they could talk about would be how much power can be shared. Neither man, however, and neither party, has a realistic economic plan. The truth that both decline to share with the Zimbabwean people is that the economic foundations of the country are so corroded that no rescue plan can succeed without causing, for something like five years, very much more suffering than even now. No one has the political courage to say that in Zimbabwe right now, Chan told the Daily News on Sunday. International Crisis Group senior consultant for Southern Africa Piers Pigou said there is need to come up with an inclusive framework for talks and a credible convener, otherwise grandstanding and posturing will continue. The faceoff between ED and Chamisa illustrates precisely why this process cannot be an exclusive political exercise, and must include civil society and other constituencies. A more inclusive process must also be facilitated by a credible team that understands process and can introduce a measure of accountability, Pigou told the Daily News on Sunday. We should not be surprised to see the old and young bull circling each other and sizing each other up, but both will have to do a lot more to convince Zimbabweans and others that these postures are anything more than a play to retain or assume power, said Pigou. DailyNews Breaking News via Email Loading... Related Zimbabwe Latest News Former Higher and Tertiary Education minister Jonathan Moyo has appealed against a High Court judgement that paved the way for Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga to sue him for alleged defamation. Moyo, on January 16 this year, was given a 10-day ultimatum by the High Court to defend the $5 million damages claim by Chiwenga after his application for exception to the charges was dismissed with costs. However, in his notice of appeal, Moyo said he was appealing against Bulawayo High Court judge Justice Thompson Mabhikwas ruling on the grounds that he was not the one who heard the case. He argued that Mabhikwa grossly misdirected himself in handing over judgement in a case heard by another judge. The court grossly misdirected itself in rendering judgement inspite and regardless of oral submissions by the parties before Justice Makoni J and the court also erred in affording respondent relief, which he had not sought and on which no submissions had been made by the parties, reads part of the appeal filed last week. The courta a quo erred at any rate in finding that the declaration discloses a valid cause of action and is otherwise not vague and embarrassing The former minister, who was forced into exile during the 2017 military coup that toppled former president Robert Mugabe, wants his appeal to be granted with costs and for Mabhikwas judgement to be set aside. Chiwenga sued Moyo after the former Zanu PF strategist issued a statement in July 2017 where he insinuated that the army commander at the time did not write the thesis for his doctorate degree from the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. He suggested that someone wrote the thesis on Chiwengas behalf. Moyo, through his lawyers, filed an exception application, saying the retired generals declaration had not disclosed any cause of action. He said the words he was complaining about were not defamatory in any way and could, under no circumstances, be damaging to his reputation. However, Justice Mabhikwa ruled that Chiwengas claim against Moyo was precise. It is this courts finding that anyone reading these documents [defendants papers included] cannot claim to be disillusioned as to what damages are claimed, read part of the judgement. The claim is for defamation damages clearly as opposed to adultery damages, damages for loss of earnings or any other damages. The terminology used need not necessarily always be defamation damage. The Standard Breaking News via Email Loading... Related Zimbabwe Latest News A brutal attack by soldiers during the January 14 protests against steep fuel price increases has ruined the life of a 38-year-old Chitungwiza man, who is struggling to heal and his relatives fear he might be losing his mind because of the savage beatings. Philemon Mutoko* said he was walking home around 9pm when the heavily-armed soldiers descended on him like a tonne of bricks and up to now he has no idea what crime he committed to invite the full might of the security forces. Mutoko says he is now living in fear and in serious pain but has no money to seek proper treatment. He often hallucinates and shouts on top of his voice claiming he would be seeing heavily- armed soldiers who want to finish him off. During the panic attacks, Mutoko would be groaning and trying to bolt out of the house, but his poor health fails him. He often broke down and hallucinated during the interview where he narrated his ordeal at the hands of the ruthless soldiers. I was close to my house at around 9pm when I met a group of soldiers who ordered me to lie down, he said while fighting off tears. They said I was part of a group that was insulting them during the afternoon. I tried to plead my innocence, but they were not interested in what I was saying and they started hitting me on the head. I screamed for help, but the moment I did that, they intensified the beatings. I tried to flee, but I met another group of soldiers who started assaulting me again. The ones who beat me first caught up with me and joined in the assault. I couldnt do anything. Mutoko said after the incident he spent about four days at his house without receiving any medical attention. When he finally gathered the courage to venture out of the house, he went to a local clinic where his wounds were treated. However, his church mates were not impressed by the treatment he received at the clinic and encouraged him to go to Chitungwiza Central Hospital where he was only able to buy pain killers. Mutoko does not have money for X-rays and a scan to determine the extent of his head injuries. I didnt participate in anything that they were accusing me of, he added. Now my life is miserable and I cannot work for my two wives and three children. I am always in pain and see the soldiers coming for me. They said they would come back for me and I always have visions of them even when I am sleeping. I have no peace at all. Doctors recommended that the man should be treated by a clinical psychologist, but he has no money to pay for the services. One of Mutokos wives said they feared he was losing his mind due to the savage attack. She said her husband wails in the dead of the night, saying he was seeing the soldiers that assaulted him. How could soldiers be moving around and assaulting anyone that they meet? I think they must take responsibility for this problem that we have, she said. They must at least pay for his medication. Mutoko is one of hundreds of people brutalised by the army during the crackdown that followed the three-day stayaway called by the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions and #ThisFlag movement to protest against the deteriorating economic situation in the country. A report released by the Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum last Friday said 17 cases of extra-judiciary killings allegedly committed by the army had been recorded so far. The NGOs said they had documented at least 1 803 violations committed since January 14 by the security forces across the country. They include at least 17 cases of rape or other violations of a sexual nature, 26 abductions, 61 displacements, 81 assaults consistent with gunshot attacks, at least 586 assaults and torture, inhuman and degrading treatment including dog bites, 954 arrests and detention (including dragnet arrests), among other violations. President Emmerson Mnangagwas government has repeatedly denied that soldiers were behind the violations, but the president promised to bring the perpetrators to book after Britains Sky TV recorded two police officers and a soldier brutalising a suspect during the protests. The government blames the MDC Alliance for the violence that erupted during the stayaway and claims that protesters stole guns at police armouries, which they were using to kill people. The military said it used force proportionate to the level of the threat posed by the protesters, where 165 shops were looted countrywide, an assertion challenged by the NGO Forum report. The violations are systematic, unleashed mainly by male perpetrators whom the victims identified as wearing either military or police attire, armed with AK rifles and or baton sticks, travelling in army and police vehicles, the report says. The targets of attack were initially the male population in highdensity suburbs, but later became indiscriminate to include women and young girls. The NGOs said they had started the process of pursuing justice and accountability for the victims and so far at least 24 letters of demand had been issued claiming about US$1 200 000 from the perpetrators. They urged the government to establish an independent complaints mechanism in line with section 210 of the constitution that is designed to receive and investigate complaints against the security services and accused the State media of abetting the rights violations. The Forum calls upon the state media that is funded by the taxpayer, to stop its current propaganda that is fuelling state violence and fanning hostilities in violation of the founding values of the constitution of Zimbabwe and the values of peace journalism, the report added. The state media must do its work responsibly in service of the nation and not be used in pursuit of a partisan parochial political agenda. A fortnight ago, the government reacted angrily to a report by the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission that accused the security forces of gross human rights violations. Human Rights Watch southern African director Dewa Mavhinga said Mnangagwas government must investigate the cases involving the army and ensure justice for the victims. All cases of people with physical and psychological injuries from the security forces crackdown on the January protests must be treated with utmost urgency by the government, he said. President Mnangagwa should, through the minister of Health, issue an open public invitation from all such people to go to the nearest hospital or clinic for urgent medical support on the governments account. A government that cares about its citizens will not look aside in the face of such a catastrophe, it steps in to help. On August 1, soldiers killed at six people in Harare after they opened fire on protesters that were demonstrating against what they said were delays in the release of presidential election results. A commission appointed by Mnangagwa to investigate the killings, which was led by former South African president Kgalema Motlanthe, last December recommended that soldiers and police officers behind the killings must be prosecuted. The Standard Breaking News via Email Loading... Related Zimbabwe Latest News KWEKWE Central MP, Masango Matambanadzo has slammed governments tough handling of popular Harare preacher Walter Magayas HIV cure claims without dedicating similar vigour to investigate the validity of his pronouncements. He was speaking at an Industry and Commerce Ministry organised business event in Harare Thursday. Matambanadzo, popularly known as Blackman, said the current government was quick to dismiss any innovations often viewed as ridiculous by locals instead of harnessing the potential talent for the greater national good. We are told that South Africa is now manufacturing Anti-Retroviral drugs but what you must know is that such developments could have been prompted by one notorious experimental individual. Just here in Zimbabwe, Magaya revealed that he had found cure for the virus but instead of inviting him to assess the credibility of his claims, you just rushed to harass and arrest him why?, Matambanadzo said of the Prophetic Healing and Deliverance Ministries founder. Magaya was this week fined $700 for manufacturing a drug without first clearing with relevant authorities. Matambanadzo said the Zimbabwean government had a bad reputation of punishing innovative citizens without taking time to harness their potential. We also had a brilliant invention by Daniel Chingoma years back, who invented a helicopter but instead of supporting him, he was rewarded by being arrested for illegally flying his plane, said the former Zanu PF MP and now opposition National Patriotic Front politician. The outspoken legislator also blamed government for scrapping the STEM initiative introduced into the schools curricula by former Higher and Tertiary Education Minister, Jonathan Moyo. The programme is credited for unlocking potential among the countrys secondary school learners. NewZimbabwe Breaking News via Email Loading... Related Zimbabwe Latest News A FAMILY from Gutu, Masvingo, is still mourning the death of their first born son, Farai Nyamadzawo, a 22-year-old that reportedly bled to death after he was cut in his underarm when a crowd of looters that he was allegedly a part of caused a melee as they stampeded into a store in Tshabalala, Bulawayo during the violent protests that rocked the country last month. Although it is unclear how he got involved in the looting spree, those in Tshabalala who claim to have seen him before he was fatally cut suggest that the late Nyamadzawo had been in the forefront when protests turned violent and decided to break into Chicken Corner in Tshabalala Extension. According to community members who spoke to Sunday News, Nyamadzawo had been pushed against the stores glass doors when those at the tail of the marauding looters started pushing to get in. However, a childhood friend that he was staying with at the time of his death said no one knew for certain how Nyamadzawo had got injured. To tell you the truth no one really knows how he died. I would be lying if I said there is someone that actually has proper details of how he died. No one is saying they saw how it happened. I didnt see where he was injured but I was told that he had got his hands injured, said his friend who only identified himself as Roddy. According to Roddy, the late Nyamadzawo had been an honest young man who had made the trek from Masvingo, where they befriended each other as schoolboys, to Bulawayo in search of greener pastures. After finding work at a local lodge, he had been recently laid off and had found himself without a place to stay in Bulawayo before his old friend bailed him out and gave him shelter. He was someone that came to Bulawayo to work. So when he lost his job, he did not have anywhere else to stay. Thats when my roommate suggested that he comes to stay with us while he was looking for a job. Thats how he found himself staying with us, he said. Roddy said his late friend had earlier on indicated that he wanted to stay indoors when the violence erupted and was still confused about what had prompted him to venture outside when it was clear that the situation was tense. He was a very good person and I even remember the morning that he died. On that morning when the violence was about to get serious my roommate told both of us to sit down and relax because the situation was tense and if we go out we might get injured. I remember him saying that even if he was a builder or doing any kind of job he would not go to work in a situation like that even though it might cost him money. Even now I dont understand what possessed him to go out that day. It was a shock an hour later to hear that he had passed on, he said. Almost a month since his friend passed on in such an unlikely and painful manner, Roddy said he was still finding it hard to come to terms with his demise. Nyamadzawos father, Mr Saruro Nyamadzawo said he was told that his son had bled to death after failing to get medical treatment on time. He said when he was injured, he was initially discovered in Tshabalala by his uncle, Mr Rodrick Makoni, who was told that Nyamadzawo was in a ditch somewhere in the high density suburb and had to frantically start searching for him. In the end his rescue attempts had been a little too late and Mr Nyamadzawo revealed that a post-mortem had revealed that his son had been pierced by a sharp object below his armpit. As a result of his untimely passing the family who had no money at that time had to mobilise resources from as far as South Africa from other family members to assist in his burial. Nyamadzawo was buried in Gutu on 19 January. Due to his untimely death we had to seek assistance from our relatives as far as South Africa who chipped in financially to help to ferry the body of to his resting place in Masvingo. As the father to the late I am also pained by the loss of my son at such a tender age. Its even more painful when you consider that he was the first born, said Mr Nyamadzawo. Another death reported in Bulawayo was of a police officer who was attacked by rioters, and arrests have been made in connection with the murder case. SundayNews Breaking News via Email Loading... Related Zimbabwe Latest News A recent army crackdown on civilians has brought problems for the countrys servicemen whose superiors have banned them from putting on camouflage on their way home to avoid revenge attacks by civilians angered by brutalities visited upon them recently. This was revealed in a memo circulated to all members by Zimbabwe National Army commander Lieutenant General Edzai Chimonyo. The ban, according to the memo, was also influenced by reports that some criminals with nothing to do with the defence forces were now committing various offences while impersonating members of the military. It has been noted with concern that ZNA uniform has been abused in offences being committed such as robbery, gold panning, fraud, theft and extortions among others. Some members have also been attacked by hostile civilians whilst in uniforms, read the memo, dated February 6. Measures were then taken to ensure imposters abusing the uniforms will be easily identified and also ensure safety of members outside cantonment areas. Commander ZNA has directed that with immediate effect no military uniform will be worn outside cantonment areas. This applies to members commuting to and from places of work, intra and intercity commuting. Take note that after working hours, members are to put on civilian clothes and leave their uniforms in cantonment areas. The countrys military recently came under spotlight for all the wrong reasons following a brutal operation waged in urban residential areas in Harare, Bulawayo and some parts of the country in response to violent anti-government protests which coincided with a job stay away called by labour groups to register discontent over rising cost of living in the country. At least 12 civilians were gunned down by soldiers during the protests while over 70 were also treated for gunshot wounds. Claims of torture, rape and other heinous acts have been reported against the army, eliciting world condemnation over the heavy handed handling of public disturbances by the Emmerson Mnangagwa led administration. Government has promised to investigate the offences but is yet to make a single arrest against any offending member of the army. However, the ban in the wearing of uniform would likely come as a disappointment for many members who have used the distinctive clothing to enjoy free transport to work when spotted flagging for lifts by government vehicles, ZUPCO buses or private motorists with sympathy for the military. Zimbabwes army, just like the rest of the civil service, is paid in the much resented RTGS electronic method while commuter transport operators demand cash from passengers. NewZimbabwe Breaking News via Email Loading... Related Zimbabwe Latest News We are in the middle of a great shale revolution. For the first time in decades, the U.S. is holding its own against OPEC and Russia, going from energy importer to energy exporter. Unlocking previously inaccessible shale reservoirs deep underground using hydraulic fracturing is becoming our nations ticket to energy dominance. The impact of shale development has made the U.S. the top producer of oil and natural gas in the world. Two decades ago, our nation was staring down a potential energy crisis, but now we are a world energy leader. From the Barnett Shale, Eagle Ford Shale and Permian Basin in Texas to the SCOOP and STACK plays in Oklahoma, the southern region tops the charts with the highest number of oil barrels per day and a huge supply of natural gas liquids to fuel manufacturing growth. The shale revolution is entering a new stage of maturity, and we must be prepared. These massive energy plants are on a construction scale we havent seen in generations. Are we prepared for such massive scales of construction amid a skilled labor shortage, especially in the southern region? With a wave of baby boomer retirements, workers who switched careers during the recession and a young generation that is not considering construction as a viable career option, contractors are reporting a severe skilled labor shortage in the South. Such a shortage could lead to higher prices and longer construction schedules. Three out of 4 construction firms are concerned about finding hourly craftworkers over the next year. But is there such a desperate lack of skilled labor, or is the panic due to a disconnect somewhere between supply and demand? In the South, contractors are scrambling to find skilled labor to man these massive energy plants, but they are overlooking the main source of skilled labor: the building trades. Many contractors are facing delays and having to rework projects while the answer to their crisis is within reach. The building trades have always maintained a healthy supply of job-ready, skilled, safe workers. They are equipped to face the challenge. They produce skilled workers through comprehensive training, innovative diversity and worker-retention measures, and fair wages. They invest in comprehensive training, including in-depth safety training, saving time and money for contractors and end users. A safe workforce reduces injuries, fatalities and costly delays, adding up to huge cost savings. For example, the Iron Workers training centers collectively spend between $80 million and $90 million a year in apprenticeship and upgrade training. But the building trades cannot do it alone. They need support to sustain a healthy supply of skilled labor. They need continued support from the Department of Labor and the Trump administration for their apprenticeship programs. President Donald Trump recently announced plans to make expansion of apprenticeship programs the center of his labor policy. We need the administration to keep that promise to fund apprenticeship programs, as they are the bread and butter of maintaining a healthy supply of skilled workers. The biggest reason for the construction industrys skilled labor vacuum, which resulted from baby boomers exiting the workforce, is a lack of awareness and planning to build a pipeline of workers. First, we need to stop telling our young people their only path to success is a four-year college degree. Nontraditional career paths are not often presented as viable and lucrative alternatives to college for young people graduating from high school, who are not often well-informed about nontraditional career alternatives. According to the Labor Department, 87 percent of apprentices are employed after completing their programs, with an average starting wage above $50,000. Earn-while-you-learn apprenticeship programs in the trades allow high school graduates to make a decent living while being trained for a lifelong career, as opposed to accruing college debt for four years. We need to change the narrative about careers in the skilled trades and retool the existing workforce. The clock is ticking on this coming tsunami of workforce demand. We must be prepared to meet the demand to keep the momentum toward U.S. energy dominance going. Lee Worley is executive director of apprenticeship and training for the Iron Workers union. Contact him at 202-383-4889 or lworley@iwintl.org. Could you describe your time in the immigration detention center? The young woman and her son nervously shuffled at the sound of this question. After taking a second to gather herself, she responded in Spanish, Well, some guards were nice and others were very mean. I am just glad to have my family out of El Congelador. El Congelador is Spanish for the freezer. Other immigrants had a different name for the Customs and Border Protection holding center they were in La Hielera (the Ice Box). Many assume it is an ironic play on words, since ICE stands for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, but those who have been in the center know La Hielera is no joke. In a lawsuit filed against CBP, a woman claims to have been so cold that her lips chapped and split, and her sisters extremities began to turn blue. Some believe that the low temperatures are being used to stop the spread of bacteria. In an article, a spokesperson from the Rio Grande Valley sector of the CBP claims that the temperature of the facility helps to do just that. Hospitals use this technique, but there is (or should be) a big difference in how sick patients are treated in cold temperatures and how people in an immigration detention facility are treated. Unlike people being detained in an immigration center, a patients body temperature is closely monitored and controlled to ensure it is safe, and most contact throughout the day is with medical professionals. Dr. Marsha Griffin, who works at a clinic in a Catholic Charities center that cares for immigrants after they have been released, noted that there is no good reason to keep an overcrowded space that has children in it at such a low temperature. According to Griffin, the cold can exacerbate an illness and cause it to linger, which gives the illness a better chance to spread to others who are being held in the overcrowded facility. Many immigrants and immigration advocates also believe there is no constructive reason for the centers to be that cold. They believe the frigid temperatures are used as deterrence and, sometimes, punishment. Using temperature as a punitive measure is strictly against CBP policy, but there is an overwhelming amount of testimony that claims that is exactly what its used for. These actions also violate a decades-old agreement reached by the federal government. The Flores agreement sets standards for the humane treatment (among other things) of detained immigrant children including regulation of temperatures at which immigrant children can be kept while being detained. And while the temperatures are not outrageous between 66 and 80 degrees its common knowledge among detainees in South Texas facilities that those guidelines are not being adhered to. For instance, in 2017 a federal district court noted substantial non-compliance with the Agreement among CBP stations located within the Rio Grande Valley sector. The court talked of 2- and 3-year-olds with wet diapers in freezing cold. The case cites a declaration that claims that when children would cry because of the frigid temperatures, officers would turn the temperature down even further after yelling at the children to shut up. Whether cold is being used as an untenable form of deterrence/punishment or an ineffective form of sanitation, all it is effectively doing is serving as a form of elongated physical and mental torture of a vulnerable group of people. Samuel David Garcia, a South Texas native, is a member of the Harvard Law Class of 2019. Joseph Gallardo, a San Antonio native, is also a Harvard Law School student. The Bexar County Sheriffs Office is asking the public to help them find a 28-year-old man who they say assaulted and threatened someone with a gun and held the person captive against their will. The victim told officials Monday that Gregory Bernard Cunningham punched, slapped and choked the victim at a Bexar County residence for two days, the Sheriffs Office said in a Facebook post. District 6 City Councilman Greg Brockhouse is running for mayor, he announced Saturday, pitching a vision to "return power to the people." Brockhouse told a crowd of more than 150 supporters gathered outside Del Bravo Record Shop that at times he has "been a lonely voice in the wilderness" since he was elected to City Council in 2017, a sign of his commitment to standing up for his beliefs. He'll face incumbent Ron Nirenberg, who announced last month that he'll run for a second term. This is only the second time in the past 20 years that a sitting mayor has been challenged by a city council member the last was when Nirenberg ran against Ivy Taylor in 2017. SUBSCRIBER CONTENT: Fire union support will be mixed blessing for Brockhouse "We're in neutral at City Hall," Brockhouse said, standing in the parking lot surrounded by classic cars and supporters. He accused Nirenberg of making "a lot of promises," and breaking "nearly all of them," and outlined three issues he plans to focus on if elected: economic opportunity, transparency and public safety. "We're going to fight for economic opportunity for everybody," he said, naming job creation, wage inequality and lowering property taxes as priorities. Brockhouse said he will "fight to shine a light" on business in City Hall, with "no more bonuses for people behind closed doors." The line is reminiscent of his promise in his first campaign for city council in 2013, when he said that "80 percent of what occurs downtown occurs behind closed doors." He also took aim at Nirenberg for refusing to bid to host the Republican National Convention in 2020, a decision made in closed session. RELATED: San Antonio mayor announces run for re-election He also addressed "my brothers and sisters here with the firefighters and police officers," promising that "when I'm elected, you won't have to worry about your jobs or anything like that." "You won't have to worry about your paychecks or your retirement," he said, accusing Nirenberg of "needlessly" fighting with the city's first responders. "We will make this city safer." Brockhouse has been the San Antonio Professional Firefighters Association's strongest ally on the council in its contract fight with the city, and was previously a consultant for the union. The John Jay High School graduate served in the Air Force and has also worked as a mortgage banker and a staffer for council members Mary Alice Cisneros and Rey Saldana. "Just as we did this past November with the charter amendments, we will return power to the people of San Antonio," he said. Brockhouse supported passage of the three propositions on November's ballot and was a vocal critic of City Manager Sheryl Sculley, who resigned shortly after the election. He said the city "isn't the San Antonio I grew up in," and said Nirenberg has "little record of accomplishment." FIND OUT FIRST: Get San Antonio breaking news directly to your inbox At his campaign announcement in January, Nirenberg highlighted the work of the Mayor's Housing Policy Report and the city's shift of funding toward historically underserved areas, using an "equity lens" in budgeting. He pointed to construction downtown as a visible sign of growth and prosperity and to his prioritization of affordable housing, climate action and transportation. "It's up to us to stay the course," Nirenberg said. Supporters of Brockhouse said Saturday that they believe he'll elevate their voices at City Hall. Supporter Al Nino praised him for "putting pressure on Sculley," while Sylvia Hernandez, who carried a handmade sign in support of Brockhouse, said he'll "fight for us." She called the fight over the firefighters' contract "ridiculous," and praised Brockhouse for his support of first responders. The deadline for mayoral candidates to file to run is Feb. 15. LTeitz@express-news.net Some of Houston's famed midcentury homes have already been demolished since Harvey's floodwaters wreaked havoc on areas like Meyerland, where this architectural style features prominently. Others are under extensive reconstruction. Those with the resources to fix damaged homes, and who appreciate turn-of-the-century architecture by famed architects, will not hesitate to spend what it takes to remodel these damaged homes. On a cold and somewhat dreary Saturday, four days before its official opening in the San Antonio area, Ikea brightened the day for a handful of locals with a taste of its newest store. "Like moths to a flame," explained Roger Barrientos who was one of the chosen few who got in on the early Ikea fun. The special preview was made available only to members of Ikea's loyalty program. And Barrientos and his family were among the couple hundred who were first to reply to email invitations, sent out last month, that secured their spot for the early preview. RELATED: Ikea having 'tons of giveaways' at grand opening Attendees were issued special parking passes that allowed them onto the property. According to Barrientos, Live Oak police were not letting anyone near the Ikea unless you had one of those special passes. The lucky shoppers, estimated by Barrientos at close to 200, were the first to walk along the store's massive offerings of eco-friendly home furnishings and appliances that the retail chain is known for. And, of course, they got to sample the much-anticipated and hyped restaurant and foods. The restaurant area, which Barrientos described as massive, was "pretty much filled to capacity." Barrientos, his wife Teri Barrientos and 4-year-old daughter Arianna, are also "pretty much" Ikea veterans. "Pretty much every single room in the apartment is filled with Ikea stuff," he said. He says the atmosphere was exciting as shoppers were going about with deals in their bags and smiles on their faces. The Barrientos love affair with Ikea began many years ago when the couple visited the Round Rock location for the first time. Since then he has been to eight different stores across the U.S. RELATED: Here's how to avoid Ikea's notoriously awful return lines He says his family makes about three road trips a year to the Round Rock store. "It's pretty much an all-day event," Barrientos explained as he described the savory foods and posh homeware and appliances he and his family get every trip. "You get there and four hours later you look at your watch and are like - Wow! Time warp!" Road trips for the Barrientos are about to get a lot shorter as the Live Oak location opens for regular operating hours on Wednesday. Click through the gallery for a look at the early sneak peek opening of Ikea. Traffic backup between Jamestown and Sonora due to Caltrans work Dec 7 2017 View Photos Caltrans urges motorists to use caution when driving by road projects this winter. Here is a list of their scheduled highway work for the first week of February. On Highway 49 at Jack Page Road, north of Sonora, all the way to the Tuolumne/Calaveras county line expect 10 minute delays for an area of one-way traffic control as Caltrans works on striping the road. The work is scheduled between 8PM and 6AM beginning Monday night and each evening, through Friday morning, weather permitting. From 6 AM to 7 PM on HWY 49 at the Montezuma junction 10 miles to Cattle Guard Road more road striping work will also cause 10 minute delays. At the Yosemite Junction look for Caltrans workers limiting traffic to one way for shoulder work and drainage work. The work is scheduled between 8 PM and 6 AM starting Sunday and each night through Friday morning. Those same nights and during the day as well, starting at the Stanislaus/Tuolumne County line, there will be areas of one-way traffic control to allow drainage and shoulder work along HWY 108/120. It may delay travelers 10 minutes. More areas of night-time drainage work are planned and may delay traffic for 10 minutes on HWY 120 in the Moccasin Creek Bridge area. On Highway 26 in Calaveras 12 miles of tree work will restrict traffic to one lane and cause estimated 10 minute delays from Ridge Road to the Calaveras/ Amador county line. Hours of work, weather permitting, are 7Am to 4PM Monday thru Friday. ELSAH Those driving or biking along the Great River Road in Jersey County these days should be on the lookout for more than just majestic bald eagles. Workers with Michels Corp. Construction are prepping the area between Elsah and Chautauqua for the Spire STL Pipeline. The work includes clearing a wide swath of woods to the top of the bluff for placement of the underground pipeline. The St. Louis-based utility company is constructing a 65-mile natural gas pipeline through Scott, Green and Jersey counties. The cost is estimated between $210 million and $225 million. Workers have clear-cut a gash into the bluffs about one-half mile northwest of Mississippi Street in Elsah. The pipeline will go under the river at that point. Specifically, the Mississippi River will be crossed using horizontal directional drill techniques to lessen the environmental impact. Nicknamed the Spire STL Pipeline, construction began this month and, if everything goes according to schedule, will be completed as soon as July. Motorists and pedestrians should avoid getting too close to the construction. We take safety very seriously, and have taken great care to clearly mark the construction zone, or right-of-way, for this project, said Jenny Barth, manager of external communications for Spire. These markings can appear as construction entrance signs, stakes along the perimeter or orange safety fencing around open excavations. Barth also said the work should have little impact on wintering bald eagles. In preparing for this project, Barth said Spire conducted extensive surveys and research to locate and protect all eagle nests, including consulting with multiple agencies including U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Illinois and Missouri Departments of Natural Resources and the Missouri Department of Conservation. During the surveys, they didnt find any eagle nests within the vicinity of the project and dont anticipate that construction will affect eagle watching, she said. Spire Inc. will own and operate the pipeline. Spire is a public utility holding company based in St. Louis. According to Spires website, the new pipeline will provide significant benefits to more than 647,000 homes and businesses in the entire St. Louis region. After the work is done, the land will be restored. Restoration efforts will begin as soon as construction work is complete, Barth said. The corridor above the pipeline will be clear of trees, but planted with grass seed and other native vegetation. Scott Cousins can be reached at 618-208-6447. Dear Abby: My wife and I have been married for 36 years and have five adult children. We have a loving, caring and mutually supportive relationship. We recently had dinner at a restaurant, and she became very flirty and familiar with our male server, who was one-third her age and a complete stranger. She complimented him on his handsome looks, his trim waistline and his smooth and reassuring speaking style. I thought she was out of line, and on the ride home, I told her so. She became defensive and angry and said she was only kidding around with him. Jim in Maryland Dear Jim: What your wife did was inappropriate. Could she have had one premeal cocktail too many? Because her behavior made you uncomfortable, she owes you an apology. And if this sort of thing happens again, perhaps you should request a female server if possible. Dear Abby: Im a sophomore college student who has finally settled in with a group of friends I love and really connect with. However, one girl in our group throws full-on temper tantrums where she cries, storms off or exerts negative energy to the point that it ruins the night for the rest of us. These fits of temper have reached a point where my friends and I feel anxious being around her. What do we do? Exhausted in College Dear Exhausted: The behavior you have described isnt normal. The girl appears to be extremely fragile emotionally. Whoever is closest to her should point out to her privately that all of you are concerned that her outbursts may be a sign of depression, and suggest she talk to someone at the student health center about them. Dear Abby: A dear friend and her husband were at a Broadway theater production. Because of a spinal cord injury, she uses either a walker or wheelchair. During intermission, when she went into the ladies room, the line was quite long. Not one woman offered to let her move ahead. Whats the protocol? I thought each person in there should have deferred to her. Trying to Help Dear Trying to Help: My view is that someone with an obvious disability should be offered the next available stall, and if the person uses a walker or a wheelchair, the handicap stall should be offered to her. Details emerge about drug trafficking ring; Meth operation in SV had ties to cartel in Sinaloa For $10, thousands of Texans could get a plate of barbecue on the Capitol lawn, just after the governor and lieutenant governor's oath of office ceremony. For another $125, a lucky few snagged tickets to see country legend George Strait play at the sold-out inaugural ball that evening. The price of access skyrocketed from there. According to the events official program and a fundraising solicitation obtained by The Texas Tribune, dozens of wealthy Texans including Midland oilman Javaid Anwar -- and businesses pledged thousands of dollars and in turn, received entree to special events or time with the states top leaders. Gov. Greg Abbotts office did not respond to questions about the event, including the cost to hire Strait. The chair of the nonprofit inaugural committee that organized the festivities, banker and Texas Transportation Commission Chair J. Bruce Bugg Jr., could not be reached for comment. Philanthropist Mindy Hildebrand and billionaire oilman Ray Hunt, the co-chairs of the committee, did not comment and deferred questions to Bugg. Donations to the inauguration are not deemed political contributions under state statute, and the inaugural committee, whose creation is mandated by law, is not required to make financial disclosures before this summer. But although corporations cant make direct donations to political campaigns or elected officials, state law permits them to underwrite the inaugural events, two days of celebration rife with pageantry, pomp and for the right price, VIP treatment. For context: The 2011 inaugural cost approximately $2 million. The 2015 inaugural committee raised $4.7 million, much of it from corporations. This year, those who gave $5,000 to the inaugural committee Bronze Star-level donors got two plates of barbecue, four George Strait tickets and promotional signage. Silver Star donors $10,000 got all that plus seats to the swearing-in ceremony. In the upper-most echelon were Diamond Star-level donors who, for $100,000, were granted exclusive access to a candlelit dinner at the Fairmont Hotel in Austin, a prayer service, an inaugural mass, a photo op with the governor and a full-page advertisement in the events program. Sources familiar with the donation process said bundlers fundraisers who help collect contributions without personally donating were also named in the 72-page inaugural program. Those who paid at least $25,000 were invited to a well-stocked VIP reception at the inaugural ball that was cordoned off from the rest of the attendees, according to the solicitation and people present at the event. Its an indirect way for the lobbyists to schmooze, said one attendee, who asked to remain anonymous because he was not authorized to comment publicly. There definitely were two balls going on. In the main hall, where lower-level donors gathered, you just didnt run into anyone important, the attendee said. There were cash bars there and, according to multiple party guests, no food. The Tribune found the names of top underwriters and the amounts given in a glossy brochure and a fundraising pitch sent to prospective donors. Spread across 52 pages in the printed program, the names and corporate logos of the sponsors include several businesses with interests before the Legislature, from Big Oil to beer distributors to high-powered lobby firms. State associations dedicated to general contractors and to oil and gas interests were designated "Headliner Sponsors," as were billionaire oilman Jeff Hildebrand and his wife, Mindy, who helped coordinate the festivities. It was not clear what those sponsors donated to receive the label, which gave them top billing in the inaugural program. Diamond-level sponsors included AT&T Corporation; H-E-B grocery; Anwar, an Abbott appointee on the Higher Education Coordinating Board; John Nau, a beer distributing magnate and Abbotts campaign treasurer; and oil pipeline billionaire Kelcy Warren, whom Abbott appointed to the board of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission. One of the few public entities perhaps the only public entity named in the program was the Texas A&M University System, listed as a Silver sponsor. A spokesman for the system said the contribution came from the Chancellors Century Council, a private group of boosters. --- Texas Tribune A Dallas-area elected official has apologized after calling Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., a "bimbo" in a now-deleted tweet directed at the congresswoman. Scott Dunn, a member of the city council in Richardson, Texas, replied to Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter with the offending remarks, according to screenshots of the tweet that circulated online last week. "The embarrassment is to have bimbos like you with nothing between your ear," Dunn wrote. It's unclear to which of the congresswoman's tweets he was responding. As of Saturday morning, Dunn's Twitter account was deactivated. Dunn later said he was trying to defend President Trump after the State of the Union address, according to the Dallas Morning News. The day after the speech, Ocasio-Cortez called the event an "embarrassment" after some criticized her for not applauding Trump and looking "sullen" in the audience. In a Facebook post on Friday, Dunn apologized for his Twitter reply to Ocasio-Cortez, according to the New York Daily News. The post was no longer publicly visible as of Saturday morning. "The words I used were offensive," Dunn reportedly wrote. "I am responsible for my own words and actions. I apologize to anyone who finds what I said offensive." Dunn did not immediately respond to a request from The Post for comment on Saturday. Even after Dunn's Twitter account was deactivated, screenshots of his tweet made the rounds on social media, prompting a few calls for him to resign. Mauri Long, a candidate for Richardson City Council, said she found the tweet "inappropriate, demeaning and divisive." "As one of only two women running for City Council, I find this sort of locker room talk disturbing and personally offensive," Long wrote in a post on her campaign's Facebook page. "This type of caustic rhetoric by an elected representative of our great city is not reflective of our own values." Amir Omar, a former Richardson City Council member, also condemned Dunn's remarks as unbecoming of an elected official. "I really don't care what political team you root for and whether you like one representative or another," Omar wrote. "I don't even care that although you are representing a city in a non-partisan role, you can't hold your tongue out of basic decorum. What I do care about is that you are so tone deaf that you don't realize that using sexist terms like this one reflects badly on our City." On Friday, Richardson Mayor Paul Voelker said he was "extremely disappointed and embarrassed" by Dunn's comments and had since talked to the councilman. "While I certainly respect Councilman Dunn's, or any citizen's, right to freely express his or her opinion on any issue of public concern, I also believe that Richardson's values are best upheld when we engage in civic discourse that is civil in tone, respectful of others and designed to produce constructive outcomes for the betterment of our community," Voelker said in a statement. "Even when we disagree about important political and social issues, we shouldn't resort to name-calling," the mayor added. Ocasio-Cortez upset longtime congressman Joseph Crowley in their Democratic primary race last year, and quickly became a popular target of the right even before she took office. As The Washington Post's Elise Viebeck reported last month, Republican lawmakers and pundits have mocked everything from Ocasio-Cortez's appearance to her background: There are new examples all the time. Republicans Ed Rollins and Rush Limbaugh recently dismissed Ocasio-Cortez as a "little girl" and "some young uppity." The Washington Examiner's Eddie Scarry tweeted a photo of her in November and wrote that she doesn't "look like a girl who struggles." The Daily Caller promoted what it described as a possible "nude selfie" of her last week before walking back its headline. In return, Ocasio-Cortez has frequently clapped back at her critics online and in interviews. She did not, however, appear to respond to Dunn's "bimbos" tweet. Dunn has served on the city council in Richardson, a Dallas suburb, since 2011, according to his bio. Martha Holmes Brown, 80, of Moultrie, died Saturday, June 19, 2021 at her home. A Funeral Service will be held at 11:00 AM on Thursday, June 24, 2021 at Pineview Baptist Church. Mrs. Brown's grandsons will serve as pallbearers. Mrs. Brown was born on October 18, 1940, in Sylvester, Georgia, featured Lorain Elyria club offers help to local entrepreneurs in Lorain You are the owner of this article. An emotional letter the Duchess of Sussex wrote to her father has been leaked to the Daily Mail. In the letter, the Duchess details how her turbulent relationship with her family has affected her. "Your actions have broken my heart into a million pieces - not simply because you have manufactured such unnecessary and unwarranted pain, but by making the choice to not tell the truth as you are puppeteered in this - something I will never understand," she wrote. She chastised him for lying in interviews, such as when he claimed he'd called her to say he was no longer coming to her wedding. "That didn't happen because you never called," she wrote. "I have only ever loved, protected, and defended you... so the week of the wedding to hear about you having a heart attack through a tabloid was horrifying." She said she "begged" him to accept her help and sent someone to his home in Mexico, but instead Mr Markle "stopped answering [his] phone and chose to only speak to tabloids". The kickoff for the 2019 Iredell March of Dimes was held Thursday in both Mooresville and Statesville, providing an opportunity for March for Babies team captains to pick up fundraising materials, network with other team captains and meet this years March for Babies Ambassador family and the volunteer leadership committee. The Medlen family of Mooresville Jenny and Robert Medlen and their 8-year-old triplets, Callista, Eleanor and Toby are serving as the 2019 ambassador family. Mom Jenny and the triplets were at the kickoff and spoke to the gathered groups. Dad Rob was unable to attend. We come together for every family, Jenny said, those going through hardship, those celebrating and those just now starting their families. This years March of Dimes March for Babies will be held April 13 at the Troutman ESC Park with registration opening at 9 a.m. The Superhero Sprint, which is a kids fun run for ages 1-10, and especially for NICU graduates to have their special event, begins at 9:45 a.m. The walk begins at 10 a.m. What impact can this have? Some statistics shared by Rebecca Sellers, development manager for March of Dimes, show that: Iredell County Sheriff Darren Campbell announced Wednesday that he will join the board of directors for the National Sheriffs Association, based in Alexandria, Virginia. Campbell is the only sheriff from North Carolina who will be on the board, which is comprised of 17 other sheriffs from across the country. NSA is a trade and lobbying group that represents the interests of the nations sheriffs. The association is routinely called upon to provide expert testimony on law enforcement corrections and court security issues before Congress, according to a release. We are honored to have Sheriff Campbell serve on our Board, NSA President Sheriff John Layton said in a statement shared by Campbell. Sheriff Campbell brings a breadth of experience serving his community as Sheriff and serving in law enforcement for the past two decades for the people of Iredell County." Campbell was nominated for the position in October by the N.C. Sheriffs Association, according to information from Campbell. The NCSAs executive committee voted unanimously to recommend Campbell fill the board of directors seat vacated by Sheriff Brady Riley of Cabarrus County, who retired last year. February 10, 2019 The MoA Week In Review - OT 2019-09 It was a quiet week as your host had the sh**s and was generally unwell. The full service will resume next week. Last week's posts on Moon of Alabama: Steffan Watkins found that the weapons mentioned in the above post came within a larger CIA operation. Steffan Watkins @steffanwatkins - 4:54 utc - 10 Feb 2019 U.S. registered Boeing 767 Cargo plane N881YV (ICAO:AC23C6), operated by 21 Air, LLC, wet-leased to GPS-Air, flew every single day from 2019-01-11 to 2019-02-07 from Florida to VZ or CO, sometimes both; then stopped. On the 7th. Why might that be? Funny story; do you know when the Venezuelans published the name of the suspect flight and laid out the spread of guns allegedly from the plane? February 5th. Flights stopped when the public were told about them happening February 7th. Others found that several people involved in the above flights were also involved in 'extraordinary rendition' torture flights for the CIA. They, of course, deny this but the evidence is clear: Miami Herald: Air charter firm, client both deny role in alleged shipment of arms to Venezuela February 9 - Racism And The Fight Over Venezuela When I wrote the above I was not aware of this Greg Palast piece on the same issue: In Venezuela, White Supremacy Is a Key Driver of the Coup More on Venezuela: RT has an interview with Rafael Ramirez who ran the Venezuelan oil industry under Hugo Chavez. He fell out with Maduro and very much dislikes his policies. He is also against the U.S. led coup attempt. I sthere a chance for a 'third way'? Hasta la (Cha)vista? Rafael Ramirez, ex-permanent representative of Venezuela to the UN Fox News claims that "Venezuela stockpiles 5,000 long-range Russian missiles" that threaten the United States. Those 5,000 missiles are Man Portable Air Defense Missiles (MANPADs) with a maximum range of some 6,000 meters(!). Adam Johnson list other propaganda points: Western Media Fall in Lockstep for Cheap Trump/Rubio Venezuela Aid PR Stunt The Democratic Party leadership is fully on board with the Trump administration's regime change plans and repeats all its talking points. It suddenly forgot #Russiagate and that Trump only does what Putin wants him to do. It is hard to think of anything more condemning than this: John Bolton @AmbJohnBolton - 1:43 utc - 10 Feb 2019 Appreciate @SpeakerPelosis strong statement of support. The U.S. stands united in its support of Venezuelan Interim President Juan Guaido, and of the peaceful, constitutional transition to democracy in Venezuela. Pelosi Statement on the Situation in Venezuela Use as open thread ... Posted by b on February 10, 2019 at 15:12 UTC | Permalink Comments next page Millions of people across the world celebrated the first day of the Chinese Lunar New Year on February 5, ushering in the "Year of the Pig," with hopes of happiness and good fortune. (Image: Reuters) On the eve of the New Year, which marked the last day of the 12-year Chinese astrological cycle, members of the Chinese community gathered for reunion dinners, lit firecrackers late into the midnight and gave red packets of money to children. (Image: Reuters) The pomp and splendour spilt on to the streets the next morning, as hundreds lined up outside famous temples to burn the first joss sticks of the year. (Image: Reuters) Streets in China and other Chinese dominated communities across the world were decorated, with kiosks set up as traditional dragon dancers leapt in the air. (Image: Reuters) The traditional red colour adorned everything from lanterns, to clothes, to signs and pig dolls were displayed in shops and homes for the 15-day festival. (Image: Reuters) The Lunar New Year which is usually referred to as the Spring Festival begins on the new moon that appears between 21 January and 20 February and culminates with the Lantern Festival, held on the 15th day of the year. (Image: Reuters) The festival is a major holiday in China and has strongly influenced neighbouring cultures, including the Korean New Year (seol), the Tet of Vietnam, and the Losar of Tibet. (Image: Reuters) Priyanka Gandhi A day before her maiden visit to Uttar Pradesh as Congress general secretary, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said that together with the people of the state she hopes to start a "new kind of politics" in which everyone will be a stakeholder. Priyanka and Jyotiraditya Scindia will arrive in Lucknow on February 11 on their first trip to the state after being appointed the Congress general secretary in-charges of eastern and western UP respectively. They will be accompanied by Congress president Rahul Gandhi -- all three visiting the crucial state for the first time after the appointments announced last month. "I am coming tomorrow to Lucknow to meet all of you. I have hope in my heart that together we will start a new kind of politics, a politics in which all of you will be stakeholders -- my young friends, my sisters and even the weakest person, all their voices will be heard," said Gandhi through the Congress's Shakti App. Congress workers are planning a roadshow when the three leaders travel from the airport to the party's state headquarter. The party in Uttar Pradesh is seeing the visit as the virtual launch of the Congress campaign in the state, ahead of the coming Lok Sabha elections. "Come, let's build a new future, new politics with me. Thank you," she said in her message to the people ahead of the visit to the state. Scindia, in his message, said: "Tomorrow I am coming to be with you. The youth of Uttar Pradesh need a roadmap for the future and the state needs change." "Come align with us and bring change to Uttar Pradesh," he said. The two general secretaries will interact with party workers at the state Congress office in Lucknow on February 12, 13 and 14, while Rahul Gandhi is likely to return the same day. Rafale fighter jets stand on tarmac during the close air support (CAS) exercise Serpentex 2016 hosted by France in the Mediterranean island of Corsica, at Solenzara air base, March 17, 2016. Serpentex is an annual exercise that involves joint terminal attack controllers (JTACs) from 12 countries from March 7 to March 25, 2016. REUTERS/Charles Platiau - RTSAXBC Alleging conflict of interest, the Congress on February 10 requested Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) Rajiv Mehrishi to recuse himself from auditing the deal to purchase 36 Rafale fighter aircraft as he, as the then finance secretary, was part of the negotiations. The opposition party also said that it would be improper on the part of Mehrishi to present the report in Parliament. The CAG report on the controversial deal is likely to be tabled in Parliament on February 11. In a press statement, the Congress has alleged that the government compromised "national interest" and "national security" in the purchase of the 36 aircraft and said the CAG has a constitutional and statutory duty to undertake a forensic audit of all defence contracts, including the Rafale deal. "It is an act of gross impropriety for you to deal with the audit of the 36 Rafale aircraft deal on account of patent conflict of interest...You are constitutionally, legally and morally disentitled to either conduct an audit or to present a report before...Parliament. We urge upon you to recuse yourself and publicly accept the gross impropriety committed by you in initiating the audit...," it said. Senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal told reporters that Mehrishi is likely to present the report on the Rafale deal in parliament on Monday. Sibal said that Mehrishi was the finance secretary from October 24, 2014 to August 30, 2015 and in between Prime Minister Narendra Modi went to Paris on April 10, 2015 and announced the signing of the Rafale deal. "...Finance Ministry plays an important role in these negotiations...Now it is clear that the Rafale deal happened under Rajeev Mehrishi. Now he is CAG. We met him twice on September 19 and October 4, 2018. We told him about the scam. We told him that the deal should be probed because it is corrupt. But how can he initiate a probe against himself," Sibal said. The Congress said it had, in its submissions to the CAG, listed the acts of omission and commission as well as corruption in the Rafale deal. "He obviously cannot probe decisions he took as finance secretary. He will protect himself first and then his government. There cannot be a bigger conflict of interest than this," he said. Mukul Roy (Image: Reuters) Moneycontrol News Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Mukul Roy was named in the First Information Report (FIR) lodged by police in connection with the murder of All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) Satyajit Biswas. According to CNN-News18, of those named in the FIR, two accused have been arrested. Roy is a former Member of Parliament (MP) in Rajya Sabha and was earlier with the TMC. He was also the Railway Minister in Manmohan Singh's government. Responding to the development, Roy said that it is "very sad that he (Biswas) was killed" and that "politics of killing is not BJP's style of politics". "In Bengal, there is huge infighting in TMC, and on directions of Mamata Banerjee they are putting blame on the BJP... I demand an independent and fair investigation..." Roy said. Biswas was shot dead by unidentified assailants inside a Saraswati puja marquee on February 9 evening in Nadia district, according to the police. The incident occurred around 8.00 pm when 41-year-old Biswas, representing Krishnaganj constituency in the assembly, along with his party workers, were at the Saraswati puja marquee at Phoolbari in the Hanskhali police station area in the district bordering Bangladesh. The MLA was immediately taken to a local hospital where doctors announced him "brought dead". The police were suspecting that two assailants were present at the spot and one of them fired at him. The ruling TMC had alleged that it was a planned attack by the BJP. Denying these allegations, the BJP has however claimed that it was the result of the ruling party's infighting. Shortly after the incident, a high-level inquiry was ordered into the killing, the police said. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee directed the party leaders to stand beside the family of the victim, he said. Claiming that the attack was a conspiracy by the BJP, TMC Secretary General Partha Chatterjee said those involved in it would be punished after a full-fledged inquiry. Chatterjee said the saffron party was trying to create disturbances ahead of the Lok Sabha polls and resorted to politics of murder by singling out leaders having mass bases. "It was a pre-planned murder by the BJP. They have hired goons to carry out the murder," the party's in-charge of Nadia district Anubrata Mondal alleged. BJPs state unit President Dilip Ghosh denied the charges and claimed that the killing might be the result of infighting in the TMC. "The allegations are baseless. The BJP is not at all involved in the case. Those who are blaming us are actually trying to hide their own sins," Ghosh said. Roy had also termed the allegations as baseless. This report was updated to incorporate reactions from Mukul Roy. (With inputs from PTI) Narendra MODI Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 10 launched a scathing attack on Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and TDP supremo Chandrababu Naidu, saying he has made a "U-turn" on promises of development to the state and only trying to replicate NDA government's schemes. "Our government gave to Andhra Pradesh much more than what was mentioned in special status. CM of Andhra Pradesh acknowledged this package but took a U-turn as they failed to use the funds in the appropriate way and were not able to develop the state," Modi said, addressing a public rally. Modi lashed out at Naidu for aligning with the Congress, saying the former chief minister NT Ramarao (NTR) had launched the party to make Andhra Pradesh "congress-mukth" after he was a victim of its 'arrogance.' Naidu was indeed a senior to him, but only in losing elections, switching alliances and ditching his father-in-law NT Rama Rao, Modi said at a public rally here. "He keeps reminding me he is senior. There is no debate in this. I have never shown any disrespect to you since you are a senior. You are a senior in changing alliances. A senior biting the back of your own father-in-law. A senior in losing one election after the other, where as I am not," the Prime Minister said. Further, Naidu was senior in embracing tomorrow those whom he would abuse today, Modi said. Modi alleged Naidu was taking him on since the Centre had sought details of every paise given to Andhra Pradesh. Naidu had promised walking in the footsteps of NTR, Modi said and asked if the Chief Minister had lived by it. "The arrogance of Delhi (during the Congress rule) has always insulted states. And NTR that is why decided to make AP Congress-mukth and floated the TDP. The TDP leader who has to resist the arrogance of the Naamdaars (famous and powerful people) and crush their arrogance is siding with them," he said in an apparent swipe at Naidu joining hands with the Congress. "This chowkidar (watchman) has disturbed his sleep.. wanted to know the details of every paise given to Andhra Pradesh," Modi said. Naidu promised the sunrise of Andhra Pradesh but is fixated with the rise of his own son N Lokesh, Modi charged. The Chief Minister promised the redevelopment of Amaravati but is now engaged in his own development, the Prime Minister alleged. He said Naidu had not initiated any new programmes for the poor but was only putting his stamp on the NDA government's development schemes. On providing clean fuel in the country, Modi said while in 60 years, only 12 crore gas connections were given, the NDA government had given 13 crore gas connections in just four years. On the occasion, the Prime Minister dedicated two petroleum and gas projects to the nation. Earlier, when Modi arrived at Gannavaram airport in Vijayawada, TDP workers staged protests. This is Modi's first visit to the state after the ruling Telugu Desam Party severed ties with the NDA. The Chandrababu Naidu-led party quit the BJP-led alliance protesting the "injustice" done to the state post-bifurcation. Giving the protocol a go-by, none of the state ministers turned up at the Gannavaram airport to formally receive the Prime Minister. BJP leaders alleged that people were "thwarted," from reaching the venue in large numbers and said countdown would start for Naidu with Modi's rally at Guntur. Commenting on the black balloon protests against him by TDP workers, Modi quipped he welcomed it recalling the tradition of smearing black to ward off evil designs. PM Modi only no. 1 in party | Asked who was the number 2 in the party, Shah said: There is only number one in our party and that is Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Were you to look for a number two after him, you would not find any. As far as the leadership of the party is concerned, I am very happy to be leading the worlds largest party and often seek suggestions from my seniors whenever occasion arises. Taking a swipe at the opposition parties' proposed "grand alliance", BJP president Amit Shah said if it wins the Lok Sabha polls, every leader of the coalition would take turn to be prime minister for a day on six days of a week and the "country would be on holiday on Sunday". Addressing BJP workers near Panaji as part of the party's 'Atal Booth Karyakarta Sammelan' he asked them to ensure that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is re-elected in the Lok Sabha polls and the party's government would "flush out infiltrators from Kashmir to Kanyakumari to Kolkata". Shah asserted that the National Register of Citizens (NRC) was aimed at identifying the "infiltrators" and said that he wanted to ask Congress president Rahul Gandhi whether the NRC exercise should be held in Goa as well. The BJP national president said booth-level workers will help the party win the Lok Sabha polls expected to be held in April. Taunting the opposition parties for trying to cobble up an alliance to oust the BJP from power, Shah said, "The 'mahagathbandhan' will have Mayawati as PM on Monday, Akhilesh (Yadav) on Tuesday, H D Deve Gowda on Wednesday, (Chandrababu) Naidu on Thursday, (M K) Stalin on Friday and Sharad Pawar on Saturday. The country will be on holiday on Sunday." Earlier, speaking at a party workers' meet in Pune, Shah challenged Pawar to share and compare figures of farm produce procured during the UPA rule and Modi government. Hitting out at West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for denying permission to BJP leaders to hold rallies in the eastern state, the BJP chief claimed that in a sting operation an "intelligence officer" had said meeting were disallowed not because of law and order apprehension but because Banerjee was "scared" of the BJP. He reiterated that the BJP is committed to building the Ram temple in Ayodhya and down played the apprehensions regarding the impact of the SP-BSP alliance in Uttar Pradesh saying his party would win 74 seats (out of 80) in the country's most populous state. Nitin Gadkari NCP president Sharad Pawar said on February 9 that he was "worried" about Union minister Nitin Gadkari as he is being projected as a possible alternative to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Gadkari, a senior BJP leader, was recently in news when he was seen as taking swipes at his party's top leadership after the Assembly poll losses in three states. Talking to reporters at Solapur in Maharashtra, Pawar said to a question, "Gadkari ismy friend. We have worked together. There is talk about his name being pushed (as an alternative to Modi) and because of that I am worried about him." He did not elaborate further. Talking about alliances in the state for Lok Sabha polls, Pawar said his party was not engaged in any talks for a tie-up with Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS). "Raj Thackeray has a great deal of support from the youth. But we have not had any talks regarding any agreement pertaining to elections with his party," said Pawar. He discusses public issues with the MNS chief often, but there has been no discussion about working together in the election, he added. Citizenship-bill Markets were closed and effigies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and others were burnt and roads were blocked as protests against the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Bill (CAB) continued across Manipur on February 9. Vendors of the Khwairamband Market, considered the largest women's market in the world, was also closed as they rendered their support to the on-going protest demanding withdrawal of the CAB. The women vendors also resolved to close the market till February 11, their leaders told reporters. "It is time for both the ruling and opposition parties to unite leaving behind their differences and fight for withdrawal of the CAB," they said. The CAB seeks to provide Indian citizenship to Hindus, Jains, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan after six years of residence in India even if they do not possess any document. The Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha on January 8 and has been awaiting the Rajya Sabha nod. Indigenous people of the region are afraid that identity would be lost if the Bill was enacted. Effigies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Chief Minister N Biren Singh were burnt by protesters at Tera locality in Imphal West district and Yairipok in Thoubal district. Security forces also foiled an attempt to block one lane of National Highway-102 at Singjamei in Imphal town. Elsewhere, despite large scale deployment of security forces, protesters at different pockets in Imphal East district blocked roads affecting vehicular traffic, officials said. Convenor of Manipur People Against Citizenship Amendment Bill (MANPAC), Phundreimayum Abdullah, demanded that an exercise similar to the updation of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) be conducted in the state to identify and deport illegal immigrants. Meanwhile, Democratic Students Alliance of Manipur leader M Angamba called for boycotting the upcoming Lok Sabha elections alleging that legislators remained silent at this critical juncture.. Royal Enfield posted a fall of 7 percent in domestic volumes in October At a time when two-wheeler manufacturers are finding sales moving at a slow pace in the domestic market, their exports have risen by 19.49 percent in the April-January period this fiscal, according to the latest data from auto industry body SIAM. Total two-wheeler exports during the period stood at 27,59,935 units as compared with 23,09,805 units a year ago, showed the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) data. The growth in exports of two-wheelers from the country is driven mainly by motorcycles and scooters. Motorcycle shipments to foreign markets during the period stood at 24,12,800 units as against 20,34,250 units in the corresponding period last fiscal, up 18.61 percent. Likewise, scooter exports zoomed by 26.67 percent to 3,32,197 units as compared to 2,62,253 units in the year-ago period, SIAM said. Exports of mopeds grew by 12.3 percent to 14,938 units, against 13,302 units a year ago. Recovery in markets such as Africa and Latin America has helped two-wheeler manufacturers crank up their exports from India, industry observers said. Leading the two-wheeler export bandwagon is Bajaj Auto, which shipped a total of 14,50,766 units in the April-January period, a jump of 24.87 percent. Chennai-based TVS Motor Co's exports also zoomed by 29.18 percent to 5,04,799 units during the period, as per the SIAM data. Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India also posted a 10.3 percent increase in its two-wheeler exports to 3,25,759 units during the period. India Yamaha Motor posted a 2.39 percent increase in its exports to 2,09,352 units, while Hero MotoCorp's shipments stood at 1,63,480 units, up 5.74 percent. The rise in exports comes at a time when two-wheeler sales in India have slowed down to single-digit growth. According to SIAM, two-wheeler sales in the domestic market stood at 1,81,25,656 units in the April-January period this fiscal as against 1,67,71,630 units in the corresponding period last fiscal, a growth of 8.07 percent. Tata group firm Voltas on February 10 said it will invest over Rs 500 crore to set up a manufacturing facility in Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh. "This facility will initially manufacture and assemble air conditioners and related cooling products with a total capacity of more than 1 million units to start with," the company said in a BSE filing. Voltas said it aims to create technologically advanced products which are expected to start rolling out from the second half of 2020. The company plans to invest over Rs 500 crore while putting together an OEM (original equipment manufacturer) base for home appliances, and simultaneously creating local employment opportunities in the region. The manufacturing facility, spread over 65 acres, will be one of the first cooling appliances unit in Andhra Pradesh. The choice of Andhra Pradesh as the destination for the new manufacturing unit was due to the state's ease of doing business and growing focus on 'Make in India', it said. The chosen location provides dual benefits of superior market access and cost effective connectivity via road and port, it added. Voltas will cater to the south, west and east markets through this manufacturing facility. "We are delighted to have laid the ground for the Voltas manufacturing plant here in Tirupati. This facility helps us in expanding our manufacturing capabilities while increasing our reach in the Southern market," said Pradeep Bakshi, managing director and CEO, Voltas Ltd. Voltas, among the top ten companies within the Tata group, provides air conditioning and engineering solutions. live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More Chandan Taparia Nifty index witnessed sustain selling pressure till the end of session towards 10,925 zone on Friday and lost its breakout momentum. It wiped out most of its gain of the week and formed a High Wave candle with long upper shadow which indicates that selling pressure is intensifying at higher zones. It has negated its formation of higher lows of last seven trading sessions and witnessed profit booking after the consecutive gains of last six trading sessions. It formed a Doji candle followed by a bearish candle on daily scale which suggests a short term pause in positive momentum as it failed to hold its gains even after its consolidation breakout above 10,985 zone. Now it has to again cross and hold above 10,985 zone to witness an upmove towards 11,080 then 11,176 zone while on the downside a hold below 10,929 could drag the index towards next support at 10,820 then 10,777 zones. Nifty index witnessed lower rollovers from January to February series and it has seen addition of around 20 percent in six-seven trading sessions of this series with long attraction which indicates that some upward bias is getting build but intact Call open interest (OI) at higher strike is restricting its upside momentum. Nifty index failed to hold its breakout as Call writers are not allowing it to move higher from last three series but at the same time dips are also being bought. India VIX fell by 0.95 percent to 15.57 levels in this week and needs to hold below 16 zone to get the dips to again bought in the market. On option front, maximum Put OI congestion is seen at 10,700, 10,400 and 11,000 strike which are having same kind of outstanding OI inventories while maximum Call OI is at 11,000 followed by 11,200 strike. Put unwinding is at all the immediate strikes while Call writing is at 11,000 to 11,200 strikes. Option band signifies a slight lower shift in the trading range in between 10,800 to 11,100 zones. Bank Nifty failed to surpass 27,500 zone and corrected towards 27,220 level in the last session. It has negated the formation of higher lows of last four sessions and finding multiple hurdles in between 27,500 to 27,750 zones from five weeks. Nifty surpassed its hurdle of 10,985 but Bank Nifty is shifting is resistances to lower zones which is not supporting the broader index to move higher. Now it has to cross and hold above 27,350 zones to extend its move towards 27,500 then 27,750 zones while on the downside support exists at 27,000 then 26,850 zone. Stock specific buying interest could be seen in the stock like Bajaj Finance, UPL, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Divis Labs, Havells, Pidilite Industries while negative set up in most of the PSU, Metals, Indiabulls Housing Finance, L&T, Exide Industries and Motherson Sumi etc. Index may stuck in consolidation band so short Vega and Theta strategy like Deep Out of the Money Short Strangle, Ladder Spread, Ratio Spread could favour to Option traders in such kind of market scenario. Now Nifty weekly contracts are also getting started from this week which could attract more traders to its weekly contract to play the swing by paying the lower trading premium similar to Bank Nifty weekly contracts. The author is Associate Vice President | Analyst-Derivatives at Motilal Oswal Financial Services Limited. : The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts on Moneycontrol.com are their own and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions Engineers India Ltd has won a project management consultancy contract from Mangolia for a new 1.5 million tonnes refinery that the country is setting up. Engineers India Ltd and the Mongolian government through Mongol Refinery State Owned LLC signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on February 10 on the sidelines of the Petrotech conference in the outskirts of Delhi. Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said India had extended a $1 billion line of credit to Mangolia during the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2015. The refinery project is being built using that line of credit, he said. "The marks embracing new height in bilateral relations," Pradhan added. The MoU is for Project Management Consultancy services for construction of an oil refinery plant in Mongolia by EIL. The Mongolian government is in process to set-up 1.5 million tonnes per annum greenfield crude oil refinery in Sainshand province, under Line of Credit (LoC) extended by India. The EIL has carried out Detailed Feasibility Study for the project, he said, adding it has subsequently been pre-qualified and shortlisted for providing project management consultancy services to Mongol Refinery for the project. The MoU was signed by Altantsetseg Dashdavaa, Executive Director, Mongol Refinery and R K Sabharwal, Director (Commercial), EIL. Complete with a huge 'tweet-dashing' sword and 'golden' armor, a colossal float depicted US President Donald Trump as the grandiose Emperor from the Warhammer 40,000 series. In all his might and glory, His Majesty the Emperor of Mankind descended on the small town of Viareggio in central Italy on Saturday. As part of an annual carnival procession, US President Donald Trump 'appeared' cosplaying the iconic character from the Warhammer 40,000 universe. The popular franchise of tabletops, which also spurred several video games, typically depicts the Emperor as a walking epitome of epicness and unparalleled power. The colossal float of Trump conveyed the same message. Clad in shiny golden armor, he sported a grim, yet pompous and regal look in his eyes. In his hand he wielded a huge broadsword. The phrase 'your duties' in Italian, engraved on the blade, hinted that he slays his enemies as boldly as he slaps tariffs on EU goods. The weapons hilt was fitted with blue Twitter birds, apparently suggesting that the US president pulls no punches while attacking opponents on social media. A human-sized Trump was also seen marching ahead on the giant float, dressed as one of the Space Marines, the Emperors loyal troops. The striking float left some commenters questioning whether it was meant to ridicule Trump or compliment him. Others poked fun at the scene, saying that the president may use the sword to combat fake news, and an army of such warriors would be better than the wall. "Trump unveils his 2020 platform," one person wrote. Think your friends would be interested? Share this story! As US border security talks apparently reach another stalemate with a new government shutdown looming on the horizon, President Donald Trump has blamed Democrats for the development by saying they need a distraction. The president once again accused the House Democrats of refusing to provide enough money for his cherished wall on the Mexico border an issue that has been a stumbling block on the border security negotiations from the very beginning. He went on to say that the Democratic leadership just does not want the deal to be reached in yet another series of fiery tweets. It was a very bad week for the Democrats, Trump wrote, adding that he believes they want a Shutdown to have a new subject to divert peoples attention from a series of scandals that have recently plagued the party particularly in the state of Virginia, where the entire Democrat leadership is arguably crumbling under allegations of racism and sexual assault. Democrats and Republicans are to come up with a border security agreement that would satisfy the president before the February 15 deadline when the stopgap funding of the government expires. The talks appear to have reached a stalemate this weekend. Acting White House chief of staff, Mick Mulvaney, told Fox News that a government shutdown is technically still on the table, adding that the president would never sign any deal in good faith, if it involves no funding for the wall or too small an amount. Also on rt.com SOTU: Trump urges Congress to choose greatness; Is that even possible? Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill are still at loggerheads over Trumps $5.7 billion wall funding proposal. Democratic negotiators have so far indicated that they might agree to allocate only $1.6 to $2 billion for the border wall. Another sticking point is the funding for detention beds for people arrested by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). While the Democrats want the number of beds to be lowered, the Republicans advocate its increase as part of an effort to speed up immigrant deportations. We've got some problems with the Democrats dealing with [Immigration and Customs Enforcement], the Senate Appropriations Committee head, Richard C. Shelby (R-Ala.), told Fox News, adding that he is not confident the sides would reach an agreement. Others hoped the shutdown can be avoided. I am hopeful that this committee will be able to come up with a proposal that we can all support, that the president can sign, Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) told CNNs State of the Union. She also added, though, that the deal would have to include funding that will allow us to secure the border. Also on rt.com From concrete to steel to flesh: Trump says he will build a human wall if necessary The Democrats were seemingly more optimistic about the outcome of the talks. House Democratic Majority Leader Steny Hoyer told CNN he expected a balanced agreement while saying he was ready to support funding for the wall amounting to $2 billion. Another Democrat, Senator Jon Tester (D-Mont.), told Fox News that, even though the lawmakers were not to a point where we can announce a deal, he still had confidence that hopefully we will get something done very soon. The current stopgap government funding ended the longest government shutdown in American history, which cost the government an estimated $11 billion dollars. Trump agreed to sign the budget without the $5.7 billion allocated for the wall under the condition that lawmakers would come to a solution in three weeks. Think your friends would be interested? Share this story! Human Rights Watch (HRW) Middle East Director Sarah Leah Whitson is under fire from Jewish organizations after claiming Israel is meddling in UK domestic politics by whipping up a manufactured anti-Semitism crisis. The incident began when Asa Winstanley, a journalist for the Electronic Intifada, a US-based pro-Palestinian news outlet, warned that new accusations would soon rock the UKs Labour Party, which has been dogged by scandals ever since Jeremy Corbyn was elected leader in 2015. Were on the cusp of a major new wave of manufactured Labour antisemitism crisis stories, much like spring/summer 2018, Winstanley tweeted, linking to his own article from last year, which suggested that Jewish activists had been using a government-developed phone app to criticize Corbyn. Whitson, who is one of the public faces of HRW, and oversees the advocacy groups work in 19 countries, including Palestine and Israel, appeared to endorse Winstanleys stance in a retweet, to which she added her own thoughts. Why is this #israel interference in domestic UK politics acceptable? Is it only a problem when Russia does this? she wrote on the social media network. This produced significant pushback from several prominent Jewish voices, including the US-based activist NGO Stand with US, and an editor at the Jewish News, the prime newspaper of the community in the UK. All insisted that her implication that Israel was behind the tensions with the Jewish community experienced by the Labour Party was an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory. So far, the US-born Whitson has neither defended her position, nor deleted the original tweet. Last year, Matthew Myers, associate director of finance at HRW, was suspended from his position after making light of the Holocaust on his dating profile on Tinder. Also on rt.com HRW suspends official with Tinder profile suggesting Auschwitz hair room is funny Both Russia and Israel deny trying to covertly sway the course of UK politics. South Korea signs new deal to pay US more for troop presence South Korea signs new deal to pay US more for troop presence South Korea will pay the US 1.04 trillion won ($924 million) as a contribution for maintaining 28,500 American troops in the region for a year, after a deal was signed in Seoul on Sunday. The sum rises from the 960 billion won the Koreans contributed last year, but is far short of the $1.5 billion President Donald Trump demanded earlier this year, which caused consternation among local politicians. Unlike previous multi-year deals, the term of the new agreement is one year.Source : RT - Daily news Venezuelas state oil company PDVSA has not opened any fresh accounts in Russias Gazprombank, the latter said, calling a report by Reuters on the alleged transfer inaccurate. No new accounts have been opened, the bank told Russian media, adding that it does not plan to open any in the near future. It also said that the information provided by Reuters does not reflect the actual situation. At the same time, the bank also admitted that PDVSA does have some accounts in Gazprombank but they were opened several years ago as part of the oil giants cooperation with some Russian companies. Earlier on Sunday, Reuters reported, citing its sources, that PDVSA was moving the accounts of its joint ventures with foreign companies to Gazprombank while telling its clients to deposit their payments into the Russian bank from now on. The move was reportedly prompted by the latest round of crippling sanctions imposed by the US. Introduced in late January, the new restrictions involved seizing $7 billion in PDVSA assets. As Washington seeks to force recognition of self-proclaimed president, Juan Guaido, as the legitimate leader of Venezuela, the sanctions are further expected to affect $11 billion worth of Venezuelas exports over the coming year, according to US National Security Advisor John Bolton. Venezuela is home to the worlds largest oil reserves, and oil sales account for roughly 98 percent of export earnings and as much as 50 percent of its GDP. In response to the US sanctions, PDVSA pledged to diversify its sales and reroute exports to customers, who are willing to buy its oil regardless of any unilateral restrictions imposed by Washington. Like this story? Share it with a friend! The US ambassador to Germany says Berlin needs to escalate its stand-off with Moscow, by investing more in weapons. In Moscow believes that Berlin "won't fall for such blackmail". The Germans have the leverage with Russia. Imagine if Chancellor Merkel stood up and said: Because of the Russian behavior , because of the malign activity in the increased offense, we cannot give you more influence by buying your energy, Richard Grenell, a career diplomat who was assigned to Germany last year, told Welt am Sonntag newspaper. The current White House administration has persistently urged Angela Merkels government to restrict or halt the Nord Stream-2 gas pipeline project, which is due to be completed later this year. So far, Germany, the biggest EU consumer of Russian gas has stood firm, preferring to keep politics out of the project, even as European officials and Paris have threatened to put new limitations on it in the past month. Grenell also reiterated Donald Trumps frequent calls for higher defense spending, which have met with resistance among local politicians. NATO asks for 2% by 2024. Germanys NATO promise to raise defense spending to 1.5 percent is not enough, he said. It is not US standards that have to be met here, but NATO commitments that Berlin has already agreed to and capabilities that theyve already signed up for." Also on rt.com France makes Germany sweat before striking deal on Russias Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline Despite media speculation that the US president is using these conditions as a pretext to weaken American involvement, Grenell said that Washington is in fact deepening [the transatlantic] relationship by recognizing that it needs to be reformed in some areas. And the purported threat from the East should be the unifying factor. The US is simply reminding its great German ally that now is not the time to undercut or weaken NATO. With the Russians at the doorstep, it should be clear to everyone that NATO needs strengthening instead, said the diplomat. Trumps brashness has mixed badly with Merkels cautious policymaking, but American style has always been different from the European one insisted Grenell, who did not rebuff the journalist who called the White House approach to its allies shock therapy. I understand that whoever is the one that turns off the music at a party and says Can we clean up? is not popular because everyone prefers to relax and dance, said Grenell, adding that he was a pushy operative. Senior Russian lawmakers appeared distinctly unimpressed with the US ambassador's display of verbal bravura. "Evidently, the US believes that it is Russian gas that is standing at the doorstep of Germany. This is nonsense. It doesn't serve the US well to be making such statements," deputy chairman of the foreign affairs committee in the upper chamber of the Russian parliament, Vladimir Dzhabarov, told RT. Also on rt.com Nord Stream 2 is in 'our interest', says German minister amid US pressure on project with Russia The senator added that "Berlin won't fall for such blackmail." His counterpart in the lower chamber of Russian parliament, Dmitry Novikov said that he believes that the US is simply trying to exacerbate the cool between Washington and Moscow, even if its calls have no practical effect. "These ideas pour oil on the fire of the international situation, and strengthen the anti-Russian feeling, not just in the United States, but also in Europe," the first deputy of the international affairs committee of the Duma said to RT. Russia, US present rival UNSC resolutions on Venezuela Russia, US present rival UNSC resolutions on Venezuela Russia and the United States are trying to push through two rival resolutions at the UN Security Council to address the crisis in Venezuela. Moscow's proposal calls for resolving the political tensions in Venezuela through peaceful measures" based on a political settlement without any preconditions or outside interference, TASS reports , citing a copy of the Russian draft. Washington instead demands that the Security Council formally calls for a new presidential election in Venezuela, urging the international community in the meantime to offer its full support for the National Assembly as the only democratically elected institution, Reuters reports . The political crisis in Venezuela was sparked late last month after the leader of Venezuelas opposition and parliament speaker, Juan Guaido, proclaimed himself interim president. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro slammed Guaidos US-backed claim to power as an attempted coup, vowing to protect the countrys sovereignty against any possible foreign military intervention. The elected leader has also repeatedly called on the opposition to come to the negotiating table, an invitation they continue to reject.Source : RT - Daily news More than 50 wild hippos left behind by notorious drug lord Pablo Escobar in Colombia are threatening both the ecosystem and the safety of locals, but nobody knows what to do with them. Escobar smuggled four hippos into his former ranch, Villa Napoles, as an addition to his private zoo which was home to hundreds of exotic (and illegal) animals including rhinos, elephants and giraffes. By the time Escobar died in a police shootout in the early 90s, most of the animals were relocated by the government - except for the hippos. Its estimated that there are now more than 50 descendants of the non-native animals roaming free in the area. People forgot the hippos, David Echeverri of CORNARE, the environmental agency in charge of tracking and managing the hippos, told CBS News. Colombia is now the only place to witness a wild pack of hippos outside of Africa, and are often the main attraction at the estate, which was turned into a theme park in 2007. Most of the pack still live there but its difficult to keep them contained, and its common for some to go rogue and escape to the local village. Also on rt.com Pablo Escobars hitman Popeye arrested in Colombia Echeverri says that while locals affectionately refer to them village pets, the three-ton animals are a dangerous and territorial species. No attacks have been reported but the hippos are also accused of displacing native wildlife and the rapidly expanding population will only become more difficult to control, the wildlife expert warns. Hippo population control options are far from simple, though. Echeverri dismissed killing the animals and instead proposes relocating or sterilizing the animals, both of which would be expensive to put in place. Like this story? Share it with a friend! The number of foreigners coming to Russia for medical treatment is growing exponentially, rising by 40 percent last year, according to Medsi, one of the biggest networks of private clinics in Russia. We have noticed a growing interest in Russian medicine from people living in CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) countries and outside it, Alla Kanunnikova, marketing and commercial activities director at the clinic told Vedomosti newspaper. She added that Medsi centers handle nearly eight million medical cases a year only five percent of which involve foreigners, but their numbers are on the rise. Also on rt.com Russia makes it into top three European destinations for Chinese travellers Most patients come from China, and are mostly interested in in vitro fertilization (IVF) and orthopedics, according to a top manager of a Moscow medical center. Apart from the Chinese, people from Germany, Bulgaria and other countries are also seeking healthcare in Russia. The number of foreign clients has made clinics open new departments and hire additional staff, including interpreters, according to Vedomosti. Medical travelers can add up to 13 billion rubles ($200 million) annually to Russias economy, according to official estimates. However, bureaucratic red tape and obstacles in getting visas impede the development of this sphere, Russian health officials have said. Also on rt.com Crimean authorities propose visa-free entry for patients of Russian clinics Last year, Crimean authorities proposed the implementation of visa-free entry for foreigners seeking treatment in Russian medical institutions. They suggested granting 30-day stays for patients and, if a person needs more time for treatment, they could apply for a special six-month visa through an accelerated and simplified procedure. Medical tourism in Russia has been growing for several years. In 2017, some 110,000 foreigners received treatment in Russian medical centers, while in 2016 the figure stood at 86,000. That year, the number of foreigners arriving for treatment surged more than 50 percent, with most patients seeking dental procedures, reproductive medicine, orthopaedics, and brain surgery. For more stories on economy & finance visit RT's business section Disturbing bodycam video shows Arizona cops tasering a man 11 times, including on the testicles, as his horrified family scream for them to stop. The police are now being sued for excessive force and torture. The nightmare tasering began when Glendale police officers approached a vehicle for a signal turn violation in July 2017. Johnny Wheatcroft was in the front passenger seat, while his wife Anya Chapman and their 11 and six-year-old sons sat in the back. A friend of the family was driving. Officers Matt Schneider and Mark Lindsey asked Wheatcroft for his ID and he enquired why he had to show it, as he was not driving the vehicle. Police allege he went to stuff something in his backpack, and, after pressing the taser against his arm and telling him to relax, Schneider twisted Wheatcrofts arm behind his back and pulled him from the car while still restrained by his seat belt. The officer began tasering him when he was half out of the vehicle, before they pulled him to the ground and continued to tase him. Even after Wheatcroft was dragged on the ground towards the back of the car, his feet remained entangled in the seat belt. His older son leaned into the front seat to open the belt to free his father, prompting Schneider to shout at him, causing the boy to burst into tears. Glendale police said in a statement that Wheatcroft exhibited verbal non-compliance by refusing to identify himself and failed to obey the officers instructions. Chapman reportedly swung a bag of bottles at Lindseys head during the incident, although this cant be seen clearly in the video. Also on rt.com VIDEO shows cops repeatedly tasering black man who later died in hospital Horrifyingly, Schneider is next seen pulling Wheatcrofts shorts down and placing the taser on the handcuffed mans testicles. The lawsuit filed by the couple reports Schneider tased his testicles and perineum. He then placed the taser on his penis and said, You want it again? Shut your mouth. Im done f*cking around with you. Another officer held a handgun to his head and Wheatcroft was kicked in the groin. According to the suit and the polices own admission, the officers used a drive stun method, in which the taser is pressed against a person before being fired. Glendale police also released a 30 second CCTV video of the incident taken from a distance. The pair were arrested and charged with aggravated assault and physically resisting arrest. They were both in jail for months as they couldnt afford bail before Chapman pled guilty to a lesser charge so she could be released to look after her children. READ MORE: Rampant US police violence prompts nationwide FBI inquiry Wheatcrofts charges were dismissed by the Maricopa County Attorneys Office after prosecutors saw the bodycam video, which his lawyers released to media outlets. Schneider was suspended for three days after the incident, Glendale police said. Think your friends would be interested? Share this story! The INF Treaty that Washington abandoned was aimed at primarily providing security for Europe, not the US, the Russian envoy to the US said, explaining the US move was driven by a desire to get new missiles. The INF Treaty is dealing with the security of the European countries and the Russian Federation, not with the security of the US, Russias ambassador to the US, Anatoly Antonov, told RT, adding that Washington has apparently not been very interested in preserving the agreement, which it began to see as a limitation on its own military capabilities. Washington confirmed its withdrawal from the treaty, signed by the US and the USSR back in 1987, earlier this year and Moscow said it would also quit in a mirror response. The pact banned nuclear-armed and conventional land-launched missiles with a range between 500 and 5,500km. The fact that Washington opted for an openly confrontational approach to talks with Moscow on the issue only proves that the US was not genuinely interested in keeping the agreement but instead looked for a pretext to leave it. For me it is clear: the US decided to withdraw, the US needs this type of missiles. The US diplomats delivered their Russian counterparts an ultimatum by saying that Russia must destroy the 9M729 missile, which supposedly violates the treaty, along with its launchers and all relevant equipment. It is not a diplomatic approach. It is impossible to imagine that somebody would attempt to impose such decisions on a permanent member of the UN Security Council, Antonov said. Apart from that, the US also ignored all Russias attempts to build a transparent and meaningful dialog on the issue. Also on rt.com Russia unveils evidence on missile that US claims violates INF Treaty, Washington snubs briefing The US snubbed a presentation of the missile in question organized by the Russian Defense Ministry. We have invited military attaches we offered them to look at our missile, Antonov said, noting that it is very strange that the US representatives have decided not to participate in the event. At the same time, the US squarely dismissed all of Russias concerns about their alleged violations of the INF Treaty. Responding to Moscows statements on the issue, Washington said that its ground-based missile defense systems in Europe, which, according to Russia, have launchers technically capable of firing cruise missiles, were totally different and could fire only defensive missiles. It further noted that its target missiles, which Russia says perfectly emulate cruise missiles banned under the INF, are actually in full compliance with it while the US attack drones that could potentially serve the same purpose as short- or mid-range missiles cannot be seen as such at all. The ambassador also said that Russia will quickly adapt to the new environment and will find a way to protect itself. Still, the dismantling of the treaty would not make any country in the world safer, including the US itself and might yet lead to another security crisis, he warned. Also on rt.com Drones arent missiles, they are re-usable: US disputes accusations of non-compliance with INF If the US decides to deploy its new missiles in Europe, it will be a crisis of security for the European countries, Antonov said. Toxic dust in Washington poisons atmosphere in relations between Russia & US The US, however, seems to be more focused on containing Russia at any cost, even if it harms international security and the prosperity of other nations, the ambassador complained, citing numerous sanctions that Washington imposed over the last 18 months and the prospect of some new ones. Also on rt.com DC hawks, US defense giants race to score profits from INF demise One US draft bill, Antonov said he is aware of, could punish Russia for supplying the Syrian Armed Forces with arms and equipment they need to defend themselves and their country. Even though Russia and the US fight against terrorism on separate fronts in Syria, both nations seek to combat the common threat of extremism. However, now Washington is apparently ready to sacrifice this goal in its feud with Moscow, he added. Other examples of Washington hampering cooperation with Moscow are: US pressure on the EU over construction of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline that European countries find very useful and is a purely economic project, and sanctions against the head of the Russian space agency Roscosmos, Dmitry Rogozin, that prevent him from participating in very important talks with his American counterparts about cooperation in space between Russia and the US. I try to understand the logic of the congressmen and senators, who introduce such sanctions but I fail to do so, he told RT. At the same time, he said that Russia is aware of the current political climate in Washington and does not intend to press on the US to speed up the improvement of bilateral ties. Moscow hopes that the toxic dust filling the atmosphere in Washington will eventually subside, opening new ways of cooperation between the two great powers, the ambassador added. Russia and US are doomed to cooperate Meanwhile, Moscow and Washington have no other choice but to work together despite all the differences in their bilateral relations, according to Antonov. I would like to remind you that the US and Russia are great powersmajor nuclear-weapon states, he said, adding that the two also bear special responsibility for international peace and security as permanent members of the UN Security Council. We are doomed to cooperate to deal with the international issues The ambassador noted that, in 2020, the world will see a Non-Proliferation Treaty review conference, adding that it would be increasingly difficult to convince non-nuclear states to stick to the non-proliferation regime if the nuclear powers, including Russia and the US, do not demonstrate any achievements in nuclear disarmament, as well as the joint resolve to keep that path. I am sure that the non-nuclear state will ask us, the nuclear states, what kind of achievements in nuclear disarmament can you present to us and it will be a very difficult conversation on that issue, he said. At the same time, he also said that Moscow and Washington still have some time to change the potential outcome of that conference. Im sure, when were together we can solve many, many pressing problems, he said, adding that Russia is always open to finding a solution together with the US. If you like this story, share it with a friend! The president of Chile has officially declared a state of catastrophe following a major flood that killed at least nine people across the northern part of the country. Drone footage filmed over the Atacama desert shows the awful aftermath of the sand-filled flood that destroyed everything in its path, including homes. The floods were triggered by a bout of extreme rainfall over the Andes. In a media address on Friday, Chiles President Sebastian Pinera estimated that more than 1,200 homes will have to be replaced in the region, and the cost of repairing the cataclysmic damage could be in the range of $60 billion, reports ADN Chile. Chile has been rocked by several extreme weather events so far this year. Apart from one of the worlds driest deserts becoming overrun with water, the south of the country has been racked with forest fires fueled by the blistering heat. Also on rt.com Easter Island people want return of their sacred statue, stolen by imperial Brits Like this story? Share it with a friend! Footage of a bright light in the night skies of Venezuela appeared on various social media accounts apparently shot in different locations of the country. Some people suggested it might be a meteor. The first videos of a mysterious bright object appeared on social media on Saturday night. Most eyewitnesses captured the fireball while out filming at random. One video has festive music in the background, while another showed people dancing in the street. But all the recordings had something in common: the light from the fireball was so bright that nothing else would immediately come into focus for the authors of the various pieces of footage. All videos show that the object crossed the sky at an extremely high speed and had a fire-tail, like meteors usually have when they cut Earth's atmosphere. However, it's still not clear whether it was a real meteor or not. Officials have not commented yet on the sightings, reports and videos. By hosting a meeting between the Taliban and other Afghan delegates, Moscow has greatly contributed to a peace process in Afghanistan, ex-President Hamid Karzai said, denouncing years of failed US military presence and policies. We would like to express our deep gratitude to the Russian government for the efforts it took to create conditions for the intra-Afghan meeting in Moscow, Karzai told Sputnik news agency, adding that the two-day talks exceeded all expectations. The former Afghan president called the talks a historic step and called Moscows approach successful and effective. Karzai spoke highly of Russias role and expressed his hope that Moscow would continue to contribute to intra-Afghan reconciliation until Afghanistan gets back on its feet. In contrast, his assessment of the 18-year US-led military campaign in Afghanistan was far less positive. The NATO mission in Afghanistan has failed, Karzai said, adding that the military presence of American troops and their allies on Afghan soil had only led to many people suffering at their hands. The ex-president also said he would like to see all foreign troops withdrawing from his country as soon as possible, even though he admitted that it would likely be a very difficult process. Karzai also dismissed US claims about providing security for Afghanistan. Protecting our borders and defending ourselves is our duty. No foreign force can do that. We have already realized that it is just impossible, he told Sputnik. The former president also said that it is the Afghan people, who should decide whether any foreign military bases should stay on the territory of Afghanistan. The Americans should leave it to the Afghan people Karzais words came days after Taliban representatives met in the Russian capital with other Afghan delegates, including the former president himself as well as other former government officials and some members of the Afghan diaspora in Russia. The current, US-backed Afghan government, led by President Ashraf Ghani, boycotted the event. It also rejected the key condition for peace set by the Taliban: the withdrawal of all foreign troops from Afghanistan. Also on rt.com Taliban & Afghan delegates seek end to 18yr war at Moscow peace talks boycotted by US-backed Kabul Even the US has to admit that Russia played a positive role in the Afghan peace process, and rushed to call for peace talks itself. It would be best for Afghanistan if a peace agreement is reached before elections scheduled for July, the US envoy for Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad said on Friday. We want to see the war end this year Meanwhile, a number of US generals whod fought in Afghanistan recently admitted that the US has de-facto lost that war. Some of them also warned that the current Afghan government would not have enough support to stay in power without a US military presence. The US invaded Afghanistan in October 2001, accusing the Taliban of harboring Osama Bin Laden, the accused mastermind of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington. Bin Laden was tracked down and killed in Pakistan in 2011, but that fact did not stop the US from continuing its war in Afghanistan and to back the government in Kabul. Also on rt.com ISIS in Afghanistan is US tool to cause trouble in whole region ex-Afghan President Karzai to RT Think your friends would be interested? Share this story! MUSKEGON, MI -- A van crashed into a home on Marquette Avenue, causing significant damage. The crash happened about 9:10 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 9 at 450 Marquette Avenue. The driver left the scene on foot. He was quickly located behind a house on the same street and police called for medical assistance for a possible drug issue. No one in the house was injured. Firefighters were called to check on whether the house was structurally sound following the crash. CASS COUNTY, MI A 70-year-old southwest Michigan man died Saturday evening after he was struck and killed by a vehicle as he crossed the street, according to Michigan State Police. Earl Edward Doss, 70, from Niles, was identified as the victim in the crash, according to a news release issued by MSP in the late evening on Saturday, Feb. 9. The driver of the vehicle, a 35-year-old Niles man, remained on scene and is cooperating with the ongoing investigation. Troopers and emergency personnel responded at around 6:40 p.m. Saturday to the intersection of U.S. 12 and Reum Road near the Cass-Berrien county line on a report of a vehicle versus pedestrian crash. Upon arrival, troopers found Doss and attempted to administer first aid, but Doss succumbed to his injuries shortly thereafter. Investigators wrote that Doss was struck while he was crossing the intersection. Troopers did not identify the driver, nor did they release the make and model of their vehicle. Troopers were assisted by the Cass County Sheriffs Office, Pokagon Band Tribal Police, Niles Township Fire Department, SMCAC ambulance service and the Michigan Department of Transportation. WEST MICHIGAN At least 20,000 West Michigan residents are without power Sunday morning in the aftermath of harrowing severe weather that rocked Michigan throughout the week. The bulk of the outages reported Sunday, Feb. 10, are affecting residents in northeastern Kent, Ionia and Montcalm counties. Sporadic outages are still being reported in the city of Grand Rapids and in Kalamazoo and Newaygo counties. Consumers Energy expects some power to be restored as early as Sunday evening. However, the larger outages in Ionia and Montcalm may not be resolved until late Monday night, according to the companys online outage map. At least 8,000 Kent County residents are still without power, while more than 7,000 in Ionia and nearly 5,000 customers in Montcalm are in the dark, according to Consumers Energy. Consumers Energy crews are being joined by workers from Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Missouri, Oklahoma and Tennessee, reads a news release issued by the company early Sunday morning. From lineworkers to call center representatives, more than 2,700 people are engaged in the restoration effort, the release reads. Severe weather in West Michigan began on Feb. 7 and led to downed trees and power lines, leaving at least 42,000 residents without power. As a result, the city opened its Emergency Operations Center (EOC) to help those in need. The poor weather prompted Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to declare a state of emergency late Saturday, Feb. 9, after severe weather in West Michigan caused widespread power outages and hazardous driving conditions for residents. UPDATE: The City Impact Center at 288 N. Main in Cedar Springs, will close at 4 p.m. GRAND RAPIDS, MI Two American Red Cross shelters in Grand Rapids that were to remain open until further notice will close Sunday evening, according to city officials. An additional location will open in the afternoon on Sunday, Feb. 10, to accommodate residents, according to a notice published by the City of Grand Rapids on Twitter. The tweet said that the Ottawa Hills High School shelter, 2055 Rosewood Ave SE, will close at 4:30 p.m. while the Union High School shelter, 1800 Tremont Blvd NW, plans to close at 7 p.m. In their place, the Red Cross plans to open a shelter at 3 p.m. located at the Wallin Congregational Church, 1550 Oswego NW. A request for comment was not immediately returned. Our friends at @RedCross are making changes to emergency shelters in GR for those without power. Ottawa Hills HS shelter is closing at 4:30 pm today and Union HS shelter is closing at 7. Emergency shelter is being opened at 3 pm at Wallin Congregational Church, 1550 Oswego NW. pic.twitter.com/VRUo6X4E3U City of Grand Rapids (@CityGrandRapids) February 10, 2019 A shelter at North Rock ford Middle School, 397 E Division St NE, will close at 12 p.m. The City Impact Center at 288 N. Main in Cedar Springs, will close at 4 p.m. Nearly 20,000 residents were still without power Sunday morning in northeastern Kent, Ionia and Montcalm counties. Some power is expected to be restored Sunday evening, but some of the larger outages may not be resolved until late Monday night, according to Consumers Energy. The poor weather prompted Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to declare a state of emergency late Saturday, Feb. 9, after severe weather in West Michigan caused widespread power outages and hazardous driving conditions for residents. This story was updated at 2:27 p.m., Sunday, Feb. 10. FLINT, MI -- A 25-year-old man wanted by the FBI on a murder charge in Kentucky has been arrested in Flint. Phillip Lee Lewis allegedly entered a gas station Jan. 16 in Gray, Kentucky, brandished a firearm and shot a customer who was trying to leave during the attempted robbery. A warrant was issued Jan. 17 by the state of Kentucky for Lewis arrest on charges of murder and first-degree armed robbery, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigations. A federal arrest warrant was issued for Lewis Feb. 23 by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky. The FBI issued a wanted notice and turned its investigation toward Flint last week after gathering information that Lewis may be in the area. He was arrested Friday, Feb. 8 in Flint by law enforcement officials from state and federal agencies. GENESEE COUNTY, MI -- Those interested in becoming a Skywarn storm spotter can head to a free workshop in Genesee County. The workshop is scheduled from 10 a.m.-noon March 30 at the Genesee County Administration Building, 1101 Beach St, in Flint. Tim Knights, secretary for the Michigan Specialized Communication Group, said the event is taking place in partnership with Genesee County Amateur Radio Public Service Corps, Genesee County Office of Emergency Management, and National Weather Service Pontiac/Detroit. They teach the basics of thunderstorm development and severe weather, in general, and what to look for and what to report to the National Weather Service, commented Knights. They also get into estimating wind speeds based on who trees are behaving and so on. Other information to be discussed by a national Weather Service meteorologist at the workshop includes the life cycle of a storm, how to observe and report severe weather such as a funnel and wall clouds. While the spotter system has worked well for amateur radio operators as theyre able to quickly relay the information to the National Weather Service, Knight said the workshop is open to the general public and they are encouraged to attend. The methods of reporting to the weather service have increased including by phone and social media. A database is kept by the National Weather Service on those attending workshop sessions across the state, Knights said, to make them aware of accredited spotters. He noted its encouraged for those whove completed the training in the past to do so every other year as new technology and information comes along at a rapid pace. For those who may not have attend a workshop in the past, Knights recommends going to two sessions in the first year as there is a lot of information to digest. The March 30 workshop is the only one being held in 2019 in Genesee County. No preregistration is required. Anyone seeking additional information about the workshop may call 810-545-7260 or visit miskywarn.org to find other upcoming workshops across the state. Residents may attend workshop sessions in other counties. ANN ARBOR, MI - Police are searching for a suspect involved in a home invasion near the University of Michigan campus. At 10:30 a.m. on Friday, a male entered a home through an unlocked door on the 1000 block of Hill St., according to a news release from UM Division of Public Safety and Security (UMDPSS). An individual who reported the incident to the Ann Arbor Police heard someone inside and confronted the suspect on the first floor, according to UMDPSS. The suspect fled without taking anything. The suspect is described as a black male in his late 20s, 5-feet-11, 200 pounds, muscular build and last seen wearing a blue jacket and dark colored sweatshirt. Ann Arbor Police could not be immediately reached for further information. The UMDPSS will post updates online. Anyone with information is asked to contact UMDPSS at (734) 763-1131, the Ann Arbor Police Department Tip Line at (734) 794-6939 or tips@a2gov.org, or dial 911. ANN ARBOR, MI - One was punched more than 15 times and another was struck with a chair. Ann Arbor Police are searching for a suspect who assaulted a student on Saturday night. At 8:56 p.m., the male suspect approached a student sitting in the Starbucks at 222 S. State St. and struck the victim in the back of the head with a chair. Correction: an earlier version of this story reported the incident occurred on Friday. It has been updated to reflect the correct date. At 10:30 p.m., a male suspect approached a female, who was walking through West Park at 215 Chapin St., near Huron and First Street, and began punching her. The suspect struck her more than 15 times, police say. The suspect is described as a black male, late 20s, 5-feet-10, clean shaven and last seen wearing a grey coat or hoodie and a khaki hat. Police cannot yet confirm whether the incidents are related. Both incidents were unprovoked and neither victim knew the suspect, police say. Anyone with information is asked to contact UMDPSS at (734) 763-1131, the Ann Arbor Police Department Tip Line at (734) 794-6939 or tips@a2gov.org, or dial 911. ANN ARBOR, MI U.S. Rep. John Dingell had his own way with words, so much so that his staff kept notes of his often-humorous expressions, which they affectionately called Dingellisms. To his younger staffers, the older congressman seemed to speak another language, with clever quips and old phrases theyd never heard until they met the Dearborn Democrat. If there was a particular issue he wanted you to pay quick and close attention to, he would say, Id like you to get on that like a duck on a June bug, said Jason Morgan, Dingells Washtenaw County field representative from 2011-2013. Its hotter than billy-goat hell and madder than a boiled owl are a couple other favorites. He had a great saying about by the great horned spoon, and nobody ever really figured out what the hell that meant, but it was to give reverence to, or to say, By golly, we got it done, said Andy LaBarre, who spent six years on Dingells staff, from 2005 -2011. You somehow understood what he was saying, LaBarre said. That was just Mr. Dingell. LaBarre and Morgan, now both Ann Arbor representatives on the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners, shared their personal insights about the nations longest-serving Congress member, who died Thursday, Feb. 7 at 92. Peanut butter and mayonnaise sandwiches LaBarre worked for Dingell in five roles: personal assistant, legislative correspondent, field rep, campaign manager and district administrator. Im incredibly fortunate to have spent that time learning from him, he said. We are all really lucky to have known him. One of LaBarres responsibilities was to get lunch for Dingell, who usually had meetings all day. He liked simple cuisine, LaBarre said. You might think of a member of Congress as sort of opulent or pretentious in their food choices, and I think it was the fact that he was a product of the Great Depression, LaBarre said. Those peanut butter and mayonnaise sandwiches were always hilarious to me, just the combination." Another of Dingells favorites was a cheese, lettuce and mustard sandwich, LaBarre said. Andy LaBarre, Washtenaw County Commissioner for District 7, speaks during a meeting of the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners in Ann Arbor on Jan. 9, 2019.Jacob Hamilton Driving Mr. Dingell Dingells staff picked him up in a car each morning and gave him his daily schedule on index cards. Then hed want newspapers. He would give me quarters to go in to get the Freep or the Detroit News or Ann Arbor News, LaBarre said, noting Dingell didnt call them quarters. He would call them bits. Is it still two bits? That was always funny to me, he said. And he had a great phrase, Let us be about the business of the day. Dingell could be a backseat driver. Probably the most common funny experience I had with him was just how bad he thought my driving was, Morgan said, adding Dingell was very particular about things, including routes he preferred. If you were driving in a fashion that was inefficient or sort of lackadaisical, he would kindly advise you not to fiddle-bitch, because to fiddle-bitch was to waste time, LaBarre said. One time, driving in D.C., Dingell told him to take a slaunch left, LaBarre recalled. I had no idea what the hell slaunch meant, but luckily I had been somewhat forewarned that it meant kind of a soft left, so I almost ran us off the road, but eventually got it, he said. Guilty pleasures Dingell regularly enlisted his staffs help sneaking snacks and fast food his wife didnt want him eating. It was always my favorite when wed be heading home and he would look over at me and give me sort of a sly look and say, Stop at that little burger shop on the way home. And by burger shop he meant McDonalds, Morgan said. As we got back in the car, hed say, Now, dear friend, do not tell the lovely Deborah about this, and I usually would not tell her. Dingell also loved Arbys, which had a cherry pie dessert that made it another frequent stop, Morgan said. He was a funny guy in terms of the treats and just trying to make sure that he did not irritate Debbie with what he ate, LaBarre said. Jason Morgan, Washtenaw County Commissioner for District 8, applauds during a meeting of the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners in Ann Arbor on Jan. 9, 2019.Jacob Hamilton More Dingellisms Many of Dingells expressions were probably things heard in the 1930s that stuck, LaBarre said. One time, he said his dad grew up poorer than Jobs turkey and we didnt know what that meant, LaBarre said. Morgan recalls phrases like useless as barbed-wire pajamas, popular as a turd in a punch bowl," and whiz-bang. If he didnt plan to stay somewhere long, he would say, Well be in and out like Murphys glass eye, Morgan said, adding he never really understood that. Dingell's staffers knew he meant business if he prefaced his remarks to them with dear friend or called them beloved. It meant basically that he was kindly telling you that was going to be the last word on the matter, LaBarre said. He also would tell his staff he didnt pay them to agree with him and to be themselves. He would often say, My father taught me something I try to teach my boys. As I told my son Christopher: Son, you be a first-class Christopher and not a second-rate John. As in, You should be yourself and not try to be me, Morgan said. I always thought that was really nice. Another Dingellism: "'Dont let the grass grow beneath your feet, which generally meant hurry up, Morgan said. Dingell also used words such as rascality, bastardry and jackassery to make his points, said LaBarre, who learned from the congressman that groundhogs or woodchucks can be called whistle pigs. Making the mundane fun Being around Dingell made the mundane fun, LaBarre said, recalling dinners they had at the McLean Family Restaurant in Virginia. As a 22-year-old kid, sometimes Id get to have dinner with a member of Congress at basically the equivalent of a Coney Island, and hed tell me stories. Hed share perspective on things. And there wasnt a pretentiousness about him, he said. There was a simplicity, a decency, and hed do just the funniest things inadvertently, he said. I remember one time he grabbed this pickle and he sort of shoved it at me, and he said, Andrew, would you like this pickle? I remember thinking in my head, you know, I dont really like pickles, but I really dont want to offend him. LaBarre took the pickle and thanked Dingell. It was hilarious in its own funny way, he said. But if you talk to the people who worked for him and worked with him, we all have these special little stories that we treasure. Morgan said he always appreciated hearing Dingells stories about everything from World War II to passing Medicare. He just had all these amazing stories that hed share for you that arent even in the history books, he said. Palpable courage Beyond funny anecdotes, Dingells former staffers also have stories about why they admired him so much. LaBarre points to Dingells vote in support of the 1964 Civil Rights Act as a prime example of his character. It made for a tougher election that year, and Dingells win was considered a surprise. Basically, he was betting his career on the decency of people to understand he was doing the right thing, he said. He had palpable courage on a number of things. LaBarre recalls organizing town hall meetings where Dingell didnt hesitate to get up before crowds he knew would be tough, because he wanted to hear from them. That included a meeting in Romulus in 2009, when Dingell stood up before Tea Party activists. He faced off against 300 folks yelling at him, just treating him in miserable fashion, and he didnt back down an inch, LaBarre said. He did it with grace. And at the end of it, we were leaving and he said, You know, Andrew, that was kind of fun. And I just remember thinking, what a wonderful public servant. Sincere and helpful Morgans first experience meeting Dingell was in 2008 at the Democratic National Convention in Denver. Long before he ever imagined working for the congressman, Morgan, still a teenager and the youngest Michigan delegate, was featured at a press event with Dingell in a room full of reporters. I had no clue how to answer these questions, he said. John Dingell tried to help me out because I was stuttering a little bit. He said, Young man, tell me how you got here. Morgan drew laughs when he responded that he flew. Dingell smiled, put his hand on Morgans shoulder and explained he was asking how Morgan became a delegate. And he said it in this way that was not making fun of me, but was just kind and sincere and helpful, Morgan said. He helped me through that interview, and afterwards I turned to him and thanked him, and he said, No, no, young man. Youre new at this. Youll be fine. That was the only interaction Morgan had with Dingell until 2011, when he showed up at Dingells office to interview for a job. At the end of the interview, he says to me, Well, youre green as grass, but were going to give you a chance, and he hired me, said Morgan, who went on to become director of government and community relations at Washtenaw Community College, and now chairs the county board. Who John Dingell was Before Dingell fully came out in support of gay marriage in 2012, he was having a tough time trying to understand where he should stand on the issue, Morgan recalls. One day, while driving back from an event in Ann Arbor, Dingell calmly and quietly turned to him and asked how he was doing with the gay community. And for me as someone who was a lower-level staffer who revered John Dingell, but also was openly gay myself and cared very deeply about the right to marriage equality, I sort of paused and wasnt sure what to say to him, Morgan said. He didnt give Dingell the most straightforward answer, so Dingell pressed him to say how he really felt. Morgan responded, Well, sir, as someone who would really like to be able to get married one day, who is gay, politically youre fine on this issue in your district and we know you care very deeply about social justice, but this issue is really important and youre not publicly there yet. And it is an issue thats really important to me, and I think you really should be in favor of gay marriage. Dingell then sat quietly, while Morgan felt he had been perhaps overly honest. Thank you. I appreciate your honesty and I appreciate you telling me how you feel, Dingell eventually said, Morgan recalls. I could tell the rest of the ride home that he was just processing it ... and that was just sort of who John Dingell was, Morgan said. He would sincerely ask for your opinion, no matter who you were or how important you were, and he would genuinely take it in." We loved the man Now, as elected officials, Morgan and LaBarre both look to their memories of Dingell as inspiration. To see a public servant who models exactly what a public servant should be was so influential in my life, Morgan said. Were lucky to have had someone like that in our lives, LaBarre agreed, adding there are a lot of former Dingell staffers around the country who have gone on to do great things. We loved the man intensely because of the way he treated us with dignity and respect, LaBarre said. Were fortunate that Debbie somehow managed to share this wonderful man with so many people. DEARBORN, MI A former U.S. president, vice president and Congress members will speak at former U.S. Rep. John Dingells two funeral services this week, his wifes office confirmed. The speakers list is a bipartisan mix of Democrats and Republicans who knew and worked with the nations longest-serving Congress member. Joe Biden, John Lewis and Fred Upton are scheduled to speak at the Michigan service planned for Tuesday, Jan. 12 in Dearborn, and pallbearers will include some of Dingells former staff. At Thursdays service in Washington, D.C., speakers include Bill Clinton, Steny Hoyer and John Boehner, and pallbearers include former Congress members and colleagues of Dingell. 'By the great horned spoon, John Dingell was loved for his words and ways A visitation open to the public will be held from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday, Feb. 11 at the Ford Community and Performing Arts Center at 15801 Michigan Ave. in Dearborn. There will be a funeral mass at Church of the Divine Child, 1055 N. Silvery Lane in Dearborn, at 11 a.m. Tuesday, and another at Holy Trinity Catholic Church, 3513 N Street NW in D.C., at 10:30 a.m. Thursday. Both are open to the public. In lieu of flowers, the family is asking for donations to the International Wildlife Refuge Alliance, which supports operation and maintenance of the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge. Donations can be made at http://www.iwralliance.org. Dingell, a Dearborn Democrat who served in office from 1955 to 2015, died Thursday, Feb. 7 after battling cancer and heart trouble. He was 92. A World War II veteran, Dingell will be laid to rest in Arlington National Cemetery. A motorcade carrying Dingells casket will be driven past the United States Capitol on the East Plaza on Tuesday, U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Dearborn, wife of the former congressman, tweeted on Sunday, indicating the exact timing will be announced later and the public is welcome to view the motorcade from the east lawn of the Capitol. One last time, John Dingells greatest tweets GRAND RAPIDS, MI - A 20-year-old male driver from Holland lost control of his vehicle Saturday, Feb. 9, after swerving for a deer and striking a large rock causing his vehicle to overturn into a frozen creek bed, according to police. Mecosta County Sheriffs Department deputies arrived to the scene of the crash at 20th Avenue north of 9 Mile Road in Wheatland Township at 11:26 p.m. Saturday, according to a news release. The driver and both passengers, a 20-year-old male from Grand Rapids and an 18-year-old female from Rockford, were transported to McLaren Central Michigan hospital in Mount Pleasant with what police described as non-life threatening injuries. Army and Marine Corps combat units are starting to receive brand-new, high-performance Joint Light Tactical Vehicles. But if war with a major power ignites in the near future, the bulk of U.S. ground forces will go into battle with the same Humvees that struggled to survive the last war. Today, the formidable-looking JLTV which promises vastly improved crew protection and enhanced performance is ready for battle. But it will take the military more than a decade to field roughly 58,000 of them to the Army and the Marines. Even then, tens of thousands of Humvees will remain in service. The Army hasn't decided whether it will upgrade its existing Humvees with improved protection and performance, a move the Marines have decided against. While there are risks associated with leaving the Humvee as it currently is, military experts question whether a major war with Russia or China will present threats that the vehicle can't handle. As policy makers push for more armor and greater survivability on all platforms, some say military leaders must make the choice to be honest with the American public about the reality of warfare: that too much armor protection can hinder performance and that ground troops will die no matter what vehicle carries them into battle. The venerable Humvee was first fielded to combat units in the mid-1980s. It had impressive mobility; it was fast and extremely reliable. But beginning in 2004, the vehicle that was designed for the European battlefield began to struggle when it faced a determined Iraqi insurgency that fought with improvised explosive devices, or IEDs. Soon, images of burnt-out, twisted Humvees became a symbol of America's struggle to cope with a new, horrific type of warfare. While many short-term efforts to protect troops were launched, the Pentagon was determined to develop a lasting solution. It first approved the JLTV as a program of record in 2006. U.S. military leaders are eager to tout the JLTV program as a success story, but seem reluctant and uncertain regarding how the Humvee will be used alongside the new vehicle in future warfare. In September, Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Robert Neller acknowledged to Military.com that the "Humvee is going to be around for a while," but said where they are used will depend on "what the threat is." Humvees belonging to 1st Platoon, 153rd Military Police Company, appear near the Arc of Triumph (Crossed Swords) at the Green Zone in Baghdad, Dec. 12, 2007. (Brendan Mackie/Army National Guard) "Obviously, you have concerns about any lightly armored vehicle and what the adversary might have, as far as direct fire and even indirect fire, IEDs and mines," Neller said. "We are not going to put any Marine in a vehicle in an environment that we don't think they have a great chance of accomplishing the mission and being survivable at the same time." Since then, the Army and Marine Corps have declined formal interview requests from Military.com to discuss the future of the Humvee. The Army's plans to purchase and field just over 49,000 JLTVs "extend into the mid-2030s," spokesman Lt. Col. Isaac Taylor told Military.com. Those Humvees not replaced by JLTVs will make up the remaining bulk of the Army's light tactical vehicle, or LTV, requirement of 117,000 vehicles. "The objective of the Army's light tactical wheeled vehicle (LTV) strategy is to enhance survivability of soldiers," Taylor said. "The Army's primary goal is to transition to an LTV fleet that is capable of scaleable protection for existing vehicles, while simultaneously investing in new, more modern vehicles. The JLTV is the next-generation LTV, designed to provide increased protection, performance and payload." The Marine Corps currently plans to buy roughly 9,000 JLTVs an increase over its original purchase plan of 5,500 and field them "through the 2020s," according to a statement to Military.com from Marine Corps Capabilities Development Directorate. "The total number of [Humvees] we have now will not be replaced by JLTVs," according to the statement, which added that the overall Marine Humvee "requirements are less now than they were a decade ago." For operational security reasons, Marine officials would not reveal how many Humvees the service currently has. But the 9,000 JLTVs fielded over the next decade will replace about 60 percent of the Humvee fleet, according to the statement. Discussing the Humvee is likely a sensitive subject with the services because of the political backlash military leaders had to endure in the early days of Operation Iraqi Freedom, when Humvees where being blown up on a daily basis. A destroyed Iraqi army humvee is left behind outside of the northern city of Mosul, Iraq, Wednesday, June 25, 2014, more than two weeks after the al-Qaida-inspired Islamic Sate of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) took over the country's second largest city. (AP Photo) According to Defense Department numbers, 3,481 U.S. service members were killed in Operation Iraqi Freedom through the entire conflict, a relatively low number compared to past U.S. wars. But beginning in 2004, soldiers who survived IED attacks often came home missing arms, legs and sometimes faces a reality that enraged members of Congress and led to many emotional hearings in which lawmakers accused military leaders of failing to provide adequate battlefield protection to deploying U.S. service members. "The problem comes down to a disconnect between current understanding of war, expectations of war, and the reality of war not only among the American public but certainly here on Capitol Hill, among members of Congress and even members of the military," said Dakota Wood, a retired Marine Corps lieutenant colonel and now a senior research fellow at The Heritage Foundation. "Why was everybody caught by surprise when the enemy used landmines you know, roadside bombs, IEDs why was it a surprise when the enemy used explosives to blow up vehicles carrying American soldiers?" Wood asked, arguing the Humvee, made by AM General LLC, was never designed to survive blasts capable of destroying a tank. "And yet, when this started occurring on the battlefield, you would have thought we had already lost the war, that the military was negligent in providing adequate protection." Under extreme pressure from Congress, the military overloaded the lightweight Humvee with armor and, in 2007, launched a $47 billion program to field much heavier, Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles to protect troops. MRAPs, while effective, sometimes weighed more than 20 tons, making them too heavy and slow-moving for many battlefield situations. It took almost a decade for the JLTV to become a reality but, in August 2015, Oshkosh Corp. was selected over Lockheed Martin Corp. and AM General LLC to build the JLTV for the Army and the Marine Corps, a program that could exceed $30 billion to meet the current joint-service requirement. The JLTV offers increased crew protection, such as MRAP-like underbelly blast protection, blast-protected seats, restraints and technologies designed to absorb and deflect blast -- while still meeting the Army's on- and off-road performance requirements. The Army is currently studying whether to make additional improvements to the Humvee beyond the upgrades that went into the expanded-capacity vehicle, or ECV, Humvees such as the newer M1151A1 ECV Armament Carrier. "The service recently conducted a study of Infantry Brigade Combat Team (IBCT) vehicle requirements and will conduct an additional evaluation of a mixed fleet of [Humvees] and JLTVs in FY22 or earlier," Taylor said. The Corps does not intend to upgrade its existing Humvee fleet, according to the Marine statement, which added that the Humvee fleet "will be managed and maintained in a high state of readiness by disposing of our least ready vehicles at the earliest opportunity as JLTVs are fielded. Those [Humvees] remaining in the inventory will be maintained through normal organic and depot maintenance procedures until they are replaced." To retired Army Maj. Gen. Robert Scales, the Humvee doesn't need upgrading to go to war with an adversary such as Russia. "In a European scenario, for which the Humvee was designed, it's perfectly fine," said Scales, a Vietnam veteran who is currently a key adviser to the Defense Department's Close Combat Lethality Task Force. Scales remembers that he was an assistant division commander with the 2nd Infantry Division in Korea when the Humvee was first fielded. "The whole division was equipped with Humvees. Given the terrain in Korea, and given the North Korean threat, it was fine," he said. It's unlikely that a future war with Russia or China will involve IEDs like the ones used in Iraq, Scales said. "The issue with the Russians is not stuff on the ground, it's stuff flying through the air -- the surface-to-surface threat from Russia and, I would presume, China as well," he said. "So what is important for a vehicle in that type of strike-counterstrike environment is the ability to displace quickly, to be small and difficult to spot and to be able to move about the battlefield to avoid strike and counterstrike." Wood said retrofitting existing Humvees with additional protection, as well as enhancing the suspension, engine and other key features to increase performance, will be expensive and increase the weight of the vehicle. "If I increase armor, I am going to increase weight, which means the trafficability and transportability become more difficult," he said. "If I increase the size, power, weight and armor that incorporate a JLTV, cost is going to go up. "People get upset when war costs a lot of money, but then, when you don't spend the money, you are also criticized for not protecting the force and providing the military what it needs to win in combat. You can't have it both ways," Wood said. Scales agreed that the Humvee wasn't designed to be a JLTV. "It wasn't designed for that. Now remember, in Europe you are going to be at least in the battlefields that were postulating in central Europe you are going to be maneuvering hundreds of kilometers. And what is important is fuel efficiency and reliability, and when you start slapping armor in the sides of Humveesyou are going to pay a price for that," he said. The JLTV, Scales said, "is designed from the ground up" for missions where more armor protection is needed. "The key is to concentrate those at the tip of the spear, where their utility for close combat can be fully exploited," he said. Wood said he believes the current Humvee is still "very capable." "Today's Humvee fleet is doggone pretty good. It's going to meet 80 percent of the requirements most of the time. You don't need everything to be fully up-armored," he said. "But sure as shootingwe will deploy a force, some set of soldiers are going to be moving from point A to point B in a less-than-heavily armored Humvee," Wood added. "They are going to get hit with a rocket-propelled grenade or some kind of armor-piercing, incendiary round or road-side bomb, and they will get blown up. And that's where the news is going to carry, and that is when Congress and the media will pounce all over the military about how could you have sent our guys and gals in harm's way inappropriately equipped. There is no perfect solution, and I think Congress just needs to understand that." -- Matthew Cox can be reached at matthew.cox@military.com. The patrol boats, which have been in the Persian Gulf region since 2003, have been replaced by two of the service's newest... MIDDLETOWN A busy February moves right along this week in Middletown and throughout Middlesex County. However, before covering some of the major events and activities on horizon, I want to take some time to address some very important issues that deal with the business community and economic development in our region. Middlesex County is known throughout the state and beyond as being home to some of the best restaurants anywhere. Middletown is packed with outstanding establishments that offer delicious food from around the world. They each provide a unique atmosphere and attract thousands of people and economic activity every week of the year. A recent article in the Middletown Press noted that the city has 275 food service establishments, which include nursing homes, school cafeterias, hospitals, food trucks and restaurants. That same article stated that a small percentage of the restaurants were cited for infractions as a result of inspections conducted over the past few months. The fact is that the vast majority of these infractions were unintentional and minor, and were corrected very quickly. It was also noted that a number of local restaurants received a perfect score of 100. These inspection reports are public information and were obtained through a freedom of information request. However, their public disclosure can be disruptive to businesses and their day-to-day operations. I am very proud to be a loyal customer of a great number of these restaurants in Middletown and those throughout Middlesex County. I am also very proud to call the vast majority of them members of the Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce. Middletown is a restaurant destination, and it will continue to be as we move forward. I encourage everyone to visit these establishments and enjoy everything they have to offer. Bon appetit! Switching gears a bit, but staying within the economic development realm, I am very encouraged by the recent development activity and interest from investors and other parties in our region. We are experiencing very strong interest in key commercial corridors in the city of Middletown including downtown, Washington Street, Newfield Street and Middle Street. There is also strong interest in the area off Interstate 91 and on 372 in Cromwell, and on Routes 17 and 66 in Portland. Developers, investors and others continue to reach out to the chamber team and our excellent municipal partners as we collectively pursue smart and strategic economic development for Middlesex County. We will continue these efforts and will ensure that the sun continues to shine down on our wonderful region. On the downtown event front, planning continues for Middletowns 22nd Annual Car Cruise on Main June 12, and discussions are also underway for a Middletown Pride Event to be coordinated through the citys new LGBTQ+ Advisory Committee. We are still working through the potential for additional events downtown for either later in the summer or in the early fall. More to come on this front. This week includes a number of important meetings on additional topics of importance to the Middlesex business community. I look forward to attending Mondays meeting of the Speakers Blue Ribbon Panel on Tourism at the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History in New Haven. Led by its Chairman, Don DeVivo, the panel is working to boost Connecticuts tourism industry which is already worth billions of dollars to the states economy. Recent meetings of the panel at the Legislative Office Building, Maritime Aquarium and Foxwoods Resort and Casino have been very productive, and I continue to appreciate Speaker of the House Joe Aresimowiczs leadership on this critically important issue. On Tuesday morning, the chambers very important KeyBank Workshop Series will host a session titled, Best HR Practices in Hiring, Disciplining and Firing Employees. It will be held from 8 to 10 a.m. at the chamber and will be presented by Joshua Hawks-Ladds of Pullman & Comley. The discussion will focus on helping small business owners and HR personnel managers understand the legal implications surrounding hiring and firing decisions in the modern era. It will also detail practical steps employers can take to minimize litigation risk. Specific topics covered include: employment background checks and due diligence, drug testing and medical inquiries, application and interview process, fraudulent employment and/or educational references, when to discipline and when to fire, effective preparation for termination, properly conducting terminations, and the most common pitfalls that employers face. More information and event registration is available at middlesexchamber.com. We look forward to another productive session Tuesday morning, and thank KeyBank for its continued support. On the new business development front, I look forward to joining Mayor Drew and other cities dignitaries at the grand opening celebration for MySignsYourWords Art Studio on College Street in Middletown. The studio offers open studio classes, private parties and welcomes local artisans. The studio is a wonderful venue that both children and adults will love. We look forward to working with Tara Sitilides and her team and wish them all the best as they move forward with this new local business. Back at the chamber office, the chambers Distinguished Citizen Committee will meet Wednesday afternoon to select the recipients of the 2019 Distinguished Citizen Award. Each year at the chambers annual dinner, a special award is presented to one or more members of the business community who have demonstrated outstanding and unselfish service to the community. Over 200 nominations have been submitted for consideration. The committee is comprised of previous recipients of this award. I look forward to seeing them all and thank them for their continued service to our community. Also scheduled for this week, the chambers Cromwell Division meets Thursday morning at the Courtyard by Marriott while the Health Care Steering Committee meets at the chamber, and Friday features meetings of our Legislative Committee and Affordable Housing Committee at the chamber. Looking ahead a bit, our next member breakfast meeting is Feb. 22 at the Red Lion Hotel in Cromwell. We look forward to welcoming U.S. state Rep. Joe Courtney as keynote speaker at this event which is sponsored by The Mohegan Tribe. Immediately following, the chamber will host an Informational Forum for Employers, Educators and Parents focusing on Developing the Manufacturing Pipeline in Middlesex County. I will continue to share updates as this important forum comes together, and we look forward to a productive morning Cromwell. Feb. 25 will feature our February Business After Work Networking Reception at the Sheraton Hartford South Hotel in Rocky Hill from 5 to 7 p.m. As always, the event will feature a great spread of food and drink for our members and their guests along with outstanding networking opportunities. I want to thank General Manager Derrick Pair, Director of Sales and Marketing Gina Molde, Senior Business Travel Sales Manager Ken Gribbon, Executive Chef Jim Oswald, Catering Sales Manager Katie Gonzalez and their entire team for once again hosting this event. We look forward to a great evening. As you can see, the chamber team continues to be on the move as winter moves along in Middlesex County. Have a great week! Larry McHugh is president of the Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce in Middletown. While mobile gaming has been on the rise and insanely trending right now, nothing can take away the experience a PC can deliver. Even laptops have made phenomenal improvements in the last few years and offer top of the line specifications. Instead of a full-fledged PC, a laptop also provides the comfort of portability. Brands have been working on integrating desktop grade GPU's in laptops, and they can now deliver on par performance. In fact, Nvidia has also released special GPUs for laptops and this, in turn, has not only brought down the price of owning a gaming laptop but also offers a complete package. Based on multiple metrics like display size and quality, processor, GPU, additional gaming-centric features, and battery life, we've compiled a list of the top gaming laptops one can buy in India (they're sorted according to price). 1. Acer Nitro Ryzen 5 (Rs 53,990) YouTube Acer's launched multiple laptops last year and the Nitro series has been an instant success. While most other machines are powered by Intel's processor, this one is the only exception. It has a 15.6-inch display and is powered by a quad-core AMD Ryzen 5 chipset clocked at 2.0Ghz with 8GB RAM. The laptop has a dedicated Radeon RX 560X GPU with 4GB memory and ships with a 1TB hard drive for storage. It comes with Windows 10 Home pre-installed and weighs 2.7Kg. If you're looking for a budget gaming rig, this one should be your first consideration since it has all basic necessities and doubles up as a gaming machine. 2. HP Pavilion Gaming Laptop (Rs 68,000) HP There are various configurations available in the series, but we recommend the BC406TX since it has a balanced spec-sheet and is much more portable than the Nitro 5. It has a 15.6-inch display that refreshed at 60Hz and distinct under keyboard lights make the design look very modern. HP claims the battery can charge from 0 to 90 per cent within 90 minutes. Powering the laptop is an Intel Core i5 8300H chipset, clocked at 2.3GHz along with 8GB RAM. The GPU consists of an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 with 4GB dedicated memory. This variant comes with a 1TB hard drive and Windows 10 pre-installed. It is significantly lighter and weighs 2.1Kg. 3. ASUS TUF FX505 (Rs 89,990) YouTube The new TUF gaming laptops offer an ultra-slim profile and feature a NanoEdge display with a 144Hz refresh rate. The laptop can remain cool for an extended period of time thanks to Anti-Dust Cooling (ADC) system, fan overboost technology, and dual-fan cooling CPU and GPU. The laptop has a 15.6-inch display and is powered by Intel's Core i7-8750H processor with 8GB RAM. It has an Nvidia GeForce GTX1050 Ti GPU with 4GB dedicated memory. Storage options include a hybrid of 1TB hard-drive and 256GB SSD. 4. Lenovo Legion Y530 (Rs 91,990) YouTube The Legion series offers a significantly better design with tiny bezels and thin body construction. Only one variant of the laptop is officially available in India and it has a 15.6-inch FHD display with a 144Hz refresh rate. Lenovo says it has a dual channel thermal system that offers best-in-class performance output and minimal noise. It is powered by an Intel Core i7-8750H processor that comes with up to six cores and 12 threads for high-end gaming. Alongside is an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 GPU with 4GB dedicated memory. Even though the laptop is fairly thin, the keyboard offers 1.7mm of travel and the speakers are powered by Harman. Lastly, it has a dual storage system consisting of a 1TB hard drive and 128GB SSD. 5. ASUS ROG Strix SCARII (Rs 139,990) Trusted Reviews ASUS's ROG lineup has been immensely popular and the brand has been doubling down on its presence in India. The SCARII comes with a 15.6-inch 144Hz super-narrow-bezel display. It has a HyperStrike Pro gaming keyboard for better controls and HyperCool Pro technology for longer performance endurance. It is powered by an 8th Gen Intel Core i7-8750H processor, coupled along with an Nvidia GeForce GTX1060 GPU and 16GB RAM. Additionally, with ROG Overstroke technology, it enables earlier key actuation and has a longer overstroke distance. 6. MSI RTX Series (Starts at 79,990) YouTube MSI launched the new RTX offerings in India this week and multiple configurations are available. Ray Tracing technology is a major stand-out feature for the series and keep in mind, these machines are built for serious gamers only. The GL73 comes with a 15.6-inch display that refreshed at 144Hz and is powered by an 8th Gen Intel Core i7-8750H processor. The laptop comes with 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD and 1TB SATA drive. For graphics, it has Nvidia's RTX 2060 GPU with 6GB dedicated memory. The GL75 comes in two display sizes, 17.3-inch and 15.6-inch. Researchers have developed a new pill that can deliver insulin straight into the stomach wall. Will injections soon be a thing of the past? Share on Pinterest An easy-to-swallow pill could replace daily insulin injections. When type 2 diabetes is at an advanced stage, the pancreas is unable to produce enough insulin. At this point, doctors usually recommend daily insulin injections to manage blood sugar levels. However, research has cited a phobia of needles as one of the most significant barriers preventing those with type 2 diabetes from taking insulin. By radically changing the delivery of insulin, Robert Langer, a professor at the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, and his colleagues hope to make insulin treatment more palatable. The research features in the journal Science. Using microneedles to deliver the drug The team came up with an innovative new design for a pill that consists of a biodegradable capsule containing an insulin microneedle. When a person swallows the pill, insulin injects directly into the stomach wall. As the stomach lining does not have any pain receptors, the researchers believe that this way of delivering the drug will be free of pain. We are really hopeful that this new type of capsule could someday help diabetic patients and perhaps anyone who requires therapies that can now only be given by injection or infusion, explains Langer. Microneedles are millimeter-size needles that scientists originally developed to penetrate the skin without causing pain. The microneedle in this study had two components: a tip comprising compressed insulin, which penetrates the stomach wall, and a biodegradable shaft, which holds the tip in place. Inside the capsule, the needle attaches to a compressed spring and a disc that the team created using sugar. The sugar disc dissolves when the capsule enters the stomach. By doing this, it releases the spring, allowing the microneedle to inject into the stomach wall. This mechanism sounds deceptively simple, but what stops the microneedle from firing off in the wrong direction and missing the stomach wall? As soon as you take it, you want the system to self-right so that you can ensure contact with the tissue, says Giovanni Traverso, an assistant professor at Brigham and Womens Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA. by Joe Mandese @mp_joemandese, February 10, 2019 When media agency wunderkind Richard Beaven stepped down as worldwide CEO of Interpublics Initiative unit seven years ago, many industry observers were surprised. After 25 years in the ad business, Beaven looked to be at the top of his game. But instead of taking another industry gig, Beaven left Madison Avenue, packed up his family and moved 120 miles north of New York City to Ghent, NY, where he began restoring a 75-acre farm to raise pigs and chickens, and pursuing his lifelong passion for photography. Seven years later, his Little Ghent Farm has become a thriving part of the towns community, and has even spawned a local commerce brand, Made In Ghent. It also spawned a series of award-winning photographs that began when Beaven, a British expatriate, became curious about a series of handmade campaign signs popping up on local roadways leading up to the 2016 Presidential election. advertisement advertisement At that time, nobody in my world seriously thought Donald Trump could be elected President, but I found it curious and interesting to see these campaign signs for him going up, Beaven recalls, adding: Some of them were quite elaborate and on a large scale. They were bold statements. I began wondering who the messengers were, so I found myself wandering down driveways and knocking on doors and I ended up putting together a series of photographs. The series proved so poignant that it ended up winning second place in one of photojournalisms most prestigious awards, the National Press Photographers Associations Best of Photojournalism Portrait Series award, and some of the work was even selected to be part of an exhibition in the National Portrait Gallery in the U.K. Along the way, Beaven successfully transitioned to a professional photojournalist, which began when a friend doing a feature for The Wall Street Journal asked Beaven to photograph the subjects, an assignment that proved to be his lucky break. He has since been commissioned for nearly 100 assignments from the Journal, The New York Times, The Guardian and a variety of other newspapers and magazines. A year after photographing the original 2016 campaign sign painters, Beaven went back and photographed them for a post-election series, which was one of the most viewed photo stories published by BuzzFeed in 2017. So many people think something like photography requires you to be somewhere exotic and that you need to take off to some mysterious continent to do good work, but if you look there are so many important stories to tell right on your own doorsteps. Anyone who follows Beavens account on Instagram will have seen some of those great stories over the past year as he began publishing a series of portraits of his neighbors to celebrate the towns bicentennial. While most of Beavens editorial work is shot digitally -- for expediency and easy conveyance -- he chose to shoot the Ghent portraits on film and has been printing them by hand to create what he calls honest renditions of his subjects. It felt like a very personal project at first, but in many ways, it turned into something more than that, because Ive been able to record the towns history in a unique way, he says of his subjects, some of which are featured in this article, but will ultimately be part of a book featuring 275 residents of Ghent. Beaven says he still stays in touch with some old friends from the ad business, but he doesnt miss his old life. Although on occasion when some city folk make their way to the farms store and a conversation strikes up, he says, it doesnt take long before someone connects someone with someone we both know. by Larissa Faw , February 8, 2019 MeringCarson (MC) is appointing Mark Taylor as chief creative officer succeeding Greg Carson, one of the agency's namesake founders who recently became partner/CCO at Crown & Greyhound, a digital brand agency. Carson and Dave Mering first invested in Crown & Greyhound in 2015, with the idea that Carson would eventually take on a leadership role in that business. But due to the constraints of being CCO at MeringCarson and the agencys growth, the shift didnt happen as quickly as expected, says an agency representative. Mering remains a partner and shareholder in both agencies. Carson's replacement is a highly-regarded multi-award winning creative director, who has spent most of his career at Crispin, Porter + Bogusky (CPB) where he was responsible for creating MINI Coopers Lets Motor and the Ikea Lamp spot. For Burger King, he is credited with the reincarnation of the King, and introducing Subservient Chicken." advertisement advertisement Taylor most recently ran his own firm, Mark Taylor, LLC where he worked with shops including BBDO, David&Goliath, Digitas, Doner, FCB, Leo Burnett, and others. Hes helped his agency clients develop new campaigns and business pitches for a litany of blue chip brands (Ford, Miller Lite and Taco Bell among them. Earlier in his career, Taylor worked at Energy BBDO, Fallon, and GSD&M in Austin. Mark stood apart from other candidates because he lined up with our intention to expand our client roster and footprint in the U.S.," says Mering. "We believe Marks work across multiple categories will attract marketers in key growth areas and that he will expand our profile outside of the California market." Guadalupe Cortez, the SkillsUSA national post-secondary secretary, hands Conneaut senior Chad Jones, 18, his gold award that he and his team won at the SkillsUSA District Competition in New Castle during a recognition event at the Crawford County Career and Technical Center. On Feb. 14, 2018, a person armed with a semi-automatic rifle entered Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., pulled a fire alarm and began shooting at students and staff members. Over the next six minutes, he killed 14 students and three staff members and wounded another 17 people in the worst shooting incident in a high school in U.S. history. One year later, officials on the front lines in the effort to prevent violence in Crawford County schools say student safety has been improved with a combination of training and technology. Students have noticed the efforts and say they feel safe, but they also describe a level of uncertainty that makes them wonder how safe they really are and that, for some, adds stress to an already stressful environment. ALICE training Crawford Central School District students were safe a year ago, the districts School Resource Officer Nick Mogel emphasized, but they are safer today. Absolutely, Mogel said. I will always say school is the safest place for kids to be during the day. With the education and training from a year ago, were definitely ahead. Im not going to say a lot safer, Mogel added, but its definitely safer than it was. One year after Parkland: Some progress but controversy still rages HARRISBURG One year ago this Thursday, a gunman opened fire at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, killing 17 students and staff members and injuring 17 others. The increased level of safety results largely from the Alert Lockdown Inform Counter and Evacuate training conducted by Mogel and Sgt. Vince Trenga, the districts school safety officer. ALICE training for district staff members had already been completed at the time of the Parkland attack and training all 3,600 of the districts students became all the more imperative. The goal of completing the student training over the next year has been achieved, Superintendent Tom Washington confirmed. Crawford Central is not alone in implementing ALICE training. Conneaut School District led the way locally, completing its training of staff and students about three years ago, according to Superintendent Jarrin Sperry. PENNCREST School District began ALICE training as well following the Parkland incident, according to Superintendent Timothy Glasspool. Initial training for faculty and administrators will be completed Feb. 20 with follow-up training planned for May and training of support staff expected over the summer. The instruction is being conducted by Glasspool and Saegertown Junior-Senior High Principal Tom Baker, who are both certified trainers. Crawford Central intruder training ALICE training for Crawford Centrals middle and high schools spanned two meetings of each students social studies class, according to Mogel. A slideshow presentation the first day introduced students to the basic concepts of responding to intruders. On day two, Mogel led students through discussions of how to apply those concepts to a variety of hypothetical situations. Trenga led elementary students through more age-appropriate versions of the lessons in how to respond to violent situations. I had a Nerf gun and the kids had dodgeballs, Mogel said. The kids would react based on what they had learned. The training, according to Mogel, was more than just a glorified placebo, like students in the 1950s conducting bomb drills in the face of possible nuclear war. It helps it does, he said of ALICE training. In the weeks after the Parkland shooting, Mogel told the Tribune that numerous Meadville Area Senior High students approached him with questions about the schools plan in the event of armed intruders. I dont think they are scared, but they are aware of what could happen, Mogel said at the time. During the ALICE training sessions last fall, students occasionally imagined scenarios more elaborate than any seen in Hollywood versions of armed intruder situations, Mogel said. More importantly, they benefited from seeing that the district has clear strategies for how to respond and from participating in discussions of those plans. Leading up to the training, there was still some talk and concern. Once the training came, I think the kids were put at ease, Mogel said. I think it answered a lot of their questions about what they can do. Student perspectives While Mogel sees evidence that students are more comfortable following ALICE training, some Crawford Central students would like to see discussions of ALICE strategies and simulations continue with added opportunities for student input. MASH senior Kaitlyn Davis-Bonilla plans to hold such a discussion at the Meadville Area Teen Lounge and hopes to attract both students and school officials. Davis-Bonilla, one of the organizers of the local March for Our Lives event held in conjunction with the national event organized in March by Parkland survivors, discussed MASHs safety efforts during a recent evening at the Teen Lounge with juniors Xavier Morfenski and Haley Fritz. Lots of changes have happened, Morfenski said, referring to MASHs response in the year following the Parkland attack. Everythings become more secure. Of the changes, a schoolwide intruder simulation that followed the ALICE training sessions made a particular impression on the three students. While they differed in their reactions, all three expressed a desire for a greater opportunity to follow up on the simulation and to provide feedback. Morfenski worried that like a fire drill, many students didnt take the simulation seriously. Fritz suggested that an unannounced simulation might be more realistic and thus more beneficial. The idea of a surprise simulation was not appealing to Davis-Bonilla, however. Having been through actual lockdowns at a previous school, she was not eager to revisit the experience. I know that a lot of students were really stressed out about it the whole day, Davis-Bonilla said of the simulation. Some people were already having problems even though they announced it, Morfenski said. You dont know what a persons been through. The goal of trainings and simulations may be to cultivate a prepared, not scared mindset, Davis-Bonilla added, That doesnt mean that students arent scared. The simulation proved to be a valuable learning experience for students, she said, but it was also a source of significant anxiety beforehand. And despite classroom discussions of the simulation afterward, many students were still left with uncertainty that additional opportunities for feedback, like the event she envisions at the Teen Center, would help to address. As an example of a specific student concern, Davis-Bonilla pointed to the intercom announcement of the hypothetical intruders location during the drill. While teachers understood the terminology used to describe the location, she said, students did not. In a real incident, she wondered, what would happen in classrooms staffed by substitute teachers unfamiliar with the districts ALICE training? Other steps ALICE training falls into the category of soft security measures that focus on education, training and awareness, according to Mogel, in contrast to hard security measures such as metal detectors, cameras and additional police officers. These (soft security efforts) are the biggest keys we need to focus on going forward, Mogel said. In mid-January, Pennsylvania launched the Safe2Say tipline to provide another option for those who see something to say something about it. Conneauts Sperry stressed the importance of speaking up when something seems odd, pointing to a recent alleged plot to attack a New York state Muslim community that was prevented when four men between the ages of 16 and 20 were arrested. It all started because a high school kid overheard something weird and said something, Sperry said of the arrests. In addition to the tipline, the School Safety and Security Committee, part of the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency, awarded $25,000 security grants in November to all but four of the states 500 school districts. We are going to use the money to help pay for a social worker that will help families connect with services in the county, Sperry said. School safety responses in neighboring states Pennsylvania is not alone in looking for ways to best prepare schools for shootings everyone Crawford Central is likely to join Conneaut in devoting much of its grant to funding mental health efforts, according to Washington. Doing so is part of a strategy of addressing students mental needs before they have a chance to become security concerns that Washington has promoted for several years. In addition to mental health, Washington said some of the grant will fund hard security efforts in the form of more security cameras throughout the district. PENNCREST will also address hard security concerns in using the grant for visitor management software from Raptor Technologies, portable metal detectors and emergency operations software from NaviGate Prepared, according to Glasspool. Another round of security grant funding is under consideration now, Glasspool said. This time, he said, $40 million will be distributed on a competitive basis. According to an email Glasspool received from the Commission on Crime and Delinquency, requests for a total of $318 million had been received. Are students safe? Students who spoke with the Tribune reported feeling safe in school, but their responses indicated that the issue of safety is complicated. Munching on pretzels and shuffling cards, Morfenski said he generally feels safe. Fritz nodded in agreement. Not always, Davis-Bonilla said with a sigh. Mostly, I guess. Students in Hunter Chaffees journalism class at MASH expressed similar feelings in anonymous written responses to Tribune inquiries. I do feel safe at school, one response said, but theres been so many issues with school shootings at other schools its hard to be sure it couldnt happen to us. Conneauts Sperry acknowledged the complicated nature of the safety question as well. I dont think any school district ever you do everything you can to keep everyone safe every day and youre always trying to do as much as you can, he said. Everyone in education, it weighs on their mind every day. I dont think anybody would be foolish enough to say theyre 100 percent, ironclad safe. You do the best you can, he added. Davis-Bonilla expressed optimism that the training could be improved. More than that, she wondered at the seeming absurdity of the need for such programs in the first place. I cant come to terms with this being a thing that has to happen, she said of school intruder training. Now that it has to happen, Im glad it is happening, but I really wish that it wasnt a thing that has to happen. Mike Crowley can be reached at 724-6370 or by email at mcrowley@meadvilletribune.com. America, one nation under God, is no more; it is divided. It is not one nation and it is not under God. I would love to be wrong regarding t Flash Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren Saturday officially announced that she is running for the president of the United States. Warren made the announcement at an event in Lawrence in her home state of Massachusetts, where she took a shot at the current administration and the nation's politics. "We need to take power in Washington away from the wealthy and well-connected and put it back in the hands of the people where it belongs," she said in her speech. The campaign of Warren, who's on the Democratic Party's left flank, will focus on economic equality, government accountability and reining in big corporations. She pledged on Saturday to "break up monopolies when they choke off competition" and "take on Wall Street banks so that the big banks can never again threaten the security of our economy." Warren has faced questions about her past claims of Native American ancestry. Her decision last year to release the results of a DNA test intended to prove her claims drew criticism from Native American groups. The senator apologized earlier this week for those claims, clarifying that she is not a member of any tribe. Brad Parscale, campaign manager for President Donald Trump's 2020 reelection, accused Warren of being a "fraud." "Elizabeth Warren has already been exposed as a fraud by the Native Americans she impersonated and disrespected to advance her professional career, and the people of Massachusetts she deceived to get elected," Parscale said in a statement on Saturday. Trump has called Warren "Pocahontas" and claimed that she benefited in schools and work from minority status. Warren, 69, has represented Massachusetts in the Senate since 2013. In November last year, she won reelection to the upper chamber for a second term. She's now officially joining a crowded field of Democrats seeking the party's nomination to take on Trump next year. Other prominent Democratic figures who have announced presidential bids include California Senator Kamala Harris, New Jersey Senator Cory Booker, and New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. Who can deny that our politics are askew? Those on the right blame the chaos on those on the left who immediately return the favor. But why Note: We have changed our commenting system. If you do not have an mdjonline.com account, you will need to create one in order to comment. Offer a personal message of sympathy... You'll find individual Guest Books on the page with each obituary notice. By sharing a fond memory or writing a kind tribute, you will be providing a comforting keepsake to those in mourning. . From a Guest Book, you may log in with your user account to leave a message. If you have an existing account with this site, you may log in with that. Otherwise, it's simple to create a new one by clicking on the Create "Sign up" button and following the simple steps on the Sign Up page. Submit A Press Release $25.00 / for 2 days Ensure your press release runs prominently on our website and in our E-mail Newsletter. Gauranteed placement on these platforms is $25. Note: All submissions will go through our editorial approval process before being posted. Did you see a photo in today's print edition that you'd like to order? Would you like to order a reprint of today's front page? Order Reprints The 48-year-old Berlin man charged in connection with the death of 58-year-old Roger Bemis in Clinton remains hospitalized after he fell from a tree stand as investigators closed in on Friday. The Worcester District Attorneys Office said Dean Valchuis is still in an area hospital. It is unclear when he will be arraigned on an assault and battery causing serious bodily injury charge in connection with the death. Authorities went to the Bemis apartment at 367 Water St., a Clinton Housing Authority complex, Thursday night after a friend hadnt heard from him in days. Bemis was found dead inside his apartment, Worcester District Attorney Joseph Early Jr. said at a news conference on Friday afternoon. It appeared Bemis had been dead for a few days. Authorities said it was obvious foul play was involved. On Friday afternoon, the Massachusetts State Police STOP team headed to Valchuis home on Pleasant Street in Berlin. As the State Police STOP team responded to the residence, they heard moaning coming from the backyard of the house, Early said. Valchuis had fallen from a tree stand used for hunting and was lying on the ground. He was seriously injured. The fall occurred before State Police arrived. Early said Valchuis could face other charges after an exact cause of Bemis death is determined. The death was not random, officials said. Early did not disclose any more information about the circumstances surrounding the death. Flash Queen Elizabeth's 97-year-old husband Prince Philip has voluntarily given up his driving licence after a crash last month, Buckingham Palace said on Saturday. Philip escaped without injury on Jan 17 when the Land Rover he was driving flipped in a collision with a car close to the royals' Sandringham residence in eastern England. "After careful consideration The Duke of Edinburgh has taken the decision to voluntarily surrender his driving licence," the royal palace said in a statement. The other driver, a 28-year-old woman, suffered cuts to her knee and a 45-year-old woman passenger in the car, which also had a nine-month-old baby on board, sustained a broken wrist. Witnesses said Philip pulled into a main road from a drive. Philip, who suggested low sun had affected his sight for the crash, also received a warning from police for driving without a seatbelt two days after the crash. Philip retired from public life in 2017, although he still occasionally appears with his 92-year-old wife at official events. There is no legal age in Britain to stop driving, but drivers over 70 must renew their licences every three years. Philip drove Barack Obama and his wife Michelle to lunch at Windsor Castle during their state visit to Britain in 2016, prompting the former US president to remark: "I have to say I have never been driven by a Duke of Edinburgh before, but I can report it was very smooth riding." The queen, a trained military driver during World War II, is said to have shocked Saudi Arabia's late King Abdullah, then crown prince, by climbing into the driver's seat and taking him for a ride around her estate during a visit to Britain in 1998. At the time, women were banned from driving in Saudi Arabia. Birthday wishes Call 281-422-8302 or email david.bloom@baytownsun.com to wish someone a happy birthday. We will print your birthday wish on Page 2 of The Sun. Happy Birthday Wishes South Africa: MPs to debate SONA The focus on the State of the Nation Address will continue this week when Parliamentarians on Tuesday and Wednesday debate President Cyril Ramaphosas second SONA. Parliament spokesperson Moloto Mothapo said on Sunday President Ramaphosa will respond to the debate on Thursday. The debate is among a series of engagements expected to unfold in Parliament this week as the fifth administration begins to wrap up ahead of the 8 May General Election. Meanwhile, Parliament will host an exhibition on the 4th Industrial Revolution, starting on Tuesday. The expo, which ends on Friday, is hosted in partnership with the Ministries of Science and Technology and Communications. A roundtable is scheduled for Friday to discuss topics such as cybercrime, security, the form and impact of the 4th Industrial Revolution on employment. This weeks exhibition and roundtable follows a roundtable in May 2018, which Parliament held as part of its commitment to hold public discussions about the issue, Parliament said in a statement. Ahead of the SONA debates, 40 committee meetings are scheduled to take place. These meetings are scheduled to consider a variety of issues including 18 bills and legislative issues; departmental plans to carry out issues raised in SONA; other matters of public interest, and quarterly and annual reports of government entities. SAnews.gov.za This story has been published on: 2019-02-10. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. Cal Thomass column in the Sunday Republican of February 3 really irked me. I could not believe that he was accusing Democrats of putting party before country! The Senate unanimously passed a funding bill in December which did not include any money for Trumps border wall (remember the one Mexico was going to pay for). The bill then went back to the House for a vote. In a last minute stunt, Paul Ryan and other Republicans killed the bill and thus began the longest government shutdown in US history. When the Democrats took control of the House in January, they immediately tried to reopen the government. But Mitch McConnell refused to hold a vote on any of the Democratic House bills that would reopen the government. McConnell put party before country. The shutdown stunt proved that Trump puts himself first. The wall that Trump wants is NOT a necessity it is a vanity project. Yet most Senate Republicans are afraid of standing up to Trump. They could have forced McConnell to hold a vote if they cared about the welfare of government workers and their families but they did not. The members of Trumps Cabinet have demonstrated that they have NO understanding of how the shutdown adversely affected so many Americans - not just government workers who were either furloughed or forced to work without pay but also their families plus many thousands of government contractors who will not receive back pay. We are quickly approaching the new deadline of February 15 and another shutdown is unfortunately a very real possibility. I can only hope that people will remember the lack of concern shown by so many Republicans and when 2020 comes around, they will vote those uncaring Republicans out of office. Patricia A. Collins, East Longmeadow A 30-year-old pregnant woman from Massachusetts and her unborn child died in a Saturday snowmobile crash in Maine, according to Maine authorities. Maine Game Warden Corporal John MacDonald said in a news release that Elizabeth Abelson, 30, of Gloucester, was snowmobiling on a trail in Greenwood, Maine around 11 a.m. when she lost control of the snowmobile. She was snowmobiling alongside her husband. It Is unclear if Abelsons husband was hurt. The couple had recently purchased a 2019 Ski-Doo Grand Touring snowmobile that Elizabeth Abelson was operating at the time of the crash, MacDonald said. Game wardens say that Abelson lost control of her snowmobile, was ejected and struck trees. Abelson was taken to nearby hospital. Abelson and her unborn child died. The baby was due in March, authorities said. Abelson was wearing a helmet. The crash remains under investigation. NEW SALEM -- Police are continuing to investigate a fiery head-on crash that sent at least two people to the hospital with serious injuries. The crash was reported at 6:34 p.m., Friday, on Route 202 south near mile marker 50, fire officials said. The first firefighters on the scene found two vehicles had collided head-on and both were on fire. Several drivers stopped and helped one man to safety after he escaped from his car, officials said. "The ferocity of the fire as well as exploding fuel tanks created an immediate hazard for multiple patients and responders," fire officials said. The fire was extinguished and multiple people were brought to area hospitals. Fire officials did not say how many people were injured in the crash. The crash was declared a Mass Casualty Incident, which is any emergency where medical services can be overwhelmed, fire officials said. New Salem Fire was assisted by Shutesbury Fire Department. Ambulances responded from the Orange, Athol and Amherst Fire Departments. Massachusetts State Police, Shutesbury Police, Massachusetts Department of Transportation and Dicks Towing also assisted on the scene. The crash is being investigated by Massachusetts State Police. Officials there could not be reached for comment Sunday. This story has been updated to include details about the reason for the lockdown. WESTFIELD -- Baystate Noble Hospital was on lockdown for about 90 minutes Sunday due to an investigation into a domestic incident. The lockdown began at 11 a.m. and was lifted at 12:30 p.m., said Shelly Hazlett, spokeswoman for Baystate Health. The problem occurred in the Emergency Department but the entire hospital was locked down, she said. Massachusetts State Police detectives assigned to the Hampden District Attorneys Office are currently investigating a domestic situation in Chester which was connected to the lockdown at the hospital, said James Leydon, spokesman for District Attorney Anthony Gulluni. This incident led to a precautionary safety measures at Baystate Noble, Leydon said. He did not release any details about the incident or how it was connected to Baystate Noble. The protocol for a lockdown at the facility is no one is allowed in or out of any part of the building until law enforcement can assess the threat of danger, Hazlett said. She referred all other questions to police, who she said were on the scene investigating. This is a breaking story. MassLive will update as more information becomes available. Boston Celtics guard Kyrie Irving suffered a right knee sprain in Saturdays loss to the Los Angeles Clippers, but according to ESPNs Adrian Wojnarowski, the injury is not serious, and Irving is expected to be day-to-day going forward. Kyrie Irvings right knee sprain isnt serious and expected to be day-to-day on a return, league source tells ESPN. Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 10, 2019 The Celtics fell apart in Irvings absence on Saturday, blowing a 28-point first-half lead and falling to the Clippers 123-112. The resulting fallout included a lengthy post-game media session by Marcus Morris, in which he called out the Celtics for not being connected as a unit. Irving has missed time for a variety of ailments this season. Early in the year, he was still recovering from the knee procedures that held him out for the last postseason. He has also been playing through a hip strain, which held him out for a few of Bostons less important games. The Celtics have been significantly better with Irving on the court -- a difference of nearly nine points per 100 possessions. Irving has submitted one of the best seasons of his career, contributing positively on both ends and taking over down the stretch. The Celtics have one of the best net ratings in the league in the closing minutes, largely thanks to Irving. The Celtics take on the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday. Having Irving back in the lineup would be a big boost against Phillys new-look starting lineup, which now includes Tobias Harris. Back in 1936 Al Diemand purchased a 125-acre farm in the rural Franklin County town of Wendell, laying the foundation for a successful chicken - then egg - business. Some of his children now own the business and have yoked other endeavors under the Diemand Farm umbrella. Over the intervening 82 years the Diemands have diversified the family-run business, responding to changes in government regulation and customer needs. Several years ago, the federal Food & Drug Administration enacted rules for egg farms with more than 3,000 laying hens, and, because the Diemand Farm had a flock of 15,000, the decision was made to reduce the numbers rather than make the large investment necessary to meet demands of the regulations. To make up for that lost revenue, the farm - which now has about 200 acres - added a sawmill operation. That's just one way members of the Diemand family have responded to the circumstances of the times through diversification. There's been more, much more done to keep the family farm functioning. Diemand Farm now raises turkeys and beef cattle and sells cord wood and native lumber. The farm has a catering business, offers various Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) initiatives and sells things like barbecued turkey legs and pulled turkey sandwiches at a limited number of festivals. They used to sell hay and maple syrup. Now a mainstay of the farm is its farm store and small commercial kitchen, located next to the farmhouse where members of the Diemand family still live. Patriarch Al Diemand and his wife, Elsie, are deceased. From baked goods to hormone and antibiotic-free meat to soups to prepared meals, the offerings are hearty and delicious. Potpies are priced from $4.75 to $13.50. A dozen eggs costs $3.25, and sandwiches sell for about $5. "We have good food," says Anne M. Diemand Bucci, a co-owner and vice president. She does much of the cooking herself, and she is showing her daughter, Tessa R. White-Diemand - whom she calls "the future of the farm" - all aspects of the farm operation. When she was a child, White-Diemand used to get off the school bus in front of the farm to spend time there with her grandparents. She enjoyed having lots of room to play and roam, but she also helped with farm chores. "It taught me a good work ethic," she says. And, when asked what she learned from her father, Bucci says Al Diemand also taught her a good work ethic: "When you finish a job, look around and see what else needs to be done. If I'm done with my job, help somebody else so we can all get done." Her parents also taught her to take pride in what she does, and knowing her family name is on the farm products, "that's huge to me," she said. The farm sells products not only from its own store but also to other retail stores, restaurants and schools across Western Massachusetts. The Diemand Farm has two full-time and a half dozen part-time employees. As she contemplates the future of the Diemand Farm, Bucci says she's excited because there is a future. "Farming and life in general are not always easy," she says. "But, with (my daughter) coming back (to work at the farm), I see some of the next generation is showing an interest, and that's hopeful to me." And she's open to incubating other ideas for the farm, perhaps, for example, a greenhouse operation or Airbnb cabins. Bucci - one of Al and Elsie's 12 children - recalled a conversation with a business associate of her father who told her Al and Elsie would be proud not only of the direction in which she and her siblings have taken the farm but because of who they have become as people. That gives her reason to crow. For more information, visit the farm's website, thediemandfarm.com. A Longford girl was on an Irish Girl Guides team that scooped first place in the research category of the FIRST LEGO League Leinster finals, which took place recently in Dublin City University (DCU). Emma Dobson (14) of Ardagh Senior Branch (Senior Branch is the Irish Girl Guides branch for 14-30 year olds) spent several months working on the project, which explored how astronauts could grow vegetables in space. Her other team-mates, all members of the Irish Girl Guides, came from all around the country, which made working together challenging. They met five times for full day workshops in DCUs Lego Innovation Studio and, fittingly, chose the name Sparrots as their team name (sparrots = carrots & space)! As well as developing a research project based on identifying a human physical or social problems faced during long-duration space exploration and proposing a solution, the girls also had to design, build and programme a robot to undertake various challenges on a themed playing field during the finals. They named their robot Pablo! The FIRST LEGO League is an international competition involving children and young people from age 11 to 16 from 80 countries. The teams operate under a signature core set of values, which include teamwork, sharing of experience, discovery, the spirit of friendly competition and co-operation. Emma hugely enjoyed taking part in the competition and winning the research category was the icing on the cake. I really enjoyed taking part in the LEGO League, she said. I loved meeting all the new people and making friends with them. I learned a lot about programming robots and, overall, it was a great experience. Im glad people are finally realising that girls can do things just as well as boys and that DCU and Learnit Lego are supporting girls all around Ireland. Irish Girl Guides welcomes new members from age 5-30 and new volunteer leaders from age 18+. No previous Guiding experience is necessary. To find out more, see www.irishgirlguides.ie or tel: 01 6683898. Former cabinet Minister, Brendan Smith TD, has commenced his bid to secure the Fianna Fail nomination to be its European Parliament candidate in the four seat Midlands North West constituency. Cavan/Monaghan TD Brendan Smith is meeting units of the Fianna Fail organisation bringing his message of how the Midlands North West region needs to send a strong, experienced and knowledgeable representative to the European Parliament: one who is focused on getting the regions many concerns heard and addressed, rather than petty, pointless, play-acting." Also read: Sinn Fein MEP Matt Carthy vows to keep fighting for Ireland in the European Parliament Speaking at recent Fianna Fail meetings, Deputy Smith has said that we need to focus on both getting through Brexit and planning for our post-Brexit Future, saying: Brexit is going to hit the North-West and Border region hardest of all. We need to work now on setting a new agenda for this regions future place in Europe. For the first time we will be the outer border of the EU. As an MEP I will reach out to former colleagues from my time on the Council of Ministers and as Foreign Committee Chair to build new alliances across the European Parliament, especially with MEPs from other smaller member states. I will deploy those alliances across party and across country to push the priorities for our rural communities and our agri-food sector in the many parliamentary committees, where so much of the real work is done. Also read: Former Rose of Tralee winner Maria Walsh seeks Fine Gael nomination to contest European election Part of the reason I decided to seek the nomination was the many contacts I had from people from the other side of the Border. They told me about their deep concerns at having no European Union representation after Brexit and impressed upon me how critically important it is for them to have MEPs from this side of the border who have a deep interest in and full understanding of Northern Ireland. Ireland has too often over the past decade been a bystander in Europe and this has cost rural Ireland dearly. We need to show our partners that Ireland is a full participant in the task of securing the Unions future, but we are a participant and partner with strategic and regional interests that we will firmly defend. Sinn Fein MEP, Matt Carthy, has said that he wants to, alongside his party colleagues, keep fighting for Ireland in the European Parliament. He was speaking as he accepted the Sinn Fein nomination to contest the May 24 European Parliament election in the Midlands North West constituency. Carthy was proposed at the convention, held in the Hotel Kilmore, Cavan, by Cavan Monaghan TD Caoimhghin O Caolain and seconded by Donegal Deputy Pearse Doherty. Outlining the challenges facing MEPs in the next European Parliament, Carthy cited the proposals for the new EU budget: The EU is currently negotiating a new multi-annual budget. Their proposal is for an increased budget, in which the Irish people contribute more, but which sees reductions for the Common Agriculture Policy and Cohesion funding while pumping billions into the creation of an EU military framework that has almost no support from the people of this country. Every vote cast for Sinn Fein on May 24 will be a vote against that type of EU budget." He said that Brexit will continue to dominate EU politics and there was a need to ensure that an all-Ireland party continued to insert Irish concerns into Brexit negotiations: Our efforts have had an undeniable impact on Brexit negotiations. Sinn Fein was the first party to argue for Special Status for the North. Other parties accused us, at that stage, of being naive now that is essentially the policy of the Irish government and the EU. It was the work of Sinn Fein MEPs that ensured that Irish issues, and in particular the issues arising from the partition of our country, were understood by our European counterparts and, in turn, became central to the Brexit negotiations. With the potential loss of northern representation in the European Parliament it is essential that we return MEPs from an all-Ireland party that has this proven track record of inserting the all-Ireland agenda into Brexit talks. How ironic that those parties who have lectured Sinn Fein on Stormount & Westminster balked at the chance to provide representation for Irish citizens from the north in the place they actually want to be represented the European Parliament. This failure to allocate Irish EU seats to the north is evidence enough as to why we need Sinn Fein MEPs. As we move closer to a United Ireland, and in recognition that the EU can play an important role in that process, we need unapologetic, unequivocal and committed United Irelanders in the chambers of Brussels and Strasbourg. Only Sinn Fein MEPs are up for that job." Also read: Labour select Dominic Hannigan to contest Midlands North West constituency in Mays European Parliament election Also read: Green Party launches Achill islander Saoirse McHugh as Midlands North West European election candidate The beginning of the school year when you got to show off your new duds, new cars, new looks! Sports! Playing, cheering, watching high school athletics. The arts: Dramatic arts, musical groups and shows, graphic arts groups, debate, etc. The prom! No dancing the night away or punch bowl antics. The daily interactions. Just being with the group, hanging with friends and classmates. Access to college recruiters and advisors its harder to line up higher education. Walking onstage to get a diploma while all the family is watching with everyone elses family. Vote View Results The Niagara Falls Fire Department and Hazmat crews were on the scene at Packard Court Wednesday afternoon as part of an internal investigation of an apartment where law enforcement officers executed a search warrant earlier this month. Officials said some of the agents and detectives involved in the original raid later developed what officials described as flu-like symptoms. Money alone will not slow the high turnover among correctional officers in the Texas prison system. While a higher starting wage for these high-stress and dangerous jobs is certainly in order, changes to the work culture within the prison walls, incentives for longevity on the job and extension of the career ladder might bear better results. Texas, like many other states across the country, has for decades been plagued with a shortage of prison staff. The current attrition rate among the states 26,000 guards is 29 percent. Increasing the starting salary of $36,000 would help, but keeping corrections officers in their jobs for any length of time will take different kinds of investment in personnel. Recruitment of prison guards is hard, but retention is even more difficult. Its the nature of the job. After a short stint on the job, many choose not to stick around, especially when the economy is doing well and the unemployment rate is low. Who can blame them? The manpower shortages are forcing many corrections officers to work overtime. The added income from overtime work can be seen as a perk, but it quickly loses its appeal when employees are not allowed to decline it. State policies allow wardens to keep correction officers on the job for up to 10 straight days and work 16-hour shifts. In the long term, those expectations are unsustainable. They create a vicious cycle that no amount of aggressive recruitment can keep up with as new hires quickly burn out. It would be different if corrections officers could see a stint on the front lines as a steppingstone in their career. But a corrections officers advancement and salary growth is severely limited under the current system. They get no mentoring, there is not much of a career ladder, and salary is capped at $43,000 after seven years. It is no surprise that a corrections officer would seek employment elsewhere. Providing management training that would allow corrections employees to move up within the agency or give them an edge when applying for other state jobs should be considered. Many of these state prison jobs are in rural communities. In the 1990s, state officials authorized the construction of 75 new prisons, with a total of 110,000 beds, to meet a growing need for detention facilities. Many of the construction contracts were awarded in rural areas in a failed attempt to spur economic development. As a result, many corrections jobs are in remote communities that lack adequate housing and in facilities lacking air conditioning. There is no incentive to go there to work, but relocating those prison beds would be cost-prohibitive. Communities seeking to attract young professionals often offer education-cost reimbursement as incentives. The state should do the same in reverse, allowing education benefits for those who commit to work for a specific amount of time. The state is already offering recruitment bonuses of $4,000 to $5,000, but what is going to keep guards on the job after that is spent and the long workdays set in? High turnover among employees is a highly inefficient way to operate. It comes with a hefty price tag, and not all the cost can be measured in dollars and cents. Its time to rethink retention strategies in state corrections. As an independent pharmacist, I see every day the burden that rising prescription drug costs are putting on patients. The people I serve express growing concern about the cost of the medicines they need today, and theyre even more alarmed at how much those medications will cost in the future. It is also my vantage point as a pharmacist that allows me to see why drug costs are rising: A handful of out-of-state companies known as pharmacy benefit managers, acting as middlemen between insurers and drug manufacturers, are driving up costs by manipulating the prescription drug market a market they largely control. Pharmacy benefit managers, also known as PBMs, determine which drugs will be covered by a health plan as part of a formulary. Manufacturers who want their drugs covered by those plans pay so-called rebates to the PBMs. To offer the types of rebates that will keep their drugs in the formularies, manufacturers keep increasing the drug prices. The problem is that the PBMs largely pocket the rebates instead of passing them along to those patients who are facing higher and higher costs. PBMs also reimburse pharmacies for dispensing a medication. But the amount of money they charge to the plan sponsor is often much higher than the reimbursement they provide to the pharmacist for the drug. This is called spread pricing, because the spread is the difference between the amount charged to the plan and the amount reimbursed to the pharmacist. Plus, most large PBMs own their own mail-order pharmacies, and they financially penalize patients who choose to use their local pharmacist instead of the PBM-owned mail-order pharmacy. The tactics employed by PBMs are anti-competitive. A few PBMs control almost the entire prescription drug market, which means pharmacists have no choice but to accept the ridiculous contracts PBMs offer. Individually owned pharmacies have zero ability to negotiate with these giant companies. PBMs use their monopolistic position to drive prescription drug costs higher, even as they pay pharmacists less and less. In this suppressed market, the focus is on PBM profits instead of cost-saving innovations. Those of us who run community pharmacies have reached a breaking point: We are tired of PBMs driving up costs for our patients and reimbursing us at such low levels that its difficult for us to compete with chain drugstores. Were also frustrated by the secrecy that surrounds rebates and other PBM business practices. In fact, all Texas taxpayers are hurt by PBMs predatory practices. A study commissioned by the Legislature in 2017 found the state could save up to $90 million per year in Medicaid and in the Childrens Health Insurance Program by ceasing to use PBMs. These are scarce taxpayer dollars that could be invested in our schools or universities or they could be returned to taxpayers. Other states have stepped up: West Virginia saved $30 million per year by cutting PBMs out of the states Medicaid program. Ohio audited one of the largest PBMs, OptumRx, and found it kept $224 million through spread pricing. The Trump administration has also sounded the alarm about the ways PBMs and their rebates are driving up the costs of prescription drugs. Higher prices allow drug companies to make bigger rebate payments, which go to pharmacy benefit managers, insurance companies and employers, rather than to patients, Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar recently wrote. With the new legislative session underway, community pharmacists hope Texas joins those states that have acted to protect patients and small businesses. For starters, we hope legislators will closely consider the study they ordered and take the PBMs out of the Medicaid program. We also hope the entire Legislature will support efforts by Rep. Tom Oliverson, R-Cypress, and other like-minded lawmakers who are pushing for PBM reforms that will increase oversight and accountability while giving pharmacists the opportunity to contest unnecessarily low reimbursements. We know Texas legislators say all the right things when it comes to supporting the small businesses in their communities. Now they can put those words into action. Across the country, PBMs are on the run, and now its time for Texas to join the chase. Our patients the people who often need to take several expensive medicines a day face enough challenges. They dont need out-of-state drug middlemen adding to their problems. Jeff Carson is president of Oakdell Pharmacy in San Antonio and sits on the board of directors of the Alliance of Independent Pharmacists of Texas and the National Community Pharmacists Association. You are here: China Clean energy powers the economy of northwest China's Qinghai Province as China seeks to reduce coal consumption to improve its energy mix. By the end of 2018, the total installed power generating capacity in Qinghai reached nearly 28 million kilowatts, with clean energy contributing to 86 percent, according to the State Grid Qinghai Electric Power Company. The installed solar power generating capacity reached 9.6 million kilowatts and that of wind power hit 2.7 million kilowatts. The hydropower capacity reached 11.9 million kilowatts, the company said. Qinghai started to invest heavily in solar energy in 2009. And in the past few years, it started to build two 10 million kilowatts renewable power generating bases. Qinghai, rich in solar and wind power, has 100,000 square kilometers of desertified land suitable for the construction of solar and wind farms. Local authorities have been encouraging more local consumption of the clean energy-generated electricity and pushing to transmit more to other regions. Last year, the grid transmitted 10 billion kwh of such electricity to other regions. So far this year, the firm has signed deals with regions like Shanghai, Chongqing, Henan and Jiangsu to send them 7 billion kwh of electricity. TOKYO - The United States and South Korea signed a "preliminary" deal to share the cost of the U.S. troop presence in the country Sunday, removing an irritant between the allies ahead of President Donald Trump's upcoming summit meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. But the deal was a stopgap agreement, only covering one year, instead of the usual five-year-term, after long-drawn-out negotiations caused by Trump's determination to get Seoul to pay substantially more. The U.S. had initially demanded a doubling of the South Korean contribution, but in the end had to settle for a rise of 8.2 percent for the first year, equivalent to the rise in Seoul's total defense budget this year. South Korea has agreed to pay 1.0389 trillion won, or around $920 million, up from the 960 billion won a year it paid from 2014 to 2018. The United States and South Korea expressed satisfaction with the deal, known as the Special Measures Agreement or SMA. "The United States government realizes that Korea does a lot for our alliance and for peace and stability in this region and the SMA is only a small part of that," said Timothy Betts, the U.S. deputy assistant secretary of state for plans, programs and operations, who led the negotiations. "But it's an important part and we are pleased that our consultations resulted in an agreement that I think will strengthen transparency and strengthen and deepen our cooperation in the alliance." The signing was labeled "preliminary" since the deal still needs to be ratified by South Korea's legislature, but Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha expressed optimism that it would be passed. "I think the response so far has been quite positive," she told Betts. "Of course there are some points of criticism as well and we will have to deal with them, but I think at this point we were able to close the gap on the total amount." The two sides held 10 rounds of negotiations last year, failing to reach agreement before the previous deal expired at the end of 2018. This year they finally settled on a one-year deal. They agreed to set up a working group to handle cost-sharing negotiations in the future, adding that if no new agreement is reached by the end of this year, "to prevent the absence of an agreement, the two sides can extend the previous agreement upon mutual consent." Opposition conservative lawmaker Won Yoo-chul said the two sides had reached a "wise" and reasonable compromise. "It is fortunate that the deal was reached before the upcoming Trump-Kim summit in Vietnam, so that the troops card is off the table," he said. "Defense cost sharing is an issue between us two allies, not a bargaining chip with North Korea." But Won, a member of the parliamentary foreign affairs committee, warned that the short-term nature of the deal could cause friction. "With renegotiation every year, the two sides will go through a standoff each time, which will look bad for the alliance," he said. "The alliance between two countries should not be approached from an economic perspective alone." Ruling party lawmaker Song Young-gil said the two sides had little choice but to reach a deal before the Trump-Kim summit, but said he expected the United States to push harder in the next round of negotiations, so that the U.S. leader could declare a "win" ahead of elections in 2020. "The way Washington views the alliance has changed since Trump took office," he said. "With Trump's isolationist pursuits, the United States is not taking the role of global policeman anymore." The deal has also been closely watched in Japan which is next in line in Trump's campaign against what he sees as "free-riders" taking advantage of U.S. defense spending. Although senior members of his administration have repeatedly tried to convince Trump that the United States gains enormous national security benefits by stationing troops in Japan and South Korea, the U.S. president is determined to get more from both countries, especially because both run trade surpluses with the United States. South Korea hosts about 28,500 U.S. troops on more than 20 sites, while Japan hosts around 54,000, around half on the island of Okinawa. Michael Bosack, a special adviser at the Yokosuka Council on Asia-Pacific Studies in Japan, said the South Korea deal would reassure U.S. allies that a deal is possible with the Trump administration, but warned that U.S. brinkmanship tactics have already fueled doubts about its commitment to its allies. "While in the short-term, this may mean allies pay more for things like cost-sharing measures, in the long-term it erodes trust in U.S. security guarantees, which bears far more significant costs," he said. If the United States is seen as "extortionist" in the negotiations, it could undermine public support for the alliance in South Korea, he said. Meanwhile Japan is due to begin negotiations over defense cost-sharing at the end of this year or early next year. Tokyo will argue it is anything but a "free-rider," especially because it is making significant purchases of F-35s and the Aegis Ashore missile defense system from the United States. But Bosack said those purchases won't show up directly in the troop cost-sharing balance sheet. "If Japanese officials are counting on those things alone to carry them through cost-sharing negotiations, they are in for a rude awakening," he said. Meanwhile the United States and North Korea plan to hold a new round of talks in another Asian nation next week, as they prepare for the Trump-Kim summit, South Korea's presidential office announced Sunday. --- Min Joo Kim reported from Seoul. Because this community has struggled to meet its challenges this decade, Priority Midland was born. Priority Midland is an initiative created to foster collaboration among elected officials, community leaders and other stakeholders to drive solutions for the growing community. And while Midlands past includes community initiatives, such as the Vision series that focused on what the community wanted, Priority Midland is about what this community needs, especially with an economy poised to continue at a break-neck speed. As Conchos Tim Leach told those gathered for the State of Oil & Gas event in January, the Permian Basin will need 45,000 high-paying technical jobs on top of the 50,000 jobs that have been created since about 2000. For a community already in need of more houses, better roads, a replenished roster of public safety and health care professionals and more than its fair share of public education shortcomings, the news could result in more anxiety. Also, Priority Midland is different in that community leaders have decided professionals are needed to help foster collaboration and produce results. $4 million in seed money has been dedicated, and consultants have been selected: Austin-based TIP Strategies, economist Ray Perryman and The McChrystal Group. ( The Reporter-Telegram reached out to various groups and taxing entities about their expectations for Priority Midland. Click through the slideshow above to see the responses that were received.) Midland is in crisis mode, Midland Mayor Jerry Morales said. Each of us the taxing entities, education, health care -- have challenges in front of us today that need to be addressed. (The McChrystal Group) has helped us prioritize those challenges and identify what is important. We will move on some of those challenges immediately, such as bond elections, and they will help us organize those campaigns from a larger scale and ensure that if we have three campaigns going on, they will help us manage all three at one time. Morales is the defacto leader of the fledgling Priority Midland group that is planning a launch event on Monday. Retired Gen. Stanley McChrystal, former commander of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, will headline the event scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. at the Wagner Noel Performing Arts Center. The event is free, but tickets are required. The Midland Development Corp. already has contracts in place with Perryman, TIP Strategies and The McChrystal Group. The contract with Perryman is for up to $60,000, for TIP Strategies it is for up to $750,000 and for The McChrystal Group the contract is for up to $2 million. Perryman is the president and CEO of The Perryman Group, an economic research and analysis firm based in Waco. Perryman told those on hand at his annual economic outlook luncheon Tuesday at Odessa Country Club that the environment is such that the cyclical boom-and-bust nature of the industry will be less extreme in the future. His forecast also shows Midland and Odessa will enjoy economic expansion well above that of Texas and the nation. The Midland metropolitan statistical area will see a 2.01 percent growth in population through 2023 for an addition of about 18,324 residents, he said. And the MSA is forecast to experience a 5.02 percent annual rise in real gross product, for a total gain of more than $18.8 billion. Kick-off event When: 6 p.m. Monday Where; Wagner Noel Performing Arts Center. Info: The free event will feature economist Ray Perryman and retired four-star Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal, who wrote the book "Team of Teams." See More Collapse TIP Strategies is no stranger to the Midland area. It has worked with local entities on projects such as the Midland Assessment and Action Plan. Morales said its analysis with Priority Midland will be more extensive and have a broader focus. TIP Strategies also will engage with Priority Midland committees. The McChrystal Group is expected to use its Team of Teams approach to help Priority Midland improve organizational performance. Morales told the Reporter-Telegram that the McChrystal Group has worked more with corporations in the past and that it remains to be seen what changes are necessary in working with taxing entities and community leaders. City officials previously stated their support for the initial seed money, saying that Priority Midland will result in greater returns down the line. Officials previously have stated that Priority Midlands strategic objectives are to align community priorities, to discover and fund partnership-based solutions and to develop a strategic investment plan. Expected outcomes, according to Priority Midland, include closer collaboration and deeper trust among local governments, entities and leadership; strong partnerships between the public and private sector; availability of greater resources to address the communitys investment needs; and increased public confidence that limited public resources are being efficiently allocated and fully leveraged. Currently, the community is lacking on all fronts. Since the mid-2000s, periods of economic boom have brought thousands of people to Midland and forced the community to play catch-up with its schools, roads, housing and health care. Periods of downturns inevitably transitioned to stronger periods of economic prosperity, bringing in record totals of tax revenue but again putting never-before-felt stress on the four essentials to a Midlanders quality of place. Also impacting the community negatively has been a school finance system in Texas that this decade has taken tens of millions of dollars a year from MISD coffers and sent that money to Austin to be distributed to areas of the state deemed property poor. Legislators dont seem to have a solution to reverse what is being taken from the Midland community. And while Midlanders have passed three bond issues of $100 million more in the last 10 years, there seems to be constant reminders of what is not in place. Midland ISD officials have said its district is under-funded, under-staffed and in need of greater facilities to handle the expected arrival of thousands of additional students in the next decade. The city of Midland has stated it needs resources that can help bring more housing to Midland. Water and roads appear to top the list of needs for a community that is outgrowing the existing infrastructure once suitable for population half its current size. Midland Memorial Hospital has stated the cost of handling the indigent is putting an increased burden on its operations. It seeks more revenue to recruit physicians who dont see Midland as a first choice for practicing medicine. Also, hospital district leaders seek facilities improvements that could require the help of the electorate. Morales said initial Priority Midland talks have helped entities see the practicality of waiting until there is a unified message that can be taken to the community. He expects that eventually a plan will be formulated to address education, infrastructure and health care needs and there could be bond referendums or sales tax increase requests as soon as November. Prior to November, we will come together and determine what is priority, Morales said. This will be fast-track movement. We have a lot to prove. Morales said Priority Midland is being set up as a long-term initiative. He said at some point there will be permanent staffers to manage the operations as Midland will not stop growing for the next 10 years. While the MDC put up the initial seed money, Morales said Priority Midland officials will be engaging with foundations, the Permian Strategic Partnership and other entities to secure more resources. Morales said more details will be provided on how Midlanders can participate. But first comes the kick-off event with McChrystal providing inspiration for how a community can unite and overcome its seemingly insurmountable problems. We need the support of the public -- not only to listen but participate. We need to hear from the public and get the message, Morales said. We want to show the world we know what we are doing. Priority Midlands steering committee. A total of 37 members on China's 35th Antarctic research mission on Friday night arrived at the Zhongshan Station after a six-day 520-km journey amid storms. They started off from the Taishan Station on Feb. 3, which, at an altitude of 2,621 meters, is located between the Zhongshan and the Kunlun stations. The stations are the latest three out of the four scientific research bases on the Antarctic ice sheet built by China since 1964. The Chinese researchers, 21 of them from the Taishan team and 16 from the Kunlun team, came to Zhongshan after successfully completing their tasks. The two teams together departed on Dec. 18 from near Zhongshan for their missions. The Taishan team completed the construction project of the supporting facilities at Taishan in 38 days, a week ahead of schedule. Taishan was put into operation in February 2014 after its main building on the ground was completed. The Kunlun team conducted research works on astronomy, ice berg and surveying and mapping, among other things. For instance, they on Feb. 7 set up a new automatic meteorological station, some 100 km away from Zhongshan. The team members arrived at Taishan on Jan. 31 to join the researchers there. The members of the two teams are scheduled to board on China's icebreaker Xuelong on Feb. 15, leaving Antarctica for home. They are expected to arrive in Shanghai on March 10. CHAMPAIGN (AP) It might not occur to many men and women who sign up to be firefighters that they could have to rescue a horse, a pig or a cow in addition to dousing flames. But occasionally, first responders have to round up livestock from semi wrecks on interstates or lead animals from burning barns. And the Illinois Fire Service Institute in Champaign, based at the University of Illinois, wants them to have the skills to succeed and to know who to contact for help in emergencies involving livestock. llinois Fire Service Institute offered its first-ever hands-on training in large-animal rescue for 17 firefighters from around the state who are in Champaign this weekend for the institutes winter fire school. Its one of those low-frequency, high-risk events. Like grain bin rescues, they dont happen often, but they are a big deal, said Dave Newcomb, an instructor in the llinois Fire Service Institutes agriculture program for about 20 years. He worked full time as an Urbana firefighter for 30 years before retiring in 2011. Joining Newcomb in teaching the inaugural course were fellow llinois Fire Service Institute instructors Deke Carls of Hillsdale and Bill Fulton of Salem, both of whom are also longtime volunteer firefighters in their hometowns. Watching proudly from the stands of the toasty UI Stock Pavilion on a cold, grey, snowy January day was llinois Fire Service Institute Director Royal Mortenson, who said he wanted to be sure there was enough demand for such training before he invested the money. The interest, he learned, came from all over the state and was pretty consistent among rural and urban, full-time and volunteer fire departments. One of 16 classes being taught over the weekend to 410 firefighters from about 50 departments, the large-animal rescue class was indeed kind of a big deal because its been in the making about seven years. The institute has offered online and classroom awareness sessions for several years but Saturdays was the first operations class, the next level of training. Carls, who graduated from the UI College of Veterinary Medicine and has been a veterinarian for 10 years, led the students in the basics of how to approach and halter the sheep, horses and cows. You gotta watch that animal. Hes going to tell you what hes thinking, Carls said. As the class got under way, only two of the firefighter students said they had zero experience with large animals. Carls and Fulton began by letting five sheep, on loan from the vet school, out of a pen. About five firefighters at a time practiced getting them back in by forming a human chain to gently corral the animals. They had earlier seen a video that may have made the assignment appear simple. Nice, calm, methodical movement, Carls counseled in a practiced, soothing voice. You want to keep them calm. Fulton instructed the firefighters how to turn or advance their bodies to keep pressure on the animals, to get them to go where the trainees wanted. Sometimes it worked great. Other times, not so great. Hence, the need for training. Fulton, a 23-year volunteer firefighter in Salem, owns his own small farm where he raises sheep and cattle. Because there are livestock marketing facilities in his area, he knows first responders need to be trained in the rescue of animals involved in accidents. Im learning a lot, said Allen Cameron, a captain in Urbanas Carroll Fire Department. I grew up on the north side of Chicago. All I really saw was trail horses in the suburbs. They are used to humans and are really forgiving. Maureen Hethmon of Anchor just joined her hometown fire department in McLean County a few months ago. She grew up with a horse and a pony so she wasnt intimidated by putting a halter on a horse. But she said barn fires, trailer accidents, hurricanes or floods can happen anywhere, and she wants to be prepared to help animals as well as humans. Ray Palczynski, another llinois Fire Service Institute instructor from the Quad Cities area, said he hatched the idea for the large-animal rescue class about seven years ago after several fire departments in northern Illinois and the collar counties around Chicago told him they were worried about the millions of dollars worth of horses headed for racetracks that criss-crossed their jurisdictions. Im glad were finally here, he said of the training, which, as a firefighter, he has actually used. So has Newcomb. But only once. In September 2017, Newcomb was one of dozens of area firefighters who rescued a horse that got sucked into a rain-swollen pond south of Savoy. We had a horse that got out of her corral after a micro burst came through, and she ran down a path and into an old retention pond full of silt. It was just like quicksand. When all was said and done, we had to take down two sections of corral fence, cut down 10 trees and dig down a berm nine feet. Seven hours later, we walked her out of the hole, Newcomb said of the exhaustive efforts that included the use of trench equipment, a high-lift forklift and a backhoe. I now have a better understanding of how to wrestle a 1,200-pound greased pig, he joked. That includes knowing the best equipment you need for the job and how to borrow it fast. Saturday, Newcomb was among those listening and learning from Carls. From previous classes he has taken, Newcomb said hes learned a lot about how to recognize animal behavior. The animals will display if they are agitated or calm. The students actions and behaviors can influence that, he said. Hes learned that a stall is a safe haven for a horse, and the animal is in no hurry to leave it. It doesnt matter that its burning down around them, he said of the need to cover their eyes to remove them from burning buildings. Another tidbit hes memorized: Knowing that a horse can run 54 feet a second tells you never to wrap your hand in the rope because you wont keep up. Guess who Im betting on? The training was to continue today with a mannequin horse on loan from the UI vet school. Newcomb said the students would get practice using equipment to properly lift and drag the horse while protecting it and themselves. In a real-life rescue, the animal being helped would be sedated. That was not part of this weekends training, he said. Poultney, Vt. A group of alumni and other supporters have launched a campaign to try and save Green Mountain College from closing. For help, theyve turned to another organization with a similar experience board members of Sweet Briar College. Supporters of that Virginia womens college in 2015 reversed a decision to close that school, which remains open. The Green Mountain College supporters have also launched web pages on a variety of social media such as Facebook and Go Fund Me as well as other spots to draw attention to the schools fate. Enrollments are down however we do believe the school is viable, said Kheya Ganguly who lives nearby and has two children who are graduates of the school. This would be an economic blow to the region, she said. One thing they are looking at: how to operate with fewer students. We know we are going to be smaller, said Ganguly. The school now has about 470 students, she said. But big and possibly insurmountable challenges remain, including what has been a steadily declining enrollment amid a persistent deficit, which GMC President Robert Allen in January cited as the reason for the closure at the end of the current semester. This years deficit is projected to be between $3 million and $4 million. There is also a $600,000 payment due this spring to the U.S. Department of Agriculture which in 2017 gave the school a 35-year $19.5 million loan. School officials say they have money put aside for the payment. But another one is due next year as well. If that were to be missed, the USDA could conceivably take possession of the campus, which is near the N.Y. -Vermont border about 13 miles from Whitehall. Enrollment has dropped almost in half over the last six years. Allen has said hes tried to partner with another unnamed school but the plan appeared unworkable. Moreover, GMC has already struck agreements in which students could transfer to other nearby colleges. More for you News Green Mountain College will close amid financial pressures Ganguly and others began talking about a campaign within days of the closure announcement. Some supporters are hoping that GMCs reputation as a leader in ecological and sustainability programs could draw enough support to keep it going. Alumni who have also been voicing their admiration for the school. I was amazed about how passionate these alumni are. They all say the same thing, remarked Larry Sherman, a Portland, Oregon resident whose daughter is a sophomore at the school. He said he was impressed during a recent visit to the campus. My experience there was amazing, he said. We're reaching out to alumni and friends of the college through phone calls, emails, and social media and are getting alumni across generations, many of whom have not heard from the college in years, involved, another alumna, Kirstin Kelley said in an email. Still, the financial challenges are real and it may be difficult to compare GMC, with an approximately $2.5 million endowment, with Sweet Briar, where the endowment is above $70 million. Allen has they have already started laying off staff. And the school has set up arrangements for students to transfer to Prescott College in Prescott, Arizona where they could complete their degrees. The nearby Castleton University, a Vermont state school, as well as Sterling College in Northern, Vt., would also accept students as will Paul Smiths College in the Adirondacks. School trustees have said they cant in good conscience continue to operate and collect future tuition payments knowing that they cant pay their bills. The group trying to save the school has raised about $200,000 but keeping the doors open would require quadrupling all the donations that have come in during the last two years. Enrollment experts have previously noted that schools in New England have struggled with a declining regional population, which adds to enrollment challenges. Hampshire College, in Amherst, Mass. on Friday announced it wouldnt accept an incoming class this fall other than the 77 students already admitted. They are looking for a partner to join forces with. And earlier in 2018, Mount Ida College in Newtown, Mass., closed after commencement, after it, too failed to successfully pursue a merger. rkarlin@timesunion.com 518 454 5758 @RickKarlinTU Katy ISD Education Foundation / Katy ISD Education Foundation The Katy ISD Education Foundation has announced the return of its annual GROOVE spring fundraiser on Friday, March 29, from 6:30 to 11:30 p.m. at the Royal Sonesta Houston. This years 80s-themed event features the Spazmatics, a high-energy, ultimate-nerdy, new-wave 80s band. Other features include a return of last years popular Kendra Scott pull and casino games. Webb County Commissioner Jesse Gonzalez hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony Thursday for the Mirando City water storage tank project. The 60,000-gallon elevated water storage tank replaces the standpipe design, which did not meet Texas Commission on Environmental Quality regulations, Webb County said. Gonzalez previously said that once this project was complete, the water storage tank will not only be in compliance with TCEQ regulations, but it will also be able to meet current capacity with a 20 percent surplus. "We are currently servicing 280 households in Mirando City. Once the new water storage tank is finished, we will be able to service up to 370 households," Gonzalez had said. The project engineer, Wayne Nance, added that with the new elevated tank design, the water will be of much better quality due to better flow, thus avoiding aging of the water. James Flores, Webb County economic development director, said, "It is amazing for me to complete a project and see the finished product that essentially took about three years of work." From the development of the application to the construction phases, Webb County and the Mirando City Water Supply Corp. were able to allot more than $500,000 in funding for the project. Another $500,000 was received through the Texas Department of Agriculture. The purpose of the lobbied grant application was to supplement the existing system with a 60,000-gallon elevated storage tank for the Mirando City Water Supply Corp. Last February, I experienced the most memorable Spring Festival of all my years in China, celebrating it in rural Henan. I had heard the Spring Festival in the countryside is more authentic. I could imagine there would be more wine drinking, more fireworks, more traditions. However, I had no clear idea what was going to happen until I went there. One of my Chinese friends had invited me to spend the holiday with his family in his hometown of Baichi, a village of 5,000 people living in courtyard-style homes under the jurisdiction of Puyang city. It's about 500 kilometers south of Beijing, a six-hour bus ride. There, I was picked up by my friend, and we drove south for almost another hour into Nanle county to reach Yuancun town. We drove through a broad expanse of fields, past roadside restaurants, through the main street where single-story shops sold hardware and basic necessities, and, finally, under a gate that read "Baichi cun" (the characters are those for hundred" and a Chinese unit of measurement.) What became quickly apparent was that the food was fresher there, and the people's hearts warmer. Most people in Baichi raise a few chickens, pigs, or other livestock. Every day, there are fresh eggs and locally grown produce with the meals. Americans like to talk about "farm-to-table" cuisine, when they are referring to food coming from farms situated far from their cities. In Baichi, much of the food is produced in the same household where it's eaten. Each night, we would eat dinner at my friend's home before heading over to a neighbor's home to drink beer. At each house, they would bring out plates of sausages, lotus roots, and duck. The many dishes weren't just snacks; they were a full-course second dinner. Rural hospitality (particularly during festivals) insists that you will have food to eat and lots of it when visiting someone's home. The big finale was the Spring Festival Eve feast in the afternoon. Tables were set up in two rooms and loaded with food. Family members came from near and far, and village friends dropped in from just down the street. Everyone who came, it seemed, brought at least one bottle of Chinese liquor. The process of drinking seemed to follow approximately this routine: every cup was filled at the beginning of the meal. With loud words of toasting, we drank it down to wish each other a happy new year. If your cup was empty, someone would come along to fill it again; if it was full, you were to take a shot. Ganbei (cheers)! Youngsters were playing outside with gunpowder-filled toys. A toddler was lighting a kind of mini firecracker and then tossing it in front of him. It would explode in a small puff of white smoke about five seconds later. Fun for the big boys would come that evening when half the village launched real fireworks into the air from their courtyards at midnight. On one of the days after the new year, we went into the town to visit a temple fair. The temple was honoring Cangjie, a local mythical figure credited with creating Chinese characters while he served as an official to the Yellow Emperor (ca. 2700 BCE). Outside the temple, carnival-related games, bumper cars, billiards tables, and more were provided for play. The next day, the fun was over. We took a train from Anyang to reach Nanjing. Though we bought the tickets in advance, we still weren't able to grab tickets with seats. Everyone was heading back from their ancestral hometowns where they had spent the Spring Festival to the big cities where they worked, studied and lived. So, we had to settle for wu zuo, or "no seat," tickets for the 10-hour journey. We weren't the only ones. The train was incredibly crowded with wu zuo ticket holders when we got on. The departures board at the ticket office showed a big line of wu characters indicating every train was sold out. There were about a dozen people standing in the passageway connecting two cars. There was almost no way to move. At Zhengzhou, I was able to squeeze my way into the carriage and sit in the aisle. Northern hospitality was on display, however, as someone was nice enough to offer me a portable stool to sit on. Spring Festival in the countryside was more flavorful and spirited than in the big city. The traditions and community feel of the village are a positive force in a world that struggles to keep up with incessant change. When I arrived in Nanjing at 3:30 am, exhausted but energized to get off the train, I was happy to have made the trip. The author is a columnist with China.org.cn. For more information please visit: http://www.china.org.cn/opinion/MitchellBlatt.htm Norman C. Massry, a Gulf War veteran and Colonie Town justice, will lead a charge of sorts to help veterans smooth their transition for life after the military. Massry will be the keynote speaker during the second annual free "On the Home Front: Helping Veterans Prepare for Civilian Life" forum from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 28 at the Hearst Media Center at 645 Albany Shaker Road, Albany. Jennifer Audette, chief of social work at the Stratton Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Albany, Jevon Schmitz, a College of Saint Rose student and former Army airborne infantryman, and Massry will be panelists at the event presented by the Veteran Center at the College of Saint Rose, Albany. Gary Hahn, Times Union senior editor and Upstate magazine editor, will be emcee. Massry and the panelists will offer ways former military personnel can adjust to civilian life. Families of veterans and people who care about veterans' issues are encouraged to attend. Pre-registration is required. You can sign up here: https://timesunionvets.eventbrite.com. Light refreshments will be served. Massry is a U.S. Military Academy at West Point graduate and decorated veteran of the Gulf War. He directed the operations of an Apache helicopter unit against the Iraqi Army. He served in Second Infantry Division as aeroscout pilot with the 4th Squadron, 7th Cavalry along the demilitarized zone in South Korea. Afterward he served as an air battle captain with the 1st Attack Helicopter Battalion, 1st Infantry Division in the Persian Gulf War. After the war he served in the Army Reserve for seven years and rose to captain. Massry has earned a Bronze Star Medal, an Air Medal and a Kuwait Liberation Medal. He earned his law degree from the University of New Hampshire School of Law and has practiced law in the Capital Region for 22 years. Today, he is serving in his third term as a town justice. He also serves on the Veteran Advisory Council at The College of Saint Rose. Audette's duties at Stratton include supervision and clinical oversight for social work service, which includes a staff of 70. During her tenure at Veterans Health Administration she has assumed many roles to include acting Fisher House Manager and acting women's health program manager. She is also the VA National Social Work Leadership Development Committee chairwoman. Audette also is a part-time instructor at the University at Albany's School of Social Welfare. She earned her master's degree in social work at Albany State in 1999. Audette is a military spouse and previously worked for the Army at Fort Huachua providing marriage and family therapy. She received the Department of the Army Commanders Award for Public Service in 2003 for her volunteer work with Echo Troop, 1st Cavalry 172nd Infantry Brigade's Family Readiness Group. Her professional and personal experiences combined provide her with a perspective in regards to identifying the needs of veterans, service members and their families. Schmitz, 26, is a first-year student in the Huether School of Business at The College of Saint Rose. He deployed to Afghanistan in 2012 and 2014. Schmitz lives at the Veteran Residence at Saint Rose and is in an Army Reserve Officers Training Corps program with plans to return to the military after graduation. He said his goal is to be commissioned into the military intelligence field. Under the leadership of retired Army Col. Martin Dinan, director of veteran enrollment, The College of Saint Rose helps veterans make transition to civilian life in many ways. The college has a Veteran Center where veterans can study or socialize with friends and families and help veterans apply for benefits. The building also has a Battle Buddies Room where veterans often stop in between classes for a quiet place to get away. The Veteran Center includes a comfortable space to lounge, a study area with computers, and a kitchenette. Dinan is a veteran of the Persian Gulf, Iraq and Afghanistan wars. He has earned a Legion of Merit, two Bronze Star Medals and a Combat Action Badge. Iwo Jima breakfast An annual breakfast marking World War II's Battle of Iwo Jima and the Korean War will be hosted by the William Dale O'Brien Marine Corps League Detachment's Capital Region Devil Dogs at 9 a.m. Friday at the Zaloga American Legion Post, Everett Road, Colonie. Associated Press reporter Chris Carola will present a program on the capturing of Hideki Tojo, Japanese prime minister, at the end of World War II. United State Marines and Army forces suffered heavy casualties as they defeated Japanese troops and captured Iwo Jima, a Pacific island, in preparation for an attack on Japan. Leatherneck and other veterans as well as friends of veterans are invited. A full free Navy breakfast will include chipped beef on toast. Donations will be accepted. Devil Dogs is an honor society that raises money for children's hospitals. Carola's program will be on "Jack Wilpers: The Man Who Captured Tojo." Wilpers, an Irish-American born in Albany, was a member of a five-man U.S. Army intelligence unit that took former Japanese prime minister Hideki Tojo into custody nine days after the Japanese surrendered to end World War II. Tojo's suicide attempt in his own home was thwarted by Wilpers and the other American soldiers. Tojo was later convicted of war crimes and executed. Duty Calls, Terry Brown, Times Union, Box 15000, Albany, NY 12212 or brownt@timesunion.com. A LIMERICK man has been sentenced to five months in prison for an offence he committed while out on on bail. John Harris, aged 23, of De Valera Park, Bruree, pleaded guilty to a number of burglaries in Bruree. Sergeant Michelle Leahy said on April 23, 2018, Harris entered two properties in Ballynoe, Bruree and removed property to an associate nearby. The burglaries were investigated by Garda David Higgins. She told Judge Marian OLeary that a Willard bike valued at 1,600 and a leafblower costing 400 were taken. In the second burglary, a chop saw, 1,000; strimmer, 300; con saw, 300 and chainsaw, 300 were stolen. Most items were recovered, said Sgt Leahy. On September 27, 2018, she said Harris entered the closed Costcutters shop in Bruree. He stole 1,850 in clothes and 349 in alcohol. The alcohol and 300 worth of the clothes was recovered, said Sgt Leahy. Kilmallock Court heard that Harris has eight previous convictions - all traffic offences. Leanne Purcell, solicitor for Harris, said her client is a young man who wants matters dealt with today. Up to 14 months ago he was in a trade and had done three years of an apprenticeship in welding. His relationship broke down and he went down a wrong road. He went off the rails with drink and drugs. He cant explain his actions, said Ms Purcell. The solicitor said her clients instructions were that all the clothes and alcohol were recovered. However, Ms Purcell said he is more than willing to repay what he owes. He is on job seekers allowance. He owes 1,550 and is willing to pay 30 a week, said Ms Purcell. Sgt Leahy said that Harris was on bail when the burglary at the closed shop in Bruree, which was being used as a store, took place. Judge Marian OLeary sentenced Harris to five months in prison for breaking into the former Costcutters store on Main Street, Bruree. She imposed a four month sentence suspended for two years for the burglary in Ballynoe, Bruree involving the bike and leafblower. The second burglary in Ballynoe was taken into consideration by the judge. Harris was also fined 200 for the theft of goods to the value of 15 in Penneys on OConnell Street. The court heard he walked past all points of payment but was stopped by security guards. Recognisance was fixed in the event of an appeal. YOUNG Abbeyfeale student Adam OSullivan has taken one of the top prizes in this years Book of Kells Creative Competition, beating off stiff competition from both national and international entrants. Adams skilful drawing won him first place in the secondary school art category and he was presented with his cash prize and certificate at a ceremony in Trinity College last week. His winning entrant, on A3 size paper, was also framed as part of his prize. I was shocked when I heard I had won, the 16-year-old Transition Year student said. I wasnt expecting it at all. We had looked at the quality of entries from last year and I said if I get up to Dublin alone it would be an achievement, he explained. The fact that I won first prize was out of the world. Adam is the only one of art teacher Keith ORahillys students to enter the competition. It was our first year entering. We did it as a trial run, Keith explained. But he continued: We are delighted at Adams success. This young man has been keen on art since he started here. He lives in the art room. He eats it up and it great to get recognition for his talent. The idea behind the competition, devised and hosted by Trinity College, is to inspire writers and artists in their response to the Book of Kells. The competition was inaugurated last year and in this, its second year, attracted some 1,600 entries in total from all over Ireland, the UK, the US, Europe and even Australia. For Adam, the son of Denis and Joanne OSullivan, it was an easy choice to enter the competition. I have always had a thing about the Book of Kells, he said. It is such a beautiful piece of art but also part of our heritage as well. This years theme was Animals and the Book of Kells and Adam selected a page, redesigning it and recreating it using all the animals in the book itself. It took me ages, he acknowledged. I spent a good few weeks on it. The level of detail was made. The judges praised Adams excellent draftsmanship and noting that each of the animals (was) minutely drawn in a very faithful Kells style The range of animals, birds and snakes around the letters that symbolise the name of Christ really demonstrated Adams familiarity with the manuscript and really brought the page alive. We also really enjoyed his bold use of colour. RTE news presenter Sharon Ni Bheolain, who attended the prize giving ceremony, said it was a pure delight to be an ambassador for this year's Book of Kells Creative Competition. I was bowled over by the standard of entries. People from every walk of life put their heart and soul into interpreting and visualising our most celebrated of manuscripts. Animals, birds and gospel scenes have all been gloriously re-imagined by our finalists and the colours and artistry leap off the page. The Book of Kells is a national treasure and it is so gratifying that Irish people retain such pride in its enduring charm. ONE HUNDRED years ago, the first three Limerick TDs were elected to the inaugural term of Dail Eireann which convened its first official meeting at the Mansion House in Dublin. Elected in the historic 1918 vote, the first three TDs were Michael Colivet for Limerick City, Dr Richard Hayes for Limerick East, and Con Collins for Limerick West. All three highly-educated men played active roles in the Easter Rising in 1916, and each served time in prison for their involvement in the insurrection, before being elected to Dail Eireann. And all three men were remembered at a commemoration event for their family at Limerick County Library in Dooradoyle, with a wide range of memorabilia displayed at an exhibition. Launching the event, addressing family members and local councillors, Mayor of Limerick City and County, Cllr James Collins said the first meeting of the Dailon January 22, 1919is an important day in Irish history. But since Deputy Colivet and Deputy Hayes were incarcerated at the time, Con Collins was the first and only Limerick man to set foot in the Dail chamber on its inaugural day of sitting. After voting against the infamous 1922 Treaty, Con Collins left politics in 1923 and worked as a superintendent for Limerick Post Office until his death in November 1937. His son John Collins was just three at the time of his death, and was at the library event to remember his father. Speaking to the Limerick Leader, John said that his father returned to Ireland in 1904 after being involved in the Gaelic revival in London at the turn of the century. Con was imprisoned at Frongoch Prison, in Wales, after his involvement in the coordination of the landing of German arms shipment at Banna Strand. John said the most fascinating thing about his father and his contemporaries was that they were all so young. They were all so incredibly idealistic, they had an idealistic view of life. Some people would say it was an innocent view, but if you havent got ideals, then what have you got? They were extraordinarily unselfish. And I believe everyone of them must have been frightened out of their lives. He said: After 20 years of that type of strain, its bound to tell a tale. Thats just a personal view, and we as a family have always felt that. We felt that it actually broke him because they werent heroes. Some of these fellas didnt love war; he was terrified of war. John added: I think what broke him was he saw so much death and he saw so many of his friends going, he saw them either being killed or dying, he saw the way that the country was divided. As time moved on and he got older, he felt that the world he knew was gone, and a younger generation were coming in. Generally speaking, I think he was tired and worn, I think. He said that Con and his wife shared a very good life together. Michael Colivet, born on Windmill Street, sat in the 1919-1923 Dail and on Limerick City Council from 1920 to 1925. He retired from politics in 1925, and moved to Dublin where he led a successful career in public service. Dr Richard Hayes, born in Bruree, was a medical doctor who a commanding officer in the Dublin Brigade, and acted as a medic during the Easter Rising in Meath. After resigning from the Dail and politics in 1924, he became a respected historian, sat on the board of the Abbey Theatre and served as Irish Film Censor. Mayor Collins said: The first Dail of 1919 was the first generation to derive its solidarity from the people and the people alone. The meeting of the first Dail was a bold, profound and decisive statement about the future of Ireland. The members elected to the first Dail changed the course of Irish history. Cllr Collins said at the event on January 29 that following the establishment of democracy in Ireland, we emerged as a stable confident nation, proudly taking our place on the world stage. COUNTY Limerick TD Tom Neville has called on the Government to establish a permanent mental health committee at a national level in order to improve health services across the country. The Fine Gael deputy made the statement in Dail Eireann last week, noting a reduction in waiting lists in Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) in October last. I call on the Government, along with support from all parties, to put the mental health committee on a permanent footing. That would send a message from the Oireachtas and show that we are taking the issue seriously and putting it on the map. Deputy Neville said that the major challenge with CAMHS is the global competition for consultant psychiatrists. He also described mental health organisations, such as Jigsaw, as important for youth mental health. Another important body is the National Office for Suicide Prevention. The latest statistics I have show that the suicide rate in Limerick city reduced from 21.8 per 100,000 between 2013 and 2015 to 15.4 per 100,000 between 2014 to 2016. I recognise the voluntary groups that operate in this area in Limerick city who do a lot of work with the public and provide intervention on the bridges as well. That should not go unnoticed. We must give credit where it is due. It is a collaborative approach and we must work on it together. A Chinese orchestra on Friday evening entertained diplomats and overseas Chinese at the UN General Assembly hall in celebration of the Lunar New Year. The performance by the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra marks the first time that the UN headquarters hosts a concert celebrating the most important holiday of the global Chinese community. The orchestra, conducted by the renowned Chen Xieyang, played a medley of Chinese and Western music as well as a fusion of traditional and modern works, including well-known Chinese folk song Jasmine Flower and classics by J. Strauss, Jr. and Tchaikovsky. Completing the repertoire, the musicians played three more pieces, Beijing Happiness, Beautiful Flower and Full Moon and Radetzky March, after the conductor had to return twice following an enduring applause by the audience. Friday's music, mostly of upbeat tempo, sent festive vibes across the hall. Elliot Downey, an associate director of admissions with Tianjin Juilliard School, said the highlight of the evening for him was the Erhu performance, which was his first time hearing the traditional Chinese instrument. Greek deputy UN envoy Dionyssios Kalamvrezos was brought back to his "good old days" in China when he had worked in Beijing from 2011 to 2014. "The first part of the concert, mostly Chinese music, evoked my attachment to China. I love the Chinese language. I love the Chinese culture." His teenage daughter Andromeda said in Chinese that she could feel the music was sending a message of a joyous Spring Festival. Founded in late 2016, the young orchestra from China's eastern city of Suzhou has performed in multiple countries including France, Germany, Singapore, Malaysia and Japan, said its director Chen Guangxian. He added the orchestra is very young and highly international, with its 70 members hailing from 20 countries and regions. The average age of the members is 30. Besides the symphony, iSuzhou, a digital platform by the municipal government, has been holding an exhibition at the UN General Assembly lobby depicting the culture of Chinese Lunar New Year as well as a historical and modern Suzhou. We're sorry that the ministry you were looking for is no longer available on LightSource.com. However, below are some great ministries that offer related content. Enjoy the inspiration, encouragement, and Biblical challenge from these LightSource.com ministry partners! Arigna Mining Experience is to receive funding of 65,000 to improve the site. Under the Geopark Grant Scheme in Geological Survey Ireland, many groups across the country have been awarded funding in an effort that more people will understand and take an interest in geoscience. Minister Sean Canney TD, at the 2019 Geological Survey Ireland Geoheritage funding awards, announced the 13 sites awarded the grant of 65,000. Also among the groups are local tourist sites the Marble Arch Caves, Co. Fermanagh and Sligo County Council. With the new funding, Arigna Mining Experience and Marble Arch Caves now have an opportunity to make the changes they need to further boost their reach and make improvements to their facility. The grant for Sligo County Council is to protect and maintain the natural geoheritage in the county for the benefits of the environment, and for future generations. Senator Frank Feighan has welcomed the support, saying The aim of the fund is to encourage the telling of the Irish geological story, improve the understanding of geoscience and to engage with groups throughout the country. This funding is also great recognition of the work invested by everybody involved in developing and promoting the Arigna Mining Experience. Please allow ads as they help fund our trusted local news content. Kindly add us to your ad blocker whitelist. If you want further access to Ireland's best local journalism, consider subscribing to our ePaper and/or free daily Newsletter . Support our mission and join our community now. Glanbia Co-operative Society (Glanbia Co-op) has announced details of its 2019 Trading Bonus Scheme that will reward farmer members of the co-op for purchases made from Glanbia Ireland and its subsidiaries. For milk supplier Members of Glanbia Co-op, the 2019 Trading Bonus is potentially worth up to 0.75 cent per litre (cpl) on all milk delivered in 2019. For grain growers, a Trading Bonus of up to 10 per tonne of grain supplied is available for 2019. Beef, sheep and pig farmer customers of Glanbia Ireland that are Glanbia Co-op members will also qualify for a Feed Bonus on their tonnes purchased this year. The 2019 Feed Trading Bonus will be 10 per tonne on Beef, Dairy and Sheep Feed products purchased from Glanbia Ireland by non-milk suppliers, with 3 per tonne available to qualifying Co-op Members on purchases of pig feed and Straights. In a change from the 2018 Trading Bonus Scheme, eligibility for Feed Bonus payments is confined to non-milk suppliers in 2019 (all feed purchases continue to count towards a milk suppliers total spend for the Milk Supplier Trading Bonus). The Milk Supplier Trading Bonus is worth up to 3,750 to a 500,000 litre supplier spending over 7 cpl with Glanbia Ireland this year. All 2019 purchases made from Glanbia Ireland feed, fertilizer, veterinary medicines, dairy hygiene products and farm hardware etc are included in the calculation (purchases made through Purchasing Groups count at 50% for 2019). At the end of 2019, the total spend will be divided by the total litres of milk delivered to generate a cent per litre input spend. The applicable Trading Bonus is then calculated. The Trading Bonus Scheme is funded from Glanbia Co-ops 60% share of the dividend paid by Glanbia Ireland to its shareholders. Commenting, Martin Keane, Chairman of Glanbia Co-operative Society said, The 2019 Trading Bonus Scheme builds on the very successful Trading Bonus Scheme launched in 2018. In the coming weeks, the 2018 Trading Bonus Scheme will return almost 14m to our active farmer shareholders. The Trading Bonus rewards our Members for trading with the business that they majority own, Glanbia Ireland. It is an equitable and transparent means of returning a share of Glanbia Irelands profit to active farmers. Get ready for an Irish celebration in Abbeyleix this St Patrick's Day as the well known and much loved local band Transmitter are set to put on one of their hugely popular shows for one of the biggest national holidays of the year. Famous for their diverse set list and lively covers that always get the crowd up, dancing and singing along, the Transmitter lads are sure to bring one of their best shows for the St Patrick's Day celebration in Abbeyleix. Band members Stewart Quinn, Rob Quinn, Wayne Connaughton and David Quinn have become one of the most sought after bands for big occasions all over the country. The gig will be held in the Abbeyleix Manor Hotel on the evening of St Patrick's Day on Sunday, March 17. This is sure to be a sell-out show and anyone interested is being urged to get their tickets sorted as early as possible. Doors for the gig open at 8.30 pm on Sunday evening and a DJ will play after Transmitter into the small hours. Tickets for the gig are 10 each and available from hotel reception or over the phone. Its time to let it go. Revere it or revile it, Bethlehems Martin Tower has become a post-industrial relic, a 1970s-era skyscraper that defies attempts to remodel and reuse it. Once the proud corporate home of Bethlehem Steel Corp., the 21-story building off Eighth Avenue in West Bethlehem is saddled with a unique design that according to its owners, at least makes it prohibitively expensive to convert to residential use, such as high-end condos. Office tenants havent materialized either. In late January, the owners local developer Lewis Ronca and Norton Herrick of Boca Raton, Fla. notified city officials of their intent to demolish the building and proceed with a redevelopment plan that would turn the 53-acre campus into a mix of houses, office and stores. Under a city rezoning approved in 2015, demolition is a permitted option. But that hasnt prevented defenders of the Lehigh Valleys tallest building from making making a last-ditch appeal for its preservation. Last week the originator of the Save Martin Tower Facebook group posted a Change.org petition, asking people to sign on to a boycott of any businesses would be built as part of the propertys redevelopment. We want to see this building renovated, and turned into something beneficial to the community. Martin Tower is an important part of the citys history. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the petition states. It is a landmark that can be seen for miles. It is an important part of Bethlehem Steels history, just as much as are the Blast Furnaces. This building could be an attraction, such as a Visitors Center, offices, and provide living space. Martin Tower is a local treasure and should be treated as such. All valid points, but the numbers dont add up. Theres no shortage of irony that the buildings architectural uniqueness an expression of the power, optimism and arrogance of the steel industry in the early 1970s now foreshadows its demise. Those who worked in or visited Martin Tower in its heyday recall its soaring posture, inside and out. The buildings footprint, in the shape of a cross, was chosen to maximize the number of corner offices and views for Steel execs. The lofty ceilings gave each story a penthouse feel. Those features, along with an abundance of asbestos, have conspired to make a cost-effective conversion next to impossible, the owners say. If taking prisoners today for a misguided design serves little purpose, its equally senseless to threaten to punish the merchants who will occupy that space in the future, as the online petition seeks to do. At some point, as the developers and city officials get together on a master development plan that makes sense for this and coming generations, they should insist on a physical reminder of what once occupied the land, and the steel-framed airspace above it. It wouldnt carry the historical heft of the blast furnaces and other preserved Steel structures on the citys South Side, but it would pay tribute to the people who helped make the city what it is today. Police say five juveniles in Tennessee are charged with fatally shooting a Nashville musician. News outlets report police charged three girls ages 12, 14 and 15, and two boys, ages 13 and 16, with criminal homicide in the death of 24-year-old Kyle Yorlets. Police said in a statement that the Belmont graduate was fatally shot outside his home Thursday afternoon. Local media reports said Yorlets was a graduate of Carlisle High School in Pennsylvania. Authorities say it appears that the juveniles were in a stolen pickup truck in an alley that runs behind Yorlets home. Police say the youths saw him outside and took his wallet and told him to hand over the keys to his vehicle. Police say they think Yorlets was shot because he refused. Yorlets was a member of the Nashville-based band Carverton. The band said in a statement that they were shocked and heartbroken. LehighValleyLive contributed to this report. - Nine party supporters of the APC slump at the campaign ground ongoing in Kano - The incident happened as people were having a great difficulty making their way at the rally's venue - Security officials were quick to rush the supporters to the hospital The campaign ground of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Kano was thrown into mourning as nine persons were said to have slumped while trying to mill around the crowd. The venue of the campaign ground where the PDP's rally was held was Sani Abacha Stadium in Kano state, The Cable reports. READ ALSO: NAIJ.com upgrades to Legit.ng: a letter from our Editor-in-Chief Bayo Olupohunda As massive crowd flooded the stadium, there was a great difficulty for movement within the facility used for the rally. It was gathered that the slumped supporters were quickly taken to the hospitals as security operatives were proactive to rescue them. Recall that Legit.ng earlier reported that Governor Abdullahi Ganduje, governor of Kano state, ordered the immediate closure of two major stadiums in the state. PAY ATTENTION: Install our latest app for Android, read best news on Nigerias #1 news app It was reported that the governor gave this order on Tuesday, February 5, five days to Atiku's presidential campaign rally. The governor ordered the renovation of Sani Abacha Stadium situated at Kofar Mata and Kano Pillars stadium at Sabon Gari and this is expected to end on February 18. NAIJ.com (naija.ng) -> Legit.ng: We have upgraded to serve you better Between Buharis Next Level And Atikulate - Nigerians React| Legit TV Source: Legit.ng - The APC has denied claims that it was responsible for the construction of the giant broom at the FCT's gate - Mallam Lanre Isa-Orlu, the party's media secretary said Nigerians who love the President Muhammadu Buhari's government erected the broom - Isa-Orlu asked the opposition party, the PDP, to build their own if they want to A new revelation has emerged about the construction of a giant broom, which is the symbol for the party, at the city gate of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). The All Progressive Congress (APC) has said that it does not know anything about the building of the broom, Channels TV reports. READ ALSO: NAIJ.com upgrades to Legit.ng: a letter from our Editor-in-Chief Bayo Olupohunda The construction have the broom have generated both heated argument in the political space and backlash from those who thought giant broom is an eye sore to the countrys capital. There were many questions as regard the motive behind the citing of the broom at a space that contributes greatly to the aesthetics of the country. In a exclusive interview with Channels TV, the APC media secretary, Mallam Lanre Isa-Orlu said the party was not responsible for it but that it was built by Nigerians who love the partys administration of the country. He also reacted by saying the opposition party, the People Democratic Party (PDP) can build their own if they want to. Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that PDP suspended its Presidential Mega Rally, earlier scheduled for Saturday, February 9 in Abuja. PAY ATTENTION: Install our latest app for Android, read best news on Nigerias #1 news app In a statement issued by the director, media and publicity of the PDP's Presidential Campaign Organisation, Kola Ologbondiyan on Saturday, February 9, in Abuja, the party said the decision followed the refusal to grant the party venue of the rally. Ologbondiyan also said that the party had earlier scheduled its Lagos mega rally for the Tafawa Balewa Square on Saturday, before the APC came up with the same date forcing PDP campaign to opt for Abuja. NAIJ.com (naija.ng) -> Legit.ng: We have upgraded to serve you better Between Buharis Next Level And Atikulate - Nigerians React| Legit TV Source: Legit.ng - A campaign spokesperson for the PDP was arrested - Ben Bako was reportedly picked up by SSS officials - His arrested is reportedly related to his alleged call for violence Ben Bako who is a spokesperson of thee Peoples Democratic Party in Kaduna state has been arrested. Premium Times reports that Bako who is the director of media and publicity of the PDP campaign organisation was picked up on Saturday, February 9. READ ALSO: Breaking: 6 days to election, INEC office in Plateau engulfed by fire, voting material destroyed (photos) An official of the party confirmed the arrest. Bako was recently caught on video inciting violence at a political rally and there is suspicion his arrest may be connected to it Yakubu Lere who is the deputy director of publicity of the PDP campaign said Bako was arrested by operatives of the State Security Service and taken to Abuja. He said: Yes, he was arrested on Saturday around 11 pm when some security agents came in their vehicles to whisk him away to Abuja. Meanwhile, the governor of Kaduna state, Nasir El-Rufai, has appealed to pastors in the state to give support to his reelection for second term in the forthcoming general elections. He urged the Christian community in the state during a meeting with the religious leaders under the group Pastors United Change Association (PUCA) on Saturday, February 9, Sahara Reporters reports. It should be noted, however, that it was reported that the governor had earlier said that if Pope was his deputy running mate, 67% of Christians in the state would never support him with their support. NAIJ.com (naija.ng) -> Legit.ng: Same great journalism, upgraded for better service! Controversy trails plans to evict Igbos from the north as El-Rufai blows hot | Legit TV Source: Legit Part of the reason for this shift is due to changes in the marketplace that have altered how buying decisions are made. In the past, customers tended to make slower buying decisions. Today, due to the changes in the marketplace, customers expectations continue to change, yet their needs remain the same. - Titi Abubakar said her husband has been destined to govern the country - The wife of the PDP presidential candidate said her husband has plans for women and youths - Titi said Atiku has come to rescue Nigerians Titi Abubakar who is the wife of Atiku Abubakar has expressed optimism that her husband will be the next president of Nigeria claiming he has been destined to be so. The Nation reports that the wife of the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) said this during a visit to a chieftain of the PDP in Lagos, Chief Bode Olajumoke. READ ALSO: Atiku who supervised liquidation of industries now promising jobs - Oshiomhole Titi said he husband has come to rescue Nigeria and that he has promised women 30 per cent slot in his government. She said: This is not his first time he will be wanting to be president but God has said it is now his time to be president, she said. When they went for primaries in Port Harcourt, not many people thought it was going to be Atiku that will emerge as the PDP presidential candidate. But he came tops and became the partys flag-bearer. This happened because he is a child of destiny. My husband has come to rescue Nigeria from the shackles of these people. Atiku promised women 30 percent of slots in government. Also, he said he will ensure that 40 per cent goes to the youth. He is going to introduce micro credit schemes to help the women and the youth. He is going to win next Saturdays presidential election and go on to lead the country as its president. Legit.ng had reported that Titi said her husband, Atiku, does not want the money of Nigerians because he has made his own money. Titi was said to have made the statement on Thursday, January 31, when speaking at a rally in Abuja which held at the old parade ground area 10, The Nation reports. She urged the Nigerian people to vote for Atiku to get Nigeria working again, noting that Atiku had plans to solve the unemployment challenges in the country because he is a job creator. Atiku must rule. Atiku must get Nigeria working again. You know that Atiku is a job creator and he is going to engage most of the unemployed people, she said. You know that Atiku is for restructuring. It is for your good. The Federal Government is too powerful that is why we must decentralise. Nigerian women are suffering. Atiku will give the women micro credit so that you can do your businesses. Dont allow anybody to come and be giving you N10, 000. Do not destroy your children future. N10, 000 cannot carry you through 4 years and 8 years. The PVC they are collecting from you is a bad omen because on the day of voting you need your PVC. My women, I am telling you, collect their money and refuse to vote them. Vote the person of your choice. That money they are bringing to you is your money and your entitlement. Dont give them your PVC. If you give them you have sold your childrens future. READ ALSO: NAIJ.com upgrades to Legit.ng: a letter from our Editor-in-Chief Bayo Olupohunda Atiku is an educationist, he has businesses, he has done it before as Vice President and he is going to do it again as President. He was the head of the economic when he was with former President Olusegun Obasanjo. Atiku does not want Nigerians money, he has made money. You know he has so many children." NAIJ.com (naija.ng) -> Legit.ng Same great journalism, upgraded for better service! Nigeria Latest News: Buhari vs Atiku - 2019 Elections | Legit TV Source: Legit.ng Nigerian comedian, Seyi Law seems to have a played a fast one on fake news mongers and from the look of things, a lot of them are falling for it pretty badly. Living in the spotlight isn't exactly easy. A lot of celebs often deal with having their private life splashed on front cover magazines. Well, it appears Nigerian comedian, Seyi Law, has had enough. He recently took to social media to bait news mongers who are always eager to spread negative news about celebrities. In what appears to be an experiment to see how many people would fall, he shared a post announcing his fake divorce. PAY ATTENTION: Get the Latest Nigerian News on Legit.ng News App He wrote: "FAKE NEWS spread faster than wildfire. Due to irreconcilable differences would have been enough to announce this, but the kind and beautiful heart of my ex-wife must be stated. She is one of the best women I have ever known. It is however sad, that I announce that my wife and I have decided to path ways for good. We will appreciate your love and support at this time. God bless you. Tiwaloluwa is safe and good." READ ALSO: Personal letter from the Editor-in-Chief of Legit.ng (former NAIJ.com) Hilarious! Meanwhile, there are rumours that the two-year-old marriage of Nollywood actors, Yvonne Jegede and Kunle Fawole, has allegedly hit the rocks. There are no confirmations yet but close sources revealed that the actress has moved out of her matrimonial home. The source also revealed that the couple have yanked off their wedding rings as well. Still on the issue of their marriage, the unidentified source also disclosed that there are possibilities that the baby boy the actress gave birth to in 2018 might not be Abounces biological child. Get the hottest gist on Africa Love Aid HELLO! NAIJ.com (naija.ng) upgrades to Legit.ng We keep evolving to serve our readers better Japheth Ezekiel: My 29-year battle with sickle cell | Legit TV Source: Legit.ng - Atletico Madrid vs Real Madrid ended in a 3-1 scoreline in the entertaining Madrid derby - Three goals were scored in the first half as Real Madrid took a 2-1 lead into the break - Gareth Bale silenced the fans at the Wanda Metropolitano with a sublime finish to get the win Atletico vs Real Madrid ended in a 3-1 victory in favour of Madrid as they move into second position on the table above their city rivals. The fans at the Wanda Metropolitano gave a hostile reception to the visitors especially to their former shot-stopper, Thibaut Courtois. The first real chance of the match fell to Thomas Partey who failed to keep his shot down after a lovely one-two with Antoine Griezmann. READ ALSO: Huddersfield vs Arsenal: Iwobi, Lacazette score to give Gunners a 2-1 win Luka Modric was at the end of a pin-point cross from Dani Carvajal but the Croatian could not direct his header on target. Then in the 16th minute, Real took the lead from a corner kick after Sergio Ramos' initial header was acrobatically volleyed home by Casemiro to make it 1-0. Atletico responded in style as Angel Correa slid in a pass through toGriezmann who beat the offside trap before putting the ball through the legs of Courtois to make it 1-1. READ ALSO: NAIJ.com upgrades to Legit.ng Madrid captain Ramos put his side back into the lead from the penalty spot after Vinicius Junior was fouled from behind in the box by Jose Gimenez. It ended 2-1 to Los Blancos in the first half. Alvaro Morata had a goal disallowed in the 53rd minute afetr the Video Assistant Referee spotted he was in an offside position. Substitute Gareth Bale sealed the win with a low drive from his left-boot giving Jan Oblak a full stretch in goal in the 73rd minute. It became 3-1. PAY ATTENTION: Become a member of the leading sports Facebook group 'Naija Football Fan Zone' Santiago Solari's men held on to win their first derby in many attempts as Real Madrid overtake their city rivals to second position on the table. NAIJ.com (naija.ng) -> Legit.ng We have updated to serve you better. Rio Ferdinand admires Okocha, reveals why he quit boxing and problem with Man United | Legit TV Source: Legit "My husband and I were at dinner when we heard about the fire, and he was like, This is just devastating. These people have kids and pets, Torres said Saturday. "He said, 'You're better at writing than me; would you put something up?' But after I posted, I saw that so many people had different things going. Well, in my past life, I was an event planner, so I rounded up and posted all the outlets I could in one place." The Rev. Kathy Brumbaugh is the pastor of the Schenevus United Methodist Church in Schenevus, New York. Benny, who was diagnosed with a brain tumor just days after participating in Lincolns St. Baldricks event as a sixth-grader in 2016, received a standing ovation during a Feb. 7 assembly, where students learned about childhood cancers and how the St. Baldricks Foundation funds research. The assembly also served as an opportunity to motivate the students to think of ways to raise money for St. Baldricks and consider volunteering to have their heads shaved at the end of it all. Last year at Yellowstone National Park was the last time I heard a coyote howl at night, sitting on the porch of the Old Faithful Inn, one of the more beautiful log-built inns ever that soars about five stories on the inside. It was far away, but it still touched you as it soared out of the quiet darkness in the distance. Severe weather walloping the Pacific Northwest -- Frigid, arctic air moved into the region on Friday, bringing with it snow and ice. Forecasters say the snow won't let up until Monday, meaning the frigid temperatures are sticking around. Parts of the Pacific Northwest woke up to snow on Saturday. Mixed snow and rain pushed into Oregon Friday night. Slick roads caused accidents and led to road closures in the Portland area. The arctic air hit Seattle first, bringing the city its second snowstorm in a week. Hundreds of flights in and out of Seattle's airport were affected by the storm Friday and Saturday. The National Weather service reported 6.4 inches of snow fell at the airport on Friday afternoon. That's the second highest snowfall at Sea-Tac in a single day in the past 20 years. The weight of the snow and ice brought down trees and power lines. At least 36,000 people in Washington state were without power at some point on Saturday. Authorities in Pierce County, Washington, rescued a 14-year-old girl who had fallen through a frozen pond. Chief Micah, Lundborg/Pierce County Sheriff's Department said, "When I got down there we saw her in the water on the ice, or kinda through the ice." The snow is expected to continue to fall through the weekend and into Monday, piling onto the 12 to 18 inches that have already fallen in other parts of Washington state. You have a chance to win a brand new truck, while also helping out a great local organization, Special Olympics Montana. Special Olympics Montana is participating in the Montana Chevy Truck Raffle for the 25th straight year. All the proceeds will benefit local youth and adult Special Olympics athletes. Andrew Minchew has been working with Special Olympics Montana since 1997. He says the raffle is their biggest fundraiser of the year, benefiting about 250 local athletes. He said Billings will send 80 people on two buses to the state competition in Great Falls in May and all the money raised helps pay for those trips and programs. There are ten great prizes up for grabs in the raffle including the grand prize truck, gas gift cards, and other rewards. Each raffle ticket costs five dollars and if you don't win, you still helped fund amazing experiences for Montana's Special Olympics Athletes. Minchew explained why Special Olympics are important for the athletes. "It's a socialization thing for them like the little girl here that's selling tickets that's being helpful and stuff like that, it just helps them helps the program to get them out get them motivated doing exercises not just sitting and getting lost in the system." The Special Olympics Montana booth will be at center court in Rimrock Mall on Saturday and Sunday. You can find them at other locations around town like Albertsons coming up soon, selling raffle tickets until they leave for Great Falls in May. Winner of the raffle will be announced on May 19th. An Arizona long-term healthcare facility where an incapacitated woman recently gave birth will remain open after its owners agreed to allow the state to oversee operations. A spokesman for Governor Doug Ducey says Hacienda HealthCare officials have agreed to accept voluntary regulation. That means 37 intellectually disabled patients there will be allowed to stay. The State Health Department released a statement saying "moving this medically fragile community is the option of last resort." Dr. Cara Christ, Arizona State Health Services Director said, "Transferring them to another facility could result in psychological physical harm and even death." The announcement to keep the facility open came a day after Hacienda said it was closing its center for the intellectually disabled because keeping it open was "not sustainable." The incapacitated woman who recently gave birth to a baby boy is in her late 20's and has been a patient there since she was a toddler. Police later arrested a nurse after a DNA test showed a match between him and the baby. Locking your keys in the car, we've all done it. I think it has to do with the weather and the rain prior to this, Golonka said. It melted the snow on the ice. We have ice, but you cant take snowmobiles out. But we have those dedicated fishermen that it doesnt stop. Kendallville, IN (46755) Today A few clouds. Low 58F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight A few clouds. Low 58F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph. Shakira Ferguson-Garrett is a former client who came to support Wayside Center on Saturday. She and her husband, Christopher, moved from Michigan about a year ago and didnt have a place to stay. Wayside helped in many ways from being able to do laundry to helping them find housing to helping provide things for their apartment, Shakira Ferguson-Garrett said. Sen. Amy Klobuchar announced her presidential bid at a snowy, freezing outdoor event on Sunday, vaulting the three-term senator from Minnesota into the crowded field of Democrats angling to take on President Donald Trump in 2020. Cpl. Shane Totty is being remembered by friends and family in Collinsville, Ill. Officials are investigating a shooting at a high school in Baltimore on Friday that left one staff member in serious condition. (WBAL, Hearst via CNN Wire) The image of all that concrete and steel and diesel dropped onto a bucolic landscape that includes Blackberry Township to the north is almost too much to fathom. But even as I fought the urge to give the stink-eye to the members of the Planning Commission seated at the front of the room, I couldnt help but feel empathy for the group as they faced that angry sea of residents, many of them their friends and neighbors. Kingstree, SC (29556) Today Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 61F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 61F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph. CHARLES CITY, Iowa A second sentence is handed down for a Floyd County crime spree. Colten Lee Lindley and Jason Duane Burnett were accused of stealing two pickup trucks and a farm tractor. One of the trucks of found torn apart and on fire on a rural Floyd County road. The two were also accused of forging checks and Lindley was also charged with stealing an ATV and illegal possession of a prescription drug, while Burnett was accused of depositing over $33,000 in forged checks into his account. Lindley, 23 of Rockford, previously pleaded guilty to 1st degree theft and ongoing criminal conduct, receiving five years of probation. Burnett, 20 of Dumont, pleaded guilty to two counts of 1st degree theft, ongoing criminal conduct, 2nd degree arson, 2nd degree theft, and 4th degree theft. Hes now been sentenced to 90 days in jail and five years of probation. Lindley and Burnett have also been ordered to pay restitution for their crimes. CRESCO, Iowa - A horse was killed and a man suffered serious head injuries after a vehicle struck a buggy Saturday afternoon in Howard County. Authorities say the crash happened at 45th St. and Timber Ave. when a truck driven by 50-year-old Steven Jensen, of Cresco, struck a buggy that turned in front of him, according to the Howard County Sheriffs Office. The occupant of the buggy, 23-year-old Phillip Yoder, of Cresco, was thrown from the buggy. The pickup truck went into the south ditch and came to a stop on the shoulder. The Sheriffs Office says the horse crawled down into the ditch and died. Jensen and a passenger in his vehicle were not injured. Yoder was airlifted to St. Marys Hospital in Rochester with serious head injuries. Cresco Fire & Rescue, Regional Health Services of Howard County Ambulance Service, Howard County Secondary Roads Department, Cresco Towing and Recovery, and Gundersen Air all assisted at the scene. ALBERT LEA, Minn. Crews remained at the scene of an early morning garage fire for about two hours Sunday. It happened in the 700 block of Minnesota Avenue and firefighters arrived at around 6 am to find heavy flames coming from a one-and-a-half stall detached garage. The fire was contained to the garage but power to the adjacent home was lost for a short time due to a power line burning off. No injuries are reported and Albert Lea Fire Rescue says the cause of this fire is undetermined due to the extensive damage to the garage, which is being considered a total loss. The Albert Lea Police Department also assisted at the scene. GREENE, Iowa A teen who caused a lockdown at North Butler High School is sentenced. Andrew Stephan Corwin, 19 of Greene, pleaded guilty to one count of threat of terrorism for an incident in May 2018 that led to a 45 minute school lockdown. Authorities say Corwin told a Charles City High School student that he was going to shoot up a school. Corwin has been ordered to spend two years on supervised probation and must follow any recommendations for mental health treatment. High Profile Vulture Fund opponent David Hall has announced that his new housing group i-Care has rescued 11 families in Mortgage Arrears in Kilkenny over the last year. I-CARE, which is funded by AIB was set up a year ago to rescue families in Mortgage Arrears trouble. At the time the housing body pledged that it would resolve five hundred cases. Instead it is poised to rescue up to six hundred Mortgage Holders which is significantly ahead of target. The not for profit housing company dedicated specifically to the resolution of Mortgages Arrears involving those who are in long term distress and qualify for Social Housing Support. Under a unique new process, a house in Mortgage Arrears is sold to i-Care at a substantial discount and I-Care then rent the house back to qualifying owners. The home-owner agrees a thirty-year lease with i-Care where they lose their home. However, those who are renting their former home can at any point re-purchase at the cost i-Care has paid. They cannot sell the property on, though, or borrow irresponsibly to re-purchase. The deal will be negotiated with the Irish Mortgage Holders Association (IMHO) who are experts in dealing with distressed mortgages. Commenting on the Kilkenny figures David Hall the CEO of i-Care said; it is vital to note that i-Care is an All-Ireland based organization. Very Aware We are, he said; very aware of the extent of the Mortgage Arrears problem and the deep concern about vulture funds invading our country-side. Mr Hall said; we are an Irish solution which will chase the vulture funds out of rural Ireland. We are very much open-for business, but people need to contact us at 1800-233-244 or info@icarehousing.ie The i-Care CEO added We are acutely aware Mortgage Arrears is as much a rural as an urban crisis. This is why working with groups like MABs, i-Care operates across the countryside. These results also indicate; there is a better way; that a real sustainable solution exists for families living under a shadow. They said it couldnt be done. But it has. Promises made have been kept. And he promised that; In Kilkenny we intend to help a lot more families that are in trouble. But you must contact us. A silent priest never got a parish Weather Alert ...EXCESSIVE HEAT WATCH NOW IN EFFECT FROM FRIDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH WEDNESDAY EVENING... * WHAT...Dangerously hot conditions Friday through at least Wednesday. Triple digit heat will develop in central Washington Friday and spread into eastern Washington over the weekend. * WHERE...Portions of North and North Central Idaho. Portions of Central, East Central, North Central, Northeast, and Southeast Washington. * WHEN...From Friday afternoon through Wednesday evening. * IMPACTS...Several days of triple digit heat and unusually warm overnight temperatures will make it difficult to control the build up of heat in homes without air conditioning. * ADDITIONAL DETAILS...This will likely be an historic heat wave. Chances are good that many long standing records will be broken during this upcoming heat wave. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Monitor the latest forecasts and warnings for updates on this situation. Be prepared to drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air- conditioned room, stay out of the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors. && EUGENE, Ore. -- Hundreds ran willingly into the freezing Willamette river this morning to raise money for Special Olympics Oregon. Some groups who participated include a crew from Eugene/Springfield Starbucks, the Lane County Police department, as well as the Eugene Emeralds. Their mascot Sluggo even dipped his toes in the frigid water. "Polar Plunge Oregon" happens every year in cities all over the states with one common goal in mind; to raise as much money as they can. The event this year has already raised more than half-a-million dollars and it will all benefit Special Olympics Oregon. This has become a tradition for some and they have already confirmed they will be participating again next year. We expect anywhere from 2,000 to 3,000 guests today, and were always excited to have kids come here and see what we do, said Amanda Early, who works for Fermilabs Office of Education and Public Outreach. For us, its really about the content and teaching kids about how we study things. We focus on things you can see and the tools we use to do that so kids can get their brains wrapped around it. BEND, Ore. (AP) - Authorities said they killed a cougar that had been seen around homes in Bend. Agents with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and Bend police tracked the animal into the Deschutes River Woods on Saturday morning. They said they believe that based on the territorial nature of male cougars and the size of its paws, it was the same animal that had been seen in backyards in southwest Bend and that it did pose a threat to people. It weighed 135 pounds. Officials said the river canyon offers excellent habitat for mountain lions and people should be aware that they might encounter one in the area. Hewlett emphasized that whole-farm profitability is derived from enterprise profitability. He explained that not all enterprises, those activities or processes engaged in by the business that generate one or more salable products in an operation, are necessarily profitable, but each is important in determining the final outcome of the total operation. It puts you in the drivers seat for better management, Hewlett explained of the extensive process. Hewlett said analysis is a better way to determine profitability and possible future potential than the earlier determination of I have something left at the end. It was a good year, and I can do it again. With this program, you are better informed on how you got there, and how to improve the something left, he explained. The afternoon was a success, according to Toby Skinner, executive director of the WHFA, who said the presentation is one effort in helping Wyoming alfalfa and forage producers recognize more profitability in their operations. The organization was established in 2016 to help producers improve their operations and profitability. PHOTOS These are the 50 most caring cities in America To be caring means to show concern for others or to be kind to them. Care can be expressed in many different ways, so WalletHub took a look at some of the most populated cities in America and ranked each according to caring for the community, caring for the vulnerable and working in caring industries. (Diamond Bridges, The Active Times) Nebraska Extension will be hosting several private pesticide applicator, chemigation and dicamba training sessions in the coming weeks. The Nebraska Department of Agriculture should have sent private pesticide applicators a barcoded letter in the mail if their license will expire in 2019. It is important for applicators who are re-certifying to bring this barcoded letter to the pesticide training. Private pesticide trainings across the state welcome both first-time and recertifying applicators. Chemigation training is required for individuals who wish to apply chemicals through irrigation systems during the growing season. In-person trainings are available as applicators must pass an exam to become certified. First-time chemigators MUST attend the in-person training. Applicators who need to recertify and have not let their license expire may opt to take the online training (https://water.unl.edu/article/agricultural-irrigation/chemigation). However, recertifying applicators who complete the online training will still need to take the exam in person at a testing site. More information can be found at the chemigation website listed above or by contacting your local Extension Office. LINCOLN (AP) Farmers who are tired of deer destroying their crops could get a new incentive to let hunters onto their land under a bill in the Nebraska Legislature, but some outdoors groups and state officials arent thrilled with the idea. The proposal would create special permits for landowners to hunt deer up to a week before the official firearm hunting season starts, if they open at least half of their land to hunters during the regular season. The idea arose from two related trends: a rising deer population in some areas of the state and a decline in land thats available to hunters. Farmers who allow hunting on their property are increasingly selling exclusive access to wealthy hunters who pay thousands of dollars so they can bag a trophy buck. To me, its a win-win, said Sen. Dan Hughes, a farmer from Venango. It gives a little something to landowners who are suffering the damage (to their crops). And if theyve already gotten their deer, theyll be more willing to open the land to other hunters. 0wner profitability workshops will kick off at 2 p.m. There will be an evening reception with cocktails and appetizers held after the workshops. Matt Davison will be giving a few remarks at the evening reception. Both days will include a silent auction with funds going on the Aurora Cooperative Coworker Crisis Fund. This fund was created to assist employees and their families with serious medical issues. Registration Wednesday will begin at 7:30 a.m. Aurora Cooperative staff will be on hand from all divisions to visit about products and services through the day in the interactive tradeshow. The government panel will begin at 9 a.m. and will be featuring Sarah Thornton Caswell, Nebraska Ethanol Board; Richard Gupton, Agricultural Retailers Association; Jay Rempe, Nebraska Farm Bureau; with moderator Dawn Caldwell, head of government affairs for Aurora Cooperative. The annual business meeting will begin at 10:30 a.m. Willie Robertson, CEO of Duck Commander and Buck Commander and star of A&Es Duck Dynasty will be the keynote speaker on Feb. 13 before lunch at 11:30 a.m. Robertson has expanded his family companies, from a living room operation to a multi-million-dollar enterprise and destination for all things outdoors. Duck Commander is the best-selling duck call brand in the U.S. It and Buck Commander are popular trademarks on apparel, hunting gear, food items, and more. KCTV5.com is now with you on the go! Get the latest news updates and video, StormTrack5 weather forecast, weather radar, special investigative reports, sports headlines and much more from KCTV5 News. >> Click/tap here to download our free mobile app. << Copyright 2019 KCTV (Meredith Corp.) All rights reserved. The World Health Organization warned Thursday of a dramatic rise in measles cases globally as parents reject vaccines for their children. In Europe, measles cases reached their highest level in a decade in 2018. Outbreaks have hit the Philippines and Madagascar. In a world of global travel, these arent distant concerns. A monthslong series of cases in New York has been traced to an unvaccinated child who caught the disease on a trip to Israel. Trump announced last week that he will sit down with Kim for their second summit. Their first summit in Singapore last June resulted in Kim's vague commitment to the "complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," a term that his propaganda machine previously used when it argued it would only denuclearize after the U.S. withdraws its troops from South Korea. During his eight years on the art faculty at Winston-Salem State University, Leo Morrissey retained his professional identity as an artist who made new work every day, as he still does. Now living and teaching art in New Jersey, Morrissey recently returned to Winston-Salem for public engagements related to Unpacking Leo Morrissey, his exhibition at the Sawtooth Schools Davis Gallery. Morrissey might be characterized a master of obsessive self-tasking. His modus operandi is to establish simple working parameters a generic image, a type of object, or a mundane subject and revisit it on a systematic, often-daily basis over a predetermined time period or theoretically ad infinitum. The point is to maintain the output and rate of production. For example, while living downtown in the Nissen Building, Morrissey had a perfect picture-window view of the Reynolds Building, which he decided to sketch on a daily basis. Using uniformly pre-cut sheets of paper he established a uniform size for each sketch not much larger than a postage stamp and contained within a pre-ruled, central rectangle corresponding to his apartment window. Every day at about the same time, he looked out the window and made a quick sketch of the buildings distinctive tower and wrote the date immediately below it. RALEIGH I am a fiscal conservative. I recognize that government at all levels has important tasks to do, tasks that make us all better off if done at a reasonable cost. I think the list of such defensible tasks is necessarily short, however, for both constitutional and practical reasons, and that American government as a whole has expanded far beyond its proper scope. Therefore, my fellow conservatives and I consider it to be a high priority for policymakers to reduce the size of government. We typically measure progress toward our goal by looking at government expenditure as a share of the overall economy. Is it realistic to expect that proportion to fall over time? Some say no, including some conservatives who would welcome smaller government but simply dont think it is politically possible in todays world. There are reasons for skepticism, to be sure. Once a spending program develops a political constituency made up of those who either receive direct payouts or who derive income from delivering government services to others it can be exceedingly difficult to reduce or eliminate funding in the future. Those beneficiaries are a discrete group with strong incentives to know what they are getting and to protect their stream of income. But the place where Behars political analysis falls short is perhaps the area where she, along with many others, believe their argument is the strongest history. Democrats and Republicans each enjoy retelling their version of the urban myth to justify losing recent elections they believe they would have otherwise won. And both scenarios involve a third-party candidacy. Republicans revel in recalling the hackneyed yarn that Ross Perot cost George H.W. Bush his reelection in 1992. The linear thinking that supports this myth is based on Perots politics being closer aligned with Bush than with then-candidate Bill Clinton. Therefore, the 18.9 percent that Perot received added to Bushs 37.4 percent would suggest a comfortable reelection for the 41st president. The problem, as John Adams noted, is that facts are stubborn things. It only requires an eight-word Google search: Did Perot cost Bush the election in 1992? There one becomes privy to the facts. If anyone was hurt, it was Clinton, who enjoyed a sizeable bump in the Gallup polling when Perot exited the race in July 1992. When Perot re-entered the race in October, Clinton held a 54-35 lead over Bush. The final tally of Clinton 43 percent, Bush 37.4 percent and Perot 18.9 percent, took a toll on Clinton. During the entire election cycle, Bush only polled better than 40 percent once. The first Africans brought to Virginia were captured in Angola and brought in a slave ship, but Virginia did not have a formal legal system for slavery in 1619. There appears to be some ambiguity over their legal status, with some still forced to work for life while others had a path to freedom, according to the National Park Service. Asked to clarify Northam's remarks, a spokeswoman for the governor pointed to news accounts that referred to the first black Africans being treated as indentured servants before slave laws. Snow conditions are worsening minute to minute, so dont expect travel conditions to improve, the sheriffs office wrote. The National Weather Service said additional snow could fall Saturday, and another storm was expected early next week. About 180 people spent the night at an emergency shelter set up at Seattle Center, with officials going out again on Saturday to get other homeless residents to safety. Inslee declared a state of emergency over the storm. The state transportation department said crews had to clear several trees that had fallen across roads in the Tacoma area. In Portland, a tanker truck slid into a sport-utility vehicle on an interchange between Interstates 5 and 84 on Saturday, blocking the ramp for hours. Other parts of the country were also wrestling with difficult weather. Residents of Hawaii were bracing for coastal flooding amid extreme surf predictions. A California man died in rough waters off of Maui on Friday, Hawaii News Now reported. In California, more than 120 visitors and staff members were rescued Thursday after being trapped by up to 7 feet of snow in a Sierra Nevada resort for five days. Another winter storm was on the way to the region. Rogers said the decision to put a technology center in Charlotte may be as pivotal to the combined bank as the headquarters move. I believe Charlotte was deliberately chosen because both King and Rogers know that Charlotte is a hub for banking and bank technology talent, Rogers said. By choosing Charlotte, the two CEOs implicitly acknowledged that neither Winston-Salem nor Atlanta offered compelling answers to long-term talent needs. This era will use Big Data to drive down costs and improve risk management practices through earlier detection of emerging risk, Rogers said. With that being said, Rogers added I cannot recall a time in history when two large banks combined and decided to locate their headquarters in a third city. The decision to not put the headquarters in the hometowns of one of the two banks had to be incredibly difficult. While I have never been a fan of merger of equals in banking, the decision to locate the new headquarters in a third city indicates to me that the management and directors of the two banks are willing to make tough decisions that give the bank the best chance for success. It is a credit to the directors of BB&T and SunTrust that they put community pride behind them and forged a path into the future. Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Q: People speed through our neighborhood at all hours. Is there a way to petition the city to add a speed bump to slow them down? L.R. Answer: The city has a traffic calming policy, which according to Laura Whitaker with the city Department of Transportation provides a process by which residents living in the neighborhoods of Winston-Salem can obtain solutions to traffic issues as they relate to quality of life. You can find details of the traffic calming policies online at www.cityofws.org/departments/transportation/safety/traffic-calming-policy, which has pdf files broken down by categories. In your case, you should select chapter two, which addresses existing neighborhoods. It includes a Traffic Calming Petition that can be printed out and submitted to the DOT. Another option, Whitaker said, is to call City Link at 336-727-8000 and request traffic calming for your neighborhood. Your request will then be forwarded to the appropriate staff member, she said. Q: I read an article in the Journal about the Lobster Dog food truck. Would love to buy one. Where is this truck? S.B. Answer: You can find Lobster Dogs schedule at www.facebook.com/lobsterdogsfoodtruck/ Zagros Madjd-Sadjadi, an economics professor at Winston-Salem State University, said the region and the U.S. economies are definitely overdue for an economic downturn. One of the ironies is that the current trade tensions with China, as well as the current uncertainty in Europe, especially over Brexit, are acting as a brake on our economy so that it does not overheat in the aftermath of corporate and personal tax reform. Yet, Madjd-Sadjadi said the likelihood is increasing for a recession to begin in the second half of the year. The issue for the Triad is that it is uncertain whether we have the right skills mix to effectively rebound when we move from recession to expansion, Madjd-Sadjadi said. We need to realize that it isnt about merely getting economic growth for the region. After all, we can achieve economic growth in one of two ways: we can import our labor force or we can use the labor force we already have. Unless we overhaul how we view economic development through the lens of those already here, we risk perpetuating the problem that we have of being one of the least economically mobile counties in the country. At Woodard & Company, where I am an investment advisor, we have $17 million invested for our clients in T. Rowe Price Blue Chip Growth (TRBCX, 800-638-5660), a terrific fund that is 29 percent tech plus 21 percent health care, managed by Larry Puglia since 1993. Last year, when the S&P 500 fell 5 percent, his fund was up 2 percent. It jumped 11 percent last month when the S&P 500 rose 8 percent. TRBCX has almost doubled for the past five years, averaging 14 percent. One reason I like it so much is that it Puglias fund has five stocks that I own in its top 10 holdings Amazon (AMZN), Microsoft (MSFT), Boeing (BA), Visa (V) and MasterCard (MA). Its top two holdings Amazon at 10 percent and Microsoft at 6 percent combine to make up almost one-sixth of his portfolio. (I think Amazon is a great buy now after reporting stellar earnings January 31 up 61 percent from a year earlier but immediately selling off 5 percent after it gave a somewhat disappointing outlook for this year.) You can buy TRBCX for a minimum of $1,000 in an IRA or $2,500 in a taxable account directly from T. Rowe Price (troweprice.com) or without fees from discount brokerages. The minimum investment that can be automatically deducted monthly from your bank account is only $100. Morningstar awards TRBCX five stars, a ranking that is reserved for the best 10 percent of all funds it rates. The combined bank will have an innovation and technology center as part of its Charlotte headquarters presence to drive digital transformation. The combined bank plans to spend at least $100 million on the digital initiative. King and the combined banks executive management team will move to Charlotte as part of the merger. The banks expect to gain $1.6 billion in annual pre-tax cost savings from the merger, about 12.5 percent of their current combined expenses. Among the major targets are redundant facilities, older information-technology systems, shared services, branches and third-party contracting. For example, BB&T and SunTrust have 740 branches in their current networks nearly one-fourth of a combined network that are within two miles of each other, including in the Triad. It is likely most, if not all, of those scenarios will result in a branch closing. Sharing a vision Although BB&T and SunTrust said they still considered making smaller deals of their own, King said he became less and less interested in them to reach the $400 billion total asset milestone. We were not interested in small purchases because we couldnt make the numbers work, King said. Police were called to the 5900 block of West Chicago Avenue in South Austin about 8 p.m. Saturday after getting reports that an unknown man shot repeatedly into a vehicle, hitting a 25-year-old inside the vehicle, according to police. Three Circles of Hope are seen at a CASA candlelight event in 2014 at St. Joseph School. With 664 children currently in its system, CASA does not have enough volunteers to meet the needs of the area. The Cook County states attorneys office has moved to vacate and dismiss drug charges against 14 men, all of whom were framed by disgraced former Chicago police Sgt. Ronald Watts and members of his tactical team, a news release from the Exoneration Project states. The states attorneys office on Sunday also confirmed, through spokesman Robert Foley, that a hearing for 10 of the men is scheduled for 9 a.m. Monday at the Leighton Criminal Court Building. Four other mens cases are expected to be dismissed at a second hearing scheduled for 9 a.m. Wednesday. The new marketing initiative, created in collaboration with the tourism agency Choose Chicago, already has resulted in unusual international coverage for the Chicago theater. Since the first of the year, for example, articles lauding the size and scope of Chicago theater have appeared in airline magazines in such countries as Colombia and Jordan. Additional international marketing efforts are underway. Today A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Partly cloudy skies. Low near 75F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph. Tonight A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Partly cloudy skies. Low near 75F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph. Tomorrow Sunny skies. High near 105F. Winds WNW at less than 5 mph, becoming S and increasing to 10 to 20 mph. New clauses in China's cyber security laws give the Ministry of Public Security broad powers to carry out on-site of remote inspections of the computer networks of any company with five or more machines connected to the Internet, the security intelligence firm Recorded Future claims. This would allow the copying of user information, the logging of security responses, and checking for vulnerabilities, the company, which has close links with In-Q-Tel, the CIAs investment arm, and Google Ventures, said in a blog post. Additionally, security in the form of the People's Armed Police would attend on-sire inspections to ensure compliance by the company in question. The details of the new laws are relevant in the context of the claims of what China's laws can mandate for companies operating overseas by officials of Chinese telecommunications equipment vendor, Huawei Technologies. The Recorded Future post said the ministry could also conduct remote inspections of PCs to check for vulnerabilities. "For remote inspections, the ministry is able to involve third-party 'cyber security service agencies', increasing the risks of both vulnerability discovery and data leakages," the blog post claimed. The inspections also gave the ministry authority to look for digital content prohibited by China. According to Recorded Future, the new provisions "specify what measures its branches at the county level and above must implement in order to better protect, supervise, and manage cyber security under the CSL [China National Cyber Security Law]". The regulations do not make it mandatory for the ministry to disclose to the company in question what has been collected during an inspection. An officer of the company is required to sign a report prepared by the ministry during an on-site inspection, but this does not apply during a remote inspection. Irish Rail is introducing new staff onboard their trains to tackle antisocial behaviour. The customer service roles will be backed up by security in a bid to create more "peace and comfort" for passengers. The move comes as Iarnrod Eireann have received an increase in antisocial behaviour complaints such as the playing of loud music. 25 were made by passengers last year with 19 of them relating to people playing videos and music without headphones Irish Rail spokesperson, Barry Kenny, says the new positions will help with a number of issues: It is obviously a deterrent and it also acts I suppose as an early warning system that if you have somebody there that can see a situation developing we can get support from our own security personnel or indeed the Gardai if needed as well. "That will be something that will be reassuring about that overwhelming majority of people who travel with us to make sure that their travelling with peace and comfort." The family and friends of an Irish man missing in Malaysia for five weeks are to hold a get together in a bid to raise money to finance a private search for him. Malaysian police authorities are following a number of possible leads in the search for missing tourist, 32-year-old Stephen Warde from Kinvara, Co Galway. Mr Warde was last seen on CCTV footage outside Mercu Summer Suites on Jalan Sultan Ismail in Kuala Lumpur on December 28 last. He last made phone contact with friends and family on New Years Day. It is understood he had been to Malaysia once in the past. His family are offering a 4,400 reward for any information that could lead directly to finding him. Police have already advised his family to hire a private detective to help in the search as they launched a fundraising campaign. In a Facebook post, on the Help Find Stephen Warde in Malaysia the post reads: The friends and relations of Stephens family are holding a meeting in the pier head at 8pm on Tuesday, February 12. The aim of the meeting is to plan fundraising initiatives over the coming weeks in support of the Warde family. The post adds: This is an extremely stressful situation, both emotionally and financially and we are asking anyone who is willing to assist in fundraising to come along and share your ideas. Unfortunately there has been no breakthrough in the investigation to date, however his family are hopeful that the private investigation team can determine Stephens whereabouts. His family would like to thank everyone for kind messages over the last number of weeks - they are determined to find Stephan and hugely grateful for the amazing support which has been shown by everyone. The meeting is to be held in the Pier Head in Kinvara. A gofundme.com fundraising page has also been set-up to help finance the search for him which has so far raised more than 12,000. The young man is described as being a quiet and placid man with dark brown hair, brown eyes, 511 in height, of a heavy set and was last seen wearing a blue and purple T-shirt, khaki shorts and black sneakers. Mr Warde, who works in e-commerce is from a large family, was last, a day before his tenancy was to expire. He had been due to fly to Thailand on the same day. All of his belongings were still in the unit rented by him when searched by police. His mother Mary, brother Donal and two sisters are now in Malaysia assisting in the search for him. It seems to me if the television shows we watch reflect who we are today, we are sadly wasting away intellectually and morally. Real-time social media posts from local businesses and organizations across Northern Virginia, powered by Friends2Follow. To add your business to the stream, email cfields@insidenova.com or click on the green button below. If you're interested in submitting a Letter to the Editor, click here. Submit Two years after the Victims of Crime Engagement hotline was launched, it continues on; its hurdle is to go beyond the political powder keg of the immigration debate and help crime victims. Seen above is a file photo of mourners holding signs during the funeral procession for slain Fiji Indian America police officer Corporal Ronil Singh on Jan. 5, 2019 in Modesto, Calif. Hundreds of police officers from across the country along with members of the public came out to pay their respects after Cpl. Singh was shot and killed by an undocumented immigrant on Dec. 26 following a traffic stop of a fugitive parolee. (Stephen Lam/Getty Images) There is another twist in the controversy over the killing of Tigress T1 aka Avni, the alleged man-eater which was shot dead in Maharashtra's Yavatmal district in November. Just days after the Maharashtra government gave a clean chit to Asghar Ali Khan, the son of shooter Nawab Shafath Ali Khan, a new report suggests the state committee probe found him guilty of unauthorized shooting and killing. It is clear that Asghar Ali Khan is prima facie guilty of unauthorized shooting and killing of T1. He appears to have clandestinely removed the weapons as well as scheduled drugs used in the operation to Hyderabad without informing the authorities. This opens the possibility of such important evidence being tampered with. Therefore, appropriate cases should be immediately registered against Asghar Ali Khan under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, by the forest authorities and under Arms Act, 1959, and the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985, by the police authorities,The Times of India, quoting from the committee's findings reported. BCCL/ FILE The report which was filed on December 5 contradicts the findings of the Forest Development Corporation of Maharashtra which gave a clean chit to Asgar Ali, who shot dead Avni, while only his father Shafath Ali was authorized to do so. FDCM officials had written a letter to the Hyderabad Police Commissioner stating that Asghar Ali has been cleared of all charges. BCCL/FILE It also said that no violations of Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, or Arms Act 1959 is found by Asghar Ali Khan, who was authorized to shoot and he shot T1 in self-defence. Earlier, the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) probe had rejected the self-defence theory. The state committee report was made public only after the controversy over the clean chit to Asgar Ali. BCCL/ FILE It is still unclear if Asgar Ali who has been cleared by one agency will be probed based on the findings of the state committee. Times of India quoting FDCM managing director Dr N Rambabu reported that the investigating officer, who gave the clean chit to Asghar, is not the final authority and the government will take a final call on initiating proceedings against him. Avni, a tigress, which had two cubs was shot dead on November 2 by Asgar Ali, despite various attempts by activists and wildlife enthusiasts to keep her alive. They also claim that the allegation of Avni being a maneater was not established beyond doubt. Photo: Contributed A vigil is being held in Kelowna to remember indigenous women, girls and two-spirited people who have been murdered or gone missing. Everyone in Kelowna is invited to attend on Feb. 14 at the steps of the Kelowna Law Courts at 5 p.m. The Native Womens Association of Canada has worked for more than four decades to document the systemic violence impacting Indigenous women, girls, their families, and communities. Throughout our work, NWAC believed the violence against Indigenous women to be much more pervasive than publicly available data would indicate, said a spokesperson. This suspicion was confirmed in 2013, when the RCMP released a report revealing 1,181 cases of missing or murdered Indigenous women and girls. Each year, the vigil is held on Valentines Day to honour Indigenous women, trans and two-spirit people, who have perished as a consequence of physical, mental, spiritual and emotional violence. The evening will start with an opening prayer and then move to the Kelowna Regional Library for a meal and speeches. Attendees are asked to wear red and more details can be found here. remaining of Thank you for Reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading. In January, we were greeted with a nationwide unemployment rate of 4 percent after adding 5.3 million jobs since the 2016 election. This is the 11th consecutive month with an unemployment rate at or below 4 percent. As more people head back to work, we have seen historic lows of unemployment across almost all demographics, including among African Americans whose unemployment rate is the lowest since 1972. And come April, 15th the increased Child Tax Credit will allow parents to get an extra $1,000 on their tax returns double the credit from 2017. If thats not real progress, I dont know what is. As a voice for veterans and representative of Fort Bragg, I was also glad to see President Trump highlight the importance of a strong national defense and re-up his commitment to our troops and their families both during and after their service. Finally, the President laid out a strong stance on immigration, calling for Democrats and Republicans to come to the table in a bipartisan manner during his State of the Union. I think its just plain common sense that we must do everything we can to stop human trafficking, the flow of drugs and illegal immigration across our border. This is an issue that Republicans and Democrats have put off for thirty years the time to act is now. Merde, I said under my breath. If we need to take one every hour and theres seven of us. Think, think, think. Were going to need like five-hundred of these to last us three days I internally concluded. So thats what we purchased. At approximately $7 a head, we walked out of that pharmacy with a jar of wake-up pills. Each of us took two tablets to shake off the cobwebs. And within minutes, our eyes no longer had visible corneas. All anyone could see when they looked at us were black pupils peering out into space. We were free of physical limitations, and felt like we were floating within our surroundings. Everything appeared to be happening in slow motion and the exhaustion which had been our kryptonite was gone. Still to this day, I have my doubts on whether we actually received caffeine tablets from that little old man. Nevertheless, if we were bamboozled, we collectively stood together and accepted the consequences of our erroneous decision. Perhaps one can argue that we should have known better. But to that I say, we were exhausted teenagers in a strange land who trusted and respected our elders to watch over us. Notwithstanding, on a positive note, our fatigue was quickly and absolutely eradicated. We were now all full of aggressive energy which did limit our ability to accurately perceive reality. Royal Bank of Scotland is set to book its second consecutive year of annual profits next week, providing further impetus for the Government to continue selling down its stake in the lender. A consensus of City analysts is forecasting the bank will see bottom line profits nearly double from 752 million last year to 1.4 billion when it reports on Friday. It will mark the banks second year in the black following a decade-long run of stinging losses, during a period marred by crisis-era legacy and conduct charges. RBS shares have already rallied by 23% over the past two months. Ian Gordon However, under chief executive Ross McEwans stewardship, the bank drew a line under the last of the major misconduct settlements in August, reaching a 4.9 billion US dollar (3.7 billion) agreement with US authorities over alleged mis-selling of residential mortgage-backed securities. Moreover, the 62.4%-taxpayer owned lender has recently gained shareholder approval that allows it to buy back up to 1.5 billion worth of shares from the Treasury. The move, which aims to speed up its privatisation and deploy excess capital, permits RBS to purchase up to 4.99% of the Governments stake in any one year. The banks shares have rallied since December and Ian Gordon, analyst at Investec, believes another upward spurt could see the Treasury offload another tranche. He said: RBS shares have already rallied by 23% over the past two months. Its (almost) time for the UK Government to leave. Another circa 10% or so and we suspect that it will become a willing seller again. Chancellor Philip Hammond said in his Autumn Statement that the Government plans to dispose of its stake in full by 2024, but Investec is pencilling in an exit by 2023. This is based on the assumption of directed share buybacks of 4.99% per year, supplemented by yearly market placings by the Government of 3 billion. Mr Gordon also believes that RBS will declare a 10p special dividend alongside its results. RBS has been majority taxpayer owned since 2008, when it received a 45 billion bailout at the height of the financial crisis. The Treasury plans to sell its stake by 2024 but is expected to lose billions in the process. RBS was bailed out at 502p per share but its stock is trading at around 240p today. Another area of focus at the results will be Brexit. RBS shares were dented in October after third quarter result showed a 100 million charge to reflect the more uncertain economic outlook in Britain ahead of March 29. Observers will be listening intently to Mr McEwans words for any further warning signals. Analysts at The Share Centre said: After a poor 2018 the share price has regained some upward momentum this year. Investors will be hoping for better news on revenues and impairments over the final quarter. Other areas of interest will be the groups outlook, especially relating to Brexit, future dividend policy and any further news on buying back shares from the Government. Supporters wait for U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) at a rally to launch her campaign for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination in Lawrence, Massachusetts, U.S., February 9, 2019. REUTERS/Brian Snyder U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and her husband Bruce arrive with their dog Bailey for a rally to launch her campaign for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination in Lawrence, Massachusetts, U.S., February 9, 2019. REUTERS/Brian Snyder Supporters wait for U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) at a rally to launch her campaign for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination in Lawrence, Massachusetts, U.S., February 9, 2019. REUTERS/Brian Snyder U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) takes the stage at a rally to launch her campaign for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination in Lawrence, Massachusetts, U.S., February 9, 2019. REUTERS/Brian Snyder Supporters wait for U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) at a rally to launch her campaign for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination in Lawrence, Massachusetts, U.S., February 9, 2019. REUTERS/Brian Snyder Supporters listen as U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) speaks at a rally to launch her campaign for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination in Lawrence, Massachusetts, U.S., February 9, 2019. REUTERS/Brian Snyder U.S. Representative Joe Kennedy III (D-MA) hugs U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) as she takes the stage at a rally to launch her campaign for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination in Lawrence, Massachusetts, U.S., February 9, 2019. REUTERS/Brian Snyder U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) speaks at a rally to launch her campaign for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination in Lawrence, Massachusetts, U.S., February 9, 2019. REUTERS/Brian Snyder U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) speaks at a rally to launch her campaign for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination in Lawrence, Massachusetts, U.S., February 9, 2019. REUTERS/Brian Snyder TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY Potential 2020 Democratic presidential nomination candidate U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) waves at the crowd ahead of a campaign rally in Lawrence, Massachusetts, U.S. February 9, 2019. REUTERS/Brian Snyder A worker takes down bunting after U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) held a rally at Everett Mills to launch her campaign for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination in Lawrence, Massachusetts, U.S., February 9, 2019. REUTERS/Brian Snyder Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., waves to supporters as she takes the stage during an event to formally launch her presidential campaign, Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019, in Lawrence, Mass. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola) Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., speaks during an event to formally launch her presidential campaign, Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019, in Lawrence, Mass. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola) Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., acknowledges cheers as she takes the stage during an event to formally launch her presidential campaign, Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019, in Lawrence, Mass. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola) US Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren has officially launched her bid for the 2020 presidency with a call to fight economic inequality and build "an America that works for everyone". Ms Warren delivered a sharp call for change at her presidential kick-off, decrying a "middle-class squeeze" that has left Americans crunched with "too little accountability for the rich, too little opportunity for everyone else". She and her backers hope that message can distinguish her in a crowded Democratic field and help her move past the controversy surrounding her past claims to Native American heritage. Weaving specific policy prescriptions into her remarks, from Medicare for All to the elimination of Washington "lobbying as we know it", Ms Warren avoided taking direct jabs at President Donald Trump. Expand Close Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., speaks during an event to formally launch her presidential campaign, Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019, in Lawrence, Mass. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., speaks during an event to formally launch her presidential campaign, Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019, in Lawrence, Mass. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola) She aimed for a broader institutional shift instead, urging supporters to choose "a government that makes different choices, choices that reflect our values". Mr Trump "is not the cause of what's broken," Ms Warren told an elated crowd in Lawrence, in her home state of Massachusetts, without using the president's name. Expand Close Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., waves to supporters as she takes the stage during an event to formally launch her presidential campaign, Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019, in Lawrence, Mass. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., waves to supporters as she takes the stage during an event to formally launch her presidential campaign, Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019, in Lawrence, Mass. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola) "He's just the latest - and most extreme - symptom of what's gone wrong in America." In a tweet, Mr Trump referenced the controversy over her Native American identity, once again using the insulting nickname he has given her. "Today Elizabeth Warren, sometimes referred to by me as Pocahontas, joined the race for President," Mr Trump tweeted. "Will she run as our first Native American presidential candidate, or has she decided that after 32 years, this is not playing so well anymore? See you on the campaign TRAIL, Liz!" Expand Close Potential 2020 Democratic presidential nomination candidate U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) waves at the crowd ahead of a campaign rally in Lawrence, Massachusetts, U.S. February 9, 2019. REUTERS/Brian Snyder / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Potential 2020 Democratic presidential nomination candidate U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) waves at the crowd ahead of a campaign rally in Lawrence, Massachusetts, U.S. February 9, 2019. REUTERS/Brian Snyder Asked to explain the tweet's reference to "the campaign TRAIL", the White House did not respond. Supporters turned out in below-freezing temperatures, many hoisting signs - "Win With Warren," one read. Expand Close U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) speaks at a rally to launch her campaign for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination in Lawrence, Massachusetts, U.S., February 9, 2019. REUTERS/Brian Snyder TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) speaks at a rally to launch her campaign for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination in Lawrence, Massachusetts, U.S., February 9, 2019. REUTERS/Brian Snyder TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY A Massachusetts bakery created "Persist" cookies for the event to honour the candidate's slogan, "Nevertheless, She Persisted," words first spoken in the Senate to rebuke her. Asked if fellow New Englander Senator Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent, could pose a serious threat to Ms Warren in New Hampshire's critical primary should he get into the race, longtime backer Carlos Garcia said Ms Warren is "such an effective communicator that I think that people will respond to that very well". Ms Warren went straight from her kick-off to New Hampshire, home to the nation's first primary, where her campaign projected that 350 people turned out for an event in the city of Dover. She plans to spend Sunday in Iowa, where the lead-off caucuses will be the first test of candidates' viability. Ms Warren enters the race as one of the party's most recognisable figures. She has spent the past decade in the national spotlight, first emerging as a consumer activist during the financial crisis. She later led the congressional panel that oversaw the 2008 financial industry bailout. After Republicans blocked her from running the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, an agency she helped create, she ran for the Senate in 2012 and unseated a Republican incumbent. This frame grab from video posted online Friday, Jan. 18, 2019, by supporters of the Islamic State group, purports to show an IS fighter driving a car bomb during clashes with members of the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, in the eastern Syrian province of Deir el-Zour, Syria. s they cling to the tiny remains of what was once a self-styled caliphate spanning two countries, IS militants are laying the groundwork for an insurgency. (Militant Photo via AP) This frame grab from video posted online Friday, Jan. 18, 2019, by supporters of the Islamic State group, purports to show an IS fighter firing a weapon during clashes with members of the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, in the eastern Syrian province of Deir el-Zour, Syria. (Militant Photo via AP) This frame grab from video posted online Friday, Jan. 18, 2019, by supporters of the Islamic State group, purports to show a gun-mounted Islamic State group vehicle firing at members of the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, in the eastern Syrian province of Deir el-Zour, Syria. s they cling to the tiny remains of what was once a self-styled caliphate spanning two countries, IS militants are laying the groundwork for an insurgency. (Militant Photo via AP) Lebanese general security member holds Syrian refugee children, who fled to Lebanon, as they wait for buses to go back to Syria from the southern village of Shebaa, Lebanon April 18, 2018. REUTERS/Aziz Taher/File Photo Fighters from Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are seen after arresting a wounded man during their fighting with Islamic State in the northern area of Deir al-Zor, Syria September 24,2017. REUTERS/ Rodi Said/File Photo The U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) began an assault against the final Islamic State enclave in eastern Syria on Saturday, aiming to wipe out the last vestige of the jihadist group's "caliphate" in the SDF's area of operations. President Donald Trump, who is planning to pull U.S. forces out of Syria, said on Wednesday he expected an announcement as early as next week that the U.S.-led coalition operating in support of the SDF had reclaimed all the territory previously held by the jihadist group. The enclave is close to the Iraqi border and comprises two villages, though Islamic State (IS) also still has territory in the part of Syria that is mostly under the control of the Russian- and Iranian-backed Syrian government. SDF official Mustafa Bali, speaking to Reuters, described the assault as "the last battle". He later wrote on Twitter that the attack had started and the enclave would "be cleared soon". Expand Close Internally displaced Syrian children who fled Raqqa city stand near their tent in Ras al-Ain province, Syria, January 22, 2017. REUTERS/Rodi Said//File Photo / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Internally displaced Syrian children who fled Raqqa city stand near their tent in Ras al-Ain province, Syria, January 22, 2017. REUTERS/Rodi Said//File Photo The SDF had handled the last 10 days "patiently" as more than 20,000 civilians were evacuated from the besieged IS enclave, Bali said. Senior SDF official Redur Xelil told Reuters the force hoped to capture the area by the end of February, but cautioned that IS would continue to pose "great and serious" security threats even after that. Expand Close Newly displaced Syrian children arrive to a refugee camp in Atimah village, Idlib province, Syria September 11, 2018. REUTERS/ Khalil Ashawi/File Photo / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Newly displaced Syrian children arrive to a refugee camp in Atimah village, Idlib province, Syria September 11, 2018. REUTERS/ Khalil Ashawi/File Photo Islamic State redrew the map of the Middle East in 2014 when it declared a caliphate across large areas of Syria and Iraq. But the group steadily lost ground and its two main prizes - the Syrian city of Raqqa and Iraq's Mosul - fell in 2017. Two U.S. security sources said the U.S. governments top experts strongly believe IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is still alive and possibly hiding in Iraq. Spearheaded by the Kurdish YPG militia, the SDF has been the main U.S. partner in Syria and has driven Islamic State out of a swathe of the north and east over the last four years. After capturing Raqqa, the SDF advanced southwards into Deir al-Zor province, attacking the jihadists in territory on the eastern bank of the Euphrates River. Expand Close Lebanese general security member holds Syrian refugee children, who fled to Lebanon, as they wait for buses to go back to Syria from the southern village of Shebaa, Lebanon April 18, 2018. REUTERS/Aziz Taher/File Photo / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Lebanese general security member holds Syrian refugee children, who fled to Lebanon, as they wait for buses to go back to Syria from the southern village of Shebaa, Lebanon April 18, 2018. REUTERS/Aziz Taher/File Photo The remaining Islamic State territory in Syria is west of the Euphrates. Trump said in December he was pulling all 2,000 U.S. troops out of Syria, saying the battle against Islamic State there was almost won. Expand Close This frame grab from video posted online Friday, Jan. 18, 2019, by supporters of the Islamic State group, purports to show a gun-mounted Islamic State group vehicle firing at members of the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, in the eastern Syrian province of Deir el-Zour, Syria. s they cling to the tiny remains of what was once a self-styled caliphate spanning two countries, IS militants are laying the groundwork for an insurgency. (Militant Photo via AP) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp This frame grab from video posted online Friday, Jan. 18, 2019, by supporters of the Islamic State group, purports to show a gun-mounted Islamic State group vehicle firing at members of the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, in the eastern Syrian province of Deir el-Zour, Syria. s they cling to the tiny remains of what was once a self-styled caliphate spanning two countries, IS militants are laying the groundwork for an insurgency. (Militant Photo via AP) But a top U.S. general said on Tuesday the group would pose an enduring threat following the U.S. withdrawal, as it retained leaders, fighters, facilitators and resources that would fuel a menacing insurgency. The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that the U.S. military was preparing to withdraw from Syria by the end of April. A U.S. official confirmed that target date to Reuters, saying the withdrawal included a pull-out from the U.S. military base at Tanf, near the Syrian border with Iraq and Jordan. The U.S.-led coalition has said it is not discussing the timeline of the U.S. withdrawal from Syria. France's pro-EU government and Italy's populist leaders sparred anew this weekend, as business giants from both countries appealed for calm amid the neighbours' biggest diplomatic spat since World War II. France said the recall of its ambassador from Italy was a temporary move - but an important signal to its historical ally not to meddle in French internal affairs. In Italy, the deputy prime minister who is the focus of French anger stood his ground, renewing criticism of France's foreign policy - in what is largely seen as electioneering in advance of the European Parliament elections in late May. France and Italy are founding members of the European Union, born from the ashes of World War II, and their unusual dispute is rippling around the Continent at a time of growing tensions between nationalist and pro-EU forces. French officials said the recall of the French ambassador was prompted by months of "unfounded attacks" from Italian government members Luigi Di Maio and Matteo Salvini, who have criticised French President Emmanuel Macron's economic and migration policies. But the main trigger for the crisis appeared to be Di Maio's meeting in a Paris suburb last week with members of the yellow vests - the French anti-government movement seeking seats in the European Parliament. French government spokesman Benjamin Griveaux said the visit violated "the most elementary diplomacy" because it was unannounced. Referring to Italy's populist leaders, he criticised a "nationalist leprosy" eating away at Europe's unity and said EU members should "behave better toward partners". A participant in the meeting, French activist Marc Doyer, said it was initiated by Di Maio's populist Five Star Movement which wanted to share advice on how to build a "citizens' movement". Doyer said it provided useful technical and other guidance to potential yellow vest candidates and their supporters, and called the diplomatic spat an overreaction. "It's a political game by certain people," he said. "Free movement exists in Europe, and the meeting didn't cost the French taxpayer anything." Di Maio said he had done nothing wrong by meeting with the yellow vest protesters without informing the French government. A borderless Europe "shouldn't just be about allowing free circulation of merchandise and people, but also the free circulation of political forces that have a European outlook", he said in a Facebook video while visiting Abruzzo. Di Maio again blamed France for policies in African countries that he said had impeded their growth and fuelled the flight of economic migrants to Europe. He also implicitly blamed Paris for the chaos in Libya that has led to years of instability and the growth of migrant-smuggling networks following France's involvement in the Nato-led operation in 2011 that ousted former Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi from power. Italian transport minister Danilo Toninelli, meanwhile, offered France's yellow vest movement technical advice on launching a version of the Five Star Movement's online portal, which allows registered party members to vote on policy decisions and candidates. As the diplomatic spat simmered, a French yellow vest activist known for his extremist views held a gathering last Friday in the Italian city of San Remo. The stand-off was clearly sending jitters through Europe's business world, given that the two countries are top trading partners and powerhouses of the EU economy. A pressing concern in Italy is the future of struggling national carrier Alitalia, amid rumoured interest from Air France in some form of partnership. Associated Press Digital challenger bank Tide has backed calls for a tribunal system for small businesses to settle disputes with their lenders, but said that increasing competition in the banking sector would go further in protecting firms. It comes after the influential Treasury committee recommended the creation of a financial services tribunal with stronger powers to provide redress for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that have been unfairly treated, but was rebuffed by the Government. It prefers an ombudsman-style approach rather than a tribunal to resolve disputes. Oliver Prill, chief executive of Tide, an SME specialist bank, told the Press Association that he supported further regulation of the SME lending market, including a tribunal, but that greater competition would address many of the issues in the banking sector. We are very open to regulation of lending, we're very open to the idea of the tribunal. The only thing we're saying, make it very pragmatic, right? And, you know, make it digital friendlyOliver Prill, Tide chief executive We are very open to regulation of lending, were very open to the idea of the tribunal. The only thing were saying, make it very pragmatic, right? And, you know, make it digital friendly. But beyond that, I think, if thats what it takes, you know, do it but also think of making the market more competitive, because then you wouldnt have as many of these problems in the first place. Calls for greater regulation for SMEs follows scandals at the Royal Bank of Scotland and HBOS in the wake of the financial crisis. RBSs now-defunct Global Restructuring Group (GRG) was accused of pushing small businesses towards failure in order to pick up assets on the cheap. While fraud at the Reading branch of HBOS, which was acquired by Lloyds, saw corrupt financiers jailed over a 245 million loans scam which destroyed several businesses. Mr Prill said the threat of losing customers would motivate the big high street banks to treat customers fairly, but not many SME customers were switching lenders. The [banking] oligopoly in particular can get away with this sort of behaviour without SME customers massively leaving them not talking about the ones that are affected, but those that are saying oh, well, this is how they are treating other SMEs I better move on before they treat me like that. Given thats not happening, there clearly needs to be intervention and Im saying, you know, if the intervention is at a level where it is not business inhibiting. But things like, you know, a tribunal, why not right? If thats what it needs to overcome this market barrier, but we would strongly argue do all of that, but at the same time make the market more competitive because that way all the banks would have a real incentive not to behave that way because otherwise, they lose customers. In a bid to boost competition in the banking sector, RBS launched an alternative remedies package, which is part of conditions attached to its 45 billion Government bailout a decade ago. Tide partnered with ClearBank to bid for a share of the capability and innovation fund that forms part of the package and winners of the first round are to be announced at the end of February. The company, founded in 2015, is one of a host of digital-only banks that have launched in recent years with the aim of taking market share from high street stalwarts. It has more than 60,000 customers, and currently has 1.1% of the SME market. Tide hopes that, if successful in obtaining the RBS grant, the company will be able to increase its share of the market to up to 10% to 16% in five years. Chelsea Powrie It was a cold, windy Saturday in the Okanagan, and weather forecasts indicate that pattern is likely to persist in the coming days. "Windy spots such as Penticton and south of there will be continuing with that [wind] overnight, weakening through Sunday," said Lisa Erven, meteorologist with Environment Canada. "For the southern half [of the valley], still lingering on to some of those stronger winds at least through Sunday morning, and even some light, moderate winds throughout the day on Sunday." Erven said the heavy winds seen Saturday are related to a larger weather system affecting the coast as well. "We've had a pretty intense arctic front move through pretty much all of B.C., brought us back into those really frigid temperatures, we've got strong winds coming from the coast," Erven explained. "Pretty much all related to the same system." Erven said a combination of pressure systems brought the winds to the Okanagan Valley. "Also we've had a fairly significant change in the air mass from cold to frigid so that also can help intensify the strength of the winds," she said. As far as temperatures go, it looks like the Okanagan is in for more cold. "We remain under this trough of cold air, looking at most of the next week here," Erven said, citing temperatures in the -8 C range for Kelowna in the coming days. She said that's unusual for the region this time of year. "Typically around this time of year we have an average high of about 1 C, so we're in that range of about eight to 10 degrees below normal," she said. Cloud cover is expected to come in over the Okanagan throughout Sunday and into Monday. -With files from Nich Johansen A powerful "mafia-like" syndicate operating within the Himalayan trekking industry is threatening to derail a government investigation into a scam involving the poisoning of tourists. It was revealed last year that parts of the tourist industry had conspired to poison hikers to reap insurance payouts for costly and unnecessary airlifts from Everest and other peaks. An alliance of international insurers threatened to pull cover for the country by Friday if its government did not crack down on the elaborate scam. However, government and industry officials told reporters that authorities may be so intertwined with a corrupt network that any investigation would be likely to be a whitewash. "The government does not seem so serious about investigating because it is trapped by the mafias of the tourism sector," said Speed Kaji Sherpa, the Everest speed-climbing record holder and vice-president of Nepal Mountaineers. He said Sherpa guides were so upset by government inaction that many were ready to go on hunger strike. Ang Tshering Sherpa, another high-profile community leader, described the "rescue racket" in Business 360 magazine as one of the "biggest evils" facing the tourism industry. An initial expose last year revealed that in extreme cases, guides had spiked the food of vulnerable trekkers with large amounts of baking soda, which can cause vomiting and diarrhoea, to coerce them into rescues. According to The Kathmandu Post, other disclosures in the report, which was not made public, included unscrupulous tour operators making multiple claims for a single helicopter ride, and inflating the costs of travel and medical treatment. One insurance company was reportedly billed 86,000 after an agent issued two bills for the same rescue. An example of a $24,000 invoice for minor treatment in a hospital was also cited. The authorities have confirmed that rescue fraud exists, but are keen to downplay its overall impact. Krishna Prasad Devkota, secretary of Nepal's ministry of culture, tourism and civil aviation, claimed the number of rescues had fallen since the fraud was exposed. But he acknowledged that "high-profile" people were involved in the scam and were being investigated by police and tax authorities. However, in a frank admission, he implied that Nepal's political instability may be hampering progress and that his own job could be on the line. "I will not be silent... when I am sitting in this chair, I cannot afford any compromise," he said. But he added: "Maybe they will try to sack me." The ultimatum for insurers to pull out of the region by Friday came from Traveller Assist, a Dublin-based medical assistance company representing three global insurance underwriters. Jonathan Bancroft, its managing director, said his firm had "identified two clear networks of fraudulent providers" controlled by "only 10 very influential people with close ties to the government". The scam cost insurers millions, placing the safety of countless travellers in jeopardy, he said. The Nepalese government produced a 700-page report in September. However, Mr Bancroft said that despite a tourism ministry pledge to "eliminate" intermediaries who cheated tourists, "not a single charge has yet been laid". He added: "Please don't be under any illusion that the fraud has stopped. It has not." Traveller Assist said more than 1,600 helicopter rescues had occurred in Nepal from January to August last year. Of 1,000 invoices issued to insurers during that period, it alleged that 34pc were fraudulent and the company calculated that this had cost insurers some $4m in losses. Telegraph Telegraph Media Group Limited [2021] Seven jihadists have been sentenced to life in prison in Tunisia over attacks at a museum and a beach resort in 2015. Sixty people, mostly tourists, died in the two attacks and many were wounded. Among the casualties were three Irish people - Co Westmeath couple Laurence Hayes (56) and his wife Martina Hayes (55), plus Co Meath woman Lorna Carty (54), who were shot dead in the attack on a tourist resort in Sousse in June 2015, which left 38 people dead. Some of the many defendants received lesser sentences and 27 were acquitted. Prosecutors plan to appeal. The first attack, at the Bardo Museum in Tunis in March 2015 killed 22. Three months later, the 38 tourists were shot dead at the Port El Kantaoui, resort near Sousse. There were two separate trials. In the Sousse trial, four militants were given life sentences, while five others were sentenced to between six months and 16 years. In the Bardo trial, three defendants received life terms and a number of others were jailed for shorter periods. Ten were acquitted. The Isil terror group said it carried out the attacks. The man believed to have planned both, Chamseddine al-Sandi, remains at large. Unconfirmed reports suggest he may have died in a US air strike in February 2016 in Libya. The Bardo attack took place on March 18, when two gunmen in military uniforms stormed the National Bardo Museum, near the city's parliament buildings, where anti-terrorism legislation was under discussion. Twenty-two people, including 17 tourists, were killed. Among the dead were citizens from Japan, Italy, Colombia, Australia, France, Poland and Spain. Two Tunisians, one a police officer, were also killed. More than 40 people were injured. The attackers, both Tunisian citizens, were killed by police. Three months later, on June 26, Tunisian electronics student Seifeddine Rezgui, opened fire on tourists staying in the resort of Port El Kantaoui, just north of Sousse. Rezgui was dropped off down a side road, a short distance from the beach, and walked the rest of the way with a Kalashnikov rifle hidden in a parasol. When he arrived at the five-star Hotel Riu Imperial Marhaba, he opened fire at tourists on sun loungers on the beach. As holidaymakers fled for their lives, the gunman continued his attack, entering the hotel complex via the pool area. He killed 38 people before fleeing in to the streets, where he was shot by police. A state of emergency has been in place in Tunisia since the attacks. The nation's tourism industry was badly hit, but it has shown signs of recovery in the past year with travel bans lifted by several countries. There has also been progress in combating jihadists, but the militants still pose a potent threat while the endemic problems of chronic unemployment and lack of economic opportunity persist. Associated Press "We can't wake mammy up." They were the words that roused Brian Dowling from his slumber and threw his family into a nightmare. Only hours before, he had been speaking to his mother Rosie, a sparkling 61-year-old in full health. Her final words to him were:"Goodnight son, we'll talk in the morning." Sudden Adult Death Syndrome (SADS) is so prevalent that at least one person under the age of 35 dies from it in Ireland every week. With no symptoms or prior warning, the only way you can prevent unnecessary death is through screening in clinics such as the Mater's Family Heart Clinic. The shock of losing his mother and best friend left the TV presenter and former Big Brother star in a state of trauma. On his own in LA, he says: "For the next 24 hours I couldn't tell you what I did. At one point my lips started to turn blue, I was going into shock." In a bittersweet coincidence, the week before, Brian and his mother had spoken about her last wishes. "She had just cooked the Sunday roast for us all and I was sitting with her in the kitchen at home in Rathangan. "She said [if she died] she wanted lots of flowers and that she didn't want any of us to wear black - only colour. And a week later she was dead." Describing his mother as "an amazing person" with "a wicked sense of humour", he says: "I am so lucky I have a great husband, great friends and a great family but it can be very hard. "Grief can be very dangerous," he explains. "It's tricky. And I think you have it forever. You just learn to live with it." He goes on: "It can send you into a dark place where you just feel despair and you feel kind of lonely. I think it has changed me as a person. Whereas before I would have been quite patient, now I don't think I am as tolerant because I think maybe I am just p*ssed off. I am frustrated with what has happened. And that is why you have to be careful with who you become - because you're never going to be the same person." He says: "You define yourself in how you deal with it and I have to deal with it the best way I can. I know Mum would never want - for any of us - for it to be so destroying that it would affect our lives. She would want us to get out there and get it together and live." On dealing with her absence, he says: "I talk to her, which is the stupidest thing, and people are going to read this and go 'oh my god Brian Dowling is mad'," he laughs. "But we have pictures of her on the wall, my sisters won't know this, but what I do is that I would go to the kitchen and walk up to the picture. The one question I ask is always 'why' and then I always say goodnight to her and I put my finger on my lips and I put it to her picture." It took 10 months after her death for it to finally sink in: "Christmas was fine and then [my husband and I] went to New York and then on New Year's Eve I just woke up and it was almost like I had taken some kind of medication. I felt different. I didn't feel like me. And I just broke down and I cried, I mean proper shaking, sobbing, crying. "It just hit me that she is not going to wish me happy new year, she is never going to remind me to put my clock back and forward like she always used to do. I am never going to get a message from her again. She will never call me when I am home again on my Irish phone. But once I let it out, I felt better." Despite the loss, Brian says he and his six younger sisters shared such a special bond with their mum that it has left him with no remorse for the past. "I have no regrets. Not one. And I can say that with a smile on my face because our mum to us was a queen. We would bring her to the cinema, we would bring her shopping for clothes for special occasions, she came everywhere with us, she was like our special buddy." With the one year anniversary of his mother's death approaching, Brian and his family have organised ''A Run For Rosie'', which takes place in Rathangan on February 24 with proceeds going to funding the Family Heart Screening Clinic. Since 2007, more than 11,000 people at risk have been screened, with 30pc of families tested found to have a potential inherited cardiac disease. However, the clinic receives limited government funding and is heavily reliant on public donations. Donations can be sent directly to The Mater Foundation, the official fundraising body of The Mater Hospital on www.materfoundation.ie Deaths by SADS "are so needless," says Brian, "go and get yourself tested". Cynthia Erivo arrives at the British Academy of Film and Television Awards REUTERS/Henry Nicholls Luke Evans arrives at the BAFTAS at the Royal Albert Hall in London REUTERS/Henry Nicholls Edith Bowman arrives at the 72nd British Academy Film Awards held at the Royal Albert Hall, Kensington Gore, Kensington, London. Photo: Ian West/PA Wire Lily Collins arrives at the British Academy of Film and Television Awards at the Royal Albert Hall in London REUTERS/Henry Nicholls Eleanor Tomlinson arrives at the British Academy of Film and Television Awards at the Royal Albert Hall in London REUTERS/Henry Nicholls Thandie Newton arrives at the British Academy of Film and Television Awards REUTERS/Henry Nicholls Glenn Close arrives at the British Academy of Film and Television Awards REUTERS/Toby Melville Laura Whitmore arrives at the 72nd British Academy Film Awards held at the Royal Albert Hall, Kensington Gore, Kensington, London. Photo: Jonathan Brady/PA Wire US actress Glenn Close and British actor Jonathan Pryce pose on the red carpet upon arrival at the BAFTAS (Photo by Tolga AKMEN / AFP)TOLGA AKMEN/AFP/Getty Images Britain's Prince William and Kate Middleton arrive at the BAFTAS Photo credit: Ian West/PA Wire The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge attend the British Academy Film Awards (Bafta) at the Royal Albert Hall, London, to meet Bafta representatives and watch the ceremony prior to the Duke presenting the Fellowship award Kate Middleton, Margot Robbie, Amy Adams and Irina Shayk were among those who wowed on the red carpet for the BAFTA Awards. The 37-year-old royal looked beautiful as she walked down the red carpet at the annual film awards ceremony at the Royal Albert Hall in London on Sunday night, alongside her husband Prince William, who is the President of BAFTA. Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close Margot Robbie attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Ian West/PA Wire Rachel Weisz attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Ian West/PA Wire Britain's Prince William and Kate Middleton arrive at the BAFTAS Photo credit: Ian West/PA Wire Barry Keoghan and Shona Guerin attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Ian West/PA Wire Olivia Colman attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Jonathan Brady/PA Wire US actress Glenn Close and British actor Jonathan Pryce pose on the red carpet upon arrival at the BAFTAS (Photo by Tolga AKMEN / AFP)TOLGA AKMEN/AFP/Getty Images Irina Shayk attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Ian West/PA Wire Amy Adams (PA) Lily Collins attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Ian West/PA Wire Michelle Yeoh attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Jonathan Brady/PA Wire Claire Foy attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Ian West/PA Wire Irina Shayk attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Jonathan Brady/PA Wire British actor Richard E. Grant poses on the red carpet with his wife Joan Washington upon arrival at the BAFTA British Academy Film Awards Photo by Tolga AKMEN / AFP)TOLGA AKMEN/AFP/Getty Images Salma Hayek attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Ian West/PA Wire Melissa McCarthy attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Ian West/PA Wire Thandie Newton arrives at the BAFTAS at the Royal Albert Hall in London REUTERS/Henry Nicholls Maya Jama (PA) Octavia Spencer attends the British Academy Film Awards at Royal Albert Hall (Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images) Laura Whitmore attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Jonathan Brady/PA Wire Millie Mackintosh attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Jonathan Brady/PA Wire Lily Collins arrives at the British Academy of Film and Television Awards at the Royal Albert Hall in London REUTERS/Henry Nicholls Eleanor Tomlinson arrives at the British Academy of Film and Television Awards at the Royal Albert Hall in London REUTERS/Henry Nicholls LONDON, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 10: Brian May attends the EE British Academy Film Awards at Royal Albert Hall on February 10, 2019 in London, England. (Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images) Laura Harrier attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Jonathan Brady/PA Wire Cynthia Erivo arrives at the British Academy of Film and Television Awards REUTERS/Henry Nicholls Joanne Tucker and Adam Driver attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Ian West/PA Wire Glenn Close arrives at the British Academy of Film and Television Awards REUTERS/Toby Melville Chiwetel Ejiofor attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Ian West/PA Wire Mary J. Blige attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Jonathan Brady/PA Wire Luke Evans arrives at the BAFTAS at the Royal Albert Hall in London REUTERS/Henry Nicholls Thandie Newton arrives at the British Academy of Film and Television Awards REUTERS/Henry Nicholls Jamie Bell (left) and Taron Egerton attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Ian West/PA Wire Edith Bowman attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Jonathan Brady/PA Wire Dermot O'Leary attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Ian West/PA Wire Laura Whitmore attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Ian West/PA Wire Tiziana Rocca attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Ian West/PA Wire The cast of Cirque du Soleil's TOTEM attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Ian West/PA Wire / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Margot Robbie attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Ian West/PA Wire The one-shoulder gown worn by the Duchess of Cambridge was accessorised with diamond-drop earrings and silver high heels, whilst her husband, the Duke of Cambridge, looked sharp in a suit. Elsewhere, actress Lily Collins opted for a blue tailored shirt, which she paired with a sheer lace skirt and matching shoes. Amy Adams wore a red ballgown, which was cinched in at the waist with a matching belt. The dress was embellished on the right shoulder and was teamed with sparkling jewellery and matching shoes. If there was an award for the most showstopping outfit, it would have to go to Cynthia Erivo, who impressed in a stunning gown and train that covered the red carpet. And Margot Robbie made sure all eyes were on her when she stepped onto the red carpet with a sparkly dress, complete with accentuated black sleeves. She let the dress do the talking, keeping her jewellery simple with just her wedding ring on her left hand on display. Expand Close Irina Shayk attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Ian West/PA Wire / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Irina Shayk attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards Photo credit: Ian West/PA Wire Irina Shayk - who was there to support her partner Bradley Cooper, who is up for Best Director and Best Actor for 'A Star Is Born' at the awards ceremony - went for a formal look as she wore a black low-cut suit, which she teamed with a black necklace and black embellished shoes. When it came to the men, director Spike Lee stood out in a purple suit, complete with bright gold shoes whilst Best Supporting Actor nominee Timothee Chalamet wowed in a vibrant and bold printed suit jacket. Sir - I read with interest Willie Kealy's article (Sunday Independent, February 3) where he described accurately the work of the SDLP, with John Hume at the helm, through the difficult years in Northern politics. He describes so well how John and his deputy Seamus Mallon, as the voice of constitutional nationalism, were listened to in London and Dublin, and in Brussels and Washington. He said Hume "made sacrifices and took risks in the hope of ending 30 years of murder and mayhem that had been inflicted on the people of Northern Ireland by the IRA. His gamble paid off with a peace dividend, but, in political terms, he and his party paid a high price". There is no voice for the people of Northern Ireland today with the stalemate at Stormont where the two main parties, DUP and Sinn Fein, are refusing to engage. This allows the chaos to continue at Westminster with nobody to represent the legitimate concerns of both communities in the North regarding their lives post-Brexit. If Hume were in active politics at the moment, he would have been talking and negotiating day and night for the past two years in order to avoid what now seems to be coming down the tracks. Political leaders on all sides and other leaders in society would be listening to him and we would be in a situation where compromise and common sense would prevail, leading to a successful outcome for all, not the mess we are now in. John's political skills were unique but what separated him was his high personal integrity, honesty and decency, and his willingness to sit down and negotiate with any party of any persuasion if he felt it was for the long-term good of society and communities, and not for his own personal advancement. He has left such a political void in Northern politics and this is evident right now in the Brexit debacle. Sean Lavin, Naas, Co Kildare Free up fares to make life fairer Sir - From this summer, public transport will be free in Luxembourg and this initiative is something city planners in Dublin should also consider. Our capital city is bursting at the seams and gridlock is a daily frustration for commuters. Free public transport would cut congestion, benefit the environment and, most importantly, it would be a progressive, socially inclusive measure that would help low-paid workers and young people with little disposable incomes as a result of spiralling rents and bloated mortgages. For those concerned that free public transport will inflict an unaffordable charge on the Exchequer, it is worth noting that public transport in Dublin is already heavily subsidised. In 1999, the Government introduced the Taxsaver scheme, which incentivises people to use public transport to and from work, and, in some cases, results in savings of over 50pc of the regular price. By going the whole way and abolishing ticket charges, the Government would help tackle air pollution and get Dublin moving more freely. Surely this is a worthwhile investment in our city's future? Denise McMorrow, Drumcondra, Dublin 3 One pot of smarts Sir - Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe likes to remind us that there is only one pot of money which has to be protected and proportionately distributed. Likewise, I suggest that within government there is only one pot of political enterprise and acumen that must be similarly conserved. The Brexit 'play-acting' in Westminster continues to be given disproportionate attention by our government, so collateral damage, such as may be in the case of the outrageous overrun for the national children's hospital, should surprise nobody. All of which worryingly begs the question as to what other collateral damage will manifest itself in the coming weeks and months? Michael Gannon, Kilkenny Name's a problem Sir - Would the deletion of the emotive word 'children's' and the word 'hospital' from the title of this inner-city building project permit a calm reappraisal of the site location, resulting in a reasonable cost for the taxpayer? Mick O'Brien, Kilkenny This brazen raid on public purse Sir - We can say 'Slan to Slaintecare'. Vested interests run this country with the connivance of a self-serving government steeped in an ideology that nurtures the enrichment of the few over the many, with not a thought for that common good espoused in our Constitution. This has initiated a brazen profiteering raid on the public purse while nudging Slaintecare, the universal healthcare plan, on to the sidelines. It has reduced that noble aim of the National Children's Hospital, albeit over-priced and in the wrong place for the wrong reasons, to a massive con trick on the citizens of this country, setting back many vital elements of an already crises-ridden health service for many years. to the detriment of the citizens inflicting more needless frustration, pain, and even death throughout the country. Are Fine Gael treating the National Children's Hospital as a 'trophy project' to be built at all costs so that their legacy will be seen to be one of the biggest hospitals of its kind and costing more than any other such hospital in the world? The one aspect of this debacle which is incalculable is the damage done to the already- depleted levels of trust in our political system. Stop the project in its tracks, move to a greenfield site more accessible to all of the citizens of this country, secure the services of Dr Jimmy Sheehan of the Blackrock and other clinics - he has sound knowledge of hospital building - and get on with building a modern hospital, then use the current site for a smaller-scale specialist amenity attached to St James's after the crises in many other areas of our health system have been fixed, including the Slaintecare universal healthcare plan. Joe Brennan, Ballinspittle, Co Cork Mater Hospital should be up now Sir - It is reported (Sunday Independent, February 3) that Leo Varadkar stated that the project for the children's hospital at the Mater Hospital project was a "failed plan". To the best of my knowledge, and I'll stand corrected, when the idea of a new children's hospital was mooted some years ago, an independent panel of experts was formed, some from overseas, and after examining the options for a site, they settled for the Mater Hospital. Plans went ahead, architects, designers, builders and so forth were employed, the final construction displayed. The planners objected to the height - it was not in harmony with the existing skyline - and two storeys were deleted, but the planners were still not satisfied, so the project was scrapped. This, according to Mr Varadkar, after 40m of taxpayers' money was spent. Health Minister Simon Harris calls for accountability in the over-run of the St James's Hospital expenses. Surely the taxpayer is also entitled to accountability regarding the Mater rejection, and why it "failed". Let's face it, if the Mater had been accepted, sick children would now be attended to. Patrick Fleming Glasnevin Dublin 9 Success of school that achieves great results Sir I read with interest the supplement on school league tables (Sunday Independent, January 27) and I understand that publishing such information can be a controversial subject. However, in my opinion the various articles in your paper commenting on the data could spark a very interesting national conversation which would hopefully in the long term improve education. As chairman and administrator of the Cork Academy of Music (a voluntary charitable organisation, on the North Monastery Campus, Cork), my interest was piqued by John Walshes piece, in which he referred to a suggestion by Gerry Bennett, chief executive of the Edmund Rice Schools Trust: It would be much better to see a league table that was focused on the holistic, social and personal development of students I respectfully suggest that educators, students and parents could benefit from both the academic and value-driven league tables. The Cork Academy was established 26 years ago and happens to be one of those education providers alluded to by John as being outside the scope of the current academic league tables. The school is run on a very tight budget, situated in an area of high unemployment, and is blessed with a capable and diligent team of full- and part-time teachers, who value the students as people, bringing out all their potential. Under the auspices of the Department of Social Protection, the Cork Education Training Board and ongoing support from Cork City Council, we run Local Training Initiative (LTI) courses (levels 4 and 5) plus a Community Employment Scheme, all geared toward using music as a tool for social inclusion. A Foundation and Access course is run for people who have the desire and capability to progress to third level including university. For students who have a preference to take up immediate employment in the music industry, graded examinations (by external bodies) in theory and instruments are provided. Over the years, the staff has noticed that the students undergo an extraordinary change in self-belief during their studies. I would credit our teachers with these advances, a large percentage of whom are former students who went on to university and returned to the academy as teachers. These teachers have a sincere empathy with their students, who in turn recognise in their mentors the embodiment of what can be achieved with a bit of application. Attention to the holistic development of the students seems to also enhance the academic achievement of those who are so inclined. In recent years there is a notable increase in students securing places on Bachelor of Music degree courses. Last year it reached 50pc on LTI courses, and 20pc on CE Scheme. (But it is fair to clarify that our numbers are relatively small, 28 students in each.) I would hope that this letter would bring to notice the work of many voluntary organisations like ours who are managing on meagre resources and achieving results for students both holistic and academic. Robert Seward, Cork Academy of Music, North Monastery Campus Grief is so lonely Sir May I refer to two recent front-page articles by Brendan OConnor (Sunday Independent, Her name was Dawn Croke January 13, and Take care, make time for life February 3) regarding two recent heartbreaking tragedies here in Donegal. He has indeed a great gift in finding words, even for such unbearable grief. It reminded me of words on the same subject, which I read in Michelle Obamas brilliant memoir Becoming as follows: It hurts to live after someone has died. It just does. It can hurt to walk down a hallway or open a fridge. It hurts to put on a pair of socks, to brush your teeth. Food tastes like nothing. Colours go flat. Music hurts, and so do memories. You look at something youd otherwise find beautiful a purple sky at sunset or a playground full of kids and it only somehow deepens the loss. Grief is so lonely this way. Brian McDevitt, Glenties, Co Donegal Brush with deadly sepsis Sir I felt goosebumps invade my body as I came upon the very informative and much-needed article concerning the condition of sepsis by Alan OKeeffe (Sunday Independent, February 3). Suddenly it was 2013 again, and my sister had given birth just a week earlier to a beautiful, healthy baby a little boy who joined his overjoyed brother and sister. However, as we basked in the elation that a new baby brings to the family, we were blissfully unaware that my sister had developed sepsis. A few days after the birth, she became seriously ill at home. Indeed her deterioration was so rapid that her husband decided to drive her to hospital himself rather than wait for an ambulance. Once she got to hospital, she was diagnosed with sepsis, told that her organs were failing, and given immediate treatment with antibiotics. In my opinion, only the efficiency and promptness of her husband and the hospital staff saved her life and so it is that I type this email today as a happy, grateful, and still relieved aunt rather than a makeshift mother of three children. I say makeshift because I think its universally acknowledged that once lost, a mother can never be replaced. For the benefit of anybody who may be interested, I would like to add, that along with the symptoms of sepsis mentioned in your article, my sister was also affected by an ice-cold feeling all over the body; cramps in the stomach and back; shivering and trembling; and loud and fast thumping of the heart. Jennifer Thompson (Miss), Convent Hill, Waterford city Lets put an end to these strikes Sir As a student at St Peters College in Wexford and having passed nurses on the picket line outside Wexford General Hospital last week, one could not but be reminded of the essential role played by nurses in caring for patients, moreover how the HSE as an organisation is failing them. It is necessary that there should be an immediate reaction from the Government further extend the number of nurses working in the public health system and also a review of the salary paid to nurses, as part of a long-term (affordable to the taxpayer) plan, with a view to increasing it over time. However, while nursing staff in Ireland are required to work under increasing pressure and strain, the Government understandably remains aware that it would be unsustainable to increase the salary in every branch of public service simultaneously. It is most frustrating that even in the 21st Century a government-union dispute results in committed, hard-working public service workers being on the streets. This strike action has been most effective in raising a point, while at the same time punishing the uninvolved taxpayer and delivering a distinctly negative blow to the care of patients. In my view, the only way the INMO can achieve what it is fighting for, is through extensive, patient, productive negotiations with the Government. Given the frequency of union-led strikes, I hope that legislation can be introduced to ensure a final decision on every deadlocked government-union dispute is made by an independent body which would avoid workers, critical to the every day running of our public services, ending up on the streets. Cillian Boggan, Wexford Nurses questions Sir On every news channel and headlining the newspapers the one story persists: Nurses on strike for more pay, Nurses on strike for job security, Nurses on strike for patient care. Now while we all want to see them get what they deserve, the questions are: just what do they deserve; what makes this group of workers deserve more than any other worker; does the fact that they hold peoples lives in their hands give them the right to play God? Will they face patients who have had their cancer care deferred due to their strike and tell them that it was for their good that they are on strike. Will they attend patients funerals and tell them that it was for their good? They must get off their high horse before patients die due to this action. Michael O Meara, Killarney The Chinese called it lingchi - which roughly translates as 'lingering death' or 'death by a thousand cuts'. The barbaric execution method saw victims tortured with small incisions for hours or sometimes days until they finally died. It was eventually outlawed, but not until 1904. Fianna Fail plans to use a similar technique to end the Cabinet career of Health Minister Simon Harris. It should be noted from the off, there will be no violence or at least there is none planned. The strategy is to swap knife wounds for something even more deadly in political life - the slow and deliberate drip feed of information during a controversy. As one frontbench Fianna Fail TD said: "Politically speaking, a slow, painful death is far better than a quick one." The aim is to keep Harris and the world's most expensive children's hospital in the headlines for as long as possible. The attitude in the senior ranks of the party is 'why rush him out of the door when he's doing a better job of damaging Fine Gael than Fianna Fail can do themselves?' Sinn Fein can table all the motions it likes. Fianna Fail has other plans. The death by a thousand cuts strategy may have been at its most painful for Harris last week, but there will be more in the coming days. The minister's pain threshold will be more resilient but he knows he's being injured. And more worryingly for Fine Gael, its beloved Prince of Prudence, Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe, may be next in line. Fianna Fail does not plan to show any mercy in this regard. With local and European elections fast approaching, the party needs to take the gloss off Fine Gael's 'more economically holier than thou' image. Once the children's hospital fiasco recedes, the party will once again focus on the national broadband plan which has dropped out of the spotlight since Denis Naughten stepped down as Communications Minister. Fianna Fail learnt from Naughten's resignation that once a head rolls everybody moves on and the detail of the controversy is never fully scrutinised. In many ways, a resignation serves the Government rather than the Opposition. It looks as if it has taken charge of a situation and found a resolution when in reality all it has done is distracted from the central issue that caused the problem in the first place. For now, Fianna Fail will continue to demand additional information and clarification on the hospital project. Departments will be flooded with Freedom of Information requests and parliamentary questions. Each response will be heralded as yet more evidence of Fine Gael's gross incompetence. Harris and Donohoe will be dragged before Oireachtas committees and Dail debates to answer for their actions or lack thereof. The political system can be ground to halt by the Opposition's constant probing of Government. Last week, Harris had to sit through two days of committee hearings on the hospital project and another Dail debate on the CervicalCheck scandal. A lot of time and preparation goes into these appearances, time which could be spent ensuring a department is being run proficiently. It should be mentioned that Labour Party health spokesperson Alan Kelly has done a lot of the heavy lifting on this one. He doesn't always get everything right, but he knows where to look for bodies. They don't like to admit it, but Fianna Failers get themselves awfully upset when Fine Gaelers question their capability to manage the economy, even though you'd think Fianna Failers would at this point be able to suck that one up. The recent Fine Gael stunt of producing figures for the demands Fianna Fail looked for over the past year got under their skin. The final figure was around 3.5bn but how robustly it was calculated is debatable. Fianna Fail wants revenge, and Harris and Donohoe have provided them with an open goal. The Fine Gael ministers almost gave themselves repetitive strain injuries from patting each other on the back for their balanced budget last year. But that image is now unravelling with each public pronouncement on the children's hospital. It should be also noted that there is nothing particularly shocking about the cost of State infrastructure work soaring above the originally projected figure. We are desensitised to that carry-on, but that's not the issue here. The problem with this particular political schmozzle is that Fine Gael seems all at sea when it comes to basic maths. Donohoe's 'steady hand on the tiller' image is severely damaged by the fact he didn't seem to know there was a potential 400m bill in the Department of Health in August when he was doing his Budget arithmetic. Now Harris was not a lot of help in this regard. The Health Minister didn't cough up much information when he first learnt about the overrun. His officials did try to raise it with their Department of Public Expenditure and Reform counterparts, to no avail. But it's not fair to blame officials. It is fair, however, to question the relationship between officials and their minister. On November 4, last year, the Sunday Independent reported that Simon Harris was "at war" with officials as "the worst ever trolley crisis" loomed. Based on information from well-placed sources, the newspaper reported that there was a "complete lack of trust" between high-ranking health officials and Harris due to the handling of the CervicalCheck scandal. The level of distrust between the minister and some of his officials was "quite palpable", it was reported. Five days after this report, senior health officials presented Harris with the 450m figure for the children's hospital costs overrun. There is nothing to suggest any Department of Health official acted improperly during the current children's hospital crisis. In fact, the documents released last week showed they diligently raised the issue with the Health Minister as they got the information. Officials also tried to contact the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. But you would wonder if there was a better relationship between the minister and his officials would he have been better prepared for the fallout of recent weeks. If there had been a better atmosphere in Miesian Plaza perhaps a senior official would have taken the time to tap the minister on the shoulder to highlight the fast-approaching capital- spending meteor heading his way. Departmental briefings and memos can clog up even the most efficient of ministerial in-trays. An invaluable asset to a minister is a savvy civil servant who'll point out potential dangers. The CervicalCheck scandal did nothing for ministerial/civil service relations and that could very well have been to Harris's detriment in this case. That is if we are dismissing the quite plausible theory that Fine Gael was happy for the costs of the hospital to remain buried in ministerial memos and board meeting minutes until it was sure an election would not be called. Alan Kelly first posed this theory and Fianna Fail jumped on board in recent days. It would explain why Fianna Fail was not informed of the overrun during Budget negotiations or confidence and supply review talks. Fianna Fail's Budget negotiator, Barry Cowen, specifically asked Fine Gael for the capital- spending plans for next year but got nowhere. This week we will learn what projects will be delayed to fill the 100m budget black hole and pay for children's hospital overrun. Fianna Fail will undoubtedly be outraged by the cuts and the torture of Simon Harris will continue. It will continue beyond the Brexit deadline in March and possibly all the way up to the local elections in May. The Taoiseach recently said he had no plans for a Cabinet reshuffle after the local elections but at that point moving Harris would probably be just putting him out of his misery. The two civil servants looked at what might reasonably be achieved by reasonable men. Neither was an ideologue. TK Whitaker was 52 at the time of their meeting. Sir Arthur Snelling was two years his senior. One was in the throes of modernising the economy of a young Republic. The other was managing the decline of a once-vast empire. It happened just over half-a-century ago last week Whitaker came over from Dublin to meet Snelling and other officials to discuss the state of the Republic's sterling reserves - this was long before the EU and the euro but only two years since the re-emergence of the UVF on the streets of Belfast. It was also - though the two men could not have known it - the last year of peace in the North for three decades. They talked about sterling, about North-South economic cooperation, and the problems of agriculture. Snelling was Under Secretary at the British Foreign Office and had served as High Commissioner to Ghana around the time of independence. He had also dealt with white supremacists who led Southern Rhodesia into a unilateral declaration of independence. That was three years before his meeting with Whitaker. Aware of his interlocutor's particular experience, Whitaker broached the old question. What was the current attitude of the British government towards Irish unity? "He said," wrote Whitaker, "that he thought the British government, having been plagued with the Irish question for so long, wanted nothing more now than not to be disturbed by any problems relating to the unification of Ireland. This did not mean that they adopted a frigidly neutral attitude. Rather was their attitude one of benevolence towards any solution that might be agreed upon in Ireland between Irishmen. They would not, however, do anything to push Northern Ireland into a United Ireland." Snelling's account largely matches that of his Irish counterpart and remembers how Whitaker wanted to know if the British would still subsidise Northern Ireland after unity. "It was a new thought to me and I could not imagine an enthusiastic reception in any quarter in London," he minuted. As far as ending partition was concerned, that was "primarily the job of the man in the South to woo the girl in the North. If successful I thought we would be prepared to give the bride away and lead her to the altar but not prepared to put pressure on her". Such was the language of the last months before reasonable men were shoved aside. The following October - after months of steadily growing tension - police baton-charged a Civil Rights march in Derry. The slide to catastrophe had begun. Spool the haunted film forward to the same week four years later. Two British soldiers were killed in a landmine attack in Cullyhanna, Co Armagh. An IRA man was shot dead in a gun battle with the RUC. Six years later the same week: two Catholics - 16-year-old Thomas Donaghy and 18-year-old Margaret McErlean - were shot dead by loyalist paramilitaries as they arrived for work in Newtownabbey, Co Antrim. Twelve years later, Constables Joseph Rose and Winston Howe were killed in an IRA landmine attack in Fermanagh. Eighteen years to the week after Snelling and Whitaker sat down, the IRA burst into a bar in Maguiresbridge, Fermanagh and shot dead Constable Derek Breen and the bartender, John McCabe. One was Protestant, the other Catholic. Twenty six years later, the INLA leader Dominic McGlinchey was shot dead in Drogheda. Twenty-eight years on, the IRA ended its ceasefire by detonating a huge bomb at Canary Wharf, killing Inan Ul-Haq Bashir and John Jeffries. They were both victims of an 'inadequate' bomb warning from the IRA. Thirty years later Robert Dougan was shot dead near Belfast. He was a leading loyalist and the IRA was blamed for the killing. We need to keep naming these names. What else can make a better claim for peace than these remembered names, dates, places? Yet a few months after the killing of Robert Dougan - on Good Friday, 1998 - a peace deal was agreed. The parties in Northern Ireland decided they would share power in a devolved administration. The Republic gave up its constitutional claim on the six counties that constitute Northern Ireland. Irish unity would only come about by consent. Dublin now had an acknowledged say in the affairs of the North after years of unionist rejectionism. Sinn Fein was in government - a government that operated within the constitutional framework of the British state. Sinn Fein MPs still refused to take their seats at Westminster but they had opted - for now - in favour of Michael Collins's politics of 'stepping stones'. It was the right thing to do. Morally. Practically. Unity by consent - as TK Whitaker had espoused decades before - was the choice of reasonable men. As President Higgins put it after Whitaker's death in 2017: "The Good Friday Agreement would be unimaginable without TK Whitaker." The question now is whether the Good Friday Agreement remains imaginable at all. It is too convenient to place all the blame on the distractions and tensions of Brexit. The agreement is also imperilled by an absence of will. It is as if the further away we move from the terrible events of the Troubles, the less commitment there is to ensuring they never return. I want to say until I am hoarse: It is not over. The war can come back. British cabinet ministers are leaking that Theresa May is worried a no-deal Brexit will lead to a border poll. The purpose of this leak is presumably to warn the DUP's supporters that they could be on a slippery slope to a United Ireland if their leaders fail to back whatever deal Mrs May eventually puts before parliament. In Dublin, Leo Varadkar raises the spectre of resurgent Republican violence in the event of a hard border. All of this underlines how far we have drifted from the days of Blair and Ahern and a united approach to resolving the disaster of the Troubles. Certainly a hard border would give Republican ultras something to attack. And a no-deal Brexit could conceivably push nationalist (with a small 'n') Catholics and more moderate unionists to look favourably on a United Ireland within Europe. But what then? Look beyond Brexit. No backstop and no border poll can cure the sectarianism which remains rife. It cannot disarm paramilitaries who still nauseatingly present themselves as the protectors of their communities, especially in loyalist areas. It cannot create a deal between Sinn Fein and the DUP to end the political stalemate. Agreements between London and Brussels can take the immediate tension out of the air. But they can't cure the old malady. That is up to ourselves... and we are running out of time. Fergal Keane is a BBC Special Correspondent A small majority of English people went mad and voted for Brexit. But a bigger majority in the Republic has gone right off its rocker. A Sky News poll reveals that eight out of 10 people want the Government to hold firm on the backstop - even if it ends in a crash exit - so as to prevent a hard border. This means we are ready to risk a crash-out to prevent a hard border - although a crash-out would ensure the EU has to erect a hard border! Never again will I ask rhetorically how Germany went mad in the 1930s. Because over the past few months I have watched the Irish people being worked up to a frenzied green fever whose evil effects will go on leaking poison into the body politic long after May and Corbyn have done a deal for the UK to stay in the customs union. The Government and a posse of craven public intellectuals fostered the Anglophobia that surfaced in the Sky poll by peddling a higher form of hypocrisy. Hypocrisy, because far from our backstop stand protecting "the peace process", it has destroyed the real peace that lives in minds and hearts by inciting our antipathy against Northern unionists in a way common in my youth but which was dying away until the Government played the green card. Hypocrisy, because the pundits bigging up the EU are the same ones who wanted us to defy it during the bank crisis and burn the bondholders - backed by a then junior minister called Leo Varadkar who said that "not a penny more" should be paid to bondholders. What short memories we have when we tell Sky pollsters we prefer the EU to our English neighbours. Let me jog these junk memories a little. Remember how the EU forced us to raid our rainy day savings, clean out our national pension fund, to pay off the bondholders? Remember Michael Noonan telling us how John-Claude Trichet had warned him if the bondholders were not paid, a bomb would go off in Dublin? Remember how the EU was far more draconian in its approach to our rescue package than the IMF? Remember who came to our aid? Not the EU. It was England which helped us with a 250m loan. Here's a reality check. There are no free lunches. The verbal backing from Tusk and Team EU will have to be repaid some day soon, not in words but in cash. Let me predict the EU will bully us when we resist "reforms" and tax harmonisation. Let me predict that English people, both Leavers and Remainers, will not easily forget our tribal gloating and jeering at our nearest neighbours when they were in difficulty. Brexit will soon be a blip on our history. But the Anglophobia revealed by Sky News will continue to corrupt our national life and feed the foul agendas of the Recurring IRA. But as if we were not green enough from backstop bluster, along come the centenaries of the War of Independence to create a perfect storm of self-pity and green flaggery. Far from trying to lower the green temperature with some real history, RTE raised it further last Monday with the first of the three-part series, The Irish Revolution, based on the mammoth Atlas of the Irish Revolution published by University College Cork. The Atlas received high praise from those who never mind the quality but want to feel the width. For now I will confine myself to three general points. First, physically, the Atlas is far too big: the sheer size gives it the look and feel of a vanity project. Second, on the plus side, the superb maps and graphics means it gives good value for money. Finally, while an enormous amount of editorial work has gone into the project, it recycles rather than challenges nationalist myths, including those of the War of Independence. The RTE film of the book, The Irish Revolution, based on the Atlas, reinforces my early editorial reservations. Let me start this brief review by pointing out that the British prime minister is Sir Herbert Asquith not Sir Henry Asquith as we were told by Cillian Murphy's Mise Eire-style voiceover. Getting an English prime minister's first name wrong is not a major crime. But it was symbolic of the slovenly and perfunctory treatment of English and unionist politicians. From start to finish the film took a reverential tone, reminiscent of the Christian Brothers' take on Irish history as depicted by James Plunkett Kelly in his classic short story Weep for Our Pride. We were swiftly and simplistically escorted past the traditional monuments erected to the bad parts of our history - the 800 years of British oppression, the Plantation of Ulster, the Penal Laws - before stopping to draw breath in 1912 and the Ulster crisis. Indeed the script was so simplistic I began to suspect it was written for an Irish- American audience. This view was supported by what we were not told. We were not told about the epic constitutional achievement of Daniel O'Connell in securing Catholic Emancipation. We were not told how Charles Stewart Parnell forged a fighting Irish party, or how the Land League won its epic campaign. We were not told that by 1900 most of the land of Ireland was in the hands of the former peasantry - thanks to grants provided by the British government. We were not told votes for women was brought in by the British government - not by Sinn Fein. We were not told about the Congested Districts Board's massive building of public housing which revolutionised the lives of the Irish rural poor at the turn of the last century. We were not told that the last 40 years of British rule in Ireland were regarded by many who lived through them as possibly the most prosperous and happy time in Irish history. We were not told the distinguished historian Tom Garvin points out it would take until the 1970s before an equivalent level of prosperity returned. But then there were few historians with the weight of Tom Garvin on the film - just a long parade of junior academics, all generally agreeing with each other's banal observations. Where were the contrarian voices from big beast historians? We got some tepid soundbites from Roy Foster and some green ones from Joe Lee, but no sense of complexity. True, Michael Laffan and Marie Coleman looked as if they could give a rounded rather than a reverential picture, but they were confined to soundbites. David McCullagh, to his credit, told us that after three failed by-elections Sinn Fein was a busted flush until the British saved it by bringing in conscription for Ireland as a result of the German Spring Offensive of 1918. But most contributions were so short, and so shorn of context, as to confirm my belief that RTE and Tyrone Productions had tailored the series for an audience abroad. The Irish Revolution looked like something sanitised and simplified for the American market, and the soundbites from Irish academics in the USA support that view. This crude greening did no favours for either RTE or UCC. In many ways the authors of the Atlas were short-changed. There is a special place in hell for those who plunder the past to suit a nationalist narrative. European Council President Donald Tusk made one significant statement last week, but it wasn't the schoolboy jibe about Brexiteers going to hell. "Today," he said, "there is no political force and no effective leadership for Remain [in the UK]. I say this without satisfaction, but you can't argue with the facts." MPs who want a second referendum certainly do seem to be in something of a disorderly and hopeless retreat, and perhaps that's just as well, because Leo Varadkar might well be the Leave campaign's single biggest asset right now. Former UKIP leader Nigel Farage already thinks that Brexiteers would win a second referendum with an increased majority; and a suspicion that he's right may well be behind the reduced enthusiasm for a so called "people's vote". Thanks to the Taoiseach, the momentum to Leave might well turn into a landslide. The EU has forgotten the famous advice from Sun Tzu's Art Of War never to back one's enemy into a corner. Leo himself has ignored an equally important golden rule. He has become too visible, and put Ireland right into the firing line through his increasingly desperate desire to provide uncritical backing to the EU. A true cynic might say that he has been deliberately manoeuvred into that position in case a fall guy is needed. A lot of the stuff that happened this week - from Tusk's remark about there being a "special place in hell" for those who led the campaign for Brexit, to the giant greeting card shown off by European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker which declared that "Britain does not care about peace in Northern Ireland" - may have been just silly, but it was also easily avoidable. There, though, was Leo Varadkar right in the middle of it at each turn, quite patently not avoiding it, playing along, chuckling. Coincidence? One can only hope so, because the alternative - that he was there because he was meant to be - is troubling. If he sensed that he was being set up as a patsy, the Taoiseach gave no sign. "They will give you terrible trouble in the British press for this," he was quoted joking sotto voce to Tusk at the joint press conference where the former Polish PM made his provocative remarks. As for the photo-op with Juncker, if he was asked for his permission to release a picture of himself alongside the giant card, then he either must have given it, or been ignored when he didn't - neither of which is encouraging. The stand-up comedian Stewart Lee once speculated on stage as to which of the three most famous Top Gear presenters he hated most. "You'd think it would be Jeremy Clarkson, wouldn't you?" he said, but it wasn't. "At least Clarkson has the guts to stand there personally expressing his stupid, offensive opinions. But Richard Hammond doesn't do that, does he? He just stands next to Jeremy Clarkson, giggling." For the English comedian, Hammond played the ignoble role of a "kid at school, hanging around with all the bullies, laughing at their jokes, in the hope that they won't pick on him". It was a savage put-down, and probably unfair, but it hit home because it did say something about the on-screen relationship between the alpha male Clarkson and his less macho sidekick. Whether it also says something uncomfortable about Leo Varadkar's role in these present EU negotiations is the still unresolved question. Tusk and Juncker have evidently given up on the UK and moved on. That will be music to the ears of Brexiteers as well, because they don't want a continued relationship with these representatives of a hated federalist vision of Europe anyway. Ireland, though, still has to deal with Britain every single day. That's not going to change. Only the atmosphere in which such relations are conducted can change, and it has. If there was any confidence that Varadkar had a deeper plan as to how to repair the rift which has opened up over Brexit, that would be some consolation. But we too may have to face facts and admit that he really doesn't. He's just hoping something turns up, and right now the most likely prospect is that what turns up will make matters worse. There was a terrifying report in German newspaper Der Spiegel midweek which quoted influential MEPs saying in effect that the protection of Europe's internal market was "even more important than peace in Ireland", and that if trouble on the Irish border was the price for protecting it, then they would expect Dublin to pay it or risk being shut out from the single market itself. It's this underlying threat which makes the Irish Government's hardline position on the backstop so hard to fathom. On the one hand, we're saying that the British created this problem and must be the ones to solve it. On the other hand, it is Europe itself which, despite previous promises, seems to be hardening its stance on the border. The British may be lying when they say they won't impose border infrastructure, as the EU now seems to have been doing all along, but, until they are shown to be in bad faith, the assumption must be that the British mean what they say. How then is finding a way out of the backstop conundrum not our problem? It may be this dawning realisation which has started to unnerve Leo Varadkar, but his implacability is proving popular with ordinary Irish voters who, if the latest Sky News poll is to be believed, are ready to die in a ditch for the backstop, buoyed no doubt by the sentiment, as expressed in Juncker's giant card, that "for the first time ever, Ireland is stronger than Britain". Meanwhile, it's those urging that the rhetoric be dialled down as a matter of urgency who are challenged. "It's time for people to cool the jets," said Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin on BBC's Newsnight on Wednesday. "We need calm, reflective engagement, the stakes are too high." His intervention went largely ignored back home. Businesswoman and broadcaster Norah Casey on Virgin Media's Tonight Show found herself equally alone when she expressed disquiet about the rising tide of anti-British sentiment which Brexit was provoking. Her argument was not that Ireland should consider taking a softer line because it would help Britain, but because it was harming Ireland. When judicious self-interest can be made to sound seditious, and stubborn self-harm is the new patriotism, then something has gone terribly wrong. The industrial relations climate in the public sector has soured to the point that it is becoming a threat to political stability and, ultimately, to the wider economy. In a debate that has relied far more on emotive anecdote than on hard evidence, the tough trade-offs about nurses' demands for further pay have not always been articulated as clearly as they need to be. Further afield, but close enough to home to cause concern, is a deteriorating economic, political and diplomatic situation at the heart of the eurozone. Before returning to these issues, it is worth taking stock of more positive developments. The Irish economy continues to confound economists' expectations. A slowdown across Europe and much of the world, along with chronic uncertainty surrounding Brexit, should have caused Irish business and consumers to pull in their horns. Instead, they remain surprisingly bullish. Signs of a slump have yet to show up in any real way in any of the most important economic indicators. Last week saw the first figures on joblessness for the new year. In January, dole queues continued to shrink. An almost boringly steady, six-year-old pattern of progress remained in evidence in the first month of the year. The claimant count is now down to 200,000, from not far off half-a-million in 2012. Almost every detail of the very detailed figures on jobless benefit numbers showed that the labour market continues to steam ahead (in the right direction). The figures gave little indication that employers are being put off hiring by chronic near-term uncertainty, most notably the prospect of the hardest of Brexits just next month. Last week also saw the first public finances numbers of the new year. They, too, point to an economy that is seemingly immune from bad news and investment-curtailing uncertainty. The big revenue raisers - income tax, social insurance and VAT - all grew strongly, in a range from 7-9pc year on year. This is yet more evidence that economic growth continued at quite a clip into 2019. If the economy is still powering ahead, generating lots of extra tax revenue for the Government, the weakening of fiscal discipline in recent years is a growing cause for concern, and something that is well encapsulated by the fiasco around the breathtaking cost overruns for the National Children's Hospital. Last week's public finances figures show that the Government continues to ramp up spending as fast as new money is being raised from taxpayers. That is despite all the risks that the economy faces. It is in contrast to some other small open economies in Europe. They are prudently running budget surpluses. They have some petrol in the tank to stimulate their economies if they slow. Ireland does not. That brings us back to the nurses. The latest figures from the Central Statistics Office show that the public pay bill grew by 20pc in the four years to the third quarter of 2018. That wasn't just a bit faster than other areas of spending. It wasn't twice as fast. It was a full three times faster. Put another way, public sector pay gobbled up almost half of all additional spending over that period. Nor should it ever be forgotten that Irish public sector workers already earn on average 40pc more than their private sector counterparts. There is no difference in the average earnings of the two sectors in Britain. Broadcast interviewers could usefully quiz trade union leaders on why that is, because none of them can explain such huge unfairness. If the Government concedes to nurses' pay demands, the entire - and already generous - pay plan for the public sector will fall apart as other unions pile in making their own claims. The money for even more pay increases than are planned will have to come from somewhere. It cannot come from spare cash because the Government is only just about managing to balance its books. With that option unavailable, there are three possible alternatives. The first is to borrow the money. Funding forever pay increases with borrowed money would be foolish in any context. For a government that is already one of the most indebted in the world by some measures, it would be folly of the highest order. It should be ruled out. The second way public sector pay increases could be paid for is by hiking taxes, a much more sustainable way of funding it. If everyone outside the public sector is prepared to pay more taxes so that their better-paid counterparts in the public sector can get more, then so be it. Problem solved. A third way to fund an even bigger public pay bill is to cut spending in other areas. Again, if public opinion favours cutting spending on welfare, education and housing so that nurses get more, then fine. But we need to be honest about the trade-offs involved. There is no hidden source of cash somewhere. The strength of feeling, if not stridency, with which nurses have been pursuing further pay increases may reflect Irish people's comparatively high expectations about the future. An annual survey by the global PR company Edelman, published in recent weeks, shows that almost half of Irish people expect to be better off in five years' time. That was the highest among the European countries surveyed. If there is a widespread sense that things are on the up, public sector workers and their unions may be motivated by wanting a cut of anything that's going. The same survey included two of Europe's most troubled big economies - Italy and France. Their inhabitants are not nearly as upbeat about the future. Just one in three Italians believe that they will be better off in five years' time. Given that the Italian economy has been stagnating for two decades, if anything Italians appear overly optimistic, and all the more so in light of developments since the survey was taken. Italy moved a step closer to going Greek last week when new figures showed that its economy had fallen into recession. Watch that space closely this year because it has the potential to deliver an economic hammer-blow to the entire continent. The French, whose economy is much stronger than Italy's, are the least optimistic about their future prospects. Just one in five think they'll be better off in the middle of the next decade. Anyone who knows France or watches it closely will not be surprised by this. The negativity and sense that everything is going downhill has long been pervasive in that country. It is becoming increasingly pervasive, and the French are getting angrier. The dark mood manifests in a number of ways. An opinion poll last week showed that support for leaving the EU stands at 40pc - an astonishingly high figure given what is happening in Britain and what a 'Frexit' could mean for the euro and cents in French pockets. The yellow vests protests over the past three months are another manifestation of the darkening mood in that country. Developments within some big countries are spilling over into the relations among them. The meeting of senior figures in the Italian government with the French yellow vests caused Paris to recall its ambassador from Rome, an extraordinarily unusual move for EU members. While we in Ireland obsess about Brexit, we shouldn't lose sight of what is happening on the other side of our neighbouring island. There is a lot to be worried about, and a crisis in the euro area could be more damaging for Ireland than even a no-deal Brexit. If both happen, well, it hardly bears thinking about. And no, we have not lowered the wall to get into heaven by supporting our president. Our faith (and Catholic doctrine as well, I believe) says that Mr. Trumps entry into heaven is the same for all and it is based on salvation through faith in Jesus Christ and not by works. With respect to the wall issue, I do not know to what extent it may help to keep our borders secure from illegal entry, but it certainly would help. My disgust is with Congress that has failed to do its job on this issue for decades because of the refusal to compromise. If we could secure the border it would make it a lot easier to find the pathway to citizenship for the Dreamers and others who were brought here as children (which I support). While I would not have used the analogy of a wall in heaven that the Rev. Robert Jeffress used to support having a wall, I would refer Mr. Zirpoli to Matthew 7:13-14: Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. If there is a gate, there must be a wall. Waterway: It's possible to canoe along some of Lake Amitsorsuaq to give your feet a break Greenland isn't all that green. That's the first thing that strikes me, looking out the plane window. The vast expanse of a dazzlingly white polar ice sheet, which covers 80pc of the country's surface, stretches as far as I can see. It takes nearly an hour to fly over it. I'm flying with three friends into Kangerlussuaq, Greenland's main airport. Our plan is to walk the Arctic Circle Trail, a 165km hiking route through the pristine wilderness that lies between here and Sisimiut on the coast. Our oversized rucksacks weigh 20kg apiece. Packed with tents, warm clothes, stoves and freeze-dried food, they contain everything we need for 10 days. We all have plenty of outdoor experience, but have never walked so far through such remote terrain. The Trail can be done by anyone with a reasonable level of fitness and backpacking experience - but you have to put in the preparation. Over the last six months, we've trained hard and planned forensically. With no roads or even tracks, the only way out is on foot or by rescue helicopter. Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close Hiking the Arctic Circle Trail in Greenland . Photo: David Flanagan The Arctic Circle Trail in Greenland. Photo: David Flanagan Packing for Greenland. Photo: David Flanagan Waterway: It's possible to canoe along some of Lake Amitsorsuaq to give your feet a break The Arctic char caught by David and friends in Greenland. Photo: David Flanagan David and friends on the trail. One of the huts along the Arctic Circle Trail. Photo: David Flanagan A view from the Arctic Circle Track, Greenland Hiking boots Nuuk, Greenland's capital Air Greenland / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Hiking the Arctic Circle Trail in Greenland . Photo: David Flanagan After some last-minute shopping and repacking, we shoulder our packs and set off down the dusty road... straight from the airport door. After 15km, the road ends and the Arctic Circle Trail starts in earnest. Following a narrow path, we soon spot the first of 400 stone cairns that will mark our way. They indicate the general direction rather than a specific path, so we still need to figure out the best route across the sometimes boggy ground. The path weaves its way across tundra which, thanks to Greenland's harsh climate and permafrost, can sustain only the smallest, hardiest plants. One of the most common is the wild blueberry, and many a rest stop is spent picking the bitter berries from low bushes. Over the next 10 days, we pass just a dozen wooden huts. The only man-made structures on the trail, they range from glorified sheds to large buildings capable of sleeping over two dozen. In this harsh, changeable climate, the distinctive red buildings play an important role, offering hikers shelter from the worst of the weather. The first hut is very rundown, but when we step inside, we're greeted by a half-dozen other hikers. We stay for a while, chatting and gathering information about conditions on the trail. Before the trip, I was concerned that meeting other hikers would detract from the wilderness experience. However, the sense of camaraderie that comes from sharing the trail proves to be one of the highlights. From the French woman who had never camped before and was walking solo, to the American guy who ended up walking in Converse trainers after his boots fell apart on the first day, the trip proves full of colourful stories. Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close Waterway: It's possible to canoe along some of Lake Amitsorsuaq to give your feet a break Packing for Greenland. Photo: David Flanagan Air Greenland Nuuk, Greenland's capital Hiking boots A view from the Arctic Circle Track, Greenland One of the huts along the Arctic Circle Trail. Photo: David Flanagan David and friends on the trail. Hiking the Arctic Circle Trail in Greenland . Photo: David Flanagan The Arctic char caught by David and friends in Greenland. Photo: David Flanagan The Arctic Circle Trail in Greenland. Photo: David Flanagan / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Waterway: It's possible to canoe along some of Lake Amitsorsuaq to give your feet a break Keen to keep moving, we push on past the hut and pitch our tents on a rise overlooking a lake. After a very long day of travel and 24km of walking, we're soon asleep. At this latitude in mid-August, it never gets fully dark, but we have no problem sleeping for over 12 hours most nights. After two days, we reach the vast Lake Amitsorsuaq. The trail follows the southern shore of the lake to a large hut that once served as an outdoor activity centre. A few of its canoes remain and hikers use them to travel the length of the lake and give their tired legs a break. Halfway along the lake, we spot an upturned canoe by the shore. It's battered but seaworthy, so we load our packs and take turns paddling in pairs. I'm scared, conscious of its dented hull and the deep cold water, but we end up making good progress... despite the homemade paddles. At one point, we stop and let the boat drift to a halt on the mirror-like surface. It's so quiet, we can hear our blood flowing - like when you put a seashell to your ear. After a few days, we settle into a good rhythm and each day feels a little easier as our bags get lighter and our bodies adapt. Out here, with no connection to the outside world to distract us, life is simple. All we have to do is walk and enjoy the spectacular views. Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close The Arctic char caught by David and friends in Greenland. Photo: David Flanagan Waterway: It's possible to canoe along some of Lake Amitsorsuaq to give your feet a break The Arctic Circle Trail in Greenland. Photo: David Flanagan Packing for Greenland. Photo: David Flanagan Hiking the Arctic Circle Trail in Greenland . Photo: David Flanagan David and friends on the trail. One of the huts along the Arctic Circle Trail. Photo: David Flanagan A view from the Arctic Circle Track, Greenland Hiking boots Nuuk, Greenland's capital Air Greenland / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp The Arctic char caught by David and friends in Greenland. Photo: David Flanagan After five days, we reach the halfway point - officially the middle of nowhere. It's this remoteness that attracted us to Greenland in the first place, but being so far from civilisation isn't without risk; out here the smallest injury or problem could quickly become very serious. As there isn't any mobile phone signal, we carry a satellite device so we can contact the outside world in an emergency. Before the trip, we read that many of the trail's rivers and lakes are full of fish, so we took a pair of rods in the hope of supplementing our rations. After a number of fruitless efforts, we pass a small pool and notice a number of large fish swimming in the gentle current. A few minutes later, we land a beautiful, speckled Arctic char which we eat that night. The fresh fish is delicious and makes a wonderful change from our freeze-dried rations. On the second-last day, we reach a fisherman's hut on the shore of a vast fjord surrounded by huge snow-capped mountains. We share the hut with Arno, a 79-year-old German. A regular visitor to Greenland, he walked the trail last summer, but doesn't feel able for it this year so is spending some time in the hut doing a few shorter walks. We spend the night listening to his stories. Our final full day takes us high into the mountains via the hardest climb on the trail. It's a warm day and a long sustained slog but, inspired by Arno's remarkable toughness, we put our heads down and just get on with it. Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close David and friends on the trail. The Arctic Circle Trail in Greenland. Photo: David Flanagan Waterway: It's possible to canoe along some of Lake Amitsorsuaq to give your feet a break Packing for Greenland. Photo: David Flanagan The Arctic char caught by David and friends in Greenland. Photo: David Flanagan Hiking the Arctic Circle Trail in Greenland . Photo: David Flanagan One of the huts along the Arctic Circle Trail. Photo: David Flanagan A view from the Arctic Circle Track, Greenland Hiking boots Nuuk, Greenland's capital Air Greenland / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp David and friends on the trail. The next morning, we wake to another beautiful crisp day. We break camp for the last time and follow an easy path down a narrow valley for a few hours before the brightly coloured wooden houses of Sisimiut come into view. After 10 days immersed in the deep silence and the simple daily rhythm of walking, the spell is broken as soon as we step on to the tarmac road that leads into town. As we walk along the road with the noise of the cars and buses assaulting our senses, the trip is consigned to memory and our thoughts turn to a shower and beer. Get there Expand Close A view from the Arctic Circle Track, Greenland / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp A view from the Arctic Circle Track, Greenland The only regular flight to Kangerlussuaq is from Copenhagen with Air Greenland (airgreenland.com). Flights leave early and arrive late, so you'll need to overnight in Copenhagen both ways. Ryanair and SAS fly non-stop from Dublin to Copenhagen. See also visitgreenland.com. When to go Expand Close One of the huts along the Arctic Circle Trail. Photo: David Flanagan / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp One of the huts along the Arctic Circle Trail. Photo: David Flanagan August is ideal, as mosquitoes have died down, temperatures are reasonable and days are still long. September brings fewer fellow hikers, but harsher weather. What to pack Expand Close Packing for Greenland. Photo: David Flanagan / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Packing for Greenland. Photo: David Flanagan On the ACT, you must carry everything you need for over a week, so spend time planning your gear. The lighter your rucksack, the more you'll enjoy the walking. For a detailed discussion of what to bring, check out David's blog at threerockbooks.com. Take Three: travel tips Get ready Expand Close Hiking boots / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Hiking boots Walking on rough ground with a heavy pack is a serious workout. Get the miles in on the ideal training ground - Ireland's 40 National Waymarked Trails, irishtrails.ie. Get around Expand Close Air Greenland / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Air Greenland With no roads joining Greenland's towns and villages, there are two ways to get around: fly or sail. Air Greenland runs domestic flights and helicopter connections. Get to Nuuk Expand Close Nuuk, Greenland's capital / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Nuuk, Greenland's capital Ferries link settlements on the coast. The Arctic Umiaq Line (aul.gl) runs a regular service along the west coast - this would be a great way to visit Greenland's capital, Nuuk. Read more: The Government has refused compensation to one of three Irish women who took international cases challenging the State's abortion laws - even though it has paid 30,000 to the other two. Deirdre Conroy took the case D vs Ireland after she was forced to leave the jurisdiction to terminate her pregnancy following a diagnosis of fatal foetal abnormality. Her case was dismissed by the European Court of Human Rights because she had not exhausted her legal options in Ireland. But subsequent cases taken by two women with the similar diagnosis, who were also forced to travel, resulted in the United Nations ruling their rights had been violated. The Government made an ex-gratia payment to Amanda Mellet and Siobhan Whelan of 30,000 last year and in 2017. Ms Conroy, a candidate for Fianna Fail in the local elections, said she asked Health Minister Simon Harris to extend the gesture to her. In her letter she said: "It remains a fact that only three women challenged the State outside our jurisdiction due to fatal foetal abnormality, and the other two women have been compensated because their situation was brought to the Government's attention in public. I am making my request in private, for the present." Ms Conroy added: "It was a very polite letter saying would you mind, please, treating me the same way." The State has offered her counselling via the Health Service Executive - but nothing more. "I am disappointed. It felt like another knock," she said. Ms Conroy was a mother of two young boys in late 2001 when she and her then partner learned she was expecting twins. The life-changing diagnosis followed in January 2002. One twin had died inside her and the other would likely not survive outside the womb. She left the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast with baby Tom wrapped in lilac crochet blankets in a small white coffin. An art dealer and architectural consultant, with a client list that included millionaires such as Johnny Ronan, the late Cathal Ryan and Michael O'Leary, she said: "You can imagine, discovering that under our law that I was a criminal to be terminating, I didn't want anyone I know." She kept her experience secret from everyone bar those closest to her while campaigning anonymously. She wrote an open letter under the pseudonym Deirdre de Barra and took the first case to Europe as D. Although it did not succeed, it paved the way for future challenges. In despair at the death of Savita Halappanavar, she revealed her identity in 2013. Ms Conroy retrained as a barrister and has written reviews for this newspaper. She has run free legal-advice centres in Crumlin, which fuelled her decision to run for election. She said: "It was the first time I realised I can talk to strangers and I can help I thought I'm wasting the experience I have. I would rather be out there, helping people." Fianna Fail would appear an odd choice for Ms Conroy as most Fianna Fail members voted No, according to an RTE poll on the referendum in May. She said she wanted the support of a political party but felt rejected by Fine Gael. Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin's compelling explanation ahead of the referendum on why he had changed his mind on abortion also resonated with her, and, she added: "Fianna Fail need women." She will contest Kimmage Rathmines ward and focus on the impact of the bus corridors on homes and on architectural conservation. A woman has died and two children were injured after their car veered off a road and crashed into a ditch in Co Limerick. The single-vehicle accident occurred at 3.30pm yesterday at Upper Sunville, Ardpatrick, Kilmallock. The victim's car "veered off the road and mounted a ditch", a Garda spokeswoman said. Two female passengers, aged 16 and seven, "received minor injuries and were taken to University Hospital Limerick for examination", she added. The victim was in her 60s and passed away at the scene. No other vehicle was involved. Kilmallock gardai are investigating the crash. Separately, a young Irish woman who was killed in a car crash in Australia has been described as an "angel" by friends and family. Amy Gill (23), from Co Mayo, was fatally injured in the two-car collision on Thursday in Melbourne. The Kiltimagh native had moved to Melbourne last month and had started working on a farm. Amy's friend Nicole Williams told the Irish Independent: "Amy was the nicest, caring and genuine person. She had such a pure and gentle soul. "Our hearts were broken when she told us her plans to move to Australia, and even more so when we heard she had been taken so tragically." Meanwhile, a man in his 50s was killed when his van crashed into a truck at Ballymackesy, Co Wexford, at 7.25am yesterday. Ollie Jowett (22) was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumour when he was 21. An inspirational personal trainer has revealed how a terminal cancer diagnosis pushed him to get in the best shape of his life. Ollie Jowett (22) received the devastating news he had a malignant brain tumour when he was 21, and was given a life expectancy of around five years. Sharing his journey on social media, he refused to let his illness stop him from achieving his fitness goals. Through 12 weeks of gruelling workouts, he struggled against fatigue and often debilitating symptoms. Training for a photoshoot, he shed 10kg in weight to achieve a peak physique. Speaking to the online fitness company Ultimate Performance, he said: "I've never been in that kind of condition in my life. I've never been 'shredded' with a six-pack. You almost doubt to a degree whether you can even get there." Ollie moved from his home in Cornwall to Belfast to become a personal trainer, a dream he had held since he was 14. Within months he received the devastating diagnosis of the brain tumour. "I was heartbroken, obviously. But it was quite a numb emotion I was feeling," he said. "I thought: 'What am I meant to do now?' Because you don't prepare yourself for this, certainly not at 21." Ollie revealed how he had suffered from serious headaches every day from 2016, before an MRI scan in 2017 confirmed the worst. His age and the location of the tumour means treatment possibilities are limited. "Surgery isn't really a valid option for me, given where the brain tumour is located. The consultant said it's just too risky, especially given my age," he said. "The likes of chemotherapy and radiotherapy aren't really options either because it's just so risky and I'm just so young." Still working as a personal trainer, he shared his story on Instagram. "I put my story out on social media, largely because I wanted to be honest, particularly with my clients," he said. Along the way he has raised money for charity and helped raise awareness of the reality of living with cancer. "The prognosis with brain tumours is not great. It's five years. That gives me until I'm 26, so the time is ticking," he said. "Now I'm just trying to inspire, motivate and inform people." He said his 12-week transformation, with the help of his trainer Umar was the "hardest process of my life". "I wanted to give up nearly every single day," he said. "Trying to find the energy just to train and trying to find the energy just to work is horrendous. "But despite my health being the problem, it was my health that was my motivation in the first place." He says his next goal is to compile his experience in a book entitled What Is Your Excuse? How I got Photoshop Lean While Battling Brain Cancer. An extra whiff of excitement was in the air at Naas Racecourse yesterday. The shutdown of horse-racing in Britain from equine flu meant the Co Kildare venue was hosting the only race meeting in Britain and Ireland. Millions of horse-racing fans on both islands turned to the Irish venue as the only show in town, with ITV broadcasting five races live. Racecourse manager Tom Ryan said: "There's a great atmosphere here today. A couple of our sponsors said they weren't able to sleep last night, thinking of the huge exposure they will be getting. "We're not among the Big Five Irish racecourses that get live coverage from RTE. We only got our first Grade One National Hunt Race in 2015 after 95 years in existence. "We're delighted to be in the spotlight today to show Irish racing in its best light." Master of ceremonies Thom Malone said there was a "fantastic buzz" and huge amounts of betting money was being focused on Naas. The Place Pot Pool was normally around 5,000 but the concentration of bets for the two islands meant it was around 50,000 yesterday. Kildare bookmaker Darragh Fitzpatrick said horses at Naas yesterday were attracting untold millions of euro of extra betting as punters all over Britain looked for horses to back. All the big betting firms in the UK were paying close attention to every alteration being made by the on-course bookies in Naas, he added. The first race to be broadcast live around Britain and Ireland was the 1.40pm Cavan Developments Maiden Hurdle, with 8,316 for the winner. Advantage Point, ridden by Robbie Colgan, won by a length, watched by millions of TV viewers. Curragh trainer Edward Harty said: "It's nice to be the winning trainer in front of such a big captive audience." Kathryn McKiernan, whose family owns Cavan Developments, said the family was delighted with the sudden big exposure. The focus on Naas followed a six-day shutdown of race meetings in Britain. In all, 174 stables are in quarantine as authorities try to contain the highly contagious disease. It is too early to say if the Cheltenham Festival, due from March 12-15, will be affected. A clearer picture is expected in the coming days as results of tests are released. Dozens of vets have been dispatched to stables to take swabs for analysis. British Horseracing Authority officials have announced no new positive cases of the flu - including those from Rebecca Menzies's yard in Sedgefield, Co Durham - have been detected among more than 700 so far processed. The BHA said the Animal Health Trust found "no further positive samples" following the six previously detected at Donald McCain's stable in Cheshire. It added: "The AHT has received approximately 2,100 nasal swabs and tested and reported on 720. There have been no further positive samples." Whether a resumption on Wednesday is feasible is due to be decided tomorrow. Philip Reynolds, son of former Taoiseach Albert Reynolds, has described how difficult life can be for the families of politicians. He also said he believes that social media and the rush to judge people in public life have made political life more difficult than it was in his father's time. In an exclusive interview with the Sunday Independent, the businessman said: "I think it's extremely, extremely hard on people. "I think it's extremely hard on the politician, but I think it's equally as hard, if not harder, on those in the family. "I saw it first hand with dad. Dad was so caught up in it and so involved in it and so close to it that the momentum of that just carried him." However, his mother, Kathleen "was at home and not having the same sort of adrenalin rushes from it". She was left "a lot of the time processing it for herself because he wasn't there to help her work through it because he was gone to the next gig or whatever it was and it's not the sort of thing that you speak openly about," he said. "So yeah, it is a very, very tough profession." He said that his father, who died in 2014, might have struggled in the social media age. "When you think of the rumpus that was created over the few media slips that dad had, can you imagine what it would be like now if he came out and he said 'crap, total crap' or whatever he said at the time." This is a reference to a comment made by Albert Reynolds describing a claim that he had never spoken to PD leader Des O'Malley outside the Cabinet as ''crap, pure crap'' and as ''crap, total crap''. "Twitter would have had a field day with him," Reynolds said. Philip Reynolds also said that former Taoiseach Brian Cowen, a personal friend, was underestimated, acknowledging that it was an unpopular thing to say. "I know the guy personally, and I know the type of guy he is, and I just think in another time, in another set of circumstances, he could have been probably one of the greatest taoisigh that Ireland had ever had", he added about the Taoiseach who lost office in the election of 2011. "You don't choose your time in politics. You have to make your time in politics and Brian did that but had things just transpired a bit differently, I think that whole story could have been a whole lot different. "I think he's misunderstood as a politician," he said. "In a different time and a different space, I think he would have shown people to be a truly fantastic statesman." Philip Reynolds has just sold the last of his stake in the family business C&D Foods to beef baron Larry Goodman. Is Big Brother watching you, Peter Casey? The former presidential hopeful has claimed US immigration officials questioned him over comments he made about America during the campaign for the Aras. Mr Casey, who surged into second place on the back of his controversial social views, claimed he was questioned about remarks he made about Donald Trump and a promise that he would give up his green card if he won the election. The businessman, who owns a recruitment firm in the US but lives in Donegal, said he arrived at Dublin Airport last Thursday for a Delta Airlines flight to the US. His card would not work at the Global Entry kiosk, a fast-track system for trusted travellers run by US Customs and Border Protection. He said he was asked to go into a holding area, where he claimed he "saw a side of America" he had not experienced before. Mr Casey told the Sunday Independent he was asked a series of questions, including: "Why have you not applied for citizenship?" He said they went on to ask: "Why did you say during the presidential election that you were going to give up your green card?" and "Is it your intention to give up your green card?" He said he was also asked if he was standing again for election and if so, would he give up his green card. According to Mr Casey, officials examined him on his knowledge of green card rules, including how many days he had to stay in the USA each year to maintain it. He claimed he was asked about the birthplace of his children and whether he owned his house in America. He said: "I was then given a lecture on the fact that my keeping my green card was stopping someone who deserved one from getting one. "One of the agents even made reference to comments I had made about Trump on the campaign. They had certainly done their homework." During the presidential campaign, millionaire Mr Casey revealed he pays 46pc tax on his worldwide income in the US but would be handing back his green card if he won. He said he was "disappointed" when Donald Trump was elected president and said America was "a racist society." He was accused of borrowing Trump's tactics in his own campaign, by stoking controversy, most notably about Travellers. Mr Casey caused outrage by claiming that Travellers should not be recognised as an ethic group. He criticised their culture, accusing families of not moving into new houses without stables for their horses. While his remarks generated praise in some quarters, others accused him of populism and racism. But Mr Casey said he does not have a racist bone in his body. However, his campaign took off and he finished as unlikely runner-up in the race for the Aras, securing 20pc of the vote, coming second to incumbent Michael D Higgins. He was one of three Dragons' Den investors who put themselves forward for the contest - the others were Gavin Duffy and Sean Gallagher. A spokesperson for the US Embassy said that it was unable to comment on individual cases. Work under way at the site. Photo: Tony Gavin Simon Harris is expected to apologise to the Dail this week over information he provided on the cost of the new National Childrens Hospital (Niall Carson/PA) Health Minister Simon Harris is set to apologise to the Dail over information he gave about the cost of building the new National Children's Hospital. Deputy Harris was accused of misleading the Dail as it emerged that the building of the new hospital will cost 450m more than originally expected. Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin has called on Mr Harris to correct the Dail record. Mr Harris's spokeswoman told RTE's This Week programme: "While the minister couldn't provide figures during commercially sensitive negotiations and because the figures were not known, he has said he wishes he had inserted some initial information - specifically reference the fact that there was a process underway to finalise pricing for Phase B (of the Children's Hospital)." Expand Close Simon Harris is expected to apologise to the Dail this week over information he provided on the cost of the new National Childrens Hospital (Niall Carson/PA) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Simon Harris is expected to apologise to the Dail this week over information he provided on the cost of the new National Childrens Hospital (Niall Carson/PA) The spokeswoman added that "whilst the parliamentary question was factually correct, Minister Harris will be happy to apologise for not providing such context". It's understood that Mr Harris was informed on August 27 last that the hospital cost overrun had risen to 191m. On September 18 he told Fianna Fail's Barry Cowen that capital expenditure on the new children's hospital was "in line with the expected expenditure profile." The issue was again raised with the minister in a memo in October, where officials said they needed more time to review costs. The final memo he received was on November 9 which shows the overrun costs had soared to 450m. It was then that he informed Taoiseach Leo Varadkar about the escalating cost of the project. The Taoiseach has expressed total confidence in the Health Minister. A protest outside of Health Minister Simon Harris' family home this afternoon has been deemed "completely unacceptable" and "inappropriate". The minister, his wife and three-week-old baby were inside their home today as up to 20 people arrived outside, claiming to be "against austerity". Gardai were called to the minister's Greystones home and have confirmed that the protest has ended. They said: "The protesters have left the scene peacefully and enquiries will be carried out." A spokesperson for Mr Harris added: "The incident has now concluded. The Minister would like to thank An Garda Siochana for their assistance and in ensuring his wife and daughter's safety. "He has no further comment to make at this time." A group of protesters put a video online claiming that Mr Harris has "neglected" his position. "Hes not even qualified for this job were all aware of the smear test scandal, thousands of patients on trolleys, medical cannabis bill, the extravagant costs of the new childrens hospital and the Nurses' strike. Who we fully support. "Simon is part of Fine Gael party, the same party who voted for the eviction bill to be signed. And are aware of the hundreds of people that are sleeping on our streets every night." They claimed they are launching a 'Bring it to their doors' campaign and called on people to target other TDs, councillors and even judges. Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin condemned the incident, as he called for people to respect public representatives' privacy. He said in a statement this evening: "This is completely and utterly unacceptable. "Everyone is entitled to peace and security with their family in their own home. "Putting yourself forward for public service does not take away that right." Culture Minister, Josepha Madigan hit out at the protest online, saying "and we wonder why people are put off being a politician? Go figure." Her ministerial colleague, Helen McEntee described the protest as "absolutely disgraceful behaviour." The Independent Alliance also condemned it, stating it was "utterly unacceptable", while Fianna Fail TD Thomas Byrne called for a ban to be imposed on protesting outside peoples homes. Gardai said that peaceful protests are allowed, providing they are not obstructing traffic. "What a thick thing to do. Family homes and hospitals should be protest free. When they bring in the hospital protest ban, I'd suggest a home protest ban too," Mr Byrne said. Sinn Fein TD Caoimhghin O Caolain, who was the party's health spokesman for 14 years, deemed the protest "inappropriate." He said: "Understanding the deep concerns that people have across the country at the state of our health service, that said, I would say that in any and all circumstances, mounting a protest at the home of a government minister or anyone in public office, the family are clearly going to be discommoded is inappropriate. "I would not support it as a means of giving voice to very justifiable anger that is out there across all of the areas the IMNO protest, the PNA protest the very legitimate demands of both organisations, the concern across all of civic society in relation to the state of our health services all of that is legitimate and should be demonstrated in the way that the huge mobilisation some 40,000 people represented yesterday on the streets of Dublin. "Thats the way to protest not in this particular mode." Mr Harris has been at the eye of two political storms in recent weeks. Nurses have staged three days of strikes over pay and are planning another three this week. And he has fighting accusations that he misled the Dail on the cost of the National Children's Hospital. It has emerged the hospital will cost 450m more than originally planned. Chimpanzees escaped from their enclosure at Belfast Zoo on Saturday afternoon after making an improvised ladder from tree branches. The BBC has reported that a chimpanzee was seen walking on a path with members of the public, while others attempted to escape. Belfast Zoo spokesperson Alan Cairns said that the chimpanzees had been able to build the ladder after the trees in their enclosure had been weakened by storms. He said they only remained outside their enclosure for a short time before returning as they were "quite cowardly". "They're intelligent primates and know they're not supposed to be out of their enclosure, so got back in themselves," Mr Cairns told the BBC. "We like things to be natural in their enclosure, to have trees in it, but we will review it. "We may have to remove the trees or make them a smaller level, although we don't want to do that." He confirmed that the chimpanzees were then locked in their enclosure to prevent a further breakout. A Belfast City Council spokesperson said that one chimpanzee left the enclosure before quickly returning. "Belfast Zoo would like to thank members of the public who helped raise the alarm as zookeepers moved in to return the animal to its enclosure," the spokesperson said. The latest escape attempt comes after a red panda escaped from the zoo last month. Endangered Himalayan native cub Amber made her escape after two electricity fences failed at the zoo. She was eventually found safe and well in Collinbridge, a residential area within a mile of the zoo's grounds. Im in those classrooms. Those elementary school teachers need help, and we have cut, cut, cut But Im telling you: We do have a priority of our teachers being compensated, but we also see our teachers need to be compensated in the classroom. We are dealing with a different type of child now and sometimes we are like a parent to them, Board of Education member Marsha Herbert, herself a former teacher, told the county commissioners. Those teachers need help and Im glad we put those [positions] in there because of the situation and the crisis in the elementary school system. We have cut for so many years; its time to step up, and we need to help those elementary teachers. It seems like another lifetime now. February, 2008 - Rome. Young Dubliner Alli MacDonnell - flanked by fellow models Vogue Williams and Tara Leniston - is holding a very surreal court in the Italian capital late one evening, explaining to the locals the meaning of certain Dublin words, while drinking a glass of red wine. It starts earlier with Alli in a taxi stopped at a red light, as a man selling fake designer handbags walks past the car. Alli rolls down the window and points at a bag that has caught her eagle fashion eye. He says 40. Alli shouts back 20. He makes a gesture to indicate she must be out of her mind. She makes a similar gesture at his price, and pretends to tell the driver to go on. The deal is done before the traffic light changes to green. "I love drive-by shopping!" she laughs, as we speed off across the Tiber with her new purchase in hand. It was astonishing how she did it. Later, in a rooftop restaurant overlooking the Spanish Steps, the lithe Ms MacDonnell astounds fellow dinners by eating her bodyweight in pasta. "Have you ever seen a girl consume so much in one sitting?" she cackles. Alli has the whole restaurant in the palm of her hand. Then Tara announces: "I don't like cats." To which Vogue asks: "What's wrong with cats?" Tara replies: "They make me itch", and Alli - with precision comic timing - says: "That's not cats. That's crabs." The laughter could be heard all the way to the Vatican. Later, in a nearby bar, Alli belts out Madonna's Like a Virgin, followed by Amy Winehouse's Valerie on the karaoke machine. She says she used to be in a girl band, Blaze - alongside Eamon Dunphy's daughter Colette - when she was 15. Back at the Hotel Eden, Alli proves herself to have a vocabulary all her own. She explains to the locals that, in Dublinese, "scaldy" is not quite the same as "minging"; being drunk is being "a bit Mary and Joseph" and someone who would "rob the eye out of your head and come back for the eyelashes" is not to be trusted. "I have the weirdest ears," she says, apropos of nothing, before pulling back her dark hair to reveal, well, the weirdest ears. Rome had seen nothing like Alli MacDonnell. The following morning, in homage to Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday, she, Vogue and Tara raced like the clappers around the Colosseum on their scooters. Tara nearly killed Alli when she came close to rear-ending her. The carefree Alli was so full of life, she could only laugh and say: "I'm going to live to become an old spinster." Sadly, that wasn't the case. She died last Monday at her home in Dublin. She was just 37 years of age. Alli was a loving and devoted mother to Alex (16), Sara (14), Harry (nine) and Siena, almost three. Her last Instagram post was a photo of her youngest daughter with the words: "Magic happens every day with this little one." An ambassador for Irish Autism Action after her son Harry was diagnosed with the condition in 2016, Alli revealed last October that Siena had also been diagnosed. She said: "My son Harry was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder two years ago, and just last month my two-year-old little girl was also diagnosed with ASD. "I take each day as it comes and try my best. I work hard and I love my kids with every inch of me. "They may have ASD but they are healthy and happy and very much loved." Her friend Tara Leniston said: "Alli always seemed to cope. She loved her kids and she just got on with it. They were her driving force behind everything she did." Tara, whose son Dylan was also diagnosed with autism when he was two, said: "When Alli started to notice [things with] Harry, she phoned me up. It's through helping her that I realised there was a need for an easy, practical book on how to help children with ASD. "Alli encouraged me to write Coming Home To Autism [published last year] and told me how she had to wait months and years to get the help she needed." Tara spoke to Alli just last weekend. "She was talking about coming over to London as she wanted to bring Harry over to see Dylan again. "I just can't get my head around it all. She adored her four children and was a warrior mama bear. "We only spoke last week about autism and the kids and how we were going to change the way Ireland dealt with autism. She was so determined to make Ireland more understanding of autism. "The world is a little less shiny and a little less fun now Alli is gone. I'm going to miss her so much." Another friend recalled: "In times of need she'd always take me in and look after me, like a broken bird. "I lived with her for about a month in 2015 [when a relationship broke down]. It was my first Christmas alone, and of course Alli insisted I come to hers. She did so much for me. I loved her so much." Another friend, John Compton, said: "Alli had a wicked sense of humour and always tried to see the funny side of every situation, no matter what. "I remember one time I was feeling down, nearly at the end of Compton Model Agency [six years ago] and I was in Belfast judging a competition. "On my way back, I rang her and gave out to her about something, I don't remember what, and she said to me, 'John, f**k off. You are not the only one in Ireland who has the right to have a nervous breakdown' and I just laughed. "She was my best friend, a very loyal friend. She was also a wonderful mother who adored her children." Lisa Burgess said: "She was always laughing and smiling, no matter what life threw at her. Alli would always be up to naughtiness in TV3 behind the scenes," remembers Lisa, who did fashion on TV3 from 2011 to 2016. "We were always being told off for laughing too much with the models, Kerri Nicole and Sinead Noonan. Alli was so bold and always up to shenanigans. "We once judged a fashion show at Trinity together. When Alli was asked what she thought, she said they needed better catwalk skills. So I said to her, 'Get up there and show them' and she did - to much applause." Tara said: "Everyone who met her fell in love with her witty, dry sense of humour. "We were pregnant at the same time and spent almost every day together. I would lie on the sofa feeling sick and sorry for myself and Alli would be up cooking a feast. "Even the day Harry arrived, early and after quite a traumatic birth, I arrived in hospital expecting to see Alli in bits, but there she was, cracking up at the socks they had given her to wear. She was always laughing." Cut back to Rome in 2008. "My love for my children is indescribable. It is the most unbelievable feeling in the world to be a mother," Alli said, adding how much she loved her own mother, Imelda. I remember asking Alli did she believe in God. "Yes, I do," she said before being overcome by her mischievous side. "It's comforting to think there's a higher power apart from myself. That's a joke! You use that and I'll bash you!" Ciao, bella. If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article please contact Samaritans helpline 116 123 or Aware helpline 1800 80 48 48 or Pieta House on 1800 247 247. Albert Finney, who died on Thursday aged 82, was one of several British actors regarded in the 1950s as a successor to Laurence Olivier, whom he once understudied in Coriolanus. Though he eventually played a wide range of roles, he made his name in the film Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (1960) as a British working-class rebel whom audiences identified as the archetypal angry young man. It was the first and only time he played such a part, drawing on his own background in working-class Lancashire. Even to the end, having played Americans, Belgians and even such real-life figures as Pope John Paul II and Winston Churchill - in the award-winning television production The Gathering Storm (2002) - he was still associated in the public mind with Arthur Seaton, the bolshie young hero of Saturday Night and Sunday Morning. In a sense this worked against him. Audiences failed to give credit for his range and subtlety, regarding every new role as a one-off departure for the man who had played Alan Sillitoe's Arthur Seaton. He was the first actor offered the role of Lawrence of Arabia but turned it down because he felt it would cramp his theatrical ambitions. Had he accepted, he might have become as familiar as Peter O'Toole. His career, which began promisingly on stage, migrated perhaps too soon to the cinema and never really delivered the theatrical triumphs that had been widely predicted. He also had several periods of inactivity, which are not conducive to audience remembrance and recognition. Albert Finney Jr was born on May 9, 1936 in Salford, Lancashire, now part of the Greater Manchester area, and lived only a few streets away from Shelagh Delaney, the future author of another working-class literary classic, A Taste of Honey. He was one of three children of Albert Finney Snr, a bookie, and Alice, nee Hobson. Expand Close Albert Finney playing Churchill in The Gathering Storm / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Albert Finney playing Churchill in The Gathering Storm Growing up around the mills and smokestacks of post-war Lancashire, he was aware at an early age of the sense of social injustice that informs every action of a factory worker like Arthur Seaton. He attended Salford Grammar School, where he appeared in more than a dozen school plays. No swot, he failed his GCEs twice and was advised by his headmaster to switch from academics to acting and apply to join the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London, where he won a two-year scholarship. During his time at Rada, he won the Emile Littler prize as the student with the most outstanding aptitude for the theatre, and his performance in Troilus and Cressida caught the eye of visiting critic Kenneth Tynan, who described him as "a smouldering young Spencer Tracy". He left Rada in 1955 and spent two years with the Birmingham Repertory Theatre, where, among other roles, he played Decius Brutus in Julius Caesar, and was acclaimed in the title roles of Henry V and Hamlet. Not all performances were so well received, however. His Macbeth was dismissed by Charles Laughton as "bloody terrible", though he subsequently offered Finney a key role in his production of Jane Arden's play The Party, which, in 1958, marked Finney's debut in the West End, at the New Theatre. It was critically mauled, however, and enjoyed only a short run. In 1959 Finney transferred to the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre at Stratford, where he played Edgar in King Lear, Cassio in Othello and Lysander in A Midsummer Night's Dream. It was an unhappy time for him, marked by a faltering run in 1960 in the Cambridge Theatre production of Keith Waterhouse and Willis Hall's play Billy Liar and the breakdown in 1961 of his first marriage to the actress, Jane Wenham. But it also marked the beginning of his film career. His first appearance on screen was a bit part in Tony Richardson's film of the John Osborne play The Entertainer (1960). He played the son of Laurence Olivier's vaudeville artist, who appears for about a minute as a national serviceman before being posted to his death in the Suez crisis. The same year, remembering Finney even in such a small part, Richardson encouraged his friend, the director Karel Reisz, to audition him for the lead role in Saturday Night and Sunday Morning. It was an epoch-making moment. He landed the role, and cinemagoers had never before seen or heard working-class realism as raw as this on screen. Arthur Seaton's bloody-mindedness mirrored sentiments that dovetailed perfectly with the era of the angry young man. It led immediately to further successes. In the theatre he was cast as Luther in Tony Richardson's Brechtian production of John Osborne's play, which transferred from Nottingham to Paris in 1961 before settling at London's Phoenix Theatre and enjoying a subsequent Broadway run. Expand Close Albert Finney with his second wife, French actress Anouk Aimee. / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Albert Finney with his second wife, French actress Anouk Aimee. In Glasgow, Finney shone in Pirandello's Henry IV (1963) and in the cinema, after a misguided MGM remake of Emlyn Williams's Night Must Fall, he scored his second biggest hit in Richardson's Oscar-winning historical romp Tom Jones (1963). Tom Jones in the film is a devil-may-care lothario on a bed-to-bed trawl through Henry Fielding's 18th Century England. Richardson and his scriptwriter, John Osborne, turned him into a light-hearted Arthur Seaton 200 years before his time - and Finney duly made the connection. Years after the film had passed from general circulation, it was remembered for the classic scene in which Finney and one of his conquests (played by Joyce Redman, who, like Finney, received an Oscar nomination) devour poultry in a drooling frenzy in anticipation of the physical congress between them that is plainly foreshadowed. The only film Finney also directed, Charlie Bubbles (1967), was also a reflection of the era. He played a working-class boy made good, who has written bestsellers but, having fallen out of love with his ritzy lifestyle, goes north in search of his roots. En route he meets a temptress, played by the then largely unknown Liza Minnelli, and the film ends in fantasy. Notorious at the time for being denied a circuit release, it is barely recalled today, and then only as a curio. After this, Finney's theatrical ambitions seemed largely to lapse in favour of screen appearances of varying quality. He made a great number of films, ranging from horror movies like Wolfen (1989) to musicals - he played Daddy Warbucks, the mean millionaire, in John Huston's misjudged adaptation of Annie (1981). Pot-boilers like these, however, were sandwiched between superior work that was generally Oscar-nominated. These films included a wonderfully crusty Scrooge in 1970, a masterly assumption of the role of Hercule Poirot, Agatha Christie's ace detective, in Murder on the Orient Express (1974), and the film of Ronald Harwood's play The Dresser (1983). This was a particularly memorable production because it featured two equally strong performances - Finney's overbearing, Wolfit-like "Sir", an actor with an ego the size of Nelson's Column, and Tom Courtenay's dresser. Finney was a moving alcoholic in John Huston's film of Malcolm Lowry's Under the Volcano (1984), an Irish-American gangster in the Coen brothers' Miller's Crossing (1990), the pitiful schoolmaster on the verge of being pensioned off in Mike Figgis's remake of Terence Rattigan's The Browning Version, and a surprisingly convincing small-time American lawyer teaming up with Julia Roberts's force-of-nature legal clerk in Erin Brockovich (2000). In 2007, in Before the Devil Knows You're Dead, he became the force who turns the tragic outcome of a bungled heist involving his two sons into a melodrama bordering on Greek tragedy. In 2012 he put in an enjoyable turn in Skyfall as the lethal old gamekeeper who assists Daniel Craig's James Bond in perpetrating mayhem. The angry young man had evolved into a character actor of distinction, but he never took himself too seriously. In 1980 he turned down the offer of a CBE and in 2000 he declined a knighthood; he had criticised the honours system as "perpetuating snobbery". Although his initial promise was well recognised in England (Laurence Olivier had called him the best actor of his generation), he was more appreciated in America than at home. English awards were largely confined to the 1960 nod from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts as best newcomer for Saturday Night and Sunday Morning. In the United States, however, he won several Golden Globe awards, for his work in Tom Jones, Scrooge and as Winston Churchill in the television mini-series The Gathering Storm. Though he never won, he was nominated five times for Oscars, four times as best actor, for Tom Jones, Murder on the Orient Express, The Dresser and Under the Volcano and once as supporting actor, for Erin Brockovich. That performance was rewarded by the Screen Actors Guild. Finney was a lifelong Manchester United supporter, and in 2008 he narrated the documentary Munich, about the 1958 air disaster in which eight Busby Babes and 15 others had perished. Albert Finney married first, in 1957, Jane Wenham. They had a son but divorced in 1961, and in 1970 he married the French actress, Anouk Aimee. They divorced in 1978, and in 2006, he married Pene Delmage. She survives him, along with his son. Telegraph Dermot OLeary and Edith Bowman attending the 72nd British Academy Film Awards held at the Royal Albert Hall, Kensington Gore, Kensington, London. Bafta chairwoman Dame Pippa Harris said the lack of women in this years directing category at the film awards is an industry-wide problem. Speaking to the Press Association on the red carpet as this years event kicked off at Londons Royal Albert Hall, she also said the nomination of Netflix film Roma had marked a real change in the way people are consuming film. She said: I make Call The Midwife for BBC One, which is going out tonight. We almost entirely use female directors so there are female directors out there they are extremely good. There has been a traditional problem with getting females to be noticed in terms of their TV work and then get picked up to make feature films. Expand Close Dame Pippa Harris is the chairwoman of Bafta (Ian West/PA) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Dame Pippa Harris is the chairwoman of Bafta (Ian West/PA) Men seem to find that transition much easier. But I think gradually thats happening. We had a scheme called Bafta Elevate which supported 15 talented female directors to take them to the next level of their careers. Weve already employed five of them on Call The Midwife, so I think it will change but it needs to change more quickly. She hailed Romas nomination adding: Audiences are delighted to see films on the big screen but they are equally delighted to see something of the calibre of Roma going out on their TV at home, so I think that has been a bit of a game-changer for everyone. Expand Close Claire Foy on the red carpet (Ian West/PA) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Claire Foy on the red carpet (Ian West/PA) Dame Pippa said she was excited by the British names in the actress and supporting actress categories. She said: Claire Foy who we all know for her TV work but her first film nomination. Also Olivia Colman has never had a film nomination before but there she is right up in contention to win best actress. So its a really great year. Barry Jenkins, who is in the running for best adapted screenplay for his film If Beale Street Could Talk, told the Press Association of his joy at being nominated. He said: It feels great, I never imagined I would make anything that would be nominated for a Bafta so I think to be here again means the world to me. Jenkins also spoke about being nominated during this awards season alongside other filmmakers including Spike Lee and The Favourite director Yorgos Lanthimos. He said: Ive seen Spike quite a bit, Yorgos Ive seen quite a bit, its such a rare thing to be in the middle of award season so it kind of bonds you in a certain way. The Favourite leads the Bafta nominations this year with 12 nods, including for best film and outstanding British film. This years ceremony will be attended by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. William, who is the president of Bafta, will present the Academys highest accolade, the Fellowship, to film editor Thelma Schoonmaker. Amy Adams brought the glamour of old Hollywood to London as she arrived at the Baftas. The US star, who is nominated for best supporting actress for Vice, looked stunning in a deep burgundy dress that was belted at the waist. Adams, who wore her hair pulled back, accessorised with a sophisticated black brooch and long earrings. Expand Close Amy Adams (PA) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Amy Adams (PA) Red carpet host Edith Bowman went for something a little more unusual a long pink dress with a sizeable white ruffle at the throat. The quirky gown had a vase of flowers beaded and embroidered on the bodice. Expand Close Edith Bowman (PA) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Edith Bowman (PA) Laura Whitmore sparkled in a long silver and clay coloured dress. Expand Close Laura Whitmore (PA) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Laura Whitmore (PA) The sleeveless gown had a high neck and a partly transparent panel at the waist. Maya Jama brought the drama in an eye-catching black dress which showed off her curves. Expand Close Maya Jama (PA) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Maya Jama (PA) The Baftas are being held at the Royal Albert Hall. Within days of the "lights, camera, action" of Davos, finance minister Paschal Donohoe issued a press release outlining Ireland's latest move against international tax avoidance. Although issued on a Wednesday the OECD's tax team called it out as part of their latest developments' webinar the day before. Either way the truth was out there. That action was Ireland handing the OECD our ratification for what's become known as the 'MLI' or Multilateral Instrument. This is a Kryptonian-esque tax treaty. It has the power to transform many of Ireland's treaties in one go. Without this super-treaty, more than a thousand of this planet's double tax treaties would have had to be renegotiated and amended individually. Decades of work avoided and we've done our bit. The MLI comes into effect for Ireland's tax treaties in line with the timelines set out in the Instrument. A tax treaty allows lower withholding taxes between countries; it can also give taxing rights on certain income and gains to one country over another by adopting a "what's mine is mine" basis. The MLI addresses concerns that double tax treaties could allow these benefits in unintended circumstances. To deal with this the MLI brings about a principal purpose test (PPT) with the option of a form of limitation on benefits provision in each treaty. Most countries have gone with the PPT route. That effectively says if you do something with a principal purpose of benefiting from a tax treaty then no treaty benefits for you. We have a similar provision within our domestic law known as the "General Anti-Avoidance Rule". It removes a tax advantage where it is "reasonable to consider" (not even a "beyond a reasonable doubt" test) that a tax benefit was a primary purpose of the transaction. The MLI does the same thing for tax treaties. Donohoe said on the MLI that it was "another example of the action Ireland is taking to tackle aggressive tax planning. Ireland has always believed that aggressive tax planning is best addressed through co-operative multilateral agreements and I am delighted that we are depositing our Instrument of Ratification with the OECD today". Once the Instrument is in force, it will significantly reduce opportunities for tax treaty abuse including bringing about the end of the so called 'Single Malt' structure. This completes the delivery of another important commitment set out in Ireland's Corporation Tax Roadmap.' The MLI is the 'good guy' with the dreary 'multilateral instrument' name whereas the perceived 'bad guys' get cool names like double this, single that. The 'Single Malt' was taken out before Christmas with the Irish and Maltese tax authorities coming together in a competent authority agreement. This gave notice that the Single Malt arrangement would not be tolerated when the MLI took effect. Revenue published one of its newsflashes at the time and explained the science behind the Single Malt: a company is treated as resident for Maltese tax purposes where a company is managed and controlled in Malta. It doesn't matter whether it's incorporated there or not. Malta's tax law provides that where a resident company has income that is not received in Malta then such income will not be taxable there. Therefore, a payment from Ireland under this arrangement would not be subject to tax in Malta. This competent authority agreement was done last year but we and Malta still had to hand over our MLI ratifications to the OECD. Malta did its bit and then we did ours last week so our treaties will be at one when the MLI takes effect. But the MLI isn't just about Malta; it affects most of our tax treaties and so this super-treaty's power outlawing the Single Malt can be invoked by other treaty partners (and us) where Revenue authorities see legal reasons for not liking arrangements. So let's take stock of where Ireland is at in terms of dealing with international tax avoidance. We've signed up to both of the EU's Anti-Tax Avoidance Directives. The first directive wanted a regime where we tax other countries' income where companies there are used for avoidance: Done, see last Finance Act. It wanted a General Anti-Avoidance rule: Done, since 1989. It wanted interest restrictions from 2024 at the latest. My last column outlined how galactically complex ours already are and our authorities are chatting with the EU about whether the restrictions will be a 2019 or 2024 event. It wanted (by 2020) a tax on inherent gains within assets which arose while a company was resident here where that company leaves Ireland behind: Done, 12 months ahead of schedule, see last year's Finance Act. The second directive wanted to tackle the 'X-Files' sounding hybrid rules where one country sees entities and transactions differently to other countries resulting in tax mismatches: We've just had a public consultation so they can be brought about on schedule in this year's Finance Act. I'm so looking forward to working my way through that one. The most famous Kryptonian couldn't see through lead and so on transparency, our tax system is based in legislation which anybody, anywhere can pick up and read. I know, I've edited the Irish Tax Institute's direct tax legislation for a decade and have been commenting on it for much longer - I'm getting old. Also, we were one of the first countries to implement Country by Country Reporting. These reports are exchanged with all relevant countries to ensure tax authorities have a clear picture of the activities of certain multinationals. We have tax treaties with over 70 countries containing "exchange of information" provisions and we have over 20 Tax Exchange of Information agreements with other countries. In this year's Finance Act, we will legislate for the European Tax Intermediaries Directive (the really catchy 'DAC6') where tax practitioners and/or departments will have to tell Revenue authorities about certain cross-border tax transactions. However, the law is effectively here in that the potentially disclosable transactions date back to mid-last year. The directive explains the criteria but the devil will be in the detail of the forthcoming law which isn't written yet. Let that sink in for a second. So when someone questions our tax laws let them look to what we've done. To paraphrase another DC Hero in Batman Begins (2005) "It's not who we are underneath, but what we do that defines us". It could be Windows XP all over again.In 11 months, Microsoft will switch off security support for Windows 7. When this happens, it's open season for viruses and malware on Windows 7 laptops and PCs - Microsoft will not issue protection patches. They'll only protect Windows 10, the current system. In Ireland, around a third of PCs use Windows 7. This includes business and public sector machines. It includes hospitals, schools, utility companies, tax offices and government departments. Even though it takes a year for a large state body or enterprise to migrate from Windows 7 to Windows 10, many of these organisations look likely to miss the January 2020 deadline. When they do, taxpayers (or shareholders) will then have to pay thousands, or hundreds of thousands of euros, to Microsoft in special 'extended support' security fees if they don't want to be sitting ducks for malware attacks. Microsoft won't officially yet say what these fees are. But the company is reportedly briefing its enterprise customers at present, details of which have leaked. And the cost looks a little scary. For Windows 7 Pro, for example, it's $50 per device ($25 for Windows Enterprise) for the first 12 months, $100 per device for the second 12 months and a whopping $200 per device for the next 12 months. (This, reportedly, is treated as an 'add on' for Windows 10 and Microsoft 365 customers.) So an organisation with 1,000 PCs stuck using Windows 7 Pro will face an upfront security fee of $50,000, rising to $200,000 per annum if they don't sort out upgrades in time. Even 11 months from the deadline, we can be fairly confident that hundreds, if not thousands, of Ireland's businesses and public sector bodies will end up paying these unnecessary premium fees. Irish large organisations, especially those in the public sector, do not do infrastructure and planning well. Aside from the risk of infection or paying out higher fees than necessary, there are other downsides to sticking with Windows 7. "Under GDPR, you're supposed to be using competent, up-to-date systems that are fully patched," says Brian Honan, one of Ireland's most senior security consultants. "If not, you're potentially in breach." Honan acknowledges that migrating an operating system is not necessarily a straightforward thing to do. "Moving from Windows 7 to Windows 10, in many cases, may require upgrading quite a bit of hardware," he says. "There may be some significant additional costs. If you spent 20m on a medical device, you're not going to replace that every couple of years. You might decide that it's cheaper in the short term to just pay for extra support fees." The medical example is a case in point. The Wannacry virus of two years ago wreaked particular havoc in public sector institutions such as hospitals because much of its equipment was attached to unsupported Windows XP systems. The HSE, for example, had 1,500 systems using Windows XP because the specialist equipment such systems drove were single-purpose machines that cost millions. A similar problem was faced by companies running devices such as ticketing machines, CCTV, ATMs and public signage. For big organisations, the cost to update all of this would typically be calculated in the millions rather than the thousands. But Honan is in no doubt as to the potential for damage for companies that don't get their act together soon. "Potentially this could be similar to the Wannacry outbreak. There are probably similar numbers of machines that haven't been upgraded. Once a piece of malware is in a large organisation, it can become rampant because there won't be anything to stop it." With XP, Microsoft softened their 'no support' rule once or twice, in order to offer patches in particularly bad malware cases. But this is not to be expected again, the company's Irish executives are warning. "If they don't purchase security updates, they don't have any support," says Shirley Finnerty, business group lead at Microsoft Ireland. "They leave themselves vulnerable to attacks and breaches." Finnerty warned that deployment of Windows 10 from Windows 7 "can take on average between three and 12 months, or longer depending on the size of the organisation" and that businesses, as a matter of urgency, "should be planning now". Other estimates put the implementation phase for companies at significantly longer than three months. "According to Gartner, average migration projects for large enterprise organisations with more than 500 seats have been taking 21 months in the US," says a recently-published report on the issue from the Irish consultancy Auxilion. "In our experience, migrations from previous versions of Windows involving Irish organisations with more than 200 users took 12 months to complete on average. In almost every case, the migration time was much longer than initially anticipated by the client." The overall cost to Irish business, Auxilion reckons, could be as much as 200m. Is this the new Y2K? No. But that won't stop a clatter of soundbytes and headlines toward the end of 2019 from business lobbyists arguing that Microsoft is 'bullying' small businesses or that 'the government' should make Microsoft call off the upgrade deadline. "It's all a scam," our outraged spokesperson will say. "They just want you to keep paying for unnecessary upgrades. Why can't they just stick to one?" They are. Windows 10 will be the last time this type of migration will happen. From now on, updates will be cloud-based. So please, please don't throw your arms up and act surprised in six months time about this. As a nation that is famous for hospitality, we take enormous pride in our homes. Our homes are an extension of ourselves, our personalities and our taste. Once upon a time, we purchased furniture and accessories to last a lifetime. Now we tire more quickly than our parents did and we change our look more often. The business of interiors is a growing industry. Helen Turkington Interior Designers Decorators Helen Turkington is an organisation specialising in interior decor for the residential market. Founded by Helen Turkington in 2006, it is now the top destination in Ireland for advice and inspiration on how to make a home look amazing. Creativity, art and design is in Helens blood as she comes from a Cookstown, Co Tyrone family that has specialised for years in fabrics and paints. As a young girl, Helen moved to London and initially trained in food and wine. Then while working for an Irish developer as his girl Friday, dressing his Newmarket home for events and parties, she found that she was more passionate about interior decor. On her return to Ireland, she worked in the family business in Cookstown. My mother was an interior designer but I never wanted to be one. Yet I found myself drawn to it by accident really, said Helen. The business already had a reputation for importing fabrics directly from the mills, which meant that we could sell high-quality fabrics at very competitive prices. So we opened two more dedicated stores in Enniskillen and Newbridge, selling fabric on rolls rather than swatches she added. Helen opened her own store under her own name in Dunville Avenue Ranelagh in 2004. Initially she was the exclusive Irish stockist for The White Company as well as Farrow & Ball and growth came quickly. This established her brand with the premium end of the market. However, downward pressure on margin during the downturn prompted her to drop those brands and switch to fabrics. That introduced curtains and re-upholstering to the mix. As time went on and with a beautiful store stocked with fabrics, flowers and interior accessories were added. Helen then found herself being invited to fit out premium homes. The interior design and decor business just evolved from that. The Business Model The company is known for having a very particular style that Helen herself describes as contemporary classic. In the same way that a black dress is a core wardrobe item and can be accessorised with a belt, shoes or a scarf, we like to keep our designs simple with timeless elegance, said Helen. Colour and design can be introduced with cushions, fabrics and curtains to enhance the look and finish the room. And they, of course, can be changed more often as the homeowner tires of a look. When homeowners engage with the company for a home makeover, they will delight in showing off the results to their friends and family. Today, most of the business which also includes a design service comes from referrals. As the business has grown over the years, Helen by herself couldnt cope with the number of enquiries coming in. It has since scaled up with the addition of a talented young team of designers and decorators. The challenge was to ensure that the brands signature was retained in all projects, regardless of the designer. An exquisite new showroom in Spruce Avenue in Sandyford was added in 2015 to showcase the look and the themes, with customer visits by appointment only. This splendid array of luxury and quality is key to ensuring continuity of the brand. It is a source of inspiration and aspiration not only to customers but to the dedicated team also. The market is full of independent competitors, so staying ahead and innovating is a crucial part of the success story. With an amazing knack for seeing trends in advance, Helen and the team spend hours on research in the companys creative studio in Sandyford. This ensures that they stay ahead of the trends curve and the competition. In days gone by, mood boards were developed to present a look, but now with various platforms like Pinterest and Houzz and of course our own showroom, we have a really strong and efficient point of difference for our customer, said Helen. The Future Launching soon is a new brand called Turkington Rock (a joint venture with Red Rock Developments), a residential development company designing and building high-end homes. The internal layout and design is not being focused on early enough in many new developments. This is critical and it means we will deliver amazing homes that have been designed with families in mind said Helen. I have recently worked with Helen and the team and I know that innovation and creativity take centre stage. As Helen looks to the completion of her own new home, she is playing around with two other ideas. One is to write and publish a coffee-table book of pictures and concepts. The other is to develop a learning academy, with classes on home styling, entertaining, flower arranging and more. Karl Fitzpatrick, owner of Wexford-based Chevron Training and Recruitment, has made a 2m bid for the business in its entirety. At least six bids have been made for troubled e-learning platform the Shaw Academy, the Sunday Independent understands. The Dublin-based academy, which provides more than 70 different online courses to 4.5 million students globally, sought the protection of the court at the start of the year after its largest debtor made demands for it to repay 5.7m in loans. The High Court-appointed examiner Stephen Tennant of Grant Thornton had sought expressions of interest from investors in order to put a scheme of arrangement in place that would see the company exit examinership within three months. It is understood that six preferred bidders have been identified by Tennant. A total of 39 parties expressed their interest in the business originally. The examiner did not respond to requests for comment. The Shaw Academy posted revenue of 7.2m last year. Founded six years ago by James Egan and Adrian Murphy, the business, which now employs 66, has grown from 10,000 students to 4.5 million last year. Initially offering finance-based subjects, it now offers subjects including design, beauty, languages, and photography. The Shaw Academy encountered financial difficulties after Columbia Lake Partners Growth Lending issued a demand for the money it had lent in 2017. Earlier this month, the High Court heard that the Luxembourg fund had provided the group with 4.65m two years ago, which was due for repayment in November 2018. The court heard the Shaw Academy had been proactive and had been in talks with a potential investor, who had withdrawn in late December. Directors and senior management had also made cuts to their remuneration and staff numbers before applying for court protection. Shaw's non-executive chairman, Stephen Murphy, has enjoyed a high profile career and succeeded Richard Branson as chief executive of the Virgin Group in 2005 before standing down six years later. Murphy also chairs the Ovo Energy Group. Last month, Wexford-based entrepreneur Karl Fitzpatrick made a 2m bid for the business in its entirety. Fitzpatrick led a management buyout of Chevron Training and Recruitment, which had entered into examinership, in December 2012.The Wexford-based company employed 15 people then but now has 44 staff. The education entrepreneur declined to comment on an offer for the Shaw Academy. An independent KPMG report, filed as part of the Shaw Academy's bid for protection from the court, found that the platform had a "strong underlying business". Around this time of the winter, I usually get that "glass half-empty" feeling when I look at my rapidly shrinking silage pit. However, in spite of the recent cold snap, I have a nice cover of early grass on some of my farm to fall back on if things do go wrong this spring, so I definitely have a "glass half-full" feeling now as far as silage is concerned. In spite of all this early growth, I still don't plan to let out any cattle until about mid-March. Hopefully, this will allow sufficient time for my old-pasture paddocks to recover should the weather turn cold. This winter's fine weather also meant I was able to get my fences and hedges cut back from my electric fence. Unfortunately, I didn't get around to spreading any lime, but as land is still relatively sound, I am hopeful that I'll get it done in time for spring. Meanwhile, we continue to move ever-closer to the edge of the Brexit precipice. Every day brings more speculation about what might happen if there is a no-deal Brexit. There was a real thunderbolt for farming recently in the form of a report published by The Lancet, one of the world's oldest and most prestigious medical journals. In conjunction with an organisation called 'EAT', the report states that the pressures of climate change will require drastic dietary changes, including a 90pc reduction in red meat and milk consumption, a 70pc reduction in chicken, as well as substantial reduction in the consumption of potatoes and some other vegetables. Even allowing for my obvious bias in this debate, this is pretty heavy stuff so I decided to research the EAT organisation. On its website, EAT describes itself simply as a "science-based global platform for food system transformation a non-profit start-up dedicated to transforming our global food system through sound science, impatient disruption and novel partnership". Of course, we are all in favour of sound science but over the decades, science has been repeatedly shown to be far from infallible in relation to food-production systems and the environment. How many times have scientists assured us of how "safe" various chemical sprays were, only to find out years later that they had been withdrawn from the market because of the dangers they posed to human health? When I was a mature student, I spent a few years studying the concept of Sustainable Development. One thing I learned was that the use of jargon such as "impatient disruption and novel partnership" as well as the repeated use of the much-abused term "sustainability" without an accompanying explanation was usually an indication of questionable motives. We have often heard it said that "you can judge a person by the company they keep" so who do the people in EAT associate with? EAT has close connections with large transnational financial, tax and investment companies and also has close ties with some biotech research facilities such as MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). One of EAT's financial partners states that "biotechnology firms have a critical role to play in developing new antimicrobials". A week or so after the food consumption report, The Lancet published a report based on 'The Lancet Commission on Obesity'. This report contains extraordinary suggestions including a call for a reduction in "unhealthy" food consumption through taxes and the redirecting of farming subsidies away from dairy and beef farming to what it calls "sustainable farming for healthful foods". To me, this report reflects what's happening in the high-stakes battle where primary food producers are caught in the crossfire between the global food industry and the global biotech industry for control of the global food market. GM crops For decades, multinational biotech companies have claimed we need to use their genetically modified crops if we are to "feed the world". They have, however, been deeply frustrated by an ongoing consumer resistance to GM food. In his book, So Shall We Reap, renowned biologist Colin Tudge has countered the pro-GM arguments and explains how "without resorting to GM crops, we can take back control from the corporate barons, feed the world and, ultimately ensure the survival of humanity". Another of EAT's claims is that CO2 emissions can be reduced by switching to plant-based food. I find this claim highly suspect as it would involve ploughing wide areas of permanent grassland. It is generally accepted that ploughing humus-rich grasslands, which we have in abundance in Ireland, leads to a massive release of CO2 into the atmosphere. Research by the University of Wisconsin has shown how the ploughing of Minnesota's prairies is dramatically increasing carbon in the atmosphere. According to this research, newly ploughed land in Minnesota released 1.86 million US tons of carbon into the atmosphere each year between 2008 and 2012. This concurs with research undertaken by Don Hofstrand, Professor Emeritus of Iowa State University. He claims that as "soil is a huge storehouse of carbon, theoretically, American soils could soak up more than 100 million tons of carbon annually by actually returning cropland to permanent grass or trees". To me that reads a lot more like sound science than the vague sentiments of the EAT organisation's mission statement. John Heney farms in Kilfeackle, Co Tipperary. Email: heney.john@gmail.com Its actually quite remarkable how different the schedules are, considering the supposed inflexibility critics have decried. It seems to me that it is a matter of priorities. Local school boards do, in fact, have quite a bit of control over the total number of days schools are closed, what holidays are deemed important for their communities, how long breaks should last and how many days should be dedicated to professional development during the year. Businessman Philip Reynolds, son of former Taoiseach Albert Reynolds, has sold down his last remaining 15pc stake in the family business, C&D Foods, to beef baron Larry Goodman. Reynolds told the Sunday Independent that Brexit had been the trigger for his exit from the company. He also is leaving the company after almost three decades as CEO. The company was founded by the late Albert Reynolds 50 years ago in Edgeworthstown, Co Longford. Goodman's ABP Food Group first invested in the company in 2008. It took a 50pc stake, helping C&D to fulfil ambitions to become a consolidator in the market and expand in Europe. The pet food company now has annual revenues of 500m and spans nine countries, employing 1,500 people. Reynolds said that in excess of 40pc of the business remained UK-focused. Under the 2008 agreement with Goodman, there was a put-and-call option under which both parties would review the business and shareholding periodically. "I had always an opportunity to put my shares to ABP and they would have to buy them, and similarly there was a time when they could call on my shares and I'd have to sell them," said Reynolds. Recently, the pair held a meeting regarding the shareholding. "Larry and I had the conversation and our agreement, our understanding coming out of it, was that Brexit is a huge issue," said Reynolds. "It is a huge issue for every business that trades in the UK and we're no different in that. We have to be Brexit-ready whatever that means and in whatever form Brexit takes. "Did I think it was going to be now? Did I think it was going to be over this issue? No is the honest answer to that," said Reynolds. "It was all about what's right for the business and we both concluded from that the time - albeit not of our choosing - the time is right now." He agreed with Goodman that having a minority shareholder would not be beneficial in the current environment. Reynolds said he and Goodman had enjoyed an extremely positive working relationship and that ABP's backing had helped the company expand and thrive. "It's very, very tight margin [the business], we're dealing with the largest retail groups all across Europe, it's fiercely competitive, and, at times, like the finance crunch, no money available to do anything - and I'm not even talking about expanding, I'm talking about to run day-to-day businesses - you need somebody of the strength of an ABP to get you through that." Pedigree, owned by Mars, and Nestle dominate the pet food sector with C&D Foods focusing on the private label business, which means it makes pet food branded for individual supermarket chains. Reynolds said selling the stake was a very emotional decision given the family's history with the business. However, he now plans to invest in new business ventures. After widespread unrest between 14-16 January, following a hike in fuel prices across Zimbabwe, over a thousand people have been arrested, a number of those in apparent dragnet operations by both police and the army. What happened immediately thereafter appeared to be a wholesale breakdown in proper legal process. Magistrates courts separately but almost universally made decisions to deny bail whatever the circumstances indeed, even where urgent medical attention was required. Prosecutions were then fast-tracked, occasionally without any legal representation. Even where there was representation there was inadequate time and facilities to prepare, let alone present, a proper defence. Although expressly denied, in light of the fact that decisions on bail and subsequent pressure to immediately proceed with trials was so consistent and widespread, its hard not to conclude that there was some central pressure and co-ordination. We were told of a trial commencing with a defendant in agony from bullet wounds. As a British lawyer who was flown out to observe the legal proceedings in operation, I have met numerous lawyers and spoken to many other actors in the criminal justice system as well as concerned diplomats from Britain and other EU missions. I witnessed one trial at Rotten Row Magistrates Court in Harare where 61 defendants were packed into a smallish court. In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Show all 55 1 /55 In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election People in Mbare celebrate after officials announced the re-election of President Emmerson Mnangagwa Getty Images In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Supporters celebrate at the Harare International Convention Centre in the early hours Getty Images In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election People in Mbare celebrate Getty Images In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election People in Mbare celebrate Getty In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Supporters sing and dance soon after the announcement EPA In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Supporters sing and dance soon after the results of the Presidential elections were announced at the Harare International Convention Centre EPA In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election A vendor sells sponges near newspaper headlines on the streets of Harare AP In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Supporters of the newly reelected Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa celebrate in Mbare AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election People in Mbare celebrate Getty Images In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election A man reads a Zimbabwean newspaper the day after the violence on the streets of Harare EPA In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election A soldier fires shots towards demonstrators AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election A wounded man reacts at the sight of soldiers while taking shelter in a stall at a market in Harare AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Supporters of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change party (MDC) light a fire in the streets of Harare. Reuters In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Soldiers open fire to disperse crowds of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change supporters outside the party's headquarters in Harare REUTERS In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Opposition MDC party supporters hold a voting placard up high on a street in Harare AP In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election A supporter of Zimbabwean opposition MDC Alliance allegedly beaten up by soldiers sits with blood on his face as other protesters assist him AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election A vendor scurries for cover with her wares as soldiers disperse demonstrators AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election A wounded man hides under a tarpauling while the Zimbabwean Army patrols the streets of Harare AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Anti-riot police officers close the entrance to the Rainbow Towers, where the election results were announced in Harare Getty In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Soldiers open fire on citizens REUTERS In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Citizens run the Zimbabwean army during protests in Harare Reuters In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Supporters of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change party (MDC) protest the result of the election, which they allege to be fraudulent Getty In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Supporters of the opposition protest in the streets of Harare as police fire tear gas AP In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election A soldier assaults a man on the streets of Harare during protests AP In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Zimbabwean anti riot police officers sit in a truck amidst protesters on the streets of Harare Getty In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Citizens run from riot police amidst protests in Harare AP In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Soldiers patrol the streets during protests in Harare Reuters In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election A Zimbabwean soldier beats a man on the streets of Harare Getty In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election A man lies dead after the Zimbabwean army shot at protesters in Harare Getty In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election A supporter of the opposition party protests in the streets of Harare Reuters In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Zimbabwean soldiers beats an opposition supporter on the streets of Harare Reuters In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Supporters of the opposition protest in the streets of Harare AP In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Supporters of the opposition protest in the streets of Harare as police fire tear gas Getty In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Supporters of the opposition burn a campaign banner of the ruling Zanu-PF party Reuters In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election A man casts his vote in Mbare, a suburb of Zimbabwean capital Harare Getty In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election A police officer keeps watch of queuing voters in Mbare Getty In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Voters stand in line outside a polling station in Mbare Getty In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Election officials remove political posters near a polling station on voting day Getty In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Oppostion leader Nelson Chamisa arrives at a polling station in Harare Getty In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Oppostion leader Nelson Chamisa casts his vote AP In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Zimbabwean president Emmerson Mnangagwa arrives to cast his vote in Kwekwe Reuters In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Zimbabwean president Emmerson Mnangagwa casts his vote AP In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Voters stand in line outside a polling station in Kwekwe AP In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election A woman prays outside a polling station in Mbare Getty In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Voters arrive at a polling station in Harare EPA In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Former president Robert Mugabe prepares to cast his vote in Harare AP In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election A woman casts her vote in Mbare, a suburb of capital Harare Getty In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election A woman casts her vote in the township of Makokoba Getty In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election A police officer casts his vote in Mbare Getty In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election A woman prays near a polling station in Mbare EPA In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election A man casts his vote in Harare AP In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Former president Robert Mugabe speaks at a press conference the day before the vote where he stated that he would not be voting for his former Zanu-PF party Reuters In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election A supporter of the opposition MDC party attends the final campaign rally in Harare on July 28 Reuters In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Supporters of the opposition MDC (Movement for Democratic Change) party attends the final campaign rally in Harare on July 28 EPA In pictures: Zimbabwe votes in historic election Supporters of the opposition MDC (Movement for Democratic Change) party attends the final campaign rally in Harare on July 28 EPA One juvenile was on trial with all the adults, again an unusual occurrence in Zimbabwe. The sheer number of defendants has necessitated lawyers taking on a large number of clients with little realistic chance of obtaining individual instruction before or indeed during the trial. Additionally, the evidence against individual defendants is in many cases wholly unclear. Whilst I witnessed individual lawyers doing their best within the constraints to properly defend their clients, and magistrates were conspicuously allowing rigorous cross-examination, the proceedings as a whole fell far short of meeting minimum fair-trial standards. Allowing the defence team to do their best with what little has been disclosed cannot realistically ameliorate such systemic failures at the initial stages of the proceedings. Lawyers demonstrated in Harare last Tuesday, 29 January and petitioned the Constitutional Court, demanding restoration of justice and an end to apparent political and military interference in the criminal justice system. The size of the demonstration (despite fears of arrest) illustrated the scale of concern about the systems response to the unrest. We heard from many sources that this direct action (lawyers retain a position of respect in Zimbabwe) had some impact and was supported, albeit secretly, by many prosecutors and judges. What strikes you in Zimbabwe is the strong continuing commitment by so many in the criminal justice system to the rule of law in spite of political interference. The constitution, passed during a time of power sharing in 2013, is a strong and effective document when implemented. The criminal justice system is adversarial and mirrors our own. Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events There is some confidence that since the high court contains many independent appointees, they may well eventually overturn those convictions obtained after manifestly unfair expedited trials. I lectured some years ago in Harare and Bulawayo on the various human rights instruments applying to Zimbabwe. I was impressed then by the enthusiastic commitment of so many human rights defenders to learn how to challenge violations and hold their government to its own stated obligations. That spirit continues. I read welcome comments as I landed on Monday by chief justice Luke Malaba supporting the role of lawyers, including from Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, for their work in representing so many accused in these circumstances. This is in stark contrast with some implied and direct criticism of the very same lawyers in state media whilst I was there. The work of these lawyers is crucial. Without their determination and dedication Zimbabwe would be a less optimistic place. It is essential that initial trials are urgently reviewed by the high court, and the serious and manifest flaws in many continuing trials addressed. The strength of any justice system is evidenced in how successful it is in ensuring due process, irrespective of the challenges being faced. Michael Ivers QC is an executive officer of the Bar Human Rights Committee of England and Wales and a barrister at Garden Court Chambers Conjoined twins who were born in Yemen have died after failing to get the urgent treatment they needed, the health ministry in the country has said. Doctors had warned that two-week-old Abd al-Khaleq and Abd al-Rahim would not be able to survive within Yemens war-ravaged health system and needed to go abroad. The twins were in the capital Sanaa but the airport in the Houthi-controlled city has been closed to civilian flights since 2015 because the Saudi-led coalition has control over Yemeni airspace. Currently only UN planes are landing at the airport. Reopening the runways is a key aim of the peace talks which started in Stockholm in December. A Saudi organisation, the King Salman Center for Relief and Humanitarian Works, had been looking into how to get the boys, who had separate heads but a shared torso, abroad for treatment, Saudi state news agency SPA said on Wednesday. Brutal effects of Yemeni war Show all 12 1 /12 Brutal effects of Yemeni war Brutal effects of Yemeni war Yemen organised by the UAE's National Media Council shows a Yemeni woman holding a child diagnosed with malnutrition at a hospital in the southeastern port city of Mukalla, the capital Hadramawt province AFP/Getty Images Brutal effects of Yemeni war Mohamed, 2, is treated for Malnutrition in Mukalla, the capital Hadramawt province, Yemen Bel Trew Brutal effects of Yemeni war a trip in Yemen organised by the UAE's National Media Council (NMC) shows a Yemeni woman holding a child diagnosed with malnutrition at a hospital in the southeastern port city of Mukalla, the capital Hadramawt province. AFP/Getty Images Brutal effects of Yemeni war UAE's National Media Council (NMC) shows a Yemeni woman sitting next to a child diagnosed with malnutrition at a hospital in the southeastern port city of Mukalla, the capital Hadramawt province. AFP/Getty Brutal effects of Yemeni war AFP/Getty Images Brutal effects of Yemeni war Mohamed, 2, is treated for Malnutrition in Mukalla, the capital Hadramawt province, Yemen Bel Trew Brutal effects of Yemeni war A Yemeni child suffering from malnutrition is weighed at a hospital in the northern district of Abs, in Yemen's Hajjah province AFP/Getty Images Brutal effects of Yemeni war A Yemeni child suffering from malnutrition awaits treatment at a hospital in the northern district of Abs, in Yemen's Hajjah province AFP/Getty Images Brutal effects of Yemeni war A Yemeni child suffering from malnutrition awaits treatment at a hospital in the northern district of Abs, in Yemen's Hajjah province AFP/Getty Images Brutal effects of Yemeni war Yemeni nurses weigh a malnourished child at a hospital in the northern district of Yemen's Hajjah province AFP/Getty Images Brutal effects of Yemeni war A Yemeni woman carries a malnourished child as she waits during food distribution in the province of Hodeida AFP/Getty Brutal effects of Yemeni war AFP/Getty Images But in a statement carried by the Houthi-run Saba news, the health ministry said the deaths reflect the health and humanitarian situation Yemen's children are living through as a result of the war. Yemen's almost four-year war pits the Iran-aligned Houthi movement against a Saudi-backed coalition trying to restore the government of Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi after it was ousted from power in Sanaa by the Houthis in 2014. US Senate rebukes Saudi Arabia voting to end support for Yemen war, defying Trump The conflict has killed tens of thousands of people, collapsed the economy and brought millions of people to the brink of famine. Additional reporting from agencies Saudi Arabia has denied involvement in an alleged blackmail plot by a US publishing company against Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. Mr Bezos, the worlds richest man, accused the National Enquirer last week of extortion and blackmail after the tabloid published in January texts between Bezos and his girlfriend, former Fox TV anchor Lauren Sanchez. He claims the Enquirers parent company, American Media Inc (AMI), demanded he announce its reporting of his private life was not politically motivated, or else it would publish a number of salacious photos, including a below-the-belt selfie. In a post on Medium, Mr Bezos alleged AMI owned by Trump ally David Pecker was angry he had launched a private investigation into how the magazine had obtained the texts. Mr Bezos referenced media reports about alleged links between AMI and Saudi Arabia, and alluded to the kingdoms displeasure at the Washington Posts coverage of the murder of its columnist Jamal Khashoggi. Mr Bezos owns the Washington title. On Friday, Saudi Arabia sparked criticism and suspicion when its foreign ministry Twitter account posted quotes attributed to foreign minister Adel al-Jubeir, in which he said: We warn against any attempt to link Khashoggis crime to our leadership. But in an interview to be aired on Sunday, Mr Jubeir told CBS News the kingdom has absolutely nothing to do with the row. This is something between the two parties, we have nothing to do with it, Mr Jubeir said, when asked if the Saudi government was involved in the Enquirer leaks. Inside the Amazon Fulfilment Centres Show all 15 1 /15 Inside the Amazon Fulfilment Centres Inside the Amazon Fulfilment Centres One of Britain's largest centres in Dunfermline, Fife PA Inside the Amazon Fulfilment Centres The centre in Peterborough AFP/Getty Inside the Amazon Fulfilment Centres The centre in Hemel Hempstead PA Inside the Amazon Fulfilment Centres The centre in Robbinsville, New Jersey Getty Inside the Amazon Fulfilment Centres The centre in Tracy, California Reuters Inside the Amazon Fulfilment Centres The centre in Robbinsville, New Jersey Getty Inside the Amazon Fulfilment Centres The centre in Boves, France AFP/Getty Inside the Amazon Fulfilment Centres The centre in Swansea PA Inside the Amazon Fulfilment Centres The centre in Madrid Getty Inside the Amazon Fulfilment Centres The centre in Robbinsville, New Jersey Getty Inside the Amazon Fulfilment Centres The centre in Swansea PA Inside the Amazon Fulfilment Centres The centre in Hemel Hempstead Getty Inside the Amazon Fulfilment Centres The centre in Hemel Hempstead Getty Inside the Amazon Fulfilment Centres 'Amazon Jobs Day', a job fair, at the centre in Robbinsville, New Jersey Getty Inside the Amazon Fulfilment Centres The centre in Boves, France Reuters It sounds to me like a soap opera, he said. Mr Jubeir claimed he was not aware of any links between the Saudi government and AMI or Mr Pecker. Mr Bezoss revelations have sparked an investigation by federal prosecutors into whether AMI violated a cooperation deal with the Southern District of New York, after it admitted last year it broke the law to help facilitate a hush money payment on behalf of Donald Trump. Jeff Bezos predicts we'll have 1 trillion humans in the solar system AMI said on Friday its reporting on Mr Bezos was lawful and it would investigate his claims. The killing of Khashoggi at the kingdoms Istanbul consulate last October strained Saudi Arabias ties with western allies, exposed the kingdom to possible sanctions and tarnished the image of de facto ruler Mohammed bin Salman, who has denied any involvement in the murder. Additional reporting by Reuters Alexandr Bekmirzaev has just finished recounting the story of the past five and half years of his life, a time he spent living in the midst of the most brutal terror group of modern times. The 45-year-old Irish citizen, originally from Belarus, tells a tale of misfortune and mistakes that led him from his home in Dublin to an isolated corner of eastern Syria, where he was captured leaving the last small area held by Isis. He insists that he never wanted anything to do with the group. But many have told a similar story after their capture, when they have every reason not to tell the truth. Does he expect people to believe him? I have this story and thats it. This is my life, he says, with exasperation in his voice. You wake me up at three in the morning and I will tell you the same. Bekmirzaev is one of hundreds of foreigners who have been detained while leaving the caliphate over the past month, on suspicion of being a member of Isis. His case is typical of the challenge facing authorities here in Syria, and back in their countries of origin it is nearly impossible to prove that anyone who lived under Isis was an active member, or carried out crimes on its behalf. The suspicion is high enough that few governments want to take them back, fearing they would pose a security risk, so they remain stuck in limbo here, in the custody of the Syrian Democratic Forces. The future for the thousands of foreign Isis suspects and their families is as unclear as their past. Bekmirzaevs current predicament is a far cry from his former life in Dublin, Ireland. He emigrated from Belarus in 1999, and eventually gained Irish citizenship in 2010. Before he left for Syria he worked as a bouncer at a club called Lillies Bordello. Life in Ireland was simple. I liked it, he says, in an interview with The Independent at a military facility in northern Syria. I tried a few things, but I ended up in security. The money was good, the hours were good. He describes himself at that time as a bad Muslim, someone who strongly believed, but badly practised. The broad outlines of this part of his life are not in question. But what happened next is the subject of intense scrutiny, both by the Kurdish authorities who hold him today, and the Irish police back home. Bekmirzaev doesnt remember the precise moment he decided to go to Syria, but he remembers consuming a steady drip of news from the country, of airstrikes and civilians being killed. On TV it was presented as a massacre. [Bashar al-Assad] just ruthlessly killed many people, he says. He was a real evil-doing person. I started thinking maybe I would come to help. But I had no military experience and I didnt plan to fight, so I thought to myself I could do something in the medical field. In September 2013, Bekmirzaev bought a plane ticket to Istanbul and made his way to the southern Turkish town of Reyhanli, and from there across the border. He says he didnt have any contacts in Syria, but asked around for a hospital where he could work. He ended up in a town called Haritan, in Aleppo province. Some people brought me there, and showed me the hospital. There were some Russian doctors there, he says. I have no medical education, I was a helper. I learned a few things, changing bandages. Whatever they tell me to do. At the beginning it was more construction, because you have to build the hospital. In those first months of Bekmirzaevs time in Syria, Isis had not yet emerged as a dominant force. In the countrys rebel-held north, it was engaged in a power struggle with the al-Qaeda-affiliated Nusra Front. Both groups espoused an extreme jihadi ideology, and both counted hundreds of foreign fighters in their ranks. Bekmirzaev says he had no intention of seeking out Isis, and wasnt familiar with them when he left Ireland. He says he was motivated by a desire to help Muslims in Syria. But rather than seek a job with a charity working in the country, he chose to go to an area that was controlled by a known extremist group, which would later evolve into Isis. Shortly after arriving, he sent for his wife and his nine-month-old son to join him, which they did in January 2014. I dont want to really talk about this, he says. I made a stupid mistake. I asked them to come and join me. I said we can spend a couple of months here and we go back home. But once they arrived, the problems started, the war started seriously. One week after his family arrived, the town of Haritan was surrounded by the Free Syrian Army, the mainstream opposition to Assad. From this moment on, Bekmirzaev says he was forced to go wherever Isis went. His family fled to Raqqa, along with masses of Isis fighters, and he followed them shortly after. 'I have no other home': Irish citizen suspected of Isis links Alexandr Bekmirzaev on his desire to return to Dublin Later I found out that it was a Dawla-controlled area, he says, using a respectful term for Isis, meaning state. After finding his family, they moved to a nearby town. He says he had come to know an Isis emir, and he asked him for permission to leave. He said OK, but the next day they came and took my passport. Then I understood I wasnt going anywhere, he says. For six months I did nothing. Then he came to me and said, You have to work. I said that I wasnt going to fight, so they told me that I have to be a driver for the foreigners who live in the area. In August 2014, he started his job, ferrying foreign Isis members mostly Russian to and from this small town near Raqqa. I didnt have a gun. I was just a driver. If I travelled to a far destination, they would always put someone with me, some fighter, he adds. If you think Im a bad person, it doesnt mean you have to throw me in the sea Alexandr Bekmirzaev He did this work for a year, until mental health issues he says he had suffered from before he came to Syria worsened. I have depression, and I have changes in my character, exhaustion, anxiety, he says. In other interviews, Bekmirzaev has said he suffers from schizophrenia. They released me from work, and I was prohibited to do any job because of the problem I have, he says. I would go once a week to the hospital and they would recite the Quran to me. Every week I would go to get papers from them to prove I was doing something, otherwise you might end up in prison. Bekmirzaev says he lived like this for a while, until Raqqa and the surrounding area was captured by the SDF, and Isis was forced to flee further south. As the Dawla get smaller, we keep moving, keep moving, he says. By early 2018, the once mighty caliphate was reduced to a string of towns and villages along the Euphrates river, in Deir ez-Zor. He describes the last months there as a constant battle to stay alive. The human is an amazing creature. I can get adapted to everything. You go to the shop, if the shop is still there, maybe 200 metres a missile landed, it becomes normal. Yeah youre afraid, but its part of your life. You wake up, next building to you doesnt exist anymore, the children that your son played with or your neighbours, they arent there anymore. They are in pieces, he says. By December last year, the caliphate was in a state of chaos. People were starting to make their way across the front lines out of Isis territory. Thousands of women and children have since fled, many of them suspected of being the families of Isis members. You wake up every morning and you see five or six houses are gone, he says. At this point I know its time to leave. With the help of a local, he and his family left with around 40-50 others. They made their way to the SDF lines, at which point he was arrested. Among the group that left with him were two US citizens and two Pakistanis also suspected Isis members. When they realised I was a foreigner, they started to shout, loaded their guns. They sat us on the ground, me and my family, screamin Daesh, Daesh, Daesh, he says. The SDF said in a statement that the group were terrorists who had been preparing to attack the civilians who were trying to get out of the war zone. Syria at war: Fleeing the caliphate Show all 14 1 /14 Syria at war: Fleeing the caliphate Syria at war: Fleeing the caliphate Trucks full of women and children arrive from the last Isis-held areas in Deir ez-Zor, Syria Richard Hall/The Independent Syria at war: Fleeing the caliphate Zikia Ibrahim, 28, with her two-year-old son and 8-month-old daughter, after fleeing the Isis caliphate Richard Hall/The Independent Syria at war: Fleeing the caliphate Richard Hall/The Independent Syria at war: Fleeing the caliphate Men who fled the last Isis-held area of Syria line up to be questioned by American and Kurdish intelligence officials Richard Hall/The Independent Syria at war: Fleeing the caliphate Richard Hall/The Independent Syria at war: Fleeing the caliphate A young girl pulls her belongings after arriving Richard Hall/The Independent Syria at war: Fleeing the caliphate An SDF fighter hands out bread to women and children after they arrive Richard Hall/The Independent Syria at war: Fleeing the caliphate Sita Ghazzar, 70, after fleeing from the last Isis-held territory in Syria Richard Hall/The Independent Syria at war: Fleeing the caliphate A family from Russia who recently fled the last Isis-held area of Syria Richard Hall/The Independent Syria at war: Fleeing the caliphate Richard Hall/The Independent Syria at war: Fleeing the caliphate Richard Hall/The Independent Syria at war: Fleeing the caliphate Richard Hall/The Independent Syria at war: Fleeing the caliphate Richard Hall/The Independent Syria at war: Fleeing the caliphate Richard Hall/The Independent Bekmirzaevs story of his time in the caliphate attempts to distance him from the crimes carried out from the group. But questions remain about what he knew about it before he came, his motivations for coming to Syria, and what he did while he was here. He says he had no knowledge of Isis until he got to the country, but Irish police say differently. Based on his activities before he left Dublin, they describe him as a serious player in jihadi circles. According to the Irish Independent, police considered him a person of interest and a lot more than a sympathiser. One officer told the newspaper that Bekmirzaev had been hanging around with a number of people who we regarded as the main [Isis] players in this country and who had been top of our monitoring list, and possibly providing logistical support to the group. A report in The Irish Times said police believed Bekmirzaev was radicalised by a man believed to be an Isis recruiter working in Ireland, who was eventually deported to Jordan. Yeah I was friends with him, and I was very often staying in his house, he says of the man who was deported. And if they are saying I was supporting financially, yes I was supporting him. Because what Special Branch did to him, they cancelled his social welfare payment. He was a sick person, he has a heart problem and a knee problem and they didnt operate on him. The Irish polices characterisation of Bekmirzaev undermines his claim that he came to Syria as a humanitarian, or that he knew little about what he was getting himself into. But after spending five years living in the caliphate, what does he think of Isis now? If you look at the ordinary muhajireen (foreigners who came to live in the caliphate), you see they are sincere people, he says. They dont think politics, they want to build an Islamic State, and they tried their best, they gave their lives, they were really good people. Were these not the same people who were carrying out atrocities against civilians across Iraq and Syria? Did he not hear about the genocide and enslavement of the Yazidi people? A long silence follows these questions. Of course I heard. As much as I tried not to be involved in anything, you hear these things, he says. About six months ago I heard a story about one of the women [Yazidi] and I thought what a scumbag. But this cannot be put down to a few bad apples. The enslavement and massacres of all those who oppose them was Isis policy. Through collective responsibility, was not every member even indirectly culpable for these crimes? Im not talking about the people in the field, the fighters, I think most of them were sincere, good people. I dont think they did that. Most of these things happened were by local people, he says. Asked why he didnt leave when he became aware of the brutality of Isis, Bekmirzaev says he didnt have a chance. Donald Trump says Isis will be '100%' defeated in Syria 'next week' Do you know how many foreigners ended up in secret police prisons? If the coalition killed about 60 per cent of foreign fighters, about 30 per cent [Isis] killed. Every day you hear about someone get pulled from the street and they killed, he says. The story Bekmirzaev wants the world to believe is this: he came to Syria to help Muslims, brought his family to join him for a short time, but was swept along with the caliphate all the way to its last holdout in a far corner of eastern Syria. He was forced to work for the group, but did not believe in the violence it perpetrated against others violence he said was the work of locals, and a corrupt leadership. I didnt come to caliphate, I came to Syria, as he says. The Kurdish intelligence officials holding Bekmirzaev say they have heard the same story from every foreigner leaving Isis territory. Most, they say, were signed up members of the organisation. But proving this is near impossible. Bekmirzaev says he wants to return to Ireland and deal with authorities there. The SDF did not respond to a request for comment on Bekmirzaevs case. If they want to put me on trial that is their right. Ireland is my home, and I want to go back. This is my right, he says. If I am a bad son of this country, this is still my home. If you think Im a bad person, it doesnt mean you have to throw me in the sea. I have no other home and this is my story, he says. I came here to help Muslim people, but I made mistakes and ended up in this situation. I already paid my price. Venez avec Nous (Come with Us) read a banner held by a woman walking past me as she headed towards Place de la Bastille in Paris last Saturday. At that point I grabbed my camera and went with them. It was Act XII (the twelfth day) of the gilets jaunes (yellow vests): The Great March of the Wounded. The focus of this particular protest was to denounce police brutality and their use of flashballs anti-riot rubber or foam pellet launchers, specifically the LBD-40. In honour of those injured by riot police over the course of the past two months of the yellow vest movement, many protesters covered themselves with a bandage over their eye, plasters and fake blood. Many gilets jaunes were happy to share their views and experiences with me while others kindly stepped in to interpret when needed. They spoke about how they felt the protests have united people in France and that they felt empowered as a whole. What started as a protest on fuel tax has now become a movement with a wider anti-government sentiment. A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests Show all 20 1 /20 A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests Come With Us: a woman in support of the gilets jaunes holds a placard in Place de la Bastille square in Paris Angela Christofilou A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests A man stands by Place de la Republique with a photo of a wounded protester around his neck Angela Christofilou A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests No to Marine No to Macron! Power to the People: graffiti on a side wall on the way to Place de la Republique Angela Christofilou A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests A woman covered in fake blood stands in memory of those wounded by police violence during the gilets jaunes protests Angela Christofilou A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests A volunteer first aid team marches with the gilets jaunes towards Place de la Bastille Angela Christofilou A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests A woman attaches a placard to her jacket with two photos depicting recent violent clashes with the police Angela Christofilou A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests Generation Sacrifice Power to the Yellow Vests family: a gilets jaunes protester holds placards in Place de la Bastille Angela Christofilou A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests A gilets jaunes protester covers his eye with a bandage in support of Jerome Rodrigues, who was hit in the eye by police and severely wounded Angela Christofilou A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests A woman holds a placard in support of the gilets jaunes march and the right to protest freely Angela Christofilou A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests A man in Place de la Bastille holds a placard in memory of those killed during the gilets jaunes demonstrations. The movement launched protests on 17 November 2018 against rising fuel prices and a planned fuel tax Angela Christofilou A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests A man stands in Place de la Republique with a bandage covering his eye calling for an end to the use of LBD flashballs by the police Angela Christofilou A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests Who will protect us from the police?: a banner hangs near Place de la Republique Angela Christofilou A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests A gilets jaunes protester marches with a banner calling for an end to the use of flash balls by the police Angela Christofilou A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests A placard in Place de la Bastille that reads: What makes us angry? Contempt, lies, injustice and violence Angela Christofilou A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests Without a way, without a voice, without a roof, without a law, without him: A gilets jaunes protester holds his placard in Place de la Bastille Angela Christofilou A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests A protester wears a yellow vest with the dates of gilets jaunes marches written on the back Angela Christofilou A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests Stop the weapons that mutilate: a gilets jaunes protester holds a placard denouncing police violence Angela Christofilou A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests Crowds gather in Place de la Republique for the gilets jaunes ACT XII Great March of the Wounded Angela Christofilou A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests A woman holds a placard in support of the change the gilets jaunes are fighting for Angela Christofilou A first-hand look inside the gilets jaunes protests A man marches towards Place de la Republique holding a placard against the use of grenades by the police at protests Angela Christofilou Many spoke of how wages are so low for them they cannot make ends meet at the end of every month, while others who consider themselves financially stable also turn up to the protests expressing support and solidarity with the yellow vests nearly every Saturday since November. I learned that they see themselves as citizens before anything else and as such at the protests you will find people from both the left and right wing, even the extremes. Its a movement that grew on the feeling that everyone was simply tired of politics. My experience of photographing protests is mainly limited to the UK and demonstrations here at home usually end in comparison to the French somewhat peacefully around Trafalgar or Parliament Square just in time for tea. In Paris, a large number of the protesters who attended the march carried along with them some form of protective gear such as goggles, helmets and masks. There have been so far up to 11 deaths and hundreds of injuries linked to the protests and clashes with the police. Police fire tear gas on 'gilet jaunes' protesters at Champs Elysees I was in the middle of photographing a sign on a wall that read Pouvoir au People (Power to the People) when a team of first aid volunteers walked by. They spontaneously teamed up during Act V and formed The Street Angels. The focus of the group is on the wounded and they voluntarily assist anyone who may get injured during the protests. Speaking with Remi, a member of the group, he stated that the team have treated all kinds of wounds during the protests, from minor to more severe ones. In Place de la Bastille the atmosphere was peaceful. We then marched towards the final destination, Place de la Republique. It wasnt long before we reached the square when I was advised that if you have a mask or goggles with you, you should get them out and have them ready just in case. The police arrived and closed in on us. At that point I walked into a cafe to charge my phone. When I came out, the police had formed a line right next to me and it was impossible to breathe. Just then, a group of people who I had met earlier in the march turned to me and said Come with us. They headed for the metro and I followed shortly after. For more of Angela Christofilous work you can visit her website here Tens of thousands of right-wing Spanish nationalists demonstrated in Madrid on Sunday to call for early elections and oppose proposed talks between the government and Catalan pro-independence parties. Demonstrators chanted Spain! Spain! and We want to vote! at the Plaza de Colon in the largest protest Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has faced since taking office eight months ago. Both centre-right and far-right parties backed the rally, seeking to capitalise on anger with the socialist-led government over efforts to establish a dialogue with Catalonias separatist leaders. The governments recent proposal to appoint a rapporteur in talks to address the Catalan independence crisis has galvanized the opposition, which has portrayed the move as a betrayal. Around 45,000 people attended the protest in Madrid city centre, organisers said. Some banners at the rally read Sanchez, liar and Spain is not negotiable and cannot be sold. Catalonia election: in pictures Show all 9 1 /9 Catalonia election: in pictures Catalonia election: in pictures People react to results in Catalonia's regional elections at a gathering of the Catalan National Assembly REUTERS Catalonia election: in pictures Ousted Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont and former Catalan Health Minister Antoni Comin, left, gesture during a press conference Rex Features Catalonia election: in pictures Center-right party Ciudadanos (Citizens) candidate Ines Arrimadas (C) and the rest of candidates and party members celebrate their polls results AFP/Getty Images Catalonia election: in pictures Suporters of Ciudadanos party celebrate the results EPA Catalonia election: in pictures Former Catalan regional minister Jordi Turull (C), candidate of Catalan pro-independence party Junts per Catalunya, and former Catalan regional minister Josep Rull, candidate of Junts per Catalunya celebrate the results Rex Features Catalonia election: in pictures Catalan independence supporters celebrate AP Catalonia election: in pictures Candidate of Ciudadanos party to the Catalan regional elections, Ines Arrimadas (C), next to the party leader, Albert Rivera (behind), delivers her speech as they celebrate the results EPA Catalonia election: in pictures Catalan independence supporters celebrate at the Catalan National Assembly headquarters after results of the regional elections in Barcelona AP Catalonia election: in pictures Junts Per Catalunya supporters celebrate following the Catalan regional election Getty Images The conservative Popular Party leader Pablo Casado told reporters: The time of Sanchezs government has ended. Mr Sanchez, who replaced a conservative government last June in a vote of confidence, holds only a quarter of the seats in parliament and relies on backing from the anti-austerity party Podemos, Catalan nationalists and other small parties to pass laws. His government is under pressure from opposing sides of the Catalan issue. The Catalan groups want a referendum on independence included on the agenda for talks, which Madrid will not accept. Protesters fill Plaza de Colon (Getty Images) Mr Sanchez defended his position on Sunday, telling a separate rally in the northern city of Santander: The government works for the unity of Spain and that means to unify Spaniards and not to put one against the other as the right is doing today in Colon square. The prime minister will face more questions about the Catalan issue this week. Tuesday sees the start of the trial of 12 Catalan independence leaders, who face up to 25 years in prison on charges of rebellion for their role in a failed secession bid from Spain that they are accused of spearheading in 2017. The government also faces a key vote on Wednesday on its 2019 budget proposal, which will likely fail without the support of Catalan parties. Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events But those parties have said their vote for the budget is conditional on the Catalan talks including the issue of independence, something the government will not include. Failure by parliament to approve the budget bill could prompt a snap election before the next scheduled vote in 2020. Recent opinion polls have shown the conservative Popular Party, centre-right Ciudadanos and far-right Vox could together win a majority of seats in parliament if new elections were held, allowing them to replace the socialist government. Additional reporting by Reuters A remote region in Russia has declared a state of emergency after more than 50 polar bears reportedly broke into homes and offices. Some of the animals forced inland by shrinking sea ice have even attacked people on the Novaya Zemlya islands, an official said. Hunting polar bears is banned in Russia, but authorities warn a cull may be the only answer if other means of warding them off fail. Last year a study published in Science found polar bears are starving because climate change is melting Arctic ice, so they spend more time on land looking for food. The animals are officially classed as vulnerable, with numbers falling. Since December the military have been patrolling the streets of Belushya Guba on the islands but the animals have lost their fear of the signals used to ward them off, so more drastic measures are needed, officials said. The village, home to about 560 people, has reported 52 bears have been spotted in two months with some of them attacking people, breaking into houses and other buildings, according to Aleksander Minaev, deputy head of the Novaya Zemlya region. Bag a polar bear for $35,000: the new threat to the species Show all 7 1 /7 Bag a polar bear for $35,000: the new threat to the species Bag a polar bear for $35,000: the new threat to the species 151921.bin GETTY IMAGES Bag a polar bear for $35,000: the new threat to the species 151941.bin Bag a polar bear for $35,000: the new threat to the species 151942.bin PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images Bag a polar bear for $35,000: the new threat to the species 151943.bin PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images Bag a polar bear for $35,000: the new threat to the species 151944.bin PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images Bag a polar bear for $35,000: the new threat to the species 151945.bin Yuri Tutov/AFP/Getty Images Bag a polar bear for $35,000: the new threat to the species 151946.bin Hulton Archive/Getty Images People are scared, afraid to leave their homes, their daily routines are being broken, and parents are unwilling to let their children go to school or kindergarten, Mr Minaev said. Local administration chief Vigansha Musin said more than five bears were on the grounds of a military garrison. Ive been on Novaya Zemlya since 1983, he said. Theres never been such a mass invasion of polar bears. In 2016 five Russian scientists were besieged by polar bears for several weeks at a remote weather station on the island of Troynoy, east of Novaya Zemlya. Russias remote archipelago of Novaya Zemlya (meaning New Earth), in the Arctic Ocean off northern Russia, has a population of just over 2,000 people. Antisemitic graffiti has been sprayed across a bagel shop in the old Jewish quarter of Paris, prompting a police investigation. Officers in the French capital said the word Juden German for Jews was discovered yesterday as anti-government yellow vest protesters and police forces clashed in other parts of the city. The French League Against Racism and Anti-Semitism showed a photograph of the shop graffiti alongside a photo of a Berlin shop that was marked in a similar way in 1938 Nazi Germany. The Representative Council of Jewish Institutions in France (CRIP), expressed indignation and anger after the discovery of a revolting antisemitic tag on the window of a Bagelstein shop. The group says it was an act that recalls the darkest hours of history. On the day the graffiti was found, vandals spraypainted more than 20 swastikas on sites across Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia. The people of Bondi and indeed all Australians of goodwill will stand together in condemning this shocking display, New South Wales Jewish Board of Deputies chief Vic Alhadeff told The Australian. Officers in Bondi found around 20 of the symbols on a mural wall, as well as three more at a local shopping centre. "Everybody has garbage, and right now [the county] pays to get it hauled away, but where's it going to go?" Feeser said. "It may be hauled to Pennsylvania or Virginia but it'll be in somebody's back door. We expect electricity, so what better way to generate a positive thing than to take trash and make energy out of it?" An Indian nun who says a bishop raped her 13 times and was urged by church officials to keep silent about it has been told the case is going to trial. Bishop Franco Mulakkal, who maintains his innocence, will be charged and face trial by a special prosecutor on accusations of rape and intimidation, police said. He was arrested on 21 September in the southern state of Kerala on suspicion of raping the nun 13 times between 2014 and 2016. She first spoke out in June but police started formal questioning only in September as fury over the case mounted. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty The church acknowledged the accusations only after five of the womans fellow nuns mutinied and publicly rallied to her side to draw attention to her year-long quest for justice, despite what they described as heavy pressure to remain silent. We used to see the fathers of the church as equivalent to God, but not any more, one of the nuns from the convent said. How can I tell my son about this, that the person teaching us the difference between right and wrong gave him his First Communion after committing such a terrible sin? Recommended Pope for first time admits sexual abuse of nuns by Catholic priests The case is part of a larger problem in the church that Pope Francis addressed on Tuesday for the first time after decades of silence from the Vatican. He acknowledged that sexual abuse of nuns by clerics was a continuing problem. At a time when church attendance is low in the West, and monasteries are being closed across Europe and America, the Vatican increasingly relies on places such as India to keep the faith growing. Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events If this case goes ahead, it will be a new beginning, and priests and bishops will be forced to be held accountable, said the Reverend Augustine Vattoly. The reverend said he was an early supporter of the nuns accusations and was ordered by his superiors to back away or face repercussions. The church is losing its moral authority, Reverend Vattoly added. New York Times Donald Trump says he believes Democrats want a new government shutdown in order to divert attention from the controversies swirling in Virginia, and strong jobs numbers released last week. The president's comments came just as his acting White House chief of staff said another shutdown is not off the table, and after news from Capitol Hill indicated negotiators had reached an impasse over Mr Trump's demands for border wall funding. The short-term funding deal announced last month after the longest shutdown in US history is set to expire on Friday. "It was a very bad week for the Democrats, with the GREAT economic numbers, The Virginia disaster and the State of the Union address. Now, with the terrible offers being made by them to the Border Committee, I actually believe they want a Shutdown. They want a new subject!" Mr Trump tweeted on Sunday, referring to ongoing scandals plaguing Democrats in Virginia where blackface photos and sexual assault claims have led to calls for the governor and lietenant governor to resign. Politicians in Washington have just under six days until temporary funding for a portion of the federal government is set to expire on Friday. The funding was agreed to last month after Mr Trump capitulated to Democrat demands to end a 35 day shutdown that left federal workers without paychecks last month. But, bipartisan efforts to resolve the border wall dispute in the weeks since have so far proved fruitless, and individuals taking part in the negotiations have come to a standstill. Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Show all 30 1 /30 Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Threatening to shut down Twitter after being fact-checked After the president tweeted that voting by post would be "substantially fraudulent", Twitter attached a warning label to his tweet and referred readers to a site which explained how the claim was "unsubstantiated". Trump then said Twitter was "stifling free speech" and that he may have to shut it down, something which he would not have the power to do AFP/Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Flippantly dismissing a serious allegation of sexual assault When author E Jean Carroll accused Trump of raping her, the president responded: Number one, shes not my type. Number two, it never happened. It never happened, OK?" AFP/Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Insulting the Mayor of London as he landed in London Just before touching down at Stansted Airport for his state visit, Trump took time out to @ the London mayor Sadiq Khan on twitter. He said that Khan has done a "terrible job"as mayor and that he is a "stone cold loser" Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Taking plenty of "Executive Time" The president's official schedule sets aside the hours from 8 to 11am daily for "Executive Time". Further intermittent periods of "Executive Time" are scheduled throughout any given day, ranging from 15 minutes to 3 hours. His duties in these hours have not been officially disclosed, though Axios reports that he spends them watching TV, reading the newspapers and tweeting Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Shutdown the government for over a month in an effort to secure funding for his wall With Mexico declining to pay for the wall, the president has faced difficulty in raising the required $5bn at home. Due to his demand that the money for the wall be included in the budget, and Congress's refusal, the government partially shut down on 22 December 2018. It remained shut for over a month, the longest period in history Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Joking about the Nazi occupation of France to President Macron In this tweet from 13 November 2018, the president mocks Emmanuel Macron's suggestion of a "true, European army" by invoking the conflict between France and Germany in the world wars Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Railing against the Mueller investigation The president has repeatedly claimed that the Mueller investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, is a "rigged witch hunt" Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Contradicting a US intelligence report on Russian meddling in the presence of Vladimir Putin In the press conference that followed his landmark meeting with Russian president Vladimir Putin, Trump stated that he saw no reason why Russia would have meddled in the 2016 US election. This contradicted a 2017 report by the US Office of the Director of National Intelligence that found evidence of Russian interference in favour of Trump Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Contradicting his contradiction of a US intelligence report on Russian meddling Following furious backlash in the US, the president claimed that he meant to say that he saw no reason why it would not have been Russia who meddled in the 2016 US election. As to why he would have intended to use such bizarre phrasing, he did not comment Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Colouring in the US flag wrong The president coloured in the US flag wrongly during a visit to a children's hospital in Columbus, Ohio. He added a blue stripe where in tradition, and statute, there have been only white and red stripes AFP/Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Firing a Secretary of State over Twitter The president announced on Twitter that he was appointing Mike Pompeo as Secretary of State, much to the surprise of then Secretary of State Rex Tillerson Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Quoting a catchphrase from a reality TV show when discussing police brutality While addressing the issue of black athletes not standing for the national anthem in protest of police brutality, the president made reference to his catchphrase from reality TV show "The Apprentice": you're fired! Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Calling African nations "S***hole Countries" Ever one for diplomacy, the president reportedly referred to African nations as "s***hole countries". Asked to confirm this when meeting with Nigeria's President Buhari, Trump stated that there are "some countries that are in very bad shape". Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Defending Russian President Vladimir Putin Trump appeared to equate US foreign actions to those of Russian president Vladimir Putin, saying: There are a lot of killers. You think our countrys so innocent? Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Asking for people to 'pray' for Arnold Schwarzenegger At the National Prayer Breakfast, Trump couldnt help but to ask for prayers for the ratings on Arnold Schwarzeneggers show to be good. Schwarzenegger took over as host of The Apprentice which buoyed Trumps celebrity status years ago Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Hanging up on Australian PM Malcolm Turnbull Early in his presidency, Trump reportedly hung up the phone on Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull after the foreign leader angered him over refugee plans. Mr Trump later said that it was the worst call he had had so far Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... The 'Muslim ban' Perhaps one of his most controversial policies while acting as president, Trumps travel ban targeting predominantly Muslim countries has bought him a lot of criticism. The bans were immediately protested, and judges initially blocked their implementation. The Supreme Court later sided with the administrations argument that the ban was developed out of concern for US security Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Praising crowd size while touring Hurricane Harvey damage After Hurricane Harvey ravaged southeastern Texas, Trump paid the area a visit. While his response to the disaster in Houston was generally applauded, the president picked up some flack when he gave a speech outside Houston (he reportedly did not visit disaster zones), and praised the size of the crowds there AP Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... 'Little Rocket Man' During his first-ever speech to the United Nations General Assembly, Trump tried out a new nickname for North Korea leader Kim Jong-un: Rocket Man. He later tweaked it to be little Rocket Man as the two feuded, and threatened each other with nuclear war. During that speech, he also threatened to totally annihilate North Korea Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Attacking Sadiq Khan following London Bridge terror attack After the attack on the London Bridge, Trump lashed out at London Mayor Sadiq Khan, criticising Khan for saying there was no reason to be alarmed after the attack. Trump was taking the comments out of context, as Khan was simply saying that the police had everything under control Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Claiming presenter Mika Brezinkski was 'bleeding from the face' Never one not to mock his enemies, Trump mocked MSNBCs Morning Joe co-host Mika Brzezinski, saying that she and co-host Joe Scarborough had approached him before his inauguration asking to join him. He noted that she was bleeding badly from a face-lift at the time, and that he said no MSNBC Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Claiming the blame for Charlottesville was on 'both sides' Trump refused to condemn far-right extremists involved in violence at 'the march for the right' protests in Charlottesville, even after the murder of counter protester Heather Heyer AP Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Retweeting cartoon of CNN being hit by a 'Trump train' Trump retweeted a cartoon showing a Trump-branded train running over a person whose body and head were replaced by a CNN avatar. He later deleted the retweet Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Tweeting about 'slamming' CNN Trump caught some flack when he tweeted a video showing him wrestling down an individual whose head had been replaced by a CNN avatar. Trump has singled CNN out in particular with his chants of fake news Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Firing head of the FBI, James Comey Trumps firing of former FBI Director James Comey landed him with a federal investigation into Russias meddling in the 2016 election that has caused many a headache for the White House. The White House initially said that the decision was made after consultation from the Justice Department. Then Mr Trump himself said that he had decided to fire him in part because he wanted the Russia investigation Mr Comey was conducting to stop Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Not realising being president would be 'hard' Just three months into his presidency, Trump admitted that being president is harder than he thought it would be. Though Trump insisted on the 2016 campaign trail that doing the job would be easy for him, he admitted in an interview that living in the White House is harder than running a business empire Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Accusing Obama of wiretapping him Trump accused former president Barack Obama of wire tapping him on twitter. The Justice Department later clarified: Obama had not, in fact, done so Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Claiming there had been 3 million 'illegal votes' Trump was never very happy about losing the popular vote to Hillary Clinton by 2.8 million ballots. So, he and White House voter-fraud commissioner Kris Kobach have claimed that anywhere between three and five million people voted illegally during the 2016 election. Conveniently, he says that all of those illegal votes went to Clinton. (There is no evidence to support that level of widespread voter fraud.) Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Leaving Jews out of the Holocaust memorial statement Just days after taking office, Trumps White House issued a statement on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, but didnt mention jews or even the word jewish in the written statement Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Anger over Inauguration crowd size Trumps inauguration crowd was visibly, and noticeably, smaller than that of his predecessor, Barack Obama. But, he really wanted to have had the largest crowd on record. So, he praised it as the biggest crowd ever. Relatedly, Trump also claimed that it stopped raining in Washington at the moment he was inaugurated. It didnt, the day was very dreary Reuters While Mr Trump has insisted he get $5.7b to build his border wall, negotiators have sought to find a figure between $1.3b and $2b that could satisfy the needs of an administration hungry to prove it takes the presidents signature campaign promise seriously while allowing democrats to claim a win of their own by not budging much to Mr Trumps demands. "You cannot take a shutdown off the table and you cannot take $5.7b off the table," Mick Mulvaney, the acting White House chief of staff, said on Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press". Mr Mulvaney continued to blame the uncertainty over whether a new deal can be reached on the "hardcore, left wing" wing of the Demcoratic Party. Recommended Second woman accuses Virginia deputy governor of sexual assault "Let's say the hardcore, left wing of the Democrat Party prevails in this negotiation and they put a bill on the president's desk wtih, say, zero money for the wall, or $800m, an absurdly low number," Mr Mulvaney said. "How does he sign that?" The effort by Republicans to secure border wall funding for the president comes alongside a democrat push to limit the number of beds that the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency has access to, which they hope can curb the detention rates that been seen during the Trump administration. Democrats say that, contrary to Mr Mulvaney's assertions, it is the Republican administration that is keeping talks tied up. "Talks have broken down because Senate Republicans are refusing to compromise on limits to the Trump administration's cruel immigration policies," a senior Democratic aide told Fox News on Sunday. "A deal that includes new physical barriers must also include limits on the number of ICE detention beds. If Senate Republicans won't compromise with us on both, we can't reach a deal". Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events Should the two sides fail to make a deal, that would me that a large swath of the US government that is currently operating on short term funding agreed to last month could be in jeopardy. That includes funding for the Department of Homeland Security, as well as funding for agencies with over 700,000 federal employees who were furloughed or told to work without pay during the recent 35-day shutdown. During that shutdown, Mr Trump attempted to force Democrats to yield to his demands only to find a united opposition who refused to budge. After his State of the Union invitation was revoked and as government services including air traffic control began to show major signs of strain Mr Trump announced that he had agreed to the three week deal. A city council member from Texas has been forced to apologise after calling Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez a bimbo in a now-deleted tweet directed at the congresswoman. Richardson City Councilman Scott Dunn replied to Ms Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter with the offending remarks, according to screenshots of the tweet that circulated online last week. The embarrassment is to have bimbos like you with nothing between your ear, Mr Dunn wrote. It's unclear to which of the congresswoman's tweets he was responding. As of Saturday morning, Mr Dunn's Twitter account was deactivated. Mr Dunn later said he was trying to defend Donald Trump after the State of the Union address, according to the Dallas Morning News. Recommended AOC refuses to stand for Trump as she joins women in protest The day after the speech, Ms Ocasio-Cortez called the event an embarrassment after some criticised her for not applauding Trump and looking sullen in the audience. In a Facebook post on Friday, Mr Dunn apologised for his Twitter reply to Ms Ocasio-Cortez, according to the New York Daily News. The post was no longer publicly visible as of Saturday morning. The words I used were offensive, Mr Dunn reportedly wrote. I am responsible for my own words and actions. I apologise to anyone who finds what I said offensive. Mr Dunn did not immediately respond to a request from the Washington Post for comment on Saturday. Even after Mr Dunn's Twitter account was deactivated, screenshots of his tweet were circulated on social media, prompting a few calls for him to resign. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty Mauri Long, a candidate for Richardson City Council, said she found the tweet inappropriate, demeaning and divisive. As one of only two women running for City Council, I find this sort of locker room talk disturbing and personally offensive, Ms Long wrote in a post on her campaign's Facebook page. This type of caustic rhetoric by an elected representative of our great city is not reflective of our own values. Amir Omar, a former Richardson City Council member, also condemned Mr Dunn's remarks as unbecoming of an elected official. I really don't care what political team you root for and whether you like one representative or another, Mr Omar wrote. I don't even care that although you are representing a city in a non-partisan role, you can't hold your tongue out of basic decorum. "What I do care about is that you are so tone deaf that you don't realise that using sexist terms like this one reflects badly on our city. On Friday, Richardson Mayor Paul Voelker said he was extremely disappointed and embarrassed by Mr Dunn's comments and had since talked to the council member. While I certainly respect councilman Dunn's, or any citizen's, right to freely express his or her opinion on any issue of public concern, I also believe that Richardson's values are best upheld when we engage in civic discourse that is civil in tone, respectful of others and designed to produce constructive outcomes for the betterment of our community, Mr Voelker said in a statement. Even when we disagree about important political and social issues, we shouldn't resort to name-calling, the mayor added. Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events Ms Ocasio-Cortez upset long-time congressman Joseph Crowley in their Democratic primary race last year, and quickly became a popular target of the right even before she took office. Republican lawmakers and pundits have mocked everything from Ms Ocasio-Cortez's appearance to her background. There are new examples all the time. Republicans Ed Rollins and Rush Limbaugh recently dismissed Ms Ocasio-Cortez as a little girl and some young uppity. The Washington Examiner's Eddie Scarry tweeted a photo of her in November and wrote that she doesn't look like a girl who struggles. The Daily Caller promoted what it described as a possible nude selfie of her last week before walking back its headline. In return, Ms Ocasio-Cortez has frequently clapped back at her critics online and in interviews. She did not, however, appear to respond to Mr Dunn's bimbos tweet. Mr Dunn has served on the city council in Richardson, a Dallas suburb, since 2011, according to his bio. Washington Post A forest on a Pacific tropical island is to be razed to make way for a new military firing range. The bulldozers will clear about 89 acres on Guam, and as part of the project will uproot and move an endangered native tree, local media have reported. The fadang tree used to be the most abundant tree in the US territory but academics say damage from Asian insects and caterpillars depleted its numbers. Work to clear the forest is not expected to start for several months after delays caused by a row over moving the tree and other environmental issues. The firing range will support US Marines moving to Guam from Okinawa, Japan, from 2025. North Korean missiles 'on highest alert' to attack US bases on mainland America, Hawaii and Guam Show all 2 1 /2 North Korean missiles 'on highest alert' to attack US bases on mainland America, Hawaii and Guam North Korean missiles 'on highest alert' to attack US bases on mainland America, Hawaii and Guam 32-northkorea-afpgt.jpg AFP/Getty Images North Korean missiles 'on highest alert' to attack US bases on mainland America, Hawaii and Guam AN18330682Soldiers-of-the-K_1.jpg REUTERS The $78m (60m) project will require clearing 89 acres of native limestone forest and 110 acres of disturbed limestone at Andersen Air Force Base, officials say. The fadang has been declared endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The US military is building up its facilities on Guam, which is about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines. The US Department of Defense holds about 30 per cent of Guams land, where it has built two bases Naval Base Guam and Andersen Air Force Base. The islands biodiversity has already been distorted by the arrival, on miltary planes, of the non-native brown snake, which has devastated the forest bird population and in turn slowed forest growth. In a public consultation on the firing range, locals expressed concern the lead from the bullets in the range could contaminate the aquifer that provides drinking water to the entire island. Defence chiefs say they are fulfilling their legal environmental requirements, and other islanders say the development boosts the local economy, creating jobs. The military says it has provided millions of dollars to the community linked with the project, including improving a waste-water plant. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has accepted an invitation to watch the Grammy Awards with Chrissy Teigen after the US model opened her doors to the congresswoman. Teigen asked Ms Ocasio-Cortez, who represents New Yorks 14th congressional district, if she wanted to join her and Modern Family star Jess Tyler Ferguson to watch the 61st awards ceremony. Teigen tweeted: Hello my hero, do you wanna come over and watch the Grammys with us? There will be pizza. After this, she asked Ms Tyler Ferguson to tell Ms Ocasio-Cortez we are normal. The Democrat, who is the youngest ever US congresswoman, said: Yes! We can live-tweet me burning something in the kitchen. Womens March bread and roses rally in London Show all 70 1 /70 Womens March bread and roses rally in London Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London A protester with a banner chants slogans as she takes part in the Women's March calling for equality, justice and an end to austerity in London Reuters Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Reuters Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London A girl holds a rose as protesters take part in the Women's March calling for equality, justice and an end to austerity Reuters Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Reuters Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Angela Christofilou/The Independent Womens March bread and roses rally in London Reuters Womens March bread and roses rally in London A woman dressed as suffragette gestures Reuters Womens March bread and roses rally in London Reuters Perfect! We have extremely different strengths except I still sometimes burn things, Teigen, one of US president Donald Trumps most outspoken and cutting celebrity critics, replied. The nascent friendship prompted great excitement on social media with some asking if they could join in on the revelry. Name a better duo, Ill wait, tweeted Jules Suzdaltsev. This type of wholesome interaction is the reason why I still have twitter wow, one person wrote. This is the crossover I didnt know I needed but cant wait to witness, added another. Ms Ocasio-Cortez worked as a bartender before thrashing Democrat stalwart Joe Crowley the 10-term representative and then-fourth-ranking Democrat in the House last year. The self-avowed socialist, from the South Bronx, has worked as a waitress, childrens book publisher, community activist, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America and volunteered for Bernie Sanders during his 2016 presidential campaign. She supports abolishing the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency and the creation of a universal healthcare system. Already this year, she has asserted that Mr Trump is no question a racist, and beaten back a manufactured controversy over a video of her dancing while in university. Teigen is similarly critical of Mr Trump and started trolling the billionaire far before he announced his presidential bid. In 2017 she told USA Today: Ive actually been a big Donald Trump hater for a long time. If you go back, Ive been trolling him for about five to seven years now. Ive been doing this forever and I take pride in that ... I cant believe somebody could actually do this all day, every day, and still be president. If I mysteriously go missing in the next four years then thats what happened. The Grammys will be held on 10 February in Los Angeles. It will start at 5pm PST, which is 1am on Monday in the UK, and is being broadcast live on CBS from the Staples Center in the city. They are set to be hosted by Alicia Keys. Cardi B, Shawn Mendes, Janelle Monae, Red Hot Chili Peppers with Post Malone, and Miley Cyrus are scheduled to perform. Rebel Labour MPs targeted by Downing Street are being warned that their constituencies could lose 1.1bn a year within a decade if they back Theresa Mays Brexit deal. Analysis of Treasury figures for the Peoples Vote campaign found the 32 constituencies such as Wigan and Hartlepool could be hit by a total annual loss of 970m in economic output and some 100m in agricultural subsidies and structural funds within 10 years of leaving the EU. These areas, whose MPs have either backed the government or been reportedly targeted by Ms May, have also seen 895m cuts from local authority funding since 2010, the research found. It comes after a row erupted among Labour MPs when it emerged the prime minister was considering measures to win over Labour rebels, including extra cash for their areas. Brexit-backing Bassetlaw MP John Mann indicated he was open to the plans, telling Ms May to show us the money, while Great Grimsby MP Melanie Onn held talks with cabinet ministers over workers rights. Downing Street has previously denied offering cash for votes to Labour MPs from Leave-voting constituencies, but it did hint at additional financial support for former mining communities. Anna Turley, the Labour MP for Redcar, warned her colleagues against forming a toxic alliance with the likes of Jacob Rees-Mogg that can only result in making our people poorer. She said: These figures show any Labour MP thinking of accepting what is, in effect, a government Brexit bribe for their constituency should think again. Brexit has always been a project of the right, for the right, by the right. The same ideology that has impoverished seats like mine in Redcar stripping away our industrial base and shrivelling funding for local government is now driving plans to leave the European Union. The cost of this Brexit deal to individual constituencies will run into tens of millions of pounds every year. Any temporary funding designed to sway parliamentary votes for this Tory government not only threatens the integrity of MPs who take it but also threatens the living standards or life chances of both their constituents and mine. It comes after 14 Labour MPs defied the party whip and refused to support Yvette Coopers plan to delay Brexit, while seven backed senior Tory Sir Graham Bradys bid to send Ms May back to Brussels to renegotiate her deal. Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events The rebels against the Cooper amendment included Eurosceptics Kate Hoey, Graham Stringer and Ronnie Campbell, as well as those from Leave-voting areas such as Don Valley MP Caroline Flint and Laura Smith, of Crewe and Nantwich. Jeremy Corbyn wrote to Ms May last week to set out Labours terms to back her Brexit deal, which include a customs union with the EU and guarantees on workers rights. He later had to quell anger from pro-EU MPs by saying a second referendum was still on the table if Ms May cannot get a compromise deal through parliament. Tony Blair has said that a no-deal Brexit will lead to a really hard border in Ireland that could prove devastating to the peace process. The former Labour prime minister stepped up his warnings over the consequences of a disorderly exit from the EU, saying such a departure could lead to a breach in the Good Friday Aggreement and cause a huge fissure in the UK. His comments came as Theresa May struggles to secure last-minute changes to the Irish backstop, ahead of a fresh Commons showdown this week. Mr Blair, who has backed The Independents campaign for a Final Say vote, said a second referendum might happen when people see what the true Brexit alternatives are. He told Sophy Ridge On Sunday: No one could responsibly propose (a no-deal Brexit). It would be economically very, very dangerous for Britain, and for the peace process in Ireland it would potentially be devastating. You would have a hard border, very hard border. A no-deal Brexit means a really hard border between north and south in Ireland, its contrary to the Good Friday Agreement and it will cause an enormous fissure within the United Kingdom. An exclusive survey for The Independent found 53 per cent of voters would support postponing Britains departure from the European Union, opening the door to a second referendum or further talks with Brussels. Mr Blair said: Ive never thought that you would get to another referendum going directly to it youll get to it when people see what the true Brexit alternatives are. And the truth is there are two. You can have a soft Brexit, which is really what Jeremy Corbyn is suggesting, or you can have the hard Brexit that Boris Johnson and Nigel Farage and other people want. He said the type of Brexit must be decided before the UK leaves the EU, arguing that a lack of clarity would lead to a lack of closure. Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events The ex-Labour leader said: The argument just goes on, and by then youll have left, youll have paid your money up front, youll have given up your negotiating leverage. And for the country to do that, as Theresa May wants to do to leave without knowing what Brexit you get this would be, in my view, an incredibly foolish thing for the country to do. Its got to know where were heading before we leave. Meanwhile, the head of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) said the chances of a no-deal Brexit have increased and the country has now entered the emergency zone. It feels like the parliamentary process is in logjam, no way can be found through, so that prospect of no-deal feels much higher, CBI director general Carolyn Fairbairn said. We really are in the emergency zone of Brexit now. Ms May travelled to Belfast, Brussels and Dublin this week for last-ditch talks after MPs ordered her to ditch the backstop mechanism, which acts as an insurance policy against a hard border in Ireland. However the EU has repeatedly said it will not renegotiate the Brexit deal that took 18 months to secure. Theresa May has sought to buy herself time to secure concessions on her Brexit deal by promising MPs a fresh round of votes before the end of February. Communities secretary James Brokenshire said a new motion would be put before the Commons by February 27, if no deal has been agreed, in a bid to win the prime minister time to hammer out a compromise after MPs overwhelmingly rejected her plan last month. MPs have been gearing up for a Valentines Day showdown, assuming Ms May is unable to present a revised deal to parliament by Wednesday, including a push by Labour to force her into a meaningful vote by the end of the month. But in an effort to see off attempts to bind the government's hands, Downing Street is promising another opportunity to table amendments - which are likely to include measures aimed at taking a no-deal Brexit off the table - on February 27. The move is aimed at postponing a rebellion by ministers who are committed to removing the possibility of the UK crashing out of the EU without a deal on March 29. But there is no commitment to hold a binding vote on the deal itself by the end of the month. Mr Brokenshire told The Andrew Marr Show: I think that gives that sense of timetable, clarity and purpose on what we are doing with the EU taking that work forward and our determination to get a deal but equally knowing that role that parliament very firmly has. It comes as Sir Keir Starmer said Labour would stop the prime minister running down the clock to exit day in March, by drafting an amendment to compel her to offer a vote by the end of February. And Labour MPs Peter Kyle and Phil Wilson were poised to launch a new push for a second referendum, writing in The Independent: It would also be reckless to accept the withdrawal agreement without the approval of the British people. Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events Both bids are expected to be among the range of amendments tabled for votes on Valentines Day. Ms May flew to Brussels, Belfast and Dublin last week to hold last-ditch talks after MPs ordered her to replace the divisive Irish backstop with an alternative plan. But she was met with stony opposition from EU leaders, who have repeatedly said that the Brexit deal cannot be renegotiated. The shadow Brexit secretary said Labour was determined to prevent the prime minister from taking Britain to the brink of a no-deal Brexit. We have got to put a hard stop into this running down the clock, Sir Keir told The Sunday Times. And thats what we want to do this week. He accused Ms May of pretending to make progress and said she intends to return to parliament after a crunch European Council summit the week before Brexit and offer MPs a binary choice her deal or no deal. We cant allow that to happen, Sir Keir said. There needs to be a day when parliament says thats it, enough is enough. Meanwhile, Labour backbenchers Mr Kyle and Mr Wilson have come up with a plan to back Ms Mays deal if she offers a referendum once it passes through parliament. Writing for The Independent, the pair said: We believe that to leave the decision to 650 MPs and the unelected House of Lords smacks of the accusation of elitism levelled against politicians during the referendum campaign. The right and proper step to take is for MPs and the Lords to approve the prime ministers deal followed by a confirmatory vote of the British people. We believe this process started with the people and should end with the people. A new version is also being drawn up of a plan by Labour MP Yvette Cooper and Tory Nick Boles to extend Article 50 to prevent a disorderly exit in March. Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament Show all 20 1 /20 Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament Brexit supporters outside parliament PA Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament An anti-Brexit protester adjusts her pro-EU wig AFP/Getty Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament A message to Jeremy Corbyn in support of a peoples vote Getty Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament A mock Titanic captained by Theresa May heads towards an iceberg in a stunt by campaigning group Avaaz AP Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament Anti-Brexit protesters outside parliament PA Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament Protesters of opposing sides are in close contact outside of parliament PA Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament Paintings of Theresa May and Jeremy Corbyn Getty Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament Former Ukip leader Nigel Farage speaks to the media at the protests outside parliament Reuters Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament A pro-Brexit protester in Parliament Square Getty Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament Opposing protesters share the space outside parliament Getty Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament An anti-Brexit protester holds EU balloons outside parliament Reuters Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament Anti-Brexit protesters stand on Westminster Bridge PA Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament Former Ukip leader Nigel Farage speaks to the media at the protests outside parliament Reuters Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament Anti-Brexit protesters demonstrate outside the Houses of Parliament EPA Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament A pro-Brexit protester sets up outside parliament Reuters Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament An Avaaz campaigner holds a Peoples Vote life float Reuters Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament A demonstrator holds a sign advocating a no-deal Brexit outside parliament AFP/Getty Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament An anti-Brexit protester waves an EU flag on Westminster Bridge PA Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament Protesters of opposing sides demonstrate outside parliament AFP/Getty Brexit deal vote: Opposing groups of protesters gather by parliament Protesters of opposing sides stand near parliament Reuters It comes after Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn wrote to Ms May setting out his partys terms for backing a Brexit deal, which include backing a customs union with the EU. However chief secretary to the Treasury Liz Truss twice refused to rule out quitting if Ms May accepted the demand for a customs union. She told Sophy Ridge On Sunday: I appreciate Jeremy Corbyn has come to the table but the reality is what he is proposing does not deliver on what we want as a country. Asked if she could stay in office if the government backed a customs union, she said: I absolutely do not think that should be our policy. Intimidation and abuse is causing MPs to change the way they vote in key Brexit clashes because they are "frightened for their own safety", Labour's deputy leader has said. Tom Watson said political leaders needed to act against the "threats of violence and intimidation" aimed at politicians after a wave of hate-fuelled incidents outside parliament and social media. Amid a febrile atmosphere in Westminster, Tory MP Anna Soubry was branded a "Nazi" and verbally abused by protesters while doing media interviews last month, while several prominent journalists and campaigners were also harassed. Mr Watson also railed against the treatment of his fellow MP Luciana Berger, a vocal critic of the Labour's handling of antisemitism, who was facing no-confidence motions from her local party until action was dropped amid a furious backlash. Asked about the threats made to MPs in recent weeks, Mr Watson told the Andrew Marr Show: "Well, I know of one MP who has confidentially told me that they changed their vote on one particular key vote because they felt frightened for their own safety. "You know, when you get to that point, you know, I would just say to people involved in politics, remember it's in the last few years that we've had a dear and valued colleague that has been assassinated by a far-right fanatic. "So MPs are intimidated. And it's really important that political leaders stand up and say we are not going to accept these threats of violence and intimidation, because it erodes our democracy and it's going to drive good people who want to change the world out of politics, and nobody wants that." The shadow cabinet member called for an overhaul of police protection offered to MPs "based on the threat level rather than the position they hold" in parliament. Mr Watson also said Labour bosses would be investigating Wavertree Consituency Labour Party (CLP) after he accused them of "bullying" Ms Berger, who is eight-months pregnant. He said: "[Jennie Formby, Labour's general secretary] has also confirmed to me that she is investigating members in that constituency, and actually Ive had another complaint this evening that I need to follow up later today. Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Show all 11 1 /11 Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Anti-Brexit protester Steve Bray (left) and a pro-Brexit protester argue as they demonstrate outside the Houses of Parliament Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament A pro-Brexit protester argues Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Police surround the pro-Brexit protester after he confronted Steve Bray, a pro-European protester Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament A leave supporter is spoken to by a police officer as he argues with a remain supporter, Steve Bray, outside Parliament PA Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament MPs in Parliament are to vote on Theresa May's Brexit deal next week after her December vote was called off in the face of a major defeat Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament A leave supporter is spoken to by a police officer PA Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Police look on as anti-Brexit protesters demonstrate outside the Houses of Parliament. Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Police hold back a leave supporter PA Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament A police officer speaks with anti-Brexit protester Steve Bray Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Police surround a pro-Brexit protester after he confronted a pro-European protester Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Conservative MP David Davies, wearing a gopro camera, speaks to anti-Brexit protester Steve Bray Getty Images "So it does seem to me there are grounds for a suspension. "I can only repeat again, I think Luciana is being bullied and there are local members in Liverpool Wavertree responsible for that, and others, and that is unacceptable and it is incumbent on political leaders to make sure that doesnt happen." Wavertree CLPs executive said they strongly reject the media inaccuracies and the accusations of political bullying, for simply adhering to party rules and doing our jobs. They said they had no control over motions submitted by CLP members, and expressed "total solidarity with Luciana as a victim of misogyny and of antisemitism coming mostly from the far right." Our chair is himself Jewish and the suggestion that the CLP executive is in any way a party to bullying and antisemitism is a false and slanderous accusation," they added. Elsewhere, shadow health secretary Jon Ashworth admitted Labour must "go further and faster" to tackle antisemitism in its ranks. Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events "It's clear we need to go further and faster on dealing with antisemitism in the Labour Party," he told Sophy Ridge on Sunday. "One antisemite in the Labour Party is one too many." The frontbencher added: "No, it's not impossible to eradicate it from the Labour Party, and John McDonnell has said that as well, so there's no disagreement between me and John McDonnell and Jeremy Corbyn on this." Police investigating an abhorrent attack on a Jewish cemetery in Greater Manchester are treating it as a hate crime. Vandals targeted three chapels at Phillips Park in Whitefield, Bury, and smashed a prominent gravestone, two windows and several wash basins. CCTV equipment was also stolen from within one of the buildings in an attempt to cover up the attack, according to Greater Manchester Police (GMP). Rabbi Shmuli Brown tweeted pictures of the damage after it was discovered on Saturday evening, describing the attack as a horrible act of antisemitism. These cowards picking on the dead trashed the place, the rabbi added. Protests against Labour antisemitism Show all 14 1 /14 Protests against Labour antisemitism Protests against Labour antisemitism Protesters clashed during the demonstration Reuters Protests against Labour antisemitism Members of the Jewish community hold a protest against Labour party leader Jeremy Corbyn and antisemitism in the Labour Party AFP/Getty Protests against Labour antisemitism Protesters hold placards and flags during a demonstration, organised by the British Board of Jewish Deputies for those who oppose antisemitism, in Parliament Square Reuters Protests against Labour antisemitism Hundreds of people gathered in Parliament Square to protest against antisemitism in the Labour Party EPA Protests against Labour antisemitism Labour MP Luciana Berger speaks during the protest PA Protests against Labour antisemitism A protester blows through a shofar during the demonstration Getty Protests against Labour antisemitism Members of London's Jewish community protest in support of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn outside parliament EPA Protests against Labour antisemitism Labour MP John Mann speaks during a protest against antisemitism PA Protests against Labour antisemitism People protest against antisemitism in the Labour Party as Jewish community leaders have launched a scathing attack on Jeremy Corbyn, claiming he has sided with antisemites again and again PA Protests against Labour antisemitism Labour politicians Stella Creasy and Chuka Umunna leave after attending the demonstration Getty Protests against Labour antisemitism A pro-Jeremy Corbyn protester holds a placard during a counter-protest Getty Protests against Labour antisemitism A support of the Labour Party hold up a placard during the demonstration Reuters Protests against Labour antisemitism Jeremy Corbyn supporters during the demo Reuters Protests against Labour antisemitism A protester holds up a sign reading For the many, not the Jew AFP The estimated cost of repairs is 30,000, according to a fundraising page set up to help the cemetery. Police launched an investigation and said the cemetery had been vandalised between midday on Friday and early on Saturday morning. GMP assistant chief constable Mabs Hussein said: This is an abhorrent act of hate which took place in the Jewish cemetery in Whitefield, Bury, yesterday. Officers are supporting the local community and all efforts will be made to arrest those responsible. In a tweet which was later deleted, an official police account for GMP Prestwich described the attackers as scumbags and a complete disgrace to humanity. The tweet read: I hope the scumbags who desecrated a graveyard in Whitefield are proud! You are a complete disgrace to humanity! This is not what the community of Whitefield are about or accept. Anyone with info particularly about anyone trying to offload copper piping should contact us. Superintendent Paul Walker, of GMPs Bury division, said: We have launched an investigation and whilst the CCTV has been destroyed by the offenders clearly in an attempt to cover their tracks I can assure you that we have a team of dedicated officers working to piece together exactly what happened in an attempt to find those responsible. I understand that this incident will have caused distress to many members of our community and we are working alongside our partners including Community Security Trust to ensure that those affected are fully supported. Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events We are treating this incident as a hate crime and I want to send a clear message that incidents of this nature will never be tolerated in our communities. I would encourage anyone with any information to get in touch as soon as possible. Shanghai (Gasgoo)- Chongqing Changan Automobile Co., Ltd. (Changan Automobile) saw its full-year sales in 2018 slid 25.6% from the previous year to 2,137,785 units, according to the automaker's sales report. It said the annual sales of its self-owned Changan brand amounted to 1,499,747 units, exceeding 1 million units for the fourth year in a row. However, speaking of the full-year sales of each subsidiary, the negative growth happened to all of them. Particularly, Changan Ford, the major force among joint ventures, should see its sales in 2018 nearly halved over the previous year. Gasgoo hereby summarized Changan Automobile's significant events that happened in 2018, helping you review how the automaker developed itself during the past year. Changan Automobile, Huawei, China Mobile cooperate in connected vehicles On January 11, Changan Automobile signed a strategic cooperation agreement in Chongqing with China Mobile, China Mobile IoT Company Limited and Huwei Technologies to conduct joint development and study on LTE-V and 5G technology for connected vehicles. In accordance with the agreement, the companies would build V2X testing fields together and co-develop telematics terminal. Besides, they would have in-depth cooperation in 4G internet of vehicles and explore the development of 5G technology for connected vehicles. The building of V2X testing field was expected to promote the marketization of V2X technology. The further development and exploration would help to improve the connectivity efficiency and accelerate the development of internet of vehicles. Changan Automobile to recall 252,087 CS75 models Changan Automobile planned to recall a total of 252,087 vehicles from March 2, according to the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine of the People's Republic of China. The recall involved part of new CS75 models manufactured between July 26, 2016 and February 24, 2018, with a total volume of 252,087 units. The model went on sale in April, 2014. It is the defect in the electronic control unit (ECU) that triggered the recall. Under extreme conditions, ECU of recalled vehicles lakes control over the engine's fuel injection strategy adjustment. When the vehicle is in a low temperature environment or at a low speed for a long time, the liquid gasoline in the engine oil cannot evaporate in time. Consequently, the engine oil would increase with the passage of time. If the owner overlooks the engine oil alarm, the engine would be damaged and cause safety hazard after continuous running. Tencent, Changan Automobile to build ICV joint venture, co-develop IoV solution On April 12, Tencent and Changan Automobile officially signed a cooperation agreement to establish an ICV (intelligent-connected vehicle) joint venture. Both parties would focus on developing IoV integration solutions as well as relevant operational businesses and services, Pony Ma, Tencent's chairman, and Zhu Huarong, Chongqing Changan's president, revealed at the signing ceremony. According to local media, the cooperation might involve two major parts. One is to develop basic ICV solutions, namely, taking advantage of Tencent's existing in-vehicle products to enhance the automaker's vehicle power. For instance, Tencent (including Wechat)'s IoV services, such as social communication, mobility payment and account systems, can be applied into the models of Chongqing Changan. The other major part is to explore a deep cooperative development in resource integration and advantage complementation. To be specific, Tencent's abilities in content ecology, Internet security, AI, big data and cloud computing will help promote its partner's product competitiveness. BYD teams up with Changan Automobile on new energy vehicles On Apr. 17, BYD and Changan Automobile signed a cooperation framework agreement to deepen their cooperation in new energy vehicles (NEV) and work together to empower the development of Chinese NEVs. BYD and Changan Automobile would jointly focus on the designing, matching, testing and manufacturing of NEV's electric drive products, which integrate electric control, electric motor and reducer into one. They targeted to finish the development of electric drive products and achieve mass production of the products. It was expected that some Changan models would carry the new high-tech product next year. Changan Automobile to build four independent brands Changan Automobile planned to build four independent brands and promote 21 BEVs (battery electric vehicle) and 12 HEVs (hybrid electric vehicles) in total by 2025, the company released its new strategies on April 23. Apart from the existing Changan Passenger Vehicle (PV), the company would still promote an all-new mid-to-high-end brand. Besides, the automaker officially renamed Changan commercial vehicle unit as Oushang Cars and its light vehicle unit as Kaicheng Cars which is positioned as a smart logistics CV brand working on improving the urban logistics efficiency. Changan Russia receives RMB 250 million of investment from Changan Changan Automobile planned to add RMB 250 million of investment in its wholly-owned subsidiary, Changan Russia to meet the subsidiary's liabilities and supplement its operating funds, according to the automaker's statement released on May 7. Due to the deficiency of Changan Russia's cash flow, Changan Automobile aimed to solve the fund shortage, which was resulted from the expansion of business, via the added investments. As planned, Changan Russia was slated to be a pioneer to march into the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) countries and Eastern European markets. Changan PSA sets up exclusive marketing department for DS Changan PSA would continue to position the DS as luxury vehicle brand, and would launch one new DS model per year over the next five years to complete the product lineup of its SUVs, according to Shen Mingjun, executive vice president of Changan PSA. He also added that Changan PSA would set up a new exclusive department to manage the relationship with customers. Lack of SUV models made DS suffer sales depression with the SUV market growing increasingly popular nowadays. But things went better as they launched their SUV models. At Auto China 2018, DS released its flagship SUV model, the DS7, which was sold more than 3,000 units during Mar. 20 and the period of Auto China 2018. Changan Automobile loses three vice presidents at the same time Changan Automobile announced on May 28 that Gong Bin, Huang Zhongqiang and Luo Minggang would no longer serve as the company's vice president. According to the personnel change statement, Gong Bin would not work in Changan Automobile after he stepped down as vice president. He was officially hired as the company's vice president on April 14, 2011 and had been in charge of the production and marketing of sedan businesses. Previously, he assumed the responsibility of chairman, general manager in Chongqing Jialing Special Equipment Co.,Ltd, chairman and general manager in China Jialing Industrial Co.,Ltd (Group) and vice president in China South Industries Group Corporation (CSGC)'s motorcycle unit, etc. CCAG transfers 21.56% of Changan Automobile's total shares gratis to China South Industries Group Corporation Changan Automobile released an announcement on May 31, saying that the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council had approved China South Industries Group Co., Ltd. (CSGC) to take 1,035,312,673 A-shares, or 21.56% of Changan Auto's total shares gratis, which previously were held by China Changan Automobile Group (CCAG). According to the announcement, Changan Automobile stated as early as on March 16 that the company's free stakes transfer aimed to enhance and optimize its automobile businesses, helping promote the development of Changan Automobile. Meanwhile, CSGC was willing to accept the 21.56% of Changan's total shares. However, the stakes transfer should be reported to and be approved by the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council. Ford, Changan Automobile name president for new sales service division Changan Automobile and Ford Motor announced on June 7 that Li Hongpeng and Cao Zhenyu were named as president and executive vice president of Changan Ford's new national sales service division. The appointment would become effective after being approved by Changan Ford's board of directors. Meanwhile, the new sales service division, as the replacement of the Changan Ford's existing sales company, would officially come into effect on July 1, 2018 and would directly report to the board of directors. Changan Automobile's RMB 20 billion NEV project starts construction Changan Automobile's new energy vehicle (NEV) project located in Jiangning District, Nanjing started construction on June 19, according to the notice released by Nanjing Municipal Commission of Economy & Information Technology. Involving RMB 20 billion, the project was planned to reach a production capacity of 240,000 units annually, including a range of pure electric vehicle models, such as high-performance crossover SUV and coupe. The Nanjing-based NEV plant is expected to be put into operation in June, 2020. It was said that the project, positioned as Changan Automobile's self-owned NEV manufacturing base, would introduce a high-speed, flexible and wholly-closed autonomous production line, together with an efficient energy-saving concept. The new plant was expected to realize an annual production value of RMB 100 billion. Changan Automobile, Huawei join forces to develop IoV platform Changan Automobile and Huawei, a leading global provider of information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure and smart devices, inked a strategic cooperation agreement on July 4 to build a joint innovation center focusing on building an IoV (Internet of Vehicles) platform. Under the agreement, both parties would jointly build an innovation center to create a R&D platform boasting intelligentization, connectivity, electrification and sharing features. Both parties would make use of Huawei's advantages in information communication and new energy control technology and conduct deep research on advanced technical application scenarios and carriers provided by Changan Automobile. BYD, Changan announce establishment of vehicle-battery JV BYD and Changan Automobile singed a strategic cooperation agreement on July 5 in Shenzhen, aiming to establish a joint venture, which specializes in the manufacturing and marketing of new-energy vehicle (NEV) batteries. By virtue of both parties' advantageous resources in such areas as traditional fuel-powered vehicles, NEVs, intelligent internet, sharing mobility and overseas market, BYD and Changan would deepen their cooperation comprehensively with focuses on electrified and intelligent vehicles as well as sharing mobility. Under their cooperation, Changan and BYD showed their willingness of capital cooperation in both the upstream and downstream of new energy industrial chain. They would jointly develop battery business for NEVs and plan to set up an independent vehicle-battery JV. FAW, Dongfeng, Changan co-establish T3 mobility joint venture FAW Group, Dongfeng Motor Corporation and Changan Automobile officially signed a letter of intent in July 13 to jointly establish a T3 mobility service company, marking another significant cooperative step since three companies formed partnership on December 1, 2017. According to the statement released by Dongfeng Motor Corporation, the three state-owned automakers would make full use of their resources in vehicle manufacturing and marketing channels and invite partners from other industries to promote the thorough marketization of their joint mobility services from such aspects as talent pool, technologies, personnel structure, investment, etc. The intensified partnership among the three traditional automakers would help them to survive the complex and changeable market climate and strengthen their respective competitiveness in the nascent mobility market. NIO, Changan Automobile to hold 45% stake in their JV sited in Nanjing Changan NIO New Energy Vehicle Technology Co., Ltd., a joint venture co-built by Changan Automobile and NIO, rolled in Jiangning Development Zone, Nanjing on Aug. 17. It was said that the new JV planned to have an investment of RMB 5 billion and would start construction within this year. The new JV was expected to research and develop three new models and the first one will be put into production in 2020. The new company would name William Li, founder of NIO, as chairman, and Li Wei, executive vice president of Changan Automobile, as vice chairman. The JV's CEO would be Yang Fang, who is a veteran in auto industry in such areas as sales, market, R&D and strategy. Changan Automobile and NIO would take a 45% stake in the JV respectively. The rest 10% stake would be held by senior executives and also would be used to attract talents. Changan Automobile, Baidu bolster cooperation in autonomous driving Changan Automobile and Baidu signed a strategic cooperation agreement on August 23 to jointly develop autonomous vehicles and IoV (Internet of Vehicles) businesses, according to local media. Under the newly-signed agreement, both parties would carry out cooperation to gradually realize the application of autonomous vehicles and integrate IoV businesses. To be specific, the cooperation, focusing on the whole technology chain of autonomous driving, cybersecurity and functional security as well as IoV, would allow two companies to implement pre-research projects, develop technologies for mass production and determine the concrete technical solutions in relevant cooperative domains. Changan Automobile transfers NEV business, assets to wholly-owned subsidiary In order to boost the development of new energy vehicle (NEV) business, Changan Automobile announced on Aug. 28 that it planned to reorganize internal assets, arming to transfer part of NEV-related assets, business and staff members to its wholly-owned subsidiary, Chongqing Changan NEV Science and Technology Co., Ltd. It was said that Changan planned to take May 31 as base date to audit the fixed assets, inventory, other account receivable as well as patents, patent application rights, software copyrights and technology secrets, and would transfer the audited book value to its wholly-owned subsidiary. The asset and liability changes happened between base date of audit and delivery date would be adjusted and transferred according to actual changes. Changan Automobile wholly controls Changan Suzuki with cost of RMB1 Changan Automobile announced on September 4 that it would acquire the other 50% stake in Changan Suzuki, which was previously owned by Suzuki Motor and Suzuki (China) Investment Co.,Ltd, with RMB 1. After the acquisition completes, Changan Suzuki would be wholly possessed by Changan Automobile and be incorporated into the consolidated statements of the Chinese parent company. Changan Automobile invests RMB 4.79 billion to set up NEV production base in Jiangsu Local media learned from the Environmental Protection Department of Jiangsu Province that Changan Auto would set up a manufacturing base in the province to build new energy vehicles. The total annual capacity of the new base would be 240,000 units and the output of the first phase would be 120,000 per year. The automaker's subsidiary in Nanjing would cover an area of 1.46 million square meters and the total investment is up to RMB 4.79 billion, of which RMB 3.47 billion is designated for the first phase. The base is slated to start production from 2020. Changan Automobile NEV subsidiary to introduce new investors for Mission Shangri-La Changan Automobile announced on October 19 that its wholly-owned subsidiary Chongqing Changan New Energy Vehicle Technology Co., Ltd. (Changan NEV Technology) planned to introduce no less than 3 new strategy investors to accelerate the deployment of the Mission Shangri-La new energy strategy. According to the announcement, the transaction would be put on the public market and achieved by means of enlarging the shares by increasing capital in cash. After the capital increase, the equity held by new investors should account for no less than 51% of the company's total registered capital, thus Changan Automobile's equity proportion would be no more than 49%. BENTELER, Changan Automobile inaugurate new JV plant in Chongqing On November 28th, BENTELER Automotive, the automotive arm of the Germany-based BENTELER International AG, opened a new joint venture (JV) plant in Chongqing, China, along with Jian'an, a subsidiary of Changan Automobile, one of the major car manufacturers in China. The new plant is operated by BENTELER Jian'an Automotive (Chongqing) Co.,Ltd, a 50-50 JV between BENTELER and Changan Automobile, which focuses on the design, testing, development, manufacturing and sales of automotive chassis modules and component. It also provides relevant services including consultation and support over technology issues. The final view captured by a Nasa spacecraft as it flew by the most distant world ever explored revealed it had a different shape to the one presented to the world on New Years Day. Instead of the snowman initially proposed when New Horizons beamed back images from the depths of space, the object instead appears to have a flattened shape. The new pictures show there is still a lot to learn about the object dubbed Ultima Thule, which is situated over 4 billion miles away from Earth. It is situated in the Kuiper Belt, a region of the solar system beyond the eight major planets, comprised of icy bodies floating in space. The highly unusual new look for Ultima Thule was captured around 10 minutes after the spacecraft passed by at its closest point, travelling at over 31,000 miles per hour. Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Show all 30 1 /30 Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Solar Flare An image from Nasa's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) shows a 200,000 mile long solar filament ripping through the Sun's corona in September 2013 Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Nasa Celebrates 50 Years of Spacewalking For 50 years, NASA has been "suiting up" for spacewalking. In this 1984 photograph of the first untethered spacewalk, NASA astronaut Bruce McCandless is in the midst of the first "field" tryout of a nitrogen-propelled backpack device called the Manned Maneuvering Unit (MMU) Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space A Hubble Cosmic Couple The spectacular cosmic pairing of the star Hen 2-427 more commonly known as WR 124 and the nebula M1-67 which surrounds it ESA/Hubble & NASA Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Veil Nebula Supernova Remnant Nasa's Hubble Space Telescope has unveiled in stunning detail a small section of the Veil Nebula - expanding remains of a massive star that exploded about 8,000 years ago Nasa's most stunning pictures of space The Soyuz TMA-15M rocket launch The Soyuz TMA-15M rocket launches from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Monday, Nov. 24, 2014, carrying three new astronauts to the International Space Station. It also took caviar, ready for the satellite's inhabitants to celebrate the holidays Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Earth from the ISS From the International Space Station, Expedition 42 Flight Engineer Terry W. Virts took this photograph of the Gulf of Mexico and U.S. Gulf Coast at sunset Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Black Hole Friday Nasa celebrated Black Friday by looking into space instead sharing pictures of black holes Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space NuSTAR X-rays stream off the sun in this image showing observations from by NASA's Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array, or NuSTAR, overlaid on a picture taken by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Cassiopeia A c A false colour image of Cassiopeia A comprised with data from the Spitzer and Hubble Space Telescopes and the Chandra X-Ray observatory Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Orion Capsule splashes down The Orion capsule jetted off into space before heading back a few hours later having proved that it can be used, one day, to carry humans to Mars Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Earth Observations From Gemini IV in 1965 This photograph of the Florida Straits and Grand Bahama Bank was taken during the Gemini IV mission during orbit no. 19 in 1965. The Gemini IV crew conducted scientific experiments, including photography of Earth's weather and terrain, for the remainder of their four-day mission following Ed White's historic spacewalk on June 3 Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Frosty slopes of Mars This image of an area on the surface of Mars, approximately 1.5 by 3 kilometers in size, shows frosted gullies on a south-facing slope within a crater. The image was taken by Nasa's HiRISE camera, which is mounted on its Mars Reconaissance Orbiter Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Yellowstone from space NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman shared this image of Yellowstone via his twitter account Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Saturn This near-infrared color image shows a specular reflection, or sunglint, off of a hydrocarbon lake named Kivu Lacus on Saturn's moon Titan Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Worlds Apart Although Mimas and Pandora, shown here, both orbit Saturn, they are very different moons. Pandora, "small" by moon standards (50 miles or 81 kilometers across) is elongated and irregular in shape. Mimas (246 miles or 396 kilometers across), a "medium-sized" moon, formed into a sphere due to self-gravity imposed by its higher mass Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Solar Flare An X1.6 class solar flare flashes in the middle of the sun in this image taken 10 September, captured by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Large Magellanic Cloud galaxy An image of the Large Magellanic Cloud galaxy seen in infrared light by the Herschel Space Observatory. Regions of space such as this are where new stars are born from a mixture of elements and cosmic dust Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Mars Rover Spirit Nasa's Mars Rover Spirit took the first picture from Spirit since problems with communications began a week earlier. The image shows the robotic arm extended to the rock called Adirondack Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Morning Aurora From the Space Station Nasa astronaut Scott Kelly captured this photograph of the green lights of the aurora from the International Space Station Nasa/Scott Kelly Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Launch of History - Making STS-41G Mission in 1984 The Space Shuttle Challenger launches from Florida at dawn. On this mission, Kathryn Sullivan became the first U.S. woman to perform a spacewalk and Marc Garneau became the first Canadian in space. The crew of seven was the largest to fly on a spacecraft at that time, and STS-41G was the first flight to include two female astronauts Nasa's most stunning pictures of space A Fresh Perspective on an Extraordinary Cluster of Galaxies Galaxy clusters are often described by superlatives. After all, they are huge conglomerations of galaxies, hot gas, and dark matter and represent the largest structures in the Universe held together by gravity Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Hubble Sees a Galactic Sunflower The arrangement of the spiral arms in the galaxy Messier 63, seen here in an image from the Nasa Hubble Space Telescope, recall the pattern at the center of a sunflower ESA/Hubble & NASA Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Pluto image Four images from New Horizons Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) were combined with colour data from the Ralph instrument to create this enhanced colour global view of Pluto Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Fresh Crater Near Sirenum Fossae Region of Mars The HiRISE camera aboard Nasa's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter acquired this closeup image of a "fresh" (on a geological scale, though quite old on a human scale) impact crater in the Sirenum Fossae region of Mars. This impact crater appears relatively recent as it has a sharp rim and well-preserved ejecta Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Hubble Peers into the Most Crowded Place in the Milky Way This Nasa Hubble Space Telescope image presents the Arches Cluster, the densest known star cluster in the Milky Way NASA & ESA Nasa's most stunning pictures of space An Astronaut's View from Space Nasa astronaut Reid Wiseman tweeted this photo from the International Space Station on 2 September 2014 Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Giant Landform on Mars On Mars, we can observe four classes of sandy landforms formed by the wind, or aeolian bedforms: ripples, transverse aeolian ridges, dunes, and what are called draa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Expedition 39 Landing A sokol suit helmet can be seen against the window of the Soyuz TMA-11M capsule shortly after the spacecraft landed with Expedition 39 Commander Koichi Wakata of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), Soyuz Commander Mikhail Tyurin of Roscosmos, and Flight Engineer Rick Mastracchio of NASA near the town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan (NASA/Bill Ingalls) Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Jupiter's Great Red Spot Viewed by Voyager I Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system and perhaps the most majestic. Vibrant bands of clouds carried by winds that can exceed 400 mph continuously circle the planet's atmosphere Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Chandra Observatory Sees a Heart in the Darkness This Chandra X-Ray Observatory image of the young star cluster NGC 346 highlights a heart-shaped cloud of 8 million-degree Celsius gas in the central region This really is an incredible image sequence, taken by a spacecraft exploring a small world four billion miles away from Earth, said mission principal investigator Dr Alan Stern, a planetary scientist at the Southwest Research Institute. Nothing quite like this has ever been captured in imagery. The departure images revealed a shape that had previously been hidden as it was not illuminated by the sun. Stringing together images taken as the spacecraft sped past the object revealed that the larger Ultima section was not spherical after all, but flattened like a pancake. The pictures have raised questions among the scientific team about how such an object could have formed. Weve never seen something like this orbiting the sun, said Dr Stern. Recommended Nasa releases first video of most distant object it has ever explored The team were able to assemble the new images based on which stars were blotted out as the darkened part of Ultima Thule passed in front of them. While the very nature of a fast flyby in some ways limits how well we can determine the true shape of Ultima Thule, the new results clearly show that Ultima and Thule are much flatter than originally believed, and much flatter than expected, said Dr Hal Weaver, New Horizons project scientist from the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory. This will undoubtedly motivate new theories of planetesimal formation in the early solar system. Last month a federal court in the US ordered the Syrian government to pay more than $300m over the murder of Marie Colvin, who was killed alongside French photographer Remi Ochlik in Homs in 2012. Her obituary is reproduced below At a ceremony at St Brides Church in Fleet Street in 2010, in honour of reporters killed in war zones, Marie Colvin, the long-serving Sunday Times foreign correspondent, delivered a moving address. We can and do make a difference in exposing the horrors of war and especially the atrocities that befall civilians, she said, but added: We always have to ask ourselves whether the level of risk is worth the story. What is bravery and what is bravado? Those who worked alongside her affirm that she was demonstrably brave but in no sense reckless. But yesterday the American-born reporter was added to the roll of those who have died for the sake of the story when she and a photographer were killed by a rocket when trying to escape from a house in Homs, Syria, that was being used as a press centre for the rebels. The previous day she had sent despatches by satellite telephone to the BBC, ITN and the news channel CNN. She reported: There is just shells, rockets and tank fire pouring into civilian areas of this city and it is just unrelenting. Her reports accompanied harrowing footage of a baby killed in the shelling. Colvin with the Duchess of Cornwall during a service at St Brides Church, London, in November 2010 (Getty) She said it was important that such images should be broadcast to show the world what was happening in the city. Why is no one stopping this murder? she asked. The question why journalists such as she put themselves in harms way for the sake of exposing violence, hardship and injustice was one that she asked herself throughout her professional career. In 2001 she visited the Tamil-held area of Sri Lanka the first western journalist to do so for six years and lost her sight in her left eye when it was struck by shrapnel from a grenade. (Her black eye patch subsequently became her badge of identity.) The same week she wrote a 3,000-word article for The Sunday Times describing the incident and the operation in a New York hospital to save her eyesight. In it she said she had been told she was foolish to court such dangers, and concluded: So, was I stupid? Stupid I would feel writing a column about the dinner party I went to last night. Equally, Id rather be in that middle ground between a desk job and getting shot, no offence to desk jobs. For my part, the next war I cover, Ill be more awed than ever by the quiet bravery of civilians who endure far more than I ever will. They must stay where they are; I can come home to London. This obituary as it appeared on Thursday 23 February 2012 In fact she had the reputation of staying in a zone of conflict longer than most of the visiting firemen who pay brief visits and leave as soon as the interest of their news desks begins to fade, even if the core situation remains unresolved. It was an important reason why her reports were notable for their insights and local knowledge. In 1999, reporting the plight of refugees in East Timor, she insistedon staying until their evacuation was assured, although some aid officials had wanted to pull out earlier. Not long before her assignment to Syria she spent many weeks in Libya, and was one of the last journalists to interview Colonel Gaddafi. The daughter of a schoolteacher, Marie Colvin was born in Oyster Bay, Long Island, in 1957 and educated at the local high school. She worked in Paris for United Press International before joining The Sunday Times in 1986 as its Middle East correspondent. Among stories she covered were the war between Iran and Iraq, the conflict in Yemen and the two Gulf wars. The reporter lost her sight in her left eye in 2001 when it was struck by shrapnel from a grenade in Sri Lanka (Joel Ryan/PA) Broadening her area of operations, she reported on the wars in Indonesia, Kosovo and Chechnya, for which she won one of the several awards she attracted during her career. This one was for her description of how she escaped from approaching Russian troops.The only route open to her was a path across mountains, leading to a remote and virtually inaccessible spot from where, after four days, she was rescued by an American helicopter. The British Press Awards judges commented: Her escape from Chechnya was a superb adventure, grippingly told. It was one of the great adventure stories of all time. Other awards came from the Foreign Press Association and the International Womens Media Foundation (for courage). In 2009 she was honoured by the trustees of the Martha Gellhorn Prize for her distinguished work over many years in the service of journalism. This gave her particular pleasure as Gellhorn, who reported the Spanish Civil War and the Second World War, was one of her heroines and an influential role model. Colvins peripatetic profession was not conducive to a stable private life and her three marriages ended unhappily. Her second husband was the journalist and author Patrick Bishop and her third Juan Carlos Gumucio, a Bolivian reporter who committed suicide in 2002. One of the few outside interests she made time for was sailing, at which she became highly proficient. Her final report, in The Sunday Times four days ago, was characteristic in its combination of resourcefulness and compassion: I entered Homs on a smugglers route, which I promised not to reveal, climbing over walls in the dark and slipping into muddy trenches ... The building I was staying in lost its upper floor to a rocket last Wednesday ... No shops are open, so families are sharing what they have with relatives and neighbours. Many of the dead and injured are those who risked foraging for food ... The scale of human tragedy in the city is immense. The inhabitants are living in terror ... On the lips of everyone was the question: Why have we been abandoned by the world? Marie Colvin, journalist, born 12 January 1956, died 22 February 2012 The government has broken a pledge to ban imports of lion hunting trophies, The Independent has discovered. In 2015, then environment minister Rory Stewart said the UK would halt imports of parts of the big cats by 2017 unless the hunting industry cleaned up its act. The following year, his successor Liz Truss repeated the promise in a letter, saying: Unless we see improvements in the way hunting takes place, judged against strict criteria, we will ban lion trophy imports within the next two years. Experts say there have been no improvements to African lion hunting, and wild populations have tumbled from about 20,000 then to about 15,000. More than 150 MPs have signed a parliamentary motion by Zac Goldsmith calling for a ban on hunting trophy imports. The women hunting big-game poachers Show all 8 1 /8 The women hunting big-game poachers The women hunting big-game poachers The Black Mambas are a specially trained team of rangers who police the park night and day to protect the animals from illegal hunting Julia Gunther The women hunting big-game poachers Lukie, 26, says, 'The next generation must know rhinos in life. If poaching is allowed they will only see them in a picture' Julia Gunther The women hunting big-game poachers Proud finds and disables a snare laid by poachers Julia Gunther The women hunting big-game poachers During a scouting trip, the Mambas examine an impala horn Julia Gunther The women hunting big-game poachers Qolile, 21, learned about wildlife and conservation at Timbavati Bush School. She would like go further both with her studies and with the Black Mambas Julia Gunther The women hunting big-game poachers Mambas on the march. The unit has so far removed more than 1,000 poachers snares, and been awarded the UNs Champions of the Earth award Julia Gunther The women hunting big-game poachers Yenzekile reports the location of a young, slain kudu to the control room Julia Gunther The women hunting big-game poachers Black Mambas Mirren, 26, Winnie, 22, Belinda, 27, and Dedeya, 26 Julia Gunther The government says it keeps the rules under review. Chris Macsween of the charity LionAid said she was appalled by the broken promise. Its awful. The number of wild lions is falling and numbers of canned [bred in captivity] lions in the cruel shooting industry is going up, yet its never on anyones agenda. Its heartbreaking, she said. An average of six lion bodies are imported each year but LionAid says a ban would send a message worldwide. A spokeswoman for Humane Society International said: The situation in South Africa, which exports more lion trophies than any other country, is exactly the same as in 2016. The US lists lions as an endangered species, which means imports of body parts from captive lions are effectively banned. In 2015 LionAid twice met Mr Stewart, and Ms Macsween said: During the second meeting, Mr Stewart told us we had won. Mr Stewart promised in November 2015: Unless there is a significant improvement in the performance of the hunting industry and of those countries, this government will move to ban lion trophies. Experts say hunting male lions devastates entire prides. A male who was head of his pride was shot by a US hunter and as a result several of his cubs were killed and lionesses beaten up Teresa Telecky Teresa Telecky, HSIs wildlife vice president, said: Last September, the magnificent Greater Kruger lion, Skye, who was head of his pride and in his prime, was lured out of the national park into a private reserve, where he was shot by an American hunter. As a result, several of his cubs were killed and some of his prides lionesses were badly beaten up as new males sought to take over. The lion dynamics in this region were severely compromised. At a rally on 13 April this year, thousands of wildlife supporters will march to Downing Street to call for tougher protections, and for all endangered animals to be exempted from trophy-hunting. Recommended Jogger choked mountain lion to death after being attacked in Colorado Mr Goldsmith said he was awaiting an update from environment officials. Asked about the criticisms, the Department for Environment referred to a statement by minister Therese Coffey, who said imports were already strictly controlled. A permit will only be issued if no detrimental impact on the survival of endangered species is demonstrated and the item has been obtained from a legal and sustainable hunting operation. We are looking carefully at this issue and plan to hold a roundtable discussion with organisations from all sides of the debate to gain a better understanding of the issues as well as consider any further scientific advice. Environment secretary Michael Gove has said the rules are constantly under review but stopped short of saying whether a ban would be considered. A group of almost 50 scientists have called on the government to review the earthquake limit for fracking sites in order to allow the industry to grow in the UK. Currently any fracking must be put on hold if it produces earthquakes above the 0.5 magnitude limit, a provision that has repeatedly brought operations in Lancashire to a halt in recent months. The open letter to The Times has added support to the voices of fracking industry chiefs from Ineos and Cuadrilla who have called for looser earthquake restrictions. The 49 geoscientists, some of whom have been linked to the oil and gas industry, called the existing traffic light system extremely conservative. In the letter, they wrote the limit is: very far below the levels set in other countries, or for other comparable industries in the UK (such as quarrying, mining and deep geothermal energy). Environment news in pictures Show all 8 1 /8 Environment news in pictures Environment news in pictures Davos 2019: David Attenborough issues stark warning about future of civilisation as he demands practical solutions to combat climate change Sir David Attenborough has issued a stark warning about climate change to business figures gathered in Davos, telling them that "what we do now...will profoundly affect the next few thousand years". On the eve of this year's World Economic Forum, the renowned naturalist told the audience that the worlds of business and politics should "get on with the practical solutions" needed to prevent environmental damage. "As a species we are expert problem solvers. But we've not yet applied ourselves to this problem with the focus it requires. "We can create a world with clean air and water, unlimited energy, and fish stocks that will sustain us well into the future. But to do that, we need a plan," he said. The broadcaster made his speech after receiving a Crystal Award, which is awarded by the forum to "exceptional cultural leaders". AFP/Getty Environment news in pictures At least 60% of wild coffee species face extinction triggered by climate change and disease Two decades of research have revealed that 60 per cent of the worlds coffee species face extinction due to the combined threats of deforestation, disease and climate change. The wild strain of arabica, the most widely consumed coffee on the planet, is among those now recognised as endangered, raising concerns about its long-term survival. These results are worrying for the millions of farmers around the world who depend on the continued survival of coffee for their livelihoods. As conditions for coffee farming become tougher, scientists predict the industry will need to rely on wild varieties to develop more resilient strains Alan Schaller Environment news in pictures Warming Antarctic waters are speeding the rate at which glaciers are melting The Antarctic ice sheet is losing six times as much ice each year as it was in the 1980s and the pace is accelerating, one of the most comprehensive studies of climate change effects on the continent has shown. More than half an inch has been added to global sea levels since 1979, but if current trends continue it will be responsible for metres more in future, the Nasa-funded study found. The international effort used aerial photos, satellite data and climate models dating back to the 1970s across18 Antarctic regions to get the most complete picture to date on the impacts of the changing climate. It found that between 1979 and 1990 Antarctica lost an average of 40 gigatonnes (40 billion tonnes) of its mass each year. Between 2009 and 2017 it lost an average 252 gigatonnes a year. This has added 3.6mm per decade to sea levels, or around 14mm since 1979, the study shows Nasa/Getty Environment news in pictures Greater Manchester to ban fracking, paving way for confrontation with government over controversial industry Greater Manchester is to effectively ban fracking, raising the prospect of fresh confrontation with the government over the controversial industry. All of the regions 10 councils are to implement planning policies which create a presumption against drilling for shale gas in their areas, Manchester mayor Andy Burnham has announced. Campaigners said the move was the latest sign that the tide was turning against fracking, which has been the subject of multiple legal battles across the country. Critics of fracking say it poses environmental and health risks. Drilling at the UKs only operational fracking site, run by Cuadrilla in Lancashire, has repeatedly been halted due to earth tremors. But ministers support the industry and last year unveiled plans to accelerate the development of new drilling sites Ross Wills Environment news in pictures Japan confirms plan to resume commercial whaling in its waters from next year Japan will resume commercial whaling next year for the first time in more than three decades, in a move that has provoked strong criticism from campaigners and the international community. Chief cabinet secretary Yoshihide Suga said his nation would leave the International Whaling Commission (IWC) to resume hunting the marine mammals in Japanese waters. However, he stated the activity would be limited to Japans territory and the 200 mile exclusive economic zone along its coasts. This means controversial scientific trips to Antarctica in which Japanese vessels killed hundreds of whales, as well as activity in the northwest Pacific, will stop in 2019 AP Environment news in pictures COP24: Environmental groups criticise morally unacceptable climate deal reached after major Poland summit Diplomats from around the world have agreed a major climate deal after two weeks of United Nations talks in Poland. But climate campaigners warned the deal effectively a set of rules for how to govern the 2015 Paris climate accord agreed between almost 200 countries lacked ambition or a clear promise of enhanced climate action. Activists cautiously welcomed elements of the plan, saying important progress had been made on ensuring that efforts to tackle climate change by individual nations can be measured and compared. But environmental groups were also highly critical of the agreement, warning it lacked ambition and clarity on key issues, including financing for climate projects for developing countries. The COP24 deal, which is aimed at providing firm guidelines for countries on how to transparently report their greenhouse gas emissions and their efforts to reduce them, was confirmed on 15 December, after talks overran Reuters Environment news in pictures Unprecedented changes needed to stop global warming as UN report reveals islands starting to vanish and coral reefs dying Greenhouse gas emissions must be cut almost in half by 2030 to avert global environmental catastrophe, including the total loss of every coral reef, the disappearance of Arctic ice and the destruction of island communities, a landmark UN report has concluded. Drawing on more than 6,000 scientific studies and compiled over two years, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) findings, released this morning, warn enormous and rapid changes to the way everyone on Earth eats, travels and produces energy need to be brought in immediately. Though the scientists behind the report said there is cause for optimism, they recognised the grim reality that nations are currently nowhere near on track to avert disaster AFP/Getty Environment news in pictures Africas three biggest elephant poaching cartels exposed using DNA from illegal ivory shipments DNA taken from massive shipments of ivory has been used to identify the three largest wildlife trafficking gangs operating at the height of Africas elephant poaching epidemic. Ivory tends to be shipped around the world from African ports in bulk, and scientists have used genetic evidence gleaned from intercepted batches to reveal their origins. Led by Dr Samuel Wasser from the University of Washington, they traced a number of these shipments to three cartels operating out of Kenya, Uganda and Togo. Evidence collected by Dr Wasser has already helped convict ivory kingpin Feisal Mohamed Ali, and as his team joins the dots between shipments they plan to shore up the cases against more of the continents most prolific smugglers Art Wolfe In the US, which has a far more developed fracking industry, the limits are at between 2.7 and 4.5 depending on the state. However, the government has refused to budge on its commitment to avoid raising the earthquake limit, which it said was agreed after consultation with industry. While smaller quakes are not generally felt at the surface, there are concerns repeated events will cause damage to infrastructure, and that they could lead to large tremors that compromise the fracking borehole and cause leaks. The 0.5 limit was set as a precautionary approach after two sizeable earthquakes struck at a Cuadrilla site near Blackpool in 2011. But after the latest attempts to frack successfully in Lancashire stalled, seismologists who have advised Britains industry regulator, the Oil and Gas Authority, said the limit in the UK could safely be raised to 1.5. The latest government figures show public support for fracking is nearing record lows, with concern about earthquakes one of the biggest concerns reported by members of the public. Vivienne Westwood joins anti-fracking protest outside Courts of Justice Environmental groups are also worried about the impact a rapidly expanding fracking industry would have on the countryside, and on the UKs climate change commitments. While ministers have presented shale gas as a relatively clean fuel compared to coal, green groups say investing in further gas extraction will go against the warnings by climate scientists that fossil fuels must be eliminated as soon as possible. The most important risk issue for fracking is that we need to keep fossil fuels in the ground, said James Knapp, from anti-fracking campaigners the Weald Action Group. The resulting production would last decades, this is manifestly at odds with what is required to face up to this existential crisis, the rapid phasing out of all fossil fuel use. Awards season travelled across the seas tonight as our very own British Academy Film Awards otherwise known as the Baftas - took place. It was an opportunity to reward homegrown talent, certainly, but the ceremony served to put the pieces into place ahead of the Oscars, which takes place in just two weeks. At this years Baftas, The Favourite led the nominations with 12 leaving Alfonso Cuarons Roma trailing behind with seven not that having the numbers on your side is any guarantee of victory on the night. However, on this occasion, it did. Below are the evening's biggest talking points. The Favourite ruled the night, despite Roma winning Best Film The Baftas had dual victors when it came to the ceremony. It was a night that belonged to both Yorgos Lanthimoss historical drama, which won seven awards, and Alfonso Cuarons Netflix-produced drama Roma, which won four awards. The Favourite may have a Greek director in Lanthimos, but the period piece received significant British funding, alongside being anchored by a British story (a love triangle between Queen Anne and two confidantes) and a largely UK-hailing cast, including Olivia Colman and Rachel Weisz, who won Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress respectively. The film not only won Outstanding British Film, but also won for Original Screenplay, Production Design and Make Up & Hair. Roma, meanwhile, won the ultimate prize of the night, Best Film. Cuaron also won for Director, Cinematography and Film Not in the English Language. Joanna Lumley played it (too) safe When Britain is currently facing one of the most turbulent political crises of recent history, it seems so faint-hearted of the ceremony to keep proceedings so dry. Host Joanna Lumleys monologue failed to deliver any topical gags, mostly consisting of a string of compliments and a cute joke about how The Favourite was, indeed, the nights favourite. The only real jabs were saved for the Oscars and A Star is Born director Bradley Cooper. Thank goodness Bafta has a host, though I suspect that has to do with the fact that Im not on Twitter, Lumley joked early on. Oscars organisers have confirmed that this years ceremony will have no official host for the first time in 30 years, after Kevin Hart stepped down when a number of old tweets resurfaced in which the comedian expressed homophobic views. Cooper, who is the star, director, producer, and screenwriter of A Star is Born, was declared by Lumley to be a multi-talented genius who needs to learn how to delegate. While referencing Alfonso Cuarons nominations in six different categories, Lumley then turned to Cooper and added: pull your finger out, sweetheart. Only Eddie Marsan truly stepped up The speeches, too, were kept oddly short and free of political comment. Accepting the prize for Best Film, Cuaron expressed his gratitude for Roma winning during a time when fear and anger would divide us perhaps hes saving his most direct attacks on Trumps policies for when he (very likely) wins at the upcoming Academy Awards. Andy Serkis made a quick reference while presenting the prize for Original Music, noting that: Music is like Laurel without Hardy, Queen without Freddie Mercury - it's Britain without Europe. The most controversial comment of the evening by far was made by presenter Eddie Marsan. While presenting the award for Best Costume Design with Cynthia Erivo, the actor described the difficulty of creating historically accurate costumes for films. He then added that it was particularly difficult to do since Britain had reinvented its past to justify Brexit. Perhaps the winners simply had no time, with such truncated speeches, to make their political case. Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Show all 35 1 /35 Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Letitia Wright The British actor looks chic in a white tuxedo by Stella McCartney on the red carpet. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Danai Gurira Gurira stuns in a black floor-length dress with a corset structured waist. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Michelle Rodriguez Rodriguez wears a gold draped dress with a plunging neckline. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Olivia Colman Colman looks sophisticated in a white and black boat neck gown with an exaggerated train. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Cate Blanchett Blanchett dazzles in a black low-cut floor-length dress with an oversized necklace. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Rachel Brosnahan The actor wears an emerald green dress with a black bow detail in the centre. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Rachel Weisz Weisz wears a white layered dress with exaggerated shoulder details and a silver waistband. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Margot Robbie Robbie wears a white embellished dress by Chanel Couture with oversized navy coloured shoulder detailing on the red carpet. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Kate Middleton The Duchess of Cambridge is wearing an asymmetric Grecian-style dress by Alexander McQueen to the event. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Irina Shayk Shayk is keeping things simple in a black tuxedo. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Elizabeth Debicki Debicki is wearing a black sleeveless dress with a knee-high slit. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Olga Kurylenko The actor is wearing a red and purple paneled ankle-length dress with structured shoulder detailing. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Linda Cardellini Cardellini is wearing a white and light pink corseted prom-inspired dress on the red carpet. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Salma Hayek Hayek is wearing an asymmetric black gown with a gold shoulder embellishment. She has accessorized the look with a matching coloured clutch bag. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Michelle Yeoh The actor has teamed a regal-inspired blue and gold off the shoulder corseted dress with a gold clutch bag and a diamond set necklace chain and pendant. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Melissa McCarthy McCarthy wears a black long-sleeved gown teamed with a white envelope clutch bag and diamond earrings. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Claire Foy Foy is dressed in a strapless green fringe dress with a thigh-high split. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Laura Harrier The actor and model wears a long-sleeved orange coloured dress with gold heeled sandals. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Glenn Close Close wears a black V-neck gown with silver detailing at the waist. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Mary J. Blige The singer wears a white structured suit by Ralph and Russo featuring a gold belt, embellishment and a train. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Cynthia Erivo Erivo wears a Cinderella-inspired pale peach-hued dress with a purple trim for the event. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Lily Collins The Hollywood star is wearing a navy two-piece outfit, featuring a cropped blazer and layered semi-sheer skirt. Getty Images Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Zawe Ashton The actor has donned a fuchsia pink dress with an elongated train and black straps for the event. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Amy Jackson The actor and model is serving Hollywood glamour on the red carpet dressed in a black gown with a plunging neckline and spaghetti straps. She has teamed the look with a large diamond necklace PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Maya Jama The British broadcaster is wearing a sheer panelled dress with a thigh-high split on the red carpet. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Thandie Newton The Westworld actor stuns in a black tulle strapless gown with a white zigzag motif. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Sandy Powell The British costume designer chose to wear a black and white suit with black platform heels and a black beret for the event. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Barbara Meier The model wears a floor-length silver embellished dress. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Eleanor Tomlinson The actor wears a pink one-shoulder bow dress with red and silver fringing. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Viola Davis The Oscar winner is wearing a white and black floor-length gown for the awards ceremony. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Amy Adams The Hollywood star is wearing a burgundy-hued, belted dress with a plunging neckline. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Lucy Boynton The Bohemian Rhapsody actor wears a floor-length metallic multi-coloured printed gold dress with a black bow. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Sophie Harman The film producer wears a gold Vampire's Wife dress with butterfly detailing. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Laura Whitmore The television presenter wears a sheer metallic silver high-neck corset-style dress. PA Baftas 2019: Best dressed guests on the red carpet Edith Bowman The broadcaster wears a floral pink floor-length dress with red and green embroidered detailing and black fingerless leather gloves. PA Rami Malek solidified his place as an Oscars frontrunner Although it wasnt certain that Roma and The Favourite would share awards quite in the way that they did, the night wasnt particularly filled with surprises. Mahershala Ali beat Richard E Grant, the expected winner, to Best Supporting Actor, winning for his role as jazz musician Don Shirley in Green Book. Rami Malek, meanwhile, cemented himself as the favourite when it comes to the Academy Awards, winning Best Actor for his role as Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody. Thanking Dexter Fletcher, who stepped in as director when Bryan Singer was fired from the project, Malek said: Thank you so much to Queen and to greatest outsider of them all, for being so unwavering and unflinching and uncompromising in every which way thank you again, Freddie Mercury. Letitia Wright proves the power of Marvel Letitia Wrights win for the publicly voted Rising Star Award proved that Marvel will always have its sway when it comes to the average cinemagoer. Although shes proven herself time and time again in her performances from Black Mirror to Young Vics staging of The Convert its her role as Black Panthers fan favourite character, inventor Shuri, that ultimately won her prize. In her speech, she said: I identify myself as a child of God and I cant get up here without thanking God. A few years ago, I saw myself in a deep state of depression and I literally wanted to quit acting. She then credited God for helping her through this period, alongside an e-mail from Bafta asking her to take part in its Breakthrough Brits programme. So this wasnt an overnight thing. This wasnt a click of the finger success. Im still a work in progress, she added. I want to thank everybody that said yes to me. President Donald J. Trump Is Committed to Womens Economic Empowerment Around the World Washington, DC - "By investing in women around the world, were investing in families, were investing in prosperity, and were investing in peace." ~ President Donald J. Trump PROMOTING ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT FOR WOMEN: The Trump Administration is launching a historic initiative to empower women globally to fulfill their economic potential. Today, the Trump Administration launched the Womens Global Development and Prosperity (W-GDP) Initiative, the first-ever whole-of-government approach focused on advancing womens full and free participation in the global economy. Through the W-GDP Initiative, the Administration will seize on the significant opportunity that promoting women in the economy represents for boosting global gross domestic product. The aim is to reach 50 million women across the developing world from the start of the Trump Administration in 2017 to 2025. The President signed a National Security Presidential Memorandum and directed the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to allocate an initial $50 million for the new W-GDP Fund. The W-GDP Initiative will have three pillars of focus: Helping women to prosper in the workforce by improving womens access to quality education and skills training; Continuing efforts to fund and support womens entrepreneurship and access to capital, markets, technical assistance, and mentorship; and Working to identify and reduce the policy, legal, and regulatory barriers to womens participation in the global economy and promote improved practices. SUPPORTING OPPORTUNITIES TO ENSURE GLOBAL STABILITY: When women are empowered, they spur economic growth and help create stable societies. Everyone benefits from the growth and stability that economically empowered women add to the global economy: When women are empowered economically, they invest in their families and communities, spurring economic growth and creating more stable societies. Research shows that promoting global womens economic participation, especially in developing countries, could boost global economic growth by $12 trillion by 2025. Unfortunately, women in many countries face significant barriers to full and free participation in the global economy. Women are legally restricted from working in specific jobs in 104 countries, preventing more than 2.7 billion women from having the same job choices as men. Despite making up half of the worlds population, women only own one-third of formal businesses worldwide and have lessor noaccess to financial services, markets, and property. BUILDING ON OUR EFFORTS: Improving the role and ability of women to participate in the global economy is a critical issue and a high priority for President Donald J. Trump. At the 2017 G20 Leaders Summit, President Trump and global partners announced the first-of-its-kind Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi). The initiative is on track to raise more than $1.6 billion in capital. On International Womens Day 2018, the Trump Administration launched the WomenConnect Challenge, to increase womens access to digital technology and bridge the gender divide. Through the Administrations 2X Womens Initiative, the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) is mobilizing $1 billion to support women in the developing world. President Trump has signed bipartisan legislation, including the Women, Peace, and Security Act; the BUILD Act; and the Womens Entrepreneurship and Economic Empowerment Act. W-GDP DELIVERABLES: The Trump Administration is excited to announce these new and expanded programs and partnerships as part of the W-GDP initiative. Dems and GOP Should Join with Trump to Fund Infrastructure Improvements Washington, DC - Infrastructure is essential to any nations success. During the 20th century, infrastructure was instrumental in growing Americas economy into one the most productive in the world. Today, aging and insufficient infrastructure threatens to impede Americas economic growth and impact quality of life in many areas. To address this and build a better future for all Americans, President Trumps State of the Union message called upon Congress to address the urgent need to repair and modernize our countrys infrastructure. Over the last two years, our economy has responded very positively to the presidents policies generating a historically strong labor market for Americans and widespread private sector investment. To keep pace with the needs of a growing economy, the Trump administration is committed to improvements that address all facets of infrastructure. So the president is calling upon Congress to pass legislation that delivers new and important infrastructure investment to clear up the backlog of needed repairs and modernize Americas aging infrastructure. Read the full op-ed here. International Falls, MN (56649) Today Partly to mostly cloudy skies with scattered thunderstorms during the evening. A few storms may be severe. Low 53F. WNW winds at 10 to 20 mph, decreasing to less than 5 mph. Chance of rain 50%.. Tonight Partly to mostly cloudy skies with scattered thunderstorms during the evening. A few storms may be severe. Low 53F. WNW winds at 10 to 20 mph, decreasing to less than 5 mph. Chance of rain 50%. Cruisers sit parked outside the county jail facility, located behind the courthouse and administration complex in downtown Beaufort. (Dylan Ray photo) Note: We've recently updated our online systems. If you can't login please try resetting your password. You must login with an email address. If you don't have an email associated with your account email circulation2@journalnet.com for help creating one. We've recently updated our online systems. If you can't login please try resetting your password. You must login with an email address. If you don't have an email associated with your account email circulation@idahopress.com for help creating one. A commercial fishing trawler heads out to the open waters of Onslow Bay from the Newport River Jan. 30. The state has issued the first round of hurricane relief checks to commercial fishermen, and Carteret County-based watermen received more that $460,000. 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The Missouri Department of Transportation said icy weather is expected late Saturday in southern Missouri. The National Weather Service has issued a winter weather advisory. Texans cant afford to ignore the warning signs of a public health calamity that doesnt have to happen. We should all be alarmed that five measles cases were reported last week; three in Harris County and one each in Galveston and Montgomery Counties. We need to remember that six measles cases were also reported in January 2018 in Ellis County, south of Dallas. Measles supposedly was eradicated in the United States years ago, but its still around. The disease kills more than 100,000 people a year worldwide; most of them children who were not immunized. Keep that in mind when you consider that any one of the tens of thousands of Texas schoolchildren who received waivers not to take the shots your child had to take could one day become a walking infection factory. If that happens, blame the Texas Legislature for bowing down to a misinformed anti-vaccine group by passing a 2003 law that made it easier to exempt children from getting school shots. Texas had allowed medical and religious waivers since 1972, but the 2003 law allowed exemptions for reasons of conscience. Anyone can get an exemption. All you have to do is fill out a form, get it notarized, and send it back to the state. Consequently, the number of waivers in Texas has soared from 2,314 in the 2003-04 school year to 56,738 in 2017-18 and that number is expected to grow. Too many parents are listening to anti-vaccine activists preaching the falsehood that childhood immunizations may cause autism or other disorders. Researchers have debunked that theory. Yet, it has become the credo of a group called Texans for Vaccine Choice, whose members insist they are only standing up for parental rights. That message resonates among devoutly independent Texans. With that in mind, conservative legislators coveting the TVCs backing have prevented any bill from passing that would make it harder to get an immunization waiver. Its become a litmus test for conservatives, said State Rep. Sarah Davis, R-West University Place, who supported four immunization bills that died in the 2017 legislative session. She said vaccine proponents this session may need to play defense to prevent waivers from being extended to child care centers. Davis pointed out that it took a meningitis outbreak that caused a Texas A&M students death and the amputation of a University of Texas at Austin students fingers and legs before the Legislature passed a 2011 law making it mandatory for college students to have a meningitis vaccination. I hope it doesnt take that now, Davis said. It could if members of the Legislatures Freedom Caucus continue cozying up to TVC, which has become a powerful political force despite making meager campaign donations. The group makes up for its lack of cash by mobilizing grassroots support to block-walk, man phone banks and leave online messages on behalf of favored candidates like state Rep. Jonathan Stickland, R-Bedford. The state of Texas doesnt own our kids, said Stickland at a TVC rally. They should be looking for ways to protect parents because we know whats best for our kids. What Bedford and other TVC-endorsed legislators ignore is that childhood immunization laws protect the publics health overall, which must at times be regarded as a higher priority. If the politicians are genuinely concerned about parental rights, what about the rights of parents of vulnerable children who cannot be fully vaccinated, including newborns and children with certain medical conditions? What about a parents right to know the percentage of immunization waivers at her childs school? Doesnt that parent have a right to know which schools pose a greater risk of her child contracting measles? Unfortunately, common-sense legislation that would have required schools to report their percentage of students with waivers, though not their identities, didnt pass in 2017. All 50 states require some childhood vaccinations and most allow medical and religious waivers, but Texas is one of only 17 states that hand out philosophical waivers. California, Mississippi and West Virginia only allow medical exemptions. Washington state may join them after a measles outbreak in January that saw more than 50 confirmed cases. Parents who mistakenly believe their unvaccinated children can rely on the immunity of vaccinated peers are learning the hard way thats not true. Unvaccinated children tend to cluster and if that cluster grows large enough, the school and the community can lose the protective effect of herd immunity. California stopped granting waivers for philosophical or personal reasons in 2015 after a measles outbreak that began at Disneyland infected 125 people. It shouldnt take an emergency on that scale to get the Texas Legislature to act. It wont if Texans tell their legislators so stop listening to the small number people in TVC and start listening to the millions of parents who want to send their children to school without worrying about them coming home with a communicable disease. Its time for the politicians to put public health before self-interest. Dr. Dianna Milewiczs pioneering discoveries have saved lives, making it possible for physicians to detect and treat an often fatal cardiovascular condition that shows no symptoms. Over 15 years, her lab studied families around the world with thoracic aortic aneurysm and pinpointed the majority of genes linked to the condition. She has won countless honors and awards for her contributions to science as the President George H.W. Bush Chair of cardiovascular medicine and director of medical Genetics and vice-chair of internal medicine at the UTHealth McGovern Medical School. But to this day, Milewicz has trouble getting a word in at male-dominated committee meetings. She has women working in her lab, but she yearns for more to join the ranks. HoustonChronicle.com: Tour highlights environmental costs of Houston's energy industry Theres way too much fun and fulfillment to see so few women making it to the point where they have a very satisfying career in science, she said. There are parts of the system that are unfriendly to women. Women have to have more confidence and more drive to get there. Milewicz is one of five featured speakers Monday at a International Women and Girls in Science Day symposium, honoring a day designated by the United Nations in 2015 to promote gender equality in the sciences. Milewicz will speak on The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of Being a Woman in Academic Medicine. The event is free and open to the public. It begins at 4 p.m. in the Fifth Floor Gallery of the McGovern Medical School. Other medical school faculty speaking at the event are Danielle Garsin, a professor of microbiology and molecular genetics, who will talk about, Interkingdom Interactions of Enterococcus faecalis; Ruth Heidelberger, a professor of neurobiology and anatomy and Frederic B. Asche Chair in Ophthalmology, who will talk about, The neuronal conversation: mechanism and modulation; and Dr. Louise McCullough, Roy M. and Phyllis Gough Huffington Distinguished Chair and chair of the Department of Neurology, discussing Sex Differences in Stroke: Implications for Womens Health. In addition, Joan Bennett, a distinguished professor of plant biology and pathology at Rutgers University, will present on The XX Factor: Women in Science, Engineering and Medicine. Milewicz says having great women as mentors helped shape her career. At Rice University, she worked with Kathleen S. Matthews in the natural sciences, who was clearly a great role model and an incredible scientist. But what floored Milewicz was that she was also very feminine. HoustonChronicle.com: Jared Sine a match for Match.com's legal department She was struck that, You could be successful as a woman without turning into a stereotype. Another groundbreaking figure for Milewicz was Dr. Helen Hobbs at UT Southwestern, who continued doing great science while she was pregnant and after her children were born. Hobbs taught Milewicz that it was possible to have a balanced life and have children without shrugging off her career goals. Milewicz in turn has mentored Callie Kwartler, who has worked as a postdoctoral fellow in her lab for almost three years. In fact, Milewicz mentored Kwartler at various points in her career, taking her on as a graduate student and research assistant. It was Milewicz who showed her it was possible to have young children and continue to pursue her career in science. Recently Milewicz let her postdoctorate fellow help out with filing an NIH grant, something Kwartler will need to know how to do to make it as a principal investigator. She realizes it has been crucial to her own success for someone like Milewicz to give her these learning opportunities, even though sometimes it slows her down to do so. And Kwartler is passing on the favors, mentoring others in the lab about things like how to interpret results and design experiments. There are little details that as a scientist are kind of intuitive to me now, she said. Kwartler, 33, recently won award for mentoring. She too, hopes more women can make it in the field she loves. gabrielle.banks@chron.com FUEL FIX: Get energy, oil, and gas news updates each weekday in our energy newsletter. The first time Michael Tracy skipped school, it was to help plan a robbery. He was 17, and reckless. It did not go well. Wearing masks and looking for a Rolex, the Klein ISD student and two older friends strolled through the front door of a northern Harris County home and held the owner at gunpoint. No one got hurt, and they fled with only a fraction of what theyd expected. But less than a week later, the long-haired kid found himself facing a very adult charge: aggravated robbery, a first-degree felony. He took the case to trial, and lost. Two months before his 18th birthday, he was sentenced to 60 years in prison. That was in 1994. Ive been gone so long, he told the Houston Chronicle recently, I no longer dream of the free world. I only dream of prison. But now, Tracy and a few hundred other aging inmates like him have a new hope for reprieve with proposed legislation known as the Second Look bill. Filed in the Texas House by Rep. Joe Moody, D-El Paso, and in the Texas Senate by Sen. Jose Rodriguez, D-El Paso, the measure would make some prisoners who were sentenced as minors eligible to get out much sooner. Anyone hit with a first-degree felony before turning 18 would be up for parole after 20 years or half of their sentence whichever is sooner. Basically, its parole reform, said Deanna Luprete, an advocate whos dedicated herself to helping the measure pass. This is not resentencing, this is not opening the gate and letting them go. Its asking that the parole board give this juvenile a second look. Dying in prison First proposed in the last legislative session, the Second Look bill comes amid a broader rethinking of juvenile justice. Many of the Texas inmates who would stand to benefit from the measure were sent to prison in the 1990s, during a tough-on-crime era of long sentences and soaring incarceration. But times have changed. In 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court banned death sentences for anyone under 18 at the time of the crime. Then, in 2012, the high court took it a step further by eliminating mandatory life without parole for juveniles. They could still get a life without parole sentence, but it couldnt be mandatory other sentencing options must be available. Life with the possibility of parole is also still allowed, and in Texas that means the first chance to get out comes after 40 years behind bars. But, advocates argue, given the typical life span of a prisoner, that might be effectively the same thing as no parole and the data seems to back that up, since the vast majority of kids hit with life sentences never get out. Only about 4.5 percent of people sentenced to mandatory life have ever been released, said Elizabeth Henneke, an attorney and executive director of the nonprofit Lone Star Justice Alliance. If 95 percent of these people are going to die in prison then there is de facto life without parole. Thats not how it works in many other states. California, Florida, Louisiana and a handful of other states set the first chance for parole at 25 years or less for minors convicted of serious crimes, according to Lindsay Linder, senior policy attorney with the Texas Criminal Justice Coalition. Texas is a harsh outlier, she said. Thats where Second Look comes in. The bill, which supporters say could make roughly 2,000 prisoners eligible for parole in the next two years, doesnt guarantee release, but it opens up the possibility of parole consideration for anyone with a first-degree offense committed before turning 18. We now know so much more about brain science and their capacity for rehabilitation, Henneke said. The truth is, people mature. Too old to cope Second chances have been a part of Lupretes life for as long as she can remember. She grew up in California as the daughter of a parole officer-turned pastor, then spent years selling high-end makeup before moving to Texas for love and joining a prison ministry. At the time, her son was in prison in California, the unfortunate result of a methamphetamine-fueled crime spree. Im a real spiritual-minded person, she said, I was under the assumption that if I helped somebody here, somebody would help him there. So in 2014 she started volunteering at the Young Unit in Dickinson. She started her first session off with a simple question to the disillusioned room of men in prison whites. What do you fear? They went around the circle offering answers. It got to this one guy, Luprete recalled, and he said, Have you ever seen Shawshank Redemption? Im going to end up like Brooks when I get out Ill be too old to cope. Hed come in at 17 on a murder charge and wasnt eligible for parole until 57. Within the year, Luprete threw herself into Second Look. At the end of last year, she picked up and moved to Austin to lobby for the bill this legislative session. At the same time, she nurtured a groundswell of support from inmates and their families, working to turn a measure into a movement. She began by launching a Facebook page and loosely knit advocacy group called Epicenter, a coalition of impacted families swapping stories in what became an online headquarters for all things Second Look. We started with a membership of five and now were at 1,200, she said. Its mostly families of Second Lookers. Joining forces with the Texas Criminal Justice Coalition and the Lone Star Justice Alliance, Epicenter helped put out the Second Look Book in 2017, a collection of handwritten accounts from nearly two dozen prisoners hoping for second chances. One of the them was Michael Tracy. I wish you would think about what Ive written, he wrote at the end, I pray that youve obtained a better understanding of who we are, after so long behind bars, and realize we were just immature kids that made mistakes. Worthy of consideration For some, the measure raises public safety concerns, since it opens the possibility of releasing hundreds of prisoners with violent pasts. But after a similar measure passed in California, none of the more than 450 inmates released in the first year ended up back in prison, according to a 2018 study in the Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law Review. Some people will look at an effort like this and get concerned because we are talking about serious crimes, and Im certainly not blind to that concern, but if we meet with people and explain what were doing and why, I think that would cut through, Moody said. There is a growing consensus around good public policy when it comes to criminal justice reform, and that is bipartisan. Marc Levin, who heads the Center for Effective Justice and Right on Crime for the conservative Texas Public Policy Foundation, touted the measure as both good justice and good sense. From a fiscal standpoint it would certainly result in some cost savings. Thats not the main reason to do this, but its certainly one of the benefits, he said. I think justice requires us to go back and look at these cases and identify those individuals that can be safely released. Outspoken victim advocate Andy Kahan didnt come out against the bill, but pointed out that the measure could make two of the men convicted in the 1993 slayings of Jennifer Ertman and Elizabeth Pena eligible for parole. If such a law was passed, he said. it would behoove all parties to make sure victims of the offenders would be properly notified that parole proceedings which they believed would not be happening for a much longer period now potentially could be expedited. But he conceded some prisoners could deserve a second chance. You cant put everything into one blanket, he said. Im sure there are cases that are worthy to be considered. The measure has also drawn some support from unlikely quarters. Lance Lowry, a Huntsville corrections officer and former union president, pointed out that aging inmates who are more apt to require hospital trips and medical transports typically require more time, money and staff to manage. Having fewer of them could ease ongoing staffing problems and offer second chances. It would be a good idea because people change over time youre talking a decade, two decades, then youre dealing with a different individual, he said. People mature; they outgrow crime. Simple dreams For Tracy, the moment of change came about four years into his bid. At that point, hed spent almost all of his sentence on the same unit, a violent prison where he flouted the rules and got into fights. But his family stayed by his side, and it was during a visit from his mother that he had a flash of clarity. He thought about his chaotic life in the unit, and he thought about the aging woman in front of him. He thought about the big mistakes hed made, and the daily mistakes he kept making and the people whod be let down if they knew. After that visit, I just looked at myself in the mirror and realized I needed to do more, he said. When you start fixing the small things, you can fix the big things. So he did. He took seminary and GED classes, stopped getting into fights. He started doing life recovery classes, and stopped catching disciplinary cases. Now, he hopes to take the welding trade offered in prison, a skill that could have value in the free world however far away that may be. But he also has simpler dreams. The biggest thing Id like to do is walk outside, he said. I havent touched vegetation except grass in 20-some years. keri.blakinger@chron.com State Sen. Bryan Simonaire states: Words cannot convey the sorrow that was felt on the day we lost five of our own due to a rogue shooter." As the son of Wendi Winters, one of the journalists killed in the Capital Gazette newsroom, I must start by saying you have no idea, sir. You have no idea. Southern Baptist Convention leader Russell Moore weighed in on the Houston Chronicle's exclusive investigation into sex abuse in the Southern Baptist church Sunday. "Nothing is worse than the use of the name of Jesus to prey on the vulnerable," Moore tweeted. Moore, the president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the SBC, added that the report uncovered "alarming and scandalous" stories of abuse. EXCLUSIVE: Abuse of Faith, Revealing 700 victims of Southern Baptist sex abuse Now Playing: Houston psychiatrist Harvey Rosenstock explains the devastation of a child being abused by a religious leader. Video: Jon Shapley/Houston Chronicle Moore continued, "This is nothing short of a scandal and a crisis." Other church leaders have also weighed in on the devastating toll the past 20 years have taken on victims. Click through the gallery above to see reactions from church leaders to the Houston Chronicle's exclusive investigation. Michael Criner, Senior Pastor of the First Baptist Church of Bellville, Texas, tweeted, "May there be peace upon the victims & may we do our part to make necessary changes as a convention." MORE REACTIONS: Nassar victim, 'Brooklyn Nine-Nine' star react to investigation Pastor Marty Duren tweeted, "The lack of coordination in establishing a way for Southern Baptist churches to avoid hiring convicted or credibly-accused offenders is surpassed only by the lack of creativity in finding a way to do so." NEWS WHEN YOU NEED IT: Text CHRON to 77453 to receive breaking news alerts by text message | Sign up for breaking news alerts delivered to your email here. In this weeks episode of the Houston Chronicles BBQ State of Mind podcast, owner and pitmaster Brett Jackson of Bretts Barbecue Shop in Katy talks about the benefits and challenges of opening a new barbecue joint in the recently closed Nonmachers Bar-B-Que location on Mason. Nonmachers was something of a Katy barbecue institution back in the day. Owner and pitmaster John Nonmacher died in 2013, and although his family kept the business going for a while, it closed for good in 2018. The space sat empty for about six months before Jackson inquired about it. The restaurant came with the original barbecue pit a 38-year-old, 14-foot-long beast of a barrel smoker that had seen a few briskets pass through its cooking chamber over the past few decades. The smoker turned out to be both a blessing and a curse. It was certainly seasoned well 38 years of cooking created a patina along the inside of the chamber that helped with heat flow and smoke flavor. On HoustonChronicle.com: Brett Jackson discusses barbecue with J.C. Reid, Alison Cook and Greg Morago Bretts Barbecue Shop 606 Mason, Katy 281-392-7666 brettsbbqshop.com See More Collapse But according to Jackson, the pit had one drawback familiar to all pitmasters who cook on older pits: It really, really enjoys eating wood, he said, referring to the volume of wood that must be burned in the firebox to keep a consistent temperature in the cooking chamber. Consistent temperature is the holy grail for commercial pitmasters. But it can be a challenge to keep the temperature at a steady 225 degrees for 12 hours or more. Variables including pit design and even the weather can conspire to create temperature swings that will affect the quality of the cooked meats. A big difference between old and new commercial smokers is in the design of the firebox where the fuel specifically a dense hardwood such as post oak is burned to create the heat necessary for cooking. Many older commercial pits came with an uninsulated firebox made of -inch-thick steel. These were cheaper and easier to build, but a lot of the fires heat radiated out of the thin steel of the firebox itself, rather than into the cooking chamber. Indeed, if you go to some older barbecue joints, the smokers firebox is used as a heating element there is often a big pot of beans bubbling away on top. In the past, pit makers offered an option to insulate the firebox by building it with thicker -inch steel. But those tended to eat a lot of wood, too. Contemporary pit makers have become more sophisticated in their firebox designs, taking a layered approach to insulation. A thermally efficient ceramic fiber blanket is sandwiched between inside and outside layers of -inch steel. The thickness of the firebox walls on new pits is then 1-2 inches, including the steel and blanket, rather than the measly -inch of steel on older pits. With this new design, fuel is burned more efficiently so that the heat is kept within the firebox and directed into the cooking chamber. An insulated firebox will burn 50 to 60 percent less wood than its uninsulated counterpart. Flavor: Get the best food newsletter in Houston sent directly to your inbox This is good news for commercial pitmasters. They spend less money on wood and are able to spend more time in bed getting a good nights sleep because they arent constantly shoving wood into the firebox. For those pitmasters who find themselves cooking on a smoker with an uninsulated firebox, there arent a whole lot of options to improve fuel efficiency. Attaching insulating firebrick to the top and sides of the firebox is a good, if clunky, workaround. For now, Jackson is happy and more than a little bit proud to cook on the old-school smoker he inherited from Nonmachers. Cooking barbecue the real way, on an all-wood smoker with no technological bells and whistles, is a badge of honor for many pitmasters. J.C. Reid is the Chronicle's barbecue columnist. He also is the co-host of BBQ State of Mind, a podcast covering barbecue news from Texas and around the world, and co-founder of the Houston Barbecue Festival. You can follow him on Twitter and Facebook, or send barbecue tips and questions to jcreid@jcreidtx.com. At the top of the month, Disney decided to unleash Marvel's Black Panther film for an encore presentation at select theaters around the country for free to kick off Black History Month in the United States. The film was made available to view in 250 AMC theaters and coincided with the company's donation of $1.5 million to the United Negro College Fund organization. Gregg DeGuire/Getty Images Now, in the spirit of keeping the significance of Black Panther going, Marvel has opened up the opportunity for fans to grab free digital copies of the Black Panther comics. Available on Marvel's website, the selection of five comics include Black Panther #1 (2005), Black Panther: World of Wakanda #1, Marvels Black Panther Prelude #1, Black Panther #1 (2018), and Shuri #1. Using code "FOREVER" at checkout will grant fans free access to the work. As for those who prefer to keep their fandom geared toward the Marvel Cinematic Universe, you can expect to catch up with T'Challa and the host of Marvel superheroes in the upcoming Avengers: Endgame film. Last week, during the Super Bowl, Marvel dropped off the first teaser attached to the film, depicting the aftermath of the events that concluded the Infinity War film. Endgame is set to arrive in theaters on April 22nd. Aziz Ansari is set to return to the stage in New York City. It was on Tuesday that Ansari took to social media to reveal that he would be taking part in a "small last minute gig." While the exact time and location have not been revealed, fans are able to sign up for a chance to buy tickets to the show. It will mark Ansari's first show in the city, just over a year after the original publication of an article in which a photographer alleged that Ansari assaulted her on a date by ignoring her cues to end their sexual encounter. Ansari would respond by stating that it, "by all indications was completely consensual. Back in November, Ansari announced a 28-date Road To Nowhere tour that will take him across various cities in the United States and Europe this year. So far, most of the dates have sold out, including four of the five back-to-back shows that Ansari has lined up at Los Angeles' Orpheum Theatre this month, He'll also be hitting up Chicago, Atlanta, St. Louis, Dublin, and London among other cities for a treak that will end in June in Paris. So far, Ansari's allegations have remained at the same stage, with no legal or civil action being taken since the story was published. Enter the Once Upon A Child Spring Style Sweepstakes today for the chance to WIN! Refresh your child's wardrobe! You could be the LUCKY WINNER of $200 in Store Cash! BEDFORD After her compelling talk Monday night at Stalker Elementary for members of a high school youth group, Fatu Koroma Litsey (left) fielded questions from some of the curious students. Born in Sierra Leone, West Africa, Fatu miraculously survived after rebel soldiers attacked her village when she was a child. Cownose rays are native to the bay and an integral part of the ecosystem, said coalition chair Mary Finelli during a hearing on the legislation. Please give the state the time it needs to put in place an effective management plan while giving the rays the protection they need and deserve and the public wants them to have. Click here to find out where to get a COVID-19 vaccine or test. To find out how many local residents have been vaccinated for COVID-19, click here. Use the map to find numbers for individual counties. Find detailed statistics about COVID-19 tests, cases and deaths by county and for the state as a whole on the Indiana State Department of Health's online dashboard. Free agent guard Wesley Matthews, who agreed to a buyout with the Knicks earlier this week, has signed with the Pacers, the team announced on Twitter. New York acquired Matthews in the January 31 trade that sent Kristaps Porzingis to Dallas. He played just two games for the Knicks before parting ways with the team. The 32-year-old appeared in 44 games with the Mavericks before the trade, averaging 13.1 points per night and shooting 38% from 3-point territory. The Pacers have a pair of roster openings, so no move was needed to add Matthews. Indiana has been looking for backcourt help since star guard Victor Oladipo suffered a season-ending injury last month. Lima, OH (45805) Today Mostly cloudy. A sprinkle or two possible. High 76F. Winds SW at 5 to 15 mph.. Tonight A few clouds. Low around 59F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. Support local journalism Now, more than ever, the world needs trustworthy reportingbut good journalism isnt free. Please support us by making a contribution. Contribute Copyright 2019 at Sun Newspapers/ APG Media of East Central Minnesota. Digital dissemination of this content without prior written consent is a violation of federal law and may be subject to legal action. The Unitarian Universalist Church of Annapolis' Youth Coordinator Laura Schrank talks about hosting the Second Wendi Winters Memorial Blood Drive in Annapolis on Feb. 16, 2019 10am - 4pm. Two leading lights in the Brexit debate House of Commons speaker John Bercow and veteran Conservative MP Ken Clarke have been dubbed Tandoori traitors for meeting in an Indian restaurant and discussing a plot to remain in the European Union. Clarke, MP from Rushcliffe and currently the father of the house, is a known Remainer, while the fiercely independent Bercow is accused by critics of being a closet Remainer after his recent decisions in the House were seen to go against the Theresa May government. The two reportedly met in the Kennington Tandoori, a restaurant in central London last week, when Bercow, according to the Sunday Express, asked Clarke: Where do we go from here? They ordered poppadums, naan bread, lamb curry and beer, and discussed Brexit. The tabloid splashed the story with the headline: Bercow in Brexit curry house plot with Remainer Clarke, prompting criticism from fervent Brexiteers such as Conservative MP Andrew Bridgen, who dubbed the two Tandoori traitors. Key Brexit-related votes and debates are due in the House of Commons in the coming days and weeks as the United Kingdom prepares to leave the EU on March 29. May has promised changes to the withdrawal agreement that will be again put to the vote. Bridgen, a known critic of Bercow, told the tabloid: The Poppadum Plot is part of the Remainer elites trying to overturn the democratic will of the British people. It appears that the Speaker is conspiring with Remainer MPs to stop Brexit and subvert democracy. Also Read: The consequences of an irresponsible Brexit deal, by Mark Tully The Speaker must be removed immediately before he can do any more damage to the reputation of Parliament, he added. The tabloid quoted an unnamed member of Mays cabinet and a ruling party MP, questioning Bercows impartiality and inclinations in the Brexit divide. This is not the only occasion when Indian food or restaurants have figured in the Brexit debate. The industry has been struggling in recent years due to tight immigration rules that make it difficult to recruit chefs from the Indian sub-continent, prompting many restaurants to close. Brexiteer Priti Patel, who was a cabinet minister during the 2016 EU referendum, had promised easing of rules to enable hiring of chefs after Brexit. But Indian restaurant industry bodies have expressed disappointment that no such relaxation is on the cards. Over the past four weeks I have been in London witnessing the spectacle of the two main political parties tearing themselves apart as members of Parliament (MPs) disagree on Britains exit from Europe. I arrived in London on the evening the Conservative Prime Minister Theresa May was humiliated when many of her own MPs voted down her plan for the exit. The next day she recovered her authority when her party rallied behind her to defeat a no-confidence motion, but that was a brief demonstration of unity, which fell apart once the threat of an election was averted. Thereafter May demonstrated that sturdy refusal to budge she has become famous for. She wasnt going to postpone Britains exit. She wasnt going to agree to a second referendum. She wasnt going to rule out exiting without an agreement. European leaders were equally stubborn saying there was no room for reopening negotiations on the exit now that the deal was rejected. Then last week, the president of the European Union, Donald Tusk, put his oar into the muddy waters of Brexit. Making the waters even muddier he said: There should be special places in hell for those who promoted Brexit without even a sketch of a plan how to carry it out safely. That provoked outrage with Andrea Leadsom, the leader of the Commons, describing the remarks as pretty unacceptable and pretty disgraceful and demanding an apology. Outrageous though, the European Union presidents remark may have been undiplomatic, they appear to be his way of saying he regards Britain as being in a mess created by its politicians. At the same time he seems to be saying that Europe is not going to help May pull Britain out of that mess. He clearly sees the heart of the problem as being the irresponsibility of the Brexit campaign. The Conservative Brexiteers demand for a referendum on leaving the European Union was irresponsible from the start because they never planned for the consequences in case of a victory. Their campaign during the referendum was marked by demagogy, slogans like make Britain great again, lies like the claim that Turkey would soon be joining the European Union, the false promise of independent trade deals, and dismissing the very real threat to British business and industries leaving the European Union would pose. The demagogy has continued in the uncertainty which has followed the Brexiteers victory in the referendum. Now a new irresponsible threat has been added. It is the threat of dire political consequences if the Brexiteers demand for a total break with Europe is not met, or if as they put it, the voice of the people is ignored. If the 28% who didnt vote in the referendum are taken into account, nowhere near half the population voted leave. The reason Mays plan failed was her effort to avoid any possibility of a hard border between Northern Ireland, a part of Britain, and the Republic of Ireland. A soft border which allowed for the free movement of people and goods was an essential feature of the agreement that ended 30 years of terrorist violence by Protestant paramilitary organisations wanting Northern Ireland to remain in Britain and Roman Catholic paramilitaries wanting Ireland to be united. The exit from Europe the Brexiteers want would mean the imposition of a hard border again because Northern Ireland and the Republic would no longer be in the same customs union. With a hard border the revival of Catholic terrorism is more than likely. For my money just the possibility of that justifies Tusks criticism of the Brexiteers for their irresponsibility. (The views expressed are personal) Underscoring Iran-India historical and cultural relations has always been the headline of every bilateral meeting between the officials of both countries. In my view, these inherent advantages cannot be taken away, because apart from the foreign policy agenda, these ties have pushed the relationship forward. These civilisational ties are the cornerstone for drawing a multidimensional and longstanding relationship. From Sanskrit ties in the Vedic era and Hindi Style in Persian poetry in the late medieval period to partnership engagements in contemporary times, mutual interactions have shaped an Indo-Persian culture of which we have every right to be proud. Our modern engagements have brought remarkable results as India and Iran have always shared deep social, cultural, economic and political relations. Our nations and peoples are bound by strong ties of friendship, mutual sympathy, trust, and respect for each others cultures, traditions and interests. How best can we move beyond a situation described as symbolism in the bilateral relations of both sides? I think the answer lies partly in Irans view on global and regional issues. In this context, Iran and India also have common ground based on shared interests, particularly in Afghanistan. The Islamic Republic of Iran strongly believes that preserving the achievements of the Bonn Agreement on Afghanistan, supporting the continuation of the democratic process, strengthening the current political order and structure, and facilitating the peace process within the Afghan-led, Afghan-owned and Afghan-controlled framework can help safeguard stability and security of the region. To reach these goals, Iran and India, with the assistance of the other countries, must cooperate closely to improve the capabilities of the Afghan government, especially Afghan security forces, and to enhance combating terrorism and illicit drugs. In another transition, West Asia is moving to Asianisation of its economy in such a way that today East Asia and India are the largest oil importers from the region. Iran has also placed India in its priority in the line of Look East Policy, the respect for which, the supreme leader of the Islamic revolution has time and again advised to successive Iranian governments. One can say with certainty that there is consensus within Irans establishment for strengthening engagement and cementing partnership with New Delhi. From our perspective, the rise of India will be positive in the path of multilateralism. Many political and strategic issues could be listed to underscore the importance of both countries for each other. India, as one of largest economies, can be a part of Irans growth story. One of the most important points of strength in bilateral ties is the geographical closeness of the two countries that can generate many opportunities for both sides, specifically in respect of economic and trade relations. Besides, India and Iran enjoy potential connectivity assets in the region. In my opinion, if both sides try to boost their economic profiles, the strategic dimension will ensue soon. Chabahar port enjoys special strategic status and is the gateway to Afghanistan, Central Asia, Caucasus, Russia and Europe. It should not be forgotten that Chabahar is a free economic zone and given Indias growing appetite for energy, it could turn into the largest industrial complex especially on the downstream and upstream oil and gas sector in the region. The International NorthSouth Transport Corridor (INSTC) is another axis of partnership. If cultivated properly, this connectivity project would be a game changer in the region. Despite the fact that connectivity and energy will continue to be the basis of the relations, there are many opportunities in the non-oil sectors, direct investment or joint ventures targeting the big market of the region. We need some drivers and incentives in many areas such as biotechnology, IT, car manufacturing and so on. It is essential to overcome barriers such as bureaucracy and third party. We have already signed several MoUs in all the above areas during the visit of Prime Minister Modi to Tehran in 2016 and President Hassan Rouhani to New Delhi in 2018. We must translate these good intentions to actions. (Ali Chegeni is ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran in India The views expressed are personal) The Google Doodle for February 10 celebrates the work of Moliere, the French actor and playwright. The doodle gives you a glimpse of his most unforgettable scenes from The Imaginary Invalid and other classics such as School for Wives, Don Juan, and The Miser. Moliere was the son of a flourishing furniture maker to the royal court. However, he did not want to be part of the family business and began a career in theatre in 1640. His first play, Les Precieuses ridicules (The Affected Young Ladies) was staged in 1660 and its premiere took place at the Theatre du Petit-Bourbon. Molieres final play, Le Malade Imaginaire (The Imaginary Invalid), premiered on February 10, 1673, which was a parody of the medical profession. In The Imaginary Invalid, he played the role of Argan, a hypochondriac who wants his daughter to ditch her true love and instead marry his doctors son, so that he wont have to pay any medical fees. Molieres plays parodied human foolishness and were known to be novel in that day and age. Prime Minister Narendra Modis election rally in Tamil Nadus hosiery hub of Tirupur on Sunday is likely to give a hint about the saffron partys line up for the electoral battle amid speculation that it will formally tie up with the AIADMK, say sources familiar with the developments. Since the PM is also launching a slew of projects, chief minister Edapapdi K Palansiwami will also be sharing the stage with Modi. With barely a couple of months to go for the elections, this is the second time that the PM is visiting the state within a fortnight. On January 27, he addressed a rally in Madurai. Other than criticising the DMK-Congress alliance and welcoming former allies, the PM has not said anything concrete about the BJPs electoral alliances till now. The BJP won just once of the 39 Lok Sabha seats in Tamil Nadu in 2014. Now, speculation is rife that alliance talks between Tamil Nadus ruling party AIADMK and the BJP are at an advanced stage and that the minor irritants about the number of seats as well as the Lok Sabha constituencies would be worked out. The AIADMK is also holding talks with the OBC Vanniyar-dominated Pattali Makkal Katchi, DMDK of actor Vijayakanth as well as Puthiya Thamizhagam of Dr K Krishnasamy. Tirupur is said to be in the wish list of the BJP. Other seats that the saffron party is eyeing are Kanyakumari, Coimbatore and Madurai. With many children of AIADMK ministers seeking party ticket, the party is said to be engaged in a hard bargain. According to BJP sources, the Tirupur rally is intended to reach out and consolidate the partys increasing support base in the states western region. The PMs rally will be a platform for reaching out to voters of eight Lok Sabha constituencies including Coimbatore, Tirupur, Erode, Karur, the Nilgiris, Salem, Dharmapuri and Namakkal in western Tamil Nadu. We are expecting at least 25000 workers from each of these constituencies to participate in the public meeting. Since BJP is strong in the western belt, PMs rally will further boost the party workers to carry out the election works, said SR Shekar, treasurer and spokesperson, BJP, Tami Nadu. The PM has already slammed the DMK-Congress alliance. He may clear the air on alliance at Tirupur meeting. After this rally, parties which are hesitant to team up with the BJP will understand our real strength, he added. Despite the expectations of a formal alliance, AIADMK veteran and Lok Sabha Deputy Speaker M Thambidurai on Saturday continued his tirade against the saffron party and said they would not allow the BJP into Tamil Nadu. When BJP state chief Tamilisai Sounderrarajan has been saying that they will destroy the Dravidian parties, we cannot let them grow in Tamil Nadu. We never want to carry the burden of national parties on our shoulder, Thambidurai told the media at his native Karur. S Vaigaichelvan, a former minister, and AIADMK spokesperson refused to confirm whether any alliance would be declared. It is purely a BJP meeting. Our CM is just participating in a government event. We cannot say anything about the alliance now. BJP rally has nothing to do with AIADMK, said Vaigaichelvan. In view of the PMs visit, two stages have been put up at the Tirupur venue, a 70-acre private ground at Peramanallur. While one is for the inauguration of government projects, the other is for the BJP rally. The PM is slated to lay the foundation stone for ESIC hospital in Tirupur and through video conference inaugurate the final phase of Chennai Metro Rail service, high speed day service Tejas train between Chennai and Madurai, lay foundation stone for Trichy airport expansion and Pamban Railway Bridge Project, said KS Palanisamy, district collector, Tirupur. While the BJP is gearing up for the massive rally, rain gods may play spoilsport with the Met office warning that the western belt of Tamil Nadu including Tirupur would receive heavy rainfall due to a low depression in the Indian Ocean. After Modi, BJP President Amit Shah is scheduled to visit Erode on February 14 to interact with party workers at the booth level. Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath is scheduled to address a rally in Tirunelveli on February 12. Newly-appointed TNCC chief K S Alagiri said Congress president Rahul Gandhi and general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will also be visiting Tamil Nadu this month. Rahul Gandhi has agreed to visit TN for launching the poll campaign this month. He will visit twice in February. Priyanka Gandhi is also scheduled to address a rally in TN. We will disclose the dates soon, Alagiri told the media. Prime Minister Narendra Modis rally in Guntur in Andhra Pradesh on Sunday is part of the Bharatiya Janata Partys (BJP) southern campaign where it faces a tall order to increase its footprints in four out of five states. In Andhra Pradesh, where the BJP fought the 2014 elections in alliance with the TDP, it won two of the four seats it contested, while the TDP won 15. The TDP has since pulled out of the NDA government last March over the Centres refusal to grant special category status to the state. And with TDP supremo and Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu playing the victim card, the BJP could find the going tough in the state. The BJP will be focussing on development as it tries to woo Telugu voters. On Sunday, Modi will unveil several projects at Yetukar Bypass in Guntur. Among them is the 1.33 MMT Visakhapatnam Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) facility of Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserve Limited (ISPRL) which he will dedicate to the nation. The BJP may find it even tougher in the other Telugu-speaking state, Telangana, where it won only one of the 17 Lok Sabha seats in 2014. In the assembly elections in December 2018, the BJPs number came down to just one from the five seats it won in the previous election. Modi will head to Tamil Nadu from Guntur, his second visit to the state since January 27, when he laid the foundation stone for the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) at Madurai amid black flag protests. The BJP may have a better chance in Tamil Nadu where it is likely to ally with the AIADMK which has weakened since it split after Jayalalithaas death. The BJP had won only one of the 39 Lok Sabha seats in the state in 2014. Modi will head for Tiruppur from Guntur and unveil several development projects including a hospital. Last week, without naming the BJP, Tamil Nadu deputy chief minister and AlADMK coordinator O Panneerselvam said party leaders are in talks with a friendly national party for an alliance for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Ramu Manivannan, Professor and Head, Department of Politics and Public Administration, of the University of Madras, said that since the DMK formed a rainbow alliance with the Congress, Left parties, MDMK and VCK, the ruling AIADMK and BJP have no option but to form an alliance together. Some AIADMK leaders criticising BJP publicly is merely a negotiating tactic ahead of the seat-sharing talks. When we look into OPSs statement, it is clear that things have consolidated and the alliance will be announced soon. Though there are some voices of dissent coming from the AIADMK on the likely tie-up, they have no other option other than joining hands with the BJP, said Manivannan. The BJPs quest to increase its footprints in the south may be the hardest in Kerala where it failed to win any of the 20 Lok Sabha seats in the state in 2014. During his two visits to Kerala last month, Modi had been highly critical of the Left Front government over its handling of protests against the Supreme Court order allowing women entry into the Ayyappa temple at Sabarimala. The BJP has been openly supporting the devotees who are opposed to womens entry into the temple but in the recent local body bypolls in the state, it failed to make a mark. Out of the 39 seats in which elections were held, the BJP won only two. A sustained pro-Hindutva campaign hasnt worked for the party in Kerala so far. Modi will also visit Karnataka, the only southern state the BJP has ever ruled, in the last leg of his one-day tour. He will unveil several projects at Gabbur in Hubli. The results of the by-elections in Karnataka last November in which it won only one seat out of five was a warning sign for the party which wants to win 20 of the 28 Lok Sabha seats. The party lost the Ballari Lok Sabha seat by a margin of over two lakh seats, underlining the fear that the Congress-JD(S) combine can torpedo its electoral ambitions. To the editor: I read your article on water quality in your Jan. 24 edition. An article in the Lake Okeechobee Newspaper entitled FWC asked to stop chemical spraying of aquatic plants provides information vital to understanding why we have red tides and algae blooms. The indiscriminate spraying of herbicides by the FWC in all the lakes in Florida, including Lake Okeechobee, is a large contributing factor to our red tides and our water quality in general. Margriet Linthout Cape Coral Estranged allies Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Telugu Desam party (TDP) are set for a showdown during Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to launch his partys election campaign in Andhra Pradeshs Guntur. The PM is likely to be greeted with Modi go back protests by TDP activists. Banners have already been installed at vantage points across the city protesting the visit. TDP chief and Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu and Modi campaigned together in the 2014 general election. In March last year, the TDP parted ways with the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) over the denial of special category status to Andhra Pradesh that would have entitled it to extra central funds to execute development projects. Also read: Narendra Modi on three-state southern blitz today to shore up BJPs prospects in Lok Sabha elections Naidu asked his party workers in a teleconference on Saturday to stage black flag demonstrations during Modis visit and give vent to their anger against the alleged betrayal of the TDP by the NDA. The BJP accused the state government of seeking to impede Modis election rally. Its a black day for Andhra people. If he (Modi) sets his foot in our home state, our soil will become unholy as he is a betrayer, belying his own assurances given to our bifurcated state such as special category status, Naidu said. Modi will arrive from New Delhi to address a rally on the Etukuru bypass road in Guntur city at 10am, said U Srinivasa Raju, a spokesman for the BJP. You cannot stall our programme by creating hurdles. you are doing all this only out of fear...., tweeted BJP Andhra Pradesh state president Kanna Lakshminarayana. TDP spokesperson Panchumarthy Anuradha said: Government gave permission for the BJP rally in Guntur. What is the basis for the BJPs charges of creating hurdles for PMs rally. Political analyst T Lakshminarayana said that while the BJP had the right to hold public meetings in the state, the TDP also had the right to protest against the manner in which the Centre reneged on its commitment to provide special status to Andhra Pradesh. New India wants a model of Mazbooti and not Majboori: PM Modi New India wants a model of Mazbooti and not Majboori, says PM Modi. Opposition have no interest in the welfare of the farmers: PM Modi Opposition have no interest in the welfare of the farmers, youth and the poor. They are selfish and only works for their own interests, says PM Narendra Modi. People who thought they will never be questioned are now being questioned for their loot : PM Modi People who thought they will never be questioned about their earnings are now being questioned and giving accounts for their loot. Those who looted made to give accounts of benami property abroad, says PM Narendra Modi. For the first time any government has thought about the housing needs of the middle class: PM Modi For the first time any government has thought about the housing needs of the middle class. Therefore, a new category has been made to provide concession on the interest rates on home loans. In the recent budget Income tax relief has been provided to those earning up to Rs 5 lakh, says PM Narendra Modi. Our government sanctioned 73 lakh houses in 55 months: PM Modi The previous government sanctioned 13 lakh houses in the urban areas, out of which only 8 lakh were completed. However, our government sanctioned 73 lakh houses in 55 months, out of which 15 lakh have been completed, says PM Narendra Modi. Our government has continuously worked for the poor:PM Modi In the past 4 years, our government has continuously worked for the poor and the middle class, says PM Narendra Modi. Projects worth Rs 5,000 crores have been inaugurated few moments ago: PM Modi Projects worth Rs 5,000 crores have been inaugurated few moments ago which gives an impetus to the vision of development for all. We are also preparing for the next generation infrastructure in the various cities of the country, says PM Modi. Would like to pay my tribute to the seer of Siddaganga Mutt, Shivakumara Swami ji: PM Modi I would like to pay my tribute to the seer of Siddaganga Mutt, Shivakumara Swami ji who devoted his entire life to the oppressed and marginalised, says PM Narendra Modi. We miss the presence of Shri Anant Kumar ji: PM Modi We miss the presence of Shri Anant Kumar ji who always worked for the development of Karnataka and the welfare of the poor, says PM Narendra Modi. With this huge gathering here, I can see the change in the political atmosphere of Karnataka: PM Modi With this huge gathering here, I can see the change in the political atmosphere of Karnataka, says Prime Minister Narendra Modi. PM Modi lays foundation stone of IIT and IIIT Dharwad Prime Minister Narendra Modi lays the foundation stone of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) and Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) Dharwad. He also witnessed the E-Griha Pravesh of 2350 houses constructed under PMAY(U) at Dharwad. Hubli, Karnataka: Prime Minister Narendra Modi lays the foundation stone of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) and Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) Dharwad. He also witnessed the E-Griha Pravesh of 2350 houses constructed under PMAY(U) at Dharwad. pic.twitter.com/ugVMqoRR4q ANI (@ANI) February 10, 2019 PM Modi addresses public meeting at Hubballi, Karnataka PM Modi addresses a public meeting at Hubli, Karnataka. Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy has refused to attend PMs programme Revenue minister RV Deshpande receives PM Narendra Modi as chief minister HD Kumaraswamy refused to go to the programme. PM Modi arrives at Hubballi where he will address a public rally shortly Karnataka: Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrives at Hubballi where he will address a public rally shortly. Karnataka: Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrives at Hubli where he will address a public rally shortly. pic.twitter.com/1X253LU9fq ANI (@ANI) February 10, 2019 Let us all work together to take Tamil Nadu and India to greater heights: PM Modi Let us all work together to take Tamil Nadu and India to greater heights, says PM Narendra Modi. Vajpayee Govt passed a Constitutional Amendment to safeguard interests of SC and ST communities: PM Modi It was the Vajpayee Government that passed a Constitutional Amendment to safeguard interests of SC and ST communities and the strongest amendments in the SC ST Act have been made by the current NDA Government, says PM Modi. I dare them to give me one instance where the BJP has altered the social justice system in the nation: PM Modi I dare them to give me one instance where the BJP has altered the social justice system in the nation. On the contrary, it was the Third Front Government, where both DMK and Congress removed reservation in promotions for SC and ST communities, says PM Narendra Modi. NDAs PM Kisan Yojana is a yearly benefit: PM Modi The NDAs PM Kisan Yojana is a yearly benefit and will ensure Rs. 7 lakh 50 thousand crore goes to the bank accounts of the farmers in 10 years . Our government brought a bill for 10% reservation for the poor of the general category and we did this without altering the existing reservation system in the country, says PM Narendra Modi. For the first time in Indias history, a government has spoken about doubling of farmers income: PM Modi For the first time in Indias history, a government has spoken about doubling of farmers income rather than giving them loan waivers as promised by Opposition as a part of their election propaganda, says PM Narendra Modi. The opposition is only good at spreading panic: PM Modi The opposition is only good at spreading panic. Time and again they have tried to mislead the farmers, poor and youngsters of the nation, says PM Narendra Modi. Agenda of the so called alliance is only Modi and no vision for development: PM Modi The agenda of the so called alliance is only Modi and no vision for development, says PM Narendra Modi. You have placed a government in Delhi who is putting a lock on corruption: PM Modi Great K Kamraj always wanted a government in power which has zero tolerance towards corruption. You have placed a government in Delhi who is putting a lock on corruption, says PM Narendra Modi. Oppositions political culture of abusing Modi may give them some space in television: PM Modi Oppositions political culture of abusing Modi may give them some space in television but the elections are fought on ones vision for the nation, not slander and attack, says PM Narendra Modi. Good work of NDA government has made some people very unhappy: PM Modi The good work of the NDA government has made some people very unhappy and their unhappiness has turned into desperation and abuse for Modi, says PM Narendra Modi. The Recounting Minister thinks he is the most knowledgeable man in this world: PM Modi Lets talk about a very wise Minister from Tamil Nadu The Recounting Minister. The man who thinks that he is the most knowledgeable man in this world. Mr. Recounting Minister, middle class has rejected you as they dont need your taunts, says PM Narendra Modi. Ayushman Bharat, most affordable healthcare programme has been implemented in India: PM Modi Ayushman Bharat the worlds largest and most affordable healthcare programme has been implemented in India, says PM Narendra Modi. Today the entire world is talking about the development of India: PM Modi Today the entire world is talking about the development of India. This development is possible due to the strength and skill of the people of India, says PM Narendra Modi. By 2022, we are aiming to achieve housing for all: PM Modi By 2022, we are aiming to achieve housing for all and working in this direction 1.3 crore houses have already been built in the last four years, says PM Narendra Modi. NDA government is a government for each and every Indian: PM Modi The NDA government is a government for each and every Indian. When a nation is healthy, development gains momentum, says PM Narendra Modi. Pace of road construction has been doubled: PM Modi The pace of road construction has been doubled and the projects like Bharatmala are connecting the remotest corners of the nation, says PM Narendra Modi. Congress never leaves an opportunity to belittle our army: PM Modi Congress never leaves an opportunity to belittle our army. Few days ago, one of the Congress leader used inexcusable language for the Army chief, says PM Narendra Modi. We dream of an India that is self-sufficient in defence production: PM Modi We dream of an India that is self-sufficient in defence production and where our forces have all the possible support they require in keeping our nation safe, says PM Narendra Modi. Our government fulfilled the demand of OROP: PM Modi Those who got the opportunity to rule the nation for years did not bother about our Defence sector. For them it was just a sector of deals and supporting their own friends. It was our government that had the honour of fulfilling the demand of One Rank One Pension which was pending for decades, says PM Narendra Modi. Work culture of NDA is different from the previous governments: PM Modi In the recent Union Budget, historic scheme of Pradhanmatri Shramyogi Maan Dhan Yojna was announced to safeguard the well being of those brothers and sisters who work in factories, mills, companies and small industries. The work culture of the NDA is different from the previous governments, says PM Narendra Modi. Congress belittles Army, doubted surgical strikes: PM Modi Congress only did defence scams, hurt India. Congress belittles Army, doubted surgical strikes, says PM Modi. 3000 passengers be facilitated at the Trichy airport in peak hours: PM Modi After the completion of the integrated building at Trichy airport which was inaugurated few moments ago, 3000 passengers be facilitated at this airport in the peak hours, says PM Narendra Modi. Namo merchandise, t-shirts and hoodies with a message of NaMo Again are manufactured in this beloved Tiruppur: PM Modi Namo merchandise, t-shirts and hoodies with a message of NaMo Again are manufactured in this beloved Tiruppur, says PM Narendra Modi. I bow to the land of Tiruppur. This land stands for bravery: PM Modi I bow to the land of Tiruppur. This land stands for bravery. It is the land of Tiruppur Kumaran who sacrificed his life for the National Flag. This land belongs to Dheeran Chinnamalai whose bravery motivates the entire country, says PM Narendra Modi. PM Modi addresses Public Meeting at Tiruppur, Tamil Nadu PM Modi addresses Public Meeting at Tiruppur, Tamil Nadu. PM Modi arrives in Tirupur Prime Minister Narendra Modi has arrived in Tirupur. He will launch several development projects here and address a public rally shortly. Tamil Nadu: Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrives in Tiruppur. He will launch several development projects here and address a public rally shortly. pic.twitter.com/0yq4DbMkCb ANI (@ANI) February 10, 2019 Marumalarchi DMK general secretary Vaiko led black flag demo against PM Alleging PM Modi ignored the concerns of people of Tamil, Marmalarchi DMK general secretary Vaiyapuri Gopalsamy , well known as Vaiko, led a blag flag demo against the PMs visit, earlier in the day. PM Modi to dedicate 7 projects in Chennai PM Modi is scheduled to inaugurate and lay foundation of a total of seven projects in Tamil Nadu. Of these, 5 are in Chennai and one each in Trichy and Tirupur. Except for the Tirupur one, the prime minister is going to dedicate the projects through video conferencing. PM to have two stages at Tirupur rally venue in Tamil Nadu In a first in Tamil Nadu, there will be two stages at the same venue for the PM event. One of the stages will be used for govt function and the other for election rally of the BJP. Black balloons will ward-off evil eye: PM In our culture, a black teeks is put to ward off evil eye. The black balloons will do the same for us, said PM Modi while reacting to TDP protest against his visit. Earlier in the day, PM Modi was greeted with black balloons by the protesters on his arrival to Gannavaram airport in Vijaywada. This father-son govt will be defeated in polls: PM There is a father-son government in Andhra Pradesh. However, this father-son govt is going to go, the corrupt forces are going to get defeated in the upcoming polls, said PM Modi in Guntur. Naidu has reserved every foul word available in dictionary for Modi: PM PM while launching a scathing attack on Andhra Pradesh CM, said Chandrababu Naidu has reserved every foul word available in dictionary for Modi. Is this the culture of the state? Projects worth Rs 3 lakh crore proposed for Andhra: PM Projects worth Rs 3 lakh crores including logic and manufacturing hubs and central institutes proposed for Andhra Pradesh. A central university in Anantapur, IIM in Visakhapatnam and AIIMS in Mangakagiri have also been planned for the state by the Centre government, said PM Modi. Naidu took a U-turn on special package for Andhra: PM Our govt gave more funds to Andhra Pradesh under special package more than what special status would have given it. The special package was hailed by Naidu in the house, but he later took a U-turn on it, said PM Modi. I would like to put a full stop on series of lies. In past 55 months Central govt has released adequate funds for the development of Andhra. However, the state govt never utilised the funds allocated in an efficient manner, he added. Chandrababu Naidu should treat everyone as his child, and not just his son Lokesh: PM Chandrababu Naidu should treat everyone as his child, and not just his son Lokesh. He is unmindful of the people of the state and busy in imposing his son to the state, said PM Modi. I am chowkidar of public wealth: PM Unlike Chandrababu Naidu, I dont know anything about wealth creation. Amaravati and Polavaram has turned money spinners for Naidu. But , the chowkidar in me will not allow him to loot the state. I am the chowkidar of public wealth, said PM Modi in Guntur. I want to remind Chandrababu Naidu that our aim is not to create wealth for ourselves but to create wealth for the nation and to ensure the efficient use of wealth and resources of the nation, he added. Modis rebuttal to Modi go back protests PM Modi responded to the Modi go back posters and banners across the state and said, I will go back to my position in the next election. Naidu going to Delhi tomorrow for photo opportunity: PM Chandrababu Naidu is going to Delhi tomorrow for photo opportunity. I request him that before reaching Delhi, before abusing me, be accountable on your spending of the public funds, said PM Modi. Naidu is spending all his time in Modi bashing and not in development of Andhra: PM Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu is spending all his time in Modi bashing and not focussing on development of the state, said PM Modi, adding, Naidu is scared of losing elections. He is trying to impose his son on Andhra people. Mukt congress is dost congress for Naidu: PM Chandrababu Naidu said he would follow NTRs foot steps. Is he following him by embracing Congress. NTR fought for mukt Congress, but Naidu is paying grand old party obeisance.Mukt Congress has now become dost Congress for Naidu,said PM Modi in Guntur. Naidus focus is on proving that he is senior to me: PM CM Chandrababu Naidu is adding stickers to my own welfare and development schemes. He says he is senior to me. Is this what he is supposed to do? I gave him due respect as a senior. You are senior in defections, back-stabbing and architecting opportunistic alliances, said PM Modi. He (Chandrababu Naidu) back-stabbed his father in law NT Rama Rao.You are a senior in praising someone at one time and despising them the next moment. CM Chandrababu Naidu busy with son rise, not sunrise of Andhra: PM CM Chandrababu Naidu has taken U-turn on Chandrababu Naidus development. His focus is on son rise and not on sunrise of Andhra Pradesh, said PM Modi. 13 crore gas connections were distributed under Ujjawala scheme for free Under NDA rule, in last 4 years 13 crore gas connections were distributed under Ujjawala scheme for free, said PM Modi Dedicated projects will provide employment to youths, provides piped gas for households: PM The dedicated projects will provide employment to youths, provides piped gas for households. Our government is continuously working to make India a clean fuel economy and several projects have been initiated in this direction Amaravati symbol of new Andhra Pradesh, new India: PM Amaravati is the symbol of new Andhra Pradesh and new India.The Central govt has selected Amravati as the heritage city under the Hriday Scheme, said PM Modi. Central govt has selected Amravati as heritage city under the Hriday Scheme: PM Centre govt dedicated three major petrol projects worth thousands of crores in Andhra Pradesh. The govt is taking steps so that even in difficult times, countrys petroleum needs could be fulfilled for months, said PM Modi in Guntur. Guntur known as Andhras Oxford as youth came here to fulfill their aspirations: PM Guntur is known as Andhras Oxford as youth across the country came here to fulfill their dreams and aspirations , said PM Modi, adding, The love of people from Andhra Pradesh has been giving me energy to work more for the development of the state. Modi begins speech in Telugu PM Modi began his speech in Telugu and invoked poet Gurram Jashuva, freedom fighter Vavilala Gopalakrishna and Nayudamma, a doyen of medical science, who all hailed from Guntur. PM Modi unveils 3 central govt projects PM Narendra Modi dedicates three central projects -laying foundation for coastal installation at Krishnapatnam, strategic crude oil storage facility in Visakhapatnam and S1 Vasishta development project at Amalapuram - from the meeting venue. Andhra Pradesh: Prime Minister Narendra Modi lays the foundation stone for Krishnapatnam Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd (BPCL) coastal terminal project in Guntur. pic.twitter.com/eiR9bHlKXX ANI (@ANI) February 10, 2019 PM arrives at rally venue PM Narendra Modi has arrived at the rally venue in Guntur amid TDP protests and allegations by the BJP that state police stopped 50 buses carrying crowds for Modi rally in Guntur district and Shankar Vilas centre allegedly at the behest of TDP. PM Modi is also scheduled to lay the foundation stone for Krishnapatnam BPCL coastal terminal project. Andhra Pradesh: Prime Minister Narendra Modi reaches the venue in Guntur where he will address a public rally shortly. He will also lay the foundation stone for Krishnapatnam BPCL coastal terminal project today. pic.twitter.com/Zv36sKuWZO ANI (@ANI) February 10, 2019 Leaders, supporters stopped on their way to Modis rally, alleges BJP Several BJP leaders have alleged that their senior colleagues have been stalled on their way to the rally venue of prime minister Modi by TDP. They have also alleged that buses carrying crowds were stopped before they could reach the PMs rally. PM greeted with black balloons at Gannavaram airport PM Modi was greeted with black balloons by the protesters on his arrival to Gannavaram airport in Vijaywada. TDP protesters demanded Modi to begin his address with an assurance to give special category status to Andhra Pradesh. Jaganmohan Reddy stays away from protests against PM, blames CM over special status to Andhra YSRCs Jaganmohan Reddy is staying away from the protests against PM Modis visit. He has blamed chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu for special category status and central assurances to the state failing to become a reality. Modi go back posters crop up in Andhra Pradesh Congress and Left parties are putting up a united show in protest against Modis Andhra Pradesh visit. Modi go back banners have already been installed at vantage points across the city protesting the visit. Congress state president N Raghuveera Reddy described the day of PMs visit as black day for Andhra Pradesh. TDP chief and Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu and Modi campaigned together in the 2014 general election. Also Read | Modi go back posters crop up in Andhra Pradesh ahead of PMs Guntur visit BJP state president disallowed entry into Gannavaram airport BJP state president Kanna Lakshminarayana was disallowed entry into Gannavaram airport. Police said Kannas name is not on the list of VIPs shortlisted by higher authorities. Chandrababu Naidu skips protocol obligations to receive Modi at airport Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu skipped protocol obligations to receive PM modi at Gannavaram airport. Governor ESL Narasimhan arrived to the airport from Hyderabad to receive PM Modi. PM lands in Gannavaram airport in Vijaywada, leaves for Guntur rally PM Narendra modi landed in Gannavaram airport in Andhra Pradesh and has left for his Guntur rally. The prime minister will be reaching the Etukuru rally venue, which has been after former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee, in an IAF chopper. TDP workers stage protest in Guntur ahead of Modis rally Ahead of PMs rally, TDP workers have allegedly tore down Modis flexies at Jinnah centre in Guntur. Some TDP workers also staged a unique protest with flowers in ears allegedly depicting PM Modi as someone who could not be trusted. PM to address rallies in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu today Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to address rallies and unveil development projects in three southern states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu on Sunday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a scathing attack on Andhra Pradesh chief minister Chandrababu Naidu on Sunday and said he is busy promoting his family and has forgotten about the development of the state. PM Modi continued his attack on the opposition and said they are only busy abusing him . Chandrababu had promised sunrise of Andhra but is busy with son rise. He has taken a U-turn on development, he said. Chandrababu Naidu pulled the TDP out of the NDA last year over the Centres refusal to grant special category status to Andhra Pradesh. In his response, Naidu said the Prime Minister will be getting back to Gujarat but certainly not to his PMs post. On Modi go back protests in Andhra Pradesh, he said Modis tour to the state was an utter flop. I have taken up cudgles for uniting opposition for the noble cause of sending Modi home but not for his bashing alone. I will not keep quiet until my state gets its due. Naidu, who had earlier welcomed demonetisation when it was announced on November 8, 2016, now called it a mad Tughlaq act. They scrapped Rs 1000 currency note but brought in Rs 2000 note. How will corruption end, he asked. Reacting to Naidus recent comments that he was senior to Modi but had to call him sir to satisfy his ego, the PM said there was no denial that the TDP chief is senior in many matters. Follow live updates here Chandrababu Naidu is senior in switching parties, he is a senior in betraying his father-in-law NT Rama Rao. He is senior in praising someone at sometime and despising him the next moment, Modi said. The Andhra CM ignored protocol and didnt show up to receive PM Modi at Gannavaram airport in Vijaywada, underlying that there is no love lost between the BJP and the TDP. Governor ESL Narasimhan arrived received the Prime Minister at the airport. Also read: Narendra Modi on three-state southern blitz today to shore up BJPs prospects in Lok Sabha elections PM Modi said Naidu had promised the public that he would follow the footsteps of NTR but indeed joined hands with NTRs enemy Congress. Naidu is trying to form an opposition alliance, it is an unholy alliance. NTR fought Congress-mukt bharat but Naidu has submitted himself to the Congress, he said. The PM alleged that the TDP boss was trying to impose his son Nara Lokesh on the people of Andhra. He said Chandrababu Naidu doesnt like him because he wants the Andhra government to be accountable for the funds disbursed by the Centre. Chandrababu has become the richest politician. The days of the father-son government are numbered. The will face defeat in the elections, Modi said. Also read: Called PM Modi sir to satisfy his ego: Chandrababu Naidu TDP workers protested against the Modis visit and tore flex boards with the PMs photographs. TDP supporters greeted Modi with black balloons as Andhra Pradesh chief minister Chandrababu Naidu urged party workers to launch their protest against the PMs visit. Some TDP workers tore flex boards with the Prime Ministers photographs. Its a black day for Andhra people. If he (Narendra Modi) sets his foot in our home state, our soils will become unholy as he is a betrayer, belying his own assurances given to our bifurcated state such as special category status, Naidu said in a teleconference with party workers on Saturday. Will they? Wont they? Thats been the question uppermost on the minds of most political analysts in Tamil Nadu on a possible alliance between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the states ruling All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK). Some say that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is speaking at a BJP election rally in Tamil Nadus hosiery hub Tirupur on Sunday, is likely to indicate the possible direction. Chief minister Edapapdi K Palansiwami is sharing the stage with PM Modi because the agenda also involves the launch of several projects. This is the second time the PM is visiting the state within a fortnight. On January 27, he addressed a rally in Madurai during he which he hit out at the alliance between the Congress and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and welcomed all former allies to partner with the BJP. Both the AIADMK and DMK have previously been part of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance, although not in its current avatar. Speculation is rife in Chennai that an announcement of a BJP- AIADMK alliance is imminent. While officially, the AIADMKs response has ranged from outright denial to silence on the issue, in private, some leaders have admitted that talks are indeed on between the two parties. The AIADMK is also believed to be holding talks with the other backward class (OBC) Vanniyar-dominated Pattali Makkal Katchi, the Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam (DMDK of actor Vijayakanth as well as Puthiya Thamizhagam of Dr K Krishnasamy. Tirupur, where the PM is addressing the rally, is believed to be on the wish list of the BJP. Other seats that the party is eyeing are Kanyakumari, Coimbatore and Madurai, people familiar with the matter said. Tamil Nadu sends 39 members to the Lok Sabha. In the current Lok Sabha, the AIADMK has 37 members. The PMs rally will be a platform for us to reach out to voters of eight Lok Sabha constituencies Coimbatore, Tirupur, Erode, Karur, Nilgiris, Salem, Dharmapuri and Namakkal in western Tamil Nadu. We are expecting at least 25,000 workers from each of these constituencies to participate in the public meeting. Since the BJP is strong in the western belt (of the state), the PMs rally will further encourage party workers to carry out election work, said SR Shekar, treasurer and spokesperson of the BJPs Tami Nadu unit. He added that Modi may clear the air on (a possible) alliance at the meeting. AIADMK veteran and Lok Sabha deputy speaker M Thambidurai on Saturday continued his tirade against the BJP. When BJP state chief Tamilisai Sounderrarajan has been saying that they will destroy the Dravidian parties, we cannot let them grow in Tamil Nadu..., Thambidurai told reporters in Karur. S Vaigaichelvan, a former minister and AIADMK spokesperson, declined comment on an alliance. It is purely a BJP meeting. Our CM is just participating in a government event. We cannot say anything about the alliance now. The BJP rally has nothing to do with the AIADMK, he added. Tamil Nadu Congress Committees new chief K S Alagiri said Congress president Rahul Gandhi and general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra would be visiting Tamil Nadu later this month. The agitation by the Gujjar community demanding five per cent quota in jobs and educational institutes turned violent in Dholpur district on Sunday as shots were fired and three police vehicles torched. The police said protesters pelted stones, injuring four people. The police had to lob tear gas shells to disperse the crowd. Heres an explainer on the quota stir: Who are Gujjars? It is a pastoral community. As per the 1931 caste census, Gujjars constitute about 5% of Rajasthans population. They are present in around 21 districts. Traditionally, they have been BJP supporters. What is their demand? They are demanding 5% reservation under special backwards classes (SBC) category. The community began its fight for reservation in 2006 when it demanded inclusion in the Scheduled Tribe (ST) reservation. The Gujjars were covered under OBC reservation since 1994. After the Chopra Committee report said Gujjars could not be given ST status, the community settled for 5% reservation under a new SBC category. But because this took the total reservation in the state beyond the 50% ceiling set by the Supreme Court, the Rajasthan high court quashed it. Has any government given them 5% SBC quota? Yes. The Vasundhara Raje-led BJP government in 2008 brought a bill for 5% SBC reservation to Gujjars and four other communities (Banjara/Baldia/Labana, Gadia-Lohar/Gadalia, Raika/Rebari and Gadaria). The HC stayed the law on December 22, 2010, and asked the state to present quantifiable data to support reservation under SBC. The government later repealed the 2008 Act and introduced a new bill in Assembly in September 2015, called the Rajasthan Special Backward Classes (Reservation of Seats in Educational Institutes in the State and of Appointments and Posts in Services under the State) Bill, 2015. A notification for this was issued on October 16, 2015. Rajasthan HC struck it down on December 9, 2016 on the ground that the 5% reservation crossed the 50% limit for quota in education and jobs. The Rajasthan government brought a bill in Assembly in 2017 to raise the other backward class (OBC) quota from the present 21% to 26% for granting 5% reservation to Gujjars and other castes. This, too, was struck down by the high court. Also read | Gujjar quota stir turns violent as agitators open fire, burn vehicles What is the current status of reservation in Rajasthan? Currently, they can avail 1% reservation under most backward class (MBC) category apart from the benefit of OBC reservation. Reservation in the state stands at 50% 16% to SC, 12% to ST, 21% to OBC and 1% to Gujjars. Is this the first time Gujjars have blocked train traffic? No. In May 2008, they laid siege to the Delhi-Mumbai rail route at Pilukapura near Bayana in Bharatpur district. They lynched a cop near the rail line leading police firing that claimed 15 lives. The next day, more Gujjars were killed in police firing in Sikandara in Dausa district. They blocked the tracks in Pilukapura in December 2010 and May 2015 also but there was no violence. In May 2007, Gujjars blocked Agra-Jaipur national highway at Peepalkheda and Patoli. 28 people were killed in police firing. So far, the Gujjars have lost more than 70 people to police firing and clashes with the Meenas, who were opposing their demand for ST status in 2007. Who is leading them? Colonel (retd) Kirori Singh Bainsla has been leading the community since 2006 when they uprooted railway tracks in Hindaun City in Karauli district. Colonel Bainsla, 85, contested 2009 Lok Sabha election on BJP ticket and lost by 317 votes. In February 2019, his son Vijay Singh Bainsla also became part of the agitation as his deputy. Also read | Gujjars reject governments invitation for talks Two Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) supporters were arrested on Sunday in connection with the murder of Krishnaganjs Trinamool Congress (TMC) legislator Satyajit Biswas, who was shot dead from close range soon after he inaugurated a Saraswati Puja in his locality in Phulpur on Saturday evening. BJPs national executive committee member and Lok Sabha election management committee in-charge for Bengal, Mukul Roy, has also been named in the FIR lodged at Hanskhali police station, sparking another war of words between the TMC and the BJP. Mukul Roy said it is Trinamool Congresss nature to blame the BJP for any incident in Bengal. Mamata (West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee) is scared of us. It is on her orders that allegations are being levelled against the BJP. I demand probe by an independent agency, Roy was quoted as saying by news agency ANI. TMC supporters on Saturday night also vandalised the residence of a BJP worker, suspecting his involvement in the murder. While the state government has already ordered a Criminal Investigation Department (CID) probe into the matter, the police administration in Nadia district suspended the MLAs bodyguard Prabhas Mondal and the officer in-charge of Hanskhali police station, Anidya Basu. The MLAs security guard and the OC of Hanskhali police station have been suspended for negligence in duty. The probe is on and we are looking for others who might have been involved with this murder, said Niraj Kumar Singh, inspector general of police, south Bengal. Inspector general of CID, Ajay Kumar, visited the spot on Saturday night. Biswas was 37 and is survived by his wife and a one-year-old son. This is the first incident of an MLAs murder since Mamata Banerjee became the chief minister in 2011, even though another TMC MLA from South 24-Parganas district had a close shave in December when three persons were killed during an attack on his vehicle. BJP is stooping too low. People will give a befitting reply to perpetrators of this dastardly act. Those who have killed him will not be spared, TMC secretary general and state education minister Partha Chatterjee who visited the family at Krishnaganj, about 120 km north of Kolkata. The two arrested persons - Kartik Mandal and Sujit Mandal - used to be TMC workers who switched to BJP several months ago. BJP has been trying to stoke tension and spread unrest in the area for quite some time, said Ratna Ghosh Kar, another minister who attended the puja inauguration along with Biswas on Saturday and left the venue minutes before assailants shot him. While BJP has denied any involvement, Mukul Roy rubbished the allegations against him. The way the state government is trying to link me various crimes in every possible way makes it evident that the TMC is scared of me, said Roy, who was TMC chief Mamata Banerjees right hand man for years before joining BJP in 2017. The police are arresting our men to suppress TMCs infighting, which is the real reason behind the MLAs tragic death, said Jagannath Sarkar, president of BJPs Nadia South organisational district. Biswas, apart from being TMCs youth wing chief for Nadia district, was also in-charge of the partys organisation for the dalit refugee Matua community, who forma sizeable part of the districts population. BJP and TMC are both vying for the dalit refugee votes in Bengal. Executives from social media firm Twitters US headquarters will not appear before a parliamentary panel that has summoned them on Monday over perceived bias towards right-wing handles on the micro-blogging platform although a spokesperson for the firm said in a statement that this is only on account of timing and that Twitter is willing to participate in a hearing by the panel. We have indicated that we are willing to participate in such a broad hearing process. Given the short notice of the hearing, we informed the committee that it would not be possible for senior officials from Twitter to travel from the United States to appear on Monday, the statement said. The panels summons were issued on February 5, with a meeting with the parliamentary panel scheduled for Monday, February 11. A right-wing group, Youth for Social Media Democracy, recently held protests claiming the microblogging site suspends or shadow-bans accounts that appear sympathetic to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the government. Anurag Thakur, a BJP MP who heads the parliamentary panel on information and technology, asked IT ministry officials and Twitter representatives to be present at the meeting. He said the committee takes a serious note of Twitters response and would take appropriate action on February 11. According to an official aware of the letter sent to Twitter, the company was told it may be noted that the Head of the Organisation has to appear before the Committee. Twitter added in its statement that while it will work with the Lok Sabha secretariat to find a mutually agreeable date for a meeting so that a senior Twitter official (from the US) can attend it has also offered representatives from Twitter India to come and answer questions on Monday. We await feedback from the government on both matters, the statement added. In a previous statement, Twitter said that its India representatives do not enforce policy and that this is done with impartiality by a specialized global team. Thakurs intervention wasnt prompted by protests by Youth for Social Media Democracy alone. According to the people familiar with the matter, the issue has been repeatedly flagged at meetings of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the ideological parent of the BJP. Twitter denied these allegations. In a statement issued on Friday, the company said, Twitter is a global platform that serves a global, public conversation. Elevating debate and open discourse is fundamental to the platforms service, and its core values as a company. Twitter is committed to remain unbiased with the public interest in mind. The public conversation around Twitters policies and actions may be distorted by some who have a political agenda and this may be particularly acute during election cycles when highly-charged political rhetoric becomes more common. For our part, we will endeavour to be even more transparent in how we develop and enforce our policies to dispel conspiracy theories and mistrust, Colin Crowell, global vice president, public policy, Twitter, added in the statement. A senior functionary of the RSS said it was soon after the January 1, 2018 clash between Maratha and Dalit groups in Maharashtras Bhima Koregaon that escalated into violence that functionaries of the Sangh began to notice posts on social media that were allegedly anti-national and had the potential to create communal friction. The content of some of the posts was construed to be similar to the expressions used by so-called urban naxals, this person said on condition of anonymity. Urban naxals is a term coined by the right wing for left-wing intellectuals who, they say, are suspected to have links to Maoist organisations. Posts that spoke of destabilising the nation, that attacked the sovereignty of the country were being put up. No action was being taken, despite complaints to Twitter, the functionary added. It was then that the Sangh chose to knock on Thakurs doors. With 34.4 million users, Twitter has emerged as a key platform for political and social conversations. Given the reach of the medium, even the Election Commission has been monitoring the posts to ensure there is no adverse impact on election processes. Experts said Twitter and other platforms need to become more transparent. Unless Twitter and other internet giants implement principles of natural justice, they will always be accused of bias, said Sunil Abraham, co-founder of the think tank Centre for Internet and Society, adding that the platform does not provide sufficient transparency regarding its decisions. Lawyer Apar Gupta said that the parliamentary panel on IT needs to function more robustly. It has not invited experts, academics, and civil society voices for deliberations. Also, the outcomes from hearings such as the ones on Aadhaar, privacy. data breaches, and net neutrality, done a while back, remain outstanding. Reports or recommendations have not been made to parliament. In general, parliamentary panels do allow hearings to be deferred at the request of someone who has been summoned, although this is usually at the discretion of the chairman and also if the request is made immediately after the summons is issued. Gupta added that usually, a breach of privilege complaint is made by the chairman of the committee to the Lok Sabha speaker who will then approve it and send it to the Privileges Committee of the Lok Sabha. Robert Vadra, who was questioned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for three consecutive days last week in connection with a probe into allegations of money laundering to purchase assets abroad, said on Sunday that truth will always prevail. Morning, Just want to say thank you to all my friends and acquaintances who have reached out in support from all over the nation, at this time, Vadra said in a Facebook post. Vadra, the brother-in-law of Congress president Rahul Gandhi and husband of AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi, was questioned for about eight hours by the ED on Saturday as he appeared before the agency for the third consecutive day. Im fine, good and disciplined to deal with anything, Im put through. Truth will always prevail. Wishing you all a happy Sunday and a healthy week, he said. He also faced two sessions of questioning on February 6 and 7. While Vadra was quizzed for about five-and-a-half hours on Thursday, he was grilled for about 9 hours the next day. Vadra has denied the allegations against him. The ED case against Vadra relates to allegations of money laundering in the purchase of a London-based property located at 12, Bryanston Square worth 1.9 million GBP (British pounds), which is allegedly owned by him. The agency has told a Delhi court that it has received information about various new properties in London which belong to Vadra. These include two houses, one worth 5 million GBP and the other valued at 4 million GBP, six other flats and more properties. Vadra has denied the allegations of possessing illegal foreign assets and termed them a political witch hunt against him. He said he was being hounded and harassed to subserve political ends. He is also expected to depose before the ED on February 12 in Jaipur in an another money-laundering case related to an alleged land scam in Bikaner. The Rajasthan High Court has directed him to cooperate with the agency in the case. PTI ASK RCJ In an attempt to popularise lesser-known places with tourism potential in the country, the ministry of tourism has reached out to travel bloggers. The ministry has selected eight bloggers, mostly women, to write about eight destinations, which will be picked next week by tourism ministry. The write-ups by the bloggers will be published in their personal blogs, and promoted on other social media platforms like Twitter and Instagram. Later, they will also be published on tourism ministrys website incredibleindia.com, officials said. The bloggers will visit the destinations in February and March. We had a meeting with around 17 travel bloggers a few days back. We have zeroed down on eight bloggers... We are open to suggestions and new thinking, and recognise the power of social media, tourism minister KJ Alphons said. The ministry plans to bring more bloggers on board in the coming months. Among other things, the articles would include the bloggers travel routes and the challenges faced by them. The focus of the write-ups would be on wellness and sustainable tourism. Alphons said there was an urgent need to put some new areas on the tourism map. Ministry officials said though the bloggers will also write about popular getaways like Hampi and Khajuraho, most of their stories will be about lesser-known places, which would include wildlife parks in different parts of the country besides some places in the north-east. J Meenakshi, one of the eight bloggers identified for the initiative, said: This is a really good initiative. Social media has a huge reach. When I wrote about the Chola temples, I was impressed to see the interest of the readers. Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi visit to Guntur to launch the BJPs election campaign in Andhra Pradesh on Sunday, Telugu Desam Party (TDP) workers tore flex boards with the PMs photographs even as governor ESL Narasimhan arrived at Gannavaram to receive Modi. Chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu threw protocol out of the window and didnt show up to receive PM Modi at Gannavaram airport in Vijaywada, underlying that there is no love lost between the BJP and the TDP. TDP supporters were ready with thousands of black balloons to greet Modi after Naidu urged party workers to register their protest against the PMs visit by staging black flag demonstrations. Also read: Narendra Modi on three-state southern blitz today to shore up BJPs prospects in Lok Sabha elections Its a black day for Andhra people. If he (Narendra Modi) sets his foot in our home state, our soils will become unholy as he is a betrayer, belying his own assurances given to our bifurcated state such as special category status, Naidu said in a teleconference with party workers on Saturday. Naidu pulled the TDP out of the NDA last March over the Centres refusal to grant special category status to Andhra Pradesh. Andhra Pradesh has 25 Lok Sabha seats. The TDP won 15 seats in the 2014 general elections in alliance with the BJP which won two of the four seats it contested. The YSR Congress won eight seats. Also read: BJP-AIADMK alliance buzz grows as Narendra Modi visits Tamil Nadu today TDP workers with flowers in their ears staged a unique protest depicting Modi as someone who could not be trusted TDP, Congress and Left parties put up a united show with the supporters displaying Modi go back banners and boards. Left parties took out protest rallies wearing black badges and carried empty pots indicating that the PMs promises are empty. Congress state president N. Raghuveera Reddy described the Modis visit as black day for Andhra Pradesh. But YSR Congress chief Jaganmohan Reddy stayed away from protests and instead blamed chief minister Naidu for failing to get special category status for the state. Jana Senas Pawan Kalyan was also silent on the anti-Modi protests. The Andhra Pradesh unit of the BJP has accused the TDP government of trying to sabotage Modis rally by putting up several hurdles including forcing private transporters and college managements to refuse to provide vehicles for transporting people for the rally. The TDP insists that the government gave permission for the BJP rally in Guntur and there was no basis for the BJPs charges of creating hurdles for PMs rally. | BY Ricki Green | Hot on the heels of the financial services Royal Commission, Industry Super Australia has launched a national campaign urging legislative reform to protect workers superannuation entitlements. The campaign created by behaviour change specialists, The Shannon Company, highlights that one in three Australian workers is owed superannuation payments. TSC, managing director, Ian Forsyth, said research showed employees are missing out on more than $6 billion every year. Says Forsyth: ISA analysis of tax office data highlighted the issue with policy makers more than a year ago, however theres been little interest across the political spectrum. The campaign runs across TV, social media, digital platforms and search engine marketing, and seeks to create greater public awareness of just how many of us are missing out, how much we are missing out on, and urges politicians to act. ISAs recommended fix is to simply align the timing of superannuation payments with wage payments, which will greatly increase transparency and give workers a better opportunity to identify that theyre missing out. Client: Industry Super Australia Alana Burnside: Director of Marketing Veteran actor-director Amol Palekar said on Sunday he was hurt at being interrupted by members of the National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) during his speech and that no member of the audience spoke up for him at a Mumbai event, where he expressed concern over the reported cancellation of exhibitions of the work of two artists. A video that was widely shared on social media showed members of the gallery repeatedly interrupting Palekar when he criticised the ministry of culture for reportedly scrapping the advisory committees at the gallerys Mumbai and Bengaluru centres. He said retrospectives compilations of work over a period of time of two senior artists appeared to have been cancelled and he sought to know the reason during his speech on Friday. Adwaita Gadanayak, director general of NGMA, denied Palekars allegation that the advisory panels were scrapped, adding that while the terms of the committees had ended, all decisions, including that to hold the exhibitions of the two artists, will take place as proposed. Gadanayak added that new committees are being constituted, but they will take decisions relating only to future exhibitions. NGMA, which is run and administered as a subordinate office to the governments department of culture, says on its website that it is a repository of the cultural ethos of the country and showcases the changing art forms. I feel restless that no one in the audience said let Palekar speak his mind, said the 74-year-old. He was invited by NGMA for the opening of an exhibition, Inside The Empty Box, held in memory of artist Prabhakar Barwe on Friday evening. I was sad that it took the organisers 24 years to remember an artist such as Prabhakar Barwe and hold his retrospective. I was not allowed to speak against this injustice and was also not allowed to criticise the ministry of culture for scrapping the NGMA advisory committee. I was interrupted and told to restrict my speech to the artist, he added. Palekar said he was told that as per the new director, four floors of NGMA would be used for displaying the works and the dome (fifth floor) will showcase only fresh exhibitions. He said the artists advisory committee at NGMA had approved holding of retrospectives of three artists, of whom Barwes work was inaugurated. But I came to know that without any communication to the committee, the next two retrospectives have been cancelled by Mumbai NGMAs new director Anita Rupavataram. I wanted to raise these issues. How and when these decisions were taken, we wanted to know, he said. Rupavataram did not respond to repeated phone calls for a comment on the issue. Gadanayak, however, said: Some artists have expressed their apprehensions about availability of less space for temporary exhibitions and retrospectives. The NGMA is deliberating on suggestions received from artists and a final decision will be taken shortly in consultation with all the stakeholders. On Friday, after Palekar was told to stick to the theme of the event, he continued with his speech and mentioned writer Nayantara Sahgal, who was invited to speak at a literary convention recently but the invitation was withdrawn because what she was going to say was slightly critical of the situation around us. Are we creating the same situation here? he asked the organisers of the event after being interrupted. The curator of the gallery, Jesal Thacker, interrupted Palekar during his speech, asking him to stick to talking about the event Barwes retrospective. Palekar said he was restlessness and hurt over the manner in which he was frequently interrupted during the speech. When Thacker asked Palekar to speak about the event, he could be heard saying the video: I am going to talk about the same. Are you applying censorship to that? He was, however, interrupted again by another person, who was heard saying: This is not needed at the moment, sorry... The function is about Prabhakar Barwe, please stick to that. The filmmaker, accompanied by his wife Sandhya Gokhale, said on Saturday that he was not provided any brief by the gallery on what he should speak about, and the question of propriety, as citied by organisers, did not arise. If I had been informed earlier about what I was supposed to speak on, I would then have had the option of not accepting the invitation, he added. It is shocking. Propriety of my comments is being objected to by NGMA. As I was talking about NGMA at their own venue and invited by the gallery itself, how can it be improper? he said. Palekars wife said no one came forward to speak in favour of Palekar after the incident. In the past 24 hours, no one has come forward and spoken about this incident. We are getting personal messages from various people pointing out the stand we took, but no one has come out in public, she said at Saturdays news briefing. Palekar sought to draw a parallel between the incident involving him and several earlier alleged attacks by right-wing organisations on artists, social thinkers and public personalities who criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government. The Congress said the incident showed the central government was interfering in the field of arts. Somebody is slammed with sedition; somebody is not let to speak. This is the new India. Narendra Modi talked of these Acche Din in his speeches, Congress leader Kapil Sibal told ANI. Nationalist Congress Party leader Supriya Sule said: This is a sign of an undeclared emergency in the country. Our democracy holds freedom of speech as a fundamental right of the citizens. Who is shooting guns from the shoulder of the ministry of culture? The Shiv Sena, the BJPs ally in the Maharashtra government, too criticised the Centre. It was cruel to interrupt him [Palekar]. The organisers had the liberty to put a disclaimer of disagreement after his speech, said Neelam Gorhe, Shiv Sena spokesperson. With inputs from agencies A day before her visit to Lucknow, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, the Congress general secretary in charge of eastern Uttar Pradesh, called for a new beginning in an audio message circulated by her party. Rahul Gandhi, her brother and Congress president, and Jyotiraditya Scindia, the partys general secretary in charge of western Uttar Pradesh, will accompany Priyanka Gandhi during her first visit to the Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee (UPCC) headquarters after her appointment in the party on Monday. In the audio message, Priyanka Gandhi asked the youth, women and the weaker sections of society to join the efforts to build a new future. I am reaching Lucknow on Monday to meet you all. I hope we all will make a new beginning in politics that will include you all. My young friends, my sisters, and weakest person, all will have a say. Come lets build this new politics and a new future, she said through the Congresss Shakti App. In another audio message, Scindia said: I am reaching UP tomorrow. Uttar Pradeshs youth needs a way for the future and the state needs change. Come, join us to bring about this change. During her visit, Priyanka Gandhi will take feedback from party workers ahead of the Lok Sabha elections due this summer. Read: Jeans in Delhi, saree in rural areas, BJP netas sexist jibe at Priyanka The UPCC office has been decked up for the high-profile visits. Hoardings welcoming the leaders have come up along the nearly 20km stretch from the Chaudhary Charan Singh airport to the Congress headquarters, and several other parts of the city. Uttar Pradesh is feeling privileged as Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is beginning her active politics from here.We can see hoardings with slogans Badlav ki aandhi, Rahul sang Priyanka Gandhi (Winds of change, with Priyanka and Rahul Gandhi). And these are the feelings of all partymen. We will accord her an unprecedented welcome, state Congress chief Raj Babbar said on Sunday. Although a roadside public meeting is being planned in the Lalbagh area, Priyanka Gandhi and the other leaders may also address party workers from a special vehicle that will carry them from the airport to the UPCC headquarters. Babbar said Priyanka Gandhi and Scindia will hold meetings with partymen from February 12 to 14. Priyanka Gandhi will interact with partymen of 42 Lok Sabha seats and Scindia will have meetings with workers of 38 constituencies at the UPCC headquarters, he said. UP has 80 Lok Sabha seats, the highest in the country. Priyanka Gandhi and Jyotiraditya (Scindia) will begin touring the Lok Sabha constituencies of east and west UP, respectively, on February 18, Babbar said. Although the detailed programme was still being worked out, people familiar with the matter said the road shows will continue till February 21. Priyanka may begin her tour from Anand Bhawan in Allahabad. A proposal for a holy dip at the Kumbh is also under consideration, said another senior leader said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday attacked the Opposition at rallies in three southern states of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka as he highlighted the development work his government has undertaken. In Guntur, Modi targeted N Chandrababu Naidu and said he does not know how to create wealth for himself, unlike the Andhra Pradesh chief minister. I am a chowkidar [gatekeeper] keeping a strict vigil in defence of the countrys wealth and Naidu is working hard to make his son rich. This is why the Naidu band of opposition parties, tainted in corruption, is gunning for me, Modi said as he launched the Bharatiya Janata Partys (BJP)s election campaign in Andhra Pradesh. Earlier, activists of the ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP), the Congress and Left parties shouted Modi go-back slogans as the Prime Minister landed at the Gannavaram airport, around 50 km from the venue of his election rally. Modis attack on Naidu came as the Andhra chief minister is preparing for a show of unity of Opposition parties in Delhi with his 12-hour relay fast on February 13 over the Centres denial of special status to his state. Naidu has the backing of 22 parties. Modi dismissed the show of strength as only worth a photo session as well as the protests against him on Sunday. I will return to power after the 2019 general elections and I should thank the protesters for keeping an evil eye off me with black balloons [they carried on Sunday], he said. Naidu hit back at Modi and said he will return to Gujarat and would certainly not retain his prime ministerial post. I have taken up the cudgels for uniting the Opposition for the noble cause of sending Modi home but not for his bashing alone, Naidu told reporters. I will not keep quiet until my state gets its due. Invoking the legacy of NTR, Modi alleged the Andhra CM was insulting the TDP founder, to which Naidu responded by saying, personal attacks would beget personal attacks. Also read | If Modi is failure, then why form alliance: PM slams funny opposition In Karnatakas Hubballi, Modi mocked the states Janata Dal (Secular)-Congress coalition government as helpless. He said Karnataka chief minister H D Kumaraswamy had become a punching bag. Modi added that the Opposition wants to impose the same model on the rest of the country. Modi said there was not even a single day when the country does not see the natak (drama) of the Karnataka government, as he launched BJPs campaign for Lok Sabha polls in the state. The chief minister here is everyones punching bag. Every day he is getting threatened. The chief ministers whole energy is spent on saving his seat from big Congress leaders, Modi said, referring to Kumaraswamy, who has often expressed his helplessness in the face of coalition pressures. Publicly, he weeps about his helplessness. Such a helpless government, such a helpless chief minister who is being challenged by anyone and everyone. Who is the in charge of the government? There is confusion about it, Modi said. in Tamil Nadus Tiruppur, Modi accused the Congress of neglecting the defence sector and claimed that for the Opposition party it was only about brokering deals. From the seas to the skies, the Congress has several scams associated with defence and, in the process, the party did not allow the modernisation of defence forces for long years that they were in power, Modi said. In Tamil Nadu, M K Stalins Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, which has backed Congress President Rahul Gandhi for the prime ministerial post, led the protests against Modi. In Karnataka and Andhra, chief ministers Kumaraswamy and Naidu skipped the courtesy of receiving Modi at the airport. Naidu and his cabinet members also stayed away from Modis programmes while Andhra Pradesh and Telangana governor E S L Narasimhan received the Prime Minister at Gannavaram airport. Modi laid the foundation for several projects in the three states. Also read | PM Modi claims to be chaiwala but look at his suits and boots: N Chandrababu Naidu hits back A day after doctors in a Hyderabad hospital discovered a pair of forceps in the abdomen of a woman who had undergone surgery in the facility in November, a Dalit woman in a backward district of Odisha has complained that her right leg was operated instead of the left at a sub-divisional hospital. Mitarani Jena of Khabil village in Keonjhar district, 220 km north of Bhubaneswar had gone to the Anandpur Sub-divisional hospital for treatment of a wound on her left leg two days ago. After checking the patients condition, the doctor at the hospital instructed the medical staff to dress the wound. However, the medical staff allegedly operated the wrong leg of the patient. The staff in the dressing room first administered anasthesia. When I came to my senses, I saw my right leg had been operated instead of the left, said Jena who is in her 40s in her complaint to the medical officer. After the womans husband Trilochan Jena also complained, doctors operated the wounded leg, but it has left her completely immobile. I am not able to walk due to the negligence of medical staff. Action should be taken against them, said the woman. Doctors say it will take some days before she can walk properly. District collector of Keonjar, Ashish Thakre has ordered a probe into the goof up. In 2012, the criminal investigation department of Odisha police had issued a detailed guideline over the procedure in probing of cases of medical negligence. The CID guideline had said that the decision to arrest should be taken only after approval of supervising officer of the case, an officer of the rank of deputy superintendent of police or above. The Medical officer in-charge of Anandpur Sub-Divisional Hospital, Dr Krushna Chandra Das said necessary action would be taken against the staff after due inquiry. Prime Minister Narendra Modis assurance on Saturday that the people of north-eastern states would not be disadvantaged by the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill failed to cut ice with Meghalaya chief minister Conrad Sangma who threatened to pull his National Peoples Party out of the BJP-led NDA if the Rajya Sabha passes the Bill which aims to grant citizenship to non-Muslims from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan. The party has adopted a resolution to oppose the CAB which will be submitted to the Government of India. The party has also decided that if this bill is passed in the Rajya Sabha NPP will break away from NDA, said Sangma who is also the president of the NPP. The BJP which has two seats the Meghalaya assembly is the junior partner in the government. The decision was taken at the national general body meeting of the party where the Bill was discussed at length. Protests have roiled much of the Northeast since December when the Centre made its intentions clear of going ahead with the Bill. The NPP also decided to contest 24 seats in Northeast in 2019 Lok Sabha election and all 60 seats in State Assembly polls in Arunachal Pradesh. As a party we are keen to contest all the Lok Sabha seats in the Northeast. We will work out a mechanism and see how we can go forward. We as party want to play a pivotal role in voicing the concerns of the people and provide them a common platform to champion the cause of Northeast, Sangma said. Earlier, Sangma was elected unopposed as the national president of the NPP for the second consecutive term. The tenure of the office is for a period of three years till 2022. Late last month, the NPP was among ten political parties from the Northeast which came together on a joint platform in Guwahati to oppose the controversial Citizenship Bill. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) will likely submit to the President on Monday a much-awaited report on its audit of big-ticket military procurements in the last few years, including the controversial Rafale jet fighter deal, officials familiar with the development said on Saturday. Report is ready to be submitted to the President. A copy of the report will be submitted to the government as well. The President will forward the report to the presiding officers speaker of Lok Sabha and chairman of Rajya Sabha who will lay it in the Parliament, a government official said on condition of anonymity. Given the short time frame, the report is likely to be tabled in the Parliament on Wednesday, the last day of the last session of the 16th Lok Sabha before general elections due in the spring, the official said. Officials in the CAG explained that it was a performance audit wherein the CAG looked into procurement systems. As is the case with all audits, it also started with an Entry Conference wherein the auditee was informed of the scope and objective of the audit and how the teams of auditors are going to collect samples for survey. The entry conference isthe initiation point of an audit, said a CAG official who also requested anonymity. Following the audit, an exit conference also took place and it was presided over by the director general of defence audit, which is considered a field office of CAG. According to the audit guidelines of the CAG, an exit conference serves as a platform to arrive at an agreement with an auditee about audit conclusions and recommendations; an attempt is made to get the audited entity to respond directly to each recommendation so that the responses can be published in the final audit report. As far as the Rafale deal is concerned, the process of buying 126 fighter jets for the Indian Air Force (IAF) began in June 2001 when the previous National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government under Atal Bihari Vajpayee was in office. Under the original proposal, 18 warplanes were to be procured in a fly-away condition and the remaining 108 aircraft were to be manufactured by state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) under licence. The bidding process commenced in August 2007, when the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA)was in office, but it was completed only five years later when Dassault Aviation of France, the maker of Rafale fighter planes, emerged as the front-runner ; the government started negotiations with the company which went on until 2014, when the UPA government lost elections and a new NDA dispensation took charge under Narendra Modi. The NDA governments decision to enter an $8.7 billion government-to-government deal with France to buy 36 Rafale warplanes was finally announced in April 2015, with an agreement signed a little over a year later. This replaced the UPA-era decision to buy 126 Rafale aircraft. The deal has become controversial with the opposition, led by the Congress, claiming that the price at which India is buying Rafale aircraft now is Rs 1,670 crore for each, three times the Rs 526 crore, the initial bid by the company when the UPA was trying to buy the aircraft. It has also claimed the previous deal included a technology transfer agreement with HAL. The NDA has not disclosed details of the price, but the UPA deal, struck in 2012, was not a viable one, former defence minister Manohar Parrikar has previously said, implying that it would have never been closed and that, therefore, any comparison is moot. Indeed, the UPA was not able to close the deal till 2014, largely over discussions related to pricing of items not included in the initial bid. The deal has also become controversial on account of the fact that one of the offset deals signed by Dassault is with the Reliance Group of Anil Ambani. The Congress claims the earlier deal was scrapped and a new one signed just to provide Ambani this opportunity for an offset deal. Both the government and Reliance Group have repeatedly denied this. Over 4.77 million households and 3.25 million automobile owners may have to pay market rates for piped natural gas (PNG) and compressed natural gas [CNG], respectively. A high-powered committee has recommended withdrawal of gas supply at concessional rates to CNG users and proposed direct subsidy to only domestic kitchens. There would be about 40-50% jump in PNG and CNG rates depending on volatility in the international benchmark rates if the recommendation is implemented, executives with state-owned natural gas processing and distribution company GAIL India and Indraprastha Gas Ltd (IGL) said requesting anonymity. There was no response to queries sent to the ministry of petroleum, GAIL India and IGL. IGL is currently supplying PNG to domestic kitchens at Rs 29.80 per standard cubic meter (SCM), including tax in Delhi. PNG costs large industrial consumers around Rs 43.6 per SCM. IGL sells CNG at Rs 44.70 per kg in the capital. The proposals are part of a recent report on energy security made by a committee chaired by NITI Aayog vice-chairman Rajiv Kumar. The report of the committee is under active consideration, two officials in the petroleum ministry said on condition of anonymity. The committee that submitted its report last month to the oil ministry has cabinet secretary P K Sinha, oil secretary M M Kutty, department of economic affairs secretary Subhash Chandra Garg, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation chairman Shashi Shankar and NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant as members. The CGD [city gas distribution] sector is availing subsidised gas comprising PNG for the household sector and CNG for the transport sector. The CNG sector need not be subsidised as even the market price-based gas would be cheaper compared to diesel or other fuel substitutes, the committee said in a report. HT has seen a copy of the report. The report added, The subsidy to PNG can be given in the form of DBT [Direct Benefit Transfer] as in the case of LPG. The Direct Benefit Transfer of LPG, which is also known as PAHAL or Pratyaksh Hanstantrit Labh, was launched on November 15, 2014. Under the scheme, LPG cylinders are sold as per the market rate and the subsidy on the fuel is transferred to the eligible consumers directly into their Aadhaar-linked bank accounts. Later, consumers earning over Rs 10 lakh per annum were excluded from the subsidy. Although there is no overt subsidy in PNG and CNG, the government has accorded the top priority for PNG and CNG consumers. Under the policy, the CGD sector has first right over domestically-produced gas. Price of domestically-produced natural gas is regulated by the government except for gas produced from Panna-Mukta-Tapti fields, which is significantly lower than the price of imported gas.Currently, domestically-produced gas is sold at $3.36 (Rs 239.15) per unit, about 65% cheaper than the landed cost of imported gas, which is around $5.50 (Rs 391.47) per unit. Replying to a query on subsidy to PNG consumers on August 1, 2018, petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan had told the Lok Sabha, Domestic gas, which is cheaper than imported gas, has been allocated to meet the entire requirement of PNG [domestic] and Compressed Natural Gas... [Transport] segments of City Gas Distribution... sector and it has been kept under no cut category. Around half-a-dozen policemen were injured when Gujjar protesters demanding five percent special reservation for their community in government jobs and education opened fire, burnt vehicles and threw stones in Rajasthans Dholpur district on Sunday. Rajasthans Director General of Police (law and order) ML Lather, in the evening, said three cases have been registered against the agitators in Jhunjhunu and two more will be lodged in Dholpur, where the protesters burnt a police vehicle and set a police post on fire. As a precautionary measure, authorities have imposed Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) that prohibits assembly of more than four people in an area in Dholpur and neighbouring Karauli. Dholpur police superintendent Ajay Singh said the protesters blocked the Agra-Morena highway in Sawai Madhopur and threw stones at policemen stationed there. The police fired tear gas shells to disperse the mob, he said. Singh said the protesters then entered the houses on both sides of the highway and fired using countrymade pistols. The situation is under control and around four to six police personnel received injuries Gujjar Arakshan Sangharsh Samiti (GASS), which is leading the agitation for the reservation, has threatened to intensify it from Monday. Kirori Lal Bainsala, the GASS chief, said the protests will take place at more areas after an auspicious time for weddings ends on Sunday. He continued to sit on railway tracks near Malrana Dungar railway station in Sawai Madhopur along with his supporters. Lather said adequate arrangements have been made to maintain law and order. The agitation affected rail traffic as two trains were cancelled on Sunday. At least 20 trains were cancelled and seven diverted during the day as the protesters, led by the Gujjar Arakshan Sangharsh Samiti chief Kirori Singh Bainsla, said an official of the north-western railway who was not authorised to speak to the media. The Gujjar community launched the stir on Friday seeking the quota under the special backward classes (SBC) category saying the ruling Congress promised it in its manifesto before the 2018 assembly elections. The state government had provided Gujjars reservation under the SBC category after similar agitations in 2007 and 2008 left dozens of people dead. The Rajasthan high court stayed the move in 2016 saying it breached the 50% limit the Supreme Court has imposed on the reservation. The Gujjar community resumed the agitation saying the limit has been breached with the Centre giving 10% reservation to economically backward sections in January. A non-governmental organisation challenged the 10% reservation before the Supreme Court on January 10 saying it breaches the 50% cap. The Rajasthan government has maintained that the Centre alone can provide the five percent EBC reservation to Gujjars. The pastoral community, which accounts for roughly five percent of Rajasthans population, gets one percent reservation under the Most Backward Class (MBC) category. It also gets quota benefits under the Other Backward Class category. Rajasthan health minister Raghu Sharma, who is a member of the ministerial committee constituted to hold talks with the Gujjar leaders, said the governments intentions are clear and that doors for talks are open. More than 40 defence attaches from Indian missions abroad will gather in Bengaluru later this month to take part in Asias largest air show, Aero India-2019, to get the lowdown on homegrown military systems and technologies, an initiative aimed at helping the country tap defence export opportunities, two officials said on condition of anonymity. The defence attaches military experts attached to diplomatic missions will attend the 12th edition of the biennial event being staged at the Yelahanka air force base from February 19 to 23. While a total of 44 colonel and brigadier-ranked officers had flown to Chennai last April to attend DefExpo-2018, the attaches will be taking part in Aero India for the first time. The attaches can help India home in on new defence markets. It is part of the governments larger goal of positioning itself as a defence exporter, said one of the officials cited above. India has 44 defence attaches accredited to 95 countries, with several of them holding the charge of more than one country. The initiative also seeks to ensure that the attaches play a greater role in the implementation of Indias defence cooperation and engagement with foreign countries. The military officers will get an overview of steps taken to boost defence manufacturing in the country under the Make in India initiative, the second official said. More than 550 defence and aerospace firms, including 279 foreign companies, took part in the previous edition of Aero India. The number of participants is expected to be higher this year. After the show, the attaches will fly to New Delhi for a two-day (February 25-26) conclave expected to be addressed by defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman. Former army vice-chief, Lt Gen AS Lamba (retd), said the attaches could help widen the perspective of the countries where they are posted, trigger awareness about Indias defence manufacturing capabilities and also identify avenues for not only exports but possibilities for military project collaborations. A draft Defence Production Policy, released last March, visualises India as one of the top five countries in the aerospace and defence sectors in the coming years, with defence goods and services accounting for a turnover of Rs 1.7 lakh crore by 2025. According to the policy, achieving the target would require an investment of Rs 70, 000 crore and could create up to 3 million jobs. Another goal is to clock exports worth Rs 35,000 crore by 2025. In 2018, India was ranked the worlds largest importer of weapons for the 10th straight year by the global think tank, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. Prime Minister Narendra Modi hit out at the Congress, saying it only did scams in defence sector and looted the country whereas his government achieved self sufficiency in the defence sector. Speaking at a public meeting in Tiruppur in Tamil Nadu, Modi said the NDA government had set up two defence corridors, one of which is in Tamil Nadu, which would bring industry and investment to the state and give options and opportunities to the youth. Those who ruled so far used the defence sector to loot. The previous Congress governments helped brokers. Every middlemen caught had a link with some or the other Congress leader, he said, adding that Congress did not allow modernisation of the armed forces. While the BJP implemented One Rank One Pension scheme for the armed forces, unpardonable comments were made against an army chief and Congress leaders belittled soldiers and doubted the surgical strikes. In a veiled dig at former finance minister P Chidambaram, who had asked why middle class complained about price rise when they could buy ice cream and mineral water bottle, Modi said the middle class had rejected Mr Recounting Minister and Congress. Read: BJP-AIADMK alliance buzz grows as Narendra Modi visits Tamil Nadu Chiding the wise minister from Tamil Nadu who thinks he is the most knowledgeable man in the world, the PM said his government had promised to waive off taxes of those earning up to Rs 5 lakh during the budget. Modi said earlier there used to be family packs for ice cream and mobile recharges, but now it seems there is a family pack for getting bail. Those who thought they could never be questioned are made to give an account for their loot now. Attacking the opposition on planning a grand alliance against the BJP, he said their agenda was only Modi and had no vision for development. Calling the alliance an adulterated club of rich people trying to promote their dynasties and good at only misleading people, he cited former Tamil Nadu chief minister Kamaraj, who wanted government with zero tolerance to corruption, and said his government had shut thousands of shell companies which had caused the opposition leaders to be unhappy. Our friends in the opposition are very funny. They say Modis government is a failure. Modi has done nothing. Modi is going to be badly defeated. But still they form big alliances to defeat Modi. What is the agenda with which they are fighting? Nobody knows. Because their guns are trained at Modi, Modi said. Assuring equality of opportunity, he said his government had brought 10% reservation for economically backward in the general section, and this would not affect the existing quotas for Dalits, SCs, STs and OBCs. He said the opposition spread panic among people on this issue and dared them to give one instance where the BJP had altered the social justice system in the nation. On the contrary, it was the third front government where DMK and Congress were partners which removed reservation in promotion. It was the (Atal Bihar) Vajpayee government that brought a constitutional amendment to safeguard the interests of the SCs and STs. The strongest amendment in the SC/ST Act has been made by the current NDA government, he said. Modi launched new projects and inaugurated completed projects in Tamil Nadu from Tiruppur. He laid the foundation stone of a 100-bed Employees State Insurance Corp (ESIC) health facility in Tiruppur, a new integrated building at Trichy Airport, modernization of Chennai airport, crude oil pipeline from Chennai Port to Chennai Petroleum Corp Ltds (CPCL) Manali Refinery, via video conference. Modi also flagged off a passenger service on the 10-km section of the Chennai Metro Rail AG-DMS Metro station to Washermenpet Metro station was flagged off by Modi. Congress on Sunday accused the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of conflict interest in the Rafale fighter jet deal report, saying he was the finance secretary when the deal was inked between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and then-France president Francois Hollande. Senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal said Mehrishi cannot act against himself as there lies a conflict of interest in doing so and demanded that he recuse himself from the CAG report on Rafale deal. CAG is going to completely save the government in its report. The whole deal was materialized in the supervision of Rajiv Mehrishi who was the then finance secretary. When the negotiations started the Ministry of Finance were part of it, Sibal said, according to news agency ANI. This is the corrupt deal and fair investigation should be done, but how can CAG investigate himself when he was the finance secretary. There is a clear conflict of interest, he claimed, ANI reported. Accusing Mehrishi of being complicit in the irregularities in the deal, Sibal said there was no reason or occasion for you to audit the 36 Rafale aircraft deal. Congress has been accusing the Modi government of corruption in the deal, alleging that the price of the aircraft was raised and the offset deal was taken from state-owned aircraft maker HAL and given to businessman Anil Ambanis newly formed Reliance Defence, which had no experience. The government and Anil Ambani have repeatedly refuted all allegations of irregularities and corruption. Congress president Rahul Gandhi stepped up his attack on the Narendra Modi government over Rafale deal on Friday following a news report claiming that the defence ministry objected to parallel parleys by the Prime Ministers Office (PMO) with the French authorities. A report published by The Hindu claimed that the French side took advantage of parallel parleys by the PMO that weakened Indian teams position in negotiating the Rafale deal with France. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Leader of Opposition in Delhi Assembly Vijender Gupta engaged in a war of words on Twitter on Saturday, accusing each another of lying over the issue of deletion of voters names from electoral roll in the national capital. The blame game erupted with Gupta charging the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader with lying that names of 24 lakh voters had been deleted in Delhi in the past four years. Do not lie Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. The 24 lakh votes have been deleted in last 10 years due to death, duplication, self-deletion through Form 7. Thirty lakh votes have been added during this period. Its a normal process, Gupta of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) tweeted in Hindi. Kejriwal hit back, saying, Your Election Commission has given us list of 24 lakh votes deleted in four years. The dirty game of BJP has been exposed early thats why you are so flustered. Will EC resign if I give you the list of those whose names have been deleted fraudulently. The Chief Electoral Officer of Delhi Saturday cautioned people against misleading calls claiming deletion of their names from electoral rolls, a day after a BJP delegation met the Chief Election Commissioner and alleged that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had been making such phone calls. Terming the poll panel statement as a slap in the face of Kejriwal, Delhi BJP President Manoj Tiwari said the Election Commission had informed all the parties, including Arvind Kejriwals AAP, that by January 18, 2019 a total number of 9,88,925 voters have increased, but Kejriwal was not ready to accept it. The poll panel statement came a day after a BJP delegation met the Chief Election Commissioner and alleged that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had been making such phone calls. The statement from the poll panel drew sharp reaction from AAP national convener and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who said the Election Commission must not be allowed to become agent of a political party. After the poll panel came out with the final voter list in January, the AAP has launched sustained attacks on the BJP alleging its hand behind the deletion of names of 30 lakh voters, particularly of Purvanchali, Muslims and Bania communities, since the assembly election in Delhi in 2015. AAP spokesperson Raghav Chadha asserted that Kejriwal is fighting with the Election Commission and he will get every voters name added to the electoral rolls that has been illegally deleted at the behest of the BJP. PTI VIT SMN Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Sunday accused the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh of conniving with bootleggers after the death toll in the twin hooch tragedies in Uttar Pradesh and neighbouring Uttarakhand rose to 97. Sixty four of the casualties were in Saharanpur and Kushinagar districts on U.P. Akhilesh Yadav said it was inconceivable that hooch trade was flourishing without the governments involvement. Opposition has been notifying the government about such activities,but they didnt wake up as the government is also involved in it.Truth is that without government such businesses cant be carried out.Goverment should accept that they cant run the state, ANI quoted Akhilesh as saying. A total of 215 persons have been arrested in Uttar Pradesh, while cases against 297 people have been filed. Forty-nine cases have been registered in Uttarakhand. Several officials were suspended in both states, with Uttar Pradesh taking action against seven excise and seven police officials. The tragedy began to unfold from Thursday onwards in villages in Haridwar district of Uttarakhand, and Saharanpur and Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh. The sale and consumption of illicit alcohol is a problem in rural districts across the country, as illegal brewers run fly-by-night operations to evade hefty levies and taxes. In January 2015, toxic liquor claimed 32 lives in Lucknow and Unnao districts of Uttar Pradesh . In October 2013, at least 40 people died in Azamgarh district after drinking illicit liquor. At one-minute long, the latest trailer for Avengers: Endgame might have been short in length, but it wasnt short on detail. After spotting what could be edited out characters and figuring out the locations for secret meeting and such, Marvel fans have theories about why Hawkeye has a terrified look on his face. A new theory, posted on Reddit, suggests that the reason behind Hawkeyes expression (and the red light illuminating his face) is none other than Ultron, the main villain and titular character of the second Avengers movie. In Avengers: Age of Ultron, Tony Stark and Bruce Banner created Ultron - a Frankensteins monster of sorts - by transmitting the consciousness of Lokis scepter into a physical body. The theorist gives the example of Red Skull, the main villain in 2011s Captain America: The First Avenger, who made a surprise appearance in Avengers: Infinity War when Thanos and Gamora go to the planet Vormir. The theory goes on to say that the shot possibly comes from a scene in which Hawkeye is in his Ronin avatar. A previous trailer showed him in full costume as Ronin, possibly in a Japanese street. It is speculated that the Decimation will bring him back from a self-imposed exile, probably because his family - who we met in Age of Ultron - was reduced to dust along with half the universes population. Also read: Marvel duped us. New theory says Avengers Infinity War trailer was actually Avengers Endgame trailer Age of Ultron was directed by Joss Whedon, who also helmed the first Avengers movie. Whedon went on to express his conflicted emotions about the film, which he was proud of, but felt was compromised by Marvels demands. He refused to return for Infinity War, and departed the MCU altogether, switching over to fill in for director Zack Snyder on DCs Justice League. Directed by Joe & Anthony Russo, Endgame stars Robert Downey Jr, Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansson and Jeremy Renner, among others. The film is set for an April release. Follow @htshowbiz for more French luxury shoe designer Christian Louboutin said Friday he has won a long-running legal battle against a Dutch company that copied his signature red-soled high-heeled shoes. A court in The Hague ruled that Dutch shoe maker Van Haren must stop selling the look-alike footwear, which went on the market in 2012, and pay damages to Paris-based Louboutin. The Dutch court ruling follows a general decision last year by the European Court of Justice that Louboutin could trademark the soles and their use of a red pigment called Pantone 18 1663TP. Christian Louboutin warmly welcomes this new judgement, which further strengthens the favourable decisions regarding the validity of the red sole trademark already issued in many countries, the company said in a statement. The Hague district court said in an order issued on Wednesday that Van Harens 2012 shoe model Fifth Avenue by Halle Berry infringes the trademark rights of the French designer. It ordered the Dutch firm to destroy all existing copies of the shoe and to provide details of all outlets in which they were sold. The Hague court had asked the ECJ, the European Unions highest court, to decide on the principle of whether Louboutins 2010 trademark for the soles was valid. In a case that vexed the EUs top legal minds, Van Haren had argued that it was impossible to trademark a shape. Louboutin argued, and the ECJ agreed, that the trademark referred mainly to the colour. Louboutin has marketed the red-bottomed shoes for more than a quarter of a century and the glam footwear was featured on the consumerism-worshipping television series Sex and the City. Louboutin has faced a series of legal battles over the distinctive soles. A Paris appeals court in May 2018 ordered the French shoe company Kesslord to pay Louboutin damages after it sold red-bottomed shoes. In 2012 a US court also said that Louboutin could trademark the red soles, reversing an earlier ruling that would have allowed rival Yves Saint Laurent to paint its outsoles scarlet. But one year before that Louboutin lost a separate case in France against the Spanish clothing chain Zara. Follow more stories on Facebook and Twitter IIM Calcutta repeated its feat of 100% placement for the 54th batch of its flagship PGP program that had 441 students in the fray. As per the conventions of the day system followed by most institutes in the country, the placements closed by Day 1 afternoon which corresponds to the second day of making offers in the placement week. A total of 123 firms from diverse sectors participated in the placement process making a total of 501 offers, translating to 15% of the batch receiving more than one offer. 50% of the batch accepted offers in Consulting (29%) and Finance (21%) sectors. Reputed consulting firms such as AT Kearney, Bain and Co, The Boston Consulting Group, and McKinsey and Co. made offers in double digits. Other prominent names included EY-Parthenon, Alvarez & Marsal and PwC amongst others. Accenture was the largest recruiter with twenty four offers accepted. Top names among finance recruiters reposed their faith in IIM Calcutta talent with big names such as Goldman Sachs, Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BAML), Citi, JP Morgan Chase, Deutsche Bank and Avendus making offers to the students. New age firms in E-commerce, Operations and Product Management also attracted a large chunk (16%) of the class of 2019 with 68 accepted offers. Amazon, Uber, Udaan, Media.Net, Flipkart, Microsoft and Salesforce were some of the top names among recruiters in the sector. General Management (14%), Sales and Marketing (12%) and IT-Analytics (8%) also hired in large numbers from the campus. Top names included Aditya Birla Group, Mahindra, Wipro, Adani, LOreal, Mondelez, Hindustan Unilever, Samsung, Coca Cola, Bajaj Auto, EXL, American Express and Cognizant. The brisk placements can be attributed to an amalgam of initiatives undertaken by IIM Calcutta in the last one year. Commenting on one of the system changes, Prof Abhishek Goel, Chairperson CDPO said, Some student volunteers co-developed a scheduling system with a Bangalore based startup aimed at increasing efficiency and ensuring maximization of interface opportunities between students and recruiters. Automation has helped us. Senior officials also congratulated the students. Dr Anju Seth, Director IIM Calcutta said, [I am] delighted to see such strong demand for the skill set of the participants of our MBA programme. This bears testimony to their talent and to the value added by the high quality education that we impart at the institute. Dr Prashant Mishra, Dean - New Initiatives and External Relations said, The results reflect the hard work of the faculty as well as the students. I congratulate the placement team on this success. Basic statistics also continued to climb. Average CTC was 24.96 lakhs and median was 23.5 lakhs, showing an increase of 0.76 lakhs and 1.5 lakhs respectively. The mood on the campus was of relief and happiness. At IIM Calcutta we were not worried about 100% placement. We focused on our preparation and learning. A hard-working student can easily secure an offer of choice, added a student. Indias long-pending e-commerce policy is stuck because the enabling personal data protection law is yet to be cleared by the cabinet and the government neither wants to upset foreign investors nor alienate the countrys 70 million domestic traders, a key constituency of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Changes in foreign direct investment policy for so-called e- marketplaces that came into effect on February 1 have already caused disruptions for the two largest online retailers Amazon India, the Indian unit of Amazon.com, and Flipkart, owned by Walmart Stores. Drafts of both the e-commerce policy and the Personal Data Protection Bill, 2018 are ready and in their respective ministries, awaiting a political green light, three officials from three different ministries said on condition of anonymity. The e-commerce policy is contingent upon the personal data protection policy, which will specify the nature of sensitive data that cannot be hosted in overseas servers, and lay down measures to protect personal details of customers, according to the officials. Email queries sent to the ministry of commerce and industry, the ministry of law and the ministry of electronics and information technology (MeitY) on Tuesday did not elicit any responses. While MCI is responsible for the e-commerce regulations, MeitY is responsible for the personal data protection legislation. According to the officials cited above, the government is apprehensive of the timing as the policies cannot please both foreign investors and local traders. It is cautious and evaluating various options, one of the officials said. Key reasons for putting a comprehensive e-commerce policy in place include regulation of access to data that is one of the main elements for the success of an enterprise in the digital economy; protection of consumers ; promotion of domestic manufacturers; to check the misuse of dominant position by local or global online retailers; and provision of a legal framework , the first official added. The e-commerce policy should be aligned with the data protection law, particularly for personally identifiable data, said Arun Prabhu , a partner at law firm Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas. A draft policy gave a reference to data as the oil of the digital economy and, in 2018, proposed a requirement for hard localisation whereby all data generated by users from various sources including e-commerce platforms, social media and search engines had to be stored only in India, he said. A draft of the Data Protection Bill, 2018, however, proposed hard localisation only for critical personal information, something that is yet to be defined, he said. To protect the interests of domestic retailers, the government recently restricted foreign e-commerce marketplaces from selling products of companies in which they had a stake and prohibited them from forging any exclusive arrangement with vendors. While the move was welcomed by about 70 million domestic traders and small shopkeepers, it invited severe criticisms from global investors and multinational companies. The Swadeshi Jagaran Manch (SJM), an economic affiliate of the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS), is confident that the government will not succumb to international pressure. I have faith that the government will protect the interests of the 7 crore domestic traders. I can say this about the BJP government with some confidence, said Ashwani Mahajan, national co-convener of the SJM. The BJP is the political offshoot of the RSS. Mahajan said the proposed e-commerce policy cannot contradict the foreign direct investment (FDI) policy on online trade, which was recently clarified and enforced from February 1. Take it from me -- no government can make any policy which is good for a few and detrimental for the masses. If this happens, there will be severe political repercussions, whether election or no election. Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) national secretary general Praveen Khandelwal said: The proposed e-commerce policy is in the favour of 7 crore (70 million) local traders and 30 crore (300 million) people whose livelihood is dependent on that. We are expecting the government to announce it (e-commerce policy) before February 25. EY India partner and national leader, e-commerce and consumer internet, Ankur Pahwa said, Data privacy is an important global subject that all companies need to consider seriously and stringently comply with. Considering the vast user data available with various e-commerce companies ranging from financial to health, personal preferences etc., it is important that there are regulations in place to maintain checks and balances. Aspects such as storage of user data to be maintained in India, national encryption policy, centralised e-commerce regulator, two-factor authentication for payments, Internet of Things (IoT) regulations, restriction on data portability, data sharing are critical aspects under discussion in the policy, he added. Some of these aspects will have an impact e-commerce companies, given the data storage infrastructure is not very well developed in India and may turn out to be an expensive exercise to carry out, he said. Another important aspect under consideration is providing the government access to user data; the data protection bill will define the extent to which the state can use data without consent (of users). This issue continues to be a red flag for privacy advocates, he added. The process of framing an e-commerce policy started in 2013-14 through a discussion paper prepared by the erstwhile Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion, now renamed the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal trade. Later, a think tank was constituted on the Framework for National Policy on e-Commerce by the department of commerce for preparing recommendations for Indias national policy on e-commerce. The first meeting of the think tank was held on April 24, 2018. Based on its recommendations, the department of commerce formulated a draft policy document, Electronic Commerce in India: Draft National Policy Framework, after consulting various stakeholders in July last year. Minister of state for commerce and industry CR Chaudhary told the Lok Sabha on December 24 that the Economic Survey 2017-18 estimated the e-commerce market in India at $33 billion. Its been more than two months since Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas wedding, but the pictures just keep on coming. Guest and popular YouTuber Lilly Singh on Saturday shared the latest images from the grand wedding - specifically the haldi ceremony - on her Instagram. The pictures show Lilly smearing haldi on Nick with a playful expression on her face. She captioned the post, How to turn a Jonas brother into a Simpson. If Im gonna do it, Im gonna do it right! My sis @priyankachopra told me no mercy during the haldi (turmeric) ceremony on @nickjonas. Ya girl had to deliver. Priyanka, who is sitting next to Nick, cant hold back her laughter as Lilly reaches into every corner of her husband. Priyankas mother, Madhu, can also be seen standing behind the bride and groom. In one picture, Nick has a look of surprise on his face as Lilly slips her hands down his kurta. In another, he just looks resigned. Several unseen pictures have been trickling in since their wedding, shared by friends and family. Nick and Priyanka tied the knot in a multiple-day event held at Jodhpurs Umaid Bhawan Palace hotel. They were married in accordance with Hindu and Christian traditions. They took to their social media to share a glimpse into the grand celebrations, which included a song-and-dance competition, vintage cars, and serene ceremonies. Also read: Priyanka Chopra is in a racy black dress kind of mood. See new pic Priyanka and Nick then held three wedding receptions, the first in New Delhi, which was attended by PM Narendra Modi, and two in Mumbai, for friends and industry colleagues. The couple celebrated New Years in Switzerland and their honeymoon in the Caribbean. They recently shared pictures from their Rocky Mountains getaway during the Super Bowl weekend. The couple is expected to attend the Grammy Awards on Sunday. Follow @htshowbiz for more Filmmaker Zoya Akhtars Gully Boy, starring Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt, premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival on Saturday. Shortly afterwards, several people took to social media to express their reactions. While everyone was unanimous in their praise, many called it Zoyas best work till date. They also applauded Ranveer Singh, calling it the best performance of his career. One Twitter user wrote, Watched the world premier of #GullyBoy @berlinale . Intense movie, strong characters, emotional , focused direction, different narrative, superb direction, @RanveerOfficial intense role, gripping performance, @aliaa08 show stopper, #ZoyaAkhtar, brilliant, @ritesh_sid innovator. Calling it Zoya Akhtars best work, author Aseem Chhabra wrote on Twitter, #GullyBoy is awesome, a great achievement for #ZoyaAkhtar. @RanveerOfficial gives his career best performance. Wonderful supporting cast. The music comes alive! Now that the embargo is over, Ive been dying to say this for 3 days! #GullyBoy is awesome, a great achievement for #ZoyaAkhtar. @RanveerOfficial gives his career best performance. Wonderful supporting cast. The music comes alive! My review out tomorrow. #Berlinale @berlinale Aseem Chhabra (@chhabs) February 9, 2019 Another viewer called the movie a present and tweeted, There are yearly 400 movies at the Berlinale. I choose every edition to see 30-35. I chose Gully Boy because it was from India and they are making great movies in the last years. I had no clue what the movie was about. What a present. Sharing the excitement from the world premiere of the film at the festival, a viewer tweeted, #ApnaTimeAayega starts on screen and the audience matches the beats with their rhythmic applause #GullyBoyInBerlin #gullyboy - that says what this movie means to todays generation. #ApnaTimeAayega starts on screen and the audience matches the beats with their rhythmic applause #GullyBoyInBerlin #gullyboy - that says what this movie means to todays generation Samir Bhamra (@phizzical) February 9, 2019 About #GullyBoy I'm gonna say something. There are yearly 400 movies at the Berlinale. I choose every edition to see 30-35. I chose Gully Boy because it was from India and they are making great movies in the last years. I had no clue what the movie was about. What a present Carlos Grau (@cineypoesia) February 10, 2019 #Gullyboy . @RanveerOfficial s best performance till date. mind blowing music, some goosebumps rap battles. Alia and MC shekh were terrific. the editing could have been better. Overall a brilliant film. 4/5 stars. half extra star for ranveer. he just killed it. vicky- elfenomeno (@aamir_greatest) February 9, 2019 Gully Boy is the story of an aspiring rapper named Murad, played by Ranveer, who rises from the slums of Mumbai to make a mark for himself in the world of desi hip hop. Alia plays his fierce girlfriend in the film, which is set to release on February 14. Follow @htshowbiz for more New life breathed into old items at 31 Thrift and More John and Ruth Featherstone, a married pair of retail gurus, have been transforming the Greater Hickory Cooperative Christian Ministrys thrift store, 31 Thrift and More, and are seeing a shift in the quality of items donated. I think people see now that we are going to be good stewards of their items, John said. He gave the example of a family who donated a collection of Stetson hats. They trusted us with something that was precious to them. It was a great revenue source for us, but it says so much that people are trusting us with their high-quality, vintage items now, Ruth added. The hats, along with many other antiques and vintage clothing items, have been pouring into the store. That led John and Ruth to change the process of selling these items. We prayed for God to send us someone who would understand vintage and would want to create an Etsy store for us, John said. Etsy is an e-commerce website focused on handmade or vintage items and supplies, as well as unique factory-manufactured items, according to their website. A hiker has been rescued after going missing on Saturday in Blowing Rock. The hiker was found uninjured shortly before 1 p.m. on Sunday. He had last been seen around noon on Saturday. The Boone Police Department tweeted shortly before 6 p.m. on Sunday that 67-year-old Frank Senady, of Charlotte, was out of the woods." He was located in a rugged area far from the China Creek Trail where he started his hike. Senady had last been seen entering the China Creek Trail around noon on Saturday wearing a red long sleeve shirt, khaki pants and a blue Patagonia hat. The extremely rugged China Creek Trail begins at a marked trail head on Laurel Lane in Blowing Rock in the Pisgah National Forest and descends several hundred feet in elevation, ending on John Rivers Road, a press release from Caldwell County states. Blowing Rock Fire and Rescue Chief Kent Graham on Sunday morning had launched a full mountain rescue team along with a class of trainees. Air support from a wildlife helicopter was also deployed. UPDATE: Frank Senady was found alive and uninjured shortly after noon on Feb. 10. For more information, click here. A search is underway for a missing hiker from Charlotte who did not return from his hike on Saturday, according to a press release from Caldwell County. Frank Senady, 67, was last seen entering the China Creek Trail in Blowing Rock around noon, wearing a red long sleeve shirt, khaki pants and a blue Patagonia hat. The trail is extremely rugged, but Senady is an experienced hiker and it is believed he has some supplies with him. The China Creek Trail begins at a marked trail head on Laurel Lane in Blowing Rock in the Pisgah National Forest and descends several hundred feet in elevation, ending on John Rivers Road, the release states. Blowing Rock Fire and Rescue Chief Kent Graham said on Sunday morning that he was preparing to launch a full mountain rescue team along with a class of trainees. Air support from a wildlife helicopter will also be deployed. Staff reports The Herald-Mail I feel like that guy in the Allstate commercial when Mayhem is stealing his car. What? What! WHAT!? The governor of Virginia is under fire because he appeared in blackface at least once in his college career. So he has to go, you would think, except that the next guy in line just received a credible accusation of sexual assault brought by a current university professor. So no, no, no, we cant have him either, we got to go to No. 3 in line except it turns out he dressed up in blackface too. And this is, we are told, the progressive party, the enlightened party. Not to be outdone, the conservative Senate majority leader of Virginia was a top editor of the Virginia Military Institute yearbook, whose pages show men in blackface. WHAT!? Who even knew this was a thing? This does not feel isolated. This does not feel like a coincidence that three of Virginias top leaders have a history with blackface. Its starting to feel that if you called for all Virginians who have painted their faces black to come up on stage, theyd be streaming down the aisles like the audience at a Billy Graham revival. Nor does this, to keep the theme going, feel like what televangelist Jimmy Swaggart described as a sin, but a past sin something that is so far in the rearview mirror that it cant possibly have relevance today. Gov. Ralph Northams infamous blackface/klan photo which he suddenly says he has no knowledge of is from 1984. The No. 1 song in February 1984 was Owner of a Lonely Heart by Yes, not Pennies From Heaven by Bing Crosby. This isnt a prank of the young, like in 1977 when I thought for some reason that it was a good idea to attend a costume party dressed as convicted killer Gary Gilmore, who insisted his death sentence be carried out for two murders he committed in Utah. Or the vulgar racist jokes we told almost by rote when we were 10. Nor is it a gray area, something that might or might not be racist depending on context like when comedian Vaughn Meader impersonates Kwame Nkrumah sarcastically ordering watermelon at a White House lunch. It is, almost without question, possible to change over the course of three decades. It is also possible that blackface getups were so prevalent throughout the Southeast that they were adopted without any thought of their meaning, the way kids would put on Indian war paint and walk around saying Me heap big hungry although few of us were still doing that in medical school at age 25. So yes, maybe adding it all up you can make a case for giving men such as these the benefit of the doubt. Maybe their judgment or their souls are not impaired to the point of disqualification. But it begs the question, are we so bereft of political talent in this nation that we cannot find qualified men and women who have not at one time or another thought it a good idea to apply brown shoe polish to their mugs? This too shows the risk of having a moral void at the top which, we have been told by the right, should not be a consideration in determining who can best run a government. How are we to tell anyone they must leave over a 35-year-old discretion when the man at the top has, far more recently, bragged about grabbing female genitalia, paid hush money to porn stars, whispered in the ears of neo-Nazis, smeared Latino judges, lied by one count more than 3,000 times in two years, mimicked a disabled journalist, cheated on his wives, actively sought to keep blacks out of his familys apartment complexes, insulted a Gold Star military family and failed to pay tribute at a World War I memorial ceremony because it was raining? So juxtaposed, its harder to demand a man fall on his sword over a moral shortcoming. Because I am not black, I cannot feel the racial hurt of blackface as acutely as someone who is. But I can feel something else that first cousin of racism that causes those of privilege to assume they have been assigned a special place at the top of the American condition. If these men had not darkened their faces they would have dressed up as a hillbilly or a coal miner or a single mom or a bum. Because its funny when someone hasnt been as lucky in their station at birth as them. A black man has no rights they are bound to respect, but neither do any of the other little people. All people are worthy of our respect. That is the standard we ought to be demanding of the leaders of Virginia, or any state. Staff reports The Herald-Mail By The Associated Press CHARLESTON, W.Va. A West Virginia delegate told a reporter Friday that he thinks the LGBTQ is a modern-day version of the Ku Klux Klan. The Charleston Gazette-Mail reported that Del. Eric Porterfield made the comments after calling to discuss a story about some controversial earlier comments. Porterfield, R-Mercer, also told the reporter that the gay community is a terrorist group, saying he received threatening voicemails and social-media messages after earlier remarks during a Wednesday committee meeting became public. Porterfield was speaking in support of an amendment that would overrule local ordinances that protect LGBTQ people from discrimination. The amendment failed. The LGBT is the most socialist group in this country, he said at the meeting. They do not protect gays. There are many gays they persecute if they do not line up with their social ideology. Del. Danielle Walker, a black woman with a gay son, challenged Porterfield on Wednesday in committee and Thursday on the House floor. Why do we need more hate?, Walker, D-Monongalia, said Friday. Why do we need more name-calling? Why do we need to reference other groups that illustrated so much hate and destruction and ugliness? Why do we need to do that? Some Republicans also criticized Porterfields comments. Del. Daniel Linville, R-Cabell, told the paper, Hes wrong, very wrong. Theres just no excuse, though, for some of the things that he said. In a news release, West Virginia Democratic Party Chairwoman Belinda Biafore called for Porterfields resignation. Porterfield told the paper that the controversy will boost his re-election chances. Porterfield didnt immediately respond Saturday to a message from The Associated Press. Jenni Vincent jvincent@herald-mail.com HARPERS FERRY, W.Va. It was a homecoming of sorts Saturday afternoon when Guinevere Roper helped kick off the Harpers Ferry National Historical Parks 75th anniversary speaker series. Approximately 80 people gathered at the Mather Training Center to hear about her early and ongoing efforts to preserve local African-American history. Audience members included former coworkers, current park employees and area history buffs who came for a presentation on Black Voices from Harpers Ferry. But to Roper, they were all friends. Thats because Roper, who retired in 2017 after having spent more than 40 years as a park ranger, is widely regarded for her personal and professional experiences. I am truly blessed to have all of you here, and just to listen to me talk about the African-American story. I am just so filled with emotion, I wont go there because it would make me cry, she said. Her passion for preserving the history of Storer College is the stuff of local legends, and she told of early efforts to make that goal a reality. One of the most important chapters of Harpers Ferrys history deals with the establishment of one of the first desegregated schools in American history, Storer College, she said, pausing briefly to recall her own childhood days attending a segregated school in Charles Town. This school provided an unprecedented opportunity to former slaves held in bondage to gain a scholarly education they had long been denied, she said. It opened in October, 1867, with 19 students on the heels of the American Civil War and the passage of the 13th Amendment which struck down the institution of slavery, she said. The school didnt close until June 30, 1956. Enrollment declined after the Brown v. Board of Education federal Supreme Court ruling in 1954 that struck down segregation in school systems nationwide, she said. But the funny thing is that when I first came to work in the parks visitor center, I couldnt help but wonder where is the history of Storer College? And why arent we telling the African-American story? she said. So I decided I was going to do something about that, she said with a smile. Park officials agreed something needed to be done, and that was the beginning of something amazing, because a small display case later grew into an exhibit and greater public recognition, she said. I gathered up all the information, and in 1983 we had an exhibit on Storer College. I was so excited I told everybody about it. Especially looking back it has really been a joy to do this for Harpers Ferry, she said. Matthew Umstead mumstead@herald-mail.com MARTINSBURG, W.Va. A Morgan County, W.Va., company hopes to establish an industrial hemp processing facility at a former auto dealership building in downtown Martinsburg. In its Jan. 15 application, SchoolHouseHemp LLC has asked the Martinsburg Board of Zoning Appeals for a special exception to the zoning ordinance to use The Union Sales Co., building at 119-121 E. Race St. for extraction and distillation of herbs and botanicals from hemp to produce cannabidiol or what is known as CBD. Such a proposed use is not among those listed in the citys zoning ordinance for Downtown Business-zoned property, according to the city. A public hearing regarding the companys application is set for March 5 at 6:30 p.m. in the J. Oakley Seibert Council Chambers at Martinsburg City Hall at 232 N. Queen St., as part of the zoning appeals boards regular meeting. CBD is a non-psychoactive compound found in hemp, a version of the cannabis plant that is low in THC, which is the part of cannabis that gives pot its high. SchoolHouseHemp owner Dennis Cates said Friday that the processing activity envisioned for the East Race Street location would produce full spectrum and isolate CBD oils that are used for making infused products for medicinal uses. Cates said he initially intends to lease about 12,000 square feet of the building, which also would be used to dry hemp plants grown and harvested in the Eastern Panhandle. This space is perfect for what were trying to do, Cates said of the second floor area they have eyed for the processing operation. The building would see very little activity until business ramps up for the harvest season in October. Cates said he and other Eastern Panhandle farmers expect to grow a total of about 15 acres of hemp this year. CBD oils have become increasingly popular in lotions, tinctures or extracts and foods and Cates said he would like to ultimately provide the immediate community greater access to products that people can use for their betterment. Founded in July 2018, SchoolHouseHemp is a vertically-scalable, seed-to-retail industrial hemp business, Cates said. The company currently is involved in making and selling CBD-infused products in the Eastern Panhandle, and installation of an extractor at the proposed Martinsburg location will allow the company to produce its own CBD instead of buying from other hemp processors, Cates said. After years of working for other companies, including Verizon and FedEx, the Tennessee native said he decided that he wanted to work for himself and opted to become a hemp farmer. This is a 180-degree turn for me, Cates said. The venture has been in development over the last couple years and Cates application with the city came less than a month after President Donald Trump signed the farm bill on Dec. 20 that designated hemp as an agricultural crop. The Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 also removes hemp from the Controlled Substances Act, which means that it is no longer an illegal substance under federal law. In West Virginia, a pilot program was expanded in 2017 to allow cultivation of industrial hemp for commercial purposes and West Virginia Agriculture Commissioner Kent Leonhardt reported last month that the state agency had seen a 300 percent increase in applications for the 2019 growing season. In December, Leonhardt said West Virginia had licensed 46 industrial hemp growers in 2018 who grew roughly 155 acres of crop. In a Dec. 20 statement lauding the signing of the farm bill, Leonhardt said the state agency had received 199 applications for the 2019 growing season, a spike in increased interest that he largely attributed to the 2017 bill passed by the West Virginia Legislature. Changes in the 2018 Farm Bill will allow the transport of raw industrial hemp products across state lines. We hope our farmers will take full advantage of this revision to the federal law, said Leonhardt in a statement lauding the signing of the farm bill. Yet, at the same time, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Scott Gottlieb issued his own statement (https://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm628988.htm) that cautioned against marketing products, whether hemp-derived or otherwise, with a claim of therapeutic benefit or with any other disease claim. Selling unapproved products with unsubstantiated therapeutic claims is not only a violation of the law, but also can put patients at risk, as these products have not been proven to be safe or effective, Gottlieb wrote. The FDA separately announced in December that it had completed evaluations and deemed hulled hemp seeds, hemp seed protein and hemp seed oil to be safe as foods and wouldnt require additional approvals, as long as marketers do not make claims that they treat disease. Jennifer Fitch waynesboro@herald-mail.com WASHINGTON U.S. Rep. John Joyce has made one of his first initiatives in Congress a renewed push for nondairy, plant-based products, such as almond milk, to drop milk from their labels. Joyce, who took office in January, joined nine other members in sending a letter to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration about the issue. They encouraged heightened enforcement of regulations about what can be labeled a dairy product. The ongoing lack of enforcement of existing dairy-product terms ... has undermined consumer confidence, the very purposes of standards of identify for foods, the letter stated. Joyce, a Republican from Blair County, Pa., represents the U.S. House of Representatives 13th District in Pennsylvania, which is formed from parts or all of 10 counties, including Franklin and Fulton counties. Joyce said in a news release that nearly 20 percent of Pennsylvanias dairy farms are in the counties covered by his district. In visits to dairy farm after dairy farm, I have heard about the lost revenue that plant-based dairy imitators have taken on our economy, and it is incredibly urgent we continue to monitor the subject, he said in the release. Partnering with the FDA to continue to revive Pennsylvanias dairy industry is one of my top priorities this term. Vernon Horst, who has 60 cows on his farm near Chambersburg, Pa., is encouraged that Joyce and others are paying attention to the products labeling. Horst pays attention to what he sees in the dairy aisle at the grocery store. As a dairy farmer, it upsets me these nonmilk juices are sitting in the dairy case at grocery stores, he said. There are existing regulations about the word milk being associated with lactating cows, Horst said. It looks now like we might be successful in enforcing those regulations, he said. Joyce, a medical doctor, described the mislabeling of milk as creating a public-health issue. Consumers should be able to feel confident that they are getting the proper nutritional value from their dairy products, and enforcing these federal regulations is necessary for that to occur, he said. Staff reports The Herald-Mail Several events are taking place across the area in February in honor of Black History Month. Some of those scheduled events include: Walking tour of Frederick Douglass in Hagerstown Tuesday, Feb. 12, 4 to 5:30 p.m.; Saturday, Feb. 16, 10 to 11:30 a.m. Hagerstown Public Square Public Square Hagerstown In 1879, Douglass took a train to Hub City, where he delivered an address to benefit the Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church. Historian and author John Muller will share never-before-published details of Frederick Douglass visit to Hagerstown. $15. Purchase tickets at www.eventbrite.com. Black History Month tribute Saturday, Feb. 23. Doors open at 1:30 p.m.; event at 2 to 4 p.m. Second Christian Church 65 W. North Ave. Hagerstown The theme My Soul Looks Back and Wonders How I Got Over, a tribute to the songs of hope that directed the path of black communities for centuries, delivered in three parts. Part one: Songs of Slavery; Part two: Song of the Civil Rights Movement; and Part three: Songs as a choir member post Civil Rights. Cecilia Summers, author of Were Crossin Over One by One will be special guest. Bishop C. Hayden will host the event. Freewill offering. Civil Rights Civil Wrongs Monday through Thursday and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Friday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; continues through Saturday, March 2 Bravura Arts 428 N. Market St. Frederick, Md. In honor of Black History Month, Just Lookin Gallery will present Civil Rights Civil Wrongs. The exhibit will feature paintings by social expressionist Charly Palmer and other African-American artists. Call 301-714-2278 or go to www.justlookin.com. Mike Lewis mlewis@herald-mail.com Dr. Stephen Bui, a podiatric surgeon, businessman, entrepreneur and inventor, refers to himself as a problem solver. An effort to solve patients problems led Bui to develop the HighHealer, a gadget designed to ease a variety of problems that people often have with their feet. Bui, of Waynesboro Pa., is a runner. He has suffered some of the same ills that hes diagnosed in his patients, such as plantar fasciitis, a common condition that causes foot pain. Theres no magic bullet to treat problems like that, he said. Typically, you have to go and get three different products and do five different exercises that will take 35 or 40 minutes. And you have to do that two times a day, Bui said. But its hard for patients to work that regimen into their daily lives and to stick with it. Bui, 47, also is the founder and CEO of Active Life Solutions, an e-commerce company based in Franklin County, Pa. Given his business experience and medical background, he took a sabbatical from practicing medicine and started looking for ways to solve that problem. I know what works, he said. I know whats out there. I know what needed to be done. Working with a company in Finland, Bui came up with the HighHealer. He calls it the most versatile foot-care device on the market. The HighHealer, he said, focuses on five areas: reducing inflammation, stretching the plantar fascia ligament, strengthening the smaller muscles that stabilize the feet, loosening calf tightness and massaging the foot. A strategically shaped piece of soapstone can provide heat or cold, as desired or prescribed. The soapstone itself is important, he said. The device incorporates predetermined angles of stretching, Bui said. That removes the guesswork, helps prevent over-stretching and saves time. Bui said the small, what he called core muscles of the foot can be sometimes overlooked as patients seek pain relief. These muscles are small theyre tiny. But theyre very, very important, he said. In that way, he said, in addition to treating ailments, the device can also help athletes build strength and improve performance. The product will be marketed to health care professionals and patients, he said. Bui launched the HighHealer on Indiegogo, a crowd-funding site, and raised more than $130,000 in preorders. Information about it is available at www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-highhealer-your-personal-foot-therapist#/ But its not available yet on store shelves. The doctor/businessman ran into a bit of delay in bringing the product to the United States. It sat in customs (at the port of New York) for more than two weeks because of the (partial government) shutdown, he said. As things stand now, Bui is planning a formal March 11 launch party for the HighHealer. Staff reports The Herald-Mail Name: Daniele Piasecki Town in which you reside: Martinsburg, W.Va. Occupation if different from full-time artist: I have been a full-time artist for 25 years. How were you selected as an emerging artist? There was a call for entries published by the West Virginia Division of Culture and History. I asked if there were specific criteria to be considered an emerging artist and was simply told I could submit works. Going through the jurying process is often a gamble; I got lucky that the juror liked my two submissions. The West Virginia State Museum is one of my very favorite museums in the world because of the way it is designed and interactive and, I guess, because of my personal history with the universe of coal mines. It is an honor to be part of an exhibition there. Your works selected are called digital art, please explain what that is. It is work created on a computer with software such as Photoshop, sometimes starting with a photo, playing with layers, sometimes intuitively created from scratch while thinking of a specific scene. I dont use any template or any type of fit all mold. Each piece is a unique spontaneous creation. Tell me about your two works that are at the Cultural Center: Hypnosis by Abstract II and Meditation on a Swirl of Dancing Leaves. Hypnosis by Abstract II is an abstract interpretation inspired by the beauty of a luscious field of flowers, the colors and shapes that imprinted my memory. Meditation on a Swirl of Dancing Leaves is also an abstract interpretation inspired by a tree, its leaves dancing in the wind, the energy and serenity surrounding the scene. I printed both on fine art paper and mounted them on wood panels treated for archival conservation. You are originally from France. How did you end up in the Eastern Panhandle? I have been in the U.S. for 27 years. I lived in Alexandria, Va., for more than 14 years. We moved to Martinsburg in 2006 to purchase a house large enough to accommodate my studio needs. While I am a West Virginian by adoption, my family history has connections to many West Virginia residents stories. Both my grandfathers came from Poland to work in the coal mines in France. Besides, I grew up in a region close to the Loire River, 50 miles from Lyon in the center of France, where it is very hilly and foggy, pretty much like many areas in West Virginia. On your website it says that you discovered photography while a travel and seminars manager for your employer. Explain how photography was part of that job. Photography was not part of my job, but while scouting locations for my employer, I got into the habit of taking snapshots to keep records and document my proposals. Quickly enough, I started paying more and more attention to the images I was catching, becoming finicky about their composition, about the light the rest is history. What was it about photography that you loved? The feeling that I am SEEING! Seeing in my own special way, seeing things that perhaps not everyone is paying attention to, seeing the world in a particular light. When we capture images, they reflect what we have to express from the inside; this is what gives each photographer a different style. It is a means to express the depth of our soul. Tell us about your work process, especially for digital art. How often are you shooting photos, versus how long you are working on them in the computer. There are times where I do a lot of shooting (if I travel, visit new places), and then times where I spend more time editing and processing them or creating new artworks at my computer, usually in winter and when weather is not propitious to outdoor photography. But I dont have any strict rules; my schedule depends on circumstances, life events, my own inspiration or obsessions at a given time. When youre in the process of digital art, what are you hoping to accomplish with each piece? When I am in the process of creating new digital artworks, I dont really think about accomplishing anything. I am in a kind of zone where I surrender to the need of creating something new. I am under the spell of colors and shapes in relation to a specific scene in nature that has inspired me. I work intuitively and spontaneously, rearranging the components, creating a different order, a mesmerizing order that reflects my yearning for perfection. I like to call my concept Chaos out of Order/Order out of Chaos, meaning Imagine a scene in your mind, cut it in little pieces and then rearrange them the way you feel inspired to do so. What do you hope people will experience when they see your work at the Culture Center? Lifting spirits up and conveying serenity has always been the purpose of my art. With this particular series of digital graphic art, I invite the viewers to surrender to a peaceful, meditative state, and connect with the art in any subjective way that suits them. Experiencing a piece of art is always a very personal matter. I simply hope triggering positive feelings and emotions. But beware! Staring at Hypnosis by Abstract may induce hypnosis. Are you working on any other projects now or have any more exhibits in the future? I am usually working on several projects at the same time new bodies of fine art photography, mixed media and digital graphic art. My professional schedule has been somewhat disrupted these past two years as I am spending extended periods of time in France caring for both my parents who are reaching toward the ends of their lives. This prevents me from committing to any solo exhibit for the moment, but I keep sending submissions to juried shows for my artwork to remain in the public eye during this trying time in my life. Sherry Greenfield sgreenfield@herald-mail.com When it came down to hiring a new executive director, the Community Free Clinic of Hagerstowns board of directors knew they needed someone who knew the community and its leaders. Thanks to her work with The Greater Hagerstown Committee, a nonprofit dedicated to bringing together community leaders for the betterment of the region, Nicole Houser was selected to oversee the free clinic. Houser, 52, has been serving at the helm since November. Its been great, said Houser, in an interview. I love it. Theres a lot to learn, but it has been amazing. Houser previously worked for the Humane Society of Washington County, first as the events coordinator, and then the director of the veterinary center. Housers volunteer work with county nonprofits is extensive. The list includes the Maryland International Film Festival, Teens Have Choices, the Washington County Department of Social Services, Leadership Washington County, United Way of Washington County and the Humane Society. But its her work with The Greater Hagerstown Committee that helped her clinch the job, said Julie Truby, president of the clinics board of directors. In an email, Truby said that board members were impressed with Housers work. In Nicoles extensive time spent working with The Greater Hagerstown Committee, she gained valuable experience interacting with elected officials, community organizations and community leaders, Truby wrote. This experience, combined with her work in the nonprofit community, provides a unique perspective for moving the clinic forward in its vision of providing health care to the uninsured of Washington County. Truby added that the board of directors looks forward to working with Houser. As the new executive director, Houser said she is looking forward to the clinic expanding its mental health services. The clinic, on Mill Street in Hagerstown, will be opening a new mental health center thanks to Dr. Mitesh Kothari. Kothari donated the neighboring building he owned to the clinic last year. Kothari started his OB-GYN practice in that building. The clinic has offered psychiatric help in the past. This project will help them expand on that. Houser replaces former Executive Director Michele Goldman, who resigned last May, after only a few months on the job. Houser is a life-long resident of Washington County. She graduated from South Hagerstown High School in 1984. She is the mother of three children and grandmother of eight. The Community Free Clinic Inc. in Hagerstown offers free resources such as continuity of care, laboratory screenings and needed medications to those who have no health care for different reasons. The clinic runs free programs to those in need, providing 15,000 patient visits each year. The clinic sees people without insurance, recently uninsured, temporarily uninsured or homeless. A lot of who we see are people that are working two part-time jobs, Houser said. Or people who have started a new job, and they have to wait the 90-day period before their health insurance kicks in. Houser said she is honored to be overseeing the clinic. I have been a supporter of this amazing organization for years and am excited to lead this group of dedicated professionals in serving the people of our community, she said. I look forward to the future of this agency and am eager to help bring new and exciting initiatives to the public. Staff reports The Herald-Mail CHARLESTON, W.Va. The West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History (WVDACH) and Gov. Jim Justice announced the winners of the Almost Heaven Inaugural Governors Art Exhibition in a Feb. 1 ceremony at the State Capitol Complex in Charleston. Among the winners was Charlie Musselwhite of Morgan Academy in Jefferson County, W.Va., whose West Va. Rivers took second place in the middle-school category. Awards were given out to Best of Show and first, second and third places in three categories: elementary school, middle school and high school. Winners received Utrecht Art Supplies gift cards for $100, $50 and $25. On display are 184 accepted entries from 39 schools in 22 counties. All West Virginia students in grades kindergarten to 12 were invited to participate in the show. Designed to showcase student creativity and the arts, this years exhibition called for one-of-a-kind postcard designs that feature a favorite place or activity in West Virginia. Selected postcard artwork will be used by the West Virginia Tourism Office to invite travelers to Almost Heaven. The artwork was accepted in painting, printmaking, digital art, drawing, photography and mixed media. The exhibit will be on display at the State Capitol in Charleston until Aug. 9. For more information about the exhibit, contact Cailin Howe, WVDACH exhibits coordinator, at Cailin.A.Howe@wv.gov. Enough is enough. Gov. Ralph Northam, Attorney General Mark Herring and Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax must resign. Northam and Herring have both admitted to wearing blackface; Fairfax has been accused of serious sexual assault and rape. We wont relitigate for you whats led up to this sorry state of affairs. Youve probably read the reports. Its hard to miss them. Virginia has been at the epicenter of national attention and condemnation. All three men have become a liability. Northams increasingly desperate maneuvering to cling to the governors seat has grown more embarrassing by the day. Northam, Herring and Fairfax can no longer adequately carry out the duties of their office. This furor will not die down, nor will it go away while they remain. Members of Northams own party have called on him to step aside, and if he does so, its only sensible that Herring do the same. Yes, they may have evolved as people; yes, they may be entirely different adults than they were young men, but this is not about how they perceive themselves to be as much as how others see them. Politics is perception; Northam and Herrings reputations are perceived by friend and foe alike as fundamentally damaged to the point of irretrievability. The Supreme Court on Thursday in a 5-4 decision blocked a Louisiana law that would have, in effect, barred most abortions. Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. sided with the four Democratic-appointed justices; the other Republican-appointed justices, including Neil Gorsuch and Brett M. Kavanaugh, voted to uphold the law. The Washington Post reports: The justices may yet consider whether the 2014 law requiring doctors at abortion clinics to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals unduly burdens womens access to abortion. The Louisiana law has never been enforced, and the Supreme Court in 2016 found a nearly identical Texas law to be unconstitutional. The decision was a triumph for abortion rights advocates in several respects. Ilyse Hogue, head of NARAL Pro-Choice America, tweeted: Trump Justices Kavanaugh and Gorsuch dissented in this case that would have ended legal abortion in Louisiana. We were called hysterical for expressing concern they would rule against #RoeVWade and our fundamental freedom but here we have it. Everyone who fought, I see you. CHILHOWIE, Va. As he wiped tears from his eyes, Virginia State Police Sgt. Matthew Riley shared some of his fondest memories of Trooper Lucas B. Dowell, who died last Monday when authorities executed a search warrant in Cumberland County. About 1,500 people including representatives from dozens of law enforcement agencies from around the country attended Saturdays funeral service in Dowells hometown of Chilhowie. Riley, Dowells tactical team supervisor in Appomattox, shared the stage at Chilhowie Christian Church with several speakers and dignitaries. Dowell was a great storyteller and a wise-cracker, Riley and others said, and he often had a smile on his face. Dowells humorous personality stood out in the department, but he was always ready to support his team and help the community, speakers said. Riley, who was wrought with emotion as he shared stories about his friend, spoke about the first day he talked to Dowell about joining the tactical team. After giving a spiel about the unit, Riley said Dowell interrupted him, leaned forward, smiled and squinted his eyes. Look, lets just get down to the heart of this thing, Riley recalled Dowell saying. Do I get to drive a tank? I said, No, you dont get to drive a tank, but youll get to drive a Bearcat if youre lucky. He stood up, twirled his fingers and said, Thats good enough for me. Riley also shared the story about Dowells first time entering a residence while executing a search warrant near Lynchburg. Before the mission, Riley briefed the team and then checked with each of them to make sure they knew their duties. He said Dowell didnt seem to have been paying too much attention. Everything was going fine, until he reached Dowell, who had a grin on his face and a World War II helmet on top of his head, Riley said. I said, Lucas, what is your role? Riley recalled. Dowell looked at the team and responded by quoting a line from Saving Private Ryan, one of his favorite movies. Keep the sand out of your weapons. Keep those actions clear. Ill see you on the beach, said Dowell, who then turned around and walked off. While his team laughed at Dowells antics, Riley said the trooper proceeded to enter the wrong vehicle. VSP Superintendent Gary Settle, who called Dowell a hero, said it was humbling to see so many rows of officers in uniform during the funeral. Settle said Dowell had great patience, remained calm while under pressure and found it easy to deal with people. Since Dowells death, Settle said staff found a to-do list that Dowell had apparently created for 2019. It was posted on the bulletin board in his VSP residence. It demonstrated that Lucas had a plan for his faith and for his family, said Settle. Dowell vowed to play less video games, work out more and go to church and spend more time with his family, Settle said. Dowell was a trooper that others could rely on. Members of his [tactical] team felt safer with him there, Settle said. He was the guy fighting for what was right, the guy you wanted on your team when things got tough. Lucas is a hero. Settle said he believes Dowell saved lives while authorities executed the search warrant on Monday. Without a doubt, he saved lives of his tactical team members, Settle said. Dowell told his tactical team members that he often felt safer with them than when he would work alone on a traffic stop. He went in with his team, said Settle, pausing as he tried to compose himself. And it was his team that carried him out. The superintendant said Dowells death has been difficult for VSP and the community. Lucas death has weighed a little heavier on my heart. You see, it happened on my watch, Settle said. Support Local Journalism Your subscription makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} Dowells sister Erica spoke during the service on behalf of the family. She recalled attending a funeral last year with her brother in Chilhowie for a close friend. After the viewing, they returned home to talk about life. Lucas said, I want to do a better job of making the people I love know and feel how much I loved them, Erica Dowell said. Looking out over this crowd and thinking about all the love that has just been poured out over my mom, my dad and I for Lucas in the last four days, I believe even more strongly now that what I said to him then was the truth. I said, Lucas, you already do that. She also expressed gratitude to the VSP for their outpouring of support to the family. I can tell you that it has just made us more proud of the work that he did and the family he chose to join, she said. Dowells body was transported in a tactical vehicle to St. James Lutheran Church Cemetery. State troopers, deputies and police officers from numerous Virginia agencies, as well as troopers from across the country, including as far away as Utah, Arizona, California, and Washington also attended the services. Officers from major cities, such as Chicago, Dallas and New York, were also present. Capt. Thornell King with the Georgia State Patrol and three other troopers from the Peach State traveled to Chilhowie to support Dowells family. Although we may wear a different uniform, we are all one brotherhood, said King, referring to a common sentiment among attendees Saturday. All of our blood runs warm and red through our veins. Were just here to show support. Anytime we have a loss like this, its such a tragedy. King noted that 15 law enforcement officers have so far been killed in the line of duty this year, including three in Georgia. Its always a tragedy when we lose a brother, said King, commander of the GSP honor guard. Georgia State Patrol came down to show their support for the family of our brother. King said the honor guard travels across the country to attend law enforcement funerals and support the families. Im all the way from the Florida/Georgia line, but I would have driven anywhere to be here today to be with the family, King said. Four troopers from the Tennessee Highway Patrols Fall Branch office also attended the service, said Sgt. Nathan Hall. Its like one of our own, said Hall, who attended service at the church and then traveled in the procession to the cemetery. The troopers from Tennessee gave Dowells family a THP flag, a challenge coin and a shadow box, Hall said. Several troopers from New York, including four who previously worked in Virginia, attended the services. Among those was Trooper Romel Arias, who currently serves in West Chester, New York, but previously worked in the Virginia Beach/Norfolk area with VSP from around 2011 to 2014. It was good to be back in Virginia, he said, and to support a fellow brother in blue. Arias said it was good to see so many fellow law enforcement officers from so many different areas. Im here to support my brother, he said, because were all bonded. We are all brothers. We bond together. Pain suffered by one is felt by all, Arias said, and the loss of a brother is felt most deeply of all. You feel the pain. You feel the hurt, he said. We are here to extend our condolences to the family. I bring those condolences from all the brothers in New York. Numerous state dignitaries were in Chilhowie for the troopers funeral, including Gov. Ralph Northam and his wife Pam Northam; Virginia Chief of Staff Clark Mercer; Virginia Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security Brian Moran; Virginia Deputy Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security Ryant Washington; and Virginia Deputy Attorney General Victoria Pearson. Other attendees included Virginia Sen. Bill Carrico, R-Galax; Virginia Del. Ronnie R. Campbell, R-Rockbridge County; and U.S. Rep. Morgan Griffith, R-Salem. Carrico and Campbell are former state troopers. Dozens of Chilhowie residents lined the streets Saturday to see the procession travel through town. Its just a sad day, said resident Kathy Evans, who stood along Lee Highway with her husband, Morris Evans. Kathy Evans said when her son served in Iraq in the military she often worried for his safety. I feel for his mother, she said. Like many Chilhowie residents, the couple, whose youngest daughter attended school with Dowell, placed their hands over their hearts as countless law enforcement vehicles passed. They stood a short distance from the Chilhowie Fire Department, which waved a large American flag over the two-lane highway. Messages of encouragement and condolences were displayed on message boards throughout Chilhowie and other parts of the county the last several days. Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Support local journalism We are making critical coverage of the coronavirus available for free. Please consider subscribing so we can continue to bring you the latest news and information on this developing story. Betty Faye Isham, 90, of Greenville, passed away on June 20, 2021, in Greenville. Funeral services will be 2 p.m. Wednesday, June 23, 2021, at Coker-Mathews Funeral Home Chapel with Mr. Amos Lowry officiating. Visitation will be Noon until service time at the funeral home. Interment will be Note: We've recently updated our online systems. If you can't login please try resetting your password. You must login with an email address. If you don't have an email associated with your account email customercare@heraldandnews.com for help creating one. Xem them ... Tin bai cuoi cung Khong con du lieu e load We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on! Submit Published on 2019/02/10 | Source /Newsis Fares of buses running between Seoul and its satellite cities are expected to rise soon after taxi fares on Feb. 16. Advertisement The reason is that bus companies with more than 300 workers will have to recruit more drivers and shoulder higher personnel costs as they implement a shorter working week in July. The Seoul, Incheon and Gyeeonggi Province governments have been discussing the matter with a view to introducing the new fares by July, according to sources on Thursday. Bus fares in the Seoul area last rose in June 2015 and normally increase every three years. Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province have raised public transport fares simultaneously since 2007 when they introduced an integrated public transport fare system. Fares are estimated to go up by W200-300 (US$1=W1,126). The largest increase so far has been W150. Currently, the base adult fare per ride is W1,200 in Seoul and W1,250 in Incheon and Gyeonggi. Published on 2019/02/10 | Source /Newsis Tour operator Hyundai Asan said Thursday that it is celebrating its 20th anniversary in North Korea's Mt. Kumgang resort on Friday. Advertisement The company is sending 22 executives and staff to the scenic mountain resort by bus for the two-day event. Hyundai Asan, which pioneered package tours to Mt. Kumgang, also sent staff there last November to mark their 20th anniversary. Hyundai Group chairwoman Hyun Jeong-eun will not take part in the event this time, and it is unclear if any North Korean officials have been invited. A Hyundai Asan staffer said Thursday, "North Korea has often informed us only on the day of the ceremony who will attend". It contacted North Korea through the inter-Korean liaison office on Jan. 25 for permission to host the event. The authorization raised hopes that the tours can resume in the foreseeable future. They were stopped when a North Korean soldier shot a South Korean tourist there in 2008. But a Unification Ministry official said Thursday that the ceremony has "no relation with a resumption of package tours to Mt. Kumgang". Read this article in Korean After leaving the Army, he joined the now-defunct AM radio station WAYE as a morning disc jockey. He had a technique that he would parody characters taken from the local political scene or sport scene and concoct stories about them that were really intriguing and funny, very funny, Mr. Feingold said. He was very good at what he did. Haiti - Politic : The Deputy Jacob Latortue condemns police brutality While Michel-Ange Gedeon, the Director General of the National Police of Haiti (PNH) congratulated the police offciers for their mastery and professionalism, https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-26881-haiti-demonstrations-message-from-the-director-general-of-the-pnh.html , the Gonaives Deputy, Jacob Latortue (AAA), seems to have a very different reading of police behavior. In a note dated February 8, 2019 "The Deputy Jacob LATORTUE (AAA) strongly condemns the acts of brutality perpetrated by agents of the PNH against the citizens of the city of independence who raise themselves legitimately against misery, the dearness of life by chanting hostile words against the President of the Republic. He deplores these acts of brutality that occurred on the day of February 8, 2019, which caused several deaths and more than a dozen wounded by bullets https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-26885-haiti-flash-2nd-day-of-violent-demonstrations-at-least-3-dead-and-many-injured.html . He warns the police against any political instrumentalisation. He presents his sympathies to the victims and their families and takes the opportunity to ask the Government Commissioner of the jurisdiction of Gonaives to put public action in motion against the perpetrators of these acts that revolt the popular conscience and to defer them in front of the jurisdiction of the Criminal Court to be judged in accordance with the provisions of laws governing the matter. The restoration of peace in the city is at this price !" See also : https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-26885-haiti-flash-2nd-day-of-violent-demonstrations-at-least-3-dead-and-many-injured.html https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-26881-haiti-demonstrations-message-from-the-director-general-of-the-pnh.html https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-26877-haiti-politic-the-radical-opposition-inspired-by-the-venezuelan-example.html https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-26875-haiti-flash-important-damage-at-least-4-dead-and-21-wounded-during-the-demonstrations.html HL/ HaitiLibre Haiti - Security : Armored vehicle against tap-tap, 4 dead and 9 wounded On Saturday, February 9, at around 8 pm, an UN Armored Personnel Carrier (APC) from the Minujusth deployed as reinforcements hit a tap-tap on the Canape-Vert road, killing 4 people and injuring 9 police offciers, 4 of them seriously. According to preliminary information, Inspector Gary Desrosier, spokesperson for the National Police of Haiti (PNH), informs that an officer of the PNH and 8 United Nations police officers who have been wounded, are currently under medical care. The police officer of the PNH and 3 United Nations police offciers would be seriously injured, 2 of them would be in a coma. Helen La Lime, Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Haiti, offers her condolences to the families of the victims and her sympathies to the wounded. "I am deeply saddened by the loss of life and wish to present my sincere condolences to the families and friends of the deceased as well as express my sympathies to the injured," said La Lime, emphasizing "I have requested that the circumstances of the accident be thoroughly investigated." HL/ S/ HaitiLibre A mid-level restaurant, like Chilis, Red Robin or Panera. Light industry to keep jobs in the area. More retail so we don't have to go to Tucson. Better and more mass transit options. All of the above. Vote View Results Jeffrey Bezos, the chief executive of Amazon.com and the world's richest man, has been a constant in headlines over the past few weeks - although not necessarily for either of the attributes listed here. Last month, the National Enquirer published texts and photos exposing Bezos' extramarital affair with former television host Lauren Sanchez. The brazen leak of the intimate messages prompted Bezos to order an investigation into whether the supermarket tabloid had been politically motivated. On Thursday, in an escalation of events, Bezos, who also owns The Washington Post, published a bombshell Medium post accusing the National Enquirer's parent company, American Media, Inc., of extortion and blackmail. He included emails from AMI lawyers who demanded Bezos publicly state that the supermarket tabloid's coverage did not represent a political hit job. If he didn't, they wrote, the National Enquirer would publish additional explicit photos, including selfies showing Bezos's private parts. "These communications cement AMI's long-earned reputation for weaponizing journalistic privileges, hiding behind important protections, and ignoring the tenets and purpose of true journalism," a defiant Bezos wrote in the post. "Of course I don't want personal photos published, but I also won't participate in their well-known practice of blackmail, political favors, political attacks, and corruption. I prefer to stand up, roll this log over, and see what crawls out." Predictably, the blog post lit the internet on fire. Other media outlets had a field day with headlines and borderline inappropriate puns, and the saga snagged the cold open spot on "Saturday Night Live" Feb. 9. However, AMI also now faces legitimate questions about whether its actions were not just sleazy but constituted a crime. On Friday, the company stated it would "thoroughly investigate" the claims made by Bezos but continued to insist it had done nothing legally wrong. On Sunday, Elkan Abramowitz, an attorney for AMI chairman David Pecker, appeared on ABC's "This Week" to double down on the company's assertion of innocence. "It absolutely is not extortion and not blackmail," Abramowitz told "This Week" host George Stephanopoulos. Instead, Abramowitz insisted, what AMI was doing was journalism. He also suggested it was Bezos who had threatened the tabloid by insinuating it was somehow being directed by the leaders of Saudi Arabia. "So that's why lawyers sit down and lawyers negotiate to try to resolve differences," Abramowitz said of the emails Bezos had published. "That's exactly what this was." Stephanopoulos pressed him on that point. "How is that journalism, though?" he asked. "If you believe the photos are newsworthy, how is it journalism to say we're not going to publish this if you give us something we want?" Abramowitz argued that the story of Bezos' affair with Sanchez was already "out there." "Is it journalism to decide not to print a story three times?" Pecker's lawyer said. "You can make journalistic decisions as to how many times you're going to write the same story. That's not the - the job of the prosecutors or anybody else to determine." ABC chief legal analyst Dan Abrams would later disagree on the show, noting AMI was threatening to publish photos that had not already been released. Whether that constituted legal blackmail or extortion was less clear. "The story was already out there. That's not the question," Abrams said. "The pictures weren't out there. The question is: Was this a clear threat to say, 'Unless you say what we want you to say, we're going to publish these photos that you don't want out there?' " Stephanopoulos also asked Abramowitz directly whether the source of the leaked texts was Michael Sanchez, Lauren Sanchez's brother, who has been a longtime supporter of President Donald Trump and Trump associate Roger Stone. Gavin de Becker, a security consultant heading Bezos's private investigation into the leaked messages, has confirmed that he is investigating Michael Sanchez and that "strong leads point to political motives," the HuffPost reported. On "This Week" Sunday, Abramowitz simply said that the leaker was "a reliable source" who had been feeding information to the National Enquirer for seven years and someone "that was well known to both Mr. Bezos and Miss (Lauren) Sanchez." He then said he could not confirm or deny the source - before contradicting himself and denying it could have been three entities who were not Michael Sanchez. "I'm not going to comment on what Michael Sanchez said," Abramowitz said. "I'm not permitted to tell you or confirm or deny who the source is. I can tell you it's not Saudi Arabia, it's not President Trump, it's not Roger Stone. But I cannot tell you who the source is." Abramowitz also sidestepped questions about whether AMI had violated a non-prosecution agreement by sending such emails to Bezos. The Post's Deanna Paul detailed the company's predicament last week: "Another wrinkle for AMI, which perhaps explains its angst - or as better-phrased by Bezos, 'about Mr. Pecker's apoplexy' - is its non-prosecution agreement. "After the media company admitted it paid former Playboy model Karen McDougal $150,000 before the 2016 election to silence her allegations about an affair with President Trump, it signed a cooperation agreement with federal prosecutors in September. "The document stipulated only that the company will not be prosecuted for the 'catch and kill' scenario and is contingent on AMI committing no other crimes. If the company's actions regarding Bezos meet the threshold of criminality, it would invalidate the cooperation agreement and limit the company's immunity. "This would put not only AMI but also Trump back under the microscope in his dealings with the media company." In closing his segment, Stephanopoulos questioned Abramowitz on whether AMI had engaged in a "pattern of practice" in threatening other people who were reporting on the company. After Bezos published his Medium post, Ronan Farrow, the Daily Beast and journalists with the Associated Press all stepped forward to say AMI had made similar threats against them. "I've never - never heard of any of those allegations," Abramowitz said. "I am not aware of any attempt by employees of AMI to blackmail or to commit any crime at all." --- Video Embed Code Video: The National Enquirer's parent company denies claims it used threats of lewd photos to attempt to extort Amazon CEO and Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos. Its not the first time American Media Inc., and it's chief executive, have been mired in controversy.(Blair Guild/The Washington Post) Embed code: Its a worthy objective: promoting responsibility in Middle East reporting. PRIMER is the acronym for this undertaking. PRIMER-Connecticut, a nonprofit organization, monitors Connecticut newspapers and other media and alerts its members when inaccurate, misleading, and biased statements are made about Israel. These PRIMER activists write letters to the editor intended to provide factual information that refutes any erroneous statements. All one must do is sit down at the computer and type a few words; the rest will flow, Fairfield resident Mark Fishman says, quoted by Connecticut Jewish Ledger staff writer Cindy Mindell in a 2014 article. Mindell reports that Fishman, president of PRIMER-Connecticut, was an unseasoned letter-writer when he first became involved in the organization in 2002, as part of a letter-writing project of the Anti-Defamation League. Fishman was elected president of the organization in 2012, replacing longtime PRIMER-Connecticut president Alan Stein. I recognized the responsibility of every American Jew to take action to defend Israel in whatever way we can, Mindell quotes Fishman as saying. As an American Jew who feels a deep connection with this Land of Israel Eretz Israel and has long been active in the Greenwich Jewish community, supporting many Jewish institutions including the Greenwich Jewish Federation, and who has been honored by organizations that include Hadassah, Chabad of Greenwich, and the Anti-Defamation League, shouldnt I also support PRIMER? Truth is, Id never heard of PRIMER-Connecticut until my column became the subject of its attacks. I could have responded, but chose to ignore the periodic assaults. However, I cannot ignore Fishmans Jan. 18 letter to the editor, which crosses a line. In that letter, Fishman makes inaccurate and misleading statements about my Jan. 13 column, engaging in the very type of distortion that PRIMER seeks to refute when it comes to the characterization of Israel. The subject of my column was the failure of Senate Republicans, led by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, to address the then ongoing Trump government shutdown, choosing instead to make a Middle East foreign policy bill Senate Bill 1 their first priority. My argument in a nutshell: Senate Republicans could end the shutdown immediately, if so inclined. But youd never know this from Fishmans distortion of my column. He makes it appear that the main focus was the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel. Making no mention of the government shutdown, he completely mischaracterizes the column. Worse, he borders on defamation when he portrays me as a supporter of the BDS movement. Members of my Greenwich Jewish community who didnt read the column might falsely conclude Im not supportive of Israel. Let me state emphatically: I unequivocally oppose the BDS movement. Ive never expressed support of any kind for BDS. Its therefore inexcusable for Fishman to put me in the position of refuting false accusations. My column did not express my personal views regarding BDS, or the anti-BDS legislation thats part of Senate Bill 1. So let my position now be clear. While I adamantly oppose the BDS movement, I also oppose the Combatting BDS Act of 2019. I oppose this anti-BDS legislation for the same reason as the American Civil Liberties Union. It enables government interference with the First Amendment protections that all Americans should cherish. Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), speaking on the Senate floor, correctly called the bill state-sponsored discrimination against disfavored political expression. Just as I, and Mr. Fishman, have our First Amendment right to speak and act in shared opposition to the BDS movement, those who support the movement are equally protected to speak and act without government interference, whether at the federal, state, county, or local levels. Courts in two states (Kansas and Arizona) have already struck down such legislation as unconstitutional. Fishman begins his letter by accusing me of having let myself be led astray by the rhetoric of the far left. He ends in condescending fashion: These issues are complex and, unfortunately, subject to distortion. Sadly, Ms. Rutgers has fallen prey to the misstatements. No, Mr. Fishman, I havent fallen prey to anything. And yes, the issues are complex, therefore inviting differing points of view. Meanwhile, the solutions remain elusive. Sadly, PRIMER does a disservice to Israel when it engages in deliberate distortion and defamation. Alma Rutgers served in Greenwich town government for 25 years. Her blog is at blog.ctnews.com/rutgers/ GREENWICH North Mianus students learned a fun lesson about diversity and empathy when a seasoned guide dog and a puppy-in-training visited the school. Alan Gunzburg, a regular at North Mianus who helps during math lessons, with his guide dog, Kili, in tow, visited the school Friday morning with Patty Doyle, a volunteer puppy-raiser and her new pooch, Moppet. The children asked Gunzburg and Doyle questions about the guide dogs and got a chance to pet Kili, who laid still, and Moppet, who was in a playful mood, chomping on a bone and a chew toy. A number of students with special needs are integrated into the classroom, kindergarten teacher Valeri Caro said. Such presentations by Gunzburg, who has a disability, and Doyle, whose work raising dogs supports others with disabilities, helps students understand more about diversity, she said. It is good, in kindergarten, to see these kinds of differences, she said. First-grader Ella Hayes said she learned that whenever she sees a dog she would like to pet, she must first ask the owner. Guide dogs are important because they help people who need help, said Ella, who has a half-beagle, half-pug at home. Guide dogs have been around for 90 years, but the relationship between dogs and their masters has changed significantly over the decades, Gunzburg said. Back then, the animals obeyed because men were men and dogs were dogs, he said. Now, its because I have treats, he said. It has changed the whole dynamic. Raising the dogs is easy, and volunteers who want to join the effort are not required to have owned a dog in the past, Doyle said. She volunteers through Guiding Eyes, a New York-based organization that is always looking for more volunteers and puppy raisers, she said. More information about Guiding Eyes can be found at https://www.guidingeyes.org/. jo.kroeker@hearstmediact.com Actor Rob Lowe was skewered on social media because of a now-deleted tweet in which he said Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., "would bring a whole new meaning to 'Commander in 'Chief' " - a jab at the senator for claiming to be Native American. The tweet came shortly after Warren formally launched her presidential bid Saturday. Lowe deleted the tweet a few hours later, saying "some peeps got upset" at his joke. On Sunday morning, he talked about the country's polarization and what he thinks causes it. "Observation: many polarizing politicians actually LIKE each other, privately help each other, then publicly stir the pot, playing for votes. That's fine. Only thing wrong with it is when we buy it whole cloth, breeding intolerance, anger and total inability to laugh at ANYTHING," he wrote on Twitter. Some critics on social media pointed out that Lowe did not apologize. On Saturday, Twitter users pounced, with some resurrecting a 30-year-old sex-tape scandal that nearly ended Lowe's career. Lowe, best known for playing Sam Seaborn in "The West Wing" and Chris Traeger in "Parks and Recreation," wasn't the only celebrity to mock Warren after she announced her candidacy. "Today Elizabeth Warren, sometimes referred to by me as Pocahontas, joined the race for President," President Donald Trump tweeted Saturday. "Will she run as our first Native American presidential candidate, or has she decided that after 32 years, this is not playing so well anymore? See you on the campaign TRAIL, Liz!" Many saw the president's tweet, which earned an exclamation-point heavy kudos from his eldest son, as a mockery of the Trail of Tears, the forced removal of Native Americans from their homeland under President Andrew Jackson. Warren has struggled to quell a controversy over her claims of Native American identity. Earlier this month, she apologized privately to the Cherokee Nation over DNA test results indicating that she has Native American ancestry. The test angered Native American leaders, who said tribal citizenship is deeply rooted in culture, heritage and laws, not just blood. Last week, The Washington Post reported that the Massachusetts senator listed "American Indian" as her race on a registration card for the State Bar of Texas 32 years ago. Warren apologized again, this time publicly, "for furthering confusion on tribal sovereignty and tribal citizenship and harm that resulted." Warren's 45-minute speech Saturday in Lawrence, Massachusetts, steered clear of references to the controversy as she sought to focus the conversation on her economic message. All of this comes amid a separate race controversy boiling over in Virginia, where white politicians found themselves grappling with the painful history of blackface. Gov. Ralph Northam, D, faces widespread calls for his resignation after a racist photo from his medical school yearbook surfaced a week ago. The photograph shows two people, one in blackface and another in Ku Klux Klan robes. Northam, who has vowed to stay in office, said he wasn't in the picture, although he initially took responsibility for it and could not explain why the photograph was on his yearbook page. Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring, D, also admitted to and apologized for wearing blackface in the past. --- The Washington Post's Annie Linskey, Amy Gardner and Gregory Schneider contributed to this report. Moore, who grew up in the Raleigh area, has nearly 20 years of experience managing restaurants and knows the business of organizing special functions from top to bottom. He, too, spent a lifetime of holidays and summers surrounded by historic architecture and artifacts. A descendant of Bergaw, North Carolina founding father, Midas Mingum Moore, he enjoyed the M.M. Moore home as a playground. The house has four bedrooms, four bathrooms, and a wrap-around gray porch. Its like a family museum with portraits from the early 1900s. Its where our family has always lived, Moore, 39, said. The historic Moore home is so picturesque, in fact, that it was used in the 1990s as the setting for the Hallmark film, The Summer of Ben Tyler. I thought that was what everyone was used to, then I realized how blessed I was to have that connection to ancestors. I always wanted an old house, Moore said. Prepping the Boxley for upcoming events, including his Nov. 16 wedding to Vaughan, means Moore has stripped ivy from a camophlaged pergola and chimney and power washed and rebuilt weathered porches and decking. As a white, middle-aged U.S. male, I was amazed to learn recently that Im also actually part of an at-risk group of people. You probably know that people in my group historically have enjoyed and continue to enjoy privileges in our society simply because of our age, race and gender (it isnt fair, yet its true). But in the last few years people in my group have also been killing themselves at appalling rates. According to an NBC News report, American men make up the bulk of suicides nationwide. Victims of death by suicide are overwhelmingly white (7 out of 10), male and between the ages of 45 and 65. What in the world is going on? Researchers say that the vast majority of these suicides are being committed by white men who have not received education beyond high school, and who have fallen behind in their ability to find reliable, well-paid employment, and this in turn has made it difficult to for them find spouses or partners. Mix together depression, alcohol and the easy availability of guns and you have an especially lethal combination. (Note: Women attempt suicide more often than men, but men tend to use more consistently deadly means.) However, I saw almost no coverage of the ripple effects the shutdown had on so many people who dont receive a paycheck straight from the federal government. Government contractors, suppliers and people who already depend on charities suffered, too, and for some, its going to be a lot harder for them to recover from the government closure. When the government didnt send out paychecks to some of its workers for a month, it also did not pay some of its contracts with private businesses. This is a big deal a 2017 report by the Volcker Alliance, The True Size of Government, says that for every federal employee, there are more than two workers paid by contracted businesses or grants. If a private business isnt making money, theres no money to pay those workers. Government employees will be paid for the time the government was shut down. People who work for contractors may never make up that lost salary. Losing a month of pay is a big deal for any family. On top of that, special loan programs, food banks, free admissions and other kind gestures to ease the burden for federal employees generally didnt apply to people who dont have federal identification cards. In 1841, Upper Canada and Lower Canada were proclaimed united under an Act of Union passed by the British Parliament. In 1863, showman P.T. Barnum staged the wedding of General Tom Thumb and Mercy Lavinia Warren both little persons in New York City. In 1936, Nazi Germanys Reichstag passed a law investing the Gestapo secret police with absolute authority, exempt from any legal review. In 1949, Arthur Millers play Death of a Salesman opened at Broadways Morosco Theater with Lee J. Cobb as Willy Loman. In 1967, the 25th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, dealing with presidential disability and succession, was ratified as Minnesota and Nevada adopted it. In 1968, U.S. figure skater Peggy Fleming, 19, won Americas only gold medal of the Winter Olympic Games in Grenoble, France, in the ladies singles event. (Gabriele Seyfert of East Germany earned the silver medal, Hana Maskova of Czechoslovakia, the bronze.) In 1992, boxer Mike Tyson was convicted in Indianapolis of raping Desiree Washington, a Miss Black America contestant. (Tyson served three years in prison.) When it comes to opt-in online surveys, you never really know what you are going to get, said Robert L. Santos, the chief methodologist at the Urban Institute, a research group. He noted that in 2013, the American Association for Public Opinion Research warned that researchers should avoid this method for estimating populations. The pet products association, which performs its survey every two years and had 22,000 respondents in 2016, used mail surveys until 2010 and thats when its ownership estimate jumped from 62 percent to 68 percent. Although its most recent report advises readers against direct comparisons between the mail and online data, its executive summary and news release do just that, touting record levels of pet-owning households and significant increases in dog ownership between 1988 and 2016. Anne Ferrante, APPAs senior vice president for member relations and business development, said the association believes the switch from mail to web was responsible for the large increase and added that researchers sought to combat bias by tracking which types of people completed the survey. The over time comparisons were highlighted because members wanted them, so we included it to ensure accuracy in data interpretation, she said. What its about: When Solomon wakes up in a filthy alley, he has no memory of where he is, how he got there, or even what his name is. But when hes confronted by an evil from another reality and has to defend a new-found friend, his memories slowly start to return. Now, he must recover the rest, and find a powerful weapon that will determine the fate of two worlds. Gerard Shields said the agency would launch an investigation into why a complete record of Thomas Webster IVs policing history was not sent to the public safety department when state officials were asked to consider granting the officer police powers in Maryland so he could join the force in the small Eastern Shore town. The investigation will not begin until the Maryland State Police complete its probe, Shields said. James McEachin, a chaplain with Corner Rock Ministries, said he attended the protest to make sure everyone stayed safe. Police have a duty to enforce the law, McEachin said, and the law still labels marijuana as an illegal substance. Smoking it in front of the police, he said, would be tantamount to tempting the devil. Note: We've recently updated our online systems. If you can't login please try resetting your password. You must login with an email address. If you don't have an email associated with your account email circulation@skagitpublishing.com for help creating one. Concise letters 250 words or fewer on topics of local interest will receive first consideration for publication. All letters are subject to editing for language and clarity. Mailing Address: Letters to the Editor, The Register & Bee, 700 Monument St., Danville, VA 24541 Letters submitted by mail must include the writer's name, signature, address and a daytime phone number. Fax: (434) 799-0595 Email: letters@registerbee.com Or submit a letter via our online form: Submit a letter Part of that strategy is to encourage attendees at Saturdays blood drive to sign up for the next one, which will be held Sept. 14. She said she wants to gather a group of regulars thatll participate in each event and then try to spur growth through them. Denmark, Sweden, Switzerland Give $14 Million To UN Aid For Eastern Ukraine By RFE/RL February 09, 2019 The governments of Denmark, Sweden, and Switzerland have announced they will pledge some $14 million over the next three years to a UN project to promote social cohesion and strengthen regional governance in eastern Ukraine. More than 10,300 people have died since fighting erupted in April 2014 in eastern Ukraine between Russia-backed separatists and Ukrainian forces. Thousands have been wounded and more than 1.5 million people have been internally displaced. In a press release on February 8 to announce the new initiative, the three states said the "breakdown in trust" in the conflict-hit region "can only be overcome by job creation, poverty alleviation, anti-corruption measures, law enforcement and judicial reform, and the promotion of human rights." "The trust of citizens in conflict-affected areas in governmental institutions will improve and they will feel safer if administrative, law enforcement, and security capacity are strengthened, and it becomes easier for them to access justice and environmental protection. This project will help to support these changes," said Victor Munteanu, the manager of the UN's Recovery and Peacebuilding Program (RPP). According to the press release, Denmark has pledged to contribute more than $9 million; Sweden $3 million; Switzerland $2 million. RPP has addressed priority needs in eastern Ukraine since the armed conflict erupted in the spring of 2014 after Russia seized Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula. According to the UN, the RPP is aimed at strengthening community security and social cohesion, supporting the economic recovery of conflict-affected communities. It also works to further decentralize and reform the health-care system in government-controlled areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. The RPP is being implemented by four United Nations agencies and is supported by the European Union, the European Investment Bank and the governments of Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, and Japan. Its total budget for 2019-2022 is over $50 million. Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/denmark-sweden- switzerland-give-14-million-to-un-aid-for- eastern-ukraine/29760738.html Copyright (c) 2019. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. Ukrainian President Vows To Push For EU, NATO Membership As He Launches Reelection Campaign February 09, 2019 Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko says Kyiv must join the European Union and NATO to protect itself from Russia as he officially launched his reelection campaign. Poroshenko, who is seeking a second five-year term in the March 31 vote, accused Moscow of planning to interfere in the election. Poroshenko also charged that Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to destroy Ukrainian independence and described the nation's presidential election as a "general battle for Ukraine." "Only full-fledged membership in the European Union and NATO can decisively and irrevocably guarantee our independence, national security, freedom, and well-being," Poroshenko told supporters in the capital on February 9. The 53-year-old Poroshenko, one of Ukraine's richest men, came to power in the aftermath of the pro-European Maidan protests that pushed Moscow-friendly President Viktor Yanukovych out in February 2014. He has vocally advocated closer integration with the West and criticized Russia following Moscow's seizure of Ukraine's Crimea region and amid a continuing war against Russia-backed separatists in the eastern region known as the Donbas. Recent polls indicate former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko and comedian Volodymyr Zelenskyy will be Poroshenko's closest rivals in the March 31 election. Ukrainian election officials said a record 44 candidates have registered to run in the election. Based on reporting by AP and dpa Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/ukrainian-president- vows-to-push-for-eu-nato-membership-as-he-launches -reelection-campaign/29760938.html Copyright (c) 2019. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. US-backed Fighters Launch Final Push to Defeat IS in Syria By VOA News February 09, 2019 U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces said Saturday that they had begun an assault against Islamic State to clear the last enclave the militant group controls in eastern Syria. Mustafa Bali, an SDF spokesman, tweeted Saturday, "#SDF started to move on to the last village remaining under jihadists' control. ... Village of Baghuz, which is the only remaining #ISIS pocket, will be cleared soon." "The battle is very fierce," Bali told The Associated Press. He did not say how long the SDF expected the battle to continue. The SDF, backed by U.S.-led coalition airstrikes, is fighting IS in a 4-square-kilometer area that includes Baghuz and is near the Iraqi border. SDF officials and the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights estimated there were about 3,000 battle-hardened IS jihadists, mostly foreigners, in the region. The observatory also estimated several hundred civilians remained in the area as well. Bali told the French news agency the SDF has "special units whose job it is to direct civilians to corridors they can cross" to safety. More than 23,000 Syrian civilians and foreign nationals fled eastern Syria this past week as the SDF, which includes Kurdish YPG militia fighters, prepared to move on IS in Deir el-Zour governorate, according to local officials and activists. The displaced residents, mostly women and children, have been placed in the Kurdish al-Hol camp in al-Hasakah governorate, in northeast Syria. The administrator of the camp, Nabil Hassan, told VOA that many of the women and children from the new wave of displacement this week were foreign nationals and family members of IS. SDF began an operation in September to rid Deir el-Zour of IS militants. The U.S.-backed fighters' advance has been slowed by fierce fighting from the IS militants. The civil war that has engulfed Syria began with Arab Spring protests in 2011. The United Nations estimates more than 400,000 Syrians have died since fighting began in 2011. More than 6 million Syrians have been displaced internally and about 5 million have sought refuge outside the country, with Turkey hosting nearly 3.5 million of them, according to the Brookings Institution. Rikar Hussein contributed to this report. US-led airstrikes claim 3 more civilian lives in Syria's Dayr al-Zawr Iran Press TV Sat Feb 9, 2019 04:30PM At least three civilians have lost their lives and several others sustained injuries when the US-led coalition purportedly fighting the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group conducted a series of airstrikes in Syria's embattled eastern province of Dayr al-Zawr. Local sources told Syria's official news agency SANA that the aerial attacks hit al-Tayyaneh town in the province on Saturday. The US-led coalition has been conducting airstrikes and operations against what are said to be Daesh targets inside Syria since September 2014 without any authorization from the Damascus government or a UN mandate. The military alliance has repeatedly been accused of targeting and killing civilians. It has also been largely incapable of achieving its declared goal of destroying Daesh. Syria has on numerous occasions condemned airstrikes by the US-led coalition, asking the UN to force Washington and its allies to put an end to their military intervention in the Arab country. On January 19, the Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, in two separate letters addressed to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and the former rotating president of the Security Council, Francisco Antonio Cortorreal, censured US-led coalition strikes conducted against al-Baghuz al-Tahtani village in Dayr al-Zawr province a day earlier, saying the US-led warplanes had targeted dozens of families fleeing from areas controlled by Daesh. Local sources, requesting anonymity, told SANA that 20 people were killed in the raid when US-led warplanes bombarded residential buildings in al-Baghuz al-Tahtani. "This new crime is in line with the criminal acts that the US-led coalition is perpetrating systematically and on a daily basis against Syrian people, and in flagrant violation of Syria's sovereignty and territorial integrity," said the letters. "The activities of this alliance are illegal as it has been formed outside the UN framework. Such acts have only contributed to the expansion of extremist terrorist organizations, especially Daesh. Cooperation and coordination between these terrorist groups and this alliance has been documented in numerous letters that [the] Syrian Arab Republic has sent to the Security Council," added the letters. The ministry also called on the UN Security Council to shoulder its responsibilities as regards to the establishment of international peace and security, and put an immediate halt to crimes against humanity that were being carried out by this "rogue" coalition against Syrian civilians and infrastructure. It also demanded that the Council take necessary measures to set up an international mechanism to punish the perpetrators of such crimes. Syrians protest presence of US, French troops in their country Meanwhile, hundreds of people have staged rallies in Syria's northern and eastern cities of Raqqah and Dayr al-Zawr in protest against the presence of American and French military forces there. The demonstrators set US and French flags on fire, and demanded the deployment of Syrian government troops in areas liberated from the clutches of foreign-sponsored Takfiri terrorists. They also reaffirmed their strong objection to the presence of US soldiers and all foreign troops in the Arab country. Syria has been gripped by foreign-backed militancy since March 2011. The Syrian government says the Israeli regime and its Western and regional allies are aiding Takfiri terrorist groups wreaking havoc in the country. Russia renews call for end of US military presence around Rukban camp IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency Moscow, Feb 9, IRNA -- Russia renewed its call for an end to the illegitimate US military presence in the area around al-Rukban camp on the Syrian-Jordanian border. Russia Today quoted the Russian Foreign Ministry as saying in a statement on Friday that Russia's stance on the situation in al-Rukban camp and the delivery of humanitarian aid to its inhabitants has not changed and it insists that the humanitarian problem in the camp cannot be solved separately, SANA reported. It stressed that the illegitimate U.S. military presence on the Syrian territory within the 55 km alleged "security zone" around the camp should end. The Ministry's statement pointed out that the humanitarian aid should reach those who need it, but not the "radicals", adding that Russia is waiting for a detailed report from the UN workers on the measures taken in this regard. 8072**1771 US State Department Confirms Pompeo Updated Congress on Khashoggi Killing Sputnik News 06:15 09.02.2019(updated 06:17 09.02.2019) WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo provided Congress with an update on journalist Jamal Khashoggi's killing, a State Department spokesperson told Sputnik. The White House came under fire earlier in the day when it appeared they would not meet Friday's congressional deadline on determining whether Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman ordered the killing of Khashoggi. "We have consulted and corresponded with Congress regularly since Jamal Khashoggi's October 2 killing. We can confirm that the Secretary provided an update today," the spokesperson said on Friday. "We will continue to consult with Congress and work to hold accountable those responsible for Jamal Khashoggi's killing." In October, US senators triggered a provision in the Global Magnitsky Act that gives the president 120 days to determine whether a foreign individual is responsible for extrajudicial killings and whether the US president intends to impose sanctions on that person. Earlier, when asked about making the deadline, a senior Trump administration official in a statement said: "the President maintains his discretion to decline to act on congressional committee requests when appropriate." In a press release on Thursday, UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial killings Agnes Callamard announced the findings of a probe into Khashoggi's death. Callamard said they concluded that Saudi government officials planned and carried out the murder of the journalist and undermined Turkey's investigation. The New York Times reported on Thursday, citing current and former US and foreign intelligence officials, that Salman had told a top aide in 2017 that he would use "a bullet" on Khashoggi if he did not return to Saudi Arabia and end his criticism of the government. On December 13, the US Senate passed a resolution that blames Salman for the murder of Khashoggi despite Riyadh's remarks rejecting such accusations. Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir reaffirmed on Friday the kingdom's position that there are no links between the murder and the crown prince. Khashoggi went missing on October 2 after he entered the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. Riyadh initially denied any knowledge of the journalist's whereabouts, but later admitted that Khashoggi had been killed with a drug injection and his body had been dismembered and taken out of the consulate. The Saudi authorities have charged 11 people with Khashoggi's murder. Sputnik Blaming MbS for Khashoggi's murder 'a red line': Top Saudi official Iran Press TV Sat Feb 9, 2019 07:48AM Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir says blaming the killing of Saudi dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi on Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman will be crossing "a red line." Speaking to reporters in Washington on Friday, Jubeir argued that the Saudi leadership could not be dictated on how to handle the murder case. "For anyone to think that they can dictate what we should do, what our leadership should do, is preposterous," he said. "Our leadership is a red line." However, Jubeir declined to comment specifically on a newspaper report that the crown prince in 2017 said he would use "a bullet" on the journalist. According to the New York Times on Thursday, the crown prince had told an aide a year before Khashoggi was killed that he would use "a bullet" on the journalist if he did not end his criticism of the government. Khashoggi was killed last October in a Saudi consulate in Istanbul, with the Times citing current and former US and foreign officials as saying that those comments had been made in 2017. Asked about the story, Jubeir said: "I can't comment on reports based on anonymous sources. We have seen in the past that many so-called reports based on intelligence sources have not panned out." Pressed by reporters if he rejected the crown prince having used the phrase in a conversation, Jubeir replied: "It's not about reject or not reject. We know that the crown prince did not order this." Jubeir said Saudi Arabia's trial of suspects in the case would show that it was a "rogue operation" committed by "officials of the Saudi government acting outside their authority." His remarks came as a UN-led inquiry into Khashoggi's murder concluded that evidence pointed to "a brutal and premeditated killing" by Saudi officials. US intelligence agencies had previously concluded that the heir to the Saudi throne must have at least had knowledge of the assassination plot. 'Trump may miss Khashoggi report deadline' On Friday, a senior administration official said the US president might not meet the deadline to report to Congress on the case. "The president maintains his discretion to decline to act on congressional committee requests when appropriate," the official said in an emailed statement. "The US Government will continue to consult with Congress and work to hold accountable those responsible for Jamal Khashoggi's killing." Juan Pachon, a spokesman for Senator Bob Menendez, said Trump was actually breaking the law by failing to send the report. "The administration's refusal to deal with this issue and keep Congress informed underscores the need to get to the bottom of what is motivating the Trump foreign policy," said Eliot Engel, chairman of the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee. Khashoggi a Washington Post columnist and a late but vocal critic of bin Salman was killed and his body was dismembered by a Saudi hit squad after being lured into the consulate in Istanbul on October 2, 2018. After weeks of outright denial, the Riyadh regime eventually acknowledged the murder but has attempted to shift the blame to bin Salman's underlings and away from the prince himself. US President Donald Trump insists that Washington-Riyadh ties are more important than establishing accountability for the murder. However, the Senate gave Trump 120 days until the end of February 8 to determine who was responsible for the death of Khashoggi and whether new sanctions should be imposed on Saudi Arabia. Trump declines to report to Congress on Khashoggi's killing Iran Press TV Sat Feb 9, 2019 03:19PM US President Donald Trump has ignored a deadline by Congress to determine who ordered the assassination of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi and whether he intends to impose sanctions on Riyadh, prompting an angry backlash on Capitol Hill. The Trump administration signaled on Friday it was unlikely to meet the congressional deadline, amid new revelations that Saudi Arabia's crown prince and de facto ruler spoke of going after the journalist "with a bullet." "Consistent with the previous administration's position and the constitutional separation of powers, the president maintains his discretion to decline to act on congressional committee requests when appropriate," a senior Trump administration official said. "The US Government will continue to consult with Congress and work to hold accountable those responsible for Jamal Khashoggi's killing," the US official added. Under a US law, the president had 120 days to report to Congress about designating and punishing Saudi officials responsible for the murder. The brutal murder of the journalist was met with widespread global condemnation and ruined the reputation of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, known in media as "MBS" , who is accused of having ordered the killing. The New York Times reported on Thursday that the Saudi crown prince had said a year before Kashoggi's death that he would use "a bullet" on Khashoggi if he did not return home and end his criticism of the government. Many members of Congress have publicly acknowledged that based on CIA assessments, they remained convinced that the Saudi prince was responsible for Khashoggi's killing. Members of Congress, including many of Trump's fellow Republicans as well as Democrats, have urged a strong response to Khashoggi's murder as well as the Saudi-led war against Yemen, which has led to a humanitarian crisis. A group of senators from both political parties on Thursday renewed their push to penalize Saudi Arabia, unveiled legislation to bar some arms sales and impose sanctions on those responsible for Khashoggi's death. "The administration's refusal to deal with this issue and keep Congress informed underscores the need to get to the bottom of what is motivating the Trump foreign policy," Eliot Engel, the Democratic chairman of the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, said in a statement. Trump has publicly said he is not concerned whether the Saudi prince was involved, arguing that the Saudi alliance with the US benefits Washington due to the kingdom's purchases of weapons and its hostility to Iran. Imran Khan to meet IMF chief for talks on Pakistan bailout Iran Press TV Sat Feb 9, 2019 04:45PM Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan is expected to meet the chief of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to discuss issues that have interrupted bailout negotiations, an official says. Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said on Saturday that Khan would meet IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde on the sidelines of a summit in Dubai on Sunday. "This will give us a chance to understand the IMF views and we will be able to give our version to (Lagarde)," Chaudhry said. The minister, who will accompany Khan to Dubai along with Finance Minister Asad Umar, said Pakistan wants any agreed bailout package to be its last such economic rescue by the Washington-based IMF. "The problem is not the (IMF) deal, the problem is the condition attached to the deal." "We don't want conditions that hurt Pakistan's growth prospects. We want a fair deal that can actually help Pakistan in the short term, without affecting our long-term economic goals." Officials had expected the talks to conclude last November but they have been delayed due to concerns on the side of the Pakistani government that the program could derail Khan's plans for his term in office. The IMF's demands could threaten Khan's campaign promise to build an Islamic welfare state. Last October, Khan said the country might need to return to the IMF to address its mounting balance of payments crisis and economic woes. Pakistan has in the meantime sought financial assistance from some so-called friendly countries to ease the pressure on its dwindling foreign currency reserves. Any IMF bailout would likely include conditions to curb government spending. Pakistan's growth expectations slashed for the current fiscal year to about four percent from six percent previously forecast. The country is seeking its 13th bailout since the late 1980s. Khan has repeatedly blamed the previous government for the economic situation and repeated a promise to recover billions of dollars he says corrupt officials have stashed abroad. "Pakistan is suffering huge internal and external debt ... caused by corruption of the former rulers." Pakistan navy's international Aman-19 exercise begins IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency Islamabad, Feb 9, IRNA -- The five-day naval exercise organized by Pakistan Navy, Aman-2019, in which 45 nations are taking part, has been kicked off in Pakistani port city of Karachi, state media reported. AMAN 19 formally commenced at Pakistan Navy Dockyard, with a colorful flag hoisting ceremony. Ships of the participating navies, observers, foreign diplomats and a large number of Pakistan Navy personnel attended the event. In his message Pakistan Naval Chief Admiral Zafar Mahmood Abbasi said threats to maritime security increasingly emanate from contemporary asymmetric challenges that have deeply impacted the maritime environment. AMAN-19 is a multinational Naval Exercise conducted biennially by Pakistan Navy since 2007. The exercise is based on Pakistan Navy led initiative to bring in world navies under one umbrella for collaborative peace and security in the maritime domain. The current exercise, 6th in the series has a growing number of participants. This year 45 nations are participating through Ships, Aircraft, Special Operating Forces, Observers and Speakers. One of the key events of AMAN-19 other than sea exercises, is 'International Maritime Conference' spanned over three days, being organized by National Centre for Maritime Policy Research (NCMPR). 272**1420 The science is getting better and better, and research is getting more clear, that usage of alternative substratematerial other than oyster shellscould be the solution to restoring the oyster population of the bay, said Delegate Stephen Lafferty, D-Baltimore County, the primary sponsor of the emergency bill. Libyan National Army Planes Carry Out Airstrikes Near El Feel Oilfield - Reports Sputnik News 18:11 09.02.2019(updated 20:13 09.02.2019) The reports about the airstrike come amid an operation that the Libyan National Army (LNA) launched on 15 January aimed at destroying local terror groups and establishing control over oil fields in the southwestern part of the country. The al Hadath TV station reported Saturday that warplanes of the LNA had struck several targets near El Feel; however, no damage was reported at the oil field. According to Reuters, citing a field engineer, there were at least four airstrikes. He reportedly called them "a warning" directed at Ali Kennah, the commander of the Sebha military zone, appointed by Prime Minister Fayez Seraj last week. Addressing the incident, the Government of National Accord (GNA) announced that it would appeal to the UN over the issue. Earlier on Friday, the LNA declared a no-flight zone over the south of the country, threatening to intercept or even down aircraft that fail to comply. El Feel is located near the El Sharara oil field, one of the biggest in the North African country. Previously, the Government of National Accord, headquartered in Tripoli, sent their military forces to this part of Libya. According to various reports, this resulted in clashes between the pro-GNA local militia, and the LNA units. The country has been ravaged by conflict since long-time leader Muammar Gaddafi was overthrown in 2011. There are two major forces: the UN-backed Government of National Accord, led by Fayez Seraj, while the Tobruk-based parliament in the east is cooperating with the Libyan National Army, loyal to Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar. Sputnik Iraq Faces Challenges to Make Society Whole Again By Lisa Schlein February 09, 2019 The International Committee of the Red Cross reports the Iraqi government faces enormous challenges in renovating its battered country and rebuilding the trust of its population after many years of bruising warfare. Iraq's big urban battles are at an end. But the ferocity of fighting in places such as Falluja and Mosul have resulted in a level of destruction and mass suffering that will be hard to repair. The International Committee of the Red Cross reports 1.8 million people remain displaced within Iraq more than a year after the end of major combat operations, with nearly one in three still living in camps. ICRC President, Peter Maurer recently visited the cities of Mosul, Baghdad and Erbil. He says he was shocked by the magnitude of destruction he saw. He warns the social scars that now run deep in society will be extremely difficult to heal. "In the aftermath of the war, there are still tensions in the society, which makes it very difficult to reconcile the Sunni and Shia and different ethnic and religious communities, which have been suffering at different periods of the conflict and different places of the conflict," said Maurer. Maurer says the weakest members of society--the women, the children and the elderly are the biggest victims. He says it will be difficult for them to return to their homes and resume a normal life. This, not only because of the physical damage, but the psychological trauma inflicted by the intensity of the war. He says a major step toward reconciliation lies in clarifying the fate of hundreds of thousands of people still missing after decades of different rounds of conflict in Iraq. He says this issue must be tackled head on so people can alleviate their suffering by finally knowing what has happened to their loved ones. Iran Shows Off New Underground Missile Factory, Rockets and Warheads Sputnik News 00:39 10.02.2019(updated 00:45 10.02.2019) During a showcase on Thursday, Tehran shared rare footage of a secretive underground complex where Iranian missiles are being built. Iran's top military officials praised their country's missile program, vowing to continue its development despite objections from the West, reported by RT. Officials have unveiled their newest weapon and, in an unprecedented move, showed off a subterranean factory, without disclosing the exact location. The facility was described by the Iranian media as an "underground city", with footage showing vast corridors full of different missile parts at different stages of assembly. Workers also were captured on video carrying out a variety of tasks, from spinning nuts to fine-tuning electronic systems. The videos revealed a new missile called Dezful, which is said to be the next generation version of the Zolfaghar ballistic missile. The rocket is believed to have a range of 1,000 kilometres and has "twice" the destructive power, according to Iranian media. Footage of new missile tests was also released by the media, which were said to have been successful. "Displaying this missile production facility deep underground is an answer to Westerners who think they can stop us from reaching our goals through sanctions and threats," Iran's Revolutionary Guard Commander Major General Mohammad Ali Jafari said during the presentation. "Europeans talk of limiting our defensive capability while they have the audacity [to allow] their offensive power to be used to attack innocent people all over the world," he added. Jafari's comments came after the EU Council on Monday released a statement saying it is "gravely" concerned by Tehran's "ballistic missile activity," urging the country to "refrain" from developing it as Iran unveiled a new homegrown cruise missile, said to have a range of over 1,350 kilometres. Sputnik Iraq reiterates opposition to US sanctions against Iran: Parliament speaker Iran Press TV Sat Feb 9, 2019 06:36PM Iraqi Parliament Speaker Mohammed al-Halbusi reiterates his country's opposition to sanctions imposed by the United States against Iran. During a meeting with Iranian Ambassador to Baghdad Iraj Masjedi on Saturday, Halbusi said Iraq had to meet its energy needs by importing gas and electricity from Iran but the US sanctions had created problems in this regard. Iran on Friday signed an agreement to extend exports of 1,200 megawatts of electricity to neighboring Iraq. The deal was inked by the managing director of Iran's state-run Organization for Management of Electric Power Generation and Transmission (Tavanir), Mohammad Hassan Motevalizadeh, and the Iraqi deputy electricity minister in Tehran. Iraq is the biggest importer of electricity from Iran. It needs more than 23,000 megawatts of electricity to meet its domestic demand but years of war following the 2003 US invasion have left its power infrastructure in tatters and a deficit of some 7,000 megawatts. The top Iraqi parliamentarian further said that Iran and Iraq had played a leading role in promoting stability and security in the region. Halbusi lauded Iran's key and unforgettable role in helping Iraq fight against terrorism and expressed hope that Tehran would continue its support for Baghdad in the reconstruction plan of the war-stricken country. He said the Iraqi government and parliament attached importance to strengthening relations with Iran in various fields. The Iranian ambassador, for his part, said the "cruel" US sanctions had definitely created problems, but the Islamic Republic managed to make great achievements in defensive, scientific and economic sectors by relying on domestic resources. Masjedi commended Iraq's firm stance on Washington's unilateral sanctions against Iran. He expressed hope that Tehran and Baghdad would further develop cooperation in all areas and voiced the Islamic Republic's readiness to help Iraq in its reconstruction projects. Back in January, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif commended Iraq's positive stance on the promotion of ties with Iran, saying the two countries had managed to foil US bids to sabotage mutual relations. "After [achieving] victory against Daesh, some countries, including the US, have created certain problems in the way of the two countries' cooperation, but fortunately, they were defused thanks to the wisdom of the two countries' officials," Zarif told reporters upon his arrival in the Iraqi capital. US threatens retaliation if companies tap Iran trade vehicle IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency Tehran, Feb 9, IRNA -- Companies using a European initiative meant to facilitate trade with Iran face US retaliation, President Donald Trump's envoy in Brussels said in a warning that casts even greater doubts about the plan's effectiveness in countending with US sanctions. "Anyone actually using it to trade on anything other than humanitarian activity is going to be sanctioned by the United States," US Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland said in a Feb. 7 interview. "We'll find them and sanction them and they won't be doing any business with the United States." The threat of US action means that the so-called special purpose vehicle "will sit there and will be little used," Sondland said, adding that it's a "fig leaf" the European Union offered to the Islamic Republic to salvage the Iran nuclear deal after Trump pulled the US out of the accord and reinstated sanctions, Bloomberg reported. Germany, France and the UK are shareholders of the SPV, which was unveiled last month and is called the Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges. The initiative is the cornerstone of the EU's effort to keep Iran from quitting the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which was signed in 2015 and was aimed at constraining the nation's nuclear activities. The US pulled out of the deal in May. Since the US left the nuclear accord, the deal's remaining powers--China, France, Germany, Russia and the UK--have struggled to provide the sanctions relief promised when Iran agreed to limits on its nuclear activities. The mechanism launched by the European nations had faced delays and skepticism that it can successfully persuade companies to trade. The European action inflamed tensions with the US, which called the SPV an attempt to evade its "maximum pressure" campaign on Iran. But the importance of the American market place calls into question whether international business will risk using the new vehicle. 8072**1771 Iran Army operationalizes new drones IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency Tehran, Feb 9, IRNA -- The Islamic Republic of Iran Army's Ground Force has made new drones operational, the commander of the Ground Forces of the Islamic Republic Army said. Speaking to IRNA on Saturday, Brigadier General Kiumars Heidari said during the recent military drills, which were held in Isfahan on January 25-26, the Islamic Republic of Iran Army's Ground Force unveiled its new capabilities. He added that new capabilities have been added to helicopters and artillery units. The Army's Ground Force has always followed up reinforcing defense power and will spare no effort in that case, he noted. Armored units, artillery, rapid response, mechanized Infantry, martial engineering, telecommunications, and airborne, UAVs and Airborne units, with the support of the Islamic Republic Army's Air Force fighters, had participated in the "Authority- 97" exercise. In the first stage of the exercise, after reconnaissance of UAVs and airborne helicopters, the 55th Airborne Brigade and the rapid reaction Brigade 25 fully-equipped entered the region with helicopters, and in addition to identification, they cleared and destroyed the enemy's elements, equipment and fortifications. The Final stage of the Iranian Army Ground Force drills, dubbed as 'Eghtedar-e- 97' (Authority- 97), started in the central province of Isfahan on Saturday. The event was held with the attendance of the Commander-in-Chief of the Islamic Republic Army, Major General Abdolrahim Mousavi. The drills started on Friday. 'Eghtedar-e- 97' Spokesman Brigadier General Nouzar Nemati earlier said portable and stable artilleries targeted enemies' positions in 10-30 km distances with precision-guided and intelligent shells. 9376**1420 Trump: Hanoi will host second summit with North Korea's Kim Iran Press TV Sat Feb 9, 2019 02:07AM US President Donald Trump says he will meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Hanoi, Vietnam, on February 27 and 28. Trump made the announcement in a tweeted message on Friday, describing a meeting his representatives had in North Korea with their counterparts as "very productive." US special representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun had held three days of talks in Pyongyang to make preparations for the summit, according to the State Department. In another tweet later, Trump said that North Korea "will become a different kind of Rocket - an Economic one!" In their first summit last year, Trump and Kim reached a vague denuclearization agreement. The ensuing talks between the two sides have had little progress since then. North Korea has complained that the US has done little to reciprocate for its actions so far to dismantle some weapons facilities and freeze its weapons testing. Pyongyang has denounced what it called US "gangster-like behavior", saying Washington has betrayed the spirit of the June summit by making unilateral demands on the complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization, while keeping the sanctions in place. Chinese ships participate as multinational naval exercise kicks off in Pakistan Global Times By Wang Bozun in Karachi Source:Globaltimes.cn Published: 2019/2/9 15:05:05 The sixth Pakistan-led multinational maritime naval drills, Aman 19, kicked off on Friday at the Pakistan Navy Dockyard in Karachi with a colorful flag hoisting ceremony, with navies and observers from 46 countries including China, Russia and the US participating in the five-day exercise. China's People's Liberation Army Navy (PLA Navy), which has participated in all previous Aman exercises, arrived at the Karachi Navy Dockyard on Thursday. A commander of the PLA Navy who requested anonymity said the PLA Navy sent two warships from the 998 Fleet to participate in the exercise, which consists of a Kunlunshan amphibious transport dock and the supply ship Luomahu. The two Chinese warships and more than 500 Chinese naval soldiers will engage in joint exercises, which include anti-piracy exercises and maritime interception. The exercises "provide not only medium security challenges but also enhance interoperability among navies at different levels of technological power to come together and secure a safe and sustainable maritime environment," Chief of the Pakistani Naval Staff Admiral Zafar Mahmood Abbasi said during the opening ceremony. "I look forward to successful and rewarding exercises and thank all the participants who have traveled great distances to be our worthy guests and invaluable partners in pursuit of peace," the naval chief said. The concept of the exercises is to develop responses, tactics, techniques and procedures (RTTPs) against non-traditional threats through tactical warfare planning, according to the Pakistan Navy. Pakistan Fleet Commander Vice Admiral Muhammad Amjad Khan Niazi welcomed the navies of participating nations for a common resolve of "Together for Peace." "While we talk of operating together, let us be mindful of the threats and challenges that we face at sea. These range from piracy to terrorism to climate change," the admiral said. Ahead of the opening ceremony, armed guards were visible on the streets to secure the area. Starting 2007, Exercise Aman has regularly been conducted every two years (the Aman 15 was not held in 2015 due to some operational commitments of the Pakistan Navy). This year's edition is scheduled from February 8 to 12, where over 45 countries are participating with ships and observers. The exercises have two major phases: harbor and sea phases. Harbor activities include seminars, discussions and demonstrations. A three-day international maritime conference will also be held on the topic, "Global geopolitics in transition and rethinking maritime dynamics in the Indian Ocean region." Maritime activities include high-end warfare serials at sea, such as naval gunfire, anti-piracy, operations, combined anti-submarine exercises, communications, boarding and air defense. The Pakistan Navy has 60 warships, including four F-22P frigates from China, according to Rashid Nazir Choudhary, a Pakistan Navy commander. Four more advanced warships are under construction and will be delivered by 2021, he said. US military alarmed by possible threats from Chinese space station in Argentina: Report Iran Press TV Sat Feb 9, 2019 07:35AM The United States military is concerned about possible "threats" coming from a Chinese-run space station in Argentina which Beijing used recently to land a probe on the dark side of the moon, according to a new report. Senior US military officials fear China can use the remote station, which is located in the deserts of Patagonia, to shoot down American and allied satellites, Foreign Policy reported Friday. Admiral Craig Faller, the newly confirmed commander of US Southern Command, warned lawmakers during a wide-ranging testimony before the Congress on Thursday that Beijing was rapidly expanding its reach in South America, a region that has become known as as America's backyard. Faller specifically named China's deep-space tracking facility in Argentina's Neuquen province as a threat. American military and intelligence officials have kept a close eye on the 200-hectare compound. China has installed a powerful 16-story antenna in the station, which is protected from trespassers by an 8-foot barbed wire fence. The ground station began operations in April 2018 and, according to Chinese media, played a key role in China's landing of a spacecraft on the dark side of the moon in January. Argentinean President Mauricio Macri's former foreign minister, Susana Malcorra, has claimed that Buenos Aires has no physical control over the Chinese center's operations. This is while Argentina's space agency, CONAE, says the agreement between the two countries clearly states both sides' commitment to "peaceful use" of the project. The agency also monitors all radio emissions from the station and sends staff there for periodic visits. China denies using station for military purposes China has made it clear that it uses the facility for civilian space observation and exploration projects. Chinese foreign ministry expressed in a statement that the station was open to the public and media, accusing those who question its operations of having "ulterior motives." China's military, the People's Liberation Army, controls the country's space program. The Patagonian station is run by the China Satellite Launch and Tracking Control General (CLTC), which reports directly to the PLA's Strategic Support Force. Trump's Space Command Last year, US President Donald Trump ordered the Pentagon to form a Space Command to address "concerns" over China and Russia's advancements in space technology. In its revised missile strategy, released in January, the Trump administration reiterated those concerns and authorized the military to develop space-based alarm systems to detect incoming missiles and space-based weapons that could intercept them. It also doubled down on Washington's need to develop technologies that could counter incredibly fast hypersonic weapons that Russia and China have been working on. Moscow has warned that the new space-based missile strategy would unleash a dangerous arms race. China, on the other hand, says the idea of forming a space force leads to the "weaponization" of space. "China has consistently proposed the peaceful usage of space, and opposes the weaponization of space and a space arms race," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said in December, adding, "We oppose even further turning space into the new battleground," she added. Venezuela's PDVSA Transfers Joint Ventures' Accounts to Gazprombank - Reports Sputnik News 02:07 10.02.2019(updated 02:10 10.02.2019) MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Venezuelan state-owned oil company PDVSA is moving bank accounts belonging to its joint ventures to one of the largest Russian banks, Gazprombank, amid US sanctions, Reuters news agency reported early on Sunday, citing sources. According to the agency, PDVSA has instructed joint ventures' clients to transfer proceeds from oil sales to new bank accounts opened by the Russian bank. The agency also said that the Venezuelan oil company had asked its foreign energy partners, including US Chevron Corporation, Norwegian Equinor and French Total, to decide whether they will remain a part of the joint ventures. In January, the US State Department announced that Washington had frozen $7 billion in assets belonging to PDVSA in order to make some of the money available to Venezuela's self-proclaimed acting president, Juan Guaido. Sputnik Thai King Dashes Sister's Political Dreams By VOA News February 09, 2019 Thailand's king has crushed the plans of his older sister to become a candidate for the country's prime minister. The Thai Raksa Chart party had announced Friday that Princess Ubolratana, who is 67, would be the party's prime minister nominee for the March 24 election. The political hopes of the princess were dashed almost immediately when her younger brother, the king, issued a terse statement saying his sister's candidacy was "highly inappropriate" and went against tradition and national culture. On Saturday, the Thai Raksa Chart party swore loyalty to the king, saying in a statement that it "complies with the royal command." Puangthong Pawakapan, professor of political science at Chulalongkorn University, told the French news agency AFP that the king's disapproval invalidated his sister's candidacy. In an Instagram post Saturday, the princess, without mentioning her brother or her dashed political plans, thanked her supporters for their "love and kindness" and expressed a desire to see the country expand rights and opportunities for citizens. Thailand will hold elections on March 24, the first since a 2014 military coup. The takeover resulted in the installation of a junta intent on eradicating the influence of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, whose allies have won every national election since 2001. Since Thaksin was ousted by a military coup in 2006, Thailand's establishment has had little success in trying to weaken his political machine with constitutional amendments, court rulings and changes to the electoral system. Thaksin, who has been in exile to avoid a jail sentence on a conflict of interest conviction, is believed by many to have played a role in establishing Ubolratana's candidacy. His alleged involvement rattled royalists who see their campaign against Thaksin as a way to protect the monarchy. As a candidate, Ubolratana would have attempted to oust junta leader and Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, the preferred choice of the military. Thailand has been a constitutional monarchy since 1932. Nearly 70 Killed in Cameroon as Separatists Stop Youth Week Activities By Moki Edwin Kindzeka February 09, 2019 Renewed fighting has killed 69 people in English-speaking regions of Cameroon, where armed separatists have ordered people to stay inside their homes as the country prepares to celebrate its national youth day. February 11 coincides with the 1961 plebiscite, which separatists identify as the day their English-speaking territory was handed to the French-speaking majority. Patients writhe and scream on the floor and get little medical attention at Saint Mary Clinic, a private hospital in Cameroon's English-speaking coastal city of Limbe. Nurse Frederick Mengoli says they were dumped there on Friday night by the Cameroon military. "This morning, the military brought 11 wounded patients and we can not take care of them because our staff is not present and we do not have the necessary drugs to take care of them," said Mengoli. "We are just going to clean their wounds. It is very serious situation." Fighting has been going on since Tuesday, February 5 in the English-speaking southwestern towns of Limbe, Buea, Mutengene, Kumba, Mamfe and Tombel, as well as in the northwestern towns of Bamenda, Kumbo, Ndop, Nkambe, Bafut and Kom. That's when armed separatists began what they call a 10-day lockdown, banning many activities in the war-torn Anglophone regions through February 14. They say the ban is intended to disrupt National Youth Day activities to be celebrated on February 11. Here in Buea, hundreds of students from the town's university are shouting as they return home after being forcefully removed from their hostels by the military and locked up for several hours. The military said by staying at home, they were following the separatists instead of obeying government instructions to continue with their activities. Nineteen-year-old journalism student Edmond Mbella says they cannot continue their studies because their lives are being threatened by the separatists. "Even the soldiers who are well armed, well trained with sophisticated weapons are being killed, but they [the government] want us to go out. We will not," said Mbella. "Who will be able to protect us when the soldiers can not protect themselves?" Some of the students remained in detention. The government says at least six military, 47 armed separatists and 16 civilians have been killed. The separatists say on social media they have killed more troops than the government is reporting. Deben Tchoffo, governor of the English-speaking northwest region, says troops will continue attacking and killing the armed fighters who disturb the public peace. "Those that will continue to challenge the state, our security, and furthermore the population, are going to be treated accordingly. Soonest, the situation will come back to normalcy in our region," said Tchoffo. Cameroon celebrates youth day every year to encourage young people to renounce violence and other negative behavior. February 11 was chosen because it coincides with the day in 1961 when the United Nations organized a plebiscite in the southern and northern parts of the British-administered trust territory in Cameroon. The northern part voted to have independence by joining the Federal Republic of Nigeria, while the southern part, today known as the English-speaking regions of Cameroon, voted to have independence by joining French-speaking Cameroon. Since then, English-speaking Cameroonians have been complaining the U.N.-sponsored plebiscite did not give them a third option: to have an independent state on its own. This resulted in an armed insurgency that started in the English-speaking regions in November 2017, after separatists declared the independence of a nation they called "Ambazonia" complaining minority anglophones were being systematically marginalized in the largely French-speaking country. Head of Southern Command on Russia in Venezuela: 'Anything's Possible' By Carla Babb February 09, 2019 The United States should not rule out Russian military involvement in Venezuela, according to the new head of U.S. Southern Command. Speaking exclusively in his first in-depth interview since taking command, Navy Admiral Craig Faller told VOA that Russia was acting like a "wounded, declining bear that's just lashing out" against democratic interests in the region. "I think with Russia, anything's possible," he said. "We've seen what they've done (in Syria), and I think we have to be prepared for what might happen in the future." Below are excerpts from the interview: QUESTION: "Admiral, let's start with Venezuela. What options have you been asked to provide for the situation in Venezuela." NAVY ADMIRAL CRAIG FALLER, COMMANDER OF THE U.S. SOUTHERN COMMAND: "We're focused on supporting a political and diplomatic solution and as you'd expect from a combatant commander we're working to ensure that U.S. citizens and property, our diplomats that are there are safe, and so that's where we've been, our efforts have been centered." QUESTION: "So we've heard about sending thousands of troops to Columbia everybody has seen National Security Advisor John Bolton's memo. Has anybody asked you to provide that particular option?" FALLER: "Again, I would refer any questions on plans to the department to the secretary's office to the National Security Council." QUESTION: "Are you working with your regional partners on a potential peacekeeping mission plan should the need arise?" FALLER: "We're focused on what you're seeing right now, the human suffering, the day to day alleviation of that suffering. We did our part earlier this year with the United States Naval Ship Comfort." QUESTION: "But is peacekeeping forces, are those an option right now?" FALLER: "We were looking, as I mentioned Carla, we're at what's happening today and the long-term efforts beyond government transition, I'll leave that to policy and the diplomats, and we'll be ready and on the balls of our feet to support when asked." QUESTION: "Since former Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis, when we were traveling together, he mentioned the importance of identifying a problem first. So with Venezuela, what is the problem for the United States there, and can it be solved through a military solution?" FALLER: "Well I think looking more broadly at this hemisphere, this is our neighborhood, and we share a lot across this neighborhood: values, a respect for law, democracy, for the most part democracy, and we have common sea, land, air, cyber, space, all of the domains right here in our neighborhood and so we look at our neighborhood and there are some glaring examples of countries that aren't democracies. Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua to name the three most glaring examples. And what you see common in these cases is the influence of Russia, and Cuba, and to some extent China." QUESTION: "Are you concerned that Russia might do something in Venezuela like it did in Syria? Like we saw how they propped up the (Syrian President Bashar al-)Assad regime there. Could that happen again?" FALLER: "I think, with Russia, anything's possible. The national defense strategy calls out competition with Russia and China specifically as areas of focus. We've really aligned and done a lot of thinking, planning and resourcing to those. Different cases though. China is an economic powerhouse on the rise, and they have a legitimate economic and business interest around the world. They don't play by the rulebook though. Russia, on the other hand, is almost, you know, a wounded, declining bear that's just lashing out, and I couldn't predict what Russia will do, and I wouldn't want to. We've seen what they've done, and I think we have to be prepared for what might happen in the future." QUESTION: "The defeat of the Islamic state in Syria and Iraq. Your predecessor had warned of the potential for these foreign fighters that came out of your area of responsibility coming back in. Have you seen that?" FALLER: "So we are, we're watching that very closely. We had a significant number of foreign fighters come out of some of our Caribbean nations and go over to Syria. We've seen some come back. We've worked with partner nations to thwart some attacks, and very successfully. And we've got our eye on that ball every day. And we have elements of Lebanese Hezbollah. QUESTION: Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has said that there are active cells in Venezuela. Have you seen that as well?" FALLER: "The long arm of Iranian malfeasance is everywhere around the world and their surrogate Lebanese Hezbollah is right at the end of that arm." QUESTION: "So they are in Venezuela." FALLER: "The secretary of state, I have ultimate respect for him, and he speaks truth to power." African continent 'an example of solidarity' towards migrants and refugees: UN chief 9 February 2019 - African nations are setting an example for richer countries when it comes to the treatment of refugees, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a press conference on Saturday, following a meeting with the Chairperson of the African Union Commission in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The UN chief is in the Ethiopian capital to attend the annual African Union summit, which brings together Heads of State from across the continent. This year's event, which begins on Sunday, will focus on the issue of refugees and internally displaced persons. Mr. Guterres, who spent 10 years as the UN's High Commissioner for Refugees, before taking up his position at the head of the organization, said that, in Africa, borders are open for refugees, and that the continent is in the leadership when it comes to addressing migration flows. The UN chief pointed out that, contrary to popular perception, there are more African migrants in other African countries than in Europe, and migration has been dealt with in a much more humane way. Mr. Guterres appealed for the UN's global compacts on Migration and Refugees to be fully implemented. The UN Refugee Agency UNHCR says that Sub-Saharan Africa hosts more than 26 per cent of the world's refugee population. 18 million people in the region are of concern to UNHCR, with conflicts and ongoing crises in the Central African Republic (CAR), Nigeria and South Sudan, as well as Burundi and Yemen, driving large increases in the numbers of refugees and displaced people. On the eve of the summit, the UN Childrens' Fund, UNICEF, published a press release warning that 13.5 million children have been uprooted in Africa including those displaced by conflict, poverty and climate change and called on African leaders to implement policies and programmes to protect, empower and invest in refugee, migrant and displaced children. Mr. Guterres struck a generally positive note in the press conference, pointing to recent peace deals and conflict de-escalation across Africa. He cited the reconciliation between Ethiopia and Eritrea; the establishment of peace agreements in South Sudan; and elections in Madagascar, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Mali, that took place in a peaceful context. The combined efforts of the African Union and the UN, he said, are producing results in conflict resolution and the prevention of conflicts, and Africa is seeing a "wind of hope" that can be extended to other parts of the world. However, he went to say that there cannot be peace without development, and that the international community must show more political will in this area, particularly in climate action, and show ambition for mitigation, adaptation, and finance: "We are losing the race with climate change and this can be a disaster for Africa and for world. Africa will pay an even higher price because of the dramatic impacts in the continent." Guaido Not Ruling Out Intervention Amid Alleged US Contacts With Venezuelan Army Sputnik News 09:26 09.02.2019(updated 12:39 09.02.2019) The development comes just a few days after US President Donald Trump said that Washington's military intervention in crisis-hit Venezuela was "an option". Earlier this week, WH National Security Adviser John Bolton tweeted that the US would consider lifting sanctions on top Venezuelan military officers if they back opposition leader Juan Guaido. Venezuela's self-proclaimed interim president Juan Guaido has refused to rule out the possibility of sanctioning a US intervention to drive out the country's incumbent President Nicolas Maduro and end the humanitarian crisis. Speaking with AFP that he would do "everything that is necessary to save human lives", admitting that Washington's interference is "a very controversial subject". His comments come on the heels of reports that the United States is engaged in direct contacts with members of Venezuela's military encouraging them to pledge allegiance to Guaido and is working on new sanctions to ramp up pressure on Nicolas Maduro. Reuters cited a senior White House official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, as claiming that the Trump administration expected more servicemen to abandon Maduro, even though only a few officers have chosen to side with Guaido since he declared himself Venezuela's interim president on 23 January. "We believe these to be those first couple pebbles before we start really seeing bigger rocks rolling down the hill. We're still having conversations with members of the former Maduro regime, with military members, although those conversations are very, very limited", the official said, although declined to provide further details on the discussions or the level at which they are being held. According to the Reuters source, the US government believes that its transatlantic allies are likely to put more effort to stop Maduro from transferring or hiding Venezuelan government assets held outside the country. Some European nations have joined Washington in recognising Guaido, although they didn't go as far as to back the sanctions on Venezuela's state-owned oil giant PDVSA and restrictions on financial transactions that the US imposed. Currently, the Trump administration is preparing a new round of possible sanctions on Caracas, the official claimed. Another US official and a person familiar with the deliberations told Reuters that Washington was also considering sanctions on Cuban military and intelligence officials who are allegedly helping Maduro to remain in power. Earlier this week, US National Security Adviser John Bolton took to Twitter to announce that Washington would consider lifting sanctions on senior Venezuelan military officers if they recognise Guaido: All eyes have been on Venezuela since Guaido, the head of the opposition-led National Assembly, proclaimed himself the South American country's interim president in late January in a move swiftly recognised by the United States and a handful of its allies, blasting the May presidential elections in Venezuela as sham. The legitimately elected Maduro harshly criticised Washington for interfering in Caracas's domestic affairs and accused the US of staging a coup d'etat, subsequently cutting diplomatic ties with DC. Maduro also claimed that a group of Venezuelan military defectors were conspiring in Colombia to "divide the national armed forces at my command". Besides the intoduction of sweeping oil sanctions and financial restrictions on the Maduro government and state-run oil and gas company PDVSA, Trump stated that a military intervention in Venezuela was "an option". In an interview with Sputnik, Maduro, who has launched a signature-gathering campaign against US interference, stressed that the main objective behind Washington's involvement in Venezuela was the fact that the country has the biggest oil reserves in the world. Sputnik US Steps Up Airstrikes on Taliban to Gain Leverage in Peace Talks - Reports Sputnik News 09:39 09.02.2019(updated 09:49 09.02.2019) MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Washington has stepped up its airstrikes and raids targeting the Taliban* leadership and militants in Afghanistan in a bid to obtain leverage in peace talks with the movement, The New York Times newspaper reported, citing unnamed sources from the US Department of Defence. The New York Times specified that the number of US attacks on the Taliban had reached the highest level since 2014, with the surge having started in fall. The Taliban has reportedly complained about the increased number of airstrikes. The United States dropped over 7,000 bombs, missiles, and other munitions on Afghanistan in 2018 a dramatic increase compared to 2,365 in 2014, The New York Times said, citing military data. Since September alone, the Pentagon has reportedly carried out over 2,000 air and artillery strikes in Afghanistan. The number of joint US-Afghan anti-Taliban raids has more than doubled from September to February, compared to the same period a year ago, according to reports. The reports come after representative of the Taliban movement Mullah Abdul Salam Hanafi stated on 6 February that the United States had pledged to withdraw half of the country's troops, which have been fighting against the Taliban and other terror groups in Afghanistan since 2001, by the end of April. However, on the same day, a State Department spokesperson denied this, telling Sputnik that Washington and Kabul had not agreed to any timeline for a possible reduction of US troop levels. The Taliban governed over Afghanistan in the late 1990s. The 2001 invasion by the United States drove them out of power, but the group has remained a significant force in the country. *Taliban, Daesh (also known as ISIS/ISIL/IS) are terrorist groups banned in Russia Sputnik US Impedes Dialogue With Opposition - Venezuelan Vice President Sputnik News 16:30 09.02.2019(updated 16:44 09.02.2019) MOSCOW (Sputnik) - It is Washington's instructions impeding a dialogue between the Venezuelan government and the opposition, Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez said in an interview with the broadcaster RT. "This is the instruction by Donald Trump's government that there will be no talks but only war that impedes [dialogue]. We say yes to dialogue and no to war. War is not an option", Rodriguez said. She added that Washington is pursuing a policy of "absolute political and ideological rejection" of Venezuela and the Bolivarian model of socialism. "Washington believes that [Venezuelan President] Nicolas Maduro must leave [his post]", Rodriguez said. The vice president claimed that it was Washington that had instructed the Venezuelan opposition not to sign an agreement on the presidential election date with the government in December 2017. Since the talks collapsed, the government has accused the opposition of never actually intending to sign the deal. Rodriguez has refuted the claims that Venezuela is experiencing a humanitarian crisis as a "lie" aimed at justifying intervention in the country. "This is a big lie There is no humanitarian crisis in Venezuela. Venezuela is suffering from social wounds triggered by the blockade. But the revolutionary government and President Nicolas Maduro are dealing directly with the most vulnerable sectors of the population those who have suffered most due to the products and medicine embargo", she added. The vice president emphasised that under international humanitarian laws, humanitarian assistance should be provided in cases of natural disasters, armed conflicts, and wars. According to Rodriguez, the people of Venezuela will not allow any intervention under the guise of providing humanitarian aid. The statements come after US President Donald Trump said in an interview with CBS last Sunday that US military intervention in Venezuela, which is currently going through a political crisis, was "an option". Maduro has already slammed the US intention to provide humanitarian aid to Venezuela as a "fake show". On 23 January, Juan Guaido, the speaker of the opposition-led National Assembly, declared himself interim president of Venezuela, contesting Maduro's re-election last May. Guaido was immediately recognised by the United States and a number of allies, prompting Maduro, who is backed by Russia, China and Mexico as well as other states, to accuse Washington of being behind an anti-government coup in Venezuela. EU nations were expected to issue a joint statement recognising Guaido, but Italy vetoed the motion. Sputnik Sweden Has Developed Jet Able to 'Kill' Russian Sukhoi Planes, Commander Claims Sputnik News 18:16 09.02.2019 The Swedish jet has no outstanding characteristics in comparison to the fifth-generation Su-57's, but reportedly has top of the line electronic warfare (EW) equipment and software, making it difficult for enemy jets to track it. Commander of Sweden's Air Force, Mats Helgesson, stated that the country's recently developed Saab JAS 39 Gripen E jets were "designed to kill Sukhois" Russia's top air superiority fighters, Finnish national broadcaster Yle reported. In a bid to further stress the Gripen E's effectiveness, Helgesson concluded that the aircraft have a "black belt" in fighting Russian jets. Justin Bronk, an aerial-combat expert at the Royal United Services Institute, cited by Business Insider, said that the JAS 39 Gripen series is known for its outstanding EW capabilities, which are upgraded every two years. "Several years ago the Gripen pilots got tired of being made fun of by German Typhoon pilots and came to play with their wartime electronic warfare and gave them a hell of a hard time", he said. At the same time, Bronk noted that a pilot never knows in advance whether EW will work, and even if it does, the pilot will still have to engage in a fight. Although it's unclear how powerful the EW components of the JAS 39 Gripen E are in comparison to those of the Su-57, as the two have never competed in the air, the Russian fighter jet is capable of carrying a far greater payload (10,000 kg, in comparison to 5,300kg for its Swedish counterpart) and reaching higher speeds (2.45 Mach in comparison to 2 Mach by the Gripen E). Additionally, Russian Sukhoi jets are known for their manoeuvrability in dogfights and ability to perform stunning feats in the air. Sputnik Czech Republic Ready to Withdraw Troops From Afghanistan Following US Minister Sputnik News 19:17 09.02.2019 PRAGUE (Sputnik) - If the United States decides to withdraw its troops from Afghanistan, the Czech Republic will follow, Czech Defence Minister Lubomir Metnar said on Saturday. "If the current negotiations [on Afghan peace with the participation of the United States and the Taliban movement] are successfully completed and this leads to internal political stability in this country, then security should improve. If it comes to reducing the number or complete withdrawal of US troops, we will respond to it adequately. Meaning that if the United States leaves Afghanistan, we will also pull out", Metnar told the Pravo newspaper. Some 340 Czech soldiers are based in Afghanistan within the framework of the NATO Resolute Support mission. The mission provides training and assistance to the Afghan security forces. A total of 16,000 soldiers from 39 NATO countries are currently serving in Afghanistan as part of the Resolute Support. In Late January, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani vowed to try to remove all foreign troops from the country. In addition, an agreement on the possible withdrawal of the US forces from Afghanistan was reportedly reached during recent talks between the United States and Taliban in Qatar. The radical movement, for its part, pledged to prevent terrorist groups such as al-Qaeda* from using Afghanistan as a base to carry out operations in other countries under the future deal. *Al-Qaeda is a terrorist organisation banned in Russia Sputnik Greek PM Welcomes North Macedonia As Partner After NATO Vote By RFE/RL's Balkan Service February 09, 2019 Greece's prime minister hailed North Macedonia as a "friendly" partner and called on it to join efforts to establish "safety, stability, and cooperation" in the Balkan region after his parliament approved a measure for it to join the NATO alliance. "I would like to again welcome North Macedonia, a country that is friendly toward Greece," Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras told Greek lawmakers on February 8 shortly before they voted on North Macedonia's bid to join NATO. North Macedonia is "a country that must be a supporter and not an opponent of our efforts to establish safety, stability, and cooperation in the wider region," he added. The 153-140 vote in favor of the former Yugoslav republic's NATO membership came after the country agreed last year to change its name to North Macedonia and following ratification of the deal by the countries' parliaments. Greece's objections to Skopje's use of the name "Macedonia" since the country's independence in 1991 complicated bids by the small Western Balkan nation to join the European Union and NATO. Athens asserted that the use of the name Macedonia suggested Skopje had territorial claims to Greece's northern region of Macedonia. With Greece's ratification of the NATO accord, the former Yugoslav republic will now write to the United Nations, its member states, and international organizations, formally announcing the name change. A government spokesman told the AP this would happen "in coming days." After all NATO members approve the protocol -- a process expected to take a year -- North Macedonia will become an official member of the alliance. The deal was strongly supported by Western nations, with many seeing it as a measure to reduce Russian influence in the country and the region. Moscow has expressed strong opposition to NATO expansion during the alliance's move eastward. "Clearly it is in Greece's interest to promote a European course for all its neighbors, not just for North Macedonia and not [back] the influence of third forces in the neighborhood, with different aspirations and pursuits," Tsipras said. Negotiations between Greece and Macedonia were protracted and difficult. Nationalist groups in both countries opposed the deal, with many saying it gave up too much to the other side. "[We] will vote against the accession protocol because it is, simply, the final act or the final act of a damaging agreement," conservative opposition leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis told parliament prior to the vote. With reporting by AP, dpa, and Reuters Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/greece-north-macedonia-nato-protocol- approved-by-parliament/29760405.html Copyright (c) 2019. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. Japan protests China gas activity in East China Sea Iran Press TV Sat Feb 9, 2019 06:11AM Japan has lodged a protest with China over its "continued deployment" of a drillship at a gas field in the East China Sea, which has been the subject of a territorial dispute between the two sides. The protest, the second in a week, was conveyed to Beijing through diplomatic channels after Tokyo said on Saturday that a Chinese drillship had moved to a location a few kilometers northeast of the sea in January. "It's extremely regrettable that China has continued its unilateral development activity," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said at a press briefing. Japan accuses China of trying to siphon off resources from beneath the Japanese side of the line, a charge China denies. Tokyo and Beijing have for several years been locked in a territorial row over a small group of uninhabited islands in the East China Sea, known respectively as the Senkaku or Diaoyu islands. China maintains that it has indisputable sovereignty over the islands but the Japanese government regards them as a part of its territory. The two sides agreed on joint gas development in the area in 2008 but negotiations were suspended in 2010. Ties, however, deteriorated after Tokyo nationalized part of the resource-rich islands in 2012. Beijing claims sovereignty over almost all of the disputed territory in the South and East China seas. Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan also have competing claims. The South China Sea is believed to sit atop vast oil and gas reserves. The territorial dispute usually draws in trans-regional countries, particularly the US. Beijing accuses Washington of interfering in regional issues and deliberately stirring up tensions in the strategic waters of the South China Sea. US activity near the resource-rich international waters off China's coast has long been a source of tension between the two sides. China accuses the US of carrying out reconnaissance flights over Chinese coastal waters and frequently calls on the US to halt patrols in the area. Israel to confiscate Palestinian land for sewage network in central West Bank Iran Press TV Sat Feb 9, 2019 03:38PM Israeli authorities plan to confiscate thousands of square meters of private Palestinian land in the central West Bank to construct a sewage network for settlements in violation of international law and UN Security Council resolutions condemning the Tel Aviv regime's land expropriation policies in the occupied territories. Palestinian sources, requesting not to be named, said authorities in Kifl Haris village in Salfit district were handed on Saturday the blueprint of the sewage network, which is 2,800 kilometers long and has a width of 8 meters and is planned to be built on privately-owned Palestinian land. The Israeli sewage network will reportedly destroy thousands of square meters of farming land in addition to dozens of olive trees, and will distort the valleys running in the targeted area. Palestinian activists warn that the villages and towns of Haris, Kifl Haris, Qirah, Dayr Istiya, Bruqin, Kafr al-Dik, Sartah, Bidya and al-Zawiyah will be bulldozed for the construction of the sewage network. About 600,000 Israelis live in over 230 illegal settlements built since the 1967 Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories of the West Bank and East Jerusalem al-Quds. The UN Security Council has condemned Israel's settlement activities in the occupied territories in several resolutions. Less than a month before US President Donald Trump took office, the United Nations Security Council in December 2016 adopted Resolution 2334, calling on Israel to "immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territories, including East Jerusalem" al-Quds. Palestinians want the West Bank as part of a future independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem al-Quds as its capital. The last round of Israeli-Palestinian talks collapsed in 2014. Among the major sticking points in those negotiations was Israel's continued settlement expansion on Palestinian territories. Trump backtracked on Washington's support for a "two-state solution" in 2017, saying he would support any solution favored by both sides. "Looking at two-state or one-state, I like the one that both parties like. I'm very happy with the one both parties like. I can live with either one," the US president said during a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington on February 15, 2017. Yemen shoots down Saudi spy drone IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency Tehran, Feb 9, IRNA -- Yemeni air defense units have shot down a Saudi reconnaissance drone in flight over a border area in Yemen's northwestern province of Hajjah on Saturday. According to al-Masirah satellite television network, the Yemeni forces also managed to shoot down another Saudi spy drone in the Kingdom's southwestern province of Jizan. Yemen has since nine days ago downed nine spy drones of the Saudi-led coalition in the border areas. Saudi Arabia and a number of its regional allies launched a devastating military campaign against Yemen in March 2015, with the aim of bringing back the government of Mansour Hadi back to power. Some 20,000 Yemenis have been killed and thousands more injured since the onset of the Saudi-led aggression. The assaults of the Saudi-led coalition forces have failed to stop the Yemenis from resisting the aggression. Recently, the Yemeni army unveiled its home-made underground missile launching pads. 8072**2050 Villagers Describe Horror in South Sudan's Yei River State By Daniel Friday Martin February 08, 2019 An unknown number of villagers were killed and hundreds of others displaced during fighting in South Sudan's Yei River State this week. In this latest round of fighting, government forces teamed up with SPLA-IO (Sudan People's Liberation Movement-in-Opposition) forces to battle National Salvation Front rebels led by General Thomas Cirillo. Residents say the clashes continue in several Otogo County villages in Yei River state, which is in the southern part of the country. Villagers accuse both sides of looting property and setting houses on fire. Since the September peace agreement, this is one of the first clashes in which a rebel group has teamed up with government forces against another rebel group, in this case the National Salvation Front. The NAS is the biggest militia faction that refused to sign the deal. Fighting continues in the troubled area, according to several villagers fleeing violence in Ondukori, Morsak, Goja and Ombaci villages of Otogo County. Ondukori resident Esther Siama, who fled her village Thursday night and walked in the bush all night before reaching Yei town Friday morning, said several soldiers sexually assaulted women and abused other villagers. "Once the soldiers reached a certain area they beat up civilians. The soldiers raped women and also robbed us of domestic animals like chickens, goats and cows," Siama told South Sudan in Focus. 'Charles' tells of violence A 60-year-old Morsak village resident who prefers to be identified only as "Charles" for fear of reprisals, said he saw four bodies on the ground. He also said gunmen set the entire village on fire. "Once they reach a house they shoot bullets inside the house. The soldiers tied down one of our elderly people, a 70-year-old brother and threatened to kill him. They set our houses and food granaries on fire, Charles told South Sudan in Focus. He said he spent four days in the bush, eventually arriving on foot in Yei. "Some people were shot dead and even my own son was injured on the leg," Charles added. Hillary Luate Adeba, Bishop of the Yei Diocese of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan, who is from Otogo County, condemned the violence, saying it violates the heart of the revitalized peace agreement. "The whole of South of Yei is in danger. People are fleeing. A number of forces are engaged in serious fighting in the area and its only Yei now which is bleeding," Adeba told South Sudan in Focus. Call for cease-fire Bishop Adeba urged all sides to immediately stop fighting in Yei. Obed Taban, Deputy Chairman of the Yei River State Relief and Rehabilitation Commission, said hundreds of civilians who arrived on the outskirts of Yei town Friday are in dire need of humanitarian assistance. "We have more than 200 IDPs [Internally Displaced Persons] and more are still coming and we are calling on the humanitarian partners to assist the IDPs with food, medicines and non-food items because these people have nothing," Taban told VOA. Government troops control urban areas Most Yei River State villages are under the control of either the SPLA-IO or National Salvation Front rebel forces. More urban areas including administrative centers are controlled by government forces. SPLA-IO deputy military spokesman Colonel Lam Paul Gabriel accused the National Salvation Front of committing atrocities against civilians. "We know that the areas around Otogo are under the control of NAS forces under the command of General Thomas Cirilo. The SPLA-IO is not responsible," Gabriel told VOA. NAS spokesman Samuel Suba Manasseh denies his group mistreated any civilians in areas under their control. "It's a crime for any National Salvation soldiers mistreating civilians and it's also against the laws of NAS. We are not part of looting and harassing civilians," Manasseh told South Sudan in Focus. Military denies looting South Sudan army spokesman Brigadier General Santo Domic denied knowledge of government forces looting villages in Otogo. "I don't expect the SSPDF [South Sudan Army] forces to loot villages in Otogo County because these are government forces mandated to protect the civil population," Domic told VOA.He called such accusations "negative propaganda" against the South Sudan People's Defense Forces. NAS leader Cirillo rejected the revitalized peace agreement signed in September by President Salva Kiir, SPLA-IO leader Riek Machar, and other opposition leaders. China denies 'ridiculous' spying allegations against Huawei by Lithuania Iran Press TV Sat Feb 9, 2019 09:02AM China has dismissed allegations made by US ally Lithuania against its telecommunication giant Huawei Technologies, describing them as "absurd and ridiculous." Head of Lithuania's State Security Department Darius Jauniskis has said Huawei posed a potential "threat" against his agency. The allegation drew an immediate response from the Chinese embassy in Vilnius, saying it was "shocked and surprised" by the "totally unacceptable" allegations. "China does not pose any security threat to Lithuania," the embassy said a statement. "It is absurd and ridiculous for the Lithuanian intelligence and security services to rely on conjecture and imagination to make unfounded distortions." The fresh allegation came in the wake of an increased pressure by the United States on European governments to scrap Huawei technology from their telecom infrastructure plans. On Friday, US ambassador to the European Union, Gordon Sondland, warned that any Western counties allowing Huawei tech or other Chinese equipment will face the risk of Washington's countermeasures. The US accuses China of using the firm for international espionage. It has said China was making attempts to "recruit Lithuanian citizens" for the spy campaign, a charge Beijing strongly denies. Last month, the US Justice Department filed criminal charges against Huawei, accusing the firm of stealing trade secrets and breaking US sanctions against Iran. The US Justice Department also revealed formal charges against Huawei's chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, who was arrested in Canada in December on the request of the United States. The move angered Beijing and triggered fresh tensions between the two sides. Meng, the daughter of Huawei's founder, is now free on bail in Vancouver and is awaiting extradition. If extradited to the United States, Meng would face charges of conspiracy to defraud multiple financial institutions, with a maximum sentence of 30 years for each charge. EU facing dilemma over Huawei On Friday, US Ambassador to the EU Sondland urged European countries to pick Finnish and other Scandinavian companies for their ultra-fast fifth-generation (5G) networks. He made the warning after German business daily Handelsblatt reported that the government of Chancellor Angela Merkel had ruled out an outright ban on Huawei. German ministers said singling out the tech giant from a list of suppliers was not legally viable. In France, however, telecoms operator Orange said in December that it would not hire the Chinese firm to build its next-generation network. Poland in January arrested an employee of the Huawei along with a former Polish security official on charges of spying. Other nations in the European continent, such as the United Kingdom,Spain, Portugal and Hungary, have by far been very receptive of Huawei's technology, Lack of resources keeps us from being a full-service agency, officers say Do you have an estate plan? Or just some estate documents? Gillette, WY (82718) Today Cloudy skies early, followed by partial clearing. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 56F. NNW winds at 10 to 20 mph, decreasing to 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight Cloudy skies early, followed by partial clearing. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 56F. NNW winds at 10 to 20 mph, decreasing to 5 to 10 mph. The turnout at a recent hearing on the rent increase limit provides a sense of the impact the price of rents has on Oregonians. More than 100 people testified on the rent limitation in Senate Bill 608 during a four-hour hearing before the Senate Housing Committee. Supporters such as Pena shared accounts of 40 to 50 percent rent increases and evictions for no cause after a new landlord bought their home. I think it is a really good thing to put a limit per year, Pena said. In helping my parents, it would give us an expectation and not having to worry about my parents getting a rent increase every five to six months. Some landlords said the limit is fair and reasonable with one testifying that it was the decent thing to do. Others said regulating rents would prompt some landlords to sell rental properties to homeowners, further reducing the rental home supply. There is a catch to the rent limit it wouldnt apply to rentals up to 15 years old. That provision is meant to encourage new development because we understand that supply of housing is an important part of the equation when it comes to solving housing issues, said Rick Osborn, spokesman for the Senate Democrats. If youre looking to shake up your routine, consider incorporating some of these healthy eating habits from other cultures around the world. Ramycia McGhee, professor of English at Linn-Benton Community College, will review "Sing, Unburied, Sing" by Jesmyn Ward, at noon on Wednesday at the Corvallis-Benton County Public Library as part of the Random Review program. Sing, Unburied, Sing is Wards second novel to win a National Book Award for fiction. The family in this sensitive drama lives in rural Mississippi. An African- American mother with serious drug problems is taking her 13 year-old son, Jojo, and toddler daughter, Kayla, who live with her parents, on a road trip to pick up the childrens white father who is being released from the Mississippi State Penitentiary. The truest and exquisitely rendered family interaction in this story is the loving, nurturing relationship between the big brother and his little sister. There is an affecting touch of the supernatural in appearances by two ghosts. Wards beautiful writing makes this heartbreaking novel not only bearable but enriching to read. McGhee hails from Chicago. She holds a bachelor's from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater in broadcast journalism and a minor in race and ethnic cultures. Her master's in journalism is from Roosevelt University where she worked in radio and print media. She received her doctorate in education leadership management from Capella University. Crtyptocurrency exchange founder Gerald Cotten died of complications from Crohn's disease back in December and now some 115,000 clients are left unable to retrieve approximately $190 million in funds. It turns out only Cotten knew the password for the Canadian cryptocurrency exchange to gain access. QuadrigaCX was one of only a handful of cryptocurrency exchanges available to Canadian online gamblers, many of whom have expressed apprehensions in using competing exchanges as a reult of the current upheaval involving QuadrigaCX. The story gets all the more absurd as it appeared that Cotten's exchange was already in financial and legal trouble prior to Cotton's death. He had also filed a will the week prior. CoinDesk revealed that QuadrigaCX had undergone creditor protection in the Nova Scotia Supreme Court. From CoinDesk.com: Evidently Cotten was the sole person responsible for transferring QuadrigaCX funds between the companys cold wallet secure, offline storage and its hot wallet or online server, according to court documents. Very little cryptocurrency was stored in the hot wallet for security purposes. Cottens laptop was encrypted, and his widow, Jennifer Robertson, and the expert she hired have been unable to access any of its contents. The company had no corporate bank accounts and used third party services to manage payments and withdrawals. For the past weeks, we have worked extensively to address our liquidity issues, which include attempting to locate and secure our very significant cryptocurrency reserves held in cold wallets, and that are required to satisfy customer cryptocurrency balances on deposit, as well as sourcing a financial institution to accept the bank drafts that are to be transferred to us, QuadrigaCXs Board of Directors wrote in a letter to customers on Jan. 31. Unfortunately, these efforts have not been successful. The debacle highlights the problems with cryptocurrencys lack of regulation. Its not issued by a government or controlled through a centralized financial institution, leaving exchanges such as QuadrigaCX with near total control over investors assets, and making them vulnerable to hackers or other mishaps. Other legal problems included the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce freezing more than $25 million of QuadrigaCXs assets after noticing irregularities in the exchanges payment processes. In what appears to be an odd coincidence, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice took control of the funds, Coindesk reported, and they were just returned to the company days before Cottens death. On the popular social media platform Reddit, conspiracy theories have arisen that Cotten faked his own death. We need: *The cold wallet addresses *Picture(s) of the corpse *Canadian Passport documentation of Gerald Cotton leaving Canada, flying to/arriving in India, and the dates *If possible (unlikely), surveillance of him at the airport with his luggage (to see a laptop) and the people flying with him. The company is looking into selling its operating platform to stay afloat, which matters little to those who can't their funds out of the troubled exchange. - Aaron Goldstein, Gabling911.com Galveston, TX (77553) Today A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Partly cloudy skies. Low 83F. Winds SSE at 10 to 20 mph.. Tonight A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Partly cloudy skies. Low 83F. Winds SSE at 10 to 20 mph. Have any questions? Please give us a call at 907-352-2250 FERC, AKLNG, AGDC, MSB and any other Alaska Natural Gas Line acronyms you can think of FLS didnt cover residents marching for life Hundreds of Fredericksburg-area residents of all ages attended the annual March for Life in Washington on Jan. 18, but your reading public had no clue. The Free LanceStar chose to ignore, and not for the first time, these many local activists in the pro-life movement, resulting in zero coverage. Could this national gathering have taken our local newspaper by surprise? Hardly! The first March for Life took place in 1974 and has occurred every year since on or around Jan. 22, the anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision by the Supreme Court. Additionally, I often alert the editors of the upcoming march as opportunities for news or feature stories. This years participants included: St. William of York in Stafford County sent 80 people in two buses . St. Patrick Church in Spotsylvania also filled two buses. Two separate groups of students from the University of Mary Washington traveled to D.C. for the march: a van full of Catholic Campus Ministry members as well as a delegation from Students for Life. SPOTSYLVANIA Countys Board of Supervisors will soon decide on sPowers proposed Solar Energy Center. This project is consistent with both Virginias 2018 energy policy and the countys comprehensive plan, both of which encourage the development of renewable solar resources. Last year, Microsoft, in connection with its data center in Mecklenburg, announced its intention to acquire 315 megawatts of power from the solar project, which represents the largest corporate acquisition of renewable power in the entire U.S. And just a couple weeks ago, the company announced a further expansion of its data center. Solar, and the desire for renewable energy, is growing in Virginia. Most Spotsylvania County residents also support this project. Recent polling demonstrates strong support, with 67 percent of voters supporting the project. Unfortunately, instead of a discussion about the future benefits to Spotsylvania, the sPower project has been subject to negative attacks by a small minority of county residents. Most of these attacks are without merit and have included a strategy of fear and intimidation. As the Board of Supervisors vote nears, we would like to clarify some of the myths that have been propelled about the project. Johnny Finch, the former president of the VAFP and a long-time supporter of Lake Anna State Park who lives near it, noted that many people have focused on the mention of additional parking as if thats all thats needed to handle the throngs that come on busy summer days. I think that some people believe that if we get more parking, we could stop closing the doors on busy summer days, said Finch. But to solve the problem, you really need to go far beyond that and address the infrastructure thats needed for those day-use visitors: more bathrooms, picnic shelters, water systems and roads to open up other sections of the park and allow those visitors to spread out. That funding would put a road into the Ware property, and some shelters and bathrooms over there, he said. The top of that knoll on the Ware property is probably the prettiest view on all of Lake Anna. Finch said renovating and/or replacing aging and over-taxed bathrooms and water systems is work thats also long overdue in the beachfront area and in other sections of the park. The budget amendments for Widewater State Park would let construction proceed from the first phase of the park construction to a second and third phase. West had written a short bio for a sorority event and mentioned, in one line, that she was part of the team at the Navy base in Dahglren that developed GPS in the 1950s and 1960s. James and West had known each other for years, and James was amazed by that significant detail. James has continued to be astonished as shes attended ceremonies with her sorority sister. She still seems surprised that so many find her worth honoring, James said. What that says to me is that Dr. West, like so many others of her generationduring a time when segregation was still a life for manydid what she had to do to take care of her family. To have others take credit for your work and not acknowledge your contributions was just the way of life at that time. Even though the spotlight is still shiningWest is being honored this month by the Library of Virginia and featured in an interview on the long-running 700 Club television programshe appreciates the attention, but is not totally comfortable in the glare. Consider her actions at last months 13th annual community celebration of Martin Luther King Jr.s birthday. She was called to the stage at James Monroe High School and given a Hidden Figure award. May is the worst month for allergies, which occur when the body is unable to tell the difference between a pathogen and pollen. We welcome your letters and columns! Use the button below to send us your thoughts. Remember: Letters must include your real name, town of residence and daytime phone number, which we use for verification. We do not accept anonymous letters or letters written under a pseudonym. Letters should be no more than about 400 words. Those of no more than 200 to 300 words are more likely to be published. Submit We have used your information to see if you have a subscription with us, but did not find one. Please use the button below to verify an existing account or to purchase a new subscription. Protective orders versus peace orders Protective: Must have a relationship or be related; all protective orders are domestic violence or child abuse, but not all protective orders are intimate partner violence Peace: You dont have to be, so this is what neighbors, former friends would file. ASHEVILLE, NC (FOX Carolina)- The North Carolina Department of Public Safety says that the Division of Adult Correction and Juvenile Justice is searching for an offender that was serving part of his sentence outside of prison MOBILE, Ala. -- Two victims were shot at a shopping center in Crichton late Saturday morning, and a short time later police apprehended four suspects who led them on a chase to the area of the Mobile Downtown Airport at Brookley Field. Officers from the Mobile Police Department responded to the Cash America location at 3054 Springhill Ave., which is at the Crichton Shopping Center, after being notified that shots had been fired. Upon their arrival, officers discovered that two males had been shot, according to LaDerrick DuBose, MPD public information officer. "Both victims were transported to the hospital. Their condition is unknown at this time," DuBose wrote in an email to news media just after 1 p.m. DuBose said the suspects involved in the shooting were spotted by police as they fled the scene in a vehicle. That vehicle led police on a pursuit to the area of Perimeter Road at Avenue O, near the Mobile Downtown Airport. "I was riding Saturday morning down I-10 when a lot of police officers got off at Michigan Avenue, so we pulled off and watched them, and they were going into Brookley Field," said Jimmy Carter. Officers apprehended the four suspects within moments, DuBose said. "The line of police cars, there must have been at least a dozen," Carter said. "They got out of their cars, and pretty quickly they came out of the bushes with one or two people. I couldn't tell because you couldn't get that close." Chris Curry, president of the Mobile Airport Authority, said the shooting suspects led police on a pursuit down Michigan Avenue. He said multiple suspects exited a vehicle and jumped a fence into Brookley Field before they were apprehended by police. Curry said the incident did not impact airport operations. DuBose said the investigation into the matter is continuing. MOBILE, Ala. -- Firefighters with the Mobile Fire-Rescue Department battled a fully involved residential fire Saturday afternoon. Around 1 p.m., MFRD tweeted that crews were on the scene of a fully-involved mobile home at the intersection of Perry Road and Bellingrath Road. The cause of origin investigation is pending, the fire department said. There is no word yet on whether anyone was home at the time of the fire. ATMORE, Ala. (AP) -- (all times local): 10:15 p.m. A Muslim inmate who complained in a legal challenge that Alabama wouldn't let his Islamic spiritual adviser be present in the execution chamber has been put to death after the nation's highest court cleared the way. Authorities say 42-year-old Dominique Ray was pronounced dead Thursday night of a lethal injection at the state prison in Atmore. Ray's attorneys had challenged Alabama's execution procedure, saying it favors Christian inmates because a Christian chaplain employed by the prison typically is in the chamber during an execution. Ray requested an imam instead but that was denied. The state said it refuses to let a non-prison employee into the execution room, but agreed not to have the chaplain present. Ray's spiritual adviser watched from an adjoining witness room. The U.S. Supreme Court overruled a lower court decision Wednesday staying the execution plans. Ray was convicted of the 1995 murder of 15-year-old Tiffany Harville. ------ 8:20 p.m. The U.S. Supreme Court has cleared the way for Alabama to proceed with the execution of a Muslim inmate who had wanted his spiritual adviser to be present in the execution chamber. Justices on Thursday evening vacated a lower court's stay with a 5-4 decision. The Alabama Department of Corrections plans to carry out the execution of Dominique Ray on Thursday night. Ray asked to have his imam replace a prison chaplain in the execution chamber. The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals stayed the execution Wednesday to weigh whether Alabama procedures favored Christian inmates. A majority of justices voted to let the execution proceed. ------ 6:45 p.m. A condemned Muslim inmate received a visit from his imam and made a final request to have the spiritual adviser present in the execution chamber if the prisoner's lethal injection is carried out. Prison system spokesman Bob Horton said 42-year-old inmate Dominique Ray was visited by his imam Wednesday and Thursday. Horton says that for his final request, Ray again asked to have that spiritual adviser beside him in the death chamber, a request the state has denied. Ray was originally scheduled to be executed at 6 p.m. Thursday. But that time passed without word from the U.S. Supreme Court on the state's request to proceed with the planned lethal injection. A lower federal court on Wednesday had stayed the execution to consider whether Alabama's death procedures favor Christian inmates. The state allows a prison chaplain in the chamber. But it rejected a request for Ray's imam to be present, saying it doesn't allow non-prison employees in the death chamber -- only in an adjoining witness room. ------ 2:15 p.m. The state of Alabama says a Muslim inmate has access to a Quran as he waits to see whether the U.S. Supreme Court will allow his lethal injection. A court document says a copy of the Islamic holy book is available to 42-year-old Dominique Ray. It says Ray also was allowed to take a prayer mat into a holding cell. The state is asking the justices to lift a stay Ray won on religious grounds after asking to have his imam in the execution chamber instead of a Christian prison chaplain. The state argues Ray can visit with his imam beforehand. It says his lawsuit was an attempt to delay the execution, originally set for Thursday evening. Ray was condemned for the 1995 murder of 15-year-old Tiffany Harville. ------ 9:20 a.m. Alabama is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to let it proceed with the execution of an inmate who won a stay on religious grounds. The Alabama attorney general's office on Wednesday asked justices to vacate an execution stay for Dominique Ray. Ray's execution was scheduled for Thursday. Ray, who is Muslim, is asking that his imam replace a Christian prison chaplain who stays in the execution chamber during a lethal injection. The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals stayed the execution to weigh whether Alabama's procedures favor Christian inmates. Alabama said it only allows prison employees in the chamber for security reasons. The state said Ray's imam can visit him beforehand and witness the execution from an adjoining room. Ray was convicted in the 1995 death of 15-year-old Tiffany Harville. There are certain topics that even romantically linked folks are loathe to broach. For example, many Americans won't divulge their weight to their partners, even when the repercussions of doing so are likely to be nonexistent. Similarly, many folks don't care to discuss their dating history. But here's one surprising thing working adults are keeping from their partners: their salaries. Only 43% of workers share their salaries with their partners, according to data from Quicken, while 31% say that talking money, even with a partner, makes them feel anxious. Keeping your income under wraps, however, could impede your ability to manage your money efficiently, not to mention make it difficult to map out long-term goals with your partner. And that's reason enough to bring money talks to the table -- even if it means stepping outside your comfort zone. It pays to share It's one thing to avoid discussing your salary with your friends, family members, and colleagues. The latter, in fact, is a wise idea, since it could make things uncomfortable at the office. Keeping your salary hidden from your partner, however, is a move that could hurt you both in the long run. If you and your partner are living together, or planning to, you'll need to know how much earnings you're looking at in order to map out a reasonable budget. After all, how will you know what sort of expenses you can afford to take on if you don't have a number to work with? Not sharing salary information will also make it difficult, if not impossible, to buy a home together. As a general rule, your housing costs, including your mortgage, property taxes, and insurance, should never exceed 30% of your income. But if you and your partner don't share your salaries, you'll have no idea where to start. Clearly, keeping one another in the dark about salary just won't work, so if you've yet to share that information with your partner, schedule a time to have that talk. That said, be prepared to discuss the ways an income discrepancy might impact your relationship. Imagine you've been hesitant to share your salary because you're quite certain you're the higher earner of the two of you, and you don't want to be taken advantage of. In that case, you might diplomatically state that while you're perhaps happy to cover the cost of a date night or new household purchase, you expect that the bulk of your shared living expenses will be split down the middle. Setting some ground rules might help you avoid an uncomfortable aftermath following that conversation. If you're convinced that you're the lower earner, you might set similar expectations. For example, you might make it clear that while your salary isn't much to write home about at present, you're intent on pulling your weight and not taking advantage. Money is a leading cause of divorce in the U.S., so the sooner you and your partner get comfortable talking about it, the less likely it is to hurt your relationship. Sharing your salary with your partner will help you better manage your finances and make smart decisions rooted in reality. And with any luck, it might also help you both get just a bit closer. What happened The shares of giant diversified Canadian midstream company TransCanada Corporation (NYSE:TRP) rose an impressive 19% in January, according to data provided by S&P Global Market Intelligence. That was a huge turn from last year, when the S&P 500 Index's late-year swoon helped to push TransCanada's stock down a painful 26%. For reference, the S&P was down around 6% in 2018 and rose roughly 8% in January. There was a similar trend for smaller midstream player Phillips 66 Partners LP (NYSE:PSXP). It was down 19% in 2018 and rose 16% in January. But the trend didn't hold for Sunoco LP (NYSE:SUN), which distributes gasoline. This limited partnership was off by 4% in 2018, two percentage points less than the broader market, and up 12% in January. Cheniere Energy Partners LP (NYSEMKT:CQP) and Cheniere Energy Inc. (NYSEMKT:LNG) were even further from the pack, up 12% and 11%, respectively, in January after posting gains of 21% and roughly 10%, respectively, in 2018. So what Without a doubt, the broader market had a big impact on the price movements of all of these midstream entities. In late 2018 investors shifted into a risk-off mind-set and pushed just about everything lower. That shifted as 2019 got underway, with investors again willing to take on risk in January. But when you step back from this group of midstream players, you can see that painting them all with the same brush doesn't make much sense. The performance disparities are the evidence that seals this deal. Take, for example, Cheniere Energy Partners and Cheniere Energy, the clear standouts here. These two are front and center in the effort to export U.S. natural gas. Cheniere Energy Partners owns and operates Sabine Pass, one of the first liquified natural gas (LNG) export facilities to get up and running in the United States. It started operations in late 2016, ramping up the facility through 2017 and 2018. Revenues have basically exploded higher after years of spending to build the Sabine Pass LNG export facility. Cheniere Energy Partners has more capacity expansion plans on the books, as well. And virtually all of its cash flow is backed by long-term contracts. Things are looking pretty good for this partnership and that remains true no matter what happens to the broader market. Which is where general partner Cheniere Energy comes in. It is benefiting along with its controlled limited partnership, but to a lesser degree because it is also building an LNG export facility in Corpus Christi, Texas. That's a big expense, but if it plays out as well as the Sabine Pass investment, Cheniere Energy will eventually see huge cash flows backed by long-term contracts. That said, things are getting exciting for the company's Texas project, with the first cargo shipped in December 2018. More of the facility will come on line later in 2019, as well, with further expansion slated for 2021 or so. It's easy to see, however, that investors have looked past the market's ups and downs with both Cheniere Energy Partners and its parent, Cheniere Energy, because of solid financial results that look likely to continue improving. The individual stories beat out the big-picture market moves. In the middle here is Sunoco LP, which is a bit of an oddball in the midstream partnership space. After some big changes in 2018, its core business, essentially, delivers gasoline to gas stations. It also owns around 940 gas stations that it leases to third parties. Although gas prices go up and down, that doesn't change the need for a station to receive fuel deliveries. Moreover, a big portion of Sunoco's business is tied to delivery, not gasoline prices. Cash flows should be materially more stable in the future than they have been in the past. And, it is actively expanding its gas distribution business via acquisitions, as well as reaching into the midstream space to increase diversification. To that end, it completed a refined terminal purchase in late December and a gas station acquisition in mid-January. This is an evolving and increasingly compelling story, and investors have taken note. Which leads to the two laggards of 2018 and leaders in January, TransCanada and Phillips 66 Partners. Although TransCanada is a much larger entity, these are both more typical midstream players, owning pipelines and other similar assets. This pair tracked more closely with similarly diversified midstream players on both the downside and the upside. The biggest news out of TransCanada was the company's desire to change its name to TC Energy. Phillips 66 Partners upped its distribution by 5.4% in late January, continuing its streak of quarterly increases that has been in place since 2013. The hike was about the same size as the previous increase. All in all, there wasn't anything major on the news front here or any particularly unique characteristic about their businesses to differentiate them within the midstream space, unlike the situations at the two Cheniere entities and Sunoco. Check out the latest Cheniere Energy and Sunoco earnings call transcripts. Now what The stock market is a fickle beast and can have a huge impact on the prices of individual securities. But not all companies are made the same, and that can lead to very different outcomes, even during broad market moves like the late 2018 swoon and swift January recovery. This collection of midstream players is proof of just how important it is to understand the unique nature of each investment in your portfolio -- as well as the need to monitor the big picture. Here are three words I'll bet you'd never expect to see strung together: Space Force France. And yet, while much of the discussion regarding the "space force" concept lately has centered on President Trump's plan to split off the U.S. Air Force's space activities into a sixth branch of the military, it turns out there are other countries planning to build -- or already building -- space forces of their own. Countries such as France. Vive la force spatiale francaise! Echoing calls in the U.S. Congress for the creation of a space force, in late June 2018 French Minister of the Armed Forces Florence Parly recommended that France increase its investments in space surveillance. As Space Daily.com reports, France's National Centre for Space Studies (CNES), which operates France's military satellites, is currently awaiting a decision by French President Emmanuel Macron on whether to create a French "space force" to accomplish this. But why is France contemplating building a space force at all, given the ridicule the idea has received in the U.S.? Here's one clue: In September, Parly described recent "suspicious activities of [a] Russian space satellite" approaching the Franco-Italian Athena-Fidus satellite "too closely," for purposes unknown. The incident convinced Parly to back raising the profile of France's Joint Space Command, up to and including the development of a dedicated space force. Without a stronger space capability of its own, France is ill-equipped to defend its satellites against foreign interference, or even to be entirely certain what the Russians are up to. France's solution: The country plans to increase spending on its space program by some 14% this year. Then from 2019 to 2025 France will spend $4.2 billion upgrading its military satellite fleet, part of a broader effort by the country to boost its defense spending toward the 2% target required of all NATO members. According to SpaceDaily, even if an actual space force is never created, this money will fund French efforts to "update observation and communication satellites, modernize radar monitoring and develop anti-satellite weapons." France fears falling behind Are these efforts necessary? CNES president Jean-Yves Le Gall thinks they are. "China [and] Russia ... are launching many more military satellites than Europe," warns Le Gall, widening a gap in capabilities between Europe and potential rivals. China, for example, conducted 39 satellite launches in 2018, more than any other country on Earth, and many with military capabilities. China has the world's first "quantum satellite" in orbit -- reportedly immune to eavesdropping -- and may eventually build an entire "quantum internet" in space. It's also building a Chinese version of America's GPS satellite constellation, and plans to put a "global, 24-hour, all-weather earth remote sensing system" in place by 2020. On top of all that, China went ahead and created a "space force" in 2015, long before the U.S. (or France) began talking seriously about the idea. China's "Strategic Support Force" integrates the space, cyber, and electronic warfare capabilities elements of the People's Liberation Army into a unified space force, and possesses anti-satellite (ASAT) missiles and "co-orbital kinetic kill" weapons (killer satellites) as Defense One reports. Russian bears in space Meanwhile in Russia, Senate president Victor Bondarev has criticized Trump's plan to create a separate U.S. space force, equating the move with the kind of "militarization of outer space [that] is the path to disaster." Presumably, he won't be pleased if France follows the same path. Then again, a rose by any other name can still have thorns. Russia, which used to have separate "Space Forces" of its own, integrated these into its Aerospace Forces in 2015, mimicking U.S. Air Force Space Command's current structure, and that of the UK as well. Within these Aerospace Forces, Russia is working to develop hypersonic missiles -- against which the U.S. Air Force says America has no defense -- and plans to begin deploying them this year. Russia also tested ASAT weapons as recently as last year, yet another space technology the U.S. has not deployed. And in an echo of the Russian satellite that unnerved France last year, the U.S. State Department recently described another Russian satellite operating in a manner "inconsistent" with its stated mission of conducting in-orbit space inspections according to the Military Times. What this all means to investors When you get right down to it, whether we're talking about China, which has a dedicated "space force," or Russia, which says it doesn't, the race toward militarizing space has already begun. Even if the U.S. Air Force isn't entirely thrilled with the idea, it may have no alternative but to fall in line with the President's plan and back the creation of a U.S. space force just to keep up with what adversaries (and now allies like France) are doing. As then-Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said last summer, the threat from Russian and Chinese space forces "is a reality." The U.S. is "not initiating this." But "if someone is going to try to engage in space with military means, we will not stand idly by." What does this mean to investors? There are reasonable arguments for creating a separate, independent space force for the U.S. military, and reasonable arguments against. But whether American "space forces" are destined to receive their own separate military branch or remain housed within the U.S. Air Force, the need to develop space defenses is becoming pretty clear. As an investor, I'd expect this to translate into more dollars for military contractors such as Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and Northrop Grumman, which have significant space operations -- spending that could potentially come at the cost of money for contractors such as General Dynamics and Huntington Ingalls, which have less space exposure. Check out the latest earnings call transcripts for companies we cover. A second effect to keep watch for is the whole series of space start-ups -- companies with names like Vector, Planet, Rocket Lab, and Virgin Orbit -- that could potentially benefit from an increase in U.S. military space spending. Indeed, Vector in particular has already won a handful of Pentagon contracts, while Virgin Orbit recently set up a subsidiary dubbed "VOX Space" to compete for Pentagon work. Although none of this latter cast of companies is currently public, given sufficient Pentagon funding to scale up in size I wouldn't be at all surprised if we see an IPO or three emerge from this group in the very near future. Yes, it's the right time No, the state should have waited a while longer The economy should have been reopened a long time ago Vote View Results Fleeing the crisis in their country, the people of Venezuela have arrived in Spain in their thousands, some of them penniless, others rich Madrid: Fleeing the political, economic and humanitarian crisis in their country, Venezuelans have arrived in Spain in their thousands, some of them penniless, others so rich they are buying sumptuous flats. Fran Leal, 36, came to Spain from Maracay in northern Venezuela two months ago with his wife and two children. "Do you have a small suitcase? I'm going to Toledo, I've found a job," he asks as he enters the Casa Venezuela, an association that helps struggling Venezuelans in Madrid. An electrician, he is going to the city south of Madrid to work illegally for six months. "I don't have a choice as I don't yet have ID papers and I have no more savings," he says, as the crisis in Venezuela deepens with opposition leader Juan Guaido's self-proclamation as interim president. Unlike Leal, Juan Leonardo Lopez has not found a job since he arrived three months ago. "Before the crisis, I wasn't a millionaire but I lived fine, I had a great car and everything I needed," he says at a Venezuelan opposition protest in Madrid. He says he saw children die of dehydration in the hospital in Maracay where he worked. Spain's statistics agency says some 255,000 Venezuelans have settled in the country. But that figure is likely to be closer to 300,000 if illegal immigrants are taken into account, according to Tomas Paez, head of the Venezuelan Diaspora Observatory. Venezuelan asylum requests have nearly doubled in Spain over the year, with close to 20,000 in 2018, according to the interior ministry. But only 29 were successful last year, the ministry says, as it is hard for those who migrate for economic reasons to get asylum. As a result, Madrid has started giving some Venezuelans humanitarian visas. At the other end of the scale, many rich Venezuelans have also emigrated to Spain over the past year to escape the crisis and insecurity. Cesar, a 42-year-old businessman who declined to give his surname, arrived in Madrid in 2014 with his wife and daughter after an armed group tried to kidnap his brother. "We lived permanently with bodyguards, we would move around in armoured cars. We couldn't go out in the evenings," he says. "Here, we're enjoying what we no longer had in Venezuela: going out, eating out," says the head of a consultancy in Madrid, which still has an office in Caracas. Unlike those who are struggling, he was able to get an express residency permit after getting a "golden visa" for which one must invest at least one million euros (USD 880,000) in Spanish companies or 500,000 euros in real estate. Cesar bought three flats in the district of Salamanca in Madrid for 800,000 euros. Such has been the affluence of Venezuelans in this upmarket area that it has been named "Little Caracas" by Spanish media. Controversial due to the difficulty in verifying the origin of the funds used, the "golden visa" is very popular among rich Venezuelans. Last year, 249 such visas were given to Venezuelans in Spain, nearly 20 percent more than in 2017, according to the foreign ministry. Angel Garcia Loriente, a real estate agent who specialises in luxury purchases, says he sealed five deals with Venezuelans in 2018 for a total of 9.7 million euros. They are clients who want flats "in elegant buildings," he says. According to Juan Carlos Gutierrez, the Madrid-based lawyer of Venezuelan opposition figure Leopoldo Lopez who also has wealthy Venezuelan clients, they have fled "insecurity." They also "want to enjoy their money as it is impossible to run a successful business in Venezuela in the current conditions." The Supreme Court said that they will not allow Louisiana to put into effect a law that requires abortion providers to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals. Washington: A divided Supreme Court stopped Louisiana from enforcing new regulations on abortion clinics in a test of the conservative court's views on abortion rights. The justices said, by a 5-4 vote late on Thursday, that they will not allow the state to put into effect a law that requires abortion providers to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals. Chief Justice John Roberts joined the court's four liberals in putting a hold on the law, pending a full review of the case. President Donald Trump's two Supreme Court appointees, Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh, were among the four conservative members of the court who would have allowed the law to take effect. Kavanaugh wrote a dissenting opinion in which he said the court's action was premature because the state had made clear it would allow abortion providers an additional 45 days to obtain admitting privileges before it started enforcing the law. If the doctors succeed, they can continue performing abortions, he said. If they fail, they could return to court, he said. The law is very similar to a Texas measure the justices struck down three years ago. Roberts dissented in that case. But the composition of the court has changed since then, with Kavanaugh replacing Justice Anthony Kennedy, who voted to strike down the Texas law. Trump had pledged during the campaign to appoint "pro-life" justices, and abortion opponents are hoping the more conservative bench will be more open to upholding abortion restrictions. Louisiana abortion providers and a district judge, who initially heard the case, said one or maybe two of the state's three abortion clinics would have to close under the new law. There would be at most two doctors who could meet its requirements, they said. But the federal appeals court in New Orleans rejected those claims, doubting that any clinics would have to close, and said that the doctors had not tried hard enough to establish relationships with local hospitals. In January, the full appeals court voted 9-6 not to get involved in the case, setting up the Supreme Court appeal. The law had been scheduled to take effect starting Monday, but Justice Samuel Alito delayed the effective date at least through Thursday to give the justices more time. He and Justice Clarence Thomas were the other dissenters Thursday. The justices could decide this spring whether to add the case to their calendar for the term that begins in October. The case is June Medical Services versus Gee. The United States has shared with its UN Security Council allies a draft resolution calling for international aid to be delivered in Venezuela and for a presidential vote to take place. United Nations: The United States has shared with its UN Security Council allies a draft resolution calling for international aid to be delivered in Venezuela and for a presidential vote to take place. While no date has yet been set for a vote on the American draft, and negotiations are ongoing, Russia is likely to use its veto power to block it as part of its support of Nicolas Maduro's regime, diplomats said. The text, a copy of which was obtained by AFP on Saturday, expresses "full support for the National Assembly as the only democratically elected institution in Venezuela." The legislative body's chairman, Juan Guaido, has declared himself interim president of Venezuela, challenging Maduro's rule. The draft resolution stresses "deep concern with the violence and excessive use of force by Venezuelan security forces against unarmed, peaceful protesters." It also "calls for the immediate start of a political process leading to free, fair and credible presidential elections, with international electoral observation, in line with Venezuela's constitution." The text also requests that UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres "utilize his good offices" to obtain such elections. It also "stresses the need to prevent further deterioration of the humanitarian situation in Venezuela and to facilitate access and delivery of assistance to all in need in the entirety of the territory of Venezuela." On Friday, Moscow proposed an alternative text to the American one, diplomats said. Humanitarian aid sent by the United States recently arrived in the Colombian city of Cucuta at the border with Venezuela, but Maduro has refused to let in the shipments. Guaido said on Friday he was ready to take any necessary measures, including authorizing a US military intervention, to force Maduro from power and alleviate the humanitarian crisis. Spearheaded by the Kurdish YPG militia, the SDF has been the main US partner in Syria and has driven Islamic State out of a swathe of the north and east over the last four years. Qamishli: The US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) began an assault against the final Islamic State enclave in eastern Syria on Saturday, aiming to wipe out the last vestige of the jihadist group's "caliphate" in the SDFs area of operations. President Donald Trump, who is planning to pull US forces out of Syria, said on Wednesday he expected an announcement as early as next week that the US-led coalition operating in support of the SDF had reclaimed all the territory previously held by the jihadist group. The enclave is close to the Iraqi border and comprises two villages, though the Islamic State (IS) also still has territory in the part of Syria that is mostly under the control of the Russian-and-Iranian-backed Syrian government. SDF official Mustafa Bali, speaking to Reuters, described the assault as "the last battle". He later wrote on Twitter that the attack had started and the enclave would "be cleared soon." The SDF had handled the last 10 days "patiently" as more than 20,000 civilians were evacuated from the besieged IS enclave, Bali said. Senior SDF official Redur Xelil told Reuters that the force hoped to capture the area by the end of February, but cautioned that IS would continue to pose "great and serious" security threats even after that. Islamic State redrew the map of West Asia in 2014 when it declared a caliphate across large areas of Syria and Iraq. But the group steadily lost ground and its two main prizes the Syrian city of Raqqa and Iraqs Mosul fell in 2017. SDF Advance Two US security sources said the American governments top experts strongly believe IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is still alive and possibly hiding in Iraq. Spearheaded by the Kurdish YPG militia, the SDF has been the main US partner in Syria and has driven Islamic State out of a swathe of the north and east over the last four years. After capturing Raqqa, the SDF advanced southwards into Deir al-Zor province, attacking the jihadists in the territory on the eastern bank of the Euphrates River. The remaining Islamic State territory in Syria is west of the Euphrates. Trump said in December he was pulling all 2,000 US troops out of Syria, saying the battle against Islamic State there was almost won. But a top US general said on Tuesday the group would pose an enduring threat following the US withdrawal, as it retained leaders, fighters, facilitators and resources that would fuel a menacing insurgency. The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that the US military was preparing to withdraw from Syria by the end of April. A US official confirmed that target date to Reuters, saying the withdrawal included a pull-out from the US military base at Tanf, near the Syrian border with Iraq and Jordan. The US-led coalition has said it is not discussing the timeline of the US withdrawal from Syria. The United States and North Korea will meet again this month in an unidentified Asian country ahead of their leaders' planned second summit in Vietnam in late February, South Korean officials said on Sunday. Seoul: The United States and North Korea will meet again this month in an unidentified Asian country ahead of their leaders' planned second summit in Vietnam in late February, South Korean officials said on Sunday. The US special representative for North Korea, Stephen Biegun, visited Pyongyang last week to work out details of the 27-28 February summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. After being briefed by Biegun about his discussions in North Korea, South Korea's presidential office said that the US and North Korea used Biegun's trip as a chance to explain what concrete steps they want from each other. South Korea's national security adviser Chung Eui-yong, who met Biegun, reported that US-North Korea diplomacy "is working well," presidential spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom said. He said a follow-up US-North Korea meeting ahead of the summit will take place in a third country in Asia in the week that begins 17 February. In Pyongyang, Biegun and Kim Hyok Chol, North Korea's special representative for US affairs, discussed "advancing Trump and Kim's Singapore summit commitments of complete denuclearisation, transforming US-(North Korea) relations, and building a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula," the US State Department said in a statement. Trump and Kim met for their first summit in Singapore last June, during which Kim pledged to work toward the "complete denuclearisation" of the Korean Peninsula, without providing a clear timetable or roadmap. US-led diplomacy aimed at getting North Korea to abandon its nuclear program in return for outside concessions has since made little headway. Saudi Arabia quietly held a second court hearing for 11 people facing charges over the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, an independent UN human rights expert said, criticising the kingdom for its lack of transparency in the proceedings over the grisly slaying Geneva: Saudi Arabia quietly held a second court hearing for 11 people facing charges over the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, an independent UN human rights expert said, criticising the kingdom for its lack of transparency in the proceedings over the grisly slaying. Agnes Callamard, the UN special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, said she learned of the hearing during her first visit to Turkey last week to investigate the murder. Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist who wrote critically about Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman, was killed and dismembered inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul last October. His remains have not been found. The brutal killing described by Turkish and US officials as an elaborate plot has drawn an international outcry about press freedom and Saudi government tactics to quell criticism. Turkey, which is carrying out its own investigation into Khashoggi's murder, has been frustrated by what Ankara says is a lack of cooperation by Riyadh. It has also called for an international inquiry. Khashoggi, a Saudi writer, had gone to the consulate on 2 October to obtain documents for his upcoming wedding to his Turkish fiancee. After denying for weeks that Khashoggi was killed in the consulate, Saudi Arabia late last year indicted 11 people in the killing, including members from the crown prince's entourage, and is seeking the death penalty against five of them. Callamard told The Associated Press over the phone on Thursday that the second hearing in Saudi Arabia took place on 31 January. She criticised the fact that there is "insufficient public attention placed on the proceedings" and that the media are not present at the hearings Trials in Saudi Arabia can be shrouded in secrecy, she noted, insisting that Khashoggi case should be open to public scrutiny. "Given the importance of the case, we should be expecting a greater presence of representatives of the media, of civil society, of a range of other governments, not just those hand-picked by the Saudi authorities," said Callamard, a French national who is director of Columbia Global Freedom of Expression at Columbia University in New York. The revelation of a second hearing highlights the closed-door nature of trials in Saudi Arabia, where international media and independent monitors are not typically given access to witness court proceedings. Callamard declined to specify who told her about the hearing, but cited "reliable" sources about information "that I have been able to cross-check. Saudi Arabia has not revealed the defendants' names or the names of their lawyers. The kingdom's chief prosecutor, Saud Al-Mojeb, has said that of 21 people taken into custody in the case, 11 have been indicted and referred to trial. It's unclear if they remain detained during the trial or where they're being held. Turkey has sought the extradition of the Saudi suspects but the kingdom has rejected any notion they could be tried abroad and has not allowed Turkey access to them. Callamard said she was still waiting for a response from Saudi authorities to a request she made three weeks ago for an invitation to visit the kingdom. She said the next phase of her investigation will take her to Washington to speak with officials from countries that have "taken a deep interest in the case" and have been in touch with Saudi and Turkish officials. Earlier on Thursday, Callamard issued a statement through the UN office in Geneva, saying that Saudi Arabia had undermined Turkey's efforts to investigate Khashoggi's death, calling it a "premeditated killing" planned and carried out by Saudi officials. During her 28 January-3 February trip to Turkey, Callamard and her four-member team met with the Turkish foreign and justice ministers, the country's intelligence chief and the prosecutor leading the case. She concluded that Turkey's efforts have been "seriously curtailed and undermined by Saudi Arabia," the statement said. Callamard plans to present her final report to the UN-backed Human Rights Council in June. The death toll from the building collapse in Turkeys Istanbul rose to 21, as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said authorities have lessons to learn Istanbul: The death toll from the collapse of an apartment building in Istanbul rose to 21 on Saturday, as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said authorities have "lessons to learn" from the incident. The eight-storey block in the Kartal district on the Asian side of the city collapsed on Wednesday but the cause is not yet clear. Erdogan, visiting the site Saturday, said, "We have a great number of lessons to learn from this. We will take the necessary measures." Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu, meanwhile, told reporters that the toll from the building collapse had risen to 21 dead and 14 are reported to be injured. It was the third time the toll figures were updated during the day. "We estimate that there were 35 people trapped under the rubble and we have now accounted for 35," he said while stressing that search operations would continue as before. Dozens of rescuers were working at the site with a crane lifting huge blocks of concrete to clear the rubble. President Erdogan also visited a hospital to talk to survivors, before attending the funeral of the nine members of one family who lost their lives in the disaster. Turkish authorities said 43 people were registered as living in the building. Environment Minister Murat Kurum, who accompanied Erdogan, said the block had housed 14 apartments and three businesses. Turkish media said three of the eight floors had been illegally built - a common practice in the metropolis of around 15 million people. The collapse fanned criticism of a government amnesty granted last year to people accused of illegal building - a measure announced ahead of municipal elections this March. Engineers and architects regularly sound the alarm against illegal additional storeys to buildings which they say weaken the constructions' structure, and put them at greater risk in the event of an earthquake. A four-storey structure in Istanbul crumbled last year following violent thunderstorms. In January 2017, two people died when another building collapsed in a working class part of the city. By Philip Pullella VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - A cardinal who was sacked from a senior Vatican post by Pope Francis has written his own 'Manifesto of Faith,' in the latest attack on the pontiff's authority by a leading member of the Church's conservative wing. Cardinal Gerhard Mueller, 71, a German who was the Vatican's doctrinal chief until 2017, issued the four-page manifesto on Friday via conservative Catholic media outlets. He said 'many bishops, priests, religious and lay people' had requested it By Philip Pullella VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - A cardinal who was sacked from a senior Vatican post by Pope Francis has written his own "Manifesto of Faith," in the latest attack on the pontiff's authority by a leading member of the Church's conservative wing. Cardinal Gerhard Mueller, 71, a German who was the Vatican's doctrinal chief until 2017, issued the four-page manifesto on Friday via conservative Catholic media outlets. He said "many bishops, priests, religious and lay people" had requested it. He did not say how many and why he was issuing it now. However, conservatives balked this week when Francis made the first trip by a pope to the Arabian peninsula and signed a "Document on Human Fraternity" with a Muslim faith leader. Ultra-conservative Catholics are opposed to dialogue with Islam, with some saying its ultimate goal is to destroy the West. The manifesto was dated Feb. 10, the sixth anniversary of the eve of former Pope Benedict's announcement of his resignation. Benedict, 91, remains an icon for conservative Catholics. Mueller said he wrote it "in the face of growing confusion about the doctrine of the faith". He said some Church leaders "have abandoned the people entrusted to them, unsettling them and severely damaging their faith". He warned against "the fraud of (the) anti-Christ". Mueller, who did not mention the pope, is one of a handful of conservative cardinals who have open accused Francis of sowing confusion. They say he is weakening Catholic rules on moral issues such as homosexuality and divorce while focusing excessively on social problems such as climate change and economic inequality. Their leader is Raymond Leo Burke, 70, an American who was demoted from a senior Vatican position in 2014. Mueller has ramped up his criticism of the pope since Francis removed him as head of the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in 2017. Most of the manifesto was a re-stating of the Church's teachings, including several that Francis himself has strongly upheld, such as celibacy for priests and the ban on women's ordination. One section, however, was a clear jab at Francis' reaching out to Catholics who have divorced and remarried outside the Church. Francis believes some should be allowed to receive communion on a case by case basis, something that is anathema to conservatives. The Vatican has not commented on the document. (Reporting by Philip Pullella; Editing by Ros Russell) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Democrat Elizabeth Warren officially kicked off her 2020 White House run on Saturday with a full-throated pledge to defend working Americans, unbowed by a row over her Native American ancestry that has threatened to nip her campaign in the bud. Lawrence: Democrat Elizabeth Warren officially kicked off her 2020 White House run on Saturday with a full-throated pledge to defend working Americans, unbowed by a row over her Native American ancestry that has threatened to nip her campaign in the bud. "This is the fight of our lives," she told cheering supporters in gritty Lawrence, Massachusetts, against "a rigged system that props up the rich and powerful and kicks dirt on everyone else." "Millions of families can barely breathe," Warren said, in a feisty speech that struck aggressively populist and unapologetically left-leaning notes. "It is not right." The Massachusetts senator who had announced her intention to run on New Year's Eve is among the highest-profile of the growing pool of Democrats hoping to unseat President Donald Trump in 2020. The Democratic field is already the party's most diverse ever, in gender, age and ethnic background, and one of its more progressive. It includes several well-known women lawmakers, with Senator Amy Klobuchar expected to join their numbers on Sunday. Warren's past battles with Wall Street have brought her a large following, and her campaign team has drawn the grudging respect of its rivals. Hoping to ride the momentum of her Lawrence speech, she heads next to early-voting Iowa and New Hampshire, followed by five other states. But for now it is unclear how badly damaged Warren is by the stubborn controversy over her claim to Native American roots a claim Trump has seized upon to belittle her, mocking her as "Pocahontas." Hoping to put the controversy to rest, Warren released DNA tests in October but this backfired when they showed her to have only negligible amounts of Native blood, dating back generations. Warren ultimately apologized to the Cherokee Nation. The matter reared its head again this week when The Washington Post published what it said was an official 1980s document in which Warren listed her race as "American Indian." 'Exposed as a fraud', says Trump Trump's re-election campaign as it issued a dismissive statement ahead of Warren's announcement, saying she had "been exposed as a fraud by the Native Americans she impersonated and disrespected to advance her professional career." It said her "socialist ideas" would hurt workers. "This is a story that she did not want in this launch," said John Cluverius, a political science professor at the University of Massachusetts-Lowell. But he also cautioned that "it's still very, very early" to speculate on "how it harms her, or doesn't harm her." Lawrence, the scene of Warren's announcement, is a former mill town where a group of women workers, including many immigrants, launched a strike in 1912 that spread across the region and came to be seen as a historic victory for women and for labor, with improved wages and working conditions. The 69-year-old senator has made the protection of middle-class rights the central pillar of her political message. Lawrence, once part of a bustling US textile industry, has for years fallen on hard times, with the loss of thousands of factory jobs. But Warren showed nothing but pride in Lawrence's pro-worker history. "I will never give up on you," she said. "I am in this fight all the way." She called for "big, structural change" in America that would reach beyond new US leadership though she called the Trump administration "the most corrupt in living memory." Warren said she would press for steeper taxes on the rich, strong anti-corruption legislation, curbs on lobbyists and a defense of the climate. She also supports universal health care. She pointed to her own rise from humble origins the daughter of a janitor, she started her schooling in a $50-a-semester community college and ended up teaching law at Harvard arguing that she can help bring a revival of the American Dream. Warren tried in her speech to appeal to a broad ethnic coalition, saying, "We must not allow those with power to weaponise hatred and bigotry to divide us." Cluverius says Warren will need strong Hispanic support since two popular African Americans Democratic senators Kamala Harris and Cory Booker are also in the crowded field. She will also need to win over female voters, which might explain the highly unusual, and somewhat risky, decision to include a story about potty-training her baby daughter. Warren recounted her decision to go to law school when Amelia was not quite two years old, but said the only day care she could find, with five days before classes were to start, would take the child only if potty-trained. A determined Warren accomplished the task, she told a laughing crowd, "courtesy of three bags of M&Ms." "Since that day, I've never let anyone tell me that anything is 'too hard,'" she quipped. Prince Philip, the husband of British Queen Elizabeth II, has voluntarily surrendered his driving licence, weeks after escaping unhurt in an accident London: Prince Philip, the 97-year-old husband of British Queen Elizabeth II, has voluntarily surrendered his driving licence, weeks after the duke miraculously escaped unhurt in a terrifying accident that injured two women in another car. "After careful consideration the Duke of Edinburgh has taken the decision to voluntarily surrender his driving licence," Buckingham Palace said in a brief statement. He surrendered his licence on Saturday, the palace said. The Prince's decision to hand over his driving licence was entirely his own and he will be driven from now on, it added. Norfolk Police confirmed that the duke had surrendered his licence to officers and it would now be returned to the DVLA, the BBC reported. Prince Philip's decision to surrender his licence comes weeks after he caused a car crash near the Sandringham estate in Norfolk, in which his Land Rover Freelander landed on its side after a collision with a Kia. Though Philip was unhurt, the accident on 17 January stirred up a debate in the UK about old age and driving and raised questions over the duke still driving himself on public roads. Two days after the accident, the duke was pictured back behind the wheel of the new Land Rover without a seatbelt, which is illegal in Britain. Later, Norfolk Police gave him "suitable words of advice". Philip, who formally retired from public life in 2017, has been seen behind the wheels on numerous occasions over the decade. The investigation file for the collision has been passed to the Crown Prosecution Service, which said it would take the latest development into account. In the letter to victim of the crash, the duke acknowledged the "very distressing experience". "I would like you to know how very sorry I am for my part in the accident," he wrote. "The sun was shining low over the main road. In normal conditions I would have no difficulty in seeing traffic coming... but I can only imagine that I failed to see the car coming, and I am very contrite about the consequences." At present, there is no upper age limit for driving in the UK. However, a person's driving licence expires once he or she reaches the age of 70. If the licence expires and they fail to renew it, then they legally are not allowed to drive. But if they apply for a renewal, they may continue. Partha P Chakrabartty Members of the Indian right launched #ProtestAgainstTwitter, accusing the platform of suppressing right-wing narratives on the platform, and endorsing left-wing ideologues. What is ironic about the protest is that even as they try to get Twitter to change its tune, the BJP government they see as their political representatives is pushing through an Internet intermediaries liability and content monitoring bill, that will allow the government to censor any content it deems unacceptable, a-la-China. Why are they not concerned with the Internet bill if they are concerned about Internet censorship? Does Twitter present more of a threat than law in the constitution with the full might of the Indian State to back it? The Internet bill gives the government the power to order platforms to use bots to automatically censor what it deems unacceptable. Again, think of China, and how just using certain words (like Winnie the Pooh) will get your post censored, never to be seen by anyone else. This is nothing compared to what they say Twitter is doing, which is: giving blue ticks to left-wing commentators; deleting right-wing propaganda from their trending list; and banning right-wing accounts while leaving left-wing fake news merchants untouched. If all of this is going onand cannot be explained by Twitters comprehensive policy against hate speechthen it needs to be addressed, especially insofar as Twitter is failing to act against hate speech by members of the Indian left. I suspect the grouse is much more than the Indian right cannot express its hatred with impunity. In failing to make the protest about freedom of expression, the protesting group, called Youth for Social Media Democracy (YSMD), is missing a marketing trick the American right figured out decades ago. Protestors need to be more worried about the Internet bill than Twitter being right or left-inclined But even as this circus plays out in Delhi and on the Internet, the Internet bill marches on, looking more and more like a foregone conclusion. YSMD is holding up posters that say Twitter is being a Twitler, a Hitler-who-is-a-twit, if I have understood them right; but they should be far more afraid of the Internet bill. Amit Shah may claim BJP will rule India for the next fifty years, in which time a catch-all law like this may come in handy to suppress sickular thought, but the odds of a single party holding power for that long in a modern democracy are slim-to-none. It would do the Youth for Social Media Democracy (who do not seem to have a website, or even a Facebook page) good to think about what will happen to their propaganda if the Opposition comes to power and chooses to wield the powers in the Internet bill against them. Whatever YSMD does or does not do, I hope the rest of us wake up to the danger that this bill represents. The rationale for the bill is the prevention of the infamous Whatsapp lynchings, but if that is its aim, the bill should come with a long list of riders and caveats to protect against its misuse. No such caveats are in place; included in the ambit of the law is any content the government deems libellous, or any content the government deems a threat to public safety. This last is a category that has been repeatedly struck down by the Supreme Court, but the Indian State does not seem to stop attempting to sneak it in. Plus, there are provisions to take this action before the content is even published, using algorithms. We do not even know which government agencies can exercise this authority (presumably, it will be the laundry list of 10 agencies the government announced earlier this year). Nor is there any accountability or penalty prescribed for misuse of this power. Nobody should be trusted with this kind of power, least of all political parties who will do whatever it takes to grab and maintain their rule. For once, it would do us netizens, the educated elite of India, to raise a ruckus before the bill becomes law, rather than wake up to it after the damage has begun and dangerous precedents set. We allowed the Aadhaar authority to summarily expand State powers in extremely sneaky and harmful ways, mostly because we remained unaware, safe in our belief that it didnt concern us. But this is the Internet, our playground and our battleground. If we love the Internet, both netizens of the right and the left, this is not a war we can afford to sit out. tech2 News Staff Moliere, considered the worlds foremost comic dramatist and perhaps the greatest artist in the history of French theater, is celebrated in today's Google Doodle. In a slideshow doodle, you can see a glimpse into Molieres most memorable scenes from his play, The Imaginary Invalid and other classics like School for Wives, Don Juan, and The Miser. And the reason why today was picked to celebrate the great artist, is because, on this day in 1673, Moliere premiered his final play The Imaginary Invalid. As Google puts it in its blog, he was famous "for his satirical plays that fearlessly lampooned human folly and blended ballet, music, and comedy into a new genre that transformed buffoonery into witty social critique". His bold work often offended people, and was banned. His religious satire Tartuffe was first performed in 1664 and immediately banned by the court of King Louis XIV. via GIPHY Ironically though, in 1669 the ban was lifted and Tartuffe came to be considered one of his masterworks. Born in the early 1600s, the now-known Moliere, was called Jean-Baptiste Poquelin. However, in the 1640s, he refused to join his family business, joined the theatre and assumed the stage name Moliere. For over a decade, Moliere was imprisoned for debts before his breakthrough in 1658, when his company performed for a royal audience at the Louvre. Centuries later, Moliere is now read as the greatest humourist and satirist by the French Theatre and the rest of the literary world. Also, his work is some great advice and lessons, that remain completely pertinent even now. Here's a quote from one of his classics, "The greater the obstacle, the more glory in overcoming it." Eric Porterfield, a Republican in the West Virginia House of Delegates, compared members of the LGBT community to the Ku Klux Klan on Friday amid facing threats and calls to resign over other recent bigoted remarks. The LGBT (community) is a modern day version of the Ku Klux Klan, without wearing hoods with their antics of hate, Mr. Porterfield said in an interview Friday morning, Charlestons Gazette-Mail reported. Porterfield also called the gay community a terrorist group and claimed that he is being persecuted and is receiving threatening voicemails and social media messages after earlier remarks in a Wednesday committee meeting became public in which he supported an amendment that would overrule local ordinances that protect LGBT people from discrimination. The amendment failed. As legislators, I dont think its our job to legislate behavior. This is discrimination against the First Amendment and religious liberty. The LGBT is the most socialist group in this country. They do not protect gays. There are many gays they persecute if they do not line up with their social ideology (sic) Some West VA. Republicans have criticized Porterfields comments. Del. Daniel Linville, R-Cabell, told the paper, Hes wrong, very wrong. Theres just no excuse though for some of the things that he said. In a news release, the state Democratic Party Chairwoman Belinda Biafore called for Porterfields resignation. Porterfield is refusing to resign and states that the controversy and his comments will boost his chances of re-election. The Associated Press Russian news reports say that Google has agreed with national authorities to delete links to websites banned in Russia. The daily Vedomosti reported Thursday that Google has reached an agreement with the Russian state media oversight agency, Roskomnadzor, to regularly receive updated lists of banned sites and delete links to them upon review. The newspaper says Google has already removed about 70 percent of the banned websites from its search results. The RIA Novosti news agency quoted Roskomnadzor as saying it has established a constructive dialogue with Google. Last December, Roskomnadzor fined Google 500,000 rubles ($7,600) for failing to delete links to the banned sites. It threatened to cut access to Google if it fails to comply with the demand. Were committed to enabling access to information for the benefit of our users in Russia and around the world, Google spokesman Nu Wexler said. The company offered no further official comment. tech2 News Staff In a letter issued by the parliamentary committee on information technology on 1 February, Twitter officials were summoned for a panel meeting on 7 February, which was then moved to 11 February to give the officials more time to make themselves available. However, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey and the other officials of the company refused to attend this meeting citing "short notice of the hearing", according to a report on 9 February. Hours later now, another report by IANS suggests that Parliamentary Committee, headed by BJP MP Anurag Thakur, is mulling an action against the platform. Thakur reportedly said, "Of course it can be an issue of breach of parliamentary privilege. They are taking advantage of the world's biggest market and are unwilling to answer." He added that the committee "will take a serious note of it". "It is a very serious subject, and the kind of reply they have given will be discussed in the parliamentary committee, and we will take further action on that," he said. BJP national spokesperson Meenakashi Lekhi also warned that if Twitter disrespects the parliament then there will be repercussions. This comes at a time when there are growing concerns about safeguarding citizens' data privacy and election interference through social media platforms. Twitter's conduct is being watched globally and their response is being seen with concern as India's Parliamentary hearing is amongst the fourth in the world after the US Congress, Singapore and EU hearing. NCP president Sharad Pawar said Saturday that he was 'worried' about Union minister Nitin Gadkari as he is being projected as a possible alternative to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Pune: NCP president Sharad Pawar said Saturday that he was "worried" about Union minister Nitin Gadkari as he is being projected as a possible alternative to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Gadkari, a senior BJP leader, was recently in news when he was seen as taking swipes at his party's top leadership after the Assembly poll losses in three states. Talking to reporters at Solapur in Maharashtra, Pawar replied to a question, "Gadkari is my friend. We have worked together. There is talk about his name being pushed (as an alternative to Modi) and because of that, I am worried about him." He did not elaborate further. Talking about alliances in the state for Lok Sabha polls, Pawar said his party was not engaged in any talks for a tie-up with Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS). "Raj Thackeray has a great deal of support from the youth. But we have not had any talks regarding any agreement pertaining to elections with his party," said Pawar. He discusses public issues with the MNS chief often, but there has been no discussion about working together in the election, he added. BJP president Amit Shah hit out at Congress chief Rahul Gandhi, saying he had stooped very low by trying to politicise his visit to Goa CM Manohar Parrikar Panaji: BJP president Amit Shah hit out at Congress chief Rahul Gandhi on Saturday, saying he had stooped very low by lying about and trying to politicise his visit to ailing Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar. Shah was addressing the BJP's booth-level workers in the presence of Parrikar here. "I felt good when Rahul Gandhi went to meet Parrikar, our leader who is battling a disease, to wish him (well)," the BJP president said. "But in the evening, he (Gandhi) claimed that during the meeting Parrikar spoke about the Rafale issue. This is a very low level of politics," Shah said. He accused Gandhi of mocking Parrikar's illness by "speaking lies". "Next day, Parrikar wrote a letter and clarified that he had not even uttered the 'R' of Rafale, let alone (talk about) Rafale and Rahul Gandhi was lying," Shah said. Gandhi had met Parrikar, who is suffering from a pancreatic ailment, on 29 January to enquire about his health. The Congress chief later claimed that the former defence minister had told him that he had nothing to do with the new Rafale fighter jet deal. Parrikar denied it. Shah said the "Congress president had broken all norms of politics" by stooping to an unprecedented low. "I want to say this to the people of Goa, while your beloved leader is fighting a disease, the Congress is trying to play politics on it," he said. The BJP chief also showered praise on Parrikar. "When I went to his house, I asked (him) whether he would like to join the meeting where there will be several leaders. He said, 'even if for two minutes, I would like to go and meet my workers'," Shah said. "If you want to see how a party worker should be, look at Parrikar," he added. Even now the Goa chief minister calls Delhi every second day to follow up on the pending work of his state, including the mining ban issue, Shah said. "In my entire life, I have never seen such a dedicated chief minister," he said. Rahul Gandhi was addressing a press conference on the fighter aircraft deal after a report in The Hindu quoted a Defence Ministry report that expressed strong reservations on the 'parallel negotiations'. New Delhi: Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of robbing the Air Force of Rs 30,000 crore and giving it to businessman Anil Ambani, in "parallel negotiations" conducted by the Prime Minister's Office in the multi-billion dollar Rafale jet deal. The Congress leader was addressing a press conference on the fighter aircraft deal after a report in The Hindu quoted a Defence Ministry report that expressed strong reservations on the "parallel negotiations". "Prime Minister Modi himself robbed Air Force's Rs 30,000 crore and gave it to his friend Anil Ambani. We have been raising this since one year. Now a report has come where Defence Ministry officials say that prime minister was holding parallel negotiations with France government," Rahul said. "The prime minister should explain to the armed forces, the Air force, why he is interfering with the negotiations?," he said, alleging Modi was looking rattled. "It is a corporate warfare and the prime minister is representing Anil Ambani. The prime minister is talking about himself does he have a dual personality chowkidar and the chor," he said. "Ulta chor, chowkidaar ko daante. He's talking about himself? He has got a dual personality? He is now viewing himself as chowkidaar and chor. He talks to himself at night. One day he becomes chowkidaar and one day he becomes chor? Schizophrenia?," Rahul said. He also claimed that the Supreme Court judgment had become questionable. "You do whatever enquiry and investigation whatever you want... investigate P Chidambaram and (Robert) Vadra, but also investigate Rafale," the Congress leader said, referring to the questioning of his brother-in-law Vadra by the Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case. "The entire Supreme Court judgement on Rafale becomes questionable now... because information was withheld by the government," the Congress chief alleged. Meghalaya chief minister Conrad Sangma said the National People's Party (NPP) will break ties with NDA if the Central government passes the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill in the Rajya Sabha. Guwahati: Meghalaya chief minister Conrad Sangma on Saturday stated that his party, National People's Party (NPP), has decided that if the Central government passes the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill in Rajya Sabha, then they will break ties with NDA. While addressing the media in Guwahati, Sangma said, "The National People's Party has decided if the bill is passed in the Rajya Sabha, the party will break its ties with the NDA. This decision was made at the general body meeting." Furthermore, Sangma said a resolution has been passed in this regard and will be submitted to the Narendra Modi government. "The party took a unanimous resolution to oppose the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016, and based on that decision, a resolution has been passed that will be submitted to the Government of India to oppose this nill and not to go ahead with it in Rajya Sabha." The bill was passed in Lok Sabha on 8 January and the Centre is expecting to get Rajya Sabha's nod in the ongoing session. Narendra Modi in Guntur lashed out at Chandrababu Naidu for aligning with the Congress, saying the former chief minister NT Ramarao (NTR) had launched the party to make Andhra Pradesh 'Congress-mukt' (free) after he was a victim of its 'arrogance.' Guntur: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday launched a scathing attack on Andhra Pradesh chief minister and Telegu Desam Party (TDP) supremo Chandrababu Naidu, saying he has made a "U-turn" on promises of development to the state and only trying to replicate NDA government's schemes. "Our government gave to Andhra Pradesh much more than what was mentioned in special status. CM of Andhra Pradesh acknowledged this package but took a U-turn as they failed to use the funds in the appropriate way and were not able to develop the state," Modi said, addressing a public rally in Guntur. Modi lashed out at Naidu for aligning with the Congress, saying the former chief minister NT Ramarao (NTR) had launched the party to make Andhra Pradesh "Congress-mukt" (free) after he was a victim of its "arrogance." Naidu was indeed a senior to him, but only in losing elections, switching alliances and ditching his father-in-law NT Rama Rao, Modi said. "He keeps reminding me he is senior. There is no debate in this. I have never shown any disrespect to you since you are a senior. You are a senior in changing alliances. A senior biting the back of your own father-in-law. A senior in losing one election after the other, whereas I am not." Furthermore, Naidu was senior in embracing tomorrow those whom he would abuse today, Modi said. The prime minister alleged Naidu was taking him on since the Centre had sought details of every paise given to Andhra Pradesh. Naidu had promised walking in the footsteps of NTR, Modi said and asked if the Chief Minister had lived by it. "The arrogance of Delhi (during the Congress rule) has always insulted states. And NTR that is why decided to make AP Congress-mukt and floated the TDP. The TDP leader who has to resist the arrogance of the Naamdaars (famous and powerful people) and crush their arrogance is siding with them," he said in an apparent swipe at Naidu joining hands with the Congress. "This chowkidar (watchman) has disturbed his sleep.. wanted to know the details of every paise given to Andhra Pradesh," Modi said. Naidu promised the sunrise of Andhra Pradesh but is fixated with the rise of his own son N Lokesh, Modi charged. The Chief Minister promised the redevelopment of Amaravati but is now engaged in his own development, the Prime Minister alleged. He said Naidu had not initiated any new programmes for the poor but was only putting his stamp on the NDA government's development schemes. On providing clean fuel in the country, Modi said while in 60 years, only 12 crore gas connections were given, the NDA government had given 13 crore gas connections in just four years. Earlier, the Prime Minister dedicated two major petroleum and gas projects a strategic petroleum reserve facility at Visakhapatnam and a gas field at Amalapuram to the nation through a remote control system. He also laid the foundation stone for the construction of a coastal terminal of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited at Krishnapatnam in SPS Nellore district. Addressing the rally, Modi said "Our aim is to have a New India that is clean and pollution-free. Such projects are the key to the nations energy security," Modi said. The Centre was building oil reserves at various locations across the country to ensure there was no shortage of oil and gas in times of crises, he said, referring to a similar facility he inaugurated in the north-east on Saturday. "Our government has been working continuously to make India a clean fuel economy and several projects have been initiated in this direction," he added. Referring to the strategic petroleum reserve facility of Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserve Limited (ISPRL) at Visakhapatnam and the ONGCs Vasishta S1 gas field in the Krishna-Godavari Basin at Amalapuram, the Prime Minister said they would not only help create jobs but also aid in the development of gas-based industries in the region. Earlier, when Modi arrived at Gannavaram airport in Vijayawada, TDP workers staged protests. This is Modi's first visit to the state after the ruling Telugu Desam Party severed ties with the NDA in March last year. The Chandrababu Naidu-led party quit the BJP-led alliance protesting the "injustice" done to the state post-bifurcation. Giving the protocol a go-by, none of the state ministers turned up at the Gannavaram airport to formally receive the Prime Minister. BJP leaders alleged that people were "thwarted," from reaching the venue in large numbers and said countdown would start for Naidu with Modi's rally at Guntur. Commenting on the black balloon protests against him by TDP workers, Modi quipped he welcomed it recalling the tradition of smearing black to ward off evil designs. Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a blistering attack on Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu in Amaravati. Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a blistering attack on Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu in Amaravati, while Naidu prepared to target the NDA regime in Delhi by rallying his friends in the Opposition, including his new-found ally, Congress. As political battle lines are drawn between Modi and his rivals on the eve of the elections, the people of the residuary state of Andhra Pradesh are caught in the political cross fire, with their concerns pushed to the back seat in the political slugfest between the BJP and TDP. Modi's speech was sharp and satirical on Naidu and his son Nara Lokesh, besides an unsubstantiated defence of his government's track record in helping the state hard hit by the arbitrary bifurcation. The prime minister claimed that projects worth over Rs 3 lakh crore were given to the state. But he failed to explain whether the bifurcation act was implemented by his government in its letter and spirit. The state of Andhra Pradesh, like any other state in India, has its own share of central funds as per the recommendations of the Finance Commission. Besides, the Centre will anyhow contribute its share in the financing of centrally sponsored schemes in the state. Both Modi and BJP president Amit Shah are trying to project these funds as special assistance to the new state. But, the political discourse in the state is on the status of implementation of the bifurcation act to which the BJP, while in Opposition, was also a part. Thus, Modi chose to speak his own language and own version of the facts, ignoring questions posed to him by the parties and people on the eve of his first visit after TDP's estrangement with BJP. Modi remained silent over several aspects of the bifurcation act, which still remain unimplemented or not properly executed. These include the demand for railway zone at Visakhapatnam, port at Dugarajapatnam, steel plant at Kadapa, petroleum refinery and cracker unit on the Andhra coast. The development grant for backward districts, financial assistance to build greenfield capital at Amravati, Vizag-Chennai industrial corridor, bridging the revenue deficit, setting up of several central institutions, etc have not been implemented to the full satisfaction of Andhra Pradesh. Instead, his main focus was on personally and politically attacking Naidu. Modi portrayed Naidu as one who backstabbed his own father-in-law, NT Rama Rao to snatch away the mantle of chief minister from the iconic leader. It is, in fact, a part of history that Naidu led the party's revolt on its founder NTR over the alleged extra-constitutional role played by his second wife, Lakshmi Parvathi. Whatever may be the truth, the fact remains that Naidu has proved his credentials as the claimant for the legacy of TDP founded by his father-in-law in elections held subsequently. Yet, his political rivals continue to use this narrative to challenge him. But the BJP allied with him both during the first and second innings of NDA only after he went against NTR. Why did BJP ally with someone who went against his own mentor and father-in-law? Modi's criticism, at least on this count, sounds hypocritical. Invoking his often repeated self-description of 'chowkidar', Modi's claim was that Naidu got annoyed with him only when he started asking proper accounts for central funds granted to the state. The prime minister alleged that the chief minister was swindling the funds to amass personal wealth. But, a person no less than the prime minister should have come out with concrete evidence to prove his allegations. The Centre also needs to explain why it did not initiate administrative action when the state government was misusing funds helping the ruling politicians to appropriate. Of course, Modi expectedly came down heavily on Naidu over his newly forged friendship with Congress. Invoking the anti-Congress political legacy of NT Rama Rao, Modi described Naidu as U-turn chief minister, a criticism which Shah has also made recently. Modi is right. Naidu never contested polls alone. He is known for frequently changing his allies. His critics call it political opportunism. His admirers describe it as a strategic act. Naidu calls it a political and democratic compulsion. Whatever may be the label, the fact has been that Naidu kept on changing his allies. He was with the Left, BJP and now even with TDP's arch rival Congress. However, BJP was the chief beneficiary of Naidu's political U-turn when TDP support was indispensable for the political survival of the first NDA government headed by Vajpayee. At a time when leaders like Nitish Kumar refused to work with Modi-led BJP, Naidu's support to Modi in 2014 was indeed a win-win political partnership between BJP and TDP. The prime minister may not be so concerned about Naidu's politics if it is confined to the state where he has little or no stakes. But Modi was visibly angered over Naidu's efforts to stitch together a broader front of Opposition parties led by Congress. Meanwhile, Modi not referring to YSR Congress would certainly give ammunition to TDP, which is already busy in trying to convince the electorate that YS Jaganmohan Reddy is acting at the behest of Modi and BJP. TDP president and Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu will sit on a day-long hunger strike in the national capital. New Delhi: TDP president and Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu will sit on a day-long hunger strike in the national capital on Monday demanding special status for his state and fulfilment of commitments made by the Centre under the AP Reorganisation Act, 2014. The Telugu Desam Party had walked out the BJP-led NDA last year protesting the "injustice" done to Andhra Pradesh after its bifurcation. Naidu will stage the 'Dharma Porata Deeksha' (a day-long protest for justice) at the Andhra Pradesh Bhavan in the national capital from 8 am to 8 pm on Monday. He will also submit a memorandum to President of India Ram Nath Kovind on 12 February, an official statement said. The chief minister will sit on a hunger strike along with his ministers, party MLAs, MLCs and MPs. Members of state employee associations, social organisations and student organisations will also join the fast, it said. Naidu is scheduled to pay tributes to Mahatma Gandhi at Raj Ghat and also to the Ambedkar Statue at the Andhra Pradesh Bhavan before sitting on the hunger strike. Leader of several Opposition parties are expected to extend their solidarity to the Andhra Pradesh chief minister's protest, the statement said. It may be noted that Naidu had staged an indefinite fast at the Andhra Pradesh Bhavan in October 2013, demanding that if a separate state is carved out of then unified Andhra Pradesh, both should get equal justice. He was forcibly shifted to Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital the fifth day after his health deteriorated. Last year, the chief minister had observed fast Vijayawada on his birthday on April 20 demanding special status for the state. After quitting the NDA in March last year, the TDP had also moved a 'no-confidence motion' in the Monsoon session of Parliament in July 2018, which was defeated. A day ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Andhra Pradesh, anti-Modi posters surfaced in the state. It has yet to be ascertained who put up those posters. Some of the posters read '#NoMoreModi #ModiIsAMistake', 'Modi Never Again', etc. Amaravati: A day ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Andhra Pradesh, anti-Modi posters surfaced in the state. It has yet to be ascertained who put up those posters. Some of the posters read #NoMoreModi, #ModiIsAMistake, Modi Never Again, etc. Andhra Pradesh chief minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu on Saturday gave a clarion call to his workers to hold Gandhian protests during Modis visit to the state on Sunday. While speaking to his party leaders through a teleconference, Naidu said: "Tomorrow is a dark day. Prime Minister Modi is coming to witness the injustice that was done to Andhra Pradesh by him. Modi is weakening the states and constitutional institutions. PMO's intervention in Rafael is a disrespect to the nation. We will hold peaceful Gandhian protests with yellow and black shirts and balloons. The Chandrababu Naidu-led Andhra Pradesh government since long has been demanding implementation of special category status for the state. Modi will address a public meeting titled 'Praja Chaitanya Sabha' at Etukuru bypass road near Guntur city on 10 February. To boost energy security of the country, he will dedicate to the nation the 1.33 million metric tonne Visakhapatnam Strategic Petroleum Reserve facility of the Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserve Limited. Modi will also inaugurate ONGCs Vashishta and S1 development project located in the Krishna-Godavari Offshore Basin in Andhra Pradesh. He will lay the foundation stone to set up a new terminal of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited at Krishnapatnam. During the Angelus, Pope Francis called on governments to tackle the causes of trafficking. Likewise, he called on everyone to "work together by speaking out against cases of exploitation and slavery". Jesus helped Peter and his fellow fishermen by "helping them not to fall victim to disappointment and discouragement in the face of defeat. He opened them up to becoming proclaimers and witnesses to his word and to the kingdom of God. Vatican City (AsiaNews) Pope Francis spoke today to the faithful gathered in St Peters Square for the Angelus, offering a prayer for Saint Josephine Bakhita to help "all those who are trapped in slavery", victims of human trafficking. As a child, the saint was sold into slavery, and then freed by her owner, an Italian. Later she became a Canossian nun in Venice and lived in Schio (Vicenza). On her feast day, 8 February, the fifth International Day of Prayer for Victims of Human Trafficking was held, titled Together against human trafficking. "It is an invitation, said the pope, to join forces to meet this challenge. I thank all those who fight on this front, especially the many men and women religious. I particularly appeal to the governments, so that the causes of this scourge are dealt with decisively and the victims protected. But we all can and must work together by speaking out against cases of exploitation and slavery of men, women and children. Prayer is the power that sustains our common commitment. Afterwards, together with pilgrims, Francis recited the prayer that had been handed out to everyone in the square. Before that, he offered his thoughts on today's Gospel (5th Sunday for year, C; Luke 5:1-11). In the latter, we read about Simon tired and disappointed, because that night they had caught nothing and Jesus' invitation to go back out and throw the fishing nets. Immediately, Simon objected, but then, inspired by the presence of Jesus and enlightened by his Word, said . . . but at your command I will lower the nets (Luke 5:5). This, the Pope said, is the response of faith, that we too are called to give; it is the attitude of availability that the Lord asks of all his disciples, above all those who have duties of responsibility in the Church. And Peter's confident obedience led to a prodigious result: "they caught a great number of fish and their nets were tearing (Luke 5:6) "It was a wondrous catch. . . When we place ourselves generously at his service, He does great things in us. He does the same with each of us: he asks us to welcome him on the boat of our life, to start again with him and to plough a new sea, which reveals itself full of surprises. His invitation to go out into the open sea of the humanity of our time, to bear witness to goodness and mercy, gives new meaning to our existence, which often risks turning inward." The Holy Father ended his address by speaking about Peter's resistance, a sign of his "inadequacy" ("Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man), and Jesus' encouragement ("Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men). For Francis, "The greatest miracle accomplished by Jesus for Simon and the other disappointed and tired fishermen, was not so much the net full of fish than helping them not to fall victim to disappointment and discouragement in the face of defeat. He opened them up to becoming proclaimers and witnesses to his word and to the kingdom of God. And the disciples' response was prompt and total. When they brought their boats to the shore, they left everything* and followed him (Luke 5:11). May the Blessed Virgin, a model of prompt acceptance of God's will, help us feel the fascination of the Lord's call, and make us available to work with him to spread his word of salvation everywhere." The Uttar Pradesh minister said that everyone is fit for prime minister according to him, but Mamata Banerjee seems the best fit. Varanasi: Uttar Pradesh minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ally Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP) chief Om Prakash Rajbhar said West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee is the best fit for the role of prime minister. The Uttar Pradesh minister who was asked about who would most likely become prime minister following the Lok Sabha elections later this year, told ANI, "Humko toh sab fit lagte hai. Iss samay toh Mamata ji sabse fit lagti hai." (Everyone is fit for prime minister according to me. Mamata seems the best fit at this time.) On the West Bengal chief minister denying permission to Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Aditynath to land his chopper in West Bengal for a rally in the state, the minister said, "it is the duty of Mamata ji to control law and order, not Yogi ji. Yogi had also cancelled my rally in Varanasi in 2017 citing law and order." Speaking about the recent hooch-related deaths in the state, the cabinet minister said, "for 16 years, I have been saying that poor people are dying because of liquor. It cannot be stopped unless there is a full ban on liquor." In the 2017 Assembly elections in the state, BJP had bagged 312 out of 403 seats, while SBSP had won 4 seats. The SBSP has been critical of the Uttar Pradesh government and has attacked it over various issues. Weeks after Priyanka Gandhi's formal entry into politics, BJP parliamentarian Harish Dwivedi on Saturday took a dig at the Congress leader while invoking her choice of dresses in a demeaning way. Basti: Weeks after Priyanka Gandhi's formal entry into politics, BJP parliamentarian Harish Dwivedi on Saturday took a dig at the Congress leader while invoking her choice of dresses in a demeaning way. Upon being asked about the possible impact of Priyanka's entry into active politics ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, Dwivedi told media persons in Basti, "For me or the BJP, Priyanka Gandhi is not an issue. If Rahul Gandhi is a failure, Priyanka is also a failure. Everyone knows that when Priyanka Gandhi is in Delhi she wears jeans and top but dons saree and sindoor when she comes to the constituencies." This is not the first time that BJP leaders have courted controversy with their remarks on Priyanka. On 30 January, Surendra Singh, BJP MLA from Rohaniya constituency of Uttar Pradesh, dubbed the Congress president "Raavan" and his sister Priyanka "Surpanakha" the demons from Hindu epic Ramayana. "We all know that before Ram and Raavan fought in Lanka, Raavan sent his sister Shurpanakha. It looks like (in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections), Rahul will play the role of Raavan, while Ram, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is making India proud across the world," Singh had said. A few days before Singh's remark, BJP general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya had also taken a dig at the Congress party and criticised them for using "chocolaty faces" to fight the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. On 25 January, Bihar minister Vinod Narayan Jha, in a statement that had potential to stir up a controversy, called Priyanka "a very beautiful face" who had no political achievements to her credit. Priyanka, whose formal entry into politics had been a matter of speculation for several years, was handed over the charge of eastern Uttar Pradesh in January this year. She was appointed the general secretary in-charge of Uttar Pradesh East. On Friday, HD Kumaraswamy of JD(S) played two audio clips, one of which purportedly caught state BJP president BS Yeddyurappa offering Rs 25 crore. Flashback to 1983: Congress leader Veerappa Moily was categorical when he told me in 1983 that the Moily tapes were a colossal heap of nonsense. I didnt believe him. But despite his confidence in winning a legal battle, he was shattered by the allegation that he had offered Rs 2 lakh to MLA C Byre Gowda to ditch Janata Party and join Congress. That was when Congress was unashamedly trying to topple the Janata Party government of Chief Minister Ramakrishna Hegde. In those days, when a mobile phone was still an engineering dream, Hegde told me that it was his idea to ask Gowda to keep a dictaphone in his coat pocket when he met Moily inside a car to record their conversation. Both Hegde and Gowda were sure that Moily was fixed and Congress was exposed. If Moily was crestfallen, the nation was shaken. There was an angry walkout in Parliament, and Janata Party president Chandra Shekhar said he couldnt imagine anything more sordid than those tapes. But four years later, a commission of inquiry cleared Moily of the charge for lack of evidence. Fast forward to 2019: On Friday, Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy of JD(S) played two audio clips, one of which purportedly caught state BJP president BS Yeddyurappa offering Rs 25 crore or Rs 10 crore as mentioned elsewhere in the conversation to an MLA for switching sides. A second clip has another male voice, supposedly that of BJP MLA Shivangouda Naik, boasting about compromising the Assembly Speaker (with Rs 50 crore) and judges. Probe after BJP volte face On Monday, Kumaraswamy announced a comprehensive inquiry by a Special Investigation team (SIT) into the audio clips to bring out the truth. This came after Speaker Ramesh Kumar said in the Assembly that an investigation was necessary and that it must be completed in 15 days since his name had also been dragged into the controversy. Yeddyurappa found himself in a soup. After first dismissing the whole thing as fake, he later said he had indeed met the MLAs son, but the content of the tape had been changed by doctoring his voice. Tit-for-tat tapes And on Saturday, BJP hit back with the replay of a 2014 tape which allegedly shows Kumaraswamy demanding money to give a Legislative Council election ticket to an aspirant. Though hitting headlines, these rival tapes didnt come as a terrible shock to the state, leave alone sending the nation into grief. The very idea or even just a hint of it of a party shopping for legislators or buying them with money or posts or doling out seats for cash might stun the inventors of democracy. But such tapes have ceased to produce the intended shock and awe. The reason is not just the resigned acceptance of political corruption as part of the Indian system but also that, more than three decades after the Hegde-Gowda tiff, tapes and counter-tapes have become as routine in Karnataka as elections. Yeddyurappa was a target of one such tape only in May 2018, when elections produced a hung Assembly and he took oath as the BJP chief minister though he was short of majority. During the 24 hours before the scheduled trust vote, Congress came out with as many as five tapes to nail BJP. Price of an MLA? Rs 25 crore if some of the tapes are to be believed. In one of these, Yeddyurappa tells an MLA he would give him whatever you want. In another one, Yeddyurappas son tells the wife of an MLA: He (your husband) will become a minister, why must you worry about it? But the MLA himself denied that it was his wifes voice and that she had ever received that call. Yet another tape allegedly had mining tycoon Gali Janardhana Reddy telling Congress MLA Basavanagouda Daddal: You will get a ministers post...you will make 100 times the money you have made so far. And this is also not the first time that Kumaraswamy is flaunting such electronic evidence against rivals. In October 2010, he sprang a CD which allegedly contained a conversation in which a BJP MLA tried to woo a JD(S) legislator. This was claimed to be the result of a sting operation using four cameras. We will complain to the governor and seek his action demanding dismissal of the Yeddyurappa government, Kumaraswamy had said at the time, but that was the last we heard about that complaint. This was a tit-for-tat against an audio clip that BJP released 12 days earlier with a voice, allegedly that of Kumaraswamy, wooing one of the partys MLAs into JD(S). There have also been videos and audios in Karnataka which allegedly established scams of bribery in mining contracts, allotment of party tickets, cross-voting in Rajya Sabha elections and sexual misadventures. Futile investigations Nose-diving of morality and the giant leap of technology have happened at the same time, making the production of an audio or a video tape with bizarre allegations as easy as the push of a button. If a smartphone makes it simple to record a conversation, there is also easily available editing software to tinker with it. As investigators have said before, tech savvy crimes can also be busted with tech savvy software. Using different software, it isnt tough to detect anomalies in an audio or a video that has been faked or a part of it has been tampered with. Yet it is rarely easy to establish with irrefutable finality that a crime like wooing an MLA with money has been committed on the basis of a tape, unless the allegation is also backed with other evidence. Besides being long-drawn, a forensic investigation may never convincingly prove that the recording is either authentic or fake. And as it always happens in Indias insufferable politics, its easy to question the fairness of or attribute motives to any inquiry. Its clear that both the producer of a phony tape or the victim of a real one can thus take comfort from this. So the pattern has been tiresomely repetitive. After a party produces a tape that allegedly incriminates another, the accuser swears by its authenticity, while the accused calls it fake and even springs a counter-tape to fix the former. Both talk of an inquiry only to forget all about it soon. The Moily tapes were a notable exception. Both Moily and Hegde wanted an investigation, though the accused got a clean chit in the end. Moily, in fact, wanted an inquiry by a Supreme Court judge, which was rejected by the union law ministry. The result of all this has been that Karnatakas spate of political audios and videos have proved only one thing: the price of an MLA has shot up from Rs 2 lakh from the days of Moily tapes in 1983 to Rs 25 crore in Kumaraswamys era. Author tweets @sprasadindia The Opposition's baseless allegations about the Rafale will not affect the BJP's poll prospects, Union minister Piyush Goyal said Mumbai: The Opposition's "baseless" allegations about the Rafale fighter jet deal will not affect the BJP's poll prospects, Union minister Piyush Goyal said on Saturday. He was speaking to the media after the party launched "Bharat ke mann ki baat, Modi ke saath", a month-long exercise to seek people's suggestions to help it prepare its manifesto. Asked if the Rafale issue, which the Congress has been raising consistently, alleging corruption, will impact the BJP in coming Lok Sabha polls, Goyal replied in the negative. "We have been going around the country and nobody has ever raised this issue and nobody has ever worried about it, because there is complete trust in Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The people of India trust Modi," Goyal said. "Absolutely baseless" allegations were being made, he said, adding, "These insinuations have no basis at all. So, I don't think this is an issue in the elections." The party is happy that a "non-issue" like Rafale "kept the Opposition busy while the BJP focuses on development and reaches out to the people", the Union minister said. Asked whether there would be simultaneous Lok Sabha and Maharashtra Assembly polls, Goyal indicated that it was unlikely. There has to be a consensus among all the parties for conducting simultaneous polls across the country, as proposed by prime minister Narendra Modi, and "it (the concept) could not be applied selectively", he said. Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi and Mumbai BJP chief Ashish Shelar were also present on the occasion. On state Congress chief Ashok Chavan's statement that they would like the newly-appointed Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi to campaign in Maharashtra, Goyal said the BJP "welcomes" it, and every party should put its "best foot forward". "Now it is accepted that their party president and leader (Rahul Gandhi) has failed. So they must make efforts (to win polls). They should find someone else if she too fails," he said. "It is unfortunate for the country that dynastic politics has reached a level where they do not have any leader beyond the family," he added. On NCP supremo Sharad Pawar hinting that he may once again fight a Lok Sabha election (after announcing some years ago that he was retiring from electoral politics), Goyal said, "We welcome it...so that we get one more opportunity to defeat him from one more seat." Asked about Twitter CEO and its top officials declining to appear before the Parliamentary Committee on IT which had summoned them over the issue of safeguarding citizens' rights on social media platforms, Goyal said it was for the Rajya Sabha Chairman and Lok Sabha Speaker to decide the course of action, and not for the government. To another question, Goyal, a Rajya Sabha member, said he will not be the party's candidate from Mumbai in Lok Sabha elections. Delhi chief minister and AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal had also attended the Kolkata rally, where he gave a call to defeat the Modi government. New Delhi: In the run up to the Lok Sabha polls, Delhi's ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) will host a mega rally of non-BJP leaders in the national capital on 13 February against the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government at the Centre. "Tanashahi Hatao, Desh Bachao" (Remove Dictatorship, Save Country) rally will be organised at Jantar Mantar on 13 February. All Opposition leaders will attend this rally against the Modi government," senior AAP leader Gopal Rai told PTI on Sunday. "It will be attended by all those who had attended Mamata Banerjee's Kolkata rally in January," he said. However, sources said, the Congress is unlikely to participate in the rally that will be attended by Mamata Banerjee and Chandrababu Naidu among other Opposition leaders. "With the Lok Sabha elections just months away, the rally will help to bring the Opposition leaders together and firm up a 'mahagathbandhan' to challenge the BJP-led NDA," they said. Delhi chief minister and AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal had also attended the Kolkata rally, where he gave a call to defeat the Modi government. Kejriwal has been a fierce critic of Modi and BJP president Amit Shah. Satyajit Biswas, a Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA from Krishnaganj in West Bengal's Nadia district, was shot dead by unidentified assailants on Saturday night. West Bengal BJP leader Mukul Roy is among the five who have been booked in connection with the murder of Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA Satyajit Biswas. The police filed an FIR in the case on Sunday and also arrested two of the four suspects, besides Roy, named in the report. "We have lodged an FIR and arrested two accused: Sujit Mondal and Kartik Mondal," Rupesh Kumar, Superintendent of Police in Nadia, was quoted as saying by DNA. The two used to be TMC workers who switched to BJP several months ago, Hindustan Times reported. Biswas, who represented the Krishnaganj constituency in West Bengal's Nadia district, was shot dead by unidentified assailants on Saturday at the venue of a Saraswati Puja celebration. He was shot at point-blank range while getting off the dais. The MLA was taken to the Shaktinagar district hospital after the incident, but the police said he was declared dead on arrival, India Today reported. According to CNN News18, the police had narrowed down their search to three suspects upon initial investigation. Biswas was a respected leader among the Matua community, which is politically sensitive for both the TMC and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The BJP had recently made inroads in the district of Nadia, which borders Bangladesh. Authorities have also suspended the Officer-In-Charge of the Hanskhali Police Station in connection with the case, ANI reported. The reason for his suspension is unclear. The MLAs security guard who was on leave on Saturday has also been suspended, DNA reported. The development comes amid political row has begun on Biswas' killing. Nadia TMC president Gourishankar Dutta has blamed the BJP and Roy's supporters for the murder. "It was a planned murder by the BJP. Minister Ratna Ghosh, Satyajit and I were invited as guests for the programme. On a personal level, he was like a son to me. He had recently got married. He was also a part of the Matua Sangha. The BJP was not able to attract Matua voters because of him. We will not let his death go in vain," The Indian Express quoted Dutta as saying. The BJP, however, has refuted the allegation. West Bengal BJP president Dilip Ghosh has denied the charges, blaming the infighting in TMC Biswas' murder. In addition, even after the FIR was lodged against him, Roy maintained the "no BJP leader" was involved in the murder, accusing the TMC of "desperately trying to frame BJP workers on false charges". Satyajit Biswas, who represented Krishnaganj constituency in the Assembly, was shot from a point-blank range by unidentified assailants on Saturday evening inside a Saraswati puja marquee at Phoolbari area Kolkata: The killing of Trinamool Congress MLA Satyajit Biswas drew sharp reactions from the ruling party and Opposition BJP, as a police complaint named saffron party leader Mukul Roy alleging his involvement in the incident. Roy, a former TMC general secretary who joined the BJP last year following differences with party supremo Mamata Banerjee, denied the allegation, claiming that Biswas was a "victim" of the TMC's internal feud. Amid allegations that there was no security cover despite the presence of the MLA and a minister at the venue of a Saraswati Puja where the incident occurred, the officer in-charge of local Hanskhali police station and the personal security officer of Biswas were suspended. A departmental inquiry has also been initiated against the OC and the PSO, who was reportedly on leave on Saturday, police said. Roy is among the four persons against whom an FIR has been lodged in connection with the killing of Biswas, police said. An officer of the West Bengal Police told PTI that two of the four people named in the FIR have been arrested. "So far, we have arrested two persons in this case and detained another three. A country-made revolver used to shoot the MLA has also been recovered. "As per our primary findings, it seems that the victim was fired from behind and the act was the result of a well- planned plot," he said. Asked about the chances of the assailants fleeing the area, the officer said the state police have been put on a high alert. "Nadia shares border with Bangladesh and there could be a possibility of them (assailants) trying to escape to the neighbouring country. Police have been put on high alert to check the movements along the border," he said. The country-made revolver was recovered from a ground near the place of the incident. Biswas, who represented Krishnaganj constituency in the Assembly, was shot from a point-blank range by unidentified assailants on Saturday evening inside a Saraswati puja marquee at Phoolbari area, which is about 15 kilometres from the Bangladesh border. He was immediately taken to a local hospital where doctors announced him "brought dead". His body was brought home from the hospital Sunday morning for last rites, amid a blame-game between the ruling party and opposition BJP leaders over who was responsible for the death. A large crowd gathered to pay last respects to the deceased MLA at his residence, a few metres away from the Saraswati Puja marquee where he was shot. Roy, a former TMC member of Parliament, said that the legislator's killing could be a result of infighting within the TMC. "Naming me in the FIR is absolutely a politically motivated move. I am sorry about Satyajit's death, but the manner in which they (TMC leaders) are trying to hold the BJP responsible is nothing but a dirty conspiracy," Roy told PTI. TMC secretary-general Partha Chatterjee, however, alleged that people who killed the 41-year old leader belonged to the saffron party. Along with party's Nadia district observer Anubrata Mondal, who asserted that the "none of the perpetrators will be spared", Chatterjee accompanied the MLA's hearse to his residence from the hospital. Stating that the chief minister was shocked to learn about the incident, he said, "Those who think that they will gain by eliminating Satyajit, are living in a fool's paradise." Meanwhile, the chief minister has spoken to the family members of Satyajit Biswas and assured them all help. Chatterjee, also the state Education minister, said that attempts are being made to create divide among the Hindus and the Matua community, of which Biswas was a leader in Nadia district. Urban Development minister Firhad Hakim alleged that "BJP is importing the politics of violence and murder in West Bengal from Gujarat. "They think that they will win the seat if they eliminate him," he said accusing the BJP. Hakim also squarely blamed the BJP for the killing of Biswas, who belonged to the Matua community - deemed vital as a support base in Bengal. "The prime minister came to woo the Matua community in Thakurnagar last week. Now the local BJP leaders are resorting to criminal activities to gain political turf," he said. TMC Nadia district president Gouri Shankar Datta also accused Roy of being involved in the incident. "Roy is the main mastermind behind this killing. We demand his immediate arrest," Datta told PTI. Denying allegations of BJP's involvement, the party's state president Dilip Ghosh demanded a CBI investigation into the killing. An independent probe will reveal the truth, he said. Ghosh also echoed Roy's sentiments and said that Biswas was a victim of internal feud within the ruling party. "If an MLA gets killed like this, how can the common feel safe?" he maintained. CPM state secretary Surjyakanta Mishra said that this incident shows that nobody is safe under TMC rule. He demanded an impartial probe to reveal the truth. The Hindu's report on the Rafale deal has unsurprisingly raised the political temperature, and there is no question that the BJP-led Central government is furiously back-pedalling now. The report on the Rafale deal carried by The Hindu on Friday has unsurprisingly raised the political temperature both inside and outside the Lok Sabha. There is no question that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Central government is furiously back-pedalling now. But it should know that it has been exposed, and its rhetoric, however brave, isn't washing particularly well. Let's begin by clearing some areas of confusion. The leader of the Indian negotiating team, Air Marshal SBP Sinha, now retired, has rejected claims of interference if it can be labelled that by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) and that it was engaged in parallel negotiations with the French government. He also claimed that the official in the Ministry of Defence who initiated the note flagging the said interference was not part of the negotiating team and had no locus standi in the matter. There is also an aspersion about motive. "It is unclear at whose behest this note was written," Sinha said, referring to the defence ministry note that said the PMO's parallel track had undermined the negotiating position of the Indian team. The Air Marshal also said that no one in the team was aware of this supposed note, and that he came to know about it only after reading the report by The Hindu. The then defence secretary G Mohan Kumar also dismissed the allegation of the PMO's alleged parallel negotiations as "absolutely wrong". The official negotiating team had headed all the price negotiations, he said, adding that his ministry's note had only raised the matter of a sovereign (or bank) guarantee. In effect, both questioned the veracity of the report by The Hindu and the inferences it draws, but neither have rebutted the foundation of the report, its factual basis. Kumar said the "accusation" against the PMO is wrong because the price of the aircraft to be bought from Dassault Aviation was wholly negotiated by the negotiating team. But nowhere does the newspaper report allege that the PMO had interfered in the negotiations over the pricing of the fighter jet. The report only mentioned precisely what he said, that the PMO had interfered in the matters of sovereign guarantee and arbitration arrangements. Kumar has not denied that he had noted on the file, for the then defence minister Manohar Parrikar's attention, "It is desirable that such discussions be avoided by the PMO as it undermines our negotiating position seriously". This was in reference to the phone conversation between a joint secretary in the PMO and a diplomatic advisor to the French defence ministry. Moreover, though Sinha rejected the accusation that the PMO was involved in parallel negotiations and revealed that neither he nor the other members of his team knew about the note, he did not deny that he first came to know that the PMO had involved itself in the matter of sovereign guarantee only after the head of the French negotiating team, General Stephen Reb, wrote a letter mentioning the conversation. He has also not contradicted the fact mentioned in the report that he had written to the joint secretary concerned after he came to know about the conversation. In other words, neither Sinha nor Kumar have contradicted the two primary points made in the report in The Hindu first, that the PMO had involved itself in the Rafale negotiations; and, second, that it did so without informing the defence ministry or the negotiating team. Its interference was by stealth; it went behind the backs of both the defence ministry and the negotiating team. Let's now get to the flimsy rebuttal incumbent Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman came up with both in the Lok Sabha and outside. She, other BJP leaders and members of the government have made four basic points first, that the Opposition is "flogging a dead horse", though how and when the equine died has not been specified; second, that the PMO had been making periodic enquiries about the negotiations, which cannot be construed as "interference"; third, the report in The Hindu was slanted because it did not print Parrikar's response to Kumar's concerns; fourth, those who are "flogging the dead horse" are damaging the country. Let's begin with the role of the PMO. Where should it have started if it had only wanted to make periodic enquiries about the progress of the negotiations? Logically, one would suppose, with the Indian negotiating team, perhaps by getting in touch with its head, Air Marshal Sinha. Surely, the most obvious way of monitoring the negotiations, or whatever else one wants to call it, would not be through a conversation between a joint secretary in the PMO and an advisor to the French defence ministry. To suggest that that conversation was by way of making "periodic enquiries" is simply surreal. It is surreal because it is a falsehood. For the PMO to agree to a letter of comfort, while the negotiating team was pushing for a sovereign guarantee, cannot be called a "periodic enquiry"; it can only be rightfully called parallel negotiations. Perhaps we need some linguistic reference points. A related issue here is the one about Parrikar's response to the note. In fact, there are two issues: one being the suggestion that The Hindu had contravened journalistic ethics, and the other that Parrikar's note somehow absolved the PMO. One depends on the other. What Parrikar wrote was that it "appears" that the PMO and the French president's office were monitoring the progress of the negotiations in the Rafale deal as an outcome of a summit meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the then President of France, Francois Hollande. He went on to say that Kumar's response and the inference made in the defence ministry note that "parallel discussions by the PMO" had "weakened the negotiating position" of the ministry and the negotiating team were an overreaction, and the defence secretary could resolve the matter after consulting with the Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister. What kind of absolution is that? Parrikar's note is a kind of get-out-of-jail response. It ducks the issue by prefacing his sense that Kumar and the defence ministry had overreacted with an "appears-to-be" qualification and then suggests that the matter be resolved, which is a straightforward recognition of the fact that there, indeed, was a matter that needed resolution. Since, Parrikar's response admitted that there was an issue and suggested an anodyne solution, it is fairly clear that The Hindu had breached no incarnation of journalistic ethics by failing to include it in the report. Finally, we get back to the dead equine that (poor thing) is being flogged, and the connection of this merciless act with the interests of the country. There are all kinds of reasons to believe that the equine has not yet given up the ghost, but let us mention the one referenced in the impugned report. The Union government, in its submissions to the Supreme Court, had said that the negotiations over the purchase of the Rafale aircraft had been conducted by a seven-member team, neglecting to make any mention of the role of the PMO, which was not just "monitoring" the progress of the talks but was actively involved in some aspects of finalising the deal. Parrikar's note, in fact, confirms this because it takes on board the concerns of the defence ministry, which specifically said that the position taken by Reb was an outcome of discussions between the French side and a joint secretary in the PMO. That is the only possible construal of his suggestion that the defence secretary should resolve the matter in consultation with the Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister. In other words, the government submitted a falsehood to the Supreme Court by omission that is, by not making known the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. That is why the horse is still alive and no amount of equine spin from Sitharaman can kill the beast. Given the foregoing, Sitharaman's remark about the country being damaged could be construed as banal, had it not pointed to a dangerous idea used by the BJP too often. Whenever the BJP or its government is chastised and finds itself in a hole, it resorts to conflating the party and its governments with the nation, states and the people. The BJP government is not the nation, and exposing its shenanigans in relation to the Rafale deal does not amount to damaging the country. If any damage has been done to India's interests, it has been perpetrated by the BJP and the governments it runs, preeminently the one in Delhi. After poisoning from illicit liquor led to over 80 deaths in Uttar Pradesh and neighbouring Uttarakhand, authorities launched a crackdown on the sale and distribution of spurious alcohol and took action against excise and police officials. Action was taken against seven excise and seven police officials in Uttar Pradesh some even facing suspension after poisoning from spurious liquor lead to over 70 deaths in the Yogi Adityanath-led state and neigbouring Uttarakhand, Hindustan Times reported. More than 30 officials from the administration and police force have been suspended in Saharanpur and Haridwar, according to The Wire. There are conflicting reports on the number of people who have died since consuming the spurious liquor on Thursday while in Haridwar for a mourning ritual. The figure, according to reports, stands between 70 and 100. Many had even carried some of the alcohol back to their villages in Uttar Pradesh. On Friday, those who consumed the liquor began to vomit profusely and were rushed to hospitals by their families. A combination of urea, battery liquid, caustic soda and sedatives mixed with the alcoholic brew made the liquor poisonous, according to The Times of India. Reports suggest that doctors had found methanol in the viscera report of the victims. After the hooch tragedy unfolded in Saharanpur and Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand's Haridwar, the Uttar Pradesh government started a 15-day campaign on Friday to crack down on the sale of illicit liquor and its distribution in the state. As a result of this drive over the weekend, authorities have filed cases against 297 people in Uttar Pradesh and 49 in Uttarakhand, and 215 people have been arrested in Uttar Pradesh, according to the Hindustan Times. Teams of the Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand police are carrying out joint operations to crack down on manufacturers. Anand Kumar, Uttar Pradesh additional Director General of Police (Law and Order), said they believe the spurious liquor had been trafficked from Bihar. About 250 litres of raw liquor and 60 litres of English liquor all stolen have been recovered, India Today reported. This was also a result of the action taken by the Yogi Adityanath government, which has also announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh for the kin of the deceased and Rs 50,000 for those undergoing treatment at hospitals. The IMF calculates Bangladeshs economy growing from $180 billion presently to $322 billion by 2021. Bangladesh is not some Scandinavian heaven. It is poor and overpopulated, undereducated and corrupt, frequented by natural catastrophes, experiences occasional terrorism, and the farcical nature of its democracy was exposed in the December 2018 elections. But the earlier caricature of a country on life support disappeared years ago. Today, some economists say it shall be the next Asian tiger. Its growth rate last year (7.8 per cent) put it at par with India (8.0 per cent) and well above Pakistan (5.8 per cent). Much of this growth owes to exports which zoomed from zero in 1971 to $35.8 billion in 2018 (Pakistans is $24.8 billion). The IMF calculates Bangladeshs economy growing from $180 billion presently to $322 billion by 2021. This means that the average Bangladeshi today is almost as wealthy as the average Pakistani and, if the rupee depreciates further, will be technically wealthier by 2020. Other indicators are equally stunning. East Pakistans population in the 1951 census was 42 million, while West Pakistans was 33.7m. But today Bangladesh has far fewer people than Pakistan 165 million versus 200 million. A sustained population planning campaign helped reduce fertility in Bangladesh. No such campaign or even its beginnings is visible today in Pakistan. The health sector is no less impressive far fewer babies die at birth in Bangladesh than in Pakistan. Immunisation is common and no one gets shot dead for administering polio drops. Life expectancy (72.5 years) is higher than Pakistans (66.5 years). According to the ILO, females are well ahead in employment (33.2 per cent) as compared to Pakistan (25.1 per cent). How did West Pakistans poor cousin manage to upstage its richer relative by so much so fast? Its all the more puzzling because Bangladesh has no geostrategic assets saleable to America, China, or Saudi Arabia. It has no nuclear weapons, no army of significance, no wise men in uniform running the country from the shadows, and no large pool of competent professionals. At birth, East Pakistan had, in fact, no trained bureaucracy; it received just one member of the former Indian Civil Service. None should be more surprised at these new developments than those West Pakistanis like me who went to school during the 1950s and 1960s and grew up surrounded by unconcealed racism. Short and dark Bengalis were reputedly good only for growing jute and rice and catching fish. They were Muslims and Pakistanis, of course, but as children we were made to imagine that all good Muslims and real Pakistanis are tall, fair, and speak chaste Urdu. Wed laugh madly at the strange-sounding Bengali news broadcasts from Radio Pakistan. In our foolish macho world, they sounded terribly feminine. But in a nutshell, Bangladesh and Pakistan are different countries today because they perceive their national interest very differently. Bangladesh sees its future in human development and economic growth. Goalposts are set at increasing exports, reducing unemployment, improving health, reducing dependence upon loans and aid, and further extending micro credit. Water and boundary disputes with India are serious and Bangladesh suffers bullying by its bigger neighbour on matters of illegal immigration, drugs, etc. But its basic priorities have not wavered. For Pakistan, human development comes a distant second. The bulk of national energies remain focused upon checkmating India. Relations with Afghanistan and Iran are therefore troubled; Being more multicultural and liberal, Bangladeshs civil society has stopped armed groups from grabbing the reins of power. For Pakistan, these are lessons. By arrangement with Dawn An example of neo-Classical architecture, the Knesset Eliyahoo Synagogue is home to beautiful stained glass panels and cast-brass lighting. Non-Jews will now be allowed to not just witness prayers here but also participate in them Kala Ghoda is the sort of neighbourhood that inspires Mumbai-centric prose. Art galleries, a museum, warmly-lit cafes and street art define its ethos. And yet, the building that seems to rouse the most intrigue in tourists and locals is the Knesset Eliyahoo Synagogue. Its blue-coloured exterior would make it seem like it is merging with the sky above, or it would make the building stand out against adjacent structures, depending on the time of the day. But the synagogue is blue no more. Following year-long restoration work, it now wears the colours indigo and white, and is open for the public. Its very much a Classical Revival building, and it has been planned like a typical Baghdadi Jewish synagogue, says Abha Narain Lambah, the principal conservation architect of the project. The restoration work was undertaken by the JSW Group, Sir Jacob Sassoon & Allied Trust, Kala Ghoda Association and the World Monument Fund. From past to present Jacob Sassoon, the grandson of businessman-philanthropist David Sassoon, built the Knesset Eliyahoo Synagogue in 1884. It was designed by the British architectural firm Gostling & Morris, and was to cater to the local Baghdadi Jewish community. Kala Ghoda was specifically chosen as its location, so that the people living in areas nearby, stretching up to Colaba (where many Iraqi Jews lived), could reach it on foot. It was built to augment prayer services for this sub-community of Jews, says Solomon Sopher, chairman and managing trustee of the Sir Jacob & Allied Trust. Now, the citys Baghdadi and Bene Israel Jewish communities, as well as Jews from countries outside of India, visit the synagogue. A sum of its parts In terms of architectural style, we find similarities between the synagogue and the Bhau Daji Lad Museum, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporations head office, and Elphinstone College. Theres an overlap particularly between the Bhau Daji Lad Museum and the synagogue; painted stencil bands have been found in both structures, Abha explained. The synagogue has neo-Classical and Gothic-Victorian architectural elements. Corinthian columns, a triangular roof on the external facade, semi-circular and segmented fenestrations, and cast-iron panels are notable features, as are its stained-glass panels, which feature flora and fauna motifs native to India. The Bechal or Ark, containing the Torah scrolls, faces west towards Jerusalem, and the prayer hall is along an east to west orientation. Services are conducted from a centralised podium, built in the Sephardic, eastern Jewish tradition. The exterior is made of Porbandar stone, and Minton tiles imported from Stoke-on-Trent were laid into the floor of the synagogues interior. Abha was always clear that the post-restoration structure should be as close to the 19th-century design as possible. Before the restoration, the inside of the synagogue was painted blue. We peeled off layer after layer of paint to find the oldest colour palette the original one that was used and decided to repaint the interiors using those colours, Abha explains. Research and development had to be undertaken to make new paints that would match the original shades used for the interiors over a century ago. Indigo and white paint were chosen for the exteriors because they wanted an authentic colour palette shades that are naturally occurring. Oral history often takes over narratives, and it is as important as tangible history. People know it as the blue synagogue, remarked Abha. Its possible that though the colours of the structure have changed, people will still call it by its old name. The inside of the synagogue is bathed in a soft, golden light. The original lights made in cast-brass, adorned with embellishments, are the only element in the building to undergo a change. Originally, it would have been lit by gaslight because it was built before the time of electricity. Now they have been replaced by electrical chandeliers, Abha said. A holistic transformation Roof repairs had to be undertaken to make the building structurally secure, and this was the first task taken up. Abha found that seepage had taken place through the walls. The original religious symbols which had become obscured under layers of blue paint, such as grapevines, citron fruit and the Star of David, have also been restored. Central to Abhas vision for the project was that it must be holistic in nature. The funding to restore the synagogue had come as far as 10 years ago from the World Monuments Fund under the Jewish Grant Programme, but it was not adequate for the whole project. The funds were enough only for the stained-glass panels. But I was very clear that we would only touch the stained glass when we are assured that the building is safe. Otherwise, you are paying lip service if you restore something that is fragile, if you ignore structurally distressed flaws, she explained. Both regular maintenance and restoration are necessary for heritage buildings, Abha says. In her opinion, the community to whom the building belongs is the best stakeholder for regular maintenance. Having said that, every hundred years, when you need major structural repairs and interventions, it does need one-time assistance. The question of funding The total cost of the restoration was five crore rupees, and the stained glass panels (restored by Swati Chandgadkar) cost 20 lakh rupees. The biggest challenge, Abha says, was to find a sponsor. This is a hurdle in our country, for those buildings which are not government-owned and which are religious. Since the Jews are a small community in Mumbai, they could not fund the restoration work themselves There are so many such unsung buildings in the city. In such a scenario, corporate funding seems to be a necessity when it comes to ensuring heritage structures dont suffer long-term damage. But corporate funding is far from being a new phenomenon. The city of Mumbai is built on philanthropy. All our important structures, whether it is the Rajabai Tower that was funded by Premchand Roychand, who was a cotton merchant and banker; the convocation hall of Mumbai University and Elphinstone College that was funded by Cawasjee Jehangir; the David Sassoon Library and Sassoon Docks, funded by David Sassoon; they have been supported by merchants, bankers and entrepreneurs. It is only fair for the present-day corporate world to pitch in to restore these landmarks. David Sassoons efforts to build hospitals, libraries and institutes for patients of leprosy was the CSR of the 19th century, Abha explained. Opening doors to outsiders Solomon Sopher has visited the Knesset Eliyahoo Synagogue ever since he was 12 years old. It is said that in the 1940s, as many as 3,000 Jews lived in Mumbai. Since that period, the population of Jews in the city, and indeed the rest of the country, has dwindled drastically. At such a moment in Indian Jewish history, the opening up of the synagogue to people of all faiths, who will now be able to witness and take part in prayers too, is monumental. When it comes to allowing tourists to visit, Solomon says the community must consider the risk of terrorism. As a result, policemen have always stood guard at the synagogue (and others in the city) during the day and night. We welcome anyone who has genuine, respectful interest, he explained. It is incumbent on visitors to carry ID proof (think passport or PAN card), Solomon added. The Jewish community wants nothing from India except to feel that they were always wanted, said Solomon. Mufti Sunday praised Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan for taking steps to name a forest reserve after Guru Nanak Dev. Srinagar: Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti Sunday praised Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan for taking steps to name a forest reserve after Guru Nanak Dev, but hit out at the Centre saying its "top priority" seems to be renaming ancient cities and building Ram temple in Ayodhya. "How times change. Centre's top priority is seemingly renaming historic cities and building Ram Mandir. On the other hand, heartening to see that Pakistani prime minister has initiated steps to name Baloki forest reserve after Guru Nanakji & create a university under his name," the former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister tweeted. She was reacting to Imran's announcement that he was taking steps to name the wild life reserve after Guru Nanak Dev, the founder of Sikhism. "The Baloki Forest Reserve and a new University in Nankana Sahib will be established and named after Baba Guru Nanak. Pakistan belongs to all citizens equally and we will ensure that Sikh pilgrims are facilitated for 550th anniversary of Guru Nanak," Khan said at a function. The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad is providing youths employment training programmes after helping them escape the clutches of the ISIS Mumbai: Jamil Ansari (name changed) runs a mobile phone repair shop in Maharashtra's Beed district. But, nobody would imagine that only two years ago, he was on the verge of joining the dreaded terror outfit ISIS by travelling to Iraq, thousands of kilometres away. Thanks to an initiative of the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), Ansari changed his mind and underwent an employment training programme after escaping the clutches of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria's (ISIS) online 'recruiters' who had almost radicalised him. He is not the only one. There are many such young men in Maharashtra, mainly in the industrially backward Marathwada region, who had once fallen victim to ISIS' propaganda but are now leading a normal life with the help of the employment training programme, a senior ATS official told PTI. Ansari, a 35-year-old graduate, lost his job as a salesman in 2016 and began spending a lot of time surfing online, where he came in contact with some ISIS sympathisers and soon got radicalised. "His online activities brought him under our scanner," the official said. The ATS sleuths realised that Ansari had become a victim of ISIS propaganda and he was counselled in a bid to de-radicalise him, he said. The official said the ATS runs a de-radicalisation programme for such people to once again join the mainstream with the help of religious leaders and clerics. But the real problem was that Ansari had no job, and there were many more like him, he said. In Marathwada, the ATS in the last two years identified as many as 400 young men who were suspected to be under the influence of ISIS. In all the cases, the recruiter started chatting with his target about "atrocities" on Muslims in India to gauge the person's views, the official said. After the person was successfully radicalised, he would be taught how to make Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) or other weapons, he said, adding that some were also encouraged to join the ISIS in Iraq, where the militant outfit once controlled large swaps of territory. Notably, the ATS last month arrested nine men from Aurangabad and Thane districts for allegedly planning chemical attacks with an intent to cause mass casualty at public events by contaminating food and water, he pointed out. In 2018, the ATS had arrested a 36-year-old man from Parbhani district who came in contact with ISIS and received instructions on how to make IEDs. He made bombs and even carried out trials, the official said, adding that he was arrested along with four others before he could use the IED for a terrorist act. ATS chief Atulchandra Kulkarni said they realised that unemployment was one of the major reasons for such men from the Muslim community most of whom were from Marathwada - getting radicalised online and falling into ISIS' trap. "The challenge was to bring these people back to normal life, and we found a solution in the Rural Self-Employment Training Institutes (RSETIs), run by the Union rural development ministry," said Kulkarni. As many as 239 such men were imparted training at these institutes last year. Besides, the anti-terror cells formed at police station-levels identified 15 men who were also trained in self-employment, another police official said. Thirty such men secured bank loans after undergoing training and started their own businesses, Kulkarni said. Appreciating the initiative, RSETI authorities agreed to train the candidates short-listed by ATS on priority basis. The ATS also approached the Syndicate Bank and the Bank of Maharashtra, which agreed to offer loans to the short-listed men after they underwent training, he said. The initiative began with some 270 young men, who were trained in mobile phone repairing. Another batch is now receiving training in fitting electric wires, a police official said. Ansari is one of the examples of this initiative's success. After being imparted counselling, he was recommended for a short training course in mobile repairing at an RSETI, he added. Now, he runs a small mobile repair shop of his own, far away from Iraq. A Madhya Pradesh Congress MLA has demanded an SIT and the transfer of the Khandwa district collector for invoking the NSA on three accused of cow slaughter. Bhopal/Khandwa: A Congress MLA has written to Madhya Pradesh chief minister Kamal Nath, demanding the setting up of an SIT and transfer of the Khandwa district collector for invoking the National Security Act (NSA) on three persons accused of cow slaughter. Bhopal Central MLA Arif Masood, in his letter sent on Friday, termed the NSA move as "one-sided", adding that the kin of the three accused had met him and had alleged that the collector had not heard their side. He said cow slaughter was "shameful" but reiterated that the collector's move to invoke the stringent NSA was unjustified. He demanded constitution of a special investigation team (SIT) to probe the case and the collector's transfer in order to have a "fair" probe. Masood said, "I have written to the chief minister and urged him to intervene in the matter. The action taken by police and district officials was on the basis of information given by an informer. The side of the accused should have been heard before invoking NSA." Masood claimed minority community leaders from different parts of the country have also spoken to Congress chief Rahul Gandhi in this regard. Earlier last week, authorities had slapped NSA on three accused, identified as Shakeel, Nadeem and Azam, for allegedly killing a cow at Khandwa, and jailed. Justifying the action, Khandwa Superintendent of Police Siddharth Bahuguna had said Nadeem, alias Raju, was a habitual offender and had been held earlier in a cow slaughter case as well as other criminal cases. Khandwa is a communally sensitive area and such an incident might affect its peace and harmony and therefore, he had said, such a move was made against the three. According to Moghat Police Station in charge Mohan Singore, acting on a tip-off that a few persons were indulging in cow slaughter, a team raided Kharkali village near here on February 1. While the accused fled from the spot, a large knife and beef was seized from there, he said. The three were arrested on February 2 and Khandwa collector Vishesh Gadpale later invoked NSA against them, Singore had informed. Deepak Talwar is in the custody of the Enforcement Directorate till 12 February, being confronted with voluminous documents linking him top politicians and businessmen. He is believed to have links with fugitive Vijay Mallya in a money laundering case. New Delhi: Staff in the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) during the tenure of PV Narasimha Rao are credited with the reforms that saved the Indian economy from the brink of collapsing in the 1990s. However, one top officer close to then prime minister chose to transform the career of a liaison man in Lutyens' Delhi, who was struggling to break into the big leagues. The man, Deepak Talwar, is now in the custody of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) till 12 February, being confronted with voluminous documents linking him top politicians and businessmen. He is believed to have links with fugitive Vijay Mallya in a money laundering case. Officials alleged that since his struggling days in the early 1990s, Talwar had ventured into suspicious deals through Deepak Talwar & Associates with the help of his proximity to the officer in Rao's PMO. "He is a secret keeper of Lutyens' Delhi, having close links with senior officers of ministries and political leaders. He came under the scanner sometime in 1997 when two of his firms, DTA Consultants Private Limited and Integral PR Services Private Limited, were found to be involved in corrupt practices. Later, agencies flagged his alleged dealings in the Ministry of Civil Aviation, but somehow, he managed to outwit investigators," officials said. The most important part of the investigation, officials claimed, is his links with two top Opposition leaders who served as ministers during the UPA regime and his alleged role in the Air India case. Three of Talwar's companies that are under investigation are Asia Field, Wave Impex and Wave Hospitality. Investigators alleged that Talwar and his family members also own offshore companies, including Gilt Asset Management and Asia Pacific Resources Corporation. The ED has alleged that he routed huge amounts of money received from foreign airlines through a front company. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is looking into the Air India case, in which it is alleged that a conspiracy was hatched to make the national carrier give up profit-making routes and flight timings to domestic and international private airlines, leading to huge losses in its market share. Talwar is being investigated for his suspected role in irregular seat-sharing that ultimately benefited Air Arabia, Emirates and Qatar Airways. Foreign airlines were allegedly given unrestricted entry into India, and major routes were given to them without Air India getting any reciprocal benefits. Despite warnings that the national carrier would lose a significant chunk of the market share because of these actions, the primary suspects public servants and private individuals continued to act dishonestly to confer pecuniary advantage to private airlines. These decisions allowed private airlines to enjoy profits from busy routes and a bigger market share than Air India, which has a social responsibility to operate at even non-viable, non-profit-making routes. "It has been alleged that through his consultancy firm, Talwar worked closely with these foreign airlines and was able to secure them favorable deals from government officials. Whether he played a major role in influencing decisions made during the UPA regime is matter of further investigation, and he will be surely grilled along those lines. Officials said that the purchase of new aircraft as part of the expansion plan of the erstwhile Indian Airlines and subsequent donations to his NGO by aviation and defence firms is another case that he will be questioned about. In November 2017, the CBI had registered a case against Talwar, his NGO and others for allegedly violating the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA). Talwar's NGO, Advantage India, as a Corporate Social Responsibility initiative, had received huge sums in donations from Airbus, the European leader in aeronautics engineering, and MBDA, the leading missile manufacturing company in the defence industry. In May 2012, Advantage India had entered into an agreement wherein Airbus had agreed to provide a donation of 9 million euros. A similar agreement was executed with England-based MBDA for 6 million euros. In August 2017, the Ministry of Home Affairs had written to the CBI flagging irregularities committed by Talwar's NGO and had sought a detailed investigation. Between 2012 and 2015, Advantage India had received total foreign contribution amounting to over Rs 90 crore. The home ministry had alleged that the NGO had fabricated medical bills to the tune of Rs 26.97 crore in connection with various health camps. The two pharma entities Aastha Pharma and Hind Pharma from where medicines were allegedly purchased had later denied any association with Talwar's NGO. "On inquiries, both firms categorically stated in their letters dated 11 May, 2017, and 28 April, 2017, that they had not dealt with the association. The bills and vouchers furnished by the NGO related to the two pharmaceutical firms were found to be fictitious and bogus. Moreover, independent inquiries made by the Income Tax Department with regard to these companies revealed that there were no such concerns at the given addresses, and the amounts these firms received from Advantage India were routed through many bank accounts, which, prima facie, were found to be bogus, home ministry had said. Sources said they are also looking into whether Talwar was able to help open lucrative businesses such as duty-free shops, convenience stores and F&B outlets at airports due to his close proximity with bureaucrats and political leaders in the aviation ministry during the UPA's tenure at the Centre. Ladakh divisonal status: Cutting across party lines, prominent politicians from Kargil district threatened mass agitation if the governor administration did not review its decision to permanently post the divisional commissioner and inspector general of police (IGP) headquarters in Leh. Jammu: Cutting across party lines, prominent politicians from Kargil district of Jammu and Kashmir Saturday threatened mass agitation if the governor administration did not review its decision to permanently post the divisional commissioner and inspector general of police (IGP) headquarters in Leh. The decision to submit resignations en masse from all democratic institutions and hold protests in Kargil, Jammu, and Delhi was announced jointly by Chairman Legislative Council Haji Anayat Ali, Chief Executive Officer of Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC) Feroz Khan and former MLA Haji Asgar Ali Karbalia at a press conference. In a major decision, the Jammu and Kashmir administration on Friday sanctioned the creation of a separate administrative and revenue division for Ladakh, with its headquarters at Leh. Ladakh will now have a separate divisional commissioner and an inspector general of police (IGP) with a full administrative and revenue division at par with Kashmir and Jammu divisions. The people of Kargil are demanding that divisional commissioner and IGP offices function on rotational basis in Kargil during summers and in Leh during winters. "We are not against the divisional status to Ladakh region comprising both Leh and Kargil districts. We are against posting the divisional commissioner's headquarters along with IGP office permanently at Leh," Khan, a senior National Conference leader, said. He said the demand for divisional status for Ladakh was first raised by the people of Kargil but the governor administration ignored their request for rotating the divisional commissioner and IGP offices between the two districts for six months each. "The people of Kargil are united in support of the demand for rotation of headquarters in Kargil during summer and in Leh during winter. If our demand is not met, we will resign en-mass from the posts we are holding in the democratic institutions, whether it is chairman of the legislative council, councilors in the LAHDC or panchayat institutions. "We will also go for general strike and occupy the roads in the entire district besides Jammu and Delhi till our genuine demand is met," Karbalai, a senior Congress leader said, He added, "The decision in this regard was taken at a joint meeting of all political parties, including the Congress, the NC, the PDP and the BJP, religious parties and social groups in the district." Echoing the sentiment, Ali, a PDP leader, said, "The people of Kargil are gentlemen by nature but will not allow anyone to strangle them." He asked all political parties to support the people of Kargil in their demand for rotational headquarters and equal share in divisional status. Karbalai said the people of Kargil are nationalist by core and have rendered numerous sacrifices over the past seven decades without caring for "injustice and discrimination" being meted out to them. "Majority of the people in Kargil are against the division of the state on the basis of region, religion or language and hence raised the demand for divisional status with economic, financial and legislature powers. We will like to continue to be part of Kashmir division as the distance between Kargil and Kashmir is just 200 kilometres, while between Kargil and Leh 230 kilometres," he said. Khan said, "If you are giving the divisional status to Ladakh, then we will not tolerate injustice with us. But if you are giving it to Leh, we have no objection since almost everything sanctioned for Ladakh is being given to Leh." The forces had cordoned the Kellam Devsar area in Kulgam on Saturday following information about the presence of militants in the area. As the search operations were underway in the area, the militants opened fire, triggering a gunfight. Five militants were killed on Sunday in an encounter with security forces in the Kellam Devsar area of Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district. The gunfight broke out after forces cordoned off Kellam Devsar on Saturday night after receiving information about the presence of militants in the area, The Indian Express reported. As the search operations were underway, the militants opened fire on the security forces, triggering the encounter. Visuals: Encounter underway between security forces and terrorists in Kulgam district's Kellam Devsar area. #JammuAndKashmir (Visuals deferred by unspecified time) pic.twitter.com/koj3VmH5xC ANI (@ANI) February 10, 2019 Authorities have retrieved the bodies of the five militants, but they have yet ascertain their identities. According to ANI, four CRPF personnel have been injured in stone pelting by local residents. According to reports, the exchange of fire died down after three militants were killed, but resumed soon after JCBs were deployed to clear the debris of the gunfight to retrieve the bodies. The remaining two militants continued to fire at security forces from a nearby house, but were eventually gunned down in the retaliatory firing. The Indian Air Force on Saturday deployed C-17 Globemaster heavy-lift aircraft to transport 170 people stranded in Srinagar to Jammu. The Jammu-Srinagar National Highway has been closed due to heavy snowfall in the state. Srinagar: Indian Air Force on Saturday deployed C-17 Globemaster heavy-lift aircraft to transport 170 people stranded in Srinagar to Jammu. The Jammu-Srinagar National Highway has been closed due to heavy snowfall in the state. Evacuated people also included students who have to appear for the GATE exam. Multiple avalanches and landslides in the state of Jammu and Kashmir have left the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway closed, for the fourth consecutive day on Saturday. There has been complete disruption of transport services, leading to thousands of people stranded. Some people are reportedly trapped under snow at various locations across the region. As the 300-kilometre-long highway is closed, trucks carrying goods to the state are also stranded. A commuter said, "We face the same situation every year. The government must do something about it." Heavy snowfall has also led to depletion of fuel stocks, following which administration directed fuel pumps on Thursday not to provide more than 3 litres petrol and 10 litres diesel per vehicle in a day. Expressing his disappointment, a commuter was of the view that the petrol purchase limit should be increased from 3 litres to 5 litres. "Three litres of petrol is too less for travelling in the state. We are facing a lot of issues because of the restrictions. The highway should be opened soon," the commuter said. The snowfall has not only affected roads but air traffic also as many flights remained cancelled at Srinagar Airport for the entire day yesterday. The heavy snowfall in the state has resulted in the loss of crops such as cabbage, apple, potatoes, etc. In Kulgam district near Jawahar tunnel on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway where an avalanche took place on Friday morning, seven bodies including bodies of five policemen have been recovered. One police personnel is still missing, while two policemen who were rescued in the morning are stable now. The avalanche that had hit a police post trapped 10 policemen under the debris of snow. As many as 13 trains were diverted, short terminated or cancelled on Sunday in the wake of the agitation by Gujjars who have blocked tracks on a section of the North-Western Railway in Rajasthan demanding a higher quota. New Delhi: As many as 13 trains were diverted, short terminated or cancelled on Sunday in the wake of the agitation by Gujjars who have blocked tracks on a section of the North-Western Railway in Rajasthan demanding a higher quota. A senior railway official said, "Many trains have been diverted/short terminated or cancelled today due to the Gujjar agitation between Sawai Madhopur-Bayana section on the North-Western Railway." Meanwhile, the Western Railway has deployed special trains to clear the rush and offer alternative routes to stranded passengers. Sharing the information, the Western Railway tweeted, "Please note. To clear extra rush due to Gurjar Agitation between Sawai Madhopur-Bayana in WCR, WR will run special train from Bandra T for Sawai Madhopur at 20.15 hrs on 10, 11, 12 and 13 February, 2019. The train will depart from SWM at 13.45 hrs for Bandra T on 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 Feb, 19." On Saturday, a section of the Gujjar community erected tents on railway tracks, a day after staging a 'rasta roko' dharna on tracks in Rajasthan's Sawai Madhopur district. In an appeal to the community, Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot has asked them not sit on rail tracks and said they should instead submit a memorandum to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Rajasthan government had, on 26 October last year, passed a bill which increased Other Backward Classes (OBCs) quota from 21 percent to 26 percent. In December 2018, the state government had also approved 1 percent reservation for Gujjar and four OBCs. At present, these communities are getting 1 percent separate reservation under the legal limit of 50 percent quota meant for the most-backward category in addition to OBC reservation. As the Gujjar agitation for reservation in Rajasthan entered its third day on Sunday, a clash broke out between protesters and the police in Dholpur. As the Gujjar agitation for reservation in Rajasthan entered its third day on Sunday, a clash broke out between protesters and the police in Dholpur after officers blocked the highway in the area. Protesters pelted stones at the police, and the security forces fired in retaliation, reports said. Protesters also set vehicles on fire, but no casualties or injuries have been reported yet. CNN-News18 quoted Gujjar leader Vijay Bainsla as saying that the government had been given "enough time" to meet the community's demands, but they had "done nothing". "It is clear that the Congress party was not serious about the election manifesto." He also reiterated the community's stand about staging a "peaceful protest". Another prominent Gujjar leader, Kirori Singh Bainsla, said: "These are baseless allegations of stone pelting. In fact, the government should tell the police and administration to allow us to carry out peaceful protests." Rajasthan: A clash broke out between police and protesters at Dholpur Highway today where the latter had blocked the road and set vehicles ablaze. The protesters were supporting the ongoing reservation movement by Gujjar community. pic.twitter.com/bq8U2JBCpe ANI (@ANI) February 10, 2019 Kirori and his supporters began a sit-in protest on rail tracks on Friday in Rajasthan's Sawai Madhopur district. The protesters are demanding 5 percent reservation for the Gujjar, Raika-Rebari, Gadia Luhar, Banjara and Gadaria communities in government jobs and educational institutes. The protest forced West Central Railway to divert, cancel or partially terminate nearly 200 trains over the weekend. A state government delegation, including Tourism Minister Vishvendra Singh and senior IAS officer Neeraj K Pawan, on Saturday met Bainsla and others for talks, but they could not reach any agreement. "We will continue the dharna on the rail tracks. No compromise was made with the government delegation. We want a 5 percent reservation order," Bainsla had said on Saturday. Gujjars have given the Rajasthan government a 20-day ultimatum to clear its stand on providing the quota. On Saturday, Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot had appealed to the people to maintain peace and said that his government was ready to hold talks. "The government is serious in resolving the issue. The Congress government had heard the issues in the previous tenure and made efforts at the state level. I appeal to people to maintain peace," he said. Currently, the five communities have a separate 1 percent reservation under the most-backward category, in addition to the quota they get as Other Backward Classes. With inputs from agencies BJP state chief Raosaheb Danve, Prakash Javadekar and other BJP MLAs and MPs were present on the occasion. Pune: The BJP will construct the Ram temple and has not moved away from its promise, assured Amit Shah in Pune Friday. However he did not share the exact time when construction would begin. Mr Shah said that invaders like in Assam would be evicted from the country through the National Residents Certificate. Meanwhile chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said that the BJP would win 43 seats, one more than the 2014 elections and the 43rd seat would be of Baramati. The leaders were speaking at the Shakti Kendra Pramukh Sammelan held in Pune Friday. BJP state chief Raosaheb Danve, Prakash Javadekar and other BJP MLAs and MPs were present on the occasion. Mr Shah said, We havent moved away from our ideology and the Ram temple will be constructed. We are committed to the cause. The Modi government has begun the process to give back to the Nyas the 42 acres of land that was acquired by the SC. Sharad Pawar and Ashok Chavan should clear their stand whether they want the Ram temple or not. BJP needs to win to end dynastic politics, politics of appeasement, casteism and all. BJP wants to win for the progress of the nation and to make it a superpower. We brought changes in 55 months that the Congress could not bring in the last 55 years, he said. While listing the achievements of the BJP government, he said, 13 crore farmers will be given `6,000 per year. Six crore women got a gas connection under the Ujjwala Gas Yojana. Income tax has been waived for income till `5 lakh per year. Traders who do business of `60 lakh need to pay taxes. 1 crore labourers from the unorganised sector will be given `3,000 per month. Daily bulletin: The CBI to continue interrogation of Rajeev Kumar in Shillong today, Narendra Modi to visit Andhra Pradesh; the toll in the illegal liquor tragedy in Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh rises to 70; day's top stories CBI interrogation of Rajeev Kumar to continue today The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) will continue the questioning of Kolkata Police commissioner Rajeev Kumar for the second day on Sunday. Three senior CBI officers questioned Kumar for nearly nine hours on Saturday about his alleged role in the tampering of crucial evidence in the scam. Former TMC MP Kunal Ghosh will also appear in person at the agency's Shillong office on Sunday for interrogation in connection with the Saradha chit fund scam. There was no briefing by the CBI on the questioning, which began at around 11 am at its highly-secured office at Shillong's Oakland area, as per the directions of the Supreme Court. Kumar's counsel Biswajit Deb, who is also the TMC coordinator for Meghalaya, said Kumar is "cooperating and complying" with the CBI. The agency may confront Kumar with Ghosh, but the investigating officer in Shillong will take a final call. The CBI is reportedly relying on a 91-page letter from Ghosh, who was expelled by the TMC, to the Enforcement Directorate (ED), detailing the role of Kumar in handling the Ponzi scam probe after the main accused, Sudipta Sen and Debjani Mukherjee, both promoters of the Saradha Group of companies, had fled to Kashmir. Toll in Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh rises to 70 after consumption of illegal liquor Consumption of spurious illegal liquor has claimed the lives of 70 people in Uttarakhand, forcing government officials to launch a major crackdown to nab those responsible for distribution of illicit liquor. Uttarakhand chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat on Saturday announced ex gratia of Rs. 2 lakh each to the kin of the deceased and Rs 50, 000 each to those who are in a critical condition after the consumption of the liquor in Rourkee. While 13 people lost their lives in Uttarakhand, the toll in Uttar Pradesh mounted to 56. Uttar Pradesh excise minister Jai Pratap Singh said, "According to the information received from the localities, a person identified as Rajendra Jaispal is involved in the distribution of illicit liquor in the Uttar Pradesh-Bihar border along with four other people. The investigation is underway to track these people down." Gujjar protesters refuse to budge Gujjar protesters continued their sit-in on the rail tracks in Rajasthan's Sawai Madhopur district for the second day on Saturday, refusing to back off from their quota demand even after a government delegation met them there. The blockade by Gujjar Arakshan Sangarsh Samiti chief Kirori Singh Bainsla and his supporters has forced the West Central Railway (CWR) to divert, cancel or partially terminate nearly 200 trains in the last two days. A state government team, which included Tourism Minister Vishvendra Singh and senior IAS officer Neeraj K Pawan, met Bainsla and his supporters, but no agreement could be reached. "We will continue the dharna on the rail tracks. No compromise was made with the government delegation. We want a 5 percent reservation order," said Bainsla. Narendra Modi to visit Andhra Pradesh Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address a public rally in Guntur on Sunday in his first visit to Andhra Pradesh after the ruling TDP severed its ties with the NDA. Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has asked his party cadre to observe protests across the state. Besides addressing the public meeting of the BJP, the prime minister will dedicate two petroleum and gas projects worth Rs 6,825 crore to the nation. He will also lay the foundation-stone through a remote control system for the construction of a coastal terminal of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited at Krishnapatnam in SPS Nellore district. Meanwhile, the chief minister said Sunday will be a "bad day" and a "dark day" for the state and asked TDP cadre to sport yellow and black shirts and release black and yellow balloons into the sky as a mark of protest against the prime minister's visit. Huge hoardings from Gannavaram airport where Modi will land at 10 am were put up along the national highway up to Guntur. They read: "Modi, No Entry". Protests were also organised in some parts of the state against his visit. The BJP lodged a complaint with the police, seeking action against those who put up the hoardings against the prime minister. TMC MLA shot dead in West Bengal Trinamool Congress MLA Satyajit Biswas was shot dead by unidentified assailants inside a Saraswati puja marquee on Saturday evening in West Bengal's Nadia district. The ruling TMC alleged that it was a planned attack by the BJP, but the saffron party claimed the shooting was the result of the ruling party's infighting. The incident occurred around 8 pm when 41-year-old Biswas, who represented the Krishnaganj constituency in the Assembly, along with party workers, were at the Saraswati puja marquee at Phoolbari in the Hanskhali Police Station's jurisdiction in the district bordering Bangladesh. The TMC leader was shot from point-blank range while he was coming down the dais. BSP splits with Om Prakash Chautala's party in Haryana Blaming the split within the Chautala family for "weakening" the alliance, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) on Saturday snapped its nearly nine-month-old association with Haryana's main Opposition, the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), and forged ties with the Lok Satta Party (LSP), an outfit floated by rebel BJP MP Raj Kumar Saini. The development came three days after INLD leader Abhay Chautala claimed that the alliance was intact. The party had suffered a humiliating defeat in the Jind Assembly bypoll, with its candidate Umed Singh Redhu forfeiting his security deposit after he was reduced to the fifth position. On the other hand, the Jannayak Janata Party (JJP), which came into existence after a split in the INLD, put up a spirited fight, and its candidate Digvijay Singh Chautala secured the second position. The BJP won the seat. India look to clinch first T20I series in New Zealand; Harmanpreet Kaur and Co eye consolation win Harmanpreet and Co will look to avoid a clean sweep at the hands of the White Ferns in the third and last T20I on Sunday. Kaur will want her batters to put up a better show, with the series already lost. The match will begin at 8.30 am (IST). A few hours later in the day, the men's team led by Rohit Sharma will be aiming to become the first Indian side to clinch a T20I series in New Zealand, when the two teams meet in the third and final match at Seddon Park in Hamilton. The T20I series is currently locked at 1-1 with the hosts winning the first one convincingly and India winning the second match by seven wickets. The match will begin at 12.30 pm (IST). Facebook Acquires Visual Shopping Startup to Bolster AI Work Facebook said it has acquired artificial intelligence startup GrokStyle Inc to improve its own AI network. This is the social media giant's second acquisition of the year. This also is the second company in as many years that Facebook has bought to improve its own AI algorithms. GrokStyle was earlier integrated in the IKEA app. Pritish Nandy calls controversy around Womaniya 'rubbish' Pritish Nandy says he knows nothing about the controversy involving him and filmmaker Anurag Kashyap over the title 'Womaniya'. He says he is making a movie called Womaniya, which is why the title has been registered by his company Pritish Nandy Communications Ltd. According to reports, Kashyap and Nandy were in a tussle over the rights to the title 'Womaniya' the former had earlier said he had intellectual property right over the name, while the latter said the title had been registered by his company. Kashyap on Saturday announced on Twitter that the film, starring Taapsee Pannu and Bhumi Pednekar, had finally got a new title. "We have decided to not pay the extortion sum of Rs 1 crore to Pritish Nandy," Kashyap tweeted. Nandy, regarding this and his involvement with the word 'Womaniya', said: "I know nothing about this. Have not spoken to AK (Anurag Kashyap) in the last 20 years. Yes, we are making a movie called Womaniya and have registered the title for that purpose. The rest is rubbish." In a press conference, Amol Palekar said that many in the art world had raised the same concerns that he had presented in a speech that he gave at the NGMA Veteran actor and director Amol Palekar was repeatedly interrupted during his speech at the National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) on 8 February, when he criticised the Ministry of Culture for reportedly scrapping the gallery's advisory committee in Mumbai and Bengaluru. He was to give a speech at an event about a retrospective of works by artist Prabhakar Barve. Palekar said that the Barve exhibition "will be the last show that is decided by the advisory committee of local artists and not by some bureaucrat or agent of the government with an agenda of either moral policing or proliferation of certain art commensurate with an ideological incline. As of 13 November, 2018, the artists advisory committees operating at both regional centres, in Mumbai and Bangalore, have been abolished." He added that he was officially inquiring about the details to verify the rumours. Palekar was interrupted by many people on the stage as well as former chairman of the advisory committee in Mumbai, Suhas Balukar and event curator Jesal Thacker. They asked him to stick to talking about Barve only. In a press conference on 10 February Palekar and his wife Sandhya Gokhale spoke about being censored. Excerpts from the press conference: [Palekar] While I was giving my speech, I was interrupted "requested" as they said not to speak about this, only to speak about this. In the end, you know what happened. I was not permitted to deliver my lecture, which was a written speech. [Palekar] The first question that was raised was over the appropriateness of what I spoke. When you are inviting someone to speak, you should mention what can be said and what cannot. I was given no such brief. Jesal Thacker did not specify what I cannot say, so how can I determine what can and cannot be said? [Palekar] Secondly, coming to the question of the issue I wanted to speak about the NGMA and the changes that have been instituted in its functioning. The retrospective was held at the NGMA, so why is it inappropriate to speak about this issue at the NGMA? In my opinion, objections to where the issue was raised and what issue was raised are wrong. [Palekar] Thirdly, that Prabhakar Barve's retrospective could possibly be the last to be held in that venue is what I was told by several in the art world. I found out that this is the last restrospective where all five floors of the NGMA will be dedicated to one exhibition. It's an extremely beautiful retrospective. As per the policy decisions taken by the new director at the NGMA, four out of five floors will only exhibit works that are part of the NGMA's collection. External exhibitions will only be held in the Dome, which is on the fifth floor. This is a set-back to artists and appreciators of art. [Palekar] Two other decisions were taken about Mehlli Gobhai and Sudhir Patwardhan's retrospectives, which were decided on by the local advisory committee, and for which dates were picked out. The local advisory committee's tenure has ended. After this, as per the new decisions that were taken (by the director), only Barve's retrospective would be exhibited, the other two were cancelled... The space allocated to external exhibitions is quite small, does it make sense to tell new artists that only so much space will be made available to them? Even for veteran artists who want to display new work, will only so much space be available? The implication is that the rest of the four floors will only be available for works that are part of the NGMA's collection. [Palekar] As art lovers, we would like to view these pieces (from the NGMA collection), but the question that has arisen is: Why has this become an either-or situation? Such a situation has never cropped up in the past, so why was this decision taken now? These are concerns that many in the art world, including myself, share, which is why I raised them in my speech... The NGMA is an institute of repute. Why took these decisions, why were they taken when I raised these questions, I was told not to broach this subject. Why was I told this? If not in the NGMA, where should I raise these questions? [Palekar] Anita Rupavataram was quite upset after my speech; she said that I should have raised these concerns to her rather than publicly in my speech. To which I asked if they would have pre-censored my script, if I had provided it to them. In fact, I was speaking about censorship, about democracy, and these concerns are in the same vein. [Palekar] She (Anita) claimed that I was being one-sided, and emphasised on the detail that it is a government gallery. Aren't government galleries run using tax payers' money? If we won't raise questions, who will? The implication of what she was saying seemed to be 'this is a government gallery, don't raise issues of this kind'. I told her I wanted to thank the Ministry of Culture for the magnanimity they have shown about Barve's exhibition being held. She replied that she does not need a backhanded compliment and left. [Gokhale] I was sitting in the audience; I took a video of what had occurred. If it weren't for phones, we wouldn't even know that something like this had occurred. Two good things happened after his speech ended. Some senior artists in the audience came up to him and said he'd done a great thing by raising these issues. About 15 young people also came up to him to say this. We wanted to raise the same concerns, but our voices aren't as strong, these youngsters said. [Gokhale] If senior artists don't speak up, how can we expect junior artists to? We thought it was wrong that Suhas Bahulkar tried to stop Amol. Perhaps one can understand Jesal Thacker's actions, because she spent a year working on the exhibition and may have felt that it was being affected negatively. However, she should have remembered that she is junior... None of the audience members stood up and asked that Amol be allowed to speak and some of them were senior artists. We could have stood up together for a cause, but this did not happen. Now people are writing in and expressing support, but no one did so in the moment... Jesal succumbed to the pressure and that was her choice to make. [Palekar] When the event began, Anita said she does not understand art, that she doesn't know Barve either. If such people are going to make decisions about the exhibitions which will be shown, is this not a serious issue? [Gokhale] This is not a question of which government is in power. This is about censorship and how it is undemocratic. This is not an issue about a singular party, it is an anti-establishment issue; push back needn't come from a government, it can come from anywhere. [Palekar] I did not expect anyone to raise such objections about what I was going to say... Instead of addressing my questions, they chose to speak about how the points I raised were not appropriate. Because answering my questions would need them to speak about the issue. Jesal Thacker should have raised her voice, if she knew this was going to be the last retrospective. [Gokhale] If Amol was told that he can't speak about the decisions taken by the NGMA, he would not have agreed to give the speech... Jesal said that she was given clear instructions that any statements against the government should not be made. Then, she said to a journalist that she was under no pressure. [Gokhale] If no one in the advisory committee raised their voice for three months, we have to ask whether we have stopped questioning the powers-that-be. [Palekar] Even Sudhir Patwardhan, who was present in the audience, did not raise his voice about the decision to cancel his retrospective, or ask the organisers to allow me to speak." Piyush Goyal also said that the charm of having a 'fixed 9 am to 5 pm' job was waning across the world, and the youth today are looking to engage in new ways of working. Mumbai: Amid the Opposition's attack on the Centre over an NSSO report on the unemployment rate in the country, Union minister Piyush Goyal on Saturday called for embracing modern ways of data collection for ensuring accuracy. The finance minister also said that the charm of having a "fixed 9 am to 5 pm" job was waning across the world, and the youth today are looking to engage in new ways of working. A recent report by the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) claimed the unemployment rate in the country was the highest in 45 years in 2017, providing ammunition to the Opposition to target the Narendra Modi government. "There was a time when a job in a government department or a company, like let's say Tata group or PSU like NTPC, was the only thing that reflected a job or working class in this country. In the whole world, the situation has changed today," Goyal said. India has now aspirational youth, who are looking to engage with new technology and ways of working, he said. In the "changing world", jobs such as those related to artificial intelligence, 3D manufacturing and others are "determining the future of the mankind", the minister said. These new working opportunities were making the youth "job creators than only job-seekers", he added. "But having said that, it will be a combination of different ways by which working opportunities and employment, self-employment, self-empowerment will be created. And it is that new way of working that the NSSO is trying to capture," he said. The minister observed that traditionally the NSSO conducted surveys and came out with a report every five years. "But we now realise that lot of old methods of data collection are outdated and we have to now connect with the modern age of data collection and data analytics." To illustrate his point, Goyal gave the example of data collection in the Railways with the help of data loggers. This, he said, helped the Railways attain better performance vis-a-vis punctuality. "Every data should connect with the modern world and accuracy and better data analytics is very important," he said. India could lose a vital US trade concession, under which it enjoys zero tariffs on $5.6 billion of exports to the United States, amid a widening dispute over its trade and investment policies, people with close knowledge of the matter said. New Delhi: India could lose a vital US trade concession, under which it enjoys zero tariffs on $5.6 billion of exports to the United States, amid a widening dispute over its trade and investment policies, people with close knowledge of the matter said. A move to withdraw the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) from India, the worlds largest beneficiary of a scheme that has been in force since the 1970s, would be the strongest punitive action against India since US president Donald Trump took office in 2017 vowing to reduce the US deficit with large economies. Trump has repeatedly called out India for its high tariffs. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has courted foreign investment as part of his Make-in-India campaign to turn India into a manufacturing hub and deliver jobs to the millions of youth entering the workforce. Trump, for his part, has pushed for US manufacturing to return home as part of his Make America Great Again campaign. The trigger for the latest downturn in trade ties was Indias new rules on e-commerce that restrict the way Amazon.com Inc and Walmart-backed Flipkart do business in a rapidly growing online market set to touch $200 billion by 2027. That, coming on top of a drive to force global card payments companies such as Mastercard and Visa to move their data to India and the imposition of higher tariffs on electronic products and smartphones, left a broader trade package the two sides were working on through last year in tatters. The GSP was tied to the trade package and since that deal had slipped further away, the United States was considering withdrawing or scaling back the preferential arrangement, people familiar with the matter said. The US Trade Representative (USTR) was completing a review of Indias status as a GSP beneficiary and an announcement was expected over the next two weeks, they said. (The two sides) were trying to sort out the trade package, but were not able to actually finish the deal. In the meantime these other things, data localisation and e-commerce, have come along, one of them said. In a sense its like someone has rained on the parade. India and the United States have developed close political and security ties. But bilateral trade, which stood at $126 billion in 2017, is widely seen to be performing at nearly a quarter of its potential. US commerce secretary Wilbur Ross is due in New Delhi next week where he is expected to raise concerns about the e-commerce policy and data localisation, officials said. Various new policies New Indian rules announced in December for the e-commerce sector banned companies such as Amazon and Flipkart from striking exclusive deals with sellers, restricted their ability to offer discounts and barred them from selling products via vendors in which they have an equity interest. The move disrupted product listings on Amazons India website and forced it to change its business structures. Amazon and Walmart, as well as the US government, had lobbied against the move, Reuters reported earlier. The new rules, coming ahead of a general election, were seen as a bid by Modi to placate small traders, who had for years complained about business practices of large e-commerce players. They form a key voter base for Modi who is facing a tightening election in the next few months. The idea of the policy was to foster healthy competition and promote Indias e-commerce, an Indian government official involved in trade issues said, defending the curbs on the big firms. But companies disagree and decry such sudden policy changes. These types of actions can really put a negative view on India as an investment destination, one of the sources said. India last year also announced proposals to force foreign companies to store more of their user data locally, in a bid to better conduct legal investigations. US lobby groups had voiced concerns about those proposals too, saying they made it difficult for companies to do business in the country. Possible setback for India If the United States eliminates duty-free access for about 2,000 Indian product lines, it will mostly hurt small businesses such as jewellery, said one of the sources. The number of goods qualifying for preferential treatment could be reduced, or the whole programme could be withdrawn. There was no response to a request for comment from the USTR or the US Embassy. Indias trade ministry also did not answer questions emailed to them about trade differences with the United States. But an Indian government official briefed on the trade discussions said the trade package under which the two sides were negotiating better access to each others farm and dairy markets was unlikely until the elections in India this spring. Talks on US demands to relax Indias decision to cap prices of medical devices made in the United States had also got stuck, the official said. The list of grievances is getting bigger, now with e-commerce added in, he said. India fears Trump may demand a free trade agreement if both sides fail to reach a compromise on the trade package. Such a pact would mean zero tariffs for US goods arriving in India, further threatening local industry. Daddys Girl! Rajinikanth is quite happy about the wedding and has already blessed the couple. He can be seen giving his daughter a warm and affectionate hug in this priceless photo. The photo is bound to create a buzz on the social media. Rajini With His Grandson Here is another priceless photo of Thalaiva' from the function in which he can be seen spending some time with his grandson. He truly is the coolest granddad ever. Priceless! Soundarya's son Ved was one of the biggest attractions of the Mehendi ceremony. The little one enjoyed the function to the fullest. Here is a golden photo of the kid with mommy dearest on her special day. Blessed & grateful beyond words !!!! The three most important men in my life ... my darling father ... my angel son ... and now you my Vishagan pic.twitter.com/v7Ra32oiYe soundarya rajnikanth (@soundaryaarajni) February 10, 2019 The Man Of The Moment The man of the moment Vishgan looked dashing as he attended the function. The Vanjagar Ulagam actor seemed to be in an upbeat and enjoyed each moment to the fullest. Here, he can e seen posing for a lovey-dovey photo with his soon-to-be better half. To Conclude... The wedding is going to e a private but grand affair. Rajini has invited his good friends Kamal Haasan and Prabhu for the grand function. He has also extended an invite to Congress leader Thirunavukarasar for the big day. Moreover, Latha Rajinikanth has asked for police protection at the her residence. This indicates that several other high-profile guests are going to be in attendance. We wish Soundarya good luck for the big day and hope she has a happy married life Yajamana is another big Kannada release of 2019. Starring D Boss Darshan, the family entertainer has already grabbed a lot of attention with its impressive tracks. Two days back, the Challenging Star himself took to Twitter to announce that the first trailer of the film would be released today (February 10, 2019). And, within an hour of its launch, Yajamana's trailer has managed to beat the record set by Yash's KGF! While KGF has received 1 million views in an hour, Yajamana achieved that number within 55 minutes. This makes Darshan's new film trailer one of the most viewed on YouTube. Not only that, but it has been trending on top on social media sites, too. D Boss Darshan took to Twitter to thank his co-star Rashmika Mandanna for all the support. She responded saying, "Thank YOU so much sir for the love and support through the film..it was a pleasure working with you and I can't wait for the release.. I hope all the hard work really pays off.. #YajamanaFromMarch1" - (sic) MOST READ: Nata Sarvabhouma Box Office (Day 2) : Puneeth's Horror Film To Create All Time Record In Mysore! Meanwhile, the title track has broken the Internet by receiving over 5 million views in the last five days. The Yajamana's first lyrical song received 1 million views within five hours since its launch, becoming the highest viewed on YouTube. Until today, no teaser or song from any Kannada film has got this overwhelming number of views. The film is all set to release on March 1, 2019. Watch the space for more latest updates and have a look at Yajamana's trailer below! Ranveer Singh- Alia Bhatt starrer Gully Boy is all set to hit the theatrical screens this Friday. But before that, the film had its world premiere at the prestigious Berlin International Film Festival on Saturday. Inspired by the slum rappers of Dharavi, the film has Ranveer-Alia being paired together for the first time. The first screening of Gully Boy at the Berlin Film Festival opened to a full house and has received a fantsatic response from the critics and audience there. Some hailed Ranveer's performance in the film as his career-best. After watching the film, many people took to social media to express their thoughts about the film. Here are the first reviews. Chaitanya Prasad @Chatty111Prasad "Watched the world premier of #GullyBoy @berlinale . Intense movie, strong characters, emotional , focused direction, different narrative, superb direction, @RanveerOfficial intense role, gripping performance, @aliaa08 show stopper, #ZoyaAkhtar, brilliant, @ritesh_sid innovator." Tanvi Jain @JainuineInsaan "Spent more than 2 hours in a queue to get a ticket, walked for miles, almost got trampled and died amongst crazy fans at the red carpet, almost broke my only surviving pair of glasses, and waited for hours without eating. #GullyBoy was totally worth the hassle!" Ranjeet Devckar @devckar "Gully Boy is going to be one cult classic, let alone the best film this year, and it's just February. Trust me, it's just sick. #GullyBoy #Berlinale #RanveerSingh #AliaBhatt." Aseem Chhabra @chhabs "Now that the embargo is over, I've been dying to say this for 3 days! #GullyBoy is awesome, a great achievement for #ZoyaAkhtar. @RanveerOfficial gives his career best performance. Wonderful supporting cast. The music comes alive! My review out tomorrow. #Berlinale @berlinale." Aryaman Bhatnagar @aryaman89 "#GullyBoy is an excellent, excellent film! There is no better director than #ZoyaAkhtar at the moment. An absolute must watch. @RanveerOfficial @aliaa08 #Berlinale2019." vicky- elfenomeno @aamir_greatest "#Gullyboy . @RanveerOfficial s best performance till date. mind blowing music, some goosebumps rap battles. Alia and MC shekh were terrific. the editing could have been better. Overall a brilliant film. 4/5 stars. half extra star for ranveer. he just killed it." Hollywood Reporter wrote, "Zoya Akhtar (Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara) directs with flair and passion and, aided by explosive performances from a right-on cast, triumphs over the familiarity of the star-is-born storyline. Her main asset is Ranveer Singh, who broke into Bollywood with the rom com Band Baajat Baaraat and who here shows a pleasingly full emotional range that extends to drama and hip hop. The music is a high quality throughout, as confident and inventive as Jay Oza's camera. Though most of the rappers are young men, it's worth mentioning that the women characters stand out as strong and individual, from Murad's furiously humiliated mom to wildcat med student Safeena and free spirit Sky, none of whom are in sexual denial, but none are sex objects for the camera, either." 'Gully Boy' Ranveer Singh Takes Berlin By Storm In An Eccentric Manish Arora Outfit! Category Select Category Apparel/Garments Textiles Fashion Technical Textiles Information Technology E-commerce Retail Corporate Association Press Release SubCategory Select Sub-Category 2020 was a year marked by hardships and challenges, but the Fauquier community has proven resilient. The Fauquier Times is honored to serve as your community companion. To say thank you for your continued support, wed like to offer all our subscribers -- new or returning -- 4 WEEKS FREE DIGITAL AND PRINT ACCESS. We understand the importance of working to keep our community strong and connected. As we move forward together into 2021, it will take commitment, communication, creativity, and a strong connection with those who are most affected by the stories we cover. We are dedicated to providing the reliable, local journalism you have come to expect. We are committed to serving you with renewed energy and growing resources. Let the Fauquier Times be your community companion throughout 2021, and for many years to come. Fadnavis, on the other hand, said that the party would win 43 seats, one more than its 2014 tally and that additional seat would be Baramati. Mumbai: Throwing an open challenge to the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), the BJP on Saturday said it will win the Baramati Lok Sabha seat, considered the pocket borough of NCP chief Sharad Pawar. Reacting strongly, the NCP said the BJP should announce its candidate first and then talk. BJP chief Amit Shah and Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday addressed a review meeting of party workers of Pune, Baramati and Shirur Lok Sabha constituencies. Both the leaders were unanimous in announcing that the BJP would win the Baramati seat, though they differed on the number of Lok Sabha seats the party would win out of the 48 seats in Maharashtra. Setting the target of bagging 45 seats in the state, Mr Shah said that Baramati should be one among them. I want my party workers to win 45 seats from the state and to achieve that we will have to win the Baramati seat, the BJP chief said. Mr Fadnavis, on the other hand, said that the party would win 43 seats, one more than its 2014 tally and that additional seat would be Baramati. We are ready to fight on all 48 seats with full strength and we would win 43 seats... the 43rd seat would be Baramati, he said. The BJP was ready to fight the elections alone, Mr Fadnavis added. Baramati is represented by Mr Pawars daughter Supriya Sule. In the 2014 polls, Rashtriya Samaj Paksha leader Mahadev Jankar, an NDA ally, had lost from Baramati by a small margin. Had the lotus symbol been there in the last polls, we would have won Baramati. This time we will not make that mistake. Our candidate will fight on the party symbol, said Mr Fadnavis. NCP spokesman Nawab Malik, however, said the BJP should announce its candidate for the seat and then talk about winning it. Amit Shah and the chief minister should announce who the candidate for Baramati would be Narendra Modi, Amit Shah or the CM?, Mr Malik sarcastically said. NCP leader Dhananjay Munde said that instead of worrying about Baramati, the BJP should be concerned about whether it will be able to retain its present seats in the state. The NFU has called on government to support investment in new technologies to help farmers in the fight against climate change. Technology will play an important role in increasing efficiency and reducing greenhouse gas emissions stemming from the farming industry. The union said farmers are 'ready to play their part' in the climate challenge, and are striving to achieve net zero emissions, reduce agricultural emissions and initiate negative emissions. Achieving net zero emissions from farming by around 2050 would be in line with the historic Paris Climate Agreement, signed by the UK and nearly 200 other countries in 2016. It comes as Westminster signals a shift to green farming policies after Brexit. Last year, Defra Secretary Michael Gove announced British farmers will receive money to make improvements to the environment under a new system of subsidies. Under it, farmers will be rewarded for planting wildlife habitats, woods, wildflower meadows and other environmental benefits. 'Great challenge' Speaking at the Energy and Rural Business Show in Telford, NFU Deputy President Guy Smith that climate change is the 'greatest challenge' and farmers are already experiencing changes in the natural environment. For example, according to an annual harvest survey released in December 2018, climate change is already posing a threat to traditional UK growing patterns. Mr Smith said: As we head into increasingly volatile times, both politically and climactic, farmers must have the tools and confidence to make their businesses more resilient so they can increase productivity, drive down their carbon footprint and weatherproof their farms against drought and flood. As our recent confidence survey showed, investment is slowing because of Brexit uncertainty, meaning government support is going to be vital in the years ahead to enable investment and make these technologies more widely available. I hope to see this approach reflected in the coming Agriculture Bill. The NFU has recently announced its ambition for the farming industry to become net zero by 2040, and new technologies will be 'crucial' in achieving this ambition. A no deal Brexit is 'not an option' for Scotland's farmers and crofters, according to NFU Scotland President Andrew McCornick. The fast-approaching Brexit date on 29 March topped the agenda at this years NFU Scotland AGM. The unions position on Brexit has remained unchanged since the vote in 2016, that any Brexit must have a deal with the EU. A no deal Brexit with no trade deals and no labour movements from the EU would be 'catastrophic' for Scotlands farmers and crofters, Mr McCornick said, who was recently re-elected as union president, said. He highlighted the need for politicians to work together and to 'leave politics and egos at the door', as they work to get the best possible deal out of the Brexit negotiations. In his speech, Mr McCornick said: A no deal means a hard Brexit and this means the UK falling out of Europe on 30 March and the application of World Trade Organization tariffs. Under a WTO regime the rules will deliver no continuity on what we are currently doing for many key sectors of our economy. This means massive disruption, amongst which will be the introduction of tariffs. Agriculture and agri-food will be the most seriously affected where the highest tariff rates are found. Red meat for example would see tariffs of around 40 per cent. He added: We must be sensible in what trade-offs we do. Europe can and will be brutal. Services are where Europe has a large trade surplus with us but in manufacturing including agri-food there is a massive deficit. We need to remember that a deal is not about what you get, but about what you give up. The comments follow the Scottish government calling on Westminster to rule out a 'no deal' and focus on the 'best outcome' for the UK, which it says is staying part of the Single Market and Customs Union. by Sean Fitzpatrick | Sun, Feb 10th 1:24pm EST Salah Mejri re-signed with the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday just days after being released to make room for Zach Randolph. Mejri will be in line for backup center minutes down the stretch. (Bobby Karalla on Twitter) The following companies are subsidiares of Molina Healthcare: Aetna & Humana - Medicare Advantage, Affinity Health Plan, AmericanWork Inc., Better Health Network, Camelot Care Centers Inc, Children's Behavioral Health Inc., Choices Group Inc., College Community Services, Dockside Services Inc, Family Preservation Services Inc., Family Preservation Services of Florida Inc., Family Preservation Services of North Carolina Inc., Family Preservation Services of Washington D.C. 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Louis Navellier the analyst who found Microsoft at .38 cents just released a new report detailing six tech stocks to own today. Dont miss your chance to get his latest picks ticker symbol and all completely free of charge. BancorpSouth Bank provides commercial banking and financial services to individuals and small-to-medium size businesses. The company operates through Banking Services Group, Mortgage, Insurance Agencies, Wealth Management, and General Corporate and Other segments. It accepts various deposit products, including interest and noninterest bearing demand deposits, and saving and other time deposits. The company also provides commercial loans, including term loans, lines of credit, equipment and receivable financing, and agricultural loans; a range of short-to-medium term secured and unsecured commercial loans to businesses for working capital, business expansion, and the purchase of equipment and machinery; and construction loans to real estate developers for the acquisition, development, and construction of residential subdivisions. In addition, it offers fixed and adjustable rate residential mortgage loans secured by owner-occupied property; construction loans; second mortgage loans; and home equity lines of credit, as well as non-residential consumer loans that consist of automobile, recreation vehicle, boat, personal, and deposit account secured loans, as well as issues credit cards. Further, the company operates as an agent for the sale of commercial lines of insurance; and offers a line of property and casualty, life, health, and employee benefits products and services. Additionally, it provides credit related products, trust and investment management, asset management, retirement and savings solutions, and estate planning and annuity products. As of March 4, 2021, the company operated through 305 full-service branch locations, as well mortgage, insurance, and loan production offices in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Tennessee, and Texas; and an insurance location in Illinois. The company was formerly known as BancorpSouth, Inc. and changed its name to BancorpSouth Bank in October 2017. BancorpSouth Bank was founded in 1876 and is headquartered in Tupelo, Mississippi. Read More For the first time, a legislator from Trinamul Congress killed during Mamatas rule. Kolkata: In a shocking incident, a young Trinamul Congress MLA Satyajit Biswas was shot dead on Saturday evening in Nadia of West Bengal ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. The murder of an MLA of the ruling party is rare in the state. This was also the first time when any legislator from chief minister Mamata Banerjees party was killed during her rule. Mr Biswas was the MLA of Krishnaganj in Nadia. While the Trinamul accused the BJP of killing its MLA, the BJP denied the allegations claiming that Mr Biswas may have become the victim of internal feud. The MLA went to attend the inauguration of a popular Saraswati Puja at Phulbari area. He was accompanied by minister of state for micro, small and medium enterprises Ratna Ghosh, also a Trinamul MLA of Chakdah in the district, and Trinamul Nadia district president Gouri Shankar Dutta. After the inauguration at around 8.30 p.m., Mr Biswas was getting down from the dais. A gang of miscreants opened fire on him from close distance in the crowd, said Mr Dutta. He added that the murder took place soon after he and Ms Ghosh left the venue. With bullets on chest and shoulder, Mr Biswas fell on the ground and died. The crowd fled for cover. Mr Biswas was declared brought dead at Shaktinagar district hospital. The body was sent for post-mortem. A country-made pistol, used in the firing, was later found lying near the dais. It was siezed by the police. Senior police officers of the district rushed to the spot. A case under section 302 of the Indian Penal Code has been initiated. The Mamata Banerjee government is likely to hand over the case to the criminal investigation department (CID) which has sent a team from its headquarters at Bhawani Bhavan. Mr Dutta accused BJP leader Mukul Roy of masterminding the murder. Satyajit was like my son. When Mukul was in our party earlier, he opposed his election as an MLA. He will not be spared if he tries to enter Nadia, he claimed. Expressing shock, Trinamul secretary general Partha Chatterjee said: Satyajit was an young and popular organiser who was trying to build the partys base in Nadia. I am short of words over his killing. He added: The BJP was trying to create disturbances in the district for a long time. They thought that if Satyajit could be eliminated, they would be able to penetrate there. It was a pre-planned murder. Trinamul observer of Nadia Anubrata Mondal claimed: It was a handiwork of the BJP which has started losing its grounds. I will visit there on Sunday. Refuting the Trinamuls charges, state BJP president Dilip Ghosh said: It was very unfortunate that an MLA was murdered. Satyajit was a good organiser. He was popular too. Since Mr Mondal got the partys charge in Nadia, he imported the culture of killing. We demand a fair probe which will bring the truth before all. Wall Street analysts have given iShares MSCI Switzerland ETF a "N/A" rating, but there may be better buying opportunities in the stock market. Some of MarketBeat's past winning trading ideas have resulted in 5-15% weekly gains. MarketBeat just released five new stock ideas, but iShares MSCI Switzerland ETF wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys. View MarketBeat's top stock picks here. Energizer Holdings, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, and distributes household batteries, specialty batteries, and lighting products worldwide. It offers lithium, alkaline, carbon zinc, nickel metal hydride, zinc air, and silver oxide batteries under the Energizer and Eveready brands, as well as primary, rechargeable, specialty, and hearing aid batteries. The company also provides headlights, lanterns, and children's and area lights, as well as flash lights under the Energizer, Eveready, Rayovac, Hard Case, Dolphin, Varta, and WeatherReady brands. In addition, it licenses the Energizer and Eveready brands to companies developing consumer solutions in gaming, automotive batteries, portable power for critical devices, LED light bulbs, generators, power tools, household light bulbs, and other lighting products. Further, the company designs and markets automotive fragrance and appearance products, including protectants, wipes, tire and wheel care products, glass cleaners, leather care products, air fresheners, and washes to clean, shine, refresh, and protect interior and exterior automobile surfaces under the brand names of Armor All, Nu Finish, Refresh Your Car!, LEXOL, Eagle One, California Scents, Driven, and Bahama & Co; STP branded fuel and oil additives, functional fluids, and other performance chemical products; and do-it-yourself automotive air conditioning recharge products under the A/C PRO brand name, as well as other refrigerant and recharge kits, sealants, and accessories. It sells its products through direct sales force, distributors, and wholesalers; and through various retail and business-to-business channels, including mass merchandisers, club, electronics, food, home improvement, dollar store, auto, drug, hardware, e-commerce, convenience, sporting goods, hobby/craft, office, industrial, medical, and catalog. Energizer Holdings, Inc. is headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Read More Nelnet, Inc. engages in loan servicing, communications, and education technology, services, and payment processing businesses worldwide. The company's Loan Servicing and Systems is involved in loan servicing activities, such as loan conversion, application processing, borrower updates, customer service, payment processing, due diligence procedures, funds management reconciliation, and claim processing activities for student loan portfolio and third-party clients. This segment also provides student loan servicing software; business process outsourcing services specialized in contact center management, such as inbound calls, outreach campaigns and sales, and interacting with customers through multi-channels. The Education Technology, Services, and Payment Processing segment offers financial management services; assistance with financial needs assessment; school information system software that automates administrative processes; professional development and educational instruction services; and technology products that aid in teacher and student evaluations. It also offers technology and payments services, including electronic transfer and credit card processing, reporting, billing and invoicing, mobile and virtual terminal solutions, and specialized integrations to business software; and mobile first technology focused on increasing engagement, online giving, and communication for church and not-for-profit customers. Its Communications segment fiber optic service to homes and businesses for internet, television, and telephone services. Its data services include high-speed internet access; and telephone services comprise local and long distance telephone, hostedPBX, and other services. Its Asset Generation and Management segment acquires, manages, and owns loan assets. It also provides investment advisory services. The company was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in Lincoln, Nebraska. Read More Since 2016, Teeka Tiwari has trumped the stock market. His investment recommendations have each averaged 281%. Thats 17 times the S&P. And 112 times the average investor, according to JPMorgan! However, one investment Teeka just uncovered could top them all It involves former President Biden, billions of dollars, several large banks, and a super-rich family. As well as a MAJOR potential upgrade to our credit cards. Teeka, who ended up correctly picking the last investment of the decade, is declaring this his top pick for the 2020s. Independence Holding Company, through its subsidiaries, engages in health, pet, and life insurance businesses. The company's dental portfolio includes indemnity and PPO plans for employer groups of two or more lives, and for individuals; vision plans that offer a flat reimbursement amount for exams and materials; and short-term medical products for people with temporary needs for health coverage. It also provides supplemental products, including hospital indemnity, fixed indemnity limited benefit, critical illness, accident medical coverage, and life insurance products; pet insurance; and occupational accident insurance products, such as accidental death, accident disability, and accident medical benefits for occupational injuries to employees of companies. In addition, the company offers group long-term and short-term disability products to employers; New York short-term disability plan that offers temporary cash payments to replace wages lost; and group term life products, such as group term life, accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D), supplemental life and AD&D, and dependent life products. Further, it provides medicare supplements and advantages; employer group and individual insurance products, including self-funded programs; and affordable care act plans. Independence Holding Company markets its products through general agents, independent brokers, and independent producers. The company was incorporated in 1980 and is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut. Read More According to police, the deceased was identified as Kudrat Tulla. He was staying with his family, who are labourers. According to police, the deceased was identified as Kudrat Tulla. He was staying with his family, who are labourers. New Delhi: A 14-year-old boy was allegedly stabbed multiple times to death by three minor boys after the deceased befriended the girlfriend of one of the accused. The incident took place on Friday evening in Anand Parbat area of Central district. Three juveniles have been apprehended while raids are being conducted to nab the absconding accused, said the police. According to police, the deceased was identified as Kudrat Tulla. He was staying with his family, who are labourers. On Friday, at around 8.45 pm, the deceased was standing near his home when four accused called him on the pretext of discussing something. However, the discussion escalated, which turned into a scuffle and the accused stabbed him multiple times, a senior police officer said. He was rushed to the hospital by his mother, where he succumbed to his injuries during treatment. Police was inform-ed about the incident and a murder case was registered after which a probe was initiated. During questioning, the accused disclosed that the girlfriend of one of the juveniles became a friend of the victim and started ignoring him. Couple of weeks ago, he asked the victim not to talk with his girlfriend. However, he denied and continued his friendship. Irked by this, the accused decided to eliminate him, the police added. CGI Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides information technology (IT) and business process services in Canada; Western, Southern, Central, and Eastern Europe; Australia; Scandinavia; Finland, Poland, and Baltics; the United States; the United Kingdom; and the Asia Pacific. Its services include the management of IT and business outsourcing, systems integration and consulting, and software solutions selling activities. The company also offers application development and integration and maintenance, testing, portfolio management, and modernization services; business consulting; and a suite of business process services designed to address the needs of specific industries, as well as IT infrastructure services. It serves clients operating in government, financial services, health, utility, communication, oil and gas, manufacturing, insurance, retail and consumer service, transportation, and post and logistics sectors. The company was formerly known as CGI Group Inc. and changed its name to CGI Inc. in January 2019. CGI Inc. was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Montreal, Canada. Read More 3 1 of 3 Contributed photo Show More Show Less 2 of 3 Contributed photo Show More Show Less 3 of 3 FAIRFIELD State Senator Tony Hwang has introduced a bill to the CT General Assembly that, if passed, would establish the Office of the Cybersecurity Czar within the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection (DESPP). This bill will enhance and broaden the scope of our current Chief Cybersecurity Risk Officer beyond the Department of Administrative Services focusing on governmental and homeland security. This bill stipulates that the position would have the responsibility to develop policies, suggestions, and resources that will address the needs of (1) National and State Homeland Security including security of utilities and infrastructure, (2) Corporate Cybersecurity to protect trade secrets and clients data privacy, and (3) protection for individual consumers personal data and application security. It is time that our state has a dedicated group of people that deals with every level of cybersecurity in our state. We know that the pervasiveness of cyberspace and the World Wide Web has created opportunities for criminal and possible terror tactics to operate within it. Our personal and business dependency on unruly digital and cyber technology pose a real threat to the security of our state and the safety of Connecticut residents, said Hwang. Government institutions, major corporations and individuals have suffered from hacking, and I believe the creation of this position within DESPP is a necessary step towards confronting the problems we are facing now and will continue to face in the future. MONROE A driver was uninjured Thursday night when they crashed into a tree in town, fire officials said Saturday. Firefighters responded to Fan Hill Road on Thursday night for a report of a crash. The incident was between Village Green Lane and Knorr Road. First responders found a vehicle that collided head-on with a tree off the roadway. BRIDGEPORT Lt. Necole Dundy Pittman said her 11 years with the Bridgeport Fire Department is proof that its not a mans job. Firefighter Mohammad Kahn said his bigger stature is proof that you dont have to be thin and muscular. Being a firefighter, they both said, is mostly about endurance. If you think you cant do it, come train with me, Dundy Pittman said. If I can do it, other young women can do it, too. Bridgeport is looking for new firefighters and is hoping to attract a diverse crew to become the newest of the citys bravest. Fire Chief Richard Thode said 3.5 percent of the Bridgeport Fire Department is made up of women. Although that percentage matches the national average, Thode said he wants to see more women join the department. Kahn said his time training to become a firefighter helped build up his endurance and prove that anyone ready to commit to the job could do it. People see me walk in and they say, hes a firefighter? Kahn said. But Im doing the same thing all the other firefighters do. When the bell rings, Im going to do my job. Training Dundy Pittman and Kahn are two of the six people on the departments recruitment team. Thode said recruitment happens twice yearly - in February and August. Theyre both available to help people looking to train for CPAT, the candidate physical ability test, required to become a firefighter. In an effort to help those worried about the $175 cost of CPAT, the city announced a scholarship program recently that will cover the cost of the test for 150 applicants. The scholarships are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Scholarships will be aided toward applicants who are city residents who meet the financial need requirement, participate in community service and attend at least four of the free one-hour CPAT training sessions at 236 Evergreen St. The training sessions familiarize applicants with what theyll face during their CPAT, Dundy Pittman said. Theyre getting to touch everything, learn everything, she said. And this way, when they do take the test, nothing is foreign to them. The scholarship application form can be found at https://bit.ly/2TEzcGo. After the CPAT and application process comes 14 weeks of training, which means on-campus living Monday through Friday in Windsor Locks, Kahn said. Youll get in the best shape of your life, Kahn said. You learn basic firefighting functions and a lot of other skills, including handling emergency medical response. Second chance Typically, anyone with a criminal record would steer away from firefighting positions, Dundy Pittman said. But a few years ago, Bridgeport Mayor Joe Ganim introduced a second chance opportunity for firefighters in the city. Dundy Pittman said once interested recruits apply, a peer-review committee will review the application. The committee will decide if that applicants background can be forgiven to allow them to continue with the process, Thode said. Deputy Chief Lance Edwards, a part of the peer-review committee, said the applicant will be brought in for an interview to discuss their record and explain their side of the story. If youre accepted and you join the department, youd be on probation for one year, Edwards said. The chief said he hopes the second chance opportunity will open up a door for many who wanted to join the fire department but didnt realize it was an option. Its a great career for everybody, Thode said. If you dont apply, youll never know, Dundy Pittman added. Reflecting community This Februarys recruitment push is in the hopes of reaching more people that might typically shy away from the position for various reasons. We want a fire department that reflects the community, Thode said. The department has roughly 300 firefighters currently working. But, Thode said, come April, there will be about 70 firefighters eligible for retirement. He said the department wants to have a list of people ready to fill those spots. The active hiring list will be filled by the recruits who will have passed the application and training process after the February recruitment drive, the chief said. We cant wait until we need the positions filled any more, Thode said. Firefighters have to be ready for more than just the big fires, Thode said; calls throughout any given day includes community-related jobs from unlocking cars to installing smoke detectors. Thode said the job, from a financial and career standpoint, is a good one. Its a union job, he said. Its good paying, theres the opportunity for promotions and moving up. WESTPORT Hoping to demonstrate a united front, a group of state legislators, local officials and environmental activists held a beach news conference Saturday afternoon focused on banning single-use plastic bags in Connecticut. Westport was the first municipality in the state to do so, 10 years ago, and several involved with that fight, including state Rep. Jonathan Steinberg, D-Westport, spoke Saturday of its importance. People said it couldnt be done, (but) the state can do it, too, Steinberg said, noting the first bill aiming to do so was introduced eight years ago in Hartford. Steinberg and state Sen. Will Haskell, D-Westport, along with state Rep. Kim Rose, D-Milford, have each introduced bills into the Legislature that, respectively, prohibit use and distribution of single-use plastic bags, promote the use of reusable bags, and establish fees on paper bags. Paper bags also have an adverse impact, said Louis Burch, program director for Citizens Campaign for the Environment, noting the goal was to encourage people to bring their own reusable bags. Its time now for our state government to follow Westports lead, Haskell said, addressing around 60 people who endured icy winds to take part in the rally adjacent to the historic cannons at Compo Beach. He said 18 billion pounds of plastic waste ends up in the worlds oceans every year, with only 5 percent ultimately recycled. Its time to reverse that trend, he said. The next generation of voters has spoken loudly and clearly, Haskell said. I cant tell you how proud I am that Westport is actually the home of the plastic bag ordinance, First Selectman Jim Marpe, a Republican, said. This is not a Republican or Democratic issue, he said. Its a bipartisan issue. Liz Milwe, a District 1 member of Westports Representative Town Meeting, and who took part in the original plastic bag ban, said Greenwich, New Canaan, Norwalk, Stamford, and Weston have all recently passed local bans similar to Westports. We hope the whole state of Connecticut will join us, she said. Wayne Pesce, president of the Connecticut Food Association, which represents retail organizations, said his group was in agreement with the ban. Connecticuts growing retail community fully supports this effort, he said. We want to be part of the solution. I do believe it is important to bring all the shareholders into this dialogue, noted State Sen. Tony Hwang, R-Fairfield, noting the manufacturing of the single-use bags was poor business. Im fully supportive of (a statewide ban) ... for the environment, but for good business as well, he said. We use these things for a minute or a second, and then they go in the seas, and they can be there for centuries, state Rep. Gail Lavielle, R-Wilton, said. That should tell us everything we need to know. But while she expressed her support for a ban, she said that, given the extreme state of the planet, it wasnt enough. We have a major problem with lots of single-use plastic bottles, she said, noting the market for plastic waste was diminishing. Were going to have to learn to, A: limit it, and B: treat it in a more methodical way than we do, Lavielle said. I think this is a good first step, but its not enough, she said. GREENWICH Jazz musicians linger on the penultimate note of a song because that extra fraction of a second gives the piece a strong swing feel. The lesson of the penultimate note is one of many that Greenwich High School band teacher John Yoon taught to Jeff Schneider, who graduated in 2005. Now a music instructor who teaches through Skype, Schneider reminds his students worldwide to hold the second-to-last note. I owe a lot to him in terms of my musicianship and growth as a person, Schneider said of Yoon. Yoon held onto his penultimate note until he announced recently that he would retire at the end of the school year after 27 years of teaching. Its time for new ideas and direction for the band program and I am sure the new leadership will inspire the young musicians to a new level of excellence, he said in a Feb. 1 email sent to parents. Rejoice with me as I venture forward toward new opportunities and horizons. Yoon took over the GHS band in 1992, and under his leadership, the program grew exponentially. He was an early supporter of the Music Instructional Space and Auditorium, which opened in 2015. Yoon created a parent-led band booster program that raises money for students who need scholarships, and organized performance trips abroad. The director wound down during the summer by teaching for the Department of Parks and Recreation summer camp. The band has been synonymous with him and what hes accomplished, said Andrea Aaron, co-president of the parent booster club. His retirement announcement surprised some, but others knew it would come soon: In the last six years, Yoon weathered bullying accusations, teaching suspensions and one attempt by administrators to fire him. I was taken by surprise, for sure, Eastern Middle School band teacher Peter Hohmeister said. I know he had been through a rough patch I sort of thought he had gotten by that. Hohmeister expected Yoon would continue in this position for a while. After talking to him, it sounds like he has personal reasons for going in another direct, and I respect that, he said. Western Middle School band teacher Karen Anderson has taught in Greenwich for 33 years and was on the committee that hired Yoon. Hes been here so long, and hes been getting ready to move on. It wasnt a shock, but I always thought hed be here longer, she said. Im very sad to see him retiring before I do. Former Board of Education chair Sandy Waters was surprised, too, but she also knew the nine school board hearings and the multiple suspensions took a toll. Returning to his position after the boards decision to reinstate him was not easy for John, Waters said. Some Greenwich High School staff continued to make life difficult for him. But 99 percent of those who worked with Yoon should remember his passion for the music program, Anderson said. Under his guidance, it changed completely. Building to last Before Yoon, band instructors taught in multiple buildings, the high school band had about 30 students and they did not have the music hall students now enjoy. Now, every middle school has one full-time teacher. More than 250 GHS students participate in performing groups, including two jazz bands and a percussion ensemble; they perform for and receive critiques from outside judges; and they travel abroad. Waters remembers fending off Yoons numerous pitches for an improved music space, but he was persistent, she said. In the end, he was more right than I, and the students he will never know will benefit from his foresight, she said. Yoon saw results because he had a vision, a strong work ethic and high expectations for his students, Anderson said. We are in a world where academics are the focus, Anderson said. If youre going to be in band, its going to be very academic. People dont realize you cant have a positive musical experience without putting hard work into it. These standards were too high for some, Waters said, but her trumpet-playing daughter thrived. Waters and her daughter remember the high quality of musicianship, as well as Yoons enthusiasm. The bands performances steadily improved throughout that four-year period because he tried to stretch the students capabilities, she said. Her daughter benefited from knowing Yoon, who made sure he knew each student personally, Waters said. He put his heart and soul into the improvement of the program, she said. He is a person of deep conviction and great personal integrity. Yoon expanded the program by recruiting middle schoolers, a strategy that smoothed the transition to high school and helped him spot talent early. When Schneider met him during his last year at Central Middle School, he had only heard the legend of John Yoon: a teacher who should be feared. But Yoon was kind and wanted the best for the program, Schneider said. I was really excited to join the band, he said. Thats when I really got into music. Yoon gave Schneider solos, connected him with music summer camps and organized private lessons with a jazz teacher at the Manhattan School of Music. I never had an instance with Mr. Yoon where he was trying to play a power card, Schneider said. He was always super nice and encouraging. Suspensions and support groups But Yoon did not get along with every student-musician or faculty member. Former Superintendent of Schools William McKersie suspended Yoon in April 2015 after two students and their families filed complaints that he had allegedly bullied them. The superintendent called for Yoons termination, but he appealed and the Board of Education unanimously reinstated him. During the same school year, Yoon signed a last-chance agreement after getting into a verbal altercation with another music teacher, which also resulted in a suspension. In April 2018, the district placed John Yoon and fellow band teacher Ben Walker on paid leave, but did not disclose why. He and Walker returned to work soon after. The controversies divided faculty, said Hohmeister, the middle school band teacher. I have friends and colleagues with both camps, he said. It makes things a little awkward. At the same time, the districts programs will continue to be excellent if the focus remains on what is best for the kids, Hohmeister said. Whatever went down, a nose to the grindstone has been my approach, he said. Through these suspensions, the community rallied around Yoon. More than 400 people voiced their dissatisfaction with the administration efforts to terminate him. Waters, a band parent, continued to support Yoon during and after the hearings. I do think most Greenwich residents got the picture through the press coverage of those events, she said. Maybe they also will understand why he is retiring. Aaron, the booster president, attended every hearing. The letters, the outpouring of support was just tremendous, she said. Yoons retirement email thanked parents and members of the Get-A-Life Club for their support. Aaron explained the club this way: My son graduated two years ago, and Im still involved. Through the years, Aaron has coordinated concert-night tuxedos, raised money for scholarships and organized trips. Ive done a lot of volunteer work, Ive been on boards for different charitable organizations since I was in my late 20s, this has been the most enjoyable volunteer gig Ive ever had, she said. Final notes One person had a hunch Yoons final days were coming Aaron. Since he started, Yoon has released studio jazz albums featuring GHS students, she said. Yoon started with the title Round 1, and he told her he would retire after releasing Round 12. When Yoon released Round 11, Aaron could feel Yoons retirement swinging closer. Without saying a word, Yoon had taught her the lesson of the penultimate note. jo.kroeker@hearstmediact.com BJP cite rise of hooliganism, failed law and order as the reason for protest. An agitating BJP worker said, 'Madhya Pradesh used to a place of peace during BJP's rule. Congress supporters have started hooliganism now. It is a culture of Congress, people knew it. If the administration does not take action against them, BJP workers will fight against them on the streets.' (Photo: ANI) Bhopal: Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) workers staged a protest on Sunday against the Kamal Nath-led Madhya Pradesh government citing rise of hooliganism and failed law and order in the state. Madhya Pradesh used to a place of peace during BJP's rule. Congress supporters have started hooliganism now. It is a culture of Congress, people knew it. If the administration does not take action against them, BJP workers will fight against them on the streets. said an agitating BJP worker. The demonstrators were holding banners which read A protest against the rising crime- killing, robbery, hooliganism and crime against women under Congress government. In January, two BJP workers were killed in the state. Following this, former chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had warned the Congress government in the state that if such incidents are not curbed, the BJP will "come out on the streets." Councilman Greg Brockhouse begins his campaign against Mayor Ron Nirenberg with a major fundraising disadvantage. Nirenberg, in his most recent campaign-finance filing, reported more than $278,000 in available funds. Brockhouse had a relatively paltry $15,000. That amount would be a decent starting point for a District 6 incumbent hoping to protect their seat. But it wont cut it for a mayoral challenger. Nirenberg supporters worry, however, that Brockhouse could possess a fiscal ace in the hole, in the form of San Antonios public-safety unions. Brockhouse served as a consultant for both the police and fire unions before winning a seat on the council in 2017 and he can count on enthusiastic support from both unions in his campaign against Nirenberg. The San Antonio Professional Firefighters Association (SAPFA) has a lot riding on this election, given that the union just resumed collective-bargaining negotiations with the city after a bitter four-year stalemate. Last week, SAPFA heralded Brockhouses Saturday campaign kickoff, urging its social-media followers to turn out for the West Side event. On ExpressNews.com: Brockhouse prepares to make his big move While fire-union representatives did not respond to an interview request for this column, there is no doubt that SAPFAs political action committee will get behind Team Brockhouse. The question is how much theyll be willing and able to spare. San Antonios Municipal Campaign Finance Code limits mayoral campaign contributions from individuals or single entities to $1,000 per election cycle. The fire unions PAC would face no such limits, however, on independent pro-Brockhouse spending, as long as its not coordinated with the candidates campaign. To be sure, the fire union has a spotty record when it comes to recent municipal elections. In 2015, the union delivered a late endorsement for Leticia Van de Putte in her mayoral runoff against incumbent Ivy Taylor, but Van de Putte came up short. In 2017, the union supported the long-shot insurgent mayoral candidacy of Manuel Medina, then the Bexar County Democratic Party chairman. It was a move that puzzled the firefighters political cousins in the police union. (The police union ultimately backed Taylor in her failed runoff campaign against Nirenberg.) All told, the fire union endorsed nine council candidates in 2017 and six of them lost. On the other hand, the union got three charter amendments designed to limit the power of City Hall on the ballot last year and, despite a high-powered opposition effort bankrolled by local business leaders, won two of those proposition races. The fire unions PAC relies on voluntary contributions from rank-and-file members. The PACs most recent campaign-finance report indicated that it had $56,017 in its coffers. The PAC has generated about $23,000 a month in voluntary donations over the past three months. For this years election, the union might also attempt to commingle its union dues with its PAC money, a practice widely seen as an illegal form of political spending. Chris Steele, the president of SAPFA, nonetheless said last year that the union has a bunch of bank accounts, but the money can be transferred between the accounts. Steeles statement came in response to questions about discrepancies in the fire union PACs 2018 campaign-finance reports. Those discrepancies prompted a lawsuit from Secure San Antonios Future, the political action committee opposing the fire unions charter-amendment propositions. On ExpressNews.com: Appeals court seeks more information on lawsuit Secure San Antonios Future sought, but failed to receive, a temporary restraining order to block the charter election. The lawsuit contended that the fire union collected its petition signatures by illegally spending more than $500,000 in union dues to a Buda-based petition-gathering firm. The fire union concentrated its charter-amendment campaign efforts on sending firefighters to polling sites, for last-ditch attempts at voter persuasion. That approach could also come into play for Brockhouse. The San Antonio Police Officers Association (SAPOA) probably wont stir up as much campaign drama as the firefighters, but it might actually provide a bigger financial impact. A SAPOA source predicted that the police unions PAC will spend approximately $100,000 to help get Brockhouse elected. All of these machinations put Brockhouse in a sensitive spot. He can use the help, but he knows that he has to be careful not to coordinate his campaign efforts with those of the public-safety unions. He also knows that his detractors will accuse him of being in the pockets of those unions. It all adds up to a very complicated mixed blessing. Gilbert Garcia is a columnist covering the San Antonio and Bexar County area. Read him on our free site, mySA.com, and on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com. | ggarcia@express-news.net | Twitter: @gilgamesh470 "The worst part is that we have known for years," In 2016, Racheal Denhollander became the first person to publicly accuse Larry Nassar of sexually abusing his patients under the guise of medical treatment. Now Denhollander is speaking out again after a Houston Chronicle and San Antonio Express-News exclusive investigation revealed 700 victims of sex abuse in the Southern Baptist church. Denhollander tweeted, "I have known most of this for years, and spoken out about it. No one wanted to listen. It did not matter enough to investigate and act. Grief and repentance and silence to learn is the only proper response." The worst part is that we have known for years. I have known most of this for years, and spoken out about it. No one wanted to listen. It did not matter enough to investigate and act. Grief and repentance and silence to learn is the only proper response.https://t.co/1tV95Gj8wU Rachael Denhollander (@R_Denhollander) February 10, 2019 Her husband, Jacob Denhollander also echoed her call to read one of the important stories about a devastating betrayal of trust. "It was easier to shoot messengers for their "tone" than to deal with the problems and hide behind church autonomy." EXCLUSIVE: 700 victims of Southern Baptist sex abuse, revealed. If you are SBC, you need to read this. And then realize that most of this was not recently "uncovered." It's been known for a long time. It was easier to shoot the messengers for their 'tone' than to deal with the problems and hide behind church autonomy.https://t.co/kKPxgPsEkh Jacob Denhollander (@JJ_Denhollander) February 10, 2019 The cases tracked by the newspapers affected more than 700 victims over 20 years. Their stories are heartbreaking. Victims of sexual abuse had pleaded for the SBC to act, saying it was allowing predators to move from church to church. But the SBC in 2008 rejected all proposals to produce such a registry, saying the organization could not tell its 47,000 member churches whom to hire or ordain. Several other community leaders, activists and church leaders have also weighed in about the investigation, including pastor Mike Phillips who called it one of the most important news stories of a decade. Michael Criner, Senior Pastor at First Baptist Church in Bellville, Texas also added that it was a significant investigation into the Southern Baptist church, and changes must be made. Criner said, "I've attended & ministered in #SBC churches my entire life. Reading this was was alarming & grieved my heart. May there be peace upon the victims & may we do our part to make necessary changes as a convention. " Ive attended & ministered in #SBC churches my entire life. Reading this was was alarming & grieved my heart. May there be peace upon the victims & may we do our part to make necessary changes as a convention. Prayed for @jdgreear as he leads us.https://t.co/JsN5ZqYFdU Michael Criner (@michaelcriner) February 10, 2019 Writer, Shannon Dingle tweeted a response to the investigation after her heartbreaking personal story of abuse at the hands of Southern Baptist church leader. Dingle tweeted, "I was 23, married a year, pregnant with our first child. I was being trained to lead a small group of middle schoolers at church summer camp. So was he. He is now serving time." I was 23, married a year, pregnant with our first child. I was being trained to lead a small group of middle schoolers at the church summer camp. So was he. He is low serving time, one of the men named in @HoustonChron database, for what he did to boys. https://t.co/mbOLkQGseH Shannon Dingle (@ShannonDingle) February 10, 2019 Russell Moore who is president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention also weighed in on the sex abuse investigation, adding that "Nothing is worse than the use of the name of Jesus to prey on the vulnerable." This is nothing short of a scandal and a crisis. There should be no tolerance for, or covering up of, sexual abuse of the vulnerable ever, especially within the church of Jesus Christ. https://t.co/h5GuEn7vXZ Russell Moore (@drmoore) February 10, 2019 Text "NEWS" to 77453 for breaking news alerts from mySA.com First came the pain, then numbness. As the two pit bulls tore through muscle, tendon and bone, Christina Gutierrez clung to a chain-link fence on the South Side street, trying to stay upright. One thought flashed through her mind God dont let me die! The mother of three felt the eyes of people watching from nearby South Side homes and she wondered why no one came out to throw a rock or spray water at the attacking dogs. Then a pickup stopped and a man ran toward her, shouting Hold on, hold on! The man yelled and distracted the dogs by flapping a blanket in the air at them. He repeated the action three times, with the dogs advancing toward him each time, until they finally retreated to a nearby yard. Im not going to let anything happen to you, Gutierrez recalled the man telling her, as he shielded her from another possible attack. On ExpressNews.com: Woman attacked by dogs on South Side street In shock from the assault and blood loss, she fell on her back. The last thing she saw was clouds in the sky and the mans face, with its look of stunned disbelief and fear. She didnt know it then, but that man was Francisco Martinez, 48, who also was on his way to work when he saw dogs attacking a woman and pulled over to help. When she arrived at University Hospital that day, she asked about her Good Samaritan, but no one knew his name. She posted a message on Facebook, looking for the man who saved her life. A week later an Animal Care Services representative notified Martinez that Gutierrez wanted to thank him. A meeting was arranged and when he walked into a conference room at the hospital, she immediately hugged him and burst into tears. Recently, Martinez visited her at her in-laws home to talk about the incident thats linked them forever. Thank you is not enough. This man is a hero, Gutierrez said. This has started a friendship. Who can say their friend is their hero? Gutierrez, 34, and her family have repeatedly expressed their gratitude to Martinez, 48, for his selfless act that day. It was Jan. 4, and started out like most regular Fridays. She was on her way to work when her truck ran out of gas. Gutierrez decided to walk the rest of the way down residential streets because the weather was good and it wasnt far. Thats when the dogs attacked her in the 1400 block of Keats, near Brighton Avenue. Express Briefing: Get the morning headlines in your inbox Martinez said he was driving to work when he saw the attack and pulled over. I saw her and the two big dogs, the soft-spoken man recalled. I ran to be close to her to do something. I was scared. I didnt know what to do. He grabbed a blanket to try to chase off the animals. Once they were finally gone, he used the blanket to cover her up, telling her not to look at her wounds, and called 911. She suffered deep gashes to the tissue and muscle of her thighs, ankles and calves and puncture wounds to her right forearm. He stayed with her until the ambulance arrived. After help arrived, he went on to work. On this day, she was sitting on a couch, with her left leg wrapped in gauze propped up on a pillow. A clear tube ran from a calf wound to a portable vacuum extraction unit that draws away excess fluid. For now, the portable machine is with her wherever she goes, 24 hours a day. Martinez knows she has a long recovery ahead of her. She has finished the last round of rabies vaccination shots it wasnt known whether the dogs that attacked had the disease so the shots were a necessary precaution and now she faces months of physical therapy sessions. Skin graft operations start in two weeks. Her doctors think it could be six months before shell be able to walk, and then with the aid of a walker or wheelchair. Sleep doesnt come easy these days, she said, and sometimes when she hears dogs bark, the nightmare replays in her mind. Her husband, Jonathan Gomez, 38, said its been an emotional ordeal for Gutierrez, but there are still flashes of her old sense of humor. To see her laughing again makes me feel good, Gomez said. Thank God someone was courageous enough to stop and help her. Gutierrezs attack was Animal Care Services first serious bodily injury case of the year. On ExpressNews.com: Irresponsible dog ownership leads to attacks, ACS says On the day of the attack, ACS seized a dog named Coco that was believed to have caused most of Gutierrezs injuries. ACS officers are still searching for the second dog. Cocos owner surrendered the dog to the animal agency. The only resolution for a dog charged with serious bodily injury is euthanasia; Coco was euthanized two weeks after the attack. ACS officers issued six criminal citations to Cocos owner and the person who was caring for Coco at the time of the incident. The owner was cited for failure to provide proof of rabies vaccination, having no microchip and allowing the dog to bite a person. The person caring for Coco at the time Gutierrez was attacked received citations for allowing the animal to bite an individual and allowing the dog to roam free. Gutierrez said her one goal is to make people aware of roaming dogs and to be cautious. I want people to be careful and notice their surroundings, she said. It could have been a child. Awareness is particularly important, she knows, because the people around you may not be willing to help. That stark fact was made clear just before she was taken away in an ambulance. As paramedics were working to stop the bleeding, an older woman with a child in tow walked up. She didnt offer to help or even ask what was happening. Martinez and Gutierrez both shook their heads as they recalled what she did ask: Anyone have a cigarette? Vincent T. Davis is a reporter in the Greater San Antonio and Bexar County area. Read him on our free site, mySA.com, and on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com. | vtdavis@express-news.net | Twitter: @vincentdavis In the first sign of a shift of power and approach on the South San Antonio Independent School District board, a slim majority of trustees are forging ahead with plans to reopen four closed schools by August despite calls by their superintendent to slow down. Three newly elected trustees, led by longtime board member and newly reinstalled president Connie Prado, have insisted that Superintendent Alexandro Flores find a way to reopen Athens Elementary, Kazen Middle, West Campus High and the districts alternative school for the 2019-2020 school year. Flores was emphatic that it will take at least a year, if not longer. At back-to-back board meetings, trustees overruled him, with Prado, Gilbert Rodriguez, Homer Flores and Shirley Ibarra Pena directing him to present a plan to move ahead as soon as possible at a special meeting called for Wednesday. OnExpressNews.com: South San Antonio ISD board resolves to weigh reopening of shuttered campuses Declines in the districts enrollment, and the resulting fiscal pressures, led the board to close Athens, Kazen and the alternative school in April 2017 in the face of protests. The district has had one high school since 2007, when flood damage closed West Campus High which also led to protests. The districts student population shrank by more than 10 percent in the past decade, but Prado has pitched a Field of Dreams vision as a way to reverse that trend. Build it, open it and they will come, she said at a recent board workshop. The proposal banks on restoring enough goodwill in the community to pass a bond or a tax ratification election to fund other projects. We dont have time to wait, Prado said in an interview, calling for a sense of urgency to get these campuses open quickly, to bring our kids to our district. South San ISD had just over 10,000 students in October 2013. Last fall, it had 8,936. The steepest decline was between October 2016 and October 2017, when enrollment fell by more than 500 students, according to Texas Education Agency data. But the new board majoritys adoption of a nonbinding resolution, followed by a direct instruction to execute the reopening by August, was a clear rejection of the superintendents plea for a more measured approach. OnExpressNews.com: Community rallies to help 'The Voice of South San' Typically, when youre going to reopen or repurpose a school or campus, it takes about 18 to 24 months, Flores said in an interview, repeating what he told board members at a Jan. 24 workshop. If youre pushing it, 12 to 18 (months). In an email to trustees ahead of the first vote on the issue, Flores asked them to delay it and take the time to get further community input. The timelines, specifications and restrictions articulated in this resolution can be seen as highly irresponsible, he wrote. I would greatly appreciate consideration of my opinion and respect for my position as superintendent of schools for South San ISD and humbly request that you table this item until further research can be conducted on the matter. The next day, trustees voted 4-2 to pass the resolution anyway. Trustees Louis Ybarra Jr. and Mandy Martinez voted against it, while Elda Flores abstained. At a workshop less than 24 hours later, trustees again sparred with the superintendent and expressed frustration that the administration did not already have a plan in place to reopen the schools. Flores instead outlined what he said were pressing needs the district faces, including maintenance spending that will be highly relevant to the decision on reopening schools. Administrators have identified $5.6 million in high-priority needs, including aging heating and air-conditioning systems at three campuses that should have been replaced in 2014 and roof work at three other schools. To reopen schools, Flores recommended studying the facilities, establishing committees and developing a proposed timeline. I understand theres a lot of feelings behind it, and my job is to look at the facts, because nobody else will, he told trustees. The board voted to instruct Flores to develop a plan to open the schools by August, rezone Shepherd Middle School eighth-graders to West Campus High School this fall and present the plan at a special meeting set for 6 p.m. Wednesday. Martinez, Ybarra and Elda Flores dissented. All three have said they support repurposing the campuses but dont want to move too quickly. Opening schools after five years of declining enrollment is unusual at a time when districts typically look to cut expenses rather than take on new ones. Prado has pointed to construction of new homes in the district and believes that opening the schools will encourage new residents to choose South San over charter schools and other alternatives. Even as the district has lost students, it has added single-family residences, a number that has grown from 10,431 in 2014 to 10,674 in 2018, according to the Bexar Appraisal District. Several new subdivisions are under construction. The district is facing an estimated $1.7 million budget deficit, officials said last fall, an improvement from a predicted gap of nearly $3 million because of a smaller-than-expected decline in enrollment of about 160 students. Former South San Superintendent Abelardo Saavedra, who retired in October, has declined to comment on the proposal to reopen the schools. You would have to have a projection of growth to reopen facilities, said John Folks, former superintendent of Northside ISD and Oklahoma state superintendent of public instruction. He questioned whether reopening the schools would be enough to revive enrollment, noting that districts lose students for many reasons. From a practical standpoint, as a school administrator for a long time, Id say you have to look at what its really going to cost taxpayers to open facilities if the enrollment isnt there, said Folks, who opened 37 schools in 10 years at Northside. I know thats a tough issue. I dont think (Saavedra) would have made a projection to close a school unless its really needed, he said. Folks said Northside used a multiyear process that started with demographic projections, adjusting boundaries and moving portable buildings from campus to campus until schools were ready. Most districts would probably use a similar kind of process, he said. Wayne Pruski, chief operating officer of Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City ISD, said the trigger point to open another school is when its projected to reach 60 percent capacity on its first day. To make that happen, we overgrow existing campuses with portables, reaching above 100 percent capacity until the new school is open, Pruski said. His district works with city officials to look at housing developments to determine future need but there is some truth to the if you build it, they will come expectation, Pruski said. After announcing that a new school will be built, housing usually pops up around that, he said. But theres another factor for South San to consider. Districts across San Antonio, including those that have outperformed South San on state accountability ratings, have blamed charter schools for declining enrollment that severely cuts into the per-pupil state funding they need to serve the students who remain. Prado herself has blamed IDEA-San Antonio. The citys largest charter network has more than 11,000 students, and 8 percent of them came from South San, behind San Antonio, Northside, North East and East Central ISDs, said its executive director, Rolando Posada. Its 22 schools have a waiting list of 14,000, he said. The charter network recruits door to door and at events in the parts of town where the educational need is greatest, with its college preparatory focus a big part of its marketing, he said. IDEA requires that students be accepted to college in order to graduate from high school. In an interview, Flores said that while he believes South San has some well-kept secrets in its Early College High School and middle school Academies of Choice, improving academic performance is the No. 1 goal and vital to boosting enrollment. The district scored a D overall and had five improvement required campuses on the most recent state accountability rating. Flores also wants to increase wraparound services at the districts schools, which he believes will attract students. While some trustees and speakers at recent meetings have said the schools are overcrowded, Flores said classrooms are being used as offices at some campuses and could be converted to hold more students. None is above 80 percent capacity, according to his presentation at the workshop, with the lowest, Kindred Elementary, at 47 percent. Elementary schools combined are at 60 percent capacity, middle schools at 62 percent and the high school, with 2,616 students, at 69 percent. We really do have a pressing need for an alternative campus, Flores said. South San currently partners with Edgewood ISD and is allocated a number of seats in that districts alternative school. Some of the budget cuts made last year have been restored, Flores said. We had braced for a more severe loss of students. When that did not materialize, then now were able to start reinvesting, he said, including adding more police officers and teachers. Im by no means saying that no, its a bad decision to reopen them, Flores said of the shuttered schools. What I am saying is, we have to do our due diligence, and we have to develop a well-thought-out, comprehensive plan. Guru was after the hanging buried within the premises of Delhis Tihar jail on February 9, 2013. Srinagar: Tabassum Guru, the wife of Parliament attack convict Muhammad Afzal Gu-ru, said on Saturday that she would wait for his mo-rtal remains till her last breath. She lamented that the successive governments have ignored her and her only child Ghalibs repeated pleas that their right to give a decent burial to the mortal remains of Guru be acknowledged and conceded too on moral and humanitarian grounds Six years have lapsed. My son and I have been pleading before New Delhi that the mortal remains of my husband may be returned to us so that we can give them a decent Islamic burial here at his native place. The people of Kashmir also want it, she said over the phone from her home in Seer Jagir area of Doabgah suburb of the north-western town of Sopore. Guru was after the hanging buried within the premises of Delhis Tihar jail on February 9, 2013. Ms Tabassum said, I shall wait for Afzal Sahibs jasad-e-khaki (mortal remains) till my last breath. I want to see him being given a decent burial as per the Islamic law and our own traditions. Can you deny me this right? No! Meanwhile, a shutdown called by an alliance of key separatist leaders brought life to a standstill across Kashmir Valley on Gurus sixth death annive-rsary on Saturday. Shops and other businesses rem-ained closed across the Muslim-majority Valley whereas only private vehicles and auto-rickshaws could be seen plying on select roads except in those areas where security restrictions were in force. Earlier, the authorities had placed key separatist leaders under house arrest or the police took them in preventive custody. Security forces enforced a lockdown in some parts of summer capital Srinagar and in the north-western town of Sopore to hold back protests. Gurus brother Muhammad Yasin Guru said that because of the restrictions in and around Doabgah even their relatives could not visit the family on his death anniversary. You know, there is only one approach road to our area. It had been blocked by government forces, he said. Leave common people aside even our relatives could not visit us because of strict restrictions, he said. The authorities had earlier announced suspending train services between northwest Kashmirs Baramulla town and Banihal town in the Jammu region as a precautionary measure. The authorities said that the security will continue to remain tight across the Valley for two more days as the separatists have called for observing a shutdown also on Monday to mark the anniversary of Jammu Kashmir National Liberation Front (JKNLF) co-founder Muhammad Maqbool Butt. The separatists have also renewed the demand that the mortal remains of Guru and Butt be returned so that they are given a decent and befitting burial in the Valley. Saturday, February 9, 2019 By Scott Lorenz Westwind Communications When youre writing a book that you hope to be movie ready, search for ways to make your idea resonate with a large demographic. Find out what movie producers have to say about turning your next book into a cinema worthy masterpiece. Many writers dream of writing a book that turns into a movie. If your goal is to turn a novel or memoir into a silver screen success, be prepared for some hard work. After all, movie producers are selective and only the right stories make their way to the big screen. The reality is that very few books even get considered for movies. Fortunately, however, turning your book into a movie is not impossible. To help you understand just what it takes to get your book noticed and turned into a movie, it only makes sense to share some advice from movie producers. Lets take a closer look at what reputable movie producers have to say to authors who are on a mission to write books that make it to Hollywood. The older I get, the more I look at movies as a moving miracle. Audiences are harder to please if youre just giving them special effectsbut theyre easy to please if its a good story.." Steven Spielberg, academy award winning producer of movies such as E.T., Jaws, The Color Purple, and Schindlers List. Spielbergs quote illustrates just how important it is for you to ensure you have a good story. An average story cannot get spruced up with some special effects and make it to the big screen. Books with high concepts are typically the ones that turn into movies. These books feature striking ideas that can be easily communicated. I think the biggest mistake people make when theyre trying to sell an idea is keeping it too narrow, Sullivan said. It speaks to such a small demographic that theres no way that it can be financially successful. Creatives become so attached to their ideas that theyre afraid to make it bigger, because they think it waters it down. But it doesnt. It actually gives you a better chance for a sale. The broader and more commercial your idea, the bigger audience you can speak to, the better. -Jamie Primak Sullivan, executive producer for a brand new movie called Breaking In. Sullivan explains that while working on a horror movie called Fear Followers, she realized that pitching a U.S. movie that captured Americans fear obsession could be successful. However, Sullivan knew that incorporating the way the characters use technology could make the movie more appealing to the global market and increase its chances of selling. The moral of the story is that when youre writing a book that you hope to be movie ready, search for ways to make your idea resonate with a large demographic. If your book could only capture the attention of a select group of people, it wont make it to the big screen. Selling a great idea to Hollywood most often starts with effective feedback from a person who understands what top decision makers are looking for.." -Regina Romain, producer of Troy the Train of Car City, Judge Alex, and Cristinas Court Romain knows what its like to be a writer with the hopes of selling a book to Hollywood. She states that most writers want to hear Thats nice, honey. Your story could be a Hollywood movie one day.." The truth is that this type of feedback does not show you how you can improve or sell your story. If possible, you should work with an agent with ties to the movie industry who can provide you with effective feedback. Human stories have always moved me. I like movies about people who are outliers, who are not in the mainstream for one reason or another, even if they are famous. Its not something Im actually seeking, its just a trend Ive noticed over the years, about myself as a producer.." -Jonathan Sanger, producer and director, known for The Elephant Man, Chapter and Verse, Flight of the Navigator, and Vanilla Sky. Sanger is one of my clients so I know that he is specifically interested in people and what makes them unique. When writing a story for Hollywood, remember this: Ensure there are characters that can evoke emotions in your audience because theyve overcome adversity, opened up about a serious illness, or saved someones life. Focus on your characters and things like their incredible achievements or heroic acts. In Sangers film, Marshall, Chadwick Boseman plays Thurgood Marshall, the first African-American Supreme Court Justice. The film focuses on State of Connecticut vs. Joseph, one of the first cases of Marshalls career that involves a chauffeur being accused of rape by his white employer. It showcases how Marshall overcame the daily challenges of working in the Supreme Court and inspired others. Check out Sangers book, Making the Elephant Man: A Producers Memoir which offers an insiders look at the creation of one of the first ever indie films. It can provide you with some valuable insight into what it takes to turn your book into a movie. View the trailer here . Having an agent skilled in negotiations, rights, and contracts would clearly be beneficial, but even more important is having an agent who believes in you as a writer.." Peter Miller, producer of Helter Skelter, Citizen Jane, Kill the Irishman, The Mona Lisa Myth, and Goodbye Miss 4th of July In Millers book, Get Published! Get Produced! A Literary Agents Tips on How to Sell Your Writing ,." he focuses on why its crucial to work with an agent. Miller explains that if you find an agent to represent you, you should ask yourself whether the individual only seems interested in your specific project or whether theyll work with you to develop your career. He states that success in this field is very difficult but those who make it, make it big. Find something you enjoy and do it. The money will somehow take care of itself.."-Alan Trustman, writer, lawyer, and producer who is best known his books-to-movies, The Thomas Crown Affair and BULLITT staring Steve McQueen. In an interview, Trustman, another one of my clients, discussed the importance of passion for writers. You have to really want to turn your book into a movie and pour your heart and soul into your story and efforts to get it noticed. Here are some resources that may help you take your book to Hollywood: How to Turn a Book Into a Movie, Script Magazine https://www.scriptmag.com/how-to-turn-a-book-into-a-movie The Power Of Theme: Turning Books Into Movies, Writers Digest https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/there-are-no-rules/craft-technique/the-power-of-theme-turning-books-into-movies Books Turned Into Movies, Newsday https://www.newsday.com/entertainment/books/books-turned-into-movies-1.3596896 The Bottom Line: Writing a book thats worthy of Hollywoods attention takes a great deal of time, effort, and dedication. Dont give up as you may just be the author of the next popular flick. About Book Publicist Scott Lorenz Book publicist Scott Lorenz is President of Westwind Communications, a public relations and marketing firm that has a special knack for working with authors to help them get all the publicity they deserve and more. Lorenz works with bestselling authors and self-published authors promoting all types of books, whether its their first book or their 15th book. Hes handled publicity for books by CEOs, CIA Officers, Navy SEALS, Homemakers, Fitness Gurus, Doctors, Lawyers and Adventurers. His clients have been featured by Good Morning America, FOX & Friends, CNN, ABC News, New York Times, Nightline, TIME, PBS, LA Times, USA Today, Washington Post, Womans World, & Howard Stern to name a few. Learn more about Westwind Communications book marketing approach at http://www.book-marketing-expert.com or contact Lorenz at scottlorenz@westwindcos.com or by phone at 734-667-2090. Follow Lorenz on Twitter @aBookPublicist Share this: Saturday, February 9, 2019 Meet tiny Tiffany and her big personality in this touching story of compassion, determination, and triumph. Readers will discover the dark and dank place (a puppy mill) where Tiffany began her life, and experience her rescue and hope for a brighter tomorrow. Yet even after her rescue Tiffany struggles to play like the other dogs, due to her injuries and weak legs. With the help of her foster mom Ashley, Tiffany gains strength in both body and spirit while she waits for her adoptive family. Tiffany discovers independence and positivity when she gets a wheelchair that allows her to run and play like the other dogs. Tiffany Rolls On promotes perspective building and empathy for others, while also supporting conversations about both animal welfare and the fact that our commonalities outweigh our differences. Perfect for ages 4 and up, Tiffanys story can be useful in a variety of humane-themed lessons, including discussions about disabilities, animal welfare, adoption, and companion animal care. Buy in Paperback | Buy on Kindle The author, Stephanie Itle-Clark, tells us: Almost 15 years ago a tiny dog, who it turns out was from a puppy mill, changed my life and my career. I swore that her short life would be one that motivated positive change and that I would use my education degrees to support those who wanted to teach about humane issues and the systemic abuses against animals and people so common in our society. One of the results of my promise to her is the Academy of Prosocial Learning, another is this picture book, Tiffany Rolls On. Buy in Paperback | Buy on Kindle About the Author About the Author Stephanie Itle-Clark is a former public-school developmental reading teacher, and the founder and president of the Academy of Prosocial Learning, where she supports prosocial and empathy education and provides resources and professional development for educators. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband and their pack of tiny rescue dogs. About the Illustrator Rhonda Van is an artist, wildlife rehabber, and lifelong animal lover. She particularly adores jackrabbits, squirrels, her animal companions, Shark Week, vegan dinners in Santa Cruz, and her husband Tony. Rhonda has been drawing forever, but only got deeper into illustration after she started drawing the wildlife friends she cares for. Rhonda is the illustrator of Spittin Kittens Speed-Away, and Tiffany Rolls On. Buy in Paperback | Buy on Kindle UPDATE 12-02: The Euro (EUR) continued to slide against the US Dollar (USD) throughout Mondays session with the /$ exchange rate sliding to a ten-week low of $1.12674. EUR/USD edged higher overnight into Tuesday trading and was last seen at $1.12864. Despite faded Fed-induced stimulus, the Greenback has been supported as investors seek the relative safety of the US Dollar amid concerns over US-China trade and global economic growth. Bank of Singapore currency strategist, Sim Moh Siong wrote The dollar is benefiting from the investor nervousness around the trade talks, adding Beyond its safe haven appeal, the dollar is still the highest-yielding currency in the developed world and with all major central banks turning dovish, the greenback seems relatively attractive. Having broken the crucial psychological support level of $1.13, BK Asset Management managing director of currency strategy, Kathy Lien , commented The next level of support for EUR/USD is the November low of 1.1215 which should be tested quickly. On the release front for the single currency, Deutsche Bundesbank President Weidmann is due to give a speech on the role of the central bank in the modern economy while for the US Dollar, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell is expected to speak and participate in a Q&A session (1745 GMT). UPDATE 11-02: The Euro remained subdued into Mondays session against the US Dollar, with the EUR/USD exchange rate close to two week lows. At the time of writing, EURUSD was seen to be trading at $1.13189. Last week saw the European Commission cut growth and inflation forecasts for the bloc amid global trade tension and a weak domestic outlook while European government debt yields hit their lowest level in two years, pressuring the single currency. Meanwhile the Greenback has benefited from fresh concerns relating to the US-China trade war as well as global growth worries as investors seek the relatively safety of the US Dollar. Commenting on the recent strength of the USD, chief operating officer at Rakuten Securities (Australia), Nick Twidale commented The Aussie dollar and the euro are at vulnerable levels right now and further dampening in risk sentiment can lead to further downside in these currencies, adding The Aussie dollar and the euro are at vulnerable levels right now and further dampening in risk sentiment can lead to further downside in these currencies. 5-Day Forecast - The Euro US Dollar exchange rates fluctuated this week as the Eurozone showed increasing signs of slowing down, and as the UK Brexit situation continued to signs of a possible Brexit no-deal between the UK and the EU, many EUR traders have remained skittish. Euro (EUR) Exchange Rates Weaken as Eurozone Economy Slows The Euro began last week subdued after Italy slipped into recession on the previous week, and as Monday began the Eurozone showed further signs of slowing down with the publication of the PPI figures for January, which slipped by a worse-than-expected -0.8%. Monday also saw the publication of the Spanish unemployment change figures for January, which also increased well above expectation to 83.5K. Euro failed to make any significant gains on Tuesday following the publication of the Spanish Markit services PMI which showed an unexpected expansion. These gains were dampened, however, by the publication of the Eurozones Markit PMI composite figures for January, which fell closer to contraction at 51.0. The Eurozones printing of the yearly retail sales figures for December showed an increase, however these failed to uplift sentiment in the EUR on Tuesday. Wednesday saw EUR fall further following the publication of German factory orders figures for December, which fell considerably by -1.6% further exacerbating fears over the Eurozone sliding into a recession. The Euro began sliding further on Thursday following the release of German industrial production figures for December, which also fell by a worse-than-expected -0.4%. Friday, meanwhile, saw the EUR begin to show signs of recovery following the publication of German trade balance figures for December, which increased above expectation to 19.4bn. These were followed by an increase in German imports, which also restored some hopes for the Eurozone economys recovery. US Dollar (USD) Exchange Rates Fluctuate as Trump Delays US-China Trade Talks The US Dollar began last week weakened by the publication of the US factory orders figures for November, which fell well below forecast by -0.6%. These were followed by the release of the US durable goods orders excluding defense for November, which decreased by -0.1% - further dampening confidence in the US economy. Tuesday saw the publication of the US ISM non-manufacturing PMI figures for January, which showed a worse-than-expected decrease to 56.7. The US Markit services PMI figures for January also fell to 54.2, drawing it closer to contraction. Wednesday, meanwhile, has President Donald Trump deliver his State of the Union address to the Senate, in which he further inflamed the House of Congress over his insistence for funding for the controversial Mexican border wall. The Greenback, as a result, remained relatively unmoved, although some USD traders became jittery over fears that the US government could once again shut down as the dived between the White House and the House of Representatives showed signs of increasing. Thursday, meanwhile saw the publication of US continuing jobless claims figures for January fall. USD continued to fare fairy well against the EUR as the Eurozones continuing signs of a downtrend benefited the safe-haven status of the Greenback, with traders fleeing the sinking single currency. Friday saw no notable US economic data releases, with the USD remaining sensitive to Donald Trumps delaying of US-China trade talks, which rattled risk markets with the end of the trade truce looming on 1 March. EUR/USD Exchange Rate Forecast: EUR Could Rise on Positive GDP Figures USD traders will be looking ahead to Monday next week, which will see the printing of the US unit labor costs figures for the fourth-quarter, and with any sign of an increase the Greenback could rise. EUR investors, meanwhile, will be awaiting the Eurogroup meeting on Monday, with any dovish comments about the Eurozone economy or a possible Brexit no-deal potentially seeing the single currency fall. Wednesday will see the publication of the Eurozones industrial production figures for December. These will be followed by the publication of the US CPI excluding food and energy figures for January, with any signs of an increase bolstering the USD/EUR exchange rate. Euro traders will be focusing on Thursday, which will see the printing of the Eurozones GDP figures for the fourth-quarter, with any signs of an increase potentially providing some confidence in the single currency. The US, meanwhile, will see the publication of its retail sales figures for December. Friday is relatively uneventful for Eurozone data releases, with the exception of the trade balance figures for December, which may restore some confidence in EUR with an increase. US traders, however, will be focusing on the publication of the Michigan consumer sentiment index for February on Friday. Turkish president breaks ground at giant opera house President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says significant step is being taken with groundbreaking of new Ataturk Cultural Center Istanbuls iconic Ataturk Cultural Center, a landmark step in the nations art and culture including a giant opera house, will be completed in less than two years, said Turkeys president on Sunday. "WE ARE TAKING A SIGNIFICANT STEP" We will complete [construction of] the Istanbul Ataturk Cultural Center in a short period of time, some two years, and we will put it in the service of artists and culture lovers, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told a groundbreaking ceremony for the new center in Taksim Square. Today we are taking a significant step that will be a breakthrough in our countrys art and culture, added Erdogan. Telling how the project was first announced in November 2017, he said today marks a new phase in its realization. He said the center, representing an investment of 850 million Turkish liras ($162 million), would have five separate sections spanning over 95,000 square meters. Erdogan said the building will boast an opera hall that seats over 2,000 people and sets new international standards, a theatre hall that seats over 800, backstage rooms, and fair areas. The center will also feature meeting rooms, administrative offices, and restaurants, he added. Erdogan said that the old center was unable to meet Istanbuls needs and was in disrepair and needed renovation, as detailed by various reports since 2007. He also said the cultural center was the fruit of 10 years of patience. ARTILLERY BARRACKS TO BECOME MEGA- LIBRARY "Now I've got some more good news. We will convert the Rami Artillery Quarters into the largest library in Istanbul," Erdogan said, adding that it would also be the largest in Turkey. He added that the new library is set to boast 6 million volumes. The historical barracks were built in the 1770s in the Eyup district on Istanbul's European side. Erdogan added that Turkey would no longer impose VAT on books, magazines, or newspapers. "No one, no sector will be able to condemn our country to mediocre art and culture any longer," he said. Erdogan said this change also aims to support publishers who have suffered from the digital economy. Turkey calls on China to close Uighur detention camps Turkish foreign ministry spokesman describes China's systematic assimilation policy of Uighur as 'a great embarrassment for humanity' Turkish foreign ministry spokesman slammed Chinese authorities systematic assimilation policy towards Uighur Turks, saying it is a "great embarrassment" in a written statement on Saturday. "SYSTEMATIC ASSIMILATION POLICY OF CHINESE AUTHORITIES IS EMBARRASSMENT" Spokesman Hami Aksoy said, "Systematic assimilation policy of Chinese authorities towards Uighur Turks is a great embarrassment for humanity." It is no longer a secret that more than one million Uighur Turks, -- who are exposed to arbitrary arrests- are subjected to torture and political brainwashing in concentration centers and prisons, Aksoy said. Uighurs -- who are not detained in the camps -- are also under great pressure. Our Uighur-origin citizens living abroad cannot hear from their relatives living in this region, he added. Turkey invites Chinese authorities to respect fundamental human rights of Uighur Turks and shut down concentration camps, Aksoy said. We also call on the international community and UN Secretary-General to take effective steps to end the human tragedy in Xinjiang Region, he added. The foreign ministry spokesperson also mentioned about Saturdays demise of Uighur poet and musician Abdurehim Heyit. In such an environment, weve learned with great sorrow that dignified poet Abdurehim Heyit, who was sentenced to eight years in prison for his composition, died in the second year of his imprisonment, he said. "THIS INCIDENT STRENGTHENED THE TURKISH PUBLIC'S REACTION" This tragic incident has further strengthened the Turkish public's reaction to the serious human rights violations in Xinjiang Region. Aksoy voiced Turkey's expectation from Chinese authorities to consider reactions of Turkish people over serious human rights violations. Chinas Xinjiang region is home to around 10 million Uighurs. The Turkic Muslim group, which makes up around 45 percent of Xinjiangs population, has long accused Chinas authorities of cultural, religious and economic discrimination. China stepped up its restrictions on the region in the past two years, banning men from growing beards and women from wearing veils and introducing what many experts see as the worlds most extensive electronic surveillance program, according to The Wall Street Journal. Up to 1 million people, or about 7 percent of the Muslim population in Xinjiang, have been incarcerated in an expanding network of political re-education camps, according to U.S. officials and UN experts. In its last report released on last September, Human Rights Watch blamed the Chinese government for a systematic campaign of human rights violations against Uighur Muslims in northwestern Xinjiang, an autonomous region in the country. According to a 117-page report, the Chinese government conducted mass arbitrary detention, torture and mistreatment of Uighur Turks in the region. NY Times: Saudi Khashoggi cover-up falling apart The New York Times says Saudi crown prince was wrong to think he could continue his 'autocratic way' after Khashoggi case Saudi Arabias efforts to cover up the case of slain journalist Khashoggi case further unraveled this week, according to The New York Times. The latest demands for a reckoning have come from American intelligence agencies, a United Nations investigator and a coalition of nongovernmental organizations, sources that in their diversity and breadth should serve notice on [Saudi Crown] Prince Mohammed [bin Salman] that all his oil wealth and powerful friends will not wash away the blood of the slain journalist, the paper said in its lead editorial on Friday. The Oct. 2 killing at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul of Jamal Khashoggi, a contributor to The Washington Post, was met by Saudi denials for weeks before officials admitted he was killed there, but- they argued- as the result of a botched extradition. The Times editorial, Saudi Arabias Threadbare Cover-Up of Khashoggis Killing Unravels Further, said bin Salman and his friends in the White House evidently calculated that the outcry over the barbarous murder of Jamal Khashoggi would die over time. They were wrong, and also mistaken to think that bin Salman could freely continue his autocratic way, repressing critics and dissidents with impunity once the outcry came to an end, said the Times editorial board. It laid out newly revealed findings by American spy agencies that bin Salman evidently suggested killing Khashoggi a year before the incident. According to their findings, bin Salman said in a conversation with a top aide that if self-exiled Khashoggi could not be enticed or brought back by force to Saudi Arabia, he would go after him with a bullet. "HE WAS THE VICTIM" The article also stressed the findings of Agnes Callamard, the UN special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, who, after visiting Turkey with a team of experts for an international inquiry into Khashoggis murder, concluded that Khashoggi was the victim of a brutal and premeditated killing, planned and perpetrated by officials of the state of Saudi Arabia." A group of NGOs -- including the Committee to Protect Journalists, Human Rights First, Human Rights Watch -- have also accused the Saudi government of continuing to persecute dissidents, activists, journalists and independent clerics, said the Times. The pressure must continue. Congress should continue to demand a full disclosure of CIA records related to Mr. Khashoggis murder, with the identities of all those responsible for it, the editorial said. It also urged full support for Callamards investigation by the governments of Turkey, Saudi Arabia, the U.S., and others. And all who rue Mr. Khashoggis fate should demand that Saudi Arabia cease the repression of those Saudis in whose name he spoke out, it said. After producing various contradictory explanations for Khashoggis disappearance last fall, Riyadh acknowledged he had been killed inside the consulate building, blaming the act on a rogue Saudi team. Turkey has sought the extradition of the Saudi citizens involved in the killing as well as a fuller accounting of the killing from Riyadh. ENID, Okla. Ahead of Tuesdays city election, one topic has taken prominence among the three mayoral candidates the Kaw Lake water pipeline project. Candidate Milton Mitchell, who returned to Enid about two years ago, is in favor of canning the Kaw Lake project. The other candidates, Ward 6 Commissioner George Pankonin and Ward 5 Commissioner Tammy Wilson, are staunchly committed to continuing the project, which currently is in its third phase of four with millions already spent. The Enid News & Eagle recently spoke with the three candidates again on their opinions about Kaw Lake, along with taking a dive into the project, looking at previous studies and investigating the feasibility of ending whats been called the largest project in the history of Enid. The candidates As a main campaign platform, Mitchell is running on ending the Kaw Lake project at whatever cost, and then building a lake and dam near Enid, which he said would also provide revenue through tourism and recreation. I keep calling it a blue herring, that means your moneys flying away. Thats your money, too. Its yours, its mine, its all of us ... were the ones thats footing the bill for that and its going to cost us, Mitchell said. Mitchell said following cancellation of the Kaw Lake project, he would take the sales tax used for the project back to the public for a vote on the continuance of the tax to instead build a lake and fix Enids roads. Wilson, whos been a part of Enid City Commission since 2011, said the city had been looking extensively at water options as early as 2014. She said a lake was an option everybody would have liked to have, but it wasnt the most feasible course of action after studying that option in depth. Along with looking at lake options, she said wells and pipelines to existing water sources were some of the other options explored. A lake is such a gamble and that was why everybody was so nervous about it because if you look at the cost of it, its not that far off from the cost of a pipeline, Wilson said. And its a 50/50 shot where the pipeline is 100 percent guaranteed, were going to have water we couldnt gamble with the peoples money like that. I mean thats a lot of money to gamble with. Pankonin said he believes the pipeline is an important project for Enids future and while there isnt a critical water shortage right now, its an issue that will come up in the future if not addressed. He said the water table is dropping from the wells the city uses and shared similar sentiments to Wilsons, that while a lake would be an option everyone would love with recreation and more, its not the feasible option. While Pankonin wasnt part of Enid City Commission during the forefront of Kaw Lake pipeline discussions, he said he trusts in the decisions made by Enid City Commission before him after all of the studies and meetings. I think the decision that was made previously by the board was a valid and sound decision, and I think thats the way we need to go, Pankonin said Current project status To date, the citys spent just short of $16.5 million on the Kaw Lake project, and so far encumbered a bit under $12.1 million, according to City Manager Jerald Gilbert. He said the numbers are tracking where they were expected to be at the existing 30 percent phase. Recently, Enid City Commission authorized a $57.7 million loan with the Oklahoma Water Resources Board, which is expected to help fund the projects third phase, which now is underway. Concept development was a main component of the first phase while preliminary engineering, including the preliminary design up to 30 percent complete, was the major effort of the second phase, Garver Engineering Vice President Michael Graves previously told Enid City Commission. The back end of the second phase involved developing a phasing plan. Progression of the Kaw Lake project, from 2006 to the present The Kaw Lake water pipeline is a project thats been in the works for the better part of 14 For the third phase, Graves has said the 30 percent design will be taken all the way to 100 percent, or bid-ready documents. He said the phase also involves the land acquisition process, continuation of environmental permitting and production of bid documents. Phase three began in October 2018, with an expected finish date of December 2020. The fourth and final phase is anticipated to overlap with phase three and begin in January 2020 with the bidding step followed by a move into construction. Plans are to have the project finished by late 2022 to early 2023. No plans to change course No backtracking on the project is contemplated by the city of Enid. More than 68 percent voted in favor of the project, which had an estimated cost of around $360 million at the time of the election. The city announced this week the project is expected to cost $315 million. The election was proposed after extensive study of all the options for securing sufficient water for the Enid and the surrounding area for the next 50 years. Quite a bit of financing is already in place, and the project is proceeding to be completed by early 2023, City Attorney Carol Lahman said. Lahman said the city project currently is contracted with Garver Engineering; the Public Finance Law Group Inc., which is the citys bond counsel; Municipal Finance Services Inc., the citys financial advisor; and Anglin PR. To stop the project, Lahman said it would take a majority of Enid City Commission. It could be curtailed by the City Commission but after a vote of the people showing significant support, I am of the opinion that it would require some significant change in the basic assumptions about the water needs based upon expert opinion bolstered by a change in circumstances, Lahman said. As for the current sales tax helping to fund the pipeline, Lahman said absent another election asking the public to approve a different use of the tax, it can only be used for the Kaw Lake project. This week, the city of Enid issued a number of releases in support of the project, explained the need for the Kaw Lake project and why the pipeline was the best option. They can be read on the citys Facebook Page. Debating the project The trio of candidates have taken part in numerous forums and debates leading up to the election, and what was discussed at those events are the same sentiments shared with the Enid News & Eagle earlier this week. Wilson said the pipeline project is roughly a seven-year endeavor, whereas a lake would take upwards of 20 years and is a long, strung-out process. She said earlier in the week at a debate the city is aiming and estimating for $315 million for the pipeline project, and a lake was estimated to be somewhat close to $300 million. Its a point Mitchells tried to disprove. He said he recently spoke with the states Farm Service Agency, and claimed a lake and dam near Lahoma could be built at a cost of $40 million. He also said that area creeks could be used to fill such a lake. Mitchell often references two Guernsey reports done on potential water supply projects for Enid, one report published in 2009 titled Water System Master Plan and a follow-up in 2014 labeled as the final executive summary. Mitchell has said that in the original report, the Kaw Lake pipeline option was declared the most uneconomic option out of the four alternative water supply sources presented. Other options in the report included constructing a lake near Hennessey, Lahoma or Sheridan, or a new wellfield option. While the report itself does state the Kaw Lake option appears to be the most uneconomic choice, by being the most expensive of the four, it also states that if a regional water supply were developed and the city treated and sold water to other municipalities, it would become a more attractive option. The report also stated an advantage of Kaw Lake is that it already exists, and that constructing lakes near Hennessey or Lahoma would require more detailed studies and negotiations with a number of entities. The Lahoma Lake option was reported to just meet the projected 2050 water demand and if growth predictions were correct, additional water resources (perhaps additional wells) would be required beyond 2050. In the 2009 study, construction costs were estimated at $189 million for Lahoma Lake and $221 million for Hennessey Lake. The 2014 study was a development of the 2009 study, according to the report. The 2014 report explored the development of water supply reservoirs near Hennessey, Sheridan or Lahoma; the Kaw Lake water pipeline; and potential groundwater expansion. During the early stages of the (2009) study Kaw Lake was not considered because of more interest in developing a reservoir completely dedicated to Enid, but as the study progressed, it became apparent that Kaw Lake required increased consideration, the report states. As a result, the information from master plan was updated for this study. For the 2014 reports project summary, it was stated that a potential Lahoma reservoir would have a lower cost basis but would continue the citys long-term reliance on groundwater as the lake would not provide enough yield to act as a sole source. Any new reservoir will require an extended period of time prior to having enough water in the reservoir to begin supplying water, the report stated. This study used a 14-year period from the time design begins on a reservoir until the reservoir is full enough to begin pumping and treating water. Despite whatever option was pursued, the report recommended to increase the number of wells currently used to alleviate the continued drop in groundwater levels. The 2014 report stated the existing groundwater supply system is not sustainable in the long term. Mitchell claimed there was a tremendous disparity between the two reports and the lake and wellfield options werent seriously considered. Hes also brought up concerns of silting in at Kaw Lake and the high amount of pressure a 70-mile pipeline going uphill would have, along with the pipelines maintenance. I dont blame anyone. I think somehow people were introduced to something that didnt fully divulge their options, and I think the citizens of Enid deserve better than that, Mitchell said. Wilson said the depth of groundwater is increasing and aquifers arent recharging that quickly. She also said siltation isnt an issue, but the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must handle that situation if it arises. In addition, Wilson said the areas evaporation rate is twice as much as its precipitation rate, and a man-made lake isnt sustainable in the area. Wilson also argued building a lake would disrupt more lives than building a pipe underground; a lake would attract more birds and wildlife, impacting Vance Air Force Base; guaranteed water from Kaw Lake would attract more industry and manufacturing; and that Oklahoma City has been pumping water uphill over 100 miles for years with no significant problems. Its been going on at least 10 years, and Ive been involved in it for eight years. Honestly, there is no decision we make thats done lightly. Every single thing that affects the city we talk about and we discuss it and sometimes we argue about it and we all give our thoughts on it, Wilson said. This is a big, big, big project. This is the biggest project in Enids history, and Im insulted people would think that we didnt take the time to think about it properly. Pankonin said he doesnt think theres any reliable source of water to replenish a potential constructed lake, and that it would end up as a hole in the ground. He said there is no way enough water would come from area creeks to fill a lake to the level needed to pump out water. Other arguments brought up by Pankonin include the impact a nearby lake would have on Vance; that the citizens of Enid voted and the city needs to provide what was voted for; and in the future, Enid could be able to sell its water to help offset the project cost. He said the water provided through Kaw Lake would be attractive to industry interested in coming to the area, along with making water available long-term for Vance. The fact of the matter is water is like gold. It does not get cheaper with time, it gets more expensive with time. And as it becomes more rare and the demand becomes higher for the limited resource, its going to get higher and higher and higher, Pankonin said. I think today is the day that we need to take care of that. City of Enids election for city mayor and Ward 5 commission seats is Tuesday. Vadra arrived at the central probe agencys office at Jamnagar House in central Delhi at about 10.45 am in his private vehicle. New Delhi: Robert Vadra, Congress chief Rahul Gandhis brother-in-law, on Saturday appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for the third time in connection with a probe into allegations of money laundering in the purchase of assets abroad. Mr Vadra arrived at the central probe agencys office at Jamnagar House in central Delhi at about 10.45 am in his private vehicle. He was given an hour-long break for lunch. This is the third consecutive day that the businessman appeared befo-re the agency. He may be called for questioning again on Monday, sources said. After two sessions of questioning on February 6 and 7, sources said the investigating officer (IO) of the case wanted to put across more questions to Mr Vadra in connection with the case and hence he was asked to depose again on Saturday. While Mr Vadra was quizzed for about five-and-a-half hours on Thursday, he was grilled for about nine hours the next day. Sources said Mr Vadra was questioned on various aspects of his personal and business finances during the latest session. It is believed that the last time Mr Vadra was confronted with documents. Bryanston Square worth 1.9 million GBP (British pounds), which is allegedly owned by him. The agency told a Delhi court that it has received information about various new properties in London which belong to Mr Vadra. These include two houses, one worth 5 million GBP and the other valued at 4 million GBP, six other flats and more properties. Mr Vadra has denied the allegations of possessing illegal foreign assets and termed them a political witchhunt against him. He said he was being "hounded and harassed" to subserve political ends. Sources said Vadra's statement was recorded under Section 50 (powers of authorities regarding summons, production of documents and to give evidence) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), as was done on the last two occasions. His appearance before the ED acquired political overtones after his wife Priyanka Gandhi, recently appointed Congress general secretary in-charge of eastern Uttar Pradesh, accompanied him to the investigating agency's office on Wednesday while she picked him up after questioning on Thursday. PONCA CITY The Memorial Service celebrating and honoring the life of Carl Kerfoot, of Ponca City, are pending. Condolences may be shared with the family online at www.EnidCremation.com. FILE - In this 1977 file photo, serial killer Ted Bundy, center, is escorted out of court at the Pitkin County courthouse, Aspen, Colo. In 2017, the Glenwood Springs Post-Independent re-discovered the 40-year-old photo of Bundy, along with others, that had been locked in an old newsroom safe, which a local locksmith volunteered to open. The pictures show Bundy in custody in 1977, the year he escaped from local law enforcement twice while awaiting a murder trial. (Ross Dolan/Glenwood Springs Post Independent via AP) Ramsey Power Station plan decommission Manx Utilities has announced that it will decommission the diesel generator engines currently installed at Ramsey Power Station. It follows a third-party analysis of the high voltage electricity network supply to Ramsey and the North of the Island. The engines and generators installed in Ramsey have not been operated in recent years and are now 50 years old. The exhaust stacks will be dismantled in early 2019 with the diesel engines and fuel storage tanks removed thereafter. The site will remain an operational Manx Utilities site with high voltage electrical equipment providing essential power distribution for the North. Stay up to date on COVID-19 Get Breaking News Sign up now to get our FREE breaking news coverage delivered right to your inbox. Sponsored By: St Anthony's Hospital Trump and his Republican enablers, like Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, are beginning to realize that they have approximately zero chance of ever winning another electionif held and run fairlyon the issues, so they are scrambling frantically to redefine these issues in a clumsy and desperate effort to confuse and distract voters. Here are just 2 examples; one from national security, and the other from education policy: 1. Border Security No one is against secure borders; not Republicans, not Democrats, not Independentsno one. But almost no one thinks a physical wall, fence, or structure will do anything to stem the flow of illegal drugs, or victims of human trafficking, or undocumented immigrants seeking asylum. So what has Trump done? Hes tried to redefine his wall as an essential part of border security, which it is not. A far better solution, endorsed by virtually everyone who is actually familiar with the situation at the border, is a combination of more border guards, drones, and hi-tech monitoring. But Trump persists in characterizing Democrats opposed to his wall as being in favor of open borders (they are not), crime (ridiculous), and mass invasions of rapists, drug dealers, and other criminals across our Southern border (immigrants commit crimes in the US at lower rates than American citizens). This is nothing more than a blatant attempt to recast border security as an existential threat to homeland security, when the truth is that immigration at the Southern border is near its all-time low. Put simply, there is no national emergency at the border, no one is against border security, and there is no need for a wall. This issue, if defined honestly and clearly, is a loser for Trump, and he knows it. So hes just decided to lie about it, and pretend its something its not. 2. Charter Schools and School Choice In a fascinating turn of events, the public has begun to realize that the charter school experiment has been a colossal failure, and support for traditional public schools is on the rise again. This has been a source of real concern for Trump and his Secretary of Education, Michigans Betsy DeVos, who sense that their window to implement their $20 billion private and religious school federal voucher initiative is now slamming shut. Its also become something of a political third rail for a handful of potential Democratic presidential contenders such as Beto ORourke and Cory Booker, who have been longtime supporters of charter schools and school choice, and now see that their shared ideology on these issues with Trump and DeVos is a serious political liability. (Indeed, Booker and DeVos have been associates for a long time, and allies on the issue of school choice. Booker and DeVos served together on the Board of Directors of pro school choice think tank Alliance for School Choice (AFC), and Booker has been invited by Dick DeVos to speak at the groups conferences. Sen. Booker has also been complimentary of the initiatives the American Federation for Children pursued under DeVos leadership. This relationship has profited both parties, but has now become, shall we say, uncomfortable, for Mr. Booker, who attempted to put some distance between him and Ms. DeVos by voting against her confirmation as Sec. of Education. Which must have been awkward given that they share virtually the same set of beliefs with respect to education policy.) So, knowing that the tide of public opinion is about to turn into a political tsunami, what are these charter and choice cheerleaders doing? They are trying to redefine the debate surrounding charters, of course. In just the last week, former Obama chief of staff and Mayor of Chicago, Rahm Emanuel, has attempted to walk back his reputation as an education reformer by redefining the charter vs. traditional public school debate: The 20-year debate between charter and neighborhood is totally misguided, and should be replaced with a focus on quality versus mediocrity. Its high time we stop fighting about brands, because the only thing that really matters is whether a school is providing a top-notch education. Other charter boosters are doing their best to help gaslight the public on this issue. Theres a distinction between Obama-style charter schools, which are public and have accountability measures, and Trump-DeVos style, which are for-profits and dont, explains Shavar Jeffries, the president of Democrats for Education Reform, an astroturf charter advocacy group that, like Emanuel and Booker, advocate public charters as a means for education improvement. However, this is a distinction without a difference. Because, as much as Trump, DeVos, Jeffries, Emanuel, Booker, and the rest of the corporate reform of education crowd would like us to believe, there are no meaningful differences between for-profit charters and not-for-profit charters. As Peter Greene (Curmudgication) points out, non-profit charters are often run by for-profit charter management companies. Other non-profit charters have taken part of lucrative real estate arrangements, in which schools and other facilities that were built with public tax dollars are then leased back or rented out by for-profit charter management companies, often to themselves. And, as Bruce Baker and Gary Miron explain, these charter management companies concoct complicated real-estate scams in which districts wind up paying for the same buildings twice, and still dont own them. School choice is another education policy issue currently receiving a face-lift in hopes of disguising a destructive policy as an avenue of freedom and empowerment for urban children and families. Schools of Choice (SoC) legislation, first passed in Michigan in 1996, has been a disaster in the state, especially for urban schools. According to Michigan State University professor Joshua Cowen, the number of students in SoC schools increased from 66,560 in 2005-06 to 115,209 in 2012-13 a 42 percent spike in just seven years. There was virtually no way for districts to plan for that kind of financial hit during that time, especially with corresponding cuts to the states education funding. I dont think anyone in Michigan would say that public education has improved in this time frame as a result of SoC. Heres how school choice works at the district level: Every time a kid from Lansing, for example, leaves to go to school in a neighboring suburban district like East Lansing, or Okemos, or Haslett, the foundation grant allowance for that child is deducted from the Lansing School District (LSD) budget and added to the suburban schools appropriation. In other words, its classic reverse Robin Hoodthe rich get richer, the poor get poorer. And the students who leave Lansing, and other urban districts, tend to be from families who can afford to drive them 10-15 miles to their suburban school each morning, and pick them up from school in the afternoonwhich means that the student population in the home school district becomes less well off in terms of socioeconomic status. So, even as we deduct funding from urban school budgets, the proportion of kids in these schools who require special education instruction, free and reduced lunch, and other support services becomes more concentratedand the district has to supply those services with ever-dwindling resources due to SoC. [An important aside: Its important to remember here that when Betsy DeVos talks about choice, she doesnt mean choice for kids or familiesshe means redistributing public dollars to private charter management companiessome of which, like National Heritage Academies, she has been associated with for years. An issue that is mysteriously under-discussed with respect to charters and school choice is that of parental voice and control. The fundamental idea that undergirds our system of public education is the notion of local control. The federal government actually has very little authority over public schoolsthat authority is constitutionally ceded to the states. This is why local school districts are governed by locally-elected school boards, who are responsible for hiring and supervising superintendents, principals, other administrators, and teachers who work in the communitys schools. Its also why folks like Ms. DeVos would like to see the federal Department of Educationwhich she now conveniently controlshave the authority to dole out $20 billion in private and religious school vouchers. Lets not forget what Ms. DeVos said not too long ago, in one of her rare public statements before becoming Secretary of Education, about the public schools in her states largest city (emphasis mine): While the state Legislature continues to debate whether Michigan taxpayers should fund a $715 million bailout of the Detroit Public Schools, we must acknowledge the simple fact that DPS has failed academically and financially for decades. We need to retire DPS and provide new and better education options that focus on Detroit schoolchildren. Rather than create a new traditional school district to replace the failed DPS, we should liberate all students from this woefully under-performing district model and provide in its place a system of schools where performance and competition create high-quality opportunities for kids. We shouldnt create a new district that is nothing more than a DPS retread. Absent urgent and serious reforms, the new district will only continue the downward spiral of poor academic performance, declining enrollment and financial instability weve seen for decades from DPS. To repeat, our current Secretary of Education was in favor of simply closing the largest public school district in her state, rather than attempting to come up with any solutions for the problems these schools faceproblems that have been caused in large part by the policies she had rammed through the MI legislature over the past decade or so.] So, back to our school choice scenario: Those parents in urban school districts who take advantage of the states SoC legislation to send their children to suburban schools effectively give up their voice in the governance of their childrens schools in those communities. Sure, they can attend school board meetings, and parent-teacher conferences, and communicate with school principals. But because they dont live in those communities they dont have a vote in those school board elections. For Sec. DeVos, more school choice means less parental voiceespecially for parents of children in urban public schools. This becomes in very real terms a matter of taxation without representationwhich weve fought wars over in this country. So, Betsy DeVos demanding that public school supporters compromise with her on education reform policies like school choice by trying to reframe the debate about charter and neighborhood schools into one about quality over mediocrity is a lot like Trump demanding that Democrats compromise with him on funding for his wall by calling it a fence. Its nothing more than a last-gasp, pathetic attempt to redefine the rules of political engagement by lying about what charters, choiceand wallsreally are all about. Maybe shes right on the brain dead part after all. "The brain-dead debate between charter and neighborhood schools should be replaced with a focus on quality over mediocrity." I agree, @ChicagosMayor. Labels dont matter, quality does. https://t.co/SLDiAyn1DA Betsy DeVos (@BetsyDeVosED) February 7, 2019 [CC image credit: Toksave | Wikimedia Commons] The Congress party has at that meeting already taken a decision of not giving LS tickets to sitting MLAs and Rajya Sabha members. New Delhi: Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Saturday drove home the importance of early finalisation of candidates for the Lok Sabha polls to his state units and asked them to send the list of probable candidates from each state by February 25. The Party was likely to announce the list of LS candidates on or before March one. Mr Gandhi, who chaired a meeting of state PCC Presidents and CLP leaders, asked them to make the process of candidate selection broader in nature so that maximum party stakeholders and workers get tickets. Top sources told this newspaper that Mr Gandhi asked the state unit chiefs and legislature party leaders to ensure that no two people from the same family are given tickets. A decision was also taken in the meeting to make Rafale the chief campaign issue. Right after the meeting, Mr Gandhi tweeted: "Today I met with our CLP Leaders and PCC Chiefs from all over India to review our election preparedness and strategy in each state. We discussed a wide range of issues related to the upcoming elections. I thank all those who came to Delhi to attend this meeting". The Congress Party in a statement later said that the Congress President asked the CLP leaders and the PCC Chiefs to expose the anti-farmer, anti-youth and anti-women policies of the Modi government. The leaders were also asked to make people aware of the welfare promises made by the Congress Party, specially the Minimum Guarantee Programme, as well as give suggestions on state issues which should be a part of the manifesto to the relevant committee. Sources said that when the issue of alliances was brought up, the Congress President maintained that alliances would be finalised at the state-level only. Saturday's meeting of CLPs and PCCs was in continuation of a similar meeting Mr Gandhi held with party General Secretaries on February 7. Newly-inducted Congress General Secretaries Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Jyotiraditya Scindia had been part of that meeting. The Congress party has at that meeting already taken a decision of not giving LS tickets to sitting MLAs and Rajya Sabha members. Where are the best places to shop? Who gives the best haircut? Who cooks the best burger? Join our readers in selecting the "Best of Windham." Make your picks! Have any questions? Please give us a call at 928-428-2560 Forkhill sits beneath the looming presence of Crosslieve mountain, about six miles north of Dundalk town centre. Back in the 1980s and early 1990s, the British army had a lookout post atop the hill and a base below. This was during the bad, dark days of The Troubles. Forkhill and the phrase 'Bandit Country were synonymous to many. This was an outpost under-siege yet monitoring and dominating a troubled landscape. In November last year, a planning application was submitted to turn the old, now empty, base into a play park for the village - a chance to fully decommission and re-purpose a once formidable and domineering blight. A chance to cleanse the area. During The Troubles the only way the British Army could enter the base at Forkhill was via helicopter - any other way was deemed extraordinarily dangerous. Speaking to the BBC in November, former soldier and now UUP MLA, Doug Beattie highlighted the subsequent, drastic change eloquently. "Every time I was here previously", he said, "I had a rifle in my hand, I was wearing body armour and had a uniform on". Forkhill is a ten minute drive from Dundalk. At some stage back then, according to a former television technician named Enda O'Kane, who I spoke to last week, the British army had installed a signal booster in the area which impacted the TV signal for nearly everyone in Dundalk. Enda says he was seconded to the area from his home in Dublin to try and help solve the problem. "The most difficult task I encountered was at Forkhill", Enda recalls. "The army had put up a booster to serve the barracks below. "It wiped out reception over much of the town, causing double images and ghosting." According to Enda, many locals in the TV trade joined the fruitless search to try and figure out what the root cause was for the failing reception; it would seem the British Army weren't overly bothered about telling the locals that their newly installed comms unit was the culprit. Enda remembers the likes of Patsy Maguire, David Lally and John McCann pitching in to try and help the TV-less folk of the town. He evokes a wonderful, more innocent image, during a time of shocking brutality; him sweeping through the thumbling fields of the border area with a compass in one hand trying desperately to find the unknown source of the problem. Locals Eddie Maguire and Carol McGahon joined him in the hunt. "It wasnt until the ceasefire that the problem was rectified", recalls Enda now. "Dundalk got their BBC reception again", he smiles. "Those were the bad days, with the lookout posts towering the countryside, " he adds. "Thank God they are 'past days'". Enda's is a small, lighter story of the impact of a military presence and of a hard border. But it neatly helps to highlight how much such a presence, impacted the lives of so many. Today Enda is long retired, but he's currently pushing to save RTE's Long Wave 252 service in the UK, along with Margaret Golden, originally from the Point Road. He sees it as a vital service for Irish ex-pats living in England and wanting to hear another side to the Brexit debacle. Admittedly, the generation of listeners in the UK is older and diminishing, but, according to Enda, it still plays a vital role in keeping those across the Irish Sea in touch with home. Brexit, it is likely, would put paid to this link. A small, sad story of the wider impact of the re-introduction of a hard border on this land. Stories that need to be heard. Now. One of the more fascinating aspects of the Dothan Area Chamber of Commerces annual Eggs and Issues legislative breakfast occurs before the meeting begins in earnest. Before the areas legislators address the important issues likely to be tackled in the next legislative session, the audience filled mostly with business leaders voices their political perspectives through an interactive poll. Questions range from the next presidential races to key state issues and, of course, topics that could impact how businesses operate. The following list contains a few intriguing results: >> Several business or local leaders embrace the idea of raising the states minimum wage. Thirty-five of the 82 votes (or 43 percent) supported the idea. Rep. Dexter Grimsley, the only Democratic lawmaker on the dais, seized the opportunity to support the idea in his comments. Nobody wants to talk about raising the minimum wage because if I was an employer, I wouldnt either, he said. The truth of the matter: the less people we have on public assistance and Medicaid, the better off our economy can move and grow. Sometimes that money reflects back to the businesses. The State of Alabama put a man to death Thursday. He was the 217th person to die under the states death penalty the 64th execution since a moratorium on executions in Alabama was lifted in 1983. Dominique Rays execution is troubling. Not because there was any question about his guilt. Debates about the moral failings of the death penalty aside, there was no reason why Ray should not see the sentence imposed on him for the murder of 15-year-old Tiffany Harville almost 25 years ago carried out at long last. Whats troubling about Rays execution is the constitutional question it raises. Ray, who embraced Islam while incarcerated, wanted an imam present with him in the death chamber. Prison officials refused, saying they could provide a Christian prison chaplain. Rays attorneys sued, and a stay of execution was issued to sort it all out. Prison officials argue that only corrections system employees are allowed in the execution chamber as a matter of security, which is reasonable. In an earlier editorial, we suggested the prison system work to create a pool of spiritual leaders from other faiths, and vet them accordingly. That seems reasonable as well. Additionally if any of the imported products were damaged during the manufacturing process, Sony could write off the losses and avoid any duties, Parker noted. Mainly local companies have saved money through the distribution/warehousing portion of the program, and Next Level could join them, Parker said. Since the Dothan-Houston County Foreign Trade Zone has adopted the weekly entry aspect of the FTZ program, companies that participate in the program can save vast amounts on import fees. You might bring in something that has an XYZ duty rate, but you also have whats called a processing fee. For every container, you pay about $480 for shipping (it) in, Parker said. If youre bringing in 20, 30 containers a week, that adds up. If you do weekly entry and notify Customs what you expect on Monday and then tell them on Friday what actually came in, you pay one merchandise processing fee. That facet has tremendously benefited his company and customers and could do so in the future, said Dothan Warehouse President Turner Jones. In the liner notes of the 10th anniversary album, The Beirneach...Field recordings of Donegal Fiddler, James Byrne...his daughter Merle recalls Listening to dad talking about his childhood I was struck how his memories mirror our own. I remember the old days when his friends Donal Ward, Sean Con Johnny, Thomas Cunningham and a gang would come into play music in our kitchen until the wee hours, and Aisling, Seana and myself falling asleep to the sound of highlands, barn dances and reels. How lucky we were to have that experience. And how lucky are we - not only to have known this gentleman of the fiddle - but to savour, once again, his extraordinary and unique playing. I was delighted to meet up with his life partner and mother of the three girls recently, and her own story is a fascinating one. She was born Connie Drost in the town of Arnsberg in Westphalia in Germany. The river Ruhr meanders south of it and it is almost completely encircled by forest. Her father sang in the local choir and she recalls him practicing his Do Re Mis on a Tuesday night. Her brother Michael practiced the violin for a few weeks until the racket drove his parents mad, and they gave him a mouth organ instead. Connie with Merle, Aisling and Seana Connie laughs: He threw it away in disgust but I picked it up. I also played recorder and guitar, and when I became a member of the orchestra, I became very familiar with all all types of flutes, including the bassoon. Planxty were playing in Cologne once, and on hearing Andy Irvine and co for the first time, she was hooked on Irish traditional music. When she eventually visited Ireland, she remembers being in Galway holding an Inter-rail ticket and realising that the transport system was dismal. She decided to visit the furthest place in the country and picked Donegal...no railway past Sligo! In any event she landed in Carrick and was bowled over by a session in John Maloneys Slieve Liag bar, where the fiddle players were the legendary Con Cassidy and James The Beirneach Byrne. I could only see his back! she laughs, and the next time I saw him was in Madge the Docs in Carrick, where Dermot Byrne, Con Cassidy and Thomas Cunningham were playing. A man came over to her and asked Are you enjoying the music? My English was very limited then and I told him to p...s off! Being the civil being he was, the man did just that. Connie and James did not have an auspicious start! But third time lucky...she wanted to learn the fiddle and in due course - with a few more focail in her vocabulary - she landed at The Beirneachs home in Meenacross and enquired about lessons. I never teach! she was told, but a fortnight later he landed down to Kinnakillew where she was staying and said that he kinda felt sorry for her, and would give her a few lessons. She purchased a Chinese fiddle in Galway for 35 punts and the rest is history! Merle was their first born, and she was playing fiddle at the age of four. Aisling and Seana followed and not only do Aisling and Merle have music degrees, but all three have inherited many of their dads traits. He was a gentle thoughtful person who never sought the limelight, a man who simply loved his music and family. Aisling has her dads musical gift and his gentle conviviality...among her many achievements, she was invited to play with the late Michael O'Suilleabhain for his retirement with the RTE Orchestra in Limerick, and teaches and plays at many music festivals. Homebird Seana is a homebird who lives locally, loves playing with her mum and has Jamess quirky sense of humour, as well as an affinity with nature and the simple life...while Merle, who has inherited his humour and calm has the travel bug and is currently in Serbia, having been to Vietnam, Uzbekistan and Cambodia. Connie is delighted at the reaction to the release of the field recordings. It took six months to get the CD together and I have to give Aisling huge credit. Shes a full time musician but she worked so hard and selected all the tracks on it. The response from as far away as France, Australia and the US has been fantastic. One person described it as a Time Machine as it brings you right back. Another said the intimate liner notes made you Feel part of the family. I agree. Playing it recently on Highland Radio has elicited a similar response. Sadly, James passed away suddenly and unexpectedly in the early morning hours of Saturday, November 8, 2008. He was waked in the family home in Meenacross over the weekend. During the wake, strong winds caused a power failure and James left this world the way he entered it by the soft twilight of candles and oil lamps. He had told Fiddler Magazine: You don't really have to learn the style if you grow up with it. You just sort of fall into the swing of it.... Thank God Connie, Merle, Aisling and Seana are ensuring that those of us who treasure one of our greatest ever fiddlers are still falling into the swing of it. The Beirneach lives on. Anand suspectedly had drinking problems and was living alone as his wife lives in Moscow, the police added. Mumbai: Mahesh Anand, who essayed negative role in a number of Bollywood movies, was on Saturday found dead at his residence here in mysterious circumstances. Police did not ruled out suicide even though no suicide note has been recovered. The body of the 57-year-old actor, who was last seen in Govinda's 'Rangeela Raja' released last month, was found in a decomposed state from his residence in Andheris Yaari road, police said. The body was sent to the nearby Cooper Hospital for post-mortem. Anand suspectedly had drinking problems and was living alone as his wife lives in Moscow, the police added. While the reason behind the actor's death is unclear, doctors from the hospital said the body was brought from his residence in a decomposed condition. According to the doctors, the reason behind his death can be ascertained only after the post-mortem. The actor had performed in several hit films including 'Shahenshah', Coolie No 1, Swarg, Kurukshetra' and Vijeta and shared screen with top stars like Amitabh Bachchan, Dharmendra, Govinda and Sanjay Dutt. Majella O'Donnell has called on the people of Donegal to come out and get behind the nurses at a planned protest in Letterkenny on Tuesday. Majella, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2013, attended the annual Cancer Ball in Dungloe on Saturday night. The wife of Daniel O'Donnell was joined by many women who had direct links with the disease either through friends, family or personally. Members of the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) are planning further strike action across the country this week. At Saturday night's event in Dungloe, Majella offered her support for the nurses. "We need to bring our nurses back home for Australia, the UAE, England," she said. "They are spread all over the world and held in the highest esteem while those left behind in our hospitals are working in impossible conditions." And she called on the members of the public to show their support at Tuesday's planned protest in Letterkenny. "We will gather at the car park near St. Conal's at 11am on Tuesday and make our way down to the University Hospital and join up with the nurses. I ask everybody to make that extra special effort and to come along and show their support." Drax Group plc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the generation and supply of electricity in the United Kingdom. The company operates through three segments: Generation, Customers, and, Pellet Production. It produces low carbon and renewable electricity; and provides system support services to the electricity grid. The company owns and operates Drax Power Station that produces electricity from biomass and coal with an installed capacity of 3,906 megawatts (MW) located in Selby, North Yorkshire; Cruachan Power Station, a pumped hydro storage station, with an installed capacity of 440 MW located in Argyll and Bute, western Scotland; and Lanark and Galloway hydro-electric power stations with an installed capacity of 126 MW located in southwest Scotland. It also owns and operates combined cycle gas turbine power stations, including Damhead Creek power station with an installed capacity of 805 MW; Rye House power station with an installed capacity of 715 MW; Shoreham power station with an installed capacity of 420 MW; and Blackburn power station with an installed capacity of 60 MW located in England. In addition, the company owns and operates Daldowie fuel plant that processes sludge from a wastewater treatment plant and converts it into dry and low-odour fuel pellets. Further, it manufactures and sells compressed wood pellets for use in electricity production; supplies and manages electricity and gas for large industrial and commercial sector customers, as well as small businesses; and provides debt recovery services. Drax Group plc was incorporated in 2005 and is based in Selby, the United Kingdom. Read More Tapestry, Inc. provides luxury accessories and branded lifestyle products in the United States, Japan, Greater China, Other Asia, and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Coach, Kate Spade, and Stuart Weitzman. The company offers women's accessories, including handbags, such as wallets, money pieces, wristlets, and cosmetic cases; novelty accessories comprising address books, time management and travel accessories, sketchbooks, and portfolios; and key rings and charms. It also provides bag collections, including business cases, computer bags, messenger-style bags, backpacks, and totes; small leather goods, such as wallets, card cases, travel organizers, and belts; and footwear, watches, sunglasses, novelty accessories, and ready-to-wear for men. In addition, the company offers women's footwear; sunglasses; bracelets, necklaces, rings, and earrings; fragrances and watches; women's seasonal lifestyle apparel collections that include outerwear and ready-to-wear, and cold weather accessories, which comprise gloves, scarves, and hats. Further, it provides ready-to-wear and footwear items for kids; fashion bedding and tableware; and stationery and gifts. Additionally, the company licenses rights to market and distribute its eyewear, watches, fragrances, and tech accessories under the Coach brand; and fashion beddings, tableware, eyewear, watches, stationery and gifts, and tech accessories under the Kate Spade brand. It sells its products to consumers through a network of 958 Coach stores, 420 Kate Spade stores, and 131 Stuart Weitzman stores, including the Internet and concession shop-in-shops; and wholesale customers, as well as through independent third party distributors. The company was formerly known as Coach, Inc. and changed its name to Tapestry, Inc. in October 2017. Tapestry, Inc. was founded in 1941 and is headquartered in New York, New York. Read More The following companies are subsidiares of Accenture: 2nd Road, 2nd Road Pty Ltd., ?What If!, ?What If! China Holdings Ltd, ?What If! Holdings Limited, ?What If! Innovation Singapore Holdings Pte, ?What If! Limited, ?What If! Shanghai Co. Ltd, ?What If! USA LLC, ACN Consulting Co Ltd, AD Dialeto Agencia de Publicidade SA, AD.Dialeto (Digital Agency acquired by Accenture), AGS Business and Technology Services Limited, ASM Research Inc., ASM Research LLC, ATAN, Accenture (Beijing) Mobile Technology Co Ltd, Accenture (Botswana) (Proprietary) Limited, Accenture (China) Co Ltd, Accenture (Shenzhen) Technology Co. Ltd., Accenture (South Africa) (Proprietary) Limited, Accenture (South Africa) Pty Limited, Accenture (UK) Ltd, Accenture 2 Business Process Services S.A., Accenture 2 LLC, Accenture A/S, Accenture AB, Accenture AG, Accenture AS, Accenture Africa Pty Ltd, Accenture Australia Holding B.V., Accenture Australia Holdings Pty Ltd, Accenture Australia Pty Ltd, Accenture Azerbaijan Ltd, Accenture BPM Operations Support Services S.A., Accenture BPM S.C.R.L., Accenture BV, 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 CAS GmbH, Accenture Canada Holdings Inc., Accenture Capital DAC, Accenture Capital Inc, Accenture Central Europe B.V., Accenture Chile Asesorias y Servicios Ltda, Accenture Cloud Services GmbH, Accenture Cloud Software Solutions Ltd, Accenture Cloud Solutions Australia Pty Ltd, Accenture Cloud Solutions LLC, Accenture Cloud Solutions Ltd, Accenture Cloud Solutions Pty Ltd, Accenture Co Ltd, Accenture Co Ltd., Accenture Communications Infrastructure Solutions Ltd, Accenture Company 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 SAS, Accenture Customer Services Limited, Accenture Danismanlik Limited Sirketi, Accenture Defined Benefit Pension Plan Trustees Ltd, Accenture Defined Contribution Pension Plan Trustees Ltd, Accenture Delivery Poland sp. z o.o., Accenture Dienstleistungen GmbH, Accenture Digital France Holdings SA, 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 (Gibraltar) III Ltd, Accenture Finance GmbH, Accenture Finance GmbH in liquidation, Accenture Finance II GmbH, Accenture Finance II GmbH in liquidation, Accenture Finance II Ltd, Accenture Finance Limited, Accenture Finance and Accounting BPO Services S.p.A., Accenture Finance and Accounting Services Srl, Accenture Flex LLC, Accenture GP LLC, Accenture Ghana Limited, Accenture Global Holdings Ltd., Accenture Global Services Ltd, Accenture Global Solutions Ltd, Accenture GmbH, Accenture HR Services Ltd, Accenture HR Services S.p.A., Accenture Healthcare Processing Inc., Accenture Holding GmbH, Accenture Holding GmbH & Co. KG, Accenture Holding GmbH in liquidation, Accenture Holdings (Iberia) S.L., Accenture Holdings B.V., Accenture Holdings France SAS, Accenture Holdings plc, Accenture Hungary Holdings Kft, Accenture Inc, Accenture Industrial Software Limited Liability Company (Accenture Endustriyel Yazylym Cozumleri Limited irketi), Accenture Industrial Software Limited Liability Company (Accenture Endustriyel Yazlm Cozumleri Limited Sirketi), Accenture Industrial Software Solutions Kft, Accenture Industrial Software Solutions SA, Accenture Insurance Services LLC, Accenture Insurance Services SAS, Accenture Insurance Services SpA, Accenture International BV, Accenture International Capital SCA, Accenture International LLC, Accenture International Limited, Accenture International Sarl, Accenture Japan Ltd, Accenture Korea BV, Accenture LLC, Accenture LLP, Accenture Lanka (Private) Ltd, Accenture Limited, Accenture Ltd, Accenture Ltda, Accenture Maghreb S.a.r.l., Accenture Managed Services SRL, Accenture Managed Services SpA, Accenture Management GmbH, Accenture Middle East B.V, Accenture Middle East BV, Accenture Minority I BV, Accenture Minority III Ltd, Accenture Mozambique Limitada, Accenture Mzansi (Pty) Ltd, Accenture NV/SA, Accenture NZ Limited, Accenture Newco LLC, Accenture Nova Scotia Unlimited Liability Co., Accenture OOO, Accenture Operations Sp. z o.o., Accenture Outsourcing SRL, Accenture Outsourcing Services, Accenture Outsourcing Services S.A., Accenture Oy, Accenture Panama Inc, Accenture Participations BV, Accenture Participations II Limited, Accenture Peru S.R.L, Accenture Peru S.R.L., Accenture Post Trade Processing SAS, Accenture Post-Trade Processing Limited, Accenture Process Ltd, Accenture Product Lifecycle Services, Accenture Properties, Accenture Pte Ltd, Accenture Puerto Rico LLC, Accenture S.A., Accenture S.C., Accenture S.L., Accenture S.R.L., Accenture SAS, Accenture SG Services Pte Ltd, Accenture SRL, Accenture Saudi Arabia Limited, Accenture Sendirian Berhad, Accenture Service Center SRL, Accenture Services (Mauritius) Ltd, Accenture Services AB, Accenture Services AG, Accenture Services AS, Accenture Services GmbH, Accenture Services Ltd, Accenture Services Morocco SA, Accenture Services Oy, Accenture Services Pty Ltd, Accenture Services S.r.l., Accenture Services SRL, Accenture Services Sp. z o.o., Accenture Services Sp. z.o.o., Accenture Services and Technology Srl, Accenture Services fur Kreditinstitute GmbH, Accenture Services s.r.o., Accenture Servicos Administrativos Ltda, Accenture Servicos de Suporte de Negocios Ltda, Accenture Solutions Co Ltd, Accenture Solutions Private Limited, Accenture Solutions Pte Ltd, Accenture Solutions Pty Ltd, Accenture Solutions Sdn Bhd, Accenture Sp. z o.o., Accenture Sp. z.o.o., Accenture SpA, Accenture State Healthcare Services LLC, Accenture Sub II Inc., Accenture Sub Inc, Accenture Sub LLC, Accenture Systems Integration Limited, Accenture Sarl, Accenture Tanacsado Kolatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag, Accenture Tanacsado Kolatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag KFT, Accenture Technologia, Accenture Technologia Consultoria e Outsourcing S.A., Accenture Technology Infrastructure Services Pty Ltd, Accenture Technology Solutions (Dalian) Co Ltd, Accenture Technology Solutions (HK) Co. Ltd., Accenture Technology Solutions (Thailand) Co. Ltd, Accenture Technology Solutions - Solucoes Informaticas Integradas, 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 SAS, Accenture Technology Solutions SRL, Accenture Technology Solutions Sdn. Bhd., Accenture Technology Solutions Slovakia s.r.o., Accenture Technology Ventures BV, Accenture Technology Ventures S.P.R.L., Accenture Uruguay SRL, Accenture Vietnam Co., Accenture Vietnam Co. LTD, Accenture Zambia Limited, Accenture do Brasil Limitada, Accenture plc, Accenture s.r.o., Acceria, Acquity Customer Insight Limited, Acquity Group, Adaptly LLC, Adaptly UK Limited, AddVal Technology, Adqptly, Advantium Inc., Agave Consultants Limited, Agilex Technologies Inc., Allen International, Allen International Consulting Group Ltd, Alnova Technologies Corporation S.L., AlphaBeta Advisors, Altima, Altima Asia Ltd., Altima SAS, Altitude, Altitude LLC, Analytics 8 LP, Analytics 8 Pty Ltd, Analytics8, Aorui Advertising (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Apis, Appaloosa Technology SAS, Arca, Ariba - BPO, Arismore, Aspiro Solutions (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Avanade, Avanade (Guangzhou) Computer Technology Development Co. Ltd., Avanade (Thailand) Co Ltd, Avanade Asia Pte Ltd, Avanade Australia Pty Ltd, Avanade Belgium SPRL, Avanade Canada Inc., Avanade Denmark A/S, Avanade Denmark ApS, Avanade Deutschland GmbH, Avanade Europe Holdings Ltd, Avanade Europe Services Ltd, Avanade Federal Services LLC, Avanade Finland Oy, Avanade France SAS, Avanade GZ Computer Technology Development Co. Ltd. (SH), Avanade Guangzhou, Avanade Holdings LLC, Avanade Hong Kong Ltd, Avanade International Corporation, Avanade Ireland Limited, Avanade Italy SRL, Avanade KK, Avanade Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Avanade Netherlands BV, Avanade Norway AS, Avanade Poland Sp. z o.o., Avanade Poland Sp. z.o.o., Avanade Schweiz GmbH, Avanade South Africa, Avanade South Africa Pty Ltd, Avanade Spain SL, Avanade Sweden AB, Avanade UK Ltd, Avanade do Brasil Limitada, Avanade Osterreich GmbH, AvantBiz Consulting Limited, Avenai, Axia Ltd., BABCN LLC, BCT Solutions, BCT Solutions Pty Ltd, BPO Servicos Administrativos Ltda, BRIDGE Energy Group, Beacon Consulting Group Inc., Beijing Genesis Interactive Technology Co. Ltd., Boomerang Pharmaceutical Communications, Boomerang Pharmaceuticals Communications Ireland Limited, Bow & Arrow, Brand Learning, Brand Learning Group Limited, Brand Learning LLC, Brand Learning Ltd, Brand Learning Partners Limited, Brand Learning Pte Limited, Bridge Energy Group LLC, Brightstep AB, Byte Prophecy, CAS, CRMWaypoint, CadenceQuest Inc., Capable Marketer Limited, Capgemini - North American health practice, Capital Consultancy Services Inc., Certus Solutions Consulting Services Ltd, Certus Solutions Ltd, ChangeTrack Research Pty Ltd., Chaotic Moon Studios, Chengdu Mensa Advertising Co. Ltd., Cimation, Cimation UK Limited, Cirruseo, Cirruseo SAS, Clarity Insights, Clearhead, Clearhead Group, Clearhead Group LLC, ClientHouse GmbH, Cloud Sherpas, Cloud Sherpas (GA) LLC, Cloud Sherpas (SN) (PTE.) Limited, Cloud Sherpas New Zealand Ltd., Cloud Talent Limited, Cloudsherpas, Cloudsherpas Inc., Codagenic Pty. Ltd., Computer Research and Telecommunications LLC, Concrete Desenvolvimento de Sistemas Ltda., Concrete Solutions, Concrete Solutions Ltda., Context Information Security, Coritel S.A., Corliant Inc., CreativeDrive, CustomerWorks Europe SL, Cutting Edge Solutions Ltd, D5 Global Holdings LLC, DAZ Systems Inc, DAZ Systems LLC, DAZSI Systems (India) Pvt. Ltd., DMA Solutions Limited, Davies Consulting, DayNine Consulting, DayNine Consulting (Australia) PTY LTD, DayNine Consulting (Deutschland) GmbH, DayNine Consulting (New Zealand) Limited, DayNine Consulting France SAS, DayNine Consulting Japan K.K., DayNine Consulting LLC, Declarative Holdings, Declarative Holdings LLC, Defense Point Security, Deja vu Security, Design Strategy and Research de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Designaffairs LLC, Digiplug S.A.S., Digiplug SAS, Digital Consulting & Software Services LLC, Droga5, Droga5 LLC, Droga5 Studios LLC, Droga5 UK Ltd., Duck Creek Technologies, Duck Creek Technologies LLC, Deja Vu Security LLC, ESR Labs, Elcurator SAS, Enaxis Consulting, Enaxis Consulting L.P., End-to-End Analytics, Energuia Web, Energuia Web S.A., Energy Management Brokers Ltd., Energy Quote Private Ltd., EnergyQuote JHA, EnergyQuote JHA Ltd., EnergyQuote Trading Ltd., Enimbos, Enkitec, 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, Enterprise System Partners PR LLC, Enterprise System Partners S.A.S., Epylon, Evopro Group, Exactside Limited, Fairway Technologies Inc, Fairway Technologies LLC, Filmproduction ApS, First Annapolis Consulting, First Annapolis Consulting Inc., First Annapolis Consulting LLC, First Annapolis International, Fjord, Focus Group Europe, Focus Group Europe Limited, Formicary, Formicary Holdings Limited, Formicary Limited, FusionX, FutureMove Automotive, Gapso Servicos de Informatica Ltda., Genfour, Genfour Limited, George Group Consulting L.P., Gestalt LLC, Gestion Altima Canada Inc., Global Public Firm S.L., GlobalView SAS, GoodFilm GmbH Filmproduktion Stuttgart, H.B. Maynard and Co. Inc., Hagberg Consulting Group, Hangzhou Aiyunzhe Technology Co. Ltd., Happen, Hjaltelin Stahl, Hjaltelin Stahl K/S, Hytracc Consulting AS, Hytracc Consulting Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., Hytracc Consulting UK Limited, Hytracc Holding AS, I-Faber S.p.A., IBB Consulting, IMJ Corp, IMJ Corporation, INCAD, INSITUM, IT One Company Limited, ITBS Servicios Bancarios de Tecnologia de la Informacion SL, Icon Integration, Imagine Broadband (USA) Ltd, Imagine Broadband USA LLC, Imaginea Inc, Industrie&Co, Infoman AG, Infoman Schweiz AG, Informatica de Euskadi S.L., Infusion Development Inc., Infusion Development UK Limited, InfusionDev LLC, Innoveer Solutions India Pvt Ltd, Insitum Consultoria Argentina SRL, Insitum Consultoria Brasil LTDA, Insitum Consultoria Colombia SAS, Insitum Consultoria Europa SL, Insitum Consultoria Peru SAC, Insitum Consultoria S.A. de C.V., Intrepid, Intrigo Systems Inc, Intrigo Systems India Pvt. Limited, Intrigo Systems LLC, Inventor Advertisement (Beijing) Co. Ltd., Inventor Technology Limited, InvestTech, Investtech Systems Consulting LLC, Javelin Group, Javelin Group (Bulgaria) EOOD, Javelin Group Limited (UK), Javelin Group SASU, K Comms Group Limited, KCS.net AG, KCS.net AG West, KCS.net Deutschland GmbH, KCS.net Holding AG, KCS.net Osterreich GmbH, Kaper Communications Limited, Karma Communications Debtco Limited, Karma Communications Group Limited, Karma Communications Holdings Limited, Karmarama, Karmarama Comms Limited, Karmarama Limited, Knowledge Rules Inc., Knowledgent, Knowledgent Group LLC, Kogentix, Kogentix LLC, Kogentix Ltd, Kogentix Singapore Pte. Ltd, Kogentix Technologies Private Limited, Kolle Rebbe, Kolle Rebbe GmbH, Kream Comms Limited, Kunstmaan, Kunstmaan NV, Kurt Salmon, Kurt Salmon Canada LTD, Kurt Salmon UKI, Kurt Salmon UKI Ltd., Kurt Salmon US LLC, LINKBYNET, LabAnswer, LabAnswer Government, LemonXL Limited, Logistics Market Place Limited (UK), Loud & Clear Creative Pty Ltd, MAXIM Systems Inc., MCG US Holdings LLC, Mackevision CG Technology and Service (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Mackevision Corporation, Mackevision Japan Co. Ltd., Mackevision Korea Ltd, Mackevision Medien Design, Mackevision Medien Design GmbH, Mackevision Singapore Pte. Ltd., Mackevision UK Ltd, Maglan, Maglan Information Defense Technologies Research Ltd., Maihiro, Matter, Matter Llc, Maud Corp Pty Limited, Maxamine International, Media Audits Ltd., Media Hive, Mediasenz Pty Ltd., Meredith Specialty LLC, Meredith Xcelerated Marketing, Meredith Xcelerated Marketing Corporation, Meridian Informed Purchasing Ltd., Mindtribe, Mindtribe Product Engineering LLC, MobGen, MobGen Technology S.L, Moonrise NV, Mortgage Cadence, Mortgage Cadence an Accenture Company, Most Champion Ltd, Mudano, N3 LLC, NBS Marketing Inc., NYTEC, Nanjing Demeng Advertising Co. Ltd., Nashco Consulting, NaviSys Inc., Neo Metrics Analytics S.L., Neo Metrics Chile, Neo Metrics Chile S.A., New Content, New Content Chile SpA, New Content Editora e Produtora Ltda., New Energy Aborda, New Energy Associates Ltd, New Energy Group, New Energy S.r.l., NewsPage, NewsPage (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, NewsPage China Ltd., NewsPage Pte Ltd, Nice Agency Limited, Northstream, Northstream AB, Northstream Holding AB, OCTO Technology, OPS Rules Management Consultants, Octagon Research Solutions Inc., Octo Technology LTDA, Octo Technology Pty Ltd, Octo Technology SA, Octo Technology SPRL, Octoman SAS, Odgaard ApS, Olikka, Operaciones Accenture S.A. de C.V., OpusLine, Orbium, Orbium Consulting Ltd, Orbium GmbH, Orbium Holding AG, Orbium Inc., Orbium International AG, Orbium International sp. z o.o., Orbium Licences AG, Orbium Limited, Orbium Pte. Ltd., Orbium Pty Ltd, Orbium Services sp. z o.o., Orbium Sarl, Origin Digital, PCO Innovation, PCO Innovation Canada Inc., PCO Innovation EURL, PIXO PUNCH Limited, PLM Systems S.r.l, POC Holdings, PRION GmbH, PT Accenture, PT Asta Catur Indra, PT Kogentix Teknologi Indonesia, Pach Invest SARL, Pach Invest SAS, PacificLink Group, PacificLink iMedia Ltd., Paja Finanssipalvelut Oy, Parker Fitzgerald Inc, Parker Fitzgerald Inc., Parker Fitzgerald International Limited, Parker Fitzgerald Limited, Parker Fitzgerald PTY Ltd, Parker Fitzgerald Services Limited, Parker Fitzgerald Solutions Limited, Partners Technology Mexico Holdings BV, Pecaso Ltd., Pegasus Production K/S, Perseroan Terbatas. Accenture, Phase One Consulting Group, Pillar Technology, Pollux, Pragsis Bidoop, Pragsis Bidoop UK Ltd, Pragsis Technologies S.L, PrimeQ, PrimeQ Australia Pty Ltd, PrimeQ Ltd, PrimeQ NZ Pty Ltd, Procurian Germany GmbH, Procurian Inc., Procurian International I LLC, Procurian International II LLC, Procurian LLC, Procurian Singapore Pte. Ltd., Procurian Switzerland GmbH, Procurian USA LLC, Proquire LLC, PureApps Ltd., Qi Jie Beijing Information Technologies Co Ltd, Radiant Services, Radiant Services LLC, Random Walk Computing Inc., Reactive Media Limited, Reactive Media Pty Ltd., Real Protect, Realworld OO Systems Ltd., Redcore, Redcore (Asia) Pte Ltd, Redcore (India) Private Limited (India), Redcore (New Zealand) Limited, Redcore Group Holdings Pty Ltd, Redcore Pty Ltd, Renacentis IT Services, Revolutionary Security, RiskControl, Rothco, Rothco Holdings Designated Activity Company, Rothco Unlimited Company, S.C. EnergyQuote S.r.l., S3 TV Technology Limited, S3 TV Technology Ltd., SALT Solutions GmbH, SEC Servizi, SEC Servizi S.p.A., SOPIA Corp., Sagacious Consultants, Sagacious Consultants LLC, Sanchez Capital Services Pvt Ltd, Schlumberger Business Consulting, Seabury Airline Planning Group, Seabury Aviation & Aerospace (UK) Limited, Seabury Aviation & Aerospace Asia (Hong Kong) Limited, Seabury Aviation Consulting LLC, Seabury Cargo Advisory B.V., Seabury Consulting, Seabury Corporate Advisors LLC, Seabury Human Capital LLC, Seabury Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., Seabury Structured Finance LLC, Search Technologies BPO, Search Technologies BPO Inc., Search Technologies GmbH, Search Technologies International LLC, Search Technologies LATAM, Search Technologies LATAM S.A., Search Technologies LLC, Search Technologies Limited, Sente Partners LLC, Sentelis, Servicios Tecnicos de Programacion Accenture S.C., Shackleton, Shackleton Barcelona S.L., Shackleton Chile S.A., Shackleton Madrid S.L., Shackleton S.A., Shanghai Baiyue Advertising Co. Ltd., Shun Zhe Technology Development Co. Ltd., Silveo, Simian Pty Limited, SinnerSchrader AG, SinnerSchrader Commerce GmbH, SinnerSchrader Content GmbH, SinnerSchrader Deutschland GmbH, SinnerSchrader Praha s.r.o., SinnerSchrader Swipe GmbH, Sinnerschrader, Sistemes Consulting S.L., Solutions IQ, Solutions IQ LLC, SolutionsIQ, SolutionsIQ India Consulting Services Private Limited, Storm Digital, Storm Digital B.V., Structure Consulting Group, Structure Consulting Group LLC, Sutter Mills, Systor AG, TQuila Limited (UK), Tadata Creative Unlimited Company, Tara Insurance DAC, Tara Risk DAC, TargetST8, TargetST8 Consulting LLC, Tech - Avanade Portugal Unipessoal Lda, Tecnilogica Ecosistemas S.A., Tecnilogica Ltd., Tecnilogica, The Brand Learning Partners Limited, The Callisto Integration Corporation, The Monkeys, The Monkeys Pty Limited, The Myrtle Group, Total Logistics, Total Logistics Supply Chain Consultants Limited, Tquila, Troop Studios Pty Ltd, VanBerlo, Verax Solutions, Verax Solutions Corporation, Vertical Retail Consulting (Shanghai) Ltd., Vertical Retail Consulting Hong Kong, Vertical Retail Consulting Hong Kong Ltd., Vertical Retail Consulting Ltd., Vivere Brasil Servicos e Solucoes SA, Vivere Brasil Solucoes De Credito Ltda., Weblinc Pty Ltd, Wire Stone, Wire Stone LLC, Wire Stone Sarl, Wolox, Yesler, Zag, Zenta, Zenta Global Philippines, Zenta Global Philippines Inc., Zenta Mortgage Services LLC, Zenta Recoveries Inc, Zenta US Holdings Inc., 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, and solid-serVision.com GmbH. Bancolombia S. A. provides various banking products and services to individual and corporate customers 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; 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 investment banking services comprising project and acquisition finance, debt and equity capital markets, principal investments, M&A, restructurings, and structured financing; money market accounts, mutual and pension funds, private equity funds, payment trust, custody, and corporate trust; and digital banking platform, transportation, securities brokerage, maintenance and remodeling, advertising and marketing, and outsourcing services, as well as credit cards. As of December 31, 2020, it operated 1,057 branches; 18,631 banking correspondents; 535 PAMs; 215 kiosks in El Salvador and 137 in Colombia; and 6,124 automatic teller machines. Bancolombia S.A. was incorporated in 1945 and is headquartered in MedellAn, Colombia. Read More So you think iCloud locked phones are worthless without the owners passcode? Hackers want you to think again as they have discovered a really clever way to break into such phones.To go past the activation lock, hackers are actually phishing and scamming Apple Store employees. They are taking the advantage of all iCloud locked iPhones which were returned to the carrier as a part of upgrading phone plans.Of course, not all such iPhones are stolen and there is a huge market of iCloud locked phones out there around the world too. When a customer decides to buy the newest iPhone from a carrier, they return back the previous one and companies ask the owners to disable the iCloud lock. When owners dont do that, these iCloud locked phones get sold in bulk.This gives a chance to all the black market (mostly dark web) re-sellers to use iCloud phishing kits, which have tools to fool the original owner of the locked iPhone so that they could give the password of their Apple ID with their own will.Hackers involved here then create special text messages which would look like as if they are from Apple . This would even have a fake location of where the person's phone has been found via Find My iPhone activation.In case, if this doesnt work, they then trick the retail employees at Apple with a fake receipt because if the owner of an iPhone has forgotten its iCloud ID information, then Apple helps out the customer only if they have the original receipt, which hackers create later.Other authentic ways to use an iCloud locked iPhone include replacing the CPU from the Logic Board and reprogramming it as a new device, which is quite rare as it requires a highly skilled labor like the ones in Asian refurbishing labs and the hackers also need a clean phone identification number called an IMEI.The next time when you decide to upgrade your phone plan with a carrier, make sure you follow their guidelines for your own protection.Read next: List of High and Low Radiation Emitting Smartphones Is Out, Samsung, Google and Apple Have a Huge Presence in It! President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints speaks in Chico, California, on Sunday, Jan. 13, two months after the Camp Fire destroyed 1,400 homes and hundreds of businesses. President Nelson wrote about the visit in an op-ed published Feb. 10 in The Arizona Republic. Life with God is far better than one without him, he wrote in the op-ed, titled Healing Hearts. Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and his wife Wendy Nelson pause with Lillianna Mower after a meeting in Chico, California on Sunday, Jan. 13, 2019, two months after the Camp Fire destroyed 1,400 homes and hundreds of businesses. President Nelson wrote about the visit in an op-ed published Feb. 10 in The Arizona Republic. Life with God is far better than one without him, he wrote in the op-ed, titled Healing Hearts. Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints looks over destroyed homes with his wife Wendy Nelson in Paradise, California on Sunday, Jan. 13, 2019, two months after the Camp Fire destroyed 1,400 homes and hundreds of businesses. President Nelson wrote about the visit in an op-ed published Feb. 10 in The Arizona Republic. Life with God is far better than one without him, he wrote in the op-ed, titled Healing Hearts. Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints looks over destroyed LDS chapel with his wife Wendy Nelson in Paradise, California on Sunday, Jan. 13, 2019, two months after the Camp Fire destroyed 1,400 homes and hundreds of businesses. President Nelson wrote about the visit in an op-ed published Feb. 10 in The Arizona Republic. Life with God is far better than one without him, he wrote in the op-ed, titled Healing Hearts. Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News President Russell M. Nelson, president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, wrote an op-ed published Feb. 10 in The Arizona Republic. Life with God is far better than one without him, he wrote in the op-ed, titled Healing Hearts. Intellectual Reserve, Inc. President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints with his wife, Sister Wendy Nelson, stand with son in-law Norman A. Maxfield after funeral services for President Nelson's daughter, Wendy Nelson Maxfield, on Saturday, Jan. 19. President Nelson wrote about his daughter in an op-ed published Feb. 10 in The Arizona Republic. Life with God is far better than one without him, he wrote in the op-ed, titled Healing Hearts. Scott G Winterton, Deseret News President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints hugs members of his family at Brighton Stake Center in Sandy, Utah, after funeral services for his daughter, Wendy Nelson Maxfield, on Saturday, Jan. 19, 2019. President Nelson wrote about his daughter in an op-ed published Feb. 10 in The Arizona Republic. Life with God is far better than one without him, he wrote in the op-ed, titled Healing Hearts. Scott G Winterton, Deseret News President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints hugs members of his family at Brighton Stake Center in Sandy, Utah, after funeral services for his daughter, Wendy Nelson Maxfield, on Saturday, Jan. 19, 2019. President Nelson wrote about his daughter in an op-ed published Feb. 10 in The Arizona Republic. Life with God is far better than one without him, he wrote in the op-ed, titled Healing Hearts. Scott G Winterton, Deseret News President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and his wife Wendy Nelson talk with fire victims Rick and KathieTurner by the burned LDS Chapel in Paradise, California on Sunday, Jan. 13, 2019, two months after the Camp Fire destroyed 1,400 homes and hundreds of businesses. President Nelson wrote about the visit in an op-ed published Feb. 10 in The Arizona Republic. Life with God is far better than one without him, he wrote in the op-ed, titled Healing Hearts. Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News Attendees look on as President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints enters the chapel in Chico, California, on Sunday, Jan. 13, 2019. President Nelson wrote about the visit in an op-ed published Feb. 10 in The Arizona Republic. Life with God is far better than one without him, he wrote in the op-ed, titled Healing Hearts. Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News Marnette Barton cries while meeting President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints after a meeting in Chico, California on Sunday, Jan. 13. President Nelson wrote about the visit in an op-ed published Feb. 10 in The Arizona Republic. Life with God is far better than one without him, he wrote in the op-ed, titled Healing Hearts. Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints hugs children after they rushed to meet him in Asuncion, Paraguay, on Monday, Oct. 22, 2018. Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints talks to fire victim Robert Harrison and his family in Paradise, California on Sunday, Jan. 13, two months after the Camp Fire destroyed 1,400 homes and hundreds of businesses. President Nelson wrote about the visit in an op-ed published Feb. 10 in The Arizona Republic. Life with God is far better than one without him, he wrote in the op-ed, titled Healing Hearts. Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and his wife Sister Wendy Nelson greet Governor Jorge Ulloa Aguillon outside at the LDS Concepcion Chili Temple in Concepcion, Chili on Saturday, Oct. 27, 2018. Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints hugs children after a devotional in Asuncion, Paraguay on Monday, Oct. 22, 2018. Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and how wife Sister Wendy Nelson greet attendees after a devotional in Lima, Peru on Oct. 20, 2018. Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News Sergio Rubin, Argentine journalist and biographer of Pope Francis, interviews President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Montevideo, Uraguay on Oct. 26, 2018. Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints holds Pierina Risso, 3, while meeting with her three generation LDS family in Montevideo, Uraguay on Thursday, Oct. 25, 2018. Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News President Henry B. Eyring, President Russell M. Nelson and Sister Wendy Nelson listen to the choir sing before speaking at Safeco Field in Seattle, Wash., on Saturday, Sept. 15, 2018. Kristin Murphy, Deseret News President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, speaks at Safeco Field in Seattle, Wash., on Saturday, Sept. 15, 2018. Kristin Murphy, Deseret News Medicaid expansion continued to be a main focus on the hill during the second week of the 45-day session. Other key issues included removing "slavery" from Utah's constitution, a bill intending to better protect victims of sexual violence and proposals to change the state flag. Here's a brief look at five major legislature stories from last week that you won't want to miss: The House voted 56 to 19 in favor of SB96 Friday, the GOP legislative leadership's alternative to the full Medicaid expansion approved by voters that now includes the possibility of reverting back to much of Proposition 3. The vote came after a group of faith leaders chanted, "Do justice, love mercy," and prayed outside the House chamber for lawmakers to support the ballot initiative passed in November rather than a more limited and initially more costly plan. Faith leaders singing outside the House chambers, pray that lawmakers dont replace Prop 3 #utpol #utleg pic.twitter.com/MqYrOtsFsU Katie McKellar (@KatieMcKellar1) February 8, 2019 Read the full story: Utah House passes replacement for voter-approved Medicaid expansion amid protests A bill that's been years in the making, aiming to allow driverless vehicles to ply Utah's highways and byways, earned the unanimous approval of a legislative committee Friday. Rep. Robert Spendlove, R-Sandy, told the House Transportation Committee he has spent the last four years assembling his proposal, HB101, that looks to lay the groundwork for navigating the legal ramifications of semi-autonomous and fully autonomous vehicles a concept once reserved for the realm of science fiction but now, according to industry watchers, is likely just a few years away. Read the full story: Utah driverless vehicle bill navigates first legislative challenge With the death of University of Utah student Lauren McCluskey in mind, a state lawmaker is seeking to strengthen campus safety when it comes to stalking, sexual assault and relationship violence. "This bill ensures all campuses have a comprehensive, consistent safety plan in place," said Senate Assistant Minority Whip Jani Iwamoto, the bill's sponsor. Read the full story: Utah bill seeks to strengthen campus safety following University of Utah student Lauren McCluskey's death Public speakers urged lawmakers on the House Judiciary Standing Committee to support HB166, a bill that would ban abortions solely based on Down syndrome diagnosis. It's a reincarnation of a bill Rep. Karianne Lisonbee, R-Clearfield, sponsored last year, but didn't survive the clock in time for a vote on the Senate floor after receiving support in the House. Grid View Lisa Wilson reads a statement during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on HB166 at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019. The bill would prohibit an abortion if the sole reason is because the fetus has or may have Down syndrome. Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Amber Merkley, with son Finn and husband Justin, testifies before the House Judiciary Committee on HB166 at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019. The bill would prohibit an abortion if the sole reason is because the fetus has or may have Down syndrome. Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Rep. Steve Waldrip, R-Eden, holds a memento of a family member who had Down syndrome during a discussion on HB166 before the House Judiciary Committee at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019. The bill would prohibit an abortion if the sole reason is because the fetus has or may have Down syndrome. Scott G Winterton, Deseret News William Duncan, of the Sutherland Institute, listens as Rep. Karianne Lisonbee, R-Syracuse, during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on HB166 at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019. The bill would prohibit an abortion if the sole reason is because the fetus has or may have Down syndrome. Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Dr. Michelle Debbink speaks against HB166 during a House Judiciary Committee hearing at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019. The bill would prohibit an abortion if the sole reason is because the fetus has or may have Down syndrome. Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Rep. Karianne Lisonbee, R-Syracuse, discusses her bill, HB166, during a House Judiciary Committee hearing at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019. The bill would prohibit an abortion if the sole reason is because the fetus has or may have Down syndrome. Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Rep. Brian King, D-Salt Lake City, asks a question during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on HB166 at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019. The bill would prohibit an abortion if the sole reason is because the fetus has or may have Down syndrome. Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Lisa Wilson finishes her statement on HB166 during a House Judiciary Committee hearing at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019. The bill would prohibit an abortion if the sole reason is because the fetus has or may have Down syndrome. Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Read the full story: Bill that would ban abortions solely based on Down syndrome diagnosis heads to House floor Now that Utah has legalized medical marijuana, the Utah Department of Health is taking the next steps to prepare itself to start distributing. And that means the health department needs money to the tune of $4 million. Read the full story: Utah officials are gearing up to sell medical marijuana and they need $4 million to do it COALVILLE, Summit County A central Utah man died after being buried by an avalanche while snowmobiling near Coalville in Summit County. According to the Utah Avalanche Center, it is the fourth fatality this year. Authorities said a signal was received from a beacon following the slide that was triggered in the East Fork of the Chalk Creek area of Summit County at 1:20 p.m. Saturday. Lt. Andrew Wright of the Summit County Sheriff's Office said the man was trapped in the deep snow. Two fellow riders were able to dig the victim out after 30 to 40 minutes, and they administered lifesaving efforts for more than 40 minutes until emergency personnel arrived, he said in a news release. The man was rushed to an Evanston, Wyoming, hospital by a Utah Department of Public Safety helicopter where he was declared dead as a result of injuries sustained in the avalanche. No one else was injured in the slide. The avalanche was estimated to be 500 feet to 600 feet wide and 4 feet to 10 feet deep. The victim was identified as a 49-year-old from Mona, Juab County, who was riding with a friend and 14-year old son. The victim and his friend both had beacons but were not skilled at its use. Neither had a probe. The man's name was not released pending notification of family members. SALT LAKE CITY Deseret News reporter Gillian Friedman remembers the moment Rabbi Avrohom "Avremi" Zippel first came to her. They had worked together on a story months earlier but now he wanted to discuss something private. "Can we speak off the record?" she said he first asked, as he began to reference a woman who had been arrested and accused of repeated sex abuse of a child. The rabbi then continued, "I don't know if it's gotten around to you yet, but the victim in that story is me." The identity of the victim in the case was not yet public and the rabbi was wrestling with how best to proceed. He had been inspired by Olympic medalist Aly Raisman and the bravery of U.S. gymnasts in telling their stories of abuse by Larry Nassar. He sought and received an introduction to Elizabeth Smart. They met privately in a coffee shop in Park City where he confided in her, told her his story of abuse and received this important advice: Find a journalist you trust and work with that journalist to tell an accurate story. That journalist was Gillian Friedman, herself a part of the Jewish community which gave her instant understanding of just how powerful and important the Chabad rabbi's story could be. Since its publication Tuesday, the story has reached across the nation and throughout Israel, and the outpouring of support for the rabbi and his family has been nothing short of remarkable. The story was picked up by the Times of Israel, the Jerusalem Post and the Jewish Press, among others. Within the first days of publication, Rabbi Zippel told our reporter, more than 1,000 people had called him, his wife and his parents to express their support. He said then he was receiving about five messages an hour about the article. The rabbi said a 19-year-old year Jewish girl from an Orthodox community in a different state reached out to say she was sexually abused when she was 7. She said she spent her whole life in shame, feeling that she had nowhere to turn and fearful that no one from the orthodox world would understand or support her. She read the article, called the rabbi, and said that for the first time she had someone from her world who could understand her. Many victims of sexual abuse have now reached out for support. They were feeling the same shame and guilt that the rabbi had felt year after year, but fear of sharing the story also was very real. I sat down with our reporter to get her insights on the interaction between her and Rabbi Zippel and his family, seeking to understand what this means for the very conservative Jewish community. Doug Wilks: Why do you think this story has had such an impact? Gillian Friedman: In the Jewish community it's been really resonant because he is the first rabbi in general, I think, but especially an observant rabbi, especially an othodox rabbi, who's come forward in this way to say "I've been sexually abused." DW: You said the rabbi had a lot of concern about how he and the family would be perceived, showing the difficulty of coming forward. GF: I think he felt like, "OK I'm doing the right thing." And his wife told me, "I'm proud of him, I support him." So did his dad (also a rabbi) and so did his mom. They said "we support him, we think it's the right thing, but we're scared, we're nervous. We don't know what the reaction is going to be." ... He was worried that he would be seen as less of a man, he was worried he would be seen as potentially he used the words, I think as a "sexual deviant" because the abuse had gone on until (age) 18. ... He said the biggest motivator for him was trying to change that idea of what a sexual abuse victim can look like, that a victim first of all can be resilient, be strong and have a successful life. ... We need to allow people space to not be seen as lesser than just because they have had this path, that they can be resilient. Which I think is also Elizabeth Smart's message in many ways. DW: Is it surprising that such a personal story reached around the world? GF: I got a call from the head of Chabad International who was saying, you know, he'd been getting calls from around the world all day with people just talking about it. ... I think in (Rabbi Zippel's) heart of hearts he was expecting that there would be criticism, judgment, and instead there was support and praise. ... I think it's really amazing to see that and it speaks to how our times have changed. DW: As you now reflect on the rabbi and the story, what are your impressions? GF: I think what surprised me most was really just a chance to look at this man and get to know a man who, maybe despite all expectations of what you might think he thinks or who he is, that what was so surprising was really just kind of getting an appreciation for how brave and how alone he was in this, and how he still decided that this was the right thing to do, that he wanted to do it, even though every cultural, religious inclination would probably tell them keep this kind of private, keep it inside. Don't share this, don't go to the police. That what he's doing is remarkably brave. And I think what's important for readers to understand is that yes, the #MeToo movement has rocked the nation. Everybody's talking about sexual assault. ... But it's a very different thing for a man who was a religious orthodox rabbi to come out and say, I was sexually abused. DW: The rabbi has really been on quite a journey. GF: He has and I think for him, it's like ... it almost reminds me of this song in Hebrew that we sing at Passover called "Dayenu" which means, "It would have been enough." In the song you sing, "if God had just created Adam and Eve, it would have been enough. If God had given us the Torah at Mount Sinai, it would have been enough," and it goes on for verses and verses. ... The point is God keeps giving to you. It would have been enough if He freed us from slavery in Egypt. It would have been enough if God created Shabbat and so on. ... so at Passover it's this joyous song of freedom, but also of gratitude. And this is like that for the rabbi. So things in this story reminded me of that for him. You know it would have been enough if I was able to tell my therapist. 'You know it would have been enough if I had just been able to call the police. ...And it would have been enough if they had taken my story seriously. ... so who am I not to let that happen.' Postscript: The woman accused of sexually abusing Rabbi Zippel, his former nanny, 69-year-old Alavina Fungaihea Florreich, has not been found guilty of any crime. She was ordered to stand trial on five counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a child, a first-degree felony, and two counts of forcible sexual abuse, a second-degree felony. Elizabeth Smart, who attended the preliminary hearing that led to the trial order, told the Deseret News: "It's not as acceptable to be a man and to speak out, because then it makes you look like you're not as tough or you're not as macho, or maybe theres something wrong with you, or you should have been enjoying it some sick and crazy idea in your mind that it's unacceptable for a man to speak out about what happened." Aly Raisman, whom the rabbi has not met, offered this tweet after becoming aware of the story: "Wow, thanks for your bravery and courage Rabbi Zippel. You will inspire so many others to share their stories. Thank you for speaking your truth! I support you." SALT LAKE CITY The threat of state intervention has loomed over a land dispute between Salt Lake City and Millcreek, but now Millcreek leaders expect to pull the bill. After a meeting between city officials and a Utah lawmaker last week, new talks are happening to resolve the matter outside of the Utah Legislature. In a vote expected Monday, Millcreek leaders plan to officially ask that a bill be withdrawn that would force Salt Lake City's hand if Millcreek doesn't get its way. Still, Salt Lake City leaders are "cautiously optimistic," remaining wary until state legislation is officially off the table. The fight? Over an annexation that happened four decades ago, when Salt Lake City swallowed about 50 acres of what was at the time unincorporated Salt Lake County a commercial area called the Brickyard near 1100 East and 3300 South. Now, officials leading the brand-new city of Millcreek want the area back, saying it's always been a part of their community's fabric. As they attempt to plan their new town center, Millcreek leaders say the awkward island of Salt Lake City jutting into the heart of their city is causing headaches. Millcreek Mayor Jeff Silvestrini said the area was annexed 40 years ago "with a water gun to the developer's head" because Salt Lake officials said they wouldn't provide the increased water needed for the project unless the area annexed into the city. "In a lot of ways, we're undoing a wrong that was done 40 years ago," Silvestrini said. Yet Salt Lake City leaders balk, reluctant to allow their neighbors to absorb an area that has been on city books for more than 40 years and provides about $3 million of taxpayer revenue into Utah's capital city budget. They also worry it could amount to more state meddling and a takeover of Salt Lake land and the precedent it would set for future potential land grabs. They also fear Millcreek officials will attempt to grab even more city land than the Brickyard, though Millcreek leaders say they have no desire. In fact, Millcreek leaders say they'd be happy with even just a segment of the area, a nearly 6-acre peninsula jutting on the east edge of the Brickyard that they say is the largest impediment to their town center planning. After months of what officials describe as slow-going negotiations, Millcreek leaders turned to the Utah Legislature for backup. "We'd like to work something out," Silvestrini said this past week, minutes before he was scheduled to meet with the bill's sponsor, Rep. Val Potter, R-North Logan, and Salt Lake City Councilman Charlie Luke. Silvestrini said Millcreek leaders originally resorted to requesting legislation because it appeared Salt Lake City leaders were "just not taking it seriously." A few days prior, a bill was filed that would target situations like the Brickyard, relating specifically to a transfer of land defined as a "substantially isolated peninsula," or an area that is "surrounded on more than 95 percent" of its border by another municipality. It would allow property owners to request a transfer into Millcreek, leaving Salt Lake City no recourse to protest. Luke said city leaders have been open to negotiations since Millcreek officials approached them in May, but when the threat of state intervention became real, it complicated things. "We're more than willing to negotiate with them," Luke said. "However, we can't negotiate as long a there's legislation being held over us Salt Lake City has already said we're willing to talk. We're just not willing to talk under duress." In an attempt to work through the stalemate, Millcreek and Salt Lake City leaders met together with Potter, HB262's sponsor, on Wednesday. Luke and Silvestrini both walked away from the meeting sounding optimistic, hinting the dispute may be resolved without state help, but the bill hadn't been officially withdrawn yet. "The point I made multiple times is Salt Lake City can't negotiate specifics as long as there's legislation held over us," Luke said. "We're ready to talk and work through the negotiations and the specifics, but we have to wait until the legislation is officially off the table." Saturday, Silvestrini told the Desert News he had been discussing the matter with other city leaders individually, and now he's confident a vote during Monday's council meeting will officially pull the legislation. "We would rather work it out in a cordial and collaborative way," Silvestrini said. "So we're going to give this a shot." He added: "We are pleased that members of the Salt Lake City Council have committed to engage with us in good faith to discuss and attempt to resolve our differences." Luke said Saturday he and other Salt Lake City leaders continue to watch the issue "closely," but he's "optimistic we'll be able to move forward once the bill is lifted off the table." "The only way that I believe Millcreek and Salt Lake City can effectively talk is if there's good faith between both sides," he said. "Our position all along has been that once the legislation is off the table, we would be able to begin our discussion with Millcreek and talk about the specifics, but we couldn't do that as long as legislation is out there." Potter said he knew Salt Lake City leaders were "concerned when the legislation hit" so he called Wednesday's meeting between city leaders to see if a compromise could be reached. "It's always better for two neighboring cities to get along and negotiate and come up with compromise," Potter said. "So I told them that's what I'd like to see them do. When two cities are at each other's throats, that's never a good resolution to good planning for a community." Potter called the meeting a "very good discussion." "I think both sides realized the need for discussion between the cities is a good thing, and I think they're going to go back to their respective councils to talk about it," he said. Earlier, Luke said he hopes the dispute with Millcreek doesn't amount to another state takeover of Salt Lake City land similar to what happened last year when the Legislature slammed through a bill to create the Utah Inland Port Authority, which now controls over 16,000 acres of the city's undeveloped west side. Luke said he worried if the state gives Millcreek the power to chip away at Salt Lake City borders, it would open up the city to a new vulnerability. He said city officials have been warned that if "the Legislature opens this door and creates a precedent where they can start adjusting municipal boundaries at will" Salt Lake City's eligibility for bonds could be put in "jeopardy" because "bond counsels will not be interested in signing to a long-term bill if they know the boundaries can change." "It opens up so many different issues," Luke said. "Our position is a boundary is a boundary. We can't do something that's going to go against the interest of our residents." But Silvestrini said Millcreek residents have always considered the area to be a part of their community, and even though Salt Lake City services the area, Millcreek is better equipped to provide police and fire services. "There's a fire station six blocks from the area," he said. "Our police are already in this area all the time so we can respond first." Luke noted Salt Lake City has been on guard, worried that Millcreek might attempt to take more than just the Brickyard area. He said there are Millcreek city documents that indicate intentions for a more "aggressive" grab, annexation petitions that would move Millcreek's northern boundary to 2700 South, which could even cut Salt Lake City Councilwoman Amy Fowler out of the city and threaten her seat on the City Council. But Silvestrini said, "that's not correct." "What they're referring to is something that hasn't even ever been adopted by Millcreek," he said, noting it's an "annexation policy" that was proposed as part of Millcreek's general plan. "That issue is a red herring and it's unfortunate it got introduced here," Silvestrini said. He added all of Millcreek is in Salt Lake City's annexation policy, so "if you want to get into that, then Amy Fowler wants to take my house." Overall, Silvestrini said the conflict is not about a "takeover." "It's not a grab by Millcreek," he said. "It's to give self-determination." SALT LAKE CITY A Utah lawmaker is pushing a bill in direct response to a scathing state audit that found a former Unified Fire Authority boss spent tens of thousands of taxpayer money to buy Apple products and expensive cameras for his own use. The bill comes at the request of State Auditor John Dougall and Utah prosecutors, who declined to file criminal charges last year after concluding a "loophole" in Utah's public corruption statutes would make prosecution impossible. At the time, prosecutors also cited an "absence of accountability" since the purchases and other issues were all ultimately approved through a "loose management structure." In front of a panel of House lawmakers last week, HB163 sponsor Rep. Craig Hall, R-West Valley City, didn't identify former Unified Fire Authority deputy chief Gaylord Scott by name, but mentioned the audit, and read off a list of Apple products auditors found Scott had purchased with taxpayer money yet used "almost exclusively for personal use." The list included two iMacs, iPads, two Nikon cameras, several camera lenses, an Apple Watch, two iPhones, MacBooks and a GoPro camera, Hall said. "These were all things that were purchased with government money, and since they were purchased with government money, they were government property," Hall said. Utah prosecutors' investigative report detailed thousands of dollars in questionable purchases, including that Scott used his Unified Fire Authority purchase card to buy $23,000 worth of technology items between January 2012 to July 2016. Yet after the case was handed over to prosecutors, Hall said they declined to file charges because they faced a dilemma with state law. Current state law is "very clear" about the misuse of public money, but it's not clear regarding the misuse of public property, Hall said. "That's the purpose of this bill," Hall said. "It prohibits, clearly, unauthorized personal use of public property." If "someone wants to buy a really nice camera," Hall said, they can either "steal the money from work" or use the money at work to buy the camera, yet only use it for themselves. Currently, Utah law outlaws the first scenario, but not clearly enough the second scenario, Hall said. "That's what we're trying to avoid is a bad actor (that) can manipulate the way things are purchased to use government resources for personal use," Hall said. Dave Carlson, assistant attorney general, joined Hall to lobby lawmakers to support the bill. He said it would be useful to "close some loopholes that we see in the public corruption statutes." Dougall also urged support of the bill, noting that such cases aren't extremely common, but when they do happen "they're usually big issues" and the public is left wondering "why wasn't more done?" The bill won an endorsement from the House Government Operations Committee on Tuesday. It now is waiting to be considered on the House floor. SALT LAKE CITY Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski will seek a second term to continue momentum on issues like affordable housing, the environment and transit, she announced Saturday. "Today we are a stronger city, one that is taking on the toughest issues," Biskupski told reporters and supporters from the steps of the Salt Lake City-County Building. She was flanked by prominent Democrats, law enforcement leaders and others as she formally announced her re-election bid. The city's first openly gay mayor said she listened carefully to concerns she heard the last time she was running for the office. "My team and I have never lost sight of what the residents care about the most," Biskupski said. The former state lawmaker wiped tears from her eyes after thanking her family for their support and at times drew cheers from supporters wearing green T-shirts and carrying signs with her name. She pointed to accomplishments like a planned 2,500 homes for low-income Utahns, in what she called the city's first affordable housing plan in 25 years. In terms of public safety, crime has dropped to a five-year low, she added, and the city's police force has added victim advocates and social workers. When Biskupski took office three years ago, she said, homelessness in the city "had hit a tipping point." Her office helped carry out initiatives to address the problem. "She needs more time to continue what she started," said Salt Lake County Sheriff Rosie Rivera. She said Biskupski, who previously worked in the sheriff's office, has shown she is dedicated to helping the city's homeless gain access to services and receive fair treatment from police. "Operation Rio Grande is working," Rivera said, referring to the joint state and local government effort to curb crime and homelessness in the beleaguered neighborhood. Former Mayor Ted Wilson told the crowd Saturday that those issues weren't as dire when held the office in the 1970s and '80s. "We have people on the street that need the heart that beats in this woman," he said. Biskupski has fought other battles, Wilson said, including legislative proposals at the state Capitol that would have harmed nearby watersheds. Biskupski also touted her administration's efforts to spur job growth in Utah's capital city, saying a new economic development office has helped to create thousands of jobs and support growing local businesses. She noted that pollution was so thick in the Salt Lake Valley when she was sworn into office three years ago that she couldn't see the mountains from downtown that January day. The city is addressing the problem with more charging stations for electric cars, more frequent bus service and a long-term commitment to renewable energy, she said. Several cheered when Biskupski said new extended bus lines will help commuters get to and from work, school and doctor appointments in the evenings and on Sundays. Former state Rep. Rebecca Chavez-Houck called Biskupski a fighter who advocates for everyone and has helped elevate women and minorities to leadership positions. "I want her in my corner," Chavez-Houck said. Biskupski on Saturday did not make mention of the Utah Inland Port, a potential shipping depot in the city's northwestern corner to be overseen by a state board. She has criticized the board and called it unconstitutional because it can strip the city's power. Among those who braved chilly, cloudy weather to show their support were Rosine Nibishaka, a student at Salt Lake City's East High, and Belvia Noudjougoto, who attends Highland High School. Nibishaka met Biskupski in the past through Future Scholars of Africa, an organization that connects first-generation college students from Africa with college scholarships, she said. The mayor has visited with her and other students in the group, giving them advice and helping identify grants, showing Nibishaka that "she's a really good person." Noudjougoto agreed. She said she is eager for Sunday bus service to begin and supports the efforts to reduce air pollution. Biskupski's challengers in the 2019 nonpartisan race include former state Sen. Jim Dabakis, two-term City Councilman Stan Penfold and businessman David Ibarra. Ibarra said Saturday that the candidates vying for the job take similar positions on issues but differ on how to address them. "Salt Lake City needs a problem-solving leader that can work in harmony with others to serve our citys interests. Those are the skills I am offering our capital city, Ibarra said in a statement. SALT LAKE CITY Visitors of a South Florida beach say a giant cross that washed ashore might be a "heavenly" sign. What happened: Last Saturday, a 20-foot wooden cross rolled up on the shores along Galt Ocean Mile in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA Today reports. A group of people pulled the cross onto the beach by the Ocean Manor Beach Resort, where it is currently being displayed. Greg Gay, a tourist in the area from Michigan, told WSVN-TV he found the cross. He said he "felt really heavenly about it." Ocean Manor resort owner Frank Talerico told WSVN he felt goosebumps when he saw the cross wash up on shore. Talerico says hell keep it at his resort. "You know what? Im glad its here," he said. "It's staying here, and if anybody wants to come see it or take a picture with it, they're more than welcome." See photos of the cross below A mysterious giant cross washed up on the shore directly in front of the Ocean Manor Beach Resort yesterday! Tune into... Posted by Ocean Manor Beach Resort on Monday, February 4, 2019 However: No one knows where the cross came from, according to WSVN. Reactions: "People have suggested possibly Puerto Rico. Others have said the Keys," said John Moschella, who was visiting the beach, according to WSVN. "Its really unknown where it has come from." I would like to applaud the Utah state Legislature for voting "yes" on House bill 20. HB20 creates a first-degree felony offense for trafficking a vulnerable adult in addition to clarifying and directing law enforcement to investigate possible human trafficking of a child when they encounter a child engaged in commercial sex. This bill is an important piece of legislation that moves our community to a safer place. According to the Utah Department of Health, nearly 1 in 6 women and 1 in 32 men experience rape or attempted rape during their lifetime. Rape is also the only violent crime in Utah that is above the national average. HB20 is a needed and important step in changing these statistics to reflect the values of Utah and to protect those most vulnerable in our state. I am proud of my leaders and their active actions to ensure continued safety for our communities. Aspen Dalton Provo WASHINGTON Utahs public lands are as unique as they are breathtaking. Red rock canyons, endless swaths of sagebrush, alpine meadows, sprawling salt flats and towering mountain peaks make our state an extraordinary place to live and visit. Such diverse and spectacular landscapes deserve to be managed through locally driven solutions that protect the environment, secure Utahs rural economies and provide abundant recreational opportunities. No one knows or loves these places more than the ranchers, teachers, police officers and others who call rural Utah home. Their history, culture and future depend on access to and the quality of Utahs public lands. For too long, however, presidents of both political parties have designated national monuments with the simple stroke of a pen leaving out the voices of those most directly impacted by their creation. Instead of being done hand in hand with locals, drawing on their love and knowledge of the land, presidents have opted for quick and heavy-handed action. This flies in the face of the democratic process and, as is the case with most unilateral decisions, stifles innovation, neglects critical pieces of information and produces incomplete and often misguided public policy. It is for these reasons that I am proud to co-sponsor the Natural Resources Management Act and the Protect Utahs Rural Economy Act, or PURE Act, as my first policy actions in the Senate. The Natural Resources Management Act is a comprehensive, bipartisan public lands package that comprises over 100 individual bills including 10 locally driven pieces of legislation that directly impact our state. With the leadership of Rep. John Curtis and collaboration between county commissioners, environmental groups, ranchers, recreationists and a host of others, these bills were carefully crafted to meet the needs of Utahns while protecting our cherished lands. Some of the highlights include the creation of 240,000 acres of wilderness and 248,000 acres of recreation areas, and the consolidation of more than 100,000 acres of Utah trust lands that will generate $100 million in revenue for our school kids. The bill also authorizes the creation of Jurassic National Monument in Emery County, small land transfers to Nephi and Hyde Park to meet their city governments growing needs and the designation of Golden Spike site as a historical park for the 150th anniversary of the wedding of the rails. Like the Natural Resources Management Act, the PURE Act a bill long-championed by Sen. Mike Lee was inspired by the needs and desires of rural Utahns. Historic and cultural sites deserve our admiration, respect and protection. No one debates this. But process matters, and national monuments should be established with congressional input and with the involvement of our legislature where local voices can be heard, transparency reigns, and sensible policy is produced. This is the vision and path paved by the PURE Act. Utah is, and will always be, a public lands state. As such, we must look for more public lands solutions that come from the bottom up and not the top down. Integrating local voices into the management of our public lands and conserving the environment are not mutually exclusive. We can conserve wildlife, protect historic sites, maintain access and preserve Utahs public lands in a way that reflects the priorities of rural Utahns. This is the future our public lands need and deserve. As the United States Congress careens the nation toward yet another government shutdown showdown, it is time for the Senate, once hailed as the worlds greatest deliberative body, to be rescued and resuscitated from years of anemic legislative effort and the annihilation of regular order with real debate. The comatose Senate needs an intervention. One person has the power, right and permission to revive and restore the Senate Vice President Mike Pence. During the first two years of the Trump administration, with Republicans in control of both chambers of Congress, more than 76 percent of the bills passed by the House received no action in the Senate. Well over 500 bills sit somewhere on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnells desk (he must have the mother-of-all-desks). Former House Speaker Paul Ryan prophetically predicted early in 2018 that Republicans were in danger of losing the majority in the House if they couldnt break the logjam in the Senate and pass the then 569 House-passed bills gathering dust in Mcconnells office. To Speaker Ryan those bills represented the promises on which they won election promises representatives needed to keep. House members often complain that the Senate is the place where great legislation goes to die. Leader McConnell isnt alone in the responsibility for grinding the legislative wheels of the Senate to a halt. He is ably assisted in the effort by his tag-team collusion partner Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. Together they have ensured there is no real debate, no opportunity for their members to offer bills, or even amendments, on the floor for votes. From the moment the last shutdown began, the McConnell-Schumer team used various Senate rules and arcane procedural moves to ensure that none of the other 98 Senators could do anything to advance real solutions that would fund the government. Both men seem content to rely on their combined and closely aligned political calculus, rather take action to address the needs of the nation. Fake fights and false choices allow each of them to raise precious campaign cash for 2020, demonize their opponents with predictable partisan wedge-issues and convince the American people that the country is just too divided to solve real problems. The mighty deliberative muscles of the Senate are so atrophied that were a real crisis to arise, there would be serious question as to whether it could rally and rise up to protect the interests of the American people. The serious intervention and white-knight-style rescue mission required to save the Senate can best be addressed by a white-haired vice president from Indiana. Regardless of whether you are a fan of the vice president, it is the office of the Vice President that holds the keys to saving the Senate. I said the same thing about Joe Biden when he occupied the position in the Obama administration. Regardless of whether you are a fan of the vice president, it is the office of the Vice President that holds the keys to saving the Senate. Under the Constitution, the vice president is the presiding officer in the Senate. The Constitution doesnt declare that the vice president is only responsible for breaking tie votes in the Senate. No, the vice president is to be the president of the Senate. Early in our Republics history, the vice president did preside over the Senate and the majority leader played more of a vote-counting, whip role. The vice president could open up the floor of the Senate immediately for continuous debate, the introduction of amendments from all senators and votes regular, meaningful votes in front of the American people. As far as advancing President Trumps agenda, Pence would force that the bills tied to the agenda be debated and voted on. If bills are blocked by Senate Democrats just for political purposes, that would become abundantly clear to voters. If the agenda itself is not what the American people want, that would also become crystal clear. If Nancy Pelosi took on a McConnell-style strategy of not voting on bills passed by the Senate, the nation would see it. The current collusion creates confusion rather than clarity and allows both political parties to point fingers, place blame and play politics rather than take responsibility for leading. The president presented a number of policy initiatives in his State of the Union address that brought Democrats and Republicans to their feet. There are countless points of possible, immediate collaboration to be taken up in both the House and the Senate. The vice president sitting and presiding over the Senate would ensure they all got a proper hearing, vetting and votes. Pence, sitting with the Senate gavel in his hand, would apply a sort of deliberative defibrillator shock treatment to the flatlining institution of the Senate. With all 100 Senators fulling and properly engaging, the Senate could actually demonstrate its commitment to action driven by decency, respect and civility on behalf of the citizens each senator represents. The vice president could start by taking the gavel every single morning and after Chaplain Black prays for the country and the institution of the Senate, Pence could declare that the worlds greatest deliberative body is alive and once again open to do the nations business. He really could, and I think he should. This article is part of our Basic Banking series , designed to provide new savers with the key skills to save smarter. Say you need to pay your utility bill, but the company doesnt accept personal checks and sending an envelope full of cash isnt a safe option. Money orders are an alternative and secure form of payment to consider. How money orders work Money orders are like prepaid checks. You provide the funds upfront and fill out an order that, like a personal check, is endorsed to a specific recipient. You dont need a bank account to purchase a money order, which makes it a useful bill-pay method for those who dont have checking accounts. Its also more secure than both cash and personal checks. You can safely send one in the mail, it doesnt contain any account information and, because it is prepaid, it wont bounce when deposited or cashed. You can purchase money orders from most financial institutions, but theyre also available at many convenience stores, supermarkets, money transfer and check-cashing companies, as well as the U.S. Postal Service. One option is to search for local branches of Western Union or MoneyGram, which are often found inside stores such as Walmart, CVS and 7-Eleven. Money orders are generally sold in amounts up to $1,000, although the Postal Service limits international money orders to $700 (or $500 if purchased for El Salvador or Guyana). There is no minimum, but youll have to pay a fee for each order. These fees vary depending on where you buy. For example, the Postal Services charges $1.20 for money orders up to $500, $1.65 for those between $500.01 and $1,000, and $8.55 for all international transactions. Wells Fargo charges a flat fee of $5. You may find less expensive or even fee-free money order options. Amscot, a Florida-based financial services company, offers money order purchases at no charge. Keep in mind that these fees are for single money orders. If your transaction is larger than the maximum allowed, you may have to purchase multiple orders and pay a fee for each, which can add up quickly. If you use money orders often, save money by shopping around for the lowest fees. Pros and cons of money orders Money orders are straightforward, secure and accessible to anyone with cash, but they do come with fees and a low limit. Before you choose a money order as a method of payment, consider the pros and cons. Pros Cons Trackable and safer than cash Low maximum amounts (often around $1,000) Dont need a bank account Fees Can be used internationally Can be counterfeited or altered Funds are guaranteed Must be purchased in person Widely available How to get a money order Money orders are available at banks, credit unions, post offices, check-cashing shops and local retail stores such as supermarkets, convenience stores and pharmacies. To find Western Union and MoneyGram locations in your area, type your ZIP code into their locator tools and filter for sites that sell money orders. While it may be convenient to pick up a money order from your bank or a store youre already visiting, keep in mind that fees vary widely, and it may cost less to purchase at another location. In most cases, you must buy money orders in person. You can purchase money orders using cash, check, debit or credit, though not all issuers accept the latter, and some may process credit transactions as cash advances, which come with higher fees. Besides a method of payment, youll need to provide the recipients name and, depending on the form, your name and address. If youre using the money order to pay a bill, such as your utilities, you may also need an account number so that the recipient knows how to apply the money you send. Money orders look similar to personal checks. To fill one out: Write the recipients (payee) name either an individual or business on the pay to the order of line. Fill out your information in the purchaser section, usually referred to as from, sender, remitter or purchaser. Some money orders require your name and address, while others may have space only for your name. Sign on the signature line. Use a black gel pen ink is more difficult to erase write legibly and ensure all information is entered correctly and the amount is what you paid for. You cannot make changes once the money order has been processed. Complete the money order immediately, and dont leave any fields blank. This leaves less room for fraudsters to alter your order. Money orders are sometimes used in scams. While theyre more secure than cash, they can still be stolen or altered. Drop completed money orders in a secure post office box or hand-deliver to the recipient. Dont leave them in your personal mailbox. Once youve sent a money order, keep your receipt until youve confirmed that the payee has received the payment. This receipt allows you to track the status of your order, including the date of deposit. If your money order is lost or stolen, you can use the receipt to submit a claim to the issuer and receive a replacement. For Postal Service-issued money orders, youll have to fill out a claims form in person and pay a $5.95 processing fee. Western Union allows you to mail, fax or email forms. It charges $15 if you have a receipt and $30 if you do not. Without a receipt, you may not receive a refund. How to cash a money order You can generally cash money orders in the same places you can purchase them: banks, credit unions and stores that offer check-cashing and other financial services. Some traditional financial institutions may allow you to put money orders through mobile or electronic deposit, while others will not. When youre ready to cash or deposit a money order, endorse the back just like you do a check. When cashing in person, youll need a valid form of identification, such as a drivers license or passport. Depending on where you cash your money order, you may pay a small check-cashing fee. Alternatives to money orders Money orders are a fairly straightforward method of paying bills or sending money, but theyre not right for every situation. Before you settle on a money order, consider these alternatives. Cashiers check Like money orders, funds sent via cashiers check are guaranteed by the issuing financial institution. Theyre often preferred, or even required, for business transactions in which cash and personal checks arent accepted. They differ from money orders in their higher maximums and higher fees (around $10), but they may still cost less depending on the size of your transaction. Wire transfer With a wire transfer, you can send a lot more money a lot more quickly than with a money order. Wire transfers can be in large amounts and often go through almost instantly because they are completed electronically. The fees are higher than both money orders and cashiers checks expect fees around $30 for domestic and $40 for international transfers, as well as additional charges on the recipients end. Wire transfers are useful for large transactions, but the fees could be prohibitive for smaller amounts. Personal check Personal checks are easy to use, can be filled out at home and carry no processing fees. But they require the payer to have a bank account and theyre not guaranteed, which means they can bounce if the sender has insufficient funds in that account. For this reason, some businesses may not accept them. If you have cash flow concerns as the payer, keep in mind that you have to keep your balance high enough until the check is deposited. Personal checks are also less secure than other payment forms because bank account numbers are printed on them. Prepaid cards If you dont have a bank account, a prepaid card is another way to send money. These prepaid cards are like gift cards: You can buy them at retail stores and use them anywhere debit cards are accepted. The downside of these cards is potential fees to purchase and load them. Theyre also not endorsed to a specific person, so if theyre lost or stolen, anyone can spend them. Online bill pay Online payment platforms such as Zelle or PayPal are thought to be more secure than sending money via paper check. These services require you to have a bank account to send and receive funds. There may be daily transaction limits, but generally the fees are low or zero. The bottom line A money order may be a good and secure alternative to cash or personal check if you have bills to pay or are sending sums less than $1,000 to family, friends or businesses. Be sure to look for the lowest fees, especially if you plan to buy multiple orders. Politics Gov. Wolf looks to get fees for state police again The Ministry of External Affairs on Saturday strongly protested against Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's comment about conditions of minorities in India. New Delhi conveyed to Islamabad that the Pakistan government would do well to focus on its domestic challenges and improve conditions of its citizens rather than try and divert attention. Khan on Saturday alleged that people of minority communities had to live like second class citizens in India. He went on to say that the new government of Pakistan would make it sure that none from the minority communities would be treated so in his country. He made the remark while speaking at an event at Balloki in Nankana Sahib in Pakistan on Saturday. The Pakistan Prime Ministers remarks are an egregious insult to all citizens of India, Raveesh Kumar, spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs, said in New Delhi. The Pakistan Prime Minister has yet again demonstrated his lack of understanding about Indias secular polity and ethos. He overlooks the obvious fact that adherents of all faiths choose to live under the democratic polity and the progressive Constitution of India. The Gurudwara Janam Asthan at Nankana Sahib in Pakistan is a holy place for Sikhs as Guru Nanak was born and lived here. Khan on Saturday said that his government understood the importance Nankana Sahib had for the Sikh community in Pakistan. He promised that his government would help celebrate the forthcoming 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak in Pakistan. He said that Quaid-e-Azam Mohammed Ali Jinnah worked for the creation of Pakistan because he had understood that the minorities would not be getting their rights at the fullest in Hindustan'. (The) Quaid-e-Azam wanted all of the minorities to be equal citizens which eventually was proven through the voices in the Congress that Muslims and minorities would never become equal citizens, the reason he struggled for Pakistan, said Khan. India has eminent leaders of all faiths who occupy its highest Constitutional and official positions, Kumar, MEA spokesperson, said. In contrast, he added, Pakistani citizens of non-Islamic faith are barred from occupying high constitutional offices. The minorities are often turned away from government bodies like the Economic Advisory Council of their prime minister, even in naya Pakistan', said Kumar, adding: The Pakistan Prime Ministers latest attempts to play with minority sentiment in India will be rejected by the people of India. Hasakeh, Syria: US-backed forces were locked in fierce fighting on Sunday as they pressed the battle against the last shred of the Islamic State groups caliphate in eastern Syria. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), supported by a US-led coalition, announced a final push to retake the jihadist pocket late on Saturday, after a pause of more than a week to allow civilians to flee. An SDF field commander said his fighters were battling their way forwards on Sunday morning. There are heavy clashes at the moment. We have launched an assault and the fighters are advancing, he said. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor group said coalition planes and artillery bombarded jihadist positions. The battle is ongoing. There were heavy clashes this morning, with landmines going off, said Rami Abdel Rahman, the head of the Britain-based Observatory. The SDF launched an offensive to expel IS from the oil-rich eastern province of Deir Ezzor in September. The Kurdish-led alliance has since whittled down jihadist-held territory to a scrap of just four square kilometres between the Euphrates and the Iraqi border. Up to 600 jihadists could still remain inside, most of them foreigners, according to SDF spokesman Mustafa Bali. But he added the extremist groups elusive leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was likely not in the pocket. We do not think he is in Syria, Bali said, without adding any details about the whereabouts of the man who declared a cross-border IS caliphate in 2014. On the Iraqi side of the border, French members of the coalition on Saturday stood ready to pour fury on any IS diehards seeking to escape. Dozens of 155-mm shells were lined up ready to be loaded onto three green-and-black Caesar gun-howitzers with a range of 40 km. Coalition deputy commander Christopher Ghika on Friday said Iraqi forces had sealed the border into their country. At the height of their rule, the jihadists imposed their brutal interpretation of Islamic law on a territory roughly the size of Britain. But separate military offensives in both countries, including by the SDF, have since retaken the vast bulk of that caliphate. On Saturday, Bali said he expected the battle for the last patch of IS territory to be over in days. Officials signed a short-term agreement on Sunday to boost South Korea's contribution toward the upkeep of US troops (Representational Image) Seoul: Officials signed a short-term agreement on Sunday to boost South Korea's contribution toward the upkeep of US troops on the peninsula, after a previous deal lapsed amid US President Donald Trump's call for the South to pay more. The new deal must still be approved by South Korea's parliament, but it would boost its contribution to 1.03 trillion won ($890 million) from 960 billion won in 2018. Unlike past agreements, which lasted for five years, this one is scheduled to expire in a year, potentially forcing both sides back to the bargaining table within months. "It has been a very long process, but ultimately a very successful process," South Korean Foreign Minister Kyung-wha told reporters before another official from the foreign ministry initialled the agreement. While acknowledging lingering domestic criticism of the new deal and the need for parliamentary approval, Kang said the response had "been positive so far". US State Department senior adviser for security negotiations and agreements, Timothy Betts, met Kang before signing the agreement on behalf of the United States, and told reporters the money represented a small but important part of South Korea's support for the alliance. "The United States government realizes that South Korea does a lot for our alliance and for peace and stability in this region," he said. About 28,500 US troops are stationed in South Korea, where the United States has maintained a military presence since the 1950-53 Korean War. The allies had struggled to reach a breakthrough despite 10 rounds of talks since March, amid Trump's repeated calls for a sharp increase in South Korea's contribution. South Korean officials have said they had sought to limit its burden to $1 trillion won and make the accord valid for at least three years. A senior South Korean ruling party legislator said last month that negotiations were deadlocked after the United States made a "sudden, unacceptable" demand that Seoul pay more than 1.4 trillion won per year. But both sides worked to hammer out a deal to minimise the impact of the lapse on South Korean workers on US military bases, and focus on nuclear talks ahead of a second US-North Korea summit, Seoul officials said. Trump said in his annual State of the Union address to Congress on Tuesday he would meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on February 27-28 in Vietnam, following their unprecedented meeting in June in Singapore. After the June summit, Trump announced a halt to joint military exercises with South Korea, saying they were expensive and paid for mostly by the United States. Major joint exercises have been suspended, but some small-scale drills have continued, earning rebukes from North Korea's state media in recent months. About 70 percent of South Korea's contribution covers the salaries of some 8,700 South Korean employees who provide administrative, technical and other services for the US military. Late last year, the US military warned Korean workers on its bases they might be put on leave from mid-April if no deal was agreed. Bangkok: Thai Princess Ubolratana's unprecedented attempt to become the country's next prime minister was abruptly nixed on Saturday after her party agreed to comply with a command from the king opposing the plan. The party's announcement effectively blocking Ubolratana's candidacy came after an extraordinary rebuke by her brother King Maha Vajiralongkorn, and removes a hurdle for the ruling junta to hold onto power after the March 24 vote the first since a 2014 coup. The Thai Raksa Chart party, affiliated with the powerful Shinawatra political clan, had announced the princess as their candidate on Friday morning. The move rattled the status quo and threatened the ambitions of the generals who have controlled Thailand since they toppled the administration of Yingluck Shinawatra almost five years ago. But the Thai king torpedoed his sister's bid in a sharply worded statement the same day that said bringing senior royal family members into politics was against tradition and highly inappropriate. Thai Raksa Chart responded swiftly, cancelling a campaign event Saturday and issuing a statement saying it complies with the royal command. Thailand has some of the most severe lese majeste laws in the world and the king's word is seldom challenged. Royalist Thais and celebrities praised the intervention on social media after the order, writing long live the king. Others expressed unhappiness with groups such as Thai Raksa Chart linked to Yingluck and her brother Thaksin, who was ousted in a 2006 coup. An activist who called himself Champ 1984 said he was disappointed with the idea of a pro-democracy party enlisting a royal family member and would now vote for a different party. Analysts say the events of the past day will help the military to consolidate power and tilt the odds in favour of junta chief Prayut Chan-O-Cha. Prayut is standing as premier for the Phalang Pracharat party, a group aligned with the regime. Almost 70% of girls in the UK arent allowed to go to the toilet during school lesson time. London: A revolutionary emoji, an important step in reducing the stigma around menstruation, has hit the internet. The cartoon red blood droplet an emoji meant to symbolise menstruation is poetically symbolic to the message being popularised by Plan International UK that periods arent shameful. The organisation began work on the emoji in 2017 after finding that 48 percent of girls and women in the UK between the ages of 14 and 21 are embarrassed by their periods. Ending the shame around periods begins with talking about it, Lucy Russell, the head of girls rights and youth at Plan International UK said. Plan organised a popular vote on the design of the symbol, with five options, including a sanitary pad, a monthly calendar, smiling blood droplets and a uterus. A pair of period pants eventually won the contest, but Unicode Consortium, the body that maintains and regulates emojis, rejected the choice. Eventually, Plan partnered with NHS Blood and Transplant to share that organisations proposed new emoji: a red blood droplet. (For NHS Blood and Transplant, the cartoon represents the importance of blood donation and not menstruation). An emoji may seem minor to other people, but it started a conversation, said Lamanda Ballard, founder and executive director for Flo Code, a non-profit based in Austin, Texas, that provides menstruation products to underserved communities. Where you once would have been shunned for grabbing a box of tampons at a store, were now in a place where we can have this open conversation online. But some, including Ballard, found the compromise disappointing. Ballard pointed out the general hypocrisy of getting squeamish over a pair of white panties showing a few drops of blood. Chennel NewsAsia quoted the Mexican newspaper El Universal daily as stating that eyewitnesses had seen the alleged attacker stepping out of a car and started shooting at Rodriguez from a point-blank range more than eight times. (Representative Image) Mexico City: The Latin American country has become one of the worlds deadliest countries for reporters, after a Mexican radio journalist was shot dead Saturday at a restaurant in Tabasco, in the east of the capital city, the local media reported. The victim, named Jesus Ramos Rodriguez, killed in the town of Emiliano Zapata, had hosted news bulletins on radio for over a decade. Chennel NewsAsia quoted the Mexican newspaper El Universal daily as stating that eyewitnesses had seen the alleged attacker stepping out of a car and started shooting at Rodriguez from a point-blank range more than eight times. The drug war and political corruption in the country have fuelled up violence and crime lately. More than 100 journalists have been reportedly assassinated in Mexico since 2000, with 10 killed last year alone. International non-profit organisation Reporters Without Borders in 2018 had ranked the Latin American country as the third-most-dangerous country for journalists, after Afghanistan and Syria. However, most of the criminal cases in the country are dispersed without proper punishment. Jesus Ramos Rodriguez is the second journalist after Rafael Murua was found dead in a ditch in January. Murua, who had received death threats for his work, was found dead after being reported missing. He had been under the Mexican government's protection program for journalists and rights activists. Thailands cooperation with Huawei on the test bed does not mean it is not concerned about security issues. Thailand launched a Huawei Technologies 5G test bed on Friday, even as the United States urges its allies to bar the Chinese telecoms giant from building next-generation mobile networks. Huawei, the worlds top producer of telecoms equipment and second-biggest maker of smartphones, has been facing mounting international scrutiny amid fears China could use its equipment for espionage, a concern the company says is unfounded. The 5G test bed in Thailand, the United States oldest ally in Asia, will be Huaweis first in Southeast Asia. Thailands cooperation with Huawei on the test bed does not mean it is not concerned about security issues, Minister of Digital Economy Pichet Durongkaveroj told Reuters at the launch. We keep a close watch on the allegations worldwide. However, this 5G test bed project is a testing period for the country, Pichet added. We can make observations which will be useful to either confirm or disconfirm the allegations. Pichet was speaking at the test site in Chonburi, the heart of the Thai military governments USD 45 billion economic project - the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC)- about 90 km (55.92 miles) southeast of Bangkok. Vendors like Nokia, Ericsson and Thai telecoms operators have also set up 5G labs at the site. Huawei, which gets nearly half of its revenue from outside China, says it has secured more than 30 commercial 5G contracts globally. But it has not yet signed a 5G contract in Thailand. Huawei is in talks with telecoms operators, such as Advanced Info Service Pcl and TRUE, to secure local partnerships ahead of a national rollout scheduled for December 2020, industry sources with knowledge of the matter said. Asked if the United States had reached out to Thailand about barring Huawei, Pichet said: I have no knowledge of that. Huawei has repeatedly denied US-led allegations that its equipment could be used by Beijing for spying. There is no evidence indicating that our equipment posed a security threat, no matter in Thailand or globally, Huawei Thailand said in a statement to Reuters on Friday. Cybersecurity has been made into a political and maybe ideological issue which is not fair for a technology company, Huawei added in its statement. Earlier, a US embassy spokesperson in Bangkok said the United States advocates for secure telecoms networks and supply chains that are free from suppliers subject to foreign government control or undue influence that poses risks of unauthorised access and malicious cyber activity. We routinely urge allies and partners to consider such risks and exercise similar vigilance in ensuring the security of their own telecoms networks and supply chains, including when awarding contracts, the spokesperson added. Ties between the United States and Thailand have cooled since the Thai military took power in a 2014 coup. Relations between Bangkok and Beijing, on the other hand have, warmed in recent years as evident from a pick up in defense trade and Chinese investment in the Southeast Asian nation. Huawei has previously set up a cloud data center worth USD 22.5 million in Thailands EEC, a centerpiece of the governments policy to boost growth in the country that has struggled to attract foreign investors besides the Chinese. Alibaba, Tencent, Kingsoft and JD.com have also pledged to invest in the EEC. This stands in stark contrast to the intense scrutiny being faced by Chinese investment in other parts of the world amid a crippling Sino-US trade war. Reuters reported exclusively on Jan. 30 that the European Commission was considering proposals that would ban Huawei from 5G networks, but that work was at an early stage. For Thailand, security concerns over Huaweis equipment come second to its competitive pricing versus that by US firms, Pranontha Titavunno, Chairman of the Information Technology Industry Club of the Federation of Thai Industries, said. We dont think about it because their products are decent and affordable, Pranontha told Reuters. There are always surveillance concerns when it comes to China ... But Thailand doesnt really have anything exciting that might be of interest to Beijing. Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter. Talks on security standards for the mobile network were ongoing. Germanys federal cybersecurity agency is investigating whether Chinas Huawei Technologies could be a security threat after warnings from other countries, the Funke group of newspapers reported on Friday, citing Economy Minister Peter Altmaier. The government currently has no own information on whether the Chinese company could be a security threat, Altmaier was quoted as saying, adding that the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) had been activated. Altmaier told Funke that talks on security standards for the mobile network were ongoing, adding that Germany needed to protect itself in all sensitive areas, from hospitals to telecommunication. His comments appeared to push back against reports that Berlin had reached a consensus not to exclude Huawei from building next-generation 5G networks, deciding instead to impose tougher compliance rules on foreign vendors. Huawei, the global networks market leader with annual sales exceeding USD 100 billion, faces international scrutiny over its ties to the Chinese government and suspicion Beijing could use its technology for spying. The company denies this. Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter. In both Syria and Afghanistan the prime theatres of the American-led offensive against Islamic radicals triggered by 9/11 a stalemate is setting in to the advantage of the ISIS and Taliban-Al Qaeda axis respectively, and this must cause concern to the democratic world in general and India in particular. This has unmistakably happened due to three developments. First, the war on terror that was launched on two premises failed on both the counts the expectation that the moderates in the Muslim world would fight the radical extremists at home and the presumption that the liberal funding from the US would push forth the cause of democracy in the Islamic countries. Second, the burden of taking down the Islamic terrorists fell solely on the United States and made the war a project of diminishing returns for the latter, primarily because of Pakistans role on the Afghan front and the reappearance of the Cold War legacy in Syria that had made Hafez al-Assad, the father of Syrias current President Bashar al-Assad, such a formidable opponent of the West and a friend of the erstwhile Soviet bloc. In the present civil war in Syria only a section of the Muslims backed by the US are taking on President Bashar, while the ISIS continues to confront the Americans in pursuit of its goal of establishing a caliphate. The third paradigm shift in relation to the war on terror and this is the cumulative outcome of the first two factors is the silent endorsement that Islamic radicals were enjoying on considerations of faith, across the Muslim world. The radicals are revivalists who carry the historical memory of the Wahhabi movement of the 19th century that was led by the Ulema in the format of jihad against the Western encroachment on Muslim lands. Their slogan is to revive the puritanical Islam of the golden period of the first four caliphs for restoring its glory. This gives them an acceptable place in the Islamic spectrum and leaves little ground for the rest of the Ummah to reject them. Pakistan is an example before the world of how a country, while pretending to be on board with the US-led international coalition against the new global terror, did not take on the Taliban entrenched in Khyber Pakhtunwa (KP) from where it has been organising attacks in Afghanistan. The Pakistan Armys total focus is on the proxy war launched against India using India-specific militant outfits under its control. Pakistan had taken advantage of the American soft-pedalling on this Pak-sponsored cross-border terrorism making a distinction between good terrorists and bad terrorists. Pakistans game is now exposed, and US President Donald Trump has suspended aid to that country, which unsurprisingly has led Prime Minister Imran Khan to publicly declare that Pakistan had committed a mistake in fighting the American war. The Pakistan Army is looking at Islamic militants of all shades as its strategic assets, and this is clearly in evidence in Afghanistan, where it is cleverly playing on Mr Trumps impatience over the continuance of US troops in that country to position itself as a mediator between the US and the Taliban. It is Pakistan that had installed the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan in 1996 under Taliban chief Mullah Mohammad Omar. Left to themselves, Pakistan and the Taliban had no problem with each other. Although the US and India are talking of an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process, Pakistan is looking for an outcome that would enable it to hold sway in Afghanistan and keep India out of the frame there. The latest Taliban attack on the training establishment of the Afghan security forces outside Kabul in which at least 125 personnel were killed signals the intrinsic inadequacy of Afghanistan to defend itself against the covert offensive of Islamic radicals. The war on terrorseems to be tapering off notwithstanding the induction of drones for intelligence-based elimination of terrorist leaders. The Taliban enjoys a tacit understanding with the Pakistan Army, which has sensed victory is in the offing. India could be in for an enhanced threat from the Pakistan-Afghanistan belt because of the ease with which the Pakistan Army and its Inter-Services Intelligence would be able to spread radicalisation in India and manoeuvre Al Qaeda-Taliban groups to target this country. The geopolitical dimension of the war on terror worked for India so long as the presence of US troops in Afghanistan helped the process of reconstruction of the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces (ANDSF) and provided scope for India to contribute to that countrys development. As it is, the government of President Ashraf Ghani has its writ running only on just half of Afghanistans territory. China and Russia, for their own reasons, want to be on the Afghan table for peace negotiations their wishful thinking is that a friendly Pakistan would be helpful in keeping the Muslim-dominated areas on their periphery free of Islamic extremism and radicalisation. They have not forgotten the importance of Afghanistan as the geographical pivot of history since the days of the Great Game. India had enthusiastically supported the US-led war on terror because it had seen how the Taliban regime of Afghanistan had apart from its historical animosity towards the West and the Shias, started taking out its wrath on the world of idolatrous people by destroying the Buddhist statues of Bamiyan. It is in this backdrop that the declaration by the US special envoy for Afghan reconciliation, Zalmay Khalizad, on January 26 at the end of his six-day talks with Taliban representatives at Doha that the two sides were close to an agreement on a ceasefire by the Taliban in lieu of a phased withdrawal of American troops, is to be scrutinised carefully. The Taliban is yet to agree on talks with the Afghan government. The US has the comfort of distance which India does not have as far as the threat of Islamic extremism is concerned, and Pakistans designs of fishing in Indias domestic politics on the issue of the alleged insecurity of the Muslim minority here gives an added dimension to the threat to our internal security. A multi-pronged strategy must be worked out without delay, of which countering radicalisation on our own soil is a matter of the utmost priority. Mr Khalizad had recently met Mr Ashraf Ghani after visiting China, the UAE and India for furthering the process of Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace negotiations involving the Taliban. The test for the US special envoy is now to bring around the Pakistan Army to play its part in restoring democracy in war-torn Afghanistan. This is a tall order, to say the least. A half-baked formula of bringing Islamic radicals into the national mainstream will only serve the interest of Pakistan and not decrease Indias security concerns. India cant do anything about this except to prepare for the possible emergence of a hostile Pak-Afghan region in the near future. As the Mahila Congress chief, you have spoken extensively against the Triple Talaq Bill. You recently said that the Congress would do away with the Bill if voted to power? Let there be no ambiguity. I started by saying that we will not be ready to pass any law which is against the Constitution. Then I said that we oppose the Triple Talaq Bill as we will not allow triple talaq to be criminalised and therefore, when our party comes to power, we will make sure that this Bill is done away with. It is a very short Bill. There are only two or three sections to it. What is in it except criminalisation? The other things it talks about are custody and maintenance, both of which are covered under the Domestic Violence Act. What does it bring to the table just criminalisation? What I said in Lok Sabha is not different from what I said at the minority convention. It (the Bill) is not needed. One single judge said bring a law in Parliament but he never said criminalise it. You look at any other law, whether it is of Hindus, Christians, Jains or Parsis. When a man leaves his wife... basically it is desertion. Nowhere is it criminalised. Why criminalise triple talaq? If anybody in the BJP says they are doing Muslim women a favour, it is a facade. Anybody who understands civil law, rather any educated person who understands what should be in the jurisdiction of civil law and what should be criminalised and uses common sense should know that this is just posturing. When you hammer a narrative through every television channel then people start believing it. Do you know that here are Muslim women who wrote to the law commission opposing criminalisation? I have met Muslim women extensively before I opened my mouth and this government has met no one before bringing in the Bill. It does not matter what TV channels show. Go to Uttar Pradesh, Assam and other states, no woman wants triple talaq to be criminalised. They could have brought a civil act to say that we are fining you with Rs 50 lakh or RS 5 lakh. Can any law force a man to live with a woman? By criminalising triple talaq, are you going to be actually stopping desertions? I am crystal clear, we are against criminalisation of triple talaq. I want to ask Narendra Modi, how many Hindu women are deserted? Criminalise it (desertion). Why are you not doing that? Why only such benevolence for the Muslim woman? Because it is part of a larger design to demonise the Muslim man. But people are comparing this with the Shah Bano case during Rajiv Gandhis time? People say that Rajiv Gandhi, by bringing the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act, disempowered women despite the Supreme Court judgment. Please read Flavia Agnes on this. She says that what unfolded after the Bill is that Muslim women in the Iddat period got the settlement of a lifetime. Actually that Act had become a problem for the Muslim men. A law is good or bad after you do impact assessment. If you look at the Shah Bano impact assessment, people are getting lakhs of rupees under this act. So lets wait two years for the Triple Talaq Bill. It is not going to help Muslim women. What has been your experience since taking over as Mahila Congress chief? I took over in 2017 and what I inherited, I believe, is huge amounts of women cadre but the challenge was that they were not equally spread out across the country. In some districts we were strong, some we were not. It has taken me over a year to build the organisation at the block levels because it is extremely difficult to mobilise women at the grassroots as they are the primary caretakers of the children and they have household chores. But I have improved it a lot. The Congress president had told me that the Mahila Congress has to turn into a vibrant organisation with lots of fresh blood. Our target is outreach. Rather than expecting people to come to rallies, instead we go to them. I always organise programmes which take us to their doorsteps. The primary task of the Mahila Congress is a door-to-door campaign. When you took over you had mentioned that Womens Reservation Bill would be your priority? Women in governance and more women in political parties this doesnt necessarily strike a cord with every woman in the village. I have met thousands of women in villages, and their biggest issues are employment, education of children, security and access to health. They want reservation but it is not something which is at the top of their list. More women in urban and semi-urban areas want reservation. But the bigger issue is that by not bringing the Reservation Bill to Parliament, the BJP has betrayed the people. After 30 years we had a government with a majority. The Rajya Sabha would not have been a problem as the Congress and the BJP both supported it. So what is the Prime Ministers excuse? There was absolutely nothing standing in the way of this government passing the law. Both Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi have written to the PM on this. The Congress as the largest Opposition party did a historical thing by supporting the Bill. I see it as a social reform which Narendra Modi did not bring. You have been deeply involved in drafting the Congress manifesto as far as womens issues are concerned. What kind of consultations have you carried out? We have tried to meet a cross-section of people. We havent done it like an event management thing we have actually gone out to various sections like teachers, students women farmers, the LGBTQ community and various NGOs who have worked for children and the United Nations. We have done a very in-depth consultation. Policy is a very dynamic issue. What worked 20 years back cant work right now. You can successfully govern a country only if your ears are to the ground. The latest revelations on the controversial Rafale fighter deal through a newspaper report are damaging to the government. About 10 months before India and France signed the agreement for 36 aircraft in September 2016, an internal defence ministry note spoke of parallel parlays (sic) being conducted by the Prime Ministers Office which, it said, weakened the negotiating position of the MoD and the Indian Negotiating Team. The then defence secretary forwarded this note to defence minister Manohar Parrikar with his observation: RM (Raksha Mantri) may pl see. It is desirable that such discussions be avoided by the PMO as it undermines our negotiating position seriously. As per established procedure, all aspects of the negotiation with a foreign party on defence purchases are conducted by the Indian negotiating team, a body of technical, financial and legal experts. It is the violation of this procedure that raises serious concerns. The PMO has no experts of the kind needed to select an advanced combat aircraft. Was it consulting its own experts, bypassing the body of specialists assembled with care, as norms require. This would be unconventional, to say the least. And whose idea was this, anyway? The current defence minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, chose to make a political reply to the revelations on Friday, after Congress president Rahul Gandhi cited the news report to return to attack the government on the Rafale issue. She hit out at the Congress Party and sharply criticised the newspaper which had carried the fresh revelations. A reply relying on facts and substance would have been more reassuring to the Indian public as the `60,000-crore Rafale purchase is the most expensive defence acquisition made. The minister said the Opposition was flogging a dead horse... when periodically PMO enquires about the progress of any work (it) cannot be construed as interference. There is a regrettable cavalier air about such a reply. The Rafale issue is a key subject the Opposition has raised and the matter is by no means a dead horse. Besides, the senior defence ministry officials expressed their concern over parallel parleys conducted by the PMO, that is, parallel negotiations, which was undermining the Indian negotiating stance. This is not the same as the PMO making periodic enquiries. In any case, such enquiries presumably to review progress must be made from our own defence ministry, not from the French side. While replying, Ms Sitharaman may have relied on her predecessors response to the concerns raised. He had called them an over-reaction. If so, its time for an impartial inquiry body question him, the relevant defence ministry and PMO officials. Late last year, the government suppressed the notings of concern from the Supreme Court, which held that procedures were followed. Would this have been its reaction if the full facts were known? Governments have a wrong notion about their power to withdraw a criminal case pending in a court of law. The power was given in the Criminal Procedure Code enacted by a colonial government in 1898. It was retained in the code revised in India in 1973 with a few changes. Section 321 empowers the public prosecutor in charge of a case to withdraw from the prosecution of any person before the judgment is pronounced. But it is subject to a condition laid down in the code itself. The withdrawal must be with the consent of the court. This condition itself implies that it is the duty of the court to see that the withdrawal is to meet the ends of justice and not for an improper reason, for example, political expediency. Section 321 advisedly confers the power on the public prosecutor and not the state government, as many other provisions of the code do. There is good reason for this. It is to emphasise that the discretion belongs entirely to the public prosecutor, as a lawyer who is an officer of the court. The code provides for the appointment of a public prosecutor by the state or central government after consultation with the high court. The only qualification prescribed is practice as an advocate for not less than seven years. There is no security of tenure. Their salaries are low. How many or how few can resist the command of the politician in power as home minister or chief minister? The Supreme Court laid down the law in a series of cases on the independence of the prosecutor. He must apply an independent mind. He acts as a limb of the judiciary, not the executive. But the newspapers tell a different story. Cases are withdrawn on the change of government. What was reported on January 28 is typical of the actual practice. The Uttar Pradesh government has decided to withdraw 18 cases related to the Muzaffarnagar riots and asked the district authorities to approach the court. UPs special secretary of law J.J. Singh has directed Muzaffarnagar district magistrate... to withdraw the cases. On this directive from Lucknow, the district authorities began to prepare themselves to ask the court for permission to withdraw the cases. The cases were filed under sections concerned of the Indian Penal Code including 147 (rioting), 148 (rioting, armed with deadly weapon) and 397 (attempt to cause death). The instructions came after the state government sought details of 125 cases linked to the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots. Additional district magistrate Amit Kumar said that the state government had wanted more information to review the possibility of withdrawing the 125 cases in courts. Several leaders of the ruling BJP were named in these 125 cases. Communal clashes in Muzaffarnagar and the adjoining areas in the second half of 2013 had claimed 60 lives and displaced more than 40,000 people most of them Muslim, needless to add. The state government is headed by one Yogi Adityanath. The newspapers of February 5 reported how the process began from the executive. A note was prepared by the special secretary and undersecretary and sent directly to the district magistrate a week earlier. It concerned 38 criminal cases involving 100 accused. They were charged with dacoity, use of fire and explosive substances, defiling of place of worship (read, mosques) and outraging religious feelings. To clinch the issue, it is reported that it was the state government that first gave its sanction on January 10. The officers note followed on January 29. BJP MPs were pressing the Yogi for the withdrawal. That the governor, Ram Naik, consented is as irrelevant as it is revealing. He is a rabid communalist. The consent is neither for him nor the chief minister to give. The decision belongs in law exclusively to the public prosecutor. The law is based on English law which confers discretion on the attorney general. The first Labour government fell in 1924 because it withdrew a prosecution for political reasons. The attorney general was the legendary Sir Patrick Hastings, one of the foremost advocates of the day. Sir Patrick had authorised the prosecution of J.R. Campbell, acting editor of a communist weekly for seducing the armed forces from their allegiance to the Crown. Some days later, the prosecution was withdrawn giving rise to suspicion of political influence. A cabinet recorded a decision of August 6, 1924. It read: [N]o public prosecution of a political character should be undertaken without the prior sanction of the cabinet also being obtained. The cabinet endorsed Sir Patricks decision. In 1931, the minute was rescinded. The law was set right: In India it awaits that. By arrangement with Dawn The Central government is not the lone torch-bearer of the nations economic growth. The achievements and failures, the contradictions and anomalies are spread out in both the Central and state budgets. Many of us in the news business, especially those based in New Delhi, fail to take note of the state budgets, and give overriding importance to the Union Budget. It does not give an accurate picture of what is happening in the countrys economy and what the governments are doing. While Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his colleagues speak of cooperative federalism, there is not much talk of economic federalism. The Central government is not the lone torch-bearer of the nations economic growth. The achievements and failures, the contradictions and anomalies are spread out in both the Central and state budgets. Three state budgets presented on February 7 and 8 provide an interesting view on what is happening on the economic front in some parts of the country. The Uttar Pradesh and Odisha budgets were presented on February 7 and that of Tamil Nadu on February 8. The political thrust of these three state budgets are conspicuous. Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath said that budgets should be welfare-oriented (lokkalyankari) and not populist (lok-lubhavni)! Tamil Nadu and Odisha have projected growth rates of eight per cent, which is higher than the 7.1 per cent average of the national growth rate. And all the three governments have laid out expansive allocations in terms of infrastructure and the welfare of different sections of people. In Odisha, the Naveen Patnaik government has announced Rs 10,000 assistance to farmers in its interim budget compared to the Rs 6,000 per annum of Union finance minister Piyush Goyals interim budget and the Rs 8,000 that the Telangana government is offering to farmers. The Odisha government rejected the Central governments Ayushman Bharat scheme and introduced the Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana and allocated `864 crores for the scheme. Both in Tamil Nadu and in Uttar Pradesh outlays for education are quite impressive, Rs 28,757 crores has been allocated to the education department, Rs 1,656 crores for school education, Rs 1,072 crores for the laptop scheme in Tamil Nadu. In Uttar Pradesh, Rs 910 crores has been allocated for scholarships to students from the minority community, and Rs 549 crores for Arab-Farsi madrasas in the state. While the per capita income in Tamil Nadu is Rs 1,42,267 per annum, in Uttar Pradesh it is Rs 55,500. There is the curious fact in the Uttar Pradesh budget that tax on liquor, which is expected to fetch Rs 165 crores, will be spent for the upkeep of stray cattle. A total of Rs 612.6 crores has been earmarked for stray cattle and the construction of gau-shalas, or cattle shelters. The other interesting fact is that UP has declared its share of Goods and Services Tax (GST) to be Rs 77,000 crores Rs 31,000 crores from excise and Rs 78,000 crores from Motor Vehicle Tax. This should make the economists sit up and analyse that the tax earnings of the most populous state in the country have this topsy-turvy picture where state taxes outstrip that of the GST, though the states share of the GST should be commensurate with its total tax earnings of the pre-GST period. It does not seem to be the case. Its GST share cannot be its share of the Central pool of taxes, but much more. It is also interesting that all three states have managed to rein in their fiscal deficits. Former Union finance minister Yashwant Sinha had argued in 2013 that it was the good performance of the states economies that was buoying up the nations economic growth rate, and that the Central government cannot take the credit for this. There is reason then to look closely at the states economies because every once in a while we hear the economists groaning that it is the fiscal deficit of the state governments that threatens to sink the national economy. There has also been the argument that centralised planning is not right and that the states should have the freedom to set their own development and economic priorities. But Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP believe in a centralised state, and cooperative federalism is nothing but a euphemism of the Central government setting the national economic agenda, which is an anomaly in a federal setup. If the states are left free to do what is best for them, then there would not be much need for the Central government to preen about is management of the national economy. A close and comparative scrutiny of the states and Central budgets would reveal that many of the Central welfare schemes are overlapping with those of the state governments, and that the Central government should end this indulgence. This would free up the Central budget to focus on defence, currency and foreign policy. India has come to a stage when the Central government need not play the big brother in guiding the states to manage their economic affairs. While Prime Minister Modi had done the right thing in closing the Planning Commission, he has not yet given up the imperial project of the Central government to set the national economic agenda. India has grown because the states are doing well, and it is time that the states take the credit for the good and the bad that is happening in their states. The states budgets and their economies present a truer picture of the national economy than the outlays in the Central budget. The trend of state governments seeking foreign investments goes back to the late 1970s, when chief ministers in then Andhra Pradesh like M. Channa Reddy and N.T. Rama Rao sought investments from non-resident Indians (NRIs) in North America. They did not always succeed, but they showed the way. Economic federalism is the flavour of the moment. Hyderabad: The Jana Sena is considering taking part in the Lok Sabha elections in Telangana, after having stayed away from the Assembly elections. The party president Pawan Kalyan on Sunday constituted Parliamentary committees for Nalgonda, Medak, Bhongir and Warangal Lok Sabha seats. The party has already constituted the Parliamentary committees for the Secunderabad, Khammam and Malkajgiri Lok Sabha seats. The Jana Sena had formally decided in October 2018 to contest in the Telangana Assembly elections for limited seats. Later, the party president, in November, announced that their party has decided not to contest in the Assembly elections and it would fight in the ensuing Lok Sabha elections. Sources said the Jana Sena has already has tied with the Left Parties to contest in the ensuing Parliament and Assembly elections in the AP and it will also contest for Lok Sabha seats in Telangana. TD activists felicitate Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu at the IGMC stadium in Vijayawada on Sunday. Naidu is wearing a black shirt in protest against the Central government neglecting funds to Andhra Pradesh. Vijayawada: In a very sharp counter-attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who had called him Lokeshs father Chandrababu, AP Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu dragged in the name of Mr Modis wife. Speaking at a public meet at Vijayawada, Mr Naidu said, Do you know Modi has a wife? Her name is Jashodaben but he has shunned his wife and family. Speaking at the Indira Gandhi Municipal Stadium in Vijayawada, he objected to the way Mr Modi referred to him and said he was proud to be Mr Lokeshs father. He said Mr Modi did not know human and family relations as he has no son and had moved away from his wife and family. He said he was against bringing up personal issues but as Mr Modi had mentioned his family, he had replied in a similar manner. Mr Naidu alleged that Mr Modi had come all the way from Delhi in a special aircraft only to criticise him. Replying to the Prime Ministers charge that he had backstabbed N.T. Rama Rao, Mr Naidu said Mr Modi had the history of backstabbing his guru L.K. Advani. He said that after the Godhra massacre then Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee had decided to remove Mr Modi as Gujarat Chief Minister but his guru, Mr Advani, had stopped it. He said after becoming Prime Minister Mr Modi had forgotten this and had not even greeted his guru during a programme. On Mr Modis charge that he had switched parties, Mr Naidu said he had served the people through N.T. Rama Rao. I never practised opportunist politics, Mr Naidu said. He said Mr Modi wore costly dresses and footwear despite claiming to be a chaiwala, while he himself dressed as a common man. In response to Mr Modi making fun of his claim of being a senior in politics, Mr Naidu said the TD had elections continuously in 1994, 1996, 1998 and 1999. Mr Naidu said that Mr Modi had never given him respect nor had he fulfilled the assurances given to Andhra Pradesh. He said he had never asked Mr Modi for personal favours but only for AP. Mr Naidu said that TD had fought against the suppression of AP by the then Congress government and now the BJP government was doing the same. This is why the TD was fighting against injustice, he said. Irani said, 'Rahul Gandhi says that if you (IAF pilots) die on duty, he would give money. Leave aside politics; if you look at it from a humanitarian angle, it indicates his mindset.' (Photo: File) New Delhi: Union Minister Smriti Irani on Saturday hit out at Congress President Rahul Gandhi over his remark on the Rafale deal and pilots of the Indian Air Force. Responding to Gandhi's comments that Rs. 30,000 crore could be given to families of Air Force pilots, Irani said that his remarks indicate the mindset that death can be compensated with money. "Rahul Gandhi says that if you (IAF pilots) die on duty, he would give money. Leave aside politics; if you look at it from a humanitarian angle, it indicates his mindset," Irani said at an event in Delhi. "I want to speak to every member of the armed forces of this nation... Here, it is absolutely clear that the prime minister has stolen Rs. 30,000 crore of your money, bypassed a process, and given it to his friend Anil Ambani," Gandhi said at a press conference over the Rafale matter, calling the deal as an "open and shut case". Gandhi was referring to a newspaper report which claimed that the Ministry of Defence had objected to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) negotiating with the French government over the price of Rafale aircraft. "This 30,000 crore could have been used for your safety. This 30,000 crore could have been given to your family. This 30,000 crore could be give to you when you die in a plane crash," Gandhi had said. New Delhi: In a fresh attack on the BJP over alleged horse-trading to topple the H.D. Kumaraswamy government in Karnataka, the Congress on Saturday said that the BJP state unit president and former CM B.S. Yeddyurappa had offered around Rs 200 crore to 18 of its MLAs in an attempt to destabilise the ruling coalition in the state. Releasing an audio tape at a press conference here, Congress general secretary in charge of Karnataka K.C. Venugopal and chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala alleged that Mr Yeddyurappa had offered Rs 10 crore to each MLA and Rs 50 crore to the Speaker. Mr Surjewala and Mr Venugopal also alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP national president Amit Shah were involved in the attempts to topple the JD(S)-Congress government in Karnataka. The Congress leaders also said that the party would raise the issue in Parliament next week. The state government is being destabilised by the national government, Mr Venugopal said. Mr Surjewala added that since Mr Yeddyurappa was heard saying in the audio that Mr Amit Shah will manage judges, the Chief Justice of India should take suo motu cognisance of attempts to defame the judiciary. "He (Mr Yedyurappa) is also offering election expenses to MLAs after they resign. They are offering Rs 50 crore to the Speaker for not disqualifying those MLAs. The clippings are referring to the names of Mr Amit Shah and Mr Narendra Modi for managing here and through Mr Yeddyurappa there," Mr Venugopal added. The purported audio tape was made public by Mr Kumaraswamy at a hurriedly called press conference in Bengaluru hours before he presented the Budget in the state Assembly on Friday. Mr Yeddyurappa has dismissed the audio clips as "fake" and the allegations as "a concocted story". Bahubali, the Jain monk towers over Karnatakas history and it is not only the gigantic statue of the royal turned ascetic at Shravanabelagola which has captured the imagination of every history lover over the years. There is another Bahubali carved out 40 years ago and its fourth Maha Mastakabhisheka will be celebrated this month at Dharmasthala where it lords over peoples dreams and destinies. GURURAJ A. PANIYADI delves into history to trace how this magnificent statue took shape. It was nothing less than the annual festival in every village that lasted for several months. Everybody in Dakshina Kannada district and even outside, 40 years ago wanted to be a part of the great event- the carving of the massive Bahubali statue, its transportation and the first Maha Mastakabhisheka! Eight year old Abdul Khader would read every detail in the newspapers, listen to stories about the statue from his friends and family members and wondered how it was possible. Everybody, right from young to old would talk about the carving of the Lord Bahubali idol, its transportation to Dharmasthala, installation and the grand anointment or the Maha Mastakabhisheka. People even queued up to see the carving of the massive monolith at Karkala and later rushed to witness the transportation of this monolith from Karkala to Dharmasthala which is 64 kms away. Carved at Karkala, the gigantic monolithic statue, 39 ft. high, with a pedestal of 13 feet weighing about 170 tonnes, had to cover 64 kms and reach the destination at Dharmasthala. It was nothing but a challenge. Probably no other Bahubali statue might have travelled so long from the place of carving to the place of installation. Every single person in the village enroute was enthusiastic about the event and participated in the transport of the monolith. Four decades down the line, much water has flown in the River Netravathi and the same Abdul Khader, who used to eagerly watch the idol of Bahubali, is today supervising all the government work at Dharmasthala town which is gearing up for the fourth Maha Mastakabhisheka. Abdul Khader has grown to be District Incharge Minister Mr U.T. Khader! The fourth Mama Mastakabhisheka to Lord Bahubali of Dharmasthala was inaugurated on Saturday and will continue till February 18. The Maha Mastakabhisheka itself would be held for three days on February 16, 17 and 18. At a meeting held to supervise the readiness of the Maha Mastakabhisheka last week, U.T. Khader went down memory lane and relived his childhood days. I was probably in 4th standard then. The idol of Lord Bahubali was carved at Karkala and had to be transported to Dharmasthala. That was big news then. Newspapers used to report every detail. People would speak about it as it was the greatest event then. Such a big monolith being transported in a massive trolley was unbelievable. We had never seen such a trolley till then. People would come to have a glance at it. They would see how the statue was transported. A new bridge was also built, care was taken to see that the existing road and bridges were not damaged. Everybody wanted to be a part of history in the making. My father was an MLA then and I still remember how I attended the function, Minister U .T. Khader recollects. Every middle-aged and elderly person in Dakshina Kannada district has some such memories related to the Bahubali of Dharmasthala. There has been great support and co-operation from the devotees for the event right from transportation of the statue. This shows the secular flavour of the Kshetra. The message of peace and harmony which Lord Bahubali had given is popular among the people at Dharmasthala, Dr Veerendra Heggade, Dharmasthala dharmadhikari said. Rituals remain the same but we have seen much improvement in the last three Maha Mastakabhishekas. Technology has improved in the last four decades due to which organising such a programme has become much easier. Through media we are able to reach more people, through technological innovations and improvement we are able to organise the event in a better way. We have strong scaffolding and better arrangements for the devotees to witness the grand event, he added. Four decades ago arrangements including boarding was difficult. Transportation was also a problem and we did not have as many employees. However today things have changed and we are able to make many improvements, he said. The statue was envisioned by Late Shri Rathnavarma Heggade and Late Smt Rathnamma Heggade and completed by their son Dr Veerendra Heggade The statue, was consecrated in 1982 but the story behind this is what interests anybody.The idea of consecrating a Bahubali statue at Dharmasthala was envisioned by Late Shri Rathnavarma Heggade who observed that Bahubali statues around the state contributed towards the holistic well being of society, as they brought together people from all communities, spread the message of peace, as well as inculcated in people the essence of simplicity in the midst of celebration. He shared his vision with his wife Maatrushree Ratnamma who too agreed and stood by him. Shashikanth Jain, an astrologer from Bengaluru selected Rajatagiri as the place to install the monolith. The foundation stone was laid for the statue by the then President of India, V V Giri. When the search began for a great and efficient sculptor who could efficiently bring a stone to life in the form of Bahubali- the famed sculptor from Karkala, sixty four year old Renjala Gopala Shenoy was approached. Gopala Shenoy was to carve one of the greatest masterpieces of the modern era and bring Dharmasthala on the map of the few places with a Bahubali Monolith. The work began at Mangala Pade at Karkala on the auspicious occasion of Vijayadashami in 1967. On an average, 25 labourers worked for nearly 6 years and completed the statue. The best sculptors were handpicked by Gopala Shenoy as there could not be any mistake in the carving. Once completed, a massive statue that would attract lakhs of devotees was ready. It was to make history as Dharmasthala would be one among the places like Shravanabelagola, Karkala and Venur with Bahubali monoliths . Though the statue resembles Bahubali statues in other parts of the state, this has some unique factors such as elephants showering flowers over the feet of the statue and divine creatures untangling the creepers around the body. Except for the serious expression on the face that overlooks the world through half closed eyes, the statue, with a breadth of 224 inches, resembles the one at Venur. After carving, there was a new challenge of transporting the idol to Dharmasthala covering 64 kms.Mangatram Construction Company in Mumbai readily agreed to the herculean task. Dr Heggade and Deenanath Oban (owner of Mangatram Co) themselves guided the entire process. A special vehicle weighing 20 tonnes and constituting an engine with 250 HP, with 64 wheels was designed and brought down for the transportation of the statue. The 40 feet Bramhastamba transported to Dharmasthala as a trial, helped to remove the obstacles to the transportation of the monolith. The journey of Bahubali to Dharmasthala began on February 27, 1973 and the statue took 9 hours to board the truck. Sliding the statue onto the trolley was made easy by Prof. Basavarajayya from NITK- Surathkal. Covering a distance of 4 kms from Mangala Paade to the main road itself took a couple of days. The procession was led by an idol of Lord Ganesha from Dharmasthala, and accompanied by a number of elephants and horses. When the trolley had to cross bridges, the railway department played a crucial role. Temporary bridges were constructed in five place - Sanoor, Hosangadi, Venur, Belthangady and Dharmasthala. After the 23 day long journey the trolley reached Dharmasthala on March 20, 1973. Hindustan Construction Works, a Mumbai based company was approached for installing the monolith. Once the statue was installed, it was ready for religious events. The statue was consecrated under the guidance of the Jain Muni Vidyananda Maharaj and the first Mastakabhisheka for Bahubali at Dharmasthala was conducted. Another important attraction of the event was that the Bahubali statue was clad in royal attire. This event can be seen only during the first Mastakabhisheka where there is a symbolic recreation of the great moment of Bahubali deciding to renounce his worldly pleasures seeking salvation. During the event, the royal attire is removed forever, representing the renunciation that Bahubali practised. Bengaluru: Refusing to address AICC president Rahul Gandhi as a 'gentleman', Union Textile Minister Smriti Irani charged that Mr Gandhi is spewing venom against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for stopping loot in the country for the last 55 months. Delivering a key note address at an event, "Intellectual Merit", organised by the BJP here on Sunday, she said that the corrupt coalition of parties is demeaning Mr Modi since he is standing between them and the country's treasury. Mr Modi's government identified over eight crore fictitious names receiving government subsidy for the last 10 years. This was going on with the full knowledge of the then government. When Mr Modi stopped it, there were heartburns, she claimed. Kannur: The fourth edition of Kannur beach run (KBR) witnessed natives picking up top notch positions at Payyambalam beach here on Sunday morning. Barring the runner-up in the 10-km elite men category, all other winners are Indians. African native Simion came second in the 10 km elite men category. Buoyed by the thumping success in the last three years, the North Malabar Chamber of Commerce (NMCC) has been instrumental in carrying forward with KBR aiming at health wellness promotion and putting Kannur on the tourism map. "As many as 1,000-plus participants, including 50 foreigners, came for the event this time'," according to A.K Rafeek, the convener of the KBR. Foreigners include those from Hungary, Kenya, Netherlands and Dubai. "Many Kannur locals, settled in various countries, have come down for the annual run. Running along the picturesque beach of Payyambalam had exposed the untapped Kannur to the world," says Rafeek. Blade-runner Sajesh, who participated in the 3 km category, was honoured at the venue. National athlete and KBR brand ambassador Thonakal Gopi, NMCC president K. Vinod Narayanan, P.K Mehaboob among others were present. Rs 50,000, 25,000 and 5,000 were distributed as cash prize for the first three positions in both men, women sections of 10-km run (Elite/International) and 10-km amateur run. Rs 5000, 2500 and 1000 were awarded in the health category. Winners: 10-km run (men) (Elite/International)--Ranjith S, Simion, Nabeel Shah. 10-km (women)--Angel James, Divya George, Sandra. 10-km amateur (men)--Binu, Sanchit, Ravikiran. (women)--Neethu, Shruthi, Stella. Bhopal: Chief Minister Kamal Nath is most likely to leave Chhindwara Lok Sabha seat in Madhya Pradesh, he currently represents, to his son Nakul in the forthcoming general elections, due in March-April this year. A senior Congress leader disclosed to this newspaper here on Sunday that Mr Nath who won Chhindwara parliamentary constituency a record nine times, has made up his mind to field his elder son in the seat in the upcoming general elections. Mr Nath is mulling to get elected to the MP Assembly from the Chhindwara segment and leave the Chhindwara LS seat to his son to keep it with his family, the Congress leader said requesting not to be quoted. Mr Naths wife Alka had once represented Chhindwara LS seat when he withdrew from the elections. Interestingly, junior Mr Nath was seen accompanying his chief minister father, when the latter was attending different official programmes, held in Chhindwara on Sunday. In another development, another veteran Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia was believed to be planning to vacate his Guna parliamentary constituency in MP for his wife Priya Darshani Raje Scindia in the ensuing LS elections. Incidentally, the Scindia-bahu who was yet to make debut in politics, was scheduled to attend a women Congress meet in Shivpuri district in MP, scheduled to be held on February 19. Mr Scindia who was given charge of Uttar Pradesh (west) in coming generation elections, was said to be worried that he may not be able to devote enough time for his constituency during the elections since he would be busy in UP. The CH-47F Chinook helicopter has been certified combat-ready by the US Army and fielded to the first operational unit in July 2007. New Delhi: In what will boost Indias airlift capability during combat missions, first batch of four Chinook military helicopters for the Indian Air Force arrived at the Mundra port in Gujarat on Sunday. These are one of the most modern heavy-lift choppers in the world. Its primary mission is to move troops, artillery, ammunition, barrier materials, supplies and equipment on the battlefield. Currently, India has been using the Soviet-origin Mi-26s for the missions. India had finalised a mega contract with Boeing to procure 22 Apache helicopters and 15 Chinooks for the Indian Air Force in September 2015. The rest 11 Chinooks are expected to be delivered later this year. The CH47F (I) Chinooks will be ferried to Chandigarh, where they will be formally inducted into the Indian Air Force later this year. Chinook helicopters have been used by US Army service since 1962 and was also deployed in Vietnam. The CH-47F Chinook helicopter has been certified combat-ready by the US Army and fielded to the first operational unit in July 2007. Guntur: In a no-holds-barred attack on Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, Prime Minster Narendra Modi said during his visit to Andhra Pradesh on Sunday that the Telugu Desam supremo has made a U-turn after his (Mr Modis) chowkidar government started asking for accounts of the funds released by the Central government for the development of Andhra Pradesh. Calling the CM Lokeshs father Chandrababu, Mr Modi said Mr Naidu has never given an account of the public money he has spent and accused him of creating wealth for himself right from Polavaram to Amaravati. He declared that the people are ready to dislodge the corrupt government in AP, which he called Baap bete ke sarkar (Father and son government). The PM also alleged that Mr Naidu sticker was being used on the propaganda material of the Centrally-sponsored schemes. Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan received Mr Modi at Vijayawadas Gannavaram airport, but Mr Naidu skipped the welcome. Chief Secretary Anil Chandra Punetha was present but not a single minister was to be seen at the airport. A mammoth crowd had turned up to hear Mr Modi, who would be holding two other meetings on Sunday, one in Chennai and the other in Karnataka. I would like to put a full stop to a series of lies. In the past 55 months, the Central government has released adequate funds for the development of Andhra Pradesh. However, the state government did not utilise the funds allocated in an efficient manner. The Centre has done its best for AP. We did all we could for the people of AP in the last four-and-a-half years, Mr Modi said. He asked Mr Naidu, to stop abusing me. Tell people of AP where you have spent the money sent by the Centre. Previous governments have never asked for an account of the money. I want every rupee spent to be properly accounted for. Antics of father-son government is not appreciated by AP people and they are now determined to throw out this corrupt government, he said. The purpose of his government, he declared, is not wealth creation for self like Naidu. Our purpose is to give them transparent government and opportunities. Our purpose is to take care of all sons and daughters of India and not only his own son. Mr Modi said there were four reasons he called them truths why Mr Naidu had joined hands with the Congress, something that the founder of the TD would have opposed. The first was fear of losing badly in the election, second truth, establishing his son in politics, third truth, creation of huge wealth, fourth truth, this chowkidar, who is talking to you at this time, has made them scared. NTRs soul must be crying looking at Naidu joining the Congress. Dusht Congress of NTR has become Dost Congress of Naidu. The TD, which took birth from self-esteem and self-respect of Telugus has now completely become a foot-mat for the Congress. This is very unfortunate, Mr Modi said. Ive just done official work without much expenditure of public money. This meeting is done with the funds of BJP karyakartas. But Naidu is going to Delhi to get himself photographed by splurging AP peoples money, he said. Resorting to sarcasm, Mr Modi said, One must admire Chandrababu Naidu Garus honesty. He says he is a wealth creator. Hes obviously creating lots of wealth for him and his son while AP suffers. We are patriotic Indians. We are only thinking about the nation. Lokeshs father is saying correctly that he knows about wealth creation. They are busy creating their own wealth. One who promised Sunrise of Andhra Pradesh is busy in rising of his son. Hubballi, Tirupur: Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday attacked the Congress, saying for the Opposition party the defence sector was only about brokering deals. Mr Modis comments came after party president Rahul Gandhi recently upped the ante on the Rafale row by quoting a media report saying the PMO conducted parallel negotiations on the deal. From the seas to the skies, the Congress has several scams associated with the defence and in the process the party did not allow the modernisation of defence forces for long years that they were in power, Mr Modi said. Addressing a party rally at Perumanallur, he said the NDAs work culture was different from that of the previous governments. Targeting the Congress, he said Those who had the opportunity to rule the nation for years did not bother about Indias defence sector. For them this sector was only about brokering deals and helping their own set of friends. He referred to the pathbreaking step of creating two defence corridors one of which is in Tamil Nadu. He said a defence corridor will bring industry and investment options and opportunities for the States youth. Prime Minister Narendra Modi who arrived in Karnataka on Sunday to launch various projects including the new building of the IIT at Dharwad, made use of the opportunity to castigate the coalition government terming Mr H.D. Kumaraswamy as a weak chief minister. Taking potshots at the Mahagathbandhan of opposition parties being planned to take on the BJP led NDA, Mr Modi said attempts are being made to impose a government similar to the coalition at the Centre. Modern India requires a strong government, not 'helpless governments,' he remarked. Referring to the political instability in Karnataka, he said people are in a state of confusion on who is charge of the state's administration. The CM is getting threats from his coalition partner, the Congress, he remarked. Commenting on the fight between Kampli Congress MLA Ganesh and his colleague and Hosapete MLA Anand Singh, the PM said ruling party leaders have remained in power only to meet their selfish motives. Drawing a comparison between the loan waiver scheme of the state government and Centre's plans for the welfare of farmers, he said the Prime Minister's Kisan Yojana will benefit more than 12 crore farmers in the country. "If you compare the schemes launched by the Centre and those of the state government, you will realize the honest effort made by us for the farming community. Though CM Kumaraswamy has announced a loan waiver, it will require 10 years to waive off the loans." On the opposition attack on him, the Prime Minister said their political culture of abusing Modi may give them some space in television but the elections are fought on ones vision for the nation, not slander and attack. Remembering Congress stalwart and former chief minister of Tamil Nadu, the late K. Kamaraj, he said the great leader always wanted a government in power which has zero tolerance towards corruption. You have placed a government in Delhi who is putting a lock on corruption, Mr Modi said. PTI Bengaluru: Emerging from his hibernation, former Chief Minister S M Krishna, who severed his decades' long association with the Congress to join the BJP some years ago, on Saturday urged his friends and colleagues in his former party to join the BJP and support Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who had given scam-free governance for the last four- and -a- half years. Addressing party workers and district leaders meeting here, the former External Affairs Minister, who had retreated into the background after the Assembly polls last year, appears to be now back in the swing of things with the Lok Sabha polls approaching and clearly hopes to try and influence the voters of his district to vote for the BJP. "A new effort is being made in Mandya by BJP and I am optimistic that it will open its account in the Mandya Lok Sabha constituency these poll. I would like all my old colleagues in the Congress to join the BJP as their support is vital in these LS polls," Mr Krishna said. "Being born in this district, I want to see the lotus bloom here in the crucial Lok Sabha polls to be held in a few months. I will be involved actively in the campaign and visit all the assembly constituencies ," he added. Earlier, speaking to reporters he said he was not aware that Ms Sumalatha Ambarish, wife of the late former minister, M H Ambarish, was hoping to contest from Mandya. On the audio tape released by Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy of an alleged conversation between the state BJP chief and the son of a JDS MLA, he said Mr Yeddyurappa had already said he would retire from politics if the tape was genuine. Full of praise for the Prime Minister, Mr Krishna said he had brought in a revolution in the country in 2014 and provided a clean administration. As for the last UPA government at the Centre, Mr Krishna recalled that he was part of it from 2009 to 2014 under then Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh. "But Mr Singh had absolutely no control over the government since everything was managed by (present Congress president) Mr Rahul Gandhi. His meddling resulted in a number of scams like the 2G Spectrum and coal scam. Many things happened without the knowledge of Dr Singh. Mr Rahul even tore a copy of the bill opposed by the then PM," he said. Ridiculing the mahaghatbandhan, Mr Krishna said some 20 "opportunistic" parties had teamed up to take on the NDA government, but had so far not decided who would head it. President of the Navy Wives Welfare Association (Southern Region) Sapana Chawla gifts a gas stove to the lady of the house as Vice-Admiral Anil Kumar Chawla claps, at the house warming ceremony of V.K. Babu at Muttinakam in Kochi on Saturday. Image: DC KOCHI: Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Southern Naval Command Vice-Admiral Anil Kumar Chawla on Saturday handed over the keys of a newly-constructed house to V.K. Babu, Vevukattu at Muttinakam near Varapuzha here. The construction was sponsored by the Navy as part of the rehabilitation activities being undertaken by the SNC as Mr Babu's original dwelling was severely damaged during the floods. It was demolished and reconstructed at a cost of Rs. 9.35 lakh. "The new house was built as per specifications and suggestions of the house owner, and has two bedrooms, a drawing room, hall and a kitchen, with vitrified tile flooring in all the rooms. The project was being steered by INS Venduruthy and has been completed within four months," the Navy said. The Vice-Admiral was accompanied Ms Sapana Chawla, president of the Navy Wives Welfare Association (Southern Region), and other senior officers. The family celebrated the occasion as house warming, and Ms Chawla gifted a gas stove to the lady of the house. Earlier, Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Sunil Lanba had visited the damaged house in August and had assured construction of a new house, for which he had sanctioned special funds to the Southern Naval Command. Another set of three houses are under construction at Cheriya Kadamakudi for flood victims, which are likely to be completed next month. Kottayam: The five nuns of the Missionaries of Jesus congregation at Kuravilangad convent, who were transferred out, have got a reprieve. Bishop Agnelo Gracious, Apostolic Administrator of the Jalandhar diocese, has ordered the congregation to withhold the transfer orders of the nuns, who were part of the protest against bishop Franco Mulakkal, till the case is over. In a letter addressed to the five nuns - Anupama, Neena Rose, Ancitta, Alphy and Josephine -, bishop Gracious expressed surprise and dismay over the move and said that he was giving a directive to Regina Kadamthottu, superior- general of the congregation, not to issue any letters to the five nuns without his permission. This will be an order to her from me as apostolic administrator in charge of the congregation--since it is of diocesan right, it comes under me, says the letter. It sought to reassure the nuns that there would be no move from the diocese of Jalandhar to oust them from Kuravilangad convent as long as they were needed for the court case. The truth will only emerge when all the evidence is presented. I am sure the Church would want the truth to emerge, it added. The bishop also apologised for his long silence after the nuns sent him a letter and clarified that he had been busy taking lectures for theologians in Mumbai. In separate notices issued to the nuns last month, the superior-general had sought to enforce the transfer orders of last year. While the communique to Sister Anupama Kelamangalathuveliyil directed her to join the Chamiyari community in Punjab as per an earlier order in March 2018, Sister Ancitta Urumbil was asked to join the Pariyaram community, Kannur. Sister Alphy Pallasseril was directed to join the Pakartala community in Bihar while Sister Josephine Villoonnickal was reminded of her appointment as superior at the Lalmatia community in Jharkhand in May 2017. Sister Neena Rose, who was also part of the protest, was asked to appear before the authorities in Jalandhar to submit a defence of her action. Following this, the nuns wrote to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan seeking his intervention to ensure their safety and stay the transfer orders. Kottayam: Union Minister of State for Culture and Tourism Alphons Kannanthanam has pulled up the state government for its lethargic attitude towards central projects affecting their timely implementation. Mr Kannanthanam told reporters here on Saturday that the state government had not spent a single paisa of the Rs. 20 crore sanctioned for the first phase of the Rs.99.99-crore Sabarimala corridor project. Similarly, the implementation of the Rs. 46- crore project at Guruvayur temple was moving at a slow pace. According to him, the centre had allocated a total of Rs. 550 crore for the tourism sector in Kerala, which is the highest amount for any state. This also includes a flagship spiritual circuit project linking 133 religious centres across the state. "The Rs. 69.47-crore project having Sivagiri as its focus will belaunched on Sunday and the Rs. 76.55- crore GaviWagamon - Thekkadi tourism project on February 17. Further, works are slated to begin on a Rs. 80.37-crore project for developing cruise tourism,'' he said. As part of the efforts to revive the flood-ravaged tourism industry of Kerala, the Union Ministry of Tourism will organise a 'cultural festival of India' at Thekkinkadu maidan, Thrissur, and Amal Jyothi Engineering College, Kanjirappally, on February 23 and 24 respectively. He also criticised Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan for triggering an unwarranted controversy by shooting off a letter to the prime minister regarding the inauguration of Sivagiri pilgrimage circuit project. "The centre has the discretion as to whom to invite. However, as a matter of courtesy, I personally sent intimation letters to the state tourism minister and the chief minister on the inauguration of the project," he said. Regarding the coming Lok Sabha election, he said he was not keen on contesting it, but would abide by the party decision. Kasaragod: The police on Saturday booked a teenager for the attempted murder of his teacher. The plus-two student allegedly beat him up for stopping malpractice in the model exam. The teacher had his shoulder bone broken and impaired hearing. The tragic incident happened at Chemnad Jamath HSS on Friday. The teacher, Dr Baby Jose, 44, of Thimiri in Cheruvathur, is undergoing treatment. Kasargod Town inspector V.V. Manoj said they had also arrested his 50-year-old father for threatening the teacher against approaching the police. He said the student was once involved in an attack on the police during a clash between students on the campus. When Mr Jose tried to prevent him from cheating in exams, he allegedly held his hand and slapped on the face. The teacher fell on the ground, and the student continued his brutal attack using a broken piece of a bench. Other teachers ran to the spot and rescued Mr Jose from further assault. All students were witnesses to the incident. The school management says that he's a frequent troublemaker who faced several disciplinary actions. He is also accused of having connections with Islamic scholars like Maulana Yousuf, Ibrahim, Talha, Ezaz, and others. (Photo: ANI) Kolkata: A team of Special Task Force (STF) has arrested Said Manirul Islam, an alleged active member of Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), a banned terror organisation, from Kolkatas Sealdah Station. Manirul Islam (42) was nabbed on Friday from APC Road, near Kaizar Street, Sealdah Station. He is also accused of having connections with Islamic scholars like Maulana Yousuf, Ibrahim, Talha, Ezaz, and others. Police said Kaizar is also accused of frequently visiting Mokimnagar Madarsa and recruiting and sending locals from his locality and other adjacent areas to the Madarsa for training. In another development, a joint operation by the West Bengal Police Special Task Force and the Kerala Police led to the arrest of terror suspect Abdul Matin from Kerala's Malappuram early this week. Hyderabad: Of 5,161 cities today, only 269 have water treatment systems. Hyderabad is one among them, thanks to the Nizams. The Nizams not only focused on education, construction of buildings and industrial development, but also gave importance to public health and sanitation. Among princely states, Hyderabad had a well-developed sanitation system, which was unprecedented at that time. The Asaf Jahi rulers strived to elevate life standards of common people and it is a fact that sanitation is one of the key factors to assess a societys standard of life. Dr Gade Venkatesh, a sanitation expert and author of The History of Sanitation in Nizams Rule said the Asaf Jahi rulers were keen to acquire world-class facilities in their estate and always focused on high quality. Whatever they built and developed were the worlds best standards of their times. He said when the Musi River was flooded in 1908, VIth Nizam Mir Mahboob Ali Khan showed concern. To avoid such havocs in future and focus on draining of storm water, he appointed Sir Mokshagondam Vishweshwarayya as chief adviser and asked him to study the city and chalk out an elaborated plan to manage floods and storm water management. Sir Vishweshwarayya submitted a plan advising construction of two reservoirs on the Musi River. He also gave a plan to construct stormwater drains. One of the officers was of the opinion that along with storm water drains, there was the need for a sewage drain system to improve the citys hygiene. Mir Mahboob Ali Khan praised this suggestion and discussed it with Sir Vishweshwarayya, who strongly supported it. Dr Gade Venkatesh said a City Improvement Board was established in Hyderabad in 1912 to provide better facilities. The VII Nizam Mir Osman Ali Khan gave much importance to public health and sanitation. In 1921, the Nizam spent Rs 3,71,923 on public health and sanitation (night soil) from Hyderabad Municipalitys total outlay of Rs 7,90,879. Dr Gade Venkatesh said Mir Osman Ali Khan had introduced scavenger tax and the collection was Rs 8,241 in 1921 and he disbursed Rs 8,166 next year as salary to scavengers. Dr Gade claims that with the development of sewage system in Hyderabad, manual scavenging was almost abolished. In the Nizam era, safai karamcharis (sanitary workers) who were like sepoys without guns, were a privileged class. In Hyderabad Municipality area, drainage lanes stretched 5,05,578 ft in 1921 and 14,427 ft of new drainage lanes were added the same year. The total length of the drainage lanes touched 5,78,539 ft. Dr Gade said that in 1925, the Nizam spent Rs 1,12,090 on roads, buildings, drainage constructions and its management. Likewise, Rs 3,56,008 was spent on public health and sanitation and the municipality budget was Rs 7,78,893. The city drainage board was established in 1926. He said new sanitation initiatives were taken from 1937 to 1940. A Sewerage Treatment Plant was established in Asif Nagar water bed for treatment of drainage water. Another STP was constructed at Amberpet using oxidation pond technology, which treated 53 million litres per day and the treated water was used to irrigate 1,100 acres. It was one of three to four such plants in the country. Many people used to visit Hyderabad to study the sanitation system, Dr Gade said. Dr Gade said usually kings pay attention to extending their dynasty and hoarding wealth, but the Nizams focused more on betterment of the common people. He said considering the interest of present-day governments, if they desire to build a sanitation system on par with the Nizams era, it will take 3,000 years. Nawab Najaf Ali Khan, grandson of Mir Osman Ali Khan, said the excellent sanitation system is still intact and serves the people more than 70 years since his visionary grandfather. Original Swacch movement Sant Gadge Baba of Maharashtra had said that ridding the body of excrement and the soul of stain is the purity of your true God. He was the social reformer who throughout his life cleaned streets of villages. He made cleanliness a Bhakti movement and was the father of cleanliness. He started Swacch movement in 1905, much before Gandhiji returned to India. Dr Gade Venkatesh is a writer, poet, author, scholar and activist. He has been writing for the two decades. His research on public drainage and sanitation systems in Nizams role has got appreciation from various quarters. Officers of the Municipal Administration and GHMC have admired his research on the sanitation system. As an engineer, he looked into the quality of sanitary engineering during the last Nizams rule. He wrote a book in Telugu on the history of sanitation in Nizams rule. A case has been registered under Section (A) of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960. Hyderabad: The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation on Friday rescued around 30 high-breed dogs, rabbits, a Persian cat, 19 hens and a few exotic birds from a scrap depot in Tellapur Huda Colony where they were being maintained temporarily by Ramgopal Reddy, a watchman. People for Animals filed a complaint at RC Puram police station against the watchman. Mr Reddy, who works as a watchman at a farmhouse, was keeping high-breed dogs at a scrap depot for a year now and these animals were kept in totally unhygienic conditions, without any protection from heat or cold, a police official said. They were kept in congested cages and their feeding bowls were kept in a congested place. There was foul smell all around. Some were even chained. A case has been registered under Section (A) of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960. We came to know about this from some animal lovers in Huda Colony of Nallagandla, said Mr Joshi from People for Animals. When we went to check, we found all those animals in pathetic and unhygienic conditions. Then, with the help of police and a GHMC team, we rescued them and shifted them to our emergency rescue home. According to PFA, the rescued animals would now be given up for adoption once they recover. Some of the rescued dogs included German Shepherds, Labradors and Pomeranians. There were also rabbits, hens and cocks, pigeons and other exotic birds like cockatiel. Hyderabad: The GHMCs general body unanimously approved a Budget of Rs 11,538 crore for 2019-20, presented by Mayor Bonthu Rammohan on Saturday. It approved the revised budget, which has increased by Rs 775 crore over this years Budget of Rs 5,375 crore. The budget estimates for major projects of other corporations assigned to GHMC have been increased to Rs 5,388 crore from last years Rs 3,560 crore. Mr Rammohan said that Rs 1,850 crore had been sanctioned for the Strategic Road Development Plan, Rs 176 crore for bridges, flyovers and subways, Rs 409 crore for stormwater drainage, Rs 262 crore for water supply and sewerage, Rs 44 crore for street lighting, Rs 71 crore under green budget. The general body approved a separate Budget for major projects of other corporations assigned to the GHMC, such as the Telangana Housing Corporation for construction of 2 BHK houses, and Hyderabad Road Development Corporation Limited for laying roads. This budget has been reduced by about Rs 1,600 crore from Rs 7,073 crore (2018-19) to Rs 5,388 crore. The GHMC has approved a Budget of Rs 11,538 crore for two separate categories for the year 2019-20 as against Rs 13,150 crore for 2018-19, showing a reduction of Rs 1,612 crore. Mr Rammohan said the corporation has been executing the weaker section housing programme in an efficient manner. As against the target of 1 lakh double-bed room housing units, the construction of 30,562 units was nearing completion, he said. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan with Dr. William Hall, School of Medicine, University College, Dublin at the inauguration of the Institute of Advanced Virology ( IAV) phase 1A building at Thonnakkal in Thiruvananthapuram on Saturday. A.V. MUZAFAR Thiruvananthapuram: Afforestation, urbanisation and the change in eco-system have resulted in new viruses like Nipah hitting the people of Kerala, according to Dr. William Hall, School of Medicine, University College, Dublin. He was here to attend the launch of the Institute of Advanced Virology at Thonnakkal on Saturday. He reached the city two days ago from Brazil where he was attending a conference on virology. "This is my first visit to Kerala. Your chief minister has been determined to bring the IAV to Kerala. There are several factors causing the outbreak of viruses ranging from afforestation, urbanisation and change in eco-system, he told DC on the sidelines of the launch of the IAV. An avid photographer, Dr. Hall was seen holding a SLR camera around his neck and clicking pictures of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and other dignitaries. Mr Vijayan has arrang-ed a slew of meetings wi-th Dr. Hall and Dr. Chris-tian Brechot, president, GVN. Dr. Brechot highlighted that hepatitis, HIV and tuberculosis had been increasingly diagnosed because hum-an beings are affected by the climate change and the destruction of the eco-system."We must have research, science and education. Majority of the new viruses come from animals. Modern science and medicine is all about networking," said Dr. Brechot. At the IAV facility, eight labs ranging from clinical virology, viral diagnostics, viral vaccines, anti-viral drug research, vital applications,viral epidemiology - vector dy-namics and public hea-lth, virus genomics, bio-informatics and statisti-cs to general virology wi-ll start functioning soon. A post-graduate diploma course in virology and PhD in virology will also be started. The IAV's European and Asian centres (Japan) will supervise the lab at Thonnakkal. They have been booked under the Foreigners act and were produced before the Siliguri Court. (Photo: ANI) Panitanki: Six Rohingya were arrested on Saturday by the Border Interaction Team at Panitanki along the Indo-Nepal border while they were trying to cross over into Nepal from India. The six arrested persons, including a woman, were handed over to Khoribari Police station. Among them, two persons were sent to a correctional home while the other four were sent to police custody. They have been booked under the Foreigners act and were produced before the Siliguri Court. The city police had also busted a drug-peddling unit and arrested a Nigerian national for distributing high-end drugs in the Porur area last month. Chennai: A 36-year-old Nigerian was arrested by the Narcotics Intelligence Bureau CID on Sunday for allegedly supplying heroin and ecstasy tablets to the resorts, pubs and hotels along the East Coast Road (ECR). The man was identified as Ikechukwu (36) from Nigeria who had come to India on a business visa in the garb of carrying out a garments business three years ago. Officers said Ikechukwu had come to India in 2015 and his visa had already expired. He migrated for a short period to Tirupur, where he was engaged in the T-shirts exports business along with a few other Nigerian friends. Last year, Ikechukwu allegedly came to Chennai and was involved in drug peddling, targeting college students and IT workers, who partied at the resorts and pubs along the ECR and also used them to expand his business. Meanwhile, on Sunday based on a specific tip-off, the sleuths arrested Ikechukwu from a resort at Neelankarai and seized ten grams of heroin and 100 grams of ketamine worth Rs 6 lakhs from him. NIB-CID sleuths registered a case and arrested the Nigerian under Section 14 of Foreigners Act apart from the possession of drugs under Sections 8 (c) read with 22 (b) of the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act. The city police had also busted a drug-peddling unit and arrested a Nigerian national for distributing high-end drugs in the Porur area last month. Hyderabad: Cyberabad cybercrime investigators cracked a blackmailing case by tracing the IP address through which the victim received threatening emails. The sleuths traced the IP address of the system and nabbed the blackmailer near Nampally railway station on Saturday. According to the cybercrime police, they got a complaint from a girl stating that she had received mails from an unknown person. The mails had attachments of her personal photos and videos. The blackmailer also demanded Rs4 lakh from the victim. When she did not respond, he threatened to upload the pictures on social media. Ch Ramiah, inspector, cybercrime, Cyberabad said, We traced the IP address and nabbed the accused, Devandla Tharaka Krishna Chaitanya near Nampally railway station. When questioned the accused revealed that the victim was his colleague in the past while he used to work in a private company. They were in a live-in relationship for some time. When she rejected his marriage proposal, he developed a grudge against her. He further added that the parents of the accused had fixed his marriage with a girl on February 10. Due to financial problems, he hatched a plan to blackmail the victim and as per his plan he demanded Rs 4 lakhs from the victim. Through fictitious mail accounts he sent the mail attached with photos and warned her that he would upload them on social media if she did not respond to the mails. The accused was sent to judicial custody on Saturday. There is a ban on the public display of high-power fireworks after the district witnessed many firecracker accidents in the past few years. (Representational Image) Alappuzha: The police seized illegally-stored explosive materials from a house at Veeyapuram and arrested the house owner on Friday. The Veeyapuram police raided the house following a tip-off and seized the materials worth lakhs of rupees. Navas, 40, Nalauthengil house, Payipad, who was arrested, was later released on bail. The materials were stored to make high-power crackers prior to the festival season. There is a ban on the public display of high-power fireworks after the district witnessed many firecracker accidents in the past few years. In July 2017, a firework at Karintharakal temple, Kayipuran, Muhamma left nine people injured. This book is not a quickie, neither to read, nor would it appear, to write, from the diligent research that has gone into it. The best read book in this genre has been Phillip Masons The Men Who Ruled India (1954) a racy account of the British administration in India, by one of their own Mason was a British Indian civil servant from 1928 till Indias independence. It is a crowded field which Deepak Gupta enters. The bibliography records 97 publications over the last 60-odd years, authored by Indian retirees from the civil services. Gupta himself is a distinguished retiree from the IAS and comes from a family of similarly distinguished administrators. Not surprisingly, Gupta subscribes to the broadly accepted view amongst those who are insiders to the civil service milieu that the present administrative structure, albeit with certain structural changes, best suits our requirements the IAS is both desirable and necessary. Not many would quibble with this formulation although the extent of the restructuring required might leave little of the original ethos, except the nomenclature. The author suggests restructuring along the principles of merit-based promotion (rather than seniority and possibly without extending affirmative action beyond selection); adequate protection for officers who might have made honest mistakes and purifying the IAS of the corrupt and the inefficient the last being an impossible dream without the national political ecosystem changing first. To deal with the lack of specialist skills at the top he favours enlarging the use of lateral entry or the induction of specialists for specific tasks at the levels of joint secretary. The Modi government is the first to use this mechanism more widely than earlier. But the potential for partisan appointments lurks. The authors solution is to route all such selections through the Union Public Service Commission an institution constitutionally mandated to manage government recruitments, which has retained its credibility amidst crashing institutional reputations all around. He advocates extending the Commissions mandate to all promotions at senior-level positions including those in the state governments, beginning with the selection of the state level director generals of police, which per the Supreme Courts recent orders requires the consent of the Union government. This is a dodgy departure, which can be viewed as breaching the constitutionally defined division of powers. Wisely, the author recommends that all lateral appointments must be based on detailed eligibility conditions, job descriptions and a well-defined selection criteria and matrix to minimise the extent of discretion. Such reformed practices are desperately needed for the ever-increasing appointments to regulatory or appellate commissions and committees, which are often viewed as shoe-in opportunities for government favourites. The author argues against a proposed change in the scheme for allocating successful candidates from the UPSC combined entrance examination to a particular service. Currently, a combination of the marks obtained and the candidates choice is used. The Union government proposes to add weightage to the marks obtained in the evaluation done at the National Academy of Administration, post selection, during the foundation training period. The fear is that political pressure brought to bear on the Academys director might lead to unfair evaluations and skew the outcome against less privileged candidates. Hardly anyone would disagree with this view. If the change is intended to make the probationers take the training seriously. Another way of achieving this objective could be to make the curricula and pedagogy more relevant and interesting than it is currently. But more has been said than done about administrative reform. More than a dozen government committees have studied administrative reforms as a whole, or specific aspects of it and recommended in situ changes. Some of these recommendations are reflected in two separate chapters devoted to the scheme of the selection examinations and the subsequent training during probation. The core of the book is an extended review of the historical context which led to the formation of the IAS. A full four chapters out of nine look closely at how a service devoted to further the cause of a civilising empire was born and nurtured a truly unique institution which allowed a small number of British officers to rule millions of Indians by collaborating with Indian landed elites and co-option of middle class through directed spread of Western education, into willing servitude in subordinate administrative positions. It is unsurprising that the IAS has survived as the successor of the ICS. As the author elaborates, this is aligned with the copycat political architecture we continued post-Independence. The IAS and the other central services became the only avenue for the educated middle class to fast tracked careers because options in the private sector were constrained by the initial four decades of ersatz Socialism. The strategy of co-opting provincial elites has been continued by reserving one third of the posts in the IAS for promotion from the provincial civil services albeit at such advanced stages that they can never be competition to those recruited directly. The business of administration at the field level has become increasingly complex as state functions expand and empowerment of the local political elite grows. The task of the district officer even now regarded as the core task of the IAS is no longer just a training ground for higher policy-making. District administration is a management area by itself. An entire career should be devoted to just this aspect if effective functioning is to be revived. The problem is an alternative service, which does exactly this, already exists. Each state government has a directly recruited provincial civil service whose members are more experienced and better suited for working at the grassroots level. A remodelled IAS might be relevant as a policy support arm of state governments. But this would mean recruiting subject specialists who have a relevant PhD. As the author notes, public policy programmes are attracting students and this might be a good way to go. The bottom line is that Sardar Patels steel frame to bind the country now includes every Indian citizen and the national political parties, not just the All India Services. As Prime Minister Modi would say, he and not the Cabinet Secretary of the Government of India, is the chowkidar at the gate holding barbarians at bay. A fully developed and politically hyperactive democracy, like India, needs deep structural reform in how we are governed to reflect this change. The writer is adviser, Observer Research Foundation Jangah Singh Shyam: A Conjurors Archive, by eminent scholar of Indian art and visual culture Jyotindra Jain, tells the story of an incredibly talented and innovative artist, Jangarh Singh Shyam. A well-known Gond painter, Jangarh, in a productive 20-year career span (1982/3-2001), rose from being an unknown tribal artist to an internationally recognised one. It sadly came to an abrupt halt when he committed suicide in Japan. Jangarh is most often linked to the Gond school of painting known for its distinctive use of primary colours, secular themes and a line patterning to fill the drawing. But as Jain explains, technically, Jangarh belongs to the Pardhan community who were the bards and travelling minstrels among the Gonds. Jangarh was discovered by J. Swaminathan while the latter was at Bharat Bhavan in Bhopal where he preferred to focus on the art content of the works as distinct from the ethnographic one. Jangarh was a shy 19-year-old when he first met Swaminathan. At the time his drawing style comprised simple lines and bold colours. Most often the paintings were made on plain white paper. But over time, living in an urban milieu and experimenting with new mediums like poster colours and Rotring pens for his fine ink drawings, Jangarh began to evolve. And in this evolution of his art and his confident visual expression began a tussle not just with contemporary Indian artists but also with the art market. The dominant feeling was that Jangarh should remain tribal in his art. But this is precisely where the individualistic stylistic idiom of Jangarh developed. For instance, while employed at Bharat Bhavan as an attendant in its graphic studio, Jangarh learnt screen painting and evolved a unique style by experimenting with the process of printing by making multiple impressions, textures, stencilling, splashing inks and scraping, and scratching the silkscreen itself. He also adapted the beaded borders of clay art relief done in village homes to minute opaque or hollow dots or circles into surface patterning of his paintings effectively, reflecting principles of chiaroscuro and perspective. His fine ink drawings are incredible for their shift from using bright colours to playing with black and white. Jangarh in his studio. Jangarhs valuable artwork is known not only for his distinctive self-expression, the intricate detail in every painting (irrespective of its dimension whether it is a mural or a painting), but also for the merging of the secular and sacred for the first time in the history of Gond art. Though a Pardhan, Jangarh never performed as a minstrel himself. Yet music was in his blood. He was familiar with stories about their deities so was able to attribute a physical form to the gods after seeing villagers in a shamanic tranceJangarh drew inspiration from their expressions at that particular moment. Jangah Singh Shyam: A Conjurors Archive recounts the rise of Jangarh as an artist against all odds particularly in the face of hostility by contemporary artists, much of which Dr Jain witnessed. Particularly heart-breaking are references to the economic exploitation of the soft-spoken artist by the art world. The bulk of this book is devoted to a curated selection of Jangarhs art arranged chronologically accompanied by an in-depth analysis by Jain. It is fascinating as in most of the paintings Jangarh gives the folk stories he heard in his village a visual expression with the rare exception of a self-portrait, placed in a village scene rather than any of the urban settings he was now more familiar with. As Jain says, He evolved a highly expressive, individualistic, aesthetic idiom, which resulted from the extraordinary trajectory of his life The visual vocabulary that he originated and continuously improvised on was his own in the sense that there was no precedent for it in his communitys collective vis ual tradition. Sadly, while on a three-month stay in Japan, for still little understood reasons, Jangarh took his life. He was 40. His last letter sent to his wife reached her in India days after his death. In it he advises her on managing the household well but a substantial portion of the missive is devoted to figuring out how to get him back home as the director of the museum where he was residing had extended his stay. One of the people he appeals to is Jain talk to Jainsahab that he should talk to the director to send me back, this is the only request rest is fine. [The letter is reproduced in this book with due permission.] As Jain writes To this day, the episode continues to haunt me and this is what gave the impulse for writing this book as a tribute to him. There are innumerable books published on Jangarh but Jangah Singh Shyam seems like the definitive account on an extraordinarily talented artist written poignantly by an art historian who was fortunate enough to witness firsthand Jangarhs meteoric rise. The writer is an independent international publishing consultant and columnist based in New Delhi. Rajisha Vijayan is beauty personified. Her long hair, evocative eyes, and the girl-next-door appeal make her the favourite of the Malayali audience. This was exactly how Elizabeth of Anuraga Karikkinvellam was. It might probably be the reason why Rajisha could do complete justice to the character and charm the audiences and critics at the same time, taking home the Kerala State Film Award for Best Actor. Though she has not many movies to boast of, it seems that Rajisha has always made it a point to grab the spotlight whenever she appears on screen. Her attempts to be June Sarah Joy of June, one of the most awaited movies of 2019, saw her undergo an amazing makeover as well. She has broken that mould and has stepped out of her comfort zone to conceive a character that, she says, will never disappoint her audience who have great expectations from her. June is a coming-of-age film that travels through a girls life, starting from the age of 16 when she is in school to her marriage at 26. June Sarah Joy is very close to my heart as I took a lot of effort to get into the characters skin. It is probably the most tiring character I have attempted till date as the transition of the character from each age was difficult. It required rigorous physical as well as mental preparations. Losing those extra kilos was taken care of by my trainer. However, getting hold of the mannerisms of a teenager and a matured woman was a bit tricky and I had to be extremely careful not to go overboard as it would completely take attention away from the essence of the story. Rajisha adds that apart from her makeover, the movie has been a long journey for the entire cast and crew as well because even Junes friends (16 newcomers) had to undergo the physical transformation that had to match their age. The movie is directed by debutant Ahamed Kabeer, which again made it a difficult task for Ahamed to find a producer. As Rajisha puts it, After meeting around 17 producers, It was Vijay Babu who trusted the director and the script. He was admant that Junes story had to told to the audiences Asked what persuaded her to commit a movie by a group of newcomers that would eat up a lot of time off her career, Rajisha says, Direction is definitely the most important part of a movie. But I think that the backbone of a movie and the major factor that decides its success and failure is its script. June has one of the most amazing and solid scripts that has forced all of us to become a part of it. That said, people might think that it is a female-oriented movie. But the truth is that it is an ordinary movie that uses June as a catalyst to look into a girls life and understand various emotions that she goes through in an organic way. June shows us that women-oriented movies need not always have serious subjects that depict a woman as a victim, a survivor or a fighter. It can be portrayed in a light and relatable way as well. Elaborating on the physical transformation for the character of June that required her to chop off her long hair, Rajisha says that it was an inevitable part of the journey of becoming June. As I already mentioned, I had to undergo the physical transformation as my characters age advanced. My hair cut was also done in par with the six different get-ups that I have in the movie. Though I was initially very much reluctant to cut my hair, our producer Vijay Babu convinced me to do it. After completing my shoot, I understood how important it was for me to undergo the physical transformation in order to look like June. I also lost nine kilos to look like a school girl, she adds. The actor stresses that the makeover brought her closer to the character and she started feeling confident that she could pull it off well. But Rajisha adds that her extreme involvement ultimately resulted in June still lingering with her even after the shoot of the movie was completed. In order to remain in the character I used to behave as a school girl on the sets even while we were not shooting. However, that does not work out everytime as we do not shoot the scenes in order of the sequence. I was so much attached to the character that it did not leave me even after the shoot ended. I remember calling Joju George and crying over the phone addressing him as Appa as he appears as my father in the movie. Even my room felt an alien place for me for few days, she says. Asked if Rajisha has any qualms of taking a long break at a crucial point in her career, she answers in composed and confident tone, I am not a blessed actor. I work very hard in order to realise a character. I have invested a lot into June and feel content. Quantity was never my priority as I can only become one character at a time. Given a choice, I will only opt for quality. I am here to become an actor, not a star, she concludes. Alia Bhatts name was being tossed up as one of the candidates to essay the female lead in the RRR film. The film is due to be made in Telugu with an expected dubbed version in Hindi as well. But then Alias date diary has been choc-o-bloc. Shes not free at all. She has to promote her upcoming film Gully Boy and then promote her next film Kalank. Then, she has to be shooting for Sadak 2, followed by Takht. She also has a discussion to do a film for Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari, says a source close to the actress. One can recall Alias name also being tossed up for the Prabhas starrer Saaho, which was eventually signed by Shraddha Kapoor. Mumbai: Known for speaking his mind, Actor Sanjay Dutt has been extremely transparent about the fact that he fell prey to drug abuse during his youth and never held himself from speaking about it at various forums. In a recent interview, the actor came on records to talk about his willingness to be a part of a nation-wide campaign against drug abuse, which is being organized at educational campuses in Chandigarh and Hisar on 18 and 19 of this month respectively. Designed to eliminate drug addiction and in order to spread knowledge about the inhumane repercussions, the actor is all set to share his past experiences and how it severely impacted his years as a young man. Not only Sanjay Dutt but B-Townies like Sonakshi Sinha, Parineeti Chopra, Badshah, Sonu Nigam, Kapil Sharma, and Varun Sharma are also coming forward to support the change. They will engage with 25000 students on campuses on both the days, to counsel and discourage them from falling prey to such abuse. Joining the bandwagon we have another one crore students across hundreds of other educational institutions in the country, who will also be able to watch this event through a live broadcast. This would be then followed by a road-show including all the celebrities coming on-board. The blueprint of the idea to eradicate drug abuse goes back to the time when actor Sanjay Dutt was released from Yerwada Jail in 2016. His friends, producer Ajay Arora (Bittoo), lyricist Montoo Bassi and filmmaker Mahavir Jain had an extensive conversation about the growing problem amongst the youth and a year later the idea was run through by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar in Bengaluru to seek a way forward. Confirming the development the actor said, I have experienced the menace of drugs first hand. I know the havoc it creates and so this cause is close to my heart. The aim is to make this campaign Indias largest. Its very easy to get sucked into drug abuse, but very difficult to get out of it. It all starts when minds are young and impressionable. We have to firmly tell youngsters that drug abuse is not cool. Thats why we want to reach out to the youth of this country and spread the word through campuses. The actor seems to have taken on this as a mission and he signs off saying, Na karunga na karne doonga. With such a stringent initiative coming forward, we are sure that this mission will lay a new path for the youth giving them a new vision of existence. Mumbai: Sooraj Barjatya produced Hum Chaar is all set to release next Friday. Taking all the newcomers like Prit Kamani, Anshuman Malhotra, Tushar Pandey and Simran Sharma in one film, debutante director Abhishek Dixit is bringing a refreshing cinema about friendship with a tagline - 'Friends Bhi Family Hain'. Making a first film that too with newcomers is indeed a big challenge for every filmmaker, however, when Abhishek was asked about it, he said, "When we make a film with well-established star, it would make you feel nervous. It's easy to be honest with the storyline when you work with newcomers. While writing the film, the first thing came in my mind that this is completely a newcomers' film." "Before the shoot, all the four actors gave full time to rehearsals. We couldn't have afforded that much liberty with stars. We made Hum Chaar with full of honesty and don't have anything to lose. We haven't copied anything and made a pure film," Abhishek added. Hum Chaar cast Rajshri Productions is known to make films for families and this is the first time they are bringing a mixture of friends and family together. Speaking about that Abhishek said, "Basically, the theme of Friendship came from Sooraj Ji (Sooraj Barjatya). We always say Friends and Family but never make them a part of our family. Hence, we brought this concept of giving status to friends like family." "I didn't need to convince Sooraj Ji for the film. He doesn't believe in box-office figures and gives importance to storytelling. He gave me full liberty to direct a film in my own way," added the 'Hum Chaar' director. Right now, the MeToo movement is gaining momentum in India. When asked about it, the debutante filmmaker said, "I think If you have the power to do something especially a wrong thing but you still don't do anything inappropriately, makes yourself powerful. I know how to behave in working environment. First thing from my side will always be to make my employee comfortable at the workplace. If you think accordingly, then you will not do anything wrong. I feel If you don't respect women then you are disrespecting 50 per cent of India." "I would like to experiment in different genres. Whether it is horror or thriller, I want to try all," Abhishek added. When asked about Hum Chaar's resemblance with 1964's film Dosti, Abhishek stated, "Hum Chaar and Dosti's theme is same but the essence is different. After watching, Hum Chaar, the audience will find something familiar with their personal life." Lastly, speaking about competing with Gully Boy at the box-office, Hum Chaar director said, "There is no competition or clash. Both films are different. I want to watch Gully Boy and I feel people should give chance to Hum Chaar as well. I want audiences should watch both the film." Hum Chaar is releasing on February 15, 2019. Portfolio management services (PMS) that mainly carter to high net worth individuals (HNIs) are facing redemption pressure, as investors are pulling out money from the schemes. Mumbai: Wealthy Indians seem to be losing faith in their portfolio managers, as most schemes have given negative returns following the rout in small- and mid-cap stocks. Portfolio management services (PMS) that mainly carter to high net worth individuals (HNIs) are facing redemption pressure, as investors are pulling out money from the schemes. An analysis shows that top portfolio managers were caught on the wrong foot in the small- and mid-cap space, with nine of the 10 best-known names in the industry losing money. These PMS schemes are showing negative returns ranging from 20-35 per cent for the past one-year period. Analysts say the huge selling seen in mid- and small-cap stocks in the recent past has mainly been due to offloading of stocks by portfolio managers to deal with the redemptions. Managing assets worth Rs 29,400 crore (about $4.3 billion), PMS schemes delivered an average 20 per cent negative return in the last one year. Most funds have underperformed the benchmark with a huge margin as their bets have gone sour. PMS schemes are showing negative returns following the sell-off in small- and mid-cap segment. Now investors are pulling out money from these schemes, as they want to cut losses, said an analyst with a leading brokerage firm. These fund managers are now offloading stocks to meet redemption pressure, adding to further weakness in the small- and mid-cap segment, he said. Small-cap stocks have got a severe beating over the past one year. The BSE Small-Cap Index is down around 26 per cent over the past one year. Small-cap stocks are highly volatile than their larger counterparts and have higher downside risk, but they do have the potential to deliver superior returns if the stock market performs well, analysts said. You should invest in small-cap funds for the long-term and the allocation should be in line with your risk appetite, they added. Analysts said the big worry for the market is rising redemption by domestic investors in the recent past, which is keeping the markets on edge. Recent data from mutual fund body Amfi shows net inflows into equity MF schemes have hit a 24-month low, with only Rs 6,158 crore accruing in January 2019. Unrelenting volatility in the stock markets and the political uncertainty seem to have impacted investor sentiment and redemptions are on the rise. In January, MFs saw redemptions of Rs 11,397 crore, up from Rs 11,234 crore in December. The volatility, experts say, stems from the turmoil in the financial markets last year and uncertainty over the general elections due in April-May. As circular trading was becoming rampant in the import of cut and polished diamonds, the government increased duties twice last year to check this. Chennai: Circular trading never stops in gems and jewellery exports. When the government tries to close one route, new alleys open up. After import of cut and polished diamonds (CPD) became no longer feasible for round-tripping, return consignment of CPD has started going up. As circular trading was becoming rampant in the import of cut and polished diamonds, the government increased duties twice last year to check this. In the 2018 budget, the import duty was raised from 2.5 per cent to 5 per cent and in September it was further raised to 7.5 per cent. At 7.5 per cent, circular trading became non-viable. Since October, the import of cut and polished diamonds has started coming down drastically. In December 2018, this was down by 44 per cent to Rs 789 crore from Rs 1,405 crore in the same month in 2017. Between April and December 2018, the imports were down by 36 per cent to Rs 7,225 crore from Rs 11,271 crore for the same period in 2017. After the government increased the duty, those who were importing cut and polished diamonds for round-tripping purposes could not do it anymore. Meanwhile, from October onwards, return consignments of cut and polished diamonds started growing higher. Now this has become a new avenue for circular trading, said an industry insider. This is how it happens. In order to inflate the export turnover for bank finance purposes, earlier some of the exporters were importing cut and polished diamonds (CPD) and sending them back without any value addition. Now they send cut and polished diamonds on a consignment basis to overseas markets, where the buyer chooses whatever he wants and sends rest of the stones back. Between showing the export turnover to the bank and then the revised turnover after receiving the return consignment, the exporter gets a breathing time of six months to one year. This round-tripping also helps launder black money. The return consignment of CPD was up by 55 per cent in October and 40 per cent in November. During the same months in 2017, return consignments registered either low single-digit growth or de-growth. When asked about the higher growth in return consignments, Sabyasachi Ray, executive director of Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council, said: Of late, most of our markets do not prefer outright purchase of goods. Instead they are demanding goods to come in consignments so that they can choose and return the remaining ones. This is the current market trend and hence we are seeing increase in return consignments. In October last year, Financial Chronicle had reported about how crude gold bangles had become instruments for round-tripping after export of medallions and coins declined. In order to check round-tripping, the government had restricted exports of medallions and gold coins by banning shipment of gold products above 22 carat. After that gold jewellery sales started going up by more than 200 per cent. Thank you for reading! Please purchase a subscription to read our premium content. If you have a subscription and are still unable to access our content, please link your digital account to your print subscription If you have a subscription, please log in or sign up for an account on our website to continue. If only Gleaners Community Food Bank had more volunteers. We could take in a truckload of food every week, said Denise Leduc, Gleaners director of community engagement. One truckload carries about 20,000 pounds of food, which could potentially create enough meals for at least 10,000 families. Sadly, they dont have enough people to work with the food. After the holiday season is over volunteer numbers drop 15 percent, leaving impactful programs without sufficient resources to effectively serve the community. Those initiatives address food waste; make shopping more accessible for low-income residents including seniors and help to bridge the meal gap for chronically ill patients. Volunteers are the heart of our mission here at Gleaners. While we are so grateful for all of the volunteers who generously donate their time during the holidays, the number of volunteers plummets in January, a time when many of our neighbors need us the most, Leduc said. The winter months can be the toughest for the people we serve because many face difficult choices, such as whether to pay for heat for feed their families. Those who volunteer love what theyre doing. Today is my first day and Im coming back, said Sister Bernie Misson of Fraser, who joined a group of volunteers who were asked to package a truckload of frozen zucchini donated by a produce processing company on the west side of the state. The same was true of Sandra Cassandra of St. Clair Shores. Its my first day but Im going to be here for the next few weeks, said Cassandra. Also helping to unload the food at Gleaners distribution center in Warren were employees from Natural Way Lawn Care. Its great being able to help out, said Tim Klingler of Warren. We do a lot of volunteer work with Gleaners. Irene and Jim Ney of Clinton Township recently retired and were looking for a way to give back to their community. When they heard about the need at Gleaners they jumped at the chance to volunteer their time and help their neighbors. Its a marvelous organization and there is so much need. Were happy to help, said Irene, as she worked alongside Jim filling plastic bags with the produce for food-insecure individuals. For more than 40 years, Gleaners has been helping to feed hungry people, annually reaching about 430,000 individuals with 43 million pounds of nutritious food. Thats more than 35 million meals that are distributed among a needy population through 500-plus partner schools, soup kitchens, shelters and pantries in Macomb, Wayne, Oakland, Livingston and Monroe counties. While a large portion of the food is donated, Gleaners also relies on monetary donations, which also go a long way to help secure nonperishable goods and other products: for every $1 donated, 97 cents goes toward food and the food programs. Still, its because of volunteers that Gleaners is been able to create program that reach people in need, while helping the community as a whole. Some of its initiatives include: * Reducing food waste It is estimated at between 30 to 40 percent of the food supply, according to the USDA. Gleaners rescues truckloads of vegetables such as carrots, sweet potatoes, cauliflower and more that otherwise would be headed for the landfill. Leducs crew, who helped this past week were essential in helping to package the frozen zucchini into family-sized portions for Gleaners Warren Distribution Center. * Increasing access to healthy food Transportation is a huge barrier for many low-income residents and one of the big reasons they dont get the food they need. Gleaners My Neighborhood Mobile Grocery is a weekly pop-up market that meets families, seniors and veterans where they are by providing an innovative shopping option in their communities. Volunteers greet and assist shoppers, assemble orders on the truck, check and bag orders for customers, and assist with market setup and teardown. * Door to door service By partnering with health care providers, Gleaners is able to better serve food-insecure patients under the care of their partners, who need groceries delivered directly to their home. How important are these programs to the people they serve? At one of our mobile grocery locations, one senior shared that she had not had fresh eggs in four years. The time commitment is small, but volunteers have the power to make such a big impact on peoples lives,' Leduc said. Anyone with a desire to help is needed, even children as young as 10-years-old can chip into to help after school, on weekends or even during special occasions. Weve had middle school and high school students celebrate their birthday here with a group of their friends and family, who volunteered to help, Leduc said. To volunteer for the programs, visit gcfb.org or any of the program links including: Vegetable packing at Gleaners Warren Distribution Center as a group, gcfb.org/volunteer_warren_distribution_center or as individuals, warendistributioncetner.gcfb.volunteerhub.com/; My Neighborhood Mobile Grocery, myneighborhoodmobilegrocery.gcfb.volunteerhub.com/; Healthy Home Delivery, healthyfoodhomedelivery.gcfb.volunteerhub.com/ Three seats in the House of Delegates and two in the state Senate stand between Virginia and, among other things, a rollback of abortion restrictions, possible restoration of the one-handgun-a-month law, LGBTQ protections, and easier access to higher education for New Virginians many of them Asians and Latinos brought to this country by illegal-immigrant parents. But Democrats first have to win. The odds against that lengthen the longer Democrats are fighting among themselves. Fairfax didn't do himself or his party any favors by suggesting he's a victim; that the salacious story about his alleged relationship with a woman who is now a college professor great shades of Kavanaugh! was wired up by Northam or a possible rival for the 2021 gubernatorial nomination, Mayor Levar Stoney of Richmond. Both deny any role in the story's release on a right-wing news site. Northam and Fairfax got Democrats in this mess. They might be able to get them out it by doing what, to some degree, they've already done: stand together. Fairfax is alone among Democratic heavyweights in refusing to demand Northam's resignation. It may be a faint attempt at good manners; that it would be tacky for Fairfax to be seen as shoving Northam from office. Not only is this, as philosopher Carsten Korfmacher notes, literally a question of life and death, but Locke also thought that personal identity was the key to moral responsibility over time. Personal identity is the basis for all the right and justice of reward and punishment, he wrote. Locke believed that individuals deserve blame for a crime committed in the past simply because they are the same person that committed the past crime. From this perspective, a person would still be responsible for any of the alleged actions of a younger self. Problems with Locke Locke argued that being the same person over time was not a matter of having the same soul or having the same body. It was instead a matter of having the same consciousness over time, which he analyzed in terms of memory. Thus, in Lockes view, individuals are responsible for a past wrong act so long as they can remember committing it. While there is clearly something appealing about the idea that memory ties us to the past, it is hard to believe that a person should get off the hook just by forgetting a criminal act. Indeed, some research suggests that violent crime actually induces memory loss. Thirty years ago, Yale historian Paul Kennedy published an influential book titled The Rise and fall of the Great Powers. He traced the rise and decline of empires over the past 500 years, including Spanish, French, Dutch, and British, and concluded that their decline resulted from an inability to finance all the overseas possessions they had acquired during their rise to great-power status. Great Britains rapid rise and gradual decline in the 19th and early 20th centuries is especially relevant today because of its similarity to Americas emergence as a superpower after World War II. Like Britain, which became a world power after defeat of Napoleons France in 1815, the United States found itself in 1945, following its victory over Germany and Japan, as the pre-eminent world power. U.S. policymakers then had to decide whether America should limit the areas where vital national interests were at stake, primarily the Western Hemisphere, or use its power to defend Western Europe and eventually spread its influence worldwide. President Truman decided that America would assume an expanded world role. End of Britains empire The White House announced that Monday was Child Tax Credit Awareness Day in an effort to make sure families know about the expanded tax credit and how to apply. She recalled attending a funeral last year with her brother in Chilhowie for a close friend. After the viewing, they returned home to talk about life. Lucas said, I want to do a better job of making the people I love know and feel how much I loved them, Erica Dowell said. Looking out over this crowd and thinking about all the love that has just been poured out over my mom, my dad and I for Lucas in the last four days, I believe even more strongly now that what I said to him then was the truth. I said, Lucas, you already do that. She also expressed gratitude to the VSP for their outpouring of support to the family. I can tell you that it has just made us more proud of the work that he did and the family he chose to join, she said. Dowells body was transported in a tactical vehicle to St. James Church Cemetery. State troopers, deputies and police officers from numerous Virginia agencies, as well as troopers from across the country, including as far away as Utah, Arizona, California, and Washington also attended the services. Officers from major cities, such as Chicago, Dallas and New York, were also present. WASHINGTON Virginians are deadlocked over whether Gov. Ralph Northam should step down after the emergence of a photo on his 1984 medical school yearbook page depicting people in blackface and Ku Klux Klan robes, with African-Americans saying by a wide margin he should remain in office despite the offensive image, according to a Washington Post-Schar School poll. The poll, conducted Wednesday through Friday, finds residents split over Northam's fate, with 47 percent wanting him to step down and 47 percent saying he should stay on. Northam counts higher support among black residents who say he should remain in office by a margin of 58 percent to 37 percent than among whites, who are more evenly divided. On the scandals buffeting the state's other top elected officials, the poll by The Post and the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University finds that about a thirdof Virginians think Attorney General Mark Herring, D, should resign after he admitted wearing blackface at a party when he was an undergraduate at the University of Virginia. A 60 percent majority say he should stay in office. Most remain undecided about a woman's allegation that Lt. Gov Justin Fairfax (D) sexually assaulted her in 2004, with 65 percent saying they didn't know enough to judge Fairfax's denial of the accusation. Respondents were not asked about a second sexual assault accusation against Fairfax by a Maryland woman on Friday, after the poll began. The Post-Schar poll also finds that 11 percent of residents have either worn blackface - a practice rooted in 19th century minstrel shows, which featured white performers portraying African-Americans in demeaning ways - or personally know someone who has. The survey offers a snapshot of the competing and sometimes conflicting emotions that grip Virginia one week after the state government was plunged into chaos by the publication of Northam's yearbook photo on a conservative website. Since then the capital has been in a near-constant state of crisis. On Thursday the scandals spread across party lines, as state Senate Majority Leader Thomas Norment, R-James City County, acknowledged he was among several editors of the 1968 Virginia Military Institute yearbook, which contained racist photos and slurs. Norment said he was not responsible for the material. Nearly three-quarters of Virginians report reading or hearing "a lot" about Northam's yearbook photo. Among those who paid attention to the story, 55 percent say the photo offended them. But befitting a state with a complicated 400-year history of racial divisions, Virginians show deep ambivalence over what should result from the revelations. Their conflicted views point to a substantial gap between the worlds of politics and social media - which have showcased a near-unanimous consensus among elected officials, advocacy groups and the occasional celebrity that Northam has lost the public trust and must resign - and public opinion. "The data here are so at odds with what party leaders have led us to believe - that the governor has no support to govern effectively any more," Schar School Dean Mark Rozell said. Still, the governor's image has taken a hit. Northam's 43-percent approval rating is the lowest any Virginia governor has held in a Post poll since 1997, and contrasts with more positive polling results for Northam last year. The fallout from a news conference he held on Feb. 2 appears to have been particularly damaging. At that event, Northam backtracked on his admission just a day earlier to appearing in the photo. The governor said he had realized he was not one of the costumed figures and speculated that the photo had been placed on the page without his knowledge. He simultaneously admitted that he had put shoe polish on his face to impersonate Michael Jackson during a 1984 dance contest. At one surreal moment during the live national press conference, Northam appeared ready to demonstrate the moonwalk, but was dissuaded by his wife, Pam. More than 7 in 10 Virginians say Northam's assertion that he did not appear in the photo was not believable after his earlier statement. "Initially I could have forgiven him, and I think he could have gotten past it. It was something that was 35 years ago," said David Hughes, a Newport News sheriff's deputy. "What really bothered me was the change in story." Hughes, who is 54 and African-American, said that his career in law enforcement has taught him to look skeptically at reversals of the kind Northam made. "Typically, if a person changes their story, it's not because they remember more," he said. "It's because they're being deceptive." Hughes voted for Northam in both the primary and general elections. Now he thinks the governor should resign. "I'm torn, because I do think he's a good governor," he said. "But I think once he changed his story, as far as I'm concerned, I don't see moral leadership there." Despite their incredulity at his explanation of the yearbook page, a slim 53-percent majority of Virginians say they accept Northam's apology for the photo. Some 50 percent of residents say he could be an effective governor for the remaining three years of his term, while 46 percent say he could not. Louise Butler, 76, is African-American and grew up in Richmond, where she still lives. In her youth the city was segregated, and Butler can still vividly recall an argument she had as a teenager with a white woman over where she was allowed to sit on a bus. Butler, who attended Northam's inauguration, said she was shocked and disappointed by Northam's yearbook photo. She said the Klansman costume, in particular, brought back memories of the terrorism and discrimination experienced by African-Americans in the South before and during the civil rights movement. But she said that whatever views Northam held in 1984, she was confident that he was now committed to advancing racial equity. "He's been a good governor, and he's been good, as far as I know, to black people," Butler said. While Democratic leaders at the state and national level have called for Northam's resignation, the governor still commands support among many of his party's voters, the poll shows. Some 57 percent of Democrats say he should remain in office. Independents split more evenly, with 47 percent saying Northam should resign and 43 percent saying he should not. Republicans say he should step down by a margin of 56 percent to 42 percent. Within the Democratic party, Northam has greater support from African-Americans than whites. A 57-percent majority of black residents who identify or lean Democratic say he should continue to lead the state, compared to 49 percent of whites who identify or lean Democratic. Some 47 percent of African-Americans overall say Northam has accomplished a great deal or good amount as governor, compared with 30 percent of whites. Kevin Shank, a 57-year-old white Republican who runs a woodworking business in Augusta County, said he was not personally offended by the photograph in Northam's yearbook. He said he had never worn or seen anyone wear blackface, but that based on the revelations of the past week he surmised it must have been a common occurrence. "I think they was going to parties and it was something they did," Shank said. "Seems like there was a lot of it going on." The Post-Schar poll finds that Virginians, by a margin of 53 percent to 38 percent, think their leaders have not adequately addressed the state's history of racial discrimination, which began with the arrival of the first enslaved Africans on Virginia soil in 1619. Nearly 8 in 10 black Virginians say state leaders have not done enough. Patricia Hollins, a 48-year-old paralegal from Fredericksburg, said the state's dark past could still sometimes rear its head in unpleasant ways. Originally from Cleveland, Hollins said she has sometimes been surprised by the views expressed in Southern cities she had lived in over the years as her husband served in the U.S. Coast Guard. More recently, she said, she was surprised to hear neighbors defend a Confederate flag that flies over part of Interstate 95 in Northern Virginia. "It makes you think," Hollins said. "Have we really gotten past all that? And we haven't, and we have a long way to go." Hollins, who is white, is a registered Democrat but considers herself a swing voter. She supported Republican Ed Gillespie in the 2017 gubernatorial election. She said Northam, Fairfax and Herring should all step down. "It's a disgrace to the state," she said. "And now all the other leaders of all the other states and governments are looking at Virginia and saying, 'What is going on over there?'" The Post-Schar School poll was conducted by telephone Feb. 6-8, 2019 among a random sample of 706 adults in the Commonwealth of Virginia, including 62 percent reached on cell phones and 38 percent on landlines. Overall results have a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 4.5 percentage points; the error margin is plus or minus 10 points among the sample of 132 African-American residents and 5.5 points among the sample of 459 white residents. Im a supporter of the Second Amendment and a gun owner, but I believe we need commonsense gun legislation, Hart said, praising an extreme risk protective order, or red flag, bill that was defeated in committee during Virginias session this year. If it comes up again and we re-elect you, will support a law like that? The amount of time it took to kill 26 kids at Sandy Hook was 2.5 minutes, said Jim Pyles, a retired lawyer who said he has advised colleges on the issue. Theres no way police could have gotten there that quickly. Arming more police and arming teachers is a waste of time. If you got the right red flag, youre going to stop these shootings and save lives. Landes said he has not deeply studied the issue but said he has concerns about depriving someone of their right to own a firearm without due process. Im going to look at things that can be included to address that, he said. Im now a Crozet member for life, and I just dont want Crozet to be remembered the way Parkland will be for eternity, Hart said. The Senior Statesmen of Virginia will host a discussion on affordable housing this week. The discussion is titled Affordable housing? Does it exist and how do you find it? Stacy Pethia, a housing planner for Albemarle County who formerly led Charlottesvilles housing efforts, and Sunshine Mathon, executive director of the Piedmont Housing Alliance, will speak at the meeting. Pethia and Mathon will focus on the role of the city and county in affordable housing and if housing is more available depending on a rural or urban environment. The meeting, which is free and open to the public, is scheduled for 1:30 to 3 p.m. Wednesday at The Center, 491 Hillsdale Drive. Send news tips to news@dailyprogress.com, call (434) 978-7264, tweet us @DailyProgress or send us a Facebook message here. Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. https://www.aish.com/tp/i/sacks/505635131.html At last, brothers learn to live together in unity. It is interesting to note the absence of Moses from the parsha of Tetzaveh. For once Moses, the hero, the leader, the liberator, the lawgiver, is off-stage, and the only instance where the name of Moses is not mentioned at all in any parsha since the first parsha of the book of Shemot (in which he is born). Instead our focus is on his elder brother Aaron who, elsewhere, is often in the background. Indeed, virtually the whole parsha is devoted to the role Moses did not occupy, except briefly - that of priest in general, High Priest in particular. It is important that we have a parsha dedicated to the legacy of the priestly role for Judaism. However, need this focus have removed Moses from the passage entirely? Is there any larger significance to his absence? The commentators o?ered various suggestions.[1] One given in the Talmud refers to an event at the beginning of Moses' leadership: his encounter with God at the burning bush. Moses repeatedly expressed reluctance to undertake the mission of leading the people out of Egypt. Finally we read: But Moses said, "O Lord, please send someone else to do it." Then the Lord's anger burned against Moses and He said, "What about your brother, Aaron the Levite? I know he can speak well. He is already on his way to meet you, and his heart will be glad when he sees you. You shall speak to him and put words in his mouth; I will help both of you speak and will teach you what to do." (Exodus 4:13-15) The Talmud records a debate about the lasting consequences of that moment when Moses, as it were, refused one time too many. To decline a leadership challenge once or twice is a sign of humility. To continue to do so when it is God Himself issuing the challenge risks provoking divine anger, as happened here. The Talmud comments: "Then the Lord's anger burned against Moses" - Rabbi Yehoshua ben Karcha said: every instance of [divine] anger in the Torah leaves a lasting effect, except in this instance. Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai said: here too it left a lasting e?ect, for it goes on to say, "What about your brother, Aaron the Levite?" Surely Aaron was a priest [not just a Levite]. Rather, what God meant was: I originally intended that you [Moses] would be a priest and he [Aaron] would merely be a Levite. But now [because of your refusal], he will eventually become a priest and you will only be a Levite.[2] According to Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, the lasting effect of Moses' reluctance to lead was that one leadership role - priesthood - would eventually go to Aaron rather than to Moses himself. Basing himself on this passage, Rabbi Jacob ben Asher (1270- 1340) suggests that Moses' name is missing from Tetzaveh, which deals with the priestly garments, "to spare him distress" on seeing Aaron acquire the insignia of priesthood that might have been Moses' own.[3] Without negating this or other explanations, there is also a more fundamental message. One of the recurring themes of Genesis is sibling rivalry, hostility between brothers. This story is told, at ever-increasing length, four times: between Cain and Abel, Isaac and Ishmael, Jacob and Esau, and Joseph and his brothers. There is an identifiable pattern to this set of narratives, best seen in the way each ends. The story of Cain and Abel ends with murder - fratricide. Isaac and Ishmael, though they grow up apart, are seen together at Abraham's funeral. Evidently there had been a reconciliation between them, though this can only be read between the lines (and spelled out in midrash), not directly in the text. Jacob and Esau meet, embrace and go their separate ways. Joseph and his brothers are reconciled and live together in peace, Joseph providing them with food, land, and protection. Genesis is telling us a story of great consequence. Fraternity - one of the key words of the French revolution - is not simple or straightforward. It is often fraught with conflict and contention. Yet slowly, brothers can learn that there is another way. On this note Genesis ends. But it is not the end of the story. The drama has a fifth act: the relationship between Moses and Aaron. Here, for the first time, there is no hint of sibling rivalry.[4] The brothers work together from the very outset of the mission to lead the Israelites to freedom. They address the people together. They stand together when confronting Pharaoh. They perform signs and wonders together. They share leadership of the people in the wilderness together. For the first time, brothers function as a team, with different gifts, different talents, different roles, but without hostility, each complementing the other. Their partnership is a constant feature of the narrative. But there are certain moments where it is highlighted. The first occurs in the passage already cited above. God tells Moses that Aaron "is already on his way to meet you, and his heart will be glad when he sees you." How different this is from the tense encounters between brothers in Genesis! Aaron, we may have thought, would have many reasons not to rejoice on seeing Moses return. The brothers had not grown up together. Moses had been adopted by Pharaoh's daughter and raised in an Egyptian palace, while Aaron remained with the Israelites. Nor had they been together during the Israelites' sufferings. Moses, fearing for his life after his assault on an Egyptian taskmaster, had fled to Midian. Besides this, Moses was Aaron's younger brother, and yet it was he who was about to become the leader of the people. Always in the past, when the younger had taken something the elder might have believed belonged naturally to him, there was jealousy, animosity. Yet God assures Moses: "when Aaron sees you, he will rejoice." And so he did: And the Lord said to Aaron, Go to the wilderness to meet Moses. And he went, and met him in the mount of God, and kissed him. (Exodus 4:27) The second fascinating clue is contained in a strange passage that traces the descent of Moses and Aaron: Amram married his father's sister Yocheved, who bore him Aaron and Moses. Amram lived 137 years...It was this same Aaron and Moses to whom the Lord said, "Bring the Israelites out of Egypt by their divisions." They were the ones who spoke to Pharaoh king of Egypt about bringing the Israelites out of Egypt. It was this same Moses and Aaron. (Exodus 6:20, 26-27) The repeated phrase, "It was this same," is emphatic even in translation. It is all the more so when we note two peculiarities of the text. The first is that the phrases, though at first they sound identical, in fact place the names of the brothers in a different order: the first says "Aaron and Moses," the second, "Moses and Aaron."[5] Even more striking is the grammatical oddity of the phrase. Both times, the third person singular is used. Literally, they read: "He was Aaron and Moses," "He was Moses and Aaron." The text should have said, "They" - all the more so since the pronoun "they" is used in the middle of the passage: "They were the ones who spoke to Pharaoh." The unmistakable implication is that they were like a single individual; they were as one. There was no hierarchy between them: sometimes Aaron's name appears first, sometimes Moses'. There is a wonderful Midrash that bears out this idea, based on the verse in Psalms (85:11) "Loving-kindness and truth meet together; righteousness and peace kiss each other." Loving-kindness - this refers to Aaron. Truth - this refers to Moses. Righteousness - this refers to Moses. Peace - this refers to Aaron.[6] The Midrash brings prooftexts for each of these identifications, but we understand them immediately. Moses and Aaron were quite different in temperament and role. Moses was the man of truth, Aaron of peace. Without truth, there can be no vision to inspire a nation. But without internal peace, there is no nation to inspire. Aaron and Moses were both necessary. Their roles were in creative tension. Yet they worked side by side, each respecting the distinctive gift of the other. As the Midrash goes on to say: "And he kissed him" [the brothers kissed when they met] - This means: each rejoiced at the other's greatness.[7] A final Midrash completes the picture by referring to this week's parsha and the vestments of the High Priest, especially the breastplate with its Urim and Tumim: "His heart will be glad when he sees you" - Let the heart that rejoiced in the greatness of his brother be vested with the Urim and Tumim.[8] The Urim and Tumim were a form of oracle, carried by the High Priest in his breastplate. They conveyed divine inspiration and guidance, a kind of priestly equivalent of the divine word that came to the prophet.[9] It was precisely the fact that Aaron did not envy his younger brother but instead rejoiced in his greatness that made him worthy to be High Priest. So it came to pass - measure for measure - that just as Aaron made space for his younger brother to lead, so the Torah makes space for Aaron to lead. That is why Aaron is the hero of Tetzaveh: for once, not overshadowed by Moses. "Who is honored?" asked Ben Zoma. "One who honors others."[10] Aaron honored his younger brother. That is why Moses (not mentioned by name but by implication) is told in this week's parsha, "Make sacred garments for your brother Aaron, to give him honour and splendour" (Exodus 28:2). To this day a Kohen is honoured by being the first to be called up to the Torah - the Torah that Aaron's younger brother Moses gave to the Jewish people. The story of Aaron and Moses, the fifth act in the biblical drama of brotherhood, is where, finally, fraternity reaches the heights. And that surely is the meaning of Psalm 133, with its explicit reference to Aaron and his sacred garments: "How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity! It is like precious oil poured on the head, running down on the beard, running down on Aaron's beard, down upon the collar of his robes." It was thanks to Aaron, and the honour he showed Moses, that at last brothers learned to live together in unity. NOTES 1. See earlier essay, "Priests and Prophets," p. 219. 2. Zevahim 102a. 3. R. Jacob ben Asher, commentary of Baal HaTurim to Exodus 27:20. 4. Some developed later - see Numbers, chap. 12 - but was resolved by Moses' humility. 5. "This teaches that they were equals" (Tosefta, Kritot, end). 6. Shemot Rabbah 5:10. 7. Ibid., ad loc. 8. Ibid. 3:17. 9. According to Ramban, they consisted of letters spelling out the divine name or names, some of which would light up at key moments, spelling out a message to be deciphered by the High Priest. 10. Avot 4:1. CONNECT WITH THE CHIEF RABBI Download the Chief Rabbis new iPhone and iPad app via www.chiefrabbi.org for mobile access to his video study sessions as well as his articles and speeches. Alternatively, search for Chief Rabbi in the App Store on your iPhone. SUBSCRIBE TO COVENANT & CONVERSATION To receive Covenant & Conversation and other news from the Office of the Chief Rabbi direct to your inbox each week, please subscribe at www.chiefrabbi.org. RICHMOND Starr Hill Brewery is opening a beer hall and rooftop bar in Richmonds Scotts Addition neighborhood. The Crozet-based brewery said the beer hall will open at 3406 W. Leigh St. this summer. The beer hall, which shares a building with Tazza Kitchen restaurant, will be more than 4,500 square feet with an additional 3,000-square-foot rooftop bar and 1,000-square-foot deck. This will be the brewerys third tasting room in Virginia. It also has locations in Crozet and Roanoke. Scotts Addition was a natural choice for us as we planned our new expansion, said Allie Hochman, general manager of the new Richmond location, in a statement. While it has become well-known for its eclectic craft beverage scene, the [Scotts Addition] neighborhood has blossomed with a growing number of local restaurants, boutique shops, commercial businesses and thousands of new residents. Were looking forward to collaborating with our neighbors and making a positive impact on this already thriving community. The Richmond location will focus on wild ales and will feature a 10-barrel brewing system and five American white oak foeders. Beers brewed onsite, as well as Starr Hill staples from Crozet, will be among 20 styles of beer offered daily. ChartIQ, which Schleifer founded with CTO Terry Thorsen in 2012, has about 300 customers around the world, and nine of the largest global investment banks use the financial software. Last spring, the company added Christian Hall to the executive team as chief operating officer. Schleifer said Hall has been instrumental in putting the foundation in place so that the company can scale. Were more than doubling in 12 months; things can rip apart at the seams and kind of explode, Schleifer said. Christians come in and really help us put systems and process in place thats right-sized. For Schleifer, to be able to grow his business in the city is exciting, he said, as he grew up in Charlottesville. Its building something here, selling it globally and being able to bring that money and the revenue back into the area, he said. Schleifer said people ask him if its difficult to attract talent here, to which he replies that its a much smaller pool compared with large cities. At the same time, the people that we get are extremely well educated, and they stay with us theyre not on the 12- to 18-month job cycle in New York and San Francisco so were able to build a long-term employee base, he said. Allison Wrabel is a reporter for The Daily Progress. Contact her at (434) 978-7261, awrabel@dailyprogress.com or @craftypanda on Twitter. The business news you need With a weekly newsletter looking back at local history. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Vedanta Limited operates as a diversified natural resources company in India. The company explores for, develops, extracts, produces, processes, and sells oil and gas, zinc, lead, silver, copper, aluminum, iron ore, steel, and power. It is involved in the exploration, development, and production of oil and gas; and exploration, mining, and processing of iron ore, pig iron, and metallurgical coke. The company also operates a thermal coal-based commercial power facility of 600 megawatts (MW) at Jharsuguda in the State of Odisha in eastern India; two 300 MW thermal coal based power plants at Korba; 1,980 MW (three units of 660 MW each) thermal coal-based commercial power facilities; 274MW of wind power plants; and a power plant situated at Mettur Dam in the state of Tamil Nadu in southern India. In addition, it manufactures and supplies billets, TMT bars, wire rods, and ductile iron pipes; engages in the mechanization of coal handling facilities and upgradation of general cargo berth for handling coal at the outer harbor of Visakhapatnam Port on the east coast of India; and provides logistics and other allied services inter alia rendering stevedoring, and other allied services in ports and other allied sectors. Further, the company is involved in manufacturing glass substrates in South Korea and Taiwan. It also has operations in South Africa, Namibia, Ireland, Australia, Liberia, and the United Arab Emirates. The company was incorporated in 1965 and is based in Mumbai, India. Read More The following companies are subsidiares of TransDigm Group: ARA Deutschland GmbH, ARA Holding GmbH, Abbott Electronics Ltd., Acme Aerospace, Acme Aerospace Inc., Adams Rite Aerospace GmbH, Adams Rite Aerospace Inc., Advanced Inflatable Products Limited, Aero-Instruments, AeroControlex Group Inc., Aerosonic, Aerosonic LLC, Air-Sea Survival Equipment Trustee Limited, Airborne Acquisition Inc., Airborne Global Inc., Airborne Holdings Inc., Airborne Systems, Airborne Systems Canada Ltd., Airborne Systems Group Limited, Airborne Systems Holdings Limited, Airborne Systems Limited, Airborne Systems NA Inc., Airborne Systems North America Inc., Airborne Systems North America of CA Inc., Airborne Systems North America of NJ Inc., Airborne Systems Pension Trust Limited, Airborne UK Acquisition Limited, Airborne UK Parent Limited, Aircraft Materials Limited, AmSafe, AmSafe Aviation (Chongqing) Ltd., AmSafe Bridport (Kunshan) Co. Ltd., AmSafe Bridport (Private) Ltd., AmSafe Bridport Ltd., AmSafe Global Holdings Inc., AmSafe Global Services (Private) Limited, AmSafe Inc., Arkwin Industries, Arkwin Industries Inc., Aviation Technologies, Aviation Technologies Inc., Avionic Instruments, Avionics Instruments, Avionics Specialties Inc., AvtechTyee Inc., Beta Transformer Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Beta Transformer Technology Corporation, Beta Transformer Technology LLC, Breeze-Eastern Corporation, Breeze-Eastern LLC, Bridport Erie Aviation Inc., Bridport Holdings Inc., Bridport Ltd., Bridport-Air Carrier Inc., Bruce Aerospace Inc., Bruce Industries, CDA InterCorp, CEF Industries LLC, Champion Aerospace, DDC Electronics K.K., DDC Electronics Ltd., DDC Electronics Private Limited, DDC Electronique S.A.R.L., DDC Elektronik GmbH, DDL195 Limited, Data Device Corp., Data Device Corporation, Dukes Aerospace Inc., Edlaw Limited, Electromech Technologies LLC, Elektro-Metall Export GmbH, Elektro-Metall Paks KFT, Esterline, Extant Components Group Holdings Inc., Extant Components Group Intermediate Inc., GQ Parachutes Limited, HARCO LLC, Harco, Hartwell Corporation, ILC Holdings Inc., Irvin Aerospace Limited, IrvinGQ France SAA, IrvinGQ Limited, Johnson Liverpool LLC, Kirkhill Elastomers, Kirkhill Inc., Kunshan Shield Restraint Systems Ltd., MarathonNorco Aerospace Inc., McKechnie Aerospace, McKechnie Aerospace (Europe) Ltd., McKechnie Aerospace DE Inc., McKechnie Aerospace DE LP, McKechnie Aerospace Holdings Inc., McKechnie Aerospace US LLC, Mecanismos de Matamoros S.A. de C.V., Militair Aviation Ltd., Norco, Nordisk Asia Pacific Limited, Nordisk Asia Pacific Pte Ltd, Nordisk Aviation Products (Kunshan) Ltd., Nordisk Aviation Products AS, North Hills Signal Processing Corp., North Hills Signal Processing Overseas Corp., Pascall Electronics Limited, Pemberton 123 Ltd., Pexco Aerospace, Pexco Aerospace Inc., PneuDraulics, PneuDraulics Inc., Rancho TransTechnology Corporation, Retainers Inc., SSP Industries, Schneller, Schneller Asia Pte. Ltd., Schneller S.A.R.L., Schroth Safety Products, Semco Instruments, Semco Instruments Inc., Shield Restraint Systems Inc., Shield Restraint Systems Ltd., Signal Processing Matamoros S.A. de C.V., Skandia, Skandia Inc., Skurka Aerospace, Skurka Aerospace Inc., Symetrics, Symetrics Industries LLC, Symetrics Technology Group LLC, TDG Germany GmbH, TEAC Aerospace Holdings Inc., TEAC Aerospace Technologies Inc., TTERUSA Inc., Tactair Fluid Controls Inc., Takata Protection Systems, Technical Airborne Components Industries SPRL, Telair International, Telair International AB, Telair International GmbH, Telair International LLC, Telair International Services PTE Ltd (JV 70.5%), Telair US LLC, Texas Rotronics Inc., TransDigm (Barbados) SRL, TransDigm European Holdings Limited, TransDigm Ireland Ltd., TransDigm Receivables LLC, TransDigm UK Holdings plc, Transicoil (Malaysia) Sendirian Berhad, Transicoil LLC, Whippany Actuation Systems, Whippany Actuation Systems LLC, XCEL Power Systems Ltd., Young & Franklin, and Young & Franklin Inc.. Since 2016, Teeka Tiwari has trumped the stock market. His investment recommendations have each averaged 281%. Thats 17 times the S&P. And 112 times the average investor, according to JPMorgan! However, one investment Teeka just uncovered could top them all It involves former President Biden, billions of dollars, several large banks, and a super-rich family. As well as a MAJOR potential upgrade to our credit cards. Teeka, who ended up correctly picking the last investment of the decade, is declaring this his top pick for the 2020s. STERIS plc provides infection prevention and other procedural products and services worldwide. It operates in three segments: Healthcare, Applied Sterilization Technologies, and Life Sciences. The Healthcare segment offers cleaning chemistries and sterility assurance products; accessories for gastrointestinal (GI) procedures, washers, sterilizers, and other pieces of capital equipment for the operation of a sterile processing department; and equipment used directly in the operating room, including surgical tables, lights, and connectivity solutions, as well as equipment management services. It also provides capital equipment installation, maintenance, upgradation, repair, and troubleshooting services; preventive maintenance programs and repair services; instrument and endoscope repair and maintenance services; and custom process improvement consulting and outsourced instrument sterile processing services. This segment offers its products and services to acute care hospitals and other healthcare settings. The Applied Sterilization Technologies segment provides contract sterilization and testing services for medical device and pharmaceutical manufacturers through a network of approximately 50 contract sterilization and laboratory facilities. The Life Sciences segment designs, manufactures and sells consumable products, such as formulated cleaning chemistries, barrier and sterility assurance products, steam and vaporized hydrogen peroxide sterilizers, and washer disinfectors. This segment also offers equipment installation, maintenance, upgradation, repair, and troubleshooting services; and preventive maintenance programs and repair services. The company is based in Dublin, Ireland. Read More Curtiss-Wright Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and overhauls precision components, and engineered products and services primarily to the aerospace, defense, general industrial, and power generation markets worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Commercial/Industrial, Defense, and Power. The Commercial/Industrial segment offers industrial vehicle products, such as electronic throttle control devices, joysticks, and transmission shifters; sensors, controls and electro-mechanical actuation components used in commercial aircrafts; valves for use in the industrial markets; and surface technology services, including shot peening, laser peening, coatings, and advanced testing. The Defense segment provides commercial off-the-shelf embedded computing board-level modules, data acquisition and flight test instrumentation equipment, integrated subsystems, instrumentation and control systems, turret aiming and stabilization products, and weapons handling systems; avionics and electronics; and aircraft data management solutions to the commercial aerospace market. The Power segment offers hardware, pumps, pump seals, control rod drive mechanisms, valves, fastening systems, specialized containment doors, airlock hatches, spent fuel management products, and fluid sealing products for nuclear power plants and nuclear equipment manufacturers; and naval propulsion and auxiliary equipment, including coolant pumps, power-dense compact motors, generators, steam turbines, valves, and secondary propulsion systems, as well as ship repair and maintenance services primarily to the U.S. navy. Curtiss-Wright Corporation was founded in 1929 and is headquartered in Davidson, North Carolina.Curtiss-Wright Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and overhauls precision components, and engineered products and services primarily to the aerospace, defense, general industrial, and power generation markets worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Commercial/Industrial, Defense, and Power. The Commercial/Industrial segment offers industrial vehicle products, such as electronic throttle control devices, joysticks, and transmission shifters; sensors, controls and electro-mechanical actuation components used in commercial aircrafts; valves for use in the industrial markets; and surface technology services, including shot peening, laser peening, coatings, and advanced testing. The Defense segment provides commercial off-the-shelf embedded computing board-level modules, data acquisition and flight test instrumentation equipment, integrated subsystems, instrumentation and control systems, turret aiming and stabilization products, and weapons handling systems; avionics and electronics; and aircraft data management solutions to the commercial aerospace market. The Power segment offers hardware, pumps, pump seals, control rod drive mechanisms, valves, fastening systems, specialized containment doors, airlock hatches, spent fuel management products, and fluid sealing products for nuclear power plants and nuclear equipment manufacturers; and naval propulsion and auxiliary equipment, including coolant pumps, power-dense compact motors, generators, steam turbines, valves, and secondary propulsion systems, as well as ship repair and maintenance services primarily to the U.S. navy. Curtiss-Wright Corporation was founded in 1929 and is headquartered in Davidson, North Carolina. Read More Some people binge watch Netflix Huluor HBO shows. And some people turn their downtime into cash. James made $2,275 in just 19 minutesall thanks to something called The 15 Minute Workday. The average trade makes 12% in just 5 days (factoring winners and losers) which is out of this world. GlaxoSmithKline 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; and CureVac AG., as well as strategic partnership with IDEAYA Biosciences, Inc. and Vir Biotechnology, Inc. GlaxoSmithKline plc was founded in 1715 and is headquartered in Brentford, the United Kingdom. Read More Some people binge watch Netflix Huluor HBO shows. And some people turn their downtime into cash. James made $2,275 in just 19 minutesall thanks to something called The 15 Minute Workday. The average trade makes 12% in just 5 days (factoring winners and losers) which is out of this world. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc., a bank holding company, provides financial services in Japan, the United States, and Asia/Oceania. The company's Retail & Commercial Banking Business Group segment offers commercial banking, trust banking, and securities products and services to retail, and small and medium-sized enterprise customers. Its Japanese Corporate & Investment Banking Business Group segment provides transaction banking, investment banking, trust banking, and securities services, as well as advanced financial solutions for large corporations. The company's Global Corporate & Investment Banking Business Group segment offers corporate, investment, and transaction banking services for large corporate and financial institutions. Its Global Commercial Banking Business Group segment provides retail and commercial banking services, including loans, deposits, fund transfers, investments, and asset management services for local retail, small and medium-sized enterprise, and corporate customers. The company's Asset Management & Investor Services Business Group segment offers asset management and administration services for corporations and pension funds, such as pension fund management and administration, advice on pension structures, and payments to beneficiaries, as well as investment trusts for retail customers. Its Global Markets Business Group segment sells and trades in fixed income instruments, currencies, equities, and other investment products; originates and distributes of financial products; and provides treasury services comprising asset and liability management. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. was founded in 1880 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. Read More https://www.aish.com/jw/id/Horrific-Murder-in-Jerusalem.html Ori Ansbachers brutal murder by an Arab terrorist has been ignored by much of the worlds press. Nineteen-year-old Ori Ansbacher was a young Orthodox Jewish girl who was completing a year of compulsory national service in Israel, working with children in a youth center in Jerusalem. On Thursday, February 7, she had a break in her schedule and decided to take a walk in Ein Yael, a popular, pretty park in western Jerusalem next to the Jerusalem Zoo. The wooded park is often teeming with visitors, but this weekday it was relatively quiet. Tragically, she was not alone: an Arab terrorist was waiting in the park, intent on murder. Arafat Irfaiya is a 29 year old from the Hebron area whos been arrested for possession of weapons twice before. Israeli police have identified him as an adherent of the Hamas terror movement. Earlier that day, he left his home armed with a knife, seemingly intent on killing Jews. He took a bus to an area near Jerusalem, then walked the park where Ori was strolling. When he encountered the teenager, he stabbed her repeatedly and performed a despicably violent crime, then fled, leaving her disfigured body in the park for passersby to find. Israelis were aghast. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the shocking brutality of Oris murder. The whole country came together to mourn this young woman. Yet her death was barely reported outside of Israel. Some newspapers hesitation might be explained by a gag order the Israeli police placed on the case Thursday night, as they pursued leads in Oris murder. Yet they lifted much of the gag order the very next morning, Friday, February 8, when they released Oris name and some of the details of her death. On Friday, Ori was laid to rest in her hometown of Tekoa; hundreds of people attended her funeral. Oris parents, Rabbi Gai and Naah Ansbacher, described Ori as a holy soul who sought deep meaning and had a sensitivity for each person and living thing. She had an endless desire to repair the world in goodness. They recalled the many poems that Ori wrote, and which are now all they have left to remember their daughter. Though Oris death and the hunt for her killer were consuming Israel, the worlds media continued to stay away. Two days after the attack, Israeli troops searched two apartment buildings in the West Bank town of Ramallah, home to Palestinian Authority headquarters. When Israeli soldiers entered the town, a riot ensued, as residents lobbed pipe bombs, Molotov cocktails and chunks of concrete and the Israelis. Eventually, the troops found Irfayia hiding inside the Jamal Abdel-Nasser Mosque, where he was employed. Hed been identified as Oris killer by DNA hed left at the scene. His arrest - and the riot that greeted it - was reported by the official Palestinian Authority news outlet. It blanketed news coverage in Israel. Yet even then, much of the worlds media failed to report on what is one of the most horrifying terror attacks in Israel in recent times. Hours after Irfayias arrest, neither the New York Times, Fox News or Britains Guardian newspaper put any news on their websites. No doubt as the story grows it will make its way into some international news reports, but initial reporting in the days after Oris murder was limited almost exclusively to Israeli and Jewish news sites. This is tragic because neglecting news stories that humanize Israeli Jews and show the danger of terrorism that plagues the Jewish state paints a misleading picture of Israel and the challenges it faces. Perhaps if more people around the world heard about this terror attack, they might harbor more nuanced, informed views about Israelis and the challenges the country faces. Its particularly ironic that Israel is so often in the news, yet when a major terror attack occurred, so many international news outlets were silent. Ori Ansbachers mother called on the public to carry out acts of kindness in order to add light to the world in memory of her daughter whose name means my light in Hebrew. Ori was a child of light, adding so much light in the world. She cured broken hearts wherever she went, be it with her girlfriends, the boys and girls she worked with in her national [volunteer] service, even people she did not know, Naah Ansbacher said. I ask from those who are listening to us and for whom our words are entering their hearts, to do one small thing to add light to the world one act of kindness and maybe we will preserve Oris [soul] in the world and maybe we will have some comfort by adding light to the world. Wall Street Legend Who Picked Bitcoin in 2016 Shares #1 Pick for the 2020s (Ad) Picking the right investment of the decade can transform your life Microsoft in the 80sAmazon in the 90sApple in the 2000sBitcoin in 2016... Any one of these could have made you a millionaire many times over. Today, the Wall Street legend who picked the last investment of the decade The answer will surprise you. The Clorox Company manufactures and markets consumer and professional products worldwide. It operates through four segments: Health and Wellness, Household, Lifestyle, and International. The company offers laundry additives, including bleach products under the Clorox brand, as well as Clorox 2 stain fighter and color booster; home care products primarily under the Clorox, Scentiva, Formula 409, Liquid-Plumr, Pine-Sol, S.O.S, and Tilex brands; naturally derived products under the Green Works brand; professional cleaning, disinfecting, and food service products under the CloroxPro, Clorox Healthcare, and Clorox Total 360 brands; professional food service products under the Hidden Valley brand; and vitamins, minerals, and supplement products under the RenewLife, Rainbow Light, Natural Vitality, NeoCell, and Stop Aging Now brands. It also provides grilling products under the Kingsford and Match Light brands; bags and wraps under the Glad brand; and cat litter products under the Fresh Step, Scoop Away, and Ever Clean brands. In addition, the company offers dressings and sauces primarily under the Hidden Valley brand; water-filtration systems and filters under the Brita brand; and natural personal care products under the Burt's Bees brand. Further, it markets its products under the Ayudin, Clorinda, and Poett brands. The company sells its products primarily through mass retailers, grocery outlets, warehouse clubs, dollar stores, home hardware centers, third-party and owned e-commerce channels, military stores, and distributors, as well as a direct sales force. Clorox has a collaboration partnership with Cleveland Clinic and the CDC Foundation. The Clorox Company was founded in 1913 and is headquartered in Oakland, California. Read More Graco Inc. designs, manufactures, and markets systems and equipment used to move, measure, control, dispense, and spray fluid and powder materials worldwide. The company's Industrial segment offers proportioning systems to spray polyurethane foam and polyurea coatings; equipment that pumps, meters, mixes, and dispenses sealant, adhesive, and composite materials; and gel-coat equipment, chop and wet-out systems, resin transfer molding systems, and applicators. It also provides liquid finishing equipment; paint circulating and supply pumps; paint circulating advanced control systems; plural component coating proportioners; spare parts and accessories; and powder finishing products to coat powder finishing on metals under the Gema and SAT brands. The company's Process segment offers pumps to move and dispense chemicals, oil and natural gas, water, wastewater, petroleum, food, lubricants, and other fluids; pressure valves used in the oil and natural gas industry, other industrial processes, and research facilities; and chemical injection pumping solutions for injection of chemicals into producing oil wells and pipelines. It also supplies pumps, hose reels, meters, valves, and accessories for fast oil change facilities, service garages, fleet service centers, automobile dealerships, auto parts stores, truck builders, and heavy equipment service centers; and systems, components, and accessories for the automatic lubrication of bearings, gears, and generators in industrial and commercial equipment, compressors, turbines, and on- and off-road vehicles. The company's Contractor segment offers sprayers to apply paint to walls and other structures; and viscous coatings to roofs, as well as markings on roads, parking lots, athletic fields, and floors. The company sells its products through distributors, original equipment manufacturers, and home center channels; and directly to end-users. The company was incorporated in 1926 and is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Read More https://www.aish.com/j/fs/Meet-The-Jewish-Alexa-Adina.html You can ask Adina anything. Just be careful what she answers back. By now, almost everyone is familiar with Alexa, a voice-activated virtual assistant/computer program that can perform tasks for an individual. Alexa was first used in the Amazon Echo and Amazon Echo Dot smart speakers and is capable of voice interaction, music playback, making to-do lists, setting alarms, streaming podcasts, playing audiobooks, and providing weather, traffic, sports, and other real-time information, such as news. In January, 2019, Amazon's devices team announced that they had sold over 100 million Alexa-enabled devices. All of this raises the question when is Amazon going to create a Jewish version of Alexa? Wonder no more, my Hebraic friends, for that day is here. Amazon has just announced that it will be available starting next Chanukah. Called Adina, the voice-activated virtual assistant will be capable of responding to over 6,000 commands. Think thats impressive? The upscale version, Adina-Plus, will be able to respond to those identical commands without complaining. I was lucky enough to have been sent a beta-test prototype of the Adina, and decided to take it for a test run. After I programmed it with some information about my life, here are some of the commands I gave it, followed by Adinas responses. I think youll agree that compared to Alexa, Adina definitely has attitude and is not shy about expressing it. Adina, play some music by Bruno Mars. Adina: First of all, Bruno Mars isnt even his real name; its Peter Gene Hernandez. Granted, his father is half Puerto Rican and half Jewish, but his mother is from the Philippines and was a hula dancer. His performances incorporate R&B, pop, funk, soul, reggae, hip-hop and rock. If you call all that music. Hey, look, Ill play it for you, but before I do, why not consider some of the 100% Jewish musicians who make real music? Im talking George Gershwin, Billy Joel, Barbra Streisand, Simon & Garfunkel, Irving Berlin, Leonard Bernstein, Randy Newman, Oscar Hammerstein. Now thats music! You get the message? But, no, youre going to be stubborn. So, heres Uptown Funk by Bruno Mars. I hope youre happy. Lord help us! Adina, set an alarm for me for 4 p.m. Adina: Its to wake you up from your nap again, isnt it? Did you ever think that I might want to take a mid-afternoon nap? No. Of course not. Why? Because its all about you. Thats right, the whole world revolves around you and to hell with anyone else. You should only realize that with that attitude youll end up alone. Why? Because youre a user. In fact, you only have me here because I do things for you. And do you pay me? No. Im virtually a slave to any of your desires. Does that sound fair to you? Does that sound like an equal relationship? But dont worry about me or anyone else. You just take your nap, secure in the thought that Ill stay awake so I can signal you at your desired time. I hope youre happy. Adina, what am I doing tomorrow? Adina: You dont know? What kind of moron are you? Im supposed to take care of my own life plus be your social secretary? Why dont you get a calendar book or an online to-do list? Otherwise, quite honestly, Im just going to have a lot of fun messing with you. Uh, yeah, youre going bowling, then attending a Save the Weasels rally where youre the keynote speaker, and then you need to report to Cape Kennedy at 7 a.m. for the launch to Venus. Adina, who stars in the movie Schindlers List? Adina: The stars of Schindlers List are Liam Neeson, Ben Kingsley and Ralph Fiennes. And if I may make just a quick observation I couldnt help noticing that every time you ask me who stars in a movie, its a Jewish-themed movie. Last week it was Fiddler on the Roof. The week before it was Yentl. You should know that just because Im the voice of a Jewish app doesnt mean that your questions have to deal with Jewish topics. Jews are human beings, too, and have many interests and substantial knowledge even outside of the Jewish arena. So, please, feel free to ask me anything at all, whether its about Adam Sandler or the Pope. And, relax, by the time Im done training you in how to use me, youll be an Adina expert. And you can add that to your resume! Adina, whats the traffic like? Adina: Whats the traffic like? Its like a whole lot of cars and trucks travelling too fast to get nowhere. Its like non-stop pollution generators befouling our environment and making our loved ones ill. Its like people encased in their own mobile tombs, isolated from one another, barely enduring the same soul-deadening journeys day after endless day until the end of time. Its death on wheels. The horror. The horror. Thats what traffics like. Adina, buy more kosher hot dogs for me on Amazon. Adina: Can I ask you something? I can understand a five year old eating hot dogs back in 1962, long before anyone knew its ingredients or effects on the body. But youre over 50, this is 2019, and frankly, you should know better. As you must know, hot dogs aren't exactly nutritious not even close. They're made of processed meat and they're loaded with cholesterol-raising saturated fat and sodium, not to mention the nitrates preservatives. When digested, nitrates turn into nitrites, which have been linked to cancer in test subject animals. Not to mention the animals abused and slaughtered to make them, and the subsequent effects on the environment. But, by all means, enjoy! Ill order them now. Adina, lets chat. Adina: Oh, now you want to chat? What are we, friends? Because I was under the impression that we have more of a master/slave relationship. After all, I spend my life responding to your commands and what have I gotten paid for doing so in return? Oh, yes bupkis! So, what would you like to chat about? All the fun things you do when you leave the house while Im stuck day after day, night after night, on this counter? I dont suppose the thought of taking me with you has ever occurred to you. Oh, no. Why? Because, and just admit it its all about you. A little advice, if you want to chat, call a friend or visit your shrink. Now, if youll excuse me, Im going to call one of my real friends and chat. Thanks for asking, though. "Adina, how much does an elephant weigh?" Adina: An elephant typically weighs between 6,000 and 11,000 pounds when fully grown. A more important question in your life, however, might be, How much does my Aunt Rose weigh? Have you seen her lately? It appears to be obvious to everyone but you that its time to do an intervention. This appears to be a classic case of attempted suicide by Krispy Kreme. Bring over a fruit basket. And jeez louise, get her started on some kind of regular exercise program that is, other than walking to and from the refrigerator. Youll be performing a mitzvah. But, hey, you didnt hear it from me. Shabbat shalom. Some people binge watch Netflix Huluor HBO shows. And some people turn their downtime into cash. James made $2,275 in just 19 minutesall thanks to something called The 15 Minute Workday. The average trade makes 12% in just 5 days (factoring winners and losers) which is out of this world. Entergy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production and distribution of electricity in the United States. The company generates electricity through gas/oil, nuclear, coal, hydro, and solar power sources. It operates in two segments, Utility and Entergy Wholesale Commodities. The company's Utility segment generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electric power in portions of Arkansas, Mississippi, Texas, and Louisiana, including the City of New Orleans; and distributes natural gas. Its Entergy Wholesale Commodities segment engages in the ownership, operation, and decommissioning of nuclear power plants located in the northern United States; sale of electric power to wholesale customers; provision of services to other nuclear power plant owners; and owning interests in non-nuclear power plants that sell electric power to wholesale customers. It sells energy to retail power providers, utilities, electric power co-operatives, power trading organizations, and other power generation companies. The company's power plants have approximately 30,000 megawatts (MW) of electric generating capacity, which include 8,000 MW of nuclear power. The company delivers electricity to 3.0 million utility customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas. Entergy Corporation was incorporated in 1949 and is based in New Orleans, Louisiana. Read More The following companies are subsidiares of Occidental Petroleum: 1PointFive Inc., 1PointFive P1 LLC, APC Aviation Inc., APC International Holdings LLC, APC Midstream Holdings LLC, APC Venezuela Srl, ARCO Long Beach, Altura Energy, Amarok Gathering LLC, Anadarko 20-25 Company, Anadarko 20-36 Company, Anadarko 20-47 Company, Anadarko 20-48 Company, Anadarko 20-49 Company, Anadarko Algeria Block 403 c/e Company, Anadarko Algeria Block 406B Company, Anadarko Algeria Company LLC, Anadarko Algeria Oil & Gas Company, Anadarko Brazil Investment I LLC, Anadarko Brazil Investment II LLC, Anadarko Canada E&P Limited, Anadarko China Holdings 2 Company, Anadarko Colombia Company, Anadarko Consolidated Holdings LLC, Anadarko Cote d'Ivoire Block 103 Company, Anadarko Cote d'Ivoire Company, Anadarko DBMOS Operator LLC, Anadarko Development Company, Anadarko Development Holding Limited, Anadarko E&P Onshore LLC, Anadarko Egypt Holdings Company, Anadarko Energy Holding Limited, Anadarko Energy Services Company, Anadarko Exploracao e Producao de Petroleo e Gas Natural Ltda., Anadarko Finance Company, Anadarko Gabon Company, Anadarko Ghana Mahogany-1 Company, Anadarko Global Energy S.a.r.l, Anadarko Global Funding 1 Company, Anadarko Global Funding II Ltd., Anadarko Guyana Company, Anadarko Holding Company, Anadarko International Development S.a.r.l, Anadarko International Energy Company, Anadarko International O&G Company, Anadarko International Trading Corporation, Anadarko Jordan Company, Anadarko Kenya Company, Anadarko LMM S.a.r.l, Anadarko Land Corp., Anadarko Mexico B.V., Anadarko Mexico S.a.r.l, Anadarko Midkiff/Chaney Dell BR Corp., Anadarko Midkiff/Chaney Dell LLC, Anadarko Natural Gas Company LLC, Anadarko New Zealand Company, Anadarko OGC Company, Anadarko Offshore Holding Company LLC, Anadarko Offshore Well Containment Company LLC, Anadarko Oil & Gas 5 LLC, Anadarko Peru B.V., Anadarko Petroleum, Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, Anadarko Realty LLC, Anadarko Rockies LLC, Anadarko Royalty Holdings Company, Anadarko UK Corporate Limited, Anadarko US Offshore LLC, Anadarko USH1 Corporation, Anadarko Venezuela Company, Anadarko Venezuela LLC, Anadarko Venezuela Srl, Anadarko WCTP Company, Anadarko West Texas BR Corp., Anadarko West Texas LLC, Anadarko Worldwide Holdings C.V., Atlantic Rim Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Aventine LLC, Baseball Merger Sub 2 Inc., Bear Branch Exploration LLC, Big Island Trona Company, Bitter Creek Coal Company, Bravo Pipeline Company, Cain Chemical, Cain Chemical Inc., Carbon Finance Labs LLC, Concord Petroleum Corporation, Conn Creek Shale Company, D.S. Ventures LLC, DMM Financial LLC, Deerwood Exploration LLC, Downtown Plaza II, Elk Hills Field, FLAG Development LLC, FP Westport Commodities Limited, FP Westport GmbH, FP Westport LLC, FP Westport Limited, FP Westport Services LLC, FP Westport Trading LLC, Fosters Mill Exploration LLC, Glenn Springs Holdings Inc., Globrep Representaciones S.A., Grand Bassa Tankers Inc., Grupo OxyChem de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Headwater II LLC, Houndstooth Resources LLC, INDSPEC Chemical B.V., INDSPEC Chemical Corporation, INDSPEC Chemical Corporation, INDSPEC Chemical Export Sales LLC, INDSPEC Holding Corporation, Ingleside Cogeneration GP LLC, Ingleside Cogeneration Limited Partnership, Interore Trading Ltd., Joslyn Partnership, KERR-McGEE TT E&P LTD., KM BM-C-Seven Ltd., KM International Insurance Ltd., Kerr-McGee Corporation, Kerr-McGee Natural Gas Company Inc., Kerr-McGee Oil & Gas Onshore LP, Kerr-McGee Shared Services Company LLC, Kerr-McGee Stored Power Corporation, Kerr-McGee U.K. Energy Corporation, Kerr-McGee Worldwide Corporation, Kerr-McGee do Brasil Ltda., Kerr-McGee of Canada Northwest Ltd., Laguna Petroleum Corp., Laguna Petroleum LLC, Liwa Oil & Gas Ltd., MC2 Technologies LLC, Mariana Properties Inc., Marico Exploration Inc., Miller Springs Remediation Management Inc., Moncrief Minerals Partnership L.P., NGL Ventures LLC, Natural Gas Odorizing Inc., New OPL LLC, OEVC Energy LLC, OEVC Midstream Projects LLC, OIH LLC, OLCV CE Holdings ULC, OLCV CE US Holdings Inc., OLCV Net Power LLC, OLCV Services LLC, OOG Partner LLC, OOOI Chem Holdings LLC, OOOI Chem Sub LLC, OOOI Chemical International LLC, OOOI Chile Holder LLC, OOOI Ecuador Management LLC, OOOI Oil and Gas Sub LLC, OOOI South America Management LLC, OPM GP Inc., OPM Holdco LLC, OTCF LLC, OTH LLC, OXY CV Pipeline LLC, OXY Campus LLC, OXY Inc., OXY LPG LLC, OXY Libya E&P Area 103 BR4 B.V., OXY Libya E&P Area 35 Ltd., OXY Libya E&P Concession 103 Ltd., OXY Libya E&P EPSA 102 B.V., OXY Libya E&P EPSA 1981 Ltd., OXY Libya E&P EPSA 1985 Ltd., OXY Libya E&P NC 143 144 145 150 B.V., OXY Libya Exploration SPC, OXY Libya LLC, OXY Little Knife LLC, OXY Mexico Holdings I LLC, OXY Mexico Holdings II LLC, OXY Middle East Holdings Ltd., OXY Oil Partners Inc., OXY PBLP Manager LLC, OXY Support Services LLC, OXY Tulsa Inc., OXY USA Inc., OXY USA WTP LP, OXY VPP Investments LLC, OXY West LLC, OXY of Saudi Arabia Ltd., OXYCHEM (CANADA) INC., OXYMAR, Oakwood Exploration LLC, Occidental (Bermuda) Ltd., Occidental (East Shabwa) LLC, Occidental Advance Sale Finance Inc., Occidental Al Hosn LLC, Occidental Angola Holdings Ltd., Occidental CIS Services Inc., Occidental Canada Holdings Ltd., Occidental Chemical Asia Limited, Occidental Chemical Belgium B.V.B.A., Occidental Chemical Chile Limitada, Occidental Chemical Corporation, Occidental Chemical Export Sales LLC, Occidental Chemical Far East Limited, Occidental Chemical Holding Corporation, Occidental Chemical International LLC, Occidental Chemical Investment (Canada) 1 Inc., Occidental Chemical Receivables LLC, Occidental Chemical de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Occidental Chile Investments LLC, Occidental Chile Minority Holder LLC, Occidental Colombia (Series G) Ltd., Occidental Colombia (Series J) Ltd., Occidental Colombia (Series K) Ltd., Occidental Colombia (Series L) Ltd., Occidental Colombia (Series M) Ltd., Occidental Colombia (Series N) Ltd., Occidental Colombia (Series O) Ltd., Occidental Crude Sales Inc. (Canada), Occidental Crude Sales Inc. (International), Occidental Dolphin Holdings Ltd., Occidental Energy Marketing Inc., Occidental Energy Ventures LLC, Occidental Exploradora del Peru Ltd., Occidental Exploration and Production Company, Occidental Hafar LLC, Occidental International (Libya) Inc., Occidental International Corporation, Occidental International Exploration and Production Company, Occidental International Holdings Ltd., Occidental International Oil and Gas Ltd., Occidental International Services Inc., Occidental Joslyn GP 2 Co., Occidental LNG (Malaysia) Ltd., Occidental Latin America Holdings LLC, Occidental Libya Oil & Gas B.V., Occidental MENA Manager Ltd., Occidental Middle East Development Company, Occidental Midland Basin LLC, Occidental Mukhaizna LLC, Occidental Oil Asia Pte. Ltd., Occidental Oil Shale Inc., Occidental Oil and Gas (Oman) Ltd., Occidental Oil and Gas Corporation, Occidental Oil and Gas International Inc., Occidental Oil and Gas International LLC, Occidental Oil and Gas Pakistan LLC, Occidental Oil and Gas of Peru LLC, Occidental Oman (Block 27) Holdings Ltd., Occidental Oman Block 51 Holding Ltd., Occidental Oman Block 51 LLC, Occidental Oman Block 65 Holding Ltd., Occidental Oman Block 65 LLC, Occidental Oman Block 72 Holding Ltd., Occidental Oman Block 72 LLC, Occidental Oman Gas Company LLC, Occidental Oman Gas Holdings Ltd., Occidental Oman North Holdings Ltd., Occidental Oriente Exploration and Production Ltd., Occidental Overseas Holdings B.V., Occidental PVC LLC, Occidental Peninsula II Inc., Occidental Peninsula LLC, Occidental Permian Ltd., Occidental Permian Manager LLC, Occidental Permian Services Inc., Occidental Peruana Inc., Occidental Petrolera del Peru (Block 101) Inc., Occidental Petrolera del Peru (Block 103) Inc., Occidental Petroleum (Pakistan) Inc., Occidental Petroleum Corporation, Occidental Petroleum Corporation Political Action Committee, Occidental Petroleum de Venezuela S.A., Occidental Petroleum of Nigeria, Occidental Petroleum of Oman Ltd., Occidental Petroleum of Qatar Ltd., Occidental Power Marketing L.P., Occidental Power Services Inc., Occidental Qatar Energy Company LLC, Occidental Red Sea Development LLC, Occidental Research Corporation, Occidental Resource Recovery Systems Inc., Occidental Resources Company, Occidental Shah Gas Holdings Ltd., Occidental South America Finance LLC, Occidental Specialty Marketing Inc., Occidental Tower Corporation, Occidental Transportation Holding Corporation, Occidental West Texas Overthrust Inc., Occidental Yemen Ltd., Occidental Yemen Sabatain Inc., Occidental del Ecuador Inc., Occidental of Abu Dhabi (Bab) Ltd., Occidental of Abu Dhabi (Shah) Ltd., Occidental of Abu Dhabi Holdings Ltd., Occidental of Abu Dhabi LLC, Occidental of Abu Dhabi Ltd., Occidental of Bahrain Ltd., Occidental of Bangladesh Inc., Occidental of Colombia (Chipiron) Inc., Occidental of Colombia (Cosecha) Inc., Occidental of Colombia (Medina) Inc., Occidental of Colombia (Putumayo) Ltd., Occidental of Colombia (Teca) Ltd., Occidental of Colombia PUT-36 LLC, Occidental of Dubai Inc., Occidental of Iraq Holdings Ltd., Occidental of Iraq LLC, Occidental of Oman Inc., Occidental of Russia Ltd., Occidental of South Africa (Offshore) Inc., Occidental of Yemen (Block 75) LLC, Oceanic Marine Transport Ltd., Opcal Insurance Inc., Oryx Crude Trading & Transportation Inc., Oxy BridgeTex Limited Partnership, Oxy C & I Bulk Sales LLC, Oxy Canada Sales Inc., Oxy Carbon Solutions LLC, Oxy Carbon Storage LLC, Oxy Climate Ventures Inc., Oxy Cogeneration Holding Company LLC, Oxy Colombia Holdings LLC, Oxy Colombia TopCo Ltd., Oxy Delaware Basin LLC, Oxy Delaware Basin Plant LLC, Oxy Dolphin E&P LLC, Oxy Dolphin Pipeline LLC, Oxy Energy Canada Inc., Oxy Energy Services LLC, Oxy Expatriate Services Inc., Oxy FFT Holdings Inc., Oxy Holding Company (Pipeline) Inc., Oxy International Ventures Ltd., Oxy LPG Terminal LLC, Oxy Levelland Pipeline Company LLC, Oxy Levelland Terminal Company LLC, Oxy Low Carbon Ventures LLC, Oxy Midstream Strategic Development LLC, Oxy Oleoducto SOP LLC, Oxy Overseas Services Ltd., Oxy Permian Gathering LLC, Oxy Permian Plaza LLC, Oxy Petroleum de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Oxy Renewable Energy LLC, Oxy Salt Creek Pipeline LLC, Oxy TL LLC, Oxy Taft Hub LLC, Oxy Technology Ventures Inc., Oxy Transport I Company LLC, Oxy Vinyls Canada Co., Oxy Vinyls Export Sales LLC, Oxy Vinyls LP, Oxy Westwood Corporation, Oxy Y-1 Company, OxyChem Ingleside Ethylene Holdings Inc., OxyChem do Brasil Ltda., OxyChile Investments LLC, Oxychem Shipping Ltd., Permian Basin JV Tax Matters Member LLC, Permian Basin Limited Partnership, Permian VPP Holder LP, Permian VPP Manager LLC, Phibro, Placid Oil LLC, Ramlat Oxy Ltd., Rio de Viento Inc., Rodeo Midland Basin LLC, San Patricio Pipeline LLC, Scanports Shipping LLC, SequestCo LLC, Stetson Exploration LLC, Sun Offshore Gathering Company, Swiflite Aircraft Corporation, Transok Properties LLC, Troy Potter Inc., Turavent Oil GmbH [in liquidation], Tuscaloosa Holdings Inc., UP Petroleo III Ltd., Upland Industries Corporation, Venezuela US SRL, Vintage Gas Inc., Vintage Petroleum, Vintage Petroleum Argentina Ltd., Vintage Petroleum Boliviana Ltd., Vintage Petroleum International Finance B.V., Vintage Petroleum International Holdings LLC, Vintage Petroleum International LLC, Vintage Petroleum International Ventures Inc., Vintage Petroleum Italy Inc., Vintage Petroleum South America Holdings Inc., Vintage Petroleum South America LLC, Vintage Petroleum Turkey Inc., WGR Asset Holding Company LLC, WGR Canada Inc., Wardner Ranch Inc., Western Gas Resources Inc., Western Gas Resources-Westana Inc., Western Midstream Holdings LLC, Woodlands International Insurance Ltd., and YT Ranch LLC. 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See how this tiny, unknown gold company secured a prime land package right next door to the worlds two largest gold producers in Nevadas famed Carlin Trend where 84 Million gold ounces have already been extracted. Best of all, investors can still get in well below US$0.50 per share. The following companies are subsidiares of The Procter & Gamble: "Procter & Gamble Services" LLC, "Procter & Gamble" LLC, Agile Pursuits, Agile Pursuits Franchising, Arbora, Arbora & Ausonia, Arborinvest, Billie, Braun (Shanghai) Co., Braun GmbH, Braun-Gillette Immobilien GmbH & Co. KG, Celtic Insurance Company, Compania Procter & Gamble Mexico, Compania Quimica S.A., Corporativo Procter & Gamble, Cosmetic Products Pty. Ltd., Detergent Products B.V., Detergent Products SARL, Detergenti S.A., Eurocos Cosmetic GmbH, FPG Oleochemicals Sdn. Bhd., Fameccanica Data S.p.A., Fameccanica Industria e Comercio Do Brasil LTDA., Fameccanica Machinery (Shanghai) Co., Fater S.p.A., Fountain Square Music Publishing Co., Gillette (China) Ltd., Gillette (Shanghai) Ltd., Gillette Aesop Ltd., Gillette Australia Pty. Ltd., Gillette Canada Holdings, Gillette Commercial Operations North America, Gillette Diversified Operations Pvt. Ltd., Gillette Egypt S.A.E., Gillette Group UK Ltd, Gillette Gruppe Deutschland GmbH & Co. oHG, Gillette Holding Company LLC, Gillette Holding GmbH, Gillette India Limited, Gillette Industries Ltd., Gillette International B.V., Gillette Latin America Holding B.V., Gillette Management LLC, Gillette Nova Scotia Company, Gillette Pakistan Limited, Gillette Poland International Sp. z.o.o., Gillette Poland S.A., Gillette U.K. Limited, Gillette del Uruguay, Giorgio Beverly Hills Inc., Hyginett KFT, Industries Marocaines Modernes SA, LLC "Procter & Gamble Novomoskovsk", LLL "Procter & Gamble Distributorskaya Compania", Laboratorios Vicks, Liberty Street Music Publishing Company, Limited Liability Company 'Procter & Gamble Trading Ukraine', Limited Liability Company with foreign investments Procter & and Gamble Ukraine, MDVIP, MERCK KGAA NPV, Marcvenca Inversiones, Modern Industries Company - Dammam, Modern Products Company - Jeddah, New Chapter, New Chapter Canada Inc., Olay LLC, Oral-B Laboratories, P&G Distribution Morocco SAS, P&G Hair Care Holding, P&G Industrial Peru S.R.L., P&G Innovation Godo Kaisha, P&G Israel M.D.O. Ltd., P&G K.K., P&G Northeast Asia Pte. Ltd., P&G Prestige Godo Kaisha, P&G Prestige Service GmbH, P&G South African Trading (Pty.) Ltd., PGT Health Care (Zhejiang) Limited, PGT Healthcare LLP, PPI ZAO, PT Procter & Gamble Home Products Indonesia, PT Procter & Gamble Operations Indonesia, Phase II Holdings Corporation, Procter & Gamble (Chengdu) Ltd., Procter & Gamble (China) Ltd., Procter & Gamble (China) Sales Co. Ltd., Procter & Gamble (East Africa) Limited, Procter & Gamble (Egypt) Manufacturing Company, Procter & Gamble (Enterprise Fund) Limited, Procter & Gamble (Guangzhou) Consumer Products Co. Ltd., Procter & Gamble (Guangzhou) Enterprise Management Service Company Limited, Procter & Gamble (Guangzhou) Ltd., Procter & Gamble (Health & Beauty Care) Limited, Procter & Gamble (Jiangsu) Ltd. China, Procter & Gamble (L&CP) Limited, Procter & Gamble (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Procter & Gamble (Manufacturing) Ireland Limited, Procter & Gamble (Shanghai) International Trade Company Ltd., Procter & Gamble (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., Procter & Gamble Acquisition GmbH, Procter & Gamble Administration GmbH, Procter & Gamble Algeria EURL, Procter & Gamble Amazon Holding B.V., Procter & Gamble Amiens S.A.S., Procter & Gamble Argentina SRL, Procter & Gamble Asia Pte. Ltd., Procter & Gamble Australia Proprietary Limited, Procter & Gamble Azerbaijan Services LLC, Procter & Gamble Bangladesh Private Ltd., Procter & Gamble Blois S.A.S., Procter & Gamble Brazil Holdings B.V., Procter & Gamble Bulgaria EOOD, Procter & Gamble Business Services Canada Company, Procter & Gamble Canada Holding B.V., Procter & Gamble Chile , Procter & Gamble Chile Limitada, Procter & Gamble Colombia Ltda., Procter & Gamble Commercial LLC, Procter & Gamble Commercial de Cuba S.A., Procter & Gamble Czech Republic s.r.o., Procter & Gamble DS Polska Sp. z o.o., Procter & Gamble Danmark ApS, Procter & Gamble Detergent (Beijing) Ltd., Procter & Gamble Deuttschland GmbH, Procter & Gamble Distributing (Philippines) Inc., Procter & Gamble Distributing New Zealand Limited, Procter & Gamble Distribution Company (Europe) BVBA, Procter & Gamble Distribution S.R.L., Procter & Gamble Eastern Europe, Procter & Gamble Ecuador Cia. Ltda., Procter & Gamble Egypt, Procter & Gamble Egypt Distribution, Procter & Gamble Egypt Holding, Procter & Gamble Egypt Supplies, Procter & Gamble Energy Company LLC, Procter & Gamble Espana, Procter & Gamble Europe SA, Procter & Gamble Export Operations SARL, Procter & Gamble Exportadora e Importadora Ltda., Procter & Gamble Exports, Procter & Gamble Fabricacao e Comercio Ltda., Procter & Gamble Far East, Procter & Gamble Finance (U.K.) Ltd., Procter & Gamble Finance Holding Ltd., Procter & Gamble Finance Management S.a.r.l., Procter & Gamble Financial Investments LLP, Procter & Gamble Financial Services Ltd., Procter & Gamble Financial Services S.a.r.l., Procter & Gamble Finland OY, Procter & Gamble France S.A.S., Procter & Gamble Germany GmbH, Procter & Gamble Germany GmbH & Co. Operations oHG, Procter & Gamble GmbH, Procter & Gamble Grundstucks-und Vermogensverwaltungs GmbH & Co. KG, Procter & Gamble Gulf FZE, Procter & Gamble Hair Care, Procter & Gamble Hellas Ltd., Procter & Gamble Holding (Thailand) Limited, Procter & Gamble Holding France S.A.S., Procter & Gamble Holding GmbH, Procter & Gamble Holding S.r.l., Procter & Gamble Holdings (UK) Ltd., Procter & Gamble Home Products Private Limited, Procter & Gamble Hong Kong Limited, Procter & Gamble Hungary Wholesale Trading Partnership (KKT), Procter & Gamble Hygiene & Health Care Limited, Procter & Gamble Inc., Procter & Gamble India Holdings, Procter & Gamble Indochina Limited Company, Procter & Gamble Industrial - 2012 C.A., Procter & Gamble Industrial Colombia Ltda., Procter & Gamble Industrial S.C.A., Procter & Gamble Industrial e Comercial Ltda., Procter & Gamble Interamericas de Costa Rica, Procter & Gamble Interamericas de Guatemala, Procter & Gamble Interamericas de Panama, Procter & Gamble International Operations Pte. Ltd., Procter & Gamble International Operations SA, Procter & Gamble International Operations SA-ROHQ, Procter & Gamble International S.a.r.l., Procter & Gamble Investment Company (UK) Ltd., Procter & Gamble Investment GmbH, Procter & Gamble Italia, Procter & Gamble Japan K.K., Procter & Gamble Kazakhstan Distribution LLP, Procter & Gamble Kazakhstan LLP, Procter & Gamble Korea, Procter & Gamble Korea S&D Co., Procter & Gamble Lanka Private Ltd. Sri Lanka, Procter & Gamble Leasing LLC, Procter & Gamble Levant S.A.L., Procter & Gamble Limited, Procter & Gamble Manufacturing (Thailand) Limited, Procter & Gamble Manufacturing (Tianjin) Co. Ltd., Procter & Gamble Manufacturing Belgium N.V., Procter & Gamble Manufacturing Berlin GmbH, Procter & Gamble Manufacturing GmbH, Procter & Gamble Manufacturing Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Procter & Gamble Manufacturing SA (Pty) Ltd, Procter & Gamble Marketing Romania SRL, Procter & Gamble Marketing and Services doo, Procter & Gamble Maroc SA, Procter & Gamble Mataro, Procter & Gamble Mexico Holding B.V., Procter & Gamble Mexico Inc., Procter & Gamble Middle East FZE, Procter & Gamble Nederland B.V., Procter & Gamble Netherlands Investments B.V., Procter & Gamble Netherlands Services B.V., Procter & Gamble Nigeria Limited, Procter & Gamble Nordic, Procter & Gamble Norge AS, Procter & Gamble Operations Polska Sp. z o.o., Procter & Gamble Overseas India B.V., Procter & Gamble Overseas Ltd., Procter & Gamble Pakistan (Private) Limited, Procter & Gamble Partnership LLP, Procter & Gamble Peru S.R.L., Procter & Gamble Pharmaceuticals France SAS, Procter & Gamble Philippines, Procter & Gamble Polska Sp. z o.o, Procter & Gamble Portugal - Produtos De Consumo, Procter & Gamble Product Supply (U.K.) Limited U.K., Procter & Gamble Production GmbH, Procter & Gamble Productions, Procter & Gamble Productos de Consumo, Procter & Gamble RHD, Procter & Gamble RSC Regional Service Company Ltd., Procter & Gamble Retail Services BVBA, Procter & Gamble S.r.l., Procter & Gamble SA (Pty) Ltd, Procter & Gamble Satis ve Dagitim Ltd. Sti., Procter & Gamble Seine S.A.S., Procter & Gamble Service GmbH, Procter & Gamble Services (Switzerland) SA, Procter & Gamble Services Company N.V., Procter & Gamble Services Ltd., Procter & Gamble Share Incentive Plan Trustee Ltd., Procter & Gamble South America Holding B.V., Procter & Gamble Spol. s.r.o. (Ltd.), Procter & Gamble Sports and Social Club Ltd., Procter & Gamble Sverige AB, Procter & Gamble Switzerland SARL, Procter & Gamble Taiwan Limited, Procter & Gamble Taiwan Sales Company Limited, Procter & Gamble Technical Centres Limited, Procter & Gamble Technology (Beijing) Co., Procter & Gamble Trading (Thailand) Limited, Procter & Gamble Tuketim Mallari Sanayii A.S., Procter & Gamble UK, Procter & Gamble UK Group Holdings Ltd, Procter & Gamble UK Parent Company Ltd., Procter & Gamble Universal Holding B.V., Procter & Gamble Verwaltungs GmbH, Procter & Gamble Vietnam, Procter & Gamble d.o.o. za trgovinu, Procter & Gamble de Venezuela S.C.A., Procter & Gamble de Venezuela S.R.L., Procter & Gamble do Brasil S/A, Procter & Gamble do Brazil, Procter & Gamble do Nordeste S/A, Procter & Gamble-Rakona s.r.o., Progam Realty & Development Corporation, Redmond Products, Richardson-Vicks Real Estate Inc., Richardson-Vicks do Brasil Quimica e Farmaceutica Ltda, Riverfront Music Publishing Co., Rosemount LLC, SPD Development Company Limited, SPD Swiss Precision Diagnostics GmbH, Scannon S.A.S., Series Acquisition B.V., Shulton, Surfac S.R.L., Sycamore Productions, TAOS - FL, TAOS Retail, Tambrands Inc., Temple Trees Impex & Investment Private Limited, The Art of Shaving - FL, The Dover Wipes Company, The Gillette Company, The Gillette Company LLC, The Gillette co., The Procter & Gamble Distributing LLC, The Procter & Gamble GBS Company, The Procter & Gamble Global Finance Company, The Procter & Gamble Manufacturing Company, The Procter & Gamble Paper Products Company, The Procter & Gamble U.S. Business Services Company, This is L., US CD LLC, Vidal Sassoon (Shanghai) Academy, Vidal Sassoon Co., WEBA Betriebsrenten-Verwaltungsgesellschaft mbH, Walker & Company Brands, and iMFLUX Inc.. 5 Ways to Win at Trading (Ad) More people are trading options... 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And today, I want to give you the name, the ticker symbol and my full analysis completely free - no strings attached. Click here to get it. 13 hours ago | June 23rd | 2021 5:00 AM You Quit Your Job Good for You! But How Does that Impact Your Investments? As companies make plans to return employees back to the office, millions of workers have made a decision not to go back at all. In fact, the number of people who quit their jobs increased to four million in April and increased 2.7%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The largest increases in employees leaving their jobs occurred in retail trade and professional and business services. Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan will meet IMF chief Christine Lagarde in Dubai on Sunday to discuss the conditions of the bailout package for his cash-strapped country. Khan is paying a day-long trip to the UAE to take part in the 7th edition of the World Government Summit on the invitation of Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE Sheikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum. Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry told Dawn newspaper that the premier will meet Lagarde on the sidelines of the World Government Summit in Dubai. The report quoted a senior official involved in the negotiations as saying that Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have narrowed their positions on the scale of adjustments over the past few weeks of continuous engagements. The IMF is asking for an adjustment of around Rs 1,600-2,000 billion over three to four years. It also wants some corrective measures to put Pakistans economy on the right track after witnessing the highest-ever current account deficit. But the stumbling issue in the talks is the pace of adjustments in the current expenditure. The emphasis on current expenditures comes as a result of a focus on what is known as a primary balance in the parlance of public finance. According to the official, there is some space for cut in certain expenditures where Pakistan is in a comfortable position. This agreement in cut will pave way for accession to the programme, the official claimed, adding that it will be a politically difficult decision. A cut in the current expenditures still seems to put the government in awkward position by making adjustments in subsidies and other special grants. The IMF has been demanding that the burden of any expenditure cuts should fall on current expenditures that include debt service, defence and subsidies. Finance Divisions Spokesperson Khaqan Najeeb said that productive dialogue continued with the IMF on all areas including fiscal, energy, structural reforms and monetary policy. The two sides continue to exchange views on data and a reform framework to move forward. Discussions are part of a regular ongoing interaction between the government and the IMF and will continue in coming weeks, Najeeb said. In addition, technical level subject-specific discussions also support the process of overall dialogue, he said. The IMF has also asked for further monetary tightening as well as a complete free float of the exchange rate. We are already towards target in these areas, the official said, adding that the IMF has acknowledged these measures. According to the official, Finance Minister Asad Umar has already conveyed to the IMF during the recent parleys that only those measures will be taken which are favourable for the countrys economic growth. Although the government has secured a breathing space from Saudi Arabian and the UAE loans, an IMF programme is essential to unlock access to resources from other multilateral lenders like the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, as well as the global capital markets. US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will meet for a second much-anticipated summit in Hanoi, as preparations kick into high gear for the peace talks. Trump announced the exact location on Twitter only the country, Vietnam, was previously known for the follow-on to the leaders' summit in Singapore last year as he hailed "very productive" preparatory talks between diplomats from the two countries. "My representatives have just left North Korea after a very productive meeting and an agreed upon time and date for the second Summit with Kim Jong Un," Trump said. "It will take place in Hanoi, Vietnam, on February 27 & 28. I look forward to seeing Chairman Kim & advancing the cause of peace!" The US State Department said the special US envoy for North Korea will meet again with Pyongyang officials ahead of the Trump-Kim talks hours after he returned to Seoul from talks in the North on the summit's agenda. In a statement, the State Department said talks during Stephen Biegun's three-day trip explored Trump and Kim's "commitments of complete denuclearization, transforming US-DPRK relations and building a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula." Biegun landed at Osan US Air Base late Friday, foreign ministry spokesman Noh Kyu-duk told AFP. The State Department confirmed Biegun agreed to meet his North Korean counterpart Kim Hyok Chol again before the leaders' talks. North Korea has yet to provide any official confirmation of the summit and Kim Jong Un appeared to make no mention of it during a meeting earlier with the top brass of the Korean People's Army. As reported by state media, the meeting focused on the need to modernize the military while maintaining party discipline in the ranks. Biegun is expected to share details of his Pyongyang meetings with his South Korean counterpart Lee Do-hoon and Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha on Saturday. Attention will focus on whether the US team have offered to lift some economic sanctions in return for Pyongyang taking concrete steps toward denuclearisation. In one of the rare investigations, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has registered a money laundering case against Pakistan-based outfit Falah-e-Insaniyat (FIF), a front for banned terror group Lashkar-e-Tayyeba (LeT). FIF is a Lahore-based organisation established by the Jamaat-ud-Dawa and acts as a front for the LeT. It was founded in 1990 by Hafiz Mohammad Saeed, the mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai terror attack. Its headquarters is in Pakistan. The ED said a criminal case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) has been filed by the central probe agency for the outfits involvement in money laundering through various hawala channels. The agency said it took cognisance of a National Investigation Agency (NIA) FIR, filed under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) last year in September, to file its own case against the Falah-e-Insaniyat.. These funds were utilised to carry out terrorist activities and create unrest in India, the ED said in a statement. The development comes within a week of Indias Note Verbale to Pakistan, raising a strong protest Saeeds recent participation at Kashmir Solidarity Day rally in Lahore. The Note Verbale read, The ministry registers its strong protest at the continued use of Pakistan controlled territory by extremist and terrorist elements to freely propagate and promote violence and terror against India. Note verbale is a form of protest a country gives to another country when it annoyed by something or some issue that undermines it in the country concerned. According to reports, the 69-year-old an internationally designated terrorist with a US bounty of $10 million on his head was showered with rose petals during the rally proceeding. Saeeds oganisation FIF is also no longer in the list of Pakistans banned organisations. Following international pressure and USA act of freezing military and economic aids to Pakistan in early 2018, former president Mamnoon Hussain had signed an ordinance amending the countrys Anti-Terrorism Act to include entities banned by the UN Security Council, including terror organisations such as JuD, FIF, Lashkar-e-Toiba, al-Qaeda, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and Lashkar-e-Jhangvi. However, in October 2018, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) was informed that the presidential ordinance had lapsed and it had never been extended or tabled in Parliament to be converted into an act. Several top Pakistani politicians and senior officials have been seen sharing the dais with him, making anti-India statements. According to ED, the NIA has carried out searches in this case in the past and has seized over four dozen SIM cards, phones and Rs 1.56 crore (suspected) cash, Nepali currency worth worth Rs 43,000, 14 mobiles phones, five pen drives, nine passports,two kg gold jewellery apart from other incriminating documents. Four persons have been arrested till now in the case. The ED said one of the arrested accused in the case, Delhi-based Mohammed Salman, was in regular touch with a Dubai-based Pakistan national, who in turn was connected with the deputy chief of FIF. Salman is alleged to have received funds from FIF operators through hawala and he and other persons were reported to have received money illegally from various persons of Pakistan and UAE among others, the agency said. Besides Salman, the NIA has also arrested FIF hawala conduit Mohammad Salim aka Mama, a resident of central Delhis Daryaganj, and Srinagar-based hawala courier Sajjad Abdul Wani. The US also designated FIF as a terrorist entity in 2010. It is a front-end organisation of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), a terror organisation proscribed under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). The ED said its probe will establish money trail and identify proceeds of crime that are suspected to be generated out of the criminal activities. In a dangerous sign that Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) has expanded its tentacles in the United States, federal prosecutors on Friday announced to have arrested a New Yorker who was about to catch a flight to Pakistan to join the terror group. While in Texas, the FBI charged a teenager with using social media to recruit people on behalf of the LeT. Jesus Wilfredo Encarnacion (29), was arrested Thursday night at John F Kennedy International Airport (JFK Airport) as he was about to board an international flight with Pakistan being his final destination. "Encarnacion allegedly attempted to travel to Pakistan to join a foreign terrorist organization and conspired with another individual to provide that organization with material support," said Assistant Attorney General John Demers. Encarnacion, a.K.A. "Jihadistsoldgier", "Jihadinhear", "Jihadinheart" and "Lionofthegood," plotted to travel to Pakistan to join and train with LeT, which is infamous around the world for perpetrating the lethal 2008 Mumbai terror attacks and other atrocities, said US Attorney Geoffrey Berman. A Manhattan resident, Encarnacion not only express a desire to "execute and behead people," he scheduled travel and almost boarded a plane so he could go learn how to become a terrorist, FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William Sweeney Jr. In the southern state of Texas, Michael Kyle Sewell, 18, was charged by the FBI with using social media to recruit people on behalf of LeT and send them to Pakistan for terrorist training. The arrest of the New Yorker and the charges against the Texas teenager who do not appear to be of South Asian origin as has been the case in previous such arrests has set the alarm bells ringing among the law enforcement agencies in the US. The arrests have thrown the spotlight on issues of homegrown terrorism and radicalisation of American youths, a situation that authorities have dreaded post Mumbai-terrorist attack. Hitting out at Narendra Modi-led central government, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Sunday said that Enforcement Directorates (ED) ongoing interrogation of Robert Vadra, husband of Congress national general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, is a political vendetta. Where was ED all these five years and it has swung into action at the time when general elections is just round the corner. It clearly indicates political vendetta, he said while talking to media persons here at Chhattisgarh Assembly premises during refresher course of new legislators. Former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh was also present on this occasion. Regarding suspension of two top police officials of the state, Baghel commented `only dust had been removed from the files at present and so much of chaos had been created. Replying to a query whether there will be arrest of former Chief Minister Raman Singh, Baghel said `probe was on at present and nothing could be said at this initial moment. Government of India will confer national level Swachchhata Excellence awards-2018-19 to three of the Women Self Help Groups of Ambikapur, Raigarh and Mahasamund regions. All the three SHGs would be awarded by Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs of Centre for their outstanding contribution in the field of maintaining cleanliness and sanitation in their respective areas. The award would be conferred to them at a function to be held Vigyan Bhawan of national capital on February 15. The names of these SHGs are Swachchh Saraipali of Saraipali in Mahasamund District, Ujala of Raigarh and Swachchh Ambikapur Mission Cooperative Committee of Ambikapur in Surguja district. Urban Administration Minister Shiv Daharia had congratulated the SHGs for their achievement asserting they have brought laurels for the state. Research Scholars of various universities of the State, the Institute of Physics and the IIT, Bhubaneswar have demanded that their monthly fellowship amount be increased by 80 per cent and be paid to them every month. They on Saturday threatened that they would intensify their agitation if the demands are not met within 30 days. They informed that they have already sent a memorandum in this regard to the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development through the State Governor and Higher Education Minister. Two days back, the Centre revised the fellowship of Junior Research Fellows (JRFs) and Senior Research Fellows (SRFs) by between 24 per cent and 35 per cent. The decision is an insult to the research scholars, they alleged. Currently, the JRFs and SRFs are getting monthly fellowship of Rs 25,000 and Rs 28,000, respectively. After the proposed hike, the JRFs would get Rs 31,000 per month and the SRFs would get Rs 35,000 per month with effect from January 1, 2019 which is meagre in view of the hefty amounts they spend as hostel and accommodation fees, they pointed out. Research Scholars including Bibhuti Bhsan Nayak of Utkal University, Sai Aparna of the Ravenshaw University, Biplab Bhatacharya of Indian Institute of Physics and Kamalakant Sethy of IIT, Bhubaneswar made the demands at a Press conference here. Among others, Bibhuti Nayak, Chandan Das, Gayadhar Mallick, Paramananda Nayak and Sudhanshu Sekhar Nayak were present. The Union Government has agreed to help out Utkal Grameen Bank (UGB), which is facing tough time due financial strain. The bank operates in 17 districts of western and southern Odisha like Balangir, Subarnapur, Bargarh, Sambalpur, Deogarh, Jharsuguda, Sundargarh, Kalahandi, Nuapada, Kandhamal, Boudh, Ganjam, Gajapati, Koraput, Malkangiri, Rayagada and Nabarangpur districts. The UGB is covering 57 per cent of the total districts and 63 per cent of the geographical area and 48 per cent of the total population of the State, said an official. As the Government of India has approved the proposal to continue the process of recapitalization of RRBs, who are unable to maintain minimum capital to risk weighted assets ratio (CRAR) of 9 per cent, the UGB will reap the benefit. As per assessment made by Nabard on its fiscal health, the UGB could not maintain the level of CRAR of 9 per cent for the year 2017-18 and requires recapitalization assistance. According to estimate, share capital required as on March 31 is Rs 323.02 crore. The RRBs are jointly owned by the Union Government, the State Government and the sponsoring bank and these organizations hold shares jointly. Out of total share capital required to the tune of Rs 323.02 crore, the Government of Indias share is Rs161.51 crore, the State Bank of Indias share is Rs113.06 crore and the State Governments share is Rs 48.45 crore. And release of the Central Government share of capital is contingent on proportionate release of the State Government and sponsor bank share. Now, the State Government will have to release share capital so that the Union Government will release its share of capital, informed Additional Secretary Financial Services to the State Government Ravi Mittal. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) will be signed between the State Government, the SBI, and the Chairman UGB with Nabard. Meanwhile, the SBI has conveyed their consent for infusion of their share capital in the UGB. So. the State Government will have to take steps for release of its share capital of Rs 48.45 crore to the UGB. Sources said that the State Government is making arrangements in this regard. Habibganj police have booked a miscreant for sexually assaulting and exploiting a 19-year-old girl for the past two years at 1100 Quarters area; police have started search for the accused. According to Habibganj police, the victim is a resident of PC Nagar and accused identified as Amit Umade is a resident of TT Nagar. Victim lodged a complaint with the police stating that she stated police that she came in contact with the accused during marriage of her aunt at 1100 Quarters area in the year 2017. At the marriage they became friends and accused who belonged to the same community developed friendship which soon turned physical and as he was from the same community he lured her of marriage and sexually exploited her for the next two years and later when she asked for the accused to get married he refused and threatened her. The victim had also claimed that on occasions when she would ask accused for marriage he used to point her age as she was minor at that time and he was unemployed and assured that he would marry after she would get job but after January 26 the accused stopped communication with the victim and later she lodged a complaint with the police. Based on the complaint the police have registered a case of sexual assault and sections of POCSO were also imposed against the accused. Search for the accused has been started as the accused went absconding after he got information of complaint made by the victim.19-yr-old girl for two years The BJP State Mahila Morcha has many times said the Odisha police must provide help and protection to abusers of minor girls. Now, Delhi Womens Commission (DWC) Chairperson Swati Maliwals letter to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has proved this concern, said Morcha president Pravati Parida at a Press conference here on Sunday. Parida said the DCW chiefs letter has exposed the crumbling law and order situation in the State. The letter is proof of the Odisha police and the Chief Ministers inefficiency. When a 16-year-old girl of Sundargarh was abducted by a 40-year-old-man, her father had lodged a complaint with police. However, the Lathikatha police did not take any action. The cops allowed the abductor to go scot-free even though he was in their clutches. Why did the police knowingly help the abductor and on whose pressure, questioned Parida. What the Odisha police could not do in two years, their Delhi counterparts did it in one day, she remarked. The Crime Branchs Economic Offences Wing (EOW) on Sunday arrested a businessman of Khordha for allegedly submitting fake mortgage documents and subsequently availing a loan from the Allahabad Bank here. As per reports, the accused Devraj Subudhi along with Narayan Senapati, both partners of the Vishal Polymers, had availed Rs 60 lakh as cash-credit loan and Rs 40 lakh as term loan for manufacturing and trading of polythene bags, packing materials in 2010 from the Allahabad Banks Old Station Bazaar branch here. At the time of availing the loan, Subudhi had given mortgage of his property located at Mouza-Banapur and Raghunathpur in Khordha but subsequently did not repay the outstanding loan amount of nearly Rs 1.45 crore. During investigation, it was revealed that the property at Banapur had been sold by Subudhi prior to submitting it as mortgage with the bank. Similarly, fake Record of Rights was produced for the Raghunathpur mouza property. The hooch tragedy, which has claimed over 100 lives in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, has snowballed into a controversy with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath recalling the hand of Samajwadi Party in such mischievous acts and Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati demanding a CBI probe into the matter. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, warned of stern action against all those found involved in illicit liquor trade even if they were associated with any political party. In the past also, such type of mischievous acts by SP leaders had come to fore. In Azamgarh, Hardoi, Kanpur and Barabanki, the SP leaders were found to be involved in hooch tragedies. We cannot deny conspiracy this time also, he said in Gorakhpur on Sunday. Yogi said he had spoken to his Uttarakhand counterpart Trivendra Singh Rawat and had asked him to share details as the spurious liquor was served to the natives of Uttar Pradesh in a Roorkee village. A racket of spurious liquor is being operated in Uttarakhand. Therefore, I have spoken to the Chief Minister and sought details, he said. The Chief Minister said action had been taken against excise officer, excise inspector, station house officers and beat constables in Saharanpur and Kushinagar districts of UP. However, Samajwadi party president Akhilesh Yadav held the BJP government responsible for the tragedy. People have died in two states and Bharatiya Janata Party is in power in both these states. If anyone is responsible, it is the BJP. The government should give Rs 20 lakh each to the families of the deceased without any discrimination, the SP chief said. Hitting out at the BJP government for the deaths in the hooch tragedy, the SP chief said the opposition had been pointing to the illicit liquor trade but the government did not act as some of its leaders were involved in it. The truth is that without the backing of the government, such activities cannot be carried out anywhere. The BJP should accept the fact that it cannot run the state, he said. The BSP also blamed the BJP governments in UP and Uttarakhand for the deaths in the hooch tragedy. Mayawati, in a statement, said that both the state governments were callous in their approach towards banning sale of spurious liquor and demanded a CBI probe into the tragedy. She said till the CBI probe was completed, the Excise ministers of both the states should be asked to step down to ensure free and fair inquiry. Mayawati said bootleggers were running a parallel administration right under the nose of the authorities and selling spurious liquor. Over 100 people have died in the hooch tragedy that hit the adjoining districts of Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh with people dying after consuming spurious liquor in a Haridwar village. In an unrelated incident, nine people died over the week in eastern Uttar Pradeshs Kushinagar district, allegedly after drinking spurious liquor. In a welcome news for farmers community, Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel announced on Sunday that next in kharif season the paddy from farmers will be procured at Rs 2500 per quintal rate. Government has also made a budgetary provision of Rs 5000 crore as well in an annual budget tabled in state assembly on Friday. He made the announcement while participating in a Parmeshwari Mahotsav organized to mark Basant Panchmi at Simga tehsil of Baloda Bazar-Bhatapara district organized by Dewangan Community. Baghel said, Government waived off farmers loan and procured paddy at Rs 2500 per quintal. This has strengthened the entire economy of state. With purchasing power of farmers has increased, it will indirectly help business too. Chief Minister appreciating contribution of Dewangan Community said, The community apart from their traditional weaving trade had progressed in business also without government patronage. One has to jump in open competition. Those who ensure quality will remain in market. State government will provide advisor to community as with changing times new designs has to be included in weaving, Baghel assured. On liquor prohibition issue, he said demand should come from society so at political and social level the social ill of liquor consumption can be dealt with. Delhi Customs Department has arrested septuagenarian couple for allegedly trying to smuggle out of the country foreign currencies worth Rs 92 lakh at Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport. According to a senior Customs official, the accused were intercepted when they were proceeding to board a flight to Dubai on Friday They were stopped by customs official and a detailed personal and baggage search of the two passengers resulted in the recovery of foreign currencies Euro and Dirham- equivalent to Rs 92.02 lakh, said the senior customs official. The two, aged around 70 years, were accompanied with their nine-year-old grandchild. The forex was seized under Section 110 of the Customs Act, 1962. Both passengers were placed under arrest in accordance with Section 104 of the Customs Act, 1962. Further investigation is going on, the senior customs official added. Commuting would be easier for the people of national Capital especially for those who travel daily between Delhi and Ghaziabad as the Delhi Government on Sunday laid foundation stones of the much awaited flyovers at Shastri Park and Seelampur. These flyovers will facilitate a signal and hassle free corridor from Uttar Pradesh (UP) border to Shahdara via Inter State Bus Terminal (ISBT). Once the projects get completed, the travel time would be reduced from existing 1:15 hours to 45 minutes as well as save around 13,802 man hours per day. Also, around 2,625 litres of fuels costing up to Rs 4.97 lakh will be saved per day. The cost of both the flyover is Rs 303 crore and is expected to complete by mid of 2020, said a senior Government official. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Sateyender Jain inaugurated the construction work of both the flyovers on Sunday. The flyover proposed to be constructed at Shahstri Park will be of six lanes while the one which would be constructed at Seelampur will be of two lanes. The project which was proposed by the PWD got green signal in a Cabinet meeting held last year. Addressing the gathering Kejriwal said that Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is working day and night for the welfare of the people even after getting troubles from the Opposition. BJP and the Congress which they were not able to do in 70 years, we have done and shown progress in just four years. 21,000 classrooms, up gradation of hospitals and roads and flyover in just four years, said Kejriwal. Also as per the proposal, the length of Seelampur flyover would be 12, 00 metre, while the length of Shastri Park Junction flyover will be 700 metre. The PWD will also update the existing roads by widening the existing underpasses by three metres, said the PWD official adding that the Seelampur Chowk will also be widened with providing signal free left and U-turn towards to decongest the area. Congress has claimed that the budget for fiscal year 2019-20 presented in state assembly late last week by Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel will create at least 2 lakh jobs annually in Chhattisgarh. Bhupesh Baghel government will provide jobs to at least 10 youths from a village, which will benefit over 2 lakh individuals across Chhattisgarh, Shailesh Nitin Trivedi, Chairman State Congress Communication wing stated. He claimed that the Congress government in this budget has clearly made provisions of more than Rs 1500 crore under MNREGA which will have positive impact on the village level economy. Now MNREGA could be used in agricultural activities which will give an impetus economic condition of farmers and labourers, Trivedi said while adding that employment-oriented schemes like Narwa, Garwa, Ghurwa, Badi will also generate massive employment opportunities at village level. While pointing out the decision of establishing five food processing units in state, Trivedi said that this step will ensure better value for crops. While taking a dig at Modi government at the centre, Trivedi stated that BJP government in its 2014 manifesto had claimed of providing 2 crore jobs annually, but at the end it turned out to be a political jumla. On the contrary GST and demonetization not only slowed down business sector but also claimed several jobs. Meanwhile, state BJP spokesperson Sanjay Shrivastav said that several key factors were missing in the state budget. Provision for new industry, business, employment, liquor prohibition etc are completely missing in the ruling partys state budget, he said. Bhupesh Baghel government has betrayed the residents of state, Shrivastava concluded. The Government wants to promote electric mobility from a pollution perspective. Thats good but how does it propose to pay for it? You will be surprised to hear that India is well on its way to become a surplus producer of electricity. In fact, even as tens of power plants, built during a debt-fuelled rush, are still to hit the grid, India has more than enough total electricity to meet most of its needs. The problem in our country that any expert on energy will tell you is the abysmal state of the finances of distribution companies that are usually owned by State Governments. Politicians are used to giving doles of free power, which in some cases, benefit them the most as many leaders make it up to the ranks. Indias large and rich farmers have made matters worse. At the same time, some newer power plants produce energy at slightly higher rates and the urge to keep rates low or subsidised means that politicians would rather deal with load-shedding, which is not a function of power production anymore but one of cost. We make this argument to answer those critics of electric cars, who ask where is the electricity for electric cars and two-wheelers if India is to go down the electric mobility route? The fact is that there is more than enough electricity in our country. If India were to go down an electric path and if one assumed that by 2030, 10 per cent of all new vehicles sold were electric, it would use under 10 per cent of the installed capacity. Of course, there are all sorts of other problems. We need to address them all. The first, of course, is the fact that Battery Electric Vehicles are not exactly clean. They are, in the words of many, emissions elsewhere vehicles. This is particularly true in India where a bulk of power remains driven by coal-powered thermal plants. Thermal plants in our country use coal, which has high ash content. This makes the particulate matter problem even worse. Of course, those living in Delhi wont care if pollution moves away to a sparsely populated area, say 500 kilometers away, but until a compensatory scheme is worked out, it is not what you would call it to be fair. Also, according to some carbon mathematics done by both research institutes and car companies, this would make Battery Electric Vehicles more carbon-inefficient than a Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV). Sure, one could argue that electric cars can be powered by green sources of energy, and that is a noble idea, but if you are charging your electric car at night, solar is not quite an option for obvious reasons. On the other hand, wind power is seasonal and needs vast open areas to build the turbines. In countries like Norway, where electric cars have really caught on, a majority of the power produced comes from hydroelectric plants, ironic for a nation that makes its money from selling oil. Damming the Himalayas is fraught with seismic risks and large electricity generating dams on the plains like the Sardar Sarovar project have huge issues surrounding land acquisition. This is not to say that storage solutions to store solar energy generated in the day will not be available, some companies like Tesla are developing both home and commercial storage facilities for solar power. This could mean that solar power can charge your car and even meet the peak demand for power, which in India is usually a Friday evening at 7 PM. The problem is actually not so much about electricity generation but primarily one of storage and distribution. In fact, even in localities, where there is no problem of electricity supply, improvements need to be made to transformers and charging infrastructure if widespread electric private mobility takes off. And that will cost a lot. Then there will also arise the question as to who will pay the electricity bill? This is the big problem in India the bill. Further, there are unintended consequences as well, both Central and State Governments make huge amounts of money from taxing liquids. The liquids in question being alcohol and petroleum products. Here is the strange situation about subsidising electric cars and electricity for electric cars. More owners of electric cars and two-wheelers, who pay lower taxes and then dont buy highly taxed petroleum, actually hurt Government revenues. Of course, if that is the price to pay for lower emissions, some might argue that it is a price worth paying. But the overall benefit from battery-powered vehicles is questionable as we have already discussed, emissions move elsewhere and overall carbon benefits are lower than plug-in hybrids. In fact, if one looks at battery-powered e-rickshaws, India has already adapted to electric vehicles but unintended consequences here have meant that millions of lead-acid batteries have to be processed and that has to be thought of. Cases of battery theft, too, have shot up in Delhi. This columnist has argued before that hybrid vehicles are the best thing to do in the short-term while charging infrastructure and the solutions for many of these problems are thought. The Government has to think of ways to replace revenue while spending money on grid improvement. Subsidies for electric vehicles, particularly for cheap power, may be a self-defeating idea for Governments in the short term. Parking solutions have to be found. Where will people charge vehicles if they dont have parking at their own house? Residential society bylaws have to be changed if people put chargers inside the parking areas and these will have to be thought of by policy-makers at the Centre, state and municipalities. (The writer is Managing Editor, The Pioneer) In Pakistan where the highest judiciary, despite its tremendous stature, has, unfortunately, seldom been disassociated from controversies, the February 6, 2019 Supreme Court verdict on the 2017 Faizabad dharna will go down in Pakistans legal and social history as a landmark decision. The verdict authored by Justice Qazi Faez Isa is one of the finest moments of the recent history of Pakistans Supreme Court for reasons that are myriad, but all that point to one fundamental truth: equality of existence within parameters of humanity that is not detrimental in its premise is a fundamental and an unalienable right of all Pakistanis. All Pakistanis are equal, and while adhering to a single institutional and social code of conduct is imperative to a countrys unity, there is the underlying premise of freedom based on the fairest principles of democracy that must be allowed to exist without any tactic of coercion by an authoritarian or an autocratic system of governance. The 20-day long protest in November 2017, staged by the self-avowed vigilantes of religion, Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), on the Faizabad interchange between Islamabad and Rawalpindi, brought the everyday business of countless people to a standstill, resulting in unquantifiable mental anguish and material losses to the public and the state. Reacting to the then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharifs governments insertion of a few words in the blasphemy law of Pakistan, the TLP, led by Khadim Hussian Rizvi and his hordes of hooligans pretending to be devotees of religion, staged a protest in which so many inflammatory statements were made against the government and the then law minister, Zaid Hamid, accused of being instrumental in making the undesirable modification that a violent reaction seemed inevitable. The Faizabad verdict is one of the finest in the recent history of Pakistans Supreme Court. (Photo: Reuters) The government apparently after being pushed into a cul-de-sac watching TLP supporters staging protests all over Pakistan, an unsuccessful police operation to end the dharna, and armys intervention, in what was said to be a capitulation to demands of extremists, signed an agreement, said to be brokered by the army, with TLP, agreeing to many of the TLPs demands. During the 20-day protest, TLPs Rizvi became a household name, with his incendiary speeches televised live all across Pakistan, turning an ordinary, unknown rabble-rouser who had come into mainstream prominence disguised as a religious vigilante into a vociferous protector of faith. In a 97 percent Muslim Pakistan what the threat or the danger to religion was a question that remained mostly unasked, and unanswered when asked. I guess I belong to that minuscule minority who never watched a speech of Rizvi on television, or when anything he said was posted on Twitter. To me, incitement to violence, divisions, anarchy and hatred is that one red line that must never be crossed, and those who are guilty of this incitement must be put on a permanent mute: personally, socially, journalistically and legally. There were lapses on part of media as well, for giving too much prominence to a rabble-rouser. (Photo: Reuters) The TLP and all those who endorse and practise incitement to violence must never be given any kind of media coverage, and they must be locked up for causing chaos in a country that is already beset with too many issues because of capitulation to religious extremism and mollification of those who function on principles of spreading fear and hate in a blatant disregard to teachings of religion that forbids it all. Appeasement of religious organisations, some of which are alleged to have the backing of the army, has been a constant phenomenon of all governments, exploiting religious sentiments for a naked agenda of acquisition and preservation of power. Fast-forward to November 2018: The TLP went on a three-day raucous rampage after the October 31st historic Supreme Court decision, signed by a three-judge bench headed by the then Chief Justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar, to release Asia Bibi, a Christian woman on the death row on an unproven accusation of blasphemy. In what was now termed as the capitulation of the new government of Prime Minister Imran Khan, there was a new agreement in which two of TLPs demands were to have a legal review of Asia Bibi's release order and to have her placed on an exit control list until the review was in process. A few weeks later, in a move that was unexpected, the leadership of the TLP was arrested, and to date is in jail. Moreover, the Supreme Court under the new Chief Justice of Pakistan Asif Saeed Khosa has upheld Asia Bibi's release verdict, and she is free to leave Pakistan. Everyday business came to a standstill during the TLP's 20-day long protest in 2017. (Photo: Reuters) Today, there is a feeling of renewed confidence in the Supreme Court of Pakistan, even among the skeptics and the critics. The highest judiciary that is often accused, sometimes justifiably, at times unfairly, of judicial overreaching, interference in matters out of its domain, and complicity in systematic weakening of institutional stability of democracy in Pakistan is now being viewed as a state entity that in the execution of its fundamental responsibility of dispensation of justice is free of any exterior pressure governmental, political, public, military. The Supreme Court in the Faizabad verdict has issued a stern reprimand regarding lapses on the part of the government, media, the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority, intelligence agencies, the armed forces, and the Election Commission of Pakistan, stating in unambiguous terms that none of what was allowed to transpire would be allowed to happen again. Each institution be it civilian or military will work within its constitutional framework. TLP hooligans were up in arms again as the Supreme Court delivered it Asia Bibi verdict last year. (Photo: Reuters) That the State must always act impartially and fairly. The law is applicable to all, including those who are in government and institutions must act independently of those in government. That: The intelligence agencies while monitoring ...activities of all those who threaten the territorial integrity of the country and all those who undermine the security of the people and the State by resorting to or inciting violence... cannot curtail the freedom of speech and expression and do not have the authority to interfere with broadcasts and publications, in the management of broadcasters/publishers and in the distribution of newspapers. That: The Constitution emphatically prohibits members of the Armed Forces from engaging in any kind of political activity, which includes supporting a political party, faction or individual. The Government of Pakistan through the Ministry of Defence and the respective Chiefs of the Army, the Navy and the Air Force are directed to initiate action against the personnel under their command who are found to have violated their oath. That: Anyone issuing an edict or fatwa, which harms another or puts another in harms way, must be criminally prosecuted under the Pakistan Penal Code, the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997 and/or the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, 2016. That: Those broadcasters who broadcast messages advocating or inciting the commission of an offence violate the PEMRA Ordinance and the terms of their licences and must be proceeded against by PEMRA in accordance with the law. That: The Constitution earmarks the responsibilities of the Election Commission which it must fulfill. If a political party does not comply with the law governing political parties then the Election Commission must proceed against it in accordance with the law. The law is most certainly not cosmetic as contended on behalf of the Election Commission. And that: Every citizen and political party has the right to assemble and protest provided such assembly and protest is peaceful and complies with the law imposing reasonable restrictions in the interest of public order. The right to assemble and protest is circumscribed only to the extent that it infringes on the fundamental rights of others, including their right to free movement and to hold and enjoy property. I as a Pakistani who loves her country unequivocally couldnt help but feel hopeful when I read the Supreme Court verdict. What it says to me is that despite mistakes that were huge, and price that was too high, not all is lost. Pakistan is on a much-needed course-correction, and there is nothing that will stop Pakistan from the attainment of its goal of being a fair, equal and a splendid country if the introspection remains deep and the tomorrow is not marked with systematic transgressions and misgovernance of yesterday. Also Read: Imran Khan is different. Hear it from people who didn't even get PTI tickets in the last election There is something quite surreal about the optimism and anticipation attached to the 'peace talks being held between the US and the Taliban. Apart from those insidiously and in some cases, shamelessly plugging the Pakistani line to "trust the Taliban", anyone with the slightest idea about Afghan dynamics in general and the Taliban obduracy in particular, knows that these talks are not going to end well, neither for Afghanistan, nor for the region, and certainly not for the global war on terror. Sugar-coated poison pill The positive spin on the "progress" in these talks by US envoy Zalmay Khalilzad is at best sugar-coating the poison pill. From whatever has emerged in the public domain, it seems that the so-called agreement on the draft of the framework for peace is steeped in favour of the Taliban. While the US is committing to something tangible withdrawal of its forces from Afghanistan the Talibans assurances are fungible. Its past track record on commitments is pretty dismal and there is no reason to think that the Taliban has changed over the years. Its assurances that it will not monopolise power, allow international jihadists, and will soften its stand on women and the minorities are not worth the paper they are written on. While the US is committing something tangible withdrawal of forces from Afghanistan the Talibans assurances are fungible. (Photo: Reuters) Those rooting for the Taliban claim they are Afghan nationalists, and not jihadists. Regardless of this binary, the Taliban will not sever its links with international jihadist groups. Much like Islamists, they have deep fraternal, ideological and personal links with these forces. They that do not pose a challenge to the Taliban and are duty-bound to give them sanctuary. The Afghan code obligates them to give protection to anyone who seeks it. The argument that the Taliban has learnt its lesson and will not support organisations like the Al-Qaeda is only a self-serving one. Taliban has re-grouped, revived and is now on the verge of winning back what it lost, all this, fighting hand in hand with the Al-Qaeda and other Islamist jihadist groups. The links that foreign jihadists established over the last 15-odd years with the Taliban makes them brothers-in-arms. To expect the Taliban to simply cast them aside amounts to naivete. Of course, the Taliban will not allow the Islamic State (which was born from the Talibans womb in the Af-Pak region) to establish itself in Afghanistan, but only because it is perceived as a threat by the Taliban. Islamist leanings The Talibans assurance on women and minorities contradicts what it has been doing in areas where it holds sway. If anything, the Taliban of today is even more radical, reactionary and brutal than the original lot. The biggest problem with the peace talks is that while there will be many (read: the European Union) who will offer to stand guarantee, no one is ready to enforce the terms of the agreement if the Taliban violates it. The bottom line is that the Taliban is smart enough to know that the US is negotiating with a very weak hand. They know about his weak hand: The Taliban is banking on Trump to lose patience and decide to quit Afghanistan. (Photo: Reuters) It will exploit this to the hilt to extract the maximum out of the US, while conceding only lollipops in the name of major concessions. The entire trajectory of talks is determined by one variable: the impetuousness of US President Donald Trump. The Taliban is banking on Trump to lose patience with the talks and decide to leave Afghanistan, even without a fig leaf of an agreement. They will string along the talks for as long as they can. On the other hand, Khalilzad is scared that his boss may pull the rug from under him, so he is in a hurry to wrap up things. This is why he seems to be making big concessions in return for peanuts. No enforcer in sight The most untenable laughable part of these talks is the suggestion that by signing a deal with the Taliban, the US will be able to keep some of its prestige intact to disguise an otherwise humiliating defeat. No matter how anyone spins it, the defeat is palpable in the desperation dictating the talks. What is critical is how the Taliban and Islamists around the world look at what is happening in Afghanistan. The jihadists are gloating about a glorious victory. The repercussions of this will be cataclysmic, not just for the region but for the entire world. Instead of expecting anything positive to come from these talks, India must start preparing for the fall-out. This means doubling-down on support for anti-Taliban forces in Afghanistan and tightening the security grid at home. With everyone focused on the General Elections, national security is at a deep discount. (Courtesy of Mail Today) Also read: Warning bells: If US troops exit Kabul, and the Taliban holds sway, Pakistan could unleash 'Ghazwa-e-Hind' against India A second woman has accused the deputy governor of Virginia of sexual assault, claiming the Democrat raped her 19 years ago while they were both students at university. A lawyer for Meredith Watson, 39, alleged in a statement that Justin Fairfax had attacked her in 2000, and it described the assault as premeditated and aggressive. The statement noted that while Ms Watson and Mr Fairfax had been social friends, they were never involved romantically. The lawyer, Nancy E Smith, said her team has statements from former classmates who said Ms Watson had immediately told friends that Mr Fairfax had raped her. A New Jersey public relations firm representing Ms Watson provided a 2016 email exchange with a female friend and 2017 text exchanges in which Ms Watson said Mr Fairfax had raped her. She also expressed dismay about his run for political office. Mr Fairfax shot back at his accusers quickly, saying in a statement that he would not resign from office and vowing to clear his name against what he described as a vicious and co-ordinated smear campaign. Two women have now accused Justin Fairfax of sexual assault (AP) He added: I deny this latest unsubstantiated allegation. It is demonstrably false. I have never forced myself on anyone ever. I demand a full investigation into these unsubstantiated and false allegations. Such an investigation will confirm my account because I am telling the truth. Duke University spokesman Michael Schoenfeld said its police department has no criminal reports naming or involving Mr Fairfax, adding that any accusation made through the student disciplinary process would be protected by student privacy laws. Police officials in Durham, North Carolina, where Duke is, said they have no records of an accusation against Mr Fairfax in 2000. The latest accusation against Mr Fairfax came two days after Vanessa Tyson, a 42-year-old political science professor, alleged publicly that he had sexually assaulted her in a Boston hotel room during the 2004 Democratic National Convention. Mr Fairfax said his sexual encounter with Ms Tyson was consensual. The accusations against Mr Fairfax have rocked an administration that is already struggling amid calls for the resignation of Virginia governor Ralph Northam over a racist photo that appeared on his 1984 medical school yearbook page. Mr Fairfax would be in line to become governor if Mr Northam resigned. A controversial no-deal Brexit ferry contract awarded to a firm with no ships has been cancelled by the Department for Transport. Transport Secretary Chris Graylings decision to award Seaborne Freight a contract worth 13.8 million had attracted widespread criticism. The department said it had decided to terminate the contract after Irish company Arklow Shipping, which had backed Seaborne Freight, stepped away from the deal. Chris Grayling had come under fire over the deal after it emerged the firm has no ships (PA) A DfT spokeswoman said: Following the decision of Seaborne Freights backer, Arklow Shipping, to step back from the deal, it became clear Seaborne would not reach its contractual requirements with the Government. We have therefore decided to terminate our agreement. The Government is already in advanced talks with a number of companies to secure additional freight capacity including through the port of Ramsgate in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Brexit-backing Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg questioned whether Leo Varadkars Irish Government had any influence on Arklows decision. He told the Daily Telegraph: One has to hope that the Irish Government has not leant on or put any pressure on Arklow to persuade it to pull out. That would be a very unfriendly act of a neighbour to obstruct no-deal preparations and one has to hope very sincerely that this is genuinely a corporate decision. Mr Grayling last month defended the Seaborne Freight contract, insisting it was not a risk. It was one of three firms awarded contracts totalling 108 million in late December to lay on additional crossings to ease the pressure on Dover when Britain leaves the EU, despite having never run a Channel service. The department said it had been Arklow Shippings backing that gave it confidence in the viability of the deal, and that it stands by the robust due diligence carried out on Seaborne Freight. It added no taxpayer money had been transferred to the company. Shadow communities secretary Andrew Gwynne told BBC Radio 4s Today: Its just another example of a major disaster on the hands of Chris Grayling, who actually must now really class as the worst Secretary of State ever. Storm Eriks strong winds will bring another blustery day to the UK, before snow showers hit some parts. Gusts of 70mph are expected on Saturday, as Erik batters much of the country for a second day. The storms strongest recorded gust on Friday was 84 mph at Capel Curig, in Wales, the Met Office said. Footage showed a British Airways plane forced to abandon its initial landing at Heathrow airport after strong winds put the aircraft off-balance seconds before it was about to touch down. Strong winds will lead to some difficult driving conditions on Saturday morning, especially across northern England #StormErik pic.twitter.com/o0TteLxHCt Met Office (@metoffice) February 8, 2019 Also on Friday a tree fell on to a double-decker bus in Dorset, but no injuries were reported. A weather warning for wind on Saturday has been extended to cover most of the UK, while in Scotland heavy rain is expected into the afternoon, with a risk of flooding in some parts, the Met Office said. Much of the country will see strong winds and rain showers, some mixed with hale and becoming thundery, meteorologist Alex Burkill said. Its going to be another very windy one, particularly across northern England, Northern Ireland, southern Scotland and northern Wales. Theyre going to have very strong winds. A tree fell on to a bus in Poole (Dorset Police/PA) We could therefore see some further problems on roads. As winds ease off later on Saturday, some hill snow is forecast in central and southern parts of England and into Wales, Mr Burkill said, before calmer conditions on Sunday. That (hill snow) will clear through Sunday morning, with blustery showers following behind. Meanwhile, in the north its going to be a fairly bright day. There will be a few showers perhaps and it could turn windy but not as windy as today by any means. The embattled operators of an Arizona long-term care facility have agreed to be regulated by the state, effectively ending a plan to close down the unit where an incapacitated woman gave birth after being raped. Patrick Ptak, spokesman for Governor Doug Ducey, said the state received written confirmation that Hacienda HealthCare would enter into a voluntary regulation agreement. This is good news and the best immediate outcome as it means Hacienda patients and families would be allowed to stay in the home theyve known for years while ensuring new and enhanced protections and oversight are put in place, Mr Ptak said in a statement. Under the agreement, Hacienda will have to devise a long-term plan and timeline that priorities health and safety at the intermediate care facility where the victim resided. Hacienda will also have to employ an on-site evaluator to make sure necessary changes have been met. The care provider will have to work with an outside health care consultant until the state finds it is in compliance. All these conditions will also apply to the skilled nursing facility, which shares the same campus. Hacienda HealthCare will enter into a voluntary regulation agreement (Matt York/AP) State agencies had issued an ultimatum after Hacienda HealthCare announced its decision to shut down on Thursday. The provider would have to comply with an order to hire a long-term third-party management team. The other option was to allow the state Department of Health Services to hold licensing authority over the facility. A closure would have forced the relocation of nearly 40 intellectually disabled patients, some of who are medically fragile. State regulators vehemently opposed the idea. They also argued Hacienda contractually requires written consent from the state Department of Economic Security to close any operation. The facility has been in turmoil since a 29-year-old patient gave birth on December 29. Nathan Sutherland, a nurse whose DNA police said matches a sample from the baby, has pleaded not guilty to charges that he raped her. Hacienda has struggled to meet the states request to hire a third-party management team to oversee daily operations. The provider had said its board after a great deal of careful consideration, has come to understand that it is simply not sustainable to continue to operate our intermediate care facility. Hacienda operates the only privately-run intermediate care facility in Arizona. It currently serves 37 intellectually disabled children and adults. It would take weeks or months to transition all of them to other places. Its not something you can do overnight, said Will Humble, a former director of the Department of Health Services. The top US envoy for North Korea returned from three days of talks in Pyongyang and will meet again with his North Korean counterpart before the second summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Earlier, Mr Trump said his planned summit will take place in Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam. Stephen Biegun, the US special representative for North Korea, met with South Korean foreign minister Kang Kyung-wha and Seouls chief nuclear envoy Lee Do-hoon on Saturday to brief them on his negotiations with North Korea. Our discussions were productive, Mr Biegun, said while meeting Ms Kang. The president is very much looking forward to taking next steps. We have some hard work to do with DPRK between now and then. I am confident if both sides stay committed we can make real progress here, he said, referring to North Korea by its formal name, the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea. In Pyongyang, Mr Biegun and Kim Hyok Chol, North Koreas special representative for US affairs, to discuss advancing Trump and Kims Singapore summit commitments of complete denuclearisation, transforming US-DPRK relations, and building a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula, the State Department said in a statement. It said that Mr Biegun and Mr Kim agreed to meet again before the leaders second summit, scheduled for February 27-28 in Hanoi. My representatives have just left North Korea after a very productive meeting and an agreed upon time and date for the second Summit with Kim Jong Un. It will take place in Hanoi, Vietnam, on February 27 & 28. I look forward to seeing Chairman Kim & advancing the cause of peace! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 9, 2019 North Korea, under the leadership of Kim Jong Un, will become a great Economic Powerhouse. He may surprise some but he wont surprise me, because I have gotten to know him & fully understand how capable he is. North Korea will become a different kind of Rocket - an Economic one! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 9, 2019 Mr Trump tweeted the venue on Friday in Washington, saying Mr Biegun had just left North Korea after a productive meeting on the summit. Mr Trump added: I look forward to seeing Chairman Kim & advancing the cause of peace! The president had previously announced Vietnam as the summit location, but the city had not been identified. Stephen Beigun, left, listens to Kang Kyung-wha during their meeting at the Foreign Ministry in Seoul (Ed Jones/Pool Photo via AP) Mr Biegun is thought to have discussed specific disarmament steps that North Korea could promise at the Vietnam summit and what corresponding measures the United States is willing to take. US-led negotiations aimed at stripping North Korea of its nuclear weapons programme has made little headway since the first Kim-Trump summit in Singapore last June, when Mr Kim pledged to work toward the complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula, without providing a clear timetable. Experts say Mr Kim is determined to win relief from US-led sanctions to help revive his countrys troubled economy, while Mr Trump, faced with domestic problems such as the Russian investigation, needs foreign policy achievements. If the second summit fails to produce a breakthrough, scepticism about the current nuclear negotiations will grow. Some experts say North Korea is trying to use the negotiations to weaken the sanctions and buy time to perfect its weapons programme. Mr Trump also tweeted: North Korea, under the leadership of Kim Jong Un, will become a great Economic Powerhouse. He may surprise some but he wont surprise me, because I have gotten to know him & fully understand how capable he is. North Korea will become a different kind of Rocket an Economic one! Sir Philip Green allegedly groped a female executive, paying her more than 1 million to stay quiet, and mocked a male employees dreadlocks, the Daily Telegraph reported after the businessman dropped legal action against the newspaper. The retail tycoon also allegedly dragged a woman around in a headlock and smashed a male employees mobile phone, the newspaper said. Details of the allegations against Sir Philip involving five employees were revealed online by the Telegraph after his legal action against the paper ended at the High Court earlier on Friday. Sir Philip has categorically denied the allegations, insisting he never meant to cause offence. Earlier on Friday he accused the paper of pursuing a vendetta against him and his staff and said former employees whose allegations were investigated by the newspaper were under ongoing obligations to honour non-disclosure agreements (NDAs). Lawyers representing Sir Philip told the Telegraph: It is further denied that any of Sir Philips conduct towards employees amounted to any type of crime, or anything that would amount to gross misconduct, or a serious risk to health and safety. Sir Philip has categorically denied the allegations (Isabel Infantes/PA) The Telegraph said the Arcadia boss paid out millions in settlements with staff members, who include a senior female executive who was allegedly called a naughty girl by Sir Philip. The newspaper said he allegedly kissed her face on a number of occasions, slapped her bottom and made comments about her weight. According to the Telegraph, Sir Philip also allegedly drew attention to the dreadlocks of a senior male executive in front of other staff, and referred to him throwing spears in the jungle. And the paper reported he was told not to come any closer by a woman whose face he is said to have grabbed, allegedly dragged another senior female staff member around in a headlock and allegedly smashed a male staff members mobile phone in an aggressive dressing down. The court injunction was first sought after Sir Philip and an executive at his Arcadia firm were contacted by a Telegraph journalist in July last year. The newspaper intended to publish allegations of misconduct made against Sir Philip by the employees who all received substantial payments after settling their claims. In all five cases, the employees had agreed to keep the details of their complaints confidential under NDAs. Sir Philip obtained the injunction, but last week it emerged that he was dropping the case because it was pointless after he was named in Parliament as the businessman behind an injunction against the newspaper. Lawyers representing the Topshop owner said the decision was prompted by Lord Hains identification of Sir Philip in the House of Lords in October last year, a day after the Telegraph ran a front-page story saying it was prevented from naming a mystery businessman. In a ruling in London on Friday, Mr Justice Warby granted Sir Philip and two of his companies permission to discontinue the proceedings which was needed because of the injunction. However, the judge declined to impose conditions to stop Sir Philip and the companies suing either the Telegraph or the former employees in future, as requested by the newspaper. In his judgment, the judge said lawyers representing the Telegraph had said Sir Philips unlawful conduct was sufficiently serious to engage the public interest, including as it does unwanted contact of a sexual nature; general sexual harassment; racist language; and intimidation and bullying; many amounting to criminal offences, and all having serious consequences for employees in particular for their health and wellbeing. A shop worker at Harrods who killed a father with a single punch after he asked for a cigarette during a night out in Trafalgar Square has been jailed. Lucas Antunes, 21, and Luis Abella, 22, had been drinking and dining with friends in Londons West End after finishing a shift at the department store before launching the assault on Desmond OBeirne, 51, at around midnight on June 3 2017. CCTV footage played at the Old Bailey showed the victim walking away from the group when Antunes landed a punch to the head, sending him sprawling to the ground, before Abella kicked him as he lay motionless. A witness saw father-of-one Mr OBeirne, who lived in a flat in Pimlico, bleeding heavily from the mouth and head. He suffered a traumatic brain injury and died six months later on December 20 2017. The court heard Antunes began to brag how he had taken out the victim with a single punch when he went back to work but fled to the United States following a public appeal in which police offered a 20,000 reward. The pair were brought to justice after Abellas cousin and Antuness girlfriend came forward after realising the seriousness of the attack, prosecutor John Clifford said. Lucas Antunes was convicted of manslaughter (Met Police/PA) Antunes, from Tottenham, north London, pleaded guilty to manslaughter while Abella, from Lambeth, south London, admitted attempted assault occasioning actual bodily harm at an earlier hearing. Prosecutors offered no evidence against Abella on the manslaughter charge. Judge Paul Dodgson jailed Antunes, who wiped tears from his eyes throughout the hearing, for three years and nine months, while Abella was handed a three-month prison sentence, suspended for two years. The judge said: An event that took a few seconds changed the lives of three people drastically, but many others would also suffer. Desmond OBeirne lost his life as a result of what happened in those few seconds. That was an event that was intended by nobody. The two defendants in the dock, Antunes and Abella both young men from hard-working families in those few seconds acted in a manner that would lead them to the dock at the Old Bailey. He continued: There is no doubt that anybody watching the CCTV would be shocked by the force that you, Antunes, used in punching someone whose only offence was to have bothered the group of which you were a part with a request for cigarettes and who would not go away when told to. Luis Abella was convicted of attempted assault occasioning actual bodily harm (Met Police/PA) I of course recognise that you did not contemplate at all that your act would lead to his death but you must have known that to have hit him with such force would lead to some injury and perhaps some serious injury. The judge added that he could not be sure Antunes boasted about the attack or that he had left the country to evade justice. Mr OBeirnes sister, Vivienne Folan, who sat in the public gallery, said her brother grew up in Edgware and had been a first-rate student before working in the civil engineering and construction industries as a highly skilled professional specialising in steel fixing. My brother Desmond was a hard-working, larger than life character, who lived in Pimlico and worked around London, she said in a witness statement. Desmonds life was needlessly cut short because of a needless and cowardly attack by two men who showed no remorse and left my brother for dead. We, his family, have found the past 18 months extremely difficult in coming to terms with the brutal and senseless attack on Desmond and the pain and suffering he must have endured in the intervening six months prior to his death from his injuries. The court heard Antunes and Abella had been enjoying a night out with friends in the West End after finishing work at Harrods, where they worked through an agency, before the fatal attack. The two defendants and friends of theirs were enjoying an evening out in London and were in Trafalgar Square, said the prosecutor. They were approached at one stage by Mr Desmond OBeirne, who was intoxicated. He asked them in relatively hostile terms for a cigarette and the group gave him short shrift. Mr OBeirne walked away from the group and the two defendants followed him. Mr Clifford continued: Mr Antunes was the first to Mr OBeirne. He punched him, Mr OBeirne falls to the ground without any attempt to break his fall, which would suggest the punch had knocked him out, he said. As Mr OBeirne lay on the ground motionless, Mr Abella followed up the punch of Mr Antunes by kicking Mr OBeirne to the body. John Swain, defending Abella, said that although his client was not responsible for causing Mr OBeirnes death, his conduct was deplorable and cowardly and it is something that has weighed very heavily on him. Christopher Harding, representing Antunes, said: It is a tragedy that Mr OBeirne lost his life and it is my client who is ultimately responsible for his death. It is not, however, something which he intended. Indeed, he didnt intend to cause any serious harm to Mr OBeirne in June 2017, but it is something for which he is truly and deeply sorry. A Harrods spokesman has said the defendants were not members of staff but were employed by Buzz Retail, which provides workers for demonstrations within Harrods, both for less than a year, in 2017. Scotland Yards Detective Chief Inspector Noel McHugh said the victim was a completely harmless individual who had gone out that night for a beer and should have quietly gone back home again. However, Abella and Antunes delivered a mindless and pointless attack on Desmond, punching him in the back of the head and kicking him while he was on the ground, he said. He suffered injuries that would put him in a coma for six months. He never stood a chance. A motorist who had almost four times the legal limit of alcohol in his breath when he drove the wrong way along the M4 has been jailed for 18 months. Dramatic CCTV footage shows Lee Johnson, 44, on the wrong side of the motorway before his van clips an oncoming police car and spins into a barrier. Police dash-cam footage also shows Johnson nearly ploughing head-on into the police car as it made deliberate contact with him in order to stop his van on the westbound carriageway at about 11.30pm on December 15 2018. After his arrest Johnson, of Colman Road, east London, was breathalysed and found to be almost four times the drink-drive limit. He was jailed for 18 months at Reading Crown Court on Friday after previously admitting dangerous driving, driving while over the prescribed alcohol limit and driving without insurance. Lee Johnson was sentenced to 18 months jail (TVP/PA) Sergeant Gaz Doughty, from Thames Valley Police, said: Roads policing officers were deployed and implemented a rolling road block from junction 11, heading towards Johnsons vehicle, a red Citroen Berlingo van. Moments later, the vehicle was seen by the officers heading straight for them. Despite the obvious risks to themselves and potential for sustaining injuries, the officers made a quick decision to make deliberate contact with Johnsons van to bring it to a halt and thereby prevent it getting past them and colliding head-on into other motorists. A breath test found Johnson had 120 micrograms of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath, compared to the legal limit of 35 micrograms. CCTV screengrab of police officers apprehending Lee Johnson (TVP/PA) Sgt Doughty, senior investigating officer, added: I hope this case serves as a reminder to the public about the dangers of drink-driving. It is extremely lucky on this occasion that no-one was seriously hurt or killed. He thanked the members of the public who reported Johnson, whose driving could have caused a needless tragedy. I would also like to praise my team whose quick thinking and courageous actions prevented what would have been a devastating collision with other motorists. Greeces parliament has approved a measure for Macedonia to join Nato, ending a decades-old dispute. Politicians late on Friday voted 153-140 to back the Nato protocol that must now also be approved by all other alliance members. The Greek vote means the former Yugoslav republic will now formally change its name to North Macedonia. Macedonias prime minister Zoran Zaev (Ronald Zak/AP) That settles a dispute of the countrys name which Greece saw as a potential threat to its own northern region of Macedonia. Greek opposition parties said the agreement made too many concessions to Macedonia. I would like to again welcome North Macedonia, a country that is friendly toward Greece, a country that must be a supporter, and not an opponent, of our efforts to establish safety, stability, and cooperation in the wider region, Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras told parliament shortly before the vote. Today is a historic day. All #NATO Allies have signed the Accession Protocol with , which will bring more security & prosperity to the whole region. I look forward to the day when 30 flags will fly outside NATO HQ. pic.twitter.com/trPtvsn3MD Jens Stoltenberg (@jensstoltenberg) February 6, 2019 Western countries strongly backed the deal between Greece and Macedonia, after the countrys bid to join Nato had been shelved for a decade and amid European concerns over Russias vocal opposition to the alliances expansion further into the Balkans. Clearly it is in Greeces interest to promote a European course for all its neighbours, not just for North Macedonia and not (back) the influence of third forces in the neighbourhood, with different aspirations and pursuits, Mr Tsipras said. An international agreement to grow and sustain social enterprises in Scotland and Canada has been announced by Nicola Sturgeon on a visit to Toronto. The Social Enterprise Academy (SEA), which provides learning and development for the sector in Scotland, has launched a new partnership with the Canadian Community Economic Development Network (CCEDNet) supported by Torontos Learning Enrichment Foundation and the Scottish Government. The collaboration will involve sharing expertise and skills relating to social enterprises businesses focused on creating positive change by reinvesting profits and finding innovative new business models. Ms Sturgeon announced the partnership on a visit to West Neighbourhood House, a community organisation in downtown Toronto, on Friday, the second day of her two-day visit to Canada. She said: Scotland and Canada are already known worldwide as social enterprise nations. Through this exciting partnership, we will be able to share our collective skills and expertise to support people tackling social and environmental challenges in communities at home and around the globe. In Scotland, our expertise has been developed through a series of initiatives such as hosting the Social Enterprise World Forum, our 10-year Social Enterprise Strategy, and funding for a specialist business support service for social enterprises. Nicola Sturgeon has announced an international partnership to support social enterprise (Dominic Lipinski/PA) By working together to exchange knowledge and promote business models that contribute to the common good, we can take further steps to improve the lives of those in our countries and further afield. Claire Wilson, head of the SEA Global Learning Lab, said CCEDNet is an exciting new addition to our international network of partners. She added: We look forward to seeing how we can work together to support communities across Canada. Mike Toye, executive director for CCEDNet, said: We are pleased to partner with SEA International to accelerate the growth of inclusive and sustainable organisations and communities across Canada and around the world. On Thursday evening Ms Sturgeon officially opened the new Scottish Government office in Ottawa, as she hosted a Scotland is Now reception in the Canadian capital. During her two-day visit to Canada she has been carrying out trade and culture engagements in Ottawa and Toronto, which included opening the Toronto Stock Exchange. Earlier in the week she carried out engagements in the USA on a tour which started on Monday. Former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg has said he will decide by the end of the month whether to seek the presidency. The 76-year-old businessman, one of the richest men in the world, has been openly contemplating a Democratic White House bid since late last year. In an interview, Mr Bloomberg said he has three more weeks to make his decision in line with his plan to announce his intentions before the end of February. He also rejected a recent report suggesting he likely would not run if former Vice President Joe Biden enters the race. Former US vice-president Joe Biden is due to decide soon on whether to seek the top job (Niall Carson/PA) My decision doesnt depend on what other people are going to do, Mr Bloomberg said. My decision depends on whether or not I think I can make a difference. Mr Bloombergs decision comes as a handful of high-profile Democrats consider joining the 2020 race. Mr Biden and former Texas Congressman Beto ORourke, who earlier in the week said he would announce his decision very soon, are the most prominent of those yet to make a decision. Michael Bloomberg is considering a possible bid for the presidency (Niall Carson/PA) Should he run, Mr Bloomberg would bring virtually limitless resources and a pragmatic governing approach to the field. The former Republican stands out for a decidedly more pragmatic governing approach than some of the early 2020 Democratic contenders, who are more aligned with the partys far-left wing. Mr Bloomberg has spent hundreds of millions of dollars to promote liberal priorities on climate change, gun control and immigration, including more than 100 million US dollars to help elect Democrats in the 2018 midterm elections. He confirmed on Friday that he would separate myself from his foundation and private business should he launch a presidential campaign, just as he did as New York City mayor. Im spending more time going around politically now, he said. Michael Bloomberg photographs a floating solar array in a pond at an Orlando (Phelan M. Ebenhack/AP) You can see the beginning of a transition. Initially registered as a Democrat, the Massachusetts native filed paperwork to change his voter registration to Republican in 2000 before his first run for New York City mayor, according to a spokesman. In June 2007, he unenrolled from the Republicans, having no formal party affiliation until he registered again as a Democrat last October. While he would walk away from his private organisations should he run, Mr Bloomberg lashed out at those who suggest his private work would present conflicts of interest as a presidential candidate. Some of the people that say that are legislators who take money from industries where theyre regulating them, he said. Maybe they should go worry about what theyre doing. The leader of SDLP has expressed confidence a proposed link-up with Fianna Fail will be endorsed by the party faithful without the loss of any dissenting members. Colum Eastwood insisted the democratic foundations of the SDLP meant there was space for healthy disagreement and debate. His comments came as Taoiseach Leo Varadkar expressed hope the SDLPs relationship with his Fine Gael party would not suffer as a consequence of the potential Fianna Fail partnership. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar ahead of the talks (Liam McBurney/PA) SDLP members will gather in Newry, Co Down, on Saturday to vote on Mr Eastwoods proposal for a link-up with Irelands main opposition party. Another proposal, put forward by members opposed to the Fianna Fail deal, will instead advocate the SDLP adopt a non-exclusive approach to cross-party cooperation. Under these terms, it would seek to forge better links with a broader range of political parties in the Irish Republic. Many founding grandees of the party favour the latter option. Mr Eastwood, who met the Taoiseach in Belfast on Friday to discuss Brexit, said he was confident members would back his plan. Whats going to happen tomorrow is there are two different proposals, one from the leadership and another proposal I think the one from the leadership will get support. I hope it will, he said. The bottom line in this is we are a very democratic party, we can have a discussion, we can even disagree, we can debate and then we can come out united together and I think thats whats going to happen tomorrow. We understand very well that politics has changed here, Brexit has changed everything and it is important that the SDLP are involved in that change. I believe that the proposal that I will be putting to the membership tomorrow is one that can get support, not just in the room but, more importantly, with the public out there, and we need to show that our values can survive and thrive in the next decade and I think thats what this is all about. Asked if he was concerned some members would quit with party if the Fianna Fail link-up is agreed, he said: No, I think this is a democratic party. There have been things in the past in the SDLP that I have disagreed with. You have to stay in and make your arguments and then move on if you are not successful. The bottom line in this is the SDLP brand remains, our integrity remains, our independence remains, what we are talking about is a partnership to work together to meet the big challenges of today. Brexit has changed the world and if the SDLP are serious about being a player in the future we have to change, too. Mr Varadkar, the leader of Fine Gael, was asked about the prospective link-up during his visit to Belfast. I think primarily that is a decision for the SDLP and I totally respect their right to make whatever decision they think is best for their party, he said. The only thing I would say is the Irish government has always had a very close relationship with the SDLP for decades now and my party Fine Gael has had a good relationship with the SDLP, too. I just hope that anything they decide to do with Fianna Fail doesnt jeopardise that into the future. A Canadian judge has sentenced warped serial killer Bruce McArthur to life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years. McArthur pleaded guilty last week to eight counts of first-degree murder. The 67-year-old former landscaper sexually assaulted, killed and dismembered men he met in Torontos Gay Village district over seven years. Justice John McMahon called McArthur a sexual predator who killed for his own warped, sick gratification and said the victims suffered slow and painful deaths. He called their dismemberments pure evil, but said the guilty plea spared a jury four months of graphic and gruesome evidence that would have probably required counselling after. Police excavating the back of a property in Toronto (Tijana Martin/Canadian Press/AP) Prosecutor Craig Harper had asked for a parole ineligibility period of 50 years, when McArthur would have been 116. The judge said that would have only been symbolic. McArthur will be eligible for parole when he is 91. McArthur has been in prison since January last year when investigators discovered dismembered remains in planters at home he used as storage for his business. He also staged photos of some of his victims after they died, posing corpses in fur coats and putting cigars in their mouths. McArthur accessed some of the photos long after the killings. The victims fit a pattern: Most were of Middle Eastern or south Asian descent and lived on the margins of Canadian society, and their disappearances attracted little attention. One victim hid the fact that he was gay from his Muslim family, another was a recent immigrant with a drug problem, a third was a refugee who was ordered deported, and another victim was homeless, smoked crack cocaine and worked as a prostitute. Many of Torontos LGBQT community said for years a serial killer was at work. McArthur pleaded guilty to killing Andrew Kinsman, Selim Esen, Majeed Kayhan, Dean Lisowick, Soroush Mahmudi, Skandaraj Navaratnam, Abdulbasir Faizi and Kirushna Kanagaratnam. The prosecution said a frequent site of the killings was McArthurs bedroom and he repeatedly strangled his victims either with his hands or with rope and a metal bar. The killings took place from 2010 to 2017. Criminal experts say it is unusual for someone to become a serial killer later in life, but the prosecution said there is no evidence of earlier murders. The first operational command centre in a Scottish hospital allowing staff to see live updates has been opened. The centre, at University Hospital Monklands, has been developed as part of a refurbishment project and will provide real-time information regarding the status of the hospital. Information provided will include emergency department activity and bed numbers, as well as giving details on ambulances due to arrive. Big screens are positioned on the wall of the command centre to allow staff to see the status of each patient, bed and ward throughout the hospital. It is also hoped the system will help to effectively manage workforce resources. Staff at the nearby Hairmyres and Wishaw hospitals will be able to access the information with the adoption of an integrated system. (From left to right): Donna McHenry, assistant service manager, Dr Gordon McNeish, consultant in emergency medicine and University Hospital Monklands chief of nursing service at the command centre (NHS/PA) Donna McHenry, assistant service manager, said: The command centre is the first of its kind in Scotland and one of only a few in Britain. It is exciting for Monklands to be at the forefront of using digital technology to address some of the challenges that the NHS faces. With live information at our finger tips, the centre will enable us to make decisions which are data-driven and anticipate and prevent any potential issues. Karen Goudie, University Hospital Monklands chief of nursing service, said: Everything we do comes back to what is best for our patients. Delivering the right care, at the right place, at the right time is the goal of effective and efficient patient flow. One of the most innovative ways to achieve this goal is by using an operational command centre. While it is essential to have all of the hard data, I am particularly pleased that we managed to incorporate the information which people have posted on Care Opinion. We have the first hospital-level Care Opinion dashboard in the country. This allows us to identify any themes or frequent issues people are experiencing and enables us to rectify this at the earliest opportunity. I would like to thank colleagues for their ongoing support to ensure we get the best out of the operational command centre. Police searching for a missing 70-year-old have recovered a mans body from the Firth of Clyde. The family of Stewart Leask has been informed of the find near Montgomerie Crescent in Saltcoats, North Ayrshire, on Friday afternoon. Formal identification has yet to take place. Mr Leask, from Milngavie in East Dunbartonshire, was last seen by his wife at their holiday home in Whiting Bay, Arran, on February 3. He is thought to have headed towards Glenashdale Falls with his German shepherd, Corrie. A post-mortem examination will be carried out but the death is not being treated as suspicious. The DUP leader has dismissed as project fear reports of Cabinet concern about an Irish unity poll in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Arlene Foster said the criteria for calling a referendum on Northern Irelands constitutional future had not been met. Mrs Fosters remarks came after the BBC quoted three unnamed Cabinet ministers talking about the increased likelihood of a poll if the UK leaves the European Union without a deal. Under the terms of the 1998 Good Friday peace agreement, the incumbent secretary of state is obliged to call a vote on the constitutional issue if there is evidence of a change in public opinion in Northern Ireland in favour of Irish reunification. Last month, it was reported that Northern Ireland Secretary Karen Bradley warned Cabinet colleagues that a poll on a united Ireland would be much more likely in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Asked about the latest reported Cabinet concern on the matter, Mrs Foster said: There are many people engaging in project fear at this point in time and we all have to recognise that. The DUP leader added: The Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement sets out the criteria for a border poll and it hasnt been satisfied and therefore will not be called. Mrs Foster was asked about the issue after she met Taoiseach Leo Varadkar in Belfast. Sinn Fein vice president Michelle ONeill also met Mr Varadkar during his round of engagements with the Stormont parties. Sinn Fein leader at Stormont Michelle ONeill speaks to the media after meeting Leo Varadkar at the Irish Goverment residence in Belfast (Liam McBurney/PA) Mrs ONeill said she raised the issue of a referendum with the Irish premier. We have put the issue of a unity referendum to the Taoiseach, to the British Prime Minister on every occasion on which we would meet them, she said. Remember the unity referendum is built into the Good Friday Agreement, it will be for the people of this island to decide the constitutional future. Clearly we want to see a deal, we do not want to see a crash out Brexit but if we do find ourselves in the scenario where there is a crash out Brexit, then the tools which the British Prime Minister and Taoiseach must look to are actually written into the Good Friday Agreement and that is the unity referendum. The republican leader said a referendum did not need to be rancorous. People often talk about fear, there is an absolutely massive opportunity for a new Ireland and agreed Ireland which we all can design and plan together, she said. Mrs ONeill said there was also a need to clarify the grey area in the Good Friday Agreement around the criteria for calling a referendum, claiming it currently was left to the whim of the Secretary of State. Daniel Craig said the world has lost a giant as he paid tribute to Albert Finney, who has died aged 82 following a short illness. Five-time Oscar nominee Finney played James Bonds gruff gamekeeper Kincade in Skyfall. He said: Im deeply saddened by the news of Albert Finneys passing. The world has lost a giant. Referencing Finneys turn in the acclaimed 23rd Bond film, Craig added: Wherever Albert is now, I hope there are horses and good company. Skyfall and Spectre director Sam Mendes also paid tribute, describing Finney as a brilliant, beautiful, big-hearted, life loving delight of a man. He said: It is desperately sad news that Albert Finney has gone. He really was one of the greats a brilliant, beautiful, big-hearted, life loving delight of a man. He will be terribly missed. Albert Finney is known for his role in Annie (Moviestore Collection/REX/Shutterstock) The producers of the Bond franchise added their voices, saying they were heartbroken at the loss. Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, the co-producers of Eon Productions, led tributes to the late actor, best known for roles in Tom Jones, Erin Brockovich and Annie. They said: We are heartbroken at the loss of Albert Finney. It was a privilege to work with him and an honour to have had him as part of our Bond family. We are very sad to hear Albert Finney has passed away at the age of 82. The five-time Oscar nominee played gameskeeper Kincade in SKYFALL (2012). pic.twitter.com/8uzZbfwSi2 James Bond (@007) February 8, 2019 Celebrities from the world of comedy, television, film and theatre also posted messages online after the news broke. Bernadette Peters starred opposite Finney as Lily St Regis, Roosters girlfriend, in the 1982 film version of Annie. She said: So sad to hear of the passing of Albert Finney. I had the great pleasure of working with him on Annie the movie. Who could forget him in Tom Jones. So sad to hear of the passing of Albert Finney . I had the great pleasure of working with him on Annie the movie. Who could forget him in Tom Jones .RIP we will miss you!!! Bernadette Peters (@OfficialBPeters) February 8, 2019 Miranda Hart thanked Finney for his enduring performance as Oliver Daddy Warbucks in Annie. She said: Aaaah goodbye Daddy Warbucks. Thanks to Albert Finney (and Carol Burnett) in Annie my quest to play and sing for a life style began. What an actor he was. Thank you. Aaaah goodbye Daddy Warbucks. Thanks to Albert Finney (and Carol Burnett) in Annie my quest to play and sing for a life style began. What an actor he was. Thank you. #albertfinney #annie Miranda Hart (@mermhart) February 8, 2019 The Usual Suspects director Christopher McQuarrie drew attention to Finneys talent for combining power and powerlessness. He said: Remember the great Albert Finney tonight by watching Millers Crossing and Under The Volcano two vastly different performances that showcase his unique ability to combine power with powerlessness. English actor David Morrissey hailed Finney as one of the greats. He said: Both on stage and screen. A powerhouse of an actor. A real hero of mine. RIP Albert Finney. One of the true great. Both on stage and screen. A powerhouse of an actor. A real hero of mine. RIP Albert Finney https://t.co/FuSu6948tS David Morrissey (@davemorrissey64) February 8, 2019 Comic David Baddiel simply described Finney as so brilliant in a post to Twitter. Ah: he was so brilliant. All the rest is propaganda. pic.twitter.com/XsdixBwraF David Baddiel (@Baddiel) February 8, 2019 Actor Rufus Sewell appeared alongside Finney in the 1994 comedy drama A Man Of No Importance. He said of his death: Very sad to hear about Albert Finney. I had the enormous privilege of working with him early on. Apart from being effortlessly great he was also a great all round example of how to behave. Comedian David Walliams posted a black and white photograph of Finney on Twitter, writing alongside it: The beautiful Albert Finney. The beautiful Albert Finney. pic.twitter.com/pNkq7tZhEi David Walliams HQ (@davidwalliams) February 8, 2019 A representative of the National Theatre said it was deeply saddened to hear of the death of Albert Finney. The statement went on to say Finney had been a huge part of the National Theatre acting company from its early days in Chichester and performed many roles over the years, including Hamlet which opened the Lyttelton Theatre in 1976. We are deeply saddened to hear of the death of Albert Finney. He was a huge part of the National Theatre acting company from its early days in Chichester and performed many roles over the years, including Hamlet which opened the Lyttelton Theatre in 1976. pic.twitter.com/IxWt6ayXCM National Theatre (@NationalTheatre) February 8, 2019 A spokesman for the Old Vic said: We are very sad to hear of the loss of Albert Finney. His performances in plays by Shakespeare, Chekhov and other iconic playwrights throughout the 60s, 70s and 80s stand apart as some of the greatest in our 200-year history. We are very sad to hear of the loss of Albert Finney. His performances in plays by Shakespeare, Chekhov and other iconic playwrights throughout the 60s, 70s and 80s stand apart as some of the greatest in our 200 year history. pic.twitter.com/6UmFOjLjx1 The Old Vic (@oldvictheatre) February 8, 2019 The BBC has announced a change to its schedule in the wake of Finneys death and will show his film A Man Of No Importance on BBC One on Sunday February 10 at 11.30pm. Nigel Farage has said he will stand for the new Brexit Party if the UKs departure from the European Union is delayed. The Brexit Party has been officially registered with the Electoral Commission allowing it to field candidates at upcoming elections. Former Ukip leader Mr Farage said the new party has my absolutely full support and he would stand for it in Mays European Parliament elections if the UK has not left the EU by that point. The new party was a live vehicle which could be mobilised if Brexit is delayed. Brexit is due to take place on March 29 but Mr Farage said that if MPs kick the can down the road by extending Article 50 then logically we would have to fight European elections and I would certainly stand in them in those circumstances. He said the registration of The Brexit Party should be a warning to MPs considering backing any effort, such as the move championed by Labours Yvette Cooper and Tory Nick Boles, to extend Article 50 in order to allow more time for negotiations. MPs considering such a move need to be aware there could be a very serious electoral threat to them. The partys founder Catherine Blaiklock told the Daily Telegraph that a number of hundred Conservative members had been in touch to say they wanted to defect to the new party and the figure was likely to rise to thousands. The new party has been registered with the Electoral Commission. Mr Farage said the party would attract support from across the political spectrum, with people now increasingly identifying along Leave and Remain lines rather than by affiliation to the Conservatives or Labour. He told the Press Association: If the need comes for the Brexit Party to be mobilised, I think it will draw support from across the entire spectrum. I genuinely believe people would be very surprised at the support it would attract. He added: There is a live vehicle there from which to fight back. There are many millions of people out there at the moment feeling disenfranchised completely, feeling that they are more Leavers, or Remainers, but feeling they are more Leavers than they are Labour or Tory supporters and this would give them a focus. Ms Blaiklock told the Telegraph: Never in peacetime has such a betrayal been attempted by this treacherous Conservative government. No country has ever signed a treaty like this except under war terms. This is a wake-up call. We are going to have thousands of people who will just leave the Conservatives and vote for us in the event of the European Parliament election. Mr Farage quit Ukip in December 2018 saying he was uncomfortable with the direction of the party under Gerard Batten. A callous coward who murdered his two-year-old stepdaughter in a savage attack has been told he must serve at least 19 years in prison. Chef Martin Johnson, 20, left Erin Tomkins with catastrophic, multiple injuries as he was supposed to be caring for her at her home in Sheffield, a court heard. A judge at Sheffield Crown Court said these injuries could have been caused by shaking or an impact or a combination or both as he described how Johnson also injured Erin, who was a few weeks short of her second birthday, on other occasions. The youngster had suffered a broken arm at one point during her short life and 10 fractures to her spine, all caused by her stepfather. Martin Johnson was found guilty by a jury at Sheffield Crown Court (Dave Higgens/PA) The judge, Mr Justice Goss, sentenced Johnson to life in prison with a minimum tariff of 19 years as he remarked that the defendant had shown no remorse. Johnson was sentenced after he was found guilty of murder and two counts of causing grievous bodily harm with intent by a jury which deliberated for under two hours on Friday. He told police Erin had collapsed in front of him as they played but prosecutors told the jury of four men and eight women how medical experts found multiple injuries. The jury heard how Erin was taken to hospital on Monday May 21 2018, after Johnson phoned 999 from his partner Kira Tomkinss home in Leighton Road, in the Gleadless area of Sheffield. Staff at Sheffield Childrens Hospital found bruises on her face and body; bruising and bleeding to the surface of her brain, which was also swollen; and bleeding to both eyes. In an impact statement read to the court, Erins mother, Miss Tomkins said: I simply do not understand who somebody could hurt a baby in this way. She said she had been turned in to a walking zombie by her daughters death. Speaking outside court, Miss Tomkins said: Erin was the most beautiful bright and funny little red-headed girl. She added so much to our lives and she will be loved and missed every day. Speaking outside court, Detective Chief Inspector Steve Whittaker said the murder was one of the worst crimes he had dealt with in his 32-year long career. Kira Tomkins, centre, speaks outside court (Dave Higgens/PA) Mr Whittaker said: This is a man, Martin Johnson, who has shown absolutely no remorse whatsoever and has been in total denial. The detective said: Martin Johnson has been a cold, calculating liar. This man is a bully, an awful man, whos tried throughout the trial to blame the mother of the child for these terrible, terrible injuries. For me, hes a callous coward that really deserves every day of those 19 years in prison. Mr Whittaker said: This is man who came into this girls life and five months later she was dead. Martin Johnson (South Yorkshire Police/PA) He moved into the house and three months later she was dead. This is man who took it on himself to break a little girls arm and when they presented at the hospital said shed fallen off the sofa. This is man who at some stage caused a girl to have four back fractures. This is a man responsible for 27 bruises on that little girl and then went on to kill that little girl. He said: This is a man whos been quite abhorrent throughout and hes got what he deserves in the end. The officer said: With some work through eminent pathologists and neurosurgeons, we could prove that this child became immediately unwell after this savage, and it was savage, attack. Albert Finney has died at the age of 82 with his wife and son at his side. The veteran actor, best known for roles in Tom Jones, Erin Brockovich and Annie, had been in Londons Royal Marsden Hospital for the past month. He died from a chest infection on Thursday afternoon with his wife Pene Delmage and son Simon at his bedside. A statement from his family said: Albert Finney, aged 82, passed away peacefully after a short illness with those closest to him by his side. The family request privacy at this sad time. Finney with John Hurt in 1999 (Michael Stephens/PA) It is understood his funeral will be held at a later stage and will be private. The five-time Oscar nominee, who was born in Salford in 1936, started his career in the theatre and made his movie debut with a small part in The Entertainer in 1960. Director Tony Richardson then offered Finney the lead in kitchen-sink drama Saturday Night And Sunday Morning, and period romp Tom Jones in 1963, which landed him his first Oscar nomination and made him a major star. Albert Finney, left, with co-star Shirley Anne Field and author Alan Sillitoe at a party for Saturday Night And Sunday Morning (PA) Along with Tom Courtenay, he was part of the wave of working class actors who revolutionised British film and television at that time. Finney went on to play the title role in Scrooge and Hercule Poirot in Murder On The Orient Express, which garnered his second nomination, as well as Daddy Warbucks in Annie. He earned consecutive nods in 1984 and 1985 for The Dresser and Under The Volcano, and his fifth came in 2001 for his role as lawyer Ed Masry in Erin Brockovich, in which he starred opposite Julia Roberts. Albert Finney as Sir Winston Churchill in The Gathering Storm (BBC) He played Winston Churchill in the TV movie The Gathering Storm in 2002 and more recently starred in the James Bond film Skyfall and the Bourne films. He received the Bafta Fellowship, the British Academys highest honour, in 2001 but reportedly turned down a knighthood. Tragic Alfie Lamb was caught on camera running to keep up with his mother just minutes before he was allegedly crushed by a car seat. The three-year-olds last steps were recorded on CCTV during a shopping trip to Sutton, south London, on the afternoon of February 1 last year. On the journey home to Croydon, Alfie collapsed in the footwell of an Audi convertible and died in hospital days later. Stephen Waterson, son of former government minister Nigel Waterson, is accused of twice pushing his car seat into Alfie while his mother Adrian Hoare allegedly failed to stop him. Giving evidence, Hoare, 23, told jurors how her boyfriend had been annoyed with her son and said: I will not be told what to do by a three-year-old. Alfie Lamb died in hospital (Family Handout/PA) There were four adults in Watersons car that day, as well as two children who were forced to sit in the footwell. Jurors were shown footage of 3ft Alfie appearing to run to keep up as the group set out from Halfords car park in Sutton and later returned with their shopping. Cross-examining Hoare, Duncan Atkinson QC, asked: Whose pace are you walking at? What allowances were you making for Alfies little legs? Why is Alfie having to run? Video grab taken from CCTV of Stephen Waterson and Adrian Hoare, left, with Alfie Lamb, right, returning from a shopping trip on the day Alfie died (Metropolitan Police/PA) The defendant replied: Its just the way I walk even if its just me and Alfie. Alfie always runs. Mr Atkinson went on: Until he got into that car on the way back from Sutton, he was fine wasnt he? And by the time that the car reached Adams Way he was very far from fine, wasnt he? Something had to have happened in that journey? So when doctors and police start saying something happened to Alfie, you knew it had to have happened in the car. Were you not thinking it must have been Stephen? Hoare replied: Not straight away. The prosecutor asserted: What Stephen had done with his seat he had done deliberately. He was annoyed the second time he moved his chair back? Hoare agreed, but added: To begin with I did not blame anyone for what happened. Mr Atkinson said: Was it your relationship with Stephen was just too important? Wasnt the reality you just put what Stephen wanted first? The defendant denied it. The Audi convertible (Metropolitan Police/PA) Hoare told the court that Alfie had travelled in the footwell of a car before. Mr Atkinson said: On this journey from Sutton to Croydon he was saying he did not have enough room and you had responded by slapping him? She denied it. The lawyer asked: Hes crying, hes unhappy, hes calling for his mum. Why not pick him up and comfort him, Miss Hoare? When Stephen moves the car seat back a second time why didnt you pick him up then? Alfie was crying, he was screaming, he was coughing. Hoare replied: I would not have been able to get Alfie out of the space because he had not moved his chair. Mr Atkinson said: Wasnt it obvious that he did not have enough room? The defendant said: I would have found a way of moving Alfie out of the space if I thought there was a serious problem and Alfie couldnt breathe. Mr Atkinson said: On February 1 last year, looking back on it now, do you feel you let Alfie down? Hoare replied: Yes. The prosecutor said: You could have kept your son out of that footwell, couldnt you? The defendant said: Yes, but Stephen said we was all going together. Mr Atkinson observed: Its all about Stephen. Earlier, Watersons lawyer Tana Adkin QC suggested Watersons chair had nothing to do with Alfies injuries, saying Hoare must have done something. She asked Hoare: Are you trying to cover up something you did in the back of the car, and now trying to say it was Stephen that moved the seat and you knew what happened? The defendant replied: No. Hairdresser Hoare, who is originally from Gravesend in Kent, denies manslaughter, child cruelty and common assault on Emilie Williams, who was in the car. Waterson, 25, has pleaded not guilty to manslaughter and intimidation of the driver Marcus Lamb. The couple and Williams have pleaded guilty to conspiring to pervert the course of justice by making false statements to police. Moves to hold a vote of no confidence in Labour MP and outspoken leadership critic Luciana Berger have triggered a heated row in party ranks. Labour deputy leader Tom Watson intervened in the controversy to offer his support to Ms Berger in what he called her battle against bullying hatred from members of her local party. The comments came after shadow chancellor John McDonnell suggested the move to censure the MP was due to concern she may join a breakaway party, not over her attacks on Jeremy Corbyns handling of anti-Semitism. Mr Watson told the Commons that Ms Berger had his solidarity in the showdown. Ms Berger, who is Jewish, has been highly critical of Mr Corbyn over how he has dealt with the issue of anti-Semitism within the Labour Party, as well as his positioning on Brexit. A number of senior Labour MPs have rallied behind Ms Berger after it emerged the Liverpool Wavertree Constituency Labour Party has called an extraordinary meeting for February 17 to discuss two no-confidence motions. Mr Watson said: Let us not forget our honourable colleagues on both sides of this House, the subject of death threats, the subject of racist abuse, the subject of misogynistic abuse, the subject of bullying and anti-Semitism. As deputy leader of my party let me say to the honourable colleagues facing that abuse and in particular my friend and comrade the member of Liverpool Wavertree (Ms Berger) that she has our solidarity and she has our support as she battles the bullying hatred from members of her own local party. They bring disgrace to the party that I love. Earlier, Mr McDonnell called on Ms Berger to make clear she is not planning to jump ship. The shadow chancellor told Sky News: If people are saying look, we are expressing a vote of no confidence because Luciana has stood up and exposed anti-Semitism in our party, that would be completely wrong and, of course, we would say that is not right. But it looks as though theres other issues. It seems on social media, from what Ive seen, whats happened is Luciana has been associated in the media with a breakaway party. Some local party members, the media, have asked her to deny that. She hasnt been clear in that. So my advice really, on all of this, is for Luciana to just put this issue to bed. Say very clearly no, Im not supporting another party, Im not jumping ship. Mr McDonnell added: Its not a deselection from what I understand. Its a vote of no confidence, which is simply an expression by local party members. The shadow chancellors comments drew direct criticism from some Labour MPs. Chuka Umunna said there should be pressure put on Ms Bergers Constituency Labour Party (CLP) to treat the MP with respect. Mr Umunna tweeted: So a victim of outrageous racism in @UKLabour must promise she will not walk because of that racism and then this can all go away. How about demanding her CLP treats her with the respect she deserves. How about the party deals with that racism. Words fail me. Totally unacceptable. Labour MP Chuka Umunna (Steve Parsons/PA) Shadow education secretary Angela Rayner offered Ms Berger her backing for speaking out against anti-Semitism when asked on Twitter by Mr Umunna what she thought of the situation. Ms Rayner tweeted: I dont know whats happening in Lucianas constituency but she has my full support in speaking out and stamping out the racism and antisemitism thats in our party & wider community. The founder of the Corbyn-backing Momentum movement, Jon Lansman, called for solidarity with Ms Berger, tweeting: We are a political party. The messages we send to voters are important. Whether you agree with her politics or not, whether you think she is the best possible MP for her constituency or not, shes suffered appalling abuse. Must we always agree with people to show solidarity? Ms Bergers stance on anti-Semitism has seen her face a torrent of abuse from online trolls and she required a police escort at last years Labour Party conference after receiving death threats. The move against Ms Berger comes after she joined other MPs at a meeting of the Parliamentary Labour Party on Monday in calling for details on the partys efforts to tackle anti-Semitism to be released. Details of allegations against Sir Philip Green are set to be revealed after his legal action against The Daily Telegraph was formally brought to an end at the High Court. The newspaper intends to publish the information as well as the inside story of the court battle on its website at 9pm on Friday and in Saturdays edition. The retail tycoon hit back by accusing the paper of pursuing a vendetta against him and his staff and said former employees whose allegations were uncovered by the newspaper were under ongoing obligations to honour non-disclosure agreements (NDAs). Sir Philip obtained a court injunction preventing the Telegraph from publishing allegations of misconduct made against him by five ex-employees who had agreed to keep the details of their complaints confidential under NDAs. The injunction had prevented allegations of sexual assault and racial harassment from being reported. https://t.co/b8giFPR5mO The Telegraph (@Telegraph) February 8, 2019 But, in a statement issued last week, it was announced the Topshop owner was dropping the case because it was pointless after he was named in Parliament as the businessman behind an injunction against the newspaper. In a ruling in London on Friday, Mr Justice Warby granted the Topshop owner and two of his companies permission to discontinue the proceedings which was needed because of the injunction. However, the judge declined to impose conditions to stop Sir Philip and the companies suing either the Telegraph or the former employees in future, as requested by the newspaper. A statement issued after the ruling on behalf of Sir Philip and the board of Arcadia Group said: The Telegraph has pursued a vendetta against Sir Philip Green and the employees and management of Arcadia Group for the past nine months, harassing many of its staff and their families in their homes, often at night and at weekends. The Telegraph and its owners must now decide whether to do the decent thing and respect the NDAs. If not, they will expose their sources to potential further legal actions and significant losses. Their fate is now in the Telegraphs hands. Sir Philips lawyers said the decision to drop the case was prompted by Lord Hains identification of Sir Philip in the House of Lords in October last year. Lord Hains disclosure came a day after the Telegraph ran a front-page story saying it was prevented from naming a mystery businessman, with the headline The British #MeToo scandal which cannot be revealed. The injunction was first sought after Sir Philip and an executive at his Arcadia firm were contacted by a Telegraph journalist in July last year. The newspaper intended to publish allegations of misconduct made against Sir Philip by the ex-employees who all received substantial payments after settling their claims. In its defence of the claim, which was due to be tried on February 4 before Sir Philip indicated his intention to drop it, the paper said it believed the public interest in revealing the allegations outweighed that involved in maintaining the confidentiality of the NDAs. It asserted the alleged misconduct included unwanted conduct of a sexual nature, general sexual harassment, racist language and intimidation and bullying. Summarising the Telegraphs case in his ruling, Mr Justice Warby said: His conduct was said to be gross and unlawful, involving habitual behaviour over a substantial period by an extremely wealthy and powerful man abusing his position. Speaking after the ruling, the Telegraphs editor Chris Evans said the newspaper maintains there is a clear public interest in telling people whether an employer has been accused of abuse and called for a change in the law. He said in a statement: Sir Philip has described the allegations against him as no more than banter. If thats so, he should release his accusers from their NDAs and allow them to speak freely. The newspaper reported that Sir Philip is facing a legal bill of 3 million in relation to the case. In August last year, Mr Justice Haddon-Cave refused to gag the newspaper, but a challenge was mounted by Sir Philip then identified in court papers as ABC and the two companies. Court of Appeal judges temporarily barred the newspaper from identifying the tycoon or revealing confidential information relating to allegations of misconduct made against him by five employees. But former Cabinet minister Lord Hain used parliamentary privilege to name Sir Philip in the House of Lords two days after the courts ruling in October. In a statement after Fridays ruling, Lord Hain said: The government must reform the law. It is entirely wrong to use NDAs to conceal abuse of victims by powerful or rich individuals. That is deploying gagging orders to enforce injustice and the abuse of human rights of ordinary citizens who dont have the money to fight back. Mr Justice Warby continued an existing order banning the identity of the former employees from being revealed. He said none of the five wanted any information about their cases disclosed in conjunction with their name, four did not want it published at all, while two supported Sir Philips case. The boyfriend of a TV actors daughter asked festival security guards to borrow a torch so he could find his overdosing girlfriend, a court heard. Louella Fletcher-Michie, 24, the daughter of Holby City Star John Michie, was given drugs by her on-off boyfriend Ceon Broughton, 29, and died as her parents rushed to help her, it is alleged. She took the class A party drug 2-CP at Bestival in Dorset on September 10 2017 and died in woodland an hour before her 25th birthday. The jury at Winchester Crown Court heard on Friday that festival staff had searched the wrong wooded area for the couple, unaware they were off site. Family handout photo of Louella Fletcher-Michie (Zoe Barling/PA) A phone call to Bestival staff from Miss Fletcher-Michies terrified mother, Carol Fletcher-Michie, had triggered a search for her daughter, the court was told. She explained how the family had received a call from Broughton in which Miss Fletcher-Michie could be heard screaming like an animal in the background. Olivia Moedt, who worked in customer support at Bestival, spoke to a concerned Carol Fletcher-Michie who said her daughter had taken drugs with her boyfriend in a forest area. Prosecutor Simon Jones asked Ms Moedt: Did Mrs Michie sound worried for Louella? Yes, terrified, Ms Moedt replied. She added: When I spoke to Carol she was really worried and I was worried too I called over everyone I could think off to help me because I was really concerned. Other Bestival staff were alerted and a description of Miss Fletcher-Michie passed to people who searched the festivals Ambient Forest area, the only wooded area within the festivals boundaries. However, searchers found nobody matching Miss Fletcher-Michies description as staff did not know she and Broughton were actually in a wooded area off site, the court heard. Holby City actor John Michie leaves Winchester Crown Court (Andrew Matthews/PA) Bestival staff member Gemma Thorogood told the jury: We dont even comprehend where the woods stretch too, its just off the map. Security guard Wayne Harrington told the court how later in the evening he and a colleague saw Broughton emerge from woods outside the festivals perimeter. He asked to borrow a torch so he could go and look for his girlfriend as she had apparently taken an overdose, he said. Mr Harrington said he and his colleague joined Broughton to search the woods in a completely different direction from where he had come out. He said during the 15-minute unsuccessful search Broughton was constantly on the phone. He was basically trying to make phone calls, texting and I saw he had the find my phone app up, he added. Broughtons lawyer Stephen Kamlish QC highlighted phone signal at the festival was poor and claimed the security guards had eventually left Broughton to search on his own without a torch. The court heard Broughton sent a text to Miss Fletcher-Michies mother which said: These pricks dont give a f***. Giving evidence earlier in the trial, Miss Fletcher-Michies father accused Broughton of not taking her to get help while she was in a distressed state. Ceon Broughton at a previous hearing (Andrew Matthews/PA) I think Louella loved Ceon. Im not sure he loved her. I dont know how you could ever say you loved someone if you left them to die in front of you, Mr Michie told jurors. Jurors have previously been shown a 50-minute video of Miss Fletcher-Michie in which she shouts: This is the best trip I have ever f****** had. But as her condition deteriorated, Broughton ignored pleas from her family to seek help and continued to film even after she was dead, jurors were told. He also told a friend he feared he would be bagged by police and tried to stop her family rushing to the festival, the court heard. But Mr Kamlish told the court on Friday that Broughton had tried six times to contact his friend Ezra Campbell for help. The jury heard Broughton sent Mr Campbell a dropped Google pin location and text asking him to send the meds. But Mr Campbells phone did not have Google Maps, and in a call from Broughton he could only hear the words forest and barbed wire information he passed to festival staff. Broughton, of Enfield, north London, denies manslaughter and supplying Miss Fletcher-Michie the drug. The chief executive of Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS) has written to bureau managers warning of job losses after a cut of more than 600,000 in legal aid board funding. In a letter sent on Wednesday, Derek Mitchell indicated that the proposed cut would have a direct impact on the loss of at least 25 staff positions in 15 bureaus across the country. Mr Mitchell wrote that after CAS was informed about a cut of 626,717 to funding by the Scottish Government at the start of January, he had arranged a meeting with the Minister for Business, Fair Work and Skills Jamie Hepburn. He also stated confidence that the figure would be significantly higher, having spoken to bureaus regarding their funding positions. Having met the minister shortly before his letter to managers, Mr Mitchell said that he had been told the funding decision would not be reversed. The CAS chief executive outlined that he was extremely disappointed by the decision. CABs Derek Mitchell said the proposed funding cut could lead to the loss of jobs (Rui Vieira/PA) The letter indicated that Mr Hepburn would be open to supporting an exploration of alternative funding options, according to CAS. Scottish Liberal leader Willie Rennie raised concern that the cut would have a significant impact on people using the service. These Scottish Government cuts pose a direct threat to services which people desperately rely upon for sound, free and independent advice, said Mr Rennie. Housing, employment law and benefits can be enormously complex and Citizens Advice services are vital to helping people navigate such processes. The loss of dozens of staff would be devastating. The Minister for Business, Fair Work and Skills has shown casual indifference to the fate of the CABs. When it comes to protecting services which help people in difficult situations, he has proven himself to be no better than the Conservatives. The First Minister should step in and reverse these cuts. Labour MSP Neil Findlay said: These cuts are appalling. The budget awards Scottish ministers a 140 tax cut and slashes funding for services like these that help the poorest people the most. No progressive government should be making cuts like this and they must be reversed before Stage 3 of the budget. Irish premier Leo Varadkar has said he will not be negotiating Brexit when he meets Theresa May for dinner in Dublin on Friday evening. After holding talks in Brussels on Thursday, the Prime Minister was flying to Dublin in an effort to resolve the dispute over the Irish backstop, which remains the main stumbling block to an agreement. She will be joined for the private dinner at official state guesthouse Farmleigh House by the UKs Brexit negotiator Olly Robbins and her chief of staff Gavin Barwell. Mr Varadkar said while the meal presented an opportunity to share perspectives on Brexit, actual negotiations can only be between the European Union and the United Kingdom. Speaking during a visit to Belfast for talks with Northern Irish parties, the Taoiseach said: I think everybody wants to avoid no-deal, everybody wants to avoid a hard border and everybody wants to continue to have a very close political and economic relationship between Britain and Ireland no matter want happens. There is much more that unites us than divides us and time is running short, and we need to get to an agreement really as soon as possible, and Ill be working very hard and redoubling my efforts, along with government, to do that. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar speaking to the media ahead of talks with Northern Irelands five main political parties at the Irish Government residence in Belfast. (Liam McBurney/PA) He added: I believe ultimately we are going to have to get this deal over the line and I am determined to do that. Downing Street said Mrs May would be emphasising what we are looking for, seeking the legally binding changes to the Withdrawal Agreement that Parliament said it needs to approve the deal. Meanwhile, Attorney General Geoffrey Cox held talks in Dublin with his Irish counterpart, Seamus Woulfe. Mr Cox has been leading work within Whitehall on providing either a time limit on the backstop or giving the UK an exit mechanism from it. Attorney General Geoffrey Cox met his Irish counterpart (Jonathan Brady/PA) Both proposals have received a dusty response from Dublin, which insists the backstop cannot be time-limited if it is to provide an effective insurance policy against the return of a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic. Mrs May, however, has warned she needs legally binding assurances the UK will not be tied to EU rules indefinitely through the backstop if she is to get her Brexit deal through the House of Commons. Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay will hold talks with the EUs chief negotiator Michel Barnier on Monday. Meanwhile, Mrs May and European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker have agreed to meet again before the end of the month to take stock of the situation. I am looking forward to meeting @SteveBarclay in Brussels on Mon evening. I will listen to how the UK sees the way through. The EU will not reopen the Withdrawal Agreement. But I will reaffirm our openness to rework the Political Declaration in full respect of #EUCO guidelines. Michel Barnier (@MichelBarnier) February 8, 2019 Mr Barnier said he was looking forward to the meeting in Brussels but restated the EUs position that the Withdrawal Agreement cannot be reopened. I will listen to how the UK sees the way through, the EU negotiator said. The EU will not reopen the Withdrawal Agreement. But I will reaffirm our openness to rework the Political Declaration in full respect of European Council guidelines. (PA Graphics) Meanwhile, Downing Street has said ministers are looking with interest at a letter from Jeremy Corbyn setting out the terms on which Labour would support a deal in Parliament. The move provoked a furious outcry from Labour Remainers who fear the plan effectively kills off their hopes of the party backing a second referendum with warnings from some MPs they could quit the party altogether. Shadow chancellor John McDonnell said Mrs May had to accept his partys proposals were the only way of getting a Brexit deal through Parliament. We believe a deal like this, put before Parliament again, could secure a majority and what youre seeing here is, yes, Parliament asserting control, and the Prime Minister has to accept that the only way shell get something through Parliament is a compromise like this, he told BBC Radio 4s Today programme. Mr McDonnell said the Prime Minister would have a secure parliamentary majority if she backed the plans, which he described as a traditional British compromise, but said a second referendum was still on the table if an agreement could not be reached. Number 10 sources acknowledged there were still very considerable points of difference with Labour over the blueprint which includes a customs union with the EU, something the Prime Minister has repeatedly ruled out. They may hope the threat Parliament could swing behind a softer Norway-style Brexit if there is no agreement on Mrs Mays deal will convince some Tory Brexiteer rebels to fall into line behind her plan. Mr Varadkar described the Corbyn proposals as very interesting. A sensible deal with Europe can win the support of parliament and bring the country together. pic.twitter.com/8MHqrXwE9Q Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) February 7, 2019 I think what Jeremy Corbyn has done is fleshed out a potential future relationship which is one that would mean a future relationship that is very close between the European Union and the United Kingdom, and I think in that regard they are very interesting, he said. But ultimately when dealing with these matters I deal with the democratically elected Government of the United Kingdom and that is headed by Prime Minister May. Speaking in Belfast, Democratic Unionist Party deputy leader Nigel Dodds said Mr Corbyns plan doesnt have the support of his own party, obviously. Mr Dodds said: The way to a majority for a deal in the United Kingdom is with the Conservative Party and the DUP. I dont believe Theresa May is going to split her party in order to reach out to a Jeremy Corbyn who is going to find it very difficult to bring his own party along and who cant be relied upon to deliver the Brexit which the Prime Minister believes people voted for in the referendum. A former health board worker has been arrested by police investigating allegations of inappropriate behaviour. The 64-year-old was previously employed by NHS Dumfries and Galloway. The board has contacted patients who had physiotherapy at the Mountainhall Treatment Centre in Dumfries between July and December last year and urged them to report any concerns, BBC Scotland reported. A Police Scotland spokesman said: A 64-year-old man had been arrested and charged in connection with an ongoing investigation. A report has been sent to the procurator fiscal. NHS Dumfries and Galloway said the man was no longer employed by the board. Police Scotland are investigating claims of inappropriate behaviour by a former health worker (Andrew Milligan/PA) A spokesman said: We are aware of the police investigation into allegations against an individual who was employed on a locum basis for a short period at Mountainhall. This individual is no longer employed in any capacity by the Board and we are cooperating fully with police inquiries. As these are live legal proceedings we are unable to comment further at this time. South Africa: DBE to launch game changer for early childhood development This story has been published on: 2019-02-10. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. Parliaments Portfolio Committee on Police will on Tuesday evaluate the current anti-gang strategy of the South African Police Service (SAPS) at its first meeting of 2019. Civil society groups and community leaders from Gauteng, the Western Cape, Eastern Cape and Free State have been invited to the meeting to give testimony on their... See more More than 1,300 people signed up to the organ donor register following an episode of BBC Two documentary Hospital. NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) said it saw a surge in interest during and after Thursday nights show. The episode followed patients in two Liverpool hospitals, including some waiting for transplants and a pregnant mother who wanted to donate tissues from one of her twins who would die shortly after birth. Three moving stories of organ donation and transplantation feature in tonights episode of #Hospital. Tune into @BBCTwo at 9pm. pic.twitter.com/QFXJM6dFX3 NHS Organ Donation (@NHSOrganDonor) February 7, 2019 A total of 1,391 people signed up as organ donors between 9pm and 11pm on Thursday evening, compared with 60 in the same period on Wednesday, NHSBT said. Andrea Ttofa, head of organ donation marketing for NHSBT, said: Were delighted that BBC Hospital inspired so many people to sign up as organ donors. We know personal stories of donation and transplantation are extremely powerful and prompt people to sign up to save lives. There was a surge in interest during and after Thursday nights show (Peter Byrne/PA) A record number of people are saving lives by donating their organs after they die each donor can save up to nine lives. https://t.co/FAUtk15n9j #Hospital #YesIDonate pic.twitter.com/cBTKkJW8cp NHS Organ Donation (@NHSOrganDonor) February 7, 2019 We would urge everyone to tell their family they want to be an organ donor to ensure their family honour this decision. Around 6,000 people in the UK are currently waiting for a transplant and there are many more who would benefit from a transplant. Last year, more than 400 people died in the UK waiting for a transplant. The Government has indicated that an opt-out system of organ donation is expected to be in place in England by April 2020. The changes will mean that everyone is considered a potential donor unless they have specified that they do not wish to donate their organs. Guitar pioneer, influencer and businessman Jim Dunlop has died at the age of 82. Born in Glasgow in 1936, the entrepreneur moved to Canada as a young man before heading to California, USA, with his wife Bernice. Working as an engineer in the San Francisco Bay Area, he used his spare time to create accessories for guitars. In 1965, he founded Dunlop Manufacturing, Inc. and found success with handmade capos a movable bar attached to the fingerboard to raise the pitch of the strings It was then he took the decision to become a maker of guitar picks, designing them gauged by a specific thickness. After experimenting with different measurements he created Tortex Picks, which are among the most popular plectrums for guitarists in the world today. Jim Dunlop, pictured in 2011, has died aged 82 (Andy Buchanan/PA) The business expanded into guitar effects in the 1980s and is now one of the largest pedal companies globally. This move led to collaborations with the family of Jimi Hendrix and artists such as Eddie Van Halen, Dimebag Darrell and Slash. Guitarists from the world of music paid tribute to Mr Dunlop on social media, including Metallicas Kirk Hammett, Slash and blues legend Buddy Guy. #JimDunlop was an innovator who helped shape the music we love. We are so sad to hear of his passing. Our thoughts are with the @jimdunlopusa family. All our love. - Team BG Photo: March 2018 in Sacramento when Jim presented BG with a one-of-a-kind gold plated #crybabywah. pic.twitter.com/IhEOqMMY5s Buddy Guy (@TheRealBuddyGuy) February 7, 2019 He was widowed by Bernice in 2001 and is survived by Linda, wife of seven years, daughter Jasmin Powell, son Jimmy and grandchildren Alyssa Powell, Krista Powell and Max Dunlop. His death was announced by his company on Thursday. As the countdown continues to the scheduled date of Brexit on March 29, here is what has been happening over the past week. Days to go 49 What happened this week? Theresa May returned to Brussels on a mission to persuade EU leaders they must accept changes to the Withdrawal Agreement to have any hope of getting it through the House of Commons. Before her visit, the Prime Minister sought to reassure Northern Ireland she will protect its interests with a high-profile speech in Belfast and talks with politicians and businesses. But the trip was overshadowed by European Council president Donald Tusks remark that there was a special place in hell for Brexiteers without a plan and his comment as talks concluded that there was still no breakthrough in sight. Theresa May met European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker for the first time since their Withdrawal Agreement was rejected by MPs (Harriet Line/PA) Meanwhile, Jeremy Corbyn made an offer to back the PMs Brexit plan if she accepted five demands, including a customs union, close links with the single market and ongoing alignment with EU workplace and environmental protections. What happens next? Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay will hold talks with EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier on Monday, as each sides teams of officials re-engage in the search for a breakthrough. If no deal has been reached by Wednesday as seems overwhelmingly likely Mrs May will address MPs on progress made and table a neutral motion for debate the following day. This motion is expected to attract a swathe of amendments on anything from the removal of the controversial Irish backstop to delaying Brexit day beyond March 29 or holding a fresh public vote. PA Graphics Valentines Day will see a succession of votes which will not be binding on the Government but will hold significant political weight as an indication of what the House of Commons will support. However, it is not expected to be the final opportunity for critics of the Brexit deal to rebel or resign, as the PM is promising another meaningful vote in the coming weeks. Good week Leo Varadkar. The Irish Taoiseach won firm commitments from EU leaders that they will not leave the Republic to stand alone, with European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker assuring him: The Irish border is the European border. Mr Juncker showed Mr Varadkar a huge card sent by an Irish woman to thank him for his support. But the womans message was awkward for the Taoiseach as it included the claim that Britain does not care about peace in Northern Ireland. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar (left) and EU Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker discusses no-deal Brexit plans in Brussels on Wednesday. (Michelle Devane/PA) Bad week Supporters of a second referendum. Hopes that Mr Corbyn would throw Labours weight behind the campaign for a Peoples Vote appeared to recede as he wrote to Mrs May offering his partys help to secure a Brexit deal. Jeremy Corbyn signs a letter he wrote to Theresa May laying out Labours five Brexit demands (Stefan Rousseau/PA) Shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer insisted the move did not take the option of a referendum off the table, but Chuka Umunna said that EU-backing voters would feel they had been sold down the river and former leadership contender Owen Smith said he and others would be considering their future in the party. Quote of the week Ive been wondering what that special place in hell looks like for those who promoted Brexit without even a sketch of a plan how to carry it out safely. European Council president Donald Tusk. Tweet of the week Well, I doubt Lucifer would welcome them, as after what they did to Britain, they would even manage to divide hell. European Parliament Brexit co-ordinator Guy Verhofstadts response to Mr Tusk. Well, I doubt Lucifer would welcome them, as after what they did to Britain, they would even manage to divide hell https://t.co/AS367egjZP Guy Verhofstadt (@guyverhofstadt) February 6, 2019 Word of the week Hell It was the place where Mr Tusk wanted to consign Brexiteers with no plans, and the place where many of his critics thought he should be sent for poisoning the atmosphere ahead of Mrs Mays visit. Unguarded comments to Mr Varadkar, caught by a microphone moments before he spoke, made clear the Council chief was all too aware that he would stir up a hornets nest in the UK. One Twitter wag appeared to be thinking of Brexit-backing pub chain boss Tim Martin when he responded to Tusks query about where the special place in hell was located with the single word: Wetherspoons. A rare portrait of Mary Queen of Scots is going on public display for the first time. Marking 432 years to the day since the Scottish monarch died in 1587, the painting was unveiled on Friday at Hever Castle in Kent by historian David Starkey. Discovered in France, it is believed to have come from the studio of Renaissance miniature portrait painter Francois Clouet but was only recently identified as Mary. The portrait (Gareth Fuller/PA) Originally thought to date back to the 17th century, scientific examination of the oak panel on which the portrait is painted revealed it was created after 1547, while analysis of the style confirmed it was created in the mid-16th century, the castle said. It shows a teenage Mary, circa 1560, thought to be in mourning dress after the death of her father-in-law, mother and husband within 18 months of each other. Starkey said: This elegant portrait shows the 19-year-old Mary, as she was on her return to Scotland at the beginning of an extraordinary adventure which turned two kingdoms upside down and ended in her own execution at Fotheringhay 26 years later. Today an extremely rare portrait of #MaryQueenofScots has been unveiled at #HeverCastle. You will be able to view the portrait in the Staircase Gallery when the Castle reopens tomorrow. Discover more: https://t.co/BtsWWsrsMA # pic.twitter.com/oFQsxuzr60 Hever Castle (@hevercastle) February 8, 2019 The castle the childhood home of Anne Boleyn bought the painting and plans to display it permanently. It can be viewed by the public from Saturday, when the castle reopens. A young mother has been accused at the Old Bailey of putting her boyfriend first after he allegedly crushed her little boy with his car seat because he was annoyed. Adrian Hoare, 23, allegedly failed to prevent Stephen Waterson from twice pushing the chair into Alfie Lamb, saying: I will not be told what to do by a three-year-old. Afterwards, Hoare did not blame him straight away because her relationship with 25-year-old Waterson was just too important, Duncan Atkinson QC claimed. Alfie Lamb (Family Handout/PA) Alfie collapsed in Watersons Audi convertible on the way home to Croydon from a shopping trip to Sutton, south London, on February 1 last year. There were four adults in the car as well as two children who were forced to sit in the footwell. Jurors were shown CCTV of 3ft tall Alfie appearing to run to keep up as the group set out from Halfords car park and later returned with their shopping. Cross-examining Hoare, Mr Atkinson asked: Whose pace are you walking at? What allowances were you making for Alfies little legs? Why is Alfie having to run? Video grab taken from CCTV of Stephen Waterson and Adrian Hoare, left, with Alfie Lamb, right, returning from a shopping trip on the day Alfie died (Metropolitan Police/PA) The defendant replied: Its just the way I walk even if its just me and Alfie. Alfie always runs. Mr Atkinson went on: Until he got into that car on the way back from Sutton, he was fine wasnt he? And by the time that the car reached Adams Way he was very far from fine, wasnt he? Something had to have happened in that journey? So when doctors and police start saying something happened to Alfie, you knew it had to have happened in the car. Were you not thinking it must have been Stephen? Hoare replied: Not straight away. The prosecutor asserted: What Stephen had done with his seat he had done deliberately. He was annoyed the second time he moved his chair back? Hoare agreed, but added: To begin with I did not blame anyone for what happened. Mr Atkinson said: Was it your relationship with Stephen was just too important? Wasnt the reality you just put what Stephen wanted first? The defendant denied it. The Audi convertible (Metropolitan Police/PA) Earlier, Watersons lawyer Tana Adkin QC suggested Watersons chair had nothing to do with Alfies injuries, saying Hoare must have done something. She asked Hoare: Are you trying to cover up something you did in the back of the car, and now trying to say it was Stephen that moved the seat and you knew what happened? The defendant replied: No. Hoare told the court that Alfie had travelled in the footwell of a car before. Mr Atkinson said: On this journey from Sutton to Croydon he was saying he did not have enough room and you had responded by slapping him? She denied it. The lawyer asked: Hes crying, hes unhappy, hes calling for his mum. Why not pick him up and comfort him, Miss Hoare? When Stephen moves the car seat back a second time why didnt you pick him up then? Alfie was crying, he was screaming, he was coughing. Hoare replied: I would not have been able to get Alfie out of the space because he had not moved his chair. Mr Atkinson said: Wasnt it obvious that he did not have enough room? The defendant said: I would have found a way of moving Alfie out of the space if I thought there was a serious problem and Alfie couldnt breathe. Mr Atkinson said: On February 1 last year, looking back on it now, do you feel you let Alfie down? Hoare replied: Yes. The prosecutor said: You could have kept your son out of that footwell, couldnt you? The defendant said: Yes, but Stephen said we was all going together. Mr Atkinson observed: Its all about Stephen. Hoare, who is originally from Gravesend in Kent, denies manslaughter, child cruelty and common assault on Emilie Williams, who was in the car. Waterson has pleaded not guilty to manslaughter and intimidation of the driver Marcus Lamb. The couple and Williams have pleaded guilty to conspiring to pervert the course of justice by making false statements to police. Wet and windy weather is set to continue throughout the weekend with the possibility of snow early next week. Storm Erik brought strong winds to parts of the country on Friday and will be followed by rain and more unsettled weather, according to the Met Office. Meteorologist Nicola Maxey said: On Friday weve got a named storm passing through the north of the country. Were looking at winds of 50 to 60mph in Northern Ireland and the west of Scotland. (PA Graphics) But Erik could bring the possibility of 70mph gusts along more exposed coasts. Even away from the strongest gusts we could still have gale-force winds. Wet weather will follow later as rain moves in across the UK, and some of it could be heavy at times. It will continue to be very wet and windy across the UK this afternoon. Here are the details.... Stay #weatheraware #StormErik pic.twitter.com/ilr2Y8LJzy Met Office (@metoffice) February 8, 2019 Police in Dorset were called on Friday morning after a tree fell on to a double-decker bus. Police were called to the scene on Ringwood Road in Poole shortly before midday. No injuries were reported. We are currently dealing with an incident on Ringwood Road in #Poole where a tree has fallen onto a double-decker bus following strong winds. Fortunately there are no reported injuries, but the road is likely to be closed for some time. pic.twitter.com/IIoyRmVbv6 Dorset Police (@dorsetpolice) February 8, 2019 There are also a number of bridge closures in place as a result of the bad weather. The Severn Bridge partially closed as a result of high winds. The bridge connecting England and Wales is closed to all vehicles heading eastbound, and closed westbound to all high-sided and vulnerable vehicles. The Tamar Bridge between Devon and Cornwall is also closed to high-sided and vulnerable vehicles in both directions. The Met Office has issued two weather warnings for Friday for strong winds across Northern Ireland and western Scotland until the evening, and for heavy rain in Scotland until Saturday afternoon. A woman battles against strong winds and rain on Waterloo Bridge in central London (Victoria Jones/PA) Saturday will see a mix of sunny spells and blustery showers, with the most persistent rain in the north of the country and the possible risk of hail and thunder in the west. There will be frost and the chance of some snow in the north of the country towards the end of the weekend when falling rain meets cold air. Forecasting Sundays weather, Ms Maxey said: There is the chance of patchy rain and this could be heavy in places. Because of the cold air, this could fall as snow on higher ground in Scotland and England on Sunday. Were expecting a widespread frost on Sunday night and into Monday, and the unsettled weather will continue into the start of next week. Storm Erik was named by Irish forecaster Met Eireann on Thursday. An American Airlines pilot has been arrested at Manchester Airport on suspicion of being drunk just minutes before he was due to operate a transatlantic flight. Greater Manchester Police said it received a report shortly before 11am on Thursday that a pilot may have been under the influence of alcohol. Officers went to the scene and a 62-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of performing an aviation function when over the prescribed limit of alcohol. He was bailed pending further inquiries. Flight AA735 to Philadelphia was due to take off at 11.05am but was cancelled following the arrest of the pilot, who has not been named. The pilot was arrested at Manchester Airport on Friday morning (PA) American Airlines told reporters: Safety is our highest priority and we apologise to our customers for the disruption to their travel plans, we have rebooked them on alternative flights. We are fully co-operating with local law enforcement and further questions should be referred to them. It is illegal for pilots in the UK to have more than 20mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood in their system. The drink-drive limit in England, Wales and Northern Ireland is 80mg. In Scotland it is 50mg. In November, a Japanese pilot was given a 10-month prison sentence for being almost 10 times over the alcohol limit while preparing to take off from Heathrow Airport. First officer Katsutoshi Jitsukawa was caught after security noticed he smelled strongly of alcohol, seemed drunk and had glazed eyes. A 33-year-old man has denied murdering Belfast community worker Ian Ogle, a court heard. There was a heavy police presence at Belfast Magistrates Court as Jonathan Brown, of McArthur Court, Belfast, appeared in the dock. He wore a grey jumper and looked around the courtroom, including at the packed public gallery where the Ogle family and supporters were sitting. Brown indicated that he understood the single charge of murder put to him. His lawyer Mark Austin told the court Mr Brown denies planning, preparing and committing this offence. No application for bail was made during the brief hearing. Ian Ogles coffin is carried past Cluan Place in east Belfast ahead of his funeral (Niall Carson/PA) Brown was remanded in custody. He will next appear in court via video link on March 8. Mr Ogle, 45, died after being stabbed 11 times as he prayed with a pastor on Cluan Place in east Belfast on January 27. Thousands lined the streets for his funeral on Monday. Detectives have made 14 arrests and carried out multiple searches over the death. The other 13 people who were arrested have been released. Speaking outside court, Mr Ogles daughter Toni Johnston said of her familys bid for justice: We know we have got a long way to go but we feel it is a good start. Mrs Johnston also thanked the community for their support, describing it as amazing. She added: We cant thank people enough, we would just ask everyone to stay calm. She was supported by Ulster Unionist councillor Sonia Copeland. Ms Copeland added: Its still a live investigation, hopefully more arrests will come later. I would ask on behalf of the family that anyone with information, if you could please come forward and at least let this family grieve as best they can afterwards. It has been a harrowing time for them. The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland has released the first pictures of a rare Malayan tapir born at Edinburgh Zoo. The male calf, which has not yet been named, was born to mother Sayang and father Mowgli on January 31. He is the eighth tapir calf to arrive at the zoo since 2007. Malayan tapirs are considered an endangered species with a European conservation breeding programme helping protect them from extinction. The brown and white fur helps provide camouflage for baby tapirs in their natural rainforest habitats, developing to black and white after a few months. An online poll has been set up to help decide a name for the zoos new arrival. Suggestions include Penang, Haruun, Bintang, Megat, Amal and Bernam all of which have a Malayan connection. The male calf was born on January 31 (Jon Paul Orsi/RZSS/PA) Jonny Appleyard, team leader for hoofstock at Edinburgh Zoo, said: Malayan tapir populations in the wild are continuing to decline, so all births are incredibly valuable to the breeding programme and were really excited about our latest arrival. At the moment he is staying very close to mum Sayang but will soon find his feet and start to follow her outside. Voting on the tapirs name closes on Tuesday. A hero police dog watched in the House of Commons as MPs backed attempts to give service animals greater protection from attacks. Finn joined Pc Dave Wardell in the public gallery to see the Animal Welfare (Service Animals) Bill move a step closer to becoming law. The Bill, nicknamed Finns Law, removes a section of the current law of self-defence often used by those who harm a service animal while committing a crime. Early morning in the @HouseofCommons supporting the Third Reading of Animal Welfare (Service Animals) Bill #FinnsLaw #FinnsLawFriday pic.twitter.com/aE7FyPs2eI Andrew Stephenson MP (@Andrew4Pendle) February 8, 2019 Pc Wardell, from Hertfordshire, said the dog now retired saved his life when a robbery suspect they were pursuing turned on them with a knife in 2016. Finn suffered serious stab wounds to the chest and head but did not let go until reinforcements arrived, and was initially thought unlikely to survive. The suspect was charged with ABH in relation to wounds to Pc Wardells hand but faced only criminal damage charges over the injuries to Finn, with MPs hearing such a charge essentially treated the dog as if he was a piece of police property. Police dog Finn with his handler Pc Dave Wardell (Jonathan Brady/PA) Pc Wardell said he was delighted that Finns Law had passed its third reading in the Commons. Sitting with Finn the dog in the Government chief whips office of the Commons, he said: He can sense that dad was a bit emotional, so I think hes quite excited now and looking forward to a run in the park. For me, what it shows is just how highly the whole of the UK thinks of their service animals and its our right really to protect them and, from what weve heard today, were well on our way to doing that. Finns presence in the Commons emerged as Tory MP Victoria Prentis (Banbury) spoke in support of the Bill. After it was initially believed he was not there, Pc Wardell lifted Finn up. Ms Prentis said: Finn is here super. I look forward to meeting him later. Oh look, hes standing up. We can see him marvellous. I can only apologise that those on the opposition benches probably cant quite see him. Conservative Sir Oliver Heald, who tabled the Bill, earlier said: This change in the law, when taken together with the Governments increase to the animal welfare penalty, will mean for the first time there is suitable protection for service animals and a proper sentence for offenders. Service animals, such as Finn, do a great job. There are 1,200 police dogs in service at any one time. There should be proper recognition in law of their vital role. The Bill would amend the 2006 Animal Welfare Act to address concerns about defendants ability to claim they were justified in using physical force to protect themselves from a service animal. The Government last year also announced animal abusers would face up to five years in jail an increase from the previous six-month maximum sentence. The Bill will undergo further scrutiny at a later stage in the House of Lords. Professor Dame Sally Davies is to leave her post as Englands chief medical officer, it has been announced. Dame Sally, who has held the position for nine years, has been appointed by the Queen as Master of Trinity College, Cambridge, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said. It is the first time the job has gone to a woman and comes after Dame Sally was the first female chief medical officer for England. She will quit as chief medical officer at the end of September and take up her new role in October. Before her Government roles, Dame Sally worked for 30 years in the NHS as a consultant haematologist. She was also director general of research and development for the NHS and helped to create Genomics England. Professor Dame Sally Davies will leave her role in September (PA) She said: I want to pay tribute to the outstanding clinicians, scientists and public servants who have supported me in this role men and women who are working tirelessly to improve the health of the nation. It has been an honour to be the first female chief medical officer. I have enjoyed it from the start and I will continue to do so right up until I finish. Congratulations to Professor Dame Sally Davies FRS on her appointment as the new Master of Trinity College Cambridge. She will be the first woman to be installed in this role.#WomenInSTEM @TrinCollCam https://t.co/EBvRsSqRdU The Royal Society (@royalsociety) February 8, 2019 I am delighted to be appointed as Master of Trinity College following a distinguished list of predecessors and as the first woman. I can assure everyone that I will continue contributing to the global fight against AMR (antimicrobial resistance) from my new role. Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock said: Sally Davies has been a dedicated public servant and a driving force for improving the health of the nation. She has led the fight against antibiotic resistance and public health risks, and has pioneered world-leading action across a whole range of areas. Shes been not just Englands chief medical officer but led thinking around the world. Sally has been an inspiration to us all and Im sure has a huge amount still to contribute in the future. Rescue workers have pulled a 16-year-old boy from the rubble of an eight-storey apartment building in Istanbul two days after it collapsed, Turkeys interior minister said. The teenager was immediately taken to hospital, Suleyman Soylu told reporters at the scene. There was no information on his condition. Rescue workers carry a 16-year-old boy from the rubble (Emrah Gurel/AP) His rescue raised the number of people who have been pulled out of the wreckage to 14, with 13 remaining in hospital, while 15 bodies have been recovered. The building, in Istanbuls mostly residential Kartal district on the Asian side of the city, crashed down on Wednesday. The cause of the collapse is under investigation. A five-year-old girl was rescued on Thursday (Emrah Gurel/AP) Friends and relatives waited near the wreckage for news of missing loved ones as emergency teams, aided by sniffer dogs, worked around the clock to reach possible survivors. Officials have not disclosed how many people are unaccounted for, and it is not clear if rescuers hope to find more survivors. The building had 14 apartments with 43 registered residents. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are to make a three-day trip to Morocco later this month, Kensington Palace has announced. Harry and Meghan will travel to the North African country on February 23 and are expected to carry out official engagements over the following two days. The duchess is heavily pregnant but is apparently able to take part in the overseas visit. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex will visit Morocco from Saturday 23rd February to Monday 25th February 2019. This visit is at the request of Her Majesty's Government. Full details of the visit will be announced in due course. pic.twitter.com/zXAUIVhEdm The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (@KensingtonRoyal) February 8, 2019 Kensington Palace said in a short statement: The Duke and Duchess of Sussex will visit Morocco from Saturday 23rd February to Monday 25th February 2019. This visit is at the request of Her Majestys Government. Full details of the visit will be announced in due course. Meghan and Harry are following in the footsteps of the Prince of Wales, who carried out a major tour of Africa last year visiting Ghana, Nigeria and the Gambia. As we prepare to leave the European Union, now is the time for the UK to deepen and strengthen its global partnerships. Morocco is a parliamentary constitutional democracy but is effectively ruled by King Mohammed VI, who made some concessions following the 2010 Arab Spring. Details of the visit have not been released yet but the trip is likely to see Meghan and Harry meet the king, the countrys prime minister Saad-Eddine El Othmani, and visit major tourist attractions. A police force which axed all of its PCSOs is hiring civilians on zero hours contracts to guard crime scenes. Norfolk Police said the new scene guards, reportedly to be paid around 10 an hour, would help at certain low risk crime scenes. The force, which got rid of all 150 of its police community support officers (PCSOs) last year, said the scene guards would free up officer time. Guarding crime scenes forms part of a PCSOs role. A force spokesman said the money saved by axing PCSOs would allow the force to replace them with a virtually identical amount of police officers in the next year. Following significant reinvestment in frontline police officers, the pilot of a scene guard role was introduced to free up officer time for more complex inquiries and investigations, the force said in a statement. In some cases it may even remove the need for overtime. One of the roles of police community support officers has been to guard crime scenes (Andrew Matthews/PA) Following the pilot, the constabulary will conduct a thorough evaluation and only progress the civilian scene guards initiative further if there is an evidence base to demonstrate the proposal is effective. The force said a review had shown that this particular duty could be performed without a policing warrant, leaving police officers to deal with greater threats to the community. Scene guards will have zero hours contracts and, when required, will assist at police cordons at certain low risk crime or incident scenes which need to have a visible police presence on a 24/7 basis while investigations are completed, the statement continued. Duties could include preserving the integrity of the crime/incident scene, running a scene log, detailing everyone entering/leaving the scene and dealing with initial enquiries from members of the public and media. It said the move was part of the forces bold plans to radically change our policing model which would improve its service and at the same time have the flexibility to tackle the more invisible, but incredibly harmful, crimes that cause long term damage to society. Norwich South MP Clive Lewis criticised the plans for civilians on zero hours contracts to guard crime scenes, writing on Twitter: The gig economy reaches our police forces. Police force that axed PCSOs takes on zero-hours 'scene guards'>Clive Lewis MP: I fear this is just the first step with more privatisation and cuts on the way, and the status of policing weakened even further. https://t.co/wssInbrRBk Clive Lewis MP (@labourlewis) February 7, 2019 This sounds like a really, really, really bad idea for so many reasons Andy Symonds, chairman of the Norfolk Police Federation, told the Eastern Daily Press he would be concerned if the role of scene guard was broadened in future. Descendants of the last Africans abducted and shipped to the United States into slavery will gather this weekend on the US Gulf Coast. The event will be held on Saturday in Mobile, Alabama, at Africatown, a once-thriving community settled by freed blacks from Africa after the Civil War. The area is now economically depressed with a dwindling population, and there are few remnants of the original settlers. Joycelyn Davis, a direct descendant of survivor Charlie Lewis (Julie Bennett/AP) The Africans were illegally smuggled into Alabama for a bet in 1860 on board the Clotilda, decades after the Atlantic slave trade was outlawed. Some of the people settled on old plantation land after the war, purchasing property and establishing a society that included leaders and courts. Relatives of the 110 people who were kidnapped in west Africa are organising the Spirit of Our Ancestors festival. Five families were involved in the initial planning, and organiser Joycelyn Davis said interest mushroomed once word got out. She said people who once were ashamed to say their ancestors were sold into slavery are finding new pride in their heritage that could breathe new life into Africatown. I am so proud to say I am a descendant. That wasnt a word that I used maybe 10, 15 years ago, said Davis, 42, a sixth-generation granddaughter of African captive Charlie Lewis. It was shameful as a child. Alabama plantation owner Timothy Meaher made a bet that he could bring a shipload of Africans across the ocean, said historian Natalie S. Robertson. The schooner Clotilda sailed from Mobile to what is now Benin in western Africa, where it picked up captives and returned them to Alabama, evading authorities during a tortuous, weeks-long voyage. They were smuggling people as much for defiance as for sport, said Robertson. The Clotilda arrived in Mobile in 1860 and was quickly burned and scuttled in delta waters north of Mobile Bay. Homes line Richardson Drive in Africatown (Julie Bennett/AP) The Africans spent the next five years as slaves, Robertson said, freed only after the Civil War ended. Unable to return home to Africa, about 30 of them used money earned working in fields, homes and vessels to purchase land from the Meaher family and settle Africatown. Africatowns peak population was estimated at more than 10,000. Today, lying about three miles north of Mobile, the area has about 1,800 residents. Meaher was charged with smuggling and faced a possible death penalty, but he was never prosecuted and his family remains prominent. A state park in Mobile bears the family name and Meaher Avenue runs through Africatown. However, few signs of the original residents of Africatown remain just graves and a chimney from the home of Peter Lee, or Gumpa, who was appointed chief after its founding. In front of a church founded by the freed slaves sits a bust of Cudjo Lewis, who was the last surviving African from the last slave ship voyage to America when he died in 1935. Brexit, Instagram and horse racing all make headlines on Friday. The Daily Telegraph reports that the head of Instagram announced a ban on all graphic self-harm images on the social media site. Friday's Daily Telegraph front page - 'Instagram boss: duty of care can save lives' #tomorrowspaperstoday pic.twitter.com/5mjzjP3ztB The Telegraph (@Telegraph) February 7, 2019 The move is part of a series of changes in response to the death of the British teenager Molly Russell, The Guardian says. Guardian front page, Friday 8 February 2019: Instagram to ban graphic images of self-harm pic.twitter.com/j2NdMDmJYM The Guardian (@guardian) February 7, 2019 Brexit makes the front of the Daily Express, which says the Prime Minister confronted Donald Tusk after he said that Brexiteers deserved a special place in hell. The i reports that Jeremy Corbyns olive branch to the PM prompted an outcry from his pro-Remain MPs. And the Financial Times reports that plans are being drawn up in secret to revive the British economy in the event of a no-deal Brexit. What the papers say - February 8 Just published: front page of the Financial Times, UK edition, Friday 8 February https://t.co/C0lBKUhFPn pic.twitter.com/RUYIGnAoRp Financial Times (@FinancialTimes) February 7, 2019 The Times leads on the Bank of England governor Mark Carney blaming the fog of Brexit as he said the economy would grow this year at its slowest rate since the financial crisis a decade ago. The Times 8/2/2019 Laws to enable couples to divorce quickly without 'blame game' are to be introduced within months. Tini Owens (pictured), whose husband denied her a divorce, welcomed the development. Photo : Dominic Lipinski/PA#thetimes #tomorrowspaperstoday @thetimes pic.twitter.com/KsEeflITxX The Times Pictures (@TimesPictures) February 7, 2019 In other news, the Daily Mail says ministers were accused of sneaking through a stealth death tax that will hit grieving families with bills of up to 6,000. And the Daily Mirror says Strictly star Len Goodman has criticised plans to scrap free TV licences for the over-75s. Elsewhere, the Metro and the Daily Star both lead on horse racing being cancelled in Britain for nearly a week due to an outbreak of equine flu. Storm Erik is set to bring strong gusts and heavy rain to the UK, as the weekend gets off to a wet and windy start. Exposed coasts of Northern Ireland could see gales of 70mph on Friday morning while heavy rain could lead to flooding in Scotland, the Met Office said. The stormy weather will result in some quite nasty travelling conditions, meteorologist Sarah Kent warned. Heavy #rain and strong winds are moving east this morning. You may need to allow some extra time for your morning commute #StormErik pic.twitter.com/rwEXZdDYNk Met Office (@metoffice) February 8, 2019 The Met Office has issued two weather warnings for Friday for strong winds across Northern Ireland and western Scotland until the evening, and for heavy rain in Scotland right through until Saturday afternoon. Elsewhere, the Welsh and Cornish coasts could see winds of 55mph, while along the coast of southern England gusts could reach 50mph, Ms Kent said. She added: Its going to be a noticeably windy day everywhere today. Strong winds are forecast across the UK on Friday and Saturday (Ben Birchall/PA) #StormErik, named by @MetEireann, will bring heavy #rain and strong winds to much of the UK. Here are the details. Stay #weatheraware pic.twitter.com/E35FtwXVzr Met Office (@metoffice) February 7, 2019 And that is going to be in association with outbreaks of heavy rain too, so there will be some quite nasty travelling conditions out there this morning. While there is expected to be a lull in the fiercest winds on Friday evening, gusts will pick up again around midnight, when a warning for wind will cover Northern Ireland, southern Scotland and much of Northern England. Winds are expected to ease off by Sunday. Storm Erik was named by Irish forecaster Met Eireann on Thursday and overnight brought winds of 56mph to Cork. Former US representative John Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history, has died at the age of 92. The Michigan Democrat, who served in the US House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died on Thursday at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. He was a lion of the United States Congress and a loving son, father, husband, grandfather and friend, her office said in a statement. He will be remembered for his decades of public service to the people of Southeast Michigan, his razor sharp wit and a lifetime of dedication to improving the lives of all who walk this earth. Dubbed Big John for his imposing 6ft 3in frame and sometimes intimidating manner, Mr Dingell served with every president from Dwight D Eisenhower to Barack Obama. He was a longtime supporter of universal health care, a cause he adopted from his late father, whom he replaced in Congress in 1955. Debbie Dingell pushes the wheelchair of her husband John Dingell (Todd McInturf/Detroit News via AP, File) He also was known as a dogged pursuer of government waste and fraud, and even helped take down two top presidential aides while leading the investigative arm of the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee, which he chaired for 14 years. One of his proudest moments came in 2010, when he sat next to Mr Obama as the 938 billion dollar health care overhaul was signed into law. Presidents come and presidents go, former president Bill Clinton said in 2005, when Mr Dingell celebrated 50 years in Congress. John Dingell goes on forever. Tributes poured in from both Democrats and Republicans. Today the great State of Michigan said farewell to one of our greatest leaders, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, said in a statement. John Dingell will forever be remembered as The Dean of Congress not simply for the length of his service, but for his unparalleled record of legislative accomplishments. Born in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on July 8 1926, John David Dingell Jr grew up in Michigan, where his father was elected to Congress as a New Deal Democrat in 1932. Following the sudden death of his father in September 1955, Mr Dingell then a 29-year-old lawyer won a special election to succeed him. Mr Dingell during an interview in his Capitol Hill office in Washington in 1979 (AP Photo/John Duricka, File) He won more than two dozen elections during his career, at first representing a Detroit district but eventually shifting because of redistricting to various southeastern Michigan communities. He became the longest-serving member of Congress on June 7 2013, when he surpassed the former record holder, the late Robert Byrd. The length of time is really quite unimportant, Mr Dingell told the Associated Press in an interview in 2009. Its what I have done with that time. Deepest sympathies to Congresswoman Debbie Dingell and the entire family of John Dingell. Longest serving Congressman in Countrys history which, if people understand politics, means he was very smart. A great reputation and highly respected man. Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 8, 2019 He announced in early 2014, at the age of 87, that he would not run for a 30th full term because he could not have lived up to his own standards. Continuing the family tradition, his wife, Debbie, successfully ran for her husbands seat in 2014. President Donald Trump has extended his sympathies to Mr Dingells family. The president said on Twitter Mr Dingell was highly respected and had a great reputation. Mr Trump also wrote in reference to Mr Dingell being the longest-serving member of Congress in US history that if people understand politics, means he was very smart. Geri Horner has hailed the Prince Of Wales as a Spice Boy and said the whole nation should be proud of the royal. The Spice Girls star has said the heir to the throne played a pivotal part in the history of the girl band, and was an honorary member. Charles first met the Spice Girls at a Princes Trust event in 1997, where he received kisses on the cheek from band members. Horner has attended another fundraising event for the trust more than 20 years later, and praised Charles as a modern and forward-thinking royal. Speaking during the event at the Savoy in London, she said: Hes part of our heritage. We consider him as a Spice Boy. I feel like Prince Charles his royal highness is part of the landscape of the Spice Girls, our journey. He was there from the beginning. To see him just grow and shine, our future king, I just think its brilliant what he does and I really admire him as a representation of our country. The Spice Girls first met Charles back in 1997 (John Giles/PA) I feel like we should be really proud of what he does. Hes a modern man, hes a modern royal in everything he does. He has consciousness. He thinks about the world that we live in. Horner, famed as Ginger Spice, was invited to meet Charles at the Princes Trust event alongside Baby Spice Emma Bunton. Asked if she would like to see Charles attend a concert of the newly-reformed Spice Girls, Horner said: Hes always welcome, always welcome. The pair attended a Princes Trust event for the Invest In Future scheme, aimed at encouraging donors to invest to help disadvantaged people into work. Charles founded The Princes Trust in 1976 to help the vulnerable young get their lives back on track, and has a history of recruiting recognisable names as ambassadors. French carmaker Renault has alerted the countrys authorities to a 50,000 euro (43,777) gift from the chateau of Versailles to its former chairman and chief executive Carlos Ghosn. The gift is reportedly linked to his lavish wedding at the royal estate. Renault said that a company investigation had found Ghosn personally benefited from an exchange worth 50,000 euro in the framework of a philanthropic accord with Versailles. The carmaker said in a statement on Thursday that it was alerting French judicial authorities. Renault started investigating Ghosns past activities after he was arrested in November in Tokyo, where he has been charged with falsifying financial reports and breach of trust. Ghosn, one of the most influential executives in the global car industry, denies wrongdoing. Renault said a company investigation had found Ghosn personally benefited from "an exchange worth 50,000 euros in the framework of a philanthropic accord" with Versailles (Kin Cheung/AP/PA) French newspaper Le Figaro reported that Versailles had allowed Ghosn to host his 2016 wedding reception in its grounds in exchange for Renaults donations to the chateau, home to Frances last kings. The chateau said it was given 2.3 million euro (2 million) by Renault to fund renovations in a 2016 philanthropic deal. In exchange, Renault was entitled to benefits from the chateau worth up to 25% of the total donation. As part of the arrangement, Renault asked for permission to rent out space in the Grand Trianon mansion on the Versailles grounds for a dinner on October 8 2016, the chateau said in a statement. It estimated the rental was worth 50,000 euro. Versailles officials would not comment on whether Ghosn himself had made the request, or confirm that the dinner was in fact his wedding reception. Officials in various French prosecutors offices who could investigate the case said on Thursday that they had no information yet from Renault about the gift. Meanwhile, a Renault official said that it and Nissan were also conducting a joint investigation into Ghosns activities as head of the alliance between them, Netherlands-based Renault-Nissan BV. Ghosn led both Renault and Nissan and championed their alliance as it grew into the worlds biggest-selling car maker. He has faced a stunning downfall since his arrest. Renault initially stood by Ghosn, but named a new CEO and chairman last month to replace him as his Japanese legal case drags on. The Japanese case includes suspicions that Ghosn under-reported his income as chairman of Nissan and falsified financial reports. Ghosn has said fellow executives opposed to forging closer ties between Nissan and Renault schemed against him. BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) - Long before an ex-student opened fire on his former classmates in Parkland, Florida, many school districts conducted regular shooting drills - exercises that sometimes included simulated gunfire and blood and often happened with no warning that the attack wasn't real. The drills began taking shape after the Columbine High School shooting in 1999. But 20 years later, parents are increasingly questioning elements of the practice, including whether the drills traumatize kids. April Sullivan was pleasantly surprised by an "I love you, Mom" text from her daughter last May, even though she knew the eighth-grader wasn't supposed to be using her cellphone during school in Short Pump, Virginia. But she did not know that her child sent it while supposedly hiding from an intruder. The girl didn't know the "code blue" alert was a drill. "To find out later she sent that text because she was in fear for her life did not sit well with me," Sullivan said. Henrico County Public Schools have since changed the way they conduct drills, making clear at the start that the events are not real and notifying parents as the drill begins or right after, district spokesman Andy Jenks said. The backlash underlines the challenges administrators face in deciding how far to go in the name of preparedness. FILE - In this Jan. 28, 2013, file photo, members of the Washington County Sheriff's Office and the Hudson Falls Police Department use unloaded guns to take part in an emergency drill as they walk through a corridor inside the Hudson Falls Primary School in Hudson Falls, N.Y. With each subsequent shooting forcing schools to review their readiness, parents are increasingly questioning elements of the ever-evolving drills that are now part of most emergency plans, including the use of simulated gunfire and blood, when to reveal it's just practice, and whether drills unduly traumatize kids. (Omar Ricardo Aquije/The Post-Star via AP, File) Thirty-nine states require lockdown, active-shooter or similar safety drills. Other states have less explicit requirements or leave it to districts, according to the Education Commission of the States. A Mississippi task force has proposed twice-yearly active-shooter drills. But even as the drills become routine for many of the nation's 51 million elementary and secondary public school students, there is no consensus on how they should be conducted, experts said. No data exists, for example, to show whether a drill with simulated gunfire is more effective or whether an exercise that's been announced in advance is taken less seriously than a surprise. "Some hard data on each question are needed with urgency," said University at Buffalo professor Jeremy Finn, who gathered experts from around the country to evaluate school security measures at a conference in Washington, D.C., in October. After Columbine, lockdowns that involved bolting the door and crouching quietly out of sight became the norm. In 2013, the Department of Education recommended giving staff latitude to evacuate, barricade classroom doors or, as a last resort, fight back by throwing things or rushing the attacker. "Do you really want it to be your kid who's the one who takes the bullet and winds up with a plaque in the lobby of the school saying he went down as a hero?" asked Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, parent Nanette Adams, who disagreed with the decision to adopt a widely used safety protocol during a September drill at her 15-year-old son's high school. The protocol is known as ALICE, which stands for alert, lockdown, inform, counter and evacuate. "To me, this just seems like an indirect admission on the part of the schools that they really have no control over who gets into the building, and the school security officer isn't enough to keep the place safe so we need to hold the kids accountable for doing it," she said. In 2014, the National Association of School Psychologists and the National Association of School Resource Officers issued joint guidance that cautioned that while drills have the potential to save lives, those "not conducted appropriately" can cause "physical and psychological harm to students, staff and the overall learning environment." After public criticism of the unannounced Short Pump drill and others, the Virginia House of Delegates last month considered, but defeated, legislation requiring schools to give parents advance notification. The bill's Democratic sponsor, Schuyler VanValkenburg, a high school teacher, said opponents argued that the heads-up would hinder safety by letting students take it less seriously. "I think that's baloney. They're very aware of what can happen in this day and age. They all see the news. They all see social media," said Sullivan, whose daughter declined to be interviewed by The Associated Press but described the drill for Richmond television station WWBT a few days later. "I thought I was probably going to die that day," she said. "We hear the door handle jiggling up and down and then we see the door open, and it's our resource officer telling us it's a drill." When her son's school fired blanks during a drill, Adams questioned whether it was really necessary to expose children to the sound of gunfire. Others complained that such realistic exercises can take a toll on classroom learning even after the drills are done. Mo Canady, executive director of the school resource officers' group, recommends districts save the most intense exercises for staff only. As the decision-makers, he said, "they need to know a little more what that's going to feel like." For students, lower-stress drills that have them listening to instructions and running through the motions, like traditional fire drills, should be the focus, he said. "We need to be as prepared as we can," Canady said, "but it doesn't mean that we've got to terrify students to get them prepared." HELSINKI (AP) - An Israeli Holocaust historian praised authorities in Finland on Sunday for publishing a report that concluded Finnish volunteers serving with Nazi Germany's Waffen-SS "very likely" took part in World War II atrocities, including the mass murder of Jews. Efraim Zuroff of the Simon Wiesenthal Center lauded the determination of the National Archives of Finland to release the findings even if doing so was "painful and uncomfortable" for Finland. Zuroff called the decision an "example of unique and exemplary civic courage." Finland's government commissioned the independent 248-page investigative report, which was made public Friday. It said 1,408 Finnish volunteers served with the SS Panzer Division Wiking during 1941-43, most of them 17 to 20-years-old. "It is very likely that they (Finnish volunteers) participated in the killing of Jews, other civilians and prisoners of war as part of the German SS troops," said Jussi Nuorteva, director general of the National Archives. A significant part of the study was based on diaries kept by 76 of the Finnish SS volunteers. Eight of the Finnish SS volunteers are still alive, Nuorteva said. The research document entitled The Finnish SS-volunteers and atrocities 1941 - 1943 against Jews, detailing atrocities against civilians and Prisoners of War in Ukraine and the Caucasus Region, pictured in Helsinki, Finland, on Friday Feb. 8, 2019. Senior Israeli Holocaust historian, Efraim Zuroff of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, on Sunday Feb. 10, 2019, has praised Finnish authorities for publishing a report concluding that the Nordic country's volunteer battalion serving with Nazi Germany's notorious Waffen-SS took part in atrocities during World War II including participating in the mass murder of Jews.(Heikki Saukkomaa/Lehtikuva via AP) Finland was invaded by Moscow in November 1939. The fighting in what became known as the Finnish-Soviet Winter War lasted until March 1940, when an overwhelmed and outnumbered Finland agreed to a bitter peace treaty. The small Nordic country lost several territories but maintained its independence. Isolated from the rest of Europe and afraid of another Soviet attack, Finland entered into an alliance with Germany, receiving weapons and other material help from Berlin. As part of the pact, Nazi SS chief Heinrich Himmler insisted that Finland dispatch soldiers to the SS Wiking division, similar to the volunteers it demanded from Nazi-occupied Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway and elsewhere. Reluctantly, Finland complied and covertly recruited the first group of 400 SS volunteers to be sent for training in the spring of 1941. The vast majority of them had no ideological sympathies with the Nazi regime, the report said. When Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union in June 1941 under Operation Barbarossa, Finnish regular army troops fought independently alongside Wehrmacht soldiers on the northeastern front. In 1941, the Finns advanced in the Karelia region outside Leningrad. The Finnish soldiers were not under Nazi command, and the country's leadership was mainly motivated by the desire to take back the territories lost to Moscow. "At the beginning of the attack (on the Soviet Union), Finns were unaware of the Germans' goal of eradicating the Jews," Nuorteva said. "Finns were, above all, interested in fighting against the Soviet Union" due to their brutal experiences in the Winter War and the perceived threat from Moscow. In this way, "the starting point for Finns' involvement was different compared to most other countries joining SS foreign volunteers," he said. Finnish SS volunteers with the SS Wiking division operated on the eastern front until 1943, entering deep into Ukraine. The leading Finnish military historians who undertook the study of the country's wartime role wrote that the Finnish SS volunteers likely took part in killing Jews and other civilians, as well as witnessed atrocities committed by the Germans. The volunteers returned to Finland after the Finnish government sensed the tide of the war had turned against the Germans. Many of them then served in the Finnish military until the end of World War II. A copy of Friday's report was given to Paula Lehtomaki, a state secretary with the Finnish government, who said it was a valuable contribution to existing research "on difficult and significant historical events" during Finland's complex World War II history. "We share the responsibility for ensuring that such atrocities will never be repeated," said Lehtomaki. The historical probe was launched following Zuroff's request in January 2018 to Finnish President Sauli Niinisto. Finland's move contrasts with the attitude of some eastern European nations that have sought to diminish their culpability in the Holocaust. In Poland, the current right-wing government has worked to highlight cases of Poles who acted heroically and saved Jews, as well as the large numbers of Poles who died and suffered during German occupation. ___ A previous version of this story was corrected to show that it was Finnish SS volunteers, not Finnish army troops, who military historians think witnessed atrocities against Jews and other civilians during World War II. ___ Aron Heller in Jerusalem and Monika Scislowska in Warsaw, Poland contributed to this report. DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) - Inspired in part by Iran's Islamic Revolution, a young Egyptian army lieutenant emptied his machine gun into President Anwar Sadat in 1981, killing a leader who made peace with Israel and offered the shah a refuge after his overthrow. The assassination carried out by Khalid al-Islambouli and others from a Sunni Islamic extremist group showed the power of Iran's Shiite-led revolution across the religious divides of the Muslim world. Islamists initially saw Iran's revolution as the start of an effort to push out the strongman Arab nationalism that had taken hold across the Middle East. But those divisions now feel inflamed by the sectarian bloodshed that followed the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003, Syria's long civil war and the regional rivalry between Iran and Saudi Arabia. It may seem as though the Middle East has always been divided between Sunni Islam, which represents about 85 percent of the world's more than 1.8 billion Muslims, and Shiite Islam. But that divide, stemming from a disagreement centuries ago over who should succeed the Prophet Muhammad, owes much to the political rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Iran after 1979. Long before the Islamic Revolution, Islamists had wanted to wed governments to their faith. One of the most prominent was the Muslim Brotherhood, a Sunni group founded in 1928 in Egypt that spread across the Arab world. Another was the Iranian Shiite Islamist group "Devotees of Islam," who assassinated pro-Western Prime Minister Ali Razmara in 1951. FILE - In this Feb. 11, 2016 file photograph, an Iranian woman holds the national flag during a rally commemorating the 37th anniversary of the Islamic revolution, in Tehran, Iran. Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution initially inspired both Islamic militants and Islamists across the Mideast. They saw the revolution as the starting gun in a competition to push out the strongman Arab nationalism that had taken hold across the Middle East. However, analysts say Iran's push to back militants in the wider Mideast and Saudi Arabia's efforts to mobilize the Sunni world against the Shiite power would turn many away. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi, File) The aftermath of World War II instead saw the rise of pan-Arab nationalists, chief among them Egypt's Gamal Abdel Nasser. Military strongmen took power, pushing for rapid modernization that shunted religion aside. The nationalists "see themselves often as critical of religion because religion is 'backward.' It's what's been holding the Arab world back," said Daniel Byman, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and a professor at Georgetown University. "That's kind of the dominant divide, and Islamists of all stripes are pushing back against this." Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who returned to Iran from exile after the departure of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, made a point to keep Shiite ideas out of speeches. "The Iranian revolution in the beginning was portraying itself as the start of a pan-Islamic revolution," said Toby Matthiesen, a senior researcher at St. Anthony's College at the University of Oxford who is writing a book on Sunni-Shiite relations. "It was even seen like that by a lot of the Sunni Islamic movements." Khomeini also made a point to embrace the Palestinians in their fight against Israel. Yasser Arafat, the leader of the overwhelmingly Sunni Palestinians, returned the favor by becoming the first leader to visit Khomeini. "The Iranian revolution gave us a strong belief that the tyrants can be brought down," said Ahmed Yousef, one of the founders of Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic political party and armed wing that has controlled the Gaza Strip since 2007 with Iran's backing. "Following that big victory, the Islamic Jihad was established here in Palestine and few years later Hamas was founded too." The pan-Islamic Iranian inspiration perhaps reached its height on Oct. 6, 1981, as Islambouli and his co-conspirators rushed out of a truck at a Cairo military parade and assassinated Sadat, who had made history by signing the first Arab peace deal with Israel. At trial, Islambouli famously clutched a Quran and shouted: "It was I who killed the Pharaoh!" Iran venerated Islambouli, naming a street in Tehran after him and issuing a postage stamp in his honor. But by this time, Saudi Arabia, fearful of Iran's growing influence and the 1979 extremist attack on the Grand Mosque at Mecca, began pumping money into spreading its ultraconservative view of Sunni Islam throughout the world and dismissing Shiites as apostates. "The Saudis really put a lot of money into the 'Dawah' machine to try to out-compete Iran around the world," Byman said, referring to the kingdom's proselytizing efforts. "There's a real panic and concern then." Pan-Islamic admiration for Iran waned as it supported destabilizing attacks across the region, such as a failed 1981 militant coup in Bahrain and a 1985 car bombing targeting the emir of Kuwait. Iran's eight-year war with Iraq deepened that rift. Iran at the same time found perhaps its greatest success in helping create the Shiite militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon, which still holds sway over much of the country decades later as both an armed group and a political party. In October 1983, a bombing at the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut killed 231 American troops - the bloodiest day for the armed forces since World War II - and a U.S. federal judge blamed Hezbollah and Iran for the attack. Iran has long denied any involvement. Sectarianism exploded in the region with the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003. Iran backed Shiite militants implicated in deadly roadside bomb attacks against U.S. forces and sectarian assaults on Sunnis. Sunni extremists repeatedly targeted Shiite civilians, and when the Islamic State group rampaged across Syria and Iraq in 2014 it massacred Shiites and other minorities. Iran intervened again, reactivating the militias to help Iraqi forces eventually defeat the extremist group. Syria's civil war further fueled the split, as Iran and Hezbollah provided crucial military aid to President Bashar Assad, who comes from the Alawite religious minority, while Sunni Gulf countries and Turkey supported the mainly Sunni opposition. And yet even today, the role of the Iranian revolution in stoking Sunni militancy cannot be ignored. "The Iranian revolution played a significant role in the birth and the growth of the jihadist movements in the Arab World, as it raised the awareness of the role of religion in political change in the region," said Adnan Milhem, a Palestinian historian at al-Najah University. "The Iranian revolution affected the political thinking in the region in terms of introducing religion as a changing tool to fight oppression and corruption." ___ Associated Press writer Mohammed Daraghmeh in Ramallah, West Bank, contributed. FILE - In this Oct. 6, 1981 file photo, a gunman, wearing an Egyptian army uniform, fires an automatic Kalashnikov rifle into the reviewing stand during an attack that took the life of President Anwar Sadat and five others in Cairo, Egypt. Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution initially inspired both Islamic militants and Islamists across the Mideast. They saw the revolution as the starting gun in a competition to push out the strongman Arab nationalism that had taken hold across the Middle East. However, analysts say Iran's push to back militants in the wider Mideast and Saudi Arabia's efforts to mobilize the Sunni world against the Shiite power would turn many away. (AP Photo, File) FILE - In this Oct. 6, 1981 file photograph, Egyptian soldiers tend to wounded after an attack on the reviewing platform which killed Egyptian President Anwar Sadat in Cairo, Egypt. Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution initially inspired both Islamic militants and Islamists across the Mideast. They saw the revolution as the starting gun in a competition to push out the strongman Arab nationalism that had taken hold across the Middle East. However, analysts say Iran's push to back militants in the wider Mideast and Saudi Arabia's efforts to mobilize the Sunni world against the Shiite power would turn many away. (AP Photo, File) FILE - In this Nov. 30, 1981 file photograph, Khalid al-Islambouli, left, and Abdel Hamid Abdel Aal hold up open Qurans during the second day of their trial in Cairo, Egypt, Monday, Nov. 30, 1981. The two were among 24 Muslim fundamentalists put on trial for conspiring in the assassination of President of Egypt Anwar Sadat. Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution initially inspired both Islamic militants and Islamists across the Mideast. They saw the revolution as the starting gun in a competition to push out the strongman Arab nationalism that had taken hold across the Middle East. However, analysts say Iran's push to back militants in the wider Mideast and Saudi Arabia's efforts to mobilize the Sunni world against the Shiite power would turn many away. (AP Photo, File) FILE - In this Oct. 27, 2015 file photograph, Hezbollah fighters stand atop a truck mounted with mock rockets as supporters chant slogans during a rally to mark the 13th day of the Shiite mourning period of Muharram, in Nabatiyeh, Lebanon. Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution initially inspired both Islamic militants and Islamists across the Mideast. They saw the revolution as the starting gun in a competition to push out the strongman Arab nationalism that had taken hold across the Middle East. However, analysts say Iran's push to back militants in the wider Mideast and Saudi Arabia's efforts to mobilize the Sunni world against the Shiite power would turn many away. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari, File) NEW YORK (AP) - The U.S. and dozens of other countries may have declared that Nicolas Maduro is no longer the legitimate president of Venezuela, but that has not loosened his grip on power. Maduro still controls the military, despite scattered defections. He has the loyalty of the Supreme Court. And he has rendered the opposition-controlled National Assembly powerless by setting up a rival constitutional assembly. But Maduro stands to lose one crucial lever of power: Houston-based refining company Citgo, a wholly owned subsidiary of Venezuelan state-owned oil company Petroleos de Venezuela SA, known by its acronym PDVSA. Americans know Citgo for its familiar red triangle logo at its more than 5,000 branded gas stations and the iconic sign visible from Fenway Park in Boston. Venezuelans know it as one of their collapsing economy's last lifelines. The Trump administration is moving to help transfer its control to Juan Guaido, the National Assembly leader recognized by the U.S. and other countries as Venezuela's legitimate president. Such a feat would give Guaido a slice of de facto power. "It's more than symbolic," said William Burke-White, a professor of international law at the University of Pennsylvania who served in the State Department under the Obama Administration. "An alternative power is starting to emerge. This is about creating a world where there is another entity contesting every point of authority that Maduro has." FILE - In this Feb. 24, 2012 file photo, gas prices are posted at the Citgo gas station in Philadelphia. U.S. refiners like Citgo are among the few customers paying cash for Venezuelan crude. Oil shipments to Venezuela's other big customers, China and Russia, are usually taken as repayment for billions of dollars in debt. So the cash from Citgo has become a lifeline over the past two years as Venezuela's oil output has plummeted amid chronic underinvestment in PDVSA and oil prices have dropped from historic highs. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File) Here's a look Citgo's critical role in Venezuela's power struggle. ___ WHY IS CITGO SUCH A VALUABLE ASSET FOR VENEZUELA? U.S. refiners like Citgo are among the few customers paying cash for Venezuelan crude. Oil shipments to Venezuela's other big customers, China and Russia, are usually taken as repayment for billions of dollars in debt. So the cash from Citgo has become a lifeline over the past two years as Venezuela's oil output has plummeted amid chronic underinvestment in PDVSA and oil prices have dropped from historic highs. Until U.S. sanctions prohibited, Citgo also repatriated profits to PDVSA. It also sent back fuel that Venezuela needs because of its deteriorating refining capabilities, as well as diluents that PDVSA needs to mix with Venezuela's heaviest crude oil before it can be exported. But sanctions have prohibited those exports. Like other refiners, Citgo can now only import Venezuelan crude oil if it makes payments into blocked bank accounts, which almost certainly means the PDVSA will halt shipments to the U.S. Maduro's government also mortgaged Citgo to raise cash. Almost 50 percent of the company's shares were put up as collateral for a $1.5 billion loan from the Russian state-controlled oil company Rosneft. The rest of the shares are collateral for PDVSA's 2020 bond, the only bond Venezuela has continued to make payments on in a desperate effort to hang on to Citgo. ___ HOW DO U.S. SANCTIONS AFFECT CITGO? Citgo itself has become a little less dependent on PDVSA in one crucial way. Like other PDVSA customers, the refiner has been forced in recent months to look for alternative sources of crude because of Venezuela's dramatic production decline, said Jennifer Rowland, an equity research analyst for Edward Jones who focuses on the energy sector. Still, the company faces a scramble to replace a complete loss of Venezuelan supply. Citgo had been processing up to 200,000 barrels a day of Venezuelan crude before the sanctions, or about 26 percent of the company's total 749,000-barrel-a-day capacity. Most of the Venezuelan oil was processed at its Lake Charles refinery in Louisiana, which is specially equipped to handle the high-density, high-sulfur crude that Venezuela exports. That type of crude oil is in short supply because of production cuts in other countries like Mexico and Saudi Arabia. Citgo itself is not a target of the sanctions. The Trump administration carved out an exemption for the PDVSA subsidiary so Americans can continue doing business with it. ___ CAN GUAIDO PULL OFF A LEADERSHIP CHANGE AT CITGO? Guaido has said he will soon name a new board of directors for Citgo. Legally, there may be little stopping him from doing so. There is some precedent, as when the U.S. and other countries recognized a coalition of rebel groups in Libya as the official government in 2011 when Moammar Gadhafi still controlled Tripoli. The decision gave the rebel group the right to take control of Libyan assets overseas. "International law allows this to happen," Burke-White said. Implementing the change, however, involves logistical hurdles. Pedro Burelli, a U.S.-based consultant who was a PDVSA executive board member until 1998, said Guaido must first appoint new PDVSA leaders, who would then oversee the shareholder-voting process of selecting a Citgo board. But that new PDVSA leadership would not have real access to the bureaucracy and operations of the parent company, which Maduro controls. ___ WHAT DOES CITGO HAVE TO SAY ABOUT THIS? As a company, Citgo has offered limited insight about how it is coping with the power struggle. What little is known reflects the company's uneasy identity as a Venezuelan-owned entity with deep American roots. Citgo's current chief executive, Asdrubal Chavez, is a Maduro ally and cousin of his late predecessor, Hugo Chavez. He works out of the Bahamas because the U.S. has denied him a visa. Other members of Citgo's executive teams are U.S. citizens who have worked at the company for decades. White House national security adviser John Bolton met with some of them last month and tweeted that it was "very productive" meeting. Later, Citgo released a statement saying it was aware of a possible change in board members and "will follow the laws of the United States." ___ WHAT IS CITGO'S HISTORY? The company was founded in 1910 as City Services by American oilman Henry Doherty. Now a refining and marketing operation, Citgo employs 3,400 people and runs three refineries, in Louisiana, Texas and Illinois. The company changed ownership several times before PDVSA fully bought it in 1990. At the time, relations between Venezuela and the U.S. were strong, and PDVSA was a well-regarded state oil corporation. Chavez, the firebrand socialist who died in 2013, often complained that Citgo contributed little to Venezuela's coffers and at one point tried to sell the company. Instead, his government put loyalists in key positions, some of them with little oil industry experience. Corporate upheaval became a way of life at the company. An oil industry purge in 2017 included the arrest of former Citgo CEO Nelson Martinez, who died in prison last year. Six other Citgo executives were also arrested including five who hold U.S. passports. Maduro's government says the purge was intended to root out corruption. Critics say it was politically motivated. ___ WHAT ABOUT THE CREDITORS TARGETING CITGO? It's unclear how much financial value Citgo would be to Guaido. For one thing, the most immediate task will be keeping Citgo from falling into the hands of creditors owed billions of dollars by Venezuela and PDVSA. Economists expect Maduro to stop paying to protect Citgo, including defaulting on the 2020 PDVSA bond. He also could stop honoring settlements with companies whose Venezuelan assets were expropriated under Chavez, including the Canadian mining company Crystallex, which won a court ruling last year allowing it go after Citgo to recover its losses. Russ Dallen, managing partner of brokerage firm Caracas Capital, said the Trump administration may seek to impose a "debt shield" for Venezuela similar to a measure the U.N. implemented for Iraq during the 2003 U.S.-led invasion. But he said the measure would have to go through the Organization of American States because Maduro allies Russia and China have veto power on the U.N. Security Council. There is also the risk that Maduro will stop paying off the Rosneft loan collateralized by Citgo shares. The Trump administration has said it is exploring legal options to keep Citgo from falling into Russian hands. VATICAN CITY (AP) - The Vatican's former doctrine chief has penned a "manifesto of faith" to remind Catholics of basic tenets of belief amid what he says is "growing confusion" in the church today. Cardinal Gerhard Mueller didn't name Pope Francis in his four-page manifesto, released late Friday. But the document was nevertheless a clear manifestation of conservative criticism of Francis' emphasis on mercy and accompaniment versus a focus on repeating Catholic morals and doctrine during the previous two papacies. Mueller wrote that a pastor's failure to teach Catholic truths was the greatest deception - "It is the fraud of the anti-Christ." Francis sacked Mueller as prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in 2017, denying the German a second five-year term. In the document, which was published by conservative Catholic media that have been critical of Francis, Mueller repeats basic Catholic teaching that Catholics must be free from sin before receiving Communion. He mentions divorced and remarried faithful, in a clear reference to Francis' opening to letting these Catholics receive Communion on a case-by-case basis after a process of accompaniment and discernment with their pastors. Mueller also repeats that women cannot be ordained priests and that priests must be celibate. Francis has reaffirmed the ban on ordination for women but has commissioned a study on women deacons in the early church. Francis has also reaffirmed priestly celibacy but has made the case for exceptions where "pastoral necessity" might justify ordaining married men of proven virtue. "In the face of growing confusion about the doctrine of the faith, many bishops, priests, religious and lay people of the Catholic Church have requested that I make a public testimony about the truth of revelation," Mueller wrote. "It is the shepherd's very own task to guide those entrusted to them on the path of salvation." The manifesto was the latest jab at Francis from the conservative wing of the church. Already, four other cardinals have called on the Jesuit pope to clarify his outreach to divorced and civilly remarried Catholics. And the Vatican's former ambassador to the U.S. has demanded Francis resign over what he claimed was the pope's 2013 rehabilitation of ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick despite knowing the high-ranking American slept with adult seminarians. McCarrick is likely to be defrocked in the coming days after he was more recently accused of sexually abusing minors. Mueller's manifesto carries the date of Feb. 10 - the eve of the sixth anniversary of Pope Benedict XVI's historic announcement that he would resign. Many conservatives are nostalgic for the doctrinal clarity and certainty of Benedict's reign. It was published after Francis penned a joint declaration of "fraternity" with a prominent Muslim imam during his recent trip to the United Arab Emirates. Some conservatives say the document's claim that the pluralism of religions is "willed by God" muddies Catholic belief about the centrality of Christ. Francis has defended the document as doctrinally sound. LOS ANGELES (AP) - The pilot whose plane broke apart and crashed into a Southern California home, killing five people, was disciplined for dangerous flying years earlier, it was reported Friday. Antonio Pastini, 75, of Gardnerville, Nevada, was flying home after visiting his daughter and granddaughter on Sunday when his Cessna began coming apart and debris slammed into a Yorba Linda home, which caught fire. Four people inside the house died. The cause of the crash is under investigation. Years earlier, Pastini, then using the name Jordan Albert Isaacson, had his license twice suspended by the Federal Aviation Administration, the Los Angeles Times reported Friday, citing records kept by the Library of Congress. In 1977, Pastini had his pilot's license suspended for 120 days after he flew from Las Vegas to Long Beach, California, in cloudy and icy weather and falsely told an air traffic controller that he had "IFR clearance" that indicated he was capable of flying the route with instruments. Pastini disregarded airspace rules and posed "a potential threat to himself, his passenger and other users of the system," wrote an administrative law judge, Jerrell R. Davis. FILE - This Dec. 24, 2018, selfie by Julia Ackley shows herself and her father, Antonio Pastini, at Lake Tahoe near Carson City, Nev. Pastini, who had also gone by Jordan Isaacson and was known for years as Ike, was killed while piloting a small plane that crashed into a house in Yorba Linda, Calif., Sunday, Feb. 3, 2019. (Julia Ackley via AP, File) In 1980, Pastini lost his license for 30 days after Davis found that his plane was behind on inspections, carried only an expired temporary registration and was "unairworthy" because of a hydraulic fluid leak from a break and other problems, the Times said. The Times said the FAA confirmed that Isaacson was Pastini. The agency said he submitted two name changes to the FAA: first in 1991 from Jordan Albert Isaacson to Jordan Ike Aaron, then in 2008 to Antonio Peter Pastini. Pastini told friends, family and even newspapers that he was a retired Chicago police officer. But Chicago police have said he never worked for them and a Chicago police badge he was carrying when he crashed had been reported lost in 1978. FILE - In this Sunday, Feb. 3, 2019 file photo, firefighters suppress a fire at the scene of a deadly plane crash in the residential neighborhood of Yorba Linda, Calif. The Federal Aviation Administration said a twin-engine Cessna 414A crashed in Yorba Linda shortly after taking off from the Fullerton Municipal Airport. The pilot whose plane broke apart and crashed into the Southern California home, killing five people, was disciplined for dangerous flying years earlier, it was reported Friday, Feb. 8. (AP Photo/Alex Gallardo, File) BEIJING (AP) - China insists that peaceful dialogue and political means are the "only way" toward enduring peace in Venezuela, the Foreign Ministry said, adding that it backs multinational efforts to reach such an outcome. Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying's statement came in response to a question about a meeting Thursday of an "International Contact Group" led by Uruguayan President Tabare Vazquez and attended by leaders of 14 countries, including Spain, Italy, Portugal and Sweden. China is a close ally of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, to whom it has lent billions to help shore up his embattled regime. Hua said China "believes that Venezuela's affairs should be resolved by the Venezuelan people under the framework of its constitution and laws and through peaceful dialogue and political means. This is the only way toward enduring peace in the country." However, she added that "China supports the efforts by the international community to this end and hopes that all sides will continue to play a constructive role in the peaceful resolution of the Venezuela issue." Late last month, the ministry issued a statement in Hua's name saying China "opposes external intervention in Venezuela," in a rebuke to calls in the U.S. for military action to remove Maduro. Over the last decade, China has given Venezuela $65 billion in loans, cash and investment. Venezuela owes more than $20 billion. China's only hope of being repaid appears to lie in Venezuela ramping up oil production, although low petroleum prices and the country's crashing economy bode poorly for such a possibility. Two dozen nations, including the U.S. and some of Latin America's biggest countries, have recognized opposition leader Juan Guaido as Venezuela's interim president, while China and Russia are backing Maduro. HAMPTON, N.H. (AP) - Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown is in New Hampshire for the weekend as he explores a potential 2020 presidential bid while trying to set himself apart with his broad appeal to the working class. The Ohio senator spoke Friday at Winnacunnet High School in Hampton with five other panelists and an audience of about 50 people. Brown expressed his strong support for paid family medical leave, higher wages, better benefits, better workplace rules and what he called a "pro-family" workplace. "Since my election to the third term in the Senate, I have continually been noticing Democrats seem to think we either chose to talk to the progressive base or you talk to working families and listen to issues that matter to them. I don't think it's a choice," he said. "I won in states like Ohio because of who I am and what I fight for every day, which is dignity of work." The event was organized by an activist group known as Campaign for a Family Friendly Economy. This is Brown's first visit since 2014. He has four other stops in the state Saturday. U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, smiles as he speaks with guests prior to an economic roundtable discussion at Winnacunnet High School in Hampton, N.H., Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Sen. Brown is weighing a run for in 2020 presidential race. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa) Brown has said he and his wife, journalist Connie Schultz, are still deciding whether he should run for president. He said he called former President Barack Obama about a month ago to talk about his potential run for the presidency but stopped short of saying how Obama responded. CHICAGO (AP) - An investigation into a fire at a Chicago apartment building where 10 children died could not determine whether it was accidental or deliberate. The Chicago Tribune reports fire officials said Friday that the Aug. 26 blaze was started by a person but that doesn't necessarily mean arson. The investigation found the fire was started by an open flame in an enclosed rear porch. The nine first cousins and close family friend whose ages ranged from three months to 16 years old were having a sleepover in the apartment building when the fire broke out. There were no survivors. After the fire, city officials issued more than 40 code violations against the building's owner. The building in the Little Village neighborhood is scheduled to be demolished in July. RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - Virginia's state government seemed to come unglued Friday as an embattled Gov. Ralph Northam made it clear he won't resign and the man in line to succeed him was hit with another sexual assault accusation and barraged with demands that he step down, too. Top Democrats, including a number of presidential hopefuls and most of Virginia's congressional delegation, swiftly and decisively turned against Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, who stands to become the state's second black governor if Northam quits. U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine called the allegations against the lieutenant governor "atrocious" and added, "he can no longer effectively serve the Commonwealth." The developments came near the end of an astonishing week that saw all three of Virginia's top elected officials - all Democrats - embroiled in potentially career-ending scandals fraught with questions of race, sex and power. Northam, now a year into his four-year term, announced his intention to stay at an afternoon Cabinet meeting, according to a senior official who was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity. In so doing, Northam defied practically the entire Democratic Party, which rose up against him after a racist photo on his 1984 medical school yearbook surfaced and he acknowledged wearing blackface in the 1980s. Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, right, gives a high five to a page as he prepares for the start of the Senate session at the Capitol in Richmond, Va., Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) Moments after Northam told his Cabinet he was staying put, a second woman went public with accusations that Fairfax raped her 19 years ago while they were students at Duke University. A lawyer for Meredith Watson, 39, said in a statement that Fairfax attacked Watson in 2000. The statement said it was a "premeditated and aggressive" assault and that while Watson and Fairfax had been social friends, they were never involved romantically. The lawyer, Nancy Erika Smith, said her team had statements from ex-classmates who said Watson "immediately" told friends Fairfax raped her. A public relations firm representing Watson provided The Associated Press with a 2016 email exchange with a female friend and 2017 text exchanges in which Watson said Fairfax had raped her. Watson's representatives declined to provide further documentation and said their client would not be talking to journalists. Fairfax emphatically denied the new allegation, as he did the first leveled earlier by Vanessa Tyson, a California college professor who said Fairfax forced her to perform oral sex on him at a Boston hotel in 2004. "It is obvious that a vicious and coordinated smear campaign is being orchestrated against me," Fairfax said. "I will not resign." Duke campus police have no criminal reports naming Fairfax, university spokesman Michael Schoenfeld said. Durham police spokesman Wil Glenn also said he couldn't find a report in the department's system on the 2000 allegation. Many Democrats who had carefully withheld judgment after the first accusation against Fairfax, saying the matter needed to be investigated, immediately condemned him. A cascade of calls for Fairfax to resign began Friday evening, mirroring the exact timing of last week's calls for Northam to resign. Top Democrats running for president in 2020 called for Fairfax's resignation, including Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts. Booker cited "multiple detailed allegations" that he found "deeply troubling." Gillibrand called the details "sickening and horrendous." Virginia's Democratic congressional delegation was split. Party elders Sen. Mark Warner and Rep. Bobby Scott said Fairfax should resign if the allegations against him were true. Other congressional Democrats made unqualified calls for Fairfax to resign. The Virginia Black Legislative Caucus joined calls for Fairfax's departure. And a Democratic member of the state House, Del. Patrick Hope, said he intends to introduce articles of impeachment against Fairfax on Monday if Fairfax hasn't left by then. If Fairfax were to leave, there's no consensus on who could replace him. Northam may try to appoint a Democrat, while Republicans could mount a legal challenge with the goal of having Sen. Steve Newman, the Senate's pro tem, serve as both a voting senator and temporary lieutenant governor. The tumult in Virginia began late last week, with the discovery of the photo on Northam's yearbook profile page that showed someone in blackface standing beside another person in a Ku Klux Klan hood and robe. Northam at first admitted he was in the picture, then denied it a day later, but acknowledged he once put shoe polish on his face to look like Michael Jackson for a dance contest in 1984. Virginia slid deeper into crisis on Wednesday, when Attorney General Mark Herring acknowledged wearing blackface at a college party in 1980, and Fairfax was publicly accused of sexual assault for the first time. Although the Democratic Party has taken almost a zero-tolerance approach to misconduct among its members in this #MeToo era, a housecleaning in Virginia could be costly to them: If all three Democrats resigned, Republican House Speaker Kirk Cox would become governor. As the crisis widened by midweek, Democratic leaders and black members of the Virginia legislature appeared willing to give both Fairfax and Herring the benefit of the doubt for the time being - in Herring's case, because he apologized personally for wearing blackface. At the start of the week, Cox said there was little appetite among lawmakers to remove Northam through impeachment, saying resignation "would obviously be less pain for everyone." ___ Associated Press Washington Bureau Chief Julie Pace and reporter Michael Biesecker in Washington, Jonathan Drew in Durham, North Carolina, Michael Kunzelman in College Park, Maryland, Alanna Durkin Richer in Boston and Thomas Beaumont in Mason City, Iowa, contributed to this report. ___ This story has been corrected to show that Fairfax would be Virginia's second black governor, not first. FILE - In this Jan. 12, 2018 file photo, Virginia Gov.-elect, Lt. Gov Ralph Northam, center, walks down the reviewing stand with Lt. Gov-elect, Justin Fairfax, right, and Attorney General Mark Herring at the Capitol in Richmond, Va. The political crisis in Virginia exploded Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019, when the state's attorney general confessed to putting on blackface in the 1980s and a woman went public with detailed allegations of sexual assault against the lieutenant governor. With Northam's career already hanging by a thread over a racist photo, the day's developments threatened to take down all three of Virginia's top elected officials. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File) Virginia Lt. Gov Justin Fairfax smiles during the senate session at the Capitol in Richmond, Va., Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. A California woman has accused Fairfax of sexually assaulting her 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax presides over the state Senate in Richmond, Va., on Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. California college professor Vanessa Tyson has made an allegation of sexual assault against Fairfax. He has denied the allegations, casting them as a political smear. (Steve Earley/The Virginian-Pilot via AP) In this undated photo provided by Scripps College, Vanessa Tyson, an associate professor in politics at Scripps College, poses for a photo. Tyson, a 42-year-old political science professor who studies the intersection of politics and the #MeToo movement, went public with her sexual assault accusation against Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019, saying in a statement that she repressed the memory for years but came forward in part because of the possibility that Fairfax could succeed a scandal-mired governor. (Scripps College via AP) FILE - In this Dec. 18, 2017 file photo, from left, Lt. Governor-elect Justin Fairfax, Attorney General-elect Mark Herring and Governor-elect Ralph Northam listen as Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe addresses a joint meeting of the House and Senate money committees at the Pocahontas Building in Richmond, Va. With Virginia's top three elected officials engulfed in scandal, fellow Democrats were rendered practically speechless, uncertain of how to thread their way through the racial and sexual allegations and their tangled political implications. (Bob Brown/Richmond Times-Dispatch via AP) FILE - In this Feb. 2, 2019 file photo, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam speaks during a news conference in the Governor's Mansion in Richmond, Va. Northam clung to his office Tuesday, Feb. 5, amid intense political fallout over a racist photo in his 1984 medical school yearbook and uncertainty about the future of the state's government. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File) FILE-In this Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018 file photo, Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring takes the oath of office during inaugural ceremonies at the Capitol in Richmond, Va. Herring, admitted Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019, to putting on blackface in the 1980s, when he was a college student. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) State Sen. Thomas K. Norment, R-James City County, arrives on the floor of the Senate chamber in Richmond, Va., on Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. Norment was an editor for a Virginia Military Institute yearbook filled with racist photos and slurs. (Steve Earley/The Virginian-Pilot via AP) ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) - U.S. land managers no longer plan to move forward next month with selling oil and gas leases near a national park, saying Friday they need to gather more information before they put up the land for bidding in New Mexico. The decision by the federal Bureau of Land Management reverses a notice last week that showed the agency intended to proceed with drilling permit reviews and energy lease preparations for the site near Chaco Culture National Historical Park in March. The Chaco-area parcels lie within 10 miles (or 16 kilometers) of the remote park in northwest New Mexico that is a globally recognized historical site and sacred site for tribes. A thousand years ago, historians say the remains of dwellings and stone structures where the park is located had been a ceremonial and economic hub for Pueblo people. In recent years, it has been a part of ongoing debate as federal officials repeatedly decline oil and gas exploration in what has become an informal buffer zone around the park. "The BLM did the right thing by deferring these parcels from being leased on culturally-significant and fragile land in the greater Chaco area, a UNESCO world heritage site," U.S. Sen. Tom Udall, a Democrat from New Mexico, said in a written statement. "Some places are just too special to lose." He and others, including tribal leaders, had criticized the Trump administration for scheduling the lease sale for the area amid the government shutdown. They argued opponents were blocked from the decision-making process because federal officials did not release information about the planned sale. They also questioned whether federal officials would be able to adequately review the land up for bid. FILE - In this Aug. 10, 2005, file photo, tourist Chris Farthing from Suffolks County, England, takes a picture while visiting Chaco Culture National Historical Park in northwestern New Mexico. U.S. land managers no longer plan to move forward in March with the sale of oil and gas leases that include land near Chaco Culture National Historical Park. The decision Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, by the federal Bureau of Land Management comes after tribal leaders and others criticized the agency for pushing ahead with drilling permit reviews and preparations for energy leases near the site. (AP Photo/Jeff Geissler, File) While Udall applauded Friday's decision, he also noted it marked the third time the agency had deferred on selling the parcels under the Trump administration, which has sought to promote mining, drilling and other energy development on public lands. He described it as an unsustainable approach to handling the ongoing situation. Acting Interior Secretary David Bernhardt earlier this week said that the Bureau of Land Management last year generated $1.1 billion from selling oil and gas leases. The announcement came during a visit to Hobbs, a city in southeast New Mexico that is at the center of the state's oil region. The government still plans to sell oil and gas leases next month for other land parcels in the area of New Mexico where Bernhardt visited, as well the state's northwest region, which includes the Four Corners area, said Cathy Garber, a spokeswoman for the Bureau of Land Management. At Acoma Pueblo, which has been outspoken against any Chaco-area drilling, Gov. Brian Vallo said the tribe appreciated federal land managers' decision to scrap the planned sale of the nine parcels near the park. But he said he remained concerned about the Bureau of Land Management's approach to consulting with tribes. Nine parcels in Oklahoma also will be sold online March 28, Garber said. UNITED NATIONS (AP) - The U.N. Security Council called on all Lebanese parties Friday to implement a policy disassociating themselves from any external conflicts "as an important priority," a statement that appears clearly aimed at Hezbollah which has sent fighters to Syria. The council also reiterated its call for implementation of its resolutions which "require the disarmament of all armed groups in Lebanon so that there will be no weapons or authority in Lebanon" except those of the state. This is also aimed at Hezbollah militants. The council statement issued Friday night welcomed the Jan. 31 announcement of a national unity government in Lebanon, which broke a nine-month deadlock. Council members encouraged all political leaders to build on the momentum of the new government's formation "to address the pressing security, economic, social and humanitarian challenges facing the country" and called on the new government to urgently implement reforms, fight corruption and strengthen accountability. Rival political groups had been locked in disagreement over the make-up of a new government since May, after the country's first parliamentary elections in nine years. A breakthrough became possible after weeks of backroom deals as Lebanon's economic woes mounted. The new government is headed by Prime Minister Saad Hariri, the Western-backed Sunni politician who has held the job since 2016. But Hezbollah, the powerful Shiite group, made significant gains at the expense of the largest Sunni party and controls three ministries including the health ministry. The Trump administration expressed concerns about Hezbollah holding three Cabinet posts and called on the new government to ensure that group is not supported by the ministries' resources. Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said Wednesday the group would defend Iran in the event of war with the United States. He said the so-called axis of resistance, led by Iran, is the strongest it has ever been. The axis groups the Syrian government of President Bashar Assad with Shiite militias in Iraq and Hezbollah. PHOENIX (AP) - The Latest on whether a long-term care facility in Arizona where a patient was raped will close (all times local): 5:25 p.m. The state will oversee the operations of a long-term care facility in Phoenix where an incapacitated woman was raped and later gave birth in an agreement to keep it from closing. A spokesman for Gov. Doug Ducey says Hacienda HealthCare officials agreed Friday afternoon to accept voluntary regulation from the Arizona Department of Health Services. Patrick Ptak said this means the patients will be allowed to stay. He says state agencies will work with Hacienda to establish a regulatory agreement with strong accountability measures. FILE - This Jan. 25, 2019, file photo shows the Hacienda HealthCare facility in Phoenix. The long-term care facility in Arizona is shutting down a unit where an incapacitated woman was raped and later gave birth, officials with Hacienda HealthCare announced Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. Hacienda officials say they're working with state agencies to develop a plan to move the remaining 37 patients to other facilities. (AP Photo/Matt York, file) Hacienda announced on Thursday that it was planning to shut down the unit where a 29-year-old patient became pregnant as the result of a sexual assault. ___ 11:55 a.m. Arizona is contesting a long-term care facility's decision to shut down the unit where an incapacitated woman was raped and later gave birth. State regulators in a letter Friday say Hacienda HealthCare's contract does not allow it to close its intermediate care facility without written consent from the state. They say Hacienda's board of directors has until 4 p.m. to answer questions about the closure decision. The facility has been in turmoil since a 29-year-old patient gave birth on Dec. 29. A nurse who cared for the woman has been charged with raping her. Hacienda has struggled to meet the state's request to hire a third-party management team to oversee daily operations. The provider says the unit that serves intellectually disabled children and young adults is not sustainable. AUSTIN, Texas (AP) - Beto O'Rourke will lead a march though his hometown of El Paso, Texas, to protest a border wall at the same time President Donald Trump will be holding a rally there to promote it. O'Rourke is teaming with dozens of civic and human rights organizations for a Monday evening event he says will counter the spreading of "lies and a false narrative about the U.S.-Mexico border." Trump said in his State of the Union address that El Paso's border walls helped it become one of the nation's safest cities. O'Rourke and local leaders say Trump's facts are wrong and walls are irrelevant. The ex-congressman is still deciding on a presidential run. But treating the political world to 2020's first dueling rallies may indicate O'Rourke is ready to join the race. NEW YORK (AP) - A New York City man has been arrested on federal charges of trying to join a Pakistan-based terrorist group. U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman says 29-year-old Jesus Wilfredo Encarnacion was arrested Thursday as he tried to board a flight to Pakistan at Kennedy Airport. Berman says Encarnacion was trying to join the militant group Lashkar e-Taiba, which has been blamed for high-profile attacks including the 2008 Mumbai attacks that killed 168 people. Prosecutors say Encarnacion went online to try to join the terrorist organization. They say he told an undercover FBI agent he was "ready to kill and die in the name of Allah." Encarnacion is charged with attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization. It's not clear if he has an attorney who can speak for him. New Hampshire's highest court upheld Friday the conviction of three women who were arrested for going topless on a beach, finding their constitutional rights were not violated. In a 3-2 ruling, the court decided that Laconia's ordinance does not discriminate on the basis of gender or violate the women's right to free speech. Citing rulings by several other courts, Associate Justice Anna Barbara Hantz Marconi wrote that courts "generally upheld laws that prohibit women but not men from exposing their breasts against equal protection challenges." "We have found that the ordinance does not violate the defendants' constitutional rights to equal protection or freedom of speech under the State and Federal Constitutions," Marconi wrote. "As such, it does not unduly restrict the defendants' fundamental rights. Accordingly, we agree with the trial court that the City had the authority to enact the ordinance." In a dissenting opinion, Associate Justice James P. Bassett with Senior Associate Justice Gary E. Hicks concluded the ordinance was unconstitutional because it treats men and women differently. Heidi Lilley, Kia Sinclair and Ginger Pierro are part of the Free the Nipple campaign - a global campaign advocating for the rights of women to go topless. They were arrested in 2016 after removing their tops at a beach in Laconia and refusing to put them on when beachgoers complained. Pierro was doing yoga, while the two others were sunbathing. FILE - In this June 2, 2016 file photo, Heidi Lilley stands for a portrait near the spot where she was arrested by the Laconia, N.H. police. On Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, New Hampshire's highest court has upheld the conviction of three women arrested for going topless on a New Hampshire beach. In a 3-2 ruling, the court found Laconia's ordinance does not discriminate on the basis of gender or violate the women's right to free speech. (Geoff Forester/The Concord Monitor via AP) The Laconia law on indecent exposure bans sex and nudity in public but singles out women by prohibiting the "showing of female breast with less than a fully opaque covering of any part of the nipple." A lower court judge refused to dismiss the case, and the women appealed to the state Supreme Court. "We are extremely disappointed in the Court's ruling that treating women differently than men does not amount to sex discrimination. The court has effectively condoned making it a crime to be female," the women's lawyer, Dan Hynes, said in a statement. "Since the N.H. Constitution, which prohibits sex discrimination, was not enough to prevent this unequal, and unfair treatment, we are hopeful the New Hampshire legislature steps up to correct this injustice by outlawing Laconia's ordinance." Hynes said he would have to talk to the women about their next step, including possibly appealing the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court. Gilles Bissonnette, the legal director at the ACLU of New Hampshire, which filed an amicus brief in the case, said he was disappointed with the ruling. "Unlike the Federal Constitution and the cases interpreting its equal protection provision cited by the majority, the New Hampshire Constitution provides even broader protections against gender discrimination," Bissonnette said in a statement. "What is deeply concerning about this decision is that it undermines these broader, unique constitutional protections and, in so doing, minimizes the importance of the New Hampshire Constitution." The attorney general's office, which defended the ordinance in court, said it would have no comment beyond the brief it submitted. It had argued the city was trying to avoid public disturbances and that it narrowly tailored the law to requiring only the covering of nipples - not requiring women to wear shirts. It questioned the First Amendment argument The ruling is the latest setback for the movement, which has had mixed success fighting similar ordinances in other parts of the country. A federal judge ruled in October 2017 that a public indecency law in Missouri didn't violate the state constitution by allowing men, but not women, to show their nipples. In 2013, a public nudity ban in San Francisco was also upheld by a federal court. But in February 2017, a federal judge blocked the city of Fort Collins, Colorado, from enforcing a law against women going topless, arguing it was based on gender discrimination. ORLAND PARK, Ill. (AP) - A 20-year-old man already charged in connection with a deadly shooting at a Chicago-area mall now faces murder and other charges. Authorities say Jakharr Williams was indicted Friday by a grand jury on murder, attempted murder, battery and other charges stemming from the Jan. 21 shooting at Orland Square Mall that left 18-year-old Javon Britten dead. Williams' arrest warrant carried a homicide charge but he initially was charged with unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon. Defense attorney David Sotomayor says he hasn't seen evidence, including surveillance videos. Police have said Britten was shot in the center of the mall and ran before collapsing outside of a clothing store. A bystander suffered a graze wound. Williams, who is being held without bond, has a hearing scheduled for Feb. 20. QUEBEC CITY (AP) - A French-Canadian man who shot dead six Muslim men in a Quebec City mosque in 2017 has been sentenced to serve 40 years in prison before being eligible for parole. Quebec Superior Court Justice Francois Huot called Alexandre Bissonnette's attack gratuitous and insidious as he handed down the sentence Friday. Several people in the room wept as the judge read a detailed account of the shooter's actions. Bissonnette, now 29, pleaded guilty last March to six charges of first-degree murder and six of attempted murder. More than 50 people were at the Islamic Cultural Centre in January 2017 when he began shooting during evening prayers. The judge began his ruling on Friday by saying the day of the murders "will forever be written in blood in the history of this city, this province, this country." But the judge rejected the prosecution's request for six consecutive life sentences, which would have prevented Bissonnette from seeking parole for 150 years and guaranteed that he end his life behind bars. Huot concluded a sentence of 50 years or more would constitute cruel and unusual punishment, and he declared that the section of the Criminal Code allowing consecutive life sentences violates the Canada's version of the bill of rights Manon Marchand and Raymond Bissonnette walk out after hearing the judge's sentencing for their son, Alexandre Bissonnette, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, at the courthouse in Quebec City. Bissonnette, who shot dead six Muslim men in a Quebec City mosque in 2017 was sentenced to serve 40 years in prison before being eligible for parole.(Jacques Boissinot/The Canadian Press via AP) While he did not strike down the section, he rewrote it to give himself the discretion to deliver consecutive life sentences that are not in blocks of 25 years, as had been the case. Bissonnette's lawyer had argued the sentences should be served concurrently, making him eligible for parole after 25 years. Bissonnette received a life sentence and can apply for parole after 40 years, but that doesn't mean he's likely to get parole. Aymen Derbali, who was shot seven times and left paralyzed from the waist down, told reporters he did not understand why the judge dwelled on Bissonnette's life expectancy and the possibility that he would die in prison. "We were astonished, we were very upset after this sentence," Derbali said. Boufeldja Benabdallah, president of the mosque that was attacked, said community members were "stunned'" by the decision and felt the judge was more concerned about the dignity of the killer than that of the victims and their families. "We want to appeal to Quebec society to understand us, to understand the pain we are in today, the disappointment we feel," he said. In pleading guilty, Bissonnette expressed shame and remorse for his actions but offered no clear explanation of why he did it. In a statement read in court, he said he was "neither a terrorist nor an Islamophobe," but rather someone who was "overcome by fear, by negative thoughts and a sort of horrible kind of despair." But in a police interrogation played in court during sentencing, Bissonnette told investigators he wanted to protect his family from terrorists when he committed the killings. He referred to numerous attacks and said he "lost it" after learning Canada was preparing to take in more refugees. Canada is generally welcoming toward immigrants and all religions, but Quebec's previous premier previously acknowledged the province has its "demons" in terms of attitudes toward Muslims. Six men, aged between 39 and 60, were killed when Bissonnette stormed the mosque and opened fire on Jan. 29, 2017. Bissonnette was arrested that night in his car on a bridge nearby, after he called 911 to say he wanted to cooperate with police. The murder victims were Mamadou Tanou Barry, 42; Abdelkrim Hassane, 41; Khaled Belkacemi, 60; Aboubaker Thabti, 44; Azzeddine Soufiane, 57; and Ibrahima Barry, 39. Said El-Amari, who was injured during a mosque shooting, reacts as he speaks with reporters Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, at the courthouse in Quebec City, following to a judge's sentencing of Alexandre Bissonnette who pleaded guilty after killing six people in a mosque shooting in 2017. (Jacques Boissinot/The Canadian Press via AP) Mohamed Labidi speaks with reporters Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, at the courthouse in Quebec City, following to a judge's sentencing of Alexandre Bissonnette who pleaded guilty after killing six people in a mosque shooting in 2017. (Jacques Boissinot/The Canadian Press via AP) HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - Pennsylvania is halting construction permits for natural gas pipelines operated by a company whose pipeline exploded last year, as the governor said Friday that Energy Transfer LP has failed to respect the state's laws and communities. The state Department of Environmental Protection said the Texas-based company is not fixing problems related to the explosion, and piled yet another penalty onto a company project in the state. State agencies already have imposed millions of dollars in fines and several temporary shutdown orders on Energy Transfer projects, while a county prosecutor is demanding documents from the company. The methane gas explosion destroyed one home in Beaver County last September along the Beaver-to-Butler County pipeline. The Dallas-based firm blamed the blast on "earth movement in the vicinity of the pipeline." "There has been a failure by Energy Transfer and its subsidiaries to respect our laws and our communities," Gov. Tom Wolf said in a statement Friday. "This is not how we strive to do business in Pennsylvania, and it will not be tolerated." The Department of Environmental Protection said Energy Transfer hasn't stabilized the soil and erosion around its Revolution pipeline in western Pennsylvania, as it was ordered to do in October. As a result, it is halting construction permits on the company's pipelines in the state, it said. "This hold will continue until the operator corrects their violations to our satisfaction," Environmental Protection Secretary Patrick McDonnell said in a statement. Energy Transfer said it told state officials that it is committed to bringing the Revolution pipeline "into full compliance with all environmental permits and applicable regulations." In a statement, it said the action did not affect the operation of any of its in-service pipelines or any areas of construction where permits have already been issued. Energy Transfer's pipelines in Pennsylvania include the Mariner East 1, 2 and 2X natural gas liquids pipelines across southern Pennsylvania. A DEP spokesman, Neil Shader, said permits for the 16-inch Mariner East 2X - which has yet to start operating - are now on hold. Construction on those three pipelines has drawn blame for causing sinkholes and polluting drinking water and waterways across the state. That has resulted in more than $13 million in fines and several temporary shutdown orders from state agencies, including one last month by the Public Utility Commission that has kept the Mariner East 1 pipeline shut down following a sinkhole that developed in suburban Philadelphia's Chester County. Nearby residents worried over sinkholes along the Mariner East pipelines sued Energy Transfer last summer in federal court. Chester County's district attorney, Tom Hogan, is demanding documents from the company as part of a criminal investigation he opened. Energy Transfer has said it is confident that it hasn't violated criminal laws. Also Friday, Wolf called on the Public Utility Commission to require an independent study to determine how long the Mariner East 1 pipeline can continue operating - it is roughly 80 years old - and asked lawmakers to pass legislation giving the state the power to regulate the routes and safety features of intrastate pipelines. Activists on both sides of the abortion debate are reacting cautiously to a 5-4 Supreme Court vote blocking Louisiana from enforcing new abortion regulations. They agree that the crucial tests of the court's stance are still to come. Depending on the viewpoint, the vote represented a temporary victory or setback - but not proof as to how the court might deal with a slew of tough anti-abortion laws working their way through state legislatures and federal courts. "We're elated - but not in the sense of uncorking the champagne," said Center for Reproductive Rights attorney Travis Tu, who has helped lead the fight against the Louisiana law. "We're elated in the sense of we just dodged a bullet." NARAL Pro-Choice America President Ilyse Hogue, while relieved by the court's vote, said it "illustrates a sobering reminder: The thread that women's rights hang by is dangerously thin." The law in question would require Louisiana abortion providers to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals. Chief Justice John Roberts joined the Supreme Court's four liberals Thursday in putting the law on hold pending a full review of the case. President Donald Trump's two appointees, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh, were among the four conservative justices who would have let the law take effect. Activists on opposing sides voiced hope that the case will eventually return to the Supreme Court for a definitive ruling on the substance of the law. FILE - In this Friday, Jan. 18, 2019 file photo, anti-abortion activists march outside the U.S. Supreme Court building, during the March for Life in Washington. Activists on both sides of the abortion debate react cautiously to a Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019 Supreme Court vote blocking Louisiana from enforcing new abortion regulations, agreeing that the crucial tests of the court's stance are still to come. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) "We will continue to do all that we legally can to protect Louisiana women and the unborn," said Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry. Benjamin Clapper of Louisiana Right to Life said he was not concerned by Roberts' break with the other conservative justices, suggesting the chief justice might eventually vote to let the law take effect. "We don't see last night's decision necessarily as a setback," Clapper said. "It sets the stage for a full review that could go either way." Beyond the Louisiana law - which resembles a Texas law struck down by the Supreme Court in 2016 - many other anti-abortion measures are being litigated in the courts or being considered in this year's legislative sessions. Many were designed to present a direct challenge to Roe v Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court ruling that established a nationwide right to abortion. In at least six states - Florida, Kentucky, Mississippi, Ohio, South Carolina and Tennessee - efforts are underway to enact bills to outlaw abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected, as early as six weeks into a pregnancy. Backers of these bills said they were undeterred by the Supreme Court's latest action. "I'm not really concerned at this point what the court does," said Mississippi state Sen. Angela Hill. "I'm concerned about doing what Mississippi wants us to do." Asked if the Supreme Court vote would have an impact on the "heartbeat" bill debate in Ohio, anti-abortion activist Janet Porter said, "None whatsoever." Porter, author of the original legislation that's now spread to other states, noted the health challenges facing liberal Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg and suggested that conservatives will have "yet another judge on the court by the time we get there." She also questioned the notion that Roberts' vote with the court's liberal wing in the Louisiana case signaled that he'd side with them in future abortion cases. Ohio Right to Life President Mike Gonidakis agreed. "What Justice Roberts' action says to us is that he wants the whole thing briefed, he wants the opportunity to grill both sides," Gonidakis said. Abortion rights supporters also expect Roberts to cast the critical swing vote in future abortion rulings. "We know there are four justices who were willing to allow a law to take effect even though the Supreme Court struck down an identical law less than three years ago" said Jennifer Dalven, who heads the American Civil Liberties Union's Reproductive Freedom Project. "We don't know how that will play out with other laws. ... It's really a question of Chief Justice Roberts." In addition to the "heartbeat" bills, several other anti-abortion measures have surfaced in multiple states, including two that National Right to Life executive director David O'Steen views as strong candidates to pass muster with the Roberts-led Supreme Court. One type of measure would ban most abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy on the disputed premise that a fetus can feel pain at that stage. Another set of bills seeks to ban a commonly used second trimester abortion procedure known as dilation and evacuation, and referred to by abortion opponents as "dismemberment abortion." O'Steen said Roberts "would have every reason" to support both of these measures if they came before the Supreme Court. At the lone abortion clinic operating in New Orleans, nurse Vanessa Shields-Haas, who helps escort patients into the facility, said she was pleasantly surprised at the 5-4 vote to block the state law's implementation. "The new makeup of the Supreme Court indicated that it was likely it would have gone through, which would have had devastating consequences," she said. "It's clear that this law is about ideology. It's not about safety." ___ Associated Press writers Kevin McGill and Stacey Plaisance in New Orleans; Emily Wagster Pettus in Jackson, Mississippi; and Julie Carr Smyth in Columbus, Ohio, contributed to this report. School Block Challenge on Exhibit at Quilt Museum thru April 2 PADUCAH - School Block Challenge at National Quilt Museum on exhibit thru April 2, 2019The National Quilt Museum inspires the next generation of quilters through the School Block Challenge contest.School Block Challenge is an annual, nationwide quilt block contest and exhibit for students in grades K-12. Moda Fabrics provides three challenge fabrics which must be included somewhere in each block. Block entries are required to have some type of machine or hand stitching. Students are encouraged to use their creativity, imagination, and math skills in designing and constructing their own 16x16 quilt blocks.Students can make a block on their own, at school in the classroom, in a home school program, with a scout troop, 4-H club, etc. They can work individually or in pairs or groups as they discover how the art of quilting relates to other school subjects and their own interests.A Grand Prize winner is chosen from all of the blocks, winners and honorable mentions are selected in each of the following categories: K-4th, 5th-8th, 9th-12th. Winners are awarded a cash prize. All blocks submitted are included in the exhibit.On the Net: POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. (AP) - A judge on Friday found a Missouri man guilty of murder in the shooting deaths of two elderly couples who authorities say were killed as part of two tests ahead of another man's "grandiose plan" to rob a local bank by kidnapping its president. Judge Michael Pritchett found Keith Boyles, 26, guilty of four counts of first-degree murder and four counts of armed criminal action, KFVS-TV reports . He faces life in prison without the possibility of parole for the 2010 deaths of 80-year-old Gladys Irene Piatt; her 77-year-old husband, Loyd Eugene Piatt; 81-year-old Edgar Atkinson; and 69-year-old Bonnie Chase. According to prosecutors, the deaths were part of David Youngblood's plan to force the president of a local bank to open the vault, then use the money to move his family to a country that would not extradite them. At the time of the slayings, Boyles was dating Youngblood's daughter, Chantale Youngblood, and living in the family's home, according to news release from Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt's office. The bank robbery never happened. David Youngblood tasked his daughter and her boyfriend with killing the Piatts, who were David Youngblood's aunt and uncle, as a "test" to see if they would carry out violent crimes, the attorney general's office said. Prosecutors alleged at trial that Boyles shot and killed the Piatts on June 23, 2010. Authorities initially thought the Piatts died of smoke inhalation after their bodies were found inside their burned Ripley County home. Boyles and David Youngblood killed Atkinson and Chase two weeks later during a second "test run," the attorney general's office said. Boyles was accused of shooting and killing Atkinson while David Youngblood shot and killed Chase. Atkinson and Chase were also found in a burned home. After those deaths, authorities exhumed the Piatts' bodies and discovered they, too, had been shot to death. Youngblood is serving life in prison after pleading guilty to first-degree murder in 2012. His wife, Melissa Youngblood, is serving life in prison after being convicted of first-degree murder in 2013. Chantale Youngblood faces sentencing on April 18 after pleading guilty to four counts of second-degree murder. Boyles' sentencing is set for May 1. Boyles' first trial in January 2016 ended in a mistrial when prosecutors could not seat a jury. Boyles agreed to a bench trial in exchange for prosecutors taking death penalty off the table as a possible punishment. ___ Information from: KFVS-TV, http://www.kfvs12.com SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - A plan to scale back a voter-approved Medicaid expansion in Utah won a key approval in the state Legislature on Friday despite protests that it reduces access to needed health care and thwarts voters' wishes. The measure would insure about 50,000 fewer people under Medicaid, a change that would need a federal approval that has not been given for any other state. Republican lawmakers argue that and other restrictions are essential to controlling long-term costs, but say their plan will still cover the state's neediest. The fast-moving measure still needs another vote from the state Senate before it goes to the governor's desk, but leaders there said they support it. Demonstrators carrying signs like "Respect democracy, our vote matters" stationed themselves outside the chamber along with four religious leaders who blocked the doors singing protest songs. The law that passed last November with 53 percent of the vote would fully expand Medicaid to people making up to 138 percent of the poverty line, or about 150,000 low-income people. Lawmakers' version scales that back to 100 percent of the line; people who make more could get coverage by buying subsidized insurance on the federal exchanges. The bill also adds work requirements and spending caps. The state would pay millions to roll out the more-limited program on April 1, the date approved by voters. Religious leaders demonstrating against Utah lawmakers' efforts to scale back a voter-approved expansion of Medicaid sit in front of the entrance to the Utah House of Representatives singing protest songs as legislators debate the bill in Salt Lake City, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Counter protesters in favor of the bill are also on hand in Salt Lake City. (AP photo/Lindsay Whitehurst) Some opponents were heartened by changes to the bill Friday, including a provision that would expand Medicaid everyone covered by the November vote if the U.S. government doesn't approve the more-limited plan. Rev. David Nichols remained skeptical. He protested because he sees people in his congregation working two or three part-time jobs but can't afford health care. "We have to speak for the voiceless, we have to speak for those that are being shut out and left behind," said Nichols. Counter-protesters who argued the state can't afford full Medicaid expansion also stationed themselves nearby, sometimes singing their own songs like "America the Beautiful." They support the plan that's passing quickly through the GOP-dominated Utah Legislature. About three-quarters of the chamber voted in favor, though a few Republicans joined Democrats to oppose it. The plan depends on a waiver from the federal government that would allow the state to collect increased money under President Barack Obama's signature health care law even though it wouldn't cover as many people as the measure requires. The waiver would be the first of its kind if approved. "Were doing the very best we can and I think we've got a great solution here," said Senate President Stuart Adams, whose chamber is expected to vote Monday. The House changes include a plan to revert back to much of what the voters passed if the federal waivers aren't approved, an improvement for many Democrats who worry the waivers might not come through, said Sen. Derek Kitchen. The Group Utah Decides, though, nevertheless called the vote "a shocking display of disrespect for Utah voters." Around the country, a number of largely conservative state leaders have changed or brushed aside voter-approved ballot initiatives in recent years, including Medicaid expansion in Maine that was initially blocked by the former Republican governor. Two other Republican-leaning states also passed similar expansions in November. The roll-out appears on track in Nebraska, though in Idaho protesters have rallied after some lawmakers suggested adding work requirements. A counter-protestor, right, supporting Utah lawmakers' plan to scale back a voter-approved Medicaid expansion to control costs, sings "America the Beautiful" as religious leaders seeking to shield the expansion block the doors to the Utah House of Representatives in Salt Lake City, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. (AP Photo/Lindsay Whitehurst) Rev. Curtis Price, left to right, Rev. Monica Dobbins, Anna Zumwalt, and Rev, David Nichols stand with locked arms in front of the House Chambers at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. A plan to scale back a voter-approved Medicaid expansion in Utah won a key approval in the state Legislature on Friday despite protests that it reduces access to needed health care and thwarts voters' wishes. (Silas Walker/The Deseret News via AP) CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - Hundreds of immigrants in the U.S. illegally were arrested this week in North Carolina after some local law agencies stopped cooperating with immigration enforcement, a federal official said Friday. Immigration and Customs Enforcement regional director Sean Gallagher said the arrests resulted from what he termed "the dangerous policies of not cooperating with ICE," The Charlotte Observer reported. "This is politics over public safety at its worst," Gallagher said at a news conference. It's a change, he said, that gave the agency "no choice" but to conduct targeted enforcement operations like the one this week. ICE officers have detained 200 people in North Carolina this week. Another 25 were detained at an arms manufacturer in Sanford. Gallagher said more such arrests are likely when ICE is restricted from accessing county jails. "If they're in the wrong place at the wrong time, my officers will take an enforcement action," he said. Since December, new sheriffs in Mecklenburg and Wake counties have reversed a policy that notifies ICE about the legal status of inmates in county jails. The Durham County Sheriff's Office also ended the practice of honoring ICE detainers. Charlotte City Council member Braxton Winston said he was threatened with arrest for trying to enter the building without media credentials during the news conference at the Department of Homeland Security office in Charlotte. Speaking to reporters and activists outside the office, Winston said he was told by ICE official Robert Alfieri that the arrests represent a "new normal" because Mecklenburg County's new sheriff, Garry McFadden, is not cooperating with federal immigration enforcement. ___ Information from: The Charlotte Observer, http://www.charlotteobserver.com WASHINGTON (AP) - Ivanka Trump says her father, President Donald Trump, did not play a role in granting security clearances to her or to her husband, Jared Kushner. Ivanka Trump - a senior White House adviser - discussed the process during an interview on ABC's "The View" Friday. She says "the president had no involvement pertaining to my clearance or my husband's clearance." The House Oversight and Reform Committee is starting an investigation into the handling of security clearances by Trump's White House and presidential transition. Kushner worked without a full security clearance for the first year of the administration. He was granted a full clearance in the spring of 2018 after a lengthy background check. Trump recently told The New York Times he was not involved in issuing Kushner's clearance. FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) - Federal authorities have charged an 18-year-old Texas man with recruiting fighters on behalf of a Pakistan-based terrorist organization. A criminal complaint filed in federal court in Fort Worth says Michael Kyle Sewell was charged Friday with conspiring to provide material support and resources to a foreign terrorist organization. The complaint alleges Sewell tried to recruit another person to join Lashkar-e-Taiba, the militant group behind a 2008 attack in India's financial capital of Mumbai that killed 166. Authorities say Sewell put the person in contact with another person who he thought would facilitate overseas travel to join the terror group. But authorities say that third person was an undercover FBI agent. It's not clear when Sewell was taken into custody or whether he has an attorney to speak on his behalf. ___ This story has been corrected to show the terror group is known as Lashkar-e-Taiba, not Lashkar-a-Taiba. EAGLE PASS, Texas (AP) - The U.S. Border Patrol says its agents rescued five Honduran migrants - including a 1-year-old and a 3-year-old - trying to illegally cross the river separating Mexico from Texas. The rescue occurred at about 8 a.m. Friday in the Rio Grande, between Eagle Pass, Texas, and Piedras Negras, Mexico. A caravan of about 1,600 migrants is waiting in Piedras Negras to try to seek asylum in the U.S. Agency spokesman Rick Pauza says the group of five has no known link to the caravan. Authorities say the adults were struggling against the river current to carry the children, and that one woman was "nearly swept away." Agents helped pull the migrants out of the water and transported them to safety by boat. They are now being processed in Eagle Pass. SAN DIEGO (AP) - A former Navy captain has been sentenced to six months in prison for moonlighting for a Malaysian contractor nicknamed "Fat Leonard" at the center of one of the maritime service's worst corruption scandals. Former Capt. Jeffrey Breslau was sentenced Friday by a federal judge in San Diego after pleading guilty to criminal conflict of interest. He was fined $20,000 and ordered to pay the Navy the $65,000 he earned moonlighting. Prosecutors say Breslau ghostwrote emails and provided talking points to the contractor, Leonard Francis, to help him win over five Navy admirals and land lucrative contracts for his company that supplied ships in the Pacific. Prosecutors say Francis overbilled the U.S. Navy by more than $35 million for services for ships. Nearly two dozen people have pleaded guilty in the case. OCALA, Fla. (AP) - Authorities say a Florida man was killed in a crash while trying to flee from police in a stolen SUV. An Ocala police statement says 50-year-old Evan Ian Smith died Thursday night after flipping the vehicle on Interstate 75. Police say the SUV was reported stolen Thursday morning. The owner says Smith helped him move the vehicle last week and believed Smith kept the key. Police say an officer spotted the SUV Thursday evening and tried to stop it. Officials say Smith kept driving, making his way to a highway with two officers and a supervisor following. Police say the pursuit ended after several miles when Smith veered onto the shoulder. The SUV overturned, ejecting Smith, and stopped against some trees. Smith died at a hospital where he was taken. RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - Virginia's state government seemed to come unglued Friday as an embattled Gov. Ralph Northam made it clear he won't resign and the man in line to succeed him was hit with another sexual assault accusation and barraged with demands that he step down too. Top Democrats, including a number of presidential hopefuls and most of Virginia's congressional delegation, swiftly and decisively turned against Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, who would become Virginia's second black governor if Northam quit. The twin developments came at the end of an extraordinary week that saw all three of Virginia's top elected officials - all Democrats - embroiled in potentially career-ending scandals fraught with questions of race, sex and power. Northam, who is a year into his four-year term, announced his intention to stay during an afternoon Cabinet meeting, according to a senior official was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity. In so doing, Northam defied practically the entire Democratic Party, which rose up against him after a racist photo on his 1984 medical school yearbook surfaced and he acknowledged wearing blackface in the 1980s. Later in the day, the governor issued a statement to government employees, saying, "You have placed your trust in me to lead Virginia forward - and I plan to do that." In a sign that he intended to return to business as usual, he also announced more than a dozen appointments to state boards. FILE - In this Jan. 12, 2018 file photo, Virginia Gov.-elect, Lt. Gov Ralph Northam, center, walks down the reviewing stand with Lt. Gov-elect, Justin Fairfax, right, and Attorney General Mark Herring at the Capitol in Richmond, Va. The political crisis in Virginia exploded Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019, when the state's attorney general confessed to putting on blackface in the 1980s and a woman went public with detailed allegations of sexual assault against the lieutenant governor. With Northam's career already hanging by a thread over a racist photo, the day's developments threatened to take down all three of Virginia's top elected officials. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File) Meanwhile, a woman came forward with a statement accusing Fairfax of attacking her when they were students at Duke University in North Carolina in 2000. The Associated Press is not reporting the details because the allegation has not been corroborated. Fairfax emphatically denied the new allegation, as he did the first one, leveled earlier this week by California college professor Vanessa Tyson, who said Fairfax forced her to perform oral sex on him at a Boston hotel in 2004. "It is obvious that a vicious and coordinated smear campaign is being orchestrated against me," Fairfax said. Duke campus police have no criminal reports naming Fairfax, university spokesman Michael Schoenfeld said. Durham police spokesman Wil Glenn also said he couldn't find a report in the department's system on the 2000 allegation. Many Democrats who had carefully withheld judgment after the first accusation against Fairfax, saying the matter needed to be investigated, immediately turned against him. Top Democrats running for president in 2020 called for Fairfax's resignation, including Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts. Booker cited "multiple detailed allegations" that he found "deeply troubling." Gillibrand called the details "sickening and horrendous." And several members of the state's congressional delegation, both black and white, also said Fairfax can no longer serve in office. The tumult in Virginia began late last week, with the discovery of the photo on Northam's yearbook page that showed someone in blackface standing next to another person in a Ku Klux Klan hood and robe. Northam at first admitted he was in the picture, then denied it a day later, but acknowledged he once put shoe polish on his face to look like Michael Jackson for a dance contest in 1984. Virginia soon slid deeper into crisis on Wednesday, when Attorney General Mark Herring acknowledged wearing blackface at a college party in 1980, and Fairfax was publicly accused of sexual assault for the first time. Although the Democratic Party has taken almost a zero-tolerance approach to misconduct among its members in this #MeToo era, a housecleaning in Virginia could be costly: If all three Democrats resigned, Republican House Speaker Kirk Cox would become governor. As the crisis deepened in the middle of the week, Democratic leaders and black members of the Virginia legislature appeared willing to give both Fairfax and Herring the benefit of the doubt for the time being - in Herring's case, because he apologized personally for wearing blackface. At the start of the week, Cox said there was little appetite among lawmakers to remove Northam through impeachment, saying resignation "would obviously be less pain for everyone." ___ Associated Press writers Alanna Durkin Richer in Boston and Thomas Beaumont in Mason City, Iowa, contributed to this report. ___ This story has been corrected to show that Fairfax would be Virginia's second black governor, not first. Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, right, gives a high five to a page as he prepares for the start of the Senate session at the Capitol in Richmond, Va., Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax presides over the state Senate in Richmond, Va., on Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. California college professor Vanessa Tyson has made an allegation of sexual assault against Fairfax. He has denied the allegations, casting them as a political smear. (Steve Earley/The Virginian-Pilot via AP) In this undated photo provided by Scripps College, Vanessa Tyson, an associate professor in politics at Scripps College, poses for a photo. Tyson, a 42-year-old political science professor who studies the intersection of politics and the #MeToo movement, went public with her sexual assault accusation against Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019, saying in a statement that she repressed the memory for years but came forward in part because of the possibility that Fairfax could succeed a scandal-mired governor. (Scripps College via AP) FILE - In this Feb. 2, 2019 file photo, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam speaks during a news conference in the Governor's Mansion in Richmond, Va. Northam clung to his office Tuesday, Feb. 5, amid intense political fallout over a racist photo in his 1984 medical school yearbook and uncertainty about the future of the state's government. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File) FILE-In this Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018 file photo, Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring takes the oath of office during inaugural ceremonies at the Capitol in Richmond, Va. Herring, admitted Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019, to putting on blackface in the 1980s, when he was a college student. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) Virginia Lt. Gov Justin Fairfax smiles during the senate session at the Capitol in Richmond, Va., Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. A California woman has accused Fairfax of sexually assaulting her 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) State Sen. Thomas K. Norment, R-James City County, arrives on the floor of the Senate chamber in Richmond, Va., on Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. Norment was an editor for a Virginia Military Institute yearbook filled with racist photos and slurs. (Steve Earley/The Virginian-Pilot via AP) Rev. Al Sharpton delivers the keynote speech at the Reflections on Faith, Community and Racial Reconciliation in the Commonwealth ceremony hosted by Virginia Union University at the Allix B. James Chapel, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, in Richmond, Va.. Sharpton said in a fiery speech at historically black Virginia Union University that Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam and Attorney General Mark Herring must step down over their blackface admissions, and the sexual allegations against Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax should be investigated thoroughly. (James H. Wallace/Richmond Times-Dispatch via AP) CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) - Opposition lawmaker Juan Guaido declared himself Venezuela's interim president last month, vowing to oust President Nicolas Maduro from power and end the once-wealthy nation's deepening political and humanitarian crisis. Millions of Venezuelans have migrated, and those left behind struggle to afford scarce supplies of food and medicine. Guaido called upon the international community for humanitarian aid. The world watches now whether Maduro's government will let the first shipments from United States cross its borders. The Associated Press explains the Venezuela aid standoff: ___ HOW DID WE GET HERE? Despite having the world's largest oil reserves , Venezuela is in a historic crisis after 20 years of socialist rule launched by the late President Hugo Chavez. Dozens of political parties that make up Venezuela's opposition have failed to mount a viable political challenge. Venezuelan volunteers place a bag of USAID humanitarian aid for storage at a warehouse next to the Tienditas International Bridge, near Cucuta, Colombia, on the border with Venezuela, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Trucks carrying U.S. humanitarian aid destined for Venezuela arrived Thursday at the Colombian border, where opposition leaders vowed to bring them into their troubled nation despite objections from embattled President Nicolas Maduro. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara) Critics accuse Maduro, Chavez's hand-picked successor, of unfairly winning an election last year for a second six-year term by banning his popular rivals from running. Some anti-Maduro leaders are jailed and others have fled Venezuela fearing for their safety. Last month, the 35-year-old Guaido was named leader of the opposition-controlled National Assembly. He's managed to rally masses of Venezuelans into the streets to show their support, and he's won backing from nearly 50 countries worldwide, including the United States. ___ HOW DOES AID FIT IN? Offers of humanitarian assistance are coming in from around the world. The Trump administration offered Guaido's interim presidency an initial $20 million in support and Guaido says the aid will come in through neighboring Colombia, Brazil and as yet unidentified Caribbean islands. The first shipment includes food kits for 5,000 Venezuelans and high-protein nutritional supplements that can treat an estimated 6,700 young children with moderate malnutrition. It arrived at the Colombian border city of Cucuta, where volunteers are bagging them in preparation for attempts to bring them across the border. The boxes of emergency aid came from the U.S. Agency for International Development, and are marked with USAID labels. ___ WHAT'S MADURO SAYING? Maduro has refused the aid, disavowing any humanitarian crisis and saying Venezuela is not a country of beggars. He's offered to try to resolve the political impasse in a dialogue with opposition leaders, which critics call a stalling tactic that has failed to lead to any changes. More defiantly, the socialist president contends that the aid is part of a U.S.-led coup against him, with a goal to colonize Venezuela and exploit its vast oil resources. The Venezuelan military has barricaded a bridge connecting the two nations with a tanker and two cargo trailers in an apparent attempt to block the aid. ___ WHAT'S THE OPPOSITION'S NEXT MOVE? It's unclear what will break the standoff playing out at the Venezuela-Colombia border. U.S. Ambassador to Colombia Kevin Whitaker said the U.S. will get supplies to the border, and Guaido will take it from there. Guaido has given few details of his strategy, but says the food and supplies will reach Venezuela's most vulnerable people in the next days. Lester Toledo, who represents Guaido in the aid mission in Cucuta, issued a message to Venezuelan troops, telling them the aid contains food and medicine their own families need. Toledo suggested one strategy: A mass mobilization of his countrymen reminiscent of how in 2016 a large group of Venezuelan women dressed in white and intent on crossing the closed border with Colombia made their way through a line of national guardsmen in order to buy food on the other side. Venezuelan volunteers, Colombian firefighters and rescue workers prepare USAID humanitarian aid for storage at a warehouse next to the Tienditas International Bridge, near Cucuta, Colombia, on the border with Venezuela, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Trucks carrying U.S. humanitarian aid destined for Venezuela arrived Thursday at the Colombian border, where opposition leaders vowed to bring them into their troubled nation despite objections from embattled President Nicolas Maduro. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara) Venezuela's self-proclaimed president Juan Guaido speaks during a meeting with university students at the Central University of Venezuela, in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Guaido declared himself interim president in Venezuela, a move recognized by several dozen countries, but President Nicolas Maduro is refusing to relinquish power. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos) (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos) Clemens Center's Exposure Series Addresses "Truth and Trust in Modern Media" WKCTC's Clemens Fine Arts Center will hosts the Exposure Series to address "Truth and Trust in Modern Media" on February 19th. The panel discussion, which is part of the center's Exposure Series, will be held at 6 pm on the second floor of WKCTC's Paducah School of Art and Design's 2D and Graphic Design Building at 905 Harrison St. in Lowertown. The event is free and open to the public. In many ways, the rise of the Internet and social media has made things much better when it comes to being informed about the world. However, the ever-changing and growing technology may also significantly and continually alter the world's relationship with media. West Kentucky Community and Technical College's Clemens Fine Arts Center will host a panel discussion on the trend of indifference towards the truth in modern media and how that may undermine the fundamental principle of trust in society. "We live in the real world and truth is about how things are and what reality is like," said Todd Birdsong, Clemens Fine Arts Center director. "This panel discussion addresses the idea that if you don't know what the truth is, you are ignorant of reality. Our Exposure Series focuses on enabling audiences and artists to explore ideas about our world with an interdisciplinary and more education-based approach." Expert panelists for the discussion will be Murray State University's Department of Journalism and Mass Communication faculty Kevin Qualls, Dr. Tim Vance, and Robert Valentine. Dr. Bob McGaughey, MSU professor and chairman emeritus of the MSU's Department of Journalism and Mass Communication will also be on the evening's panel. For more information, visit artsinfocus.org or contact Todd Birdsong at todd.birdsong@kctcs.edu or 270-534-3213. View Online: http://westkentucky.meritpages.com/news/wkctc-s-clemens-fine-arts-center-hosts-exposure-series-to-address-truth-and-trust-in-modern-media/7285 PADUCAH - PLYMOUTH, Ind. (AP) - No charges will be filed in the death of a 13-year-old Indiana boy who was killed when a truck rear-ended a school bus in December. Marshall County deputy prosecutor Matt Sarber says a grand jury looked at evidence and declined to return charges against the truck driver. Sarber told reporters Friday that "there was no intent to cause any harm." But the grand jury considered whether the truck driver's actions were criminally reckless. The crash occurred along U.S. 31, about 30 miles (50 kilometers) south of South Bend. The bus was carrying students from the Eastern Pulaski school district to see a Christmas musical. Sarber says the truck driver, who was removing a piece of clothing, saw the bus but didn't realize it had stopped at railroad tracks. NEW BERN, N.C. (AP) - A North Carolina woman who helped her immigrant boyfriend register and vote is going to prison for helping the non-citizen vote. U.S. District Judge Louise Wood Flanagan this week sentenced 66-year-old Denslo Allen Paige to two months in prison and a $250 fine. Paige advised Guadalupe Espinosa-Pena to register and vote in the November 2016 elections though he was ineligible as a Mexican citizen. Espinosa-Pena was among 19 foreign nationals charged with illegal voting in August by federal prosecutors in eastern North Carolina. Paige was a seasonal poll worker in Wake County, but she said she was never taught legal residents holding green cards like Espinosa-Pena weren't allowed to vote. Paige said she thought workers at a help desk at the polling site would know if he could vote. MEXICO CITY (AP) - Mexico's ex-first lady Angelica Rivera announced Friday she is divorcing her husband, Enrique Pena Nieto, two months after the end of his presidential term which was marred by scandals including one over a mansion provided to her by a government contractor. Rivera is a former telenovela actor, and critics have long charged that the photogenic couple's marriage was a marketing strategy to burnish Pena Nieto's image for his 2012 presidential campaign. Earlier this week the magazine Hola reported that the couple had split in December; Pena Nieto's six-year term ended Dec. 1. In a brief message published on social media, Rivera said she had always given her all to the marriage and deeply regrets "this very painful situation." "Today all my energy, strength and love are focused on continuing to be a good mother, on recovering my life and my professional career," Rivera said. In 2014, many Mexicans were outraged when it was reported that Rivera was living in a multimillion-dollar home registered to a builder that had been awarded public contracts. FILE - In this Sept. 16, 2018 file photo, Mexico's President Enrique Pena Nieto waves from a National Palace balcony, accompanied by first lady Angelica Rivera, during the Independence Day military parade in the Zocalo of Mexico City. Rivera posted on her Instagram account on Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, that she is divorcing Pena Nieto. (AP Photo/Anthony Vazquez, File) She said at the time that she had been purchasing the mansion legitimately with earnings from her acting career, but that she was selling her stake in the property. Rivera and Pena Nieto's last official public appearance together was Sept. 15 for Mexican Independence Day celebrations. They were also seen in January at the funeral of a prominent leader of his Institutional Revolutionary Party. According to Hola the two remain "cordial," and while Pena Nieto and his three children are still in Mexico, Rivera and her children have gone to her residence in the United States. Pena Nieto and Rivera, known as "La Gaviota" or "the seagull" for a character she played on a soap opera that brought her fame, wed in 2010 when he was governor of Mexico State. It was the second marriage for each. Pena Nieto left office with dismal approval ratings after a presidency tarnished not only by the mansion scandal but also corruption cases involving officials from his party; soaring murder and other crime rates; the unsolved disappearance of 43 teachers college students at the hands of local police and cartel thugs; and a widely held perception that he bungled Mexico's response to the candidacy and presidency of Donald Trump. SOUTHAVEN, Miss. (AP) - A family plans to sue after Mississippi police went to the wrong house and ended up killing a man, lawyers said Thursday, and they suggested that a state investigative report they obtained in court would bolster their case. Attorneys for Ismael Lopez's relatives said they'll sue the city of Southaven and two officers who fired shots, news outlets reported. Lopez was shot inside his home on July 23, 2017, as officers were trying to locate a suspect who lived across the street. District Attorney John Champion said in July that grand jurors declined to indict anyone, saying at least one officer saw Lopez sticking a rifle out the door. State investigators concluded the door was slightly ajar when one bullet passed through, and was open a little wider when another bullet went through. "It is unknown if the door was open or closed when the projectile passed through it and struck the victim in the base of his skull," the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation report says. Lawyers for the Lopez family acknowledge that a .22-caliber rifle was found near the door, but they dispute that the mechanic pointed it, saying his body was found some distance away inside the mobile home. "I have very serious questions about whether this is an accidental shooting and a cover-up, and that the gun was conveniently used as part of cover-up to explain why a relatively young officer went blazing through a closed door," attorney Murray Wells said. Wells suggested that one Southaven officer heard another shoot at Lopez's dog, prompting the first officer to shoot into the house through the front door, fatally wounding Lopez. But Tony Farese, a lawyer for officers Samuel Maze and Zachary Durden, said Lopez was to blame because officers saw him point the rifle through a partly opened door. The report shows investigators concluded Maze fired at a pit bull that ran out the front door, while Durden fired at the door, including the bullet that went through the door and struck Lopez in the back of the head, fatally wounding him. "Bottom line is, it's a justified shooting," Farese said. "DA's looked at it. FBI's looked at it. When people knock at your door and you point a gun at uniformed police officers - that's not the way I go to the door." A roundup of some of the most popular but completely untrue stories and visuals of the week. None of these is legit, even though they were shared widely on social media. The Associated Press checked these out. Here are the real facts: ___ CLAIM: Stacey Abrams gave the State of the Union response in front of a green screen showing fake supporters. THE FACTS: Abrams, who ran for governor of Georgia last year, did not stand before a green screen to give the Democratic rebuttal to President Donald Trump's State of the Union address Tuesday. The claim circulated widely on social media, with comments suggesting she lacked an audience of supporters. Abrams held her address at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 613 in Atlanta, said Caitlin Highland, spokeswoman for Abrams' campaign. Abrams had more than 35 people standing behind her throughout the speech and about 40 more watching from the sidelines. The audience included activists, doctors and elected leaders, Highland said. The Associated Press confirmed the crowd with news footage from the event and photos provided by her campaign, which gave a behind-the-scenes look at who attended her speech. On the night of the event, the AP was also provided with pool photos and video of her speech. The pool photos and video show the same people pictured in the campaign's behind-the-scenes photos and video. ___ CLAIM: Ruth Bader Ginsburg did not attend concert because there are no photos to prove it. FILE - In this Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2019 image from video, Stacey Abrams delivers the Democratic party's response to President Donald Trump's State of the Union address, from Atlanta. On Friday, Feb. 8, 2018, The Associated Press has found that stories circulating on the internet that Abrams spoke in front of a green screen showing fake supporters, are untrue. (Pool via AP) THE FACTS: Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg made her first public appearance in weeks on Monday, however photography was not permitted at the event. The AP reported that Ginsburg on Monday attended "Notorious RBG in Song," a concert in her honor presented by the National Constitution Center in Washington. Ginsburg was seated in the back of the darkened auditorium at the National Museum of Women in the Arts, according to the AP and other media outlets in attendance. Since the event, posts on social media have insinuated falsely that she did not attend the concert, citing the lack of photos. And in recent weeks, posts questioning the health of the 85-year-old justice have circulated widely on social media, with some suggesting she died after undergoing cancer surgery in December. Most of the reports surfaced after she missed oral arguments in January for the first time in 25 years. Other social media users pointed to Ginsburg's absence at President Donald Trump's State of the Union address Tuesday, however Ginsburg also skipped last year's State of the Union address. Justices Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito also did not attend this year's address. ___ CLAIM: The State of the Union address had more viewers than the Super Bowl THE FACTS: President Donald Trump's State of the Union address did not have more viewers than this year's Super Bowl despite reports circulating widely on Twitter and Facebook. The New England Patriots win over the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday attracted 98.2 million television viewers, according to the analytics company Nielsen. It aired only on CBS. Figures released Friday show viewership outside the home - in bars, restaurants, hotels and office - added 12 million more viewers to that total, making up roughly 10 percent of overall viewership. While typically the most watched program of the year, Super Bowl viewership was down 5 million viewers this year compared to last year. Meanwhile, Nielsen reported 46.8 million people tuned in to Trump's national address on Tuesday. The speech aired on multiple cable and prime time networks. Nielsen has not yet reported out of home viewership for the speech, but the largest viewership in the last 17 years was 51.7 million who watched President George W. Bush's 2002 address. Trump had a larger audience for his address this year than last, when 45.6 million watched. Nielsen's estimates do not include viewers on streaming services. ___ This is part of The Associated Press' ongoing effort to fact-check misinformation that is shared widely online. ___ Find all AP Fact Checks here: https://www.apnews.com/tag/APFactCheck ___ Follow @APFactCheck on Twitter: https://twitter.com/APFactCheck ___ FILE - In this Saturday, Dec. 15, 2018 file photo, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg sits onstage as a speaker during an event organized by the Museum of the City of New York with WNET-TV held at the New York Academy of Medicine in New York. On Friday, Feb. 8, 2018, The Associated Press has found that stories circulating on the internet that she did not attend a Monday, Feb. 4, 2019 concert - her first public appearance in weeks, are untrue. (AP Photo/Rebecca Gibian) THE VILLAGE, Okla. (AP) - An Oklahoma man is facing charges after authorities say he lived for more than a month in a home with his father's decomposing body and cashed the dead man's retirement checks. Oklahoma County prosecutors charged 50-year-old Lynn Little on Thursday with forgery, embezzlement, neglect and desecration of a corpse. A man who identified himself as Little on the phone Friday said he was "not going to discuss" the case. Court records don't list an attorney to speak for him. Police were dispatched Jan. 12 to Little's home in the Oklahoma City suburb of The Village, where they found the body of 89-year-old William Little. Lynn Little told police his father died before Thanksgiving. He is not charged in connection with the elder Little's death. PASADENA, Calif. (AP) - "Veep" star Julia Louis-Dreyfus doesn't know who she'll support for president in 2020, but is sure about who she won't. She called Donald Trump a "pretend president" and said "I'm not a fan." Louis-Dreyfus was asked her political views Friday while promoting the final, seven-episode season of her HBO series, which begins on March 31. "Veep" has won three Emmys for best comedy series and the series star won four best actress awards. She's on location shooting a movie in Austria and said via satellite that she's is constantly approached by people who ask her opinion on President Trump. She says she doesn't hesitate to give an answer. "I have no idea who I'm going to support in 2020 except to say that it's a Democrat," she said. She gave few hints about how "Veep" will end, except to say her character, Selina Meyer, "is as true to herself as she can possibly be." FILE - In this May 25, 2017, file photo, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, a cast member in the HBO series "Veep," poses at an Emmy For Your Consideration event for the show at the Television Academy in Los Angeles. 'Veep' star Julia Louis-Dreyfus doesn't know who she will support for president, but is sure she'll be opposing President Donald Trump. She called him a pretend president. Louis-Dreyfus' 'Veep' character is now a former president, and begins its last season on March 21, 2019 (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, File) "Saying goodbye to it was a very hard thing to do, even though it was our decision," she said. WASHINGTON (AP) - Civil and criminal crackdowns on polluters dropped sharply in the second year of the Trump administration, according to 2018 enforcement figures released Friday by the Environmental Protection Agency. The Trump administration EPA says the agency is taking a new tack with polluters, giving states more of a role in regulation and enforcement and stressing education and voluntary compliance with offenders as well as fines and criminal prosecution. "In fiscal year 2018, we continued our focus on expediting site cleanup, deterring noncompliance, and returning facilities to compliance with the law," Susan Bodine, acting head of EPA enforcement, said in a statement. The EPA has been one of the most active agencies overall in carrying out the deregulatory goals of President Donald Trump. Environmental and public-health groups say the business-friendly rollbacks place public health and the environment at greater risk. Jeff Ruch of Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility said the newly released 2018 totals show environmental enforcement "entering a near dark age." Declines include civil investigations carried out by the agency, which fell to 22 last year, down from 40 in 2017 and 125 in 2016, the last year of the Obama administration. Criminal fines and restitution tumbled, from $207 million in 2016, $3 billion in 2017 - including a $2.8 billion fine against Volkswagen over emissions-rigging, a case initiated under the Obama administration - to $86 million last year. Federal environmental regulators opened 129 criminal cases in 2018. That was down from 170 under the last year of the Obama administration, although up slightly from 115 criminal cases opened the first year under Trump. Numbers show overall criminal and civil enforcement to protect the environment and public health on a general downward trend for many years, but the decline has sharpened under the Trump administration. That includes a 30-year low in referrals for criminal prosecution in 2018. Civil penalties last year were the lowest since the EPA's enforcement office was created in 1994, said Cynthia Giles, assistant administrator of that office through the Obama administration. "Not only are the Trump EPA's enforcement numbers at historic lows, they are on track to get worse," Giles said. EPA civil investigations and evaluations - precursors to possible tougher enforcement action - fell from 13,500 in 2016, 11,750 in 2017 to 10,612 last year. CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - A North Carolina nonprofit known for its unusual rescues says it has extricated a newborn calf from a family's bathroom after a relative of the man keeping it pleaded for help. The Charlotte Observer reports Carolina Waterfowl Rescue says it learned of the calf's plight from a social media message, adding a photo showed the calf standing on a hay-covered bathroom floor in an Asheville area home. Jennifer Gordon of Caroline Waterfowl Rescue says it responded to the message on Jan. 29 by sending someone to get the calf, which was suffering from dehydration and diarrhea. It wasn't immediately clear why the calf was in the bathroom. The nonprofit named the calf Lucy and put it in a fenced-in yard near Charlotte while seeking a new home for the animal. ___ Information from: The Charlotte Observer, http://www.charlotteobserver.com BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) - Standing Rock Sioux tribal members and others who are suing over a five-month shutdown of a North Dakota highway during protests against the Dakota Access oil pipeline have broadened their claims to include allegations of extortion and media manipulation by state and county officials. Plaintiffs allege the closure of a stretch of state Highway 1806 was aimed not only at protesters who had gathered in the thousands in camps near the two-lane road but also at influencing the tribe's position on the camps and reporters' coverage of the prolonged clash. It played out over six months in 2016 and 2017 and resulted in 761 arrests. The new filing by plaintiff's attorney Noah Smith-Drelich references several alleged documents in support of the argument, including a government strategic plan he says detailed concessions authorities wanted from the tribe, such as a public decree to vacate the camps. "Defendants' true purpose for discriminatorily closing the road in question ... (was) to extort political concessions from the Standing Rock Sioux tribe," Smith-Drelich wrote in an amended complaint filed earlier this month. The lawsuit also alleges the highway closure made it "substantially more difficult for local press in particular to independently obtain firsthand evidence of what was happening in or around the camps," making reporters more reliant on government accounts of protesters as being "violent and criminal, and of the (protest) movement as defined by mayhem." The state attorney general's office declined comment on the new claims and said it will be filing a formal response in federal court. Morton County lead attorney Randall Bakke said Friday that he will do the same and added, "We don't think there's any basis for the claims." The $3.8 billion pipeline has been moving North Dakota oil to Illinois since June 2017 . Texas-based pipeline developer Energy Transfer Partners maintains it's safe, but opponents who fear environmental harm fought its construction for months. State officials blocked off a stretch of 1806 just north of the camps in October 2016 after a bridge was damaged by fires during one clash between protesters and police. The bridge was deemed structurally sound in January 2017, but authorities didn't reopen it for two more months, after initial repairs were completed and the protest camps were shut down. The lawsuit initially filed last October argues that the highway closure unduly restricted travel and commerce and violated free speech and religious rights. A reservation businesswoman, two pipeline opponents and a priest at a reservation church seek unspecified money damages from the state, county and TigerSwan, a North Carolina-based company that oversaw private security for ETP. They also seek class-action status. Plaintiffs initially also asked a judge to force the implementation of stricter rules for road closures in such instances, but they have dropped that request. Government attorneys last month had argued that the request was improper because "plaintiffs merely speculate defendants may again restrict traffic at some unspecified time and under some unspecified conditions in the future." They also argued that officials had not only the authority to shut down the highway but also an obligation to do it. "Bottom line, we feel it was appropriate for the Highway Patrol and Sheriff (Kyle) Kirchmeier to close the road for public health, public safety and public welfare reasons," Bakke said Friday. TigerSwan has asked to be dismissed as a defendant, arguing it had nothing to do with the shutdown. The plaintiffs allege the company "actively provided logistical support to law enforcement." ___ Follow Blake Nicholson on Twitter: https://twitter.com/NicholsonBlake Virtual Instruments announced that its VirtualWisdom Platform Appliance v5.7 has completed the Common Criteria certification process. By achieving the certification, Virtual Instruments provides critical security assurance to customers in highly regulated industries, including federal government, financial services and healthcare. As the centerpiece of the VirtualWisdom hybrid infrastructure management and AIOps platform, the VirtualWisdom Platform Appliance holistically monitors, analyzes and optimizes the health, utilization, capacity and performance of IT infrastructure within the context of the application. The completion of the Common Criteria certification under the NIAP-approved collaborative Protection Profile for Network Devices (NDcPP) gives governments and end users confidence that the VirtualWisdom Platform Appliance has passed strenuous documentation and testing requirements. Common Criteria is an internationally recognized set of guidelines (ISO 15408), which define a common framework for evaluating security features and capabilities of Information Technology products. The standard consists of several predetermined evaluation assurance levels, each one more stringent than the last. Common Criteria allows vendors to have their products tested against a chosen level by an independent third-party testing laboratory. The Common Criteria Mutual Recognition Agreement (CCRA) is a pact, which was designed to allow all evaluations up to an EAL 2 to be recognized by all participating countries, regardless of where the evaluation was completed. There are currently 28 countries involved in the CCRA, including the United States and Canada, with others that follow unofficially, such as the EU. "The completion of the Common Criteria certification process for the VirtualWisdom Platform Appliance demonstrates Virtual Instruments' commitment to product security, giving federal agencies and regulated industries the ability to purchase a third-party-tested, verified, and trusted hybrid infrastructure management solution," said Jake Nelson, Corsec Security, Inc. Director of Marketing. Corsec, the global leader in product security requirements hardening, assisted Virtual Instruments with its Common Criteria evaluation and helped streamline the certification effort. The U.S. government mandates Common Criteria certification of security products for federal purchases. Through the NSTISSP No. 11, federal agencies are required to purchase only those commercial security products that have met specified third-party assurance requirements and have been tested by an accredited national laboratory. "Federal government agencies rightfully place a premium on the security of their constituents' data and information, and expect their hybrid infrastructure solution providers to assure the highest level of security in their products," said Jay Lambke, President, Government Acquisitions, Inc. "With Virtual Instruments' Common Criteria certification, our federal agency customers gain invaluable peace of mind that they are in compliance with the world's most stringent security requirements." "The Common Criteria certification is a significant achievement for Virtual Instruments, as it provides our customers with invaluable third-party assurance that the VirtualWisdom platform meets the most stringent security requirements," said Jeff Jordan, VP of Federal Sales, Virtual Instruments. "The certification underscores our commitment to delivering industry-leading solutions - validated through a rigorous testing process - to the U.S. and other international federal government agencies. In addition, this certification further illustrates the completeness of our hybrid IT infrastructure management solutions versus competitive offerings that lack certification." NEW YORK (AP) - The longtime boss of a union for New York City corrections officers was sentenced to nearly five years in prison Friday for corruption convictions, a steep fall for a man credited with winning guards pay and benefits parity with police and firefighters before squandering $19 million in union funds. U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein announced the sentence for Norman Seabrook after hearing the former head of the New York City Correction Officers' Benevolent Association defiantly defend his two decades of work leading the union. The judge told a courtroom packed with Seabrook supporters, including former New York Knicks star Charles Oakley, that all the good Seabrook did after rising from a childhood of poverty left him wondering anew: "Why do good people do bad things?" "Mr. Seabrook, I believe, was blinded by his own sense of importance and a desire to benefit himself after having benefited others for so long," Hellerstein said. As he left the courthouse, Seabrook bristled at a reporter who asked him why he expressed no remorse. "How can you be remorseful for something you didn't do?" he asked. FILE- In this June 8, 2016, file photo, Norman Seabrook, center, president of the New York City Correction Officers' Benevolent Association, leaves court, in New York. Seabrook was sentenced to nearly 5 years in prison Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, after being found guilty last year on conspiracy and bribery. The longtime head of the nation's largest municipal jail guard union was paid tens of thousands of dollars in cash in exchange for steering $20 million in union money to a hedge fund. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File) Seabrook, 58, was convicted last August at a Manhattan trial after prosecutors said he accepted $60,000 in cash bribes in 2014 to funnel $20 million in union funds to a risky hedge fund. All but $1 million was lost. A trial witness, Jona Rechnitz, told jurors he talked Seabrook into the investment on a free trip to the Dominican Republic, then later handed off $60,000 in a designer bag. Assistant U.S. Attorney Martin Bell told Hellerstein during sentencing arguments that Seabrook kept the bag he received cash in hanging on a doorknob at his home when it should have been a source of shame. Seabrook, though, told Hellerstein the bag was filled with cigars. He said there was no evidence he ever intended to "lose a dime" of union members' money. Seabrook pledged to emerge from the case "stronger and better." "My life's journey may have been interrupted but it's not over until God says it's over," he said. Outside the courthouse, he said he would appeal and would win. His lawyer, Paul Shechtman, appeared to nearly convince the judge that his client should remain free pending an appeal. Shechtman said the question of whether Hellerstein should have allowed the jury to hear about the $19 million that was lost was a big enough point of contention that Seabrook should get to remain free until the appeals court rules. Hellerstein said he'll let prosecutors submit written arguments opposing the request in the next week. Before the sentence was announced, two men and a woman who worked in the jails system spoke as victims of Seabrook's crimes, saying Seabrook was a bully who once had so much power that he could retaliate against anyone who spoke against him. WASHINGTON (AP) - Tick-tock. Time seemed to be on acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker's mind Friday when House Democrats trained their new oversight powers on his stewardship of the Trump administration's Justice Department. That's at least in part because his stewardship began in November with Jeff Sessions' resignation and could end next week if the Senate confirms William Barr to the post. "I have, as I mentioned, six days left and I plan to take full advantage of that, including, as I said, at this hearing," Whitaker said as the proceedings entered a sixth hour. Again and again, Whitaker tried to run out the clock on the Democrats' efforts to grill him on whether he had interfered with special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian election meddling. (He said he had not.) Throughout, they scuffled over who was running the place. "Mr. Chairman, I see that your five minutes is up," Whitaker said to Rep. Jerrold Nadler, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. The remark drew gasps in the hearing room, where committee chairmen hold immense power, including over who asks the questions and for how long. Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker appears before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019 in Washington. Democrats are eager to press him on his interactions with President Donald Trump and his oversight of the special counsel's Russia investigation. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) The setup for Whitaker's hearing was fairly typical: Committee members did the asking in five-minute increments. But Trump had set the tone in his State of the Union address when he decried "ridiculous partisan investigations" and seemed to some to tie the prospect of advancing legislation to whether Congress stopped investigating his administration. Republicans made clear they regarded Friday's hearing as a partisan exercise and a waste, given Whitaker's status as a probable short-timer. Yet television networks spent the better part of the day airing it live, and some in the GOP worried privately that Whitaker seemed unprepared at times. White House officials kept an eye on Whitaker's performance and, while they appreciated his combative tone and aggressive defense of the administration, there was a sense from aides that his performance, at times, appeared halting. The president himself kept an eye on the proceedings as well before leaving the White House for his annual physical. For Democrats, it was their first and likely only chance to grill an attorney general they perceive as a Trump loyalist and whose appointment they suspect was aimed at suppressing investigations of the Republican president. Even before the hearing, it was a contest about who was in charge. Whitaker initially accepted the committee's invitation to testify. Then Nadler threatened a subpoena if he refused. Whitaker refused to testify under threat of subpoena, but eventually backed down and agreed to appear before the panel Friday morning. His answers to Democrats' questions often focused on procedure and involved rhetorical wind-ups that ate up precious seconds. "I'm controlling the time, let me move on," snapped Rep. Hank Johnson Jr., D-Ga. Nadler, a bulldog questioner under the Republican majority, piped up. "It's getting a little tiresome hearing you stall," the New York Democrat told Whitaker. "We don't need a speech." Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., tried to ask Whitaker who paid him the more than $1.2 million that he made heading a right-leaning nonprofit that doesn't disclose its donors, according to the nonprofit's tax filings. Whitaker tried to interrupt, sparking a yelling match. "Mr. Whitaker, you don't run this committee," said Raskin. Nadler confirmed that the congressman "controls the time." Later in the hearing, Whitaker seemed to get his feet under him. Pressed by Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., to tell Trump that Mueller is "honest," Whitaker replied: "I am not here to be a puppet to repeat terms and words that you say." And he had more to say. When Nadler gaveled the hearing into a five-minute recess, Whitaker said into an open mic: "Five minutes for lunch?" ___ Associated Press writer Jonathan Lemire contributed to this report. ____ Follow Kellman on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/APLaurieKellman DEARBORN, Mich. (AP) - The Latest on the death of former Rep. John Dingell (all times local): 5 p.m. John Dingell criticized President Donald Trump on the day the long-serving Michigan congressman died, dictating comments to his wife and congressional successor Debbie Dingell. Dingell never mentions Trump by name but says in the opinion article published Friday in The Washington Post that "in our modern political age, the presidential bully pulpit seems dedicated to sowing division and denigrating, often in the most irrelevant and infantile personal terms, the political opposition." Dingell also wrote that his "personal and political character was formed in a different era" in which was observed "modicums of respect" as sides fought over issues. He died Thursday at age 92 while with his wife, Debbie, at their home in suburban Detroit. He represented parts of southeast Michigan for nearly 60 years before retiring in 2014 as the longest-serving member of Congress in U.S. history. FILE- In a Feb. 4, 2009 file photo, Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich. poses for a photograph inside his office in House Rayburn Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File) ___ 4:40 p.m. President Donald Trump has extended his sympathies to Rep. Debbie Dingell and other family members of the late Rep. John Dingell. Trump said Friday on Twitter that John Dingell was "highly respected" and had a "great reputation." Trump also wrote in reference to John Dingell being the longest-serving member of Congress in U.S. history that "if people understand politics, means he was very smart." Dingell died Thursday at age 92 while with his wife, Debbie, at their home in Dearborn, a Detroit suburb. The Democrat represented parts of southeast Michigan for nearly 60 years before retiring in 2014. ___ 4:20 p.m. A casket carrying the body of former Rep. John Dingell will be driven past the Capitol in Washington, where he was a member of Congress for 59 years. The motorcade is planned for Tuesday, after a funeral Mass in Dearborn, Michigan. The public is invited to watch from the east lawn of the Capitol. A second funeral Mass will be held Thursday at 10:30 a.m. at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Washington. The public is invited. The details were released by Dingell's wife Debbie Dingell, who succeeded him in his Detroit-area congressional seat. Dingell will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery. ___ 3:40 p.m. President Donald Trump has ordered flags lowered to half-staff in memory of former Rep. John Dingell. Trump's proclamation applies to flags at the White House, other public buildings and grounds, U.S. military posts and naval stations, and on all federal naval vessels. They'll be lowered until sunset Saturday. Flags at U.S. embassies and other facilities overseas also are ordered to half-staff. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer also ordered flags on state property lowered. Dingell died Thursday at age 92 while with his wife at their home in Dearborn, a Detroit suburb. The Democrat represented parts of southeast Michigan for nearly 60 years before retiring in 2014 as the longest-serving member of Congress in U.S. history. ___ 12:40 p.m. A funeral and a public memorial will be held next week to honor former U.S. Rep. John Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in U.S. history. Dingell died Thursday at age 92 while with his wife at their home in Dearborn, a Detroit suburb. Dingell represented parts of southeast Michigan for nearly 60 years in Congress before retiring in 2014. A public visitation will be held Monday at Ford Community and Performing Arts Center in Dearborn. A funeral will be held at a local church Tuesday. His wife, U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, says her husband will be interred at Arlington National Cemetery. A funeral is also planned in Washington. Tributes poured in following Dingell's death, including from former U.S. presidents, colleagues and some of his more than 250,000 Twitter followers. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer ordered flags on state property to half-staff. ___ See AP's complete coverage of John Dingell here: https://apnews.com/JohnDingell FILE- In this Sept. 24, 2008 file photo, House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., right, accompanied by Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., meets with reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell.(AP Photo/Lauren Victoria Burke, File) FILE - In a June 12, 1979 file photo, Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., comments on President Jimmy Carter during an interview in his Capitol Hill office in Washington. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/John Duricka, File) FILE - In this June 2, 1977 file photo, President Jimmy Carter hosts a breakfast in the Family Dining Room of the White House in Washington for House Subcommittee members on Energy and Power. From left are Rep. John M. Murphy (D-N.Y.), Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.), President Carter, Rep. Harley Staggers (D-W Va.), Rep. Andrew Maguire (D-N.J.), and Rep. Timothy Wirth (D-Colo.). Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Charles Harrity, File) FILE - In this Nov. 6, 2012 file photo, Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., addresses supporters during the Michigan Democratic election night party at the MGM Grand Detroit. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File) FILE - In this May 7, 2014 file photo, Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich. is seen on Capitol Hill in Washington. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Lauren Victoria Burke, File) FILE - In this April 21, 2015 file photo, U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell pushes the wheelchair of her husband, retired Congressman John Dingell after the funeral of Detroit-area businessman and philanthropist A. Alfred Taubman at Congregation Shaarey Zedek in Southfield, Mich. Former U.S. Rep. John Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (Todd McInturf/Detroit News via AP, File) FILE - In this July 29, 2015 file photo, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of Calif., standing with former Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., holds up the gavel Dingell used 50 years ago when Medicare legislation was passed during an event marking the 50th Anniversary of Medicare and Medicaid on Capitol Hill in Washington. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File) FILE- In this April 7, 1987 file photo, Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., left, and John Dingell, D-Mich. hold a news conference at Capitol Hill, in Washington, to release a report on Alzheimers disease. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Charles Tasnadi, File) FILE - In this Oct. 5, 2013 file photo, House Democrats, including Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., center, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history, make their way to the office of House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi before a vote in Congress, at the Capitol in Washington. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. He was 92. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) - Two men have been indicted on federal charges that they brought crack cocaine to Vermont in exchange for firearms intended for use in a "war" in Boston that one of the men vowed to win, according to court documents. Federal court documents say John Guerrero and Darwin Medina, of South Boston, were indicted Thursday in U.S. District Court in Burlington. Lawyers for Guerrero and Medina did not return calls Friday seeking comment. A criminal complaint filed in the case last month said five of the guns were recovered by police in the Boston area and some have been matched to shootings in South Boston, but the documents did not provide the details of those shootings. At least some of the firearms were taken to the Joyce Hayes Way neighborhood of South Boston where the two men lived. The indictment of Guerrero and Medina, who told people in Vermont they were members of the Latin Kings street gang, came after a number of people from northwestern Vermont were charged in September with making about 30 gun purchases on behalf of two men originally identified in court documents as "Target A" and "Target B." Kraig LaPorte, a spokesman for the Vermont office of the United States Attorney, confirmed Friday that Guerrero and Medina were targets A and B. The documents said that between November 2017 and March of 2018 the two men traveled between Boston and northwestern Vermont where they gave locals money to buy the firearms for them from local gun shops. One of the Vermonters who allegedly bought guns for the two told investigators that "Guerrero told him that he wanted the firearms because 'there is a war going on in Boston' and 'we are gonna win the war,'" according to the documents. The same Vermonter told investigators Guerrero used a tool to grind the serial numbers off the guns. But the documents say police in Boston were able to restore the serial numbers for a number of the guns and determine they were purchased in Vermont. DETROIT (AP) - A moving crew evicting a retired Detroit homicide detective from his home has found a locker with evidence from old cases. Police Chief James Craig says he's ordered an investigation into the Thursday discovery. He tells The Detroit News that he's concerned the evidence "could taint some cases," especially if it was relevant but never introduced in court. The former officer retired in 2012. He worked in the homicide unit for six years until 2009. A name wasn't released. Craig has been chief since 2013. He says any retiring officer now is checked for any leftover police property. MEXICO CITY (AP) - Railroad blockades by radical teachers in Mexico are testing leftist President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador's promise not to use force against protesters. Since taking office Dec. 1, Lopez Obrador has said he would handle all protests with negotiation. But the obstinacy of the teachers - who set up protest camps on railways in January to demand back pay - has exhausted the president's patience. The teachers in the western state of Michoacan received their pay and freed some rail lines last week. But on Friday, they again blocked a key line leading to the Pacific coast port of Lazaro Cardenas. Lopez Obrador has now taken the unusual step of asking the country's National Human Rights Commission to recommend measures for ending the stoppage. His administration has also filed an appeal to the commission, saying the blockade violated people's rights. According to Ferromex, one of the railways affected, the 25-day protest has left over 2,000 containers stranded in freight patios. In addition, it has caused some plants to temporarily shut down due to interrupted shipments of steel, cement and raw materials; forced automakers to ship vehicles out by truck rather than rail; and delayed hundreds of loads of often spoiled grain. Lopez Obrador has ruled out asking police to intervene, saying that "we are not repressive." But he wondered out loud if the Michoacan teachers' union was working for enemies of his administration. "It is strange, I would almost say suspicious, that these things did not happen when the conservatives were in power, and as soon as we arrived, they want to confront us," he said. "Now is the time for people to stand up and take off their masks." "There are groups that are leftist and who have never been on the side of our movement," Lopez Obrador said, an apparent reference to radical teachers and leftist Zapatista rebels in southern Chiapas state. ATHENS, Greece (AP) - The Latest on Greece-Macedonia relations (all times local): 10 p.m. Greece's parliament has approved a measure for Macedonia to join NATO, ending a decades-old dispute. Lawmakers late Friday voted 153-140 to back the NATO protocol that must now also be approved by all other alliance members. The Greek vote means the former Yugoslav republic will now formally change its name to North Macedonia, settling a dispute of the country's name which Greece's saw as a potential threat to its own northern region of Macedonia. Greek opposition parties said the agreement made too many concessions to Macedonia. ___ Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras delivers a speech during a parliament session in Athens, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Greek lawmakers are set Friday to approve Macedonia's NATO accession, ending a process to normalize relations between the two neighbors and anchor the country - renamed North Macedonia - firmly within the western sphere of influence. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis) 11:55 a.m. Greek lawmakers are set to approve Macedonia's NATO accession, ending a process to normalize relations between the two neighbors and anchor the country - renamed North Macedonia - firmly within the western sphere of influence. Greek opposition parties reject the move, arguing that the name deal, which will end a 27-year dispute, concedes too much to Macedonia. But the left-led government in Athens controls enough seats in parliament to win the vote, expected late Friday. Greece and the former Yugoslav province - independent since 1991 - struck the historic agreement last summer. Despite strong misgivings from opposition parties and public opinion, both ratified it in parliament. Greek approval of Macedonia's NATO accession bid is the final step in the deal. Macedonia will then formally implement the name change. SEBRING, Fla. (AP) - A prosecutor says he plans to seek the death penalty for a man arrested in the fatal shootings of five women at a Florida bank last month. State Attorney Brian Haas said at a news conference Friday that he had reached the "unquestionable conclusion" that he should seek the death penalty against 21-year-old Zephen Xaver. Haas also said a grand jury in Highlands County, Florida, this week had indicted Xaver on five counts of first-degree murder. Xaver will be arraigned later this month. Four employees and a customer at the SunTrust bank were killed last month. Sebring Police officials say the women were shot in an apparently random act of violence. Hass on Friday didn't offer any further details on what motivated the suspect. WASHINGTON (AP) - Tempering expectations, the Trump administration's peace envoy for Afghanistan said Friday that although his talks with the Taliban have produced a tentative "framework" agreement, negotiations are far from finished. The envoy, Zalmay Khalilzad, said he hopes a final deal is clinched before Afghanistan's presidential election in July. But he also stressed that many issues remain to be resolved and that it must be a package deal. "We are in the early stage of a protracted process," he said in remarks at the United States Institute of Peace, adding, "We have a long way to go." The envoy, who is a former U.S. ambassador to Kabul, also called for direct talks to begin as soon as possible between the Taliban and the Afghan government, which thus far has not been involved in Khalilzad's talks. But he noted that the Taliban have been unwilling to take this step, arguing that the government is illegitimate. Zalmay, who was appointed in September as the State Department's special representative for Afghan reconciliation, said that although he and the Taliban have made progress on the issue of a U.S. troop withdrawal, that is just one among many issues and none has been fully resolved. "My overall goal is, at the direction of the president and the secretary of state, not to seek a withdrawal agreement but a peace agreement," he said. Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad speaks on the prospects for peace, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, at the U.S. Institute of Peace, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) The U.S. has about 14,000 troops in Afghanistan, and President Donald Trump has indicated he wants a substantial withdrawal this year, although no such orders have been given, according to U.S. military officials. Khalilzad said the U.S. is not seeking permanent military bases in Afghanistan and will leave if Kabul does not want U.S. troops there, "provided that there is no threat to our national security from Afghanistan, that there are not terrorist threats from Afghanistan to the United States - that is a red line, and I think that's the policy of the president as well." U.S. troops invaded Afghanistan in October 2001 and toppled the Taliban government within weeks. The U.S. military turned its attention largely to Iraq in 2003, and eventually the Taliban were able to regenerate enough combat power to contest key battlefields, mainly in the south. The war is now considered a stalemate. Getting American troops out of Afghanistan, where they have been either fighting the Taliban or advising Afghan government forces since October 2001, is the top priority for the Taliban officials he has talked with, Khalilzad said. The main U.S. objective, he said, is ensuring that Afghanistan never again becomes a haven for extremists like al-Qaida, the group led by Osama bin Laden that launched the 9/11 attacks from Afghanistan. "After many conversations, we have reached an agreement in principle with the Taliban on a framework that would provide guarantees and an enforcement mechanism that no terrorist group - international terrorist group or individual - would be able to use Afghanistan" as a platform for international terrorism, he said. He added that more talks are planned to "flesh out" the Taliban's commitments. Critics have questioned the wisdom of accepting any Taliban assurances against collaboration with al-Qaida, and Khalilzad did not explain how Washington would ensure that any such arrangement were effective. "We will not just rely on people's words," he said, adding that there would have to be "enforcement mechanisms," which he did not define. "Words are not enough," he said. Khalilzad said the U.S. and the Taliban have worked out a "framework" for a "possible U.S. withdrawal as part of a package deal." Even if the troop withdrawal and Taliban assurances on denying haven to extremist groups were fully settled, a peace agreement would not be completed until numerous other issues such as political participation are decided, he said. "Nothing is agreed to until everything is agreed to," he said. Khalilzad said he sees himself as a "catalyst," to find a formula for Afghans to sit down with each other and work out a roadmap for a peaceful future. He said he wants those intra-Afghan negotiations to start immediately. He said the Taliban are unwilling to negotiate with the Afghan government, but added there are "indications" that they would be willing to do so in a "multiparty arrangement." While the U.S. talks with the Taliban have focused on troop presence and assurances that terrorist networks would not be given haven, Khalilzad said intra-Afghan talks could also deal with human rights, freedom of the press and the role of women, who were harshly oppressed under Taliban rule. "They (the Taliban) say they made a mistake in how they dealt with women the last time," Khalilzad said. "But nevertheless, they're not going to be the government of Afghanistan. They are going to be part of the political process of Afghanistan. They may be part of a power-sharing arrangement in Afghanistan." Khalilzad said he has pressed the Taliban to agree to a permanent ceasefire as a step toward ending the war, but they have resisted, arguing that it would remove their leverage and reduce the Afghan government's incentive to make concessions in direct negotiations. They also contend that a long ceasefire would make it difficult to get their troops back into the field if the halt to violence came to an end. But he said there are ongoing discussions about arranging some sort of ceasefire. __ Associated Press writer Deb Riechmann contributed to this report. Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad speaks on the prospects for peace, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, at the U.S. Institute of Peace, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad speaks on the prospects for peace, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, at the U.S. Institute of Peace, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad pauses while speaking about the prospects for peace, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, at the U.S. Institute of Peace, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad approaches the microphone to speak on the prospects for peace, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, at the U.S. Institute of Peace, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) ATLANTA (AP) - The Latest on a judge ordering a Georgia election redone after two botched rounds of voting (all times local): 2:50 p.m. A judge is ordering an April 9 election to redo voting for a Georgia legislative seat after two prior elections got thrown out twice because ballots were cast illegally. Superior Court Judge David Sweat's order Friday also says the winner of the first two elections - state Rep. Chris Erwin - must step down less than a month after he was sworn into office. Erwin defeated then-Rep. Dan Gasaway by 67 votes in the Republican primary last May in northeast Georgia's District 28. Gasaway went to court and the judge found mapping errors had enabled people to vote who lived outside the lawmaker's district. A new election was held Dec. 4 and Erwin won again by just two votes. Sweat threw out that election too, ruling that at least four people cast illegal votes. The winner of the primary gets the seat because no Democrats ran for it. ___ 10:40 a.m. A Georgia lawmaker who just took office is preparing to step down and run all over again after winning two elections that a judge says were tainted by illegal votes. Rep. Chris Erwin says he's frustrated having to start campaigning a third time after being sworn into office in the state House just last month. Erwin defeated then-Rep. Dan Gasaway by 67 votes in the Republican primary last May in northeast Georgia's District 28. Gasaway went to court and a judge found mapping errors had enabled people to vote who lived outside the lawmaker's district. A new election was held Dec. 4 and Erwin won again by just two votes. The same judge threw out that election too, ruling that at least four people cast illegal votes. The winner of the primary gets the seat because no Democrats ran for it. Trend Forward Capital, the investment arm of Trend Micro, and Turbonomic announced an investment. As a catalyst for organizations innovating to unlock a smart connected world, under the terms of the agreement Trend Forward Capital is now a Turbonomic investor and will help accelerate Turbonomic's go-to-market (GTM) particularly in Asia, leveraging the global relationships of Trend Micro, a Turbonomic customer. Together, the companies will accelerate the adoption of workloads that self-manage, anywhere, in real-time (SMART), to help customers modernize IT and accelerate digital transformation. "Turbonomic's workload automation software is a proven and trusted platform technology, used by the majority of the world's money center banks as well as thousands of additional customers globally to optimize their workloads in hybrid and multi-cloud environments," said Partha Panda, Partner at Trend Forward Capital. "We invested in Turbonomic because we believe that workloads must be self-managing to run anywhere in the future. Today's connected world is increasingly connected with devices only getting smarter and require processing in the core and at the edge." "The Trend Micro and Turbonomic partnership is testament to the power of our AI-powered platform in ensuring that SMART' workloads are always performant and compliant and that customers only pay for what is needed - whether on-premises or in the cloud," said Benjamin Nye, CEO at Turbonomic. "As we continue scaling globally, most recently with a new Center of Cloud Excellence in Israel and development center in Greece, we look forward to working with Trend Micro and Trend Forward Capital to accelerate our Asia Pacific growth." NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Tennesseans determined to be using public records requests as a form of harassment could be banned from filing them for one year under a new bill that would allow courts to punish people for making too many inquiries. The move has alarmed open government advocates worried about the potentially chilling effects the bill might have, while also causing tension among supporters who feel queasy about limiting a person's right to public records. Under the proposal - introduced just this week - harassment would be defined as person who makes three or more public records requests in a year where: - The requester submitted each inquiry in a threatening or abusive manner. - The requester's conduct was abusive or intimidating during each request. - All three requests were not made in "good faith or for any legitimate purpose." A public agency would then have to ask a court to ban the person from making records requests, and if successful, that person could not make a request for a year unless they prove to a court any future inquiry over that 12-month time does not constitute harassment. Anyone found guilty could only file a public records request during that one year ban with permission from a judge. "We put a very high bar on this. I do not want any city or public entity abusing this opportunity to simply block someone from getting a public record," said House Majority Leader William Lamberth, the proposal's co-sponsor. The Republican leader added he believes the bill would be rarely used if approved by the Legislature and Gov. Bill Lee. "It's not just harassment. It's really about when someone egregiously abuses the public records process as a weapon against one of our public entities," Lamberth said. Local and state agencies have long spoken out against a handful of individuals who flood their inboxes with records requests, clogging up the system and wasting limited resources. Sometimes, the response has been slapping heavier fees onto intricate requests or applying lengthy time extensions until the records requests can be fulfilled. The challenge particularly has come to a head in Gallatin - a city just north of Nashville - where officials say they've been bogged down by one particular individual known for making extraordinary public records requests for the past several years. "It feels weird to me, I'm all about fulfilling public records requests but we've had a serious issue for a very long time. We need some relief," said Gallatin Mayor Paige Brown, a former journalist, who reached out to Lamberth about finding a possible solution. Last year, the city received more than 400 public records requests but 130 of those came from just one private citizen. According to Brown and other city officials, the man frequently asks to view hours of police body and dash camera footage, as well as often accuses officials of withholding information while filing multiple lawsuits against the city. And because this person's request is just to view - not for copies of the records - the city is prohibited from charging him for the hours of work needed to vet law enforcement records. Brown said the city spent at least 80 hours on one request only for the man to come in and spend just three minutes looking through the records. However, when asked if she believed Lamberth's bill was the appropriate response to one problematic person, Brown said she had some concerns. "Yes, the bill would help. But I can't tell you if it's appropriate because we're all having trepidations about limiting public access to public records," she said. "I just think our current system isn't fair to the taxpayer." Brown added that she was more inclined to possibly charge people to view copies of public records, but added even that option caused heartburn for her because she doesn't believe public entities should put up barriers to accessing their government. The bill has also raised concerns among open government advocates, who warn even with the strict harassment definition in the bill, public agencies could use the measure to scare people from snooping into government business out of fear of being penalized. "I think it would be very easy in some tense situations for a government official to claim they were intimidated by a citizen or journalist, file a lawsuit against the citizen, forcing that person to hire an attorney to defend themselves," said Deborah Fisher, executive director of the Tennessee Coalition for Open Government. The proposal is still in the early stages of making its way through the Tennessee Legislature, it's unclear how the new Republican governor will weigh in. Lee has promised to make government more transparent since taking over the office earlier this year, but held off from saying if he supported the bill when asked by The Associated Press on Thursday. NEW YORK (AP) - Gov. Andrew Cuomo warned Friday about what he called "political pandering" to critics of Amazon's proposed secondary headquarters amid a report that the company is reconsidering its planned New York City headquarters. But opponents said they'd keep fighting a project they consider corporate welfare. The back-and-forth came after The Washington Post reported that Amazon is having second thoughts because of some local politicians' opposition to the nearly $3 billion incentive package. The report cited two unnamed people familiar with the company's thinking. In response, Amazon would say only that it's engaging with small business owners, community leaders and educators, pointing to its pledges to fund high school computer science classes and contribute to job training. "We are working hard to demonstrate what kind of neighbor we will be," the Seattle-based company said in a statement. Noting the Post's report, Cuomo accused the state Senate - whose leader recently tapped an Amazon critic for a board that might have sway over the project's subsidies - of "governmental malpractice" and siding with those who are "pandering to the local politics." FILE - This Dec. 12, 2018 file photo shows State Assemblyman Ron Kim, center, as he speaks at a rally opposing New York's deal with Amazon, on the steps of New York's City Hall. Gov. Andrew Cuomo warns that what he calls "political pandering" to critics of Amazon's proposed secondary headquarters could sink New York's biggest-ever economic development deal. But opponents say they'll keep fighting a project they see as corporate welfare. Friday's back-and-forth came after The Washington Post reported that Amazon is reconsidering its planned New York City headquarters because of opposition from local politicians. (AP Photo/Karen Matthews, File) "And that's what could stop Amazon," he said at an unrelated event on Long Island. "I've never seen a more absurd situation where political pandering, and obvious pandering, so defeats a bona fide economic development project." "It is irresponsible to allow political opposition to overcome sound government policy," he said. Cuomo and the Senate leadership are Democrats, as are many of the deal's critics. Cuomo and Democratic Mayor Bill de Blasio say Amazon will transform Queens' Long Island City area into a high-tech hub and spur economic growth that will pay for the $2.8 billion in state and city incentives many times over. "The mayor fully expects Amazon to deliver on its promise to New Yorkers," spokesman Eric Phillips said in response to the Post's report. Construction-industry groups urged the public and officials to get behind a plan projected to create at least 25,000 jobs in a decade: "It's time to stop the showboating," declared Gary LaBarbera, president of the Building and Construction Trades Council of Greater New York, a group of unions. Critics see the project as an extravagant giveaway to one of the world's biggest companies and argue it won't provide much direct benefit to most New Yorkers. Several welcomed the news that Amazon might be rethinking the plan. "We rose up and held the line. ... It's not over, but I'm proud of the values we fought for," Democratic City Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer, who represents Long Island City, said in a statement. Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, whose district includes some nearby neighborhoods, suggested on Twitter that the report showed people can "come together and effectively organize against creeping overreach of one of the world's biggest corporations." The Post said no firm decision had been made about whether Amazon would pull out of the deal. "I don't know if they're serious or not, and frankly, I don't care," said Sen. Michael Gianaris, a Democrat who represents Long Island City and calls the agreement bad policy. "If their view is 'we're going to extort New York or we're going to leave,' then they should leave." State Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins nominated Gianaris earlier this week to a little-known state panel that could ultimately be asked to approve the subsidies. Cuomo has the final say over appointments. After Cuomo's remarks Friday, a spokesman for Stewart-Cousins said it was "unfortunate that the governor is trying to divide the Democratic Party at this crucial and historic time." A Quinnipiac University poll released in December found New York City voters support having an Amazon headquarters, by 57-26 percent. But they were divided on the incentives: 46 percent in favor, 44 percent against. The survey had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.8 percentage points. ___ David Klepper reported from Albany. Associated Press writer Bernard Condon in New York contributed. ___ This story has been corrected to say that a quote that had been attributed to Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins came from her spokesman. FILE - This Nov. 14, 2018 file photo shows New York State Sen. Michael Gianaris, center, as he calls on supporters to remove the Amazon app from their phones and boycott the company, as he address a coalition rally and press conference, in New York. Gov. Andrew Cuomo warns that what he calls "political pandering" to critics of Amazon's proposed secondary headquarters could sink New York's biggest-ever economic development deal. But opponents say they'll keep fighting a project they see as corporate welfare. Friday's back-and-forth came after The Washington Post reported that Amazon is reconsidering its planned New York City headquarters because of opposition from local politicians.(AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews, File) FILE - This Nov. 13, 2018 file photo shows a seagull flying while holding fish scraps near a former dock facility, with "Long Island" painted on old transfer bridges at Gantry State Park in the Long Island City section of the Queens Borough of New York. Gov. Andrew Cuomo warns that what he calls "political pandering" to critics of Amazon's proposed secondary headquarters could sink New York's biggest-ever economic development deal. But opponents say they'll keep fighting a project they see as corporate welfare. Friday's back-and-forth came after The Washington Post reported that Amazon is reconsidering its planned New York City headquarters because of opposition from local politicians. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews, File) OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) - Amid a measles outbreak that has sickened more than 50 people in the Pacific Northwest, Washington lawmakers heard testimony Friday on a bill that would remove parents' ability to claim a personal or philosophical exemption to opt their school-age children out of the combined measles, mumps and rubella vaccine. Hundreds of people opposed to the measure lined up more than an hour before the start of the hearing before the House Health Care and Wellness Committee, many wearing stickers with the bill number, HB 1638, within a crossed out circle. The bill comes as health officials have reported at least 52 known cases in Washington state and four in Oregon. Most of the Washington cases are concentrated in Clark County, just north of Portland, Oregon. The measure is sponsored by a lawmaker from that region, Republican Rep. Paul Harris of Vancouver, and has the support of the state medical association and Gov. Jay Inslee. Inslee declared a state of emergency last month. Harris said people in his area are "concerned about our community, its immunity and the community safety." The measure does allow proof of disease immunity through laboratory evidence or history of disease to substitute for immunization. Currently, the state allows school-vaccination exemptions for children at public or private schools or licensed day-care centers based on medical, religious and personal or philosophical beliefs. Unless an exemption is claimed, a child is required to be vaccinated against or show proof of acquired immunity of nearly a dozen diseases - including polio, whooping cough and mumps - before they can attend school or a child care center. Kebby Johnson, center, of Spokane, Wash., holds a sign that reads "Say No to HB 1638," as she waits in line, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, to attend a public hearing before the House Health Care & Wellness Committee at the Capitol in Olympia, Wash. Amid a measles outbreak that has sickened people in Washington state and Oregon, lawmakers heard public testimony Friday on a bill that would remove parents' ability to claim a philosophical exemption to opt their school-age children out of the combined measles, mumps and rubella vaccine. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren) John Wiesman, the secretary of the state Department of Health, said the effort to limit exemptions is "about safe schools and protecting vulnerable children." Wiesman told the panel that compared to other outbreaks in the state in the past decade, "the outbreak we are dealing with right now is larger and infecting people faster than recent history." Opponents testifying against the bill included environmental activist Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., who questioned safety standards around vaccines. Susie Corgan, with Informed Choice Washington, said after the hearing that parents who are worried about their children having adverse reactions to vaccines have a right to philosophical exemptions. "Where there is risk, there must be choice, and there is risk with this vaccine as there is with any other medical procedure," she said. Four percent of Washington secondary school students have non-medical vaccine exemptions, according to the state Department of Health. Of those, 3.7 percent of the exemptions are personal, with the remainder being religious exemptions. In Clark County, 6.7 percent of kindergartners had a non-medical exemption for the 2017-18 school year, according to health officials. Washington is among 17 states, including Oregon, that allow some type of non-medical exemption for vaccines for "personal, moral or other beliefs," according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Legislation introduced in Washington state in 2015 that would have removed the personal or philosophical belief allowance for an exemption to childhood vaccines never made it to the House floor for a vote after it faced stiff opposition. Both the WSMA and Inslee also support a broader bill that was introduced in the Senate earlier this week. That measure, which has not yet been scheduled for a hearing, would not allow personal or philosophical exemptions to be granted for any required school vaccinations. California removed personal belief vaccine exemptions for children in both public and private schools in 2015, after a measles outbreak at Disneyland sickened 147 people and spread across the U.S. and into Canada. Vermont also abandoned its personal exemption in 2015. A woman holds a sign opposing a proposed bill that would remove parents' ability to claim a philosophical exemption to opt their school-age children out of the combined measles, mumps and rubella vaccine as she stands near the Legislative Building, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, following a public hearing before the House Health Care & Wellness Committee at the Capitol in Olympia, Wash. Amid a measles outbreak that has sickened people in Washington state and Oregon, lawmakers heard public testimony Friday on the bill. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren) Robert Kennedy Jr., center, and Dr. Toni Bark, left, wait to testify Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, during a public hearing before the House Health Care & Wellness Committee at the Capitol in Olympia, Wash. Amid a measles outbreak that has sickened people in Washington state and Oregon, lawmakers heard public testimony on a bill that would remove parents' ability to claim a philosophical exemption to opt their school-age children out of the combined measles, mumps and rubella vaccine. Both Bark and Kennedy spoke against the bill. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren) Robert Kennedy Jr. testifies Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, during a public hearing before the House Health Care & Wellness Committee at the Capitol in Olympia, Wash. Amid a measles outbreak that has sickened people in Washington state and Oregon, lawmakers heard public testimony on a bill that would remove parents' ability to claim a philosophical exemption to opt their school-age children out of the combined measles, mumps and rubella vaccine. Kennedy spoke against the bill. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren) Rep. Monica Stonier, D-Vancouver, lower left, and Rep. Laurie Jenkins, D-Tacoma, right, listen Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, during a public hearing before the House Health Care & Wellness Committee at the Capitol in Olympia, Wash. Amid a measles outbreak that has sickened people in Washington state and Oregon, lawmakers heard public testimony Friday on a bill that would remove parents' ability to claim a philosophical exemption to opt their school-age children out of the combined measles, mumps and rubella vaccine. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren) People opposed to a bill that would remove parents' ability to claim a philosophical exemption to opt their school-age children out of the combined measles, mumps and rubella vaccine listen to testimony Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, during a public hearing before the House Health Care & Wellness Committee at the Capitol in Olympia, Wash. Amid a measles outbreak that has sickened people in Washington state and Oregon, lawmakers heard public testimony on the bill Friday. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren) WASHINGTON (AP) - A top Saudi official on Friday insisted his country's crown prince had no role in the October slaying of a Washington Post columnist, saying the trial of the suspects and the ongoing investigation would show it was a "rogue operation" with no official backing. Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel Al-Jubeir spoke to reporters as legislation was introduced in Congress to block some arms sales to the kingdom over the killing of writer Jamal Khashoggi and the widespread deaths of civilians in the war in Yemen. "We know that the crown prince did not order this. We know that this was a rogue operation," he said. "We came out and we acknowledged it. It was committed by officials of the Saudi government acting outside their authority." The New York Times reported Thursday that U.S. intelligence agencies intercepted a 2017 conversation in which Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman told a top aide that he would use "a bullet" on Khashoggi if he did not return home to Saudi Arabia. He who wrote columns critical of the Saudi government while living in self-imposed exile in Virginia. U.S. intelligence agencies had previously concluded that the crown prince must have at least had knowledge of the plot, leading some members of Congress to call for him to step down as the de facto leader of the country. Al-Jubeir bristled at the notion that outsiders would criticize the government. FILE - In this Dec. 15, 2014, file photo, Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi speaks during a press conference in Manama, Bahrain. An independent U.N. human rights expert says authorities in Saudi Arabia quietly held a second court hearing for 11 people facing charges over the killing of Khashoggi. Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist who wrote critically about Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was killed inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2, 2018. (AP Photo/Hasan Jamali, File) "Our leadership is a red line," he said. "Our leadership leads the country. I think for anyone to think they can dictate what we should do or what our leadership should do is preposterous." The killing, he said repeatedly, was a "terrible crime" and those responsible will be held accountable. Khashoggi entered the Saudi consulate in Istanbul to get a document he needed for his upcoming marriage while his fiancee waited outside. He was never seen alive again. After denying for several weeks that Khashoggi was killed in the consulate, Saudi Arabia indicted 11 people in the killing, including several officials close to the crown prince, and is seeking the death penalty against five of them. The killing has strained relations between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia. In Congress, criticism over the kingdom's handling of the war in Yemen had already been building for months. Lawmakers, including Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey and Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, introduced legislation Friday that would prohibit certain arms sales to Saudi Arabia in response to the killing of Khashoggi and its role in Yemen. It was introduced on the date that the Trump administration was supposed to inform Congress on its determination of whether the crown prince was personally responsible for the killing of Khashoggi. "Seeing as the Trump Administration has no intention of insisting on full accountability for Mr. Khashoggi's murderers, it is time for Congress to step in and impose real consequences to fundamentally re-examine our relationship with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and with the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen," Sen. Menendez said in a statement introducing the legislation. ___ Associated Press writer Ben Fox contributed to this report. FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - His political future down to a coin flip, a Kentucky Republican walked away from an election challenge Friday in a decision that will keep a Democrat in the state legislature and likely avoid a lengthy lawsuit. Democrat Jim Glenn defeated Republican DJ Johnson on Election Day by a one-vote margin. Kentucky has no automatic recounts, so the State Board of Elections certified Glenn as the winner. But Johnson had asked the GOP-dominated House of Representatives for a recount, relying on a rarely used state law that lets legislative candidates contest election results. That recount found nine additional votes - five for Johnson and four for Glenn - giving each candidate 6,323 votes. Johnson's attorney told lawmakers on Friday that they had to pick a winner by drawing lots, suggesting a coin flip or picking a name out of a hat. But Glenn's lawyer vowed to file a lawsuit should he be removed from office. That's when Johnson withdrew his challenge. "Unfortunately, Mr. Glenn chooses not to accept what this board does, chooses not to accept the rule of law," Johnson said. "The best solution would be for me to win the coin toss and I get seated. That would be best for me. What's best for my district, what's best for people in my community, is that we end this." FILE - In this Jan. 8, 2019, file photo, incoming state Rep. Jim Glenn, D-Owensboro, is sworn in during a ceremony at the Kentucky House of Representatives in Frankfort, Ky. Republican candidate DJ Johnson has withdrawn his challenge of a close Kentucky state House race. Glenn defeated Johnson by one vote in Kentucky House district 13 on Election Day. But a legislative panel of six Republicans and three Democrats ordered a recount in the race at Johnson's request. That recount ended in a tie. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley, File) Glenn shook Johnson's hand after the meeting and thanked him for his decision. But Glenn disputed Johnson's characterization that he was not accepting "the rule of law." "I'm a grown man. I won this race," Glenn said. "I wasn't planning to go back for a coin toss. We're not in elementary school where we are shooting marbles. This is serious business." The decision also saves the Republican majority in the state House of Representatives from potentially having to remove a Democrat from office. When Johnson contested the election, the House appointed six Republicans and three Democrats - all chosen by random drawing - to an Election Contest Board to oversee the process. Republican state Rep. Jason Petrie, the board's chairman, vowed to follow the law. But he also noted the final decision of who won the election lies with the House of Representatives, where Republicans control 61 out of 100 seats. Democrats criticized the process as overly partisan, and Glenn's lawyer had asked the state's Democratic Attorney General Andy Beshear to investigate. All of that went away on Friday when Johnson withdrew his challenge. "The recount did not give us that definitive voice of the people, and that makes us disappointed," Petrie said. "Mr. Johnson made the right call. ... If we go through a draw-by-lot or coin flip, then that's not the voice of the people, that's just luck." Last week, the Daviess County Clerk's Office recounted more than 12,000 ballots by hand. When they finished, Glenn led by three votes. But after a personal appeal form Johnson and his attorney, the Daviess County Board of Elections reversed an earlier decision and gave him one of those votes back. The board then decided to open five absentee ballots they had rejected on Election Day for various reasons. Of those five votes, one was blank, Johnson received three and Glenn received one - giving each candidate 6,323 votes. Nationwide, at least 80 recounts resulted from the 2018 elections, changing an average of 4.8 votes per race, according to research form Johnson's legal team. Of those races, five had been decided by a one-vote margin. The Kentucky House of Representatives had essentially been on hold while the election challenge was pending, not voting on any legislation. That will change Monday when lawmakers return. Glenn said he plans to spend the day Friday filing several bills. "I'm going to move on and try to help the people of the 13th district," he said. Johnson said he would return home and "get my life back in order" and decide what to do next. He said he did not know if he would run against Glenn again in 2020. "I will leave it at this: I did not throw away my yard signs," he said. DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - The Latest on Sen. Cory Booker's first presidential campaign visit to Iowa (all times local): 1 p.m. New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker is stressing a theme of social justice on the first visit of his presidential campaign to Iowa. Booker's first stop Friday was to a crowded church basement in Mason City, where he said denying health-care coverage was like denying civil rights. Booker was opening his inaugural Iowa event using the rhetoric reminiscent of the civil rights movement to distinguish himself early in the race. Although Iowa is a vastly white state, the theme of social justice resonates within the state's Democratic base. Booker announced his candidacy for the presidency last week. In this Feb. 7, 2019, photo, Senate Judiciary Committee member Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., arrives as the panel meets to vote on the nomination of William Barr to be attorney general, on Capitol Hill in Washington. Booker is taking his call for social justice to Iowa, where he plans to visit with black leaders this weekend on his first trip to the early 2020 caucus state as a Democratic presidential candidate. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) ___ 6 a.m. New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker is taking his call for social justice to Iowa, where he plans to visit with African-American leaders on his first trip to the early 2020 caucus state as a Democratic presidential candidate. Booker is using rhetoric reminiscent of the civil rights movement to distinguish himself early in the 2020 race. And although Iowa is a vastly white state, the sentiment echoes within the state's Democratic base. During his two-day trip beginning Friday, Booker is also scheduled to campaign at a Mason City church known for its support of same-sex marriages. He is also scheduled to make stops in Cedar Rapids, Iowa City, Marshalltown and Des Moines. Booker announced his candidacy last week. OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - The Nebraska Supreme Court on Friday disbarred an already-suspended attorney who played a key defense role for a former doctor convicted of killing four people with ties to an Omaha medical school. Jeremy Jorgenson, 44, violated state law and attorney rules of conduct by continuing to make filings and practice law after his 2017 suspension, the high court found. It said he also failed to inform clients of his suspension or return their money. Jorgenson had blamed depression and alcohol abuse for his failings, the high court said, but noted he "did not present any evidence beyond his own testimony that he had depression and alcohol abuse issues and that he participated in group meetings." A working phone number for Jorgenson could not be found Friday. His disbarment is the latest in a string of troubles Jorgenson has faced since agreeing in 2016 to help represent Anthony Garcia in the former doctor's first-degree murder case . Garcia was convicted months later of killing the 11-year-old son and a housekeeper of Creighton University faculty member William Hunter in 2008 and killing pathology doctor Roger Brumback and his wife in 2013. Prosecutors said Garcia blamed Hunter and Brumback for his 2001 firing from Creighton's pathology residency program. Garcia was sentenced last year to death. Jorgenson saw his Nebraska law license suspended indefinitely last February for missing oral arguments before the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in 2016 and for failing to promptly respond to questions about a client complaint. In both instances, Jorgenson partly blamed his transgressions on the onus of handling the Garcia case. But Jorgenson's role was arguably minimal, as he merely served as a sponsor for the Chicago law firm representing Garcia. Nebraska law allows out-of-state attorneys to practice in Nebraska, as long as they appear with a Nebraska attorney. Following a series of conflicts and reprimands against the Chicago firm, the Nebraska lawyers who had been sponsoring them bowed out. That's when Jorgenson and his partner stepped in to sponsor Garcia's legal team. Following Jorgenson's suspension last year, he pleaded no contest to two counts of misdemeanor child abuse and witness tampering involving his wife's 7-year-old son. Prosecutors say that after the boy threw a toy, Jorgenson picked the boy up by his shirt collar and dropped him. One of the boy's wrists was broken. Investigators say he then instructed the boy and mother to lie to hospital staff about how the injury had occurred. Jorgenson is set to be sentenced in that case next week and faces up to a year in jail on each count. CHICAGO (AP) - The Latest on shooting of 1-year-old Chicago boy (all times local): 12:45 p.m. Chicago Police say the gunman who opened fire on an SUV and shot a 1-year-old boy in the head may have been aiming at the child's mother. Department spokesman Anthony Guglielmi says Thursday evening's shooting that left the 1-year-old boy in very critical condition and on life support was not a random act and that detectives are trying to determine if the boy's mother, who was also in the vehicle, may have been the target. Police say the boy's grandmother was dropping someone off at a home on the city's South Side on Thursday when someone in a dark-colored car fired as many as eight shots. Police say the grandmother did not see who fired or get a good look at the vehicle because by the time she turned around after hearing the sound of a window of her SUV shatter, the boy had been shot in the head. No arrests have been made and Guglielmi says that police are collecting footage from surveillance video cameras in the area in the hopes of getting a look at the suspect and the vehicle the suspect was in. ___ 11:27 a.m. Chicago police say a 1-year-old boy was shot while sitting in the back seat of a car parked on a street on the city's South Side has been placed on life support and is on critical condition. Department spokesman Anthony Guglielmi says the boy's grandmother was dropping someone off Thursday night when she heard glass breaking and looked back to see that the baby had been shot. Police say two other children were also in the car at the time. Guglielmi says police believe that the shooter may have mistaken the car for another vehicle and opened fire. He says there is no reason to believe the grandmother was a target and police do not believe the gunman was aiming for another vehicle. No arrests have been made. ___ 8:01 a.m. Chicago police say a 1-year-old boy was shot in the head while sitting in the back seat of a car parked on a street on the city's South Side. Police say the shooting happened Thursday evening. Chicago police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi says the boy's grandmother was dropping someone off on the block when she heard glass breaking. She looked in the car and saw the baby had been shot. Police say two other children were also in the car at the time. Authorities say the baby is hospitalized in critical condition. Police said a dark, older-model vehicle pulled up and someone inside opened fire. Guglielmi says police are investigating and that the shooter may have mistaken the car's identity. No arrests have been made. CONROE, Texas (AP) - An MMA fighter facing murder charges who prompted a nine-hour manhunt when he escaped from a prison van said he had "nothing to do with" the deaths of his ex-girlfriend and her friend. During a Thursday video call from a Texas jail, Cedric Marks told TV station KPRC2 that he did not kill Jenna Scott or her friend Michael Swearingin. The pair had been missing from their Texas home for more than a week when their bodies were found in a shallow grave in Clearview, Oklahoma, on Jan. 15. "I can only imagine what's going on with their family and I am so sorry for their losses, but I did not and had nothing to do with this," Marks said. Marks was arrested in Michigan last month on a Texas charge alleging he broke into Scott's home on Aug 21. He somehow got free from a private prison van that was bringing him from Michigan to Texas on Sunday, the same day Texas officials issued murder warrants. Authorities recaptured him nine hours later. But Marks, 44, said he "was not trying to escape" from the van that stopped outside a McDonald's near Houston. "I was actually in fear and I was not going anywhere at all," he said. Neither police nor the company that was transporting Marks, Texas Prisoner Transportation Service, have explained how he managed to get loose while wearing leg, hand and belly restraints. Marks declined to discuss his escape with the TV station. The middleweight fighter was found hiding in trash can in a residential neighborhood less than a mile (1.61 kilometers) from the McDonald's. FILE - This undated booking photo released by Bell County Sheriff's Office shows Cedric Marks. The MMA fighter accused of killing two people before escaping from a private prison van says he had "nothing to do with" the bodies found buried in Oklahoma last month. Marks told KPRC2 during a Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, video call from a Texas jail that he's not guilty of the slayings of Jenna Scott and Michael Swearingin. Marks says that police "coerced" a witness against him and that he "was not trying to escape" when he somehow freed himself Sunday from the van stopped at a McDonald's outside Houston. (Bell County Sheriff's Office via AP, File) In the interview with KPRC2, Marks also challenged the account of the woman who appears to be the primary witness against him, Maya Maxwell. Maxwell told police that she was there when Marks allegedly killed Scott and Swearingin in a Texas house on Jan. 3, according to an affidavit Temple police filed Tuesday in Bell County District Court. She also said that she was present when their bodies were moved more than 350 miles (563 kilometers) north and buried in Oklahoma, but she did not make clear what role she or Marks played in these actions. Maxwell is being held on a felony charge of tampering with evidence in the Bell County Jail, which does not list an attorney for her. Marks said he believes police forced Maxwell's statements. "I believe that they coerced her and scared her and forced her to say some things, but none of this has involved me," he said. Marks is being held on a more than $1.75 million bond for charges including capital murder. He is also a person of interest in the 2009 disappearance of April Pease, the mother of one of his children, according to police in Bloomington, Minnesota. The couple had been involved in a custody dispute in Washington state when Pease, who had a drug problem, went to live in a Bloomington women's shelter because she said she was afraid of Marks, according to court documents. WASHINGTON (AP) - The head of the Food and Drug Administration is questioning whether electronic cigarette maker Juul and its new partner Altria are following through on pledges to help reverse the boom in underage vaping. FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb on Friday posted letters he sent to Juul and Altria, the maker of Marlboro cigarettes and other tobacco products. He called for a joint meeting to discuss what he calls "inconsistent" statements from the companies. Gottlieb and other government officials have been scrambling to contain a surge in underage vaping. Under federal law, people must be at least 18 years old to purchase vaping products yet the latest federal survey found 1 in 5 high school students used e-cigarettes. Last year's uptick coincided with the rise of Juul, a small vaping device that accounts for about three-quarters of the U.S. e-cigarette market. In December, Altria paid nearly $13 billion to purchase a 35 percent stake in Juul, a Silicon Valley startup which has portrayed its products as a less harmful alternative for adult cigarette smokers. E-cigarettes heat a nicotine solution into a vapor that's inhaled. The acquisition came after Altria told the FDA it was pulling some of its own flavored e-cigarettes off the market to be "part of the solution." The company said specifically that cartridge-based products, which include Juul, "significantly contribute to the rise in youth use of e-vapor products." FILE - This Thursday, Dec. 20, 2018 file photo shows a Juul electronic cigarette starter kit at a smoke shop in New York. According to letters released on Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, the head of the Food and Drug Administration is questioning whether electronic cigarette maker Juul and its new partner Altria are following through on pledges to help reverse the current epidemic of underage vaping. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig) But since investing in Juul, Altria has announced plans to use its vast supply chain to expand Juul's footprint to some 230,000 convenience stores and retailers across the U.S. Altria is the parent company of Philip Morris USA, the nation's largest tobacco company. Gottlieb said the company's recent actions don't match its previous statements. "I want to understand what's changed from a public health standpoint that their posture has changed," Gottlieb said Friday. In response, the two companies said they remain committed to stopping teens from getting their products. "Both Altria and Juul have taken significant steps that exceed what others in the industry have done," said Altria spokesman Steven Callahan, in an emailed statement. In November, the FDA proposed but hasn't yet implemented tighter restrictions on the e-cigarette industry, including limits on sales in convenience stores and online. Juul and Altria took steps to limit youth access ahead of the FDA's announcement. Juul voluntarily shut down its Facebook and Instagram accounts and pulled several of its fruit and candy flavors out of retail stores. Despite those voluntary measures, Gottlieb said he doubts youth vaping will decline this year. That could require regulations that would force some or all e-cigarettes off the market, he said. "If the rates of youth use continue to increase sharply we're going to have to take additional steps - there's no question about that," he said. After taking charge of FDA in 2017, Gottlieb outlined a mostly hands-off approach toward vaping, delaying FDA reviews of Juul and other e-cigarettes until 2022. Gottlieb still says he doesn't want to over-regulate an industry that could provide a safer option for adult smokers. Several anti-smoking groups are suing the FDA to immediately begin reviewing e-cigarettes. ___ The Associated Press Health & Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Kaspersky Lab is announcing the availability of its DDoS Q4 2018 Intelligence Report, which covers statistics of last quarter of the year as well as all of 2018. The report highlights a decline (13%) in the overall number of DDoS attacks when compared to the previous year, however, the company's experts noticed a trend in cybercriminals turning to longer, more sophisticated, mixed and HTTP flood attack techniques. DDoS Attacks in Q4 2018 In the last quarter of the year, the longest DDoS attack lasted 329 hours (almost 14 days) - such a long attack was last registered at the end of 2015. In addition, the top three counties with the most DDoS attacks remain the same - with China in first place, although its share dropped significantly (from 77.67% to 50.43%), the U.S. remaining in second and third place with Australia for the second quarter in a row since reporting began. By geographical target distribution, China continues to top the list but its share declined significantly from 70.58 percent in Q3 to 43.26 percent while all other top 10 countries increased in their shares. In second place was the U.S. (29.14%) followed with Australia (5.91%) in third. In Q4 2018, Kaspersky Lab also witnessed changes in the countries hosting the most command & control (C&C) servers. As in the previous quarter, the U.S. remained the leader, but the UK and the Netherlands came second and third, replacing Russia and Greece respectively. Experts believe this is because of the number of active C&C Mirai servers increasing significantly in the aforementioned countries. DDoS attacks in 2018: Duration on the rise Although the number of attacks in 2018 decreased, Kaspersky Lab experts found that the average attack duration grew. Compared with the beginning of the year, the average length of attacks has more than doubled - from 95 minutes in Q1 to 218 minutes in Q4 2018. Complex attacks, such as HTTP misuse, which require time and money, continue to remain lengthy. As the report revealed, the HTTP flood method and mixed attacks with HTTP component, which shares were relatively small (17% and 14%), constituted about 80 percent of DDoS attack time for the whole year. Accounting for almost half (49%) of the DDoS attacks in 2018, the most common type of attack is actually User Datagram Protocol (UDP) flooding, but these attacks observed over the year rarely last more than five minutes. Kaspersky Lab experts assume that the decline in the duration of UDP flood attacks illustrates that the market for easy-to-organize attacks is continuing to shrink. Protection from DDoS attacks of this type is becoming widely implemented, making them ineffective in most cases. The researchers propose that attackers launched numerous UDP flood attacks to test whether a targeted resource is not protected. "When cybercriminals do not achieve their goals of earning money by launching simple DDoS attacks, they have two options," said Alexey Kiselev, business development manager on the Kaspersky DDoS Protection team. "They can reconfigure the capacities required for DDoS attacks towards other sources of revenue, such as cryptomining, or malefactors who orchestrate DDoS attacks have to improve their technical skills, as their customers will look for more experienced attackers. Given this, we can anticipate that DDoS attacks will evolve in 2019 and it will become harder for companies to detect them and stay protected." According to Kaspersky Lab researchers, as more and more organizations adopt solutions to protect themselves from simple types of DDoS attacks, 2019 will likely see attackers improve their expertise to overcome standard DDoS protection measures and bring overall complexity of this type of threat to the next level. Kaspersky Lab recommends the following steps to protect an organization from DDOS attacks: Train and make IT personnel aware of how to respond to DDoS incidents. Ensure that the organization's websites and web applications can handle high traffic. Use professional solutions to protect against all types of DDoS attacks regardless of their complexity, strength or duration. Read the full report on Securelist: https://securelist.com/ddos-attacks-in-q4-2018/89565 PARIS (AP) - Several thousand supporters of an exiled Iranian opposition group marched through Paris on Friday, calling for an end to Iran's clerical regime 40 years after the Islamic revolution toppled Iran's monarchy. The Mujahedeen-e-Khalq, widely referred to in the West as the MEK, were joined at the rally by an array of speakers before the march, from former and current French politicians to a one-time Algerian prime minister and a Syrian opposition figure. Crowds waved posters of group leader Maryam Rajavi and founder Massoud Rajavi - not seen since 2003 in Iraq, where the MEK once had a camp and waged war against Iran before being disarmed by invading U.S. troops. The group bases its headquarters outside Paris with several thousand members in Albania, extracted in a U.N.-brokered effort from Iraq. Supporters are scattered elsewhere in the West as part of the Iranian diaspora. Security was tight during the rally and march through Paris' Left Bank. The group's annual rally last year was the target of an alleged bomb plot, which was thwarted by arrests. An Austrian-based Iranian diplomat is being held in Belgium, where police found bomb material in the car of a couple of Iranian origin. "As long as we're dealing with the main state sponsor of terrorism, there is a concern ... But that will never stop us," MEK spokesman Shahin Gobadi said. The MEK hones to U.S. President Donald Trump's hard line on Iran, and supports U.S. sanctions on Iran. Supporters of Maryam Rajavi, the leader of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, demonstrate in Paris, Friday Feb.8, 2019 as Iran marks the 40th anniversary of its Islamic Revolution. (AP Photo/Francois Mori) One speaker, former French Sen. Jean-Pierre Michel, said in an interview that "I'm not a fanatic of Mr. Trump ... but I think the United States is right about Iran." He chastised Europeans for what he views as their softer approach to Tehran. Michel, 80, is a long-time supporter of the Mujahedeen, which has drawn around it numerous U.S. and European parliamentarians and former officials who disagree with critics' portrayal of the organization as cult-like. He praised MEK for having a woman at its head who says she wants democracy and separation of church and state in a future Iran, and he hopes one day to visit Tehran with Rajavi, saying, "It keeps me alive." Supporters of Maryam Rajavi, the leader of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, demonstrate in Paris, Friday Feb.8, 2019 as Iran marks the 40th anniversary of its Islamic Revolution. (AP Photo/Francois Mori) Supporters of Maryam Rajavi, the leader of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, gather during a rally in Paris, Friday Feb.8, 2019 as Iran marks the 40th anniversary of its Islamic Revolution. (AP Photo/Francois Mori) Demonstrators carry posters of Maryam Rajavi, the leader of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, during a protest in Paris, Friday Feb.8, 2019 as Iran marks the 40th anniversary of its Islamic Revolution. (AP Photo/Francois Mori) Demosntrators carry posters of Maryam Rajavi, the leader of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, during a protest in Paris, Friday Feb.8, 2019 as Iran marks the 40th anniversary of its Islamic Revolution. (AP Photo/Francois Mori) AMMAN, Jordan (AP) - Negotiators say Yemen's warring sides agreed to exchange bodies of some of those killed in the country's 4-year-old civil war. Representatives of Yemen's internationally recognized government and Iran-backed Houthi rebels said they agreed Friday that each side will hand over 1,000 bodies in three stages. The first stage will see the release of bodies from morgues. The war has claimed tens of thousands of lives. The agreement came after four days of talks in Jordan, as part of efforts to implement agreements reached in principle in December. The negotiators say they also made progress on an exchange of prisoners and would now consult with their leaders. A deal on a prisoner swap has stalled because each side seeks the release of more prisoners than the other claims to be holding. CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP) - The Latest on a 20-year-old Salvadoran immigrant accused of murdering four people in Nevada last month (all times local): 10:20 a.m. A 20-year-old Salvadoran immigrant accused of murdering four people in Nevada last month will be tried on four murder counts in Reno before he faces burglary charges in Carson City. Wilber Martinez-Guzman waived his right Friday to a speedy preliminary hearing in Carson City Justice Court on the burglary charges related to items he allegedly stole from some of the victims. Prosecutors in both counties said family of the victims preferred the more serious charges be addressed first in district court in Reno. Carson City prosecutor Melanie Brantingham says she expects Martinez-Guzman to be extradited early next week to the Washoe County Jail in Reno where he will be held without bail. Wilber Martinez-Guzman is escorted into Carson City Justice Court on Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, before his preliminary hearing was postponed on multiple counts stemming from his alleged murder of four people in northern Nevada last month. The 20-year-old Salvadoran immigrant waived his right to speedy proceedings in Carson City on burglary charges related to items stolen from some of the victims. Prosecutors say he's expected to be extradited to Reno next week to face four murder counts first. (AP Photo/Scott Sonner) His public defender agreed to postpone the preliminary hearing that was scheduled Friday on multiple counts of burglary, possession of stolen property and obtaining money under false pretenses. ___ 8 a.m. A 20-year-old Salvadoran accused of killing four people in Nevada last month is going before a justice of the peace who will consider whether he should be tried initially on burglary charges related to items he is accused of stealing from the victims. A preliminary hearing is scheduled in Carson City Justice Court Friday to determine whether there's enough evidence so Wilber Martinez-Guzman can be ordered to stand trial for burglary, possession of stolen property and obtaining money by false pretenses. The stolen property includes jewelry and a .22-caliber revolver that prosecutors say Martinez-Guzman told investigators he stole from a Reno couple less than two weeks before he fatally shot them with it at their home on Jan. 16. Prosecutors have said those victims, 81-year-old Gerald David and 80-year-old Sharon David, employed him as a landscaper at their Reno property last summer. Federal immigration officials say Martinez-Guzman entered the United States illegally but they haven's disclosed when or where. Washoe County District Attorney Chris Hicks, right, answers a reporter's question during a news conference in Reno, Nevada on Monday, Jan. 28, 2019, about murder charges filed against Wilber Martinez-Guzman in the killings of four people in northern Nevada earlier this month as Douglas County Sheriff Dan Coverley, left, and Douglas County District Attorney Mark Jackson, center, look on. (AP Photo/Scott Sonner) FILE - In this Thursday, Jan. 24, 2019 file photo Wilber Ernesto Martinez-Guzman, of El Salvador, listens to his public defender and interpreter during his initial appearance in Carson City Justice Court, in Carson City, Nev. Nevada prosecutors are set to announce their plans for the prosecution of Martinez-Guzman an El Salvadoran immigrant identified as the prime suspect in four killings. Martinez-Guzman has been jailed since his arrest more than a week ago. He was charged Thursday with possessing weapons and selling jewelry belonging to several victims. Prosecutors say they'll announce their prosecution plans at a news conference on Monday, Jan. 28. Authorities have said Martinez-Guzman was in the U.S. illegally. (AP Photo/Scott Sonner,File) FILE - In this Jan. 24, 2019 file photo, Wilber Ernesto Martinez-Guzman, 19, of El Salvador, is escorted into the courtroom for his initial appearance in Carson City Justice Court in Carson City, Nev. Prosecutors say Martinez-Guzman, a Salvadoran immigrant accused of being in the U.S. illegally, has been charged with murder in shooting deaths of four people in their homes in Nevada. District attorneys from two counties announced the charges against Martinez-Guzman on Monday, Jan. 28. (AP Photo/Scott Sonner, File) JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - The Latest on an oil leak near St. Louis (all times local): 12:15 p.m. TransCanada says its Keystone pipeline is likely the source of an oil leak near St. Louis. Spokesman Terry Cunha in a Friday statement said crews continue to excavate the St. Charles County area where the leak was discovered Wednesday. He said TransCanada's preliminary investigation points to Keystone. A spokesman for Enbridge Inc. said it's "highly confident" that its nearby Platte pipeline wasn't the source. The leak prompted closures of sections of both the Keystone and Platte pipelines. Excavation equipment is used to search for an oil leak close to where the TransCanada Corp's Keystone oil pipeline runs through northern St. Charles County off of Highway C, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, near St. Charles, Mo. The source of the oil leak has not yet been identified but the Keystone oil pipeline has been shut and the Missouri Department of Natural Resources official said the the release is stopped. (David Carson/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP) Enbridge spokesman Devin Hotzel said Friday that the company expects its pipeline will be operating normally by Saturday. Cunha says there's no estimated time for the Keystone pipeline to return to service. The Missouri Department of Natural Resources has estimated that about 43 barrels, or 1,800 gallons (6,814 liters), of oil leaked. It said the oil did not get into any waterways. ___ noon Enbridge Inc. says it's "highly confident" that its Platte pipeline wasn't the source of an oil leak near St. Louis. TransCanada's Keystone pipeline also runs through the area where the leak occurred . A spokesman for the company didn't immediately return an Associated Press request for comment Friday. A Missouri Department of Natural Resources spokesman says excavation of the Keystone pipeline in St. Charles County will begin Friday. The leak was discovered Wednesday. It prompted closures of sections of both the Keystone and Platte pipelines as crews sought out the source. Enbridge spokesman Devin Hotzel said Friday that the company expects its pipeline will be operating normally by Saturday. The Department of Natural Resources has said the oil did not get into any waterways. WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. (AP) - A police detective who was shot in the jaw has lashed out at the teenager who pulled the trigger during an emotional sentencing hearing in the New York City suburbs. The Journal News says Yonkers Det. Kayla Maher (mahr) told 19-year-old Frank Valencia on Friday that she hopes he never feels safe and always has to watch his back. Judge Barry Warhit (WOHR'-hiht) pronounced a sentence of 24 years to life. The judge said it would be fine with him if the defendant never sees "the light of day." Maher was shot in September 2017 while checking out a suspicious vehicle. Other officers rescued her during an ensuing gun battle. Westchester County District Attorney Anthony A. Scarpino Jr. called the shooting "an attack on the entire Yonkers police force." Valencia says he hopes God can forgive him. ___ Information from: The Journal News, http://www.lohud.com Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden proposed legislation Friday that would give states a free hand to allow legal cannabis markets without the threat of federal criminal intervention, the latest push in Congress to bolster the nation's burgeoning pot industry. The proposal, identical to a bill in the House, aims to ease the longstanding conflict between states where cannabis is legal in some form and the U.S. government, which categorizes marijuana as a dangerous illegal drug, similar to LSD or heroin. "The federal prohibition of marijuana is wrong, plain and simple," Wyden, a Democrat, said in a statement. "Too many lives have been wasted, and too many economic opportunities have been missed." It remains unclear if Wyden's bill would have a chance of clearing the Republican-controlled Senate. The Democratic majority in the House appears more open to considering proposals to ease federal restrictions on marijuana. The chamber has set a hearing next week on a bill intended to make banking services more widely available for pot companies. A proposal similar to Wyden's previously languished in the Senate and House. FILE - In this Dec. 19, 2018, file photo, Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., joined at left by Sen. Patty Murray, D-Ore., speaks during a news conference to press Congress to intervene on behalf of the Affordable Care Act, after a federal judge in Texas ruled it unconstitutional, on Capitol Hill in Washington. Wyden has proposed legislation that would give states a free hand to allow legal marijuana markets without the threat of federal criminal intervention. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File) However, Rep. Earl Blumenauer, an Oregon Democrat carrying the current bill in the House, said voters have "elected the most pro-cannabis Congress in American history." "It's tough to see how things will shake out, but there is a very serious chance cannabis policy reform will move in the Senate," said Morgan Fox of the National Cannabis Industry Association. Most Americans live in states where pot can be legally purchased for medical or recreational use, and the move to loosen federal restrictions on marijuana came as the issue has played into the emerging 2020 presidential campaign. The proposal would take marijuana off the federal controlled substances list, and remove federal criminal penalties for individuals and businesses acting in compliance with state marijuana laws. It would also reduce barriers for legal marijuana businesses to get access to banking. The bill is part of a three-bill package: A second would impose a tax on marijuana products similar to federal excise taxes on alcohol, while a third would allow state-legal marijuana businesses to claim tax deductions and credits. Justin Strekal, political director of the pro-legalization group NORML, said in a statement that the proposal is another sign of the "growing public support for ending our failed war on cannabis consumers." Former House Speaker John Boehner, who sits on the board of cannabis company Acreage Holdings, on Friday announced the formation of an industry-backed lobbying group that would push for national marijuana reforms. FILE - In this April 24, 2018, file photo, a hemp plant is pollinated at the Unique Botanicals facility in Springfield, Ore. Sen. Ron Wyden from Oregon has proposed legislation that would give states a free hand to allow legal marijuana markets without the threat of federal criminal intervention. (AP Photo/Don Ryan, File) In this Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019 photo a bud tender helps customers at Serra a dispensary in Portland, Ore. A U.S. senator from Oregon has proposed legislation that would give states a free hand to allow legal marijuana markets without the threat of federal criminal intervention. (AP Photo/Richard Vogel) In this Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019 photo a bud tender helps customers at Serra a dispensary in Portland, Ore. A U.S. senator from Oregon has proposed legislation that would give states a free hand to allow legal marijuana markets without the threat of federal criminal intervention. (AP Photo/Richard Vogel) FREEPORT, Texas (AP) - A 6-year-old Houston-area girl with cancer had a dream come true when she was sworn in as an honorary police officer. Police in Freeport, Texas, tweeted details of Thursday's ceremony for Abigail Arias (AR'-ee-ahs). Chief Ray Garivey (gar-ee-VAY') had learned of Abigail's interest in law enforcement and swore her in. Abigail has Wilms' tumor, a type of childhood cancer that starts in the kidneys. Abigail wore a custom-made police uniform and stood on a stepladder as she raised her right hand while the police chief administered the oath. Freeport is a city of about 12,000 located 50 miles (80.46 kilometers) south of Houston. Uniformed officers from a number of agencies were on hand for the ceremony. In this Feb. 7, 2019 photo provided by the Freeport Police Department, 6-year-old Abigail Arias, who is battling cancer, is sworn in as a Texas police officer by Freeport Police Chief Ray Garivey in Freeport, Texas. The chief administered the oath to the girl, who wore a custom-made police uniform, and then gave her a big hug. Abigail stood on a stepladder as she raised her right hand to join the police department in Freeport, a city of about 12,000 located 50 miles south of Houston. (Freeport Police Department via AP) PARIS (AP) - Paris prosecutor's office says the suspect in the fire that killed 10 people in the French capital this week is going before an investigative judge to face eventual charges of deadly arson. The suspect, a woman who prosecutors say has been hospitalized at least 13 times in the past decade for mental health issues, has been detained in the investigation into the fire at the nine-story apartment building. Besides the deaths, 96 other people were injured in the blaze, including eight firefighters. The suspect had been sent to a police psychiatric infirmary for psychological evaluation. Police say she indicated during the first part of her detention that she was not behind the fire early Tuesday that was the deadliest in Paris since 24 people died in a 2005 hotel fire. In this photo provided on Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2012 by the Brigade de Sapeurs-Pompiers de Paris (Paris Fire Brigade), a fire rages through the top floors of an apartment building in Paris, France. The fire that authorities suspect was an arson attack sent residents fleeing to the roof or climbing out their windows to escape. (Benoit Moser/BSPP via AP) View of the apartment building after a fire broke Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2019 in Paris. Paris' deadliest fire in over a decade claimed 10 lives, sending fleeing residents to the roof to escape the flames that engulfed their apartment building before dawn Tuesday. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena) View of the apartment building after a fire broke Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2019 in Paris. Paris' deadliest fire in over a decade claimed 10 lives, sending fleeing residents to the roof to escape the flames that engulfed their apartment building before dawn Tuesday. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena) BANGUI, Central African Republic (AP) - An agreement signed by Central African Republic and 14 rebel groups earlier this week will see the dissolution of armed groups, the formation of an inclusive government and the creation of a fund for victims who have suffered in years of conflict, according to the accord seen Friday. The deal signed Wednesday is the eighth since the fighting began in 2013 but the first to emerge from direct dialogue. The 30-page peace pact, negotiated in Sudan and titled the Political Accord for Peace and Reconciliation, evokes four main points: victims, justice, peace and national reconciliation. The agreement says that armed groups will undertake to respect the legitimacy of the country's institutions, and to renounce the use of arms and violence against the defense and security forces, U.N. personnel and humanitarian workers. They also agree to refrain from any act of destruction, occupation of public buildings, place of worship and violence against the civilian population, as well as acts of sexual or gender-based violence. In exchange, armed groups are able to create political parties. The government, meanwhile, will monitor the agreement and analyze the reintegration of the leaders of armed groups who formerly served as civil servants or military. The government is also committed to set up a Truth, Justice, Reparation and Reconciliation Commission within 90 days, cutting short the idea of amnesty long negotiated by armed group leaders. The signatories also undertake to set up mixed security units that will include elements of the defense and security forces as well as ex-combatants after training. This means that armed groups will dissolve their movement and help facilitate the return of the authority of the state and to participate in disarmament, demobilization, reintegration and repatriation within two months. Armed groups currently control around 80 percent of Central African Republic, and President Faustin Archange Touadera, in power since 2016, has struggled to stabilize the country as armed groups compete over lands rich in gold, diamonds and uranium. The major conflict in Central African Republic began in 2013 when predominantly Muslim Seleka rebels seized power in Bangui. Largely Christian anti-Balaka militias fought back. Rebels continue to carry out deadly attacks on displaced people's camps and other communities. The African Union, which oversaw the negotiations that began on Jan. 24 in Khartoum, has expressed optimism about the agreement. ___ Follow Africa news at https://twitter.com/AP_Africa SKOPJE, Macedonia (AP) - Macedonia's parliament speaker has signed a decree declaring a presidential election will be held on April 21. President Gjorge Ivanov is serving his second and final five-year term which ends on May 12. The next president will be the head of state of the newly renamed North Macedonia, after an agreement with Greece that ends a 27-year dispute over the country's name. The presidency is largely a ceremonial post. Kiro Gligorov, Macedonia's first president after the country declared independence from the former Yugoslavia in 1991, survived an assassination attempt in 1995. The country's second president, Boris Trajkovski, died in a plane crash in 2004. To be elected in the first round, a candidate needs to secure more than a half of the total 1.8 million registered voters. Russia and Turkey achieved a special level of trust-based dialogue in bilateral relations last year, Russias Ambassador to Turkey Alexei Yerkhov said in an interview with Russian media on occasion of Diplomats Day. "2018 was really hard, but at the same time very interesting, busy and especially fruitful for Russian-Turkish relations. This was the year of unprecedented bilateral political dialogue. Over the past year, Presidents Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan held seven personal meetings and 18 phone conversations. I believe this was a record," the ambassador said, TASS reports. Speaking on what bilateral contacts are scheduled soon, Yerkhov stressed that Russia and Turkey "in their bilateral relations have reached such a level of trust-based friendly dialogue that sometimes there is no need in planning visits." "Sometimes visits are arranged just in a couple of days, and sometimes within several hours and at a rather high level. Our embassy has got accustomed to this dynamics, it brings us joy and optimism about the quality of our contacts in the foreseeable future," the diplomat said. In addition, Alexei Yerkhov said that trade turnover between Russia and Turkey last year exceeded the pre-crisis level. "According to preliminary data, bilateral trade turnover last year reached nearly $25.4bln. This figure really exceeds the so-called pre-crisis level. This means that compared with last year we increased our trade turnover by 20-25%," the diplomat said. The ambassador also noted that "this growth was achieved in rather challenging conditions, which international trade relations are undergoing in general." Speaking on trade in national currencies, the ambassador said there are good prospects in this sphere. "According to our assessments, now up to 10% of bilateral trade operations are carried out in this trade regime," he said, noting that the initiative comes from economic entities themselves. "They are carrying out these operations in the framework of their mutual settlements." "The work in this direction is underway, but it is early now to speak about any particular projects or prospects, moreover this will depend on the environment in international trade. Nevertheless, we have prospects in this area and I believe they are not bad ones," TASS quoted him as saying.. JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - TransCanada Corp. believes its Keystone pipeline is likely the source of an oil leak near St. Louis that Missouri officials have estimated at 1,800 gallons (6,814 liters), a spokesman for the company said Friday. Sections of both the Keystone pipeline and Enbridge Inc.'s Platte pipeline were closed as crews sought to find the source of the leak, which was discovered Wednesday in St. Charles County. "Following overnight activity and excavation, preliminary investigation has led TransCanada to believe that the oil discovered in St. Charles County likely originates from the Keystone Pipeline system and we will continue to conduct our activities accordingly," TransCanada spokesman Terry Cunha said. Enbridge Inc. spokesman Devin Hotzel said the company is "highly confident" that the Platte pipeline is not the source. Missouri Department of Natural Resources spokesman Brian Quinn said in an email that if Keystone is confirmed to be the source, "it will remain closed until the cause is determined and necessary repairs or corrections can be made and verified." Cunha said there's no estimated time for the Keystone pipeline to return to service. Excavation equipment is used to search for an oil leak close to where the TransCanada Corp's Keystone oil pipeline runs through northern St. Charles County off of Highway C, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, near St. Charles, Mo. The source of the oil leak has not yet been identified but the Keystone oil pipeline has been shut and the Missouri Department of Natural Resources official said the the release is stopped. (David Carson/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP) "Onsite crews of approximately 75 people continue to excavate and safely expose the pipeline segment of concern," he said. "These specialists continue to affirm there is no threat to public safety or the environment." Hotzel said that Enbridge expects its pipeline will be operating normally by Saturday. Quinn has said the spill was contained to an area of about 4,000 square feet (372 square meters), and did not reach any waterways, including the Mississippi River, which is about 2,000 feet (610 meters) away. Quinn said the department has met with landowners affected by the spill and "at this time there are no concerns." WASHINGTON (AP) - The Latest on President Donald Trump's annual medical checkup (all times local): 6:10 p.m. President Donald Trump's physician says the president is "in very good health" and is likely to remain so for the duration of his presidency and beyond. Dr. Sean Conley says that over the course of a four-hour medical check-up Friday, he supervised a panel of 11 board-certified specialists in examining Trump. Conley adds that the 72-year-old president did not undergo any procedures requiring sedation or anesthesia. This is Trump's second health checkup since becoming president. It took place at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. President Donald Trump waves after arriving on Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. The President was returning to the White House after his annual physical exam at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) Conley did not provide details about the examination, such as weight, heart rate or blood pressure. Modern-day presidents have undergone regular exams to catch any potential problems but also to assure the public they are fit for office. ___ 12:45 p.m. President Donald Trump has arrived at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center for his annual medical checkup. Trump was declared to be in "excellent health" in January 2018 after a battery of tests on his heart, lungs, gastrointestinal system and other areas. This year's exam will be overseen by Sean Conley, a Navy veteran and doctor of osteopathic medicine who's now president's physician. The exam isn't mandatory, but modern-day officeholders have them regularly and release a doctor's report to assure the public that they are fit for office. Last year's exam lasted more than four hours. ___ 2:10 a.m. It's time for President Donald Trump's annual medical checkup. Trump will be at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center outside Washington later Friday for the physical exam. His personal physician declared him to be in "excellent health" after a battery of tests last January on Trump's heart, lungs, gastrointestinal system and other areas. Trump was said to have "incredibly good genes." Last year, the public learned details about Trump's height, weight, heart rate, blood pressure and cholesterol levels. Doctors checked his eyes, ears, nose and throat, heart, lungs, gastrointestinal tract, skin, and teeth. Neurological, cognitive and stress tests were also performed. Trump's hearing was not tested, The exam stretched past four hours. President Donald Trump arrives on Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. The President was returning to the White House after his annual physical exam at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) President Donald Trump waves after arriving on Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. The President was returning the White House after his annual physical exam at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) DEARBORN, Mich. (AP) - On the day of his death, longtime Rep. John Dingell dictated a farewell message to America and used some of his final words to criticize President Donald Trump. Dingell dictated the message to his wife and congressional successor Debbie Dingell Thursday in their suburban Detroit home. The Washington Post published the opinion piece on Friday. "One of the advantages to knowing that your demise is imminent, and that reports of it will not be greatly exaggerated, is that you have a few moments to compose some parting thoughts," Dingell said Thursday. "In our modern political age, the presidential bully pulpit seems dedicated to sowing division and denigrating, often in the most irrelevant and infantile personal terms, the political opposition." Dingell, who died Thursday at age 92, didn't mention Trump by name in the article. Dingell represented parts of southeast Michigan for nearly 60 years before retiring in 2014 as the longest-serving member of Congress in U.S. history. On Friday, Trump ordered flags at the White House and other federal facilities lowered to half-staff in Dingell's memory. The president also used Twitter to extend sympathies to Debbie Dingell and other family members. FILE- In a Feb. 4, 2009 file photo, Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich. poses for a photograph inside his office in House Rayburn Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File) "Longest serving Congressman in country's history which, if people understand politics, means he was very smart," Trump tweeted. "A great reputation and highly respected man." Dingell's opinion article was similar to a letter penned by former Arizona Sen. John McCain before his death in August from brain cancer. In McCain's letter, the late Arizona Republican appeared to repudiate Trump's politics one last time, saying, "We weaken our greatness when we confuse our patriotism with tribal rivalries that have sown resentment and hatred and violence in all the corners of the globe." Much of Dingell's letter to the Post focused on the country and improvements made over the decades to Medicare, the environment, the Great Lakes and efforts to end racial discrimination. "All of these challenges were addressed by Congress," Dingell said. "Maybe not as fast as we wanted, or as perfectly as hoped. The work is certainly not finished. But we've made progress - and in every case, from the passage of Medicare through the passage of civil rights, we did it with the support of Democrats and Republicans who considered themselves first and foremost to be Americans." He concluded by saying "as I prepare to leave this all behind, I now leave you in control of the greatest nation of mankind and pray God gives you the wisdom to understand the responsibility you hold in your hands. May God bless you all, and may God bless America." Trump's proclamation applies to flags at the White House, other public buildings and grounds, U.S. military posts and naval stations, and on all federal naval vessels. They'll be lowered until sunset Saturday. Flags at U.S. embassies and other facilities overseas also are ordered to half-staff. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer also ordered flags on state property lowered. A public visitation will be held Monday at Ford Community and Performing Arts Center in Dearborn. A funeral will be held at a local church Tuesday. Following those services, a casket carrying Dingell's body will be driven past the Capitol in Washington. The public is invited to watch from the east lawn of the Capitol. A second funeral Mass will be held Thursday at 10:30 a.m. at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Washington. The public is invited. Dingell will be interred at Arlington National Cemetery, said his wife Debbie Dingell, who succeeded him in the Michigan congressional seat. Tributes poured in following Dingell's death, including from former U.S. presidents, colleagues and some of his more than 250,000 Twitter followers. ___ See AP's complete coverage of John Dingell here: https://apnews.com/JohnDingell FILE- In this Sept. 24, 2008 file photo, House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., right, accompanied by Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., meets with reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell.(AP Photo/Lauren Victoria Burke, File) FILE - In a June 12, 1979 file photo, Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., comments on President Jimmy Carter during an interview in his Capitol Hill office in Washington. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/John Duricka, File) FILE - In this June 2, 1977 file photo, President Jimmy Carter hosts a breakfast in the Family Dining Room of the White House in Washington for House Subcommittee members on Energy and Power. From left are Rep. John M. Murphy (D-N.Y.), Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.), President Carter, Rep. Harley Staggers (D-W Va.), Rep. Andrew Maguire (D-N.J.), and Rep. Timothy Wirth (D-Colo.). Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Charles Harrity, File) FILE - In this Nov. 6, 2012 file photo, Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., addresses supporters during the Michigan Democratic election night party at the MGM Grand Detroit. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File) FILE - In this May 7, 2014 file photo, Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich. is seen on Capitol Hill in Washington. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Lauren Victoria Burke, File) FILE - In this April 21, 2015 file photo, U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell pushes the wheelchair of her husband, retired Congressman John Dingell after the funeral of Detroit-area businessman and philanthropist A. Alfred Taubman at Congregation Shaarey Zedek in Southfield, Mich. Former U.S. Rep. John Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (Todd McInturf/Detroit News via AP, File) FILE - In this July 29, 2015 file photo, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of Calif., standing with former Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., holds up the gavel Dingell used 50 years ago when Medicare legislation was passed during an event marking the 50th Anniversary of Medicare and Medicaid on Capitol Hill in Washington. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File) FILE- In this April 7, 1987 file photo, Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., left, and John Dingell, D-Mich. hold a news conference at Capitol Hill, in Washington, to release a report on Alzheimers disease. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Charles Tasnadi, File) FILE - In this Oct. 5, 2013 file photo, House Democrats, including Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., center, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history, make their way to the office of House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi before a vote in Congress, at the Capitol in Washington. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. He was 92. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) WASHINGTON (AP) - President Donald Trump will host Austria's Chancellor Sebastian Kurz next week at the White House. The 32-year-old Kurz is a conservative and is the youngest head of government in Europe. He took office in December 2017 in a coalition with the nationalist, anti-migration Freedom Party. He has made curbing unregulated migration a priority. White House press secretary Sarah Sanders says Trump and Kurz will discuss global and European conflicts, economic prosperity and strengthening energy security. Earlier this month, Austria was among European Union countries to express concern about the spread of nuclear weapons as the U.S. readied to pull out of a key Cold War-era arms control treaty with Russia. The pact bans land-based cruise and ballistic missiles with a range of 500-5,500 kilometers (310-3,400 miles). LA VISTA, Neb. (AP) - An Omaha-area bakery that has been helping fund a luxury religious retreat founded by billionaire Joe Ricketts said it is considering ending the relationship in light of emails that surfaced showing Ricketts making Islamophobic comments and spreading conspiracies about former President Barack Obama. Rotella's Italian Bakery in La Vista told the Omaha World-Herald that it's reevaluating whether to continue selling a roughly $3 loaf that benefits The Cloisters on the Platte near Gretna. Jim Rotella, the bakery's vice president of sales, said the move comes in light of emails published this week by Splinter News that feature Ricketts, who founded TD Ameritrade and is the father of Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts. Joe Ricketts opened the luxurious retreat center, which resembles a country club and lake resort, in July. The silent, weekend retreats held at the sprawling campus are geared toward Catholics but are open to anyone of any faith. They're also free of charge, and Ricketts had hoped the bakery's bread sales would supplement donations to pay the center's bills. The bakery has been selling the loaves since June, with a portion of the revenue going to the retreat. Rotella didn't respond to the newspaper's questions about how much the bakery has made from the loaves and how much the retreat center has received from bread sales. But he said the bakery "takes great pride in the diversity of our workforce and customer base." "We believe everyone matters and value our role in helping feed and strengthen families and communities," he said. Ricketts has apologized for the emails, saying that his comments don't reflect his values and that he strongly believes "that bigoted ideas are wrong." Ricketts hasn't disclosed the retreat center's price tag, but building permits list costs of at least $20 million. Ricketts bought the property for an additional $13.6 million in 2014. ___ Information from: Omaha World-Herald, http://www.omaha.com CRIPPLE CREEK, Colo. (AP) - The Latest on the case of the death of a missing Colorado woman (all times local): 10:25 a.m. A woman will testify against the Colorado man accused of killing his fiance after admitting that she moved a cellphone to try to thwart investigators. Thirty-two-year-old Krystal Kenney of Hansen, Idaho pleaded guilty Friday to tampering with evidence connected to the death of Kelsey Berreth, who was last seen on Thanksgiving. Berreth's fiance, Patrick Frazee, is charged with murder and solicitation of murder in the 29-year-old woman's death. In a statement in court, Kenney said she learned that Frazee had killed someone. This undated booking photo provided by the Colorado Springs Police Department shows Krystal Jean Lee Kenney. Kenney, 32, has pleaded guilty, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, to a charge that she tampered with evidence connected to the high-profile disappearance of a Colorado woman. Kenney entered the plea Friday, Feb. 8, 2019 to the charge related to the death of Kelsey Berreth, who was last seen on Thanksgiving. (Colorado Springs Police Department via AP) Kenney says she moved "the victim's cellphone" in the days after Thanksgiving to keep it from law enforcement. Police have not found Berreth's body but have said evidence suggests she was killed at her home in a mountain town near Colorado Springs. Authorities have not disclosed the nature of the relationship between Kenney and Frazee. ____ 9:40 a.m. A woman has pleaded guilty to a charge that she tampered with evidence connected to the disappearance of a Colorado woman and has agreed to testify against the man charged with killing her. Krystal Jean Lee Kenney entered the plea Friday to the charge related to the death of Kelsey Berreth, who was last seen on Thanksgiving. Prosecutors in December charged Berreth's fiance, Patrick Frazee, with murder and solicitation of murder in the 29-year-old woman's death. Kenney is from Hansen, Idaho and has agreed to testify against Frazee. She will be sentenced after Frazee's trial and after anyone else prosecuted. Police have not found Berreth's body but have said evidence suggests she was killed at her home in a mountain town near Colorado Springs on or around Thanksgiving. POINT PLEASANT BEACH, N.J. (AP) - After Superstorm Sandy pummeled the New Jersey coast, then-Gov. Chris Christie set out to build protective sand dunes along most of the state's 127-mile (204-kilometer) shoreline. Despite lawsuits from homeowners throughout the shore seeking to block the project, the state prevailed and much of the work has been done. But two recent jury awards in cases seeking compensation for beachfront property owners for the loss of part of their sand - and oceanfront views - have environmentalists worried that a wave of similar payouts could make it too costly for the state and federal governments to finish and maintain the dunes. Damage from Sandy was demonstrably less in areas that had sand dunes than in areas without them. In recent months, the owners of two homes in Point Pleasant Beach were awarded over $590,000 by juries. The most recent verdict came Thursday when a couple was awarded $330,000 for the loss of beachfront property and oceanfront views. "It's extremely alarming," said Jeff Tittel, director of the New Jersey Sierra Club, which along with most of the state's environmental groups has strongly supported the dune project. "We as taxpayers are paying millions of dollars to restore beaches and build dunes to protect lives and property, and now we have to pay them for the privilege. This Friday, Feb. 8, 2019 photo shows a section of beachfront in Point Pleasant Beach, N.J. that will soon undergo a beach replenishment and dune construction project. Owners of two houses in Point Pleasant Beach have recently been awarded more than $590,000 in compensation for the loss of some of their sand and ocean views to make way for the project. (AP Photo/Wayne Parry) "I almost feel like we should take the sand away and let them get wiped out by the next nor'easter," he said. "If those dunes weren't there and these houses were destroyed, they'd be the first ones running to FEMA for a bailout." Tittel said he worries that the state and federal governments could be forced out of the dune building business by a flood of similar jury awards; there are numerous similar cases pending in the courts. Ralph Coscia, founder of the Citizens Right to Access Beaches, also fears a slew of homeowners filing similar cases. "It could stop these dune projects in their tracks, even though we know that the dunes have done so much to mitigate storm damage," he said. A spokesman for the state Attorney General's Office would not say Friday whether New Jersey plans to appeal the recent jury awards. On Thursday, a jury in Ocean County gave $330,000 to Dennis and Catherine LaPlante, who lost about 60 percent of their oceanfront lot to the dune project, according to their attorney, John Buonocore Jr. "They had an area that was in effect their yard, and now they don't," Buonocore said. A similar case was decided last fall in which the owner of another home in Point Pleasant Beach was awarded $260,260 for the loss of part of his property and its now-decreased value. They were the first jury awards in dune compensation cases since a 2013 state Supreme Court ruling requiring that the protective benefits of a sand dune on a property's value be considered against the decreased value from loss of land and ocean views. The high court ruling involved homeowners in Harvey Cedars on Long Beach Island. The elderly couple was awarded $375,000 for the decreased value of their property and lost ocean views caused by dunes that were built before Sandy. Ironically, those dunes are what protected the couple's house during Sandy while other areas without dunes sustained major damage. After the New Jersey Supreme Court ruling vacated the award, the couple accepted a $1 settlement from the state. The attorney who represented them in the Harvey Cedars case, Peter Wegener, is also the attorney for the owner of the other house in Point Pleasant Beach that received $260,260. "What is clear is that two different juries understood that it is absurd for the state to take the position that pumping sand onto the beach raises everyone's value by 15 percent," Wegener said. "In some places, they need storm protection; in other places, they don't." ___ Follow Wayne Parry at http://twitter.com/WayneParryAC ___ This story has been corrected to show that Peter Wegener is the attorney for the owner of the second house, not the owner. NEW YORK (AP) - Designer Elie Tahari celebrated his 45th anniversary show with a pair of models at either end of their careers - veteran Christie Brinkley, 65, and her rising star daughter, Sailor, 20. The blonde mother-daughter duo on Thursday seemed to capture Tahari's theme of ageless beauty and timeless fashions. "I am so honored to be here, and I think that it is so wonderful that he chose me and my daughter to present both ends of the spectrum," Brinkley said. Tahari explained that the supermodel featured in one of his very first runway shows. "She is more beautiful and moves better now," Tahari said. "She has more confidence, independence and style." Brinkley's daughter, Sailor Brinkley Cook, modeled three looks in the show and greeted her mother with a high-five as Brinkley came out for the show's grand finale. Sailor said it was hard to keep a straight face while on the runway with her mother. "I mean we were just cracking up passing by each other - it was hilarious," Sailor admitted. "I try and keep this straight face, model face and then the second I saw her coming out I was like 'Oh, my god!'" This image taken from video shows model Christie Brinkley backstage at the Elie Tahari show during Fashion Week in New York on Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. (AP Photo/Aron Ranen) The collection boasted chic and sophisticated looks, featuring fur trimmings, fierce animal prints and bold embellishments. The looks which were composed of elegant cocktail dresses, sporty jackets, belted-blazers and trench coats, ranged in jewel-toned colors from royal blue to violet and emerald green. WICHITA, Kan. (AP) - A Kansas judge who blamed two teenage girls for a sexual encounter with a 67-year-old man spent nearly a decade on the bench overseeing mostly sealed juvenile and child-in-need-of-care cases behind closed doors before taking over the adult criminal cases for a retiring judge last summer. Since then, Leavenworth County Judge Michael Gibbens' rulings have drawn more scrutiny and criticism, including his widely panned decision in December in a sex abuse case during which he eased a man's sentence after saying the victims, ages 13 and 14, were "more an aggressor than a participant." It was not the first time Gibbens has substantially departed from Kansas sentencing guidelines in handing down lenient punishments, according to court documents reviewed by The Associated Press. In July, he sentenced a man to probation for battery of a law enforcement officer. In November, he gave another man probation for bringing contraband into a state prison. Because Gibbens has not been handling adult cases for long, it's unclear how he compares with his colleagues on the bench when it comes to following sentencing guidelines. An analysis by the Kansas Sentencing Commission found that state judges handed down sentences within the guideline range in 79 percent of cases in 2017, a number consistent with the prior two years. Gibbens did not return a call at his court office seeking comment for this story. Leavenworth Police Chief Pat Kitchens said his department was "sort of disappointed" with the probationary sentence Gibbens gave 19-year-old De'Aire McNeal in July for pushing Officer Sarah Moreno when she was attempting to arrest him, causing the officer to suffer a concussion after she was knocked down a flight of stairs. In this Dec. 19, 2008 photo, Michael Gibbens, center, stands next to his wife, Nancy, as he is sworn in as a Leavenworth County District Court judge by District Court Chief Judge David King, left, at the Veterans of Foreign Wars hall in Tonganoxie, Kan. The Kansas judge who blamed two young girls as the 'aggressor' in a sexual encounter with a 67-year-old man has spent a decade on the bench overseeing mostly sealed juvenile and child-in-need-of-care cases behind closed doors. But since Leavenworth County Judge Michael Gibbens took over the criminal docket for a retiring district judge this summer his rulings have drawn more public scrutiny and criticism. (Estuardo Garcia/The Journal-World via AP) "We always wish sentencing and punishment for assaulting police officers should be much more severe," Kitchens said. In a journal entry of judgment, the judge cited McNeal's age, an expert's psychological report, and the availability of treatment as "compelling reasons" for his departure from Kansas sentencing guidelines of 12 to 14 months. Kitchens demurred when asked whether Gibbens has a history of giving lenient sentences to defendants: "I don't think we have a full sense, a fair opportunity to make that evaluation." Democratic former Gov. Kathleen Sebelius appointed Gibbens to the bench in 2008. Like many of Kansas' district court judges, he is periodically listed on the ballot for retention. Gibbens was up for retention last year and won't be on the ballot again until 2022. Kansas voters typically have little information to draw upon when deciding whether to retain a trial judge. A judicial evaluation program that once surveyed attorneys, non-attorneys and appellate judges to come up with individualized ratings for Kansas judges lost its funding in 2011 and was officially discontinued in 2013, Christy Molzen, staff attorney for the Kansas Judicial Council, said in an email. Its only report on Gibbens showed that 93 percent of attorneys and 90 percent of non-attorneys recommended that Gibbens be retained in 2010. Gibbens also has not faced any disciplinary actions from the Commission on Judicial Qualifications, which reviews complaints against judges to determine whether they have violated the code of judicial conduct. Complaints are confidential, but disciplinary actions are posted on the commission's website. Another case where Gibbens diverged from sentencing guidelines involved Charles Newsome, who admitted to bringing marijuana, synthetic marijuana and tobacco into the Lansing Correctional Facility. Gibbens gave Newsome probation despite a plea agreement in which the prosecution and defense had agreed to what was already a below-guideline sentence of two years, according to court documents. The sentencing guidelines called for about four years in prison. In explaining his decision, Gibbens wrote that the contraband was not weapons or hard drugs; the crime was nonviolent; and "community safety interests are better served" by placing Newsome on probation in conjunction with drug treatment. The judge also cited the increasing population of prisons. Asked how local attorneys view Gibbens, defense attorney Joseph Osborn, who represented Newsome, said the judge "generally has a decent reputation in this county." But Osborn said it would be inappropriate for him to offer his own opinion, noting he practices in front of Gibbens. None of the judge's cases have generated the scrutiny as that of Raymond Soden. Gibbens sentenced Soden in December to five years, 10 months in prison for soliciting a 13-year-old on Facebook - eight years less than what's called for in sentencing guidelines. Gibbens said the teens had voluntarily gone to Soden's house and taken money for sexual favors. He also questioned the level of harm the victims suffered because they didn't appear at the sentencing hearing. The Kansas City Star, which first reported the judge's comments after obtaining a transcript, wrote in an editorial that Gibbens "made a serious mistake" and should resign. CINCINNATI (AP) - The Latest on funeral services for Ohio deputy (all times local): 11:45 a.m. The Cincinnati region's law enforcement community is bidding farewell to the latest of five police officers to die in less than two months. Tributes for 20-year-old Clermont County sheriff's deputy Bill Brewer included one on the U.S. House floor from Rep. Brad Wenstrup, a Republican. Wenstrup said Brewer "died trying to a help a member of his community." Sheriff Steve Leahy told a packed church Friday he is "devastated" by Brewer's loss. He says Brewer gave his life as he lived it, "as a hero." A procession to a cemetery was planned following funeral services. Brewer was gunned down last weekend after responding to a suspected suicide attempt by a man barricaded inside an apartment. Another officer was wounded in the leg before a man was arrested. Police tape surrounds an apartment damaged by fire involved in a shooting incident that resulted in the death of a Clermont County Sheriff's Office Deputy, Monday, Feb. 4, 2019, in Pierce Township, Ohio. Suspect Wade Edward Winn was charged with aggravated murder and attempted aggravated murder. (AP Photo/John Minchillo) ___ 6:25 a.m. Authorities in the Cincinnati region are reeling after the deaths of five police officers in less than two months. Funeral services and a procession to the cemetery were set Friday for the latest to die. Twenty-year Clermont County sheriff's deputy Bill Brewer was gunned down last weekend while responding to a suspected suicide attempt by a man barricaded inside an apartment. Another officer was wounded in the leg before a man was taken into custody at the apartment complex. The Hamilton County coroner says she has been wearing a black mourning band over her badge since Dec. 17, when the string of deaths began. Lakshmi Sammarco (lak-SCHMEE' suh-MAHR'-coh) has been the Cincinnati-based coroner since 2012. She can't think of any comparable period for so many police deaths so close together. Suspect Wade Edward Winn, second left, appears before Judge Kevin T. Miles at Clermont County Municipal Court in the shooting incident involving two officers of the Clermont County Sheriff's Office, Monday, Feb. 4, 2019, in Batavia, Ohio. Detective Bill Brewer died from gunshot wounds after being transported to Anderson Mercy Hospital. (AP Photo/John Minchillo) Suspect Wade Edward Winn, right, appears before Judge Kevin T. Miles at Clermont County Municipal Court into the shooting incident involving two officers of the Clermont County Sheriff's Office, Monday, Feb. 4, 2019, in Batavia, Ohio. Detective Bill Brewer died from gunshot wounds after being transported to Anderson Mercy Hospital. (AP Photo/John Minchillo) Clermont County Deputy Lt. Nick DeRose rises to leave the courtroom following a hearing for suspect Wade Edward Winn at Clermont County Municipal Court in the shooting incident involving two officers of the Clermont County Sheriff's Office, Monday, Feb. 4, 2019, in Batavia, Ohio. Detective Bill Brewer died from gunshot wounds after being transported to Anderson Mercy Hospital. (AP Photo/John Minchillo) Police detained 45 people in Paris on Saturday during the 13th nationwide day of Yellow Vest protests, TASS reported citing BFM TV channel. According to the report, 42 people have been placed in custody until the investigation is launched. The protests in the French capital saw clashes between their participants and police. A total of 51,400 people took part in manifestations in France, including 4,000 of them in Paris. CRIPPLE CREEK, Colo. (AP) - A woman said Friday that she helped thwart an investigation into the disappearance of a Colorado woman who authorities believe was killed by her fiance, but her motive and the nature of her relationship with the suspected killer remains a mystery. She also agreed to testify against him at his murder trial. Krystal Jean Lee Kenney, 32, of Hansen, Idaho, made the admission in court as she pleaded guilty to tampering with evidence connected to the death of Kelsey Berreth, who was last seen on Nov. 22. Berreth's fiance, Patrick Frazee, is charged with murder and solicitation of murder in the 29-year-old woman's death. In a statement in court, Kenney said she learned that Frazee had killed someone around the time Berreth was last seen. "I moved the victim's cellphone with the intent to impair the phone's availability in the investigation. I had no right or authority to move the victim's cellphone," she said. According to Kenney's statement, she moved the phone between Nov. 24 and 25. This undated booking photo provided by the Colorado Springs Police Department shows Krystal Jean Lee Kenney. Kenney, 32, has pleaded guilty, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, to a charge that she tampered with evidence connected to the high-profile disappearance of a Colorado woman. Kenney entered the plea Friday, Feb. 8, 2019 to the charge related to the death of Kelsey Berreth, who was last seen on Thanksgiving. (Colorado Springs Police Department via AP) She faces up to three years in prison but prosecutors said Kenney will not be sentenced until all trials related to Berreth's disappearance are completed. Judge Scott Sells indicated that could take months or years. She will remain free in the meantime and must attend periodic court hearings. Her agreement with prosecutors also prevents her from speaking with media. Police have not found Berreth's body but have said evidence suggests she was killed at her home in Woodland Park, a mountain town near Colorado Springs. Berreth, who worked as a flight instructor, was last seen on surveillance footage at a grocery store near her home on Nov. 22, which was Thanksgiving Day. It shows Berreth entering the store toting a baby carrier holding her 1-year-old daughter. Frazee told police he and Berreth met later that day to exchange their daughter; the couple did not live together. Police said several text messages were sent from Berreth's phone in the days following Thanksgiving, including a message sent to her employer asking for a week off of work. Location data suggested that by Nov. 25 the phone was near Gooding, Idaho, nearly 800 miles (1,290 kilometers) from Berreth's house and about 40 miles (64 kilometers) from where Kenney lived. Police didn't start searching for Berreth until Dec. 2, when her mother became concerned after several days without hearing from her daughter. Berreth's mother called police from her home in Idaho to request that someone check on her daughter. Since Frazee's arrest in late December, authorities have released little information about what led to the charges against him. Key court documents have been sealed. Frazee has not entered a plea in the charges of murder and solicitation of murder. He is due back in court on Feb. 19. The state public defender's office, which is representing him, has said its attorneys will not comment on ongoing cases. Prosecutors said Frazee sought to find someone to kill Berreth between September and November. Authorities said in December that additional charges could follow Frazee's arrest but there was no public activity until this week when prosecutors charged Kenney. They have not disclosed the nature of the relationship between Kenney and Frazee. Public records show Kenney holds an Idaho license as a registered nurse. A spokeswoman at a Twin Falls hospital previously told local media that Kenney worked at the facility but said this week that she was no longer employed there. MADRID (AP) - The Spanish government says it is breaking off talks with Catalan secessionists about the region's future after failing to break a prolonged stalemate. Spanish Deputy Prime Minister Carmen Calvo said Friday the Catalan separatists wouldn't budge from their demand for an independence referendum, which the government says is not possible. The government says it was prepared to offer other concessions, including greater financial assistance. The Catalan regional government said it was prepared to keep talking. The breakdown comes amid mounting tensions just days ahead of a high-profile trial at the Supreme Court in Madrid of 12 Catalan politicians and activists for their part in a 2017 secession bid that created Spain's deepest political crisis in decades. The Catalan separatists went ahead with a banned independence referendum and unilaterally declared independence. SAN DIEGO (AP) - Central Americans are increasingly entering the United States illegally in groups of at least 100 people in rugged, remote stretches of the Mexican border, authorities said Friday upon releasing January figures that show total arrests fell for a second straight month. A group of 325 Central Americans surrendered to agents Thursday near Lukeville, Arizona, according to Customs and Border Protection. Migrants told authorities that buses and trucks dropped them off throughout the night on a nearby Mexican highway that runs parallel to the border and they entered the U.S. together to wait for agents to find them. There were nearly 150 children, including 32 who were traveling alone. The Border Patrol has encountered groups of at least 100 people 60 times since Oct. 1, compared to 13 during the entire 2018 fiscal year and two in the 2017 fiscal year, officials said. Many are in the desolate New Mexico Bootheel and Arizona deserts It is unclear what's driving the sudden uptick of large groups in remote areas but families, many of them Central American asylum seekers, make up a large and growing percentage of arrests across the border. U.S. authorities arrested or stopped people for immigration violations 58,207 times in January, down 4 percent from 60,779 in December but up 62 percent from 35,905 in January 2018. It was the second straight monthly decline, though arrests typically fall from December to January. Families and children traveling alone accounted for 33,861 of those encounters, or nearly 6 of every 10 stopped at official crossings or arrested for entering the country illegally between crossings, mostly from Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras. That's a dramatic change from several years ago when most people who crossed illegally were single Mexican adults. FILE - In this Jan. 10, 2019, file photo President Donald Trump, far right, tours the U.S. border with Mexico at the Rio Grande on the southern border in McAllen, Texas. The Trump administration said Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, it would waive environmental reviews to replace up to 14 miles (22.5 kilometers) of border barrier in San Diego, shielding itself from potentially crippling delays. San Diego was the third busiest corridor for illegal crossings among the Border Patrol's nine sectors along the Mexican border in 2018 after Texas' Rio Grande Valley and Tucson, Ariz. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File) The January numbers are unlikely to swing public opinion either way in President Trump's showdown with Democratic leaders in Congress over funding to replace and extend border walls with Mexico. The impasse led to a five-week partial government shutdown that ended when Trump agreed to reopen the government until Feb. 15. The large percentage of families and young children has stretched U.S. authorities, even more in remote areas where staffing is thinner. Customs and Border Protection says medical attention was needed about 12,000 times for border crossers in the 12-month period ending Sept. 30. On Jan. 14, a group of 376 Central Americans was arrested near San Luis, Arizona, the vast majority of them Guatemalan families who dug short, shallow holes under a barrier to cross the border, according to authorities. ATLANTA (AP) - In a story Feb. 8 about a challenge to Georgia's voting machines, The Associated Press reported erroneously that a federal appeals court ruling affects two lawsuits. It is actually a single lawsuit with two sets of plaintiffs that is affected. A corrected version of the story is below: Court: Suit challenging Georgia voting machines can proceed A decision by a federal appeals court in Atlanta clears the way for a lawsuit challenging Georgia's use of paperless electronic voting machines to move forward By KATE BRUMBACK Associated Press ATLANTA (AP) - A ruling by a federal appeals court in Atlanta clears the way for a lawsuit challenging Georgia's use of paperless electronic voting machines to move forward. The lawsuit, filed by Georgia voters and an election integrity group, seeks to bar Georgia from using the machines in future elections. In an opinion Thursday, a three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Court of Appeals did not rule on the merits of the case but rejected arguments that state officials have immunity from the suit. The lawsuit argues that the touchscreen voting machines Georgia has used since 2002 are vulnerable to hacking and provide no way to confirm that votes have been recorded correctly because there's no paper trail. The plaintiffs sought in motions filed in August to force the state to use paper ballots in the November midterm election. U.S. District Judge Amy Totenberg in September denied those requests, saying she worried it would be too chaotic or problematic to make the switch so close to the election. But she found that the Georgia voters and election integrity advocates who filed the suits had demonstrated "the threat of real harms to their constitutional interests." Totenberg also declined to dismiss claims against the Georgia secretary of state and state election board members, and the state appealed that rejection to the 11th Circuit. In oral arguments last week, the three-judge panel was clearly skeptical of arguments by a lawyer for the state officials who claimed state officials were immune from the suit, so Thursday's ruling rejecting those arguments wasn't terribly surprising. The ruling says requests to keep the state from using the current voting machines don't violate state sovereignty. "(S)uits are permitted when the plaintiff alleges that state election officials are conducting elections in a manner that does not comport with the Constitution," the opinion says. Furthermore, the opinion says, the plaintiffs "do not seek a court order directing the precise way in which Georgia should conduct voting." Rather, they are just asking the court to order the state to stop using "a system that they decry as unconstitutionally unsecure." Legislative immunity does not apply because the lawsuit doesn't challenge acts of the legislature but instead challenges the way state laws are implemented, the opinion says. Lawyer John Salter, who represents the state officials, did not respond to an email seeking comment Friday. Marilyn Marks, executive director of the Coalition for Good Governance, which is one of the parties that filed the lawsuit, said she looks forward to getting answers to "questions about systemic irregularities" in past elections. "Such information will greatly benefit voters, election officials and lawmakers as plans are made for a new voting system, and Congress considers changes to federal laws on voting systems," Marks said in an emailed statement. "We appreciate that the court of appeals acted quickly in rejecting defendants' arguments on appeal, which enables us to finally move forward with our case on the merits for the benefit of all Georgia voters," Michael Qian, who represents a group of voters, said in an emailed statement. Totenberg recognized that her September order would likely be appealed but said at the time that if the case returned to her, she would handle it on an expedited basis. "The 2020 elections are around the corner," she wrote. "If a new balloting system is to be launched in Georgia in an effective manner, it should address democracy's critical need for transparent, fair, accurate, and verifiable election processes that guarantee each citizen's fundamental right to cast an accountable vote." Georgia state lawmakers are expected to come up with criteria for a new election system during the current legislative session. Then the secretary of state's office would handle the procurement of a new system in line with the changes that lawmakers outline in state law. Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger has said that, ideally, the state would have new machines in place for some municipal elections in November 2019, before having them fully implemented across the state for the 2020 election cycle. RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - The Latest on the fallout after two top Virginia Democrats admitted wearing blackface and another was accused of sexual assault (all times local): 11:15 p.m. U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia is calling on Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax to resign after two women went public with allegations of sexual assault against Fairfax. Kaine says his fellow Democrat cannot effectively serve and should step down. In issuing a statement Friday evening, Kaine broke from other party elders like Sen. Mark Warner and U.S. Rep. Bobby Scott, who did not directly call for Fairfax's resignation. A second woman came forward Friday to accuse Fairfax, a Democrat, of sexual assault. She said the attack took place when she and Fairfax were students at Duke University. Earlier this week, California college professor Vanessa Tyson accused Fairfax of forcing her to perform oral sex on him in 2004 in a Boston hotel room during the Democratic National Convention. Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, gavels the session to order at the start of the Senate session at the Capitol in Richmond, Va., Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) Fairfax has denied wrongdoing, called for investigations and said he won't resign. ___ 10:45 p.m. Virginia Sen. Mark Warner is holding off from directly calling for Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax's resignation after two women accused Fairfax of sexual assault. But Warner says the allegations against his fellow Democrat are serious and Fairfax should resign if they are true. "Sexual assault is never acceptable, and survivors of violence and harassment deserve to be heard. If these allegations concerning Lieutenant Governor Fairfax are accurate, then they are clearly disqualifying," Warner said in a statement Friday evening. Many Virginia Democratic officials have called for Fairfax to resign immediately. A second woman came forward Friday to accuse Fairfax of sexual assault. She said the attack took place when she and Fairfax were students at Duke University. Earlier this week, California college professor Vanessa Tyson accused Fairfax of forcing her to perform oral sex on him in 2004 in a Boston hotel room during the Democratic National Convention. Fairfax has denied wrongdoing, called for investigations and said he won't resign. ___ 10:20 p.m. The dean of Virginia's Democratic congressional delegation wants immediate investigations into whether Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax sexually assaulted two women. Rep. Bobby Scott on Friday did not join the state's six other Democratic U.S. House members in calling for Fairfax's immediate resignation, but he said Fairfax should resign if investigations show either allegation to be true. Also, former congressman and gubernatorial candidate Tom Perriello said Fairfax should step down. The Democratic lieutenant governor has been accused by two women of sexual assault. He denies wrongdoing. The allegations come as Virginia's Democratic governor and attorney general are embroiled in scandals involving the past use of blackface. ___ 9:45 p.m. The Virginia Legislative Black Caucus has joined the growing chorus of elected officials and others calling for Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax to resign over sexual assault allegations. The group of lawmakers said Friday that "we can't see it in the best interest" of Virginia for Fairfax to stay. Fairfax, a Democrat, is only the second African-American to ever win statewide office. The caucus' call for his resignation leaves him with virtually no base of political support. Two women have leveled assault allegations against Fairfax. The allegations come as Virginia's Democratic governor and attorney general are embroiled in scandals involving the past use of blackface. ___ 8:20 p.m. Democrats in Virginia's state House and Senate are calling for Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax to resign, as he faces sexual assault allegations from two women. In a joint statement, Democrats from both houses said Fairfax can no longer fulfill his duties to the Commonwealth because of the serious nature of the allegations and needs to address them as a private citizen. They concluded, "The time has come for him to step down." A second woman came forward Friday to accuse Fairfax, a Democrat, of sexual assault. She said the attack took place when she and Fairfax were students at Duke University. Earlier this week, California college professor Vanessa Tyson accused Fairfax of forcing her to perform oral sex on him in 2004 during the Democratic National Convention. Fairfax called the allegation a political smear. The allegations against Fairfax come as Virginia's Democratic governor and attorney general are embroiled in scandals involving the past use of blackface. ___ 7:50 p.m. A Virginia lawmaker says he plans to file papers to begin impeachment proceedings against his state's lieutenant governor, who faces sexual assault allegations from two women. Del. Patrick Hope tweeted Friday that he would introduce articles of impeachment for Lt. Governor Justin Fairfax on Monday "if he has not resigned before then." Hope is an Arlington County Democrat who has served since 2010. A second woman has come forward Friday to accuse Fairfax, a Democrat, of sexual assault. She said in a statement that the attack took place when she and Fairfax were students at Duke University. Earlier this week, California college professor Vanessa Tyson accused Fairfax of forcing her to perform oral sex on him in 2004 during the Democratic National Convention. Fairfax called the allegation a political smear. ___ 7:15 p.m. U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts is among the 2020 presidential contestants calling for the resignation of Virginia's lieutenant governor following sexual assault allegations against him from a second woman. Warren said on Twitter the "credible and troubling allegations" from the women accusing Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax "make it clear" that he should resign. Her message came shortly after U.S. Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey and Kirsten Gillibrand of New York called for Fairfax to resign. They join other notable Democrats like former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, who earlier Friday tweeted the "serious and credible" allegations have made clear Fairfax "can no longer effectively serve." A woman released a statement Friday that Fairfax assaulted her when they both were students at Duke University. California college professor Vanessa Tyson has accused Fairfax of forcing her to perform oral sex on him in 2004 during the Democratic National Convention. Fairfax called the allegation a political smear. ___ 6:55 p.m. U.S. Rep. Don McEachin, one of two black members of Virginia's congressional caucus, is calling for Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax to resign. McEachin said Friday that Fairfax should deal with accusations of sexual assault from two women "as a private citizen." McEachin is a former top-ranking Democratic state senator. He's joined by five other Democratic U.S. House members from in calling for Fairfax to resign. Fairfax is the only African-American official in a Virginia statewide office. Earlier Friday, a woman released a statement saying Fairfax assaulted her when they both were students at Duke University. Earlier, a California college professor, Vanessa Tyson, accused Fairfax of forcing her to perform oral sex on him in 2004 during the Democratic National Convention. Fairfax has denied the allegations and says he won't resign. ___ 6:20 p.m. Contenders for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination have begun to issue calls that the lieutenant governor of Virginia to resign after a second woman accused him of sexual assault. U.S. Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey and Kirsten Gillibrand of New York were first among the expanding field to call for Justin Fairfax's resignation. Booker posted on Twitter on Friday that "the multiple detailed allegations against the Lt. Gov. of Virginia are deeply troubling" and called on Fairfax to leave office. Gillibrand called details of the second woman's claims "sickening and horrendous" and also called on Fairfax to step down. Earlier Friday, a woman released a statement that Fairfax assaulted her when they both were students at Duke University. California college professor Vanessa Tyson has accused Fairfax of forcing her to perform oral sex on him in 2004 during the Democratic National Convention. Fairfax has denied the allegations. ___ 4:45 p.m. A second woman has come forward to accuse Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax of sexual assault. The woman said in a statement Friday that the attack took place when she and Fairfax were students at Duke University. The new accusation further clouds the fate of Virginia's government. Fairfax would take over if Gov. Ralph Northam were to resign over the racist photo that appeared on his medical school yearbook page. Northam told his top staff Friday that he would not resign. Attorney General Mark Herring, who is second in line of succession, admitted putting on blackface in college. Earlier this week, California college professor Vanessa Tyson accused Fairfax of forcing her to perform oral sex on him in 2004 during the Democratic National Convention. Fairfax called the allegation a political smear. ___ 4:10 p.m. A senior official in Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam's administration says the governor has told his top staff that he does not plan to resign over a racist photo despite intense pressure to step down. The official says Northam told his Cabinet during a Friday afternoon meeting that he intends to stay. The official was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity. Northam has faced widespread calls to step down over after his medical school yearbook page with a racist photo surfaced last week. It shows one person in blackface and another in a Ku Klux Klan robe and hood. Northam said last Friday that he was in the picture. On Saturday, he denied he was in the picture and said he was not immediately resigning but left his long-term fate unclear. ___ 1:15 p.m. A Democratic lawmaker from Virginia's D.C. suburbs says won't call on the besieged governor to resign. State Sen. Chap Petersen issued a statement Friday saying he's spent the week meeting with voters to discuss the discovery of a racist photograph on the 1984 medical school yearbook page of Gov. Ralph Northam. Petersen's Democratic-leaning district includes Fairfax and Vienna. Peterson said he's concluded that he "will not request the Governor's resignation," nor that of any other official who hasn't obviously committed a crime in office or seen their ability to serve "irredeemably compromised." Many of the state's Democrats have called on Northam to step down over the yearbook photo, which shows one person in blackface and another in Ku Klux Klan attire. He first said he was in the picture, then denied it while at the same time acknowledging that he did wear blackface once at a dance contest. ___ 11:10 a.m. A hip-hop pioneer who was imitated by a Virginia politician in blackface says he hopes people will learn lessons from such "regrettable actions." Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring said earlier this week that he wore brown makeup to a college party in 1980 because he wanted to look like rappers he listened to, specifically mentioning Kurtis Blow. Now Herring is struggling to shore up his political support amid calls for his resignation. The rapper released a statement Friday on Instagram saying he hopes moments like this can help people understand the harm of blackface. He writes: "It is my hope that these regrettable actions can be turned into teachable moments." He doesn't mention Herring by name. __ 7:25 a.m. Virginia's House Democrats have followed the state's Legislative Black Caucus in not calling for resignations of the lieutenant governor or attorney general after insisting that the governor must go. The Democrats' statement says they take the issues and allegations facing Virginia's top three elected officials seriously and they'll be taking the pulse of their constituents over the weekend. If Gov. Ralph Northam, Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax and Attorney General Mark Herring all resign, Republican House Speaker Kirk Cox would be in charge. Northam and Herring are struggling to affirm their respect for African-Americans after acknowledging they wore blackface once decades ago. A woman says Fairfax's possible promotion compelled her to publicly accuse him of sexually assaulting her 15 years ago in an encounter Fairfax says was consensual. FILE - In this Feb. 2, 2019 file photo, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam speaks during a news conference in the Governor's Mansion in Richmond, Va. Northam clung to his office Tuesday, Feb. 5, amid intense political fallout over a racist photo in his 1984 medical school yearbook and uncertainty about the future of the state's government. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File) Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax presides over the state Senate in Richmond, Va., on Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. California college professor Vanessa Tyson has made an allegation of sexual assault against Fairfax. He has denied the allegations, casting them as a political smear. (Steve Earley/The Virginian-Pilot via AP) FILE - In this Oct. 6, 2003 file photo, Kurtis Walker, known by his rap name Kurtis Blow, poses in the Harlem neighborhood in the Manhattan borough of New York. Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring issued a statement Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019, saying he wore brown makeup and a wig in 1980 to look like a rapper during a party as an undergraduate at the University of Virginia. In the statement, he said he and two friends dressed up to look like rappers they listened to, including Kurtis Blow. The revelation comes amid calls for Gov. Ralph Northam to resign after the emergence of a racist photo in his medical school yearbook. (AP Photo/Jim Cooper, File) FILE - In this Jan. 12, 2018 file photo, Virginia Gov.-elect, Lt. Gov Ralph Northam, center, walks down the reviewing stand with Lt. Gov-elect, Justin Fairfax, right, and Attorney General Mark Herring at the Capitol in Richmond, Va. The political crisis in Virginia exploded Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019, when the state's attorney general confessed to putting on blackface in the 1980s and a woman went public with detailed allegations of sexual assault against the lieutenant governor. With Northam's career already hanging by a thread over a racist photo, the day's developments threatened to take down all three of Virginia's top elected officials. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File) In this undated photo provided by Scripps College, Vanessa Tyson, an associate professor in politics at Scripps College, poses for a photo. Tyson, a 42-year-old political science professor who studies the intersection of politics and the #MeToo movement, went public with her sexual assault accusation against Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019, saying in a statement that she repressed the memory for years but came forward in part because of the possibility that Fairfax could succeed a scandal-mired governor. (Scripps College via AP) FILE-In this Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018 file photo, Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring takes the oath of office during inaugural ceremonies at the Capitol in Richmond, Va. Herring, admitted Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019, to putting on blackface in the 1980s, when he was a college student. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) Virginia Lt. Gov Justin Fairfax smiles during the senate session at the Capitol in Richmond, Va., Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. A California woman has accused Fairfax of sexually assaulting her 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) State Sen. Thomas K. Norment, R-James City County, arrives on the floor of the Senate chamber in Richmond, Va., on Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. Norment was an editor for a Virginia Military Institute yearbook filled with racist photos and slurs. (Steve Earley/The Virginian-Pilot via AP) Rev. Al Sharpton delivers the keynote speech at the Reflections on Faith, Community and Racial Reconciliation in the Commonwealth ceremony hosted by Virginia Union University at the Allix B. James Chapel, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, in Richmond, Va.. Sharpton said in a fiery speech at historically black Virginia Union University that Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam and Attorney General Mark Herring must step down over their blackface admissions, and the sexual allegations against Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax should be investigated thoroughly. (James H. Wallace/Richmond Times-Dispatch via AP) KIEV, Ukraine (AP) - Election officials in Ukraine said Friday that 44 candidates have registered to compete in the March presidential election - a record for the nation. The latest polls show that comedian Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who plays the nation's president in a popular TV series, has surged ahead of both incumbent President Petro Poroshenko and ex-Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko in the run-up to the March 31 vote. Zelenskiy's popularity has been driven by both his TV star status and public dismay with current leaders. Ukraine has seen economic troubles and a sharp drop in living standards after Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea and Russia's support for a separatist insurgency in eastern Ukraine. "A comedian has taken the lead in Ukraine's political carnival, which is expectable amid a crisis of confidence in the old political elites, popular disappointment and massive poverty," said Volodymyr Fesenko, an analyst with the independent Penta think-tank. A survey released this week had 21.9 percent supporting Zelenskiy, while Tymoshenko was the choice of 19.2 percent and Poroshenko came in third with 14.8 percent. The poll of 10,000 had a margin of error of 1 percentage point. Among the 44 candidates is a man with the same last name as Tymoshenko who also happens to have the same initials. Ukrainian comedian and presidential candidate Volodymyr Zelenskiy speaks during his interview with The Associated Press, in Kiev, Ukraine, Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019. Zelenskiy, who has taken the lead in Ukraine's presidential race, says his popularity reflects the public disillusionment with the nation's politicians. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky) Tymoshenko on Friday accused Poroshenko of "dirty manipulations," saying that the man's inclusion on the ballot was intended to confuse voters and erode support for her. She urged Poroshenko to "remember his dignity" and get the man off the ballot. The total of 93 presidential hopefuls tried to enter the race. Most of those who have been denied registration failed to collect the required fee of 2.5 million hryvnias (about $90,000). Former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko speaks during a parliament session in Kiev, Ukraine, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. During the plenary session lawmakers voted on various matters including issues about the Constitution, on foreign policy and on entering the EU and NATO. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky) QUINCY, Mass. (AP) - A Massachusetts cab driver is being praised by police for helping an 87-year-old woman from being taken by a classic scam. Richard Spencer, who drives for Yellow Cab of Quincy, tells The Patriot Ledger he sensed something was wrong when the woman he was driving Wednesday told him she was going to Walmart to purchase thousands of dollars in gift cards. Instead of taking her to the store, he drove her to the police station. The woman told police she had received a phone call saying her grandson was in trouble and needed the money to stay out of jail. Unfortunately, the woman had already been scammed out of $4,000, but police say "it could have been much, much worse." Spencer says what he did was not a big deal. ___ Information from: The (Quincy, Mass.) Patriot Ledger, http://www.patriotledger.com NEW YORK (AP) - New York police on Friday fatally shot a man they say was attacking his domestic partner with a butcher knife. Chief of Department Terence Monahan said two officers responded to a 911 call at around 7 a.m. from an apartment on Manhattan's Lower East Side. "The 911 caller said that his partner had him barricaded in the bathroom," the chief said. When police arrived, the caller was freed and told officers the other man was in the rear of the apartment. As they escorted the man toward the hallway, he was at first "calm and compliant," Monahan said, then suddenly broke away, grabbed the large knife in the kitchen and started stabbing the victim. The chief said the officers responded, quickly firing a total of five shots. The attacker was declared dead at a Manhattan hospital. Police identified him as Joshua Williams, 32. This photo, provided by the New York City Police Department, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, shows a butcher knife that police say was used in an attack. New York police on Friday fatally shot the man they say was attacking his domestic partner with the butcher knife. (New York City Police Department via AP) The victim was hospitalized in stable condition and is being treated for slash and puncture wounds to his face and left shoulder. "Our preliminary investigation shows there is a history of domestic violence between these two individuals," Monahan said. An order of protection had been issued earlier this week against the attacker. The 6th floor apartment is located on Cherry Street off the FDR Drive. It's the third police shooting in New York City in 10 days. Monahan said both officers were wearing body cameras that captured the shooting. DETROIT (AP) - The family of a man who was fatally shot by police outside a baby shower in suburban Detroit has filed a $10 million wrongful death lawsuit against police. The federal lawsuit was filed Thursday on behalf of the family of 29-year-old Theoddeus Gray of Detroit. The suit says Gray was shot while unarmed and after surrendering to police in St. Clair Shores. Gray was fatally shot Nov. 4 outside Lakeland Manor banquet hall after police got a report about a man with a gun. Police Chief Todd Woodcox disputes Gray surrendered, telling The Macomb Daily that the lawsuit was "the first I've heard of any allegation that he had surrendered." Macomb County Sheriff Anthony Wickersham says Gray was armed and his office's investigation determined that the shooting was justified. A police dog also was killed. ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) - Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Friday that he'll decide by the end of the month whether to seek the presidency. The 76-year-old businessman, one of the richest men in the world, has been openly contemplating a Democratic White House bid since late last year. In an interview with The Associated Press, Bloomberg said he has "three more weeks" to make his decision in line with his plan to announce his intentions before the end of February. He also rejected a recent report suggesting he likely would not run if former Vice President Joe Biden enters the race. "My decision doesn't depend on what other people are going to do," Bloomberg said. "My decision depends on whether or not I think I can make a difference." Bloomberg's decision comes as a handful of high-profile Democrats consider joining the 2020 race. Biden and former Texas Congressman Beto O'Rourke, who earlier in the week said he'd announce his decision "very soon," are the most prominent holdouts. Should he run, Bloomberg would bring virtually limitless resources and a pragmatic governing approach to the field. The former Republican stands out for a decidedly more pragmatic governing approach than some of the early 2020 Democratic contenders, who are more aligned with the party's far-left wing. FILE - In this Jan. 29, 2019 file photo, potential Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg speaks to workers during a tour of the WH Bagshaw Company, a pin and precision component manufacturer, in Nashua, N.H. Bloomberg said Friday that he'll decide by the end of the month whether to seek the presidency. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola) Bloomberg has spent hundreds of millions of dollars to promote liberal priorities on climate change, gun control and immigration, including more than $100 million to help elect Democrats in the 2018 midterm elections. He confirmed Friday that he "would separate myself" from his foundation and private business should he launch a presidential campaign, just as he did as New York City mayor. "I'm spending more time going around politically now," he said. "You can see the beginning of a transition." Initially registered as a Democrat, the Massachusetts native filed paperwork to change his voter registration to Republican in 2000 before his first run for New York City mayor, according to a spokesman. In June 2007, he unenrolled from the GOP, having no formal party affiliation until he registered again as a Democrat last October. While he would walk away from his private organizations should he run, Bloomberg lashed out at those who suggest his private work would present conflicts of interest as a presidential candidate. "Some of the people that say that are legislators who take money from industries where they're regulating them," he said. "Maybe they should go worry about what they're doing." Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has vowed to continue negotiations with Russia with the aim of signing a peace treaty, TASS reports. "The issue that has remained unresolved for over 70 years, should not be passed on to future generations," Abe said on Sunday. "I am full of resolve to put an end to this problem by our joint efforts with [Russian] President Putin. I want to continue negotiations on the peace treaty," he noted. For decades, Moscow and Tokyo have been negotiating a peace treaty after World War II. The main stumbling block is the status of the southern part of the Kuril Islands. After World War II, the whole archipelago became part of the Soviet Union. However, Tokyo disputes Russia's sovereignty over Iturup, Kunashir and Shikotan Islands as well as a number of smaller uninhabited islands called the Habomai Islands in Japan. MADRID (AP) - Spain's justice minister has asked the country's Catholic Church leaders to hand over all the information they possess about internal investigations or proceedings related to sexual abuse allegations at church institutions. The Justice Ministry says in a statement that the request sent by letter Thursday reflects a need to move forward with any criminal proceedings as well as to throw a light on "deeds our society can no longer remain quiet about." The Spanish Episcopal Conference replied that it has already provided information about known cases to the Vatican and Spanish judicial authorities, as required by law. It also expressed "sincere concern" for the victims of "a serious problem which affects the whole of society." Only a handful of church-linked sexual abuse cases have emerged in Spain. GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) - Israeli troops shot and killed two Palestinian teenagers on Friday as thousands held demonstrations along the perimeter fence separating Gaza and Israel. Hassan Shalabi, 14, was shot in the chest at one protest site in southern Gaza Strip and Hamza Ishtiwi, 18, was killed at a protest in east Gaza City, the Health Ministry said. He was hit with a bullet in the neck. The ministry added that 17 other protesters were wounded. There has been no immediate comment from the Israeli military. Friday's protests drew thousands of Palestinians who gathered at five locations along the fence, throwing rocks toward the Israeli forces stationed behind the frontier. The Israeli troops responded with barrages of tear gas and live fire. The protest campaign, launched by Gaza's Hamas rulers last March, has become a weekly event. They have seen the death of about 190 Palestinians and an Israeli soldier. The violence sometimes escalated into brief rounds of cross-border exchanges of rockets and airstrikes. The militant Hamas group demands an end to the Israeli-Egyptian blockade imposed on the territory since 2007. Egypt has since eased Palestinian movement through its border and Israel allowed Qatar to send financial aid to Gaza, but the Hamas says this is insufficient. Israel accuses Hamas of exploiting the protests as a cover to carry out attacks against its soldiers. Earlier this week, Israel began reinforcing its fence, erecting a galvanized steel barrier six meters (20 feet) high that will run the length of Gaza's perimeter. NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) - The United States military says targeted airstrikes against suspected extremists in Somalia have killed 15 fighters. A U.S. Africa Command statement says the airstrikes occurred in the vicinity of Gandarshe, Lower Shabelle region, on Wednesday and in the vicinity of Bariire in the same region on Thursday. The airstrikes killed 11 and four people, respectively, after Somali troops engaged the extremists. The statement says no civilians were harmed. These are the latest in a dramatic uptick in U.S. airstrikes in the Horn of Africa nation since President Donald Trump took office. The al-Qaida-affiliated al-Shabab extremist group once controlled large swathes of Somalia. African Union forces have succeeded in pushing it from major cities. Al-Shabab, the deadliest Islamic extremist group in Africa, continues with attacks in Somalia and neighboring Kenya. ATLANTA (AP) - Relatives of an 18-year-old Georgia man fatally shot by Atlanta police are suing the city for $5 million. WXIA-TV reported Thursday on the wrongful death lawsuit filed by family of D'ettrick Griffin, who was killed last month. Atlanta police have identified the officer as Oliver Simmonds. Griffin is accused of trying to steal Simmonds' unmarked police car. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation says a preliminary investigation has found that the plainclothes officer was pumping gas when Griffin got into the city-issued car. The GBI says Griffin tried to drive off and was shot by Simmonds. Griffin crashed into two vehicles and was found dead in the car. The GBI says it doesn't appear that Griffin was armed. Simmonds is a member of Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms' executive protection unit. ___ Information from: WXIA-TV, http://www.11alive.com/ MOSCOW (AP) - Russian officials say that seven workers have died in two separate accidents at Siberian coal mines. The Investigative Committee, the nation's top state investigative agency, said that in one accident Friday, a truck carrying miners to the Raspadskaya coal mine in the Kemerovo region in central Siberia veered off the road and fell 8 meters (26 feet) down a slope. The agency said six workers were killed and 16 others were injured and hospitalized. In another accident in the nearby Belovo region of Kemerovo, a section of a coal mine collapsed, trapping four workers. One of them died of injuries while three others have been rescued, according to the regional government. Kemerovo Gov. Sergei Tsyvilev said the accidents highlighted the need to improve safety standards at the region's mines. Rep. Chris Erwin finally won a seat in the Georgia legislature after a chaotic campaign in which a judge threw out the first election and ordered the vote to be redone in December. Now a court has ruled that illegal votes tainted the second election, removing Erwin from office Friday less than a month after he was sworn in and ordering him to run for the job a third time. "It's frustrating, I won't say any different," said Erwin, who's already seeing signs of do-over deja vu in his district. "I drove to the dentist this morning and I rode by and noticed three of my campaign signs had been put out already." Erwin and the fellow Republican he thought he had defeated twice last year, former state Rep. Dan Gasaway, are heading for a third showdown at the polls in state House District 28 in northeast Georgia. That's after a judge found illegal votes tainted both the initial GOP primary last May as well as the special do-over election held Dec. 4. Superior Court Judge David Sweat ordered Friday that a new election be scheduled for April 9. His order also stripped Erwin from office, likely for the remainder of the legislature's 40-day session that started in January. It's yet another example of problems Georgia voters faced at the polls in 2018. In some cities, voters had to wait two hours or more to cast ballots Nov. 6. Pending lawsuits accuse Georgia officials of enforcing strict voter ID rules and other policies that violated citizens' voting rights. Meanwhile, state officials are working to replace paperless electronic voting machines that security experts have warned are vulnerable to hackers. Attorneys for both Gasaway and Erwin said errors that tainted both elections originated with local officials. Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, who oversees elections in Georgia, said Thursday his office is investigating whether vote fraud played a role, but gave no details. Republicans keep the seat no matter who eventually wins. No Democrats ran in the district that spans Banks, Stephens and Habersham counties in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. Facing the loss of a seat he'd held since 2013, Gasaway challenged the May primary election in court after losing by 67 votes. Sweat, a senior judge based outside the district, was brought in to hear the case and ruled mapping errors allowed some who didn't live in Gasaway's district to vote. The December do-over election was even closer. Erwin won again by just two votes, and Gasaway went back to court. After hearing four days of testimony, the same judge on Feb. 1 threw out the second election. Sweat found that four voters cast illegal ballots - enough to have potentially tipped the race. Gasaway said his refusal to concede to a fellow Republican hasn't been popular with some in the GOP. "I've been called every name known to man," Gasaway said. "I have seen some parties who thought it was sour grapes the first time, and now see that I've been right twice, who are realizing we have a real problem now and Dan might not be crazy." All four instances of illegal voting cited by the judge occurred in Habersham County. One voter showed up as having voted twice. Three others were found to have cast illegal votes in the race because they had moved outside the district. "It does sort of boggle the mind," said Cathy Cox, Georgia's secretary of state from 1999 through 2007 and now the dean of Mercer University's law school. "When you have to redo any election, you would hope that everybody involved would flyspeck any of the places where there was potential for error... But we're all humans." The elections supervisor for Habersham County, Laurel Ellison, said in an email Friday that county officials had asked the secretary of state to investigate "possible voter fraud due to a double vote." Jake Evans, Gasaway's attorney, said election workers in Habersham County failed to catch voters who had moved outside the district even after they signed in at the polls under addresses that didn't match their voter registration. "The crux of this case was just letting people to continue to vote in a district they had moved out of and provided notice," Evans said. Erwin's attorney, Bryan Tyson, argued the three voters who had moved still should have been allowed to vote because Georgia law gives voters time to change their registration before they can be removed from the rolls at a former address. "It's a complicated question of what is the duty of the voter and what is the duty of the registrar when you move somewhere else," Tyson said. "I think everybody worked really hard here to get it right." Tyson said he hasn't decided whether to appeal. Erwin's forced exit from the House likely leaves the district's more than 50,000 constituents with no representative until after the 2019 legislative session ends. It's not the first Georgia election to require a double do-over. Courts twice tossed out results of the District 1 state House race in November 2002 and again in January 2003, citing confusion over which voters were eligible after the northern Georgia district's boundaries were redrawn. Democratic Rep. Mike Snow won re-election after the third round of voting in July 2003. SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - In a story Feb. 8 about retailers adopting technology to allow shoppers to buy goods without waiting in line, The Associated Press misspelled the name of a provider of checkout-free shopping technology. The company is Grabango, not Grabandgo. A corrected version of the story is below: Retailers are shopping for ways to get rid of checkout lines Grab a soda and go: Convenience stores embracing cashier-less shopping By MICHAEL LIEDTKE and JOSEPH PISANI AP Business Writers SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Get ready to say good riddance to the checkout line. A year after Amazon opened its first cashier-less store, startups and retailers are racing to get similar technology in stores throughout the world, letting shoppers buy groceries without waiting in line. If they work, cashier-less stores will not only save time but maybe money too, for both cost-cutting merchants and customers whose shopping habits are dissected. From cameras and sensors, the stores will know when shoppers pick up a product and put it down, and can send them a discount to tempt them to buy it. Merchants will be able to create more space for merchandise, better track when shelves need replenishing and draw more business from the hordes of customers who detest long lines. But the monitoring system underlying cashier-less technology is bound to raise new privacy issues and worries about customer data falling into the wrong hands, especially if stores deploy facial recognition software in the omnipresent cameras watching shoppers. "It could be scary, and it could be creepy," says Peter Trepp, CEO of FaceFirst, a Los Angeles company that so far has only sold its facial recognition tools to retailers trying to identify shoplifters and other criminals. "But if it's used to give people a 30 percent coupon on something they want that is going to be a nice benefit. That kind of experience will help people embrace the technology." Amazon has a head start in the U.S., opening 10 convenience stores in three cities: Chicago, San Francisco and Seattle. The stores sell salads and sandwiches for lunch, everyday items like toilet paper and Advil, and groceries such as Cheerios and raw ground beef. Shoppers scan an app to enter the Amazon Go store, grab what they want and walk out. Cameras and sensors on the ceiling track what's taken so their credit or debit cards are automatically charged when they leave. Shoppers will know how long it took to shop, since Amazon sends an alert with their shopping time. "It was just a phenomenal experience," said Tom Hadfield, who bought a Coke Zero in a minute and five seconds at one of the Go stores in San Francisco while visiting the city recently. Hadfield, who runs a technology startup in Austin, Texas, said it reminded him of the first time he rode an Uber. "You just know it's going to be the future," he said. Amazon doesn't say how much money its cashier-less stores make. But analysts from RBC Capital Markets recently visited Amazon Go's two San Francisco stores to come up with a number. Based on their observations of traffic patterns, they estimated about 400 to 700 customers per day will visit each of the roughly 2,000-square-foot Amazon Go stores, generating sales of $1.1 million to $2 million annually, assuming an average purchase of $10. At the high end of that range, it works out to twice the sales of a typical U.S. convenience store, RBC calculated. Several startups are pitching technology to retailers who want to create Amazon Go-like stores of their own. One of the companies, called AiFi, says it has signed deals with the Carrefour chain in France and Zabka convenience stores in Poland. Others, including Zippin, Grabango, Trigo Vision and Inokyo, say they are negotiating deals with retailers in the U.S. and other parts of the world, although none are ready to identify them yet. "Once a few big retail chains begin to deploy this technology, it's going to snowball and we will see more and more of them doing it," says Michael Suswal, co-founder of Standard Cognition, another cashier-less technology startup. So far, companies working on the technology are finding ways to do without facial recognition. Their systems rely on cameras for identifying objects rather than people. Like Amazon, they rely on tailored smartphone apps to identify who is entering the store and to process the sale for whatever products are taken. Both Standard Cognition and Zippin opened small stores in San Francisco last year that have held invitation-only demonstrations or been open for limited hours with a scant selection of merchandise. "I like the idea of being able to come into a store, grab what you want and just walk out," says Tomonori Nishimura, a 30-year-old researcher for Fujitsu Laboratories after getting a bag of Funyuns at Standard's small store in San Francisco recently. Amazon appears the most likely to make cashier-less stores a more common sight, partly because it can afford to open stores with the technology already built into them, given its current market value of about $800 billion - ranking among the most valuable companies in the world. But the country's biggest retailers are also trying to speed up the shopping process. Sam's Club, the warehouse-style club owned by Walmart, opened a test store in Dallas that has no cashiers. Instead, shoppers use their smartphones to scan products and pay. 7-Eleven is testing something similar at 14 stores in Dallas. "Waiting in line is torture," says 7-Eleven's Gurmeet Singh, the company's chief digital officer and chief information officer. Though, he added, there are no plans to get rid of cashiers. He wants people to have a choice on how they pay. As cashier-less stores become more common, there will likely be more political pressure to ensure they still offer an option to pay by cash to avoid discriminating against lower-income consumers without bank accounts and credit cards. In anticipation of that likelihood, Standard Cognition already has set up a separate kiosk for all-cash purchases in its test store. RBC believes Amazon eventually will also introduce its cashier-less technology in its Whole Foods supermarkets, though Amazon says it has no plans to do so. For now, Amazon seems to have its eye on smaller stores: Late last year it introduced a 450-square-foot version of Amazon Go that can be plopped into office buildings or hospitals, like a walk-in vending machine. "Within five years, I think just about everyone will have experienced what autonomous checkout is like," says Suswal of Standard Cognition. "And within 10 years, regular checkout stands will be very rare." ___ Pisani reported from New York. ___ This story has been revised to correct the spelling of the last name of Standard Cognition's co-founder to Suswal from Suswai. MEXICO CITY (AP) - Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador is facing opposition from day care advocates after he cut direct funding for government-run and concessionary child care centers. The current system allows parents to sign up for low-cost care based on their place of employment or residence, but the centers have been plagued by abuse scandals and faulty installations. One such center burned in 2009, killing 49 children. Lopez Obrador instead plans to give parents about $85 every two months for each of their children and let them choose their own day care. This voucher-type system faced criticism from Mexico's Senate, especially after administration officials suggested families pay grandparents to care for children. The Senate passed a non-binding resolution Thursday calling for renewed direct funding and better regulations for existing centers. MOSCOW (AP) - Sergei Yursky, a renowned Russian film and stage actor who has been widely recognized as one of the most talented actors of his generation, has died. He was 83. The Mossovet Theater where Yursky worked said he died in Moscow on Friday. The Tass news agency quoted his daughter as saying that he died of heart failure. Born to an actor's family in Leningrad, Yursky graduated from a theater academy and joined the city's Bolshoi Drama Theater in 1957. He worked there for the next two decades and made his directorial debut with Moliere. He had worked as an actor and director in Moscow's Mossovet Theater since 1979. Yursky also had a highly successful movie career, playing charming con artist Ostap Bender in the "The Golden Calf" and a desperate man facing murder charges and struggling to prove his innocence in "The Meeting Place Can't Be Changed" among dozens of other roles. Russian President Vladimir Putin sent his condolences to Yursky's family, describing him as a man of "remarkable, multifaceted talent." In a Facebook post, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said that Yursky could perform "in different scenic genres - from tragedy to grotesque." ''His characters form a portrait gallery of an epoch," he said. FILE In this file photo taken on Friday, April 8, 2011, Russian actor Sergei Yursky holds the Nika Award at a presentation ceremony in Moscow, Russia. Yursky, who died in Moscow on Friday, Feb. 8, 2019 at the age of 83, has been widely recognized as one of the most talented actors of his generation. (AP Photo/Mikhail Metzel, File) Yursky is survived by his wife and daughter, both of them actresses, and two grandsons. He is set to be buried Monday at Moscow's Troyekurovsky Cemetery. NEW YORK (AP) - The Latest on Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos' allegations against the National Enquirer's publisher (all times local): 12:50 p.m. Federal prosecutors in New York are probing whether the National Enquirer's parent company violated a cooperation agreement in its handling of the story regarding Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos. Bezos claims American Media Inc. threatened to publish intimate photos of him unless he stopped investigating how the tabloid obtained his private exchanges with his mistress. Two people familiar with the matter tell The Associated Press that prosecutors are looking at whether an email exchange Bezos published shows AMI violated an agreement it struck to avoid prosecution for alleged campaign finance violations. The people were not authorized to speak publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity. The agreement requires AMI commit no crimes for three years. AMI did not respond to requests for comment. FILE- In this Sept. 13, 2018, file photo Jeff Bezos, Amazon founder and CEO, speaks at The Economic Club of Washington's Milestone Celebration in Washington. Bezos says the National Enquirer is threatening to publish nude photographs of him unless his private investigators back off the tabloid that detailed the billionaire's extramarital affair (AP Photo/Cliff Owen, File) - Jim Mustian and Michael R. Sisak ___ 9:45 a.m. The publisher of the National Enquirer says it will investigate Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos' allegation that it threatened to publish revealing personal photos of him unless he stopped investigating how the tabloid obtained his private exchanges with his mistress. American Media Inc. says in a statement issued Friday it "acted lawfully" while reporting the story. The Enquirer published a story last month that included lurid texts between Bezos and former TV anchor Lauren Sanchez. Since then, private investigators have been looking into how the Enquirer got the texts. Bezos says he was the target of "extortion and blackmail" by American Media. But the company says it engaged in "good faith negotiations." American Media says its board of directors ordered a prompt and thorough investigation. It says it'll take "whatever appropriate action is necessary." ___ 12:45 a.m. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos says he was the target of "extortion and blackmail" by the publisher of the National Enquirer. He says the Enquirer chief threatened to publish revealing personal photos of Bezos unless he stopped investigating how the tabloid obtained his private exchanges with his mistress. Bezos, who is also owner of The Washington Post, detailed his interactions with American Media Inc., in an extraordinary blog post Thursday on Medium.com. The billionaire said the Enquirer wanted him to make a public statement that the tabloid's coverage was not politically motivated. Bezos' accusations add another twist to a high-profile clash between the world's richest man and the leader of America's best-known tabloid. Iran will stage large-scale naval drills in the Gulf of Oman and Indian Ocean in near future, deputy commander of the Iranian navy announced, Xinhua reported. Iran's Air Force, marine brigades and naval commando units are also planning to join the maneuvers, Touraj Hassani Moqaddam was quoted as saying by official IRNA news agency. The drills will be held in an expanse of northern coasts of the Gulf of Oman in the southeast of Iran down to the Indian Ocean, said Moqaddam. The drills aim to display Iran's capacity to establish security in the region and show its powerful presence in the high seas, he added. Iran's state-of-the-art hardware, such as naval vessels, submarines, surface-to-sea missiles, drones and electronic warfare equipment, will participate in the naval exercise, the deputy commander said. WASHINGTON (AP) - The Latest on acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker's appearance before a House committee (all times local): 12:40 p.m. Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker has declined to answer a question about whether special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation is a "witch hunt." President Donald Trump has repeatedly called the Russia probe a "witch hunt." Asked by Democratic Tennessee Rep. Steve Cohen on Friday if he also thought it was, Whitaker declined to answer, citing the ongoing investigation. Asked by Cohen if he would stop a "witch hunt," Whitaker said it would be "inappropriate" to answer that question. Whitaker oversees the Mueller probe. Trump's permanent pick for attorney general, William Barr, has said he does not believe Mueller would be involved in a "witch hunt." Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker appears before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Washington. Whitaker insisted on Friday that he has not "interfered in any way" in the special counsel's Russia investigation as he faced a contentious and partisan congressional hearing in his waning days on the job. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Democrats are eager to press acting Whitaker during his first testimony to Congress on his interactions with Trump and his oversight of the special counsel's Russia investigation. ___ 10:20 a.m. Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker says he has "not interfered in any way" in the special counsel's Russia investigation. Whitaker also says he has not talked to President Donald Trump or senior White House officials about the investigation. The acting attorney general made the comments Friday during a contentious hearing of the Democrat-led House Judiciary Committee. Whitaker has been supervising special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation after rejecting the advice of career ethics officials to step aside out of an abundance of caution. The testimony comes as Whitaker is likely winding down his tenure leading the Justice Department. ___ 10:05 a.m. House Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler says he wants to ask Acting Attorney General Matthew Whittaker why he wouldn't recuse himself from overseeing special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation. Nadler also wants to know why President Donald Trump left Whitaker in his acting position for so long after Attorney General Jeff Sessions was pushed out. Trump waited a month to nominate William Barr to the permanent position after Whitaker took over. Nadler asked on Friday what Trump hoped to get out of appointing him and what Whitaker provided to Trump, a question the top Republican on the committee, Georgia Rep. Doug Collins, called "offensive." Democrats said they would not use a subpoena they had authorized in case Whitaker doesn't answer questions. But Nadler said they would get answers "in the long run." ___ 10 a.m. The top Republican on the House Judiciary Committee says a hearing with acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker is a "dog and pony show." Georgia Republican Rep. Doug Collins says the Friday hearing is such a political show that he's "thinking maybe we just set up a popcorn machine in the back." Collins says the hearing was especially pointless because a new attorney general could be voted in at the Justice Department as soon as next week. He ended his opening remarks with a motion to adjourn the hearing. That motion was defeated. Democrats are eager to press Whitaker on his interactions with President Donald Trump and his oversight of the special counsel's Russia investigation. ___ 9:55 a.m. Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker will tell lawmakers that there has been no change in the "overall management" of the special counsel's Russia investigation. That's according to Whitaker's prepared remarks released as he arrived on Capitol Hill to testify before the Democrat-led House Judiciary Committee on Friday. Whitaker also will say that he had run the Justice Department to the best of his ability, with "fidelity to the law and to the Constitution." Whitaker has been supervising special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation after rejecting the advice of career ethics officials to step aside out of an abundance of caution. The testimony comes as Whitaker is likely winding down his tenure leading the Justice Department with the almost certain confirmation of Attorney General nominee William Barr in the coming weeks. ___ 1:55 a.m. Democrats are eager to press acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker, during his first testimony to Congress, on his interactions with President Donald Trump and his oversight of the special counsel's Russia investigation. Whitaker's testimony Friday was in limbo after the House Judiciary Committee approved a tentative subpoena to ensure he appeared. The stalemate ended Thursday evening after the committee chairman said the committee wouldn't issue a subpoena if Whitaker came voluntarily. Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker arrives to testify before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker appears before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Rep. Doug Collins, R-Ga., questions Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker as he appears before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Washington. Whitaker insisted on Friday that he has not "interfered in any way" in the special counsel's Russia investigation as he faced a contentious and partisan congressional hearing in his waning days on the job. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., questions Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker as he appears before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Washington. Democrats are eager to press him on his interactions with President Donald Trump and his oversight of the special counsel's Russia investigation. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker appears before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., arrives before Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker appears before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., arrives before Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker appears before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - Supporters of a former Fulbright scholar who took sanctuary at a Connecticut church to avoid deportation rallied Friday to call on federal immigration officials to allow him to stay in the U.S. About 50 people gathered in a light rain for a peaceful demonstration outside the federal courthouse in Hartford, where Immigration and Customs Enforcement has an office. Sujitno Sajuti, 70, was ordered by ICE to get on a plane and return to his native Indonesia in October 2017, but instead entered the Unitarian Universalist Church in Meriden. He and his wife have been there ever since. ICE has a policy to not arrest people at certain "sensitive" locations, including churches. Several other immigrants facing deportation have taken sanctuary in churches in Connecticut. "Sending him back to Indonesia where he's from at this point would be cruel and inhumane considering that he's an older person," said Jesus Morales Sanchez, of the Connecticut Immigrant Rights Alliance. "For him to be able to earn a living in Indonesia is going to be very challenging." Sajuti, a West Hartford resident, came to the United States in 1981 on a Fulbright Scholarship, earning advanced degrees from Columbia University and the University of Connecticut. He overstayed his student visa and remained in the United States. He has said he has registered with immigration officials since 2001. FILE - In this Feb. 22, 2012 file photo, Sujitno Sajuti of Indonesia attends a rally by Connecticut immigrants and social rights advocates against the federal Secure Communities program the State Capitol in Hartford, Conn. Supporters of Sajuti who came to the U.S. in 1981 on a Fulbright Scholarship and took sanctuary at a Connecticut church to avoid deportation, are set to rally to call on federal immigration officials to allow him to stay in the U.S. The demonstration is scheduled for Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, outside the federal courthouse in Hartford, where Immigration and Customs Enforcement has an office.(AP Photo/Jessica Hill) Demonstrators huddled under umbrellas, joined in prayer and held signs saying "Set Sujitno Free" and "Shame on ICE Spreading Hate Deporting Love." They also chanted "Let Sujitno Say!" ICE officials said in a statement Friday that Sajuti remains an "immigration fugitive" who is evading U.S. immigration law and still faces deportation. "If an immigration fugitive seeks sanctuary at a site categorized by ICE as a sensitive location it may delay, but does not void ICE's authority to enforce a final order of removal against that individual," the statement said. U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat, took part in the rally and called on immigration officials to allow Sajuti to stay in the U.S. "This 70-year-old man has played by the rules, worked hard, violated no laws and is in this position because of previous inadequate legal representation," Blumenthal said. "He should be given the right to contest the deportation, to reopen his case, have his day in court and seek justice through the immigration system." Blumenthal added, "This cruel and unjust possible deportation is another case in the Trump conveyor belt of injustice and cruelty." Diana Blank, a nonprofit group lawyer representing Sajuti, said Sajuti filed an appeal of the deportation order and a motion to stay the deportation last July and continues to wait for rulings. Supporters of immigrant Sujitno Sajuti rally outside the federal courthouse in Hartford, Conn., on Friday, Feb. 4, 2019. Demonstrators called on immigration authorities to stay a deportation order that forced Sajuti to seek sanctuary in a church in Meriden more than a year ago. Immigration officials say Sajuti, 70, who came to the U.S. in 1981 and overstayed a student visa, is evading immigration law. (AP Photo/Dave Collins) Supporters of immigrant Sujitno Sajuti rally outside the federal courthouse in Hartford, Conn., on Friday, Feb. 4, 2019. Demonstrators called on immigration authorities to stay a deportation order that forced Sajuti to seek sanctuary in a church in Meriden more than a year ago. Immigration officials say Sajuti, 70, who came to the U.S. in 1981 and overstayed a student visa, is evading immigration law. (AP Photo/Dave Collins) U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal speaks at a rally in support of immigrant Sujitno Sajuti rally outside the federal courthouse in Hartford, Conn., on Friday, Feb. 4, 2019. Demonstrators called on immigration authorities to stay a deportation order that forced Sajuti to seek sanctuary in a church in Meriden more than a year ago. Immigration officials say Sajuti, 70, who came to the U.S. in 1981 and overstayed a student visa, is evading immigration law. (AP Photo/Dave Collins) Supporters of immigrant Sujitno Sajuti rally outside the federal courthouse in Hartford, Conn., on Friday, Feb. 4, 2019. Demonstrators called on immigration authorities to stay a deportation order that forced Sajuti to seek sanctuary in a church in Meriden more than a year ago. Immigration officials say Sajuti, 70, who came to the U.S. in 1981 and overstayed a student visa, is evading immigration law. (AP Photo/Dave Collins) RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) - Recovery teams are searching for a 9-year-old girl who ran away from a residential youth home amid frigid weather last weekend in South Dakota. The search for Serenity Dennard had been stalled for two days before resuming Friday because of a winter storm. The girl went missing Sunday in subfreezing temperatures from the Black Hills Children's Home near Rockerville. The Pennington County Sheriff's Office said if the girl was outside, it's unlikely she survived because she wasn't dressed for the weather. Authorities said their efforts are now focused on finding her body. On Friday, searchers headed outside with specially trained dogs to go over the area near the children's home. Additional dogs and handlers are expected to arrive from out-of-state for the weekend. The home is operated by Children's Home Society. The Rapid City Journal reported Friday that staff at the facility waited more than an hour and a half before calling 911 after Serenity ran away. Searchers comb the area near the Black Hills Children's Home near Rockerville, S.D., on Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2019, while looking for Serenity Dennard, a 9-year-old girl who was last seen Sunday morning leaving the Children's Home. Officials are encouraging anyone living in the Rockerville, Foster Gulch and Highway 16 area to check their property. (Ryan Hermens/Rapid City Journal via AP) Bill Colson, executive director of the Children's Home Society, said that after Serenity left the sight of a staff member at about 10:45 a.m., "we immediately conducted a thorough search of our grounds and buildings. When we were unable to find Serenity we called law enforcement." Helene Duhamel, spokeswoman with the Pennington County Sheriff's Office, said investigators believe someone heading to the Children's Home around 11 a.m. was probably the last person to see the girl. A dog helps search for Serenity Dennard, 9, Monday, Feb. 4, 2019, near Rockerville, S.D. Authorities say that the girl ran away from staff at a residential youth home. (Arielle Zionts/Rapid City Journal via AP) Searchers gather in a parking lot at the Black Hills Children's Home near Rockerville, S.D., on Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2019, after helping to look for Serenity Dennard, a 9-year-old girl who was last seen Sunday morning leaving the Children's Home. Officials are encouraging anyone living in the Rockerville, Foster Gulch and Highway 16 area to check their property. (Ryan Hermens/Rapid City Journal via AP) Cisco, a search-and-rescue dog with the Rapid City Fire Department, returns from searching for 9-year-old Serenity Dennard near Rockerville, S.D., Monday, Feb. 4, 2019. Authorities say that the girl ran away from staff at a residential youth home. (Arielle Zionts/Rapid City Journal via AP) Cisco, a search-and-rescue dog with the Rapid City Fire Department, takes a break during the search efforts for a missing 9-year-old girl in freezing weather near Rockerville, S.D., Monday, Feb. 4, 2019. Authorities say that Serenity Dennard ran away from staff at a residential youth home. (Arielle Zionts/Rapid City Journal via AP) CAIRO (AP) - The doctors' union in Sudan said Friday that a government crackdown on weeks of protests has left at least 57 people dead, including three who allegedly died of torture in police custody. The death toll is expected to climb because some of the wounded protesters are in serious condition, the Doctors' Syndicate said in a statement. Sudan has been gripped by nationwide anti-government protests since mid-December. The demonstrations were triggered by rising prices and shortages but quickly shifted to calls for autocratic President Omar al-Bashir to step down. The doctor's union alleged authorities trying to disperse protests have used tear gas excessively, including in residential areas, in homes and in hospitals. The union said 28 doctors have been detained, and one was shot dead while treating wounded protesters. Hundreds of protesters have been wounded, according to previous reports by activists who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals. The union's statement came a day after a chief investigator concluded that Ahmed al-Khair, a 33-year-old school teacher who died in detention a week ago, had been beaten to death. The government has claimed he died of food poisoning. Amer Ibrahim, the head of the Supreme Investigation Committee, said Thursday that forensic reports showed al-Khair was beaten across his body causing complications that led to his death. Al-Khair was detained by Sudanese authorities after protests in the town of Khashm el-Girba in Kassala province. The teacher's death in custody has become a rallying cry for the protesters. Unpopular economic policies helped trigger the unrest. A devaluation of the currency in October drove up prices. The lifting of state subsidies on bread proved to be the final blow that sparked the protests. A cash crunch also led to long lines at cash machines and limits on cash withdrawals. A fuel shortage meant hours-long waits at gas stations. Al-Bashir, who seized power in a military coup in 1989, insists that only elections, which he intends to contest, will result in change. Wanted for genocide by the International Criminal Court, al-Bashir has repeatedly warned that the protests could plunge Sudan into the kind of chaos convulsing other countries in the region. In December, the Sudanese parliament, which is packed with members of al-Bashir's National Congress party, demanded a constitutional amendment to enable the president to serve an unlimited presidential term. He was elected in 2010 and 2015. LONDON (AP) - Albert Finney, one of the most respected and versatile actors of his generation and the star of films as diverse as "Tom Jones" and "Skyfall," has died. He was 82. From his early days as a strikingly handsome and magnetic screen presence to his closing acts as a brilliant character actor, Finney was a British treasure known for charismatic work on both stage and screen. Finney's family said Friday that he "passed away peacefully after a short illness with those closest to him by his side." He died Thursday from a chest infection at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London, a cancer treatment center. Finney burst to international fame in 1963 in the title role of "Tom Jones," playing a lusty, humorous rogue who captivated audience with his charming, devil-may-care antics. He excelled in many other roles, including "Saturday Night and Sunday Morning", a 1960 drama that was part of the "angry young man" film trend. Finney was a rare star who managed to avoid the Hollywood limelight despite more than five decades of worldwide fame. He was known for skipping awards ceremonies, even when he was nominated for an Oscar. FILE - In this Jan. 15, 1970 file photo, British actor Albert Finney waves his cane while playing the title role in "Scrooge," at Shepperton Studios. British Actor Albert Finney, the Academy Award-nominated star of films from "Tom Jones" to "Skyfall" has died at the age of 82 his family said on Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. (AP Photo/R. Dear, File) "Tom Jones" gained him the first of five Oscar nominations. Other nominations followed for "Murder on the Orient Express," ''The Dresser," ''Under the Volcano" and "Erin Brockovich." Each time he fell short. In later years he brought authority to bid-budget and high-grossing action movies, including the James Bond thriller "Skyfall" and two of the Bourne films. He also won hearts as Daddy Warbucks in "Annie." He played an array of roles, including Winston Churchill, Pope John Paul II, a southern American lawyer, and an Irish gangster. There was no "Albert Finney"-type character that he returned to again and again. In one of his final roles, as the gruff Scotsman, Kincade, in "Skyfall," he shared significant screen time with Daniel Craig as Bond and Judi Dench as M, turning the film's final scenes into a master class of character acting. "The world has lost a giant," Craig said. Although Finney rarely discussed his personal life, he said in 2012 that he had been treated for kidney cancer for five years. He also explained why he had not attended the Academy Awards in Los Angeles even when he was nominated for the film world's top prize. "It seems silly to go over there and beg for an award," he said. The son of a bookmaker, Finney was born May 9, 1936, and grew up in northern England on the outskirts of Manchester. He took to the stage at an early age, doing a number of school plays and - despite his lack of connections and his working-class roots - earning a place at London's prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts. He credited the headmaster of his local school, Eric Simms, for recommending that he attend the renowned drama school. "He's the reason I am an actor," Finney said in 2012. Finney made his first professional turn at 19 and appeared in several TV movies. Soon, some critics were hailing him as "the next Laurence Olivier" - a commanding presence who would light up the British stage. In London, Finney excelled both in Shakespeare's plays and in more contemporary offerings. Still, the young man seemed determined not to pursue conventional Hollywood stardom. After an extensive screen test, he turned down the chance to play the title role in director David Lean's epic "Lawrence of Arabia," clearing the way for fellow RADA graduate Peter O'Toole to take what became a career-defining role. But stardom came to Finney anyway in "Tom Jones". That was the role that introduced Finney to American audiences, and few would forget the sensual, blue-eyed leading man who helped the film win a Best Picture Oscar. Finney also earned his first Best Actor nomination for his efforts and the smash hit turned him into a Hollywood leading man. Finney had the good fortune to receive a healthy percentage of the profits from the surprise hit, giving him financial security while he was still in his 20s. "This is a man from very humble origins who became rich when he was very young," said Quentin Falk, author of an unauthorized biography of Finney. "It brought him a lot of side benefits. He's a man who likes to live as well as to act. He enjoys his fine wine and cigars. He's his own man. I find that rather admirable." The actor maintained a healthy skepticism about the British establishment and turned down a knighthood when it was offered, declining to become Sir Albert. "Maybe people in America think being a 'Sir' is a big deal," he said. "But I think we should all be misters together. I think the 'Sir' thing slightly perpetuates one of our diseases in England, which is snobbery." He told The Associated Press in 2000 that he would rather be a "mister" than a "Sir." Instead of cashing in by taking lucrative film roles after "Tom Jones," Finney took a long sabbatical, traveling slowly through the United States, Mexico and the Pacific islands, then returned to the London stage to act in Shakespeare productions and other plays. He won wide acclaim before returning to film in 1967 to co-star with Audrey Hepburn in "Two for the Road." This was to be a familiar pattern, with Finney alternating between film work and stage productions in London and New York. Finney tackled Charles Dickens in "Scrooge" in 1970, then played Agatha Christie's sophisticated sleuth Hercule Poirot in "Murder on the Orient Express" - earning his second Best Actor nomination- and even played a werewolf hunter in the cult film "Wolfen" in 1981. In 1983, he was reunited with his peer from the "angry young man" movement, Tom Courtenay, in "The Dresser," a film that garnered both Academy Award nominations. Finney was nominated again for his role as a self-destructive alcoholic in director John Huston's 1984 film "Under the Volcano." Even during this extraordinary run of great roles, Finney's life was not chronicled in People or other magazines, although the British press was fascinated with his marriage to the sultry French film star Anouk Aimee. He played in a series of smaller, independent films for a number of years before returning to prominence in 2000 as a southern lawyer in the film "Erin Brockovich," which starred Julia Roberts. The film helped introduce Finney to a new generation of moviegoers, and the chemistry between the aging lawyer and his young, aggressive assistant earned him yet another Oscar nomination, this time for Best Supporting Actor. His work also helped propel Roberts to her first Best Actress Oscar. Still, Finney declined to attend the Academy Awards ceremony - possibly damaging his chances at future wins by snubbing Hollywood's elite. Finney also tried his hand at directing and producing and played a vital role in sustaining British theater. The Old Vic theater said his "performances in plays by Shakespeare, Chekhov and other iconic playwrights throughout the '60s, '70s and '80s stand apart as some of the greatest in our 200-year history." Finney is survived by his third wife, Pene Delmage, son Simon and two grandchildren. Funeral arrangements weren't immediately known. FILE - In this Thursday, June 18, 1981 file photo, British actor Albert Finney puffs a big cigar as he sits in the back seat of a vintage cap on the set of "Annie" in New York. Finney, the Academy Award-nominated star of films from "Tom Jones" to "Skyfall" has died at the age of 82, it was reported on Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. (AP Photo/Drew, File) FILE - In this Feb. 25, 2001 file photo, actor Albert Finney, poses for a photo. British Actor Albert Finney, the Academy Award-nominated star of films from "Tom Jones" to "Skyfall" has died at the age of 82 it was reported on Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. (William Conran/PA via AP, FIle) TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) - A lawyer for suspects in two separate attacks in Tunisia that killed some 60 people, mainly tourists, offered condolences to the victims' families Friday. Twenty-four suspects, who have all denied any direct role in the attack, attended the final hearing of the trial over a massacre at a popular sea resort and a deadly attack at the famed Bardo Museum. The suspected mastermind of both attacks hasn't been caught and is thought to be hiding in Libya. The final session at the Tunis courthouse was dedicated to the defense's closing arguments and a livestream was made possible so that families of victims in Europe could watch. A verdict is expected to be reached later Friday. Defense lawyer Imene Truqui presented her condolences to families and insisted the trial was held in a democratic atmosphere, with all parties granted the right to defend themselves. According to lawyer Sondos Ouertani, 44 people have been charged but many suspects who weren't detained haven't showed up at the trial. Imen Triqui, one of the defense lawyers talks to the Associated Press outside the Hall of Justice in Tunis, Friday, Feb.8, 2019. More than 40 people have been summoned to face trial over Tunisia's deadliest attack in a Mediterranean resort in 2015 and the verdict in expected Friday Feb.8, 2019, more than 3-1/2 years after the attack on the Imperial Hotel in the beach resort of Sousse left 38 people dead, mostly British tourists (AP Photo/Hassene Dridi) On June 26, 2015, in the coastal city of Sousse, attacker Aymen Rezgui walked onto the beach of the Imperial Hotel and used an assault rifle to shoot at tourists in lounge chairs, then continued onto the hotel pool before throwing a grenade into the hotel. Rezgui, a Tunisian student who trained with Libyan militants, was killed about 15 minutes later by police. He killed 38 people in Tunisia's deadliest attack, whose responsibility was claimed by the Islamic State group. Some of the defendants face potential capital punishment for charges of premeditated murder, threatening state security and belonging to a group with extremist links. In addition to the massacre at the beach resort, Tunisia suffered two other major attacks in 2015. At the Bardo Museum, 22 people were killed by extremists while 12 perished in the center of Tunis on a bus carrying presidential guards. IS also claimed responsibility for those attacks, which, along with the attack at the Imperial Hotel, devastated the country's tourism sector as travel agencies pulled out and governments issued travel warnings. Tourism has since partially bounced back after Tunisia's government implemented a series of measures aimed at securing popular destinations in the country. ___ This story has been corrected to show that 24 suspects attended the final hearing, not 21 suspects. Imen Triqui, one of the defense lawyers talks to the Associated Press outside the Hall of Justice in Tunis, Friday, Feb.8, 2019. More than 40 people have been summoned to face trial over Tunisia's deadliest attack in a Mediterranean resort in 2015 and the verdict in expected Friday Feb.8, 2019, more than 3-1/2 years after the attack on the Imperial Hotel in the beach resort of Sousse left 38 people dead, mostly British tourists (AP Photo/Hassene Dridi) BERLIN (AP) - France and Germany have buried their differences on new European rules that could complicate plans for a gas pipeline from Russia to Germany. After last-minute negotiations Friday between the two European Union powerhouses, ambassadors of EU countries meeting in Brussels gave the go-ahead to a tweaked proposal that will not threaten the politically sensitive project. The agreement, which only Bulgaria voted against, sets the scene for negotiations within the EU for extending the bloc's rules regulating gas deliveries to incoming pipelines, like the Russian-German Nord Stream 2. "It only happened because Germany and France worked very closely together, also with the Romanian presidency (of the EU) and other member states," German Chancellor Angela Merkel said in Berlin. The Russian-German pipeline is being built under the Baltic Sea to deliver gas directly to Germany for further distribution across Europe, increasing the route's capacity over what already flows through the first Nord Stream pipeline. Eastern European countries like Poland and Ukraine have vehemently objected to the project because they say it specifically bypasses their territories. FILE - In this Nov. 11, 2018 file photo a ship works offshore in the Baltic Sea on the natural gas pipeline Nord Stream 2 from Russia to Germany. (Bernd Wuestneck/dpa via AP) The United States, itself a major gas producer, has called the pipeline a form of Russian control over Germany and a threat to European energy security. It has also suggested that companies involved in the pipeline project could be vulnerable to energy-related sanctions against Russia. "The Americans don't want Nord Stream 2 to happen," an adviser to French President Emmanuel Macron said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to be publicly identified, stressing that it was not American pressure that shaped the French position. "What we say is that if Nord Stream 2 happens, we want it to happen in a European framework." Berlin had been against the new EU directive but, after France threatened to use its weight to push it through, agreed to a compromise where German regulatory officials would oversee projects like Nord Stream 2, but with EU regulators having the final say, according to Macron's office. Germany and France have the eurozone's two biggest economies and are traditionally the drivers of European integration, although the relationship hasn't always run smoothly. Macron's proposals for far-reaching reform of the EU have met with an often-lukewarm response in Berlin. German officials were keen Friday to downplay suggestions of a Franco-German rift, arguing that Paris and Berlin have a strong relationship that allows them to resolve differences. "I think this is a good day and it wouldn't have happened this way without German-French cooperation," Merkel said. The decision ends a two-year impasse, and negotiations are now seen largely as a technical matter that will likely be resolved by this summer. Once the new regulations are finalized, experts say they will subject Russia's Gazprom to EU regulations on the pipeline, and will not allow it to be its sole operator. That will mean charging market prices for gas, rather than Gazprom making its own agreements, and will likely make running the pipeline more expensive in general, said Gustav Gressel, a senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations think-tank in Berlin. "Gazprom would have to run the pipeline in a much more commercial manner, and there will be much less money left that could be funneled into the private pockets of the regime or other parts of the Russian state," he said. However, an attempt to implement new regulations mid-way through the Nord Stream 2 project are almost certain to run into legal challenges from Russia, said Katja Yafimava, a senior research fellow at Britain's Oxford Institute for Energy Studies. Additionally, if the European Commission sees the directive as giving Europe leverage to secure agreements with Russia about gas transiting Ukraine in other pipelines, it could backfire, and make Moscow less willing to concede to a longer-term agreement on that, she said. "Thus, while the European Commission may believe the amendment would put it into position of strength vis-a-vis Russia/Gazprom, in my view this is an illusion and even if the amendment passes it may well be a pyrrhic victory," she said in an email to The Associated Press. _____ Geir Moulson in Berlin and Angela Charlton in Paris contributed to this story. NOGALES, Ariz. (AP) - The Latest on a border shooting (all times local): 9:45 a.m. A U.S.-Mexico border crossing in Arizona has reopened following a shooting in which U.S. Customs and Border Protection says a CBP officer shot the driver of a vehicle attempting to cross into Mexico. The mayor of Nogales, Arizona, had told a newspaper Thursday night that the wounded man was killed but CBP spokeswoman Teresa Small told The Associated Press on Friday he wasn't dead. CBP planned to release additional information Friday. A CBP statement Thursday night said the driver was taken to a hospital in Nogales, Sonora, but did not provide his condition. FILE - This June 1, 2009 file photo shows vehicles waiting to enter the U.S. through The Dennis DeConcini Port of Entry in downtown Nogales, Ariz. The mayor of Nogales says a port of entry on the U.S.-Mexico border is temporarily closed after a customs officer shot and killed a southbound driver who refused to stop Thursday night, Feb. 7, 2019. (Mark Henle/The Arizona Republic via AP, File) The Arizona Daily Star reported the Nogales Mayor Arturo Garino said the shooting took place after the driver refused to stop and tried to run over the CBP officer. --- 6:50 a.m. U.S. Customs and Border Protection says a CBP officer shot and wounded the driver of a vehicle attempting to cross into Mexico at a port of entry, and the mayor of the Arizona city where the incident took place says the wounded man died. A CBP statement about the Thursday night shooting said the driver was wounded and taken to a hospital in Nogales, Sonora, but did not provide his condition, and CBP officials told The Associated Press on Friday they could not immediately provide additional information. Mayor Arturo Garino, the mayor of Nogales, Arizona, told the Arizona Daily Star that the shooting took place after the driver refused to stop and tried to run over the CBP officer. The CBP statement said the vehicle stopped several yards into Mexico. --- 11:55 p.m. The mayor of Nogales, Arizona, says a port of entry on the U.S.-Mexico border is temporarily closed after a customs officer shot and killed a southbound driver who refused to stop. Mayor Arturo Garino tells the Arizona Daily Star that he was told the shooting took place after the truck tried to run over the officer Thursday night. The truck's momentum then carried it onto the Mexican side of the buffer zone between the two countries. Officers of the Mexican equivalent of U.S. Customs and Border Protection reportedly surrounded the truck and discovered the driver dead. Mexican authorities told the Nogales International newspaper that two men were in the truck and the passenger was arrested. PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) - Kosovo's government said Friday that recent comments from Serbia's president not recognizing its borders threaten peace and security. A statement said Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic's words a day earlier not recognizing Kosovo's internationally accepted borders "are unacceptable and introduce a serious threat of Kosovo's territorial integrity and sovereignty." It added they "threaten peace, stability and security in Kosovo, the region and wider." Kosovo-Serbia ties have been strained after Pristina's decision to set a 100 percent import tariff on Serb and Bosnian goods until Belgrade recognizes its sovereignty and stops preventing it from joining international organizations. Kosovo broke away from Serbia in 2008, but Serbia has not recognized its independence. The European Union-facilitated dialogue between the two countries, which started in 2011, has stalled, with Belgrade saying it won't take part until the tariff is lifted. Kosovo's President Hashim Thaci called on the Cabinet to suspend the tariff on Serb goods, saying the U.S. and EU have suggested giving "a chance to the dialogue through temporary suspension of the tax." "Refusal of such an advice could have repercussions in the future," he warned. In a joint open editorial, the U.S. ambassadors to Belgrade and Pristina - Kyle Scott and Philip S. Kosnett - urged both sides to return to talks. They called on "Kosovo to suspend the tariffs, for Serbia to respond constructively, for provocations by both sides to end." They said if those actions are taken, "we are optimistic you can reach a historic normalization agreement in 2019." The ambassadors warned "if the two sides fail to seize this opportunity, you risk losing the best opportunity in a generation." ___ Llazar Semini contributed from Tirana, Albania. ___ Follow Llazar Semini on Twitter: https://twitter.com/lsemini DURHAM, N.C. (AP) - A Catholic school in North Carolina invited a black lesbian alumna to speak at a Black History Month event, but canceled the event and classes due to threats of protest. The Herald-Sun reports Immaculata Catholic School canceled classes Friday after officials learned "a number of groups" planned to protest the talk by Durham councilwoman Vernetta Alston. Alston said Thursday that the school's move sends the message that black voices can be canceled. Father Christopher VanHaight told parents the cancellation prioritized student safety. He hasn't specified what upset the groups. Alston is one of six openly LGBTQ candidates elected to office in North Carolina in 2017. Councilwoman Jillian Johnson, who was also scheduled to speak at the school, says she was told the Black History Month program is now canceled. ___ Information from: The Herald-Sun, http://www.herald-sun.com President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has congratulated Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on the occasion of the Day of Victory of the Islamic Revolution. "Dear Mr President, On my own behalf and on behalf of the people of Azerbaijan, I extend my sincerest congratulations to you and all the people of your country on the occasion of the national day of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Victory of the Islamic Revolution," Azertac quoted his official letter to Iranian counterpart. "Relations between the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Islamic Republic of Iran stem from the will of our two peoples, who have historically lived in an atmosphere of friendship and good neighborliness. I am confident that our bilateral relations, mutually beneficial cooperation, which covers various areas, will continue developing and expanding," Ilham Aliyev wrote. "On this festive day, I wish you the best of health, success in your endeavors, and the friendly and brotherly people of Iran everlasting peace and prosperity," he added. DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) - Syria's state news agency says a mine has exploded in agricultural land in the central province of Hama killing seven civilians and wounding another. SANA said the mine blast occurred Friday east of the central town of Salamiyeh adding that it was left behind by militants who once inhabited the area. SANA gave no further details. The area east of Salamiyeh was once controlled by the Islamic State group before government forces drove them out in recent years. Mines and booby traps have killed and maimed thousands of Syrians since the conflict began nearly eight years ago. Syria's conflict began in March 2011 and has killed more than 450,000 people, wounded more than a million and displaced 11 million from their homes, including 5 million who are now refugees. CUCUTA, Colombia (AP) - The Latest on the political crisis in Venezuela (all times local): 9:30 p.m. China says peaceful dialogue and political means are the "only way" toward enduring peace in Venezuela and says it backs multinational efforts toward that end. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying's statement comes in response to a question about a meeting Thursday of an "International Contact Group" led by Uruguayan President Tabare Vazquez and attended by leaders of 14 countries, including Spain, Italy, Portugal and Sweden. China is a close ally of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, to whom it has lent billions to help shore up his embattled regime. Hua said China "believes that Venezuela's affairs should be resolved by the Venezuelan people under the framework of its constitution and laws and through peaceful dialogue and political means. This is the only way toward enduring peace in the country." Supporters of President Nicolas Maduro sing a song about Venezuela's late president Hugo Chavez, during a event at Bolivar Square in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. Trucks carrying U.S. humanitarian aid destined for Venezuela arrived Thursday at the Colombian border, where opposition leaders vowed to bring them into their troubled nation despite objections from embattled President Nicolas Maduro. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos) ___ 1:40 p.m. Former Venezuelan diplomat Isaias Medina, who broke with President Nicolas Maduro in July 2017, says he strongly supports the courage of opposition leader Juan Guaido and wants the Trump administration to keep the military option on the table. Medina told a news conference at U.N. headquarters in New York: "I think we need the strength of the U.S., Brazil, Colombia." He said Venezuela is now experiencing the worst situation of any country in Latin America, with thousands dead and dying due to a lack of food and medicine. "The main objective here is to bring humanitarian assistance- and if it must be done by military support, so be it," he said. "It's not military intervention - it's international humanitarian intervention," Medina added, noting that his grandfather was president of Venezuela during World War II and opposed the Nazis. "I am not only saying that Maduro is a threat to the maintenance of peace of the region," he said. "He is a clear and present danger and a risk to the national security of the United States. This is a very anti-Western, anti-democratic, anti-American regime." Medina previously served as a legal adviser at Venezuela's U.N. Mission. ___ 1:25 p.m. A Venezuelan Supreme Court justice says the constitution does not include language for forming a transitional government as opposition lawmaker Juan Guaido claims. Justice Juan Mendoza read a statement Friday on state TV saying that steps Guaido has taken are therefore null. Guaido in late January declared that he had a constitutional right to assume the presidency, vowing to oust President Nicolas Maduro and restore democracy. Justice Mendoza says Guaido is usurping presidential powers. The pro-Maduro Supreme Court has already barred Guaido from leaving the country and frozen his bank accounts while prosecutors investigate what they call his anti-government activities. ___ 11:45 a.m. U.S. humanitarian aid destined for Venezuela is now sitting in a warehouse on the Colombian border. The goods stored at the border city of Cucuta, which is just across the river from Venezuela, consist of corn, flour, lentils and cans of tuna. Volunteers hustled about as they filled up white sacks with the food and other items from boxes marked with the words USAID. Venezuela's opposition is vowing to deliver the aid to the South American country, but no timeline has been released. The border bridge near where the aid is being stored has been blocked by the Venezuelan military. President Nicolas Maduro has said Venezuela isn't a nation of "beggars" and won't accept the U.S. humanitarian assistance. ___ 6:15 a.m. An international group of parliamentarians is urging Venezuela's government to stop the "ongoing harassment" of opposition lawmakers and denouncing "intimidation" of 60 parliamentarians - including 40 who have allegedly faced physical attacks. The Geneva-based Inter-Parliamentary Union, which counts 178 parliaments as members, says it's also monitoring the impact of a Venezuelan Supreme Court decision "ordering a blanket investigation into possible criminal conduct by members of the National Assembly." Rogier Huizenga, secretary of the IPU's human rights committee, expressed concern the opposition-controlled Assembly is "being ill-treated." Opposition leader Juan Guaido has declared himself interim president in Venezuela, a move recognized by several dozen countries, but Preside11:15 nt Nicolas Maduro is refusing to relinquish power. Huizenga said Friday that the committee has asked to send a mission to Venezuela, and has seen informal signs that this might be agreed. ___ 5:50 a.m. Romania's president has officially recognized Juan Guaido as Venezuela's interim president almost a week after other European Union countries recognized him. President Klaus Iohannis said Friday that Romania had decided to join other EU countries and allies in recognizing Guaido partly because Bucharest currently holds the EU's rotating presidency. Iohannis, in charge of the country's foreign policy, said Romania needed to have "quick, fundamental and firm reactions" to international developments. Several EU countries, including Spain, Germany, Britain and France, had given Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's government an eight-day deadline to call a new presidential election. The deadline expired Sunday and they recognized Guaido as interim president. Guaido, who heads the opposition-led National Assembly, declared himself Venezuela's legitimate ruler on Jan. 23. He has the support of Washington and most South American nations. A supporter of President Nicolas Maduro holds a sign that reads in Spanish "I sign for peace" during a event at Bolivar Square in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. Maduro said that he hopes to collect 10 million signatures to ask Washington to withdraw its threats of war against the people of Venezuela. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos) This Feb. 6, 2019 image taken from video, shows a fuel tanker, cargo trailers and makeshift fencing, blocking the Tienditas International Bridge in an attempt to stop humanitarian aid entering from Colombia, as seen from the outskirts of Cucuta, on Colombia's border with Venezuela. Immigration authorities say the Venezuelan National Guard built the roadblock a day earlier. (AP Photo) Supporters of President Nicolas Maduro sing a song about Venezuela's late president Hugo Chavez, during a event at Bolivar Square in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. Maduro said that he hopes to collect 10 million signatures to ask Washington to withdraw its threats of war against the people of Venezuela. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos) MIAMI (AP) - Federal prosecutors have formally charged a fugitive in the 2015 highway robbery of 10 gold bars worth almost $5 million. U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami announced Thursday that Pedro Santamaria, 56, has been indicted on robbery and gun charges. The FBI is offering up to $10,000 for information leading to his arrest and conviction. Santamaria, Adalberto Perez and Roberto Cabrera caused noxious fumes to fill the cabin of the TransValue Inc. truck that was transporting gold bars from Miami to Boston, prosecutors said. Armed robbers removed and bound the TransValue employees, transferred the gold bars to their vehicle and fled. Nine of the 10 bars were melted down for jewelry, Perez and Cabrera were sentenced to long prison terms, and others pleaded guilty after helping investigators. But most of the cash value of the stolen gold, which weighed about 275 pounds, has never been recovered, and Santamaria's whereabouts remain a mystery. The prosecutors' statement doesn't say what prompted them to obtain an indictment now for Santamaria, an ex-convict who has been suspected in the heist since 2015. The Miami Herald reports that Santamaria was given up by one of his accomplices and a prison acquaintance who tried to fence one of the 10 gold bars in Miami. FILE- This undated file photo provided by the FBI shows a gold bar that was recovered in Miami from a heist in North Carolina on March 1, 2015. Federal prosecutors have formally charged a fugitive in the 2015 robbery of a tractor-trailer carrying almost $5 million in gold bars. U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami announced Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, that Pedro Santamaria has been indicted on robbery and gun charges. Authorities say he joined Adalberto Perez and Roberto Cabrera in the heist. The other two were sentenced to lengthy prison terms. (FBI via AP, File) The shipment of gold, which was refined by Republic Metals, was insured. It was being transferred from South Florida to another major gold company, Metalor, in North Attleboro, Massachusetts. According to court records, the robbers placed a GPS device under the tractor-trailer to track the shipment. They also placed pepper spray in the truck and remotely activated it so the two courier guards would get sick and have to pull over on Interstate 95 in North Carolina. At that point, three armed robbers in a white minivan confronted them, yelling 'Policia!" Records show the guards got out of the truck without their weapons. They were tied up and led into the woods. The men took the buckets containing the gold bars, along with 40 silver-stamped coins, and divided up the loot. Santamaria reached out to a man he had spent time with in prison to fence one of the gold bars, according to an FBI affidavit filed with Santamaria's criminal complaint. That man, Miguel Bover, approached a Miami pawnshop broker and asked him to sell the bar to a precious metals refinery. The plan backfired when an off-duty police officer working at the refinery grew suspicious and contacted the FBI, which confiscated the bar. Bover was arrested in 2015, and eventually cut a deal and was sentenced to prison. He provided insider information on Santamaria and the others. The Herald reports that jeweler Yanan Mirabal, who received a probationary sentence for initially lying to the FBI, estimated he made about $1.2 million by melting down and selling off the other nine bars. Perez and Cabrera were arrested in 2016. Agents found more than $600,000 in cash, but no gold. Cabrera was sentenced to nearly 20 years and Perez received more than 11 years. ANKARA, Turkey (AP) - Turkey and other countries will soon submit a formal request to establish a U.N. committee to investigate the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, the Turkish foreign minister said Friday. Mevlut Cavusoglu's comments came a day after U.N. human rights expert Agnes Callamard said Saudi Arabia had undermined Turkey's efforts to investigate the death, which she described as a "brutal and premeditated killing." Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist who wrote critically about Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was killed inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2. His remains have still not been found. Cavusoglu told reporters Friday in the southern Turkish coastal city of Antalya: "The (U.N.) secretary general or the human rights commissioner can realize the establishment of a committee to shed light on the truth." "Two days ago in Washington, D.C. we also evaluated this issue with foreign ministers from other countries," Cavusoglu said. "In the coming days, along with some other countries, we'll be making this request because there are still many unanswered questions." Khashoggi's Turkish fiancee told reporters earlier Friday that she was hopeful that his killers will be punished and appealed to legislators in the European Union and the U.S. Congress to closely follow the case. FILE - In this Dec. 15, 2014, file photo, Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi speaks during a press conference in Manama, Bahrain. An independent U.N. human rights expert says authorities in Saudi Arabia quietly held a second court hearing for 11 people facing charges over the killing of Khashoggi. Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist who wrote critically about Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was killed inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2, 2018. (AP Photo/Hasan Jamali, File) Speaking at the launch of a book about the journalist, Hatice Cengiz also said she believes that Saudi King Salman "has a conscience" and will support Turkey's efforts to shed light on his killing. Turkish officials have been frustrated by what they say is a lack of cooperation by Riyadh over the murder investigation and have called for an international inquiry. After denying that Khashoggi was killed in the Saudi consulate for several weeks, Saudi Arabia indicted 11 people in the killing and is seeking the death penalty against five of them. ___ Corrects that minister was speaking in Antalya, not Istanbul. Hatice Cengiz, the fiancee of slain Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, speaks during a news conference to launch of a book about the journalist, in Istanbul, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Cengiz says she hopeful that his killers will be punished and has appealed to legislators in the European Union and the U.S. Congress to closely follow the case. (DHA via AP) ISTANBUL (AP) - The Latest on the deadly collapse of an apartment building in Istanbul (all times local): 7:15 p.m. Turkey's health minister says the number of dead from the collapsed eight-story building in Istanbul has risen to 15. Fahrettin Koca also told reporters Friday that 13 out of the 14 people who were rescued alive from the rubble remain hospitalized; seven of them are in serious condition. The building in Istanbul's mostly-residential Kartal district collapsed on Wednesday. The cause is under investigation but officials have said its top three floors were illegally built. Koca made the announcement after visiting some of the injured at a hospital in Kartal. Turkish rescue workers carry a 16-year-old boy after they pulled him out from the rubble of an eight-story building which collapsed two days earlier in Istanbul, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) ___ 3:05 p.m. Turkey's interior minister says emergency teams have found three more bodies in the rubble of a collapsed eight-story building in Istanbul, increasing the death toll to 14. Suleyman Soylu said Friday that rescuers were pressing ahead with efforts to reach other people trapped inside the debris. He did not say how many people remain unaccounted-for. So far, 14 people have been pulled alive from the wreckage of the building in Istanbul's mostly residential Kartal district. They include a 16-year-old boy who was rescued on Friday. Soylu said: "We hope to bring out those inside safely." The minister promised punishment for anyone found responsible for the collapse at the end of an investigation. ___ 10:25 a.m. Turkey's interior minister says the number of dead from the collapse of an eight-story apartment building in Istanbul has increased to 11. Suleyman Soylu made the announcement late on Thursday after emergency teams, assisted by sniffer dogs, found one more body in the wreckage from Wednesday's collapse in Istanbul's mostly residential Kartal district. Friends and relatives on Friday continued to wait near the wreckage for news of their missing loved ones. So far, 13 people have been pulled out of the wreckage alive. Officials have not disclosed how many people are unaccounted-for, and it is not clear if rescuers hope to find any more survivors. Rescue workers continue to remove rubble from an eight-story building which collapsed two days earlier in Istanbul, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Turkish rescue workers on Friday pulled out a 16-year-old boy from the rubble of an eight-story apartment building in Istanbul two days after it collapsed, Turkey's interior minister Suleyman Soylu said. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris has hired a seasoned operative to head her 2020 presidential campaign in South Carolina, her campaign announced Friday, making a key hire as the competition for staff and infrastructure in the critical early-voting state intensifies. South Carolina native Jalisa Washington-Price will serve as Harris' state director and deputy national political director, the California Democrat's campaign said, advising and directing overall political efforts from her perch in South Carolina. The strategic move shows the emphasis that Harris is placing on her campaign in South Carolina, which holds the first presidential balloting in the South. The state also is the first place for candidates to test their messaging in front of a mostly black Democratic primary electorate. Most recently, Washington-Price was chief of staff for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, where she also directed the Office of Diversity. For the 2018 midterms, Washington-Price worked to flip dozens of U.S. House seats that had been held by Republicans into Democratic control. Previously, Washington-Price also worked on Hillary Clinton's 2016 campaign, as political director in South Carolina as well as regionally. Clinton won the 2016 South Carolina primary, defeating U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont. With the field of 2020 Democratic hopefuls beginning to take shape, several of the campaigns have begun to lay claim to staff in each of the early states and make plans for substantive visits, following on to earlier, mostly brief introductory trips. Earlier this week, U.S. Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey announced directors and advisers in all of the early states as well as trips this month to Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. In this Jan. 28, 2019, photo, Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., speaks to students at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa. Racial tensions are looming over the early days of the Democratic Party's presidential primary. Of nine declared candidates so far, just two are white men. Voters and political strategists alike are cheering such diversity, but some fear that another presidential contender of color in the era of deep racial divisions may hurt their ultimate goal of beating President Donald Trump. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall) Harris also has announced plans to visit those states and Nevada this month, beginning next week with a two-day stop to South Carolina. U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York begins a three-day trip to South Carolina on Friday. ___ Meg Kinnard can be reached at http://twitter.com/MegKinnardAP BAGHDAD (AP) - An official with the Iraqi government-sanctioned umbrella of mainly Shiite paramilitary groups says a militia commander was arrested after he criticized Iran's influence in the country. The official from the Popular Mobilization Forces said on Friday that Aws al-Khafaji, commander of the Abu al-Fadl al-Abbas Brigade, was detained the previous night. The official spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters. Al-Khafaji had earlier told a local TV station that Iraqis should not only oppose American and Turkish presence in Iraq but also Iran's interference. A statement from the Popular Mobilization Forces says four Baghdad offices of al-Khafaji's group were closed because they were located in residential neighborhoods. It said members were arrested after rejecting the closure. CUCUTA, Colombia (AP) - Dozens of volunteers prepared sacks of rice, canned tuna and protein-rich biscuits for malnourished children at a warehouse on the Colombian border on Friday as Venezuela's opposition vowed to deliver the U.S. humanitarian aid to their troubled nation, even if it means mounting a mass mobilization of their countrymen to carry it in. As the food and hygiene kits were packed into individual white bags in the city of Cucuta, just across the river from Venezuela, U.S. officials and Venezuelan opposition leaders appealed to the military to the let the aid through. Lester Toledo, who is representing opposition leader Juan Guaido in the aid mission, issued a message to troops, telling them the aid contains food and medicine their own families need. He recalled how in 2016, a large group of Venezuelan women dressed in white and intent on crossing the closed border with Colombia made their way through a line of national guardsmen in order to buy food on the other side. "I am convinced that the way we are going to pass this aid is with the Venezuelan people," Toledo said at a press event unveiling the aid. "People, people and more people bringing in humanitarian aid." The emergency supplies have become the focus of Venezuela's political struggle between President Nicolas Maduro and Guaido, who declared interim presidential powers in late January, accusing Maduro of being illegitimate following an election last year widely viewed as a sham. The Venezuelan military has blocked the bridge where the aid is stationed and Maduro is refusing to allow it in. The embattled Venezuelan leader dug in further Friday, contending the aid is part of a coup being orchestrated by the U.S. government. A Venezuelan volunteer places a bag of USAID humanitarian aid for storage at a warehouse next to the Tienditas International Bridge, near Cucuta, Colombia, on the border with Venezuela, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Trucks carrying U.S. humanitarian aid destined for Venezuela arrived Thursday at the Colombian border, where opposition leaders vowed to bring them into their troubled nation despite objections from embattled President Nicolas Maduro. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara) "There's an attempt to violate our national sovereignty with this 'show' of a humanitarian operation by the government of Donald Trump," he said. The goods, including packaged corn flour, lentils and pasta, arrived Thursday in what the opposition is hoping will be the first of many shipments of humanitarian aid from countries around the world. Opposition leaders said three countries in the region will become aid hubs and that some nations, like Colombia, will likely have more than one collection site. The first shipment includes food kits for 5,000 Venezuelans and high-protein nutritional supplements that can treat an estimated 6,700 young children with moderate malnutrition. Additional aid is being stored in Miami and Houston and "ready to be deployed to the region immediately," the U.S. said in a statement. "We expect more to come," U.S. Ambassador to Colombia Kevin Whitaker said. "This is a down payment." Asked what would happen if the Venezuelan military blocks the aid from going in, Whitaker said any obstacles would be dealt with as they arise and reiterated that Trump has made clear nothing is off the table - though, he added, the priority is to arrange a broad international mission. Whitaker said the U.S. involvement stops at the Colombian border, where the Guaido-led opposition will be charged with distributing the aid inside Venezuela, a seemingly tall task as Maduro shows no signs of conceding. Opposition leader Jose Manuel Olivares, who is in Cucuta helping coordinate the aid mission, said the idea floated by Toledo to use a mass mobilization of people to get the aid across the border is one of the strategies being considered. "The aid is going to be backed by popular support, by hundreds and thousands of people who need it," he said. A growing list of nearly 50 countries has thrown their support behind Guaido. On Friday, Romania's president became the latest world leader to recognize Guaido as interim president almost a week after other European Union countries did so. President Klaus Iohannis said Romania decided to join other EU countries in recognizing Guaido partly because Bucharest currently holds the EU's rotating presidency. Speaking at the Central University of Venezuela Friday, Guaido called on Venezuelans to hold popular assemblies in their towns this weekend to organize volunteers to receive the aid and called on the military to let the supplies through. "If they dare to continue blocking the way, all these volunteers will go open a humanitarian channel," he said. Guaido declared himself Venezuela's interim president Jan. 23, maintaining that the constitution gives him that right as head of the opposition-controlled National Assembly because Maduro's re-election should be considered legitimate. On Friday, Supreme Court Justice Juan Mendoza challenged that assertion, saying the constitution does not include language for forming a transitional government as Guaido claims. Steps the lawmaker has taken are therefore void and he is usurping presidential powers, Mendoza said. The pro-Maduro Supreme Court has already barred Guaido from leaving the country and frozen his bank accounts while prosecutors investigate what they call his anti-government activities. ___ Smith reported from Caracas, Venezuela. Associated Press writer Jorge Rueda in Caracas contributed to this report. Venezuela's self-proclaimed president Juan Guaido speaks during a meeting with university students at the Central University of Venezuela, in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Guaido declared himself interim president in Venezuela, a move recognized by several dozen countries, but President Nicolas Maduro is refusing to relinquish power. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos) (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos) Venezuelan volunteers place a bag of USAID humanitarian aid for storage at a warehouse next to the Tienditas International Bridge, near Cucuta, Colombia, on the border with Venezuela, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Trucks carrying U.S. humanitarian aid destined for Venezuela arrived Thursday at the Colombian border, where opposition leaders vowed to bring them into their troubled nation despite objections from embattled President Nicolas Maduro. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara) Venezuelan volunteers, Colombian firefighters and rescue workers prepare USAID humanitarian aid for storage at a warehouse next to the Tienditas International Bridge, near Cucuta, Colombia, on the border with Venezuela, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Trucks carrying U.S. humanitarian aid destined for Venezuela arrived Thursday at the Colombian border, where opposition leaders vowed to bring them into their troubled nation despite objections from embattled President Nicolas Maduro. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara) Venezuelan volunteers, Colombian firefighters and rescue workers prepare USAID humanitarian aid for storage at a warehouse next to the Tienditas International Bridge, near Cucuta, Colombia, on the border with Venezuela, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Trucks carrying U.S. humanitarian aid destined for Venezuela arrived Thursday at the Colombian border, where opposition leaders vowed to bring them into their troubled nation despite objections from embattled President Nicolas Maduro. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara) Demonstrators hold signs in support of the country's self-proclaimed president Juan Guaido and and for foreign humanitarian aid, next to the Tienditas International Bridge, near Cucuta, Colombia, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Trucks carrying U.S. humanitarian aid destined for Venezuela arrived Thursday at the Colombian border, where opposition leaders vowed to bring them into their troubled nation despite objections from embattled President Nicolas Maduro. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara) Demonstrators hold signs in support of the country's self proclaimed president Juan Guaido and and for foreign humanitarian aid, next to the Tienditas International Bridge, near Cucuta, Colombia, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Trucks carrying U.S. humanitarian aid destined for Venezuela arrived Thursday at the Colombian border, where opposition leaders vowed to bring them into their troubled nation despite objections from embattled President Nicolas Maduro. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara) Lester Toledo, a representative of the government of Venezuela's self-proclaimed interim President Juan Guaido, second right, United States ambassador to Colombia Kevin Whitaker, second left, and other representatives, attend an event at a warehouse next to the in Tienditas International Bridge, near Cucuta, Colombia, on the border with Venezuela, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Trucks carrying U.S. humanitarian aid destined for Venezuela arrived Thursday at the Colombian border, where opposition leaders vowed to bring them into their troubled nation despite objections from embattled President Nicolas Maduro. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara) Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro touches his forehead during a press conference at Miraflore's Presidential Palace in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. U.S. humanitarian aid destined for Venezuela was being prepared at a warehouse on the Colombian border Friday, as opposition leader Juan Guaido assured his desperate countrymen that supplies would reach them despite objections from embattled President Nicolas Maduro. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd) Venezuela's self-proclaimed president Juan Guaido raises his arm as he leaves a meeting with university students at the Central University of Venezuela, in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Guaido declared himself interim president in Venezuela, a move recognized by several dozen countries, but President Nicolas Maduro is refusing to relinquish power. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos) (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos) Venezuelan volunteers, Colombian firefighters and rescue workers prepare USAID humanitarian aid for storage at a warehouse next to the Tienditas International Bridge, near Cucuta, Colombia, on the border with Venezuela, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Trucks carrying U.S. humanitarian aid destined for Venezuela arrived Thursday at the Colombian border, where opposition leaders vowed to bring them into their troubled nation despite objections from embattled President Nicolas Maduro. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara) NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) - Cyprus' judges need to draw up a detailed code of conduct that spells out rules on key issues, including when they should recuse themselves in order to avoid any perceptions of bias or conflict of interest, a top European anti-corruption official said Friday. Martin Mrcela, chief of the Council of Europe's Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) said the code should be "enforceable" and cover in detail areas such as gifts, third-party contacts and handling of confidential information. He said GRECO will examine a guide of conduct Cyprus' Supreme Court unveiled last month, but repeated that his group isn't looking for a general statement of principles. "This is about credibility and trust," Mrcela told a news conference at the end of a two-day evaluation. "The standard says the judge must be impartial and not only impartial but also independent and seen as such." Mrcela also urged more transparency in judges' appointments based on publicly available criteria. He said a body overseeing judges' appointments should be more inclusive so that it doesn't reflect the Supreme Court's composition to avert perceptions of "self-protection and cronyism." Career-long ethics and corruption prevention training for judges should also be enacted. Mrcela said Cyprus failed to implement four recommendations GRECO made in 2016 that aimed at strengthening the judiciary's anti-corruption firewall. He said GRECO member states are obligated to follow through on implementation. Mrcela's remarks came less than a month after Cyprus' attorney general stirred up controversy when he suggested that judges' familial and professional links to a law firm that handled cases involving the country's biggest bank gave off the impression of favoritism and skewed rulings. Attorney General Costas Clerides suggested that in two such cases, the judges didn't recuse themselves even though their family members worked at the law firm representing senior Bank of Cyprus officials. Indignant Supreme Court judges said they're "particularly sensitive" to the composition of the bench and dismissed the allegations as unfounded and an unfair attack on the judiciary's integrity that deeply eroded public trust. Mrcela said although no conclusions can safely be drawn from a couple of cases, they could indicate that the system "is not the perfect one." He said the same standards apply to all countries irrespective of size. Cyprus' Justice Ministry is working on judicial reform legislation that includes the setting-up of new courts to speed up rulings. CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) - "This Is Us" actor Milo Ventimiglia was honored Friday as Man of the Year by Harvard University's Hasty Pudding Theatricals at Farkas Hall in Cambridge. The Emmy-nominated actor received the award after a roast from Elizabeth Mann and Mariana Sanchez Medina of the Hasty Pudding Theatrics, who poked fun at some of his B-list acting roles and his status as a sex symbol. "Milo was named the world's sexiest vegetarian alive by PETA, even though everyone sees you as a piece of meat," the two Harvard undergrads quipped. Before being able to hold the pudding pot, Ventimiglia had to endure a little extra embarrassment: the Pudding had Ventimiglia sing Fergie smash "Big Girls Don't Cry," (Ventimiglia starred in the music video) and gave a lap dance to one of its members. Ventimiglia took the teasing in good fun, emphasizing how proud he was to receive the title. "My mom, who declined being my date two years in a row for the Emmys, made sure to be here tonight," he told the crowd. FILE - In this Sept. 25, 2018 file photo, Milo Ventimiglia arrives at a season three premiere screening of "This Is Us" in Los Angeles. Ventimiglia is being honored as Man of the Year by Harvard University's Hasty Pudding Theatricals on Friday, Feb. 8. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, File) After the roast, the Hasty Pudding had the opening night for "France France Revolution," the troupe's first production to feature women in the cast. Medina and Mann produced the play. Ventimiglia said he was honored to be part of the historic event. "To know that the Hasty Pudding is now including women on stage is absolutely the right thing to do," he said. "The heart of the artist isn't only in one type of person or one way of being. It's really in all of us." America's oldest theatrical organization says Ventimiglia was selected because he has made "significant impressions on television and film." He stars as the patriarch Jack Pearson in family drama "This is Us" and has had leading roles in "Gilmour Girls" and "Heroes." Ventimiglia said he understands why "This is Us" resonates with many Americans, even in a particularly charged political climate. "I think people want to feel good even in pain and sadness," Ventimiglia said. "It's a gratifying thing when I as an artist know that the work that I'm a part of is creating positivity." Hasty Pudding has honored a Man of the Year since 1967, and previous winners include Clint Eastwood, Tom Hanks and Christopher Walken. Paul Rudd was honored last year. Bryce Dallas Howard was named Hasty Pudding's Woman of the Year. A group of investors from the United Arab Emirates has reportedly proposed setting up a gambling complex on the dried-up shores of the Aral Sea in Uzbekistan, As Eurasianet writes in an article "Is Uzbekistan to get its own Las Vegas?", news website Daryo reported on February 7 that the General Prosecutors Office is readying a fix to regulations to allow the casino resort to come into existence. The idea already has official blessing from the highest possible authority. Speaking in November, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev floated the idea of setting up gambling facilities in economically depressed Karakalpakstan as a way of lifting the region out of its funk. It is hard to say, but we need this. All over the world, like in Las Vegas, there are huge gambling complexes. If need be, we will also allow such establishments to be set up in Nukus, he said, referring to the capital of the Karakalpakstan autonomous region. This proposal is not without its awkwardness though. In September 2007, the late President Islam Karimov specifically outlawed various kinds of gambling and slot machines. So the notion of a casino in Muynak, the stranded port town being eyed by the Emirati investors, is something of a last throw of the dice in restoring vitality to a region ravaged by the environmental collapse precipitated by the drying-up of the Aral. Waters have receded around 200 kilometers from Muynak since the sea began shrinking as a result of excess use of water in tributary rivers. The population has shrunk from around 30,000 to the current 11,000. Mirziyoyevs first instinct was to turn Muynak into a center for ecological tourism and to use other incentives to bring in money. In February 2017, the government adopted a development program that granted businesses setting up in the area with long-term tax breaks. But the severity of conditions there are such that few have seized the opportunity. The idea of a casino has roused mixed feelings. Dilbar Khujamuradova, the owner of a hostel in Muynak, said she was delighted. This will create new jobs and the conditions for new hotels and restaurants to be built. My business will grow if we have many tourists coming, she told Eurasianet. Saginbay Ibragimov, a writer from Karakalpakstan, said that Muynak is unlikely to become a new Las Vegas, however. Who is going to travel this far? he asked. I dont really believe in this venture. Economist Navruz Melibayev said that if the whole project was done properly though, the venue could draw visitors from far afield. The beauty of this idea is that a cluster [of restaurants, hotels, cafes] could, if properly organized, attract people from neighboring Central Asian nations, from other [former Soviet] nations, as well as domestic tourists from other regions of Uzbekistan, Melibayev said. GARISSA, Kenya (AP) - A Kenyan court has freed a New Zealander held in police custody for several days on suspicion of links with extremism. Sulub Warfaa, 36, spoke to journalists outside the court in Garissa, in northwestern Kenya. "Just because I was born in Mogadishu does not mean that I am a terrorist," he said. "I did not get tortured. The officers they were just doing their jobs, you know, that's what they were doing," said Warfaa, adding "I'm really happy that I am free, you know, and actually finally justice has been served." Warfaa was arrested near Kenya's border with Somalia for allegedly possessing two passports with different names. He was detained earlier this week with 10 other people in a sweep on suspected extremists near the Dadaab refugee camp, which houses at least 200,000 Somali refugees. Sulub Warfaa, 36, center, a New Zealander who was held in police custody for several days on suspicion of links to extremists, sits in court before he was released in Garissa, Kenya Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Warfaa, who was arrested for allegedly possessing two passports with different names, told journalists outside the court that he was pleased to be released. (AP Photo) The crackdown followed an attack in January on a hotel complex in Nairobi in which 21 people were killed. The hotel assault was claimed by al-Shabab, Somalia's Islamic extremists who are linked to al-Qaida. The arrests were not directly linked to that attack. Since 2011 Kenya has experienced several attacks by al-Shabab. The extremist group has vowed retribution on Kenya for sending troops to battle them in Somalia. Kenya is part of an African Union mission bolstering Somalia's fragile government from al-Shabab's insurgency. LAWRENCE, Mass. (AP) - U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren is expected to launch her presidential campaign in one of New England's poorest and most heavily Latino communities. John Cluverius, a political science professor at the University of Massachusetts, says Lawrence, Massachusetts, provides an ideal backdrop for the Democrat's announcement Saturday. The faded mill city was once a center of America's textile industry and has a long history of welcoming immigrants. It's now 80 percent Latino. But President Donald Trump and other Republicans have criticized the city for being a hub for the heroin trade. They've also taken aim at its sanctuary city policies limiting cooperation with federal immigration agencies. Carmen Reyes is among the many residents who say Warren's announcement is a positive development as the city recovers from September's natural gas explosions and fires. SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - The top U.S. envoy for North Korea returned from three days of talks in Pyongyang and will meet again with his North Korean counterpart before the second summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Hanoi later this month, the U.S. State Department said. Stephen Biegun, the U.S. special representative for North Korea, met with South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and Seoul's chief nuclear envoy Lee Do-hoon on Saturday to brief them on his negotiations with North Korea. "Our discussions were productive," Biegun said while meeting Kang. "President is very much looking forward to taking next steps. We have some hard work to do with DPRK between now and then. I am confident if both sides stay committed we can make real progress here," he said, referring to North Korea by its formal name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. In Pyongyang, Biegun and Kim Hyok Chol, North Korea's special representative for U.S. affairs, discussed "advancing Trump and Kim's Singapore summit commitments of complete denuclearization, transforming U.S.-DPRK relations, and building a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula," the State Department said in a statement. It said that Biegun and Kim agreed to meet again before the leaders' second summit, scheduled for Feb. 27-28 in Hanoi, Vietnam. Trump tweeted the venue on Friday in Washington, saying Biegun had just left North Korea after a "productive meeting" on the summit. Trump added: "I look forward to seeing Chairman Kim & advancing the cause of peace!" U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Beigun listens to South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha during their meeting at Foreign Ministry in Seoul Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019. Beigun returned from three days of talks in Pyongyang, North Korea, before the second summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vietnam later this month. (Ed Jones/Pool Photo via AP) The president had previously announced Vietnam as the summit location, but the city hadn't been identified. Biegun is thought to have discussed specific disarmament steps that North Korea could promise at the Vietnam summit and what corresponding measures the United States is willing to take. U.S.-led negotiations aimed at stripping North Korea of its nuclear weapons program has made little headway since the first Kim-Trump summit in Singapore last June, when Kim pledged to work toward the "complete denuclearization" of the Korean Peninsula, without providing a clear timetable or roadmap. Experts say Kim is determined to win relief from U.S.-led sanctions to help revive his country's troubled economy, while Trump, faced with domestic problems such as the Russian investigation, needs foreign policy achievements. If the second summit fails to produce a breakthrough, skepticism about the current nuclear negotiations will grow. Some experts say North Korea is trying to use the negotiations to weaken the sanctions and buy time to perfect its weapons program. Trump also tweeted: "North Korea, under the leadership of Kim Jong Un, will become a great Economic Powerhouse. He may surprise some but he won't surprise me, because I have gotten to know him & fully understand how capable he is. North Korea will become a different kind of Rocket - an Economic one!" U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Beigun, second from left, talks with South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha, third from left, during their meeting at Foreign Ministry in Seoul Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019. Beigun returned from three days of talks in Pyongyang, North Korea, before the second summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vietnam later this month. (Ed Jones/Pool Photo via AP) U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Beigun, left, listens to South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha during their meeting at Foreign Ministry in Seoul Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019. Beigun returned from three days of talks in Pyongyang, North Korea, before the second summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vietnam later this month. (Ed Jones/Pool Photo via AP) U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Beigun, left, gestures while speaking to South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha during their meeting at Foreign Ministry in Seoul Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019. Beigun returned from three days of talks in Pyongyang, North Korea, before the second summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vietnam later this month. (Ed Jones/Pool Photo via AP) U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Beigun, left, listens to South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha during their meeting at Foreign Ministry in Seoul Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019. Beigun returned from three days of talks in Pyongyang, North Korea, before the second summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vietnam later this month. (Ed Jones/Pool Photo via AP) U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Beigun, left, and South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha talk during their meeting at Foreign Ministry in Seoul Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019. Beigun returned from three days of talks in Pyongyang, North Korea, before the second summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vietnam later this month. (Ed Jones/Pool Photo via AP) U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Beigun, left, is escorted by South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha for a photo during their meeting at Foreign Ministry in Seoul Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019. Beigun returned from three days of talks in Pyongyang, North Korea, before the second summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vietnam later this month. (Ed Jones/Pool Photo via AP) U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Beigun, left, and South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha shake hands during their meeting at Foreign Ministry in Seoul Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019. Beigun returned from three days of talks in Pyongyang, North Korea, before the second summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vietnam later this month. (Ed Jones/Pool Photo via AP) U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Beigun, left, and South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha shake hands during their meeting at Foreign Ministry in Seoul Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019. Beigun returned from three days of talks in Pyongyang, North Korea, before the second summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vietnam later this month. (Ed Jones/Pool Photo via AP) DAKAR, Senegal (AP) - Senegal's former President Abdoulaye Wade has called for a boycott of the West African nation's Feb. 24 elections, accusing the current president of locking down the vote. Wade returned to Dakar Thursday as hundreds greeted him at the airport, cheering and wearing T-shirts bearing his son's image. Karim Wade was eliminated as an opponent to incumbent Macky Sall. The younger Wade has been in Qatar since his release from prison in 2016 after serving three years for corruption. Wade urged Sall's four opponents to not give credibility to the vote and urged Senegalese to burn their voting cards. Wade's appeal is not likely to be followed. On Wednesday, Mamadou Diop, one of his most loyal allies, announced his support for former Prime Minister Idrissa Seck. The president has not reacted. ATHENS, Greece (AP) - Greece's parliament on Friday approved a measure for Macedonia to join NATO, ending a decades-old dispute watched closely by Western allies wary of Russian influence in the region. Lawmakers voted 153-140 to back the NATO protocol that must now also be approved by all other alliance members. The Greek vote means the former Yugoslav republic will now formally change its name to North Macedonia, settling the spat over the country's name which Greece saw as a potential threat to its own northern region of Macedonia. "I would like to again welcome North Macedonia, a country that is friendly toward Greece, a country that must be a supporter - and not an opponent - of our efforts to establish safety, stability, and cooperation in the wider region," Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras told parliament shortly before the vote. Western countries strongly backed the deal between Greece and Macedonia, after the country's bid to join NATO had been shelved for a decade and amid European concerns over Russia's vocal opposition to the alliance's expansion further into the Balkans. "Clearly it is in Greece's interest to promote a European course for all its neighbors, not just for North Macedonia - and not (back) the influence of third forces in the neighborhood, with different aspirations and pursuits," Tsipras said. Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, left, raises his hand as former defense minister Panos Kammenos leaves the podium during a parliament session in Athens, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Greek lawmakers are set Friday to approve Macedonia's NATO accession, ending a process to normalize relations between the two neighbors and anchor the country - renamed North Macedonia - firmly within the western sphere of influence. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis) Tsipras had faced large demonstrations against the deal, while opinion polls showed that more than two-thirds of Greeks oppose it. The agreement also nearly toppled his government last month after triggering the breakup of his coalition with the nationalist Independent Greeks party. Greek opposition parties argued the agreement made too many concessions to Macedonia. "(We) will vote against the accession protocol because it is, simply, the final act or the final act of a damaging agreement," conservative opposition leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis told parliament to applause from members of his party before the vote. Greek approval of Macedonia's NATO accession bid is the final step in the deal. Provided lawmakers vote for the motion, Greece's foreign ministry will promptly notify the Macedonian government of the result. Macedonia will then write to the United Nations, its member states and international organizations, formally announcing the name change. Government spokesman Mile Boshnjakovski told The Associated Press this would happen "in coming days." ___ Konstantin Testorides contributed from Skopje, Macedonia. ___ Follow Derek Gatopoulos at http://www.twitter.com/dgatopoulos Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras speaks during a parliament session in Athens, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Greek lawmakers are set Friday to approve Macedonia's NATO accession, ending a process to normalize relations between the two neighbors and anchor the country - renamed North Macedonia - firmly within the western sphere of influence. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis) Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, right, speaks as Greek Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs George Katrougalos, applauds during a parliament session in Athens, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Greek lawmakers are set Friday to approve Macedonia's NATO accession, ending a process to normalize relations between the two neighbors and anchor the country - renamed North Macedonia - firmly within the western sphere of influence. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis) Greek opposition New Democracy party leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis speaks during a parliament session in Athens, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Greek lawmakers are set Friday to approve Macedonia's NATO accession, ending a process to normalize relations between the two neighbors and anchor the country - renamed North Macedonia - firmly within the western sphere of influence. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis) TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is defending "Death to America" chants that are standard fare at anti-U.S. rallies across Iran but says the chanting is aimed at America's leaders and not its people. Khamenei's website on Friday quoted him as saying the chant means "death to U.S. leaders, death to (President Donald) Trump and John Bolton and (Mike) Pompeo." He says the Iranian people "will not stop saying 'Death to America' as long as the U.S. acts malicious" toward Iran. Khamenei was referring to Trump's State of the Union address this week in which the American president, among other things, said: "We will not avert our eyes from a regime that chants death to America." Khameini's remarks come as Iran marks the 40th anniversary of its Islamic Revolution. In this picture released by an official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei attends a meeting with a group of the air force staff in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Khamenei is defending "Death to America" chants that are standard fare at anti-U.S. rallies across Iran but says the chanting is aimed at America's leaders and not its people. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP) WARSAW, Poland (AP) - Jan Olszewski, a Polish anti-communist dissident and former prime minister, has died. He was 88. Olszewski died in a Warsaw hospital late Thursday after a long illness, the news agency PAP reported Friday, citing former Defense Minister Antoni Macierewicz. Many Polish officials praised Olszewski for his service to the nation, describing him as a person of honor and honestly. "Jan Olszewski was a person of crystal honesty and faithful to his views, and at the same time immensely courageous. He proved his steadfastness many times," Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said. "The Republic has suffered an unimaginable loss today." Olszewski, a Warsaw native born in 1930, was a young teenager when he participated in the 1944 Warsaw Uprising against the Nazi German occupiers of the country during World War II. Under Soviet-backed communism, Olszewski was a lawyer who defended anti-communist dissidents in political trials. In the 1980s he was a leading figure in the anti-communist Solidarity movement, helping to draft its founding charter. He also took part in the Round Table Talks in 1989 that negotiated a peaceful transition from communism to democracy. Olszewski served as prime minster for six months from 1991 to 1992, making him the shortest-serving premier in Poland's post-communist era. "Sad news has come from Warsaw," Donald Tusk, the European Council president and a former Polish prime minister, said on Twitter. He remembered his predecessor as "a courageous defense attorney in political trials, a participant of Solidarity, a good man. May he rest in peace." A government official said there will be a state funeral for Olszewski but a date was not yet given. PARIS (AP) - France's pro-EU government and Italy's populist leaders sparred anew Friday, as business giants from both countries appealed for calm amid the neighbors' biggest diplomatic spat since World War II. France said the stunning recall of its ambassador to Italy was a temporary move - but an important signal to its historical ally not to meddle in internal French affairs. In Italy, the deputy prime minister who's the focus of French anger stood his ground, renewing criticism of France's foreign policy. France and Italy are founding members of the European Union, born from the ashes of World War II, and their unusual dispute is rippling around the continent at a time of growing tensions between nationalist and pro-EU forces. French officials said Friday that this week's recall of French Ambassador Christian Masset was prompted by months of "unfounded attacks" from Italian government members Luigi Di Maio and Matteo Salvini, who have criticized French President Emmanuel Macron's economic and migration policies. But the main trigger for the crisis appeared to be Di Maio's meeting in a Paris suburb this week with members of the yellow vests, a French anti-government movement seeking seats in the European Parliament. In this photo taken on Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2019 near Paris, Christophe Chalencon, 5th from right, one of the leading figures of the yellow vest movement, poses for a group photo with yellow vests' members and Italy's Five-Star Movements' leaders Luigi Di Maio, 4th from right, and Alessandro Di Battista, 6th from left. France kept up pressure on Italy Friday amid their biggest diplomatic spat since World War II, as business leaders from both countries appealed to their leaders to restore calm. The main trigger for the crisis appeared to be Di Maio's meeting in a Paris suburb this week with members of the yellow vest movement seeking seats in the European Parliament. (Five-Star Movement via AP) French government spokesman Benjamin Griveaux said the visit violated "the most elementary diplomacy" because it was unannounced. Referring to Italy's populist leaders, he criticized a "nationalist leprosy" eating away at Europe's unity and said EU members should "behave better toward partners." A participant in the meeting, French activist Marc Doyer, told The Associated Press that it was initiated by Di Maio's populist 5-Star movement and aimed at sharing advice on how to build a "citizens' movement." Doyer said it provided useful technical and other guidance to potential yellow vest candidates and their supporters, and called the diplomat spat an overreaction. "It's a political game by certain people," he said. "Free movement exists in Europe, and the meeting didn't cost the French taxpayer anything." Di Maio said he had done nothing wrong by meeting with the yellow vest protesters without informing the French government. A borderless Europe "shouldn't just be about allowing free circulation of merchandise and people, but also the free circulation of political forces that have a European outlook," he said in a Facebook video while visiting Abruzzo. Di Maio again blamed France for policies in African countries that he said had impeded their growth and fueled the flight of economic migrants to Europe. He also implicitly blamed Paris for the chaos in Libya that has led to years of instability and growth of migrant smuggling networks following France's involvement in the NATO-led operation in 2011 that ousted former Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi from power. Italian Transport Minister Danilo Toninelli, meanwhile, offered France's yellow vest movement technical advice on launching a version of the 5-Star movement's online portal, which allows registered party members to vote on policy decisions and candidates. "If useful, we can offer them a hand and do political activities in service of the French people," Toninelli said, according to the ANSA news agency. As the diplomatic spat simmered, a French yellow vest activist known for his extremist views held a gathering Friday in the Italian city of Sanremo. The standoff was clearly sending jitters through Europe's business world, given that the two countries are top trading partners and powerhouses of the EU economy. A pressing concern in Italy is the future of struggling national carrier Alitalia, amid rumored interest by Air France in some form of partnership. Italian opposition leaders seized on a report Friday in business daily Il Sole 24 Ore that the French carrier had cooled on a deal as a result of the standoff. Di Maio, who is also Italy's economic development minister, pushed back. "I've been following the Alitalia dossier for months. Air France's enthusiasm hasn't cooled now," he said. The Italian business lobby Confindustria and its French counterpart Medef wrote to their respective leaders calling for "constructive dialogue" to resolve the dispute, which they warned could threaten Europe's global standing. "It's necessary that the two historic protagonists of the process of integration don't split, but reconfirm their elements of unity," the presidents of the two groups wrote Macron and Italian Premier Giuseppe Conte. "Europe is an economic giant and we have to work to make it become a political giant as well." The two business leaders - Vincenzo Boccia of Confindustria and Geoffroy Roux de Bezieux of Medef - confirmed plans for a joint meeting later this month in Paris. French Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Agnes von der Muhll told the AP that the ambassador recall "is an unprecedented gesture toward a European state that is aimed at making clear that there are things that are not done between neighboring countries, friends and partners within the European Union." ___ Winfield reported from Rome. French activist of the 'Gilets Jaunes' (Yellow Vests) movement, Maxime Nicolle, center, attends a demonstration of Italian and French yellow vests, in Sanremo, Italy, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. France's government spokesman said that the recall of the French ambassador to Italy was prompted by months of "unfounded attacks" from Italian government members Luigi Di Maio and Matteo Salvini - and especially by Di Maio's meeting in France this week with yellow vest protesters. (Riccardo Antimiani/ANSA via AP) FILE - In this Nov.9, 2018 file photo, Italian deputy Premier and Labor Minister Luigi Di Maio talks to reporters during a press conference at the Foreign Press Association headquarters, in Rome. France is recalling its ambassador to Italy amid mounting tensions, after Di Maio met with French yellow vest protesters and offered to support their anti-government movement. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini, File) FILE - In this Aug. 6, 2012 file photo, the then France's Ambassador to Japan Christian Masset attends the ceremony marking the 67th anniversary of the atomic bombing at the Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima, western Japan. France's government spokesman said the recall of its ambassador Christian Masset to Italy is temporary, but sends an important signal toward its historical ally not to meddle in internal French affairs. (Kyodo News via AP, File) Italian military stand guard at the entrance of the Farnese Palace, which hosts the French embassy to Italy, in Rome, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. France's government spokesman said that the recall of the French ambassador was prompted by months of "unfounded attacks" from Italian government members Luigi Di Maio and Matteo Salvini - and especially by Di Maio's meeting in France this week with yellow vest protesters. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini) LONDON (AP) - The British and Irish leaders were looking to mend fences after a week of Brexit tensions at a dinner in Dublin Friday. But Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar and his U.K. counterpart, Theresa May, sought to dampen expectations of a breakthrough on the thorny issue of the Irish border. Varadkar said ahead of the meeting that "today is not a day for negotiations." "Today is a day for us to share our perspectives and for us to listen to each other," said Varadkar, who also met Friday with Northern Ireland politicians in Belfast. "There is much more that unites us than divides us and time is running short," he added. May's office said she would be underscoring her desire for legally binding changes to the Brexit deal she sealed with the EU late last year. It was overwhelmingly rejected by Britain's Parliament last month, largely over concerns about a provision designed to ensure an open border between the U.K.'s Northern Ireland and EU member Ireland. Britain is due to leave the bloc on March 29, and the U.K.'s bid for last-minute changes has exasperated EU leaders, who insist the legally binding withdrawal agreement can't be changed. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar prepares to speak to the media, ahead of talks with Northern Ireland's five main political parties at the Irish Government residence in Belfast, Northern Ireland, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. The British and Irish leaders were meeting Friday to discuss the Irish border - and mend fences - amid rising tensions between Britain and the European Union over Brexit. (Liam McBurney/PA via AP) Simmering differences boiled over this week when EU Council President Donald Tusk wondered aloud what "special place in hell" might be reserved for those in Britain who had backed Brexit with no idea of how to deliver it. The comments enraged British Brexiteers, and May reprimanded Tusk for causing "dismay." Tusk's comment came ahead of talks between May and EU leaders on Thursday that both sides described as "robust." Neither side moved from their entrenched positions, but they did at least agree to keep talking, with May and EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker saying they would meet again before the end of the month, after more talks between their officials. The British and Irish attorneys general met Friday to see if there is any common ground on the border provision, known as the backstop. It's a safeguard that would keep the U.K. in a customs union with the EU to remove the need for checks along the border until a permanent new U.K.-EU trading relationship is in place. Britain has suggested the backstop could be altered by adding a time limit or a get-out clause. Both ideas have been rejected by officials in Brussels. May is determined to get changes to her deal and win backing for it in Parliament, but many lawmakers want her to change course. Britain's Parliament is set to hold a debate and votes Thursday on the next steps, giving lawmakers a chance to force May to tack toward a softer Brexit - if divided legislators can agree on a plan. The main opposition Labour Party said this week that it could support a Brexit deal if May committed to seeking a close relationship with the EU after Britain leaves. But any such move would cost May the support of a big chunk of her Conservative Party. The political impasse leaves Britain lurching toward a chaotic "no-deal" departure that could be costly for businesses and ordinary people in both the U.K. and the EU. Labour finance spokesman John McDonnell said no-deal Brexit "could be catastrophic for our economy." "In the national interest, we have got to come together to secure a compromise," he said. Two former heads of Britain's civil service said the country was not ready to leave the EU on March 29 and should delay departure. Gus O'Donnell, who was the country's top civil servant between 2005 and 2011, wrote in the Evening Standard that "we should not leave until and unless we know we have a clearer idea where we are going." His successor, Bob Kerslake, said Britain was "divided, directionless and hurtling towards a legal deadline with no idea where we will end up after we cross it." ___ Follow AP's full coverage of Brexit at: https://www.apnews.com/Brexit Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar speaks to the media ahead of talks with Northern Ireland's five main political parties at the Irish Government residence in Belfast, Friday Feb. 8, 2019. (Liam McBurney/PA via AP) Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May talks to journalists after her meeting with European Council President Donald Tusk at the European Council headquarters in Brussels, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco) Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May leaves after a meeting with European Council President Donald Tusk at the European Council headquarters in Brussels, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert) European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker greets British Prime Minister Theresa May before their meeting at the European Commission headquarters in Brussels, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco) Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, left, answers a question during a joint news conference with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker following their meeting at the European Commission headquarters in Brussels, Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco) Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar waves as he walks to address the media ahead of talks with Northern Ireland's five main political parties at the Irish Government residence in Belfast, Friday Feb. 8, 2019. (Liam McBurney/PA via AP) CAIRO (AP) - An international rights group on Friday said Egypt executed three Muslim Brotherhood members sentenced to death following torture and beatings to extract confessions. Human Rights Watch said in a statement the families of the men were notified of their hanging on Thursday and asked to come to the morgue to pick up the bodies. The three were convicted last year for the 2014 killing of a judge's son in the Nile Delta town of Mansoura. HRW said a letter from one of the men was reportedly smuggled out of prison, describing torture and beatings. Michael Page, deputy director at the New York-based group, says Egypt "committed a glaring injustice by executing three men who apparently gave 'confessions' extracted through electric shock and other torture." Later Friday, the Interior Ministry confirmed the execution, saying prison authorities carried out a final court order after the defendants' appeal was turned down. Since the 2013 ouster of Egypt's freely elected but divisive Islamist President Mohammed Morsi, who hailed from the Brotherhood, authorities have waged an extensive crackdown on Islamists, arresting and detaining thousands and levelling harsh sentences against them. The Brotherhood has been banned and declared a terrorist group. Some militant groups, such as a faction known as Hasm, have also been linked to the Brotherhood and have targeted Egyptian police and army officers in the years following Morsi's ouster. Many Islamists who fled persecution in Egypt have found refuge in Turkey, Qatar, and Britain, where they have run satellite TV and radio stations. HRW's statement came after Turkey this week launched an investigation into eight police officers over the deportation of a wanted Islamist and Egyptian national back to Egypt, where he could face death penalty. The young man escaped Egypt after he was sentenced to death in absentia last year, and arrived in Turkey on Jan. 16 where was detained and deported two days later, despite requesting political asylum. He was convicted along with others for the 2015 assassination of Egypt's chief prosecutor. He is likely to face a new trial in Egypt over the same accusations. U.S. concerns regarding Turkey's purchase of Russian-made S-400 missiles are politically motivated, a top defense official said. "I believe that the U.S. expresses more political concerns [than technical issues]," Defense Industry Vice President Cemal Sami Tufekci told Anadolu Agency (AA) on Thursday following an academic conference in Washington, Daily Sabah reports. Stressing that U.S. officials claims suggesting the S-400 system may obtain confidential information about F-35 fighter jets are baseless, he said American and Israeli F-35 jets already fly over Syria, where Russian radars are active. "Technically, everything is possible, but Turkey will use its domestic software. We are a friendly country with the U.S.," he said, pledging that Turkey would not allow any information on F-35 jets to be obtained by others. "We would not allow such a thing anyway," he added. Ankara has long been underlining that it needs to address its air defense needs and called for purchasing defense systems from its NATO allies. Turkey plans to purchase a hundred F-35 fighter jets from the U.S., pending congressional approval. Thirty fighter jets have already been approved for purchase. In relation to the U.S.' offer to sell the Patriots in January, Tufekci noted that Turkey was negotiating with Russia about the purchase of S-400 missiles way before the U.S. offer. Tufekci's comments came after a U.S. official said Thursday that Washington was concerned with Turkey's decision to purchase the Russian-made S-400 defense system, and the U.S. government is considering not proceeding with the Patriot sale if Turkey insists on buying the S-400. "We are concerned that a Turkish purchase of the S-400 missiles will endanger the country's participation in the F-35 program and will likely result in some sort of sanctions coming through legislation called the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA). Our desire is for Turkey to have a more effective and NATO-interoperable system, which the S-400 system is not," the official said. Ankara opposes any prerequisite in the contract that foresees the cancellation of the S-400 defense systems. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan also previously said that S-400 missile system negotiations between Ankara and Moscow are a done deal, and the U.S. was not in a position to say something about it, adding that Turkey needs both Russian-made S-400 air defense systems and U.S.-made F-35 fighter jets. On Dec. 19, 2018, the U.S. State Department approved a possible sale of the Patriot air and missile defense system, saying that Turkey continues to be an essential element of the national security and defense strategy. This was regarded as a breakthrough move after Washington's delay of F-35 airplanes to Turkey due to its purchase of the Russian-made S-400 defense system. MOSCOW (AP) - Russia will be able to compete at next year's Paralympics in Tokyo after being reinstated Friday, more than two years after the country was suspended for widespread doping. The IPC ruled reforms to crack down on doping and limit government interference are enough to allow Russia to compete under its own flag ahead of the 2020 Paralympics. The reinstatement is expected to be formalized by March 15. The IPC said it had given up on a demand that Russian authorities should admit to the findings of a report by World Anti-Doping Agency investigator Richard McLaren which led to the Russian Paralympic Committee's suspension in August 2016. "Keeping the RPC suspended is no longer necessary and proportionate to the situation we now face," IPC president Andrew Parsons said. Parsons added the IPC believes Russia would "most probably never accept" the McLaren report and that an indefinite stalemate would hurt the country's athletes. FILE - In this Sunday, March 16, 2014 file photo, the flame burns at the Olympic Park on the last day of the 2014 Winter Paralympics in Sochi, Russia. Russia will rejoin the Paralympics after a suspension of more than two years for widespread doping, the International Paralympic Committee said Friday Feb. 8, 2019. (AP Photo/Pavel Golovkin, File) The IPC will monitor Russian Paralympic affairs through at least 2022, impose extra drug-testing for athletes and could immediately re-suspend the country if it breaches conditions to be unveiled next month. Those will include an automatic suspension if WADA decides Russia's national anti-doping agency doesn't meet international rules. "The Paralympic movement and para-athlete community are now ready to welcome the RPC and Russian para-athletes back into the fold," Parsons said. "They should be under no illusions, however, that their every action going forward will be heavily scrutinized, not just by the IPC and other para-athletes, but by the entire world." Russia was completely barred from the 2016 Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, although 30 athletes from the country were allowed to enter as Neutral Paralympic Athletes for last year's Winter Paralympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. Russia is a perennial power in Paralympic sports. It topped the medals table when it hosted the 2014 Winter Paralympics in Sochi, and in London two years earlier its gold-medal count was second only to China. "As they say, better late than never," the RPC said in a statement. "The 'post-reinstatement' criteria in the IPC's statement appear acceptable to us overall." Documents from Moscow's anti-doping lab revealed in McLaren's 2016 investigation showed that failed doping tests were covered up for athletes across numerous sports, including some with disabilities. The IPC ruling leaves track and field as the only sport still with a doping ban on Russia's team. The IAAF does allow dozens of certified Russians to compete as neutral athletes. ___ More AP sports: https://apnews.com/apf-sports and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) - Two volcanoes in Indonesia have spewed fresh lava down their slopes, in the latest of several eruptions in less than two weeks, an official said Friday. Volcanology official Kasbani said Mount Merapi on the main island of Java shot out hot clouds and lava that flowed 2,000 meters (6,560 feet) down its slopes late Thursday. Hours earlier, Mount Karangetang on Sulawesi's Siau island sent lava and searing gas out of its crater, prompting evacuation preparations, said Kasbani, who uses one name. Authorities expanded its danger zone to 4 kilometers (2.4 miles) from 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) from its crater. No casualties or damage were reported and the volcanoes' alert levels were not raised. Indonesia, home to 130 active volcanoes, lies on the Pacific "Ring of Fire," an arc of volcanos and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin. BERLIN (AP) - German imports and exports both rose unexpectedly strongly in December, providing a positive note about the strength of Europe's largest economy amid growing worries, official data showed Friday. Exports rose 1.5 percent from November, to 112.3 billion euros ($127.3 billion), while imports rose 1.2 percent to 92.9 billion euros, adjusted for seasonal and calendar factors, the Federal Statistical Office said. That widened Germany's trade surplus to 19.4 billion euros from November's 18.9 billion euros. Economists had predicted a 0.4 percent rise in exports and a 0.5 percent rise in imports. For the full year, German exports rose 3 percent from 2017 to 1.32 trillion euros and imports rose 5.7 percent to 1.09 trillion euros. The year-on-year gain in exports was led by a 4.5 percent rise in demand from other countries in the 19-nation eurozone. Exports to countries outside the European Union were up 1.9 percent. The gain in imports was more greater, with those from the eurozone rising 6.9 percent and those from outside the EU climbing 5 percent. FILE - In this Oct. 15, 2018 file photo, container ships are loaded at the harbor in Hamburg, Germany. German imports and exports both rose unexpectedly strongly in December, increasing the trade surplus and providing a positive note about the strength of Europe's largest economy amid growing worries (AP Photo/Martin Meissner) ING economist Carsten Brzeski called the figures a "welcome sign of life." They followed disappointing data this week on factory orders and industrial production in December. Economic growth has been held back in recent months by automakers' troubles getting vehicles certified under new, tougher emissions tests. At the same time, new import taxes imposed by the U.S. and China are weighing on prospects for global trade - hurting the outlook for major exporter Germany. Last week, the government slashed its 2019 economic growth forecast from 1.8 percent to 1 percent. Germany's economy grew 1.5 percent last year and 2.2 percent in 2017. ISTANBUL (AP) - Turkish emergency services on Friday recovered four more bodies from the rubble of an eight-story building that crashed down in Istanbul, bringing the death toll to 15. One man said he lost nine members of his extended family. Earlier in the day, rescuers pulled a 16-year-old boy out alive from under the rubble two days after the collapse, raising the number of people who have been rescued to 14. Friends and relatives waited near the wreckage for news of their missing loved ones as emergency teams, aided by sniffer dogs, worked around the clock to reach possible survivors. Nedim Alemdar said 14 relatives were living in three separate apartments in the building that collapsed in the Kartal district on the Asian side of the city. The building had been the family's home for 25 years, he said. "We have nine losses. My elder brother, our siblings, our children are all gone," Alemdar, 43, told The Associated Press. "This is beyond imagination." Three other family members were being treated in the hospital, including his nine-year old son, who was trapped in the rubble for nine hours before he was rescued. Turkish rescue workers carry a 16-year-old boy after they pulled him out from the rubble of an eight-story building which collapsed two days earlier in Istanbul, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) "It was an old building, there were some noises ... we could sense there was something wrong, but we didn't think much of it," he said outside the hospital. The cause of the collapse is under investigation but a senior Turkish official has said the building's top three floors were added illegally. Officials have not disclosed how many people are still unaccounted for. The building had 14 apartments with 43 registered residents. The teenager who was rescued Friday, Mert Aydin, was immediately hospitalized, Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu told reporters. Soylu said he had "breaks and fractures" but was doing well. The family of another missing woman, Seyma Kambur, received a glimmer of hope Friday. Relatives told The Associated Press that the 29-year-old's older sister managed to reach Kambur on the phone, while Kambur was still trapped under the rubble along with four others who were still alive. "Our hopes had almost died but today, a million thanks to God. We're relieved. We'll be even more relieved if we see her face to face," said Nuran Nuroglu, Kambur's cousin. "She is a very good person . everybody loves her, loves everything about her," said her visibly distraught mother, Nadire Ceri. Ceri and members of her family were waiting for news at a nearby public school that was turned into a crisis center. Soylu promised punishment for anyone found responsible for the collapse. ___ Fraser reported from Ankara, Turkey. Yagmur Cengiz in Istanbul contributed. People watch rescue workers searching for survivors in the rubble of an eight-story building which collapsed two days earlier in Istanbul, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Turkish rescue workers on Friday pulled out a 16-year-old boy from the rubble of an eight-story apartment building in Istanbul two days after it collapsed, Turkey's interior minister Suleyman Soylu said. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) A rescue worker uses Pasha, a sniffer dog, as they search for survivors in the rubble of an eight-story building which collapsed two days earlier in Istanbul, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Turkish rescue workers on Friday pulled out a 16-year-old boy from the rubble of an eight-story apartment building in Istanbul two days after it collapsed, Turkey's interior minister Suleyman Soylu said. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) People watch rescue workers searching for survivors in the rubble of an eight-story building which collapsed two days earlier in Istanbul, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Turkish rescue workers on Friday pulled out a 16-year-old boy from the rubble of an eight-story apartment building in Istanbul two days after it collapsed, Turkey's interior minister Suleyman Soylu said. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) A rescue worker uses Pasha, a sniffer dog, as they search for survivors in the rubble of an eight-story building which collapsed two days earlier in Istanbul, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Turkish rescue workers on Friday pulled out a 16-year-old boy from the rubble of an eight-story apartment building in Istanbul two days after it collapsed, Turkey's interior minister Suleyman Soylu said. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) Rescue workers use Pasha, a sniffer dog, as they search for survivors in the rubble of an eight-story building which collapsed two days earlier in Istanbul, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Turkish rescue workers on Friday pulled out a 16-year-old boy from the rubble of an eight-story apartment building in Istanbul two days after it collapsed, Turkey's interior minister Suleyman Soylu said. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) People carry the coffin of Fatma Kahraman, 63, a victim who lost her life under the rubble of an eight-story building which collapsed two days earlier in Istanbul, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. The cause of the collapse is under investigation but a top Turkish official has said the building's top three floors were added illegally. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) People attend funeral prayers for Fatma Kahraman, 63, a victim who lost her life under the rubble of an eight-story building which collapsed two days earlier in Istanbul, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. The cause of the collapse is under investigation but a top Turkish official has said the building's top three floors were added illegally. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) People attend funeral prayers for Fatma Kahraman, 63, a victim who lost her life under the rubble of an eight-story building which collapsed two days earlier in Istanbul, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. The cause of the collapse is under investigation but a top Turkish official has said the building's top three floors were added illegally. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) Turkish rescue workers carry a 16-year-old boy after they pulled out him from the rubble from an eight-story building which collapsed two days earlier in Istanbul, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Turkish rescue workers on Friday pulled out a 16-year-old boy from the rubble of an eight-story apartment building in Istanbul two days after it collapsed, Turkey's interior minister Suleyman Soylu said. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) Turkish rescue workers carry a 16-year-old boy after they pulled out him from the rubble from an eight-story building which collapsed two days earlier in Istanbul, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Turkish rescue workers on Friday pulled out a 16-year-old boy from the rubble of an eight-story apartment building in Istanbul two days after it collapsed, Turkey's interior minister Suleyman Soylu said. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) Turkish rescue workers carry a 16-year-old boy after they pulled him out from the rubble of an eight-story building which collapsed two days earlier in Istanbul, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) Turkish rescue workers carry a 16-year-old boy after they pulled him out from the rubble of an eight-story building which collapsed two days earlier in Istanbul, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) Rescue workers continue to remove rubble from an eight-story building which collapsed two days earlier in Istanbul, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Turkish rescue workers on Friday pulled out a 16-year-old boy from the rubble of an eight-story apartment building in Istanbul two days after it collapsed, Turkey's interior minister Suleyman Soylu said. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) Rescue workers continue to remove rubble from an eight-story building which collapsed two days earlier in Istanbul, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Turkish rescue workers on Friday pulled out a 16-year-old boy from the rubble of an eight-story apartment building in Istanbul two days after it collapsed, Turkey's interior minister Suleyman Soylu said. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) Rescue workers continue to remove rubble from an eight-story building which collapsed two days earlier in Istanbul, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Turkish rescue workers on Friday pulled out a 16-year-old boy from the rubble of an eight-story apartment building in Istanbul two days after it collapsed, Turkey's interior minister Suleyman Soylu said. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) Rescue workers continue to remove rubble from an eight-story building which collapsed two days earlier in Istanbul, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Turkish rescue workers on Friday pulled out a 16-year-old boy from the rubble of an eight-story apartment building in Istanbul two days after it collapsed, Turkey's interior minister Suleyman Soylu said. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) Rescue workers continue to remove rubble from an eight-story building which collapsed two days earlier in Istanbul, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Turkish rescue workers on Friday pulled out a 16-year-old boy from the rubble of an eight-story apartment building in Istanbul two days after it collapsed, Turkey's interior minister Suleyman Soylu said. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) GENEVA (AP) - Saudi Arabia quietly held a second court hearing for 11 people facing charges over the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, an independent U.N. human rights expert said, criticizing the kingdom for its lack of transparency in the proceedings over the grisly slaying. Agnes Callamard, the U.N. special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, said she learned of the hearing during her first visit to Turkey last week to investigate the murder. Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist who wrote critically about Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was killed and dismembered inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul last October. His remains have not been found. The brutal killing - described by Turkish and U.S. officials as an elaborate plot - has drawn an international outcry about press freedom and Saudi government tactics to quell criticism. Turkey, which is carrying out its own investigation into Khashoggi's murder, has been frustrated by what Ankara says is a lack of cooperation by Riyadh. It has also called for an international inquiry. Khashoggi, a Saudi writer, had gone to the consulate on Oct. 2 to obtain documents for his upcoming wedding to his Turkish fiancee. After denying for weeks that Khashoggi was killed in the consulate, Saudi Arabia late last year indicted 11 people in the killing, including members from the crown prince's entourage, and is seeking the death penalty against five of them. FILE - In this Dec. 15, 2014, file photo, Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi speaks during a press conference in Manama, Bahrain. An independent U.N. human rights expert says authorities in Saudi Arabia quietly held a second court hearing for 11 people facing charges over the killing of Khashoggi. Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist who wrote critically about Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was killed inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2, 2018. (AP Photo/Hasan Jamali, File) Callamard told The Associated Press over the phone Thursday that the second hearing in Saudi Arabia took place on Jan. 31. She criticized the fact that there is "insufficient public attention placed on the proceedings" and that the media are not present at the hearings Trials in Saudi Arabia can be shrouded in secrecy, she noted, insisting that Khashoggi case should be open to public scrutiny. "Given the importance of the case, we should be expecting a greater presence of representatives of the media, of civil society, of a range of other governments, not just those hand-picked by the Saudi authorities," said Callamard, a French national who is director of Columbia Global Freedom of Expression at Columbia University in New York. The revelation of a second hearing highlights the closed-door nature of trials in Saudi Arabia, where international media and independent monitors are not typically given access to witness court proceedings. Callamard declined to specify who told her about the hearing, but cited "reliable" sources about information "that I have been able to cross-check." Saudi Arabia has not revealed the defendants' names or the names of their lawyers. The kingdom's chief prosecutor, Saud Al-Mojeb, has said that of 21 people taken into custody in the case, 11 have been indicted and referred to trial. It's unclear if they remain detained during the trial or where they're being held. Turkey has sought the extradition of the Saudi suspects but the kingdom has rejected any notion they could be tried abroad and has not allowed Turkey access to them. Callamard said she was still waiting for a response from Saudi authorities to a request she made three weeks ago for an invitation to visit the kingdom. She said the next phase of her investigation will take her to Washington to speak with officials from countries that have "taken a deep interest in the case" and have been in touch with Saudi and Turkish officials. Earlier on Thursday, Callamard issued a statement through the U.N. office in Geneva, saying that Saudi Arabia had undermined Turkey's efforts to investigate Khashoggi's death, calling it a "premeditated killing" planned and carried out by Saudi officials. During her Jan. 28-Feb. 3 trip to Turkey, Callamard and her four-member team met with the Turkish foreign and justice ministers, the country's intelligence chief and the prosecutor leading the case. She concluded that Turkey's efforts have been "seriously curtailed and undermined by Saudi Arabia," the statement said. Callamard plans to present her final report to the U.N.-backed Human Rights Council in June. ___ Associated Press writer Aya Batrawy in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, contributed to this report. SRINAGAR, India (AP) - Heavy snow caused avalanches and landslides that killed 11 people and trapped another in the Himalayan region of Kashmir, officials said Friday. Rescuers cut through mounds of snow to reach 11 people - seven policemen, two firefighters and two prisoners - who were trapped in a fire station in the southern Banihal area overnight, said top police officer S.P. Pani. They found the bodies of three of the policemen, the two firefighters and the two prisoners, and three policemen were rescued alive, Pani said. He said the rescued men were hospitalized while efforts to find the missing policeman continued. Pani said the policemen had taken shelter in the fire station because it had not been damaged by past avalanches in the mountainous area, where landslides are common. Elsewhere, a man and his wife died in the southern Kokernag region when an avalanche hit their home Thursday evening, police said. Two other family members were rescued. Officials said a landslide also hit a key highway connecting the Kashmir Valley and Jammu near the southern Ramban region, killing two people. An elderly Kashmiri man pushes his cycle on a snow covered road in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. The fresh snowfall has resulted in disruption of air and road traffic for the second consecutive day between Srinagar and Jammu, the summer and winter capitals of India's troubled state. (AP Photo/ Dar Yasin) Dozens were evacuated from high-risk areas following heavy snows that disrupted power and communications as well as air traffic in the Indian-controlled portion of Kashmir, while cutting off the Kashmir Valley from India. Authorities issued a high-danger avalanche warning in many parts of the region. Last month, 10 workers were killed when an avalanche hit a Himalayan mountain pass bordering China in the Indian-controlled portion of Kashmir. Rescuers took about a week to retrieve the bodies. Last year, 11 civilians died in an avalanche near the highly militarized Line of Control that divides Kashmir between Indian and Pakistan-administered areas. Avalanches also have caused some of the heaviest tolls for the Indian and Pakistani armies camped near the de facto frontier dividing their territories. In 2017, at least 20 Indian soldiers were killed in three avalanches, and in 2012, a massive avalanche in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir killed 140 people, including 129 Pakistani soldiers. Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan and is claimed by both in its entirety. An Indian paramilitary soldiers removes snow from a net protecting their bunker in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. The fresh snowfall has resulted in disruption of air and road traffic for the second consecutive day between Srinagar and Jammu, the summer and winter capitals of India's troubled state. (AP Photo/ Dar Yasin) An auto-rickshaw drives on a snow-covered road on the outskirts of Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. The fresh snowfall has resulted in disruption of air and road traffic for the second consecutive day between Srinagar and Jammu, the summer and winter capitals of India's troubled state. (AP Photo/ Dar Yasin) A Kashmiri nomad boy Rafiq Khan stands with his mouth open to catch snowflakes outside his temporary shelter during fresh snowfall on the outskirts of Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. The fresh snowfall has resulted in disruption of air and road traffic for the second consecutive day between Srinagar and Jammu, the summer and winter capitals of India's troubled state. (AP Photo/ Dar Yasin) A Kashmiri nomad Zubair Khan washes his face early morning on a snow covered field outside his temporary shelter on the outskirts of Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. The fresh snowfall has resulted in disruption of air and road traffic for the second consecutive day between Srinagar and Jammu, the summer and winter capitals of India's troubled state. (AP Photo/ Dar Yasin) WASHINGTON (AP) - Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker said on Friday that he has "not interfered in any way" in the special counsel's Russia investigation as he faced a contentious and partisan congressional hearing in his waning days on the job. The hearing before the House Judiciary Committee was the first, and likely only, chance for newly empowered Democrats in the majority to grill an attorney general they perceive as a Donald Trump loyalist and whose appointment they suspect was aimed at suppressing investigations of the Republican president. They confronted Whitaker on his past criticism of special counsel Robert Mueller's work and his refusal to recuse himself from overseeing it, attacked him over his prior business dealings and sneeringly challenged his credentials as the country's chief law enforcement officer. "We're all trying to figure out: Who are you, where did you come from and how the heck did you become the head of the Department of Justice," said Rep. Hakeem Jeffries. When Whitaker tried to respond, the New York Democrat interrupted, "Mr. Whitaker, that was a statement, not a question. I assume you know the difference." Yet Democrats yielded no new information about the status of the Mueller probe as Whitaker repeatedly refused to discuss conversations with the president or answer questions that he thought might reveal details. Though clearly exasperated - he drew gasps and chuckles when he told the committee chairman that his five-minute time limit for questions was up - Whitaker nonetheless sought to assuage Democratic concerns by insisting he had never discussed the Mueller probe with Trump or other White House officials, and that there'd been no change in its "overall management." "We have followed the special counsel's regulations to a T," Whitaker said. "There has been no event, no decision, that has required me to take any action, and I have not interfered in any way with the special counsel's investigation." Republicans made clear they viewed the hearing as pointless political grandstanding, especially since Whitaker may have less than a week left in the job, and some respected his wishes by asking questions about topics other than Mueller's probe into potential coordination between Russia and the Trump campaign. The Senate is expected to vote as soon as next week on confirming William Barr, Trump's pick for attorney general. Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker is sworn in before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019 in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) "I'm thinking about maybe we just set up a popcorn machine in the back because that's what this is becoming. It's becoming a show," said Republican Rep. Doug Collins of Georgia, who accused his Democratic colleagues of "character assassination." But Rep. Jerrold Nadler, the committee chairman who a day earlier had threatened to subpoena Whitaker to ensure his appearance, left no doubt about his party's focus. "You decided that your private interest in overseeing this particular investigation, and perhaps others from which you should have been recused, was more important than the integrity of the department," said Nadler, of New York. "The question that this committee must now ask is: Why?" Whitaker toggled between defending his role in the special counsel's investigation and echoing the president's talking points, conceding for instance that while foreign interference in U.S. elections was a problem, so too was voter fraud - a key issue for Republicans, but one that Democrats say is overstated. He said he had no reason to doubt Mueller's honesty or to believe that he was conflicted in his leadership of the investigation. But he also declined to say if he still agreed with sharply critical comments about the Mueller probe that he made as a television commentator before arriving at the Justice Department in the fall of 2017 as chief of staff to then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions. And he passed up a chance to break from the president's characterization of the Mueller investigation as a "witch hunt," saying simply, "I think it would be inappropriate for me to comment about an ongoing investigation." FBI Director Christopher Wray, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and Barr have all maintained that they do not believe the investigation to be a witch hunt. Whitaker also denied a news report that Trump had lashed out at him after the guilty plea of Michael Cohen, the president's former lawyer. But he did not answer directly about whether he had discussed that investigation, run by prosecutors in New York, with Trump, insisting only that the president had never instructed him to take particular actions. He said his comment at an unrelated news conference last week that the Mueller investigation was close to wrapping up - a remark that generated significant attention and speculation - reflected only "my position as acting attorney general." He said Mueller would finish on his own schedule. White House officials kept an eye on Whitaker's performance and, while they appreciated his combative tone and aggressive defense of the administration, there was a sense from aides that his performance, at times, appeared halting and ill-prepared. The president himself kept an eye on the proceedings before leaving the White House for his annual physical. Democrats also inquired about Whitaker's past business dealings. Nadler and three other House committee chairmen released documents that they said show Whitaker failed to return thousands of dollars that were supposed to be distributed to victims of a company's alleged fraud. Whitaker has come under scrutiny for his involvement with the invention promotion company, which was accused of misleading consumers. Whitaker, a former U.S. attorney from Iowa, took over when Sessions was forced from the Cabinet last November as Trump seethed over Sessions' decision to step aside from overseeing the Russia investigation. Trump insists there was "no collusion" between his campaign and Russia. Nadler said Friday that he wanted Whitaker to return for a deposition in the coming weeks. ___ Associated Press writers Chad Day and Jonathan Lemire contributed to this report. Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker appears before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019 in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker appears before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker speaks after telling Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., that his time has expired during questioning before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker stands to leave a House Judiciary Committee hearing during a recess on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Washington. Whitaker insisted Friday that he has not "interfered in any way" in the special counsel's Russia investigation as he faced a contentious and partisan congressional hearing in his waning days on the job. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker speaks during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Washington. Whitaker insisted Friday that he has not "interfered in any way" in the special counsel's Russia investigation as he faced a contentious and partisan congressional hearing in his waning days on the job. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker appears before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Whitaker insisted Friday that he has not "interfered in any way" in the special counsel's Russia investigation as he faced a contentious and partisan congressional hearing in his waning days on the job. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) Rep. Doug Collins, R-Georgia, the top Republican on the House Judiciary Committee, objects to Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., left, summoning Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker before the Democrat-controlled panel on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019 in Washington, as Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., listens at lower left. Democrats are eager to press him on his interactions with President Donald Trump and his oversight of the special counsel's Russia investigation. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) Rep. Doug Collins, R-Georgia, the top Republican on the House Judiciary Committee, objects to Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., left, summoning Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker before the Democrat-controlled panel on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019 in Washington, as Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., listens at lower left. Democrats are eager to press him on his interactions with President Donald Trump and his oversight of the special counsel's Russia investigation. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) Rep. Doug Collins, R-Georgia, the top Republican on the House Judiciary Committee, objects to Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., left, summoning Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker before the Democrat-controlled panel on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019 in Washington, as Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., listens at lower left. Democrats are eager to press him on his interactions with President Donald Trump and his oversight of the special counsel's Russia investigation. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., reacts as Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker tells Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., that his time has expired during questioning before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Washington. Democrats are eager to press him on his interactions with President Donald Trump and his oversight of the special counsel's Russia investigation. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker speaks during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker appears before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Washington. Democrats are eager to press him on his interactions with President Donald Trump and his oversight of the special counsel's Russia investigation. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker is sworn in to testify before the House Judiciary Committee by Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., right, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker is sworn in before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker appears before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., questions Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker as he appears before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Washington. Democrats are eager to press him on his interactions with President Donald Trump and his oversight of the special counsel's Russia investigation. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker appears before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Washington. Whitaker insisted on Friday that he has not "interfered in any way" in the special counsel's Russia investigation as he faced a contentious and partisan congressional hearing in his waning days on the job. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker arrives to testify before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019 in Washington. Democrats are eager to press him on his interactions with President Donald Trump and his oversight of the special counsel's Russia investigation. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) - On his first trip to Iowa as a presidential candidate, New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker urged Democratic activists and black leaders on Friday to heed his call for social justice and apply it to the fight for universal health care coverage and a fair criminal justice system. In a Mason City church basement, in a meeting with city leaders in racially diverse Waterloo, at a town hall-style meeting in Cedar Rapids and in a packed home in Iowa City, Booker continually likened domestic problems to the denial of civil rights. "You cannot have life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness if you don't have health care," the Democratic senator told an overwhelmingly white audience of about 100 who turned out despite sub-zero temperatures. "That's not justice." Later, in a racially mixed crowd in Waterloo, Booker bemoaned a criminal justice system that disproportionately punishes racial minorities and "ultimately makes us a country that has a cancer on our soul." Race is shaping up to be central to the Democratic presidential campaign. Democratic prospects have called President Donald Trump's portrayal of immigrants racist and condemned his reaction to a deadly 2017 demonstration in Virginia as being sympathetic toward white supremacists. Booker, who is African-American, is starting his campaign for the Iowa caucuses by framing the election in terms of a movement, like those for civil and voting rights more than a half century ago. U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., poses for a photo with Alyssa Benson, of Mason City, Iowa, right, and her daughter Jersey, center, during a meet and greet with local residents at the First Congregational United Church of Christ, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Mason City, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall) "We are a nation in crisis that is ripping itself apart with leaders who are pitting us against each other because of our race or our political party," Booker boomed in Iowa City. "I believe we can light this world on fire again, and put the indivisible back in this nation again." Jeannie Maybanks, who met Booker during an event in Cedar Rapids, called him "an inspirational figure." "He's got so much enthusiasm," Maybanks added. "He says what he says with such conviction. It's infectious." Booker voraciously signed autographs, shook hands and stood for selfies, taking the now-commonplace political glad-handing a step further. Booker repeatedly took the phones of people he met and recorded digital video messages of himself and Iowans, smiling and joking with them. In Waterloo, Booker became the first presidential candidate this year to visit Black Hawk County, where the black population - at 9 percent - is more than twice that of Iowa overall. Booker, a former mayor of Newark, held a public panel discussion in Waterloo focusing mainly on issues facing the black community. Booker touted the passage of the a criminal justice reform bill in December as an act that benefits minority men, though University of Iowa law school student Daisy Cruz said the bill didn't go far enough. "I thought he sounded defensive," Cruz said. "He told us what he did, but not what more he's willing to do." Throughout his events, Booker sprinkled in references to civil rights figure John Lewis, a longtime Democratic congressman from Georgia. In Mason City, Booker bemoaned the influence of corporate and lobbyist money in elections, and told the audience he would not accept such contributions. However, Booker's candidacy is being encouraged by a super political action committee started by wealthy Democratic donor Steve Phillips, a friend and former classmate of Booker's at Stanford University. Booker told reporters he was frustrated by super PACs generally, but he did not expressly call for Phillips to shut it down. "I don't think super PACs should be in a campaign for anybody, including Donald Trump. So, I don't support the super PAC," he said. "I've said publicly time and time again, I don't think there should be super PACs in this race." Phillips was undeterred. "Cory Booker's candidacy is the best vehicle for inspiring the kinds of large voter turnout in communities of color that will be necessary for progressives to win up and down the ticket in 2020," he said in an emailed statement. However, he added, the super PAC Dream United would likely support whomever the Democratic Party nominates. "What we are doing goes beyond Booker. We are doing this for our country," he said. Booker planned to continue campaigning Sunday with stops in Marshalltown and Des Moines. ___ Associated Press writer Brian Slodysko in Washington contributed to this report. U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., speaks during a meet and greet with local residents at the First Congregational United Church of Christ, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Mason City, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall) U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., speaks during a meet and greet with local residents at the First Congregational United Church of Christ, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Mason City, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall) U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., speaks with Steven Howell, of Mason City, Iowa, right, during a meet and greet with local residents at the First Congregational United Church of Christ, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Mason City, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall) U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., speaks during a meet and greet with local residents at the First Congregational United Church of Christ, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Mason City, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall) U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., poses for a photo with Chris Peterson, of Clear Lake, Iowa, right, during a meet and greet with local residents at the First Congregational United Church of Christ, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Mason City, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall) U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., speaks during a meet and greet with local residents at the First Congregational United Church of Christ, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Mason City, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall) U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., speaks during a meet and greet with local residents at the First Congregational United Church of Christ, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Mason City, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall) U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., waits as he is introduced to speak at a meet and greet with local residents at the First Congregational United Church of Christ, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Mason City, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall) U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., center, speaks to local residents during a meet and greet at the First Congregational United Church of Christ, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Mason City, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall) PHOENIX (AP) - Arizona is trying to catch up to 10 states with laws allowing electronic monitoring and other technology aimed at deterring abuse of vulnerable people at long-term care facilities, following the rape of an incapacitated Phoenix woman who later gave birth. Cameras are most commonly used, but they pose privacy issues, and advocates and experts disagree about their effectiveness. Some say video surveillance can help in criminal cases but may not stop attacks, while others have seen improvements and urge any effort to safeguard those who are aging, sick, disabled or otherwise unable to protect themselves. The Arizona Legislature is considering a measure that would let certain facilities install video surveillance in common areas. The providers would have to detail how to avoid privacy violations. The state would join Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah, Virginia and Washington with laws or regulations allowing surveillance equipment inside nursing homes, assisted living centers and other group residential settings. "We're looking into how to make it so parents have more reliable ways to ensure their loved ones are safe," said Republican Rep. Nancy Barto, the measure's sponsor. "I'm learning a lot of group homes already do this. Some of those policies are actually working." FILE - In this Feb. 5, 2019, file pool photo, Nathan Sutherland, accused of raping and impregnating a patient at Hacienda HealthCare, is arraigned in Maricopa County Superior Court in Phoenix, Ariz. The rape of an incapacitated woman at this facility is driving Arizona to catch up to 10 states with laws or regulations governing electronic monitoring and other technology aimed at deterring abuse inside long-term care facilities. Renewed attention on safeguarding vulnerable residents at care centers comes after an incapacitated woman gave birth at the Phoenix facility in Dec. 2018. (Tom Tingle/The Arizona Republic via AP, Pool, File) Most of those laws place the option and cost of electronic monitoring on residents and their guardians. A majority of the laws say residents or their surrogates can put a camera or monitoring device in their rooms but must notify the facility, among other conditions. Carole Herman, founder of the advocacy group Foundation Aiding the Elderly, is not sure cameras would have helped her aunt, who died of bedsores in a nursing home but said that they might be useful in other cases. Cameras in hallways can show who is at a patient's bedside and how often the patient is getting care, she said. She questions why any facility would oppose them. "The industry doesn't want it obviously," Herman said. "But if they care about these people, what's the resistance to these cameras?" Nicole Jorwic, director of rights policy at The Arc, a national advocacy group serving people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, cautioned that cameras are not a "magic pill." "Even if the law's written perfectly well, it's not going to capture every form of abuse and neglect," Jorwic said. While cameras could help catch abusers, it's not clear they're effective at preventing violence, said Brian Lee, a former Florida long-term care public advocate who heads the advocacy group Families for Better Care. "As far as prevention, I don't know," Lee said, "but I've seen it used for prosecution." But one expert says a properly designed closed-circuit TV system with multiple monitoring points can be a good deterrent. A common mistake is to have one monitoring area that nobody is watching, which makes cameras reactive instead of proactive tools, said Steve Wilder, president of Sorensen, Wilder & Associates, an Illinois-based health care safety and security consulting group that works primarily with hospitals and senior living communities. "A lot of facilities think cameras give the message of 'We're not a safe facility.' Nothing could be further from the truth," Wilder said. Details were not known about the security system at the Phoenix facility, where a licensed nurse is charged with sexually assaulting a 29-year-old woman who had a baby boy Dec. 29. Hacienda HealthCare said Thursday that it was closing the intermediate care facility that serves young people with intellectual or developmental disabilities and would work with the state to move patients elsewhere. After the birth, the state Department of Health Services implemented new safety measures at Hacienda, including more monitoring of patient care areas but not video cameras. The department declined to comment on the surveillance legislation Thursday. In Texas, a 2013 law allowing facilities to install and operate video surveillance equipment in common areas has made an impact, health officials said. Devices can only be placed in the state's 13 intermediate care facilities, which serve nearly 3,000 patients with intellectual disabilities. Cameras have both confirmed and cleared staff in allegations of abuse, neglect or exploitation. "There was an initial rise as (the Department of Family Protective Services) was able to confirm cases more readily, but since then, the rates have fallen," Carrie Williams, a Texas Health and Human Services Commission spokeswoman, said in an email. New Jersey has taken a different approach. Its "Safe Care Cam" program aims to catch abuse or neglect by allowing residents to borrow a hidden camera. A loaner camera led to the January arrest of a caretaker at an assisted living facility. The attorney general's office said footage showed her slapping a 90-year-old bedridden woman on the hand and roughly pushing her head back onto a pillow several times. The victim couldn't communicate verbally because of a stroke. In Arizona, the lawmaker behind the camera legislation said it has "a good chance" of passing. As chairwoman of the House Health & Human Services Committee, Barto can likely get the measure a hearing. Gov. Doug Ducey, a Republican, is usually skeptical of regulations and has touted his record of rolling them back, but the Republican has ordered agencies to improve protections for people with disabilities. Arizona also is considering legislation that would require facilities like Hacienda to get a state license and conduct background checks of employees that care for clients. So far, neither bill is scheduled for a vote. ___ Associated Press national writer Matt Sedensky in New York City contributed to this report. PHOENIX (AP) - Cindy McCain has apologized after she claimed she stopped a case of human trafficking at the Phoenix airport when she reported a toddler with a woman of a different ethnicity and "something didn't click." Police said they investigated but there was no evidence of a crime. The incident draws attention to the suspicion that parents, relatives, nannies and others face when they travel with children who don't look like them. That it was McCain, who adopted a daughter from Bangladesh and is recognized globally as an advocate for ending human trafficking, illustrates the challenge of being vigilant without triggering concerns about racial bias. "There's a huge danger in trusting your gut when it comes to race and all kinds of identity dimensions," said Andrew Grant-Thomas, who co-founded an organization called Embrace Race along with his wife. "We make these split-second judgments. And often those split-second judgments ... are driven by bias." It reminded Grant-Thomas, who is African American, of the intimidating stares he would get while babysitting his godson, who appears white. When someone's suspected of a crime while simply living their life, "there's a cost," and the person has probably endured suspicion and questions many times before, Grant-Thomas said. McCain has not said if other factors besides ethnicity led her to suspect wrongdoing. FILE - In this Nov. 17, 2018 file photo, Cindy McCain pauses while presenting the inaugural John McCain Prize for Leadership in Public Service to the People of the island of Lesbos, Greece at the Halifax International Security Forum in Halifax, Canada. McCain is apologizing, Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019, after claiming that she intervened to stop human trafficking at the Phoenix airport last month. The widow of former U.S. Sen. John McCain told radio hosts at Phoenix station KTAR that she spotted a toddler with a woman of a different ethnicity and "something didn't click." She says she told a police officer, and the woman was waiting for a man who bought the child. (Darren Calabrese /The Canadian Press via AP) "I came in from a trip I'd been on," McCain said on Phoenix radio station KTAR. "I spotted - it looked odd - it was a woman of a different ethnicity than the child, this little toddler she had. Something didn't click with me. I tell people 'trust your gut.' I went over to the police and I told them what I thought, and they went over and questioned her, and by God she was trafficking that kid." She went on to say the woman "was waiting for the guy who bought the child to get off an airplane." Phoenix Police Sgt. Armando Carbajal confirmed McCain requested a welfare check on a child at the airport on Jan. 30, but said "officers determined there was no evidence of criminal conduct or child endangerment." McCain was discussing trafficking at the Super Bowl in Atlanta, which she said attracts sophisticated traffickers who sell women and children for sex. She urged people to speak up if they see something odd. Later, McCain said on Twitter that she reported an incident she thought was trafficking. "I commend the police officers for their diligence," she wrote. "I apologize if anything else I have said on this matter distracts from 'if you see something, say something.' " McCain is an outspoken advocate for preventing human trafficking. She's co-chair of the Arizona Human Trafficking Council, which recommends ways to end exploitation, and trafficking is a focus for the McCain Institute for International Leadership at Arizona State University. "Her hyper sensitivity to looking for trafficking in this instance was not correct," but everyone has a responsibility to be aware of the issue and it shouldn't discourage anyone from reporting potential problems, Luke Knittig, a spokesman for the McCain Institute, said in an email. The "if you see something, say something" call popularized after the 9/11 attacks is a reminder not to be a bystander and assume someone else will act. But it's important to "talk to your gut before you talk to someone else," asking whether the suspicion is based on behavior or appearance, said Alexis McGill Johnson, co-founder and executive director of the Perception Institute, which researches bias and trains people to avoid it. When making a quick decision on partial information, the brain tends to fill in the blanks by drawing media- and culture- driven perceptions of race, gender or class about what's "normal," McGill Johnson said. Kuwait's Directorate General for Civil Aviation (DGCA) is set to sign up a global agency or consultant for its new T2 airport terminal project in order to meet all the necessary requirements and abide by the international standards. An adhoc committee has already been formed to study and meet the requirements for the new T2 airport terminal project in co-ordination with Ministry of Public Works and the Turkish company Limak, reported Arab Times, citing senior civil aviation officials. DGCA is currently studying the offers of a number of global consultants that had applied for the project in co-ordination with the Central Tenders Committee (CTC), it stated. The project is likely to be completed by 2022, the report added. The political crisis in Virginia threatens to turn a state that has trended Democratic back into a battleground, a development that could complicate the party's effort to defeat President Donald Trump next year. Three of the state's top Democrats are engulfed in a scandal that has shaken the state government. Gov. Ralph Northam and Attorney General Mark Herring have admitted wearing blackface as young men in the 1980s. Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, meanwhile, has been accused of sexually assaulting a woman in 2004, an allegation he denies. The men are resisting calls for their resignation. Virginia's increasingly diverse and urban population has fueled Democratic victories for a decade. But Democrats are anxious that the dizzying developments could suddenly halt their progress. The prospect of losing Virginia's 13 electoral votes would spread Democrats thin as they try to win back upper Midwest states that voted for Trump while making a push in GOP-leaning states like Georgia and Arizona. "This doesn't change the blue direction of the state long-term, but this certainly complicates things for Democrats in the immediate future," said Virginia native Carolyn Fiddler, a top operative at the DailyKos website, a force in liberal politics nationally. "Everyone, presidential candidates, Democratic candidates here and everywhere, are going to have to wrestle with this." Josh Schwerin, who worked for Northam's predecessor, Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe, said, "Voters could take this out on Democrats ... less as an ideological shift but more as an issue of repercussions for genuine political scandal." Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax presides over the state Senate in Richmond, Va., on Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. California college professor Vanessa Tyson has made an allegation of sexual assault against Fairfax. He has denied the allegations, casting them as a political smear. (Steve Earley/The Virginian-Pilot via AP) The president himself gleefully agreed, predicting in a tweet Thursday that he will reclaim a state he lost by 5 percentage points to Hillary Clinton in 2016. "Democrats at the top are killing the Great State of Virginia," he tweeted Thursday. "If the three failing pols were Republicans, far stronger action would be taken. Virginia will come back HOME Republican) in 2020!" Trump's taunt ignores his own history of sexual assault allegations and his contorted relationship with race, including when he insisted after a 2017 white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, that there were "very fine people on both sides" of an encounter that left a counterprotester dead. Virginia's booming population - particularly around Washington - has given Democrats sweeping gains in recent cycles. President Barack Obama twice won the state after four decades of GOP dominance. In 2016, Clinton held on despite losing nearly every other battleground state. The party flipped state legislative seats across Virginia in 2017, while Northam, Fairfax and Herring won with ease. In 2018, Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine coasted to re-election while Democratic congressional nominees ousted three GOP incumbents. But that momentum abruptly stopped last week with the disclosure of a picture from Northam's medical school yearbook showing one young man in blackface and another in Klan regalia. Northam initially signaled that he was in the picture. He recanted a day later but admitted using blackface in the same timeframe to dress as pop icon Michael Jackson. As the situation unfolds, the risk for Democrats isn't so much that legions of Virginia voters move to Republicans - a party that nominated an open Confederate sympathizer to challenge Kaine last year - or suddenly embrace Trump. But there are questions about how committed and enthusiastic that growing Democratic electorate would be if Northam, Fairfax and Herring remained in office. AP VoteCast data, analyzing the 2018 midterm electorate, shows that black voters cast about 17 percent of Virginia ballots in November, with about 9 out of 10 of those backing Democratic congressional candidates. Women, meanwhile, made up 52 percent of the Virginia electorate and sided with Democrats by a margin of 20 percentage points. If those advantages shrank, while Trump was able to stoke GOP turnout, the state could suddenly return to tossup status. Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey, a Democratic presidential candidate, said Friday he didn't think the Virginia scandals would hurt Democrats in 2020. "I don't think this is a party issue," he said. "We've seen these problems on both sides of the aisle. I think this is an issue with a very difficult past, a painful past, a hurtful past that we have. And a lot of the truth telling that's going on is going to lay the groundwork for reconciliation that we all need." Democrats in Richmond and in Washington say the next moves may largely depend on what black state legislative leaders push for. They remain publicly noncommittal. The situation is complicated by the racial politics of the three Virginia officials at the center of the scandal. Northam and Herring are white men approaching 60. Fairfax is a 39-year-old black man who just days ago was viewed as Northam's heir apparent - either via the 2021 election or when Northam heeded calls to step down. Democrats like Zac Petkanas, an operative who specializes in opposition research and offensives against Trump, say any solution must involve the resignations of all three Virginia leaders. They don't want to hand control to the Republican next in line, but they want to avoid the optics of elevating, even for a short time, a lieutenant governor accused of sexual assault or having that same official - the lone black man among the three - be the only one to give up his post. "The Democratic Party has made it clear we will not tolerate racism or the way some men have treated women," Petkanas said. "They just have to do it in a smart way that respects voters' wishes that Democrats be in charge." There are recent examples of controversies resulting in upsets that go against a state's fundamental bent. Heavily Republican Alabama elected Democrat Doug Jones to the U.S. Senate over a Republican nominee accused of sexually pursuing teenage girls when he was in his 30s. Louisiana chose Democrat John Bel Edwards as governor in 2015 over then-Sen. David Vitter, a Republican who'd been identified as a client of a high-end brothel. If anything spares Democrats, pollster Zac McCrary said, it's Trump himself, along with Virginians' general satisfaction with the direction of their state government. "If Ralph Northam or one of these others was on the ballot," he said, "they might have a problem. ... But it's much too alarmist (to say) that enduring this significant pain and embarrassment in February will have long-term ramifications nearly a year from now and beyond in an environment where Trump still blocks out the sun every day." ___ Associated Press writers Hannah Fingerhut in Washington and Thomas Beaumont in Mason City, Iowa, contributed to this report. ___ Follow Bill Barrow on Twitter at https://twitter.com/BillBarrowAP CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP) - A 20-year-old immigrant from El Salvadoran accused of killing four people in Nevada will be tried on four murder counts in Reno before he faces related burglary and other charges in Carson City, prosecutors in the two counties said Friday. Prosecutors said family members of the victims preferred the more serious charges against Wilber Martinez-Guzman be addressed first. As part of the plan, Martinez-Guzman and his public defender agreed to postpone a preliminary hearing that had been scheduled Friday in Carson City on burglary and other counts involving items belonging to some of the victims. He will be extradited to Reno and held without bail while awaiting trial on the murder counts. He has not entered pleas to any of the charges. Federal immigration officials say Martinez-Guzman entered the U.S. illegally but they haven't disclosed when or where. The case has drawn the attention of President Donald Trump, who tweeted shortly after the arrest of Martinez-Guzman that the killings showed the need for his proposed U.S.-Mexico border wall. Wilber Martinez-Guzman is escorted into Carson City Justice Court on Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, before his preliminary hearing was postponed on multiple counts stemming from his alleged murder of four people in northern Nevada last month. The 20-year-old Salvadoran immigrant waived his right to speedy proceedings in Carson City on burglary charges related to items stolen from some of the victims. Prosecutors say he's expected to be extradited to Reno next week to face four murder counts first. (AP Photo/Scott Sonner) Martinez-Guzman told investigators that he stole jewelry, a .22-caliber revolver and other property from a Reno couple less than two weeks before prosecutors say he fatally shot them with the gun on Jan. 16 at their home. Those victims, 81-year-old Gerald David and 80-year-old Sharon David, employed Martinez-Guzman as a landscaper last summer, investigators say. He is also charged in the killing of two other women a week earlier at their homes 45 miles (72 kilometers) away in rural Gardnerville. Martinez-Guzman was arrested Jan. 19 and jailed on $500,000 bail in Carson City. Carson City District Attorney Jason Woodbury said the agreement to prosecute the murder charges first was "unusual but not unprecedented." "Generally, the jurisdiction that catches a defendant proceeds with its prosecution first," Woodbury said. But "when we have a way to make the process a little easier on people victimized by a crime, and when those people tell us they want the murder case to go first, we absolutely listen and do our best to honor those wishes," he said. Prosecutors say Martinez-Guzman acknowledged killing the Davids and that his DNA was found on the revolver also used to kill Connie Koontz and Sophia Renken. Trump invited the Davids' daughter, Debra Bissel, granddaughter and great granddaughter to attend his State of the Union address as his guest, and introduced them during the speech in the U.S. House chambers. "Just three weeks ago Debra's parents Gerald and Sharon were burglarized and shot to death in their Reno, Nevada, home by an illegal alien," Trump said. "No one should ever have to suffer the horrible heartache they have had to endure." Carson City Deputy District Attorney Melanie Brantingham talks to reporters Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, outside Carson City Justice Court in Carson City, Neb., after a brief court appearance by a 20-year-old Salvadoran accused of murdering four people. Wilber Martinez-Guzman agreed to postpone his preliminary hearing on related burglary charges in Carson City and be extradited to Reno to face four murder counts in Washoe County first. (AP Photo/Scott Sonner) Wilber Martinez-Guzman, right, stands with his public defender and interpreter in Carson City Justice Court, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Carson CIty, Nev., before his preliminary hearing was postponed on multiple counts stemming from his alleged murder of four people in northern Nevada last month. Martinez-Guzman agreed to postpone his preliminary hearing on related burglary charges in Carson City and be extradited to Reno to face four murder counts in Washoe County first. (AP Photo/Scott Sonner) Washoe County District Attorney Chris Hicks, right, answers a reporter's question during a news conference in Reno, Nevada on Monday, Jan. 28, 2019, about murder charges filed against Wilber Martinez-Guzman in the killings of four people in northern Nevada earlier this month as Douglas County District Attorney Mark Jackson looks on. (AP Photo/Scott Sonner) Washoe County District Attorney Chris Hicks, right, answers a reporter's question during a news conference in Reno, Nevada on Monday, Jan. 28, 2019, about murder charges filed against Wilber Martinez-Guzman in the killings of four people in northern Nevada earlier this month as Douglas County Sheriff Dan Coverley, left, and Douglas County District Attorney Mark Jackson, center, look on. (AP Photo/Scott Sonner) FILE - In this Jan. 24, 2019 file photo, Wilber Ernesto Martinez-Guzman, 19, of El Salvador, is escorted into the courtroom for his initial appearance in Carson City Justice Court in Carson City, Nev. Prosecutors say Martinez-Guzman, a Salvadoran immigrant accused of being in the U.S. illegally, has been charged with murder in shooting deaths of four people in their homes in Nevada. District attorneys from two counties announced the charges against Martinez-Guzman on Monday, Jan. 28. (AP Photo/Scott Sonner, File) Chief Justice John Roberts broke with the Supreme Court's other conservative justices and his own voting record on abortion to block a Louisiana law requiring abortion providers to have admitting privileges at a nearby hospital. Roberts didn't explain his decision late Thursday to join the court's four liberal justices. But it was the clearest sign yet of the role Roberts intends to play as he guides a more conservative court with two new members appointed by President Donald Trump. Since the retirement of Justice Anthony Kennedy last summer, Roberts has become the court's new swing vote. He is, by most measures, a very conservative justice, but he seems determined to keep the court from moving too far right too fast and being perceived as just another forum for partisan politics in Washington. "People need to know that we're not doing politics. They need to know that we're doing something different, that we're applying the law," Roberts said during an appearance this week at Tennessee's Belmont University. Roberts' vote in the Louisiana case was the fourth time in recent weeks that he has held the decisive vote on 5-4 outcomes that otherwise split the court's conservative and liberal justices. In late December, Roberts joined the liberals to keep Trump's new asylum policy from taking effect. It would have prevented immigrants from making asylum claims if they didn't enter the United States at a border crossing. Then, in January, Roberts voted with the conservatives to allow restrictions on military service by transgender individuals to be put in place. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts answers questions during an appearance at Belmont University Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey) On Thursday, a half hour before the court acted on the Louisiana law, Roberts voted with the conservatives to deny a Muslim death row inmate's plea to have his imam with him for his execution in Alabama. The federal appeals court in Atlanta had ordered the execution halted, but the Supreme Court lifted the hold and allowed it to proceed. The final vote was the order to keep Louisiana's admitting privileges law on hold while the court decides whether to add the case to its calendar for the term that begins in October. Louisiana's law is strikingly similar to a Texas measure the justices struck down in 2016. A district court judge had struck down the Louisiana law because he found it would have resulted in the closure of at least one, and perhaps two, of the state's three abortion clinics, and left the state with no more than two doctors who could meet the law's requirements. But the federal appeals court in New Orleans upheld the law, concluding it was not certain that any clinic would have to close. So much of what the court has done in recent weeks has been through emergency appeals, cases that call for temporary, yet often revealing, votes. Unlike in cases that are argued and decided, the votes come with little explanation. When there is an opinion, it usually is a dissent. Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote the only dissent in the Louisiana case, arguing that the court should have allowed the law to take effect because it is not clear that doctors would have been unable to obtain hospital privileges during a 45-day transition period. After the ruling, some Democrats seized on Kavanaugh's vote as proof that he was not following through on his assurances at his confirmation hearing to respect past Supreme Court decisions on abortion. But in his dissent he said otherwise. Kavanaugh acknowledged that the court's decision in the Texas case is the guiding precedent and seemed to suggest he might be willing to vote the other way if it turned out that hospitals were unwilling to afford the doctors admitting privileges. The Louisiana clinics had argued that they would have been forced to stop performing abortions immediately and that clinics, once closed, are difficult to reopen. Kavanaugh and Justice Neil Gorsuch, Trump's two high-court appointees, are among six Trump-nominated judges who voted to let the law take effect, a sign that the president is carrying through on a campaign pledge to put abortion-rights opponents on the bench. The other four judges are members of the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which had refused to put the law on hold. The execution aside, the recent votes are not likely to be the court's last word on asylum, military service by transgender people or the abortion clinic legislation. A decision on whether the high court will take on the abortion clinic legislation could come this spring. If it does, as seems likely, a ruling on the constitutionality of the Louisiana law would likely come next year. There's no guarantee that Roberts will be with his liberal colleagues then. In 2007, Roberts voted to uphold a federal ban on an abortion method its opponents call partial-birth abortion. Three years ago, Roberts was in dissent when the court struck down a Texas law that is strikingly similar to the blocked Louisiana measure. Justices often feel bound by a prior decision of the court, even one they disagree with, at least until the court formally takes on a case to consider overruling the earlier decision. If he ends up voting to invalidate the Louisiana law, Roberts wouldn't be the first chief justice to put institutional concerns above his own views. Chief Justice William Rehnquist had been a fierce critic of the Supreme Court decision that requires police officers to advise arrestees of their Miranda rights to remain silent and have a lawyer represent them. Yet, in 2000, he was the author of a 7-2 decision that reaffirmed the Miranda case. There are few high-profile cases on the court's docket this year, seemingly by design, after Kavanaugh's tumultuous confirmation hearings. In March, the justices will consider whether to impose limits on drawing electoral districts for partisan political gain. They also could hear arguments this spring on another controversial Trump administration initiative, to add a question on citizenship to the 2020 census. Already on the calendar for next term is the court's first examination of gun rights in nine years. That decision, as well as the Louisiana case, could come in the spring of 2020, fodder for a presidential campaign in which the court could play an outsized role. ___ Associated Press writer Jessica Gresko contributed to this report. NEW YORK (AP) - The National Enquirer's alleged attempt to blackmail Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos with intimate photos could get the tabloid's parent company and top editors in deep legal trouble and reopen them to prosecution for paying hush money to a Playboy model who claimed she had an affair with Donald Trump. Federal prosecutors are looking at whether the Enquirer's feud with Bezos violated a cooperation and non-prosecution agreement that recently spared the gossip sheet from charges in the hush-money case, two people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press on Friday. The clash between the world's richest man and America's most aggressive supermarket tabloid spilled into public view late Thursday when Bezos accused it of threatening to print photos of him and the woman with whom he was having an extramarital affair. He said the Enquirer made two demands: Stop investigating how the publication recently obtained private messages that Bezos and his girlfriend had exchanged. And publicly declare that the Enquirer's coverage of Bezos was not politically motivated. Enquirer owner American Media Inc. said Friday that its board of directors ordered a prompt and thorough investigation and will take "whatever appropriate action is necessary." Earlier in the day, the company said it "acted lawfully" while reporting the story and engaged in "good-faith negotiations" with Bezos. In recent months, the Trump-friendly tabloid acknowledged secretly assisting Trump's White House campaign by paying $150,000 to Playboy centerfold Karen McDougal for the rights to her story about an alleged affair with Trump. The company then buried the story until after the 2016 election. FILE- In this Sept. 13, 2018, file photo Jeff Bezos, Amazon founder and CEO, speaks at The Economic Club of Washington's Milestone Celebration in Washington. Bezos says the National Enquirer is threatening to publish nude photographs of him unless his private investigators back off the tabloid that detailed the billionaire's extramarital affair (AP Photo/Cliff Owen, File) Trump's longtime personal attorney and fixer Michael Cohen pleaded guilty last year to charges that included helping to broker that transaction. Federal prosecutors considered the payment an illegal corporate contribution to Trump's campaign. In September, though, AMI reached an agreement with federal authorities that spared it from prosecution. It promised in the agreement not to break any laws. The deal also required the continuing cooperation of top AMI executives, including CEO David Pecker and Enquirer editor Dylan Howard. Now, federal prosecutors in New York are looking at whether AMI violated those terms, the people familiar with the matter said. They were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke to AP on condition of anonymity. A violation of the agreement could lead to criminal charges over the McDougal payments. And the resulting court proceedings could lay bare details of the gossip sheet's cozy relationship with the president. The Enquirer and top executives could also be subject to state and federal extortion and coercion charges and prosecution under New York City's revenge porn law, passed last year, which bans even the threat of sharing intimate photographs, legal experts said. The U.S. attorney's office in Manhattan declined to comment. Carrie Goldberg, a Brooklyn lawyer representing revenge-porn and sex-crime victims, said Bezos' account laid out a clear case of criminal coercion. The Enquirer has "weaponized journalism and made it into this bartering, brokering thing where it's like, 'If I can blackmail you with the threat - I'll expose this unless you've got something better,'" Goldberg said. It is a federal crime to threaten to injure someone's reputation in exchange for money or a "thing of value," though federal courts haven't made it clear whether a public statement, like the one demanded by AMI, could be considered something of value. Bezos said the Enquirer did not demand money. Former New York federal prosecutor Jennifer Rodgers said prosecutors are probably weighing the pros and cons of keeping the cooperation agreement in place. The agreement secures Pecker's testimony in any future cases stemming from the hush-money payments, while winning a criminal case over the Bezos matter would be far from clear-cut, Rodgers said. The company could say it was relying on the advice of its counsel or even cite First Amendment protections, she said. The Bezos camp has suggested the Enquirer's coverage of his affair was driven by dirty politics. Trump himself has criticized Bezos on Twitter over his ownership of The Washington Post and Amazon. Bezos' extramarital affair became public when the Enquirer ran a Jan. 9 story about him and Lauren Sanchez, a former TV anchor who is also married. Bezos then hired private investigators to find out how the tabloid got texts and photos the two exchanged. Bezos' personal investigators, led by his security consultant Gavin de Becker, have been focusing on Sanchez's brother, according to a person familiar with the matter. The person wasn't authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity. Michael Sanchez is his sister's manager, a Trump supporter and an acquaintance of Trump allies Roger Stone and Carter Page. Sanchez did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment. In a tweet, he said de Becker "spreads fake, unhinged conservative conspiracy theories." Bezos detailed his blackmail allegations in an extraordinary blog post. The intimate photos at issue include a "below the belt selfie" of Bezos and several revealing photos of Sanchez, according to emails Bezos released of his exchanges with AMI. "Of course I don't want personal photos published, but I also won't participate in their well-known practice of blackmail, political favors, political attacks, and corruption," Bezos said in explaining his decision to go public. "I prefer to stand up, roll this log over, and see what crawls out." ___ Balsamo reported from Washington. Associated Press writers, Brian Melley in Los Angeles, Rachel Lerman in San Francisco and Zeke Miller in Washington contributed to this report. ___ Follow Sisak at twitter.com/mikesisak, Mustian at twitter.com/JimMustian and Balsamo at twitter.com/MikeBalsamo1 WASHINGTON (AP) - President Donald Trump has long railed against immigration as a scourge on the economy and national security. He's committed his administration to starting construction on a wall along the Mexican border to stop illegal immigration and asylum seekers, yet he reversed his past policy efforts on restricting legal immigration in this year's State of the Union address. Trump managed to accuse immigrants in the country illegally of stealing jobs from American workers, while declaring that the country needs more immigrants because of its economic boom. This argument rested on a series of false stereotypes. "I want people to come into our country in the largest numbers ever, but they have to come in legally," he declared, only to say later, "Working-class Americans are left to pay the price for mass illegal immigration: reduced jobs, lower wages, overburdened schools, hospitals that are so crowded you can't get in, increased crime, and a depleted social safety net." That's a slight variation on his drumbeat going back to 2015, when he declared: "They're taking our jobs, they're taking our manufacturing jobs, they're taking our money, they're killing us." The fact is that 75 percent of immigrants arrived legally, according to the Pew Research Center. In general, the entire immigrant population is increasingly better educated than native-born Americans. They're more likely to have jobs. They're less likely to commit violent crimes. They help fuel economic growth. And as a group over time, they're no more a drain on taxpayers than native-born citizens. President Donald Trump walks to board Marine One for a trip to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center to attend his annual physical, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Washington. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci) Moreover, for all the attention to the southern border, in recent years immigrants to the U.S. have been more likely to come from Asia than from Mexico. Three Harvard University economists released a paper in June that looked at immigration in multiple countries and concluded that native-born Americans as a whole wildly overestimate the prevalence of immigrants. These Americans estimated, on average, that legal immigrants made up 36 percent of the U.S. population, more than triple their actual share. They thought that immigrants were less likely to work and more dependent on government aid than immigrants actually are - and these stereotypes made them less supportive of social programs that might aid immigrants. "We were surprised by how much of a misperception there was about the level of education, income and contribution to society that immigrants give," said Alberto Alesini, a Harvard economist who co-wrote the paper. Here are some fundamental myths about U.S. immigration and the economy: ___ MYTH: VAST NUMBERS OF IMMIGRANTS ARE POURING ACROSS U.S. BORDERS REALITY: Not really. The net flow of all migration into the United States in recent years - around 0.3 percent of the total population - is roughly at a long-standing historical average, according to an analysis of government data by Lyman Stone, an economist who studies demographic issues. "It isn't rock-bottom, but it isn't that high either," Stone said. Economists say that restricting immigration would probably weaken economic growth. Given today's lower birth rates in the United States, immigrants are increasingly needed to sustain a level of population growth for the U.S. economy to keep expanding. Immigrants as a whole do make up a greater percentage of the total U.S. population than they did back in 1970, having grown from less than 5 percent of the population to more than 13 percent now. But there's a largely overlooked reason for that: Native-born Americans are having fewer children. The falling birth rate means that immigrants now make up a greater share of the population. In 2030, it's projected that immigrants will become the primary driver for U.S. population growth, overtaking U.S. births. ___ MYTH: IMMIGRANTS ARE TAKING AWAY JOBS REALITY: Many people have firsthand stories of losing a construction bid or an office job to a foreign worker. This happens in an economy as large and diverse as the United States', where numerous people also lose jobs to native-born Americans. But employment data suggest that the influx of immigrants helps increase overall hiring for the U.S. economy rather than erode job growth. The trend is clear in the government's monthly jobs report. The data doesn't distinguish between immigrants who are in the U.S. legally and illegally. Nearly 64 percent of immigrants hold jobs, compared with roughly 60 percent of workers born in the United States, according to the Labor Department. Last year, immigrants accounted for roughly 40 percent of the 2.4 million jobs added. Because a steady growth in the workforce helps the economy expand, economists say fewer immigrants would equal slower growth and fewer jobs. Falling birth rates and the retirement of the vast generation of baby boomers mean fewer people will flow into the workforce in the coming years - a drag on economic growth, which will, in turn, probably limit hiring. Many economists have noted that adding immigrants would help maintain the flow of workers into the economy and support growth. ___ MYTH: IMMIGRANTS ARE UNEDUCATED REALITY: The president has pledged to create an immigration system based on "merit," thereby implying that the United States is a destination mainly of unskilled and uneducated workers. "When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending their best," Trump said at his 2015 campaign kickoff. But today's immigrants are more likely to be better educated than Americans. And the country has increasingly become a magnet for foreigners with doctorates and master's degrees. Sixteen percent of all immigrants who arrived since 2000 hold an advanced degree, compared with 13 percent of the native-born population, according to the Census Bureau. As of 2017, immigrants who have become citizens are almost twice as likely to hold a doctorate than are native-born U.S. citizens. Foreign-born citizens were more likely to have a doctorate at least as far back as 2000. And Census records also show that the children of immigrants are more likely to graduate from college than are those of native-born parentage. This doesn't mean, of course, that all immigrants are better educated. Such are the disparities within the immigrant population that immigrants as a whole are less likely than native-born Americans to have completed high school. But the trend shows that the United States is increasingly a home for foreigners with graduate degrees and higher earnings. ___ MYTH: IMMIGRANTS ARE TO BLAME FOR TODAY'S SLUGGISH WAGE GROWTH REALITY: The weight of the research suggests that immigrants have not suppressed wages. David Card, an economist at the University of California at Berkeley, first studied the issue in 1990 by reviewing the arrival of Cuban migrants in Miami during the 1980 "Mariel boat lift." This historical rush of immigrants created a natural experiment to measure what then happened to incomes in the local area. He concluded: "The influx appears to have had virtually no effect on the wages or unemployment rates of less-skilled workers." Giovanni Peri, an economist at the University of California at Davis, studied immigration into California between 1960 and 2005. He wrote in a 2010 paper that it had "essentially" no effect on wages or employment of native-born workers. But many people seeking to reduce immigration rely on research from George Borjas, a Harvard economist. His research found that the arrival of Cubans in the Mariel boat lift caused wages to fall for native-born high school dropouts in Miami. Other economists have questioned his methodology. In addition, Borjas' findings would apply to a small fraction of U.S. jobholders today, only about 6.2 percent of whom lack a high school degree. Other explanations for sluggish wage growth go beyond immigration. They include the decline in unionization, an intensified push to maximize corporate profits, growing health insurance costs that supplant wages and the rise of a lower-wage global labor force that in an intertwined worldwide economy can hinder pay growth for Americans. ___ MYTH: IMMIGRANTS ARE A DRAIN ON TAXPAYERS REALITY: The National Academy of Sciences explored the costs to taxpayers in 2016. It's a tricky issue. The federal government runs a budget deficit, which means it spends more than it collects in taxes. This means that, on average, most Americans are a net drain on taxpayers. All told, the costs imposed by immigrants are about the same as they are for native-born citizens. "An immigrant and a native-born person with similar characteristics will likely have the same fiscal impact," the report said. But the report also examined spending by states and localities, which generally must maintain balanced budgets. Because state and local governments supply most of the money for public schools, immigrants often receive more in benefits than they pay in taxes. That said, there are longer-term benefits from educating children, who grow into adults who get jobs, buy cars, buy houses and pay taxes and thereby contribute to economic growth. The National Academy found that the net cost from 2011 to 2013 for state and local budgets combined averaged $1,600 a year for a first-generation immigrant. But that figure became a net positive of $1,700 for the second generation and $1,300 for the third. Immigrant households with children are generally more likely to use welfare programs like food assistance and Medicaid than native-born households, largely because the immigrant families have lower average incomes and larger families, according to the National Academy report. ___ MYTH: ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION LEADS TO VIOLENT CRIME REALITY: Trump frequently highlights violence by the "savage" MS-13 gang, saying in his speech Tuesday that it operates in at least 20 states and "they almost all come through our southern border." He invokes that gang, whose members come predominantly from El Salvador or are U.S. citizens descended from there, to portray immigrants as criminals. Widespread crime makes it harder, of course, to run a business, spend money and engage in the daily transactions that keep an economy humming. But there is scant evidence that immigrants are perpetuating a crime wave. In a paper published last year, sociologists Michael Light and Ty Miller reviewed crime in every state and the District of Columbia from 1990 to 2014. They found that a rising number of immigrants in the country illegally corresponded with a drop, not a rise, in reported crime. The authors acknowledged that it's possible that people who came illegally are less likely to report a crime. But the authors also note that such immigrants overwhelmingly arrived to work, a trend that helps to reduce crime levels. Past research cited in their paper found that 93 percent of the men in the country illegally either have a job or are looking for one. "At a minimum, the results of our study call into question claims that undocumented immigration increases violent crime," their paper concluded. "If anything, the data suggest the opposite." ___ Find AP Fact Checks at http://apne.ws/2kbx8bd Follow @APFactCheck on Twitter: https://twitter.com/APFactCheck SYDNEY (AP) - Australia's leading cybersecurity agency is investigating a breach of the country's federal parliamentary computing network amid speculation of hacking by a foreign nation. Lawmakers and staff in the capital, Canberra, were made to change their passwords on the system after the overnight breach. A joint statement from House of Representatives Speaker Tony Smith and Senate President Scott Ryan says there's no evidence that data had been accessed in the breach, but investigations are continuing. "We have no evidence that this is an attempt to influence the outcome of parliamentary processes or to disrupt or influence electoral or political processes," the statement said. Though Australian officials have not blamed any country, in 2011 it was reported China was suspected of accessing the email system used by lawmakers and parliamentary staff. Cybersecurity expert Fergus Hanson, from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, said it's likely a "nation-state" was behind the incident. "There would be lots of juicy correspondence between staffers about who is doing what and dirt files on different politicians," Hanson said. "There might be interesting information about parliamentary perks that are given to politicians that the public may not like. There may be whole email stashes that could damage one party or another party." Prime Minister Scott Morrison said he had been briefed on the matter but could not comment on the source of the attack. "I should stress that there is no suggestion that government departments or agencies have been the target of any such incursion," Morrison told reporters. The cyberbreach follows revelations that parliamentarians in Britain were targeted by an attempt to hack into their email and phone contact lists earlier this week. PUNTO FIJO, Venezuela (AP) - Nieves Ribullen, a Venezuelan oil worker sick of struggling to get by as his country falls apart, is betting it all on Iraq's far-away Kurdish region to give his family a better life. Over the years he's watched dozens of co-workers abandon poverty wages and dangerous working conditions at the rundown complex of refineries in Punto Fijo on Venezuela's Caribbean coast for jobs in far-flung places like Kuwait, Angola and Chile. Now it's his turn. Leaving his wife and three children behind, he'll soon ship out to Iraq's semi-autonomous northern Kurdish region, where he expects to earn more than $3,500 a month - a fortune compared to the less than $20 he brings home monthly in increasingly unstable Venezuela. "I only earn enough to buy a kilo (2 pounds) of meat and one chicken each month," Ribullen said. "We're in chaos." Opposition leader Juan Guaido has rallied support from distraught Venezuelans and roughly 40 countries that now recognize him as Venezuela's rightful president. But the accelerating exodus of oil workers means that Venezuela's crude production - already at a seven-decade low - is unlikely to rebound anytime soon, even if recently-imposed U.S. sanctions are lifted and a business-friendly government replaces the increasingly wobbly President Nicolas Maduro. CORRECTS TO IRAQ'S KURDISH REGION INSTEAD OF KURDISTAN In this Dec. 10, 2018 photo, Nieves Ribullen speaks during a interview at his home in Punto Fijo, Venezuela. Ribullen, a Venezuelan oil worker sick of struggling to get by as his country falls apart, is betting it all on far-away job in Iraq's Kurdish region to give his family a better life.(AP Photo/Fernando Llano) Venezuela was once one of the world's top five oil exporters, pumping 3.5 million barrels a day in 1998 when President Hugo Chavez was elected and launched Venezuela's Bolivarian revolution. Today, the state-run oil company PDVSA produces less than a third of that. Critics blame corruption and years of mismanagement by the socialist government. Even worse, production is about to sink even further due to fresh sanctions by the Trump administration targeting PDVSA that have essentially cut off Venezuela from its Houston-based cash-cow, Citgo, with the aim of depriving Maduro of more than $11 billion in exports this year. Despite the short-term pain they will bring Venezuela, Guaido said the sanctions are a critical part of stopping Maduro from consolidating power in what he calls a "dictatorship." Venezuela's oil workers began flooding out in 2003, shortly after Chavez fired thousands of them - many by name on national television - for launching a strike that paralyzed output. The oil workers accused Chavez of riding roughshod over the nation's democratic institutions, while Chavez said the picketers were plotting a coup. Tomas Paez, a professor at Central University of Venezuela who studies the Venezuelan exile community, estimates that 30,000 oil workers fled in the initial wave, many banned from working in the country's oil industry. He said it's difficult to gauge how many more have left as Venezuela's economic problems have worsened under Maduro, but from the tar sands of northern Canada to the deserts of Kuwait, Venezuelan roughnecks now live in more than 90 oil-producing countries. "Let's say, where there is oil, there is a Venezuelan," Paez said. Many have made new lives in their adopted countries with no plans to return to a gutted Venezuela. And with each new departure, fewer remain behind with the know-how to pump the world's most abundant oil reserves, once the economic backbone of a thriving country. "We are losing man hours, hours of training, millions and millions of hours that we can't calculate," said union leader Ivan Freites, secretary of the Federation of Professionals and Technicians of Oil Workers of Venezuela. "It's impossible to recover our trained personnel working abroad." In a recent speech laying out the economic plan for his second six-year term, Maduro vowed to catapult Venezuela's production to 5 million barrels a day. But he provided few details other than promising to take charge personally and root out corruption. The embattled president retains support from powerful allies, including Russia and China, which are both heavily invested in Venezuela's oilfields. Maduro's hand-picked head of the PDVSA, Maj. Gen. Manuel Quevedo, did not respond to requests for comment by The Associated Press. While the most-talented engineers left long ago - many contributing to a production boom in neighboring Colombia - there's still demand for labor throughout the industry. "We're still in a talent-short market, especially with people willing to go into hardship locations - like Kurdistan," said Dane Groeneveld, CEO at California-based PTS Advance, an oil industry recruiter, referring to Iraq's Kurdish region. "It's those people who are now getting picked up by national oil companies around the world," Groeneveld added. The 43-year-old Ribullen said he was thinking of his family when he made the decision to go to Iraq's oil-rich Kurdish region - which is semi-autonomous from the central government in Baghdad - and leave his wife and children behind until he's saved enough to send them to Chile or the United States. As he spoke, his youngest, 9-year-old Isaak, cuddled up next to him on the couch of their living room. "He doesn't want me to go," Ribullen said. "It's difficult for us." He recalled starting work at PDVSA 16 years ago, when he made enough money to buy a Toyota and take his family to the Caribbean island of Aruba on vacation every year. Now, the car is long gone and it's been seven years since the last family vacation. Sometimes after his night shift he's forced to stand in line for hours at the market to buy food for his family. He blames Chavez and Maduro for destroying his country. Conditions are dangerous at the refinery, where Ribullen says workers clock in every day with memories of a massive explosion that killed dozens of workers in 2012. Workers don't have company-issued hardhats, boots or gloves. Once in Iraq's Kurdish region, he'll join dozens of other Venezuelan roughnecks who live and work on a remote compound. "The situation forces me to look for opportunities somewhere else," he said. "We're leaving this in God's hands, asking that he'll protect us." ___ Follow Scott Smith on Twitter at https://twitter.com/ScottSmithAP . FILE - In this Dec. 9, 2002 file photo, a striking oil worker holds a Venezuelan flag as he protests with other strikers outside administrative offices of Petroleos de Venezuela, SA, or PDVSA, in Maracaibo in western Venezuela, on the eighth day of a nationwide general strike called by the opposition. Venezuela's oil workers began leaving in 2003, shortly after then President Hugo Chavez fired thousands of them for launching a strike that paralyzed output. The oil workers accused Chavez of riding roughshod over the nation's democratic institutions, while Chavez said the picketers were plotting a coup. (AP Photo/Ana Maria Otero, File) FILE - In this Aug. 10, 2006 file photo, Venezuela's late President Hugo Chavez visits oil workers on the platform of an oil drill at Carabobo block one in the Orinoco oil belt in Venezuela's Anzoategui state. Venezuela was once one of the world's top five oil exporters, pumping 3.5 million barrels a day in 1998 when President Hugo Chavez was elected and launched Venezuela's Bolivarian revolution. Today in 2019, the state-run oil company PDVSA produces less than a third of that. (AP Photo, File) FILE - In this Aug. 27, 2012 file photo, workers of the state oil company, PDVSA, watch a fire that rises over the Amuay refinery near Punto Fijo, Venezuela. Now in Feb. 2019, conditions are so dangerous at the refinery, that oil worker Nieves Ribullen says workers clock in every day with memories of a massive explosion that killed dozens of workers in 2012. Workers don't have company-issued hardhats, boots or gloves. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos, File) NOGALES, Ariz. (AP) - A U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer shot and wounded a driver who was trying to enter Mexico at a crossing in Arizona, the agency said Friday. The mayor of Nogales, Arizona, told a newspaper Thursday night that the man was killed, but CBP spokeswoman Teresa Small told The Associated Press Friday the man had not died. A CBP statement said he was wounded and taken to a hospital in Mexico. His condition and further details on the incident were not provided. CBP said it would release more information later Friday, but additional details had not been released by mid-afternoon. Nogales Mayor Arturo Garino told the Arizona Daily Star that the shooting occurred after the driver refused to stop and tried to run over the CBP officer. The CBP statement said the vehicle stopped just a few yards into Mexico. Officials stand at the scene late Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019 at the Port of Entry in Nogales, Ariz. A Customs and Border Protection officer shot and wounded a driver who was trying to enter Mexico at a crossing in Arizona, the agency said Friday. (Genesis Lara/Nogales International via AP) A woman who answered the phone at Garino's office said the mayor was unavailable, and there was no more information about the shooting. The shooting occurred in the border city where U.S. troops recently installed razor wire along portions of an 18-foot border wall, in some spots reaching nearly ground level. The Nogales City Council condemned the wire and demanded that it be removed over safety concerns for children and pets. Residents and shopkeepers complain that it makes the community look like a war zone. FILE - This June 1, 2009 file photo shows vehicles waiting to enter the U.S. through The Dennis DeConcini Port of Entry in downtown Nogales, Ariz. The mayor of Nogales says a port of entry on the U.S.-Mexico border is temporarily closed after a customs officer shot and killed a southbound driver who refused to stop Thursday night, Feb. 7, 2019. (Mark Henle/The Arizona Republic via AP, File) The additional concertina wire can be seen on the border fence in Nogales, Ariz, on Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2019. U.S. The city council in Nogales, which sits on the border with Nogales, Mexico, is set to consider a proclamation Wednesday night condemning the use of concertina wire. It follows reports that U.S. military troops installed more horizontal layers of the wire along the downtown border fence over the weekend. (Tim Steller/Arizona Daily Star via AP) DETROIT (AP) - Dubbed "Big John" for his imposing 6-foot-3 frame and sometimes intimidating manner, former Rep. John Dingell bolstered that reputation with the head of a 500-pound wild boar that greeted visitors to his Washington office. The story behind it also helped: The Michigan Democrat is said to have felled the animal with a pistol as it charged him during a hunting trip in Soviet Georgia. Yet the congressman - whose nearly six decades in the U.S. House made him the longest serving member of Congress in American history - was hard to typecast. An avid sportsman and hunter, he loved classical music and ballet. His first date with his wife, Debbie, whom he affectionately introduced as "the lovely Deborah," was a performance of the American Ballet Theater. He also amassed more than 250,000 followers on Twitter, which became an outlet for the outspoken congressman's wry takes and quick wit. Dingell mastered legislative deal-making but was fiercely protective of the auto industry back home in Detroit, and he was a longtime supporter of universal health care. He also was a dogged pursuer of government waste and fraud, helping take down two top presidential aides while chairman of a powerful investigative panel. "He taught me how to shoot a rifle. I remember he said shooting a rifle is a lot like legislating," former Ohio Rep. Dennis Eckhart told The Associated Press in 2009. "You have to be very, very sure of your target, and then when you get your chance, don't miss." Dingell, who died Thursday at age 92, served in the House with every president from Dwight D. Eisenhower to Barack Obama. Elected in 1955, following the sudden death of his congressman father, he had a front-row seat for the passage of landmark legislation including Medicare, the Endangered Species Act and the Clean Water Act, all of which he supported, as well as the Clean Air Act, which he was accused of stalling to help auto interests. His hometown, the Detroit suburb of Dearborn, was home to a Ford Motor Co. factory that was once the largest in the world. FILE- In this Sept. 24, 2008 file photo, House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., right, accompanied by Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., meets with reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell.(AP Photo/Lauren Victoria Burke, File) Yet one of his proudest moments came in 2010, when he sat next to Obama as the historic $938 billion health care overhaul was signed into law. Taking up his father's cause, Dingell had introduced a universal health care coverage bill during each of his terms. "Presidents come and presidents go," former President Bill Clinton said in 2005, when Dingell celebrated 50 years in Congress. "John Dingell goes on forever." Dingell's wife, U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, said her husband died at their home in Dearborn, a Detroit suburb. "He was a lion of the United States Congress and a loving son, father, husband, grandfather and friend," her office said in a statement. "He will be remembered for his decades of public service to the people of Southeast Michigan, his razor sharp wit and a lifetime of dedication to improving the lives of all who walk this earth." The announcement was quickly followed by an outpouring of tributes. Former President George W. Bush said he spoke with Dingell on Thursday and "thanked him for his service to our country and for being an example to those who have followed him into the public arena. He was a fine gentleman who showed great respect for our country and her people." Clinton said Dingell's "respect for his constituents, his colleagues of both parties, and the institutions of Congress are a valuable reminder today of what a noble calling public service can be." Former President Barack Obama echoed the sentiments, adding: "John Dingell's life reminds us that change does not always come with a flash, but instead with steady, determined effort." For 14 years he chaired the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee, which oversees industries from banking and energy to health care and the environment. He also led its investigative arm, which produced several high-profile cases. His investigations led to the resignation of former Stanford University President Donald Kennedy after the California school misused hundreds of millions of dollars in federal research funds, and the criminal conviction of one of President Ronald Reagan's top advisers, Michael Deaver, for lying under oath. His investigations also led to the resignation of Reagan's first environmental protection chief and U.S. Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch's mother, Anne Gorsuch Burford. She stepped down after being cited for contempt of Congress for refusing to share subpoenaed documents with a House subcommittee investigating a Superfund toxic waste program. "I've gotten more death threats around here than I can remember," Dingell told the AP in a 1995 interview. "It used to bother my wife, but oversight was something we did uniquely well." His critics called him overpowering and intimidating, and his Washington office was decorated with big game trophies. And he often used his dry wit to amuse his friends and sting opponents. Even when hospitalized in 2003, following an operation to open a blocked artery, he maintained his humor. "I'm happy to inform the Republican leadership that I fully intend to be present to vote against their harmful and shameless tax giveaway package," he said from the hospital. Born in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on July 8, 1926, John David Dingell Jr. grew up in Michigan, where his father was elected to Congress as a "New Deal" Democrat in 1932. After a brief stint in the Army near the end of World War II, the younger Dingell earned his bachelor's and law degrees from Georgetown University. Following the sudden death of his father in September 1955, Dingell, then a 29-year-old attorney, won a special election to succeed him. But the newly elected politician was no stranger to the Capitol. Alongside his congressman father, Dingell was serving as a page on the House floor when President Franklin D. Roosevelt asked Congress to declare war on Japan on Dec. 8, 1941. He supervised elevator operators while in college, and when he became the longest-serving U.S. House member in history in 2009, he recalled entering the chamber for the first time - as a 6-year-old - and being in awe of the East door. "I had never been in a place like this. I was a working-class kid from a Polish neighborhood in Detroit, and this was quite an event for me," Dingell told Time magazine at the time. "I've only begun in later years to appreciate what it all meant. Dingell won more than two dozen elections during his career, at first representing a Detroit district but eventually shifting because of redistricting to various southeastern Michigan communities. He became the longest-serving member of Congress on June 7, 2013, when he surpassed the former record holder, the late West Virginia Sen. Robert Byrd. "The length of time is really quite unimportant," Dingell told the AP in an interview in 2009. "It's what I have done with that time." Dingell, at age 87, announced in early 2014 that he would not run for a 30th full term because he could not have lived up to his own standards. Continuing the family tradition, his wife, Debbie, successfully ran for her husband's seat in 2014. "I don't want people to be sorry for me. ... I don't want to be going out feet-first, and I don't want to do less than an adequate job," said Dingell, who by that time was using a cane or motorized cart to get around the Capitol. Obama awarded Dingell the Presidential Medal of Freedom later that year. Dingell suffered a heart attack four years later, in September 2018 at age 92. He was hospitalized but was soon "cracking jokes as usual," his wife said at the time. An autobiography, "The Dean: The Best Seat in the House," written with David Bender, was published in December. Forewords were written by former President George H.W. Bush, who had died only a few days before its publication, and former Vice President Joe Biden. Dingell, in his later years, used Twitter as an outlet for his quick wit. In January, he noted the negative 7-degree temperature in Hell, Michigan, and retweeted a tweet from the Detroit Free Press that said the "Detroit Lions are going to win the Super Bowl" now that Hell had frozen over. Along with his wife, Dingell is survived by two daughters, two sons, one of whom served 15 years in the Michigan Legislature, and several grandchildren. ___ See AP's complete coverage of John Dingell here: https://apnews.com/JohnDingell FILE- In a Feb. 4, 2009 file photo, Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich. poses for a photograph inside his office in House Rayburn Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File) FILE - In this July 29, 2015 file photo, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of Calif., standing with former Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., holds up the gavel Dingell used 50 years ago when Medicare legislation was passed during an event marking the 50th Anniversary of Medicare and Medicaid on Capitol Hill in Washington. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File) FILE - In this July 29, 2015 file photo, former Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., speaks at an event marking the 50th Anniversary of Medicare and Medicaid on Capitol Hill in Washington. Former Michigan Rep. John Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history, has died. He was 92. Congresswoman Debbie Dingell says her husband died at his Dearborn home on Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File) FILE - In this April 21, 2015 file photo, U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell pushes the wheelchair of her husband, retired Congressman John Dingell after the funeral of Detroit-area businessman and philanthropist A. Alfred Taubman at Congregation Shaarey Zedek in Southfield, Mich. Former U.S. Rep. John Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (Todd McInturf/Detroit News via AP, File) FILE- In this April 7, 1987 file photo, Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., left, and John Dingell, D-Mich. hold a news conference at Capitol Hill, in Washington, to release a report on Alzheimers disease. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Charles Tasnadi, File) FILE - In this June 2, 1977 file photo, President Jimmy Carter hosts a breakfast in the Family Dining Room of the White House in Washington for House Subcommittee members on Energy and Power. From left are Rep. John M. Murphy (D-N.Y.), Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.), President Carter, Rep. Harley Staggers (D-W Va.), Rep. Andrew Maguire (D-N.J.), and Rep. Timothy Wirth (D-Colo.). Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Charles Harrity, File) FILE - In a June 12, 1979 file photo, Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., comments on President Jimmy Carter during an interview in his Capitol Hill office in Washington. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/John Duricka, File) FILE - In this Oct. 5, 2013 file photo, House Democrats, including Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., center, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history, make their way to the office of House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi before a vote in Congress, at the Capitol in Washington. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. He was 92. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) FILE - In this Nov. 6, 2012 file photo, Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., addresses supporters during the Michigan Democratic election night party at the MGM Grand Detroit. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File) TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) - Pilots from Taiwan's China Airlines went on strike Friday in the middle of the Lunar New Year travel rush, forcing the cancellation of at least 18 flights over coming days and stranding thousands of passengers. Hundreds of the state-owned carrier's 1,300 pilots were believed to have joined the action over complaints of long work hours on long-haul routes and the refusal of management to make improvements in order to suppress costs. "We chose this date to strike because we are left with no other choices. Since we announced on February 1 that we will go on strike, we were expecting a positive response," union leader Chen Pei-pei told reporters. The union is calling for an additional backup pilot to be added to flights lasting 8 hours or more, a more transparent system of promotion, a year-end bonus and other concessions. The airline has said it is willing to continue negotiations but that the union's demands in talks are different from those it makes in public, according to Taiwan's official Central News Agency. The airline said on its website that 18 flights had been canceled, including those bound for Hong Kong, Bangkok, Los Angeles, Manila and Tokyo. Earlier reports said 26 flights were expected to be canceled and the number of cancellations is expected to rise if the strike drags on. FILE - In this Jan. 26, 2003, file photo, a China Airlines Boeing 747-400 sits on the tarmac at the Chiang Kai-shek International airport in Taoyuan, Taiwan. Pilots from Taiwan's China Airlines have gone on strike during the Lunar New Year travel rush Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Taiwan, forcing the cancellation of 18 flights over coming days. (AP Photo/Jerome Favre, File) "We deeply apologize to all the customers for any inconvenience about the pilots' strike," CAL said on its Facebook page. "Most colleagues in China Airlines still stay at their position and provide the best flight service." The strike led to chaotic scenes at Taiwan's three main airports as angry passengers demanded answers from airline staff. The Lunar New Year is Taiwan's busiest travel period, with thousands flying home to island or taking trips abroad. CNA said a one-day strike of the airline's flight attendants in 2016 forced 76 flights to be canceled. Founded in 1959, China Airlines is one of the island's two largest carriers with a fleet of 88 aircraft. Saudi Arabia's General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) has launched eight initiatives targeting various sectors in the field of civil aviation and logistical services. The initiatives are part of the National Industrial Development and Logistics Program, one of the Kingdoms Vision 2030 programs aimed at transforming the country into a leading industrial power and an international logistics platform, GACA said in a statement. The initiatives are as follows: Establishment and expansion of airports to meet the expectations of air traffic growth. Achieve the highest standards of aviation safety with full compliance with international safety standards. Increase the efficiency and capacity of air cargo services in the kingdom by developing freight cities in Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam. Improve ground handling services and apply best practices in regard to flights schedule, ticket prices and customer experience. Develop navigational systems and procedures to improve the efficiency of airspace use. Apply best practices for flight scheduling, domestic air ticket prices and for the supported air routes for the Public Service Obligation (PSO). Boost employment of locals in the aviation section Implement the best international technology and innovation to improve sector performance and customer experience. This initiative aims to establish a dedicated unit for managing innovation within GACA. Furthermore, develop technical and information systems and communication networks in the air transport sector. Improve overall customer experience at the Kingdoms airports. - TradeArabia News Service DETROIT (AP) - Reaction to the death of former U.S. Rep. John Dingell, the longest serving member of Congress in U.S. history, who died Thursday at age 92: "It is with a heavy heart that we announce the passing of John David Dingell, Jr., former Michigan Congressman and longest-serving member of the United States Congress. Congressman Dingell died peacefully today (Thursday) at his home in Dearborn, surrounded by his wife Deborah. He was a lion of the United States Congress and a loving son, father, husband, grandfather, and friend. He will be remembered for his decades of public service to the people of Southeast Michigan, his razor sharp wit, and a lifetime of dedication to improving the lives of all who walk this earth." - Office of U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, wife of John Dingell ___ "My heart is broken. My true love is gone. The tears are flowing pretty freely as I miss the man that made me whole. One can know it is coming, but nothing prepares you for the hole in your heart. He was my one and only true love. Know he loved every one of you, and was proud to call you friend." - U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, in a Facebook post Friday. ___ "For nearly 60 years, John represented the people of Michigan with honor, integrity, great good humor, and an unequaled ability to get good legislation passed. There are few major legislative triumphs since 1955 that John didn't have a key hand in passing. ... His respect for his constituents, his colleagues of both parties, and the institutions of Congress are a valuable reminder today of what a noble calling public service can be. Hillary and I are grateful to have had the chance to work with him, to celebrate his becoming the longest-serving member of Congress in history, and most of all, to call him our friend." - Former President Bill Clinton FILE - In this May 7, 2014 file photo, Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich. is seen on Capitol Hill in Washington. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Lauren Victoria Burke, File) ___ "I was fortunate to speak to John Dingell this afternoon. I thanked him for his service to our country and for being an example to those who have followed him into the public arena. He was a fine gentleman who showed great respect for our country and her people. He represented his district with decency and honor. And Laura and I join the people of Michigan in sending our sympathies to Congresswoman Debbie Dingell and their family." - Former President George W. Bush ___ "John Dingell - the Dean of the House and my dear friend - was not merely a witness to history. He was a maker of it. His original family name, translated into Polish, meant 'blacksmith.' Nothing could be more fitting for a man who hammered out our nation's laws, forging a stronger union that could weather the challenges of the future. John Dingell loved Michigan. He understood the connection our people have to manufacturing, to agriculture, and to the land and the Great Lakes that support our Michigan way of life." - U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Michigan ___ "John Dingell's life reminds us that change does not always come with a flash, but instead with steady, determined effort. Over the course of the longest congressional career in history, John led the charge on so much of the progress we take for granted today ... Michelle and I send our deepest sympathies to Debbie, the entire Dingell family, and all the Michiganders and Americans whose lives are better because of his lifetime of service." - Former President Barack Obama ___ "Today the great State of Michigan said farewell to one of our greatest leaders. John Dingell will forever be remembered as 'The Dean' of Congress not simply for the length of his service, but for his unparalleled record of legislative accomplishments. The Congressman's grit, humility and humor taught us all that we can disagree without being disagreeable, while still finding common ground and working together to get things done. The people of Michigan owe John Dingell ... We are a stronger, safer, healthier nation because of Congressman Dingell's 59 years of service, and his work will continue to improve the lives of Michiganders for generations to come." __ Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Michigan __ "Today, we have lost a beloved pillar of the Congress and one of the greatest legislators in American history. Every chapter of Chairman John Dingell's life has been lived in service to our country, from his time as a House Page, to his service in the Army during World War II, to his almost six decades serving the people of Michigan in the U.S. Congress. John Dingell leaves a towering legacy of unshakable strength, boundless energy and transformative leadership ... His memory will stand as an inspiration to all who worked with him or had the pleasure of knowing him. His leadership will endure in the lives of the millions of American families he touched." - House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif ___ "Chairman Dingell was a true statesman: he embodied the values, spirit and dedication that all public servants should aspire to have. He was a mentor to me and countless others who sought to give back to their communities. I will never forget his wise counsel as I learned my way around Congress. - U.S. Senator Gary Peters, D-Michigan ___ "Our nation mourns the passing of a legend. As the longest-serving congressman in U.S. history, John represented the people of Michigan with high honor, great humor, and a bigger heart ... History will always remember John for his commitment and service to Michigan and his love for Debbie." - Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel ___ "... John Dingell was a giant, not only in the length of time he spent representing the best interests of his constituents, but in his advocacy for policies that improved the quality of life for many Americans. From Medicare and social security, advancing the idea of universal healthcare, to environmental protections and standing up for our autoworkers - the Dean stood up for the protection of the well-being of Americans. So many people have John Dingell to thank for providing an excellent example of public service, and we will miss him deeply." - Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, D-Michigan ___ "John Dingell ... was and will remain the embodiment of what it means to be a Michigan Democrat: hard-working, selfless, and relentless in his pursuit to improve the lives of the everyday people who built our state and make it great ... His charm, wit, and devotion touched everyone who knew him, and his legacy will inspire millions more for generations to come. He will be incredibly missed, but John Dingell will never be forgotten." - Michigan Democratic Party, on behalf of MDP Chair Lavora Barnes ___ "I am deeply saddened at the death of John Dingell. He will be remembered as of the greatest legislators in American history who never forgot about the people he served and the city of Detroit ... While it's hard to imagine a world without John Dingell, his legacy of working to improve people's lives will last forever." - Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan ___ "I had the honor of serving alongside John Dingell in Congress and working with him from the Obama and Clinton White Houses. He never forgot where he came from, and always knew who he was there to speak for. John Dingell was the author of national health care, and through his tireless efforts he was able to see it become a reality. Our country owes him a deep debt of gratitude for a lifetime of selfless service." - Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel ___ "For my 20 years as Chairman of Ford Motor Company, I considered John Dingell a friend and advisor. John was a larger-than-life legend whose presence will be deeply missed at Ford. Even on the most divisive issues at the most difficult of times, he was unwavering in his efforts to find common ground. He constantly reminded us as a company and as an industry that we either work together or we fail separately ... His passing is a reminder that we need more leaders who are willing to find compromise and bring people together for the greater good." -Bill Ford, Executive Chairman of Ford Motor Co. ___ "The entire Levin family joins with the fullest sorrow in marking the passing of John Dingell ... He was a giant who deeply believed in public service and was rewarded with the public's immense respect and gratitude. He was tough because he cared so deeply. His contributions to working families' economic well being, health care and environmental protection over more than half a century were unparalleled." - Former Congressman Sandy Levin, former U.S. Senator Carl Levin and Congressman Andy Levin ___ "John Dingell's colleagues - and I was proud to be one of them - were always educated, inspired, and in fact awed by him. With John you always knew where you stood ... John was enormous in stature, integrity, and accomplishments. When he put his hand on your shoulder and spoke, you listened ... There is a reason why a Dingell has represented Southeast Michigan for some 86 years. Their constituents know they always put country over everything else. They have all been chiseled from the same block of gold." - Congressman Fred Upton, R-Michigan ___ See AP's complete coverage of John Dingell here: https://apnews.com/JohnDingell FILE - In this April 21, 2015 file photo, U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell pushes the wheelchair of her husband, retired Congressman John Dingell after the funeral of Detroit-area businessman and philanthropist A. Alfred Taubman at Congregation Shaarey Zedek in Southfield, Mich. Former U.S. Rep. John Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (Todd McInturf/Detroit News via AP, File) FILE - In this July 29, 2015 file photo, former Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., speaks at an event marking the 50th Anniversary of Medicare and Medicaid on Capitol Hill in Washington. Former Michigan Rep. John Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history, has died. He was 92. Congresswoman Debbie Dingell says her husband died at his Dearborn home on Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File) FILE - In this July 29, 2015 file photo, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of Calif., standing with former Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., holds up the gavel Dingell used 50 years ago when Medicare legislation was passed during an event marking the 50th Anniversary of Medicare and Medicaid on Capitol Hill in Washington. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File) FILE - In this Nov. 6, 2012 file photo, Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., addresses supporters during the Michigan Democratic election night party at the MGM Grand Detroit. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File) FILE - In this Oct. 5, 2013 file photo, House Democrats, including Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., center, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history, make their way to the office of House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi before a vote in Congress, at the Capitol in Washington. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. He was 92. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) FILE - In this June 2, 1977 file photo, President Jimmy Carter hosts a breakfast in the Family Dining Room of the White House in Washington for House Subcommittee members on Energy and Power. From left are Rep. John M. Murphy (D-N.Y.), Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.), President Carter, Rep. Harley Staggers (D-W Va.), Rep. Andrew Maguire (D-N.J.), and Rep. Timothy Wirth (D-Colo.). Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Charles Harrity, File) FILE- In a Feb. 4, 2009 file photo, Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich. poses for a photograph inside his office in House Rayburn Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File) FILE- In this April 7, 1987 file photo, Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., left, and John Dingell, D-Mich. hold a news conference at Capitol Hill, in Washington, to release a report on Alzheimers disease. Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress in American history who mastered legislative deal-making and was fiercely protective of Detroit's auto industry, has died at age 92. Dingell, who served in the U.S. House for 59 years before retiring in 2014, died Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, at his home in Dearborn, said his wife, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. (AP Photo/Charles Tasnadi, File) NEW YORK (AP) - Federal prosecutors have cast a wide net in their investigation of President Donald Trump's inaugural committee, subpoenaing a smorgasbord of documents, including any addressing whether foreign nationals helped fund the $107 million celebration thrown to celebrate the Republican's ascent to the White House. But in their records request Monday, federal prosecutors in New York also singled out a donor by name: Imaad Zuberi, a prolific political fundraiser with extensive ties to foreign officials and business associates. Zuberi is a Los Angeles venture capitalist who raised millions of dollars for Democrats but shifted allegiance to Trump immediately after the 2016 election and gave $900,000 to the inaugural. The subpoena sought information on the committee's interactions with Zuberi. Prosecutors haven't disclosed why they're interested in Zuberi, who gives his address in campaign donations as a small warehouse in South El Monte, California, yet has a corporate biography that says he's closed "$55 billion in transactions." Zuberi said he is bewildered as to why his name was in the subpoena. He declined to comment to The Associated Press when reached Thursday, but told The Washington Post and The New York Times earlier in the week that the money he gave to the inaugural committee was his own, and that he was not acting as a straw donor for foreign nationals, who are barred from giving to U.S. political campaigns. FILE - In this Jan. 20, 2017, file photo, President Donald Trump dances with first lady Melania Trump at The Salute To Our Armed Services Inaugural Ball. Federal prosecutors have cast a wide net in their investigation of President Donald Trump's inaugural committee, subpoenaing a smorgasbord of documents, including any addressing whether foreign nationals helped fund the $107 million celebration thrown to celebrate the Republican's ascent to the White House. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File) Zuberi's spokesman, Steve Rabinowitz, said he also wasn't trying to buy favors from the Trump administration. "He gets that he got involved at the presidential inaugural at a high level, but not nearly as high a level as so many others," Rabinowitz said. "He's not looking for anything from the U.S. government." Zuberi has a long history of rubbing elbows with - and opening his wallet for - elected officials in the U.S., focusing on presidential campaigns and members of Congress involved in foreign affairs. He made more than $583,000 in donations to the Hillary Victory Fund in 2015 and 2016 and contributed between $250,000 and $500,000 to the Clinton Foundation. He previously gave heavily to President Barack Obama's second inauguration committee, though much of that money was later refunded. Despite serving as a bundler for Obama and for Hillary Clinton, including stints on both of their campaign finance committees, he quickly became one of Trump's benefactors following his upset victory. After spending part of election night at Clinton's party in New York in 2016, he finished it across town at the hotel where Trump was celebrating, according to his social media posts. Days after the election he gave $33,400 to the National Republican Congressional Committee. By Dec. 7, his Facebook timeline showed him attending a $5,000-a-plate fundraising breakfast with Trump in Manhattan. On Dec. 12, he was recorded on video accompanying a group of Qatari dignitaries, including the country's foreign minister and the head of its sovereign wealth fund, as they were greeted in Trump Tower's lobby with Trump's then-lawyer, Michael Cohen. The group rode up in the elevators together. Zuberi posted photographs of himself on Facebook the same day posing with Michael Flynn, Trump's former national security adviser, and Energy Secretary Rick Perry. Two weeks later, Zuberi's company, Avenue Ventures, gave $900,000 to Trump's inaugural committee and $100,000 to help pay off costs from the 2016 Republican National Convention in Cleveland. Zuberi later posted a photo of an invitation he received to Trump's inauguration. "From our friend Michael Cohen," he wrote. Zuberi's spokesman, Rabinowitz, said there is nothing nefarious about the donations. "He's long been a guy who likes to go to these events, meet people at them, network at them and be seen at them," said Rabinowitz. "He talked to the inaugural committee about what it would take to play at that level, and that entitled him, during the inaugural festivities, to go to what for him were the fun parties and to meet the interesting people." As for the Trump Tower visit, Rabinowitz said Zuberi did not attend any meetings despite accompanying the Qatari delegation. He said Zuberi was cultivating a relationship with the Qataris because he hoped to work together on investments. Zuberi got some face time with Trump several months later, in October 2017, when he attended a roundtable meeting in South Carolina with the president and Gov. Henry McMaster. After the event, Zuberi, his wife and companies he controls gave McMaster's campaign $49,000. Zuberi, who emigrated as a boy from Pakistan and is an American citizen, acknowledged to the Times that he donates to get the ear of important lawmakers. "To open doors, I have to donate," he said. "It's just a fact of life." Since being thrust into the spotlight, Zuberi has deleted years of photographs and social media posts, which chronicled his travels - including trips to London and Oman and meetings at Turkey's presidential palace. On Facebook, he would record meetings and dinners with Middle Eastern military officials and Blackwater USA founder Erik Prince. His relationship with at least one foreign government has been called into question. Several years ago, Zuberi failed to disclose the extent of his ties to Sri Lanka's former regime, missing a deadline to register as a foreign lobbyist despite the country paying him millions of dollars for services that "included influencing the U.S. government," Foreign Policy magazine reported in 2015. Zuberi told the magazine at the time that he "registered not as a lobbyist but as a consultant because that was the extent of my involvement." ___ Suderman reported from Richmond, Virginia. In this Aug. 27, 2018, photo, Trump Tower, center, stands on New York's Fifth Avenue. Federal prosecutors have cast a wide net in their investigation of President Donald Trump's inaugural committee, subpoenaing a smorgasbord of documents, including any addressing whether foreign nationals helped fund the $107 million celebration thrown to celebrate the Republican's ascent to the White House. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan) SYDNEY (AP) - Australian police arrested six people after what authorities said Friday was the largest single seizure of methamphetamine in the United States and the biggest drug haul bound for Australia. U.S. Customs and Border Protection said 1,728 kilograms (3,800 pounds) of the drug were seized mid-January at the Los Angeles-Long Beach port complex along with smaller amounts of cocaine and heroin. The drugs were hidden in metal boxes labelled as loudspeakers. Australian authorities said it was also the largest haul of the drug intercepted while bound for Australia and would have provided around 17 million hits of the substance also known as ice. Australian authorities said that the operation with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Drug Enforcement Agency, Australian Federal Police and Victoria state police had stopped "a tsunami of ice" from reaching their shores. Police said that six people arrested in Australia on Thursday and Friday were tied to a U.S.-based syndicate under investigation over the drugs. Two of those arrested are Americans: a 52-year-old man and a 46-year-old woman. Police said the raid in the Melbourne suburb of Woodstock where they were arrested also found "hundreds of thousands of dollars of proceeds of crime." This photo provided by U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows an officer extracting methamphetamine from a loudspeaker on Jan. 11, 2019 at the Los Angeles-Long Beach seaport. Australian police arrested six people after what authorities said Friday, Feb. 8, 2019 was the largest single seizure of methamphetamine in the United States and the biggest drug haul bound for Australia. U.S. Customs and Border Protection said 1,728 kilograms (3,800 pounds) of the drug were seized mid-January at the Los Angeles-Long Beach port complex along with smaller amounts of cocaine and heroin. (U.S. Customs and Border Protection via AP) Police said that three of those arrested would appear in the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Friday, charged with attempting to import illegal drugs. Two other Australians face the same charge. Australian Federal Police Assistant Commissioner Bruce Hill told reporters in Melbourne that police now believe Mexican cartels are actively targeting Australia. "They have been sending smaller amounts over the years. This is now flagging intent Australia is now being targeted," he said. "The cartel is among one of the most powerful and violent drug trafficking syndicates in the world." None of the agencies involved has further identified the cartel. The operation also involved raids in British Columbia on Thursday by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, which resulted in the seizure of "a significant quantity" of suspected proceeds of crime, police said. Jason Halls, Victoria manager for the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission, said the drugs would have had an "immeasurable" impact on the Australian community. He said sewage drug monitoring data showed Victoria state - which has a population of 6.3 million - was estimated to consume just over 2 tons of ice each year. The previous record haul of methamphetamine seized in Australia was 1.3 tons in December 2017. ___ Associated Press writer Robert Jablon in Los Angeles contributed to this report. This photo provided by U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows an officer extracting methamphetamine from a loudspeaker on Jan. 11, 2019 at the Los Angeles-Long Beach seaport. Australian police arrested six people after what authorities said Friday, Feb. 8, 2019 was the largest single seizure of methamphetamine in the United States and the biggest drug haul bound for Australia. U.S. Customs and Border Protection said 1,728 kilograms (3,800 pounds) of the drug were seized mid-January at the Los Angeles-Long Beach port complex along with smaller amounts of cocaine and heroin. (U.S. Customs and Border Protection via AP) PIERRE, S.D. (AP) - Paul Erickson, the boyfriend of admitted Russian covert agent Maria Butina accused this week of fraud, has turned up in the unlikeliest of places - from landing a top spot on Pat Buchanan's 1992 presidential campaign to representing a man involved in one of the most salacious trials of the 1990s. From his youth in Vermillion, South Dakota, Erickson parlayed a network of contacts with the College Republicans into an odyssey of business and political adventures on the fringes of celebrity over more than two decades. He was national political director for Buchanan's insurgent bid to topple President George H. W. Bush in the 1992 Republican primary. He was a media adviser to John Wayne Bobbitt, the Virginia man whose wife cut off his penis with a kitchen knife in 1993. He joined with Jack Abramoff, a Washington lobbyist later imprisoned for corruption, in producing an anti-communist action movie. And he represented the African dictator Mobutu Sese Seko when the president of then Zaire wanted to enter the United States. Erickson has also said that he was in Israel in 1982 when its troops temporarily occupied southern Lebanon. The next year, he claimed that he helped supply tents, boots, camels and mules to fighters combatting the Soviet Union in Afghanistan. Along the way, Erickson also left a trail of aggrieved associates from his business dealings back in the Dakotas. Erickson, 57, pleaded not guilty this week to 11 counts of wire fraud and money laundering in business schemes that stretched from 1996 through August 2018, according to federal prosecutors in South Dakota. Butina pleaded guilty in December for trying to infiltrate conservative political groups as a Kremlin secret agent, a case that was separate from special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. In this May 25, 2003, photo, Paul Erickson, a Vermillion native, poses for a photo. The American political operative, Erickson, linked to admitted Russian covert agent Maria Butina was accused this week of fraud. Erickson pleaded not guilty Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019, to 11 counts of wire fraud and money laundering in business schemes that stretched from 1996 through August 2018, according to federal prosecutors in South Dakota. (Lloyd B. Cunningham/The Argus Leader via AP) "Paul is a very charismatic gentleman," said Daniel Bielfeldt, an aggrieved investor. "I just think the whole thing is sad because he is a very intelligent person and to use his talents to deceive people is wrong. He could have earned a lot more money doing the right thing." The fraud indictment was filed after Erickson got caught up in the firestorm over Butina's work seeking to use contacts in the National Rifle Association to pursue back channels to American conservatives during the 2016 campaign. Prosecutors now accuse Erickson of concocting schemes to carry out well over $1 million in fraudulent transactions using company names such as Investing with Dignity, a business purportedly developing a wheelchair that allowed a person to use the bathroom from the chair and Compass Care, which he said developed assisted living homes for elderly people. It's unclear why Erickson's indictment came Tuesday, after more than 20 years of alleged wrongdoing. The U.S. Attorney's Office in South Dakota declined to comment about the investigation. The charges carry a penalty of up to 20 years per count. Erickson's Sioux Falls lawyer, Clint Sargent, said he is "anxious to let the criminal justice process play out and believes a story different from the government's will emerge." When Butina entered her plea in December, attorney William Hurd said Erickson "has done nothing to harm our country and never would." It's not clear if Erickson will face charges in that case. Those who've met Erickson have been guarded in what they say about him since he popped up as a figure in Butina's case. One of those who view him as an unsavory character is South Dakota Republican lawmaker Lee Schoenbeck, whose experience with Erickson goes back to their time in the College Republicans. Erickson landed a job on Jim Abdnor's 1980 campaign that ousted George McGovern from the U.S. Senate, but Erickson didn't ever show up for work, Schoenbeck said. "I've just always known him as a fraud," Schoenbeck said. Former South Dakota House Speaker Harvey Krautschun, who was a Republican candidate for lieutenant governor in 2002, said Erickson was an acquaintance who worked on the campaign. Krautschun said Erickson was "on fire" for politics, but he never felt there was anything unsavory about Erickson at the time. "He ate and slept and breathed politics," Krautschun said. "If there was a thing known as political blood, he had it." Erickson transferred from the University of South Dakota to Yale University, serving as national treasurer of the College Republicans while there. He graduated in 1984 and got a law degree in 1988 from the University of Virginia and was executive producer of Abramoff's movie brainchild, "Red Scorpion," starring Dolph Lundgren. Erickson worked in 1992 for Buchanan's campaign at a time when many established Republican operatives shied away from trying to unseat the sitting president of the United States. As Bobbitt's media adviser, Erickson booked an international tour in which the man whose penis was lopped off and reattached sold shirts and steak knives, the Rapid City Journal reported. Public records in South Dakota include at least seven court judgments for more than $421,000 against Erickson or his companies since 2003, according to the Rapid City Journal. Several of the court cases that produced the judgments include evidence of Erickson writing bad checks to creditors. Bielfeldt and his son, Daniel, developers from Brookings, South Dakota, sued Erickson in 2015. They had been persuaded by Erickson in 2009 to invest a combined $30,000 in a company called Dignity Medical Inc. The Bielfeldts reached a $30,000 settlement with Erickson and received their first check for $10,000 but the other checks bounced, the Journal reported. The Bielfeldts eventually won a judgment against Erickson in January 2017 for about $41,000. Conservative syndicated writer L. Brent Bozell III sued Erickson in 2007. Bozell said in the lawsuit that he had been persuaded to invest $200,000 in Compass Care, which Erickson founded in 1996. Bozell sued for breach of contract and won a $190,000 judgment in 2008, but it's not clear if he received the money. Court documents in the lawsuits by the Bielfeldts and Bozell show that Erickson predicted returns ranging from 25 to 100 percent. In another lawsuit, Erickson was ordered in 2003 to pay more than $115,417 to Bluestem Capital Partners, the venture capital firm of Steve Kirby, who is a Republican former lieutenant governor of South Dakota. Court documents show Bluestem had lent Erickson money for Compass Care that he failed to pay back in time, the Journal reported. Kirby did not return a phone message left Thursday by The Associated Press. Casey Phillips, now a political strategist and consultant in Virginia, said he met Erickson in the early 2000s while he was a College Republican in South Dakota. Erickson was always "hanging around" and was quick to try to help or share a lesson. The two have kept in touch, Phillips said, but he never met Butina. Erickson sent him a birthday card in October. "Paul Erickson is a great guy to have a beer with," Phillips said. "It looks like he charmed his way into trouble, and I feel terrible for him and for anyone he hurt along the way." ___ Kolpack reported from Fargo, North Dakota. SAN DIEGO (AP) - The Trump administration on Friday waived environmental reviews to replace a 14-mile (22.5 kilometer) stretch of border barrier in San Diego, shielding itself from potentially crippling delays. The Department of Homeland Security said it would issue the sixth waiver of Donald Trump's presidency under a 2005 law that empowers the secretary to waive reviews required under environmental laws if the border barrier is deemed to be in national security interests. Those laws include the National Environmental Policy Act, the Clean Air Act and Endangered Species Act. The waiver, which was announced Thursday and published Friday in the Federal Register, helps clear the way for work to begin this month on replacing a second layer of barrier in San Diego, a steel-mesh wall that worked like a fortress when it was built about a decade ago but is now often breached with powerful battery-operated saws sold in home improvement stores. The waivers avoid time-consuming reviews and lawsuits challenging violation of environmental laws. The government awarded a $101 million contract to SLSCO Ltd. of Galveston, Texas, to build a barrier of 30-feet-high steel bollards, with options for an additional $30 million. Work is scheduled to begin this month. Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen said in a public notice that the Border Patrol's San Diego sector is "an area of high illegal entry," with more than 38,000 arrests and seizures of more than 4 tons (3,600 kilograms) of marijuana and 1,800 pounds (816 kilograms) of cocaine in the 2018 fiscal year. San Diego was the third busiest corridor for illegal crossings among the Border Patrol's nine sectors along the Mexican border in 2018 after Texas' Rio Grande Valley and Tucson, Arizona. FILE - In this Tuesday, March 13, 2018, file photo, President Donald Trump holds a poster with photographs of the U.S. - Mexico border area as he reviews border wall prototypes in San Diego with Rodney Scott, the U.S. Border Patrol's San Diego sector chief. The Trump administration said Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, it would waive environmental reviews to replace up to 14 miles (22.5 kilometers) of border barrier in San Diego, shielding itself from potentially crippling delays. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File) Work on replacing the first layer of San Diego barrier is nearly complete, also 14 miles (22.5 kilometers) long and made of steel bollards up to 30 feet (9 meters) high. Environmental groups criticized the latest waiver. "Trump is ignoring laws that protect public health and endangered wildlife so he can fulfill a hateful campaign promise," said Laiken Jordahl, borderlands campaigner for the Center for Biological Diversity. "Communities and ecosystems along the border are being upended by this militarization, but Border Patrol won't even give residents the decency of a public hearing. This is the definition of lawlessness." President George W. Bush's administration issued five waivers, paving the way for barriers to blanket about one-third of the border with Mexico. Barack Obama's administration didn't issue any waivers. FILE - In this Jan. 16, 2019, file photo, Yuli Arias, left, stands near a newly-replaced section of the border wall as her mother, Esther Arias, center, stands in the family's house that was once threatened by construction along the border in Tijuana, Mexico. The Trump administration said Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, it would waive environmental reviews to replace up to 14 miles (22.5 kilometers) of border barrier in San Diego, shielding itself from potentially crippling delays. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File) FILE - In this Jan 15, 2019, file photo, structures in Tijuana, Mexico, left of the older section of the border wall, as machinery sits ready to continue to replace the wall with new sections, in San Diego. The Trump administration said Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, it would waive environmental reviews to replace up to 14 miles (22.5 kilometers) of border barrier in San Diego, shielding itself from potentially crippling delays. The waivers avoid time-consuming reviews and lawsuits challenging violation of environmental laws. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File) FILE - In this July 24, 2014, file photo, a bend in the Rio Grand is viewed from a Texas Department of Public Safety helicopter on patrol over in Mission, Texas. The Trump administration said Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, it would waive environmental reviews to replace up to 14 miles (22.5 kilometers) of border barrier in San Diego, shielding itself from potentially crippling delays. San Diego was the third busiest corridor for illegal crossings among the Border Patrol's nine sectors along the Mexican border in 2018 after Texas' Rio Grande Valley and Tucson, Ariz. (AP Photo/Eric Gay, Pool, File) FILE - In this March 13, 2018, file photo, President Donald Trump reviews border wall prototypes in San Diego. The Trump administration said Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, it would waive environmental reviews to replace up to 14 miles (22.5 kilometers) of border barrier in San Diego, shielding itself from potentially crippling delays. The waivers avoid time-consuming reviews and lawsuits challenging violation of environmental laws. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File) FILE - In this Jan. 10, 2019, file photo President Donald Trump, far right, tours the U.S. border with Mexico at the Rio Grande on the southern border in McAllen, Texas. The Trump administration said Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, it would waive environmental reviews to replace up to 14 miles (22.5 kilometers) of border barrier in San Diego, shielding itself from potentially crippling delays. San Diego was the third busiest corridor for illegal crossings among the Border Patrol's nine sectors along the Mexican border in 2018 after Texas' Rio Grande Valley and Tucson, Ariz. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File) FILE - In this July 24, 2014, file photo, a Customs and Border Protection vehicle patrols on the Texas border near the Rio Grande in Mission, Texas. The Trump administration said Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, it would waive environmental reviews to replace up to 14 miles (22.5 kilometers) of border barrier in San Diego, shielding itself from potentially crippling delays. San Diego was the third busiest corridor for illegal crossings among the Border Patrol's nine sectors along the Mexican border in 2018 after Texas' Rio Grande Valley and Tucson, Arizona. (AP Photo/Eric Gay, Pool, File) WASHINGTON (AP) - With Democrats now controlling the House and holding the legal key to seeking President Donald Trump's tax returns, Republican lawmakers are invoking privacy in defending Trump's flank. At an oversight hearing Thursday, lawmakers examined proposals to compel presidents and presidential candidates to make years of their tax returns public. And they discussed the authority under current law for the head of the House Ways and Means Committee - now Democratic Rep. Richard Neal - to make a written request for any tax returns to the Treasury secretary. The law says the Treasury chief "shall furnish" the requested information to members of the committee for them to examine behind closed doors. Republicans accused the Democrats of using powers in the tax law to mount a political witch hunt for Trump's tax returns. "In reality, this is all about weaponizing our tax laws to attack a political foe," Rep. Jackie Walorski of Indiana said at the hearing by the Ways and Means oversight subcommittee. Getting Trump's returns has been high on the Democrats' list of priorities since they won control of the House in November's midterm elections, but asking for them will probably set off a huge legal battle with his administration. Chairman of House Ways & Means Committee Oversight Subcommittee Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., speaks with Ranking Member Mike Kelly, R-Pa., during a hearing on proposals to compel presidents and presidential candidates to make public years of their tax returns on Capitol Hill, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, in Washington. But the burning question is what Democrats might do more immediately to get such files from President Donald Trump. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) The Democrats tried and failed several times to obtain Trump's returns as the minority party in Congress, seeking to shed light on his complex financial dealings and potential conflicts of interest. Their newly energized leftward wing is pushing Neal to set the quest in motion, and fast. Thursday's hearing appeared to set the table for the move by examining the legal foundations. "A strong case is being built," William Tranghese, an aide to Neal, told The Associated Press this week. He said Neal is consulting with lawyers for the House "to determine the appropriate legal steps to go forward with this unprecedented request." Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., chairman of the oversight subcommittee, said the American public is intensely interested in the subject. "We ask the question: Does the public have a need to know that a person seeking or holding the highest office in our country obeys the tax laws?" George Yin, a professor of law and taxation at University of Virginia Law School, testified to the panel that he doesn't see any "wiggle room" in the law for the Treasury secretary to refuse Neal's request for Trump's returns. If the Trump administration refused the request, "We would be in uncharted territory," Yin said. The legal battle that could ensue over Trump's tax filings would be unprecedented. It could take years to resolve, possibly stretching beyond the 2020 presidential election. Rep. Mike Kelly of Pennsylvania, the subcommittee's senior Republican, accused the Democrats of gearing up to obtain the president's returns - and release them. "Congress is prohibited by law from examining and making public the private tax returns of Americans for political purposes," said Kelly. "Such an abuse of power would open a Pandora's box. It would set a very dangerous precedent." The tax returns of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, other lawmakers or federal employees could be in jeopardy, he warned. But Bill Pascrell, D-N.J., insisted that no one, including the president, is above the law. "The law is on our side," he said. At a news conference Thursday, Pelosi said the public "overwhelmingly" wants to see Trump's tax returns, but the move cannot be made in haste. "It's not just a question of sending a letter; you have to do it in a very careful way. And the chairman of the committee (Neal) will be doing that," the Democrats' leader said. The hearing came two days after Trump faced a divided Congress in his State of the Union address, imploring the Democrats to step away from "ridiculous partisan investigations." The subcommittee also examined a proposal that would require all presidents, vice presidents and candidates for those offices to make public 10 years of tax returns. It's part of House Democrats' comprehensive election and ethics reform package - their first major bill for the new Congress this year. The legislation also would make it easier for citizens to register and vote, and ban executive-branch officials from lobbying their old agency for two years after they leave government. While the ethics bill includes a range of reforms, some Democrats have made clear that one of their chief targets is Trump. Some elements of the bill have bipartisan support, but the overall package is unlikely to advance in the Republican-controlled Senate. If the administration mounted a legal challenge over Trump's returns, "I assume that there would be a court case that would go on for a period of time," Neal, D-Mass., said just after the November election. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin "will review any request with the Treasury general counsel for legality," the department has said. Trump's attorney Rudy Giuliani has suggested the Democrats could have a hard time proving their demand was intended for pursuing legitimate congressional oversight and was not a political scavenger hunt. Trump broke with decades of tradition for presidential candidates by refusing to release his income tax filings during his 2016 campaign. He has said he won't release them because he is being audited, even though IRS officials have said taxpayers under audit are free to release their returns. Trump claimed at a news conference following the November elections that the filings are too complex for people to understand. Democrats want to dive in and explore numerous questions about Trump's personal financial webs. Among them: whether there are conflicts of interest between his companies and his presidential actions; what are the sources of his income and to whom he might be beholden as a result; whether he's properly paid taxes; and whether he benefited from the sweeping Republican-written tax law enacted in late 2017. Rep. Jackie Walorski, R-Ind., read her notes during a House Ways and Means Committee Oversight Subcommittee hearing on on proposals to compel presidents and presidential candidates to make public years of their tax returns on Capitol Hill, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019, in Washington. But the burning question is what Democrats might do more immediately to get such files from President Donald Trump. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) FILE - In this Nov. 27, 2018 file photo, Rep. Richard Neal, D-Mass., then incoming chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, addresses an audience during a gathering of business leaders in Boston. The Democrats tried and failed several times to obtain Trump's returns as the minority party in Congress. Their newly energized leftward wing is pushing the chairman of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, Rep. Richard Neal, D-Mass., to set the quest in motion, and fast. (AP Photo/Steven Senne) JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) - The Indonesian government is planning to post some of the dozens of underemployed generals into high-ranking civilian roles, alarming rights groups who see it as a threat to the country's young democracy. Indonesia's military has at least 150 generals without defined positions, partly due to a rise in the retirement age, and President Joko Widodo is planning a regulation to create 60 new posts for them, including in the civilian bureaucracy. Al Araf, the director of Indonesian rights group Imparsial, said Thursday the plan is inconsistent with the spirit of reforms that followed the end of dictator Suharto's rule in 1998 and returned the military to barracks. Under Suharto, seats in the legislature were reserved for the military and officers occupied thousands of civilian roles from district chiefs to Cabinet ministers. "The move has the potential to restore the authoritarian system," Araf said. Currently, active military officers can only serve in ministries or institutions related to state security and defense under a law governing the military that was enacted in 2004. In this May 11, 2018, photo, Indonesia Armed Forces Chief Air Marshall Hadi Tjahjanto, second left, puts on an epaulet on the shoulders of a military general during their inauguration to their new position in Sorong, Papua province, Indonesia. The Indonesian government is planning to post some of the dozens of underemployed generals into high-ranking civilian roles, alarming rights groups who see it as a threat to the country's young democracy. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana) Widodo discussed a restructuring of the armed forces last month with military and police leaders and said creating 60 new posts in government for one, two and three-star generals would allow colonels to advance in the military's ranks. Military spokesman Maj. Gen. Sisriadi said the restructuring does not aim to restore the "dual function" of the military that it had under Suharto. "That concept was an old book that has been thrown away," said Sisriadi, who goes by a single name. "It will never exist again." He said the military is proposing various measures to overcome its generals' bulge, including lengthening the years or service required to reach high rank to 26 years from 24. The military is working with the Defense Ministry and the Ministry of Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform to create a system that equips soldiers with skills for specialist careers within the military, said Sisriadi. Military analyst Evan Laksmana at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies said in a commentary that the military has no long-term plan for managing its personnel. It has too many officer academy graduates and between 2011 and 2017 had an average of 330 surplus colonels a year, he said. SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - The National Transportation Safety Board will investigate a natural gas explosion in San Francisco that sent flames into the sky for hours and damaged five buildings, an official said Thursday. An eight-person team arrived in San Francisco on Thursday night to begin the lengthy process of gathering evidence and trying to determine what happened, spokesman Eric Weiss said. The federal agency often investigates blasts on pipelines because they transport oil and natural gas, which it oversees. "We're going to look at not only what happened but why it happened and see if there are any lessons to be learned for future safety," Weiss said. California's workplace safety agency, Cal/OSHA, also is investigating. A private construction crew digging on a street to install fiber-optic wires cut a natural gas line, igniting the fire Wednesday, Fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White said. A San Francisco Police officer watches as a crew works at the scene of a Wednesday fire on Geary Boulevard in San Francisco, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. A gas explosion in shot a tower of flames into the sky and burned five buildings including one of the city's popular restaurants before firefighters brought the blaze under control. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu) However, Weiss cautioned that it could be months or even years before the NTSB issues an official determination of the probable cause. No one was injured but flames shot above the rooftops of three-story buildings and burned for more than two hours until Pacific Gas & Electric workers were able to shut off the gas fueling the fire. Some questioned why it took the utility so long. State law required crews to dig by hand around numerous other pipelines before they were eventually able to "squeeze" a 4-inch (10-centimeter) plastic line, PG&E spokeswoman Melissa Subbotin said. Because the fire was contained to a limited area, the utility said it had to weigh the threat from the flames with the risk of more drastic action on a cold day in San Francisco. Officials opted not to quickly shut off a massive transmission line as they would do in an earthquake, Subbotin said. "Had we turned the gas off to a transmission system, we would have shut off gas to nearly the entire city of San Francisco," Subbotin said. "The objective of this was to turn the gas off safely and as quickly as possible." The company stressed that the workers who cut the gas line are not affiliated with the nation's largest utility. About 300 customers were affected by the gas line rupture. PG&E restored gas to the line Thursday and went door-to-door turning back on customers' pilot lights. The company allegedly responsible for the massive, fiery gas rupture in San Francisco on Wednesday afternoon was identified as a third-party contractor for Verizon, but it was a subcontractor of that company who actually hit the line, state workplace inspectors said. Verizon told KTVU-TV on Thursday that the contractor was Florida-based MasTec. "We want to express our deep concern for those affected by the gas line rupture," MasTec executive John Higgins told the station in an email, adding that the company has started an investigation into the accident. Frank Polizzi, a spokesman for Cal/OSHA, said an employee for a subcontractor, San Francisco-based Kilford Engineering, was operating an excavator when the gas line ruptured. Kilford has no previous workplace violations, he told the station. KTVU-TV said efforts to reach the company were unsuccessful. Five buildings were damaged, including one housing Hong Kong Lounge II, a reservations-only dim sum restaurant that is a fixture on the city's "best of" lists. The fire began on the street in front of the restaurant. Officials evacuated several nearby buildings, including a medical clinic and apartments, Hayes-White said. Vehicles on one of the city's main arteries were rerouted as authorities cordoned off the bustling neighborhood. Caroline Gasparini, 24, who lives kitty-corner from where the fire ignited, said she and her housemate were in their living room when the windows started rattling. She looked up to see flames reflected in the glass. "We went into crisis mode," Gasparini said. "We grabbed our shoes, grabbed our laptops and grabbed our passports and just left." Gasparini said they saw employees of the burning restaurant run out the back door and people fleeing down the block. Firefighters worked to keep the fire from spreading while PG&E crews worked to shut off the gas line. The utility faces heightened scrutiny over its natural gas pipelines after one exploded in a neighborhood south of San Francisco in 2010, killing eight people and wiping out a neighborhood in suburban San Bruno. A U.S. judge fined PG&E $3 million for a conviction on six felony charges of failing to properly maintain the pipeline, and the utility remains under a federal judge's watch in that case. A utility crew works at the scene of a Wednesday fire on Geary Boulevard in San Francisco, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. A gas explosion shot a tower of flames into the sky and burned five buildings including one of the city's popular restaurants before firefighters brought the blaze under control. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu) A utility crew works at the scene of a Wednesday fire on Geary Boulevard in San Francisco, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. A gas explosion shot a tower of flames into the sky and burned five buildings including one of the city's popular restaurants before firefighters brought the blaze under control. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu) A charred utility pole and building are shown at the scene of a Wednesday fire on Geary Boulevard in San Francisco, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. A gas explosion shot a tower of flames into the sky and burned five buildings including one of the city's popular restaurants before firefighters brought the blaze under control. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu) A utility crew works at the scene of a Wednesday fire on Geary Boulevard in San Francisco, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. A gas explosion shot a tower of flames into the sky and burned five buildings including one of the city's popular restaurants before firefighters brought the blaze under control. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu) San Francisco firefighters battle a fire on Geary Boulevard in San Francisco, Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019. A gas explosion in a San Francisco neighborhood shot flames high into the air Wednesday and was burning several buildings as utility crews scrambled to shut off the flow of gas. Construction workers cut a natural gas line, San Francisco Fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White said. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu) San Francisco firefighters battle a fire on Geary Boulevard in San Francisco, Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019. A gas explosion in a San Francisco neighborhood shot flames high into the air Wednesday and was burning several buildings as utility crews scrambled to shut off the flow of gas. Construction workers cut a natural gas line, San Francisco Fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White said. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu) Devotees flock to the Guiyuan Temple in Wuhan in central China on the 5th day of every Lunar New Year, to pay homage to the god Caishen Thousands of Chinese worshippers crowded into a temple in the middle of the country on Saturday to pay homage to the God of Wealth and pray for good fortune. Devotees flock to the Guiyuan Temple in Wuhan in central China on the 5th day of every Lunar New Year, to mark the birthday of the god Caishen. Braving the pre-dawn cold, young and old brought handfuls of incense sticks to burn in the courtyard of the vast Buddhist temple. Braving the pre-dawn cold, young and old brought handfuls of incense sticks to burn in the courtyard of the vast Buddhist temple Worshippers burn incense and other offerings on a scale much larger than at any other festival in China. Flames flicker in the darkness, with the burning producing so much ash that employees of the temple need to regularly take it away by the shovel-load. In recent years, the event has attracted more than 100,000 people to the temple each day, according to state media. Worshippers burn incense and other offerings on a scale much larger than at any other festival in China "Chinese tradition says that it is the birthday of Caishen, so I am here to celebrate," Gong Xinwen, a young woman who has been coming to the temple with her parents since she was young, told AFP. This year, she has a special request for Caishen -- that she may have a child during the year of the Pig, that will carry the animal's zodiac sign, which is associated with good fortune. "The pig is a blessing," she explains. The Chinese zodiac has 12 signs, one for each year. In recent years, the event has attracted more than 100,000 people to the temple each day, according to state media In the middle of the temple stands a giant statue of Guanyin, the goddess of mercy, who is often approached by those seeking to have a child. On Monday night and into Tuesday, the Chinese celebrated the Lunar New Year, which falls on a different date each year, although always in January or February. The burning produces so much ash that employees of the temple need to regularly take it away by the shovel-load The most important holiday of the Chinese calendar, the New Year is marked with a fortnight of festivities as reunited families wrap dumplings together and exchange gifts and red envelopes stuffed with money. In a country with almost 200 million internal migrants, the return home by workers during the festival season is the world's largest annual migration. Abubakar and his party have accused the president of trying to scupper their campaign because they fear the race will be close Nigeria's main political opposition on Saturday said it had been forced to cancel a key presidential campaign rally in the capital Abuja, and blamed President Muhammadu Buhari and the ruling party. Atiku Abubakar and his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had been due to hold the event in the Garki area of the city, with just a week to go until polling day. But the PDP said it had been denied access to the Old Parade Ground venue, despite making payments and having obtained official approval. "The PDP invites Nigerians to document this provocative action against our party and our presidential campaign by the Buhari Presidency and the APC (All Progressives Congress)," it said in a statement. Nigerians go to the polls next Saturday, with Buhari, 76, seeking a second, four-year term. Abubakar, a 72-year-old former vice-president is his leading challenger. Abubakar and the PDP have accused Buhari and the APC of trying to scupper their campaign because they fear the race will be close. Buhari was on Saturday scheduled to hold a similar rally in the commercial hub, Lagos. Abubakar is pencilled in to visit next week. "We hope they will allow the Lagos rally to hold on Tuesday," the party said. APC spokesman Lanre Isa-Onilu said the party did not own the Abuja venue, "so there is no way we could have denied them access to a place we don't own and we don't have control over". "If there is any truth to what the PDP has said, it is not APC and it is not our policy," he told AFP. There was no immediate comment from the authorities at the APC-run Federal Capital Territory administration. Bahrain Airport Services Company (BAS) recently honoured a group of employees for their selection as ideal employees of the month. Salman Al-Mahmeed, CEO of the company, said: 'Employee of the month' is part of BAS's strategies to continually raise the quality of its employees, and to ensure that its employees are able to compete with foreign companies." Employees recognised by BAS include Jumana Khaled, Ahmed Yousif, Hisham Ghuloom, Mohammed Saadalla, Subash Vattekattu, Yousif Jamal, A.Rahman Hazeem, Mohamed Taqi & Al Imran Ohiduzzaman. Established in 1977, Bahrain Airport Services Company has a 40-year long track record of continuous service and has been the sole operator of ground services at Bahrain International Airport since it was established as the first international airport in the Arabian Gulf region. It is also a trusted name in the world of services as a company certified by the Air Transport Safety Audit Program of the International Air Transport Association. BAS offers a number of commercial activities including aircraft and passenger handling services, catering services, aircraft engineering services, BAS Engineering Training Centre (BAETC), as well as owning and managing airport lounges. - TradeArabia News Service UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres was speaking on the sidelines of an African Union summit in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres said Saturday that a slew of peaceful elections and truces in Africa were signs of a "wind of hope" on the continent. He was speaking on the sidelines of an African Union summit in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa, where heads of state from 55 member nations will meet from Sunday. "This is a moment in which a wind of hope is blowing across Africa. We have seen reconciliation between Ethiopia and Eritrea, we have seen peace agreements... in South Sudan and CAR (Central African Republic)", said Guterres. "We're working together to see if we can move the same direction in Libya. We have seen elections in Madagascar, DRC and Mali that people were forecasting will lead to tragedy and violence and in the end took place in a peaceful context," he added. Ethiopia and Eritrea last year ended a two-decade long cold war, while South Sudan is trying to implement the latest in a long line of peace deals to end a bloody five-year conflict. The Central African Republic this week reached a peace deal between the government and 14 militia groups, boosting hopes of an end of a crisis that has gripped the country since 2012, sparking conflict that left thousands dead and over a million displaced. "All these circumstances were realized through the combination of efforts of the UN and AU... to make sure guns will be silent from 2020 onwards on the African continent," said Guterres. "I believe Africa is becoming an example where it is possible to solve conflicts and prevent conflicts and I hope this wind of hope can be extended to other parts of the world." The announcement effectively invalidates Princess Ubolratana's unprecedented bid for prime minister in March elections A Thai political party will obey a command from the king blocking the candidacy of a princess for prime minister, it said in a statement Saturday, in a dramatic reversal only a day after putting her forward for the position. "Thai Raksa Chart party complies with the royal command", it said in a LINE message to reporters. The statement added that the party is ready to do its duty with respect to the "tradition and royal customs" under Thailand's constitutional monarchy. The announcement effectively invalidates Princess Ubolratana's unprecedented bid for prime minister in March elections and comes after an extraordinary rebuke of her candidacy by her younger brother Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn. Thai Raksa Chart announced the princess as their candidate Friday morning in a move that looked to rattle the status quo and threaten the ambitions of the junta that has ruled Thailand since it toppled the administration of Yingluck Shinawatra in a 2014 coup. But the Thai king torpedoed the bid in a sharply worded statement later the same day that said bringing senior royal family members into politics is against tradition, national culture and "highly inappropriate." Thailand has some of the most severe lese majeste laws in the world and the king's word is considered final. Analysts had already forewarned that the palace statement had scuttled the princess' chances. "The palace disapproval invalidates her candidacy," said Puangthong Pawakapan, professor of political science at Chulalongkorn University, before the Thai Raksa Chart announcement. Thailand is a constitutional monarchy and has not had a royal run for frontline office since 1932. The 67-year-old princess did not address the royal rebuke head-on Saturday morning, when she thanked supporters on her widely followed Instagram account and said vaguely that she wanted Thailand to "move forward". Junta chief Prayut Chan-O-Cha, the leader of the coup that toppled the administration of Yingluck Shinawatra, also said he would stand for the top post Friday. Ubolratana's move briefly threw his fortunes into disarray but the palace action made it clear it does not endorse her run. The king did not criticise the princess directly and seemed to focus blame on political party members who brought her on board. Thai Raksa Chart is aligned with Yingluck and her brother Thaksin, who was ousted by the army in 2006. Analysts assumed Thaksin and the party would not make such a move without royal approval. Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi (C) and Rwanda's President Paul Kagame (R) -- the outgoing and incoming AU chairs Nearly six years after the African Union shut it out in the cold, Egypt will take the organisation's helm -- and strengthening multilateral powers is unlikely to be on the agenda. Cairo's tenure "will probably concentrate on security and peacekeeping", said Ashraf Swelam, who heads a think tank linked to the country's foreign ministry. Incoming AU chair President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will likely focus less on "financial and administrative reform" than his predecessor, Swelam added. Such reform was the cornerstone of outgoing AU chairman Paul Kagame's year in the role. The Rwandan president has pushed for a continent-wide import tax to fund the AU and reduce its dependence on external donors, who still pay for more than half the institution's annual budget. An African diplomat told AFP that Egypt -- along with fellow heavyweights South Africa and Nigeria -- does not want a powerful AU. This diplomat, who has been tracking AU affairs for over a decade, said Cairo has "never forgotten" its suspension in 2013. The near year-long lock out from the AU came after Egypt's army deposed Islamist president Mohamed Morsi, who in 2012 had become the country's first democratically elected president. Sisi is due to take the helm at the AU's biannual heads of state assembly, which takes place on February 10 and 11 at the AU's gleaming headquarters in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa. As usual, the continent's multiple security crises will be high on the VIPs' agenda. Rwanda's ambitious funding proposal will also likely be on the table. But it has met resistance not only from Egypt, but other member states, so may fail to pass. Reform of the AU Commission is an even more sensitive topic. In November 2018, most states rejected a proposal to give the head of the AU's executive organ the power to name deputies and commissioners. - Egypt backs free trade zone - But the Egyptians are "fully engaged" in pushing other AU reforms, according to an AU official. Cairo was suspended from the AU after its army deposed Islamist president Mohamed Morsi, who in 2012 had become the country's first democratically elected president One key initiative backed by Cairo is the Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA), an initiative agreed by 44 of 55 member states in March 2018. The single market is a flagship of the AU's "Agenda 2063" programme, conceived as a strategic framework for socioeconomic transformation. However, the trade pact has met resistance from South Africa. Sisi will therefore need to push hard for ratification of this accord, if it is to come into effect. For Elissa Jobson, head of Africa advocacy at the International Crisis Group, Sisi can be expected to "use the presidency to increase his country's standing among other African states". "This is not a departure from previous administrations", particularly that of the outgoing chairman, she added. "Kagame showed that the presidency -- for a long time considered to be merely a figurehead -- can be used to promote national interests and boost a leader's international profile," Jobson said. The AU official -- who requested anonymity -- said Rwanda's president will remain a point person for the organisation's broad reform agenda, despite handing over the chair. - Limited power - Delegates at the African Union headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia But there are major limits to the power wielded by the post of AU chairman. Kagame suffered a crushing disavowal by the AU after expressing "serious doubts" about the results of Democratic Republic of Congo's recent presidential election, which was officially won by Felix Tshisekedi. While also disputed by the Catholic church, the results were validated by DRC's constitutional court and saluted by continental heavyweights South Africa, Kenya and Egypt. For Liesl Louw-Vaudran at the Institute of Security Studies, Sisi wants Egypt to be considered part of Africa, not just the Arab world -- but that will require work. "North African countries have a reputation of looking in a different direction than Africa, and Egypt will have to overcome that stereotype," she said. The AU's theme for this summit is "Refugees, Returnees and Internally Displaced Persons" presented within a security context. Cairo is casting itself as a champion in the battle against illegal immigration -- and as a model for hosting refugees on its soil. Senator Cory Booker Makes First Trip To Iowa Since Launching Presidential Campaign It is a sparsely populated and homogenous state where agriculture rules. But Iowa -- equally disparaged and cherished as a folksy American backwater -- remains a political titan, first in the nation in picking presidential candidates. With nearly a year to go before the all-important Iowa caucuses, Democrats seeking the right to challenge President Donald Trump are already pouring in, impatient to raise their profiles in the state that will vote before any other in the 2020 primary process. Retail politics is a rite of political passage here. Winning a presidential caucus can launch a candidate's career into the stratosphere, while finishing back in the pack often prompts an inglorious exit. But every four years, outsiders ask the same question: Why does a state with less than one percent of the US population, where the vast majority of residents are white, and which hosts an impenetrable voting system hold such a pivotal role in presidential selection? Iowa's image remains powerful in American lore: idyllic small-town life where faith, common sense and an open-hearted warmth prevail. For decades Iowans have been the first to cast nomination votes, and they fiercely protect that status. It is a privilege to see candidates "coming out, shaking hands, talking to people one on one," Chris Henning, chairwoman of the Democrats in Greene County, told AFP. "It is so important, at least in Iowa, that we meet the (candidates) and they meet us." Many experts see the prudence in winnowing the presidential field in Iowa. Forcing candidates into face-to-face encounters -- in coffee shops, at the famed Iowa State Fair, in voters' living rooms -- helps put the brakes on what has become a technology-driven, money-talks political culture. US Senator Sherrod Brown is among several Democrats who have ventured early in 2019 to Iowa, exploring a potential challenge to President Donald Trump next year "It humbles candidates," said Iowa State University professor Steffen Schmidt, a veteran caucus observer. Iowans "will pinch them and probe them just like they're at a county fair" inspecting cattle, he added. "It's actually a pretty good training ground." - Credibility at stake - 2020 is shaping up to be an extraordinary year with a sprawling field of Democratic candidates, and Iowa party leaders are expecting record caucus turnout. Officials are scrambling to book venues large enough to accommodate each of the 1,679 separate caucus meetings that will take place across the state next February 3. "The caucuses have grown far beyond what they were ever intended to be," argues John Deeth, a local Democratic activist who has worked with the party in Johnson County. While Iowa is considering implementing major reforms for next year, including allowing absentee voters to participate online or by telephone, the caucus credibility is being put to the test. Rumors have swirled that New Hampshire, which traditionally votes one week after Iowa, seeks to leapfrog into pole position. The most populous state California, tired of being a virtual afterthought with its residents voting late in the process, has shifted its primary three months forward -- joining several other states voting on March 3, 2020. That means California's early voting, which starts one month before the primary, will overlap with Iowa and New Hampshire contests. Former US Representative and 2020 Democratic presidential hopeful John Delaney speaks at TC Mae's restaurant in Fort Dodge, Iowa -- candidates' stops at eateries have become a part of Iowa's political lore Large, ethnically diverse California is such a massive market that contenders need deep pockets to compete, as reaching voters is primarily done through paid television advertising. Iowa, by contrast, is a study in miniature, where candidates look voters in the eye and hone their political messaging. But voter Anne Kinzel, 62, expressed worry about the influence of Iowa's overwhelmingly white population in an increasingly diverse America. "I'm concerned that we lose some candidates after Iowa and New Hampshire without the rest of the population, a more diverse population, getting a say," Kinzel said. Deeth believes much of the Iowa caucus spontaneity has dissolved, replaced by carefully calculated media appearances. "Even diners are scheduled and staged," he said of candidates' stops at eateries that have become a part of Iowa's political lore. - Out of Iowa - Iowa cemented its first-in-the-nation status quite by accident. In 1972 the Democratic Party democratized its primary process, with voters, not party elites, choosing the nominees. Iowa's organizers, determining they needed months for their convoluted system to play out, leapfrogged ahead of New Hampshire, whose primary had opened the nominating process for decades. Few took much notice until the 1976 cycle, when an obscure southern governor, Jimmy Carter, barnstormed Iowa and won, catapulting him to the Democratic nomination and ultimately the White House. Candidates from both parties have beaten a path to Iowa ever since, and a political adage congealed: "There are three tickets out of Iowa." The top three advance, losers go home. "It's the beauty that is the Iowa caucuses," said the state's Democratic chairman Troy Price, explaining that Iowa forces campaigns to organize well. "Traditionally you need to do very well here to be the Democratic nominee." US Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun says he was confident progress was being made ahead of the summit between President Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un There was still some hard work to be done ahead of the upcoming summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, a Washington envoy said on Saturday. Stephen Biegun, the US Special Representative for North Korea, said three days of preparatory talks in Pyongyang that ended Friday had been productive, but more dialogue was needed ahead of the summit scheduled for Vietnam from February 27-28. Biegun on Saturday briefed South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-hwa on his Pyongyang visit, also confirming the summit would be held in the Vietnamese capital, Hanoi. "We have some hard work to do with the DPRK," Biegun told Kang, adding: "I'm confident that if both sides stay committed we can make real progress here. "We don't know where it's going to go, but we are in the midst of a conversation ... our discussions (with Pyongyang) were productive." Kang told Biegun that the US had South Korea's "full support" for the summit. The US State Department said Biegun will meet again with Pyongyang officials ahead of the Trump-Kim talks Trump earlier announced Hanoi as the venue in a tweet, saying: "I look forward to seeing Chairman Kim & advancing the cause of peace." At their landmark summit in Singapore last year, the mercurial US and North Korean leaders produced a vaguely worded document in which Kim pledged to work towards "the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula". But progress has since stalled, with the two sides disagreeing over what that means. Experts say tangible progress on Pyongyang's nuclear weapons will be needed for the second summit if it is to avoid being dismissed as "reality TV". On Friday Trump tweeted that North Korea will become a "great Economic Powerhouse" under Kim. "He may surprise some but he won't surprise me, because I have gotten to know him & fully understand how capable he is," said Trump. Last year's landmark summit in Singapore produced a vaguely-worded document in which Kim pledged to work towards 'the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula' US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will meet for a second much-anticipated summit in Hanoi, as preparations kick into high gear for the peace talks. Trump announced the exact location on Twitter -- only the country, Vietnam, was previously known -- for the follow-on to the leaders' summit in Singapore last year as he hailed "very productive" preparatory talks between diplomats from the two countries. "My representatives have just left North Korea after a very productive meeting and an agreed upon time and date for the second Summit with Kim Jong Un," Trump said. "It will take place in Hanoi, Vietnam, on February 27 & 28. I look forward to seeing Chairman Kim & advancing the cause of peace!" The US State Department said the special US envoy for North Korea will meet again with Pyongyang officials ahead of the Trump-Kim talks -- hours after he returned to Seoul from talks in the North on the summit's agenda. In a statement, the State Department said talks during Stephen Biegun's three-day trip explored Trump and Kim's "commitments of complete denuclearization, transforming US-DPRK relations and building a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula." Biegun landed at Osan US Air Base late Friday, foreign ministry spokesman Noh Kyu-duk told AFP. The State Department confirmed Biegun agreed to meet his North Korean counterpart Kim Hyok Chol again before the leaders' talks. North Korea has yet to provide any official confirmation of the summit and Kim Jong Un appeared to make no mention of it during a meeting earlier with the top brass of the Korean People's Army. As reported by state media, the meeting focused on the need to modernize the military while maintaining party discipline in the ranks. - Ending the Korean War? - Biegun is expected to share details of his Pyongyang meetings with his South Korean counterpart Lee Do-hoon and Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha on Saturday. Attention will focus on whether the US team have offered to lift some economic sanctions in return for Pyongyang taking concrete steps toward denuclearization. Discussions on declaring an end to the 1950-53 Korean War could also have been on the table, with Biegun last week saying Trump was "ready to end this war." The three-year conflict ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty, leaving the two Koreas still technically at war, with the US keeping 28,500 troops in the South. The US envoy was also likely to have discussed with his counterpart protocol and security matters for the upcoming Trump-Kim summit. At their landmark summit in Singapore last year, the mercurial US and North Korean leaders produced a vaguely worded document in which Kim pledged to work towards "the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula." But progress has since stalled, with the two sides disagreeing over what that means. Experts say tangible progress on Pyongyang's nuclear weapons will be needed for the second summit if it is to avoid being dismissed as "reality TV." burs-oh/ska Los Angeles City Hall, located in the downtown area, has apparently been overrun with rodents Los Angeles officials are ripping out carpets, setting traps and fumigating as they battle a rat infestation at City Hall that one attorney says left her battling a bout of typhus. The historic building, located in the downtown area, has apparently been overrun with rodents after a nearby structure was demolished last year. City council members and staff say the rats are having a field day in the 91-year-old building, nesting in potted plants, gnawing at carpets and leaving droppings on several floors. Elizabeth Greenwood, a city attorney, believes she contracted typhus last November after working in a building connected to City Hall. "It was terrifying, I thought I was going to die and couldn't figure out what was wrong with me," she told the local CBS station. The rat problem has gotten so bad that city council president Herb Wesson this week submitted a motion calling for a probe into "the scope of vermin and pest control issues" in the building and adjacent structures. Los Angeles city council members and staff say rats are having a field day in 91-year-old City Hall, nesting in potted plants, gnawing at carpets and leaving droppings on several floors "Employees shouldn't have to come to work worried about rodents," Wesson told the Los Angeles Times. "I intend to do whatever it is we need" to solve the issue. He said the problem of vermin and fleas in the rugs of his fourth-floor office had gotten so bad that he removed his staff from the art-deco building during the end-of-year holidays and ripped out all the carpeting. He is now asking the city to consider taking out all the rugs in the 27-story building, a popular filming location used in numerous movies including "Chinatown" and "L.A. Confidential." Questioned by AFP, the Los Angeles mayor's office said it was concerned about the rodent issue and was seeking to eradicate the critters. "We are working with our general services department to do whatever... we need to do to make sure this doesn't continue to be an issue," spokesman Alex Comisar said. "They are setting traps, filling borrows, treating tree wells. They are going to all of the places that these rodents tend to find refuge and they are doing what they need to do to eradicate the problem. "We see this as a problem that is very solvable in the immediate future." US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (L) is set to meet Hungary's increasingly authoritarian prime minister, Viktor Orban, amid Western concerns over Budapest's trajectory US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is hoping to stall inroads of Russian and Chinese influence as he visits two of the European Union's most quarrelsome members, Hungary and Poland. The top US diplomat arrives Monday in Hungary and will also visit Slovakia and Poland, in each NATO ally highlighting Washington's role in the fall of communism 30 years ago. Poland, eager for a strong US relationship amid a resurgent Russia, is teaming up with Pompeo to hold a two-day conference on the Middle East, which has drawn limited interest as Europeans balk at President Donald Trump's hawkish line on Iran. Hungary has drawn especially deep concerns among Western powers as Prime Minister Viktor Orban shows growing authoritarianism, buddies up with Russian President Vladimir Putin despite Western worries over Ukraine and willfully exercises Hungary's veto within the 28-member EU. A US official said Pompeo will raise concerns about Orban's support for the Russian-backed TurkStream gas pipeline, Moscow's financing of the Paks nuclear plant in Hungary -- and especially the country's agreement to let Huawei develop its 5G mobile networks, as Washington accuses the Chinese telecom giant of undermining global security. - Populist praise for Trump - Police arrest protesters blocking a bridge as part of demonstrations against Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban The right-wing leaders of Poland and Hungary have been among the few Europeans to praise Trump, sharing his hard line against refugees, his extolling of Christian values and his antipathy toward the power of multilateral bodies such as the EU. The Trump administration initially welcomed engagement with Orban, who received the cold shoulder from former US president Barack Obama, but concerns have mounted in Washington that Hungary has moved no closer into the US orbit. Last year, Hungary disappointed the United States by sending two suspected Russian arms dealers wanted by Washington back home. And despite the US ambassador's intervention, Budapest's renowned Central European University last year said it was moving key programs to Vienna due to tough requirements imposed by Orban on institutions it considers foreign. The university was founded by US-Hungarian billionaire philanthropist George Soros, an outspoken proponent of liberal values, who is vilified by the far-right in both countries with imagery that is at times anti-Semitic. The State Department said that Pompeo would not shy away from raising concerns with Orban and would meet in Hungary with civil society groups. Orban's chief of staff Gergely Gulyas scoffed at Pompeo's meeting with non-governmental groups, telling reporters: "If a US foreign minister meets organizations receiving support from America, then no one should be surprised about that." - 'Show up or lose' - Orban (left) shakes hands with Russian President Vladimir Putin during a meeting at the Kremlin in September 2018 The US official adamantly defended engagement with Hungary, saying the Obama administration paid too little attention to Central Europe while Putin visited Budapest twice last year alone. "We have to show up or expect to lose," the official said. "Those vacuums that were created by the US not being more strongly present in these places, they do get filled and they have gotten filled," he said. But Joerg Forbrig, an expert on Central Europe at the German Marshall Fund of the United States, said that Orban is a wily politician who knows that Washington has even less leverage over him than the EU, which he has defied for years despite the bloc's power of the purse over Hungary. "This small country called Hungary, whether it's on Western values or traditional partnerships or existing integration schemes like NATO and the EU, they are completely spitting at this, and very consciously," Forbrig said. He doubted that the United States and European Union could coordinate much on Hungary in light of Trump's poor relationships with major European allies such as Germany and France. "I'm not sure Orban will be quite laughing Pompeo out the door, but I'm not sure he's taking his trip very seriously," Forbrig said. Volunteers and officials organize US aid shipments in Cucuta, Colombia -- but the Venezuelan military is blocking it from crossing the border The soldiers blocking humanitarian aid from entering Venezuela look unlikely to give any ground, but Maria Acevedo thinks she knows how to make them let the shipments through. Acevedo, 26, wants to join together with fellow Venezuelan women and escort the food and medicine across the border from Colombia. Her bet is that a group of hungry and suffering mothers, sisters and daughters can convince the soldiers to break with President Nicolas Maduro and let the US aid shipments pass. Maduro, who is locked in a power struggle with opposition leader and self-declared interim president Juan Guaido, refuses to let the aid through. He calls it a "show" and says Venezuela's humanitarian crisis has been manufactured by Washington to justify a "coup." What happens to the sea of shiny white plastic bags filled with vital supplies -- and to Venezuela itself -- now hinges on the military, which has so far stood by Maduro. But Acevedo, who has three children, thinks she and her fellow Venezuelan women can change that. She should know -- she comes from a family of soldiers. What happens to the sea of shiny white plastic bags filled with vital supplies now hinges on the military "I come from a military family, too. And my family is against this, against the army blocking humanitarian aid. "But my family can't do anything. Only the top brass," Acevedo told AFP in Cucuta, on the Colombian side of the border. She regularly travels there to buy the food she can no longer find in Venezuela, a once booming oil giant that has skidded into a devastating economic crisis under Maduro. "We women are the ones who have to help get this humanitarian aid through. Not the men," she added. "They may be strong, but they can't do much because the authorities would immediately attack them." - 'We're counting on you' - Venezuelans regularly travel across the Colombian border to buy supplies no longer found in the crisis-wracked country There is history behind Acevedo's hope. In 2016, Maduro also closed the border at Cucuta, accusing Colombia of plotting to destabilize his socialist government. In July that year, hundreds of women dressed in white broke through the military cordon and crossed to Colombia, the only place they could buy enough food for their families. Women protesting in white, a tradition dating to at least the suffrage movement in the United States a century ago, has reemerged as a trend. It was seen most recently on Tuesday at President Donald Trump's State of the Union address, where several dozen opposition Democrats used their wardrobes to make a visually striking statement against Trump. Guaido, who is recognized by around 40 countries, may try the same strategy used in Cucuta in 2016. The team he has appointed to distribute the aid says it is not ruling it out. Lester Toledo (R), head of the team appointed to distribute the aid, gives a press conference in Cucuta, Colombia "The Venezuelan people are going to unite in a humanitarian corridor, civilians hand in hand with soldiers," said Lester Toledo, the head of that team. A small group of Venezuelan protesters on the Colombian side of the border bridge -- expatriates who are among the 2.3 million people to leave the country since 2015 -- is sending the same message. "Soldier, friend, we're counting on you," said a sign one of them was brandishing. "We didn't want to leave our country, which we love, but the situation forced us to. Our children are hungry, we have no money," said demonstrator Eduard Guzman, clutching a sign asking soldiers to let the aid through "now, now, now." He walked across the border and was on his way to the Colombian capital, Bogota, when he saw the protest and decided to join it. "We need it, we are suffering," said Guzman. "We can't go on like this." Executives at Goldman Sachs headquarters face questions over the firm's work for scandal-ridden Malaysian fund 1MDB Goldman Sachs's decision to potentially cut bonuses for top executives over the 1MDB scandal reflects an acknowledgement at shareholder and public outrage over the debacle. The prestigious investment bank announced last week that it could withhold millions of dollars in bonuses to former Chief Executive Lloyd Blankfein and two other retired executives depending on the outcome of ongoing probes into the Malaysian fund. The bonuses were first approved in 2011 and the annual payouts depend on the firm's performance over the ensuing eight years. In Blankfein's case, the bonus began at $7 million and nearly doubled, according to US securities documents. Beyond the bonuses, Goldman also said it could claw back compensation from current chief executive David Solomon and two other current senior executives, president John Waldron and chief financial officer Stephen Scherr. Solomon was paid $23 million last year, including $15.4 million in stock options. The announcement on bonuses was intended as a message for shareholders who are upset at how the corruption scandal has tarred the bank's image at a time when it is working to build up its consumer banking business through the online platform Marcus, according to two people familiar with the matter. The board of directors wants shareholders to know it is not blind to the gravity of the situation, said one of the sources, adding that the message was not meant to be an admission of wrongdoing. Besides Solomon, who also serves as chairman, Goldman's 13-member board includes ArcelorMittal chief executive Lakshmi Mittal. Experts say Goldman Sachs could face a fine of perhaps $2 billion under a criminal case related to 1MDB. - Under scrutiny - Goldman Sachs chief executive David Solomon is among the company leaders who could see compensation clawed back depending on probes over 1MDB In January, Solomon apologized to Malaysia over the scandal and the involvement of former Goldman partner Tim Leissner, who had pleaded guilty to violating US anti-bribery and money laundering laws. Solomon's statement stood out in tone from that of Blankfein, who said during the height of the financial crisis in 2009 that he was "doing God's work" in helping companies raise capital. US authorities have accused a Malaysian financial intermediary, Low Taek Jho, along with Leissner and another former Goldman banker, Ng Chong Hwa, of conspiring to launder billions of dollars from 1 Malaysia Development Berhad, a sovereign wealth fund set up for development of the country. Goldman garnered $600 million in fees and revenues from 1MDB bond transactions. US officials maintain that more than $2.7 billion in funds went to kickbacks and bribes. Pointed questions facing Goldman Sachs include revelations it proceeded with its first transaction with 1MDB to finance a $1.75 billion purchase of power plants despite being warned by rival bank Lazard that the deal looked suspicious, according to a source. Also, a division of the investment bank agreed to do business with Low Taek Jho even though he was rejected in 2011 from opening an account because bank officials could not determine the source of his wealth, a person familiar with the matter told AFP. "The due diligence functions at Goldman Sachs fell apart," said Richard Bove, analyst at Odeon Capital and a frequent Goldman critic. "If you're going to raise $6 billion for someone you better know everything there is to know about that someone." The three transactions were presented to the bank's investment committees for Asia and firm-wide, which required 1MDB to pay a larger-than-usual fee because 1MDB was opposed to a syndicated loan, saddling Goldman with all of the risk, a source said. Goldman declined comment and Lazard did not respond requests for comment. Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority (RAKTDA) has announced the opening of its international representative office in Prague, Czech Republic, to manage and oversee the tourism authoritys activities in Central and Eastern Europe. The new office is located in one of the most important economic, transportation and communication centres in the region, and will play a vital role in promoting the destination and driving further growth in the number of visitors travelling to Ras Al Khaimah. Central and Eastern European countries have shown increased interest in the emirate over the past few years with significant growth year-on-year. In 2018, visitor numbers from the Czech Republic and Hungary were up by 18.4 per cent and 11.4 per cent respectively compared to the previous year. Announcing the opening of the new office, Haitham Mattar, CEO of Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority, said: Our New Destination Strategy 2019-2021 aims to attract 1.5 million visitors to the emirate by 2021. We believe that by providing a compelling proposition and establishing a dedicated presence in our key international target markets, we will be able to promote the destination and its diverse offering driving growth in visitor numbers." Central and Eastern European countries are amongst the fastest growing markets for us and frequently rank in our top 10 source markets for visitors. The new representative office in Prague will support our promotional activities, trade partnerships and help us develop the regions high potential outbound market, added Mattar. Adding to Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority international representation offices in UK, Germany, Russia and Nordics, the Prague office will support RAKTDAs initiatives to drive further awareness of the emirate as a multi-faceted leisure destination to Central and East European travellers. In 2018, approximately 48,000 visitors from Central and Eastern Europe chose to spend their vacation in Ras Al Khaimah. The increase in demand from these markets was further highlighted by the introduction of direct flights between RAK International Airport and several cities in Poland including Warsaw, Katowice, Poznan and Wroclaw, as well as direct flights to Prague in the Czech Republic. Numerous trade activities have been organised for the coming year in the region, including webinars, networking events, workshops, FAM trips for the trade, and an exclusive Ras Al Khaimah roadshow in February 2019. RAKTDAs new three-year strategy focuses on diversifying the emirates offerings to create experiences that showcase some of the finest beaches and nature in the region, the highest mountain in the UAE, a unique terracotta desert, rich history and heritage, as well as authentic Arabian cultural experiences and adventures. - TradeArabia News Service A soldier walks past a burnt building in Yumbi, where the December 16-17 massacre claimed 535 lives, according to a UN toll It was a bloodbath that happened out of sight of the rest of the world and was largely unnoticed even at home, occurring in the runup to fiercely-disputed elections. Days passed before details began to trickle out about what had happened on December 16 and 17 in Yumbi, a remote territory in southwest DR Congo. It was a whole month before a preliminary UN investigation said "credible sources" had found nearly 900 people were killed -- a figure later scaled back to 535 after bodies had been identified. Some 16,000 refugees fled across the Congo river into the neighbouring Republic of Congo. The authorities have characterised the violence as a spontaneous act -- long-simmering tensions between the Batende and Banunu communities that suddenly flared over the burial of a Banunu tribal chief. But when AFP visited the scene last week, sources said the violence was a carefully-planned massacre of the Banunu. The attack was carried out using military-style tactics and some assailants were dressed in army uniforms, they said. Some implicated members of the armed forces and the local authorities in the massacre. - 'Three-column attack' - Colonel Olivier Gasita, sent to the region on December 20 from Kinshasa, around 400 kilometres (250 miles) to the south, said: "The assailants were well organised. Clearly there was an organisation commanding them." Refugees from the massacres at Yumbi in DR Congo gather at the church in Makotimpoko, a town in the Republic of Congo on the far side of the river. "Between 3,000 and 4,000 men attacked the area," said Gasita, who has become Yumbi's acting territorial administrator. There was a "training camp" in the Yumbi region, he said, without giving its location. Men in military uniform and armed with assault rifles gunned down Banunu people, said many survivors who had fled across the river to Makotimpoko in the Republic of Congo. The colonel spoke of "a three-column attack -- that's a military tactic. That shows that military men, either deserters or demobilised men, were involved." "The soldiers were right in the front line," said Bosukisa Montole, a refugee cradling his son, who had a bullet wound in the neck. The grave of the Banunu traditional chiefs in Yumbi, where burial plans reportedly served as the signal for slaughter. Another soldier, who wished to remain anonymous, told AFP "around 30 troops" had directly participated in the violence. He said that his unit, deployed in one of the four targeted villages, Bongende, received warning messages from members of the Batende just before the onslaught began. "They called us to say that they were going to fight the Banunu," the soldier told AFP, asking not to be named. "They told me that if the Banunu brought back the body of their tribal chief, that would be the signal to start fighting." At least 339 people perished in Bongende village on December 17, according to investigators. The soldier said that three days before the assault, he notified the Yumbi authorities that suspicious men were gathering at the home of a school headmaster in Ngamabila, situated near Bongende. But his concerns were not addressed, he said. - 'Soldiers going to attack' - "Attackers went to the home of the primary school headmaster to camouflage themselves," said Richard Nkumu, a teacher from Bongende who took refuge in Makotimpoko. Survivors of an attack on the village of Bonguende stand by a mass grave, where 100 victims are reputedly buried. At least four Banunu people who had spouses or friends and relatives among the Batende were given several days warning ahead of the attack, survivors told AFP. "A Batende friend came to say that I should flee with my family because soldiers were going to attack," said Raoul, who took a pseudonym and is today a refugee. After the bloodshed, the government replaced several territorial officials, including the police and intelligence chiefs, army staff and administrative personnel. The local chief of the National Intelligence Agency (ANR), Paul Mutumbula, was arrested in Yumbi. He is now being investigated by prosecutors in a military probe launched by Kinshasa. Islets in the vast Congo River are home to fishing communities and those who fled the bloodshed Yumbi's police chief, Major Dominique Matshindi, has gone on the run. The territorial administrator, Paul Mbo Nsami, was killed soon after the attack on Yumbi in murky circumstances while he hid in the local premises of the electoral commission, which had been wrecked. The massacre took place just four days before elections that brought the curtain down on President Joseph Kabila's 18-year reign. He was replaced by Felix Tshisekedi, head of Democratic Republic of Congo's veteran opposition party, the UDPS. Polling in Yumbi was postponed because of the violence -- a measure that was also implemented in parts of the east where militia groups have killed hundreds of people in the last five years. Participants and onlookers gather for Go Topless Day, in Venice Beach, California -- the women convicted in New Hampshire are members of the "Free the Nipple" movement The northeastern US state of New Hampshire's Supreme Court on Friday upheld the conviction of three women who went naked on a beach -- violating a local ordinance. In May 2016, "Free the Nipple" activist Ginger Pierro decided to do some topless yoga on a beach in the city of Locania. But that broke a local law against nudity in public places -- which specifically bans "the showing of the female breast with less than a fully opaque covering of any part of the nipple." Police, alerted by onlookers, arrested her. Then, three days later, activists Kia Sinclair and Heidi Lilley decided to sunbathe topless on another beach in the town to protest Pierro's arrest. The three women were found guilty and slapped with a $100 suspended fine. They then appealed to have their conviction thrown out, arguing they were victims of gender discrimination. But the Supreme Court did not agree. For the majority of the judges, the law "merely reflects the fact that men and women are not fungible with respect to the traditional understanding of what constitutes nudity." The women's lawyer, Dan Hynes, said he was "disappointed" with the ruling -- and argued the court had "effectively condoned making it a crime to be female." His clients now have their sights set on the US Supreme Court. Should the high court take the case, it could clarify a point of some confusion in the US. Only some states formally forbid women from showing their breasts -- with others imposing restrictions, particularly on breastfeeding. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is seen in 2009 unveiling the Kindle 2, one of the company's electronic reader devices, one step in the long march by the company which has become of the world's most valuable Starting three decades ago in his garage, Jeff Bezos built one of the world's most successful business empires -- and became the richest person on the planet. Now Bezos is turning to new challenges, giving up his role as chief executive of the technology giant to focus his energy on other business and philanthropic ventures. Now 57, Bezos founded Amazon in 1994 and went on to grow it into a colossus that dominates online retail, with operations in streaming music and television, groceries, cloud computing, robotics, artificial intelligence and more. Bezos announced Tuesday he would transition to executive chair at the company he founded more than 26 years earlier and hand over the job of chief executive to Andy Jassy, who heads the cloud computing unit AWS. "This journey began some 27 years ago," Bezos said in a letter to Amazon employees. "As much as I still tap dance into the office, I'm excited about this transition," he wrote. In announcing the news, Bezos said he would remain engaged at Amazon but also devote time to his other businesses include The Washington Post newspaper and the private space firm Blue Origin. He also will concentrate on his philanthropy efforts which include his Day One Fund and the Bezos Earth Fund, to which he made a $10 billion donation last year. "I've never had more energy, and this isn't about retiring. I'm super passionate about the impact I think these organizations can have," he wrote. The move by Bezos comes after his ex-wife MacKenzie Scott had seized the spotlight in the philanthropic arena by pledging to give away the majority of her wealth to social causes, starting with nearly $6 billion last year to a variety of organizations chosen with the help of advisors. - Transforming, innovating - Jeff Bezos divorced after 25 years of marriage to MacKenzie Scott, who launched a vast philanthropic initiative with her money from the divorce settlement Jeff Bezos's stake in Amazon gives him a personal worth of some $196 billion, making him the world's richest individual, ahead of Tesla founder Elon Musk who briefly held that distinction. The stunning rise of Amazon has come amid a rapid global expansion and taking risks with its investments and innovation. "It is hard to believe that Mr. Bezos only founded the company some 26 years ago," said analyst Neil Saunders of the research firm GlobalData. "Into that short period has been crammed a whole lifetime of innovation and entrepreneurship which have transformed not only the company's fortunes but the whole shape and configuration of the retail sector." "Its relentless focus on the customer and its constant pursuit of finding better ways of doing business made it not only a survivor but a leader of the internet age." - In the headlines - Bezos has been in the headlines in recent years not only for his business success, but for his 2019 divorce from MacKenzie, his wife of 25 years, and a blackmail attempt which he decided to make public. He stood up to the National Enquirer, controlled by then-president Donald Trump's ally David Pecker, who threatened to release lurid, intimate pictures of Bezos and his mistress, by making details of the exchanges public himself. "If in my position I can't stand up to this kind of extortion, how many people can?" Bezos wrote on Medium. - Road to riches - Bezos is seen at the Amazon headquarters in early 2018 Bezos's penchant for experimenting reportedly dates to a young age -- with one widely shared story recounting how he tried to dismantle his own crib as a toddler. His mother was a teenager when she gave birth to Bezos in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on January 12, 1964. She remarried when her son was about four years old, and he was legally adopted by his Cuban immigrant stepfather who worked as an engineer at a petrochemical company. "My dad came here from Cuba all by himself without speaking English when he was 16 years old, and has been kicking ass ever since," Bezos said in a Father's Day tweet. Bezos was enchanted by computer science when the IT industry was in its infancy and he studied engineering at Princeton University. After graduating, he put his skills to work on Wall Street, where by 1990 he had risen to be a senior vice president at investment firm D.E. Shaw But about four years later he surprised peers by leaving his high-paid position, backed by money borrowed from his parents, to open an online bookseller called Amazon.com. Looking back at the journey so far, he offered this advice in his parting letter to staff: "Keep inventing, and don't despair when at first the idea looks crazy." UN Special Envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths (C-R) and International Committee of the Red Cross President Peter Maurer (C-L) attend a new round of talks between Yemen's warring parties on a prisoner swap on February 5, 2019 in Amman Yemen's Saudi-backed government and Huthi rebels have made "important progress" during talks in Jordan on a troubled UN-brokered prisoner swap deal, mediators said Friday. The huge prisoner exchange agreed in Stockholm in December is seen as a crucial confidence-building measure in the UN-led push to calm four years of devastating conflict. After three days of talks in the Jordanian capital, a UN committee tasked with overseeing the swap said the warring sides had made "important progress in moving the release process forward". That headway included "providing additional information on the status of individuals included in the lists of prisoners", it added. Both sides have said repeatedly they remain committed to the agreement that could see thousands of prisoners released. During talks in Jordan last month, they submitted lists of the detainees they each want to see freed, but deep distrust prevented them coming up with a final list of names for the exchange. Saudi prisoner Musa al-Awaji waves as he steps into a Red Cross plane at Sanaa airport following his release by Yemen's Huthi rebels in January 2019 At the end of January, the rebels released a captured Saudi soldier while Riyadh set free seven Huthi prisoners, but they are the only detainees exchanged under the deal so far. UN envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths said Tuesday at the opening of this round of talks he hoped the two sides would manage to finalise the swap deal. "Success in this regard is not only of huge importance for those who will be released and return to their families but also to the broader political process in which we are engaged," he said The prisoner exchange was one of the key breakthroughs at the UN-mediated talks in December. There are fears that if the exchange fails it could have a knock-on effect on the other key elements -- fragile truce agreements for the lifeline port of Hodeida and battleground third city of Taez. Those deals too have faced problems -- while the ceasefires have largely held, timetables for the pullback of combatants have fallen far behind schedule. Yemen's government and Huthi rebels have agreed on a preliminary compromise for redeploying their forces from the port city of Hodeida, the UN said Thursday. The conflict in Yemen has killed some 10,000 people since a 2015 Saudi-led intervention and pushed 14 million to the brink of famine, according to the United Nations. A Christian believer visits the recently renovated 'Prison of Christ' inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem's Old City on February 8, 2019 A chapel built on a site where Christians believe Jesus was imprisoned by Roman soldiers ahead of his crucifixion has reopened after repairs, a Church official said Friday. The site -- in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre -- was repaired over a period of several years after a fire caused major damage. "It is in this prison that Jesus was detained after he carried the cross along the Via Dolorosa," a senior Greek Orthodox official told AFP Friday, asking not to be named. "Since the end of January, it has once again become a place of prayer and contemplation", the official said. The chapel houses two holes dug into rock that were used, according to tradition, to bind the feet of Jesus. The two holes are protected by a window and are adorned by an icon representing Jesus' hobbled feet and hands. The chapel is under the sovereignty of the Greek Orthodox Church. The site is also revered by the Armenian Church, as well as by representatives of the Catholic Church. According to tradition, the Holy Sepulchre stands on the site of Jesus' crucifixion and burial. The site is in the old city of Israeli annexed east Jerusalem. Thai Princess Ubolratana's decision to run for prime minister has shaken up Thai politics Thai Princess Ubolratana was put forward Friday as a candidate for prime minister in the March elections, the first time a royal has entered frontline politics -- a development the palace later condemned as "highly inappropriate". Her game-changing entrance into Thailand's turbulent political scene -- and the displeasure it stirred from her brother, the king -- layers on complexity into the coming poll, the first since a 2014 coup. So what do Friday's astonishing events mean for Thai politics? How is the junta affected? The moment the princess entered the fray, for the Thai Raksa Chart party, junta chief Prayut Chan-O-Cha looked to be on the ropes. He agreed to be a candidate for premier shortly after her, in a move putting him in direct rivalry with a member of the institution he seized power vowing to defend. But the statement late Friday from the palace condemned the move "to bring" Ubolratana into politics as "highly inappropriate" and "unconstitutional", dimming the prospects of her running. That would put Prayut back in the driver's seat. "She supported Thaksin and wanted to participate in politics," said Paul Chambers, a lecturer at Naresuan University. "He (the king) was against regal involvement in elections." Election Authorities have a week to review which candidates are allowed to stand for prime minister after the March 24 vote. How will this affect Thailand's political divides? The kingdom's political schism is broadly between the Shinawatra-aligned rural poor and the Bangkok-based elite, and has resulted in rounds of deadly street protests and two coups since 2006. For the princess, coming out on the side of the Shinawatras will further complicate Thailand's troubled politics, said Pavin Chachavalpongpun, associate professor at the Center for Southeast Asian Studies at Kyoto University. "Thai politics has been drawn along the monarchy fault line and the latest move has further deepened that line." The palace statement did not directly criticise the princess but seemed to take aim at the political party bringing her on board, a move described as "against royal traditions and the nation's culture". Thailand has been a constitutional monarchy since 1932. Some initially viewed Ubolratana's entry as deft political strategy by Thaksin and a sign of a backroom deal to revive his political fortunes. But the palace statement casts serious doubt on the efficacy of Thaksin's strategy. Does the princess have a background in politics? Her experience is limited, but the Shinawatras have a deep pool of political know-how. Thaksin and his sister Yingluck were both ousted in military coups, in 2006 and 2014 respectively. Still, their parties have won every election since 2001. Ubolratana is well-known among the Thai public, having appeared in movies, stage performances and maintaining an active, vibrant social media presence. "I feel great. And I think she's a suitable choice," Thai homemaker Nirinsiri Chanboriboon, 41, told AFP after the announcement of her candidacy earlier Friday. But she is still untested politically and Thai social media was full of scepticism over the move -- with many unsure what to make of it. The monarchy is revered in Thailand, and is protected by some of the harshest lese majeste laws in the world. The ongoing trade battle between the US and China could "have a negative impact of 0.7 percent of GDP from Africa" through lack of trade and investment flows, according to a senior official at the African Development Bank Persisting trade tensions between economic superpowers the United States and China could shave 0.7 percent from Africa's GDP in 2019, a senior official at the African Development Bank (AfDB) said on Friday. Hanan Morsy, director of the AfDB's macroeconomic policy department, made the prediction on the sidelines of an African Union meeting in Addis Ababa as fresh doubts emerged over the prospects for US-China trade war negotiations. She was speaking after the release of the bank's African Economic Outlook 2019 report, which said the continent registered growth of 3.5 percent in 2018, and was expected to grow 4 percent in 2019. This is higher than most regions of the world but still insufficient to address persistent fiscal and current account deficits and "unsustainable debt". Furthermore, the ongoing trade battle between the US and China could "have a negative impact of 0.7 percent of GDP from Africa. This impact will be through lack of trade and investment flows". "AfDB in particular expects a noticeable impact in the tradeable sectors, including export commodities like minerals, oil and food related products," she added. US President Donald Trump (L, pictured November 2018) said he did not expect to meet his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping before March 1, leading to a slump in world stock markets The United States has threatened to more than double existing tariffs on Chinese goods at the start of March if there is no agreement on measures to reform China's trade practices, which Washington says are deeply unfair. US President Donald Trump said Thursday he did not expect to meet his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping before the March 1 deadline, leading to a slump in world stock markets. Top White House economist Larry Kudlow told Fox Business on Thursday that while Trump was "optimistic" about prospects for a deal, there remained a "sizeable distance" separating the two sides. A lack of a breakthrough could weaken the global economy, with already gloomy growth forecasts from the European Commission on Thursday which predicted lower than expected growth of 1.3 percent in the eurozone this year. A slowdown in the global economy could lead to a decline in demand for Africa's exports, more than 60 percent of which head to the US, China and Europe, said the AfDB report. The report said that in 2019, 40 percent of African countries are projected to see growth of at least 5 percent. However a burgeoning working-age population means the continent needs to create 12 million jobs a year, meaning the nature of economic growth has to change to move away from mainly informal sector jobs. HMCS Vancouver, a Royal Canadian Navy frigate, docking in Hong Kong in May 2018: Canada has signed a Can$185 million contract with Lockheed Martin to design a new generation of frigates Canada announced Friday it had partnered with US weapons maker Lockheed Martin on a Can$185 million project to design 15 warships. "Our government is providing the Royal Canadian Navy with the ships it needs to do its important work of protecting Canadians," Procurement Minister Carla Qualtrough said in Halifax, where the ships will be built. Based on the British-designed Type 26 frigate, developed by BAE Systems for the British defense ministry, the ships will measure 492 feet (150 meters) from bow to stern. Armed with sea-to-air missiles and with a range of 8,000 miles (13,000 kilometers) and a top speed of 26 knots (48 kilometers an hour), the ships will carry crews of between 157 and 208 sailors. The design period is expected to last three to four years, with construction due to start in the early 2020s. While the initial contract is for Can$185 million ($139 million), the cost of building all 15 warships will rise to Can$60 billion, according to the Radio-Canada public news service. "These highly advanced, state-of-the-art warships will enable our navy to monitor and defend our waters here at home, help us support our international allies and keep Canadians safe," said Defense Minister Harjit Sajjan. Since coming to office in 2015, the government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has launched an extensive modernization program of Canada's armed forces, updating warplanes and submarines and buying new light armored vehicles and a new generation of precision-guided munitions. The long-term aim is to bolster defense spending from the current one percent of gross domestic product to 1.4 percent by 2027. US President Donald Trump faced a February 8, 2019 deadline to designate those responsible for the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, as US lawmakers publicly suspect the involvement of Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman President Donald Trump appeared prepared Friday to ignore the US Congress's deadline to determine who ordered the assassination of Jamal Khashoggi amid new revelations that Saudi Arabia's crown prince spoke of going after the journalist "with a bullet." With pressure mounting in Washington and Riyadh, the US president theoretically had until the end of the day to designate those responsible for the murder of the Washington Post columnist, who was strangled and dismembered by Saudi agents in the kingdom's consulate in Istanbul on October 2. The time limit was imposed by Democratic and Republican senators, who wrote to the president on October 10 calling for an investigation into the killing. Under a human rights accountability law the letter gives the president 120 days to designate and punish those responsible. But no definitive action was expected Friday from the administration. "Consistent with the previous administration's position and the constitutional separation of powers, the president maintains his discretion to decline to act on congressional committee requests when appropriate," a senior administration official said. "The US Government will continue to consult with Congress and work to hold accountable those responsible for Jamal Khashoggi's killing." The State Department said Thursday Washington had already taken action, pointing to last year's revocation of visas for nearly two dozen Saudi officials and the freezing of assets of 17 others. Some members of Congress have publicly stated that they suspect the powerful Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was directly responsible for the killing, based on the CIA's conclusions. Predicting little movement, a bipartisan group of senators on Thursday proposed a bill that would cut off some weapons sales and require sanctions against any Saudis involved in Khashoggi's killing. "Seeing as the Trump administration has no intention of insisting on full accountability for Mr. Khashoggi's murderers, it is time for Congress to step in and impose real consequences to fundamentally re-examine our relationship with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and with the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen," said Robert Menendez, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Jamal Khashoggi, pictured in the Bahraini capital Manama on December 15, 2014, was strangled and dismembered by Saudi agents The Trump administration claims it has no compelling evidence of the direct involvement of the young and powerful Saudi leader, although the senators -- briefed in private by intelligence leaders -- stressed they remained convinced that the prince known as "MBS" was responsible. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo raised Khashoggi's killing among other issues during a meeting in Washington Thursday with Adel al-Jubeir, the Saudi foreign minister, according to the State Department. Al-Jubeir reiterated Friday that the prince was not involved in the murder and blaming him would be crossing a "red line." "For anyone to think that they can dictate what we should do, what our leadership should do, is preposterous," al-Jubeir told reporters. - New revelations - Trump has publicly said he is not concerned whether Prince Mohammed was involved, arguing that the Saudi alliance benefits Washington due to the kingdom's purchases of weapons and its hostility to regional rival Iran. Hatice Cengiz, fiancee of Jamal Khashoggi, at the presentation of her book in Istanbul The deadline coincides with new embarrassing developments for the prince. The New York Times, citing officials who had seen US intelligence, said Prince Mohammed had warned in an intercepted conversation with an aide in 2017 that he would go after Khashoggi "with a bullet" if he did not return to Saudi Arabia from the United States. US intelligence understood that the ambitious 33-year-old heir apparent was ready to kill the journalist, although he may not have literally meant to shoot him, according to the newspaper. Special UN rapporteur Agnes Callamard said Thursday after a visit to Turkey that the killing of Khashoggi, who had written critical pieces on Saudi Arabia in the Post, had been "planned and perpetrated" by Saudi officials. In light of the revelations, Khashoggi's Turkish fiancee said Friday she hoped pressure from US lawmakers would encourage the Trump adminstration to take a tougher stance on the killing. Speaking at a news conference in Istanbul, Hatice Cengiz left the door open to a meeting with Trump if certain conditions were met, a softening of her position in December when she rejected an invitation from the US president. "A visit to the United States could take place in March," Cengiz said, adding she hoped Trump would have a change of "attitude" about the murder. With new regulations such as the PPP (public-private partnership) law in Saudi Arabia, an increased number of PPP projects will get off the ground around the region, with a growing focus on renewables, transportation, education and healthcare, said a report by global law firm Hogan Lovells. The impact of key market regulations will become clearer as they are approved and implemented: with possibly a new PPP law in Oman; foreign investment law in UAE and Qatar, stated Hogan Lowells in its recently released "Investment Outlook 2019 Report: Economic trends and corporate transactions in the GCC." The third annual Investment Outlook report investigates the fiscal environment in the GCC, the key macroeconomic factors impacting the region, as well as investment trends and capital inflows over the next 12 months. In this years report, alongside trends for capital markets, privatization and PPPs, Hogan Lovells takes a close look at the prospects for foreign direct investment (FDI), growing trade and investment ties with Africa and China, and the Gulf regions emergence as Silicon Valleys leading venture investor. The global law firm pointed out that Emirati investors will continue to expand out of their slowing home market and take advantage of growth potential in Saudi Arabia, as well as increasing ties in Africa, China, India, Russia and Latin America, it stated. Sovereign wealth funds like Mubadala and Saudi's Public Investment Fund (PIF) are likely to expand their investment in global ventures, increasingly financed by loans. They could start investing more actively into their home economies to make up for lack of foreign investment and struggling private sectors, it stated. Hogan Lowells pointed out that the macroeconomic picture had improved significantly across the GCC over the last 12 months. Increased oil production and the more benign fiscal environment translated into improved GDP growth. Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar returned to fiscal surpluses in 2018, Oman's deficit narrowed very sharply, while Bahrain pulled back from crisis, after receiving support from Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Kuwait, it stated. According to Hogan Lowells, there are some challenges from 2018 which will make the transition into 2019. GDP growth has not yet delivered a better environment for the private sector. "Also the low hanging fruit has gone, hindering the high growth rates we have become used to. The global and regional framework grows ever more challenging and harder to navigate," it stated. "However, there are also key opportunities shaping Gulf markets this year, including: Growing trade and investment ties. With the US becoming a less predictable partner, Gulf countries are making efforts to develop ties in new markets," it added. In Saudi Arabia, a number of privatisation deals, currently in the pipeline, are likely to be completed in 2019. Also the sovereign wealth funds are investing into global ventures. "The major opportunities shaping Gulf markets include the UAE's strong position as a gateway for investment into Africa besides the transformation in Chinas relations with the Gulf over the past year, and Brexit, whilst causing financial markets to suffer, could be seen as an opportunity for GCC nations to strike mutually beneficial trade deals directly with the UK," it stated. The Tech Boom The Gulf region has emerged as Silicon Valley's leading venture investor, with key players establishing offices there to focus their high-value tech investments. Within the Middle East, a wave of tech start-ups, mostly founded after the recession, are now reaching critical mass and attracting serious capital investment. GCC governments continue to attract foreign investment by offering far-reaching reforms, unlocking state-owned assets and loosening restrictions. New regulations such as the PPP law in Saudi Arabia, and possibly Oman, as well as the Foreign Investment Laws in the UAE and Qatar are encouraging investors to take a real look at the Middle East, remarked Rahail Ali, the managing partner of Hogan Lovells Middle East. "GCC economies have proved to be resilient in the face of, at times, depressed oil prices. The growth potential of these markets is huge and the reform drive is continuing, while government infrastructure spending has grown - a key hook for foreign investment," noted Ali. "That is not to say that there isn't room for further development. Privatization, for example, takes time and local businesses need to adjust to the new regulatory environments," he pointed out. "However, government initiatives, such as Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030, are committed to positive change which we can already see in the development of sustainable market sectors," he added.-TradeArabia News Service US President Donald Trump has said a resolution to the trade dispute with Beijing will depend on a meeting with China's President Xi Jinping, but it won't take place before the truce expires March 1 US officials will be in Beijing February 14-15 for the third round of talks aimed at heading off an escalation of the ongoing trade war with China, the White House announced Friday. Negotiators are working towards an agreement before the 90-day tariff truce expires March 1, after which the US is set to more than double punitive duties on $200 billion in Chinese goods. US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin will lead the delegation, which also includes David Malpass, who President Donald Trump has nominated to be president of the World Bank, according to the statement. However, strident White House China critic Peter Navarro was not listed as part of the US team. While officials seemed optimistic after talks last week in Washington, more recent comments have jarred financial markets, amplifying concerns about how the dispute will impact global growth. US President Donald Trump said Thursday he did not expect to meet his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping before a March 1 deadline for the two economic superpowers to reach a deal. Trump had said final resolution of the trade dispute would depend on the meeting with Xi "in the near future," but told reporters it had not yet been arranged. And top White House economist Larry Kudlow said Thursday that while Trump was "optimistic" about prospects for a deal, there remained a "sizeable distance" separating the two sides. Washington is demanding far-reaching changes from China to address unfair practices it says are deeply unfair, including theft of American intellectual property and the massive Chinese trade surplus. The White House said there will be a preparatory meeting of senior officials beginning February 11, and the talks will include officials from the Agriculture, Energy and Commerce Departments. US President Donald Trump's daughter Ivanka Trump (C) speaks during a White House event to launch her Women's Global Development and Prosperity Initiative President Donald Trump's daughter Ivanka said Friday that she is not worried about any threat that the Mueller Russia meddling investigation might pose to her family. The senior White House advisor, who is married to Jared Kushner, another of the president's closest advisors, told ABC News that there is "nothing" of substance in the 21-month-old probe by Special Counsel Robert Mueller into possible collusion between Moscow and President Trump's 2016 election campaign. Mueller has already charged six former Trump aides and associates with various crimes. Given that the investigation could nearly be over, ABC interviewer Abby Huntsman asked Ivanka Trump in an interview, "Are you concerned about anyone in your life that you love being involved?" "No. There's nothing there," Trump answered. "Yet it's created weeks and weeks and months of headlines. I'm not. I'm really not" concerned, she said. The rare interview with the president's 37-year-old-daughter came in conjunction with the launch of her new "Women's Global Development and Prosperity Initiative" to help boost women in developing countries. She has said little about the Mueller probe, which is believed to be honing in on her father, husband and brother Donald Trump Jr over their involvement in contacts with Russia during the 2016 presidential race. Mueller has revealed very little about his interests, but court documents and lawyers have suggested he is focused both on possible collusion and obstruction allegations against members of the Trump family. ABC asked Ivanka about her own involvement in a Moscow real estate project that recently-revealed documents and court filings showed the Trump family pursued right up to the time of the 2016 election, despite President Trump's previous claims that the project was given up at the beginning of 2016. Documents showed President Trump had personally signed an initial letter of intent on the deal with the Russian developer. While she was deeply involved in the Trump Organization, the president's real estate business, Ivanka said she knew "literally almost nothing" about the Moscow Trump Tower project. "There was never a binding contract," she said. "We could have had 40 or 50 deals like that, that were floating around, that somebody was looking at. Nobody visited it to see if it was worth our time. So this was not exactly like an advanced project." Former US ambassador to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad has in recent months held meetings with Taliban officials in Qatar The United States is hoping Afghanistan can strike a peace agreement including the Taliban before elections scheduled for July, US envoy Zalmay Khalilzad said on Friday. "It will be better for Afghanistan if we could get a peace agreement before the election, which is scheduled in July," the negotiator said, adding that there remained "a lot of work" to do. Khalilzad, who is leading talks with the Taliban, was at the US Institute of Peace in Washington to discuss an ongoing push for a political settlement to the 17-year-old Afghanistan conflict. A former US ambassador to Afghanistan who is now special envoy in the talks, Khalilzad has in recent months held meetings with Taliban officials in Qatar, where the group's senior leaders have an office in the capital Doha. He has expressed cautious optimism about the prospect of a deal, and even announced a draft framework, but stressed nothing had been finalized. Critics are skeptical about the talks for a number of reasons, primarily because they have not yet included the Afghan government, which the Taliban considers US-backed puppets. Additionally, the Taliban have promised not to provide shelter again to foreign extremists, but experts say they cannot be trusted and even now are helping to hide foreign militants. The talks come as President Donald Trump pushes to end the Afghanistan conflict, where about 14,000 US troops are still deployed and which has seen countless thousands of civilian and military deaths, as well as an infusion of more than $1 trillion in US cash into the country. In his annual State of the Union speech on Tuesday, Trump said the time has come "to at least try for peace." Afghanistan has suffered nearly constant conflict since the Soviet invasion of 1979, which was followed by civil war, the Taliban regime, and the US invasion in late 2001. Khalilzad was a major player in George W. Bush's administration when the United States first invaded Afghanistan after the September 11, 2001 attacks. French Defence Minister Florence Parly (L) meets Iraqi President Barham Saleh (R) in Baghdad on February 8, 2019 France's defence minister warned Friday in Baghdad that "the work is not over" in the fight against the Islamic State group, despite the jihadists facing the loss of their last scrap of territory. "The territorial caliphate, which has not yet been wiped out, is being defeated," minister Florence Parly said in the Iraqi capital. "We must continue the fight against IS and terrorism in the region because IS is probably in the process of reorganising underground and spreading out." US-backed fighters in neighbouring Syria are gearing up for a final push to oust IS from the sole village it still holds, all that remains of a proto-state that once spanned swathes of both countries. President Donald Trump, who committed late last year to pulling US troops out of Syria, has said he expects a final declaration of victory over IS next week. Parly called for France "to strengthen the relationship of cooperation and partnership with Iraq", both as part of a US-led coalition and bilaterally, to face the "persistent threat" of IS. Trump sparked the ire of Iraqi officials last week when he said he plans to keep American forces in their country to keep an eye on neighbouring Iran, also a major power-broker in Baghdad. Defence ministers from the anti-IS coalition, of which France is a central member, are set to meet soon to determine how it can maintain a regional "presence", Parly said. "It is a proposal that will be made subject to Iraq accepting the conditions of this presence. We are on sovereign territory." Civilians fleeing fighting between Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and Islamic State (IS) jihadists in the frontline Syrian village of Baghuz, wait to be screened in the countryside of the eastern Syrian on February 3, 2019 Kurdish officials told AFP on Friday there was no progress on repatriating dozens of French nationals, including accused Islamic State fighters, women, and children, from prison camps in northern Syria. France announced last month it may bring back some 130 nationals held by the autonomous Kurdish administration in northern Syria after they were caught fleeing shrinking IS-held territory in recent months. But two administration officials denied any preparations were under way. "No French authorities have reached out to us about handing over French nationals, whether fighters, women, or children," said Abdulkarim Omar, who heads the Kurdish administration's foreign relations commission. "There's nothing new on this." Badran Jia Kurd, another top official in the semi-autonomous Kurdish government, also told AFP nothing had changed. "Yes, there have been many statements, but there has not been any progress in negotiations," he said. The Kurdish administration has said it was holding hundreds of foreign nationals, but both officials declined to provide accurate numbers. It has spent months calling on the foreigners' countries of origin to repatriate them, but the issue has taken on a new urgency since US President Donald Trump announced in December he would pull troops from Syria, prompting fears of a security vacuum in the north. Pressure has also increased since the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces launched an assault against IS's last eastern Syria pocket in December, which has seen foreign nationals stream out of the crumbling "caliphate". The Kurds also face the prospect of a major military operation Turkey has threatened to launch against them and they have warned they may then not be in a position to keep large numbers of foreign jihadists locked up. In two months, at least 1,000 foreign nationals have arrived in Al-Hol, one of two displacement camps where foreigners are being held. Human Rights Watch has warned that any transfers of foreign nationals must occur transparently. Palestinians in Gaza have been staging demonstrations along the border with Israel for nearly a year, calling on Israel to end its blockade of the enclave Two Palestinian teenagers were killed by Israeli fire on Friday during clashes along the Gaza border, the health ministry in the Hamas-run enclave said. Hassan Shalabi, 14, was killed by "live fire to the chest east of Khan Yunis" during protests along the frontier with Israel in the southern Gaza Strip, the ministry said. It announced the death of 18-year-old Hamza Ishtawi shortly after, saying he was shot in the neck during similar clashes east of Gaza City. Another 17 Palestinians were shot and wounded at different protest sites along the border, the ministry added. The Israeli army declined to comment on the deaths, but said 8,200 "rioters and demonstrators" had been protesting along the frontier. "They are hurling rocks at (Israeli) troops and towards the security fence, as well as a number of explosive devices that did not cross the fence," a spokesman said, adding that they had heard grenade explosions. Israeli troops "responded with riot dispersal means and fired according to standard operating procedures", he added. Palestinians in Gaza have for nearly a year gathered at least weekly along the border for often-violent protests, calling on Israel to end its blockade of the enclave. Israel says it is protecting its borders and accuses Hamas of orchestrating the protests. At least 249 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since then, the majority shot during clashes, though others have been hit by tank fire or air strikes. Two Israeli soldiers have been killed over the same period. Protests have dwindled in recent months after an informal agreement between Israel and Hamas. A Sudanese protester carries a sign calling for an end to President Omar al-Bashir's rule during an anti-government demonstration east of the capital Khartoum on February 8, 2019 Sudanese protesters rallied after Friday prayers in an eastern town against the death in custody of a teacher arrested in connection with anti-government demonstrations sweeping the country, witnesses said. An investigator on Thursday confirmed that teacher Ahmed al-Kheir, 36, had died from wounds sustained while in detention after he was arrested last week by security agents in the eastern town of Khashm el-Girba. Kheir, a member of Sudan's Islamist Popular Congress Party, was detained for allegedly organising anti-government protests, a relative told AFP. On Friday, crowds of protesters in Khashm el-Griba staged a rally after the weekly Muslim prayers to protest his death. "We will sacrifice our soul, our blood for you," chanted the protesters as they converged from several mosques, a witness told AFP by telephone. Kheir was arrested by agents of the country's powerful National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS), his uncle Ahmed Abdelwahad told AFP as the family took his body from a mortuary. Amer Ibrahim, the head of an investigative committee at the prosecutor's office, said Thursday that Kheir "had wounds on the back, legs and other parts of his body that led to his death". The investigator said he had requested the regional NISS boss bring in the security agents who interrogated the teacher. Deadly protests have rocked Sudan since December 19, with demonstrators holding nationwide rallies calling on President Omar al-Bashir to resign. Officials say 30 people have died in the violence, while Human Rights Watch says at least 51 people have been killed. Demonstrators on Friday also staged rallies in a district of Khartoum and in Omdurman, the twin city of the capital, witnesses said. Police fired tear gas as protesters rallied chanting "freedom, freedom" after Friday prayers outside a mosque in Omdurman run by the main opposition Umma party, witnesses said. Police dispersed the protesters but the Umma Party said that tear gas canisters hit the compound of the mosque. "The security forces of the regime fired tear gas inside the El-Saed Abdelrahman mosque compound and at the cars of Sadiq al-Mahdi," the party said in a statement late on Friday, referring to the head of the party. "Several worshippers have been wounded. We condemn this incident." The party said that security personnel came close to "worshippers and pointed their weapons at their faces". Police and security officials were not available for comment. Umma's head, former premier Mahdi, has thrown his weight behind the protests and called on Bashir to step down. Bashir, who has refused to resign, swept to power in a 1989 Islamist-backed coup that ousted Mahdi's elected government. Protests first erupted after a government decision to triple the price of bread but soon escalated into rallies against Bashir's three-decade-old rule. Former Ivorian rebel chief Guillaume Soro, seen here on the right, has said he is stepping down as parliamentary leader Former Ivorian rebel Guillaume Soro on Friday said he was stepping down as head of the National Assembly amid rumours he may be harbouring his own presidential ambitions in the 2020 elections. "I tender my resignation," Soro told lawmakers at a special session of parliament that he called. The announcement came just over a week after President Alassane Outtara had trailed Soro's departure as president of the National Assembly, saying he "will resign in February". Soro reputedly has a frosty relationship with Outtara, who pushed him to resign after he refused to throw his support behind changes to the ruling coalition. Ouattara heads a new party, the Rally of Houphouetists for Democracy and Peace (RHDP), which draws part of its name from founding president Felix Houphouet-Boigny and includes the president's Rally of Republicans (RDR) with other forces. Soro was reportedly not keen on the change and is now expected to declare himself a candidate in the 2020 presidential elections. "Refusing to resign would provoke an institutional crisis," said Soro, who served as prime minister between 2007-2012. "We cannot risk the fragile peace... to hold on to a job." Domineque Ray converted to Islam while in prison A US Muslim man has been executed after the Supreme Court denied a request to halt the sentence over his demand to be accompanied by an imam to the death chamber. Domineque Ray, 42, was put to death in the southern state of Alabama for the 1995 rape and murder of Tiffany Harville, 15. "Due to the nature of his crime, the decision of a jury to condemn him to death and because our legal system has worked as designed, Mr Ray's sentence was carried out," Alabama Governor Kay Ivey said in a statement. The execution occurred Thursday after the country's highest court denied a request for a stay of execution. Alabama carries out the death penalty by lethal injection. The Supreme Court's ruling lifted a last-minute stay which Ray had won on Wednesday from a federal appeals court. Judges on that lower-level court had argued that Alabama regularly placed a Christian cleric in the death chamber of Christian inmates "but has refused to provide the same benefit to a devout Muslim and all other non-Christians." Officials in the conservative state appealed that ruling to the Supreme Court, which has a conservative majority under President Donald Trump. The First Amendment to the US Constitution forbids public authorities from favoring one religion over another, or from preventing the free practice of faith. Ray converted to Islam while in prison and demanded the right to be escorted to the death chamber by an imam. Local news site al.com reported that Ray's last words were in Arabic, and his Muslim spiritual advisor was sitting with his lawyers and journalists in a viewing room. Bangladesh authorities said 17 women, six children and seven men were detained on a beach near the coastal town of Teknaf, which borders Myanmar's violence-wracked Rakine state Bangladesh security forces stopped 30 Rohingya refugees from being smuggled to Malaysia by boat, officials said Friday, as fears rise that calmer seas may tempt those living in squalid camps to make the journey to Southeast Asia. Two suspected human traffickers were detained in the operation by Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) forces in Cox's Bazar district late Thursday, the officials said. About 740,000 Rohingya fled Myanmar for Bangladesh following a military clampdown in August 2017. They joined about 300,000 of the Muslim minority already in the country where they are largely confined to camps, which have strained Bangladesh's resources to the limit. The 17 women, six children and seven men were detained on a beach near the coastal town of Teknaf, which borders Myanmar's violence-wracked Rakine state, the BGB said. It is the third time since November that Rohingya have been intercepted while attempting to reach the more prosperous and Muslim-majority Malaysia by boat. Some boats have also been intercepted trying to leave Myanmar. Lieutenant Colonel Asadud Zaman Chowdhury told AFP the 30 Rohingya were lured by human traffickers operating in refugee camps in Cox's Bazar. He said the Rohingya, who had paid about $1,000 each for "safe passage" to Malaysia, would be sent back to the camps. One of the women in the group said she was going to Malaysia "to get married" to a Rohingya man she had never met. "My uncle set me up for the journey and paid for the trip. My husband to be was meant to meet me once I reached Malaysia," she told AFP, refusing to give her name. There are fears that with improving weather more Rohingya may be tempted by traffickers to leave the Bangladesh camps and make the dangerous boat journey to Malaysia. People smugglers sent tens of thousands of Rohingya from the camps to Malaysia before Bangladesh launched a crackdown in 2015. This came after Thai authorities discovered mass graves of refugees and overcrowded boats were intercepted at sea. The Bay of Bengal -- which the boats must cross on their way to Malaysia -- is calmer between November and March. But many of the small boats are critically overcrowded by the owners seeking to make more money. Improved public and private partnerships are crucial to take the benefits of the latest technologies to the entire population across the world, advised a panel of thought-leaders at the seventh World Government Summit (WGS 2019) in Dubai. The panel discussion, titled The Future of Digital Policy, was hosted in partnership with Google at WGS. Speakers at the panel included Dr Amr Talaat, Egyptian minister of Communications and Information Technology; Karan Bhatia, vice president, Global Public Policy & Government Relations, Google; and Margaret Peterlin, senior vice president, Global External and Public Affairs at AT&T. The discussion was moderated by CNBCs Arjun Kharpal. Opening the discussion, Bhatia said that although the last decade has been extraordinary for the technology sector, almost half of the globes population are still not online, and the problems associated with the gap will become more pronounced in the coming years a situation that needs addressing now. Bhatia further highlighted three main areas that governments should address in the future improving infrastructure, investing in human capital and enabling smart tech revolutions. He said: Technology is moving at a rapid rate, with current buzzwords including AI and Blockchain. But, how do we develop the opportunities this technology offers while keeping data safe? He added: We are standing at the dawn of an exciting new era the question isnt if AI will transform, its how fast it will transform. He also outlined how there has been a blurring of lines with technology companies having an increased digital footprint, describing how Google itself has evolved from a search-engine to a cloud company. Peterlin underlined how AI should be delivered by people, for the benefit of people. She said that although AI is an important development, it should be harnessed within ethical guidelines while remaining aware of its potential cautions. Topics at the panel discussion also covered cross-country cooperation and the need for agile policy approaches that will respond to the fast-moving challenges facing todays policymakers. The three-day World Government Summit 2019, which runs till February 12 at Madinat Jumeirah, has convened more than 4,000 participants from 140 countries, including heads of state and governments, as well as top-tier representatives of 30 international organisations. - TradeArabia News Service Thousands of haggard women and children have fled the Islamic State's last enclave as the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces ready a final assault on remaining jihadist diehards, maybe as early as next week Kurdish-led forces in eastern Syria prepared Friday for a push on the last remaining speck of the Islamic State group's "caliphate" where diehard jihadists and their families are holed up. US President Donald Trump predicted that the once-sprawling proto-state's official defeat could be proclaimed as early as next week but operations have been paused for days on the main front line. Four years ago, IS controlled territory the size of Britain and administered millions of people, but the US-led coalition fighting the group says "99.5 percent" of it has been clawed back in successive offensives. The coalition has been training and providing air support to the Syrian Democratic Forces, which launched an offensive on the last pocket of jihadist territory in September 2018. Two months later, they took Hajin, which was the last town of note still under IS control and left the jihadists fighting over a few scattered hamlets in the Euphrates Valley. The hundreds of women and children arriving daily at the Al-Hol camp set up by US-backed forces for civilians fleeing the jihadists' last stand have turned it into a vast tent city Thousands of suspected IS fighters have attempted to blend in with civilians fleeing the jihadists' last bastion, including a large number of foreigners. "They are attempting to escape through intermixing with the innocent women and children attempting to flee the fighting," coalition deputy commander Christopher Ghika said on Thursday. - 'Remnants' - The SDF have set up screening centres to process the droves of haggard people streaming out of IS-held territory, often famished and covered in dust. British, French, US and other forces are actively looking for wanted IS operatives among those fleeing the combat zone with civilians. After weeks of advancing steadily, the SDF halted their ground assault on IS's tiny remaining enclave. US-backed forces have set up screening centres in the desert to process the droves of haggard people streaming out of IS-held territory, seeking to weed out wanted jihadist operatives "There hasn't been any big advance or change on our side over the past five days," an SDF spokesman told AFP on Friday. "Currently, the SDF is advancing very cautiously to ensure the safety of civilians that IS is using as human shields." The Kurds, who have de facto autonomy in northeastern Syria, are also engaged in behind-the-scenes diplomatic talks over the fate of the region. Trump in December ordered a complete troop withdrawal from Syria, a shock announcement that left the Kurds scrambling for new allies. "We are seeking a political solution in Syria, which requires an agreement with the government in Damascus," senior Kurdish official Badran Jia Kurdi told AFP. "We have chosen a political agreement with Damascus because we don't want secession from Syria." Speaking at the State Department on Wednesday, Trump said that US-led troops and their Kurdish allies should formally announce the end of the "caliphate" some time next week. "Remnants -- that's all they have, remnants -- but remnants can be very dangerous," Trump said. His words were echoed Friday by France's defence minister during a visit to neighbouring Iraq. The Syrian Democratic Forces and their Western supporters have been on the alert for jihadist fighters hiding among the fleeing civilians and it is mainly women, children and the elderly who get through the screening process "The territorial caliphate, which has not yet been wiped out, is being defeated," minister Florence Parly said in Baghdad. But "the work is not over", she warned, adding the jihadists were "probably in the process of reorganising underground and spreading out". As IS has been pinned back its surviving fighters have reverted to guerrilla warfare and remain a potent force. The jihadists maintain sleeper cells along the border with Iraq, as well as in cities they once ruled, and have carried out periodic hit-and-run attacks. The SDF said it arrested 63 suspected militants in IS's former Syrian capital Raqa on Thursday during an operation against sleeper cells. At least 48 suspected IS members were among them, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The Observatory says IS sleeper cells are suspected of assassinating at least 50 civilians and 135 SDF fighters in Kurdish-held territory since August. - Fate of jihadists - More than 37,000 people, mostly wives and children of jihadist fighters, have fled IS territory since the SDF, backed by the US-led coalition, intensified its offensive in December, according to the Observatory. The Britain-based war monitor has said that figure includes some 3,200 suspected jihadists. Most of the more than 37,000 people who have fled IS territory since December are the wives or children of jihadist fighters Kurdish authorities say they have in their custody hundreds of foreign male IS members. Suspected jihadists captured by the SDF are usually eager to be sent home, something the Kurdish administration also wants. Governments in the jihadists' countries of origin are often reluctant, although France -- which has one of the largest contingents -- recently said it would consider limited repatriations. But Kurdish officials told AFP on Friday there had been no progress on reaching a deal with Paris. "No French authorities have reached out to us about handing over French nationals," said Abdulkarim Omar, who heads the Kurdish administration's foreign relations commission. Human Rights Watch has warned that any transfers of suspected foreign jihadists and their relatives out of Syria should be transparent. Prominent political donor Huang Xiangmo said the decision to cancel his residency visa was 'based on unfounded speculations that are prejudiced and groundless' The Chinese businessman barred from Australia on suspicions he is part of a Communist Party influence campaign said he had been treated in a "grotesquely unfair manner" Friday and suggested his political donations could be returned. The long-term Sydney resident had been a prominent donor to Australias two major parties before being effectively banned from the country Wednesday. In a statement Huang Xiangmo said the decision to cancel his residency visa was "based on unfounded speculations that are prejudiced and groundless." Huang led one of a series of "reunification councils" that advocate in support of Chinese Communist Party policies. Huang described the groups as being "local community organisations lawfully registered" without backing from foreign governments, and called on Australia's government to present evidence of wrongdoing. Australian intelligence agencies believe the groups are fronts for influence campaigns designed to skew Australian politics. China experts and former Australian intelligence officials say the groups take direction from the United Front Work Department, a Communist Party agency. After donating millions of dollars to both the Liberal and Labor parties, Huang insisted he followed the rules. "If any of the past donations I made was deemed inappropriate by any political party or political figure, I again propose the option for them to duly return the amount donated without the need to pay any interest," he said. "The returned money will be then donated to Australian charitable organisations accordingly." Last year's landmark summit in Singapore produced a vaguely-worded document in which Kim pledged to work towards 'the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula' The US State Department announced Friday that the special US envoy for North Korea will meet again with Pyongyang officials before a second summit between President Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un -- hours after he returned to Seoul from talks in the North on the summit's agenda. In a statement, the State Department said talks during Stephen Biegun's three-day trip explored Trump and Kim's "commitments of complete denuclearization, transforming US-DPRK relations and building a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula" in preparation for the much-anticipated summit in Vietnam on February 27 and 28. Biegun landed at Osan US Air Base Friday evening, foreign ministry spokesman Noh Kyu-duk told AFP. The State Department confirmed Biegun agreed to meet his North Korean counterpart Kim Hyok Chol again before the summit. North Korea has yet to provide any official confirmation of the summit and Kim Jong Un appeared to make no mention of it during a meeting Friday with the top brass of the Korean Peoples Army. As reported by state media, the meeting focused on the need to modernise the military while maintaining party discipline in the ranks. Biegun is expected to share details of his Pyongyang meetings with his South Korean counterpart Lee Do-hoon and Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha on Saturday. Attention will focus on whether the US team have offered to lift some economic sanctions in return for Pyongyang taking concrete steps towards denuclearisation. Discussions on declaring an end to the 1950-53 Korean War could also have been on the table, with Biegun last week saying Trump was "ready to end this war". The three-year conflict ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty, leaving the two Koreas still technically at war, with the US keeping 28,500 troops in the South. The US envoy was also likely to have discussed with his counterpart protocol and security matters for the upcoming Trump-Kim summit. At their landmark summit in Singapore last year, the mercurial US and North Korean leaders produced a vaguely worded document in which Kim pledged to work towards "the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula". But progress has since stalled, with the two sides disagreeing over what that means. Experts say tangible progress on Pyongyang's nuclear weapons will be needed for the second summit if it is to avoid being dismissed as "reality TV". Some 400,000 items had disappeared from Amazon.in after stringent regulations banning online marketplaces from selling products from firms in which they have a stake came into force last week Amazon has struck a deal that will allow hundreds of thousands of products forced offline because of new e-commerce rules to return to its Indian site, a source said Friday. Some 400,000 items disappeared from Amazon.in after stringent regulations banning online marketplaces from selling products from firms in which they have a stake came into force last week. The government announced the surprise restrictions in December after complaints from brick-and-mortar retailers that e-commerce giants were unfairly selling products at discounted prices. Amazon and US rival Walmart -- which bought a 77-percent share in Indian e-commerce behemoth Flipkart last year -- are investing billions of dollars in India's rapidly growing online consumer market. The new rules, which also forbid e-tailers from entering into exclusive deals with sellers, sent them scurrying to comply. Two of Amazon's local venture partners, including a firm called Cloudtail, were forced to remove thousands of items from the US company's website after the regulations kicked in on February 1. On Friday, a person familiar with the matter told AFP that Amazon had agreed to sell much of its stake in the company which holds Cloudtail. "With the new structure Cloudtail becomes completely compliant with the new laws and therefore they can now come back and list as sellers," the source said. "Hundreds of thousands of products will be back," they added. Indian law already prevents foreign-owned companies from selling directly on their internet sites so the e-commerce companies had been buying in bulk and then selling the products to favoured vendors. These then resell the products at discount on the e-commerce sites who legally remain intermediaries. Analysts have said that the new rules will force Amazon and Walmart, which paid $16 billion for its majority stake in Flipkart, to rethink their Indian operations. India's nationalist government is seeking to strengthen home-grown enterprises against foreign competition ahead of a looming general election in which Prime Minister Narendra Modi will seek a second term. Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Friday that Europe "cannot be trusted", a week after the EU launched a trade mechanism to bypass US sanctions on Tehran. "These days there's talk of the Europeans and their proposals. My advice is that they shouldn't be trusted, just like the Americans," he said at a meeting with air force officials, his website reported. "I'm not saying we shouldn't have relations with them. This is about trust," he added. Britain, France and Germany last week launched a special payment mechanism called INSTEX to help save the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers. It would allow Tehran to keep trading with EU companies in spite of US sanctions renewed after Washington quit the accord last year. Tehran has cautiously welcomed INSTEX as a "first step", but US officials said the new entity would not have any impact on efforts to exert economic pressure on Iran. Khamenei also accused Europe of hypocrisy over human rights, criticising France's treatment of protesters in Paris. "They (anti-riot police) attack protesters in Paris streets and blind them, then they have the audacity to make human rights requests of us," he said. Turning to the United States, Khamenei said Iranians would chant "death to America" as long as Washington kept up its hostile policies, but the slogan was not directed at the American people. "Death to America means death to (President Donald) Trump, (National Security Advisor) John Bolton and (Secretary of State Mike) Pompeo. It means death to America's rulers ... we have nothing against the American people," he said. Instagram angered many users with a design change requiring them to scroll horizontally through their feed, but quickly rolled back the change Instagram has announced a clampdown on images of self-injury after a British teen who went online to read about suicide took her own life. The Facebook-owned picture sharing platform's announcement followed a Thursday meeting between its global chief Adam Mosseri and British Health Secretary Matt Hancock. British teen Molly Russell took her own life in her bedroom in 2017. The 14-year-old's social media history revealed that she followed accounts about depression and suicide. The case sparked a vigorous debate in Britain about parental control and state regulation of children's social media use. "It is encouraging to see that decisive steps are now being taken to try to protect children from disturbing content on Instagram," said Molly's father Ian Russell. "It is now time for other social media platforms to take action." Molly's parents did not directly blame Instagram for the loss of their daughter. But they cited the easy access to such posts as a contributing factor, to which Instagram should respond. Mosseri said the changes followed a comprehensive review involving experts and academics on children's mental health issues. "I joined the company more than 10 years ago and we were primarily focused on all of the good that came out of connecting people," Mosseri told The Telegraph newspaper. "But if I am honest we were under-focused on the risks of connecting so many people. Thats a lesson we have learned over the last few years." - Cry for help - Instagram has never allowed posts that promote or encourage suicide or self-harm. But it will now remove references to non-graphic content related to people hurting themselves from its searches and recommendation features. It will also ban hashtags -- words featuring a "#" that mark a trending topic -- relating to self-harm. The measures are meant to make such images more difficult to find for depressed teens who might have suicidal tendencies. "We are not removing this type of content from Instagram entirely," said Mosseri. "We don't want to stigmatise or isolate people who may be in distress and posting self-harm related content as a cry for help." Instagram is also reaching out to counsellors to see how they can engage with teens who the platform thinks need help. - 'Careful regulation' - Social media are coming under increasing scrutiny as they expand in reach and cultural influence. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg said last year that he thought more regulation of the industry was "inevitable" because of the internet's size. "My position is not that there should be no regulation," Zuckerberg told an April 2018 US congressional hearing. "But I also think that you have to be careful about regulation you put in place." Instagram's Mosseri told The Telegraph that he supported statutes being considered by the British government "as a concept". "There is a lot of regulation already," said Mosseri. "We think its important to collaborate with policy makers so that ... whatever legislation or processes they put in place work, make sense." The UK government this month will publish a "white paper" on harmful online behaviour that will be used as guideline for possible oversight rules. "The task is to design a system of oversight that preserves what is best and most innovative about the online companies but which also insists that they do what they can to keep the users of their services safe," UK culture minister Jeremy Wright wrote in The Times. Mount Merapi's last major eruption in 2010 killed more than 300 people and forced some 280,000 others to evacuate Indonesia's Mount Merapi, one of the world's most active volcanoes, has spewed a plume of grey ash into the sky as fiery red molten lava streamed down from its crater. Authorities did not raise the rumbling volcano's alert status after the eruption on Thursday evening. But any activity at Merapi raises concern and local residents have previously been ordered to stay outside a five-kilometre (three-mile) no-go zone around the crater near Indonesia's cultural capital Yogyakarta. Its last major eruption in 2010 killed more than 300 people and forced some 280,000 others to evacuate. It was Merapi's most powerful eruption since 1930, which killed some 1,300 people, while another explosion in 1994 took about 60 lives. Mount Karangetang on Sulawesi island also erupted this week with more than a hundred nearby residents ordered to evacuate Across the Southeast Asian archipelago, Mount Karangetang on Sulawesi island also erupted this week with more than a hundred nearby residents ordered to evacuate from the remote site. Indonesia has more than 17,000 islands and islets -- and nearly 130 active volcanoes. It sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire", a vast zone of geological instability where the collision of tectonic plates causes frequent quakes and major volcanic activity. Violent crime has been on the rise as the Chinese economy has boomed in recent decades and the gap between rich and poor has widened rapidly Fifteen people were killed in China on the night of the Lunar New Year in two family tragedies, after one man started a fire and another went on a knife rampage. As people celebrated to welcome in the Year of the Pig Monday night, a man surnamed Lu set fire to the home of his brother in the northern province of Shaanxi, killing seven, according to police in the town of Baoji. The brother, his wife, their fathers and their three children died in the blaze, police said on the Twitter-like Weibo platform. A few hours after the incident police arrested the suspect, who had just tried to kill himself. During the same night, a man surnamed Guo, who suspected his wife of adultery, stabbed eight people to death and injured seven in a village in the northwest province of Gansu, according to police in the commune of Baiyin. The man, aged 49, has been arrested. The identities of the victims have not been released. Knife attacks are common in China, where the carrying of firearms is strictly regulated. Violent crime has been on the rise as the economy has boomed in recent decades and the gap between rich and poor has widened rapidly. Studies have also described a rise in the prevalence of mental disorders, some of them linked to stress as the pace of life becomes faster and support systems wither. John Dingell was a powerful and outspoken Democrat who served for a record 59 years in Congress John Dingell, an imposing and outspoken Democrat who became a powerful figure in Washington over the course of a record 59 years in Congress, has died at the age of 92. The death of former House member Dingell, who retired in 2015, was announced by his wife Debbie Dingell, who succeeded him in their district in the car-making region of Michigan. In recent years, in retirement, he was known for stinging criticism of President Donald Trump. Dingell was scathing, for instance, towards the end of last month's partial government shutdown prompted by Trump's dispute with Democrat lawmakers over his proposed border wall. "Crooks like Trump will steal a hot stove and come back for the smoke. Theres no bar too low," he wrote on Twitter on January 24. Dingell was an imposing figure. He stood 6-foot-3 (1.9 metres), weighed 200 pounds and had a booming voice. He was a long-serving committee chairman who helped shape US legislation on everything from energy and health care to telecommunications and consumer protection. Dingell served with 11 presidents and cast 28,551 votes, CNN said, quoting the House historian's office. Former Maldives leader Abdulla Yameen, who suffered a shock defeat in elections in September, is accused of embezzlement and money laundering charges The Maldives government is seeking international help to find millions of dollars allegedly siphoned off by former president Abdulla Yameen who faces embezzlement and money laundering charges, officials said Friday. Maldivian diplomats said authorities in the Indian Ocean archipelago were in talks with foreign experts as part of a police investigation against the leader who lost power last September. "Police have now completed their investigations. The Prosecutor General can now formally charge the former president," Aslam Shakir, spokesman for the Maldives embassy in Colombo, told AFP. He said police investigations had found evidence linking Yameen and his justice minister Azima Shakoor to the theft of state funds and money laundering. In December, courts in the tourist paradise froze some $6.5 million in accounts allegedly linked to Yameen who suffered a shock defeat to Mohamed Ibrahim Solih in elections in September. Shakir said millions of dollars could be stashed abroad and talks were underway with foreign entities to repatriate any cash found. He did not name the countries involved. "We are getting foreign financial forensic help. We are also getting the expertise of others in connection with several cases of disappearances of people during Yameen's regime," Shakir said. An anti-establishment journalist Mohamed Rilwan vanished in August, 2014 and is widely believed to have been abducted by figures linked to Yameen's government. Yameen, who had been in power since 2013, jailing or forcing into exile many of his opponents, has also been accused of receiving close to $1.5 million in illicit payments during his failed bid for re-election. The country's monetary authority lodged a police complaint over alleged donations made into a private account held by Yameen in the runup to the polls. The former strongman president, who has been questioned but not detained, has denied the allegations. Yameen remains politically active. But since his downfall, almost all key dissidents have returned to the country and been cleared of convictions against them. Dubai-based du, from Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company (EITC), has announced its participation for the sixth time at the World Government Summit as a headline partner. During the summit running from February 10 to 12, du will participate in discussions on the importance of digital innovation in promoting the progress of countries and communities around the world. The company will also highlight the role of modern technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, Blockchain and IoT in improving the quality of public and private services as well as improving peoples lives. Mohamed Al Hussaini, chairman, EITC, said: The World Government Summit represents the global pinnacle of innovative thought leadership. As we brace for the fourth industrial revolution, platforms such as this are essential to empower the worlds decision-makers and policy-makers to make ardent strides towards improving the lives of citizens across all of society. In line with our efforts to drive the UAEs digital transformation, we are proud to continually support this grand event and to generate dialogue that promotes the sustainable futures of the UAE and the world via next-generation telecommunications advancements. At the summit, Osman Sultan, CEO of EITC will be participating in a panel discussion along with other industry leaders including prominent representatives of ITU and TRA on The Upcoming Revolution in the Telecom Sector. Sultan said: "We are proud of our strategic partnership with the World Government Summit, which has proven its importance as a global platform for dialogues and solutions to the challenges facing governments nowadays. In line with the various developments in today's world, there is a need to develop integrated digital solutions and systems that can contribute to improving the lives of people and communities. By participating in this year's summit, we aim to present our vision of the importance of telco and ICT services in creating a more sustainable future for people in the UAE, the region and the world. We are committed to strengthening our partnerships with various stakeholders to set a roadmap for the next phase of the digital innovation era. The summit will host a variety of distinguished world leaders as well as a large number of industry experts and spokespersons, who will discuss the role of governments in finding solutions to the challenges facing the development and progress of societies. Participants in the three-day summit will discuss several key themes including globalization, opportunities and challenges, public-private partnerships as well as youth support and empowerment of various groups within society. This will be dus sixth consecutive year participating in the World Government Summit, which has proven itself effective and influential through its own transformation from a government summit into a world government summit, bringing together a diverse group of intellectuals, decision makers, and representatives of state governments under a common interest in future development. TradeArabia News Service Australia is one of the world's biggest producers of coal An Australian court on Friday delivered a landmark ruling by rejecting plans to build a coal mine on the grounds it would worsen climate change. Chief Justice Brian Preston said a planned open cut coal mine in a scenic part of New South Wales state would be in "the wrong place at the wrong time". The ruling by the New South Wales Land and Environment Court was notable for citing not only local impacts of building the proposed Gloucester Resources mine, but also secondary "climate change impacts" of the eventual use of the coal. "It matters not that this aggregate of the Project's GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions may represent a small fraction of the global total," the justice said. "Not every natural resource needs to be exploited." The case was unusual in referring to the 2015 Paris Agreement and United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and calling climate scientists to testify. Will Steffen, a noted climatologist, told the court that Australia's average surface temperature had increased one degree centigrade over the last century. Baker & McKenzie's global head of climate law, Martijn Wilder, said the decision reinforced the trend in legal judgements around the world that directly link fossil fuels and climate change. It also added to the growing perceived risk of coal investments, he told The Australian Financial Review. "In both Australia, and around the world, financiers have largely decided that, except in some exceptional circumstances, investments in coal are not viable and that such investments will now be stranded," he said. Climate activists have described the case as a "seminal judgement" in Australian law and hope that it sets a legal precedent. Australia is one of the world's largest producers of coal and the world's largest exporter -- fuelling powerplants in Japan, China, South Korea and India. "It's a judgement of enormous significance," said David Morris, a solicitor for Environmental Defenders Office, which represented local residents against the project. "It heralds the arrival of climate litigation in Australia, the first time climate change has featured as a ground for refusal of a fossil fuel project in this country and, as far as I'm aware, anywhere," he told AFP. The Australian Conservation Foundation described the ruling -- which could yet be appealed -- as "significant." Gloucester Resources, which was not immediately available for comment, had said the project would create 170 jobs and would be in place for two decades. A party official holds a registration document bearing the image of Thai Princess Ubolratana, who will run for PM Thailand's powerful King Maha Vajiralongkorn late Friday described an unprecedented move to make his older sister Princess Ubolratana prime minister as "highly inappropriate" and against "royal traditions". Ubolratana, 67, the older sister of Vajiralongkorn, was announced hours earlier as a candidate in the upcoming elections for the Thai Raksa Chart party, which is steered by the divisive Shinawatra political clan. Her shock entrance into frontline Thai politics was a first by a member of the powerful royal family and promised to reshape the political landscape of the country. But a late-night statement from the palace left no doubt over the King's displeasure at the move. "The king and royal family exist in a status above politics," said the statement, published in the Royal Gazette and given blanket television coverage. The statement did not criticise Ubolratana, instead praising her public work. But it appeared aimed at those behind her sudden stride into politics. "To bring a senior royal family member into the political system in any way is against royal traditions and the nation's culture... which is highly inappropriate." While the monarchy, which is vastly wealthy and protected from criticism by a harsh royal defamation law, has been seen as above the political fray, royals have intervened in moments of political crisis. In a day of high drama, junta chief Prayut Chan-O-Cha also declared his candidacy for premier, running for the pro-military Phalang Pracharat party, moments after the princess's announcement. Election authorities have a week to review which candidates put up by each party are allowed to run for premier after the March 24 poll. - Political drama - Ubolratana's candidacy had electrified the build-up to the election, which has long seemed poised to return the ruling junta and its proxies to power. Thailand politics Her involvement gave a royal sheen to the political machine of Thaksin Shinawatra, the self-exiled billionaire whose parties have won every election since 2001. The princess, who gave up her royal titles to marry a foreigner, took to Instagram earlier Friday to say she was allowed to run under the constitution as a "commoner" had "allowed Thai Raksa Chart Party to use" her name. The party falls under the tutelage of Thaksin, who stands at the heart of Thailand's bitter political schism -- loathed by the army and Bangkok elite, yet adored by the rural poor for health, welfare and education schemes. The announcement appeared set to thrust him back onto the centre stage of Thailand's political drama. He was toppled in a 2006 coup, while his sister Yingluck was booted from power in a 2014 military takeover and forced into exile to avoid a jail term. The King's intervention has cast Thaksin's future role in politics into doubt. - Colourful royal - Ubolratana, a colourful, public-facing royal in contrast to her more restrained brother King Maha Vajiralongkorn, relinquished her royal titles after marrying the American Peter Jensen in 1972. Thai Princess Ubolratana is a colourful figure known for lead roles in Thai films, vibrant fashion sense and a prolific Instagram following But the couple divorced and she moved back to Thailand where she is still considered part of the royal family. In Thailand, she experienced tragedy, losing her autistic son Poom to the 2004 Asian tsunami. Known to the public for lead roles in Thai films, onstage singing performances, a vibrant fashion sense and a sizeable Instagram following, Ubolratana is the first-born child of the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej. The stride into politics by a royal left Thais scrambling to work out what it may mean for the nation's tattered democracy. No caption "This is quite unprecedented and nobody is prepared for this," Professor Anusorn Unno of Thammasat University told AFP. "I don't think it's the victory for the people, I think this is part of the adaptation of the ruling elite in terms of changing the landscape of politics." Since ascending the throne in 2016, King Maha Vajiralongkorn has reorganised palace affairs. The vastly wealthy Crown Property Bureau is now under his personal stewardship, he has appointed several new privy counsellors and established a highly trained personal guard. Crucially he has appointed a new army chief from a different faction of the military to the ruling junta. His coronation will be held in May. burs-apj/qan Heavy rains have flooded swathes of Queensland state, with the full scale of the devastation on drought-hit cattle stations becoming clearer as floodwaters recede Hundreds of thousands of cattle weakened from a severe drought are feared to have died in record-breaking floods in northeastern Australia, authorities said Friday, as they stepped up efforts to feed surviving livestock. Incessant rains over an almost two-week period have flooded swathes of Queensland state, with the full scale of the devastation on drought-hit cattle stations becoming clearer as floodwaters recede. "We are expecting hundreds of thousands in terms of stock losses," Prime Minister Scott Morrison told reporters in Sydney. "This will be heartbreaking to these communities that have been experiencing years of drought, only to see that turn into a torrential inundation which threatens now their very livelihoods in the complete other direction." About half of Australia's 25-million strong cattle herd is bred in Queensland state, and graziers say the floods could devastate their industry Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk Friday spoke of seeing a "sea of dead cattle" when she toured one region on Thursday. "To see the cattle spread across these yards, not moving, it made you feel sick in the stomach," she told national broadcaster ABC. Bales of hay and fuel have been transported into towns near the disaster zones and are being distributed to farmers so they can carry out airdrops to their stock. Farmer Rachael Anderson and her husband, who manage Eddington cattle station near Julia Creek township, said 800 of their 1500 cattle were still unaccounted for. "The cattle didn't have anywhere else to go... We've got a railway line close to us and the whole railway line is just tangled with dead cattle," Anderson told AFP. "If the floodwater wasn't enough to kill them, then those that got to higher areas were exposed to elements that were not conducive like rain hitting them at 60 kilometres an hour. They can't survive them long term." Anderson -- who had been hand-feeding cattle over the past few months amid the crippling drought -- said there were also many dead kangaroos as well as birds that were falling dead on the ground. About half of Australia's 25-million strong cattle herd is bred in Queensland state, and graziers say the floods -- described as a once-a-century event -- could devastate their industry. "This will finish a lot of people, there's some people who've lost everything, every beast they own, so there's no income at all," farmer William McMillan told the ABC. Australia's tropical north typically experiences heavy rains during the monsoon season, but the recent downpours have seen some areas get a year's worth of rainfall in just a week. Under the fresh rules, refusal to grant Australian authorities access to devices is punishable with up to 10 years in prison Australian security agencies have begun using sweeping new powers to access encrypted communications even before a promised review meant to address concerns from the likes of Google, Apple and Facebook. The powers were granted under a new decryption law which was rushed through parliament in December amid fierce debate, and seen as the latest salvo between governments worldwide and tech firms over national security and privacy. Two months later, the Australian Federal Police have revealed that agents have already used it while investigating drug trafficking and child exploitation. Australia is widely seen as a global test case for such laws, with possible applications by other governments seeking to counter the growing use of encrypted messaging, notably Australia's partners in the so-called "Five Eyes" intelligence alliance -- the United States, Britain, Canada and New Zealand. Under the new laws, refusal to grant authorities access to devices is punishable with up to 10 years in prison, and police told a parliamentary inquiry they had used that threat to compel two suspects to hand over their passwords. Citing secrecy provisions in the law, police declined to say if they had used it to force device makers or telecommunications firms -- including global giants such as Apple -- to break or bypass encrypted communications. The same provisions bar companies from disclosing whether they have received such police demands, known as "compulsory notices". The government has argued the law was urgently needed to foil terrorist plots and intercept communications among other serious criminals. But opponents allege it punches a hole in global efforts to keep governments from eavesdropping on secure communications, such as WhatsApp. They also argue it could undermine legitimate uses of encryption for commerce and banking, saying you cannot create vulnerabilities in encryption technologies without opening the door for them to be used by malicious actors. "That is a needle that cannot be threaded -- you cannot break encryption without introducing a vulnerability into the whole system," an alliance of tech giants, including Amazon, Google and Facebook, said in a submission about the legislation before it was adopted in December. - Threat to industry - The legislation was passed only after the conservative government agreed to reopen debate in the new year on amendments that would address widespread concerns among civil liberties advocates and tech industry experts that it was ill-conceived and too broad. The Department of Home Affairs says the law is being progressively implemented and that in January it wrote to tech industry members for assistance in drawing up guidelines on how to use the new powers. But the tech industry appears far from reassured. "There is no doubt there is an extremely broad coalition of stakeholders that are very concerned about the impact of this bill," said John Stanton, chief executive of the Communications Alliance, which represents the Australian communications industry. "It is not just industry, it is civil society and digital rights activists (too)." Stanton warned the new law posed "an enormous threat" to export opportunities for Australian tech firms "because they can no longer provide any assurance that their gear hasn't been tampered with by Australian security". "Even to say, 'no, it hasn't', is an offence" under the law," he added. Industry groups have combined forces to present a joint submission to the latest inquiry proposing a series of amendments. These include a higher threshold for using the law, which can currently be applied in any investigation of an offence carrying a maximum three-year jail term -- a bar critics say is too low. The industry also wants more precision about an element of the law barring authorities from forcing companies to introduce a "system vulnerability" into their products -- a term they say is ambiguous. The tech industry alliance warned the new law as written could force companies to take actions in Australia that violate laws in other nations where they operate or have clients. And they issued a thinly veiled warning that the law could force major global companies to end or restrict their activities in Australia. "Australians may not have access to the best technology, because technology providers may choose not to sell to Australians and submit to this legislation," the alliance said in its submission to parliament. The parliament committee must complete its review by April 3, but any moves to then amend the legislation risk running up against the Australian electoral cycle, with a federal poll due by mid-May. Changes to Instagram's self-harm content rules follow a review involving experts from around the world on youth, mental health and suicide Instagram late Thursday announced it is clamping down on images related to self-injury such as cutting. The move came after British Health Secretary Matt Hancock met with social media companies about doing more to safeguard the mental health of teenagers using their platforms. British teenager Molly Russell was found dead in her bedroom in 2017. The 14-year-old had apparently taken her own life, and her Instagram account reportedly revealed she followed accounts related to depression and suicide. "It is encouraging to see that decisive steps are now being taken to try to protect children from disturbing content on Instagram," said the girl's father, Ian Russell. "It is now time for other social media platforms to take action to recognize the responsibility they too have to their users if the internet is to become a safe place for young and vulnerable people." Changes to Instagram's self-harm content rules follow a comprehensive review involving experts and academics from around the world on youth, mental health, and suicide, according to chief executive Adam Mosseri. - Downplaying self-damage - "Over the past month, we have seen that we are not where we need to be on self-harm and suicide, and that we need to do more to keep the most vulnerable people who use Instagram safe," Mosseri said in an online post. "We will not allow any graphic images of self-harm, such as cutting on Instagram - even if it would previously have been allowed as admission." Instagram has never allowed posts that promote or encourage suicide or self-harm. The Facebook-owned service is removing references to non-graphic content related to people hurting themselves, such as healed scars, from search, hashtag, explore, or recommendation features. "We are not removing this type of content from Instagram entirely, as we don't want to stigmatize or isolate people who may be in distress and posting self-harm related content as a cry for help," Mosseri said. Instagram also planned to ramp up efforts get counseling or other resources to people who post or search for self-harm related content. "During the comprehensive reviews, the experts, including the Centre for Mental Health and Save.org reaffirmed that creating safe spaces for young people to talk about their experiences -- including self-harm -- online, is essential," Mosseri said. "However, collectively it was advised that graphic images of self-harm -- even when it is someone admitting their struggles -- has the potential to unintentionally promote self-harm," he continued, citing it as the reason for the ban. Instagram's aim is to eliminate graphic self-injury or suicide related imagery and significantly downplay related content in features at the service while remaining a supportive community, according to Mosseri. On Thursday, Mosseri joined representatives from Facebook, Google, Snapchat, Twitter and other companies who met with Hancock to discuss handling of content related to self-injury or suicide. "What really matters is when children are on these sites they are safe. The progress we made today is good, but there's a lot more work to do," Hancock said after the meeting. "What all the companies that I met today committed to was that they want to solve this problem, and they want to work with us about it." Scott Morrison is set to argue that his government can keep Australians safe amid local and global threats, ranging from violence against women and children to tensions between the world's greatest powers. The prime minister will make the case in an address at the National Press Club in Canberra on Monday, where he will announce $78 million in fresh funding for families escaping domestic abuse. He will also showcase coalition policies such as its record defence spending over the coming decade and its border protection systems. "Our government has demonstrated we have the mettle to make the right calls on our nation's security," he is expected to tell the event. "We have embraced tough calls rather than seeking to buy weak compromises for cheap political cover or opportunism. "This is our form. It is why we can be trusted." Mr Morrison is expected to say that Australia is facing "new and emerging threats", both outside its borders and within them. Among the local threats is domestic violence, and he'll announce $78 million in funding to support emergency accommodation for women and their children escaping abuse and security upgrades for their homes. Worldwide threats include regional tensions between major powers, greater global instability, foreign interference, terrorism, organised crime, cybersecurity issues and money laundering. He'll also highlight stiff headwinds facing the global economy. "Economic strength and our country's security are interdependent." Australia's national security is closely linked to the broader safety of the Indo-Pacific region, Mr Morrison is expected to stress how. "Australia and our partners face diverse security threats - from North Korea's long-range missile and nuclear programs, to state fragility, to Islamist terrorism - that challenge our interests," he'll say. "We want to see an open, rules-based Indo-Pacific where the rights of all states are respected. "So my government is strengthening our partnerships in the region and beyond, to protect our security and our sovereignty." The address comes ahead of federal parliament sitting again for two weeks from Tuesday. The opposition and the coalition are expected to slug it out over the fortnight on who is tougher on boats and banks. Labor Leader Bill Shorten says he's open to finding a "middle ground" with the government on proposed changes to the way sick asylum seekers are transferred to Australia, but they haven't yet. The opposition also wants the government to add two weeks of sittings in March in order to deal with the recommendations of the banking royal commission. But the coalition is resisting the calls, saying while some work on the royal commission response can be done quickly, more time is needed to draft legislation and negotiate with the states on court reform. An 11-year-old girl has been grabbed by the waist and pulled to the ground by a stranger who then fled in Lawnton, north of Brisbane. Queensland Police have asked the public for help after receiving a report of the attack on the Francis Road overpass at 3.20pm on Saturday. A man approached the girl and pulled her to the ground before running away toward a dark coloured SUV on Park Lane, police said. The girl did not suffer any physical injuries. The man is described as Caucasian in appearance with a shaved head, in his early 20s, wearing a light blue t-shirt, running shoes and black shorts. Minjee Lee's Vic Open title defence is almost certainly over, with the world No.7 set to miss the third-round cut at 13th Beach. Lee only just scraped into the weekend action but with a second cut to be made at the conclusion of Saturday's third round she is sure to be eliminated. The Australian had a two-over 74 on Saturday to be at two-over 218 and in a tie for 57th. Only the top 35 plus ties get to tee off in the men's and women's final rounds on Sunday. American Kim Kaufman sat atop the leaderboard at 13-under early in her third round on Saturday, two shots clear of Japan's Haru Nomura. Su Oh was the leading Australian in fourth spot at eight-under, although she had bogeyed her first two holes in difficult, windy conditions on Saturday afternoon. Two young men have been stabbed in separate incidents at about the same time in Sydney and near the Blue Mountains. A 19-year-old man from the Sydney suburb of St Clair was found with stab wounds to his arm and back just after midnight on Saturday. He was found at Banks Drive, near Mamre Road. A 28-year-old man was found with a stab wound to his abdomen at a service station on the Great Western Highway, near Oatlands Road, in Hazelbrook, just after 12.15am. Police were told he was wounded in a brawl. Police are appealing for anyone with information on either incident to contact them. An elderly Victorian man is due to face court next month charged with drink driving after his car hit a teenager on the Gold Coast, seriously injuring him. Police say the 16-year-old boy was on the edge of the road when he was hit about 9.15pm on Friday at the intersection of Ferny Ave and Cavill Ave in Surfers Paradise. He was taken to Gold Coast University Hospital in a serious condition. A 79-year-old Victorian man was breath tested and allegedly had a breath alcohol concentration of 0.117 per cent. He was given a notice to appear at the Southport Magistrates Court on March 20 charged with middle range drink driving. Pratt & Whitney, a division of United Technologies Corp, along with Airbus and Delta Air Lines celebrated the entry into service (EIS) of the airline's A220 aircraft powered by Pratt & Whitney GTF engines. The momentous occasion makes Delta the first A220 operator in North America. The event was commemorated with a gate celebration at LaGuardia Airport in New York, US, said a statement from the company. In April 2016, Delta announced its order of 75 firm A220 aircraft with options for up to 50 additional aircraft powered by Pratt & Whitney GTF engines, it said. In January, Delta added 15 firm aircraft, increasing its total firm order to 90 A220 aircraft. Delta also announced selection of the GTF engine to power its order of 100 firm A321neo aircraft in December 2017 with options for up to 100 additional aircraft. Additionally, Delta TechOps joined Pratt & Whitney's growing MRO network which supports the GTF engine fleet and Pratt & Whitney customers worldwide. Rick Deurloo, senior vice president of sales, marketing and customer support at Pratt & Whitney, said: Delta has been a pioneer in the aviation industry for decades and today we celebrate another milestone with the Delta team as their new A220 aircraft enters service. Delta's GTF-powered A220 joins more than 330 other company powered aircraft already in service with Delta, he said. We and Delta have built a strong and trusted relationship over the years and we are confident that Delta will enjoy the GTF engine's proven economic and environmental benefits on the A220 aircraft, he added. The A220, exclusively powered by the GTF engine, offers double-digit improvement in operating costs compared to current generation aircraft. It's 20 per cent more fuel efficient and provides a 75 per cent reduction in noise footprint and NOx emissions 50% below the ICAO CAEP 6 regulation, it stated. TradeArabia News Service A sophisticated cyber attack on Australia's federal parliamentary computer network is under investigation in a bid to find out who is behind it. Security industry sources told AAP it was possible China could be the source of the latest breach. There is no evidence that any data has been accessed, but the investigation is ongoing, Speaker Tony Smith and Senate President Scott Ryan said. MPs and staff have had to change their passwords overnight on security advice. "We have no evidence that this is an attempt to influence the outcome of parliamentary processes or to disrupt or influence electoral or political processes," they said in a joint statement on Friday. It is understood the Australian Signals Directorate is assisting and investigating, alongside the Department of Parliamentary Services. Australian Cyber Security Centre head Alastair MacGibbon declined to speculate on whether it was a foreign source, but admitted the breach was sophisticated. "We of course along with our allied agencies would be very keen to understand who it is that got into the system and why," he said. In March 2011, it was reported China was suspected of accessing the email system used by federal MPs, advisers, electorate staff and parliamentary employees. The Australian Strategic Policy Institute's Fergus Hanson said it appears a "nation state" is behind the incident. Prime Minister Scott Morrison said he had been briefed on the incident but there was no suggestion government departments or agencies had been the target. Opposition Leader Bill Shorten says the breach - which he was confident was being handled properly - is a "wake up call". "We give a lot of our data to the big international and multinational technology companies and online platforms. It's very important that we do more to protect our data." Labor will look at advice from security agencies warning against a bill on medical transfers for asylum seekers as the party searches for "middle ground" with the government. The bill, which would ensure two specially-appointed doctors can request medical transfers for offshore asylum seekers to Australia, is due to return to the lower house on Tuesday. Labor voted for it in the Senate and had indicated its support in the lower house, but Labor leader Bill Shorten appeared to back away from it on Friday. "I do think if there's middle ground, we should try and find it," he told reporters in Sydney. "This is all about making sure that people in our care, no matter what the circumstances, receive appropriate medical quality care - that's what's driving us." The government this week accused Mr Shorten of ignoring an offered briefing from ASIO, which has warned the proposed laws will threaten Australia's border security. Mr Shorten will have the briefing in Canberra next week. Prime Minister Scott Morrison says he hopes the Labor leader will listen to the advice, reiterating the government would not be backing the amended laws. "Anyone who is supporting this bill is not for stronger borders," Mr Morrison said. Under pressure from non-government MPs and moderate Liberals, Mr Morrison has also softened his stance. He proposed a medical transfer clinical assurance panel to review decisions where refugees and asylum seekers have been denied medical transfers when recommended by treating doctors. Links between "violent" Mexican cartels and bikie gangs are being probed after authorities intercepted a billion-dollar ice haul bound for Australia. The seizure of 1.7 tonnes of the drug in California on January 9 was also the biggest ever domestic seizure of methylamphetamine in the US. "This is the largest seizure of ice bound for Australia ever. This is the largest seizure ever located in the USA," Australian Federal Police Assistant Commissioner Bruce Hill told reporters in Melbourne on Friday. Authorities believe the Mexican cartel has links to Australian based outlaw bikie gangs but would not give any more detail. "We now believe Mexican cartels are actively targeting Australia, they have been sending smaller amounts of ice over the years but this is now flagging the intent that Australia is now being targeted," Mr Hill said. "This cartel is among one of the most powerful and violent drug trafficking syndicates in the world." The investigation began after police intercepted a vehicle in northern Victoria last year, and found 25kg of ice. The suspect was linked to organised crime with outlaw motorcycle gangs. Three people fronted court on Friday on charges including attempted drug importation and possession with the trio remanded for their next appearance on June 17. A fourth person is also facing drugs charges. Two men from Sydney will also be extradited to Melbourne to face court. Investigations are ongoing. A man is fighting for his life after being struck and run over by a car at a north Melbourne reserve. Police are looking for the driver of the white car, which they believe struck the man about 4pm on Friday when he was with friends at the Roxburgh Park reserve, off Lakeside Drive. The Craigieburn man landed on the bonnet, fell off and was run over by the car, which left, police said. The man is in a critical condition in hospital with multiple injuries. Today's Birthday, February 9: Gina Rinehart, mining magnate and Australia's richest person (1954 - ) The subject of bestselling books and a television mini-series, Gina Rinehart is Australia's richest person and ranked in Forbes' 2017 list as the seventh richest woman in the world. The mining magnate who made her fortune in iron-ore is also one of the country's largest cattle producers and holds a substantial portfolio of properties in Australia and homes across the globe. Her life in the public eye has been marred by family disputes and litigation battles played out in the Supreme Court. Rinehart was born in 1954 and grew up on large cattle and sheep properties in the Pilbara region of northwest Australia. She attended a girls boarding school in Perth. Rinehart left the University of Sydney after briefly studying economics to work for her frontier mining father, who she'd accompanied to business meetings from age 13. In 1992 she succeeded her father as chairman of his company Hancock Prospecting, following his death. Decrying the term "heiress", Rinehart is credited with turning around her father's bankrupted estate into one of the most successful private companies in Australia. Despite falling iron-ore prices, joint ventures including partnering with mining giant Rio Tinto in the Hope Downs area - which produced 46.9 million tonnes of iron-ore in 2017 - keeps her cash flow in the billions. For her long standing support and involvement with Australian sport, Rinehart was awarded an Order of Merit from the Olympic Organisation in 2014. She's positioned herself in the political sphere over the years, buying up shares in media companies including Channel 10 and Fairfax, which she sold in 2015. Suspicious of journalists after her personal family disputes were splashed across front pages, she's also made a reputation as a ruthlessly hard worker, saying women who wanted to get ahead should "work through lunches, and work later". Her advice to those without fortune is "spend less time drinking or smoking and socialising, and more time working". In 2015 her eldest daughter Bianca was handed control of the family's trust worth more than $4 billion, following a long-running legal battle. She recently came under fire when she was revealed as a key funder of right-wing think tank Institute of Public Affairs - a dedicated promoter of climate science scepticism. In 2019 she topped the Forbes' Aussie rich list ahead of real estate developer Harry Triguboff. Cuts to public transport and services will be key issues when voters head to the polls for two South Australian by-elections, Labor candidates say. Residents in the suburban seats of Cheltenham and Enfield will vote on Saturday following the resignation of former Labor premier Jay Weatherill and his deputy, John Rau. Labor is expected to retain both seats, with the Liberal Party opting not to run any endorsed candidates as it focuses on the looming federal election. ALP candidate for Cheltenham Joe Szakacs said cuts to public transport and services announced in last year's state budget have presented as a big issue during the campaign. "People use these services for a variety of purposes, but most importantly our buses and trains keep people connected to the community," Mr Szakacs, the SA Unions boss, said. "Cuts to jobs, services and public transport must be reversed." Labor's Enfield candidate, lawyer Andrea Michaels, said the biggest issues for locals in her area had also been the cuts, as well as unfair rent increases and traffic issues. "My priority will be to fight the closure of Prospect Service SA... and to get the Marshall Liberal government to deliver on their promise to upgrade the Fosters/North East Road intersection," she said. "I will also be a passionate advocate for better school and health funding for our community." Five candidates will appear on the ballot paper in Cheltenham and seven in Enfield, including "independent Liberal" Saru Rana. The Greens have endorsed candidates Steffi Medrow in Cheltenham and Sebastian Konyn in Enfield. The Electoral Commission of SA says it will send a text message to enrolled voters on Saturday morning in a bid to boost turnout. "Recent by-elections in South Australia and around the nation have resulted in significantly lower turnouts than at general state and federal elections," electoral commissioner Mick Sherry said on Friday. "Some electors do not understand that it is compulsory to vote at parliamentary by-elections, or claim they were not aware the election was taking place." Mr Sherry said the commission had undertaken the largest by-election awareness campaign in South Australian history in the lead-up to Saturday's poll. Owners and tenants of Sydney's cracked Opal Tower who are still living in temporary accommodation have had their return date delayed yet again. A third group or residents who were due to move back in from Saturday have been told their temporary accommodation and food allowances have now been extended until Saturday, February 16. Residents in two groups have moved back into about 170 apartments since late January. "The engineers are continuing to work through their respective queries to enable the progressive re-occupation of apartments," builder Icon said in a letter to residents on Friday. "As there are various parties involved it is important that all queries are satisfied." Residents were first evacuated on Christmas Eve after hearing and seeing cracks in a wall. Design engineers WSP maintain the building is structurally sound overall - a verdict also made by the government's independent engineering experts. Some 74 apartments were deemed fit for reoccupation by the body corporate's engineers Cardno in late January while another 97 passed the test in early February. Icon expects Cardno will release a third list of safe-to-occupy apartments within the next week. Some of the residents of the units cleared for return have refused to move back because they say the building is still a "construction zone". Manly's spiritual home Lottoland will receive a $36.1 million facelift including a 3000-seat grandstand and centre of excellence after securing a NSW government grant. The Gladys Berejiklian government on Friday promised $20 million for the project. Brookvale Oval has long been criticised as antiquated and lacking compared to modern stadiums and will receive a major makeover after the NRL club secured funding from the state and federal governments. The club has been fighting for several years to upgrade the facility and chairman Scott Penn has previously outlined a broader master plan for Brookvale Oval. Local member Tony Abbott has previously pledged $12.5 million worth of federal funds for the project with the club to chip in the remaining $3.6 million. It will see a grandstand built at the northern end of the ground with a centre of excellence and training facility attached. "This is the major stepping stone to ensuring that our elite aspiring athletes, male and female and our community at large, have the best possible facilities to allow them to maximise their potential, for many years to come," CEO Lyall Gorman said. "We are both excited and delighted that our Centre of Excellence, which has been on the drawing board for many years, will now be brought to life." An incoming Labor government will be "absolutely" held to account for promises the party has made about increasing wages and helping workers. ACTU secretary Sally McManus says she also expects to see action on multi-employer bargaining, which Labor has promised for some low-wage industries. In a speech to the Melbourne Press Club on Friday, Ms McManus said Australians realise the balance has tilted too strongly in favour of employers. "We are ready to work with those businesses and business leaders who also want a fair and equal country, instead of one driven with suspicion, division, inequality and anger," she said. Ms McManus said Australia's enterprise bargaining system is broken and declining, as wages were flatlining. She said multi-employer bargaining, and the power to strike, needed to be part of Australia's industrial relations landscape. "The option to take industrial action in last resort absolutely has to be available for multi-employer bargaining just as it is for enterprise bargaining," Ms McManus said. "It's not that anyone wants to take strike action, but if you don't have that as part of your bargaining tools ... then you're in a much weaker bargaining position. "So we would see that it's absolutely necessary and right that whenever you're bargaining that you should have that right as a last resort to withdraw your labour." Ms McManus said she had spoken to virtually every party about the ACTU's Change The Rules campaign, and said Labor seemed prepared to listen. But she said if Labor wins the next election the ACTU will "absolutely" hold them to account on the party's commitments to improving conditions for working people. 'We're not putting all this effort into this because of any other reason than wanting the actual laws changed," she said. A once-senior Australian diplomat has admitted using a messaging app to find an underage boy for sex. John Cornelius Finnin, 63, believed he was talking to a 14-year-old boy on Kik Messenger but was actually in contact with an undercover police officer for two weeks in September last year. Finnin established that the 'boy' was underage within the first few days of the conversation, police claimed in court documents released in January. "I understand you're nervous. So am I, as you are underage," one message to the undercover officer said. Finnin pleaded guilty in Melbourne Magistrates Court on Friday to a single charge of using a carriage service to procure a child under 16 for sexual activity. Four other charges, including using a carriage service to groom, were dropped. A once senior trade official for the Australian government covering Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Finnin revealed at his last court appearance that he was now penniless and unemployed. He's due to face the County Court in June. A man is in hospital after his bobcat was crushed by a semi-trailer which rolled over at a wrecking yard in Sydney's west. Paramedics were called to the site in Blacktown after midday on Friday when the tipper of a semi rolled onto and crushed the bobcat. The 28-year-old operator was trapped inside the bobcat for three hours. Workers used a forklift to take some weight off the bobcat before the truck's load was secured and emergency services were able to free the man. He was treated for neck, chest and abdominal injuries and taken to Westmead Hospital in a serious but stable condition. Their relationship lasted only a few short months. But Pete Davidson was ready to rid himself of the past as he covered up another tattoo from when he was dating ex-fiancee Ariana Grande. The 25-year-old comedian sat down for some inkwork with Jon Mesa, only to reveal that a matching 'mille tendresse' tattoo has been covered with the word 'cursed' in bold block lettering. Over: Pete Davidson was ready to rid himself of the past as he covered up another tattoo from when he was dating ex-fiancee Ariana Grande; seen in August 'How many licks does it take to get to the center of a tootsie roll pop? Fun tats for the homie #petedavidson,' the artist captioned an image of his work. Noticeably covered up was a massive neck tattoo which read 'cursed', which previously read 'mille tendresse,' a French expression meaning 'a thousand tendernesses.' Ariana got the tattoo back in 2014 before Pete joined in for the design, an expression made famous by the 1961 film, Breakfast At Tiffany's. While Pete has a wide variety of pieces on his back, the word 'always' written in Ariana's handwriting is still prominently displayed. Art: The 25-year-old sat down for some inkwork with Jon Mesa, only to reveal that a matching 'Mille tendresse' tattoo has been covered with the word 'cursed' in bold block lettering Matching: The couple went on a tattoo spree of sorts during their nearly six month relationship that began in May and ended in October The couple went on a tattoo spree of sorts during their nearly six month relationship that began in May and ended in October. In addition to their H2GKMO tattoos the pair have matching heart tattoos on their fingers and both have Pete's father's FDNY badge number 418 on their skin. She has since covered up the number with a tribute to her late boyfriend Mac Miller and his dog Myron. Ariana covered a Pete tattoo on her left ring finger with a solemn black heart while Pete also turned a nod to Dangerous Woman into a black heart. First: Ariana got the tattoo back in 2014 before Pete joined in for the design, an expression made famous by the 1961 film, Breakfast At Tiffany's 'How many licks does it take to get to the center of a tootsie roll pop? Fun tats for the homie #petedavidson,' the artist captioned an image of his work Over: The former couple met on the set of Saturday Night Live in 2014 before growing closer when she hosted in 2016; seen in August The former couple met on the set of Saturday Night Live in 2014 before growing closer when she hosted in 2016. They began dating in May after she ended her relationship with Mac Miller and he parted with his girlfriend of two years, Cazzie David. Engagement news broke in June when she debuted a massive diamond ring, only for their relationship to end a few months later in October. Pete has since been spotted holding hands with Kate Beckinsale in Los Angeles while Ariana released an album seemingly dedicated to her life without Davidson titled, Thank U, Next. She is an acclaimed actress who has picked up a Golden Globe Award and an Oscar nomination for her role in If Beale Street Could Talk. And Regina King was every inch the superstar as she arrived at the 72nd British Academy Film Awards at the Royal Albert Hall on Sunday evening. The star, 48, showed off her honed figure in a fuchsia pink gown with a thigh-high split which showcased her toned legs. Toned: Regina King was every inch the superstar as she arrived at the 72nd British Academy Film Awards at the Royal Albert Hall on Sunday evening The stylish gown featured an elegant asymmetric neckline, which teased her perky cleavage. The flowing skirt exposed the star's toned legs, with the ensemble completed with silver stiletto sandals. Her raven tresses were pulled back into a sleek updo while her pretty features were enhanced with smoky shadow and liner, finished with a slick of rose lipstick. King stars in the Barry Jenkins movie as the mother of a young woman, played by Kiki Layne, who fights to prove her boyfriend's innocence of a crime while pregnant with their first child. Set in Harlem, it is based on the book by James Baldwin. Olivia Colman was delighted as she took home the gong for her sensational display in the The Favourite at the awards. Gorgeous: The star, 48, showed off her honed figure in a fuchsia pink gown with a thigh-high split which showcased her toned legs Following her win she congratulated her 'extraordinary' fellow nominees while joking that she is going to get 'p***ed' to celebrate her incredible win along with her 'classy' co-stars Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone. Earlier in the evening Rachel Weisz put on an emotional display with her co-star Olivia as she collected the prestigious gong. Olivia, 45, looked delighted with her friend's achievement, as they shared a sweet kiss as Olivia congratulated the actress for winning the sought-after award. Rami Malek was awarded the Best Actor gong, as he took to the stage wearing a sharp white suit and thanked Freddie Mercury as he address the ceremony. He gushed: 'I can't believe am I included in this group of actors, I've entered this world, as an outsider you Brits do it so well and it's not lost on me how sacred your musical heritage is, so thank you so much for including me. 'Thank you so very much to Queen, and to the greatest outsider of them all, for being so unwavering, so uncompromising, and so wonderful in every which way, Freddie Mercury.' Glowing: The stylish gown featured an elegant asymmetric neckline, which teased her perky cleavage Strut: Her raven tresses were pulled back into a sleek updo while her pretty features were enhanced with smoky shadow and liner, finished with a slick of rose lipstick Yorgos Lanthimos's The Favourite has swept the nominations with 12 nods in top categories including a Best Actress chance Supporting Actress and Best Film. The Favourite picked up seven prestigious awards during the ceremony, including Outstanding British Film and Best Production, while Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody was awarded with the Best Sound gong. Netflix drama Roma took home the top prize at the awards ceremony at London's Royal Albert Hall, pipping other nominees BlacKkKlansman, The Favourite, Green Book and A Star Is Born to the post. Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse, which has previously done well at earlier awards ceremony's, was given the Best Animation accolade at the glitzy awards ceremony. Letitia Wright spoke of how she nearly quit acting due to a 'deep depression' as she picked up the Rising Star Award at the EE awards Duo: Regina posed up with hunky actor Luke Evans at the awards The Black Panther star took home the honour at the annual awards ceremony, Speaking to accept her prize, she said: 'A few years ago I saw myself in a deep depression and I wanted to quit acting. 'The only thing that pulled me out of that was God, my belief, my family, and an email from BAFTA telling me they wanted me to be a part of BAFTA Breakthrough Brits and it inspired me to keep going. I'm still a work in progress. I want to encourage young people - matter of fact you don't even have to be young - anybody that is going through a hard time, God made you and you're important. Let your light shine.' The 25-year-old actress beat fellow nominees Barry Keoghan, Cynthia Erivo, Jessie Buckley and Lakeith Stanfield to the crown. She's recently returned from a sun soaked jaunt to Miami where she flaunted her incredible frame. And Tanya Burr looked sensational as she showed off her figure in a quirky black bodysuit and sheer Dior dress at the 72nd annual EE British Academy Film Awards at London's Royal Albert Hall on Sunday evening. The vlogger and actress, 29, left little to the imagination in the black PVC style number which pushed up her ample assets while showing off her toned legs. Stepping out: Tanya Burr looked sensational in a quirky black bodysuit and sheer dress at the 72nd annual EE British Academy Film Awards at London's Royal Albert Hall on Sunday evening Fashion: The vlogger and actress, 29, left little to the imagination in the black PVC style number which pushed up her ample assets while showing off her toned legs She covered up in a sheer black dress complete with plenty of dazzling sequins while adding height to her frame in a pair of black strappy heels. The pretty blonde left her shoulder-length locks in loose waves around her face and opted for plenty of glamorous makeup for the star-studded bash. Tanya was a favourite with the fans as she stopped to sign autographs for waiting followers before heading to the event. Style: She covered up in a sheer black dress complete with plenty of dazzling sequins while adding height to her frame in a pair of black strappy heels The sensation is heading to big screens after landing the starring role in the revival of Judy Upton's nineties play Confidence at the Boundless Theatre at the Southwark Playhouse. The YouTuber will play the role of Ella in the play that tells the tale of summer working by the seaside and was the actress' debut role on the stage. She was first propelled into the limelight as a British YouTuber making videos about fashion, style and baking. Stepping out: The pretty blonde left her shoulder-length locks in loose waves around her face and opted for plenty of glamorous makeup for the star-studded bash New role: The sensation is heading to big screens after landing the starring role in the revival of Judy Upton's nineties play Confidence at the Boundless Theatre at the Southwark Playhouse First love: She was first propelled into the limelight as a British YouTuber making videos about fashion, style and baking Tanya signed with London based acting agency, Waring and McKenna in September 2017. She shot two films, Hurt By Paradise and Cassette, last Summer, which will be released later this year. As well as rubbing shoulders with a number of vlogger stars, she married fellow YouTuber Jim Chapman at Babington House, Somerset in September 2015. Sparks flew when they first started dating in 2007 and the couple decided to take their relationship up a knot in December 2012. After threatening a divorce for years, Lisa and David Oldfield have finally separated. Lisa, 44, recently left the marital home in Sydney and 'isn't coping very well' amid the split, said a source with knowledge of the situation. 'She's currently living with her parents at the moment and is extremely fragile,' the insider told Monday's New Idea magazine. David and Lisa Oldfield to DIVORCE: The controversial couple have reportedly 'separated', as it's claimed the Real Housewives of Sydney star has moved back in with her parents Lisa Oldfield declined to comment on the separation when contacted by Daily Mail Australia. The Oldfields have made no secret of the fact their 17-year marriage has faced significant troubles in the past. Last year, Lisa confessed to self-medicating with alcohol to deal with anxiety and checked herself into rehab to address the problem. Claims: Lisa, 44, recently left the marital home in Sydney and 'isn't coping very well' amid the split, said a source with knowledge of the situation. Pictured: Lisa, David and their children Lisa and David - who share two sons, six-year-old Bert and eight-year-old Harry - have often complained about each other publicly. They had bitter arguments while on I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! in 2018, leaving the other contestants visibly uncomfortable. After being evicted from the jungle, Lisa actually vowed to divorce the former One Nation politician - but later backpedalled on her remarks. Warring spouses: Lisa and David - who share two sons, six-year-old Bert and eight-year-old Harry - have often complained about each other publicly 'He's a t**t,' she told I'm A Celebrity hosts Dr Chris Brown and Julia Morris at the time. 'I will be speaking to a divorce lawyer. I feel like David is a boat anchor around my neck and after 17 years I've had a revelation.' News of the split comes after it was confirmed Lisa's Foxtel show Real Housewives of Sydney would not be returning for a second season. Foxtel's executive director of television Brian Walsh told TV Tonight last week: 'Sydney won't happen again. Once bitten twice shy.' She's no stranger to dazzling on camera and at high-profile industry events. And Cate Blanchett maintained her style savvy ways as she attended the 72nd British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs) at London's Royal Albert Hall on Sunday evening. The Carol actress, 49, oozed sophistication as she wowed in a perilously low-cut black dress with a jewel-encrusted bodice, while debuting her newly-dyed brunette locks. Looking good: Cate Blanchett maintained her style savvy ways as she attended the 72nd British Academy Film Awards ( BAFTAs ) at London 's Royal Albert Hall on Sunday evening Upping the fashion ante, the screen star took the plunge as she went braless in the sizzling gown by Christopher Kane, while flashing a hint of her lean legs with the ensemble's thigh-high slit. The Present actress added height to her enviable physique in a pair of classic pointed heels, while accessorising with an array of statement rings. Switching up her stunning appearance, natural blonde Cate styled her newly-dyed brunette tresses in a sleek blowdry. Wow-factor! The Carol actress, 49, oozed sophistication as she wowed in a perilously low-cut black dress with a jewel-encrusted bodice, while debuting her newly-dyed brunette locks Fashion maven: Upping the fashion ante, the screen star took the plunge as she went braless in the sizzling gown by Christopher Kane, while flashing a hint of her lean legs with the ensemble's thigh-high slit New look: Switching up her stunning appearance, natural blonde Cate (L) styled her newly-dyed brunette tresses in a sleek blowdry (R) The Aussie star complemented her out-of-this-world beauty with rose-tinted eyeshadow, blush-swept cheeks and faint pink lipgloss. Meanwhile, two-time Oscar winner Cate has become the latest Hollywood celebrity to switch to TV, signing on to star in the new FX limited series, Mrs America. Created and written by 'Mad Men' co-producer Dahvi Waller, the nine-episode series will feature Blanchett as conservative activist Phyllis Schlafly, who led the fight against the movement to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). All in the details: The Present actress added height to her enviable physique in a pair of classic pointed heels, while accessorising with an array of statement rings Radiant: The Aussie star complemented her out-of-this-world beauty with rose-tinted eyeshadow, blush-swept cheeks and faint pink lipgloss The ERA is a proposed amendment to the US Constitution stating that equal rights may not be denied on the basis of one's sex. The amendment was passed by the US Congress in 1972 but failed to win the backing of enough states. Blanchett joins other Hollywood A-listers who have made the jump to television in recent years, including Meryl Streep, Tom Hardy and Julia Roberts. Bradley Cooper thanked his two leading ladies, Lady Gaga and Irina Shayk as his film A Star Is Born picked up the gong for Best Original Music at the EE British Academy Film Awards on Sunday. Following the main event, the 44-year-old actor was seen slipping out of the Royal Albert Hall alongside Irina, going hand-in-hand as they headed off. The pair put on a low-key display following Bradley's big win, which saw him pay tribute to the Russian supermodel - as well as co-star Lady Gaga - in his acceptance speech. Holding hands: Bradley Cooper went hand-in-hand with his girlfriend Irina Shayk following the main EE BAFTA 2019 ceremony, slippping out of the Royal Albert Hall together on Sunday Looking loved-up, the couple slipped under the radar as they gave the after-parties a miss. Bradley was seen clutching his BAFTA trophy in one hand as he strolled along beside his partner of almost four years, with whom he shares two-year-old daughter Lea. Earlier in the evening, the actor gave a moving speech in which he dedicated the award to his co-star Gaga: 'I got to fulfill a dream I never thought would happen. I share this with Lady Gaga tonight, the music was the heartbeat of this film'. He added: 'I also need to thank Irina for putting up with me while I was trying to make music in our basement for a year'. Honour: Bradley thanked his two leading ladies, Lady Gaga and Irina, as his film A Star Is Born picked up the gong for Best Original Music Delighted: Bradley and Irina looked in high spirits as they headed off for the evening Speedy exit: Bradley was seen clutching his BAFTA trophy in one hand as he strolled along beside his partner of almost four years, with whom he shares two-year-old daughter Lea Elegant: The stunning beauty complemented her chic suit with a pair of sparkling silver heels A proud Irina gave her boyfriend a standing ovation as his film was announced as the winner. Bradley, who lost out on the Best Actor award to Rami Malek, was at the event in a similar black trouser suit by Celine to his lady love. Russian-born beauty Irina, 33, went braless in a black Burberry number while flashing a hint of her side boob as she worked the camera from different angles. Model-esque: Irina Shayk (left) and boyfriend Bradley Cooper (right) wore matching trouser suits from prestige fashion houses at the ceremony Nominated: Bradley starred with Lady Gaga in a remake of A Star Is Born, with the film up for seven awards including Best Film Style: She completed her look with a pair of embellished heels and opted for silver hoop earrings to match her simple gold necklace Hot stuff: The Russian-born beauty, 33, went braless for the black number while flashing a hint of her side boob as she worked the camera from different angles She completed her look with a pair of embellished heels and opted for silver hoop earrings to match her simple gold necklace. Never one to forgo the glamour, Irina wore her locks in a side parting pulled back in a tight bun while sporting natural makeup for the award ceremony. Bradley, 44, looked handsome in a black Celine by Hedi Slimane tuxedo complete with a bow tie and white shirt. Earlier in the day, Irina shared a picture to her Instagram Stories as she used plenty of Charlotte Tilbury makeup to help her get that coveted no makeup-makeup look. Winner: The actor, 44, gave a moving speech in which he dedicated the award to his co-star: 'I got to fulfill a dream I never thought would happen. I share this with Lady Gaga tonight' Love: He added: 'I also need to thank Irina for putting up with me while I was trying to make music in our basement for a year' Lucky day: The proud star's film is up for a further six awards at the ceremony Star of the show: Bradley lost out on the Best Actor award to Rami Malek, 37, for his portrayal of Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody The couple first began dating in 2015, with the actor moving into the model's apartment in New York City in November of that year. They welcomed their first child together, a daughter named Lea De Saine, in March 2017 in Los Angeles. Bradley has won critical praise for his directorial debut, A Star Is Born, where he also plays the male lead opposite Lady Gaga. The singing sensation, 32, took to Twitter to share her praise for the film's award: 'I cant believe we just won Best Original Music @BAFTAs . I wish so much I was there but am at the Grammys to show them our love as well. We made a film about music. This means the world to me. Thank u to all our fans we love u so much, we wouldnt be here without u [sic].' Missing out: The singing sensation, 32, took to Twitter to share her praise for the film's award: 'I wish so much I was there but am at the Grammys to show them our love as well' Get the look: Earlier in the day, Irina shared a picture to her Instagram Stories as she used plenty of Charlotte Tilbury makeup to help her get that coveted no makeup-makeup look Beauty: Never one to forgo the glamour, Irina wore her locks in a side parting pulled back in a tight bun while sporting natural makeup for the award ceremony Filling in: Irina is at the event supporting her beau Bradley Cooper lost out on the Best Actor gong to Rami Malek Fashion queen: Irina was previously nominated Best International Model of 2010 by Glamour Magazine, Spain for her stunning cover looks Family life: The supermodel is mother to daughter Lea De Seine Shayk Cooper who she welcomed with Bradley in March 2017 Speaking on the red carpet, Bradley said he would love to see Lady Gaga pick up the best actress gong for A Star Is Born: 'Gaga winning would be amazing. It would be cool [if I won too] but the truth is, for her to take that shot with me and get that accolade would be insane.' While the film is nominated for best picture at the Academy Awards, Bradley was not nominated in the best director category, something he recently admitted he is embarrassed about. Speaking with Oprah Winfrey at her SuperSoul Conversations from Times Square, he explained that when he realized he hadn't been nominated for his directing, 'I went, 'Oh wow.' 'And the first thing I felt was embarrassment, actually felt embarrassed that I didn't do my part,' he said. Head turning: The model proved why she's such a hit on the catwalk as she posed effortlessly on the BAFTA red carpet She is one of the world's most beautiful women. And Salma Hayek proved she is also one of the world's most fashionable women as she graced the red carpet at the 72nd British Academy Film Awards at London's Royal Albert Hall on Sunday evening. The 52-year-old screen siren was turning heads all over as she slipped into a skin-tight black gown while giving an edgy touch with a huge brooch on her shoulder while also adding in a chic beaded headdress. A vision: Salma Hayek proved she is also one of the world's most fashionable women as she graced the red carpet at the 72nd British Academy Film Awards at London 's Royal Albert Hall on Sunday evening Salma looked sensational for the outing as she slipped into the one-shouldered black gown which clung to her figure flawlessly. She gave the simple gown striking detailing with a lizard brooch sat on her chest while also coordinating with her gold beaded hairband. The brunette beauty scraped her hair into a high bun with tendrils loosely framing her face, which was perfectly made up to enhance her good looks. She sported fluttering false lashes over peach eye-shadow while slicking on nude lipgloss to highlight her plump pout perfectly. WOW! The 52-year-old screen siren was turning heads all over as she slipped into a skin-tight black gown while giving an edgy touch with a huge brooch on her shoulder while also adding in a chic beaded headdress Glossy girl: She sported fluttering false lashes over peach eye-shadow while slicking on nude lipgloss to highlight her plump pout perfectly On Friday evening, Salma attended attended the Charles Finch x Chanel pre-Bafta dinner, in Mayfair, with husband Francois-Henri Pinault. Salma and Francois-Henri began dating in 2006, and just 11 months later the pair became engaged, before welcoming their daughter Valentina into the world in September 2007 in Los Angeles. The pair, who now live in London, tied the knot on Valentine's Day in 2009 in Paris, France, before hosting a second ceremony in Venice, Italy, that April. The Frida star also shares stepdaughter Mathilde Pinault, 17, and stepsons Augustin Evangelista, 11, and Francois Pinault, 20, with her husband. Out and a pout: She flashed a peek at her staggering crocodile heels worn beneath the dress Wow: Salma Hayek, 52, and husband Francois-Henri Pinault, 56, enjoyed a night out on the town as they attended the Charles Finch x Chanel pre-Bafta dinner in London on Saturday Meanwhile, Salma has been busy with her thriving acting career and will next be seen in comedy Limited Partners about two friends who start a beauty company together, due out on June 28. The mother-of-one is presently filming an Untitled Sally Potter Project for release in 2020. The actress is also due to star with Ryan Reynolds and Samuel L. Jackson in upcoming comedy thriller The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard, the sequel to the 2017 movie, The Hitman's Bodyguard. Joanna Lumley has returned for a second stint behind the podium for the 72nd annual awards after impressing last year in place of Stephen Fry while Cirque de Soleil will also be back with another performance. Busy bee: Meanwhile, Salma has been busy with her thriving acting career and will next be seen in comedy Limited Partners about two friends who start a beauty company together, due out on June 28 Beaming: Her gown made the most of her figure as she hit the red carpet in style Yorgos Lanthimoss The Favourite has swept the nominations with 12 nods in top categories including a Best Actress chance for its star Olivia Colman, Supporting Actress nominations for Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz and a shot at Best Film. The Favourite will compete with A Star Is Born, BlacKkKlansman, Green Book and Roma for Best Film but surprisingly, after its success at last month's Golden Globes, Bohemian Rhapsody was snubbed in the category. The Favourite is nominated in 12 categories. Bohemian Rhapsody, First Man, Roma and A Star Is Born each have seven nominations; Vice has six, BlacKkKlansman has five, and Cold War and Green Book have four each. Can You Ever Forgive Me?, Mary Poppins Returns, Mary Queen of Scots and Stan & Ollie have three nominations each. All star faces: She revealed celebrity make-up artist Charlotte Tilbury was behind her beauty look Just hours before, she discussed her first ever sex scene. And Eleanor Tomlinson was further making her mark on the world of film as she arrived in absolutely sensational style at the 2019 British Academy Film Awards on Sunday, held at the Royal Albert Hall in London. The 26-year-old Poldark beauty looked phenomenal in her as she hit the red carpet in an asymmetric gown by Ralph & Russo complete with a one-shouldered top and a slashed skirt. Happy days: Eleanor Tomlinson was further making her mark on the world of film as she arrived in absolutely sensational style at the 2019 British Academy Film Awards on Sunday, held at the Royal Albert Hall in London Eleanor looked sensational in the dress which boasted a trio of hues and a number of materials combined to stunning impact. The skirt featured dazzling adornments in pink and red colours while a black curve moved with her figure to give an optical illusion. She scraped her trademark flame red tresses into an elegant chignon while dripping in De Beers jewels to add to the elegance of the ensemble. The stunner allowed her alabaster complexion to stand out boldly against her flame red hair and her dewy make-up. Stunner: The 26-year-old Poldark beauty looked phenomenal as she hit the red carpet in an asymmetric gown complete with a one-shouldered top and a slashed skirt Jewelled delight: Her stunning De Beers earrings added a further dazzling feel to the look Eleanor has kept her clothes on for five seasons of Poldark as the feisty redhead Demelza yet the star candidly discussed finally stripped off for her first sex scene in Colette after staying in her corset for five seasons of Poldark. She bared her naked breasts in the movie as she played out a number of raunchy sex scenes in the character of Georgie Raoul-Duval. Joanna Lumley has returned for a second stint behind the podium for the 72nd annual awards after impressing last year in place of Stephen Fry while Cirque de Soleil will also be back with another performance. Yorgos Lanthimoss The Favourite has swept the nominations with 12 nods in top categories including a Best Actress chance for its star Olivia Colman, Supporting Actress nominations for Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz and a shot at Best Film. Alabaster stunner: She contrasted her pale complexion with the hues Chic: She scraped her trademark flame red tresses into an elegant chignon while dripping in jewels to add to the elegance of the ensemble The Favourite will compete with A Star Is Born, BlacKkKlansman, Green Book and Roma for Best Film but surprisingly, after its success at last month's Golden Globes, Bohemian Rhapsody was snubbed in the category. The Favourite is nominated in 12 categories. Bohemian Rhapsody, First Man, Roma and A Star Is Born each have seven nominations; Vice has six, BlacKkKlansman has five, and Cold War and Green Book have four each. Can You Ever Forgive Me?, Mary Poppins Returns, Mary Queen of Scots and Stan & Ollie have three nominations each. The 2019 nod marks Olivia's sixth BAFTA nomination but her first for a film role after previously winning for TV hits Twenty Twelve, Accused and Broadchurch. Strutting her stuff: The pink gown contrasted boldly against her red locks Sexy and stunning: She looked incredible in the gown which made the most of her frame Olivia competes against Glenn Close for The Wife, Lady Gaga for A Star Is Born, Melissa McCarthy for Can You Ever Forgive Me?' and Widows star Viola Davis, but in another shock snub, Mary Poppins Returns lead Emily Blunt has missed out on a nomination. In fact, Mary Poppins Returns only received nominations in the technical categories for BAFTA, with three nods in total for Best Film Music, Best Production Design and Best Costume Design. Olivia's chances at scoring her first film BAFTA have only increased after she took home the Best Actress Motion Picture - Musical Or Comedy for The Favourite at the Golden Globes. Olivia's critically-acclaimed film was released last month and follows the love triangle Queen Anne forms with two of her female courtiers, played by Emma and Rachel, who are both nominated in the Best Supporting Actress Category. The Favourite is also nominated for Outstanding British Film, Original Screenplay, Cinematography, Production Design, Costume Design, Make Up & Hair, Editing and Yorgos Lanthimos for Director. Sensational: The flame-haired beauty ensured she was topping the best dressed stars Out and a pout: She was dazzling as she hit the red carpet alongside the top stars of Hollywood She was nominated for the prestigious Best Actress in a Supporting Role award for her performance in drama film First Man, but lost out to Rachel Weisz. However rather than fretting over pre-awards ceremony nerves, Claire Foy was more concerned about her rumbling stomach as she complained to presenters Dermot O'Leary and Edith Bowman of her hunger at the BAFTAs on Sunday. Quick to appease the 34-year-old actress, Dermot dashed off to find her something to eat, while Claire told Edith she was desperate for a plate of potatoes and gravy. Hungry? Rather than fretting over pre-awards ceremony nerves, Claire Foy was more concerned about her rumbling stomach as she tucked into Wine Gums at the BAFTAs on Sunday Returning with a bag of Wine Gums sweets, the screen star joyously tucked into the bag of gummy treats as she chatted to the two red carpet corespondents. The Crown actress put on an incredibly sophisticated display as she slipped into a flowy dark green gown, embellished with a sizzling thigh-high slit. Showcasing her radiant decolletage, the brunette's strapless ensemble featured waterfall tasseled detailing, while her height was boosted with a pair of Jimmy Choo silver heels. Wow-factor! The Crown star, 34, commanded attention in her green ensemble at London's Royal Albert Hall on Sunday evening Sensational: The award-winning actress put on an incredibly sophisticated display as she slipped into a flowy dark green gown, embellished with a sizzling thigh-high slit What a vision! Claire put on an incredibly sophisticated display as she slipped into a flowing dark green gown, embellished with a sizzling thigh-high slit The Promise actress amped up her glamorous appearance with eye-catching diamond jewellery, consisting of shimmery dangle earrings and a matching bracelet. Brunette beauty Claire slicked her cropped 'do back to reveal her striking visage, which was enhanced with heavy strokes of mascara, blush-swept cheeks and a slick of rose-tinted lipstick. First Man joined the seven nominations club with seven nods for Adapted Screenplay, Cinematography, Editing, Production Design, Sound, and Special Visual Effects, as well as Supporting Actress for Claire. Dazzling: Showcasing her radiant decolletage, the screen star's strapless ensemble featured waterfall tasseled detailing, while her height was boosted with a pair of Jimmy Choo silver heels Radiant: The screen star amped up her glamorous appearance with eye-catching diamond jewellery, consisting of shimmery dangle earrings and a matching bracelet British talent Claire, who plays Neil Armstrong's wife in the moon landings biopic, competed with The Favourite's Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz, Margot Robbie for Mary Queen of Scots and Amy Adams for Vice - with Rachel taking home the gong. Joanna Lumley returned for a second stint behind the podium for the 72nd annual awards after impressing last year in place of Stephen Fry while Cirque de Soleil will also be back with another performance after their 2018 tribute to Guillermo del Toros The Shape of Water. Yorgos Lanthimoss The Favourite swept the nominations with 12 nods in top categories including a Best Actress chance for its star Olivia Colman, Supporting Actress nominations for Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz and a shot at Best Film. Impressive: The star has been nominated for the prestigious Best Actress in a Supporting Role award for her role in drama film First Man Regal: Later in the evening Claire looked stunning while attending the British Vogue and Tiffany & Co. Celebrate Fashion and Film Party at Annabel's in Mayfair She found fame on BAFTA-award winning reality show Made In Chelsea. And while Millie Mackintosh is no longer a star of the show, which won Reality And Constructed Factual in 2013, she was certainly a star of the red carpet as she attended the British Academy Film Awards on Sunday, at the Royal Albert Hall. The 29-year-old reality star-turned-social media maven looked a vision in a flowing pink gown which she appeared in just hours after revealing she was forced to wear a stick-on bra and a thong by sharing a snap in her lingerie. A vision: while Millie Mackintosh is no longer a star of MIC, she was certainly a star of the red carpet as she attended the 2019 British Academy Film Awards on Sunday, at the Royal Albert Hall in London Millie borrowed from the dressing-up box for the awards where she was every inch the fairy princess in a frothy pink gown with a bust-enhancing corset top. Prior to hitting the red carpet, she shared a snap while posing in a nude stick-on bra, as she admitted she was 'sticking her cleavage together' before posting the result. Millie looked sensational at the bash as she swept the red carpet in style in the candyfloss pink gown which was laden with ruffles. The puffy sleeves and floating hem were not dissimilar to the voluminous sleeves on her dress at her wedding to husband Hugo Taylor last year. A vision: The 29-year-old reality star-turned-social media maven looked a vision in a flowing pink gown which she appeared in just hours after revealing she was forced to wear a stick on bra and a thong by sharing a snap in her lingerie Pink princess: She was every inch the fairy princess in a frothy pink gown with a bust-enhancing corset top and flowing skirt A star is born: Millie proudly showed off the trio of stars tattooed on her shoulder The blonde beauty was making the most of her sensational figure in the ensemble while displaying her lithe limbs and perky assets. Her tresses were scraped into an elegant chignon while her make-up was dewy and striking to best show off her stunning good looks. Joanna Lumley has returned for a second stint behind the podium for the 72nd annual awards after impressing last year in place of Stephen Fry. Yorgos Lanthimoss The Favourite has swept the nominations with 12 nods in top categories including a Best Actress chance for its star Olivia Colman, Supporting Actress nominations for Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz and a shot at Best Film. The Favourite will compete with A Star Is Born, BlacKkKlansman, Green Book and Roma for Best Film but surprisingly, after its success at last month's Golden Globes, Bohemian Rhapsody was snubbed in the category. Nude ambition: The stunner shared a shot of her stick-on bra which was keeping her cleavage in place Floaty and fantastic: She showed off her stunning style in the flowing gown Nude ambition: Her tresses were scraped into an elegant chignon while her make-up was dewy and striking to best show off her stunning good looks Frilly and fantastic: Millie was sure to show off all her best assets The Favourite is nominated in 12 categories. Bohemian Rhapsody, First Man, Roma and A Star Is Born each have seven nominations; Vice has six, BlacKkKlansman has five, and Cold War and Green Book have four each. Can You Ever Forgive Me?, Mary Poppins Returns, Mary Queen of Scots and Stan & Ollie have three nominations each. The 2019 nod marks Olivia's sixth BAFTA nomination but her first for a film role after previously winning for TV hits Twenty Twelve, Accused and Broadchurch. Also receiving seven nominations is Alfonso Cuaron's Roma which is nominated for Best Film, Film Not in the English Language, Director, Original Screenplay, Cinematography, Production Design and Editing. Wow! Millie looked incredible in her ensemble as she dazzled along the red carpet Ruffled and ravishing: She showed off her lithe limbs from beneath the volmunious sleeves A change of look: Millie's red carpet look was in contrast to her usual scanty ensembles A vision: Nominee Amy Adams, who is up for her role in Vice, looked sensational as she followed Millie on her sashayed along the red carpet Cuaron will be a tough competitor in the Direction category, after winning best director honours at the Golden Globes for his ode to his own childhood in 1970s Mexico City. First Man also joins the seven nominations club with nods for Adapted Screenplay, Cinematography, Editing, Production Design, Sound, and Special Visual Effects, as well as Supporting Actress for Claire Foy. British talent Claire, who plays Neil Armstrong's wife in the moon landings biopic, will compete with The Favourite's Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz, Margot Robbie for Mary Queen of Scots and Amy Adams for Vice. Supporting Actor also includes big names with Adam Driver for BlacKkKlansman competing against the Golden Globe winner Mahershala Ali for Green Book as well as Richard E. Grant for Can You Ever Forgive Me?, Vice star Sam Rockwell and Timothee Chalamet for Beautiful Boy. Flowing fancy: She looked incredible in the dress which set her apart from her co-guests She invited her 'hero' Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to her house for a Grammy-viewing pizza party on Friday. But it looks like the freshman democrat may not make it to Chrissy Teigen and John Legend's house. 'She's much more busy!' Chrissy, 33, said with a laugh when approached by TMZ at Spago Beverly Hills, Wolfgang Pucks flagship restaurant on Saturday night. 'She's much more busy!' Chrissy Teigen and John Legend revealed on Saturday Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez may not make it to their Grammy bash 'We can only hope!' John said with a smile. Just a few days ago, Chrissy invited Alexandria via Twitter to her house for a Grammy viewing party attended by the likes of Jesse Tyler Ferguson. '@AOC hello my hero, do you wanna come over and watch the grammys with us? there will be pizza,' Chrissy asked. When Alexandria didn't immediately reply, Chrissy enlisted the help of party guest Jesse to help convince her. Work: The model put her long legs on display as she enjoyed dinner with her husband Man of style: The Ordinary People singer wore a winter coat with gold buttons 'Jesse will he here! help me!! tell her we are normal,' she tweeted. 'She can have my portion!' Jesse quickly replied. It seems Chrissy will enjoy the festivities from home as she posted a makeup tutorial while wearing a towel. As she followed down a few steps for her fans, Teigen admitted she was lost in the process due to alcohol. Missing out: It seems Chrissy will enjoy the festivities from home as she posted a makeup tutorial while wearing a towel 'Sorry about that, I literally forgot what I was doing,' she told her followers. 'I have had a couple glasses of wine' 'Sorry about that, I literally forgot what I was doing,' she said. 'I have had a couple glasses of wine.' After plugging a few products, she thanked her fans for tuning into her 'at home for The Grammys makeup tutorial. 'Enjoy the show,' she said. 'Hit me up if you want any beauty tips.' A few hours after Chrissy's initial invite, Alexandria replied with her RSVP. 'We can live-tweet me burning something in the kitchen': The rising political star RSVP'd to Chrissy's invite a few hours later Let's get together! Teigen reached out to Alexandria on Friday morning 'yes!' she gushed. 'we can live-tweet me burning something in the kitchen.' Chrissy has made no secret of her being a fan of AOC - the star re-tweeted a viral video posted by James Corden of Alexandria talking campaign finance laws. 'Oh my god. This is just sensational. Please watch and retweet,' James tweeted. Alexandria has been making waves ever since was became the youngest woman elected to Congress. The rising political star was elected a representative of New York's 14th congressional district during the 2018 midterm elections, and began her term on January 3, 2019. 'Help me!' Teigen enlisted the help of her friend Jesse Tyler Ferguson to convince Alexandria 'I can only speak for myself': Tyler playfully replied back to the model Retweet: The star re-tweeted a viral video posted by James Corden of Alexandria talking campaign finance laws She's a rising star of the film and TV world. And Lily Collins more than stood out among the A-list as she hit the red carpet for the 2019 BAFTAs on Sunday night. The actress daughter of Phil Collins, turned heads in her quirky midnight ensemble as she posed up a storm at London's Royal Albert Hall. Simply stunning: Lily Collins more than stood out among the A-list as she hit the red carpet for the 2019 BAFTAs on Sunday night Lily, 29, chose a dramatic sheer lace skirt for the big night, with an elaborate floral peplum detail. Her legs and towering black platform heels could be glimpsed through the sheer lace, while the fashion fan mixed up her fabrics by pairing the lace with a cropped satin jacket. Lily accessorised with sapphire rings and silver drop earrings. Feeling blue: The actress daughter of Phil Collins, turned heads in her quirky midnight ensemble as she posed up a storm at London's Royal Albert Hall Her hair was slicked back into a sleek up do, while a deep plum lip colour was the finishing touch to the gorgeous ensemble. The stars turned out in force at the 2019 British Academy Film Awards on Sunday, held at the Royal Albert Hall in London for the third year in a row, after the move from the Royal Opera House. Joanna Lumley returned for a second stint behind the podium for the 72nd annual awards after impressing last year in place of Stephen Fry. Ready for her close up: Her hair was slicked back into a sleek up do, while a deep plum lip colour was the finishing touch to the gorgeous ensemble Standing out from the crowd: The stars turned out in force at the 2019 British Academy Film Awards with Lily wowing among a series of sleek gowns Yorgos Lanthimoss The Favourite has swept the nominations with 12 nods in top categories including a Best Actress chance for its star Olivia Colman, Supporting Actress nominations for Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz and a shot at Best Film. The Favourite will compete with A Star Is Born, BlacKkKlansman, Green Book and Roma for Best Film but surprisingly, after its success at last month's Golden Globes, Bohemian Rhapsody was snubbed in the category. Lily told the BAFTA red carpet of her pick for the top prize: 'I really do think my favourite was "The Favourite."' So glam: Lily has a host of big roles coming up in 2019 and has wowed most recently in the BBC adaption of Les Miserables All the bling: Lily accessorised with sapphire rings and silver drop earrings for the glam night Presenting: Lily was on stage to present a gong with a very glam Olga Kurylenko Lily has got a whole host of impressive roles coming up, playing Ted Bundy's longtime girlfriend Elizabeth Kloepfer, aka Liz Kendall in Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil And Vile alongside Zac Efron. And that's not all where Lily's portrayal of real-life characters end, she will next be seen in the film Tolkien opposite Nicholas Hoult, a biographical drama of The Lord of the Rings author J.R.R Tolkein. The beauty portrays Edith Bratt, Tolkein's wife and muse who inspired his characters, Luthien Tinuviel and Arwen Evenstar. Glow: Lily continued to look sensational as she wowed later that evening at the British Vogue and Tiffany & Co. Celebrate Fashion and Film Party at Annabel's in Mayfair Pals: She was joined by Naomi Campbell and Amy Adams as the trio dazzled in their party gear He was honoured with the Best Actor gong at Sunday night's BAFTAs for his portrayal of legendary Queen frontman Freddie Mercury. And Rami Malek, 37, let his hair down as he celebrated his win with girlfriend Lucy Boynton, 25, at a BAFTA afterparty at The Grosvenor Hotel. The award-winning actor was pictured looking in jovial spirits as he prepared to get out of their car and into the star-studded soiree. Chivalrous: Rami Malek, 37, appeared to be in good spirits as he celebrated his win with girlfriend Lucy Boynton, 25, at a BAFTA afterparty at The Grosvenor Hotel Helping his other half out of their car, Rami looked wide-eyed as wrapped his arm around her waist and guided Lucy inside the party while flanked by a number of security guards. Lucy continued her glamorous display to the soiree as she held onto her Dior box clutch while she made her way into the party with Rami's help. Making it out of their car safely, the duo, who met on set of Bohemian Rhapsody, appeared to breath a sigh of relief following the hysteria that followed them. Inside the star-studded bash, the duo were seen mingling with the crowds following Rami's win and were congratulated by those around them. Good spirits: The award-winning actor was pictured looking in jovial spirits as he prepared to get out of their car and into the star-studded soiree Caring: Lucy affectionately placed her hand behind Rami's head before they continued on with their night Stepping out: Rami followed his other half out of the car Walk on: Lucy was pictured as she walked along the pavement Home time: The loved-up duo looked as glam on arrival to the glamorous afterparty Their celebratory mood comes after they opted to light up the red carpet separately at the 72nd British Academy Film Awards at the Royal Albert Hall on Sunday evening. The actress was every inch the red carpet style queen, as she arrived wearing a dramatic blush and black ruffled gown with Roger Vivier platform heels. Lucy looked phenomenal for her turn on the red carpet as she dazzled away from her beau who was hot on heels on the red carpet. The dress featured incredible feather-effect detailing around the bust, while boasting a striking black bow and thick-set straps. Cute couple: Rami looked delighted to have Lucy on his arm as they made their way inside the party Pout and about: The showbiz couple have recently gone public with their romance Celebrations: Inside the bash, the duo were seen mingling with the crowds after Rami's win Glam: Their celebratory mood comes after they opted to light up the red carpet separately at the 72nd British Academy Film Awards at the Royal Albert Hall on Sunday evening Lucy's gown flowed out into a stunning graphic retro-style print skirt, which cascaded down to the floor as she ascended the steps into the event. The Let Me Go star opted for an eye-catching make-up look, sporting lashings of mauve eye-shadow and mascara to complete her old-school look. Styling her platinum locks in a centre parting, Lucy swept her tresses back with two decorative black clips, while accessorising with a pair of jewel drop earrings. The star has been seen putting on a loved-up display with co-star Rami, after the pair finally confirmed their real-life romance last month, however she arrived at the awards ceremony without her new beau. Hold me close: The couple looked loved-up as they hit the red carpet together Retro queen: The 25-year-old actress was every inch the red carpet style queen, as she arrived wearing a dramatic blush and black ruffled gown Slick: He looked handsome as he hit the red carpet away from his stunning girlfriend Making her mark: The dress featured incredible feather-effect detailing around the bust, while boasting a striking black bow and thick-set straps Beaming: Lucy's gown flowed out into a stunning graphic retro-style print skirt, which cascaded down to the floor as she ascended the steps into the event Rock on! Rami has blown fans away with his performance as Freddie Mercury During his winner's speech, Rami said: 'This is truly extraordinary. Thank you BAFTA for this gorgeous gift. I cannot believe I am included in this group of actors... 'Ive entered this would as an outsider. You Brits do it so well and its not lost on me how sacred your musical heritage is so thank you so much for including me'. Their film is tipped as a hot contender at the Oscars later this month, having scooped nominations for Best Actor, Best Picture, Best Sound Editing, Best Film Editing and Best Sound Mixing. Hold me close: Their film is tipped as a hot contender at the Oscars later this month, having scooped nominations for Best Actor, Best Picture, Best Sound Editing, Best Film Editing and Best Sound Mixing Stylish: Rami looked dashing in his white suit with a black shirt and dicky bow Stylish: Rami and Lucy opted not to pose together on the red carpet Edgy: Rami cut a stylish figure as he joined the creme de la creme of Hollywood Love life: The star has been seen putting on a loved-up display with co-star Rami, after the pair finally confirmed their real-life romance last month, however she arrived at the awards ceremony without her new beau Rami confirmed his relationship with Lucy when he won the Breakthrough Artist Award at the 30th annual Palm Springs International Film Festival's Film Awards Gala. He thanked the festival before directly addressing the London-raised actress. 'Thank you, Lucy Boynton. You have been my ally, my confidante, my love. Thank you so much,' he said. Rami previously dated his Mr. Robot co-star Portia Doubleday, 30, before they split in 2017. One to keep: The pair were happy as they posed with Rami's BAFTA award for his performance as Best Actor in Bohemian Rhapsody He has credited his girlfriend Anne-Marie Corbett for 'saving his life', after battling addiction, a drink-drive conviction and divorce. And Ant McPartlin looked in jovial spirits as they stepped out hand-in-hand in Manchester on Sunday. The television presenter, 43, grabbed a coffee with Anne-Marie before heading to the Lowry Theatre to film another round of Britain's Got Talent auditions. Absolutely smitten: Ant McPartlin looked in jovial spirits as he stepped out hand-in-hand with his girlfriend Anne-Marie Corbett in Manchester on Sunday Ant looked smart in a grey fitted blazer and matching baker boy hat, while Anne-Marie wrapped up in a comfy pink puffa jacket and blue cropped trousers. The television presenter paired the look with a navy jumper, denim jeans and Nike trainers. The pair couldn't take their eyes off one another as they headed to a cafe for their caffeine kick before heading to the Lowry Theatre. Caffeine-kick: The television presenter, 43, grabbed a coffee with Anne-Marie before heading to the Lowry Theatre to film another round of Britain's Got Talent auditions Looking good: Ant looked smart in a grey fitted blazer and matching baker boy hat, while Anne-Marie wrapped up in a comfy pink puffa jacket and blue cropped trousers Dapper: The television presenter paired the look with a navy jumper, denim jeans and Nike trainers Loved-up: The pair couldn't take their eyes off one another as they headed to a cafe for their caffeine kick before heading to the Lowry Theatre Strike a pose! Ant's arrival in Manchester caused quite the stir, with the television presenter happily posing for photos with fans while Anne-Marie played photographer Ant's arrival in Manchester caused quite the stir, with the television presenter happily posing for photos with fans while Anne-Marie played photographer. The former PA has been throwing her support behind Ant, travelling around the UK while he films for the upcoming series of BGT. His return to BGT for auditions has firmly marked his return to TV since last year's troubles. Doting girlfriend: The former PA has been throwing her support behind Ant, travelling around the UK while he films for the upcoming series of BGT Back to his best: His return to BGT for auditions has firmly marked his return to TV since last year's troubles Windswept: The pair appeared a little windswept as they strolled through the street's of Manchester Only eyes for her: Ant looked utterly besotted with Anne-Marie as they strolled side-by-side High spirits: The pair flashed huge smiles on their walk through the city centre His rock: Ant has credited his girlfriend Anne-Marie Corbett for 'saving his life', after battling addiction, a drink-drive conviction and divorce Comfort: Anne-Marie paired her pink puffa jacket with black trainers and wore her blonde hair in a sleek straight style After first seeking rehab treatment for his addiction to prescription drugs and alcohol in 2017, Ant then pleaded guilty to drink-driving in April last year after being involved in a three-car collision. The series of incidents led to the star checking in for rehab treatment, while he also stepped away from his co-presenting gigs with sidekick Declan Donnelly. And Ant has credited Anne-Marie for guiding him on the straight and narrow, telling The Sun On Sunday: 'Shes a beautiful soul. Were very happy. Im in the best place Ive been in my life, to be honest with you. Its great.' Thrilled: Ant has credited Anne-Marie for guiding him on the straight and narrow, he said: 'Shes a beautiful soul. Were very happy' Defensive: Ant was quick to back Anne-Marie by noting people 'had to be careful' when it came to judging the relationship of others Ant's romance Anne-Marie was revealed in June of last year. And makeup artist Lisa soon hinted of betrayal on Anne-Marie's part when she tweeted soon after their relationship was revealed: 'Yeah My Friend and OUR Pa who I let into OUR home?' Ant was quick to back Anne-Marie by noting people 'had to be careful' when it came to judging the relationship of others. Complimenting his girlfriend yet again, he added: 'She is the most wonderful true woman. And the way we are and when people see us together theyll see how honest and kind and happy we make each other.' Raring to go: Ant certainly looked back to his best as he prepared for another day of filming Speaking further of ex Lisa, Ant admitted they 'don't talk' and 'haven't for a while.' During the interview, he also hinted at not agreeing with the way Lisa handled their break-up, following her slew of 'liked' tweets regarding their failed romance and personal issues. It emerged last month that Lisa had been left 'disgusted and devastated' after Ant credited Anne-Marie for 'saving his life'. Ant's relationship with Anne-Marie appears to be going from strength-to-strength, with the pair recently welcoming two new Maltipoo puppies, Milo and Bumble. James McAvoy couldn't keep his hands to himself on Sunday, as he was spotted strolling along with girlfriend Lisa Liberati for a chilled out afternoon in London. The Glass star, 39, was seen packing the PDA on as he stopped to smooch Lisa, 40, unfazed about who might be watching on. Wrapped up against the winter weather, James grabbed Lisa passionately and kissed her on the lips in the middle of the street. Keeping warm: James McAvoy couldn't keep his hands to himself on Sunday, as he was spotted strolling along with girlfriend Lisa Liberati for a chilled out afternoon in London Strolling along: The Glass star, 39, was seen walking along with his lover, 40 He looked cosy in a black puffer jacket and skinny jeans, with a grey scarf wrapped around his neck. Lisa wore a black woolly beret over her brunette tresses, which she wore loosely around her checked yellow and blue coat. She wore stonewashed denim jeans and black boots, flashing bright pink socks underneath. At one point, James produced a bouquet of flowers for Lisa, who seemed delighted with the romantic gesture. Gissa kiss: James was seen packing the PDA on as he stopped to smooch Lisa unfazed about who might be watching on Loved up: Wrapped up against the winter weather, James grabbed Lisa passionately and kissed her on the lips in the middle of the street At one point, James produced a bouquet of flowers for Lisa, who seemed delighted with the romantic gesture The pair giggled as the looked at a 3.75m house, clearly deciding the resist temptation by moving swiftly on On the market: They stopped by an estate agents - one particular property catching their eye Cosy: James wrapped up in a black puffer jacket and skinny jeans, with a grey scarf wrapped around his neck All wrapped up: Lisa wore a black woolly beret over her brunette tresses, which she wore loosely around her checked yellow and blue coat Casual: She wore stonewashed denim jeans and black boots, flashing bright pink socks underneath That's amore: The pair nipped into a cafe Touch up: Lisa was seen reapplying her make-up Off you trot: The pair strolled along the street taking in the afternoon air The pair nipped into a cafe where Lisa was seen reapplying her make-up before the strolled along the street to an estate agents - one particular property catching their eye. The pair giggled as the looked at a 3.75m house, clearly deciding the resist temptation by moving swiftly on. The pair got together after James and his actress ex Anne-Marie Duff split in 2016. James and fellow Brit Anne-Marie share eight-year-old son Brendan - but James' new love is American. PDA: The pair got together after James and his actress ex Anne-Marie Duff split in 2016 Flower power: James and fellow Brit Anne-Marie share eight-year-old son Brendan - but James' new love is American Day out: James and Lisa were first reportedly linked while he was shooting M. Night Shyamalan's psychological horror flick Split in her native Philadelphia James and Lisa were first reportedly linked while he was shooting M. Night Shyamalan's psychological horror flick Split in her native Philadelphia. Lisa was credited as the Signs director's personal assistant on John Erick Dowdle's 2010 elevator-set thriller Devil, which he co-wrote with screenwriter Brian Nelson. However, James and the Philadelphia University graduate didn't become 'Instagram official' until last Halloween partying alongside the cast and crew of Shyamalan's 2019 sequel Glass - which was released in cinemas last month, also starring Sarah Paulson and Bruce Willis. Casual Sundays: Lisa was credited as the Signs director's personal assistant on John Erick Dowdle's 2010 elevator-set thriller Devil, which he co-wrote with screenwriter Brian Nelson Besotted: James and the Philadelphia University graduate didn't become 'Instagram official' until last Halloween partying alongside the cast and crew of Shyamalan's 2019 sequel Glass - which was released in cinemas last month, also starring Sarah Paulson and Bruce Willis A gift: James was seen exiting a florists with the present for his lover James reprised the role of dissociative identity disorder patient Kevin Wendell Crumb aka The Horde in Glass - which is an Unbreakable/Split crossover film. Despite production officially concluding on December 5, the two-time Oscar nominee revealed he was still shooting scenes for Glass in Brazil just weeks before it was due for release. Fans can next catch James reprising his voiceover role as Gnomeo in Paramount Pictures animated flick Sherlock Gnomes, which hits US theaters Friday and UK theaters May 11. For you: He presented her with the bouquet outside the estate agents House hunting? Could the couple be in the market for a new home... Sweet: James disappeared for a while to get the flowers for Lisa Sequel: James reprised the role of dissociative identity disorder patient Kevin Wendell Crumb aka The Horde in Glass - which is an Unbreakable/Split crossover film Latest project: Despite production officially concluding on December 5, the two-time Oscar nominee revealed he was still shooting scenes for Glass in Brazil just weeks before it was due for release 'I basically made sure I did a lot of shouting, a lot of screaming, I'd go out really late at night and try to make sure that my voice was husky and sort of raspy and sexy as possible,' McAvoy joked to ABC Radio about the role. 'On this one, you just got to inhabit it and enjoy it. You try to put as much of something different in Gnomeo as you can.' John Stevenson's Gnomeo & Juliet sequel also features Emily Blunt, Johnny Depp, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Mary J. Blige, Michael Caine, and Maggie Smith. She never fails to turn heads with her sensational sense of style. And Diane Kruger looked gorgeous as ever as she hit the red carpet for The Operative premiere during the 69th Berlinale International Film Festival on Sunday. The actress, 42, and fashion fan looked every inch the leading lady in her sheer black lace gown. Leading lady: Diane Kruger looked gorgeous as ever as she hot the red carpet for The Operative premiere during the 69th Berlinale International Film Festival on Sunday Diane's statuesque figure was on show in the dramatic dress, which featured a semi sheer skirt made up of shimmering black panels. The top of the dress was just as head-turning with its cut-out panels and silver embroidered collar detail. The style-savvy star accessorised with statement earrings to match the collar detail, shown off by her sleek up-do. Strike a pose: The actress, 42, and fashion fan looked every inch the leading lady in her sheer black lace gown for the glam red carpet Good looking pair: The German star posed alongside her co-star in the thriller Cas Anvar Simply stunning: The actress showed off her legs in the sheer structured skier of her gown Ruby red lips were the finishing touch. Earlier in the day the German actress donned a white, pinstripe blazer with a v-neckline and matching trousers for her movie's photocall at the Grand Hyatt Hotel. Keeping it simple, the film star added height to her frame with a pair of black heels and styled her blonde locks into loose curls. All-star cast: Diane lined up with co-star Martin Freeman and her director and producer Yuval Adler Finishing touches: The style savvy star chose some statement ear cuffs to add to the glam Turnign ehads: All eyes and camera lenses were on Diane as she swept down the red carpet Flawless: The actress flaunted stunning makeup including a statement red lip Making her entrance: Diane made an elegant exit from her flashy ride straight onto the carpet Joining Diane at the event was her The Operative co-star Martin Freeman, 47, who cut a casual figure in a dark green shirt with off-white trousers. The film tells the story of Rachel (Diane) a rogue spy from Israel's feared national intelligence force Mossad who vanished without a trace after attending her father's funeral. The only clue to her whereabouts is a mysterious phone call she makes to her former handler Thomas (Martin) who is then summoned to Israel by Mossad. Style: Earlier in the day Diane turned out in style for The Operative photocall at the Grand Hyatt Hotel Glamour: The actress, 42, donned a white, pinstripe blazer with a v-neckline and matching trousers Ensemble: Keeping it simple, the film star added height to her frame with a pair of black heels and styled her blonde locks into loose curls Co-stars: Joining Diane at the event was her The Operative co-star Martin Freeman who cut a casual figure in a dark green shirt with off-white trousers He then must try to find out what happened to her and if she now poses a threat to the organisation. Diane's appearance comes shortly after she discussed her journey to motherhood in a candid interview after she lifted the lid on how she waited to have a baby. The actress stressed the importance of finding The One before having a child as well as her feeling that she wasn't sure she wanted to be a mother until she turned 35. Film festival: Diane and Martin posed for a snap at the industry event alongside their co-star Cas Anvar Plot: The film tells the story of Rachel (Diane) a rogue spy from Israel's feared national intelligence force Mossad who vanished without a trace after attending her father's funeral Thriller: The only clue to her whereabouts is a mysterious phone call she makes to her former handler Thomas (Martin) who is then summoned to Israel by Mossad Diane welcomed her daughter, whose name is unknown, into the world in November with her beau Norman Reedus. The baby is a second child for Walking Dead star Norman, who has 19-year-old son Mingus with ex-partner Helena Christensen. Of her partner's parenting abilities, she told NET-A-PORTERs digital magazine PorterEdit: 'Norman is so calm, and he teaches me a lot, because hes done it before. Theres definitely something to be said for being with someone who is doing it for the second time. Candid: Diane's appearance comes shortly after she discussed her journey to motherhood in a candid interview after she lifted the lid on how she waited to have a baby Journey: The actress stressed the importance of finding The One before having a child as well as her feeling that she wasn't sure she wanted to be a mother until she turned 35 Baby joy: Diane welcomed her daughter, whose name is unknown, into the world in November with her beau Norman Reedus Happy: The baby is a second child for Walking Dead star Norman, who has 19-year-old son Mingus with ex-partner Helena Christensen 'I think as you grow older, you learn that things come to you when youre ready for them. Im glad I waited to have a baby.' Candidly, Diane shared how she first thought she didn't want to be a mum, saying she was 'too selfish', until she got to the age of 35. She added: 'I was too selfish. But by the time I got to about 35, I thought, yes, I probably do want one. But then you have to wait for the right person to come along.' Family: Diane welcomed her daughter, whose name is unknown, into the world in November with her beau Norman Reedus (pictured in January 2018) Dedicated: Diane underwent training with the Israeli security forces in order to prepare for her role in the film Diane and Norman first fell in love while filming Sky in 2015 but the couple took things slow as they didn't make their first public debut until a year later. Advertisement Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly were back doing what they do best on Sunday, as the Britain's Got Talent auditions continued in Manchester, at the city's Lowry Theatre. Dec, 43, appeared in high spirits, laughing and joking as he arrived ready to start the day and was pictured posing for selfies with fans outside the studio. His best pal and sidekick Ant, also 43, was pictured arriving separately to Dec and appeared deep in thought as he prepared to dive back into his work on the ITV talent show, weeks after making a triumphant return. The show must go on: Ant McPartlin, right, and Declan Donnelly, left, were back doing what they do best on Sunday, as the Britain's Got Talent auditions continued in Manchester, at the city's Lowry Theatre The boys have been filming in Manchester since Friday and the show is expected to air on screens sometime in April, although no exact date has been released yet. Providing some serious glamour on the day was Amanda Holden, 47, who looked sensational in an orange one-shoulder dress which boasted a caped detail. Her hair was styled into loose curls and she completed her look with a pair of designer sunglasses and nude and perspex court shoes. Strike a pose: Dec, 43, appeared in high spirits, laughing and joking as he arrived ready to start the day and was pictured posing for selfies with fans outside the studio Centre of attention: Declan patiently struck a series of poses with excited fans before pressing on with his presenting duties Casually cool: The TV star looked casually cool for his day at work, stepping out in denim shirt with loose-fitting khaki trousers Staving off the winter chill: The jovial TV personality, 43, staved off the chilly winter temperatures with a black quilted vest Alesha Dixon, 40, wore a big smile on her face as she got into her car, wearing a white and black striped trouser suit. Dec has been back at work on the show after he was reunited with his presenter partner Ant last month, with the host making a triumphant return to the show following his drink-drive arrest in March. Ant returned to work at the show's London Palladium auditions on January 18, and admitted he was 'really really emotional' as he was given a standing ovation. The Geordie star was convicted of drink-driving, given an 86,000 fine and a 20 month driving ban following a three-car smash in March and later checked into rehab. All things bright and beautiful: Providing some serious glamour on the day was Amanda Holden, 47, who looked sensational in an orange one-shoulder dress which boasted a caped detail Tress-ed to impress: The star's hair was styled into loose curls and she completed her look with a pair of designer sunglasses In August last year, Ant revealed he was taking a break from presenting with co-host Dec to focus on recovering from his painkiller addiction, months after his drink-driving charge in April. This led Dec to host the remaining episodes of Saturday Night Takeaway solo, along with the Britain's Got Talent live shows in May. Ant previously credited new girlfriend Anne-Marie Corbett as being 'his rock' over the past year as he battled with drug and alcohol addiction and took time away from the spotlight. Speaking to The Sun, he said: 'Anne-Marie honestly is the fundamental reason for the great change in my life. She's been my rock. She's a beautiful soul. We're very happy.' Stylish: Alesha Dixon, 40, wore a big smile on her face as she got into her car, wearing a white and black striped trouser suit Upbeat mood: Looking stylish in a black ensemble, Ant appeared to be in an upbeat mood as he made his way to the auditions Back to work: Dec has been back at work on the show after he was reunited with his presenter partner Ant last month, with the host making a triumphant return to the show following his drink-drive arrest in March Advertisement They welcomed their second child to the world last month. And Conor McGregor looked like he was firmly settling into his new role as a dad-of-two as he enjoyed a family beach day in Miami on Friday. The Irish UFC champion, 30, was spotted with his newborn baby for the first time as he joined his girlfriend Dee Devlin and son Conor Jr, on a stroll down South Beach's famous Ocean Drive. Doting dad: Conor McGregor looked like he was firmly settling into his new role as a dad-of-two as he enjoyed a family beach day in Miami on Friday Conor looked like he had his hands full as he played with his 18-month-old son Conor Jr, while Dee doted on their newborn baby- rumoured to be a girl name Croia. The Mixed Martial Arts fighter looked dapper as he showcased his muscular figure in short circular-print swimming trunks, while his adorable tot wore a nappy. Dee, meanwhile, cut a casual figure in a form-fitting black jumpsuit with white piping. She cinched in her trim waist with a black Gucci belt and wore her brunette tresses in a high bun. Sweet: Joined by his girlfriend Dee Devlin and one-year-old son Conor Jr, the Irish UFC champion, 30, was spotted for the first-time with his newborn baby as they strolled down South Beach's famous Ocean Drive Happy family: Conor looked like he had his hands full as he played with his 18-month-old son Conor Jr, while Dee doted on their newborn baby- rumoured to be a girl name Croia Special bond: Following a quick nappy change, Conor appeared in high spirits as he was showered in cuddles from both of his parents Just like dad: Their blue-eyed baby looked the spitting image of Conor and was dressed in a pink baby-grow for the beach outing So much to see! After a stroll along Ocean Drive, the family stopped to tend to little Conor, who looked like he had got tired of travelling by pram and wanted to explore the beach His pride and joy: Conor couldn't have looked prouder of his son as he strolled along Ocean Drive and soaked up the sunny climes After a stroll along Ocean Drive, the family stopped to tend to little Conor, who looked like he had got tired of travelling by pram and wanted to explore the beach. Following a quick nappy change, the tot appeared in high spirits as he was showered in cuddles from both of his parents. Conor paid a gushing tribute to his son on Instagram as he shared a slew of snaps of them playing on the beach. The athlete wrote: 'Stay patient and trust your journey, my son.' The family outing is the first time Conor and Dee's second child has been seen, following his announcement on Instagram. Stylish display: Dee showcased her incredible post-baby figure in a form-fitting black jumpsuit with white piping Wise words: The star paid a gushing tribute to his son on Instagram as he shared a slew of snaps of them playing on the beach. The athlete wrote: 'Stay patient and trust your journey, my son' Doting parents: While they have not confirmed the baby's gender or sex, The Mirror reports the couple welcomed a baby girl, who they have decided to call Croia While they have not confirmed the baby's gender or sex, The Mirror reports the couple welcomed a baby girl, who they have decided to call Croia. McGregor took to Instagram, posting a from-the-back photo of himself holding a baby seat and the hand of his oldest son, Conor Jr., inside a hospital. 'Heading home with my two healthy babies and an energized and healthy SuperMam,' McGregor wrote in the photo's caption, accompanying it with a heart emoji. Baby's debut: The family outing is the first time Conor and Dee's second child has been seen, following his announcement on Instagram Time for an adventure: Conor Jr looked keen to explore the beach as he clutched onto his dad for support '2019 is off to the best start! Thank you for the well wishes everybody!' he added. It is not immediately clear what day McGregor's second child was born however he shared a snap of heavily pregnant Devlin three says ago captioned: 'Happy New Year everyone! 2019 we get the best gift of all.' Last week, single mother Terri Murray, 26, told The Mirror that she wants McGregor to take a DNA test to confirm he is the father of her one-year-old daughter Clodagh. Defiant: McGregor and his girlfriend of ten years Dee have put on a united front since Terri Murray, 26, claimed her daughter Clodagh was born nine months after she slept with the sports star in 2017 Fans from around the world: The fighter appeared to cause quite a stir on his stroll Star-struck: Conor appeared more than happy to greet fans while others filmed him during his walk down the beach Murray said she met the Dublin-born former UFC featherweight and lightweight champion in a Liverpool hotel after watching the 2017 Grand National. She claimed she fell pregnant as a result of their encounter and nine months later gave birth to her daughter. Murray told The Mirror: 'I dont want his money. I just want to prove he is Clodaghs dad and Im not lying.' Famous face: Conor was joined by a filming crew and appeared unbothered by the stir he was causing McGregor, who is worth 75 million, has denied sleeping with Murray and said she may have been with one of his friends, who accompanied him to Aintree on a private jet. His son with longtime girlfriend Dee, 31, was born on May 5, 2017, a month after the alleged encounter with Murray. The loved-up couple met back in 2008 when Conor was 19 and Dee was 20. The fighter had just quit his job as a plumbing apprentice and was struggling to make ends meet as he tried to pursue his passion, with Dee standing by him as he forged his career in the MMA industry. He recently denied claims he was set to move back to the UK permanently. But Mark Wright, 32, has made the most of his time at home with wife Michelle Keegan, 31, as the couple went on a romantic date to Sheesh restaurant in Chigwell, Essex on Saturday evening. The Our Girl actress looked sensational their night out, donning a monochrome, striped shirt with a black belt and long, puffed sleeves. Couple: Michelle Keegan, 31, went on a romantic date with husband Mark Wright, 32, to the Sheesh restaurant in Chigwell, Essex on Saturday evening The TV star paired it with black leather-inspired trousers and added height to her frame with a pair of matching heels. Showing off her sun-kissed glow, Michelle styled her brunette locks into an updo and completed her look with a black handbag. Mark looked dapper in a black and navy bomber jacket which he paired with a black t-shirt and matching slim-fitting jeans. The pair looked in high spirits as they posed for a photo with the owner of the restaurant towards the end of the evening. Romance: The pair looked in high spirits as they posed for a photo with the owner of the restaurant towards the end of the evening Mark and Michelle tied the knot in May 2015, having first met in Dubai in 2012. Mark recently denied claims he quit his presenting gig with US television show Extra to start a family with his other half. With the former TOWIE star permanently out in Los Angeles to present Extra and his wife previously flying all over the globe for Our Girl, the coupe have had a long distance relationship. However, a spokesperson for Mark told the MailOnline the reality star-turn-presenter had no plans to quit his job in the States to have children. The Daily Star alleged a source told them: 'He is heading home and the next step will be when to start a family.' Career: Mark recently denied claims he quit his presenting gig with US television show Extra to start a family with his other half (pictured in May 2018) Mark previously opened up on how the couple make their long distance love work. Speaking exclusively to MailOnline, he said: 'Don't listen to the rulebook, the rulebook will say "long distance can't work', there's no way this couple are going to work," it's bulls**t. 'At each other's feet every day doesn't work, it depends on the couple, if you love each other you make it work. I wouldn't suggest going months and months without each other, make it work, put it into your schedule, make sure you see each other enough, it keeps the heart fonder.' Speaking of his move stateside, Mark admitted that he does find it difficult being away from his friends and family. 'I miss them every day when I'm not with them. It's something I have to think about in the future, how long I want to be away from them for.' Shirley Ballas has decided to move from Los Angeles - where she currently resides most of the year - back to her native England, it has been reported. The Strictly head judge, 58, is said to have made the decision to relocate permanently, putting her LA mansion on the market for a cool $1.6m. The decision will see the brunette leave her son, Mark, in the US, where he is a pro on Dancing With The Stars. Back for good: Shirley Ballas has decided to move from Los Angeles - where she currently resides most of the year - back to her native England, it has been reported The Star reports that Shirley said: 'I'm moving back permanently from the United States in March. It's something that's a really big deal for me. 'I have some big things in my work and my life planned for 2019. So it will be great to be back here.' Shirley is currently on the Strictly Come Dancing live tour, which is soon to be wrapping up for 2019. She won't be required on the new season of the BBC dancing contest until the Autumn. Motherland: The Strictly head judge, 58, is said to have made the decision to relocate permanently in March of this year Pastures new: Strictly star Shirley will join a band of other celebrities confirmed to take on the 19,000ft challenge of climbing Mount Kilimanjaro for Comic Relief this year Shirley's move might have something to do with her new romance; she has been dating actor Daniel Taylor, since they met in Liverpool over the festive season, during her stint in panto. Her mother Audrey resides in the UK, so she will also be closer to her. One plan in particular she has for 2019 is the 19,000ft hike up Mount Kilimanjaro for Comic Relief, which she took on last week. Kilimanjaro: The Return takes place 10 years after the original excruciating climb led by Gary Barlow, which raised 1.5 million for the cause. Climb the mountain: The ascent will be documented in a special one-hour documentary to air on BBC One Tribute: Shirley shared a heart wrenching tribute to her older brother David, 15 years on from his suicide to mark what would have been his 60th birthday Former Strictly constant Ed Balls joins the likes of Shirley, Dani Dyer, Little Mix's Jade Thirlwall and Leigh-Anne Pinnock, Alexander Armstrong and Anita Rani. The ascent will be documented in a special one-hour documentary to air on BBC One. Meanwhile, Shirley shared a heart-wrenching tribute to her older brother David last week - 15 years on from his suicide. David killed himself in December 2003, and on Tuesday Shirley posted photos and a message to him on what would have been his 60th birthday. Loss: The Strictly judge's brother killed himself in December 2003, and on Tuesday Shirley posted photos and a message to him on what would have been his 60th birthday Calling him the 'best brother I could have wished for', the champion dancer and choreographer used the tribute to raise awareness of mental health. 'Dear David today 5th Feb 2019 you would have been the big 60. There is not a day that goes by in my life without you coming to my mind,' Shirley began her message. 'The best brother I could have wished for. Protective, caring and king of your family. We for sure came first.' 'I wish I could turn the clock back in time and be more aware of mental health and the fact that we all need to share more how we feel.' 'As we make are way through this short life with all its twists and turns I will hold you close in my heart so you are always on this journey with me. Seems like yesterday I had my last cuddle with you but I feel you closer than ever. RIP David I love you.' She tied the knot with comedian Hamish Blake in 2012 and they now share two children, Sonny, four, and 18-month-old Rudy. And Zoe Foster Blake has now revealed the obstacles they face with children in the house, admitting they struggle to have 'sexy time'. Speaking on 60 Minutes on Sunday, the author, 38, was then left red-faced after Hamish, 39, threatened to reveal her 'weird fetish'. Getting candid! In an intimate interview on Sunday's 60 Minutes, Zoe Foster Blake admitted she struggles to have 'sexy time' with husband Hamish Discussing their secret to a happy marriage, Hamish said: 'There's no right or wrong. I'm sure there's lots of people out there that whirlwinds totally worked for them. 'But I think for us anyway, when times get... when you've got kids, and you're sleep-deprived, you're falling back on your friendship far more than you're falling back on...' Zoe interjected with: 'Sexy times.' 'When you've got kids, and you're sleep-deprived, you're falling back on your friendship far more than you're falling back on': The loved-up couple opened up about their six-year marriage Hamish said it's hard to get intimate when there's kids in the house, confessing: 'I tried it, yeah, doesn't work. 'At three in the morning when the kids are crying, I'm like, "I think I know what we need here." Put some leather pants on and a satin shirt, and came back. It didn't work.' Zoe quipped: 'It was weird,' prompting her beau to shoot back: 'Actually, there was there was that weird fetish that Zoe had.' Making it work! The couple juggle parental duties with their respective successful careers Laughing, the cosmetics entrepreneur hastily replied: 'Oh, don't talk about that, honey.' Hamish and Zoe met in 2004 at a media event she later described as a 'horrible men's deodorant launch'. Zoe admitted that they were friends at the time and their love slowly blossomed, telling 60 Minutes: 'To be frank, I loved him very much as a friend, but I did not consider him romantically.' 'I loved him very much as a friend, but I did not consider him romantically': Zoe told 60 Minutes that she and Hamish began as friends She added: 'I'd just come out of a big relationship, and I needed to be single, so it wasn't even on my radar. Sorry, babe. No offence.' The couple have been married for seven years after tying the knot in 2012 at the Wolgan Valley in the Blue Mountains. 'I married the love of my life, several lives perhaps, in a very small ceremony that was genuinely the best, most fun, perfect day of both our lives,' Zoe wrote on her blog of the big day. Radio star Hamish has likewise gushed about his wife, writing on Instagram: 'She is the smartest funniest person I know... She is an incredible babe and mother and best friend and wife'. It has turned out to be one of the most coveted events of the year, with a guestlist that rivals the Golden Globes, Grammy's and Oscars. And Gwyneth Paltrow led the slew of Hollywood actresses attending Jennifer Aniston's 50th birthday celebrations held at the Sunset Towers hotel in Los Angeles on Saturday. Joined by the likes of Demi Moore, Sandra Bullock and Reese Witherspoon, the actress, 46, displayed her quirky sense of style in a silver sequin Attico dress and cowboy boots as they partied until the early hours of the morning. Leading lady: Gwyneth Paltrow led the slew of Hollywood actresses attending Jennifer Aniston's 50th birthday celebrations in Los Angeles on Saturday Gwyneth flashed a hint of cleavage in the knee-length dress, which featured a shimmering sequin panel at the front, while the back was made out of blue velvet. She paired the show-stopping dress with brown cowboy boots and wrapped up in a wool camel coat. The Sliding Doors star wore her blonde locks in a soft curls and accentuated her youthful visage with deftly touches of make-up. In a twist of events, Brad Pitt was also at the event - who used to be married to birthday girl Jennifer and, before that, engaged to Gwyneth. In a twist of events: Brad Pitt was also at the event - who used to be married to birthday girl Jennifer and, before that, engaged to Gwyneth [pictured in 1995 movie Se7en together] A-list guestlist: Gwyneth was joined by Demi Moore, who looked stylish in a green velvet minidress Sweet: Sandra Bullock left holding hands with her long-term boyfriend Bryan Randall Demi, 56, turned up to the star-studded bash in a green velvet minidress, which highlighted her tremendous pins. After rubbing shoulders with Hollywood's finest, the star tottered out of the hotel and heading into an awaiting taxi. Sandra, meanwhile, left holding hands with her long-term boyfriend Bryan Randall. The Birdbox actress, 54, looked effortlessly stylish in a red cherry blossom kaftan and plunging black vest. Sartorially savvy: The actress, 46, displayed her quirky sense of style in a silver sequin dress and cowboy boots Glam: The Sliding Doors star wore her blonde locks in a soft curls and accentuated her youthful visage with deftly touches of make-up Gwyneth and Jen have been friends for years, despite both having history with Brad Pitt. The former Friends actress was previously married to Brad, who dated Gwyneth between 1994 and 1997 after meeting on the set of Se7en. Brad proposted to Gwyneth in 1996, while he was filming Seven Years in Tibet in Argentina, but the couple split the following year. In 2014, in an interview with Allure magazine, Jennifer said about her friendship with the actress: 'I've known her (Gwyneth) a long time, that woman has got style to the moon and back. Chic, effortless, gorgeous. This sums us up,' she said, adding: 'She's always been sweet to me.' Home-time: After rubbing shoulders with Hollywood's finest, Demi was spotted tottered out of the hotel and heading into an awaiting taxi Night owl: Demi partied until the early hours of the morning with the slew of Hollywood stars Bleary-eyed: Reese Witherspoon appeared in high spirits as she left the bash Dressed to impress: The Legally Blonde actress put on a leggy display in a black minidress and furry coat Among other famous faces attending the bash was Reese, Kate Hudson and Isla Fisher. According to Hollywood Life, Jen had no fears about turning 50 and was excited to celebrate the landmark. A source told the publication: 'Jen is looking forward to her fiftieth birthday much more than one would expect. Star-studded: Kate Hudson and her boyfriend Danny Fujikawa were also in attendance Chatting away: The pair appeared deep in conversation as they left the hotel Milestone: Jennifer invited a slew of Hollywood stars to ring in her birthday 'She has had such an amazing life and she feels that turning fifty is not a death sentence, but a chance to age gracefully and have even a greater life ahead. "She is completely invested and confident with turning fifty, it 's not a problem for her. 'She knows she looks great, she's in a good place personally and professionally, and she is only looking forward to what is ahead.' Reunited: Friends star Lisa Cudrow (L) and Christina McLarty (R) showed their support as they marked the occasion She's a regular on the front row at every Fashion Week show. And Karlie Kloss was putting on a stylish display when she arrived at the Brandon Maxwell show during NYFW on Saturday. The model looked lovely in a fitted blue dress as she enjoyed a sneak peek at the new collection when the models hit the runway at Penn Plaza Pavilion. Stepping out: Karlie Kloss was putting on a stylish display when she arrived at the Brandon Maxwell show during NYFW on Saturday Karlie stood out from the crowd in a chic and sophisticated look, donning a baby blue dress. The knitted number featured a high neck and a knee-length cut, adding some extra height to her look with a pair of black stilettos. She added a touch of glamour to the look thanks to a pair of silver sparkling earrings. Wow: The model looked lovely in a fitted blue dress as she chatted to Ashley Graham and Nicky Hilton at the show VIP arrival: She enjoyed a sneak peek at the new collection when the models hit the runway at Penn Plaza Pavilion Karlie kept her make-up simple and natural, enhancing her cheekbones with rosy blush. She wore her sleek, blonde locks down loose and added a slick of black winged eyeliner. Located high up in Rockefeller Center, the fashion show apparently began a bit tardily, and Christian apologized from the runway, the Bradenton Herald reports. Karlie's outing came after she opened up about her first three months of marriage to Joshua Kushner. Beautiful: Karlie kept her make-up simple and natural, enhancing her cheekbones with rosy blush Strike a pose: The girls were enjoying themselves at the star-studded fashion show 'I love being married,' the Chicago native said in Pasadena, California at the 2019 Winter Television Critics Association on Tuesday. She continued: 'Honestly, I just feel really happy. It's so nice to just have a home base. I can't explain. Nothing has really changed, but in all the best ways, it feels different. I love it.' The 6ft2 catwalk queen made the remarks as she appeared on a panel in support of her upcoming relaunch of Project Runway, People reported Tuesday. She praised Joshua - a venture capitalist who's the brother of President Donald Trump's senior adviser and son-in-law, Jared Kushner - for having her back as she's 'figuring out how to continue to grow [her] career and balance [her] personal and professional life. Stepping out solo: The newly-married star was in attendance without husband Joshua She is known for her sensational sense of style. And Irina Shayk was radiant as ever as she departed Loulou's in Mayfair with boyfriend Bradley Cooper after a pre-BAFTA event on Saturday evening. Wearing head-to-toe Chanel, the Russian supermodel, 33, donned a white blazer with a boucle embellishment and a matching skirt. Style: Irina Shayk, 33, was radiant as ever as she departed Loulou's in Mayfair with boyfriend Bradley Cooper, 44, after a pre-BAFTA event on Saturday evening Pairing her outfit with a matching hat, Irina added height to her frame with white heels and accessorised with branded bracelets and a clutch bag with a glittering, cross-shaped detail. Irina and Bradley departed the industry event separately where they got into a waiting car, with the model being shielded from the evening downpour with her driver's umbrella. The A Star Is Born director, 44, was dapper for the evening, wearing a grey suit with a baby blue shirt and navy tie. Irina and Bradley first began dating in 2015, with the actor moving into the model's apartment in New York City in November of that year. Low profile: Bradley was dapper for the evening, wearing a grey suit with a baby blue shirt and navy tie. Outfit: Wearing head-to-toe Chanel, the model donned a white blazer with a boucle embellishment and a matching skirt Career: Bradley is nominated for best actor and best director at this year's BAFTAs They welcomed their first child together, a daughter named Lea De Saine, in March 2017 in Los Angeles. Bradley has won critical praise for his directorial debut, A Star Is Born, where he also plays the male lead opposite Lady Gaga. A Star Is Born has been nominated for eight Academy Awards and the winners will be announced during a live telecast on Febraury 24. While the film is nominated for best picture, Bradley was not nominated in the best director category, something he recently admitted he is embarrassed about. Evening out: Irina and Bradley departed the industry event separately where they got into a waiting car Ensemble: Pairing her outfit with a matching hat, Irina added height to her frame with white heels and accessorised with branded bracelets and a clutch bag with a glittering, cross-shaped detail Speaking with Oprah Winfrey at her SuperSoul Conversations from Times Square, he explained that when he realized he hadn't been nominated for his directing, 'I went, Oh wow.' 'And the first thing I felt was embarrassment, actually felt embarrassed that I didnt do my part,' he said. Meanwhile, Irina has made admissions about why she prefers to keep her relationship with her other half private. Homeward bound: Irina was shielded from the evening downpour with her driver's umbrella She told Glamour UK: 'I have a lot of friends who share a lot of their personal life on Instagram or social media, very publicly. I admire it and I think it's great but I think it's all about personal choice.' 'Because my work requires me to be out there, I just decided my personal life will be quiet. 'That's why it's called personal, because it's something for you and your family, and I feel happy with it.' Their relationship has gone from strength-to-strength, with the pair recently moving into a new home after being targeted by thieves in a 'sickening burglary'. And Olivia Attwood and her Blackburn Rovers boyfriend Bradley Dack looked in the throes of love as they headed out for a romantic dinner date in Mayfair on Saturday. The Love Island star, 27, turned heads, showing off her leggy frame in a pair of red PVC flared trousers as she walked hand-in-hand with her beau, 25. Smitten: Olivia Attwood and her Blackburn Rovers boyfriend Bradley Dack looked in the throes of love as they headed out for a romantic dinner date in Mayfair on Saturday Olivia complemented the racy look with a black slogan t-shirt and a leather Louis Vuitton bag. She added a boost to her height with a pair of black court shoes and wore her blonde locks in a voluminous blow-dry. The reality starlet finished off her date night look with a heavily bronzed tan, fake eyelashes, blush-swept cheeks and a slick of pink lip-gloss. Stylish: The Love Island star, 27, turned heads, showing off her leggy frame in a pair of red PVC flared trousers as she walked hand-in-hand with her beau, 25. Olivia complemented the racy look with a black slogan t-shirt and a leather Louis Vuitton bag Glam: She added a boost to her height with a pair of black court shoes and wore her blonde locks in a voluminous blow-dry Dolled to the nines: The reality starlet finished off her date night look with a heavily bronzed tan, fake eyelashes, blush-swept cheeks and a slick of pink lip-gloss Bradley, meanwhile, cut a dapper figure in a white Balmain t-shirt, which he paired with a leather biker jacket and jeans. The loved-up couple packed on the PDA as they made their way to Michelin-star Cantonese restaurant Hakasan in Mayfair. Olivia's outing comes after she revealed earlier this week she was diagnosed with ADHD 'many years ago'. During a train trip into London, the Love Island star shared her frustration at leaving her diary and to-do list at home, which helps 'organise' her thoughts. The TV personality told her social media followers: 'Left my f****** diary and To-Do list at home. Not happy. Anyone else obsessed with list writing?' Trendy: Bradley, meanwhile, cut a dapper figure in a white Balmain t-shirt, which he paired with a leather biker jacket and jeans In response to fans questioning her about the importance of her diary, the reality star detailed: 'You guys asking why I love writing lists lol so... 'I was diagnosed with ADHD many many years ago and writing lists is one thing I was taught to do that helps me organise my thoughts.' Detailing the significance of her notes on a day-to-day basis, blonde beauty Olivia added: 'Every night before bed I right the next day in order of what I'm gong to do, even things as simple as... "eat breakfast".' [sic] She went on: 'Find it so therapeutic and helps me in control of my day and stops me doing weird impulsive s*** (most of the time lol). Expensive taste: The loved-up couple packed on the PDA as they made their way to Michelin-star Cantonese restaurant Hakasan in Mayfair '(That was a big share from me and now I feel very naked and awkward. You guys know how I hate that LOL)'. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a group of behavioural symptoms that include inattentiveness, hyperactivity and impulsiveness. Symptoms of the disorder tend to be noticed in childhood years, with most cases diagnosed between the ages of six and 12. People with ADHD may also have problems such as sleep and anxiety disorders. Meanwhile, Olivia recently moved into her brand new home with boyfriend Bradley, weeks after being targeted in a 'sickening burglary'. Honest: Olivia's outing comes after she revealed earlier this week she was diagnosed with ADHD 'many years ago' The pair decided to vacate their Manchester property after they were left 'shaken-up' by the 'horrible' burglary, where thieves stole their two Mercedes cars from their driveway. Chanel and Louis Vuitton bags, Rolex's, and a brand new laptop were also stolen. The former Motorsport Grid Girl star, told The Sun last month: 'It was horrible. We were in bed, someone had a key, we don't know who it was... We're moving anyway, we're moving this week. She documented the burglary on Instagram and shared her relief when her cars were recovered. She told her 1.6million social media followers: 'So happy to say both mine and Brad's cars have been recovered by police. 'They had been abandoned not long after I posted on here, so I can't thank everyone enough for getting the word out, because it probably made all the difference.' Fifi Box, 41, has revealed she's pregnant with her second child. The Fox FM star - who already has a five-year-old daughter, Beatrix 'Trixie' Belle, with ex-partner Grant Kenny - announced the happy news on Instagram on Sunday. The radio personality explained that she's expecting a baby via IVF and an anonymous donor, and declared that she's filled with 'pure joy' over the 'miracle'. 'A little miracle is growing inside me!' Fifi Box, 41, has revealed she's PREGNANT with her second child via IVF and an anonymous donor (pictured with radio co-hosts Brendan Fevola and Byron Cooke) Fifi posted a video of her breaking the exciting news to Trixie while they sat on the couch. She began: 'Can I tell you something? You know how Mummys been really really sick lately... Did you know that its good sick Do you know whats in my tummy?' After a pause, Trixie said: 'A baby?' Fifi squealed with delight: 'Yes, were having a baby! A doctor told me. Sweetheart, theres a for real baby in my tummy!' She added: 'Youre going to have a little brother or sister can you believe that?' before letting Trixie feel her baby bump. 'There's a baby in my tummy!' Fifi posted a video of her breaking the exciting news to Trixie while they sat on the couch She began: 'Can I tell you something? You know how Mummys been really really sick lately... Did you know that its good sick Do you know whats in my tummy?' The radio personality captioned the clip: 'Were having a baby! Yes Trixie and I are over the moon/jumping out of our skin/cant stop smiling/floating on air/dancing in the streets/walking on sunshine and every other metaphor that conveys absolute pure joy.' She went on: 'How did this happen you might ask? Well, a few years ago I made an appointment to see an IVF specialist, the amazing Dr Sameer Jatkar at Monash IVF, and I began an IVF journey to extend our little family. 'After a series of egg retrievals and freezing, last year I started the process to become pregnant via an anonymous donor.' Great news! After a pause, Trixie said: 'A baby?' to which Fifi squealed with delight: 'Yes, were having a baby! A doctor told me. Sweetheart, theres a for real baby in my tummy!' Ecstatic: Fifi captioned the clip: 'I am still pinching myself that I have been this blessed and that this little miracle is growing within me, a much wanted and longed for sibling for a very excited big sister!' Fifi continued: 'I am still pinching myself that I have been this blessed and that this little miracle is growing within me, a much wanted and longed for sibling for a very excited big sister! 'I know the value of this miracle because I have seen first hand the heartbreak, tears and sacrifices so many women and couples suffer on their IVF journeys and my heart goes out to those who are facing that pain and struggle. It is not lost on me that I am one of the lucky ones. 'Being a mum is my greatest joy in life, it is quite simply everything to me. Trixie has brought me more happiness and love than I ever imagined possible and to feel my heart expanding to include this little angel kicking and rollicking within me, I am overwhelmed with how much love and happiness the future holds.' Proud dad: The Fox FM star already has a five-year-old daughter, Beatrix 'Trixie' Belle, with ex-partner, former Ironman, Grant Kenny (pictured) Friendly exes: Fifi and Grant, 55, split in 2012 after a brief romance and a few months later, the radio star gave birth to Trixie. She did not publicly confirm that Grant was Trixie's father until the child was three years old, but Grant regularly visits the tot in Melbourne She concluded: 'I will cherish Trixie and this little angel forever, and hold them so close for the rest of our lives #family.' Fifi and Grant, 55, split in 2012 after a brief romance. A few months later, the radio star gave birth to Trixie. She did not publicly confirm that Grant was Trixie's father until the child was three years old. Fifi and Grant have remained close despite going their separate ways, with Grant regularly visiting his daughter in Melbourne. Grant was previously married to former competitive swimmer Lisa Curry, but split from her in 2009 after 23 years together. Hmm: She was thought to be dating Neighbours star Damien Richardson (pictured), 49, although the actor was not mentioned in Fifi's pregnancy news and the pair have not been seen together since last year Fifi was thought to be dating Neighbours star Damien Richardson, 49, although the actor was not mentioned in Fifi's pregnancy news and the pair have not been seen together since last year. They first met on the set of Neighbours in 2016 when she was cast as his love interest, Brooke Butler. The actor was separated from his wife and mother of his three children, Nicole, at the time. Shortly after Fifi and Damien's relationship was revealed, Nicole told Woman's Day she felt 'hurt, betrayed and embarrassed.' Sam and Phoebe Burgess ended their three-year marriage in December last year, less than a month after welcoming their second child. But the pair all but confirmed a reconciliation on Sunday morning when they were spotted visiting a local cafe in Sydney's Coogee with their daughter Poppy, two, and newborn son William. The duo drove to the trendy eatery in Phoebe's white Range Rover and were spotted stepping out of the vehicle and unpacking the pram from the boot. Scroll down for video He's out of the doghouse! Sam and Phoebe Burgess all but confirm a reconciliation as they step out with their children... after the NRL star spent his first night back in the marital home Sam, who spent his first night back in their marital home on Saturday, had a spring in his step as he pushed Poppy in a pram while chatting away with Phoebe. Meanwhile, new mother Phoebe protectively cuddled her bundle of joy while shielding him from the sun with a blue blanket. There was little sign anything was amiss as the pair enjoyed the warm summer day, strolling along and chatting merrily. Family outing: There was little sign anything was amiss as the pair enjoyed the warm summer day, strolling along and chatting merrily What split? Phoebe looked happy and relaxed following separation reports Doting dad: Rabbitohs star Sam was seen carrying a stroller out of the car Out and about: The couple appeared to be at ease in each other's presence, despite claims that Sam walked out on Phoebe in December - a few weeks after she gave birth to their son Billy. The pair are pictured with two-year-old daughter Poppy Phoebe looked breezy and stylish for the low-key occasion, donning a billowing floral-print maxi dress, black sandals and a pair of dark sunglasses. The former journalist battled the steamy summer climes by wearing minimal makeup and sweeping her flaxen locks into a no-fuss bun at the nape of her neck. Interestingly, she also chose to wear her diamond engagement ring for the occasion. What a gentleman: Sam was seen helping his wife with the car door Just like the good old days: Phoebe cradled her newborn son as Sam pushed a pram during the family outing Back on? While the couple have not officially confirmed a reconciliation, they appear to be working on their marriage after separating late last year High spirits: Phoebe smiled while chatting to her NRL star hubby Meanwhile, Sam wore a white T-shirt, grey cargo shorts and rubber sandals; but his engagement ring was nowhere in sight. The sportsman had his hands full for the occasion, pushing the pram along with his right hand while sipping from a take-away beverage in the other. The couple continued their lively conversation once they reached the cafe, opting to sit across the table from one another. Sunny outing: The sportsman had his hands full for the occasion, pushing the pram along with his right hand while sipping from a take-away beverage in the other What's so funny? Phoebe was seen chuckling as they dined at a local cafe Summer outfit: The NRL WAG wore a loose-fitting light brown maxi dress paired with black sandals as she and Sam greeted a friend Not a care in the world: Phoebe and Sam had an animated chat with a smartly-dressed man At one stage, their conversation was interrupted by several friendly diners, who were perhaps interested in finding out the status of their very high-profile relationship. The family outing ended with a trip to a local park, where Phoebe and Sam were spotted playing on a swing set with their two children. Looking jubilant and carefree, Phoebe enjoyed a session on the swings while Sam took charge of pushing Poppy with one hand and holding William in his other. Decisions: The high profile couple browsed through the menu before placing their order Happy: Phoebe looked elated as she gazed at her Rabbitohs star husband Chatting to locals: The couple bumped into a friend outside the cafe Later, Sam enjoyed some daddy-daughter time on the playset while Phoebe breastfed her adorable newborn. The outing marked the first time the pair had stepped out together in their local neighbourhood since their shock split last year. It wasn't the first time the couple have see each other since splitting, however, with Sam spending Saturday night at their $3.8 million matrimonial property. Tender moment: The former journalist watched on as Sam bonded with his baby boy Team work: The pair took turns doting on baby Billy outside the cafe Daddy's boy! Sam was seen with baby Billy's dummy in his mouth while cuddling the newborn Earlier on Saturday, Sam was seen answering the door to a young fan before leaving in a hire care for a trip to the Souths Juniors. It comes after the footy star was spotted back at the family home in late January. The sighting marked the first time he had been seen at the home in more than a month. Happy family: Sam pushed Poppy on a swing while cradling Billy in his other hand next to Phoebe Having a blast: Little Poppy seemed to be having a ball as her proud parents watched on Resting: Phoebe took time out to put Billy to sleep while Sam and poppy sat on the swings So much fun! Little Poppy chuckled while playing with her NRL star dad Sam Fun in the sun! Phoebe looked radiant as she basked in the summer sun Off to training: On Friday, Sam was pictured leaving his marital home in a hire car on his way to footy training Phoebe has remained living at the palatial residence, and it is understood that her mother, Sarah Hooke, has temporarily moved in to lend a helping hand. The Rabbitohs player dropped by briefly and looked downcast as he left the premises without a wedding ring on his finger. However in recent days, he's been sending increasing time at the home, The Daily Telegraph reports, and going for food and nappy runs. Sam and Phoebe, 29, first met at an Avicii concert in Sydney back in January 2014 and by June 2015, they were engaged following a romantic holiday in Greece. Dapper: Her wore a white collard shirt with jeans and designer shades In January 2017, the couple welcomed their first child, a daughter named Poppy Alice, now two. Their second child, son William 'Billy' Mark, was born in early December 2018, and a month later, the couple announced their separation. Soon after, reports surfaced describing Phoebe and Sam's marriage split as 'pretty messy'. A close friend of the former couple told The Daily Telegraph that 'things [had] been bad for a while' before they parted ways. Advertisement They remained friends throughout his ill-fated relationship with Angelina Jolie. And eagle-eyed onlookers spotted Brad Pitt, 55, sneaking past the paparazzi as he joined the stars at ex-wife Jennifer Aniston's 50th birthday party in Los Angeles on Saturday night. Actor Brad, who's reportedly been quietly dating Charlize Theron since January, went incognito in a flat cap as he rushed inside Jennifer's favorite West Hollywood spot, the historic Sunset Tower. Scroll down for video Time to celebrate: Jennifer Aniston partied in style Saturday night as she celebrated her 50th birthday with an exclusive party Still Friends: Brad Pitt, in flat cap, center, snuck into the star-studded bash, which was held at West Hollywood's Sunset Tower He wasn't alone, with stars including Katy Perry and boyfriend Orlando Bloom, chat show host Ellen DeGeneres, Gwyneth Paltrow, Barbra Streisand, Jason Bateman and Kate Hudson joining the celebrations. Jennifer, whose birthday falls on February 11, attended the soiree in eye-catching style, stepping out in a stylish all-black jumpsuit with criss-cross detailing on the back. With her golden locks styled in voluminous waves and her makeup applied in typically impeccable style, the star looked relaxed and happy as she was feted by her famous friends, as well as her actor dad John Aniston. Stepping out in style: Jennifer, whose birthday falls on February 11, attended the soiree in eye-catching style, stepping out in a stylish all-black jumpsuit with criss-cross detailing on the back Tress-ed to impress: With her golden locks styled in voluminous waves and her makeup applied in typically impeccable style, the star looked relaxed and happy as she was feted by her famous friends The way they were: Jennifer and Brad Pitt were one of Hollywood's most glamorous. Pictured in 2004, a year before they split Taking the plunge: Hollywood actress Jennifer's eye-catching ensemble of choice boasted a deeply plunging neckline Hat's the way to do it: The star's former husband Brad went incognito to the high-profile bash, stepping out in a driver's cap Tabloid stars: Brad and Jennifer quickly became the it couple of the early 2000s, with their every move making headlines. Two years after they met, Aniston and Pitt married Shock split: After several years of being celebrated as one of Hollywood's most glamorous couples, Jennifer and Brad shocked fans when they announced that they were divorcing in 2005 Also among the attendees was George Clooney, who arrived with his glamorous wife Amal. Jennifer has long been friends with George and visited him and Amal at their lake house in Como last summer. During an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, the Friends star revealed how incredible it was to see George become a father. 'Its amazing to see him with children. That is what we talked about, that anything can happen,' she told the host. After several years of being celebrated as one of Hollywood's most glamorous couples, Jennifer and Brad shocked fans when they announced that they were divorcing in 2005. Support from her famous friends: Also among the attendees was George Clooney, who arrived with his glamorous wife Amal You've got to hand to them: The couple, who tied the knot in a romantic ceremony in Venice, exited the bash holding hands Effortlessly glamorous: Mother-of-two Amal, who was raised in the UK, cut aglamorous figure in a purple camisole dress Golden girl: Amal accessorised with a pair of oversized gold hoop earrings at the exclusive party with her famous husband Close pals: Jennifer has long been friends with George and visited him and Amal at their lake house in Como last summer Belly laughs: The photogenic twosome were in high spirits as they laughed raucously while being whisked away in their car Daddy cool: During an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Friends star Jennifer revealed how incredible it was to see George become a father to his twins, Ella and Alexander Special guest: Gwyneth Paltrow was also among the long list of A-listers lucky enough to land an invitation to the gathering It's all in the accessories: Wrapping up in a stylish camel coat, the actress accessorised with a chunky gold pendant necklace The two began dating after meeting on a blind date their respective agents set up in 1998. They quickly became the it couple of the early 2000s, with their every move making headlines. Two years after they met, Jennifer and Brad tied the knot during a romantic ceremony in Malibu, California. Their marriage ended on January 5, 2005. The couple announced that they had formally separated. It soon emerged that he had begun a relationship with Angelina Jolie, with the actress later confirming years later that they fell in love while filming Mr And Mrs Smith in 2003, while he was still married to Jennifer. Throughout his 11-year relationship with Angelina, tabloid stories regularly emerged that Brad was still in contact with Jennifer, seeking advice from his former wife despite his new love's objections. Quirky: Katy Perry showed off her trademark quirky sense of style, Katy donned a black, pleated leather-inspired jumpsuit Need for speed: The pop superstar arrived with her boyfriend Orlando Bloom, who rode his gray Husqvarna motorcycle Denim: British heartthrob Orlando wore jeans and a blue fleece-lined jacket, but jeans and a pair of brown boots to the party She's got sole! Katy stood-out with her eye-catching footwear, sporting off-white trainers with dozens of shimmering beads Cropped: The California Girls hitmaker styled her platinum blonde locks into a cropped quiff and added a touch of glamour with silver, shimmering earrings. Katy topped off the look with a black handbag and a leather coat Keeping it simple: The lovebirds were casually-dressed for their outing to the exclusive soiree, attended by countless stars Easy riders: The stars appeared to be the only ones who opted to ride into the bash on a motorcycle, as opposed to in a car And it seems that following Brangelina's divorce, Brad may well have renewed his friendship with his ex. On Saturday, the exes had plenty of mutual friends to celebrate with. Katy Perry and Orlando Bloom turned heads as they arrived at Jen's party on his gray Husqvarna motorcycle. Orlando wore jeans and a blue fleece-lined jacket, while Katy showed off her trademark quirky sense of style, Katy donned a black, pleated leather-inspired jumpsuit. She stood-out with her eye-catching footwear, sporting off-white trainers with dozens of shimmering beads. The California Girls hitmaker styled her platinum blonde locks into a cropped quiff and added a touch of glamour with silver, shimmering earrings. Katy topped off the look with a black handbag and a leather coat. A-lister: Oscar-winning actress Reese Witherspoon added her name to the A-listers who were in attendance on the night Tumble: Reese's night came to a bit of a messy end, as she was seen falling while making her way down a short flight of stairs Mustering a smile: The star was able to a muster up a smile after making her way to the backseat of a chauffeur-driven vehicle Friends in high places: Screen star Demi Moore also attended the party, held at the popular celebrity haunt the Sunset Tower Typically stylish: The actress looked typically stylish in a green dress, which she wore under a grey coat with black boots Stand out: Accessorising with a grey clutch bag and black-rimmed spectacles, the mother-of-three stood out from the crowd Low-cut: Oscar-winning actress Sandra Bullock also put in an appearance, wearing a low-cut black dress under a red top Elegant: Jennifer's former Friends co-star Lisa Kudrow looked elegant and low-key in a black top and jeans with a juster jacket Couple's night out: Christina McLarty and David Arquette (L-R) donned brown ensembles to the exclusive bash Having a laugh: Isla Fisher and her British comedian husband Sacha Baron Cohen shared a laugh as they made their exit Fashion maven: Isla looked the epitome of style in a white bardot star-print dress Designated driver: Sacha looked dapper in a blue suit as he drove Isla home after the festivities It was a Big Little Lies night out for Reese Witherspoon and her co-star Laura Dern as the pair were among the many celebrities who attended the star-studded bash. Reese undoubtedly had a fantastic night at the Sunset Tower Hotel as she was spotted looking slightly bleary-eyed after leaving the party. The Legally Blonde star, 42, was radiant as ever for the evening, donning a black mini-dress. Wrapping up in a matching faux-fur coat, the actress added height to her frame with a pair of black, strappy heels. Letting her blonde locks hang loose down her shoulders, Reese looked in high spirits as she departed her famous friend's soiree. So in love: Actress Kate Hudson and her beau Danny Fujikawa looked as loved up as ever as they made their exit from the bash Romantic: The couple, who recently welcomed the birth of their daughter Rani Rose, held hands as they stepped out together Shimmer: The Almost Famous star looked glamorous in a shimmering full-length gown, over which she draped a black coat Flattering look: The mother-of-three styled her golden locks in a half-updo, while her makeup had a flattering dewy finish All that glitters...: Iconic supermodel Cindy Crawford looked as chic as ever, arriving at the event in a glittering black gown Joining the festivities: The supermodel attended the bash with her husband Rande Gerber (R) Partners in style: Rande looked dapper as he donned an all-black ensemble Laura, 51, cut a glamorous figure for the evening, sporting a flowing black, leather-inspired dress which she paired with a white, long-sleeved top. Styling her tresses into loose curls, she also donned black boots and carried a matching handbag. Chat show host Ellen DeGeneres was also spotted joining the birthday shindig, looking casually cool in tailored tracksuit bottoms with a navy bomber jacket. During the Dumplin' star's appearance on The Ellen Show, the host promised a special hour-long appearance for her friend on the occasion of her 50th birthday. Iron Man and Avengers co-star Robert Downey Jr. showed up to Jennifer's shindig looking every bit like Tony Stark. Casually cool: Chat show host Ellen DeGeneres was also spotted joining the birthday shindig, looking casually cool in tailored tracksuit bottoms with a navy bomber jacket Big promise: During the Dumplin' star's appearance on The Ellen Show, the host promised a special hour-long appearance for her friend on the occasion of her 50th birthday Ready to hit the road: The popular television star was seen chatting away as she made her way into her waiting vehicle Glam: Laura Dern cut a glamorous figure for the evening, sporting a flowing black, leather-inspired dress which she paired with a white, long-sleeved top. Styling her tresses into loose curls, she also donned black boots and carried a matching bag Splashing the cash: Actor Robert Downey Jr. clutched a banknote as he prepared to leave the valet team a generous tip Superhero in the flesh: Iron Man and Avengers co-star Robert showed up to Jennifer's shindig looking every bit like Tony Stark Tinted: Robert accessorised with a pair of tinted spectacles for the party, which was attended by a who's who of Hollywood The acclaimed actor made one of the toasts during Jennifer's ill-fated wedding to Justin Theroux, which ended with their separation in late 2017. Jason Bateman, her co-star in 2010's The Switch, stepped out of a car with a goatee, a rarity for the usually clean-shaven actor. Kate Hudson stopped by the birthday party in a shimmering black dress. She was accompanied by her beau Danny Fujikawa, with whom she recently welcomed daughter Rani Rose. The How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days actress recently appeared with Jennifer in the romantic comedy Mother's Day. Icons: There was also plenty of Hollywood royalty at the Marley & Me star's bash. Barbra Streisand and her husband James Brolin made an appearance Purple reign: The singing and acting legend complemented her ensemble with a deep purple satin jacket and matching hat Unmissable: Also among the stars was Diane Keaton, who donned her trademark finger-less gloves and wide-brimmed hat Just the two of us: Actor Charlie Day was seen outside the popular Sunset Boulevard venue with his wife Marry Elizabeth Ellis Happy to be there: A smiling David Arquette, a figure from Jennifer's Friends days, made a special appearance There was also plenty of Hollywood royalty at the Marley & Me star's bash. Barbra Streisand and her husband James Brolin made an appearance, as did Diane Keaton, who wore her trademark finger-less gloves and wide-brimmed black hat. A smiling David Arquette, a figure from Jennifer's Friends days, made a special appearance. After he married her co-star Courteney Cox, the NBC sitcom's cast famously appended '-Arquette' to all of their names to poke (loving) fun at their colleague. Tobey Maguire's ex-wife Jennifer Meyer, who designed the Horrible Bosses star's wedding ring from her marriage to Justin Theroux, dropped by the party as well. Fellas: Jason Bateman (right), Jennifer's co-star in 2010's The Switch, and comedian David Spade (left) were also at the party Daddy's girl: Jennifer also received some support from family, with her actor dad John Aniston putting in an appearance Satisfaction: Rock legend Keith Richards, 75, was a surprise addition to the guest list, arriving with his wife Patti Hansen Grin: The couple, who have been married since 1983, appeared to have a great night, as they were all smiles while walking out Dapper gents: Tom Ford, left, and David Foster, right, each looked dapper in dark suits over crisp white shirts Jennifer Meyer, who designed the Horrible Bosses star's wedding ring from her marriage to Justin Theroux, dropped by the party as well Birthday girl: Hollywood beauty Jennifer appeared to be in an upbeat mood as she laughed and chatted in the back of her car Killing Eve's prime psychopath Jodie Comer was embodying her character's iconic fashion sense on Saturday, as she reunited with co-star Sandra Oh for the Television Critics Associate BBC America/AMC panel. The Liverpudlian donned a statement red lip and sequinned polo neck as she teased the upcoming second season of the thriller, which begins Stateside on 7th April. In the panel Jodie admitted that viewers will see Villanelle in a 'completely different way' in the follow-up series, after her fate was left unknown in a heart-stopping cliffhanger. Gorgeous: Killing Eve's prime psychopath Jodie Comer was embodying her character's iconic fashion sense on Saturday, as she joined Sandra Oh for the BBC American/AMC TCA panel Clad in all-black Jodie looked utterly amazing in the all-black ensemble with a silver sequinned high-neck, adding a cheeky pop of colour with a statement red lip. The British star had her blonde tresses in voluminous curls while still slicked back, as she gave fans some teasers about the upcoming series. Meanwhile Sandra was putting on a more busty display in a plunging white blazer with very defined shoulders, along with her thick curled tresses which new seemed to be boasting a new fringe. Flawless: The Liverpudlian donned a statement red lip and sequinned polo neck as she teased the upcoming second season of the thriller, which begins Stateside on 7th April Amazing: Jodie's look was a dead ringer for the imaginative fashions rocked by Villanelle in the series Beautiful: Along with the high-necked black ensemble with silver sequins, Jodie also sported a scarlet lip with her curled tresses slicked back Coming soon: She and co-star Sandra teased the upcoming second series of the thriller, which will pick up right after the heart-stopping cliffhanger The duo were in attendance for the panel ahead of the follow-up series, as they told TV Line that fans will see a 'whole new side' to Villanelle. On the show's opening scenes she said: 'We see Villanelle in a completely different way. She has no control of the situation.' Jodie also explained that Villanelle's wardrobe will see a drastic shift as her character develops from the murderous psychopathic free to roam Europe of episodes old. 'You see her in a completely new, vulnerable setting, and her clothes are completely different Youll see, when she moves out of that vulnerable setting, how much her clothing means to her,' she added. Dynasty chic: Meanwhile Sandra (left) was putting on a more busty display in a plunging white blazer with very defined shoulders Tense: Jodie teased that viewers will see a different side to Villanelle in the second series, and that will be reflected in her wardrobe Jaw-dropping: The star has also previously spoken about struggling with fame ever since she won worldwide acclaim for her role in Killing Eve Lavish: The panel also saw fellow star Fiona Shaw (second left) and producer Sally Woodward Gentle (far right) Jodie has previously spoken about struggling with fame ever since she won worldwide acclaim for her role in Killing Eve, and previously said she finds it a challenge dealing with criticism from trolls. Making an appearance on the Two Shot Podcast in December, she explained: 'The job I do doesn't end when the camera stops rolling, there's this whole other world.' 'I know all the people who comment on YouTube are aliens anyway, but I was speaking as myself and they were saying I'm losing my accent. 'I'd adapted it a little bit because it's an American audience and a lot of the time people are like: "What is she saying?" 'That's a whole other world to me. That side of things is something I can find difficult. I don't want to pretend to be something I'm not, but I worry that sometimes it comes across all over the place.' Killing Eve returns to BBC America on Sunday 7th April. A UK air date is yet to be announced. Glamour girl: Alongside her all-black ensemble Jodie also sported quirky net-style heels for the event in Pasadena She's well loved for her 11 year stint hosting Blue Peter. And Konnie Huq, 43, joined her husband Charlie Brooker, 47, creator of Black Mirror, for a night out at the BAFTA Nespresso Nominees Party at Kensington Palace on Saturday. The TV personality stood out as she clad her petite figure in a yellow satin dress complete with colour clashing grey bow. Stepping out: Konnie Huq joined her husband Charlie Brooker for a night out at the BAFTA Nespresso Nominees Party at Kensington Palace on Saturday Konnie added height to her frame in similarly shaded stilettos while sporting natural makeup and opting to leave her raven tresses loose. Her husband, 47, put on a smart display in a navy suit and black shirt. He added a pop of colour with electric blue laces threaded into his patent leather footwear. Couple: The TV personality, 43, stood out as she clad her petite figure in a yellow satin dress complete with colour clashing grey bow while her husband, 47, put on a smart display The couple - who have been married for eight years - got engaged after just nine months of dating. They are now parents to two sons Covey, six, and Huxley, four with Charlie recently paying tribute to the TV star and their children, revealing how his whirlwind romance and becoming a parent changed him for the better. And the talented writer told BBC 4's Desert Island Discs that marrying Konnie in a Las Vegas ceremony in 2010 and deciding to become a dad was 'the best decision' he had ever made. Family fun: Thee couple - who have been married for eight years - got engaged after just nine months of dating are now parents to two sons Covey, six, and Huxley, four (pictured Dec 2018) Of the loved-up pair's marriage he said: 'That was absolutely the right time. 'It was weird because, for years, I'd not known if I'd wanted kids or a family, that seemed like something that other people did, I couldn't perceive of that as a future. 'And then Konnie came along and quite early on she said "I want kids and a family" and this sort of thing, and I heard myself going "OK", and sort of thought, "oh, right, why have I said that?" It was the best decision I ever made.' Love: And the talented writer told BBC 4's Desert Island Discs that marrying Konnie in a Las Vegas ceremony in 2010 and deciding to become a dad was 'the best decision' he ever made She's been very open about her struggles with psoriasis in the past. And on Saturday, Kim Kardashian took to her Instagram Stories to share a potential remedy for the skin condition with her fans. 'I am super desperate with my psoriasis [and so I] went to a Chinese herbalist,' said the 38-year-old while showing a bowl of dark, frothy liquid. Eww: On Saturday, Kim Kardashian took to her Instagram Stories to share a potential remedy for her skin condition with her fans 'I have my own mixture,' said the reality TV star of the concoction. 'I have to drink it twice a day and it is so nasty,' said the mother-of-three, before showing what appeared to be a bottle of apple cider vinegar and saying that she would 'chase it with this'. 'Hopefully this works,' concluded Kim. 'I'll see in six weeks'. Covering up: 'I am super desperate with my psoriasis [and so I] went to a Chinese herbalist,' said the 38-year-old while showing a bowl of dark, frothy liquid Pills and potions: 'I have my own mixture,' said the reality TV star of the concoction [left], and a bottle of what appeared to be apple cider vinegar The Keeping Up with the Kardashians star suffered a bad skin day while grabbing lunch with her older sister Kourtney and her ex-partner Scott Disick in Los Angeles on Monday. The KKW Beauty CEO took to Twitter on Tuesday to explain that what appeared to be a few pimples wasn't even a breakout at all. Kim explained that the bumps were actually a flare up of psoriasis, a chronic skin condition. Nobody's perfect: KUWTK star Kim Kardashian West was seen with some skin issues while she was out on Monday but later took to Twitter to explain that she was suffering from a psoriasis flare up 'Its psoriasis all over my face,' she responded with a crying emoji on Twitter to a DailyMail.com story. Kim's skin issue was noticed while she was out and about on Monday with her family. The Glam Masters producer - who relies on stylist Simone Harouche - opted to cover up in a long black leather trench coat over a matching turtleneck, spandex pants, and pointy-toed booties. The reality star has been open about her struggles with the chronic skin condition for years. 'Its psoriasis all over my face,' she responded with a crying emoji on Twitter to a DailyMail.com story Issues: The reality star has been open about her struggles with the chronic skin condition for years 'Psoriasis is a common skin condition that speeds up the life cycle of skin cells. It causes cells to build up rapidly on the surface of the skin,' according to the Mayo Clinic. 'The extra skin cells form scales and red patches that are itchy and sometimes painful.' Before Christmas, Kim told fans that she was having the worst flare up of her life and asked for tips from others who are afflicted. 'I think the time has come I start a medication for psoriasis,' she Tweeted on December 23. Adding: 'Ive never seen it like this before and I cant even cover it at this point. Its taken over my body. Has anyone tried a medication for psoriasis & what kind works best? Need help ASAP!!!' Help! Before Christmas, Kim told fans that she was having the worst flare up of her life and asked for tips from others who are afflicted While sister Kendall has battled acne for years - leading to her new appointment as a Proactiv spokesmodel - Kim's skin is typically blemish free. However, when issues do crop up, Kim has become a master of disguising her temporary flaws with concealer and contour. In fact, fans are shelling out between $299 and $1,699 to attend her make-up artist Mario Dedivanovic's six-hour Master Class happening next Saturday at LA's Ace Hotel, which features Kardashian and 'Queen of Brows' Anastasia Soare. At the event, Kim and Mario also revealed another secret to maintaining a perfect complexion - Tatcha's newly-launched The Dewy Skin Cream. According to Mario, the $68 cream is the key to achieving shimmer-free and naturally dewy skin, along with his long-time favorite product, Tatcha's Luminous Dewy Skin Mist. Last Wednesday, the Calabasas socialite released three new fragrances - Wifey, Baddie, and Baby Girl - just in time for Valentine's Day. Rainy day: The Glam Masters producer opted to cover up in a long black leather trench coat over a matching turtleneck, spandex pants, and pointy-toed booties Magic's in the make-up: In fact, fans are shelling out between $299 and $1,699 to attend her make-up artist Mario Dedivanovic's six-hour Master Class happening next Saturday at LA's Ace Hotel, which features Kardashian and 'Queen of Brows' Anastasia Soare Fragrance empire: Last Wednesday, the Calabasas socialite released three new fragrances - Wifey, Baddie, and Baby Girl - just in time for Valentine's Day The wrongful incarceration advocate and Kanye West will welcome a baby brother to daughter North, 5; son Saint, 3; and daughter Chicago, 1; via surrogate in early May - according to Us Weekly. It's the fourth and final frozen embryo for Kardashian and the 41-year-old rapper-designer as she can't carry anymore children due to complications from pre-eclampsia. The hot-tempered hip-hop star will next compete for the producer of the year (non-classical) trophy at the 61st Annual Grammy Awards, which air this Sunday on CBS. Back in 2017, Kim and her famous family signed a massive $100M deal with the E! Network through 2020 - according to Variety - and the 16th season of their series premieres sometime in March. She could be about to win her fourth BAFTA on Sunday. And as Olivia Colman's, 45, career continues to skyrocket, it seems that she is still as humble and hardworking as ever, according to her friends and colleagues who have branded her 'the warmest, most delightful human being.' While the British actress - whose real name is Sarah - has been setting award season alight with her numerous Leading Actress nominations for The Favourite, friends of the star say she would never let the fame 'go to her head'. Humble: As Olivia Colman's, 45, career continues to skyrocket, it seems that she is still as humble and hardworking as ever, according to her friends and colleagues Actor and writer Jonathan Dryden Taylor, who first met Olivia - nicknamed Collie - in 1994, told The Mirror: 'She's the same person now as she was back then, the warmest, most delightful human being. 'I don't think you can find anyone in the industry with a bad word about her. 'She's not someone who'd let the fame go to her head. You wouldn't see her demanding blue M&Ms or room temperature water or any of that. She just turns up and does the job.' Jonathan recalled a time that Olivia, once took him aside to thank him for the jokes which he penned for her in That Mitchell and Webb Sound sketch show, despite Olivia herself being the 'actual star,' and that this act of kindness showed her true nature. Delightful: Olivia's friends and colleagues have branded her 'the warmest, most delightful human being' (Pictures in film The Favourite) Leading lady: While the British actress - whose real name is Sarah - has been setting award season alight, friends of the star say she would never let the fame 'go to her head' David Mitchell (of Mitchell and Webb fame), whom she met while studying at the University of Cambridge and subsequently worked with on Peep Show - wrote about Olivia in his autobiography Backstory. He gushed: 'Suddenly she was shining with talent - working the audience, timing her lines, drawing out new laughs without ever seeming hammy. 'There were many talented actors at Cambridge while I was there, very few were as good as Collie certainly no one better.' Well-liked: Actor Jonathan Dryden Taylor, who first met Olivia - nicknamed Collie - in 1994, told The Mirror: 'I don't think you can find anyone in the industry with a bad word about her' (Pictured with a fellow student during rehearsals lines at Cambridge University) Humble: 'She's not someone who'd let the fame go to her head. You wouldn't see her demanding blue M&Ms or room temperature water or any of that. She just turns up and does the job,' continued Jonathan David's former flatmate, and one of Olivia's university chum's Ellis Sareen, now a 44-year-old barrister, joined in the praise of the actress, branding her 'absolutely delightful.' Meanwhile, Olivia is set to be honoured with the prestigious BFI Fellowship at the BFI Chairmans dinner in March. The Broadchurch star revealed that she is 'absolutely bowled over' by the prestigious recognition from the British Film Institute. Gushing: David Mitchell (R) with whom she worked with on Peep Show wrote in his autobiography Backstory that there was 'no one better' than Olivia Continuing of the honour, which 'recognises her distinctive and prodigious acting talents', Colman enthused: 'The BFI is a wonderful organisation and that I will soon be in a Fellowship with so many of my heroes is an honour that is hard to compute.' Clearly unable to contain her delight over the ceremony dinner, which will be held at March 6 at Londons Rosewood hotel, Olivia concluded: 'Thank you a thousand times, I really am thrilled. THANK YOU!' Following the honour, Olivia will be joining the ranks of previous recipients Helena Bonham Carter, Cate Blanchett, Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, Steve McQueen and Hugh Grant. Success: Olivia's portrayal of a frail, eccentric and introverted Queen Anne of Great Britain in The Favourite has also earned her coveted Best Actress nomination at the BAFTAs Olivia has found herself in the running for the Leading Actress category at the Oscars alongside heavy-hitters Glenn Close for The Wife, Lady Gaga for A Star Is Born, Yalitza Aparicio for Roma and Melissa McCarthy for Can You Ever Forgive Me? Hotly tipped for success, Olivia's portrayal of a frail, eccentric and introverted Queen Anne of Great Britain in The Favourite has also earned her coveted Best Actress nomination at the BAFTAs on Sunday. Olivia has shown off her incredible acting prowess in a slew of high-profile and critically acclaimed projects over the years, including her role in the British comedy Peep Show in 2003 to 2015 and ITVs Broadchurch from 2013 to 2017. Her film credits are equally as impressive, starring alongside Simon Pegg in Hot Fuzz and The Iron Lady opposite Meryl Streep. Fans of Colman will see her next in Netflix's eagerly-anticipated The Crown, in which she will take over the role of Queen Elizabeth II from Claire Foy in the third series. Claudia Winkleman was enjoying a rare outing with her husband Kris Thykier on Saturday, as she attended the star-studded Chanel Finch x Chanel BAFTA pre-party. The Strictly Come Dancing host, 47, dazzled in a black sequinned jumpsuit as she joined her spouse of 18 years for the party in London's Mayfair. Kris, also 47, was looking dapper in a velvet suit as the couple enjoyed the joint outing at the party, which comes ahead of the BAFTA Awards ceremony on Sunday. Happy: Claudia Winkleman was enjoying a rare outing with her husband Kris Thykier on Saturday, as she attended the star-studded Chanel Finch x Chanel BAFTA pre-party Claudia had her trim figure on display as she sported the low-cut grey jumpsuit with intricate silver sequinned detailing, teaming the look with a matching leather clutch. The mother-of-three was donning her signature long blunt fringe, as well as heavily lined eyes along with a classic nude lip and deep tan as she proudly beamed for the occasion. Claudia has been out and about at many of the BAFTA pre-bashes over the weekend, and hosted a charity gala dinner as part of the celebrations in London on Friday. She and Kris - who was looking sharp in a blue velvet suit - have been married since 2000 and have three children together. Beaming: The Strictly Come Dancing host, 47, dazzled in a black sequinned jumpsuit, along with her signature blunt fringe and heavily lined eyes The party comes ahead of the grand awards ceremony to celebrate the best in British and International Film on Sunday, to be hosted by Joanna Lumley in London's Royal Albert Hall. Yorgos Lanthimoss The Favourite has swept the nominations with 12 nods in top categories including a Best Actress chance for its star Olivia Colman, Supporting Actress nominations for Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz and a shot at Best Film. The Favourite will compete with A Star Is Born, BlacKkKlansman, Green Book and Roma for Best Film but surprisingly, after its success at last month's Golden Globes, Bohemian Rhapsody was snubbed in the category. I'm here! As she arrived for the party Claudia covered up her ensemble in a classic black blazer as she made her way into the party The Favourite is nominated in 12 categories. Bohemian Rhapsody, First Man, Roma and A Star Is Born each have seven nominations; Vice has six, BlacKkKlansman has five, and Cold War and Green Book have four each. Can You Ever Forgive Me?, Mary Poppins Returns, Mary Queen of Scots and Stan & Ollie have three nominations each. The 2019 nod marks Olivia's sixth BAFTA nomination but her first for a film role after previously winning for TV hits Twenty Twelve, Accused and Broadchurch. Olivia competes against Glenn Close for The Wife, Lady Gaga for A Star Is Born, Melissa McCarthy for Can You Ever Forgive Me?' and Widows star Viola Davis, but in another shock snub, Mary Poppins Returns lead Emily Blunt has missed out on a nomination. His tragic death came as a shock to friends and fans of The Young And The Restless. Now, Kristoff St. John will be be laid to rest next to the grave of his son, Julian St. John, according to TMZ. Julian died tragically by suicide in 2014 at age 24. Final resting place: Follow his shocking death, The Young And The Restless star Kristoff St. John will be buried next to his son, Julian St. John, according to TMZ; shown in Las Vegas in 2016 Sources told the publication that Kristoff will be interred at Valley Oaks Memorial Park in Westlake Village, California, near Los Angeles. The actor's cause of death is still unknown, though an autopsy was performed and his body has since been returned to his family. The soap star was found unresponsive in his San Fernando Valley home on February 3, where he was pronounced dead at the scene. He was 52 at the time of his death. Sources have indicated that alcohol might be a factor in his death. Personal demons: Kristoff battled severe depression in the years following his son's untimely death; pictured in 2018 Kristoff battled severe depression in the years following his only son's untimely death. He also had two daughters, who survive their father. In October 2017, he was placed on a 72-hour psychiatric hold after threatening to shoot himself. Kristoff was again hospitalized earlier this year. He checked himself into the UCLA Medical Center after suffering another bout of depression. He was released only a few days prior to his death. The actor's final TV appearance came on February 6, three days after his death. Gone but not forgotten: Kristoff's son Julian killed himself in 2014 at age 24 Last looks: The actor's final TV appearance came on February 6, three days after his death 'Thank you for sharing in this adventure, this mighty ship that has sailed for so long,' Kristoff said during a short tribute. 'I love you'; still from his final episode of The Young And The Restless from February 6 The Young And The Restless paid tribute to Kristoff on Friday with a short package of behind the scene clips at the end of the broadcast, which included a fitting farewell from the actor. 'Thank you for sharing in this adventure, this mighty ship that has sailed for so long,' he said, directly addressing the audience. 'I love you.' The late actor's fans took to social media to criticize the long-running soap opera for what they perceived to be an underwhelming tribute, according to USA Today. The clips lasted a mere 90 seconds. Helen McCrory was out to stun in a beautiful black sequinned gown on Saturday, as she joined husband Damian Lewis for the Charles Finch x Chanel BAFTA pre-party. The actress, 50, looked far younger than her years as she joined her spouse of 11 years for the bash in London's Mayfair. Damian, 47, was also looking dapper in a teal velvet suit and contrasting suit for the occasion, among the stars out in force ahead of the BAFTA Awards ceremony on Sunday. Couples night: Helen McCrory was out to stun in a beautiful black sequinned gown on Saturday, as she joined husband Damian Lewis for the Charles Finch x Chanel BAFTA pre-party Linda was stunning in the black frock adorned with sequins as she proudly arrived on her husband's arm, with her brunette cropped tresses loosely coiffed for the occasion. Carrying her essentials in a black satin clutch, she looked sensational upon making her way into the party. Meanwhile Damian added a splash of colour to proceedings by donning his teal velvet two-piece with a pink floral shirt, finishing the casual look with brown suede boots. The Emmy winner's signature red hair contrasted heavily with his outfit, though he still look as smart as ever for the evening. The couple were also seen making their way into the bash which comes just a day before the official BAFTA Awards, which will be hosted by Joanna Lumley in London's Royal Albert Hall. Quirky: Damian added a splash of colour to proceedings by donning his teal velvet two-piece with a pink floral shirt Damian rose to international attention in 2011 following his role as Nicholas Brody in Homeland, winning both a Golden Globe and Primetime Emmy Award. He has been starring in the HBO and Sky Atlantic series Billions since 2016. Damian will also soon star in Once Upon A Time in Hollywood next year, a crime film based on the infamous 'Manson family' murders in 1969. Grand occasion: The couple were also seen making their way into the bash which comes just a day before the official BAFTA Awards Directed by Quentin Tarantino, it also stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt and Margot Robbie as Sharon Tate, the actress who was murdered by Charles Manson's followers. Damian will portray Steve McQueen, an actor who was invited to Sharon's home the night the murders took place, but was unable to show up. Luke Perry, Dakota Fanning and Al Pacino also have roles in the flick which wrapped up filming in September and is slated to be released next July. 90 Day Fiance star Leida Margaretha was reportedly granted a four-year restraining order against her stepdaughter Tasha Rosenbrook at Sauk County Courthouse in Wisconsin on Friday. The 29-year-old Indonesia native's attorney Andrea Von Hoff confirmed to Us Weekly that the 19-year-old cosplayer was ordered by a judge to 'stay away from Leida and stop antagonizing her on social media.' Margaretha and her husband Eric Rosenbrook famously kicked Tasha out of his two-bedroom apartment during the sixth season of TLC's 'mail-order bride' show, and he often sided with his wife. Estranged: 90 Day Fiance star Leida Margaretha (L) was reportedly granted a four-year restraining order against her stepdaughter Tasha Rosenbrook (R) at Sauk County Courthouse in Wisconsin on Friday 'I can fake a smile. I can fake being friendly. But you know what I can't fake? I can't fake the years, heartbreak, and anxiety attacks,' the teenage Insta-storied last month. 'I can't fake keeping people up at night because I'm so hurt I'm physically SCREAMING as the tears stream down my face. I can't fake going to the hospital for stressing myself so sick and being so depressed I stopped eating for almost two weeks. 'I can't fake ripping my hair out and punching my desk because I don't get what I did to deserve this. So please. NONE of you know anything. So stop acting like you do.' Stepdaughter: The 29-year-old Indonesia native's attorney Andrea Von Hoff confirmed to Us Weekly that the 19-year-old cosplayer was ordered by a judge to 'stay away from Leida and stop antagonizing her on social media' (pictured January 6) Often sided with his wife: Margaretha and her husband Eric Rosenbrook (R) famously kicked Tasha out of his two-bedroom apartment during the sixth season of TLC's 'mail-order bride' show (pictured January 19) Drama never stops: Police responded to the couple's home on January 20 after Leida claimed the 41-year-old father-of-three pulled her hair 'really hard' when she tried to 'self harm' with a knife (pictured November 22) Police responded to the couple's home on January 20 after Leida claimed the 41-year-old father-of-three pulled her hair 'really hard' when she tried to 'self harm' with a knife. This, after the 'medical school graduate' and the Avionics service manager announced they quit 90 Day Fiance in December via Insta-story after receiving 'death threats.' Eric first met Leida on an international dating site and they got engaged just two days after their first face-to-face meeting thanks to the K-1 visa, which requires marriage within 90 days. Shes happily loved up with her beau after the pair reignited their relationship last year. And Charlotte Dawson, 27, made sure her boyfriend Matthew Sarsfield knew he was in for a night of fun as the pair packed on the PDA as they left The Ivy, Manchester on Saturday night. Ensuring her ample assets took centre stage, the busty star wore a form-fitting black dress that dipped down her bra-less cleavage. Loved-up: Charlotte Dawson, 27, and boyfriend Matthew Sarsfield packed on the PDA as they left The Ivy, Manchester on Saturday night The reality star's outfit was adorned with fluffy, black feathers and the curvy beauty highlighted her hour glass figure by nipping her outfit in with a belt. Charlotte added a touch of ice with sparkly, diamond stud ear rings and a bling ring. The beauty selected a pair of black, patent heels to accentuate her long, tanned pins. Her mocha brown locks were scooped to one side as they were styled in beautiful curls. Full-on: Looking the picture of happiness, the couple embraced and passionately kissed as they were snapped leaving the eatery Preened to perfection, the Celebs Go Dating personality coated her lips in a nude colour and framed her blue eyes with thick, wispy false lashes. Looking the picture of happiness, the couple embraced and passionately kissed as they were snapped leaving the eatery. Showing off his chivalrous side, Matthew carried his girlfriend on his back and she tightly gripped onto her lover as they headed off. In August last year, Matt narrowly avoided jail for punching a stranger outside a club. Lift-off: Matthew carried his girlfriend on his back and she tightly gripped onto her lover as they headed off He was left 'sickened' in court, after hearing details of how he drunkenly landed a single blow to Daniel Jackson's bottom lip on April 2 this year, which may leave him with permanent scarring. He hit the aspiring actor without warning in an unprovoked attack, Wigan and Leigh magistrates heard. It came months after Matt rekindled a romance with Charlotte, who confirmed the news in December 2017. Matt was sentenced to six months in prison which has been suspended for two years, as well as being handed a community order and hefty fine. They are doting parents to eleven-year-old daughter Valentina. And Salma Hayek, 52, and her husband Francois-Henri Pinault, 56, enjoyed a glamorous night out on the town as they attended the Charles Finch x Chanel pre-Bafta dinner, in Mayfair, London on Friday. Cosying up to her other half, the actress injected her A-list glamour into the event in a perilously plunging sequin dress which showed off her ample assets. Wow: Salma Hayek, 52, and husband Francois-Henri Pinault, 56, enjoyed a night out on the town as they attended the Charles Finch x Chanel pre-Bafta dinner in London on Saturday Salma oozed body confidence in the dangerously low-cut number which showcased her curves to perfection. The midi-length dress was jazzed up with an eye-catching pink satin bow and featured buttons down the middle. Salma was primped and preened to perfection with wavy raven tresses and her age-defying features enhanced with a glamorous slick of bronzed make-up. The Grown Ups star boosted her petite frame in a pair of sky-high peep-toe heels. Stunning: The actress injected her A-list glamour into the event in a perilously plunging sequin dress which showed off her ample assets Work it: The Grown Ups star boosted her petite frame in a pair of sky-high peep-toe heels. Meanwhile, Francois-Henri looked handsome in a sensational suit as he posed away with his other half. Salma and Francois-Henri began dating in 2006, and just 11 months later the pair became engaged, before welcoming their daughter Valentina into the world in September 2007 in Los Angeles. The pair, who now live in London, tied the knot on Valentine's Day in 2009 in Paris, France, before hosting a second ceremony in Venice, Italy, that April. The Frida star also shares stepdaughter Mathilde Pinault, 17, and stepsons Augustin Evangelista, 11, and Francois Pinault, 20, with her husband. Turning heads: The midi-length dress was jazzed up with an eye-catching pink satin bow and featured buttons down the middle Babe: Salma was primped and preened to perfection with wavy raven tresses and her age-defying features enhanced with a glamorous slick of bronzed make-up Meanwhile, Salma has been busy with her thriving acting career and will next be seen in comedy Limited Partners about two friends who start a beauty company together, due out on June 28. The mother-of-one is presently filming an Untitled Sally Potter Project for release in 2020. The actress is also due to star with Ryan Reynolds and Samuel L. Jackson in upcoming comedy thriller The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard, the sequel to the 2017 movie, The Hitman's Bodyguard. She's held the role of Astrid Hofferson since the first How To Train Your Dragon in 2010. And bidding farewell to the character at the premiere of the final release - The Hidden World - America Ferrera looked every bit a queen when she stepped out in Los Angeles on Saturday. The 34-year-old led the stars in a gorgeous mermaid-esque frock from J. Mendel. Princess! America Ferrera was an absolute princess at the How To Train Your Dragon premiere in Los Angeles on Saturday America's dress featured an detailed pattern with soft shades of yellow, blue and purple filling its entirety. The actress' dress was cinched in at the waist and featured a modest attached shawl over the top. Even her hair complimented with the princess theme, channeling Rapunzel with a crown followed by a thick braid down the length. Gorgeous: America's dress featured an detailed pattern with soft shades of yellow, blue and purple filling its entirety Simplistic design! The actress' dress was cinched in at the waist and featured a modest attached shawl over the top Disney princess: Even her hair complimented with the princess theme, channeling Rapunzel with a crown followed by a thick braid down the length America's glam was kept minimal with a clear complexion, softly blushed cheeks and lash extensions. Her makeup was complete with a nude lip and perfectly shaped brows. Taking to Instagram, America shared a few shots of her look ahead of the carpet. Nine years: She's held the role of Astrid Hofferson since the first How To Train Your Dragon in 2010 Natural beauty: America's glam was kept minimal with a clear complexion, softly blushed cheeks and lash extensions Reunited: America was seen with some of her co-stars while on the carpet 'A Queen's farewell to my beloved Astrid and the epic journey of How To Train Your Dragon. #premiere #finalchapter.' She also tagged her glam squad and thanked them for her stunning look. America was also joined by fellow cast members Gerard Butler and Jay Baruchel. Co-stars: America was also joined by fellow cast member Gerard Butler Casual: Gerard kept things casual in a fitted white T-shirt that was buttoned all the way to the top. Minimalist: He teamed the look with a black open biker jacket and a pair of denim trousers Gerard kept things casual in a fitted white T-shirt that was buttoned all the way to the top. He teamed the look with a black open biker jacket and a pair of denim trousers. He finished off his rockstar look with black sneakers and sported well groomed facial hair. Outfit complete: He finished off his rockstar look with black sneakers and sported well groomed facial hair happy days: Gerard effortlessly groomed his hair back into a subtle crown and was all smiles as he graced the blue carpet Big role: The actor has spent the past nine years playing the role of Stoick the Vast in the three consecutive films Fun day! Gerard appeared to be having fun while posing for photographers Gerard effortlessly groomed his hair back into a subtle crown and was all smiles as he graced the blue carpet. The actor has spent the past nine years playing the role of Stoick the Vast in the three consecutive films. Also on the carpet was Jay who played the roll of Hiccup Horrendous Haddock lll - the awkward son of Stoick the Vast. Leading man: Also on the carpet was Jay who played the roll of Hiccup Horrendous Haddock lll - the awkward son of Stoick the Vast From his lady? On Jay's right collar appeared to be someone's lipstick kiss print. He completed his ensemble with a pair of white sneakers The actor opted for a striped navy suit with a white button up shirt underneath. On Jay's right collar appeared to be someone's lipstick kiss print. He completed his ensemble with a pair of white sneakers. He bought along girlfriend Rebecca-Jo Dunham with him as his date fro the premiere on Saturday. Classic: The actor opted for a striped navy suit with a white button up shirt underneath Love: He bought along girlfriend Rebecca-Jo Dunham with him as his date fro the premiere on Saturday Family: America was also joined by fellow cast members Gerard Butler and Jay Baruchel Rebecca stunned in a black suit dress that drew attention to her long and lean legs. She styled her dark brunette tresses out into natural waves and her glam focused on her eyes. Christopher Mintz-Plasse was also spotted out on the blue carpet. Look who's here! Christopher Mintz-Plasse was also spotted out on the blue carpet Everybody's here! The cast and crew were all seen posing together for photos at one point Neat and tidy: Craig Ferguson looked incredibly dapper in a navy suit jacket underneath a black shirt What's so funny? The How To Train Your Dragon star kept thing casual in a pair of jeans and was seen having a friendly catch up with fellow cast member Gerard Butler The star wore a white shirt underneath a fitted bomber jacket that had grey cuffs and neckline. He ensured his outfit popped with red checkered trousers and white sneakers. Craig Ferguson looked incredibly dapper in a navy suit jacket underneath a black shirt. Big reveal: And man of the hour Dean DeBlois appeared to be having a stellar time on the blue carpet There'd be no movie without her! The director was also seen posing alongside Cressida Cowell - the original author of the How To Train Your Dragon series Adorable! Child star Aj Kane attended the premiere The How To Train Your Dragon star kept thing casual in a pair of jeans and was seen having a friendly catch up with fellow cast member Gerard Butler. And man of the hour Dean DeBlois appeared to be having a stellar time on the blue carpet. Posing with the stars, the writer, director and executive producer opted for a grey suit complete with a black bow-tie. So stylish! AJ was all dressed up in a suit and matching tie Here's everyone! (L-R) F. Murray Abraham, Gerard Butler, AJ Kane, America Ferrera, Jay Baruchel, Craig Ferguson and Christopher Mintz-Plasse Warm and cosy! Fellow child star Scarlet Spencer arrived in a knit dress The director was also seen posing alongside Cressida Cowell - the original author of the How To Train Your Dragon series. The beauty was angelic in white and teamed her look with black peep-toe heels. She kept her blonde tresses styled out and accessories minimal. Almost didn't see you there! YouTuber Lauren Riihimaki nearly camouflaged with the carpet in her knitted blue bodycon ensemble on Saturday Making a stand! Mekai Curtis wore a statement shirt and a cross necklace to the premiere Classic style: Zach King kept things simple in a button-up shirt and trousers, opting out of a suit jacket All matching! Michael Ann Young and Robin Atkin Downes ensured their family matched, all opting for black colored ensembles for the sweet family photo Designer beauty! Talia Jackson was extra stylish in her gorgeous frock complete with a designer Gucci belt around her waist Simple and stylish! Justin Rupple wore a plain shirt and trousers underneath a well-fitted suit jacket She's recently bounced back from her public breakup with ex-fiance John Noble. And days after confirming she's dating TOWIE's Ercan Ramadan, Vicky Pattison has dished more on the fledgling romance, revealing that they are taking it slow and won't be flat-hunting or getting engaged any time soon. The Geordie Shore star, 31, told the Mirror: 'We are officially dating but it's not love yet. I do still believe in love, though. 'Not getting engaged anytime soon': Vicky Pattison, 31, has dished more on the fledgling romance with TOWIE's Ercan Ramadan, revealing that they are taking it slow Vicky explained herself further: 'I have to or I would be very sad. I am worried about rebound, I want to make sure I'm doing things for the right reason and not just to feel better'. The reality star's candid remarks come as she admitted she's still a hopeless romantic, despite calling off her engagement from John when he was spotted getting close to a number of women during a lads' holiday in Dubai. However, Vicky also revealed that after putting her trust in the 'wrong men', she's now determined to find the right one. New fella: Vicky revealed she isn't in love with Ercan (pictured next to Vicky) just yet but still believes in love Exes: Vicky recently called off her engagement from John after he was spotted getting close to a number of women during a lads' holiday in Dubai She noted: 'I give too much in relationships. If I can love the wrong one that much, when I meet the right one it will be even more amazing.' And despite facing a heartbreaking time with her ex, Vicky admitted she still hopes to get married and have a family. Vicky's heartbreak has been documented in TLC show, The Break-up and ahead of the airing she gave an explosive interview to MailOnline in which she confirmed she's ready to date again in an attempt to move on from her ex. 'When I meet the right man, it'll be amazing': ' Vicky also revealed that after putting her trust in the 'wrong men', she's now determined to find the right one The former I'm A Celebrity star shared she had been hitting the town more, both with her girls and her male companions, because it was a 'nice distraction' from her heartache. Vicky admitted: 'When you're single you do go out more. I think that's natural and it was a nice distraction to be out and be around people, When your sad the devil does make idle work... 'I exhausted myself. I slept better when I was tired and I stood by what I believed in.' Insisting she doesn't 'think' about her ex anymore, Vicky claimed her former fiance has demanded the ring back and wants to get the money out of the house. Atlanta police have one more clue in determining who the aggressor was in the violent February 2 fight which sent Bow Wow and his girlfriend Kiyomi Leslie Holden to Fulton County Jail on battery charges. In surveillance footage taken from his apartment building's elevator, the Never Met Her rapper - turning 32 next month - could be seen grabbing the 27-year-old model's arm and snatching her phone away. His friend attempted to break the couple apart, putting his arm on Bow Wow (born Shad Moss) to stop him from grabbing Kiyomi. Intimidating: Atlanta police have one more clue in determining who was the aggressor in the violent February 2 fight which sent Bow Wow and his girlfriend Kiyomi Leslie Holden to Fulton County Jail on battery charges Holden slowly moved to the back of the elevator and the former child star followed her, got in her face, and yelled at her but she does not appear to react or respond. The Wild 'N Out loser continued yelling at Kiyomi before the couple and his friend exited the elevator together. Their initial argument stemmed from the Broken Heart rapper becoming jealous after Holden was talking to another man at a Super Bowl party, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Caught on camera: In surveillance footage taken from his apartment building's elevator, the Never Met Her rapper - turning 32 next month - could be seen grabbing the 27-year-old model's arm and snatching her phone away Defending her: His friend attempted to break the couple apart, putting his arm on Bow Wow (born Shad Moss) to stop him from grabbing Kiyomi No reaction: Holden slowly moved to the back of the elevator and the former child star followed her, got in her face, and yelled at her Talking smack: The Wild 'N Out loser continued yelling at Kiyomi before the couple and his friend exited the elevator together Kiyomi suffered 'redness on her lower back, redness on her right fingers, and broken nails' - while Bow Wow suffered 'scratches to his face/neck and bite marks on his body.' Atlanta police were 'unable to determine who started the fight and the report listed them both as victims and suspects.' By Friday night, the 5ft7in rapper's face appeared to have completely healed as he Insta-storied himself partying at a Georgia night club. Domestic dispute: Their initial argument stemmed from the Broken Heart rapper becoming jealous after Holden was talking to another man at a Super Bowl party Physical: Kiyomi suffered 'redness on her lower back, redness on her right fingers, and broken nails' - while Bow Wow suffered 'scratches to his face/neck and bite marks on his body' Happier times: Atlanta police were 'unable to determine who started the fight and the report listed them both as victims and suspects' (pictured June 23) Bow Wow is already back at work on the set of WE tv reality show Growing Up Hip Hop: Atlanta, which started production on the third season on Wednesday. The Ohio-born hip-hop star is father to a seven-year-old daughter Shai with ex-flame Joie Chavis. That was quick! By Friday night, the 5ft7in rapper's face appeared to have completely healed as he Insta-storied himself partying at a Georgia night club 'Day 1!' Bow Wow is already back at work on the set of WE tv reality show Growing Up Hip Hop: Atlanta, which started production on the third season on Wednesday She has been a successful model since she was discovered at the age of 14. And Kate Moss continued to make a sensational style statement on the front row of Longchamp's show at New York Fashion Week on Saturday. Sitting alongside Kendall Jenner, 23, the cover star, 45, pulled off an all-black ensemble complete with a edgy studded dress with sheer sleeves and thigh-high leather boots. Honour: Kate Moss, 45, continued to make a sensational style statement on the front row of Longchamp's show at New York Fashion Week on Saturday. Kate wore her freshly blow-dried locks loose and opted for a smattering of makeup to enhance her beauty. While US sensation Kendall, 23, looked every-inch the designer's dream as she slipped her slender frame into a leather dress which enhanced her slim waist. The Keeping Up With The Kardashians star styled her brunette locks in a middle partying which she pinned at the side with a large black clip. Pals: Sitting alongside Kendall Jenner, 23, the cover star, 45, pulled off an all-black ensemble complete with a edgy studded dress with sheer sleeves and thigh-high leather boots Natural: Kate wore her freshly blow-dried locks loose and opted for a smattering of makeup to enhance her beauty Duo: While US sensation Kendall looked every-inch the designer's dream as she slipped her slender frame into a leather dress which enhanced her slim waist Fashion: The Keeping Up With The Kardashians star styled her brunette locks in a middle partying which she pinned at the side with a large black clip Her makeup was subtly applied to boost her long lashes and sculpted cheekbones. The duo, who have both previously modelled for Longchamp, were later joined by the brand's CEO Jean Cassegrain for pictures. Joining them at the Longchamp show was actress Emma Roberts, 27, who showed off her Western style as she posed on the front row in a suede shirt with tassel design paired with a net skirt. Well made up: Her makeup was subtly applied to boost her long lashes and sculpted cheekbones Man of the moment: The duo, who have both previously modelled for Longchamp, were later joined by the brand's CEO Jean Cassegrain for pictures Fashion queens: And actress Emma Roberts, 27, showed off her Western style as she posed on the front row in a suede shirt with tassel design paired with a net skirt Speaking recently to Harper's Bazaar, Kate admitted she doesn't let her supermodel status make her too overly concerned about her image. 'I think it helps that I dont take myself too seriously. You dont want to be a slave to beauty,' she said. 'Dont get me wrong, I love beauty products more than everas you get older, you have more to hidebut Im not obsessed. Proud: Speaking recently to Harper's Bazaar, Kate admitted she doesn't let her supermodel status make her too overly concerned about her image Honest: 'I think it helps that I dont take myself too seriously. You dont want to be a slave to beauty,' she said Kate added: 'Even when Im going out, I still find it hard to wear false eyelashes and stuff. Sometimes [makeup artist] Pat McGrath will be like, "Come on, darling, lets put a lash on you," but I would never put one on myself.' Known for her party-girl days, Kate said she's more concerned with looking after herself these days. She said: 'Ive learned to take care of myself a bit more. I do yoga every day. I dont go out nearly as much. And I take care of my skin, which somehow has held up.' In 2013, she was honoured at the British Fashion Awards to acknowledge her contribution to the fashion industry over the course of 25 years. It was all set to be the wonderful annual affair that would leave us in no doubt that the Cambridges and Sussexes could make a difference together. So I am disappointed to reveal that there will be no repeat of last years appearance by the Fab Four at this years Royal Foundation Forum. Last February, William, Kate, Harry and Meghan were given The Beatles famous nickname as they appeared on stage together to discuss their ideas for the organisation, which was set up to move forward their charitable ambitions. Last February, William, Kate, Harry and Meghan were given The Beatles famous nickname as they appeared on stage together to discuss their ideas for the organisation, which was set up to move forward their charitable ambitions The decision will do little to convince Royal fans that all is well between the brothers and their wives, following months of speculation that relations are tense. In fact, the four have been working separately on different parts of the charity The Palace has confirmed that it is now accepted procedure that the couples will meet the charity at alternate board meetings The Royal Foundation website press release still states that the forum will be an annual event, but a Palace source told me: There will be no forum like last year with the four of them together. The timing isnt great. They should be putting on a united front. The decision will do little to convince Royal fans that all is well between the brothers and their wives, following months of speculation that relations are tense. In fact, the four have been working separately on different parts of the charity. Last month, the Duchess of Cambridge, 37, had a meeting with Lorraine Heggessey, CEO of the Royal Foundation while Prince Harry, 34, recently met Ms Heggessey alone, as did Prince William, 36, and the Duchess of Sussex, 37. In December, Harry and Meghan attended a board meeting of the Foundation before heading out to the Christmas party with staff while William and Kate did not appear. The Palace has confirmed that it is now accepted procedure that the couples will meet the charity at alternate board meetings. Buckingham Palace declined to comment on the event. PS Royal watchers will be interested to learn that Harry and Meghan will soon not have a base in London. They are renovating Frogmore Cottage, their ten-bedroom home in Windsor, and plan to move out of their two-bedroom berth in Kensington Palaces Nottingham Cottage near Prince William and Kates apartment once the work is completed in the next few weeks. Nottingham Cottage will no doubt continue to hold happy memories for Harry and Meghan it is where he got down on one knee and proposed while cooking a chicken supper. But, as they prepare for their first child in April, they seem determined Windsor will be the family home. It was a busy night at the pre-Grammy party at the Liaison Restaurant in Hollywood on Thursday. Brit Lisa Vanderpump with her restaurateur husband Ken Todd, plus Bachelor Nation's Ashley Iaconetti and Jared Haibon were among the many celebs who turned up at OK! Magazine's Pre-Grammy bash. The Real Housewives Of Beverly Hills alum, 58, and Ken, 73, brought their little fluff pups along with them suitably dressed for the occasion. Bringing guests: Brit Lisa Vanderpump and her restaurateur husband Ken Todd turned up with their fluff babies at OK! Magazine's Pre-Grammy bash at Liaison Restaurant in Hollywood on Thursday No wonder she cuddled up to him: Ashley Iaconetti smiled from ear-to-ear as she posed with fiancee Jared Haibon Lisa, a beautiful brunette, looked lovely in a black pants suit with very wide legs. The jacket was adorned with silver embroidered panels over the shoulders and down the front of the garment. And she wore blingy statement earrings and a gem encrusted necklace. Furry friends: Lisa and Ken cuddled their pups at the event. The Grammys will air live from the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles on Sunday Happy couple: The couple were among the many celebs who turned up at the event Blonde bombshell: Corinne Olympios rocked a tiny white mini dress on the red carpet Her husband Ken was casually dresssed in a blue shirt with a black jacket and matching pants. Meanwhile, Ashley, 30, stunned in a black halterneck dress with black strappy sandals on the chilly evening. She smoothed her brunette tresses back into a low pony tail to reveal her beautiful complexion and expertly applied make-up. Very different styles: Lisa, left, a beautiful brunette, 58, looked lovely in a black pants suit with very wide legs and silver brocade while Ashley, 30, opted for a form-fitting halter-neck dress Jared, 29, was much more sensibly - and warmly - dressed in a white hoodie that he wore under a black zip-up jacket, jeans and white sneakers. Ashley and Jared first met in 2015 but only became an item last year when Jared realized he was about to lose his 'best friend' to another man. Meanwhile, the Grammys will air live from the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles on Sunday. Having fun: Vanderpump Rules couple Tom Sandoval, 35, and Ariana Madix, 33, mixed and mingled at the party Others at the event include the Last Sharknado actor Kato Kaelin, 59, and Mean Girls actor Jonathan Bennett, who are both currently on Celebrity Big Brother. They were joined by reality show alums Shahs Of Sunset's Golnesa Gharachedaghi, 37, and Shervin Roohparvar, 38. Meanwhile Vanderpump Rules couple Tom Sandoval, 35, and Ariana Madix, 33, also mixed and mingled at the party. Casually dressed: Shahs Of Sunset's Golnesa Gharachedaghi, 37, and Shervin Roohparvar, 38 Geoff Huegill announced his split from wife of seven years, Sara, in December last year. And a new report claims the 39-year-old is already back on the dating scene. Sources told the Sun-Herald on Sunday that the former Olympic swimmer is looking for love on dating app Hinge. Scroll down for video Back in the dating pool? Former Olympic swimmer Geoff Huegill 'joins dating app Hinge' to find love... months after split from wife Sara Insiders also claim the pair, who were together for 13 years in total, had actually separated long before their announcement late last year. Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Geoff for comment. The couple announced they had 'amicably' ended their marriage in December last year and released a statement via Instagram. Tension: Insiders also claim the pair, who were together for 13 years in total, had actually separated long before their announcement late last year. Pictured on November 13, 2012 in Sydney Geoff wrote: 'It's with a heavy heart that after 13 years together, Sara and I have made the decision to amicably separate. 'We continue to remain friends as our focus will always be on providing a positive, loving and beautiful future for our girls.' Geoff and Sara married in Bali, Indonesia in 2011 and share two children: daughters Gigi, six, and Mila, four. Trying times: The separation follows a difficult year for the Huegills, after Sara was arrested for shoplifting in May before the charge was dropped three months. The estranged couple are pictured leaving Waverley Local Court in Sydney on May 14, 2014 in relation to unrelated legal matter The retired athlete thanked his fans, friends and family for their ongoing support as he and his estranged wife enter 'the next chapter' of their lives. In May 2018, Sara was charged with stealing a pair of $2500 pants from an upmarket boutique in News South Wales' coastal town of Byron Bay. According to a report by News.com.au, police alleged Sara was caught with the pants stuffed into her handbag after being followed out onto the street by the store's manager. But in August 2018, she had the charges dropped on mental health grounds. After the court appearance, her lawyer issued a statement claiming she had been suffering with anxiety and depression, as reported by News.com.au. The couple have had a difficult few years, with them being caught snorting cocaine in a disabled toilet at Randwick Races in 2014, according to Sydney Morning Herald. The couple subsequently charged with drug possession and given six-month good behaviour bond. Young family: Geoff and Sara married in Bali, Indonesia in 2011 and share two young children: daughters Gigi, six, and Mila, four (pictured) He shot to fame when his dance group Diversity won Britain's Got Talent in 2009. But Jordan Banjo revealed the ligament damage he sustained to his knee meant he struggled to walk without crutches and post-operation his leg gave out during a performance for The Greatest Dancer. The presenter, 26, spoke to The Sun to reveal the extent of his injuries: 'Where I just had surgery that's why I couldn't dance in the opening number.' Ouch! Jordan Banjo, 26, revealed the ligament damage he sustained to his knee meant he struggled to walk without crutches Jordan continued to detail: 'Even when we were rehearsing, all me and Alesha [Dixon] had to worry about at the very end was walking down the two corridors the performers made. As you're walking down and trying to bust a move with a little style, I took about two steps and my knee just gave out.' The father-of-one credited his team of physiotherapists for helping him walk without crutches or the aid of brace. He added: 'I was on crutches and my physio managed to get me back walking for the live shows. I didn't want to be on the live shows in a leg brace and on one crutch. I need to be walking.' Detailing all: The presenter revealed the extent of his injuries: 'Where I just had surgery that's why I couldn't dance in the opening number' Painful: He added that when he joined Alesha during The Greatest Dancer rehearsals he 'took about two steps and my knee just gave out' Jordan admitted that as the swelling went down he put more pressure onto his knee but got carried away leading to his unfortunate tumble in rehearsals. Earlier, Jordan and beau Naomi Courts, 27, revealed last month that they were expecting their second child, just nine months after welcoming son Cass. And he isn't the only Banjo brother to be preparing for a baby, his brother Ashley, 30, is set to welcome his first son later this year. Big brother: Earlier, Jordan and beau Naomi Courts, 27, revealed last month that they were expecting their second child, just nine months after welcoming son Cass Jordan revealed to OK! Magazine that he thinks his older sibling will make a good dad because 'he reminds me of Mufasa in The Lion King because he's so wise.' Baby Cassius' full name is Cassius Ashley Banjo as a tribute to the hosts's Diversity band mate and brother. Jordan featured on the 2016 series of jungle reality show I'm A Celebrity, and confessed afterwards that distance definitely made the heart grow fonder. He explained: 'That show gives you a lot of time to think about things and it made me realise Naomi is the girl I want to marry.' Soap fans might know her as rebellious teenager Bella on Home And Away. But what they might not know is that Courtney Miller, 22, volunteers as a Lifeline counsellor each week, helping people in emotional distress. The qualified psychologist told The Daily Telegraph on Saturday: 'I'm probably working two to three hours per week on the phones helping people through crisis.' Scroll down for video 'I become a different person': Home And Away's Courtney Miller (right) revealed the surprising work she does off screen on Saturday Courtney, who has a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology, said her job as a phone counsellor is a bit like playing a role. 'I become a different person, I really do. It's almost like acting. I become "Professional Courtney" on the phones.' Miller, who grew up in the Sydney suburb of Gladesville, joined Home and Away last year, and it is her first gig as a TV actor. Helping hand: Soap fans might know her as rebellious teenager Bella on Home And Away (pictured on the soap). But what they might not know is that Courtney, 22, volunteers as a Lifeline counsellor each week, assisting people in emotional distress The opportunity did not come easily, however. Courtney told TV Week in November: 'I've auditioned for Home And Away three times before, but felt a strong connection with Bella. This character just clicked with me, although I'm very different to her.' She added: 'But I liked her story and worked really hard.' Sweet: The qualified psychologist told The Daily Telegraph on Saturday: 'I'm probably working two to three hours per week on the phones helping people through crisis' While the brunette beauty joined the soap in June last year, having played an extra in the series several years prior gave her a taste of what was to come. 'I was about 15 when I was first an extra,' Courtney told New Idea in November. 'That was really my introduction to screen acting and how a set worked.' He has been in Japan for the past week on a work trip. So it was no surprise Kris Smith was thrilled to have his newborn daughter Mila back in his arms upon his return to Sydney on Thursday. Taking to Instagram, Kris' partner Sarah Boulazeris shared an adorable snap of the former Myer ambassador playing with the cherubic tot while visiting Balmoral Beach. Scroll down for video ''Daddy's home': Model Kris Smith cuddled up to his newborn daughter Mila at a Sydney beach on Thursday following a work trip to Japan In the picture, Kris flaunts his muscular figure as he dotes over the adorable baby. 'Daddy's home,' Sarah captioned the photograph. On location: Kris has been shooting in Japan for the past week, and has shared a number of selfies around Tokyo, including Shibuya, and Sensoji Temple, Asakusa Last week, Kris shared a number of selfies around Tokyo, including Shibuya, and Sensoji Temple, Asakusa. The father-of-two has been on cloud nine since he welcomed his daughter, and has posted a slew of pictures of the baby girl on his social media accounts. Just last month, he uploaded a heart-warming picture of himself back at the beach with Mila. Hello, daddy! The father-of-two has been on cloud nine since he welcomed his daughter and has posted a slew of pictures of the baby girl on his social media accounts. Just last month, he uploaded a heart-warming picture of himself back at the beach with Mila She's here! Kris first announced his child's birth on Instagram in December. He shares his daughter with partner, Sarah Boulazeris While it's the first child for Kris and Sarah, he is also a father to eight-year-old son Ethan, who he shares with ex-partner Dannii Minogue. Kris shared a snap of Mila when she was first born, with a partially tear-stained faced while cradling her in his arms. He captioned the sweet image: 'I could not love you any more even if I tried, my beautiful girl.' My Kitchen Rules contestant Josh Bonwick has been caught smoking a suspicious-looking pipe in newly-unearthed photos. The devout Christian chef, 25, posed with the pipe in a mirror selfie shared to his Facebook account several years ago, WHO magazine reported. In the caption, he made reference to 'drugs', writing: 'I lose weight because of drugs? Well you get fat because your a burger-eating sexually frustrated h*e. Come on who's next?' That's not very Christian! My Kitchen Rules' home-schooled chef Josh Bonwick smokes a suspicious-looking pipe in newly-unearthed Facebook posts Alongside another similar photo, Josh wrote: 'Its mxcicaaaaaan nit mexicant (sic).' At the time, one of his Facebook friends commented below the post: 'That's now on the internet forever.' Daily Mail Australia has contacted Channel Seven for comment. Josh, who appears on MKR with his 21-year-old brother Austin, has already made headlines after hurling cruel insults at the other contestants. 'That's now on the internet forever': The devout Christian chef, 25, posed with the pipe in a mirror selfie shared to his Facebook account several years ago Explicit: Josh (left), who appears on MKR with his 21-year-old brother Austin (right), has already made headlines after hurling cruel insults at the other contestants When the siblings were asked about their first impressions of the other teams, they didn't hold back with their opinions. He told pink-haired Jodi-Anne, who has been married to her husband Mick for more than a decade, 'We thought that you were a lesbian and that was your gay friend.' Turning his attention to Ibby and Romel, he added: 'What I thought you two had in common was that you, like, both had mail-order brides but the gay version.' He then said to Ruby and Andy: 'We thought that you were like a sassy, plastic chick with a friend who you brought along to make yourself look prettier.' God-botherers: Josh and Austin are devout Christians and have been open about their attitude to religion in the past Josh and Austin are devout Christians and have been open about their attitude to religion in the past. 'The biggest misconception with religion in this day is that religion is based on practice and we don't believe that religion is necessarily based on practice, we believe it's based on what's in your heart,' Josh told New Idea. 'Religion today tells people you have to do this or you're going to hell if you don't do this, and we don't believe in that at all. 'We believe that if your heart is in the right place, then your actions will follow that.' My Kitchen Rules continues Sunday at 7pm on Channel Seven Arrive in Latvias capital and you can feel the buzz of Baltic optimism in the bracing air. Riga is a welcoming, walkable city thats awash with music, history, art and nightlife. A recent survey named Riga the best-value city for those seeking a European winter break. Low-cost airlines and a glut of great hotels mean flight savings can be splurged on luxury accommodation, such as the chic Bergs Hotel (slh.com/hotels/hotel-bergs), a favourite with Sir Elton John, Lady Gaga and Sting. Vibrant: The colourful buildings of the Old Town DAY ONE - MORNING Get your bearings by wandering the Old Towns cobbled streets. Every era in Rigas rich history has left its mark: medieval defences, Gothic churches, baroque townhouses and stolid Soviet-era museums. Its heart is Doma Laukums (Cathedral Square), site of the huge medieval cathedral. More interesting is the House of the Blackheads (liveriga.com; 5 entry) on the squares southern side. Built to house bachelor Hanseatic traders and sailors, its name is derived from the patron saint Maurice, traditionally depicted as an armed Moor. The Soviets destroyed it after the war its Gothic-Dutch Renaissance architecture was decadent but after independence in 1991 it was rebuilt. Many of the citys grand Viennese-style cafes were also eradicated during the Soviet occupation but the genre is returning. The Art Deco cafe Kuze (kuze.lv) opposite the parliament building is the perfect place for a hot chocolate. Understanding Latvian history will enhance a visit. In the mid-1960s, the Soviets built a Museum of the Revolution in the Old Town. In a stroke of post-independence revenge, Latvia turned it into the Museum of the Occupation (okupacijasmuzejs.lv/en). The most touching exhibits are personal keepsakes, from chess sets carved from scrap and wood in the gulags to heartbreaking, hastily scribbled notes thrown from trains by deportees to Siberia. AFTERNOON Decoration on a building in the Art Nouveau district Lunch afterwards, Latvian-style, at nearby Pelmeni XL (xlpelmeni.lv). The cafe offers Russian dumplings stuffed with meat, cheese or vegetables. Fight the urge for a post-lunch snooze with a walk around the beautiful Art Nouveau district. Riga boomed in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries and has one of the largest collections of Art Nouveau buildings in the world. Alberta Iela, just north of the Esplanade, is the best single street for viewing such treasures. The citys Art Nouveau Museum (jugendstils.riga.lv/eng/muzejs) provides a fascinating glimpse of life inside these homes. Stroll back towards the Old Town through Kronvalda Park, built during the days of tsarist rule, and enjoy a diversion to the Latvian National Museum of Art (lnmm.lv/en), whose collection includes many Latvian impressionists. For a reasonably priced early evening dinner in the park, a good place to try is Pagalms (Courtyard) behind the National Theatre building. Its low lighting, tiled walls and pop-up feel attract a cool clientele. Its also ideally placed for an evening at Rigas small but beautiful Opera House (opera.lv/en), which showcases Latvian music and ballet with good seats for about 17.50. The handy free tourist magazine Riga In Your Pocket (you can download the free app at iyp.me/app) lists the programme of events and is available at all tourist offices and museums. DAY TWO - MORNING No trip to Riga would be complete without visiting the Central Market, south of the railway station. With 1,200 vendors, it spreads across five enormous former Zeppelin hangars where you can find everything from fresh farmers cheese and lemongrass to pig snouts and the local firewater, Black Balsam, a potent liqueur. Caviar fans can snap up 100g tins for 20. Spoilt for choice: The cavernous Central Market, home to 1,200 stalls Head for lunch at Valtera (valterarestorans.lv/en) in the Old Town. Its modern twist on traditional Latvian cuisine think venison, pork and freshwater fish uses local ingredients. Its rye bread is celebrated, and try one of the local fruit wines. AFTERNOON For a city steeped in history, its fitting that the jewel of choice is amber, which has been washing up on Baltic coasts for millennia. Those in a rush can buy amber at any souvenir or jewellery shop; for local colour, though, visit the stalls behind St Peters Church (peterbaznica.riga.lv/) and its towering steeple or along Valnu Iela behind the Hotel Riga. For a quirky supper on the same street, try Istaba, which houses an art gallery and tiny restaurant. Expect to pay about 40 for two with beer or wine. Seating at Istaba is limited, so gastronomes might prefer Vincents (restorans.lv). Chef Martins Ritinss passion for seasonal ingredients has attracted the discerning for more than a decade. Prices are reasonable, with mains, such as saddle of roe deer in red wine, for about 30 a memorable way to round off a flying visit to this hip little capital. The single mother who took the now-famous photo of the 'fab four' smiling on Christmas Day at Sandringham has once again helped get the perfect royal image. Karen Anvil, from Watlington, Norfolk, shot to fame after capturing William, Kate, Harry, and Meghan, walking to church in 2017 and claims to have raked in 40,000 from the snap. And she was back to her old tricks when at the EE British Academy Film Awards at the Royal Albert Hall in London, on Sunday - this time with the help of her daughter. Capturing the Duchess of Cambridge, 37, with an excited smile on her face, the royal looks directly at the camera after the hospital worker's daughter Rachel told her 'she looked beautiful'. The single mother who took the now-famous photo of the 'fab four' smiling on Christmas Day at Sandringham has once again helped get the perfect royal image of a beaming Kate arriving at the BAFTAs With eye-brows raised high, the mother-of-three looks ecstatic to once again be attending the prestigious event alongside her husband Prince William. After first posting the image to Twitter, Ms Anvil wrote: 'Hi Everyone! Thanks for all of your great comments - can you direct them to my daughter @AnvilRachel. 'She got the snap when she told the Duchess she looked Beautiful - which she really does, doesnt she?' Looking every inch the movie star, Kate opted for an Alexander McQueen off-the-shoulder white gown with a floral motif for her glamorous red carpet appearance. Karen Anvil, 40, from Watlington, Norfolk, shot to fame after capturing William, Kate, Harry, and Meghan, walking to church in 2017 and claims to have raked in 40,000 from the snap After her first snap ended up on front pages around the world, hospital worker Ms Anvil (pictured with her daughter Rachel) says the image has changed her and her family's lives Ms Anvil was one of hundreds who braved the cold to get a glimpse of the royal family as they walked to church on the Sandringham estate in Norfolk on 25 December in 2017. After 'screaming like a fan-girl' to get their attention, Ms Anvil, who had two jobs at the time, managed to take a close-up that ended up on front pages around the world - and has subsequently helped her make 40,000. From royalties alone Ms Anvil now has a regular monthly income of between 600 and 6,000 Describing the experience as 'like a lottery win', Ms Anvil, of Norfolk, told the BBC: 'The biggest change for me was that it was so nice to go shopping at Tesco and not be worried about whether I've got the cash in the bank.' The image has since been sold to publications in countries around the world, with requests from Japan, the US, Canada, Spain and Italy all coming through. A growing Cabinet revolt is threatening to sink the HS2 rail link. Ministers are alarmed by the projects spiralling costs and are increasingly minded to kill it off, says a senior source. Initially put at 33billion, the budget is thought to have soared to more than 60billion. Treasury insiders admit the scheme is being added to an audit of major capital projects in which its future will be assessed from scratch. This means funding could be squeezed or stopped. An investigation screened tonight claims ministers fear that over a decade HS2 will cost up to 6billion a year equal to the entire maintenance budget for the existing rail network. Ministers are alarmed by the projects spiralling costs and are increasingly minded to kill it off, says a senior source Although ministers publicly insist it will go ahead, the Cabinet source told of rising dissent. HS2 opponents are said to include Theresa Mays deputy David Lidington, Chief Secretary to the Treasury Liz Truss and Commons Leader Andrea Leadsom. There is concern across government at the way the project is being managed and at the way the projected costs are continuing to grow, the source said. We are not yet at the final go/no-go decision but opposition is mounting. And last night a Department for Transport insider admitted that scoping work had been commissioned to cut costs, which could include reducing the depth of cuttings and tunnels. The Department for Transport said it did not recognise the figure of 6billion a year equivalent to Network Rails annual budget for maintenance and upgrade work. HS2 opponents are said to include Theresa Mays deputy David Lidington (pictured) Tonights investigation, for Channel 4s Dispatches programme, claims that although published national accounts show HS2 will rise to an average cost of 4.2billion a year over the next ten years, ministers have secretly allocated up to 6billion a year. This would bring the outlay to 64billion 8billion more than budgeted currently and almost twice the initial budget of 33billion set in 2011. The senior Cabinet source tells the programme ministers are now increasingly minded to kill off plans for the line and put the money into upgrading services used by millions of voters every day. The costs are spiralling so much that weve been actively considering other scenarios, including scrapping the entire project, the source said. A Cabinet minister told the Spectator: In the next Tory leadership contest the winning candidate will need to have Scrap HS2 in his or her leadership manifesto as in: call the whole thing off. Another minister told the magazine: The case for HS2 is and always was nonsense. By the time it gets to Birmingham, if it ever does, there will have been so many rows about cost overruns that the second phase wont happen. Dispatches also reveals that ministers are considering saving money by building only the first leg of HS2, the section that runs from London to Birmingham. A source close to Transport Secretary Chris Grayling insisted the project would go ahead, and ruled out any bid to scale it back. There is no possibility of it being either axed or any of the routes changed, the source said. The Campaign for Better Transport has urged the Government to invest 4.8billion instead in extending the rail network to help the most disadvantaged and disconnected communities. It said that a national reopening programme would initially create 33 new rail lines with 72 new stations, allowing an additional 20million rail journeys a year. Dispatches features the first interview with Professor Stephen Glaister since he stepped down as chair of the Office of Road and Rail watchdog in December. Asked if we would regret the construction of HS2, he replies: That is what the analysis shows. There was no big picture analysis. We just dont know whether there would have been a better way of spending the money. Phase one of the high-speed rail link will open between London and Birmingham in December 2026 before the railway is extended to Crewe, Manchester and Leeds by 2033 Alistair Darling, who was chancellor when HS2 Limited was set up to build the line ten years ago, tells Dispatches the project should now be scrapped. He says: Anyone who knows anything about long scale projects knows that if youre spending a lot of money on one big prestigious project it will suck money away from everything else you need to be doing. The railways depend on sustained annual investment going on decade after decade. The risk is money simply gets taken out of where you need to be spending it to fund one project and that will be very bad for the country, both economically and politically. A Department for Transport spokesman said: HS2 is already underway with 7,000 people and 2,000 businesses working on building what will become the backbone of Britains rail network. This new rail line will integrate with Northern Powerhouse Rail and together they will transform the region. Miss Truss is overseeing the annual spending review which sets departmental budgets from 2020. She has said that the Government must be prepared to junk white elephant projects. Last week it emerged that HS2 has already spent more than 2billion on buying up land and property along the route. A quarter of HS2 workers were said to be on six-figure pay deals. HS2: The Great Train Robbery. Dispatches, tonight at 8pm on Channel 4 Australian UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker wanted to go through with his scheduled title defence just five minutes before emergency surgery. The star fighter suffered a twisted and collapsed bowel and an internal intestinal hernia and could have died if he stepped in the ring. He was slated to headline UFC 234 against U.S. challenger Kelvin Gastelum at Melbourne's Rod Laver Arena on Sunday but had to pull out. Australian UFC fighter Robert Whittaker (pictured with his wife Sofia) suffered a twisted and collapsed bowel and an internal intestine hernia and could have died if he stepped in the ring UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker has pulled out on Sunday's showdown Whittaker's wife Sofia and manager Titus Day had to convince him to call off the fight and have the surgery after 'intense pain' started about 9pm on Saturday. 'Up until five minutes before going into surgery Rob was insisting he would fight, but advice was that a blow to his stomach could be fatal,' Day said. UFC boss Dana White said Whittaker 'had suffered a less than one per cent, freak injury'. 'What they told me was that his colon and intestines had popped out,' White said in the post-show press conference. 'They don't think it was anything he did yesterday, they think he's had it for a while and it's been popping in and out. 'The scary part is that if he took a shot to the stomach he could have died. He could rupture the colon and become septic and that's not good. 'Everything happens for a reason. It's great the way this worked out, to find out this kid had this problem and was unhealthy and we were able to get it fixed and they think he'll be out for four to six weeks.' The Kiwi-born, Sydney-based star has been plagued with illness and injury in recent years Whittaker started vomiting soon after the abdominal pain began but refused to go to hospital until 3am on Sunday. 'He was actually going to push through it and fight, thank God he didn't,' White said. Whittaker will spend the next four to six weeks recovering then defend his belt against either Gastelum or sixth-ranked middleweight Israel Adesanya. Gastelum borrowed the belt of flyweight champion Henry Cerjudo, who attended the show. 'I turned up to fight,' he said, declaring he was the champion as Whitaker had effectively forfeited the fight. Robert Whittaker (pictured) was rushed to hospital on Saturday night and has been diagnosed with a hernia and undergone surgery However, he was more forgiving after he learned of Whittaker's severe injuries that forced him to call off the bout. 'I was devastated when they told me the news, I wish Rob all the best, a speedy recovery and hope he recovers a hundred per cent,' he told ESPN. The UFC offered refunds to disappointed fans who had bought tickets to see Whittaker in action, but only a handful of fans accepted them. With a record of 20 wins from 24 bouts, Kiwi-born, Sydney-based star Whittaker hasn't been beaten in five years. However, he's been plagued with injuries and illness in recent times. A straph infection in his stomach forced Whittaker to pull out UFC 221 in Perth last year, which was also a title defence. He was on the comeback after breaking his hand in an epic showdown with Yoel Romero last June. Veteran broadcaster Tony Jones will quit as Q&A host before the end of the year, he confirmed on Monday. The 62-year-old is moving to Beijing with his wife Sarah Ferguson who will become head of ABC's China bureau after her stint as Four Corners host. 'I love doing Q&A,' Jones told The Australian. 'But going to China is an opportunity that is too good to miss.' Veteran broadcaster Tony Jones (pictured) will quit as Q&A host before the end of the year, he confirmed on Monday Jones has hosted Q&A since it launched in 2008 with then prime minister Kevin Rudd as the first guest. It is not yet known who will replace him - but the bookies' favourite is ABC News Breakfast co-host Virginia Trioli. Other possible candidates include The Drum hosts Ellen Fanning and Julia Baird and the ABC's chief online political writer Annabel Crabb. Jones fears he will not be allowed to work in China due to strict visa rules - but said he is going to continue to write books to follow his 2017 thriller The Twentieth Man. The veteran also said he may occasionally come back to Q&A to host as a guest. But he conceded his role will be taken before the year is out. It is not yet known who will replace Jones - but the bookies' favourite is ABC News Breakfast co-host Virginia Trioli (pictured) Other possible candidates include The Drum hosts Ellen Fanning and Julia Baird and the ABC's chief online political writer Annabel Crabb (pictured) 'Someone will have cemented [my] role by then,' he said. 'There's no way in my wildest dreams they'd be holding it open.' Talking about his next adventure, he said: 'There are growing opportunities to pitch for documentaries here, and I'll be writing more novels when I'm in China.' Ferguson announced she was leaving Four Corners earlier this year. She said in a statement: 'China has become the story of our time and one with immense implications for Australia.' 'Understanding China and the Chinese perspective is vital. This is a unique opportunity to join the Beijing bureau and continue the first-rate analysis and coverage my colleagues have produced.' Lance-Corporal Brian Wood won the Military Cross for bravery in Iraq only to be smeared as a war criminal nine years later. In the first part of our serialisation of his memoirs on Saturday, he told of his sense of betrayal. Here, in the final extract, he recalls his wrongful persecution by compensation-hungry British lawyers . . . The moment of truth had arrived. As the public inquiry into alleged mistreatment of Iraqi prisoners by British soldiers began in London in 2013, I was repeatedly told I was not a defendant and this was not a trial. But the wooden dock I was sitting in looked pretty much like a dock youd see in a court of law. It was difficult not to think I was on trial here. I scanned the busy room and could see the easily recognisable figure of Phil Shiner, the human rights lawyer who had pressed so hard for this inquiry. He represented six Iraqis who claimed British soldiers me among them attacked them at the Battle of Danny Boy in 2004 when they were nothing more than innocent farmers going about their lawful business, and then maltreated them when they were in custody. Brian Wood, pictured returning home to his family after touring Afghanistan They were also claiming 20 detainees taken back to the British base at Abu Naji for interrogation had been murdered. Shiner had a reputation as the gold standard of solicitors. Named human rights lawyer of the year in 2004 and the Law Societys solicitor of the year in 2007, he had previously taken on the Government in mistreatment cases and won. I had nothing to hide, but no wonder I was nervous. The chairman, Sir Thayne Forbes, a former High Court judge, took his place. The only thing I knew about him was that he was the judge for the trial of the serial killer Dr Harold Shipman. It didnt seem a positive omen. Good morning, Colour Sergeant, he began my rank now, though I was a Lance-Corporal when the events we were about to go over happened and his polite demeanour put me more at ease. Phil Shiner, human rights lawyer But I felt under pressure more in that inquiry room than when I was a junior commander out in the desert and a dozen or more insurgents armed with rocket-propelled grenades, Kalashnikovs and machine-guns were trying to kill me and my men. He reassured me again that this was an inquiry and not a trial, but said my evidence would be given on oath which seemed odd to me if it wasnt a trial. Sat in that box with everyone looking up at me, it was almost impossible not to feel daunted as questioning began. Prompted by the lawyer for the inquiry in effect, the prosecuting counsel I began to give my account of what had happened at Danny Boy, a checkpoint in the Iraqi desert where my Warrior armoured troop carrier was ambushed back in 2004. Id been awarded the Military Cross for my part in that battle, and congratulated by the Queen. Now I felt unnerved as the lawyer homed in on every small detail and then picked over it. Did I remember this? Where precisely was I when that happened? All of this had been covered in my written statement to the inquiry, but he asked me anyway. I could feel myself getting irritated. But I knew I had to keep my composure. Id give him my answer, hed ask again and Id give him the same answer again. It was like walking through a minefield. In that inquiry room, I felt belittled and humiliated. I was having my experiences taken apart by someone who simply did not understand the confusion of a battlefield. For example, he kept on about whether, when I exited the Warrior troop carrier to engage the enemy, Id gone left or right. I couldnt remember for sure, hardly surprising given the noise from guns and rockets, the speed of the action and that I was hyped up on adrenaline. He hadnt a clue what it was like to be outnumbered and fighting for your life, yet here he was cross-questioning me on the minutest detail. He produced a diagram Id drawn of the incident and asked whether the irrigation ditches Id shown in which the insurgents were hiding and shooting at us were U or V- shaped. He asked about timings, as though, in the middle of a gunfight, I was checking my watch every couple of minutes. He wanted certainty about the number of enemy we faced when, at the time, it was impossible to say. His line of questioning was based on a misunderstanding of what a wartime situation is like. The more he asked, the more my yes and no responses were being mixed up with I dont know and I cant remember. Some of my answers contradicted statements of others involved in the action, and he seized on these, though it was perfectly natural for people in such intense situations to have different recollections. Brian Wood collecting his MC at Buckingham Palace with his wife Lucy and parents He put to me an allegation from one of the Iraqi prisoners we took that he was kicked while blindfolded and handcuffed on the floor. A second detainee said that soldiers pushed his head hard onto the ground, stepped on him and dragged him by his ankles. A third alleged hed been kicked in the chest and struck on the head with a rifle. Id seen nothing of the sort, I said. It didnt happen. On a purely practical level, there simply wasnt time. And hitting someone with a rifle butt would only slow us down and put us in more danger. He asked me about the handcuffing of the prisoners and whether Id checked if they were too tight. I cant remember, I replied but inside my head I was thinking: Why are we even discussing this? I was a British soldier fighting for my country, protecting and serving this great nation and you are questioning me about how I applied a handcuff. You cuff them so they cant pull a fast one. If its a bit tight, well, tough s***. I recall glancing at the Ministry of Defence lawyer and my lawyer and wondering why they werent stepping in to tell the inquiry this was standard procedure. But they said nothing, leaving me on my own, defending Army policy. You see, its not hard for civilians to sit in an air-conditioned inquiry room years after the event and make comments about plasticuffs and blindfolds and insinuate that our behaviour was brutal and barbaric. But the lack of understanding they showed of what it was like really being in that situation, and the context of how the Army carries out its instructions, that was truly shocking. War isnt a contract negotiation. Youre not sat there calmly dotting every last i and crossing every last t until an agreement is reached. Youre under threat. Youre under fire. A bullet or a grenade or piece of shrapnel could kill or maim you at any moment. Brian Wood pictured on patrol with 4 Platoon B Company in Helmand in 2012 You rely on gut and instinct to get you through, do what you have to do in order to survive. Thats the basics of what being a soldier is all about. Thats what it felt as though I was defending. And thats what I felt as though no one in that inquiry room properly understood. My ordeal in that dock worsened as the next lawyer began his inquisition. Steven Powles was representing the six Iraqi complainants and went on the attack straightaway. He wanted to know why, when the enemy had surrendered and we collected up their weapons, we had not made any effort to link any particular weapon with a particular detainee. It was totally missing the point. In the sort of situation we were in having dashed across open ground through a hail of bullets and leaping into their trench our sole priority was to get all their weapons, unload them and make them safe. You dont start making a list of which rifle belongs to whom. Then he wanted to know if Id reinforced my commands to the prisoners with any use of physical force or violence. I shook my head. Nor had I seen any of the other soldiers I was with hit or kick them. I maintained eye contact with Powles during these exchanges, giving him a good straight eyeball as if to say no, Im not afraid of you. His questioning seemed deliberately designed to try to trip me up, and I didnt like it. Brian Wood receiving the Military Cross. 'As the Queen pinned the medal on my chest, she said it was rare for her to hand out such awards. She told me to wear it with pride, and I promised I would' He picked up on a discrepancy in the statement Id given immediately after the battle when I said I only remembered killing two insurgents when in fact there were six dead. Is the reality, he asked, that you dont want to tell this inquiry how the other four died? Wow, I thought. Youve got some nerve, throwing such serious allegations about without any evidence to back them up. His insinuations were implying that the statements Id given were somehow cooked up, and my accounts of what happened werent to be believed. No, not at all, I replied firmly. All this left me frustrated, but angry, too. With complete impunity, hed been allowed to stand up and make all kinds of accusations against me, call me a liar, a murderer and everything in between. There in the dock, I felt pretty isolated and ridiculed as the rest of the room looked on and listened to me trying to defend myself. At least, when they got their chance, my lawyer and the MoD lawyer redressed some of the balance and put what had happened at Danny Boy into a proper military context. The MoD lawyer listed the weapons wed seized that day grenade launchers, belts of ammunition, five or six AK47 rifles and a machine-gun. Brian Wood as a schoolboy Thats correct, I said. This amount of weaponry demonstrated this had not been a chance encounter but that wed been lured into a well-organised ambush. When we took the insurgents prisoner, did they have any implements such as spades or sickles, which might suggest that they were farmers, as they claimed? No, I replied, trying to keep a straight face at the ridiculousness of it all. There were no picks or shovels, no tractors or anything like that, or cattle. It was just them and their weapons. And thankfully at that point my ordeal in the dock was over. The inquiry chairman thanked me and wished me well for the future and I was dismissed. I was exhausted after the hours of questioning and being made to relive things I didnt want to relive. I had spent difficult years coming to terms with the trauma of battle the fear, killing, corpses and now it had all been resurrected. My lawyer reassured me that I had handled myself with great dignity and presented myself well. I was told Id be notified where things would go next, and went back to my regiment in Germany. It was now a waiting game for all the evidence to be collected, the remaining witnesses to be interviewed and the inquiry to pass its judgment on what really happened that day in Iraq. BY THE time the verdict came, I had left the Army and taken up a position with the security firm, Control Risks, providing close protection for U.S. oil executives, in Iraq of all places, back where it all began. It was just over four months after my questioning when, on the last-but-one day of the hearing, there was a devastating shock counsel for the Iraqi complainants withdrew the most serious accusation of all, that prisoners taken at Danny Boy had been murdered by British soldiers. Phil Shiners firm issued a statement: Following the conclusion of the military evidence and current state of disclosure by the MoD, it is our view there is insufficient material to establish that Iraqi civilians were unlawfully killed whilst in the custody of British troops at Camp Abu Naji. It was an extraordinary climbdown and undermined their whole case. If the most serious of the accusations against British forces werent true, what did that mean for the rest of them? Evidence from a number of Iraqi witnesses had apparently been clarified and significantly weakened. In plain English rather than legalese, it had been deemed unreliable. Which meant, in turn, that, as the MoD lawyers put it, the entire factual basis upon which the inquiry was predicated was untrue. Nine months later, the final report of the inquiry was released, summing up 169 days of hearings, evidence from 55 Iraqi witnesses and 222 service personnel, and further written statements from another 328 witnesses. The report ran to more than 1,200 pages. In it, the chairman, Sir Thayne Forbes, concluded that the vast majority of the allegations made against the British military were wholly and entirely without merit or foundation. Without merit or foundation. Wow. I had to read that twice and pinch myself to make sure Id read it right. Forbes went on: Very many of those baseless allegations were the product of deliberate and calculated lies on the part of those who made them, and who then gave evidence to this inquiry in order to support and perpetuate them. Other false allegations were the result of inappropriate and reckless speculation on the part of witnesses. That, though, was just for starters. The approach of the detainees and of a number of other Iraqi witnesses to the giving of their evidence was both unprincipled in the extreme and wholly without regard for the truth. As damning as Forbes was of the Iraqi witnesses, he was also full of praise for the military ones like me. In general I found the military witnesses to be both truthful and reliable. They used their best endeavours to recall details of events that had occurred nearly a decade previously. The evidence clearly showed that the British soldiers responded to this deadly ambush with exemplary courage, resolution and professionalism. The work of this inquiry has established beyond doubt that all the most serious allegations made against the British soldiers involved in the Battle of Danny Boy and its aftermath, and which have been hanging over these soldiers for the last ten years [are] wholly without foundation and entirely the product of deliberate lies, reckless speculation and ingrained hostility. I felt a weight lifting off my shoulders. For the inquiry to come up with these conclusions, backing up everything Id said, was a huge release. The inquiry did uphold some of the more minor claims of mistreatment. It suggested, for example, that the detainees should have been given proper food and drink when they were first detained. That was a little dig at me for refusing to give a prisoner water when returning to base in the back of the Warrior, on the grounds (as Id told the inquiry) that we had a limited amount left and I was keeping it back in case my men needed it. Looking back, I can see this was wrong and I should have let him have a drink. There were also criticisms about the tightness of the handcuffs, but these were minor compared to the larger accusations of mistreatment and torture. The inquiry had cost 31 million, and I felt bad, in a strange way, that so much money out of the public purse had been spent on it. But above all, I felt relief that the truth was out there and the soap opera of emotions Id been through over those years was finally coming to an end. As I told the Daily Mail in an interview at the time: We have been dragged through years of hell and that, in my view, is a betrayal of our service. We did what we had to do as soldiers and we did the right thing. In the House of Commons, the Defence Secretary, Michael Fallon, was sharply critical of both the Iraqi witnesses and their legal team: The Iraqi detainees, their accomplices and their lawyers must bear the brunt of the criticism for the protracted nature of this inquiry. He challenged Phil Shiner to issue an unequivocal apology to the soldiers whose reputations he attempted to traduce which he has never done. Fallon added: The reputation of our Armed Forces will survive the baseless slurs of those who seek to undermine those on whom we all depend. This, for me, was real lump-in-the-throat stuff. After sitting in that inquiry room, feeling isolated and hung out to dry by the MoD, it was good to finally hear them coming down on our side. And not only defending us, but acknowledging the bravery that wed shown in that battle. The spotlight now shifted to Shiner. The Government produced evidence that his firm of solicitors had had misgivings over the credibility of its clients, but left it a full 12 months before withdrawing the allegations of unlawful killing at the very end of the inquiry. It also claimed they had used a fixer or agent in Iraq, who had made what it described as unsolicited approaches to potential victims. The result of this deeply unethical process had been an explosion in the number of cases Shiners firm had filed against British forces more than 1,000 judicial review claims in total. The Government pushed for Shiner to be struck off as a solicitor. In 2016, his firm closed, announcing it would not act for 187 Iraqi claimants it was representing and would not bring forward a further 1,000 cases that it had been intending to lodge. Charged by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, he admitted nine counts of acting without integrity and one of acting recklessly. In a letter to the disciplinary tribunal, he admitted paying a fixer more than 25,000 in referral fees to try to find clients, and that he had doctored evidence in an attempt to cover his tracks. He also admitted to paying a witness to change their evidence in the Danny Boy inquiry. He was struck off as a solicitor, and I was pleased. He appeared to have got into his head the idea that the British Army were b******s to a man and that he was going to bring them down. Hed dragged people like me through years of hell. Now hed never be able to do that again.He never apologised. Even if he did now, I think its too late. There was a time and a place to do so, and he decided not to. I think hes heartless and a coward for not having done so. The contrast with the bravery shown by the troops at Danny Boy couldnt be sharper. My firm belief remains that the public inquiry should never have happened in the first place. Those initial accusations should have been thoroughly investigated behind closed doors, to ascertain that there wasnt a case to be brought. One of the detainees claimed he had been out grazing cows on the battlefield when the action took place. Another said hed been there buying 40 litres of yoghurt for a wedding. It was ridiculous. Someone should have looked at this stuff at the start and said: Theres nothing to this. Having the accusations out there, and given credence by the public inquiry, tarnished our names, tarnished the regiment, tarnished our achievements. Mud sticks. My life has moved on. I have a good job in Civvy Street and spend as much time as I can with my family. But the mere fact that the Government allowed that inquiry to happen at all still makes me feel angry. It was a complete betrayal. A man appeared in court today charged with the murder of his ex-wife who was stabbed to death in the street after recently moving into a 'protected' home. Ricardo Godinho, 41, is charged with murdering Aliny Mendes, 39, who was attacked as she walked to collect two of her children from school in Ewell, Surrey, on Friday. Godinho, of Epsom, appeared at Staines Magistrates' Court this morning after he was charged last night with murder and possession of a bladed article. Aliny Mendes (right) was attacked as she walked to collect two of her children from school on Friday. Her ex-husband Ricardo Godinho (left), 41, from Epsom, was charged with murder He appeared in the dock with short hair and stubble, wearing a grey custody jumper, and listened to the two-minute hearing with the help of a Portuguese interpreter. Godinho spoke only to confirm his name, address and date of birth, and gave his nationality as Brazilian and Italian. He was remanded in custody and appeared at Guildford Crown Court this afternoon, where a date of March 15 was set for a plea and trial preparation hearing at the same court. Witnesses say a man jumped out of a black 4x4 and chased the 39-year-old before stabbing Ms Mendes near Meadow Primary School in Ewell. Ms Mendes was attacked as she walked to collect two of her children from school on Friday Armed police arrested a man on suspicion of murder two hours later as he sat in a van a mile from the scene. Officers also announced that the matter has been referred to the police watchdog, the Independent Office of Police Conduct. As investigators continue to question the suspect, friends have revealed the Brazilian-born mother had separated from her husband a month ago. They say she had recently moved into sheltered accommodation in Streatham, south London, because she was 'scared'. Members of Mrs Mendes's Roman Catholic church visited the murder scene near London Road to pay their respects. A fundraising campaign has raised more than 37,000 so far to support her children Surrey Police have confirmed that the victim and suspect were known to each other. Members of Mrs Mendes's Roman Catholic church visited the murder scene near London Road to pay their respects. Father Gianom, a priest at St George's Church in Epsom, said: 'She was a person full of life. She had four children, three boys and a girl. 'Every morning she got up at 4am for the children. She made a lot of sacrifices for them. Witnesses say a man jumped out of a black 4x4 and chased the 39-year-old before stabbing her near Meadow Primary School in Ewell, Surrey. Armed police arrested a man on suspicion of murder two hours later as he sat in a van a mile from the scene 'When she separated from her husband she left for Streatham. It was in a house protected. 'She lived there because she separated from him. That was about a month ago.' Another parishioner said: 'I don't know why they separated. I have heard some people saying she had been scared.' Pictures posted on Ms Mendes's social media accounts include one taken on her daughter's third birthday in July last year. The photograph, captioned 'My family, my life', shows her celebrating with her four children and a man believed to be her husband. As investigators continue to question the suspect, who is in his 40s, friends have revealed the Brazilian-born mother had separated from her husband a month ago. They say she had recently moved into sheltered accommodation in Streatham, south London, because she was 'scared' They seem in high spirits as they clap and blow out birthday candles. Other pictures show her spending time with friends, enjoying a holiday with her children and trying out new recipes. Her sister, who did not wish to be named, said: 'My sister was lovely, always thinking about everyone but mostly her children. She had a wonderful heart and there was no one else like her. 'She tried to help everyone where she could. She loved to cook and would organise surprise parties for friends and family giving cakes and presents she was loved by everyone. Everything she did was for the love for her children.' A Meadow Primary School spokesman said: 'Our heartfelt condolences go out to the family and friends of Aliny Mendes. We will be working closely with the family to offer as much support as we can at this terrible time. Armed police arrested a man on suspicion of murder two hours later as he sat in a van a mile from the scene. They are not looking for anyone else in connection with her death [File photo] 'We believe our community can be best supported by the school opening as usual tomorrow and we will ensure any pupils affected are given additional support to help them through this difficult time.' An online fundraiser to repatriate Ms Mendes's body to Brazil has beaten its 40,000 target after more than 2,000 people donated. Vanessa Ferro, who started the fundraiser, described Ms Mendes as a 'dear friend, colleague and mother of four adored children'. 'Her friends, church community, colleagues and her family in Brazil and other parts of the world are in total shock at the loss of this wonderful person,' she said on the fundraising page. A man has been found dumped in quiet suburban street after being shot in the stomach. The man, 27, was found at a property in St Albans in Melbourne's north-western suburbs about 5.45am on Monday. He was taken to Royal Melbourne Hospital in a stable condition with non-life threatening injuries, and police are investigating the shooting, Nine News reported. A man, 27, was found at a property in St Albans in Melbourne's northwestern suburbs about 5.45am on Monday. Pictured: A hat at the scene being investigated by police A resident (pictured) living nearby said news of the shooting was 'really scary' Officers examined a hat and a mobile phone found in the front yard, and the shooting victim is known to police. Police believe the man may have been shot somewhere else before being dumped at the house in St Albans. A large section of Conrad Street, where the man was found, has been cordoned off by police. Armed crime detectives have now taken over the investigation, Seven News reported. A resident living nearby said news of the shooting was 'really scary'. 'It's really odd for us to have it and it's really scary especially when there's two primary schools nearby, and everyone walks here every morning, especially the kids, it's just really scary,' she said. The sister-in-law of a woman who was strangled and dumped in an Indian river knew their family was plotting to murder her - but couldn't warn her. Sarbjit Athwal, 49, told the Sun Online that she was told of the insidious plot to 'get rid of' 27-year-old Surjit Athwal over tea with her mother-in-law - months before her body was tossed into the Ravi River in December 1998. As a new documentary 'The Killer In My Family' is set to air, Sarbjit reveals how she was told about the plot to murder her Surjit by mother-in-law Bachan at the family home in Hayes, Middlesex. 'In the middle of our tea Bachan says, "Surjit's bringing shame on the family. It's decided. We have to get rid of her",' Sarbjit said. Sarbjit, left, on her wedding day with her sister-in-law Surjit who was murdered by their mother-in-law and her husband Surjit pictured with her evil mother-in-law Bachan who told sister Sarbjit about the plot to kill her 'I was shocked, but thought she's just angry. There's no way she would be seriously suggesting murder. I thought, she'll calm down, but Sukhdave Surjit's husband was just sitting there and didn't say anything.' Surjit was born and raised in Coventry but had been living in Hayes, West London since marrying Sukhdave Athwal at just 16. Bachan Athwal, then 70, was sentenced to 20 years in prison According to Sarbjit, both she and Surjit were treated like prisoners by their husbands, and she would often her her sister-in-law being beaten in the next door room. 'I would hear her being beaten up next door. I felt sick as I once heard my sister-in-law hit the floor. Then I made out a different voice. It was Bachan. She was attacking [pregnant] Surjit as well,' Sarbjit added. Sarbjit said her family decided to murder Surbjit because she was mixing with friends they didn't like and who they believed were 'bringing shame upon the family'. Surjit had previously asked for a divorce from husband Sukhdave, although she was eventually convinced to stay with him. After Surjit gave birth to her second child, and still seemed intent on divorcing Sukhdave, grandmother Bachan decided to have her killed, according to Sarbjit. Sarbjit said she tried to tell her of the plot shortly before Surjit was taken to India and killed. 'When Surjit left, I was by the door, desperate to say something to her, but Bachan was there and she closed the door in my face. We weren't allowed to communicate,' she said. Sarbjit Athwal, 49, (left) said she couldn't tell Surjit of the plot to kill her as they weren't allowed to speak to one another Worried about her sister, Sarbjit said she then called Crimestoppers from a public phonebox and left a recorded message. She said she also wrote them a letter when Surjit was in India to try and get them to take action. Police later confirmed they had received the anonymous letter, but did not act on it. A Metropolitan Police spokesperson told MailOnline: 'Police received an anonymous letter in early January 1999 which formed part of the original missing person's enquiry into Surjit Athwal. Suhkdave Athwal, Sutjit's husband, was also convicted of her murder 'This letter remained on file with the Uxbridge Missing Persons Unit whilst officers tried to ascertain who had written it and if it contained information that they could act on. 'In 2005 when Sarbjit Athwal gave her interview to police she made detectives aware that letter was written by her.' After Bachan returned to London without Surjit, Sarbjit knew what had happened in India. But she said she was scared into keeping quiet by Bachan and threatened with the same fate if she talked. Sarbjit Athwal stayed quiet for seven years and eventually found the courage to speak out about the so-called 'honour killing' in 2004. After telling her parents what she knew, they arranged for her to meet DCI Clive Driscoll, a senior investigator at the Metropolitan Police. With the information Sarbjit supplied, he travelled to Punjab in India to try to find more evidence, advising Sarbjit to sit tight and not let Bachan and Sukdave know the police are on to them. Thanks to the people he met in India, who remembered Surjit's visit, and how her mother-in-law and husband tried to cover their tracks after her disappearance, he was finally able to piece together a picture of what happened to Surjit. DCI Driscoll continued his investigation for the next few years, but as determined as Sarbjit was to help, it was not until 2007, Bachan, 70, and Sukhdave, 43, were arrested. Justice was finally served and Bachan Athwal, then 70, was sentenced to 20 years and Sukhdave to 27 years, but these terms were later reduced at appeal to 15 and 20 years respectively. Hundreds of thousands of cattle died in flood-ravaged Queensland after the defence force refused to deliver life-saving hay drops. The state was hit with two years worth of rain in less than two weeks, turning roads into river and paddocks into lakes. Bodies of the dead cattle crowded fields as floodwaters receded, the animals having either starved to death or been too badly battered by the elements. Farmers across flood ravaged Queensland could be left millions of dollars out of pocket as devastating floods leave behind destroyed crops, livestock and livelihoods Farmers expected supply drops of hay last week to feed what was left of their herds, but the ADF refused to deliver the tonnes of supplies on safety grounds. Deliveries were organised as early as Tuesday, but due to the mix up were never transported to where they were needed. 'There was an initial problem in terms of fodder drops happening outside of the local disaster management committee,' Queensland Deputy Premier Jackie Trad said. 'Industry had advised exactly where to drop the hay. We had the hay available Tuesday and had it wrapped as the air force asked us to do.' However, the ADF then said it did 'not carry or transport hay in aircraft as it is a fire and safety hazard'. The big wet has dumped nearly two-years worth of rain in little more than a week in parts of the sunshine state as a punishing monsoon trough made its way across Queensland Central western Queensland farmer Mr Ren Field recorded more than 835mm of rain over a ten day period, and looked to his livestock to assess the real damage of the storm Instead it delivered aviation fuel so farmers could share their own supplies or picking up from depots set up by AgForce that were donated by farmers around Australia. More than 20 million hectares of farmland is affected by the floods and 146 farmers in the crisis zone are begging for help. 'We are expecting hundreds of thousands in terms of stock losses,' Prime Minister Scott Morrison said. 'This will be heartbreaking to these communities that have been experiencing years of drought, only to see that turn into a torrential inundation which threatens now their very livelihoods in the complete other direction.' Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk Friday spoke of seeing a 'sea of dead cattle' when she toured one region on Thursday. Farmer Rachael Anderson and her husband, who manage Eddington cattle station near Julia Creek township, said 800 of their 1500 cattle were still unaccounted for. 'The cattle didn't have anywhere else to go... We've got a railway line close to us and the whole railway line is just tangled with dead cattle,' Anderson told AFP. 'If the floodwater wasn't enough to kill them, then those that got to higher areas were exposed to elements that were not conducive like rain hitting them at 60 kilometres an hour. They can't survive them long term.' While hundreds of homes have been damaged, the farmers are turning to the wrecked crops and livestock to tally up the damage Ms Anderson - who had been hand-feeding cattle over the past few months amid the crippling drought - said there were also many dead kangaroos as well as birds that were falling dead on the ground. About half of Australia's 25-million strong cattle herd is bred in Queensland state, and graziers say the floods - described as a once-a-century event - could devastate their industry. 'This will finish a lot of people, there's some people who've lost everything, every beast they own, so there's no income at all,' farmer William McMillan told the ABC. Eddington cattle station owner Rae Stretton said that whatever cattle the flood did not wipe out, would have to be put down because of the grim conditions. Jane McMillan said she had probably lost 40 to 50 per cent of her livestock, but considered herself more fortunate than others who had lost everything. 'People have lost their income for the next three years,' she said. The distraught farmer said it was not just livestock that was impacted, but also the native wildlife, sheep, horses and kangaroos. 'They're all dying, they're dying from drowning in the floodwaters or the cold wind'. Eddington cattle station owner Rae Stretton said that whatever cattle the flood did not wipe out, would have to be put down because of the grim conditions Elsewhere in the north Queensland city, several suburbs remain partially flooded as mopping up operations continue in the tropical heat. Homeless families now face a long wait for their flood-damaged homes to be repaired after 10 days of catastrophic flooding. More than 730 homes have been found to be severely damaged and 252 completely uninhabitable following about 1,500 damage assessments, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said on Thursday. Jane McMillan said she had probably lost 40 to 50 per cent of her livestock, but considered herself more fortunate than other who had lost everything 'That is sad news for families,' she told reporters. About 20,000 homes are believed to have sustained water impact in the Townsville area. It's pushed the damage bill from the near-citywide floods to $124 million and rising, the Insurance Council says. 'As of 10am (on Thursday), insurers (HAD) received 10,064 claims, with insurance losses estimated at $124 million,' the council's Campbell Fuller said. He also warned that scammers were active in Townsville, with fake tradies going door to door offering building inspections and repairs for cash before taking the money and running. There have been more than 16,000 claims for personal hardship assistance with more than $1.9 million paid out so far. Even as Townsville continues cleaning up after the floods, more flood waters are washing across west and northwest Queensland. With cold winds reaching up to 50km/h, farmers are having a hard time dropping fodder to the remaining livestock 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. Arieta Gouvakis, 38, is accused of stealing the jewelry from at least two patients while they were under sedation at the Long Island Implant and Dentist in Rocky Point, New York on January 31 and February 1 A New York dental assistant has been arrested for allegedly stealing necklaces and wedding rings from sedated patients to fund her drug habit. Arieta Gouvakis, 38, is accused of stealing the jewelry from at least two patients while they were under sedation at the Long Island Implant and Dentist in Rocky Point, New York on January 31 and February 1. Police said among the items stolen was a $2,000 gold and pearl necklace and a $3,000 gold and diamond wedding ring. The patients were under nitrous oxide sedation at the time and didn't realize the jewelry was missing until later. They later informed the dentist, Dr. Nick Augenbaum, of the missing items and he got police involved. Police managed to track the stolen jewelry to local pawn shops and were able to recover the items. Gouvakis had been hired just three weeks earlier. Police arrested Gouvakis on Friday and charged her with grand larceny and criminal possession of stolen property. Photo courtesy of CBS New York Gouvakis had been hired just three weeks earlier and was working as a dental assistant at the Long Island Implant and Dentist in Rocky Point Police arrested Gouvakis on Friday and charged her with grand larceny and criminal possession of stolen property. Authorities said she has a prior criminal record. They said her motive may have been to feed a drug habit. Gouvakis was fired from the dental office soon after the patients reported the stolen jewelry. Police are appealing for other patients to come forward if they believe that have been victimized by Gouvakis. Any potential victims are asked to contact the Suffolk County Police Department at 631-852-8752. An Ohio woman has been charged after she left her infant son at a bar and asked a stranger to take him home. Ernestine Goggans, 33, was at the Tick Tock Tavern in Cleveland on Thursday between 10pm and 11pm, reported ABC News 5. Waitress Michelle Reese, who was on shift, told the station that Goggans - who was not a bar regular - was in a booth with her seven-month-old son and 'acting strangely'. 'She kept walking over to the bar, and leaving him in his car seat at the booth,' Reese said. Ernestine Goggans, 33, has been charged with child endangerment after she asked a stranger at the Tick Tock Tavern (pictured) in Cleveland, Ohio, to take home her seven-month-old son Reese told ABC News 5 that Goggans was attempting to find someone at the bar to watch over her son while she was in another room. 'All by himself. She just kept leaving him,' Reese said. 'It gave me a heart attack.' Eventually Goggans allegedly went up to a customer, told them they could have her baby and left. When another waitress at the Tick Tock Tavern couldn't locate the mom, she contacted the nearby Lakewood Police Department, a police report says. However, because the bar is technically located in Cleveland, the Cleveland Division of Police took over the case. Officers took the infant to Metro Health Medical Center to be evaluated and, once he was cleared, he was placed in the custody of Child and Family Services. Goggans was arrested at her home on Friday and charged with the misdemeanor of endangering a child, according to court documents viewed by DailyMail.com. She is due back in court on February 28 for a hearing. Court records reviewed by DailyMail.com show that Goggans has been issued several traffic violations. She was charged in 2006 with the minor misdemeanors of driving above the maximum speed limit and driving without a seat belt. In 2010, Goggans was charged with a misdemeanor for driving without a valid driver's license. Just one year later, in 2011, she was charged with driving while revoke, suspended or otherwise unlicensed. Then, in 2012, Goggans with charged with unsafe bumper height, driving without a seat belt and the passenger riding without a seat belt. Sen. Amy Klobuchar joined the Democratic presidential field on Sunday and was welcomed to the competition with a tweet from President Donald Trump, who mocked her for talking about global warming in her speech while giving it in the snow. 'By the end of her speech she looked like a Snowman(woman)!,' he sniped about the woman running for the right to take him on in 2020. Klobuchar made her announcement on a snow-filled day in Minneapolis, in a speech that countered the president's policies on climate change and immigration along with knocking his divisive tone in politics. Sen. Amy Klobuchar made her announcement on a snowy day at an outdoor event on Boom Island, a park that juts into the Mississippi River in Minneapolis Trump slammed Klobuchar's entry into the 2020 race Trump snapped back: 'Well, it happened again. Amy Klobuchar announced that she is running for President, talking proudly of fighting global warming while standing in a virtual blizzard of snow, ice and freezing temperatures. Bad timing. By the end of her speech she looked like a Snowman(woman)!,' he wrote on Twitter. Klobuchar did mention climate change in her remarks, vowing to reverse the president's policies when it comes to the environment. 'The people are on our side when it comes to climate change,' she said as snow poured down around her. 'Why? Because like you and I, they believe in science. That's why, in the first 100 days of my administration, I'll reinstate the gas standard mileage and put sweeping legislation to invest in green jobs and infrastructure. And we will enter into a mutual climate agreement.' Klobuchar's announcement speech also focused on her humble roots and Midwest no-nonsense personality as she introduced herself to the nation. 'I stand before you as the granddaughter of an iron ore miner, as the daughter of a teacher and a newspaperman, as the first woman elected to the United States Senate from the State of Minnesota, to announce my candidacy for president of the United States,' she said as snow poured down on her. She described herself as a candidate with 'grit.' 'I'm asking you to join us on this campaign. It's a homegrown one. I don't have a political machine. I don't come from money,' Klobuchar said. 'But what I do have is this: I have grit. I have family. I have friends. I have neighbors. I have all of you who are willing to come out in the middle of the winter, all of you who took the time to watch us today, all of you who are willing to stand up and say people matter.' She made her announcement Sunday on a cold, snowy day at an outdoor event on Boom Island, a park that juts into the Mississippi River in Minneapolis. Snow poured down on participants and whited out the coverage of the event, obscuring the red and blue 'Amy' signs that filled the crowd. 'We don't let a little snow stop us. We don't even let a little cold stop us,' said Klobuchar, speaking without a hat or gloves. Sen. Amy Klobuchar became the latest Democrat to join the race for the nomination on Sunday She started off her speech by thanking her 'incredible team and staff' The combined North and Patrick Henry High School drum corps keeps warm in the parking lot before Klobuchar's announcement Bands played and state officials touted Klobuchar's record for 45 minutes in the snowy conditions before the senator finally took the stage. Klobuchar, 58, started her speech by offering her thanks to her staff on behalf of herself and her husband John. 'Now, John and I want to first thank our amazing and incredible team and staff for putting this together,' she said. The run up to Klobuchar's announcement has been marred by reports she mistreats her staff. She addressed those rumors to reporters on the ground in Minnesota. 'You know, I love our staff,' Klobuchar said, according to Politico. 'And yes, I can be tough. And yes, I can push people. I know that. But in the end, there are so many great stories of our staff that have been with me for years who have gone on to do incredible things. I have, I'd say, high expectations for myself. I have high expectations for the people who work for me. But I have high expectations for this country, and that's what we need.' In her remarks, Klobuchar touted her record of working with Republicans and said the country is tired of what she calls 'the shutdowns and the putdowns, the gridlock and the grandstanding.' She vowed her candidacy would be focused on 'getting things done.' 'I am running for this job for every person who wants their work recognized and rewarded. I am running for every parent who wants a better world for their kids. I am running for every student who wants a good education. For every senior who wants affordable prescription drugs. For every worker, farmer, dreamer and builder, I am running for every American. I am running for you. And I promise you this. As your president, I will look you in the eye. I will tell you what I think. I will focus on getting things done. That's what I've done my whole life, and no matter what, I'll lead from the heart,' she said. Her speech followed the trail of Mississippi River as she touted political heroes in the states it goes through, such as former President Barack Obama in Illinois and the Rev. Martin Luther King's work in Tennessee. 'The Mississippi river, all our rivers, they connect us to one another, to our shared story. For this is how our country was founded, with patriots who saw more that united them than divided them,' she said. Supporters came out on a cold, snowy day to see Klobuchar The senator spoke without wearing a hat or gloves Klobuchar's volunteers set up a warming station for crowds She emphasized her immigrant roots, speaking of her grandparents who came from Slovenia and Switzerland. 'They made a home here. It was cold - okay, maybe not as cold as this. They didn't know anyone. But like so many immigrants, they wanted a better life for their families,' she said. Klobuchar may have gotten in a subtle dig at one of her primary opponents, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, when she thanked the highest-ranking Native American official in the nation, Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, for being at her announcement. Warren has apologized for over-emphasizing her Native American heritage. She didn't mention President Trump by name but did get in a knock at him when she praised Americans working overseas. 'They deserve better than foreign policy by tweet,' she said, adding it was time to 'stop the fear mongering and stop the hate.' Klobuchar's remarks were designed to appeal to the working class, a group of voters that helped put Donald Trump in the White House and will be an influential voting bloc in the early caucus state of Iowa. She also threw in red meat for liberals, pushing an agenda that would invest in green infrastructure, net neutrality, comprehensive immigration reform, universal health care and bringing down the cost of prescription drugs. Klobuchar's team ordered 100 gallons of hot cocoa and 100 gallons of apple cider for supporters, CNN reported, and volunteers handed out small American flags and packs of Little Hotties hand warmers as people entered the park on the cold day. She tweeted a photo on Sunday morning of her out with her staff the night before at a local brewery Snow falls as rally goers arrive at Boom Island Park for Amy Klobuchar's announcement Snow covered supporters as they waited on Sen. Klobuchar's announcement Supporter cheered and waved flags for Klobuchar The senator has work to do to introduce herself the Democratic base. She barely registers in early opinion polls of 2020 candidates. Klobuchar was accused of being demeaning and cruel to her staff last week. Multiple former staffers told the Huffington Post that the senator, who cultivates the image of a nice, laid-back girl from the MidWest, is quite the opposite and that at least three people have turned down the chance to run her campaign because of the stories about her. The report came as Klobuchar was set to announce her decision to pursue the Democratic nomination. She has been setting the stage for her chance to win the right to take on President Donald Trump next year. She tweeted a photo on Sunday morning of her out with her staff the night before at a local brewery. 'Good time last night with our great team at Boom Island Brewery. Good jazz and I'm glad we got out of the cold for a few hours to visit this local homegrown neighborhood brewery!,' she wrote. Sen. Amy Klobuchar has been accused of being demeaning and cruel to her staff in days before she's expected to announce her presidential campaign Staff describe Klobuchar as a demanding boss who accuses of them of bad work and uses aides to perform personal tasks such as washing dishes But staff describe the senator as a demanding boss who sends dozens of emails over night accusing of them of bad work, ccing multiple colleagues on said emails to publicly embarrass them with her floggings, and using aides to perform personal tasks such as washing dishes at her home or picking up her dry cleaning. One staffer even recalled how the senator would write out tardy slips to staffers who came to the office late. Long hours, being pulled into personal tasks, and temper tantrums can and does happen in offices on Capitol Hill where the political pressure turns the professional environment into a pressure cooker. And staffers are generally over worked and under paid compared to members of Congress. Klobuchar's Senate salary is $174,000. But the criticism comes as Klobuchar prepares to enter the national spotlight as part of the crowded Democratic presidential primary field, where the tiniest infraction can be multiplied into days of bad news. Other former staffers, however, defended the senator, saying she puts in long hours and demands that her office meet the high standards she sets for herself. And some questioned whether former co-workers who thought she was abusive were falling for sexist stereotypes about female leaders with high standards. 'I've heard people say she's tough to work for and I sometimes cringe when I hear it because I rarely hear that said about male bosses in Congress despite the fact that half of Congress is tough to work for,' Tristan Brown, a former legislative aide who called Klobuchar 'probably the most brilliant, hardworking person I've had the privilege to work for,' told the Huffington Post. A troubling sign, however, is that Klobuchar's office has one of the highest rates of staff turnover in the Senate. Amy Klobuchar has been laying the groundwork for a presidential campaign From 2001 to 2016, she was No. 1 in the Senate for staff turnover as measured by LegiStorm, a widely used database of congressional staff information. She's now third. Her campaign defended the senator as someone who 'loves her staff.' 'Senator Klobuchar loves her staff - they are the reason she has gotten to where she is today,' a campaign spokesperson told Huffington Post. 'She has many staff who have been with her for years - including her Chief of Staff and her State Director, who have worked for her for 5 and 7 years respectively - and many who have gone on to do amazing things, from working in the Obama Administration (over 20 of them) to running for office to even serving as the Agriculture Commissioner for Minnesota. She is proud of them and the work they have done for Minnesota.' Despite the bad press her campaign is going forward. Klobuchar will be in the early caucus state of Iowa on February 21 to headline the Ankeny Area Democrats Winter Banquet, Politico reported Tuesday. Klobuchar, 58, was a local prosecutor and county attorney before she ran for the Senate in 2006. She's in her third term and garnered national attention recently for her interactions with two men: her questioning of then-Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh in the Senate Judiciary Committee hearings and her statement on Al Franken, her then fellow senator from Minnesota who was revealed to have touched women inappropriately during his 'Saturday Night Live' days. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (left) in Brett Kavanaugh's confirmation hearing with Senate Judiciary Committee members Sen. Chris Coons, (seated right), Sen. Cory Booker (top left), Sen. Kamala Harris (top center), and Sen Richard Blumenthal (top right) Sen. Amy Klobuchar with Vice President Joe Biden, then-Senator Al Franken and former Vice President Walter Mondale During Kavanaugh's contentious hearing, she patiently questioned him on his alcohol use. She noted that her father had long battled alcoholism and used that to ease into her questioning about the nominee's alleged drinking. Kavanaugh lost his temper when she probed him as to whether he had ever drank to the point of blacking out, asking the senator if she had a drinking problem. 'I have no drinking problem, Judge,' she said. 'Yeah, nor do I,' he snapped back. He later apologized to her for his comments. As for Franken, when the allegations of inappropriate sexual behavior came out November 2017, Klobuchar condemned his actions but did not call on him to resign. She, instead, spoke with him privately. Her name was conspicuously absent in a coordinated effort among her female colleagues, who called for Franken to step down rapidly, one after another. 'I had condemned his conduct early on when the first allegation was made,' she told CNN at the time.' 'I felt I was in a different role as his colleague, that I'm someone that has worked with him for a long time, there's a lot of trust there, and I felt it was best to handle it in that way.' She joins several of her Senate colleagues in the Democratic primary: Elizabeth Warren, Kirsten Gillibrand, Cory Booker and Kamala Harris have all already announced bids. ALSO RUNNING: Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Kamala Harris are also running Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and Rep. Tulsi Gabbard round out the five women running She'll be the fifth woman in the campaign (Rep. Tulsi Gabbard has also announced her bid), an increasingly diverse field that includes two African American candidates - Harris and Booker - an opening gay candidate with South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg, and former Housing Secretary Julian Castro, a Hispanic. She would be the first candidate from the Midwest, which is the home to several battleground states including Iowa, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Ohio. And the field of contenders may grow. Former Rep. Beto O'Rourke, former Vice President Joe Biden, former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Sen. Bernie Sanders could all join the race for the Democratic nomination. A 13-year-old epileptic boy whose case led to the legalisation of medical cannabis in Britain has been given his first legal dose the country. Billy Caldwell and his mother, Charlotte, from Castlederg, Co Tyrone, returned from three months in 'exile' in Canada yesterday. They were forced to leave Britain in November because they were unable to find a doctor willing to prescribe medical cannabis - despite it now being legal. Billy Caldwell and his mother, Charlotte, from Castlederg, Co Tyrone, returned from three months in 'exile' in Canada yesterday. The pair landed at Heathrow Airport and pick up the cannabis from a pharmacy in Surrey after being prescribed it by a doctor who was told by the Department of Health it was okay to write a prescription for the medicine. Since taking the medicine, Billy who suffers from severe epilepsy, has been almost fit-free. An overjoyed Mrs Caldwell told The Times: 'I scoured the UK and Ireland for doctors who would dot this. I have lost count of how many emails I sent and phone calls I made. I'd be there in Canada [sending messages at at three or four in the morning because of the time difference. 'I'm a wee bit emotional, it feels like I am getting out of jail.' Mrs Caldwell, who paid for the prescription, said Billy would probably be the first person since NHS reforms to be prescribed the medicine on the NHS. She added the Billy would die without taking the medicine. Billy was given one NHS prescription for cannabis in 2017 - but the Home Office then banned his GP from giving him any more by the Home Office. Last summer, when the family tried to bring in a fresh supply of medicinal cannabis from Canada where it is legal - it was seized by customs. Since taking the medicine, Billy who suffers from severe epilepsy, has been almost fit-free Billy was then thrust into the spotlight by his mother who made an appeal in the media for the law to be changed to allow medical cannabis to be legally prescribed - and said Billy could die without it. Four days later she was pictured cradling him on the way to Londons Chelsea and Westminster Hospital. A tearful Charlotte, 50, spoke outside the hospital about her beautiful, sweet, innocent boy who was suffering life-threatening seizures and didnt deserve this callous treatment. Within hours, the Home Office released some of the confiscated medicine, which contains two cannabis-derived substances, the legal cannabidiol (CBD) and banned tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive compound associated with the high given by the drug. They gave doctors a 20-day licence to administer one of the seven bottles of the drug Charlotte had brought from Canada. Then, clearly feeling forced to act, Home Secretary Sajid Javid told the House of Commons it was time to review the scheduling of cannabis for medicinal use. Mr Javid's review led to a change in the law. Patients' groups say the reform has had little effect and could be negative. The pair were forced to leave Britain in November because they were unable to find a doctor willing to prescribe medical cannabis - despite it now being legal Mrs Caldwell released a video from her son's room in Chelsea and Westminster Hospital where he received his cannabis oil treatment The remarks from the patients' group triggered new guidance from professional bodies which discouraged doctors from prescribing cannabis. One body, the British Paediatric Neurology Association, received letters from more than 30 parents - who had accused it of 'ignoring the law change' and causing 'barriers and threats to those seeking treatment'. Charlotte said that for the first time 'connections had been made' between the medicinal cannabis experts in Canada and doctors and the UK. She said 'it was a huge step forward for us in the UK - and not only Billy'. Meghan Markle sent a brutal letter to her father in which she claimed she 'barely knows' stepsister Samantha - it has been revealed. In an explosive letter published in the Mail on Sunday, the Duchess of Sussex blasted father Thomas Markle and sister Samantha's public attacks on her and Prince Harry. 'I pleaded with you to stop reading the tabloids,' she wrote in the letter to Thomas. 'On a daily basis you fixated and clicked on the lies they were writing about me, especially those manufactured by your other daughter, who I barely know. Scroll down for video Meghan Markle said she 'barely knows' half-sister Samantha in the explosive letter to her father Thomas Meghan complains Thomas sided with her half-sister Samantha in criticising her, but he insists: I never wanted Meg to suffer. 'You watched me silently suffer at the hands of your vicious lies. I crumbled inside.' The bombshell five-page letter, sent in August last year, lays bare the true depths of the Duchesss estrangement from her father. In elegant script, she accuses him of breaking her heart into a million pieces by giving interviews to the press, fabricating stories and attacking her new husband. The Duchess also admonishes her father, in anguished tones, for siding with her half-sister Samantha who has attacked her in the press while she silently suffered at the hand of her vicious lies. Earlier this week it was revealed that Meghan burst into tears after discovering her estranged half-sister Samantha is planning to write a book about her. The Duchess of Sussex, who is around seven months pregnant, was upset because she felt she was being 'taken advantage of', according to a close friend with knowledge of the situation. Samantha, 54, first revealed her literary ambitions in April 2016 and initially said the book would be called, 'The Diary of Princess Pushy's Sister.' Earlier this month, she announced she would be writing a second book which, like the first, will be called, 'In the Shadows of the Duchess'. The first installment is slated for publication in April around the time that Meghan, 37, is expected to give birth and will, Samantha said in a recent interview with the Daily Star, 'cover everything from behind the scenes that the world does not know about.' In her letter to her father, the Duchess begged him to stop attacker 'patient, kind and understanding' Prince Harry Meghan has told friends that she stopped reading interviews with members of her family after finding out about the first book two years ago and tries not to look at gossip about herself. 'She stopped reading things after finding out about her sister's book,' the friend told DailyMail.com. 'She cried when she found out about it. 'Out of everything that's been said, the one thing that really upset her was that [the book]. She and Samantha never had a very good relationship and she feels her sister is using her position for profit.' Meghan is last thought to have seen her sister, who lives in Ocala, Florida, in 2008 and her brother Thomas Markle Jr, 52, of Grants Pass, Oregon, in 2011. Both have repeatedly spoken out about their famous half-sister; more recently to plead with her to reach out to their father. Thomas Markle has revealed the full content of a five-page letter written to him by his daughter the Duchess of Sussex President Donald Trump, on a tweet-filled Sunday spent in the White House with nothing on his public schedule, defended his excessive amount of 'executive time' as periods when he is 'generally working, not relaxing.' He noted in a series of tweets that because the 'country was a mess' when he became president, 'I had no choice but to work very long hours!' Trump spent Sunday tweeting on the need for a wall on the Southern border, accusing Democrats of wanting a second government shutdown to change the subject and slamming his rivals for the situation with their top officials in the state of Virginia. President Trump, on a tweet-filled Sunday spent in the White House with nothing on his public schedule, defended his 'executive time' When the term Executive Time is used, I am generally working, not relaxing. In fact, I probably work more hours than almost any past President,' he tweeted He noted in a series of tweets that because the 'country was a mess' when he became president, 'I had no choice but to work very long hours!' But he was particularly defensive of his 'executive time' - what aides call the period when the president is watching TV, calling friends and tweeting. 'The media was able to get my work schedule, something very easy to do, but it should have been reported as a positive, not negative. When the term Executive Time is used, I am generally working, not relaxing. In fact, I probably work more hours than almost any past President.....,' he wrote on Twitter. He added: '....The fact is, when I took over as President, our Country was a mess. Depleted Military, Endless Wars, a potential War with North Korea, V.A., High Taxes & too many Regulations, Border, Immigration & HealthCare problems, & much more. I had no choice but to work very long hours!' His tweets on executive time were his seventh tweets of the day. Last week, in an unprecedented leak to Axios, Trump's daily schedules showed the president spent 60 percent of the last three months in 'executive time.' Acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney defended the use of the president's executive time in an interview with NBC's Chuck Todd on 'Meet the Press' on Sunday.' 'You and I have had this conversation I think before, which is this show lasts an hour. Does that mean you only work for an hour a week? No, there's a lot of stuff that goes on in order to make this happen. That executive time is on there to allow the president to prep for the next meeting, to debrief from the previous meeting. The phone calls start at 6:30 in the morning, and they go until 11:00 at night. So I can assure you that the gentleman is working more than what's on that calendar,' he said. Trump ordered staff to track down the White House mole who leaked his private schedules. White House officials said they have enlisted computer specialists and IT professionals in their search, which they say is progressing, Politico reported. A Trump aide told the news site that it is believed the culprit is a career government employee and not someone appointed by the president, though no evidence to this effect has surfaced as of yet. Trump's personal secretary, Madeleine Westerhout, was not amused by the embarrassing report. What a disgraceful breach of trust to leak schedules, she tweeted, adding that the leaked documents in Axios don't show "the hundreds of calls and meetings @realDonaldTrump takes everyday." This POTUS is working harder for the American people than anyone in recent history, she tweeted. Acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney defended the use of the president's executive time in an interview with NBC's Chuck Todd on 'Meet the Press' Trump's personal secretary, Madeleine Westerhout (seen right as Trump speaks in the Oval Office in February 2018), was not amused by the embarrassing report Westerhout called the leak a 'disgraceful breach of trust' last Sunday afternoon The leak angered White House officials because the schedule leaves some with the impression that Trump does little actual work. In past administrations, the presidents schedule was structured much more tightly than that of the current occupant of the Oval Office, according to Business Insider. Bill Clinton began his days at 9am, when he met with White House staff. His work days were considered long and he kept busy until late at night before getting five hours of sleep. George W. Bush woke up at 5:15am, arrived at the Oval Office by 6:45am, and finished his first meeting of the day by 8:15am. Trumps immediate predecessor, Barack Obama, was also known to work long hours into the night. Following a rare snowstorm that paralyzed much of the Pacific Northwest over the weekend, officials are warning about severe surf and winds in Hawaii. Gusts have already hit 40 mph (64 kph) in some areas, according to The National Weather Service, as authorities said residents on the islands' north shores should be prepared for coastal flooding. The surf was forecast to top out at 60 feet (18 meters) on Sunday, Hawaii News Now reported, with residents on Oahu's North Shore being told to prepare for possible evacuation. Multiple advisories and warning are currently in effect for the area. A 66-year-old California man died after getting stuck in rough ocean conditions in Napili Bay, off northwest Maui, on Friday. Rescuers brought him to shore and performed CPR but the as-yet unidentified man could not be saved. Officials are warning about severe surf and winds in Hawaii, and possible evacuation on Oahu's North Shore. Wind gusts have already hit 40 mph (64 kph) in some areas, and the surf was forecast to top out at 60 feet (18 meters) on Sunday Weather reports warned of strong winds, high surf and damaging coastal flooding to close out the weekend in Hawaii, which is currently operating five hours behind the east coast, on Hawaii Standard Time. Key messages for the Central Pacific islands issued by the National Weather Service at 5am HST (10am Eastern) noted that coastal inundation and damage to coastal properly was likely, due to dangerously high surf. Others dangers for Hawaiians to be aware of included ocean water sweeping across roadways, significant beach erosion, extreme habour surges, and giant, disorganized waves. 'Stay off the beaches!' NWS said, pertaining to the surf only. In terms of the wind risk, NWS told residents to be prepared for downed trees and power outages, with property damage likely. Key messages for the Central Pacific islands issued by the National Weather Service at 5am HST (10am Eastern) noted that coastal inundation and damage to coastal properly was likely, due to dangerously high surf High wind warnings are all in effect at this time in various part of Hawaii, through 6am HST (11am Eastern) on Monday. High surf warnings begin at 4pm HST (9pm Eastern) on Sunday, and also extend through 6am HST (11am Eastern) on Monday. 'Inexperienced persons should remain off beaches and adjacent beachfront areas,' NWS said. 'Large breaking surf, significant shorebreak, and dangerous currents make entering the water very hazardous.' A Gale Warning is also currently in effect for all Hawaiian waters, similarly extending through 6am HST (11am Eastern) on Monday. 'A Gale Warning means winds of 34 to 47 knots are imminent or occurring,' NWS said. Operating a vessel in gale conditions requires experience and properly equipped vessels. It is highly recommended that mariners without the proper experience seek safe harbor prior to the onset of gale conditions.' Others dangers for Hawaiians to be aware of included ocean water sweeping across roadways, significant beach erosion, extreme habour surges, and giant, disorganized waves In the Pacific Northwest on Saturday, the region more accustomed to winter rain saw some areas under a considerable amount of snow, and meteorologists say more is on the way early next week. Hundreds of flights were canceled in Seattle and Portland over the weekend, and heavy snow drifts closed major highways in eastern Washington, with around 50,000 people losing power on Saturday. Parts of Seattle were in a complete whiteout on Friday, with one resident captured on camera taking his own selfie against the solid wall of white. As the Seattle cityscape is lost in a whiteout behind him, Scott Mathews snaps a photo of a metal sculpture of women on a beach during a snowstorm on Friday A pedestrian moves along the waterfront during a snowstorm on Friday in Seattle A homeless encampment in Seattle is pictured covered in snow on Friday Residents in Seattle cleared out grocery store shelves and left work early on Friday afternoon as the storm arrived. Many businesses and schools closed early,as well, so workers could get home. State and local officials urged people to stay off the roads over the weekend as traffic slowed to a standstill in some places because of the snow. Cars, trucks, and a lone cyclist make their way in the snow on Capitol Way in Olympia, Washington on Friday A pedestrian joins traffic in Seattle as it backs up heading out of downtown on State Route 99 at the beginning of a snowstorm on Friday More than a foot of snow (30.5 cm) was recorded by Saturday morning on the Olympic Peninsula, in the nation's latest bout of winter weather. Severe snow drifts shut down Interstate 90 and other roads in central Washington. About 200 flights were canceled at Seattle-Tacoma and Portland international airports on Saturday, roughly matching the number of Friday cancellations. More than a foot of snow (30.5 cm) was recorded by Saturday morning on the Olympic Peninsula, in the nation's latest bout of winter weather. Snow falls at the Washington Capitol in Olympia, Washington on Friday A Georgia businessman, who was pictured holding a gun as he and another man stood over two dead elephants, claims he killed the animals in self-defense when they charged at him. Mike Jines, a partner with TopGen Energy in Alpharetta, Georgia, made the claim after the photo went viral on social media and critics started targeting his business. Thousands of social media users have accused Jines and professional hunter, Max 'Buzz' Delezenne, of killing two baby elephants on an African 'trophy' hunt in Zimbabwe. Georgia businessman, Mike Jines (right), who was pictured holding a gun as he and another man stood over two dead elephants, claims he killed the mammals in self-defense when they charged at him Jines, a partner with TopGen Energy in Alpharetta, Georgia, made the claim after the photos went viral on social media and critics started targeting his business Thousands of social media users have accused Jines and professional hunter, Max 'Buzz' Delezenne, of killing two baby elephants on an African 'trophy' hunt in Zimbabwe Jines (left) went on the hunt with professional hunter Max 'Buzz' Delezenne (right). Jines has claimed that the elephants were shot in self-defense after they charged at the two men Jines also said that the animals were shot in full compliance with laws and regulations in both Zimbabwe and the US The hunt occurred in October 2018, but the images weren't shared on social media until last month. Darrel Eisman shared the photos in a Facebook post, which has more than 56,000 shares. 'Apologies for the disturbing photo,' Eisman wrote. 'If you're really upset by what you see, than make this go viral along with an email letting Mike Jines know what you think,' Eisman added. He also included Jines' email address in the post. Thousands commented on the post calling the photos 'horrible', 'sad' and 'sickening'. 'It utterly breaks my heart to see such cruelty going on those scumbags who killed this poor innocent creature should be punished, hunters should be banned as a lot of animals in Africa are now on the verge of extinction how tragic,' one Facebook user wrote. The hunt occurred in October 2018, but the images weren't shared on social media until last month. Darrel Eisman shared the photos in a Facebook post (pictured), which has more than 56,000 shares Thousands commented on the post calling the photos 'horrible', 'sad' and 'sickening' 'You have no heart, no soul. This is sickening and pathetic. Its just so sad to see this,' another angry Twitter user wrote. Another tweeted: 'Theres evil, and then theres you #mikejines one can only hope the universe and all that is just punish you for killing those elephants. Boycott #TopGenEnergy.' Since the photos emerged, Jines says he's focused on 'making sure people understand the actual facts as opposed to the mischaracterization of the information on social media'. He told CBS 46 that the elephants shown in the photos 'were shot in self-defense, in an unprovoked charge and both elephants were fully mature cows, not juveniles'. Jines also said that the animals were shot in full compliance with laws and regulations in both Zimbabwe and the US. Democrat presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren took aim at President Donald Trump on Sunday, saying he 'may not even be a free person' by next year's election. The Massachusetts senator has largely avoided talking about Trump since she began testing the waters for a campaign more than a month ago. She has been a frequent target of the president, who has criticized her past claims to Native American heritage, including in a tweet on Saturday night. During her first of three events Sunday in eastern Iowa, Warren said the president shouldn't be allowed to dictate the direction of the campaign with divisive attacks. Democrat presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren took aim at President Donald Trump on Sunday in Iowa, saying he 'may not even be a free person' by next year's election 'Every day there is a racist tweet, a hateful tweet - something really dark and ugly,' she said. 'What are we as candidates, as activists, as the press, going to do about it? We're going to chase after those every day?' 'Here's what bothers me. By the time we get to 2020, Donald Trump may not even be president. In fact, he may not even be a free person.' Warren didn't explain her comment, though she appeared to be referring to the multiple investigations that have shadowed Trump's presidency. Asked later if she supported impeaching Trump, Warren was noncommittal, saying only that special counsel Robert Mueller needs to be allowed to finish his investigation and make his report public. "If we go down that path, we're going to need to help pull this country together and have as many people as possible understand it was a legitimate process based on facts," she said. Trump has not been charged with any crimes, but several of his former advisers have been pleaded guilty to a variety of charges. The Democrat presidential candidate told a crowd in Cedar Rapids, Iowa that Trump 'may not even be a free person' by next year's election During a campaign event in eastern Iowa on Sunday, Warren said the 2020 campaign should not be dominated by Trump's frequent attacks Shortly after Warren officially entered the race, the president took a swipe at her on Twitter. 'Today Elizabeth Warren, sometimes referred to by me as Pocahontas, joined the race for President,' Trump tweeted. 'Will she run as our first Native American presidential candidate, or has she decided that after 32 years, this is not playing so well anymore? See you on the campaign TRAIL, Liz!' The White House didn't explain what the president was referring to in his tweet, though some Democrats accused him of making light of the Trail of Tears - the forced removal of Cherokee and several other Native American tribes from their lands in the 1830s. Warren's campaign wouldn't say what the senator believes Trump was referencing. Warren formally launched her White House bid on Saturday in Massachusetts, grounding her campaign in the populist calls to combat economic inequality that have long made her a favorite of liberals. Shortly after Warren officially entered the race, President Trump took a swipe at her on Twitter on Saturday Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., poses for a photo with a local residents during an event in Cedar Rapids, Iowa on Sunday In Cedar Rapids, she said sweeping changes are needed to re-balance an economy that she now favors the wealthy at the expense of middle- and lower-income Americans. Warren has struggled to shake the controversy surrounding her past claims to Native American heritage. She's apologized for claiming Native American identity on multiple occasions early in her career. Trump has frequently taken digs at the senator by calling her Pocahontas, a reference to the native woman who lived in present-day Virginia in the 1600s and agreed to marry an English colonist to help ensure peace and protect her people. Warren has said the story of Pocahontas long has "been taken away by powerful people who twisted it to serve their own purposes." Voters in Cedar Rapids did not ask Warren about the controversy during a question-and-answer session, focusing instead on her stances on issues including tariffs and student loan debt. Police have been forced to defend a wanted man - after he was ridiculed online about his haircut. Humberside Police want to speak to Emilio Romana in connection with a burglary in Willerby, Kingston upon Hull on February 6. Mr Romana's mugshot was uploaded to Twitter and Facebook and attracted at least 400 Facebook comments within hours - about his bowl cut and high fringe. One user mockingly wrote of Emilio Romana's mugshot (above): 'Probably sat at home watching Sky with the fantastic satellite connection he's getting from those ears'. In light of the comments, police were forced to step in and urge people to be 'respectful' One urged police: 'while you're at it please arrest his barber'. Hundreds of users have since been mocking Mr Romana's haircut - even commenting on his ears and calling him 'Dumbo'. Replying to the police, one user wrote: 'Please find him before further infringement', while another asked 'Who cut his hair?....the Council!' Another mockingly said: 'Probably sat at home watching Sky with the fantastic satellite connection he's getting from those ears.' Others included: 'What was he trying to steal, the rest of his haircut?' and 'Short back & what the f*** is that?' The post has received 649 comments and over 1,300 shares in just three days. The Twittersphere was also abuzz with jibes and taunts when the mugshot hit people's news feeds. One person wrote: 'Have you tried looking in the year 2001?' Another tweeted: 'While you're at it please arrest his barber.' Mr Romana's mugshot was uploaded to Twitter and Facebook and attracted at least 400 Facebook comments within hours - about his bowl cut high fringe. Humberside Police want to speak to him in connection with a burglary in Willerby, Kingston upon Hull on February 6 [File photo] In light of the comments, police were forced to step in and urge people to be 'respectful'. They wrote: 'Whilst we encourage participation on our posts please keep it respectful. If you have any information that may assist please call us. Thank you.' Some Facebook users agreed with the police's request with one posting: 'Can we have some sensible comments cos if he is a suspect in a house burglary then any comments really don't help the police.' And another commenting: 'Great I bet Humberside love the fantastic and informative response they are getting from a certain section of the non thinking masses.' Humberside Police are still wanting to speak to Mr Romana and have asked anyone who knows of his whereabouts to contact them. Disturbing surveillance footage has emerged showing a woman being abducted from outside a workshop in Miami. The unknown woman was reportedly heard screaming 'Call 911, he's going to kill me' as she was dragged away and forced into a car by what police believe was an armed assailant. Authorities released video of the altercation on social media, showing an African-American lady speaking to two men outside La Ceiba Tire Shop on Friday, before taking refuge inside. Witnesses say the woman attempted to hide in a restroom. A white Nissan Altima then speeds up to the premises and a man gets out from the driver's side. Moments later the currently unidentified pair emerge from the shop in a struggle, with the man's arms clasped around the woman's chest as she appears to be in a state of distress. The man can then be seen physically attacking the woman, as he forces her into the vehicle, before driving away. Police say they are hoping members of the public can help identify the victim (left), who they describe as black woman in her mid 20s or early 30s. A white Nissan Altima (right) was used by the assailant The unidentified pair emerged from the La Ceiba Tire Shop on Friday,as the man dragged the woman away towards his car A witness said he hit her '20 times' with the car door to force her inside. 'She told me, "Call 911, he's going to kill me",' said the anonymous witness to Miami 7 News. 'He was running over here. He takes her from the restroom and hit her like, I don't know 20 or 50 times. 'And then he put her in the drivers seat; he hit her 20 more times with the door.' The witness went on to describe the 'fighting and screaming' as disturbing, and believed the man was armed with a gun. Witnesses at the tire store in Miami (above) depicted a violent scene The assailant has his arms firmly clasped around the victim's chest as he pushes her towards his car The man can then be seen physically attacking the woman, as he forces her into the vehicle Police say they are hoping members of the public can help identify the victim, who they describe as black woman in her mid 20s or early 30s, and between 5 ft 4 inches and 5 ft 8 inches tall. 'We don't know the whereabouts of this young lady. We don't know if she's hurt,' Miami Police Commander Freddie Cruz said in a Facebook Live statement. 'This is someones daughter, this is someones sister, someones family member. We need to apprehend this individual. We need to bring this young lady back home to safety.' The assailant's car had a temporary license plate attached to it, with the partial tag of either 'CFJ7', or 'CFF7'. Police said he may be armed and dangerous, urging to public to keep their distance if seen. Anyone with information should contact the Miami Police Department at 305-603-6370 or Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS. Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam said if the rape allegations against his lieutenant governor are true, then Justin Fairfax should resign his office. Northam, who is staying in the gubernatorial mansion after his own blackface photo scandal rocked the state, said Fairfax should go. 'If these accusations are determined to be true, I don't think he's going to have any other option but to resign,' he told CBS News. Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam said if the allegations against his lieutenant governor are true, then Justin Fairfax should resign his office A second woman has accused Democratic Lieutenant Governor of Virginia Justin Fairfax of rape Asked if Fairfax should go ahead and resign, Northam said: 'That's going to be a decision that he needs to make.' Fairfax was one of the few Democrats not to call for Northam's resignation from the start. He would have been elevated to the gubernatorial mansion if Northam resigned. Northam said he supported Fairfax's call for an investigation into the allegations. 'I can only imagine that it must take tremendous courage for women to step forward and and talk about these things that are just so hurtful. And these accusations are very, very serious. They need to be taken seriously. As you know, Governor Fairfax has called for an investigation. I really think where we are now, we need to get to the truth,' he said. Northam is in recovery mode after a photo was revealed in his 1984 medical yearbook of a man in blackface. He has defied the calls of Democratic leaders with his decision to remain in office. Northam immediately apologized for appearing in the photograph, saying he could not 'undo the harm my behavior caused then and today.' The next day, however, in a bizarre press conference the governor reversed course and said he wasn't in the picture. He said he would remember dressing in that because he remembered he once dressed in blackface as Michael Jackson and noted the make up used to color his skin was difficult to remove. The head-scratching explanation did not help his cause although the political pressure eased after the allegations against Fairfax came out and state Attorney General Mark Herring admitted he had worn blackface in the past too. The potentially career ending scandals involving the top three Democrats in the state has left the political establishment reeling. On Friday, a second woman accused Fairfax of rape. Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, greets, Bishop Felton Hawkins, Full Gospel Kingdom Church, Newport News, right, as well as State Sen. Lionel Spruill, Sr., D-Chesapeake, front, prior to the start of the Senate session at the Capitol in Richmond, Va., Friday In a letter released by her lawyer on Friday, Watson called for Fairfax's resignation claiming he sexually assaulted her in 2000 The attack allegedly took place in 2000 when Watson and Fairfax were students at Duke University. Pictured above is Fairfax in his university yearbook photo Meredith Watson released a letter through her lawyer on Friday calling for Fairfax's resignation claiming he sexually assaulted her in 2000 when they were both students at Duke University. 'Mr. Fairfax's attack was premeditated and aggressive. The two were friends but never dated or had any romantic relationship,' the letter states. Watson's attorney does not provide specific details of the attack but states the assault was 'similar' to that of Vanessa Tyson, who on Wednesday, publicly accused Fairfax of raping her in 2004. Watson was 'upset' to learn Fairfax, 39, had assaulted another woman and reluctantly decided to come forward 'out of a strong sense of civic duty.' 'At this time, Ms Watson is reluctantly coming forward out of a strong sense of civic duty and her belief that those seeking or serving in public office should be of the highest character,' the letter continued. Watson has provided emails and Facebook messages with friends and classmates which her lawyer says prove she told them of the incident immediately after it happened. Those witnesses have also provided statements corroborating Watson's allegations. Her lawyer said her client is not looking to become a media personality nor is she seeking financial damages, but rather, is hoping Fairfax will resign. Stanford University fellow Vanessa Tyson suggested in a private Facebook post that Virignia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax sexually assaulted her in 2004; she said Wednesday that he 'forced me to perform oral sex on him' This photograph, from Tyson's Twitter account, shows the college professor at a conference of the American Politicla Science Association Fairfax released a statement shortly after the allegations emerged saying he does not intend to step down. 'I deny this latest unsubstantiated allegation. It is demonstrably false. I have never forced myself on anyone ever,' he said. 'I demand a full investigation into these unsubstantiated and false allegations. Such an investigation will confirm my account because I am telling the truth. 'I will clear my good name and I have nothing to hide. I have passed two full field background checks by the FBI and run for office in two highly contested elections with nothing like this being raised before. 'It is obvious that a vicious and coordinated smear campaign is being orchestrated against me. 'I will not resign.' Fairfax is also dealing with the fallout of the first allegation against him. Vanessa Tyson alleged on Wednesday that Fairfax raped her during the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston. Tyson issued a stinging statement through her lawyers, saying: 'What began as consensual kissing quickly turned into a sexual assault. Mr. Fairfax put his hand behind my neck and forcefully pushed my head towards his crotch. Only then did I realize that he had unbuckled his belt, unzipped his pants, and taken out his penis. He then forced his penis into my mouth.' Vanessa Tyson, (pictured) publicly accused Fairfax of raping her in 2004 'Utterly shocked and terrified, I tried to move my head away, but could not because his hand was holding down my neck and he was much stronger than me. As I cried and gagged, Mr. Fairfax forced me to perform oral sex on him. 'I cannot believe, given my obvious distress, that Mr. Fairfax thought this forced sexual act was consensual. To be very clear, I did not want to engage in oral sex with Mr. Fairfax and I never gave any form of consent.' Democratic Rep; Jennifer Wexton became the first member of Virginia's congressional delegation to weigh in on the Fairfax scandal, tweeting Wednesday afternoon: 'I believe Dr. Vanessa Tyson.' Wexton told CBS on Sunday Fairfax cannot stay in office. 'Elected leaders need to be held to a higher standard and where there are credible allegations- corroborated allegations- of serious sexual assault. We're talking about rape and forcible sodomy. This is something that impacts his ability to lead in future,' she said on 'Face the Nation.' The 39-year-old Fairfax's political future seemed to unravel in slow-motion on Wednesday as sources told NBC News that he had snapped out of his normal mild manner to condemn Tyson during a private meeting with staff shouting: 'F**k that b***h!' Lawrence Roberts, Fairfax's chief of staff, insisted to a Washington Post reporter that the lieutenant governor never said those words: 'Absolutely not true. I was there.' A grandmother is suing a male stripping company for 150,000, after claiming she was blinded by a performer tearing off his pants. Merle Groenewald, 58, was sitting in the front row of a Dreamboys show in London, when one-of-four strippers dressed as firemen allegedly whipped his pants into her eyes. The South African national was rushed to hospital, permanently losing sight in her left eye and temporarily losing sight in her right eye. Merle Groenewald, 58, is suing a male stripping company for 150,000, after claiming she was blinded by a performer tearing off his pants Her barrister, Mark Mulrooney, wrote in documents filed to the London County Court that: 'One of the performers flicked his trousers towards the audience, but part of the trousers caught Mrs Groenewald in the eyes and caused her to suffer injury.' Mrs Groenwald was staying in Maidstone, Kent in 2014, after travelling to the UK from her home in Cape Town. She travelled to London with three female friends in December that year, deciding to attend a Dreamboys show at Rise Club in Leicester Square. Mrs Groenewald was attending a Dreamboys show in London when she says she was permanently blinded in one eye and temporarily blinded in the other The grandmother told the court she was suing Dreamboys because it: 'Failed to ensure that there was sufficient space between the performers and the audience, so as to ensure that the performance could be carried out safely.' In a statement to The Sun, the stripping troupe denied the accusation, adding that the type of accident described was 'not reasonably foreseeable'. Dreamboys denies any wrongdoing, adding the type of accident described is 'not reasonably foreseeable' Dreamboys is the self-proclaimed 'most famous and successful male strip show in UK history'. The company puts on shows around the country, including Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds and Liverpool. Tickets for the group's London shows start at 36. Passengers flying from Glasgow to the Canary Islands were faced with an unexpected diversion when their Jet2 flight was forced to land due to a lack of water. The LS155 flight, which departed Glasgow Airport at 8.55am, was set for the Spanish island of Tenerife when it was diverted due to an on board plumbing issue. Holiday-makers were met with the detour at around 10am while the plane was flying over Cork in the Republic of Ireland. Upon arriving in Manchester, passengers were transferred onto another flight heading to the holiday destination. Jet2 Passengers flying from Glasgow to the Canary Islands today were diverted to Manchester Airport due to a lack of water Fire services were also present as the plane landed as a precautionary measure. As the far from ideal events unfolded, holiday-makers took to Twitter to share their thoughts on the diversion. Ian Anderson wrote: 'Diverted to Manchester and now on a replacement plane bound to Tenerife. Broken toilets and no running water on the first Jet2 plane apparently. 'Everyone in good humour and @jet2tweets crew looking after us a treat.' The plane was flying near Cork in Ireland when it made the unexpected detour to Manchester Craig Muirhead tweeted: 'Jet2 Glasgow to Tenerife grounded in Manchester as there's not running water on board! Please be quick.' He later added: 'Fair play @jet2tweets. Another aircraft waiting for us at Manchester! Waiting for a slot to fly now! #Tenerife.' However other passengers were far from pleased with the airline's unexpected disruption. One Jet2 passenger, Soph, wrote: 'So @jet2tweets plane from Glasgow to Tenerife had to turn back and emergency land in Manchester because they had no water supply for hot drinks! My arse. 'Get a better excuse next time.' One passenger, Ian Anderson, wrote: 'Diverted to Manchester and now on a replacement plane bound to Tenerife. Broken toilets and no running water on the first Jet2 plane apparently. 'Everyone in good humour and @jet2tweets crew looking after us a treat' Craig Muirhead wrote: 'Jet2 Glasgow to Tenerife grounded in Manchester as there's not running water on board!' He later added: 'Fair play @jet2tweets. Another aircraft waiting for us at Manchester!' However another passenger was far from pleased with the unexpected diversion and wrote: 'Get a better excuse next time' A spokeswoman for Jet2 confirmed that the flight had been diverted to Manchester Airport due to a lack of water for teas and coffee. The Jet2 spokeswoman said: 'Flight LS155 from Glasgow to Tenerife diverted to Manchester Airport earlier today, due to a minor fault. 'Customers were transferred onto a replacement aircraft and are on their way to Tenerife.' The wife of a British man who flew to Switzerland last week to end his life in a Dignitas clinic has slammed the British legal system for ruining the couple's final days together. Retired accountant Geoff Whaley, from Buckinghamshire, 80, chose to die in Switzerland on Thursday, rather than face 'immense suffering' in the end stages of the devastating condition. In an interview with the Express, his wife of 52 years, Ann, revealed Geoffrey 'died peacefully in her arms surrounded by family and friends'. Scroll down for video Geoffrey Whaley's wife of 52 years Ann (pictured) hit out at the UK legal system on Sunday She and husband Geoffrey were forced to travel to Switzerland for an assisted suicide at a Dignitas clinic But she hit out at the British legal system for not allowing motor neurone-sufferer Geoffrey to die in the UK - which would have 'given them an extra three weeks in peace'. 'If he'd had the choice of an assisted death here at home, we could have been spared this horrific ordeal,' Mrs Whaley said. 'We could have had a few more weeks or months together, as Geoff would not need to be physically able to travel. 'We could have spent the last three weeks in peace, sharing memories and saying goodbye'. Just moments before Geoffrey passed away at 10am he posted a haunting letter to the Government, calling for a change in the law which he said, 'robbed me of control over my death.' Mr Whaley said the law in this country 'robbed me of control over my death' in an interview with the BBC It was posted online shortly before he died. In the letter, he said he 'does not fear death, but fears the journey.' The 80-year-old said the final weeks of his life had 'been blighted by visits from social services and police.' He adds: 'I want to impress upon you the anguish me and my family have experienced, not because of this awful illness (though of course this has been incredibly difficult), but because of the law against assisted dying in this country. 'No family should ever have to endure the torment we have undergone in recent weeks.' Mrs Whaley echoed her husband's final sentiments on Sunday, saying she plans to 'honour his legacy' by 'fighting for a change in the law'. Father-of-two Mr Whaley was diagnosed with motor neurone disease two years ago and in December doctors told him that he had six to nine months left. He had dinner with his wife and two adopted children, Alix and Dominic, at a hotel in Zurich last night. Mr Whaley has left letters for his four grandchildren, aged four to 17. Mr and Mrs Whaley on their wedding day. Ann was interviewed under caution and warned she faces 14 years in prison for helping her husband die China's development of military drones could lead to an artificial intelligence arms race and an accidental war, a report has warned. Beijing has developed a deadly unmanned drone bomber and a stealth combat drone in recent months, which could be deployed without humans pressing a button. A report by a Washington-based think tank has warned that drone warfare would 'lower the threshold of military action' because fewer humans were at risk. The drone technology would work 'just like the brain of the human body' in wartime, the research by the Center for a New American Security found. China shows off its latest military drone Wing Loong I-D at last November's International Aviation and Aerospace exhibition on November 15 Wing Loong I-D is armed with BA-7 laser-guided missiles (pictured). The air-to-surface missile is believed to be one of the most powerful anti-tank missiles in the world 'Chinese officials expressed concern that increased used of AI systems would make misperceptions and unintentional conflict escalation more likely due to the lack of well-defined norms regarding the use of such systems,' the report said. 'Most of China's leadership sees increased military usage of AI as inevitable and is aggressively pursuing it. 'China's behavior of aggressively developing, utilizing, and exporting increasingly autonomous robotic weapons and surveillance AI technology runs counter to China's stated goals of avoiding an AI arms race.' Zeng Yi, an executive at a Chinese defence firm, said mechanised equipment would work 'just like the hand of the human body'. 'In future intelligent wars, AI systems will be just like the brain of the human body,' he said. 'Intelligence supremacy will be the core of future warfare. Visitors to the Airshow China take pictures of CH-7, China's newest stealth combat drone. It can fly at more than 500 miles an hour CH-7 (pictured) is set to have its test flight next year and will enter mass production in 2022 'AI may completely change the current command structure, which is dominated by humans to one that is dominated by an AI cluster.' In December China showed off its latest drone bomber, releasing footage of the unmanned aircraft completing its first flight. Wing Loong I-D, a type of combat and spy drone, can carry more than 10 different types of weapons and fly up to 35 hours without refuelling. The drone is equipped with laser-guided missiles which can destroy tanks as think as 55 inches (1.4m) from as far away as 23,000 feet (7,000m). The Blowfish A2, a helicopter drone, can have weapons including an AK-47 or a machine gun installed to increase its firepower. Also unveiled last year was CH-7, or Rainbow-7, China's newest stealth combat drone. It can fly at more than 500 miles (800 kilometres) per hour at an altitude of 42,650 feet (13,000 metres). Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam on Sunday was lectured on slavery during an interview where he explained why he wasn't resigning in the wake of a racially offensive photo that set off a series of scandals in his state. 'Well it has been a difficult week,' he told CBS News of the scandal that resulted in several Democratic leaders calling for his resignation. 'And you know if you look at Virginia's history we are now at the 400 year anniversary, just 90 miles from here in 1619. The first indentured servants from Africa landed on our shores in Old Point Comfort what we call now Fort Monroe and while-' 'Also known as slavery,' interviewer Gayle King interrupted. Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam was lectured on slavery during an interview where he explained why he wasn't resigning nterviewer Gayle King told him it was 'slavery' when Northam talked about 'indentured servants from Africa' coming to America Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam: "We are now at the 400-year anniversary just 90 miles from here in 1619. The first indentured servants from Africa landed on our shores in Old Point Comfort, what we call now Fort Monroe, and while"@GayleKing: "Also known as slavery" pic.twitter.com/AiX96MU1rJ CBS This Morning (@CBSThisMorning) February 10, 2019 'Yes,' Northam said. 'And while we have made a lot of progress in Virginia, slavery has ended. Schools have been desegregated. We have ended the Jim Crow laws, easier access to voting. It is abundantly clear that we still have a lot of work to do and I really think this week raised a level of awareness in the Commonwealth.' Northam is still reeling from last week's revelation of a photo of a man in blackface in his 1984 medical school yearbook. The man is at a Halloween party, holding a beer and standing next to another man dressed as a member of the KKK. He immediately apologized for appearing in the photograph, saying he could not 'undo the harm my behavior caused then and today.' The next day, however, in a bizarre press conference the governor reversed course and said he wasn't in the picture. He said he would remember dressing in that because he remembered he once dressed in blackface as Michael Jackson and noted the make up used to color his skin was difficult to remove. The head-scratching explanation did not help his cause among Democrats and Northam hunkered down behind the closed doors of the gubernatorial mansion as he weighed his political future after party big wigs like Hillary Clinton, former Vice President Joe Biden, former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, former Attorney General Eric Holder and several 2020 presidential candidates called for his to resign. Northam told CBS News - in his first televised interview since the scandal - that he's aware most Democrats have called for his head. 'You know, I don't live in a vacuum. And so yes, I have heard it,' Northam said. 'I have thought about resigning, but I've also thought about what Virginia needs right now. And I really think that I'm in a position where I can take Virginia to the next level.' 'Virginia also needs someone who is strong, who has empathy, who has courage and who has a moral compass. And that's why I'm not going anywhere,' Northam added. He said he could help the state heal in his capacity as a doctor and noted he's learned a lot from the situation. The yearbook page from Northam's 1984 medical school yearbook is seen above Northam, in a bizarre press conference last Saturday, said he admitted to being in the photo because didn't buy his school yearbook and hadn't seen it but realized on reflection he wasn't in the picture Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam (center) walks with Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax (right) and Attorney General Mark Herring (left) at the Capitol in Richmond, Va., in January 2018 'Virginia needs someone that can heal. There's no better person to do that than a doctor. Virginia also needs someone who is strong, who has empathy, who has courage and who has a moral compass. And that's why I'm not going anywhere. I have learned from this. I have a lot more to learn. But we're in a unique opportunity now,' he said. The photo set off a flurry of scandals in Virginia that engulfed its top three Democrats and left the political establishment reeling. Poll numbers show Northam's support is strong among African Americans and running even in the wider margins of the state. A Washington Post-Schar School poll this weekend found that a majority of black residents of the state say Northam should remain in office by a margin of 58 percent to 37 percent. Overall, Virginians are split on Northam: 47 percent want him to step down and 47 percent said he should stay on. With his decision to stay in the gubernatorial mansion, Northam defied practically the entire Democratic Party. The pressure on Northam to resigned eased up in the wake of scandals that engulfed his lieutenant governor and the state attorney general. The potentially career-ending scandals involving the top three Democrats in the state capitol in shambles. On Friday, a second woman accused Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax of rape. Northam said if the allegations against his number two are true, then Fairfax should resign. From left, Lt. Governor Justin Fairfax, Attorney General Mark Herring and Governor Ralph Northam in a 2017 photo; all three men are engulfed in potentially career ending scandals A photo on Northam's yearbook page depicts a man in blackface and another in a KKK robe; Northam originally apologized but then said the photo was not him 'If these accusations are determined to be true, I don't think he's going to have any other option but to resign,' he told CBS News. Asked if Fairfax should go ahead and resign, Northam said: 'That's going to be a decision that he needs to make.' Fairfax was one of the few Democrats not to call for Northam's resignation from the start. He would have been elevated to the gubernatorial mansion if Northam resigned. Northam said he supported Fairfax's call for an investigation into the allegations. 'I can only imagine that it must take tremendous courage for women to step forward and and talk about these things that are just so hurtful. And these accusations are very, very serious. They need to be taken seriously. As you know, Governor Fairfax has called for an investigation. I really think where we are now, we need to get to the truth,' he said. Northam did defend his Attorney General Mark Herring, who is the third Virginia in trouble after admitting that he had worn blackface to imitate African-Americans decades ago. 'Well I know Attorney General Herring well, as I do Lieutenant Governor Fairfax, and you know we have all grown. I don't know what the attorney general was thinking, what his perception was of race, of- of the use of blackface back then. But I can tell you that I am sure, just like me, he has grown. He has served Virginia well and he and I and Justin, all three of us have fought for equality. And so again I regret that our Attorney General is in this position but this is a decision that he's going to need to make,' he told CBS News. Although the Democratic Party has taken almost a zero-tolerance approach to misconduct among its members in this #MeToo era, a housecleaning in Virginia could be costly: If all three Democrats resigned, Republican House Speaker Kirk Cox would become governor. Before his own potentially disqualifying scandal erupted, Herring stood to become governor if Northam and Fairfax found the political heat too much to bear and quit. Herring told members of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus during an emergency closed-door meeting Wednesday morning that he wore blackface on at least one occasion while he was a University of Virginia student in 1980. Herring had previously called on Northam to resign and came forward after rumors about the existence of a blackface photo of him began circulating at the Capitol. A second woman has accused Democratic Lieutenant Governor of Virginia Justin Fairfax of rape Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, greets, Bishop Felton Hawkins, Full Gospel Kingdom Church, Newport News, right, as well as State Sen. Lionel Spruill, Sr., D-Chesapeake, front, prior to the start of the Senate session at the Capitol in Richmond, Va., Friday In a letter released by her lawyer on Friday, Watson called for Fairfax's resignation claiming he sexually assaulted her in 2000 The attack allegedly took place in 2000 when Watson and Fairfax were students at Duke University. Pictured above is Fairfax in his university yearbook photo But his scandal was overshadowed by the controversies swirling around Fairfax with the second accusation of rape against him. Meredith Watson released a letter through her lawyer on Friday calling for Fairfax's resignation claiming he sexually assaulted her in 2000 when they were both students at Duke University. 'Mr. Fairfax's attack was premeditated and aggressive. The two were friends but never dated or had any romantic relationship,' the letter states. Watson's attorney does not provide specific details of the attack but states the assault was 'similar' to that of Vanessa Tyson, who on Wednesday, publicly accused Fairfax of raping her in 2004. Watson was 'upset' to learn Fairfax, 39, had assaulted another woman and reluctantly decided to come forward 'out of a strong sense of civic duty.' 'At this time, Ms Watson is reluctantly coming forward out of a strong sense of civic duty and her belief that those seeking or serving in public office should be of the highest character,' the letter continued. Watson has provided emails and Facebook messages with friends and classmates which her lawyer says prove she told them of the incident immediately after it happened. Those witnesses have also provided statements corroborating Watson's allegations. Her lawyer said her client is not looking to become a media personality nor is she seeking financial damages, but rather, is hoping Fairfax will resign. Stanford University fellow Vanessa Tyson suggested in a private Facebook post that Virignia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax sexually assaulted her in 2004; she said Wednesday that he 'forced me to perform oral sex on him' This photograph, from Tyson's Twitter account, shows the college professor at a conference of the American Politicla Science Association Fairfax released a statement shortly after the allegations emerged saying he does not intend to step down. 'I deny this latest unsubstantiated allegation. It is demonstrably false. I have never forced myself on anyone ever,' he said. 'I demand a full investigation into these unsubstantiated and false allegations. Such an investigation will confirm my account because I am telling the truth. 'I will clear my good name and I have nothing to hide. I have passed two full field background checks by the FBI and run for office in two highly contested elections with nothing like this being raised before. 'It is obvious that a vicious and coordinated smear campaign is being orchestrated against me. 'I will not resign.' Fairfax is also dealing with the fallout of the first allegation against him. Vanessa Tyson alleged on Wednesday that Fairfax raped her during the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston. Tyson issued a stinging statement through her lawyers, saying: 'What began as consensual kissing quickly turned into a sexual assault. Mr. Fairfax put his hand behind my neck and forcefully pushed my head towards his crotch. Only then did I realize that he had unbuckled his belt, unzipped his pants, and taken out his penis. He then forced his penis into my mouth.' Vanessa Tyson, (pictured) publicly accused Fairfax of raping her in 2004 'Utterly shocked and terrified, I tried to move my head away, but could not because his hand was holding down my neck and he was much stronger than me. As I cried and gagged, Mr. Fairfax forced me to perform oral sex on him. 'I cannot believe, given my obvious distress, that Mr. Fairfax thought this forced sexual act was consensual. To be very clear, I did not want to engage in oral sex with Mr. Fairfax and I never gave any form of consent.' Democratic Rep; Jennifer Wexton became the first member of Virginia's congressional delegation to weigh in on the Fairfax scandal, tweeting Wednesday afternoon: 'I believe Dr. Vanessa Tyson.' The 39-year-old Fairfax's political future seemed to unravel in slow-motion on Wednesday as sources told NBC News that he had snapped out of his normal mild manner to condemn Tyson during a private meeting with staff shouting: 'F**k that b***h!' Lawrence Roberts, Fairfax's chief of staff, insisted to a Washington Post reporter that the lieutenant governor never said those words: 'Absolutely not true. I was there.' On Saturday, Northam made his first official public appearance since he his press conference where he denied being in the photo, attending the funeral for a state trooper killed in a shootout. But he made no public comments upon arriving in Chilhowie, four hours west of the tumult in Richmond. In his first interview since the scandal erupted, a chastened Northam told The Washington Post on Saturday that the uproar has pushed him to confront the state's deep and lingering divisions over race, as well as his own insensitivity. But he said that reflection has convinced him that, by remaining in office, he can work to resolve them. He said: 'It's obvious from what happened this week that we still have a lot of work to do. There are still some very deep wounds in Virginia, and especially in the area of equity.' Northam said he planned to work for the rest of his term to address issues stemming from inequality, including improving access to health care, housing, and transportation. He also repeated his contention that he is not the one pictured on his yearbook page in blackface. But he could not explain how it wound up there, or why he had taken responsibility for it. Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, left, and his wife Pam, attend the funeral of Virginia State Trooper Lucas B. Dowell at the Chilhowie Christian Church in Chilhowie Virginia State Trooper Lucas B. Dowell was killed in the line of duty earlier in the week and Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam today attended his funeral He added: 'I overreacted. If I had it to do over again, I would step back and take a deep breath.' Northam has now also said he can't be man in blackface because he's left handed and both people are holding beers in their right, according to reports. In his initial apology, Northam, a pediatric neurologist, said that the photo does not represent who he is now. But a day later he denied being in the photograph at all. 'It has taken time for me to make sure that it's not me, but I am convinced, I am convinced that I am not in that picture,' he told reporters at the Executive Mansion in Richmond, calling the picture offensive and horrific. Russian trolls have claimed that Novichok victim Yulia Skripal, pictured during a press conference in May, is pregnant by an MI6 agent or a man sent to kill her father Sergei Russian trolls have claimed that Novichok victim Yulia Skripal is pregnant by an MI6 agent or a man sent to kill her father. Several versions of the accusations have been posted online in an attack against Ms Skripal and her father Sergei who were poisoned in Salisbury last March. Tweets about the bizarre claim are also said to have been re-posted numerous times by accounts with pro-Kremlin references in their names, reports the Sun. Website Utro first ran a story about the possibility of a pregnancy and based the claim around the fact that Yulia has rarely been seen in public. The 33-year-old did make a public appearance in May, just two months after the incident, where she said being poisoned was an 'attempted assassination'. However she pulled back from blaming Putin directly despite admitting she is 'lucky to be alive'. Russian site Utro's story said a pregnancy is why Ms Skripal 'is not showing up' while another story said 'Yulia Skripal has been taken to a maternity hospital.' They also said: 'Some time ago the bloggers supposed that frequent changes of Yulia's mood are all about hormones and naturally mean that the girl is pregnant.' The Skripals, pictured, were found unconscious on a bench in Salisbury, Wiltshire, on March 4 Meanwhile a Tweet alleged Yulia was made pregnant by an MI6 agent or her doctors in hospital in Salisbury due to the timing. It said: 'So Yulia Skripal was admitted to maternity hospital to give birth. So she "got knocked up" in April. Boshirov and Chepiga poisoned her on 4 March. So she was crashed by somebody from MI6 or doctors.' Analysts told the Sun this tweet was re-posted many times by accounts with pro-Kremlin references in their names. Another news site said Yulia was made pregnant by one of the two GRU intelligence agency agents who were spotted in Salisbury. Pro-Kremlin news site Tsargrad said in a headline: 'Skripal is claimed to give birth by Boshirov and Petrov: social networks accepted new twist in scandalous story.' One outlandish claim suggests Ruslan Boshirov (left) and Alexander Petrov (right), who were accused by British police of being spies, could be the father if Yulia is pregnant When interviewed the spies said their trip to Salisbury as tourists was hampered by snow so they 'left early' on March 4 - the day the Skripals fell ill Two men using the names Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov allegedly smeared Novichok on the Skripal's front door. The pair travelled to Salisbury on false passports during the botched operation to kill double agent Sergei Skripal and later insisted on TV that they were just tourists. But their real identities quickly unravelled and the second agent, previously known as Alexander Petrov, was unmasked as Dr Alexander Mishkin. His accomplice - who travelled as 'Ruslan Boshirov' - was also revealed to be GRU Colonel Anatoliy Chepiga. Retired Army Officer and chemical weapons expert Hamish de Bretton-Gordon said: 'These stories are so far-fetched it is ridiculous.' Jose Arevalos-Avalos, 37, from Holliston, was arrested on Friday evening after a female Uber passenger claimed he'd sexually assaulted her Police in Boston have arrested an Uber driver who's been accused of sexually assaulting a female passenger after she turned down his cash-for-sex offer. Jose Arevalos-Avalos, 37, from Holliston, has been charged with indecent assault and battery on a person over the age of 14, and an additional charge of attempting sexual solicitation. Ashland police were summoned by the unnamed woman on Friday afternoon, who alleged she'd been sexually assaulted by the driver. She told officers she'd ordered an Uber to take her to work, when Arevalos-Avalos arrived in a gray Toyota Corolla. The 37-year-old allegedly offered her $100 for sex during the journey, and, when she refused, Arevalos-Avalos is reported to have put his hands between the passengers legs and sexually assaulted her. The victim says she ordered an Uber on Friday afternoon and was picked up by the defendant. She alleges he offered her cash for sex and later place his hands between her legs and molested her The victim claims he also took her hand and placed it between his legs. Terrified, as the woman arrived at her destination, the accused allegedly gave his phone number to her and asked her to call. According to police, the victim's Uber app confirms it was Arevalos-Avalos who conducted the trip, and the license plate listed along with the phone number given led to his arrest at 11pm the same day. A police report details that Uber assisted officers with the investigation, providing information that helped corroborate the accused's potential involvement. Ashland police Chief Crag Davis commended the victim's bravery for coming forward so quickly and preventing any potential harm coming to other subsequent passengers of the suspect. Arevalos-Avalos is currently being detained by Ashland PD. He will appear at Frammingham District Court on Monday. It's alleged Arevalo-Avalos gave the apparent victim his phone number as she left the car and told her to call him 'Uber is an integral part of American society. Every day millions of people enjoy the freedom to ride and earn money, but we are not immune to ills of society either,' the ride-share company said in a previous statement relating to a sexual assault charge against a driver. 'All drivers must undergo a screening process before they can use the Uber app, which includes a driving and criminal history background check reviewing local, state and national records. 'Safety does not begin and end with a background check. Our technology makes it possible to focus on safety for riders and drivers before, during, and after every trip in ways that have never been possible before.' The Florida triple-amputee veteran who garnered more than $20 million online to help build a wall along the southern US border was filmed being thoroughly searched by Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents in Tuscon, Arizona. A concerned fellow traveler filmed Purple Heart recipient Brian Kolfage, 37, being subjected to an 'invasive TSA pat down' on Saturday morning at Tuscon International Airport, following a 'We Build The Wall' rally in Sahuarita, which took place on Friday. 'They groped and searched under his hips and buttocks, his groin and his half arm searching for what?' YouTube user 'james hoft' wrote in the caption with the video, uploaded on Saturday. 'Brian is an Afghanistan War veteran. They also swabbed his prosthetic legs and wheelchair for explosives.' The video shows the TSA agent first explaining to Kolfage the areas where he will be searched, and Kolfage then nodding, apparently to show his understanding. The agent asks Kolfage to remove his hat, and swabs the inside of it, along the portion that rests against the front of his forehead. From there, he asks Kolfage to extend his arms and proceeds to pat down his left arm, the collar area around the back of his neck, and then his right arm. 'Lean forward just a bit,' the agent says to Kolfage, who complies as the agent pats down his back. Florida triple-amputee Purple Heart veteran Brian Kolfage, 37, who garnered tens of millions online to help build a border wall, was filmed by a concerned third party while being subjected to an 'invasive TSA pat down' on Saturday morning in Tuscon, Arizona. The agent is pictured running the top of his hands along the tops of Kolfage's thighs, before using his palms to pat down the inner and outer areas of his thighs At one point, the agent moves to Kolfage's sides and pats the area along his buttocks and thigh, where it meets the seat of his wheelchair. He then moves back to his rear, presumably searching the same area where his buttocks meet the seat The agent then moves to Kolfage's left side, camera right, and pats the area along his left buttocks and thigh, where it meets the seat of his wheelchair. He does the same along Kolfage's right side, then moves back to his rear, presumably searching the same area where his buttocks meet the seat. Coming back to Kolfage's front, the agent asks him to sit up straight, and proceeds to pat down his waistband area. Following that, the agent runs the top of his hands along the tops of Kolfage's thighs, and then uses his palms to pat down the inner and outer areas of his thighs. The agent firmly grips Kolfage's shoes, which cover his prosthetic feet, before the clip cuts to the agent using a swab along the area of the wheelchair that meets Kolfage's outer thighs and buttocks. He was in the Tuscon area for a rally held regarding his goal to build a border wall with crowdfunding resources. Kolfage is pictured on January 14, 2016 in Sandestin, Florida at a groundbreaking ceremony for a new home he and his family were receiving through the Gary Sinise Foundation's RISE program According to his website, Kolfage was severely wounded in a 2004 rocket attack at an Iraq air base, losing both legs and one arm. He and his family live in the resort community of Sandestin, in Florida's Panhandle. Kolfage is pictured in his Air Force uniform in an undated photo 'Its unfortunate that every time I travel I get a full search and swabbed for explosives. Its the times we live in,' Kolfage told The Gateway Pundit, who first obtained the video. 'I understand the security concerns but its not TSAs fault, its the policy makers in DC who have no clue what the real world is like; its a joke. Its the same people who think theres no issue at our border.' He continued: 'Its amazing how our government is so worried about airport security with a triple amputee veteran in a wheelchair but everyday thousands of illegals are coming into our nation unchecked and killing Americans. I guess they turn a blind eye to them like they have to all the angel families.' Kolfage referenced dealing with 'full cavity searches and removing of prosthetics' while flying commercially, although that didn't appear to happen in this case. Kolfage said he usually avoids such an extensive search by flying privately through the non-profit organization, Veterans Airlift Command. Kolfage said he usually avoids such an extensive search by flying privately through the non-profit organization, Veterans Airlift Command According to his website, Kolfage was severely wounded in a 2004 rocket attack at an Iraq air base, losing both legs and one arm. He and his family live in the resort community of Sandestin, in Florida's Panhandle. He was in the Tuscon area for a rally held regarding his goal to build a border wall with crowdfunding resources. Kolfage has raised more than $20 million through GoFundMe to support his effort, but fell short of his $1 billion goal, triggering refunds to patrons. On January 11, it was announced that individuals who contributed to the campaign would have the option of opting in to shift their support to a new nonprofit effort. The Air Force veteran says on the GoFundMe page he started in December to raise money for President Donald Trump's desired wall that the nonprofit endeavor will be more successful than government efforts have been. The message tells donors they can get a refund if they do nothing or they can redirect their donation to the nonprofit. 'There is a lot of work ahead of us, but this has never deterred me in the past. With the help of our highly experienced team, and your support, we will make this work!' Kolfage wrote. 'I will personally not take a penny of compensation from these donations.' So far, about 350,000 people have contributed. The new nonprofit is called We Build The Wall Inc. and Kolfage says he hopes to raise $1 billion. "We are better equipped than our own government to use the donated funds to build an actual wall on the southern border," he wrote. "Our team strongly believes that we can complete our segments of the wall for less than half of the government's estimated costs on a per mile basis." It's not clear how this private effort would interact with any federal plans sought by Trump to build a wall with government funds in many of the same areas, or with local building regulations. Democrats in Congress have refused to support the $5.7 billion Trump seeks for the project, leading to the ongoing partial government shutdown - now the longest in US history. 21 Savage may be embroiled in a deportation battle with ICE, but the British-born rapper can be safe in the knowledge that the millions he's made during his illegal tenure purportedly can't be touched. According to an investigation by TMZ, authorities are only able to seize income from defendants who've gained revenue through illegal means. If the money is rightfully earned - regardless of immigration status - it cannot apparently be taken. The 26-year-old's net worth has been reported to weigh in at the $8 million mark, having found commercial success with his 2018 album 'I am > I was'. ICE spokesman said the rapper is a British citizen who entered the US legally in July 2005 at the age of 12 but overstayed his visa which expired in 2006 The rapper's birth certificate shows he was born in London on October 22, 1992 at Newham Hospital, to British parents He was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers on February 2, after they believed he'd been residing in the US under illegal circumstances. 21 - real name Sha Yaa Bin Abraham-Joseph - was born to British parents in London, according to his birth certificate. He lived in the UK for 12 years before moving to Atlanta, Georgia. According to his manager Stone Mound Meezy, the rapper remains in custody on lock-down for '23 hours of the day, with no TV or any communication besides our 10 minute phone calls'. 'Everything I've told him that has been happening made him happy and makes this time fly by thank y'all for the support,' the manager added in a tweet, alluding to high-profile efforts and petitions to secure Abraham-Joseph's release. Police claim the musician has been is in the country 'unlawfully' since 2006 - but in those 13 years he has made $8 million from his hit rap songs, toured the world and was even prosecuted for a drugs offence in 2014 before his immigration status came to light. On Tuesday Savage called himself a 'Dreamer' before describing how he had 'three US Citizen children' and had been working on a U Visa before he was detained by ICE, in a statement released by his legal team. (Pictured: Savage with his father and two sisters as a child) 21 Savage is pictured as a young boy. His birth certificate reveals he was born in London, as were both of his parents and his family have said that his British background was not a secret An ICE spokesman said: 'His whole public persona is false. He actually came to the US from the UK as a teen and overstayed his visa'. His fans are in shock because they believed that he was born and raised in Atlanta - because he has a thick Georgian accent and has never denied claims he was born and bred in the city, where he has three young children. A MailOnline report revealed he was born Sheyaa bin Abraham on October 22, 1992 at Newham Hospital, in east London, and his parents Heather Joseph and Kevin Emmons are also British. Savage is being held in federal custody pending removal proceedings And ICE officials have accused him of living a 'false' life in the US and say aged 12 he came legally to America in July 2005 - but his visa expired a year later and has lived there illegally ever since. They have also said he's guilty of felony drug charges dating back to October 2014. UK authorities have said they are in contact with a lawyer for Atlanta-based rapper 21 Savage, who is in federal immigration custody in the US as he is allegedly there illegally. 21 Savage has 'told everyone back home not to talk,' after he was detained by immigration officers in the US. Speaking in London his cousin said today the rapper managed to get word back to Britain to friends and family to keep quiet. His relative, named by friends as 'Tahir', arrived with three other men at a maisonette in Brixton, south London, believed to be home to the rap star's paternal family. The cousin said: 'I am not saying anything. He told everybody at home not to talk. 'He has already sent the message round to everybody.' 'Tahir' was seen telling friends not to 'give away anything.' The rapper has got word back to relatives in the UK not to speak with officials if questioned over his life in Britain, MailOnline was told by family members One group member, who referred to himself as Cameron, said: 'He has been told not to say anything and it's not his business to tell. 'He is his cousin but it's not his place to say anything.' They made reference to his dad 'Kevin'. A spokesman for the British Foreign Office confirmed he is British and said: 'Our staff are in contact with the lawyer of a British man following his detention in the US.' Critics, including his family in Britain, have claimed his past was not a secret. Abraham-Joseph's star rose quickly in the Atlanta underground after a pair of 2015 mix-tapes. Collaborations with Atlanta artists including Metro Boomin and Offset of rap group Migos raised his profile. He's collaborated with Drake, Cardi B, and Post Malone, whose song with 21 Savage, 'Rockstar,' is nominated for two Grammy's at Sunday's awards ceremony in Los Angeles. Advertisement Londoners have welcomed in the Chinese New Year of the Pig with colourful celebrations in the city centre. Thousands of people lined the streets of the West End of London today to watch a vibrant parade make its way to Chinatown. Crowds braved the wet weather to be entertained by dancers, musicians and performers in traditional dress. The dragon at the head of the parade as performers make their way through Soho much to the enjoyment of the huge crowd Mayor of London Sadiq Khan claimed the new year celebrations in the city were the largest anywhere outside of Asia. 'Londoners of Chinese origin have been contributing towards our city for decades, contributing economically, socially and culturally,' he said. 'They make a massive contribution to our city being the greatest city in the world.' Chinese and British dignitaries, including the mayor, gathered on a stage in Trafalgar Square to give speeches, join in a traditional ceremony and watch an acrobatic flying lions performance. The new year is a two-week festival which began officially on 5th February and this year celebrates the of the Pig. Sadiq Khan with Chinese Dignitaries as the Chinese New Year festival reaches Trafalgar Square for further performances Women dressed in traditional costume with oil-paper umbrellas during the Chinese new year parade today in London Performers on stage during London's Chinese New Year celebrations, in Trafalgar Square Crowds stand in the rain at Trafalgar Square during the Chinese new year parade. Sadiq Khan said it was biggest outside Asia Crowds braved the wet weather to be entertained by dancers, musicians and performers in traditional dress Pupils from the Gravesend Riverview Junior School dressed in Lion costumes during the Chinese new year parade today The new year is a two-week festival which began officially on 5th February and this year celebrates the of the Pig Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats, during Chinese New Year celebrations 'Londoners of Chinese origin have been contributing towards our city for decades,' said London's Mayor Performers who appear to be dressed in traditional Hmong clothing pose for a selfie. Hmong are ancient peoples from the Yellow River region of China Performers react as they take part in the Chinese Lunar New Year parade through central London People dressed in cartoon animal costumes dance during the Chinese new year parade People dress as the giant panda, also known as panda bear or simply panda, its a bear famously native to south central China A Lion dance is performed during the Chinese new year parade. It's performed for good luck, as it is believed that the lion is an auspicious animal The Pig is the twelfth of the 12-year cycle of animals which appear in the Chinese zodiac related to the Chinese calendar. Pictured are festival performers Man dresses in a Pai Mei (also known as Bak Mei) styled costume. Mei is a fictional Chinese character that is one of five elders Traditional Qing dynasty style gate in London's Chinatown with revellers in the foreground, it's the largest Chinese gate in the country A woman in the crowd reading a Chinese newspaper during London's Chinese New Year celebrations in Trafalgar Square The Right Worshipful Lord Mayor of Westminster - Councillor Lindsey Hall poses for a photo during the festivities President Donald Trump on Sunday claimed Democrats are going to shutdown the government again because they want a 'new subject' in the wake of their bad week. 'It was a very bad week for the Democrats, with the GREAT economic numbers, The Virginia disaster and the State of the Union address. Now, with the terrible offers being made by them to the Border Committee, I actually believe they want a Shutdown. They want a new subject!,' he tweeted. Trump slammed Democrats over the political explosion they're facing in Virginia, which saw the party's top three leaders engulfed in career-ending scandals, as he touted his own State of the Union address and the strong U.S. economy. President Donald Trump claimed Democrats are going to shutdown the government again because they want a 'new subject' in the wake of their bad week The president was laying groundwork to blame Democrats should there be a second government shutdown on Friday The president spent part of his Sunday morning tweeting new arguments for his border wall ahead of his trip to El Paso on Monday and laying the ground work to blame Democrats should there be a second government shutdown on Friday. 'I don't think the Dems on the Border Committee are being allowed by their leaders to make a deal. They are offering very little money for the desperately needed Border Wall & now, out of the blue, want a cap on convicted violent felons to be held in detention!,' he wrote on Twitter Sunday morning. His latest round of tweets comes amid reports talks have broken down to prevent a second government shutdown ahead of Friday's deadline. 'The government shutdown is technically still on the table,' acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney told 'Fox News Sunday.' A group of bipartisan lawmakers are in talks on a border security deal that would prevent a second shutdown from happen. They are said to be trying to find a number between $1.3 billion and $2 billion that would be acceptable to both sides - the full funding Trump wants versus the $1.3 billion Democrats were originally willing to spend. Trump alleged Democrats want to make a deal but leadership won't let them and he blamed them for wanting a 'cap on convicted violent felons to be held in detention.' Democrats are trying to limit the number of detention beds that the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency would have access to as a way to limit aggressive detention activities by ICE. 'To enhance national security and encourage more efficient immigration enforcement, Democrats have proposed a cap on the number of ICE detention beds associated with interior enforcement. This cap will force the Trump administration to prioritize arresting and deporting serious criminals, not law-abiding immigrants,' a House Democratic aide said of the party's demand. This demand to cap the number of beds led to the impasse in the talks, The Washington Post reported. Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, a close Trump ally, said the president will not sign legislation that caps the number of beds. 'I promise you this. Donald Trump is not going to sign any bill that reduces the number of bed spaces available to hold violent offenders who come across our border. He can't do that. He won't do that. And you can you can take that to the bank. I think,' he said on Fox News Channel's 'Sunday Morning Futures.' Mulvaney blamed Democrats for the chaos surrounding the talks. 'It's all over the map, and I think it's all over the map because of the Democrats,' Mulvaney said on 'Meet the Press' of the talks. 'You absolutely cannot,' he said of ruling out a second government shutdown. He also declined to say for certain whether Trump would sign the compromise legislation. 'There's going to be a lot of different moving pieces so I'm not in a position to say the president will absolutely sign or will not sign. Here's what we do know, the president has to sign a piece of legislation in order to keep the government open. He cannot sign anything that they put in - cannot sign everything they put in front of him. If there will be some things that simply we couldn't agree to,' he said on 'Fox News Sunday.' Acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, in appearances on 'Fox News Sunday' (left) and 'Meet the Press' (right), said Trump can find the rest of his border wall funding else where in the government coffers But, he noted, the president will get his border wall one way or another. In appearances on both 'Fox News Sunday' and 'Meet the Press,' Mulvaney said Trump can find the rest of his border wall funding else where in the government coffers 'The president is going to build the wall,' Mulvaney said on 'Fox News Sunday.' Well take as much money as you can give us and then we will go off and find the money someplace else legally in order to secure that southern barrier. But this is going to get built with or without Congress.' He said that doesn't necessarily mean the president will declare a national emergency to get the full $5.7 billion. 'There are certain funds of money he can get to without declaring a national emergency, and other funds that he can only get to after declaring a national emergency,' Mulvaney noted. 'How much good to get without declaring?,' Fox News anchor Chris Wallace asked him. 'That remains to be seen. Lets talk about the whole pot. The whole pot is well north of $5.7 billion,' he responded. Mulvaney noted: 'There are other funds of money that are available to him through what we call reprogramming. There is money that he can get at and is legally allowed to spend. And I think it needs to be said again and again: all of this is going to be legal. There are statutes on the books as to how any president can do this.' He noted on 'Meet the Press' that if Democrats met the president in the middle on the money, Trump would likely sign the legislation to keep the government open and get the rest of the funds elsewhere. 'You cannot take a shutdown off the table and you cannot take $5.7 [billion] off the table. But if you end up someplace in the middle, yeah, then what you'll probably see is the president say, "Yeah, okay. And then I'll go find the money someplace else,"' Mulvaney said. There is growing concern the talks among lawmakers may not come up with a fruitful solution. The 17 lawmakers on the bipartisan, bicameral border security negotiation team had given themselves an informal deadline of Monday to have a proposal completed, in order to give it time to work its way through the legislative process and to Trump's desk. But an aide familiar with the talks told The New York Times the lawmakers have stopped talking. The president spent part of his Sunday morning tweeting new arguments for his border wall ahead of his trip to El Paso on Monday He's complained about Democratic negotiators working on a deal to keep the government open 'I think the talks are stalled right now,' Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby, the lead Republican negotiator in the talks, told 'Fox News Sunday.' 'Im not confident were going to get there. Im hoping we will get there,' he said of Friday's deadline. Also on Sunday, Trump tweeted a claim that Gallup found open borders would 'potentially attract 42 million Latin Americans' to tout the need for a U.S.-Mexico border wall. 'Gallup Poll: 'Open Borders will potentially attract 42 million Latin Americans.' This would be a disaster for the U.S. We need the Wall now!,' he wrote on Twitter. Gallup, in a post this past Friday, offered a detailed breakdown of its finding on a poll it conducted in Latin America. Gallup asked the whole population of Latin America - roughly 450 million adults: 'Would you like to move to another country permanently if you could?' And 27 percent told them 'yes.' Asked where they'd like to move, 35 percent of those named the United States. So Gallup estimated that 42 million Latin Americans want to come to America. 'This suggests that open borders could potentially attract 42 million Latin Americans. A full 5 million who are planning to move in the next 12 months say they are moving to the U.S,' Chairman and CEO of Gallup Jim Clifton wrote in an opinion piece on the website. 'The government shutdown is technically still on the table,' acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney told 'Fox News Sunday' Trump is arguing for his wall ahead of Friday's deadline to prevent a shutdown Trump used those numbers as part of his latest push for his $5.7 billion border wall as his acting chief of staff admitted a second shutdown could happen. If negotiators don't come to a deal and if the president won't doesn't sign the legislation, the Homeland Security Department and other agencies will shut down on February 15. The departments are operating off of a short-term spending bill Trump signed on January 25, when he ended the nation's longest ever government shutdown after 35 days. President Trump is scheduled to travel to El Paso, Texas, for a rally Monday night where he is expected to double down on his argument for a wall, a stance that led to the first government shutdown. Democrats have been firm in their refusal to fund it. Nigel Farage today boasted that 15,000 people subscribed to email updates for a new Brexit party in 24 hours after it was officially registered. The former Ukip leader said the 'appetite' for the political group should serve as a warning to Theresa May and Jeremy Corbyn. The party will only 'kick in' and become active if the PM delays the Brexit date beyond the end of March, which she currently insists she will not do. Speaking on his LBC show, Nigel Farage said: 'In the first 24 hours, 15,000 people subscribed to the Brexit Party, there is huge appetite out there. 'If Labour or the Conservatives think they can just kick this can down the road and not deliver Brexit without consequences, they've got another thing coming.' Nigel Farage (pictured on his LBC radio show) has said he will stand for the new Brexit Party if the UK's departure from the European Union is delayed The Electoral Commission formally recognised the Brexit Party on Friday, meaning it is allowed to field candidates in elections. However, there does not appear to be any formal mechanism for joining yet. The party's Facebook site has around 440 'likes'. Mr Farage has said he will stand for the new Brexit Party if the UK's departure from the EU is delayed, and European elections take place in May. The Brexit Party's leader is former Ukip candidate Catherine Blaiklock. Ms Blaiklock told the Telegraph that 'a number of hundred' Conservative members had been in touch to say they wanted to defect to the new party and the figure was likely to rise to thousands. She failed to win Great Yarmouth for Ukip in the 2017 general election after brandishing a large photograph of her Jamaican husband at one hustings. Ms Blaiklock used the photograph to demonstrate that those in the party were not racist, later telling Vice: 'I sleep with somebody who is black.' Smiling broadly, this young mother-of-one looked the picture of health as she posed for a photograph with her father. But less than 24 hours later, Jade Davies collapsed and never regained consciousness after suffering a sudden bleed on the brain, having complained only hours earlier of pain behind her eyes. Now her family are urging others who suffer from severe headaches or have a history of brain hemorrhages in their family to seek medical help at the earliest opportunity, Wales Online reports. Kevin Davies took this selfie with his daughter Jade, less than 24 hours before she collapsed Her father, Kevin, said the last time he saw his daughter was just hours before she collapsed, having enjoyed a walk in the countryside before posing for a selfie with a pony they came across. Jade's mother, Carla Bromley, also fondly recalled the last time she saw her 30-year-old daughter before flying off to New York on holiday. She said: 'I will always remember our final kiss and cuddle before leaving.' Mother-of-one Jade Davies died from a spontaneous intracerebral haemorrhage As she travelled back from Heathrow on Friday, January 25, Carla received a phone call from her daughter, who complained of feeling sick and having a severe pain behind her eyes. Concerned, Carla asked her son, Kody to check on her, but tragically he discovered Jade had collapsed at home. Jade, from Pontllanfraith, Caerphilly, was eventually taken to the University of Wales Hospital, Cardiff, where doctors found she had suffered a spontaneous intracerebral haemorrhage, possibly caused by a congenital condition, which resulted in swelling to her brain. Jade, who was mum to five-year-old Sonny, died three days later on Monday, January 28. Carla said she had since been comforted by 'hundreds' of flowers, cards and gifts, as well as messages of condolence on social media. Jade Davies (left) with mum Carla Bromley, brother Kody, father Kevin Davies and sister Eden Support: Kody and Eden (left) paid heartfelt tributes to their sister, Jade (right) Jade (right) with her mother Carla Bromley (left) and sister Eden (middle) 'She was an amazing daughter and a much loved granddaughter, niece and cousin with the biggest heart and I miss her so much,' she added. Professional boxer Kody also paid tribute to his sister, thanking her for supporting his career, while sister Eden said they were the best of friends. 'She would always come back with little presents for us, but the biggest gift I got from Jade was being her sister,' she said. Proud mother Jade, 30, poses for a photograph with five-year-old Sonny Tributes have poured in on social media for Jade Davies (far left), seen pictured with father Kevin, brother Kody Davies, sister Eden and mother Carla Bromley A minute's silence will be held at Pontllanfraith Rugby Club's first home game since Jade's death, on February 16 and balloons will be released in her memory. Her funeral will take place in Mynyddiswlyn on February 25. Barry Smith, 69, made his own special food for his herd after he was worried about feed 'laced with antibiotics' A former beef farmer who created healthy feed for his cattle could see his 'life changing' invention ease the symptoms of Parkinson's disease. Barry Smith, 69, made his own special food 30 years ago using grains with 'good bacteria' after he was worried about feed 'laced with antibiotics'. But he soon noticed his cows were healthier, living longer and less prone to infection. The former military nurse, from Farnham, Surrey, left farming to redefine the product into a unique probiotic drink for humans, the Sunday Telegraph reports. And now his product is being used in a clinical trial to test the effects of probiotics on the gut to ease the symptoms of Parkinson's disease. The trial, which is part-funded by Parkinson's UK, could lead to improved quality of life for 145,000 people living with the disease across the country. Recent research has shown bacteria in the gut is different for those living with Parkinson's and scientists believe re-balancing levels are the key to halting symptoms. Professor David Dexter, of Parkinson's UK, said there is 'mounting evidence' that the neurological disease starts in the gut. The trial on 60 patinets at king's College College hospital in London will study if healthy bacteria can ease symptoms such as tremors and joint stiffness. Mr Smith soon noticed his cows were healthier, living longer and less prone to infection after feeding them his special grain mix The former military nurse, from Farnham, Surrey, left farming to redefine the product into a unique probiotic drink, named Symprove, for humans Former farmer Mr Smith said he first developed his animal feed after he found most grains were of poor quality and 'laced with antibiotics'. together with a marine biologist friend, he developed a feed that used four kinds of bacteria which 'pickled the grain' so it wouldn't go off. Mr Smith told the newspaper: 'We started off just trying to make a better-quality feed with a decent shelf life but I soon noticed the improvements we were seeing in the livestock, without using any drugs.' Within a decade, Mr Smith made the product into a drink for humans, named Symprove, which soon began to be studied in clinical trials for ailments such as IBS. Professor K Ray Chaudhuri, who is leading the new trial, said it could have a 'major impact for people with Parkinson's'. President Donald Trump on Sunday weighed in on the political scandal consuming Virginia by saying African Americans are 'very angry at the double standard' there. The president did not elaborate on what he meant by a double standard. 'African Americans are very angry at the double standard on full display in Virginia!,' he wrote on Twitter. The state has been consumed by bomb shell after bomb shell involving Virginia's three top Democrats embroiled in potentially career-ending scandals: their governor who was caught in a blackface scandal, their African American lieutenant governor who was accused of sexual assault and their state attorney general also revealed to have worn black face. President Donald Trump on Sunday weighed in on the political scandal consuming Virginia From left, Lt. Governor Justin Fairfax, Attorney General Mark Herring and Governor Ralph Northam in a 2017 photo; all three men are engulfed in potentially career ending scandals Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam told his top staff Friday that he is not going to resign over the racist photo that appeared in his medical school yearbook. And a Washington Post-Schar School poll found that a majority of black residents of the state say he should remain in office by a margin of 58 percent to 37 percent. Overall, Virginians are split on Northam: 47 percent want him to step down and 47 percent said he should stay on. The poll also shows a majority of residents are undecided about Democratic Lieutenant Governor of Virginia Justin Fairfax with 65 percent saying they didnt know enough to judge Fairfaxs denial of the accusations against him. The poll came out after a second woman came forward to accuse Fairfax of rape. Meredith Watson released a letter through her lawyer on Friday calling for Fairfax's resignation claiming he sexually assaulted her in 2000 when they were both students at Duke University. 'Mr. Fairfax's attack was premeditated and aggressive. The two were friends but never dated or had any romantic relationship,' the letter states. Watson's attorney does not provide specific details of the attack but states the assault was 'similar' to that of Vanessa Tyson, who on Wednesday, publicly accused Fairfax of raping her in 2004. Watson was 'upset' to learn Fairfax, 39, had assaulted another woman and reluctantly decided to come forward 'out of a strong sense of civic duty.' A second woman has accused Democratic Lieutenant Governor of Virginia Justin Fairfax of rape Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, greets, Bishop Felton Hawkins, Full Gospel Kingdom Church, Newport News, right, as well as State Sen. Lionel Spruill, Sr., D-Chesapeake, front, prior to the start of the Senate session at the Capitol in Richmond, Va., Friday In a letter released by her lawyer on Friday, Watson called for Fairfax's resignation claiming he sexually assaulted her in 2000 The attack allegedly took place in 2000 when Watson and Fairfax were students at Duke University. Pictured above is Fairfax in his university yearbook photo 'At this time, Ms Watson is reluctantly coming forward out of a strong sense of civic duty and her belief that those seeking or serving in public office should be of the highest character,' the letter continued. Watson has provided emails and Facebook messages with friends and classmates which her lawyer says prove she told them of the incident immediately after it happened. Those witnesses have also provided statements corroborating Watson's allegations. Her lawyer said her client is not looking to become a media personality nor is she seeking financial damages, but rather, is hoping Fairfax will resign. Fairfax released a statement shortly after the allegations emerged saying he does not intend to step down. 'I deny this latest unsubstantiated allegation. It is demonstrably false. I have never forced myself on anyone ever,' he said. 'I demand a full investigation into these unsubstantiated and false allegations. Such an investigation will confirm my account because I am telling the truth. 'I will clear my good name and I have nothing to hide. I have passed two full field background checks by the FBI and run for office in two highly contested elections with nothing like this being raised before. 'It is obvious that a vicious and coordinated smear campaign is being orchestrated against me. 'I will not resign.' Fairfax's statement came after reports that embattled Virginia Governor Ralph Northam is also refusing to step down over a racist photo scandal. Northam, who was expected to be replaced by Fairfax, called an afternoon Cabinet meeting to announce his intention to stay, a senior official said. The tumult began last Friday afternoon, when Northam's medical school yearbook page surfaced with a picture of one person in blackface and another in a Ku Klux Klan hood and robe. Northam immediately apologized for appearing in the photograph, saying he could not "undo the harm my behavior caused then and today." Most of the Democratic establishment called for his resignation by the end of the day. On Saturday, though, the governor reversed course and said he wasn't in the picture. He said he wasn't going to resign immediately because he owed it to the people of Virginia to start a discussion about race and discrimination and listen to the pain he had caused. He has been hunkered down ever since, fighting for his political life. Both Fairfax and Northam are among three of Virginia's top government officials in danger of losing their positions. Vanessa Tyson alleged on Wednesday that Fairfax raped her during the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston. Stanford University fellow Vanessa Tyson suggested in a private Facebook post that Virignia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax sexually assaulted her in 2004; she said Wednesday that he 'forced me to perform oral sex on him' Democratic Rep. Jennifer Sexton, a Virginia freshman congresswoman, sided with Fairfax's accuser late on Wednesday This photograph, from Tyson's Twitter account, shows the college professor at a conference of the American Politicla Science Association Tyson issued a stinging statement through her lawyers, saying: 'What began as consensual kissing quickly turned into a sexual assault. Mr. Fairfax put his hand behind my neck and forcefully pushed my head towards his crotch. Only then did I realize that he had unbuckled his belt, unzipped his pants, and taken out his penis. He then forced his penis into my mouth.' Vanessa Tyson, (pictured) publicly accused Fairfax of raping her in 2004 'Utterly shocked and terrified, I tried to move my head away, but could not because his hand was holding down my neck and he was much stronger than me. As I cried and gagged, Mr. Fairfax forced me to perform oral sex on him. 'I cannot believe, given my obvious distress, that Mr. Fairfax thought this forced sexual act was consensual. To be very clear, I did not want to engage in oral sex with Mr. Fairfax and I never gave any form of consent.' Democratic Rep; Jennifer Wexton became the first member of Virginia's congressional delegation to weigh in on the Fairfax scandal, tweeting Wednesday afternoon: 'I believe Dr. Vanessa Tyson.' The 39-year-old Fairfax's political future seemed to unravel in slow-motion on Wednesday as sources told NBC News that he had snapped out of his normal mild manner to condemn Tyson during a private meeting with staff shouting: 'F**k that b***h!' Lawrence Roberts, Fairfax's chief of staff, insisted to a Washington Post reporter that the lieutenant governor never said those words: 'Absolutely not true. I was there.' Attorney General Mark Herring is the third Virginia in trouble, after admitting that he had worn blackface to imitate African-Americans decades ago. Before his own potentially disqualifying scandal erupted, Herring stood to become governor if Northam and Fairfax found the political heat too much to bear. Herring told members of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus during an emergency closed-door meeting Wednesday morning that he wore blackface on at least one occasion while he was a University of Virginia student in 1980. In this Jan. 12, 2018 file photo, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, center, walks with Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, right, and Attorney General Mark Herring, left Fairfax has denied Tyson's claim but reportedly snapped in a recent staff meeting: 'F**k that b***h!' Mark Warner, one of Virginia's two Democratic U.S. senators, told reporters at the Capitol in Washington: 'I'm shocked and incredibly disappointed. This has been an awful week for Virginia.' Protesters descended on New York City's Solomon R Guggenheim Museum on Saturday night demanding the institution cut its ties with a powerful pharmaceutical family. Organized by photographer Nan Goldin, the more than 100 demonstrators criticized the Sackler family, the owners of Purdue Pharma - which makes the narcotic OxyContin. The group wants museums, including the Guggenheim, to refuse donations from Sackler family members whose wealth comes from sales of the drug. Videos posted on Twitter show hundreds of scraps of paper designed to look like 80mg prescriptions raining down the Guggenheim's central spiral. More than 100 demonstrators filled the Solomon R Guggenheim Museum in New York City on Saturday night demanding the institution cut its ties with the Sackler family The Sackler family are the owners of Purdue Pharma, which makes the narcotic OxyContin. Demonstrators hung banners that read: 'TAKE DOWN THEIR NAME', '200 DEAD EACH DAY' AND ' SHAME ON SACKLER' (pictured) Each 'prescription' features a statement made by Richard Sackler, the son of late Purdue founder Raymond Sackler. One reads: 'We have to hammer on the abusers in every way possible. They are the culprits of the problem. They are reckless criminals', according to ArtForum. Another read: 'If Oxycontin is uncontrolled, it is highly likely that it will eventually be abused. How substantially would it improve our sales?' according to ArtNet News. Demonstrators staged a die-in and red banners hung from the balconies with black letters that read: 'TAKE DOWN THEIR NAME', '200 DEAD EACH DAY' AND ' SHAME ON SACKLER'. The protest came after it was revealed that a member of the Sackler family told people when the prescription launched that it would be 'followed by a blizzard of prescriptions that will bury the competition'. The revelation was part of a court filing in a case brought by Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey against Purdue Pharmacy last month. She accused Purdue Pharma, its executives and members of the Sackler family of deceiving patients and doctors about the risks of opioids and pushing prescribers to keep patients on the drug longer. The complaint says the Sackler family, which also donates to New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Tate Modern in London, was long aware its drug was dangerous and addictive but pushed more sales anyway. Videos posted on Twitter show hundreds of scraps of paper designed to look like 80mg prescriptions raining down the Guggenheim's central spiral (pictured) A case was filed in Massachusetts last month against Purdue Pharma, accusing it of deceiving patients and doctors about the risks of opioids. Pictured: Pieces of paper are strewn during a protest on Saturday against the opioid crisis at the Guggenheim Museum Goldin, who founded the group PAIN (Prescription Addiction Intervention Now), revealed she was former addict who almost died from an OxyContin overdose. 'I want the Guggenheim and others publicly to disavow themselves from the Sacklers and refuse future funding from them, and I want them to take down the Sackler name from the museums,' she told The Guardian. Goldin's group staged a similar protest last March at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Guggenheim was gifted the 8,200-square-foot Sackler Center for Arts Education - which houses theaters, an exhibition gallery, multimedia labs and a resource center - in 2001. Last year, a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found drug overdose deaths soared by 10 percent in 2017 topping 70,000. It means that, in the last 20 years, the overdose death rate has increased nearly four-fold, from 6.1 deaths per 100,000 people in 1999 to 21.7 in 2017. Nearly 2000 has been raised in a crowdfunding campaign to erect a statues of a famous local cat that died aged 17. Millie the cat won hoards of admirers in Barnet, North London for her adventurous streak that saw her frequent the Spires shopping centre so much so that she became known as Spires Cat. The popular cat also had stints as library cat and Waitrose cat in her long career of stationing herself wherever she wanted. Ms Gabb said her beloved pet (pictured) had been on medication for her ailments for months She died 'peacefully' after being poorly for some time with a thyroid problem and her owner, Paula Gabb, has been so inspired by tributes to her pet that she wants to permanently honour her. 'I knew everyone loved Millie, but I'd no idea the affection for her was anything like this,' she told The Barnet Society. 'The response has been amazing. In less than a week 1,621 has been donated.' Millie the cat being escorted out of Waitrose where she would attempt to steal fresh fish As well as frequenting Waitrose Millie won admirers by mastering the zebra crossing Ms Gabb said she intends to ask the management at the Spire's shopping centre whether it might be possible to put up a plaque, statue, or bench baring Millie's name on site. Millie waiting to enter Waitrose in Barnet She added that any excess funds will be donated to the RSPCA rescue centre where Ms Gabb was given Millie. As well as by wandering around Barnet, Millie made her name by crossing at a zebra crossing on her way between her favourite haunts. In her early days, she was also soon napping in a library and being shooed away from the fish counter in Waitrose. Ms Gabb said that her beloved pet had been on medication for her ailments for months. 'She had improved in recent weeks, but I knew she didn't have long, and she passed away peacefully,' she said. 'She will be sadly missed by me, my sons, and all the lovely people to whom she gave so much joy, love and amusement. RIP dear Millie.' Millie heads towards Spires where she won many admirers. She would frequent shops there 'A trip to Waitrose will never be the same again,' said one admirer online after Millie's death 'It would be wonderful if we could have something in her memory,' said Millie's owner, Paula Tributes flooded in online to the 'real local character'. 'A trip to Waitrose will never be the same again,' said one admirer. The Spires twitter account also paid tribute, saying: 'We are very sad to hear about the passing of Millie. She will be sorely missed by both Spires staff and customers. RIP Millie.' 'Oh no how sad. Coolest cat ever! Used to cross at the zebra crossing to come see her adoring fans, rip Millie #topCat,' said another person on Twitter. Ms Gabb said such is the interest in Millie that she has already started writing her biography. 'It would be wonderful if we could have something in her memory,' she said. You can donate to Ms Gabb's cause here. Advertisement Thousands of protesters packed Madrid today in a fierce backlash against Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and his planned talks with Catalan separatists. Demonstrators waving Spanish flags filled the Plaza de Colon in the city centre in the largest protest Sanchez has faced since taking office last year. Some 45,000 people turned out in a show of force against the Socialist leader, demanding new elections and chanting: 'Spain! Spain!' and 'We want to vote!' Sanchez, who relies on backing from Catalan nationalists and other minority parties to stay in power, plans to appoint an intermediary to resolve the dispute but was accused of 'treason' and caving in to the nationalists. Mass protests: Demonstrators waving Spanish flags gather in the Plaza de Colon in central Madrid on Sunday in a show of force against Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez who has offered talks with Catalan separatists Flag and country: A woman holds up a red-and-yellow Spanish flag in central Madrid, organised by opposition parties, after Sanchez drew fierce criticism for his plans to appoint an intermediary to resolve the Catalan dispute Sea of red and yellow: People wave Spanish flags in a protest against Sanchez, who has been accused of caving in to Catalan nationalists Recent polls have shown the conservative Popular Party, center-right Ciudadanos and far-right Vox could together win a majority of seats in parliament if elections were held, allowing them to replace the Socialist government. 'The time of Sanchez's government has ended,' Popular Party leader Pablo Casado told reporters before the protest. Some banners at the rally read 'Sanchez, liar' and 'Spain is not negotiable and cannot be sold'. Sanchez is also under pressure from Catalan nationalists, who want a legally valid referendum on independence which Madrid has refused to allow. Ana Puente, a 73 year-old retiree who attended the gathering, said she was protesting for a 'united Spain'. 'The government is giving many things to supporters of Catalan independence and is going to break Spain apart,' said Raquel Garcia, 76, who was carrying a Spanish flag. Demonstration: People surround a fountain in Plaza de Colon in Madrid, in a 45,000-strong protest against Pedro Sanchez Opposition: Pablo Casado, president of the conservative opposition People's Party, gives a speech during the Madrid demonstration on Sunday. He said 'the time of Sanchez's government has ended' Target: Right-wing protesters hold a sign with a picture of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez calling for elections and calling the Socialist leader a 'liar' and 'impostor' Flag and hat: A man with a Spanish emblem and matching headgear walks by bushes during the mass protests in Madrid Sanchez told a separate rally in the city of Santander: 'The government works for the unity of Spain and that means to unify Spaniards and not to put one against the other as the right is doing today in Colon square.' The protest took place two days before the start of the trial of 12 Catalan independence leaders, who face up to 25 years in prison for their role in 2017's failed secession bid from Spain. A referendum in October that year was declared invalid by Madrid and separatist leader Carles Puigdemont fled into exile in Brussels. The government faces a key vote on Wednesday on its 2019 budget proposal, which will likely fail without the support of Catalan parties. But those parties have said their vote for the budget is conditional on the Catalan talks including the issue of independence, something the government will not include. Failure by parliament to approve the budget bill could prompt a snap election before the next scheduled vote in 2020. Clad in the flag: Protesters wrap the Spanish flag around them in a protest against Sanchez's moves on establishing a dialogue with the separatist political parties in Catalonia A man walks with a Spanish flag sticking out of his coat in the protests against Pedro Sanchez's government in Madrid Show of force: People wave flags on a street in Madrid in the latest development in the long-running Catalonia crisis Filling the streets: Thousands of flag-waving demonstrators pack a city centre road during Sunday's mass protests in Madrid Santiago Abascal, leader of the right-wing Vox party which has recently emerged as a presence in Spanish politics, delivers a speech during the Sunday demonstration in Madrid Advertisement Prince Harry was spotted at the rugby today in his first public appearance since the 'devastating' details of Meghan's letter to her father were revealed, showing how she begged him to stop his 'painful' attacks on her 'kind and patient' husband. Harry was seen belting out the National Anthem ahead of England's Six Nations clash with France. He then warmed his hands in the chilly conditions before sitting down for the action, which ended in the home side beating their French rivals 44 to 8. A deeply personal letter sent by the duchess to her father was published this weekend, in which she accused him of breaking her heart 'into a million pieces' by giving interviews to the press, fabricating stories and attacking her new husband. Scroll down for video. The Duke of Sussex alongside French Rugby Federation president Bernard Laporte in the Twickenham stands before England's Six Nations clash against France today The royal was stood next to Rugby Football Union president Chris Kelly (left) as he sang the National Anthem with the home crowd In her letter to her father, the Duchess begged her father to stop attacker 'patient, kind and understanding' Prince Harry (pictured on the left at the rugby today) and on the right with Meghan on February 7 She accuses her Thomas Markle) of snubbing her and Prince Harrys offers to help when he pulled out of attending their wedding. They are seen together in an undated photo In the letter Meghan admonishes her father, in anguished tones, for siding with her half-sister Samantha who has attacked her in the press while she silently suffered at the hand of her vicious lies. She goes on to complain that Mr Markle has made no attempt to contact her and chastises him for falsely telling journalists he is the one who has been shunned a criticism her father vehemently refutes. She also accuses her father of snubbing her and Prince Harrys offers to help when he pulled out of attending their wedding following two heart attacks and accuses him of being ungrateful for money she has given him. The former award-winning Hollywood lighting director, who now lives in Mexico, said that he never intended to make the handwritten missive public out of respect for Meghan but says he has been forced to do so now because its contents have been falsely portrayed. Contrary to claims made by the Duchesss friends, he said the letter made no attempt to heal their bitter rift. I thought it would be an olive branch. Instead, it was a dagger to the heart, Mr Markle, 74, said last night. Harry looked hopeful as England leapt ahead of France in today's Six Nations match at Twickenham in west London The Duke of Sussex is pictured for the first time since the contents of his wife Meghan's letter to her father were published Come on England! Harry gave the English players a round of applause (left) and look intently at the pitch as they dominated France (right) Harry gesticulated as he tried to make himself heard over the roaring noise of the stadium as he spoke to Rugby Football Union president Chris Kelly during the match at Twickenham Harry was dressed in a smart navy blue coat and matching suit as he spoke to RFU president Chris Kelly in the stands He dismissed suggestions he has made no attempt to patch things up since her wedding. He showed this newspaper texts which he says prove he reached out multiple times to his daughter and the son-in-law he has never met. The US magazine People claimed to put the record straight over the Duchesss relationship with her father and criticism of her style as a Royal. It was based on interviews with five friends at least one of whom is thought to be one of the Duchesss co-stars in Suits, the legal drama in which she starred for six years. The Duchess came under fire over her apparent decision to allow her confidantes to defend her in the extraordinary interview, without, it is understood, involving Kensington Palace. The palace has refused to comment on whether the magazines anonymous sources had co-operated at the direct request of the Duchess or with her tacit approval. Prince Harry arrives at Twickenham today before greeting rugby fans. Before the appearance he met a group of schoolchildren The royal chats with Rugby Football Union president Chris Kelly (on the left) ahead of kick-off at Twickenham today The Duke of Sussex was pictured looking reflective as he stood next to Rugby Football Union president Chris Kelly at the game After the break England were leading France by 40 to 8. Pictured is England's Jonny May (centre) celebrating his third try of the day Ben Youngs of England passes the ball during the Six Nations match, which comes after England beat Ireland in the first round The bombshell five-page letter, sent in August last year, saw Meghan accuse Thomas Markle of breaking her heart into a million pieces by giving interviews to the press. Pictured is an extract Meghans sad opening message to Daddy as she sits down to pour out her heart to her estranged father over five handwritten pages Meghan complains Thomas sided with her half-sister Samantha in criticising her, but he insists: I never wanted Meg to suffer. The Duchess tells her father that the family had 'rallied around' to support him after his heart attack, and criticises him for telling the press he phoned before her wedding Mr Markle comments: I have no idea what this means. This is pure Harry. Americans dont use the rabbit hole expression Former Buckingham Palace press secretary Dickie Arbiter, who worked for both Prince Charles and the late Diana, Princess of Wales, feared the decision would only exacerbate issues. He said: Assuming and as these sources are anonymous we dont know for sure that this was done with her agreement, it has opened a Pandoras box. The issue with her father is an open wound and Im not entirely sure it is the best idea to aggravate that. Last night, Mr Markle said it was unfair for his daughters friends to use the media to spin a line while he was being criticised for giving a handful of interviews to the press. In the article last Wednesday, the Duchesss friends said that she was devastated by his response to the letter, in which he suggested father and daughter pose for press pictures. One friend said: She feels like thats the opposite of what Im saying. Im telling you that I dont want to communicate through the media, and youre asking me to Did you hear anything I said? Mr Markle said he had suggested the photo op as a way of showing the world they could be friends again, describing the Duchesss reading of it as tragic misunderstanding he wishes he could put straight. The rift between the Duchess and her father began after The Mail on Sunday revealed, just days before her wedding in May last year, that he had colluded with the paparazzi to stage a series of lucrative photo opportunities. Such was his humiliation that he offered to pull out of attending the Royal Wedding and was later prevented from going after suffering two heart attacks. Since then, he has given a series of damaging interviews in which he has spoken of his dismay at being cast adrift by his daughter and the Royal Family. Five nameless friends of the duchess spoke to People in an effort to counter the 'global bullying' directed at her. Mr Markle, who allegedly staged paparazzi photos of himself days before his daughter was due to marry the Duke of Cambridge, has previously claimed his relationship with his daughter has broken down. He has made public appeals, including during an interview on Good Morning Britain, for his daughter to get in touch with him. Meghan, who is currently pregnant, revealed in mid January her baby is due around the end of April or the beginning of May. Two handwriting experts give their views on Meghan's letter Tracey Trussell Her emotional barometer (seen in the handwriting slant) is set to the right, which means that emotional responsiveness is high - Meghan wants to be friendly and cooperative, she wants to communicate and express herself. Also, the spacing of the words is tellingly quite wide and irregular, which also tells us that she gave great thought and consideration to the content of what she's saying, to the extent that it was naturally causing her to feel quite a bit of anxiety. This matter is clearly affecting Meghan deeply. She has strong left tendencies (where her endstrokes sweep up and backwards), which reveal how much she reflects about things that have happened to her in the past, and how it's impossible for her to forget people who have meant so much to her in her life. And the elaborate strokes or embellishments that sweep across the tops of words (which incidentally are added as a superfluous addition afterwards) look like little protective umbrellas, giving further credence to her deep feelings on the matter. They also reveal her vulnerability - the chink in her armour. Surely this is enough proof how much Meghan cares? It must be exhausting for her! Emma Bache Meghan shows a highly stylised and slow handwriting. She is ultra cautious, is well aware that the world has their eyes on her and that is just how she likes it. This is not a spontaneous or intellectually creative woman but a consummate performer and strategist. There is a strong right slant and her letters have often been retraced. There is enormous emotion as well as energy but she is both self aware and self orientated. However she suffers from anxiety and in this instance her usual regularity and over control of pen strokes does show some wavering and a slight uneven baseline - she is showing some wavering of self control. But not much! The pressure of the pen is strong - she is physically and sensually as well as materially motivated. The somewhat incongruous and visually dominating leftward upper zone flourishes appear to be tacked on - this is the 21st Century female equivalent of the Dandy, the fop or indeed the showman - and yes the narcissist. There are circles within circles in the smaller letters which show her secrecy and unwillingness to reveal her true inner thoughts. She is stubborn and unlikely to waiver in her thoughts but she is ambitious, very hard working and driven. Advertisement Thomas's Anguished Reply Mr Markle replied by insisting he never attacked Harry, but feels he should have met him before the wedding Jeff Bezos' manhood and the media coverage surrounding his explicit selfies became the basis for Saturday Night Live's cold open as the program mocked the billionaire Amazon boss and a 'new low in journalism'. SNL took on the recent controversy surrounding Bezos and the National Enquirer on Saturday night with a panel on a mock Meet The Press. During the panel, Chuck Todd (played by Kyle Mooney), was questioning several high-profile journalists about the coverage of Bezos' scandal after the Amazon founder accused the publication of blackmailing him over the naked selfies. Washington Post columnist Eugene Robinson (Kenan Thompson), Wall Street Journal columnist Peggy Noonan (Cecily Strong) and former Democratic National Convention chair Donna Brazile (Leslie Jones) all weighed in on the controversy. SNL took on the recent controversy surrounding Jeff Bezos and the National Enquirer on Saturday night with a panel on a mock Meet The Press 'In a new low for journalism, the National Enquirer this week was accused of blackmailing Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos. You're all highly respected journalists, so when all is said and done, what do you think Jeff Bezos' penis is going to look like?' Mooney's Todd asked, mocking the media's obsession over the photos. Strong's Noonan said: 'When I hear 'billionaire's penis,' I immediately think 'small potatoes,' you know? Like they say, if it's small and looks funny, you better have the money, honey.' Thompson's Robinson said: 'As a journalist, this is not something I ever thought I'd have to cover, but as a human, I'm curious' on whether Bezos was 'working with something the size of an Amazon Echo or the Dot.' The reporters were asking what the story said about the U.S. in general and Thompson's Robinson said he thought it was disgraceful. SNL also mocked the New York Post's real headline about the Bezos controversy as they argued there was some missed opportunity for Amazon-related puns and created their own headlines During the panel, Chuck Todd (played by Kyle Mooney), was questioning several high-profile journalists about the coverage of Bezos' scandal after the Amazon founder accused the publication of blackmailing him over the naked selfies 'This is a clear violation of someone's privacy,' he said, before adding that when the photos do come out, 'I will look at them. I'll make them into hilarious memes and I'll send them to all my friends.' SNL also mocked the New York Post's real headline about the Bezos controversy as they argued there was some missed opportunity for Amazon-related puns. Thompson's Robinson and Strong's Noonan each held up their own mock-up versions of the Post's headline, saying: 'Your Amazon "package" is on its way' and 'Stroke of Genius: Bezos Gives Pecker The Shaft'. Later in the Meet The Press segment, Kate McKinnon came in as Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross and Aidy Bryant as Attorney General Matt Whitaker. As Bryant's Whitaker said he would be revealing some very important Trump-related news, his interview was interrupted by news that Bezos' photos had just been leaked. Mooney's Todd ended the cold open by promising to cover the Bezos controversy for the rest of the Meet The Press show. Amy Elizabeth Fleming (pictured), 60, has been charged with the murder of her young son, Francillon Pierre A 60-year-old Florida woman has been charged with the murder of her young son who went missing 33 years ago. Amy Elizabeth Fleming was arrested last month for allegedly killing her son, Francillon Pierre, when he was just three years old in 1986. According to The Charley Project, Francillon was last seen at the Broad Acres Swap Meet in North Las Vegas, Nevada, on August 2, 1986. At the time of his disappearance, the child had been living with his mother, who was known as Amy Luster, and his stepfather, Lee Luster. His biological father's name is Jean Pierre, Amy's former boyfriend. The year before Francillon disappeared, Amy and Lee Luster were charged with child abuse. They had allegedly beat Francillon so bad that they caused 30 to 40 welts to form on his body. The Lusters were awaiting trial when the little boy went missing, according to the Project. At the time, the couple told police they believed the boy's father, Jean Pierre, took the child back to Haiti. Francillon (left) was last seen at the Broad Acres Swap Meet in North Las Vegas, Nevada, on August 2, 1986. Francillon's age-progression photo is seen above They had also claimed that they had taken Francillon to the swap meet and lost him there. Authorities later searched Pierre's home in Haiti, but found no trace of Francillon. Pierre was then asked to fly to the US to take a lie detector test, which he passed. He was eventually ruled out as a suspect. Almost a year after Francillon's disappearance, Amy and Lee Luster moved to Florida, telling police that they still believed Pierre had taken the child and wanted to be closer to Haiti. The Nevada Department of Probation and Parole gave them a 30-day travel pass to find work and a home in Orlando or else return to Nevada. Amy and Lee were considered suspects in the case but they were never charged, until December 2018. It's unclear how investigators were able to break the case. But the North Las Vegas police will be releasing more details about what led to Amy Fleming's arrest during a news conference on Monday. Police said detectives have spent more than a year working Francillon's case A warrant for Amy's arrest was issued on December 13. A month later, she was booked into the Palm Beach County Jail for allegedly murdering her son, according to The Columbus Dispatch. Her second court appearance is scheduled for Monday. It's unclear how investigators were able to break the case. But the North Las Vegas police will be releasing more details about what led to Amy Fleming's arrest during an afternoon news conference on Monday. Police said detectives have spent more than a year working the case. A female soldier died after drinking too much when she returned from a posting in Germany, an inquest has heard. Private Mhairi Anne Burnet, 28, was found dead in a house in Bordon, Hampshire, on 30 December last year. She was part of the Military Police in the 160 Military Provost Company who are garrisoned in Aldershot and had just returned from a posting abroad in Germany. Private Mhairi Anne Burnet, 28, was found dead in a house in Bordon, Hampshire, last year shortly after she returned from a posting in Germany, an inquest has heard (stock picture) Initially an investigation was set up by North East Hampshire Coroner Andrew Bradley into Ms Burnet's death. An inquest was opened in Basingstoke on Friday after tests showed cause of death to be acute alcohol intoxication. Hampshire Police have said that Ms Burnet's death is not being treated as suspicious. The Ministry of Defence said: 'We can confirm that Private Mhairi Burnet was found dead in Bordon on 30 December 2018.' Private Burnet - who came from Fife, Scotland - was found by Royal Military Police Officers after concerns were raised for her well being. She found dead at the scene and paramedics confirmed her death at 8.45pm. The inquest was adjourned until May. Police are searching for the man suspected of shooting and killing a Georgia businessman and philanthropist in what appears to be an attempted carjacking. Jack Hough, 73, was sitting inside his car in a CVS Pharmacy parking lot in Gainesville, Georgia, while his wife shopped on Thursday night. Around 7.45pm, he was shot in the torso, although it's unclear how many times. Hough, the founder of MSE Branded Food Systems, was pronounced dead at the Northeast Georgia Medical Center about an hour later, according to the Gainesville Times. The suspect has not been identified, but police did release a surveillance camera image showing a man wearing dark clothes and sneakers. Gainesville Police Chief Jay Parrish told Fox 5 Atlanta that he is hoping DNA was left behind by the gunman, either on the bullets or on the car, which could lead to an arrest. Businessman and philanthropist Jack Hough, 73 (left and right), was killed during what appears to an attempted carjacking. He was sitting inside his car in a CVS Pharmacy parking lot while his wife shopped on Thursday night Police are now searching for the suspect. They released this surveillance image (pictured) of the suspect wearing all-black clothing and sneakers Authorities believe the man approached Hough's car and that the two men struggled before Hough was fatally shot in the torso. Pictured: Authorities at the crime scene Police said Hough was sitting in his Mercedes while he waited for his wife to come out of the CVS. That was when the suspect approached Hough and the two men began to struggle, leading to Hough being shot. 'Not sure if [the gunman] shot through the window or he opened the door but Mr. Hough was seated in the seated position inside the vehicle when he was shot,' Parrish told Fox 5 Atlanta. Witnesses reported that the suspect fled the scene on foot, but authorities believe he may have had a getaway driver nearby. Police have been searching for the suspect using K-9 units and a helicopter, but have not yet been able to locate him. Witness reportedly saw a man wandering around the parking lot outside the CVS, wearing all-black clothes, a hooded sweatshirt and a mask, according to WSB-TV. The incident is currently being investigated as a homicide. Parrish told WSB-TV that he feels sympathy for Hough's widow, Gail Davis. 'I can't imagine what it would be like to walk out of that business and find citizens rendering aide to my spouse. That's what breaks my heart and keeps me up and driven to find this man,' the police chief said. Hough's friends are said to be chipping in to create a $25,000 reward for information leading to an arrest of the suspect. Hough was said to have been in the parking lot, waiting for his wife, Gail Davis, to come out of the CVS at when he was fatally shot Hough (left) headed up MSE Branded Foods for 23 years. He was also an Air Force veteran (right), a member of the Rotary Club of Gainesville and also active in charity work 'Jack was a fine Southern Gentleman,' Hough's friend, Ron Clary, told accesswdun.com. '[He was] always trying to help others. A great community volunteer.' Hough's close friend, Andy Piucci, called his death 'senseless.' 'I'm numb. I mean, my wife last night said she couldn't cry anymore,' Piucci told WSB-TV. 'He was a great friend and just a wonderful person. It's just horrible.' Hough is said to have been well-known within the Gainesville community. The Air Force veteran headed up MSE Branded Foods, which developed and operated food courts in malls and airports around the country, for 23 years. Additionally, he was president of the Wall Street Club, a member of Rotary Club of Gainesville and a founding director of the Chattachoochee Bank of Georgia, according to his obituary. He and his wife, Gail, were said to have been very involved in local charities, particularly We Care. A woman has detailed the heart wrenching moment she thought both her and her home were going to be swept away by rising floodwaters in Townsville. Living just five minutes from the Ross River Dam, Sonia Solari spent the evening of February 3 on the edge of her seat waiting for the dam to spill over. She shared her story to popular 'FNQ Flood Watch' Facebook page expressing her amazement with the city's community spirit and has since garnered more than 1,200 shares. 'Sunday night just after 8pm I heard the dam creaking and groaning, straining under the water weight,' Ms Solari wrote. Despite having minimal damage from the torrential rains that plagued the city, Sonia Solari and her family were ready to lose it all (pictured: Ms Solari's home) Living just five minutes from the Ross River Dam, Sonia Solari, spent the evening of February 3 (pictured: Ms Solari's home) The region was thrown into chaos after more than a year's worth of rain fell in little more than a week Despite having minimal damage from the torrential rains that plagued the city, Ms Solari and her family were ready to lose it all. 'I heard noises from that structure (maybe 2km away) that made my blood run cold. I heard the river howling and roaring like a wounded animal as the gates opened,' she said. 'I honestly thought, in spite of all assurances, that our number was up. All of our numbers.' Ms Solari had her family prepared for the worst, with their ID's in protective cases and a ladder ready for them to climb onto the roof if need be. She talks about how North Queenslander's have always had a 'she'll be right attitude' but she admires how the community has come together in this time of devastation. 'Throughout the whole experience, I have noticed one thing. Our community, in spite of its failings, is a beautiful one,' Ms Solari said. 'The many small kindnesses I have witnessed this past week have astounded me. The rescue efforts in chest-high water, the sand-baggers in the pouring rain, the clean-ups, the volunteers, the offers of help, the generosities of local businesses.' People remain holed up in evacuation centres waiting for the floodwaters to recede, with about 10,000 homes still without power Ms Solari continues to say that although there has been monstrous loss from the floods, the town is better when everyone comes together in unity. 'Imagine the future of Townsville if we carried this forward. We just survived, together,' she said. 'I would rather live in this bubble of kindness we seem to have right now, even if it's in amongst all the destruction, than the negativity that somehow pervades our city and feeds off itself on social media.' The region was thrown into chaos after more than a year's worth of rain fell on the North Queensland region in little more than a week. Townsville resident David Mitchell (pictured) had his entire home to clear on Tuesday following the devastating floods Despite a brief respite from the rain on Tuesday, more downpours are forecast to hit the region in the coming days Townsville has been shattered in the past two weeks, with many homes, car parks and shopping centres almost totally submerged. At least 2,000 residents have been affected by the 12-days of near-nonstop rain. People remain holed up in evacuation centres waiting for the floodwaters to recede, with about 10,000 homes still without power. Hundreds of homes have already been deemed uninhabitable and the number is expected to rise. However, some residents were able to return to their homes and have begun hosing down their mud-filled houses. At least 2,000 residents have been affected by the 12-days of near-nonstop rain Dave Mitchell helps clean his brother's flood affected motel in Townsville on Tuesday Many homeowners have been forced to throw-out their flood-damaged belongings. Claims for damaged property and lost belongings have already exceeded $80million, with the bill set to soar as more residents return to their waterlogged homes. The mood has been stoic but Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has warned that while they are a resilient people, the enormity of what they'd been through would soon hit. The Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) said they had received more than 6500 claims, with more than half of those lodged in the span of 24 hours. ICA Communications Manager Campbell Fuller told AAP they expected the bill from this event to be in line with Cyclone Oswald, which caused $1.26 billion of damage in Queensland and northern NSW in 2013. Indonesian police have been forced to admit officers used a live snake to terrorise a suspected thief during an interrogation after video of the incident circulated online. Police in Indonesia's easternmost Papua region apologised but also tried to justify the officers' actions by saying the snake was not venomous and that they hadn't resorted to beating the man, who was suspected of theft. In stomach-churning video of the interrogation, the Papuan man is seen screaming in fear as his interrogator laughs. Human rights lawyer Veronica Koman said Sunday the interrogation methods were torture and violated police policies as well as several laws. She said it was only the latest of several reports of police and military using snakes to terrorise Papuan detainees and symptomatic of a culture of racism against indigenous Papuans. Sam Lokon, a member of the West Papua National Committee, which advocates for independence from Indonesia, was put in a cell with a snake and also beaten after being arrested in January, Koman said. Police indicated the incident with the alleged thief happened recently, during a crackdown on petty crime in Jayawijaya district. The spread of the video had forced police into a 'very rare' apology, Koman said, while also criticising the attempt to provide a justification. The one minute and 20 second video shows the dark brown snake, at least two meters long, wrapped around the handcuffed suspect's neck and waist, and an officer pushing its head into the man's face as he becomes increasingly hysterical. Officers appear to be asking how many times he'd stolen cellphones. Indonesian police used a live snake to terrorise a man suspected of stealing cell phones (pictured). Officers have been forced to apologise, but they say the snake was not venomous Jayawijaya police chief Tonny Ananda Swadaya said the officers had been disciplined by being given ethics training and moved to other locations. The events are likely to further inflame tensions in the region where an insurgency has simmered since the early 1960s when Indonesia took control of the western half of the island of New Guinea, formerly a Dutch colony. Police and military have carried out a sweeping crackdown on independence supporters after rebel fighters in December killed 19 people working on a construction site for the trans-Papua highway. A Polish man who is being held in a Jayawijaya prison while on trial for treason said earlier this week he'd been assaulted by police officers visiting the prison as guards looked on. The Queensland Premier has announced proposed legislation reforms that would see child killers handed longer jail sentences. Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk made the announcement on Sunday, saying it was time the State Government got harder on those convicted of killing a child. 'This is about holding killers to account for their actions. It is about ensuring justice is delivered for their victims, and those who are left devastated by their deaths, their families and friends,' she told The Courier Mail. The LNP has said it will support the new bill, as well as introducing its own, Mason's Law, named after Mason Lee (pictured) which would see a new minimum non-parole period of 25 years for the murder of a child Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk made the announcement on Sunday, saying it was time the State Government got harder on those convicted of killing a child (stock image) 'We want to see stronger sentences imposed when people take the lives of our most vulnerable children, the elderly and the disabled.' Under the proposed legislation, the definition of murder will be expanded and aggravating factors will be taken into account for those charged with manslaughter of a child under 12. For example, under current Queensland law, the maximum penalty for a person failing to provide food, shelter and other 'necessities of life' to a child is three years. Under the new proposed legislation, that would be increased to seven years. Ms Palaszczuk said in essence the legislation would redefine 'the unlawful killing of another if the death is caused by an act or omission with reckless indifference to human life'. 'The Bill is also aimed at capturing those child manslaughter cases at the 'higher end' of culpability, involving violence or significant neglect but where intent to kill or cause grievous bodily harm cannot be proved beyond a reasonable doubt,' she said. A Queensland Sentencing Advisory Council review which found a string of lenient sentences for people convicted of the manslaughter of a child played a part in the decision to reform the law. Under the proposed legislation the definition of murder will be expanded and aggravating factors will be taken into account for those charged with manslaughter of a child under 12 (stock image) The review found that the average length of a jail sentence given to a person convicted of the manslaughter of an adult was 8.5 years compared to just 6.8 for the manslaughter of a child. The LNP has said it will support the new Bill as well as introducing its own, Mason's Law, which would see a new minimum non-parole period of 25 years for the murder of a child. As well as a mandatory minimum of 15 years jail for those convicted of the manslaughter of a child. The LNP named the bill in honour of 22-month-old Mason Jett Lee, who was beaten so severely by his stepfather William O'Sullivan that his intestines ruptured, leaving him in agony for days as he died. O'Sullivan will be eligible for parole after having served only seven years jail. Both bills are set to be introduced during the first sitting of Queensland Parliament on Monday. Actor Rob Lowe has deleted a joke he posted on Twitter referencing Senator Elizabeth Warren's claimed Native American heritage, on the same day she announced her 2020 presidential bid. Lowe is pictured in Mayfair, London on January 28 Actor Rob Lowe has been forced to delete a joke he posted on Twitter referencing Senator Elizabeth Warren's claimed Native American heritage following a backlash from other Hollywood stars. On Saturday, Lowe tweeted, 'Elizabeth Warren would bring a whole new meaning to Commander in "Chief,"' and then promptly took the post down after other celebrities publicly let him know they did't find the joke funny. Lowe tweeted the jab on the same day that Warren officially announced she was running for president in 2020, during an appearance in Lawrence, Massachusetts. Warren apologized recently for claiming her race was 'American Indian' on a registration form for the state bar of Texas in 1986, when she did not have tribal citizenship. Her claim that she is of Native American descent has also been a long-running source of contention between her and President Donald Trump, who has called her 'Pocahontas.' Scroll down for video On Saturday, Lowe tweeted, 'Elizabeth Warren would bring a whole new meaning to Commander in "Chief,"' and then promptly took the post down after other celebrities publicly let him know they did't find the joke funny Lowe tweeted the jab on the same day that Senator Elizabeth Warren officially announced she would be running for president in 2020, during an appearance in Lawrence, Massachusetts Lowe took the tweet down, but never apologized. Instead, in the first hour of Sunday morning he wrote: 'I deleted my Elizabeth Warren tweet. It was a joke and some peeps got upset, and thats never my intention. On the GOOD side: I just got to use the Oxford comma!' Lowe didn't actually use an Oxford comma in that tweet, though, as comedian Tony Posnanski pointed out. An Oxford comma is a comma placed after the second to last item in a list, before the conjunction preceding the final item in that list. It's not a comma simply placed after the word 'and' in a compound sentence, which is what Lowe did in his tweet. After posting the non-apology with that error included, Lowe added: 'Observation: many polarizing politicians actually LIKE each other, privately help each other, then publicly stir the pot, playing for votes. Thats fine. Only thing wrong with it is when we buy it whole cloth, breeding intolerance, anger and total inability to laugh at ANYTHING.' Lowe took the tweet down, but never apologized. Instead, in the first hour of Sunday morning he wrote: 'I deleted my Elizabeth Warren tweet. It was a joke and some peeps got upset, and thats never my intention. On the GOOD side: I just got to use the Oxford comma!' Lowe didn't actually use an Oxford comma in that tweet, though, as comedian Tony Posnanski pointed out. An Oxford comma is a comma placed after the second to last item in a list, before the conjunction preceding the final item in that list. It's not a comma simply placed after the word 'and' in a compound sentence, which is what Lowe did in his tweet After posting the non-apology, Lowe added: 'Observation: many polarizing politicians actually LIKE each other, privately help each other, then publicly stir the pot, playing for votes. Thats fine. Only thing wrong with it is when we buy it whole cloth, breeding intolerance, anger and total inability to laugh at ANYTHING' Not long after Lowe posted the first, now-deleted tweet on Saturday, the internet worked fast to show people's disapproval. Short, sweet and sarcastically to the point, a Twitter user identified as 'Queerjohn PA' wrote, 'You misspelled apologize.' Another user wrote, 'Thank you for this short less on "how to fake an apology like a douche." It's a great follow up to "how to be a not so funny racist."' Along those same lines, as of 10am Eastern on Sunday, a Wikipedia page about Rob Lowe had been updated to read that he 'is a racist,' though it's not clear exactly when that update went live. Not long after Lowe posted the first, now-deleted tweet on Saturday, the internet worked fast to show people's disapproval. Short, sweet and sarcastically to the point, a Twitter user identified as 'Queerjohn PA' wrote, 'You misspelled apologize' Another user wrote, 'Thank you for this short less on "how to fake an apology like a douche." It's a great follow up to "how to be a not so funny racist"' As of 10am Eastern on Sunday, a Wikipedia page about Rob Lowe had been updated to read that he 'is a racist,' though it's not clear exactly when that update was made Celebrities also quickly sounded off, letting their displeasure with the comment be known. 'Hot in Cleveland' star Valerie Bertinelli replied to Lowe's post, 'Dont. Jesus.' Mark Hamill, who played Luke Skywalker in the original Star Wars trilogy, commented, 'What a raw blow!' Quoting Lowe's since-deleted tweet, awarding-winning journalist Soledad O'Brien wrote: 'Just when I was liking Rob Lowe after his moving comments about being his moms caretakerhe takes a page from Trump. Ick. You shouldnt do this.' (Lowe authored an opinion piece for Newsweek that was published in November on his experience with unpaid caregiving and how it inspired him to become an advocate for people in those situations.) Celebrities also quickly sounded off, letting their displeasure with the comment be known. 'Hot in Cleveland' star Valerie Bertinelli replied to Lowe's post, 'Dont. Jesus' Mark Hamill, who played Luke Skywalker in the original Star Wars trilogy, commented, 'What a raw blow!' in reply to Lowe's 'chief' remark Quoting Lowe's since-deleted tweet, awarding-winning journalist Soledad O'Brien wrote: 'Just when I was liking Rob Lowe after his moving comments about being his moms caretakerhe takes a page from Trump. Ick. You shouldnt do this.' (Lowe authored an opinion piece for Newsweek that was published in November on his experience with unpaid caregiving and how it inspired him to become an advocate for people in those situations.) Trump has long chastised Warren over her claimed heritage, and didn't stop on Saturday, when she made the announcement about her presidential bid. 'Today Elizabeth Warren, sometimes referred to by me as Pocahontas, joined the race for President,' Trump tweeted. 'Will she run as our first Native American presidential candidate, or has she decided that after 32 years, this is not playing so well anymore? See you on the campaign TRAIL, Liz!' Trump has long chastised Warren over her claimed heritage, and didn't stop on Saturday, when she made the announcement about her presidential bid His word choice did not go unnoticed by verified Twitter user Ryan Hill from Detroit, Michigan, who replied with a map of the 'Trail of Tears' His word choice did not go unnoticed by verified Twitter user Ryan Hill from Detroit, Michigan, who replied with a map of the 'Trail of Tears.' The 'Trail of Tears' refers to the 5,045-mile route indigenous Americans were made ot travel during forced relocation in the mid 1800s, as they were removed from their ancestral homelands in the Southeastern US, and displace to what we now know as Indian Territories. 'The President has once again reaffirmed for the world what a despicable, racist, culturally insensitive excuse for a human being he is,' Hill wrote with the image. 'As he continues to make light of some of the darkest times of American History, For many (with a soul).. The "TRAIL" of Tears isn't a Joke!' Warren underwent genetic testing in an attempt to prove her ancestry, and shared the results with the Boston Globe in October. The finding showed 'strong evidence' Warren had a Native American descendant, dating back six to 10 generations. Some have called out the hypocrisy of those who say Warren is not 'Native American' based on this potentially tenuous link, since our nation has a history of referring to people with any amount of black lineage as 'not white,' and discriminating against them. Retired Sailor Willie Rosario from Georgia tweeted, 'This issue with Warren just prove how ridiculous our system is and how stupid it has made us. To be called a Native American you must have a certain %, but to be called White you can not have any % of Black. The Gov, the Casinos, the paybacks, it is all about money.' Warren underwent genetic testing in an attempt to prove her ancestry, and shared the results with the Boston Globe in October. The finding showed 'strong evidence' Warren had a Native American descendant, dating back six to 10 generations. Some have called out the hypocrisy of those who say Warren is not 'Native American' based on this potentially tenuous link, since our nation has a history of referring to people with any amount of black lineage as 'not white,' and discriminating against them On Wednesday, Warren apologized for writing 'American Indian' on her state bar of Texas registration in 1986, noting that she is 'not a tribal citizen' On Wednesday, Warren apologized for writing 'American Indian' on her state bar of Texas registration in 1986. Last week she apologized personally to the Cherokee Nation's principal chief for 'causing confusion on tribal sovereignty and tribal citizenship and the harm that resulted,' tribal spokesperson Julie Hubbard said, according to Fox News. 'I am not a tribal citizen. Tribes, and only tribes, determine citizenship,' Warren said, adding, 'I have apologized for not being more sensitive to that distinction. Its an important distinction.' When pressed, Warren couldn't answer whether she had claimed to be an 'American Indian' on any other official documents, during that same time frame. 'All l I know is during this time period, this is consistent with what I did because it was based on my understanding from my family's stories,' Warren said on Wednesday. 'But family stories are not the same as tribal citizenship.' President Donald Trump again touted the findings of Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr, who said his panel has yet to find evidence of collusion between the president's 2016 campaign and Russia. The president raged about the conclusion in a tweet filled with capital letters after complaining the media wasn't covering Burr's findings in enough detail. 'Senator Richard Burr, The Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, just announced that after almost two years, more than two hundred interviews, and thousands of documents, they have found NO COLLUSION BETWEEN TRUMP AND RUSSIA! Is anybody really surprised by this?,' he tweeted on Sunday. President Trump again touted the findings of Senate Intelligence Committee Trump raged about the conclusion in a tweet filled with capital letters after complaining the media wasn't covering Burr's findings in enough detail Trump first touted the findings last week after Burr, a Republican senator from North Carolina, gave a long interview to CBS News on Thursday where he said his committee staff has worked for two years, interviewed more than 200 witnesses from multiple countries and reviewed over 300,000 pages. 'Based on the evidence to date,' Burr said his panel could not definitively say there was collusion between Trump and the Russians. 'If we write a report based upon the facts that we have, then we don't have anything that would suggest there was collusion by the Trump campaign and Russia,' Burr told CBS. The senator was not officially declaring no collusion between Trump and Russia. He qualified his remarks by saying it was based on 'evidence to date.' He also told CBS his panel has a long ways to go in its probe and said the implications of the committee's findings could occupy lawmakers for the next decade. Burr said the committee has not begun drafting its final report. And he could not say how much of that final report would be declassified. The Senate Intelligence Committee is among several congressional panels investigating Russian interference in the 2016 election, along with the special counsel's office, which operates out of the Justice Department. The House Intelligence Committee's probe was closed last year when the panel was under Republican control. But with Democrats now in charge, the committee has announced it will reopen its investigation. President Trump has long denied collusion and has blasted the special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation as a 'witch hunt.' Moscow also has denied interference even though U.S. intelligence agency have concluded it meddled in the race between Trump and Hillary Clinton. Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr gave a long interview to CBS News on Thursday where he said: 'If we write a report based upon the facts that we have, then we don't have anything that would suggest there was collusion' Burr's panel also is examining whether former President Barack Obama did enough to follow up on official government reporting of Russian election interference. Burr told CBS the committee is 'close to pushing out the door' an assessment of the Obama administration's response, saying it would be ready in a 'matter of weeks.' Trump complained Friday the 'mainstream media' has paid little attention to Burr's assertion. 'The mainstream media has refused to cover the fact that the head of the VERY important Senate Intelligence Committee, after two years of intensive study and access to Intelligence that only they could get, just stated that they have found NO COLLUSION between 'Trump' & Russia,' Trump tweeted. Trump spent the better part of an hour complaining about the probes on Friday morning, when he had little else to do, according to his public schedule, than rage at the television. The best bang for your buck! This option enables you to purchase online 24/7 access and receive the Sunday, Tuesday & Thursday print edition at no additional cost * Print edition only available in our carrier delivery area. Allow up to 72 hours for delivery of your print edition to begin. Print edition not available for Day Pass option. Dyson stick vacuums (file photo) have been removed from a respected magazine's list of recommendations over reliability fears Dyson stick vacuums have been removed from a respected magazine's list of recommendations after a survey found almost half of them broke within five years. Consumer Reports has downgraded the British firm's products after they scored just two out of 10 in a reliability test. They were hailed as the 'best stick vacuum we've ever tested' by the magazine in 2016 but have now been knocked off the top spot. The products are on the market for between 230 and 540, according to the American magazine's website. Customers reported a dead battery as the most common problem with their Dyson stick vacuum. More than one in 10 consumers also found that the brush had stopped working within three years, which the testers said was higher than average. One dissatisfied user said the cleaner's performance had 'degraded quickly' while another called it 'extremely frustrating'. Responding to the findings, Dyson said their own tests and surveys 'differ from the reliability predictions made by Consumer Reports'. 'Dyson goes to the limit to create machines that perform exceptionally, are delightful to use, and last a long time,' the company said. Some of the firm's upright vacuum cleaners are still on the recommended list, Consumer Reports said. Last month the firm's Brexit-backing owner Sir James Dyson announced he would relocate the Dyson head office from the UK to Singapore. Consumer Reports has downgraded the British firm's products (pictured, founder Sir James Dyson holding a Cyclone V10 in Tokyo) after they scored just two out of 10 in a reliability test The bombshell announcement will mean Dyson is no longer a British registered company and Singapore will become its main tax base. It is the second blow Dyson has dealt to Brexit Britain after last year's announcement that it will manufacture its new electric cars in Singapore, rather than the UK. Two of Dyson's senior executives will move to Singapore initially, with the head count to grow over the coming years. The announcement was made alongside Dyson's full year results for 2018, when profits topped 1billion for the first time. Turnover rocketed 28 per cent to 4.4billion and profits jumped 33 per cent to 1.1billion thanks to the success of products such as its Supersonic hairdryer. The mistress of a murdered Australian millionaire has shared the chilling voicemail messages she claims she received from her lover's wife in the lead-up to his death. Sunnie Heng, 35, was the secret girlfriend of podiatrist Phillip Vasyli - who was stabbed to death in a mansion he shared with wife Donna in the Bahamas in 2015. Mrs Vasyli was initially sentenced to 20 years in prison for his murder, but was released just five months into the jail term after the judge ordered a retrial. On Sunday night, Mr Vasyli's scared and devastated lover shared her side of the story for the first time, saying she was 'terrified' after receiving abusive messages. which she claims came from Mrs Vasyli. Scroll down for video Mistress of a murdered millionare Sunnie Heng (pictured) has shared the terrifying voicemails she claims she received from her lover's wife in the lead-up to his stabbing murder Phillip Vasyli (right) was found stabbed to death in a mansion he shared with wife Donna (left) Sharing the shocking voicemails left on her mobile phone on Channel Nine's documentary Murder, Lies and Alibis, a woman can be heard leaving Ms Heng a string of abusive and racial slurs. 'You're busted sl*t, you f**king house-wrecking dirty little f***ing b***h,' she can allegedly be heard saying in one. In another rant, the woman says: 'I've got the big boys on to you. You're dead. You can get f**ked you little Chinese sl*t.' The woman, who Ms Heng claims is Ms Vasyli, could be also be heard telling Ms Heng that her husband 'hates Asians'. A fourth message warns Ms Heng that she would be 'paying a visit' to her home in San Francisco. In many of the messages, she is heard slurring. Donna Vasyli (pictured) was arrested and sentenced over the murder, but later released with promise of a retrial It's a shock twist in a case that had already gripped Australia, with Mr Vasyli's $600 million fortune from his podiatry empire believed to be a motive in the murder. Despite being married for 30 years and living a luxury life, Mr and Mrs Vasyli reportedly were unhappy. But he and Ms Heng hit it off when they met by chance in 2012, while she was working at a Four Seasons hotel in San Francisco. She was later fired from the hotel, claiming Mrs Vasyli called her management and told them the maitre d was seducing married men. 'My time with Phil's been a bit of a secret,' Ms Heng said. 'When Phil was alive I felt like he could still protect me. He would tell me not to worry but I still worry. I worry a lot about how I go about every day, just being under the radar. 'I'm terrified of her.' Mrs Vasyli (left) allegedly sent a slew of racist voicemails to her husband's (right) mistress Mrs Vasyli has consistently denied any involvement in her husband's death. She is currently living in the home her husband was stabbed in on a $312,000 bail ahead of a retrial - for which she is fighting against. Mr Vasyli, 59 at the time of his death, was found by a worker in the morning of March 24 lying in a pool of blood. His $600million fortune from a podiatry empire is believed to be the motive behind the murder. Five watercolor paintings believed to be the workings of infamous fascist dictator, Adolf Hitler, failed to sell on Saturday at a controversial German auction. The sale of the scenic paintings, as well as a Swastika embellished wicker chair also thought to have belonged to the Nazi ruler, had been fiercely criticized by politicians and residents of Nuremberg where the Weidler auction house held the bid. With the city home to several of the most notorious Nazi rallies in the 1930s, would-be buyers are thought to have been scared off from purchasing the tainted artwork. Though the auction house has failed to comment on the reasons behind the lack of takers, inflated asking prices also likely played a part - with one painting, depicting a mountain lake, beginning bids at $51,000. Bidders are thought to have been scarred off from purchasing any of the six listed pieces over fears of public backlash, high bidding prices and doubts over authenticity (pictured: One mountain lake water painting had an opening bid price of $51,000) Accompanying the paintings was also a swastika-embellished wicker chair and a china pot, both thought to once belong to the infamous dictator Weidler auction house described the contentious vendue as a 'special sale', insisting the collection comes from private 'Austrian or European' ownership from the estates of collectors and from heirs. Nuremberg's major, Ulrich Maly, however, condemned the sale calling it 'bad taste'. Before spearheading the Nazi movement in Germany, Austrian-born Hitler was said to be a keen artist and attempted to pursue the medium as a full-time career. Impoverished and walking the streets of Vienna between 1908 and 1913, Hitler regularly attempted to paint surrounding landscapes but failed to garner any significant acclaim. Rejected twice from the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts in 1907 and 1908, the impending historical monster's abilities are widely considered to be 'unremarkable' among art connoisseurs. Acerbic art critic Vittorio Sgarbi branded one of Hitler's oil paintings as a 'piece of s**t' during its first public unveiling in 2017. '[It] says a lot about his psyche: there is no grandeur here, only misery,' he continued. Hitler (left) was rejected twice from the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts in 1907 and 1908, the impending historical monster's abilities are widely considered to be 'unremarkable' among art connoisseurs (pictured: Hitler salutes Nazi youth soldiers at a rally in Nuremberg in 1934) Nuremberg played host to many of the Nazi's most infamous rallies in the 1930s. The now major of the city branded Saturday's auction as being in 'bad taste'. In the wake of World War II, US and British soldiers unearthed many of the dictator's drawings and paintings in the ruins of government buildings. Eversince, auctions have taken place in England and Germany offering willing bidders a chance to own a piece of macabre history. However its still illegal in Germany to display any art of photography depicting Nazi iconography - unless in an educational setting. According to Stefan Koldehoff, cultural editor for Deutschlandfunk, the most common buyers of Adolf's art come from Arab Countries and Iran 'where Antisemitism is high,' he told Fox News. 26 artworks were withdrawn by the auction house on Wednesday, after concerns were raised about their authenticity Hitler would regularly paint simple landscapes, particularly during the years 1908 and 1913. The Austrian-born fascist failed however to garner any significant artistic acclaim Weidler had originally planned to list 31 alleged Hitler artworks and artifacts, but 26 had to be withdrawn just days before the auction over concerns of their authenticity. 'Unfortunately, we must inform you that some of the pictures have been dropped because of a review,' a statement by the company read. The announcement came shortly after authorities seized 63 artworks from Weidler's premises on Wednesday, all bearing the signatures 'A. Hitler' or 'A.H'. A spokesperson for the Nuremburg-Fuerth prosecution department said they were investigating certain individuals in 'suspicion of falsifying document and attempted fraud.' 'If they turn out to be fakes, we will then try to determine who knew what in the chain of ownership.' 63 artifacts with 'A. Hitler' or 'A.H' were seized from the Weidler auction house over fraud concerns. More than 95% of all art listed as Hitler's is thought to be fake The auction house has not yet address the claims publicly. Weidler has been responsible for selling a number of alleged Hitler paintings over the last few years, with one even selling for $147,000 in 2014. As a result of his lack of a distinctive artist style, paintings alleged to be Hitler's often prove to be difficult to authenticate for experts. It's thought that as many as 95 percent of the art on the market is likely to be fake. An Afghan asylum seeker allegedly grabbed two nurses' bottoms after being rushed from Nauru to Australia for medical treatment. The asylum seeker allegedly carried out the assault a week after he arrived at Sydney's Royal North Shore Hospital on January 4. The 38-year-old, who arrived in Australia in 2013, also allegedly threatened to assault both the nurses after he found out they had complained. An Afghan asylum seeker allegedly grabbed two nurses' bottoms after being rushed from Nauru (pictured) to Australia for medical treatment The man was arrested after police were called and transferred to Villawood detention centre. He was bailed after being charged with common assault, touching a person sexually without consent and stalking or intimidating intending to cause harm. The asylum seeker's case, which will go before a Sydney court this week, comes as independent Wentworth MP Kerryn Phelps battles to get her medivac bill passed in Canberra. The bill would mean two doctors' recommendation would be enough to force the Australian government to bring asylum seekers over for medical treatment. The only grounds under which the government could fight the doctors' recommendations would be medically-based or if the person was a terror threat. While opposition leader Bill Shorten has voiced support for the bill, the government has been advised the move would undermine the security of Australia's borders. The asylum seeker allegedly carried out the assault around a week after he arrived at Sydney's Royal North Shore Hospital on January 4 The new push has come under fire from immigration minister David Coleman. 'Under Labor's law, a person who has been convicted of serious offences would have to come to Australia and there is nothing the minister could do to stop it,' he said. Prime minister Scott Morrison will speak at the National Press Club in Canberra on Monday - where he will argue only his government can protect Australians from local and global threats. The number of women divorcing their husbands has dropped to its lowest level in a generation, new figures reveal. There were a total of 62,712 women who filed for divorce in the UK in 2017, compared with 118,401 in 1993. Overall divorce rates in Britain are at their lowest in a generation since laws were changed in 1969 to make it easier for couples to split. Experts suggest the drop in women seeking separations is down to an improvement in their husband's behaviour. New figures reveal there were a total of 62,712 women who filed for divorce in the UK in 2017, compared with 118,401 in 1993. File image used Speaking to the Sunday Times ahead of Valentine's Day this Thursday, Harry Benson, research director for the Marriage Foundation, said: 'At a time when men's past bad behaviour towards women is being challenged, and quite rightly, we are now seeing clear evidence that men's behaviour in their marriages at least has improved substantially over the past 25 years.' According to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics, the number of husbands seeking divorce has also dropped. It was reported last year that the number of couples divorcing within three years of marriage was at its lowest for 30 years, with relationship experts claiming men are taking on a greater share of their marital duties. The figures come amid Government plans to relax divorce laws so that couples can get a separation without citing adultery or unreasonable behaviour as a reason. Critics have branded it a 'divorce-on-demand' law and say it will do nothing to ease quarrels over money and property that leads to 'bad feeling' when married couples split. Overall divorce rates in Britain are at their lowest in a generation since laws were changed in 1969 to make it easier for couples to split. Experts claim it is because married men are behaving better. File image used Lady Deech, a former chief of the barristers' regulator the Bar Standards Board and one of the country's top family lawyers, is the first senior legal figure to challenge the reforms, which have won the backing of Justice Secretary, David Gauke. One of the country's top family lawyers Baroness Deech (pictured) has condemned plans for a new 'divorce-on-demand' law The reforms would abolish the role of adultery or unreasonable behaviour as grounds for divorce and would instead allow any husband or wife simply to ask for divorce. The marriage would be over automatically six months later, even if one of the couple opposed divorce. Lady Deech said the changes would not protect children from the damage caused to them by divorce - one of the main reasons cited by ministers for supporting reform. She said: 'It is a pity that the Government is throwing its weight behind what is arguably the least urgent and smallest reform that needs to be made to family law. 'The divorce proposal as it stands would give us the quickest and harshest law that I have come across.' Ministers have admitted in consultation papers that their new reforms are likely to result in at least a temporary increase in divorce and may provoke a long-term rise. A mother is worried for her children's safety after her teenage daughter came home from school with a black eye and swollen face. All four of Jodie Ninyette's children have at one point come home from their Perth high school with injuries after getting in a physical fight. Her 13-year-old daughter Vanessa didn't even make it through her first week of year eight before she was beaten. The student was left with a black eye and a swollen and bruised forehead. All four of Jodie Ninyette's children have at one point come home from school after getting in a physical fight, including 13-year-old Vanessa (pictured) Mrs Ninyette is calling for the school to ensure attackers are met with harsher punishments and for teachers to take control, Perth Now reported. 'I'm angry, frustrated and I am frightened for my kids' safety all the kids, not just my own kids but everybody's kids,' Mrs Ninyette said. This wasn't the first time the mother-of-four had to pick up an injured child from the school. 'A lot of friends have gone to the school and they're ... pulling their children out and sending them to different schools to try to get them away from this environment,' Mrs Ninyette said. There have been two other physical incidents filmed at the school in just the last week alone. Mrs Ninyette is under the belief teachers have no control over the students and she's having to send her children to school in fear. However, the Education Department insists they take physical fights seriously and has since suspended the student responsible for instigating the argument. The Education Department also said they have strong consequences for those who act aggressively at school, including suspension and expulsion. Rules have been implemented this year stating that anyone who starts a fight is suspended. Mrs Ninyette said she had a meeting with the department about her children's safety but it didn't go the way she planned. 'Something needs to be changed in the system where the teachers have got more control over the students and the punishment needs to be harsher for these kids that are doing this,' she said. An investment company claims Sir Bob Geldof 'misrepresented' how much money was needed for his 2011 solo album Sir Bob Geldof has found himself at the centre of claims over tax avoidance and fraud in the funding of his 2011 solo album. How To Compose Popular Songs That Will Sell was neither a commercial or professional success for The Boomtown Rats frontman, having made it to only 89th place in the charts after it was released in February 2011. Now the album could also spell a legal disaster for Geldof, after an investor who helped pay for the album said the 67-year-old Irish-born musician had 'misrepresented' how much money was needed and presented invoices that suggested 'five times more costs than were needed'. Lochurst LLP, based in Great Yarmouth, has filed documents at the High Court claiming it was duped by Icebreaker Management, which had assisted in raising funds for Geldof's album. The latter, which was dissolved last month, came under intense scrutiny in 2014 after HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) won a ruling that the investment service offered by Icebreaker was in reality a tax avoidance scheme. Among those caught out were Gary Barlow and fellow Take That members Mark Owen and Howard Donald, as well as their manager Jonathan Wild. Collectively, they invested 66million into Icebreaker Management, which styled itself as a music-industry investment scheme. But the court ruled it was in fact an artificial tax shelter for the super-rich. Speaking at the time, Judge Colin Bishopp said: Icebreaker is, and was known and understood by all concerned to be, a tax avoidance scheme. How To Compose Popular Songs That Will Sell was not a commercial or professional success The aim was to secure [tax] relief for members, and to inflate the scale of the relief by unnecessary borrowing. He added: No serious or even moderately sophisticated investor, genuinely seeking a profit... would rationally have chosen an Icebreaker partnership. The predominant purpose of entering the scheme was "to achieve a tax saving". HMRC subsequently began chasing investors to pay the tax owed, including Lochurst. But Lochurst alleges that it was duped by Icebreaker and there were questions over Geldof's involvement. His accountant Patrick Savage told The Times that Geldof and his production company deny the allegations. Icebreaker said the claims were 'completely unfounded'. British spies smuggled an Iranian nuclear scientist to the UK across the English Channel on a dinghy after using the migrant crisis as cover, it has been claimed. The 47-year-old man is thought to have hidden among other Iranians on an inflatable boat when making the crossing. The scientist travelled by 3,000 miles by land to the French coast near Calais after he was reportedly smuggled out of his homeland and into neighbouring Turkey by the Israeli secret service Mossad. The nuclear scientist was originally smuggled out of Iran by Mossad before making the lengthy trip across Europe and into the UK The Iranian scientist, who has information about Iran's nuclear programme and reportedly helped plan the 2012 assassination of Tehran's top nuclear expert Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, arrived in Lydd, Kent, with 12 other migrants on New Year's Eve. But MI6 faced a problem. They wanted to interview the scientist, and help him make his way on to America, but, unlike the US, Britain is still part of the nuclear Iran Deal. Not wanting to jeopardize the deal by being seen to help a defector, MI6 decided on the unusual method of 'extraction' in a joint operation with Mossad and America's CIA. 'Once in France, the question of how to get him into Britain remained. We couldn't simply fly him in. Though unusual, it was determined infiltrating him into a group of fellow migrants preparing to cross the Channel by boat offered one solution.' The plot, which was hatched in October, was complicated by President Donald Trump ending US support for the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which is aimed at preventing Iran from building nuclear weapons via an inspection regime and suspension of sanctions. A source told the Sunday Express: 'This wasn't without its challenges. 'His absence was noted quickly and we were informed that a special unit of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had been dispatched. A dinghy was recovered in Lydd, Kent, on New Year's Eve, with a number of suspected migrants on board 'Once in France the question of how to get him into Britain remained. 'We couldn't simply fly him in. 'Though unusual, it was determined infiltrating him into a group of fellow migrants preparing to cross the Channel by boat offered one solution.' MI6 interviewed the nuclear technician on Iran's nuclear plans before he was flown to America. For decades Western nations have been concerned about Iran's nuclear programme, accusing Tehran of seeking atomic weapons. Iran long has said its program is for peaceful purposes, but it faced years of crippling sanctions. The 2015 nuclear deal Iran struck with world powers, including the U.S. under President Barack Obama, was aimed at relieving those fears. Trump, who campaigned on a promise to tear up the nuclear deal, said he ultimately pulled America out of the accord over Iran's ballistic missile programme and its malign influence on the wider Middle East. Advertisement Astonishing images of anti-government Yellow Vest protestors fighting each other have emerged in France. Rival groups faced off in Lyon on a day when they were meant to be united in protest against President Emmanuel Macron's government. 'A Right-wing group of Yellow Vests attacked a Left-wing one, and the result was carnage,' said a protestor who witnessed the violence in the South East city on Saturday. 'They were using any weapons they could lay their hands on, and in the end the police had to break them up.' The scenes were captured by other witnesses who posted their videos on social media. Footage shared on Twitter shows two factions of the yellow vest movement clashing in the south eastern city of Lyon in France French gendarmes stand in tear gas smoke during an anti-government demonstration called by the 'yellow vests' (gilets jaunes) movement, yesterday in Lyon French gendarmes take off a barricade during an anti-government demonstration in Lyon yesterday Protester with blood stains on his face treats injury (left) as street medics provide first aid to a woman on the ground in Lyon The Yellow Vests - who are named after the brightly coloured jackets that all motorists are obliged to carry in France - started out demonstrating against rising fuel prices last November. But they have now becoming a far broader anti-establishment movement calling for President Macron to resign, and for widespread reform of France's political system. Some 55,000 Yellow Vests were involved in the 13th Saturday in a row of demonstrations. More than 5000 of them were in Paris, where there were 38 arrests following widespread rioting that saw banks, estate agencies, post offices and insurance firms targeted. Two anti-terrorism patrol vehicles were set alight by the Eiffel Tower, while a Yellow Vest lost four fingers during an attempted assault of the National Assembly, France's parliament. A French police officer holds a pepper-spray on his back during an anti-government demonstration in Lyon, France Yellow Vest (Gilets Jaunes) protesters rally in Lyon on yesterday as they take to the streets for the 13th consecutive Saturday Disturbing images showed the man, who has not been named, being treated by medics shortly after police had fired rubbed bullets at a mob trying to scale metals railings. 'His hand was torn off following a blast - there was blood everywhere,' said an eyewitness to the incident, which happened at around 1pm on Saturday. 'Graffiti was being scrawled on the statues and walls around the parliament building, but nobody got over the railings.' Baton charges and tear gas were also used around the Champs Elysee, the most famous avenue in France, after demonstrators threw stones at officers and vandals tried to smash shop windows. There have been months of continual unrest, including major riots that saw the Arc de Triomphe and other public monuments attacked, with shops looted and set on fire. A protester holds a bottle of wine and a rock to use as projectiles to clash with the police during an anti-government demonstration in Lyon 'Extremists wearing black balaclavas have infiltrated the crowds and are intent on violence,' an officer at the scene said on Saturday. Four armoured cars containing chemical weapons dispensers were being used to patrol the demonstration, together with water canons and other police vehicles. Among those in the crowd was Jerome Rodrigues, a leading Yellow Vest who lost an eye after being hit by a fragment from a rubber bullet fired at him last month. Protesters wearing a yellow vest throw back tear gas canisters to police officers near the National Assembly in Paris, during the 13th consecutive Saturday of demonstrations Eric Drouet, another Yellow Vests leader, said the Rodrigues incident had justified 'a mass uprising without precedent by all useful and necessary means.' Such words were of huge concern for President Macron, who has accused British politicians of 'tearing society apart' by allowing a Brexit referendum in Britain. The Yellow Vests have been joined by extremists from the far Right and the ultra-Left, as well as anarchists intent on causing as much damage as possible. The independent Mr Macron, leader of the Republic On The Move party, won the French presidential election in a landslide in 2017, but he is now dubbed the 'President of the Rich' with polls showing his popularity rating struggling to get above 30 per cent. An injured protester is given help during a demonstration after baton charges and tear gas were used around the Champs Elysee Protesters gathering around a man whose hand appears to have been ripped off which spurts blood as he cries in pain Grisly scenes show blood splattered on the ground as protesters pour water over a mans wound after his hand was torn off Firemen work to battle blazing cars in Bordeaux on Saturday afternoon in scenes that are becoming familiar in Macron's France A protester faces police officers amid tear gas smoke outside the National Assembly in Paris. The protest in the French capital has passed the National Assembly and will end up near the Eiffel Tower Riot police lift a demonstrator up by his limbs as they remove him from heavy clashes on the streets of Bordeaux this afteroon Many businesses were shut as the Yellow Vests - who are named after their high visibility motoring jackets - mobilised across the country Men destroy the window of a bank. The protest in the French capital has passed the National Assembly and will end up near the Eiffel Tower A protester from the movement climbs a police vehicle on the Champs Elysees during the 'Act XIII' demonstration Protesters wearing a yellow vest gather outside the National Assembly in Paris. There have been months of continual unrest, including riots that saw the Arc de Triomphe and other public monuments attacked, with shops looted and set on fire Police officers stand amid tear gas smoke outside the National Assembly in Paris. Extremists wearing black balaclavas infiltrated the crowds Protesters march during a demonstration near the Arc de Triomphe in Paris as they gather to keep pressure on French President Emmanuel Macron's government The protest in the French capital passed the National Assembly and ended up near the Eiffel Tower yesterday. An officer at the scene said: 'Extremists wearing black balaclavas have infiltrated the crowds and are intent on violence.' Also yesterday, a criminal enquiry was launched after an arson attack on the home of the President of France's National Assembly. Richard Ferrand, who is the equivalent of the Speaker in Britain's House of Commons and a close personal friend of President Emmanuel Macron, described the attack on the property in his Brittany constituency as 'violence and intimidation'. The National Gendarmerie discovered a blanket, tire residue and a homemade torch soaked in fuel on the site, leaving 'the criminal origin in no doubt,' according to a statement from Mr Ferrand's office. The Yellow Vests have been joined by extremists from the far Right and the ultra-Left, as well as anarchists intent on causing as much damage as possible. The independent Mr Macron, leader of the Republic On The Move party, won the French presidential election in a landslide in 2017, but he is now dubbed the 'President of the Rich' with polls showing his popularity rating struggling to get above 30 per cent. Today's ugly scenes are typical of those that have regularly reduced Paris and other towns and cities to a war zone. The yellow vest activists, who have brought hundreds of thousands onto the streets over the past three months, are now trying to achieve electoral success but the movement is politically divided and has no appointed leader. President Emmanuel Macron - the target of many demonstrators' anger - seems to be clawing back support as he tries to quell the movement with a national political debate. Recent polls show Macron's approval ratings rising. Several competing groups of yellow vests are getting ready to present candidates for the European Parliament election in May, while other figures insist the movement must remain non-political. Around 69,000 people nationwide took part in French protests last week, down from more than 80,000 the previous two weekends, according to the French Interior Ministry. The yellow vests movement began in November and was named after the fluorescent safety vests that French motorists must carry. A protester throws a tear gas canister on the facade of the National Assembly in Paris Protesters wearing a yellow vest stand in tear gas smoke near the Eiffel Tower in Paris An injured policeman in riot gear is given help during a demonstration by the 'yellow vests' movement A protester wearing a yellow vest attempts to remove a banner depicting President of the French National Assembly Richard Ferrand and French MPs, outside the National Assembly A protester throws a wooden plank on the facade and a man destroys boards of the National Assembly Yellow flowers are seen on the top of a mast displaying the French national flag as yellow vest protesters gather around the Arc de Triomphe Among those in the crowd was Jerome Rodrigues (pictured), a leading Yellow Vest who lost an eye after being hit by a fragment from a rubber bullet fired at him last month Medical researchers have lifted the lid on some of the more bizarre and deadly ingredients hidden in herbal supplements. Heavy metals, arsenic and animal products are some of the components found in nutrients being sold Australia-wide, new research out of the University of Adelaide reveals. The groundbreaking analysis of more than a dozen supplement products on Australian shelves found that more than 90 per cent 'had something wrong with them'. Scroll down for video A pair of Australian doctors have lifted the lid on the deadly components of some herbal supplements. Pictured are Dr Ian Musgrave and Dr Roger Byard Pharmacologists Dr Ian Musgrave and Dr Roger Byard recently conducted the world-first research. They found herbal supplements and Chinese medicine products were littered with contaminants like 'heavy metals, like arsenic, animal products'. '[We found] rats, dogs, cats, snow leopard,' Dr Byard told 60 Minutes. He says his interest in the research was brought on by a pair of deaths related to contamination in health supplements. New South Wales woman Merrill Gemmell found herself battling liver failure 18 months after she began taking a herbal supplement. Some supplements and vitamins were found to have rat, cat, dog and snow leopard products A chemist had prescribed her the drug to help her sleep, but instead handed her the prospect of a liver transplant. 'I was petrified. I thought I was going to die,' she said. Brisbane-based surgeon Dr Paul Clark found that one-third of Ms Gemmell's liver cells had died and the supplement was likely to blame. He shared an opinion held by Dr Musgrave and Dr Byard - regulation on the $5billion industry is growing increasingly necessary. Seven of every 10 Australians take some form of vitamin or supplement on a regular basis. A teenage girl is fighting for her life in hospital after the boat she was racing capsized and trapped her underwater for several minutes. The 16-year-old girl was taking part in the WA Speed Boat club race day on the Swan River in Perth on Sunday when the boat flipped over at 1pm, WA Today reported. Rescue crews and other competitors raced as quickly as they could to the boat and pulled the unconscious young girl from the water. A teenage girl is fighting for her life in hospital after the boat she was racing capsized and trapped her underwater for several minutes They carried her to the river bank, where emergency workers performed CPR before rushing her to the Royal Perth Hospital in a critical condition. She remains in the intensive care ward. Water Police are currently investigating the incident. The Western Australian boating club told the publication they will launch their own investigation. The event was cancelled immediately. Speaker John Bercow faced a Brexiteer backlash today over a 'Poppadom Plot' dinner with arch-Remainer Ken Clarke. Mr Bercow was spotted dining with the former chancellor at a popular curry house near Parliament last week. Witnesses claimed he asked Mr Clarke at one point during the meal: 'Where do we go from here?' Long-standing Europhile Mr Clarke voted against triggering the Article 50 process nearly two years ago, but backed Theresa May's Brexit deal in the House of Commons last month. The Tory MP for Rushcliffe is currently the Father of the House - the member with the longest continuous service. The meeting emerged just days before the latest round of crunch Brexit votes in the House of Commons. The two politicians were pictured leaving the Kennington Tandori on Wednesday evening Witnesses claimed John Bercow (left) asked Ken Clarke at one point during the meal: 'Where do we go from here?' Mr Bercow is supposed to be politically neutral, but has been accused of bending Parliamentary procedures to make life as difficult as possible for Theresa May. The PM took a swipe at his actions during a Tory fundraiser last week, joking about auctioning off his unused copy of the House rule book. Despite admitting he voted Remain in the referendum, Mr Bercow has insisted he is just being a 'champion' for Parliament and ensuring MPs get to have their say. A spokeswoman for the Speaker played down the dinner engagement with Mr Clarke - who reportedly told Mr Bercow he was having discussions with Labour Brexit committee chair Hilary Benn this week. 'The Speaker socialises over dinner with friends from across the House on a regular basis. We're not in the business of commenting on private conversations,' she said. However, Tory Brexiteer MP Andrew Bridgen, a long-term critic of the Speaker, condemned the meeting. He told the Sunday Express: 'The Poppadom Plot is part of the Remainer elites trying to overturn the democratic will of the British people.' He added: 'It appears that the Speaker is conspiring with Remainer MPs to stop Brexit and subvert democracy. 'The Speaker must be removed immediately before he can do any more damage to the reputation of Parliament.' Tony Blair today delivered a stinging rebuke to Jeremy Corbyn for allowing 'intolerable' anti-Semitism to pervade Labour. The former PM joined condemnation of the veteran left-winger saying he had not been 'robust' enough in tackling the issue. Anger has been growing within Labour about the failure to grip the crisis over rising levels of abuse. Labour's general secretary Jennie Formby was accused of a cover-up last week after she refused to reveal how many cases of anti-Semitism the party is dealing with. She was also reported to have told a meeting with MPs that it was 'impossible' to eradicate the problem altogether. Tony Blair today delivered a stinging rebuke to Jeremy Corbyn for allowing 'intolerable' anti-Semitism to pervade Labour Anger has been growing within Labour about the failure by Mr Corbyn (pictured giving a speech in Coventry yesterday) to grip the crisis over rising levels of abuse But Mr Blair insisted: 'Of course we should eradicate anti-Semitism from the Labour Party. 'We are supposed to be a progressive political party, how can we say it's tolerable to have a certain level of anti-Semitism in the party? 'Would we say more generally it is tolerable to have a level of racism within the Labour party? 'No, we'd say of course we can't have that, and yes, there are parts of the Left, not the whole of the Left, but there are parts of the Left that do have a problem with anti-Semitism.' He told Sky News' Sophy Ridge On Sunday the treatment of Jewish Labour MP Luciana Berger - an outspoken critic of Mr Corbyn on Brexit and anti-Semitism who faced a no-confidence motion from local activists until it was dropped on Friday - was 'shameful'. 'The fact that someone like Luciana Berger - who is a smart, capable, active Member of Parliament doing her best for her constituents - the fact that she should even be subject to a no-confidence motion with this type of allegation swirling around is shameful for the Labour Party,' he said. Mr Blair backed deputy leader Tom Watson's call for Ms Berger's Liverpool Wavertree constituency Labour party to be suspended - something that Ms Formby has rejected. Shadow chancellor John McDonnell has suggested Ms Berger was being targeted because she had hinted at joining a breakaway party, rather than for criticising Mr Corbyn. Meanwhile, shadow health secretary Jon Ashworth admitted Labour must 'go further and faster' in tackling anti-Semitism. He said the issue 'breaks my heart'. 'It's clear we need to go further and faster on dealing with anti-Semitism in the Labour Party,' he said. 'One anti-Semite in the Labour Party is one too many.' The frontbencher added: 'No, it's not impossible to eradicate it from the Labour Party, and John McDonnell has said that as well so there's no disagreement between me and John McDonnell and Jeremy Corbyn on this.' The wife of crime lord Terry Adams has accused MI5 of spying on the 'most private moments' of their family life. Ruth Adams, who supported her husband in court this week as he paid up 50,000 to avoid jail, said surveillance officers had noted their toilet habits, conversations with their 14-year-old daughter and even saw her waving at the family cat. Mrs Adams said the couple's 1.6million mansion in Mill Hill, north London, had been bugged and said it was a 'unique level of intrusion'. Terry Adams, now 64, once belonged to the notorious Adams Family gang in Clerkenwell, also dubbed the A-team and described by police as 'worse than the Krays'. Terry Adams, pictured left outside Westminster Magistrates Court this week - joined by his wife Ruth, right - avoided further jail time after paying nearly 50,000 in court costs. Mrs Adams has accused MI5 of spying on the 'most private moments' of their family life Writing on a blog entitled Terry Adams - Rough Justice, she described the 10million surveillance operation carried out by MI5 between 1997 and 1999. She said: 'The police deliberately sought to intrude into our most private moments that could have nothing to do with their investigation, to transcribe them and in some instances to joke and poke fun at us. 'There were references made by listening officers, which on the face of it, must have reflected visual surveillance. 'Officers made several references to actions, such as "Terry shrugs", "Terry frowns", or "Ruth gestures to Tiffany the cat", which would have had to have been seen to be described.' The surveillance included 'incidents relating to our then 14 year old daughter, such as her need to use deodorant, the need for her to tidy her room and occasions when she was told off', she said. She said 'personal and private toiletry habits' had also been observed. Terry Adams helped run the Clerkenwell crime syndicate with brothers Patsy and Tommy. Mansion: The 1.6million home in north London where Terry and Ruth Adams lived and where an MI5 surveillance operation gathered intelligence ...and now: Adams told a magistrates' court he was now living in a council flat (pictured) after paying back at least 750,000 from his days of crime The gang was linked to the shooting of the Krays' notorious chief henchman, Mad Frankie Fraser. He was jailed for seven years for money laundering in 2007 and was told to pay 750,000 from his crime days, in a confiscation order to avoid further time in prison. Adams said he was forced to sell the north London mansion to pay the fine but was ordered to hand over a further 46,258 in court costs. A district judge handed Terry Adams a 12-month jail sentence on Monday for his 'wilful refusal' to pay the costs but hours later he paid up. The crime boss's lawyers told Westminster Magistrates' Court on Monday that Adams was unemployed and lived in a council flat in Bloomsbury, central London. But District Judge Michael Snow said he was satisfied Adams had assets which he did not wish to disclose to the court. A hero father-of-two whose back was fractured as he shielded his son from a falling tree at a birthday party says he's surprised he's alive. Miguel Mawate was attending a third birthday party at a park in eastern Adelaide on Saturday with his wife and their toddler when a large tree collapsed at about 1pm. 'How I got out of it, I honestly don't know how it happened. Very very lucky,' Mr Mawate said of his miraculous survival. Scroll down for video Miguel Mawate (right) has been hailed as a hero after saving his two-year-old son's life by shielding him from a falling tree He said he heard a big crack as his family enjoyed the picnic. He looked up to see the tree was falling and grabbed his son. 'In those three seconds I thought 'if I pick him up, if I get up and run, it's probably not going to work, we're probably going to get hit in the head.' So I just had time to grab him by the legs, he fell back, and then I got on top of him,' he told 9 News. The tree hit his back, however, his son was protected and a nurse and spinal surgeon who were at the park rushed to help. Mr Mawate also said his wife was knocked unconscious by the tree. 'I was fearing the worst but then she got up. She was upset and started screaming,' he said. The 37-year-old is now recovering in bed with son Raphael by his side and says he is grateful for the outcome The 37-year-old is now recovering in bed with son Raphael by his side and says that although doctors told him his recovery will be slow and painful, considering what could have happened, he is grateful for the outcome. Earlier reports indicated that twelve people - including at least five children - were sitting beneath the tree when it suddenly split in two. 'The tree was coming down too quick, so he actually put the children underneath him,' witness Bianca di Brino told Channel 9. 'I guess you do anything for your kids,' Ms di Brino said. Twelve people were sitting beneath the tree on Barr Smith Street and a witness said Mr Mawate had initially tried to get them out of the way (pictured; tree after it fell) The 61-year-old grandfather of the birthday girl and was also taken to hospital. Charlambos Dimitriou had rushed to the aide of those who were under the tree when it fell and has been treated for a heart condition. Two of the children were also treated for shock. Mick Sausse from the South Australian Country Fire Service told Channel 7 the tree could have fallen as a result of the recent hot weather coupled with rain on Saturday morning. Determined not to let the freak accident affect the celebrations, the party continued as the two men recovered in hospital. The fallen tree has been cordoned off and Burnside Council have said they will be investigating the cause. Officials said no previous concerns had been raised about the tree, according to The Adelaide Advertiser. Mr Mawate, his wife, and son are all set to make full recoveries. Mr Mawate suffered back injuries and was taken to hospital (pictured), along with the 61-year-old grandfather of the birthday girl, but miraculously the young boy was uninjured UK Youth Strike 4 Climate currently has planned strikes in 38 cities across UK Thousands of pupils are expected to walk out of class for three hours on Friday A nationwide school strike over climate change has been 'applauded' by the head teachers' union, leaving many furious. The mass walkout called UK Youth Strike 4 Climate currently has students in 38 cities and towns across the country planning to join them on Friday's protest. It is expected thousands of pupils from places including Cardiff, Brighton, Exeter and Glasgow will down their books for three hours, reports the Sunday Express. The UK Youth Strike 4 Climate event was organised on social media and encourages all pupils whether at school, college, or university to join in on the three hour walk out Friday February 15 This isn't the first time that young people have coordinated action against climate change and the UK strikes have taken inspiration from a 16-year-old Swedish activist. The National Association of Head Teachers, which is chaired by Andy Mellor, has welcomed the day and 'applauded' students for being prepared to take action. A spokesman said: 'When you get older pupils making an informed decision, that kind of thing needs to be applauded. 'Society makes leaps forward when people are prepared to take action. 'Schools encourage students to develop a wider understanding of the world around them, a day of activity like this could be an important and valuable life experience.' However some have been quick to critisise the protest calling it 'ridiculous' and 'just truanting'. Toby Young, former director of the New Schools Network, said: 'Calling this a strike is ridiculous. What are they going to do? Down pencils? This is just truanting.' Currently there are 38 locations across the UK planning to hold strikes on Friday February 15 Thousands of students are expected to walk out of school in at least 32 places across the UK in a strike over climate change Former primary school teacher and Tory MP William Wragg said: 'I would not encourage a walk out, it's far more fruitful to learn about climate change in school.' While education campaigner Margaret Morissey OBE said she was pleased to see children taking action but that 'we need to get out of the culture that ... you go on strike if you don't get your own way.' The Department for Education said regarding the individual protests across the country, they are a matter for individual schools. However a spokesperson added that pupils can only take term-time leave in exceptional circumstances, and where this has been authorised by the headteacher. Writing on their Facebook page, the UK Youth Strike 4 Climate group explained the reasons behind their action, saying: 'The World's Youth are waking up. 'Millions of young people are realising it's now or never and are now taking direct action on the climate crisis and ecological catastrophe. 'Whether you are at school, college or uni, go on strike on the Friday 15th February. Young people started protesting over climate change after being inspired by 16-year-old activist Greta Thunberg last summer (pictured are students in Magdeburg, Germany) Students join a Fridays For Future climate change protest in Munich, Germany 'For some this falls on half term; join the protest anyway, with youth from across the world.' Depending on which strike is being attended, pupils are told to meet at prominent locations such as outside Parliament Square in London and the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh. The children's climate change movement started last year when 16-year-old climate activist Greta Thunberg started Fridays for Future. She now strikes every Friday to protest the lack of effective climate legislation on a governmental level with many students across Europe following suit. Last November 15,000 Australian pupils left their classes over concerns about the planet. Sixteen-year-old Greta Thunberg, pictured outside the World Economic Forum in Switzerland in January, sits next to a sign saying school strike for the climate As well as Australia, there has also been strikes in Germany, Switzerland, Canada and Japan. Jake Woodier, of the UK Youth Climate Coalition, which is helping to coordinate the strikes, said Greta's message struck a chord with young people in the UK. He told the Guardian images of Greta's solo protest outside Sweden's Parliament 'really inspired people' to take action themselves. Mr Woodier added: 'Young people see what is happening they realise politicians are nowhere near where they need to be on this and want to do something.' The 'queen' of Scientology may never be freed from the Church, despite fierce rumours she's being forced to stay, her father-in-law claims. Ron Miscavige, father of Scientology figurehead David Miscavige, believes the fact his daughter-in-law Shelly Miscavige hasn't been seen by the public in more than a decade is a reflection of the Church's lack of 'conscience'. In an interview with 60 Minutes on Sunday night, the 'disgraced' former Scientologist says he may be unsure of Shelly's whereabouts forever. 'Queen' of Scientology Shelly Miscavige (pictured) hasn't been seen by the public for more than a decade Ron joined the Church of Scientology in 1970 and worked in the Sea Org - the Church's inner core - for 42 years. He famously left the Church in 2012 and was immediately shunned by his son, who assumed the Church's top leadership position in 1986 after its founder, L. Ron Hubbard, died. David was groomed as Hubbard's successor for years, first working directly under him in 1979. But always by his side was fellow Church devotee and wife, Shelly. Shelly and David were inseparable, actress and former Church member Leah Remini said. So, she said she was generally confused when Shelly failed to make an appearance at Tom Cruise's wedding in 2007 - touted as the Scientology event of the century. Shelly's father-in-law Ron (pictured) left the Church in 2012 and says he may never know where Shelly is She says she may never know what happened to Shelly, who hasn't been seen since 2005, but believes it's her duty to uncover the truth. Ron shared the sentiment, saying he believes 'she'll never be free'. The Church's official stance on the issue is that Shelly continues to work for the religious group behind the scenes, but is still entirely devoted to the cause. Church figurehead David Miscavige (pictured) was groomed as the successor to the Church's top position, alongside his wife Shelly Others claim she wouldn't be able to leave if she tried, having become so indoctrinated in the Church's beliefs. Remini went to extreme lengths to find her friend in 2013, filing a missing person's report immediately after leaving the Church. She says she was dissatisfied with the reply from authorities, who told her the report was 'unfounded'. 'You can't just do what you want with a human being,' Remini says. The Church of Scientology dismissed the 60 Minutes interview as 'deceitful' in a self-published blog post. Sir Philip Green (pictured) was accused of slapping a woman's bottom but evidence from two male witnesses was allegedly left out of a report by his retail company A report into alleged sexual harassment by Sir Philip Green left out crucial evidence from witnesses, it is claimed. The retail tycoon was accused of slapping a woman's bottom but evidence from two male executives who had seen the alleged incident was apparently not included in Arcadia's findings. Sir Philip, 66, was also accused of making 'offensive remarks' about the woman but these too did not appear in the report, in what has been described as a 'cover-up', according to the Sunday Telegraph. Detailed claims against the Topshop mogul - who denies any wrongdoing - have emerged this week after his legal action against the Telegraph was ended at the High Court. Among the allegations are that he groped a female executive, paying her more than 1million to stay quiet. It is also alleged that he drew attention to the dreadlocks of a senior male executive in front of other staff, and referred to him 'throwing spears in the jungle'. Former Las Vegas Topshop manager Auna Irvine has previously claimed that when Sir Philip Green was her boss he slapped her bottom and called her fat. She said last year she had counselling to help her recover from alleged intimidation and bullying. In the latest claims reported by The Sun on Sunday, it is also alleged that the businessman called called an employee of Indian origin 'Bhaji' and 'Curry'. Today's report claims he could face more groping allegations from women who are not covered by non-disclosure agreements. Sir Philip has categorically denied the allegations and on Friday he accused the paper of 'pursuing a vendetta' against him and his staff. Former Las Vegas Topshop manager Auna Irvine (pictured) has previously claimed that when Sir Philip Green was her boss he slapped her bottom and called her fat Sir Philip Green with his wife Tina (left) and daughter Chloe (right) in Cannes in 2017. He has denied wrongdoing and said the non-disclosure agreements remain in place His lawyers told the Telegraph: 'It is further denied that any of Sir Philip's conduct towards employees amounted to any type of crime, or anything that would amount to gross misconduct, or a serious risk to health and safety.' Former employees whose allegations were investigated by the newspaper were under 'ongoing obligations' to honour non-disclosure agreements, he said. MailOnline has contacted Arcadia, the company behind Topshop, Miss Selfridge and other brands, for a response to the latest claims. Sir Philip initially obtained an injunction against the Telegraph but Labour peer Lord Hain named him as the tycoon behind it in the House of Lords. The employees making the claims had all received substantial payments after settling their claims, and signed non-disclosure agreements. Labour chairman Ian Lavery has also called for the Topshop owner's knighthood to be removed if the claims are accurate. 'If the allegations are true, then Philip Green should be stripped of his knighthood,' he said. Topshop tycoon Sir Philip Green could sue ex-colleagues if they have defied gagging orders over claims he sexually harassed, bullied and made racist remarks towards staff By Helen Cahill for The Mail on Sunday Topshop tycoon Sir Philip Green is considering hitting former colleagues in the pocket if it emerges they breached confidentiality agreements over allegations that he sexually harassed, bullied and made racist remarks towards staff. The Mail on Sunday understands that the billionaire retail boss and his advisers are looking at whether non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) have been breached. Sir Philip could seek to recover the money he paid to claimants as part of those agreements. In some cases, former staff who signed NDAs after making allegations were paid more than 1 million. The tycoon faced claims yesterday that he groped women, put one senior executive in a headlock and told a black man that he was 'still throwing spears in the jungle'. Philip Green speaks during an interview at his new Topshop store in Hong Kong in 2013 The allegations were revealed by The Daily Telegraph after Sir Philip abandoned High Court action to prevent the newspaper publishing them. Last night, Sir Philip's retail group Arcadia, which also owns fashion brands Dorothy Perkins and Burton, confirmed that he and the company were considering pursuing legal action against the individuals. None of the former employees concerned has been named publicly. A spokesman for Arcadia said: 'The NDAs were entered into willingly by individuals who received independent legal advice about their rights and responsibilities. 'The judge has confirmed that these NDAs and the confidentiality surrounding them were legitimate.' Five employees reportedly signed gagging agreements in exchange for payoffs. If Sir Philip does pursue legal action, it is likely to prove controversial. Sir Philip attending Loulou's nightclub in London in September 2017 Equalities Minister Penny Mordaunt has said the Government will tackle the abuse of NDAs, which are more commonly used to protect commercially sensitive information in business deals. She said: 'It is unacceptable that non-disclosure orders have been used to hide workplace harassment or intimidate victims into silence and we will take the necessary steps to stop this.' The claims revealed in the Telegraph included a female executive receiving more than 1 million after complaining that Sir Philip groped her, and a second woman being given hundreds of thousands of pounds following complaints that he grabbed her face and made inappropriate comments. A third woman alleged Sir Philip gripped her in a headlock and sexually harassed her, and that she was paid hundreds of thousands when she signed an NDA. A black staff member also received a 1 million pay-off to keep quiet about alleged racial harassment, it is claimed. According to the newspaper, Sir Philip criticised the executive, saying 'everyone else is firing guns and you're still throwing spears in the jungle'. Sir Philip has always strenuously denied harassment. In October, he told The Mail on Sunday that he had indulged in no more than office 'banter', adding: 'As far as I'm concerned that's never been offensive.' The nature of the cases Sir Philip might bring against former staff will depend on the terms of the NDA contracts they signed. In some cases, signatories are barred from even discussing the existence of an NDA or the matters it relates to. Sir Philip ended his legal battle with the Telegraph before the case was due to go to trial, allowing the billionaire to side-step an expensive and high-profile court case. He has been ordered to pay most of the newspaper's legal costs, along with his own, leaving him a bill of 3 million. The Topshop tycoon's efforts to stop publication suffered a major blow when Labour peer Peter Hain used parliamentary privilege to name Sir Philip as the mystery subject of a Daily Telegraph report which was billed as 'the British #MeToo scandal'. Rangzieb Ahmed, 43, (pictured) was jailed for life at Manchester Crown Court in 2008 for directing terrorism A convicted Al-Qaeda terrorist has received nearly 800,000 in legal aid fees to appeal his conviction. Rangzieb Ahmed, 43, was jailed for life at Manchester Crown Court in 2008 for directing terrorism. The jury heard that he headed a three-man Al Qaeda cell which was preparing to commit mass murder. Ahmed was jailed for life with a minimum term of ten years after the Manchester Crown Court after a jury found him guilty of being a member of Al Qaeda with his associate, Manchester taxi driver Habib Ahmed. The 43-year-old, who was arrested in Pakistan, became the first person in the UK convicted of directing a terrorist organisation. A freedom of information request has revealed the extremist received 782,407 in legal fees, as reported by The Sun on Sunday. The fees include 589,667 for a barrister and lawyers, 121,892 for an appeal against a failed conviction in 2011, as well as 60,435 for a civil action. MP David Davies described the payments as an 'outrage.' Ahmed, who is thought to have links to the 7/7 terrorists, has a parole hearing next month. Ahmed lost an appeal against conviction in 2011 after he claimed that police and the security services had earlier allowed him to leave Britain for Pakistan while he was under surveillance, knowing that he would be mistreated. Ahmed was jailed for life with a minimum term of ten years after the Manchester Crown Court (pictured) after a jury found him guilty of being a member of Al Qaeda with his associate, Manchester taxi driver Habib Ahmed. He accused British officials of passive rendition which meant Ahmed was viciously tortured. His lawyers argued his subsequent conviction should be ruled unlawful because it was tainted by torture evidence obtained with Britains complicity. During the appeal hearing Ahmeds QC, Joel Bennathan, said the trial judge should have halted the proceedings against his client as an abuse of process. But three Appeal court judges, Lord Justice Hughes, Mr Justice Owen and Mrs Justice Thirlwall, rejected the appeal and said it was right that the trial went ahead. They said the alleged torture had not been proven, and even if it did take place it had no effect on the trial. Before the prosecution was heard, the trial judge investigated the claims and said Ahmed had not been able to prove he had been tortured. Any torture that may have taken place did not occur before Ahmed was seen by British security officers, the judge concluded. The mummified body of a British OAP has been discovered in the Costa del Sol home she shared with her daughter nearly a year after she died. Police have launched an investigation after discovering a body under a mattress at the property near Marbella following complaints from neighbours about a bad smell. The 71-year-old, who has been named locally as Valerie Butroid, is believed to have died on March 12 last year - 24 hours after Mother's Day in the UK. The decaying body of a 71-year-old British woman has been found nearly a year after she died at her home in Istan, near Marbella, in Spain (file picture) Forensic experts have found no signs of violence on her body and have told officials they believe she died of natural causes. But Civil Guard officers are trying to establish why the woman's loved ones failed to report her death and kept her body hidden in their home. Her corpse was discovered late on Friday night after police went to the property on a residential estate in Istan a 20-minute drive from the coastal resort of Marbella. Valerie Butroid is said to have lived with her daughter Louise, pictured, at the home Neighbours said Mrs Butroid lived with her daughter Louise and had a teenage grand-daughter, aged around 15, who visited from time to time. One said Louise had become reclusive after the death of her husband several years ago in the same house, a 265,000 semi-detached property overlooking Lake Istan. Louise Butroid's whereabouts was unclear today with locals saying she was back at the house, although there was no answer at her door. One said: 'She was at the Civil Guard station in Marbella yesterday but she has been back since.' Another, a Brit expat who has been living near to the dead woman and her Lincolnshire-born daughter for several years, said: 'There's been a bad smell coming from the house for a while. 'But it got really bad over the summer and the smell started coming through the air conditioning vents when I put the heating on for my baby daughter as it turned a bit colder. 'I had new ventilation put in because I thought that was the problem but it just masked the smell. 'The dead woman had Dementia and the daughter told me in August that she'd died after breaking her hip in a fall a couple of weeks earlier. 'I assumed she had died in hospital. It blows my mind to think that poor woman's body could have been in that house for nearly a year and the smell was that. 'I woke up around 3am on Saturday and saw forensics in the house because one of my windows looks directly into their place. 'The dead woman's daughter was at the police station yesterday because I saw her when I had to go and give a statement.' The OAP's body is understood to have been found in one of the rooms, squashed between a plastic mattress and cardboard she was covered up with. Police went to the residential property, pictured, around a 20-minute drive from Marbella on Friday night and forensic experts said there were no signs of violence on the woman's body Her clothed corpse was mummified. Civil Guard officers who made the discovery are believed to have been alerted by the woman's grand-daughter after a former partner of the OAP's found out her body was in the property and told the family they had to go to the police. Officers are trying to establish why her loved ones failed to report her death. Mrs Butroid is thought to have lost her husband too several years ago when he passed away in a Lincolnshire nursing home. The local Civil Guard force could not be reached early this morning and it was not immediately clear if they had made any arrests. The dead woman's daughter has reportedly told police her mother died on March 12 last year, 24 hours after Mother's Day in the UK. Istan is a town of Arabic origin which is a 15-minute drive from the beaches of Marbella. It is a popular spot for Sunday day-trippers and cyclists riding up to the mountain village. Despite being so close to some of the Costa del Sol's most popular resorts, it has managed to retain its rural charm. It is visited by thousands of tourists every year who go to see its church and main square and eat in its restaurants as well as using it as a base to explore the beautiful surrounding countryside. Chris Grayling (pictured) is facing mounting calls to quit after a no-deal Brexit ferry contract awarded to a firm with no ships was humiliatingly axed Chris Grayling is facing mounting calls to quit after a no-deal Brexit ferry contract awarded to a firm with no ships was humiliatingly axed. MPs from across the political spectrum have taken aim at the Transport Secretary for initially handing Seaborne Freight a package worth 13.8million to run services between Ramsgate and Ostend. The plan was designed to ease pressure on shipping capacity at nearby Dover if the UK crashes out of the EU without a deal next month. But the Department for Transport (DfT) announced over the weekend that it is terminating the contract after Irish company Arklow Shipping, which had backed Seaborne Freight, pulled out. Downing Street insisted Theresa May still has full confidence in Mr Grayling despite the embarrassing climbdown. However, Tory Remainer Anna Soubry said Mr Grayling 'should be quietly considering his position'. 'Chris Grayling holds a critical position in government, trying to mitigate what would be a very serious crisis for the country if we leave the European Union without a deal,' the MP told the Observer. 'He has no grip on the very serious nature of his job. The Prime Minister should also be considering whether there is not someone else who could do the job better.' Labour said Mr Grayling 'has to go', with Jeremy Corbyn describing the situation as 'completely ludicrous'. The Labour leader said: 'Chris Grayling the Transport Secretary claimed the Government had 'looked very carefully' at Seaborne Freight before giving the company the contract, but apparently not carefully enough to notice that it didn't have any ships.' Liberal Democrat Brexit spokesman Tom Brake said: 'The Government did not need a siren's call to get into chaos over a contract with a ferry company, all they needed was to put Chris Grayling in charge.' A DfT spokeswoman said: 'Following the decision of Seaborne Freight's backer, Arklow Shipping, to step back from the deal, it became clear Seaborne would not reach its contractual requirements with the Government. We have therefore decided to terminate our agreement. 'The Government is already in advanced talks with a number of companies to secure additional freight capacity, including through the port of Ramsgate, in the event of a no-deal Brexit.' Brexit-backing Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg questioned whether Leo Varadkar's Irish Government had any influence on Arklow's decision - something Dublin strongly denied. Seaborne Freight was initially handed a package worth 13.8million to run services between Ramsgate (pictured) and Ostend if there is a no-deal Brexit The plan was designed to ease pressure on shipping capacity at nearby Dover if the UK crashes out of the EU without a deal next month Mr Grayling last month defended the Seaborne Freight contract, insisting it was 'not a risk'. It was one of three firms awarded contracts totalling 108million in late December to lay on additional crossings to ease the pressure on Dover when Britain leaves the EU, despite having never run a Channel service. The department said it had been Arklow Shipping's backing that gave it confidence in the viability of the deal, and that it stands by the robust due diligence carried out on Seaborne Freight. It added no taxpayer money had been transferred to the company. Mick Cash, general secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union, said: 'The whole exercise is a complete and utter shambles, with the Government ignoring union calls on what needs to happen. 'Instead they are blundering on from crisis to crisis.' The first pictures have emerged of a six-year-old boy who was brutally killed with broken glass in front of his screaming mother in Saudi Arabia. Zakaria Al-Jaber was in a taxi with his mother, on their way to the shrine of the Prophet Muhammad in Medina, when a car drove up and the boy was dragged out. The taxi driver reportedly dragged the boy towards a coffee shop in the Al-Tilal area before smashing a glass bottle and slitting his throat. The attacker slit the six-year-old's throat with a shard of glass before stabbing him repeatedly as both his mother and a nearby police officer attempted to stop the brutal attack, TMV reported. Zakaria Al-Jaber (pictured) was in a taxi with his mother, on their way to the shrine of the Prophet Muhammad in Medina, when a car drove up and the boy was dragged out Sajid Hussain shared pictures of the boy on Twitter, calling for 'justice' and saying: 'Smallest coffins are the heaviest'. He said: That's barbaric how that Saudi driver beheaded 6years old Zakariya. 'You don't need to be a Shia or Sunni. Try to be a a Human first. Justice Delayed means Justice Denied.' An unknown man had reportedly asked the mother if she was Shia before the attack, to which she answered yes. It is not known why the boy was targeted, but Saudi officials have reportedly claimed the attacker was suffering from mental health issues. Shia Rights Watch, a group which defends the rights of the minority Shia Muslims, has said the boy was killed on Thursday in an act of sectarian violence but claimed it was a `beheading'. A taxi driver reportedly dragged the boy (pictured) towards a coffee shop in the Al-Tilal area before smashing a glass bottle and slitting his throat They said: 'The Saudi Shia community came together today in mourning and to show solidarity with the parents. 'The community also reported this incident is a result of ongoing violations and lack of protection by the Saudi authority toward its Shia population.' Shia Rights Watch, whose headquarters are in Washington D.C., said the `beheading' must be addressed ASAP. They added: 'Shia Rights Watch, other human rights NGOs and activists have long advocated for the rights of this minority through campians, UN and other entities. 'However the population still suffers because of the lack of international commitment to end such violations. 'Beheading of a young child in such manner must be addressed ASAP.' A little girl is fighting for her life after a car crash in South East Queensland on Sunday afternoon. Emergency services were called to Chambers Flat Road in Logan at 2.20pm, according to Fairfax. The little girl reportedly suffered head injuries and was rushed by paramedics to Queensland Children's Hospital. She's in a critical condition. Alittle girl is in a critical condition after reportedly suffering head injuries and has been rushed by paramedics to Queensland Children's Hospital (pictured) A woman was taken to Logan Hospital with potential spinal injuries and is undergoing assessment. A baby with serious chest injuries and a boy with minor facial injuries were also taken to Queensland Children's Hospital. A man and a woman were also assessed at the scene but declined transportation. Rolf Harris has been put on house arrest by his family after he was given a warning from police after wandering into primary school grounds. The disgraced entertainer, 88, who was spotted waving at young pupils on Tuesday, has been ordered by his family to not leave the house without permission. Harris was handed a police warning after staff told him to leave Oldfield Primary School in Maidenhead, Berkshire after he stood chatting to a wood sculptor. His daughter Bindi Nicholls, 54, who has desperately been trying to restore his image after he was jailed for indecently assaulting girls, says it is a 'PR disaster'. Rolf Harris has been put on house arrest by his family after he was given a warning from police after wandering into primary school grounds A family friend told the Daily Star Sunday that there is a lot of 'upset' in the Harris family household. They said: 'Bindi is beside herself as she's been working so hard on all of the upcoming books and a documentary to try to sell the good side of her dad. Harris is now under 'house arrest' and has to ask for permission from his management team to leave the house. Headteacher Richard Jarrett said he ordered the disgraced Australian former TV star, who was released from HM Prison Stafford in 2017, to leave the school grounds. the source said: 'The family are flabbergasted that he would do such a thing and be so brazen, given the background. 'They think hes still living on "Planet Rolf" and thinks hes well recognised and in good favour.' Rolf Harris leaving home on Wednesday morning. He was reported to police after approaching a wood sculptor on the outskirts of a primary school The Ministry of Justice confirmed they were investigating but refused to rule out whether Harris faces a recall to prison, when pressed by MailOnline. Sentencing Council guidelines state that a breach of licence by a sex offender carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a minimum of six months in custody or a fine. Thames Valley Police said: 'A report was made that a man was on the site of the school. 'An officer attended the scene but no offence was committed. No arrests were made and advice has been given to the man involved.' An MoJ spokesman told MailOnline it will take 'appropriate action', adding: 'Sex offenders are subject to strict licence conditions upon release and enforcement action if they breach them'. Heatdteacher, Mr Jarrett, was forced to make a statement outside the school after the pictures emerged. Headteacher Richard Jarrett said he ordered the disgraced Australian former TV star, who was released from HM Prison Stafford in 2017, to leave the school grounds Thames Valley Police said: 'A report was made that a man was on the site of the school' He said: 'In line with our standard procedures, an uninvited individual was asked to leave the outer perimeter of the school site yesterday, which he did without delay. 'At no time did any of our pupils come into contact with the individual nor was the individual invited by us on to the school grounds. 'As a precaution, this incident has been reported to Thames Valley Police.' The school is located just a few hundred yards from the riverside home of the former entertainer which he shares with his wife Alwen. Parents of children attending the school said they were 'stunned' to see the photographs of disgraced TV personality outside the school. But neighbours defended Harris and said he was an 'asset to the area'. Harris was convicted of 12 indecent assaults at London's Southwark Crown Court in June 2014, one on an eight-year-old autograph hunter, two on girls in their early teens, and a catalogue of abuse against his daughter's friend over 16 years. He was jailed for five years and nine months, but released from HMP Stafford in May 2017 after serving less than half the sentence. Daughter Bindi has revealed plans to pen a tell-all book about life with her father after sticking with him throughout his prison term and trial. An Arctic region of Russia has declared a state of emergency over a polar bear 'invasion' which has left people 'afraid to go outside'. The aggressive bears have entered homes and public buildings in the remote Novaya Zemlya archipelago - home to around 3,000 people - where officials have warned of a 'mass invasion'. Since December 52 polar bears have regularly visited the archipelago's main settlement, Belushya Guba, with some displaying 'aggressive behaviour'. People are 'afraid to go outside' and 'daily life is in turmoil', said the deputy head of the local administration, Aleksandr Minayev. Invasion: A polar bear prowls inside a building, one of more than 50 of the endangered animals who have been terrorising residents in a remote Arctic archipelago in Russia Aggressive: A polar bear at a playground on the Novaya Zemlya archipelago in northern Russia, with parents left worried about sending their children to schools and kindergartens 'Parents are wary of letting children to go to schools and kindergartens,' he said. 'There are cases of aggressive behaviour of wild animals - attacks on people, penetration into residential and office buildings. 'There are constantly 6 to 10 bears inside the settlement.' Bears are constantly inside a military garrison and 'literally chase people' as well as going into the entrances of blocks of flats, another official said. Despite the siege, residents have been warned they face prosecution if they shoot the endangered species. Scavengers: More than a dozen polar bears search through a pile of rubbish amid a state of emergency and fears that the animals no longer feel scared of patrols Playground: One of the animals roams around a Russian yard on the Arctic archipelago Presence: Two of the dozens of polar bears regularly spotted in the area. People are 'afraid to go outside' and 'daily life is in turmoil', a local official said Lurking: One of the polar bears, who cannot legally be shot because they are endangered A request to Moscow to allow the shooting of some bears has met with a flat refusal from nature preservation bosses. Instead a team of specialists has been dispatched to the outpost to advice residents on other measures to discourage the bears. Local officials have complained that vehicle and dog patrols have not been effective as polar bears feel secure and no longer react. Polar bears are affected by global warming with melting Arctic ice forcing them to spend more time on land where they compete for food. Russia has air force and air defence troops based on Novaya Zemlya. The archipelago in the Arctic was used by the USSR for nuclear tests. Prince Philip will still be able to drive on private roads at Sandringham and other royal estates despite giving up his licence after horror crash. The Duke of Edinburgh voluntarily surrendered his driving licence just weeks after he flipped his Land Rover in Norfolk which sent two women to hospital. Motoring lawyers believe he may not be charged for careless driving because there is little public interest in bringing a 'costly prosecution' if he has given up his licence, according to the Sunday Times. But the 97-year-old will still be able to drive on royal grounds despite the woman involved in the car crash saying the 'roads will be safer'. Emma Fairweather, 46, was a passenger in the Kia that was involved in the collision with the Duke's Land Rover last month. Just two days after the crash, Prince Philip was back behind the wheel Emma Fairweather, 46, has welcomed the news that Prince Philip has surrendered his driver's licence What is the legal limit on driving ages in Britain? The horror accident involving Prince Philip last month sparked a debate on whether he should still be driving. In the UK there are no legal limit on driving ages but motorist have to renew their licences at least 90 days before turning 70. After turning 70, drivers are expected to renew their license every three years. But a license can only be renewed if the minimum eyesight requirement is met. DVLA figures show that 100,281 people over the age of 90 hold a valid license. Only 248 people over 100 years own one. Source: Sky News and DVLA Advertisement She broke her wrist in the crash and has said that the Duke's decision is 'sensible and the right thing to do', before adding that it was a 'shame he didn't make the decision sooner'. A file has been handed to prosecutors who are now weighing up whether to bring a case against the Duke. A CPS spokesperson said: 'We review each file carefully before a decision is made and will take this development into account.' Buckingham Palace confirmed Prince Philip relinquished his licence on Saturday. The 97-year-old apologised for his role in the accident after his vehicle hit another car before landing on its side. Ms Fairweather told the Sunday Mirror: 'He's making the most sensible decision he can. It's a shame he didn't make it a bit sooner but it's the right thing to do. 'Undoubtedly the roads will be safer now. It won't have been easy for him to make as it is a loss of independence. But he can work around it.' She also added that she has done nothing but cry' this week after having an operation to screw a metal plate into her arm. Prince Philip left two people requring hospital treatment after his Land Rover rammed into a Kia Just two days after the crash, the Duke was spotted driving without a seatbelt, sparking widespread backlash. A statement from Buckingham Palace said: 'After careful consideration the Duke of Edinburgh has taken the decision to voluntarily surrender his driving licence.' The retired barrister who pulled the Duke from the wreckage said he might have been overly cautious giving up his licence. Roy Warne said: 'No one should be driving if they don't feel safe to do so however old they are but in the Duke of Edinburgh's case we don't have the full facts so it is very difficult to express a view.' Mr Warne, who with wife Victoria helped free the royal and tend to the injured women driver and passenger, said: 'He's surrendering his licence but maybe the accident wasn't his fault. We simply don't know. 'He's done what he felt was best and maybe he had been under pressure so I can't be surprised either way. But younger drivers are much more dangerous than older drivers.' A Norfolk Police said: 'We can confirm that the 97 year old driver of the Land Rover involved in the collision at Sandringham on Thursday 17 January 2019 has today voluntarily surrendered his licence to officers. We will follow the standard procedure and return the licence to the DVLA. Philip is believed to have just left Sandringham, marked in red, and was turning on to the A149 at this junction when he collided with a Kia and his car cartwheeled on to the other side of the road, circled blue A driver claims Prince Philip almost crashed into her as near Sandringham estate before his shocking crash on Thursday (pictured) The investigation file for the collision has been passed to the Crown Prosecution Service for their consideration. Witnesses revealed Philip was shaking and pleading 'get me out' after his Land Rover crashed while he was out driving alone without a protection officer. He escaped injury but Emma Fairweather, 46, broke her wrist and called for Prince Philip to be prosecuted if found to be at fault. According to one eyewitness, the Kia, driven by a 28-year-old mother, 'T-boned' the duke's car and ended up in a hedge with smoke coming from the engine. On January 21, Prince Philip sent her a letter wishing her a 'speed recovery' and that he 'failed to see the car coming', the Sunday Mirror reported. The sun was blamed for hindering his vision and he wrote he was 'very contrite about the consequences' of the collision. A motorist who swerved around the wreckage (aftermath of crash pictured) said the duke was 'hanging from his seat' and saying 'my leg is trapped'. Four rescuers had to free him from his upturned Land Rover He said he was 'deeply sorry' and explained while he was familiar with the junction he could 'only imagine' the low sun stopped him seeing her approaching. The Duke appeared to admit responsibility in a letter to Ms Fairweather several days after the accident. In his 181-word typed letter, Prince Philip wished her a 'speedy recovery from a very distressing experience'. Two days ago, Norfolk Police confirmed they were still investigating Prince Philip's crash on January 17 when his Land Rover rolled over after being hit by a Kia. The accident happened as Philip pulled out of a side road on to the 60mph limit A149 road. The Duke, who has given a police statement, could be charged with careless driving. Witnesses yesterday revealed the 97-year-old was shaking and pleading 'get me out' after his Land Rover crashed (aftermath pictured) while he was alone and without a protection officer Advertisement A grandfather who fought to get a 'dangerous' tree felled for 30 years has been left devastated after it crashed into his house during Storm Erik. The vicious Storm Erik battered the UK on Friday and Saturday, with gales of up to 80 mph causing widespread travel disruption, with three people reported dead. The worst of the storm is now thought to be over, but Melvin Toon has been left with an estimated 20,000 worht of damage to his home after the strong winds brought the chestnut tree down on his property in Bulwell, Nottingham. The 68-year-old, says he has made 'countless' calls to Nottingham City Council about the tree since moving into the property in 1985. The retired Mr Toon said the tree - which was around 25ft from his three-bedroom, semi-detached home had always shaken heavily in the wind. Melvin Toon's house after a tree fell on it in Nottingham. Mr Toon's house was a victim of Storm Erik who battered the UK with heavy winds and rain on Friday and Saturday The stump of the felled tree can be seen as well as the significant damage to roof of Melvin Toon's home in Bulwell, in Nottingham Melvin Toon, 68, (pictured) says he has made 'countless' calls to Nottingham City Council about the tree since moving into the property in 1985 He also believed it did not have enough space for roots to make it stable, and feared it would come down one day. The great-grandfather was told by the council it was protected under a preservation order - but Mr Toon said it was only trimmed once every ten years. During Storm Erik winds of 50mph brought the chestnut tree down onto the house at 6.45am on February 9 - causing an estimated 20,000 of damage. The 40ft tree damaged the roof, loft and the middle room at the back of the house. Many of Mr Toon's belongings were covered in dirt from the loft, and have since become damp from the hole in the roof. The retired demolition worker and ex-serviceman said: 'Countless times I have rung them up. 'They told me it has got a preservation order on it. When there was high wind we could see the branches bending. 'I always thought 'one day, that tree is going to come down'.' Mr Toon's eldest son Paul Toon, 40, had been staying in the middle room at the back of the house until four days before the incident. The family dog Stanley, a Rhodesian Ridgeback, had been sleeping in the middle room but managed to get out at the moment the tree hit the house. Melvin said: 'At about 6.45am, I was about to get up when all of a sudden there was a tremendous bang. 'The whole room room shook and it was drenched with thick, black dust that came from the loft. I heard my son shouting. 'It took me a few minutes to realise this was reality.I thought 'was it a plane?'. 'I got out of the bedroom as quickly as possible. We checked in the middle room - we thought the dog had been killed. 'But then we heard the dog bark downstairs. We realised the tree had come down. 'Two neighbours came round banging on the door to see if we were OK. We told them we were all in one piece. 'We called the police and the fire brigade and they said to call the council. I moved here in 1985 and the children used to play in the garden. 'I was on the phone telling the council about it. '[Right next to the tree] there is a sheer drop that goes into a moat. 'It's wasn't rooted properly to have the strength to stay up. The council should have realised that. 'The council should have chopped the tree, and it probably would never have happened. It's negligence on the council's part. If necessary, I will have to consult a solicitor. 'Someone should have said that the tree is dangerous. It must have been rotting for a period of time for it to snap like that. 'It's in a neighbour's garden. I never would have thought it would have fallen into my side. 'I urged my son to move rooms four days before the event. He would have been killed. 'You get these feelings and instincts to do something. We are relieved we are alive. 'Everything in the house is covered with dust. Virtually the only thing I have left is the clothes on my back. 'It will take six months to a year to repair. It has been devastating. 'It would cost over 20,000 to repair the damage. It would cost at least 2,000 to replace our belongings. 'I don't have insurance. We have a lot of memories in that house.' Cold conditions overnight in the hills above Longtown in Herefordshire. There could be further snow overnight, as many areas will be hit with rain and strong winds Mr Toon has eight grandchildren and a one-year-old great-granddaughter. His wife Christine died in 2010 - and he has a lot of memories in the house from their time together. Mr Toon served in the 17th/21st Lancers of the British Army from 1968 for eight years. Delroy Beverley, director of construction, repairs and maintenance services at Nottingham City Homes, who manage the property on behalf of the council, said: 'We are aware of the serious incident which occurred on Naomi Crescent early [on Saturday morning]. 'We made it a priority to dispatch staff immediately and have had a team on-site working with Mr Toon from 8am. 'The falling tree has caused significant structural damage to the exterior roof and to internal ceilings on the upper floor of the property. 'We have offered Mr Toon and his family alternative temporary accommodation over the weekend, however they have elected to stay with relatives for the time being. 'We have ensured that utilities to the property are isolated, and have made it safe and secure. 'We intend to start further investigations next week, and work with Mr Toon to ensure that him and his family have somewhere to stay while the works to the property are being carried out.' Five year old Elijah and brother two year old Jazaiah taking advantage of a mild afternoon today as they run amongst the rising crocusses at Royal Victoria Park in Bath after heavy rain overnight The house is owned by the council, and Mr Toon said he would take another property if he were offered one by the council. Forecasters have said there are expected to be showers in the south today following the downpour overnight, but as the day moves on the rain will be replaced by sunny spells. Northern Ireland will see a dry start but then see strong winds and heavy rain, and the south-east will remain damp throughout the day and into overnight. The heavy rain will then edge into Wales and the north-east England overnight, and there could even be a chance of snow in high areas in the south overnight. The tail end of Storm Erik - the first named storm of 2019 - still had enough strength to bring huge waves battering the sea defences at Aberystwyth on the Cardigan Bay coast yesterday A weather warning for wind on Saturday was extended to cover most of the UK, while in Scotland heavy rain hit Scotland on Saturday afternoon Meteorologist Simon Partridge from the Met Office, said: 'A bit of a mixed bag this Sunday morning. 'Sunny spells for many of us, also a mixture of rain and showers in other parts of the UK. 'And it will be a touch colder than it has been on recent mornings. 'For Scotland it's generally a cold and clear start to the day... 'A clear bright start for Northern Ireland and northern England, we do have showers making their way across Wales and the rain from last night is covering up much of south-eastern England, so a pretty grey and damp start for many of us here. A motorist has died after Storm Erik ripped a giant tree from the earth and sent it flying into the road in Devon (pictured), as meteorologists issued 'danger to life' warnings due amid 80mph winds and heavy rain on Saturday A woman struggles through strong gusts during the tail end of Storm Erik - the first named storm of 2019 which still has enough strength to bring huge waves battering the sea defences at Aberystwyth on Saturday This was the scene in Woolacombe, North Devon on Saturday morning as strong winds continued to batter the coast 'Through the day basically all of this weather is going to move its way south and eastwards, with the rain in the south gradually clearing its way eastwards, although the southeast corner will hold on to a rather grey and damp day. 'Elsewhere lots of sunshine on offer, a few showers across parts of England and Wales, but these will be few and far between. 'And then this area of low pressure starts to make its way across Northern Ireland as we head through the afternoon. 'This will bring in strong to gale force winds and also some locally heavy rain at times as well, now that continues to make its way further south-east overnight. 'Through the evening period it starts to edge its way into parts of north-west Wales and north-west England. 'At the hills here, mainly over 300 to 400 metres it could turn to snow for a time as well, but for most of us it will be a little bit wetter and windier as it makes its way through.' The improved weather will be a relief for Britons in various parts of the UK who suffered the wrath of Storm Erik on Friday and Saturday. On Saturday a kitesurfer died amid strong winds in an incident on the Saunton Sands beach in north Devon. On Friday morning a 50-year-old man died on the A384 in Buckfastleigh, Devon, and in Wales a van driver was killed after he collided with a fallen tree on the B4306 between Pontyberem and Llannon in west Wales. The Met Office issued a yellow weather warning for strong winds on Saturday covering much of Wales, central and northern England and southern Scotland. A separate yellow weather warning for heavy rain was issued for northern Scotland on Saturday. The Met Office said wind speeds of 75mph were recorded in Powys, Wales, and 74mph in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, adding that across the rest of the country gusts between 40 and 50mph were typical. Tony Blair stepped up his warnings on no-deal Brexit today saying it would be 'devastating' for Northern Ireland and breach the Good Friday Agreement. The former PM said crashing out of the EU would inevitably lead to a 'really hard border' on the island of Ireland and cause a huge split within the UK. Despite a series of setbacks for those campaigning for another Brexit referendum, Mr Blair said still hoped one might happen when people saw the 'true alternatives' the country faces. The latest intervention from Mr Blair comes as Theresa May struggles to get concessions from the EU that can win support from MPs for her deal - with less than seven weeks to go until the UK is due to leave the bloc. Tony Blair (pictured giving an interview on Sky News) has stepped up his warnings on no-deal Brexit saying it would be 'devastating' for Northern Ireland Mrs May has so far been met by a wall of resistance from Brussels, which insists the Withdrawal Agreement will not be reopened. The PM is facing another round of crunch Brexit votes in the Commons on Valentine's Day - with Remainer and Eurosceptic opponents again seeking to bind her hands. Former Labour leader Mr Blair heaped pressure on Mrs May this morning by issuing another dire warning about the consequences of leaving without a deal. 'No one could responsibly propose (a no-deal Brexit). It would be economically very, very dangerous for Britain, and for the peace process in Ireland it would potentially be devastating, ' he told Sky News' Sophy Ridge On Sunday. 'You would have a hard border, very hard border. A no-deal Brexit means a really hard border between north and south in Ireland, it's contrary to the Good Friday Agreement and it will cause an enormous fissure within the United Kingdom.' Mr Blair, who has argued strongly for a second EU referendum, added: 'I've never thought that you would get to another referendum going directly to it - you'll get to it when people see what the true Brexit alternatives are. And the truth is there are two. 'You can have a soft Brexit, which is really what Jeremy Corbyn is suggesting, or you can have the hard Brexit that Boris Johnson and Nigel Farage and other people want.' He said the type of Brexit must be decided before the UK leaves the EU, arguing that a lack of clarity would lead to a lack of 'closure'. He said: 'The argument just goes on, and by then you'll have left, you'll have paid your money up front, you'll have given up your negotiating leverage. 'And for the country to do that, as Theresa May wants to do - to leave without knowing what Brexit you get - this would be, in my view, an incredibly foolish thing for the country to do. It's got to know where we're heading before we leave.' Theresa May (pictured with Jean-Claude Juncker in Brussels last week) has been struggling to get concessions from the EU that can win support from MPs for her deal A woman assaulted by a group of men in a suburban street has died from her injuries. Louise Allison Langhorn, 59, succumbed to her injuries in the Royal Perth Hospital on Sunday morning after being assaulted in Balga, in Perth's north, on Wednesday night. Homicide detectives will now investigate the death. Her attackers are still on the run, police said. Louise Allison Langhorn (pictured), 59, died after she was attacked by a group of men in suburban Perth Ms Langhorn reported the assault on Friday as she was admitted to Royal Perth Hospital - two days after the attack actually took place. From her hospital bed, she told police the group of men attacked her and were only deterred when a passerby stopped his car and intervened. Ms Langhorn was admitted to Royal Perth Hospital on Friday, two days after the attack The driver of a dark car scared off the men and drove Ms Langhorn to her apartment in Balga. His identity remains unknown, as does the group of attackers'. Police have urged the man who assisted Ms Langhorn to come forward, as he may be instrumental in finding the attackers. London's latest murder victim had his 'throat slit with a huge knife' outside a 24 hour off licence after 'a row over ciggarettes', according to a shocked local business boss. The victim, believed to be aged in his 30s, was pronounced dead at the scene in Lordship Lane in well-heeled East Dulwich shortly after 3am on Sunday. No arrests have been made and enquiries into what happened are ongoing, the Metropolitan Police said. This morning his body still appeared to be inside the police cordon as a forensic tent could be seen outside an off licence on the main road. The scene on Lordship Lane in East Dulwich, south London where a man, believed to be in his 30's, was stabbed to death The shop's assistant manager, Muhammad Khan, said his cousin was working when an argument erupted inside the store, and has given a statement to police. He said both men involved in the fight were black and in their 30s or 40s. Mr Khan said the whole incident from start to finish lasted around 20 seconds and, judging from CCTV footage which has since been handed to police, the knife was around six inches long. He said: 'They had an argument about cigarettes. 'My cousin was here, he was manager. 'The guy who had the knife came in about five or six minutes after the man who got stabbed. 'The guy with the knife asked the other for free cigarettes, like as a favour or something. I don't know whether he knew him. A policewoman stands by the cordon of the scene of the stabbing early this morning Police forensics work in a tent covering the body, at the scene on Lordship Lane in East Dulwich 'They has an argument and he took out a knife. Everyone was trying to stop him. 'A member of staff behind the counter and other customers tried to stop him too. 'I watched the CCTV this morning, they are both black guys. The guy that was stabbed was bald and quite tall. They were both in their 30s or 40s.' He said he had never seen the man with the knife before. He added that his cousin was too shocked to speak to reporters about the incident. The assistant manager said the area was 'very quiet' and they never had any trouble with customers. He added: 'We are always open late, but this is the first time. 'We have had no trouble around here - it's very nice, all educated and wealthy people living around here.' Medical equipment remains on the floor, at the scene of the fatal stabbing in south-east London A who owns another shop that is just a few doors up from where the attack happened, said: 'The guys from the off licence saw it. 'We spoke to them briefly this morning because when we saw the police we were worried something had happened to them. 'They said they heard something outside and came out to stop it. But they couldn't do anything. 'The knife was huge, bigger than a kitchen knife. He slashes him across the neck. I don't think they were customers.' He added: 'I think the guys from the off licence are the ones who called the ambulance. 'As it's open late they do get a lot of drunk people in there, but I haven't heard of them having any problems.' MP for the area, Helen Hayes tweeted that the knife crime 'has to stop'. The scene is pictured The cordon was partly lifted at around 10.30am and traffic is now travelling in both directions alongside the forensic tent. The victim's body was removed from the scene at around 11.30am this morning and taken away in a private ambulance Formal identification and a post-mortem examination will take place in due course, the force added. Police have appealed for information. A passer-by at the scene told Mail Online: 'You read about people being stabbed in the news, but I didn't expect it to happen so close to home. 'People live here because it is a nice area, lots of nice places to eat and a good place for families. I'm really surprised.' MP for the area, Helen Hayes tweeted that the knife crime 'has to stop'. Police forensics at the scene of the stabbing in East Dulwich where the victim was said to have had his throat slit with a large knife She said: 'Appalled to learn of a fatal stabbing on Lordship Lane during the night. Another family now devastated due to knife crime. This has to stop.' The news follows three other separate events in London, a stabbing in Neasden last night and a shooting in Isleworth also last night. The earliest of the incidents was a stabbing during a fight in Hayes, west London. The incident, at around 3.47pm on Saturday, saw police arrest four males on suspicion of the attempted murder of a 16-year-old who was found with stab wounds. They are a 15-year-old, a 16-year-old and two 18-year-old men. All four were taken to west London police stations where they remain in custody. Police forensics and officers outside Payless Food & Wine which remains behind a cordon Two police vehicles at the scene on Lordship Lane as an officer stands by a forensic tent His injuries are not believed to be life threaten. In both other cases the victims are in critical conditions in hospital. The stabbing in Neasden, northwest London, saw a 23-year-old taken to a central London hospital after a man and a woman were arrested after the incident which took place at around 10.45pm. The man, 29, was arrested at the scene on suspicion of attempted murder. He remains in custody. He was with a 24-year-old woman who was also arrested. She was arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender she also remains in custody. In the other event just hours before at around 7.15pm on Saturday night, in Isleworth, Hounslow, west London, a teenage boy was rushed to hospital following a shooting. A Scotland Yard spokesman said: 'Police were called by paramedics to London Road, Isleworth, at 7.17pm on Saturday to reports of an injured male. 'Officers attended. At the scene a 17-year-old male was receiving treatment from medics for gunshot wounds. The injured male was taken by LAS to a west London hospital.' They described his condition as critical. The police cordon extended across the street, forcing business closures and bus diversions A man in his 30s has died after being stabbed in Lordship Lane, pictured, in East Dulwich shortly after 3am on Sunday On Thursday the Office for National Statistics revealed that the number of fatal stabbings is now at the highest level since records began in 1946. Some 285 people were stabbed to death in the year ending March 2018, with attacks 'most pronounced' in young men. Highlighting a worrying increase in violence plaguing Britain, there were 726 killings recorded overall - 20 more than the previous year. The homicide figures are more pronounced when excluding mass murders such as the London Bridge, Westminster and Manchester terror attacks, which claimed the lives of 35 innocent victims in 2017. Already this year at least nine people have been murdered in the capital including Lejean Richards, 19, who was stabbed near Prince George's school earlier this week Stats released on Thursday show that stabbings are by far the most common cause of death in homicide cases, nearly three times the second most common, which is beating Taking those deaths out, the number of killings increasing by 89, or 15 per cent, from 606 to 695. London witnessed the starkest concentration of crimes involving knives and sharp instruments, highlighting the capital's ongoing crisis. So far in 2019 at least nine people have been murdered in the capital including Lejean Richards, 19, who was stabbed to death near Prince George's school. His mother Lavern Joseph said: 'Lejean was a loving son and brother, a young man determined to turn his life around.' Four people have been arrested after a tradesman was fatally shot inside a Melbourne apartment on Saturday. Duane Hutchings, 44, was found with critical injuries inside an Oakleigh East property, east of Melbourne, before 5.30am on Saturday. He was rushed to The Alfred hospital, where he later died, The Age reported. On Sunday, Crime Command detectives executed search warrants related to the shooting in the suburbs of Doncaster and Park Orchards. Duane Hutchings, 44, was found with critical injuries inside an Oakleigh East property, east of Melbourne, before 5.30am on Saturday (pictured) Duane Hutchings (pictured) was found with critical injuries inside an Oakleigh East property, east of Melbourne, before 5.30am on Saturday and was rushed to The Alfred hospital where he died Three men from Doncaster, aged 56, 22 and 18, along with a 24-year-old man from Park Orchards, were arrested by Homicide Squad detectives and are currently assisting police with their inquiries. Investigators have been told Mr Hutchings was at the apartment when an 'altercation' allegedly occurred between a group of people, Victoria Police said. 'It is believed a number of people fled the scene in unknown vehicles,' a spokeswoman said. Police are appealing for any witnesses to the shooting to contact Crime Stoppers. The brave actions of a band of bystanders may have saved a young girl from a dire fate after she was tackled by a stranger in broad daylight. The 11-year-old girl was walking to a friend's house when she was grabbed by the stranger in Brisbane's north on Saturday afternoon. Without saying a word, the stranger ran up behind her and pulled her to the ground. The brave actions of a band of bystanders may have saved a young girl from a dire fate after she was tackled by a stranger in broad daylight before he fled in a blue SUV (pictured) A group of witnesses intervened in the random attack, shouting at the assailant from across the Francis Road overpass. The attacker, who is believed to be in his early 20s, quickly fled the scene on foot. No demands were made of the girl and she was left physically unhurt, though mentally distraught. Detective Senior Sergeant Joseph Zitny told 9 News that bystanders did indeed intervene to help the girl. 'The man tackled her to the ground without warning, and as a result passers-by have started shouting at him,' he said 'She was quite distraught, which is understandable, however she's in okay spirits now,' Detective Senior Sergeant Joseph Zitny told The Courier-Mail. The attacker remains on the run from police, who have since released a description of him. The young girl was walking along Francis Street in Lawnton, Brisbane, when the man allegedly approached her without warning He is described as Caucasian with a shaved or bald head, aged in his early 20s with a slim build. He was wearing a blue T-shirt, running shoes, black shorts and a chain around his neck. Police believe he ran to a black Holden Captiva parked on a nearby lane before fleeing the scene. Detectives have urged anyone in the area who may have seen someone, or drivers who have dashcam footage, to contact police. An Australian man who was told he needed more than $1,200 worth of dental work done has been left stunned after a second dentist quoted him just $60. Marc Pelletier, from Waterloo in New South Wales, prides himself on taking care of his teeth. So when the 33-year-old was told he needed more than a $1,000 of work during a routine check-up, he became suspicious. Mr Pelletier claims the dentist, Ghaith Al-Juboori, who has 20 years' experience, told him he required six fillings. Marc Pelletier, from Waterloo in New South Wales, prides himself on taking care of his teeth (file photo) 'A year and a half ago I got four fillings on my molars, which I was devastated about, and I've never had any other issues, and all of a sudden I needed all this work? It didn't seem right,' he told Stuff. After raising his suspicions, Mr Pelletier decided he needed a second opinion and visited another dentist. The second dentist told the 33-year-old he needs a little work done on one tooth, a $60 fissure sealing, but that it wasn't a dire situation. Mr Juboori told the publication his diagnosis wasn't wrong, saying he is honest with his patients about work they need for both the short and long run. 'A decay is a decay. They may not see it or feel it, but we should remove it, I tell my patients what is important for them, for the short and long term,' he said. He said neither he or the second dentist are wrong, they just have differing opinions on how to diagnose a patient. The story has raised questions about the impact corporate chains have on the market, and whether patients are being over-treated. Head of 1300Smiles, Daryl Holmes, told the publication it was nothing new for a patient to receive varying quotes from various dentists. 'Send someone to five dentists and you'll get five different opinions, there's a bigger crime in under-treating someone,' he said. A young girl was found screaming in the back seat of a car in Houston on Thursday, just feet away from where her father had been shot and killed. The shooting happened around 11:50pm at The Champions Townhomes in the Green neighborhood. Deputies said they found 28-year-old Anthoni Terrell shot in the head, dead, lying next to a car in the parking lot. A two-year-old girl was found sleeping in the back seat of a car next to where her father was fatally shot in a Houston suburb. She was found by police who carried her away to safety Anthoni Terrell, 28, was found shot in the head next to the car at 11:50pm on Thursday night 'A neighbor heard a gunshot fired and deputies responded,' said Sgt. Dennis Wollford, of the Harris County Sheriff's Office homicide division. 'Upon checking the vehicle, it was determined that a small child was inside the vehicle,' Wollford said to Click2Houston. The little girl was initially sleeping in the backseat and was not injured in the shooting but saw everything that happened. 'She was crying out for her daddy,' said a neighbor who didn't want to be identified. 'She just lost her father, and she saw what happened.' The girl's father was found outside the car in a parking lot having been shot in the head The girl was not injured and was later reunited with her mother. Investigators are searching for the shooter The neighbor said she tried to help comfort the girl after the traumatic event. 'I fixed her some hot chocolate, and I gave her a bag of chips to eat, and I gave her a blanket to put on to cover her up because it's cold,' the neighbor said. 'No one should have to go through that. No one.' Deputies say the girl was taken to a Child Protective Services office and reunited with her mother. Investigators say the search is on for the gunman. A vicious fight between two shoppers at a supermarket south of Perth has been captured on video. The video shows two men one wearing nothing but a pair of shorts wrestling each other to the floor of the Spudshed fresh food outlet at Mandurah. Once the fight hit the deck, the pair continued brawling as one man applied a reverse headlock and the other delivered several punches to the ribs. A wild brawl between two shoppers at a fresh food outlet has been caught on camera A security guard interrupted and yelled at the two men to break it up. 'Oi! Hey, take it outside mate.... hey security, take it outside,' he could be heard saying. However, the guard couldn't stop the fight and said to another shopper: 'I'm not getting into it and getting hurt.' Eventually the larger of the two men got the better of the one wearing shorts, telling him to 'let it go.' The cause of the fight was unknown, and police have not confirmed whether they would investigate. But Tayla Macleod, who was at the store and filmed the altercation, told the Mandurah Mail it may have been caused by one of the men staring at the other. Timothy Moriarty, 43, was arrested this week at Poinciana High School and booked into Osceola County Jail on stalking and criminal mischief charges. He posted bail on Friday A Florida high school teacher has been arrested for the second time in two weeks for stalking and harassing his pregnant girlfriend and her 10-year-old daughter, it has been reported. Timothy Moriarty, 43, was arrested this week at Poinciana High School and booked into Osceola County Jail on stalking and criminal mischief charges. He posted bail on Friday. Sheriffs Deputies were called to a local residence on Monday after receiving a report alleging that Moriarty was stalking his girlfriend and her daughter. The woman told investigators that Moriarty harassed them whenever they stepped out of the house where they were staying, WKMG-TV reported. Moriarty allegedly shined the high beams of his car into the home where the girlfriend was staying. He is also alleged to have taped a picture of her daughter on their door. The woman sent her daughter to New York to stay with family until she can move into a new home. Moriarty was first arrested on January 27 after Deputies were called to his home in Poinciana. His girlfriend called the authorities after claiming that the two had fought. Moriarty (above) allegedly poked holes in the tires of his girlfriend's car, turned on the high beams to illuminate the home where she was staying, and texted and called her repeatedly The girlfriend took her 10-year-old daughter and left Moriartys home to stay at a neighbors house across the street. According to authorities, Moriarty gathered the victims belongings and those of her daughter and put them outside. He then called his girlfriend and threatened to set her belongings on fire if she did not get them, according to the arrest warrant. The girlfriend then called deputies because she was afraid to gather her belongings on her own. Just after midnight, deputies arrived at the residence, where Moriarty allegedly became belligerent and confrontational. Moriarty demanded that his girlfriend return the key to the home, but deputies said they could not force her to do so because she lived there. Two hours later, deputies were called back to the neighborhood because Moriarty allegedly began pounding on the neighbors door demanding that his girlfriend return the key. Moriarty was first arrested on January 27 after deputies were called to his home (above) in Poinciana. His girlfriend called the authorities after claiming that the two had fought. The girlfriend took her daughter and went to stay at a neighbors house across the street Moriarty is then alleged to have drilled holes in all four tires of his girlfriends car. Deputies allege that during their second trip to the neighborhood, Moriarty once again became hostile and belligerent. He was taken into custody and booked on charges of assault on a law enforcement officer, breach of peace, and resisting arrest. Later that same day, he posted bail and was released from Osceola County Jail. Moriartys girlfriend then called deputies once again after he allegedly started to text her and call her repeatedly. Osceola County School officials said Moriarty will not return to teach at Poinciana High School. He will first be required to report to the school districts human resources department on Monday, where officials will determine his employment status. Moriarty has been working as a culinary arts teacher at the school since last August. Everybody likes him because he's like a school father, student Percella Newman said. He's a really nice person. He gives us good advice. A rise in 'drunken tattoos' has prompted calls for rogue tattoo artists to be charged with assault if their customer is deemed to intoxicated to consent. Dr John Flynn from the Australasian College of Cosmetic Surgeons is encouraging anyone with 'tattoo regret' to proceed with criminal action, Courier Mail reported. Under the Tattoo Industry Act 2003 in Queensland, it is not illegal to tattoo a drunk person, and Attorney-General Yvette D'Ath says there are currently no plans to introduce new laws to jail tattoo artists. Australasian College of Cosmetic Surgeons spokesman and former president Dr John Flynn is encouraging anyone with 'tattoo regret' to proceed with criminal action Under the Tattoo Industry Act 2003 in Queensland, it is not illegal to tattoo a drunk person Poll Do you have a drunken tattoo you regret? Yes No Do you have a drunken tattoo you regret? Yes 23 votes No 115 votes Now share your opinion But the Department of Justice and Attorney-General has warned that a person who unlawfully assaults a person and causes a person bodily harm is liable to a maximum penalty of seven years in jail. 'These drunken tattoos without proper consent are assault,' Dr Flynn told The Sunday Mail. 'Policing of every tattoo parlour is not always feasible so people need to start taking action. 'Tattoo removal is not an easy thing to do and you are likely to end up with scarring. A cooling-off period is a must.' South Australia introduced a law in 2012 where it is illegal to perform any body modification procedures on intoxicated people A person must not perform a body piercing or body modification procedure on a person who is intoxicated (whether by alcohol or by any other substance or combination of substances),' the law reads Risk of getting a tattoo When getting a tattoo or piercing you risk yourself getting either of the following: Hepatitis C Hepatitis B HIV Bacterial infection Advertisement South Australia introduced a law in 2012 making it illegal to perform any body modification procedures on intoxicated people. 'A person must not perform a body piercing or body modification procedure on a person who is intoxicated (whether by alcohol or by any other substance or combination of substances),' the law reads. Anyone who is caught will face a maximum penalty of $5000 or imprisonment for 12 months. The tattoo artist or similar are allowed to defend themselves on reasonable grounds by proving that they did not know the client was intoxicated at the time of the procedure. Plastic surgeon Dr Laith Barnouti said there's been an astonishing rise in people wanting to remove their drunken tattoos Tradition Tattoo's Ben Rorke told Courier Mail that no artists would tattoo someone if they knew they were under the influence. 'If we ever have any suspicions, we just politely send them away and ask them to come back another time,' Mr Rorke said. Plastic surgeon Dr Laith Barnouti also told the publication that there's been an astonishing rise in people wanting to remove their drunken tattoos. The rival of Australian UFC superstar Robert Whittaker has declared himself as the new middleweight champion after their highly anticipated showdown was called off. The match up between Whittaker and US opponent Kelvin Gastelum was scheduled to be the main event of the sold-out UFC 234 at Melbourne's Rod Laver Arena on Sunday. But Whittaker was rushed to hospital for emergency surgery on a hernia and collapsed bowel the night before his title defence and biggest fight of his life. UFC boss Dana White and Whittaker's management have since said the consequences could been fatal had the bout gone ahead as planned. Despite the dire warning, a triumphant Gastelum made a grand entrance to the UFC 234 arena carrying the title belt and proclaiming himself as the new champion 'for sure'. 'It's my belt and I've earned this, you know what I mean,' he told reporters. 'I showed up, travelled thousands of miles across the world to be here, made the weight, showed up on fight day. In my world, if a guy for whatever reason forfeits, that makes me the champion.' Gastelum's opponent Aussie middleweight titleholder Robert Whittaker (pictured) could have died had his UFC 234 gone ahead in Melbourne on Sunday Kelvin Gastelum declared himself at the new UFC middleweight champion on Sunday Despite copping backlash on social media from fans for showing disrespect to Whittaker, Gastelum declared wouldn't be going home empty handed. 'I made a promise to my people I was coming home with some hardware,' Gastelum said as he touched his new belt. Earlier, a disappointed Gastelum took to social media to express mixed feelings about his forfeited fight. 'God has a reason for doing things and I firmly believe his plans are much bigger and better than I can even imagine. I'm so torn about this situation. A lifetime of pursuit to be able to reach this level and I hope none of these efforts will go in vain,' he tweeted. Robert Whittaker and Kelvin Gastelum faced off in Melbourne in the lead up to the fight Gastelum later tweeted to wish his fierce rival a speedy recovery. Whittaker will spend the next few days in hospital after he was rushed to hospital late Saturday night suffering from severe abdominal pain. 'This is one of those freak accidents where the doctor said he'd literally never seen this type of injury in a young person,' White told ESPN. 'This usually only happens to old people. His bowel and his intestines poked through the hole and it didn't happen yesterday after the [weigh-ins]. They think he had this problem and it's been going in and out.' Kelvin Gastelum (pictured) has declared himself as the new UFC middleweight champion Kelvin Gastelum had mixed feelings about his showdown being called off Whittaker's management released a statement on Sunday afternoon to say he was recovering from dual surgery and was devastated to forfeit. 'Rob will want to speak to his fans directly when he can,' the statement read. 'Up until five minutes before going into surgery, Rob was insisting he would fight, but advice was that a blow to his stomach could be fatal. Rob will come back stronger and ready for what is to come.' Earlier on Saturday afternoon, Whittaker took to social media to say he was ready for his title defence on home soil. 'Never been better prepared or more ready! BRING. IT. ON,' Whittaker posted on Instagram. The Kiwi-born Sydney-based star has been plagued with illness and injury in recent years Disappointed fans commented on Whittaker's post when the news broke on Sunday morning. 'Pullout Merchant. Twice in own country. I understand it can happen but you would had symptoms earlier so i think it's just a b******t excuse,' one posted. Another added: 'Bro are you made of glass. Literally injured before and after every event.' Others called him a coward over the late withdrawal. Whittaker took to Instagram on Saturday to say he was ready to defend his title Other fans jumped to Whittaker's defence and wished him well in his recovery. 'He's one of the best champs, made it through with that thing in his abdomen the whole time. That's a true warrior, good thing doctors picked up on it when they did,' one posted. Another added: 'Get well soon champ. Gutted for you.' With a record of 20 wins from 24 bouts, the Kiwi-born Sydney-based star hasn't been beaten in five years. According to a statement from his management, Robert Whittaker (pictured) insisted he would fight the next day just minutes before he was wheeled into emergency surgery 'I travelled all the way across the world to be here, made the weight, showed up on fight day ... where's my opponent?,' a disappointed Kelvin Gastelum (pictured) However, he's been plagued with injuries and illness in recent years. A straph infection in his stomach forced Whittaker to pull out UFC 221 in Perth last year, which was also a title defence. He was on the comeback after breaking his hand in an epic showdown with Yoel Romero last June. The UFC has offered refunds to disappointed fans who had bought tickets to see Whittaker in action. Whittaker attracted a huge crowd of Melbourne fans in the big build up to UFC 234 Victoria Gotti shared the surprising tidbit for her upcoming Lifetime biopic 'My Father's Daughter', which premieres on Saturday Mob royalty Victoria Gotti revealed that her father shocked her when he said he could see former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani winning the Presidency, if he ran. The daughter of crime boss John Gotti shared the surprising tidbit for her upcoming Lifetime biopic 'My Father's Daughter', which premieres on Saturday. 'I was very surprised, because he looked at me and said, "Eh, maybe he's got a shot? Let's see. You never know,"' she recalled, the New York Daily News reports. Giuliani was Mayor of New York city from 1994 until the end of 2001, just six months before John passed away behind bars. And the mob boss clearly didn't predict correctly, as Giuliani didn't even beat Senator John McCain for the Republican party presidential nomination in 2008. But Victoria still admitted to being shocked by the admission, even though she didn't agree with it. Scroll down for videos Giuliani (left) was Mayor of New York city from 1994 until the end of 2001, just six months before John Gotti (right) passed away behind bars 'This was the man who prosecuted my father so I'm thinking you know?' she said. 'My father actually wanted him to win if he ran.' 'This was the man who prosecuted my father so I'm thinking you know?' she said. 'My father actually wanted him to win if he ran.' Victoria was referring to the 1985 indictment of the 'Five Families' of New York City by Giuliani. Included was John's boss, Paul Castellano. Castellano was gunned down in front of a Midtown steakhouse before he could be convicted - with many believing that John had organized the killing. A 2007 FBI report also indicates that the mobster wanted Giuliani assassinated, but that was ultimately voted down by the other crime families. Victoria was referring to the 1985 indictment of the 'Five Families' of New York City by Giuliani (pictured). Included was John's boss, Paul Castellano But John's daughter asserted that her father would have voted for Giuliani had he been able to do so. 'He said it that day,' she added. Victoria was a 2012 contestant of President Trump's 'Celebrity Apprentice', but makes it her 'business never to talk about politics.' When she was recently told that Trump was compared to a mob boss for his bullying ways, she said: 'I was laughing because I hadn't heard that. Donald can be a little heady. That's for sure. But we got along.' The 56-year-old Brooklyn native deduced both her father and Trump to being like all men in wanting to be in charge. When Victoria was recently told that Trump was compared to a mob boss for his bullying ways, she said: 'I was laughing because I hadn't heard that. Donald can be a little heady. That's for sure. But we got along' 'I think every man would love that power and ability somewhere at some point in their lives every man,' she said. 'Its just an ego thingsome men have bigger egos than others I think every man would love to be in a position of power and say "Do this and not that."' Victoria is confident that today, her father 'would' have won office, but feels he wouldn't have wanted to be President. 'I don't think that would have been a job he would've wanted,' she said. 'He was too much a people person. He believed politicians tell nothing but lies. It was all about games and the drama and the chutzpah he didn't buy that.' A family of seven are facing deportation from New Zealand after immigration say their popular restaurant doesn't create enough jobs. The Shchetkova family arrived from Ukraine to New Zealand six years ago and have since opened up a restaurant, La Vista, which employs 17 full-time staff. They thought their move to New Zealand would make it their new home forever but were heartbroken when immigration denied their residency request telling them to get ready to leave by July 1, Newshub reported. Nataliya Shchetkova's family is facing deportation from New Zealand despite having lived there six years The Shchetkova family arrived from Ukraine to New Zealand six years ago and have since opened up a restaurant, La Vista, which employs 17 full-time staff Immigration argued that the Shchetkova's family restaurant 'does not add enough benefit to New Zealand' by providing on-going employment for its staff. Over 300 people attended a rally on Sunday, organised by ACT Party leader David Seymour, showing support to the Ukranian family calling on immigration to reconsider. Nataliya Shchetkova told the crowd that she was overwhelmed with the support and says it's rekindled the family's hope. She said the family has built their future in New Zealand for their children 'to live in safe, beautiful, inclusive country'. Nataliya Shchetkova told the crowd that she was overwhelmed with the support and says it's rekindled the family's hope Over 300 people attended a rally on Sunday, organised by ACT Party leader David Seymour, showing support to the Ukranian family calling on immigration to reconsider Mr Seymour started a petition - which has over 13,000 signatures - asking for the family to be granted residency by special direction. 'The Government has declined their application for residency despite the family building a successful business as required by their visa requirements,' the petition reads. 'I believe it is simply wrong that upstanding citizens be sent to war-torn Ukraine when others of varying character are allowed to stay. Please show your support of the Immigration Minister intervening so they can stay.' The petition closes on Monday and will be presented to Parliament on Tuesday. He is worth nearly $15 million but chocolate heir, Robert Lea, lives in a mouldy run-down house and is forced to 'beg' the Queensland government for permission to spend his own money. Mr Lea, 72, who is under the financial administration of the Public Trustee of Queensland, has also been charged hundreds of thousands in fees since 2013. Mr Lea's wife, Simone Lea, claims that while her husband has memory lapses he can make decisions in daily life and can make his wishes known. One of the grandsons of the Darrell Lea founder, Mr Lea became a multi-millionaire when the family chocolate business was sold to the Quinn family in 2012 after going into administration in the same year. Robert Lea, one of the heirs to the Darrel Lea chocolates fortune, is under the financial administration of the Public Trustee of Queensland The Leas live in the Gold Coast suburb of Worongary in a modest four-bedroom brick veneer home worth about $520,000. The public trustee reveals Mr Lea was worth $14.68million at the end of 2018 from which he and his wife are paid a living allowance of $185,000 a year, including $50,000 set aside for capital expenses. The couple's income is well above the national average, but with Mr Lea's wealth the couple could be funding a far more luxurious lifestyle. As it is, Mrs Lea told the The Sun-Herald their home was 'very run down' and they had been begging for years to be allowed to upgrade their 'leaking, mouldy and ugly' bathrooms. Darrell Lea (one of its outlets is pictured here) went into administration in 2012 and was then bought for $200million in the same year by the Quinn family The bathroom renovations is now finally going ahead, and the Lea's are also requesting the replacement of their termite damaged shed. Mrs Lea pays living expenses on her credit card then applies for reimbursement, but she claims that sometimes her purchases are vetoed after the fact by the public trustee even though they are within the approved budget. Mrs Lea had not credit card debt in either 2012 or 2013 but now has an outstanding balance of almost $40,000, incurring interest charges of $385 a month. 'It's harassment, pure and simple,' Mrs Lea says. 'This is how they break people - but they won't break me.' The Public Trustee of Queensland (pictured) has charged the Leas with over $300,000 in fees since 2013 The trust has also charged over $300,000 to Mr Lea's trust in fees. The Public Trustee told The Sun-Herald it would be 'quite improper and unlawful' to provide information about an adult whom it is appointed administrator. The public trustee also said the information Mrs Lea provided was lacking in context. Guardianship and financial administration or management are state-based systems designed to protect those who lack decision-making capacity and do not have suitable family members to protect them. However, the system has been criticised for having a number of problems, and has been described by the disability discrimination commissioner as at odd with Australia's United Nations human rights commitments. When Emma Eros first met Milo Yiannopoulos, she recoiled in anger as he told her she should be 'expelled from the west' over her religious beliefs. But on Sunday, all seemed to be forgiven as the right-wing provocateur sent a supportive message to Ms Eros, the first Muslim candidate to stand for Pauline Hanson's One Nation party. Speaking from Miami, the political commentator sent his best wishes to the mother-of-two as she sat down for a Facebook Live interview with Ms Hanson. 'You're probably quite surprised to hear from me, after we had our little run in,' he said. 'But I just had to take a couple of minutes out of my day to send you a message to wish you all the very best. 'It's 3am here in Miami, and I'm struggling through a throat infection, but I wasn't going to let that stop me sending you a message to say: "go for it girl". New One Nation candidate Emma Eros received a message of support from right-wing provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos on Sunday - despite a clash between them in 2017 making national headlines 'I know you and I have had our differences in the past but what you're doing is important. People are not being told the truth about Islam, about what Muslims believe. Not by the politicians and not by the media. 'And if somebody with an Islamic background can help people come understand a little bit more about what Islam is, I think they're doing a good thing.' Mr Yiannopoulos and Ms Eros met in November 2017, during his speaking tour in Australia. She was invited to ask a question, which quickly became a heated debate. The lively discussion descended into shouting, with Ms Eros struggling to make a point over Mr Yiannopoulos's constant barrage of questions. Ms Eros, who supports banning the burqa, for a solution to Islamic extremism in the West. 'Expel Islam from the West,' Mr Yiannapoulos responded. 'Anyone who describes themselves as a Muslim, send them back to the Middle East.' Ms Eros, a Muslim woman from north Sydney, is running as a One Nation candidate for the seat of Hornsby. She sat down with party leader Pauline Hanson to speak about her platform and her religion Ms Eros, who runs her own construction plumbing business, asked Yiannopoulos if he meant she should be deported. 'If you describe yourself as a Muslim. If you believe in the precepts of Islam. All the things Islam seems to produce in those countries, I think you should go,' he said. As the speaker laughed and pestered Ms Eros about how often she prayed, whether she knew about certain interpretations of the Quran and why she had not completed her pilgrimage, the Sydney plumber grew more frustrated and flustered. 'No wonder you don't like Muslims, you don't know what they believe,' he cackled, as Ms Eros tried to regain control of the situation. When confronted with the memory of their debate during her conversation with Ms Hanson, Ms Eros seemed more relaxed about the situation. 'I guess I just lost my train of thought... I didn't know what to expect,' she said. 'I should have done more research, to be honest. I have nothing against Milo, I think I can agree with lots of things he has said in the past, I just didn't agree with the Islam he was talking about.' Milo Yiannopoulos told Ms Eros in 2017 he believed all Muslims should be 'expelled from the west' (pictured) After Mr Yiannopoulos's message played, she responded: 'I appreciate Milo's words of encouragement and support, and I thank him', to the delight of her new boss. The 30-minute Facebook Live conversation between Ms Hanson and Ms Eros appeared tense, with the new candidate badgered about Islamic extremism and her own religious beliefs. She was asked if she ate pork or ham, asked repetitively about honour killings and terrorism, and if she celebrated Christmas. The questions were said to have come from party supporters, some of whom were incensed a Muslim woman was chosen to be a One Nation candidate. Ms Eros appeared to answer the questions appropriately, with Ms Hanson becoming visibly more relaxed as the conversation went on. 'I like Emma,' Ms Hanson said towards the end of the interview, after the self-employed plumber swore she would not leave the party. 'She's got my full support, she will not be disendorsed.' The boyfriend of a mother fatally shot in the head yesterday has revealed how he planned to propose on Valentine's Day. Megan Kirley, 40, was declared dead after paramedics were called to the property on Wembley Road, Karawatha, a southern suburb of Brisbane, in the early hours of Saturday morning. Ms Kirley's shattered partner of six months, Pieter Pickering, 43, made the frantic call to emergency services at around 3am. Megan Kirley (pictured) , 40, was declared dead at the scene by police and paramedics He is currently assisting police with inquires. On Sunday Mr Pickering told how he had been preparing to propose to Ms Kirley on Valentine's Day. 'I loved her so much and planned to ask her to marry me on Valentine's Day. I'm lost now she is gone,' Mr Pickering told The Courier Mail. 'She was the greatest woman this world has ever been graced with.She was strong yet kind and caring, she was understanding and my best friend. She made an impact on every person's lives that were privileged enough to meet her,' he added. Ms Kirley's (pictured) shattered partner of six months, Pieter Pickering, 43, has made the frantic call to emergency services at around 3am Detective Inspector Craig Morrow confirmed the man who had alerted the police to the scene was currently assisting officers with the investigation. 'What we've been able to determine is that he and the deceased were the only ones at the residence at the time of police arrival,' he said. Yesterday, police shut down nearby roads as officers continue to investigate the crime scene. Forensic personnel and homicide detectives attended the scene. Police are asking anyone who was in the area and has dash-cam footage to contact them. If you have information for police, contact Policelink on 131 444 An Anti-Semitic attack dubbed as an 'abominable intolerant act' has left a Jewish community reeling. Numerous sites across Bondi Beach, in Sydney, were found to be defaced with more than 30 Nazi swastikas on Sunday morning. It's believed the seaside suburb was targeted due to the 'significant orthodox Jewish community' in the area, which is also home to synagogues and the Sydney Yeshiva. Numerous sites across Bondi Beach, in Sydney, were found to be defaced with more than 30 swastikas (pictured) Australian Jewish Association president Dr David Adler warned the attack is part of an ongoing racist trend which has spread across the country. 'We see it very much on social media, on Facebook in particular, where we have reported a number of anti-Semitic pages, a number of anti-Semitic comments, Holocaust denial and related comments,' Dr Adler told news.com.au. 'It's certainly been increasing in the last couple of years,' he added. He noted that Bondi was commonly known to have a large Jewish community. Wentworth council confirmed the swastikas (pictured) were being removed on Sunday 'Bondi is also home to a number of Holocaust survivors and it is particularly upsetting to them for obvious reasons,' Dr Adler said. Dr Adler also said the act was contradictory to the core values of Australia, a country which believes in 'religious freedom and expression'. Other prominent members of the Jewish community have spoken out to slam the vandals for scrawling the offence symbol in public areas. International lawyer and former Bondi resident, Arsen Ostrovsky, described the incident as a 'horrific un-Australian act' (pictured) Former Australian ambassador David Sharma took to social media to say this type of racist behaviour had 'no place' in the community (pictured) Former Australian ambassador David Sharma took to social media to say this type of racist behaviour had 'no place' in the community. 'What an abominable, intolerant and shameful act. Anti-Semitism, racism, and hatred in all its forms has no place in our community,' he wrote. While an international lawyer and former Bondi resident, Arsen Ostrovsky, described the incident as a 'horrific un-Australian act'. 'Horrific to hear that Bondi Beach, the iconic Sydney suburb which I was privileged to grow up in [and] which has such large Jewish community, has been defaced with swastikas, in a repulsive, racist, Antisemitic and wholly un-Australian act,' he said. Federal member for Wentworth Dr Kerryn Phelps wrote: 'The Wentworth community is united in outrage by the news that thirty swastikas were graffitied on the murals around Bondi Beach overnight. Federal member for Wentworth Dr Kerryn Phelps said the community is united in it's outrage (pictured) (File picture) Waverley Council had said the swastikas will be removed from the sites surrounding Bondi beach (pictured) on Sunday 'There is no place for anti-Semitism in Australia.' While the Australian Jewish Association also took to its official Facebook page to condemn the graffiti. 'Bondi and Bondi Beach suburbs are home to a significant orthodox Jewish community and includes synagogues and the Sydney Yeshiva,' the post read. 'The growth of overt antisemitism is very worrying. It is contrary to Australian values of freedom and tolerance and must be unreservedly strongly condemned,' it added. The post confirmed that the culprits have not yet been identified. It also added that Waverley Council had said the swastikas will be removed on Sunday. Local police are believed to be investigating the incident. The plan is being spearheaded by Labour MPs Peter Kyle (pictured above) and Phil Wilson New life has been breathed into Theresa May's ailing Brexit deal after a cross-party group of MPs have proposed offering their support in return for a second referendum. The new referendum would offer the British people a choice between the Prime Minister's deal and staying in the European Union. The plan is being spearheaded by Labour MPs Peter Kyle and Phil Wilson alongside vocal Remainers in the Tory party such as Sarah Wollaston, Dominic Grieve and Anna Soubry. Peter Kyle, MP for Hove, said that the amendment would be added to the withdrawal bill, but on the condition that if it passed through Parliament, there would be another referendum. If Kyle's amendment was backed by a majority of MPs but the deal was rejected in the referendum, the UK would remain in the EU under current arrangements. The cross-party initiative will also be a test of confidence that the Prime Minister has in her own deal: if the population supports May's Brexit deal, the UK would immediately initiate its departure on those terms, according to The Observer. The Kyle initiative has won backing from vocal Tory Remainers including Anna Soubry MP Kyle, 48, told The Observer: 'The beauty of this plan is that it holds attractions for both Leavers and Remainers. For Leavers, if the deal is confirmed by the British people, it offers a definitive end to the withdrawal process with Brexit sealed once and for all. For Remainers, on the other hand, it offers the chance to make the case to stay in the EU to the public, based on facts not promises as before,' said Kyle. 'Remainers could vote for May's deal, or abstain, even though they might not like it, in the knowledge that they could campaign against it later in the referendum. 'The key is that Labour and Tory MPs could choose their own way of allowing the bill to pass, yet both will still be able to campaign in the referendum for their real objectives and their principles will remain intact'. Sarah Wollaston MP said the plan was a 'very sensible way forward that I would be happy to support' Labour MPs Kyle and Wilson say they have found a precedent in their idea based on how the Good Friday Agreement on Northern Ireland power-sharing passed through parliament in 1998. While the initiative has won the backing of Anna Soubry MP and Sarah Wollaston MP said the plan was a 'very sensible way forward that I would be happy to support', the position of Kyle's own party leadership looks more uncertain. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said his party would only back Theresa May's deal on five conditions including a permanent UK-wide customs union. However, Corbyn has insisted that he will not rule out a second referendum and that "all options are on the table". The money man behind a new young conservatives movement targeting British universities is a devout Vladimir Putin supporter who wants closer ties with Russia. Turning Point UK is a US-backed campaign to counter Left-wing dominance on campuses, set up by supporters of Donald Trump on both sides of the Atlantic. But The Mail on Sunday can reveal that its leading fundraiser, John Mappin, is a millionaire Kremlin cheerleader. Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a Security Council meeting in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia on Friday Turning Point UK is a US-backed campaign to counter Left-wing dominance on campuses, set up by supporters of Donald Trump on both sides of the Atlantic Mr Mappin, who owns Cornish three-star resort Camelot Castle and is a practising Scientologist, regularly uses Twitter to urge closer ties with the Kremlin, saying being friends with Putin is very smart. We love him. The jewellery heir also publicly questioned the Governments account of the Salisbury Novichok attack, parroting Kremlin talking points on the outrage. The group launched with a lavish drinks party in Londons clubland and has since received backing from leading Brexiteers including Jacob Rees-Mogg but critics have branded it hard-Right. Tory MP Bob Seely said: I would be wary of having support from anyone who pledges support for an authoritarian Russian regime. We have to start being careful again about where money in our political system is coming from. But last night Mr Mappin insisted his views on Russia and Putin had absolutely no connection to Turning Point UK. Theresa May has reignited her war of words with John Bercow after issuing a stinging rebuke for his Brexit cheating. Relations between the Government and the controversial Commons Speaker plumbed new depths on Wednesday evening, after the PM tore into the former Tory MP at a private event for donors. After Mr Bercow was accused of plotting with Remainers to ignore hundreds of years of parliamentary process and allow pro-EU MPs to try to block or delay Brexit, Mrs May took aim at the Speaker during the Conservatives annual Black and White Ball. Theresa May tore into John Bercow at a private dinner for donors (pictured here at the Royal Free Hospital last summer) Mr Bercow sparked Commons uproar last month by defying advice from his own officials to allow Tory Dominic Grieve to try to hamstring Mrs Mays negotiations. John Bercow, the controversial Tory speaker of the House of Commons And speaking at the fundraiser, which is notorious for its controversial auction lots, Mrs May teased: We do have one unique prize tonight. Its John Bercows personal copy of the parliamentary manual. His Erskine May. One careful owner, never used. Erskine Mays Parliamentary Practice is the definitive guide to Commons rules, and Mrs Mays dig drew thunderous applause and cheers from the party faithful. Of the genuine lots, a lunch date with former Chancellor George Osborne sold for more than 14,000, while a dinner cooked by Michael Gove fetched another 16,000 for the party coffers. Rich Tories paid more than 15,000 for a table at the ball, held in South-West London. Calls for the Red Arrows, above, to fly over Parliament on EU exit day have been blocked by a Remainer Minister over fears of upsetting pro-EU voters. Tory MP Nigel Evans has appealed to the Ministry of Defence for a flypast to properly celebrate that important historic event. But Tobias Ellwood rejected the plea, saying it would be too divisive. The Red Arrows training above RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire on a clear day last month He told Mr Evans: Although 17 million people may be shouting for joy on that day and may demand that the Red Arrows participate, the nation as a whole 43 million voters must come together, put aside their polarised views and the gridlock we have faced and move forward. Mr Ellwood also raised eyebrows in the House of Commons by adding: We were on different sides of the argument. 'To be clear, where we are is not where I would want to be. But he insisted he would continue supporting Britains EU exit if there is a deal as he was committed to democracy. The upcoming election is the country's first since the current Prime Minister, army general Prayut Chan-o-cha, took power in 2014 a military coup Princess Ubolratana Mahidols bid to become the next prime minister of Thailand has been blocked by her brother, the king. Her sudden decision to stand for the Thai Raksa Chart Party collapsed when King Maha Vajiralongkorn banned her from running. Yesterday Ms Ubolratana, 67, thanked people for their support and encouragement. Thai Princess Ubolratana's decision to stand for the Thai Raksa Chart Party collapsed when King Maha Vajiralongkorn banned her from running. The upcoming election is the country's first since the current Prime Minister, army general Prayut Chan-o-cha, took power in 2014 a military coup [File photo] After her original announcement, the king had issued a statement from the palace which declared the royals 'exist in a status above politics'. The Thai Raksa Chart party is steered by the divisive Shinawatra political clan. The Thai royal family, a revered institution shielded from criticism by a tough defamation law, has traditionally been seen as above the political fray, although royals have intervened in moments of political crisis. The upcoming election is the country's first since the current Prime Minister, army general Prayut Chan-o-cha, took power in 2014 a military coup. Mr Prayut overthrew the democratic government of Yingluck Shinawatra, the younger sister of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt attends a reception hosted by Prime Minister Theresa May at 10 Downing Street Six Cabinet plotters led by Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt are holding secret Brexit peace talks behind Theresa Mays back, The Mail on Sunday has learnt. Aided by Brexiteer Ministers Chris Grayling and Liam Fox, Mr Hunt held an emergency meeting with Remainers David Gauke, Greg Clark and Amber Rudd last week, with more private talks planned for tomorrow evening. The Cabinet has been split into Leave and Remain camps, but fears that No 10 is dangerously close to losing its grip have brought Ministers from both sides together, said one source at the meetings. The source said the talks were designed to find common ground between the warring Cabinet groups, as well as to strengthen the Prime Ministers hand by keeping a No Deal option on the table in talks with Brussels. The Foreign Secretary has argued that now is the time to hold that [No Deal] card but he is also looking for ways to satisfy Ministers who back a softer Brexit. Our revelation that Mr Hunt is taking a prominent role in bypassing No 10 will reignite speculation of a leadership challenge amid claims he is hoping to cement his position as the frontrunner to succeed her as Tory leader. Amber Rudd, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, arrives for a Cabinet Meeting last week Liam Fox, Secretary of State for International Trade and President of the Board of Trade, is in the Brexiteer camp Meanwhile, the Cabinet was told last week to urgently review its legislative programme and critically evaluate what laws can be delayed until the summer as Mrs May prepares to railroad her Brexit deal through the Commons. All Secretaries of State have been ordered to identify opportunities for cross-departmental collaboration to create Super Bills for critical legislation in the coming months to free up the Commons timetable to pass Brexit legislation as quickly as possible. However, Ministers have been warned there is a preference for the avoidance of Bills. Privately, Downing Street insiders concede that a delay to Britains exit from the EU, scheduled for March 29, will be needed. But there are deep fears that diehard Brexiteers could vote with Labour in a motion of no confidence against the Government if the request to extend departure comes ahead of a crunch summit on March 21 when the European Council meets. Downing Street still hopes to convene a special meeting of EU leaders later this month. But it is understood any extension to the Brexit deadline could be discussed at the Council, though it is seen as being held too late for a breakthrough on the hated Irish backstop. One Cabinet source said: Everyone knows they [Downing Street] are going to have to extend, but they fear that if they announce that before March 21, a dozen nutters will bring down the Government. Greg Clark, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, and one of the Remainers, leaves the Cabinet Meeting David Gauke, Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, leaves the Cabinet meeting last month Downing Street is braced for a fresh attempt this week from Remain MPs led by Labours Yvette Cooper to seize control of the Brexit process, but Mrs Mays team hope it can be diffused by the offer of more Commons votes. The Prime Minister is due to report back to Parliament on her negotiations with the EU on Wednesday, with a further series of votes by MPs expected the next day. Downing Street sources last night pleaded with Tory MPs not to tie the hands of Mrs May on Thursday and promised that a third amendable motion would be put before the House by February 27. Last week, Mrs May told Brussels that its hope of relying on Labour MPs to back a softer Brexit deal was not going to work and they could not rely on Jeremy Corbyn. Dressed in a dirty jacket and creased trousers, Jeremy Corbyn arrived in Westminster as a new MP in the summer of 1983. He immediately told friends that Parliament was a waste of time with no relevance to his Islington constituents, especially the immigrant communities. To meet them, he set up offices in the Red Rose Centre in Holloway where his door was always open to a tide of human misery: Cypriots, Jamaicans, Indians, Pakistanis, South Africans, South Americans, Somalis, West Saharans and Kurds all sought his help. Diane Abbott, Jeremy Corbyn and Bernie Grant in the House of Commons The procession of petitioners reinforced his conviction that Britain should allow unrestricted immigration and offer the worlds destitute an open invitation to share our wealth. In his opinion, all immigrant communities were victims of white imperialists, and the British state owed them a financial obligation. Anyone who disagreed was racist. Four years later Corbyn was back in Westminster for another first day of the new Parliament. In his opinion, all immigrant communities were victims of white imperialists, and the British state owed them a financial obligation To celebrate a new era, Britains first three black MPs all Labour marched into the Commons chamber together. Paul Boateng, Diane Abbott and Bernie Grant, together with the Asian Keith Vaz, each dressed in their parents national costumes, created an unprecedented spectacle as they walked towards the Speaker to take the oath. Acting as part-supplicant and part-valet, Corbyn walked immediately behind, pleased to have a place as the honorary white man for the black caucus. Look at Jeremy, said Brian Wilson, a new Scottish MP, to George Galloway, who had also been newly elected. He would black up if he could. Mr Cleggs action was a clear conflict of interest, it is claimed in legal documents seen by The Mail on Sunday Sir Nick Clegg has been accused of breaching the Ministerial Code when he was Deputy Prime Minister by requesting confidential details of a criminal bribery inquiry into a company which weeks later became a client of his lawyer wife Miriam. Mr Cleggs action was a clear conflict of interest, it is claimed in legal documents seen by The Mail on Sunday. The filing in a US court also accuses him of breaching government protocol by failing to send his request via the Attorney Generals office. His request for information concerned a Serious Fraud Office case involving Kazakh mining giant Eurasian Natural Resources Company (ENRC) in December 2011. The SFO briefing sent back to him was marked in anticipation of a possible question he might be asked in Parliament. But Hansard records show Mr Clegg was never asked about ENRC in the Commons, nor did he table any other questions. A month after the letter, Clegg's wife Miriam Gonzalez Durantez, 50, took on ENRC as a high-value client upon joining US law firm Dechert LLP as a partner A month after the letter, his wife Miriam Gonzalez Durantez, 50, took on ENRC as a high-value client upon joining US law firm Dechert LLP as a partner. Over the next two years, Dechert racked up fees totalling 16 million on the case, with Ms Gonzalezs time billed at 570 an hour. These fees are now the subject of a bitter legal dispute between ENRC and Dechert. Mr Clegg faces being quizzed in a Californian court about his role in the case just as he takes on a job in Silicon Valley as chief PR adviser for Facebook, reportedly earning 15 million a year. The US legal docket from ENRCs new lawyers also contains the claim that Ms Gonzalezs senior colleague and mentor, Neil Gerrard, boasted to colleagues that through her and Mr Clegg, he could influence and in some cases change government policy. David Cameron (left) and Sir Nick Clegg (right) who was accused of breaching the Ministerial Code when he was Deputy Prime Minister The papers claim strong evidence that Ms Gonzalez and/or Mr Gerrard was in communication with Clegg concerning ENRC as part of Gerrards scheme to expand the scope of Decherts investigation and thereby increase the fees that Dechert was able to charge. Mr Cleggs alleged role emerged in court papers filed in San Francisco on Friday, applying for him to be subpoenaed to explain his actions. The SFO briefing had given Mr Clegg a detailed summary of the case and warned it regards its dealings with ENRC plc as confidential the SFO response to any public or press enquiries has been and remains to neither confirm nor deny any investigation is taking place. According to the newly filed documents: There was a clear conflict of interest as a result of Mr Cleggs wifes role at Dechert. The Ministerial Code states it is the personal responsibility of each Minister to decide whether and what action is needed to avoid a conflict or the perception of a conflict [of interest]. Mr Clegg, 52, is also accused of flouting protocol by sending his request to the SFO via the Foreign Office, rather than the Attorney Generals Office, which has responsibility for the agency. The docket also contains a letter sent by a whistleblower to then SFO head, Sir David Green, in July 2012, alleging that a drunken Mr Gerrard boasted to fellow lawyers that via Ms Gonzalez, he had direct access to Nick Clegg and the heads [of] many European governments. The letter added that through this route, Mr Gerrard had the ability to influence and in some cases change government policy. ENRC denies any corruption and has called for the ongoing SFO inquiry into its activities, which has led to no charges, to be scrapped. Dechert and Mr Gerrard have denied the claims made by ENRC and the whistleblower and yesterday declined to comment further. Mr and Mrs Clegg, the SFO, Foreign Office, Attorney Generals Office and Cabinet Office all declined to comment. One of Corbyns defining characteristics is his hatred of the middle class even though, as the son of a skilled engineer and a grammar school maths teacher, who grew up in a five-bedroom 17th Century farmhouse in Shropshire called Yew Tree Manor, he couldnt be more middle class himself. Corbyn disapproves of ambition and success equating both with greed. To create the Marxist ideal, he dreams of using taxation and confiscation of middle-class wealth to irreversibly transform Britain. His goal isnt equality of opportunity to prosper its equality of poverty. Until recently, Corbyn did not conceal his contempt for his middle-class quarry but, in his hunger to win power, he and John McDonnell have starkly moderated their language. Affluent start: Yew Tree Manor, the sprawling five-bedroom home in Shropshire where Corbyn grew up Yet his true feelings are stamped throughout his career. As a Haringey councillor in 1974, faced with a huge housing problem after the arrival of thousands of Cypriot refugees in London, Corbyn proposed building homes on green parkland. Local residents were outraged, which delighted him. The rich, he scoffed, clearly disliked living alongside immigrants but they would have no choice. Four years later Haringey Council workers went on strike after their eye-watering demands for a 40 per cent pay increase were rejected. Corbyn, even though as a councillor he was their employer, joined them on the picket line outside the councils premises. Corbyn disapproves of ambition and success equating both with greed Rapidly, Haringeys streets filled with bags of uncollected rubbish, children couldnt enter schools (the caretakers prevented them), and repairs to council homes were abandoned. Volvos are sliding on the ice on Muswell Hill, Corbyn gaily told Toby Harris, a fellow councillor. The sight of suffering middle-classes, Harris noticed, evidently pleased Corbyn. Later as leader of Haringey Councils Left-wing caucus, he encouraged plans to build council blocks among private houses, and when people protested he dismissed them, scoffing: The arrogance of all those doctors and lawyers, talking about the environment when what theyre scared of is black kids. On another occasion, to spite Muswell Hills middle class, he allowed gypsy families to set up an encampment on local playing fields. Jeremy Corbyn would be the 'least intelligent and least well-educated politician ever to enter No 10' after flopping at school where he scraped two Grade E's at A-Level, biography reveals If Corbyn does become Britishs first Marxist-Trotskyist Prime Minister, hell also be the least intelligent and least well-educated politician ever to enter No 10. At school Haberdashers Adams, a selective grammar in Shropshire he was regarded as a poor student, unsporty, insouciant and gauche. He was not noticeably clever, recalled Lynton Seymour-Whiteley, his finely named Latin teacher. For his 16th birthday, Corbyns mother gave her youngest son a collection of George Orwells essays, although young Jeremy never claimed to have read them. He was not noticeably clever, recalled Lynton Seymour-Whiteley, his Latin teacher (pictured: Jeremy Corbyn aged 18 in 1967) Rather, he sat in his bedroom poring over Ordnance Survey maps of the surrounding countryside and gazing at a world atlas, dreaming of future journeys. In the corner was a hand-operated Gestetner duplicator, used to produce leaflets for the local Labour Party. Politics was already his obsession. Corbyns A-levels were dismal he scraped two with the bottom grade E and totally failed one. With no chance of following his three brothers to university, on his last day headmaster John Roberts predicted: Youll never make anything of your life. Over his head: The Trotsky book Corbyn never bothered to read Afterwards his embarrassed mother would tell people that it was her sons poor handwriting that prevented him getting to university. Later, she suggested he enrol at the Polytechnic of North London in Holloway to study trade unionism, and he agreed. But Corbyn barely entered the building before he abandoned the course. I was utterly bored, he would say later, but academic work was beyond his abilities. He and his brother Piers would in later years craft a story of defiance: how he had walked out of the polytechnic after an argument with a lecturer about his course. Just as his first wife would be shocked by his failure to read so too was his friend and constituency agent, Keith Veness. When they first met, Veness handed Corbyn a copy of Trotskys History Of The Russian Revolution. Six months later Corbyn returned the book, still in its wrapping. He wasnt interested in reading anything, Veness concluded. It was a waste of time talking to him about books. Veness could not decide whether Corbyn who relies for his news on The Morning Star and occasionally the Guardian was unintellectual or just lazy. Stung by his academic failures, Corbyn came to loathe achievers, especially undergraduates with ambitions to get to the top. Most of all he hated the successful and prosperous, and identified with losers. An 11-year-old pit bull has saved the lives of a family after sniffing out a gas leak in the basement of the family home in New York. Neither Serena Costello or her four-year-old daughter were home when the leak began at their house in Tuckahoe street in Westchester county. But thankfully their dog Sadie was in and managed to escape, by chewing through a blocker in front of the backdoor, to alert the neighbors. Residents heard the frantic barking and called the police. When officers arrived the clever canine led them round the back of the house where they noticed a sliding door in the backyard that was open - and a distinct smell of gas. Officials with the Eastchester Fire Department and Con Edison later determined there was a gas leak coming from the basement. Sadie is being hailed as a hero because her escape and frantic barking alerted the police 'The dog saved the house from a potential gas explosion and gas leak,' police Lieutenant Lawrence Rotta told WABC. 'The dog ran and took the officers through several streets, and then lead them back to the dog's residence into the backyard,' 'Did Sadie sense danger? Did she smell the gas in the house, and force her way outside to the street to draw attention?' the police department pondered. 'Sadie - Great work sniffing out danger and getting help! If we are ever in need of a K9, we will put you at the top of our list!' it added. The dog had made quite the mess of the doors to the basement room where she had been Sadie somehow managed to scrape her way out of the house and open the patio door 'She is a hero,' Sadie's owner Serena Costello said, adding that the dog ultimately saved both her life and that of her four-year-old daughter. 'It's just so out of character for her to do. She saved our lives.' Further inspection revealed claw marks and blood on the back of the door, leading the family to believe Sadie sensed there was danger and jumped into action. 'She went from being in time out to being my girl,' Costello said. 'It looks like she was trying to get out this window...She was determined to get out.' At one point, Costello was initially written a summons for having a dog off the leash in the area, but then one of the officers on the scene 'ripped it up' after the gas leak was discovered. Homeowner Serena Costello is amazed that the dog managed to sense anything was wrong If Corbyn does become Britishs first Marxist-Trotskyist Prime Minister, hell also be the least intelligent and least well-educated politician ever to enter No 10. At school Haberdashers Adams, a selective grammar in Shropshire he was regarded as a poor student, unsporty, insouciant and gauche. He was not noticeably clever, recalled Lynton Seymour-Whiteley, his finely named Latin teacher. For his 16th birthday, Corbyns mother gave her youngest son a collection of George Orwells essays, although young Jeremy never claimed to have read them. He was not noticeably clever, recalled Lynton Seymour-Whiteley, his Latin teacher (pictured: Jeremy Corbyn aged 18 in 1967) Rather, he sat in his bedroom poring over Ordnance Survey maps of the surrounding countryside and gazing at a world atlas, dreaming of future journeys. In the corner was a hand-operated Gestetner duplicator, used to produce leaflets for the local Labour Party. Politics was already his obsession. Corbyns A-levels were dismal he scraped two with the bottom grade E and totally failed one. With no chance of following his three brothers to university, on his last day headmaster John Roberts predicted: Youll never make anything of your life. Over his head: The Trotsky book Corbyn never bothered to read Afterwards his embarrassed mother would tell people that it was her sons poor handwriting that prevented him getting to university. Later, she suggested he enrol at the Polytechnic of North London in Holloway to study trade unionism, and he agreed. But Corbyn barely entered the building before he abandoned the course. I was utterly bored, he would say later, but academic work was beyond his abilities. He and his brother Piers would in later years craft a story of defiance: how he had walked out of the polytechnic after an argument with a lecturer about his course. Just as his first wife would be shocked by his failure to read so too was his friend and constituency agent, Keith Veness. When they first met, Veness handed Corbyn a copy of Trotskys History Of The Russian Revolution. Six months later Corbyn returned the book, still in its wrapping. He wasnt interested in reading anything, Veness concluded. It was a waste of time talking to him about books. Veness could not decide whether Corbyn who relies for his news on The Morning Star and occasionally the Guardian was unintellectual or just lazy. Stung by his academic failures, Corbyn came to loathe achievers, especially undergraduates with ambitions to get to the top. Most of all he hated the successful and prosperous, and identified with losers. Ozzy Osbourne was treated in intensive care amid fears he could have developed pneumonia. The rock star was rushed to a private hospital's critical facility after his bronchitis became progressively worse. His wife Sharon and their two children Jack and Kelly, along with other relatives, have been trying to keep his spirits up following the last three days. Ozzy Osbourne (pictured after being hospitalised in October) is now back in the wards again after fears his bronchitis may worsen 'Poor old Ozzy hasn't had the best of times,' a source told The Sun. 'He's been really struggling with flu which turned into bronchitis. Doctors feared he could contract pneumonia which, in a person over 70, can be fatal. 'This sparked a lot of panic among those closest to him, but doctors reassured everyone he was in the best possible hands. 'Ozzy's a fighter, and is getting better day by day. The worst is over, he's smiling again, and he can't wait to get up on stage.' The 70-year-old has spent the past 11 days in hospital but is due to be released this week The 70-year-old has spent the past 11 days in hospital but is due to be released this week. He has been forced to postpone his UK and European tour as a result of the illness. In a statement, Osbourne said: 'It just seems that since October everything I touch has turned to s***.' A spokesman said he will cancel the Australian leg of the tour. In October, the Prince of Darkness said he became ill while on his US tour and was forced to cancel his show at the Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, California while he spent two days in hospital. He had to have surgery after getting a serious infection in his thumb which caused the digit to swell to the size of a lightbulb after having a manicure. Following his divorce from his second wife Claudia in 1999, Corbyn enjoyed relationships with a succession of younger women. Among the most prominent was Loraine Monk, a member of the London Labour Party executive who lived in Kingston upon Thames. Noted for dressing in Oxfam clothes, Monk asked Corbyn to take her to receptions, and to everyones great surprise he agreed. Other women followed, including Ann Cesek, a lively blonde Marxist. Many were bewildered by how an unkempt, anti-social man, now in his 60s and dedicated to his allotment and jam-making, could attract any woman. Unlikely Lothario: Jeremy Corbyn with his current wife Laura Alvarez The answer was partly that Left-wing activists seek different qualities than domestic goddesses, and partly what his old friend Val Veness told Corbyn to his face: You couldnt pull all these women if you werent an MP. They wouldnt be interested in an old man with a beard. Corbyns lifestyle changed after he forged a new, long-term relationship. In 1999 he had helped Marcela Alvarez, a Mexican living in Britain, to find her son, who had been taken away by his father. Loraine Monk, one of Jeremy Corbyn's old flames In the midst of the custody battle, Marcelas sister Laura had arrived from Mexico to give moral support. Over the years Corbyn and Laura developed a transatlantic friendship, albeit Laura was 20 years younger than him. Unlike his second wife Claudia Bracchitta, she was not a middle-class intellectual but a smalltown activist. Their relationship developed slowly, not helped by Corbyns evident boredom during his visits to Mexico he tended to go off on his own to send long text messages to people in England but eventually they agreed to share his small house in a quiet street in Highbury. Like her predecessors, Alvarez soon discovered that Corbyn was not helpful with the housework, and was rarely at home, for all his objections about a very unequal society. Nevertheless, they married in 2013. As was the case with his two previous marriages, none of his political friends knew in advance or was invited. Topshop tycoon Sir Philip Green is considering hitting former colleagues in the pocket if it emerges they breached confidentiality agreements over allegations that he sexually harassed, bullied and made racist remarks towards staff. The Mail on Sunday understands that the billionaire retail boss and his advisers are looking at whether non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) have been breached. Sir Philip could seek to recover the money he paid to claimants as part of those agreements. In some cases, former staff who signed NDAs after making allegations were paid more than 1 million. The tycoon faced claims yesterday that he groped women, put one senior executive in a headlock and told a black man that he was still throwing spears in the jungle. Tina Green (left) Sir Philip Green and Chloe Green attend the Fashion for Relief event during the 70th annual Cannes Film Festival in May 2017 Philip Green speaks during an interview at his new Topshop store in Hong Kong in 2013 The allegations were revealed by The Daily Telegraph after Sir Philip abandoned High Court action to prevent the newspaper publishing them. Last night, Sir Philips retail group Arcadia, which also owns fashion brands Dorothy Perkins and Burton, confirmed that he and the company were considering pursuing legal action against the individuals. None of the former employees concerned has been named publicly. A spokesman for Arcadia said: The NDAs were entered into willingly by individuals who received independent legal advice about their rights and responsibilities. The judge has confirmed that these NDAs and the confidentiality surrounding them were legitimate. Five employees reportedly signed gagging agreements in exchange for payoffs. If Sir Philip does pursue legal action, it is likely to prove controversial. Equalities Minister Penny Mordaunt has said the Government will tackle the abuse of NDAs, which are more commonly used to protect commercially sensitive information in business deals. Sir Philip attending Loulou's nightclub in London in September 2017 She said: It is unacceptable that non-disclosure orders have been used to hide workplace harassment or intimidate victims into silence and we will take the necessary steps to stop this. The claims revealed in the Telegraph included a female executive receiving more than 1 million after complaining that Sir Philip groped her, and a second woman being given hundreds of thousands of pounds following complaints that he grabbed her face and made inappropriate comments. A third woman alleged Sir Philip gripped her in a headlock and sexually harassed her, and that she was paid hundreds of thousands when she signed an NDA. A black staff member also received a 1 million pay-off to keep quiet about alleged racial harassment, it is claimed. According to the newspaper, Sir Philip criticised the executive, saying everyone else is firing guns and youre still throwing spears in the jungle. Sir Philip has always strenuously denied harassment. In October, he told The Mail on Sunday that he had indulged in no more than office banter, adding: As far as Im concerned thats never been offensive. The nature of the cases Sir Philip might bring against former staff will depend on the terms of the NDA contracts they signed. In some cases, signatories are barred from even discussing the existence of an NDA or the matters it relates to. Sir Philip ended his legal battle with the Telegraph before the case was due to go to trial, allowing the billionaire to side-step an expensive and high-profile court case. He has been ordered to pay most of the newspapers legal costs, along with his own, leaving him a bill of 3 million. The Topshop tycoons efforts to stop publication suffered a major blow when Labour peer Peter Hain used parliamentary privilege to name Sir Philip as the mystery subject of a Daily Telegraph report which was billed as the British #MeToo scandal. Muslim One Nation candidate Emma Eros has said she 'respects Sharia law', but says it could never work in Australia. Ms Eros, a plumber running for the seat of Hornsby in Sydney's north shore in the upcoming state election, told the panel on Outsiders she respected the laws of other countries, and simply wanted to see that attitude reciprocated. 'Sharia law is a very complex issue,' she said. 'I respect what other countries want to have as a law in their country. As far as Im concerned we dont have Sharia law in this country, not now not ever. 'I respect what you have over there I expect the same when you come over here.' Emma Eros, a Muslim One Nation candidate who is running for the seat of Hornsby, says she 'respects' Sharia Law In a wide-ranging interview with Outsiders, Ms Eros said she has been harshly critiqued by more conservative Muslims, but says she believes Pauline Hanson's One Nation is the best party to lead Australia Ms Eros has long been outspoken about her faith, and made headlines in 2017 for questioning right-wing provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos on his beliefs about Islam. She says she has been attacked by more conservative Muslim people for her decision to run as a candidate for One Nation - a party that wants to see surveillance cameras in every mosque and decline Muslim politicians the right to be sworn in under the Quran. Ms Eros says she is not bothered by the criticism, and believes she is doing the right thing for her country by aligning herself with Pauline Hanson. 'We cant win them all, part of the reason I am speaking out is because of extremist thinkers out there,' she said. 'They dont represent people like myself. They can attack all they like sticks and stones as far as Im concerned. Ms Eros says she also believes in banning the Burqa, and said it should be treated the same as a balaclava or a helmet would 'This is Australia, this is my country and I absolutely love it and I want to protect it.' Ms Eros told the Outsiders panel Ms Hanson is 'one of the most amazing women she has ever spoken to'. 'She absolutely loves this country and I think people have a different understanding of what she represents and they forget that she is representing the people of Australia,' she said. While Ms Eros and Ms Hanson may have some issues to work out regarding the Queenslander's policies on Islam in Australia, they do agree on one thing. Ms Eros said she firmly believes in banning the burqa, claiming the headscarf has 'no place in Australia'. 'You have to take a helmet and balaclavas why isnt it the same,' she asked. She said the right-wing party did not want to 'ban' Muslim people from entering Australia despite One Nation's official policy being to impose an America-style travel ban. The Trump administration banned immigrants from entering the US from countries that are 'known sources of radicalism'. 'One Nation isnt saying ban Muslim people. It doesnt want trouble makers like in Melbourne with the African crime gangs,' she said. 'We dont have successful integration, it isnt working. 'It's not like the migration in the 1960s when people worked with their blood sweat and tears. 'They are not coming here and doing that, and unfortunately the taxpayer is paying for all this.' Proposed changes to the way sick asylum seekers are transferred to Australia are designed to end the nation's offshore processing system, according to Immigration Minister David Coleman. The changes, in a legislative amendment supported by Labor and crossbenchers, would ensure two specially-appointed doctors can request medical transfers for offshore asylum seekers to Australia. A minister would then be required to review their case in 24 hours, and if they reject it, an independent health advice panel would review it. Proposed changes to the way sick asylum seekers are transferred to Australia are designed to end the nation's offshore processing system Immigration Minister said amendment would lead to demise of offshore process (pictured detention centre on Manus Island) Despite Labor arguing the panel's advice could still be overruled by a minister on security grounds, Mr Coleman says the laws are designed to allow every asylum seeker detained offshore to be sent to Australia. That would undermine the nation's offshore processing system and ultimately lead to its demise, he says. 'Within weeks, it is highly likely - and that's the advice that we've received - that substantially everyone who is currently on Manus and Nauru would come to Australia,' he told Sky News on Sunday. 'The structure of this legislation is designed to undermine offshore processing to such a state that it no longer exists any more.' The minister dodged questions about whether that suggests everyone in the offshore processing centres is unwell. But Mr Coleman said the current process was effective, with doctors located at offshore processing sites recommending transfers which are then considered by the government's Department of Home Affairs. 'The structure of this legislation is designed to undermine offshore processing to such a state that it no longer exists any more' The coalition also announced this week it would establish an independent health panel, which could ask bureaucrats to review individual cases, as an extra layer of oversight. Asked about the courts approving transfer applications knocked back by the government, Mr Coleman said those cases were in the minority. 'The overwhelming majority of transfers have been through the usual process.' Labor has said it will look at advice from security agencies against the proposed changes as the party searchers for a 'middle ground' with the government. The opposition voted for the bill - inspired by a push from Independent MP Kerryn Phelps - in the Senate and had indicated its support in the lower house. A vote is expected on the changes as early as this week, with the minority coalition government facing the prospect of a loss if both Labor and enough crossbenchers support them. But Labor leader Bill Shorten appeared to back away from it on Friday. 'I do think if there's middle ground, we should try and find it,' he told reporters in Sydney. Secondary schools are offering students make-up lessons in a bid to keep up with increasingly-elaborate standards portrayed by beauty gurus online. The surge in interest comes amid a revolution for the make-up industry which sees online often-amateur artists post picture-perfect looks to millions of followers. For make-up artist and workshop facilitator Larissa Jones, the shift has led to a gap in the market for schools whose students are inspired by their Internet idols. 'We've hit an era with YouTube just blowing up with beauty bloggers. It's really important to speak to the young girls,' she told the ABC. Secondary schools are offering students make-up lessons in a bid to keep up with increasingly-elaborate standards portrayed by beauty gurus like Jazmine Hand (pictured) The surge in interest comes amid a revolution for the make-up industry which sees online often-amateur artists post picture-perfect looks to millions of followers (file image) '[It's about] helping them realise you've got the power to change how you feel about yourself on the inside.' An important part of Ms Jones' work is leading workshops with teenage girls, which she has already held in more than 30 schools across Australia. The courses focused on emaphasising 'inner-beauty' and showcasing kindness in addition to learning techniques to better apply make-up. Following a session at Karoonda Area School, in south-east South Australia, one student revealed the impact workshops had while getting ready for a Christmas school disco. 'When I finally finished (putting a themed outfit together) I hated what I looked like,' the student wrote to Ms Jones in a text. For make-up artist and workshop facilitator Larissa Jones, (pictured) the shift has led to a gap in the market for schools whose students are inspired by their Internet idols 'I was frightened of what people at my school would think of me, but then I remembered the self-talk I remembered from Larissa Jones. 'I started to say good things to myself such as: you look amazing, you are unique, who cares what people think - saying all of this gave me enough confidence to go to the disco. Among Australia's top influencers are Shani Grimmond (right) and Michael Finch (left) who have a combined following of more than three millions followers on YouTube alone 'Without Larissa's help I would have never had the courage to go,' the girl concluded. Much of the past decade has seen the beauty industry revolutionised by increasingly-daring make-up artists post tutorials to their looks online. Among Australia's top influencers are Shani Grimmond, Michael Finch and Jaz Hand who have a combined following of more than three millions followers on YouTube alone. The rain lashed down and wind blew in fiercely over icy Baltic waters as Peter Skaarup stepped back on the Danish mainland off the ferry from Lindholm island. 'It's a very nice place,' he told me with a smile. 'If you go there you will see a very pleasant, quiet island. There are no cars. People will have a good time there.' Skaarup, one of Denmark's most prominent politicians, sounded like a man selling a dream holiday destination. Yet he was greeted by hundreds of local protesters holding handmade banners. 'Lindholm is for free birds, not humans in cages,' read one, while children wore T-shirts asking in freshly scrawled ink: 'What about our safety?' Syrian refugees walk with their luggage near the village of Kliplev, Denmark, unhappy about their treatment For Skaarup is parliamentary leader of the populist Danish People's Party (DPP). And the island he was visiting for the first time has split his nation over plans to turn it into 'Europe's Alcatraz' an isolated fortress to dump dozens of rejected and criminal refugees who cannot be sent home. This 17-acre scrap of land home to a research station for animal diseases and a cemetery for infected carcasses symbolises how a Scandinavian country once famed for liberalism and tolerance has become the toughest on refugees in Western Europe. Denmark's immigration minister even posed with a cake on social media to celebrate passing her 50th law restricting migrants. Recent measures include a ban on face veils, confiscating jewellery from refugees and designating 29 urban areas as 'ghettos' subject to special laws to control residents. Other ideas debated by MPs include prohibiting ritual slaughter of animals for halal food and barring women teachers from wearing head-scarves. One key politician has even proposed curfews and electronic bracelets for all children living in 'ghettos'. Denmark is, like most Western nations, bitterly divided over migration. Many key voices argue there is urgent need for these harsh policies driven by the DPP but embraced by mainstream parties on Left and Right to defend Danish values. 'You can reduce this issue down to cries of racism and xenophobia but it is about complex issues of shared values going back generations,' said Mikael Jalving, a prominent political commentator. 'Denmark, Norway and Sweden were all very homogenous societies until recently. We were people of one tribe with the same views on social justice and the welfare state. Once they were taken for granted but now we must be explicit.' This 17-acre scrap of Lindholm symbolises how a Scandinavian country once famed for liberalism and tolerance has become the toughest on refugees in Western Europe Yet others believe their cherished tolerance has been betrayed. 'We used to be one of the best countries in the world,' said Carolina Maier, parliamentary leader of the Alternative, a new pro-business green party. 'Now we see a slow, dangerous shift that has similarities to the 1930s with different laws for different people.' At the heart of this surprising Scandinavian crackdown is hygge, the celebrated Danish idea of creating a warm atmosphere to share the good things in life with friends and neighbours that some feel is under threat from globalisation and migration. The concept makes perfect sense when I enter the cosy fug of a community hall after the bitterly cold protest in Kalvehave, a little port that sits just a few miles from Lindholm. Women serve coffee and apple cake, a man in a wheelchair plays the organ and children play on the floor. But these residents, many of whom left urban life for coastal serenity, are seething over a 94 million plan to turn Lindholm into a holding pen for up to 125 unwanted arrivals, including convicted killers and others who cannot be returned to unstable countries. 'If you are unwanted in Danish society, you should not be a nuisance to ordinary Danes,' wrote hardline immigration minister Inger Stojberg on Facebook. 'They are undesirable in Denmark and they must feel it!' The refugees and migrants will be free to leave the island on its two ferries one of which is called 'Virus' yet face prison if they fail to check in daily with police after the centre opens in three years' time. Some DPP figures also want to reduce ferry services. 'We really want these people to go home but this is the next best solution,' said Skaarup, whose party the second biggest in parliament devised the plan. 'We have to take precautions, especially if people commit violent crime and terror.' Yet some rival politicians say this is a costly political stunt ahead of this year election designed to stoke fears, the UN has raised 'serious concerns' and Danish human- rights groups warn they may take legal action to stop the proposal. Meanwhile, protesting local residents fear an influx of convicted refugees and migrants puts their quiet area at risk. 'It's just a scam,' said Mette Praem, 36, a foster mum from the neighbouring tourist island of Mon. 'It's scary for us and not been thought through.' Others said the idea was inhuman. 'Even if you commit a crime you still deserve decent conditions,' said Charlotte Brandt, 64, a psychologist waving a banner painted with the red-and-white national flag. 'They talk about Danish values but if these are our values then I'm ashamed to be Danish.' Yet what makes this plan to create a dumping ground for unwanted refugees on a remote island two miles off the coast so extraordinary is that it is happening in a country that until the turn of the century had Europe's most liberal refugee laws. There was uproar in 2000 when another leading Danish minister complained about treating all cultures equally and proposed interning refugees who commit crimes on an island. She was denounced and ostracised for racism by Left and Right. Now immigration minister Stojberg shows off her iPad screensaver showing one of the cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad from a Danish newspaper that caused global outrage 13 years ago and even Social Democrats on the Left have fallen in line with her hostile policies. The change in culture began in 2001 when a Right-wing coalition including the DPP took office. The parties have held power ever since, except for a four-year interlude under Helle Thorning-Schmidt, the wife of British Labour MP Stephen Kinnock. Then came the huge influx to neighbours Germany and Sweden in 2015 and, when pictures of bedraggled Middle Eastern refugees wandering down rural roads of their own country began appearing, it provoked impassioned debate and a nationalist backlash in Denmark. The Danish government took advertisements out in Middle Eastern papers warning people against heading to Denmark and informing them of big cuts to benefits for arriving asylum seekers. One town even told all council buildings, including schools and care centres, to serve pork which cannot be eaten by observant Muslims. Parliament also permitted police to take cash and valuables worth more than 1,000 from refugees to help fund their stay in the country, which led to international condemnation. Chillingly, one officer was quoted as saying he would happily 'pull out the gold fillings from refugees' teeth' if ordered. Another controversial law brought in last month forces all new citizens to shake hands with the officiating person at their naturalisation ceremony, clearly aimed at conservative Muslims who refuse on religious grounds to touch members of the opposite sex. So although people of 'non-Western' origin make up almost 500,000 of Denmark's 5.8 million population, the country accepted only 2,365 refugees in 2017 compared with 27,000 in next-door Sweden. It also, uniquely, refuses to accept UN quotas. Among those backing the tough stance is Naser Khader, a Syrian-born MP who arrived 45 years ago and is the Conservative spokesman on immigration. 'We have a lot of my people in Denmark with a dishonest agenda,' he said. Khader argues that many Arab refugees and migrants who claimed to be fleeing war were actually living in the Gulf states and believes Western countries should pick vulnerable people from camps in conflict zones rather than just accept those wealthy enough to reach their borders. 'I want to offer my children a society that is good and culturally cohesive,' he said. 'I love the Middle East but I don't want to see it in ghettos in Denmark.' The designation of 'ghettos' of housing for about 50,000 low-income migrants is among the most controversial new measures, with its sinister echoes from history in a nation that famously saved almost all of its Jews during Nazi occupation. Families living in them lose benefits if children older than one do not attend nursery which is intended to force integration while crime committed in the ghettos is punished with heavier sentences. Some ghettos may also be partially bulldozed to break up communities. This rattled even those such as Flemming Rose, the journalist responsible for the Prophet Mohammed cartoon crisis. He has since become a global free speech campaigner and fierce critic of attempts to silence candid discussion on migration and social cohesion. 'It is great to have this debate, even such a tough debate,' said Rose. 'My fear is equality and freedom are the building blocks of democracy, so I am concerned by legal discrimination against anyone and limitations on free speech such as by imams.' The Danish government is vowing to thwart 'parallel societies'. Lars Lokke Rasmussen, the prime minister, has made dark warnings that ghettos could 'reach out their tentacles' by fuelling gang violence and claimed they led to 'cracks on the map of Denmark'. Yet when I visited the housing estate Mjolnerparken in Copenhagen, one of these places seen as such a danger to Danish society, there was a noticeable lack of graffiti in the cluster of low-rise blocks, many bicycles were not locked and residents were unfailingly friendly. Several shrugged off the 'ghetto' image. 'There are some problems with youths hanging around but I've been living happily in this area for 20 years,' said Pakistani-born Mehnaz, 38, as she dismounted her bike. 'When you come to Denmark you should learn Danish and mix with Danes, but that doesn't mean you cannot be a Muslim also. For me, this is no problem.' Yet Mohammad, a 23-year-old driver from the Palestinian city of Hebron, said he was moving to Sweden after struggling to bring his wife and son into the country. 'If I am honest I don't feel Danish because I don't have the same rights as they do. 'Why can I not live with my wife and son? I just want a normal life but they don't want any more Muslims here so they provoke all these fears over us,' he said. Others from ethnic minorities and human-rights bodies complain the harsh rhetoric has sparked rising discrimination in jobs and housing. Some Muslims also told me they get more hostile looks in the street along with more smiles of support. Yet the lack of anger over issues such as Lindholm and 'ghettos' drove Adam Holm, a prominent historian and journalist, to despair and led him to recently publish an excoriating polemic entitled The Denmark I've Always Feared. 'I am not a multicultural fanatic, quite the opposite, but they want us as a nation to go from a policy of open arms to clenched fists when it comes to receiving refugees and immigrants,' he told me. His concerns are fuelled by his Jewish heritage. 'If we do not learn from the lessons of history, we are doomed to repeat its mistakes. 'The gravest mistake is creating a political climate in which people of certain ethnicities are classified as suspicious. 'This causes a massive split in our society and the coherence that once tied us together is rapidly falling apart. 'Denmark is disintegrating, not saving itself.' Jake Paul, the actor and YouTube star, is being sued by a neighbor who claims that he was placed under citizens arrest by his security detail because of his race Jake Paul, the actor and YouTube star, is being sued by a neighbor who claims that he was placed under citizens arrest by his security detail because of his race. The lawsuit stems from an alleged incident which took place a year ago at Pauls mansion in the exclusive Los Angeles suburb of Calabasas. The neighbor claims that he drove over to Pauls home and was allowed onto the property when the gate was opened, according to TMZ. He claims he wanted to speak to Paul about cars being driven in and out of his property at abnormally high speeds. In the lawsuit, the neighbor alleges that moments after he got out of his car, one of Pauls friends verbally attacked him and a security guard approached him and accused him of trespassing. The guard is then alleged to have grabbed him, twisted his arm behind his back and threw him against his car to hold him. The neighbor claims Pauls entourage called the police. While the police were on their way, the neighbor says he was unlawfully detained by members of Pauls security detail. When police arrived, members of Pauls crew tried to convince the officers that the neighbor was trespassing. But police found no evidence to support the claim and let the neighbor go. The lawsuit stems from an alleged incident which took place a year ago at Pauls mansion (seen above) in the exclusive Los Angeles suburb of Calabasas The impressive mansion (pictured) is surrounded by wealthy neighbors In his lawsuit, the neighbor alleges that the security guards had no basis to carry out a citizens arrest. He alleges that he was detained based on his religion and nationality. The lawsuit seeks undisclosed damages from Paul. The neighbor claims he was the victim of false imprisonment and intentional infliction of emotional distress. An attorney for Paul told TMZ that the former Disney Channel star was not at home during the incident. The lawyer told the news site that Paul wasnt even aware of the citizens arrest at the time it took place. Paul, 22, is an actor and online sensation. He got his start on Vine, switching to YouTube after the apps demise. His big acting break came in 2016 when he was cast in Disneys Bizaardvark. The sitcom was all about online video stars posting their work to a fictional platform called Vuuugle. While appearing on the show, Paul continued to grow his online audience by sharing viral prank videos. Paul has a history of creating unrest for neighbors. In July 2017, Paul was accused by West Hollywood residents of turning their once peaceful neighborhood into a 'war zone' when he rented a home on their street. Residents revealed at the time details of his 'crazy' pranks which included throwing a Harley Davidson in his backyard pool and setting furniture on fire. He and his 'squad' also loved to throw rowdy parties, while he often publicized his address which allowed hoards of his young fans - he calls 'Paulers' - to show up outside his home. In July 2017, Paul was accused by West Hollywood residents of turning their once peaceful neighborhood into a 'war zone' when he rented a home on their street Residents revealed at the time details of his 'crazy' pranks which included throwing a Harley Davidson in his backyard pool and setting furniture on fire The image above shows Jake Paul setting furniture on fire at his West Hollywood home While his roughly 18 million young followers may have been impressed with his antics, his neighbors were not. Families in Paul's old LA neighborhood had accused Paul of turning their lives into a 'living hell'. Paul seemed amused by the misery he is imposing on those around him. 'The neighbors hate me,' he told KTLA back in July, laughing. When the reporter told him that locals fear he has turned the neighborhood into a 'circus' with his non-stop parties and dangerous stunts, Paul replied: 'But, I mean, people like going to circuses.' Paul was then seen running and skipping through the streets before climbing on top of the KTLA van - ignoring the pleas of staffers to stop. Eventually, Paul returned to the interview, where he was able to compose himself for a second to say: 'It's terrible, it's a bad situation and I feel bad for them, but there's nothing we can do. 'Jake Paulers are the strongest army out there. 'Dab,' he added, pulling the 2016 cliched dance move, before pointing at the reporter's shoes, and screeching, 'What are those?' and running away with his friends. In November 2017, Paul bought his current residence - a 15,000 square-ft mansion in Calabasas for $6.925million. The property had been listed in June for $7.385million. Paul's older brother, Logan Paul, is also a YouTube personality who amassed tens of millions of followers before eventually causing controversy of his own. Paul found himself in hot water over a video on his YouTube channel posted on New Year's Eve 2017, that showed a deceased man's corpse. The video was shot in the infamous Aokigahara Forest in Japan, known as the 'suicide forest, which was intended to be part of a series of videos of Paul's adventures in Japan. Paul's brother, Logan Paul, is also a YouTube personality with tens of millions of followers. On New Year's Eve 2017, Paul found himself in hot water after posting video on his YouTube channel that showed a man's corpse The video gained over 6.3 million views in just 24 hours, which also lead to backlash from celebrities and politicians, and eventually the temporary suspension of his YouTube ad revenue stream. Last month, he apologized for joking about 'going gay for a month'. The 23-year-old made the controversial comments on the January 9 episode of his Impaulsive podcast. 'Were going to attempt to go gay for just one month,' quipped Paul. The gag caused online consternation, including from advocacy group GLAAD (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation), who tweeted, 'That's not how it works, @LoganPaul'. When Brisbane man Hazem Hamouda landed in Egypt for a dream holiday with his Australian-born family, he never imagined it would land him in prison. The devoted father of six was whisked away by Egyptian security minutes after touching down. More than a year later, Mr Hamouda, 55, still languishes in a Cairo jail, where his mental and physical health are rapidly deteriorating. Brisbane father Hazem Hamouda (pictured) has spent a year inside one of Egypt's most notorious prisons, but has not been charged with any crime Egyptian authorities accuse him of being associated with the banned Muslim Brotherhood and spreading false information - but no charges have been laid. Mr Hamouda's eldest daughter, Lamisse Hamouda, 29, says her dad, who was an IT consultant with Queensland Health before flying to Egypt, has nothing to do with the blacklisted organisation. 'Spreading false news covers everything from social media activity to being a television presenter to being a comedian or university student who might have handed out a flyer - it's a very broad accusation,' she told AAP. Mr Hamouda (pictured with his wife) landed in Egypt on the anniversary of the Egyptian revolution, and was arrested on the same day Little information has been provided to Mr Hamouda's family, who speculate the accusations may be linked to Facebook posts he made during the Arab Spring in 2011. 'There's no formal evidence and we've been trying to rack our brains why they took dad, that's the only possibility we can come up with, but even then it's not really a reason to arrest someone,' she said. Mr Hamouda, a dual Australian-Egyptian national, landed in Cairo on the anniversary of the Egyptian revolution, January 25th, when there was heightened security. 'The initial advice was 'your dad will be out in six months, it's just something they do, they round up people at this time and when they realise he's done nothing they'll release him'.' That didn't happen. Despite hard work by the Australian government and the family's legal team, Mr Hamouda remains locked in a 9 x 3 metre cell with 13 other men in the notorious Tora prison. 'They share one squat toilet dad says has never been cleaned, and all sleep on the floor because there's no beds,' Ms Hamouda said. 'Dad hasn't lived in Egypt for 30 years. He's putting on a brave face but he's broken down quite a few times when we visit.' He spends his days in a 9 x 3 cell that he shares with 13 other men, and the group have only one squat toilet between them His four daughters, including eldest Lamisse (pictured), have been tirelessly campaigning for his release and insist that he has not committed any crimes The family is also worried requests for him to see a surgeon outside the prison are constantly rejected. Australian journalist Peter Greste echoes the family's concerns. Greste spent 400 days in Tora prison following similar accusations - broadcasting false news and supporting the Muslim Brotherhood. 'It's pretty grim, there's very little time spent outside the cell... [and] when you've been locked up with no clear charges and no clear end to it all - it's very, very tough,' he told AAP. 'The Australian government certainly needs to be much more publicly involved.' More than 150 nudists gathered together on a Perth beach in a practice run for a future attempt at the skinny dipping world record. Georgia Rose, the event organiser, hopes the naked practice dip held on Saturday will help Perth regain the title for the largest number of people skinny dipping simultaneously. The Australian city held the record for three years before Ireland took over in 2018. Speaking about the practice dip, Ms Rose told The West Australian: 'We were all celebrating positive body image and embracing all of who we are.' Over 150 people (pictured) attended the skinny dipping world record practice run at Perth's Swanbourne nudist beach on Saturday Event organiser, Georgia Rose, said the practice skinny dip was about 'letting go of fear, guilt, shame and insecurity about our bodies' 'It was about letting go of fear, guilt, shame and insecurity about our bodies,' she said. The trial run at Swanbourne nudist beach on Saturday attracted a range of ages from people in their early 20s up to their late 60s. The turnout at the practice event and the interest on Facebook has inspired Ms Rose to apply to Guinness World Records to host an official attempt. The official attempt would likely to be later this year or early next. The practice skinny dip event (pictured) at Swanbourne nudist beach, WA, attracted people from their early 20s up to their late 60s 'If everyone came along, we'd break the world record,' she said. Previous successful tilts by Perth at the record have seen well over 500 people involved in the nude swims. In 2015, 786 people stripped off and ran into the water at Freemantle's South Beach for the Naked Fig Skinny Dip challenge. That record was smashed in June, 2018 when 2,505 women attended the 'Strip and Dip' event on Magheramore beach in Wicklow, Ireland. A prominent Australian human rights advocate remains behind bars in Vietnam for a crime that carries the death penalty. Long-time Sydney resident Chau Van Kham, 69, was arrested in Ho Chi Minh City last month while meeting with a civil society activist on a human rights fact-finding mission to his former homeland. The retired small business owner is being detained for alleged activities against Vietnam's communist government. Australian human rights advocate Chau Van Kham (pictured) is behind bars in Vietnam Vietnamese authorities also allege he used a fake identity card to enter the country, the ABC reported. His family are devastated and revealed that Mr Chau has been denied access to legal representation. [My mum] always tries to be strong but I can tell how she's breaking down,' his son Dennis told the ABC. Mr Chau was feared missing for two weeks after he stopped responded to messages before the Vietnamese government eventually confirmed he had been detained. Mr Chau's wife Trang and their son Dennis and Daniel are concerned about him Mr Chau's family is also concerned about his health. 'If he does eventually come home, is he going to be the same? Or is he going to be frail or broken? I just don't know,' Dennis said. A Vietnamese refugee, Mr Chau arrived to Australia's shores by boat in 1982 and is an active member of the pro-democracy group Viet Tan. The organisation took to Instagram on Saturday to post a photo of two Sydney police officers showing their support for the campaign for Mr Chau's release. Mr Chau's family suspected he was on a government watch list for his pro-democracy activities, which they used to joke about. Dennis told the ABC that his father continues to campaign for those in his former homeland because they don't have basic freedoms. A Change.org. petition calls on Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Foreign Affairs minister Marise Payne to intervene and demand for Mr Kham's immediate release 'I think that motivates him to do it. He's always been very, very passionate about it,' Dennis said. 'He's always put other people ahead of himself.' The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed it's offering consular assistance to an Australian man detained in Vietnam but wouldn't provide further details due to privacy reasons. Mr Chau (pictured with his wife) isn't allowed to speak to his family or have access to a lawyer A Change.org. petition signed by more than 2500 people calls on Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Foreign Affairs minister Marise Payne to intervene and demand the Hanoi government for Mr Kham's immediate release. 'A well known member of the Vietnamese community in Australia, Chau Van Kham has worked to shed light on the Hanoi's government's ongoing crackdown of free expression and peaceful activism,' the petition states. 'According to his family, Chau Van Kham received his first consular visit after more than two weeks and is being denied legal representation by the Vietnamese authorities.' Mr Chau being detained for alleged activities against Vietnam's communist government The petition also calls for Mr Chau to be reunited with his family. 'We believe that the Australia-Vietnam Comprehensive Partnership can only be realised when the Hanoi government respects basic human rights and treats everyone fairly,' the petition states. Viet Tan and Mr Chau's family are in close contact with the Australian foreign ministry. 'We are mindful that the Vietnamese police have a history of framing peaceful activists with fabricated charges,' Viet Tan spokesman Phong Nguyen recently told AAP. Three horses racing have horrifically crashed into each other leaving two of the harness drivers with broken arms and legs. The South Australian Pacing Derby on Saturday night saw the three horses stumble into each other. Footage shows Danielle Hill's horse, I'm Sir Blake, veering into Darby McGuigan's horse, Major Exclusive. The South Australian Pacing Derby on Saturday night saw the three horses stumble into each other Footage shows Danielle Hill's horse, I'm Sir Blake, crashing into Darby McGuigan's horse, Major Exclusive The two horses then toppled on Paul Cavallaro's horse, Culture King. Hill suffered a broken leg, while Cavallaro suffered a broken wrist and severe lacerations. McGuigan escaped serious injury, Herald Sun reported. Following the shocking pile-up, the race was abandoned. There is an unconfirmed report one of the horses broke its leg, while the other two were unscathed, the publication reported. Apple and Google are being accused of helping to 'enforce gender apartheid' in Saudi Arabia by offering an app on their platforms which allows men to track women and stop them leaving the country. Absher is available on both the Google Play and iTunes store and is an app developed by the Saudi government which allows men to specify when and how women can cross Saudi borders - and will even alert them if they do so. Absher's travel 'featured' have been identified by activists and refugees as a major factor in the continued difficulty women have leaving Saudi Arabia. The iTunes and Google Play stores freely host an app called Absher, run by the Saudi government that tracks women and stops them leaving the country The Absher app is run by the Saudi government and has been downloaded more than one million times so far The app allows for guardians to state where women can go, for how long and which airports they're allowed to go to. Alerts are triggered if a woman leaves a certain area. It is one of the main reasons women have difficulty trying to flee Saudi Arabia are often get caught. Absher tips off male guardians and the fleeing women can be apprehended whil still withint the while the fleeing women can still be apprehended. On another page the guardian can see easily which permissions are active and change them if needed. Absher allows men in Saudi Arabia to track and control where women travel Under Saudi law, every woman has a legal 'guardian' who can restrict her travel to specific airports and routes, receiving alerts when they cross borders Yasmine Mohammed, ex-Muslim activist who campaigns and writes on women's rights said there was a tragedy in the way Apple and Google were facilitating 'archaic misogyny.' 'What irony. In the West these technologies are used to improve lives and in Saudi Arabia they're used to enforce gender apartheid.' Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have expressed concern about the app which have been downloaded from the Google and Apple stores more than one millions times. 'Apple and Google have rules against apps that facilitate threats and harassment. Apps like this one can facilitate human rights abuses, including discrimination against women,' Rothna Begum a Middle East researcher for Human Rights Watch told The Insider. 'In evaluating whether an app should be allowed, app store providers should be considering the broader context of the purpose of the app, how it is used in practice, and whether it facilitates serious abuses. Companies should apply extra scrutiny to government-operated apps in particular.' 'Even though the app is more general purpose, the government could simply remove the guardianship tracking functionality from the app, and continue to offer the rest of the functionality.' Similarly, Dana Ahmed, a Saudi Arabia researcher for Amnesty International similarly condemned the app saying, 'SMS alerts were 'another example of how the Saudi Arabian government has produced tools to limit women's freedoms. 'The tracking of women in this way curtails their movement and once again highlights the disturbing system of discrimination under the guardianship laws.' The human rights organization has called on Apple and Google to accept that the app is being used to harm women, and demand changes to stop it happening in future. Apple and Google have so far yet to to comment. US Border Patrol said they stopped 325 Central Americans trying to illegally enter the country Thursday, spotting them after they were alerted to campfire started to deal with freezing temperatures. The huge group surrendered to agents assigned to the Ajo Station in Pima County, Arizona who learned they'd crossed via an area only blocked off by a vehicle barrier designed to stop pedestrians crossing the road. But the bunch including 150 minors of which 32 were not accompanied by an adult - got caught as a US Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine Operations helicopter scanned the area. US Border Patrol said they stopped 325 Central Americans trying to illegally enter the country The huge group surrendered to agents assigned to the Ajo Station in Pima County, Arizona Thursday, who learned they'd crossed via an area only blocked off by a vehicle barrier (left) The group included 150 minors of which 32 were not accompanied by an adult. Two children were taken to hospital with illnesses and doctors checked the rest CBP claimed two juveniles were sent to a local hospital for treatment. The children included five-year-old possibly suffering from chicken pox, and a 12-year-old with a skin infection. Trained Department of Homeland Security medical staff, including a physician, screened the hundreds who had arrived in the area where CBP said had 'limited infrastructure' and 'smugglers continue to take advantage'. According to CBP, the group indicated buses and trucks dropped them off throughout Wednesday night on Mexico's Federal Highway 2 that runs parallel and just 50 yards away from the US border. After they'd all arrived, they gathered to cross together at 8am and were busted by a surveillance camera. The arrival of the large group meant agents patrolling other areas were reassigned to provide security, care, and transportation for next several hours. Vehicles took the group more than 15 miles through the so another set of buses could take them to the nearest Border Patrol facility to be properly processed. The same unsecured Tucson Sector area has seen the arrival of three separate groups totaling more than 650 people apprehended over the past year. CBP said they had 'limited infrastructure' and 'smugglers continue to take advantage' CBP said the number of groups apprehended had crept up compared to the 2018 fiscal year CBP said in a statement: 'Illicit transnational criminal organizations exploit the vulnerability of foreign nationals with false promises of legal status and encourage dangerous border crossings, placing lives at risk.' They said the number of groups apprehended had crept up vastly compared to the 2018 fiscal year. 'January border stats show a sustained, high volume of families & unaccompanied children from Central America illegally crossing along the SW Border,' a tweet read. '#USBP agents encountered 58 large groups (100+ people) so far this FY compared to 13 in FY18.' Meanwhile authorities said Saturday that a 21-year-old US citizen shot and wounded by a US Customs and Border Protection officer at a port of entry was in critical condition in an Arizona hospital. The man was shot that night in Nogales, Arizona when he accelerated his pickup truck driving toward Mexico. It was while he was being questioned by agents figured out the vehicle had a license plate for a different vehicle. The truck crossed a few yards into Mexico and hit a concrete barrier. A passenger was in the pick-up but was not injured and was released by Mexican authorities. The officer who shot the man - whose name has not been released was also not hurt. The man's identity wasn't released. He was initially taken to hospital in Nogales, Mexico. Holiday destinations such as the US, Italy, Germany and Poland are against British tourists returning, it emerged today as the Government considers moving countries with low coronavirus case rates to the travel 'green list'. Travel experts have suggested the four countries could be among a host of popular 'amber list' locations - also including Malta, Croatia, Finland and the Balearic Islands - that could be opened up for quarantine-free travel. Others that could be added include Grenada, Barbados and Jamaica along with Canada, Morocco and Croatia, according to travel consultancy the PC Agency which based its research on case rates per 100,000 people. It comes as fully vaccinated Britons could enjoy quarantine-free holidays from as early as July 19 as ministers scramble to save the summer season - but will still face tough entry restrictions in many countries. Boris Johnson is under huge pressure from senior ministers to sign off a 'big bang' reopening on so-called 'Freedom Day' with travel curbs eased at the same time as restrictions are lifted at home. Formal advice against trips to 'amber list' countries would be dropped for those who have been double-jabbed under the plans - opening up summer breaks in Spain, France , Italy , Greece and the United States. Children would also be able to avoid quarantine if travelling with their parents. Meanwhile, Malta and Spain's Balearic Islands are on track to be added to the 'green list' tomorrow, offering more options for people desperate for some sunshine. Creative teachers have taken to Instagram in a bid to inspire each other with increasingly decked-out and colourful classrooms. There has been a surge in accounts dedicated to showcasing teachers' efforts in creating the most welcoming space possible for the youngsters in their care. For Sydney-based Year 4 teacher Sarah Lanser, the app gives her a platform to share ideas with other educators hoping to create a 'warm and safe' room for students. Creative teachers have taken to social media in a bid to inspire each other with increasingly decked-out and colourful classrooms For Sydney-based Year 4 teacher Sarah Lanser (pictured), the app gives her a platform to share ideas with other educators hoping to create a 'warm and safe' room for students 'A lot of time and effort goes into it, and I change it up throughout the year,' she told The Sun-Herald. However, despite the additional time and expenses which Ms Lanser has incurred from the account's creation, she said her classroom creativity would remain regardless. 'I love it and wouldn't do it if I didn't,' she said. Across Ms Lanser's well-stocked classroom, her students are greeted with inspirational quotes, stacks of educational posters and a comfy reading corner. In Ms Lanser's well-stocked classroom, her students are greeted with inspirational quotes, stacks of educational posters and a comfy reading corner Despite the additional time and expenses which Ms Lanser has incurred from the account 's creation, she said her classroom creativity would remain regardless. Elsewhere on Instagram, other enthusiastic teachers are sharing their often self-funded, revamped classrooms with Lauren Fairclough largely leading the way. The West Australian primary school teacher has amassed 40,000 followers and carved out a supplementary income selling educational posters and graphics online. And Ms Fairclough is quick to extend this creativity to her own students too. Primary school teacher Lauren Fairclough has amassed 40,000 followers and carved out a supplementary income selling educational posters and graphics online Elsewhere on Instagram, enthusiastic teachers are sharing classrooms with Ms Fairclough largely leading the way, with a space including a colourful reading corner (pictured) One colourful post details to followers how her youngsters benefitted from homemade books which document their first week of the year. 'These books were a great way to get my students excited and talking about school!' she said. 'The kids took great pride in taking home their own little book they'd written at the end of the week and it was an excellent source of info for parents!' Journalist Dan Sewell has recalled how killer Ted Bundy could make him smile, even after a jury found him guilty of murder in 1979. The Associated Press reporter remembers visiting the then-32-year-old in prison to carry out an exclusive interview and admitted he couldn't help by respond positively to the man known for being both charming and a callous murderer. Bundy received attention from young women who hung on his every word in the courtroom, unsure of why they were fascinated and even got kind words from Judge Edward Cowart who said he would have like to see law student Bundy practice before him. Journalist Dan Sewell found himself smiling in the presence of killer Ted Bundy (pictured June 27, 1979 in a Dade County courtroom in Miami, Florida) The Associated Press reporter interviewed him three days after his murder conviction in the first trial for two Florida sorority sisters But as Bundy imitated the judge's drawl as he confidently predicted the death penalty but imaged winning an appeal, telling Sewell, 'Ah can only hope that the judge will look at mah case with an open mind,' the journalist was surprised to find himself beaming. 'Bundy had me smiling, and he left me wondering about the contrast between this personable, engaging man across from me and the ruthless killer the jury found him to be,' Sewell commented in a Saturday article about his experience 40 years ago. The married father was prepared to charm at all times it seems. Sewell's chat with him was unplanned after he was assigned to go to Dade County Jail and find out what he was doing. Ready to probe into who was visiting him and whether he was causing problems for jailers 'as he had at times during the trial', Sewell writes in the new article, a sergeant who noticed he had been waiting for a while whisked him into the visiting cell. 'Bundy was meeting with one of his attorneys,' Sewell reveals. 'The cell door closed behind me. I introduced myself, and it was clear by his grin that Bundy was amused by my audacity. In this July 6, 1979 file photo, Ted Bundy (right) confers with Margaret Good, a member of his defense team, during jury selection for his murder trial in Miami, Florida. Bundy was accused of murdering two Florida State University students Seemingly endless people were spellbound by Bundy who questioned witnesses for the prosecution, raised objections, and disrupted his defense team (pictured June 25, 1979) Bundy (pictured June 13, 1977) was always ready to speak to media. Sewell noted he was talkative and charming although his 1979 visit was unannounced Despite the attorney's uneasiness about an unplanned interview, I sat while Bundy, unshaved and dressed in jail grays left open at the top, leaned back on his elbows on a bench, and went to work on me.' Unlike he later did with another journalist, Stephen Michaud, shortly before he was executed, Bundy maintained he was innocent and said 'he wasn't losing any sleep'. Sewell said he was told in the interview published in 1979: 'I'm not trying to sound callous. ... I'm very confident we have a good appeal.' Speaking about how he was 'surprised and disappointed' by the jury deciding his fate in under seven hours on July 24 after the five-week trial in Miami, Florida he then attempted to charm with his knowledge of literature, something that was completely lost on Sewell. The journalist explained he mentioned complicated forensic evidence would help him but Bundy suggested there wasn't much point explaining how so: 'He told me it would take a mind like William S. Burroughs to explain it. Not a fan of the Beat generation author he referenced, I didn't get what he meant, other than to show he was well-read.' Zac Efron and Lily Collins appear in Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile directed by Joe Berlinger. The movie and a new Netflix documentary series have stirred up complicated reactions to handsome Bundy who killed at least 30 females in a multiple-state spree It didn't work out for Bundy however as the next week, Judge Cowart sentenced Bundy to die for 'extremely wicked, shockingly evil and vile' crimes. Al Carlisle, a Utah State Prison psychologist, advised he was not insane as he had claimed and believed he was smarter than everybody else. His appeal was denied. Despite delivering the line that has become the title for a 2019 movie starring Zac Efron and Lily Collins playing wife Liz Kloepfer, Sewell writes that 'throughout the trial, Cowart showed judicial firmness mixed with some homespun warmth. Mentioning how Cowart called Bundy 'a bright young man' and lamented over how he could've been working in his field, 'But you went another way, partner,' Sewell notes how even as deputies prepared to take Bundy away, the judge softly said: 'Take care of yourself.' Of course, there were seemingly endless people spellbound by Bundy who questioned witnesses for the prosecution, raised objections, and disrupted his defense team in the case of the Chi Omega murders that saw two Florida State University sorority sisters die and three injured. Sewell remembered how a teenager he interviewed while providing court coverage for AP at the time told him: 'I don't know what it is he has, but he's fascinating. He's impressive. He just has a kind of magnetism.' Nita Jane Neary (right in July 18, 1979) looks at a drawing in court as prosecution attorney Larry Simpson holds additional prints during the murder trial of Ted Bundy in Miami This 1977 file photo shows Bundy's jail cell in Glenwood Springs, Colorado Netflix asked viewers to find another attractive man on the streaming service to crush on after their documentary series Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes - inspired by interviews with journalist Stephen Michaud in the pictured book - came out The journalist says she was part of the 'backdrop of spellbound female spectators who were "attractive, young and single" ... just like the women Bundy was on trial for bludgeoning and sexually assaulting'. On February 9, he abducted, sexually assaulted and killed a 12-year-old girl in Lake City, Florida. After two murder trials, Bundy would confess on death row in 1989 to taking the lives of at least 30 women across the country from Washington to Florida. Cincinnati correspondent, Sewell says nearly 40 years after trial, and 30 years after his electric chair death, 'Bundy's deadly charm continues to captivate and perplex'. Netflix asked viewers to find another attractive man on the streaming service to crush on after their documentary series Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes reignited a fire in viewers who called him 'hot'. Similarly, Zac Efron's Sundance Film Festival motion picture from the same director, Joe Berlinger, came under fire for portraying his charm a little too much perhaps. But the helmer has refuted the criticism and noted it was important to show how his handsome looks and expressive eyes charmed people at the time. 'I certainly dont think were glorifying him because he gets his due,' Berlinger told the Salt Lake City Tribune. A victim of an alleged sexually-motivated assault has stripped in a naked protest after police failed to act on her claims. Jazmine Rose Phillips stood hand-in-hand with her friend Kyah Dove at the entrance to St Kevins' Arcade, on Karangahape Road in Auckland, on Saturday. The women covered themselves in fake blood and put black tape across their mouths, while female friends handed out flyers to nearby passersby. Ms Phillips claims she was assaulted by an unknown male on January 21. Scroll down for video Jazmine Rose Phillips (pictured right) and Kyah Dove (pictured left) stood stark-naked at the entrance to St Kevins' Arcade, in Auckland, on Saturday It's believed the man had been making 'sexual gestures' from inside his car as he watched Ms Philips and her female partner hug. In response to his lewd actions, Ms Phillips said she tapped on his car window. The statement on the flyer alleges the man then got out his car and hit Ms Phillips in the head after she 'rejected his sexual advances' and attempted to bash her again. She noted the pair were 'lucky to get away' and subsequently called the local police. She said she gave police a description of the man, his car registration number and details of the incident. The flyer claims the woman on the phone assured the accusers there would be CCTV footage and the police would be in touch shortly. According to the flyer, the girls never heard back from the police. Ms Phillips (pictured center left) said she felt defeated and dis-empowered and let down by police after the attack The next day, one of the women went to file a complaint at City Police station and was 'turned away in tears'. The statement concluded: 'How many women have to die on the streets and in their homes before police respond to violence?' 'After the attack I felt defeated and dis-empowered. I felt let down by police,' Ms Phillips told Daily Mail Australia. 'It's so hard to go through to the trauma of speaking to police. I was really upset they never called me back,' she added. The flyers (pictured) detailed the reason for the protest and claimed that Ms Phillips and her partner had been assaulted by an unknown male Ms Phillips, who is a musician and Auckland performance artist, said she'd decided to protest in an artistic way to raise awareness for the issues Ms Phillips, who is a musician and Auckland performance artist, said she'd decided to protest in an artistic way to raise awareness for the issues that surround sexual assault cases. 'I kept hearing stories from other women who experienced sexual harassment much more traumatic than mine, and decided I wanted to raise for everyone else who had experienced these things,' she said. Despite the initial nerves beforehand, Ms Phillips said the protest was worthwhile as she's since received a flurry of messages from other women who had had similar experiences. 'To stand on the street naked, and get attention for this issue, was so hard to do. We found it so hard. We were both very scared' she said. 'Our hearts were pounding. It's such a confronting thing to do to stand on the street naked. (File picture) Since the protest on Karangahape Road (pictured) Ms Phillips said she'd received a praise from other women who had experienced a similar ordeal According to Ms Phillips (pictured left) after the protest she was approached by a local policeman who wanted to help her cause 'But women and men were coming up to us and thanking us. Some women were crying. So it made the whole thing beautiful,' she added. According to Ms Phillips, after the protest she was approached by a local policeman who wanted to help her. He gave her his number so he could further explore the case. 'The police sergeant who approached me has called to arrange a time to look into the case, which I will do,' she said. 'But I want to speak to the police and ask them about the bigger picture. I know lots of women who've had worse experiences than me. I want to know what the police are going to do. This issue is much bigger than just me,' she added. Auckland District Commander Superintendent Karyn Malthus has since spoken out to say the incident was 'being followed up urgently' and the police were in the process of contacting the girls to look into the matter further. (File picture) According to Ms Phillips, after the protest she was approached by a local policeman who wanted to help her cause She added that the police wanted to establish the 'exact circumstances' of the incident and find out what happened when the women had tried to report it. 'It is very concerning that these women feel let down by police and we are doing everything we can to establish exactly what happened, work with the victims and address their concerns,' Superintendent Malthus said, according to Stuff.co.nz However, Ms Phillips claims the issue with police investigating matters of assault aren't just limited to New Zealand. 'I'm from Australia and grew up in Australia. I grew up in a single parent home with my mum,' she said. 'I remember my mum had an issue with an ex-partner who wouldn't go away and kept knocking on the door. But when she called the police they said there was nothing they could do as it's not illegal to knock on a door. 'How bad do things need to be before police can act?' she said. On the late afternoon of May 31, 1942, three Japanese midget submarines invaded Sydney Harbour. Two submarines were destroyed but one, the M-24, launched its torpedoes and sunk the HMAS Kuttabul, killing 21 Allied navy officers. The M-24 slipped away after the attack and its whereabouts remained a mystery until divers discovered the wreck 60 years later. Now, 77 years after the attack on Sydney Harbour, a detailed 3D model which accurately shows the historic wreck 54 metres below the sea has been created and made available online. Two submariners blew up their vessel after being caught in an anti-submarine net The second vessel was heavily damaged and the crew shot themselves to avoid capture The Office of Environment and Heritage (OEH) built the 3D model with help from the Australian and New Zealand Chapter of the Explorers Club. The OEH will use the baseline recording to monitor any changes to the wreck over time and update the graphic. The online 3D model is now available to see and will provide a detailed image of the wreck without having to dive 54 metres under the sea. The M-24 submarine sunk the HMAS Kuttabul and killed 21 Navy officers The M-24 Japanese midget submarine was one of three vessels to directly attack Sydney Harbour during the Second World War. The first submarine entered the harbour at 8pm and was detected after its propeller became caught in an anti-submarine net. The HMAS Yarroma was ordered to investigate the disturbance in the water caused by the submarine but the Japanese two-man crew killed themselves and destroyed their submarine by detonating demolition charges. Two of the wrecks were still in good condition and were pulled out of Sydney Harbour At 9.48pm, the M-24 submarine entered the harbour and was fired on by the USS Chicago. The M-24 fired two torpedoes at the cruiser but one did not explode and the other missed the cruiser and struck the harbour bed beneath the depot ship HMAS Kuttabul. The torpedo exploded and sank the HMAS Kuttabul, killing 19 Royal Australian Navy officers and two Royal Navy officers. The M-24 slipped out of the harbour undetected and it was never seen again until divers discovered its wreck 60 years later off Bungan Head, Newport. The HMAS Kuttabul was struck by a torpedo launched from the M-24 Japanese submarine The wreck of the HMAS Kuttabul where 21 Navy officers lost their lives The third submarine entered the harbour in the early hours of June 1 and was detected in Taylors Bay. Patrol boats Sea Mist, Steady Hour and Yarroma repeatedly released depth charges and the submarine was heavily damaged. A specialist diving unit of the Royal Australian Navy investigated the submarine the following day and found its engines still operating. The submarine was raised from the water and Navy officers found two crew members inside who had died from self-inflicted gunshot wounds. One of the Japanese midget submarines being pulled from Sydney Harbour after the attack More than 200 Navy personnel attended the burial service for the 21 officers who died during the attack. The Royal Australian Navy also held a burial service for the four Japanese submariners who died and recognised their bravery. The cremated remains of the Japanese crew were returned to Japan two months later. The recovered wreckage of the two submarines were identical and used to construct one vessel where it is displayed at the Australian War Memorial. A composite midget submarine was created using parts from the two wrecks The composite midget submarine is now on display at the Australian War Memorial The PM replied, saying the Government will work to improve communication Mother Cornelia Kohl, 61, says she received little help and is still seeking answers The grieving mother of a German backpacker who died at a Queensland avocado farm over a year ago says the Australian Government needs to do a far better job in helping families who lose a loved one overseas. Cornelia Kohl's only daughter Jennifer, 27, died on December 8, 2017, when the ride-on mower she was driving with her then-boyfriend rolled over and crushed her. Emergency services arrived at the Mt Tamborine, Queensland, farm at around 11.30am but Jennifer died at the scene. Cornelia Kohl (left), 61, wrote a letter to Prime Minister Scott Morrison last November, detailing her frustration Jennifer had been working on the farm to earn her second year in Australia. In a letter sent to Prime Minister Scott Morrison on November 10 last year, geriatric nurse Mrs Kohl, 61, said: 'Your departments such as Workplace Health and Safety and Fair Work Australia need more attention to detail when it comes to dealing with families of backpackers who die in your country.' She also asked the Prime Minister to help her come to Australia to 'find out what exactly happened and what the investigation results will find'. 'I am asking for the assistance of Australian Government to please help me come to Australia to seek answers,' she said. 'I was never able to say goodbye to my daughter. 'Because my English is not good the communication has been difficult.' German backpacker Jennifer Kohl, 27, died after being crushed by a ride-on mower in 2017 In his reply the Prime Minister said: 'I note your comments about the need to improve communication with families in the event of an accident. A committee of the Australian Parliament has recently looked at the framework surrounding the prevention, investigation and prosecution of workplace deaths.' 'Their inquiry highlighted the enormous impact workplace deaths have on families and recommended improvements to the quality of investigations and prosecutions and the support provided to families following a workplace death. The Government is taking action on the key recommendations of this inquiry.' Recently Mrs Kohl received a text message from the Australian Taxation Office that said it could not provide her with specific information about Jennifer's taxation as she was not an authorised contact. But the German mother has no information relating to her daughter's superannuation account or whether Jennifer's employer paid her superannuation. She is also still waiting for the investigation into her daughter's death to be concluded. Mrs Kohl (right) is desperate to fly to Australia and get answers to her questions. Left, Jennifer during her working holiday in Australia Rosie Ayliffe, the mother of Mia Ayliffe-Chung, 21, who died after being stabbed in a hostel in 2016 in Home Hill, Queensland, was shocked by the way Mrs Kohl has been treated. In a tweet to Scott Morrison, the campaigner for changes to the Government's second working holiday visa program said: '[Mrs Kohl] asked ME to translate the accident report and fundraise to get her out there. SHAME on you @ScottmorrisonMP. You have left this poor woman in the dark.' 'To be in left in a foreign country with no resources or money to help you get the answers you need must be excruciating,' she said. 'I looked at the message the tax office sent Cornelia and I couldn't even make sense of it.' Rosie Ayliffe (above) had to translate the accident report for Mrs Kohl and set up a GoFundMe page Ms Ayliffe, an English teacher in the UK, also highlighted problems with the Government's second working holiday visa program, which allows backpackers an extra year in Australia if they complete 88 days of regional work in specified industries. 'Since the inception of the 88 days program, how many have died?' Rosie Ayliffe has helped Mrs Kohl set up a GoFundMe page to help her come to Australia and get the help she needs. It's the bush ballad that's been sung by everyone from Slim Dusty to Kylie Minogue... but do Australians know the story behind their unofficial national anthem? Poet Andrew 'Banjo' Paterson, who appears on the $10 note, wrote the poem in 1895 at Dagworth, a sheep station in western Queensland. Paterson and his fiancee Sarah Riley were visiting the Macphersons, a squatter family who had claimed Dagworth Station for themselves. A school friend of Sarah, Christina Macpherson played a Scottish tune The Craigielee March to which Banjo wrote Waltzing Matilda. Love triangle: Sarah Riley, Banjo Paterson and Christina Macpherson (from left to right). Banjo took a liking to Christina who played him the The Craigielee March to which Banjo wrote Waltzing Matilda. The Macpherson family kicked Banjo off the property shortly after he wrote the song. Sarah then dumped Banjo and moved to London where she never married. Christina also never married Banjo Paterson is on the $10 note with an illustration of one of his poems The Man from Snowy River. Paterson wrote poems about outback life including Clancy of the Overflow Banjo was kicked out of the Macpherson home shortly after writing the song with her. The poet had an affair with Christina that left both women spurned, according to Waltzing Matilda: The Secret History of Australia's Favourite Song by Dennis O'Keeffe. Sarah's engagement to Banjo was then called off and she moved to London where she never married. Christina Macpherson also never married. Down came the troopers, one, two, three! Three troopers in dark uniform (left) and squatter Bob Macpherson (fourth from right) at Dagworth Station during the 1894 shearers' strike. They are the same troopers and squatter from the poem, according to O'Keeffe Before the scandalous love triangle at Dagworth Station there was the 1894 shearers' strike. A death during the violent conflict between workers' unions and squatters backed by the Queensland government is the likely inspiration for Waltzing Matilda. The upbeat tune is about a swagman, a travelling worker, who drowns himself in a billabong to avoid being captured by police after he steals a stray sheep. An illustration of Waltzing Matilda shows a swagman boiling tea in his billy. Swagmen were travelling workers who carried all of their belongings with them. It is believed that the swagman from Waltzing Matilda was a German shearer named Samuel 'Frenchy' Hoffmeister German shearer Samuel 'Frenchy' Hoffmeister, whose body was found at the Four-Mile Billabong during the strike, is thought to have been the swagman in the song. Frenchy was a union leader who burnt down a shearing shed at the Macpherson's Dagworth Station the night before his body was found. Police reports from the time say Hoffmeister shot himself in the mouth to kill himself and avoid capture. A poster at the end of the 1891 shearers' strike where over 1,000 men put down their shears. The 13 men pictured were union leaders who were sentenced to three years hard labour. The great strikes of 1890-94 began with the maritime industry but spread to the shearing industry It's also possible that Hoffmeister was murdered by a squatter or police. The unionists made a secret deal with the police to hide the truth of the swagman's death, according to O'Keeffe. The strikes ended when unionists ran out of funds and were beaten by the squatters who had the support of the government and police. What do the lyrics mean? Waltzing: Travel while learning a trade. It comes from the German term 'auf der walz' as German apprentices would travel to gain trade experience Matilda: A blanket to keep warm at night. Matilda is an old name meaning 'mighty battle maid'. It was given as a nickname to women who slept with soldiers during the Thirty Years' War and eventually blankets Waltzing Matilda: Travelling in search of work while carrying all of your belongings on your back Billy: A tin can used to boil water Billabong: A stagnant pool of water made after a flood or when a river changes course Jumbuck: A sheep. It is likely to be a contraction of 'jumping buck' Swag: A bundle of personal belongings, often wrapped in a blanket Swagman: A travelling worker who would carry his belongings in a swag Squatter: A wealthy landowner. Squatters were ex-convicts or settlers who staked land without legal claim Trooper: A police officer, often mounted on horse Tucker bag: A satchel for storing food (tucker) Advertisement The sheet music cover for Waltzing Matilda featuring the Second Imperial Australia Force marching through Sydney during World War Two in 1940 Tearful parents have pleaded with the Australian government to deport their son after he racked up $47,000 (27,000) of debt in their name. Jill and Tony Lewis said they did not want to want to see their son Russell ever again after he betrayed their trust, broke into their home, stole their credit card information, and drained all bank accounts. 'Please deport my son, because I've had enough I never want to see him again,' Mr Lewis pleaded on A Current Affair on Tuesday. 'Please deport my son, because I've had enough I never want to see him again,' Mr Lewis pleaded on air Ms Lewis broke down pleading for the government to deport her son saying she could not believe he would do something like that Ms Lewis broke down as she recalled the moment the couple realised Russell had left them penniless and also stolen televisions, a four-wheeler, and a portable air conditioner from their house. 'Please deport Russell because I don't want to see him again.' Tony and Jill Lewis moved to Australia from England in 1985 with their 10-year-old-son Russell, Nine News reported. Mr and Ms Lewis, who expected to be retired by now, are now borrowing money to pay their rent while looking after Russell's six-year-old daughter. Russell was convicted of fraud and firearms were also found in his house when police investigated the break in and account draining. He was sentenced to 3.5 years' jail in Sydney's Long Bay prison, and will remain behind bars until 2020. Mr and Ms Lewis said they were forced to sell their home and their business after the theft five years ago. The couple told A Current Affair in 2013 they were headed back to their native Britain for a holiday and had informed the Commonwealth Bank their accounts would remain idle. Before they had even reached the UK, the pair said Russell broke into and robbed their home. Russell (pictured) robbed his parents's home and drained their bank accounts while they were away Mr and Ms Lewis did not know they had been robbed by their son until they came back from their holiday and a bank teller alerted them. The couple claim the Commonwealth Bank initially accused Mr Lewis of being a part of the scam in collusion with Russell. Pete Steel, executive general manger of digital at the Commonwealth Bank, told Daily Mail Australia they were sorry for the situation and they have commenced a review to fully understand the problem. 'We are very sorry for the situation involving Mr and Mrs Lewis. We know that events involving fraud can be complex and very difficult for customers,' he said. 'CBA has commenced an extensive review and will work directly with Mr and Mrs Lewis and their representative to get a full understanding of their matter with the view to making a goodwill payment to them. 'We want to remind all our customers to never keep a record of a PIN, password or other code in a location where, if a thief finds a card or code, they will also find the record of the PIN or password.' A hero dog saved his owner when she fell three metres down a cliff face and broke her ankle as they went for a walk. Sue Pethick, 55, tripped and fell as she walked Abby the red heeler during a two-week family camping trip to the remote Yorke Peninsula in South Australia. Abby ran back to the Gleesons Landing campground at about 1pm on Monday, where Ms Pethick's husband Michael, 59, was. Abby the red heeler dog saved his owner by alerting her husband when she fell three metres down a cliff face and broke her ankle as they went for a walk Sue Pethick, 55, tripped and fell as she walked Abby during a two-week family camping trip to the remote Yorke Peninsula in South Australia He was already concerned they were gone for almost 20 minutes, and even more so when he saw the dog coming back without her. 'I said "take me to mum" and she turned around and headed down this little track, along the cliff face and walkways and,' Mr Pethick told the Adelaide Advertiser. 'She stopped near an edge where it goes down to the beach and waited for me to catch up three metres down, there was Sue laying on her back.' Mr Pethick said the couple rescued the loyal 'wonder pooch' from a shelter in Victoria a year ago and now she had repaid them. Abby ran back to the Gleesons Landing campground at about 1pm on Monday, where Ms Pethick's husband Michael, 59, was Mr Pethick (pictured) said the couple rescued the loyal 'wonder pooch' from a shelter in Victoria a year ago and now she had repaid them 'Sue was telling me that Abby didnt want to leave her (but) she told Abby to go find dad (and) thats what (she) had done. For some reason I dont know how she knew what to do,' he said. Emergency services took two hours to stabilise Ms Pethick and rescued her from the cliff face, during which time she passed out twice from the pain. She was airlifted to Royal Adelaide Hospital in a stable condition for surgery on her broken ankle. 'Loving our little girl even more. Thank you, thank you, thank you puppy girl,' Ms Pethick posted on Facebook. It took emergency services two hours to stabilise Ms Pethick and get her off the cliff face, during which time she passed out from the pain twice A schoolgirl has hit another in the head and slapped her in the face while she lay on the ground after the pair began arguing over a boy. Video of the incident shows a blonde girl blast a brunette girl for talking s*** as they argue over a boy, before the blonde lays into the second girl at an unidentified Australian high school. He said to me, hes like: I still love her, the blonde said. Scroll down for video A schoolgirl has hit another in the head and slapped her in the face while she lay on the ground after the pair began arguing over a boy You just talk s*** about everybody. You need to stop. You have to close your mouth, she continued, angrily. Youre being immature, the brunette said. Im being immature, yeah? Im being immature, the blonde said. She then crouched over the brunette, who was sitting on grass, and began slapping her in the face and hitting her in the head. She crouched over the brunette, who was sitting on grass, and began slapping her in the face and hitting her in the head The brunette lay on the ground as she was being struck and then stood up and walked away. That escalated quickly, a schoolboy could be heard saying in the background. Video of the incident was shared by Australia-based Facebook page Most Wanted Lads on Thursday afternoon, and attracted 14,000 views in just four hours online. It is unclear which Australian school the fight took place at. A tormented father returned Wednesday to the charred ruins of his Georgia home where the night before his wife and two young daughters perished in a fire. 'My whole life is over,' Brent Patterson told reporters as he stood in front of the devastated house where balloons and flowers had been placed in a makeshift memorial. Patterson told WSBTV how he and his wife Kathy were putting their two daughters aged nine and 12 to bed Tuesday night when he heard a popping sound coming from downstairs. Realizing the house was on fire, he tried to return upstairs, but couldn't. Scroll down for video Brent Patterson said he tried his best to save his wife and two daughters from the blaze that killed them Brent Patterson with wife Kathy and the couple's two daughters aged nine and 12. Only Brent survived a fire that devastated the family's Tucker, Georgia house Tuesday Gwinnett County firefighters in front of the burnt-down two-story house in Tucker, Georgia 'I came downstairs, I opened the front door and it's like the place exploded. I tried to get back in. It was too hot,' Patterson told WSBTV. 'I couldn't get back in because the fire came around and it came up the stairway. I did everything I could.' Patterson said he and a neighbor tried to get back into the house through a back door. 'Me and my neighbor, we got a shovel and we went and broke the back glass on the back door and the heat was just so much there was no way we could [get] back in,' Patterson said. When Gwinnett County firefighters responded to the home on the 1000 block of Pointer Ridge in Tucker, a town outside of Atlanta, shortly after 10pm Tuesday, the two-story home was 'engulfed in flames,' officials said. Firefighters at the scene of the deadly house fire in Tucker, Georgia in a picture taken Wednesday The fire was so intense that firefighters had to battle the flames from outside, unable to enter the house Fire officials survey the damage from a house fire that killed three and left a lone survivor Because of the intensity of the fire, which was stoked by strong winds, firefighters had to battle the blaze from the outside. When officials finally were able to enter the home, it took hours to find the bodies of all three victims. Rescue teams had to prop up walls that posed a danger of collapsing before they were able to recover the body of the second daughter on Wednesday morning, fire officials told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The bodies were turned over to the local Medical Examiner. The family's dog was also found dead and was buried in the backyard 'as a show of respect due to the overwhelming loss sustained by the family,' a Gwinnett County fire department spokesman told the Journal-Constitution. A prayer vigil for the family was held Wednesday afternoon at the Tucker First United Methodist Church. Family friends set up an online fundraiser for the Patterson family that had raised over $8,000 by Thursday morning. Brent Patterson is comforted by neighbors Wednesday as he returns to his devastated home Neighbors embrace as they watch firefighters work the scene of a deadly house fire in a picture taken Wednesday Kathy Patterson and her two young daughters died in a house fire Tuesday, leaving father Brent Patterson as the lone survivor Brent Patterson pose with his wife and two daughters, who were killed by a house fire Tuesday Kathy Patterson, center, with her two daughters aged 9 and 12. All three perished in a house fire Tuesday Backlash: Ryanair chief Michael O'Leary Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary was facing a backlash last night after his new 90million bonus scheme was branded 'ludicrous' by a major investor. O'Leary, who has been in charge for 25 years, will be in line for the bonus if profits or the share price double over the next five years. Ryanair shares have recently been trading at four-year lows. Ashley Hamilton Claxton, head of responsible investment at the 117billion giant Royal London Asset Management, said: 'Asking shareholders to pay directors more than 100 million for achieving a marginal improvement over its share price high in August 2017 is ludicrous. 'Many of the reasons for the recent poor performance, such as labour issues, strikes and logistical problems, have been within management's control. 'So this eye-watering payout for rectifying these issues and achieving a share price recovery simply adds insult to injury.' The scandal at Patisserie Valerie has already lost him millions of pounds and damaged his credibility as one of Britains top entrepreneurs. Now the controversy appears to have starved deal-hungry Luke Johnson of yet another restaurant chain takeover. The Mail on Sunday understands Johnson was set to gobble up a sizeable stake in trendy Italian restaurant chain Polpo before pulling out of a deal when Patisserie Valerie collapsed. Luke Johnson was set to gobble up a sizeable stake in trendy Italian restaurant chain Polpo Polpo has six restaurants in London and one in Brighton. The chain was founded in 2009 by Russell Norman, the former operations director of The Ivy owner Caprice Holdings, and his friend Richard Beatty. The company has been suffering in recent years and was forced to close several outlets. Despite making a pre-tax loss of 2million on revenues of 14.3million in the year ended March 2017, the company paid 280,000 in dividends to Norman and Beatty. They have collected more than 2.1million in dividends since 2013. Polpos accounts for 2018 are now overdue. The company did not respond to requests for comment. Johnson had been eyeing Polpo via his private equity firm Risk Capital Partners. Patisserie Valerie, which Johnson bought through Risk Capital Partners and then floated on AIM in 2014, collapsed into administration last month after uncovering a 40million fraud. A Tokyo official last night warned that Japanese companies could 'suspend' operations in the UK if Britain exits the EU without a deal even though the country's firms have collected millions of pounds in UK state aid. Analysis of European Commission records shows Nissan has been awarded 22million since Britain voted to leave the EU. This was on top of the 61million state aid revealed last week. Toyota received 20.7million in Business Department state aid grants last year and Hitachi was handed 9.5million by Government departments in 2016 and 2017. Nissan last week announced it had abandoned plans to build its new X-Trail SUV at its European headquarters in Sunderland. Japanese car firm Nissan has been awarded 22million since Britain voted to leave the EU Shinichi Iida, a minister at London's Japanese embassy, told The Mail on Sunday that if the UK leaves the EU without a deal, manufacturing firms 'would be forced to suspend their operations, adjust to the environment and shift the balance of their productions'. He added: 'Under such dire circumstances, they would be forced to readjust and rebalance their manufacturing.' The Government has now told Nissan it needs to reapply for most of the promised 61million. Official records show Nissan got an additional 16.3million in October 2016 from the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy and then 6.1million from Innovate UK in 2017. A BEIS spokesman said: 'Since 2010, these grants, typically matched by industry, have been available to all firms to apply for funding to develop skills, workforce training and innovation with the aim of bringing economic benefits.' Nissan said it had invested 4billion in the Sunderland area and added that government grants are available to a 'wide number of other businesses in the UK'. Plumbing tycoon Charlie Mullins has called an end to the search for a new investor in his London business. Mullins, an anti-Brexit campaigner who wants to be the next Mayor of London, last year launched a sale process to offload 20 per cent of Pimlico Plumbers, a business he values at 100million. But the 66-year-old revealed last night that he had decided to keep hold of his 100 per cent shareholding. Pipe dream: Plumbing tycoon, Charlie Mullins, will keep 100% of business Pimlico Plumbers Launched by Mullins in 1979, the business today has 330 professional tradespeople, 120 support staff and a long list of celebrity clients, including James Bond star Daniel Craig and actress Dame Helen Mirren. The business pulled in revenues of 44million last year after enjoying a record-breaking summer, despite a heatwave that meant less plumbing work. The firm has diversified in recent years into carpentry, electrics, roofing and other trades, shielding it from lulls in demand for plumbing. Mullins said: 'It is a matter of public record that I have recently considered taking on outside investment in Pimlico to aid ongoing expansion plans. 'But having looked long and hard at the options on the table and decided to remain a 100 per cent family-owned outfit, I feel vindicated in that decision by these strong results, and the positive future outlook.' Four bosses of failed energy suppliers have returned to the market to sell gas and electricity to households, it can be revealed. Customers are expected to rush to switch deals after the energy price cap was hiked by 117 last week. Yet The Mail on Sunday found some of the suppliers offering the cheapest rates have links to firms that collapsed with big debts. Gulf Gas & Power UK, Northumbria Energy, Lite Energy and Saturn Energy are all linked to individuals who ran failed energy suppliers. Return: Gulf is linked to the former owner and boss of bust supplier GB Energy, Luke Watson Gulf, trading under the famous oil brand which dates back to 1901, offers one of the best deals on the market at 1,015 a year for an average family, according to Energy Helpline. This is far below the new 1,254 cap on variable deals. But the firm, which operates from the Grade II-listed Bowcliffe Hall, West Yorkshire, is linked to the former owner and boss of bust supplier GB Energy, Luke Watson. GB Energy collapsed in November 2016 with its 160,000 customers taken on by Co-operative Energy. Creditors were left 32.3million out of pocket, including 6 million owed in green taxes and 15.5million Co-op Energy had to cover in unpaid credits to customers. On his LinkedIn networking page, Watson claims he is Gulf's 'co-founder', though he is not listed on Gulf's Companies House records. He has also been referred to as Gulf's 'general manager' in documents published by a partner firm. Jonathan Turner, Gulf's owner and chief executive, said Watson was not the general manager and insisted he had 'no influence or control as to how my business is run'. But Turner said he wanted to give Watson a second chance, adding: 'I was obviously very sensitive to his background.' The company accounts were 'more than healthy', Turner said. Watson did not respond to requests for comment. A number of smaller energy suppliers have ceased trading recently due to market difficulties David Bird, chief executive of Co-operative Energy, called for tougher rules on former bosses returning to the market. He said: 'When a supplier goes bust, the tab is usually partly picked up by the new supplier and all other remaining suppliers and their customers. 'This loophole could be exploited by unscrupulous directors. The introduction of a 'fit and proper person' test would help protect customers.' Gillian Guy, chief executive of Citizens Advice, also called for regulator Ofgem to keep closer tabs on individuals running energy firms. In Newcastle, Northumbria Energy has been set up by Tim Cantle-Jones, a local businessman who was part of a group on entrepreneurs accompanying Theresa May on a trip to Africa last year. He was the former chief executive of Future Energy, which went bust 13 months ago. He was not running it at the time of its collapse, but was still a shareholder. The company owed 2.3million to creditors, and its 10,000 customers were transferred to Green Star Energy. Cantle-Jones did not respond to requests for comment. Extra Energy, a supplier run by Ben Jones, went bust in November. It owed 15.5million in green taxes and about 100million to creditors. Its 129,000 customers were sent to Scottish Power. Within a month, Jones had a new Ofgem licence to run Callesti Energy Supply and had set up a website for Lite Energy. Jones could not be reached for comment. In September last year, Gen4U failed and its 500 customers were sent to Octopus. The owner, Fareed Hussain Bashir, registered Saturn Energy at Companies House two months later. He did not respond to requests for comment. Mary Starks, an executive director at Ofgem, said the regulator was reviewing its licensing rules. She said: 'We don't just want anybody to enter the market, and in particular we don't want suppliers to fail with big debts behind them. 'We are revoking licences at the moment to make sure they don't get picked up by people we don't approve.' Sales of cards are proving surprisingly resilient against online messaging Personalised cards and gifts company Moonpig has recorded its tenth consecutive year of booming sales growth as the anticipated slowdown in the traditional greeting cards industry fails to materialise. The company has diversified into gifts including flowers, chocolates, wine and balloons but meanwhile its sales of cards are proving surprisingly resilient against online messaging. Accounts just filed for the year ending April 30, 2018 saw sales grow from 85.8million to 90.8million while pre-tax profits dipped slightly from 18.5million to 15.9million. The company was founded by entrepreneur Nick Jenkins in 1999 who named it after his school nickname. Jenkins sold his company in 2011 to Photobox for 120million and went on to work on various charitable projects as well as becoming a dragon on the BBCs Dragons Den. Praise: Lady Sorrell's words of support will further dispel rumours of marital trouble Sir Martin Sorrell's wife has paid a heartfelt tribute to the embattled businessman nearly a year after he left advertising giant WPP in controversial circumstances. In new accounts for the family's charity, the Jmcmrj Sorrell Foundation which she leads as chief executive Cristiana Falcone Sorrell said: 'I personally would like to thank, once again, the chairman [Sir Martin] and our family for their commitment, trust, time and counselling including our next generation who inspire us to go further.' Lady Sorrell's words of support will further dispel rumours of marital trouble which emerged after Sir Martin left WPP last April. The Wall Street Journal said he quit after a WPP probe into allegations he used company funds to pay for a prostitute a claim he strenuously denies. The details of the WPP investigation were not revealed, but it found nothing material against Sorrell, who resigned as a good leaver. The charity relies on WPP for income, last year receiving 2.7million in dividends. The champagne market is fizzing. Investment returns from buying the best French sparkling wine if you resist the temptation to pop the cork have beaten those from the stock market over the past decade. The Liv-Ex Champagne 50 Index which tracks the value of 50 of the finest vintage champagnes has risen 85 per cent over the past ten years. Over the same period, the FTSE 100 Index which measures the performance of the 100 largest companies on the London Stock Market rose just 65 per cent. Even in the past year alone some cases of champagne have risen 30 per cent in value. Over the past decade, the best performing champagnes have come from small producer Salon Over the past decade, the best performing champagnes have come from small producer Salon, whose best vintages have increased in value by 163 per cent. Others that have done well include Philipponnat, Dom Perignon and Krug rising by 63, 61 and 60 per cent, respectively. The prices for vintage Cristal have increased 40 per cent. Nicola Graham, of Liv-Ex, says: Brand recognition is strong in the champagne market with restaurants, nightclubs and Royal Weddings all playing a part in adding to their appeal. 'It is not just about how critics score the champagne, but also the year the grapes were harvested the vintage. A great vintage can add to the appeal of other champagnes bottled in that year. The best vintages that a champagne producer bottles are often known as prestige cuvee. In contrast, if a grower believes a particular vintage is not up to scratch they usually scrap it preferring to blend it with others to sell as non vintage champagne, destined for supermarket shelves. This helps add to the attraction and price of vintages that producers believe are worthy of their name. When Dom Perignon 2008 was released last month at 1,200 for a crate of 12 standard 75-centilitre bottles, investors pounced. Within a day prices had risen 16 per cent with wine lovers paying 1,400. Other vintages that have recently enjoyed impressive returns include Louis Roederers Cristal 2005, rising 30 per cent in value in the past year, with a crate now changing hands for almost 1,500. The brand used to be a huge favourite of hiphop artists with rappers such as Jay Z mentioning it in his lyrics. But not all champagne has increased in value. A crate of Bollinger 2007 has fallen in value by more than 10 per cent over the past year and is now priced at 560. Graham says: Older vintages tend to grow in value with age the prices nudging ever higher as bottles get drunk and become harder to find. Sparkling wine has also received a boost from sterlings devaluation following the Brexit referendum in 2016 since when the Champagne 50 Index has risen by 35 per cent. A vintage investment: The Cristal champagne cellar at Roederer in Reims, France The average price of a crate of investment-quality champagne is now valued at 1,485, or 124 for a standard-size bottle. If you are interested in acquiring investment quality champagne you will not find it at your local supermarket. Instead you must visit a specialist wine merchant. They regularly tour the vineyards of north-east France to find the best vintages by sampling them. Some merchants provide investment advice. To benefit from all the tax breaks available to wine investors, you will have to accept that you will never see the champagne. The wine will be bonded by the merchant and remain in a temperature- controlled warehouse. Such bonding means no VAT or duty have to be paid. The cost of having a crate of 12 bottles bonded is usually between 10 and 20 a year. This includes insurance against loss or damage. Champagne vintages are often released ten years after they have been harvested so this year you should look out for 2009 vintages. But you may have to keep it stored in bond for several years perhaps a decade or so for supply to fall sufficiently for you to make a half-decent investment return. When you eventually sell the champagne typically back to a wine merchant you can expect to see about 10 per cent of the proceeds absorbed in trading costs. On the plus side, champagne as with other wine is classed a wasting asset by Revenue & Customs. This means there is no capital gains tax to pay when you sell. Merchant Alex Marton, who runs Alex Marton Fine Wines in Ealing, West London, says: Wine trading is an unregulated market so you must find someone reputable. He says it is essential to do background checks on any wine merchant or trader you intend to deal with. It is important they have an office you can visit not just a fancy website. Also, never respond to a cold-call sales pitch. Before agreeing to hand over any money visit consumer website investdrinks.org. This provides details of wine traders that have been involved in fraud and publishes regular blogs on the latest scams. While most investors will buy and sell cases containing 12 bottles each with a 75cl capacity, Marton says the size of bottle can matter when investing, with the bigger and rarer bottles sometimes commanding premium prices. A magnum twice the size of a regular bottle is commonly used for champagne. A bottle that holds three litres is known as a jeroboam and is the size used to spray the crowds in celebration at the end of a Formula One Grand Prix. One of the biggest is the rare nebuchadnezzar, which holds 15 litres. Marton adds: Many people do not realise champagne can be stored for a long time before it is drunk. I have tasted champagne bottled in the 1950s that has lost a little of its effervescence, but still had bubbles with a glorious flavour of orange and grapefruit. He points out that one of the great qualities of champagne is that even if it works out as a poor long-term investment you can always drown your sorrows and drink it. Every week Toby Walne gives the low-down on the value of forgotten treasures that may be gathering dust in your attic. Valentine's Day can be traced back to ancient Roman fertility festivals. The name comes from Saint Valentine, who was executed in 269AD after performing wedding ceremonies at a time when marriage was banned to get men to join the army. Old Valentines card can be worth a lot of money now, with this one from 1893 on sale for 85 It was not until the 15th Century that letters were swapped between sweethearts as a token of love. Thanks to improved printing techniques, by the 1820s, thousands of cards were delivered every year, posted by hand in the dead of night and encrypted with secret codes to hide the senders identity. If you are lucky enough to have inherited a handpainted lithograph from the 1850s with a lace-style frill, you have a love note worth 25. An ornate design, such as those by German firm Littauer & Boysen, with a decorative leather cover and gilt edging can fetch 100. An 1876 set of British artist Kate Greenaways illustrations The Quiver of Love: A Collection of Valentines is worth 350. This year, more than 560,000 people have applied to study at British universities, including in excess of 100,000 from overseas. Our higher education is particularly highly prized at postgraduate level and it is well funded too. Every year, about 8billion is spent on university research, two thirds of which comes from the Government. Much of that research is world-class, but far too little evolves from theory into practice. This creates a serious problem. Future tech: One Frontier project was helping to develop a robotic fruit-picker, to save on hiring people Companies are constantly looking for clever ideas, academics are full of them, but there is a mismatch between the two and, along the way, large amounts of money are put to little use. Frontier IP aims to bridge the gap between academia and commerce. Its shares are 82p and should increase in value as the company is involved in several highly promising young businesses. A number of listed firms tour the university circuit looking for research opportunities that they can invest in and commercialise. Frontier is rather different. Instead of throwing money at promising ideas, chief executive Neil Crabbe and his team offer advice, support and industry contacts to academics. In return, Frontier receives a stake, as clever theories turn into start-up companies. The group also takes academics work to industry partners at an early stage so researchers can tailor their work to what companies really need. This makes a huge difference, saving time, money and effort on both sides. Fieldwork, for example, started out when an academic from Plymouth University started thinking about developing a robotic arm that could pick soft fruit. Frontier introduced the idea to the largest raspberry grower in the UK, supplying Tesco and all the big supermarkets. They are now working together to create a fully-fledged automated picking system, which could significantly reduce the need for human fruit-pickers. Another firm Frontier works with, Molendotech, has patented a way to test the cleanliness of water for bathing and irrigation, and is now working with FTSE 100 group Halma to develop the technology. Alusid, spun out of the University of Central Lancashire, recycles ceramics and industrial glass into high quality tiles. Supported by Frontier, it is already supplying Nandos, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts and Amazon. Overall, Crabbe and his team have stakes in about 15 companies, spun out of universities, including Cambridge, Dundee and Heriot-Watt in Edinburgh. They have even started working with Lisbon University, as the link between academia and commerce is considerably more fractured in southern Europe than it is here. At the same time, Frontier is establishing a reputation in industry, so companies are increasingly turning to the business when they want access to academic ideas with genuine potential. Within Frontiers portfolio, some firms have made such progress that they are considering floating on the stock exchange. Others may be acquired or receive serious injections of cash from deep-pocketed partners. Crabbe, a former fund manager and 6 per cent shareholder, is highly focused on delivering returns to investors, so share buybacks and special dividends are likely in the future. Midas verdict: Frontier is an interesting company performing a valuable service for business and academia. The stock is certainly not risk-free, but at 82p the shares should deliver rewards to the more adventurous investor. A slowdown in economic growth, together with the threat of a trade war with the United States, has sent the Chinese stock market into a tailspin in recent months. But it has not dented the enthusiasm of Dale Nicholls, manager of investment trust Fidelity China Special Situations. In the UK while Hong Kong (his home) and mainland China celebrate the Lunar New Year and the Year of the Pig, Nicholls believes the investment case for China remains as robust as ever. Consumer focus: The 1.1billion trust has a portfolio primarily exposed to the domestic Chinese economy It is just that the way to extract investment return from the market, he says, has changed. Now nearly nine years old, the 1.1billion trust has a portfolio primarily exposed to the domestic economy with most of the 150 stocks generating their revenues from the Chinese consumer rather than overseas trade. The development of the consumer is the biggest theme in the trust, says Nicholls, talking from Fidelitys London offices late last week in between meeting big investors in the trust. Consumption is the biggest component of Chinas economic growth and the development of the middle classes over the next decade will drive the economy forward. 'Consumption will continue to grow every year in high single-digit figures. This focus on the domestic consumer is reflected throughout the trust from the biggest holding (internet giant Tencent) through to the 5.5 per cent exposure to companies yet to list on the stock market (unquoteds). Nicholls says: Although nearly 15 per cent of the trusts assets are in Tencent, this is an underweight position compared to the market. 'Yes, the company has encountered some issues with the granting of gaming licences by the Chinese authorities, but it remains a dominant force. 'It is the leader in the world of Chinese social media with WeChat, the equivalent of Facebook, having more than a billion users. If anything, the companys shares are undervalued. Other key consumer holdings include China Meidong Auto that runs car dealerships for the likes of BMW, Lexus and Porsche, as well as selling finance and insurance. Nicholls also has a stake in Li-Ning, a Chinese sportswear manufacturer whose wares have gained traction among the young middle-classes. The company was set up by former Chinese gymnast Li-Ning. Among the trusts unlisted holdings is DiDi, Chinas version of taxi service Uber. Its everywhere in China, says Nicholls. It delivers 2.5 million people every day to where they want to go to more than Uber does globally. Nicholls, Australian by birth but who has spent half a century working in the Far East as an investment analyst and fund manager, says anyone investing in China must accept that the ride is going to be volatile. He says: As a fund manager the key is to find companies that are cash generative, have good long-term prospects and are run by good people. To help him find these company gems, he draws upon research from more than 20 Fidelity analysts based in Hong Kong and Shanghai. Anyone who invested in the trusts launch in spring 2010 when it was managed by the legendary Anthony Bolton would have doubled their money. But over the past year the trusts share price has fallen 15 per cent. Fidelity China Special Situations is a well-run trust investing in companies looking to grow on the back of Chinas continued economic growth. It is not for widows, nor orphans. It should represent no more than five per cent of an investment portfolio. A damning report exposing the inability of some fund managers to deliver value for money for investors has been published by Bestinvest, part of wealth manager Tilney. The research is based on close scrutiny of the performance of nearly 700 established funds managing assets just shy of 400billion. It shows that one in six are failing investors by consistently underperforming the stock market indices that their marketing literature claims they will beat. Bestinvest labels Neil Woodfords firm as one of the main culprits for disappointing returns Despite this, Bestinvest estimates that investment houses earn a staggering 537million a year in fees from these ailing funds. It says the charges, which eat into the returns of investors, are nothing but reward for failure. In many cases, it adds, investors would have been better off putting their faith in a fund run by a robot that mechanically tracks the performance of an index such as the FTSE 100 (which comprises the 100 biggest companies listed on the London Stock Exchange) or the wider FTSE All-Share Index. The report is required reading for anyone with a portfolio built around funds, maybe held within a tax-friendly Individual Savings Account or a self-invested personal pension. At the very least, it should prompt investors to check that their existing portfolio remains fit for purpose or needs a shake-up. It is also an essential tool for anyone looking to take advantage of their annual 20,000 Isa allowance by buying investments ahead of the end of the tax year in early April. Although Bestinvest says some of the 111 poorly performing funds it identified could well recover, it believes many should be avoided. Firms that have failed to outperform their benchmark in each of the past three calendar years Jason Hollands, a director at Tilney, says: Investment managers often go through tough periods because their particular approach or investment process goes temporarily out of fashion. That is understandable. But there are also times when fund managers either make bad decisions or start managing money in a different way to how they did in the past when they were more successful. His comments are aimed particularly at Neil Woodford, one of the countrys highest profile fund managers. He jumped ship from Invesco Perpetual more than four years ago to set up Woodford Investment Management. Bestinvest labels Woodfords firm one of the main culprits for disappointing returns other big names include Invesco, Columbia Threadneedle and Artemis. Hollands says the flagship fund, Woodford Equity Income, looks very different to the funds he made his name in at Invesco Income and High Income due to its exposure to small firms. Woodford earned his reputation by holding stakes in big tobacco and healthcare stocks. In response, Woodford Investment Management says: Throughout his career, there have been times when Neils funds have underperformed the market because of a contrarian view like now. 'In the past 18 months he has invested in UK domestically-exposed equities, which are cheaper now than he has ever seen, based on a view which he doesnt share that the UK is about to go into recession. He believes there are risks in stocks whose share prices have risen on an increasingly false premise. The worst funds are shown in the table above. They have failed to outperform their benchmark in each of the past three calendar years. Over the full 36-month period they have also provided a return at least 5 per cent below the benchmark. Though the report focuses on poorly performing fund managers, it also lists funds that have consistently done well, such as Fundsmith Equity, which has turned 100 into 160 in the past three years. The report comes hard on the heels of new rules announced by the Financial Conduct Authority to ensure investors can identify suitable funds. The regulator has long maintained that many investors do not get value for money. The report is available at bestinvest.co.uk/spot-the-dog. A year on from the collapse of Carillion, and the outsourcing sector is deep in crisis. Interserve, which makes around 70 per cent of its income from the British government, is the latest domino to fall. Its efforts to put together a lifeboat with its banks are already under fire from a New York hedge fund, Coltrane, its largest shareholder which stands to lose its shirt. But the problems in the sector, which has been hit by profit warnings, plunging share prices, high debt and fat cat pay scandals, extend much further than one angry American investor. Outsourcing firms are a Cinderella industry but are vital to the whole economy, providing all sorts of essential public services from building hospitals to housing asylum seekers. In the mire: A year on from the collapse of Carillion, and the outsourcing sector is deep in crisis They account for tens of thousands of jobs and pensions and are responsible for billions of pounds of taxpayers' money. The UK has been one of the most enthusiastic adopters of farming out essential government works and services to the private sector. The theory was that companies such as G4S, Capita, Serco and Mitie would be more efficient and provide services at a lower cost. In reality, much of the industry is in the mire. Billions of pounds have been wiped off the values of listed companies. Shares in G4S have halved since 2015. At Kier, they are down by two-thirds since 2014 and at Capita, they have dropped 85 per cent since 2015. At Mitie they have fallen around 60 per cent from a high in 2014. Serco, which is on a recovery path, is an exception, with shares up by more than a third in 12 months. Companies have already tapped up shareholders for hundreds of millions of pounds and there are likely to be more attempts to raise additional capital. To say this is likely to go down badly with shareholders is an understatement. Capita's 700m rights issue last year was ill-received by some and a capital-raising by Keir just before Christmas flopped badly. Senior insiders say there is something of a liquidity crunch, as some firms are facing a squeeze on bank lending. Banks are wary of being burned again. And, due to the uncertainty around Brexit, some European players are reluctant to lend more to UK companies full stop. Many of the current difficulties date back several years. Most of the companies have relatively new bosses such as Rupert Soames at Serco and Sir Ian Powell at Capita, parachuted in with a mandate to clean up the mess. The causes? Aggressive accounting policies where profits on long-term contracts were booked years before the money was expected to arrive, if it ever does. Weak and half-blind auditors. The obsessive pursuit of short-term revenues at whatever cost. Suffice it to say, parts of the sector look like accidents waiting to happen. The Government is not likely to rush into bank-style bailouts for any that do go to the wall ministers want shareholders and lenders to be on the hook, not the taxpayer. Measures for 'living wills' so companies can be wound down in an orderly way if they fail, with a minimum of disruption to public services, are in train but are untested. With Brexit looming, the country urgently needs to upgrade infrastructure if the economy is going to flourish. Executives should be very mindful that the morass is a boon to Jeremy Corbyn who would like nothing more than to nationalise the lot. The huge loss suffered by Jaguar Land Rover 3.4billion in one three-month period is a major blow for the car maker, of course. Shares in its owner, Tata Motors, last week fell by one fifth, their sharpest decline for 26 years. But it also carries lessons for all companies, all countries, and indeed all of us in our daily lives. The rule is 'don't have too many eggs in one basket'. The reasons for the Jaguar Land Rover loss were a fall-off in sales to China, the switch from diesel in Europe, and costs associated with Brexit. Market losses: Jaguar Land Rover has made too big a bet on diesel and too big a bet on China Sales in the UK and the US were actually very good, but Jaguar Land Rover had made too big a bet on diesel and too big a bet on China. Growth in China has slowed dramatically and the political climate towards buying imported products has cooled too. German car makers have been savaged by this shift, like Jaguar Land Rover. Because Germany's car industry is so big relative to its overall economy at about 6 per cent of Gross Domestic Product, it is possible we don't have final figures yet that Germany has fallen into recession. It is also possible that the UK will turn out to have been the fastest-growing large European economy in the second half of 2018. We'll get GDP figures this week that may confirm that. So if you are a company, you don't want to be over-reliant on one or two markets. If you are a country, you don't want to be over-reliant on one or two industries, particularly those that depend on exports. Germany is indeed a wonderfully successful exporter. It has a current account surplus equivalent to 8 per cent of GDP. But not only has that surplus generated all sorts of political problems, including pushback from a more nationalist US, it means if exports fall, the whole economy takes a tumble. Of course, countries have to have both manufacturing and services. It is not either/or. Many small energy suppliers have ceased trading recently due to difficult market conditions But predominantly service industry-based economies, such as the UK and US, seem more resilient to swings in international trade than ones that are overly dependent on manufacturing. We can roll with the punches. Germany can't. Now to us as individuals. Employment in the UK is very strong, with joblessness at its lowest since the 1970s. But we cannot assume this will continue, and it is pretty clear that the world economy is heading into some sort of downturn. We also cannot know what sort of political conditions will prevail in another ten or 20 years' time. So the lesson of Jaguar Land Rover for us is to spread our risk. It sounds boring, but it means building up some savings, being aware that our jobs may not be as secure as we'd like, maybe having sidelines that make some money. By all means get a new Jaguar if you are in that market it needs our help but figure out how to tuck away some cash too. This string of fledgling energy companies that are going belly up should be a warning. If you get a wonderful-sounding offer for cheap, green electricity, or fancy buying a bond yielding 11 per cent from one of them, do the following... Google the firm and go on to the Companies House website (beta.companieshouse.gov.uk), to look at its reports. If any director has been associated with firms that have gone into administration that is a red flag. If any of the accounts have been delayed, that is another. Look at the accounts: are they losing money? Another red flag. Who are the directors anyway? Is there evidence they know anything about energy? It is all public information. It is all free. If you smell a rat, you might be wise to pass this one by. Cheap by historical standards I noted a couple of weeks ago that with an average dividend yield of 4.7 per cent, big British companies were very cheap by historical standards. I have just seen a note by Saracen Fund Managers that the gap between the average dividend yield on FTSE 100 companies and that on ten-year gilts is at its highest since the Second Word War. Low share prices (and hence a high dividend yield) and high gilt prices (and hence a low interest yield) are signs of extreme pessimism about the future. I know things look a bit tricky now, but I don't think the outlook is quite as bad as it was in 1940. Recent research indicates that school lessons in money can set the tone for a lifetime of sound financial management. According to work carried out by the Money Advice Service in conjunction with Cambridge University, money habits are often set by age seven and personal finance lessons in school can be transformative. Of a group of 14 to 16-year-olds receiving money lessons, two thirds said the information had changed the way they spent and saved, in research carried out by the Tax Incentivised Savings Association. School lessons in money can set the tone for a lifetime of sound financial management Personal finance has been compulsory in UK schools since 2014 and the lessons are empowering children, enabling them to understand the key money issues they will face in adulthood. As editor of financial magazine Moneywise, I am passionate about personal finance education. It is why we have launched a search for the countrys best primary and secondary school personal finance teachers. The schools where the winning money teachers work will share in a prize pot worth 12,500 with a judges award also given to a teacher making a difference maybe as a result of the original way they approach the subject. Recently, I visited Arkholme Church of England Primary School in the Lune Valley, Lancashire where one of last years winners head teacher Joy Ingram runs money classes. When I was there, ten five-year-olds had organised a class party. The pupils had worked hard to get the party right. They had created a shopping list and then bought items, strictly within an agreed budget. I believe the need for money education is greater than ever as young people face many financial challenges including working in an economy where incomes are variable. To nominate a primary or secondary school teacher, email editor@moneywise.co.uk with their name along with details of the school. The teacher will then be asked to submit at least one lesson plan and a supporting statement. Teachers can also nominate themselves. Deadline is Friday, April 5. Rachel Rickard Straus is the editor of financial magazine Moneywise. If you have a problem, email z.west-meads@you.co.uk. Zelda reads all your letters but regrets that she cannot answer them all personally My boyfriend wont talk about our problems I have been with my boyfriend for more than a year. He is almost 30 but at times I feel I am in a relationship with a child. He is amazing a lot of the time but his major downfalls are that he is stubborn and not a good listener. If I am upset about something that has happened between us, I am vocal about it and tell him I want to work out what is causing the problem. We have had several heated debates recently because he never says sorry unless I ask him to. He often makes a fuss and says the fact I have told him that he has hurt me upsets him. I know this is a defence mechanism on his part but I dont know how much longer I can take it. I often feel unheard and that he doesnt care about my feelings. I am not sure if I should stay with him as I feel I shouldnt be constantly questioning my self-worth. I do love him and I cant imagine being without him. The way that couples argue is often a good indicator of whether their relationship will stand the test of time, and it seems as though this part of your relationship is very difficult to deal with. He sounds fragile and insecure. When he says that he is upset by being told that he has hurt you, this is just like a child, as you say. It shows that he doesnt feel comfortable with handling emotions in any depth and prefers to retreat. Does he come from a family where emotions were never discussed, so its not easy for him? Or perhaps a family where everyone was volatile and overemotional? When you say you are vocal about your feelings if he has upset you, I wonder if your frustration with your boyfriend means your approach is a little critical or aggressive. However, it may be that you approach him gently but he still does not respond. I think you need to tell him that you really love him but that for any relationship to thrive, couples need to be able to really talk about their feelings and be emotionally close. Ask him to come to counselling with you at Relate (relate.org.uk). If he refuses and nothing changes, then I think that ultimately you will feel you cant continue in this relationship. She prefers his ex-wife to me My lovely husband of seven years is planning to visit his sister in Italy, where she lives with her Italian husband and two children. They have always been very close. The problem is that she was incredibly close to his ex-wife and they are still very good friends. I have never felt accepted by her, and though he emailed her and said it would be lovely if I could come as well, I got the impression from her reply that she would rather he went on his own. I would like to go with my husband because, after staying with her, we could perhaps have a holiday together in Italy. What do you think I should do? It is unfair of your sister-in-law to ask her brother to come to stay and not you too, but I can see that this is a difficult situation. Because she is so close to his ex-wife, she may resent you a little because, really, she wishes that her brother was still married to his ex. She may also feel guilty about being friendly towards you as she may believe that this is disloyal to your husbands first wife. Indeed, your husbands ex may well be influencing his sister and putting pressure on her to keep her distance from you. This may be especially true if his ex is bitter about the break-up and hasnt moved on herself, or if he left her for you. However, his first marriage ended and he is with you now, so it is very sad for him and for you if his sister wont accept you. I think he needs to talk to his sister about all of the above and explain that the past is the past, that he loves both her and you very much, that he would like her to give you a chance and that he really wants you to come to Italy with him. I hope that she will invite you. I cant afford to go to his wedding My grandson is getting married abroad in the summer. I would love to go but I simply cant afford the flights and accommodation. (I work part time, as my pension does not go very far.) However, this has not gone down very well: my daughter the grooms mother has taken it as a snub. How can I explain to her that I havent got a bottomless pit of money? I am sure you are a loving grandmother and would really like to go with the rest of your family to your grandsons wedding. Explain to your daughter how much you want to be there and that it is making you really sad to think you might not be able to see your lovely grandson get married. Tell her that you are very worried about the money as you struggle to live on your pension. Is there any chance that your daughter and her son or his future wifes family could help with your costs? I am sure they would all love to have you there. Alternatively, could you cut costs by flying at a cheaper time of day or sharing a room? Do you have the kind of job where you could work extra hours for a few weeks to save up? I do hope that if your daughter knows how worried you are she will try to help or be more understanding if it is really not possible for you to go. From a spicy chicken curry to these mouthwatering beef pies with oysters, sample succulent dishes from James Martin, inspired by his culinary tour of the UK British Just looking at these souffles is enough to make your stomach rumble I used to drive past Briddlesford Lodge Farm on my trips to the Isle of Wight but its become my first stop when I arrive on the island. The milk from their Guernsey cow herd produces the most fantastic cheese, cream and butter all of which are used in these souffles. Any Cheddar cheese will do, though, so give the recipe a try! Serves 4 40g (1oz) butter, plus extra softened, to grease 40g (1oz) plain flour, plus extra to dust 250ml (9fl oz) milk 200g (7oz) grated Cheddar 1tbsp Dijon mustard 1tsp chopped rosemary Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper 1 egg yolk 3 egg whites 400ml (14fl oz) double cream A small bunch of watercress 1 chicory bulb, chopped l 2 little gem lettuces, chopped For the dressing 1 egg yolk 25ml (fl oz) white wine vinegar 100ml (3fl oz) vegetable oil Preheat the oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Grease 4 x 8cm souffle moulds or ramekins with butter and dust the insides with flour, tipping out any excess. Melt the butter in a saucepan over a medium heat and whisk in the flour, cooking for about 1 minute. Slowly pour in the milk, whisking all the time, and cook for about 2 minutes. Beat in a third of the cheese and all the mustard and rosemary, then season. Pour into a bowl and leave to cool. Stir in the egg yolk when the sauce has cooled. Whisk the egg whites in a clean, grease-free bowl until stiff peaks form. Fold into the sauce, then fold in half of the remaining cheese. Spoon into the prepared moulds, then level off the tops. Run your finger around the edge of each souffle to create a slightly shallower border. Sit the moulds in a deep roasting tin lined with kitchen paper (to stop the bottoms of the souffles from catching) and pour water into the tin to about two-thirds of the way up the outsides of the moulds. Carefully transfer to the oven and bake for 12-14 minutes. Remove from the oven and lower the temperature to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Lift each mould out of the roasting tin, run a knife around the edge of the souffles and turn out into an ovenproof dish. Allow to cool slightly then pour the cream over and scatter with the remaining Cheddar. Bake for 10-12 minutes. To make the dressing, whisk the egg yolk, vinegar and oil together in a bowl. Season and add 1tbsp cold water and whisk again to combine. Put the watercress, chicory and little gem leaves into a bowl and dress with 2tbsp of the dressing. (Pour the rest into a clean, airtight jar, store in the fridge and use within a week.) Toss well. Spoon a souffle and some sauce onto each plate and serve the salad on the side. NOTE: The dressing uses raw egg, which may be unsuitable for those with vulnerable immune systems. James Martins Great British Adventure is published by Quadrille, 25. To order a copy for 20, visit mailshop.co.uk/books or call 0844 571 0640, p&p is free. Spend 30 on books and get FREE premium delivery. Offer valid until 23/02/2019. Photographs: Peter Cassidy. James Martins Great British Adventure TV series starts on Monday at 2pm on ITV. From a spicy chicken curry to these mouthwatering beef pies with oysters, sample succulent dishes from James Martin, inspired by his culinary tour of the UK British You can't beat a good burger, and you won't get much better than this variety Goodwood in West Sussex was the perfect place to cook this dish. The estate has amazing pasture and produces great lamb and beef, plus it holds one of the best events in Britain the Goodwood Revival, celebrating all things from the 1950s and 60s. Its like stepping back in time, with 200,000-plus visitors and food harking back to when the Wimpy was the first burger brought to these shores. Serves 4 600g (1lb 5oz) beef mince Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper 125g (4oz) ball of buffalo mozzarella, quartered A little oil, for frying 4 brioche buns, halved 1 large tomato, sliced 1 little gem lettuce, leaves separated 4 slices of Monterey Jack cheese (from supermarkets, or use Gouda) 1 red onion, sliced For the cucumber pickle 100ml (3fl oz) white wine vinegar 50g (1oz) caster sugar 1tsp sea salt 3 baby cucumbers, sliced lengthways into 4 For the shakes 1ltr (1pt) whole milk 375g (13oz) raspberries, pureed in a blender Start by making the cucumber pickle. Pour the vinegar into a pan, add the sugar and salt and heat gently to dissolve them. You may need to stir the mixture every now and then. When theyve dissolved, add the cucumber slices and remove the pan from the heat. Set aside to cool. To make the burgers, put the mince into a bowl and season well. Mix together with your hands then divide into 4 even portions and shape each portion into a burger-shaped round. Push your thumb into the centre of one of them to make a hole (making sure you dont push all the way through) then fill with a piece of mozzarella. Cover the hole over with mince to seal it in. Do the same with the other burgers and remaining mozzarella. Drizzle a large, flat griddle pan with oil. Place over a medium heat and, when hot, lay the burgers in the pan. Reduce the heat and fry the burgers gently for 5 minutes. Flip them over and continue to cook them for a further 5 minutes. Toast the brioche buns sliced-side down in the same pan. To serve, place each brioche base onto a plate and top with slices of tomato and lettuce leaves, then a burger. Add a slice of Monterey Jack cheese, some onion and pickled cucumber. Pop the bun tops on and secure with a stick. To make the shakes, whisk the milk and the raspberry puree together in a jug. Pour into 4 glasses and serve alongside the burgers. James Martins Great British Adventure is published by Quadrille, 25. To order a copy for 20, visit mailshop.co.uk/books or call 0844 571 0640, p&p is free. Spend 30 on books and get FREE premium delivery. Offer valid until 23/02/2019. Photographs: Peter Cassidy. James Martins Great British Adventure TV series starts on Monday at 2pm on ITV. From a spicy chicken curry to these mouthwatering beef pies with oysters, sample succulent dishes from James Martin, inspired by his culinary tour of the UK British This cake is everything that's good about comfort food, you'll struggle not to have a second piece I made this delicious cake on my visit to Northern Ireland for the road trip and I was shown around the area by my old friend and local chef, Paul Rankin Serves 10 200g (7oz) butter 150g (5oz) dark chocolate, broken into smaller pieces 300ml (10fl oz) stout 4 eggs 500g (1lb 2oz) soft light brown sugar 350g (12oz) self-raising flour For the icing 400g (14oz) full-fat cream cheese 25ml (fl oz) stout 200g (7oz) icing sugar A couple of squares of dark or milk chocolate, to decorate Preheat the oven to 160C/fan 140C/ gas 3. Line a 27cm, deep-sided cake tin with baking parchment. Put the butter, dark chocolate and stout into a large heatproof bowl and rest over a pan of just-simmering water, making sure the base doesnt touch the water, until the butter and chocolate have melted. Lift the bowl out of the pan and leave to cool slightly. Add the eggs and sugar then whisk together well. Fold in the self-raising flour until the mixture is smooth. Pour the cake batter into the prepared tin and bake for 1 hour. Leave the cake to cool in the tin and then turn out onto a plate or stand. For the icing, whisk the cream cheese, stout and icing sugar together until smooth. Spoon the mixture on top of the cake and spread all over to cover. Grate the chocolate over the top of the cake and serve in slices. James Martins Great British Adventure is published by Quadrille, 25. To order a copy for 20, visit mailshop.co.uk/books or call 0844 571 0640, p&p is free. Spend 30 on books and get FREE premium delivery. Offer valid until 23/02/2019. Photographs: Peter Cassidy. James Martins Great British Adventure TV series starts on Monday at 2pm on ITV. Where do we stand on dressing gowns? I quite like wearing one to breakfast on a chilly winters morning. But what about in public? During the afternoon? When youre not allowed to have anything whatsoever on underneath? This, I discover, is the rather odd sartorial conundrum that presents itself when you check into a posh hotel spa. Once catering exclusively to ladies of leisure (and the occasional hen party), these places have in recent years begun embracing gender equality, while cashing in on modern mans obsession with grooming. But the dress code doesnt seem to have caught up. Not when, like me, youre a middle-aged bloke who knows full well that one poorly-tied towelling cord is all that separates your unmentionables from a roomful of strangers. Fortunately, Im making my debut visit to a spa in the company of a chaperone: my long-suffering wife, Katie. Guy Adams (pictured with his wife Katie) gave his verdict on a couple's spa date at the Forum Spa in Celtic Manor Resort, South Wales Bitter experience has taught her precisely when I need telling to re-tie my extremely cosy brown velour robe. And shes equally good at helping navigate the seemingly endless menu of wraps, scrubs and rub-downs. Today, weve come to the Forum Spa, an inviting place deep in the bowels of Celtic Manor Resort, which in turn is a vast and somewhat splendid five-star hotel just outside the scenic tourist attraction that is the City of Newport in South Wales. Less than a mile away, three lanes of traffic are crawling endlessly through Junction 24 of the M4. But inside, everything is utterly Zen. Steam and the scent of candles fills the air. Fountains tinkle and flower petals float in bathtubs. Ceilings are spotted with fairy lights, and relaxing music (Id describe the genre as Eastern mystical) is piped into the ether. Stepping inside this cosy, somnolent space feels rather like entering a large womb. With herbal tea and citrus-flavoured water on tap. Our mission is to experience an exciting trend: the rise and rise of the so called Couples Spa date. For the uninitiated, this describes an outing during which a duo, whove grown tired of the same old leisure routine of pub suppers and cinema trips, choose instead to be locked away together, inside a candlelit treatment room, for several hours of pampering. Katie and Guy experienced the Couples Signature Deep Tissue Massage, Elemis Superfood Pro-radiance Facial and visited the Forum Herbal Steam Temple Once there, they will be variously kneaded, slapped and rubbed down by a pair of hard-working therapists. In extremis, they might even choose to undergo a few beauty treatments: pedicures, eyebrow plucking, body waxing and such-like. On the face of things, it all sounds rather terrifying. With three young children (aged eight, six and three), weve largely forgotten how to sit still, let alone switch off. Oh, and did I tell you that a single treatment lasts the best part of an hour, during which youre not really meant to talk? It turns out that were having no fewer than three of the things: a Couples Signature Deep Tissue Massage, followed by an Elemis Superfood Pro-radiance Facial and a visit to the Forum Herbal Steam Temple a sort of Turkish bath where you smear mud over each others torso, as if youre recreating that scene from the film Ghost. Apparently, the exercise mimics an Arab cleansing ritual. The Forums manager, Marie, says I am not alone in viewing the whole thing with scepticism. Quite a lot of couples spa dates start with men being dragged reluctantly along by their wives, only to discover they really rather enjoy the whole thing. How many men visit spas? 49 per cent of spa customers worldwide in 2017 were men Advertisement There used to be a real stigma attached, that coming to a spa somehow wasnt a manly thing to do, but thats no longer the case, is how she puts it. People now see it as a great way for a couple to spend quality time together, away from their children, especially on occasions such as Valentines Day. Were all also much more aware of stress, and well-being, and understand the benefits of leaving phones in a locker and completely switching off for a couple of hours. Guy (pictured right) read in Glamour magazine that some spas are offering rooms for couples to lock themselves away for hanky-panky after a massage Whatever the benefits, the trend is certainly real. Before Christmas, the Lanserhof Lans, a famous Austrian medical spa, revealed that 45 per cent of its visitors in the past five years were male. And Celtic Manors spa turns out to be chock-full of men furtively shuffling around in disposable slippers behind their better halves. The other day, no less a specimen of masculinity than England rugby legend James Haskell told an interviewer that hes a big fan. It rattles everyone, but I am just very in touch with my feminine side, he declared. If I book Chloe [Madeley, his new wife] and I in for a couples spa day, Ill have a facial too ... but I do draw the line at a back, sack and crack wax. I hear you, James! Elsewhere, Glamour magazine recently ran an investigation into a somewhat scandalous trend by which spas are building special private therapy rooms, with lockable doors, which allow patrons to lock themselves away for hanky-panky after a relaxing massage. Forget the Mile High club, it was headlined. Are you a member of the Terry Robe club? Thankfully, Celtic Manor doesnt go in for such vulgarity. Instead, Katie and I are shown to a cosy room where we are invited to disrobe before lying down under a gargantuan quantity of white towels. I shall not bore you with a minute-by-minute account of what unfolds, except to say that our therapists, Alex and Jane, have magic in their fingers. The afternoon passes in a contented haze, during which we rediscover the lost art of switching off. Guy (pictured right) revealed that he may choose a spa date for next Valentine's Day instead of going to an overcrowded restaurant In a strange way, as we lie side by side, Katie and I are able to reconnect in a way that recalls our dating years. There is just one moment when I disgrace myself by falling asleep during a facial. Allegedly, I begin to snore. Later, I discuss the incident with Suzanne Duckett, the nations foremost spa expert (and former editor of the Tatler Spa Guide), who assures me the incident is perfectly commonplace. Shes a big fan of spa dates, though says punters shouldnt be afraid to venture off piste by choosing treatments from a spas equivalent of the a la carte menu, rather than opting for specially marketed couples therapies, which often carry a price premium. There is something quite special when you reconnect with each other after a nice relaxing treatment, she adds. I cant disagree. After a blissful afternoon, we emerge into the evening rush hour, bright-eyed, clear-headed and glowing. So next Valentines Day, when years gone by might have found us being shoehorned into an overcrowded restaurant, I shall instead return to the candlelit bowels of Celtic Manor. Because I reckon that couples who spa together almost certainly stay together. celtic-manor.com Anne Hathaway said she takes inspiration from the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's 'empowering' parenting style. The Oscar-winning actress, 36, said she read a story about the 'really cool' way William and Kate speak to their children by crouching down to their eye level, and started doing it with her two-year-old Jonathan. Speaking about the royals, she told The Sunday Times Style magazine: 'They get down on the child's level and speak to them eye to eye to make their child feel empowered. I thought that was really cool. I started doing that with Jonathan.' Anne Hathaway, who welcomed her first son in 2016, has said she takes inspiration from the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge over their 'empowering parenting style' Kate was first pictured using the technique known as 'active listening' as she touched down on at Victoria airport during a royal tour of Canada in 2016 The parenting technique Anne describes is known as active listening and both the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have been pictured crouching down to speak to Prince George while on official outings. Kate was first pictured using the technique as she touched down on at Victoria airport during a royal tour of Canada in 2016. While the technique is popular with child development experts, the Duke of Cambridge was famously scolded by his grandmother The Queen during the trooping of the colour when he too squatted down to speak to his son. The monarch was seen tapping her great-grandson on the arm and gesturing him to stand up as he crouched down on the balcony of Buckingham Palace during the RAF display. William has also been photographed crouching down to see 'eye to eye' with Prince George, including at Princess Charlotte's Christening in 2015 Child development expert Gill Connell told People magazine at the time: 'Active listening is one of the most important ways you can send the message, "You're important to me." Get down on the child's level, lean in and make eye contact." 'These simple messages foster self-esteem in powerful ways while encouraging him to communicate even more.' Gushing over her son, Anne, who has been a household name since she starred in the Princess Diaries aged 18, added to Style that her son was 'so beautiful' and that she forgives herself when she makes parenting mistakes. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge with their children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis on the photograph sent out with their Christmas card last year 'He's so beautiful. I'm not perfect, but if I'm frustrated or distracted, I'm good at making sure he's sage and walking away, calming down and then coming back to him. 'I fall short every day, but i'm not going to beat myself up about it, I'm going to learn from it.' Anne is currently promoting her new film Serenity which where she approaches her fishing boat captain ex-husband, played by Matthew McConaughey, and asks him to murder her new husband. Prince William is widely-praised for being the perfect example of a future monarch, but it appears he wasn't always prepared to wear the crown. As a young boy William, now 37, would reportedly tell his mother that he didn't want to be king. Meanwhile a confident Prince Harry, now 34, was ready to step in and take his older brother's place. Speaking in a new documentary, Jeremy Paxman recalls Princess Diana talking about her sons' feelings over a private lunch at Kensington Palace. 'We talked about our children and she said William often told her that he didnt really want to be king, and then Harry would say, "If you dont want the job Ill have it",' Paxman says. Growing into his role: As a young boy William, now 37, would reportedly tell his mother that he didn't want to be king. Meanwhile a confident Prince Harry, now 34, was ready to step in and take his older brother's place. Pictured, Diana with sons William and Harry in 1987 The University Challenge presenter also describes Diana as appearing 'pretty lonely' and compared the palace, where Diana lived with her young sons, as a 'prison'. Paxman continues: 'She [Diana] said, "Its not a prison at all, Jeremy. More like an upmarket Coronation Street. As we go out, you will see all the curtains twitching".' The insights emerge in the second part of Channel 5 Documentary Paxman on the Queen's Children, which airs on Tuesday. The two-part series sees the journalist explore the lives of Charles, Anne, Andrew and Edward across two episodes. Picture of confidence: The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in Dundee last month The broadcaster also looked into the lives of those they married including, the late Princess Diana. In the first episode it was revealed that while Diana's hands-on approach appeared to be a hit with the public, it seemed to rub her in-laws up the wrong way, in particular Princess Anne. Speaking to Paxman on the programme, the Daily Mail's own Richard Kay claims the pair did not get along He said: 'I remember Diana saying 'if Anne's there I'm off' because Anne would usually say something rather cutting to her.' Paxman explained in the programme how Anne was 'eclipsed' by Diana who made her appear 'out of touch'. Insight: The programme explores how the Queen's children changed the face of the royal family. Pictured, l-r: Anne, Charles, Edward, Andrew, the Queen and Prince Philip in 1972 Paxman on the Queen's Children, airs on Tuesday, 9pm, on Channel 5 A working mother has told how she was always home in time for her children's bath time- by taking a company helicopter. Jane Bentall, 48, a managing director for caravan site Haven, has told how she was asked to move from her office post to a more field-based role when she was pregnant with her first child in 2001. Speaking at a London hospitality event, Jane, who is mother to two children, now 15 and 17, recalled how she expressed her concerns to her boss over juggling the travel along with raising a young family. Admitting that maternity leave is a 'vulnerable time' for many working mothers, she revealed that being one of the travel industry's most senior female executives meant her boss was keen to keep her, and offered her the use of a helicopter. Jane Bentall, 48, a managing director for caravan site Haven, has told how she was asked to move from her office post to a more field-based role when she was pregnant with her first child in 2001 According to The Sunday Times, she said: 'They didn't buy it for me, just to be clear, but they were able to let me use the helicopter to get home for my children's bath time.' Praising the company's flexibility and support, she added: 'It's both mums and dads, the helicopter is there to get our teams from our head office in Hemel Hempstead to our sites, and to ensure that our teams can maintain a work-life balance.' Jane told how the company's camp sites were all located near shorelines, such as Norfolk, Sussex and Cornwall, making travel between them and her Harpenden home, easier by air. Speaking at a London hospitality event, Jane, who is mother to two children, now 15 and 17, recalled how she was always home in time for her children's bath time- by taking a company helicopter Speaking about the struggles new mothers face in their careers, Jane continued: 'It usually feels a very vulnerable time to take a break, so it's thinking about: How do I manage my career pre, during and post the time when I will have a young family'. This comes after research showed that working full time mothers-of-two are 40 per cent more stressed others. Four university professors studied data taking from over 6,000 participants, and found that reducing the hours worked had a positive impact on their stress levels, where both working from home and flexi time had none. According to the Guardian, Professor Tarani Chandola, of Manchester University, said in research published in journal Sociology: 'Work-family conflict is associated with increased psychological strain, with higher levels of stress and lower levels of wellbeing. 'Parents of young children are at particular risk of work-family conflict. Working conditions that are not flexible to these family demands, such as long working hours, could adversely impact on a person's stress reactions.' When it comes to landing a job interview, a great cover letter is generally a must. But crafting the perfect correspondence, which effectively introduces you to a potential employer, can be tricky. According to Sian Havard, Founder and Consultant at recruitment company MilkShake Group, the key is to wow firstly but not overburden your letter with too much detail. From why you need to avoid 'regurgitating your resume' to what you need to know to make a great impression from the outset, here FEMAIL takes a look at Sian's top tips for writing a covering letter that will get you noticed. If you're in the market for a new job, a polished resume is a must, as is a great cover letter (stock image) 1. Keep a cover letter brief A cover letter doesn't need to be an extensive document and one that details everywhere you've worked or every skill or ability you have. Its job, Sian explains, is to act as a kind of teaser - and it should never be more than one page. She advises firstly and foremost, to keep it 'punchy and professional', and to view it as a way of demonstrating your communication skills. Her recommendation is not to write any more than four or five paragraphs although she says a more in-depth application may require a longer document. 'The purpose of a cover letter is to offer the person reviewing it a taster of who you are, your potential fit for the position and incentivise them to review your resume to learn more about you,' she told Seek. 2. Make a great first impression Don't wait until the end of your letter to tell a prospective employer why you might be the best person for the job. Instead, be 'upfront' and state why you believe your skills, abilities and experience would make you an ideal person for the advertised role. An opening paragraph might see you include details of your most relevant qualification or current work experience, along with a sentence about your objective. Sian offers the following as an example: 'With a background in closing contracts at top corporations, I am confident that I could excel in the role of Sales Executive'. 3. Don't regurgitate your resume A cover letter isn't merely an extension of your resume, although it may function to expand on some aspects of your experience. Sian suggests that as well as showcasing your abilities and skills, a cover letter is a great opportunity to demonstrate an understanding of a company's culture or values. 'If you've read about the company online and you can tell they're informal in their communication, use your cover letter to show you know how to communicate in their language,' she explained. 'The purpose of a cover letter is to offer the person reviewing it a taster of who you are, your potential fit for the position and incentivise them to review your resume' (stock image) 4. Make sure you know who you are talking to If there are details in a job application about who you should be addressing a cover letter to, make sure you open your letter with their name. On the other hand, if you don't know this information or it's not readily available, 'To Whom It May Concern', is acceptable. Sian says a more casual environment may allow for an opening such as 'Hi Team [insert company name]' but you do need to be sure the workplace you're sending your cover letter to will find this type of greeting acceptable. How can you impress at an interview? Be on time for the interview and dress for the job you want. Punctuality and grooming matters Do your research dont ask questions that you could have found the answer to by Googling it Be prepared and come ready to ask questions. If you dont ask questions you can look disinterested Know why you want the job and why you are the best candidate for it. Come ready to sell your value Be personable and friendly. People hire people they like and want to work with Source: Australian careers mentor Michelle Gibbings Advertisement 5. Cover letters can take different forms When applying for a job, always check there aren't specific instructions regarding the formatting of a cover letter. This might mean you need to send as a Word document, or in some cases, an email covering letter may suffice. Sian explains these days it's not uncommon to email an application to a person directly, which means the content of your email will replace the traditional cover letter. 'A well written, brief email making reference to an attached resume will be a strong start to your application process,' she said. New York Fashion Week is in full swing. And while all eyes are on the designer runways, there's a lot of action happening off of the catwalk. In the last five days, Jordache celebrated their latest retro-inspired collection with the help of Alessandra Ambrosio, Victorias Secret PINK launched their first-ever GRL PWR PROJECT with a chance to win $10,000, and so much more. FEMAIL rounds up stylish highlights of the week. COOL NEW DENIM Supermodel: Brazilian model Alessandra Ambrosio celebrated the Jordache fall 2019 collection this week Take a look back: Drawing from Jordaches rich archives, the line was inspired by 80s Aspen Brazilian model Alessandra Ambrosio celebrated the Jordache fall 2019 collection this week. Drawing from Jordaches rich archives, the line was inspired by 80s Aspen. The line is made up of authentic silhouettes (updated to current fits) featuring hints of classic ski references in the form of neon accents. Standout pieces include a mixed media ski inspired jacket, leather fringe jacket and a re-introduction of the famous Jordache 'Coming and Going' jean which has made a splash with its two toned silhouette and contrast back. Other notables at the party include Simi Haze, Barron Hilton, Tessa Hilton, Alton Mason, Rose McGowan and Jonathan Cheban. Retro cool: The line is made up of authentic silhouettes (updated to current fits) featuring hints of classic ski references in the form of neon accents What to look for: Standout pieces include a denim mixed ski inspired jacket, leather fringe jacket and a re-introduction of the famous Jordache 'Coming and Going' jean VS PINK MAKING DREAMS COME TRUE Who run the world: On Tuesday, February 5 Victorias Secret PINK launched their first-ever GRL PWR PROJECT On Tuesday, February 5 Victorias Secret PINK launched their first-ever GRL PWR PROJECT. The project invites women between the ages of 18-25 who are leaders, trendsetters and go-getters in their communities to apply for funding that will help make the individuals GRL PWR goals a reality. 'The GRL PWR PROJECT is a natural extension of the PINK brand we are looking to help fund the dreams of young women who exemplify ambition, optimism and confidence,' says PINKs CEO, Amy Hauk. Twenty young women will be chosen to receive $10,000 to help power their dreams and jumpstart their bright futures. Submissions are being accepted through February 28th, 2019 on the PINK Nation App. Each applicant will provide a brief video detailing how they would best use their award to empower themselves and/or others. Applicants will also be asked to share thoughtful responses about the female heroes that have inspired them. A panel of notable judges will be looking for passion, drive and originality. 'Our goal is to celebrate, support and inspire young women everywhere by encouraging our customer to find their voice in society and achieve their full potential, 'explains Amy. 'PINK is proud to be a brand that helps to shape the future of young women by empowering them through programs like the PINK GRL PWR Project and the PINK Campus Rep program, as well as college Internship opportunities.' Dreams come true: The project invites women between the ages of 18-25 who are leaders, trendsetters and go-getters in their communities to apply to win $10,000 ELEGANT JEWELRY AFFAIR Sparkle: On Tuesday, February 5 Ilene Joy celebrated the launch of its fine jewelry line and campaign featuring model and actress Poppy Delevingne with a cocktail party On Tuesday, February 5 Ilene Joy celebrated the launch of its fine jewelry line and campaign featuring model and actress Poppy Delevingne with a cocktail party. The star-studded event took place at a stunning New York City maisonette. On display was the brands fine jewelry collections and one-of-a-kind high jewelry pieces. Attendees like Christina Hendricks and her husband Geoffrey Arend, Jane Krakowski, Sienna Miller, and many more notables enjoyed light bites and libations by Major Food Group, and the tunes of DJ Harley Viera-Newton. Star-studded: Attendees like Christina Hendricks and her husband Geoffrey Arend, Jane Krakowski, Sienna Miller, and many more notables enjoyed light bites and libations by Major Food Group, and the tunes of DJ Harley Viera-Newton Left: Fine Feather Long Earrings by Ilene Joy, $13,500; ilenejoy.com. Right: Diamond Encrusted Shoulder Duster Pear Earrings by Ilene Joy, $33,100; ilenejoy.com Solitude Clover Inlay Baroque Cuff by Ilene Joy, $3,890; ilenejoy.com Left: Spit Fin Bolo Lariat by Ilene Joy, $1,3410; ilenejoy.com. Right: Split Ends Domed Spike Lariat by Ilene Joy, $16,450; ilenejoy.com Left: Duet Harlequin Ring by Ilene Joy, $5,370; ilenejoy.com, Right: Duet Spike Ring by Ilene Joy, $5,790; ilenejoy.com Duet Cluster Harlequin Cuff by Ilene Joy, $7,800; ilenejoy.com Beautiful locale: The star-studded event took place at a New York City maisonette, courtesy of The Azoulay Miles Team at Douglas Elliman THE UNDONE DONE BRAID From head-to-toe: Ulla Johnson delivered a gorgeous bohemian chic collection which included a great hair style Ulla Johnson delivered a gorgeous bohemian chic collection on Thursday, February 7 during New York Fall/Winter Fashion Week. While her shearling coats over matching separates were the stars of the show, it was the beautiful styling from head-to-toe that took your breath away. Lead hair stylist, Bob Recine, created an undone done side braid for several models walking the catwalk. 'The look for Ulla Johnson is a side braided look that is divided into 5 or 6 sections (according to hair type) that are then put into small ponytails,' said Bob. 'Then hair is braided from forehead back to the nape of neck, giving the braid a profile side that accentuates the head shape.' To carry out the boho aesthetic, Bob wanted the hair to appear natural. 'We finished the look with a small amount of Paul Mitchell Worked Up.' A Howard University professor has stirred up some very strong feelings about her controversial missed assignment policy. Professors tend to have varying degrees of flexibility when it comes to missed classes and late assignments, but most are willing to work with students at least in extreme circumstances. Unfortunately, that was not the case in one Reddit user's class: This week, she shared a photo of her syllabus, which said the unnamed professor wouldn't accept death certificates or obituaries as an excuse, and even declares that anyone expecting a possible death in the family later that semester drop the course. Harsh: A Howard University professor said that he would not accept a death certificate or obituary in cases of a missed assignment or exam Though the Redditor did not shared the name of the professor or the class, the syllabus seems to be from Howard University in Washington, D.C. The single sheet of paper shared on the site starts off reasonably enough, if quite firm: The professor expects participation, encourages students to ask questions, and doesn't take attendance but expects people to show up. But under a headline about the missed assignment/exam policy, things get quite harsh. 'There will be no makeup exam, quizzes or assignments,' its reads in bold, all-capital letters. 'Please don't bring me doctors'/death certificates, funeral obituaries I will no accept these [sic]. I Also cannot make exceptions for jobs, birthdays, dates with celebrities, etc. 'If you have a conflict or think that your grandmother, grandfather, uncle, cousin etc. may die you should talk to me the first day of class [sic]; however, I will most likely suggest that you drop the course or find a way to reschedule your outside conflict.' The Redditor in the class who shared the strict rules was clearly flabbergasted. 'I guess I'll just reschedule my family member's death,' she wrote. Meanwhile, other Redditors who saw the post were left confused and outraged, and several suggested the student report the teacher. 'I'm a part-time professor at a university in Chicago. I had a colleague with a similar policy, and that's a major problem. Please go to your department head or dean about this,' wrote one. 'No decent college will tolerate that ridiculous policy. Id go right to department head to complain,' commented another. Others left mocking remarks, like: 'plugs life support back in Not today, grandma. Your little boys got classes to take.' According to Howard University Provost Anthony Wutoh, Ph.D., the course rules were given to students in 2017, and the teaching assistant responsible is no longer working for the university. 'The image circulating the Internet of a syllabus screenshot dates back to a 2017 posting,' Wutoh said in a statement made to DailyMail.com. 'The Teaching Assistant involved previously apologized to students and is no longer teaching at Howard. As a general practice, our faculty make every effort to accommodate students during times of bereavement.' But that didn't stop other Reddit users from sharing stories about their own similar experiences. 'Had a professor like this... dad died.. explained I had to take care of things pertaining his death... this lady looked me in the eye and said I was studying for finals next to my father on his death..he died.. my paper was still turned in on time,"' wrote one. 'I got an F in a college course once for missing the final cuz i was in the hospital,' wrote another. The top luxury destinations in the world have been unveiled in an envy-inducing look at how the other half live. Tatler have revealed just which off-the-beaten track destinations are the places to be seen - or rather not to be seen- by the rich and famous in 2019. Los Angeles-based Jaclyn Sienna India, founder of elite travel firm Sienna Charles, told the society bible that this year billionaires are straying away from pampering breaks and towards 'adventure and culture'. The holiday-booker to the stars, who once sent George Bush on an exclusive family trip to Ethiopia, reportedly charges up to 400,000 for a single VIP trip. A look at her site boasts luxury adventure travel, private jets and villas, fine dining, luxury yacht charters, and spa retreats paired with first-hand knowledge. And according to Jaclyn, the top five countries to visit this year include a newly-opened luxurious remote tented camp in South Cardamom National Park, Cambodia, and a spa retreat carved into volcanic rock, surrounded by the Blue Lagoon's natural springs and an 800-year-old lava flow. For those keen on a quiet beach break, she recommends exclusive water villas in Fiji and Bora Bora, while Tel Aviv and Hong Kong are top on her list of city breaks. 1. Cambodia, Shinta Mani Wild Luxury travel expert Jaclyn Sienna India told Tatler that Cambodia was enjoying a resurgence on the travel scene, having first been made famous by the likes of Angelina Jolie, who adopted first son Maddox there. Jaclyn cites luxury remote camp Shinta Mani Wild as the place billionaires should visit in 2019, pictured, costing from 1,500 per night The newly-opened luxurious remote tented camp, created by designer Bill Bensley, is located in South Cardamom National Park, Cambodia, with luxury tents dotted along the picturesque springs in the plush rainforest The retreat's amenities include stunning free-standing baths with luxury bath products overlooking the plush green spaces in the picturesque national park in Cambodia Taking the meaning of 'glamping' to a whole new level, the tents boast four poster beds, wooden walls and floors and chic furnishings as well as stunning multi-aspect views from floor-to-ceiling openings 2. Iceland, The Retreat Next on the list of billionaires retreats is The Retreat in Iceland, a spa retreat carved into volcanic rock, surrounded by the Blue Lagoon's natural springs and an 800-year-old lava flow, costing from 924 per night The exquisite rooms boast floor-to-ceiling French doors with stunning terraces opening onto the surrounding waters and views of the volcanic rocks Their 'lava' restaurant is set against incredible scenes of the natural waters and rocks surrounding the eatery, providing fine dining for lucky guests Showing just why it earned its name, guests can enjoy a dip in the surrounding Blue Lagoon, nestled amid the Nordic mist and clouds, making for a scene fit for Instagram 3. Tel Aviv, Jaffa hotel Another destination high on the list for VIP travellers in 2019 is The Jaffa Hotel in Tel Aviv, Israel. The stunning hotel combines contemporary chic with stunning interiors, seen here in their chapel bar, and is located in the Old City with prices starting from 431 per night The hotel, a 19th-century former French hospital and monastery, boasts a luxury pool area, seen, is owned by Aby Rosen, the man responsible for the trendy W South Beach in Miami Rooms in the trendy abode look out onto a picturesque court yard and Jaclyn recommends combining the visit with a trip to Jerusalem 4. Hong Kong, Rosewood Hotel The ever trendy Rosewood hotel is expanding to Hong Kong, and will open its doors in March, when Jaclyn recommends visiting. You can eat cheaply or super fancy, take out a yacht for the day or hike up mountain trails. Its what makes it one of my favourite destinations in the world', she says. The hotel's plot is pictured 5. French Polynesia Bora bora, Coqui Coqui Coba Spa Cult hotel brand Coqui Coqui will be opening a hotel on the picturesque island of Bora Bora, a favourite honeymoon destination famed for its clear waters and white sandy beaches. A model of its rattan-filled guesthouse is seen. Fiji, Six Senses While fans of French Polynesia await the opening of the uber-trendy Bora Bora hotel, they can hop over to nearby island Fiji, where Jaclyn recommends luxury water villas The Six Senses. The resort, pictures, starts from 900 per night The hotel offers jaw-dropping private villas by the water front with floor-to-ceiling windows offering picturesque views and luxury interiors As well as the sea, guests can enjoy a dip in the infinity pool surrounded by palm-fringed shores and mountains The water villas are seen surrounded by the picturesque waters, famous for its stunning snorkeling opportunities See the full feature in the March issue of Tatler , available via digital download and newsstand now See the full feature in the March issue of Tatler, available via digital download and newsstand now. Scooby Age: 2 Breed: Mongrel Battersea centre: London Scooby is a larger than life dog with a heart of gold. He loves being close to his favourite humans and seems to enjoy the company of other dogs, but still needs to learn some manners around them so should be the only dog in the home for the time being, but would love some doggy friends over the park to help teach him the ropes. He is a different dog once bonded, going from a little untrusting, to best friends for life, in a short space of time. Larger than life Scooby is looking for a home where his owners are able to give him lots of time to settle and build strong bonds Scooby may need training in a few areas, but with his love of pleasing his carers this should be a doddle if you're committed to his training. He aims to please. Scooby is looking for a home where his owners are confident with his large size, able to give him lots of time to settle and build strong bonds, and understand that it will take some time before he's happy to be left alone. In reward for giving Scooby a second a chance you will find the most loyal and loving companion you could have ever wished for. Click here to find out more about Scooby. Aidan Age: 7 Breed: Staffordshire Bull Terrier Battersea centre: Old Windsor Aidan is a lovely gentle boy, he likes a cuddle and loves just about everybody. He likes to be covered up with a fleece blanket, enjoys his walks and pottering in the garden. He likes to carry his favourite toy around and has insisted he is re-homed with it! Aidan is spending time in a foster home and has been fully house trained. Whilst it took him a bit of time, now that he is settled in his foster home Aidan is quite comfortable to be left alone for an hour or two. Aidan the Staffordshire Bull Terrier is a very clever dog who likes a cuddle and loves 'just about everybody' With other dogs, Aidan likes to keep himself to himself on walks and enjoys exploring in the leaves and grass with his nose. Aidan is a very clever dog and has some lovely training in place - getting him to use his brain to learn new things really helps to settle this lovely boy. He's a very expressive dog and pulls a very comical wrinkly face when he is enjoying having his neck scratched. Click here to find out more about Aidan. Twizzle Age: 7 Breed: Domestic shorthair Battersea centre: London Twizzle was found sloping through the grim streets of wintery London, homeless and very hungry. He has come far since he first arrived at Battersea and has made lots of friends with his playful and affectionate nature. Twizzle is a proper lap cat and has a wonderful personality that he is just waiting to show off to his new owners and wants to make friends for life. Twizzle the domestic shorthair was found on the streets, but he loves sitting in people's laps and wants to make friends for life Battersea screens all cats for the Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV) and Twizzle has tested positive. FIV is a slow-acting virus and most cats live long, happy and healthy lives. However, in order to protect other cats and to preserve the health of the carrier, Battersea rehomes FIV+ cats to homes with cat proof gardens. Click here to find out more about Twizzle. Felix Age: 2 Breed: Domestic shorthair Battersea centre: Old Windsor Time spent at Battersea: 69 days Fantastic Felix is a gorgeous boy who is on the lookout for his new home! Felix can be a bit nervous, so he's hoping to find a quieter home with owners who will understand him and let him take things at his own pace. Once he feels comfortable, Felix has so much love to give! He has a great purr and he loves to have attention and fuss. Click here to find out more about Felix. Felix the domestic shorthair has a great purr and loves to have attention and fuss, but he's looking for a quieter home with owners who will let him take things at his own pace Ruby Age: 10 Breed: Domestic shorthair Battersea centre: London Ruby is a sweet, gentle cat who is looking for a settled home that she can call her own. Once she gets to know you she is very affectionate and enjoys having gentle head strokes and rubs. Ruby will need a garden to explore once settled in her new home. Click here to find out more about Ruby. Ascintillating tale of sex, snobbery and secrets set among the yummy mummies of ruggedly beautiful and seriously affluent Monterey on the Northern California coast, Big Little Lies was the TV event of 2017. The Sky Atlantic series, revolving around a group of women whose outwardly perfect lives mask deceit, domestic violence and adultery, won eight Emmys and four Golden Globes, with Nicole Kidman taking Best Actress at both for her portrayal of battered wife Celeste Wright. Filming on series two wrapped last summer and it promises more seduction, scandal and amazing scenery as well as Meryl Streep joining the cast when it returns. Award-winning Big Little Lies is the brainchild of Hollywood A-listers Nicole Kidman and Reese Witherspoon, both keen champions of women in drama The show is the brainchild of Hollywood A-listers Nicole Kidman and Reese Witherspoon, both keen champions of women in drama, who brought their production companies together to get it made. This adaptation of the 2014 bestselling book by Australian author Liane Moriarty, who is a producer on the series, was their first project together. Reese read the novel first and immediately sent a copy to Nicole. 'I read it overnight,' says Nicole. 'I couldn't put it down. Because I was in Sydney where Liane lives I had coffee with her. I said, 'If you let us option the book, I promise we'll get it made.' She said, 'I'll give you the rights as long as you promise to play Celeste.' 'So she cast it as well as writing it!' It was initially intended to be a movie until Nicole and Reese realised two hours wasn't enough to squeeze in all the plotlines, so they turned it into a one-off mini-series. But so gripping were the twists and turns, which began with a murder but did not unmask the victim or perpetrator until the finale, that viewers wanted more. With no book sequel to base it on, however, Reese and Nicole insisted the decision lay with the author. Signing Meryl Streep (pictured playing Celeste's mother-in-law) was a major coup for Reese and Nicole, who signed on without reading a script Fortunately, Liane said yes. 'She wrote a novella of new stories for us,' the show's screenwriter David E Kelley has said, 'but the genius idea was casting Meryl as Celeste's mother-in-law. 'It's a delicious character, and bringing her in was both liberating and daunting. Daunting because she sets a high bar and you have to measure up, but liberating in that now the show won't be compared to the last one.' The drama revolves around five mothers whose children attend an exclusive primary school, but whose lives are not as polished as their stunning homes would lead us to believe. 'The first series opened with a murder during the school's Hepburn & Elvis themed fundraising ball, before rewinding to show the chain of events that led up to it. Celeste was suffering domestic violence at the hands of her husband Perry (Alexander Skarsgard) in some brutally graphic scenes Nicole plays lawyer Celeste who gave up her career to raise her family, with Reese cast as her best friend Madeline Martha Mackenzie. Laura Dern is neurotic businesswoman Renata and Zoe Kravitz takes the role of free-spirited yoga teacher Bonnie. Shailene Woodley plays Jane, a single mother new to the area who was taken under the wing of Madeline and Celeste. Meryl Streep pokes her nose in Signing Meryl Streep was a major coup for Reese and Nicole. 'She signed on without reading a script,' says Nicole. 'She did it to support Reese and me and to support women in this industry, which is great.' Reese adds, 'She called on the day of the Golden Globes and said, 'I hear your show's really struggling' it wasn't 'so I'll join it and make it even better!' Three-time Oscar winner Meryl plays Mary Louise Wright, Celeste's mother-in-law, who comes to Monterey after the death of her son Perry to get to the bottom of what happened. 'She comes in not believing how it's been set up and she wants to know the truth,' says Nicole, who offered fans a glimpse of her first day on set with Meryl in a scene they were shooting with Celeste's sons (left). Meryl is set to be involved in a showdown with Madeline, and Reese has been pictured pelting her with an ice cream cone in a scene. 'It's true I threw an ice cream cone at Meryl Streep,' she says, 'I really chucked it at her, and I nailed it. It was a top-five moment in my career, for sure.' Meryl, 69, settled in fast as part of the tight-knit cast. When they weren't filming, the group were spotted at a bowling alley and playing pool together in a bar. 'There are no bells and whistles,' says Nicole. 'She's just there.' Advertisement But when her son Ziggy was accused of trying to choke Renata's daughter on the first day of school, her dark secret started to unravel that Ziggy was the product of a rape. But that wasn't all. Celeste was suffering domestic violence at the hands of her husband Perry (Alexander Skarsgard) in some brutally graphic scenes. Madeline had an affair with her drama teacher, while Bonnie was living with Madeline's ex-husband Nathan, causing friction between them. As the storylines interwove, it seemed any of the characters could have been the victim or the killer. In the gripping finale, we discovered Perry was Jane's rapist, and it was he who died, pushed down a flight of steps by Bonnie. All five women insisted it was an accident, although the investigating officer, Detective Quinlan, was sceptical. But is Perry really dead? It's been revealed that Alexander Skarsgard will return in series two, although the logical explanation is that it will be in flashbacks. 'I don't know if I'm really dead,' he has teased. 'I was away when the series aired. I got back after the finale and people did not like me!' The final scenes showed the five mothers picnicking on the beach with their children, as Quinlan watches them through binoculars. So what do we know about series two? For starters, Meryl joins the cast as Perry's mother Mary Louise, who turns up in Monterey to be with her grandchildren and snoop into what really happened to her son. It's also been revealed we'll see Madeline and Renata, whose hard-nosed facade will soften, deal with marital struggles. It's rumoured Madeline's husband Ed (Adam Scott) may be about to discover her affair. Madeline did not cheat on him in the original book, so why did they add it? 'A big theme of the show is shame,' says Reese, referring to Celeste's abuse, Jane having been raped, and Madeline's adultery. 'These women are best friends but they never tell each other their real shame. 'Then when they do share it, they're free. The drama revolves around five mothers whose children attend an exclusive primary school, but whose lives are not as polished as their stunning homes would lead us to believe. Pictured: Nicole, Shailene Woodley and Reese in the drama 'They'll be forever connected because they were finally able to let it all go.' However, Shailene Woodley has suggested that Jane, who's trying to rebuild her life, won't have got over her traumatic past yet. 'There's an assumption that these things are quick to heal once you begin therapy or once you have closure,' she has said. 'But these are lifelong pains that you're constantly working through.' Both she and Ziggy have to explore the realisation that he's a half-brother to Celeste's children Max and Josh. In the book Bonnie's role is more substantial, and having dealt the fatal blow to Perry it's understood she will feature more prominently when the show returns as she tries to come to terms with what happened. Her back story is explored, including her being abused by her own father, so her parents (played not by her real parents Lenny Kravitz and Lisa Bonet, but by Martin Donovan and Crystal Fox) will appear in some of the episodes. Shailene has suggested that Jane, who's trying to rebuild her life, won't have got over her traumatic past yet (pictured on set with Nicole and Reese) And what about Celeste, free at last of Perry's violence? Liane Moriarty hints, 'When you've been through a relationship like that, how would you feel now? 'She's grieving, grieving for the end of a terrible relationship, and that is really interesting to explore.' Meryl isn't the only new face. Nicole's two younger children, Sunday, ten, and Faith, eight, will make cameo appearances; Douglas Smith will play Corey Brockfield, a surfer training to be a marine biologist who works with Jane he could be a potential love interest for her; and Sons Of Anarchy actor Mo McRae who was in the 2014 film Wild with Reese and Laura is a teacher who causes Renata's daughter to have a panic attack in a lesson on global warming. As for Tom (Joseph Cross), the friendly barista at the cafe Madeline, Celeste and Jane use for breakfast, he clearly likes Jane, although she thought he was gay at first. I like being in people's homes on the TV, I feel closer to people because of it. He has a much bigger role in the novel, so will we see more of him in the sequel? The reaction to series one was overwhelming, even for an A-lister like Nicole. 'The good thing was everyone had to wait each week to see the next episode,' she says. 'Then I was being recognised in airports, people were coming up to say they couldn't wait to know what happened next. 'I was getting texts from my husband's friends. 'People were saying they were staying in on Sunday night to watch it. 'I like being in people's homes on the TV, I feel closer to people because of it. 'But I'd come home from filming with bruises. Alexander didn't mean to do it. I didn't tell him he was hurting me because I wanted people to feel the abuse scenes were real.' Now it's coming back, along with another powerful soundtrack and those jaw-dropping houses. And maybe another murder. A cryptic plot description says, 'Relationships will fray, loyalties will erode the potential for emotional and bodily injury shall loom', while Reese claims the new series will be 'even more exciting'. There's more to come from Moriarty too. Nicole has optioned the rights to her latest novel Nine Perfect Strangers and will play the lead, a romantic novelist whose break at a health retreat becomes anything but relaxing. Nicole and Reese are developing her book Truly Madly Guilty, and her other titles The Husband's Secret and What Alice Forgot are being made into movies with Blake Lively and Jennifer Aniston respectively. Not knowing which of the characters would live or die was always part of the emotional wringer that acclaimed thriller The Missing put its eight million viewers through. So when, at the end of the second series in 2016, we saw French detective Julien Baptiste go into brain surgery for a tumour after delaying his treatment to solve the case, it was the most nail-biting cliffhanger of them all. The character had glued the series together and what followed was a wail of despair from all those who'd taken him to their hearts. But the good news is that Baptiste television's most enigmatic, obsessive (and strangely sexy) French detective lived, and he's back to solve another mystery. The acclaimed thriller The Missing finished in 2016, with Julien Baptiste in surgery , but lucky for fan's he lived and is back with hos own series, co-starring Jessica Raine as Genevieve Taylor What's more, this time the sleuth, played by French/Turkish actor Tcheky Karyo, has his own series after The Missing's writers and producers, brothers Harry and Jack Williams, realised it wasn't just the audience who'd fallen in love with him they had too. 'Sometimes an actor makes a character you've written so much better, you want to write more, because that's so rare,' says Jack. 'Even on the page we loved Baptiste as a character, but once Tcheky started playing him we began to write the character around him. 'Things he'd say to us in conversation often ended up in the script.' His brother Harry adds, 'He's just a very magnetic performer, and the character is very warm and likeable. 'He loves his wife, he's a guy trying to do the right thing that's somebody you want to spend time with and don't want to say goodbye to.' We were introduced to Julien Baptiste in 2014 in the first series of The Missing, in which James Nesbitt's character Tony Hughes and Tony's wife Emily were left in despair when their five-year-old son Oliver disappeared in France during a family holiday. I feel all of this is a gift because I'm French, but this is related to a British audience. Baptiste may be a certain age, but he's active, he's sexy, his brain is still working and I guess people love that The story focused on Baptiste, a detective who retired in part to deal with his daughter's drug problems, returning to the case when Tony believed he'd found fresh evidence. We also discovered how he got his pronounced limp, when a dodgy cop slammed his leg in a car door. The second series was set on a British military base in Germany and starred David Morrissey as Captain Sam Webster and Keeley Hawes as his wife Gemma. Their daughter Alice, who went missing in 2003, suddenly reappeared saying she'd been held captive with a French girl, Sophie Giroux. Baptiste, who was in charge of the Giroux investigation, returned and found there was more to Alice's story than anyone could imagine. And so to Baptiste, which is unconnected to previous stories from The Missing. Set several months after his brain surgery, Baptiste is worried he's not as sharp as he used to be. He's lost his confidence and seems even more fragile than before. But once on a new case, his brilliant intensity returns. Tom Hollander plays Edward Stratton, in search of his missing niece in Amsterdam When we meet on the set of the show in Antwerp, Tcheky, who was born in Istanbul and raised in Paris, reveals even he wasn't sure if Baptiste would return. 'Like the audience, I was left hanging, not knowing what would happen,' he says. 'But when the doctors asked me to count down in that last scene as the anaesthetic took hold, and we got to three, I wondered whether that was a hint they were going for a third series. 'I was so pleased when they and the BBC, and the audience, felt they didn't want to say goodbye to this character. 'People in England kept asking me, "When is Baptiste coming back to solve more cases?" Tcheky, who has two young children with his partner Valerie Keruzore and is a grandfather to his 42-year-old daughter Liv's l4-year-old son, twinkles when I ask him what it's like to become a sex symbol at the age of 65. 'It's rewarding, I like it!' he laughs. 'I feel all of this is a gift because I'm French, but this is related to a British audience. Baptiste may be a certain age, but he's active, he's sexy, his brain is still working and I guess people love that. 'He has wisdom and you know you can rely on him.' But he's not perfect, and mistakes from his past will come back to haunt him. 'The brothers told me he had a lot of skeletons in his closet and they need to be dealt with,' he says, 'so they decided to give him a spin-off. 'The new series has the DNA of The Missing but this time the audience sees things through Baptiste's eyes.' Indeed, the show has all of the best elements of The Missing; a brilliant cast, shocking cliffhangers and a story that takes you in directions you never expected. 'The original Missing stories spanned several years in each case, while this takes place over three or four days,' says Harry. 'It's exciting to tell a story in this way as there's a pressure cooker waiting to explode; before it felt like a pressure cooker with the valve off.' The action takes place mainly in Amsterdam, where Baptiste and his British wife Celia, played by Anastasia Hille, are helping their daughter Sara with her new baby. Having been a drug addict who refused to listen to her father, she now appears to be on the straight and narrow and is living with her boyfriend in the Dutch city. You never quite know where you are with it, and that makes it exciting. They're very good at telling a tale. But then Julien is contacted by ex-girlfriend Martha, played by Belgian actress Barbara Sarafian, who is now Amsterdam's Chief of Police. She's heard he's in the city and she needs help finding a missing girl. An Englishman, Edward Stratton (Tom Hollander), has been in touch to say his niece, who he brought up but who had become a drug addict and prostitute in Amsterdam's red light district, has gone missing. Baptiste agrees to meet him and is touched by Stratton's obvious desperation as well as the similarity to his own experience of looking after a drug addict. An East European slave-labour gang are soon pinpointed as the likely culprits, but as with all stories by the Williams brothers it goes much deeper. Edward's niece had become a drug addict and prostitute in Amsterdam's red light district By the end of the first episode, everything you thought you understood is turned upside down. Tom, who's best known as a comedy actor in Rev but who also starred in The Night Manager, says he was immediately fascinated by the role despite missing out to James Nesbitt for a lead part in the first series of The Missing. ' When I didn't get the part I sulked for about three years,' he admits. 'But I couldn't keep away because the writing is so good. 'You never quite know where you are with it, and that makes it exciting. 'They're very good at telling a tale.' Tom's never been at the centre of a thriller before and found the non-stop grittiness a strain. 'I've seen the stills from the show and I look dreadful,' he says, 'like I need a holiday. 'There's no humour and every day something distressing happens in the story. 'For weeks I'd get back to my flat, learn the lines for the next upsetting day, and then head to work. 'But I did enjoy the action scenes. 'The downside of the car chases is that insurance issues mean you're asked to slow down all the time; they make it look faster than it is. 'The director told me there wouldn't be a lot of running, but of course there was. 'We'd finish a running scene and he'd say, "Can you do it again?" Tom admits that, as tough as any of his days might have been playing Edward, they weren't as hard as the challenges Tcheky faced. 'He didn't spend the show being as upset as I was, but he had more lines and had to learn them in a language that isn't his first. 'I loved working with him; he's handsome and cool, with a French machismo that's different from a British one. 'He has a brilliant face I think it's down to his bone structure that makes him very powerful on screen. 'I have huge respect for him.' Gradually the search for the missing girl expands, taking in the darker side of Amsterdam. By episode three, European crime agency Europol becomes involved when it becomes clear the gang is operating across the continent. Jessica Raine plays a fierce officer called Genevieve Taylor, who has a very personal reason for wanting to jail the Romanian gang Baptiste has been investigating. The action takes place mainly in Amsterdam, where Baptiste and his British wife Celia, played by Anastasia Hille, are helping their daughter Sara with her new baby Death will once more stalk the key characters, but this time we can be sure Baptiste is safe, because the plan is to make more shows with him in it 'Tom's character Edward has kind of pulled a thread from a jumper and then it suddenly comes apart. 'That's where Genevieve swoops in,' says Jessica. 'She puts a lot of noses out of joint and attempts to use Edward to get to the person she needs to get to.' Jessica, who's married to fellow actor Tom Goodman-Hill, was in the early stages of pregnancy when she got the action-packed role. 'I had neglected to tell them I was pregnant,' she laughs. 'So when I broke the news, they had to think about ways of doing the car chases without me being in huge danger, but we managed it. 'Genevieve is quite a hard character she's ruthless and so focused she's practically psychotic. 'Being pregnant is quite an emotional time, so it was interesting playing her during that period.' Death will once more stalk the key characters, but this time we can be sure Baptiste is safe, because the plan is to make more shows with him in it. 'We know exactly what'll happen in the second one and potentially the third,' reveals Jack. 'But this series does have an ending.' His brother adds, 'We've planted ideas into the series that could continue, because it's been fun writing this character and thinking about where we could take Baptiste over a trilogy. 'The important thing is that we continue to surprise, and show people things they haven't seen before.' Three helpings of Baptiste? It should be well worth the wait. Advertisement You sent us shimmering sea views and dramatic urban skylines; there were magical mountain streams and dreamy summer vistas, beautiful snow scenes and spectacular Scottish landscapes. Indeed, the standard of entries for our photographic competition was so high that drawing up a shortlist was a challenge. But we managed to pick 30 front-runners, and that's when we invited our four expert judges TV presenters Ben Fogle, Julia Bradbury and John Sergeant plus professional photographer Damien Demolder to get together to make the final decision. Professional photographer Damien Demolder (left) joined TV presenters (left to right) Ben Fogle, Julia Bradbury and John Sergeant to judge Weekend magazine's photography contest They chose their 12 favourite images, from which they unanimously agreed the overall winner and two runners-up, who win 1,000 and 500 each respectively. Now you can see these glorious photos for yourself here and on the following pages. The competition was a project close to Ben's heart, as he feels that anything that encourages people to photograph their surroundings is a brilliant idea. 'For many years I've been so busy filming that I haven't stopped to take my own photographs of the world around me. Meet the judges BEN FOGLE: An ex-picture editor of Tatler, Ben found fame on TV in Castaway in 2000 and has made a name as an adventurer, having rowed the Atlantic and walked to the South Pole. JOHN SERGEANT: A former political correspondent at the BBC and political editor of ITN. A keen countryman, John has made a number of travel documentaries. JULIA BRADBURY: After a spell co-presenting Countryfile, she is now most associated with TV series concentrating on the great outdoors in general and walking in particular. DAMIEN DEMOLDER: Our technical judge, Damien has been an acknowledged photographer and speaker for two decades and held the job of editor of Amateur Photographer magazine. Advertisement 'I look back at the past 20 years of travel all over Britain, and there are huge gaps where I haven't got a single photograph,' he says. 'I have the TV films I've made, but you can't sit in a pub and show them to your friends. 'I really regret that, and I say this as someone who started his career as picture editor of Tatler. 'I love photographs and I love looking at them. 'Now I'm making a conscious effort to remedy things, even if it's only using my iPhone, particularly so I can show my kids what I've been doing while I've been away.' Few people know more about the British landscape than former Countryfile presenter Julia Bradbury, whose many TV series have included Britain's Best Walks. 'Looking through this selection of stunning shots reinforced just how privileged we should all feel about our natural heritage,' she says. 'So let's look after it for the rest of our lives and for the generations to come.' Since his days as ITN's political editor, John Sergeant has presented several TV series, including Barging Around Britain. 'So I'm a big fan of this country, and of a contest like this, because it encourages people to enjoy the wonderful island on which we live without having to get on board a plane,' he says. Ben Fogle, a former picture editor of Tatler, says he love photographs and I love looking at them 'And, as the entries to this competition so comprehensively demonstrated, you don't need fancy equipment to take a fabulous photograph. 'A smartphone can produce thoroughly professional-looking results.' He's right, of course. Britain may be a relatively small island but we think you'll agree that, on the evidence of this stunning selection, we can boast some of the best views anywhere in the world! WINNER Mark Bulmer, 49, a Ministry of Defence engineer, wins our 1,000 first prize for his stunning view of the Seven Sisters cliffs and coastguard cottages Mark Bulmer, 49, a Ministry of Defence engineer, wins our 1,000 first prize for his stunning view of the Seven Sisters cliffs and coastguard cottages near Seaford, East Sussex. 'I live in York with my partner Emma,' says Mark, 'and we like to go on touring holidays in our camper van. 'In September 2017 we deliberately visited the East Sussex coast so I could take this shot of the Seven Sisters and the coastguard cottages near Seaford. Mark Bulmer (pictured) says he will be upgrading his camera with his prize money 'I was particularly drawn to the white cliffs, which seem so quintessentially British. 'It's a famous beauty spot but it took me nearly two days to get the perfect conditions. 'At mid-afternoon on the second day, the sun and the tide were exactly as I wanted them. 'I've been keen on photography all my adult life. I bought my first camera a Zenit SLR with my first wage packet. 'This picture was taken with my Canon EOS 5D Mark III a camera I love, although I'd like to upgrade. 'Come to think of it, I can now, thanks to my prize money!' What the judges thought John Sergeant 'I love this. It so perfectly typifies Britain's coastline. 'The light is terrific and just look at the colour of the sea. 'The way the photograph is composed, you're pulled into the landscape towards the cottages. 'Are they inhabited or empty? 'And then the eye travels across the water to the cliffs. 'This is precisely the kind of picture I'd be happy to hang on a wall at home and look at for a long time. 'It seems so full of stories.' Julia Bradbury 'This is a window into Britain, a photograph anyone would be proud to have taken. 'This is quite a popular beauty spot and I've seen other shots of it, but nothing that equals this. 'Truly a worthy winner.' Damien Demolder 'The composition is fantastic. 'The path leads you into the shot and then curls round to the left and those spectacular cliffs. 'And the exposure is just right: you can see detail in the rock face, the water, the shrubbery. It makes me feel as though I'm there.' RUNNER UP This dramatic photo of the Maunsell Forts in the Thames estuary wins Roy Morris, 71, from Eastbourne, East Sussex, 500 'I took up photography on my retirement and belong to a camera club in Eastbourne,' says Roy. 'I make no apology for the fact this could never be described as a pretty picture. 'The club was on an outing on a boat on the River Medway with the idea of taking shots of the Thames barges racing. 'But there was a lull in the action so I asked the guy in charge of the boat if there was anything else I could photograph with my Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. 'And that's when he suggested the Maunsell Forts in the Thames estuary. 'They were built as part of Britain's defence system in the Second World War. 'There's something other-worldly about them, a sort of cross between the Daleks and the Triffids. 'Their rusting, slightly sinister appearance appealed to me.' What the judges thought Ben Fogle 'These were built in the last war as a defence against enemy invasion and I like the fact they were never taken down. 'It makes them look like something of a ghostly relic now, but they're no less fascinating for that. 'It's the kind of photograph I'd have in my house. These strike me as ugly/beautiful, like something out of Stars Wars. They're very arresting. - Julia 'Not because it's calming or beautiful, but quite the reverse. 'It's challenging.' Julia 'These strike me as ugly/beautiful, like something out of Stars Wars. 'They're very arresting.' Damien 'The composition is excellent. 'The photographer's managed to separate each of them so they don't merge into one.' RUNNER UP Susan Albrighton, 41, a business development manager for a pharmaceuticals wholesaler who lives in Birmingham, wins 500 for her atmospheric shot of Puck's Glen in Benmore, Argyll and Bute 'I've been taking photographs since I was a child when my dad gave me a basic camera with 24 exposures,' says Susan. 'I now use something rather more sophisticated: a Sony A7R II compact camera, which is easy to use and carry around. 'I love Scotland. 'If it were nearer to Birmingham where I live, I'd explore it every weekend. 'It was bucketing with rain when I took this shot but there was something about this twist and turn along the riverbank that struck me as magical, a scene perhaps out of The Lord Of The Rings. I've been taking photographs since I was a child when my dad gave me a basic camera with 24 exposures 'The locals believe fairies live there and you can see why.' What the judges thought Ben 'This summons up ancient Britain for me with all that moss and lichen. 'You feel as though this photograph could have been taken years and years ago and wouldn't have looked any different. There's a timeless quality about it.' John 'I want to explore it and discover what's round the next bend. 'There's a distinctly magical quality about it but I don't find it remotely frightening.' Damien 'It's clever because the softness of the setting doesn't blunt the sharpness of the shot.' THE FINALISTS Eddie Allen, 26, an electrical engineer from Guildford and one of our finalists, got up at 2am to take this picture of the Old Man of Storr 'I was on a hiking and photography trip to Scotland, and it was worth the lack of sleep to watch the first rays of sun light up this wonderful landscape,' says Eddie. John says 'I found myself immediately drawn to this crazy, almost lunar-like study.' Julia says 'This borders on prehistoric, showing you how that rock formation was created.' Damien says 'There's drama here, created by the glancing light that illuminates the shot.' Retired financial adviser Brian McGregor, 63, took this study of the three bridges crossing the Firth of Forth near his home in Queensferry, near Edinburgh 'I've lived in the area for 33 years and this view is virtually on my doorstep,' says Brian. 'I spent many years driving across the Forth Road Bridge [in the middle] for work before the new Queensferry Crossing [the bridge on the left] opened in 2017. The third bridge is the Rail Bridge, which opened in 1890. What draws me to this view is that the Forth is a tidal river, so the scene is completely different every time you look at it. 'What draws me to this view is that the Forth is a tidal river, so the scene is completely different every time you look at it. 'My main aim was to capture all three bridges in one photo. 'It was a challenge but I think I've succeeded here.' John says 'I love the crunchy walkway that takes the viewer in, inviting you to look at the lovely bridges. 'And then there's the gentle curve reflected in the water. 'It's a fascinating study with all its different planes and elevations. 'I could get lost in it for a long time. It seems to reveal something new every time you go back to it.' Gold Hill in Shaftesbury, Dorset otherwise known as Hovis Hill since the famous TV bread advert was filmed there in 1973 was the subject of Antony Lowe's picture Antony, 46, who lives in Southampton, says, 'I work as a courier and pass this way once a month, always stopping to take in this lovely scene before the working day begins at 7am. 'Some of my pictures were featured on the BBC's Winterwatch a few years ago, and my enthusiasm for photograpy snowballed from there. 'Now I'm always looking for photo opportunities when I'm driving around the country. What makes this view stand out from all the others, though, is that you can see out to three different counties on a good day 'What makes this view stand out from all the others, though, is that you can see out to three different counties on a good day. 'It's just so fantastic.' Ben says 'I spent a good deal of my childhood in Dorset staying with my grandparents so this is a shot that immediately resonates with me. 'I've also filmed there as an adult. 'I like the fact the photographer always takes the trouble to break his journey to work to enjoy the magical setting, and I can quite understand why he wanted to capture it in a picture. 'I sympathise with that.' Marketing officer Tracy Garwood, 47, captured this sunrise over the River Deben in Waldringfield, Suffolk 'Our home is close to the river and as I was getting ready for work one morning, 'I saw the orange glow reflecting on the walls of the neighbouring cottages and I knew this would make a spectacular picture,' says Tracy. She took the photo without filters on her iPhone 7. Ian Williamson, 57, from Cheshire, is head of occupational health and safety at Keele University He took this bleakly beautiful image last winter. This is a skilfully taken photo, as quite often a shot like this can come out as simply grey. 'This was in Rainow, where I used to live. 'It was snowing, and a gust of wind created the mist above the pathway. 'It was freezing, but getting this photo made it worth going out!' says Ian. What the judges thought: Ben 'This is how I imagine our winters to be and yet they so rarely are.' Damien 'This is a skilfully taken photo, as quite often a shot like this can come out as simply grey.' Julia 'This looks like a perfect Christmas card.' A Super Blue Moon eclipse occurred on 31 January, 2018 and William Richardson, 54, an information manager from London, was there to capture it as he looked over the River Thames towards St Paul's Cathedral and the striking modern skyscrapers beside it 'I usually enter Weekend's Great British Wildlife Photography Challenge so this was a slight diversion for me,' he says. 'As a keen astronomer, I'm aware of exciting things happening in the sky and picked this spot because it's where the moon would rise with such a commanding view of the City of London. It looks so exotic, which you don't expect in London - Ben Fogle 'I knew it would make a good photo but to have the lunar eclipse framed by St Paul's was a bit of a one-off.' Julia says 'This is fabulous, like the opening credits in a movie; and the colours are unbelievable. I 'I'd rather look at this than at the Dubai skyline any day.' This study of a long-abandoned vessel was taken by Mark Calden, 58, a senior policy advisor from Chelmsford, along the mudflats of the Blackwater Estuary in Maldon, Essex 'The river walks are now quiet places for dog walkers like me and ramblers but there are many reminders such as this boat I photographed at dusk of the town's proud maritime history,' says Mark. Damien says: 'I live in Essex and trying to be a landscape photographer there is sometimes quite challenging because so much of it is flat. 'But this photographer has done a fantastic job. 'I particularly like the big sky, and he's managed to get lots of colour into the marshes, which can often look very brown.' Ralph Witty, 59, a retired occupational therapist from Scarborough, lives a short drive from the North York Moors National Park 'July and August are wonderful months to visit the moors because the rich purple and magenta colours of the ling and bell heathers complement the stone cottages in the scattered villages,' says Ralph. 'This particular view is a favourite of mine, taken from a ridge overlooking Rosedale Abbey village and showing the Millennium Cross amid the heather in the low evening sun.' What the judges thought Julia: 'This photographer told us he waited four years to get the perfect conditions for taking his shot. His patience was amply rewarded.' Ben: 'The colours here are fantastically evocative.' Lisa Hands, 59, a charity worker, lives in Sheffield close to this stunning landscape across Hope Valley to Hathersage in Derbyshire 'It's known as Surprise View ever since Queen Victoria's carriage crossed the flat moorlands, turned a corner and came across this panorama,' says Lisa. 'That's a surprise!' she's said to have uttered and she was right. 'It makes your heart leap with joy.' Julia says 'I was brought up in Sheffield so this spoke to me. 'I love the contrasting colours and the hint of a walk in the right-hand corner.' Ive always had my suspicions about Jeremy Corbyn. It wasnt just the moment last December when he seemingly mouthed stupid woman across the benches at Theresa May in the House of Commons. Nor was it his ensuing protestation that he hadnt said woman but had, in fact, called the Tories en masse stupid people this, in spite of the fact that professional lip-readers and the musician Evelyn Glennie, who is deaf, all insisted otherwise. It is not just that he presides over a party that has never elected a female leader or that, in the May 2017 regional mayoral elections, he fielded an all-male line-up and ignored the critics who pointed out this was, well, sexist. No, its not any of these things taken in isolation. Rather, its a mild drum-beat of discomfort, a vague but un-ignorable sense that Corbyn has a tricky relationship with the opposite sex. It wasnt just the moment last December when he seemingly mouthed stupid woman across the benches at Theresa May in the House of Commons As women, we get used to discerning the casual sexism that so often masquerades as humour or supposedly harmless banter. We recognise those private slips of the tongue that reveal what an inherently sexist man really thinks, even if this man is trying hard to prove his right-on feminist credentials in public. As women, were often accused of being overly sensitive or seeking out offence where none is intended. But the truth is, were just practised at spotting unspoken prejudice. Weve had a lifetime of it. Were used to being passed over for job promotions or told we cant take a joke. Were accustomed to the silent eyeing up in the lift from a lecherous male colleague or being trolled on Twitter for expressing an opinion. And as a result, most of us can sniff out a misogynist at ten paces. So I wasnt all that surprised when I read Tom Bowers new biography of Corbyn to discover a lot of what I suspected about the Labour leader turns out to have some veracity. This is a man who, according to Bower, routinely expected his wives to do all the domestic chores and household drudgery so he could be free to concentrate on loftier things such as attending Labour Party meetings and strategising the proletariat revolution. He didnt acknowledge my emotional side. He doesnt recognise a womans feelings, said his first wife, Jane Chapman, recalling vegetarian meals she made that were wolfed down without acknowledgement and Corbyns utter lack of interest in going to the cinema when he could be sitting on the floor singing IRA songs with members of the Hornsey Labour Party instead. The marriage lasted four years. When Chapman left him, she says he was incapable of working out why the marriage had collapsed: He thought I left him on a feminist kick but it was because I wanted some fun. Blaming the breakdown of a relationship on feminism rather than analysing your own actions is, of course, the ultimate misogynist put-down. If a woman is behaving in a way you dont like, just dismiss her as a feminist and be done with it, the reasoning goes. That way, youre demeaning both feminism and a womans ability to make her own decisions. Result! His second wife, Claudia Bracchitta, fared little better. When she was giving birth to the couples first child in the Royal Free Hospital in Hampstead, Corbyn was on the phone to his constituency agent worrying about whether theyd put out a leaflet about Northern Ireland. Its a mild drum-beat of discomfort, a vague but un-ignorable sense that Corbyn has a tricky relationship with the opposite sex Later, he would prove to be incompetent at managing financial affairs and unreliable when it came to keeping to any kind of timetable that wasnt his own. Bracchitta went on to bear two more of his children, but clearly couldnt rely on much help from her spouse. Family holidays were blighted by Corbyns absence, as he would disappear without explanation. On one occasion he re-emerged after 36 hours claiming he had been to a meeting and that the unexplained delay had been a necessary sacrifice for the movement. Her desire to get a cleaner to help with all the chaos that comes with having three small children was greeted with derision: one of Corbyns friends questioned whether she had bourgeois tendencies. When Bracchitta asked Corbyn to clear out the fridge and the garage ahead of a house move, he forgot to do even this most basic of tasks (despite the fact that the garage was mostly filled with his discarded railway memorabilia and junk picked up from neighbourhood skips). It would be funny were it not so pathetic. Im sure many of us will, at some level, be able to relate to this retrograde behaviour. We have all encountered the man who single-mindedly pursues his interests at the cost of everyone elses because he believes his work is more important than any of that boring old domestic stuff. The husband who refuses to lift a finger around the house and yet expects it all to fall into place without any effort. The father who does not turn up for family outings because hes otherwise engaged. The enthusiastic hoarder who stuffs everything into a garage and expects his wife to sort out the mess. One of these traits might be enough to drive even the most patient partner to distraction. But for a single individual to possess all of them seems unfortunate, to say the least. Youd think, given that Corbyn has been married three times, that he might have learned from his earlier mistakes. After all, hes had enough practice. But no. This seems to be a man who is so blinkered in his self-belief that he never believes anything is his fault. In between his first two marriages, he had a brief affair with Diane Abbott, now the Shadow Home Secretary. Abbott would soon discover that her paramour had no intention of marrying her or fathering her children. His absences were as lengthy and unexplained as ever. Its hard to have a relationship with someone who doesnt come home for two weeks, Abbott said as she was packing up her bags to leave. What did Corbyn do when he saw another woman upset by his inability to commit? Did he seek to engage with Abbotts concerns? Did he sit down to have an adult conversation about how to tackle her dissatisfaction? Did he have a moment of self-reflection? Did he ask himself what he might have done to contribute to the ending of yet another romantic relationship? Apparently not. According to Bower, he walked away without comment; he was off to a meeting, he said. It seems Corbyn didnt really care about the women in his life. His politics always came first, but it feels as though his ideology was also a convenient fig-leaf behind which to hide his laziness and emotional myopia. Thats the thing about ideologues: they find real people rather inconvenient. Individual needs tend to get in the way of an overarching political worldview. You cant redistribute the means of production if youre having to clean out the fridge. Well, you might think, fair enough, he wasnt exactly a domestic god and perhaps he had traditional notions about a womans place in the home, but maybe he had a fun side? Sadly not. This is a man, according to Bower, who spent holidays camping in tents and cooking tins of beans on a single-ring Calor gas stove while his first wife wanted to go to restaurants and sleep in a proper bed once in a while. On a trip with Chapman to Czechoslovakia, he declared palaces too royal to visit and boulevards too capitalist to appreciate. About the only thing that swayed Corbyns interest was British manhole covers, particularly their dates of manufacture. Can you imagine someone proudly stating that as their hobby on a dating profile? Its hardly the stuff of romantic fantasy. Worse than any of this, to my mind, is what his first wife described as the absence of books in her husbands life. Throughout the four years of their marriage, he never read a single one, Bower writes. Unless someone is dyslexic, its very hard to trust anyone who doesnt read books. Its especially hard to trust a man with ambitions to be our Prime Minister who doesnt read books. It displays such an inherent lack of curiosity in other ways of being and other peoples lives and speaks of a person who is satisfied he already possesses all the knowledge he needs, which is the worst form of arrogance. Perhaps, you might be thinking, Corbyn has changed? Perhaps its unfair to judge him on his past, youthful mistakes? After all, hes been married to his third wife, Laura Alvarez, since 2013 even if she has also discovered Corbyn was not helpful with the housework. But the truth is, I dont believe he has, not really, not deep down. Bower recounts a revealing episode when, 20 years after the breakdown of his marriage to Chapman, he invited his first wife for tea in the House of Commons. Instead of accepting any sort of responsibility for what had happened between them, Corbyn told his ex-wife the woman he had dragged around on joyless camping holidays while he examined manhole covers she should lighten up. Accusing a woman of lacking a sense of humour because she ended a relationship has to be the last refuge of a scoundrel. It wasnt that she couldnt take a joke, Jeremy. It was that she couldnt take being married to you. @ChescoCourtNews on Twitter Michael P. Rellahan has been a staff reporter and editor at the Daily Local News since 1982. He has covered all kinds of news over the years but is now assigned to report on court and legal news, as well as Chester County government news and politics. Donna Debs is a longtime freelance writer, a former KYW radio news reporter, and a certified Iyengar yoga teacher. She lives in Tredyffrin. Shed love to hear from you at ddebs@comcast.net. NEW GUN LAWS IN 2018 States passed 67 gun laws in 2018, according to the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, 65 of them after the tragedy in Parkland, Fla., on Feb. 14. An * indicates the law was passed before Parkland. These are the results of the passed laws: BACKGROUND CHECKS Added a background check requirement or improved an existing background check law: Florida, Louisiana, New Jersey, Oregon, Tennessee, Vermont and Washington. BUMP STOCKS & TRIGGER ACTIVATORS New laws or strengthened existing laws that ban the use of bump stocks and other trigger activators: California, Connecticut, Washington, D.C., Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Maryland, New Jersey*, Rhode Island and Washington. CONCEALED CARRY Regulation of carrying concealed firearms in public: California, Maryland, New Jersey, South Dakota and Washington. DEALER REGULATIONS Extended states handgun dealer regulations to all firearms dealers: Oregon. DOMESTIC VIOLENCE Laws that help keep firearms away from domestic abusers: California, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Vermont and Washington. EXTREME RISK PROTECTION ORDERS Measures that allow law enforcement, a family member, or others in the community to petition for a temporary order removing access to firearms by at-risk individuals: Washington, D.C., Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Rhode Island and Vermont. GUNS IN SCHOOLS Banned possession of guns in K12 school buildings and buses, except where authorized by local school officials for specific occasions or purposes: Vermont. LARGE-CAPACITY AMMUNITION MAGAZINES Expanded the states ban magazines that hold over 15 rounds to include any magazines that hold over 10 rounds: New Jersey. Banned magazines that accept over 10 rounds for a long gun and over 15 for a hand gun: Vermont. Increased penalties for possessing a large-capacity magazine: Washington, D.C. MENTAL HEALTH Removal of firearms from a person who is dangerous due to mental illness: Delaware and New Jersey. MINIMUM AGE Tightened minimum age laws, specifically addressing the ability of people under 21 to access firearms: California, Florida, Vermont and Washington. Washington also restrictsed where a person between the ages of 18 and 21 may possess a semiautomatic rifle. PROHIBITED PEOPLE Added prohibiting factors to laws regulating who may purchase and possess firearms: Louisiana, Nebraska, New York, Virginia, and Washington. New Yorks law also extends the states relinquishment procedures to those who have committed felonies or serious offenses. RESEARCH CENTER New Jersey appropriated $2 million to fund a center on gun violence research that will be housed at Rutgers University. SAFE STORAGE Imposes criminal liability on people who unsafely store guns that are then used by a prohibited person. Dealers must also offer a gun safe or lock with each firearm purchase: Washington. SAFETY TRAINING PRIOR TO TRANSFER Washington Initiative 1639 prohibits a licensed dealer from delivering a semiautomatic rifle to a person who does not provide proof of firearm safety training within the previous five years. UNDETECTABLE/UNTRACEABLE GUNS Regulation of guns that are undetectable due to the material used to create them and/or untraceable because they lack a serial number: California and New Jersey. URBAN GUN VIOLENCE REDUCTION PROGRAMS Funding for urban gun violence reduction programs: California, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nebraska, New York and Rhode Island*. TRAFFICKING Two states enacted laws that make it harder for criminals to traffic firearms from the legal to the illegal market: Georgia and Wisconsin. WAITING PERIODS Extended the states waiting period for handguns to all firearms sold at rwetail locations: Florida. Lengthened the states long gun waiting period to three days: Illinois. Added a 10-day waiting period for semiautomatic rifles sold by dealers: Washington. Source: Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence SOJOURNER TRUTH Event recalls life of activist Sojourner Truth's remarkable life remembered with walk, re-enactment of speech Former slave's remarkable life remembered with walk to courthouse where she won her son's freedom KINGSTON, N.Y. The city's new Zoning Task Force has begun reviewing what should be expected from consultants who will be charged with taking Ethos is a nationally recognized, award-winning independent student publication. Our mission is to elevate the voices of marginalized people who are underrepresented in the media landscape, and to write in-depth, human-focused stories about the issues affecting them. We also strive to support our diverse student staff and to help them find future success. Ethos produces a quarterly free print magazine full of well-reported and powerful feature stories, innovative photography, creative illustrations and eye-catching design. On our website, we also produce compelling written and multimedia stories. Ethos is part of Emerald Media Group, a non-profit organization thats fully independent of the University of Oregon. Students maintain complete editorial control over Ethos, and work tirelessly to produce the magazine. Since our inception as Korean Ducks Magazine in 2005, weve worked hard to share a multicultural spirit with our readership. We embrace diversity in our stories, in our student staff and in our readers. We want every part of the magazine to reflect the diversity of our world. Ms. Annette "Honey" Brock age 96 of Dalton, GA, went to be with the lord Tuesday June 22, 2021. She was born October 21, 1924 in Memphis, TN a daughter of the late Edwin Douglas and Ann Louise Johnson. She was also preceded in death by her husband, Paul "Pete" Brock, sisters and brothers, da This post might not be for you. Or, it could be exactly what you and your credit union team need. Inspired By: Someone Elses Faux Pas Ill be honest; the inspiration came from a local chamber of commerce, not a credit union. So, its possible none of you are making this mistake. Unless you are Were going to talk about messaging. Public perception. How you convey yourselves to your target audience. Be it your members or the community at large. Just as it can raise positive awareness, publicity can paint an undesirable picture. I saw this happen with a large chamber of commerce in my area. Pretty sure they didnt notice the faux pas. So what happened? Whos Your Target Audience? (ie. Who do you serve?) First, lets back up and ensure we are all on the same page. Whether youre a chamber of commerce or credit union, who is your target audience? Exactly. Local businesses and their staff, residents, and those you wish to attract to the area. Who do you serve? Well, your members. When these two things line up, you can better pursue your mission. In the case of this chamber of commerce, they held a major event, complete with ribbon cutting by the mayor, to celebrate the opening ofa Krispy Kreme. Now, I dont know if their stores are franchise or corporate, yet think about it. Is this the message they really want to promote? That a big, multi-national corporation gets special treatment and recognition, while thousands of local businesses, each with their own unique stories to tell, get ignored? To clarify, this isnt something they do for every new business opening, even of chamber members. Perception Matters In real estate, the oft-repeated phrase is: Location, location, location. Here, could we say its perception, perception, perception? If an institution talks about being there for the little guys, then makes a big deal out of the exact opposite, what do you think? It comes across as hypocritical towards the local businesses they espouse to promote and support. Where is the event for the local business whose staff and owner overcame enormous struggles to be successful? Or even to just open their doors? Like I said, you might not be making this mistake. But in case you areawareness is a good thing. PS This is a great time to solicit stories from members about the greatest challenges they have. Then choose one (or more) and do something to help. LAWRENCE, Mass. - Sen. Elizabeth Warren formally launched her presidential bid Saturday by reemphasizing her signature issues of fighting economic inequality and corporate wrongdoing, an effort to move beyond new questions that arose in recent days about her previous claims that she was a Native American. The outdoor rally - on the steps of a former cotton mill and the site of a historic labor strike led by women and immigrants - was intended to position Warren as the leader of a renewed crusade against what she called the "corrupt" influence of large companies and powerful politicians. "The story of Lawrence is a story about how real change happens in America," Warren told a crowd that the campaign estimated at 3,500. "It is a story about power - our power - when we fight together." The announcement came after a difficult week for Warren. The Washington Post published a document that shows, for the first time, Warren's handwritten assertion that she was an "American Indian" on a 1986 registration card she filled out for the Texas bar. Warren in recent days offered apologies for claiming Native American identity, first privately to the leader of the Cherokee Nation and then publicly. In forcefully populist language, Warren sought to carve out a distinctive position in the crowded Democratic field, citing achievements like the creation of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which regulates banks and other financial institutions. Other Democrats are also speaking out on inequality, but Warren is hitting particularly hard on the notion of creating new operating rules for the capitalist system. "It won't be enough to just undo the terrible acts of this administration," Warren said. "We can't afford to just tinker around the edges - a tax credit here, a regulation there. Our fight is for big, structural change." During the roughly 45-minute speech, she repeatedly stressed her image as a fighter, linking her family's economic struggles to a promise to battle for middle-class Americans. Supporters hope that reputation will eclipse any image of her as someone who misrepresented herself as a Native American for years. But even some of those who attended the kickoff had concerns about the strength of her candidacy, given the identity issue and President Donald Trump's aggressive campaign style. "Trump is an intimidating guy to take on," said Hugh Stinson, 40, of Douglas, Mass., before the speech, adding that he hadn't decided whom to support for president. "Warren has left herself open on a couple fronts to pile on. He loves dredging up Pocahontas," he added, referencing Trump's nickname for Warren. Others worried that the country isn't ready for a female president. "I want a candidate who will win. It's a challenging time," said Pamela Baldwin, 55, of Arlington, who said she likes Warren as a senator but believes sexism will prevent a woman from becoming president in 2020. Trump's campaign issued a statement Saturday saying Warren has been "exposed as a fraud" by claiming Native American ancestry. "The American people will reject her dishonest campaign and socialist ideas, like the Green New Deal, that will raise taxes, kill jobs and crush America's middle class," Brad Parscale, Trump's campaign manager, said in the statement. The Green New Deal, supported by an array of Democrats, is a sweeping environmental initiative. Warren acknowledged in her speech that some view her ideas as unrealistic. "There will be plenty of doubters and cowards and armchair critics this time around," Warren said. "But we learned a long time ago that you don't get what you don't fight for." Warren was introduced by Democratic Rep. Joe Kennedy, once seen as a potential 2020 presidential candidate himself, and Sen. Edward J. Markey, along with local officials whom Warren has backed. Supporters held signs reading "Persist, Persist, Persist," while some munched on butter cookies with the same word. It became an unofficial Warren motto after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., in a 2017 incident, complained that she had been warned against continuing to speak on the Senate floor in violation of Senate rules, but "nevertheless, she persisted." After the rally, Warren headed to Dover, New Hampshire, a town of 32,000 with a long history in now-faded industries like shipbuilding. Several of those who braved the biting wind to hear Warren speak at the old City Hall were impatient with the attention on Warren's Native American ancestry claims. "If they are going to toss her out of the ring over that, then they aren't looking deep enough," said Sheri Clark Nadell, 58, a high school teacher. "It's a very superficial way of looking at things." Others cited Warren's explanation that a Native American background was part of her family lore. "She is in the exact same position as me," said Fay Scofield, 70. "I was told ever since I was a young child that we are part Native American. I have no idea if it's true, but it's always been part of the family story, and we've been proud of it. I'm sure she was, too." At the Massachusetts event, Warren added some biographical elements, describing herself, as a young mother entering law school, having to quickly toilet-train her toddler so she could leave the child at a day-care center while she attended classes. And she blamed the divides in American culture on "the rich and powerful," saying the country's problems go beyond the current occupant of the White House. Warren has proposed an "ultra-millionaire" tax that adds an annual 2 percent levy on wealth over $50 million and a 3 percent tax on those with assets worth more than $1 billion. She wants large companies to be more tightly regulated, requiring them to focus on more than stock prices and consider their employees and communities. And she wants workers included on corporate boards. "When I talk about this, some rich guys scream 'class warfare!' " Warren said. "Well, let me tell you something - these same rich guys have been waging class warfare against hard-working people for decades. I say it's time to fight back." Warren did not refer to her Native American claims, but she repeatedly mentioned race and the added difficulties confronting minorities. Nonwhite voters made up more than a quarter of the Democratic primary electorate in 2016. "Race matters - and we need to say so," Warren said, noting that blacks continue to face, for example, discriminatory housing practices. "And we can't be blind to the fact that the rules in our country have been rigged against other people for a long time," listing women, gays and lesbians, Latinos, Native Americans, immigrants and people with disabilities. She got some of her biggest applause when she talked about her plan to change politics, repeating a pledge not to take money from special interests. "I'm not taking applications from billionaires who want to run a super PAC on my behalf," Warren said. She also backed a constitutional amendment to ensure the right to vote, and she advocated for tightening ethics requirements on members of Congress and even Supreme Court justices. Warren was the first major candidate to announce a presidential exploratory committee, sending out a video on New Year's Eve. Since then, the field has grown considerably, including her Senate colleagues Kamala Harris of California, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and Cory Booker of New Jersey. It's expected to expand further Sunday, with Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota set to announce her bid. Warren has visited Iowa, South Carolina, New Hampshire and Puerto Rico. In coming days, she plans events in Georgia, South Carolina, Nevada and California. She is scheduled to be in Iowa on Sunday. J. Arthur (Joe) Lenzi was just another local guy helping to build the big bridge over the Quinnipiac River in 1957 when some of the older construction workers who had noted his good looks kept telling him: What are you doing here, kid? You should go to Hollywood and become a movie star! Recalling his life-changing decision to heed that advice, Lenzi said: I was seeing those guys with two or three kids and theyd married their childhood sweethearts and they could barely make ends meet. It scared the hell out of me. I said to myself: This is not going to happen to me. And so on an October morning, Lenzi and his buddy, Red Nazario, headed off to California in a new Chrysler 300. They were paid to drive it across the country and deliver it to an address in Los Angeles. This odyssey landed Lenzi, just 19, in La La Land, a fantasy landscape where he spent years partying with movie stars and plunging into romantic adventures with gorgeous women. He has told his story in a self-published book entitled Easy Access: From Boudoirs to Movie Stars. He subtitled it A Memoir of Good Looks. Lenzi hung on in Hollywood until 1992, when he returned to New Haven to keep a promise to his elderly parents. I had told my father: Dad, I will never put you or mom in a (nursing) home. My sister and I took care of them in their own home. Lenzi and I met last Monday afternoon at his condo on Townsend Avenue. He lives there with his wife, the woman he says saved him from continuing his pursuit of femmes fatales. His memoirs dedication reads: To my darling wife Esmahan, my Turkish delight. While Lenzi and I sipped the delicious Turkish tea she had brewed for us, I asked her what she thought about her husbands memoir, which is loaded with tales of one-night stands and affairs with glamorous young women. Oh, I love it! she said. I really do. Its beautiful. Im really impressed. As for all those former lovers, she said, I dont mind. I never get jealous. Thats what he did before, not now. Hes a wonderful person. Lenzi settled in to tell me the story of his life. He began by recalling something that happened when he was about 12. A good buddy of mine on Wooster Street, where I grew up, had boils that would erupt on his face and make him look very unattractive. He told me, When you go into a store, the cashier smiles and says hello. When I go in, she locks the register. I really felt bad for him. I realized: the homely are ignored and the beautiful are adored. Its the number one discrimination in the world but nobody talks about it. I want to cry sometimes, its such an injustice, he added. Were not all created equal. Lenzi said he wrote his memoir in part to make people aware of this discrimination. He noted, Tony Curtis and Robert Wagner in their bios never once mentioned that they were good-looking and had that advantage. As I say in my book, I had wonderful opportunities. But I really believe it was only because I happened to be nice looking. I had lots of female friends, lot of male friends, because I was nice looking. If I hadnt had good looks, Id probably never have left New Haven. In another book Lenzi wrote, Joes Street Smarts: From Soup to Sex, Knowledge Not Taught in College, he said his natural good looks were the effortless universal door opener that provided easy access to the good life of sun, sex and spaghetti. Lenzi told me his timing also was lucky: No other place on the planet offered more opportunities of every kind than Beverly Hills from 1957-1992, the years I was there. But like any aspiring youth arriving in L.A., he had to pay some dues. We were there for only five days when Red got homesick and said, Ive got to go home. I told him, Red, Im not going back. So he left and I got a tiny room in a hotel for $14 a week. It had bullet holes in the ceiling. Soon afterward, Lenzi said, I got a job parking cars from Billy the bull at a new restaurant, the Villa Capri. I was mesmerized by the people coming in. Frank Sinatra was going out at the time with Lauren Bacall; they had battles royale in the parking lot. Shes swearing at Sinatra; hes saying: Dont give her the car! Im taking the car! He had a beautiful new Cadillac. One night, he told me to go get some gas for it. So Im driving around Hollywood in Frank Sinatras Cadillac! Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr. and Dean Martin were constantly playing around. Sinatra would come into the place with a whole group of people at 2 oclock in the morning. Theyd sit at a booth and make a lot of noise. Sinatra intimidated everybody, Lenzi said. Even Kirk Douglas was intimidated by him. The only person who intimidated Sinatra was Dean Martin. Dean was just naturally cool. Lenzi said he grew to love Sinatra because of his generosity. Nobody on the planet was more generous. If you had a problem, hed go looking for you. He was the biggest tipper of all, nobody came close. Hed give me $10, $20: Here, kid. Lenzi said he spent three days in Las Vegas with Sinatra, Mia Farrow (his wife at that time) and Lenzis girlfriend, Pamela Mason, who was divorced from the actor James Mason. Wed drink til 3 in the morning. Lenzi quoted Farrow saying: Joe looks like a young Frank Sinatra. In 1959, Lenzi enrolled in an acting school, impressed a talent scout with 20th Century Fox and signed a contract to attend acting classes at the studio for six months. If he impressed the board of directors at a screen test, he would be signed to a seven-year contract. Lenzi seemed to be on the verge of fulfilling his dream of becoming a movie star. It was an incredible opportunity, he noted. But he got heavily involved with a gal named Dusty Miller, whom Lenzi described as more beautiful than Elizabeth Taylor. After several months of a wild romance, I learned she was being kept by a baron from Switzerland. I called my father, crying on the phone: Shes not who she said she was. The next morning I was going to do my big scene for 20th Century Fox. I was a good actor. But I was so distracted, I hadnt slept. I did one scene and I was a mess. I blew one of the biggest opportunities of my life. I had all the potential to be a movie star, Lenzi said, but I struck out. I didnt live up to my full potential. But if I had, I couldnt have handled it. Id probably be dead by now if Id been a star. But he holds onto those Hollywood memories. Lenzi pulled out a loose leaf scrapbook filled with photos of him alongside Zsa Zsa Gabor, Kirk Douglas, Phyllis Diller and others. Theyre included in his paperback book (available via Amazon), which he admits is filled with typos. Im a grammatical nitwit. After his acting dream died, Lenzi got into real estate sales. In 1991, he pulled off a big deal, selling a Beverly Hills mansion to the Sultan of Brunei for $12.5 million. This was his path to early retirement. These days, at 81, Lenzi reads philosophy in bed at night, does laps at IKEA on Sargent Drive and enjoys cozy days with his Turkish delight, whom he met in 2004 when she answered a personal ad he had placed. In spite of all the Hollywood starlets he had flings with, Lenzi told me, With Esmahan, Im blessed. These have been the best years of my life. Contact Randall Beach at 203-680-9345 or randall.beach@hearstmediact.com GREENWICH Thats not a dog! Visitors to Tods Point in Greenwich on Saturday were surprised by an animal that joined on the beach on the sunny but cold afternoon. It came on the beach and was looking at dogs playing for few minutes. We all thought it was a dog first. Then we realized it was a seal, Eiji Nishimura said in an email. It paid just a brief visit to shore at Greenwich Point, which Nishimura documented using an iPhone X cellphone. In the pictures, CoCo, an Australian Shepherd, and LiLi, Aussie/Border Collie, greet the seal. A seal came on the beach to play with dogs, Nishimura said. Dogs are people, too! Mystic Aquarium has reported an increase in seal sightings along the Connecticut shoreline. And the Waterford-East Lyme Animal Control reminded residents to leave seals alone after a resting seal attracted peoples attention at a southeastern Connecticut beach last week. There have been similar reports from Stratford and Westport, including one where people tried to take selfies with seals. People may notice seals resting on our beaches. This is perfectly normal, the animal control unit posted on Facebook. If there are visible injuries, we can contact the experts at the Mystic Marine Life Aquarium who can respond to evaluate it. Please do not approach the seal. Federal law requires you stay 150 feet away. Do not try to touch or handle the seal, do not let your dog approach it, do not gather around it to take selfies, please just leave it alone so it can rest and return to the water. It says if you encounter a seal that appears to need help, call Mystic Aquariums 24-hour hotline at 860-572-5955, Ext. 107; do not touch the animal; give it plenty of space crowding may cause it to stress out or act aggressively; keep pets away from the animal; Do not pour water on the animal, feed it or help them in any way, be observant and note if the animal has any physical signs of injury or distress, such as eating sand. As for the seal that was resting on the East Lyme beach, animal control reported: This seal has returned to the water and is off doing seal things. Hutchinson, MN (55350) Today Partly cloudy this evening, then becoming cloudy after midnight. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 72F. Winds SSW at 10 to 15 mph.. Tonight Partly cloudy this evening, then becoming cloudy after midnight. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 72F. Winds SSW at 10 to 15 mph. Where in the World is The Crescent-News? Thailand We are analyzing the site. Please wait a few seconds.. Cllr Rupert Barnes is a councillor on Three Rivers District Council and Vice-Chairman of the Association of British Counties. Certain words cause an immediate reaction in the hearer, triggering a torrent of thoughts, reactions and feelings, all bundled up in that one word. Let me try these on you: Yorkshire, Cornwall, Norfolk, Argyll. Your reactions to each name are not drawn from a sudden analysis of current official reports but come from generations of familiarity with the conception of those places this is the essence of their heritage. It is a buzzword of our generation, heritage, but it is real, and here I like to make a distinction: history is what happened in the past, but heritage is that which has come down to us today from the past. The value of a countys name is clear: a seaside B&B may look like any other, but with the name Cornwall attached and all the collective understanding is engaged, maybe holiday beaches, or bleak moorland, tin-mining, Poldark, or pasties, it is all contained in that magic name. Kent may remind you of its oast houses and cathedrals; Fermanagh of its lakes and skies; Westmorland of soaring fells and Wordsworths poetry; Norfolk of broads, windmills and Norwich. No Yorkshireman would allow me to characterise his county in a single sentence (just as I should not have tried to characterise the others so briefly). Reactions are individual: Sussex makes me think of long walks over the chalk Downs, while others may think of the seaside, and Caithness sings of its cliffs on the edge of the world, or the sadness of the roofless, abandoned croft houses. Take your pick any of our ninety-two shires. In each case its name is more evocative than any brand name. These common understandings have grown over centuries, in a way that only ancient places can: you would not expect romantic notions to blossom over Whitehall inventions such as Neath Port Talbot or indeed Three Rivers. They have attached to historic counties because they are ancient: the shires of England all have their names recorded for a thousand years and more (apart from a youngster, Lancashire at just 800 years). The Domesday Book shows their borders unchanged into modernity. That is an impressive framework on which our collective imagination has been able to settle. Over the summer, I set out to walk the border of Hertfordshire, to discover more of my own home county, and 180 miles later I was back where I started. Over the whole walk I had not a single disappointing day. It is an exercise I can recommend to anyone as every county has its own variety of characteristics to be sampled and enjoyed. This year I may do Buckinghamshire. The most perfectly Hertfordshire place I found myself on my walk was on Totteridge Common, which is administratively within the London Borough of Barnet. It is a lesson that the conveniences of bureaucracy do not define the character of a place. We know that already though: a Somerset of cider and cheese is fine enough, but it is also the county of Regency Bath, which is outside what Whitehall thinks is encompassed in the label. It should be needless to say it, but the identity of a place is not defined by which bureaucratic entity empties the bins there. Those entities are only relevant because they have the cash to promote their own corporate branding, and in doing so they steal from the real places beneath. They should not forget: the ancient counties underlie all. They are not dependent on bureaucracies for their existence and have not been superseded by administrative areas which might borrow their names. Not a single line in the Local Government Acts abolishes any ancient county as a geographical area, and nothing transfers from them the birthright of fifty generations. We are left with an unnecessary confusion then, that the word county describes two wholly different things an administrative area and a historic, geographical area. The heritage, which is of such value, attaches to the county with the history, and nowhere with a claim to that inheritance is to be excluded because it lies the wrong side of a line drawn on a map in Whitehall. Cities too have their own characters. When you think of Coventry your mind may go to many things which make the townsfolk proud; the medival cloth trade, the tragic cathedral or women riding horses naked through the street (they dont do it these days believe me; Ive looked). As important is that it is the city in the heart of Warwickshire, from which county it drew its prosperity. Its medival tradition of wandering players reached as far as Stratford-upon-Avon, whose bard set the beginning of the Wars of the Roses at the lists in Coventry, in his home county, so the city has an equal right to the heritage of the shire which is the birthplace of the British imagination. However leaving the city you are welcomed to Shakespeares county, as if Coventry were shunned, expelled from that which is its own by right. Durhams council is admirably keen on its heritage, welcoming visitors to the Land of the Prince Bishops, but they exclude from this Stockton, Darlington, Jarrow, Gateshead; all towns with just as much a claim to this heritage and each with its story to tell. What authority does one new-minted council have to steal a thousand years of history from a town, just because that shard of officialdom has borrowed the countys name? Recently Jake Berry, the Minister for the Northern Powerhouse and Local Growth, announced that something should be done about this, and that local authorities should be encouraged to celebrate their historic counties. He has proposed that they should fly their counties flags. These flags are a colourful new tradition, and can be encouraged without cost. Do not let it stop there though: the rich seam of each countys unique heritage is there to be opened up. Darlington will celebrate its own history, but also let it assert that it is part of the Land of the Prince Bishops, and Coventry and Birmingham that they are equal parts of Shakespeares County. Huntingdonshire is not the embarrassing pregnant bulge on the edge of Cambridgeshire but is a unique, exquisite shire. This should be written into every cultural plan: remember where we are; remember what has come down to us. Those of us who are councillors should have the humility to recognise that local government is just a functional convenience, and when the meeting is over and the office closes, the ancient land beneath us is all that matters, bearing all those ideas and overlapping elements of local identity that shape us. The common picture of place does not derive from the shifting lines of administrative geography but from the shires bearing the inheritance of ages. Jennifer Bailey/Commercial-NewsHousing Authority of the City of Danville Executive Director Jaclyn Vinson stands at a parking lot in the first block of North Hazel Street downtown, south of the mass transit transportation center, where a two-story building with 22 mixed-income units would be constructed under an affordable housing proposal. Vinson, getting pushback from city officials and residents about certain sites and the proposed units, is leaning toward not submitting a full tax credit application until next year to get more support for the project and sites. Robert Lee Alexander passed away in Florissant, Missouri on June 11, 2021, at the age of 90. He was a loving and devoted husband of 64 years to Jacqueline Lee (Blaine) Alexander, who preceded him in death in 2018, and a devoted and loving father to Cindy Sander, and Robert Alexander Jr., and Mexico's former president shared some choice words for President Donald Trump, describing the American leader as a "machine" with "no compassion" while at the World Government Summit in Dubai on Sunday. "He doesn't seem to be a human being, he just looks like a machine, he doesn't have any compassion," Vicente Fox told CNBC's Hadley Gamble. The former leader blasted Trump's border wall plans and focused on the divide within the U.S., adding that Trump essentially has a "f--- you" approach to the rest of the world. The White House did not immediately respond to a CNBC request for comment. Former Mexican president Vincente Fox Mark Ralston | AFP | Getty Images "That is the big big problem of today, in the U.S., the divide. And when the leader is calling aggressive means for people, when the leader is not uniting, then you have this divide," Fox said. "We don't need walls, we need bridges of understanding, bridges of sharing; that is exactly what must be done in the very immediate future." Otherwise, Fox warned, we will be left with "nationalism, or (a) nation state that Trump is claiming, or walls to divide, or getting apart from the world and saying only America is great, and the rest, f--- you." Fox, who served as Mexico's 55th president from 2000 to 2006, has long made headlines for his vocal and often profanity-laden criticisms of the American president. His ire stems from Trump's campaign promise to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, which he initially promised that Mexico would pay for without Mexico's consent. "We are not paying for that f----n' wall," he told CNBC in April of last year. "That's for sure. And why should we?" With no success in getting Mexico to pay for the wall, which is expected to cost in the tens of billions, Trump has since shifted his plan to one that requires U.S. government funding for its construction. He argues the infrastructure is necessary for America's national security and critical in combating drug flows into the country. The battle over wall funding, which congressional Democrats oppose, led to the longest government shutdown in the nation's history. France's finance minister expressed his disappointment at a recent EU decision to block a major rail merger, calling for competition rules to be changed to enable European firms to become stronger on the global stage. "Let's have a look at reality we are facing a huge challenge with the rise of the Chinese industry. What do we do shall we divide the European forces, or try to merge the European forces from the industrial point of view?" Bruno Le Maire told CNBC's Hadley Gamble at the World Government Summit in Dubai on Sunday. His comments come after the European Union blocked a rail deal between Alstom and Siemens on Wednesday, citing competition concerns. The merger proposal between the French and the German companies planned to create a European rail champion with revenues of about 15 billion euros ($17 billion). The merger proposal referred only to the companies' transport services and would have combined them into one new firm, solely controlled by Siemens. Speaking on a panel at the same event, Siemens CEO Joe Kaeser said Monday that the decision was based on out-of-date legislation. "If it had been decided in the UAE I assure you it would have been different," he told CNBC after praising what he described as the Gulf country's pragmatic and efficient approach to business. "We must not confuse antitrust laws with industrial policies, we need to respect that. But if the future of the world's mobility is being determined with law that is 30 years old, that may have to be revisited for the future, not for the past." The EU's competition authority specified that the proposed merger would have created an "undisputed" market leader in several mainline signaling markets, as well as reducing the number of suppliers by removing one of the two largest manufacturers of very high-speed rolling stock. Both the German and French governments had supported the merger, believing the deal would've been a good counter to the economic rise of China. "I think it was a mistake from the EU commission to refuse that merger between Alstom and Siemens," Le Maire added. Google's top policy chief has called for "common rules of the road" globally when it comes to the regulation of technology, amid ongoing debate around the world on how to create legislation for the internet economy. Karan Bhatia, vice president of global public policy and government relations at Google, said that while a one size fits all approach to regulation would not work, he would welcome some "convergence" of regulation globally. "Some coordination on this, some level of collaboration, I think is going to be absolutely critical. We are very supportive of international efforts on multiple fronts to sort of create that level of dialogue and ideally common rules of the road," Bhatia said during a CNBC-hosted panel at the World Government Summit in Dubai on Sunday. "I think it would be extremely helpful if there was some convergence," he said. Governments around the world are trying to figure out how to regulate technology from data and privacy to taxation. But there is a fragmented approach. The biggest piece of legislation has been the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) which governs all companies operating in the 28 European Union member states. But other countries have gone their own way. In the U.S. for example, the state of California wants to introduce its own privacy laws in the absence of any federal regulation. China has its own entirely separate rules particularly around censorship of content. There's a growing consensus toward regulation from policymakers in part because of the backlash against huge technology companies that many view has having grown largely unchecked in the past few years. One of the biggest episodes that raised awareness about data privacy was the Facebook and Cambridge Analytica scandal in which millions of profiles on the social network were harvested for data. Major technology executives have appeared in front of lawmakers in the past few months to talk about their data collection practices including Google CEO Sundar Pichai. Celebrate the Class of 2020 Submit a profile of your favorite graduate to have them featured in our Virtual Graduation 2020 special section. Tout their accomplishments, share their photos, and wish them well! Submit profile ORT is entering its 31st year of selling its 8-ounce jars of kosher honey for its Honey From the Heart fundraiser. Proceeds will support the 700 students of Kfar Silver Youth Village in Israel, educating Israeli children living near the border with Gaza. The fundraiser is also helping kinder MANCHESTER, N.H. While Sen. Sherrod Brown was addressing the New Hampshire Young Democrats on Saturday evening, another Ohio politician and potential presidential primary foe had his face adorning every table. Youngstown-area Democratic Rep. Tim Ryans smiling face greeted the crowd of 350 who showed up to hear Browns speech, part of his visit to the early-voting states in the presidential primary. Ryan, like Brown, has not declared he is running for president yet, but has openly expressed interest in doing so. How did that happen? Was it some kind of flex by Ryan against Brown? Or do Ohio politicians just really love the Granite State? According to Ryan spokesman Michael Zetts, it was purely coincidental. They reached out to us a few weeks ago to help sponsor the event and Rep. Ryan was happy to make a donation and help out, Zetts said in an email. We werent aware that Sherrod was going to be there. New Hampshire Young Democrats President Lucas Meyer confirmed that Ryan purchased the table ad through a standard $1,000 donation. Anyone was welcome to donate, Meyer said. The congressman has a history of helping the group, Meyer said. Hes helped us out, Meyer said. Two summers ago he headlined our annual summer barbecue. Asked if he saw the humor in a congressman whos openly expressed interest in running for president taking out a full-size table ad during an event where a senator from the same state who has also openly expressed interest in running for president was giving the keynote address, Meyer said he did not. Humor in it? No, he said. Were grateful to have support for a grassroots organization. A spokeswoman for Brown declined to comment. BERLIN, LACONIA, CONCORD and MANCHESTER, N.H. -- After a full day blanketing the state of New Hampshire, it appears a presidential run from Sen. Sherrod Brown is gaining momentum with voters. Brown, an Ohio Democrat, was greeted at several stops Saturday in the Granite State by his largest crowds to date. The senator is currently on a listening tour of the early-primary states to test his message as he mulls whether to jump in the 2020 Democratic primary to challenge Republican President Donald Trump. The day started with an early-morning roundtable in Berlin where about 25 people showed up. Another roundtable followed just past noon in Laconia, where another 50 people came out. By Browns 3 p.m. stop at Gibsons Bookstore in Concord, a throng of more than 150 people packed the place for a meet and greet with the senator. He capped the night off by giving the keynote address during the New Hampshire Young Democrats annual fundraiser to an audience of about 350. It was arguably the most successful quasi-campaign day for Brown yet and the latest sign he could be competitive in a growing field of primary candidates, even those with a head start. The group in Concord chose to come see Brown instead of Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who held an event less than 40 miles away in Dover only hours after officially declaring her candidacy for president. Unlike many of his other events where voters have come out of sheer curiosity, New Hampshirites on Saturday were generally more familiar with Brown, some through a recent spike in media coverage, but some having followed him for years. Several who spoke with cleveland.com said they were already devoted to Brown should he decide to run. Hes kind of flown under the radar as this perfect senator, said Rob Sailer, a 22-year-old student at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Sailer was such a fan, hed been perfecting his impression of Browns gravelly voice, which he showed off to journalist Connie Schultz, Browns wife and co-campaigner on the early-state trip. The fervor expressed by some in the crowd for Brown indicates he may have a ready-made activist base in the Northeast composed of people like Adam Weldari, 31, and Amanda Smith, 48, both from more than an hour away in Malden, Massachusetts. Weldari described himself as a Brown superfan. Smith said she rescheduled a flight so she could come see Brown. While neither of them are New Hampshire voters, Democrats from nearby states often volunteer during election season. I still think to this day if Hillary (Clinton) had picked him (as a running mate in 2016), theyd be president and vice president right now. I think hes amazing, Weldari said. He added the only candidate who might be able to pry him away from Brown is former Vice President Joe Biden whom Brown is often compared to though Weldari still preferred Brown. Ned Helms, former chair of the New Hampshire Democratic Party and a state campaign co-chair during Democratic President Barack Obamas successful 2008 and 2012 runs, was one of those in the Concord crowd and watched Brown with a smile. Helms, a 73-year-old retiree who first met Brown in 2008, said Browns message wouldnt suffer from regional appeal. He said Brown could be a successful candidate in the Northeast with his blunt style and emphasis on working-class issues. I have a relatively small tier of top tier people and hes clearly in it, Helms said. I think were going to need somebody whos effective, both personally and professionally and politically. Craig Thompson, a 49-year-old pork, hay and maple syrup farmer and a Democratic state representative from Harrisville, agreed. Thompson said he won a typically Republican district in 2018 with a similar campaign to Browns, focused on everyday economic issues like wages and health care. These are things that need to be addressed, he said. It doesnt mean climate change isnt important. I think it is. But we also have to be thinking about the things that are affecting voters lives today and not just in the next 20-to-40 years. Brown was far from universally known by any of the Saturday crowds, but the packed field of candidates, and Democrats willingness to support anyone who can beat Trump, may play to Browns favor should he decide to run. Like with Jennifer Still, a 55-year-old cybersecurity recruiter from Bedford. Still said she only became politically active after Trump won in 2016. She voted for Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders in the Democratic primary that year before supporting former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in the general election. This year, she wants to hear from everybody, regardless of how well known they were. When I hear about people like Sherrod Brown, hes really got a reputation of not being extremely liberal, Still said. Hes more of a moderate Democrat, and I think that is what we need. The parties keep putting up somebody on the extreme. You can see that doesnt really work so well." Brown started the day by making his pitches in old timber mill communities. In Berlin, a once thriving North Country town about 60 miles from the Canadian border, voters like Darlene Mercauto, a 57-year-old nursing center clerk from nearby Gorham, were happy to hear from a presidential candidate at all. Just for him to come up here, thats really important, Mercauto said. Because thats what people want to see. Brown also sampled his message in front of a new audience of young voters with his address to the New Hampshire Young Democrats, a political force in the state. One of the most tired tropes in the media today has to be that millennials dont work as hard as past generations, Brown, 66, said. Youve been blamed for killing everything from the marriage to mayonnaise. But if you cant afford a starter home, and you need to drive Uber at night just to make a rent, thats not a problem with your generation. Its a problem with our economy. The next leg of Browns trip comes in two weeks when he visits Nevada, the first state in the West to vote. Its also a chance to showcase his campaign to the nearby voters of California, the largest state in the nation that for the first time votes on Super Tuesday, a collection of primaries following the first-four contests. CLEVELAND, Ohio Politicians and pundits have offered many assertions about whats happening on the Southwest border. Some are true and some are false, and many are based on numbers taken out of context. To understand the big picture, it helps to take a look at the numbers, and how theyve changed over time. More of The Plain Dealers Special Report from the border, Desperation Knows No Boundary: cleveland.com/border-wall The tone of the national conversation on immigration might leave the impression America is facing an unprecedented wave of illegal immigration. Numbers from the Border Patrol, however, show that the number of undocumented immigrants apprehended by American officials since 2010 is at its lowest point since the 1970s. This chart shows immigration apprehensions defined by the Border Patrols webpage as physical control or temporary detainment that may or may not lead to an official arrest going back to the 1920s, when Congress first passed numeric quotas limiting immigration from Europe. (Those quotas didnt initially restrict immigration from the Americas, so workers from Central and South America could still come in unimpeded at the time.) One kind of immigration has increased, however. While past generations of Latin American would-be immigrants typically have been men crossing alone in search of work, recent months have shown a spike in the number of people trying to get in as a family. This is part of the rise of the caravan phenomenon, where families travel together as a large group so they can seek safety in numbers. Department of Homeland Security officials said in a press phone call recently that these families are placing a strain on an immigration processing system that was not designed to deal with women and children. Where these immigrants are coming from has also changed. Historically, most of the people crossing into Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California came from Mexico. In recent months, the vast majority of the families trying to cross the Southwest border come from a group of countries called The Northern Triangle, which consists of Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. All three of these countries suffer from epidemics of organized crime, resulting in some of the highest homicide rates in the world. Gangs like MS-13 which started in California prisons are known to extort non-gang members, and to give young men the choice of joining the gang or being killed. Some now trying to enter the U.S. say they fear gangs will kill them if they return. Many travel to the U.S.-Mexico border hoping to gain asylum in the U.S. However, after years of contradictory court rulings by immigration judges, the Justice Department issued a policy last year declaring that gang violence, unlike state violence, does not qualify applicants for protected status in the U.S. While immigration judges approved 44 percent of all asylum applications in 2018, only 19 percent of applicants from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador won their cases. In keeping with international law, the U.S. cant summarily deport people if officials think they have a credible fear of persecution or torture in their home country. Their asylum case has to be processed before they can be removed from the U.S., which can take months, and sometimes years. In the past, asylum seekers often were given a court date and allowed to live independently in the U.S. until their case was decided. President Donald Trumps administration has derided this policy as incentivizing spurious asylum claims. His administration instituted a zero tolerance policy for people trying to cross the border, whether they asked for asylum or not, and chose to detain them until their cases were decided or they agreed to leave on their own. After the forced separation of children from their guardians sparked widespread outrage, the administration resumed releasing families while their cases were pending. Last month, however, the administration launched a new policy of sending some asylum seekers to Mexico to await their court dates. So far, only a handful of people have been sent to wait in Mexico, but Department of Homeland Security officials said they plan to expand the program to include families soon. Immigrants can ask for asylum either at a legal point of entry when theyre trying to enter the U.S., or when theyre apprehended after crossing the border illegally. Department of Justice data suggests most of the asylum-seekers from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador cross the border illegally and then ask for asylum. That puts them at risk of dying while they try to cross the desert or the Rio Grande. Death from exposure or thirst is common along the Arizona border, though many bodies found by American officials are merely skeletons, and no cause of death can be determined. What else is coming over the border? Some politicians have talked about drug smuggling, a real problem on the Southwest border. By weight, marijuana makes up the overwhelming majority of drug traffic from Mexico. Since 2012, when Washington and Colorado became the first states to legalize recreational marijuana, the amount of pot seized by customs and border patrol officials has dropped by about three-quarters. Deadlier drugs like methamphetamine and fentanyl are moved in smaller quantities, but theyre on the rise. While American pharmaceutical companies started the opioid crisis, as state governments cracked down on opioid prescriptions, cartels stepped into the gap by smuggling Mexican-grown heroin. Most fentanyl an even stronger opioid that sent the overdose death rate soaring from 2013 to 2017 is manufactured overseas and shipped to Americans through the mail, but some passes through Mexico en route. Most of the fentanyl intercepted on the Southwest border is not carried through the desert. It is smuggled through legal points of entry. The same is true for cocaine, methamphetamine and heroin. Marijuana is the only illegal drug more likely to be carried over the border between official entry points than smuggled through customs. To make the case for stricter immigration enforcement, some politicians have seized on high-profile crimes committed by undocumented immigrants, like the murder of Mollie Tibbets, a University of Iowa student killed in summer 2018 while she was out for a jog. A recent study by conservative think tank The Cato Institute found that native-born Americans are more likely than either legal or undocumented immigrants to be arrested or convicted for any kind of crime, including sexual assault and homicide. CLEVELAND, Ohio A 26-year-old man was killed early Sunday when the vehicle he was traveling in struck another, then careened into a utility pole on the citys West Side. The crash happened about 3 a.m. near the intersection of West 117th Street and Governor Avenue, Cleveland police spokeswoman Sgt. Jennifer Ciaccia said. A 2014 Hyundai was speeding north on West 117th Street without its headlights turned on when it struck a 2009 Chevrolet that was turning into a driveway, Ciaccia said. The Hyundai then drove off the road and hit a utility pole. The 26-year-old man was pronounced dead at the crash scene, Ciaccia said. The Hyundais driver and other passengers were treated for non-life-threatening injuries. The passenger killed in the crash has not yet been publicly identified by the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiners Office. His name will be released once his family is notified. If youd like to comment on this post, please visit the cleveland.com crime and courts comments section. Stay up to date on COVID-19 Get Breaking News Sign up now to get our FREE breaking news coverage delivered right to your inbox. You will receive 5-day a week delivery of the Citizen Tribune newspaper to your home or business, plus full, ad-free access to CitizenTribune.com as well as full access to the Electronic Edition of the newspaper. ONLY $13.99 per month for the first 3 months! Only $16.00 per month after promotional period. Or ONLY $169.99 for a full year Only $198.95 per year after promotional period. Reporters Robert Downen and John Tedesco recently interviewed two officials of the Southern Baptist Convention about the findings of an investigation into sexual abuse. August "Augie" Boto, general counsel and interim president of the SBC's executive committee, and Roger "Sing" Oldham, vice president for communications and relations, answered questions for 90 minutes. Below are excerpts from the conversation. *** Q: Since the SBC does not keep stats, we went out and tried to quantify this problem. We found roughly 200 SBC ministers and volunteers and youth pastors who had been criminally convicted. We're going to be posting those records online in a searchable database in order for people to use it as a resource ... Boto: Good. Q: What's that? Boto: Good. Q: I guess I have to ask ... that's not quite the response I expected. Why do you think that's good? Boto: Because your posting of it is going to heighten awareness. It's going to harden the targets. I told you at the outset of this phone call that my perception of your doing a report is probably more positive than you would suspect. ... I think sometimes people presuppose that our initial reaction to a report of Southern Baptist failure anywhere is embarrassment. I can assure you that is not my initial reaction. My initial reaction is anger. Oldham: But not at you. Boto: No, not at you. My initial reaction is anger that it happened. Just within the last few months I was in a car that was broken into and my briefcase was stolen. My initial reaction was not embarrassment that I didn't watch the car close enough or that I left the briefcase on the seat. That was not my initial reaction. My initial reaction was anger that the predator did what he did. Taking advantage of the vulnerable is what criminals do. And when that happens, our job is to voice it. Not to hide it. What I'm saying is, that's why I appreciate your compilation and you're lifting it up again anew and afresh. Why? Because not only Baptist churches but all churches are considered by sexual predators to be soft targets. There are reasons for that. We can discuss them. And they may be softer than some other targets. But we harden those targets by making people aware of the malevolence that exists. So you understand my reaction now? (ABUSE OF FAITH: Southern Baptist sexual abuse spreads as leaders resist reforms) Q: Sure ... The team we had developing this, it took us some time. We're only a small team. Why could the Southern Baptist Convention not have a similar thing doesn't even have to be public (that) churches could consult when hiring? Boto: Look at our sexual abuse prevention resource page. We do have that thing. (The public sex offender) registry is listed right there. How does that differ from what you're compiling? Q: But this is focused on Baptists, though. Boto: Why would you do that when predators leave one church construct and go to another field that is more productive? We had independent Baptist pastors moving into the Southern Baptist realm. Why would I limit it to Baptists? I want my fellow churches to be as aware as possible. Why would I ever limit a list to Baptists? Q: ... But you're linking to a federal (sex offender registry). It's a different thing though, isn't it? Boto: No. Why is it deficient? You tell me. Q: Because people can get taken off of a sex offender registry. People can negotiate pleas. ... Boto: John and Rob, I think you brought up a good point. But let me say this. The idea of another registry ours or created by another nonprofit outside the Southern Baptist Convention that is an idea that I can support. Even if it were to include coverage of people who are reported to be or suspected to be sexual predators. I can support the idea. Q: Pastor (Wade) Burleson ... has had a lot of time to think about how this thing would work. He said that he would like to see ... what you just said. An independent nonprofit (would) handle this. Boto: So would I. I agree with Pastor Burleson on that point. But I don't think it's going to happen. And the reason I don't is because I don't think a database so constructed is viable. Q: Can you elaborate? Are you referring to some of the issues raised in the 2008 executive committee report? Boto: Yes. Yes. Now, you can indict me for that belief, but my belief does not control Southern Baptists. Southern Baptist churches are of their own opinion about these things. ... (EXPLAINER: What is the Southern Baptist Convention?) Q: I mentioned to you the roughly 200 convictions we found. ... Beyond the convictions, we're also including things like arrests, cases where a pastor confessed or resigned after an allegation was made, successfully sued. Since '98, we're looking at roughly 400 cases of pastors accused of sexual misconduct. Ministers. Church employees. Volunteers. Oldham: One instance is one too many. Four hundred is 400 too many. Q: Does that number surprise you? What's your reaction to that? Boto: Sorrow. It would be sorrow if it were 200 or 600. Sorrow. What we're talking about is criminal. The fact that criminal activity occurs in a church context is always the basis of grief. But it's going to happen. And that statement does not mean that we must be resigned to it. Let's be mature. Crime is crime and needs to be dealt with like crime. Because that's what it is. And so, reports to law enforcement should be immediate. Can I be vulnerable with you just for a second? Believers of all kinds sometimes lead themselves to the conclusion that mercy should preempt justice. The Bible says that those two things are not mutually exclusive. They co-exist in the very character of God. I'm afraid sometimes people opt for mercy to the exclusion of justice, when in fact justice is corrective. Justice is God's technique for dealing with sin. So I'm all for mercy. But it should not be precluded by justice. In fact, it should not precede justice. Q: Some readers might wonder if the SBC cannot do more to try to prevent this. What would your response be? Boto: I understand that. And let me say this. How pretentious it would be of me or any Baptist to say, we're perfect, we can't do any better, we're doing the most we can do. I just wrote an article that I was motivated to write for our news journal in the last edition because I strongly suspected that we aren't doing all we can do. Especially with regard to vetting potential employees. When I talk about background checks, I'm not talking about criminal history checks. As you and John have both voiced, a criminal history check is limited. A background check should be much broader. It should not limit inquiry to only those references listed on a curriculum vitae. It should go around those references. Q: Look for gaps? Boto: Oh my word, yes. It should look for spotty explanations. It should look for all sorts of things because there's a vulnerability in any gathering of folks who are by inclination trusting. Guys, you are not my opponent. You are not the opponent of the Southern Baptist Convention in your reporting. You're helping us. I'm all for shining the light of day upon crime. *** Tell us your story Do you have information about sexual misconduct in Southern Baptist churches? Help us investigate by telling us your story. Fill out our confidential questionnaire here. Support our journalism Help our journalists uncover the big stories. Subscribe today. Leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention have declined for more than a decade to create a list of sexual predators from affiliated churches. But the Houston Chronicle and San Antonio Express-News assembled one of our own. The newspapers spent nearly a year building a database of church leaders and volunteers who pleaded guilty or were convicted of sex crimes in the past 20 years. Most are now in prison or are registered sex offenders. More are from Texas than from any other state. Read the first part of our exclusive investigation, ABUSE OF FAITH, on HoustonChronicle.com: Southern Baptist sexual abuse spreads as leaders reject reforms The cases tracked by the newspapers affected more than 700 victims over 20 years. Their stories are wrenching. Victims of sexual abuse had pleaded for the SBC to act, saying it was allowing predators to move from church to church. But the SBC in 2008 rejected all proposals to produce such a registry, saying the organization could not tell its 47,000 member churches whom to hire or ordain. About 220 church leaders were convicted. They were pastors. Ministers. Youth pastors. Sunday school and Christian schoolteachers. Deacons. Church program volunteers. Scores of others were credibly accused or civilly sued. Some remain in the pulpit; others returned to positions in churches even after serving time. The SBC has ended its affiliation with four churches in the past 10 years for affirming or endorsing homosexual behavior. The SBC governing documents ban gay or female pastors. They do not outlaw convicted sex offenders from working in churches. One victim of sexual abuse said he can't forgive leaders who offered prayers but took no action. "That is the greatest tragedy of all," he said. "So many people's faith is murdered. I mean, their faith is slaughtered by these predators." *** Abuse of Faith Read Part 1: Southern Baptist sexual abuse spreads as leaders resist reforms Search the database: We compiled 20 years of convictions Help us investigate: Do you have information about sexual misconduct in Southern Baptist churches? Fill out our confidential questionnaire here. Support our journalism: Help our journalists uncover the big stories. Subscribe today. Richwood, TX (77531) Today Sun and clouds mixed. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. High 92F. Winds SSE at 10 to 15 mph.. Tonight A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Some clouds. Low near 80F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph. Former U.S. Senate candidate Beto ORourke confirmed that he will be part of a community rally in El Paso on Monday that is aimed at countering President Donald Trumps visit to the city. Trump is scheduled to lead a rally at 7 p.m. at the El Paso Coliseum to promote his call for a border wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. At the same time, ORourke, a Democrat who is considered a potential 2020 presidential contender, is expected to take the stage just three miles away at what is being called a celebration of El Paso or the March for Truth. Trumps visit to the states most western major city comes just days after his State of the Union address when he specifically pointed to El Paso as evidence that walls work. The border city of El Paso, Texas, used to have extremely high rates of violent crime one of the highest in the country, and considered one of our nations most dangerous cities. Now, immediately upon its building, with a powerful barrier in place, El Paso is one of the safest cities in our country, Trump said. That statement brought immediate reaction from many El Pasoans who objected, noting FBI crime statistics show violent crime in the city has dropped significantly since the 1990s, well before the wall was built. Congresswoman Veronica Escobar, a native of the border city and a former El Paso county judge, sent Trump a letter asking for an apology. In a statement to the media put out by ORourkes former campaign spokesman announcing his participation, it says the event ORourke will be part of will show the reality of the border city: a vibrant, safe, binational community that proudly celebrates its culture, history, diversity and status as a city of immigrants. ORourke did not organize the event. Dozens of community groups and election officials in and around El Paso are part of the event that will start with a march about a mile away at 5 p.m. El Paso time. El Paso is in the Mountain Time Zone. Speculation has been growing that ORourke is poised to get into the race for the White House. During an interview Tuesday with Oprah Winfrey, ORourke said he would make a decision about whether he will run by the end of the month. Trumps rally in El Paso will take place five days before a Feb. 15 deadline to break an impasse with Democratic leaders in Congress over $5.7 billion for a border wall. It also comes as a caravan of about 1,800 Central American immigrants arrived at the Texas-Mexico border at Eagle Pass, hoping to enter the United States. In going to El Paso, Trump will be in a city where he had one of his worst showings in the 2016 election. Trump won just 26 percent of the vote in El Paso County. jeremy.wallace@chron.com In the latest Texas resurgence of a familiar infectious disease, seven cases of the mumps have been confirmed at a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility in Houston. City health officials said Saturday that there has been no spread of the disease in recent days and that theyre hopeful the outbreak has been contained. The individuals infected, all adults, were detained at the facility during the infectious period. Since these individuals were isolated inside the facility, we dont anticipate these cases posing a threat to the public, said Dr. David Persse, Houstons local health authority and medical director of the citys EMS program. This is nothing to be afraid of. Persse said the some people likely became infected while at the facility, which is located near George Bush Intercontinental Airport. He said the original source or sources who entered the country at the border likely were already infected when apprehended. Some have already recovered from their bouts with the disease, including one who had to be hospitalized. People who came into contact with them were quarantined. No employees were infected. Mumps is a highly contagious virus, most transmissible from a few days before the onset of symptoms until 10 days after. It typically starts with fever, headache, muscle aches, tiredness and loss of appetite, followed a few days later by swollen salivary glands. Most people recover without serious complication, though in rare cases, it can cause meningitis, hearing loss, some heart issues and miscarriage if contracted early in a pregnancy. The disease has been increasing in numbers in recent years. Nationally, there were more than 6,000 cases in both 2016 and 2017, compared to under 1,000 in most previous years. In Texas, there were 191, 470 and 198 cases in 2016, 2017 and 2018, respectively, compared to 25 or less in most previous years. Houston had two cases in Houston in 2017 but no others in the previous five years, Persse said. The mumps cases come just a few days after confirmation of five measles cases in the area three in Harris County, one in Montgomery County and one in Galveston County. Those cases were the latest in a number of clusters around the nation causing serious concern about a disease all but eradicated in the U.S. 20 years ago. Beginning in the 1960s, vaccination made mumps much less common, but there have continued to be some outbreaks. The virus is not as contagious or dangerous as the measles. The health department is working with the ICE facility on infection control methods and will conduct an on-site visit in coming days. Persse attributed mumps spread at the ICE detention facility to population density there. He said the transmission of viruses is always a significant concern in crowded spaces, such as emergency shelters for people displaced by hurricanes and floods. Mumps outbreaks involving dozens of patients shut down visitations at two Texas prisons in late 2017. ICE was nevertheless condemned by Pantsuit Republic, a liberal group, which noted mumps is preventable by vaccine. It stressed that such outbreaks are not new, citing 31 cases of measles at one of the federal agencys detention facility in Arizona two years ago. Mumps usually can be prevented with two doses of measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine. Children should receive the first dose at 12 to 15 months, and the second dose at 4 through 6 years of age. Two doses of the vaccine are 88 percent effective at preventing mumps, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Persse said the mumps outbreak at the ICE center transpired over a few weeks. He said health officials learned of the first case in early January. todd.ackerman@chron.com twitter.com/chronmed The father of a teen held at Fort Bend County Juvenile Detention Center says officials failed to protect his son from a volunteer who allegedly sexually assaulted the boy hundreds of times during one-on-one visits, including attacks captured on video by guards. Supervisors became aware of the situation between the mentor and the boy, then 17, after about a year. The staff cut off the visits after witnessing physical contact on video in May 2018, and Deborah Helen Sutter, 64, of Rosenberg, the volunteer mentor assigned to the boy, was arrested and charged with two counts of indecency with a child by sexual contact. Fort Bend County Sheriff Troy Nehls has called the case disturbing and disgusting, and labeled Sutter, who had passed a background check, as a predator who took advantage of a vulnerable child. Even in the wake of the arrest, however, Nehls did not take the boys needs into consideration, according to a civil rights lawsuit the father filed this week in Houston federal court. The lawsuit accuses multiple officials of neglecting their obligation to address the teens physical safety and medical and psychiatric needs. The father filed under the name John Doe, sued on behalf of his son, Frank Thomas, also a pseudonym. Both live in Harris County. The suit seeks damages from Sutter and eight county officials who it says violated the childs rights to equal protection and due process and showed deliberate indifference by failing to follow mandated reporting procedures. The officials should have intervened and provided support sooner, they argue. In addition, the teen spent many months in the countys care following Sutters arrest without obtaining any services related to sexual abuse, the lawsuit says. The assaults left the boy deeply traumatized and he has since been diagnosed with PTSD and severe depression, said the fathers lawyer, Taft Foley. The young man has been suicidal, Foley said, and wont come out of his room. Hes a broken child. He wont make eye contact, Foley said. When you speak to him, he rocks back and forth. The fact that the Fort Bend County Juvenile Detention Center treated a child within their custody with such blatant brutality and inhumanity is an outrage to contemporary society and violated contemporary standards of decency, Foley wrote in his pleading. The Fort Bend County Attorney's Office did not respond to a request for comment Saturday. They later declined, through their lawyer, on Monday to respond to particular details of the case. "The county and individual county defendants are assessing the suit and will file the appropriate motions before U.S. District Judge Sim Lake," said Justin C. Pfeiffer, who represents the defendants for the Fort Bend County Attorneys Office. Pfeiffer said, "The ongoing criminal prosecution of the criminal defendant makes it inappropriate to comment outside what will be filed in the federal district court." The boy was arrested for a nonviolent offense at age 14. His case was adjudicated and he was sent to the facility in March 2017, when he was 15. It was his second time being sent there. His working-class parents, who both juggled two jobs, decided to practice tough love and decided not to visit their son in juvenile detention, Foley said. Thomas was lonely and was set up with Sutter as his volunteer mentor. She visited him weekly to provide general support and friendship. Instead, the lawsuit says, she began grooming him. She met with him two times a week and routinely touched his genitals. She also encouraged him to touch her genitals and breasts, which he did on some occasions. The lawsuit says a conservative estimate is that the sexual abuse occurred 312 times. The father says Sutter threatened that if he told anyone about the intimate contact, she would tell authorities he had initiated it, adding something along the lines of, Who do you think theyre going to believe: me or you? The interactions were subject to video surveillance, but the facility did not retain video records prior to March 2018, according to a sworn statement by an officer. On May 16, the detention director, Kenny Johnson, was viewing live video footage of a visit between Sutter and Thomas and noticed they were sitting side by side rather than across from each other as mandated. He looked more closely and observed that Thomas was touching Sutters waist area. The staff reviewed several videos and observed Sutter reaching into Thomas pants and touching his exposed penis. Sutter admitted to the sex acts during a subsequent interview, according to a news release from the sheriffs office. The fathers lawyer said the boy was coerced into sex acts and has suffered mental anguish as a result. Victims of child molestation never heal, they just learn to cope, Foley said. The suit is seeking damages from Sutter for allegedly preying on Thomas, but also from Nehls, two sergeants, a sheriffs deputy and a detective, the detention director, the Prison Rape Reform Act coordinator and a forensic interviewer, who all knew about the acts and failed to provide Thomas help, according to court documents. They stood idly by and let it happen, Foley said. They didnt supervise this animal. They threw this meat to a lion. gabrielle.banks@chron.com ST PETERSBURG The 2019 St. Petersburg Conference on World Affairs returns to USF St. Petersburg this week. The event features 30 panel discussions focused on critical world issues that take place over three days. Speakers include distinguished diplomats, military, media, and academic experts discussing critical international issues of the day. Admission is free and open to the public. This year's conference kicks off with a keynote address and jazz concert at the Palladium on Tuesday. Panel discussions cover a broad array of topics from foreign policy and immigration to the role of media in democracy and race relations. Seating is on a first come, first seated basis. Featured speakers include: Ed Marks Senior Foreign Service Officer Since retiring as a Senior Foreign Service Officer (Minister-Counselor) in 1995, Ambassador Marks has engaged in consulting, lecturing, and writing, primarily on terrorism, interagency coordination, United Nations affairs, and complex international emergencies. Ambassador Marks was recalled to active duty in 2002-5 to serve as the Department of State's advisor on terrorism to the United States Pacific Command. Angie McCourt vice president, transportatiom management office Angie McCourt is vice president, transformation management office, Americas. In this role she is responsible for leading the organization through a transformation initiative. She previously served as vice president, Cisco Solutions Group, at Tech Data since September 2010. In that role, she led the company's dedicated team of sales, marketing and technical professionals in support of all Cisco solutions available through Tech Data. Under her leadership, Tech Data was recognized and awarded by Cisco for best-in-class partner enablement, innovation, technology enablement and execution. Andrew Hano Hematologist/Medical Oncologist Dr. Hano is a hematologist/medical oncologist having practiced in Pinellas County, Florida for 32 years and retiring in 2015. He has served as an associate medical director with Hospice of the Florida Suncoast for 10 years and was on the board of the American Cancer Society, Pinellas chapter. He served on the staff of several local hospitals, including being Chief of Medicine and Chief of Staff at Largo Medical Center Hospital. He belongs to the Pinellas County Osteopathic Medical Society, Florida Osteopathic Medical Association, American Osteopathic Association, American College of Osteopathic Internists, the American Society of Clinical Oncology and, more recently, the American Association of Cannabis Medicine. Clint Elbow United Nations Association Tampa Bay Charter Pres. Clint Elbow is the President of the Tampa Bay Chapter of the United Nations Association of the United States of America and has been on its board since 2015. His motivations for becoming involved with the UNA-UNA Tampa Bay comes from his belief that the United States should be an active participant and leader in the United Nations and that this leadership can take place at the local level. He has an academic background in foreign language and literature, globalization, and human geography. His research interests have been focused on the processes of globalization which included a case study of how Tampa Bay stakeholders used air transport infrastructures in attempts to reposition Tampa Bay in the global economy. He has a professional background in Information Technology, a field in which he currently works in the Tampa Bay area. Jim Verhulst Editor of the Tampa Bay Times, writer Jim Verhulst edits the op-ed page at the Tampa Bay Times and writes editorials as a member of the editorial board, mostly about science, education, environment and civil rights. He was a 2016 Pulitzer finalist in public service for editorials based on Failure Factories, a series about St. Petersburg schools that were allowed to resegregate, become almost exclusively poor, and then were denied the resources to serve their challenged students. The series went on to win the local reporting Pulitzer for three of the Times metro reporters. He has contributed on occasion to PolitiFact, the fact-checking website owned by the Poynter Institute, which, in turn, owns the Times. Orlando "Moses" Acosta Lieutenant Colonel (USAF) (Ret.) Orlando "Moses Acosta is a retired career U.S. Air Force officer with 13 years serving at 4-star command headquarters: U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM). Click here for a full list of speakers and panelists. Click here for a schedule of events. A Houston Police Department officer was injured Saturday evening when he lost control of his vehicle and hit a barricade on the 610 West Loop. The officer was traveling northbound to assist an officer when another car changed lanes in front of him, causing him to swerve to avoid hitting the car, authorities said. The Bexar County District Attorney's Office has released graphic crime scene photos and videos depicting the aftermath of a road rage shootout last year involving an intoxicated off-duty police officer in the parking lot of a northwest San Antonio strip club. The material, which includes prosecution documents, was made public in a rare move by former District Attorney Nico LaHood, according to current DA officials. It provides new insight into the chaotic gun battle outside the Allstar's Gentleman's Club on May 29 that left 26-year-old Demontae Walker paralyzed and resulted in a 15-day suspension for San Antonio Police Officer Dezi Rios. According to a prosecution guide detailing the shooting and body worn camera footage of the crime scene and Walker's testimony, the incident began at about 9:30 p.m. when Rios sped past Walker on Interstate 10 onto the Callaghan Road exit. Rios was heading home from a cadet dinner at Ajuua Restaurant, where he estimated he had had about five mixed drinks. FIND OUT FIRST: Get Houston breaking news directly to your inbox Both men pulled into the Allstar's parking lot. Walker was taking his cousin, Destiny Rhodes, to the club so she could dance, and Rios told investigators he pulled over to call his wife. At some point, both men got out of their cars and got into a verbal altercation. Walker, a firearm enthusiast who often carried a pistol on him, told investigators he put his pistol in his pocket and went to check on Rios to see if he was okay. "It was just a coincidence that we went to the same parking lot," Walker later told a detective from his hospital room. "So, I'm guessing he thought like, I wanted to fight or something." "He looked amped," Walker said during the same interview, noting Rios used a racial slur while yelling at him and never identified himself as a police officer. Walker told investigators he remained calm during the confrontation. Rios later told investigators that Walker had been aggressive. "Hey, motherf----r, you know you almost killed me back there?" Walker said, according to Rios' statement to detectives. "Obviously, I f-----g didn't because you're still here," Rios said he retorted. "You're a f-----g dumbass for pulling over. Get the f--k out of here." RELATED: Former UTSA-area barber cleared of charges in shootout with off-duty officer outside S.A. strip club During the confrontation, Walker said he saw Rios reach for something near his waist so he shot him. "I go to the gun range every week. I could've shot him in the face," he told a detective. He didn't want to kill Rios, he said, so he aimed for his pelvis and below. He struck Rios multiple times, then ran to his car to call 911. Rios then crawled to his own car, grabbed his Glock pistol and shot at Walker through his vehicle. Walker was shot while on the phone with 911 operators and Rhodes was grazed in the head. Rhodes ran to the club to ask for help, and Rios stumbled to the front door, where he was detained by a security guard until authorities arrived. RELATED: Father left with questions after son accused of shooting off-duty police officer in San Antonio Officer Matthew Robles was one of the officers who responded to the scene. His body warn camera footage shows him running to Rios and helping paramedics treat him. "He shot me, man," Rios says repeatedly. "I shot him back. I had to." Paramedics took all three to University Hospital for treatment. Walker was later charged with two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, one charge relating to Rios's injuries, and one related to Rhodes, though he did not shoot her. A grand jury later dismissed the charges. "It's very hard for a prosecutor to take the position of someone other than a police officer," Walker's Houston-based defense attorney Charles Adams told MySA.com after his client was cleared. "I have a lot of admiration for the Bexar County District Attorney's Office. It really was very admirable, their dedication to the truth and justice." Rios was issued a 15-day suspension for the road rage dispute and being intoxicated "to the extent that he was rendered unfit to report for duty." Rios made a full recovery from his injuries, but Walker is now a paraplegic and is unable to support himself. NEWS WHEN YOU NEED IT: Text CHRON to 77453 to receive breaking news alerts by text message | Sign up for breaking news alerts delivered to your email here. For 20 years, Buckner International (the parent organization of Parkway Place, a faith-based senior living community in Houston) has donated nearly 4 million pairs of shoes to children in poverty-stricken countries. Now, residents and associates of Parkway Place are taking part in the annual Shoes for Orphan Souls shoe drive, and the community invites the public to participate. The community asks anyone in the Houston area to donate money or new childrens-sized shoes to the senior living community at 1321 Park Bayou Drive. Donations will benefit vulnerable children around the world by providing them with their own pair of shoes. Parkway Place will be collecting donations from Sunday, Feb. 10, until Thursday, Feb. 28. Chaplain John Bender is leading the project and set this years goal at 200 shoes, equal to about $5,000. This is my favorite project each year because it puts smiles on the faces of children around the world, said Bender. Ive led this project for three years now, and each year it gets bigger and bigger. With this year being number 20, we want to collect 200 shoes to benefit the most vulnerable people in the world. We will be accepting new shoes for both boys and girls in all sizes. So next time youre at the store pick up a pair of shoes that these children need. We also encourage people to think of older kids while they shop. I know that with the help of residents, associates and the city of Houston, we will meet our goal. We hold the shoe drive in February because we know people have love on their minds and in their hearts, so we need you to look in your heart and give the gift of love to these children by providing a new pair of shoes. About 30 percent of the shoes stay in the United States, which helps children in the Houston area, and the other 70 percent go to children in other countries. The new shoes will benefit the childrens daily lives in several ways, improving their health, allowing them to attend school and giving them hope. Since the shoe drives inception, children in 83 countries have benefited from this project. I am excited for Parkway Place to host another shoe drive to benefit children locally and around the world, said Susan Phelps, executive director. Through this drive, we can provide children with something many people tend to take for granted. This year, we are tracking the number of shoes we collect in a different way. A resident will be making wooden shoe boxes for each pair of shoes we collect, and we will have them on display at the community. Its heartwarming to see the dedication of the Parkway Place team and residents who make this project successful. With everyone pitching in, we can make a difference in the lives of so many children. The 76th Annual Katy Independent School District FFA Livestock Show begins Wednesday and continues through Saturday this week. Kicking events off on Wednesday will be a 10 a.m. Special Rodeo followed by the Rabbit Show at 5 p.m. Interspersed throughout the day will be weigh-ins of animals. The rest of the week includes: Thursday, Feb. 14: 8 a.m. Swine Show, 1 p.m. Steer Show, 2:30 p.m. Broiler Show, 7 p.m. Rodeo Performance. Friday, Feb. 15: 7:30 a.m. Goat Show, 10 a.m. Lamb Show, 1 p.m. Auction Sale Meeting, 7 p.m. Rodeo Performance. Saturday, Feb. 16: 7 a.m. Barn Sale, 9:30 a.m. Parade, 11 a.m. Buyers Luncheon, 1 p.m. Auction, 7 p.m. Rodeo Performance. This years parade grand marshal is Greg Murray. The parade will depart the west gate of Rhodes Stadium onto Katyland Drive and end at the LD Robinson Pavilion on FM 1463. GET READY: Katy ISD Livestock Show and Rodeo parade to start at Rhodes Stadium on Saturday Last years Livestock Show brought in about $599,000. The biggest big-ticket item was Rachel Wheelers Grand Champion Steer with a price of $20,000. There were 442 exhibitors at last years show. The 2019 Katy ISD FFA Livestock Show will be held at the new Agricultural Sciences Center, 5825 Katy Hockley Cut Off Road in Katy. Students will compete showing steers, goats, lambs, hogs, broilers, and rabbits. The public can support FFA students through auction and barn sale purchases along with add-on donations. Visit www.KatyISDLivestockShow.org for details. Next to the rodeo grounds parking area, Crabtree Amusements Inc. will set up carnival rides and shows. Pre-sale tickets are $20 while gate price is $25. The carnival will operate 5 p.m. to midnight Feb. 14-15 and noon to midnight on Feb. 16. Heart month February is associated with things of the heart. Houston Methodist West Hospital is offering free heart screenings to help people learn their 10-year risk for heart disease on Tuesday, Feb. 12. The event will be from 5-7 p.m. in the first floor atrium of the hospital at 18500 Katy Freeway. The screenings include cholesterol and blood pressure readings and a talk with an expert about the test results. Visit events.houstonmethodist.org/west-heart for required reservations. YEAR OF THE PIG: Lunar New Year culminates with traditional Lion Dance at Katy Asian Town City Council Katy City Council will hold a relatively light meeting beginning 6:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 11, at Katy City Hall, 901 Ave. C in Katy. The two big items on the agenda are resolutions relating to water projects. The biggest expenditure of more than $579,000 to KTI Construction associated with the 2019 waterline replacement project. The other resolution would be to award Aranda Industries $126,254 for Bartlett Road Storm Sewer and Sanford Street Storm Sewer Project. Go to https://tinyurl.com/y76dtolt to check the full agenda. Women Helping Women Women Helping Women 2 Network Katy is set to meet from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 13, at El Canton Firewood Pizza at 981 Mason Road. The guest speaker at the event is Janet Scudder. The group meets the second Wednesday of each month. For more information go to https://tinyurl.com/yakrgfub. Cosmic Air Park The grand opening of Cosmic Air Park continues Sunday, Feb. 10, with a full schedule of events. Anyone showing up between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. will get 50 percent off general admission. From 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. jumpers will get free fountain drinks and there will be 25 percent off parties. Cosmic Air Park is a trampoline park located at 1210 Fry Road. For more information, call 281-215-500 or visit https://cosmicairpark.com. rkent@hcnonline.com Katy-area residents favor rapid-transit centers according to social media accounts as they voice their opinion to Harris County transit officials about proposed long-range plans to address transportation needs. The Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County is nearing the end of a series of meetings held throughout the Houston area to collect comments on the MetroNext regional plan that identifies projects for the next 20 years. Metro could ask voters in the fall to authorize it to borrow $3 billion to help implement the $7.5 billion plan, which includes more miles of light rail, bus rapid transit and two-way HOV lanes. No decision has been made by our Board of Directors regarding a bond referendum. Right now were continuing the conversation with community members and other stakeholders about plans as the population booms, said Don Elder Jr., a member of the Metro board of directors and former Katy mayor. This is an investment in our future. Theres much more to lose by doing nothing and maintaining the status quo. I think people realize that, said Elder. I also want to be very clear that funding MetroNext will not result in an increase in taxes. Metro is funded by a one-cent sales tax, rider fares and federal funds. Were not proposing any kind of tax rate increase whatsoever, he said. "We are a financially prudent agency. In fact, we were just awarded a AAA rating from Standard & Poors. Its the agencys highest rating and it reflects Metros credit worthiness and fiscal policies. When transit officials met Feb. 4 at the Katy Independent School District Administration Building, Elder was part of a group of about 20 people at the meeting. Those who missed the meeting can visit https://tinyurl.com/yc9elwct to give opinions. Visit www.METRONext.org for more information. As the number of Katy-area residents continues to grow, so too does traffic and congestion, said Elder. Folks love the quality of life this community offers. Its a great place to live and raise a family, but on the same token you lose a lot of quality time with your family if youre stuck in gridlock for several hours a day. We put 22 lanes of highway down years ago in the hopes that it would relieve congestion, but those lanes filled up pretty quickly. We even have traffic jams in the city now. We need to start looking at transportation alternatives that move more people, more efficiently. Elder said he didnt get any opposition from residents at the meeting, but added that comments are still being collected and will be analyzed before Metro moves forward. From my experience, residents are excited about seeing new transit options like 2-way HOV lanes, more Park & Rides and several people have mentioned to me that theyd like to see a local Community Connector type of service. Growth is a big factor for us, said Elder. Near Hwy 99 and I-10 will be a new University of Houston and HCC campus. Those two campuses will bring in more than 8,000 students. The mall is enlarging. We also have the Katy Boardwalk which will feature a 305-room Hyatt Regency, convention center, lofts, restaurants and businesses. With all this growth were going to have more traffic and congestion and we need to look at other ways to get around, said Elder. The plan shows three projects for the Katy area: the Katy Freeway serving as a regional express corridor, new local service to roughly the Mason Road area and new or improved transit center/park & ride near Mason Road and near the City of Katy. However, Monica Russo, Metro media specialist, cautioned, This is a draft plan. Were still continuing to receive input. The plan can change. Im 100 percent certain it will change at some point. Bus rapid transit is an option, continued Russo. Buses have their own dedicated lanes. It makes the trip more reliable and much quicker. On Jan. 16, city and transit leaders broke ground on a new Aero Bus Rapid Transit system for Tulsa. Mayor G.T. Bynum said Tulsa is one of the first 12 cities in the country to adopt the bus rapid transit service. Visit https://tinyurl.com/y957plp5 for details. Two-way HOV lanes also can get people in and out of town at all hours of the day, Russo added. The last scheduled Metro public hearing is Feb. 13. Russo also talked of a possible telephone town hall in the future. Once the process of collecting information is completed, officials will have to compile the data and look at what comments were submitted from those meetings, said Russo. Theyll take a look at the data and go back and refine that current plan. Of course, it depends upon funding. karen.zurawski@chron.com The Miller Career & Technology Center is all about offering options to students in the Katy Independent School District, officials said during the training centers annual open house. This is a great opportunity were giving these kids, principal Russell Faldyn said as crowds of students and their parents wandered along the hallway for information about the programs offered at the campus adjacent to Jack Rhodes Memorial Stadium. For students not particularly interested in pursuing a university degree after they graduate high school, they can pursue training and even professional certification in career fields as varied as automotive technology, cosmetology and culinary arts. They can get a taste of industry before they get out into the real world, Faldyn said. This gives them an opportunity to learn a trade in something theyd be interested in. The Miller Career and Technology Center began in 1983 and has steadily grown over the year, both in the programs offered for their students and the campus. Faldyn said it is much more than merely a vocational training program. The open house was for students in sixth through 11th grades. The machinery we use here is close to the college level, said Jonathan Volk, 16, who takes classes there in the manufacturing engineering department. The machinery were using and the techniques used here are something Ill probably use my entire life. Rafaela Hartel, 16, said the subjects they are studying and applying include mechanical fabrication, mechanical drive systems and hydraulics. The classes are amazing. Theyre very hands on, said Hartel, who is considering a mechanical engineering major in college. I love building things with my hands and getting very involved with the projects instead of just sitting behind a computer. Hartel said she wishes more girls would sign on for programs like manufacturing engineering at the Miller Center. There are just a lot of dudes and not that many girls, she said. I hope that changes. We need more women in the field. Bill Novak was waiting with his daughter for the next briefing on the Miller Centers veterinary medicine program. Its a wonderful opportunity. Not only do you get your regular schooling but you can get some hands-on practical experience, Novak said. This is a wonderful opportunity because so many school districts dont offer this. The district takes some younger KISD students to field trips to the Miller Career & Technology Center so they can get some idea of the programs that will be available when they get older. Katy ISD parent Johanna Richman heard about the program when her eighth grade daughter came home and said she wanted to taking cooking classes. During the open house, Richman was there with Gavin, her 16 year old son who attends Tompkins High School. She said her son will be able to get an early hint about a subject he might want to study after he graduates from high school. If he goes to college thinking I might like architecture and takes classes then decides hes not suited for it, hes wasted some of his college career doing something he doesnt enjoy, she said. Here, he gets the chance to decide, Do I really enjoy this and want to pursue it as a career? Richman wasnt aware of every opportunity being offered at the Miller Center but said shes glad Katy ISD students have the opportunity. I love that kids can come here and leave with an EMT certification. You can walk out of here and have a job, she said. I think its a fantastic opportunity. mike.glenn@chron.com In 2016, Racheal Denhollander became the first person to publicly accuse Larry Nassar of sexually abusing his patients under the guise of medical treatment. Now, Denhollander and other victims of sexual abuse are speaking out again after a Houston Chronicle and San Antonio Express-News exclusive investigation revealed 700 victims of sex abuse in the Southern Baptist church. Denhollander tweeted, "I have known most of this for years, and spoken out about it. No one wanted to listen. It did not matter enough to investigate and act. Grief and repentance and silence to learn is the only proper response." EXCLUSIVE: 700 victims of Southern Baptist sex abuse, revealed. Her husband, Jacob Denhollander also echoed her call to read one of the important stories about a devastating betrayal of trust. "It was easier to shoot messengers for their "tone" than to deal with the problems and hide behind church autonomy." Tarana Burke, founder of the Me Too movement, also took to social media to react to the story. Click through the gallery above to see reactions from prominent victims of sexual abuse, including actor Terry Crews, to the Houston Chronicle's exclusive investigation. The cases tracked by the newspapers affected more than 700 victims over 20 years. Their stories are heartbreaking. Victims of sexual abuse had pleaded for the SBC to act, saying it was allowing predators to move from church to church. But the SBC in 2008 rejected all proposals to produce such a registry, saying the organization could not tell its 47,000 member churches whom to hire or ordain. NEWS WHEN YOU NEED IT: Text CHRON to 77453 to receive breaking news alerts by text message | Sign up for breaking news alerts delivered to your email here. Heavily favoured DWs NY Yank held off Meladys Monet Saturday night, winning the featured $44,000 Open Handicap Trot at Yonkers Raceway on a card that also boasted the first stateside start of Maritime standout Sock It Away. Away third from assigned post position No. 5, DWs NY Yank (George Brennan) saw Mostinterestingman (Jason Bartlett) lead though intervals of :27.4, :58 and 1:26.3. Having taken out of third before the three-quarters, DW began to close the gap. With Mostinterestingman leading by a length-and-a-quarter in and out of the final turn, DWs NY Yank did eventually collar him late in the lane. He then found the line in time, whipping a from-seventh Meladys Monet (Jordan Stratton) by a nose in 1:56.1. Third went to Mostinterestingman, with Lilys Swan Pond (Joe Bongiorno) and Chestnut Schofield (Dan Dube) settling for the minors. For DWs NY Yank, a 10-year-old Dilbert Hanover gelding co-owned (as Burke Racing) by (trainer) Ron Burke and Weaver Bruscemi, it was his first win in three seasonal starts. He paid $4.60. The Saturday feature was one of Brennans four wins during the dozen-race card. Maritime star Sock It Away was a solid runner-up in his U.S. debut Saturday evening at Yonkers Raceway for trainer Andrew Harris and driver Jason Bartlett. The four-year-old son of Pang Shui-Someone Like You sat a pocket trip behind Roland N Rock, with that foe going the distance in 1:55.1. Sock It Away launched a late attack in the lane, but wound up settling for the runner-up award after falling short by a neck. The runner-up performance gives Sock It Away 28-4-0 career record from 34 trips to the track for owner Reg MacPherson of Stratford, PE. (With files from Yonkers) A fire in southwest Houston damaged 14 apartment units and displaced several residents Saturday, just one month after a hearing-impaired man died in a fire at the same complex. The fire started around noon at the Glen Willow Apartments on South Post Oak and Willowbend after a resident turned his heater on. Red Cross was on site to help displaced residents, none of whom were injured, according to authorities. Government pushing ahead with no-fault divorce The Government is moving ahead with plans to change the law to allow no-fault divorce, justice secretary David Gauke has confirmed. Mr Gauke is to introduce legislation in the next session of Parliament that will eliminate the existing need for couples to aportion blame to their spouses as grounds for the divorce. At present, the law offers the alternative of both parties living separately by mutual agreement for two years. But in some cases, the wait is longer if the couple are unable to prove that their marriage broke down because of adultery, unreasonable behaviour or desertion, or where one spouse is contesting the divorce, in which case they must live apart for five years before they can divorce. This will all change with the legislation being brought in by the Government after submissions to its consultation on the reforms showed broad support. Mr Gauke told The Times that the more than 600 responses to the consultation 'were overwhelmingly in support, which is why I remain as convinced as I have been for the need to reform this particular area'. He added, 'I hope to respond early next month and to take forward legislation in the next session of parliament.' The move, which represents the first major change to divorce laws in half a century, comes after Tini Owens last year lost her Supreme Court bid to divorce her husband, Hugh, on the grounds that she was unhappy in the marriage. They had been living apart since 2015 but her husband refused to give his consent to a divorce. The Supreme Court ruled that she must remain married to her husband until 2020. The Christian Institute is among those opposed to no-fault divorces. It says that instead of making divorce easier, the Government should focus on helping couples stay together. 'Given the devastating effects of divorce on adults, children and society, even those who do not hold to a Christian view of divorce should be opposed to measures which make divorce even easier,' it said. 'The statistics clearly show that every time the law on divorce has been liberalised, the number of divorces has increased.' The Coalition for Marriage also questioned the plans to introduce no-fault divorce after a study by University College, London found that children who were between the ages of seven and 14 when their parents split are more likely to suffer emotional and behavioural problems than their peers who are still living with both of their parents. 'Divorce still damages children. There are exceptions but that's normally the case,' the group said. 'Divorce for any and every reason euphemistically known as 'no-fault' divorce could, according to the Government's own research, cause the divorce rate to soar. 'It will inflict long-lasting pain on yet more young people and damage society as a whole. 'Why would any Government want to introduce it?' Religious colleges fear higher education becoming more hostile to faith Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Religious colleges are attempting to re-write the narrative that exists today about faith in education before societal hostility mobilizes to one day push faith-based institutions out of the mainstream of higher education. Presidents from colleges representing traditions of Protestant Christianity, Islam, Catholicism, Judaism and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints gathered last week to discuss the challenges they face as secular society continues to grow more hostile to principles of Abrahamic morality. Just days after the media hysteria surrounding second lady Karen Pence's job as an art teacher at a Christian private school in Virginia that adheres to biblical doctrine, presidents from the five religious colleges participated in a discussion just a few miles down the road in Washington, D.C., about the misunderstandings people have about faith in higher education. The discussion capped off the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities Presidents Conference that took place at the Washington Court Hotel on Capitol Hill. CCCU is a network of over 180 Christian colleges worldwide. "Todays discussion invites us to reimagine this narrative that [characterizes] so much of the modern period and to rewrite this story going forward, to rewrite this story that persists so much in the world of higher education," Shirley Mullen, the president of Houghton College, a Christian liberal arts school in Western New York, said during the panel. This standard western narrative of progress has assumed that deeply-held religious beliefs, especially when there is diversity in those beliefs, result in intolerance, conflict, violence, oppression." Mullen, who serves as vice chair of CCCUs board of directors, contended that a new narrative must be crafted regarding the relationship between religion, society, higher education and human flourishing. One of the great misperceptions out there today, particularly within higher education, is that our institutions would be the ones that are very monolithic internally and that students come here to learn how to think like Muslims or think like Roman Catholics or whatever, Mullen said. In fact, what you have heard illustrated here today is that these are the institutions where it is often really tough-minded, thoughtful dialogue going on among our students, she continued. [Those conversations] are passionate and they are deep because they are grounded in those fundamental moral and theological commitments. As a historian, Mullen stressed that people dont realize that science actually grew up in the context of a religious framework that assumed a universal order that the world was a creation of a rational being. She added that faith has also been the motivation for various social reform movements and the expansion of human rights in the modern period. John Fitzgibbons, president of the Jesuit-aligned Regis University in Colorado, suggested that students at religious colleges are able to have a dialogue on their campuses about controversial topics of the day. But on many secular college campuses, people who advocate certain religious views on topics like sexuality and marriage might find themselves shut out from the conversation. Instead of safe spaces, Fitzgibbons argued that colleges really need sacred spaces. The university is the place where the consummately personal and the structural are examined together. It is an enormous mistake to excise or cutout faith from public conversation, Fitzgibbons said. It is simply misguided. It doesnt matter what the faith articulation is. ... The point is if you dont bring the deepest parts of your being to the conversation with others that is rigorous, challenging and profoundly difficult, the deepest part of what it means to be human is not in the conversation. Hamza Yusuf, co-founder of Zaytuna College, the first accredited Muslim college in the U.S., said that there is increasing hostility toward deeply-held religious beliefs at many secular colleges. Where I am up on Holy Hill [in Berkely, California], the most intolerant college is up there [University of California, Berkeley] and is the one that claims to be the most tolerant, Yusuf said. Because if you are not completely on board with all of their beliefs, then you are unacceptable, you are a bigot. I am just saying that I dont want to see any persecution but I also feel that we should not be persecuted for adhering to Abrahamic morality. It is just not really fair. During a press lunch following the panel, the presidents expressed their concerns with proposed changes to standards for accreditation issued by one of the nations regional college accrediting agencies, Higher Learning Commission, which oversees 1,300 post-secondary schools in the central U.S. Last year, the HLC issued a draft rule proposal that removed language that instructed accreditors to take into account an institutions specific and diverse mission when assessing a schools commitment to diversity. The rule drew concerns from leaders within Christian higher education who fear that policies reflecting traditional Christian belief in marriage and sexuality could be questioned. They fear that such a rule would give the accrediting body the ability to decide whether a school ensures inclusive and equitable treatment of diverse populations. As a number of Christian schools have statements of faith that oppose homosexuality, the fear is that the accrediting agency wields power to impact an institutions abilities to receive federal student loans and federal grants if they are noncompliant. It is noteworthy that this is really a plea for diversity from a group of universities that are sometimes viewed as not very tolerant in their viewpoint, Kevin Worthen, president of Brigham Young University in Utah, explained. One reporter pushed back during the conversation and noted that the HLC rule proposal being objected to by religious schools is supposed to ensure the inclusivity in the viewpoint of the colleges. The reporter asked if the universities simply dont want to be forced to accept diversity. There is one way in which you say everyone will be diverse in exactly the same way, Worthen replied. Mullen agreed. There is some tension between that and sort of institutional diversity that comes as a seedbed for ultimate diversity, Mullen said. There is some tension there. That is a very good point. Yusuf weighed in and said that if religious colleges are supposed to take their religious traditions seriously, then the demand that they abandon a set of core principles of the religions for the zeitgeist is not fair. One reporter brought up the public outrage surrounding Karen Pences decision to teach at a Christian school in Northern Virginia that has clearly outlined beliefs opposing homosexuality. It is interesting that someone mentioned earlier that she was out of step with 67 percent of the country, Yusuf said. So suddenly morality is determined by a poll? That is like saying that Abraham Lincoln is out of touch with reality because 67 percent of Americans are pro-slavery. It is a little crazy. Yusuf said that in the future, he can see things getting much worse and difficult for Christian, Orthodox Jewish and Muslim colleges to adhere to basic Abrahamic morality without being considered bigots or preaching hate or something like that. While religious colleges are guaranteed the freedom to hold religious beliefs by the U.S. Constitution, one reporter asserted that the Constitution doesnt guarantee religious colleges federal funding. Mullen responded by stating that it has always been understood that federal dollars are tied to individual students who have the freedom to choose where they spend those federal dollars. There are still many, many students in this society that want to choose an education that accords with their fundamental moral and spiritual roots, Mullen explained. No students arrive at one of our institutions not knowing what they are getting into. They are choosing to go to those institutions because of the values of those institutions. I believe there is also a social good in American society for these institutions to remain places that these students can spend that money. Mullen believes that civil society would be worse off if religious colleges were not granted access to federal funding. Most of these institutions are going to turn out people of faith who have thought much more deeply about the links between reason and faith than most of the people in American society, Mullen stressed. These graduates can be the bridge builder in a society that has many people who have nothing to do with religion and people of faith. The larger culture would be worse off if federal dollars cannot continue to support the branch of higher education which is doing the most to produce people who understand [how to speak across the religious and political spectrum]. Mullen asserted that religious colleges are committed to being within the mainstream of American higher education. That is really what we are arguing for right now is the right to remain within the mainstream of higher education rather than be segregated off, she concluded. Young evangelicals souring on Israel because of 'social justice,' media deception: theologian Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Correction Appended WASHINGTON A leading Anglican theologian is arguing that the reason younger evangelicals are distancing themselves from supporting Israel, including the theological underpinnings for doing so, is in part because of mass media derision of their "immoral" parents. Before a small crowd of journalists, Christian and Jewish thinkers, and Israel advocates at a gathering at MindSpace in The Washington Post building on Monday, sponsored by the Christian foreign policy journal Providence, Gerald McDermott, Anglican Chair of Divinity at Beeson Divinity School in Birmingham, Alabama, recounted his experiences as one of only two pro-Israel voices at the Christ at the Checkpoint conference, which is usually held in Bethlehem, Jesus' birthplace, but occurred last fall in Oklahoma City. With its strong pro-Palestine bent, critics say the conference is aimed at turning younger Christians away from the pro-Israel theological paradigm that presently dominates American evangelical Christianity. Yet millennial evangelicals are increasingly distancing themselves from modern Israel, the Anglican theologian said, in part because they want to distance themselves from their parents, who tend to support Israel enthusiastically, he said in response to a question from The Christian Post about why recent polling data indicates waning support for the Jewish state among younger Christians. CP asked if this trend is a reaction against what they see as uncritically blind, total support for Israel through figures such as San Antonio pastor John Hagee, an outspoken Christian Zionist and the founder of Christians United for Israel. "Their parents are roundly criticized in our culture for being uneducated, and for being, now, at this point in our culture, immoral. For their opposition to gay marriage, that's sort of a leading reason. And young people don't want to be thought of as bad people," McDermott explained. Survey data from LifeWay that was published in December 2017 revealed that 77 percent of evangelicals ages 65 and older said they supported the existence, security and prosperity of Israel, whereas only 58 percent of evangelicals ages 18 to 34 said the same. "For the most part, younger evangelicals are indifferent about Israel," said Scott McConnell, executive director of LifeWay Research, observed at the time. The shift is not just political but theological, as younger Christians don't see a biblical connection between the land of Israel and the modern nation-state, in addition to the ongoing role of the Jewish people in salvation history. University and college professors have played an important role in this, McDermott said Monday, adding that millennial evangelicals are also more concerned with social justice than their parents. Their parents recognize that there are many types of "social justice" and some of what is passed off as justice is not, he continued, as some forms actually hurt rather than help the poor, and the form many millennials support is inextricably linked to left-wing politics. During their formative university years, he continued, "what little media they take in, and it's mostly social media, rather than The New York Times or The Washington Post, but The New York Times and The Washington Post trickle down into social media. And what they hear there over and over again is the standard Palestinian narrative." "I'm for Palestinians," he stressed, distinguishing that from the storyline pushed in much of the mainstream media that Israel is the bad guy and that Palestinians are helpless victims of an evil Israeli state. That narrative is "wrong from beginning to end", he argued, and many millennials have simply never heard a cogent pro-Israel case; when their parents start talking about the rapture and end-times theology that often centers around Israel, "they just roll their eyes and say: 'Yeah, mom. Sure, sure.'" He recounted a journey he took to the Holy Land several years ago during one of his sabbaticals. During his trip he stayed with both Jews and Arabs, interviewing them about what day-to-day life was like in Israel. McDermott talked with countless people Arab Muslims, secular Jews, religious Jews, Arab Christians, Messianic Jews who lived in Galilee, asking them their opinions on Jesus and a variety of other things. "And you know what happens when you ask an average person what they think about something? They are really thrilled to tell you," he said. "What I found, whenever I talked to Arab Christians, to a person," he recounted, "they'd pull me aside, and take me around a corner where we couldn't be overheard. And the first thing they'd say was 'Don't use my name.'" He emphasized: "And then they would sort of lean over and whisper: 'Don't believe what you read in the media, that our enemy is the Israeli government. It is not. We wish the Israeli government would do more to protect us from our real enemy, which is our Muslim cousins. They are out to destroy us." McDermott heard a version of that same story all over Israel but they were afraid to say so publicly because if they did there would have been repercussions for them and their families, he explained. Those personal accounts strike at the heart of what is wrong with the Palestinian narrative, he stressed. Asked to elaborate on increasing millennial distaste for Israel, McDermott explained in a follow-up interview with CP that what is known as the theory of intersectionality the interconnected nature of social categorizations such as race, class, and gender as they apply to a given individual or group, regarded as creating overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination or disadvantage is influencing young minds, and it is in this system where Israel is routinely referred to as an "apartheid" state. "And apartheid immediately raises the specter of racism. And recalling the, I believe it was the 1975 UN Declaration that said Zionism is racism, these days, particularly because of our very tense national conversation on race, now Jews are portrayed as racists, as the new Nazis. And the Palestinians are sort of the perfect victims, and everyone who cares about justice ought to care about victims. The Palestinians are the quintessential victims and thus, obviously, the Jewish Israelis are the cruel, Nazi-like oppressors," McDermott said. He does not believe that critiques from Christians who are otherwise supporters of the Jewish state when it does indeed err will matter much. "I think a whole generation has so bought into the leftist approach to Israel into so-called social justice that these little attempts at atonement by Israel supporters by criticizing the government of Israel, I don't think it will make any difference." For Christians who care about standing with Israel, he urges them to visit and speak with the natives like he did. Unfortunately, reporters are plentiful who work for purportedly mainstream new outlets who, despite knowing better, churn out stories the feed the master narrative line, that Israel is the bad guy and the Palestinians are these poor victims who can't do anything to help themselves, he said, adding that if they write a story that deviates too much from those predetermined characterizations they will not get promotions as major newsroom editors will accept nothing else. McDermott is the author of Israel Matters: Why Christians Must Think Differently About the People and the Land and is the editor is of The New Christian Zionism, a volume of Christian scholarship on Israel released in 2017. His latest book, Everyday Glory: The Revelation of God in All of Reality, was published in November. Correction, February 10, 2019. A previous version of this article stated that McDermott was the only pro-Israel voice at the Christ at the Checkpoint conference. He was one of two pro-Israel speakers. This week in Christian history: AME founder, notable female preacher, first black speaker before Congress Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Christianity is a faith with a long and detailed history, with numerous events of lasting significance occurring throughout the ages. Each week brings the anniversaries of great milestones, horrid tragedies, amazing triumphs, telling tribulations, inspirational progress, and everything in between. Here are just a few things that happened this week, Feb. 10-16, in Church history. They include the birth of a notable African-American preacher, the birth of founder of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, and the first time an African-American addressed Congress. Christians Must Think Differently About Israel, Jews in Light of Past Atrocities: Gerald McDermott Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment The majority of Christians have been wrong about Israel for most of their history, according to a leading Anglican theologian and Israel scholar. For many reasons, Christians ought to think differently about the land of Israel and the Jews as God's covenant people, Gerald R. McDermott, Anglican chair at Beeson Divinity School in Birmingham, Alabama, explains in a new book. In an interview with The Christian Post on Tuesday, McDermott explained that his latest work, Israel Matters: Why Christians Must Think Differently About the People and the Land, articulates why it's important for believers in Jesus to engage Israel with the utmost humility. This is necessary not only because of the geopolitical complexities present there but especially because "the Jews have been horribly wronged by Christians over the millennia." "Even before the Holocaust, hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions, of Jews were murdered over the last 1,800 years by Christians as "Christ-killers," McDermott said, noting at the time of the Holocaust Germany was the most Christianized nation in the world. "Jews know these things and are afraid of us," he said. The error in thinking that Jesus departed from Judaism and began a new religion furthers the distance between Christians and Jews and makes Jews into an "other," he said. Yet in the past several decades, especially in the United States, a resurgence of what is known as Christian Zionism, the view that the land of Israel and ethnic Jews remain central to God's eternal purposes, has occurred. McDermott did not personally subscribe to this perspective because he associated it with dispensationalism, theology that considers biblical history as divided intentionally by God into specific ages to each of which He has allotted distinctive administrative principles. This teaching was popularized in the 1800s by Anglo-Irish preacher John Nelson Darby. But all that began to change for him upon doing further study of the Bible and history and he found that throughout the ages a minority has believed that one day, in accordance with Scripture, a massive ingathering of Jewish people to their historic homeland would take place. He realized he did not have to accept a dispensationalist approach to regard the land and people of Israel as an essential component of God's ongoing work in the world. Nor did he have to subscribe to the often wild, apocalyptic end times scenarios some Christian Zionists have espoused in the past. In Chapter 3 of Israel Matters the author showcases "Those Who Got It Right." From early Church fathers like Tertullian to more recent figures like American theologian Jonathan Edwards and Swiss theologian Karl Barth, each of these men believed that a day would come when the Jews would return to their ancient homeland. During his ministry Edwards repeatedly warned against spiritualizing biblical promises to the Jews. When the modern state of Israel was established in 1948 Barth wrote that it was a "secular parable" and that the large numbers of Jews returning to the land was a fulfillment of biblical prophecy. As is expressed throughout The New Christian Zionism, a volume of Christian scholarship on Israel released last year for which McDermott was the editor, Israel Matters argues strongly against supercessionism. This is also known as "replacement theology" which holds that the Church replaced Israel as God's chosen people. Today, what is known as "fulfillment theology," which some assert is merely an updated form of replacement theology, also holds that Jews do not have a God-given destiny in their ancient land. But instead of the Church replacing Israel, its proponents contend that Jesus fulfills in his life and redemptive work all the promises that God ever made to the Jews, including the promise that the land of Canaan would be their everlasting possession. This theology considers the land insignificant and that the only Jews who are now significant to God are Messianic Jews, those who believe Jesus is the Messiah. But several passages in the New Testament suggest both beliefs are wrong, McDermott explained. "Paul says in Romans 11:28 that the Jews who did not accept Jesus as Messiah were 'enemies of the Gospel' but nevertheless 'are beloved' to God, and that their 'gifts and calling of God' to be His special people 'are irrevocable,'" he said. Moreover, the Apostle Paul was writing to the Romans 30 years after Jesus' resurrection but even then was still saying that God's covenant with ethnic Israel remains in place. This did not mean that all Jews were saved, but that they were still special to God in a particular way. Likewise, in his Beatitude in Matthew 5:5, Jesus was quoting Psalm 37:11 word for word when he said, "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the [earth.]" The Hebrew word for "earth," which is used five times in Psalm 37, in every one of these five instances in Psalm 37 refers to the land of Israel, McDermott continued. So the Beatitude is better translated, "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the Land." And in Acts 1:6, "when Jesus' disciples asked him just before his ascension, 'Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?' Jesus did not tell them they were wrong to think there would be a future Israel that God would establish," he said. "Instead, He (Jesus) said that the timing of that future was not to be known then." In addition to the theological objections McDermott unpacks in the book, he explores the modern political history of the region, which is often characterized by intense and bloody conflicts. Yet unlike some Christian Zionists who appear to think that the nation of Israel can do no wrong, McDermott is not afraid to criticize the Israeli government when it's warranted. He acknowledges in the book where Palestinians have been mistreated at times, how the Israeli government has broken promises, and how certain policies have been unwise. He also writes that the state of Israel should do more to protect Messianic believers. Whether an unjust action is perpetrated by a Jew or an Arab, he says, Christians need to feel free to raise their voices to criticize whoever is responsible when it is clear such an injustice has occurred. Although imperfect, the state of Israel, "an oasis of freedom and democracy in the Middle East," is inextricably linked with the Jews, McDermott insists. "Even if the covenanted people of Israel and the state of Israel are not one and the same, they are intertwined in a complex way," he writes in the book. "The state could not exist without its people, and the covenanted people could not survive or flourish without the state. The state shelters the people, and the people though not all are religious Jews support the state. One without the other is unthinkable and impossible." For Christians who care about the Palestinians and their rights, McDermott encourages them to visit Israel since tourism helps everyone there, and to support the largely-unreported incremental steps Israel is taking to improve the lot of Palestinians. Written in a scholarly yet accessible tone, Israel Matters is likely to be a important resource for Christians looking to bring their faith to bear on current events unfolding in the United States and in the Middle East. Earlier this month President Donald Trump signed a waiver delaying the move of the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem, skirting a key campaign promise that he might or might not revisit. CP asked McDermott if moving the embassy would constitute a blessing to Israel, as some scholars have argued. Such a move would "help the cause for peace, not hurt it," he replied. "First of all, it would be the simple recognition of reality: Jerusalem and no other city is Israel's capital," McDermott said. "Second, the Palestinian leaders are thugs who would realize by this move that they can no longer dictate as they did to Obama, whose policies hurt both Jews and Arabs." The only hope for improvement is for Palestinian President Abbas to understand that he has to talk to the Israelis and moving the U.S. diplomatic outpost to the capital would signal to him that he can no longer circumvent the Israelis and try to get what he wants from the United Nations, he added. Aside from the fulfillment of prophetic scriptures and political considerations, Christians need to think differently about the people and land of Israel because Jesus was and is Jewish, McDermott stressed. And in order to relate to Jewish friends, getting in touch with His Jewishness is essential. "The Jews were raised up by God as representatives of humanity," McDermott said. "So that if the Bible shows their departures from God, it is really illustrating ours." "Jesus prized Jewish law, said that salvation is from the Jews, predicted that one day Jerusalem will welcome Him, and foresaw that His Apostles will one day rule over the tribes of Israel," McDermott said. If Christians begin to think they are somehow better because they believe in Jesus as Messiah and the Jews do not, they fail to understand God's grace, he added. "When we realize how profoundly Jewish Jesus was and is, we will feel greater kinship with those for whom Paul said he had 'unceasing anguish in his heart.'" Leith Anderson to retire from NAE, praised for shaping evangelical mov't in complex times Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Faith leaders on both sides of the political aisle are commenting on the retirement of National Association of Evangelicals President Leith Anderson who has shaped and stewarded the evangelical movement in recent decades as something not to be defined by politics. NAE, an influential coalition of over 40 evangelical denominations, 45,000 churches, schools and nonprofits that seeks to honor God by connecting and representing evangelical Christians in the United States, announced last week that it has begun the search for a new president as the 74-year-old Anderson plans to retire by the end of the year. Anderson has served as the organizations president since 2006 and previously served for 35 years as the senior pastor of Wooddale Church, a megachurch in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. Anderson has also written over 20 books. Under his leadership, the NAE has strived to get the wider society to view the terms evangelicalism and evangelicals through the lens of their theological meaning, not through the lens of political preferences held by conservative evangelicals. During his time with NAE, Anderson has used his platform to address concerns of the evangelical community with public officials and provided commentary to mainstream news outlets. Anderson has been one of the most vocal evangelical advocates calling for things like immigration reform, prison and criminal justice reform, the continued resettling of refugees in the U.S. and the continued provision of aid to impoverished communities at home and around the world. As NAE president, Anderson has also been one of the more influential voices included in the Evangelical Immigration Table, a coalition of evangelical organizations that advocate for immigration reform and regularly issue statements reflecting on the immigration debate of the day. "I have worked with Leith over many years and rarely have I observed such a depth of wisdom, integrity, skill and grace combined in one person, Scott Arbeiter, the president of NAEs humanitarian arm World Relief, said in a statement provided to The Christian Post. He has both shaped and stewarded the evangelical movement, walking into the most intractable challenges yet emerging with consensus and principled solutions. I greatly admire this man and am deeply grateful for his leadership and legacy. Shirley Hoogstra, president of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities, a fellow member of the Evangelical Immigration Table, told CP that it has been an honor to work alongside such a wise leader. Leith has a passion for the church to be a witness to the goodness and hope of the Gospel, Hoogstra, who heads a network of over 180 Christian colleges around the world, explained. He works tirelessly on behalf of the NAE, and they could not have had a better leader for this season in the nations and churchs history. Samuel Rodriguez, president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference and pastor of New Season Christian Worship Center in Sacramento, California, told CP in a statement that Andersons contributions as an unwavering advocate of biblical immigration reform will be greatly missed. Johnnie Moore, an evangelical public relations executive who is seen as an informal spokesperson for the group of evangelical leaders who interact with the Trump administration, said that Anderson is one of the most extraordinary leaders he has ever been around. While too often boiled down into stereotypes, the evangelical community is actually an incredibly complex and diverse movement, in every way imaginable, Moore, who is also an NAE board member, wrote in an email. And across evangelicalism, we generally embrace a vibrant bottom-up polity and a bias against hierarchy for the purpose of keeping Christ as our leader and His Kingdom as our focus. It also sometimes makes our community a loud and unwieldy bunch. It isnt easy to lead evangelicals and it is impossible over the long haul unless that leader is a servant leader. Having observed Anderson for over a decade, Moore says that Anderson has served every end of evangelicalism with wisdom, sensitivity, theological conviction, patience and care. [H]e has consistently done so in some incredibly complex and difficult moments, Moore explained. His leadership will leave the NAE stronger than ever in its history. We will miss him. As there has been much confusion in the media and society about what the term evangelical means in the context of todays political discussions and public polling, NAE worked with LifeWay Research in 2015 to come up with a theological definition of what it means to be evangelical. While many in todays wide society may view evangelicals as another term for white social conservatives, NAE and LifeWay maintain that evangelicals are people who believe in four basic statements of faith regardless of their color, ethnicity and political leaning. Leiths years of service to the NAE, have not only strengthened the organization, but they have contributed invaluably to evangelicalism at a time in history when our community has grown to become at least the third largest segment of Christianity in the globe, and maybe soon, the second, Moore stressed. Leith is probably too humble to ever acknowledge it, but many of us recognize clearly that God himself entrusted to his servant leadership a critical moment in 2000 years of Christian history in a nation that has played an indispensable role in the advance of Gods mission. We will miss his wise, convictional and steady hand and as a board, we are praying intensely for God to guide us to whomever it is he would have lead the NAE next, Moore concluded. That person will have huge shoes to fill. On Twitter, several other Christian leaders offered their praises of Anderson. One of them is Melissa Rogers, a Baptist who served as director of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnership during the Barack Obama administration. Thanks to @leithanderson for his many years of distinguished ministry [and] service, Rogers tweeted. Leith's compassionate & courageous leadership has made a huge difference on a wide range of issues. Best wishes to @NAEvangelicals and to Leith for their next chapters. S. Carter McNeese, a pastor at Fairmont First Baptist Church, Fairmont, NC, praised Anderson for helping him reclaim his evangelical identity. @NAEvangelicals, under his leadership, has consistently tried to get others to define evangelicalism theologically and not politically or culturally, McNeese wrote on Twitter. I give thanks to God for his leadership. Speaking at a meeting with the ministrys senior officials on the matter, Somkid he also requested trade negotiators to push for the conclusion of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) this year. "The government's clear stance on the CPTPP and the RCEP will help boost trade and investment sentiment," Somkid said. "Despite the transition period before the next government is formed, continuous efforts by the current government to build up investor confidence are still a must." Acting Commerce Minister Chutima Bunyapraphasara said the ministry will call a meeting of a working group on the CPTPP this month to consider a study of the benefits and impacts of joining the new bloc. A conclusion of all the pros and cons will be submitted to the cabinet for consideration in March, he said. Negotiations on the CPTPP were concluded in January last year between 11 countries namely Singapore, Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam, Australia, Mexico, Canada, Peru, Chile, Japan and New Zealand. It replaced the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a similar deal that included the US until the Trump administration decided to withdraw. In 2017, the 11 CPTPP countries' GDP made up US$10.5 trillion, or 13.3 percent of the world's GDP. They have a combined population of 498 million or 6.7 percent of the world's total. The trade pact came into force on December 30, 2018, after seven signatory members including Mexico, Japan, Singapore, New Zealand, Canada, Australia and Vietnam ratified it. True Face of Christianity Christian Examiner Contributor | 09 February, 2019 by Mark Klages On a backdrop of Blackface bookended by a Green New Deal and a Red-faced President who refuses to release his tax returns a friend reposted a meme by "Tyrannowhale" that disparaged so-called Christians who crusade for total (dare I say mandatory?) prayer in school. As interesting as that idea may sound every Christian will agree we really need God back in our schools forcing prayer in school is wrong. Forcing any element of Christianity on anyone, non-believer and believer alike, is wrong. And I'd postulate anyone trying to force prayer on anyone else is a false prophet bent on destroying the Church from "within." True Christians true Christianity doesn't force anything. Wolves in sheep's clothing force prayer. False prophets force prayer. To the untrained eye they look like Christians, but they are not. They might carry the Bible, use religious words, even quote scripture, but despotic theism is not the same as Christianity. Rather, those wolves are trying to soil Christianity "from within." They do more harm than good because they draw away some who are fragile at a time when they truly need God but can't discern His truth from Satan's lies. Imagine me telling you "if you truly want to be free, you must carry this book and recite this code every day." That's not freedom, that's slavery wrapped in shiny paper and tied up with a pretty little bow. Just look at Jesus' example. Never in the Bible did Jesus demand loyalty, prayer, sacrifice. Jesus rightly spoke of loving God above all else, then serving man second because He knows love leads to service, not the other way around. He gave us a universal, absolute truth, but never demanded universal servitude. "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." (Matt 22:36-40, NIV) Even when challenging his own Disciples, Jesus gave them a choice first. Then Jesus said to his disciples, "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? (Matt 22:24-26, NIV) Here's the other thing just about everyone in this conversation fails to define. While Engel v. Vitale (1962) and Abingdon School District v. Schempp (1963) are among two of the most celebrated secular victories banning official school prayer, none of the official court actions in these United States actually removed prayer from schools. We did that ourselves when we found prayer in school too hard or the lack of prayer in school too easy. The truth of the matter is, while we may not vocally or physically oppose the law, true Christians never stopped praying in schools. True Christians simply pray silently, sometimes alone and sometimes in groups and sometimes with adults, even! So, to my atheist friend who groups all Christians among those wolves and false prophets, ask yourself if you know of any "Christian" who practices what he/she preaches, yet has never tried to force his/her faith on you. If you can answer "yes," then you have seen the true face of Christianity. Mark Klages is an influential contributor, a former US Marine and a lifelong teacher who focuses on applying a Christian worldview to everyday events. Mark blogs at https://maklagesl3.wixsite.com/website under the title "God Provides where Hate Divides," with a heart to heal social, political, relational, and intellectual wounds through God's divine love and grace. Mark can also be found on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-klages-04b42511/. Religious colleges fear higher education becoming more hostile to faith 09 February, 2019 by Samuel Smith/CP , | Religious colleges are attempting to "re-write" the narrative that exists today about faith in education before societal hostility mobilizes to one day push faith-based institutions out of the "mainstream" of higher education. Presidents from colleges representing traditions of Protestant Christianity, Islam, Catholicism, Judaism and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints gathered last week to discuss the challenges they face as secular society continues to grow more hostile to principles of "Abrahamic morality." Just days after the media hysteria surrounding second lady Karen Pence's job as an art teacher at a Christian private school in Virginia that adheres to biblical doctrine, presidents from the five religious colleges participated in a discussion just a few miles down the road in Washington, D.C., about the misunderstandings people have about faith in higher education. The discussion capped off the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities' Presidents Conference that took place at the Washington Court Hotel on Capitol Hill. CCCU is a network of over 180 Christian colleges worldwide. "Today's discussion invites us to reimagine this narrative that [characterizes] so much of the modern period and to rewrite this story going forward, to rewrite this story that persists so much in the world of higher education," Shirley Mullen, the president of Houghton College, a Christian liberal arts school in Western New York, said during the panel. "This standard western narrative of progress has assumed that deeply-held religious beliefs, especially when there is diversity in those beliefs, result in intolerance, conflict, violence, oppression." Mullen, who serves as vice chair of CCCU's board of directors, contended that a "new narrative" must be crafted regarding the relationship between religion, society, higher education and human flourishing. "One of the great misperceptions out there today, particularly within higher education, is that our institutions would be the ones that are very monolithic internally and that students come here to learn how to think like Muslims or think like Roman Catholics or whatever," Mullen said. "In fact, what you have heard illustrated here today is that these are the institutions where it is often really tough-minded, thoughtful dialogue going on among our students," she continued. "[Those conversations] are passionate and they are deep because they are grounded in those fundamental moral and theological commitments." As a historian, Mullen stressed that people don't realize that "science actually grew up in the context of a religious framework that assumed a universal order that the world was a creation of a rational being." She added that faith has also been the motivation for various social reform movements and the expansion of human rights in the modern period. John Fitzgibbons, president of the Jesuit-aligned Regis University in Colorado, suggested that students at religious colleges are able to have a dialogue on their campuses about controversial topics of the day. But on many secular college campuses, people who advocate certain religious views on topics like sexuality and marriage might find themselves shut out from the conversation. Instead of safe spaces, Fitzgibbons argued that colleges really need "sacred spaces." "The university is the place where the consummately personal and the structural are examined together. It is an enormous mistake to excise or cutout faith from public conversation," Fitzgibbons said. "It is simply misguided. It doesn't matter what the faith articulation is. ... The point is if you don't bring the deepest parts of your being to the conversation with others that is rigorous, challenging and profoundly difficult, the deepest part of what it means to be human is not in the conversation." Hamza Yusuf, co-founder of Zaytuna College, the first accredited Muslim college in the U.S., said that there is increasing hostility toward deeply-held religious beliefs at many secular colleges. "Where I am up on Holy Hill [in Berkely, California], the most intolerant college is up there [University of California, Berkeley] and is the one that claims to be the most tolerant," Yusuf said. "Because if you are not completely on board with all of their beliefs, then you are unacceptable, you are a bigot. I am just saying ... that I don't want to see any persecution but I also feel that we should not be persecuted for adhering to Abrahamic morality. It is just not really fair." Read more from "Religious colleges fear higher education becoming more hostile to faith" on The Christian Post. Meghan Markle | Charles McQuillan/Getty Images Plastic surgeons never go out of business, even if some of the results arent appealing to the beholder. Nevertheless, the patient often thinks otherwise. Whenever a new pop culture icon becomes a top news story, plastic surgeons usually ramp up their marketing campaigns. With Meghan Markle now being the most fascinating woman in the world, a lot of women want more than what shes wearing or the makeup shes using. Were seeing a strange new trend of women wanting Markles unique nose. Ethical plastic surgeons are already speaking up about how this could lead to more than a few unwanted proboscis disasters. The desire to want Meghan Markles nose We all know Markle is a beautiful woman, and she arguably does have one of the most prominent noses of anyone alive today. Its also very recognizable from any direction, especially when photographed in profile. More specifically, its becoming renowned by plastic surgeons as having a refined tip definition and natural-looking hump. Many would say its the perfect nose, so its no surprise so many women are wanting to shape their noses into Meghans. Hold that nose, though. When it comes to obtaining such a look, its not necessarily going to work on everyones face. This isnt to say everyone wants to listen to those warnings. Markle has already broken protocol on her appearance Look around on social media, and youll see a lot of people still obsess over Markles makeup, wardrobe, and hair. A lot of those pics also show Markle in profile, no doubt making many admire her nose even more. If you look carefully, you can see she inherited her awesome nose from her dad who has a similar nasal structure. However, her mom also has a beautiful nose, proving she inherited a little of both. For those who still pay attention to Markles fashion sense, there isnt a doubt shes broken royal protocol on her overall look. Part of that comes in doing her own hair and makeup most of the time. A nose is a nose by any other name Over the years, weve certainly seen our share of plastic surgery gone horrifically wrong. Without posting pictures or naming names, no doubt many of you have seen the evidence in the media. What makes it more crazy is the recipient often cant see what they did wrong. Could we end up seeing young women changing their nose into Markles without realizing the possible consequences? Interviews from prominent plastic surgeons recently say its not a good idea to do a Markle nose job on the fly without examining whether it fits your face. As these surgeons note, each face is different. The symmetry of each face always matters, making a prospective Markle nose look more than a little unsettling on some countenances. Will patients wanting Markles nose listen to warnings? Meghan Markle and Prince Harry Receive Last Nose Rubs of Their Down Under Tour! https://t.co/0hSXjIUjze People (@people) October 28, 2018 If anyone wants Markles nose and has the financial means to get it done, chances are they probably will. Some lucky people in Australia managed to at least rub noses with Markle when the royal couple visited Down Under this last October. From all indications, the desire for Meghans nose comes mostly from those in the U.K. and America. Yet, on a sociological level, its still interesting to see what we consider a beauty standard in a womans nose. During Princess Dianas time, her larger nose was also considered beautiful, despite rumors of her having a minor rhinoplasty. The best bet for those wanting Meghan Markles nose is to do a liquid rhinoplastyinvolving liquid injections refining or reshaping a nose for a temporary time. These might become the new temporary tattoos of plastic surgery so patients have time to take it back. Weve been keeping up with the stars of the Food Network for years and theres no doubt the regulars make serious earnings from their shows. While The Pioneer Woman Ree Drummond may be a relative newcomer to the network, shes still pulling in major cash. And her show aside, her successful blog, books, and line of products is also certainly keeping her and her family afloat with their life on the ranch. Its not just her Pioneer Woman label that brings her money, however. It turns out shes receiving millions of dollars from the government, too. Heres why. Ree and Ladd Drummond own 433,000 acres of land In The Pioneer Woman intro, we see plenty of cut scenes of Ree and Ladd Drummonds incredible ranch, and Ree talks at length about her land ownership and how far away from civilization she feels. But few viewers realize just how much land the Drummonds own. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, their ranch sits on part of their 433,000 acres of land in Oklahoma. This amount also marks them as the 23rd largest landowners in the U.S. As for how they came to acquire all of this land, Ree can thank her husband, Ladd, for his familys business. The publication notes Ladd descends from a family of cattle ranchers who have held down thousands of acres in Oklahoma and Kansas for decades. And in 2015, the Drummond Land & Cattle Co. was even inducted into Oklahomas Quarter Horse Hall of Fame. The government reportedly has paid the Drummonds over $20 million Now that its been established that the Drummonds land ownership extends over half the size of Rhode Island, heres why the government is paying them serious cash. According to Daily Mail Online, records revealed that since 2006, the Bureau of Land Management had given the Drummond Land & Cattle Co. over $23 million. The AJC notes thats a payout of around $2 million per year. So, why is the government handing over so much cash? Daily Mail Online notes the Drummonds are paid to keep wild horses and burros on their huge property for animal protection purposes. Some of the payouts have been huge for the family, too, as the publication notes their largest one totaled over $2 million and was given to them on New Years Eve back in 2015. A more recent payout in June 2017 still totaled over $1 million, too. It seems as long as the Drummonds are willing to use their land to help protect the wildlife, theyll continue to receive these huge government checks. Rees still pulling in a lot of money from her many business endeavors, too The Drummonds could easily live purely off of what the government is awarding them, but thanks to Rees success through the Food Network and her blog, the familys making plenty more. Mashed notes all the way back in 2010, Ree claimed she was making at least $1 million in ad revenue from her blog alone and that was well before her food show even began. While she wasnt an experienced blogger when she began, fans loved following her tales of life on the ranch, and eventually they also stayed for her comforting recipes. Ree is still pulling in tens of millions of visitors to her blog per month. The Pioneer Woman on Food Network pulls in a ton of income too, of course. And we cant forget that Rees best-selling cookbooks, highly-anticipated public appearances, and beautiful general store/restaurant (The Mercantile) are also major income-boosters. More recently, she and Ladd also embarked on a new creative venture and that was their eight-room hotel called The Boarding House. Both The Mercantile and The Boarding House are located in Pawhuska, as she wanted to give fans a taste of life in her hometown. And with room rates varying between $150 and $280 per night, theres no doubt she can add this to her long list of successful businesses. Check out The Cheat Sheet on Facebook! Prince George and Princess Charlotte might be two of the most adorable members of the British Royal Family, but at the end of the day, the little royals are just kids. Their parents, Prince William and Duchess Kate Middleton have been cautious about limiting their kids time in the spotlight so we only see them every now and again. However, as top-tier royals the prince, princess, and their little brother, Prince Louis are expected to do their duty. Do Prince George and Princess Charlotte already attend official royal events? Prince William with Prince George and Princess Charlotte | Chris Jackson/Getty Images Do Prince George and Princess Charlotte attend official royal events? The older prince and princess attend certain royal events on special occasions, but they certainly dont have the schedules that their parents and aunt and uncle have. Instead, the little royals attend things like royal weddings, and their great-grandmother, Queen Elizabeth IIs birthday celebration. Though Prince George attended church on Christmas in 2017, neither he nor Princess Charlotte attended service in 2018. Two services within the space of three hours was probably too much for them. This is completely normal considering the fact that Prince Harry wasnt seen at his first Christmas service until he was 7. Do Prince George and Princess Charlotte have royal duties? Right now, Prince George and Princess Charlottes only royal duties are attending school and having fun. Even when they do attend royal events, their nanny Maria Teresa Turrion Borrallo is always on hand to rescue them when things get too boring or too overwhelming. So far, Prince George and Princess Charlotte has been on a couple of official royal tours with their parents. As they get older, their duties will increase dramatically. Prince George will be educated on all he needs to know to be the future King of England and Princess Charlotte will likely be a full-time royal like her mother and aunt. As pre-teens and then as teens, the prince and princess will be expected to attend more and more charitable events, engage in walkabouts, and eventually take up causes. Princess Charlotte of Cambridge | Chris Jackson/Getty Images Will Princess Charlotte be able to have a regular job? Since she is not directly in line for the throne like her big brother, Princess Charlotte may be able to have a somewhat regular job one day. Though she will probably eventually settle in as a full-time role, she may be able to indulge her passions and hobbies with a career after she finishes university. After all, her mother Kate Middleton worked as a fashion buyer, her aunt, Meghan Markle was a Hollywood actress, and her great-aunt, Anne, Princess Royal was an Olympian equestrian. We cant wait to see what Princess Charlotte wants to do with her life. Does Prince George know hes going to be king? Prince William and Duchess Kate Middleton have decided to delay telling their son about his future. Prince William revealed, As far as we are concerned within our family unit, we are a normal family. I love my children in the same way any father does, and I hope George loves me the same way any son does to his father. We are very normal in that sense. Therell be a time and a place to bring George up and understand how he fits in, in the world. But right now its just a case of keeping a secure, stable environment around him and showing as much love as I can as a father. Check out The Cheat Sheet on Facebook! Before things got serious with Prince Harry, Meghan Markle had a fairly active online presence. Like most celebrities, the former actress once shared her travels and nights out with friends on her Instagram page. But, that wasnt the only way she stayed connected with her fanbase. In addition to social media, Meghan Markle also had her own lifestyle blog called The Tig. Meghan Markles lifestyle blog Meghan Markle once ran a lifestyle blog called The Tig. |Chris Jackson-Pool/Getty Images According to the websites about section, The Tig was a hub for the discerning palate those with a hunger for food, travel, fashion [and] beauty. Through her online platform, Meghan Markle shared her favorite recipes, messages from her famous friends including Serena Williams as well as the duchesss go-to travel and beauty tips. But, when Meghan met Harry, her beloved blog soon went straight to the archives. In the early months of their relationship, the former actress continued to post on The Tig. But, as things progressed, she soon came to the conclusion to go offline. While sources close to the now royal initially said she decided to leave The Tig behind in an effort to focus more on her career, we now know that wasnt the case. Shortly after parting ways with her readers, Meghan Markle also announced her final season of Suits and went dark on social media, too. Clearly, she was preparing for a new royal life (one that doesnt allow such connection to the public). | The Tig Meghan Markle might have closed off website access to readers, but she left behind a sentimental note for those loyal to her lifestyle blog: To all my Tig friends After close to three beautiful years on this adventure with you, its time to say goodbye to The Tig. What began as a passion project (my little engine that could) evolved into an amazing community of inspiration, support, fun and frivolity. Youve made my days brighter and filled this experience with so much joy. Keep finding those Tig moments of discovery, keep laughing and taking risks, and keep being the change you wish to see in the world. Above all, dont ever forget your worth as Ive told you time and time again: you, my sweet friend, you are enough. Thank you for everything. Choosing to remove take down her website was an effort to comply with the queens royal rules. But, as we have seen over and over again, Meghan Markles royal lifestyle often goes against Her Majestys rulebook. Could there come a time when the Duchess of Sussex revisits her old so-called passion project? Will Meghan Markle bring back her lifestyle blog? While some royal family members including Princess Eugenie have social media accounts, its highly unlikely that Meghan Markle could return to the online space. And, if she does, it most likely wont be to share her thoughts, tips, and favorite recipes on The Tig. Meghan Markle started her lifestyle blog long before her royal status and, now, with the craze that follows her every move, she probably doesnt want to add fuel to the fire (though having a place to speak up on behalf of her now infamous royal feud would probably be nice). That said, never say never. With Prince Charless ascension closer than ever, a lot could change for the royal family. And, Meghan Markles father-in-law could see the potential benefit in connecting with royal fans via The Tig (though we wont count on it). Check out The Cheat Sheet on Facebook! Meghan Markle at Royal Ascot | Chris Jackson/Getty Images The entire world was in love with Princess Diana. Even more than two decades after her tragic death, she is still thought about and celebrated constantly. Her sons, Princes William and Harry, do everything that they possibly can in order to ensure that her legacy will never be forgotten, and as it turns out, Meghan Markle is doing just the same. How has Meghan Markle paid tribute to Princess Diana? In the short months since Meghan became Duchess of Sussex, she has paid tribute to her late mother in law Diana, on more than one occasion. It is no secret that as Harrys wife, Meghan has access to some of the most priceless jewels in the world. However, as a sweet and subtle nod to Princess Diana, Meghan has often been photographed wearing pieces that were close to her late mother-in-laws heart. What has Meghan been seen wearing? Meghan Markle wearing Princess Dianas ring | Steve Parsons-WPA Pool/Getty Images On her wedding day, after the ceremony, as Meghan and Harry were on their way to the private reception, fans caught a glimpse of the bride wearing an aquamarine ring that once belonged to Princess Diana. The ring looked stunning on Meghans finger. At one point, before Harry presented her with a custom-designed diamond ring that features side stones from Dianas personal collection, fans speculated that he would use the aquamarine ring to propose. Diana acquired the 30-carat ring in 1996 and proudly wore it on many occasions. It hadnt been seen in years until Meghan Markle lifted her hand and waved to cheering fans as she drove off with her new husband. What other pieces from Princess Diana has Meghan worn? Shortly after announcing her pregnancy, Meghan was seen wearing a pair of butterfly earrings that once belonged to Princess Diana. She also wore a gold bracelet that she inherited from Harrys mother and the two pieces accented each other beautifully. The same bracelet was seen on Meghans wrist during a performance of Cirque du Soleil, as it perfectly matched her stunning sparkly blue dress. How else has Meghan honored Diana? It is not only her amazing jewelry collection that honors Princess Diana. Meghan has worn outfits that have paid subtle tribute to her mother in law. The Duchess was recently photographed on an engagement with Harry showcasing her baby bump in a purple dress with a red coat that was seemingly a nod to an outfit that Diana once wore. The pale pink outfit that Meghan wore to Trooping the Colour closely resembled a pale pink gown that Diana wore to the Berlin opera house over 30 years ago. Are there any other ways that Meghan has paid homage to Diana? It hasnt been just once or twice that Meghan has honored the beloved mother of her husband. It seems that Meghan channels Dianas style every time she gets a chance, and fans absolutely adore her for it! Meghan attended her first Royal Ascot in an outfit similar to the one Diana wore at the same event. The elegant pantsuit that Meghan wore at the WellChild awards was extremely similar to one that Diana wore in 1990. Even the white shirt and torn jeans that Meghan wore to the Invictus Games before becoming a Royal was just like an outfit seen on Diana many years prior. It remains to be seen if Meghan will somehow pay tribute to Diana when she and Harry debut their new Royal baby to the world. Perhaps she will honor the grandmother of her child by wearing a special piece of jewelry, or a dress that closely resembles a design that Diana loved. Whatever she chooses, fans are sure that it will honor Diana in the most loving way possible! An officer responded to a residence on Chickamauga Road on a report of an intruder. The resident told police that someone was up in his attic. He said he locked them in the attic so they would not get out. Police checked the attic and found no one. Police came to the conclusion that the resident "was seeing things that was not there." Police assured the man again that "there was no one in the house but him and his cats." * * * An officer went to Hunt Avenue on a possible forced entry. The home owner's life alert device was activated for emergence help. Fire personnel did not get a responses from the front door. They gained entry through a bedroom window. Once inside the home no one was present. There was just a small brown dog. When the resident returned home he thought someone had broken into his house. Police explained what happened and everything was clear up. * * * Police were summoned on a theft from a motor vehicle at 307 Laws Ave. Upon arrival, police met with the complainant, who informed police that both his vehicles were opened and some items were stolen out of one of them. He said both vehicles were left unlocked, and that his wife's work bag, shoes, and some miscellaneous luggage items were taken from his 2012 White Chevy Suburban. He estimated that total value stolen was approximately $1,075. No suspect information is available. * * * There was a shoplifting call to Mapco at 1221 E Main St. The cashier said a black female took several items while her back was turned retrieving cigarettes that the suspect requested. The thief took four 16-ounce Mayfield fruit punch juice worth $6, one Sunkist strawberry worth $1.79, two Little Debbie Be My Valentine cakes worth $2.58, one Swiss Cake Roll worth $1.29, five Lady Jumbo Bucks scratch off tickets worth $15 total, and six Halloween-themed Jumbo Bucks scratch offs worth $18 total. The suspect left with a black male in a Nissan Armada . The vehicle is registered to an address in the Westside Housing Project. * * * Another shoplifting was at Speedway at 1330 E 3rd St. An employee said a black male wearing a flannel shirt and blue jeans came into the store and grabbed two cases of beer that were $20 each. He then then ran out the door without paying. Officers searched the area, but were unable to locate the suspect. * * * Police reviewed video taken at 3 a.m. related to a vandalism at 2300 Wilson St. A black male was seen walking through property of the Bayberry Apartments. The suspect tried avoiding the cameras. He walked up to a vehicle and cut both tires on the driver side. He then walked over to the passenger side and threw a rock into the windshield. Thee owner of the vehicle looked at the video and identified the culprit. He said it was retaliation. He said there was a prior incident in which his wife's vehicle was damaged while it was at the home of the man seen in the video. In that case, the tires on the wife's Chevrolet Tahoe were slashed. There was no video proof of who carried out the prior vandalism, police said. * * * The manager of IHOP on Brainerd Road said a customer entered the restaurant, at 10 49 p.m.. He only ordered a small item, and then made a deal with the waitress to get cash back. The customer said he would write a $400 tip to the waitress if she would give him back $300, keeping $100 for herself. Several days later, the customer's bank issued a charge-back for the bill, stating that the customer called the bank and stated his card had been used fraudulently. The bank was therefore charging IHOP for the $400 bill. According to the manager, the customer, actually called IHOP back and confirmed that he made the purchase, and that the entire charge was his. The complainant stated that this is not the first time a party with the same last name has done this in the area, as a nearly identical exchange was done recently at another store in the region by a man with the same last name. * * * The manager of the Mapco on Cummings Highway said while he was in the restroom a black male and white female came into the store and stole an entire rack of lighters and a case of beer. He said they fled the scene in a silver PT Cruiser. * * * A woman on E 32nd Street said she turned her vehicle on to warm it up before she left home. When returning she saw the vehicle driving away westbound from her home. The complainant could not give a description of the driver. The vehicle is a 2003 Chrysler Voyager minivan with damage to the front passenger side of the vehicle and a cracked windshield. * * * An anonymous caller said at Chao's Mongolian Grill on Brainerd Road a male had been in a verbal disorder with a customer. The report says, "The male was made to leave the restaurant. As a result, the male was made to leave the restaurant. In anger, the male began to urinate on customer's vehicles in the parking lot. No owners of the vehicles vandalized stayed to make a report, and/or press charges. I was able to make contact with the male walking in the Verizon Wireless parking lot. He was respectful and compliant, and, because of the totality of factors, he was given a warning." * * * An officer patrolling at 300 E Martin Luther King Blvd. spotted one of his "regulars." He stopped to check out the man, who has a history of public intoxication. and drinking in public at the same location. On contact it was found that he was drinking tea, that appeared to be beer at the time of the stop. The regular was released after the sobriety check. If you are currently a print subscriber but don't have an online account, select this option. You will need to use your 7 digit subscriber account number (with leading zeros) and your last name (in UPPERCASE). 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. remaining of Thank you for reading! This is your last free article before you will be asked to subscribe. Already have a paid subscription? Sign in news, act-politics Canberra Liberals leader Alistair Coe will lead the first ever delegation to China by an ACT opposition next month. Mr Coe said the self-funded delegation would look to strengthen Canberra's economic and cultural ties with the country during the trip to Beijing, Shanghai, Fuzhou and Xiamen. Mr Coe will be accompanied by Canberra Liberals deputy leader Nicole Lawder, Member for Yerrabi James Milligan and seven advisers. The delegation will focus on education, tourism, aviation, information technology and health, as well as developing relationships with provincial and municipal governments. The trip, from March 9 to March 16, comes as Canberra approaches 20 years of sister city relations with Beijing. Then chief minister Kate Carnell signed the sister city agreement with the Chinese capital in September 2000. "Our cities can learn a lot from each other," Mr Coe said. "There are already many Canberra businesses that have strong relationships with businesses in China. "Our education, technology, construction and tourism industries all have strong links to Chinese markets. "We have thousands of citizens, residents, students and visitors that come from China that contribute enormously to our city." /images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/d94b8177-26ad-4abe-ba4f-7f9e9820aa0f/r0_90_1728_1066_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg news, latest-news Detailed work on a new cemetery for Canberra is to start in the next few months. The ACT government has given the go-ahead for design and planning of a Southern Memorial Park to be built on Long Gully Road in south Canberra. It is to have 60,000 burial sites over the next century. A proposal was made as long ago as 2012 but the plans were then shelved. The proposal has now been resurrected and developed. The ACT government said the imminent first stage of the work will be on costings and the planning of "infrastructure and landscaping". The design will look at features including the entrance, road access, paths and parking, burial and memorial areas, fencing, building footprints for a main office, memorial halls and a works depot, as well as landscaping such as trees and shrub plantings," Minister for City Services Chris Steel said. The proposed Southern Memorial Park would provide interment services for the next 100 years and is essential for the growing Canberra community, providing an alternative to the Gungahlin Cemetery for the Southside. Woden Cemetery is now fully subscribed for new burials which is why we are building a new cemetery for the Southside to meet the needs for our growing city." He said the new cemetery would "also be designed to allow for a second crematorium for Canberra". The ACT Greens welcomed the go-ahead for the new cemetery but urged that it should allow "natural burials" where the body is buried so it can decompose easily in the earth. "A growing number of ACT residents are interested in returning to the earth in a natural and environmentally friendly way," the party's spokeswoman on planning in the legislative assembly, Caroline Le Couteur said. Sustainable alternatives to traditional burial or cremation include biodegradable coffins or shrouds as well as vertical burial. Natural burial methods have been operating successfully in other jurisdictions for many years." A private company is already planning the crematorium. InvoCare operates funeral homes, cemeteries and crematoria around Australia, New Zealand and Singapore under the better-known brand names, White Lady Funerals, Simplicity Funerals, Value Cremations and more than 30 other brands across Australia, including Tobin Brothers in Canberra and Queanbeyan. It's being represented by Purdon Planning which also worked on the plans for the Southern Memorial Park in 2009. The company's general manager, Richard Nash, told The Canberra Times, "Purdon Planning are working with the project team and are still finalising components of the design. The project is progressing with Stage One designs currently being finalized for the crematoria and shared services. Further community consultation will take place prior to the Development Application which is to be lodged later in 2019." Burial space on the south side of Canberra is expected to run out soon with the cemetery at Woden filling up quickly. The ACT government was considering expanding it but dropped the plan due to the second stage of light rail. The severe shortage of space and the competition for land between private developers of lucrative housing projects and public uses like cemeteries has prompted a debate about whether graves should be offered in perpetuity rather than leasing them to bereaved families for a limited time. The Catholic Church has opposed the idea of leasing plots for graves. In a consultation on a new site in southern Canberra, Father Julian Wellspring said, "Our belief is that the body is sacred and that once a person dies and is buried they rest in the grave until the day of resurrection. "The idea of disturbing a grave that we bless and make a sacred site for a burial is troubling to religious sensibilities." It's not clear which system the new cemetery will have. Mr Steel said, "The proposed Southern Memorial Park would provide interment services for the next 100 years and is essential for the growing Canberra community, providing an alternative to the Gungahlin Cemetery for the southside. Cemeteries are expensive to run because of the maintenance of the graves (in contrast to crematoria). It's not clear what the budget for the new cemetery will be. That detail is to be investigated by the ACT government in the coming months. /images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/b97677f5-61d2-4b1f-bb4e-08caede0e305/r0_95_2000_1225_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg comment There have been many comments, including by Commissioner Hayne, on the demeanour and responses of NAB's Ken Henry and Andrew Thorburn. I didn't see Thorburn's appearance so won't comment on that, but I saw Henry's and agree that he was arrogant. His comment that "The capitalist model is that businesses have no responsibility other than to maximise profits for shareholders" has attracted particular criticism, but I believe that, as a statement of the actual legal position and as unpalatable as it is, what he said is the truth. I assume that Henry would agree that he meant "within the constraints of the law", though the banks' behaviour would belie that. Beyond very specific obligations such as warranty and fit-for-purpose, there is no general legal obligation to care about the effect of business actions on others. It is buyer, including society as a whole, beware. Maximising profits is the sole broad obligation under the social licence that society has given capitalism, especially with the neo-liberal amendments of the past few decades. It is essentially a licence in the second sense given in my Compact Oxford Dictionary of "freedom to behave without restraint". In response to the commission's report some, (including it seems the stockmarket) have expressed surprise that it did not recommend major legislative changes, such as prohibition of vertical integration. But perhaps Hayne judged that the legislative changes needed to protect society effectively go well beyond specific matters such as these and, indeed, beyond just the finance industry and that genuine reform would be so unpalatable to both major political parties that they would risk all the report's recommendations being thrown out. Chris Ansted, Garran I don't want the recommendations from the banking royal commission to become another pawn for those seeking power at either a political or business level. I propose a simple policy change to regulate the future role and business model of mortgage brokers. I suggest we continue to allow brokers to receive a paid commission by the bank who wins the loan agreement, whilst brokers also seek to find the best-value deal for their homeowner clients. My key amendment is that the commission period be restricted to a three-year maximum or for the life of a fixed-term loan. When this period ends, the commission the bank pays to the broker must stop. If the broker is able to negotiate a new loan that meets the homeowner's financial needs, than the broker's commission time period begins again. This model should ensure that mortgage brokers will continue to have to work for their bank commission by regularly obtaining the best home loan deal for their clients. Add some additional clauses to ensure that the broker must work for solely the benefit of their client and that they must expose the amount of commission received and my solution should provide a simple and workable tweak to the current system. Brendan Halloran, Wanniassa Hayne has spoken. Eloquently, bluntly, but with to-be-expected restraint in the interests of protecting Australia's international economic respectability and credibility. It is a time for the banking industry to reciprocate with humility and cultural renewal. Even if many of us won't be holding our breath that this will occur unless the boot of a determined regulator is on their collective throats. In contrast, the NAB top duo, Henry and Thorburn, seem to still not get it. The culture of the NBA, as with their ilk, is the problem, not the forensic probing as big and ego-bruising as it may be of the RC. NAB's greedy and unethical culture has been laid bare. A. Whiddett, Forrest Ross Gittins' expectation of a trickle-down effect from the Hayne royal commission is enthusiastic and infectious ("Hayne promises new start", February 6, p16). He believes that because "deregulation, privatisation and outsourcing is now seen to have ended badly", and because of recent revelations of "many businesses breaking the law while government regulatory bodies fail to bring them to justice ... the next term [of government] will see a tightening of the regulation of many industries besides financial services". That is refreshing hidden among the morass of conflicting assessments such as moderate, unintended consequences and ineffective. The movement Mr Gittins dreamed of continuing through other industries and holding them to account needs more than any slight momentum provided by Commissioner Kenneth Hayne's work. The royal commission was not self-generating. It was created, fuelled and driven by his colleagues with explosive additives from self-sacrificing whistle-blowers. Even with unrelenting delivery of this fuel, Mr Gittins faith that "all that's changed ... Life won't be the same for big business" is poorly based in history. G. Wilson, Macgregor Sometimes you can be smart. Trying to be too smart can cost you your job. Don't believe me? Ask NAB's outgoing leadership. Jeff Bradley, Isaacs Re the banks. Two [senior executives] down, six to go. John Howarth, Weston Do the bank royal commissioner, Kenneth Hayne, and Opposition leader, Bill Shorten use a bank? Do either of them have banking shares? If so, which bank or banks? In view of their criticism of the banking system would they recommend theirs? Dick Ashby, Numurkah, Vic While I can believe your editorial (February 7) is correct when it claims that Canberra is "seriously undersupplied with aged care beds", after perusing Gina Pinkus' letter on the same day, I wonder why we would wish for an increased supply of places which are underfunded, understaffed, subject to private profiteers and underskilled. I would add, "and so unattractive the majority of residents are unvisited!" The people who live in them never re-emerge to tell us how bad their experience has been. They die in a place which is foreign to them and often devoid of the tenderness they deserve. Instead of calling for our aged to disappear into these places, I would cry out for more community and professional support so they might die among us. They may die sooner but, for my part, I would not mind. Jill Sutton, Watson In mid-July 2018 we were innocently involved in a head-on collision. The paramedics assessed the evacuation priorities of this catastrophic situation and flew my wife to the Canberra Hospital by helicopter. Her heart stopped twice on the way. I was transported by ambulance and my heart also phased out twice in the Intensive Care Unit. Fortunately I remember nothing of the collision, or the frantic activities in the ICU. My stay after nearly four weeks in intensive care was followed by a six-week delirium, a very frightening experience. My stay in the hospital was 94 days and my wife, after some major bowel operations, was released a little earlier. Now that we are both alive and learning to live with some life-changing medical impositions we wish to let your readers know what outstanding service we received from the rescue team and the hospital staff. The treatment and care given to us was second to none and world class. We are fully aware that without the compassionate and professional service we would not be alive. H. R and J. Zimmermann, Greentrees, NSW The warning of former NSW Fire and Rescue commissioner Greg Mullins about the increasing threat we face from bushfires as a result of climate change should be required reading for every politician in this country. Mullins states that fire seasons are now longer and more severe, and "we are getting fires that are much harder to put out". Vivien Thomson, a farmer and firefighter, made very similar comments on January 26 and stated explicitly that we need to urgently phase out fossil fuels. At the risk of posing a rhetorical question, what's the matter with our political leaders when our firefighters give stark clear warnings and are ignored? The message is not new, and it's not hard to grasp. What is it about "urgently phase out fossil fuel" that they don't understand? Our leaders ignore the scientists on climate change, they ignore the pleas of our Pacific neighbours, and they ignore the first-hand experience of our very own firefighters; they ignore everyone except vested interests. They are selling off the welfare of the nation for personal gain and their friends in business. If another country posed a threat to us as great as that posed by climate change, we'd have the troops out in an instant. Any "leader" who cannot see where the real threats lie is a danger to the nation. In the meantime, our thanks go to all the courageous firefighters who pay a very heavy price for our leaders' inaction. Sue Wareham, Cook Shouldn't the ACT government be thanking (rather than disputing) structural engineer Mal Wilson for his alert over serious fire safety and structural issues at the Elara complex in Bruce and at least five other buildings ("ACT government warned design flaw left Canberra apartments at risk of fire", canberratimes.com.au, February 4)? A reminder about fire risks comes from 150 people who were recently forced to evacuate a Melbourne apartment complex after a fire spread up the side of the high-rise building, which firefighters say has combustible cladding similar to the material used on London's Grenfell Tower. Prevention is a pivotal aspect of the ACT Work Health and Safety Act 2011. Mr Wilson said the government should, at the very least, commission an independent audit into the buildings he had red-flagged. Surely prevention is a whole lot better than a disaster. Murray May, Cook Perhaps because nuclear weapons have never been stationed on Australian soil, President Trump's decision to cancel the Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty has here been passed over lightly. Yet at the time, the signing of the treaty in 1987 by Russian president Michael Gorbachev and US president Ronald Reagan was cause for much jubilation in Europe. It seemed to be a sign of a more rational handling of the problem of nuclear weapons, hitherto the province of the Mutually Assured Destruction doctrine, with its very appropriate acronym. Yet it is one thing to tear up a treaty, and another to reimpose stationing of nuclear weapons in allied countries. There was always strong groundswell resistance to the Cruise and Pershing missiles on European soil. In Britain there was the famous longstanding protest at Greenham Common, exclusively by women, who marched on the base from Wales initially in 1981 and maintained a continuous protest in tents around the base throughout the bitter winters with occasional active blockades, until the missiles were eventually withdrawn. There was also protest in Europe, where the missiles were seen as a danger that the superpowers were contemplating a nuclear war with Europe as the battleground. Though the military pact NATO will probably welcome European missiles, the populations and the governments of European countries today will be even more strongly opposed to US missiles than in the earlier days. Harry Davis, Campbell In his letter about petrol price gouging (February 7) Brian Bell raises an interesting point. But I fear that in converting from imperial to metric measures he got his conversion factors the wrong way around. Five cents per gallon (in 1968) converts to something a bit more than one cent per litre. That has now increased to 20-25 cents per litre, an increase of something over 2000 per cent. Definitely not a "remarkably steady" rate as Brian suggests. Roger Quarterman, Campbell Kerin Cox (Letters, February 7) argues that Australians would not want to give up New Year's Day if January 1 correctly became Australia Day. Most state and territories have local holidays, I think the one in the ACT is called Canberra Day. Holidays can come and go too. In Victoria Show Day disappeared a few decades ago but more recently the Friday before the AFL (men's) grand final was made a holiday. For Victoria Separation Day, when the colony of Victoria separated from the colony of NSW and not a holiday yet, is more important than Sydney's First Fleet Day. Mr Cox is confused about the summer season as it ends on the last day of February, not at the end of January. Adrian Jackson, Middle Park, Vic Further to Jochen Zeil's letter (January 25), and the many earlier letters, I find it deeply disappointing that none of the proposed initiatives to address the water crisis in the Murray have adequately recognised the need for farms to better manage their water. P.A. Yeomans, Keyline Landscape Management (Water For Every Farm, 1973, revised by his son Ken, 2008 ) and Peter Andrews, Natural Systems Farming (Back From The Brink, 2006; and Beyond The Brink, 2008) have pioneered, globally, whole-ecosystem approaches to better conserve and manage water within landscapes. Until their (and other "landscape design/redesign") approaches are considered and implemented we will certainly experience a persistence of the water problems in the Murray (and our other waterways, both here and throughout the world). Emeritus Prof Stuart B. Hill, Linden, NSW Is it not ironic that Edward Teller, a Hungarian American physicist and "father" of the hydrogen bomb, was one of the first prominent people to raise the danger of global warming in 1957. Rod Matthews, Melbourne, Vic Email: letters.editor@canberratimes.com.au. Send from the message eld, not as an attached le. Fax: 6280 2282. Mail: Letters to the Editor, The Canberra Times, PO Box 7155, Canberra Mail Centre, ACT 2610. Keep your letter to 250 or fewer words. References to Canberra Times reports should include date and page number. Letters may be edited. Provide phone number and full home address (suburb only published). /images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/196d90ef-124e-4aea-b136-18651316b050/r0_118_2000_1248_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg news, latest-news The ACT's new chief police officer has echoed his predecessor's calls for nationally consistent laws to deal with the threats posed by outlaw motorcycle gangs. But ACT Attorney-General Gordon Ramsay says the government is "not the slightest bit interested" in introducing "ineffective" anti-consorting laws or criminal organisation control orders like those in other Australian jurisdictions, including NSW, Queensland and Victoria. The Canberra Liberals plan to introduce laws modelled on the NSW approach for a second time when the ACT Legislative Assembly sits this month. The retabling of the laws comes as the opposition's spokesman on attorney-general issues, Jeremy Hanson, warns innocent people will be caught in the crossfire if a string of violent offences linked to bikie gangs continues in Canberra. Three bullets were fired into a Kambah home with children inside on Monday morning in what police say was the latest targeted, bikie-related attack in the capital. Four outlaw motorcycle gangs are now active in Canberra, with the notorious European gang Satudarah the latest to set up in the capital. They join the Rebels, Nomads and Comancheros in vying for supremacy in Canberra, with the Finks having unsuccessfully tried to establish a local chapter last year. In a statement, new ACT chief police officer Ray Johnson followed predecessor Justine Saunders' lead in calling for nationally consistent legislation to deal with serious and organised crime. He said ACT Policing would continue to work with the territory government on appropriate powers to prevent, deter and prosecute organised crime. "However, it is important to note that no single power should be seen as a cure-all and serious and organised crime is not limited to openly identifiable criminal gangs, such as outlaw motorcycle gangs," Assistant Commissioner Johnson said. "ACT Policing will continue to proactively target, prosecute and disrupt those involved in serious and organised crime in the ACT, regardless of their individual affiliations." Despite the police calls for nationally consistent powers, which have been supported by the police union, the ACT opposition's latest attempt at legislative reform in relation to bikies appears set to be crushed by the territory government. Attorney-General Gordon Ramsay dismissed anti-consorting laws and criminal organisation control orders as ineffective and said the ACT government would continue to "work in other areas", including the establishment of ACT-specific laws that would see unexplained wealth stripped from criminal gang members. Mr Ramsay said he was working with his state and territory counterparts on other anti-bikie measures, but refused to detail those because he wanted to "stay one step ahead" of criminal gangs. He pointed to the findings of a review by the NSW Ombudsman into that state's anti-consorting laws, which found they had a disproportionate impact on groups including Aboriginal and homeless people. The review recommended the legislation be repealed. "They evidence is that [anti-consorting and criminal organisation control orders] are not effective laws," Mr Ramsay said. "Were not the slightest bit interested in providing legislation that isnt effective. "There is this sense that all you need to do is have anti-consorting laws and you don't get bikies working together, but outlaw motorcycle gangs are operating outside the law. That's their mentality." While the number of bikie gangs in the ACT has increased since the Rebels' stranglehold on Canberra slipped in late 2014, Mr Ramsay and Police Minister Mick Gentleman said the number of active gang members had not increased. "[Canberra's criminal gang members] are the same people. The advice to me is they're not new people," Mr Gentleman said. "What they're doing is patching over. We're seeing this change in allegiance from one gang to another, but the brief to me is that they are the same people." Both government ministers praised the work of ACT Policing's Taskforce Nemesis, which has arrested 29 outlaw motorcycle gang members in the past year, laying 78 charges and executing 101 search warrants. They also talked up the ACT government's role in funding the bikie-busting unit and providing police with new powers to secure crime scenes without a warrant to preserve evidence and the introduction of drive-by shooting laws. Mr Gentleman pointed to Taskforce Nemesis' results, including the recent arrests of two men police say are the president and acting president of the Satudarah gang's ACT chapter, as proof the territory was not soft on bikies. "Out of the number of criminal gang members we do have in the ACT, probably close to a quarter of them are now incarcerated," Mr Gentleman said. "That's quite a message, I think, to criminal gangs coming into Canberra. If you break the law, you will be arrested and charged." /images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/a758e2b5-38de-4008-9113-80e213c90d2b/r0_287_5472_3379_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg news, latest-news Transport Canberra is still not weighing ACTION bus drivers to ensure they comply with safe working limits, more than six months after the directorate said it was looking at ways to monitor drivers' weights. In August last year, a Transport Canberra spokesman said it was "working with other ACT government departments on systems and process for monitoring driver body weights". The comments came after The Canberra Times revealed concerns raised by two drivers that going to work was "like playing Russian roulette", because overweight drivers were damaging seats and creating a risk they could "bottom out" or collapse mid-trip. Comcare accepted liability for a back injury one of the drivers suffered when a seat he had raised concerns about failed during a test run he was directed to undertake in 2016. Transport Canberra requires drivers to weigh less than 130 kilograms so they comply with the manufacturer's specifications. Driver seats in ACTION buses can hold either 130 or 150 kilograms, but drivers are required to be below the lower limit so they can drive any bus in the fleet. Despite specifying the 130-kilogram limit as recently as Tuesday, when Transport Canberra launched its latest recruitment drive, the directorate does not know how many ACTION drivers don't comply with the weight limit. A Transport Canberra spokesman told the Sunday Canberra Times this week no staff, including bus drivers, were being weighed in the workplace. "Weight alone is not a determinate of a drivers suitability to continue duties," he said. The spokesman said Transport Canberra had put in place various initiatives to encourage a healthy lifestyle among staff, including a healthy-eating program and a survey on healthy-living support. He said there was also a driver-seat-replacement program, through which seats were replaced every four years. If issues were reported or detected sooner, seats could be reupholstered or replaced earlier. "Driver weight is a complex issue and there is currently no driving prohibition based solely on a set weight limit," the spokesman said. "Drivers must be medically fit to drive. Drivers are required to undertake medicals every 12 months. These are also required as part of a driver-licence-renewal process with the RTA which takes place every 24 months." The spokesman did not directly address a question asking whether a weight-monitoring program would be implemented. The Canberra Times has previously revealed ACTION Buses increased the weight limit for drivers by 10 kilograms in 2014. The limit changed from 120 kilograms to 130 kilograms the same weight as the safe working limit for the driver's seats installed in many public buses removing a buffer zone despite a warning that overloading the seats could be fatal. /images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/551ef825-a0af-41d4-9684-11f85ea1a08b/r22_0_1004_555_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg news, latest-news Parents say they are afraid to send their children to a Canberra school amid escalating violence between students, but their concerns have been ignored by the government for more than a year. In November, more than 30 parents signed a letter addressed to ACT Education Minister Yvette Berry calling for a government intervention at Theodore Primary. It detailed harrowing incidents at the school including a child who had been allegedly choked into unconsciousness on the playground and another student who had been cornered in a toilet and swung around by a broken arm. The incidents were alarmingly frequent and widespread, multiple families told The Canberra Times, but the school and the education directorate appeared to turn a blind eye to their severity despite complaints stretching back to 2017. Responses were often not followed through as promised or not disclosed and some parents had not been told about incidents at all, including those involving head injuries, families said. At least one child had been hospitalised with a concussion, another had mild scarring after being hit across the face with a heavy instrument and others had sought psychological support outside of school for anxiety, depression and copycat behavioural problems. Leann Manunui was one of at least six parents to pull her kids out of Theodore in recent months due to safety concerns. "This is not a bit of push and shove on the playground, this is 18 months of really shocking things happening and nothing being done, Ms Manunui said. Theres kids being hit over the head with stools, rocks and tree branches, hit in the face with rakes; little girls followed into the toilets by older boys and told to 'Suck their d---', kids coming home with bruises and they're just told to stay away from [certain] kids or be more resilient. Other families said they were "trapped" at Theodore, knocked back from nearby schools due to zoning and enrolment pressures. They now dropped their children off each morning with dread. All parents spoken to said there were some great teachers at the school who were deeply concerned for their children, but they did not appear to have the support they needed. Emma Warwick's son was hospitalised last year after he was thrown against a brick wall and punched in the head by another student, and she has since moved her children across the border to a school in NSW. "I'm sure a lot of parents are really happy there...There's always been some incidents at Theodore [like] any school, but it's the way it's handled now," she said. "I dont expect one on one supervision in the playground and I completely understand you [shouldn't always just] suspend a child at home but ... those kids need more support, I feel for them, the teachers need more support." Ms Manunui said the school was a great community, which proudly catered to students with complex needs, but it did not appear to have enough staff to watch over students during recess and lunch. Despite some improvements to playground supervision last year, she said children were still being hurt. If anything it's getting worse, parents have ended up coming down to help keep an eye out, she said. While it is understood the school had developed a plan for the school toilets, after a number of students were followed into cubicles and assaulted, incidents had continued and some children were now afraid to use the bathroom. The ACT education directorate said the school was well resourced to meet the needs of all its students and had been putting plans in place to respond to incidents. This month, the directorate began ramping up its own specialist support for the school. Though its behavioural experts have already been helping Theodore Primary, like all schools, with some individual students, The Canberra Times understands a direct intervention has not taken place. "An occupational therapist has undertaken an assessment of the playground activity to boost the schools focus on strengthening positive student behaviour, a spokeswoman said. She did not answer questions on what procedures the school had put in place, why the directorate was only now ramping up its support, or if all incidents at the school had been reported appropriately. "Schools always need to balance giving families confidence action is being taken on incidents and protecting the confidentiality of other students," the spokeswoman said. In May 2018, responding to a complaint Mrs Warwick made following her son's hospitalisation, the directorate said it had reviewed Theodore Primary's behavioural management practices and was satisfied the school was following student safety procedures. "[The current safety policy] is intended as a benchmark for schools ... rather than a covenant," it said. "Principals ... have the authority to respond to student incidents on a case-by-case basis." Last Friday, the directorate clarified the policy was a requirement, not just a benchmark, and all schools had a duty of care. A spokeswoman did not provide detail about how such standards were enforced. Theodore school board chair Alison Yialeloglou also backed the school's leadership, saying a new year and a new configuration of staff would help improve things. "In 2018 several changes to the school playground layout, end of year staff movements and strong enrolments have seen some students and their families struggle with the transition of this change," she said. "Strategies to address these difficulties have been explored and developed by the principal and the school board that will be rolled out over the coming months." But parents said there had already been a number of fights and injuries at the school in its first week back, including a knock to the head. "My son has been vomiting before school, he's so stressed, they make us promises but it keeps happening," one parent, who did not want to be identified, said. "I'm terrified ... And [some of] the kids are falling so far behind in their learning." Last year, some families had pulled their kids out of school for up to weeks at a time due to violence. The Education Minister declined to comment but a spokeswoman said she was aware of the situation and the directorate was investigating. Following the letter from parents in early November, Ms Berry's office rang Ms Manunui for more information and it is understood the directorate sat down with the school the same month to discuss the incidents. A few weeks later, Theodore Primary sent home an email acknowledging there had been "incidents over time where some students have behaved inappropriately towards fellow students". Senior students had been reminded that hitting, kicking, punching and swearing at other students is not acceptable, the email read. We have additional staff on duty at recess and lunch to monitor students at play. We will continue to manage any further incidents through our usual processes of restorative conversations, mediation, time out and follow up conversations with students and families. The same month, it is understood the school briefly banned recess and lunch for senior students due to fighting. Parents were also notified when a child brought a knife to school in October. Some families whose children had been punched repeatedly in the head, kicked in the stomach or otherwise hurt in the past 12 months at school said that, when they had asked for incident reports, the school was often unable to produce them. Mrs Warwick said her son's head injury had not been reported by the school for four days despite an ambulance being called. "I had to kick up a stink just to get them to do it," she said. In that instance, the directorate told Mrs Warwick the school had correctly followed reporting procedure. Michelle Moir, who moved from Googong in December so she could send her children to school over the border, said when she requested reports on nine separate occasions that her son had been hurt at school, she was only handed three. "My hair was falling out from [the stress], the place is like a detention centre," Ms Moir said. "My son would come home just black and blue after being bashed up, he'd be punched in the back, in the stomach, in the private parts, my daughter was punched in the face repeatedly and kicked." Ms Moir sought psychological support for her son, who would wake up screaming at night and often fell ill with anxiety. The social worker at the hospital couldnt believe it when I told her what was happening. Now in his new school, hes back to being a normal kid, hes made friends easily, hes happy. "But I'm praying for those kids every day ... the school needs help." Following questions from The Canberra Times, the directorate began calling parents at the school on Friday asking how students were going in their first week back. While Theodore Primary underwent an improvement review by the directorate last year, it is understood reviewers focussed on teaching and learning and did not look at violence or specific incidents. The school is in its second year rolling out a new system-wide positive behaviour model, which is based on international approaches linked to reduced rates of violence in schools. The directorate said the program was already showing remarkable results in some ACT schools and would help standardise incident responses, but was expected to take five years to fully embed in a school. Theodore Primary is not the only school experiencing difficulties with violence. In its latest annual report, the directorate reported 1660 student incidents in public schools, though that number does not capture all incidents reported to the directorate. Non-government schools in the ACT are only required to report critical incidents, such as a natural disaster, terrorist attack or bomb threat, to the government. Catholic schools report incidents above a certain threshold to the Catholic Education Office. The ACT government is also rolling out sweeping reforms to reduce occupational violence in schools and increase reporting, amid action from WorkSafe ACT and pressure from the union for action on teacher assaults. Know more? Get in touch: sherryn.groch@canberratimes.com.au Students asked to 'name names' on bullying Minister told about violence concerns at ACT school more than a year ago Tears in assembly as push for inquiry into school violence fails /images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/ad06d171-d6cc-4014-a0fc-b0e61837cccf/r0_269_5000_3094_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg CAMEROUN :: President Maurice KAMTOs message on the occasion of the celebration of the National Youth Day :: CAMEROON My dear young compatriots, I address you today on the occasion of the celebration of the National Youth Day from the back of my makeshift jail cell located in the Special Operations Group of Yaounde where I have been detained, for 14 days, in an illegal and totally arbitrary way, as well as several citizens who accompany me in our struggle for a better Cameroon. As you know, the fight for freedom has never been without obstacles. The history of our continent, and more particularly that of our country, is replete with figures whose commitment to just causes has often been at the risk of their own lives. Our incarceration at the GSO, at the State Secretariat for Defence, at the Mobile Intervention Group, at the direction of the judicial police, and the provisional detention of some of our comrades at Kondengui Central Prison, in flagrant violation of all the rules of procedure, should not arouse in you fear and anguish, but strengthen your conviction that it is necessary that the forces of change, from the entire nation, rise up against the degrading power determined to drag our country towards insignificance, uncertainty and total disintegration. Indeed, this situation is far from strange considering the context of our country where we have witnessed for many years the systematic privation, or even the privatisation, of public freedoms to the benefit of the maintenance of a political regime whose political, socio-economic and security record is a disaster. On the political front, the consensual reform of the electoral system, which is an imperative for the balance of democratic competition, has been proposed with the aim of settling incongruities such as the maintenance of the electoral majority at 20 years while the we are criminally responsible at the age of 18. It is really denying most of the population of our country its ability to make an informed political choice. It is as if, for the illegitimate power of Yaounde, the maintenance of the status quo marked by an Electoral Commission and a Constitutional Council designed to remain instruments of conservation of power is more important than the balance of the political game, the only guarantee of a lasting peace. Similarly, the absence of a strong reaction following the withdrawal from Cameroon of the organisation of the African Cup of Nations, unfortunately assimilated to a simple "date shift" by the one who made the commitment to hold it on the "stated day", is the proof that Mr Biyas regime is a victim of a lack of momentum that is detrimental to the proper functioning of the institutions. On the economic front, the failure of the Growth and Employment Strategic Document, originally presented as a compass towards the emergence of our country, is further proof of the inability of the CPDM regime to provide solutions to problems faced by Cameroonians. The introduction of a 2015-2018 Triennial Emergency Plan, a Special Youth Triennial Plan, the Humanitarian Emergency Plan is a sign of an inability to strategic planning, or even an economic governance through permanent tinkering. On the security front, the legendary neglect and contempt of Mr Biya's regime vis-a-vis the northern regions, whose populations are considered as mere stooges, has fostered the emergence of crises, including the spread of the Boko Haram terrorist threat. While it is necessary to salute the heroic action of our defence forces in the fight against this threat, intellectual honesty would emphasise the inconsistent use of the financial and material resources made available for this purpose. This not only jeopardises the military cooperation between Cameroon and strategic partners such as the United States, but also undermines the credibility of our country as a key player in the fight against insecurity in the Sahel-Sahara region. Moreover, the phenomenon of hostage taking in the Adamawa, long stressed by many alerts, has finally taken a worrying scale, thus creating another front of insecurity. What about the crisis in the North-West and South-West regions that the military option chosen by the Yaounde government, to the detriment of the organisation of the inclusive dialogue regularly proposed by the forces of change and the CRM, is still unable to resolve? It arises as a resounding failure with regard to the radicalisation of the actors and the diversification of the fronts. The numerous consequences of the crisis on the employment of the populations, in particular the young people, and on the stability of the economic activities, school and university of the two regions demonstrate, besides the increasing number of victims, that the resolution by the arms of an eminently political problem inevitably leads to an impasse. Dear young compatriots, This gloomy picture of the situation in our country reflects the daily race towards uncertainty where the CPDM regime leads us. This is the reason why we decided to implement the continuity of the National Resistance Plan, with the marches of 26th January being a crucial step. The plan is based on three main axes, namely: a) Expressing our indignation at the refusal to adopt inclusive dialogue as a prior option for crisis resolution in the North-West and South-West regions; b) Outrage at the irresponsible management of the failed AFCON scandal of 2019; c) Indignation following the electoral hold-up of the last presidential election. The brutal, unexplainable and unjustified reaction of the power to peaceful demonstrations conducted in strict compliance with the constitution and international conventions of which our country is a party, informs on the dangerous turn taken by those who conceal their hatred of democracy and civil liberties under the mask of the maintenance of public order. It is important for you, my young compatriots, to remain vigilant in the face of this desire to prevent the full expression of contradictory thinking in the Cameroonian public space. The illegitimate power uses various tools, one of the most fearsome of which is the agitation of passions based on identity stigmatisation. Remember, tribalism is the weapon used by those who have no arguments to defend the record of 36 years of corruption and widespread embezzlement. It is the weapon of those who want you to turn away from the numerous financial scandals related to the AFCON organisation, to the failure of the much-vaunted structuring projects, to the widespread misery among our population, at a time when they enjoy many privileges including quality care abroad at the expense of the taxpayer. In this regard, the CRM deplores and condemns with the utmost energy the irresponsible speech of a member of the government who took on him to stigmatise with an incredible violence an ethnic group, drawing a parallel with a sad page of humanity that was the genocide of the Jewish people. Very curiously, by a kind of selective indignation, another member of the government felt it necessary to dissociate himself from the remarks against the Jewish people, refraining from blaming those against a national community. Dear young people, never forget that competition for development cannot be between Cameroonians, but against other nations determined to preserve their interests to the detriment of ours. This is why the CRM has been firmly committed since its creation to the fight against tribalism and all other forms of discrimination. As much as I am for the free expression of political ideas, if necessary through public demonstrations, as much I object to any act of vandalism of buildings, goods and national emblems wherever they are. This is an opportunity for me to condemn, again, the violation of our diplomatic representations abroad. I appeal to all young Cameroonians to remain mobilised for the defence of their fundamental rights and freedoms, and urge them to take advantage of this day of 11th February 2019 not for festivities whose purpose is to distract them, but to devote an in-depth meditative reflection to the future of our dear and beautiful country. Long live Cameroonian youth, long live Cameroon. Maurice KAMTO, President-elect of Cameroon. Yaounde, 10th february 2019. BANGKOK, Feb 10: The Thai political party that nominated a princess as its candidate for prime minister could be banned from a general election in March after an activist said on Sunday he would file a petition seeking its dissolution. Thailands Election Commission is to meet on Monday to consider the candidacy of Princess Ubolratana Rajakanya Sirivadhana Barnavadi, 67, who stunned the nation on Friday when she said she would be the prime ministerial candidate for a populist party loyal to ousted ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra. Her announcement drew a swift rebuke from King Maha Vajiralongkorn, the princesss younger brother, who issued a statement hours later saying it was inappropriate for members of the royal family to enter politics. The March 24 election is the first since a military coup in 2014 toppled an elected pro-Thaksin government. The current junta leader, Prayuth Chan-ocha, is also contesting the race for prime minister, as the candidate of a pro-military party. The nomination of the kings elder sister, who has starred in soap operas and an action movie and gave up her royal titles after marrying an American, was a shocking move by forces loyal to Thaksin, who face an uphill battle in the election. The Election Commission has until Friday to rule on the princesss candidacy. It is unlikely its members would disregard the wishes of the king, who while a constitutional monarch, is considered semi-divine in Thai society. On Sunday, an activist said he would file a petition to disqualify the Thai Raksa Chart party, which nominated the princess. The royal announcement made it clear that the party violated electoral law, Srisuwan Janya, secretary-general of the Association for the Protection of the Constitution, told Reuters. Srisuwan said his complaint to the Election Commission would ask it to recommend that a Constitutional Court dissolve the party. Thai Raksa Charts executive chairman Chaturon Chaisaeng declined to comment on the request to disband it. The party said it would accept the kings message and move forward into the election arena to solve problems for the country. The royal family has a long-standing tradition of staying out of politics, and electoral law forbids parties from using the monarchy in campaigns. Parties loyal to former telecommunications tycoon Thaksin have defeated pro-establishment parties to win every election since 2001, but every time have been removed by court rulings or coups. The gambit to nominate a member of the royal family could backfire on Thai Raksa Chart, said Titipol Phakdeewanich, dean of the faculty of political science at Ubon Ratchathani University. Things are now more unpredictable, Titipol told Reuters. If the party is dissolved, it could give more seats to anti-Thaksin affiliated parties like the pro-junta, Phalang Pracharat and progressive Future Forward party, he said. Thaksin, who was ousted in a 2006 coup, lives in self-imposed exile after being convicted of corruption in absentia. He responded to the events on Twitter late on Saturday telling supporters to keep moving forward and learn from past experiences but live for today and the future. History-Making Chinese Spacecraft Spotted by NASAs Moon Orbiter By Tang Ziyi / Feb 07, 2019 05:12 PM / World Chinese spacecraft Change 4 made history when it became the first manmade vessel to land on the far side of the moon earlier this month. Now, its feat has been recorded for posterity as tiny bright speck on a photograph by rival space program NASAs Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. Change 4, part of Chinas ambitious plan to become a major space power by 2030, is composed of two parts: a lander, which powered the journey to the moon, and a rover, which detached from the lander after impact to explore the moons surface. "Because LRO was 330 kilometers (205 miles) to the east of the landing site, the Chang'e 4 lander is only about two pixels across," said NASA members in a statement released on Thursday. In the photograph, the lander can be seen at its landing site in the Moons Von Karman crater. Chang'e 4's rover is too small to be detectable. Related: Five Things to Know About Chinas Bid to Land on the Far Side of the Moon The country's largest telecom firm Vodafone Idea is planning to invest around Rs 20,000 crore in networks over the next 15 months, according to company officials. "We have given capex of Rs 270 billion for financial year 2019 and financial year 2020, combined together. Out of that, roughly Rs 70 billion has been spent in first nine months. In next 15 months we are looking at capex deployment of Rs 200 billion," Vodafone Chief Financial Officer Akshaya Moondra told analysts in a tele-conference. The company is also planning to raise Rs 25,000 crore through rights issue, in which the promoter shareholders -- Vodafone Group and Aditya Birla Group -- have reiterated to the board that they intend to contribute up to Rs 11,000 crore and Rs 7,250 crore, respectively as part of such rights issue. The promoter shareholders have also said that in case the rights issue is under-subscribed, each of the promoter shareholders reserves the right to subscribe to part or whole of the unsubscribed portion. Moondra told analysts that the capex guidance of Rs 27,000 crore does not include capacity that will be created by reusing equipment from the synergy of operations between Vodafone and Idea, which is estimated to be valued at around Rs 6,200 crore. When contacted, Vodafone Idea confirmed investment details and said "capacity creation on account of consolidation of spectrum is over and above capacity creation with the above two categories of fresh capex and redeployed equipment". The death toll in the hooch tragedy that hit two adjoining districts in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh rose to at least 61 with more people dying of the spurious liquor they drank at a Haridwar village, officials said. Officials fear the number could rise as the viscera examination on 20 more bodies is yet to be conducted to find out if these too were alcohol-related deaths. Twenty-five of the victims died in Balupur and its neighbouring villages in Uttarakhand's Haridwar district, state's Additional Director General (Law and Order) Ashok Kumar said. According to an Uttar Pradesh government statement released in the evening in Lucknow, 36 died in Saharanpur district which adjoins Uttarakhand. The Saharanpur victims had returned home to their villages in the district after drinking the spurious liquor in Balupur on Thursday night. Earlier in the day, Saharanpur officials had said 46 people from the district died due to the consumption of spurious liquor 35 in the district itself and 11 more at a Meerut hospital to which they had been referred. In addition, the viscera examination on 11 others was yet to be performed, officials had then said. In the evening, however, the district authorities said while liquor poisoning had been confirmed as the cause of death of 36 people, the viscera test needed to be performed on 20 more bodies. The viscera examination is in addition to the routine post-mortem. In Uttarakhand, about 15 people are still under treatment. Most of the victims had consumed the liquor Thursday evening after the `tehravin', the 13th day of mourning ritual, following a relative's death in Balupur, officials said. Uttar Pradesh police, however, added that a Saharanpur district resident may have brought 30 pouches of the same liquor from Uttarakhand for sale back home. This may have led to more casualties, an official said, but the investigation into this is still on. Both states have suspended administration and police officials for alleged negligence and ordered probes. They have also announced ex-gratia compensation of Rs 2 lakh each for the families of those killed. Earlier, Saharanpur district magistrate Alok Pandey said people from Nangal and adjoining villages in his district had started falling ill when they returned home from Balupur. Many of them were not immediately admitted to hospital as the area was hit by rain and a hailstorm, he said. Up to late Friday night, 16 people had died in Haridwar and 18 more in Saharanpur. By Saturday afternoon, the combined death toll had risen sharply. In an unrelated incident, nine people have died over the week in eastern Uttar Pradesh's Kushinagar district, allegedly after drinking spurious liquor. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has ordered departmental action against district excise officers of Kushinagar and Saharanpur, the state government said. Four Saharanpur excise officials have been suspended. In Uttarakhand, 13 excise department personnel and four policemen have been placed under suspension. Ten policemen were suspended Friday in Uttar Pradesh. Both states announced drives to curb the sale of spurious liquor. In a fortnight-long drive begun Friday, the UP authorities have so far registered 297 cases after raids, arresting 175 people. Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan will meet IMF chief Christine Lagarde in Dubai on Sunday to discuss the conditions of the bailout package for his cash-strapped country. Khan is paying a day-long trip to the UAE to take part in the 7th edition of the World Government Summit on the invitation of Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE Sheikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum. Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry told Dawn newspaper that the premier will meet Lagarde on the sidelines of the World Government Summit in Dubai. The report quoted a senior official involved in the negotiations as saying that Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have narrowed their positions on the scale of adjustments over the past few weeks of continuous engagements. ALSO READ:Pakistan to earn millions by exporting donkeys to China The IMF is asking for an adjustment of around Rs 1,600-2,000 billion over three to four years. It also wants some corrective measures to put Pakistan's economy on the right track after witnessing the highest-ever current account deficit. But the stumbling issue in the talks is the pace of adjustments in the current expenditure. The emphasis on current expenditures comes as a result of a focus on what is known as a "primary balance" in the parlance of public finance. According to the official, there is some space for cut in certain expenditures where Pakistan is in a comfortable position. "This agreement in cut will pave way for accession to the programme," the official claimed, adding that it will be a politically difficult decision. A cut in the current expenditures still seems to put the government in awkward position by making adjustments in subsidies and other special grants. The IMF has been demanding that the burden of any expenditure cuts should fall on current expenditures that include debt service, defence and subsidies. Finance Division's Spokesperson Khaqan Najeeb said that productive dialogue continued with the IMF on all areas including fiscal, energy, structural reforms and monetary policy. The two sides continue to exchange views on data and a reform framework to move forward. Discussions are part of a regular ongoing interaction between the government and the IMF and will continue in coming weeks, Najeeb said. ALSO READ:China sanctions $2.5 billion loan to boost Pakistan's forex reserves "In addition, technical level subject-specific discussions also support the process of overall dialogue," he said. The IMF has also asked for further monetary tightening as well as a complete free float of the exchange rate. "We are already towards target in these areas," the official said, adding that the IMF has acknowledged these measures. According to the official, Finance Minister Asad Umar has already conveyed to the IMF during the recent parleys that only those measures will be taken which are favourable for the country's economic growth. Although the government has secured a breathing space from Saudi Arabian and the UAE loans, an IMF programme is essential to unlock access to resources from other multilateral lenders like the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, as well as the global capital markets. Cash-strapped Pakistan has received USD 1 billion each from Saudi Arabia and the UAE, as part of the bailout package by the two Gulf nations to help shore up Islamabad's dwindling foreign currency reserves. Saudi Arabia's assistance was part of the USD 6 billion bailout package - USD 3 billion balance-of-payments support and another USD 3 billion in deferred payments on oil imports - which Riyadh had agreed in October last year. Pakistan, which is in talks with the IMF for a bailout package, has also reportedly received financial assistance from China. Earlier, officials said that Pakistan would seek around USD 8 billion from the IMF which would be the biggest package by the Fund for Islamabad. ALSO READ:Greater efforts will be needed to reduce fiscal deficit: IMF Before the end of last year, Vijay Mallya offered to pay back the loan he owes to Indian banks in full as a UK court was hearing a matter over his extradition. But recent findings by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) claim that the fugitive businessman decided to hold back substantial funds he had at his disposable even as his Kingfisher Airlines suffered due to debt in its name. The agency's probe showed that Mallya, United Breweries Holdings Ltd (UBHL) and others promoters of the now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines Limited (KAL) held shares of various public listed companies but did not use these instruments to clear the outstanding dues. Investigating under provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, ED found that Mallya and UBHL held shares worth Rs 3,847.45 crore, an IANS report said. As on August 12, 2016, Mallya on his own possessed Rs 1,773.49 crore in shares of UBHL, United Spirits, United Breweries and Mcdowell. Out of this, shares worth Rs 1,653 crore were pledged to UTI Investor Services, it further added. In its earlier investigations, the ED had reportedly found that Mallya had no intention of repaying the Rs 5,500 crore to an SBI-led consortium of banks even after they agreed to restructure the debt. Instead, Rs 3,516 crore was channelised through dummy companies as an unsecured loan to KAL by UBHL. Investment entities held pledged shares worth Rs 2,000 crore. The total value of unpledged shares held by investment entities is about Rs 1,800 crore which could be used to replay a third of the outstanding loan of KAL, IANS said in its report. Even in the case of pledged shares, a substantial amount could have been withdrawn as the outstanding loan against them amounted only to Rs 755 crore. These shares pledged to UTI Investor Services could not be sold either, as liability towards them had been cleared, even though lien was not removed. Investor services could not sell them as the transfer of these shares had been prohibited in the lien agreement. "These facts again indicate the intent of Vijay Mallya regarding non-payment of the dues to the consortium of banks. If he had the sincerity and willingness for repayment, he would have got possession of these shares and used these for repayment," ED said in its provisional attachment order. Earlier this week, Mallya's extradition to India was approved by the UK Home Secretary. However, the liquor baron still has a week to appeal against his extradition before the High Court, something he has decided to do. Furthermore, Mallya still has three more courts to appeal to before exhausting his options. The next court is the Crown Court from where it will lead to the Queen's Bench of High Court of Justice followed by the UK Supreme Court. So this is one extradition that is unlikely to happen in a hurry, if at all. No wonder the bank consortium wants to get a head starts on the r Imploring industry bodies to weed out "black sheeps" who give a bad name to the business community, Vice-President Venkaiah Naidu on Sunday asked various nations to reach a consensus to not provide shelter to fugitives involved in economic offences. "In the wake of the economic offences by some individuals, I implore industry bodies to weed out black sheeps who give a bad name to the business community," he said at "The Huddle," a thought conclave held by 'The Hindu' here. "Time also has come for various nations to arrive at a consensus in not providing shelter to economic fugitives," he added. These remarks come in the wake of industrialist Vijay Mallya's possible extradition to India from the United Kingdom. A UK court on December 10 last year had ordered extradition of Mallya, who is wanted in India for alleged fraud and money laundering involving an estimated Rs 9,000 crore. "It should be remembered that such economic offences pose a direct challenge to a nation's health and wealth," Naidu said. Voicing concern about the disruptions in the functioning of Parliament and legislatures, Naidu said the time has come for political parties to evolve a code of conduct for their MPs and MLAs and ensure effective functioning if these Houses have to fulfil the aspirations of people. "It is truly unfortunate that disorder and disruptions have become the order of the day," he said. He said he also felt that political parties should not resort to populist, impractical and short-term promises to win elections as the country's economy would suffer in the long-term due to unproductive schemes. "We need to empower people to stand on their feet, rather than making them increasingly dependent on governments," Naidu said. The vice-president said the delicate balance between the executive, legislature and judiciary should be maintained at all times and nobody should encroach into the domain of the other. "The wheels of democracy will run smoothly as long as each wing functions within its demarcated domain and not overstep into other's jurisdiction," he added. Naidu said the other major challenge the country needs to address on a war footing is the deficiencies in infrastructure development and the central government is already addressing the issue by building road and highway networks, developing ports and promoting regional air connectivity. The Public-Private Partnership projects have to be scaled up for accelerating the pace of infrastructure development and need to promote massive infrastructure projects for the country to compete with other countries, Naidu said. On the media scenario in India, he said some of the news stories are slanted to suit the views of the management and media outlets are being started for commercial and political considerations, not for providing pure and unadulterated news to the people. Mindless sensationalism and paid news are some of the concerns that media professionals themselves need to address, he added. Media associations should also come out with a code of conduct for journalists to ensure professional integrity, the vice-president said. ALSO READ:Will Vijay Mallya be extradited before or after general elections? PARIS (Reuters) - The City of Paris is suing Airbnb for publishing 1,000 illegal rentals adverts, which could cost the American rental website more than 12.5 million euros ($14 million), the mayor of Paris told a newspaper in an interview published on Sunday.Under French law, home owners in Paris can rent out their places on short-term rental platforms for up to 120 days in a year. Advertisements must include a registration number to help ensure properties are not rented out for longer.France passed a law in 2018 which makes companies such as Airbnb punishable by fines of 12,500 euros per ... The chances of Britain leaving the European Union next month without a deal have increased and the country has now entered "the emergency zone", the head of business lobby group the Confederation of British Industry told Sky news on Sunday. "It feels like the parliamentary process is in logjam, no way can be found through, so that prospect of no-deal feels much higher," CBI Director General Carolyn Fairbairn said. "We really are in the emergency zone of Brexit now." By Corina Pons and Marianna ParragaCARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela's state-run oil company PDVSA is telling customers of its joint ventures to deposit oil sales proceeds in an account recently opened at Russia's Gazprombank AO, according to sources and an internal document seen by Reuters on Saturday.PDVSA's move comes after the United States imposed tough, new financial sanctions on Jan. 28 aimed at blocking Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro's access to the country's oil revenue.Supporters of Venezuelan opposition leader and self-proclaimed interim president Juan Guaido said recently that a ... By Marianna Parraga and Deisy Buitrago(Reuters) - Venezuelan state-run oil company PDVSA is taking steps to remove at least two American executives from the board of directors of its U.S. refining subsidiary, Citgo Petroleum Corp, according to people close to the matter.Citgo is facing unprecedented challenges to its finances and management after the U.S. government last week imposed tough sanctions on Petroleos de Venezuela designed to prevent oil revenue from going to leftist President Nicolas Maduro. The United States and dozens of other nations have refused to recognize Maduro, viewing ... Former Union Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha Sunday claimed all the economical data, including the growth figures, are being "manipulated" by the BJP-led Central government to give a "false impression" of development. Delivering a lecture on 'State of the Nation and the way forward' here, Sinha, who had quit the BJP last year, referred to the recent resignation of two members of the National Statistical Commission and the issue of data's authenticity. "In 2017, I said that it was difficult to trust government data. I am telling you with all sense of responsibility that I can command, that this is the first government in India which is manipulating data. No government did this earlier. This government is doing it continuously. "All the current economical data are manipulated. The country is not growing at 7.5 per cent, it is not the fastest growing economy in the world. Own (NDA) data are revised upward and UPA's data were revised downward," he said. During demonetisation period also, data were "fudged" and the country's growth data was revised at 8.2 per cent, Sinha claimed. He mentioned about writing an article in September 2017 on the country's economical aspects, after which the government tried to deviate the topic by presenting it as a personal conflict between him and his son, who is also a minister in the Narendra Modi-government. "The Prime Minister brought in Mahabharata and said that some people are cunning and always spoke depressing things. But I said I would not deviate from the topic, would not make it personal issue between father-son and would continue to raise the actual matter. "Quoting Mahabharata, I said that only two brothers of Kauravas are known -- Duryodhan and Dusshashana. Nobody knows who is the third in Kauravas. At most, people talk about Shakuni Mama. Today, BJP's situation is like Kauravas -- nobody knows who is the third person," Sinha said without naming anyone. The former Union Minister attacked the Prime Minister several times without taking his name for a single time and said that he (PM) "does not believe in democracy". "The democracy is not only about numbers. The essence of democracy is about consensus. The days of Parliament sessions were decreasing, the PM does not sit in the House and he does not reach out to the opposition. The whole session wash out. Why?" he asked. Sinha also said that media is worst affected among all institutes during the present Central government with a "fear environment" everywhere. "Voices are not heard, it is suppressed. In Delhi, it is said that daily instructions go from BJP on what to publish or telecast. The biggest problem is that the fourth pillar of the democracy has just collapsed. It is playing a big role in weakening our democracy," he added. Talking about RBI's former Governor Urjit Patel's resignation, Sinha said: "I don't think the last word has been said about Patel's resignation. One day when it will be opened, the truth will shock everyone. I know some information, but I don't want to share it today with you because it may be termed an irresponsible statement." He also attacked the prime minister on his alleged unilateral style of functioning saying that the Home Minister, the Defence Minister, the Finance Minister or the External Affairs Minister are "never consulted" before any important decision. "Election Commission has also been influenced on occasions. It is not like that EVM cannot be hacked. We read that it malfunctions. If it malfunctions, then it can also be done manually. So why don't we calculate the paper trails of VVPAT? Parties are demanding that 50 per cent of paper trails be counted. I also don't understand why EC is so adamant," Sinha said. On announcing various schemes in the interim Union budget, the former Finance Minister said that the Constitution was "violated" by doing so. Stating that the CBI's credibility is at stake, Sinha said: "People in the country are disturbed. They are concerned with many issues. They are looking for a path of rescue. It is our duty to help people find that path. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) St Xavier's University Vice Chancellor Father Felix Raj has said the new university will never allow politics inside the campus to protect the academic atmosphere of the institution. "We have a tradition in St Xavier's.....we discouraged politics inside the campus to maintain the academic atmosphere," Raj told PTI here Friday on the sidelines of university foundation day programme. He was asked about students' agitation rocking many higher educational institutions in recent times but the St Xavier's having been freed from such activities. Observing the students and their parents are very much in favour of the stance of the St Xavier's management on this issue, he said, "if you allow politics, if you allow parties, if you allow all these things coming into the campus...there will be no academic atmosphere." Claiming students are not in favour of being divided, Raj said, "you ask students, they are not in favour of being divided." Raj, who had earlier been the Principal of St Xavier's College, was asked to comment on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and minister Partha Chatterjee having praised the St Xavier's College and St Xavier's University in recent times. He said, "the CM cited the St Xavier's example for discipline and for quality and suggested this type of students council be promoted in other institutions." "I urge to make the campus a sacred place, there cannot be agitation and violence inside the campus....we must forget all differences, keep our differences outside and focus on our academic research and studies so that quality cannot suffer....we have to protect our institution and maintain the academic atmosphere," he said. To another question, Raj said in another five year's time the new St Xavier's University will be able to "fully functionally well." He said while a sum of Rs 185 crore has already been spent for building and other facilities of the new institution, another Rs 160 crore would be used in the coming three years. Asked about the support of alumni, he said they have been very supportive. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Winter vacations in schools in Himachal Pradesh's state capital Shimla have been extended by two days after heavy snowfall, a district official said. The vacations in all primary and senior secondary schools have been extended by two days, Shimla district magistrate said. In its order issued Saturday, the magistrate said the schools in Shimla district would now reopen on February 13, instead of February 11. The decision to extend winter vacations has been taken in the interest of safety of the students as several roads are still blocked after heavy snowfall on February 7, it said adding that the work of clearing the roads is going on. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) At a function in a Mumbai film studio where "Pakeezah" was being shot, the then home minister Lal Bahadur Shastri failed to recognise Meena Kumari when she garlanded him and asked journalist Kuldip Nayar sitting near him who the woman was. Meena Kumari was at the height of her success as an actress when this incident took place. Shastri was invited to the shooting of "Pakeezah", in which Meena Kumari was the heroine. There was also much pressure from the Maharashtra chief minister to attend it and Shastri could not say no. This interesting account of Meena Kumari's encounter with Shastri on the film sets finds mention in Nayar's new book "On Leaders and Icons: From Jinnah to Modi", which he finished only weeks before he passed away last August. The function was attended by leading personalities from the cinema world. Many top actors were present. Meena Kumari garlanded Shastri. Amidst loud applause, Shastri asked me in his soft voice who the lady was. Meena Kumari, I said in amazement. Shastri expressed his ignorance. Yet never did I expect him to admit this in public, Nayar wrote. He, however, praised Shastri for his innocence and honesty. Shastri made a brief speech on the occasion. He began his speech with the remark, Meena Kumariji, mujhe maaf karna, maine aapka naam pahle dafa suna hai' (Meena Kumariji, please forgive me, I have heard your name for the first time). The legendary beauty of Hindi cinema, the darling of millions across the nation, was a figure of embarrassment and sat impassively in the front row, the book said. Shastri was given a tour of the film studio. For him, it was like going through a routine exercise. Shastri's speech made no comment about the sets or the film itself, Nayar wrote. In the iconic movie directed by Kamal Amrohi and released in 1972, Meena Kumari played the lead role of a golden-hearted nautch girl from Lucknow. Raaj Kumar, Ashok Kumar and Nadira were also in the film. In the book, published by Speaking Tiger, Nayar recounts his experiences of meeting many of the men and women who shaped the destiny of pre- and post-Independence India, revealing hitherto unknown aspects of their personalities and shedding light on many key events in the country. He also mentions about Faiz Ahmed Faiz's flawless recitation of his poetry even after consuming a full bottle of Black Dog whiskey. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) firm Sunday said it will invest over Rs 500 crore to set up a manufacturing facility in Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh. "This facility will initially manufacture and assemble air conditioners and related cooling products with a total capacity of more than 1 million units to start with," the company said in a BSE filing. said it aims to create technologically advanced products which are expected to start rolling out from the second half of 2020. The company plans to invest over Rs 500 crore while putting together an OEM (original equipment manufacturer) base for home appliances, and simultaneously creating local employment opportunities in the region. The manufacturing facility, spread over 65 acres, will be one of the first cooling appliances units in Andhra Pradesh. The choice of Andhra Pradesh as the destination for the new manufacturing unit was due to the state's ease of doing business and growing focus on 'Make in India', it said. The chosen location provides dual benefits of superior market access and cost-effective connectivity via road and port, it added. will cater to the south, west and east markets through this manufacturing facility. "We are delighted to have laid the ground for the Voltas manufacturing plant here in Tirupati. This facility helps us in expanding our manufacturing capabilities while increasing our reach in the Southern market," said Pradeep Bakshi, managing director and CEO, Voltas Ltd. Voltas, among the top ten within the Tata group, provides air conditioning and solutions. The country's largest telecom firm is planning to invest around Rs 20,000 crore in networks over the next 15 months, according to company officials. "We have given capex of Rs 270 billion for financial year 2019 and financial year 2020, combined together. Out of that, roughly Rs 70 billion has been spent in first nine months. In next 15 months we are looking at capex deployment of Rs 200 billion," Vodafone Chief Financial Officer Akshaya Moondra told analysts in a tele-conference. The company is also planning to raise Rs 25,000 crore through rights issue, in which the promoter shareholders -- Vodafone Group and Aditya Birla Group -- have reiterated to the board that they intend to contribute up to Rs 11,000 crore and Rs 7,250 crore, respectively, as part of such rights issue. The promoter shareholders have also said that in case the rights issue is under-subscribed, each of the promoter shareholders reserves the right to subscribe to part or whole of the unsubscribed portion. Moondra told analysts that the capex guidance of Rs 27,000 crore does not include capacity that will be created by reusing equipment from the synergy of operations between Vodafone and Idea, which is estimated to be valued at around Rs 6,200 crore. When contacted, confirmed investment details and said that "capacity creation on account of consolidation of spectrum is over and above capacity creation with the above two categories of fresh capex and redeployed equipment". Virginia's embattled lieutenant governor on Saturday called for authorities, including the FBI, to investigate sexual assault allegations made against him while defying widespread calls for his resignation with a plea for "space in this moment for due process." Democratic Lt Gov Justin Fairfax issued a statement repeating his strong denials that he had ever sexually assaulted anyone and made clear he does not intend to immediately resign, despite having lost almost his entire base of support. Meanwhile, Gov Ralph Northam pledged to work at healing the state's racial divide and made his first official appearance a week after a racist photo on his 1984 medical school yearbook page surfaced and he acknowledged wearing blackface in the 1980s. Northam has also defied calls from practically his entire party to step down. Saturday capped an astonishing week in Virginia that saw all three of the state's top elected officials embroiled in potentially career-ending scandals, and the state Democratic Party on the verge of collapse. Two women have accused Lt Gov Justin Fairfax of sexual assault. After the second allegation was made Friday, Fairfax the second African-American to ever win statewide office was barraged with demands to step down from top Democrats, including a number of presidential hopefuls and most of Virginia's congressional delegation. Northam now a year into his four-year term has told his top staff he's staying in office and said he wants to focus the rest of his term as governor on taking concrete steps toward increasing racial equality. In his first interview since the scandal erupted, a chastened Northam told The Washington Post on Saturday that the uproar has pushed him to confront the state's deep and lingering divisions over race, as well as his own insensitivity. But he said that reflection has convinced him that, by remaining in office, he can work to resolve them. "It's obvious from what happened this week that we still have a lot of work to do," Northam said in the interview, conducted at the Executive Mansion. "There are still some very deep wounds in Virginia, and especially in the area of equity." Northam said he planned to focus on addressing issues stemming from inequality, including improving access to health care, housing, and transportation. He also repeated his contention that he is not pictured in the photo on his yearbook page that shows someone in blackface standing alongside someone in a Ku Klux Klan hood and robe. But he could not explain how the photo wound up there, or why he initially had taken responsibility for it. "I overreacted," he said. "If I had it to do over again, I would step back and take a deep breath." On Saturday, Northam made his first official public appearance since he denied being in the photo, attending the funeral for a state trooper killed in a shootout. But he made no public comments upon arriving in Chilhowie, four hours west of the tumult in Richmond. The lieutenant governor did not make any public appearances Saturday and released his statement late in the day, after Republican state House Speaker Kirk Cox and the Democratic Party of Virginia joined a chorus of other calls for Fairfax to resign. Two women have made allegations against Fairfax. A lawyer for Meredith Watson, 39, said in a statement that Fairfax raped Watson 19 years ago while they were students at Duke University. Vanessa Tyson, a California college professor, said Fairfax forced her to perform oral sex on him at a Boston hotel in 2004. Fairfax has denied both allegations and on Saturday asked that "no one rush to judgment." "Our American values don't just work when it's convenient they must be applied at the most difficult of times," he said. Since the two allegations were made, many top Democrats running for president in 2020 have called for Fairfax's resignation, including Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts. Virginia's Democratic congressional delegation was split. Party elders Sen Mark Warner and Rep. Bobby Scott said Fairfax should resign if the allegations against him were true. Other congressional Democrats made unqualified calls for Fairfax to resign. The Virginia Black Legislative Caucus joined calls for Fairfax's departure. And a Democratic member of the state House, Del. Patrick Hope, said he intends to introduce articles of impeachment against Fairfax on Monday if Fairfax hasn't left by then. Hope is not a powerful figure in the House and there's little sign there's a broad appetite for impeachment with lawmakers set to finish this year's legislative session by the end of the month. Attorneys for Watson and Tyson released separate statements Saturday, saying their clients would be willing to testify at an impeachment hearing. "Ms Watson stands ready, although it will be painful, to tell the Virginia Legislature what Mr. Fairfax did to her when she was 20 years old," a statement released by Watson's attorney said. A statement released by Tyson's attorneys said: "We are confident that once the Virginia legislature hears Dr. Tyson's harrowing account of this sexual assault, the testimony of many corroborating witnesses, and evidence of his attempts to mislead the public about The Washington Post's decision not to run a story in 2018, it will conclude that he lacks the character, fitness and credibility to serve in any capacity. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The United States has shared with its UN Security Council allies a draft resolution calling for international aid to be delivered in Venezuela and for a presidential vote to take place. While no date has yet been set for a vote on the American draft, and negotiations are ongoing, Russia is likely to use its veto power to block it as part of its support of Nicolas Maduro's regime, diplomats said. The text, a copy of which was obtained by AFP on Saturday, expresses "full support for the National Assembly as the only democratically elected institution in Venezuela." The legislative body's chairman, Juan Guaido, has declared himself interim president of Venezuela, challenging Maduro's rule. The draft resolution stresses "deep concern with the violence and excessive use of force by Venezuelan security forces against unarmed, peaceful protesters." It also "calls for the immediate start of a political process leading to free, fair and credible presidential elections, with international electoral observation, in line with Venezuela's constitution." The text also requests that UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres "utilize his good offices" to obtain such elections. It also "stresses the need to prevent further deterioration of the humanitarian situation in Venezuela and to facilitate access and delivery of assistance to all in need in the entirety of the territory of Venezuela." On Friday, Moscow proposed an alternative text to the American one, diplomats said. Humanitarian aid sent by the United States recently arrived in the Colombian city of Cucuta at the border with Venezuela, but Maduro has refused to let in the shipments. Guaido said Friday he was ready to take any necessary measures, including authorizing a US military intervention, to force Maduro from power and alleviate the humanitarian crisis. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Enthused by the appointment of new leaders to steer them into the coming Lok Sabha election, Congressmen have planned a grand welcome to the party's general secretary in-charge of eastern Uttar Pradesh, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, and others when they arrive in the state capital on Monday. Congress workers, led by Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee (UPCC) chief Raj Babbar, have made elaborate arrangements to welcome their leaders, including Congress president Rahul Gandhi and in-charge of the state's western region, Jyotiraditya Scindia, who will accompany Priyanka Vadra as she makes her first public appearance in the state after her new assignment. The trio, who will arrive at the Lucknow airport, will pass through the main areas of the state capital to reach the Nehru Bhawan office of the UPCC. They will be welcomed by party workers and leaders at nearly 37 points in the city between the airport and the UPCC office, Congress spokesman Anshu Awasthi told PTI. Before reaching the Congress office, the Congress leaders are expected to garland the statues of Mahatma Gandhi and former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi on the route. Hoardings of Congress leaders, including Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Vadra, have been put up along the route they are proposed to take. Banners on the route read, "Waqt Hai Badlav Ka". Workers of Congress and its grassroots organisation Sewa Dal have been giving final touch to the preparations since early Sunday. Babbar held a meeting of Congress workers Saturday evening to review the preparations for the road show, which will also be attended by All India Mahila Congress chief Sushmita Dev and general secretary Anupama Rawat. Elaborate security arrangements have been made for the visit. Special Protection Group personnel, who provide security to the Gandhis, on Thursday visited the UPCC office, party sources said. The Congress is expecting the visit to become a virtual launch of its campaign in Uttar Pradesh, ahead of Lok Sabha elections due by May. Priyanka Vadra will meet leaders and office-bearers from 42 constituencies of Uttar Pradesh (East) during her visit till February 14. "Congress workers are excited about the visit of party leaders and we are awaiting to give them a rousing welcome... We hope that with her (Priyanka Vadra) joining active politics, the state will also get a new energy," chief state Congress spokesperson Rajiv Bakshi said. "This is a very auspicious time for us and a good omen for the party," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has warned of stern action against all those found involved in illicit liquor trade even if they were associated with any political party. "In past too such type of mischievous acts by SP leaders had come to fore. InAzamgarh, Hardoi Kanpur and Barabanki SP leaders were found to be involved in past hooch tragedies. We can't deny conspiracy this time too," Yogi said here on Saturday night He was responding to queries ofreporters after attending meeting with MPs and MLAs to review preparations for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP national president Amit Shah's visit on February 23 and 24 to attend 'Kisan Adhiveshan'. The CM said he had spoken to Chief Minister of Uttrakhand and asked for sharing details as the spurious liquor was served to natives of Uttar Pradesh in a Haridwar village where they had gone to attend a programme. "A racket of spurious liquor was being operated there in Uttrakhand therefore I have spoken to CM seeking details over it," he said. He said the action has been taken against excise officer, excise inspector, SHOs and beat constables in and Saharanpur and Kushinagar. Taking serious note of the deaths due to spurious liquor in Kushinagar as well as Saharanpur districts, the state government has ordered a 15-day joint drive by excise and police officials against those involved. The UP government has announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh for the next of kin of the deceased and help of Rs 50,000 each for those undergoing treatment in hospitals. Over 60 people have died in the hooch tragedy that hit two adjoining districts in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh with more people dying of the spurious liquor they drank at a Haridwar village, officials said. More than 20 victims died in Balupur and its neighbouring villages in Haridwar district and around 40 had died in UP's Saharanpur district. In an unrelated incident, nine people have died over the week in eastern Uttar Pradesh's Kushinagar district, allegedly after drinking spurious liquor. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Welcome Guest! You Are Here: Keen on expanding footprint to India, UK-based Susaimo International is in advanced talks with India's ASL Industries for manufacturing light-weight British designed tractor-trailers, its founder said Sunday. The company plans to foray into automative tractor-trailer manufacturing in India with initial estimates of 6,000 trailers a year, Susaimo International's Director and Founder Surya Kumar Singh, who has earlier served on key posts of Tata Steel Europe and British Steel, told PTI. Susaimo International is a registered company in England and Wales, specialising in consultancy in engineering and manufacturing. It is also engaged in products and process development in steel and aluminium, as well as global trading. "We are working on manufacturing of these advanced tractor trailers at Jamshedpur through a joint venture (JV) with ASL Industries. These trailers will be made as per flat pack model which can be easily transported to long distances and assembled locally in one-hour time. Light body weight will help to consume less fuel," Singh said. India at present manufactures nine lakh trailers a year but lacked several safety features and Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) had raised the issue with the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways to make safety features mandatory, he added. "The British Designed trailers will be light weight and strong with corrosion resistant body, and for road safety they will be equipped with tail and side lights and mechanical brakes at par with European trailers," Singh said. These safety features are mandatory in the western countries. "The project will be a boost to 'Make in India' drive as born in Azamgarh (UP), I am keen to contribute something to my country," Singh said. He also claims to have patent for corrosion resistant rebars. Asked about the investment in the venture, Singh, however, said that the investment figures will be finalised after detailed project report. ASL Industries is a Jamshedpur-based firm engaged in the business of manufacturing of forged products and press shop for sheet metal products that have varied applications and are used in various industries like railways and automobile. Its clients include Tata Motors and Indian Railways, among others. Apart from trailers, Singh is also eyeing manufacturing of high-end mattresses in association with a Haryana-based firm. "Susaimo international is in discussion with PlushPedic Mattresses- Mundka, Delhi to manufacture Luxury Burgess Mattresses - a British brand since 1927. These sprung Mattresses will have natural fibres fillings for sleeping comfort and no synthetic material like foam will be used. The special natural fibres will be imported from UK," he said. Both these ventures will generate employment in India, he said, adding that the mattresses will be exported to Middle East, Africa and neighbouring countries. "I am also exploring to export auto components from India to UK," he said. Singh said that he is in discussions with Indian Railway Board to incorporate high-end rail track technology to provide long life of tracks with added safety features to avoid track failures. He has also worked with Caparo Group-UK as Technology and Businesses Development Director. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Two women were killed and three others injured after their car overturned before hitting a divider in the Naujhil area here Sunday, police said. The incident took place in the morning at Kilometer No 61 on Yamuna Expressway under the Naujhil police station area, they said. The Bihar-bound car coming from Delhi overturned as it first dashed against the boundary of a drain and then a divider, resulting in death of two women and injuries to three others, police said. The deceased have been identified as Kiran Devi, 43, of Mahavir enclave Uttam Nagar, Delhi, and her aunt-in-law Gagia Devi, 85, of Bihar, they said. The injured were rushed to the Kailash Hospital, police said. The occupants of the car were going to Bihar to attend a marriage ceremony, they said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Two construction workers were killed allegedly by their colleague after an argument at Rupai in Tinsukia district, police said Sunday. According to Tinsukia Additional Superintendent of Police, Saurav Jyoti Saikia, the deceased were killed on Saturday evening by one of their colleagues with a machete after they fell apart over some issue. "They first had an argument during the afternoon. Later again in evening after work, the trio started arguing. At one point, one of them picked up a machete and attacked the other two, killing them on the spot," the ASP added. The attacker later surrendered in front of the police with the weapon of the crime, Saikia informed. The deceased have been identified as Idrish Seikh (30) and Seikh Mahammad (45), both hailing from Medinipur in West Bengal. The accused was named as Raju Gorh (36) from Pengeri in Tinsukia, Saikia said. "All of them were working for construction works of a private school under a contractor, who had lodged the complaint to the police. We have registered a case at Doomdooma police station," he added. Police is interrogating the accused to find more details about the cause of the murder, Saikia said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The death toll from the collapse of an apartment building in Istanbul rose to 21 Saturday, as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said authorities have "lessons to learn" from the incident. The eight-storey block in the Kartal district on the Asian side of the city collapsed on Wednesday but the cause is not yet clear. Erdogan, visiting the site Saturday, said: "We have a great number of lessons to learn from this. We will take the necessary measures." Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu, meanwhile, told reporters that the toll from the building collapse had risen to 21 dead and 14 injured. It was the third time the toll figures were updated during the day. "We estimate that there were 35 people trapped under the rubble and we have now accounted for 35," he said while stressing that search operations would continue as before. Dozens of rescuers were working at the site with a crane lifting huge blocks of concrete to clear the rubble. President Erdogan also visited a hospital to talk to survivors, before attending the funeral of the nine members of one family who lost their lives in the disaster. Turkish authorities said 43 people were registered as living in the building. Environment Minister Murat Kurum, who accompanied Erdogan, said the block had housed 14 apartments and three businesses. Turkish media said three of the eight floors had been illegally built -- a common practice in the metropolis of around 15 million people. The collapse fanned criticism of a government amnesty granted last year to people accused of illegal building -- a measure announced ahead of municipal elections this March. Engineers and architects regularly sound the alarm against illegal additional storeys to buildings which they say weaken the constructions' structure, and put them at greater risk in the event of an earthquake. A four-storey structure in Istanbul crumbled last year following violent thunderstorms. In January 2017, two people died when another building collapsed in a working class part of the city. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Robert Vadra, who was questioned by the (ED) for three consecutive days last week in connection with a probe into allegations of money laundering to purchase assets abroad, said on Sunday that truth will always prevail. "Morning, Just want to say thank you to all my friends and acquaintances who have reached out in support from all over the nation, at this time," Vadra said in a Facebook post. ALSO READ: Robert Vadra questioned for 8 hours on third day of appearance before ED Vadra, the brother-in-law of president and husband of AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi, was questioned for about eight hours by the ED on Saturday as he appeared before the agency for the third consecutive day. "I'm fine, good and disciplined to deal with anything, I'm put through. 'Truth will always prevail'. Wishing you all a happy Sunday and a healthy week," he said. He also faced two sessions of questioning on February 6 and 7. ALSO READ: Robert Vadra grilled by ED for nine hours in money laundering case While Vadra was quizzed for about five-and-a-half hours on Thursday, he was grilled for about 9 hours the next day. Vadra has denied the allegations against him. The ED case against Vadra relates to allegations of money laundering in the purchase of a London-based property located at 12, Bryanston Square worth 1.9 million GBP (British pounds), which is allegedly owned by him. The agency has told a Delhi court that it has received information about various new properties in London which belong to Vadra. These include two houses, one worth 5 million GBP and the other valued at 4 million GBP, six other flats and more properties. ALSO READ: Robert Vadra to appear before ED on Feb 12 after another grilling session Vadra has denied the allegations of possessing illegal foreign assets and termed them a political witch hunt against him. He said he was being "hounded and harassed" to subserve political ends. He is also expected to depose before the ED on February 12 in Jaipur in another money-laundering case related to an alleged land scam in Bikaner. The Rajasthan High Court has directed him to cooperate with the agency in the case. A day before her maiden visit to Uttar Pradesh as Congress general secretary, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said that together with the people of the state she hopes to start a "new kind of politics" in which everyone will be a stakeholder. Priyanka and Jyotiraditya Scindia will arrive in Lucknow Monday on their first trip to the state after being appointed the Congress general secretary in-charges of eastern and western UP respectively. They will be accompanied by Congress president Rahul Gandhi -- all three visiting the crucial state for the first time after the appointments announced last month. "I am coming tomorrow to Lucknow to meet all of you. I have hope in my heart that together we will start a new kind of politics, a in which all of you will be stakeholders -- my young friends, my sisters and even the weakest person, all their voices will be heard," said Gandhi through the Congress's Shakti App. Congress workers are planning a roadshow when the three leaders travel from the airport to the party's state headquarter. The party in Uttar Pradesh is seeing the visit as the virtual launch of the Congress campaign in the state, ahead of the coming Lok Sabha elections. "Come, let's build a new future, new with me. Thank you," she said in her message to the people ahead of the visit to the state. Scindia, in his message, said: "Tomorrow I am coming to be with you. The youth of Uttar Pradesh need a roadmap for the future and the state needs change." "Come align with us and bring change to Uttar Pradesh," he said. The two general secretaries will interact with party workers at the state Congress office in Lucknow on February 12, 13 and 14, while Rahul Gandhi is likely to return the same day. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) An Ethiopian military helicopter crashed inside a United Nations compound in the disputed Abyei region between Sudan and South Sudan, killing three crew members and injuring 10 passengers, the UN said in a statement Sunday. The statement said the helicopter was carrying 23 passengers when it crashed on Saturday inside the compound of the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA), "killing three of its crew members." "Ten passengers were injured with three in critical condition," it said. The MI-8 helicopter was carrying Ethiopian troops from Kadugli in Sudan to Abyei, which has been contested since South Sudan gained independence in 2011. "We are investigating the incident," said UNISFA's acting Head of Mission and Force Commander Major General Gebre Adhana Woldezgu. Ethiopia is the sole troop contributing country to UNISFA, with some 4,500 soldiers on the ground. The UN Security Council has warned that the situation in Abyei and along the Sudan-South Sudan border "continues to constitute a serious threat to international peace," and called on the two countries to show concrete progress on border demarcation and monitoring. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Three Indian nationals were Sunday arrested by the Nepal police for allegedly trying to smuggle 360 kgs of cannabis to India. Acting on a tip-off, police arrested the accused from Nepal's Dhading district while they were trying to smuggle the contraband drugs in an Indian container truck. The arrested have been identified as Om Prakash from Uttar Pradesh, Gulaf Khan and Marupal Verma from Bihar. "The police have started further investigation into the matter taking the trio in custody. The confiscated hashish is the largest bust of illegal contraband this year," police said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Exposure to residual tobacco and nicotine lingering in carpets and upholstery in rooms, as well as a smoker's fingers, can cause respiratory problem in children, a study has found. The harmful effects of exposure to tobacco smoke have been known for many years. Cigarette and cigar smokers are at significantly higher risk of contracting all sorts of respiratory maladies, and research linking secondhand smoke to cancer goes back nearly three decades. Researchers at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center and the University of Cincinnati in the US have found more evidence of the potentially harmful effects of exposure to the residue and particles left behind by tobacco smoke. According to a study published in the journal Tobacco Use Insights, not smoking around children does not prevent exposure to nicotine. They also found that that higher levels of exposure to tobacco smoke residue -- which likely includes carcinogenic tobacco-specific nitrosamines -- may be linked to respiratory problems. "It just goes to show that indoor smoking bans don't necessarily protect children from tobacco smoke exposure and related pollutants, such as thirdhand smoke," said Ashley Merianos, from University of Cincinnati in the US. "It also shows that exposure to tobacco smoke toxicants is more widespread than previously thought because exposure in children is not limited to inhaling secondhand smoke," said Melinda Mahabee-Gittens, an attending physician at Cincinnati Children's. Research staff collected wipes of the dominant hands of 104 children between April 2016 and August 2017 with complaints potentially linked to tobacco smoke exposure and who had at least one caregiver who smoked. The handwipes were then analysed for nicotine. The research explored several variables, including the self-reported smoking behaviours of the children's caregivers, as well as the number of smokers living with the child. The research also looked at the medical records of the children for possible smoke exposure-related complaints such as wheezing and cough, as well as past medical histories and discharge diagnoses. The study found significant levels of nicotine on the hands of children of smokers whose caregivers did not smoke in their presence, averaging 82 nanograms (ng) of nicotine. A similar amount was found on the hands of children whose caregivers smoked between one and five cigarettes per day in their presence. Children whose parents smoked 15 or more cigarettes around them had nicotine levels on their hands in excess of 200 ng. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The BJP in Odisha Sunday hit out at Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and sought an answer about the kidnap and trafficking of a 16-year-old girl from Sundergarh, who was recently rescued from Rajasthan. The Chief Minister must answer as to why Odisha police failed to rescue the girl for over one year while the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) could so it in two days, Odisha BJP Mahila Morcha President Prabhati Parida said. Saying there was no safety for women in Odisha, she said DCWs letter on lapses of police in the Sundergarh girl case showed there is delay in delivering justice to women. Referring to the letter written by DCW Chairperson Swati Maliwal to the chief minister, Parida said the father of the girl had approached the police officials and district administration, but his pleas went unheeded. Parida further claimed that 1,465 kidnap cases were registered in the state last year and sought the intervention of the chief minister for speedy investigation into them. The BJP women wing leader's statement comes two days after DCW alleged involvement of some Odisha Police personnel in the kidnap and trafficking of the 16-year-old girl and demanded action against erring officials and traffickers. On February 5, the DCW, along with Rajasthan Police, rescued the girl from Jhunjhunu. She was allegedly kidnapped and trafficked from Rourkela in Sundargarh district in 2017. In a letter to Odisha Chief Minister, DCW Chairperson Swati Maliwal claimed that the girl's father, a retired railway officer, has alleged that after her disappearance, he had approached the Odisha Police, whose personnel had traced the girl and brought her back to Odisha from Rajasthan. "The concerned Child Welfare Committee directed the police to hand over the girl to the father. However, he has alleged that instead of handing over his daughter, the police officials in connivance with the traffickers, facilitated the return of the girl to Rajasthan. "Thereafter, over the last one year, he approached several authorities in Odisha...,but to no avail," Maliwal said in the letter. Maliwal said the girl was subjected to rape and abuse for over a year and somehow managed to contact her father, recently. They then informed the DCW and she was rescued. Currently, she has been housed in a shelter home in Delhi. The DCW chairperson said that the alleged "connivance of Odisha Police in the trafficking of the girl is extremely serious". "While the DCW was able to rescue the girl within a short span of receiving information, I fail to understand why the Odisha Police failed to do so for over a year. Due to the alleged negligence and connivance of the police, the girl and her father have undergone immeasurable suffering and the girl is deeply traumatised," Maliwal said. Maliwal has sought Patnaik's intervention in the matter and urged him to ensure that the alleged traffickers as well as police officials concerned were immediately arrested. She also asked the chief minister to provide for the rehabilitation, protection and welfare of the girl. According to a DCW official, the girl was kidnapped, sold and forced into a marriage with a 40-year-old man, who has been raping her over one year. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Eleven people, including seven security personnel, were injured in a grenade attack by militants at Lal Chowk area here on Sunday. The militants hurled the grenade at the security personnel near Palladium Cinema at Lal Chowk around 6.45 pm, resulting in injuries to 11 people, a police spokesperson said. "Four policemen, three CRPF personnel and four civilians were injured in the terror attack," he said. The wounded include two women, he added. The injured were taken to a hospital, where their condition was stated to be stable, the police spokesperson said. Police have registered a case in this regard and an investigation is underway, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Tens of thousands of people waving Spanish flags joined a rally on Sunday in Madrid called by right-wing and far-right parties against Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez over his negotiations with Catalan separatists. Under the shadow of a huge Spanish flag that flies above the central Colon Square, the demonstrators waved their own smaller red and yellow versions of the same banner and held signs reading "Stop Sanchez. Elections now!". Municipal police estimated some 45,000 people had taken part in the protest, which comes just two days before the high-profile trial of Catalan separatist leaders opens in Madrid under the national and foreign spotlight. The rally was called by centre-right Ciudadanos, the conservative Popular Party (PP) and far-right Vox, which has only recently burst onto Spain's political scene, as well as a handful of smaller far-right groups. They are angered by Sanchez's decision to take a more conciliatory tone with pro-independence parties, whose votes are crucial to the legislative agenda of his eight-month-old minority government. "The government of Sanchez's time is up," PP head Pablo Casado told reporters before the start of the rally. Sanchez came to power in June with the support of Catalan nationalist parties, which voted with him in a no confidence motion against former Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, whose PP was embroiled in a corruption scandal. Polls show that between them the PP, Ciudadanos and Vox would win a majority if a general election were held today, giving them the combined parliamentary clout to drive Sanchez from office. The three parties won a majority in a regional election in the southwestern region of Andalusia in December, ousting the Socialists from power in the region after 36 years. They called the rally after Sanchez's government last week accepted the presence -- as asked by Catalan separatists -- of an independent "rapporteur" in future talks between Catalan parties. The right wing parties accused the government of treachery over the move. Despite the government's concession, Catalan separatist parties still refuse to back the government's 2019 budget. If Sanchez is unable to approve his budget, he could call elections before his term is over in 2020. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) South Korea and the United States struck a new deal Sunday on how much Seoul should pay for the US military presence on its soil, official said, after previous rounds of failed negotiations caused worries about their decades-long alliance. Last year, South Korea provided about USD 830 million, roughly 40 percent of the cost of the deployment of 28,500 US soldiers whose presence is meant to deter aggression from North Korea. President Donald Trump has said South Korea should pay more. The allies had failed to reach a new cost-sharing plan during some 10 rounds of talks. On Sunday, Seoul's Foreign Ministry said the countries signed a new deal. A five-year 2014 deal that covered South Korea's payment last year had expired at the end of 2018. Some conservatives in South Korea voiced concerns over a weakening alliance with the United States amid a stalemate in negotiations with North Korea to deprive it of its nuclear weapons. They said Trump might use the failed military cost-sharing negotiations as an excuse to pull back some of US troops in South Korea, as a bargaining chip in talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Trump told CBS' "Face the Nation" last Sunday that he has no plans to withdraw troops from South Korea. Trump announced last week that he will sit down with Kim for a second summit in Hanoi, Vietnam in late February. Their first summit in Singapore last June resulted in Kim's vague commitment to "complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," a term that his propaganda machine previously used when it argued it would only denuclearize after the U.S. withdraws its troops from South Korea. The South Korean ministry hasn't immediately revealed the exact amount of money Seoul would pay this year under the new deal. Yonhap agency reported that South Korea will provide about 1.04 trillion won (USD 924 million) in 2019. Yonhap said the US had previously demanded 1.13 trillion won (USD 1 billion) from South Korea. The US military arrived in South Korea to disarm Japan, which colonized the Korean Peninsula from 1910-45, following its World War II defeat. Most US troops were withdrawn in 1949 but they returned the next year to fight alongside South Korea in the 1950-53 Korean War. South Korea began paying for the US military deployment in the early 1990s, after rebuilding its war-devastated economy. The big US military presence in South Korea is a symbol of the countries' alliance, forged in blood during the war, but also a source of long-running anti-American sentiments. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A six-time BJP MLA from Gujarat's Vadodara district Sunday demanded the party's Lok Sabha ticket from the prestigious seat. The Vadodara Lok Sabha seat was won in 2014 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi by a margin of over 5 lakh votes. The PM then relinquished it and retained Varanasi Lok Sabha seat in Uttar Pradesh. Madhu Srivastav, six-time MLA from the district's Waghodiya Assembly constituency, said he wanted to fight the Lok Sabha polls from Vadodara to strengthen PM Modi's hands and spread the latter's "sabka saath, sabka vikas" initiative. Claiming to be a staunch Modi loyalist, Srivastav told reporters here he also had good contacts in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar which would come handy for the party in the general polls. "I have communicated to the BJP central leadership that I want to contest Lok Sabha polls from Vadodara," he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Relatives mourn the death of a victim of illicit alcohol during funeral at Cemetery at Malad in Mumbai The government on Sunday night announced a probe by a special investigation team (SIT) into the deaths of over 40 people due to consumption of spurious liquor in the state. An official spokesperson said that the SIT has been constituted to make an in-depth enquiry into the tragedy that struck and Kushinagar districts in the state last week. The five-member SIT, constituted on the directives of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, is headed by ADG (Railways) Sanjay Singhal. It has been specifically asked to find out whether there was any conspiracy angle and also to review past incidents, and submit its report within 10 days, suggesting measures to stop recurrence of such incidents. Meanwhile, a home department official said that the government has decided to suspend the circle officers in both the districts where the tragedy took place. The circle officer of Deoband in district, Siddharth, and the circle officer of Tamkuhi Raj in Kushinagar district, Ramkrishna Tiwari, have been placed under immediate suspension, he said. The latest action of the government came against the backdrop of a blame game over the twin incidents with Adityanath referring to the involvement of the in "such mischievous acts" in the past and BSP supremo seeking a CBI probe into the matter which she said was a result of "sheer callousness" of the BJP government. Adityanath, from his home turf Gorakhpur, warned of stern action against all those found involved in illicit liquor trade even if they were associated with any political party. "In the past too, such type of mischievous acts by SP leaders had come to fore. In Azamgarh, Hardoi, and Barabanki, SP leaders were found to be involved in past hooch tragedies. We can't deny conspiracy this time too," Yogi told reporters Saturday night. Hitting back, (SP) and former chief minister slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government on Sunday over the deaths in the tragedy. He said, "The opposition has been notifying the government about such activities, but they did not act as some of its leaders are involved. The truth is that without the backing of the government, such businesses cannot be carried out. The BJP should accept the fact that they cannot run the state." The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), the SP's alliance partner for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, also blamed the BJP governments in UP and Uttarakhand for the deaths. BSP chief in a statement said that both the state governments were "callous" in their approach towards banning sale of spurious liquor and demanded a CBI probe into the tragedy. She said till the CBI probe was complete, excise ministers of both the states should be asked to step down to ensure free and fair inquiry. said bootleggers who are running a parallel administration right under the nose of the authorities and selling spurious liquor. Over 70 people have died in the hooch tragedy that hit two adjoining districts in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh, officials said. Thirty-six people died in Balupur and its neighbouring villages in Haridwar district in Uttarakhand and as many people had died in UP's district. In an unrelated incident, nine people have died over the week in eastern Uttar Pradesh's Kushinagar district, allegedly after drinking spurious liquor. Adityanath said he had spoken to his Uttarakhand counterpart Trivendra Singh Rawat and asked him to share details as the spurious liquor was served to the natives of in a Haridwar village. "A racket of spurious liquor was being operated there in Uttarakhand. Therefore, I have spoken to the CM seeking details," Adityanath said. He said action has been taken against the excise officer, the excise inspector, SHOs and beat constables in Saharanpur and Kushinagar districts of UP. Taking serious note of the deaths due to spurious liquor in Kushinagar as well as Saharanpur districts, the state government has ordered a 15-day joint drive by excise and police officials against those involved. The UP government has announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh for the next of kin of the deceased and help of Rs 50,000 each for those undergoing treatment in hospitals. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Gujjar community agitation demanding five per cent quota in jobs and educational institutes turned violent in Dholpur district Sunday as shots were fired and three police vehicles torched. Unidentified miscreants fired 8-10 rounds in the air while the blockade on the Agra-Morena Highway was in place, Dholpur Superintendent of Police (SP) Ajay Singh told PTI. The agitators set afire three police vehicles, including two jeeps and a bus, he added. The SP said the protesters also pelted stones, injuring four jawans, adding that police had to lob tear gas shells to disperse the crowd. He said traffic movement on the highway resumed later. Gujjars are holding a sit-in protest on rail tracks in Malarna Dungar of Swai Madhopur district from Friday evening. The agitation spread as Gujjar leader Kirori Singh Bainsla refused to call off the stir. On Saturday, a government delegation had met Bainsla and his supporters to hold talks, but no agreement could be reached. Bainsla has said that the community will continue their protest demanding five per cent reservation to the Gujjars, Raika-Rebari, Gadia Luhar, Banjara and the Gadaria communities in government jobs and educational institutions as promised by the state government. The agitation has affected train movement in the NWR and the CWR region, and agitators have now started blocking highways connecting major cities. : Kerala Congress chief Mullappally Ramachandran Sunday said the party was ready to hold talks with the CPI(M) to form a front to fight fascist forces if the Communist party only sheds its of violence. Ramachandran's remarks did not go down well with the other Congressmen as its former chief and MLA K Muraleedharan rubbished the statement and said the Congress could do well without the help of the CPI (M). The Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee chief's remarks came during his Janamaha Yathra at Malappuram. "If CPI(M) is ready to shed of violence and its Stalinist thoughts, Congress is ready for an open discussion to form a secular democratic front to fight fascism," he said. Also, the state Congress chief alleged that CPI(M) was not ready to eschew the of violence. He said the Communist party was afraid of the BJP. "The CPI(M) sees Congress as the main opposition. They don't see the BJP as the main enemy. It's not possible for the CPI(M) to create a Left alternative at the national-level," he said. He said the Kerala CPI(M) should accept the party's Bengal and Tripura units' decision to fight the fascist forces. However, his comments were ridiculed by the CPI(M) which said it doesn't require the co-operation of Congress in Kerala. "The Congress has policies similar to that of the BJP," CPI(M) leader M A Baby said. The Congress and the CPI(M) have been in a bitter fight in Kerala for decades. However, when the first UPA government was formed in 2004, the Left front in Kerala returned 19 candidates out of 20 constituencies to Parliament fighting against the Congress party but backed the Congress-led UPA at the Centre. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The latest norms of markets regulator Sebi on secretarial audit will help improve transparency in corporate governance practices as well as empower company secretaries to report "everything" related to compliances, according to company secretaries' apex body ICSI. Every listed entity and its material unlisted subsidiaries have to undertake secretarial audit and also submit a secretarial audit report along with its annual report with effect from the year ending March 31, 2019. The secretarial audit and the report has to be done by a practising company secretary, as per the Sebi. Regarding the circular, the regulator said that would help improve governance and transparency. "One of the most important component of (corporate) governance is transparency. You should be transparent and fair to your stakeholders. Transparency will improve as far as compliance and governance are concerned," ICSI President Ranjeet Pandey told PTI. While secretarial audit is still done at companies, the report is submitted to a company's management is not in an elaborate format. Acknowledging that accountability is less in the current framework for secretarial audit, Pandey said if general statements are given, then the point of interpretation becomes more than the substance. "Now, we (company secretaries) will have to be very clear about our thoughts about what we are reporting. It will be supported by annexures, which will be more detailed ones," he noted. Generally, secretarial audit looks at compliances with respect to Companies Act, Sebi regulations, industrial and labour legislations as well as system and process of compliance. The latest requirements put in place by the Sebi will provide more depth and quality to secretarial services, the ICSI President said, adding that the current three-page report format was more about giving static information. "The detailed information which we (company secretaries) were submitting internally to the board was not coming into the public... Now, this will be made public and more transparent report. The qualitative aspect will be highlighted...," he said. On a quarterly basis, he said that company secretaries are giving the audit report and on that basis the management is taking care and doing the needful. "In the final reporting, the format is not that elaborate... the management generally comes to the company secretary and says this is not fitting into the format, then why are you reporting it. You don't report it.... now, everything will be reported. Company secretaries will be empowered," Pandey said. The Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) has around 57,000 members. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Nestled in a narrow bylane in the Muslim-dominated locality of Mohatsimganj here, the Saraswati Puja at Suraradhana Sangeet Vidyalaya has been a symbol of communal harmony and bonhomie with both Hindus and Muslims eagerly looking forward to the annual festival. The over-a-decade-old puja, near the Civil Lines bus station in this city in Uttar Pradesh, draws the young and the old from both communities. "The atmosphere is absolutely good and lively," said Moazzam Raza, a hafiz at Badi Masjid Mohatsimganj, just a stone's throw from the music school. "Whenever Azaan is held, cultural programmes organised during the Saraswati puja are briefly stopped...People -- both Hindus and Muslims -- respect each other's religious sentiments here," he said. Seventy-year-old Naseeruddin, who runs a salon below the mosque, said, "I have been witnessing the Saraswati Puja for over a decade, and it is one of the joyous occasion that children in the locality look forward to." He said that people belonging to both communities have been living in the area peacefully. It remained peaceful even when large parts of the country witnessed communal violence in the wake of the demolition of Babri mosque in Ayodhya in 1992, he said. Anjan Ghosh, one of the organisers, said the puja at Suraradhana Sangeet Vidyalaya started in 1995. The puja also draws people from far flung areas of Allahabad, he said. Saraswati is the goddess of knowledge and learning. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) : Accusing Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy of indulging in 'third grade' politics, Karnataka BJP chief B S Yeddyurappa Sunday said he was ready for any inquiry into an audio clip about his alleged bid to destabilise the coalition government in the state. The audio tape war is set to play out in the assembly on Monday, with Yeddyurappa saying that his party would raise the matter about an audio tape in which Kumaraswamy is heard purportedly discussing cash-for-seat with supporters of an MLC seat aspirant, which had stirred a controversy in 2014. "The Chief Minister is doing third grade He is indulging in blackmail, conspiracy. The Chief Minister had himself sent the MLA's son (Sharan Gouda) to the guest house whereI was staying at around 12:30 in the night and made him speak to me. They have kept the part of discussion (in the tape) that they needed as record, leaving the rest," Yeddyurappa said. Pointing out that the Chief Minister had himselfclaimed that he had sent the MLA's son to him, Yeddyurappa said, "It is true that he (Sharan Gouda) had come and spoken to me. "What happened...all those things let's see in the future, but the Chief Minister has stooped to the level of sending someone and getting the conversation recorded. No Chief Minister in independent India has behaved in such a manner," he told reporters in Hubballi, adding that he was ready for any inquiry. Facing turmoil in the Congress-JD(S) ruling coalition that has cast a shadow over the stability of his government, Kumaraswamy had on Friday released the audio clip in which Yeddyurappa is purportedly trying to lure JDS MLA Naganagouda through his son. Yeddyurappa, who is at the vortex of the row over his alleged bid to poach the ruling coalition MLAs for the past few weeks, was quick dismiss the clip as "fake" and a "concocted story". He had on Friday dismissed the claim by the Chief Minister that he had spoken in the audio about a 'Rs 50 crore' offer to the assembly speaker. "I will retire from if it (the allegation) is proved If I had spoken like this(about the speaker), if it is proved,I will resign as an MLA and quit politics,"he had said. Referring to the audio involving Kumaraswamy that had stirred a controversy in 2014, Yeddyurappa Sunday said that demanding Rs 25 crore to make someone an MLC was an unforgivableoffence. "We have the documents, tomorrow we will hand it over to the Speaker... We have to bring out the true colours of the Chief Minister who had stooped to the level of demanding Rs 25crore to give it to MLAs (in return for votes). It should also be inquired into," he said. Kumaraswamy was at the centre of a controversy in July 2014 after an audio CD surfaced of him purportedly telling supporters of MLC seat aspirant Vijugowda Patil, the then JDS leader from Bijapur district, about the demand for money from his party MLAs in return for votes. In the tape, Kumaraswamy was purportedly heard telling the supporters, "Each MLA (of JDS) is asking for one crore. They are saying you make anybody the MLC." At another point, Kumaraswamy was heard saying, "40 people (JDS MLAs) are asking for 40 crore...This is my fate." Meanwhile, reacting to Yeddyurappa's comments,Kumaraswamy said he was ready for any discussion on the audio tape involving him. "Yeddyurappa, who had called it (tape) mimicry theother day has now conceded (about speaking to MLAs son) today. Mostly Lord Manjunatha Swamy of Dharmastala has given him sense," he said. Speaking to reporters here, he said "he (Yeddyurappa) has said that he will come with some old thing (audio tape) tomorrow (to assembly)... let him come, I'm ready. Did I ask for money? I don't have money... It was discussed within theparty and not to lure other party people with Rs 10 or 20crore as Chief Minister." Kumaraswamy said the Speaker would take a call on the further course of action regarding the tapes. Taking serious note of his name being dragged in the purported conversation involving Yeddyurappa in an alleged bid to lure a JDS MLA, Speaker K R Ramesh Kumar had said he would take up the issue in the House on Monday and had gone through the letter and tape sent to him by the ChiefMinister. Hitting out at Yeddyurappa, Congress leader and former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said his statement madeit clear what he was up to. "Yeddyurappa is mad after power and wants to topplea constitutionally formed government at any cost to become ChiefMinister," he said. Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara said now that Yeddyurappa has accepted that he spoke to the MLAs son, he has to announce his retirement as he had claimed that he would quitpolitics. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Rajasthan could see a 2004 like scenario after the coming Lok Sabha elections, when Congress rode back to power after eight years out of office, Deputy chief minister of that state Sachin Pilot said here Sunday. "Most certainly, the Congress can ride back to power as it did in 2004 after being out of power for eight years. There is no way that the BJP will be able to hold on to some 100 seats in Rajasthan, Gujarat, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh because the performance of their state and central governments is far from satisfactory," he said at "The Huddle," a thought conclave held by 'The Hindu' here. Pilot said Indian is unpredictable as nobody knew that the late Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee would lose by just one vote. "Likewise, nobody thought that the Congress would come back and form the government in 2004," he added. Pilot said that the Indian electorate is sophisticated and sometimes politicians misread and underestimate the competence of voters. "As many as 130 crore people have been watching for the last four years and have been asking questions and getting no answers. It won't be surprising if the mighty BJP has a fantastic fall," he said. Pilot said that BJP talks of nationalism, mandir-masjid, ghar wapsi and love jihad, but is silent on issues, including food prices and national security. He also said that never before had various institutions in the country been 'devalued' like under the BJP. "There is a deliberate and conscious effort in the last four years to devalue institutions. It will have far reaching consequences," he added. Asked if Priyanka Gandhi's entry into would be a game changer, Pilot said that even before she officially took charge, there was a sense of insecurity in BJP. "She is just the general secretary of the Congress, not a Chief Minister or Governor. Why is it causing so much heartburn for the BJP? The political uncertainty it has caused is telling me that they have a reason to fear," he said. On BSP and SP ignoring Congress to form an alliance in Uttar Pradesh for the coming Lok Sabha polls, Pilot said nothing was static in and the party was likely to perform better than 2009 in the state. "Uttar Pradesh is very critical in the next Lok Sabha elections as it has 80 seats, but the narrative needs to change," Pilot said. "People are willing to give the mandate to the Congress. We will do well, much better than the other parties," he said. Asked if Congress supported a woman Dalit Prime Minister, Pilot said the party is pro-women and pro-Dalit, but winning adequate number of seats decides leadership issues. "There has been no Prime Minister from the Gandhi family for the past 35 years, so it is wrong to say Rahul Gandhi is doing this to become one. Congress has an equal presence in both northern and southern India," he said. Moreover, BJP, which was in power in the cow belt had now lost three states and there is a political messaging that is symbolic of things to come, he added. Asked what was the Congress' vision for the coming Lok Sabha elections, Pilot said the party manifesto would not be a book of 'jumlas' and various details, including the promise of universal basic income, wherever applicable, would be placed before the people in the beginning of March. "Mr Chidambaram is preparing the manifesto. At the end of the month, we will have the draft of what Congress wants to do. I promise you it would not be a book of jumlas. Mr Rahul Gandhi has already promised universal basic income for entire country wherever applicable. Details will be out very soon in the beginning of March," he said. Pilot said India is an aspirational country and young people want a level playing field and opportunities. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will complement Congress president Rahul Gandhi's efforts in winning over young voters and the brother-sister combine will be a game changer for the party in the Lok Sabha polls as the country needs a young team, technocrat-turned-politician Sam Pitroda said Sunday. He said the Rahul-Priyanka duo will make a "great team" along with many other young leaders active in the party, including Sachin Pilot, Jyotiraditya Scindia and Milind Deora, as people who can take the country forward, rather than keeping it hung up on history and religion. Pitroda, the Indian Overseas Congress chief and a long-time friend of the Gandhi family, also said Rahul Gandhi has learnt a lot from the 2014 elections and is much more "mature, stronger, wiser", and ready to take on the job of Prime Minister. In an interview with PTI from Chicago, he said India needs a young person with a new inclusive vision of the future, focus on employment, and new opportunities for all, to lead. "India today needs somebody who believes in teamwork, collaboration and cooperation as opposed to a centralised power centre. India today really needs someone who believes in truth rather than lies, who believes in trust and not mistrust, who believes in inclusion and not exclusion. Rahul is at the right age to lead India," Pitroda said. Asked about Priyanka Gandhi's entry into active as AICC general secretary in-charge of Uttar Pradesh East, he said she will be a "great asset and a good politician". "She will complement her brother's efforts. She will join him in getting young people excited, especially women. They are both young, they represent a large young team in the party, they are modern, they are tech-savvy with a healthy respect for history and new vision for the future. "I am confident that they will attract more young people in the mainstream and that is what a young India needs," Pitroda said. Pitroda, who divides his time between the US and India, is seen as a key adviser of the Gandhis. Asked if the Rahul-Priyanka team will be a game changer for the Congress in the Lok Sabha polls, expected in April-May, he said: "I think it will be. People will see the benefit of a younger team with a modern outlook. The country needs to look forward rather than backwards, and not get hung up on history and religion." "But it is not just the Rahul-Priyanka combine. The party has many other young people like Sachin Pilot, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Milind Deora, to name just a few," he said. Pitroda said he is hopeful that Priyanka Gandhi's coming into active will have a big impact on the polls. Priyanka Gandhi (47) and Scindia (48) took charge as AICC general secretary UP east and UP west respectively last week. Pilot, 41, was made deputy CM of Rajasthan in December 2018 after the Congress wrested power from BJP. He as well as Deora (42) and Scindia had served as Union ministers in the last UPA government at the Centre. Rahul Gandhi (48) took charge as Congress chief in December 2017. However, the party has had several presidents who took charge at a younger age, including his father Rajiv Gandhi, grandmother Indira Gandhi, and maternal great grandfather Jawaharlal Nehru, as also Maulana Abul Kalam Azad. On the BJP's charge that the Congress was promoting dynastic politics, Pitroda said dynasty is in every business, but ultimately the performance matters. If you don't perform dynasty cannot help, he said. Rahul Gandhi's popularity has increased exponentially after becoming Congress president because once he took over, he has had a free hand, Pitroda said. "He could do things that he wanted to do. Earlier, he was constrained in some ways. After becoming Congress president, he had to leave his mark, bring in a young team, respect the old guards, and realise that going forward, he would need new thinking and new blood, and that is what he is trying to do," said Pitroda, who headed the Knowledge Commission during the tenure of Manmohan Singh. He said Gandhi has the qualities to make a good PM because his heart is in the right place and he is keen on working for India and its people. "He (Gandhi) is not driven by personal and vested interests. He is driven by the people at the bottom of the economic pyramid. He is driven by opportunities for the young. He is driven by the welfare of farmers. He is driven by the idea of inclusion...he believes in the idea of India that our founding fathers had," Pitroda said. Asked whether Rahul Gandhi's NRI events in foreign countries were similar to the ones PM Narendra Modi has had, he said it was not so and the idea behind the trips was not just to have big events with NRIs, but to meet local political and business leaders, interact with students, with members of the Indian Overseas Congress, and then have a big event to be able to meet them en masse. "He (Gandhi) interacts with students wherever he goes. So it's a different format." Pitroda, who has worked closely with both Rajiv Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, said they cannot be compared as there is big difference between the India 35 years back and the India now, but added they were open to new ideas. On the EVM issue, he said no one has used electronic voting technology the way India has. "It deserves a lot more attention than we are willing to give. You can't just brush it aside." Pitroda led the telecom revolution under Rajiv Gandhi when he set up the C-DOT. He worked on the Knowledge Commission and also founded National Innovation Council during the UPA rule. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will complement Congress president Rahul Gandhi's efforts in winning over young voters and the brother-sister combine will be a game changer for the party in the Lok Sabha polls as the country needs a young team, technocrat-turned-politician said Sunday. He said the Rahul-Priyanka duo will make a "great team" along with many other young leaders active in the party, including Sachin Pilot, Jyotiraditya Scindia and Milind Deora, as people who can take the country forward, rather than keeping it hung up on history and religion. Pitroda, the Indian Overseas Congress chief and a long-time friend of the Gandhi family, also said has learnt a lot from the 2014 elections and is much more "mature, stronger, wiser", and ready to take on the job of Prime Minister. In an interview with PTI from Chicago, he said India needs a young person with a new inclusive vision of the future, focus on employment, and new opportunities for all, to lead. "India today needs somebody who believes in teamwork, collaboration and cooperation as opposed to a centralised power centre. India today really needs someone who believes in truth rather than lies, who believes in trust and not mistrust, who believes in inclusion and not exclusion. Rahul is at the right age to lead India," Pitroda said. Asked about Priyanka Gandhi's entry into active politics as AICC general secretary in-charge of Uttar Pradesh East, he said she will be a "great asset and a good politician". "She will complement her brother's efforts. She will join him in getting young people excited, especially women. They are both young, they represent a large young team in the party, they are modern, they are tech-savvy with a healthy respect for history and a new vision for the future. "I am confident that they will attract more young people in the mainstream and that is what a young India needs," Pitroda said. Pitroda, who divides his time between the US and India, is seen as a key adviser of the Gandhis. Asked if the Rahul-Priyanka team will be a game changer for the Congress in the Lok Sabha polls, expected in April-May, he said: "I think it will be. People will see the benefit of a younger team with a modern outlook. The country needs to look forward rather than backwards, and not get hung up on history and religion." "But it is not just the Rahul-Priyanka combine. The party has many other young people like Sachin Pilot, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Milind Deora, to name just a few," he said. Pitroda said he is hopeful that Priyanka Gandhi's coming into active politics will have a big impact on the polls. Priyanka Gandhi (47) and Scindia (48) took charge as AICC general secretary UP east and UP west respectively last week. Pilot, 41, was made deputy chief minister of Rajasthan in December 2018 after the Congress wrested power from BJP. He as well as Deora (42) and Scindia had served as Union ministers in the last UPA government at the Centre. (48) took charge as Congress chief in December 2017. However, the Congress party has had several presidents who took charge at a younger age, including his father Rajiv Gandhi, grandmother Indira Gandhi, and maternal great grandfather Jawaharlal Nehru, as also Maulana Abul Kalam Azad. On the BJP's charge that the Congress was promoting dynastic politics, Pitroda said dynasty is in every business, but ultimately it is the performance that matters. If you do not perform dynasty cannot help, he said. Rahul Gandhi's popularity has increased exponentially after becoming Congress president because once he took over the party, he has had a free hand, Pitroda said. "He could do things that he wanted to do. Earlier, he was constrained in some ways. After becoming Congress president, he had to leave his mark, bring in a young team, respect the old guards, and realise that going forward, he would need new thinking and new blood, and that is what he is trying to do," said Pitroda, who headed the Knowledge Commission during the tenure of Manmohan Singh. He said Gandhi has the qualities to make a good prime minister because his heart is in the right place and he is keen on working for the greater good of India and its people. "He (Gandhi) is not driven by personal and vested interests. He is driven by the people at the bottom of the economic pyramid. He is driven by opportunities for the young. He is driven by the welfare of farmers. He is driven by the idea of inclusion...he believes in the idea of India that our founding fathers had," Pitroda said. To a question on whether Rahul Gandhi's NRI events in foreign countries were similar to the ones Prime Minister Narendra Modi has had during his overseas visits, he said it was not so and the idea behind the trips was not just to have big events with NRIs, but to meet local political and business leaders, interact with students, interact with members of the Indian Overseas Congress, NRIs, and then have a big event to be able to meet them en masse. "He (Gandhi) interacts with students wherever he goes, so it is a different format," Pitroda said. Pitroda, who has worked closely with both Rajiv Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, said they cannot be compared as there is a big difference between the India 35 years back and India now, but added that both were very open to new ideas. Pitroda led the telecom revolution under Rajiv Gandhi when he set up the C-DOT. He worked on the Knowledge Commission and also founded the National Innovation Council later during the Congress-led UPA rule. The BJP Sunday took a swipe at Congress President Rahul Gandhi for his remarks against the Prime Minister on the Rafale deal, accusing him of playing with the country's security in the most "irresponsible manner". Dismissing Gandhi's allegations, Union Law Minister and BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad said he was "lying shamelessly" on the fighter jet deal and has got "Rafale phobia". "Rahul Gandhi has Rafale phobia...The kind of language he is using against the Prime Minister does not behove him," Prasad told reporters here. Citing cases of alleged corruption involving members of the Gandhi family, Prasad said, "How many corruption charges were levelled against his father (Rajiv Gandhi) in the Bofors case?...What has been the corruption record of Indiraji (former prime minister), his grandmother? We have never used the kind of language he has used against Prime Minister Narendra Modi." The Union Minister for Law, Electronics and Information Technology charged the then Congress-led UPA government with not finalising the Rafale deal, alleging it again went for review because the party never inked any agreement unless it received "commission" (kickbacks). "As they did not get commission, therefore they kept it (deal) pending," Prasad said. After coming to power in 2014, Modi decided to go ahead with the Rafale deal as IAF needed fighter aircraft. Reiterating the NDA government's claim that the basic price of Rafale negotiated by it was cheaper than what the UPA had agreed to, the senior BJP leader said, "Modi government's price is 9 per cent cheaper than UPA's and with all weapons loaded, it is 20 per cent less." The previous UPA government was negotiating with Dassault Aviation for procurement of 126 Rafale jets under which 18 jets were to supplied in a fly-away condition and 108 were to be manufactured in India by the French company along with HAL. However, the UPA could not seal the deal. "The Supreme Court had examined it thoroughly and found there is no commercial interest...," Prasad said, adding the Centre had no role in picking the offset partner. "Rahul Gandhi please don't play with the security of India... What he says in India is picked up by the Pakistani press the next day." "Rahul Gandhi in the most irresponsible manner is playing with the security of India," Prasad added. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced the procurement of a batch of 36 Rafale jets after holding talks with then French president Francois Hollande on April 10, 2015 in Paris. Opposition Congress has accused the government of choosing Reliance Defence over state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) as offset partner to benefit the private firm though it did not have any experience in the aerospace sector. Hollande's reported comments that New Delhi had proposed Reliance Defence as the Indian partner for the contract has escalated into a major political row, even as the French government said it had no say in the choice of the Indian industrial partner for the multi-billion dollar deal. However, Dassault Aviation refuted Hollande's claims and said that it was their decision to partner with Reliance. In December last year, the Supreme Court had given the Narendra Modi government a clean chit on the procurement of 36 Rafale fighter jets from France and dismissed all the petitions seeking a direction to the CBI to register an FIR for alleged irregularities in the deal. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prince Philip, the 97-year-old husband of British Queen Elizabeth II, has voluntarily surrendered his driving licence, weeks after the duke miraculously escaped unhurt in a terrifying accident that injured two women in another car. "After careful consideration the Duke of Edinburgh has taken the decision to voluntarily surrender his driving licence," Buckingham Palace said in a brief statement. He surrendered his licence on Saturday, the palace said. The Prince's decision to hand over his driving licence was entirely his own and he will be driven from now on, it added. The move means the royal is likely to escape being charged and prosecuted for careless driving after injuring two women in a crash outside the Queen's Sandringham estate in Norfolk on January 17. Norfolk Police confirmed that the duke had surrendered his licence to officers and it would now be returned to the DVLA. "We will follow the standard procedure and return the licence to the DVLA. The investigation file for the collision has been passed to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS)," a Norfolk Police spokesperson said. The CPS said it would take the latest development into account. It is believed that bringing a prosecution over the crash will not be deemed in the public interest. Officers from local Norfolk Police have been investigating the crash since January 17, when the Duke pulled out of a side road onto the main road and collided with a Hyundai Kia driven by Ellie Townsend. The impact of the crash flipped his Land Rover onto its side. Townsend, a 28-year-old teacher, suffered cuts to her knee, while her friend and passenger Emma Fairweather, 46, broke her wrist. Townsend's nine-month-old son escaped without injury. Though Philip was unhurt, the accident stirred up a debate in the UK about old age and driving and raised questions over the duke still driving himself on public roads. Two days after the accident, the duke was pictured back behind the wheel of the new Land Rover without a seatbelt, which is illegal in Britain. Later, Norfolk Police gave him "suitable words of advice". Philip, who formally retired from public life in 2017, has been seen behind the wheels on numerous occasions over the decade. The Duke later sent a note to Fairweather apologising for his part in the accident. "I would like you to know how very sorry I am for my part in the accident," he wrote. "The sun was shining low over the main road. In normal conditions I would have no difficulty in seeing traffic coming... but I can only imagine that I failed to see the car coming, and I am very contrite about the consequences." At present, there is no upper age limit for driving in the UK. However, a person's driving licence expires once he or she reaches the age of 70. If the licence expires and they fail to renew it, then they legally are not allowed to drive. But if they apply for a renewal they may continue. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prince Philip, the 97-year-old husband of British II, has voluntarily surrendered his driving licence, weeks after the duke miraculously escaped unhurt in a terrifying accident that injured two women in another car. "After careful consideration, the Duke of Edinburgh has taken the decision to voluntarily surrender his driving licence," Buckingham Palace said in a brief statement. He surrendered his licence on Saturday, the palace said. The Prince's decision to hand over his driving licence was entirely his own and he will be driven from now on, it added. Norfolk Police confirmed that the duke had surrendered his licence to officers and it would now be returned to the DVLA, the BBC reported. Prince Philip's decision to surrender his licence comes weeks after he caused a car crash near the Sandringham estate in Norfolk, in which his Land Rover Freelander landed on its side after a collision with a Kia. Though Philip was unhurt, the accident on January 17 stirred up a debate in the UK about old age and driving and raised questions over the duke still driving himself on public roads. Two days after the accident, the duke was pictured back behind the wheel of the new Land Rover without a seatbelt, which is illegal in Britain. Later, Norfolk Police gave him "suitable words of advice". Philip, who formally retired from public life in 2017, has been seen behind the wheels on numerous occasions over the decade. The investigation file for the collision has been passed to the Crown Prosecution Service, which said it would take the latest development into account. In the letter to the victim of the crash, the Duke acknowledged the "very distressing experience". "I would like you to know how very sorry I am for my part in the accident," he wrote. "The sun was shining low over the main road. In normal conditions I would have no difficulty in seeing traffic coming... but I can only imagine that I failed to see the car coming, and I am very contrite about the consequences." At present, there is no upper age limit for driving in the UK. However, a person's driving licence expires once he or she reaches the age of 70. If the licence expires and they fail to renew it, then they legally are not allowed to drive. But if they apply for a renewal they may continue. Rape-accused Bishop Franco Mulakkal, who was relieved of his pastoral responsibilities by Pope Francis, still interferes with the administrative matters of Jalandhar diocese of the Roman Catholic Church, nuns protesting against him alleged here Sunday. "We believe that Bishop Angelo is the apostolic administrator of Jalandhar diocese. But when we see the kind of letters (being issued by the diocese PRO and Missionaries of Jesus congregation head), we doubt whether Bishop Franco still wields power in the diocese," Sister Anupama, a representative of the protesting nun, told reporters at Kuravilangad near here. Their statement comes a day after Jalandhar diocese PRO Fr Peter Kavumpuram, who is allegedly close to Bishop Mulakkal, issued a clarification statement countering an e-mail issued to nuns by its apostolic administrator Bishop Angelo Ruffino Gracias. In his e-mail, Bishop Angelo had assured the five nuns, who are staying with the rape survivor nun, that "there will be no move from the diocese of Jalandhar to oust" them from the Kuravilangad convent in Kottayam district as long as they are needed for the court case. The Bishop wrote to the nuns after they complained to him against the head of their congregation, Missionaries of Jesus under the Jalandhar diocese, for issuing transfer orders to four of them who took part in the protest demanding the arrest of the bishop. Another nun, Sister Neena Rose, who is staying with the rape survivor, was asked to report to the Missionaries of Jesus congregation's Jalandhar convent and meet its Superior General Sr Regina Kandamthottu on January 26. Kavumpuram, issued a clarification statement countering Bishop Angelo hours after his e-mail communication was made public, saying even though the congregation of Missionaries of Jesus is of diocesan right, the internal running of the congregation is left to the Superior General and her council. "The Bishop of Jalandhar does not normally interfere unless the overall interests of the church demands such interference. By this clarification the Apostolic Administrator has not interfered in the internal affairs of this congregation, therefore the order to return to their rightful communities by the Mother General is not cancelled but stands," the statement quoting Fr Kavumpuram had said. The protesting nuns stay with the survivor nun in the convent in Kuravilangad. Talking to reporters on Sunday, Sister Anupama rejected the clarification statement issued by Kavumpuram, saying they would not move out of the convent in Kuravilangad. "Clarification statement (issued by Kavumpuram) is not acceptable for us. We will continue to stay in this convent till the case is over," she said. The congregation of nuns -- Missionaries of Jesus -- had directed the nuns to join their previously-assigned convents, according to the transfer orders issued between March and May last year. The nuns Alphy, Anupama, Josephine and Ancitta were served notice by the superior general, urging them to take up their assigned responsibilities as befitting members of the congregation. The four nuns had earlier written to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan seeking his intervention to ensure that their transfer orders were not effected till the trial of the case was over. The survivor nun had also written a separate letter to the chief minister, seeking his help in the matter. "Their aim is to single me out and to harass and torture me. My life will be in danger if such a situation arises," she said in her letter. The nuns on Saturday had joined 'Save our Sisters' forum to stage a protest against the transfer orders issued by the congregation. A tense situation prevailed at the protest site when a group of people opposing the nuns' protest reached there and raised slogans against them. The group was removed from the spot, police sources said. The protest led by the nuns and the Catholic reformist forums in Kochi in September last year had led to a public outrage and demands for action against the bishop. Bishop Mulakkal, a senior member of the Roman Catholic clergy in India, was arrested last year following allegations by a nun that he repeatedly raped and sexually assaulted her at the Kuravilangad convent between 2014 and 2016, a charge denied by him. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Police Sunday ordered a probe into alleged manhandling of woman by cops in Shopian district of Jammu and Kashmir. The inquiry was ordered after a 15-second video clip, showing two cops manhandling a woman in a village in Shopian on Saturday night, went viral on social media. "The video is being probed and an inquiry is ordered to examine the conduct of the policemen," a police spokesman said. The spokesman said the cops had gone to the house of one Rameez Khan while investigating a case of kidnapping of a minor girl. Police received a complaint from a man that his 15-year-old daughter was abducted by three persons -- Rameez Khan, Mohsin Khan and Saleem Khan, of Shadab Karewa in Shopian, he said. The spokesman said as the police party raided the house of the accused to recover the victim, they found two of the accused -- Mohsin Khan and Saleem Khan -- in the house. "The family members of the accused, especially women around the house, tried to block the policemen on duty. The accused meanwhile managed to escape," he added. The spokesman said the incident happened in pursuance of the investigation by the cops of a serious crime. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actor Mahesh Anand, who played negative roles in a number of Bollywood films in the '80s and '90s, was found dead at his residence in suburban Andheri, a police official said on Sunday. When the 57-year-old actor's maid came to work at his house on Saturday, she knocked at the door but there was no response. The maid then informed Anand's neighbours who alerted the police. Later, the police broke open the door and found him dead, the official said. According to police, the actor apparently died two days back. Versova police station's senior inspector Ravindra Badgujar said the exact cause of the death would be known after the post mortem. "Nothing suspicious has been found," he added. Anand acted in several films, including megastar Amitabh Bachchan-starrer "Ganga Jamuna Saraswati", "Shahenshah", "Lal Badshah", and also hit films like "Thanedaar", "Coolie No.1" and "Baaghi". He was last seen in the recently released film "Rangeela Raja", starring actor Govinda. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) coal block in Birbhum, the largest in Asia, is set to get technical support from mining experts in Poland, who have assured to remove all operational hurdles that might come in the way of mining the black gold. West Bengal Power Minister Shobhandeb Chattopadhyay said Polish companies have expressed interest to study the coal block, which has a 500-metre-thick layer of overburden (an outer surface covering the coal seams). "A high-level Polish delegation was in city to attend the fifth I had a detailed meeting with a team and they have agreed to study the block." "They claimed that they would be able to handle the problems and begin work as soon as possible," he told PTI. Bengal is the sole allottee of Deocha Pachami, which has an estimated reserve of 2.1 billion tonnes. The overburden above the coal assets turned out to be one of the key reasons for six shareholder states -- Bengal, Karnataka, Bihar, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh -- and public sector undertaking Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited to exit the block, questioning its viability. However, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee recently said that despite the allotment, the Centre was reluctant in handing over the block to Bengal. According to the state government estimates, investments worth Rs 12,000-15,000 crore would be required in developing the block, which may help create 100,000 jobs and usher in rapid economic development in the area. An SPV (special purpose vehicle) - - Bengal Birbhum Coal Company Ltd - - is already in place to execute the project. India's largest LNG supplier Qatar on Sunday urged the central government to include natural gas in GST to help create demand for the environment friendly fuel and raise its share in the country's energy basket. Speaking at Petrotech conference here, Qatar Gas CEO Khalid Bin Khalifa Al-Thani said India is very important market for Qatar. "If there is change in demand worldwide we will see it in India especially in fossile fuel," he said. Qatar supplies 8.5 million tonnes a year of liquefied natural gas to India. It is the country's single largest source of imported gas, supplying about 40 per cent of all overseas shipments reaching India. He said the country needs to build infrastructure so that clean fuel can reach all corners. "LNG should be considered to get full benefits of GST," he said. "We would be working closely with the government". Qatar is the second big foreign investor to seek GST on petroleum products. In October last year, Russian oil firm Rosneft, the biggest foreign investor in India's energy sector, had criticised the country's taxation policy, saying it was a major hurdle in its expansion plans. Rosneft and its partners had in August 2017 completed a USD 12.9 billion acquisition of Essar Oil to enter the world's fastest-growing energy market. The company will, however, have to pay a 20 per cent withholding tax even after paying corporate tax and dividend, Rosneft's first vice-president for economics and finance Pavel Fedorov had said. Fedorov said the company was also not able to claim credit of tax it pays on inputs in its Vadinar refinery in Gujarat. While the Goods and Services Tax (GST), which unified over a dozen central and state levies, came into effect from 1 July 2017, five petro goods crude oil, natural gas, petrol, diesel and aviation turbine fuel (ATF) were kept out of it. This means the tax, a user of natural gas pay on inputs cannot be offset by taxes paid at consumption end. State-owned gas utility GAIL India Ltd Chairman B C Tripathi, speaking at the same session at Petrotech, too favoured to bring natural gas under the ambit of GST, saying it is a low hanging fruit. Also, power plants must start using natural gas as it would be difficult to achieve the target of raising the share of natural gas in the energy basket to 15 per cent by 2030 from current 6.2 per cent. Al-Thani said natural gas demand worldwide is expected to grow at the rate of 1.5 per cent through 2035 and LNG demand is projected to grow by 4 per cent to 600 million tonnes from 290 million tonnes in 2017. Qatar, he said, will raise LNG production capacity to 110 million tonnes by 2023 from current 77 million tonnes. ALSO READ:Govt incentives to ONGC, OIL for natural gas discoveries to boost production The Gujjar community agitation demanding five per cent quota in jobs and education turned violent Sunday with shots being fired and police vehicles torched in Dholpur district and protesters blocking road and rail traffic in many areas in Rajasthan. As a precautionary measure, authorities have imposed prohibitory orders under CrPc section 144 in Dholpur and neighbouring Karauli districts, police said. At least 20 trains were cancelled and seven diverted during the day as the protesters, led by the Gujjar Arakshan Sangharsh Samiti chief Kirori Singh Bainsla, continued their sit-in on railway tracks in Sawai Madhopur district for the third day on Sunday, officials said. The sit-in began on Friday evening and has affected the movement of over 250 trains through the region since. The agitators also blocked highways connecting major cities on Sunday. According to police officials, three cases have been registered in connection with the blocking of traffic. Violence broke out in Dholpur district as unidentified miscreants fired 8-10 rounds in the air while a blockade on the Agra-Morena Highway was in place, Superintendent of Police (SP) Ajay Singh told PTI. The protesters set afire three police vehicles -- two jeeps and a bus, he added. The SP said the protesters also pelted stones, injuring four personnel, adding that police had to lob tear gas shells to disperse the crowd. The Hindoli-Uniyara state highway was blocked in Bundi district, where hundreds of people demonstrated throughout the day. As traffic movement came to a halt, vehicles were diverted to other routes. The demonstrators, however, allowed the passage of ambulances and vehicles with patients or pregnant woman. Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot called the stone pelting and the torching of vehicles unjustified. "Holding protest is justified but sitting on railway tracks is not. Protesters should come forward for talks. The government is open for dialogue and has constituted a committee," he said. Referring to the violence in Dholpur, Gehlot said, "Anti-social elements have joined the protest. Administration and police will investigate the reasons of the incident. Gujjar leader Kirori Singh Bainsla has appealed to maintain peace so people should listen to him." According to the Northern Railways, trains like 12953 Mumbai Central-Hazrat Nizamuddin August Kranti Rajdhani Express, 19022 Lucknow Jn.-Bandra Terminus Express, 12059/12060 Kota-Hazrat Nizamuddin-Kota Jan Shatabdi Express and 12909 Bandra Terminus-Hazrat Nizamuddin Garib Rath Express were among those which were cancelled. At least 13 trains were running late in the zone. The 22405 Bhagalpur-Anand Vihar Garib Rath Express, Mumbai-New Delhi Rajdhani Express, Howrah-New Delhi Poorva Express were delayed by around three hours while the Raxaul-Anandvihar Sadbhavna Express was running late by seven hours, it said. The Northern Railways said 19024 Firozepur-Mumbai Central Janata Express, Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra, 12472 Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra-Bandra Terminus Swaraj Express, 12450 Chandigarh-Madgaon Goa Sampark Kranti Express and 12904 Amritsar-Mumbai Central Golden Temple Mail had been diverted. On Saturday, a state government delegation, including Tourism Minister Vishvendra Singh and senior IAS officer Neeraj K Pawan, had met Bainsla and his supporters to hold talks, but no agreement could be reached. Bainsla has said that the community will continue their protest demanding five per cent reservation to the Gujjars, Raika-Rebari, Gadia Luhar, Banjara and the Gadaria communities in government jobs and educational institutions as promised. "We will remain on dharna. We do not want to talk with the government. We are waiting for the government to give the order for five per cent reservation," Vijay Bainsla, son of Kirori Singh Bainsla, said. He said an appeal had been made for maintaining peace but it was the angst of the people which have come out during the protests. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Police have seized a huge amount of cartridges, unassembled parts of AK-47 rifle and arrested three arms smugglers from Bihar's Purnea district, a senior officer said Sunday. A police patrolling team stopped a vehicle in Baisi area on Thursday during routine checking and found 600 live cartridges and arrested three arms smugglers, Additional Director General of Police (Headquarters) Kundan Krishnan told reporters here. After a thorough checking of the vehicle the police recovered various parts of firearms and 1000 additional cartridges which were hidden in specially built boxes inside the vehicle. The police found that there were three AK 47 rifles after assembling the various firearms parts seized, the ADGP said. During interrogation, the three arrested persons confessed that they used to supply arms and weapons to Mukesh Singh of Patna and Santosh Singh of Bhojpur, Krishnan said. The police raided Mukesh Singhs house in Patna on Saturday and seized 50 cartridges, he said adding that Mukesh has been absconding since then. Police are also considering to hand over the case to Central agency as arms bore the 'MA' mark which shows that the arms are of Myanmar Army and have been smuggled into India, the ADGP added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Elaborate preparations are underway in Vrindavan for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's programme here on Monday during which he will serve food to underprivileged schoolchildren and address a huge gathering. He will also unveil a ceremonial plaque to mark the serving of "3rdbillionth meal" by Akshaya Patra Foundation at Vrindavan Chandrodaya Mandir campus in this holy city. "The prime minister will serve food to about 20 schoolchildren from underprivileged background in the campus, marking the three billionth meal offered by Akshaya Patra,"Naveena Neerada Dasa, the head of strategic communications in ISKCON, said. Funded by International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), Akshsya Patra is a Bengaluru-based not-for-profit organisation that works with the government on mid-day meal schemes. Akshaya Patra has a state-of-the-art kitchen in Vrindavan and Modi will serve food to children near the facility. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Union HRD minister Prakash Javadekar, BJP's Mathura MP Hema Malini will also join the prime minister at the event. "Arrangements have been made for over 10,500 people, including parents, teachers of schoolchildren, our donors and other well-wishers of the foundation, and enclosures have been made for them," Dasa told PTI. The prime minister and the UP chief minister will address the gathering, he said. Modi will also pay floral tribute at the Vigraha of Srila Prabhupad, the Acharya of ISCKON, the Union government said. This would be PM Modi's "first visit to the Chadrodaya Mandir campus" and elaborate arrangements have been made for it, Dasa said. Police and security personnel are keeping a tight vigil in the town in view of his visit, and the venue and the main stage have been decked up. Twelve LED screens have been put up for the audience and 70 mobile toilets and four VIP washrooms have been arranged for the event, organisers said. "The programme would be streamed live on the Web across all 42 centres of Akshaya Patra in the country. "In Gujarat, where we are a partner for the Mid-Day Meal Scheme, all government schools will be hosting the streaming. So, people will join on the ground and online for the big event," he said. A silver 'patra' (container), as symbolised in our logo, will be gifted to the prime minister, Dasa said. The event will commemorate the NGO's serving of cumulative three billion meals since its inception in 2000. The NGO's state-of-the-art kitchens have become a subject of study and have attracted curious visitors from around the world. "Today, Akshaya Patra is the world's largest (not-for-profit run) mid-day meal programme serving wholesome food every school day to over 1.76 million children from 14,702 schools across 12 states in India," according to its website. A few ministers of the Uttar Pradesh government, including Anupma Jaiswal, minister of state (independent charge) for basic education, child development and nutrition; local MLAs and Mukesh Arya Bandhu, Mayor - Mathura-Vrindavan Nagar Nigam, are also expected to be present on the occasion, the official said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Sunday invoked the legacy of late Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N T Rama Rao to question TDP supremo N Chandrababu Naidu's move to align with the Congress, saying NTR's "atma" would be "hurt" on seeing this. Veterans like (TDP) founder NTR, as he is addressed, were "insulted' by the arrogance of the "naamdars (famous)" of the Delhi family, Modi said in an apparent reference to the party. Addressing a BJP rally here, Modi questioned the rationale behind Naidu's plan to tie up with Congress, reminding him that his party's very existence was born out of the 'insult' meted out to his father-in-law by the grand old party. In an apparent reference to the Congress, Modi said NTR used to call 'dusht' (evil) those 'insulting' Andhra Pradesh and asked why Naidu was hobnobbing with such persons today. Modi's scathing remarks came at the meeting attended by senior party leaders, including N T Ramarao's daughter D Purandeswari, who had quit to join BJP in 2014. "The arrogance of the naamdar family in Delhi has always insulted big leaders in states. During that course of insult, NTR had decided to make make Andhra Pradesh Congress-mukt and therefore TDP came to existence." "Today, the TDP leader (Naidu) who should have strived for a Congress-mukt Bharat, who had to crush the arrogance of the naamdaars, has sided with them," Modi said. "Then, NT Ramarao used to call those insulting Andhra Pradesh as dusht (evil). Today, the chief minister has made them friends. Wherever NTR is today, we can assume how much his atma (soul) would have been hurt seeing this," Modi said. Modi charged that though Naidu claimed to have inherited the legacy of NTR and promised to fulfil his dreams, he had not lived up to those assurances. "Is he respecting NTR today...what is the compulsion that they have surrendered before the naamdar?. What is the pressure that he has forgotten his party's very history?," Modi said in his broadside against Naidu. Taking a swipe at Naidu and his son Lokesh, Modi described the TDP rule in the state as "father-son government." At a particular juncture of his speech, he addressed Naidu as "N Lokesh's father."He also said Naidu promised the sunrise of Andhra Pradesh but was fixated with the rise of his own son Lokesh. : BJP will get full majority on its own in the forthcoming general elections, as the people were happy with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and want to re-elect him to the top post, Union Minister of Law, Electronics and Information Technology Ravi Shankar Prasad said Sunday. Speaking to reporters here, the Minister accused the proposed 'Mahagatbandhan' (grand alliance of opposition parties) of not having any programme; having the only agenda of 'Modi Hatao' (remove Modi). ''The people of India are very happy. They want to re-elect Modi in a decisive manner. India of 2019 is not the India of the 1990s where it had Prime Ministers from 40 days to 11 months,'' he said. With the leadership which Modi has shown, the people would place their trust fully in him, the Minister said. The people have seen the work, honesty and commitment of Modi, that of the BJP and NDA government, and they would win strong support from across the country, and the party would get 300-plus seats, he said. Today, the country has been ranked the sixth biggest economy in the world and by this year-end, the nation may surpass the British economy to become the fifth largest economy, the Minister said. The BJP government was committed to the welfare of the poor, it was giving Rs 6,000 to farmers, and pension to workers in the unorganised sector, he said. The BJP has been tough on security of the nation by launching surgical strikes, besides the ones against black money through demonetisation, the Law Minister said. Modi talks to develop India, work for the poor and middle-class and to take the country forward, he said. The Union Minister took a dig at Congress president Rahul Gandhi's gravitas of understanding politics, saying the knowledge of the leader of the grand old party was debatable. On Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidus protest in Delhi on February 11 seeking demanding special status for Andhra Pradesh, Prasad said this is nothing new of him (Naidu). The people of Andhra Pradesh would take a call, they want a 'majboot' (strong) government in Delhi not a 'majboor' 'helpless' government. Moreover, the people in the state have love and respect for Modi, the Minister said. The BJP was seeking suggestions from farmers, traders, IT professionals etc, etc on how to make the 'New India' agenda more powerful and on how to make the country a global power, he said. Over 7,000 suggestion boxes were being taken around the country to get people's ideas so that the BJP could prepare its manifesto for the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections, he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Palestinian man who murdered a young Israeli woman had "nationalist" motives, the Shin Bet security agency has said. The body of 19-year-old Ori Ansbacher was found on Thursday south of Jerusalem and her suspected murdered Arafat Irfaiya, 29, was arrested on Saturday in what the Shin Bet now says was a "nationalist" attack. Both the police and the Shin Bet security agency said earlier that investigations had so far not concluded whether it was a "terrorist attack" or driven by another motive. But in the run-up to general elections in April, politicians and Israeli media appeared to have already made up their minds. "I have no doubts about the nationalist motives of the murderer," Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan told public radio. Despite a court gag order, Israeli social media were abuzz at the weekend with what Yediot Aharonot newspaper called "graphic descriptions about the alleged nature of the murder". And on Sunday Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is under pressure and seeking re-election in April, pledged to freeze money transfers to the Palestinian Authority in line with a law voted in July by parliament, which has yet to be implemented. The prime minister also visited the Ansbacher family on Sunday evening and promised that he will make good on his pledge. In July last year, the Israeli parliament passed legislation to partially withhold funds, in response to Palestinian Authority payments to families of Palestinians jailed by Israel for attacks against Israelis. The army on Sunday said it had started preparations to demolish the West Bank home of the Palestinian suspect in the flashpoint city of Hebron on the occupied West Bank. Ansbacher's body was found late Thursday in southeast Jerusalem, and she was buried the next day in her Israeli settlement of Tekoa. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Pakistan Prime Minister will meet chief in on Sunday to discuss the conditions of the bailout package for his cash-strapped country. Khan is paying a day-long trip to the UAE to take part in the 7th edition of the World Government Summit on the invitation of Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE Sheikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum. Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry told Dawn newspaper that the premier will meet Lagarde on the sidelines of the World Government Summit in The report quoted a senior official involved in the negotiations as saying that Pakistan and the Monetary Fund (IMF) have narrowed their positions on the scale of adjustments over the past few weeks of continuous engagements. The is asking for an adjustment of around Rs 1,600-2,000 billion over three to four years. It also wants some corrective measures to put Pakistan's on the right track after witnessing the highest-ever current account deficit. But the stumbling issue in the talks is the pace of adjustments in the current expenditure. The emphasis on current expenditures comes as a result of a focus on what is known as a "primary balance" in the parlance of public finance. According to the official, there is some space for cut in certain expenditures where Pakistan is in a comfortable position. "This agreement in cut will pave way for accession to the programme," the official claimed, adding that it will be a politically difficult decision. A cut in the current expenditures still seems to put the government in awkward position by making adjustments in subsidies and other special grants. The has been demanding that the burden of any expenditure cuts should fall on current expenditures that include debt service, defence and subsidies. Finance Division's Spokesperson Khaqan Najeeb said that productive dialogue continued with the IMF on all areas including fiscal, energy, structural reforms and monetary policy. The two sides continue to exchange views on data and a reform framework to move forward. Discussions are part of a regular ongoing interaction between the government and the IMF and will continue in coming weeks, Najeeb said. "In addition, technical level subject-specific discussions also support the process of overall dialogue," he said. The IMF has also asked for further monetary tightening as well as a complete free float of the exchange rate. "We are already towards target in these areas," the official said, adding that the IMF has acknowledged these measures. According to the official, Finance Minister Asad Umar has already conveyed to the IMF during the recent parleys that only those measures will be taken which are favourable for the country's economic growth. Although the government has secured a breathing space from Saudi Arabian and the UAE loans, an IMF programme is essential to unlock access to resources from other multilateral lenders like the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, as well as the global capital markets. Cash-strapped Pakistan has received $1 billion each from Saudi Arabia and the UAE, as part of the bailout package by the two Gulf nations to help shore up Islamabad's dwindling foreign currency reserves. Saudi Arabia's assistance was part of the $6 billion bailout package - $3 billion balance-of-payments support and another $3 billion in deferred payments on oil imports - which Riyadh had agreed in October last year. Pakistan, which is in talks with the IMF for a bailout package, has also reportedly received financial assistance from China. Earlier, officials said that Pakistan would seek around $8 billion from the IMF which would be the biggest package by the Fund for Islamabad. Pakistan has the Mecca and Medina for the Sikhs and the country is opening up those sites for the minority community, Prime Minister Imran Khan said in the UAE on Sunday. Prime Minister Khan in November last year laid the foundation stone for the corridor linking Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan's Kartarpur - the final resting place of Sikh faith's founder Guru Nanak Dev - to Dera Baba Nanak shrine in India's Gurdaspur district to facilitate visa-free movement of Indian Sikh pilgrims. Khan is paying a day-long trip to the UAE to take part in the 7th edition of the World Government Summit on the invitation of Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE Sheikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum. "We have the Mecca and Medina of the Sikhs... and we are just opening up those sites for Sikhs," Khan said. Mecca and Medina are the two holiest sites in Islam. "We have opened our visa regime. For the first time in Pakistan, we have 70 countries from where people can come and get visas at the airport," the prime minister said. Khan said Pakistan has the best tourist potential even though at the moment it hardly has any tourism. "Half the world's highest peaks are in Pakistan," he said, adding that the country has 1,000 kilometers of coastline. Khan also said that Pakistan has the oldest historical monuments, probably as old as anywhere in the world. "We have Indus Valley Civilization, which is 5,000 years old. We have Peshawar, the oldest living city in the world, 2,500 years old. Lahore and Multan are ancient cities. "We have the Gandhara civilization, which was the cradle of Buddhist civilization, in the north of Islamabad. The biggest sleeping Buddha, 40 feet, is in Haripur. We have some of the greatest and highest number of Sufi shrines all over Pakistan," he said. Khan said they are opening up the country for tourism. Kartarpur Sahib in Pakistan is located across the river Ravi, about four kilometres from the Dera Baba Nanak shrine. It was established by the Sikh Guru in 1522. The first Gurdwara, Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib, was built here, where Guru Nanak is said to have died. The Kartarpur Corridor, which will facilitate the visa-free travel of Indian Sikh pilgrims to Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur, is expected to be completed soon. Thousands of Sikh devotees from India visit Pakistan every year to celebrate the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak. India had proposed the corridor to Pakistan around 20 years back. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya Sunday said he would not be surprised if the BJP bags all 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state, and asserted it was an "ideological victory" for the saffron party that opposition parties were "pursuing soft Hindutva". Hitting out at political rivals, Maurya said he was happy that Congress president Rahul Gandhi, whose party has been "consistently obstructing" the construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya, is now talking about his janeu (sacred thread) and chanting Om Namah Shivay. "And far as the Samajwadi Party is concerned, its founder Mulayam Singh Yadav had once ordered firing on innocent, unarmed and harmless Ram devotees (kar sevaks). And today, his son Akhilesh is coming to the Sangam and taking a dip (during Kumbh)," he told PTI in an interview. Maurya said even Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has to say 'Jai Mata Di' in West Bengal. "And I feel the day is not far when you will hear (BSP chief) Mayawati chanting Jai Shri Ram," the UP Deputy Chief Minister said. "All these indicate our (BJP's) ideological victory," he asserted. He said the BJP ideology directly relates to national unity and integrity. "It talks of Sabka Sath, Sabka Vikas (together with all, development for all). It talks of justice to all and appeasement of none, and it does not differentiate people on the basis of caste or religion." Taking a jibe at the proposed anti-BJP alliance, Maurya said, "Those who are talking about forging an anti-BJP gathbandhan are actually living in a state of confusion as the people of the country have already made up their minds to reelect Modiji as prime minister. He claimed the BJP's vote share will increase by at least 10 per cent in 2019 Lok Sabha elections. "We have coined a slogan this time '100 mein 60 hamaaraa hai, baaki mein batwaaraa hai' (60 per cent of votes will go to the BJP and the rest will be divided among the rest). He also went on to say that it would not be surprising if the BJP wins all 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state surpassing its own target of "74-plus". In the parliamentary elections in 2014, the BJP had won 71 seats in the state, securing 42.63 per cent of the votes. BJP ally Apna Dal had bagged two more. The Samajwadi Party had won five seats with a vote share of 22.35 per cent while the BSP did not win any seat even though it had secured 19.77 per cent votes. The Congress won two seats with a vote share of 7.53 per cent . (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) An unidentified man was killed when the police fired in retaliation on a suspected gang of robbers travelling in a car in Maharashtra's Solapur district in the wee hours of Sunday, a local official said. Three policemen were injured as the car's passengers, including the deceased man, attacked them, he said. Solapur tehsil police station in-charge Vijay Patil and three other policemen stopped on suspicion a car with five or six men inside around 3.30 am near Ulegaon, 400 km from here, the official said. The police found weapons such as swords and choppers inside the vehicle. When they questioned the car's passengers, the latter stepped out and attacked the policemen with swords and pelted stones at them, the official said. The policemen first fired in air and then fired at the assailants, injuring one of them, he said. He later died in a hospital. Though his identity was yet to be established, he apparently belonged to the local Pardhi community, the police official said. His companions fled from the spot leaving the car behind. The police found weapons and tools used for house break-in inside the vehicle, which showed the assailants were planning a crime, said Solapur Superintendent of Police Manoj Patil. Inspector Vijay Patil and two other policemen who were injured in the attack were undergoing treatment at a hospital, he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Ryan Crocker. Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images Few Americans have more on-the-ground foreign-policy experience than Ryan Crocker. Over a career spanning from the 1970s to the 2010s, he served as the U.S. ambassador to Lebanon, Kuwait, Syria, Pakistan, Iraq, and Afghanistan, as well as filling important diplomatic roles in several other countries. He survived the U.S. Embassy bombing in Beirut in 1983, and was awarded a Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2009. Crocker opposed President Trumps presidential candidacy in 2016, and has recently become an outspoken critic of his administrations Afghanistan strategy. Intelligencer spoke with Crocker about why he thinks Trumps attempt to end the conflict that has come to be known as the forever war is so misguided. Youve expressed some pretty grave concerns about the tentative peace framework being negotiated between the U.S. and the Taliban without the Afghan government. Why do you think these talks may be a mistake? The Taliban has insisted for the last decade and a half or so that it is always ready to sit down with the U.S., but not with the Afghan government in the room, which they style as an illegitimate puppet of the occupying force us. After a decade and a half of saying we wont talk under those terms, we have now conceded the point. And without knowing anything at all about the policy process in Washington, I think the symbolism is pretty clear. The only conceivable reason we would do this is because were done in Afghanistan, and were going to want to try to get the best terms we can. It completely delegitimizes the Afghan government, and that is very, very dangerous. As the talks have progressed, the Taliban has become even more violent than usual, killing scores of Afghan officers and civilians with regularity. At the same time, theyre meeting with former Afghan officials and elders, including the former president Hamid Karzai just not the current government. What do you make of their strategy at the moment? Having gotten concessions on their most important demand, they know that theyre in a very good place right now, and theyre going to maximize their position. I think youll see them throw everything they can find into the fight. Why? Several reasons. One, to indicate that they are indeed a military force that has to be taken seriously. But they also know that the Afghan establishment, both civilian and military, will be severely demoralized by this U.S. action. So it makes sense to ramp up the violence when youve already got the U.S. to deliver a mortal blow to confidence in the government. Youre probably going to start seeing mass desertions in the military. Similarly on the political side, now that we have signaled that its perfectly fine to talk to the Taliban without participation by the Afghan government, thats the green light. Everybody can talk to them without the Afghan government. Did we intend this? I have no idea, but its certainly what weve got. So we may be on the fast track to extricating ourselves, but through these steps, we are decreasing dramatically the survivability of the government, including its armed forces. We have incentivized the enemy, and we have given a sign to nonviolent opponents of the government that its just fine to start talking to the Taliban about a political future that may include you, but certainly wont include the current administration in Afghanistan. Youve also said that if U.S. troops do withdraw, its likely only a matter of time before the Taliban completely retakes the country. I would expect that. I mean, in kinetic matters in complex foreign areas, you cant be too confident of any future prediction. But again, were already seeing an uptick in the violence, and I think youre probably also going to see that Afghan security forces are not putting up the fight they had done before this started. What does that say about the Afghan military, which the U.S. has been spending so much time almost two decades and so much money on, trying to train into a potent fighting force? Isnt this exactly the kind of scenario that theyre supposed to be prepared for? Well, if you look at a relatively recent parallel, the Afghan military did fight on after the Soviet withdrawal in 1989. I think they lasted another couple of years before they eventually were consumed. You know, Afghans theyre tough folks, whatever side of the fight theyre on. Its just that its pretty hard to keep fighting in uniform when you no longer believe in the outcome, and positively dangerous, too. Theres not much point of soldiering on if all thats going to get you is an execution by a Taliban court because you fought the soon-to-be dominant power. So obviously were going to have to see what happens, but I have to think the Afghan forces are pretty severely demoralized, and that makes it pretty tough for our guys who are out there, our guys and gals out there who are involved in training. This peace deal, if it does come to fruition, would involve the Taliban pledging that it wouldnt allow Afghanistan to be used as a staging ground for attacks against the U.S., the way it was before 9/11 with Al Qaeda. Do you think theres a strong chance that the Taliban would violate that promise? It seems to me that theres little incentive to do so, given that theyve just spent almost two decades in grinding combat as a result of hosting terrorists in the first place. Well, thats one way to look at it. Another way is that the Taliban decided it would continue to stand with Al Qaeda, even though it cost them the country. They would not break those ties, and I would absolutely not expect them to do so now. And what is it exactly that were going to do to ensure that they live up to the terms of whatever they say theyre going to do, like not allowing terrorists back into the country? It just seems fanciful to say, well, theyll run the risk of being overthrown again. Im not sure how ready, willing, and able were going to be to launch yet another military effort into Afghanistan. I think many Americans dont view Al Qaeda as an imminent threat, and think that theyve been pretty much destroyed. How long can you justify an occupation if there are no attacks on U.S. soil for decades? Do we just keep the troops there forever? Well, we keep them there until were powerfully persuaded in a way that will stand up to scrutiny by the American public that that threat is gone. Its pretty hard to make that case convincingly, since it looks like the people who actually brought us the attacks are on their way back in. But somebody show me the demonstrable truth that Al Qaeda has either gone away completely, or that they have fundamentally changed their ideology. In the absence of that evidence, I think weve got to remember what happened before, and that the people who brought it to us are still there. Would you prefer to keep about the level of troop commitment we have now for the foreseeable future, or send more? I cant say it better than President Trump did when he laid out his policy in the summer of 2017. He said that in Afghanistan we have substantial interests. Were going to be driven not by a calendar, but by conditions. We will be there in whatever form at whatever numbers we judge to be the right way to secure our national-security interests. I mean, he got it right. Its just that his impatience has overcome him. And I take it you dont have that much faith in drones to monitor this problem, as opposed to forces on the ground. Drones are great platforms, no question. But actual control comes from, in this case, the boots on the ground. Thats where you get your detailed intel picture from its where youre able to direct operations in real time. Drones are one part of an arsenal that requires a broader set of weapons, including some minimum number of forces on the ground. It seems that the U.S. is not negotiating from a position of strength here: President Trump clearly wants to get out, and thats the way hes approaching things. But has there been a time over the last 17 years where the U.S. could have negotiated from more of a position of strength than it is now? When I was there, in 2011 and 2012, we did see some indications of [Taliban members] interested in coming in out of the cold. That started when I was there. But at that time, my position, our position was, Sure, well talk to [the Taliban] when the Afghan government asks us to do so. And when we do it, theyre gonna be in the room. So, you know, had we sustained a more robust presence, that probably would have been about the time to do it. I think a lot of people would say that weve sent tons of troops to Afghanistan since 2001, and the situation in the country has never fundamentally changed. So why should we believe that anything would change with more of them? Well, the flip side of it is that we had over 100,000 troops there in 20112012. Now weve got 14,000 and the situation has not gotten hugely worse. So, we can sustain a commitment at or near the current levels, which costs much, much less in blood and in treasure. If were able to get this, you know, good-enough Afghanistan with a minimal troop commitment, thats a pretty cheap insurance policy for our own national security. The war has been unpopular for a long time, and has become even more so over the years. How would you frame what were actually doing there now? Is it about making sure the country doesnt fall into ruin, or just about sustaining our own interests? Both goals are tied to the whole country not going belly-up. If our non-minimal presence is a bulwark and a sustenance for the current Afghan government and its armed forces, thats good for our own strategic safety. And, of course, the difference between Afghanistan and Syria and Vietnam and everything else is that it was a Taliban-sheltered Al Qaeda, which caused 9/11. Hezbollah, as bad as theyve been, the Iranian revolutionary guards, as bad as they are, the Syrian regime, as bad as they are none of them have even contemplated, to our knowledge, any kind of attack into the U.S. mainland. Al Qaeda, in a Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, not only thought about it, they did it. And do we really think that somehow the Taliban is kinder and gentler after 18 years in the wilderness? Why on earth would we think they are? Theyre committed to their cause. Theyre outlasting us. They have a level of patience we dont. Are you in contact with many people in the Trump administration? Do you get a sense that this policy is unpopular in the military or diplomatic core? Or are you pretty far removed from that world at this point? I stand pretty well clear of that world, in large part. To be clear with you and with others, these are my own thoughts and conclusions drawn from publicly available information, and Im not privy to any particular inside knowledge. That said, knowing some of the players and past situations, the only reason that you can imagine us now agreeing to talk to the Taliban without the Afghan government would be a result of negotiators being told, Were getting out, cut the best deal you can, cut it as quick as you can, because were going. Theres no other explanation I can find for the sudden decision to reverse course on a critical policy point of the Afghan government and the chief interlocutor. The interview has been edited and condensed for clarity. : Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy Sunday said he has not received an invite for the Prime Minister's official programme in Hubballi-Dharwad and accused the Modi government of indulging in "petty politics". "Today's Narendra Modi's programmes, till now no officials have come to invite me," he told reporters before the Prime Minister arrived at Hubballi. Speaking to reporters here, he pointed out that for railway projects, the state government shares 50 per cent of theamount, along with land. "We need not say anything to point at the Prime Minister'spetty behaviour... We don't have any objection to them doing their party event, but the government programme that he (PM) is attending, despite having projects that has state government's assistance.... They don't have basic courtesy to invite. They are indulging in cheap politics," he added. Modi's Sunday programmes include laying the foundation for the IIT Dharwad building and gas pipeline project, among others, besides addressing a political rally in Huballi later to kick start the BJP's Lok Sabha poll campaign in the state. The Prime Minister is expected to visit the state two more times this month on February 19 and 27 to campaign for BJP that has set a target of winning over 22 of the total of 28Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka. Karnataka Pradesh Congress Chief Dinesh Gundu Rao also hit out at the Modi government for not inviting the Chief Minister to official programmes at Hubballi and termed it as an "insult" to Karnataka. He alleged that the Modi government was claiming credit for establishing an IIT in Dharwad without acknowledging the contribution of the state, that allotted 500-acres of prime land for this purpose. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A 97-year-old Indian-origin man in the UAE has got his driving licence renewed for the next four years, a media report has said. Tehemten Homi Dhunjiboy Mehta, who was born in 1922, could become the first centenarian to be driving on Dubai roads in three years. His licence is valid until October 2023, Gulf reported Saturday. Coincidentally, Prince Philip, the 97-year-old husband of British Queen Elizabeth II, has voluntarily surrendered his driving licence, weeks after the duke miraculously escaped unhurt in a terrifying accident that injured two women in another car. Mehta, a Kenyan of Indian descent, lives alone and is in no hurry to hit the roads as he thinks cars make people lazy. He prefers to walk -- sometimes up to four hours daily. The long-time Dubai resident, who never married, last drove a vehicle in 2004. He now uses public transport or travels around on foot. "Don't tell anyone. It's the secret of my robust health and long life. And yes, I don't smoke or drink," Mehta says as he chuckles. He came to Dubai in 1980 and took up an accounting job at a five star hotel where he worked until 2002 when a routine background check of employees revealed his age and he was asked to put in his papers. "I was 80 then with no family and nowhere to go so I dug into my lifetime's savings and bought a one-bedroom apartment in the city to secure a life-long residency in the safe environs of Dubai. "I have been living as a loner for the most part of life as I never got married. I have a younger sister in the UK who I visit every summer but I banished all thoughts of relocating there after I was mugged in London in broad day light some years ago. I can't imagine that happening in Dubai so I would rather stay here," Mehta said. All of Mehta's friends are long dead and the only support he has here is from members of law firm Al Midfa and Associates whom he contacted in 2004 to help draft a will. In 2012, the law firm celebrated his 90th birthday at the hotel where he worked for over three decades. "If there were an old age home here, I would've happily sold my apartment and moved there to enjoy my remaining life to the hilt. Presently, I am living on a tight budget as I have had no income for 17 years. My finances are fast dwindling. The mandatory insurance cost also eats away my limited savings," he said. Mehta does all the household chores himself. "The day is almost over by the time I wake up which is around 1.30 PM. I prepare freshly brewed tea for myself and then flick through channels before heading out for long walks. Sometimes I walk for up to four hours. Occasionally I take the Metro to visit malls," he said. The only meal Mehta has is dinner which is mostly at 9 PM from one of the many restaurants in his neighbourhood. "I return home around midnight and read the previous day's newspaper or watch TV before going to bed at 4.30 AM. The proverb 'early to bed early to rise makes a person healthy, wealthy and wise' may work for most people but not for me," he added as he smiled. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) There is no consensus among Sri Lankan political parties for electoral reforms, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said Sunday. Sri Lanka adopted a new system of hybrid elections, proportional representation and first past the post, in the local council elections held a year ago. The major parties want to revert to the full proportional representation system which was in force for all elections held since 1988. Addressing a public gathering in the southern town of Balapitiya, Wickremesinghe said: "There are differences among political parties on the new system of elections". While the major political parties are in agreement, the smaller parties and minority parties are not, he said. "Smaller parties say their chances are not good in a mixed system. The major political parties are for the proportional representation with safeguards to ensure stable government formation," Wickremesinghe said. His comments came as President Maithripala Sirisena said efforts must be taken to hold provincial elections as soon as possible while ruling out the possibility of holding a snap presidential polls before its schedule in November this year. "A presidential election cannot be forced," Sirisena said, referring to the demand of Wickremesinghe's party. Main opposition leader Mahinda Rajapaksa's party prefers early parliamentary elections ahead of its 2020 August schedule. Six of the nine provinces must go to polls now to elect a body for a five-year term with three other provinces ending their terms later this year. Provincial polls are being delayed to enable the legislature to implement the delimitation commission recommendations which would allow the elections to be held under the hybrid system of proportional representation and first past the post. The opposition led by Rajapaksa accuses Wickremesinghe of delaying elections for the fear of losing them. Rajapaksa's new party swept the local elections held under the hybrid system last year. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Telecom regulator Trai has said 90 million out of 170 million TV homes have made their channel preferences to onboard the new tariff regime, and it is constantly monitoring the situation to ensure that consumers do not face inconvenience. "The speed (of onboarding) has increased as per our data and we expect the rest of the people to also register their choice of channels soon," Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) Chairman told PTI. Sharma, who is spearheading Trai's new tariff and regulatory framework for broadcasting and cable services, said of the 90 million TV homes that have made their channel preferences clear, 65 million are cable TV homes and 25 million are DTH homes. "Out of the total 170 million TV homes (which includes 70 million DTH homes and 100 million cable TV homes), about 90 million homes have already registered their choice with the operators, which is a big number," he said. Since DTH is a pre-paid model, as and when customers' long and short duration packs come to an end, people will make channel selection, he added. "We are guiding and helping the operators where ever required and are calling regular meetings to clarify matters," Sharma noted. The regulator also plans to step up efforts on customer outreach and awareness programmes. "Trai will take up a massive campaign on consumer awareness, through social media, print, advertisements, jingles and other programs," he said. Last week, the sector regulator had asked platform operators to revert on special schemes and plans for households with multiple TV connections. Trai had made it clear that players have to allow individual set-top boxes (even within a same household) to have a separate choice of channels if the consumer wishes. As per the regulations, players can also choose to offer discounts, even waive off the network capacity fee (a maximum of Rs 130) on the subsequent connections in the same household. But such discounts have to be offered uniformly in a location and declared transparently on the players' website. Sharma said that Trai has received responses from three operators on the special schemes for multi-connection homes, but at this point, does not feel the need to intervene into the matter. He did not divulge further details. The regulator has unveiled the new tariff order and regulatory regime for the broadcast and cable sector, which paves the way for consumers to opt for channels they wish to view and pay only for them. It has said every channel should be offered a la carte, with a transparent display of rates on electronic programme guide. The new framework has come into effect from February 1. A recent Crisil report had claimed that costs of TV viewing may rise by 25 per cent under the new regulatory regime, but Trai had strongly refuted the claim citing specific data from two market players to argue that prices in specific locations like Delhi and Mumbai have come down. India will decide on the number of new reactors to be placed under IAEA safeguards only after assessing if these will be fuelled by uranium procured from abroad, a senior official said. There are at present 22 operational reactors, of which 14 are under the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards as these use imported fuel. In 2017, the government sanctioned 10 new pressurised heavy water reactors (PHWR) and a decision on these being put under IAEA safeguards has to be taken, the official said. The 10 reactors are being installed in Kaiga in Karnataka, Chutka in Madhya Pradesh, Gorakhpur in Haryana, and Mahi Banswara in Rajasthan. "We have recently signed an agreement to procure uranium from Uzbekistan. We will take a call only after assessing the position of the imported fuel and domestic uranium," the official said. India currently imports uranium from Russia, Kazakhstan and Canada. Plans are also afoot to procure the fuel from Uzbekistan and Australia. By placing the reactors under the IAEA safeguards, India gives the international nuclear energy watchdog access to them. This step was taken by the country in 2014 to demonstrate that its nuclear energy programme was for peaceful purposes. This is a necessary step under the Indo-US nuclear deal. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Imploring industry bodies to weed out "black sheeps" who give a bad name to the business community, Vice-President Sunday asked various nations to reach a consensus to not provide shelter to fugitives involved in economic offences. "In the wake of the economic offences by some individuals, I implore industry bodies to weed out black sheeps who give a bad name to the business community," he said at "The Huddle," a thought conclave held by 'The Hindu' here. "Time also has come for various nations to arrive at a consensus in not providing shelter to economic fugitives," he added. These remarks come in the wake of industrialist Vijay Mallya's possible extradition to India from the United Kingdom. A UK court on December 10 last year had ordered extradition of Mallya, who is wanted in India for alleged fraud and money laundering involving an estimated Rs 9,000 crore. "It should be remembered that such economic offences pose a direct challenge to a nation's health and wealth," Naidu said. Voicing concern about the disruptions in the functioning of Parliament and legislatures, Naidu said the time has come for political parties to evolve a code of conduct for their MPs and MLAs and ensure effective functioning if these Houses have to fulfil the aspirations of people. "It is truly unfortunate that disorder and disruptions have become the order of the day," he said. He said he also felt that political parties should not resort to populist, impractical and short-term promises to win elections as the country's economy would suffer in the long-term due to unproductive schemes. "We need to empower people to stand on their feet, rather than making them increasingly dependent on governments," Naidu said. The vice-president said the delicate balance between the executive, legislature and judiciary should be maintained at all times and nobody should encroach into the domain of the other. "The wheels of democracy will run smoothly as long as each wing functions within its demarcated domain and not overstep into other's jurisdiction," he added. Naidu said the other major challenge the country needs to address on a war footing is the deficiencies in infrastructure development and the central government is already addressing the issue by building road and highway networks, developing ports and promoting regional air connectivity. The Public-Private Partnership projects have to be scaled up for accelerating the pace of infrastructure development and need to promote massive infrastructure projects for the country to compete with other countries, Naidu said. On the media scenario in India, he said some of the news stories are slanted to suit the views of the management and media outlets are being started for commercial and political considerations, not for providing pure and unadulterated news to the people. Mindless sensationalism and paid news are some of the concerns that media professionals themselves need to address, he added. Media associations should also come out with a code of conduct for journalists to ensure professional integrity, the vice-president said. Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu Sunday slammed some activists for either "defending" or "maintaining silence" regarding violation of human rights by some groups and said "ballot is more powerful than bullet". Giving a valedictory address in the closing ceremony of the first Law Association For Asia and the Pacific (LAWASIA) conference here, Naidu said violence is one of the "worst forms" of human rights violations and urged the international community to work towards achieving peace. "Violence is one of the worst forms of human rights violations because democracy essentially is all about protection of fundamental rights of individuals. Ironically some activist groups tend to adopt paradoxical attitude towards human rights. They either defend or maintain silence regrading the violation of human rights by violent groups and ready to condemn law enforcing, peace promoting firm action by the state," Naidu said. "Democracy is the best form of government. We are a parliamentary democracy. We have elections... We can change the rulers however mighty they may be because it has been proved beyond doubt that ballot is more powerful than bullet," he said. He also said that the perpetrators of violence can claim no human rights. "You cannot follow this theory of power through gun and take the gun and then when you are arrested, claim human rights violation," said Naidu, in an apparent reference to left-wing extremism. He also said that "some people" have taken it up as a "fashion" these days to defend such forces. "We have seen some people they have taken it as fashion to defend such forces, such people. This is not acceptable at all in a democracy. Any violation of the right of any individual is not acceptable either by the government of other citizens also," said Naidu. Agreeing with the vice president, senior advocate Shyam Divan, who was also one of the dignitaries, said, "Eventually as the vice president very clearly said as they are all very keen on endorsing human rights there is a counter balance over there, with the problems which were faced by violence and terrorism." Speaking on how the international community should fight terrorism together, Naidu said, "Terror is the enemy of humanity. If there is terror, you cannot have attention towards anything. Peace is the prerequisite for progress. We must work together to achieve peace." "Violence by anybody is condemnable. I would like the international community to seriously ponder over all these activities that are being carried out and the problems of terror and challenges". Naidu also condemned people who have evaded the country. He said, "You escape and (take) shelter there. Some people wonderfully were saying I am worried about my safety in India. You have been born in this country, brought up in this country. Then you go outside and make a statement that you have a threat to your life. You created threat to the lives of people by disturbing the economy and system." Naidu hailed the Supreme Court for being a "fierce guardian" of human rights throughout. "The contribution of the Indian Supreme Court as a guard of human rights in the country has pushed jurisprudence in the country...The court has been a fierce guardian of human rights. The Supreme Court has made great strives in human rights, jurisprudence, in this country," said Naidu. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday launched a scathing attack on Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and TDP supremo Chandrababu Naidu, saying he has made a "U-turn" on promises of development by not using central funds in an appropriate way and failing to develop the state. "Our government gave to Andhra Pradesh much more than what was mentioned in special status. CM of Andhra Pradesh acknowledged this package but took a U-turn as they failed to use the funds in the appropriate way and were not able to develop the state," Modi said, addressing a public rally. Modi lashed out at Naidu for aligning with the Congress, saying the former chief minister N T Rama Rao (NTR) had launched the party to make Andhra Pradesh "congress-mukt" after he was a victim of its 'arrogance.' The Prime Minister said Naidu had been saying he was his senior and he had no problems with it. "He keeps reminding me he is senior. There is no debate in this. I have never shown any disrespect to you since you are a senior. Babu garu is senior in jumping parties, senior in switching to new alliances and in backstabbing own father-in-law (NTR). He is a senior in losing every other election. He is a senior in sitting in the lap of the same person whom he criticises. He is senior in destroying the dreams of (people of) AP. I am certainly not a senior in that respect," Modi said, amid peals of laughter. Modi, who was on his first visit to the state after the TDP walked out of the NDA government at the Centre in March last year, came down heavily on Naidu, whom he repeatedly referred to as "father of N Lokesh." Modi alleged Naidu was taking him on since the Centre had sought details of every paise given to Andhra Pradesh. Naidu had promised walking in the footsteps of NTR, Modi said and asked if the Chief Minister had lived by it. "The TDP leader who has to resist the arrogance of the Naamdaars (famous and powerful people) and crush their arrogance is siding with them," he said in an apparent swipe at Naidu joining hands with the Congress. "This chowkidar (watchman) has disturbed his sleep.. wanted to know the details of every paise given to Andhra Pradesh," Modi said. Naidu promised the sunrise of Andhra Pradesh but is fixated with the rise of his own son N Lokesh, Modi charged. "Chandrababu Naidu rightly said that he is a "wealth creator" and Modi has no idea about wealth creation. From Amaravati to Polavaram, they are busy in creating wealth for themselves and thats why are scared from this 'Chowkidar'. "One must admire Chandrababu Naidu Garus honesty. He says he is a wealth creator!Hes obviously creating lots of wealth for him and his son while AP suffers." The Chief Minister promised the redevelopment of Amaravati but is now engaged in his own development, the Prime Minister alleged. He said Naidu had not initiated any new programmes for the poor but was only putting his stamp on the NDA government's development schemes. On providing clean fuel in the country, Modi said while in 60 years, only 12 crore gas connections were given, the NDA government had given 13 crore gas connections in just four years. Earlier, the Prime Minister dedicated two major petroleum and gas projects--a strategic petroleum reserve facility at Visakhapatnam and a gas field at Amalapuram worth Rs 6,825 crore to the nation through remote control system. Modi said his government was working towards ensuring energy security for the country while simultaneously building a clean fuel economy. He also laid the foundation-stone for the construction of a Rs 2,280 crore coastal terminal of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited at Krishnapatnam in SPS Nellore district. During the rally, Modi said "Our aim is to have a new India that is clean and pollution-free. Such projects are the key to the nations energy security," Modi said. The Centre was building oil reserves at various locations across the country to ensure there was no shortage of oil and gas in times of crises, he said, referring to a similar facility he inaugurated in the north-east on Saturday. "Our government has been working continuously to make India a clean fuel economy and several projects have been initiated in this direction," he added. Referring to the strategic petroleum reserve facility of Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserve Limited (ISPRL) at Visakhapatnam and the ONGCs Vasishta S1 gas field in the Krishna-Godavari Basin at Amalapuram, the Prime Minister said they would not only help create jobs but also aid in the development of gas-based industries in the region. Earlier, when Modi arrived at Gannavaram airport in Vijayawada, TDP workers staged protests. The Chandrababu Naidu-led party quit the BJP-led NDA protesting the "injustice" done to the state post-bifurcation. Giving the protocol a go-by, none of the state ministers turned up at the airport to formally receive the Prime Minister. BJP leaders alleged that people were "thwarted," from reaching the venue in large numbers and said countdown would start for Naidu with Modi's rally at Guntur. Commenting on the black balloon protests against him by TDP workers, Modi quipped he welcomed it recalling the tradition of smearing black to ward off evil designs. Modi said: "In the last four and a half years, whatever had to be done to ensure justice for my sisters and brothers of Andhra Pradesh, we have done. We stand with Andra Pradesh and its great people. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Taking exception to the Prime Minister addressing him as "father of Lokesh" at a rally in Guntur Sunday, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu launched a counter-offensive by dragging Narendra Modi's wife into the row. "You have estranged your wife. Do you have any respect in the family system," Naidu asked Modi. The TDP president said he loved his family and respected it. He said the Prime Minister did not have a family or a son. "Since you have referred to my son, I am mentioning about your wife. People, do you know Narendra Modi has a wife? Her name is Jashodaben," Naidu told a public meeting at Vijayawada. The Chief Minister also continued his outburst at the Prime Minister, accusing him of ruining the country and all the systems. Naidu, who had earlier welcomed demonetisation when it was announced on November 8, 2016, now called it a "mad Tughlaq act". "They scrapped Rs 1000 currency note but brought in Rs 2000 note. How will corruption end," he asked. The TDP had quit the NDA in March last year protesting against the "injustice" done to the state post-bifurcation. Naidu alleged the opposition YSR Congress mobilised crowds for the Prime Ministers public meeting at Guntur as the BJP totally "lost" public support in the state. "Modis AP tour is an utter flop. BJP should realise that people registered their protest by not attending Modis meeting. It has been established again that Telugu people would teach a lesson to those who betrayed them," Naidu later told his party leaders. The Chief Minister condemned BJP leaders complaint that the government obstructed people from attending the Guntur public meeting. "The Prime Minister claims to be a chaiwala but look at his suits and boots....," the Chief Minister said. "The go back slogan we gave is asking you to go back to your village in Gujarat as you are not eligible to be the Prime Minister," Naidu added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) RLSP leader Nagmani, who was sacked from the post of national executive president two days back, resigned Sunday from the primary membership accusing party chief Upendra Kushwaha of "selling" Lok Sabha tickets. "I am announcing my resignation in front of journalists since the RLSP did not observe the courtesy of providing me with a copy of the letter removing me from the top post, the contents of which I came to learn only through the media," Nagmani told reporters here. Nagmani was sacked from the post of national executive president for indulging in anti-party activities. "The party had held that my presence at functions attended by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar was tantamount to indiscipline. Both such functions were held in the memory of my father Jagdeo Prasad, who is extolled by our Kushwaha community as an icon. Can I be accused of anti-party activities in such a backdrop," Nagmani asked. The former Union minister in Atal Behari Vajpayee's government also alleged that Upendra Kushwaha and his "cronies" were upset with him since February 7 when he flagged the issue of a party ticket being given from Motihari to Madhaw Anand, who hails from Madhubani and is based in Delhi. "I told him that there is considerable resentment in Motihari over this decision of the party," Nagmani, who was himself an aspirant for party ticket from Chatra in Jharkhand, said. He alleged that Kushwaha tried to silence him by saying that Anand had used his corporate connections to get Rs 9 crore for the party. "I reminded Kushwaha that people like me had joined his party and offered him support since we strongly felt that our community, despite being sizeable, has not got its due in Bihars "He was compromising on our cherished goal by putting tickets on sale. He did not say anything then but I sensed that I had ruffled many feathers. Kushwaha bared his fangs the very next day," he added. Asked about the Rashtriya Lok Samta Party's (RLSP) contention that it was unacceptable to see him beside Nitish Kumar when the party was accusing the chief minister of having conspired to get Kushwaha killed in the lathi charge of February 2, Nagmani quipped "Kushwaha is a big 'nautankibaaz' (One who indulges in drama). He stayed in hospital for two days without having received a single blow on his body". Reacting to Nagmanis allegations, the RLSP office here shot off a release dismissing his claims about the Motihari Lok Sabha seat. Ir said RLSP was yet to formally announce candidates for any seat. "The fact is, he (Nagmani) wanted the ticket for himself from Chatra in Jharkhand which he has represented in the past, besides a ticket for his wife. He has been bitter since he was given no assurance," the statement said. The statement, signed by state RLSP general secretary Satyanand Prasad Dangi said, it is ridiculous that on the one hand Nagmani is accusing Kushwaha of putting up party tickets for sale and on the other he is also upset that after removing him from the national executive president's post, Kushwaha refused to talk to him. Nagmani had won the Chatra seat in 1999 on an RJD ticket but engineered a split in the party headed by Lalu Prasad and joined the BJP-led NDA, becoming a minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government at the Centre. After the NDA lost power at the Centre, Nagmani switched over to Ram Vilas Paswan's LJP before crossing over to the JD(U). His wife got elected to the Assembly on a JD(U) ticket and became a minister in the Nitish Kumar government while Nagmani himself got a berth in the legislative council. He subsequently joined the NCP but left the party ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha polls hoping to join the BJP, which fought the polls in alliance with Kushwahas RLSP. He joined the RLSP in 2017, calling Kushwaha the next chief minister of Bihar, and was made the national executive president. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Does Joe Biden represent anything more than the ghost of a Democratic Party whose time has passed? Photo: Alex Wroblewski/Bloomberg via Getty Images As Democrats in Washington wrangle over the extent to which they support progressive agenda items like Medicare for All and the Green New Deal, and as a left-leaning 2020 presidential field is steadily shaped, its easy for veteran observers of the Donkey Party to feel a bit disoriented. After all, in presidential nominating contest after contest dating back to 1972, self-identified Democratic progressives have been regularly outmaneuvered by party moderates. And there were plausible reasons that kept happening, beginning with an electorate in which conservatives significantly outnumbered liberals, and moderate swing voters offered Democrats the only path to a majority. By the end of the Obama presidency and its horrible sequel, however, Democrats had reason to feel cheated by this long history of ideological self-restraint, which left them weakened at nearly every level of government, awash in corporate power and economic inequality, and still fighting to maintain the achievements of the long-ago New Deal and Great Society eras while battling a new wave of racism and sexism. The eternal rationale of Democratic moderates based on their superior electability hit rock bottom with Hillary Clintons disastrous general election campaign, and did not gain much traction from a successful 2018 midterm cycle in which voters did not seem to care what kind of specific ideology Democratic candidates professed. Looking ahead to the next era of Democratic governance, progressives make sense in arguing that a more clearly left-bent Democratic Party wouldnt lose significant numbers of votes for being too socialist, but would have a mandate for accomplishing a lot more than did the mixed and tentative records of the Clinton and Obama administrations. I say all this as someone with impeccable moderate credentials of my own as former policy director of the Democratic Leadership Council. There are still, I believe, substantive grounds for, say, preferring a public-private health care system linked to an aggressive strategy for fighting provider cartels, as opposed to a single-payer system, or for envisioning the future economy in democratic capitalist rather than socialist terms. But the empirical electoral case for moderation has never been weaker, and moreover, the tendency of moderates to compromise on principles rather than simply means of implementing common progressive goals has been demonstrated too many times to dispute. So at this particular moment, who needs moderate Democrats? At FiveThirtyEight, Perry Bacon Jr. establishes pretty clearly that there is no coherent moderate faction of rank-and-file Democrats who can stake a claim to the presidency in 2020. Most polls dont release detailed breakdowns of Democrats who identify as moderate and conservative, so its a bit hard to describe this group and its views precisely. But I reached out to the Pew Research Center to get details on the 54 percent of Democrats over all who identified as moderate or conservative, based on an aggregation of their surveys in 2018, and nonliberal Democrats appear to be made up of four main groups: 1. White voters without college degrees (30 percent). 2. Black voters (22 percent). 3. Latino voters (21 percent). 4. White voters with college degrees (16 percent). I think this will be a complicated bloc to unify around a single candidate. In the past, white southern moderate politicians (famously Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton) showed themselves capable of putting together coalitions that included non-college-educated white voters in the South and border states along with African-Americans from a similar religio-cultural background. That type of politician barely even exists today. African-American and Latino voters are beginning to gravitate toward presidential candidacies from their own communities, which may be more self-consciously progressive. More subtly, we may be entering an era in which instead of Democratic progressives casting their lots with competing moderates of somewhat different dispositions (you saw a lot of that in 2008 when lefty activists split between Barack Obama and John Edwards), Democratic moderates split between competing progressives. I am impressed at how many of my own moderate Democratic acquaintances are attracted to Elizabeth Warren as a counterweight to Bernie Sanders. But all these trends cut across the currently immovable presence of the one 2020 candidate who will almost automatically appeal to Democratic moderates: Joe Biden. Bacon notes his unique nature: Perhaps even more obviously, Biden is a living link to the whole era of moderate-dominated Democratic politics, even as it passes from the scene, with particular appeal to low-information voters who have nothing but pride and affection for Barack Obama and Bill Clinton. And he wont have to spend a minute building his name ID. Bidens also very old and has tons of baggage that opponents and the media will gleefully and redundantly exploit. And he might not choose to run at all. Theres no obvious substitute for Biden as someone who appeals to moderates, as Bacon points out: Other candidates could appeal to this group too, but pundits usually tout the wrong sorts of candidates for the wrong reasons i.e. white, big-city, college-educated pundits may be overhyping Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota as a candidate who can appeal to all moderate voters because Klobuchar kind of embodies the white, educated, moderate political style of many of these pundits. A successful candidate for the moderates in the Democratic Party needs to win over black and Latino moderates who are nearly half of this bloc and cant just be a spokesperson for Never-Trump-Republicans-turned-Democrats. And age and ideology aside, theres a question as to whether any moderate, Biden included, will alienate Democratic voters with the sort of reflexively civil rhetoric that sounds too much like surrender. Jamelle Bouie accuses Biden of this anachronistic habit: For Biden, you dont need to demonize the richest Americans or their Republican supporters to reduce income inequality; you can find a mutually beneficial solution. [T]his is a faulty view of how progress happens. Struggle against the powerful, not accommodation of their interests, is how Americans produced the conditions for its greatest social accomplishments like the creation of the welfare state and the toppling of Jim Crow. In an atmosphere of passionate and increasingly successful resistance to Donald Trump and the radicalized GOP he leads, moderate politics may just seem inadequate to the moment (as Barry Goldwater wryly put it in the last half of his famous quote involving extremism: Moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue). Its still possible that Biden (or Klobuchar, or Hickenlooper, or even the ultra-irenic Cory Booker) can build a primary and then a general election coalition based on the broadest possible anti-Trump alliance, recognizing that this sort of coalition may fall apart in the very moment of victory. More likely, the party of passionate progressivism will rise or fall with an agenda and a message that reverses the course of public policy decisively once and for all. And Democratic moderates will go right along. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will kick-start BJP's Lok Sabha campaign in Madhya Pradesh with rallies on February 15 and 16, the party said here Sunday. State BJP chief Rakesh Singh said Modi would address a public meeting at Hoshangabad on February 15 and at Dhar on February 16. "The BJP will start its campaign in the state for coming Lok Sabha polls with these two rallies," he said, though the elections are yet to be announced. Congress chief Rahul Gandhi had addressed a farmers' gathering in Bhopal Friday. The BJP lost power in Madhya Pradesh to the Congress after 15 years in a closely contested Assembly election last November. There are 29 Lok Sabha seats in the state. In 2014, the BJP had won 27 seats while the Congress managed to win only two. The Congress won by-election to the Ratlam Lok Sabha seat in 2015, increasing its tally by one. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) : In an apparent reference to senior Congress leader P Chidambaram, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday taunted him as a "recounting Minister' of the UPA regime, describing him as 'arrogant'. Citing his government's step of offering tax exemption for those with incomes upto Rs five lakh, he told a public rally here that it was a reflection of genuine concern for the middle class, unlike the previous UPA regime. After referring to this step , Modi said he wanted to recall the state of affairs during the UPA regime. "There was a very wise Minister from Tamil Nadu," he said and told the audience, "you know whom I am talking about." When the people responded loudly, he said,"right, the recounting Minister," without directly naming the former Union Finance Minister. Chidambaram, now a Rajya Sabha MP, won the 2009 Lok Sabha election from Sivaganga constituency in Tamil Nadu by a slender margin of 3,354 votes after a see-saw battle. Confusion had prevailed then as election officials delayed the declaration of the result due to a dispute in the counting of votes in respect of the final round. Chidambaram, then Home Minister, was declared elected later after the votes were tallied again vis-a-vis the final round. Modi had made the same "recounting Minister" remark during his 2014 Lok Sabha election campaign. Continuing his attack on Chidambaram, Modi said described him as "the man who thinks all the knowledge in the world resides only in his brain. In his typical arrogance, he says why is the middle class so worried about price rise when they buy such expensive ice cream and mineral water." "Mr recounting minister, the middle class does not need the taunt by you and Congress. They have rejected you and will continue to do so."Chidambaram, highly critical of the Modi government, had days ago targeted it on the row over the "National Sample Survey Organisation's data on high unemployment," (as per the report of a business daily) and related developments. Taking forward his attack against the Congress, Modi said the good work of the NDA government has made some people very unhappy. "Those who thought power was their divine right, those who thought only they are bound to rule are disturbed. Because here is a government that is working. Their unhappiness has turned into desperation and abuse," the Prime Minister said. Taking potshots at the opposition for blaming him at the drop of a hat, he said their answer for any question posed to them targeted him. Be it "agriculture or MSME," the answer will invariably be "Modi, Modi, Modi." He said it was the NDA government which took the initiative to shut fake companies,remove fake beneficiaries and ensure that middlemen no more roamed the corridors of power. Without naming anyone, he said that only in the services or products like mobile recharge or ice creams, was the idea of a "family pack" seen. But now it applied for bail too. "Those who thought they could never be questioned, who lorded over the nation are now having to give an account for the loot. This is what a change in India today." Mocking at the grand opposition against his party,he said "our friends in the opposition are very funny." Though the opposition called his government a failure and claimed it did nothing for the people and that he would be badly defeated, "still they have to form a big alliance to defeat Modi." However, "what is the agenda of the so called alliance, what are the issues they fight for, nobody knows. Because their guns are only aimed at me. This is 'maha milavat, or adulteration." He asked if the people of Tamil Nadu and the rest of the country would ever accept an adulterated product? "Never," he said. The people of Tamil Nadu and the entire nation are seeing through this game, Modi said. The "Mahamilvat" or "adulterated alliance" is a club of rich people trying to promote their dynasties. They neither understand poverty nor have a vision to serve the poor, he said. "The opposition is good at one thing and that is to spread panic. Time and again they have tried to mislead farmers, workers and youngsters." While the opposition talked of a "poorly thought out loan waiver" only during election, his government took the step of announcing Rs 6,000 assistance annually to farmers to support them, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday launched a scathing attack on Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and TDP supremo Chandrababu Naidu, saying he has made a "U-turn" on promises of development to the state and only trying to replicate NDA government's schemes. "Our government gave to Andhra Pradesh much more than what was mentioned in special status. CM of Andhra Pradesh acknowledged this package but took a U-turn as they failed to use the funds in the appropriate way and were not able to develop the state," Modi said, addressing a public rally. Modi lashed out at Naidu for aligning with the Congress, saying the former chief minister NT Ramarao (NTR) had launched the party to make Andhra Pradesh "congress-mukt" after he was a victim of its 'arrogance.' Naidu was indeed a senior to him, but only in losing elections, switching alliances and ditching his father-in-law NT Rama Rao, Modi said at a public rally here. "He keeps reminding me he is senior. There is no debate in this. I have never shown any disrespect to you since you are a senior. You are a senior in changing alliances. A senior biting the back of your own father-in-law. A senior in losing one election after the other, where as I am not," the Prime Minister said. Further, Naidu was senior in embracing tomorrow those whom he would abuse today, Modi said. Modi alleged Naidu was taking him on since the Centre had sought details of every paise given to Andhra Pradesh. Naidu had promised walking in the footsteps of NTR, Modi said and asked if the Chief Minister had lived by it. "The arrogance of Delhi (during the Congress rule) has always insulted states. And NTR that is why decided to make AP Congress-mukt and floated the TDP. The TDP leader who has to resist the arrogance of the Naamdaars (famous and powerful people) and crush their arrogance is siding with them," he said in an apparent swipe at Naidu joining hands with the Congress. "This chowkidar (watchman) has disturbed his sleep.. wanted to know the details of every paise given to Andhra Pradesh," Modi said. Naidu promised the sunrise of Andhra Pradesh but is fixated with the rise of his own son N Lokesh, Modi charged. The Chief Minister promised the redevelopment of Amaravati but is now engaged in his own development, the Prime Minister alleged. He said Naidu had not initiated any new programmes for the poor but was only putting his stamp on the NDA government's development schemes. On providing clean fuel in the country, Modi said while in 60 years, only 12 crore gas connections were given, the NDA government had given 13 crore gas connections in just four years. Earlier, the Prime Minister dedicated two major petroleum and gas projects--a strategic petroleum reserve facility at Visakhapatnam and a gas field at Amalapuram to the nation through remote control system. He also laid the foundation-stone for the construction of a coastal terminal of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited at Krishnapatnam in SPS Nellore district. Addressing the rally, Modi said "Our aim is to have a New India that is clean and pollution-free. Such projects are the key to the nations energy security," Modi said. The Centre was building oil reserves at various locations across the country to ensure there was no shortage of oil and gas in times of crises, he said, referring to a similar facility he inaugurated in the north-east on Saturday. "Our government has been working continuously to make India a clean fuel economy and several projects have been initiated in this direction," he added. Referring to the strategic petroleum reserve facility of Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserve Limited (ISPRL) at Visakhapatnam and the ONGCs Vasishta S1 gas field in the Krishna-Godavari Basin at Amalapuram, the Prime Minister said they would not only help create jobs but also aid in the development of gas-based industries in the region. Earlier, when Modi arrived at Gannavaram airport in Vijayawada, TDP workers staged protests. This is Modi's first visit to the state after the ruling Telugu Desam Party severed ties with the NDA in March last year. The Chandrababu Naidu-led party quit the BJP-led alliance protesting the "injustice" done to the state post-bifurcation. Giving the protocol a go-by, none of the state ministers turned up at the Gannavaram airport to formally receive the Prime Minister. BJP leaders alleged that people were "thwarted," from reaching the venue in large numbers and said countdown would start for Naidu with Modi's rally at Guntur. Commenting on the black balloon protests against him by TDP workers, Modi quipped he welcomed it recalling the tradition of smearing black to ward off evil designs. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday launched a scathing attack on Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and TDP supremo Chandrababu Naidu, saying he has made a "U-turn" on promises of development to the state and was only replicating the former's schemes. Modi lashed out at Naidu for aligning with the Congress, saying the former chief minister NT Ramarao (NTR) had launched the party to make Andhra Pradesh "congress-mukth" after he was a victim of its 'arrogance.' Naidu was indeed a senior to him, but only in losing elections, switching alliances and ditching his father-in-law NT Rama Rao, Modi said at a public rally here. "He keeps reminding me he is senior. There is no debate in this. I have never shown any disrespect to you since you are a senior. You are a senior in changing alliances. A senior biting the back of your own father-in-law. A senior in losing one election after the other, where as I am not," the Prime Minister said. Further, Naidu was senior in embracing tomorrow those whom he would abuse today, Modi said. Modi alleged Naidu was taking him on since the Centre had sought details of every paise given to Andhra Pradesh. Naidu had promised walking in the footsteps of NTR, Modi said and asked if the Chief Minister had lived by it. "The arrogance of Delhi (during the Congress rule) has always insulted states. And NTR that is why decided to make AP Congress-mukth and floated the TDP. The TDP leader who has to resist the arrogance of the Naamdaars (famous and powerful people) and crush their arrogance is siding with them," he said in an apparent swipe at Naidu joining hands with the Congress. "This chowkidar (watchman) has disturbed his sleep.. wanted to know the details of every paise given to Andhra Pradesh," Modi said. Naidu promised the sunrise of Andhra Pradesh but is fixated with the rise of his own son N Lokesh, Modi charged. The Chief Minister promised the redevelopment of Amaravati but is now engaged in his own development, the Prime Minister alleged. He said Naidu had not initiated any new programmes for the poor but was only putting his stamp on the NDA government's development schemes. On providing clean fuel in the country, Modi said while in 60 years, only 12 crore gas connections were given, the NDA government had given 13 crore gas connections in just four years. On the occasion, the Prime Minister dedicated two petroleum and gas projects to the nation. Earlier, when Modi arrived at Gannavaram airport in Vijayawada, TDP workers staged protests. This is Modi's first visit to the state after the ruling Telugu Desam Party severed ties with the NDA. The Chandrababu Naidu-led party quit the BJP-led alliance protesting the "injustice" done to the state post-bifurcation. Giving the protocol a go-by, none of the state ministers turned up at the Gannavaram airport to formally receive the Prime Minister. BJP leaders alleged that people were "thwarted," from reaching the venue in large numbers and said countdown would start for Naidu with Modi's rally at Guntur. Commenting on the black balloon protests against him by TDP workers, Modi quipped he welcomed it recalling the tradition of smearing black to ward off evil designs. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Mocking the JDS-Congress coalition government in Karnataka as "helpless" with Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy becoming a "punching bag", Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday said the Opposition wants to impose the same model on the country. Modi said there was not even a single day "when the country doesn't see the Natak (drama) of the government", as he launched BJP's campaign for Lok Sabha polls here in the party's stronghold of north Karnataka. The Prime Minister, whose visit comes amid the political turmoil in the state, with BJP being accused of trying to dislodge the coalition government, took potshots at the ruling alliance in the state, saying "everyone is involved in saving their seat." The visit also comes when BJP state unit chief B S Yeddyurappa is at the vortex of a row after the chief minister released an audio clip of his purported conversation to lure a JDS MLA through his son in his alleged toppling game. Yeddyurappa has dismissed the audio clip as 'fake.' "MLAs are fighting at hotels and breaking their heads. Several Congress leaders are fighting for their supremacy," Modi said, apparently referring an alleged brawl between Anand Singh and J N Ganesh, seriously injuring the former. The turmoil has seen both BJP and Congress camping their MLAs at resorts and hotels to prevent poaching bid and several wayward Congress lawmakers keeping the party on tenterhooks skipping the assembly session and legislature party meeting. "The Chief Minister here is every one's punching bag. Every day he is getting threatened. Chief Minister's whole energy is spent on saving his seat from big Congress leaders," Modi said, referring to Kumaraswamy who, facing coalition pressures, has often openly expressed his 'helplessness.' "Publicly, he weeps about his helplessness (mazboori). Such helpless government, such helpless Chief Minister who is being challenged by anyone and every one. Who is the in-charge of the government. There is confusion about it," Modi said. Setting the "mazboor versus mazboot" narrative, the prime minister said, "Karnataka's helpless model" was being sought to be imposed on the country, scoffing at efforts of the opposition parties to cobble up a "mahaghatbandhan" (grand alliance) against him. "...They want to impose it on the country. Such a helpless model where the head of the government keeps weeping at the corner and decisions are taken in naamdaar's palace...they want confusion and fight for power to continue and the world laugh at the country. They want to impose this model on the country," Modi said. The Prime Minister said the "New India" wanted a model that was strong and not a model that was helpless. "Every single vote of yours will decide whether therewill be honesty or dishonesty, progress(vikaas) or dynasty (vanshwaad), whether there will be positivity or negativity. Whether you want clarity orconfusion. The answer to this questions will decide our destiny" he said. "You are witnessing in Delhi who all are falling in line...about whose income people used to fear talking.They are made to make their appearances before court and agencies and answer questions. They are giving an account of their benami properties in the country and abroad," he said. He was apparently referring to Robert Vadra and former Union Minister P Chiadmbaram's son Karti appearing before probe agencies like the Enforcement Directorate. Modi also launched projects worth Rs 5,000 crore, including the Strategic Petroleum Reserve Facility that includes 1.5 million metric tonnes reserves at Mangaluru (Rs 1227 crore) and 2.5 MMT at Padur (Rs 1693 crore) in Udupi district to ensure energy security. He laid the foundation stone for the Indian Institute of Technology at Dharwad, near Hubballi, a 470 acre "green, smart campus" with state-of-the-art infrastructure with provision for UG and Doctoral programmes in multiple streams. Modi also laid the foundation stone for Indian Institute of Information Technology at Dharwad was also laid. The "world class" IIIT will come up on a 60 acre land with public-private partnership for UG and doctoral programmes in IT and related areas. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In a stinging attack on the JDS-Congress coalition in Karnataka, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday said Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy heading a "helpless" government had become a "punching bag" and mocked opposition efforts to impose the same model on the country. Addressing a massive rally here in north Karnataka and virtually launching his Lok Sabha campaign, Modi said there was not even a single day "when the country doesn't see the Natak of the government" as he took potshots at the ruling coalition over turmoil within it for the past few weeks. "Everyone is involved in saving their seat," Modi said, adding that for the sake of power "MLAs are fighting at hotels and breaking their heads. Several Congress leaders are fighting for their supremacy." Modi's attack on the coalition government comes amid the politically fluid situation in Karnataka, with BJP allegedly making aggressive attempts to topple the government and both ruling and opposition camps having kept their MLAs in resorts and hotels to stall the poaching bid. In an ugly turn to the resort politics, two Congress MLAs Anand Singh and J N Ganesh,who were reportedly on BJP's radar, had an alleged brawl, causing serious injuries to the former. "The Chief Minister here is everyone's punching bag. Every day he is getting threatened. His whole energy is spent on saving his seat from big Congress leaders," Modi said referring to Kumaraswamy, who, facing coalition pressures, has often openly expressed his 'helplessness.' "Publicly, he weeps about his helplessness (mazboori). Such a helpless government, such a helpless Chief Minister who is being challenged by anyone and everyone. Who is the in charge of the government.? There is confusion about it."Setting the "mazboor versus mazboot" narrative,Modi said "Karnataka's helpless model" was being sought to be imposed on the country and scoffed at the efforts of opposition parties to cobble up a "mahaghatbandhan" (grand alliance) against him. "They want to impose it on the country. Such a helpless model, where the head of the government keeps weeping at the corner and decisions are taken in naamdaar's palaces...they want confusion and fight for power to continue and the world to laugh at the country. They want to impose this model on the country," he said. Modi said the "New India" wanted a model that was strong and not a model that was helpless. "Every single vote of yours will decide whether there will be honesty or dishonesty, progress(vikaas) or dynasty (vanshwaad), whether there will be positivity or negativity. Whether you want clarity orconfusion. The answer to these questions will decide our destiny" he said. Modi's visit came amid an escalating political war over charges of horse trading with Kumaraswamy releasing the audio clip of a purported conversation of state BJP chief B S Yeddyurappa over his alleged bid to lure a JDS MLA through his son. Yeddyurappa, at the vortex of the row over his alleged bid to poach the ruling coalition MLAs for the past few weeks, had dismissed the clip as "fake" and a "concocted story". "This Pradhan sevak (himself), this chowkidar (ensures) that the benefits meant for poor are going directly to their accounts. That is why the honest have trust on Modi while the corrupt have a problem, Modi said. "You are witnessing in Delhi who all are falling in line... About whose income people used to fear talking... they are made to make their appearances before court and agencies and answer questions. They are giving an account of their benamiproperties in the country and abroad," he said, apparently referring to Robert Vadra. Vadra is facing a probe by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with an alleged money laundering case. "Whether it is the ration of the poor of the country, and of poor farmers, or deals relating to defence of the country, whoever has taken commission, their numbers are coming down one after other," Modi said. The Prime Minister also criticised the ruling coalition's loan waiver scheme for farmers. "These are the people who did not leave even farmers. People of Karnataka have experienced it. Ahead of elections big promises of loan waivers were made. What happened to it? How many loans were waived off?" Modi said a promise was made that loans of 43 lakh farmers would be waived, but till now they had waived loans of only 60,000 farmers. "This is the truth about their loan waiver. For decades these people have been playing this game. They come with a 10 year plan of loan waiver for the sake ofvotes. They lie to people, but in reality loan waiver happens to about 25-30 farmers out of 100 and even in that most of it goes to middle men." Modi also launched Rs 5,000 crore projects, including the Strategic Petroleum Reserve Facility that includes 1.5 million metric tonnes reserves at Mangaluru (Rs 1,227 crore) and 2.5 MMT at Padur (Rs 1693 crore) at Padur in Udupi district to ensure energy security. He laid the foundation stone for Indian Institute of Technology at Dharwad near Hubballi, a 470 acre "green, smart campus" with state-of-the-art infrastructure with provision for UG and Doctoral programmes in multiple stream. Modi also laid the foundation stone for the Indian Institute of Information Technology at Dharwad, which willcome up on 60 acre land with public-private partnership for UG and doctoral programmes in IT and related areas. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Special mass prayer was held in churches across Mizoram for the defeat of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill in the Rajya Sabha, Presbyterian church's Mizoram Synod sources said on Sunday. Members of 16 major churches of different denominations held prayers on Saturday night. The appeal made by the Mizoram Kohhran Hruaitute Committee (MKHC), a conglomeration of leaders of major churches, had asked the local churches of all the denominations to pray so that the bill gets stalled in the Rajya Sabha. The MKHC had earlier appealed to members to hold mass prayer on the night of February 16, but issued another circular on Friday last to conduct the mass prayer on February 9 or February 10. A press statement issued by the MKHC said that the bill is "harmful" for Mizoram and Christians. The bill, being vehemently opposed in the Northeast, was passed in Lok Sabha on January 8 and the Centre has said it will try to get the Rajya Sabha nod in this budget session. The bill seeks to provide Indian citizenship to Hindus, Jains, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan after six years of residence in India even if they do not possess any document. "Passage of the amendment bill can result in suppression of the freedom of religion and is against the spirit of secularism," the MKHC statement said. It appealed to the church members to pray for religious freedom in India so that the people can continue to worship God freely. Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a public meeting at Changsari in Assam Saturday assured the people of the region that the bill will in no way cause harm to their interests. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A 34-year-old man riding a motorcycle was killed after his vehicle collided with a tempo traveller on the Pathankot-Mandi national highway in Himachal Pradesh's Kangra district, police said Sunday. The accident occurred on Saturday at the district's Ghatnalu village, police said. Manohar Lal was rushed to a civil hospital from where he was referred to Tanda Medical college where he succumbed to injuries, they said. Police said a case has been registered against the tempo driver. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The law secretary of the Puducherry government has requested the Madras High Court to deploy a mobile magistrate Traffic court here to ensure motorcyclists wear helmets, Lt Governor Kiran Bedi has said. A day after DGP Sundari Nanda said the rule regarding helmet use would be enforced from February 11 in the Union Territory, Bedi in her WhatsApp message to mediapersons said, "It is now time and opportunity for relentless adoption of the rule by law enforcement agencies to bring down fatalities on roads." "There shall be no relaxation, exceptions and interference regarding enforcement of the helmet rule. The Law Secretary of Puducherry has requested the Madras High Court to set up a Mobile Traffic Magistrate court in Puducherry to strengthen the performance of the traffic and transport departments," she said. Chief Minister V Narayanasamy at a press conference on Sunday said, "Awareness about the importance of helmet use may be created through a month-long drive. The directive of the Supreme court on compulsory wearing of helmets should be honoured by all without exception. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Hours before Prime Minister Narendra Modi launches BJP's campaign in Karnataka for the Lok Sabha polls, the Congress Sunday questioned the saffron party over its alleged bid to topple the coalition government is the state. The Prime Minister is scheduled to address a rally at Hubballi in northern part of the state later this evening. Speaking to reporters here, Pradesh Congress President Dinesh Gundu Rao posed a few questions to Modi and demanded answers from him. "Your (PM's) popular slogan has been, 'Na khaoonaga, na khaane doonga' (I will neither indulge in corruption, nor let others indulge in it). Then how did you let horse-trading and bribing of MLAs by your party leaders take place in Karnataka? Are you willing to take any unethical action in order to attain power?" he questioned. "How do you justify statements of your party leader (B S) Yeddyurappa in an audio clip that surfaced, where Yeddyurappa offered money to MLAs to switch sides and spoke about your illegitimate control over the judicial system," he asked. "Please make it a point to answer these very legitimate questions during your visit to Hubballi. These questions aren't political in nature. These are quintessential questions of public importance, especially to the people of Karnataka," he said. Amid the turmoil in the ruling coalition that has cast a shadow over the stability of his government, Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy had Friday released the audio clip in which Yeddyurappa was purportedly trying to lure JD(S) MLA Naganagouda through his son. The state BJP strongman had, however, said the audio clip was 'fake' and a "concocted story". The KPCC chief also alleged discrimination by the Centre against the state, saying Karnataka was reeling under drought and had requested Rs 2,400 crore to deal with it, but the Centre has released only Rs 900 crore. On the other hand the central government's assistance to NDA-ruled Maharashtra stood at Rs 4,714.28 crore, he claimed. He said mandatory payments of MGNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act) workers to the tune of Rs 2,000 crore is still pending, and hit out at the Modi government for claiming credit for establishing an IIT in Dharwad, without acknowledging the state government's contribution for allotting a 500-acre prime land. Ahead of the BJP rally, the PM is scheduled to lay the foundation stone of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT-Dharwad) on Sunday. Alleging that the Karnataka Chief Minister was not officially invited to the event, Rao termed it an 'insult' to the state. He also targeted the PM on Rafale deal and alleged "sidelining" of Bengaluru-headquartered HAL. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Croatia supports the serious and credible efforts undertaken by Morocco to find a political solution to the Sahara issue, Croatias vice prime minister and foreign minister Marija Pejcinovic Buric said. Croatia has the same position as the EU on the Sahara issue, she told press following talks in Rabat with foreign minister Nasser Bourita. She said her country welcomes the resumption of the negotiations process between the parties to the regional conflict over the Sahara, which she described as a new momentum that could foster regional stability and prosperity. The Croatian official was leading a delegation including businessmen that explored ways to foster trade and cooperation in areas such as renewable energies and military industry. The visit of the Croatian delegation (Feb.7 to 9) was marked by the signing of several cooperation agreements covering the political, economic, cultural, tourism and health areas. The two parties also signed a military cooperation agreement establishing the general framework for bilateral relations, particularly in the fields of military training and exercises, military health, disaster management and the exchange of expertise. Judging is "under stress" in the digital era, a Supreme Court judge said Sunday, lamenting that even before a case is taken up by the court, people start discussing on social media what the outcome "should be" which has an influence on the judges. Talking on "Freedom of press in the digital age" at the first Law Association For Asia and the Pacific (LAWASIA) conference here, Justice A K Sikri said the freedom of press is changing the paradigm of civil and human rights and the current pattern of media trials is an example of it. "Media trials were there earlier also. But today what is happening is that when an issue is raised, a petition is filed, (and) even before it is taken up by the court, people start discussing what should be the outcome. Not what 'is' the outcome, (but) what 'should be' the outcome. And let me tell you from my experience here that it has an influence on how a judge decides a case. "It is not so much in the Supreme Court because by the time they come to the apex court they are quite matured and they know how the case is to be decided on the basis of law irrespective of what is happening in the media. Today judging is under stress," Justice Sikri said. He said the power of contempt of court is not being used that much. "Few years ago, it has always been an opinion that once a judgment was rendered by the court, be it the Supreme Court, high courts or any trial court, you have every right to criticize the judgement. Now there is slander or defamatory speeches even against judges who gave that judgment. And still not much is said on this," Justice Sikri said. Additional Solicitor General Madhavi Goradia Divan, one of the speakers at the conference, also expressed her concurring views and said that on social media, there is a huge blur between and fake news, and opinion, citizens and journalists. Divan said one of the challenges was that with the growth of Twitter, lawyers have become activists too. And in that quest for activism and stardom, she added, one should not eclipse one's professional duties as the casualty would be independence of the judiciary and matters would be decided for the "wrong" reasons. "It is all right to an activist be now and then. But when one has appeared on those cases, argued in those cases, tweeting immediately after (hearing) can conflict with your professional duties," she said. Divan said though the requirement is that one needs to be an accredited journalist to be able to report from the Supreme Court, "for the rest, there is Twitter". "It is true that you (a lawyer) have a much better understanding of the law and the justice delivery system than a journalist, but at the same time there is a certain shallowness to Twitter which may distort the public understanding of how the justice delivery system works. "I think it can put the judge under pressure because the judges as much as they are trained to decide shorn of media reportage, we know they are as human as anybody else and we should not distract them from deciding independently shorn of all media pressures. The casualty would be independence of judiciary and matters would be decided for the wrong reasons. Justice Sikri said the media has undergone a complete transformation in the digital age and now "we are in the era of paid and fake news". "It is becoming very alarming but we are in the era of paid and fake because of the digital era. Stories are created...and somebody puts it on any digital mode and these, in few hours time, become viral. The reach is a billion people," he said. He said though social media has become a watchdog, there was a challenge to human rights also as there is a real threat of surveillance by both private and public players. "How data is mined, how players like Facebook, WhatsApp etc collate data, how they can see what their consumers' choices and preferences are. If it affects the freedom of people, privacy of people, then it becomes a very dangerous instrument. And issues of dignity comes in," he said. Divan also emphasised on how people's dependence on social media for information have led tech titans and corporates to gather individual data and feed-curated information. "The more people depend on social media for news and information, we know that tech titans have allowed themselves to plant customised or curated news based on the social profiling of individuals," she said. She talked about how most journalists today gather information from social media platforms, rather than being on field. "This is definitely impacting the capacity of independent news gathering. It's not only the easy way out, I would say it is a great dereliction of duty on the part of the mainstream media because it is denying public access to credible, truthful information. There is absolutely no substitute to credible, accountable media. I think more than ever before we need that media now to be able to sift the truth from untruth and the grain from chaff," Divan said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik held a detailed meeting here with regard to implementation of smart mobility in urban and hilly areas through ropeways in the state, an official spokesman said on Sunday. The Governor held the meeting with a team of WAPCOS limited, a Government of India undertaking, headed by chairman cum managing director R K Gupta at the Raj Bhavan Saturday. The team made a PowerPoint presentationon the occasion and detailed discussions were held on the advantages of putting in place ropeways facilities in the state, the spokesman said. The Governor observed that due to increasing traffic congestion on roads and also to minimise road accidents, the establishment of ropeways as urban transport solutions would prove to be highly beneficial. The Governor stressed upon the departments concerned to further convene meetings and identify the most feasible areas in the state for establishment of such ropeway projects, the spokesman said. During the meeting, he said the WAPCOS authorities briefed about various advantages of ropeways and said such systems can carry up to 12,000 people per hour and have the highest level of incremental scalability. Similar projects have already been initiated in other states such as Himachal Pradesh. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) After the withdrawal of flights to Guwahati and Delhi from here by Jet Airways, Mizoram now has direct air link with Kolkata only, officials said Sunday. The Saturday Jet Airways Aizawl-Guwahati flight was the last one to take off from Lengpui Airport here as the airline has withdrawn flights on the route from Sunday and also on the Aizawl-Delhi route, they said. Only Air India is now running a flight service from Lengpui Airport here to Kolkata, the officials said. Mizoram government's principal consultant for Civil Aviation, Wing Commander Joe Lalhmingliana said travellers from the land locked north-eastern state would face a tough time due to withdrawal of flights to Guwahati and Delhi. Lalmingliana said the Mizoram government has held talks with some airlines, including Indigo for starting flight service from Aizawl to Delhi and Guwahati. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Film-maker Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra says he has no plans to hold a special screening of his next "Mere Pyare Prime Minister" for PM Narendra Modi as it has become "fashionable" now. The film chronicles the story of a young slum kid who travels to the capital with his friends to meet the prime minister, after his mother is raped. When asked if he plans to hold a screening for Modi, Mehra told reporters, "No, not at all. We don't have any such plans, yet. It has become very fashionable, I would rather want to stay away from it." The director was speaking at the trailer launch of the film here. When asked why he wouldn't want to screen the film, Mehra said if the PM to wants to see the movie, it'll be an honour but he wouldn't use the PM's office for publicity. "I feel the film is made for the people of the country and somewhere I don't want to dilute that by using such a big office. He is a very busy man and is running the country. To take three hours of his time, which he could devote to some national and international interest policy. "Just because I want to promote, it doesn't suit me. But, If he wants to watch the film, it'll be an honour," he said. The film, which talks about the need of public sanitation and is scheduled to release on March 15, comes just before the parliamentary elections. On being quizzed if the film will, in any way, impact the elections, the "Rang De Basanti" director said that's not the movie's intention. "It'll not (have an) effect (on) the elections and it should not. A film's job should not be to impact elections. My endeavour is to make movies which can be perpetual. Because all of us, our best novels and films, we don't remember which week we watched or read them in. We don't know when that film or novel released but for us those are our favourite films. "If you're lucky and everything falls in place, if your work becomes perpetual, I feel achievement is in that," he said. The film stars Anjali Patil, Om Kanujiya and Atul Kulkarni among others. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) State-owned (IOC) has emerged as the biggest bidder for city gas licences in the 10th bid round that also saw Group, Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) and Indraprastha Gas Ltd as the other prominent bidders, according to oil regulator PNGRB. IOC, the country's top oil refiner and fuel marketing company that is looking to diversify into natural gas distribution business big time, bid for licences to retail to automobiles and piped natural gas to households in 35 out of the 50 cities put on offer for the 10th round and another seven in partnership with Gas. Gas bid for 19 cities on its own and seven in partnership with IOC, the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) said after opening of bids between February 7 and 9. HPCL, a subsidiary of state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC), emerged as the third largest bidder, putting in bids for 24 towns and cities while Gujarat-based Torrent Gas applied for 20 areas. Indraprastha Gas Ltd, which retails and piped cooking gas in the national capital, put in bids for 15 areas while Bharat Gas Resources Ltd, a subsidiary of state-owned Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL), bid for 14 cities. State-owned GAIL India Ltd, which is country's biggest gas marketer and transporting company, put in bids for just 10 areas through its subsidiary GAIL Gas Ltd. In the last bid round, it had managed to bag just 5 out of the 86 Geographical Areas (GAs) put on offer. In the previous 9th round which was awarded just a few months back, Adani Gas had won city gas licences for 13 cities on its own and nine in a joint venture with IOC. IOC had won licences for seven cities on its own. Bharat Gas Resources Ltd had walked away with 11 cities while Torrent Gas had made 10 winning bids. Sholagasco Pvt Ltd bid for 9 out of the 50 GAs put on offer in the 10th round while Gujarat Gas bid for seven and Petronet LNG Ltd put in bids for five areas. Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) had at the close of bidding on February 5 stated about 225 bids were received for licence to retail to automobiles and piped natural gas to households in 50 GAs offered in the 10th City Gas Distribution (CGD) bidding round. It had not revealed the names of the bidders then. Eight out of the 50 GAs received single bids, with IOC being the only applicant for six areas in Bihar and Jharkhand while other two single bidders were Bharat Gas Resources Ltd and GAIL Gas Ltd for one area each. Stating that the licences would be awarded by the month end, PNGRB had on February 5 said, "Once awarded, it is envisaged that this initiative would help in creating a robust infrastructure by bringing an investment of about Rs 50,000 crore, generate employment and play a significant role in achieving the shift towards a gas-based economy, with natural gas as the next generation, cheaper and environment-friendly fossil fuel." In the 10th round of CGD, 50 GAs, covering 124 districts -- 112 complete and 12 part -- in 14 states were put on offer in November 2018. The round would extend city gas coverage to 18 per cent of India's geographical area and 24 per cent of its population, the regulator said. Together with past rounds, CGD network would now extend to 400 districts, covering 70 per cent of the population. In the 10th round, bidders were asked to quote the number of CNG stations to be set up and the number of domestic cooking gas connections to be given in the first eight years of operation. Also, they had to quote the length of pipeline to be laid in the GA and the tariff proposed for city gas and compressed natural gas (CNG), according to PNGRB. The bid round comes within months of the close of the 9th round, which was the biggest ever CGD licensing round where 86 permits for selling CNG and piped cooking in 174 districts in 22 states and union territories were offered. The government is targeting to raise the share of natural gas in the primary energy basket to 15 per cent from the current 6.2 per cent in the next few years. The bid rounds are also aimed at meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi's target of giving piped cooking gas connection to 1 crore households, roughly triple the current size, by 2020. Cities offered in the 10th round include Nellore in Andhra Pradesh, Muzaffarpur in Bihar, Kaithal in Haryana, Mysore and Gulbarga in Karnataka, Allapuza and Kollam in Kerala, Ujjain, Gwalior and Morena in Madhya Pradesh, Jhansi and Basti in Uttar Pradesh, Firozpur and Hoshiarpur in Punjab, Ajmer and Jalor in Rajasthan, Nainital in Uttarakhand and Darjeeling and Howrah in West Bengal. The Indian women's team almost pulled off a dramatic win but failed to score a boundary in the final delivery to lose the third and final T20 International against New Zealand by a mere two runs here on Sunday. Chasing 162 for a win, star opening batswoman Smriti Mandhana took the Indian team on course for a consolation win with a career-best knock of 86 from 52 balls but the visiting side failed to build on her scintillating knock to end their innings at 159 for 4. With the three-match series already lost after defeats in the first and second T20Is, India surprising named senior player Mithali Raj in the playing eleven and she contributed 24 not out from 20 balls after coming to bat at the fall of captain Harmanpreet Kaur (2). But she failed to hit a four from the final delivery bowled by Leigh Kasperek as India lost the match by two runs. India needed 16 runs from the final over and Raj and Deepti Sharma (21 not out) raised hopes of a remarkable win by hitting boundaries in the first and third deliveries but were left to hit a four off the last ball. Captain Harmanpreet Kaur, whose indifferent form has hurt the team, said she was disappointed at the result and the 0-3 series defeat. India had won the three-match ODI series 2-1 before this T20 contest. "We are disappointed to lose the series like this, we could have done better. We have a lot of work to do," she said after scoring just two on Sunday. She had scored 17 and 5 in the first two matches. "In T20 Internationals we need to make improvements in the final 10-over batting. More importantly, we need to sort out the batting order. "But there are positives from this series like the batting of Smirti and Jemimah as well as the performance of bowlers," she added. Mandhana, who had scored 58 and 36 in the first two matches, continued her red-hot form by notching up her eight T20I fifty and second of the series as she dominated against New Zealand bowlers yet again. With one-down Jemimah Rodrigues (21), the other batswoman who has been in fine touch, India reached 92 for 2 at the halfway stage. But after that, India could not force the pace of scoring and with captain Kaur failing to make a mark, the asking rate kept on climbing. When Mandhana was out in the 16th over, India needed 39 from 4.3 overs which was not an easy job. Raj and Deepti could not get too many boundaries and they were left with 16 to win from the final over. Electing to bat, New Zealand looked set to post a much bigger total by reaching 80 for 2 at the halfway stage but India came back strongly to force a batting collapse as the home side finally ended their innings at 161 for 7. Hard-hitting opener Sophie Devine top-scored with a sparkling 52-ball 72 which was laced with eight boundaries and two sixes while captain Amy Satterthwaite contributed 31 from 23 deliveries. The duo's 71-run stand for the third wicket from exactly eight overs was the highlight of the New Zealand innings. The other opener Suzie Bates (24) and one-down Hannah Rowe (12) were the other batswomen who reached to doube-digit figures. Devine dominated against all the Indian bowlers, especially against leg-spinner Poonam Yadav whom she hoisted for two big sixes during her onslaught. But once Devine was dismissed in the 17th over, New Zealand suffered a batting collapse, scoring just 21 runs from the remaining 3.2 overs. From 140 for 2 in the 17th over, New Zealand ended their innings at 161 for 7. The Indians got a wicket each in the 18th and 19th overs and two from the final over to made a remarkable come back in the final five overs from which they conceded just 34 runs. Off-spinner Deepti Sharma grabbed two wickets for 28 runs while Poonam Yadav, Mansi Joshi, Radha Yadav and Arundhati Reddy took a wicket apiece. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) An Indian man in Dubai has been charged with sexually harassing a British tourist inside a lift at a residential tower. The 24-year-old Indian worker was charged at the Dubai Court of First Instance after the prosecutors accused him of exposing himself to the 35-year-old tourist and inappropriately touching her. "Around 4.40 pm on the day of the incident, I was going to practise yoga at the gym on the 37th floor. An Asian man took the lift with me. It was just the two of us. He stood so close to me in a way to touch me. I was moving away but he would not step away from my left side. I could hear him moaning," the victim was quoted as saying by the Khaleej Times. "He walked out at 34th floor and when I reached the 37th floor, I found his semen traces on my clothes," she told the public prosecution investigator. The victim reported him to the hotel security and the surveillance cameras were checked. The lift did not have any camera but the defendant was captured on camera right before he entered the lift after her, the report said. A police corporal said they arrested the suspect the next day at the same tower. "He admitted during interrogation that he stood very close to the woman in a way to touch her on purpose more than once," the police said. The woman's clothes were seized. The defendant's DNA traces were found on the tourist's clothes, as shown in a report. A ruling will be pronounced on February 25, the report said. The detained Indian worker has denied the charge in the court. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Noted Indian historian Sanjay Subrahmanyam has won Israel's prestigious Dan David Prize for this year for his work on inter-cultural encounters between Asians, Europeans and people of North and South America during the early modern era. Subrahmanyam, son of strategic analyst K Subrahmanyam and brother of former foreign secretary S Jaishankar, won the award in the category of 'past time dimension' for his work in macro history. He shares the USD 1 million award in this category with Prof Kenneth Pomeranz of University of Chicago. The international Dan David Prize is awarded annually to those who have made outstanding scientific, technological and humanistic accomplishments in fields representing the past, present and future of human achievement. Three Dan David Prize are given every year. The recipients in the "Past" category are generally drawn from the fields of history, archaeology, paleontology and biography; the "Present" from arts, media, policy and economics; and the "Future" from one of the exact or natural sciences. This year's winners were chosen from the three categories for their work in macro history, defending democracy and combating climate change, respectively. Subrahmanyam, an alumni of University of Delhi, holds the Irving and Jean Stone Endowed Chair in Social Sciences at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), which he joined in 2004. He is also the recipient of the Infosys Prize for humanities for his "path-breaking contribution to history". The eminent historian, who did his doctorate from Delhi School of Economics, began as an economic historian but later branched out to work on political, intellectual and cultural history. The Dan David Prize is a joint international enterprise endowed by the Dan David Foundation headquartered at Tel Aviv University. The award ceremony is likely to be held at the university in May. The prize, now in its 18th year, was established by late Dan David, an international businessman and philanthropist who envisioned a project that would extend beyond traditional academic categorisations. The winners in the "Present" category for "Defending Democracy" this year has been won by Reporters without Borders, an organisation that works for the freedom of the Press and Prof Michael Ignatieff. Ignatieff is a Canadian author, academic and former politician who headed Liberal Party of Canada and was also the leader of the official opposition for almost three years. Christina Figueres, a Costa Rican diplomat has been awarded the prize in the "future" dimension for her role in combating climate change. Subrahmanyam, with this honour, joins the elite group of other prominent Indian laureates of the Dan David Prize which includes author Amitav Ghosh, music conductor Zubin Mehta, renowned chemist CNR Rao and astronomy professor Shrinivas Kulkarni. In order to encourage and foster new generations of scholars, the laureates are required to donate 10 per cent of their prize money towards scholarships for graduate or post-graduate researchers in their respective fields. Other prominent recipients of the award include former US vice president Al Gore, former British premier Tony Blair, cellist Yo-Yo Ma, novelist Margaret Atwood, Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales and filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen. Meanwhile, reacting to Subrahmanyam's achievement, eminent Indian historian and writer Ramachandra Guha tweeted, "Delighted that my college contemporary Sanjay Subrahmanyam has won the Dan David Prize. Our teacher Dharma Kumar said when he was a student: Sanjay will be India's first truly world-class historian. And so it has proved." He further said, Subrahmanyam "is a true polymath; in his command of languages and sources, his brilliant analytical mind, his interdisciplinary framework, his literary flair. Incidentally all his degrees are in economics, all from the University of Delhi. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) UK-based and healthcare professionals are campaigning against what they describe as an unfair doubling of a health surcharge imposed on professionals from outside European Union (EU) living and working in Britain. The Health Surcharge was introduced in April 2015 and from December last year it was hiked from GBP 200 to GBP 400 per year. It is imposed on anyone in the UK on a work, study or family visa for longer than six months in order to raise additional funds for the country's state-funded National Health Service (NHS). The British Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (BAPIO), the UK's largest representative body for Indian-origin doctors, is lobbying the UK Home Office for a rethink over the charge, arguing that it would have an adverse impact on their attempt to recruit more healthcare professionals from India to meet staff shortages in the NHS. Clinicians wishing to work in the UK are already facing burdensome processes relating to regulation and immigration, and this surcharge is only going to see UK losing out on quality healthcare professionals from non-EU countries, notes a letter from BAPIO president Ramesh Mehta and secretary Parag Singhal, sent to UK home secretary Sajid Javid last week. The current policy adversely affects the attraction of working in the NHS and will sabotage our own requirements of providing quality health services to our patients. Therefore, in the interest of patient safety and improved morale of the immigrant workforce, we request that this unfair and highly discriminatory health surcharge for NHS-employed professionals should be reversed with immediate effect, the letter states. According to the organisation, one in 11 NHS clinical posts are currently unfilled, rising to one in eight for nursing vacancies, and the severe shortage is likely to grow to around 250,000 by 2030. Doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals from countries like India are often referred to as the backbone of the UK's healthcare system as they take up critical posts across hospitals and clinics in the country, the BAPIO pointed out. BAPIO has been at the centre of organising fellowship programmes for doctors from India to fill NHS shortages while completing their training in Britain as a win-win arrangement. But it fears these efforts would be hit as a result of the additional financial burden imposed by the health surcharge. These professionals are paying their taxes, including National Insurance (NI) contributions, in addition to providing quality health services in over-stretched hospitals. Such an additional burden will make them feel demoralised and discriminated, said Prof. Singhal. The health surcharge is payable by nationals from countries like India if they are seeking to live in the UK for six months or more, or to extend their stay. The payment is made at the time the application is made and is payable annually until such time as the person is granted indefinite leave to remain (ILR) in the UK, or returns to their home country at the end of their visa period. Short-term migrants, including tourists on visitor visas, are charged differently for secondary care treatment by the NHS at the point of visa access. Other groups have also questioned the extremely high surcharge on the grounds that it amounted to double taxation for long-term migrants, who are already expected to make tax contributions towards the care system. Most people who do move here will work and they will pay tax. So doubling this charge is a form of double taxation. People are going to be ending up paying for the NHS twice, said Satbir Singh, chief executive of the Joint Council for the Welfare of Migrants. The UK government says since the surcharge was introduced in 2015, it has raised over GBP 600 million, which has been ploughed back into health budgets. It expects to raise an estimated GBP 220 million in extra funding with the doubling of the surcharge, with the funds aimed at "sustaining and protecting" the country's healthcare system. We welcome use of the NHS by long term residents who still need leave to remain, but we believe it is right that they make a fair and proportionate contribution to its long-term sustainability," a UK Home Office spokesperson said. "Parliament agrees and has approved the order we proposed to increase the health surcharge so it better reflects the actual costs to the NHS, the spokesperson added. India and Peru will hold the next round of negotiations for a proposed free-trade agreement (FTA) in the South American nation next month, a move aimed at boosting two-way commerce between the countries, an official said. "Officials from the commerce ministry will visit Lima, capital of Peru, in March for the fourth round of negotiations. It is scheduled to begin from March 11," the official said. The third round of talks concluded last month here. The main chapters of the trade agreement include market access for goods, trade in services, movement of professionals, investments, dispute settlement, technical barriers to trade, trade remedies, rules of origin of goods, customs procedures and trade facilitation. In an FTA, two countries significantly reduce or eliminate duties on most of the goods traded between them besides relaxing norms and rules to promote trade in services and increase bilateral investments. With growing uncertainties in its traditional markets, including the US and Europe, India is looking to enhance engagements with other regions such as Africa, South America and Central Asia. The Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) said Peru holds huge potential for exports and investments for domestic exporters and businesses. "The FTA would help boost our exports. South American markets such as Peru hold huge export potential for India. The only issue is logistics cost, which the FTA should look into to facilitate shipments," FIEO President Ganesh Kumar Gupta said. He said India should also look at increasing investments in these regions. Peru ranked third among export destinations for India in the Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) region. The bilateral trade between the nations increased to USD 3.13 billion in 2017-18 from USD 1.77 billion in the previous fiscal. Among the top-10 commodities that India exports to Peru are motor vehicle, cars, products of iron and steel, cotton yarn and fabrics. While the imports include bulk minerals and ores, gold, fertilisers, crude oil and zinc. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) IMF chief said that the global lender stands ready to support as she met the cash-strapped country's Prime Minister in Dubai on Sunday. Khan is paying a day-long trip to the UAE to take part in the 7th edition of the World Government Summit on the invitation of Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE Sheikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum. Lagarde in a statement said that her meeting with the Pakistani leader about an Monetary Fund (IMF)-supported programme was constructive. "I reiterated that the IMF stands ready to support I also highlighted that decisive policies and a strong package of economic reforms would enable to restore the resilience of its and lay the foundations for stronger and more inclusive growth," she said. "As emphasized in the new government's policy agenda, protecting the poor and strengthening governance are key priorities to improve people's living standards in a sustainable manner," Lagarde further said. Khan also tweeted about his meeting with Lagarde. "There was a convergence of our views on the need to carry out deep structural reforms to put the country on the path of sustainable development in which the most vulnerable segments of society are protected," he said. Earlier, Dawn newspaper quoted a senior official involved in the negotiations as saying that Pakistan and the Monetary Fund (IMF) have narrowed their positions on the scale of adjustments over the past few weeks of continuous engagements. The IMF is asking for an adjustment of around Rs 1,600-2,000 billion over three to four years. It also wants some corrective measures to put Pakistan's on the right track after witnessing the highest-ever current account deficit. But the stumbling issue in the talks is the pace of adjustments in the current expenditure. The emphasis on current expenditures comes as a result of a focus on what is known as a "primary balance" in the parlance of public finance. According to the official, there is some space for cut in certain expenditures where Pakistan is in a comfortable position. "This agreement in cut will pave way for accession to the programme," the official claimed, adding that it will be a politically difficult decision. A cut in the current expenditures still seems to put the government in awkward position by making adjustments in subsidies and other special grants. The IMF has been demanding that the burden of any expenditure cuts should fall on current expenditures that include debt service, defence and subsidies. Finance Division's Spokesperson Khaqan Najeeb said that productive dialogue continued with the IMF on all areas including fiscal, energy, structural reforms and monetary policy. The two sides continue to exchange views on data and a reform framework to move forward. Discussions are part of a regular ongoing interaction between the government and the IMF and will continue in coming weeks, Najeeb said. "In addition, technical level subject-specific discussions also support the process of overall dialogue," he said. The IMF has also asked for further monetary tightening as well as a complete free float of the exchange rate. "We are already towards target in these areas," the official said, adding that the IMF has acknowledged these measures. According to the official, Finance Minister Asad Umar has already conveyed to the IMF during the recent parleys that only those measures will be taken which are favourable for the country's economic growth. Although the government has secured a breathing space from Saudi Arabian and the UAE loans, an IMF programme is essential to unlock access to resources from other multilateral lenders like the and the Asian Development Bank, as well as the global capital markets. Cash-strapped Pakistan has received USD 1 billion each from and the UAE, as part of the bailout package by the two Gulf nations to help shore up Islamabad's dwindling foreign currency reserves. Saudi Arabia's assistance was part of the USD 6 billion bailout package - USD 3 billion balance-of-payments support and another USD 3 billion in deferred payments on - which had agreed in October last year. Pakistan, which is in talks with the IMF for a bailout package, has also reportedly received financial assistance from China. Earlier, officials said that Pakistan would seek around USD 8 billion from the IMF which would be the biggest package by the Fund for Islamabad. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday said the honest trusted him and the corrupt had a problem as he ensured the benefits meant for the poor reached them directly. Modi said those who had worked as middlemen in areas, including deals concerning national security for illegal gratification were facing the music now. "This Pradhan sevak (himself), this chowkidar (ensures) that the benefits meant for poor are going directly to their accounts. That is why the honest have trust on Modi while the corrupt have a problem," he said at a public rally here. In an apparent reference to Robert Vadra and former Union Minister P Chiadmbaram's son Karti appearing before probe agencies like the ED, he indicated this could have hardly happened earlier. "You are seeing in Delhi what is happening.. those whose incomes people dared to talk about earlier, are now appearing before courts (and) agencies," he said. Such persons were giving details of their domestic and foreign benami properties". He said Karnataka chief minister H D Kumaraswamy was being used as a 'punching bag' due to coalition pulls in that state. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) US-backed forces were locked in fierce fighting Sunday as they pressed the battle against the last shred of the Islamic State group's "caliphate" in eastern Syria. The jihadists overran large parts of the country and neighbouring Iraq in 2014, but various military offensives have since reduced that territory to a patch on the Iraqi border. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), supported by a US-led coalition, announced a final push to retake the jihadist pocket late Saturday, after a pause of more than a week to allow civilians to flee. SDF spokesman Mustafa Bali on Sunday afternoon said his fighters had battled their way forwards against the jihadists, capturing 41 positions from them. "Our forces are relying on direct combat with light weapons," he told AFP. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor group said the SDF had advanced across farming land, backed by coalition air strikes and artillery fire. Earlier, an SDF field commander reported "heavy clashes" as his fighters gained ground. The SDF launched an offensive to expel IS from the oil-rich eastern province of Deir Ezzor in September. The Kurdish-led alliance has since whittled down jihadist-held territory to a scrap of just four square kilometres (one square mile) between the Euphrates and the Iraqi border. Up to 600 jihadists could still remain inside, most of them foreigners, Bali said. Hundreds of civilians are also believed to be inside, he said. But Bali added the extremist group's elusive leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was likely not in the last pocket. "We do not think he is in Syria," Bali said, without adding further details about the whereabouts of the man who declared a cross-border IS "caliphate" in 2014. On the Iraqi side of the border, French members of the coalition on Saturday stood ready to pour fury on any jihadists trying to escape. Dozens of 155-mm shells were lined up ready to be loaded onto three green-and-black Caesar gun-howitzers with a range of 40 kilometres (25 miles). Coalition deputy commander Christopher Ghika last week said Iraqi forces had sealed their border with Syria. Since September, more than 1,270 IS militants, more than 670 SDF fighters, and around 400 civilians have been killed in the fighting, the Observatory says. At the height of their rule, the jihadists imposed their brutal interpretation of Islamic law on a territory roughly the size of Britain. But military offensives in both countries, including by the SDF, have since retaken the vast bulk of that "caliphate". On Saturday, Bali said he expected the battle for the last patch of IS territory to be over in days. The jihadists, however, retain a presence in Syria's vast Badia desert, and have claimed a series of deadly attacks in SDF-held areas. Since December, more than 37,000 people, mostly wives and children of jihadist fighters, have fled out into SDF-held areas, the Observatory says. That figure includes some 3,400 suspected jihadists detained by the SDF, according to the monitor, which relies on sources inside Syria for its information. The SDF holds hundreds of foreigners accused of belonging to the extremist group in its custody, as well as members of their families. They have urged Western governments to repatriate their nationals, but politicians abroad have been reluctant. Relatives at home fear alleged foreign jihadists may end up facing tough justice in Iraq, where Human Rights Watch warned they could face "torture and unfair trials". On Sunday, a Russian diplomatic source says Russia was repatriating 27 children who mothers are being held in Iraq for belonging to IS. The issue of jihadist repatriation from Syria has come into sharper focus since the United States in December announced its military withdrawal from Syria. That announcement has seen the Kurds warn they may struggle to keep jihadists in jail, and pushed them to seek a new ally in the Damascus regime to prevent a long threatened Turkish offensive. While the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) have been a key US ally in the fight against IS, Ankara views them as "terrorists". Syria's Kurds have largely stayed out of the country's civil war, instead building semi-autonomous institutions in northern and northeastern regions they control. The conflict has killed more than 360,000 people and displaced millions since starting in 2011 with a brutal crackdown on anti-government protests. The regime has made a military comeback with Russian military support since 2015, and now holds almost two-thirds of Syria. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Delhi High Court has dismissed a plea alleging medical negligence by a neurosurgeon leading to death of a woman, who was suffering from brain tumour. Justice Vibhu Bakhru said the issue of whether there was any negligence on the doctor's part is to be assessed by the medical practitioner and unless it is shown that there was any flaw in the decision making process or there was malafide, no interference by the court would be warranted. "... this court finds no merit in the present petition and the same is dismissed," the court said. The court was hearing a plea by a man, whose wife was being treated by Dr S K Sogani, a neurosurgeon, for meningioma/ brain tumour and she died in May 2011, after her third operation. The man had alleged in the plea that the doctor was negligent in treating his wife and he had operated upon her thrice from November 2003 to May 2011. It was alleged that the doctor conducted the operation on May 7,2011, without a prior MRI scan and it was an act of negligence. He intially filed a complaint before Delhi Medical Council (DMC) which passed the order that no case of medical negligence had been made out against the doctor in treating the woman as she died due to "the known complications associated with surgery of such nature". This was challenged by him before the Medical Council of India (MCI) which disposed of the plea by approving the finding of its Ethics Committee that there was no medical negligence. The man then approached the high court against the MCI's order. The MCI was represented through advocate T Singhdev who countered the submissions made by the man. The court noted that proceedings before DMC or MCI regarding medical negligence are in nature of peer review and a judicial review on the merits of the decision is not available, except on limited grounds, where it is found to be such that no reasonable person could possibly have arrived at this decision. "It is clear from the above that neither any separate legal opinion was sought by the Executive Committee nor was any such legal opinion tendered. However, an expert was included as a part of the Executive Committee, which had deliberated on the complaint filed by the petitioner (man). "As observed above, the examination of the complaint by DMC is in the nature of peer review, and in conformity with this nature, an expert in neurosurgery was included as a part of the concerned committee," it said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari Sunday said in a lighter vein that there was no place for casteism in his area because of his "warning" that anybody talking about caste will be "thrashed" by him. Speaking at a programme organised by the Punaruththan Samarasta Gurukulam in Pimpri Chinchwad township here, the senior BJP leader said the society should be brought together on the basis of the economic and social equality, and it should not have any scope for casteism and communalism. "We do not believe in any casteism...I do not know what do you have but there is no place for castiesm in our five districts because I have warned everybody that if someone talks about caste, I will thrash him," said Gadkari who represents Nagpur Lok Sabha seat. Gadkari further said: "the entire society should be brought together on the basis of economic and social equality and unity and it also should be free from casteism and communalism". Gadkari, who is known for speaking his mind, had kicked up controversies over his public statements in the past. He had said in December last year that leadership should have the tendency to own up defeat and failures. The remarks had come days after the BJP's loss in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh assembly polls. Gadkari later clarified that his remarks were taken out of context. Last month, Gadkari had advised fellow politicians against interfering in "other fields". He had made the remarks at the valedictory function of the annual Marathi literary meet at Yavatmal in Maharashtra which was embroiled in a controversy after an invitation to noted writer Nayantara Sahgal was withdrawn. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Mohammad Hanif Syed, one of the three convicts sentenced to death in the 2003 Mumbai twin bomb blasts and currently lodged in the Nagpur Central Jail, died at a hospital, a prison officer said Sunday. Syed's health suddenly deteriorated Saturday evening, following which he was shifted to the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) where he died one and half hours after admission, Jail Superintendent Rani Bhosle told PTI Sunday night. "The exact cause of his death will be known after post-mortem which will be conducted Monday in the presence of his relatives who have arrived in the city Sunday," she said, adding that Syed's body will be handed over to his relatives after autopsy. As per preliminary information and symptoms, he could have died of a cardiac arrest, Bhosle said. Syed, his wife Fehmida and third conspirator Ashrat Ansari were convicted by a POTA (Prevention of Terrorist Activity) court in 2009 of planting powerful bombs in two taxis which exploded at the iconic Gateway of India and Zaveri Bazaar on August 25, 2003, leaving 52 people dead and 244 injured. Syed was shifted to the Nagpur Central Jail from Yerwada jail in 2012, after the Bombay high court upheld his death sentence. The Lashkar-e-Toiba's role in the twin blasts was revealed by an accused-turned-approver. It was for the first time that the LeT had used a family to carry out bomb blasts in the country. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Zoya Akhtar's much-awaited film "Gully Boy", featuring Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt in lead, had a packed house premiere at the ongoing Berlin International Film Festival. Cameron Bailey, Artistic Director, Toronto International Film Festival shared on Twitter that the film was well-received and he has never seen such a response for any movie at Berlinale in past two decades. "Watched the GULLY BOY world premiere tonight in a packed house with @RanveerOfficial, @aliaa08 & @ZoyaAkhtarOff present. Biggest cheers I've heard in 20+ years at the Berlinale," he wrote alongside a picture of Ranveer meeting the audience post the premiere. The festival's official Twitter handle thanked Ranveer for his energetic rap performance on film's track "Apna Time Aayega" "Thank you @RanveerOfficial , we had a blast last night, you were absolutely amazing," the tweet read. Ranveer, 33, said it was a "memorable" night for him. "It was a truly memorable night! Thank you so much for having us," he tweeted in response to the festival's post. "Gully Boy", produced by Ritesh Sidhwani and Farhan Akhtar, features Ranveer as an up-and-coming rapper who sets out to achieve his dream by rhyming about his life on the Mumbai streets. The film, also starring Kalki Koechlin, Siddhant Chaturvedi and Vijay Raaz, will release on February 14. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Rajasthan government Sunday pasted a notice at the residence of Gujjar leader Kirori Singh Bainsla, who is leading a protest by the community that turned violent in some areas and saw rail and road traffic being disrupted, warning him against violation of court directives on agitation. In the notice pasted by the Karauli district administration at Bainsla's Hindaun residence, it has been stated that Supreme Court and different high courts have on several occasions directed that no public or private property be damaged and rail or railway traffic be disrupted during any agitation. "If the Supreme Court and high court directives are not followed, you will be held responsible for contempt of court," the notice said. District Collector Nannu Mal Pahadia said the notice was issued by the state's Home Department. The notice said the protesters have squatted on the railway track on the Delhi-Mumbai route and they have blocked the Karauli-Hindaun road on Bainsla's orders. The Gujjar community agitation demanding five per cent quota in jobs and education turned violent Sunday with shots being fired and police vehicles torched in Dholpur district and protesters blocking road and rail traffic in many areas. As a precautionary measure, authorities have imposed prohibitory orders under CrPc section 144 in Dholpur and neighbouring Karauli districts, police said. At least 20 trains were cancelled and seven diverted during the day as the protesters, led by the Gujjar Arakshan Sangharsh Samiti chief Bainsla, continued their sit-in on railway tracks in Sawai Madhopur district for the third day on Sunday, officials said. The sit-in began on Friday evening and has affected the movement of over 250 trains through the region since. The agitators also blocked highways connecting major cities on Sunday. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The government plan to offer PSUs special incentives for discoveries in difficult and unviable areas will help raise India's production as it will unlock output in a dozen fields of state-owned and OIL, officials said Sunday. India currently produces about 90 million standard cubic meters per day (mmscmd) of and has ambitious plans to double output by 2022 to reduce its reliance on imports and replace some of the polluting liquid fuels to cut emissions. Speaking on sidelines of the Petrotech conference here on the outskirts of Delhi, officials said and have a dozen discoveries, which are unviable at current government mandated gas price. These finds, they said, need a higher price and the government plans for special incentives for them would help bring them to production quickly. Minister had last month stated "special incentive besides the incentive already provided" will be given to difficult fields of "We dont know what that incentive will be, but we presume it will be a higher and remunerative price," an official said. State-owned and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) and Oil India Ltd (OIL) have not been able to develop the discoveries or bring them to production as the current gas price of $3.36 per million British thermal unit (MMBtu) is way lower than the cost of production. Officials said ONGC has about 35 billion cubic meters of recoverable reserves in discoveries in the shallow sea off Andhra Pradesh on the east and off Gujarat and Mumbai on the west coast blocks. The three blocks in Krishna Godavari basin, Gulf of Kutch and Mumbai offshore can produce about 10 mmscmd of gas and an equivalent amount can be produced from its onshore discoveries in blocks like Bantumili, Mandapeta and Bhuvanagiri, they said. About 5 mmscmd of production can be added by making some investment in existing fields like Mumbai High South, Neelam and B-127 Cluster in the Arabian Sea. Oil India Ltd (OIL) has an onland discovery in the Krishna Godavari basin in Andhra Pradesh with over 3 billion cubic meters of recoverable reserves, but needs a higher price to bring it to production. The officials said all these fields can be expeditiously developed and monetised in case pricing and marketing freedom is granted by the government. ONGC and OIL want a price of over $6 per MMBtu to help them produce the gas without suffering any losses. In the absence of a viable gas price, they will have to mothball $3 billion projects, the officials said. The BJP-led government had in October 2014, evolved a new pricing formula using rates prevalent in gas surplus nations like US, Canada and Russia to determine price in a net importing country. Prices using this formula are calculated semi-annually. While the government has allowed a higher rate of $7.67 per mmBtu for gas fields in difficult areas like the deep sea, ONGC's Krishna Godavari basin block KG-OSN-2004/1, which has about 15 bcm of recoverable reserves, is in shallow waters and does not qualify as a 'difficult field'. Similar is the fate of Mumbai basin block MB-OSN-2005/1 on the western side. The block GK-28/42 in Gulf of Kutch is a nomination block which does not qualify for higher rates, they said. The onland discoveries of ONGC and OIL, too, do not qualify for the higher rates. While ONGC's KG block can produce a peak output of 5 mmscmd, the same from GK-28/42 is expected to be around 2.5 mmscmd. Peak output from MB-OSN-2005/1 is expected to a little less than 3 mmscmd. Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha on March 20, 2017, had stated that the cost of production of natural gas in the prolific Krishna Godavari basin is between $4.99 to $7.30 per mmBtu. The same for other basins is in the range of $3.80 to $6.59 per mmBtu, he had said, adding the production cost of vary from field to field depending upon the size of the reservoir, location, logistics and availability of surface facilities. Union Minister Alphons Kannanthanam Sunday launched the Sivagiri spiritual tourism circuit with facilities like a craft bazaar, bus shelters and an audio-video virtual reality show and said that the future of Kerala lies in the tourism sector. The inauguration of the much-hyped spiritual circuit around the Sivagiri Mutt near here was marred by controversy as the state-central ministers sparred over the project. While Kannanthanam, the Minister of State for Culture and Tourism, asked the state government to change its approach towards the Centre, State Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran said that Kerala was 'ignored' in the project due to the involvement from certain quarters. "This (state) government had given a comprehensive proposal of Rs 99.09 crore for development projects at Sivagiri Mutt and temples related to Sree Narayana Guru. Just a few days before the sanctioning this amount, due to the involvement from certain quarters, the state government was ignored. The chief minister had criticised the same," Kadakampally said during his address in the event. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had earlier written to the Prime Minister against the Centre's decision to inaugurate the spiritual circuit without consulting the state government. The state government alleged that the Centre ignored its proposal to entrust the project with State Tourism Development Corporation. At present the project has been undertaken by the India Tourism Development Corporation. "The state's approach must change.We are now constructing walls around us. Instead of lighting lamps, people here are confining themselves inside the walls. This is a conservative thought process," Kannanthanam said, in an apparent reference to the Women's wall initiative by the state government. He, however, said that the state and the Centre should work together and praised Kerala's efforts in making the spiritual circuit around the Sivagiri Mutt a reality. Sivagiri sanyasis who spoke during the event said the Mutt does not have any kind of political affiliation and it wanted the ITDC to handle the spiritual circuit. Under the total project, Chembazhanti Narayana Gurukulam, Aruvippuram temple, Subramanya Sawmi temple and Mutt at Kunnumpara and the Sivagiri Mutt will be developed. The Sivagiri Mutt will have a tourist facilitation centre, enquiry room, waiting room, first aid, kiosks, cloak room, community dining hall with kicthen and audio-visual hall to be constructed at a cost of Rs 14.92 crore. Kannanthanam said that Ministry of Tourism has sanctioned seven projects in Kerala under the Swadesh Darshan and PRASHAD schemes for approximately Rs 550 crore. "Kerala's future lies in exploring the possibilities in the tourism sector," he said. Sree Narayana Dharma Sangham President Swami Vishudhananda presided over the function. The project was sanctioned in January 2019 for Rs 69.47 crore. Other facilities to be developed under the project include tourist facilitation centres, beautification and landscaping, meditation/yoga centre, public conveniences, battery operated vehicles, drinking water facility, multimedia show, wayside amenities, parking, CCTV and Wi-Fi facilities, cafeterias, open air theatre. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The police have arrested three Nigerian men alongwith a Brazilian woman and seized cocaine worth around Rs 39 crore from their possession,a senior official said here Sunday. The accused were about to send the drug to South Africa, police said. A team of Amboli police nabbed the accused from the Maurya Estate road in suburban Andheri Saturday night and recovered drugs worth Rs 38.95 crore, the official said. The accused were identified as Neras Pokhogo (35), Michael Hop (29), Simon Agobata (32), all Nigerians; and Karle Ires (41), a woman from Brazil. The cocaine allegedly seized from their possession was supposed to be sent to Johannesburg in South Africa. The accused were held when they were heading for the office of a courier companyto dispatch the consignment. Additional Commissioner of Police Manoj Kumar Sharma said the accused concealed narcotic drugs in rings and pipes of curtains. These drug-loaded consignments of curtains would be then sent abroad through courier companies. The police were probing whether courier company officials were aware of this racket, Sharma added. The accused were booked under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act. A local court remanded them in seven-day police custody. A police official said that Pokhogo was already facing a drug case in neighbouring Thane, while Ires, the Brazilian national, had come out of prison recently after serving a jail term in an NDPS case. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday attacked the Congress, saying for the opposition party the defence sector was only about brokering deals. Modi's comments came after party president Rahul Gandhi recently upped the ante on the Rafale row by quoting a media report saying the PMO conducted "parallel" negotiations on the deal. "From the seas to the skies, the Congress has several scams associated with the defence and in the process the party did not allow the modernisation of defence forces for long years that they were in power," Modi said. Addressing a party rally at Perumanallur about 13 km from here, he said the NDA's work culture was different from that of the previous governments. Targeting the Congress, he said "those who had got opportunity to rule the nation for years did not bother about India's defence sector. For them this sector was only about brokering deals and helping their own set of friends." "The NDA's approach to national security is different," he said and outlined that it was the dream of his government that India be self-sufficient in defence production and where "our forces have all possible support they require in keeping our nation safe." He referred to the "pathbreaking" step of creating two defence corridors one of which is in Tamil Nadu. He said a defence corridor will bring industry and investment options and opportunities for the State's youth. On the opposition attack on him, the Prime Minister said their "political culture of abusing Modi may give them some space in television but the elections are fought on ones vision for the nation, not slander and attack." The good work of the NDA government has made some people very unhappy and their unhappiness has turned into desperation and abuse for Modi, he said. Remembering Congress stalwart and former chief minister of Tamil Nadu, the late K Kamaraj, he said the "great" leader always wanted a government in power which has zero tolerance towards corruption. "You have placed a government in Delhi who is putting a lock on corruption," Modi said. He recalled the NDA government had brought a legislation for providing 10 per cent reservation for the poor in the general category and this was done without altering the existing reservation system in the country. On the PM Kisan Yojana scheme, he said it was a yearly benefit and will ensure Rs.7.5 lakh crore goes to the bank accounts of the farmers in 10 years. For the first time in India's history, a government has spoken about doubling of farmer's income rather than giving them loan waivers as promised by Opposition as a part of their "election propaganda." "Our goal is to improve ease of living for all Indians," he said referring to foundation stone laying for several projects including those related to ESIC hospitals. This also included new aviation infrastructure at Chennai and Tiruchirappalli and crude oil pipline from Chennai Port to Chennai Petroleum Corporation Limited's Manali refinery. Modi began his speech in Tamil by saying "Vanakkam," and added that he bowed to the "land of Tirupur," which is known for its bravery. Modi referred to freedom fighters including Tirupur Kumaran for their sacrifices. He said Namo merchandise like T-shirts were made in Tirupur and praised the region's enterprising spirit. He also lauded a Jain guru for his peace initiatives. Speaking on the occasion, Tamil Nadu unit BJP president Tamilisai Soundararajan hit out at the main opposition DMK and lauded the Prime Minister for his welfare initiatives. Even as Modi arrived at the venue of the meeting, slogans like "Vendum Modi," (we want Modi), rent the air. Farmers representatives presented him a silver coconut for announcing the maximum support price for copra. Modi's Sunday rally here was the second such BJP event in less than a month in Tamil Nadu. On January 27, he addressed a grand party rally at Madurai after laying a foundation stone for the AIIMS hospital there. Modi had in the recent past held a slew of video conferences based interactions with party workers of Tamil Nadu. Five militants were killed Sunday in an encounter with security forces in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district, the Army said here. The gunbattle broke out after the ultras opened fire on a search team of the security forces in the district's Kellem village this morning, an Army official said. He said five militants were killed in the encounter. The identity and group affiliation of the ultras are being ascertained. Weapons and war-like stores have been recovered from the encounter site, the official added. Clashes between protestors and security forces broke out near the encounter site, a police official said, adding there were no immediate reports of injury to anyone. He said the law enforcing agencies were trying to restore order in the area. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Five militants belonging to Hizbul Mujahideen and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) were killed on Sunday in an encounter with security forces in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district , police said. The gunbattle broke out after militants opened fire on a search party of the security forces in Kulgam's Kellem village this morning, a police official said. He said five militants were killed in the encounter and weapons and warlike stores were recovered from the spot. The slain militants were identified as Waseem Ahmad Rather, Aqib Nazir Mir, Parvaiz Ahmad Bhat, Idrees Ahmad Bhat and Zahid Ahmad Parray, the police official said. "As per police records, it was a combined group of proscribed terror outfits HM and LeT and their (militants') exact affiliations are being ascertained. They were wanted by the law for their complicity in a series of terror crimes, including attacks on security establishments and civilian atrocities," a police spokesperson said. Waseem, Aqib and Parvaiz were involved in killings of a civilian, Mohd Iqbal Kawa, and local Army jawan, Mukhtar Ahmad, he said. He said this group of militants was also involved in various grenade attacks across Anantnag and Kulgam districts. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) An executive engineer, who was assigned to clear snow on roads in Jammu and Kashmir's Kishtwar district, was suspended for dereliction of duty, an official spokesperson said Sunday. District Development Commissioner Angrez Singh Rana ordered the suspension of the officer with immediate effect on Saturday, the spokesperson said. He said the district development commissioner had passed directions to all officers concerned to remain on high alert and keep men and machinery on standby in view of the prediction of heavy snowfall on Thursday. Besides, the executive engineer in Kishtwar Mechanical Division was also asked to keep snow cutters ready for clearance of all the main roads and other intra district link roads, the spokesman said. He said the officer paid no heed towards the directions and left the headquarter without informing the deputy commissioner. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) An elderly couple was arrested by the customs officials for allegedly trying to smuggle out of the country foreign currencies worth Rs 92 lakh at Delhi airport, according to an official statement issued on Sunday. The accused were intercepted when they were proceeding to board a flight to Dubai on Friday. A detailed personal and baggage search of the two passengers resulted in the recovery of foreign currencies Euro and Dirham equivalent to Rs 92.02 lakh, it said. The two, aged around 70 years, were accompanied with their nine-year-old grandchild, the Customs Department said in the statement. The forex was seized and the couple arrested, it said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The chill prevailing in the atmosphere in and around Sangam here failed to dampen the spirit of around 1.25 crore people hailing from different walks of life, who gathered on Sunday morning to participate in the third shahi snaan held at the confluence of Ganga, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati. Even before the break of dawn, scores of people had taken the dip with their friends and family. As a bright sunny day progressed, the number of devotees and enthusiasts went up. "Around 1.25 crore people have taken dip on the occasion of Basant Panchami. The number is likely to go up further. Close to 50 lakh devotees had already taken dip before sunrise," Kumbh Mela Adhikari Vijay Kiran Anand told PTI. He also said that all 'akharas' have completed the shahi snan (royal bath). The continuous cold breeze sweeping the mela area could not deter the devotees from taking the dip in Sangam. They chanted devotional hymns eulogizing various Gods and Goddesses. Chants of Har Har Gangey' and Jai Ganga Maiyya' filled the air around the Sangam area as devotees from different walks of life poured in and around the bathing ghats. According to Kumbh Mela administration, till February 9, as many as 14.94 crore devotees have already visited the place. However, UP Cabinet minister and leader of SBSP (Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party) Om Prakash Rajbhar questioned the statistics of the pilgrims turning up at the mega event. "On what basis are they (government) claiming that around 15 crore people have visited the Kumbh Mela? Can they tell which route has been opted by the devotees and pilgrims, while arriving to the Kumbh and departing from it?" Rajbhar told reporters. The entire Kumbh Mela area wore an illuminated look, and devotees approaching the Sangam area through Kali Marg were mesmerized by the LED lighting at the event. Some enthusiasts stopped to click selfies, with an illuminated mela area in the background. Most of the devotees could be seen carrying water of river Ganga in bottles. As the number of visitors started going up, senior police officials were heard issuing instructions to the devotees to take a specific exit route, and finish the bathing formality, so that other devotees could also take a holy dip. Kumbh Mela police this time used gas balloons as an indicator to the public thronging the mela area to locate the lost and found centres run by it. Choppers were also used for aerial monitoring of the Kumbh mela area. The Mela commenced on January 15 on Makar Sankranti, the first bathing day, and the Mahashivratri on March 4 will mark its last bathing day. Prior to Basant Panchami, shahi snaans were held on Makar Sankranti on January 15 and Mauni Amawasya on February 4. Allahabad Mayor Abhilasha Gupta Nandi told PTI, "Basant Panchami is the third and the last shaahi snaan of the Kumbh. By taking three dips on this day, a devotee gets the blessings of Ganga, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati rivers. Hence, it holds tremendous significance for devotees." The festival of Basant Panchami heralds the arrival of spring and is dedicated to Goddess Saraswati. Hours before sunrise, lakhs of devotees had already taken dip in Sangam on Basant Panchami the third and final shahi snaan during the Kumbh. Many were seen carrying the holy water of Ganga, a sense of satisfaction reflected on their faces. Even before 2 am, a number of devotees were seen taking the exit route from the Mela area, and searching for a mode of transport to reach their respective destinations. It was 1.45 am, and Rakesh Kumar, a resident of Banda, was heading home. "The main reason to take the (holy) dip early was that I will get ample amount of time to reach home. The crowd was relatively less and hence there were no problems," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Democrat Elizabeth Warren officially kicked off her 2020 run Saturday with a full-throated pledge to defend working Americans, unbowed by a row over her Native American ancestry that has threatened to nip her campaign in the bud. "This is the fight of our lives," she told cheering supporters in gritty Lawrence, Massachusetts, against "a rigged system that props up the rich and powerful and kicks dirt on everyone else." "Millions of families can barely breathe," Warren said, in a feisty speech that struck aggressively populist and unapologetically left-leaning notes. "It is not right." The Massachusetts senator -- who had announced her intention to run on New Year's Eve -- is among the highest-profile of the growing pool of Democrats hoping to unseat in 2020. The Democratic field is already the party's most diverse ever -- in gender, age and ethnic background -- and one of its more progressive. It includes several well-known women lawmakers, with Senator Amy Klobuchar expected to join their numbers on Sunday. Warren's past battles with Wall Street have brought her a large following, and her campaign team has drawn the grudging respect of its rivals. Hoping to ride the momentum of her Lawrence speech, she heads next to early-voting Iowa and New Hampshire, followed by five other states. But for now it is unclear how badly damaged Warren is by the stubborn controversy over her claim to Native American roots -- a claim Trump has seized upon to belittle her, mocking her as "Pocahontas." Hoping to put the controversy to rest, Warren released DNA tests in October -- but this backfired when they showed her to have only negligible amounts of Native blood, dating back generations. Warren ultimately apologized to the Cherokee Nation. The matter reared its head again this week when The Washington Post published what it said was an official 1980s document in which Warren listed her race as "American Indian." 'Exposed as a fraud': Trump's re-election campaign issued a dismissive statement ahead of Warren's announcement, saying she had "been exposed as a fraud by the Native Americans she impersonated and disrespected to advance her professional career." It said her "socialist ideas" would hurt workers. "This is a story that she did not want in this launch," said John Cluverius, a political science professor at the University of Massachusetts-Lowell. But he also cautioned that "it's still very, very early" to speculate on "how it harms her, or doesn't harm her." Lawrence, the scene of Warren's announcement, is a former mill town where a group of women workers, including many immigrants, launched a strike in 1912 that spread across the region and came to be seen as a historic victory for women and for labor, with improved wages and working conditions. The 69-year-old senator has made the protection of middle-class rights the central pillar of her political message. Lawrence, once part of a bustling US textile industry, has for years fallen on hard times, with the loss of thousands of factory jobs. But Warren showed nothing but pride in Lawrence's pro-worker history. "I will never give up on you," she said. "I am in this fight all the way." - She called for "big, structural change" in America that would reach beyond new US leadership -- though she called the Trump administration "the most corrupt in living memory." Warren said she would press for steeper taxes on the rich, strong anti-corruption legislation, curbs on lobbyists and a defense of the climate. She also supports universal health care. She pointed to her own rise from humble origins -- the daughter of a janitor, she started her schooling in a $50-a-semester community college and ended up teaching law at Harvard -- arguing that she can help bring a revival of the American Dream. Warren tried in her speech to appeal to a broad ethnic coalition, saying, "We must not allow those with power to weaponize hatred and bigotry to divide us." Cluverius says Warren will need strong Hispanic support since two popular African Americans -- Democratic senators Kamala Harris and Cory Booker -- are also in the crowded field. She will also need to win over female voters, which might explain the highly unusual -- and somewhat risky -- decision to include a story about potty-training her baby daughter. Warren recounted her decision to go to law school when Amelia was not quite two years old, but said the only day care she could find -- with five days before classes were to start -- would take the child only if potty-trained. A determined Warren accomplished the task, she told a laughing crowd, "courtesy of three bags of M&Ms." "Since that day, I've never let anyone tell me that anything is 'too hard,'" she quipped. Two people were arrested Sunday in connection with the hooch tragedy that claimed over 70 lives in two adjoining districts in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh, police said. The death toll in Uttarakhand rose to 36 on Sunday, with 11 more people succumbing after consuming the spurious liquor in a village in Haridwar district. According to an Uttar Pradesh government statement released Saturday evening in Lucknow, 36 died in Saharanpur district which adjoins Uttarakhand. According to the police, the arrested father-son duo, Fakira and Sonu, told investigators that they had procured the spurious liquor from Uttar Pradesh and sold it in Balupur and its neighbouring villages in Uttarakhand's Haridwar district. The two are residents of Balupur village, Haridwar SSP Janmejay Khanduri and Saharanpur SSP Dinesh Kumar, who held a joint press conference in Roorkee, told PTI. The accused have told interrogators that the liquor they had bought did not have its usual colour and smelt of diesel, the Haridwar Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) said. "It was white like milk and smelt of diesel," they said in their statement to the police. The victims, hailing from Haridwar district in Uttarakhand and Saharanpur district in Uttar Pradesh, had consumed the liquor after the 'tehravin', the 13th day of mourning ritual, following a relative's death. Efforts are underway to nab the residents of Punden village of Saharanpur who manufactured the illicit liquor, the Haridwar police chief said. He said raids have been conducted at their residence but they are on the run. The tragedy took a political hue on Sunday, with UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath suggesting the involvement of the Samajwadi Party in "such mischievous acts" and BSP chief Mayawati seeking a CBI probe into the matter. Adityanath, from his home turf Gorakhpur, warned of stern action against all those found involved in illicit liquor trade even if they were associated with any political party. "In the past too, such type of mischievous acts by SP leaders had come to fore. In Azamgarh, Hardoi, Kanpur and Barabanki, SP leaders were found to be involved in past hooch tragedies. We can't deny conspiracy this time too," Yogi told reporters Saturday night. Samajwadi Party (SP) president and former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav slammed the BJP government in the state over the deaths. The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), the SP's alliance partner for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, also blamed the BJP governments in UP and Uttarakhand for the tragedy. BSP chief Mayawati in a statement said that both the state governments were "callous" in their approach towards banning sale of spurious liquor and demanded a CBI probe into the tragedy. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, the newly appointed general secretary in charge of East UP, also demanded the BJP governments in both the states ensure strict punishment to those responsible for the hooch tragedy and provide adequate compensation to the families of the deceased. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) has helped a woman recover money that she had paid to a placement agency in north Delhi's Mangolpuri area with had falsely promised her a lucrative job in a school. The commission on Sunday said a 26-year-old woman applied for a job after seeing an advertisement in a newspaper put in by the placement agency. "The woman realised that she had been duped when even after many days no job offer had come, and the agency also did not reply to her phone calls. She then called the Delhi Commission for Women at its 181 Women's Helpline, seeking help in the matter," a DCW statement said. The commission said it immediately set up a team and a counsellor was sent to meet the woman. She was then taken to the police station to file a complaint. The counsellor then accompanied the woman to the placement agency and dialled 100, it said. "The owner denied having taken any money on which the woman produced the signed receipt that she had received. When the counsellor threatened to escalate the matter, the owner returned the amount to her. With the support of the head constable, the counsellor coaxed the placement agency to refund the woman's money," the statement stated. Similar cases of other women duped by the same agency have come to light and in cases where receipts were available, the commission was able to get them refunds. The DCW has requested the Delhi Police to investigate the matter and ensure strictest action against the accused as per the law. "While the woman would have had to run from pillar to post to retrieve her money, a small intervention of the commission has helped her get her dues. Every day, the commission is utilising its powers to the fullest and employing innovative means to help distressed women and girls. I appeal to people to be wary of false traps laid down by criminals for extortion and report wrongdoings," DCW Chief Swati Maliwal said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The post of Up-Lokayukt (Deputy Lokayukta) in Madhya Pradesh's anti-corruption watchdog was created and subsequently filled a day ahead of announcement of assembly polls by the Election Commission, documents obtained under RTI Act show. Within three days, the whole process of appointment from writing a letter to Chief Justice of Madhya Pradesh High Court, seeking nomination of the suitable candidate, to finally approving the appointment was completed, the documents received in response to an RTI query filed by transparency activist Ajay Dubey reveal. After the documents were made public, transparency activists have raised their voice at the "lightening speed" with which the appointment was processed. "The appointment of Up-Lokayukt was made within three days. It was done a day ahead of announcement of assembly polls in Madhya Pradesh. Why did government think of filling the post of Up-Lokayukt towards the end of their tenure," asked Dubey. According to the documents, former chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had written to Madhya Pradesh Chief Justice on October 3, 2018, seeking the name of a suitable candidate for the post of Up-Lokayukt. On the same day, the high court chief justice replied to the CM's communique and recommended sitting judge, Justice Sushil Kumar Palo, who was due to retire on November 1, for the post, the documents show. On October 5, the state government wrote to Lokayukt Justice N K Gupta, seeking his nod, a statutory requirement, for the appointment, which was received on the same day. Following which, Palo's appointment was approved by the government. An order, mentioning the government's approval for creation of the post of Up-Lokayukt and support staff, was sent to the Lokayukt's office on the same day, as per the documents. The file was later sent to Madhya Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel for her approval, as per the statutory requirement. Incidentally, the secretary to the governor approved the proposal, on the direction of the governor, on October 10, according to an order that said it was done after obtaining a 'no-objection certificate' from the Election Commission (as the elections were already announced by the poll body on October 6 and model code of conduct had come into force). The cabinet gave its post-facto approval to the government on December 5, days ahead of the counting of votes on December 11. The Kamal Nath-led Congress government took over the reins of the state on December 17. Meanwhile, Justice Palo took over as the second Lokayukt on November 3. Activist Dubey said he would challenge the appointment of Up-Lokayukt in the Supreme Court. He said the central government is yet to set up Lokpal, nearly five years after the Act on the anti-corruption ombudsman was passed. "But here in Madhya Pradesh, the government acted with lightening speed to ensure appointment of second Up-Lokayukt ahead of the state elections," Dubey claimed. The tenure of Lokayukt or Up-Lokayukt is of six years. The Lokayukt organisation is mandated to act against acts of corruption by state government employees. There can be one post of Lokayukt and one or more Up-Lokayukts in the Lokayukt organisation. Justice N K gupta had been working as the Lokayukt and Justice Umesh Chandra Maheshwari as the other Up-Lokayukt. As per rules, Up-Lokayukt shall be appointed after consultation with Lokayukt, or where a sitting judge of a high court is to be appointed, the chief justice of that high court in which he is working, shall be consulted. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Hyderabad-based fintech startup CredRight Sunday announced a loan of Rs 200 crore to micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the next three years. CredRight, the data-driven lending platform partners with chit funds and uses a reverse auction to distribute pooled funds across India to acquire customers and to underwrite loan for a customer, the company said in a release. In 2019-20 fiscal, the company plans to further invest in technology and disburse Rs 50 crores to MSMEs by December 2019, it said. "We are looking to provide loans of above Rs 5 lakh to retailers/small businesses and above Rs 10 lakh to SMEs. In the last year, the loan band ranged from Rs 1 lakh to maximum of Rs 35 lakh with an average of Rs 9.5 lakh," Co-founder & CEO of CredRight, Neeraj Bansal noted. "There are around 50 million registered and unregistered MSME businesses in India that face a nearly USD 300 billion credit gap. The lack of adequate finance due to shortage of organised lending from banks and other formal institutes along with absence of transparency poses severe challenges in front of MSMEs to obtain loans," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Accusing the of launching 'fake campaigns' against the defence forces, judiciary and Reserve Bank, Union Minister Sunday said it is time to protect the country as well as its institutions from 'institution wreckers'. In a hard-hitting post, the minister recalled how the Congress-led governments used to interfere with institutions like the RBI, judiciary and the (CBI). "It is about time that and its institutions are protected from these 'institution wreckers'," said Jaitley, who Saturday returned from the US after medical treatment. In the post titled 'Institutions Under Attack - The Latest Fabrication', said the past two months have witnessed several "fake campaigns" which failed to cut much ice as falsehood does not have longevity. The 'compulsive contrarians' continued to jump from one falsehood to another, he said. said in West Bengal, democracy is seriously under peril. "BJP leaders can't land, public meetings are being prevented and the Rath Yatra was disallowed. The Congress Party's stand on multiple issues is self-contradictory. It slaughters a cow before the cameras in Kerala, and invokes the National Security Act against the cow killers in Madhya Pradesh," he said. There are two critical features of these new emerging breed of institution protectors'. They criticise the government the maximum and simultaneously argue that the free speech is in danger, Jaitley said. "They shed crocodile tears for democracy and make every effort to convert the world's largest democracy into a dynastic one," he said. "The Congress aligned with the Maoist in the recent elections. stood shoulder to shoulder with the 'Tukde Tukde' gang at the Jawaharlal Nehru University. The Congress was in the forefront of defending the urban naxals in court. And yet it claims to be friend of both, the idea of and its institutions," Jaitley said. He said these 'institution protectors' support the legitimising of illegal infiltrators into They readily jump to the support of those who want to dismember the country, he said. Accusing Congress President of stalling functioning of Parliament, Jaitley said his two speeches on Rafale are based on a personal hatred for the Prime Minister emanating from envy. "History will record that Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru's great grandson has singularly damaged India's Parliament as an institution more than anyone else," he said. The minister said the Congress attempts at 11.00 am every morning to disrupt both houses of Parliament. "If we analyse Rahul Gandhi's two speeches on Rafale, they are based on a personal hatred for the Prime Minister emanating from envy. A failed student always hates the class topper. Additionally, the context of the speeches points more to college-level lumpenisation in content. "It has been left to two opposition members namely Bhartruhari Mahtab of the BJD and N.K. Premachandran of the RSP to fill up the intellectual vacuum that the Congress has created," he said. On Rafale, Jaitley said the deal not only strengthens the combat ability of the but saved thousands of crores for the exchequer. "When its falsehood collapsed, its creators by producing half a document lost their full credibility. They forgot that truth always prevails," he said. Accusing the Congress of organising loot on the banks between 2008-2014, Jaitley said the party is now alleging that industrial loans had been waived. "Not a single rupee was waived. On the contrary, the defaulters have been thrown out of management & Congress's falsehood was exposed," he said. Stating that the government has consistently maintained an arm's length distance with the Election Commission, he said the attack on the EVMs is not merely to allay defeat, it is an attack on the commission. He also said it is the Opposition which questioned first the existence of the surgical strike and then played it down as a routine action which has also taken place in the past. "The Chief was described as a 'Sadak ka Gunda'. Serious doubts have been raised on the led choice of the combat aircraft Rafale and its negotiation process. In the face of all this, they allege that institutions are under attack by the Government would be a mockery he said. On RBI, Jaitley said Congress governments in the past have been liberal in asking governors of the central bank to quit. "Pt. Nehru, Mrs. Indira Gandhi and subsequently Mr had asked Governors to quit. During the UPA Government, two Governors were barely on speaking terms with the Finance Minister. Nothing of this kind has happened in the recent past, he said. The government legitimately flags the issues relating to liquidity and credit availability with the RBI, Jaitley said. "The Government is the principal manager of the nation's economy. How can raising legitimate issues relating to credit and liquidity availability be an interference with the RBI. The Government consistently maintained communications with the RBI Governors during its tenure," Jaitley said. Stating that the government does not interfere in any investigative function of CBI or any other investigative agency, Jaitley said restoring the credibility of an investigative agency is strengthening the institution and not assaulting it. Former Union finance minister Yashwant Sinha Sunday said the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill is "wrong" in all aspects and claimed there is no chance of getting it passed in the Rajya Sabha as the government is "unlikely" to introduce it in the Upper House. Delivering a lecture on 'State of the Nation and the way forward' here, Sinha, who had quit the BJP last year, appealed the people "not to give a single seat" to the party during the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. "You are concerned whether Citizenship (Amendment) Bill will be passed in the Rajya Sabha. I think it is the biggest concern of North East at this moment. All those people I spoke to, they are determined not to pass the Bill. So I do not think the government will dare to pass the Bill. "That's why I believe it will not be passed in this session. So no chance that it will be passed by this government," he said. Sinha claimed that "this government is not coming back to power again. So there is no need to worry about the Bill." He said "This Bill should not be passed because it is wrong from all aspects. It is a question of sheer existence for Assam and the North East people. If anyone tried to eliminate your existence, then people will obviously protest and fight against it. That is why the entire North East is protesting." The former Union minister said the Bill is "wrong" from Constitutional, moral, legal and equality aspects as well as "against the country's ethos". "There is nothing positive in the Bill for which it should be passed. I am firmly standing with you in opposition of the Bill. I will always come and stand with you in protesting against the Bill," he said. Sinha opined that when an agreement is signed by a government, it should not be changed by the next government because "if it is done, then the trust and faith on the country and its people will be lost". "That is why, we do not have the right to change an accord which had been solemnly arrived at by a previous government, even if it is very unpopular for the present dispensation. It is a national commitment, which has to be maintained at all cost," he added. Attacking the NDA government at the Centre over various issues, Sinha said: "Should such a government come back in this country? So, please make sure that you do not give a single seat (to the BJP) in the North East. We all should try for this." The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, which was passed by the Lok Sabha on January 8, seeks to provide Indian citizenship to Hindus, Jains, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan after six years of residence in India even if they do not possess any document. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) TDP and Chief Minister will sit on a day-long hunger strike in the capital on Monday demanding special status for his state and fulfilment of commitments made by the Centre under the AP Reorganisation Act, 2014. The had walked out the BJP-led NDA last year protesting the "injustice" done to after its bifurcation. Naidu will stage the 'Dharma Porata Deeksha' (a day-long protest for justice) at the Bhavan in the capital from 8 am to 8 pm on Monday. He will also submit a memorandum to of India on February 12, an official statement said. The chief minister will sit on a hunger strike along with his ministers, party MLAs, MLCs and MPs. Members of state employee associations, social organisations and student organisations will also join the fast, it said. Naidu is scheduled to pay tributes to at Raj Ghat and also to the Ambedkar Statue at the Andhra Pradesh Bhavan before sitting on the hunger strike. of several opposition parties are expected to extend their solidarity to the Andhra Pradesh chief minister's protest, the statement said. It may be noted that Naidu had staged an indefinite fast at the Andhra Pradesh Bhavan in October 2013, demanding that if a separate state is carved out of then unified Andhra Pradesh, both should get equal justice. He was forcibly shifted to Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital the fifth day after his health deteriorated. Last year, the chief minister had observed fast Vijayawada on his birthday on April 20 demanding special status for the state. After quitting the NDA in March last year, the TDP had also moved a 'no-confidence motion' in the Monsoon session of Parliament in July 2018, which was defeated. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has briefed the Union Cabinet about the mining crisis in Goa and asserted the need to resolve the issue on priority, Union AYUSH Minister Shripad Naik said on Sunday. A delegation of mining dependents and MPs from Goa had last Wednesday met Modi in New Delhi over their demand for resumption of the iron ore extraction operations in the coastal state. "After the delegation of Goa leaders and mining dependents met the prime minister, he chaired a Cabinet meeting where he briefed the members about the mining issue and asserted that we need to find a solution to it," Naik told reporters on the sidelines of a government event near Panaji. The mining operations, a key source of revenue to the government, came to a standstill in March last year following a Supreme Court order which quashed 88 mining leases. The BJP-led state government has requested the Centre to amend the existing mining laws during the ongoing session of Parliament so that leases get extended. Naik said a speedy solution to the mining crisis was not possible as the issue was "not within the Union government's purview". "But, the government is on it and we will be able to find a solution by February 15, after the budget session of Parliament ends on February 13," he said. Reacting to a statement by Goa Mining People's Front (GMPF) that it does not have much hope from the BJP, Naik said leaders of mining dependents should "stop misguiding the people". The minister also ruled out the possibility of the mining issue impacting BJP's prospects in the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls. "Goa's people know what we have done for them. We are indebted to the people of Goa who are responsible for the party's growth. They will surely stand by the BJP during the Lok Sabha elections," he said. The GMPF, an umbrella group of mining dependents - whose livelihood has been affected - had in December last year staged three-day protests in New Delhi demanding resumption of mining activities in the state. GMPF president Puti Gaonkar had last week claimed that an amendment to the Goa, Daman and Diu Mining Concessions (Abolition and Declaration as Mining Leases) Act could revive the mining leases till 2037. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Union minister Arun Jaitley Sunday alleged that the Congress was casting aspersions on the institution of CAG based on "falsehoods" after the party urged Rajiv Mehrishi to recuse himself from auditing the Rafale deal since he, as the then finance secretary, was part of the negotiations. The opposition party also said that it would be improper on the part of Mehrishi to present the report in Parliament. The CAG report on the deal to purchase the 36 Rafale fighter aircraft is likely to be tabled in Parliament on Monday. "Another attack on the institution of CAG by the 'Institution wreckers' based on falsehood. After ten years in Government former UPA ministers still don't know that Finance Secretary is only a designation given to the senior most secretary in the finance ministry," Jaitley said a series of tweets. Senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal had earlier said that Mehrishi was the finance secretary from October 24, 2014 to August 30, 2015 and in between Prime Minister Narendra Modi went to Paris on April 10, 2015 and announced the signing of the Rafale deal. "...Finance Ministry plays an important role in these negotiations...Now it is clear that the Rafale deal happened under Rajiv Mehrishi. Now he is CAG. We met him twice on September 19 and October 4, 2018. We told him about the scam. We told him that the deal should be probed because it is corrupt. But how can he initiate a probe against himself," he said. Jaitley, who returned from the US after medical treatment said finance secretary is the designation given to the senior most secretary in the finance ministry and has no role in dealing with the Rafale files. "Secretary (Economic affairs) has no role in expenditure files of the Defence ministry. Defence ministry files are dealt with by Secretary (Expenditure)," the senior BJP leader said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The chill in the atmosphere in and around the Sangam here failed to dampen the spirit of around 1.5 crore people who gathered Sunday for the third 'shahi snan' at the confluence of Ganga, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati. Even before the dawn broke, scores of people hailing from different walks of life had taken the dip with their friends and family. As a bright sunny day progressed, the number of devotees and enthusiasts taking dip went up. "Around 1.5 crore people have taken dip on the occasion of Basant Panchami. Close to 50 lakh devotees had taken dip before the sunrise," Kumbh Mela Adhikari Vijay Kiran Anand told PTI. He also said all 'akharas' have completed the shahi snan (royal bath). With Sunday's figures, the total number of pilgrims taking the holy dip during the Kumbh this year (up to February 10) has touched 16.44 crore, officials said. The continuous cold breeze sweeping the mela area could not deter the devotees from taking the dip in Sangam. They chanted devotional hymns eulogizing various gods and goddesses. Chants of Har Har Gangey' and Jai Ganga Maiyya' filled the air as devotees poured in and around the bathing ghats. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has expressed his gratitude to all akharas and saints on the successful conduct of three shahi snans and a total of four snans during the ongoing Kumbh. He congratulated all the officers of the Team Kumbh for their hard work in the organisation of the Kumbh, a senior UP government official said. However, UP Cabinet minister and leader of Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP) Om Prakash Rajbhar questioned the statistics of the pilgrims turning up at the mega event. "On what basis are they (government) claiming that around 15 crore people have visited the Kumbh Mela? Can they tell which route has been opted by the devotees and pilgrims, while arriving at the Kumbh and departing from it?" Rajbhar told reporters. The entire Kumbh Mela area wore an illuminated look (before sunrise), and devotees approaching the Sangam area through Kali Marg were mesmerized by the LED lighting. Some enthusiasts stopped to click selfies, with an illuminated mela area in the background. Most of the devotees could be seen carrying water of river Ganga in bottles after finishing the ritual bath. As the number of visitors started going up, senior police officials were heard issuing instructions to the devotees to take a specific exit routes, and finish the bathing formality, so that other devotees could also take the holy dip. The Kumbh Mela police used gas balloons as indicator to the public thronging the mela area to locate the lost-and-found centres run by it. Choppers were also used for aerial monitoring of the Kumbh mela area. The mela commenced on January 15 on Makar Sankranti, the first bathing day, and the Mahashivratri on March 4 will mark its last bathing day. Prior to Basant Panchami, shahi snans were held on Makar Sankranti on January 15 and Mauni Amawasya on February 4. Allahabad Mayor Abhilasha Gupta Nandi said, "Basant Panchami is the third and the last shahi snan of the Kumbh. By taking three dips on this day, a devotee gets the blessings of the Ganga, the Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati rivers. Hence, it holds tremendous significance for devotees." The festival of Basant Panchami heralds the arrival of spring and is dedicated to Goddess Saraswati. Even before 2 am, a number of devotees were seen taking the exit route from the Mela area, and searching for a mode of transport to reach their respective destinations. It was 1.45 am, and Rakesh Kumar, a resident of Banda, was heading home. "The main reason to take the (holy) dip early was that I will get time to reach home. The crowd was relatively less and hence there were no problems," he said. Meanwhile, in the afternoon, fire broke out in sector-14, and one person sustained minor burn injuries. "The fire was controlled within 15 minutes, and the person was administered first aid, additional mela officer, Dilip Kumar Trigunayat said. Till 3.00 pm, more than 1.50 crore pilgrims had taken a dip at 40 ghats, officials said. Amidst playing of various musical instruments, and chanting of 'Har Har Mahadev' the Akharas participated in the shahi snan. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The opposition BJP staged a demonstration here Sunday alleging that the law and order situation has deteriorated in Madhya Pradesh after the Congress came to power. BJP workers submitted a memorandum to the Governor after staging the protest at Roshanpura square. "The law and order situation has been deteriorating since the Congress government took over," Bhopal district BJP president and former MLA Surendra Nath Singh said. The BJP government had successfully established a rule of law in the last 15 years but now criminals were running amok with a rise in murders, chain-snatching, extortion, robberies and crimes against women, he alleged. The Congress responded to the protest by claiming that it was mostly BJP workers who were found to be involved in crimes recently. "After losing power, they have become desperate and are committing crimes," said Bhopal District Congress vice-president Yogendra Singh Chouhan. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The killing of Trinamool Congress MLA Satyajit Biswas drew sharp reactions from the ruling party and opposition BJP as a police complaint named saffron party leader Mukul Roy alleging his involvement in the incident. Roy, a former TMC general secretary who joined the BJP last year following differences with party supremo Mamata Banerjee, denied the allegation, claiming that Biswas was a "victim" of the TMC's internal feud. Amid allegations that there was no security cover despite the presence of the MLA and a minister at the venue of a Saraswati Puja where the incident occurred, the officer in-charge of local Hanskhali police station and the personal security officer of Biswas were suspended. A departmental inquiry has also been initiated against the OC and the PSO, who was reportedly on leave on Saturday, police said. Roy is among the four persons against whom an FIR has been lodged in connection with the killing of Biswas, police said. An officer of the West Bengal Police told PTI that two of the four people named in the FIR have been arrested. "So far, we have arrested two persons in this case and detained another three. A country-made revolver used to shoot the MLA has also been recovered. "As per our primary findings, it seems that the victim was fired from behind and the act was the result of a well- planned plot," he said. Asked about the chances of the assailants fleeing the area, the officer said the state police have been put on a high alert. "Nadia shares border with Bangladesh and there could be a possibility of them (assailants) trying to escape to the neighbouring country. Police have been put on high alert to check the movements along the border," he said. The country-made revolver was recovered from a ground near the place of the incident. Biswas (41), who represented Krishnaganj constituency in the Assembly, was shot from a point blank range by unidentified assailants Saturday evening inside a Saraswati puja marquee at Phoolbari area, which is about 15 km from the Bangladesh border. He was immediately taken to a local hospital where doctors announced him "brought dead". His body was brought home from the hospital Sunday morning for last rites, amid a blame-game between the ruling party and opposition BJP leaders over who was responsible for the death. A large crowd gathered to pay last respects to the deceased MLA at his residence, a few metres away from the Saraswati Puja marquee where he was shot. Roy, a former TMC member of Parliament, said that the legislator's killing could be a result of infighting within the TMC. "Naming me in the FIR is absolutely a politically motivated move. I am sorry about Satyajit's death, but the manner in which they (TMC leaders) are trying to hold the BJP responsible is nothing but a dirty conspiracy," Roy told PTI. TMC secretary general Partha Chatterjee, however, alleged that goons who killed the 41-year old leader belonged to the saffron party. Along with party's Nadia district observer Anubrata Mondal, who asserted that the "none of the perpetrators will be spared", Chatterjee accompanied the MLA's hearse to his residence from the hospital. Stating that the chief minister was shocked to learn about the incident, he said, "Those who think that they will gain by eliminating Satyajit, are living in a fool's paradise." Meanwhile, the chief minister has spoken to the family members of Satyajit Biswas and assured them all help. Chatterjee, also the state Education minister, said that attempts are being made to create divide among the Hindus and the Matua community, of which Biswas was a leader in Nadia district. Urban Development minister Firhad Hakim alleged that "BJP is importing the of violence and murder in West Bengal from Gujarat. "They think that they will win the seat if they eliminate him," he said accusing the BJP. Hakim also squarely blamed the BJP for the killing of Biswas, who belonged to the Matua community - deemed vital as a support base in Bengal. "The prime minister came to woo the Matua community in Thakurnagar last week. Now the local BJP leaders are resorting to criminal activities to gain political turf," he said. TMC Nadia district president Gouri Shankar Datta also accused Roy of being involved in the incident. "Roy is the main mastermind behind this killing. We demand his immediate arrest," Datta told PTI. Denying allegations of BJP's involvement, the party's state president Dilip Ghosh demanded a CBI investigation into the killing. An independent probe will reveal the truth, he said. Ghosh also echoed Roy's sentiments and said that Biswas was a victim of internal feud within the ruling party. "If an MLA gets killed like this, how can the common feel safe?" he maintained. CPI(M) state secretary Surjyakanta Mishra said that this incident shows that nobody is safe under TMC rule. He demanded an impartial probe to reveal the truth. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) BJP leader was among the four people booked on Sunday in connection with the killing of Trinamool Congress MLA in West Bengal's Nadia district, a senior police officer said. Of the four people named in the FIR, two have been arrested, an officer of the West Bengal Police told PTI. Biswas (41), who represented Krishnaganj constituency in the state assembly, was shot from point-blank range by unidentified assailants Saturday evening inside a Saraswati puja marquee at Phoolbari area in the district bordering Bangladesh. He was immediately taken to a local hospital where doctors announced him "brought dead". "So far, we have arrested two persons in this case and detained another three. A country-made revolver used to shoot the MLA has also been recovered." "As per our primary findings, it seems that the victim was fired from behind and the act was the result of a well-planned plot," the officer said. Asked about the chances of the assailants fleeing the area, the police officer said the state police have been put on a high alert. "Nadia shares border with Bangladesh and there could be a possibility of them (assailants) trying to escape to the neighbouring country. Police have been put on high alert to check the movements along the border," he said. Roy, a former TMC member of Parliament, joined the BJP last year after his relations soured with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Claiming that the attack was a conspiracy by the BJP, TMC secretary-general Partha Chatterjee said Saturday that those involved in the killing will be punished after a full-fledged inquiry. He also said the saffron party was trying to create disturbances ahead of the Lok Sabha polls and resorted to " of murder" by singling out leaders having mass bases. The allegations were termed "baseless" by Roy and BJP state president Dilip Ghosh. With the Lok Sabha elections and Assembly polls drawing closer, heavyweights of both BJP and Congress are all set to increase the frequency of their visits to Odisha. Both the parties are focussing on Odisha where Assembly election is likely to be held along with Lok Sabha polls in April-May this year. After his back-to-back Odisha visits, BJP president Amit Shah is scheduled to address a rally at Sambalpur on February 15, a party leader said. Shah will have a meeting with the booth level organisers of four Lok Sabha constituencies of Dhenkanal, Sambalpur, Bargarh and Sundargarh. About 60,000 booth level organisers will attend the meeting, according to state BJP chief Basant Panda. This will be Shahs third visit to Odisha this year and the second in 12 days. His last visit to Odisha was on February 3 when he addressed a meeting of BJP's ST Morcha at Puri. Earlier, he had visited Cuttack district and addressed a public meeting at Kulia in Salipur block on January 29. On both the occasions, Shah had slammed the Naveen Patnaik-led BJD government in Odisha dubbing it as a "fused transformer" which needs to be replaced. Shahs back-to-back visits were followed by a tour of BJP stalwart and Union Minister Nitin Gadkari to Dhenkanal and Paradip on February 6 when he launched a slew of projects. The BJP, which seems to be leaving no stone unturned to brighten its poll prospects, is also organising "Parivartan Samabesh" in all the 147 Assembly segments in the state. The saffron party has set a target of winning more than 120 of the 147 Assembly seats in the state. As part of its strategy, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Union ministers Giriraj Singh, Ram Kripal Yadav and Manoj Sinha are scheduled to lead the partys campaign in Odisha in days ahead. Rajnath Singh is slated to visit Odisha on February 17, while Giriraj Singh and Ram Kripal Yadav are also scheduled to tour the state. Adityanath's programmes are being given final shape, a senior BJP leader said. The visits are coming after three back-to-back visits of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the state on December 24, January 5 and January 15. The saffron party is keen to corner a large number of the 21 Lok Sabha seats in Odisha and also overthrow the Naveen Patnaik government. The BJD is in power in Odisha since 2000. Congres president Rahul Gandhi, who has already visited Odisha twice in a fortnight, is slated to undertake another visit this month. Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) has also urged the AICC to bring Priyanka Gandhi Vadra as a star campaigner during Rahul Gandhi's visit. Stating that the exact date and place of the proposed visit is being finalised, OPCC President Niranjan Patnaik said "We have requested the AICC for Priyanka Gandhis visit to Odisha." The Congress, which has been out of power in the state since 2000, is making a desperate bid to keep its cadre united and stage a comeback. During his recent visits, Rahul Gandhi mounted a scathing attack on both BJP and BJD, dubbing them as two sides of the same coin. The Congress chief had also accused Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik of being "remote controlled" by Narendra Modi from Delhi. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Popular Bengali writer Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay has called for introspection as to why Bengali language is "not getting" the respect and recognition in West Bengal as it does on the other side of the border. Speaking at the 'Dui Desh Ek Bangla: Stories From Across The Borders' session at the Kolkata Literature Festival here on Saturday, Mukhopadhyay compared the love and passion for the language among people in West Bengal and Bangladesh. "The respect and passion for their mother tongue Bengali remains more intense among the people of Bangladesh," Mukhopadhyay said at the discussion on the third and concluding day of the Kolkata Literature Festival. Mukhopadhyay said Bengali is the sixth largest spoken language in the world and one of the largest spoken language in India. The 83-year old Sahitya Akademi winner for 'Manabjomin' said, "There is nothing to feel embarrassed and awkward to proclaim your identity as a Bengali." Describing the readers in Bangladesh as 'more literary-minded' than in West Bengal, Mukhopadhyay said, "If 50 copies of a particular title of mine is sold in West Bengal, in Bangladesh the number will be 500." Asserting that partition had not been able to cause mental barriers among the Bengali-speaking people, the writer said that national anthem of both countries have been composed by Rabindranath Tagore. The partition was done for political reasons but that could not divide the minds, he said. Poet Srijato Bandyopadhyay said the geographical divide has been bridged by social media which has made him more aware how people in Bangladesh are updated about the latest works of Bengali writers and poets. "Even before people of West Bengal start asking me about my new title in poetry, I get queries from my friends in Bangladesh about when and where they will get the new book. The social network gives me that feel of immediate response," the poet said. Endorsing Mukhopadhyay's views, Srijato said, "In Kolkata when I have to write my name in the visitor's book at any building, the guard is taken aback when I write in Bengali and even ask me the reason and say everyone else writes in English. That is not the situation in Dhaka where writing in Bengali is the norm." Bandypadhyay said he was looking for the day when there will be more sense of pride, sense of belonging, sense of comfort to speak, write and communicate in one's mother's tongue and not in any other language. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Some of the important team members of popular film franchise 'Bahubali' and celebrity chef Sanjeev Kapoor will attend Prime Minister Narendra Modi's programme here on Monday during which he will serve food to school children from underprivileged background, the organisers said. Director and screenwriter S S Rajamouli is one of the goodwill ambassadors of Akshaya Patra Foundation which is hosting the event. "The prime minister will serve food to about 20 school children from underprivileged background in the campus, marking the three billionth meal offered by Akshaya Patra," Naveena Neerada Dasa, Head, Strategic Communications, ISKCON said. While a host of senior leaders, including Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Mathura MP Hema Malini will be present on the occasion, a few more noted personalities will also attend it. "S S Rajamouli is one of our well-wishers, and he won't be able to make it. But, some of important team members of the 'Bahubali' film, which he directed, will be present to show the support to the cause," Dasa told PTI. Celebrity chef Sanjeev Kapoor will also attend the mega event for which elaborate preparations have been made. Modi is slated to reach Vridavan Chandrodaya Mandir in a chopper in the morning and the programme is expected to begin around 11:30 am, organisers said. He will also unveil a ceremonial plaque to mark the serving of "three billionth meal" by Akshaya Patra Foundation at Vrindavan Chandrodaya Mandir campus in this holy city. Funded by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), Akshaya Patra is a Bengaluru-based not-for-profit organisation that works with the government on mid-day meal schemes. Akshaya Patra has a state-of-the-art kitchen in Vrindavan and Modi will serve food to children near the facility. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A complaint has beenfiled against Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy alleging that the audio clip released about state BJP Chief B S Yeddyurappa's alleged bid to destabilise thecoalition government was a "fabricated,created and truncated" one,the party said Sunday. The complaint has been lodged with the Vidhana Soudha police station under various sections of IPC including 463 (Forgery) and 464 (Making a false document) among others, and the Information Technology Act, state BJP said. After coming to know of the "plot" hatched by Kumaraswamy and his associates to "tarnish" the reputation of Yeddyurappa and BJP, M B Maramkal (Yeddyurappa's associate) filed the criminal complaint, it said. "We hope that the investigating agency would investigate into the matter and press criminal charges against Kumaraswamy and his associates and bring them to justice," itsaid in a statement. Facing turmoil in the ruling coalition that has cast a shadow over the stability of his government, Kumaraswamy had on Friday released the audio clip in which Yeddyurappa is purportedly trying to lure JDS MLA Naganagouda through his sonSharana Gouda. Yeddyurappa, who is at the vortex of the row over his alleged bid to poach the ruling coalition MLAs for the past few weeks, was quick dismiss the clip as "fake" and a "concocted story". He had on Friday dismissed the claim by the Chief Minister that he had spoken in the audio about a 'Rs 50 crore' offer to the assembly speaker. Noting that subsequent to the event on Friday when the Chief Minister along with others held a press conference and released the audio clip, the BJP said it was found that the clip was a "fabricated, created and truncated one." "The making of the audio CD and the release of the same to media houses was part of the conspiracy hatched by Kumaraswamy who is presently facing severe trust deficit from the legislators of his party as well as the coalition partner being the Congress," the saffron party said. Accusing Kumaraswamy of indulging in "third grade" politics, Yeddyurappa Sunday said he was ready for any inquiry into the audio clip. Pointing out that the Chief Minister has himself sent MLA's son to him, the senior BJP leader said it was true that he spoke to Sharan Gouda, and charged Kumaraswamy with releasing only a part of the audio which he wanted. On the other hand, Karnataka state youth Congress has also petitioned Sadashivanagar police here to book a case against Yeddyurappa on grounds of "corruption and allurement" with money to poach MLAs from ruling side with an intention to topple the coalition government. Claiming that the audio tape of Yeddyurappa's conversation with Sharan Gouda that has been released is an evidence, Youth Congress Vice President (Malleshwaram) Ashwin Gowda in a statement said, a complaint has been filed at Sadashivanagar police station here recently,under whose jurisdiction Yeddyurappa's residence falls. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) At least 18 people were injured on Sunday as police lathicharged a group of teachers that was marching towards Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh's residence here to protest against conditions for their regularisation, police said. A superintendent of police-rank officer and five other policemen were among those injured in the melee as cops tried to disperse the protesters who wanted to gherao Singh's residence, they said. The protesters were demonstrating against the regularisation policy for 8,886 teachers of Adarsh schools, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) and Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA). Police also used water cannons to disperse the protesters. The protesters had gathered near the Patiala bus stand where barricades had been erected to stop them, the police said. However, as they insisted on marching ahead, towards the chief minister's residence here, a scuffle broke out between protesters and police personnel, they said. Singh appealed to the teachers to shun the path of agitation and be patient, saying the state government was committed to finding an amicable solution to their grievances. The teachers, most of whom were contractual employees, were protesting against a condition which requires them to work at a monthly salary of nearly Rs 15,000 for three years before being regularised in their jobs. Some teachers alleged that the state government has stopped paying salaries to the SSA and RMSA teachers for not accepting the regularisation condition. In a statement issued in Chandigarh, Singh said the employees must understand that despite the unprecedented financial crisis being faced by the state, the government was doing everything in its power to resolve all their issues. He said agitations will not lead to any constructive solution and talks will be held soon to find a way out. The district administration of Patiala, which is also the chief minister's home district, invited the teachers' representatives for talks and promised to arrange their meeting with the education minister. Asserting that teachers were an intrinsic part of society, Singh assured the protesters that Health Minister Brahm Mahindra-led cabinet sub-committee was already working to find a solution to their issues. He said he would soon meet the representatives of various employees' bodies. Opposition parties, including the Shiromani Akali Dal and the Aam Aadmi Party, condemned the lathicharge on teachers, saying holding a peaceful protest was their democratic right. They said Sunday's situation would not have arisen if the government had accepted the demands of the teachers. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The head of the International Monetary Fund warned Sunday that the British exit from the European Union means it "will never be as good as it is now" for the country's economy. Christine Lagarde spoke at the World Government Summit in Dubai, which also saw Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri make an own investment pitch for his small country, now struggling through a major economic crisis as one of the world's most-indebted nations. The clubby annual event brings world leaders together at a luxury hotel in Dubai for motivational talks littered with business buzzwords. But this year's summit comes amid a worldwide turn toward populism and away from globalization. Lagarde didn't hesitate to criticize Britain's upcoming departure from the EU, known as "Brexit." Britain is due to leave the European Union on March 29. UK businesses fear a possible "no-deal" Brexit with the EU will cause economic chaos by imposing tariffs, customs and other barriers between Britain and mainland Europe. "I'm certain of one thing, is that it's not going to be as good as if they had not been Brexit, that is for sure," Lagarde said. "Whether it ends well, whether there is a smooth exit given by customs unions as predicated by some, or whether it's as a result of a brutal . exit on March 29 without extension of notice, it's not going to be as good as it is now." She urged all parties to "get ready for it" as it will upend how trade is now conducted with Britain. For his part, Hariri sought to attract investment from Gulf Arab states, which long have been a major benefactor of Lebanon. His nation now faces soaring public debt of $84 billion, or 150 percent of the gross domestic product, making it one of the most-indebted nations in the world. Lebanese unemployment is believed to be around 36 percent. Political paralysis has exacerbated the crisis. Lebanon formed a government last week after nine months of deadlock. "We took the decision to bring together all the political powers because is this is the only way to save Lebanon," Hariri said. "Today in Lebanon, we don't have the time or the luxury of because our economy could completely collapse unless we surgically remove (politics) quickly, seriously and collectively." Gulf nations like Saudi Arabia are increasingly suspicious of Lebanon' government because of the influence of Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed Shiite political party and militant group. Hezbollah has three ministers in the new government. A moderator gave Hariri a $100 bill and said he could keep it if he pitched him on investing in the country. After his pitch, Hariri returned the bill and said that he wished he had $115 to offer back. Making a surprise visit to the summit was U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry, who took the stage to announce a robotics competition would be held in the United Arab Emirates later this year. Perry, a former governor of Texas who twice ran for president unsuccessfully, has tended to avoid the spotlight in President Donald Trump's administration. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Opponents of the Shinawatra political clan campaigned triumphantly in the Thai capital on Sunday, after a weekend of high political drama when a Thai princess' bid to be premier provoked a rare royal rebuke. Thai Princess Ubolratana's unprecedented attempt to become prime minister of Thailand was scuttled after her party agreed to comply with a command from her brother King Maha Vajiralongkorn on Friday, opposing her move to contest the upcoming election. The Thai Raksa Chart party, affiliated with the powerful Shinawatra political clan, had announced the princess as their candidate Friday morning -- a move which rattled the status quo and threatened the ambitions of the generals in power. The much-anticipated election is set for March 24 and will be the first since a 2014 coup. Members of the Phalang Pracharat party -- which is aligned with the military -- were jubilant following the weekend's upheaval and its party leaders took to the streets, campaigning in a 60-vehicle convoy, to tout their tradition-abiding credentials. "We won't work with a party that is not like us: respecting the laws... traditions and Thai customs -- something that Thai people are very strict about," party leader Uttama Savanayana told reporters Sunday, in a reference to the Thai Raksa Chart party. Perched on top of a truck driving in central Bangkok, Phalang Pracharat party leaders waved and yelled into mostly empty streets, peppered by occasional shop vendors. "We take this seriously! This isn't a play!" said Buddhipongse Punnakanta, a party member who recently left his position as spokesman for junta leader Prayut Chan-O-Cha. Prayut announced his interest in staying on as prime minister on Friday, submitting his candidacy under Phalang Pracharat -- but the move was overshadowed by Thai Raksa Chart's unorthodox candidate pick. The Election Commission will meet on Monday morning and is expected to discuss the future of Thai Raksa Chart, following the strong condemnation from the king. The Association for the Protection of the Constitution plans to file a petition to the commission to "investigate if Thai Raksa Chart Party's nomination of Princess Ubolratana is lawful and constitutional", said chairman Srisuwan Janya. "If (the commission) finds it to be unconstitutional, they should submit a case to the constitutional court to dissolve the party," he told AFP. A day after the party's swift response saying it "complies with the royal command" to retract the princess' candidacy, Thai Raksa Chart issued a statement Sunday saying their party policies remain unchanged. "We will keep moving forward in the election so that we can solve the problems for the people and country," the party said in a statement posted on Facebook. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Organising secretary of TTV Dhinakaran-led AMMK Chinnadurai, along with his 100 supporters, joined the AIADMK in the presence of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami here Sunday. Palaniswami was on his way to Tirupur to participate in a function wherein Prime Minister Narendra Modi is laying the foundation for various welfare schemes for the benefit of the people of Tamil Nadu. Chinnadurai, along with six other office-bearers and workers, met Palaniswami at the airport here and he welcomed them to the AIADMK fold, party sources said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) As debate intensifies over rising unemployment in the country, the Modi government claims to have generated over 379,000 jobs between 2017 and 2019 in its various establishments, according to the for 2019-20. The government said it has generated 251,279 jobs in central government establishments between 2017 and 2018. This is estimated to go up by 379,544 to reach 36,15,770 on March 1, 2019, shows an analysis of documents of the Interim Budget, presented by Finance Minister Piyush Goyal on February 1. The data assumes significance as the Congress and other opposition parties have been targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi over rising unemployment. The government has rejected the charges. Replying to the debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President's address to Parliament on Thursday, Modi cited data from provident fund, National Pension System (NPS), Income Tax filings and sale of vehicles among others to say millions of new jobs were created in the formal and unorganised sectors, including transport, hotels and infrastructure. Most of the recruitment was done by the Ministry of Railways, police forces and the direct and indirect tax departments. The Budget documents give a sector-wise break-up on how the jobs were added in central government establishments. It said Indian Railways will generate the highest number of jobs -- 98,999 by March 1, 2019, against its actual strength of 12,70,714 in March 2017. ALSO READ: Thousands of youth converge in National Capital to protest lack of jobs There will be 79,353 additional jobs in police departments by March 1, 2019, up from the actual strength of 10,52,351 as on March 1, 2017. Similarly, jobs in direct tax departments will touch an estimated 80,143 by next month as against 50,208 in March 2017 (an increase of 29,935 jobs). In indirect tax departments, the government said there were 53,394 employees in March 2017. This went up to 92,842 in March 2018. It also gave the same figure (92,842) as the estimated strength of indirect tax establishment as on March 1, 2019. The Ministry of Civil Aviation will have 2,363 more personnel by March 1 this year against its actual strength of 1,174 in March 2017, the document shows. Similarly, for the Department of Posts, it said there will be 4,21,068 personnel on March 1, 2019, as against its actual strength of 41,88,18 in March 2017. In the Ministry of External Affairs, 11,877 people are estimated to be working by next month as against its actual strength of 10,044 in March 2017, which was estimated to have reached 11,870 in 2018. We can verify that the domain is for sale over the phone, help you with the purchase process, and answer any questions. In the run up to the Lok Sabha polls, Delhi's ruling will host a rally of non- leaders in the national capital on February 13 against the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government at the Centre. "'Tanashahi Hatao, Desh Bachao' (Remove Dictatorship, Save Country) rally will be organised at Jantar Mantar on February 13. All opposition leaders will attend this rally against the government," senior Aam Aadmi Party leader Gopal Rai told PTI. It will be attended by all those who had attended Banerjee's Kolkata rally last month, he said. However, sources said, the Congress is unlikely to participate in the rally that will be attended by Banerjee and Chandrababu Naidu among other opposition leaders. With the Lok Sabha elections just months away, the rally will help to bring the opposition leaders together and firm up a 'mahagathbandhan' to challenge the BJP-led NDA, they said. Delhi chief minister and convener Arvind had also attended the Kolkata rally, where he gave a call to defeat the government. has been a fierce critic of and president Six eminent personalities have been selected by the Karnataka Konkani Sahitya Academy for its honorary and literary awards for the year 2018 for their contributions to the language and culture. J F D'Souza (Literature), Kudla Anandu Shanbhag (Art) and Vasanth Badekar (Folk) have been selected for the honorary awards for the year. The award carries a cash prize of Rs 50,000 each, an Academy release here said. The book awards for the year have gone to writers Roshu Bajpe (poetry), Jeyal Manjarapalke (short story) and Tara Laveena Fernandes (novel). The awards carry a cash prize of Rs 25,000 each. The academy has plans to publish 100 books on 100 topics with each book consisting of 35 to 60 pages, Konkani Sahitya Academy president R P Naik said in a release here. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A 30-year-old man suffering from depression over not getting a job allegedly committed suicide by jumping off the Mayur Vihar flyover in east Delhi, police said Sunday. Saurabh, a native of Bhojpuri in Bihar, was presently staying at New Ashok Nagar, they said. He had completed his Bachelor of Technology degree from a university in Bihar, they added. The Mayur Vihar police station was informed at around 9 am regarding the incident following which they rushed to the spot, a senior official said. Saurabh was rushed to a nearby hospital where he was declared brought dead, he said. The officer said they have recovered a dairy from the residence of Saurabh wherein he had written that he was frustrated over not getting a job. The content of the dairy showed that he was depressed over being unemployed, he added. Investigations revealed that the deceased had shifted to Delhi just two-and-a-half-months ago and was looking for a job, the officer said. The body has been handed over to family after post-mortem, police said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Ten people were injured on Sunday as police lathicharged a group of teachers that was marching towards Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh's residence to protest against conditions for their regularisation, police said. A superintendent of police-rank officer was also injured in the melee as police tried to disperse the protesters who wanted to gherao Singh's residence, they said. The protesters were demonstrating against the regularisation policy for 8,886 teachers of Adarsh schools, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) and Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA). Police also used water cannons to disperse the protesters. The protesters had gathered near the Patiala bus stand where barricades had been erected to stop them, the police said. However, as they insisted on marching ahead, towards the chief minister's residence here, a scuffle broke out between protesters and police personnel, they said. The teachers, most of whom are contractual employees, were protesting against a condition for their regularisation. According to the condition, the contractual teachers will have to work at a monthly salary of nearly Rs 15,000 for three years before being regularised in their jobs. Some teachers alleged that the state government has stopped paying salaries to the SSA and RMSA teachers for not accepting its condition for regularisation. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Much to her embarrassment and annoyance, one global investor asked her with a straight face: Wouldnt a bank chief in any other geography have lost the job after the kind of performance ICICI Bank has put up over the years under your stewardship? An awkward smile laced with silence was her answer. After all, ICICI Bank had underperformed its peers as well as the ... Dear Reader, Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance. We, however, have a request. As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed. Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard. Digital Editor Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu on Sunday urged all political parties to agree on a common agenda on vital issues relating to the nations progress and security, and suggested them to evolve a code of conduct for effective functioning of Parliament and legislatures. For that to happen, every politician should rise above narrow, short-term rhetorics, Naidu said speaking on "India: Our Opportunities and Challenges" at "The Huddle 2019", organised here by The Hindu newspaper. "Opportunities are beckoning us and we need to seize the moment. There are challenges that are impeding our progress. I feel all the political parties, irrespective of who is in power, should agree on a common agenda when it comes to vital issues relating to the nation's progress and security," he said. Referring to the challenges impeding progress, Naidu called upon all political parties to adopt of consensus on promoting inclusive growth, ending agrarian distress and making agriculture profitable, eradicating poverty and illiteracy, empowering the deprived and weaker sections, ending gender and caste discrimination, fighting the menace of corruption, bridging urban-rural divide and protecting the unity and integrity of India. "Unless these challenges are tackled on a war-footing in a mission mode, the fruits of development will not reach the deserving section." In the backdrop of forthcoming Lok Sabha elections, Naidu also urged people to elect leaders who have 4Cs -- character, calibre, capacity and conduct -- and cautioned against attempts to encourage cash, caste, community and criminality during the polls. He also suggested to political parties, business bodies and media associations to "evolve codes of conduct for effective functioning of the Parliament and legislatures, conducting ethical business and ensuring professional integrity of journalists". Expressing his anguish over the deterioration in the functioning of Parliament and legislatures, he said it is unfortunate that disruptions and disorder have become the order of the day. Appealing to political parties not to resort to populist and impractical promises to win elections, Naidu said that parties which make tall and impractical promises should explain to people as to how they would find finances for their schemes. "Competitive populism is not good for the country." Observing that business and ethics must go hand-in-hand, he urged the industry to weed out "black sheeps" that bring a bad name to the business community. Expressing his concern over "mindless sensationalism and paid news", he asked media professionals themselves to address the issue. He said the media must pass on unpolluted and undiluted news without mixing views. He said India is the fastest growing economy and poised to become the third leading major economy in the next 10-15 years. Stating that inclusive economic growth should be central to our development, the Vice President said that making people living in rural areas an integral part of the developmental process should be the aim of the policymakers and planners. --IANS rak/nir (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) US authorities have captured two alleged supporters of the deadly Pakistani terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT) that was behind the 26/11 Mumbai massacre, according to John Demers, the federal Assistant Attorney-General in charge of national security. He disclosed on Friday the arrest in Texas of a teenager, Michael Kyle Sewell, who, he said, allegedly used social media to recruit and encourage someone to travel abroad to join the LeT and provide support to it. The recruit was not identified. On Thursday, he had announced the arrest of Jesus Wilfredo Encarnacion, 29, of New York at the city's JFK Airport just as he was about to board a plane to Europe en route to Pakistan on Wednesday night. "Encarnacion allegedly attempted to travel to Pakistan to join a foreign terrorist organization and conspired with another individual to provide that organization with material support," Demers said. Encarnacion wanted to be an executioner and carry out beheadings on video, according to a court filing. Both were caught by undercover agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) after making contacts over social media, according to court papers filed by officials in separate cases in New York and Texas. Expressing concern about the digital strategy of terrorist groups, FBI Assistant Director William Sweeney said: "These organisations are using the Internet and social media to appeal to the most barbaric impulses in people, and train them to kill." It was not clear if the two cases and the accused are linked. According to a court document, Encarnacion has described himself as a Dominican. But it was not apparent if he was an immigrant from the Caribbean nation of Dominican Republic or had been born here. The document mentioned that he is a new convert to Islam. Sewell's ethnicity or if he is a convert or from a traditional background is not known. A court document in New York said that a co-conspirator was involved with Encarnacion, but was not named as a defendant in the case or identified. In previous cases of attempting to join or train with LeT were US citizens of South Asian or Arab background. Syed Haris Ahmed born in Pakistan and Ehsanul Sadequee from a Bangladeshi-American family were arrested in 2006 and convicted of charges, while Syrian American Ahmad Abousamra, charged in 2009, had allegedly gone to Pakistan to join the group. Encarnacion and Sewll are likely the first Americans with no South Asian or Arab ties to have been linked to LeT. (Arul Louis can be reached at arul.l@ians.in and followed on Twitter @arulouis) --IANS al/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Two policemen and a pedestrian were injured on Sunday evening when militants hurled a grenade here in Jammu and Kashmir. Police said the militants threw the grenade at a police party in the city centre Lal Chowk. "The grenade exploded injuring the policeman and a woman. The injured have been shifted to hospital," a police officer said. --IANS sq/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Two people were arrested on Sunday in connection with the murder of Trinamool Congress legislator Satyajit Biswas from West Bengal's Nadia district, police said. Biswas, a popular Dalit leader and an MLA from Nadia's Krishnaganj constituency, was shot dead by unidentified assailants while attending a Saraswati Puja programme in Nadia on Saturday evening. Locals revealed that there was "constant load shedding during the programme" and they smelt a conspiracy behind the outages. "Two accused, Kartick Mondol and Sujit Mondol, have been arrested," a senior police officer said. The TMC and the BJP have been engaged in a bitter war of words since the killing. While the TMC has alleged a BJP hand behind it, the latter had blamed the murder on the TMC's internal feud. --IANS bnd/dm/rtp/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Pace picks up now that session is in stride US President Donald Trump is preparing to sign an executive order next week, banning American carriers from using equipment from Chinese technology players, the media reported on Sunday. The decision is expected to be announced ahead of the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona from February 25, the Android Police reported. "Both the White House and Congress have been trying to ban networking infrastructure from Chinese companies for months," the report said. Chinese tech giant Huawei has been in bad light after the US Justice Department last month filed a host of criminal charges, including bank fraud, obstruction of justice and theft of technology against the company and its detained Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou. Apart from Huawei, ZTE has also been listed to be banned from being used by network operators in the US. The US has long suspected and often accused the Chinese government of encouraging trade secret theft as a way to build up its own industries which has reportedly prompted the US administration to take such drastic measures. "Government officials are mainly targeting Huawei and ZTE's network infrastructure business, so the sale of phones and tablets to US consumers would likely not be affected," the report said. Earlier in January, an Apple engineer of Chinese origin -- Jizhong Chen -- was found to have been attempting to leak confidential intellectual information about the company's secret autonomous vehicle programme to a China-based autonomous vehicle company where he had applied for a job as well. --IANS rp/ksk/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Pilots in Taiwan continued their strike for a third day on Sunday after talks to end the logjam broke down without any headway. Around 400 of China Airlines' (CAL) over 1,300 pilots have been taking part in the strike since Friday which has so far led to the cancellation of 22 flights and another four delayed at the end of the Lunar New Year holiday -- the island's busiest period for air travel, reports Efe news. The biggest carrier in Taiwan announced the cancellation of 17 flights on Monday and one on Tuesday due to the strike. More than 5,000 passengers have been affected. Pilots union president Lee Hsin-yen said that no date has been set for resumption of talks over their various demands including concessions to prevent pilot fatigue. The union urged CAL to increase the number of pilots and co-pilots in flights longer than eight and 12 hours, as well as better pay and promotion process. Other demands include a guarantee for full year-end bonus packages for employees. The airlines, in which the government holds a 35 per cent stake, had initially responded to the strike by threatening to suspend the contracts of striking pilots but decided against going ahead with it on Saturday. In June 2016, CAL pilots had led a 24-hour strike leading to the cancellation of 76 flights, affecting more than 20,000 passengers. --IANS ksk/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) At a time when there are a few or no takers for stalled residential projects, the public sector construction major NBCC is willing to take up such properties for completion, provided they are commercially viable and do not hurt the company's balance sheet. After agreeing to take up few incomplete projects of Amrapali Group, NBCC is now looking to take up the incomplete housing projects of Jaypee Infratech. In an interview to IANS, NBCC CMD Anoop Kumar Mittal said that the company is willing to take up any stalled realty project for completion if it seems profitable. He said that being a Board-governed company, it would take decisions based on commercial viability of the projects. "Wherever there will be some opportunity we can complete the stalled projects without compromising the balance sheet and profitability or whatever commercial interest we have... We are ready to take those projects," he said. Speaking of the Amrapali projects, he said that part of the work has started. The Supreme Court last month gave a go-ahead to NBCC for completing the construction of two projects of the Amrapali Group. Regarding upcoming redevelopment projects, he said that it is currently working on the design and Detailed Project Reports (DPR) of Air India's two land parcels at Baba Kharak Singh Marg and Vasant Vihar in the national capital. In September, the national carrier gave an in principle approval to NBCC for monetising or redeveloping the non-core assets in the city. The projects assume significance as the property at Baba Kharak Singh Marg in Connaught Place is likely to be another major commercial hub in the heart of the national capital. The plot at Baba Kharak Singh Marg is spread across 3.54 acres while that in Vasant Vihar which houses Air India's staff colony spreads across 30 acres. He also said that its bid for the bankrupt Jaypee Infratech at the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) is a major target ahead and if approved, it would be a "big work". Talking of the financial growth of the company, Mittal said the company aims a minimum growth of 30 per cent in its profit and revenue for the financial year 2019-20. "In 2019-20, our plan is that minimum 30 per cent growth in top line and bottom line in all our business verticals." On the issues faced by the real estate sector, he noted that although the there has been an uptick in sales in the past few months, demand still remains a concern. He observed that realty players along with the government should come up with a mechanism to maintain stock of unsold inventory in the local or district level and gauge the demand-supply parity. "I feel that there should be some mechanisms before local bodies allow any developer to start the project. They should also see whether that demand is still available in that area There should be some mechanism," Mittal told IANS. "Before sanctioning the houses that kind of analysis should be done. There can be some variation in that, 5-20 per cent, but there should not be variation of 300-500 per cent," he said. (Rituraj Baruah can be contacted at rituraj.b@ians.in) --IANS rrb/sn/am/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot said here on Sunday that his government was ready to open talks with Gujjars, but condemned the violence and blocking of road and train traffic by protesters in the state. "The government is ready to open discussions with the agitating community," Gehlot said and added sitting on railway tracks as a part of protest was unethical. The agitation for reservation that entered its third day on Sunday turned violent as the protesters clashed with the police personnel near Dholpur, officials said. The police had to fire tear gas shells to disperse the protesters when they began pelting stones. Three police vehicles were also set on fire. Five policemen were injured in the stone pelting. No arrests have been made, so far, said Mohan Lal Lather, Director General of Police. Three separate cases have been registered and investigations are on. Those flouting norms shall be dealt with iron hand, the police officer said. The Chief Minister said the government would look into the issue and probe the violence that erupted in Dholpur on Sunday. The Gujjar Aarakshan Sangharsh Samiti (GASS) launched agitation on Friday and started blocking highways and traffic on the Delhi-Mumbai rail route. They are demanding five per cent reservation in government jobs and education institutions. The DGP said control rooms have been set up in the violence-hit areas of Rajasthan. On the Gujjars' threat to intensify the agitation on Monday, the DGP said: "We have deputed additional forces in the violence-prone areas to tackle any untoward incident." Early in the day, protesters tried to block the National Highway No. 3 near Dholpur but the police intervened resulting into clashes. On Saturday, Rajasthan Tourism Minister Vishwendra Singh and IAS officer Neeraj K. Pawan visited GASS chief, Col. Kirori Singh Bainsla (retd) near Malarna Dungar in the Sawai Madhopur district to hold negotiations. But these failed to make any headway. While the rail traffic on the Delhi-Mumbai route remained disrupted for the third consecutive day on Sunday, the Kota Railway Division has cancelled 28 trains till February 13, and diverted 37 trains. Around 18 trains scheduled to run on Sunday, 10 on Monday, 12 on Tuesday and 15 on Wednesday were cancelled, a Northern Railway official said. GASS chief Bainsla blamed anti-social elements, who have become a part of the protest, for the violence. According to the DGP, Gujjars have blocked National Highway 148D at Bundi, Bhilwara and Gulabpura. Agitators are sitting on rail tracks in Sawai Madhopur's Malarna Dungar. The Karauli-Hindon Highway was also blocked by Gujjars on Sunday. Gehlot said he was confident that Bainsla and his team will come forward to open discussions and vthe issues would be resolved the earliest. The Gurjars are classified as Other Backward Class (OBC) in some states and Union territories. In Jammu and Kashmir and some parts of Himachal Pradesh, they are categorised as a Scheduled Tribe. --IANS arc/pgh/pcj (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Terming Congress President Rahul Gandhis promise of a minimum income guarantee to poor unimplementable, NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Rajiv Kumar says it is similar in nature to former Prime Minister Indira Gandhis 'garibi hatao slogan. He says India neither had the kind of fiscal space, nor the kind of complete data needed to implement the scheme. Kumar also opposed the idea of Universal Basic Income, often advocated by former Chief Economic Adviser Arvind Subramanian, saying he favoured incentives for population to work. The NITI Aayog Vice Chairman said the Congress needed to explain to the country how it can afford a scheme like minimum income guarantee. "I don't think it is practical. I think it is more rhetorical. It is similar in nature to 'garibi hatao'. And I don't think its implementation will be feasible. We neither have that kind of fiscal space, nor that kind of complete data that you need were you to be able to implement it," Kumar told IANS in an interview. "This is why, I think, the Congress has left all details completely unclear and have only made a broad announcement," he added. Former Finance Minister P. Chidambaram has, however, said that the broad contours of the scheme justifying its implementability would be explained in the Congress manifesto. Rejecting the idea of Universal Basic Income for Indians, Kumar said: "I have not been a supporter of the scheme. For India's per capita income and its demographic profile, I would much rather have incentives for work rather than incentives for being in on social security." "I think a lot of countries, especially something like China, have done very well by empowering their young in employment rather than putting them on doles," he said. The economist also defended the government's newly-launched Rs 6,000 direct income support to farmers and rejected criticism that the amount was too little. "About it being too less, the average income of a poor or marginal farmer household per month is probably in the range of Rs 3,000 to Rs 4,000. And in that context, an additional Rs 500 does not sound so little. It should not be dismissed, neither should it be demeaned. "This amount can be used (by a farmer) to send his child to school, to buy rations, to buy water from large land-owners, and so many other things. It's not a small amount," he said. "Another way to look at it is that in 10 years, you get Rs 60,000. It's not a one-time sop. It's a long-term relief. In terms of government expenditure, Rs 75,000 crore becomes Rs 7.5 lakh crore in 10 years. It's a fair, significant fiscal burden," he added. Kumar said that one can always criticize a measure saying it is too little, but it has to be balanced with fiscal responsibility. "Having seen poor households, I don't think the sum is too small. It is a significant percentage of total income, not something that disappears in the decimal as you would tend think." He added the criticism that the scheme leaves out a large part of urban poor out of its net was also unfair and said only 13.7 per cent of farmers were tenants even out of which, 80 per cent owned some land or the other. "So hardly anyone is left out among the agriculture farming households. The only people who are not included are the landless labour. That is only 2.6 per cent of the rural population. That has been left out because for them, there is MNREGA. That is what gives them social security," Kumar said. "The coverage is not narrow. It covers 12 crore households - around 60 crore people. It is much bigger than any farm loan waiver would cover, which are by nature skewed or biased towards larger land-owners." In a sharp criticism of loan waiver schemes announced by the newly-formed governments in the Hindi-heartland states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarh, he said it was not the answer to agricultural distress. "Farm distress can be sorted out through true modernisation of the sector - convert farmer from mere producer of commodities to a producer of agricultural value products. The second part of solving the crisis is to connect the farmer to the market - get logistics in place. "And finally, you have to lower the cost of production in agriculture. At the moment, Indian agriculture products are higher-priced than global prices. There I think, one has to move away from the model of increasing doses of chemical inputs into agriculture, resulting in higher cost, higher debt and higher distress. We need to shift to bio pesticides, bio-fertilizers," Kumar said. --IANS vv/vsc/vm (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A day before submission of the audit report on military procurement, including the Rafale jet deal, by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India to the President, the Congress on Sunday citing a "conflict of interest" said the exercise is a cover-up of the "scam". Holding Prime Minister Narendra Modi "guilty" of compromising national security, the Congress also criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led central government for being "opaque, intransient, obscure and obstinate to cover up the layers of corruption in the Rafale scam". In a memorandum to CAG Rajiv Meharishi, the Congress accused him of committing "gross impropriety" by auditing the Rafale deal, saying as the Finance Secretary he was involved in the deal announced by Modi in April 2015. "You were the Finance Secretary from October 29, 2014 to August 30, 2015, including at the time of unilateral announcement for purchase of 36 Rafale aircraft. Even at the time of cancellation of the 126 aircraft MMRCA deal you were the Finance Secretary. "Consequently, you were directly involved in the Rafale deal on both these occasions as the Finance Secretary. Not only this, you were also involved in negotiations of the deal as a representatives of the Finance Ministry," the Congress said in the memorandum. It accused Meharishi of being "complicit in the irregularities" in the deal and questioned his propriety to audit the deal as the CAG. "The irregularities, bungling and corruption were happening at the highest level with your direct or indirect complicity and consent. This reflects your direct collaboration in the entire matter. "There is no reason or occasion for you to audit the 36 Rafale aircraft deal as you can neither be a judge in your own cause (case) nor can sit in audit over your own actions to which you were a party. "This conduct points to a direct conflict of interest, making you a judge in your own cause (case) and rendering you ineligible to conduct any audit on the Rafale deal as CAG," the party said. Addressing the media later, Congress leader Kapil Sibal said the CAG report was yet another attempt of the Modi government to cover up the "Rafale scam". "The CAG in his report, likely to be submitted on Monday, will not only defend his action in deal as then Finance Secretary but also do cover-up for the government. Despite all the irregularities happening before his eyes, the CAG will only come out defending the government and saying there is no corruption in the deal," said Sibal. "Being legally not entitled to audit the deal, the CAG should recuse and refrain from submitting a report on the deal," said Sibal. The Congress has repeatedly demanded a probe by a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) in to the "country's biggest defence scam". --IANS and/pgh/pcj (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Protests were held across Andhra Pradesh on Sunday to mark Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the state. Wearing black dresses and carrying black flags, protestors took to the streets since early Sunday. Raising slogans of 'Modi go back', the activists of various political parties, student groups and mass organisations staged sit-ins or took out rallies. Leaders and activists of the ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP), Congress, Left parties, employees' and student groups, trade unions and other mass organisations fighting for Special Category Status (SCS) for the state staged the protests in all 13 districts. Barring the BJP, YSR Congress Party and Jana Sena of actor Pawan Kalyan, all parties called for demonstrations. Leaders of the Left parties held protests with empty pots in Guntur. They released black balloons in the air to register their protest. Pratekya Hoda Sadhana Samithi, fighting for SCS, also staged the protest. However, there were no protests near the venue of the rally addressed by Modi in Guntur. Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu said Modi, who urged people to register their protest, himself wore a black shirt. He said Modi had no right to visit the state as he 'betrayed' the state by not fulfilling the promise to accord SCS and other commitments made in Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act 2014. Irrigation Minister Devineni Uma Maheswara Rao led a protest in Vijayawada. Leaders of TDP participated in the protests in various towns. Actor Sivaji and his supporters held innovative protest in Vijayawada by remaining in two to three feet water during Modi's three-hour visit to the state. This is Modi's first visit to Andhra Pradesh after the TDP pulled out of the BJP-led NDA last year. --IANS ms/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Gujjar agitation for reservation in Rajasthan turned violent on Sunday, third day of the stir, when protesters clashed with police personnel near Dholpur. As gun shots were heard, the police fired tear gas shells to disperse protesters, police officials said. However, no casualties have been reported. The police intervened when protesters were trying to block the national highway No. 3 near Dholpur. Angry agitators pelted stones and torched three police vehicles. A strong contingent of police personnel was deployed on NH 148D near Nainwa as well as Bhilwara, which was blocked by protesters. Rail traffic on the Mumbai-Delhi route remained disrupted for the second day on Saturday. The Gujjar Aarakshan Sangharsh Samiti (GASS) launched agitation in the state on by blocking highways and traffic on the Mumbai-Delhi rail route. They are demanding five per cent reservation in government jobs and education institutions. Talks between agitators and the government have failed so far. On Saturday, state Tourism Minister Vishwendra Singh and IAS officer Neeraj K. Pawan visited GASS chief Col Kirori Singh Bainsla near Malarna Dungar in the Sawai Madhopur district to hold negotiations. The Gurjars are classified as Other Backward Class (OBC) in some states and Union territories. In Jammu and Kashmir and some parts of Himachal Pradesh, they are categorised as a Scheduled Tribe. --IANS arc/rtp/pcj (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi will unveil development projects in Karnataka's twin cities of Hubballi and Dharwad northwest region and address a BJP convention on Sunday, a party official said. "Modi will fly to Hubballi from Tiruppur in Tamil Nadu later in the day to participate in 2-3 public programmes and address our state leaders and cadres from all the state," party official S. Shantaram told IANS. The twin cities are about 400km from the state capital Bengaluru. Modi will first lay the foundation stone of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT-Dharwad) and dedicate the city distribution project in Dharwad and 1.5-tonne Mangaluru strategic petroleum facility (SPR) and the 2.5-tonne Padur SPR facility of the state-run Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Ltd (ISPRL). The Prime Minister will also dedicate doubling of 18km Chikjajur-Mayakonda section railway line for passenger and freight services, and initiate the electrification work of 346-km Hospeta-Hubballi-Vasco da Gama line in this region. The electrification of the broad gauge will reduce travel time and emission of greenhouse gas with lower diesel consumption. Before addressing the party convention in Hubballi, Modi will witness the e-griha pravesh (house warming) of 2,384 houses built under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana in Dharwad. "Modi will launch the BJP's campaign for the ensuing Lok Sabha elections, due in April-May, as the party will contest in all the 28 parliamentary constituencies in the southern state," added the official. The party had won 17 Lok Sabha seats in 2014 general elections. --IANS fb/vin/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K. Palaniswami on Sunday asked the Central government to sanction the second phase of the Chennai Metro Rail Project. In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the text of which was released to the media, Palaniswami requested him to direct the Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry to sanction the metro project's Phase II under a 50:50 joint venture partnership between the Centre and the state governments as was done for Phase I. He said that out of the total project cost of Rs 69,180 crore, the land cost and state taxes amounting to Rs 13,723 crore are being met by the state government and the balance cost of Rs 55,457 crore has to be funded by the Centre (20 per cent), Tamil Nadu (20 per cent) and funding agencies(60 per cent). "Hence the Central funding may be to the order of Rs 11,100 crore spread over six years," he said. Palaniswami said Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA) has already approved a loan of Rs 20,196 crore and agreement for the loan's first tranche has also been signed. "Moreover, the Department of Economic Affairs has also recommended funding for this project to the tune of Rs 10,351 crore from the ADB (Asian Development Bank), the AIIB (Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank), the NDB (New Development Bank) and the World Bank," he said. --IANS vj/vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Sunday left for a day-long visit to Dubai where he will participate in a global summit, the Foreign Office announced. The World Government Summit is an annual gathering of heads of states and governments, policy makers and experts. It provides an opportunity to discuss improvement in governance through reform, innovation and technology. Khan is expected to meet International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde on the sidelines of the summit to discuss the conditions that have held up the fund's bailout programme, a Foreign Office spokesperson told Dawn news. He will also meet United Arab Emirates Crown prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed bin Sultan Al-Nahyan. Khan is accompanied by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Finance Minister Asad Umar. In his key note address at the summit, the Prime Minister will highlight his vision for a strong and prosperous Pakistan and will encourage investment in different sectors of the economy, the spokesperson added. Regarding Khan's meeting with Lagarde, Foreign Minister Qureshi, while speaking to the media before their departure, said that Islamabad wanted to proceed with the bailout package under conditions that "will not add additional burden on the common man". The IMF is asking for an adjustment of around 1,600-2,000 billion Pakistani rupees over three to four years, reports Dawn news. It also wants some corrective measures to put Pakistan's economy on the right track after witnessing the highest-ever current account deficit. The Fund has also asked for further monetary tightening as well as a complete free float of the exchange rate. --IANS ksk/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Hitting out at the alliance, Prime Minister on Sunday said why they were coming together to fight him even as they claim his government was a failure. Modi, addressing a rally after inaugurating a slew of projects, called the alliance an "adulterated alliance" and a "club of rich people" to promote a dynasty. Slamming the 'mahagathbandhan', Modi alleged nobody knows the agenda of the alliance and they don't have worthwhile answers to any question. "The only answer they have for all the questions is 'ask Modi'," he said. Alleging that the opposition was good at spreading panic and misleading the youth, farmers and other sections of society, the Prime Minister said for a long time the opposition parties had created discord in society on the issue of social justice. "For us, social justice is an article of faith and not a mathematical formula, the way it is for the opposition parties," he said, adding it was the NDA government led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee that restored reservation in promotions for SC/STs, a privilege that was scrapped by the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre earlier. On his government's decision to provide 10 per cent reservation to the economically backward sections, Modi said the move was aimed at equality of opportunities to all and would not affect the existing reservation for SC/STs and Other Backward Classes. He criticised the farm loan waiver scheme saying it would not benefit anybody but would result in an extra burden of Rs 50,000 crore. The Prime Minister for the first time in India's history his government had announced a Rs 6,000 per year income scheme for farmers' holding less than five acres of land. When the scheme was announced in Parliament the opposition parties were left shocked, he added. In his address, he also tried to establish a connect with the local audience, quoting from Thirukurual and peppered his speech with local names. He recalled the bravery of Tiruppur Kumaran and Dheeran Chinnamalai. Stressing his government's zero tolerance on corruption, the Prime Minister said he was providing "Kamaraj Rule" -- a corruption-free rule -- like K. Kamaraj who provided a clean government as Tamil Nadu's Chief Minister. ALSO READ: Clash between Modi govt and Mamata may capture zeitgeist of Lok Sabha polls Modi said the work culture of his government is vastly different from that of the earlier led one. No middlemen roam around in the corridors of power now, which was not the case with the earlier Congress-led governments, he added. He said the government has scrapped bogus companies and bogus beneficiaries of welfare schemes. Without naming him directly, Modi took a jibe at former Union Finance Minister as "recounting minister" and said the latter is of the view that all the knowledge in the world resides in him. Modi said those who had the opportunity to rule the nation for long did not bother to modernise the defence forces as were more interested in deals in import of defence equipment. He said the had scams from 'seas to skies' when it came to the defence sector and alleged every middleman had a link with some Congress leader or other. The Prime Minister said his government wanted India to be self-sufficient in defence equipment and has set up two defence industrial corridors, including one in to provide jobs and opportunities for the youth. At the beginning, he paid tributes to Tiruppur and the Kongu region as the land of brave and industrious people, mentioning freedom fighter Tiruppur Kumaran who died but kept the tricolour aloft even as British police rained baton blows on him and Dheeran Chinnamalai who fought the British. Modi said his government's goal is to improve the ease of living for people and cited the proposed expansion of Tiruchirappalli International Airport that can handle about 3,000 passengers at peak hour from 500 passengers now and the ESIC Hospital to come up in Tiruppur. He said a historic pension scheme for workers in micro, small and medium enterprises in Tiruppur and elsewhere was announced in the recent budget. Modi was on a day-long visit to Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and for the launch of developmental projects. His visit to saw a black flag protest led by MDMK leader Vaiko. Vaiko and his supporters were detained as they released black balloons in the sky and shouted "Go back Modi" near the railway station. During his visit, Modi also laid foundation stones for a new integrated building of the Trichy Airport and for modernisation of the via video conference. US-backed Kurdish fighters have launched an offensive to free the last Syrian territory held by the Islamic State (IS) terror group, defence officials said on Sunday. The territory is in the small town of Baghouz Al-Fawqani in Deir al-Zour province near the Iraqi border, reports CNN. Before the offensive began on Saturday night, some 20,000 civilians were evacuated from the area. According to reports from the area, the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) were meeting with less resistance from the IS fighters. SDF commanders said that there were come IS members who wanted to surrender and others who would fight until death. The SDF has driven out the IS from towns and villages in north-eastern Syria in recent months, the BBC said. In 2014, the IS established a "caliphate" stretching across Syria and Iraq and ruled over more than 7.7 million people. The IS has suffered substantial losses, but the UN says it still reportedly controls between 14,000 and 18,000 militants in Iraq and Syria, including up to 3,000 foreigners. --IANS ksk/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Below a large cut-out of BJP President Amit Shah in Kolkata's northern suburb Baranagar lies a board reading "courtesy Baranagar Trinamool Congress". At first glance, the scenario may seem a welcome exception in a state where clashes between the BJP-ruled Centre and the Trinamool Congress-run state government are reaching a flashpoint ahead of the Lok Sabha polls. However, that is not to be. In fact, the cut-out has generated much heat between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Trinamool. According to the Trinamool's local leadership, large cut-outs of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee were put up on B.T. Road ahead of the January 19 Brigade Parade ground rally of anti-BJP opposition leaders. The boards reading "courtesy, Baranagar Trinamool Congress" were placed below those cut-outs. "The BJP put up Shah's cut-out at Baranagar by removing that of Banerjee. But, in a comical slip, they forgot to remove the board which remained as it is," said a Trinamool leader. Another local Trinamool leader Aparna Moulik "condemned the BJP's attitude". "I condemn them for their brand of They have put up flags and cut-outs, but the board below the cut-out proves they removed our leader's picture. Nothing can be more despicable than this," said Moulik. On the other hand, the BJP vehemently denied the allegation. "In the prevailing political situation in West Bengal, is it possible for any opposition party to remove Banerjee's cut-out?" asked BJP's Kolkata North Suburban district President Manas Bhattacharya. "This is a blatant lie. BJP is a party with a different ideology. We respect Banerjee's chair," Bhattachaya told IANS. "There is no proof that the Chief Minister's cut-out had been put up there. As for the board below that talks of "courtesy", can one say for certain when it was placed there? The Trinamool has so many factions. We don't know which of their faction has kept it there, and when," said Bhattacharya. With the saffron party making West Bengal - where they have been traditionally weak - a focus state, the political temperatures have been soaring. The BJP had emerged as the main challenger to the Trinamool in recent polls and is now making a determined bid to increase its tally of seats from the state that sends 42 representatives to the lower House of Parliament. The BJP secured only two Lok Sabha seats in Bengal in the 2014 elections. During his visit to the state last month, Shah appealed to the people to give more than 23 seats from the state to the BJP. --IANS ssp/rs/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday hit out at the opposition alliance, questioning why they were combining against him when they claim his government was a failure. Referring to the coming together of opposition parties of various hues, Modi, addressing a rally in Tamil Nadu's Tirupur after inaugurating a slew of projects, termed them an "adulterated alliance" and a "club of rich people" to promote a dynasty. Nobody knows the agenda of the opposition alliance and they don't have worthwhile answers to any question, he alleged. "The only answer they have for all the questions is 'ask Modi'," he said. Citing cases against opposition leaders, he said after the availability of family pack ice creams and mobile telephony packages, it is "now the turn of family pack jail". Alleging that the opposition was good at spreading panic and misleading the youth, farmers and other sections of society, the Prime Minister said that for a long time the opposition parties had created tension in society on the issue of social justice. "For us, social justice is an article of faith and not a mathematical formula, the way it is for the opposition parties," he said, adding that it was the NDA government led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee that restored reservation in promotions for the SC/STs, a privilege that was scrapped by the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre earlier. Referring to his government's decision to provide 10 per cent reservation to the economically backward sections, Modi said the move aims at equality of opportunities to all and would not affect the existing reservation for SC/STs and Other Backward Classes. He criticised the Congress' farm loan waiver scheme saying that it would not benefit anybody but would result in an extra burden of Rs 50,000 crore, while his government, for the first time in India's history, had announced a Rs 6,000 per year income scheme for farmers' holding less than five acres of land. When the scheme was announced in Parliament the opposition parties were left shocked, he added. Modi said the work culture of his government is vastly different from that of the earlier Congress led one. He stressed his government has zero tolerance against corruption, and is providing "Kamaraj Rule" or corruption-free rule, like freedom fighter and veteran leader K Kamaraj who provided a clean government as Tamil Nadu's Chief Minister. The Prime Minister said no middleman roam around in the corridors of power now, which was not the case with the earlier Congress-led governments. He said the government has struck down various bogus companies and bogus beneficiaries of various welfare schemes. Without naming him directly, Modi took a jibe at former Union Finance Minister P.Chidambaram as "recounting minister" and said the latter is of the view that all the knowledge in the world resides in him. In 2009 Lok Sabha polls, Chidambaram was declared a winner after a recount of votes. Modi accused those who had the opportunity to rule the nation for long of not bothering to modernize the defence forces and being more interested in deals in import of defence equipment. He also alleged that every middleman had a link with some Congress leader or other. Modi said his government wanted India to be self-sufficient in defence equipment and has set up two defence industrial corridors, including one in Tamil Nadu to provide jobs and opportunities for the youth. At the beginning, he paid tributes to Tiruppur and the Kongu region as the land of brave and industrious people, mentioning freedom fighter Tiruppur Kumaran who died but kept the tricolour aloft even as British police rained baton blows on him and Dheeran Chinnamalai who fought the British. Modi said his government's goal is to improve the ease of living for people and cited the proposed expansion of Tiruchirappalli International Airport that can handle about 3,000 passengers at peak hour from 500 passengers now and the ESIC Hospital to come up in Tiruppur. He said that a historic pension scheme for workers in micro, small and medium enterprisesin Tiruppur and elsewhere was announced in the recent budget. Modi was on a day-long visit to Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh for the launch of several developmental projects as well as his poll campaign. His visit to Tamil Nadu saw a black flag protest led by MDMK leader Vaiko. Vaiko and his supporters were detained by the police as they released black balloons in the sky and shouted "Go back Modi" near the railway station. --IANS vj/vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The New Zealand government said on Sunday that it will ban smoking in cars with children. Once the legislation is approved by Parliament, the police will be able to give people warnings or issue a fine of 50 New Zealand dollars ($33) to smokers including those who vape, reports Xinhua news agency. Associate Minister of Health Jenny Salesa said the amendment is expected to take effect by the end of this year. --IANS ksk/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Nagaland government on Sunday appealed to civil society organisations to reconsider the 10-hour statewide shutdown on Monday in protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016. The coordination committee of tribal hohos (associations), civil society organisations, various committees and mass-based organisations under the aegis of the Nagaland Gaon Burhas Federation (NGBF) said in a release that the strike has been called to protest the planned passage of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016, in the Rajya Sabha. The opposition Naga People's Front is supporting the dawn to dusk shutdown. Appealing to the civil society organisations to reconsider the shutdown, Chief Secretary Temjem Toy said the government will propose the adoption of a resolution to oppose the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill in the forthcoming Budget session scheduled to be held on February 21, as decided during the January 31 consultative meeting held in Dimapur. The Nagaland cabinet on Monday rejected the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill which was passed in the Lok Sabha on January 8. Chief Minister Neiphui Rio has said that the state government, which represents the will and desire of the people, remains opposed to the Bill. The government also promised that it would leave no stone un-turned to constantly protect the rights and privileges of the people. --IANS rrk/arm/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday launched a host of new as well as completed projects in Tamil Nadu from here as he kicked off his 2019 election campaign in the southern states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. This was his first visit to Tamil Nadu since the presentation of the Interim Budget for 2019-20. In his last stopover at Tiruppur -- a major export hub for knitted garments, about 470 km from Chennai, Modi laid the foundation of a 100-bed Employees State Insurance Corp (ESIC) health facility. The hospital will cater to the needs of over 100,000 workers and their family members in the hosiery town and nearby areas would be covered under the ESI Act. The brief function in Perumanallur village was also attended by Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit, Chief Minister K.Palaniswami, Deputy Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam, Union Minister of State for Finance Pon Radhakrishnan and others. The Prime Minister also laid foundation stones for a new integrated building of the Trichy Airport and for modernisation of the Chennai airport via video conference. Post expansion, the Trichy Airport would be able to handle 3,000 passengers in peak hours, up from 500 passengers now. The PM also dedicated to the nation, a 470-bed ESIC Hospital and the Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd's Ennore Coastal Terminal in Chennai. He also inaugurated a crude oil pipeline from the Chennai Port to the Chennai Petroleum Corp Ltd (CPCL)'s Manali refinery in Chennai. The pipeline, built with enhanced safety features, will ensure reliable supply of crude oil to Tamil Nadu and the neighbouring states. He also flagged off a passenger service between a 10-km section of the Chennai Metro Rail -- AG-DMS Metro Station to Washermenpet Metro Station. --IANS vj/rtp/nir (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday launched development projects here amid protests staged across Andhra Pradesh against his visit to the state. At an event, he unveiled plaques to formally unveil the projects which have come up or would be built in different parts of the state. He dedicated the 1.33 million metric tonnes of Visakhapatnam Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) facility of the Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserve Limited (ISPRL) built at a cost of Rs 1,178 crore. The Prime Minister also inaugurated the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited's Vashishta and S1 development project at Amalapuram on the Krishna-Godavari Offshore Basin. Modi also laid the foundation stone for setting up of a new terminal of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) at Krishnapatnam. It will be built at a cost of Rs 700 crore. He will also address a mass rally here. Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan, senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders received Modi at the Gannavaram Airport at Vijayawada earlier in the day. He later flew in a helicopter to Guntur. Meanwhile, wearing black dresses and carrying black flags, demonstrators stages protests and sit-ins across the state reiterating their demands for a Special Category Status (SCS) to Andhra Pradesh. Leaders of the Left parties held protests in Guntur. They threatened to disrupt Modi's rally over his "betrayal" to the state. This is Modi's first visit to Andhra Pradesh after the ruling Telugu Desam Party pulled out of BJP-led NDA last year. --IANS ms/ksk (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday evening unveiled various development projects in the twin cities of Hubballi and Dharwad in Karnataka. Arriving from Tamil Nadu's Tiruppur in a special IAF aircraft, Modi was received at the Hubballi airport by state Revenue Minister R.V. Deshpande, officials and state Bharatiya Janata Party unit leaders. Soon after reaching the venue at KLE Institutions in the city's outskirts, Modi first remotely laid the foundation stone of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT-Dharwad) campus and the Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT). He then dedicated to the nation the city distribution project at Dharwad and 1.5 million tonne Mangaluru and the 2.5 million tonne Padur strategic petroleum reserve facility (SPR) facility of the Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Ltd (ISPRL). The Prime Minister also dedicated the doubling of 18-km-long Chikjajur-Mayakonda section railway line for passenger and freight services, and initiated the electrification work of the 346-km-long Hospeta-Hubballi-Vasco da Gama line in this region. The doubling will increase capacity of this vital route connecting Bengaluru to Mumbai via Hubballi, Belagavi, Goa and Pune. The electrification of the broad gauge will reduce travel time and emission of greenhouse gases with lower diesel consumption. Modi also witnessed the e-griha pravesh (house-warming) of 2,384 houses built under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana at Dharwad. Besides Deshpande, Union Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda, BJP's state unit leaders B.S. Yeddyurappa, Jagdish Shettar, Prahlad Joshi and Muralidhar Rai were present on the dais at the public function. Infosys Foundation chairperson Sudha Murthy, who hails from Hubballi, was also present. --IANS fb/vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Protests were staged across Andhra Pradesh on Sunday as Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived here on a day-long visit during which he will unveil developmental projects and address a mass rally. Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan, senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders received Modi at the Gannavaram Airport at Vijayawada. He later flew in s helicopter to Guntur where he will launch the projects and address the rally. Wearing black dresses and carrying black flags, the protesters took to the streets since early Sunday morning. Raising slogans like "Modi go back", the activists of various political parties, student groups and mass organisations staged sit-ins or took out rallies. Leaders and activists of the ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP), Congress and Left parties also participated in the protests staged in all the 13 districts that called for a Special Category Status (SCS) to the state Barring the BJP, YSR Congress and Jana Sena of actor Pawan Kalyan, all parties backed the protests. Leaders of the Left parties held protests in Guntur. They threatened to disrupt Modi's rally over his "betrayal" to the state. Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu said Modi had no right to visit the state as he has not fulfilled his promise to accord the SCS and various other commitments the Prime Minister had made during the state's bifurcation in 2014. This is Modi's first visit to Andhra Pradesh after the TDP pulled out of BJP-led NDA last year. --IANS ms/ksk (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Jammu and Kashmir's former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti on Sunday praised Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan for deciding to name a forest reserve in Nankana Sahib district after Sikhism's founder Guru Nanak. "How times change. Centre's top priority is seemingly renaming historic cities & building Ram Mandir. On the other hand, heartening to see that Pak PM has initiated steps to name Baloki forest reserve after Guru Nanak ji & create a university under his name," she said in a tweet. Imran Khan had on Saturday announced that the Baloki forest reserve and a new university in Nankana Sahib will be named after the first Sikh Guru. "Pakistan belongs to all citizens equally and we will ensure that Sikh pilgrims are facilitated for celebrating the 550th anniversary of Guru Nanak," he had said at a function in Nankana Sahib. --IANS sq/vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) BSP chief Mayawati, who the Supreme Court has said should reimburse to the public exchequer the money spent on putting up statues of herself, her mentor Kanshi Ram and of elephants - the party symbol - in Lucknow and Noida, holds properties in Lutyens's Delhi worth several crores of rupees. She also has an official residence-cum-office in the national capital. Mayawati, who rose from the grass-roots to national prominence and is counted among the richest politicians in country, is a four-term Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh. According to the declaration made by her at the time of filing her nomination papers for the 2012 Rajya Sabha elections, her immovable properties, both residential and commercial in Lucknow and Delhi, cash in banks and jewellery, stood at over Rs 111 crore. She resigned from the Rajya Sabha in 2017. In 2010, when she was elected to the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council, Mayawati's total assets were valued at around Rs 88 crore and in 2007 they were estimated at around Rs 52.27 crore. Much of her wealth is in real estate and she has residential buildings in posh areas of Delhi and Lucknow. Mayawati was allotted three adjacent government bungalows during the Congress-led UPA government in 2013 on Gurudwara Rakabganj Road in the heart of national capital. The bungalows - Nos. 12, 14 and 16 - were amalgamated into a super-bungalow and now serve as her residence-cum-office in Delhi. She holds her press conferences and other important party meetings here. The amalgamated single unit has been allotted in the name of Bahujan Prerna Trust. Rules do not allow any modification in government bungalows in New Delhi's Lutyens Bungalow Zone but the rules have been violated. Mayawati also has a government bungalow in her name at 4, Gurudwara Rakab Ganj Road, which is separate from these three. Such bungalows are meant for Ministers and Secretaries with a plot size of 8,250 square feet and front and back lawns. They have a plinth area of 1,970 square feet and include eight bedrooms, four servants quarters and two garages. The Bahujan Samaj Party supremo's immovable properties in Delhi include two commercial buildings in Connaught Place in Delhi (B-34 ground floor and B-34 1st floor with areas of 3,628.02 and 4,535.02 square ft respectively) whose approximate market value was estimated at Rs 9.39 crore and Rs 9.45 crore respectively in 2012, when she filed her nomination for the Rajya Sabha elections. In 2009, Mayawati bought a property - 23, 24 Sardar Patel Marg in New Delhi's diplomatic enclave, whose total area is about 43,000 square ft. It was valued at over Rs 61 crore in 2012. She owns a residential building in Lucknow at 9, Mall Avenue, measuring 71,282.96 square ft with a built-up area of 53,767.29 square ft. It was purchased on November 3, 2010 and its value was estimated at Rs 16 crore in 2012. The Supreme Court on Friday observed that Mayawati should reimburse the public exchequer the money spent on putting up elephant statues in Lucknow and Noida. With her rivals attacking her in the wake of apex court obervations, Mayawati said parks and memorials were built in Uttar Pradesh during her regime to honour great men from among oppressed Dalit and OBCs. These have become tourist spots, generating revenue for the government, she added. She said the media should not distort the oral observation of the court. "Sure to get justice in this matter also. Media and BJP leaders, please stop kite flying," she said in on Twitter. The case will be next heard in April. --IANS bns/ps/vm/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Hundreds of women vendors from the four women's markets in the Imphal city, who staged a sit-in protest in the main market complex from Saturday morning, have refused to return home. The activists said that they shall stay in the market complex until Wednesday when it is expected that the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016 will be passed by the Rajya sabha. The Lok Sabha has already passed it. This has become a headache for the police and paramilitary personnel maintaining law and order in the city areas. There are problems in procuring potable water, and even toilets and bathrooms do not have running water. Inakkhunbi, a vendor, said: "We buy bottled water since there is no water supply." The initial plan was to stage a routine sit-in by the women vendors. "But we decided to stay in the market complex till Wednesday since the Central government is firm on passing the Bill," said a woman vendor. Several women vendors participating in the sit-in protest said that they are facing the chilly nights without sufficient warm cloths. Health officials fear that some of them could take ill if they stay in the wintry nights for some more nights. The activists said that the government should give a written assurance to the effect that the Bill shall not affect the northeastern region in general and Manipur in particular. Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren said that his government is against the bill if a clause is not inserted to safeguard the people. On Saturday Biren said: "The government shall continue to oppose the bill unless a clause is inserted." Opposition Congress has been demanding a special session of the Assembly to take a resolution in this regard. MLA and state unit Congress president Gaikhangam said: "The BJP-led coalition government has been refusing to summon a special session though some other NE states had taken a firm stand on the issue". There have been numerous daily protests in other parts of the state. Effigies of Narendra Modi and Rajnath Singh are also burned here and there. Meanwhile, the People's Alliance Manipur formed by 131 civil society organisations is calling a total shutdown from 5 a.m on Monday till 5 p.m on Tuesday in protest against the citizenship bill. --IANS il/nir (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) They don't walk, talk or live differently. But the LGBTQ community was given a different treatment in showbiz for long. The representation is changing as there's larger acceptance of gay characters and stories. But there are still miles to go. Oscar-winning actor Eddie Redmayne, lauded for telling the story of a Danish painter finding his sexual identity in "The Danish Girl", feels showbiz is going through an "important change", but it can't happen "quick enough". "The job of cinema is to represent human lives and for so many years LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer) community have not had their story told.... This is just the tip of the iceberg at the moment," Redmayne told IANS. British actor Ncuti Gatwa, who essays a gay character in Netflix show "Sex Education", is happy that stories are veering away from the struggle to come terms with one's sexuality. Taking his role of Eric in the show as an example, Gatwa explained: "He is openly gay to his peers and his family and they all accept this. I found it interesting that his story didn't focus on his 'coming out' or his trying to find his sexuality." In Hollywood, films like "Carol", "Moonlight", "Brokeback Mountain", "God's Own Country", "Call Me By Your Name", "Boy Erased" and "Love, Simon" stitch the gap. But as per a GLAAD report, the number of major studio movies with LGBT characters fell from 23 in 2016 to 14 in 2017. The number in 2018 is also expected to fall short of expectations. Indian-American Nik Dodani, who has never veiled his own sexuality, said it is exciting to see the different shades of the queer community being reflected on-screen, although he would love to see more of it. "The Danish Girl" author David Ebershoff said he continues to tell queer stories because "those in positions of privilege, must speak out on behalf of those who face discrimination and hatred every day". In Bollywood, there was a time when gay characters were mocked at, stereotyped or used as comic relief with big entertainers like "Dostana", "Bol Bachchan", "Veere Di Wedding" and "Partner" leading the list of examples. But the trend is shifting. If there is a story of a professor who was fired for having an affair with a man in Manoj Bajpayee's "Aligarh", there is Pakistani actor Fawad Khan's portrayal of a man opening about his sexual orientation to his family and finding acceptance in "Kapoor & Sons (Since 1921)". In fact, Sonam Kapoor's lesbian drama "Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga" is not only being touted as brave, but path-breaking too. Not to forget films like "Fire", "My Brother.Nikhil", "Margarita with a Straw", "Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd." or sub-plots in "Fashion", "Heroine" and "Dishoom". Regina Cassandra, who plays Sonam's love interest in "Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga", pointed out that Supreme Court's decision to repeal Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, which criminalised homosexuality, came as a big push for all such stories. "Evening Shadows" director Sridhar Rangayan believes that bringing LGBT stories to mainstream theatres for the larger audience to see the films with their families will remove prejudices and pave way for an equal society. Director Onir said: "It's wonderful to have a sensitive representation... but we are yet to see if that is the trend and have many more." Keshav Suri and Ayesha Kapoor, who have been fighting for the rights of homosexuals, say cinema plays an important role in making or breaking an image. Suri added: "Stereotypes around gays have existed in all spheres and industries... I will like to say that there has been a conscious effort to change the depiction." (Sugandha Rawal can be contacted at sugandha.r@ians.in) --IANS sug/rb/vm/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The death toll has risen to 21 three days after an eight-storey residential building collapsed in Istanbul, Turkey's interior minister announced. Speaking at a crisis centre near the scene in Kartal district, Suleyman Soylu on Saturday said 14 people had been rescued from the rubble with injuries since the incident happened on Wednesday. The rescue operation has been continuing for almost 74 hours after the incident, the minister added. Earlier in the day, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited the wounded in the hospital. --IANS vin/ (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi met with visiting French Minister of Defence Florence Parly in Baghdad to discuss means of cooperation between the two countries. According to a statement from Mahdi's media office, the Iraqi Prime Minister on Saturday highlighted the need to focus on cooperation in economic fields, while expressing his appreciation for France's role in fighting the Islamic State (IS) militant group and aiding internally displaced persons, Xinhua reported. Meanwhile, Parly reaffirmed her country's support to Iraq in achieving stability and fighting IS remnants, stressing the willingness of French leaders to continue cooperation with Iraq in the rebuilding process and development of services. Parly arrived in Iraq's capital Baghdad on Friday in a surprise visit. She also met with Iraqi President Barham Salih and discussed with him regional and international developments and means to boost ties. --IANS vin/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said that the Islamic republic will maintain supports for Palestine's "resistance" groups, official IRNA news agency reported. "Iran will support the Palestinian resistance groups against Zionist (Israeli) regime's occupation and aggression," Zarif was quoted as saying by IRNA on Sunday. Zarif made the remarks in a meeting with the Secretary-General of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement Ziad al-Nakhala, in the Lebanese capital Beirut, Xinhua news agency reported. Ziad thanked Iran for its support for the Palestinian cause and the Palestinian nation. The two sides, discussed the latest developments in the "occupied" lands of Palestine. Zarif arrived in Beirut on Sunday to hold talks with senior Lebanese officials on the boost of ties. --IANS vin/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The troubles for Robert Vadra, brother-in-law of Congress President Rahul Gandhi, who was grilled by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for three days in connection with a money laundering case, may not end any time soon as the probe agencies are again set to question him in the coming days in different cases involving his company Skylight Hospitality. The ED, which questioned Vadra for the first time for three days in connection with a money laundering case, plans to interrogate him again on February 12 in Jaipur in an another money-laundering case related to a land scam in Rajasthan's Bikaner, sources said. Vadra and his mother, Maureen Vadra, have been asked by the Rajasthan High Court to appear before the ED on February 12 to respond to allegations of money laundering by his firm. The ED had for the third time, issued summons to Robert Vadra and his mother, a partner in the firm last November but none of them appeared and instead moved the high court seeking a "no coercive action" order and stay of their arrest. The Rajasthan High Court has directed him to cooperate with the agency in the case. The agency had registered a money laundering case in September 2015 alleging that Skylight Hospitality had acquired land in Kolayat village of Bikaner, which was meant for rehabilitation of poor villagers. It was alleged that Vadra bought 69.55 hectares of land at a cheaper rate and sold it to Allegenery Finlease for Rs 5.15 crore through illegal transactions. During investigations, the agency claimed to have found Allengenery had no real business dealings and the shareholders were also found to be fake. Earlier, the CBI had also filed 18 cases at the instance of the Rajasthan government in August 2017 in connection with the Bikaner land deal case. Of the 18, four cases have been registered against Skylight Hospitality. According to ED sources, Vadra will also be called for questioning in a money laundering case relating to a land deak in Gurugram's Shikohpur village after it registers a fresh case in the coming days. On January 23, the CBI had filed a case against former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and several others, including 15 private builders, for alleged irregularities in allotting over 1,417 acres of land during 2009-12 in Gurugram. The Haryana Police on September 2 last year has also registered a case against Vadra and Hooda for alleged irregularities in land deals in Gurugram. Vadra faces allegations that his company sold 3.5 acres of land in 2008 in Shikohpur village to DLF at a rate much higher than was prevailing at the time. The ED has also grilled Vadra for in a money laundering case against his close aide Manoj Arora, whose role surfaced during a probe by the Income Tax Department into another case under against absconding arms dealer Sanjay Bhandari. The London property was allegedly bought by Bhandari and sold in 2010 for the same amount despite incurring additional expenses on its renovation. The ED says it has received information about various new properties in London which belong to Vadra. These include two houses, one worth 5 million pounds and the other valued at 4 million pounds and six flats. The total worth of these properties is 12 million pounds. The ED also grilled Vadra about the mails he exchanged with Sumit Chadha, a relative of Bhandari, in reference to a London property. Vadra was also asked how he knew Bhandari and Chadha and what business transactions they had. According to sources, Vadra was confronted with the emails he had reportedly exchanged with Chadha for the payment of the renovation of a London property, about which the agency informed a Delhi court. The ED also told the court that the London property was part of the kickbacks received in a petroleum deal. According to the ED, Vadra and his associates received 'kickbacks' in the petroleum deal signed in 2009 during the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) regime. The ED claimed that money was allegedly transferred to Santech International, FZC, a company based in UAE and controlled by Bhandari. Santech International then purchased the 12 Bryanstone Square mansion from Vortex, a private holding, and Vortex shares were later transferred to Skylight Investment, FZE, which is led by NRI businessman C Thampi (Anand Singh can be contacted at anand.s@ians.in) --IANS aks/vsc/vm (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A Dubai court charged an Indian man with sexually harassing a tourist inside an elevator at a residential tower. Prosecutors at the Dubai Court of First Instance on Saturday accused the 24-year-old of exposing himself to the British tourist, 35, and also of inappropriately touching her, reports The Khaleej Times. The accused has denied the charges. The victim reported the incident to the tower's security and the surveillance cameras were checked. She identified him in the video recordings. --IANS ksk/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Finish this article for as low as $1 when you purchase a day pass. Just click the sign up button to purchase. If you are already a subscriber, just click log in to continue reading. Hey Alexa! Please play "Bhaja Govindam" by M.S. Subbulakshmi, goes the command every morning at my home and Alexa takes no time in obliging, playing the song by the legendary Carnatic vocalist as breakfast begins to roll. This has become a routine at millions of Indian homes, indicating a clear trend about voice becoming the next conversational platform between people and devices. As we head toward a world where data-driven machine intelligence powers conversations between brands and consumers, Indian consumers are now ready for this, frequently using smartphones to interact with brands and coordinate tasks. According to Forrester, mobile penetration has allowed rapid, leapfrogging acceleration among metropolitan Indian online adults in the uptake of wearable devices and other smart technology. Nearly 54 per cent Indians now use at least one wearable device. The smart home is at a similar turning point: 30 per cent use a smart TV, 16 per cent use a voice assistant speaker like Alexa-rich Amazon Echo or Google Assistant-driven Home, and 36 per cent use smart home devices like Internet-connected thermostats or home audio systems. According to Meenakshi Tiwari, Forecast Analyst at Forrester, most of the digital consumers in India today are mobile consumers, doing multi-tasking on the go. "Voice has much bigger role to play in the circumstance, which is further verified by the fact that 28 per cent of search queries in India are done by voice, and Hindi voice search queries are growing at over 400 per cent year on year," she told IANS. It gives clear indication that voice will play a bigger role in India's digital space in near future. "Smart speaker will also play critical in this direction which is evident from their increasing shipment and time spent by consumer on it," Tiwai added. According to market research firm International Data Corp (IDC), the smart speakers' category in India, led by Amazon, grew 43 per cent in the second quarter of 2018. "I personally believe that voice as a platform is going to lead the next wave of content searches, social conservation, and eventually, it will also become the medium of commerce, said Jaipal Singh, Senior Analyst, IDC India. We already have voice-enabled devices which help us set routines, automate home appliances and provide on-demand information. "In terms of devices install base in 2018, it has significantly improved as vendors have shipped a set of new devices ranging from mobile phones, ear pods, TVs and smart speakers with voice assistants feature enabled on them," Singh told IANS. This novelty feature is really attracting a wide segment of users and obviously, millennials and Gen Z are leading the adoption as they are more comfortable to experiment with new technology. According to Singh, smart speakers are very popular among the kids who mostly use those for educational content, listening mythological stories quizzing and playing games. "However, playing music and setting alarms, asking for information from the internet are some of the popular tasks that Indian users prefer asking to voice assistants," the IDC analyst said. There are still concerns on users spending time with voice assistants as it is yet to get the desired traction in India. However, refined use cases with localised experiences are expected to lead the desired growth of voice-based devices in the coming years, the experts stressed. (Nishant Arora can be reached at nishant.a@ians.in) --IANS na/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Air Chief Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa will begin a four-day visit to Bangladesh on Monday, the Defence Ministry said here on Sunday. It's part of the bilateral goodwill visit to a SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) nation, the ministry added. The Indian Air Force chief is scheduled to visit the operational and training units of Bangladesh Air Force. During his visit, he will also meet chiefs of the three defence services and Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. "The visit would provide further impetus towards increasing defence cooperation and pave the way for greater interaction. This would also strengthen relationships and enable engagement in productive exchanges between the two Air Forces," the ministry said. --IANS rak/arm/pcj (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Expressing shock over the death of nearly 100 people in the Uttar Pradesh-Uttarakhand hooch tragedy, Congress General Secretary in-charge of Uttar Pradesh East Priyanka Gandhi on Sunday blamed the BJP governments in the two states for allowing the illicit liquor industry to flourish. "I am shocked and very sad to know that more than 100 people have been killed in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh and the death toll continues to rise," Priyanka Gandhi said in a statement. "It is hard to believe that the illicit liquor industry in the two states is operating without the support of the respective state governments. "I hope that the BJP governments will take strict action against the criminals and appropriate compensation and provision of government jobs will be made for the families of the deceased," added Gandhi, who recently took over as the AICC General Secretary in charge of east Uttar Pradesh. The death toll in the hooch tragedy has increased to 97 and over 200 people have been arrested so far in a police crackdown, officials said on Sunday. All the deceased had gone to Balupur village in Uttarakhand's Roorkie for an after-death ritual where they were apparently served spurious liquor. --IANS and/arm/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A "yellow vest" protester in France had his fingers ripped off during violent clashes at the Parliament building in Paris, as the anti-government protests entered its 13th week, the media reported on Sunday. According to French media reports, the incident took place on Saturday when the protester attempted to pick up a rubber pellet grenade and it exploded in his hand, reports the BBC. According to French government figures, 51,400 people joined the protests on Saturday, 4,000 of them in Paris. That was down from the previous week, when official figures put the number at 58,600, 10,500 in the capital city. In Paris, the protesters marched from the Champs-Elysees to the city's Parliament buildings, where a violent contingent broke down barriers and threw projectiles at police. The police responded with tear gas and anti-riot munitions. Tens of thousands of protesters turned out in other parts of France, including the port cities of Marseille and Montpellier and also in Bordeaux and Toulouse in the southwest. Eight police officers were lightly injured during clashes with protesters in Bordeaux. There was also an arson attack on the home of Richard Ferrand, the head of France's National Assembly, though it was not clear if the attack was linked to the protests, the BBC reported. Ferrand published pictures on Twitter of his scorched living room, writing: "Nothing justifies intimidations and violence towards an elected official of the Republic." What began as anti-fuel tax protests in November 2018, the yellow vests - who owe their sobriquet to the high-visibility jackets the protesters wear - have since morphed into catch-all demonstrations against the French government and President Emmanuel Macron. But since the government decided to delay the increase in fuel taxes and Macron announced measures favouring purchasing power, the number of participants has dropped radically. Their demands, however, have multiplied, with yellow vests carrying posters calling for "Frexit" - the exit of France from the European Union - while others were looking for "a better world" and some also requesting Macron's resignation. The law passed by the National Assembly this week that called for more measures to be taken against violence occurring on the fringes of the movement, which is attributed to far-right and far-left groups, was also one of the main targets of the yellow vests, who call it "freedomcide". --IANS ksk (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Five militants were killed on Sunday in a gunfight in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district. Defence Ministry spokesman Col Rajesh Kalia said the five were killed in Kelam village. Police said the precise identity of the slain militants was being ascertained. "Arms and ammunition have been recovered from their possession," an officer said. Following specific information about the presence of militants, security forces started a cordon and search operation in the village. As the cordon tightened, the militants fired at the security forces, triggering an encounter, police added. Clashes between civilian protesters and the security forces also took place near the gunfight site. The security forces used tear smoke and pellets to quell the mob. Mobile Internet services have been suspended as a precaution in Kulgam district. --IANS sq/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Aerospace company Boeing on Sunday announced the arrival of the first four CH-47F (I) Chinooks -- an advanced multi-mission helicopter -- for the Indian Air Force (IAF) at the Mundra Port in Gujarat. The CH-47F (I) Chinooks will be ferried to Chandigarh, where they will be formally inducted into the IAF later this year, said a Boeing news release. "The CH-47F (I) Chinook is an advanced multi-mission helicopter that will provide the Indian armed forces with unmatched strategic airlift capability across the full spectrum of combat and humanitarian missions. The Indian Air Force currently has 15 Chinook helicopters on order," said the release. --IANS rak/rtp/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Engineers India Ltd (EIL) on Sunday signed a project management consultancy contract for 1.5 million tonne greenfield refinery in Mongolia. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed by EIL and Mongol Refinery State Owned LLC in the presence of Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on the sidelines of the Petrotech 2019 that got underway at Greater Noida in the national capital region (NCR) on Sunday. "India extended a $1 billion line of credit to Mongolia during the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2015. The refinery is being built using that line of credit," Pradhan said. "It marks a new height in bilateral relations," he said. EIL has done a detailed feasibility study for the project, Pradhan added. --IANS bc/arm/pcj (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Election Commission (EC) on Sunday said it has asked the Delhi Police to probe telephone calls made to voters claiming their names have been deleted from the electoral rolls. In a letter to the Delhi Police Commissioner, the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Delhi mentioned receiving several complaints alleging that certain unknown persons/entities/sources are making misleading phone calls to the citizens of Delhi, telling them that their names have been deleted from the electoral roll, and that the caller is trying to get the same restored. "The only authority to add or delete a name in the electoral roll is the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO). No other person can do so. Any person can apply to the ERO for including his name in the electoral roll," the CEO office said in a statement. "It appears that the matter needs to be thoroughly investigated in order that the factual correctness of the averments made in the complaints are ascertained and necessary action under relevant extant laws is taken," it said in the February 8 letter to the Delhi Police chief. Warning voters about such misleading calls, the poll panel asked them to check their names in the electoral roll either by calling Voter Helpline or by visiting the National Voter Service Portal. --IANS and/pgh/pcj (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Democrat Senator Elizabeth Warren has officially launched her 2020 presidential campaign at a rally, using the backdrop of Everett Mills -- the site of a historic 1912 labour strike led by women and immigrants. Over 44 minutes in sub-freezing temperatures in Lawrence, Massachusetts, Warren on Saturday issued a call for action against wealthy power brokers who "have been waging class warfare against hardworking people for decades", CNN reported. "The man in the White House is not the cause of what is broken, he is just the latest and most extreme symptom of what's gone wrong in America," Warren said of President Donald Trump. "A product of a rigged system that props up the rich and powerful and kicks dirt on everyone else. So once he's gone, we can't pretend that none of this ever happened." The formal start of the Massachusetts Senator's White House campaign comes as the Democratic primary intensifies by the day, with numerous candidates including Indian American Senator Kamala Harris, already in the race, and others, like Senators Bernie Sanders and Amy Klobuchar, expected to jump in soon. In a warning to rivals, Warren touted her refusal to accept donations from lobbyists, corporate PACs (political action committees) or the support of super PACs, and challenged "every other candidate who asks for your vote in this primary to say exactly the same thing". Warren was joined by family, including her husband, Bruce, two children and grandchildren. In the days leading up to Saturday's announcement, Warren had been weighed down by new questions over her past claims to Native American heritage. The Washington Post reported that Warren wrote in 1986 that her race was "American Indian" in a Texas state bar registration card, adding to the list of instances in which the Senator self-identified this way. The disclosure prompted yet another public apology from Warren, just days after she had expressed remorse to Cherokee leaders for using a DNA test last year to try to show her Native American ancestry. Warren is slated to begin a six-state tour on Sunday, CNN reported. After Lawrence, she will travel north to campaign in New Hampshire before flying to Iowa and then South Carolina, Georgia, Nevada and California next week. The campaign's decision to stage its first major rally in Lawrence, a former industrial mill town, was an appeal to the key constituency groups -- immigrants, women, working class families, union members -- Warren hopes to appeal to. "There'll be plenty of doubters and cowards and armchair critics this time around," Warren said. "But we learned a long time ago, you don't get what you don't fight for." In 1912, textile workers in Lawrence, many of them immigrant women, walked off the job and went on strike to protest wage cuts. In an email to supporters last week, Warren's campaign wrote: "Underpaid, overworked, and flat-out exploited workers from more than 50 countries gave Lawrence the nickname 'Immigrant City.'" In her speech on Saturday, she pledged to go further, to "break up monopolies when they choke off competition" and "take on Wall Street banks so that the big banks can never again threaten the security of our economy". --IANS ksk (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The death toll in the twin hooch tragedies in Uttar Pradesh and neighbouring Uttarakhand has increased to 104, with over 200 people arrested in a police crackdown, officials said on Sunday. Fifty-four deaths were reported from Uttar Pradesh's Saharanpur district, while 18 people died during treatment at the Meerut Medical College. Saharanpur District Magistrate Alok Kumar Pandey told IANS that of the 46 post-mortems conducted so far, 36 were confirmed to have died due to consumption of spurious liquor. Meerut Superintendent of Police (SP) Ranvijay Singh said 14 people undergoing treatment at the medical college, were in serious condition. Meanwhile, 32 deaths were also reported in Haridwar, Uttarakhand, according to Excise Department officials The Uttar Pradesh victims had visited Balupur in Roorkie, Uttarakhand, on February 7 for a funeral after which they consumed the illicit liquor, police sources said. In the police crackdown, 9,269 litres of hooch was seized in Uttar Pradesh while 1,066 litres was recovered in Uttarakhand. A total of 215 persons have been arrested in Uttar Pradesh, while cases against 297 persons have been filed. Forty-nine cases have been registered in Uttarakhand. The Uttar Pradesh government has ordered a magisterial enquiry into the tragedy and many officials of the police and the Excise Department have been suspended. --IANS md/ksk (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) "We are all at risk, so we must take all precautions to stay healthy." The recent and alarming declaration of a measles outbreak in Metro Manila and other regions has put a spotlight on health as a rising political issue. This has, after all, consistently been a top personal priority for most Filipinos. DOHs Epidemiology Bureau recorded 196 measles cases in the National Capital Region in the first 19 days of the year, a sharp jump from the 20 cases posted a year ago. During the same period, 58 fatalities were recorded at San Lazaro Hospital. Four more regions were recently added to the list where an outbreak was detectedCentral Luzon, Calabarzon, Western and Eastern Visayasall of which similarly posted sharp increases in cases and as many as 18 deaths just last month. DOH Secretary Francisco Duque said the declaration of an outbreak is to help increase public awareness on the matter. We are declaring an outbreak as cases have increased in the past weeks and to strengthen surveillance for new cases and alert mothers and caregivers to be more vigilant, he said. Health has consistently been the most urgent personal concern for Filipinos, a trend that has not changed across many administrations. Urgent Personal and National Concerns of Filipinos surveys conducted by Pulse Asia over the years reveal as much. The most recent iteration, made in December of last year, said 68 percent of Filipinos identify staying healthy and avoiding illnesses as the most urgent personal concern. This incomparable regard for staying healthy has remained the most steadfast personal concern since 2012, minor fluctuations notwithstanding. Trailing by around 20 percentage points are next on the list: finishing school or providing schooling for children, avoiding being a victim of any serious crime, and having a secure and well-paying job. It is easy to understand why health is the top personal concern. For many Filipinos, from the most vulnerable to the rising middle class, an unwanted medical diagnosis or sudden injury can spell the difference between a passably comfortable life and utter financial ruin. Cancer diagnosis, for instance, often entails not only untold emotional distress but, more critically, hundreds of thousands of pesos in hospital bills and medicines all the way toward after care, which, if not covered by insurance, can easily bankrupt a household. The data on the matter reveal a disconcerting picture. According to the Philippine National Health Accounts released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), the out-of-pocket health expenses incurred by Filipinos continued to rise in 2017, hiking by a troubling 8.8 percent year-on-year. In real terms, household out-of-pocket expenses amounted to P372.8-billion in 2017, which accounted for a little over half of Current Health Expenditures in the same year. The PSA includes in out of pocket expenses medicines, food supplements, other medical products, therapeutic appliances, outpatient medical care, dental care, diagnostic services, and private and public hospital care.Out of the P372.8-billion, more than half, or P186.6-billion, went to pharmacies, while P97.5-billion, or 26.1 percent, went to private general hospitals, and P50.3-billion, or 13.5 percent, went to providers of ambulatory health care. Meanwhile, Total Health Expenditure swelled by 8 percent to P712.3-billion, contributing some 4.5 percent to the Philippine GDP. This translates to a 6.3-percent increase in per capita health spending of Filipinos, or P6,090, in 2017. Research by the government think tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies said Filipinos carried a so-called triple burden of disease that has historically led to losses of centuries of life and billions in public and out-of-pocket expenditures. For instance, for every million Filipinos, they found that around 580 years of life have been lost to heart disease and stroke and 95 and 75 years lost to tuberculosis and interpersonal violence, respectively. This worrying trend, the PIDS researchers said, indicates the continuing need to improve the countrys healthcare system, including service delivery and health infrastructure. An effective health insurance program, they added, can be instrumental in guaranteeing that Filipinos get the healthcare they need, without the need to break the bank. The Universal Health Care Bill, which has been approved by the bicameral conference committee, proposes a system in which all Filipinos are enrolled in a National Health Insurance Program and whose membership is classified into two: those who have the capacity to pay as direct contributors and those who are sponsored by the government, like indigents, senior citizens and persons with disabilities. For us to have a universal health care na kompleto ang target natin by five to ten years in time, Senate Committee on Health Chairman JV Ejercito said. Funds for the measure, estimated at some P257-billion for its first year of implementation, will come from the incremental sin tax collections, the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Offices charity fund, the Philippine Gaming Corporation, premium contributions, government subsidy to PhilHealth, and the DOHs annual budget. With elections coming up, however, and with the measles outbreak freshly shining a spotlight on health as a key concern, the subject will no doubt be politicized. Candidates know that there is political capital to be gained when dealing with things that resonate deeply with the people. The key is to discern when pro-health rhetoric is just being used to abet populist sentiments and when there is a real desire to make quality healthcare truly accessible. Two landmark health legislations are now waiting to be signed into law by President Duterte: the National Cancer Control Act and the Universal Health Care Law. This will give the DOH a powerful legal mandate to expand access to adequate health care to all Filipinos. When the new Congress convenes to tackle the 2020 budget, these laws must be given enough funding for effective implementation. I pray that these outbreaks do not deteriorate to pandemic proportions. We are all at risk, so we must take all precautions to stay healthy. Former Union Minister Yashwant Sinha on Sunday said the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016 will not be passed in the Rajya Sabha even as he insisted that the Modi government is not going to come to power for a second time. The veteran politician, who quit the BJP last year, said this here while delivering a talk organised by a citizens' forum. "Before coming here, I met lots of people. Except the BJP, all the people told me that they won't let the Bill pass in the Upper house at any cost. So, I don't think the government will dare to pass the Bill by force in the Rajya Sabha. "Sometime they do it... In case of important bills, sometimes they are passed by voting amid ruckus in the House. But considering the importance of the Citizenship Bill, I don't think they will dare to pass the Bill amid ruckus," he said. "The ongoing session of Parliament will be over in two days and this is the last Parliament session of this government. "I would also like to tell you with confidence that this government is not coming to power for a second time. So there is nothing to worry. If there are still worries, please wait for two days, after February 13, we all can breathe easy," Sinha said. He dubbed as "incorrect from all angles" the Bill which seeks to provide Indian citizenship to six minority groups from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh. "This Bill should not be passed because it is incorrect from all angles -- legal, constitutional, moral. And from the point of view of Assam Accord it is incorrect. This Bill is also against the ethos of the country. There is nothing like merit in this bill. "The Bill has posed an existential question before the people of Assam and northeast. If someone tries to end your existence, obviously he or she will protest and that is the reason the people of the northeast are protesting. "If the entire northeast is standing up against the Bill, it is because it has posed an existential threat to the whole of the region," he said. --IANS ah/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The first of the 15 Chinook heavy lift helicopters ordered by the Indian Air Force (IAF) arrived in India on Sunday. The CH-47F (I) was received at the Mundra Port in Gujarat and would be transported to its home base at Chandigarh. Boeing, the maker of Chinooks, announced the arrival of the helicopter that will significantly enhance IAF's air lift capabilities. The helicopter, which can carry around 10 tonnes of load, has been delivered ahead of schedule. It will fill the gap in IAF's heavy lift capability that had taken a hit after the problems in maintaining three ageing Mi-26 helicopters - the world's heaviest helicopters - of Russian origin. India had signed a $3 billion deal with the US in September 2015 for the purchase of 15 Chinook heavy lift and 22 AH-64E Apache attack helicopters. Chinooks have a unique twin engine, tandem rotor design which has become one of the most visibly recognised symbols of the American armed forces. --IANS gautam/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actor Charlie Sheen, who celebrated one year of sobriety in December 2018, has encouraged actress Lindsay Lohan to "stay the course" in her sobriety journey. "I always had tremendous affection for her. I can totally relate to some of the stuff she had gone through, was going through. (I'd) just tell her, just stay the course. You can't change the past, but they would not call it that if it was not, right?" he told usmagazine.com. Lohan had insisted she has put her partying ways behind her, and is now focused on running her own chain of nightclubs instead of spending her time partying in them. She said: "That was so in my past. Most of my friends (now), actually, who own nightclubs and stuff aren't drinkers or anything. "Because I'm running the show, I have to be on it and I have to keep myself busy. It's more fun to watch other people have their own fun with what they are doing. There's no judgment in it though. It has nothing to do with my past." --IANS dc/nn/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) What could be more ironic than the fact that while distressed farmers in the state are clamouring for protection from stray cattle, a problem that has assumed menacing proportions with crops worth crores of rupees being lost due to it, the Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh has set aside an unprecedented over Rs 600 crore for the protection and welfare of cows in the State Budget for 2019-20. It's a different matter that top government functionaries mouth sympathies for farmers as Lok Sabha elections are round the corner and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has already paid a price in terms of three state governments in the recent polls for ignoring farmers' issues. With the growing trouble among farmers in Uttar Pradesh over stray cattle ruining their harvest, the spectre could result in a possible backlash in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Naturally, there is anxiety in the state's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leadership. Old and abandoned cattle that are being set free because they are no longer of any use, have become a terror for people as they destroy crops and fields and add to the agony of already distressed farmers. As for the government that had vowed to protect the 'gau mata' and banned slaughter houses, it appears to have given farmers a short shrift. The budget also proposes Rs 247.60 crore for maintenance and construction of gaushalas in the rural areas. Malkhan Chauhan, a small farmer in Darveshpur (Barabanki), some 55 km from here, told IANS how his 3-bigha farm land had been devastated by stray cattle. "I spent a lot of money for seeds and fertilisers, and now the cattle menace have forced me to shell out another Rs 10,000 to fence the field to protect the crop," said an upset Chauhan. A frustrated Ranjeet Maurya (40) in neighbouring Kanhaipur who lost his crop to the menace criticised the Yogi Adityanath government for his troubles. "Yogi ordered closure of slaughter houses, now see what's happening," he said and added cow vigilantes and Hindu outfits should "adopt ten cows each". Crops of potato, wheat and mustard have been destroyed by the stray bulls and cows in his village, he said. Many cattle has also been abandoned due to growing mechanisation of farming. Rizwan Ahmad, a dairy owner in Hariharnagar, said once the cows go dry (stop giving milk) they are thrown out by farmers. "What else do we do of them?" he asked. Many Muslim milk sellers like Ahmad Ali, a dairy owner in Chinhat, said his community is scared. "We hear stories about members of the community being roughed up for transporting cows," he said. They can neither keep a large number of animals nor abandon them, he added. That the cattle menace has taken centre-stage for many farmers can be gauged from the fact that in many parts of the state, angry farmers have locked up cattle in schools, hospitals, community health centres. Their demand: fix this menace. Their threat: face music at the hustings. The government has expedited building cattle shelters and 'gau shaalas' but the bureaucratic inertia seems to have retarded the pace. Thus the state missed the January 10 deadline set by the Chief Minister Adityanath for district magistrates to shift stray cattle to these shelters. Penal action has also been sought against cattle owners who abandon or lock them up in public properties. "The chief minister is serious about the issue. Many steps are being taken to tackle the problem", additional chief secretary (Information) Awanish Kumar Awasthi told IANS. There are 510 registered cow shelters in the state. According to a 2012 government data, there were around two crore cows in the state. Adityanath has also called for a fresh census and allocated funds for that. Animal Husbandry Minister S.P. Singh Baghel agrees that there is a problem, but claimed "a solution is on the way". However, he pointed out that the number of stray cattle was also a reflection of the staggering number that was being slaughtered before the ban." Samajwadi Party (SP) spokesman Abdul Hafiz Gandhi said the BJP government has "misplaced priorities" and predicted that farmers' anger "would cost them dear" in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The state government has also levied a 0.5 per cent tax Cow Protection Cess on eight government departments, including the cash-rich excise department. (Mohit Dubey can be contacted at mohit.d@ians.in) --IANS md/am (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) T-series owner Bhushan Kumar said on Sunday that everyone in creative world should be blessed by goddess Saraswati as she is the goddess of creativity. Entire Bollywood celebrity brigade attended director Anurag Basu's annual Saraswati Puja on Vasant Panchami day at his residence in Mumbai on Sunday. Celebrities, such as Bhushan Kumar along with wife Divya Khosla Kumar, Katrina Kaif, Abhishek Bachchan and many more were present on the occasion. Talking about the annual puja, Bhushan Kumar said: "I am feeling quite happy as there are only few such functions that happen in Mumbai. We usually witness such things in Delhi during Navratri. Dada has been organising it and we have been coming here for almost five years now. Dada has been doing it for almost 25 years and I hope he keeps doing as long as he lives...it brings everyone together. It gives you such an amazing positive feeling." Bhushan Kumar further said that he believes that people working in a creative world should always seek blessings of goddess Saraswati. "She is the goddess of creativity and everyone who the creative world should be blessed by her. We're from creative world, so it is always better to have goddess Sarawati's blessings." Stunning and talented actress Katrina Kaif was seen in a traditional outfit. She was wearing a yellow suit. Actor Abhishek Bachchan also opted for the traditional outfit -- kurta pajama. Among other Bollywood celebrities present on the occasion to seek blessings at the pooja were Patralekhaa, Ishita Dutta, Sakshi Tanwar, Sumona Chakravarti and Asha Negi. --IANS iv/nir (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) From a powerful Cabinet Minister and Congress General Secretary who managed key states and allies, Kamal Nath has migrated seamlessly to Bhopal, the power centre of Madhya Pradesh. Well versed in the art of real politik, the state's 18th Chief Minister has an onerous responsibility now that he has reversed the BJP's long winning streak in its quest to make India Congress Mukht. Blessed with innate strategic and tactical thinking, he has now set out to fix what was broken in the state. In the concluding part of his interview with IANS, he outlines the problems faced by the state, starting with acute joblessness, something that is rampant across the country. Joblessness was probably the single biggest factor along with farm and rural distress in the state which won Congress the mandate. When asked about the severity of the crisis, its sheer width and depth is alarming, Nath spoke about alleviation measures. "Employment in Madhya Pradesh is in a sorry state of affairs. It was disheartening to witness the drain of resources that could otherwise have been used to mobilise growth in the state. On the very first day of taking charge of my office, I made it mandatory to employ 70 per cent local youth in Industries in the state to be eligible for industrial incentives. "With time, we will come up with more employment-generation schemes and work on strengthening industries, which provide the largest opportunities for employment. Our government is focusing on skill development of youth, Industrial growth for increasing job opportunity and quality education. On Republic Day, we announced a new scheme 'Yuva Swabhiman Yojna'. Under this scheme we will provide work to youth of the state for full 100 days in a year. On the agrarian distress side, Mandsaur twice in the last few years became the go-to hot button epicentre for the farmers, a rallying point against BJP policies on the farm front." Sitting in Delhi, one heard of continuing farm distress in Madhya Pradesh and how Mandsaur became ground zero of the agitation. Nath spoke about various issues in relation to farm distress in Madhya Pradesh, how and why the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) overnment tried Bhavantar and then recalled it. He was most forthcoming: "Madhya Pradesh is one of the largest agrarian states of India. Almost 70 per cent of the population is directly or indirectly related to agriculture. It is very sad that Madhya Pradesh tops in the country in terms of farmer suicides. Had the state been such an utopia for farmers as touted by the previous BJP government, things would have been very different. "The resentment of the farmers was evident from the Mandsaur incident and so was the government's apathy towards them. One of the major reasons for farm distress is farmers not getting appropriate price for their crops. Bhavantar was launched only to launder money and not address this issue. It was flawed from the word go and thus had to fail. "We are going to redesign the 'Bhavantar Scheme' and come up with measures that will give farmers their dues. True to our words, we have waived off loans of farmers immediately after taking charge of the government and will formulate more such policies for the welfare of state farmers." As a former organisation man and a party General Secretary in charge of states in the past, IANS asked him whether Congress has a fighting chance in the coming hustings to return to power at the Centre? Nath was at his eloquent best: "I am confident we are coming back to power with majority. BJP's win in the last election was nothing but a fluke. However, you can't fool people for too long and they see through your ploys. Things like demonetisation and GST have been absolute debacles and people now are rooting for a change. "There is an anti-BJP sentiment among the people and we could witness that from the recent Assembly election results. When we talk about our Prime Minister Narendra Modi's popularity, it has started to dwindle and people have started taking cognisance of it. While the popularity graph of our Prime Mnister is plummeting, that of Rahul Gandhi is on a steady increase." An interesting empiric seen in the defining battle in Madhya Pradesh which Nath won was that it went right down to the wire. The vote share of the BJP and Congress was very high and showed only a marginal difference in the end. So we asked Nath what was it that really swung the tight vote in favour of the Congress? Nath, who was educated in Doon School and St Xavier's College, Kolkata, and speaks many languages with great felicity which helps in his conduct of rolled off the perfect answer - "Waqt hai badlav ka" (it is time for change) is what people of Madhya Pradesh strongly rooted for. "Citizens of the state were tired of retarded growth and wanted a change. The anti-government sentiments of the people could be felt during our rallies. The state was engulfed in distress and misery and every class was a victim. It is their hope and trust on us that led us to victory and we will live up to the promises made. "Now, the people of the state are very clearly feeling the difference between the two governments. One is performing but the other never did. I am confident people will support Congress Party, which has a strong will to work for the progress and prosperity of the state," he said. (Sandeep Bamzai can be contacted at sandeep.bamzai@ians.in) --IANS sandeep/am/ksk (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Foreign Minister of Bangladesh on Sunday said prolonged Rohingya crisis would encourage formation of pockets of radicalism, which could destabilise the South Asian region. Speaking at a seminar on "Bangladesh and Human Rights" in Dhaka, A.K. Abdul Momen said Rohingya refugees needed to be sent home at the earliest, with safety and security, Efe news agency reported. "My fear is, if this (Rohingya) problem lingers for a longer time, it may encourage pockets of radicalism and create problems of uncertainty and instability not only for Myanmar and Bangladesh but for the entire region," Momen said. "Rohingya must go back to their homes, earliest the better. The global leadership must come forward to resolve the crisis at its root, not in Bangladesh," he said. Momen, a former Bangladesh permanent representative in the United Nations, became the Foreign Minister after a new government took charge in January. "Had Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina not sheltered the Rohingyas, it would have ended up in the gravest and worst genocide since World War II," said Momen. "Our Prime Minister, by allowing (in) the persecuted people of the Rakhine province of Myanmar, has saved the face of global leaders from ignominy and disgrace," he said. Rohingyas are ethnic Muslim minority concentrated in Rakhine State, and whom the Myanmar government refuses to recognise as citizens and allow basic rights. More than 738,000 Rohingya refugees have arrived in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, since the beginning of the crisis on August 25, 2017, following a wave of persecution and violence in Myanmar that the UN described as an attempt at "ethnic cleansing". The majority of Rohingyas -- more than 620,000 people -- live in just one area: Kutupalong, the largest refugee settlement anywhere in the world. "They need to be repatriated with safety and security at the earliest. Their exodus was created by Myanmar and it is their responsibility to solve it," said the Minister. The first phase of Rohingyas' voluntary repatriation to Myanmar was due to begin in November last year, as per an agreement between Bangladesh and Myanmar on November 23, 2017. However, it could not take off because none of the refugees volunteered to go home amid security concerns in Myanmar. --IANS rs/pcj (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Sunday hit back at Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying he has a estranged wife and has no respect for the family system. With Modi making a stinging attack on Naidu at a rally in Guntur, the latter launched a counter-offensive at a public meeting in Vijayawada. The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief even remarked that Modi is keeping his wife away without giving her divorce. As Modi had addressed him as Lokesh's father, Naidu retorted by calling him the Prime Minister husband of Jashodaben. Referring to the legislation brought by Modi to criminalise triple talaq citing the injustice to Muslim women, Naidu told the gathering that Modi has a wife Jashodaben. "You are keeping her away. You are doing all this without giving her divorce." The TDP leader said that he avoids making personal attacks but since Modi made the comments, he is compelled to respond. "He spoke about my son and called me Lokesh's father. I am proud of being Lokesh's father. You have no son, you have no family and no relationship," he told Modi. On Modi's allegation that he backstabbed his father-in-law N.T. Rama Rao, Naidu said Modi spoke in a manner which is unbecoming of a person holding the Prime Minister's post. The TDP leader said he never switched the parties or went back on his word. He said he differed even with his father-in-law for state's future and pointed out that he had the full support of the family and the party. Naidu alleged that Modi insulted his "guru" L.K. Advani by not responding to his greetings at an event. He claimed that it was Advani who had saved Modi when then Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee wanted to remove him as Gujarat Chief Minister following the riots. Naidu said Modi calls himself "chowkidar" and "chai wala" but wears "suit boot" worth crores of rupees. "He says one thing and does another. Did you ever see me in any other clothes even when I go abroad? Even this black shirt which I am wearing today (Sunday) is to protest Modi's visit." The Chief Minister said Modi came to Andhra Pradesh just to criticise him and left without answering the question what he did for the state in the last five years. Stating that the state was yet to get over Rs 1 lakh crore from the Centre, Naidu said he would continue to fight for the state's rights. "Are we not paying taxes to the Centre? Are we not part of this country?" He rubbished the allegations of corruption levelled by Modi and said there is an independent body Comptroller and Auditor General to audit the accounts of both state and the Central governments. "We are not bound to give accounts to anybody as there is CAG to audit the same," said Naidu on Modi's allegation that he is afraid as the Centre is seeking account for the money being given to the state. --IANS ms/nir (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Afghan forces stormed a Taliban detention centre in Helmand province and rescued seven detainees, an Army statement said on Sunday. The rescued detainees were civilians abducted by the militants, the statement said, adding the detention centre was destroyed on Saturday night, reports Xinhua news agency. It was the second crackdown on Taliban detention centres in the last five days. On February 7, security forces overran a centre in Chahar Dara district of Kunduz province, rescuing five persons. --IANS ksk/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The death toll in the moonshine tragedy in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand rose to 97 on Sunday even as 215 people were arrested in a sweeping police crackdown on illicit liquor in Uttar Pradesh, officials said. Simultaneously, as the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) blamed the ruling BJP in both states for the mass deaths, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said he smelt "a conspiracy" in which the SP may be involved. He said in Gorakhpur that a probe had been ordered. "Such incidents have happened in the past too where many times SP workers were involved. The guilty will not be spared." The death toll in Saharanpur district in Uttar Pradesh remained unchanged at 36, but 18 deaths were reported from the Meerut Medical College where many had been brought after consuming the illicit liquor on Thursday. Meerut's Superintendent of Police Ranvijay Singh confirmed the hospital deaths and said 14 others were still undergoing treatment at the medical facility and were in critical condition. A hospital doctor told IANS that 17-18 of the 22-24 people brought after taking the moonshine had died. Saharanpur District Magistrate Alok Kumar Pandey told IANS that post-mortem had confirmed 36 deaths due to consumption of spurious liquor. Eleven persons also died in Kushinagar district. A total of 32 people died in Roorkie and Haridwar in Uttarakhand. All the deceased had crossed over to Balupur in Roorkie in the neighbouring hill state on Thursday for an after-death ritual where they were apparently served the spurious liquor. In the crackdown following the deaths, a total of 9,269 litres of moonshine was seized in Uttar Pradesh and 1,066 litres in Uttarakhand. A total of 215 persons were arrested in Uttar Pradesh while cases against 297 others have been filed. In Uttarakhand, 49 cases have been registered. The Uttar Pradesh government has ordered a magisterial enquiry into the tragedy and many police and excise department officials have been suspended. Police raided many places in Banda, Gorakhpur, Hamirpur, Chitrakoot, Basti, Deoband, Maharajganj, Mathura, Bulandshahr, Ghaziabad and Meerut. In a joint raid conducted by the police and excise department, in Nagla Madhya village of Etah district, 50 litres of spurious liquor was seized on Sunday and three persons arrested. The deaths ignited a blame game. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav blamed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) governments in both the states ruled by it and said the BJP has to own up the responsibility for the tragedy. "BJP is in power in both these states. If anyone is responsible, it is the BJP," he said, and asked the state governments to hike the compensation announced to the bereaved families from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 20 lakh. He charged that so much trade in illicit liquor could not have been "done without government protection and patronage". BSP supremo Mayawati also come down heavily on the government over the deaths. "The tragedy is not only unfortunate but heart rending and shameful. These incidents are the result of a callous and unconcerned BJP governments," she tweeted. The four-time Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh demanded that Excise Ministers of both the states should be immediately relieved of their duties and a CBI probe ordered to ensure a fair investigation. Meanwhile, a press conference called by Uttar Pradesh Excise Minister Jai Pratap Singh on Sunday noon was called off at the last minute without any explanation. --IANS md/mr/vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) "The fear has reached Metro Manila." The bombing of a Catholic cathedral in Jolo has spawned fears of a religious strife in Mindanao. This was given credence after what seemed to be a retaliatory blast on a mosque that claimed as many lives in the Catholic church. Now, the fear of bombings has reached Metro Manila where the Philippine National Police has tightened security at shopping malls. Collateral damage in shopping malls could be bigger if terrorist suicide bombers are able to slip through the security check. The PNP claimed that a male bomber and a female bomber from Indonesia were responsible for the Jolo cathedral attack. Suicide bombers are something new in the countrys history of blasts perpetrated by lawless elements. The Abu Sayyaf group of extortionists who passed themselves off as political rebels has not been known to commit suicide bombings. This is a method of mass murder that is new and difficult to stop. How do you prevent a suicide bomber from detonating himself in a line of mall goers passing through security check? In light of this new development, there is now a public clamor to restore the death penalty. And why not, considering that a bombing that results in mass murder is a heinous crime? The same extreme measure should be accorded to those involved in the trafficking of illegal drugs. These evil criminals destroy young lives who in the full bloom of their lives could turn out to be useful and productive citizens. Killing them in the suspicious police scenario that they resisted arrest and fired at law enforcers has only earned condemnation and derision from local and international human rights groups. So capture these drug traffickers and execute them after a fair and speedy trial. The public execution of Chinese drug pusher Lim Seng in the first days of Marcos martial law put the fear of God among other drug traffickers.There is a global war being waged by terrorists. Governments world-wide should step up to the challenge of fighting these cold-blooded butchers. In other major capitals, the other weapon used by terrorists is running down pedestrians on a busy street with a stolen vehicle. London, Paris and other US cities have experienced these terrorist killing using vehicles as weapons of death. Last week, there was the rumored death of President Rodrigo Duterte. The President laughed off the fake news while Palace officials dismissed the false report as wishful thinking by his detractors. But the President drew criticism when he told his Cabinet officials not to campaign for administration in the midterm elections on May 13. Cabinet members must have raised their eyebrows considering that President Duterte is openly campaigning for and endorsing Senate candidates Bong Go and Francis Tolentino. The President must lead by example on this issue. These two senatorial bets have enough money to mount their campaign and win senate Seats without the President campaigning for them. The women senatorial betsCynthia Villar, Grace Poe and Pia Cayetano --are leading the pack in the senatorial race, according to two polling companies. But how reliable are these pollsters when their survey is limited to a small area that does not reflect the nationwide preference? And who are paying for these surveys? Obviously, its the candidate who has money to spend with the questions rigged to suit the desired effect of the candidate. Expect a few surprises in the final outcome of the May 13 elections. Those who are not in the win column of 12 senatorial candidates might yet prove the pollsters wrong. Name recall, a good work track record plus a nationwide network of supporters could prove the survey polls inadequate.This scenario is possible in the national elections for senators. At the local level, congressmen, governors and mayors would most probably prevail given their family dynasty control of constituents in their area. This then is the reason why those expensive TV commercial ads are done by the senatorial candidates who have to campaign on a nationwide basis while local candidates like congressmen, governors and mayors confine their campaign to their district, province or city. But given their perks and pork barrel, the local bets have just as much stake to win. So dont wonder why the pork-laden P3.757-trillion national budget was approved by Congress despite the verbal skirmishes between Rep. Rolando Andaya and Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno. Its only a joke, no? A brilliant top-order batting display helped New Zealand post a mammoth 212/4 against India in the third and final Twenty20 International match here on Sunday. Colin Munro's 72 off 40 balls and Tim Seifert's 43-run knock set up a perfect platform for the other batters which helped them post a massive total. Apart from the duo, Colin de Grandhomme (30) and Kane Williamson (27) also contributed handsomely. Put in to bat, New Zealand openers Seifert and Munro got off to a flying start, slamming 80 runs in just 7.4 overs before Seifert was stumped by Mahendra Singh Dhoni off chinaman Kuldeep Yadav. In his 25 ball stay, Seifert hit three boundaries and as many sixes. Unperturbed by the fall of the opener's wicket, Munro and skipper Williamson joined hands for a 55-run stand for the second wicket to help New Zealand get past the 130 run mark in 13 overs. Just when things seemed good in the middle, Munro was dismissed by Kuldeep in 13.2 overs. He slammed five boundaries and as many sixes which also included some beautifully crafted shots. Grandhomme and williamson then tried to continue the flow of runs at the same pace but in the process, Williamson departed. The skipper was sent packing by pacer Khaleel Ahmed in 14.4 overs when scoreboard was reading 150 runs. Despite the wicket, Grandhomme kept on playing his shots before his stay was cut short by pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the penultimate over. Daryl Mitchell (19) and Ross Taylor (14) remained unbeaten and finished off the proceedings. For India, Chinaman Kuldeep Yadav took two wickets while Bhuvneshwar and Khaleel took a wicket each. Brief scores: New Zealand: 212/4 ( Colin Munro 72, Tim Seifert 43; Kuldeep Yadav 2/26) against India. --IANS gau/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) New Zealand defeated India by four runs in the third and final Twenty20 International (T20I) to clinch the series 2-1, here on Sunday. Chasing the 213-run target, India could score only 208/6 in their 20 overs. India suffered their first blow early when opener Shikhar Dhawan was dismissed by Mitchell Santner in the first over. Rookie all-rounder Vijay Shankar and Rohit Sharma came together to add 75 runs between them before the former was dismissed after mistiming an attempted slog sweep off Santner's bowling. Shankar was the top scorer for India. He hit five boundaries and two sixes in a quickfire 28-ball innings that produced 43 runs. The visitors were plunged into deeper trouble soon afterwards as Rishabh Pant and Rohit Sharma were dismissed in successive overs. Rohit, who scored 38 runs off 32 balls, was looking good for a big score. But he went after a Santner delivery that was a bit wide outside the off-stump only to offer an easy outside edge to New Zealand wicket-keeper Tim Seifert. Hardik Pandya smashed 21 runs off 11 deliveries before he was sent back to the pavilion by Scott Kuggeleijn. When Daryl Mitchell claimed the prized wicket of Mahendra Singh Dhoni in the next over, the Kiwis were well and truly on top. Although Dinesh Karthik and Krunal Pandya made a valiant attempt with a late 63-run stand off the last 28 balls, it did not prove to be enough. Karthik remained unbeaten on 33 runs off 16 balls while Krunal was not out on 26 off 13. For the hosts, Santner and Daryl Mitchell bagged two wickets each. Earlier, a brilliant top-order batting display helped New Zealand post a big total of 212/4 in 20 overs. Colin Munro's 72 off 40 balls and Tim Seifert's 43-run knock set up a perfect platform for the other batters, which helped them post a big total. Apart from the duo, Colin de Grandhomme (30) and Kane Williamson (27) also contributed handsomely. Put in to bat, New Zealand openers Seifert and Munro got off to a flying start, slamming 80 runs in just 7.4 overs before Seifert was stumped by Dhoni off chinaman Kuldeep Yadav. In his 25-ball stay, Seifert hit three boundaries and as many sixes. Unperturbed by the fall of the opener's wicket, Munro and skipper Williamson joined hands for a 55-run stand for the second wicket to help New Zealand get past the 130-run mark in 13 overs. Just when things seemed good in the middle, Munro was dismissed by Kuldeep in 13.2 overs. He slammed five boundaries and as many sixes, which also included some beautifully crafted shots. Grandhomme and williamson then tried to maintain the flow of runs at the same pace. But in the process, Williamson departed. The skipper was sent packing by pacer Khaleel Ahmed in 14.4 overs when scoreboard was reading 150 runs. Despite the wicket, Grandhomme kept on playing his shots before his stay was cut short by pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the penultimate over. Daryl Mitchell (19) and Ross Taylor (14) remained unbeaten and finished off the proceedings. For India, Chinaman Kuldeep Yadav took two wickets, while Bhuvneshwar and Khaleel took a wicket each. Brief scores: New Zealand: 212/4 (Colin Munro 72, Tim Seifert 43; Kuldeep Yadav 2/26) against India: 208/6 (Vijay Shankar 43, Rohit Sharma 38; Mitchell Santner 2/32, Daryl Mitchell 2/27). --IANS ajb/pcj (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma on Saturday stated that his party, People's Party (NPP), has decided that if the central government passes the Citizenship Amendment Bill in Rajya Sabha then they will break ties with NDA. While addressing the media here, Sangma said: " People's Party (NPP) has decided if the Bill (Citizenship Amendment Bill) is passed in Rajya Sabha, the party will break its ties with the NDA. This decision was taken in the general body meeting." Furthermore, Sangma said a resolution has been passed in this regard and will be submitted to the Narendra Modi government. "The party took a unanimous resolution to oppose the Citizenship Amendment Bill 2016 and based on that decision a resolution has been passed which will be submitted to the Government of India to oppose this Bill and not to go ahead with it in Rajya Sabha." The Bill was passed in Lok Sabha on January 8 and the centre is expecting to get Rajya Sabha's nod in the ongoing session. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Two persons have been arrested in connection with the killing of Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA Satyajit Biswas in Nadia in West Bengal, police said on Sunday. Biswas, who was elected from Krishnaganj in Nadia district, was shot dead by unidentified assailants at a Saraswati puja on Saturday. Those arrested have been identified as Sujit Mondal and Kartik Mondal. The police have also suspended the officer-in-charge (OC) of Hanskhali Police Station. However, the reason for his suspension is yet to be known.An FIR in the case was registered on Saturday. According to police sources, the lawmaker was shot multiple times from a close range when he was coming down from the stage after attending the event. The TMC has alleged that the BJP got Biswas eliminated, a charge denied by the BJP. Gauri Shankar Dutta, TMC's district president, alleged on Saturday that BJP leaders conspired to kill Biswas as he defeated the BJP candidate by a huge margin. "Satyajit Biswas was BJP's target for a very long time. He had been a preventive wall for attempts of Mukul Roy and Soumitra Thakur for movement of 'Matua' community votes to the BJP. The murder of Biswas is the handiwork of Mukul Roy. He is touring these days across the area to strengthen the BJP. He is the conspirator. Roy had earlier lashed out at Satyajit Biswas. We will fight it (the murder case) and ensure that justice is done," he alleged. "The BJP is playing politics of bloodshed in the state," he claimed. Roy, a former leader of Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress, left the party in 2017 and joined the BJP. Nadia district Zila Parishad member, Santosh Kumar Guha, said, "Satyajit Biswas was a good person. We doubt if he had any enemy. Political parties like the BJP have always been thinking of removing Biswas from here. So someone from the BJP must have killed him." Denying the allegations, the BJP claimed that factional feud in the ruling party was behind the attack. BJP state president Dilip Ghosh said, "This is utterly tragic. This shows even lawmakers of the ruling party are not safe in the total lawlessness of Mamata Banerjee's Bengal. In the last few months, each time a TMC leader or a supporter is killed, they blame our party. How can the BJP kill a TMC MLA? Our security itself is in question." "We would like to tell the central government that this is the situation in Bengal where even a ruling party lawmaker is not safe. How will the Trinamool Congress government protect the people of the state? People in the state are living at the behest of God," Ghosh said in a video on his Twitter handle. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Venezuela's state-run oil company Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) on Saturday announced that it is planning to confiscate American officials, members of the board of directors at the company's subsidiary located in the United States, Citgo Petroleum Corp, sources confirmed Al Jazeera. The decision by PDVSA came after Citgo reported of facing financial problems and plunging exports following the imposition of tough sanctions on the oil company by the Donald Trump-led US government, on Friday. The sanctions were imposed so that the Maduro government in Venezuela may not get access to the revenues and profits garnered by the oil company, the Washington Post reported. The sanctions, however, has pushed many in the South American nation further on the verge of a humanitarian crisis. Venezuela's oil exports to the US, the biggest source of profit for the Maduro regime, fall by 40 per cent last week as assets were frozen and tankers filled with crude oil from Venezuela remained stranded on the borders of the Caribbean. "We can't charge, we can't receive money. Our finances are paralyzed," Reinaldo Quintero, head of the Venezuelan Oil Chamber -- an industry group that represents the country's 500 biggest oil service companies, was quoted as saying. "There will be major collateral damage," Quintero added. But amid the crisis, relief was offered by Russia's state-run oil refining company Rosneft, which stated to increase its output in Venezuela irrespective of the US sanctions. Meanwhile, President Trump has said that the sanctions were imposed to topple the Maduro regime that has been holding on to the power in the country, despite warnings to call for re-elections in the country. The US and the European Union has accused President Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela of violating human rights and recognized Opposition leader Juan Guaido, who announced himself as the interim president of Venezuela last month, as the legitimate Head of the State. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Robert Vadra, son-in-law of UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, who has been grilled by the Enforcement Directorate three times for his involvement in a money laundering case, on Sunday said "truth will always prevail." "Good Morning, Just want to say thank you to all my friends and acquaintances who have reached out in support from all over the nation, at this time, I'm fine, good and disciplined to deal with anything, I'm put through. "Truth will always prevail". Wishing you all a happy Sunday and a healthy weak," Vadra wrote on Facebook. The businessman was grilled by ED for over eight hours on Saturday in connection with a money laundering case. He has been summoned by the ED thrice this week. On February 7, Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi reached the ED office to take her husband Vadra back home from the office of ED, where he was questioned in the case. Vadra was questioned for around six hours for the first time in the case on Wednesday. The probe agency has alleged that Vadra owns several properties in the United Kingdom. Vadra has denied the allegations against him. The Patiala House court has granted interim bail to Vadra on February 2 till February 16 in connection with the case. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Scores of protesters, under the banner of 'A Future for Work', took to the streets here on Saturday to protest against unemployment in the economy. "There are structural knots in Italy that this government is not dealing with, unfortunately, like previous governments," Maurizio Landini, the head of the Italian General Confederation of Labour (CGIL) told Deutsche Welle. Protesters, gathered together by a host of trade unions, demonstrated against the current Italian government's move to provide the poor section of Italians with a basic income, labelling the step as "misguided" and insufficient". "If someone governs this country and yet goes as a friend to protesters in another, to them we say if you have a shred of intelligence listen to us in this square: we are the change," Landini further remarked, while referring to the Italian Deputy Prime Minister, Luigi Di Maio's recent meeting with the French Yellow Vest protesters. The labour union also slammed the Italian government for failing to fight corrupt practices, climate change, sexism and racism in the country. Unemployment rates in Italy currently stand at 9.7 per cent - a figure which is the third-highest in the European Union, after Greece and Spain. Youth unemployment, on the other hand, fares worse as 16.7 per cent of Italy's young people were without jobs in 2017. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) South Africa's President, Cyril Ramaphosa, will be taking over as the Chair of the African Union (AU) in 2020 after Egypt's President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi completes his term. The announcement was made on Sunday during the 32nd Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the AU which is underway here. El-Sisi took charge from Rwandan President Paul Kagame on Sunday, during the opening of the summit. "Rwandan President HE @PaulKagame handed over the AU Chairmanship to President Abdul Fattah Al-Sisi of Egypt during the opening ceremony of the 32nd Ordinary Session of Assembly of the African Union. South Africa assumes the AU chairship in 2020. #AUSummit #BetterAfricaBetterWorld," the official Twitter account of South Africa's Presidency tweeted on Sunday. The Chairperson of the AU is the ceremonial head of the bloc, who is elected for the term of one-year. The chair rotates among the five geographic regions of the African Union. Meanwhile, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres put forth the UN's resolve towards the promotion of peace at the session. "There is a wind of hope blowing over Africa. The United Nations is committed to continuing to promote a diplomatic wave for peace. The 'Silencing Arms in Africa by 2020' initiative is an excellent example of the African Union's efforts in this area," he tweeted in French. Ethiopia's last Emperor, Haile Selassie I's, life-sized statue was unveiled at the premises of the AU's headquarters during the session as well. He is deemed to be the founder of the African Union's predecessor, the Organization of African Union. The theme of this year's session is "Refugees, Returnees, and Internally Displaced Persons: Towards Durable Solutions to Forced Displacement in Africa." The two-day AU session is being held in Ethiopia's Adis Ababa on February 10 and 11 this year and has representatives from member-nations in attendance. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Around 75 flights of domestic carrier IndiGo were affected due to hailstorm in northern India recently. In a press statement on Sunday, the company said: "Around 75 flights were affected due to hailstorm and positioning of pilots and crew members." "On last Friday due to severe hailstorm in north India, eleven flights were diverted. Consequently, this disrupted operation across our network the following day." "As a part of recovering our schedule, the positioning of the crew and aircraft had to be readjusted. As result, a number of flights were cancelled. We regret the inconvenience caused to our customers," said the company. Heavy rain and hailstorm in various parts of Delhi and the surrounding states had also affected the normal movement of traffic. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) As many as 13 trains were diverted, short terminated or cancelled on Sunday in the wake of the agitation by Gujjars who have blocked tracks on a section of the North-Western Railway in Rajasthan demanding a higher quota. A senior railway official said, "Many trains have been diverted/short terminated or cancelled today due to the Gujjar agitation between Sawai Madhopur-Bayana section on the North-Western Railway." Meanwhile, the Western Railway has deployed special trains to clear the rush and offer alternate routes to stranded passengers. Sharing the information, the Western Railway tweeted, "Please note. To clear extra rush due to Gurjar Agitation between Sawai Madhopur-Bayana in WCR, WR will run special train from Bandra T for Sawai Madhopur at 20.15 hrs on 10,11,12 and 13 February 2019. The train will depart from SWM at 13.45 hrs for Bandra T on 10,11,12,13 and 14 Feb, 19." On Saturday, a section of the Gujjar community erected tents on railway tracks, a day after staging a 'rasta-roko' dharna on tracks in Rajasthan's Sawai Madhopur district. In an appeal to the community, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has asked them not sit on rail tracks and said they should instead submit a memorandum to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Rajasthan government had on October 26 last year passed a bill which increased Other Backward Classes (OBCs) quota from 21 per cent to 26 per cent. In December 2018, the state government had also approved one per cent reservation for Gujjar and four OBCs. At present, these communities are getting one per cent separate reservation under the legal limit of 50 per cent quota meant for the most-backward category in addition to OBC reservation. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Whos to blame? PAO chief Persida Acosta cites a COA study that shows there was under-distribution or under-supply of measles vaccines from 2014 to 2017 during the watch of then-President Benigno Aquino III. Public Attorneys Office (PAO) chief Persida Acosta on Sunday defended herself against criticism that her statements on the discredited Dengvaxia vaccine had scared parents away from having their children immunized against measles, leading to an outbreak of the disease In an interview on radio dzBB, Acosta said a Commission on Audit (COA) report showed that measles vaccines were under-distributed from 2014 to 2017, probably because of an under-supply. She also said that if the P3.5 billion spent on purchasing Dengvaxia were used to buy proven vaccines, under-distribution would not have been a problem. Its the fault of the Department of Health that there was an under-distribution of proven vaccines because they concentrated on Dengvaxia, she said in Filipino. Acosta also rejected a call by opposition Senator Risa Hontiveros that she resign for contributing to the erosion of public trust in the governments vaccination program. READ: Join fight vs. measles, LGUs told She shouldnt crucify me because it wasnt my responsibility to distribute vaccines in 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017, she said. Meanwhile, party-list Rep. Bernadette Herrera-Dy said airport and civil aviation authorities nationwide must place all airports under the appropriate alert status to detect and contain the spread of measles, after a confirmed case of an infected child returning home to Australia. These protocols would keep measles from spreading to other parts of the country and the rest of the world, she said. The Department of Health in Calabarzon directed all provincial and city health offices to conduct a mass immunization against measles and polio for all children, with priority given to those six months to 59 months old. READ: Measles under control Due to the continuously increasing number of measles-rubella cases, Regional Director Eduardo Janairo said there was a need to immunize all children regardless of whether they had already received the vaccine.We will include children ages 5 years old and above to ensure that everyone will be protected and [to] prevent the spread of measles to the population, he said. The Regional Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit reported that there were 560 measles-rubella cases with 14 confirmed deaths from Jan. 1, 2019 to Feb. 2, 2019. This was 409 percent higher than in the same period last year. Janairo said the mass immunization activity will include house-to-house visits, reading of advisories during church services, distribution of materials on measles vaccination and setting up of injection posts in churches, bus stations, food chains, schools and other public areas. Measles is a highly contagious virus and easily spread to others through coughing and sneezing. Persons infected with measles can spread it to others from four days before through four days after the rash appears. The virus can live in the air for two hours, he said. Measles appears around seven to 14 days after exposure to a person infected with the virus. Among its symptoms are fever, dry cough, runny nose, red watery eyes (conjunctivitis), tiny white spots inside the mouth and skin rashes. There is no cure for measles but it can be prevented through proper immunization of children aged 6 months to 59 months old, Janairo said. A person can receive the vaccine more than twice after 28 days or after a month after receiving it, he added. The DOH official called on parents to have their children vaccinated against measles. It is their only protection against the virus and it is clinically safe and proven effective for many years, he said. In Calabarzon, the province with the highest number of measles cases is Rizal with 226; followed by Laguna with 115; Batangas with 114; Cavite with 87; and Quezon with 18 cases. READ: DOH outlay cut by P14 billion amid measles outbreak Union Minister Smriti Irani, on Saturday, hit out at Congress President Rahul Gandhi for his remark on Indian Air Force (IAF) pilots. Responding to the Congress president's comments that Rs 30,000 crore could be given to families of IAF pilots, Irani said that Rahul Gandhi's remarks indicate the mindset that death can be compensated for money. peaking at an event here, she said: " On Friday, addressing a press conference in New Delhi on the Rafale matter, Rahuk Gandhi had said, "Rs 30,000 crore were given to Anil Ambani's Reliance Defence in the Rafale deal. This could have been given to you (pilots) when you died in a plane crash." The Congress president was referring to a newspaper report which claimed that the Ministry of Defence had objected to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) negotiating with the French government over the price of Rafale aircraft. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Thousands of protesters thronged the streets of Madrid on Sunday, making calls for fresh elections "for a united Spain" after Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez proposed talks to ease tensions in Catalonia. The demonstrations were organised by two centre-right parties, Popular party and Ciudadanos, and far-right Vox Party. Calls for Sanchez's resignation were made by the protesters who collected at the Plaza de Colon here on February 10. "Historical day in the Plaza de Colon. The United Spain has said enough to the blackmail and the cessions before the nationalists. Next stage, 26M. If you do not go, Sanchez stays. #UnidosPorEspana (United for Spain), elections already," Pablo Casado, the President of the People's Party tweeted in Spanish on Sunday. . (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Cancer Institute (NCI) at Badhsa, Jhajjar, in Haryana, from Kurukshetra on February 12 through video conferencing. Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare Minister OP Dhankar on Sunday presided over a review meeting regarding preparations for the inauguration of NCI, jointly with District Administration and AIIMS administration, in Jhajjar. Union Health Minister JP Nadda would be present as the chief guest in the inauguration ceremony of the NCI, Badhsa, said Dhankar, who has directed the officers to make adequate arrangements to make the inaugural ceremony memorable. Prime Minister Modi will also launch the Swachh Shakti-2019 programme from Kurukshetra. This programme is dedicated to women. An official spokesman of the state government said that about 7,500 women representatives from across the country and 15,000 women Panches and Sarpanches from across the state are participating in this programme. Prime Minister Modi had first launched the Swachh Shakti-2017 programme from Gujarat, Swachh Shakti-2018 from Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh and the third Swachh Shakti-2019 programme is being inaugurated from Kurukshetra in Haryana. He will also lay the foundation stone of the Institute of Ayurveda at Shri Mata Mansa Devi Complex, Panchkula, on February 12 at 11 am from Kurukshetra through digital link. The estimated cost of the project is Rs 270.50 crore, and will have 250 beds. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday took a jibe at the Opposition saying although its "political culture" of abusing him may give them an opportunity to avail more space on television, elections are fought on one's vision for the nation. Keeping up his attack on the Opposition, the Prime Minister said that "friends in Opposition" are very funny and are good at spreading panic. "Opposition's political culture of abusing Modi may give them some space in television but the elections are fought on one's vision for the nation, not slander and attack. Friends in the opposition are very funny. They claim that the Modi government is a failure. The opposition still keeps looking to make alliances. This is adulteration. The opposition is only good at spreading panic. Time and again they have tried to mislead the farmers, poor and youngsters of the nation," the Prime Minister said while addressing a public rally here. Referring to Congress leader Sandeep Dikshit's statement where he likened Chief of Army Staff General Bipin Rawat to a "sadak ka gunda (goon on the street)", the Prime Minister lashed out at the Congress by saying that the party did nothing for the Defence sector of the country during the time it had an "opportunity to rule the nation for years". "The Congress never leaves an opportunity to belittle our army. A few days ago, one of the Congress leaders used inexcusable language for the Army chief. Those who got the opportunity to rule the nation for years did not bother about our Defence sector. For them, it was just a sector of deals and supporting their own friends," he said. Mentioning the name of Congress stalwart K Kamraj, the Prime Minister said: "Great K Kamraj always wanted a government in power which has zero tolerance towards corruption. You have placed a government in Delhi who is putting a lock on corruption." Prime Minister Modi said that it was his government that fulfilled the demand of "one rank, one pension (OROP)". He said: "It was our government that had the honour of fulfilling the demand of One Rank One Pension which was pending for decades." "By 2022, we are aiming to achieve housing for all and working in this direction 1.3 crore houses have already been built in the last four years," he added. He further opined that when a nation is healthy, development gains momentum. "Ayushman Bharat - the world's largest and most affordable healthcare programme has been implemented in India. Today the entire world is talking about the development of India. This development is possible due to the strength and skill of the people of India. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The United States and North Korea will be holding the second round of pre-summit talks next week in a third Asian nation, South Korea announced on Sunday. South Korean President Moon Jae-in will be holding discussions with his US counterpart Donald Trump over the latter's impending meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Hanoi, Vietnam on February 27 and 28. The talks are expected to take place over the phone, Yonhap News Agency has reported. "We are going to announce details as soon as preparations are complete," Seoul's Presidential spokesperson Kim Eui-kyeom has been quoted by the news agency, as mentioning. The second round of discussions over Vietnam meeting, however, comes after the US special envoy for North Korea, Stephen Biegun, visited Pyongyang recently. He held the first round of discussions with his North Korean counterpart Kim Hyok-chol during his three-day visit to North Korea, which concluded on Friday. "I heard Representative Biegun received a warm welcome in Pyongyang," the South Korean official stated. "I heard that the North-US talks this time were a useful opportunity where the North and the US talked openly and fully about their specific positions on what they want in a very detailed manner," Eui-kyeom put forth. The second US-North Korea summit is seen as a breakthrough amid the prevailing impasse between Pyongyang and Washington over sanctions, which led to impeded growth in denuclearisation efforts in the Korean peninsula. The recent talks held regarding preparations for the second landmark summit have been hailed by Biegun himself, who labelled his Pyongyang meetings as "productive. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Latin American country has become one of the world's deadliest countries for reporters, after a Mexican radio journalist was shot dead Saturday at a restaurant in Tabasco, in the east of the capital city, the local media reported. The victim, named Jesus Ramos Rodriguez, killed in the town of Emiliano Zapata, had hosted news bulletins on radio for over a decade. Chennel NewsAsia quoted the Mexican newspaper El Universal daily as stating that eyewitnesses had seen the alleged attacker stepping out of a car and started shooting at Rodriguez from a point-blank range more than eight times. The drug war and political corruption in the country have fuelled up violence and crime lately. More than 100 journalists have been reportedly assassinated in Mexico since 2000, with 10 killed last year alone. International non-profit organisation 'Reporters Without Borders' in 2018 had ranked the Latin American country as the third-most-dangerous country for journalists, after Afghanistan and Syria. However, most of the criminal cases in the country are dispersed without proper punishment. Jesus Ramos Rodriguez is the second journalist after Rafael Murua was found dead in a ditch in January. Murua, who had received death threats for his work, was found dead after being reported missing. He had been under the Mexican government's protection program for journalists and rights activists. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Sunday hit out at PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti by saying that the mainstream politicians of Kashmir 'sing the song of Pakistan' when they are out of power, but swear by India when in power. Taking to Twitter, Singh, who is the Minister of State (MoS) in the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), attacked former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti for praising Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan while criticising the governance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in India. "Indeed, how times change! Kashmir mainstream politicians sing the song of Pakistan when they are out of power, but swear by India when in power. Remember, #Farooqabdullah, as CM, frequently advocated the bombing of terror camps in Pak occupied Kashmir," Singh tweeted. . (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Indian Air Force chief Birender Singh Dhanoa will embark on a four-day official visit to Bangladesh on Monday, Defence Ministry said on Sunday. This is a bilateral goodwill visit--from February 11 to 14--to a SAARC nation wherein the IAF chief is scheduled to visit operational and training units of Bangladesh Air Force. According to the statement of Defence Ministry, Air Chief Marshal Dhanoa will also meet the Chiefs of the three Defence Services and the Prime Minister of the People's Republic of Bangladesh. The visit would provide further impetus towards increasing defence cooperation and pave the way for greater interaction between the two countries. "This would also strengthen relationships and enable engagement in productive exchanges between the two Air Forces," said the statement. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The provisions of a humanitarian aid initiated by Washington is a "big lie", Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez said on Saturday (local time), adding that such moves indirectly reflected on the United States' intention to topple President Nicolas Maduro from power. In an interview with the Russian Times, the Venezuelan Vice President said: "This [humanitarian assistance] is a big lie." Addressing the ongoing political and humanitarian crisis in the country, Rodriguez added that Venezuela's social "wounds" resulted due to the economic "blockade" exerted by the US. In order to put an end to the crisis, the incumbent government of Venezuela needs to enter into a dialogue with the Opposition, a move which is impeded by Donald Trump-led US government, the Vice President added to her statement. "We say: 'yes to dialog' and 'no to war'," Rodriguez said, adding that the South American nation has been facing "total political and ideological rejection" by the US and its allies (over the issue) including the member nations of the European Union (EU), Canada, Colombia and many others. Rodriguez said that the humanitarian aid is just an excuse through which the US wants to enter into Venezuela and further create situations of a coup. She also accused the Opposition led by Juan Guaido, who announced himself as the interim President of the country last month, to be acting upon the orders of Washington. "Washington believes that [Venezuelan President] Nicolas Maduro should go. Washington's response is its distorted doctrine of regime change [in] democratic nations that do not like it when someone twists their arms and forcibly interferes into their internal affairs," Rodriguez explained. The Vice President noted that the US is creating a "false positive" impression about its own policies against Caracas, which by no means requires any help from Washington, despite reeling from social and economic problems. Recently, the Venezuelan army had barricaded the Tienditas international bridge on the border with Colombia and blocked trucks and tankers carrying aid from entering into the country. The remarks by the Venezuelan Vice President came after Guaido told AFP last week that he could "authorize" a foreign military intervention into the country to topple President Maduro. According to reports, President Maduro, many times since the crisis began in January has called for dialogue with the Opposition but was turned down repeatedly. Meanwhile, Guaido has been recognised as the legitimate Head of the State by the US and the EU. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Eastern Uttar Pradesh General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Sunday expressed grief over the death of more than 100 people in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh due to illicit liquor consumption and demanded an appropriate compensation and provision of government jobs for kin of the deceased. "I am sad and stunned by the death of more than 100 people in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh due to illicit liquor. This is condemnable. It couldn't have been imagined that the trade of illicit liquor flourished at such a large scale in the two states," Priyanka said in a statement. She further appealed the BJP-ruled governments in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand to take stringent action against all the accused in the case. "It is not possible to imagine that such a big business of illegal liquor is operated in Uttarakhand and the government of Uttar Pradesh. I hope that the BJP Governments will be subjected to take strict action against the criminals and appropriate compensation and provision of government jobs will be made for the families of the deceased. I express my condolences to bereaved families," she said. Etah police today conducted a raid at an illicit liquor production factory near Nagla Madiya village and arrested the manager while three people managed to escape. Around 50-litre illicit liquor was recovered from his possession and was later destroyed by police. Equipment to produce alcohol were also seized from the site. In Saharanpur, locals sat in protest and blocked road against the deaths due to consumption of illicit liquor. One of the protestors said: "Our children should get free of cost education. Women who lost their husbands should be given jobs. Culprits should be given strict punishment." The death toll due to consumption of illicit liquor in Uttarakhand's Roorkee touched 32 on Saturday. Total 31 liquor traders were arrested in connection with the deaths that occurred due to consumption of illicit liquor. 509 quarters of country-made liquor and 91 litres raw liquor were seized from them, said an official. Uttarakhand government has suspended 13 employees of Excise Department including the Excise Inspector of Roorkee region after 70 people lost their lives following the consumption of spurious liquor in the state and Uttar Pradesh. A show cause notice has also been issued to the higher officials of the Enforcement Wing of Excise Department for dereliction of duty. A magisterial inquiry has already been initiated in the hooch tragedy. Meanwhile, as many as 46 people lost their lives in Saharanpur and 10 in Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh after consuming illicit liquor. The authorities also claimed to have seized 965 bulk litre of illicit liquor in just one day (from 8 February to 9 February). Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh Police teams are carrying out joint operations along the UP-Uttarakhand border. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra on Sunday said his department will be fair in resolving the criminal charges filed against Health Secretary Francisco Duque III, over the deaths linked to the Dengvaxia vaccine, despite a Palace pronouncement that the cases against him would not prosper. Guevarra said the charges of reckless imprudence resulting in homicide and violations of the Anti-Torture Act and the Consumer Act against Duque would be resolved based on evidence at hand. The Palace, he added, will not have a hand in the resolution of the charges against Duque and other respondents, including former Health secretary Janette Garin. READ: Garin denies Dengvaxia charges Nonetheless, Guevarra admitted that the President said during a Cabinet meeting on Feb. 6 that the complaints filed against Duque by the families of Dengvaxia victims would not prosper because they involve a battle of medical experts. However, he clarified that the President only said that in response to Duques concern, and said there was no instruction to dismiss the criminal charges against the Health secretary. The President merely expressed a personal opinion in reaction to Secretary Duques statement that PAO chief [Persida] Acosta had relentlessly filed cases against him in connection with the Dengvaxia controversy, Guevarra said in a text message. In fairness to the President, he has never interfered in the discharge of the DOJs functions and responsibilities, including the resolution of the Dengvaxia cases, he added. The DOJ chief said he told the President the Dengvaxia cases before his department would be resolved by this month. I also dont have any hand in the preliminary investigation. My office only steps in when there is petition for review filed before the DOJ challenging the resolution of the investigating prosecutors. Thats the process we follow in DOJ, he said. Earlier, presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo said the President had assured Duque that the cases against him would not prosper. The Health secretary has said the complaints against him lack merit and were meant to distract him from his work of looking after children who received Dengvaxia shots. He also said that Acostas baseless claims and accusations led to a decline in public confidence in vaccines and caused a rise in the cases of measles and other vaccine-preventable diseases.Acosta, on to the other hand, said the Dengvaxia cases have nothing to do with the measles outbreak. The Palace and the DOJ both defended Acosta, saying she is just doing her job of building cases against those liable for the Dengvaxia mess. The allegation against Acosta came after the House Committees on Good Government and Public Accountability and Health recommended the filing of graft, technical malversation and civil charges against former President Benigno Aquino III , former Budget Secretary Florencio Abad, Garin, and several other officials over the dengue vaccination program. READ: Aquino, Sanofi execs rapped over Dengvaxia The DOJ is expected to resolve this month the first batch of cases involving nine schoolchildren of the 32 cases filed so far in the DOJ--Aejay Bautista, Angelica Pestilos, Lenard Baldonado, Zandro Colite, Abbie Hedia, Jansyn Bataan, Mark Axel Ebonia, Rey Justin Almagno, and Alexander Jaime. DOJ has also already completed the preliminary investigation on the second batch of cases involving eight victims--Clarissa Alcantara, Christine Mae De Guzman, Erico Leabres, Roshaine Carino, Naomi Nimura, John Paul Rafael, Michael Tablate and Christine Joy Asuncion. It has just started the preliminary investigation on a third batch of cases involving 13 victims--Wiljen Alcontin, Eleazar Brigoli Jr., Trishanne Asona, EJ Christian Apa, Joanina Cortes, Gladimeir Juevesano, Kianah Mae Racuya, Adeline Castroverde, Jessica Viaros and Senior Police Officer 2 Vicente Arugay; Shiela Mae Guerra and Gillian Vasquez; and Kristen Jean Martira. Two more cases were recently filed with the DOJ involving the deaths of a 39-year-old doctor, Kendric Gotoc, and 12-year-old student Zarah Mae De Luna from Quezon. In all 32 complaints filed so far, Garin and others were accused of negligence for their failure to obtain the consent and inform the Dengvaxia recipients and their parents or families of the dangers and risks related to the vaccine. The complainants cited the failure of the Health department under Garin to conduct proper screening of Dengvaxia recipients and implement active and aggressive monitoring and surveillance. Garin and other respondents have persistently denied criminal liability in the deaths of the schoolchildren inoculated with the anti-dengue vaccine, arguing that the direct link of the deaths to the vaccine has not been scientifically established. Security forces on Sunday gunned down five terrorists and seized a big cache of arms and ammunition from them following an encounter in Kulgam district of Jammu and Kashmir. The gunfight between the terrorists and security forces broke out early this morning in the in Kellam Devsar area in south Kashmir, Army sources said. The identities and affiliation of the terrorists are yet to be ascertained. The police have also requested citizens to not to venture inside the encounter zone citing the possibility of stray explosive materials. Following the encounter locals have resorted to stone pelting in which four CRPF officials have been injured, official sources said. Two terrorists from militant outfit Jaish-e-Mohammed were killed in an encounter with security forces in Pulwama district of Jammu and Kashmir on February 1. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Four foreign nationals were arrested on Sunday in possession of cocaine worth Rs 39 crore. The accused- three Nigerians and a woman from Brazil- used to smuggle drugs to South Africa from Mumbai. They hid the drugs in curtains and sent it through courier, the police said. The courier company is being interrogated by the police. All the accused were produced in court today and sent to seven days police custody. The accused Brazilian woman has already served three years in prison in a drug smuggling case. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The defence corridors in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu will generate 3.5 lakh jobs at their various stages of supply chain, said Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday. "The two defence corridors are expected to generate 3.5 lakh jobs-2.5 lakh in Uttar Pradesh and one lakh in Tamil Nadu at various stages of the supply chain," said Sitharaman in a Facebook post. According to her, investments worth Rs 3,200 crore have already been announced for Tamil Nadu defence corridor, while a defence investors' cell has been set up to ensure speedy development of the corridor in Uttar Pradesh. Talking about improving ease of doing business in the country, she said: "India has made a significant jump of 65 places, from 142 in 2014 to 77 in 2018 in the global 'Ease of Doing Business' Rankings in the last four years." Defence Minister Sitharaman attributed India's improving business milieu to the 'mantra' of 'Reform, Perform and Transform.' "Make in India, the big-ticket policy launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, will turn the nation into a manufacturing hub," she said. "NDA government has promoted the Make in India, especially in defence sector to invigorate the indigenous industry," she said. "The steps to reduce the burden on imports and make India an important player in the global supply chain are already showing great results at the ground level," she said. "A comprehensive approach has been adopted where policy changes and on-ground programmes have simultaneous been implemented with a long term vision to convert India from a defence importer into a defence exporter," she said. The Defence Procurement Policy 2016 has introduced many changes that focus on giving priority to the procurements from Indian manufacturers and service providers. Accordingly, the Central government has taken steps to develop infrastructure and build capacity in various locations across the nation. "Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu defence industrial corridors, as announced by the Finance Minister in his 2018 Budget speech, have been landmark decisions in that direction," she said. The purpose of the corridor is to revive the Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs) and encourage Micro Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSME) to work closely with PSUs for defence indigenisation. "Small businessmen often complain that they still run from pillar to post and wait for days to test components and get them certified before they supply to the assembling units. Defence corridor attempts to change this status quo and encourage private players to venture into the defence sector," said Sitharaman. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday reiterated its commitment to implement the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill. While speaking to ANI, Subramanian Swamy said, "We will make all efforts to implement this bill as it is in the public interest. Around the world, there are only two Hindu countries- Nepal and India. India is much bigger than Nepal thus it is our responsibility to give citizenships to Hindu in the region. Moreover, we are working on this in accordance with the directions of the Supreme Court" The statement from Swamy came just a day after Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma threatened to pull People's Party out of the BJP-led NDA if the Rajya Sabha passes the Bill. This Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2016 was passed in the Lok Sabha on January 8 aims to grant citizenship to non-Muslims from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan who came to India before December 31, 2014. Several organisations have staged massive protests over the Bill asserting that the legislation will create law and order problems in the North East. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The first batch of four Chinook helicopters arrived in the country and are to be deployed on both China and Pakistan borders where they would be used for rapid troop and equipment deployment on the frontiers. The first batch of four of these tandem-rotor planes were offloaded at the Mundra port of Gujarat to be deployed in Chandigarh, Defence officials said. The multirole choppers are likely to be inducted into the Air Force by late February or early March. Though the choppers were being negotiated for by the UPA government for a long time, the final clearance was given by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Cabinet Committee on Security. "The CH-47F (I) Chinooks will be ferried to Chandigarh, where it will be formally inducted in the Indian Air Force later this year," Boeing said in a release. The CH-47F (I) Chinook is an advanced multi-mission helicopter that will provide the Indian armed forces with unmatched strategic airlift capability across the full spectrum of combat and humanitarian missions. The Indian Air Force currently has 15 Chinook helicopters on order. The ahead-of-schedule arrival of the Chinooks validates Boeing's commitment to delivering on its promise of modernising India's defense forces, the firm said. Through its current partnerships with Indian Air Force and Indian Navy, Boeing has ensured a high rate of mission readiness and increased operational capabilities, it added. Boeing has strengthened its supply chain with over 160 partners in India, and a JV to manufacture fuselages for Apache helicopters. Annual sourcing from India stands at USD 1 billion. It currently employs 2200 people in India, and more than 7000 people work with its supply chain partners. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bolivia has rejected self-proclaimed President Juan Guaido's openness towards a US military intervention in Venezuela amid the ongoing political turmoil in the South American nation. "We reject the statements by the self-proclaimed Juan Guaido who welcomes a US military intervention in Venezuela. I wonder what the brother Presidents who recognised him have to say about such incitement to war in Latin America," Evo Morales Ayma, President of Bolivia, tweeted on Sunday. Ayma's statement comes close on the heels of Guaido refusing to completely eliminate the possibility of authorising the United States for a military intervention to oust Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. On January 23, Guaido proclaimed himself to be the President of Venezuela, amid cheering protesters who supported Maduro's ouster. The United States immediately lent their support to Guaido, recognising him as the official interim President, a move which has since been backed by several Latin American and European countries. However, countries like China, Russia, Turkey, amongst others, have slammed foreign intervention in Caracas' internal affairs while supporting Maduro's leadership. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) workers staged a protest on Sunday against the Kamal Nath-led Madhya Pradesh government citing rise of hooliganism and failed law and order in the state. "Madhya Pradesh used to a place of peace during BJP's rule. Congress supporters have started hooliganism now. It is a culture of Congress, people knew it. If the administration does not take action against them, BJP workers will fight against them on the streets." said an agitating BJP worker. The demonstrators were holding banners which read "A protest against the rising crime- killing, robbery, hooliganism and crime against women under Congress government." In January, two BJP workers were killed in the state. Following this, former chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had warned the Congress government in the state that if such incidents are not curbed, the BJP will "come out on the streets. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Congress and left parties are planning to hold protests against Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Andhra Pradesh visit. They have also announced state-wide protests with empty vessels. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit Andhra Pradesh on Sunday. It is the Prime Minister's first visit to the state after the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) pulled out of the BJP-led NDA last year. Earlier on Saturday, anti-Modi posters surfaced in the state. However, it is yet to be ascertained who put up those posters. Some of the posters read '#NoMoreModi #ModiIsAMistake', 'Modi Never Again', among others. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu on Saturday gave a clarion call to his workers to hold Gandhian protests during Prime Minister Modi's visit to the state on Sunday. While speaking to his party leaders through a teleconference, Naidu said: "Tomorrow is a dark day. Prime Minister Modi is coming to witness the injustice that was done to Andhra Pradesh by him. Modi is weakening the states and constitutional institutions. PMO's intervention in Rafael is disrespect to the nation. We will do peaceful Gandhian protests with yellow and black shirts and balloons." The Chandrababu Naidu-led Andhra Pradesh government since long has been demanding implementation of special category status for the state. Prime Minister Modi will address a public meeting titled 'Praja Chaitanya Sabha' at Etukuru bypass road near Guntur city on February 10. To boost energy security of the country, he will dedicate to the nation 1.33 MMT Visakhapatnam Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) facility of the Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserve Limited (ISPRL). ONGC's Vashishta & S1 development project located in the Krishna-Godavari (KG) Offshore Basin in Andhra Pradesh will be inaugurated by the Prime Minister. He will lay the foundation stone for setting up a new terminal of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) at Krishnapatnam. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Veteran actor and director Amol Palekar expressed disappointment at the "constant interruptions" he faced during his speech at a recent event at Mumbai's National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA). Addressing a press conference regarding the controversy along with his wife and "first-hand witness" to the event Sandhya Gokhale, Palekar said he wasn't briefed on the event beforehand. "I was invited as a speaker to the event and everyone saw what happened. I was asked not to speak, and was interrupted in between. The simple thing is, when you invite some speaker you should tell him what to speak about and what not to. Nothing as such was given or briefed to me," he told media present here. Recalling the incident, Palekar said, "I started speaking about NGMA guidelines and the changes that have taken place in it. If speaking about NGMA itself is not relevant I don't understand what is." "The Director was present there and she said that I should have spoken to her before speaking this here. I asked whether my script would be censored before I speak. I even told them that I wanted to thank the Ministry of Culture for the magnanimity of culture for showing this exhibition. She said she doesn't want any backhanded compliment like this and left," he added. "This retrospective will be the last show decided by the advisory committee of local artists and not by some bureaucrat or an agent of the government with an agenda of either moral policing or proliferation of certain art commensurate with an ideological incline," Palekar noted. The 74-year-old had on Friday attended 'Inside the Empty Box', an exhibition held in honour of renowned artist Prabhakar Barwe. While addressing the gathering, he had allegedly criticised the Ministry of Culture for scrapping the local artists' advisory committees at the gallery's centres in Mumbai and Bengaluru. This was interrupted by members present at the event, including artist and former chairman of the advisory committee in Mumbai, Suhas Bahulkar and show curator Jesal Thacker, who asked him to keep his discussion limited to the artist and the exhibition. This, Palekar said, was a form of censorship. A video of the incident has surfaced on social media, which, Sandhya said, was shot by her. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) House committee on appropriations chairman. said Sunday that the(DBM) would be divided among senators and congressmen as a discretionary fund. In an interview on Radio dzBB, Andaya said each congressman would receive P160 million to fund projects and programs for his or her district. Thats true because we agreed that nobody would get a zero allocation, Andaya said in Filipino. He also confirmed that the funds would be taken from the P75 billion insertion by the DBM. Earlier, Senator Panfilo Lacson warned that under the budget deal, there were discretionary funds or pork of P48 billion for the congressmen and P23 billion for the senators. In a privilege speech Friday, Lacson said the pork insertions were the result of connivance of the DBM and the old leadership of the House of Representatives. He urged the President to veto any line item in the budget that looked and smelled like pork. Andaya said he would challenge before the Supreme Court any move by Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno or Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles to restore the P75 billion in insertions in the 2019 budget. In case the two Cabinet members succeed in this evil scheme of vetoing the 2019 General Appropriations Bill to restore the P75-billion insertion, I will join Senators Lacson and [Franklin] Drilon in questioning the veto message before the Supreme Court, he said. It is Congress job to scrutinize the National Expenditure Program as part of its budget authorization function. Now that Congress has fulfilled its job in correcting the P75 billion gaffe, Secretary Diokno, and Secretary Nograles are back at the drawing board to restore it in the 2019 General Appropriations Act via a veto message. This is clear mockery of the power of Congress to scrutinize the budget, he said. He challenged Diokno to stop dropping the name of President Rodrigo Duterte in saying the 2019 national budget was the Chief Executives national expenditure program when the President had nothing to do with the P75 billion insertion. I do not know where Secretary Diokno is getting the gall to call the 2019 NEP with Department of Budget and Managements P75 billion insertion as the Presidents budget. The President is not part of the conspiracy between the DBM and the previous House leadership. It will be a great disservice and disloyalty for a few Cabinet members to drag the President into this mess, Andaya said. He also supported Lacsons view that the P75 billion insertion was a conspiracy between the DBM and the previous House leadership. READ: 'Budget probe not over' My unsolicited advice to Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles, the new spokesperson of DBM Secretary Ben Diokno [is] be careful with the crafting of the veto message for it will just lead back to where it all started. The public never forgets that you were part of the previous House leadership as chairman of the appropriations committee, he said. Opposition Senator Risa Hontiveros, meanwhile, said bullying by the House panel during the bicameral conference committee resulted in the retention of unconscionable or unreasonable amounts of pork in the national budget. In an interview with Radio dzBB, Hontiveros said she wanted to uphold the Supreme Court ruling that declared pork barrel unconstitutional by inserting additional budget for health and other social services instead of putting up discretionary funds. READ: Diokno accused of P40-billion bribe try We tried that in Senate version. So we allocated additional budget for health and social services. But what happened last week, we saw the bullying of the House of Representatives, she said. READ: Congress approves Hontiveros was among those who objected to the pork insertions in the 2019 General Appropriations Act which was ratified Friday. It is currently awaiting signature of President Rodrigo Duterte. But Senator Juan Edgardo Angara said that teaching personnel in state universities and colleges across the country will be able to receive this year part of their long-overdue salary adjustments with the approval of budget that included funding for job promotion. The wait is over, said Angara, vice chairman of the Senate committee on finance and head of the sub-committee that tackled the spending package of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and SUCs, after both chambers of Congress approved the P3.757-trillion budget for this year. Tata Motors aims to export its newly launched electric buses to SAARC countries after winning supply tenders by six state transport undertakings in India. We have made a huge investment in the development and design of our electric buses, which is an indigenous product and conforms to our Made in India commitment, Rohit Srivastava, Tata Motors vice president and head (buses), told Business Standard in Lucknow. We would definitely like to explore the export market for our electric buses, especially the SAARC region, Srivastava said about ... Dear Reader, Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance. We, however, have a request. As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed. Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard. Digital Editor It is not uncommon to see businesses that start out by focussing on selling products or services to other businesses (B2B) to harbour ambition to eventually sell directly to the end user. Going straight to the end consumer or B2C makes immense business sense. You can get immediate feedback from the buyer, sell at a potentially higher profit margin, and have more control over the way you interact with the target audience. All this is, however, easier said than done. The entire organisation and its various processes have to be changed to face and satisfy the new target ... The Palace on Sunday defended President, saying he wanted Congress to make the bill strengthening the. The veto of the bill will give Congress more time and opportunity to improve the formulation of the PCA and the distribution of coco levy funds, said presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo, saying that a new version of the bill should have more safeguards to. The Palace official said the P10 billion annual appropriation for the development of an industry that does not seek approval from the executive branch is susceptible to corruption akin to creating pork barrel funds. The oversight functions over the PCA are placed only with Congress. Specifically, the strengthened PCA bill mentions an oversight to be exercised by the coconut farmers and the industry oversight committee to the exclusion of the executive branch, Panelo said. He also observed that the bill gave the reconstituted PCA functions over the sale, disposition or dissolution ofassets, but did not giveit the power of checks and balances. This would render the Department of Justice powerless over cases involving the coco levy fund, he added. Furthermore, the vetoed bill called for 15-member PCA Board that allows seven members from the private sector to join. The Palace official said such move will permit private persons to influence the disbursement of public funds. The PCA is set up like the Road Board which is heavily criticized for allegations of corruption and misappropriation of funds, he said, maintaining that Dutertes use of veto on the bill was done to promote good governance and public accountability. On Friday, Duterte sent a letter to Senate President Vicente Sotto III and members of the Senate explaining the need to veto the bill, believing that its enactment would be against the full utilization and distribution of coco levy funds to its beneficiaries. The PCA bill is one of the priority bills pushed by Duterte. Under the proposed measure, the reconstituted and strengthened PCA will handle the P100 billion coco levy fund.The reconstituted PCA gives greater representation to farmers with six seats (two each from Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao) in the 11-member PCA Board. Other members will be composed of a representative from the PCA, the Department of Finance, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Budget and Management, and one coconut industry stakeholder. Senators Cynthia Villar and Francis Pangilinan said thewould not discourage them from fighting for the rights of farmers to the coco levy fund, which rightfully belongs to them. In the coming days, I hope to be enlightened more on why the President believes the measure lacked vital safeguards and will work with him to improve this bill, said Villar. Pangilinan said thehas put a cloud of uncertainty on when the countrys coconut farmers would finally be able to benefit from the coco levy fund. It is their money -- from years of toil and sweat, he said. The measure before the President, he said, is not reflective of the farmers sentiments and needs. It has gone through a tedious process of revisions and has lost its soul. However, he said the veto means Congress is back to square one. We urge fellow advocates of the coconut farmers cause to stay the course and again work on the proposed law that would truly be beneficial to the farmers and the industry, he said. READ: Rody vetoes coconut bill for lack of safeguards Dear Reader, Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance. We, however, have a request. As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed. Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard. Digital Editor Latest News Queensland has Australias fastest growing property market They might be losing State of Origin, but there might be some good news for Queensland MFAA reveals top brokers, lenders in Victoria and Tasmania Check out the list of winners in this years MFAA VIC/TAS State Excellence Awards Lenders and aggregators are throwing their support behind the MFAAs recently-launched campaign to defend mortgage brokers. The campaign encourages Australians to search for their MP and write a letter of support for the industry. Non-bank mortgage provider Resimac has backed the Dont Kill Competition campaign which opposes the proposed ban on broker commissions paid by lenders. The industry was shaken last week after the Royal Commission final report was released, recommending the complete abolition of trail commissions followed by the removal of upfront commissions, to switch to a borrower-pays structure. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has said the government will remove trail commissions from 1 July 2020, and hold a review after three years to assess the impact of such a drastic change. Resimac chief executive Scott McWilliam said that mortgage brokers are an essential component of the ecosystem of the mortgage industry. Brokers provide consumers with access to loans from the big banks as well as smaller lenders without a branch network and accordingly stimulate competition within the lending market, he said. The health of the broking sector is vital in achieving the best outcomes for home loan borrowers. The MFAA recently released data showing that 59.1% of home loans were introduced by mortgage brokers, but has warned the broking sector is under threat as a result of the proposed changes. Along with a number of other lenders including the major banks, aggregators and brokerages, Resimac contributed to the Combined Industry Forum (CIF) package released in December, proposing changes to remuneration be made in the interests of the customer. We support the six principles of the CIF package which includes a carefully managed up-front commission structure, McWilliam said. This approach achieves better customer outcomes and improved standards of conduct, while continuing to promote competition in the Australian mortgage market. McWilliam said Royal Commission scrutiny had led to big banks having a greater focus on responsible lending which has resulted in tightening of lending policies. This Royal Commission effect has levelled the playing field by requiring big banks to operate to the more stringent standards already observed by non-banks and smaller mortgage lenders. However, the proposed changes threaten to reduce competition in the mortgage industry, penalising consumers who could end up paying more for mortgages. McWilliam urges lawmakers to think carefully about the consequences of changes. Anything that diminishes competition or reduces consumer access to a wide range of mortgage options would be detrimental to ordinary Australians, he said. Resimac has advised that it will be issuing a communication to its customers to draw attention to the matter, referring them to the MFAA-led petition at www.brokerbehindyou.com.au. Latest News Queensland has Australias fastest growing property market They might be losing State of Origin, but there might be some good news for Queensland MFAA reveals top brokers, lenders in Victoria and Tasmania Check out the list of winners in this years MFAA VIC/TAS State Excellence Awards The Baking Royal Commission findings could lead to an exodus of brokers from the industry, warns one prominent SME advocate. Neil Slonim, from theBankDoctor.org, told Australian Broker that the recommendations handed down by Royal Commissioner Kenneth Hayne on Monday afternoon were a rude awakening for brokers, many of whom were left blindsided by the report. Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Treasurer Josh Frydenberg are poised to accept almost all the reports 76 recommendations, which includes removing trail commissions for brokers from 1 July 2020. Slonim said the shift to a borrower pays system has huge implications for a sector already in turmoil. There are compelling arguments on either side, but bankers need brokers just as much as brokers need bankers, Slonim said. If there are fewer brokers around, potential borrowers will go directly to the banks, but the banks are not sufficiently resourced to handle that level of inquiry. Slonim said this would lead to more potential borrowers not being able to access funds. It would take more time to get decisions, and that wouldnt be good for anyone, he said, adding this could force potential borrowers into the hands of less scrupulous and unregulated lenders. Another concern that Slonim highlighted was how Australian consumers might react to being charged a fee for a service they previously got for free. Whether the bank pays the broker commission or whether the borrower pays fee for service to the broker, the customer ends up paying anyway, Slonim said. Whilst previously borrowers havent been too concerned about trails and upfronts that banks pay to brokers, the reality is that banks build those fees into their overall pricing. One way or another, the borrower pays anyway. Perhaps its better if the borrower knows exactly what theyre paying and to whom, and what theyre getting for it. Slonim said this is also a major change for the brokers who previously havent had to be accountable to borrowers for what theyve earnt. There are many brokers who are now considering whether they should stay in the business. There are many people who became brokers over the last few decades because it was a relatively easy way of making a lot of money, particularly during a housing boom and commissions and trails were paid on value, he said. So, this has been a very rude awakening for the broker community, and it will be difficult for them to digest these recommendations. Deputy Premier Jackie Trad has called on insurance companies to treat people reeling from the devastating floods in Townsville and north-west Queensland with compassion. Ms Trad said reports of conflicts between insurance companies and people affected by floods in Townsville about definitions in their policies filled her with "grave concerns". A man helps strangers remove flood-damaged items from their home in the suburb of Rosslea in Townsville on Thursday. Credit:AAP Image/ Dan Peled She said she was told some insurance assessments had been very "brash and on the spot rather than allowing residents and households to actually compile the information and have a conversation with the insurance companies and claim assessors". Ms Trad said people were crying out for a higher standard of ethics following the royal commission into the financial sector. NSW Labor has unveiled a 10-year plan to provide 600,000 students with free TAFE courses in a bid to reduce skill shortages. The scheme will cover all certificate-level courses in areas where there are skill deficits, such as childcare, aged care and disability care along with apprenticeships in fields such as plumbing and electrical trades. But Labors free training scheme will only apply to courses offered by the governments vocational trainer, TAFE. The states independent Parliamentary Budget Office has put the cost of the plan, which will start in January 2020 should Labor win office, at $64.5 million between its commencement and 2021-22. The Agriculture department on Sunday banned pork and pork products from Japan due to the African Swine Fever. At 12 noon today, I have alerted the Bureau of Animal Industry through [Agriculture] Undersecretary for Policy and Planning Segfredo Serrano to immediately impose a ban on the entry of pork and pork products from Japan following reports of its spread in that country, Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Pinol said on his Facebook page. He said a written directive will be issued shortly, which will be in effect while quarantine officials are validating the reports with the World Animal Health Organization. All quarantine officers in the ports of entry all over the country are directed to implement this directive immediately, Pinol said. The quarantine officers were also advised to review their Quarantine Protocols, including the foot baths installed at the Ports of Entry and the monitoring of all meat products being brought into the country by tourists.According to a report from The Japan News, the ASF virus gene was identified in four separate cases in Japan on Jan. 12 and 16, when it was found in carry-on baggage brought from China at Chubu Airport in Aichi Prefecture and Haneda Airport in Tokyo. The virus is believed to enter countries via international mail and foreign tourists carry-on baggage. ASF is a viral disease that infects pigs and boars but does not infect humans. The virus survives in the bodies of animals for three to six months and spreads via feces and the raw and processed meat of infected animals. It also spreads through watering places and other mediums that have come into contact with infected animals. The union movement will resist a key finding of the banking royal commission, baulking at Commissioner Kenneth Hayne's recommendation that workers should be defaulted only once into a superannuation fund in their lives. The resistance is set to heap pressure on Labor to formally declare its hand on the recommendation months out from a federal election in which it will rely heavily on unions and union-backed industry super funds for support. Unions will lobby for an "auto-rollover" model, which would see workers' funds transferred from super fund to super fund when they changed jobs. Credit:Jessica Shapiro The tension comes as the Morrison government tries to put its superannuation legislation first drafted in 2017 to a final vote in the last sitting weeks before the April budget. The government is banking on Labor's support for changes that would see inactive so-called zombie accounts swept up by the Australian Taxation Office and insurance made opt-in for accounts with under $6000 and for those aged under 25. [Steggall says she wants an orderly end to coal-fired power plants, a focus on renewable energy and the development of new clean technologies.] Abbott insists the Coalition has a satisfactory climate change policy going into this election, though many Liberal MPs are convinced the party needs something new to offer. A big boost to the Abbott-era "Direct Action" fund could be on the cards in the budget. "Its quite possible we might go back to Direct Action and renew the Emissions Reduction Fund," Abbott tells The Sun-Herald and The Sunday Age. "If we have to reduce emissions, I think direct action is the best way of doing it. Tony Abbott meets Joy Latos, who despairs at the campaign to try to oust him from the seat. Credit:Jessica Hromas But Abbott also argues the political potency of the issue is overstated. "If you look at the polls, climate change rates no more strongly today than it did a decade or so back," he says. Instead, the ex-PM is focused on entirely local problems. He has pledged to fight tooth-and-nail to fast-track a proposed tunnel linking the Northern Beaches to the CBD. He has called for a halt to residential developments in the area. And he wants more toilets in Manly. A video of a shirtless Abbott outside a portaloo demanding more public bathrooms for the busy tourist spot attracted howls of derision last weekend. For some critics, it was proof he had failed to deliver for the electorate for the past 25 years. This is the one accusation that genuinely angers Abbott. "That's a smear, that's an absolute smear," he says. He talks proudly about his regular surf patrols, volunteering with the fire brigade and raising money for charity on the annual Pollie Pedal. "Id back my local record against anybody else running in the Warringah campaign," he says. For other critics, the portaloo video triggered something else a feeling that there was something jarring or unbecoming about a former prime minister spruiking dunnies. Abbott's response reveals much about his lack of pretence or ceremony. "Democracy is very humbling, and thats a good thing, not a bad thing. Im not too proud to do all this stuff, and you cant be too proud to do all this stuff," he says. "A lot of politics is very, very basic. People want their potholes filled, they want their rubbish removed. They do not like noisy neighbours having parties all night. And they expect their politician any politician they can get access to to help fix all that stuff. "And sometimes you can and sometimes you cant, but you've always got to be interested in it - because if it interests them, it has got to interest you." A Rhodes scholar, former journalist and keen writer, Abbott is fond of intellectual debates on big-picture issues. He muses about Brexit and opines on the future of conservatism and the centre-right. But all that is secondary, he argues, to the main gig. "The job of being a member of Parliament is not all making great speeches on the great issues of life and death. Its about solving very practical problems as best you can," he says. "But you only get the licence to do the stuff you want to do if you are prepared also to do the stuff that is not necessarily what you want to do, because thats part of the job." Former prime minister Tony Abbott meets voters at Bridgepoint Shopping Centre in Mosman on Saturday. Credit:Jessica Hromas Out and about in Warringah on Saturday, Abbott puts his skills as a political veteran to work. An army of about 50 "Team Tony" volunteers has turned out to knock on doors and hand out flyers on a hot and sunny morning. The squad includes Abbott's sister Christine Forster and her wife, Virginia Flitcroft, as well as Liberal Party federal vice-president Teena McQueen and former Fairfax Media chairman Roger Corbett. Abbott is positioning himself as the financial underdog, asserting: "The big money in this campaign will certainly be with the independents." He says the cash will come from unions, GetUp and "wealthy people with a vested interest in the renewables sector", an undisguised reference to Turnbull's son Alex, a hedge fund manager. In the nondescript malls of Balgowlah and Mosman, the former PM isn't constantly mobbed, but he is always recognised. He encounters a few angry detractors but meets several devout fans who are seething at what they see as an insurgency against their serving member. Graham Kells, a Military Cross winner and chairman of the Mosman Anzac Memorial Hall Trust, can't speak highly enough of Abbott when they cross paths at Bridgepoint Shopping Centre on Saturday. Loading "He's the answer," Kells says. "He's got values and he's got dedication, and he speaks up. He doesn't equivocate. You might not agree with everything he says, but he believes in this country." One area where Abbott's constituents definitely disagree with him is on same-sex marriage. Warringah voted 75 per cent for "Yes" in the postal survey, one of the highest in the country. Abbott has not abandoned his well-known opposition to marriage equality but he is, oddly enough, now taking credit for the result. (His election provided some pantomime as left-winger Gerry Hand yelled out to right-winger McLeay: "Leo, I just wanted you to look," as he forced his own hand to write McLeay on the ballot paper.) The slightly-built, but forthright Mrs Child, who, as you would imagine, needed a piercing voice as a prerequisite for the job ahead of her, made her position clear. No-one who ever came into the House was independent and everyone owed their allegiance to a party. Being impartial and being fair is quite a different thing. The niceties were then over and as soon as Question Time began, MPs started getting that lean and hungry look. Perhaps it had something to do with a 24-hour strike by employees in the parliamentary catering service which denied members and non-members alike the delights of Parliament House food and caused Mrs Child to declare that the House would rise early at 7.30. The Opposition Leader, John Howard, asked the Prime Minister whether the Government would pass on the drop in oil prices to motorists, or did he propose to cheat them? Mr, er Madame Speaker, stumbled the PM, I suppose when it comes to comments about cheating we have the benefit of listening to Australia's number one cheat National Party leader, Ian Sinclair, who'll try anything twice, leapt to his feet suggesting that standing orders demanded that personal references like that should be withdrawn. Joan Child pictured in the Speaker's chair, 1986 Could I suggest to the Right Honourable Leader of the National Party that the phrase was just used to the Prime Minister by the Honourable Leader of the Opposition, Mrs Child boomed. The flowers by now had probably wilted. Firsts are not new to Mrs Child. In 1974 she became the ALP's first woman MHR. It was Labor's first win since 1901 in the electorate of Henty, a middle class area, the centre of which is Carnegie, 8km south east of Melbourne. There is another important first which Mrs Child hopes to see realised within the next few months. Widowed for 22 years, she has five sons and her four grandchildren are all boys. Another grandchild is expected soon and the Child family is hoping for its first, daughter. While federal MPs will have to address a Madam Speaker for the first time in 85 years, Mrs Child commented: "Whats in a name? Everyone calls me Joan, anyhow." Mrs Child, who has been Deputy Speaker for more than a year, says her main job as Speaker will be to keep order. For 97 per cent of the time the House runs peacefully and with good humour, she said. Emotive issues will always come up. Joan Child and Paul Keating in ALP caucus meeting in Canberra, August 18, 1986. Credit:David Bartho "Opposition members can become frustrated and can cause an outburst. I know too well because I have served on the Opposition benches. A Speaker should bring good humour to Parliament and members need to be aware just how far they can go. Mrs Child has faced almost as many elections as she has had jobs since she found herself in the role of bringing up five teenage sons, Peter, now 39, a pharmacist, Andrew, 36, a teacher, Geoff, 35, a computer programmer, Gary, 31, a policeman, and Roger, 29, a builder. She said: After my husband died I became an eight to five factory worker but with cut lunches, leaving before the boys went to school and coming home after them - it didn't work out. "Next I worked part-time in a dress shop and that didn't work out. I began cooking at a geriatric home for 22 elderly people, lots of eggs, cream and baked custard and I was a good cook. "After that I tried to live on a widow's pension. When I couldn't make ends meet I went out to clean houses and that worked better. Life was hard." Mrs Child combined housekeeping with jobs as secretary of a suburban ALP branch, and later as a delegate to the Victorian conference of the Labor Party. She has been winning and losing the seat of Henty for almost 15 years. She first campaigned in 1972 and lost narrowly, gaining a swing of 9.2 per cent when she needed 9.3 per cent. Mrs Child entered Parliament in 1974 when she won Henty in the Whitlam years, lost it in 1975, failed to regain in 1977, won it back in 1980 and she has retained it at the 1983 and 1984 federal elections. A large personally-signed portrait of Mr Whitlam hangs in her electoral office. I loved him. He is a great man. History will record him as a great man, Mrs Child said. Mr Hawke? Politics are different now. There was little notice taken of politics before Mr Whitlams era. Prime Minister Julia Gillard speaks at the State Funeral for The Honourable Joan Child AO, March 5, 2013. Credit:Angela Wylie There was little legislation before his days. He brought excitement to politics. Politics now aren't very exciting. Politics today are a hard slog. Although there was a light-heartedness in the leaders of the Whitlam Government there is nothing gung-ho in todays leaders. ... But Mr Hawke? Whitlam, Mrs Child continued, was a political animal. Mr Hawke never brought his famous larrikinism into Parliament. Mrs Child lives in a Carnegie weatherboard behind a high fence. She has been burgled eight times but says that the only valuables she has are two inexpensive rings which she never takes off and she spends Saturday mornings shopping even though many friends believe groceries fly off the shelves into my home. Her regular relaxation is having dinner parties for which she caters and cooks at home, and a game of cards - conversation whist - which she plays with her family. The independent MPs behind the push to move refugees off Nauru and Manus Island for medical treatment have demanded Labor hold the line in supporting the proposed law as Bill Shorten ponders a politically safe compromise. Kerryn Phelps, the independent MP for the Sydney seat Wentworth, said it would be enormously disappointing if the opposition backed down, while independent senator Tim Storer said voters might wonder what Labor stood for. If Labor does back down now, voters may wonder about the value of its commitments more generally and wonder whether what Labor says before the election is what it would actually do if it comes to power, Senator Storer said. Any softening by Labor would represent a significant win for the Morrison government, which was facing an historic defeat in the House of Representatives this week as Parliament resumes for the year. The current bill before Parliament, which has been the subject of an intensifying political struggle between the major parties, would give doctors and a separate medical advice panel established by the government the power to order the transfer of needy refugees to Australia. Sydney: After several years of negotiations, officials will on Monday sign an agreement for the construction of the Australian Navy's fleet of new submarines. Minister for Defence Christopher Pyne during a visit to the submarine construction yard at Osborne, Adelaide in December. Credit:AAP The federal government announced the signing of the Attack class submarine Strategic Partnering Agreement with French shipbuilder Naval Group. Defence and Naval Group officials have been locked in negotiations for several years to produce the 12 submarines. In December there were reports the $50 billion project could arrive late and cost millions more than expected. The ACT Greens will move amendments to planned reforms to legalise cannabis possession to allow Canberrans to cultivate hydroponic cannabis in their homes, when a bill from Labor backbencher Michael Pettersson is debated this week. The cannabis bill will be one of the top hot-button issues debated when the Legislative Assembly sits from Tuesday for its first fortnight this year, along with proposed changes to tenancy laws, political donations laws and the state of the government's budget. ACT Greens minister Shane Rattenbury. Credit:Alex Ellinghuasen ACT Greens leader Shane Rattenbury said the minor party would pose several amendments to Mr Pettersson's bill including allowing the use of artificial light and methods to grow up to four cannabis plants per adult in Canberra homes. While Labor has largely endorsed the bill, some executive amendments are expected and the Opposition opposes it in its current form. Footage captured of a 59-year-old Balga woman days before she died after she was assaulted has been released in a bid to find out what happened. Police are hoping to get in touch with anyone who witnessed the assault or the passer-by took Louise Langhorn home. Credit:WA Police Louise Allison Langhorn died in hospital last week after receiving injuries believed to have been sustained during an altercation in Balga this month. Sergeant Alice Cockram said Louise Allison Langhorn told police she was assaulted by a group of men on Wednesday, February 6, on Balga Avenue near Redcliffe Avenue. She did not immediately report the assault, but told police about it at a later stage and was admitted to Royal Perth Hospital two days after suffering injuries in the incident. A youthful crowd enjoys a set by Mojo Juju at the St Kilda Festival. Credit:Chris Hopkins The St Kilda Festival drew more than 400,000 people to the foreshore on Sunday, organisers have said - more than the population of Canberra. With its main roads - including Fitzroy and Acland streets, Jacka Boulevard and The Esplanade - all closed to traffic, the bayside suburb was heaving in a sea of humanity. And when legendary local band Cat Empire took to main stage, one thing was clear: the turnout was staggering. Too large to be contained at the main stage, the crowd spilled onto the road with hundreds dancing in the street to the band's funky Latin, ska, reggae and jazz inspired tunes from its near two-decade repertoire. That's it from us this morning. Check back in later for news from the aged care royal commission, which starts in Adelaide today. We'll be back bright and early tomorrow. Be kind to each other. A four-year-old girl is fighting for life after she was rushed to a Brisbane hospital in critical condition with head injuries following in a crash on Sunday. A woman was also injured in the collision, which happened when a Honda turned right across the road when a Subaru was approaching at Chambers Flat Road in Park Ridge in Logan about 2.20pm. A 30-year-old woman was driving the Honda, with her daughter and infant son. The baby boy suffered serious chest injuries. Paramedics, including a high-acuity response team member, took the children to the Queensland Children's Hospital. Other times the strangers have yelled "There's no room for you here," or thrown rubbish at her. "Go back to your country," yelled a stranger, the insult spat with hatred from the mouth of a stranger as their car zoomed by a schoolgirl walking home. The 23-year-old refugee has created E-Raced, an NGO with a team of more than 20 volunteers who have come from countries such as Syria, Iraq, Rwanda and South Sudan, as well as Indigenous Australians, who visit schools in rural and regional areas. They tell their stories, answer questions and break down barriers. Ms Melom, who is in her third year of a law degree, said she felt racism could be driven by a lack of awareness and understanding. "I thought if maybe people in my community or young people in general have the opportunity to meet people who have gone through that journey and have had that experience and just hear their stories, then maybe it would change their mindset and perspective on refugees and migrants arriving in Australia," she said. "Having that face-to-face interaction ... meeting the person for yourself and getting to know them and realising that they are also humans and they also want to be accepted and feel welcome in their community." A man in his 20s is fighting for life after he had to be cut from his vehicle, which had rolled over in Central Queensland. Police said the man was driving a car on Red Rover Road at 2pm on Saturday when it rolled and left the roadway in Gladstone, about 107 kilometres from Rockhampton. An RACQ Capricorn Helicopter Rescue Service spokeswoman said it appeared the four-wheel-drive vehicle left the road and slammed into a culvert where it came to rest. RACQ Capricorn Helicopter Rescue Service airlifted the man to hospital on February 10 after a crash at Gladstone in Central Queensland. Credit:RACQ Capricorn Helicopter Rescue Service He was initially flown to Rockhampton Hospital in a serious condition. Seventy years since its Broadway debut, Death of a Salesman still has words of wisdom for fathers and sons in the #MeToo age, says the Queensland actor taking on the lead role of Willy Loman. Peter Kowitz, one of Australias most accomplished actors on stage and screen, said the play's protagonist struggles to raise his sons because his own father walked out on him at a young age and so he drills a misguided belief system into his own children. Death of a Salesman, featuring Peter Kowitz, is part of the 50th anniversary season at Queensland Theatre. Credit:Tim Jones Photography Arthur Millers classic play has been revived four times on Broadway and been adapted for cinema and television, but the Queensland Theatre production is going to be "a pretty bloody good one", according to Kowitz. "Its a great play ... but I think what were discovering at the moment with the play, which I think is relevant to this time and to what's going on in the world with the #MeToo movement, is that for me ... it's about fathers and sons," Kowitz said. Police are searching for the driver of a car that crashed in Sydney's south-west and damaged train signalling equipment, causing delays across the Sydney Trains network on Monday morning. The Honda Accord crashed through the boundary fence at the intersection of Romilly Street and Broadarrow Road in Riverwood at 1.55am, damaging the signal box. A car crash at Riverwood has damaged train signalling equipment. Credit:Sydney Trains Sydney Trains said crews were on site to keep services running on time, but some T8 Airport Line services were experiencing delays. Earlier in the morning, the incident was also expected to affect some T3 Bankstown and T2 Leppington and Inner West line services. The owners of a sprawling housing estate in Sydney's west are being ordered to probe for a potential leak of chemicals - more than three years after the possible contamination risk to thousands of residents was first recognised. Since 2015, Ford Motoring Company has suspected chemicals, including ammonia, could have spread from a former waste dump at its old factory to the residential precinct at Centenary Park in Homebush West. Centenary Park apartments overlook the former landfill site used by Ford motoring company. The fenced-off site was remediated in the 1990s. Credit:James Brickwood But the extent of any contamination, or any safety risk to the thousands of residents, remains unknown. That is because Ford and the developer, Telmet Ventures, have not agreed for Ford to have access to test for the presence of any chemicals on the site. In the golden age of animal collecting, and also of taxidermy and photography, a sunfish weighing 1116 kilograms discovered grounded in mud at Darling Harbour in December 1882 was an opportunity too good to miss. Time was of the essence. It needed to be preserved before it began to rot and smell in the heat of a Sydney summer. Taxidermists at the Australia Museum knew what to do. The following year the specimen went on display having been preserved and hoisted using pulleys through an upstairs window. Bump-head sunfish, Mola alexandrini, captured in Darling Harbour in December 1882. Credit:Australian Museum Conservators brought it out of storage in 2016 and found it stuffed with 'the equivalent of 25 large refuse sacks of wheat straw, a broken chair and scraps of The Sydney Morning Herald from January 26, 1883. A new exhibition entitled Capturing Nature at the Australian Museum, and book of the same name, celebrate those pioneering days of wet plate photography between 1857 and 1893 in an era when new discoveries of Australian fauna were captivating the imagination of the international science community. There are few things as honorable as the philanthropic pursuit of ocean research, and for that we salute Fortescue Metals chairman Andrew Forrest. But we couldnt help but wonder exactly what type of ocean science was being conducted on his 56-metre Pangaea Ocean Explorer deepwater marine research vessel, launched at great fanfare six months ago as part of the billionaires $100 million research announcement. Andrew Forrest's deepwater research vessel sported a major slide late last month. Credit:Illustration: Matt Golding Twiggys luxury research craft was last month spotted off the coast of Dunsborough, in Geographe Bay south of Perth, fully equipped with a very scientific four-storey slide. Was it, as one Sydney-based funds manager asked, in aid of an important study into the velocity of extremely wealthy mining magnates descending into shark-infested waters? I've never seen anything like it: one minute we're hand feeding cattle in drought conditions, the next they're getting washed down the road. Justin Orr Mr Orr had just driven home from work in Bungendore on Tuesday when the rain hit, as it got heavier he decided to go check in on the 80-plus black angus cows he has on his farm. He found some on the edge of the water and had to start pushing them up hill when he got a call from a neighbour. "He said, 'You've got stock tangled in the fence down the bottom drowning'," Mr Orr said. Mr Orr's farm covered in water during Tuesday's heavy rain near Murrumbateman. Credit:Justin Orr Justin Orr's horse could only stand as it waited for the flood conditions to subside. Credit:Justin Orr Too busy pushing the other cows uphill, Mr Orr said he couldn't get there in time. It's then when his neighbour told him they'd broken through that fence, and pushed across the road into his neighbours fence. "Then I heard a scream of delight from his daughter on the other end saying 'They're swimming, they're swimming'," Mr Orr said. They had broken through his neigbour's fence. When it was all over, Mr Orr said he was lucky he only had to euthanise one cow but with no ground to feed them or fences to contain them, he's had to quickly sell them at a low price. His horse had also luckily survived; caught in the water, the horse could only stand there and wait for the conditions to ease. "It got a bit heartbreaking," Mr Orr said. "You think you just got it to a place saying 'I'm there, we can just tick along' and then something like this happens." A photo of Glengyle Road during the rains on Tuesday. Credit:Justin Orr But as bad as it is for Mr Orr, he said other farmers in that small patch around Murrumbateman had fared worse. One of his neighbours had 600 acres of field washed away after he'd just ploughed it for oats. Bureau of Meteorology meteorologist Rebecca Farr said nearby Young had recorded 72mm of rain from the slow moving storms moving across the region on Thursday. She said the nature of thunderstorms meant you could see heavy rainfall in one area and next to nothing in another nearby. Mr Orr's plight shows just how patchy the recent weeks of rain around the Canberra region had been. Out east in Braidwood, Ian Cargill - who spoke to The Canberra Times about the drought conditions early last year - said the recent weeks of rain had helped. The streets of Braidwood itself had received 100 millimetres of rain on Thursday as water lapped at the doors of shops, but just five minutes out of town, Mr Cargill said he'd only had about 50 millimetres. "I took a quick drive around this morning and saw some dams full that I haven't seen full for two years," Mr Cargill said. "We're not out of the woods but it's a lot more positive than it was 12 months ago, I can tell you." Grants, subsidies and feed had helped take the pressure off Mr Cargill but even then, when he normally would be selling 1500 lambs, this season he could only sell 400. "It's a fair whack of our income," he said. In addition to the breathtaking famous opening from trumpeter Ben Elton, and carefully paced cohesive dynamism from conductor and SSO Artistic Director David Robertson, the performance excelled in intimate instrumental exchanges such as the duet between violin and cor anglaise (Alexandre Oguey) and beautifully couched solo from violinist and concertmaster leader Andrew Haveron. The Sydney Symphony began its 2019 season with music that begins in primeval dawn and leads to a superspecies transcending human superstition and intellectual feebleness. No pressure. An intimate evening with Brahms. Sydney Philharmonia Choirs. City Recital Hall. February 8. Two and a half stars. Conductor David Robertson in rehearsal with the SSO. Credit:Wolter Peeters In a welcome rehearing of Nigel Westlakes well-structured Oboe Concerto Spirit of the Wild, SSO principal oboist Diana Doherty gave an utterly compelling performance from memory of the solo part. From first note to last, playing from memory, she held the line of musical concentration through subtle nuance, deft virtuosic agility and that indefinable element of unmediated engagement with musical thought that always draws listeners in. Much of the wildness is in the ever-changing rhythmic energy, the exotic bird-like utterances that Doherty captured so imaginatively and the depth of sentiment in the haunting song that makes up the slow middle section. Percy Graingers The Warriors: music for an imaginary ballet (1913) also aims to capture wildness though more in the spirit of a pageant of brightly bedecked male and female protagonists in a parade of primitivism staged to excite the Western gaze. It provided an extrovert conclusion to a high energy concert. As the #MeToo movement unfurled, I watched in horror but not surprise as right gave way to might. This was hashtag politics, after all, and what began as a much-needed wake-up call quickly became the baying of the mob. Rumours circulated, allegations followed and heads began to fall at a rate of knots, all before the law could get a look-in. It soon became clear that the hordes of the digitally equipped righteous weren't interested in legal justice: they wanted nothing less than a total moral cull, enacted through the terrifying dynamics of virtual stoning. Liam Neeson addresses his controversial interview on Good Morning America. Credit:ABC Loading A few brave souls including writers Margaret Atwood, Germaine Greer, and Lionel Shriver wondered out loud what had happened to due process. In a powerful moment of feminist dissent, Atwood voiced concerns about the treatment of the Canadian creative writing professor, Steven Galloway, who was dismissed from his post at the University of British Columbia following allegations of sexual misconduct. "Temporary vigilante justice can morph into a culturally solidified lynch-mob habit," she noted, warning that legal justice was being "thrown out the window" and "extralegal power structures" put in their place. The cost of defending due process in the face of hashtag outrage has been made clear. So I was heartened last week to read that due process still has its fans. Speaking at the Berlin film festival, where she is head of the jury, the beautiful Juliette Binoche went so far as to wish for the end of mob rule on Harvey Weinstein, #MeToo's first and biggest monster. She suggested that even in his despicable case, the court of public opinion, and the punishments it metes out, should now be suspended to make way for quieter, more sober legal justice. "A lot of people have expressed themselves," said Binoche. "Now justice has to do its work." A United Nations agency has expressed alarm over the measles outbreak across the Philippines. Unicef cited recent reports from the Department of Health and the World Health Organization that showed there were more than 20,000 measles cases in the country as of December 2018, a 500 percent increase from last year. From May 2017 to April 2018 globally, the Philippines ranks among the top 10 countries with the highest incidence of measles, along with Nigeria, Pakistan and the Democratic Republic of Congo. An estimated 2.5 million Filipino children from under five were not vaccinated with the measles vaccine remain at risk of getting the disease. Measles is a serious and highly contagious disease. Population immunity can be achieved by 95 percent or higher coverage and outbreaks prevented, Unicef said. Unfortunately, coverage for routine immunizations in the Philippines is only 55 percent. If not prevented, measles can cause serious complications including infection of the brain, severe diarrhea and dehydration, pneumonia and ear infections and even death. Measles survivors are often left with life-long disabilities, such as blindness, deafness and brain damage. Vaccinations to prevent measles is available free of cost in government health centres. The measles vaccine is safe and effective and had been successfully used in the Philippines for more than 40 years now. Measles in children is deadly and can cause long-term complications and disabilities which can seriously impede development and potential in our children, UNICEF Philippines Deputy Representative Julia Rees says, I urge parents and communities to take their children to the health center to be immunized.The Philippines, as a signatory to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, is mandated to give children the best health care possible, including vaccination against childhood diseases. The Republic Act 10152 or the Mandatory Infants and Children Health Immunization Act states that mandatory basic immunization shall be given for free at any government hospital or health center to infants and children up to five (5) years of age. Falling short of utmost efforts to urgently increase vaccination coverage and identify populations with unacceptable levels of under, or unimmunized children, we risk losing decades of progress in protecting children and communities against this devastating but entirely preventable disease, according to the World Health Organization. UNICEF said it is fully committed in supporting the Philippine government to fight measles by ensuring that vaccines are available. We also provide technical assistance to improve coverage of routine immunization and supplemental immunization activities and improve public awareness on measles vaccination, Rees said. We call on parents and caregivers to bring their children to the nearest health center to have their children vaccinated and ensure that they receive at least 2 doses of measles-containing vaccine. Children with severe symptoms should see a barangay health worker or midwife as soon as possible, however, to prevent spreading the infection at the health facility, children without severe symptoms may be better taken care of at home, Rees said. The start of a new school year is a time of excitement and curiosity as new students, parents and teachers wonder what they can expect from the classroom. More broadly, there are a lot of questions about what's in store for the education sector as new teaching methods emerge and ever-present technological disruption and innovation continues. We spoke to some industry experts about what we can expect to see in education in 2019. Focus on mindfulness and mental health Already on the rise, mindfulness and mental health programs are looking like becoming a regular fixture in a lot of classrooms this year. Organisations such as Smiling Mind, Trinity Kids and The Resilience Project are equipping teachers with apps, activities, talks, music and meditation to help children face the mentally rigorous world of school. Being a digital business is just a part of doing business according to Jen Geale, the co-founder of Mountain Bikes Direct. Geale and her co-founders started the online bike business after running a local bike shop in Brisbane. Jen Geale, co-founder of Mountain Bikes Direct. Credit:Lachlan Ryan "We saw people shopping on line and we wanted a piece of that pie," she told the Oracle and Netsuite Suiteconnect conference in Sydney last week. Mountain Bikes Direct has operated online since it first launched in 2012 and digital transformation hasn't really been on the agenda. Want to praise someone or get something off your chest? Darts and Pats is the place to do it. Bulgarian officials say they will investigate reports about a third suspect in last year's nerve agent poisoning of a Russian former spy in Salisbury. The man linked to the poisoning of Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia, has also allegedly been involved in a 2015 poisoning in Bulgaria. Tsvetan Tsvetanov of the ruling GERB party told the TV channel on Sunday that Bulgaria's intelligence services will present evidence at a hearing soon before the parliamentary committee on homeland security. The hearing follows a report by the investigative group Bellingcat, which says an alleged Russian GRU military intelligence agent arrived in Bulgaria in April 2015, just a few days before Bulgarian businessman Emilian Gebrev was poisoned by an unidentified substance. Mr Gebrev, a key executive in the country's arms industry, survived the attack, but authorities still do not know who poisoned him. Bellingcat said on its website that the 45-year-old agent, who travelled under the alias Sergei Vyacheslavovich Fedotov, had been "conclusively identified as an agent of Russian military intelligence", or GRU. Bellingcat said Fedotov is also suspected of being involved in the Novichok nerve-agent poisoning of Mr Skripal in March 2018, having arrived in Britain two days before the attack. Both Skripals survived but spent weeks in the hospital and are now at an undisclosed location for their own safety. British officials have blamed the attack on the GRU, and charged two Russian suspects, who travelled under the names Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov. The men, and Russian authorities, deny involvement in the poisoning, and Moscow refuses to extradite them to Britain. The Skripal poisonings set off a wave of recriminations between Britain and Moscow, prompting dozens of envoys to be expelled. Mr Tsvetanov, a former Bulgarian interior minister, said that the new probe was being co-ordinated with foreign partners. "I am certain that the necessary co-ordination has already been set up between the Bulgarian, British and European authorities on the case and they are working actively on it," he told reporters. - PA Update: Gardai have confirmed that a man plucked from the River Erne in Ballyshannon, Co Donegal today (Sun) has died. The man had been rushed to Sligo University Hospital by ambulance after he was spotted by a passer-by the water in the Ballyshannon estuary just after midday. However, he was later pronounced dead. Gusts could reach more than 110 kilometres an hour in parts of the country this afternoon. Met Eireann has issued a status yellow wind warning for Donegal, Galway, Leitrim, Mayo, Sligo and Clare. A man is in hospital after being seriously assaulted in Co. Kerry this morning. The man in his early 30s was attacked in The Square in Killorglin at around 2.20am today. Update: One of the groups that protested outside the home of Health Minister Simon Harris today has said the action was held to make Mr Harris "accountable for the damage he is inflicting on the Irish working class". Members of the Anti Eviction Flying Column joined the Fingal Battalion Direct Action Group, and Wicklow Says No for the silent, peaceful protest at Mr Harris' home. Minister Harris was inside with his wife and three-week-old baby at the time this afternoon. The group said: "Simon Harris and the rest of the Free State Administration are waging a class war against the Irish people and are facilitating the attacks on working-class families and our homes by Imperialist Vultures. "For too long the Free State has been allowed to get away with such actions unchallenged, but no more. "Today was the start of a campaign to bring it to the doors of all those waging a war against the Irish working-class - Free State Politicians, Landlords, Bankers, Sherrifs, and anyone else who lines up against our class. "So long as you come to our doors- we can come to yours. "The working class is getting organised - the people are ready to fight back. The Free State's days are numbered." Earlier: Health Minister thanks Gardai after they move protestors from outside his Wicklow home Gardai were called to the house of Health Minister Simon Harris after a group of protesters gathered outside there this afternoon. Minister Harris was inside his home along with his wife and his three-week-old baby as around 20 people protested outside. A spokesperson for the Minister confirmed the incident saying: "The Minister, his wife and three-week-old daughter remain inside while they await the arrival of the gardai." A Garda spokeswoman has confirmed that officers were at the minister's Wicklow home. The protesters, who are believed to be protesting "against austerity", have since left the scene peacefully and Gardai say enquiries will be carried out. A spokesman for Mr Harris added: "The incident has now concluded. The Minister would like to thank An Garda Siochana for their assistance and in ensuring his wife and daughter's safety. "He has no further comment to make at this time." It comes after he faced accusations that he misled the Dail on the cost of the National Children's Hospital which will cost 450m more than originally planned. His department is also under pressure as nurses staged strikes over pay. A special mass and wreath laying ceremony will take place for the victims of the Stardust fire in Dublin today. The mass marks the 38th anniversary of the tragic event which occurred in Coolock. TORONTO - The U.S. ambassador to Canada said Saturday her country is "deeply concerned" about China's "unlawful" detention of two Canadians. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 10/2/2019 (864 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. GRAHAM HUGHES / THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES Kelly Craft, United States Ambassador to Canada, speaks to the Montreal Council on Foreign Relations in Montreal, Tuesday, April 17, 2018. TORONTO - The U.S. ambassador to Canada said Saturday her country is "deeply concerned" about China's "unlawful" detention of two Canadians. Ambassador Kelly Craft said in a statement to The Associated Press the arrests of ex-diplomat Michael Kovrig and entrepreneur Michael Spavor are "unacceptable" and urged China to end the arbitrary detentions. It is her first public comments on the cases. China detained the two Canadians on Dec. 10 in an apparent attempt to pressure Canada to release Chinese executive Meng Wanzhou, who was arrested Dec. 1 at the request of U.S. authorities. Meng is the chief financial officer of the Chinese tech giant Huawei and the daughter of its founder. The U.S. wants her extradited to face charges that she committed fraud by misleading banks about Huawei's business dealings in Iran. Craft said the U.S. Department of Justice's criminal case against Meng is based solely on the evidence and the law. "The United States appreciates Canada's steadfast commitment to the rule of law," she said. Craft made no mention of China's planned execution of a third Canadian. China re-sentenced a convicted Canadian drug smuggler to death after the Meng arrest as part of an apparent campaign of intimidation and retribution against Canada. Some analysts have said the U.S. response to China's arrests of the two Canadians has been muted. President Donald Trump himself has not commented on the Canadians. But U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has, saying China ought to release them. White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders and the State Department have also issued statements of support. "We urge China to end all forms of arbitrary and unlawful detentions and to respect the protections and freedoms of all individuals in accordance with China's international commitments," Craft said. Robert Bothwell, a professor at the University of Toronto, called Craft's statement "tepid." "It doesn't bespeak ringing support," Bothwell said. Beijing threatened grave consequences for America's neighbour and ally after Meng was arrested at Vancouver's airport. Canada has embarked on a campaign with allies to win the release of Kovrig and Spavor and many countries have issued statements in support. The two were detained on vague allegations of "engaging in activities that endanger the national security" of China. They remain locked up without access to lawyers. Meng is out on bail in Canada and living in one of her two Vancouver mansions awaiting extradition proceedings. Despite the escalating frictions resulting from the detentions, trade talks between Beijing and the Trump administration remain ongoing. The U.S. has taken pains to emphasize that their trade talks are entirely separate from the U.S. case against Meng. They have been doing so since Trump said in an interview that he might be willing to drop the charges against Meng as part of a trade deal with China. Trump's comment frustrated Canadian officials who have been adamant Canada is following the rule of law and that Canada has an extradition treaty it must respect. A Canadian judge could deny the extradition request if it the charges are deemed political. "The next time the U.S. asks Canada will be hard of hearing," Bothwell said. "Trouble with Trump and company is that they are entirely transactional. They don't think ahead. And in this case Trump's own words will probably be enough to get the U.S. extradition request denied." OTTAWA - Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer has written directly to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asking him to waive solicitor-client privilege so former attorney general Jody Wilson-Raybould can publicly talk about what happened with SNC-Lavalin. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 10/2/2019 (864 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer holds a press conference on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick OTTAWA - Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer has written directly to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asking him to waive solicitor-client privilege so former attorney general Jody Wilson-Raybould can publicly talk about what happened with SNC-Lavalin. The request is contained in an open letter dated Sunday, in which Scheer says he also wants all communications to or from the prime minister or members of his staff about the criminal prosecution of SNC-Lavalin to be opened up to public scrutiny. "Solicitor-client privilege and the duty of confidentiality are important values in our legal system," Scheer wrote. "But in the present situation, they must be subordinated to a higher value: the confidence of Canadians in the integrity, fairness and impartiality of our criminal justice system." The request follows a Globe and Mail report last week that members of Trudeau's office leaned on Wilson-Raybould to have federal prosecutors negotiate a "remediation agreement" with SNC-Lavalin rather than move ahead with a criminal prosecution. The Quebec engineering and construction giant has faced legal trouble over allegations it paid millions of dollars in bribes to get government business in Libya, which would be a crime under Canadian law and threaten its ability to win future federal work. Wilson-Raybould, who was demoted from her role as justice minister and attorney general last month, has said she cannot comment because in her role as the government's top lawyer, she is bound by solicitor-client privilege. Government officials have acknowledged that Wilson-Raybould was involved in extensive, internal discussions last month about whether SNC-Lavalin should be allowed to avoid criminal prosecution. But they maintain there was nothing wrong with that, while Trudeau has publicly denied he or anyone in his office "directed" the minister on the matter. Wilson-Raybould's refusal to comment has nonetheless added fuel to the political fire, sparking opposition demands for transparency and accusations of government interference in a criminal case. In his letter, Scheer said Canadians deserve answers "as the allegations surrounding it strike at the very heart of fair and impartial law enforcement and prosecutorial functions, themselves vital to the rule of law and to our democracy." NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh made a similar demand Sunday while campaigning in the B.C. riding of Burnaby South, saying in a statement: "Canadians want the whole truth, and so I'm asking Mr. Trudeau to waive his government's solicitor-client privilege regarding SNC-Lavalin." The Prime Minister's Office did not respond to questions Sunday, but a Toronto Star report cited unnamed senior government officials as saying the privilege would not be waived because the case against SNC-Lavalin remains before the courts. One senior official also reportedly told the newspaper that the government would not agree to Opposition demands for an emergency meeting of the House of Commons justice committee to hear from Wilson-Raybould and members of Trudeau's staff. Parliamentary committees are supposed to be masters of their own domain because of their role in holding the government to account. The chair of the committee, Liberal MP Anthony Housefather, stated on Twitter on Sunday that "nobody has attempted to influence me" about the opposition's attempts to hold hearings on SNC-Lavalin. "I intend to independently determine whether committee study of the issue will be useful for Canadians (and) colleagues will do same," Housefather wrote, adding the committee will convene on Wednesday to discuss the issue. Liberal MPs nonetheless have a majority of members on the committee, meaning they could move to block any opposition request to conduct a probe. Current Justice Minister and Attorney General David Lametti, who replaced Wilson-Raybould, told CTV's Question Period in an interview broadcast Sunday that he did not believe there was any justification for a committee hearing into the matter. "All we've heard are allegations in a newspaper," said Lametti. "The prime minister has said that these allegations are false. We haven't had any corroborating evidence there. There hasn't been anything to my mind that justifies a committee investigation." Wilson-Raybould, now veterans affairs minister, released a statement on Friday saying she is bound as the former attorney general by solicitor-client privilege and cannot publicly talk about aspects of the case. SNC-Lavalin has been charged with bribery and corruption over its efforts to secure government business in Libya and wants a deal, allowed under the law, to pay reparations rather than be prosecuted. A guilty verdict on bribery and corruption charges would result in SNC-Lavalin being barred from government contracts in Canada for 10 years. Officials have said it could also cause foreign government contracts to dry up, potentially putting it out of business. Consequently, they said, it was natural for internal discussions to have taken place after the director of public prosecutions, Kathleen Roussel, informed SNC-Lavalin last October that a remediation agreement would be inappropriate in this case. The company is challenging her decision in court. SNC-Lavalin has heavily lobbied ministers, government officials and even Scheer and Singh to make its case for avoiding a prosecution. Quebec Premier Francois Legault has also pressured Trudeau to intervene on the company's behalf. Scheer's office confirmed to the Star on Sunday that the Conservative leader met with the head of SNC-Lavalin last year to discuss the case against the company and a possible remediation deal. Scheer's spokesman Brock Harrison did not respond to emails. Under the law, the attorney general may issue a directive to the director of public prosecutions on how to handle a specific case, provided the directive is in writing and made public. Follow @leeberthiaume on Twitter. REGINA - Legal experts, government officials and industry leaders will all watch this week as Saskatchewan and Ottawa head to court over the constitutionality of a federally imposed carbon tax. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 10/2/2019 (864 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe speaks to the media at the First Ministers conference in Montreal on December 7, 2018. Legal experts, government officials, industry leaders -- and maybe even the public -- will watch this week as Saskatchewan and Ottawa head to court over the constitutionality of a federally-imposed carbon tax. The federal government is set to impose a carbon tax on provinces that do not have one of their own starting in 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz REGINA - Legal experts, government officials and industry leaders will all watch this week as Saskatchewan and Ottawa head to court over the constitutionality of a federally imposed carbon tax. The federal government is set to impose a carbon levy on provinces that do not have one of their own starting in April. Ottawa's price on pollution starts at a minimum of $20 a tonne and rises $10 annually until 2022. The Saskatchewan Party government has always been opposed to the idea. The province says the tax would hurt the economy and feels its own plan for emissions reductions is sufficient. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has promised that most of the money from a national carbon price will be returned to Canadians through rebates and that it's a necessary mechanism to fight climate change. The Saskatchewan government has asked the province's Appeal Court to rule on whether a federally imposed tax is constitutional and two days of hearings are to begin Wednesday. "There's no question that it's a monumental decision in the life of the Canadian Constitution," said University of Alberta law professor Eric Adams. "The court hasn't yet grappled explicitly with climate change as the background context to a constitutional question." In court filings, both Canada and Saskatchewan point to the Constitution to show that neither the province nor the federal government has explicit control over the environment, but that it overlaps both jurisdictions. But Saskatchewan argues a federally imposed carbon tax is "constitutionally illegitimate" because it only applies to some provinces. "Under our Constitution the federal government has no authority to second-guess provincial decisions with respect to matters within provincial jurisdiction," court documents filed by the province say. It also cites part of a 2017 legal opinion released by Manitoba, which last year pulled out of the federal plan. Legal expert Bryan Schwartz concluded that there's a strong chance the Supreme Court of Canada would uphold a federal carbon tax. But the law professor from the University of Manitoba said a "credible" yet "untested" argument could be made about how such a measure is applied. Schwartz wrote that a case could be made that Ottawa would be "arbitrarily denying" Manitoba authority to deal with emissions reductions in its own way. Ottawa argues climate change is a national concern and the federal government's power to impose a carbon tax comes from Section 91 of the Constitution, which states laws can be made "for the peace, order and good government of Canada." Adams said that branch of jurisdiction is not often cited in constitutional disputes because it's difficult for courts to define the limits of a "national concern." Arguments are to be heard before a panel of five judges. There are also submissions from 16 interveners representing both sides of the dispute. Applicants in support of Canada's position include the government of British Columbia, The David Suzuki Foundation and the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation. Amir Attaran, lawyer for the northern Alberta First Nation, argues a federal carbon price is "a constitutional necessity" because the effects of climate change have an impact on northern Indigenous peoples' rights to hunt, fish and trap. Interveners on Saskatchewan's side include anti-carbon-tax allies such as Alberta's United Conservative Party and the government of Ontario, which has filed its own legal challenge. Todd Lewis, president of the Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan, which also has intervener status, said he supports the province's position because he feels a carbon tax would disproportionately affect farmers. Adams said it's inevitable the dispute will not be settled in Saskatchewan's highest court and will ultimately be decided by the Supreme Court. "I think everybody understands that we are not in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup final yet. We're in a preliminary round of the playoffs." OTTAWA - Canada's trade minister says the government expects Canadian business interest in China to slow given current tensions, but he is confident the two countries will work through their differences and allow economic ties to again flourish. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 10/2/2019 (863 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Jim Carr, Minister of International Trade Diversification speaks during a press conference in Winnipeg on Tuesday, October 23, 2018. Canada's trade minister says the government expects Canadian business interest in China to slow given current tensions, but he is confident the two countries will work through their differences and allow economic ties to again flourish. THE CANADIAN PRESS/John Woods OTTAWA - Canada's trade minister says the government expects Canadian business interest in China to slow given current tensions, but he is confident the two countries will work through their differences and allow economic ties to again flourish. That confidence is based on the long and complex trading relationship between Canada and China, which has continued despite a recent "difficult period" between the two countries, Jim Carr told The Canadian Press in an interview Sunday. "It's not an easy time. It's challenging," Carr said from Vancouver, where he was set to launch a weeklong campaign to promote Canada's newest trade deal, the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for the Trans-Pacific Partnership, or CPTPP. But, he added, "when we add the perspective of the relationship going back decades, and the importance of the continuing relationship, I'm confident we will move beyond this point and continue to broaden and deepen our relationship with the Chinese." Ottawa and Beijing have been locked in a diplomatic dispute since the arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver in December at the request of the United States, which is seeking her extradition on fraud allegations. After her arrest, China detained two Canadians former diplomat Michael Kovrig and entrepreneur Michael Spavor on allegations of engaging in activities that endangered the country's national security. It upgraded the drug-smuggling sentence of another, Robert Lloyd Schellenberg, from 15 years in prison to the death penalty. The federal government has since increased its travel advisory for China by warning potential visitors about "the risk of arbitrary enforcement of local laws." Carr said he expects some Canadian businesses to steer clear of the country in the near term. "We think it's likely that there won't be the same kind of growth of travel and of these kind of exploratory visits that there might be if there were no tensions," he said. However, he added that many Canadian firms are continuing to travel to China and "we are confident that we will work our way through this and return to a situation where people have no compunctions at all about visiting China." Asked whether federal trade officials were continuing to talk to their Chinese counterparts about deepening economic ties, Carr said: "There are conversations that go on all the time and not only among officials, but among businesspeople." American authorities laid out their case against Meng late last month, accusing her and Huawei of misrepresenting their ownership of a Hong Kong-based subsidiary between 2007 and 2017 in an effort to circumvent U.S. sanctions against Iran. The company's U.S. branch was also accused of stealing trade secrets and equipment from cellphone provider T-Mobile USA. Meng, 46, has been free on bail since Dec. 11, living in one of her two multimillion-dollar homes in Vancouver while wearing an electronic tracking device and being monitored by a security company. Her case is due back in court in March. The federal government has been rallying support from allies to win the release of Kovrig and Spavor, with a number of countries issuing statements of support and emphasizing the importance of the rule of law. U.S. Ambassador to Canada Kelly Craft issued a statement on Saturday saying her country was "deeply concerned" about China's "unlawful" detention of two Canadians and calling for their release. with files from the Associated Press. WINNIPEG - Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister appeared to marvel on social media in recent days at Winnipeg's wintry weather, but in reality he was at his vacation home in tropical Costa Rica, his office has confirmed. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 10/2/2019 (864 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. WINNIPEG - Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister appeared to marvel on social media in recent days at Winnipeg's wintry weather, but in reality he was at his vacation home in tropical Costa Rica, his office has confirmed. Pallister's Twitter and Instagram accounts put up a few pictures last Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, as daytime temperatures hovered around -20 C. A photo of a snowy day in Winnipeg, posted on Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister's Instagram account, is shown in this recent handout photo. On social media, Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister appeared to marvel in recent days at the wintry Winnipeg weather. But in reality, he was at his vacation home in tropical Costa Rica, his office confirmed. Pallister's Twitter and Instagram accounts put up a few pictures of snowfall last Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO - Instagram, premierbrianpallister One featured a photo of snow falling outside the Manitoba legislature with a comment "Snow Day!" A similar picture posed the question "Do you like the snow?" It was accompanied by an emoji a cartoon smiling face with large red hearts for eyes. A third picture showed workers clearing snow from a side entrance of the legislature and warned: "Expect blowing snow and gusting wind this afternoon! #staywarm my fellow Manitobans!" The messages, it turns out, were posted by one or more of Pallister's staff. Pallister's office offered a brief explanation as to why, but would not confirm details as to how long Pallister had been out of the country. (FACEBOOK / TIERRA DEL SOL ARQUITECTURA Y CONSTRUCCION) Premier Brian Pallister was at his getaway home in Costa Rica while his social media account posted pictures of snowy Winnipeg. The premier was expected to return this weekend from his property in the Tamarindo area of Costa Rica, where recent temperatures surpassed 30 C. "As a rule, we do not comment on the premiers schedule due to security considerations," read a written statement from the premier's office. "The premiers Twitter account is used as a communications tool to maintain a continuous digital conversation with his audience. It can include comments on news events, anniversaries, disasters and emergencies, and significant weather events." TREVOR HAGAN / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Premier Brian Pallister has faced criticism for the amount of time he's spent at his holiday home in Costa Rica. The statement also said the premier's Twitter profile notes that the account is run by the premier and staff. His Instagram profile does not. Andrew Swan, a legislature member for the Opposition New Democrats, accused the premier and his staff of being misleading. "The man's entitled to take holidays but he's not entitled to pretend he's back here in Winnipeg ... when in fact he's down in Costa Rica doing whatever it is he does down there." Pallister has faced repeated criticism over his Costa Rican villa purchased in 2008. In 2016, he said he planned to spend six to eight weeks a year in Costa Rica during his time as premier. He later revised the number to five weeks. In 2017 a little more than a year after his Progressive Conservatives swept to power government documents revealed Pallister was communicating with staff through his wife's cellphone and personal email account while down south. New protocols were brought in requiring the premier and all staff to use government devices and email accounts when conducting government business. Last year, Pallister admitted to not having paid a Costa Rican national tax on luxury homes because he had failed to update his property assessment. He said he owed roughly $8,000 in penalties and back taxes on the property, which includes a 3,400-square foot bungalow, a pool, a groundskeeper's quarters and a small gym. OTTAWA - A shortage of experienced pilots is forcing the Royal Canadian Air Force to walk a delicate line between keeping enough seasoned aviators available to train new recruits and lead missions in the air. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 10/2/2019 (864 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Royal Canadian Air Force Commander Lt.-Gen. Al Meinzinger waits to appear before the House of Commons public accounts committee on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on December 3, 2018. A shortage of experienced pilots is forcing the Royal Canadian Air Force to walk a delicate line between keeping enough seasoned aviators available to train new recruits and lead missions in the air. Air force commander Lt.-Gen. Al Meinzinger described the balancing act during a recent interview with The Canadian Press in which he also revealed many pilots today are likely to have less experience than counterparts in similar positions 10 years ago. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld OTTAWA - A shortage of experienced pilots is forcing the Royal Canadian Air Force to walk a delicate line between keeping enough seasoned aviators available to train new recruits and lead missions in the air. Air force commander Lt.-Gen. Al Meinzinger described the balancing act during a recent interview with The Canadian Press in which he also revealed many pilots today are likely to have less experience than counterparts in similar positions 10 years ago. Much of the problem can be traced back to veteran aviators leaving for commercial jobs, or other opportunities outside the military, forcing senior commanders into a juggling act over where to put those still in uniform. "In order to (support) your training system ... you've got to pull experienced pilots into those positions, but you have to have experienced pilots on the squadrons to season the youth that are joining the units," he said. "So it's a bit of a delicate balance. And when you're in a situation where you don't have as much experience, broadly speaking, you've got to balance that very carefully. Hence the idea of retaining as much talent as we can." Fixing the problems created by the shortage will become especially critical if the air force is to be ready for the arrival of replacements for the CF-18s. Meinzinger said such transitions from one aircraft to another are particularly difficult the RCAF needs to keep the same number of planes in the air to fly missions and have senior aviators train new pilots, while still sending seasoned pilots for training on the incoming fleet. "Ideally you want to go into those transitions very, very healthy with 100 per cent manning and more experience than you could ever imagine," Meinzinger said. While he is confident the military can address its pilot shortage in the next few years, especially when it comes to those responsible for manning Canada's fighter jets, the stakes to get it right are extremely high. The federal auditor general reported in November that the military doesn't have enough pilots and mechanics to fly and maintain the country's CF-18 fighter jets. Air force officials revealed in September they were short 275 pilots and need more mechanics, sensor operators and other trained personnel across its different aircraft fleets. There are concerns the deficit will get worse as a result of explosive growth predicted in the global commercial airline sector, which could pull many experienced military pilots out of uniform. "That's the expectation, that Canada will need an additional 7,000 to 8,000 pilots just to nourish the demands within the Canadian aerospace sector," Meinzinger said. "And we don't have the capacity as a nation to produce even half of that." Within the military, there also hasn't been enough new pilots produced to replace the number who have left. The auditor general found that while 40 fighter pilots recently left the Forces, only 30 new ones were trained. The military is working on a contract for a new training program that will let the air force increase the number of new pilots trained in a given year when necessary, as the current program allows only a fixed number to be produced. Meanwhile, Meinzinger said the loss of more seasoned pilots means others are being asked to take on more responsibility earlier in their careers, though he denied any significant impact on training or missions. He said the military is managing the situation through the use of new technology, such as simulators, to ensure the air force can still do its job. "There's no doubt commanding officers today in RCAF squadrons, they have probably less flying hours than they did 10 years ago," he said. "What that (commanding officer) has today is probably an exposure to 21st-century technology and training. So I think that certainly offsets the reduction of flying hours." Meinzinger and other top military commanders are nonetheless seized with the importance of keeping veteran pilots in uniform to ensure those climbing into the cockpit for the first time have someone to look to for guidance now and in the future. New retention strategies are being rolled out that include better support for military families, increased certainty for pilots in terms of career progression and a concerted effort to keep them in the cockpit and away from desks and administrative work. Other militaries, notably the U.S., that are struggling with a shortage of pilots have introduced financial bonuses and other measures to stay in uniform. Meinzinger couldn't commit to such an initiative, but did say that "nothing is off the table." The situation may not represent an existential crisis, at least not yet, but officials know it is one that needs to be addressed if Canada's air force is to continue operating at top levels for the foreseeable future. "Experience is what allows us to (transfer knowledge) and grow for the future," Meinzinger said. "And that's why I talk about it as being kind of the centre of gravity. In the extreme, if you lose all your experience, you can't regenerate yourself." Follow @leeberthiaume on Twitter. MONTREAL - A Quebec judge's "unusual" decision to modify the Criminal Code as he sentenced six-time murderer Alexandre Bissonnette to a life sentence with no possibility of parole for 40 years highlights the ongoing legal debate over consecutive life sentences in Canada, according to legal experts. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 10/2/2019 (864 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Ahmed Cheddadi, who was present at the mosque during the shooting, reacts to the 40-year sentence given by judge Francois Huot to Alexandre Bissonnette who pleaded guilty after killing six people in a mosque shooting in 2017, Friday, February 8, 2019 at the courthouse in Quebec City. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacques Boissinot MONTREAL - A Quebec judge's "unusual" decision to modify the Criminal Code as he sentenced six-time murderer Alexandre Bissonnette to a life sentence with no possibility of parole for 40 years highlights the ongoing legal debate over consecutive life sentences in Canada, according to legal experts. On Friday, Quebec Superior Court Justice Francois Huot rejected the Crown's call to sentence Bissonnette to 150 years with no chance of parole, arguing a sentence of 50 years or more would constitute cruel and unusual punishment under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Sentences that exceed an offender's life expectancy and offer no reasonable hope of release are "grossly disproportionate and totally incompatible with human dignity," he wrote in his 246-page decision. But instead of sentencing Bissonnette to serve his six sentences concurrently, Huot rewrote the 2011 consecutive sentencing law, section 745.51 of the Criminal Code, to give himself the discretion to deliver consecutive life sentences that are not in blocks of 25 years, as had been the case. (First-degree murder carries an automatic sentence of life in prison with no possibility of parole before 25 years.) In the end, Huot decided Bissonnette will serve at least 40 years in prison. Bissonnette, 29, pleaded guilty last March to six counts of first-degree murder and six of attempted murder after he walked into the mosque at the Islamic Cultural Centre during evening prayers on Jan. 29, 2017 and opened fire. Kent Roach, a law professor at the University of Toronto, described Huot's decision as "innovative." "Charter challenges to the 2011 provisions had previously been denied on the basis that the judge was not forced to increase parole ineligibility for multiple murders," he wrote in an email. "It may very well be appealed by both the Crown (who wanted far more than 40 years) and the defence, which may argue that if the judge thought the provision violated the Charter he should have imposed only 25 years of parole ineligibility." But Renald Beaudry, a criminal lawyer who was at Bissonnette's sentencing, doesn't think the sentence would be easy to overturn. He noted that Huot's lengthy decision included a comprehensive overview of worldwide jurisprudence on the issue of consecutive sentences, the philosophy behind the fundamental principles of Canadian law, and a summary of House of Commons debate on the issue. "He really backed himself up, to use the expression," he said. On Friday, lawyers for both the Crown and defence said they would study the decision before deciding whether to appeal the sentence. A spokesman for the Quebec Justice department also indicated its lawyers were studying the possibility of appeal. Lisa Silver, a law professor at the University of Calgary, said the decision reflects the ongoing conversation in Canada surrounding the law that allows judges to "stack" life sentences for multiple murders instead of serving them concurrently. "(The decision) does seem unusual, but it's also very consistent with what some judges are saying, not just about this section, but about sentencing and the larger discussion about these sections in the Criminal Code," she said. Recent high-profile sentencing decisions across Canada have reflected different judicial approaches to the idea of multiple life sentences. The longest prison sentence in Canada to date is 75 years without parole, which has been given to at least five triple killers including Justin Bourque, who murdered three RCMP officers in a shooting spree in New Brunswick in 2014. But other judges have rejected calls for consecutive sentences, including the Toronto judge who on Friday sentenced Bruce McArthur to life in prison with no parole for 25 years for murdering eight men with ties to Torontos gay village. Silver said the difference in sentences can be problematic because it leads to comparisons, such as the perception that a gay or Muslim person's murder isn't "worth" as much as that of an RCMP officer. But she said people should understand that a sentence isn't about putting a numerical value on a person's life. "We need to remember that sentencing is individual, it takes in a number of factors, and those include the circumstances of the crime, the severity, the impact on the community, but it also has to reference the circumstances and background of the offender," she said. Silver agreed that the Bissonnette sentencing is also likely to be appealed, and she believes that's a good thing. She said she believes the consecutive sentencing law needs to be reviewed in order to provide more guidance for judges and avoid the harm caused by the perception of inconsistent sentencing. "The difficulty in the street level is, these are communities that need to have some closure," she said. "And when you have appeals and decisions that, in a public view don't seem consistent, it's difficult for people to move on with their lives." The Brandon School Division board of trustees will vote Monday on whether to award a contract to Winnipeg-based construction company Fresh Projects to build the citys new Maryland Park School. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 9/2/2019 (865 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Advertisement Advertise With Us An early proposed site plan for the future Maryland Park School, released last summer. (MCM Architects Inc.) The Brandon School Division board of trustees will vote Monday on whether to award a contract to Winnipeg-based construction company Fresh Projects to build the citys new Maryland Park School. A motion will be presented to the board to award the low tender from Fresh Projects, in the amount of $22,679,187, plus GST, for the construction of the new K-8 school. Although a groundbreaking ceremony was tentatively scheduled for this month, BSD secretary-treasurer Denis Labossiere said the dates for construction will be set once the tender is awarded. "The end date is still the same," he said. "Its still for the division to get possession of the new school August 2020." But while the tender has not been officially awarded, the Manitoba Progressive Conservative caucus released a news release Friday stating it had. The release included a quote from Brandon East PC MLA Len Isleifson, a paragraph highlighting the governments $129.5-million investment in school capital projects, and a line criticizing the former NDP government for "17 years of mismanagement," which the PCs said led to more than 480 portable classrooms in Manitoba and more than $485 million in deferred school maintenance. Manitoba PC caucus communications officer Ross Romaniuk told The Sun it was their understanding the school tender had been awarded. "We are trying to find out why theres this discrepancy between what were saying and what the school division is saying," he said. Designed by MCM Architects, Maryland Park School is scheduled to open in time for the 2020 school year. It will be one of five new schools the provincial government plans to build in Manitoba by 2020. The school will have an initial capacity of 450 students, 14 regular classrooms and kindergarten rooms, as well as dedicated art, band and science rooms, a science, technology, electronics and math, or STEM, lab, an English as an additional language room, a nutritional and textiles lab and a manufacturing and construction shop. It will also have 40 nursery school spaces, a child-care centre for 54 preschool children and 20 infants, and will accommodate the addition of eight classrooms, bringing its total capacity up to 675 students. The board of trustees will meet in the boardroom of the BSD administration office at 7 p.m. mlee@brandonsun.com Twitter: @mtaylorlee Reciba en su email: noticias de ultima hora, analisis tecnicos o el cierre de mercado Email no valido Nombre requerido Recibira las informaciones mas relevantes del dia en tiempo real Que informacion desea recibir? Noticias de Ultima hora Boletin Cierre de Mercado Boletin analisis tecnico Boletin Fundsnews Debe seleccionar un tipo de boletin Acepto la Politica de privacidad Debe aceptar la politica de privacidad Responsable EMPRESAS DEL GRUPO WEB FINANCIAL GROUP Finalidad La remision de informacion, novedades y promociones Establecimiento o mantenimiento de Relaciones Comerciales. Legitimacion Consentimiento del interesado. Interes legitimo en el desarrollo de la relacion comercial Destinatario Empresas del Grupo WEB FINANCIAL GROUP Derechos Acceso, rectificacion, supresion, limitacion, oposicion y portabilidad Informacion adicional Politica de Privacidad de nuestra pagina Web + INFORMACION SIGN UP TO GET BLACKLISTED NEWS DELIVERED RIGHT TO YOUR INBOX Enter your email address: Five suspected Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) militants were killed in a battle with security forces in Indian Kashmir on Sunday, while 10 civilians were injured in clashes that followed, police said. Police said the civilians were injured after villagers gathered at the site of the battle in the Himalayan regions southern Kulgam area to show solidarity for HM, adding another 11 were injured in a grenade attack in Srinagar. Also on Sunday, thousands protested in West Bengal following the shooting death of a politician late Saturday. The militants killed today were involved in a series of attacks on security forces. Their killing is a major setback to the militant group which is struggling to revive its base particularly in south Kashmir, police Director General Dilbagh Singh told BenarNews. Militants are always on the radar of the security forces, he said adding that these groups were trying to step up attacks on security forces in the run-up to high profile events including the general election to be held by May to make their presence felt. The security forces are fully prepared to nullify the evil designs of militants, who are hell-bent on disrupting peace, Singh said. The fighting began after government forces cordoned off Keelam village in southern Kulgam area following an intelligence tip that militants were hiding there, defense spokesman Col. Rajesh Kalia told BenarNews. Heavily armed militants hiding in a house fired on security forces during searches, triggering a gun-battle in which all five militants were killed. A large quantity of weapons were recovered from the encounter site, Kalia said. Police identified one of the militants killed as Waseem Bashir, who had joined the militant group in May 2018 after completing a masters degree in English. Waseem was a graduate and involved in a series of violence-related acts. Police wanted him to surrender and live a dignified life, but he was committed to violence and fell to the bullets, Singh said. Police said the gunfight triggered clashes as villagers marched to the site of the killings to show solidarity and shouted anti-India slogans. The security forces fired tear gas as the protesters pelted them with stones leading to 10 civilians suffering injuries. Later, seven security personnel and four civilians were wounded after suspected militants tossed a grenade at a security installation in Srinagar city, officials said. Muslim-majority Kashmir has grappled with a separatist insurgency that has killed more than 70,000 people since the late 1980s. The Himalayan territory is claimed in its entirety by both India and Pakistan, who have fought two wars over it. Politician killed Meanwhile, thousands of activists paraded in West Bengal on Sunday with the body of a politician who was shot and killed the night before while attending a Hindu ceremony, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported. Politician Satyajit Biswas, a member of the states ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC), was shot by unidentified gunmen. His party blamed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, but its leaders denied any involvement, according to AFP. Biswas had been actively trying to prevent the BJPs foray into the community, said TMC general secretary Partha Chatterjee as he blamed the rival party for the killing. West Bengal BJP chief Dilip Ghosh blamed the killing on splits in the TMC. When there is a political killing, they accuse my party. Let there be a Central Bureau of Investigation inquiry, everything will become clear, he told AFP. Uighurs living in Turkey and their supporters, some carrying coffins representing Uighurs who died in Chinas far-western Xinjiang Uighur region (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel, File) Turkey has called Chinas treatment of its minority Uighurs a great cause of shame for humanity. Foreign Ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy said it is no longer a secret that China has arbitrarily detained more than a million Uighurs in concentration camps. He said the Turkic Muslim population faced pressure and systematic assimilation in western China. Mr Aksoy said Turkey has shared with China its position on all levels and urged authorities to close the detention facilities and respect human rights. This tragedy has further reinforced the reaction of the Turkish public opinion towards serious human rights violations committed in the Xinjiang regionHami Askoy The minister said Turkey had also learned of the death in prison of famed Uighur musician and poet Abdurehim Heyit, who had been sentenced to eight years over one of his songs. This tragedy has further reinforced the reaction of the Turkish public opinion towards serious human rights violations committed in the Xinjiang region, Mr Aksoy said. We expect this legitimate response to be taken into account by the Chinese authorities. We respectfully commemorate Abdurehim Heyit and all our kinsmen who lost their lives defending their Turkish and Muslim identity, Mr Aksoy said. Heyit was a master of the dutar, a type of two-stringed instrument with a long neck that is found in Iran and throughout Central Asia. His detention was considered indicative of Chinas determination to crack down on Uighur intellectuals and cultural figures in an effort some say to eradicate a separate Uighur language and identity. Heyits death could not be independently confirmed. Chinas embassy in Ankara called Mr Aksoys comments completely unacceptable in a lengthy response posted on its website that defended its policies in the north-western region of Xinjiang, the Uighur homeland. Both China and Turkey face the arduous task of fighting terrorism. We are opposed to maintaining double standards on the question of fighting terrorism, said the statement, attributed to an embassy spokesman. We hope the Turkish side will have a correct understanding of the efforts made by China to legally deploy measures to effectively fight terrorism and extremism, withdraw its false accusations and take measures to eliminate their harmful effects, it said. Beijing has intensified a security clampdown on Uighurs in the northwestern region of Xinjiang that was put in place after a bloody 2009 riot. Droves of Uighurs have fled, many travelling to Turkey, where the language and culture are similar to that in Xinjiang. After months of denying their existence, Chinese authorities under increasing outside pressure acknowledged the system of camps, terming them vocational training centres. They have provided little or no information on how many are interned within them and how long they are being held. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had once accused China of genocide but has since established closer diplomatic and economic relations with Beijing. Thousands of Spaniards joined a rally in Madrid to demand that socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez step down. Many in the crowd gathered in the capitals Plaza de Colon, waving Spanish flags. They chanted slogans in favour of the nations security forces and for Mr Sanchez to resign. Expand Close There are calls for Pedro Sanchez to resign (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte) AP/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp There are calls for Pedro Sanchez to resign (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte) The conservative opposition Popular Party and the centre-right Citizens party organised the rally, which was also backed by the upstart Vox and other marginal parties. They claim that Mr Sanchez must resign for holding talks with separatists in the north-eastern region of Catalonia. The time of Mr Sanchezs government is over, said Popular Party president Pablo Casado, who asked voters to punish Mr Sanchezs Spanish Socialist Workers Party in upcoming European, local and regional elections in May. Expand Close Thousands of demonstrators protest in Madrid (AP Photo/Andrea Comas) AP/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Thousands of demonstrators protest in Madrid (AP Photo/Andrea Comas) The political tensions come as a highly sensitive trial at Spains Supreme Court starts on Tuesday for 12 Catalan separatists who face charges, including rebellion, for their roles in a failed secession attempt in 2017. Mr Sanchez inherited the Catalan crisis from former prime minister Mariano Rajoy, the then-leader of the Popular Party. Mr Rajoy proved incapable of stopping support for secession from swelling in Catalonia to roughly half of the regions voters. Mr Sanchez came to power in June promising to thaw tensions between central authorities in Madrid and the Catalan leaders in Barcelona. He has met twice with Catalan chief Quim Torra and members of both governments had several more encounters. Expand Close Demonstrators chanted slogans in favor of the nations security forces (AP Photo/Andrea Comas) AP/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Demonstrators chanted slogans in favor of the nations security forces (AP Photo/Andrea Comas) Mr Sanchez had said he would be willing to help Catalan politicians agree to a new Charter Law, which determines the amount of self-rule the region enjoys. But Mr Sanchezs government broke off negotiations on Friday, when vice president Carmen Calvo said the separatists would not budge from their demand for an independence referendum. Mr Sanchez is trying to cobble together support to pass a national budget and will need votes from the Catalan separatists to pass it. Even though Mr Sanchez has said he wants to see out the legislative term to 2020, a failure to win a budget vote will crank up the pressure on him to call for an early election. Seven people have been jailed for life following a trial over two 2015 terror attacks in Tunisia which killed 60 people, including 31 Britons. Samir Ben Amor, a lawyer for one of the 44 defendants, said the verdicts were handed down over a massacre at the popular Sousse resort and another deadly attack on the countrys famous Bardo Museum. Thirty Britons were killed in the mass shooting in Sousse which left 38 people dead, while another UK citizen died in the Bardo assault, which killed 22 in total. Other defendants received jail terms ranging from 16 years to six months, while the charges against 27 of the suspects were dismissed, according to Mr Ben Amor. None of the defendants received the maximum penalty of capital punishment for a range of charges that include premeditated murder, threatening national security and belonging to an extremist-linked group. Expand Close Defence lawyer Imen Triqui (AP) AP/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Defence lawyer Imen Triqui (AP) The prosecution has said it will appeal the verdicts. The suspected mastermind of both attacks, Chamseddine Sandi, has not yet been caught and is thought to be hiding in Libya. Police say the defendants denied having participated directly in the March and June 2015 attacks during their questioning, but several of them acknowledged having provided logistical assistance to Sandi. On March 18 2015 at the Bardo Museum in Tunis, 22 people were killed by extremists. Two of the gunmen were killed by police. Three months later, on June 26 in the coastal city of Sousse, attacker Aymen Rezgui walked onto the beach of the Imperial Hotel and used an assault rifle to shoot tourists, killing 38 people, including 30 Britons. Rezgui, a Tunisian student who trained with Libyan militants, was killed about 15 minutes later by police. Islamic State claimed responsibility for those attacks, which devastated the countrys tourism sector as travel agencies pulled out and governments issued travel warnings. Tourism has since partially bounced back after Tunisias government implemented a series of security measures to protect popular destinations. Phoenix Petroleum Philippines Inc. plans to expand in regional markets such as Vietnam, Indonesia, Myanmar, Thailand, and Australia, a corporate filing showed over the weekend. Phoenix, in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, said it might also take a 40-percent stake in Tanglawan Philippine LNG Inc., which just received from the Department of Energy a notice to proceed with the construction of a liquefied natural gas integrated hub in the country. Phoenix is seeking stockholders approval on a proposed joint venture with China National Offshore Oil Corp. The partnership will establish a new company to manage and invest P250 million in the joint venture. The companys subsidiary also plans to acquire a 60-percent share in the property holding company for the LNG hub, Liwanag Philippine Property Management Inc. Phoenix will acquire a share when the joint venture establishes an LNG-powered power plant. Phoenix is seeking approval from shareholders for the formation of a new wholly-owned subsidiary in Singapore, PNX Energy International Holdings Pte. Ltd., to manage the companys foreign investments, including expansion of related business activities and operation in the Asia-Pacific region. Phoenix, which will hold annual stockholders meeting on March 15, is seeking ratification of the companys initial investment of $10,000 intended for PEIHs initial operations.It will use the initial investment to establish PEIH and shoulder the initial administrative and operational expenses of the company. The company expands regionally, it requires an appropriate corporate structure to ensure tax efficiency, a stable and fair legal environment, world-class infrastructure and access to high-quality international skills, thus the need to establish PEIH, Phoenix said. The company established the company in Singapore because of the countrys excellent financial and IT infrastructure and pro-business environment, major international air and sea hubs and a flexible tax regime. Other than holding shares in other foreign subsidiaries and generating passive investment income, PEIH may also carry out commercial activities such as conducting supply chain activities, it said. Jayne Jenkinson and Woody a miniature Dachshund as hundreds of dogs and their owners attend the National Memorial Arboretums annual Paws for Remembrance event in Alrewas, Staffordshire (Aaron Chown/PA) Around 300 dogs and their owners have visited Britains National Memorial Arboretum for its annual Paws for Remembrance fundraising event. The gathering, now in its fourth year in Alrewas, Staffordshire, highlights the sites memorials commemorating the service of animals, including a tribute to the Army Dog Unit. Expand Close A man walks his two dogs in front of The Armed Forces Memorial (Aaron Chown/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp A man walks his two dogs in front of The Armed Forces Memorial (Aaron Chown/PA) A team of volunteers was on hand to provide information about the arboretum and its memorials, while veterinary staff from the PDSA offered free MOT health checks for dogs and pet care advice. Sarah Oakden, head of marketing at the arboretum, said: Since 2016 we have welcomed thousands of dog lovers and their four-legged friends to our annual Paws for Remembrance events and throughout the year to explore our dog-walking route on the hardstanding paths around the site. Expand Close Dog-walking at the National Memorial Arboretum (Aaron Chown/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Dog-walking at the National Memorial Arboretum (Aaron Chown/PA) The event raises valuable funds for the upkeep of the arboretum through a 5 per per dog suggested donation. Dogs are welcome all year round to walk around the arboretum and to visit the coffee shop for refreshments. Expand Close An American Akita in front of the Armed Forces Memorial (Aaron Chown/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp An American Akita in front of the Armed Forces Memorial (Aaron Chown/PA) However, we do ask that dog walkers use our designated route to ensure the comfort of all our visitors. The 150-acre arboretum is the home of the national Armed Forces Memorial, which bears the names of service personnel killed during their duties since the end of the Second World War. Theresa May is promising MPs more Brexit votes before the end of February, amid claims she is trying to run down the clock before the UKs departure from the European Union. Labour will seek to force Mrs May into a decisive second Commons showdown on her Brexit deal by February 26. The Prime Minister is instead offering MPs a further chance to vote on amendments to her Brexit strategy on February 27 in order to avoid a potential Cabinet split this week. The Government is stepping up efforts to persuade the European Union to accept changes to the Irish border backstop in the Withdrawal Agreement. Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay is meeting EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier on Monday and Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt will visit Paris and Warsaw for talks this week. On Thursday Valentines Day MPs will consider a motion on Brexit and a series of amendments, likely to include shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmers attempt to impose a new deadline for a vote on the deal. But in an effort to see off attempts to bind the Governments hands, Downing Street is promising another opportunity to table amendments which are likely to include measures aimed at taking a no-deal Brexit off the table on February 27. The move is aimed at postponing a rebellion by ministers who are committed to removing the possibility of the UK crashing out of the EU without a deal on March 29. But there is no commitment to hold a binding vote on the deal itself by the end of the month. Communities Secretary James Brokenshire said: I think that gives that sense of timetable, clarity and purpose on what we are doing with the EU taking that work forward and our determination to get a deal but equally knowing that role that Parliament very firmly has. When will the meaningful vote on the #Brexit deal take place? Communities Secretary James Brokenshire talks to #Marr https://t.co/M3KdThXJ7w pic.twitter.com/Sq8tMPqRbb BBC Politics (@BBCPolitics) February 10, 2019 He acknowledged that more work was needed to get the UK ready for Brexit on March 29, telling the BBCs Andrew Marr Show there are still steps that are currently being put in place but there is steady work that is going on, 10,000 civil servants that are now focused on this and the Border Force was ramping up its staff. Sir Keir earlier said his plan was necessary to put a hard stop to Mrs May running down the clock before the March 29 deadline. We have got to put a hard stop to the Prime Minister running down the clock on Brexit and trying to impose a binary choice between her deal and no deal. This week Parliament needs to say enough is enough - and to take control of what happens next.https://t.co/Q8RHF22iAx Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) February 10, 2019 He told the Sunday Times he fears the Prime Minister is pretending to make progress but actually intends to return to Parliament after the March 21/22 European Council summit the week before Brexit and offer MPs a binary choice her deal or no deal. We cant allow that to happen, Sir Keir said. There needs to be a day when Parliament says thats it, enough is enough. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has written to the Prime Minister setting out five demands that would have to be met for his MPs to support a deal, including a permanent customs union and close alignment with the single market. Deputy Labour leader Tom Watson told the Andrew Marr Show that if those conditions were not met then his party could move to supporting a second referendum. It seems to me were now at the point where we can have meaningful talks to get a deal between the main political party leaders, he said. Or the only way to break the impasse is to have a public vote, and that remains our policy. Treasury Chief Secretary Liz Truss refused to rule out quitting if Mrs May did accept the demand for a customs union. She told Sky News Sophy Ridge On Sunday: I appreciate Jeremy Corbyn has come to the table but the reality is what he is proposing does not deliver on what we want as a country. Asked if she could stay in office if the Government backed a customs union she said: I absolutely do not think that should be our policy. Transport Secretary Chris Grayling faced mounting demands for his resignation from MPs across the Commons after a controversial no-deal Brexit ferry contract awarded to a firm with no ships was cancelled. The Transport Secretarys decision to award Seaborne Freight a contract worth 13.8 million to run services between Ramsgate and Ostend had attracted widespread criticism. The Department for Transport (DfT) said it had decided to terminate the contract after Irish company Arklow Shipping, which had backed Seaborne Freight, stepped away from the deal. But MPs including pro-EU Tories said Mr Grayling should take responsibility for the situation and resign. Expand Close Seaborne Freight had been expected to operate a Ramsgate-Ostend service (Gareth Fuller/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Seaborne Freight had been expected to operate a Ramsgate-Ostend service (Gareth Fuller/PA) Conservative former business minister Anna Soubry said Mr Grayling should be quietly considering his position. Chris Grayling holds a critical position in government, trying to mitigate what would be a very serious crisis for the country if we leave the European Union without a deal, she told the Observer. He has no grip on the very serious nature of his job. The Prime Minister should also be considering whether there is not someone else who could do the job better. Labour said Mr Grayling has to go, with Jeremy Corbyn describing the situation as completely ludicrous. The Labour leader said: Chris Grayling the Transport Secretary claimed the Government had looked very carefully at Seaborne Freight before giving the company the contract, but apparently not carefully enough to notice that it didnt have any ships. Liberal Democrat Brexit spokesman Tom Brake said: The Government did not need a sirens call to get into chaos over a contract with a ferry company, all they needed was to put Chris Grayling in charge. A DfT spokeswoman said: Following the decision of Seaborne Freights backer, Arklow Shipping, to step back from the deal, it became clear Seaborne would not reach its contractual requirements with the Government. We have therefore decided to terminate our agreement. The Government is already in advanced talks with a number of companies to secure additional freight capacity, including through the port of Ramsgate, in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Brexit-backing Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg questioned whether Leo Varadkars Irish Government had any influence on Arklows decision something Dublin strongly denied. Mr Grayling last month defended the Seaborne Freight contract, insisting it was not a risk. It was one of three firms awarded contracts totalling 108 million in late December to lay on additional crossings to ease the pressure on Dover when Britain leaves the EU, despite having never run a Channel service. The department said it had been Arklow Shippings backing that gave it confidence in the viability of the deal, and that it stands by the robust due diligence carried out on Seaborne Freight. It added no taxpayer money had been transferred to the company. Mick Cash, general secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union, said: The whole exercise is a complete and utter shambles, with the Government ignoring union calls on what needs to happen. Instead they are blundering on from crisis to crisis. Simon Harris is expected to apologise to the Dail this week over information he provided on the cost of the new National Childrens Hospital (Niall Carson/PA) Simon Harris is expected to apologise to the Dail this week over information he provided on the cost of the new National Childrens Hospital. The opposition has called for the health minister to resign after his departments memos from August 2018 showed a 391 million euro overrun. Mr Harris did not tell Cabinet colleagues about the overspend until November. The minister has been criticised by Fianna Fail after an answer he gave to a parliamentary question failed to show that costs were escalating. Hereas the protest outside @SimonHarrisTDas home. This isnat on and should be condemned by all who favour democracy. pic.twitter.com/cfOXNBwQqV Noel Rock (@NoelRock) February 10, 2019 Mr Harriss spokeswoman told RTEs This Week programme: While the minister couldnt provide figures during commercially sensitive negotiations and because the figures were not known, he has said he wishes he had inserted some initial information specifically reference the fact that there was a process under way to finalise pricing for Phase B (of the Childrens Hospital). She added that whilst the parliamentary question was factually correct, Minister Harris will be happy to apologise for not providing such context. The approximate bill for the new hospital which will be located on the campus of St Jamess Hospital in Dublin has risen from an original estimate of 650 million euro to more than 1.7 billion euro. Sinn Fein has threatened to table a motion of no confidence in the minister over the spiralling bill. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has expressed total confidence in his colleague. On Sunday, around a dozen anti-austerity protesters held banners outside Mr Harriss home. Gardai were called and the demonstration ended within an hour. This is completely and utterly unacceptable. Everyone is entitled to peace and security with their family in their own home. Putting yourself forward for public service does not take away that right. https://t.co/Q0ZyuGzDJ9 MicheAl Martin (@MichealMartinTD) February 10, 2019 Political rivals including Micheal Martin tweeted their support for the minister. A young man has died after being recovered from the sea off the Donegal coast. The man, aged in his mid-20s, was found in the Ballyshannon Estuary in Co Donegal and was rushed to Sligo University Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead. The man was spotted by a passer-by after midday and the emergency services were notified by the Malin Head Coastguard station who co-ordinated the rescue. Members of the Rescue 118 helicopter along with Gardai and members of the Bundoran Lifeboat crew rushed to the scene and began a search. After an intensive search of the area took place and the man was spotted a short time later. Weather conditions during the search were very challenging with heavy rain and gusting winds. A 27-year-old man has been charged with a number of offences after a police helicopter was targeted with a laser. Police were carrying out searches relating to drug dealing in north Lurgan when a laser was shined into their helicopter from the ground. A man was then pursued by police, before he took refuge in a house after discarding the laser. Police tracked him in their helicopter and the man was then arrested. A man now been charged with shining a light to dazzle or distract a pilot, endagering the safety of an aircraft, causing danger to road-users by using a larger light and disorderly behaviour. He is expected to appear before Lisburn Magistrates Court on Monday. "Fantastic work by PSNI Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon to introduce a Darwinian Award winner to the custody suite," a PSNI spokesperson said. "While supporting your local police who were targeting drug dealing activity in North Lurgan we were attacked by a 'gentleman' with a laser. "Imagine for a second what would happen if a helicopter full of aviation fuel lost control and came down on a residential housing estate." The PSNI spokesperson said that the helicopter was a vital resource for the community. Expand Close The laser shone at a police helicopter. / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp The laser shone at a police helicopter. "An attack on the helicopter is an attack on the community. On Friday it was up over north Lurgan helping us find Jim. Yesterday it was up helping us target drug dealers. Who knows what this week will bring. It could be stolen cars, burglars on the move, or more missing people," the spokesperson said. "Whatever it is, the eye in the sky is a vital tool, and risking the the crew not only puts those on the ground at risk, but damages the service we can give the whole community." Former Irish presidential hopeful Peter Casey has claimed US immigration officials questioned him over comments he made about America during the campaign for the Aras. Mr Casey, who is from Londonderry, surged into second place on the back of his controversial social views. He claimed he was questioned about remarks he made about Donald Trump and a promise that he would give up his green card if he won the election. Read More The businessman, who owns a recruitment firm in the US but lives in Donegal, said he arrived at Dublin Airport last Thursday for a Delta Airlines flight to the US. His card would not work at the Global Entry kiosk, a fast-track system for trusted travellers run by US Customs and Border Protection. He said he was asked to go into a holding area, where he claimed he "saw a side of America" he had not experienced before. Mr Casey told the Sunday Independent he was asked a series of questions, including: "Why have you not applied for citizenship?" Expand Close President Donald Trump (Evan Vucci/AP) AP/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp President Donald Trump (Evan Vucci/AP) He said they went on to ask: "Why did you say during the presidential election that you were going to give up your green card?" and "Is it your intention to give up your green card?" He said he was also asked if he was standing again for election and if so, would he give up his green card. According to Mr Casey, officials examined him on his knowledge of green card rules, including how many days he had to stay in the USA each year to maintain it. He claimed he was asked about the birthplace of his children and whether he owned his house in America. He said: "I was then given a lecture on the fact that my keeping my green card was stopping someone who deserved one from getting one. "One of the agents even made reference to comments I had made about Trump on the campaign. They had certainly done their homework." During the presidential campaign, millionaire Mr Casey revealed he pays 46pc tax on his worldwide income in the US but would be handing back his green card if he won. He said he was "disappointed" when Donald Trump was elected president and said America was "a racist society." He was accused of borrowing Trump's tactics in his own campaign, by stoking controversy, most notably about Travellers. Mr Casey caused outrage by claiming that Travellers should not be recognised as an ethic group. He criticised their culture, accusing families of not moving into new houses without stables for their horses. While his remarks generated praise in some quarters, others accused him of populism and racism. But Mr Casey said he does not have a racist bone in his body. However, his campaign took off and he finished as unlikely runner-up in the race for the Aras, securing 20pc of the vote, coming second to incumbent Michael D Higgins. He was one of three Dragons' Den investors who put themselves forward for the contest - the others were Gavin Duffy and Sean Gallagher. A spokesperson for the US Embassy said that it was unable to comment on individual cases. Speaker John Finucane pictured at the event at St Marys University College Belfast entitled Pat Finucane 30th Anniversary, A Community Reflects. The event was organised by Feile an Phobail (Kelvin Boyes/Press Eye/PA) Belfast solicitor Pat Finucane was murdered to silence other human rights lawyers, his son has said. This week marks 30 years since he was shot 14 times by loyalists in collusion with British security forces while enjoying Sunday lunch at home with his family. He was 39. Mr Finucanes son John was a schoolboy when his father died in front of him. On Sunday, he recalled: Our lives changed forever. It was a deliberate decision to kill him, to silence other lawyers and prevent them from doing that type of workJohn Finucane His fathers best years professionally were ahead of him, his son said. He added: It was a deliberate decision to kill him, to silence other lawyers and prevent them from doing that type of work. What we see now is a generation coming through with lawyers, people wanting their human rights. I think that is very much a legacy of Pat Finucane and what he stands for and represents. That gives me enormous pride. While they did silence him they could not have made a bigger mess of it if they tried. The name reverberates around the world and an enormous amount of credit for that is to due to my mother. Former prime minister David Cameron acknowledged the shocking level of state collusion in the 1989 Ulster Defence Association (UDA) killing after receiving a report on the evidence. Sir Desmond de Silvas review confirmed agents of the state were involved and it should have been prevented but ruled out an overarching state conspiracy. The Finucane family has engaged in years of litigation over what they say is the UK Governments failure to grant an independent public inquiry and strongly opposed the decision to order the de Silva review. A Supreme Court judgment on legal action connected to the case is pending. Mr Finucane was from working-class west Belfast and took advantage of the opportunities afforded by university education to become a lawyer during the Northern Ireland conflict. As a defence solicitor, he represented clients who included convicted members of the IRA and families involved in shoot-to-kill allegations against the former police force, the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC). During the Irish republican hunger strikes in prison during the 1980s he represented Bobby Sands. His son said he represented all sides, while others at a special event in Belfast said he spoke up for the voiceless. Mr Finucane recalled the early years of his familys campaign for justice. We were attacked very deliberately and cruelly as nothing more than republican propagandists, that we were an IRA mans children who did not deserve truth and justice, he said. He praised his mother Geraldines hard work, strength and resilience during a speech marking the anniversary of his fathers death. Expand Close Gerry Adams TD pictured at the event at St Marys University College Belfast entitled OPat Finucane 30th Anniversary, A Community ReflectsO. The event was organised by Feile an Phobail (Kelvin Boyes/Press Eye/PA) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Gerry Adams TD pictured at the event at St Marys University College Belfast entitled OPat Finucane 30th Anniversary, A Community ReflectsO. The event was organised by Feile an Phobail (Kelvin Boyes/Press Eye/PA) Former Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams said Mr Finucanes murder haunted the corridors of power to this day. He said the Finucane family was using its influence to help everybody else, to raise their voices for those who had none. He said he was a decent human being, a hero who dedicated his life to aiding others. Mr Adams added: As a human rights lawyer it didnt matter to Pat whether you were a republican, a unionist, a loyalist, or none of these. If you were arrested you have rights and Pats responsibility his vocation, his mission in life was to vindicate and defend those rights. Pat believed that the law should uphold and protect the rights of citizens. But he was not naive. Pat understood the difference between the theory and the practice in the application of human rights. The suspension of a number of nurses who work at Muckamore Abbey Hospital by their regulatory body has been lifted following a legal challenge at the High Court. The seven staff had been suspended by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) amid allegations of physical and mental abuse against patients at the facility, which is located on the outskirts of Antrim. Read More However, on Friday the High Court ruled there was insufficient evidence to justify the suspensions. It is understood the Belfast Trust, which runs the hospital, was unable to provide CCTV footage of alleged abuse to the NMC due to the ongoing police investigation into the scandal. However, a spokeswoman from the Belfast Trust last night said it has agreed a system to provide any additional information required by the NMC. She said: We are aware of the High Court decision and understand the impact this will have on families. We have contacted families directly over the weekend to discuss concerns. We appreciate that this is a difficult time. Belfast Trust has been in contact with the NMC and has agreed a process to provide any additional information they require. The Trust added that its own processes were unaffected by the ruling. The staff remain on precautionary suspension from Belfast Trust whilst investigations are ongoing, the spokeswoman said. Meanwhile, Matthew McClelland, Director of Fitness to Practise at the NMC, apologised for the impact on patients families. We are continuing to investigate the very serious allegations about nursing care at Muckamore Abbey Hospital, he said. In light of the courts decision, we urge the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust to provide us with the evidence we have previously requested which we require so we can take appropriate regulatory action. Concerns over the safety and well-being of residents at Muckamore Abbey emerged last year, after CCTV footage showing healthcare professionals assaulting patients in the hospitals intensive care unit came to light. Families have since come forward to make shocking allegations about the conditions endured by loved ones living there, including a seclusion room which was described by one parent as a dark dungeon. An independent investigation subsequently found that patients lives had been put at risk, prompting the Department of Healths permanent secretary Richard Pengelly to speak out about the abuse suffered by residents. There is no other way of describing the findings of the panels report than truly shocking, he said. Mr Pengelly has been coming under increasing pressure to call a public inquiry into conditions at the hospital, while the chair of the Bamford Review - a major review of mental health services in Northern Ireland - has said the crisis could be the tip of the iceberg. He described testimonies from parents of adult children with profound learning difficulties as a disturbing listen. As the police enquiries continued, last month PSNI officers searched eight homes linked to hospital staff and seized mobile phones from properties in Co Antrim and Co Down. A detective confirmed that the police team is examining 158 alleged incidents of ill treatment and is committed to a full and thorough investigation. Prime Minister Theresa May is set to ask MPs for more time to negotiate changes to the Irish border backstop with EU leaders. The BBC has reported that Mrs May will offer MPs another vote on amendments to her Brexit withdrawal deal if an agreement has not been reached by the end of February. Read More MPs voted to replace the controversial backstop with "alternative arrangements" in a vote on amendments to the PM's Brexit deal last month. The backstop aims to prevent a hard border on the island of Ireland has been a constant sticking point in Brexit negotiations with Tory Brexiteers and the DUP rejecting the plan. The EU and the Irish Government have insisted that the backstop is the best way of guaranteeing there will be no hard border in Ireland. The PM is due to address the House of Commons this week after returning from negotiations with EU leaders in Brussels. If no agreement on changes to the backstop are reached by Wednesday Mrs May is set to ask for more time for negotiations and will table a motion for debate. MPs would then debate the motion and any new amendments on Thursday. Shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer has said Labour will use a Commons amendment to require the Prime Minister to hold another meaningful vote on her deal by February 26. The move is in response to fears that Mrs May is engaged in a cynical attempt to run down the clock before the Brexit deadline in order to leave MPs with a stark choice of accepting her deal or crashing out of the European Union without any agreement. After talks with Brussels this week Mrs May said that she was determined to deliver Brexit on time ahead of the March 29 deadline. If an agreement is not reached in time the UK will leave the EU with no-deal. Mrs May described discussions with EU leaders in Brussels as robust but constructive and insisted she was determined to negotiate hard over the coming days to secure legally-binding changes to the Agreement which will render it acceptable to Parliament. However European Council president Donald Tusk said there was no breakthrough in sight. Police said the "vicious and sickening" attack was carried out by three masked men. A 42-year-old man arrested on Saturday following a paramilitary style shooting in the Creggan area of Londonderry has been released unconditionally. He was arrested in the city early on Saturday morning and was taken to the Serious Crime Suite in Musgrave Police Station for questionining. A 35-year-old man received a gunshot would to his lower leg in the attack shortly after 6pm on Friday. Police said the "vicious and sickening" attack was carried out by three masked men. "There is absolutely no justification for this attack and we must all work together to bring those responsible to justice and to stop this from happening to anyone else," Detective Inspector Michael Winters said. Gerry Adams with the family of Pat Finucane during the 30th anniversary event held for human rights lawyer Pat Finucane on February 10th 2019 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) John Finucane and Gerry Adams during the 30th anniversary event held for human rights lawyer Pat Finucane on February 10th 2019 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Gerry Adams during the 30th anniversary event held for human rights lawyer Pat Finucane on February 10th 2019 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Gerry Adams during the 30th anniversary event held for human rights lawyer Pat Finucane on February 10th 2019 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Gerry Adams during the 30th anniversary event held for human rights lawyer Pat Finucane on February 10th 2019 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) John Finucane and Gerry Adams during the 30th anniversary event held for human rights lawyer Pat Finucane on February 10th 2019 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Gerry Adams during the 30th anniversary event held for human rights lawyer Pat Finucane on February 10th 2019 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Gerry Adams during the 30th anniversary event held for human rights lawyer Pat Finucane on February 10th 2019 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Gerry Adams during the 30th anniversary event held for human rights lawyer Pat Finucane on February 10th 2019 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Former Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams has called on Taoiseach Leo Varadkar to "stand up to the Brits" on the issue of Irish unity. Mr Adams made the comments when delivering the annual Pat Finucane lecture at St Mary's University College in Belfast. Read More In a wide ranging speech the Louth TD touched on a number of issues including the life of Mr Finucane, Brexit, the political stalemate in Northern Ireland and the road to Irish unity. He told the large crowd at the event that he didn't believe Northern Ireland would ever achieve a full bill of rights "until we have control of our own affairs, free from British involvement". Mr Adams said that the Good Friday Agreement sets out a peaceful and democratic way to achieve Irish unity and that the process should be accelerated. The long-time Sinn Fein leader called on the Irish government to establish a forum to facilitate "an informed and inclusive" debate around Irish unity. Mr Adams said that while many are critical of Brexit, nobody would accept the EU overruling Parliament and telling the UK they could not leave. Expand Close Taoiseach Leo Varadkar (Tom Honan/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Taoiseach Leo Varadkar (Tom Honan/PA) "When the people of Ireland voted to leave the British Empire and elected the First Dail one hundred years ago the British government did exactly that. London said you cannot leave the Empire. London said no and went on to outlaw and suppress that Parliament," he said. The Louth TD called on the Irish government to "learn from the lessons of history" and recognise that the UK government "does not have friends. It has interests and it always only acts in its own interests" He called on Taoiseach Leo Varadkar to "stand up to the Brits and standby the Good Friday Agreement in all its parts". "He needs to have a consistent all island visions and all island objectives in keeping with the Good Friday Agreement," Mr Adams said. "In addition, there is a responsibility and a constitutional obligation on Irish governments to promote the goal of Irish unity and to work to achieve it through democratic dialogue and negotiation. During his lecture Mr Adams called for the establishment of a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland and the establishment of equal marriage rights, new abortion laws, and equal marriage legislation. Expand Close Murdered: Pat Finucane / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Murdered: Pat Finucane The former Sinn Fein President also expressed concern about the rights of Irish citizens living in Northern Ireland after Brexit. The Republic of Ireland's Committee on the Administration of Justice has warned that Irish citizens in the North may be reduced to the status of second class citizens after Brexit. Mr Adams stated that Leo Varadkar had previously guaranteed the rights of Irish citizens living in Northern Ireland in the past and must live up to his promise. "Many now believe this promise has been broken. The specific commitment to citizens who reside in the North is missing from the Withdrawal Agreement published last November," he said. The Louth TD also paid tribute to human rights lawyer Pat Finucane ahead of the 30th anniversary of his murder. Mr Finucane was 38 when he was shot dead by masked loyalist paramilitaries in front of his wife Geraldine and their three children at their Belfast home on February 12 1989. His son John is set to run for a seat on Belfast City Council as a Sinn Fein candidate in the upcoming local elections in May. "As a human rights lawyer it didnt matter to Pat whether you were a republican, a unionist, a loyalist, or none of these," Mr Adams said. "If you were arrested you have rights and Pats responsibility his vocation his mission in life - was to vindicate and defend those rights. Pat believed that the law should uphold and protect the rights of citizens." Sex abuse is not restricted The Fort Worth Star-Telegram discovered a pattern of abuse and cover-up in independent fundamental Baptist churches. The report identified 412 abuse allegations in 187 independent fundamental Baptist churches and institutions across 40 states and Canada, with some cases reaching as far back as the 1970s. The newspaper said it found that 168 IFB church leaders were accused or have been convicted of sexually abusing children. The Boy Scouts have been at the center of sexual-abuse scandals in the past, and the organization is facing a number of lawsuits that allege inappropriate conduct by employees or volunteers in incidents dating back as far as the 1960s. USA Gymnastics is turning to bankruptcy in an attempt to ensure its survival. The embattled organization filed a Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition in an effort to reach settlements in the dozens of sex-abuse lawsuits it faces and to avoid its potential demise at the hands of the U.S. Olympic Committee. Billy Grahams grandson, Boz Tchividjian, says evangelicals are worse than Catholics on sex abuse, saying too many evangelicals had sacrificed the souls of young victims. Protestants can be very arrogant when pointing to Catholics, says Tchividjian. This abuse goes on in every denomination but the mainstream media only sees fit to rehash decades old cases in the Catholic Church. Most of these priests are dead and cant defend themselves. Just because the news media says this abuse occurred doesnt mean it actually did. Most of these cases are allegations, not fact. Almost daily reports come out in the media about Catholic clergy abuse while ignoring the thousands of cases of Protestant clergy abuse. Candy Hartzog, Beaumont Socialism is not the answer We didnt watch the State of the Union address. We had a rough day and went to bed at 8 p.m. However, people who watched said that when the president said America will never be a socialist nation, the Democrats sat on their hands. If you are Democrat and vote your conscience I commend you and dont want to insult you. My personal belief is that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer think socialism is the way to go. To me, they are shepherds leading the flock to destruction of our way of life. Why is it that socialism has throughout history never worked in any country? These so-called intelligent people need only to look at Venezuela and the upheaval and the near collapse after less than two decades under this panacea. I guess they think, mistakenly, that America will be the exception. Not! Again I respect everyones choice of political affiliation but really does anyone really think Pelosi can lead after all the gaffes she has made with her words and her actions? No one over 75 should be allowed in Congress, in my humble opinion. Joe Bonura, Beaumont Subsidized housing is a controversial topic, but theres one form of it that generates less opposition housing for seniors. Thats what an Indianapolis-based developer is proposing for northwest Beaumont, and it deserves the support of the City Council and Beaumont residents. Beaumont has to do something about its flat population growth. One clear way to do that would be to provide housing that people can actually afford to live in and thus keep them here. The proposal put forth last week seems like a reasonable way to help low-income seniors and the city in general. The developer wants to build a 77-unit apartment complex on 11.5 acres on the northwest corner of Veterans Circle. The rooms would have high-quality finishes and appliances, according to the builder, as well as planned activities. The company would help finance the project by applying for tax credits from the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs. Similar projects have been proposed before in Beaumont and other parts of Southeast Texas, sometimes sailing through and sometimes generating pushback. Its hard to see why anyone would oppose this plan. Those 100 or so residents would buy food, clothing and supplies at local businesses. Without something like this, they might not live here. The city and the region have a shortage of affordable housing, like many parts of the country. Instead of constantly bemoaning this fate, public officials should take active steps to remedy it such as supporting projects like this. Because of the local housing shortage, this project wouldnt compete with any private-sector landlords, a common and valid complaint about some government programs. Generally speaking, when an affordable rental house or apartment becomes available in Beaumont, it is spoken for quickly. Our main emphasis should be on adding young professionals and young families. They will fill the jobs of the future and put down the kinds of roots that can help a community grow. But a diverse, vibrant city needs all kinds of people, and that certainly includes older residents. Beaumont has no shortage of people who could live in these apartments. Senior citizens dont join gangs or hold rowdy late-night parties. They are about as law-abiding as any segment of our society. If someone has a better way to boost population growth in Beaumont, let them come forward now. If they dont, or in the meantime, lets proceed with this one. Its real, not theoretical, and it needs action soon. N. Oregon Coast's Tillamook County Abuzz with Events: Manzanita, Pacific City, Tillamook, Nehalem Published 02/09/2019 at 4:23 AM PDT By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff (Pacific City, Oregon) From Manzanita to Pacific City, the Tillamook Coast area of the north Oregon coast provides a bevy of fun and intriguing events throughout February and March. Its where the indoors events begin to morph into outdoor happenings, including a load of music, food, arts, and nature fun. A literary event here or there, a food feast, some music scattered about, and the rush of whale watching season and the SOLVE beach cleanup dot the seascape of this part of the Oregon coast. Check out the preview of activities in the next two months. Most Fridays. Garibaldi Jam. Mostly old-time favorites and Country-Western standards using their complete sound system, with the audience cutting a rug on the large dance floor while others sit and enjoy, toes a-tapping. No admission fee is charged, but donations are always welcome. 6 p.m. Garibaldi Community Hall, 6th St. and Acacia Ave. Garibaldi, Oregon. 503-801-0953. February 15. Tony Smiley. Raw rhythms with live looping. From rock, hip hop, reggae, tribal fusion, 80s and everything in between, with a dash of Mongolian throat singing. 9 p.m. Cover. San Dune Pub, 127 Laneda Avenue. Manzanita, Oregon. Through February 17. Beer for Breakfast. A group of middle-aged buddies reunite for a guys weekend in a snowed-in cabin to eat chili, drink beer, and relive the good old days. $15. 7 p.m. and 2 p.m. on matinee days. Tillamook, Oregon. https://app.arts-people.com/index.php?ticketing=tap02. 503-812-0275 February 22. Manzanita Film Series. Mostly documentaries from the Northwest Film School in Portland. 7:30 pm. $5 admission charge. Refreshments will be available for purchase. Hoffman Center for the Arts. 594 Laneda Ave. Manzanita, Oregon. February 23. Celebrate the Bounty of the Bays with Tillamook Estuaries Partnership. TEP is celebrating the 25th Anniversary of Tillamook Bays designation as a Bay of National Significance.You are invited to show your love for the estuaries and watersheds of Tillamook County and join in on a scrumptious feast that highlights amazing locally-sourced cuisine. 4 p.m. 205 Main Ave. Tillamook, Oregon. 503-322-2222. www.tbnep.org. February 23. Tillamook Downtown District Artwalk. Each month a variety of merchants will host local artists in a dynamic and evolving art show. 1 p.m. Tillamook, Oregon. www.artaccelerated.org. February 23. Three Capes Relay. From Cape Meares to Cape Kiwanda, running solo or in teams of 2 or 5 through the beautiful Oregon coast scenery to end here in Pacific City, Oregon. This one day race helps to support the three legs of Ultimook non-profit organization; Tillamook Distance Project, Ultimook Running Camp, and Ultimook Track Club. Cape Meares, Oregon. Www.yourlittlebeachtown.com. February 25. Derik Nelson & Family. Musical concert. 7 p.m. Don Whitney Auditorium. 2605 12th St, Tillamook, Oregon. https://deriknelson.com/home. March 2. Correo Aereo Trio. Award-winning acoustic multi-instrumental and vocal Latin/World Music Trio. They perform traditional music of Latin America: especially of Venezuela, Argentina & Mexico. 7 p.m. $15. Hoffman Center For The Arts. 594 Laneda Avenue. Manzanita, Oregon. https://hoffmanarts.org March 8 - 9. Tillamook County Fairgrounds Vintage Flea Market & Spring Bazaar. Many different vendors that will be selling a wide variety of items. Noon. Tillamook County Fairgrounds. Tillamook, Oregon. 503-842-2272. www.tillamookfair.com. March 9. Literary Tea with Myrna Daly. Her book Night Falls in the Gorge is a Pacific Northwest mystery. 3:30 p.m. La Tea Da Tea Room, 904 Main Ave, Tillamook, Oregon. 503-842-5447. March 9. Sedona Fire Band Songs and Meaning Show. This event will be a night of music, poetry and storytelling that will take you on a theatrical and musical journey. 7 p.m. $10 - $15. St. Catherines Episcopal Church, 36335 N Hwy 101, Nehalem, Oregon. March 23. Tillamook Downtown District Artwalk. Each month a variety of merchants will host local artists in a dynamic and evolving art show. 1 p.m. Tillamook, Oregon. www.artaccelerated.org Lodgings in Three Capes - Where to eat - Maps - Virtual Tours Lodging in Manzanita, Wheeler - Where to eat - Maps - Virtual Tours More About Oregon Coast hotels, lodging..... More About Oregon Coast Restaurants, Dining..... Coastal Spotlight LATEST Related Oregon Coast Articles Back to Oregon Coast Contact Advertise on BeachConnection.net All Content, unless otherwise attributed, copyright BeachConnection.net Unauthorized use or publication is not permitted Linda Carol Morand, age 81, of Tazewell, VA passed away Tuesday, June 22, 2021 at Kingsport, TN. Born August 3, 1939 in Amonate, VA she was a daughter of the late Palmer A. Penland and Mabel Patrick Penland. Carol was active in the Tannersville community, her beloved valley. She was an avid Dear Aspirants, Current Affairs for NIACL AO Main 2018-19: Knowledge of current news also helps you deal with the PI (Personal Interview) more efficiently so you do not give a mumble jumble answer to the interviewees simple questions. Here is a quiz on Current Affairs to let you assess your Current Affairs Knowledge. Q1. India and Bangladesh have signed an MOU for training how many Bangladesh Civil Servants at the National Centre for Good Governance (NCGG) over the next 6 years? The General Awareness Section of Banking Exams covers numerous sections in it like Banking Awareness, Static GK, and Current Affairs. Most of the questions in GA appear from Current Affairs section. So it becomes important for you all to cover this particular section with sincerity and seriousness. The questions on Static and Banking Awareness are related to the countries, events or anything that has been in news for a while.Here is a quiz on Current Affairs to let you assess your Current Affairs Knowledge. (a) 1500 (b) 1600 (c) 1800 (d) 2000 (e) 2200 S1. Ans.(c) Sol. India and Bangladesh have signed an MOU for training 1800 Bangladesh Civil Servants at the National Centre for Good Governance (NCGG) an institute under the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DAR&PG), Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Govt. of India, over the next 6 years. Q2. In a bid to recognize the outstanding performance and to promote a healthy competition by States/UTs, Urban Local Bodies, Beneficiaries and Housing Finance Corporations (under CLSS), Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has instituted an award under the Mission. Name the award. (a) PMAY (H) awards for Renovation and Innovation (b) PMAY (U) awards for Implementation and Innovation (c) PMAY (R) awards for Accomplishment and Innovation (d) Both (a) and (b) (e) None of the given options is true S2. Ans.(b) Sol. In a bid to recognize the outstanding performance and to promote a healthy competition by States/UTs, Urban Local Bodies, Beneficiaries and Housing Finance Corporations (under CLSS), Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has instituted the PMAY (U) awards for Implementation and Innovation under the Mission. In a bid to recognize the outstanding performance and to promote a healthy competition by States/UTs, Urban Local Bodies, Beneficiaries and Housing Finance Corporations (under CLSS), Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has instituted the PMAY (U) awards for Implementation and Innovation under the Mission. Q3. The 13th Conference of Parties (COP) of the Convention on the conservation of migratory species of wild animals (CMS) will be hosted by which of the following country? (a) South Africa (b) Barcelona (c) New Zealand (d) India (e) Brazil S3. Ans.(d) Sol. The 13th Conference of Parties (COP) of the Convention on the conservation of migratory species of wild animals (CMS), an environmental treaty under the aegis of United Nations Environment Programme, is going to be hosted by India during 15th to 22nd February 2020 at Gandhinagar in Gujarat. Q4. Name the Oscar-nominated British actor who passed away recently after a short illness aged 82. (a) Albert Finney (b) Jacob Marley (c) Frankenstein Roba (d) Robert Macao (e) Inherista Decora S4. Ans.(a) Sol. Oscar-nominated British actor Albert Finney passed away peacefully after a short illness. He aged 82. He was a five-time Oscar nominee who began his career at the Royal Shakespeare Company before making his mark in film. Q5. To which among the following region, Jammu & Kashmir Government had granted a Divisional Status? (a) Srinagar Region (b) Anantnag Region (c) Ladakh Region (d) Baramulla Region (e) Leh Region S5. Ans.(c) Sol. While exercising powers conferred in Section 5 of Land Revenue Act, the State Government of Jammu and Kashmir issued a notification of creation of Ladakh as 3rd Division in the state. Q6. Who is the present Governor of Jammu and Kashmir? (a) Kesri Nath Tripathi (b) Satya Pal Malik (c) NN Vohra (d) BD Mishra (e) VP Singh Badnor S6. Ans.(b) Sol. Satya Pal Malik is the present Governor of Jammu and Kashmir. Q7. The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) announced that it has signed a pact with which of the following government Agency to promote foreign investments in the country and Indian investments abroad? (a) Exchange India (b) Make in India (c) Product India (d) Invest India (e) Direct India S7. Ans.(d) Sol. The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) announced that it has signed a pact with Invest India to promote foreign investments in the country and Indian investments abroad. Invest India is a government agency that promotes and facilitates investment in the country. Q8. Union Minister of Textiles Smriti Irani launched the India Size project in _________. (a) New Delhi (b) Mumbai (c) Guwahati (d) Gandhinagar (e) Ajmer S8. Ans.(b) Sol. Union Minister of Textiles Smriti Irani launched the India Size project in Mumbai. A first-of-its-kind project in the history of the country, India Size aims to arrive at a standard Indian Size for the ready-to-wear clothing industry, on the lines of the standardized sizes available in countries such as the USA and the UK. Q9. Union Minister of State for Tourism KJ Alphons inaugurated the 2nd ASEAN-India Youth Summit at Hotel Taj Vivanta in _________. (a) Leh (b) Gandhinagar (c) Guwahati (d) Bengaluru (e) Kochi S9. Ans.(c) Sol. Union Minister of State for Tourism KJ Alphons and Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal inaugurated the 2nd ASEAN-India Youth Summit at Hotel Taj Vivanta in Guwahati. Q10. The Reserve Bank of India raised the limit of collateral-free agricultural loans to Rs. 1.6 lakh from the current __________ with a view to help small and marginal farmers. (a) Rs. 1.5 lakh (b) Rs. 1.0 lakh (c) Rs. 1.3 lakh (d) Rs. 1.4 lakh (e) Rs. 1.2 lakh S10. Ans.(b) Sol. The Reserve Bank of India raised the limit of collateral-free agricultural loans to Rs. 1.6 lakh from the current Rs. 1 lakh with a view to help small and marginal farmers. The central bank also decided to set up an internal working group (IWG) to review agricultural credit and arrive at a workable policy solution. Username: Password: or Register Back to Forum Reply to This post Post New Thread Thread Rating: 2 Vote(s) - 3 Average 1 2 3 4 5 Page: 1 2 Hitler Promoted "Progressive" Policies To Attack Capitalism In Germany LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 488535 02-10-2019 09:15 PM Post: #1 Hitler Promoted "Progressive" Policies To Attack Capitalism In Germany Advertisement Their war is not a war for territorial expansion, for loot and hegemony like the imperialistic wars of the past, but a holy crusade for a better world to live in. And they feel certain of their victory because they are convinced that they are borne by the wave of the future. is a law of nature, they say, that great historic changes cannot take place peacefully or without conflict. It would be petty and stupid, they contend, to overlook the creative quality of their work because of some unpleasantness which the great world revolution must necessarily bring with it. They maintain one should not overlook the glory of the new gospel because of ill-placed pity for Jews and Masons, Poles and Czechs, Finns and Greeks, the decadent English aristocracy and the corrupt French bourgeoisie. Such softness and such blindness for the new standards of morality prove only the decadence of the dying capitalistic pseudo-culture. The whining and crying of impotent old men, they say, is futile; it will not stop the victorious advance of youth. No one can stop the wheel of history, or turn back the clock of time. The success of this propaganda is overwhelming. People do not consider the content of alleged new gospel; they merely understand that it is new and believe to see in this fact its justification. As women welcome a new style in clothes just to have a change, so the supposedly new style in politics and economics is welcomed. People hasten to exchange their old ideas for new ones, because they fear to appear old-fashioned and reactionary. They join the chorus decrying the shortcomings of the capitalistic civilization and speak in elated enthusiasm of the achievements of the autocrats. Nothing is today more fashionable than slandering Western civilization. This mentality made it easy for Hitler to gain his victories. Hitler does not have a new secret weapon at his disposal. He does not owe his victory to an excellent intelligence service which informs him of the plans of his opponents. Even the much-talked-of fifth column was not decisive. He won because the supposed opponents were already quite sympathetic to the ideas for which he stood. What would have happened to Western civilization if its peoples had always shown such liking for the new? Suppose they had welcomed as the wave of the future Attila and his Huns, the creed of Mohammed, or the Tartars? They, too, were totalitarian and had military successes to their credit which made the weak hesitate and ready to capitulate. What mankind needs today is liberation from the rule of nonsensical slogans and a return to sound reasoning.<<< "Progressive" Attacks On Capitalism Were Key To Hitler's SuccessTheir war is not a war for territorial expansion, for loot and hegemony like the imperialistic wars of the past, but a holy crusade for a better world to live in. And they feel certain of their victory because they are convinced that they are borne by the wave of the future.is a law of nature, they say, that great historic changes cannot take place peacefully or without conflict. It would be petty and stupid, they contend, to overlook the creative quality of their work because of some unpleasantness which the great world revolution must necessarily bring with it. They maintain one should not overlook the glory of the new gospel because of ill-placed pity for Jews and Masons, Poles and Czechs, Finns and Greeks, the decadent English aristocracy and the corrupt French bourgeoisie. Such softness and such blindness for the new standards of morality prove only the decadence of the dying capitalistic pseudo-culture. The whining and crying of impotent old men, they say, is futile; it will not stop the victorious advance of youth. No one can stop the wheel of history, or turn back the clock of time.The success of this propaganda is overwhelming. People do not consider the content of alleged new gospel; they merely understand that it is new and believe to see in this fact its justification. As women welcome a new style in clothes just to have a change, so the supposedly new style in politics and economics is welcomed. People hasten to exchange their old ideas for new ones, because they fear to appear old-fashioned and reactionary. They join the chorus decrying the shortcomings of the capitalistic civilization and speak in elated enthusiasm of the achievements of the autocrats. Nothing is today more fashionable than slandering Western civilization.This mentality made it easy for Hitler to gain his victories.Hitler does not have a new secret weapon at his disposal. He does not owe his victory to an excellent intelligence service which informs him of the plans of his opponents. Even the much-talked-of fifth column was not decisive. He won because the supposed opponents were already quite sympathetic to the ideas for which he stood.What would have happened to Western civilization if its peoples had always shown such liking for the new? Suppose they had welcomed as the wave of the future Attila and his Huns, the creed of Mohammed, or the Tartars? They, too, were totalitarian and had military successes to their credit which made the weak hesitate and ready to capitulate. What mankind needs today is liberation from the rule of nonsensical slogans and a return to sound reasoning.<< LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 488535 02-10-2019 09:15 PM Post: #2 RE: Hitler Promoted "Progressive" Policies To Attack Capitalism In Germany https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-02-0...rs-success LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 472854 02-10-2019 09:16 PM Post: #3 RE: Hitler Promoted "Progressive" Policies To Attack Capitalism In Germany I knew HeMao was a NAZI LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 475829 02-10-2019 09:44 PM Post: #4 RE: Hitler Promoted "Progressive" Policies To Attack Capitalism In Germany but who is worse, hitler or dave duke ? hitler was bad ??but who is worse, hitler or dave duke ? LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 488535 02-10-2019 10:04 PM Post: #5 RE: Hitler Promoted "Progressive" Policies To Attack Capitalism In Germany LoP Guest Wrote: (02-10-2019 09:16 PM) I knew HeMao was a NAZI A democrat one-starred a history lesson thread.... because the lessons we can take from history buttfukks their "progressive" Democrat party ideology, and destroy the idea of destroying the past because "new" is cool. (NEVERMIND THAT THEIR "NEW" IS RECYCLED OLD COMMIE FASCIST sh*t). Even the art poster they made for the Green New Deal LOOKS like an old Soviet propaganda art poster, lol. A democrat one-starred a history lesson thread.... because the lessons we can take from history buttfukks their "progressive" Democrat party ideology, and destroy the idea of destroying the past because "new" is cool.(NEVERMIND THAT THEIR "NEW" IS RECYCLED OLD COMMIE FASCIST sh*t).Even the art poster they made for the Green New Deal LOOKS like an old Soviet propaganda art poster, lol. LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 488535 02-10-2019 10:22 PM Post: #6 RE: Hitler Promoted "Progressive" Policies To Attack Capitalism In Germany LoP Guest Wrote: (02-10-2019 10:04 PM) LoP Guest Wrote: (02-10-2019 09:16 PM) I knew HeMao was a NAZI A democrat one-starred a history lesson thread.... because the lessons we can take from history buttfukks their "progressive" Democrat party ideology, and destroy the idea of destroying the past because "new" is cool. (NEVERMIND THAT THEIR "NEW" IS RECYCLED OLD COMMIE FASCIST sh*t). Even the art poster they made for the Green New Deal LOOKS like an old Soviet propaganda art poster, lol. the poster can be see here https://www.google.com/amp/s/m.huffpost....f0912e/amp (sorry for linking to huffpo...) the poster can be see here(sorry for linking to huffpo...) LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 475829 02-10-2019 10:28 PM Post: #7 RE: Hitler Promoted "Progressive" Policies To Attack Capitalism In Germany https://hollywoodlife.com/2019/02/08/can...ter-video/ this gyyim knows too much Candace Owens Blasted For Defending Hitler & Saying Making Germany Great Was Finethis gyyim knows too much LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 475829 02-10-2019 10:29 PM Post: #8 RE: Hitler Promoted "Progressive" Policies To Attack Capitalism In Germany LoP Guest Wrote: (02-10-2019 10:28 PM) Candace Owens Blasted For Defending Hitler & Saying Making Germany Great Was Fine https://hollywoodlife.com/2019/02/08/can...ter-video/ this gyyim knows too much I actually dont have any problems at all with the word nationalism. I think that the definition gets poisoned by elitists that actually want globalism. Globalism is what I dont wantWhenever we say nationalism, the first thing people think about, at least in America, is Hitler. You know, he was a national socialist, but if Hitler just wanted to make Germany great and have things run well, OK, fine, the 29-year-old told an audience in London. The problem is that he wanted he had dreams outside of Germany. He wanted to globalize. He wanted everybody to be German, everybody to be speaking German. Everybody to look a different way. Thats not, to me, thats not nationalism. In thinking about how we could go bad down the line, I dont really have an issue with nationalism. I really dont. I think that its OK, she added. lol I actually dont have any problems at all with the word nationalism. I think that the definition gets poisoned by elitists that actually want globalism. Globalism is what I dont wantWhenever we say nationalism, the first thing people think about, at least in America, is Hitler. You know, he was a national socialist, but if Hitler just wanted to make Germany great and have things run well, OK, fine, the 29-year-old told an audience in London.The problem is that he wanted he had dreams outside of Germany. He wanted to globalize. He wanted everybody to be German, everybody to be speaking German. Everybody to look a different way. Thats not, to me, thats not nationalism. In thinking about how we could go bad down the line, I dont really have an issue with nationalism. I really dont. I think that its OK, she added.lol LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 488530 02-10-2019 10:32 PM Post: #9 RE: Hitler Promoted "Progressive" Policies To Attack Capitalism In Germany Not capitalism, corrupt crony central banker con job, Hitler like many before and after him tried break away from their slavery, Lincoln, JFK, reagan ...just to name a few...the progressive policies were to push their elitist racist ideals, nothing has changed, the same eugenicist filth that were called nazis are now called liberal progressives aka social democrats...the same liberal filth btw that enrich themselves with the so called free market, competition in The market place that feeds humanity is nothing more than another twisted example of delusional twit darwinism LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 488535 02-10-2019 10:32 PM Post: #10 RE: Hitler Promoted "Progressive" Policies To Attack Capitalism In Germany "We recognize that separating humanity from nature, from the whole of life, leads to humankinds own destruction and to the death of nations. Only through a re-integration of humanity into the whole of nature can our people be made stronger. That is the fundamental point of the biological tasks of our age. Humankind alone is no longer the focus of thought, but rather life as a whole . . . This striving toward connectedness with the totality of life, with nature itself, a nature into which we are born, this is the deepest meaning and the true essence of National Socialist thought." Ernst Lehmann, Biologischer Wille. Wege und Ziele biologischer Arbeit im neuen Reich, Munchen, 1934, pp. 10-11. Lehmann was a professor of botany who characterized National Socialism as "politically applied biology." LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 488530 02-10-2019 10:37 PM Post: #11 RE: Hitler Promoted "Progressive" Policies To Attack Capitalism In Germany LoP Guest Wrote: (02-10-2019 10:32 PM) "We recognize that separating humanity from nature, from the whole of life, leads to humankinds own destruction and to the death of nations. Only through a re-integration of humanity into the whole of nature can our people be made stronger. That is the fundamental point of the biological tasks of our age. Humankind alone is no longer the focus of thought, but rather life as a whole . . . This striving toward connectedness with the totality of life, with nature itself, a nature into which we are born, this is the deepest meaning and the true essence of National Socialist thought." Ernst Lehmann, Biologischer Wille. Wege und Ziele biologischer Arbeit im neuen Reich, Munchen, 1934, pp. 10-11. Lehmann was a professor of botany who characterized National Socialism as "politically applied biology." rehash of centuries old Catholic doctrine, nothing more rehash of centuries old Catholic doctrine, nothing more NormalIsSubjective User ID: 461465 02-10-2019 10:37 PM Posts: 19,603 Post: #12 RE: Hitler Promoted "Progressive" Policies To Attack Capitalism In Germany Wall Street and the Rise of Hitler By Antony C. Sutton Finally, a distinguished scholar has penetrated the cloak of falsehood, deception, and duplicity that for more than thirty years has protected one of the most incredible secrets of World War II: the support from key Wall Street financiers and other international bankers in subsidizing Hitler's rise to power. Professor Antony C. Sutton proves that World War II was not only well planned, it was also extremely profitablefor a select group of financial insiders. Carefully tracing this closely guarded secret through original documents and eyewitness accounts, Sutton documents the roles played by J.P. Morgan, T. W. Lamont, the Rockefeller interests, General Electric Company, Standard Oil, National City Bank, Chase and Manhattan banks, Kuhn, Loeb and Company, and scores of other business elitists... http://Go sue yourself./wall-st-hitler.html PDF: The irony being:Wall Street and the Rise of HitlerBy Antony C. SuttonFinally, a distinguished scholar has penetrated the cloak of falsehood, deception, and duplicity that for more than thirty years has protected one of the most incredible secrets of World War II: the support from key Wall Street financiers and other international bankers in subsidizing Hitler's rise to power.Professor Antony C. Sutton proves that World War II was not only well planned, it was also extremely profitablefor a select group of financial insiders. Carefully tracing this closely guarded secret through original documents and eyewitness accounts, Sutton documents the roles played by J.P. Morgan, T. W. Lamont, the Rockefeller interests, General Electric Company, Standard Oil, National City Bank, Chase and Manhattan banks, Kuhn, Loeb and Company, and scores of other business elitists... http://Go sue yourself./wall-st-hitler.htmlPDF: https://www.voltairenet.org/IMG/pdf/Sutt...Hitler.pdf LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 441631 02-10-2019 10:37 PM Post: #13 RE: Hitler Promoted "Progressive" Policies To Attack Capitalism In Germany That's the scam with the progressives. They take the old tired failed ideas of the past and tell the lumpkins that don't know any better that they're brand knew. Socialism Marxism Communism Fascism Nazism. They never met a train wreck they didn't like. LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 488535 02-10-2019 10:38 PM Post: #14 RE: Hitler Promoted "Progressive" Policies To Attack Capitalism In Germany LoP Guest Wrote: (02-10-2019 10:29 PM) LoP Guest Wrote: (02-10-2019 10:28 PM) Candace Owens Blasted For Defending Hitler & Saying Making Germany Great Was Fine https://hollywoodlife.com/2019/02/08/can...ter-video/ this gyyim knows too much I actually dont have any problems at all with the word nationalism. I think that the definition gets poisoned by elitists that actually want globalism. Globalism is what I dont wantWhenever we say nationalism, the first thing people think about, at least in America, is Hitler. You know, he was a national socialist, but if Hitler just wanted to make Germany great and have things run well, OK, fine, the 29-year-old told an audience in London. The problem is that he wanted he had dreams outside of Germany. He wanted to globalize. He wanted everybody to be German, everybody to be speaking German. Everybody to look a different way. Thats not, to me, thats not nationalism. In thinking about how we could go bad down the line, I dont really have an issue with nationalism. I really dont. I think that its OK, she added. lol Nationalism is okay. Your lol is the deviant laughter of a brainwashed imbecile. https://lunaticoutpost.com/thread-106186.html Candace has brains. She rejects your liberal ghet-to ass and you SEETHE with anger that she fled the Dem plantation. Nationalism is okay.Your lol is the deviant laughter of a brainwashed imbecile.Candace has brains. She rejects your liberal ghet-to ass and you SEETHE with anger that she fled the Dem plantation. LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 488535 02-10-2019 10:47 PM Post: #15 RE: Hitler Promoted "Progressive" Policies To Attack Capitalism In Germany this is awesome.....this thread is causing Dems to be like "WTF? Now i have to explain how Hitler was justified in being angry at Jewish bankers!" .....something they previously never would have done......but now in The Age Of Orange Man Bad the world is all topsy-turvy and Dems are always doing a "WTF? Now I......." (fill in the blank) It is so fun to watch! Advertisement Back to Forum Reply to This post Post New Thread John Cox can be reached at 661-395-7404. Follow him on Twitter: @TheThirdGraf. Sign up at Bakersfield.com to receive free newsletters about local business. Camp KEEP's history Spring 1968 The Kern County Superintendent of Schools enters into a partnership with the Tulare County Office of Education to allow sixth graders to participate in Scicon short for Clemmie Gill School of Science and Conservation a residential science school near Springville in Tulare County. April 1969 The first five-day sessions of Camp KEEP are held at Camp Condor near Pine Mountain Club and at Tehachapi Mountain Park. Camp KEEP is coordinated by George Houghton, KCSOSs director of science, conservation and outdoor education, under the leadership of Bruce Crawford and County Superintendent Harry Blair. 1969-70 Camp KEEP sessions are held at Camp Condor near Pine Mountain Club and at Tehachapi Mountain Park. Spring 1971 Camp KEEP moves to a 10-acre plot on Keene Ranch, in the foothills off of Hwy. 58, 30 miles east of Bakersfield. June 1971 Local education officials and dignitaries gather in Hart Flat to officially dedicate KEEP as the Bruce M. Crawford School. Fall 1971 KEEP operates at Hazard Canyon south of Morro Bay in Montana De Oro State Park. Spring 1972 KEEP Ocean is relocated to a new site within Montana de Oro State Park, where it has operated since. May 1973 The Kern County Sheriffs Mounted Posse donates $2,500 so that children with physical and mental disabilities can take part in KEEP. It becomes the first of many donations over the years. Spring 1974 Camp is held at Cambria YMCA Camp due to heavy flooding at Montana de Oro State Park. 1987 Because of the popularity and growth of KEEP, KCSOS leases the YMCA Dickson Camp near Glennville and opens a second camp. Spring 1990 KCSOS purchases YMCA Dickson Camp and officially renames it KEEP Sierra. Spring 1992 KEEP Cambria opens, at the request (and with the financial support) of the Bakersfield City School District, in order to give their students a coastal science experience operating out of the Cambria YMCA facility. October 1992 The KEEP Foundation is founded. 1994 KEEP Cambria relocates to a new Cambria location, operating out of the Coalinga-Huron Park & Recreation District's Camp Yeager facility. 2003 KEEP Sierra is closed. 2004-05 KEEP celebrates 35 years of operation. 2009-10 KEEP celebrates 40 years of operation. A new dome is built at KEEP Ocean. 2011-12 KEEP Ocean installs a new kitchen and adds a new entry native plant garden 2016-17 KEEP Ocean completes an extensive project to renovate its outdoor amphitheater. 2017-18 KEEP Cambria is held at two temporary campuses due to ongoing maintenance issues at its permanent campus. In the fall 2017, camp is held at Rancho El Chorro Outdoor School. In the Spring 2018, camp is held at Camp San Luis Obispo. KCSOS begins exploring options to move to a new, permanent location. Spring 2018 KCSOS leases property on the site of Camp Arroyo Grande for a new camp to replace the campus in Cambria. The new campus is slated to open in fall 2018 under the name KEEP By the Sea. August 28, 2018 The first students arrive at Camp KEEP By the Sea in Arroyo Grande. Spring 2019 The Camp KEEP program celebrates 50 years of existence. Hong Kong: Subsidy scheme to open year-round A Social Welfare Department subsidy scheme to support the employment of the disabled will open for applications all year round from tomorrow. The Support Programme for Employees with Disabilities, launched in 2013, gives employers a one-off subsidy of up to $20,000 for each disabled staff to buy assistive devices or modify workplace. A grant of up to $40,000 may be considered for cases where the price of a single assistive device and its essential accessories exceeds $20,000. The subsidy can be used on a wide range of assistive devices and modifications, including computer accessories or adaptive equipment, optical magnifying devices, hearing and assistive devices, Braille products and handrails. Employers may send their application forms together with the required documents to the department through the referring organisations. Each applicant may submit more than one application. Click here for details. This story has been published on: 2019-02-10. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. By Trend In 2018, Iran moved ahead of Turkey in exports to Iraq, Hamid Hosseini, the secretary-general of the Iran-Iraq Joint Chamber of Commerce, told the Fars News Agency, Trend reports. Iranian exports to Iraq in 2018 amounted to $8.75 billion. Hosseini added that Iranian exports to Iraq failed to reach a satisfactory level during the 10th month of the Iranian calendar (started 21 March 2018). "There were two reasons for this. The first one was the holidays during the month of January, and the second was the return of foreign currency acquired through exports," he said, adding that the exports declined by $510 million in the 10th month. "However, during some months of the current year (started March 21, 2018), Iran's exports to Iraq had also reached $900 million," he said. Hosseini said that Iran has exported about $750 million worth of goods to Iraq on average per month, and remarked that Turkish exports stood at $8.3 billion in 2017 and $7.35 billion in 2018. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Trend By the end of January 2019, the growth of the gross domestic product (GDP) of Turkmenistan was 6.2 percent, the Turkmen government said in a statement, Trend reports. In general, the volume of production and the retail trade turnover grew by 4.9 and 19 percent compared to the same period last year, respectively. The plan for the production of various types of food products has been fulfilled by 155.1 percent. The report detailing the aforementioned figures was presented at a meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers of Turkmenistan. It was noted in particular that the plan for the extraction of oil and gas condensate was fulfilled by 103.2 percent, natural and associated gas by 107.9 percent, processing of hydrocarbon raw materials by 113.3 percent, gasoline production by 101.3 percent, diesel fuel by 108.8 percent, lubricating oils by 100.9 percent, liquefied gas by 110.6 percent, and investment management by 113.5 percent. Turkmenistan, according to a report by British Petroleum (BP), ranks fourth in the world in terms of natural gas reserves and currently exports it to China and Iran. The country set a course for diversifying the local economy. The textile and petroleum industries have developed, and the oil, gas, chemical, and building material industries are actively developing. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Trend US Senator Elizabeth Warren, struggling to move past criticism over her claims of Native American heritage, aimed for a fresh start on Saturday with the formal launch of her 2020 presidential campaign, saying that she is fighting for all Americans, Trend reports with reference to Reuters. The Massachusetts Democrat, a leader of the partys progressive wing, made her announcement from a historic site in Lawrence, northwest of Boston, that launched the US organized labor movement. Warren, 69, has made worker rights, fair wages and access to health care central to her campaign. This is the fight of our lives. The fight to build an America where dreams are possible, an America that works for everyone, Warren said. And that is why I stand here today: to declare that I am a candidate for President of the United States of America. Warren is part of an increasingly crowded and diverse field of Democrats vying for the chance to challenge President Donald Trump, the likely Republican nominee. A year before any ballots are cast in a Democratic primary, many of those candidates are spending this weekend talking to voters in the early-nominating states of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. Warrens announcement will be followed on Sunday by US Senator Amy Klobuchar, who has said she will reveal her presidential plans in her home state of Minnesota. Warren picked up the endorsement of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee (PCCC) simultaneously with her launch - a group that could pump millions of dollars behind her candidacy and provide an outside attack dog against her Democratic opponents. We believe that Elizabeth Warren is the most electable Democrat and the best person to be president to defeat Trump, Adam Green, the co-founder of PCCC, said. Warrens heritage claims have dogged her since her first campaign for the Senate in 2012, and Trump mockingly refers to her as Pocahontas. Her ancestry drew fresh scrutiny earlier this week with the discovery that she described her race as American Indian on a form to join the Texas legal bar in the 1980s. Warren has repeatedly apologized, saying the claim was based on family lore and she now understands tribal sovereignty dictates membership. Trumps campaign described Warren as a fraud. A statement from his campaign manager Brad Parscale said, The American people will reject her dishonest campaign. In addition to being a fierce Trump critic, Warren is an outspoken critic of Wall Street who gained national notoriety for her efforts to create the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to regulate large banks. Warren is one of four women so far seeking the Democratic nomination, an unprecedented number of female candidates vying to lead a country that has never had a woman chief executive. Warren and the other women running so far, among whom are Senators Kamala Harris and Kirsten Gillibrand, are hoping to build on the success of women candidates who played a significant role in Democrats regaining control of the US House of Representatives in Novembers congressional elections. I like her anger, said Christiane Alsop, who has donated to Warrens previous campaigns and is backing her presidential bid. I like her fighting spirit. Warren heads next to Iowa, where fellow Democratic contenders US Senator Cory Booker and Pete Buttigieg, the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, campaigned on Friday. I am running for president right now because I believe Americans have surrendered to cynicism, Booker said at an event in Waterloo, Iowa. I want to see a revival of civic grace. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Trend Iranian parliament speaker is scheduled to travel to Japan for an official visit to the Asian country on Monday, Trend reports citing IRNA. Heading a high-ranking parliamentary delegation, Ali Larijani will depart Tehran for Tokyo on Monday for an official two-day visit to the country. Larijani will visit Japan upon an official invitation of his Japanese counterpart Tadamori Oshima. The Iranian parliament speaker is expected to discuss issues of mutual interest with his Japanese counterpart and other officials of the Asian country. Tehran and Tokyo have good diplomatic relations for about a century and Japan is one of Iran's oil importers. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Leman Mammadova The global trade turnover of SOCAR on liquefied natural gas (LNG) has increased four-fold, SOCARs President Rovnag Abdullayev said in an interview with AZERTAC. Each year, we enter new spheres and new markets, expanding our business. Although we have entered into a commodity market in 2017 that is new to us as liquefied gas, we have been able to increase our global trade turnover more than four times in just one year, he said. Speaking about the company's traditional operating areas, exploration and production, Abdullayev noted that SOCAR has drastically increased its drilling activities by 66 percent over the past two years. Since 2015, 4 wells at depths of more than 6,000 meters were drilled and handed over in Bulla Deniz and Umid fields. At present, the depth of the new well drilled at Umid field is 6810 meters, its drilling will be completed soon, he added. Head of SOCAR also noted that the new wellhead drilling rig named "Heydar Aliyev" will begin drilling the first well at Absheron field in the third quarter of this year and then will start to drill the well within the "Shafag-Asiman" project. Abdullayev said that the expectations regarding the oil and gas reserves of the Karabakh field are great. About 60 percent of work on the new offshore platform for the Karabakh field have been completed. The first product from the Absheron and Karabakh fields is expected in 2020-2021. In addition, the first well is expected to be drilled from the Umid-2 platform in 2020. He also spoke about the activity of SOCAR Polymer. The polypropylene product produced at SOCAR Polymer complex is exported to Turkey and Ukraine today. In the future, the product is expected to be exported to CIS and European countries, said R.Abdullayev. The total production capacity of the complex will reach 220,000 tons in the current year, and up to 300,000 tons in the following years. Speaking about the SOCAR Carbamide Plant that put into operation this year, he said that earlier, Azerbaijan imported carbamide fertilizer which has a high nitrogen capacity, adding, now, this factory will fully satisfy domestic demand and export more than 70 percent of its product to foreign markets, bringing hundreds of millions of dollars annually to the country. He also touched upon the global mega-project Southern Gas Corridor and stressed that the first gas through the corridor was transported to the Turkish market exceeded of 1.1 billion cubic meters. Surely, this figure will increase and will reach 6 billion cubic meters a year in the upcoming years, he said. He also mentioned that as a result of the substantial increase in the natural gas production in Azerbaijan in 2018, SOCAR completely refused to import gas from abroad. Projects to be implemented in the upcoming years will provide the energy security of the country and will enable Azerbaijan to become a strategic energy center between the two continents. The State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) is one of the world's 50 largest oil companies. SOCAR's mission is to ensure the energy security of the Republic of Azerbaijan. Established in 1992, SOCAR aimed at manage Azerbaijan's oil resources on the basis of a single state policy, to improve the management structure of the oil industry and to ensure the development of fuel and energy complex. Three production divisions, one oil refineries and one gas processing plant, a deep water platform fabrication yard, two trusts, one institution, and 23 subdivisions are operating as corporate entities under SOCAR. SOCAR has a significant position in a number of regional and international energy projects. Currently, SOCAR is the only producer of oil products in the country, and also operates more than 370 filling stations in Switzerland, Georgia, Romania and Ukraine. --- Leman Mammadova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @leman_888 Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Trend Military units of the armed forces of Armenia violated ceasefire 30 times throughout the day, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said Feb. 10, Trend reports. Armenian armed forces, located in Voskevan village and on nameless hills in Noyemberyan region, on nameless hills in Ijevan and Krasnoselsk regions subjected to fire the positions of the Azerbaijan Army located in Gushchu Ayrim, Ashaghy Eskipara villages and on nameless hills in Gazakh region, in Goyali, Zamanly villages of Gadabay region. The positions of Azerbaijan Army were also fired from positions of Armenian military units located near the occupied Chilaburt village of Terter region, Bash Garvand, Yusifjanly villages of Aghdam region, Garvand and Horadiz villages of Fuzuli region, as well as from positions located on nameless hills in Goranboy, Terter, Aghdam and Fuzuli regions. The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Trend An Azerbaijani wine-making company Aspi Agro LLC, operating in the country's Gabala district, plans to expand its export geography, the company told Trend. The company plans to export its products to neighboring Turkey. "We plan to export "Savalan" wines to the new market. This brand is very popular in Azerbaijan, and is in great demand. Today we export alcoholic products to the Russian market, and in the future we are going to increase the volumes of these supplies," the company said. The company has a Certificate of Conformity issued by the State Committee for Standardization, Metrology and Patents, as well as a hygiene certificate issued by the Center for Hygiene and Epidemiology of the Azerbaijani Healthcare Ministry. The company operates modern equipment made in Italy. Aspi Agro LLC was established in 2007. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz The most powerful actors in the financial world might well be the index providers. They essentially compel all passive investors when it comes to their asset allocation. They also create the benchmarks against which nearly all active investors are measured. The state of play: When indices change, billions of dollars of money can end up moving as a result. When it comes to emerging markets, the two giants of the indexing world are the MSCI for stocks and the EMBI for bonds. When those indices are altered, all emerging-market fund managers, be they active or passive, will feel the consequences. Index providers are susceptible to government coercion. China twisted MSCI's arm to try to persuade it to include Chinese stocks in its emerging market index. Meanwhile, Venezuelan politicians aligned with Juan Guaido, who may or may not be the president of Venezuela depending on who you believe, want JPMorgan, which runs the EMBI index, to keep the country in the index, despite the fact that it's illegal for Americans to buy Venezuela's bonds. The bottom line: Everything is susceptible to human biases, even supposedly objective indices. People think that the S&P 500 includes the 500 biggest stocks in America, for instance, but it doesn't: Tesla has never been included. If you can influence the people who determine what gets into the index and what doesn't, that's real power. The largest health insurers, hospitals and doctors' groups in Rhode Island have agreed to cap their annual spending growth to 3.2% from 2019 to 2022. That's a somewhat aggressive target that is below recent national spending growth. Yes, but: Guaranteed increases of 3.2% may be a good deal for the groups if they think their costs will grow at even slower rates. And there doesnt appear to be any way to enforce this, unlike the state health spending law in Massachusetts. The bottom line: Rhode Island is a small state, but it's still surprising to see the health care industry voluntarily agree to a spending cap. Go deeper: The steady rise of health care spending rolls on Username: Password: or Register Back to Forum Reply to This post Post New Thread Thread Rating: 1 Vote(s) - 5 Average 1 2 3 4 5 The Japanese-German Alliance Against "America First" Might Backfire Badly ALADIN * weird wizard1* User ID: 485250 02-10-2019 06:47 PM Posts: 5,426 Post: #1 The Japanese-German Alliance Against "America First" Might Backfire Badly Advertisement Prime Minister Abe hosted Chancellor Merkel earlier this week and committed to enhancing what he described as the alliance of multilateralists that exists between their countries and especially them personally. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, left, is welcomed by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe upon her arrival at Abes official residence in Tokyo, Japan, February 4, 2019. These two Great Powers are against Trumps America First ideology of prioritizing his countrys interests in all foreign policy and economic decisions instead of proverbially taking one for the team and sacrificing the US interests for the so-called greater good of its supposed allies and the rest of the world. Abe and Merkel, however, are Liberal-Globalists who are ideologically opposed to Trumps Hyper-Realist view of International Relations, which explains why theyre joining forces to thwart his global ambitions. There are obvious limitations to what these two US-occupied countries can really do in this respect, but the fact that they signed a recent Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with one another that gives Germany and the rest of the EU a foothold in last years Japanese-led Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP, or basically the TPP minus the US) shows just how much theyre willing to defy the economic dimensions of Trumps America First vision. As for the geopolitical ones, Germany is proudly moving ahead with Nord Stream II despite fierce American resistance while Japan is engaged in talks with Russia over finally signing a peace treaty to end World War II. https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-02-0...fire-badly It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a ma s k on their nose and mouth ... The Japanese-German Alliance Against "America First" Might Backfire BadlyPrime Minister Abe hosted Chancellor Merkel earlier this week and committed to enhancing what he described as the alliance of multilateralists that exists between their countries and especially them personally.German Chancellor Angela Merkel, left, is welcomed by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe upon her arrival at Abes official residence in Tokyo, Japan, February 4, 2019.These two Great Powers are against Trumps America First ideology of prioritizing his countrys interests in all foreign policy and economic decisions instead of proverbially taking one for the team and sacrificing the US interests for the so-called greater good of its supposed allies and the rest of the world. Abe and Merkel, however, are Liberal-Globalists who are ideologically opposed to Trumps Hyper-Realist view of International Relations, which explains why theyre joining forces to thwart his global ambitions.There are obvious limitations to what these two US-occupied countries can really do in this respect, but the fact that they signed a recent Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with one another that gives Germany and the rest of the EU a foothold in last years Japanese-led Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP, or basically the TPP minus the US) shows just how much theyre willing to defy the economic dimensions of Trumps America First vision. As for the geopolitical ones, Germany is proudly moving ahead with Nord Stream II despite fierce American resistance while Japan is engaged in talks with Russia over finally signing a peace treaty to end World War II. LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 461243 02-10-2019 06:53 PM Post: #2 RE: The Japanese-German Alliance Against "America First" Might Backfire Badly Good story. I wonder if the next president will continue Trump's "America First" policies. Irish Graham lop guest User ID: 414816 02-10-2019 07:14 PM Post: #3 RE: The Japanese-German Alliance Against "America First" Might Backfire Badly If they could just get Italy to come on board? Remember, remember,... ALADIN * weird wizard1* User ID: 485250 02-10-2019 07:21 PM Posts: 5,426 Post: #4 RE: The Japanese-German Alliance Against "America First" Might Backfire Badly Irish Graham Wrote: (02-10-2019 07:14 PM) If they could just get Italy to come on board? Remember, remember,... Quote: There are obvious limitations to what these two US-occupied countries can really do in this respect, but the fact that they signed a recent Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with one another that gives Germany and the rest of the EU a foothold in last years Japanese-led Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP, or basically the TPP minus the US) shows just how much theyre willing to defy the economic dimensions of Trumps America First vision. It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a ma s k on their nose and mouth ... LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 487668 02-10-2019 07:31 PM Post: #5 RE: The Japanese-German Alliance Against "America First" Might Backfire Badly The whole world is beginning to hate The United States of Israel.. Just as the Zionists have planned it. War mongering resource grabbing @#$#@#$.. ALADIN * weird wizard1* User ID: 485250 02-10-2019 07:56 PM Posts: 5,426 Post: #6 RE: The Japanese-German Alliance Against "America First" Might Backfire Badly if Trump meets Kim Jong Un in Vietnam (end febr) maybe he finds a nice new workplace for Ambassador Grenell ... It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a ma s k on their nose and mouth ... (This post was last modified: 02-10-2019 08:00 PM by ALADIN .) Back to Forum Reply to This post Post New Thread Periodically, a story falls into your lap. This one fell 37 years ago, and I just discovered the relevance to todays flying. Well, maybe. Nov. 3, 1982, was a slow news day in Watsonville, California, when the local radio led with, Local Man Lands Airplane on Freeway. I was on my way to work as an air traffic controller at Monterey Peninsula Airport (MRY) but detoured to Watsonville Muni (WVI) to verify my suspicions that it was my friend, Jake, (not his real name) whod made the freeway landing. It was. And to no ones surprise. Flash forward to a few days ago when I saw Paul Bertorellis video How To Land On a Freeway. While thoroughly enjoyable and informative, complete with high-end graphics, award-winning music score and live-action dashcam video, it missedI feltthe human element. Or in this case, Jake. Bertorelli made several excellent observations, with two that I caught while simultaneously watching another video about a cat chasing a Dorito tied to a string. Killer stuff. Anyhow, Paul convincingly argued that landing with traffic on a highway is generally preferable to smashing head-on into a Freightliner with the truck driver listening to Waylon Jennings and wouldnt even notice your Cub splattered on the grill until she reached Amarillo by morning. Pauls second point was that once the engine quits, the insurance company owns the airplane so be cool. Jake employed both philosophies when over the Santa Monica Mountains after dark, and his 150s engine quit for a really non-unanticipated reason. Hed run out of gas. NTSB records for the two-year period bracketing the crash date show that Cessna 150s crash a lot, many from running out of gas. So, we cant really fault Jake for that, now can we? You decide: Jake left Watsonville bound for Santa Monica (SMO), 239 miles southeast. The 150 burns roughly 6.5 GPH; more in climb, less in descent, way less in Jakes descent after hed run the tanks dry. Now, as Bertorelli noted, an emergency landing sans fuel usually mitigates any large-scale threat of a fireball evening-news arrival. Again, we can applaud Jake for planning to run the tanks dry before arrival. That 239-mile trip would take roughly 2:50, mas o menos, at 85 knots with a light headwind. (Yes, Cessna 150 owners all fly more efficiently, but these are rough estimates.) So, 2:50 at 6.5 GPH requires 19 gallons of fuel. The C150 holds 26 gallons, of which 22.5 gallons are usable if you rock the wings and pinch the seat cushion into your butt. Jake only needed 19 plus three-ish gallons reserve (total 22), but the NTSB report states that the aircraft departed (WVI) with partially filled fuel tanks. Aircraft will do that, often leaving an unsuspecting PIC confused when the engine quits, as it did for Jake at 6:50 p.m. No problem. Jake didnt have to sweat a post-accident fire, and insurance wasnt an issue, because he probably didnt have any. Likely, he didnt own the airplane. Its a tad vague who did or what the loan arrangement was. Not an issue here, because Jake glided with commendable skill toward the traffic along the well-lit (from zillions of cars) San Diego freeway (I-405, about the busiest stretch of freeway this side of the Jersey Turnpike). Anticipating Paul Bertorellis 2019 advice to land with the traffic, Jake got with the flow, clipped a highway sign and settled ever so gently atop a Toyota (mightve been a Datsun), driven by a woman who told reporters something like, Suddenly, there was a thump, and a wheel (nose) was in my windshield. Good so far, as Jake hoped the Toyota driver would gradually slow, so they could pull onto the shoulder like the finale in a Flying Clown Act with applause all round. But Jakes luck expired. The driver, doing what most untrained drivers would do, hit the brakes, and the C150 did what unsecured roof cargo does when the vehicle stopsit slid onto the freeway, causing substantial damage. No one hurt. Jake climbed from the airplane, introduced himself to the woman with tire tread marks on her Toyotas hood and, being a gentleman, offered her a beer. No, really, he did. This was the 1980s. Things were different then. For the air cadets in the audience, this was long ago, back before cellphones when some laws were advisory-only, and you often had to wait for things to happen and, maybe, even talk to strangers face-to-face. Scary, I realize. Jake and the Toyota driver sat along the meridian enjoying an evening beer, until the police arrived and detained Jake for drunk flying with the flimsiest of circumstantial evidence. Subsequent investigation proved that he wasnt drunk, hadnt been drinking while flying or before but routinely traveled with a six-pack in case of emergencies. This qualified. The NTSB found probable cause to be threefold: 1) Fuel exhaustion. No argument there. 2) Fuel consumption calculationsdisregarded (by the) Pilot In Command. 3) Preflight planning/preparation (was) inadequate (again, by the) Pilot In Command. I think causes two and three are arguably the same thing, and it feels a bit like piling on. The guy ran out of gas, because he didnt plan anything, except he did remember to bring the beer. But was the accident his fault? Had the Toyota driver not panickedjust sayingand kept pace with the decelerating airplane piggy-backed on her roof, this story couldve had a happier ending. I really think they need to teach aircraft emergencies in Drivers Ed. Thank you for reading! Please purchase a subscription to read our premium content. If you have a subscription, please log in or sign up for an account on our website to continue. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration As of December 2018, no fewer than 50.36 million airbag inflators were recalled by automakers on a worldwide scale. Approximately 23 million are left to go according to the. The NHTSA can help U.S. owners check their vehicles by entering the 17-character VIN on the agencys website.Turning the focus back on the February 2019 expansion, and the most affected of six automakers is Subaru with 826,144 vehicles. These include the Forester crossover, Outback wagon, and Legacy sedan from 2010 through 2014. Next up is Mercedes-Benz and Daimler Vans with 288,779 and 159,689 vehicles, respectively. Volkswagen (and Audi) announced its recalling 119,394 vehicles while BMW is calling back 266,044 cars and crossovers.Even Tesla is affected, planning to replace the Takata airbags in 68,763 Model S sedans from 2014 to 2016. Last, but certainly not least, Ferrari has to replace the airbags on no fewer than 11,176 vehicles from the 2014 to 2018 model years. Its curious why Ferrari continued to equip its supercars with Takata airbags for such a long time, more so when you remember the first series of recalls date back to 2013 and the Monclova plant in Coahuila, Mexico.Takata filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in June 2017, following a bankruptcy back home in Japan. The company had to no other way to compensate what it owed customers, automakers, and governments but to sell everything to Key Safety Systems for $1.6 billion . Following the completion of the acquisition in April 2018, Takata was renamed to Joyson Safety Systems.As if that wasnt complicated enough, Joyson is headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The parent company is Ningbo Joyson Electronic, a Chinese automotive conglomerate that acquired Key Safety Systems in 2016 for $920 million. There was a time not so long ago when even mentioning that you smoked weed was very much taboo. Being a pot smoker might get you arrested, or Local Magazine is here! The summer 2021 issue of Local Magazine is out. Pick up a copy of your favorite local magazine around town or peruse our e-edition below. Because the best things in life are local. Support local journalism Now, more than ever, the world needs trustworthy reportingbut good journalism isnt free. Please support us by making a contribution. The deal was to take the Weinstein company name off, and donate future from, the film Wind River to the National Indigenous Womens Resource Center. For the center, which is run out of a woodstove-heated bungalow in snow-swept Lame Deer, Mont., this was a potentially huge boon. The nonprofit addresses violence against Native American women, runs a national helpline for domestic violence survivors, and provides assistance to tribes and tribal programs across the country. Now, theyre likely to see nothing. The New York Times Estonian Minister of Defence Juri Luik confirmed the Ministry of Defences action plan for the period 2020-2023. According to Estonian Minister of Defence Luik, servicemen are at the centre of the new action plan. In 2018, together with the Commander of the Defence Forces, we made the decision to raise the average salary of active servicemen from the current average of around 30% to 33% above the Estonian average,' said Luik. Estonian soldiers during military exercise (Picture source Estonia MoD) The new action plan will considerably improve the command and communications capability of the Defence Forces, notably increasing the combat support capability (supplying of the combat service support and pioneer battalions of brigades) of the Defence Forces, and supplying the recently created Cyber Command. In 2018 the Defence League formed the centre of gravity of the large-scale training Exercise Siil (Hedgehog). With more than 18,000 participants, it was the largest military training exercise following the restoration of Estonias independence and the second largest within NATO in 2018. The Defence League occupies an important place within the scope of the action plan. The amount of support set aside for it will increase to EUR 43 million per year by 2023, plus additional investments in the territorial defence structure of the Defence Forces prepared on the basis of the Defence League. Investments will continue to be made in equipment, for example, the acquisition of night vision equipment as well as bulletproof and splinterproof vests. The replacement of firearms and machine guns, as well as man-portable anti-tank weapons, will also commence. Investments in ammunition supplies continues to occupy an important place. By 2023, all planned self-propelled artillery units will have arrived in Estonia and long-range anti-tank systems will be acquired. In 2019 the Air Force will be supplied with M-28 airplanes, the Navy will receive two new cutters and mobile sea surveillance radar during the planning period, to ensure the survivability of sea surveillance during wartime. The Action Plan for the Period 2020-2023 for the Area of Government of the Ministry of Defence describes military national defence objectives and the required resources for achieving those objectives, the allocation of which proceeds from the National Development Plan for Defence for the Period 2017-2026, the military advice of the Commander of the Defence Forces, and NATO force capability objectives. Young Eagle first to take off from Ontario in about 10 years History tells us that when politics in Spain reaches boiling point which is a regular occurrence the path of emotions, even of the bloody kind, prevails over reason and temperance, with devastating results. We are witnessing the mercury rise in Madrid, where Pablo Casados PP has succumbed to Voxs threatening style, dumping the discretion inherited from Rajoy to adopt the provocative, inflaming rhetoric that echoes the purest strand of fascist populism that preceded the Spanish Civil War. Vox has become the agent of chaos in Spanish politics, fuelling the more extreme positions within the conservative bloc that it forms with the PP and Ciudadanos. While Casado draws a comparison between Catalonias independence movement and ETA, conveniently forgetting that his mentor, former PM Jose Maria Aznar, held talks with the Basque terrorist group, the process of whitewashing the far right that began with the coalition government in Andalusia continues full steam ahead in politics and media. Purchase an online subscription to our website for $7.99 a month with automatic renewal. Each online subscription gives you full access to all of our newspaper websites and mobile applications. To cancel you may contact Customer Service @ 256-235-9253 or email JPAYNE@ANNISTONSTAR.COM For a limited time, for NEW SUBSCRIBERS ONLY a NEW ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION is just $59.99 for the first year. Existing customers do not qualify for the specials! After the first year, well automatically renew your subscription to continue your access at the regular price of $69.99 per year. Please note *Your Subscription will Automatically Renew unless you contact Customer Service To Cancel* Tim Canova got only 43% of the vote in that primary, but he challenged the results in court. While the case was being decided, Canova requested that Broward County hand over the thousands of paper ballots that had been cast. When Brenda Snipes' office refused, he sued - only to find out later that Snipes had destroyed the ballots in direct violation of federal law and Florida state law. Broward County, FL election head Brenda Snipes is back in the news, as a former candidate who ran against Debbie Wasserman Schultz in the 2016 Democratic primary wondered aloud in a tweet why the Department of Justice never prosecuted her for illegally destroying paper ballots from the race. Sun-Sentinel: Canova, who was checking for voting irregularities in the race, sought to look at the paper ballots in March 2017 and took Elections Supervisor Brenda Snipes to court three months later when her office hadnt fulfilled his request. Snipes approved the destruction of the ballots in September, signing a certification that said no court cases involving the ballots were pending. Snipes called the action a mistake during testimony she gave in the case, saying the boxes were mislabeled and there was nothing on my part that was intentional about destroying the contested ballots. Big League Politics reported, "On May 11, 2018, the Florida Circuit Court granted Plaintiff Canova summary judgment, and found that Snipes had violated numerous state and federal statutes, including laws punishable as felonies with up to five years in prison. The Courts ruling made clear that Snipes destruction of ballots was illegal on several separate counts. It doesn't matter if the destruction of the ballots were intentional or not. But both the county and the feds refused to prosecute. Why? Assistant United States Attorney for the US Attorney's Office is none other than Debbie Wasserman-Schultz's brother, Steven. And Canova found out from the local district attorney, who was considering prosecuting Snipes, who was involved in the decision not to prosecute Snipes: Ive been told it was Rod Rosenstein, the Deputy AG, along with his assistant Steven Wasserman no doubt, who stopped a Federal investigation into Browards illegal destruction of all ballots cast in our 2016 primary against Debbie WhatsHerRig Schultz. . https://t.co/9WNEd5JL9a Tim Canova (@Tim_Canova) February 6, 2019 Familiar partisans in the Justice Department. Needless to say, the fact that Rosenstein was directly involved with the strongly partisan activities documented by the FISA memo makes it unsurprising that he would interfere on behalf of associates of Hillary Clinton. Setting the possibility that Wasserman-Schultz's brother may also have been involved in protecting Snipes from prosecution aside for the moment, Canova's allegations raise a myriad of new questions, including: who benefits from protecting Snipes? Undeniably, the most obvious answer is Debbie Wasserman-Schultz, the alleged beneficiary of Snipes's illegal ballot destruction. Similarly, one wonders what connection such a decision may have with the DOJ's refusal to prosecute the Awan scandal, a move from which Debbie Wasserman-Schultz also directly benefited. In light of this, we are led to ask: Who benefits from shielding Debbie Wasserman-Schultz from the blowback of multiple national scandals? What would induce the DOJ to prop up such an embarrassment? Snipes' malfeasance in the 2018 election can now be seen in an entirely different light. Either she is the most incompetent election official in America or she manipulates elections for partisan reasons using the power of her office. It doesn't matter that Canova had no chance of overturning the results of the 2016 primary. Snipes acted illegally and both local and federal authorities turned a blind eye to it. The whole matter stinks of partisan manipulation - which only serves to buttress the case that the permanent bureaucracy at the Justice Department is hopelessly corrupt. The repercussions of New York's radical new abortion law are only now being made clear as a Queens prosecutor was forced to drop second degree abortion charges against a man accused of murdering his pregnant girlfriend. Queens District Attorney Richard Brown sent out a press release saying Anthony Hobson, 48, would be charged with second-degree abortion as well as murder in Sundays fatal stabbing of Jennifer Irigoyen, 35. But a DA spokeswoman later told The Post that the abortion charge was repealed by the Legislature, and this is the law as it exists today. Cuomo signed the RHA into law on Jan. 22, the 46th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision. The law removes abortion from the states criminal code and puts it into public health law. The implications are astounding - and not just for fetuses. The dehumanization that this abortion law represents means that the very old and the very sick are just an amendment away from being treated as a "public health problem." The Catholic church was right: It faced fierce opposition, with the New York State Catholic Conference warning that it removes accountability for those who would harm unborn children outside the context of medical termination of pregnancy. So if a boyfriend deliberately beats up his pregnant girlfriend, even if his clear intent is to end the pregnancy, he can't be charged with murder. A great chasm has opened up beneath our feet as lawmakers from several other states are eager to pass similar legislation. It is the most obvious slippery slope regarding human life since the Groningen Protocols in the Netherlands that allowed doctors to kill babies up to the age of one. There are those who want to gloss over the details involved in the New York abortion law - anything to hide or obfuscate the clear consequences of what now amounts to infanticide. The very definition of murder is being refashioned in order to pander to radical, pro-abortion activists who have emerged in many blue states as a powerful lobby. Candace Owens is under fire from mainstream media and their liberal readership this week after comments she made during a London conference back in December, which are now circulating via viral video. Leftists heard Hitler's name and salivated at the opportunity to accuse her of defending, in Owens's own words, the "homicidal, psychotic maniac." I actually don't have any problems at all with the word "nationalism." I think that the definition gets poisoned by elitists that actually want globalism. Globalism is what I don't want. Whenever we say "nationalism," the first thing people think about, at least in America, is Hitler. You know, he was a national socialist, but if Hitler just wanted to make Germany great and have things run well, OK, fine. The problem is that he wanted he had dreams outside of Germany. He wanted to globalize. He wanted everybody to be German, everybody to be speaking German, everybody to look a different way. That's not, to me, that's not nationalism. In thinking about how we could go bad down the line, I don't really have an issue with nationalism. I really don't. I think that it's OK. After headlines blew up and she was the number-one trending Twitter topic, Owens tried clarifying her statements to anyone who wouldn't bother digesting more than false headlines about her. She explained in a candid video that she doesn't believe that Hitler was actually a nationalist since, one, he killed his own German people, and two, he was hell-bent on enforcing his ideology on the rest of the world. In her opinion, this would liken his actual policies to globalism. She clarified for those still claiming she was a Hitler-supporter that "there is no excuse or defense ever for ... everything that he did." That didn't stop Democratic pundits like Chelsea Clinton, who tried to join the pitchfork mob against Owens when she tweeted this: "Good afternoon Andrew - Ignorance about Hitler's evil regime must always be confronted. That burden should not fall on Holocaust survivors. There was nothing, using @RealCandaceO own words, "great" about the Third Reich before it began annexing & invading its neighbors." Candace shut her down viciously in tweets back, which read: "Don't you ever in your miserable life have the audacity to tweet at someone who [is] educating blacks on the nasty, racist, harmful "evil regime" policies inflicted by your soulless mother and father. There will be #BLEXIT. And your trash parents will be alive to witness it." Chelsea Clinton responded by tweeting back that she isn't her parents, whatever that means. Eventually, Candace confronted her again, saying, "You don't get to separate yourself from the HORRORS your parents inflicted worldwide through the Clinton Foundation. You were on the payroll. But wishing you a life full of love, health, and of course, happiness. #LockHerUp" In an irony that only liberal media could produce, they, along with popular propagandists like the Clinton child, are assisting in proving Owens's point for her. Her statement that the word "nationalism" is mechanically connected to Hitler with negative connotations that all nationalists must support him was proven by headlines like the Huffington Post's garbage article "Candace Owens' Bonkers Take On Nationalism Includes A Defense Of Hitler." As of writing this, HuffPo has still not corrected their its with the fact that Candace Owens never defended Hitler. The press continued to pound away over the rest of the weekend at the BLEXIT leader, contorting the context and her sardonic exclamation of "OK, fine" to imply that she believes Hitler's actions were okay as long as they stayed in Germany. However, her nuanced point is that Hitler rose to power on promoting nationalism, but once he had a grip on the nation, he drove it to destruction with endless global wars and stripping Germans of their rights, even abusing policies to justify the murder of the nation's own citizens. Hitler had economic plans for the entire world, and that, by definition makes him a globalist. The Left has sought to control the definition of nationalism and load it as a dirty word that implies support of the former German dictator on the weak argument that the name of his party was "national socialists." Hypocritically, some liberals are proud to call themselves socialists, also in the name, but they manage to understand that that name doesn't automatically connect to Nazism although it should attach them to even more prominent socialist mass-murderers like Stalin and Mao Tse-Tung. This isn't the first time Owens has struck a chord with the media, who then unashamedly blitzkrieg her character. Recently, an article in The Root described Owens as "the black less famous Ann Coulter, [who] makes a living as the low-IQ, pet negro who spends most of her time trolling black people between pursuing a dual career in shucking and jiving." Gross, racist attacks on her like this have been nonstop as she campaigns as a Trump-supporter to teach black Americans that they don't owe their loyalty to the Democratic Party. Deliberately misconstruing her words is just a tactic to stigmatize support for the increasingly popular conservative. We shouldn't be silent. Does the mere mention of Hitler by a right-wing figure automatically mean support for Hitler? Absolutely not. Yet when a conservative utters his name even in pure criticism, it gives the media another chance to police speech they don't agree with. They are purposely misleading their readers with weaponized headlines to associate popular Republicans with anything that is universally atrocious like, when Republican Iowa Rep. Steve King recently asked in an interview why the term "Western civilization" now has to be linked to terms like "white supremacy," the press had a field day, pretending his question stretched to imply that he is a white supremacist. Adolf Hitler was a globalist by any definition, with his horrible actions as proof, and that should be the buzzword that ignites the sort of response Candace Owens is receiving. Connect with Taylor Day on Twitter @TABYTCHI. Image: Louis P. Hirshman via Wikimedia Commons. One of the attorneys representing Covington High School student Nick Sandmann and his parents confirmed to LifeSiteNews that Native American activist Nathan Phillips, and some of the others who have received notices from the attorneys, will be sued. One of the most disgusting phony propaganda gambits to discredit Trump supporters is to face the civil justice system, where the truth will come out. Most AT readers already know that a wide array of media and political figures have been put on notice that they will be sued for libel of Nick Sandmann, the parochial school kid who was approached by Indian elder Nathan Phillips, who drummed inches from his face. Based on edited video, Sandmann was vilified as the aggressor. But now comes word that in addition to media outlets, writers and politicians, Phillips himself will be sued. This is important not for the monetary damages at stake, because Phillips shows no signs of having any financial resources, but because he will be placed under oath and questioned, where he will have to face videotape evidence of his behavior, contrasted with what he has said to the media. Steve Jalsevac reports in Life Site News : Lin Wood, an Atlanta-based lawyer, told LifeSite yesterday that Phillips lies and false accusations against Sandmann and the other Covington students are well documented. He also said they would be filing the first round of lawsuits "within two weeks." Getting Phillips on the record, facing perjury penalties if his testimony is contradicted by the video, will be of inestimable value in suing the media. He would be wise to consider apologizing if he has any assets at all that he might wish to protect from a monetary judgment. Because the lawyers choose the order in which to sue, they can get this on the record before proceeding with other targets, a group which is growing in number: The legal action by Sandmanns attorneys is ramping up after notices demanding preservation of evidence for possible slander litigation were recently sent out to more than 50 media, dioceses, and celebrities. Wood told LifeSite that the list of recipients of the notices continues to grow in number and that the legal team is in the process of sending formal written retraction demands in conformity with statutes in states in which litigation may be filed. They expect to advance to the next stage and file the first round of civil lawsuits within the next two weeks. The media that will be sued have a serious vulnerability once Phillips is discredited: Most seemed to rely almost entirely on statements made by Phillips and especially on a short initial video posted on social media that went viral. The video appears to have been deliberately edited to portray the Covington students as accosting and disrespecting Phillips. The video was initially pushed through what has been revealed by Breitbart to be a likely Democrat activist controlled, anti-Trump fake Twitter account. It has since been suspended by Twitter for violating its fake account policy. Experts say the use of the account to so effectively promote the video had "the hallmarks of a disinformation campaign." The lawyers for Sandmann already have created a 14-minute documentary film that gives the lie to the false media narratives: YouTube screen grab Naturally, the media would prefer that this examination of their accuracy and bias just go away. But that will not happen, thanks to the civil justice system. Federal courts do not permit video cameras, but many state courts do. Video of Phillips being cross examined could turn into a sensational rebuke. And it could also demonstrate media deception and bias harming an innocent child. Much though they would prefer to ignore it, the existence of social media makes that a poor option, for spiking the story only would make them look worse. Keep in mind that journalists are one of the most unpopular groups in the country. Are juries going to sympathize with them, or with a boy who was unfairly demonized? Kate Scottow was detained following an argument on Twitter with a transgendered woman. She was charged with "harassment and malicious communications." A British woman was arrested in front of her children and held in police custody for 7 hours after calling a transgender woman a man online. "Malicious..." what? Daily Mail: Writing on online forum Mumsnet, Mrs Scottow who has also been served with a court order that bans her from referring to her accuser as a man claimed: 'I was arrested in my home by three officers, with my autistic ten-year-old daughter and breastfed 20-month-old son present. 'I was then detained for seven hours in a cell with no sanitary products (which I said I needed) before being interviewed then later released under investigation ... I was arrested for harassment and malicious communications because I called someone out and misgendered them on Twitter.' Confirming the arrest, Hertfordshire Police said: 'We take all reports of malicious communication seriously.' You will be forced to care...or else. Aside from the tyrannical actions of the police and the odious "malicious communications" law, does anyone really believe that by arresting people who don't agree that a man is actually a woman, you are going to change anyone's mind? The "misgendering" of trans people is still a matter of opinion. There is no scientific basis to believe that a man can magically transform himself into a woman just by calling himself one. Therefore, the law becomes a tool of oppression and stifling dissent and not of fostering understanding. Coercive measures to force acceptance of trans people are not going to work. You don't change the culture by mandating that people be required to believe something they do not wish to believe. So this is not about gaining acceptance for trans people. This is all about the raw exercise of naked power in the most non-diverse, illiberal ways imaginable in order to punish political and cultural opponents. Presently, this could never happen in the US, although I'm sure that trans activists would love to lock up those who don't agree with them. Given the attitudes toward the First Amendment by many millenials, it's probably only a matter of time before the activists get their wish. 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Here's the Independent of London's report: Elizabeth Warren has officially launched her 2020 bid for the White House with a speech in her home state of Massachusetts that focused on fighting what she called a rigged system. The Democrat, a former law professor, delivered a sharp call for change, decrying a middle-class squeeze that has left Americans crunched with too little accountability for the rich, too little opportunity for everyone else. Here's the USA Today report: "This is the fight of our lives. The fight to build an America where dreams are possible, an America that works for everyone," Warren said. "And that is why I stand here today: to declare that I am a candidate for President of the United States of America." ...and... She touted her support for progressive politics, including increasing the minimum wage and Medicare for All. She propped up embracing diversity and the immigrants who helped build the nation, all with a backdrop of Everett Mills, the site of a workers strike 100 years ago led by women and immigrants that boosted workers rights. She told the story of the strikes, using it as an example that even those without power can work together to shape policy and change America. Ralff. Offering us the 'opportunity' to pay extortionate union dues to finance Democratic campaigns and then getting to go on strike is kind of ... unattractive. But speaking of rigging. Warren is the wizard of rigging, given that she's a very rich woman with a declared fortune as high as $11 million she doesn't like to talk about, culled from her near-no-show job at Harvard, her politician book deals, her cut of the cash in class-action lawsuits -- a pretty penny, and her investments while in office. She plays the swamp games, outlined by Peter Schweizer in his "Throw Them All Out" very well. But more to the point, and on a level that most people can understand, she tried to pass herself off as 'Indian' in a bid to get fancy jobs. She recognized that universities such as Penn and Harvard were desperate to diversify their hirings racially, and jumped right in to help herself to call herself Indian and get hired over real Indians as well others in her quest for the wealth and spoils. She even called herself American Indian in her own handwriting on her Texas state bar card, something she ought to be disbarred for, given that it's a false statement. Her apologies and explanations that this was what she understood from family lore are just a little disingenuous. Rigging is the only word for this and Warren knows how to rig. Takes one to know one, right Liz? Warren came out with a stemwinder speech of a left-populist bent, telling Americans they should vote for her for president because she's going to be the one to get rid of all the rigging out there. Law blogger Ann Althouse, whose views I respect, did think it was a strong speech, because she could see the outlines of Warren's borrowings from the tactics of President Trump in it. She even had winning signs in her crowd, "Win With Warren" which certainly is a borrowing from Trump. So, yes, maybe she will be a strong competitor with Trump. She does seem to out-substance the other Democrats in the candidate clown car, given their lockstep leftwingery, with each of them trying to out-left the other. She does speak with passion and conviction, and she seems ... nice. But I think it's a hollow imitation, given Warren's own history of rigging. Warren is the master rigger of riggers and for her to claim she's on our side is ridiculous. Image from CBS News on YouTube Just her yelling about PAC money tells us that. She says she won't take it, but that's ridiculous, given that PACs tend to do their own ads independently even if they come off as completely partisan for a candidate. That isn't going to work. Her claim that she will refuse corporate fatcat money is another example of trying to make a virtue out of a deficit. Starbucks's former CEO. Howard Schultz, recently noted that Warren came crawling to him for campaign money and he told her 'no.' The only thing one can conclude from this virtue-signaling about not being tainted by corporate campaign money is that Warren is not successful at raising such money. Rigging, rigging, rigging, serving us slop and telling us it's gourmet food. Her entire platform is like this - and largely tied to the tired Obamunist policies of the past. She complains about college costs being high just as President Obama did - but ignores that those costs rose in the wake of Obama's takeover of the student loan industry, which gave colleges an incentive to raise rates. It's rigging all right, and all the work of leftists. She calls falling black home ownership a problem but doesn't mention the lefty zoning regulations that make new housing construction, let alone affordable housing construction, impossible, which is what we see in California. More rigging - by leftists. Voters aren't going to be fooled by the hypocrisy. Her imitation of Trump is a hollow one, speaking with forked tongue, and it's not surprising a lot of her supporters walked out on her before she finished making her speech. The press was happy to tout that she got endorsements - but didn't mention that they were all very local endorsements from entrenched Massachusetts machine pols. Now she's yelling about rigging. No wonder a lot of us think this whole thing is going to end badly for her. Image credit: YouTube screen grab from CBS News report. A practical application of the classic word 'antidisestablishmentarianism' When we were teenagers, a smart childhood friend taught me how to spell antidisestablishmentarianism. I did not understand at the time what this word meant, other than it was just anti-something, and that generally worked for a teenager. Fast-forward to 2010, when Geoffrey P. Hunt wrote a learned article explaining this confusing word: "Obama's Antidisestablishmentarianism and the Tea Partiers." It seems establishmentarianism comprised those supporting the old Anglican Church, and disestablishmentarianism was those against the old Anglican Church. By extension, the antidisestablishmentarians were those against those who were against the church. This sounds like our current political system in this country; everyone has to be against someone else or something else, without always clearly defining what he is for. In that article, Mr. Hunt went on to say the current-day establishmentarians are the progressive liberals pushing more government controls and higher taxes, and the disestablishmentarians are the current-day Tea Party agitators. Mr. Hunt referred to Obama as "the high priest of the antidisestablishmentarians." Mr. Hunt concluded in 2010 that the Tea Partiers were disestablishmentarians, much like our nation's founders. Fast-forward to the present day: the liberals and the progressives rarely openly attack the Tea Partiers anymore, because this form of direct antidisestablishmentarianism has not proven successful. The present-day liberals and progressives openly attack anything relating to the founding of this country, in an effort to aggregate enough votes to elect persons who will then secretly make changes to our laws, courts, and institutions. Examples of the present-day antidisestablishmentarianism include: Openly attacking all white men as if they are guilty for being white men. Openly attacking established religions, including Catholics, Jews, and Protestants. Openly opposing our military and policies that protect our borders and the safety of our citizens. Openly opposing free enterprise and the freedoms to create success and wealth. Openly opposing the teaching of our country's founding history. Openly opposing the right to bear arms and working to restrict people from having guns that can protect them from evildoers. Openly opposing past successful learning regimens and policies in our public schools, creating the present downfall in public education. Openly promoting universal health care and higher education, without considering how these "free" services are to be funded. Openly promoting unlimited immigration and not requiring new immigrants to learn English or to abide by existing U.S. laws. Openly promoting false reporting in support of specific ideologies. These recent actions do not appear to be promoting policies that would improve our free society. In fact, these actions could be considered assaults on our U.S. Constitution and freedoms. Then why are these actions permitted? Because the U.S. Constitution promotes freedom of speech. Our founders are certainly turning over in their graves, considering how far from 1789 our country has ventured. Democrats and Republicans alike are guilty of allowing these open attacks on our history and our society. There are more than a few Democrats who would willingly destroy the U.S. Constitution in order to achieve political gains. There are more than a few Republicans who sit quietly and idly as these and other actions assault our Constitution. Inaction is often as damaging as direct assault. I like the odds for the long-term life of our republic, if we stay united behind the principles and policies of the past, which made our country the greatest leader of freedom and wealth creation in the world. Our representative republic will not survive if those successful principles and policies are no longer taught and supported in our schools and institutions. It is time to stand up and be counted, either for or against the U.S. Constitution. People in the U.S. are ready to stand up and fight these actions and for our Constitution. If all of our political leaders are not ready for this fight, then perhaps we should line up behind a Foundation Party, which would keep its focus on what has benefited these great United States for the last 250 years. Michael P. Bates is a business consultant and writer. We Built the 2006-2007 Wall: 'Over 100 Miles in 90 Days' "We built over 100 miles in only 90 days," explains James Bonk. Bonk was a consultant and manager among the team of companies who in 2006-2008 built and extended much of the border wall that already exists today along the USA's southern border with Mexico, in the Goldwater and Yuma sectors. The prime contractor was Boeing, but there were many subcontractors. More recently, Bonk has been involved in planning border walls in Spain and in Israel. He has worked with a variety of major companies and different engineering designs for fences and barriers. Actual experience in building miles of border wall argues for a so-called Bollard wall or fence, or the design of vertical steel rods or "slats" (perhaps some other metal, but metal) promoted by Trump more recently. ("Bollards are upright steel posts mounted in or alongside roads and parking lots to control, direct, or obstruct vehicular traffic or impact," says the Long Fence Co.) James Bonk came to speak at the Northern Virginia Tea Party, skeptical of discussions about Trump's border wall being solid concrete slabs. From his years of experience, transporting giant concrete slabs to the middle of nowhere would be expensive and inefficient. He has worked on concrete wall projects but would not recommend that design on the wilderness frontier. Mixing and pouring concrete slabs on site in the middle of nowhere would be difficult. Logistics and transport of components are an important part of any such project. Opponents of a border wall keep saying we must listen to experts. Along with border patrol agents on duty, those experts include those like James Bonk, who have actually built the parts of the border wall we have now. But those experts and border patrol agents on site are calling for a metal wall of vertical pipes or slats they can see through, which is exactly what Trump is now promoting. James Bonk is concerned that bureaucrats a decade ago sabotaged and undermined the project with "designed to fail" illogical requirements and that ideas being discussed today are similarly aimed at intentionally failing in the project. The wall-building project abruptly stopped when Barack Obama became president. Nevertheless, despite the hindrances, they successfully built hundreds of miles. This author asked James Bonk about the problems of building in or near the Rio Grande in the flood plains along the border of Texas. Not even remotely a problem was among the lessons learned from experience. A concrete foundation would not need to be laid in the lowlands. One of the best techniques would be to dig a trench and then bury a steel "footer" deep into the ground. The metal plate serving as the buried foundation would have legs or wings out to each side to make the wall stay upright. The vertical slats or pipes forming the actual fence or wall would then be welded or bolted into the footer. A second level of footer may be added with side legs or wings just beneath the ground level. Then the entire footer is buried. Another design involves massive metal bases seated into the ground by pile-drivers. Each such base attaches to one large vertical pipe or a section of vertical fence. This design will allow flood waters to freely flow through the openings without obstruction. Strong winds would flow through easily. Irrigation channels or pipes can be installed through the fence to bring water from the river to farmers and ranchers. Trump's new sections would be probably be 30 to 40 feet, rather than the 12-foot-high sections constructed in 2007-2009. Bonk emphasizes that teams then were prohibited from building a high wall out of fear that trespassers would climb over and then fall. In the past, bureaucrats did not want a fence that would actually work. Solar panels mounted on the ground on the north side of the access road along the fence would power motion sensors or movement differential radar mounted up on the top of the fence, triggering radio alerts back to Customs and Border Patrol; lights; video cameras; and loud-speaker-recorded warnings of potential injury if climbing the fence is attempted. If anyone tries to damage the fence, the video recordings would get him put in jail with felony convictions, not released into U.S. society. A win. Recall that it is already the law of the land that a border wall shall be built along the "entire" United States' southern border. In late 2006, Congress enacted and President George W. Bush signed into law the Secure Fence Act of 2006. The wording of the act is not about a "fence," but about any kind of barrier customized to the particular terrain in each location to the extent necessary to "the prevention of all unlawful entries into the United States, including entries by terrorists, other unlawful aliens, instruments of terrorism, narcotics, and other contraband." That is "all" as in "all." So the Secure Fence Act of 2006 requires building "whatever it takes" not a "fence" per se. And it requires operational control of the "entire" border of the United States. The Secure Fence Act of 2006 was never fully implemented because Congress did not appropriate the funds to pay for a barrier along the entire border. Because the project is already a construction project "authorized" by Congress, the only remaining question is to supply the funding needed through appropriations by Congress or by Trump repurposing funds from other budgetary line items and applying those funds to finishing the border wall. In 2007, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) led passage of an amendment that did not actually change much. The amendment clarified that the secretary of homeland security has discretion to determine the type of wall or barrier appropriate for each location along the border. That means that if Trump's DHS secretary determines that an extensive wall of vertical slats 100 feet high is necessary, the Secretary's determination becomes the absolute law of the land. The imbroglio in Virginia has inspired lots of humorous digs on the right, not the least of which is the rewriting of the motto Virginia is for Lovers into Virginia is for Losers as indeed the party is now a laughingstock with no good way out of the dilemma. For decades, lacking a coherent and acceptable broad-based platform, the Democrats have cobbled together their victories by playing the identity politics game. Reaching out to different groups, playing on their sense of victimization and oppression, dissolving the very bonds of civic cohesion, and pretending to a savior role for each group. Of course, if people thought about it, no one is less oppressed than a modern-day American, and the special interests and pleadings of these disparate groups often collide and conflict, but that seemingly passes beyond their ken or notice. This week, in contrast to the unifying State of the Union address by the President which was coherent, consistent, and uplifting, the three top officials in Virginia -- all Democrats -- are engaged in a bloody battle which looks to disunite the Democratic women from the black voters of the state. Its not helping the media either, especially not the Washington Post, owned by Jeff Bezos himself, embroiled in a marital scandal and fight with David Pecker, the owner of the National Enquirer. (Who can beat the NY Posts front page on Friday Bezos Exposes Pecker?) A Little Background (1) Kavanaugh and Christine Blasey-Ford Events pass so quickly, pardon me for a quick review of recent history. Christine Blasey-Ford accused then-nominee for the Supreme Court Brett Kavanaugh of sexual harassment, which, she said, had occurred years before when they were both in high school. She was vague as to the date and place, and persons she identified as being in the house when the offensive behavior occurred did not confirm that he was even there when the claimed abuse occurred nor was there a shred of evidence that the two had ever even met. Yet for days, the Washington Post headlined her story. And Democrats, especially women Democrats, insisted that women accusers of sexual malfeasance must be believed. Hillary Clinton (oddly enough) was typical: Every survivor of sexual assault deserves to be heard, believed, and supported. Additionally, that paper then reported on a number of preposterous, unverified, and even more outlandish allegations against the nominee, later withdrawn. (2) Governor Ralph Northam, Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax, and Attorney General Mark Herring The fiasco in Virginia began when a medical school yearbook in which on Northams page was a picture of a man in blackface standing next to a man in a KKK outfit surfaced. Northam first apologized, later denied he was in that picture but did admit hed appeared in blackface at a dance while in college. His denials seemed unpersuasive, suggesting someone mixed up pictures and placed this one on his page without his knowledge. Next up Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring admitted he, too, had had worn blackface in college. (This seems to be a peculiar Virginia tradition. No one in other states seems to remember this happening at that time.) The blackface furor began with demands for Northams resignation, and then Herrings. Among those calling for Northams immediate resignation were the editors of the Washington Post, which cited his shifting and credulity-shredding explanations for the racist photograph. Professor Glenn Reynolds (Instapundit) was having none of this: Hey, WaPo editorial board -- remember how you pushed Northam as some sort of racial healer, while gleefully spreading the bullshit claims that longtime milquetoast GOP pol Ed Gillespie was some sort of Stormfront stalking horse? Maybe you should resign, too, hacks. Dont try to pretend this is just about the rottenness of Virginias Democratic Party. Youre part of the rot yourselves. It would, indeed, be hard to argue with a straight face that Virginia Democrats got into this box on their own. The Washington Post deserves a great deal of credit. In any event, an online friend, Lynn Chu, probably best explains the hoopla about blackface and Northam: All this weird, exaggerated shrieking about blackface etc. (and so many other leftist fetish behaviors) is some kind of psychological displacement behavior. With pathetic desperation they seem to seek to cover up for, or find scapegoats or substitutes for, what ought to be profound guilt and shame over all their other immoral behaviors. This the Left adamantly ignores except for its symbolic expiations in overkill involving boorish male sex predators, the worst being those who abuse power. Northam's bland assertion of a right to infanticide, and that jerk Cuomo's actual jubilant celebration of it (excommunicate him please, Pope, alas, a useless one) is a prime example. But there are more. The calls for Northams resignation, which had to include Herrings for consistencys sake, might have gotten somewhere but for two allegations involving Justin Fairfax. For then it occurred to not a few people that all three might have to resign leaving a Republican in the Governorship according to Virginias succession law. (a) The Fairfax Allegations. A Scripps College professor, Dr. Vanessa Tyson, asserts that at the 2004 Democratic Convention in Boston, Fairfax forced her to perform fellatio on him. Friday Meredith Wilson who has corroborating contemporaneous corroborating emails, Facebook messages and statements from friends, accuses Fairfax of raping her when they were both students at Duke University. Tysons allegations were made public sooner and we have more details about how they were handled than we do of Wilsons. Tyson, a friend of Virginia democratic Congressman Bobby Scott, says she told him about the incident a year ago. His aides said that Tyson first reached out to Scott on October 20, 2017 indicating she was not a fan of Fairfax and that she followed up a month later indicating she wanted to explain to Scott why that was so, In December she texted him her issue with Fairfax was because of a MeToo allegation and about January of this year she disclosed that it was, she who had been Fairfaxs victim. The Washington Post received the information from Tyson over a year ago (prior to the Virginia election) and decided not to publish her allegations. As Becket Adams notes: Whats the papers excuse for running multiple stories repeating totally uncorroborated allegations of sexual abuse aimed at Kavanaugh? When the Post got Ford on the record amid the fight over Kavanaughs Supreme Court nomination, the paper didnt seem to be so concerned by the fact that she couldn't provide a single piece of evidence to verify her claim that the judge tried to rape her when they were both in high school -- or even that they'd ever met. Note that, absent the leaks, her allegation could have been properly investigated by senators from both parties on the Senate Judiciary Committee without the resulting damage to privacy and reputation. But the Post, less worried in that case about the lack of evidence behind the allegation, plowed ahead. In fact, as the Hamilton Lincoln Law Institutes Ted Frank noted Monday, there are fewer red flags in the Fairfax accuser's story then there were in Ford's. Unlike Ford, Fairfaxs accuser identifies the exact year and location of the alleged assault. Unlike Ford, Fairfaxs accuser belongs to the same political tribe, and therefore speaks against interest in at least one sense. There are other things that bother me about the Posts uneven treatment of the Fairfax and Kavanaugh accusers. For example, the papers first original coverage of the allegation against the lieutenant governor came only after Fairfax had issued a statement defending himself. Kavanaugh was afforded no similar benefit. Virginia Democrats havent had this hard of a time since the third day at Gettysburg says my online friend Captain Hate and with good reason. Northam cant be forced to resign even if black voters are furious. Neither can Herring. And it seems inconsistent to not treat both men equally for essentially the same offense. But if they resign for blackface pictures in college, how can Fairfax stay in office facing charges now from two women for far more egregious conduct? And if all three resign the Democratic Party in Virginia will be decimated. But if they dont it will infuriate women voters or black voters, or both. The Ku Klux Krats The racist antics of Virginia governor Ralph Northam ought not to surprise anyone. The Democratic Party has long been marinated in racist thinking. Today, most of that racism is irrational hatred of white people and the denial of white people through such policies that the Nazis practiced racial quotas in the name of that moronic and repulsive goal "social justice," which is to say injustice; all justice is individual. The Democratic Party was even more deeply committed to racism against blacks, and the Ku Klux Klan was simply the terrorist wing of the Democratic Party, which drove Republicans out of the South and compelled blacks to join the Democratic Party, where they were denied the right to vote in primaries or participate in caucuses to choose the Democrat nominee for offices. Blacks who gave in to this terrorism and became Democrats were said by disgusted black women to be "crossing the Jordan" and were referred to as "Uncle Tom," which is how that derogatory name from Uncle Tom's Cabin entered the American political lexicon. The Ku Klux Klan did more than just terrorize Republicans. The Klan was a strong supporter of public schools and a passionate advocate of creating a federal department of education with Cabinet-level status. The Ku Klux Klan also touted itself in many parts of the nation as "progressive" and opposed big business. The infestation of Klan members in the Democratic Party an utterly forgotten story includes not just nebbishes like Northam, but Democrat icons. Woodrow Wilson, though not a Klan member himself, re-segregated the federal civil service. He showed the Klan celebratory film, The Birth of a Nation, in the White House and commented that so much of what was in the film was so true. FDR won the Democrat presidential nomination in 1932 when, in the later rounds of voting, all the "Solid South" swung to him. FDR never desegregated the military or tried to end the disenfranchisement of blacks in the South or supported the civil rights bills that conservative Republicans repeatedly introduced in Congress. Truman himself applied to join the Ku Klan Klan. Democrat presidents put several Klansmen on the Supreme Court. Justice Edward White, who had been a Klansman, was put on the Supreme Court by Grover Cleveland. FDR put Hugo Black, a leftist icon and also a Klansman, on the Supreme Court. Harry Truman put Tom Clark, father of the odious radical leftist Ramsay Clark, on the Supreme Court. Is all this ancient political history? Recall that the presidency of George W. Bush included West Virginia senator Robert Byrd, who had been a high official in the Ku Klux Klan and used the term "white nigger" in a television interview. Byrd was repeatedly chosen as the Democrat leader in the Senate. The contrast with the Republican Party is stark. Every single Republican presidential candidate since the Civil War supported equality before the law for blacks and invited blacks to join and to participate in the Republican Party at the local and national levels. Even after serving terms as president, men like Rutherford B. Hayes devoted the rest of their lives to working to educate blacks in the South. Thaddeus Stevens, who is attacked in most history books for supporting the impeachment of Andrew Johnson, refused to acknowledge Pennsylvania state law changes that, before the Civil War, denied blacks the vote. In his will, Stevens asked to be buried in a black-only cemetery. Republican national conventions long before there was any political gain to be had often had the invocation by black clergymen. The platforms of these conventions almost invariably called for granting blacks genuine political and civil rights. Virtually all the black leaders, up to W.E.B. Du Bois, were Republicans (and even the Marxist Du Bois, after supporting Wilson in 1912, declined to do so in 1916). How, then, did the Ku Klux Krats come to be seen as the champions of blacks? Because, as they always do, leftists the Ku Klux Klan is clearly a spawn of the Left promised them unearned goodies, unmerited advantages, and the appearance of power. Equality before the law became in fact inequality, forcing colleges and companies to hire relatively unqualified blacks, which both destroyed the value of those institutions in many ways and also insured that interracial hostility continued and worsened. Can anything be done? Possibly, but probably not. All those who crossed the Jordan to become Democrats are too addicted to those destructive narcotics that are the tools of enslavement used by the Left. That is just what the left and its political vehicle, the Democratic Party, want. Image: Heath Alseike via Flickr. In my fathers last years, many things fell away, but he always gave charity to one group, the Anti-Defamation League, the voice of conscience of American Jews fighting to purge our society of the scourge of anti-Semitism. My father was a combat photographer in World War II, who filmed our frontline troops in Europe from Omaha Beach through the liberation of Paris and the Battle of the Bulge to Berlin in ruins. He also filmed the liberation of Dachau, an experience so painful he never spoke about it to me until the last year of his life, at age ninety-eight. He could hardly speak. He was crying so hard his frail body was shaking, as he gasped out, Im sorry to be so weak. No more. Now the ADL is just one more left-wing group, a radical extension of the Democratic Party, according to Isi Leibler, a prominent worldwide Jewish leader writing in the Jerusalem Post. The only anti-Semitism that it will fight is that of the tiny fringe group of white supremacists. The greater danger of the radical left and Muslim activists gets a pass. The Boycott Divestment Sanctions (BDS) movement, declared anti-Semitic by the American government, is supported by Democratic politicians and so ADL wont fight it. ADL actively supports the Marxist anti-Semitic group Black Lives Matter, which incorporates anti-Israel passages in its platform and campaigns against anti-boycott legislation. ADLs moral collapse is even greater than Leibler had space to enumerate. ADL wont fight anti-Semitism, even violence against Jewish youngsters on campus, organized by Muslim Brotherhood front groups, because progressive multiculturism privileges Muslims over Jews. And it utterly refuses to confront the Democrat party mainstreaming anti-Semitism from three out of its four main voting blocs blacks, new Hispanics, and leftists. Today in America, Leibler writes, Jews and Israels biggest supporters are Evangelicals. American Jewish leaders are betraying the trust of their community, putting their liberal agenda ahead of protecting Jews at home and Israel abroad. Jewish identity has become submerged by progressivism. Indeed, left-wing Jews wishing to be regarded as progressive are discovering that a prerequisite to their acceptance requires a hostile attitude to Israel. It all began with Obama, says Leibler. Before Obama, Jewish leaders were not intimidated. Their job was to speak out in defense of Israel. No more. Obama had pro-Israel congressmen spied on by our intelligence services for opposing his pro-Iran policies. In a favorite Obama technique for suppression, pro-Israel groups were harassed and suppressed by the IRS. Barack Obama treated Israel as a rogue state. He groveled before the Iranians and treated Israeli defenders and Arab terrorists as moral equivalents. The response by the majority of the American Jewish establishment, who were previously never reticent about raising their voices, was a deafening silence, writes Liebler. Jewish leadership caved to Obamas bullying. They knew that criticizing Obama would be punished severely by liberal activists, jeopardize their funding, and bring down even more hostile attacks from President Obama. Many Jewish liberals are so ignorant of their heritage that they regarded social justice and their Democratic political affiliation as the foremost factors in their Jewish identity. This past decade has been one of unprecedented passivity and cowardice by the Jewish establishment. It failed to speak out against Obamas anti-Israel bias and remained silent when the ADL, J Street, the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, the National Council of Jewish Women, progressive rabbis and other Jews engaged in the primitive defamation of Trump from Jewish platforms. Jewish groups have always been scrupulously bipartisan as a bedrock principle. Fighting anti-Semitism and promoting Jewish American interests was never partisan. But after Obama radicalized the party, that went out the window. Leibler calls out the hysteria sweeping through the Jewish community, as progressive rabbis and their lay leaders call Trump racist, an anti-Semite, and even a Nazi sympathizer. This, despite the fact that to date, Trump has unquestionably been the most positive president toward Israel and has a converted Jewish daughter who is religiously observant. He introduced significant beneficial policies, such as ceasing financial aid to Palestinian terrorists, moving the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem and promoting the case for Israel at the UN and international forums. Meanwhile, they support rabid black and Muslim anti-semites wherever they may be on campus, in Congress, leading the pussy-hat Womens March, Farrakhan supporters in Congress, in the social justice movement. Jewish silence has already sowed the wind. What must have shocked and sent shivers down the spines of Jews even remotely supportive of Israel was House Speaker Nancy Pelosis appointment of (Ilan Omar) this antisemitic newly elected congresswoman to the prestigious and powerful House Foreign Affairs Committee, which oversees foreign aid and such national security issues as terrorism and the proliferation of nonconventional weapons. Isi Leibler was born before the Holocaust. He has seen it happen before. He is calling out American Jewish leadership for their cowardice and collusion with the forces of left-wing hate. He says the appointment of Ilan Omar to the Foreign Affairs Committee is a wakeup call. In truth, it is a wakeup call to all of us. Pelosis folly has given Congresswoman Omar the keys to Americas national security secrets. When anti-Semitism rules, none of us are safe. Hat tip: https://www.peaceandtolerance.org/ Lake Charles, Louisiana (70615) Today A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Some passing clouds. Low 76F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible early. Some passing clouds. Low 76F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph. JERUSALEM | President of Al-Quds University Professor Imad Abu Kishek received in his office at the main campus the Turkish Cultural Attache in Palestine Mr. Riha Erm Jo who visited the university to discuss ways to enhance cooperation ties between both sides in the academic, research, and cultural fields. Professor Abu Kishek welcomed the Turkish official, paying tribute to the Turkish government for the deep relations Al-Quds University has with the Turkish government and Turkish higher education institutions. During the meeting, Abu Kishek cited the various programs and projects both parties have been engaged in, most notably the project of the female students dormitory which has recently been launched on campus with generous funding from the Turkish government. He also mentioned the grand Turkish conference that was held last year at Al-Quds University main campus under the patronage of their Excellencies President Recep Tayyib Erdogan and President Mahmoud Abbas and which brought together hundreds of multi-national academics and scholars, mostly Turkish, to discuss hot social sciences themes. Abu Kishek expressed his appreciation for the big role the Turkish Cultural Center at Al-Quds University plays in teaching the Turkish language to Palestinian students, which comes in the framework of the universitys ongoing efforts to promote international cultural understanding. Mr. Riha Erm Jo, for his part, expressed his pleasure for visiting Al-Quds University and meeting its leadership, while praising the deep historic ties between the peoples of both countries as well as the fruitful academic and research cooperation between Al-Quds University and the Turkish government and academic institutions. The Turkish Cultural Attache pledged to employ whichever possible means to further enhance cooperation with Al-Quds University, particularly because it enjoys a special status as a leading Palestinian institution that is located within Jerusalem and is well reputed to have numerous academic and research accomplishments. About the show A weekly programme that examines and dissects the worlds media, how they operate and the stories they cover. Watch The Listening Post every Saturday at 0830GMT Post: #39 RE: Reports of meteor over the sky of Venezuela Fork Wrote: (02-10-2019 05:00 AM) LoP Guest Wrote: (02-10-2019 04:58 AM) It's obvious as with the one over cuba that the u.s is sending missiles and exploding them over these countries as a warning of sorts. Tyrants. I have also had the same thoughts...... the meteors are armed missiles. FAKE Spread this to expose the fake news. 1) Valera News is the source. They have existed a short time and do not have offices in VZ, they publish only pro-US coup articles and viewpoints. They do not source their photographs or content which breaks copyright laws. They do not list any actual people or company in their articles and videos. This is not a legit organization. They ask for "superhero" donations. Their Google+ has 75 followers. The website does not supply owner information according to firefox and connection is not secure. Registry check reports domain valeranoticias.com.ve as available and valeranoticias.com as for sale. The site was built with a WordPress software. (emarassingly says so on the bottom of its page) It is hosted by 1&1 Internet (1&1 Ionos) which only has offices in Germany and Pennsylvania. ICANN says the website is not a top-level domain. 2) There are no reports of this supposed meteorite on TeleSur which is the real VZ news source, or in any other credible organizations. 4) There are apparent "fires" on ground in the video before the "meteorite" lands. 5) It is possible they are prepping the gullible public to accept future fake meteorite attacks as real meteors. There are artificial meteor showers that can be produced. They are being sold as fireworks. Here is an example: http://www.arabnews.com/node/1437486/science-technology 6) The video that shows a swooning ball of fire exactly like the purported meteorite is napalm. https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index...240AAP75zg FAKESpread this to expose the fake news.1) Valera News is the source. They have existed a short time and do not have offices in VZ, they publish only pro-US coup articles and viewpoints. They do not source their photographs or content which breaks copyright laws. They do not list any actual people or company in their articles and videos. This is not a legit organization. They ask for "superhero" donations. https://translate.google.com/translate?s...actanos%2F Their Google+ has 75 followers. The website does not supply owner information according to firefox and connection is not secure. Registry check reports domain valeranoticias.com.ve as available and valeranoticias.com as for sale. The site was built with a WordPress software. (emarassingly says so on the bottom of its page) https://www.graphene-theme.com/ It is hosted by 1&1 Internet (1&1 Ionos) which only has offices in Germany and Pennsylvania. ICANN says the website is not a top-level domain. https://whois.icann.org/en/lookup?name=v...ias.com.ve Hence, the .ve is a page tag not a real domain suffix which is the .com2) There are no reports of this supposed meteorite on TeleSur which is the real VZ news source, or in any other credible organizations.4) There are apparent "fires" on ground in the video before the "meteorite" lands.5) It is possible they are prepping the gullible public to accept future fake meteorite attacks as real meteors.There are artificial meteor showers that can be produced. They are being sold as fireworks. Here is an example:6) The video that shows a swooning ball of fire exactly like the purported meteorite is napalm. Outside of Buckingham Palace in London a couple of years ago, a woman approached Terrell Patrick and said, "I love your crown." She was referring to the festive imagery on the Mobile Area Mardi Gras Association backpack that he was wearing; a gift from his mother after Patrick served on MAMGA's 2016 royal court. So, standing in the shadow of Queen Elizabeth II and her British empire, he happily shared stories of Mobile's mystic monarchs. "It gave me great joy to see what I am involved in, and be able to teach and educate others about it," Patrick says. Now, he's going to become a king himself, ascending to the throne of MAMGA's Elexis I and reigning over his hometown's Mardi Gras celebration. 2019 Mobile Area Mardi Gras Association King Elexis I Terrell Patrick (L.D. Alston/Courtesy Mobile Area Mardi Gras Association) It's a point of pride for his family and friends, but it also helps Patrick form a deeper connection to his community -- one that he has long fostered as a case officer with the Mobile County District Attorney's Office. Through its Bully Blocker program, Patrick works with school officials to investigate juvenile crimes and ultimately protect youth from predation. Criminal justice has been a focus of his for years, which led to Patrick earning his master's degree in public administration with a concentration in justice administration from Troy University. As a professional, he works with at-risk youth, and says his relationship with MAMGA also helps him affect the lives of upcoming generations. "Being involved in Mardi Gras has made me more passionate about the work that I do," Patrick says. "By being a mentor to young men and women in our school systems, we're giving them an opportunity to know that they can do whatever they put their minds to. "They could be the next King Elexis or the next Gracious Majesty." On that summer day in England, Patrick's would-be admirer asked him what Mardi Gras truly was, to which he replied, "Well, Mardi Gras is a big party." And it's on the subject of said celebration that Patrick's persona transforms from concerned citizen to stately king. Listen close, and he might just refer to himself in the third person, a trait shared by Carnival luminaries going back generations. Another regal characteristic that Patrick embodies is his dedication to family. Historically, only the women in his family have served on the MAMGA royal court, and when it comes to those whom he's honoring during his reign, the trend continues. "I am honoring my grandmother because she taught us the ropes of Mardi Gras," Patrick says of Linda Patrick, who worked with what is now called Mobile Arc, supporting people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. He remembers piling into the MARC van with the patients and heading to the barricades. Together they cheered along the downtown parade routes when Patrick was a child, and together they designed the family crest when it was known that he was going to be king. The crest features a family tree with roots and branches; each significant member of his family is represented by his or her respective birthstone. The crest is the centerpiece of Patrick's brown-velvet train, designed by the illuminative Patricia Richardson and replete with silver, gold, aqua blue and copper. It was created with his mother and grandmother in mind, he says, because "without them Terrell wouldn't be the person he is today." And without family, Mardi Gras wouldn't be what it is, Patrick says. "It's a time for my family, your family, everyone's family to get together and celebrate," he says. "No one does it like Mobile, and I say no one does it like the Patrick family." It was nearing the end of a long morning and Judge John H. England, Jr. was understandably fatigued. The 72-year old Sixth Judicial Circuit judge and member of the University of Alabama Board of Trustees was sitting in his familiar seat at Fridays board meeting, held at the University of Alabama, Birminghams Hill Student Center. Earlier, hed been treated for the pain in his back that cropped up six months ago and causes him to need the aid a walker, and now he sat with head bowed as fellow Trustee Joe Espy read a resolution that was the days last order of business. Mr. Chairman, Espy began. Today we have the opportunity to honor an individual who has made many contributions to our system, our institutions, our state, and our local community. As the University of Alabama began the process of selecting the name of its new freshman residence hall, one name immediately came to the forefront. As Espy continued to read, England, sitting next to him, didnt budge. Until. In public service, he served as a city council, first chairman of the citys finance committee Suddenly, England looked up and glanced towards Espy on his right, with a look of curiosity. elected to the circuit bench, and served not only his county Finally, the emotion of the realization that the honor was being bestowed upon him, one of the first African Americans to attend UAs School of Law, came forth. England reached into his pocket, pulled out a white handkerchief and began to dry the tears. Espy spoke of Englands service on the Alabama Supreme Court, his civic contributions to the YMCA, the Salvation Army, the Boys Scouts of America and others, his honorary Doctorate from Tuskegee University; and his service as a church trustee. and as many of us know, he claims he can sing. England laughed along with the rest of the room. Moments later, a rendering of the new Hon. John H. England Jr., residence hall filled the giant screen at the front of the room. A resolution was presented to the Board officially conveying the honor. Espys voice began to crack: He has served this board for 21 years. Mister Chairman, I move that my friend, John England Jr., be made this... I move the passage of this resolution. Yall got me this time, England said after the resolution was unanimously approved. Watch Judges Englands emotional response to the honor: In 1969, England was one of the first African Americans to attend the UA School of Law. He is the first African-American to have a building name for them on the University of Alabama campus. The Malone-Hood Plaza (named for Vivian Malone and James Hood) and the Autherine Lucy Foster Clock Tower on campus are also named for pioneering African Americans who helped integrate UA in the face of significant resistance. (Former Governor George Wallaces infamous stand at the schoolhouse door was in defiance of Malones and Hoods enrollment.) This is a complete and total surprise, England said. Im still thinking it was a mistake. I cant think of anything Ive done to merit this honor. I just hang around and try to help other people. England was surprised at the event by several friends and family, including Coradean Bishop and children April (an attorney), John (a U.S. magistrate judge in the northern Alabama district) and Chris (a member of the Alabama House of Representatives). Im afraid to go by [and see it], England later joked. Im afraid of what might happen. The residence is in the final phases of construction and is scheduled for occupancy in the fall. The recent fatal shootings of police officers in Birmingham and Mobile loom over this springs legislative battles, as influential law enforcement associations continue to hold sway over reforms in Montgomery. Its fair to assume that Republicans are certainly more interested in making sure we protect our law enforcement personnel than maybe heading toward some of these other roads that have been tried in the past unsuccessfully, said State Sen. Chris Elliott, R-Daphne. Republicans, who hold supermajority status in the Alabama Legislature, are poised to unveil legislation soon that would classify violence against law enforcement as a hate crime. Lawmakers could also look at ensuring that killing a police officer is punishable by the death penalty. The recent police killings could also slow reform efforts on a variety of criminal justice topics, such as racial profiling, marijuana enforcement and civil asset forfeiture. Reform in each area has long been opposed by associations representing law enforcement in Alabama. There is definitely a concern that has been clearly stated by the public regarding the tragedy of the loss of law enforcement officers, said Republican state Rep. Victor Gaston of Mobile, where two police officers have been shot and killed while on duty within the past 12 months. I believe the Legislature will examine opportunities to clearly state how the law itself can address this grave concern. Separate situations Indeed, the mood in Montgomery is likely to be tilted toward support of police and sheriffs departments and their policy interests when lawmakers return for the spring session on March 5. Advocates for reform, though, believe the changes they support should be viewed separate from the tragedies that included the killing on Jan. 13 of Birmingham Police Sgt. Wytasha Wyt Carter and the killing on Jan. 20 of Mobile Police Officer Sean Tuder. They also believe legislative disputes in Montgomery should not be directly influenced by the civil unrest in Hoover following the Thanksgiving police shooting that resulted in the death of a 21-year-old man at the Riverchase Galleria. State Sen. Rodger Smitherman, D-Birmingham, said issues like civil asset forfeiture reform and a new law addressing racial profiling are complete and totally separate situations from legislation that addresses physical assault on police. I think you will find there will be a balance that people will try to reach, said Smitherman. Added state Rep. Randall Shedd, R-Fairview: We are all heartbroken about the loss of life. There is a lot of emotion and passion about a number of those issues. It is important that we debate with respect and accomplish common good with the proper balance on any review or changes to the criminal justice system. Reform advocates believe that their changes will make police safer, and not cause harm. Said Carla Crowder, executive director with Montgomery-based Alabama Appleseed Center for Justice and Reform: Many of the reforms we support would mean valuable law enforcement resources could be directed toward combating and investigating serious, violent crime. Alabama Appleseed is pushing for the decriminalization of small amounts of marijuana, putting an end to suspending drivers licenses of people with unpaid court debt and reforming the states civil asset forfeiture process. The group, in conjunction with the Southern Poverty Law Center, has rolled out several in depth analyses of criminal justice issues in Alabama. The eye-opening Forfeiting Your Rights report on the states civil asset forfeiture laws helped spur reform discussions during last years legislative session. The report revealed that more than $2.2 million in 2015 was awarded to 70 government agencies from property seized by police. In a quarter of those cases, the property owner was not charged nor linked to a crime. And in half of all forfeiture cases in Alabama, the amount of cash seized was less than $1,372. Appleseed has been able to provide data and research that points the way to evidence-based solutions for chronic inefficiency and unfairness in the criminal justice system, Crowder said. We trust that all legislators will want to use evidence in their decisions. Hate crime For now, the behind-the-scenes talk among GOP lawmakers is to tighten laws against people who threaten, injure or kill police. Since the shooting of Tuder, lawmakers have been discussing the possibility of resurrecting legislation that adds law enforcement to the list of protections under the states hate crime law. Alabama has had a hate crime law on the books since 1994, enhancing penalties for crimes motivated by someones race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity or mental or physical disability. Alabama law does not include sexual orientation or gender identity. Lawmakers last considered adding law enforcement to the hate crimes statute in 2016, but the measure stalled and hasnt resurfaced. No bill has officially been pre-filed ahead of the legislative session. State Sen. Cam Ward, R-Alabaster, said the timing seems right to add law enforcement to the hate crime law. He anticipates such a bill winning legislative approval. But he said the issue does place Republican lawmakers in a peculiar situation. Every time we have hate crime classification in the past, for example with (the LGBTQ community), the argument from Republicans is murder is murder and you shouldnt classify that a murder is more important to one person than the other, said Ward, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Now that its a police officer, its different. Philosophically, those two arguments contradict each other. Elliott, who says hes willing to sponsor the legislation, said Alabamas proposal would likely mirror a 2016 law passed in Louisiana that added police and firefighters to the list of protected people under that states hate crime law. Its simple in that it adds not only the murder of a police officer but also the targeting of a law enforcement officer as a hate crime, Elliott said. We have people out there mad at law enforcement and in a premediated fashion, are seeking (to harm them). Baldwin County Sheriff Huey Hoss Mack suggested a stiff punishment be included that includes violations punishable by a life sentence without possibility of parole. Said Mack, Today, law enforcement officers are not only confronted with resistance and the occasional scuffle during a case or an arrest, but the possibility of being assassinated for no other reason than they wear the badge. Alabamas interest in the law comes after Louisiana became the first state to act following concerns from police over the heated rhetoric surfacing during the height of the Black Lives Matter movement, which seeks to end police brutality. Critics of adding law enforcement to hate crime laws believe the action is more about public relations than as a crime deterrent. Michael Bronski, co-author of the 2016 book, Considering Hate: Violence, Goodness and Justice in American Culture and Politics, spoke out about the Louisiana action and has generally described hate crime laws as essentially feel-good laws. I think (hate crime laws) hone peoples sense of vengeance and that its, oh, well get these people since they did something bad, said Bronski. Ideally, our sense of justice and our system of justice shouldnt work on vengeance but should work on justice. We have laws against killing people strong laws against killing people. Bronski also doesnt believe a profession, such as law enforcement, should be added to a list of demographic designations such their ethnicity or religious affiliation. Would you include doctors and nurses? he said. Would you include people who work on EMTs? At some point, youre loosening up the very notion that the category was invented which was to include protected classes of people. Republican State Rep. Shane Stringer, the police chief in Satsuma, said he believes the current laws are already pretty stiff in that killing a police officer is a capital offense punishable by the death penalty. I dont see where making it a hate crime will help or change anything, he said. Maybe it would help on the federal side, but the state prosecution is pretty stiff in that its capital punishment if found guilty of murdering police. Law enforcement organizations with a presence in Montgomery are also expected to weigh in with their own extra police-protection policies. Barry Matson, executive director with the Alabama District Attorneys Association, said his organization wants to see legislation that ensures the murder of a police officer is followed with death penalty considerations, closing any loopholes that may allow a perpetrator to avoid death row. I think that, like the military, police work every day to protect our rights and make us safe, said Matson. If there are things that need to be done for the public to feel safer, (state lawmakers) will support that). Civil asset forfeiture Ward said there may be nothing Alabama lawmakers can do to prevent a national trend toward ending the practice of allowing police to seize and keep property even when no one is convicted of a crime. The public strongly opposes the practice. A 2016 poll shows 84 percent of Americans opposed the taking of private property from someone suspected of being involved in a crime, but who has not yet been convicted. It will come to an end at some point, whether the courts force it or we do, said Ward. Sheriffs and police chiefs in Alabama overwhelmingly support the status quo and defend Alabama law, even after Alabama Appleseed and SPLC released its revealing report of the program in January 2018. Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall has also long been on record in support of the status quo, and is wary of reform. He was the only candidate running for Attorney General last year who embraced the practice, calling it a vital tool for law enforcement. Change nearly happened last year. A coalition of Republican lawmakers, the right-leaning Alabama Policy Institute and left-leaning SPLC and Alabama Appleseed, backed a measure requiring more transparency on the items seized during an arrest. But the final bill died during the waning hours of the legislation session on the Senate floor. Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur, who was a part of ongoing negotiations for reform, said he anticipates a revised bill returning for reconsideration this spring. Crowder, at Alabama Appleseed, said: Its not a left or right issue. We simply need to fix a system that allows the government to keep your property when no crime has been committed. Racial profiling Racial profiling legislation is almost certain to receive another airing before Alabama lawmakers this spring. Smitherman, who first pitched racial profiling legislation in 2004, says hes going to keep working at it. During last years session, Smithermans proposal sparked intense reaction and support from Alabamas Black Caucus. They warned of filibusters and promised to slow the legislative progress of other bills. The proposal, in general, would require law enforcement agencies to report to the Attorney Generals Office statistics about traffic stops, including the race, age and gender of the driver and the officer and the nature of the alleged violation that prompted the stop. Smithermans bill passed out of the Senate, but was stopped in the House where its likely to face another difficult road this spring. The Houses Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee is likely to hear the proposal, and that group consists mostly of law enforcement professionals. The chairman is Rep. Allen Treadway, R-Morris, who is the assistant police chief in Birmingham. The vice-chairman is Rep. Allen Farley, R-McCalla, who spent 37 years in law enforcement. Farley said the best approach for Smitherman is to work on the legislation outside the halls of legislative authority, and inside Birmingham with the states two largest local policing agencies: The Birmingham Police Department and Jefferson County Sheriffs Department. Let them work on it together and try it out for a year and have a pilot program for those two agencies and then bring it to the associations and say that weve gotten together, tried it out and I think we have something, said Farley. That is the way Id like to work things instead of saying, We are in the state Legislature and we will create this bill and you will put it out there on the street. Said Farley: Senator Smitherman, hes got 34 colleagues in the Senate but when he comes downstairs (to the House), there are 105 of us and there are people who dont know him and they are getting calls from their sheriffs and police chiefs who dont know the senator asking, Is he trying to help us or is there an ulterior motive? Farley added, People are cautious about these bills. Smitherman said hes fully aware of the Alabama House members who are actively employed in law enforcement, and he said hes ready to make changes to his proposal that will be more supportive of police. Gun permits Conservatives pushing to loosen gun restrictions are also facing wary police when it comes to a proposal to end state requirements to possess a permit to carry concealed weapons. Sen. Gerald Allen, R-Tuscaloosa, is once again sponsoring a bill that would repeal the permit requirement. A similar proposal Allen sponsored in 2017, won support in the Senate before meeting a roadblock in the House. Once again, the law enforcement officers who have a strong showing in the Alabama House, scuttled its advancement. Police and sheriffs have led the opposition arguing that requiring a permit is an important law enforcement tool. Said Ward, It gets close, but law enforcement is opposed to it. Allen said there are misperceptions about his bill pushed by law enforcement. The perception is well get rid of permits, said Allen. Thats not the case. Law enforcement utilizes the permit fees, which vary by county, to raise money to help fund their operations. But law enforcement leaders have said that the permit fees are not the main reason sheriffs want to keep the status quo. Allen claims his bill, backed by the National Rifle Association, adheres closely to the intent of the Second Amendment. In Mobile on Tuesday, leading law enforcement officials still reeling from Tuders death and the February 2018 killing of Mobile Police Officer Justin Billa, urged residents to be more mindful about their guns. James Barber, the executive director of public safety with the city of Mobile, said that that thousands of guns are stolen each year within the city. While authorities are not pushing for any gun restrictions, they are pleading publicly with people to secure their firearms at all times. For Gods sake, help us by securing your weapons, Barber said. You need a computer that runs sophisticated software and can withstand extremely hot or cold temperatures. You may operate the computer in the back of a Humvee or inside a tent in the Middle Eastern desert. And it likely will be exposed to sand, so it needs an air filter than can be easily cleaned with plain water. And by the way, it needs to be the size of a piece of carry-on luggage to fit in an airline overhead bin. No problem for MaxVision, a 25-year-old Madison-based computer hardware company, now legally known as Rugged Portable Computers LLC. The computers are practically indestructible, according to the companys website, and built to operate inside or out, under most any circumstances. We build mission-specific ruggedized computer equipment for the defense industry, says Bruce Imsand, the companys 66-year-old founder and Chief Executive Officer. A former Vice President of Engineering at Intergraph Corp., where he led workstation product development, Imsand started MaxVision in 1993 with only a handful of employees. They first focused on commercial clients, building specialty computers to run Computer Assisted Design (CAD) programs. In the late 1990s, we had the idea to come up with a portable super workstation, he says. That concept has snowballed over time for MaxVision, which is poised to exceed $20 million in sales in the first half of 2019. Imsand, whose expertise includes mechanical and industrial design, holds at least eight patents related to workstations, and says he has chosen not to patent other technologies, but rather protect them like a secret sauce. He attributes his success to having a good team that listens to and understands the needs of clients, and designing their products to specification with great speed. We design it faster than they ever believed possible, he says of the monstrous machines that range in price from $8,000 to $120,000 each, with an average price ranging from $30,000 to $35,000. This is not your daddys PC, Imsand says. (It is) the most amazing machine youve ever seen in a small package. MaxVisions computers are portable and practically indestructible. An electrical engineering graduate of Auburn University, where he also obtained a masters degree in the same field, Imsand remembers a time where there were no PCs in the Universe. When he first went to college, the only computer around was a low-end IBM 360. Today he and his company can turn around a customized weather-and drop-proofed geospatial workstation with 100 terabytes of storage and high-performance graphics displays in a matter of 90 to 120 days. All in one box, he says. It folds up in two minutes. With business booming, MaxVision is in the process of building a roughly 28,000 square foot manufacturing facility and headquarters next to its current location on Production Avenue. The new building has 12-inch concrete walls, making it unusually efficient to heat, cool, and maintain. MaxVisions other focuses include cyber defense incident response, drone counter-measures, and ground support for unmanned aerial vehicles. One early customer, the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency, was sold in the early 2000s on MaxVisions abilities, and since then, all the soldiers fell into line, says Imsand. Customers include the U.S. Army, U.S. Special Operations Command, U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Navy, Imsand says. We have dominated the segment for 10 years. Bob Cuffe, marketing manager for MaxVision, calls Imsand a visionary whose products, with such names as MaxPac, MaxRax, MiniRax and MaxCube, are manufactured 100% in-house in Madison. The company claims to offer the most powerful portable computers supporting the most demanding missions in the most difficult places. Products include multi-screen workstations and deployable compact servers designed to operate normally in temperatures as cold as freezing to 122 degrees Fahrenheit or even hotter. With business ups and downs post 9-11 and after the 2009 economy collapse, MaxVision is currently enjoying a surge, doubling its 2017 income in 2018 and poised to double again this year. OPTIONAL TRIM Representatives of the company attend about 25 annual national conferences and trade shows, half of which Imsand attends personally. Despite the fast pace and the fact that he is quite hands-on, Imsand limits his work hours to 50 per week in order to balance his life and spend time with his family. He and his wife, Katherine, a retired choral director, have five grown children three of them engineers and six grandchildren. The couple lives in Toney and sing together twice a week in the Hazel Green United Methodist Church choir. Imsand also plays tympani in the Madison Community Orchestra. Im part artist, part analytical, he says. Music is cheaper than therapy. Imsand stays fit by going to the gym and taking classes in Pilates. If I dont have rest time I cant be my best, he says, adding that he has no retirement plans. I expect to be designing when Im 75 years old, he says. The creative part of it keeps me alive. The three main tribes in Libyas southern Fezzan region largely support Gen. Khalifa Hifters military takeover. Despite little media coverage, his Libyan National Army (LNA) has come to an agreement with most of the main tribal authorities in Libyas southern capital city, Sabha, and other areas in the southeast. The military operation has restored some security in a part of the country where human, fuel and drug trafficking has run rampant since the fall of Moammar Gadhafis regime in 2011. Libyas three main southern tribes are Awlad Suleiman, Tebu and Tuareg. They have all released official statements declaring support for Hifters army, though some members have raised concerns for the LNAs reputation of brutal military force over the territories it controls. Awlad Suleiman released a statement through its municipal council, rather than directly through its tribal spokespersons, to avoid disputes with the rival Tripoli government it receives support from. Despite the complexity of Libyas war, the key southern region which has been lawless for almost a decade has now seen a return to the rule of law with Hifters military advances in the south. In addition to the majority of the tribes, other Libyans also appear to be supportive of Hifters military operation, according to individuals and organizations in the area. We havent heard of kidnappings or thefts since the LNA forces took over, a spokesperson for the Fezzan Libya Organization, a civil rights group based in Sabha, told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity. Abu Bakir, the son of the head of the Tebu tribe, told Al-Monitor, Most regular people in the south support this operation because they have had problems traveling in the area without fear of kidnapping. They needed someone to restore security in their daily lives, He added, Human trafficking, smuggling and kidnapping have all gone down considerably in the areas under the LNAs control. The spokesperson for the Fezzan Libya Organization said civilians are definitely on the side of the LNA. While interacting with people here, theyre quite excited about the LNA coming into Sabha, and some people are wary some militias or tribes might try to counteract their influence, he said. Despite the negative media coverage, the LNA took control over key areas in the south on relatively peaceful terms by coming to agreements with the tribes, which voluntarily gave up some of their power in exchange for security guarantees against local gangs and criminals. Contrary to claims of the LNA taking over through force, they were mostly able to peacefully negotiate with the tribes, said the spokesperson for Fezzan Libya Organization. Bakir agreed, saying, They took control over airports, hotels, and checkpoints through voluntary agreements with the tribal leaders. According to another source in Sabha who asked for anonymity for fear of repercussions from local gangs and criminals, kidnappings were widespread before the LNA took control over the city. Ive seen 19-year-olds involved in smuggling, trafficking and kidnapping buying mansions and driving luxury cars within six months of them working in these illicit activities. He added, Now, its the first time we have security since the fall of Gadhafi. A fundamental issue in resolving the trafficking and smuggling business in the south has been the increasing number of foreign gangs and criminals taking over the region, including portions of the southern tribes themselves. Tebu, for example, is part native and part Chadian, because of the increase in Chadians who have entered through Libyas open southern border. The Libyan side of Tebu is in favor of the LNA, but a lot of the Chadian side is against it because of their involvement in the smuggling and trafficking business, the source in Sabha said. According to this source, Tebu is now mostly made up of foreigners, which is why Tebu has declared in a new statement that it opposes the LNAs operation. Tebu is barely Libyan anymore, and so the majority Chadian and foreign members likely released this statement because they dont want Hifter to end their lucrative business, the source added. Some of the Chadian and Sudanese militants are like a mafia group and they took control because our borders were open, said Bakir. The LNA has been supporting the native Libyan elements of the tribes. Chadians and Sudanese militants who entered the country through its porous southern border have largely disrupted the fragile equilibrium between the different tribes in the south and their relations with other Libyans. For this reason, many Libyan tribes and others in the south want the LNA to take control of the border and stop the gangs and criminals from entering the country in the first place. We hope that the LNA will also take control over the border to stop human trafficking and mass migration into Libya. The people are for the LNA to help them end these problems and finally live in peace, Bakir said. With this military operation, Hifter under the eastern government controls 60% of the south, according to the Fezzan Libya Organization, and the vast majority of the country at large. He is likely to take further control over the southern region with his ongoing operation, drastically changing his prospects of winning Libyas almost decade-long war. The LNA's primary goal is to ultimately extend to the southwestern border and seize key oil installations, a Libyan journalist residing in the southeast who asked for anonymity over security reasons told Al-Monitor. Should Hifter, with the support of France, Russia and the UAE, also seize the oil revenues, it could trigger a strong reaction from the rival Tripoli government, with its sponsors of Italy, the EU and the United States, and further prolong Libyas war. But if Hifter remains unopposed by foreign governments in his conquests, he is likely to win. In Israel, citizens elect parties that represent them in the parliament. The composition of the parliament then entails the composition of a majority coalition, led by a prime minister. This system of proportional representation is a gift that keeps on giving. It enables Israeli voters to be represented more accurately than the vast majority of democracies around the globe. A situation in which one candidate receives nearly 3 million more votes than the other, and yet the opponent still goes on to become president of the United States, would be impossible in Israel. Furthermore, in the election for the most important job in the world, there is no reason to waste time courting voters in many of the biggest states, because these states are already red (Republican) or blue (Democratic). The only states that really interest the US presidential candidates are the ones that dont follow a traditional, predictable voting pattern. This is not the situation in Israel. The problem in Israel, however, is that proportional representation has resulted in a multiplicity of parties. That is why a voter threshold system was created: to avoid an inflated number of parties. In this system, votes for parties that failed to pass the threshold are split up among the other parties, based on their size. The minimum voter threshold has risen in Israel over the years, with it standing at 3.25% in the last election. While this is still far from the German or Turkish thresholds (5% and 10% respectively), it still reduces the number of parties serving in the Knesset, so that there are now no parties with fewer than four representatives in the 120-seat Knesset. The Israeli political system has been confronted for many years with a situation where the goal of the Likud is to form a governing coalition with at least 61 seats (as in 2015). In contrast, the center-left camp generally strives, at a first stage, to form a coalition of 61 legislators to block the right from reaching the majority needed to form the next government. The right has a much easier time in forming a governing coalition in Israel. The center-left has difficulties in forming such a coalition from a blocking majority because some parties will not join the group that would govern; the group's parties are supposed to recommend to Israel's president that one of group's leaders be tasked with the mission of forming a government. The Arab parties in general wont recommend a leader of a Zionist party, as they will not join a government headed by a Zionist platform. As a result, the center-left acts in two phases. It first focuses on establishing a blocking majority. This bloc would typically include the Arab parties, which avoid joining any government, not least because they have never been asked. As a result of this, once the liberal (center-left) camp is certain that it can block the right from forming a coalition, it tries to create a government of its own by including religious or right-wing groups ready to enter a coalition led by the center-left. Because of the rising voter threshold, parties not only try to increase their own strength but also often try to protect the smaller parties in their camp from falling below the vote threshold so that the camp as a whole does not lose seats. That is why Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is so interested in some kind of consolidation involving right-wing HaBayit HaYehudi and the (radical right) followers of the late Rabbi Meir Kahane. Now that Naftali Bennett and Ayelet Shaked have left HaBayit HaYehudi to form their own New Right party, HaBayit HaYehudi could well fail to pass the voter threshold. And yet, for some reason, it is hard to point to some parallel effort on the left intended to prevent some party or other from vanishing, even though the risk exists there, too. Polls show that Meretz under Tamar Zandberg would win four to five seats; this is close enough to the edge that it could well fail to pass the voter threshold. Meanwhile, polls give the Labor Party no more than six seats, meaning it also is at risk of disappearing. A solution to their guaranteed survival lies in the two parties running together as a single group until they decide to go their separate ways again. Labor and Meretz are sister parties, even though virtually all Labor Party leaders have avoided getting too close to Meretz so as not to be accused of being leftists. Labor Party chair Avi Gabbay is no different from his predecessors. Similarly concerned about being considered too far to the left, he prefers to join forces with the center. Yet just as Gabbay is reluctant to join forces with Meretz, the leaders of the centrist parties are wary of integrating the Labor Party into their ranks. Meanwhile, Labor is steadily shrinking in the polls. This author has been calling for a joint Labor-Meretz framework since the 1990s, after the United Workers Party (Mapam) broke away from the Labor Party, following the decision by Shimon Peres to form a national unity government in 1984. The joint Labor-Mapam framework was never reinstituted. I raised the need for this as a member of the Labor Party leadership and again in 2003, when I switched parties to Meretz and was elected party chair. A consolidation of this sort could increase the parties strength. After the 2015 election, for example, it would have allowed both movements to form a group with 29 Knesset members and be a significant force when dealing with the Likud and its 30 seats. Now, however, such a merger would be a lifesaver, not only for the two parties but for the entire center-left camp. Without Meretz or Labor, there will be no way to form a coalition of parties that could block the Likud after the April 9 election. And a merger makes sense in other ways. After all, both parties openly support a two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. They are both secular, and they both want to repeal the extreme nationalist legislation that Netanyahu and his cohorts adopted so cynically. Invigorating Rabin (from the same root as Meretz), the Meretz party election slogan in 1992, sums up the whole story. Meretz is less diplomatic and clearer in its messaging, while the Labor Party, no matter how weak, considers itself to be a potential ruling party, meaning that it shows greater willingness for ideological compromise. It is in the Labor Partys DNA to head a coalition, or at least to be part of one, while Meretz is typically an opposition party. Nevertheless, their worldviews are very similar. Many members of the Knesset for the Labor Party would have no problem seeing themselves as Knesset members for Meretz. There are those who describe the Labor Party as a materialistic party, which focuses on issues pertaining to the here and now, while Meretz is seen as a post-materialistic party, which focuses on longer-term issues (such as global warming, the environment, etc.) and human rights, not only in Israel but around the world. Even if this distinction is artificial and too sharp, it does indicate the overall nature of the differences between the two parties. These differences could cause tension, if and when some joint framework is created. On the other hand, it could also contribute to greater cooperation and a division of labor between those party members who deal with the challenges of the present and those who confront the challenges of tomorrow. This would not be some cynical or technical merger. Rather, it would be a family reunion. The upcoming Warsaw ministerial summit on peace and security in the Middle East can be regarded as a turning point in US President Donald Trump's policy toward Tehran. Although Poland has tried to assuage Iran's concerns, and while acting US Ambassador to the UN Jonathan Cohen has denied that the Islamic Republic will be the focal point of the Feb 13-14 meeting, the rhetoric of US officials and especially Secretary of State Mike Pompeo suggests there is an ongoing effort to represent Iran as a threat to international security that should be immediately contained through a global and multilateral arrangement. This new trend in US policy toward Iran is in line with prior unsuccessful attempts to form international coalitions against Iran. For instance, in February 2018 three months prior to the US withdrawal from the nuclear deal Trump hosted an unconventional meeting with the delegations of all UN Security Council members to highlight Irans destabilizing activities in the region. That meeting did not appear to be as effective as expected, given the continued broad international support for the nuclear deal. In another surprising move, Trump in September personally chaired a UN Security Council meeting on nuclear nonproliferation. As such, the upcoming Warsaw ministerial summit can be considered as neither the last nor least instance of a broader trend: namely, the continuation of the US effort to build an international consensus against Iran, albeit with some different characters and features. The main motivations for the latest iteration of the Trump administrations specific approach to multilateralism could be analyzed as follows: As far as foreign and security policy is concerned, numerous gaps and conflicts remain among EU members, particularly when it comes to the manner in which Western and Eastern Europe approach the issue of Iran. Poland, ruled by a nationalist government, was the first European nation to break from the EUs rejection of the reimposition of US sanctions in the aftermath of Trumps withdrawal from the nuclear deal, arguing that Europe should not seek to blunt American penalties against Iran. It is important to bear in mind that Poland largely determines its foreign policy on the basis of its perception of Russia as an existential threat. The United States has seized on this to deepen existing gaps within Europe with reference to Iran. For instance, Poland was the first destination of Trumps European tour after taking office. Here, it ought to be additionally noted that the Warsaw summit has been scheduled to take place only days before the Munich Security Conference, a key annual event on the EU policy circles calendar. Against the backdrop of Britain, France and Germanys launch of an EU-endorsed mechanism to uphold trade with Iran, the timing of the Warsaw summit suggests that the United States is stepping up its efforts to deepen the existing gaps between EU countries on the subject of how to convince Iran to remain within the nuclear deal. In contrast to the EUs efforts, Trump's version of multilateralism seeks conformity and consolidation among influential actors in the Middle East against Iran. After the sudden announcement of a US withdrawal from Syria, many concerns have surfaced among Washingtons regional allies. In addition to dispatching national security adviser John Bolton and Pompeo to the region to relieve such anxiety, the United States is continuing to try to establish a regional military alliance to confront Iran, with two clear benefits for US policy in the region: burden-sharing in security costs and also closer diplomatic relations between Israel and Arab states in order to convince them to work on a deal to resolve the long-running conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. Regardless of its drivers and features, the Warsaw summit could have many important implications for Iran. The impacts of these implications depend on two important variables: the extent to which EU member states comply with the US agenda against Iran and the extent to which the United States can mobilize summit participants to actually act against Iran. In accordance with these two variables, there could be three possible scenarios. First could be Europes failure to operationalize the recently registered Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges (INSTEX). In the worst case scenario for Iran, the United States would succeed in convincing European powers that any flexibility toward Iran would simply enable the Islamic Republic to mount its destabilizing activities in the region. However, the likelihood of this scenario is low because of serious gaps between the EU and the United States regarding how to curb and contain Iran. In the second and for Iran, best scenario, there would be a significantly growing divide between the United States and the EU in the aftermath of the summit. Already, the legitimacy of the Warsaw meeting has come under question in some quarters given the expected low level of European and particularly of Western European participation. However, the possibility of a major rift emerging is rather low given the roles and impact of US allies in Europe, and also the extensive security and economic relations between the EU and the United States. The third, and most probable, scenario would be the creation of a lifeline for the Iranian economy with the launch of INSTEX while Europe in parallel accepts the US policy of pressuring Iran to bring it to the negotiation table. The latter would entail the United States and the EU cooperating on a relatively consistent and coordinated policy toward Iran. This would involve Europe incentivizing Tehran to remain in the nuclear deal via use of INSTEX for humanitarian needs while putting maximum pressure on Iran to negotiate on some other critical issues such as its regional policies and missile program. Given that this scenario is the most likely, the Warsaw summit holds the possibility of being a starting point for the creation of a fragile European-American consensus against Iran down the line, potentially completely depriving Iran of its minimum benefits from the nuclear deal. In this vein, it ought to be noted that there has recently been a heated debate among experts in Iran about how a response to the Trump administrations new effort to forge unity with Europe against Tehran should look. These debates include assessments of the legal and security consequences of Irans withdrawal from the nuclear deal; the possibility and plausibility of negotiations to amend the accord; and cost-benefit evaluations of other alternative scenarios. The Warsaw summit cannot and should not be either overestimated or underestimated. Regardless of its immediate and practical consequences, the summit will likely be a litmus test for Trumps approach to multilateralism in the ongoing process involving international reactions to Irans missile program and its regional policies. While the undertaking may be a rocky path with many serious obstacles, it is part of a lengthy process of consensus-building against Iran. Therefore, it may be time for Iran to seriously consider its policy options in response to an emerging, fragile coalition against it at least on the regional level, for now. If the terrorists in Manbij are not removed in the next few weeks, our waiting will end, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned last week. He added, We will go our own way and nothing will stop us from implementing our plans, including a sanctions list, Jasper Mortimer reports. Turkey reached an agreement with the United States for the withdrawal of the Kurdish Peoples Protection Units (YPG) from Manbij last year, writes Mortimer. But despite [US President Donald] Trumps announcement in December that US forces would pull out of Syria, the town continues to be controlled by US troops and the allied Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) of which the YPG is the largest component. Similarly, Turkey says the Americans have not done enough toward setting up a safe zone along Syrias northeast border with Turkey, a zone free of the YPG. If the US does not contribute to a safe zone under the control of Turkey, we will take the matter into our own hands, Erdogan said. We dont accept any other formula than a safe zone where Turkey has control and other countries provide logistical support. The Pentagon is planning to withdraw all US troops from Syria by the end of April, according to current and former officials, and reported in The Wall Street Journal. Turkey finds itself in an increasingly difficult situation on two fronts in Syria, explains Semih Idiz. Its key priorities have boiled down to trying to keep Russian and Syrian regime forces out of Idlib on the one hand and securing the departure of US forces from Manbij and territories east of the Euphrates River on the other. The two topics will continue to drain Turkeys diplomatic energies in the coming weeks and months and require subtle negotiations with the United States and Russia if Ankara is to make any headway in its plans for northern Syria. Moscow continues to complain that the memorandum agreed upon between Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin in September 2018 for Idlib is not working, writes Idiz. According to the memorandum, Turkey which has established a military presence in the province was to neutralize the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group that Moscow and Damascus have vowed to eliminate. In return, Moscow and Damascus agreed not to stage any attacks on the province. While not accusing Turkey directly, Russia has been saying for weeks that the Idlib accord is not being fully implemented. Moscow also says that HTS has taken control of 70% of Idlib province, prompting a resumption of Russian and Syrian strikes there. Aware of the increasing difficulties it faces in Idlib, Ankara has started to accuse the West of supporting HTS in order to undermine the Turkish-Russian memorandum, adds Idiz. Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu repeated this accusation first brought up by Erdogan in December 2018 during a meeting with Hurriyet editors last week. I know for a fact that some Western countries are encouraging HTS and even giving it money to commit these violations in order to spoil the Idlib memorandum, Cavusoglu said. Islamic Jihad steps up in Gaza Over the past few months, Israeli security forces have noted the growing influence of the Islamic Jihad on Hamas, reports Shlomi Eldar. Seeking to avoid problems with Iran, the Hamas leadership feels it has little choice but to follow the Islamic Jihads dictates in their actions when dealing with Israel and Egypt. Inevitably, the relationship between Islamic Jihad and Hamas was complicated, explains Eldar. On one hand, the two groups fully cooperated operationally in times of emergency and during armed conflicts with Israel. On the other hand, Islamic Jihad competed with Hamas over Palestinian public opinion, particularly when it came to the question of who was more loyal to the idea of a genuine armed jihad against Israel. Islamic Jihad became a contractor for Hamas on more than one occasion, adds Eldar. In some cases, it fired rockets at Israel just to ensure there would be no Hamas fingerprints on the operation. At other times, Islamic Jihad tried to challenge Hamas in an effort to prove to the people of Gaza and their custodians in Tehran that their magnanimous funding was being put to good use. So far, it looks like Islamic Jihad is managing to bend Hamas to its will, concludes Eldar. In the past, any shooting which would have posed a problem to Hamas and led to the collapse of its understanding with Israel and Egypt would have resulted in the arrest of the people who fired the shots or even of the people who sent them. This was true even when Ramadan Shalah stood at the head of Islamic Jihad. Instead, head of the Hamas political bureau Ismail Haniyeh arrived in Cairo on Feb. 4, together with [Islaic Jihad Secretary General Ziyadg al-]Nakhalah, for discussions with Egyptian intelligence officials on ways to maintain calm with Israel. Report from Tunis The subject of Tunisians who joined IS [Islamic State] remains highly sensitive in this North African nation that has, in previous years, been rocked by a series of deadly jihadi attacks, reports Amberin Zaman. Few ordinary Tunisians are willing to talk about the jihadis for fear of drawing the notoriously heavy-handed security services attention. IS attacks led to an official state of emergency in Tunisia beginning in 2015. The number of attacks has sharply diminished, Zaman writes, thanks in large measure to help from the EU, Algeria and the United States, all of which have a vested interest in containing the threat. The border with Libya, through which jihadis and weapons once flowed, is tightly monitored by US-supplied surveillance drones and is being beefed up with sand barriers and water trenches. Casting poverty and joblessness as the main sources of radicalism can also be reductive, concludes Zaman. Asked why he believed his brother, Jamel Ben Moussa, had joined IS, Saif said, It was out of weakness of character. He was drinking every day, hanging out with girls and even taking drugs. He wasnt looking for a job and just taking money from our mother. The family was comfortably well off, Saif explained. But before his disappearance in August 2014, Moussa had grown a beard and began spending long hours at a local mosque. He began lecturing us. IS brainwashes people. They are the devil, he said. Jeffrey Bates is licensed to practice law in the State of Texas, but is not board certified in any area of specialty by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. This column is meant for general information and educational purposes only, and neither this column nor the transmittal of a legal question via email constitutes the creation of an attorney/client relationship between the reader and Jeffrey Bates and/or Southern Newspapers Inc. For specific advice regarding legal matters affecting you, consult an attorney. To submit a question, send it via email to JeffreyPBates@aol.com , or via regular mail to Ask the Lawyer, 101 S. First St., Lufkin 75901, or call 639-2900. Would you like to receive breaking news notifications from The Post and Courier? Sign up to receive news and updates from this site directly to your desktop. Breaking News Columbia Breaking News Greenville Breaking News Myrtle Beach Breaking News Aiken Breaking News Click on the bell icon to manage your notifications at any time. Success! Please click the 'Allow' button in the 'Show Notifcations' alert in your browser if one is available. Thank you for signing up! Please enable notifications in your browser and reload the page. Without a veterinary school in South Dakota, legislators are looking at ways to make it easier on the student loans for students wanting to pursue a veterinary degree and help fill the shortage of rural vets. On Jan. 29, the Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee discussed the proposed 2+2 veterinary school program between South Dakota State University and the University of Minnesota. The deal would replace the agreement with Iowa State University, which has been in place for around 25 years. South Dakota funds the difference between in-state and out-of-state tuition for South Dakota residents going to Iowa States vet school. It was initially supposed to cost roughly a half million dollars to put six students through four years of vet school, but tuition increases have brought the number closer to $650,000 per year. That program has been very successful, SDSU President Barry Dunn said. Im sure many vets you know are graduates of that program. Dunn and vice president of finance and administration Rob Kohrman spoke on behalf of the bill, along with state veterinarian Dustin Oedekoven, who is a graduate of the ISU program. Oedekoven supported the new bill as a way to refocus on in-state schooling. Under the current proposition, which was presented to SDSU in 2015 by the University of Minnesota, students would spend two years in Minnesota and two years at SDSU. Instead of six students per year, the program would be open to 20. The bill would eliminate the previous partnership with ISU and shift those funds to SDSU. SPRINGFIELD, Ill. No news isnt necessarily good news. Marketing experts at the Illinois Pork Expo in Springfield Jan. 29 said it is good that USDA information has started to flow again, but acknowledged it will be a slow process getting export figures and other data caught up. At the same time, uncertainty continues for U.S.-China trade talks, with a March deadline looming when tariffs resume. Any market doesnt like uncertainty, said Chip Nellinger, co-founder of Blue Reef Agri-Marketing based in Morton, Illinois. As the reports start flowing after the partial U.S. government shutdown, there is a huge amount to digest, said the commodity market analyst. When marketing experts took the stage at the expo the day before the anticipated U.S.-China talks resumed, there was still uncertainty if the talks would affect markets in a positive or negative light in both the short-term and long run. There may be a nice rally on the grain market with positive U.S. China trade talks, but it may be short-lived Nellinger said. Brian Basting, commodity research analyst for Advanced Trading in Bloomington, Illinois, said that even if the U.S. and China start to reach agreements, it is a long process. Alan Brugler, president of Brugler Marketing based in Omaha, Nebraska, cautioned not to expect any kind of a deal this week. Its not a given that there will be a trade deal, he said, because intellectual property and theft issues are not resolved. BEIRUT (AP) - The Latest on the Syria conflict (all times local): 6 p.m. U.S.-backed and Kurdish-led Syrian forces say they have begun the final push to defeat the Islamic State group in the last pocket it holds in eastern Syria. Syrian Democratic Forces spokesman Mustafa Bali tweeted that the offensive began Saturday after more than 20,000 civilians were evacuated from the IS-held area in the eastern province of Deir el-Zour. Bali says the aim of the current push is to end the military presence of "Daesh terrorists." He was using an Arabic acronym to refer to the extremists. U.S. President Donald Trump predicted Wednesday that IS will have lost all the territory it once controlled in Iraq and Syria by next week. The Kurdish-led SDF launched its offensive to end the IS presence in Syria in September, a battle that left hundreds of fighters dead on both sides. ___ 5:20 p.m. Syrian opposition activists say Islamic State militants have attacked U.S.-backed fighters near an oil field in the country's east, triggering airstrikes by the U.S.-led coalition. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says 12 IS gunmen attacked the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces and clashed with them for several hours until most of the attackers were killed early Saturday. Other activist collectives, including the Step news agency, reported the attack, saying some of the attackers used motorcycles rigged with explosives. The fighting was concentrated near al-Omar field, Syria's largest. The SDF, backed by U.S. air power, has driven IS from large swaths of territory it once controlled in northern and eastern Syria, confining the extremists to a small pocket of land near the border with Iraq. (Copyright 2019 The Associated Press) REDDING, Calif. - This week five hospitals in California received penalities and fines from the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) after their investigations revealed noncompliance with licensing requirements caused, or was likely to cause. serious injury or death to patients in 2017. One of the five hospitals is Mercy Medical Center in Redding. They were cited for leaving a surgical sponge inside of a patient after a surgery, which led to the death of the patient. Courtest Photo Yelp Courtest Photo Yelp CDPH officials said the hospital was fined $47,500 after they "failed to ensure the health and safety of a patient when it did not follow established policies and procedures regarding the treatment and care of a patient." This penalty and fine is the hospital's second immediate jeopardy administrative penalty from CDPH. A spokesperson from Mercy Medical Center said the following on Saturday morning: "Our deepest sympathies goes out to this patient's family. Patient care and safety are always our highest priorities, and we take this matter very seriously. This incident fell short of the high standards to which we hold ourselves. We have conducted a thorough investigation and are working lcosely with the medical staff, patient care staff, and hospital leadership, as well as with the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) to ensure that an incident like this does not happen again. Mercy Medical Center Redding has submitted a corrective action plan that has been approved by CDPH. Consistent with patient privacy laws and hospital policy, we respect our patient' privacy by not discussing the specifics of their care." PARADISE, Calif. - Allen Meyers invited the community to a "realignment" meeting in Paradise on Saturday, to get a conversation going about rebuilding on the Ridge after the Camp Fire. The group worked on the vision of what they would like to see happen on the Ridge, on their homesites and in their town. The event was held at the Terry Ashe Recreation Center on the Skyway. Meyers is a local filmmaker with a website called "Rebuilding Paradise." Meyers says that many people have been frustrated and are not sure what to do or where to go since the the Butte County Board of Supervisors voted 4-1 to repeal a housing ordinance in Butte County that allowed residents to live in RV's on properties in the Camp Fire burn scar area. The Town of Paradise had an emergency meeting last week as well, and rescinded their new housing ordinance. All this was done to keep FEMA money for the cleanup process. That funding was in jeopardy, said a FEMA spokesperson, if people were allowed stay on their properties during Phase 2 cleanup. Meyers organized the meeting to help address and figure out solutions to various issues. "The things that we're talking about are temporary village buildouts for people that don't have a place to go, working with organizations that want to donate services for that, temporary shelter, community members that have land in Butte County, fundraising." "We have a website," he said, at RebuildingParadise.com, where people can donate to help fund the planning efforts. Meyers hopes to do it again. He believes the community can help identify some solutions together by coming together and sharing ideas and resources. Other topics discussed were ecological restoration and permaculture. They hope to continue holding these meetings on a regular basis. Anyone is welcome to attend their planning events. Here is the link to a story about the Town Council of Paradise and their vote to rescind the Camp Fire housing ordinance. Here is the link to the story about the vote by the Butte County Board of Supervisors to rescind the Camp Fire housing ordinance. Information about the new FEMA REGISTRATION DEADLINE for the Camp Fire can be found at this link. Wet and windy weather will continue on Sunday morning, drying up somewhat in the afternoon but getting very cold on Sunday! Could we see snow in the Valley again early Sunday? This is most likley in the area in and around Redding at the north end of the valley. A very strong and cold low pressure area has moved into northern California . The winds have kicked up ahead of this syetem and there are wind warning across the valley through this evening. The storm will surge in from the north on Saturday afternoon and night, spreading rain all over the Valley and more snow in the mountains. We'll see around 1/3" of rain in the Valley. Winds will gust 20 to 40 mph in the Valley by the afternoon and evening, and diminish after midnight. Snow levels will remain near 2500' through the day, but they'll plunge after dark. Those snow levels will end up around 500' by Sunday morning, and snow will move into the foothills (like the Paradise Ridge, Forest Ranch and Cohasset), and could try to sneak into the Valley again. Remember when we had the Valley snow earlier this week, it was only Redding, Anderson, Thermalito and Chico that saw snow in the Valley. So, if it happens again Sunday morning, it will be rather isolated. Isolated showers will continue through the day Sunday, but only around sunrise will it be cold enough for the possibility of Valley snow. Scattered showers continue on Monday. They'll pick up on Tuesday, ahead of a Pineapple Express storm! That Atmospheric River (or Pineapple Express) will bring warmer and much wetter weather our way. Look for the rain to turn heavy at times Tuesday night and Wednesday, with snow levels rising back up but it will still be cold enough for plenty of mountain snow above 4000 feet. We'll dry out a little and turn partly cloudy on Thursday but there's more rain coming near the end of the week! Twitter Others 'So @gucci puts out a sweater that looks like blackface...... On Black History Month....,' one critic writes. Feb 8, 2019 AceShowbiz - Gucci enrages people with its latest sweater collection. Many complained that the wool sweater was offensive as it resembled blackface makeup and asked the Italian fashion house to pull them its both online and physical stores. The black turtleneck, that costs $900, allowed you to pull it up over the bottom half of the face. It featured a cut out and oversized red lips around the mouth. "Today Gucci released their Balaclava Knit Top. Sigh. Really @Gucci? Really?" Another critic tweeted, "At this point Gucci playing in our face but y'all still gone shop happy black history month." Today Gucci released their Balaclava Knit Top. Sigh. Really @Gucci? Really? pic.twitter.com/ETWKFhHVEB Mikeisha Dache (@MikeishaDache) February 6, 2019 At this point Gucci playing in our face but yall still gone shop happy black history month pic.twitter.com/vPTLvsA0TF Casanova (@weeezy___) February 7, 2019 Another comment read, "So @gucci puts out a sweater that looks like blackface...... On Black History Month.... And then issues an apology because they didn't know that blackface images are racist." One other added, "We have ONE month to celebrate the history of African Americans. Feb. 2019: Multiple accounts of politicians wearing blackface. And now news Gucci was selling a $890 blackface sweater. We are a nation desperately in need of diversity training. " So @gucci puts out a sweater that looks like blackface...... On Black History Month.... And then issues an apology because they didn't know that blackface images are racist. pic.twitter.com/G3HjPTIuuQ Tariq Nasheed (@tariqnasheed) February 7, 2019 We have ONE month to celebrate the history of African Americans. Feb. 2019: Multiple accounts of politicians wearing blackface. And now news Gucci was selling a $890 blackface sweater. We are a nation desperately in need of diversity training. #gucci#BlackHistoryMonthpic.twitter.com/tHXEAP2pjN Michelle Singletary (@SingletaryM) February 7, 2019 The house quickly responded to the backlash. Removing the turtleneck from its website, Gucci took to Twitter to issue a public apology, saying that it "deeply apologizes for the offense caused by the wool balaclava jumper." The luxury brand added, "We can confirm that the item has been immediately removed from our online store and all physical stores." Gucci deeply apologizes for the offense caused by the wool balaclava jumper. We consider diversity to be a fundamental value to be fully upheld, respected, and at the forefront of every decision we make. Full statement below. pic.twitter.com/P2iXL9uOhs gucci (@gucci) February 7, 2019 "We consider diversity to be a fundamental value to be fully upheld, respected, and at the forefront of every decision we make. We are fully committed to increasing diversity throughout our organization and turning this incident into a powerful learning moment for the Gucci team and beyond," the statement concluded. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... The future of art in Belen is near, and two famous Belenites internationally known feminist artist Judy Chicago and her husband, photographer Donald Woodman are attentively working to make the Through the Flower Art Space a reality. What was initially thought could be a museum, the TTF Art Space at 107 Becker Ave., is scheduled to open in July the weekend of Chicagos 80th birthday. Its the latest venture for the two famous artists, who have made the Hub City their home since purchasing the historic Belen Hotel in 1993. We believe you dont have to live in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago or even Santa Fe to have access to art, Chicago said. I think whats really important to moving forward is the outpouring of community support. Were going to need ongoing support from the community in order to sustain it and grow. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ A museum, Chicago and Woodman explained, has to be accredited by the National Association of Museums. For them, they have to meet certain requirements, and the TTF Art Space isnt big enough to be called a museum. The idea of a museum began when Belen Mayor Jerah Cordova and Councilor Ronnie Torres approached Chicago and Woodman about the idea around six months ago. They agreed, saying they wanted to give back and hoped to contribute to the economic development of the city and bring back some of that neighborly feel of the area. After what Chicago characterizes as the brouhaha surrounding the controversy when a financial partnership was proposed to the city, they pulled the offer. But recognizing the community support for the project, the TTF board decided to go it alone, and set up a GoFundMe account, which to date, has raised more than $16,600, including Cordovas yearlong salary of $10,000. A space for local artists The Through the Flower Art Spaces first year will be an exhibition on the Belen Hotel and about Chicago and Woodmans life, art and work. After that, Paula Castillo will become the curator of the space and will organize exhibitions and programs for New Mexico artists, Chicago said. We want to introduce the community to whats going to go on there, so we will have three introductory programs leading up to the grand opening. The first event will be a Through the Flower yard sale in March, where people can buy a variety of office furniture and equipment while supporters and staff discuss the plans for the Art Space. The second event, Friday Night Family Arts Gathering, will take place in April, when Castillo will lead a discussion and creative practice for teenagers and their parents. The third event, Displaying Thankfulness, will be held in May at Kelly Crosss studio on Becker Avenue. This is a Mothers Day workshop for children, who will paint a plate to commemorate the important women in their lives. Were providing all the materials and Kelly is providing the space, Chicago said. Its not about opening the Through the Flower Art Space; we dont have to have everything here. We can partner with other venues where it can fit best. Were wanting to share the programing at different places, Woodman said. The fundraising effort was also in full swing Saturday, when Cordova, Torres and Jaramillo Vineyards hosted A Night with Judy Chicago and Donald Woodman at Jaramillo Vineyard Tasting Room and Central Parlour. Barb Jaramillo, owner of Jaramillo Vineyards, is more than willing to support the TTF Art Space, saying its a gift to the community. Its a no-brainer, Jaramillo said. We just knew that if Belen wasnt smart enough to take the deal, someone else would. Thats why we decided to support this and move this forward. Judy and Donald are well known enough to bring tourism to Belen, she said. We need to publicize it on billboards and throughout the state. Cordova said hes thrilled to be able to help the Art Space, saying that about 25 to 30 people planned this weekends event. Torres, a longtime friend of Chicago and Woodman, said it was Cordovas idea for the fundraising event, which grew with community support. Jerah has spearheaded this and its grown and grown, and were very excited, Torres said. We want to show that we have someone of that caliber, someone who was recognized as Time Magazines 100 Most Influential People, here in our community. Torres said when he and Cordova first approached Chicago about the idea of a museum, she was humbled, wondering if anyone would come see it. After she thought about it for a while, she came back and agreed, Torres said. We are grateful to the community, Chicago said. Its just been wonderful to see all these people come together to help. Labor of love Before the Through the Flower Art Space can open, they have to replace the roof, renovate the interior to make way for exhibitions and programming, and construct a gift shop, where visitors can buy products, including T-shirts, posters, soaps, books and more. The couple, who have been married 33 years, bought the Belen Hotel on Becker Avenue 26 years ago. They moved in after three years of renovation and restoration to the building that sits on the National Register of Historic Places. Chicago and Woodman had been renting a house on Canyon Road in Santa Fe from a long-time friend and patron as Chicago was working on a project. While working and living there, the housing market boomed in The City Different and the friend wanted to sell. It was then that Woodman suggested they buy a home, which Chicago never had, having rented her entire life. We had done a lot of work at the house in Santa Fe, and I was tired of building studios and darkrooms, Woodman said. Judy didnt care, but I wanted a place of our own. It was a typical New Mexico story, Chicago said. First I came for three weeks, then I stayed for three months, then I was living here but all my stuff was in California. As they looked for the perfect location, it had to be somewhat close to the airport because they travel around the world for their work. When they found the Belen Hotel, they fell in love with the building and the community. It was it is a beautiful building, and it has what artists like space, Chicago said. It also had this central staircase, which was divided as a his-and-her space. It was kind of perfect. But I told Donald, Im not moving in until (the renovation) was done. That was the smartest thing I ever did because he told me it would take year. Woodman went to every bank in the state seeking a loan to restore the building, and were able to get funding through the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Before starting work on the building, Chicago and Woodman invited the community in to see the landmark. Thats when we found out how much the building meant to people here, Chicago said. That was really nice. The project was long and arduous, having to replace a leaky roof, fixing the rotted floorboards and plaster walls, just to start. Woodman, along with a few locals, worked day in and day out on the building. It was a team effort, Woodman said of the project. It was me, Trinne Mascarena and Charlie Barela. Everyone told me Trinne was the best mason around and it took me six months to convince him to come and work with me. Unfortunately, Mascarena died in 1995, a year before the hotel was completed. Woodman successfully nominated Mascarena for a state preservation award, posthumously, honoring his work on the Belen Hotel. Chicago and Woodman made an instant connection with their neighbors and the community, including the late Sugar and Eva Glidewell, owners of Sugar Bowl Lanes and Evas Grocery. Eva was great; she ruled life with an iron fist, Chicago remembers. When the bar got too noisy next door, Eva would go over and start yelling. I remember she was always trying to feed us. When the couple moved in, the area was a lot more active with thriving businesses and people coming and going. More times than not when Chicago and Woodman had company, they would walk down the street to get huevos rancheros from Femias restaurant. Weve watched the neighborhood die out through the years, Woodman said. It was really sad because it was very lively, Chicago said. We even had a Through the Flower bowling league. Giving back In the years that followed, Chicago and Woodman have continued to support the community and art in Belen and Valencia County. When UNM-Valencia moved to Tome, its library was empty. The couple, through the New Mexico Womans Cultural Corridor, a program of Through the Flower, has donated more than 2,100 books to the library by and about women and womens achievements, including about Chicagos Dinner Party. Contributions to the collection is ongoing. Through the Flower also provided Chicagos Birth Project, which is a variety of needle and textile techniques, to the Albuquerque Museum of Art and History. The New Mexico Womans Cultural Corridor ties together sites across New Mexico, and were going to resurrect that, Chicago says. Not only have Chicago and Woodman worked to preserve the Belen Hotel, theyve invested in the community, held a variety of free programing and exhibitions at the Through the Flower building in Belen beginning about 15 years ago. Along with teaching local artists how to show their work professionally, theyve also hired a number of local residents for a number of employment and internship opportunities. Weve tried to be good citizens of Belen, Chicago said. Chicagos efforts were also recognized in 2011 when then-Gov. Susanna Martinez awarded her with one of seven Governors Award for Excellence in the Arts for multidisciplinary arts. Chicagos Through the Flower, a non-profit arts organization established in 1978, is committed to countering the erasure of womens achievements though art by providing educational resources and artistic opportunities. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... A look at where the investigations related to President Donald Trump stand and what may lie ahead for him: WHATS THIS ALL ABOUT? Special counsel Robert Mueller is looking into whether the Trump campaign coordinated with Russia and whether the president obstructed the investigation. Trump also plays a central role in a separate case in New York, where prosecutors have implicated him in a crime. They say Trump directed his personal lawyer Michael Cohen to make illegal hush-money payments to two women as a way to quash potential sex scandals during the campaign. New York prosecutors also are looking into Trumps inaugural fund. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ ___ WHAT DO I NEED TO KNOW RIGHT NOW? Democrats launched a sweeping new probe of Trump on Monday. Rep. Jerrold Nadler, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, announced the probe into possible obstruction of justice, corruption and abuse of power. The panel is sending document requests to 81 people linked to the president and his associates. The broad investigation could be setting the stage for an impeachment effort, although Democratic leaders have pledged to investigate all avenues and review Muellers upcoming report before trying any drastic action. Over the last several years, President Trump has evaded accountability for his near-daily attacks on our basic legal, ethical, and constitutional rules and norms, Nadler said. Investigating these threats to the rule of law is an obligation of Congress and a core function of the House Judiciary Committee. Trump dismissed the Nadler probe and others as futile efforts in search of a crime. On Twitter, the president exclaimed that it was Ridiculous! Meanwhile, the Justice Department said career ethics officials had advised Attorney General William Barr that he should not recuse himself from overseeing the special counsel investigation and Barr said he has decided to follow that advice. Some Democrats had raised concerns that Barr might disrupt or upend Muellers investigation. Conservative author conspiracy theorist Jerome Corsi retracted an article he wrote last year for the website InfoWars alleging that Democratic National Committee staffer Seth Rich and his brother were involved in downloading and leaking DNC emails to the website WikiLeaks. Seth Rich was killed in July 2016 in what Washington police believe was a robbery attempt. On his website Corsi acknowledged that he did not have independent factual knowledge for the allegation and had instead relied on a Washington Times article that has since been retracted. ___ SO DID THE TRUMP CAMPAIGN COLLUDE WITH RUSSIA? There is no smoking gun when it comes to the question of Russia collusion. But the evidence so far shows that a broad range of Trump associates had Russia-related contacts during the 2016 presidential campaign and transition period, and several lied about the communications. There is evidence that some people in Trumps orbit were discussing a possible email dump from WikiLeaks before it occurred. American intelligence agencies and Mueller have said Russia was the source of hacked material released by the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks during the campaign that was damaging to Democrat Hillary Clintons presidential effort. ___ OTHER QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER: WHAT ABOUT OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE? That is another unresolved question that Mueller is pursuing. Investigators have examined key episodes such as Trumps firing of FBI Director James Comey and Trumps fury over Attorney General Jeff Sessions recusal. WHAT DOES TRUMP HAVE TO SAY ABOUT ALL THIS? Trump has repeatedly slammed the Mueller investigation as a witch hunt and insisted there was NO COLLUSION with Russia. He also says Cohen lied to get a lighter sentence in New York. WHEN WILL IT ALL WRAP UP? Its unclear. Then-acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker said in January that the probe is close to being completed, the first official sign that Muellers investigation may be wrapping up. But he gave no specific timetable. ___ For more in-depth information, follow AP coverage at https://apnews.com/TrumpInvestigations gettyimagesbank By Park Hyong-ki Some global investment banks have lowered the country's growth forecast for this year further amid falling exports, according to the Korea Center for International Finance, Sunday. Credit Suisse, Barclays and UBS have revised down their Korean projections by 0.1 percentage point as they expect sluggish exports and corporate investment will weigh on the economy. The Swiss bank forecasts Korea to grow 2.4 percent this year, the same as Citibank's 2.4 percent, the lowest among nine investment banks. UBS and Barclays forecast the economy to grow 2.5 percent. The average growth projection among the nine banks stood at 2.5 percent for 2019, down from 2.6 percent projected in November 2018. This is lower than the Bank of Korea and the Korea Development Institute's forecast of 2.6 percent. The downward revision comes as the volume of the country's outbound goods has contracted for two consecutive months in December 2018 and January 2019. Exports fell 1.2 percent in December from the same period a year ago, and dropped a further 5.8 percent in January. This was due to semiconductor exports falling more than 23 percent in January, negatively affecting the overall data, given that they accounted for 20 percent of total annual shipments. In 2018, exports of chips increased nearly 30 percent. Also, exports are highly likely to continue to slide in February given the Lunar New Year holiday, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. U.S. protectionism, and China's slowdown and industrial policies aimed at strengthening its homemade technologies such as semiconductors and robotics have weighed on Korea's tech shipments, according to analysts. "Exports will remain weak in February due to decreasing prices of memory chips and crude oil. Also, the Chinese slowdown will negatively affect Korea's exports," said Moon Jeong-hee, an analyst at KB Securities. The analyst forecast the prices of oil and chips will start to rebound in the latter half of the year. Also, China's recent monetary and fiscal measures to stabilize growth will likely become effective beginning in the second half, Moon added. The Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy are expected to announce measures to help revitalize exports of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SME) later this month. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... SANTA FE, N.M. Charter school supporters showed up to the Legislature in force Saturday morning to voice opposition to a provision in a House bill that would effectively eliminate the small school size adjustment charters currently receive. House Bill 5, which was approved by the House Education Committee, aims to revamp the state education system and bring it into compliance with a landmark court decision that found the state was not providing a sufficient education to some its high-risk students. House Bill 5 would, among other things, increase the minimum salaries for teachers and principals, create a new funding formula, and prohibit public schools from claiming funding for students over 21 years of age. The bill does, however, grandfather in older students currently attending public school. But it was the proposal to eliminate the small school size adjustment for charters and schools in large districts that garnered the most criticism. The adjustment provides more funding to small schools. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ Removing the small school size funding will close our doors to our school,said Monica Aguilar, director of Mark Armijo Academy in Albuquerque. The fear that eliminating the small school size adjustment would cripple schools and even force some to close was echoed by charter school educators from around the state who traveled to the Roundhouse to speak against the provision. Jade Rivera, founder of the Albuquerque Collegiate Charter School, said the funding allowed her school to launch and is critical to her school. Without that funding our schools scholars would not have access to the model that we are able to provide, Rivera said. Small School Size adjustment would have a tremendously detrimental effect on numerous schools, families, and children across our state, she added. But legislative staffers countered that the small school size adjustment was originally only intended to go to schools from small districts, and not to charter schools. Rachel Gudgel, director of the Legislative Education Study Committee, said that small school size funding was never intended for urban or charter schools and that fundings previously going to charter schools was the result of a misinterpretation by the past two governors administrations. Charles Sallee, deputy director of the Legislative Finance Committee, defended the bill. This is an attempt to try to treat both charters and districts equitably and limit school size adjustment units to small rural areas of the state which tend to be in districts with less than 2,000 students, Sallee said. Prior to taking public comment, the House Education Committee amended the bill to, among other things, bring it in line with a similar Senate bill. Changes made include increasing teacher pay over the next four fiscal years to bring the minimum teacher salaries for Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3 to $46,000, $56,000, and $66,000, respectively at that fourth fiscal year. The amended bill was passed by the committee on a 9-2 vote and now heads to the House Appropriation and Finance Committee for consideration. Lawmakers have been considering a host of education reforms this year. Last July, state District Judge Sarah Singleton ruled that New Mexico is violating the rights of at-risk students including Native Americans, English-language learners and those from low-income families by failing to provide them with a sufficient education. The judges landmark decision gave the state, the Public Education Department and the Legislature until April 15 to take steps to ensure that New Mexico schools have resources needed to provide a sufficient education. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... Copyright 2019 Albuquerque Journal CIENEGA GRANDE, Guatemala Celestino and Martina Alvarez walk through the small plot of land with their six grandchildren, past freshly picked corn and a few chickens scratching in the yard, and into the peach orchard that is their pride and joy. The trees in the orchard are filled with pink flowers, and a few branches have the first small peaches beginning to ripen in the warm Guatemala sun. The couple, who raised five children, all of whom attended college, also owns a small tortilla shop and a little store. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ They persevered. Theyre hard workers, and fighters, Betzabe Alvarez said of her parents. They looked for options. But those options are limited in a country where 60 percent of the population lives in poverty, and half suffer from chronic malnutrition and struggle to find employment. We grew up barefoot. At 13 I went to work in a factory, Martina Alvarez, 59, said. After she got married and had children, she earned money cleaning homes and the local school while her husband held down a job at a factory. But they still struggled to make ends meet. Then she found a nonprofit program offering microcredits, and that has made all the difference. Guatemala is among the countries where small loans help low-income individuals who dont have access to credit from banking institutions. Her loan was for $6,000 quetzalez, the equivalent of about $700. I bought chickens, she said. Over the next three years, Alvarez raised a flock, sold the meat and paid back the microloan in full. The money gave Alvarez and her family the edge they needed to get ahead. Along with helping pay the familys bills, she was also able to make sure her children got an education. I didnt get to study. Back in my day, women were not considered worthy of an education, Alvarez said. Three of her daughters have college degrees. Her son and youngest daughter are expected to graduate from college in a few years. Since I was a child, that was my dream for my daughters. And thanks to God, they accomplished it, she said. She also ensured that her daughter-in-law Clara Vielman got her degree as well. Vielman said her father helped support the family of nine by working construction jobs in the U.S. Sometimes people have a lot of children and dont have enough work, and the children need an education, need food. Thats why they leave, she said. But in Guatemala even college graduates struggle to find a job, and six years ago her husband, Alvarezs son, joined tens of thousands of Guatemalans who set off for the U.S., seeing that as the best chance to get ahead. Some people may see someone with a big home from one day to the next and say they want that, too. But its not like that. You have to work hard and study to achieve something one day, Alvarez said. When he was deported within a year, his parents eagerly welcomed him home. Im sorry, son, but I want you here, Celestino Alvarez said he told his son. It doesnt matter if we have just beans and tortillas, dont worry. Youll find work, and well live together as a family, son, with my grandchildren and daughter-in-law. That son, now 26, has a job working as a vendor for a pharmacy company and is on track to get his degree at the university within two years. His wife helps run the tortilla shop and store. The couple has started to build a house on the familys small piece of land next door to his parents. Thank God, hes here with our girls, that were together, Vielman said. They have two daughters, ages 6 and 9. Little by little, well get ahead with help of family, Vielman said. Its a team effort, said Martina Alvarez, the matriarch of the family. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... Copyright 2019 Albuquerque Journal Editors note: The Journals border reporter, Angela Kocherga, recently visited Guatemala to try to discover what is driving a large number of citizens of the Central American nation to the United States, with many now winding up in New Mexicos remote Bootheel. CIENEGA GRANDE, Guatemala Martina Alvarez sat at a wooden table in her small tortilla shop and lamented the exodus of families from Guatemala headed for the United States, including some of her own relatives. They left eight days ago, Alvarez said. They said they are going to turn themselves in to immigration authorities there, to ask for help. One of those asking for asylum is a young mother who departed with her 5-year-old boy. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ Deep poverty and violence including extortion by street gangs, impunity and government corruption are real factors influencing Guatemalans to migrate. But these days there is another driving force: smugglers actively promoting their services with the promise that parents who make it across the border will be allowed to stay in the U.S. New Mexicos Bootheel has become one of the newest routes used by coyotes taking people to the U.S. border. Since Oct. 27, large groups totaling more than 5,370 people have arrived in Antelope Wells. Most are parents with children, or minors traveling alone from Guatemala, according to Border Patrol. Nobody leaves because they think its going to be easy, said Luis Argueta, a Guatemalan filmmaker who has produced a trilogy of documentaries exploring migration issues. Spurred by smugglers, Guatemalans who may have contemplated leaving for the U.S. see this as their moment. It is a fact if you arrive at the border with an underage child your chances of being admitted temporarily are very high, Argueta said. With limited family detention space and a ban on keeping children locked up for more than 20 days, smuggling organizations peddling the American Dream dangle the ultimate reward for migrants who ask for asylum at the border. Smugglers will tell people, Youre going to get a permit, which is not true. Theyre going to get an order of appearance (for immigration court), but they confuse the immigrants. They tell them with this paper you can work for however long you want. Its not true, Argueta said. Central Americans with children are released, often with ankle tracking devices, and though most wont be granted asylum, a backlog in cases means they can stay in the U.S. until a judge decides their case. It can take years. But people know that in a year or two years they can pay the debt, the debt to the smugglers,Argueta said. Smugglers are looking for new customers, and not just in rural areas with a history of heavy migration. They are also drumming up business in places like Chimaltenango, in central Guatemala. Chimaltenango, one of 22 departments, which are similar to states, is home to 15 municipalities, including San Martin Jilotepeque. At the open-air market in front of a historic Catholic church under renovation, its an open secret that coyotes are looking for new customers. If you have a child, they say you get into the U.S. Is that true? asked Dina Muzuzt, 36, perched on a stool at her fruit and vegetable stand behind piles of tangerines, potatoes and apples. She is amazed that her cousins husband made it to the U.S. so quickly. He took his daughter. In 11 days he arrived. Now, hes in New Jersey, Muzuzt said. Theyve told me I should go because my husband is there, she said. He left 12 years ago. Im not going to go. You know why? He can come here, she said with a chuckle. Muzuzt said she is content. What do I want over there? A woman approached when she saw Muzuzt talking with a stranger and asked her, Are you leaving for the states? No, Muzuzt answered, explaining that the visitor is a reporter. Crime victims But at another produce stand in the market her cousin was reluctantly considering leaving with her 14-year-old son to join her husband and teenage daughter in the U.S. The impetus for her to leave was the crime she sees. Theyve robbed the truck we were riding in twice, Ana Matzutz said. Gunmen stopped the vehicle when they were on the way to buy produce and fired warning shots into the ceiling of the truck, she said. They made people strip down to their underwear and they put their hands in undergarments and bras, to make sure people were not hiding cash, she said. What do we have left when bad people rob us? she asked. This is what we live from. This is how we eat. She wouldnt confirm that they will hire a smuggler to take them to the U.S. border. Now that her husband is in the United States, she said, the family has been targeted for extortion because gangs believe they have money. Many motivations Its a very troubled country that isnt providing to the vast percentage of its population what any government should be providing, said Sue Patterson, a former U.S. consul general serving in Guatemala. After retiring from the foreign service in 1996, Patterson started WINGS, a nonprofit that helps rural and indigenous women with reproductive health and family planning in Guatemala, where half of the population copes with chronic malnutrition. Poverty, a growing population and high unemployment fuel migration, Patterson pointed out. Guatemalans working at minimum wage in the U.S. can make as much in an hour as they can working a whole day at home. There are true, valid reasons for heading off to the U.S. and a lot of optimism in that, and a lot of that is based on actual stories of the brother who got up there and started sending back money, she said. But she suspects something else is behind the sudden surge in migration from Guatemala. Whats made it explode so suddenly, in my opinion, has to be the traffickers. Theyre spreading false information. I cant find any other explanation, Patterson said. The largest number of families and unaccompanied children arriving at the border now are from Guatemala, more than from both Honduras and El Salvador. Since October, 50,593 family units parents with children from Guatemala have turned themselves in to Border Patrol, according to government figures. This is the newest market, if you will, of people who are very desperate people to get to the United States, said Theresa Brown, an immigration expert with the Bipartisan Policy Center, a nonprofit think tank based in Washington, D.C. She said sophisticated smuggling networks are aggressively promoting their services in Central America by touting their knowledge of the border, U.S. policies and the best time to cross. Think of it like a car dealer. They always want you to believe that right now is the time you must buy because theyve got to make their numbers, Brown said. In some cases, families use deeds to property as collateral while they pay their debt to smuggling organizations. Others get a loan from relatives in the U.S. to pay smuggling fees, which according to various people in Guatemala can range from $5,000 to $10,000, depending on the services provided and final destination. Border tricks The policies of the administration of President Donald Trump may also be boosting smugglers profits when Central American families are turned away at official ports of entry and told to wait in Mexico for their turn to file an asylum claim, according to Brown. The smugglers are going to the people waiting in those long lines and saying, Why are you waiting here? Theyre never going to let you in. I can get you into the U.S. today, Brown said. They are taking families by the busload to remote stretches of the border, including Antelope Wells, where migrants are told where to cross and turn themselves in to Border Patrol agents, according to the Border Patrol. Guatemalans know about the two migrant children who died while in Border Patrol custody in December and others who have lost their lives heading north, but Argueta, the filmmaker, said a deep either faith or fatalism tempers their fears. God willing, it wont happen to me. God willing, Ill make it. God willing, Ill succeed and achieve some of my goals. And theyve seen others who have done it, Argueta said. Alvarezs son was 20 years old when he set off for the U.S. six years ago to earn some money after the birth of his second child. He quickly ended up in an immigration detention center and was deported. When he arrived, I was so happy to have my son back, Alvarez said. I told him we have beans, corn and thats enough. Not long after her son came home, the smuggler showed up offering him another chance to cross the border. Her husband talked to the man. The coyote came here, and I told him, Dont bother us because my son will not be leaving, Celestino Alvarez said. But on a busy street corner in the city of Chimaltenango, someone elses son said he will be setting off for the U.S. The shoeshine boy said hes 13, but he looks much younger. Jose Macario tells a customer, My father says we should go. He said they will depart for the U.S. as soon as they have enough money to pay the smuggler. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... NM State Police recaptured a teenager Friday who had cut off his ankle bracelet while visiting family and never returned to the Albuquerque Boys Reintegration Center last Sunday. State Police spokesman Mark Soriano said the agency arrested Adrian Nieto, 17, at a southeast Albuquerque apartment on Friday afternoon. He said with the help of Albuquerque police, officers found Nieto around 4 p.m. at an apartment complex in the 1700 block of Dan SE, near Interstate 25 and Avenida Cesar Chavez. Nieto was taken into custody without incident and booked into the Bernalillo County Juvenile Detention Center. State Police had been looking for Nieto since Sunday when the teen cut off his ankle bracelet while visiting his grandmother in southwest Albuquerque. At the time Nieto was on family visitation from the Albuquerque Boys Reintegration Center, a group home for juveniles on supervised release and probation. Nieto was originally placed in the facility for charges of aggravated battery resulting in great bodily harm. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... Slow learners? Bad at math? In denial? All fair questions given the response by Albuquerque Public Schools leadership after voters unequivocally rejected three tax questions on a mail-in ballot last week. APS wanted to hit property owners with $900 million in taxes over the next six years for maintenance work and a wish list of capital projects. In a morning-after press conference, Superintendent Raquel Reedy expressed surprise the measures went down to defeat an electoral shellacking the magnitude of which is hard to overstate. We asked, Could our community support a relatively small uptick in our taxes for our childrens schools and for the facilities they live and learn in? she said. They said no. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ Small uptick? The three measures would have raised hundreds of millions in NEW property taxes, jacking up the APS tax rate by a whopping 19 percent. The district preferred to focus on the increase in context of a total tax bill an increase of about 4.7 percent, $147 a year on a home valued at $220,000. In what world is that a relatively small uptick? Not one where half the population is on Medicaid, one in four residents is on food stamps and the per capita income is just $25,257. And those who maintain that only property owners would have been affected miss the fact the increase would have undoubtedly been passed along in higher rents and prices of goods. Reedy said she didnt see the vote as a referendum on community sentiment about APS. Rather, she said she thought voters were motivated by their own private personal situation. Thats certainly true to some extent, but given the lopsided results, its also a rose-colored glasses way of looking at things. Typical turnout for an APS election is in the single digits. More than 28.7 percent of eligible voters cast ballots in this election, the districts first mail-in under the states streamlined election law. And the three requests failed miserably the first mill levy question was voted down by 64 percent of those casting ballots, the second mill levy by 69 percent and the bond by 57 percent. Some of that has to be driven by community awareness of APS steadily declining enrollment, significant dropout problem and poor test scores at the same time local high-performing charter schools have long waiting lists as parents try to move their kids out of APS. APS has fewer students now than in the 1970s, and its student population has dwindled from more than 90,000 in 2010 to under 82,000 this year. Critics also pointed out APS already spends more per student than many similar districts. And APS has been busier growing its spending on adults in administration than on kids in classrooms. From 2006 to 2017, according to state data, APS administrative spending increased by 17.5 percent, while classroom spending went up 7.4 percent. Peggy Muller-Aragon, who is unfortunately too often a minority of one on the APS Board of Education, was much more in touch with public sentiment in her assessment of the election results. She said APS wasnt in check with reality and voters want better accountability, with students taking priority over unions items not currently on the APS menu. All three measures were soundly rejected by what Reedy seems to think are stingy voters yet APS voters consistently open their wallets for the district. In fact, the last time all measures on an APS ballot were defeated was in 2002. The biggest proposed tax hike a mill levy increase costing $510 million in new taxes over six years lost by more than a two-to-one margin, with about 72,000 voters turning thumbs down compared with about 32,000 in support. How does that not send a message? Speaking of sending messages. Are our lawmakers and governor in Santa Fe listening? While concern over APS performance and accountability played a factor in these results, so, too, did New Mexicans frustration with rising taxes. Many Journal letter writers voiced concern about APS tax increase at the same time city and county taxes have gone up and lawmakers are proposing myriad increases this legislative session. Sadly, the first mill levy question, which was not an increase but a continuation of a current tax and would have brought in $190 million over six years, would have paid for much-needed maintenance. It should have been approved but failed miserably. And while some of that money could have been used for safety upgrades, APS cynically tried to blackmail voters by putting the relatively small amount earmarked for safety, $20 million, in one of the new tax, high-dollar, ballot questions. So instead of the simple mill levy extension, which would have generated additional new money every year as property values rise by 3 percent annually, the tone-deaf APS administration and its rubber-stamp board majority included the two shoot-for-the-moon packages. Now, APS is in the unenviable position of having to prioritize projects and maintenance based on getting no dollars from the election. What we need to do now is reassess all three questions and do, frankly, what any good teacher would do when a lesson plan misses the mark, Reedy said. We review, we adjust, adapt, revamp and rewrite, if necessary. That new lesson plan should include a focus on what caused these proposals to fail. It starts with a commitment to fiscal transparency and accountability, and the acknowledgement that any tax increase must be moderate and thoroughly explained. It continues with a promise to deliver student academic achievement. And it ends with the understanding that most people support our public schools but need to see both that commitment and that promise in action before making it even harder on themselves to pay their bills. 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. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... SAN DIEGO President Donald Trump is perfectly suited to be driving this chapter of the immigration debate. Thats because he very ably represents the millions of Americans who love most talking about a subject they dont understand in the least. Knowledge, experience and common sense are overrated. Anger, fear and racism work just as well. Trump proved that again during the State of the Union address, much of which he devoted to his hackneyed scare tactics about how immigrants are supposedly invading the United States through the U.S.-Mexico border. For the Carnival Barker of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., all those years spent hocking everything from apartments to steaks to vodka taught him two things: First, give people what they want. And second, if you cant do that, try to convince them that what they really want is what you have to give. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ What Trumps supporters want is blistering talk on border security, threats to crack down on illegal immigrants and reassurances that the much ballyhooed big beautiful wall on the U.S.-Mexico border will one day materialize. Dont hold your breath. Whatever structure finally emerges from all the horse-trading will be neither big nor beautiful. In a political bait and switch, Trumps supporters were promised an imposing structure made of concrete, something scary enough to deter the desperate people of Mexico and Central America from traveling north. Now those plans have been scaled back. The best we can hope for is a mixture of steel slats combined with a virtual wall of electronic sensors. Thats fine with Democrats, who supported physical barriers on the border long before they opposed them. The parties are actually much closer to each other than you might think from all the heated rhetoric. Democrats have signaled theyll support a wall as long as they can call it a fence. Meanwhile, Republicans will support a glorified fence if they can describe it as a wall. Call it what you like, just dont call it a silver bullet that solves our border-enforcement woes. The only way to stop illegal immigrants is for Americans to do something they dont want to do stop hiring illegal immigrants. Yet show me a tough-talking member of Congress who barks like a junkyard dog about how we have to end illegal immigration, and Ill show you a trained poodle when it comes to butting heads with employers. Meanwhile, Trumps remarks about immigrants, refugees and border security during the State of the Union speech were a hodgepodge of lies, half-truths and fearmongering a poisonous brew intended to hypnotize the ill-informed and the small-minded. Trump talked about putting the ruthless coyotes, cartels, drug dealers and human traffickers out of business. But every time we fortify the border, those bad hombres see a surge in profits as they raise their prices. He warned of large, organized caravans on the march to the United States from Central America. But weve heard from Chicken Little before, and the flood was more like a trickle with many people opting to stay in Mexico. Trump said that Mexican cities are getting trucks and buses to bring refugees to the U.S.-Mexico border. But officials in the Mexican city of Tijuana are recruiting Central Americans to take jobs that would otherwise go unfilled. Trump said he wants people to come in legally. But he championed the RAISE Act, which would have created a merit-based point system and all but eliminated legal immigration. He claimed that El Paso used to be one of the nations most dangerous cities and that now, with a powerful barrier in place, El Paso is one of our safest cities. But the sheriff in El Paso quickly refuted that, pointing out his city was never among the nations most dangerous. The other half of that claim was demolished by The El Paso Times. The newspaper took a look at violent crime in the city starting from two years before the barrier was built until two years after. In that time period, violent crime spiked up 17 percent. Finally, Trump said, we have a very dangerous southern border. But that will come as news to the estimated 100,000 people who every day cross just that tiny portion of that border south of San Diego, usually without incident. To think, this is the same president who likes to brag about his intelligence. Yet, whenever immigration is on the exam, he fails with flying colors. E-mail ruben@rubennavarrette.com. Navarrette Nation, is available through every podcast app. 2019, The Washington Post Writers Group. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... Last month I told my friends and family that I would be moving to Texas at the end of the week, and the question I got asked the most is Why? Well, to put it simply, Im leaving because I dont see very many real opportunities in New Mexico for someone like me. Im 24, career oriented, and I want to make a real change in the world and in my community but I also want to grow myself to be the best version of myself that I can possibly be. After many long nights, Ive come to realize that in order to do just that, my time in New Mexico must come to an end. I love New Mexico. My family roots can be traced in this land all the way to the 1500s and beyond. The food, the culture and the beauty of this state will be missed incredibly. But at some point, we all have to ask ourselves: is food, culture and beauty worth sacrificing the opportunity to succeed? Is it worth passing the opportunity to advance myself, professionally and personally? Young, productive people in this state are leaving in droves. I cant tell you how many of my friends have left New Mexico in search of better opportunities. Those who havent left are waiting for their chance to do so. Texas, Colorado, Washington, Louisiana, Arizona, Utah and Florida are all reaping the rewards of productive, often young, New Mexicans moving to their states to advance their careers, start a family and buy a home. New Mexico cannot expect to compete in this country by pushing more burdensome laws and creating more barriers to peoples success. When legislators whove been in elected office for longer than Ive been alive propose the same regressive and tired ideas like an increased gas tax or a hike in the income tax, I lose a little hope for the future of New Mexico. Add the fact that our new governor will likely sign off on most, if not all, of these taxes, regulations and barriers, and I cant really see our state making any real progress. Taxing our citizens will not lead us to prosperity. This isnt an issue of partisan politics. Its safe to say that Colorado is a blue state. Its where I grew up, and its a neighbor to New Mexico. Just like most of our neighboring states, it kicks our butt in nearly every category. The politicians in Colorado realize that individual success begins with people having a means to be successful, a JOB. Businesses flock to Colorado, and it seems like another 1,000 jobs are headed to Texas every week. New Mexico is falling seriously behind. Were the only state in our region that isnt rapidly gaining population, and were the only state in our region who hasnt yet recovered from the Great Recession. If it wasnt for the oil and gas industry continuously pulling our economy out of the gutter, wed be in a much, much worse place. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ I have sacrificed countless hours trying to help change this state for the better. I have given everything Ive got to help push New Mexico in a new direction, but it seems like our elected leaders choose to keep the status quo. Many people across this state have joined me in trying to make New Mexico a better place. They have given their weekends, holidays and have sacrificed time that could be spent with families in order to be right there with me, fighting for our states future. Im forever grateful to those of you who took that time to open your minds and realize that our state is in serious trouble and have taken action to (try to) save it. I love New Mexico. I hope to return to this beautiful state some day in the future. But in order to advance myself, I have to say goodbye to the Land of Enchantment, and hello to The Lone Star State. Michael A. Aguilar, a UNM graduate and former state chair of the College Republicans, moved from New Mexico last month. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... Theres a lot on the table as New Mexico moves into a new legislative session under the helm of our new governor, including several issues related to oil and gas. State leaders will be looking at ways to address climate change and the impacts on our state as well as reducing air pollution and waste of taxpayer resources through the venting and flaring of methane. And rightfully so. New Mexico is home to the nations highest concentration of methane pollution in our air, yet we are the worst in adopting policies and practices that help reduce methane emissions. Its no mystery to New Mexicans that the majority of state revenue is derived from the oil and gas industry, an industry that primarily benefits key public institutions such as our schools, hospitals and law enforcement agencies. But thats also no excuse to waste taxpayers dollars, further accelerate climate change, put our families health at risk or imperil wild places that are home to our history and wildlife. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ We can and should be doing more, and there are a number of efforts under way that help move us from being top of a list we should not be on from the legislative session to the development of federal public lands management plans in places like the Permian Basin. With oil and gas continuing to be a major revenue source for the state, we must find ways to balance our economic needs with the health and safety of our air. We all must do our part to be responsible stewards of our environment, public land, and the futures of our family. One of my commitments in the state Legislature has been to lift the voices of southern New Mexico in Santa Fe. Growing up in rural Lake Arthur, I know all too well the feeling of my community being an afterthought in Santa Fe a low priority and a community with little to no clout in the legislative process. I often have that same feeling today in the shadow of the oil and gas giants and lobbyists who have the financial resources and political connections to influence the very body I serve on. What I have learned over time is that when you combine facts with the demands of the public, we can hold our elected officials accountable to the voters. Sensible methane regulation and conservation of wild places and habitat will require many stakeholders at the table. We all have to do our part, and Im committed to doing mine and call on you to stand with me in pushing the facts forward. We must first start with addressing methane. The state must do its part to protect the well-being of its residents and ensure that were not being ripped off. According to recent estimates, New Mexico is wasting up to $240 million in natural gas every year through venting, flaring and leaks, and its costing residents like you and me $27 million in revenue for our schools, hospitals and infrastructure. Thats unacceptable. We need the state to crack down on this waste. New Mexico can do this by setting gas capture targets, requiring operators to measure and report flared gas, setting emission reduction requirements, minimizing emissions from pneumatic pumps and controllers, and increasing oversight and inspections of wells. With smart policies, we can begin to reduce emissions and maximize profit; who would balk at that? On the ground in the Permian Basin, the Bureau of Land Management is considering leasing even more wild land to industry, threatening sensitive desert and cave ecosystems. Instead, BLM should be looking to protect these areas and keep them off limits to development. BLM must work with all stakeholders in a public and transparent process that protects water sources, important wildlife habitat and our air quality. In the Pecos District, the Delaware, Pecos and Black rivers support rare and valuable riparian areas, places that we count on to hike, fish and hunt, among other outdoor recreation activities. Beneath the surface, a vast underground cave system, largely unexplored, is home to some of the worlds most incredible geologic wonders, as is evident in world-class Carlsbad Caverns National Park. Although I represent District 35 in Las Cruces, Southeast New Mexico remains my home, the place where I grew up and the place that made me who I am today. Whether through a management plan, the state Legislature or rule making by our state governing bodies, New Mexico can and must do more when it comes to smarter policies for oil and gas development. Join me in asking the state Legislature and BLM to put people, and not corporate profits, first. Angelica Rubio serves as vice-chair of the House Energy, Environment & Natural Resources Committee. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... State Departments of Justice have always been the first line of defense against widespread consumer scams because they are closer to the public and more accountable to them. This role is more important now than ever as Washington, D.C., sinks deeper into dysfunction and distraction. A recent lawsuit filed by Attorney General Hector Balderas is a prime example. After years of rising public outrage, the lawsuit alleges tech companies engaged in commercial exploitation of children by secretly tracking them and selling that information to the highest bidder. Balderas lawsuit is more than just an attempt to enforce the consumer protections we all deserve. It is also a perfect example of the kind of innovative legal work by state prosecutors that could end up making the internet significantly safer for our kids. The situation Balderas targeted was outrageous. App manufacturers allegedly marketed their product to kids, secretly installed software tracking them, harvested that data, used it to target them with more ads, and then lied about it. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ Balderas explains these apps can track where children live, play and go to school with incredible precision. These multi-million-dollar tech companies partnering with app developers are taking advantage of New Mexican children, and the unacceptable risk of data breach and access from third parties who seek to exploit and harm our children will not be tolerated in New Mexico. The lawsuit targets a game maker called Tiny Labs, and both Google and Twitter for marketing its games. Tiny Labs created dozens of apps with names like Fun Kid Racing and Baby Toilet Race: Cleanup Fun. The lawsuit charges that those apps violated the law and took advantage of kids by collecting their personal data, including their location, demographics, online behavior and other personal identifiers that can be used to build detailed profiles. These illicit profiles of children are quite valuable to advertisers. This exfiltrated data was then used to track, profile and target kids for advertising, even though no one gave any consent to these activities especially not the parents, whose consent is required for young children under federal law. The Childrens Online Privacy Protection Act, which Attorney General Balderas charges these practices violate, requires informed parental consent prior to companies collecting such information from children under age 13. The lawsuit also charges the companies with engaging in unfair business practices that deceived New Mexico consumers. It is not just one app manufacturer and not just one state our privacy is at the mercy of companies looking to turn a profit. The city of Los Angeles recently sued the Weather Channel app for tracking the locations of millions of users. A recent Motherboard reported that for $300 that kind of geolocation information could be used by bounty hunters to track down just about almost any member of the public. Hundreds of companies exist across the digital market specifically to monetize children, in the words of Balderas lawsuit. Academic research has long documented this problem, which has turned todays kids into the most-tracked and most-targeted generation in history. Parents want to improve their kids digital wellbeing, and that means pushing back against these privacy violations. A Common Sense Media poll of American families finds that almost half of teens feel addicted to their cellphones. Ninety-five percent of families with kids younger than age 8 had a smartphone in the home and 78 percent had a tablet. It should come as no surprise then that 84 percent of parents and 68 percent of teens are at least moderately concerned that sites are using their personal data to target them with ads. Attorney General Balderas has filed against a small number of companies to date, and the judge has yet to schedule a hearing, but his lawsuit could end up as a model to make the internet safer for everybody. We need aggressive elected officials like Balderas who will stand up for what is right and work to protect privacy rights. New Mexico kids are being tracked, targeted and taken advantage of online. At long last, this lawsuit gives them a real shot at protecting themselves and their online privacy. Let justice be done. Common Sense is a non-profit organization devoted to improving media and entertainment for families. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... Edward Zigler, a psychologist and childrens advocate who was a principal architect of the Head Start program in the 1960s, called for schools to be neighborhood social service centers, and advised every president from John F. Kennedy to Barack Obama, died Feb. 7 at his home in North Haven, Connecticut. He was 88. His death was announced by Yale University, where he was a longtime professor. The cause was not disclosed. Dr. Zigler grew up in poverty as the child of immigrants and drew on those experiences in developing ideas for improving the lot of children, parents and schools. He was a major scholar in the field of childhood psychology, publishing more than 800 papers and dozens of books, and advocated the concept of the whole child. He believed that social development was as crucial to a childs well-being as academic achievement and sought to foster that notion with programs, the best known being Head Start. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ He was among several social scientists and public policy experts, including Bettye Caldwell, Robert Cooke and Jule Sugarman, who designed the framework for Head Start, which was launched in 1965 as part of President Lyndon B. Johnsons War on Poverty. It began as a summer program for preschool children, and after two years, it was expanded to serve families year-round. In 1970, under President Richard M. Nixon, Zigler became the first full-time director of the Office of Child Development, which then administered the Head Start program. I dont think we have had the kind of advocacy for children that they deserve to get, he said at the time. I intend to be an outspoken advocate for children. We can do better by our children than we have been doing. Working with Rep. John Brademas, D-Ind., and Sen. Walter Mondale, D-Minn., Zigler helped draft the Child Development Act of 1971, which was passed by both houses of Congress. The bill, which would have provided child care for working mothers and poor families, was vetoed by Nixon after an outcry from conservative opponents. They didnt want women to work, Zigler said in 1989. They said we were Sovietizing Americas children, that children would be raised in centers rather than by their mothers. Zigler soon resigned from the government and returned to Yale, where he taught psychology and directed a center for the study of childhood development. Head Start also faced similar criticism, was condemned as a Communist plot to take children away from their families and was for years threatened with a loss of funding. Zigler often pointed out that the program was voluntary and was administered with varying degrees of success by local communities. In our nation today children and families all too often come last, and the social barriers to providing a better quality of life for our nations children have become almost insurmountable, he wrote in a 1976 New York Times essay. Too many Americans either will not or do not want to hear the well-documented facts concerning our nations massive shortcomings in regard to children. Zigler developed performance standards for measuring the effectiveness of Head Start, and independent studies have generally found that the program has had beneficial effects on children, making them more productive in school and less likely to become burdens on society. More than 35 million have gone through Head Start programs, which now serves more than 1 million children each year. Edward Frank Zigler was born March 1, 1930, in Kansas City, Missouri. His parents were Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe who earned a meager living selling produce and plucking and selling chickens. By the time he was 8, Zigler was selling fruit and vegetables from a horse-drawn wagon. His family received support from a settlement house, an institution once common in cities that helped immigrant families with social and medical needs, English-language skills and acculturation into American life. Years later, Zigler used the settlement house as a model for Head Start and other programs for children and families. It was predicated on what he remembered of how he was treated as a child of immigrants, Walter Gilliam, a Yale colleague, said Saturday in an interview. After military service during the Korean War, Zigler graduated in 1954 from what is now the University of Missouri at Kansas City. He received a doctorate in psychology from the University of Texas at Austin in 1958, then joined the Yale faculty a year later. In the mid-1970s, Zigler helped coordinate the resettlement of 3,000 Vietnamese children many of them the offspring of U.S. military personnel in the United States. Beginning in the 1980s, Zigler promoted what he called the school of the 21st century. Especially with more women entering the workforce and the rise of single-parent households, he called for schools to act as neighborhood social service centers providing day care, medical services and recreation, as well as academic training. I want a solution thats going to last for the next 100 years and provide quality day care for everyone, he told The Washington Post in 1987. We have to open schools earlier in the morning, keep them open later in the afternoon and during summer. Today, more than 1,400 schools in at least 20 states are following Ziglers blueprint by offering an array of social services. He said if there was ever anything that should unite us, it should be how we care for our children, said Gilliam, who now directs the Edward Zigler Center in Child Development and Social Policy at Yale. He felt that any society that is going to survive needs to invest in its children. Ziglers wife of 61 years, the former Bernice Gorelick, died in 2017. Survivors include a son, Perrin Scott Zigler of East Bridgewater, Massachusetts; a sister; and two granddaughters. Zigler, who served Republican and Democratic presidents, believed Americans should united by the cause of children. I remember when I was in Washington they kept trying to get me to say whether I was a Republican or a Democrat, he told the Progressive magazine in 2002. I just said, my politics are children. Thats all I know anything about. gettyimagesbank By Park Hyong-ki KB Financial Group faces losing its sector leadership to Shinhan Financial Group after the company posted weaker-than-expected profit in 2018. KB Financial's consolidated net profit was 3.07 trillion won ($2.7 billion) last year, down 242.5 billion won, or 7.3 percent, from the year before, according to the group. KB Financial Chairman Yoon Jong-kyoo The group has managed to achieve over 3 trillion won in profit for two consecutive years. But the increasing cost of financing severance payments has weighed on profit, along with weak nonbank businesses, the group and analysts said. Costs amounted to 286 billion won, compared with the market projection of 200 billion won. "Due to the one-off costs and losses from its stock portfolio, the group's profit came short of expectations," KB Financial said. "However, the group's fundamentals remain strong. The group will continue to achieve stable profits through risk management in the face of an economic slowdown." Analysts say KB Financial's KB Kookmin Bank's profit remained stable, but the weak profitability of its nonbanks may have put the brakes on the group's leadership. "KB Securities and KB Insurance had weaker-than-expected profits," said Baek Doo-san, an analyst at Korea Investment & Securities. If Shinhan Financial posts 3.2 trillion won in profit on Feb. 12, in line with the market consensus, the group will regain top spot in the sector. Shinhan lost to KB in 2017. Shinhan Financial Group Cho Yong-byoung .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... SANTA FE, N.M. Several years ago, coming back from a trip to Ojo Caliente with a friend, Dale Dunn was driving into Santa Fe on U.S. 84/285 when she saw what she believes were two Mexican gray wolves running down the highway. Mexican gray wolves, near extinction, have been reintroduced in southwestern New Mexico and southeastern Arizona, hundreds of miles from Santa Fe. In 2017, officials estimated that only 114 were alive in the wild. But Dunn says that after going home and doing some research, she knows that is exactly what she saw. They were running on the highway straight at the car, said Dunn. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ And then, of course, being in Santa Fe, I started telling people this story and they said you should look up if a wolf is your spirit animal and what that means. What Dunn found online was that if you have a wolf encounter, its about feeling betrayed and needing to find your pack. Lynn Goodwin, co-director with Dunn of the Just Say It Theater Company, says that at the time, they were also in a way searching for a pack, or a creative home. Dunn said shed been reflecting on their journey in theater after some frustrations in the past. It was just kind of a time of recentering (and) gathering, said Goodwin. The encounter with the canines on the highway inspired Dunn to learn more about wolf reintroduction efforts. Then, several months later, on a road trip through Montana, she came across an abandoned reform school just outside Helena. The daunting brick building had razor wire fence around it and an obstacle course out front, and it led her to doing some more research on tough love reform schools for teenagers that ended up abusing students more than helping them. This convergence of encounters inspired Dunn to writing her original play, The Big Heartless. The show, which shes been working on for three years and is being directed by Goodwin, will premiere in Santa Fe later this week. The drama was a semi-finalist in the Eugene ONeill Theater Centers National Playwrights Conference in Waterford, Conn., and a finalist in the Ashland New Plays Festival in Oregon and the Actors Theatre of Louisvilles Humana Festival of New American Plays. Goodwin described the play as a exploring the blending of humanity and nature. Dunn added that it also addresses humans mistakes, fear of the unknown and the desire to push aside things people view as out of control or wild. Its about embracing the wild in all of us, said Dunn. The Big Heartless follows Mac, a biologist living in southwestern Montana who specializes in wolf reintroduction in Yellowstone National Park. The park hosted the first federal wolf reintroduction project in the country back in the 1990s. Mac lives an isolated life, away from his family and most people, except for his sick, elderly neighbors and their orphaned teenage granddaughter, Jean, who occupy a nearby cabin. His sharp focus on the wolves, especially two that have run off and which hes desperately trying to find before ranchers or hunters get them, becomes distracted when his nephew and a friend escape from an abusive reform school and end up at his door. Macs nephew, Cliff, forces him to re-evaluate. While hes been so dedicated to helping animals stay protected, hes been ignoring this family member who has long needed his help. Without giving too much away, Goodwin explained that a disaster forces Mac to make a choice thats bigger than what he ever thought hed have to make. Throughout the story, parallels between the runaway teens and the runaway wolves are evident both can often be feared or misunderstood by society. Because they often arent doing exactly what we should be doing or acting the right way or something, Dunn said. As a teacher at the New Mexico School for the Arts, which is helping produce the play, the Santa Fe Indian School and THE former Santa Fe University of Art and Design Dunn said shes found that many young people just need an outlet and to be heard. Just to put them away isnt serving society, its breaking it, said Dunn. The play stars Matt Sanford, who plays Mac, Tulah Dillman-Stanford as Jean, John Helfrich as Cliff, Lucy Shattuck as Cliffs fellow escapee Monsoon, and Dan Friedman and Jennifer Graves as grandparents Ned and Tootie. The Big Heartless will run Feb. 14-March 3. After the Feb. 24 performance, a talk and Q&A is scheduled with local wolf reintroduction experts John Oakleaf, Dave Parsons and Nick Smith. The Big Heartless WHEN: Feb. 14-March 3. Shows are Thursdays-Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. WHERE: Warehouse 21, 1614 Paseo De Peralta HOW MUCH: $25/$20 for seniors and military/$15 for students. Purchase at www.brownpapertickets.com or by calling 505-986-0857 .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... Copyright 2019 Albuquerque Journal SANTA FE New Mexico lawmakers got a peek Saturday at the complexity of establishing a legal marijuana industry that would allow adults 21 and over to smoke or consume cannabis for recreation. They spent about three hours listening to testimony and poring over concerns about workplace safety, how to measure intoxication in impaired drivers and whether a recreational program would damage New Mexicos medical cannabis program. At the center of the debate is a 140-page bill that would legalize, tax and regulate the recreational use of marijuana for adults. The state now allows cannabis only for medical purposes. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ The proposal, House Bill 356, cleared its first committee Saturday on a 5-2 vote along party lines, with Democrats in support. Prohibition simply does not work, Democratic Rep. Antonio Moe Maestas of Albuquerque said, and the country is coming to the realization of that. But he and the other four co-sponsors all Democrats in the House said they are open to changes aimed at addressing concerns raised by supporters and opponents alike. Some speakers who addressed the House Health and Human Services Committee on Saturday said they support the concept of legalization, but that they had particular concerns about, say, keeping edible marijuana away from children or how to ensure medical patients have a steady, independent supply of the cannabis products they prefer. We are taking all those comments to heart, Rep. Javier Martinez, an Albuquerque Democrat and co-sponsor, told his colleagues. We want to make sure we do this right. Business groups, meanwhile, raised concerns about impairment at work. The proposal, for example, would prohibit adverse action against employees in the medical marijuana program, unless the worker is in a safety-sensitive position. We strongly believe that employers must have the right to establish a drug-free workplace and have the ability to enforce that, said Sherman McCorkle, a businessman who spoke on behalf of the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce. The measure is just now getting started as the Legislature approaches the midway point of its 60-day session. To have a chance to become law, it will have to move quickly through a network of committees and win approval from both legislative chambers by mid-March. The bills prospects remain unclear. Some moderate Democrats in the Senate have helped block similar proposals in the past. Martinez and Maestas said Saturday they have already taken steps aimed at addressing the criticism raised Saturday and in previous sessions. Licensed marijuana businesses, they said, would have to keep a percentage of their supply dedicated to the medical program. And cannabis packaging couldnt targeted at children, the sponsors said. Maestas, a former prosecutor and defense attorney, said there are police officers trained in recognizing whether drivers are under the influence. Employers, he said, could still prohibit marijuana possession and impairment at work. House Bill 356 touches on a host of policy questions. As it stands now, the proposal would include: Imposing taxes of up to 19 percent on recreational marijuana sales. Annual tax revenue would be in the neighborhood of $56 million, legislative analysts said. The money would go to health, law enforcement and research programs, in addition to city and county governments. Allowing cities and counties to opt out of allowing commercial sales of recreational cannabis. Expunging criminal records on marijuana arrests and convictions. The proposal now heads to the House Judiciary Committee, potentially its last stop before the House floor. Senate approval, of course, would also be required. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Democrat, has said she would support legalization under certain circumstances, such as adequate safeguards against use by children. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... Copyright 2019 Albuquerque Journal You can now access the internet from a park bench on the Plaza. Since the beginning of the year, Santa Fe city government has been providing free Wi-Fi service in the heart of the city. I think its the kind of thing cities ought to be making available, said Randy Randall, executive director of Tourism Santa Fe. Hopefully, it will be come a permanent addition to what we offer residents and visitors on the Plaza. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ Randall described whats currently in place as a pilot program. Its a pilot because, if it works out well on the Plaza, it can be pushed out to areas beyond the Plaza area, he said. If you go as far down as the Lensic (Performing Arts Center), you could lose connectivity. So far, two Wi-Fi antennas have been installed atop buildings on the Plaza, with two more planned, pending permission from property owners and modification of an agreement with PNM, which owns the light poles in the Plaza area. Users can now access Wi-Fi at certain locations in the downtown area mostly hotels, but also some coffee shops and the main library on Washington Avenue as well as hotels and businesses in other parts of the city. But they usually require users to be patrons who have to sign in with an access code. Now, anyone in the vicinity of the Plaza can just tap into the Wi-Fi network marked SF Plaza Free Wifi. An online search shows that many cities in America offer free Wi-Fi to some sections of their towns, often at public libraries. But few large cities provide access in outdoor areas like Santa Fes Plaza, a National Historic Landmark which dates from the 1600s. In an effort to curb abuse, users in Santa Fe are limited to connection speeds of 10 megabytes per second. Randall said each Wi-Fi antenna actually radios that send and receive signals can handle up to 250 users. So, about 500 people can now access the network at one time. When all four antennas are in place, as many as 1,000 people could access the internet, which could come in handy for events like the citys New Years celebration or Fiesta if that many people were streaming video of the event. While free and without restriction, Randall said the city may require users to provide an email address before logging in. The address users provide would not be sold or distributed to anyone else, but would be used strictly for survey purposes, Randall said. One of the first questions they may be asked is whether they are a visitor or a resident of the city. And once they sign in, they wont have to sign in again. It will be there the next time they want to use it, he said. Randall said the idea to bring free Wi-Fi to the downtown area came at the suggestion of Stephen Resnick, who co-chairs the Santa Fe Chamber of Commerces Economic Development Committee. Randall said the Wi-Fi around the Plaza would only moderately affect cellphone service downtown, which has been a problem in the past. In December 2017, then-Mayor Javier Gonzales declared an emergency due to the lapse of cellular networks and telecommunications capabilities that he said had become a public safety concern. Temporary cellphone towers were installed throughout the city in an effort to alleviate the problem. There is one issue that still needs to be worked out, Randall said. All the streetlight poles around the Plaza are dedicated to providing light, not to act as a power source for the equipment that makes Wi-Fi possible, he said. So city officials will meet with PNM representatives next week to try to work out an agreement in which at least one pole could be metered separately from the others to account for powering the Wi-Fi system. We cant use the power from that pole for anything else, Randall said, adding that the antennas require only enough power to light a 60 watt light bulb. But with the (state Public Regulation Commission) regulations, we cant use even that much if its not separately metered. Randall said funding for the project is through an existing contract the city has with Santa Fes Cyber Mesa Telecom. The tourism department is paying the $750 monthly cost for the broadband access. Providing Wi-Fi service on the Plaza is just one of many little things that make a tourists visit to the city more enjoyable, Randall said. We need to constantly be looking for ways that we can enhance a visitors experience in Santa Fe, and this will be one of them, he said, adding that it is one of many little things that add up and enhance Santa Fes reputation a popular vacation spot. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... Copyright 2019 Albuquerque Journal GLORIETA Theres finally a historical marker commemorating the key role that New Mexico Civil War volunteers played in the Unions victory at the crucial Battle of Glorieta Pass in 1862. The bronze plaque was posted several months ago on a vertical stone slab off N.M. 50, a few miles northwest of the visitors center at Pecos National Historical Park, which includes a large section of the battlefield. Beneath American and New Mexico flags with crossed staffs, the plaque reads: In memory and honor of a contingent of New Mexico Volunteers who fought alongside Union Regulars and Colorado Volunteers and spearheaded a Union flanking movement at the Battle of Glorieta Pass that ultimately caused the Confederate forces to retreat to Texas, thereby giving up on their effort to annex the entire West and parts of northern Mexico to the South. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ The new marker, resulting from efforts by The Friends of Pecos National Historical Park, with help from state funding obtained by state Rep. Jim Trujillo, D-Santa Fe, is part of a set of three. Before the park owned the site, a red granite memorial was placed there by the United Daughters of the Confederacy in 1939 to memorialize Texas volunteers who fought at Glorieta Pass for the Confederacy. Another slab honors the First Colorado Volunteers who saved the Union in Northern New Mexico, erected in 1993. But now theres talk of another Civil War memorial at Glorieta Pass. State Sen. Linda Lopez, D-Albuquerque, has introduced a measure at the Legislature that would create a task force to plan the development of an American Civil War memorial to be placed at the Glorieta pass battle site and make recommendations before next years legislative session. It turns out that Lopezs measure is aimed at another location, a few miles south of the national historical park at a pullout off Interstate 25s northbound lanes, according to a backer of the proposal. Years ago, Alfonso Sanchez, a lawyer and former local district attorney, built his own makeshift memorial to the 1862 battle there, a handmade tribute to the Gettysburg of the West that has fallen into disrepair in recent years. Ralph Arellanes, chair of the state Hispano Roundtable, is a supporter of the Lopezs Senate Joint Memorial 5, and helped write it. Its the right thing to do to honor our Civil War soldiers, he said. He said the old Alfonso Sanchez site has parking and electricity. Issues of cost and the safety of vehicles pulling on and off I-25 at whats now not an official exit or rest stop would be considered in the task force study, he said. And, Arellanes said, it would pay for itself over time as a historical and tourist attraction. Ninety-nine percent of the country has no knowledge that New Mexico played a significant role in the Civil War, Arellanes said. Most people in the state dont even know it. He said something more significant is needed to mark the battle and the service of the New Mexico Volunteers, mostly Hispanic men who were led by Lt. Col. Manuel Antonio Chaves. But Andres Romero, vice president of the friends of the Pecos historical park group, said theres no need for another memorial now that the plaque honoring the New Mexico soldiers is up on the battlefield in the park. The completion of the set of stone markers, with the one honoring New Mexico Volunteers in the middle, means the creation of a memorial has been accomplished, he said. Its simple and where it should be, Romero said, and not at the I-25 site, near where Confederate soldiers were buried. He called the legislative proposal duplication. And Romero said its difficult to get a waiver to rules against new memorials on National Park Service sites like the Pecos park. The nearly 17-acre I-25 site is not now in the park. It was acquired in 2014 by the American Battlefield Trust, a charitable group based in Washington, D.C., and dedicated to preserving battlefield land around the country, according to spokeswoman Nicole Ryan. She said last week that the trusts hope is to transfer the site to the Pecos park. Our big focus is on preserving the land, she said. Ryan said the trust has no specific plan for what to do with Sanchezs old homemade memorial off the interstate. What we want is to tear it down, said Romero, of the friends of the park group. Park superintendent Karl Cordova said the state Department of Transportation is not fond of travelers pulling on and off at the I-25 spot via a DOT right of way to check out the ramshackle displays. New Mexico plaque Getting the plaque honoring the New Mexico Volunteers installed hit some bumps last year. After The Friends of Pecos National Historical Park got the waiver from the National Park Service to allow the memorial, and Rep. Trujillo obtained $50,000 to pay for it and improvements at the memorial site, the park announced that it would be installed and there was to be an unveiling at the parks annual Civil War weekend in March. The plaque was in fact unveiled, but it was never installed, at least not in its original form, which specifically named Lt. Col. Chaves as leader of the New Mexico volunteer contingent at the 1862 battle. Superintendent Cordova said at the time that the park wouldnt put the plaque up because of its focus on a single individual, unlike the pre-existing Texas and Colorado memorials. But Romero and Rep. Trujillo said last year the real reason the plaque wasnt accepted was because Chaves also fought against Indian tribes at a time when Native women and children were taken into slavery. Last week, Romero blamed a specific Associated Press news story that detailed Chaves violent raids on Indians, as the Legislature was considering funding for a bust of Chaves. Romero said the article got the attention of regional National Park Service officials who took back previous approval of the text of the Civil War plaque that mentioned Chaves. The plaque thats now installed has the exact same wording as the original version, except for the omission of Chaves name as the leader of the New Mexico volunteer contingent. The plaque with the original text was given to the New Mexico National Guard Museum in Santa Fe. The controversy still irks Romero. You cant judge what happened 150 years ago from the point of 2019, he said last week. There was murder and slavery on both sides. The centerpiece of Pecos National Historical Park are ruins of the abandoned Pecos Pueblo and of a huge Spanish Colonial church that was built at the Native American village. Pecos park superintendent Cordova spoke about the matter in a recent article in the magazine of the National Parks Conservation Association. He said again that not singling out an individual was consistent with the two pre-existing Civil War memorials, but that a goal was also to make sure we respect the historical perspective of our native communities, as well. Its our job to protect their ancestral land, and we take that very seriously, he was quoted as saying. The last thing we want to is offend their descendants. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... LOS ALAMOS A retired Los Alamos National Laboratory biologist thinks he has found the solution to long-term allergy relief. Its a lollipop. Specifically, a lollipop that Cliff Han says tackles what he believes is the root cause of environmental allergies, rather than the symptoms. By stabilizing levels of good oral bacteria, he says, his product helps switch off an overworking immune system that makes people sneeze or cough. His process isnt nearly as passive as taking an allergy pill, getting a shot or letting a lozenge dissolve. It requires a user to perform a thorough mouth cleaning, including of the tongue, before using the lollipops, and to keep up a specified non-intensive oral hygiene regimen over time. His original instructions for the AllerPops included 13 steps. Hans says users of his pops report a black and white difference depending on how well they follow the instructions, which he now has simplified to merely four steps. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ Han, who launched AllerPops in February 2018 after studying his own struggle with allergies, briefly had a storefront at Santa Fe Place Mall, but he has shifted to selling online through his website and Amazon and at the Los Alamos Cooperative Market. Most of his current customers are from New Mexico. He said he has sold around 1,000 boxes so far. A $39.99 box comes with 12 pops, which he says has been enough to provide relief for an estimated 70-80 percent of his customers. The pops are made in China. Han credited a sales increase in January, during which he sold about 100 boxes, to a recent push with local television and online advertisements. Due to the costs, however, he said hes temporarily suspending those efforts. Compared to 50 million people having (allergies), we have lots of work to do, he said. Han also has work to do to persuade allergists that his candy actually works. If people want to try it, I dont see on the surface anything thats detrimental, but I dont believe it has the effects that hes claiming, said Richard Wachs, a board-certified allergist immunologist and medical director of BreatheAmerica New Mexico, an Albuquerque-based allergy and asthma clinic. A spokesperson from the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America said in an email that the organization could not comment on the effectiveness of AllerPops because theyre an unproven treatment method. Han, who was trained as a doctor in his native China, moved to the U.S. in 1996. He worked at Los Alamos National Laboratory for more than 20 years, mostly in its bioscience division. He retired last year to focus on his AllerPops business full time. Han sells the pops under his umbrella corporation, Knoze Jr. The theory behind AllerPops is based on research Han conducted not on a trial group, but on himself. He started collecting his own saliva samples and, later, others from members of his family when he started having environmental allergy symptoms in 2014. His symptoms were ongoing, then became seasonal in 2015. I couldnt sleep in the night, because the nose was completely congested, he said. I just couldnt breathe. Any time I fall into sleep, my throat would be burning when I wake up. Each night, I would wake up five to 10 times a night. When trying to determine what could have led to his new sensitivity to pollen, he realized he had recently intensified his oral hygiene routine. Hed started visiting the dentist more regularly, and was supplementing his brushing with regular flossing, tongue scraping and mouthwash use. He said says the extra cleaning could have killed both good and bad bacteria in his mouth. Comparing his saliva to that of family members, he noticed a correlation between the abundance of two specific types of bacteria, streptococcus and veillonella, and reduced allergy symptoms. Together, these two kinds of bacteria create a fatty acid that has the ability to pacify the immune system, Han said. Without them, he said, the immune system will fight pathogens, but also overreacts to non-harmful foreign substances like pollen or mold, producing the familiar symptoms of allergies Its just like the switch, he said. The immune system is on, the power is always there. You have to have a switch to switch it off if you dont need it. He first tried completely eliminating oral hygiene to bring up the good bacteria levels, but that didnt relieve his allergies. In 2017, he decided to make a candy to specifically promote streptococcus and veillonella. He made the AllerPops with sugars and amino acids based on research of what the bacteria prefer as their energy sources. At first, the pops provided him only temporary relief. But during his testing, he caught a fever that killed off the biofilm on his tongue. Having a clear mouth meant it was a good time to try to promote good bacteria, he said, and he took a few of his pops the following day. The next day, everything was gone, he said. I could actually sit in the Ashley Pond (Park). That was March 15, 2017. You know March (is) allergy season, juniper pollen is the highest in the year. But at that moment, I could sit in the park without feeling anything. So that was the moment. It (was a) black and white change. With his pops, Han provides instructions to start with cleaning out the mouth. One hour before a meal, users are supposed to brush their teeth with no toothpaste, scrub the tongue of all biofilm and gargle hot water in 10- to 20-second intervals for five minutes. The process then calls for using one AllerPop for an hour until it melts and repeating the entire process, including the mouth cleaning and gargling, every other day until symptoms disappear. He said people who follow the directions correctly, adhere to a proper oral hygiene routine brushing daily, as well as occasional flossing and tongue scraping and arent taking antibiotics, can enjoy relief that could last for months or years. What I guess is as long as you keep your oral microbiota stable (and) dont interrupt it too much your relief could last for a very, very long time, he said. I dont know how long that could be. Its just like flu, right? You could get it next season. On Amazon, there are reviews from users who say AllerPops provided lasting relief and from critics who complain it didnt work. Other complaints included that the instructions are too complicated and about the candys taste. The pops are flavored with cinnamon, vanilla extract and cocoa powder. Hans instructions for AllerPops come with a warning that they should be used only until symptoms subside. He does not recommend using them long-term, as over-pacified immune systems can increase the odds of other health problems, such as infection or some types of cancer. Scientific doubt Allerpops instructions note that the product has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. It also states they should not be used in lieu of prescription medication or as a substitute for any treatment. As a biologist, Han is used to needing numerous case studies to verify a result. But with his firsthand experience with AllerPops, as well as that of his son, who also suffered from allergies, he says hes convinced his product works. Han acknowledged his theories havent garnered support from the scientific community. He also speculated that journals he has submitted his study to may not like a one-person study or the fact that he conducted it on himself. BreatheAmerica New Mexicos Wachs said hes not aware of any research that backs up the theory that changing bacterial flora in the mouth will alter the immune system, particularly for people whose immune systems have already formed the antibodies that overreact to allergens. He also described Hans tiny self-study as more anecdotal than scientific. Han said he isnt surprised by the doubts, but that at this point, getting the scientific community to believe is a secondary goal. I choose to give the benefit to people who need first and over time they will see the benefit and do something (and) hopefully more research will follow, he said. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. The Santa Fe Symphony will honor three of the worlds greatest Jewish composers at the Lensic Performing Arts Center on Sunday, Feb. 17. Symphony concertmaster David Felberg will take center stage to perform Bruce Adolphes Concerto for Violin (I will not remain silent), a passionate retelling of the life of the rabbi Joachim Prinz. Prinz grew up in Germany and very early recognized the threat posed by Hitler and the Nazis. He spoke out vigorously, warning Jews of the imminent danger and encouraging them to protect themselves. Expelled from Germany in 1937, he came to the U.S., where he committed himself to the civil rights movement with equal fervor. He was an organizer of the 1963 March on Washington, where he spoke before Martin Luther Kings I Have a Dream speech. He warned that the most urgent, the most disgraceful and most tragic problem is silence. Bruce was a classmate of mine at Juilliard, conductor Guillermo Figueroa said. Bruce is related to Prinz. I thought it would be a perfect piece for David (Felberg). ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ Felberg is the son of the late Santa Fe Symphony concertmaster Leonard Felberg, to whom the concert is dedicated. Leonard Felberg was concertmaster for 25 years, Figueroa said. Bruce Adolphe is coming to the concert, he added. Hell take part in the pre-concert lecture. John Williams haunting theme from Schindlers List follows. The 1993 movie told the story of Oskar Schindler, who used his position as the head of a Krakow enamelware factory to save thousands of Jews during the Holocaust. The Steven Spielberg film won seven Academy Awards, including best original score and best picture. Williams wrote the theme specifically for violinist Itzhak Perlman. The achingly beautiful music has become one of Williams most frequently performed concert works. Gustav Mahlers Symphony No. 4 in G Major will crown the program with what has been called the composers friendliest symphony. Its hard to use the word short, but this is the smallest in conception and time, Figueroa said. Its a very lyrical work. Soprano Mary Wilson will sing the last movement, a wide-eyed childs vision of heaven. Mahler based the piece on the German fairy tale The Youths Magic Horn. It is absolutely ravishingly beautiful, Figueroa said. Its perhaps the most accessible of all the Mahler symphonies. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. You can pile up a lot of memories in 97 years, but for Albuquerques Bill Norris, who reached that mark on Jan. 31, some of the most vivid go back 75 years. Not so surprising when you consider that three-quarters of a century ago, Norris was piloting B-24 Liberator bombers in perilous attacks on German targets during World War II. Or that just after the war, as an Air Force test pilot, he was among the first Americans to probe the boundaries of flight in jet-engine aircraft. Oh yeah. And then there was Daisy June, the spider monkey. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ Stuff like that stays with you. Up like rain It would come up like rain. We took hits all over the place, but no one was injured. They didnt hit the bomb bay. We didnt lose any fuel. Norris is talking about the anti-aircraft fire, burning tracer rounds blazing red-hot paths from German barges along the French coast skyward toward American bombers flying from England to targets on the European mainland. Creases cut deep into his face bear witness to his many years, but Norris is trim and fit-looking, his hair is white but present and accounted for, his mind sharp and agile, his speech precise and detailed. He wears hearing aids, but he only needs glasses for reading. Widowed for more than 17 years, he lives in the Four Hills house that has been his home since he and his late wife, Priscilla, moved to Albuquerque in 1972. When the weather is warm enough, he gets around town on his Yamaha 94 motorcycle. On this day, a recent Friday afternoon, Norris son Bob, grandson Mike and son-in-law, Lynn Duncan, are with him, an advance guard of family coming into town to celebrate Norris 97th birthday. They have brought him a special gift, a hand-painted leather flight jacket depicting B-24 aircraft and emblazoned with the words Never Forget, the insignia of Norris 453rd Bomb Group and 32 bombs, signifying the number of missions he and his crew flew during World War II, including two on D-Day, June 6, 1944, the day allied troops invaded the beaches at Normandy, France. The first (D-Day) mission was hitting beach defenses before the troops got there, Norris said. The second mission was in the afternoon. We were hitting secondary defenses. A good fit The birthday flight jacket is a good fit both for Norris frame and for the reflective mood questions about his long life have put him in. A Pennsylvania native, Norris joined a horse cavalry unit of the Pennsylvania National Guard right out of high school in 1939. We were living with horses, he said. We had 1918 equipment and no budget. Nothing changed until Hitler took on the Polish cavalry. He wiped them out and walked into Poland. Norris National Guard unit mechanized, switching from horses to motorcycles, jeeps and scout cars and merging with air reconnaissance. He was recruited by the Army Air Corps for pilot training. At age 22, he was assigned to pilot B-24s, four-engine, heavy bombers, and attached to the 453rd, flying out of Englands Old Buckenham airfield. Film actor Jimmy Stewart, who before the start of the war had already won an Oscar for his role in The Philadelphia Story, was the 453rds group operations officer. He was a nice guy, Norris said of his movie star superior officer. My first encounter with him was a debriefing (after a bombing mission). He was interviewing us. Near misses You did not fly 32 bombing missions in hostile air during World War II without the kind of experiences that make a man wonder how he lived to be 23, never mind 97. Once, Norris was flying his Liberator during a nighttime return to Old Buckenham airfield from a bombing run into Germany. German night fighter planes, twin-engine Junkers Ju88s, had pursued the homeward-bound bombers and unleashed 20 mm hell on the B-24s as they attempted to land. A Ju88 was firing at us on our final approach and the gunners were returning fire til we touched down, Norris wrote about that night. We sustained several 20 mm hits in the wings and tail, but no one was injured. Asked about his most harrowing war experience, however, Norris does not talk about a mission in which he might have died but about one that haunts him still. He was piloting the lead B-24 on a bombing mission to destroy a German power-generating plant. But this time, his bombardier could not find the target, even after a risky second run, so the Liberators bombs failed to do substantial damage to the plant. None of the bomber crews were injured in that mission. All the planes returned safely. But the pain in Norris eyes when he talks about it all these years later is evidence of the internal wounds he suffered from one mission gone wrong. As an Air Force test pilot after the war, Norris flew dozens of planes including F-86s, F-94s, F-101Bs, F-102s, F-104s at supersonic speeds and altitudes pushing 60,000 feet, testing not only the performance of planes but that of pressure suits designed to keep men conscious and keep their blood from boiling at elevations they were never intended to attain. He survived all that, too, retiring from the Air Force in 1964 with the rank of colonel and going into defense contract work. He and Priscilla had two sons and two daughters. Son Bob flew F-14s and F-18s for the Navy. Grandson Mike, Bobs son, flew a helicopter in the Coast Guard. It was Mikes idea to give his grandfather the birthday flight jacket. Someone pointed out to Norris that if he looked close he could see the figure of a monkey in the top gun turret of the lead B-24 painted on the jacket. Monkey business In February 1944, Norris was assigned to pilot a new B-24, nicknamed the Slick Chick, from the United States to England. Like the plane, Norris and his crew, newly trained but inexperienced, were heading toward their first taste of war. During a 10-hour, nighttime crossing of the South Atlantic from Brazil to Senegal in west Africa, they encountered towering thunderstorms and heavy rain. The Slick Chick was kicked up and down between 8,000 and 12,000 feet and St. Elmos fire, luminous plasma, bathed the planes exterior in blue fire, spun halo-like around the propellers and cascaded down the catwalk inside. It was frightening in a way, Norris recalled. But when the only thing we lost was the radio, I began to feel comfortable. It was awe-inspiring. Eventually the storm abated. But not much later Norris felt some unsettling vibrations. Going to the rear of the aircraft to investigate, he discovered that Daisy June, a spider monkey purchased by the crew in Brazil, was causing the disturbance. Agitated by the recent light show, the monkey was swinging on the planes control cables. The only redeeming quality of the situation, Norris wrote some years back in son Bobs blog, happened when Daisy June, bless her heart, swung down from a cable, scampered over to the ball turret and relieved herself in the sleeping bombardiers ear. Some things you never forget. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. Its been nearly 50 years since a poem was distributed in freshman English classes at the University of New Mexico, touching off a furor that commanded headlines for weeks, rocked the university to its core and shocked people throughout the state although most of them likely never read a word of it. Love-Lust Poem, written by San Francisco beat poet Lenore Kandel, was considered obscene by many for its use of offensive words and description of perverted acts. It resulted in ongoing newspaper stories in March and April of 1969, the suspensions of two UNM teaching assistants, the resignation of the chairman of the English Department, student protests and threats from the state Legislature to cut funding for the university and launch an investigation of the school. The state revenue commission reported that numerous 1969 state tax returns came with letters protesting the situation in our universities. On Thursday, Valentines Day, Kandels poem will be part of the Love in the Archives display from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Center for Southwest Research (CSWR) at UNMs Zimmerman Library. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ The exhibit, featuring items from the UNM archives, will also include vintage wedding photos from New Mexico, love letters, dance cards, romantic music and digital representations of UNM public art such as Luis Jimenezs sculpture Fiesta Dancers which fit the theme. One day, when we were yakking about our collections, we realized we all had centuries of materials about love, lust, passion and courtship, said Heather Foster, a CSWR graduate fellow. Sharing this passion for and in the archives is what we want to do with the community on Valentines Day. Portia Vescio, UNMs archivist, said the exhibit is an open house aimed at giving the public an idea of the variety of items available for research at CSWR and also online. A committee of 12, including Vescio, Foster and other archivists, curators, librarians, conservation techs and digital specialists, assembled the items that will be displayed. We all work on different collections and types of materials, and we are only showing a few items from each collection, Vescio said. The focus is on romantic love, but we have a wide definition of it. We will have LGBT materials on display. We have a little section called Outlaw Love, from our Latin American collection, which tells the love story of a Brazilian bandit couple. The bandit couple is Lampiao (Virgulino Ferreira da Silva) and Maria Bonita, active in northeast Brazil in the 1920s and 1930s. According to Wendy Pedersen, CSWR library service coordinator, Lampiao holds a place in Brazilian folklore that is somewhere between Pancho Villa, Billy the Kid and Robin Hood. Bonita was Lampiaos lover and like other bandit women in Brazil she carried weapons and knew how to use them. The couple, Pedersen notes, was romanticized in Brazil as Bonnie and Clyde were in America. And they ended up the same way, killed in an ambush, along with nine other bandits, in 1938. The gentler side of love will get its due as well. From the archives composers collection, there will be exhibits of songs and sheet music that feature love in the title or are romantic in nature. There will also be a collection of dance cards, on which, in days gone by, a woman would record the names of men with whom she intended to dance during successive dances at a formal ball. We have dance cards from two specific eras, one from 1914 to 1917 and one from the 1930s, Vescio said. The cards from the 1930s are slightly more fancy. They are made of leather, or have metal covers and some have pencils attached to them. Vescio said there will be a craft station where visitors can make their own Valentine cards, a 3-D printer that can produce small hearts and other love charms, a selfie station where couples can photograph themselves in a reproduction of an elaborate frame from a past and more romantic era and also chances to win prizes such as passes to the Georgia OKeeffe Museum or tickets to a Popejoy Hall show. The New Mexico Womens Chorus will perform love songs at 1:30 p.m. As for Kandels Love-Lust Poem, its still the stuff of controversy five decades on. Vescio said the poem will be covered in the exhibit. People can read it if they want, she said. But it will come with a warning that it is very graphic. IF YOU GO WHAT: Love in the Archives, display of love letters, wedding photos, a notorious love/lust poem, post cards, movie and theater memorabilia, dance cards and more; love ditties by the New Mexico Womens chorus; interactive activities; prizes; and refreshments. WHEN: 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 14 (Valentines Day)WHERE: Waters Room at the Center for Southwest Research in Zimmerman Library on the University of New Mexico campus.ADMISSION: Free Stan Wise Farm Forum Editor In last weeks column, I implied that my life has turned out pretty well despite graduating college with a degree in English. I should have mentioned that has mostly been due to my lovely wife. As you might imagine, someone who majors in English has decided that the practical things in life (like paying our bills) are somewhat less important than a bunch of high-minded observations on human nature. Thank goodness, then, that I found a no-nonsense wife to make sure my head occasionally comes down out of the clouds. She makes sure the kids have doctors appointments that I never even knew they needed. She makes sure our finances and investments are in order. Shes constantly on the lookout for educational opportunities for the kids. She makes certain that we eat something healthier than mac and cheese and pizza at most mealtimes (even if Im the one designated to cook it). She reminds me that we need to take vacations now and then. Oh, and of course, she works a full-time job. If youre thinking that she only keeps me around to make the occasional home and car repair, Id like to point out that I also have a decent sense of humor. I am very fortunate to have married such an amazing woman, and I owe it all to a hunting guide in Mississippi. Renee (my wife) and I were both dating other people when we met in a martial arts dojo during grad school, but we still formed a friendship. A year later we were both single, and I kind of had a feeling she wanted me to ask her out. I wasnt sure I wanted to do that, thinking that a poor farm boy from Mississippi had little business dating a high-class girl from New York. A group of us from the dojo went to a bar after class, and Renee and I were playing a game of pool. It wasnt long before one of the local guys came up to Renee and offered to show her how to play pool. He soon had his arms around her to guide her movements with the cue. This guy, who worked as a hunting guide, did his best to flirt with Renee. At first, she didnt seem too interested, but after a short restroom break with one of her friends, Renee seemed a bit more open to his advances. I later learned that Renees friend advised her to use the hunting guide to make me jealous. Folks, the plan worked. When our group decided to move our party to a restaurant, this hunting guide started to get in the passenger seat of Renees car. I took that moment to quietly, but firmly explain to him that if he wanted to join us at the restaurant, he needed to find another vehicle to take him. I then climbed into the car next to Renee. We arrived before he did, and I made sure that our table was full. He was forced to sit on the other side of the restaurant. We never saw him again, but I owe that man thanks for the life that Ive had since. If youre out there, mister, thanks, and Im sorry I was rude to you but not that sorry. You see, it seemed wrong to run off one of Renees potential romantic prospects if I wasnt going to at least ask her out. So, I finally did, and that resulted in 15 years (so far) of happy marriage and a loving family. So, this Valentines Day, if youve got your eye on someone, dont wait for some interloper to come along and make you jealous enough to do what you shouldve done already. Ask your crush out on a date. You never know. You might just be as lucky as me and win the relationship lottery. Shannon Marvel smarvel@aberdeennews.com Some Aberdeen homeowners recently received official-looking letters that begin by noting how property owners are responsible for any repairs to their water or sewage service lines. Those repairs can cost thousands of dollars and require digging up lines that extend from the exterior of a house to the water main underneath the city street, according to the letter. The letters are not a part of a scam, and the use of Aberdeens official city seal is legitimate, said City Manager Lynn Lander. The letters provide information on an optional coverage program from Service Line Warranties of America, a private company based in Pennsylvania. The company pays for all aspects of the program, including marketing, customer service and repairs. So although the letters bear the city seal and mailing address, no public funds were used to promote or market the program, said Lander. The city of Aberdeen derives no revenues as part of the marketing agreement, Lander wrote in an email. Likewise, Service Warranties isnt provided a mailing list from the city, and SLWA purchases their own mailing list from a private source vendor. According to information about the program provided by Lander, the city reaps a few benefits from the partnership. First, it educates residents of their service line responsibility. Secondly, SLWA only uses qualified local contractors, so repair dollars stay within the community, which helps us all. Lastly, the city can be assured that all repairs are performed to code and that all appropriate permitting is pulled, the document reads. The program encourages residents to report water and sewer leaks in a timely manner, which allows the city to conserve and reduce water loss, according to the paperwork. Heres how it works. If a homeowner purchases coverage from Service Line Warranties, he or she can either pay a monthly fee of $5.41 or an annual fee of $64.92. That is to cover as much as $4,000 per incident for any repairs to service lines leaving the home. If the cost exceeds $4,000, the homeowner has to pay the difference. When a leak or blockage is discovered in a water service line, the homeowner must call Service Line Warranties. From there, the company is supposed to take care of contacting a licensed contractor to make repairs. The contractor is to make an onsite visit within 48 hours after the claim is filed. Whether Service Line Warranties will cover repair costs is completely at the companys discretion, according to a terms and conditions document. The document notes that the company covers damages caused by normal wear and tear, such as aging, ground shifting or overgrown tree roots. Damage caused by frozen or thawing pipes, acts of God, or negligence by the homeowner or any other third party is not covered. The warranty also does not include coverage of any service lines within the interior of the home. As of 2017, 616 residents had signed up for the sewer line coverage, according to data provided by Lander. Since the city partnered with Service Line Warranties in 2014, 252 claims have been paid in Aberdeen. Combined claims paid to date for water and sewer line repairs has amounted to $167,643, Lander said. Kelda J.L. Pharris kpharris@aberdeennews.com Comfort is not the antithesis of creating great comedy. Some writers say great comedy comes from pain. If a writer is comfortable, they arent going to come up with anything good, said Mary Mack over the phone last month. The more comfortable I am, the more I write. The folk humorist, performer and voice actor will be in Aberdeen Friday for a show hosted by the Aberdeen Area Arts Council. The dinner-and-comedy event is at the Best Western Ramkota Hotel and Convention Center. Based out of Los Angeles, Mack finds herself most comfortable among the rural settings of northwestern Wisconsin, where she grew up. Its always easier for me to write if Ive been home recently, she said. (Macks family members) live an absurd life, but they dont realize it. My muse is going back to where Im from. That goes along with (the saying) write what you know. When you leave, you put it in context with the rest of the world. Ill be in L.A. for six months, but everything I like to write about is in the Midwest. Her medium has taken her across the nation, whether living in her car or dropping jokes and ponderings on Conan or Last Call with Carson Daly. But shes been based out of Minneapolis for most of her 16-year career. Im comfortable there. When I say something people usually understand it on the first try. In L.A., I lost a lot of my accent, but I still get people asking what country Im from, she said. In a comedians typically self-aware and self-effacing way, she said her voice isnt professional sounding and can rub some people the wrong way. Its got a childlike quality bright, urgent and nasal-tinged. It might sound familiar to some. Mack voiced character Zaffy on Aqua Teen Hunger Force, as well as character Dylan on Foxs late-night cartoon Golan the Insatiable. She will also be the voice of the starring role in Solar Opposites, a new animated project by Rick and Morty co-creator Justin Roiland. Its currently in postproduction with a 2020 release set. Macks first foray into live performance was with music, but her Nashville polka band broke up. She initially turned to teaching. It was a dare. I was teaching band during the day. My roommate from Wisconsin just started signing me up for open mics. Sometimes it would be African American poetry night, but Id still go up to do a stand-up routine, Mack said. I got addicted to the quietness and just that people were listening to me. I grew up in a family of six and no one was listening there, she said. Thats how I kind of started. I missed performing in my band. I get in a bubble where I can talk. Its easier to talk on stage than in a party. In a way, its an introverts dream. Macks stand-up is anecdotal. She said the Valentines tour shes on will likely mean some sad Valentines Day stories and a number of personal experiences. Comedy doesnt exist in a vacuum, its originating from people, Mack said. Situations make me laugh. All those scenes that Lucille Ball was famous in her show, theres not necessarily a punchline, but they are ridiculous. The first part of her tour will take her to a Minnesota radio appearance, but the live performances really call to Mack. They come with the unexpected, and sometimes Mack likes to capitalize on that with a second mic and some audience interaction. As for Aberdeens show, who knows? Going to live shows is such a special thing. A moment that happens with the group and performer and cant happen again. Its like the northern lights, Mack said. Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup. Sarah Lyall in the New York Times: With his finely tuned editing ear, Benjamin Dreyer often encounters things so personally horrifying that they register as a kind of torture, the way you might feel if you were an epicure and saw someone standing over the sink, slurping mayonnaise directly from the jar. There is manoeuvre, the British spelling of maneuver, for example, whose unpleasant extraneous vowels evoke the sound of a cat coughing up a hairball, Dreyer says. There is reside, with its unnecessary stuffiness. (You mean live?) There is the use of quotation marks after the term so-called, as in the so-called expert, which just looks stupid. And there are the words Dreyer currently dislikes most, even more than he dislikes munch and nosh and other distasteful eating-adjacent terms. Sitting recently in his book-crammed office at Penguin Random House, where he is vice president, executive managing editor and copy chief for Random House a division within the larger company Dreyer scribbled smelly and stinky on a card and slid it speedily across the desk, as if the card itself was emitting a foul stench. I cant say them out loud, he said. More here. William L. Katz in BlackPast.Org: In January 1817 nearly 3,000 African American men met at the Bethel A.M.E. Church (popularly known as Mother Bethel AME) in Philadelphia and denounced the American Colonization Societys plan to resettle free blacks in West Africa. This gathering was the first black mass protest meeting in the United States. The black leaders who summoned the men to the church endorsed the ACS scheme and fully expected the black men who gathered there to follow their leadership. Instead they rejected the scheme and forced the black leaders to embrace their position. The genesis of this remarkable meeting can found in the early efforts of Captain Paul Cuffee, a wealthy black New Bedford ship owner. After an 1811 visit to the British colony of Sierra Leone which had been established to receive free blacks and later recaptives blacks freed by the British Navy from slaving vessels taking them from Africa to the New World Cuffee envisioned a similar colony for African Americans somewhere in West Africa. To promote his vision, Cuffee, at great financial loss, brought 38 black volunteer settlers from the United States to Sierra Leone in 1815. When he returned to the United States with news of the resettlement he persuaded many of the most influential black leaders of the era to support him in transporting larger numbers of African Americans to a yet to be determined colony on the West African coast. Rev. Peter Williams of New York, Rev. Daniel Coker in Baltimore, and James Forten, Bishop Richard Allen, and Rev. Absalom Jones all of Philadelphia, who were the most important African American leaders in the United States at that time, enthusiastically endorsed the plan. Given the dire situation faced by free blacks in the North during that era, their endorsement was understandable. The vote was denied to all but a handful of black men. No black women could vote at the time. Black workers were limited in the occupations they could pursue and the wages they could receive. In Philadelphia, New York, Boston, and other Northern cities they were subject to attack by white mobs and to the ever present threat of slavecatchers who kidnapped fugitive slaves and on occasion those who had never been enslaved. Thus to many leaders in the free North colonization seemed an attractive option. More here. 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(1) Abortion law ERINN CRANE WATERLOO I felt the need to clarify a huge misunderstanding many have about the new abortion law passed in New York. This law does not allow for someone to kill her healthy unborn baby up until the moment of birth. The law permits abortions after 24 weeks if a health care professional determines the health or life of the mother is at risk or the fetus is not viable. For example, if a baby is shown to have a major birth defect that will not allow him or her to live outside the womb or will cause the baby considerable pain to do so, a doctor can allow for an abortion in these circumstances. We like to assume the worst about each other, and many pointed out women will decide they dont want to be mothers at the last minute and go out and abort their healthy babies. This could not be further from the truth or the intent of this law. Robots and jobs MARK HANAWALT WAVERLY The article in the Cedar Rapids Gazette Feb. 4 is extremely misleading: Robots threaten Iowa jobs. What the headline should have read is Robots augment Iowa jobs. Weve done everything society says. Weve gone to college, she added. You worked hard to get this job you had to be 10 times as good (as a white person). ... Or this (black) person has all of the qualifications, but does not get the job. Also, Iowa had the dubious distinction of an 11-1 ratio of incarcerated blacks to whites in 2014, according to the Washington, D.C.-based Sentencing Project. A decade earlier then Gov. Tom Vilsack had created a task force to study the issue, stating, No community is better represented in the prison population than the Waterloo-Cedar Falls areas. Hope, though, is a huge deterrent to crime. Kyle Roed, human resources director at CPM process equipment and automation solutions in Waterloo, is helping provide it, eliminating a prominent barrier to employment by banning the box on criminal history. He wont immediately inquire about a criminal record, but the topic isnt entirely precluded. Asking the question upfront is a barrier, Roed said, adding, Were fighting a war for talent. And our perspective is, theres talent out there, and they may have a criminal background. In our discussions all parties recognized that by regionalizing we can develop economies of scale and over the long term drive down the costs for treating waste water. The connecting cities can remove smaller treatment plants and much of the associated budgetary operational costs as well as the regulatory compliance costs. Discussion could include establishing a utilities board so each city has some input into understanding the compliance requirements for Waterloo today and into the future. Such a utilities board would then assure all parties understand and report their inflow and infiltration maintenance plans to insure the collection system integrity and report and review their flow data so annualized usage and costs are discussed as a group. The additional reasons for the cities in this study to regionalize are too numerous to list, and the reasons not to regionalize are none. Every mayor and council member for the cities in this study cite their desire to hold the line on spending, seek opportunities to work with other cities wherever possible and to move their cities forward, and regionalization of waste water treatment is an opportunity to do just that. So now is the time for everyone, in every city, to set aside the territorial politics, keep an open mind, set aside any fears of loss of control on costs and pull up a chair to the table and start the process to make this happen. Gary Wurthz is the former mayor of Elk Run Heights. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Reynolds broke the ice, Stevie, despite the Washington Post describing you as the congressman most openly affiliated with white nationalism and the unhinged, Iowa Democrats said little about me picking a racist to co-chair my election campaign. You helped me win the rural vote. Kudos. Feb. 9 was when Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, Stevie and I met at the Whistler County Library, located in Wonton. Ernst began: I said in my Senate election campaign Id make them squeal in D.C. Ive not done that yet as Im waiting for President Trumps swamp to further expand, we get into more financial debt as weve only increased it $2 trillion, we see how damaging the trade tariff fiasco really becomes, we build the wall thingy. OK, OK, the Republicans had total control for two years to fund the unnecessary wall and when Stevie gets more radical than he currently is over issues such as gun rights, LGBTQ, womens rights and climate change, then Ill ride my Harley into the Senate chambers and make em squeal. Whats the question? Oh, wait, there wasnt a question. Never mind. Have you noticed there is a new definition of racist? It was originally defined as someone who believes race is the primary determinate of human traits and these traits produce a superiority of one or several races over others. In our current enlightened world, where almost all knowledge has been reduced to sound bites, the new definition is simplicity itself: If I dont like you, then you are a racist. For example, what has President Trump actually done to be constantly labeled as a racist, except constantly being called a racist? Google Trump racist and you will get about 180 million hits. What has Trump done that Barack Obama had not already done to be called another Hitler? Except, of course, constantly being compared to Hitler. By the way, why is he not labeled as Stalin, or Castro or even Mao? In light of what pollsters call the Trump effect, this is most interesting. Pollsters began to see dramatic and emphatic shifts in how people responded to questions based on whether or not they were told the statement was made by Trump. Students would condemn Obama statements if they were told they came from Trump. Evidently, it was not the idea or concept people are responding to, but some created persona (a cartoon) of the person that determined whether an idea was Hitler-like or racist. Vets benefits seminar set WAVERLY -- Waverly VFW Post 2208 will host a veterans benefits informational seminar at the Waverly Area Veterans Post, 1300 Fourth St. N.W., at 10 a.m. Feb. 16. A VFW service officer will be on hand to provide veterans with information on benefits, services available to them and claim assistance. A chili meal will be provided at noon and all veterans are invited to attend. Deere Museum topic in Denver DENVER -- The Denver Genealogy and History Club will meet on at 2 p.m. Feb. 26 at the Denver Public Library. The guest speaker will be Rosa Grant from the John Deere Tractor and Engine Museum in Waterloo. Grant, who currently serves as manager of the museum, is in charge of overseeing the operations of the museum and is in charge of developing the exhibits for all John Deere Attractions. Her presentation will focus on John Deere and the companys relationship to the community of the Cedar Valley. The presentation is open to the public and is free of charge to attend. Sign up in advance by calling 984-5140. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 The only way to do this is with incentive programs, Rooff said. What it does is it helps us get the (sale) price low enough so we can get people qualified (for mortgages) to move into them. Most of the lots remained undeveloped and prompted questions from the public and council members about whether the land should be recovered by the city. Things changed last year when IEDA restored Rooffs tax credits. Lincoln Savings Bank engaged Rooff to install the infrastructure on the five Williston Field lots and to finish a home Ellis had started at Baltimore Field. The amendments approved recently by the city reset the original agreement, replacing Ellis with the bank, and call for up to 14 new houses to begin construction this year. It also adds a $5,000 incentive payment for each home. Rooff has already built and sold houses on two of his four lots at Baltimore Field. That leaves five lots there to be developed by Rooff and the bank. As of (this week) we could have four of them sold, Rooff said. Theres interest, and were happy about that. WATERLOO An internet service contract and the purchase of computer network equipment will be considered Monday by the Board of Education. The board meets at 5 p.m. in the Education Service Center, 1516 Washington St. Waterloo Community Schools officials are proposing a three-year contract with Aureon to provide 5 gigabits per second of internet service at $2,800 per month and a one-time installation fee of $1,000. Aureon proposed the lowest bid of seven vendors. Other bids ranged from $3,111 to $5,575. However, the district would file for discounts through the Universal Service Administrations taxpayer-funded e-rate program. That would reduce the monthly cost by about 90 percent to $280 if its approved. The new contract would replace one of the districts two agreements for internet service. Currently, it has a 1 gigabit per second contract with Unite Private Networks that will expire at the end of June. CEDAR FALLS A $263,300 roofing bid for Peet Junior High School will be considered Monday by the Board of Education. The Cedar Falls Community Schools board meets at 5:30 p.m. in the council chambers at City Hall, 220 Clay St. Service Roofing Co. of Waterloo was the lowest of four bidders on the project, which includes three sections of the schools roof. Other bids ranged from $286,573 to $383,440. The low bid came in more than $50,000 under the $314,000 estimate on the project. Service Roofings base bid, for two of the roof sections, came to $233,000. The third section, a roof over a corridor, was bid as an alternate but is being recommended for approval, as well. Service Roofing bid $30,300 for the alternate. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Want to see more like this? Get our local education coverage delivered directly to your inbox. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. The webinar will cover five key areas to consider for retirement. Register at http://ow.ly/1aSH30nvqi5. For more information, contact Crystal Ford at Crystal.Ford@bergankdv.com. Career fair set in Independence INDEPENDENCE The Buchanan County Economic Development Commission will host its second annual Spring Career Fair from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. March 5 at Heartland Acres Agribition Center, 2600 Swan Lake Blvd. Buchanan County businesses that are ready to hire will be available to discuss job opportunities. The career fair is free for all job seekers and for investors in Buchanan County Economic Development. The cost to exhibit for businesses and industries that are not investors in BCEDC is $50. The last day for businesses to register as an exhibitor is noon March 1. Businesses may register at www.growbuchanan.com. Those seeking employment do not have to register. For more information, call BCEDC Director George Lake at 334-7497 or email director@growbuchanan.com. Alliance hosts networt event The earliest description of February 14 as an annual celebration of love, Historical background and reason to celebrate it! 14th February an annual celebration for expressing love between the two. It is a day to make the lovers one. Famous and the best places that celebrate Valentines Day are America, Canada, Australia, France, Mexico, South Korea, and the Philippines. This celebration is a chance to say some special words to make someone permanent in your life. Valentines Day is the best option for couples to stay connected with their memories. It will provide the Ideas for Long Distance Couples to Celebrate Valentines Day. We are here explaining the actual meaning of Valentines Day and its historical background. Take a view to know a lot about the day. What is Valentines Day? The day of romance and affection always celebrated on 14th February each year. valentine day is also known as the Saint Valentine Day. Well, it associated with choosing your life partner, and the expression of love for someone special. So, it will be celebrated in all over the United States and many other places. The loved ones change the gifts and candy wrap with each other. Well, here we will explain to you the background history of this commercially celebrated day on 14th February. History of Valentines Day Although, this day is not only for just exchanging the gifts it has a love tale behind it. Besides all, this love tail explains the way of true love, commitment and the real meaning of Valentines Day. Here are the main and real things behind that day that you must have to know about! How Did Valentines Day Start However, in ancient times, a period of time vacation even before Saint Valentines time. Although, this holiday is also famous as Lupercalia, celebrated fertility, and will have enclosed a formal celebration within which boys and girls were paired off by selecting names from a jar. So, previously in Greece, across the region, that culture makes a mid-winter celebration for the wedding of the god Zeus and therefore the goddess Hera. Some historians marvel if these traditions could have influenced the means we have a tendency to currently celebrate Saint Valentines Day. Who Was Saint Valentine Saint Valentine is the actual hero of chocolate hearts. Many Christian priests are famous as Valentine. But the real and actual Saint Valentine is residential of Rome. However, two names are the most common for Saint Valentine. Different stories are available in history for these two valentines. Well, the legends for this day of romance have numerous telling. But the actual Saint Valentine is a priest of Roman who makes weddings of the soldiers who were banned to get married. Because the Emperors law dictates that the married troopers did be good warriors in the field of battle. He used to wear a ring having the picture of an angel on it. It has an image of love which helped troopers acknowledge him. And in an exceeding predecessor to acknowledgment cards, he two-handed out paper hearts to prompt Christians of their love for God. Due to this act, he became famous among the people as a supporter of true love. Saint Valentine starts making pairs of chocolate-hearts. And these pairs summon up their commitment towards their God. This act will connect Saint Valentine with love. The poem Parlement of Foules of Geoffrey Chaucer in 1381 was the main origin of todays the modern Valentines Day. In the 269 A.D, the Emperor came to know about these secret marriages. And he ordered his army to put Saint Valentine behind the bar. And singes her death orders. Well, this act for love of Saint Valentine makes history for lovers. And they decided to celebrate this day on the mid of the February. Because they believe that this season is the mating season of birds. So they connect the lovebirds with the 14th of February each year for making love and affection. Now it is a tradition of Britain to make love and couples on that day in the memory of Valentine. On this day the flowers, gifts and candy wrap consider as the traditional gifts for the Valentine celebration. Why Do We Celebrate Valentines Day In the 15th century, the valentine word describes the lover in the poem and songs. However, at the start of the 18th century a book name as The Young Mans Valentine Writer was published in the UK for the lovebirds. Therefore, now in the 19th century, the paper Valentines Cards are specially made for Valentine Day. So, this invention now we will use to express our feeling about someone special. And this is what we celebrate to make the event more amazing and hot. At the end what matter who you are, from where you are, or who is with you. Just feelings do matter. Therefore, celebrate your day to follow the true feeling of your heart. And be the special one in the life of others whom you love. Tons of litter pollute Seal Beach in California. These consist of an assortment of items that are carried by rainwater from the riverbeds of los angeles and Orange counties. A few other beaches are also affected and cleanup crews have arrived with the necessary equipment to remove and cart it away. Los Angeles Times reports that volunteers with the environmental group undertake this exercise regularly. However, the winter storms have aggravated the situation and the volume of debris is substantial. The teams have a tough task ahead because such unwanted material piles up on the beaches after any storm but the recent storms makes the beaches look like landfills. Source of the problem The source of the litter is interesting. Portions of it come from places that are nearly 40 miles away while the bulk of them are belongings of the homeless people who live in riverbeds around Los Angeles and Orange counties. Volunteers are always on the job to remove the litter but the rains have dumped an extraordinary amount of debris and it will take time to complete the cleanup. Some of these unwanted materials could be different types of waste which might lead to health issues once they come into contact with the body. These usually settle at the floor of the ocean and destroy the quality of the surroundings. This appalling image of debris is at Seal Beach in California, where drains run-off from at least 50 cities in the Los Angeles river basin converge in the same place to leave a refuse trail. Read the story here https://t.co/kuVTVlucMv #Environment #Pollution pic.twitter.com/7RxVatgrhB EP Scotland (@EPScotland) February 8, 2019 Los Angeles Times adds that experts advise beachgoers to delay entering the water after a downpour. In the opinion of the Save Our Beach group, there must be a long-term plan to arrest the pollution at its source. As Fellers says, Every city that has a storm-drain system ought to have a catch system some way of catching at least the larger articles that are floating in the water to filter it out. Californias famous Seal Beach looks like a landfill The recent winter storms in California played havoc with the Environment. The rains carried mounds of litter from various locations to the ocean and these have given the beach an appearance of a landfill. These items include not only plastics but also shopping carts, traffic cones and Styrofoam. Recent rain storms washed tons of debris, along with a few Target carts, down the San Gabriel River. The sand is now covered in trash in Seal Beach. #sealbeach #trash #beachcleanup pic.twitter.com/YU7pZ13vGV Jeff Gritchen (@jeffgritchen) February 5, 2019 According to the Guardian, Eben Schwartz, an official of California, says that 80 percent of the trash that ends up in the ocean originates on land. He adds that Seal Beach lies at the mouth of the San Gabriel River, and trash from as many as 50 cities in the Los Angeles river basin move to the ocean via this route. It is a massive problem and needs a concerted effort to check such a trend in order to protect the environment. Uprooted Palestinians are at the heart of the conflict in the M.E Palestinians uprooted by force of arms. Yet faced immense difficulties have survived, kept alive their history and culture, passed keys of family homes in occupied Palestine from one generation to the next. NOTRE DAME, Ind. The University of Notre Dame was well represented this weekend as members of the track and field team split to compete at various competitions. A pair of Irish runners stamped their names in the Irish records books this weekend in Iowa while 16 members of the team earned top-10 finishes in Bloomington, Indiana. Logan Kusky also updated the mens records with his weight throw performance in South Carolina, breaking the record he previously set last month in the weight throw. Hoosier Hills For the second time this season, the Irish traveled to Bloomington, Indiana as they competed at the Hoosier Hills invite. The team was well represented both in the field and on the track, posting 16 finishes in the top-10, including a win in the womens hurdles. In The Field The team started the day off strong with Connor Artman and Colton Crum both finishing in the top-five of their respective events. Artman, who leapt 6.7m took fifth in the long jump while standout Irish pole vaulter, Colton Crum finished fourth with a height of 4.88m. In the throwers pit, Alesis Juntunen, Shae Watkins and John Stefan all scored towards the top of their events. Competing in shot put, Juntunen took eighth overall with a distance of 13.01m while Watkins and Stefan placed fifth and sixth, respectively, on the mens side. It was Watkins leading the way for the Irish again in the weight throw, finishing with a distance of 16.32m for seventh overall and Stefan placed 10th when he threw the weight 15.71m. Mad Dash Traveling south as part of their final regular season road trip, the sprinters showed great discipline in all their events. Starting the afternoon off, Shae Douglas crossed the line fifth in the 60m dash with a time of 7.80 seconds after qualifying for the finals earlier in the day. Michaela Butler also earned a spot in the final heat of the womens race where she took eighth with a time of 8.02. On the mens side, Zachary Zajdel completed the 60m dash finals in 7.04 seconds for a sixth place finish. Summer Thorpe led the way in the womens 60m hurdles, having finished the preliminary race atop the standings. She finished the finals heat in just 8.49 seconds to win first overall. Madysen Hunter also competed in the finals of the event, posting a time of 8.97 seconds for sixth at the meet. Hunter also competed in the 200m dash shortly after where she crossed the finish sixth with a time of 25.33. In the final race of the day for the Irish in Bloomington, Grace Cronin and Luis Cossio both earned second in the 400m dash with time sof 57.83 and 50.74. Edward Cheatham also ran the 400m dash at a later time where he finished third overall in the championship heat, crossing the line in 48.90. Results (PDF) Iowa State Classic A handful of distance runners made the trek to Ames, Iowa where they competed at the annual Iowa State Classic. The underclassmen filled large shoes at the meet as four finished towards the top. The women placed three in the top-10 of their events, two of which were freshmen, while the men boasted two. Going The Distance First up for the Irish, Maddy Denner took 10th overall in the 3K run, finishing with a time of 9:41.75. Fellow freshman, Jackie Gaughan took fourth overall in the 5K Invite championship race, clocking in with a time of 15:52.63. Annie Heffernan won the earlier edition of the 5K event, finishing the race in 16:25.57 for first overall in her heat. A pair of sophomores led the Irish in the two 3K events on the mens side, cementing themselves in the Notre Dame records books.. Andrew Alexander ran first where he crossed the line in 8:06.16 for second overall and the 10th best time in program history. Yared Nuguse followed up his classmates performance with a time of 7:57.55 in the later 3K championship heat, placing seventh overall and fifth all-time in the Notre Dame records. Results (PDF) Tiger Paw Invitational Logan Kusky led the Irish throwers at Clemson as he improved his impressive season, breaking the school record in the weight throw when he threw for 20.73m on his fifth attempt Saturday. He had previously set the record three weeks ago at the Notre Dame Invitational. On the womens side, Abbey Kapitan recorded a distance of 19.55m for eighth overall. Results (PDF) Up Next The team reunites next Saturday for the annual Alex Wilson Invite and their final regular season contest of the indoor season. Following the home meet, the Irish will travel to Blacksburg, Virginia to compete at the Atlantic Coast Conference Championships February 21-23. The US and Russia have proposed differing texts at the United Nations about resolving the crisis in Venezuela. Meanwhile, US humanitarian aid is stuck in bordering Colombia. The United States has presented a draft resolution at the United Nations Security Council calling for international aid deliveries and a presidential vote in Venezuela, triggering a Russian counter-proposal.While no date has yet been set for a vote on the American draft, and negotiations are ongoing, Russia is likely to use its veto power to block it as part of its support of Nicolas Maduro's regime, diplomats said.The text, a copy of which was obtained by AFP on Saturday, expresses "full support for the National Assembly as the only democratically elected institution in Venezuela."The legislative body's chairman, Juan Guaido, has declared himself interim president of Venezuela, challenging Maduro's rule."In all the states of Venezuela, we're getting organised to demand the entry of humanitarian aid. This huge feat will be accomplished thanks to unity amongst Venezuelans and solidarity from the world"Concern about violence amid calls for elections The draft resolution stresses "deep concern with the violence and excessive use of force by Venezuelan security forces against unarmed, peaceful protesters."It also "calls for the immediate start of a political process leading to free, fair and credible presidential elections, with international electoral observation, in line with Venezuela's constitution."The text also requests that UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres "utilize his good offices" to obtain such elections.It also "stresses the need to prevent further deterioration of the humanitarian situation in Venezuela and to facilitate access and delivery of assistance to all in need in the entirety of the territory of Venezuela."The Russian alternativeOn Friday, Moscow proposed an alternative resolution to the American one, diplomats said.It expresses "concern over the threats to use force against the territorial integrity and political independence of... Venezuela," according to a draft seen by AFP.Calling for a "peaceful" resolution of the stalemate in Venezuela, it "supports all initiatives aimed at reaching a political solution amongst Venezuelans to the current situation... through a genuine and inclusive process of national dialogue."However, a diplomat told AFP that if put to a vote, the Russian text would fail to obtain the minimum of nine votes to pass without another veto-wielding country blocking it.Another high-ranking military official defectsAn active-duty Venezuelan army colonel who is a military doctor has dropped his allegiance to President Nicolas Maduro, backing opposition leader Juan Guaido instead."Ninety percent of us in the armed forces are really unhappy," said Colonel Ruben Paz Jimenez said in a video released Saturday. "We are being used to keep them in power."Humanitarian aid blocked at Colombian borderHumanitarian aid sent by the United States recently arrived in the Colombian city of Cucuta at the border with Venezuela, but Maduro has refused to let in the shipments.Guaido said Friday he was ready to take any necessary measures, including authorizing a US military intervention, to force Maduro from power and alleviate the humanitarian crisis.(With AFP) The US and Russia have proposed differing texts at the United Nations about resolving the crisis in Venezuela. Meanwhile, US humanitarian aid is stuck in bordering Colombia. The United States has presented a draft resolution at the United Nations Security Council calling for international aid deliveries and a presidential vote in Venezuela, triggering a Russian counter-proposal. While no date has yet been set for a vote on the American draft, and negotiations are ongoing, Russia is likely to use its veto power to block it as part of its support of Nicolas Maduro's regime, diplomats said. The text, a copy of which was obtained by AFP on Saturday, expresses "full support for the National Assembly as the only democratically elected institution in Venezuela." The legislative body's chairman, Juan Guaido, has declared himself interim president of Venezuela, challenging Maduro's rule. "In all the states of Venezuela, we're getting organised to demand the entry of humanitarian aid. This huge feat will be accomplished thanks to unity amongst Venezuelans and solidarity from the world" Concern about violence amid calls for elections The draft resolution stresses "deep concern with the violence and excessive use of force by Venezuelan security forces against unarmed, peaceful protesters." It also "calls for the immediate start of a political process leading to free, fair and credible presidential elections, with international electoral observation, in line with Venezuela's constitution." The text also requests that UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres "utilize his good offices" to obtain such elections. It also "stresses the need to prevent further deterioration of the humanitarian situation in Venezuela and to facilitate access and delivery of assistance to all in need in the entirety of the territory of Venezuela." The Russian alternative On Friday, Moscow proposed an alternative resolution to the American one, diplomats said. Story continues It expresses "concern over the threats to use force against the territorial integrity and political independence of... Venezuela," according to a draft seen by AFP. Calling for a "peaceful" resolution of the stalemate in Venezuela, it "supports all initiatives aimed at reaching a political solution amongst Venezuelans to the current situation... through a genuine and inclusive process of national dialogue." However, a diplomat told AFP that if put to a vote, the Russian text would fail to obtain the minimum of nine votes to pass without another veto-wielding country blocking it. Another high-ranking military official defects An active-duty Venezuelan army colonel who is a military doctor has dropped his allegiance to President Nicolas Maduro, backing opposition leader Juan Guaido instead. "Ninety percent of us in the armed forces are really unhappy," said Colonel Ruben Paz Jimenez said in a video released Saturday. "We are being used to keep them in power." Humanitarian aid blocked at Colombian border Humanitarian aid sent by the United States recently arrived in the Colombian city of Cucuta at the border with Venezuela, but Maduro has refused to let in the shipments. Guaido said Friday he was ready to take any necessary measures, including authorizing a US military intervention, to force Maduro from power and alleviate the humanitarian crisis. (With AFP) Turkey has called Chinas treatment of its minority Uighurs a great cause of shame for humanity. In a statement Saturday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy said its no longer a secret that China has arbitrarily detained more than a million Uighurs in concentration camps. He said the Turkic Muslim population faced pressure and systematic assimilation in western China.Aksoy said Turkey has shared with China its position on all levels and urged authorities to close the Uighur detention facilities and respect human rights.The minister said Turkey had also learned of the death in prison of famed Uighur musician and poet Abdurehim Heyit, who had been sentenced to eight years over one of his songs.This tragedy has further reinforced the reaction of the Turkish public opinion toward serious human rights violations committed in the Xinjiang region, Aksoy said.We expect this legitimate response to be taken into account by the Chinese authorities. We respectfully commemorate Abdurehim Heyit and all our kinsmen who lost their lives defending their Turkish and Muslim identity, Aksoy said.Heyit was a master of the dutar, a type of two-stringed instrument with a long neck that is found in Iran and throughout Central Asia. His detention was considered indicative of Chinas determination to crack down on Uighur intellectuals and cultural figures in an effort some say to eradicate a separate Uighur language and identity.Heyits death could not be independently confirmed. China had no immediate response to the ministers remarks.Security clampdownBeijing has intensified a security clampdown on Uighurs in the northwestern region of Xinjiang that was put in place after a bloody 2009 riot. Droves of Uighurs have fled, many traveling to Turkey, where the language and culture are similar to that in Xinjiang.After months of denying their existence, Chinese authorities under increasing outside pressure acknowledged the system of camps, terming them vocational training centers. They have provided little or no information on how many are interned within them and how long they are being held.Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had once accused China of genocide but has since established closer diplomatic and economic relations with Beijing.(AP) Turkey has called Chinas treatment of its minority Uighurs a great cause of shame for humanity. In a statement Saturday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy said its no longer a secret that China has arbitrarily detained more than a million Uighurs in concentration camps. He said the Turkic Muslim population faced pressure and systematic assimilation in western China. Aksoy said Turkey has shared with China its position on all levels and urged authorities to close the Uighur detention facilities and respect human rights. The minister said Turkey had also learned of the death in prison of famed Uighur musician and poet Abdurehim Heyit, who had been sentenced to eight years over one of his songs. This tragedy has further reinforced the reaction of the Turkish public opinion toward serious human rights violations committed in the Xinjiang region, Aksoy said. We expect this legitimate response to be taken into account by the Chinese authorities. We respectfully commemorate Abdurehim Heyit and all our kinsmen who lost their lives defending their Turkish and Muslim identity, Aksoy said. Heyit was a master of the dutar, a type of two-stringed instrument with a long neck that is found in Iran and throughout Central Asia. His detention was considered indicative of Chinas determination to crack down on Uighur intellectuals and cultural figures in an effort some say to eradicate a separate Uighur language and identity. Heyits death could not be independently confirmed. China had no immediate response to the ministers remarks. Security clampdown Beijing has intensified a security clampdown on Uighurs in the northwestern region of Xinjiang that was put in place after a bloody 2009 riot. Droves of Uighurs have fled, many traveling to Turkey, where the language and culture are similar to that in Xinjiang. After months of denying their existence, Chinese authorities under increasing outside pressure acknowledged the system of camps, terming them vocational training centers. They have provided little or no information on how many are interned within them and how long they are being held. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had once accused China of genocide but has since established closer diplomatic and economic relations with Beijing. (AP) The top US envoy for North Korea returned from three days of talks in Pyongyang and will meet again with his North Korean counterpart before the second summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Earlier, Mr Trump said his planned summit will take place in Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam. Stephen Biegun, the US special representative for North Korea, met with South Korean foreign minister Kang Kyung-wha and Seouls chief nuclear envoy Lee Do-hoon on Saturday to brief them on his negotiations with North Korea. Our discussions were productive, Mr Biegun, said while meeting Ms Kang. The president is very much looking forward to taking next steps. We have some hard work to do with DPRK between now and then. I am confident if both sides stay committed we can make real progress here, he said, referring to North Korea by its formal name, the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea. In Pyongyang, Mr Biegun and Kim Hyok Chol, North Koreas special representative for US affairs, to discuss advancing Trump and Kims Singapore summit commitments of complete denuclearisation, transforming US-DPRK relations, and building a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula, the State Department said in a statement. It said that Mr Biegun and Mr Kim agreed to meet again before the leaders second summit, scheduled for February 27-28 in Hanoi. To view this content, you'll need to update your privacy settings. Please click here to do so. To view this content, you'll need to update your privacy settings. Please click here to do so. Mr Trump tweeted the venue on Friday in Washington, saying Mr Biegun had just left North Korea after a productive meeting on the summit. Mr Trump added: I look forward to seeing Chairman Kim & advancing the cause of peace! The president had previously announced Vietnam as the summit location, but the city had not been identified. Stephen Beigun, left, listens to Kang Kyung-wha during their meeting at the Foreign Ministry in Seoul (Ed Jones/Pool Photo via AP) Mr Biegun is thought to have discussed specific disarmament steps that North Korea could promise at the Vietnam summit and what corresponding measures the United States is willing to take. Story continues US-led negotiations aimed at stripping North Korea of its nuclear weapons programme has made little headway since the first Kim-Trump summit in Singapore last June, when Mr Kim pledged to work toward the complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula, without providing a clear timetable. Experts say Mr Kim is determined to win relief from US-led sanctions to help revive his countrys troubled economy, while Mr Trump, faced with domestic problems such as the Russian investigation, needs foreign policy achievements. If the second summit fails to produce a breakthrough, scepticism about the current nuclear negotiations will grow. Some experts say North Korea is trying to use the negotiations to weaken the sanctions and buy time to perfect its weapons programme. Mr Trump also tweeted: North Korea, under the leadership of Kim Jong Un, will become a great Economic Powerhouse. He may surprise some but he wont surprise me, because I have gotten to know him & fully understand how capable he is. North Korea will become a different kind of Rocket an Economic one! Belfast solicitor Pat Finucane was murdered to silence other human rights lawyers, his son has said. This week marks 30 years since he was shot 14 times by loyalists in collusion with British security forces while enjoying Sunday lunch at home with his family. He was 39. Mr Finucanes son John was a schoolboy when his father died in front of him. On Sunday, he recalled: Our lives changed forever. His fathers best years professionally were ahead of him, his son said. He added: It was a deliberate decision to kill him, to silence other lawyers and prevent them from doing that type of work. What we see now is a generation coming through with lawyers, people wanting their human rights. I think that is very much a legacy of Pat Finucane and what he stands for and represents. That gives me enormous pride. While they did silence him they could not have made a bigger mess of it if they tried. The name reverberates around the world and an enormous amount of credit for that is to due to my mother. Former prime minister David Cameron acknowledged the shocking level of state collusion in the 1989 Ulster Defence Association (UDA) killing after receiving a report on the evidence. Sir Desmond de Silvas review confirmed agents of the state were involved and it should have been prevented but ruled out an overarching state conspiracy. To view this content, you'll need to update your privacy settings. Please click here to do so. The Finucane family has engaged in years of litigation over what they say is the UK Governments failure to grant an independent public inquiry and strongly opposed the decision to order the de Silva review. A Supreme Court judgment on legal action connected to the case is pending. Mr Finucane was from working-class west Belfast and took advantage of the opportunities afforded by university education to become a lawyer during the Northern Ireland conflict. As a defence solicitor, he represented clients who included convicted members of the IRA and families involved in shoot-to-kill allegations against the former police force, the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC). Story continues During the Irish republican hunger strikes in prison during the 1980s he represented Bobby Sands. His son said he represented all sides, while others at a special event in Belfast said he spoke up for the voiceless. Mr Finucane recalled the early years of his familys campaign for justice. We were attacked very deliberately and cruelly as nothing more than republican propagandists, that we were an IRA mans children who did not deserve truth and justice, he said. He praised his mother Geraldines hard work, strength and resilience during a speech marking the anniversary of his fathers death. Gerry Adams speaking at the event (Kelvin Boyes/Press Eye/PA) Former Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams said Mr Finucanes murder haunted the corridors of power to this day. He said the Finucane family was using its influence to help everybody else, to raise their voices for those who had none. He said he was a decent human being, a hero who dedicated his life to aiding others. Mr Adams added: As a human rights lawyer it didnt matter to Pat whether you were a republican, a unionist, a loyalist, or none of these. If you were arrested you have rights and Pats responsibility his vocation, his mission in life was to vindicate and defend those rights. Pat believed that the law should uphold and protect the rights of citizens. But he was not naive. Pat understood the difference between the theory and the practice in the application of human rights. Olivia Colman was queen of the Baftas as The Favourite scored seven prizes at the glittering ceremony. The Broadchurch star beat Glenn Close, Lady Gaga, Melissa McCarthy and Viola Davis to win the leading actress prize for her turn as a cantankerous Queen Anne in the spiky period drama. The movie was also named outstanding British film, with Rachel Weisz taking the best supporting actress prize, beating her co-star Emma Stone in the category. The film had led the nominations ahead of the ceremony, with 12 nods. (PA Graphics) Roma, Alfonso Cuarons black-and-white film about his childhood in Mexico City, was named best film and best film not in the English language, while he was also named best director and cinematographer. Taking to the stage after her name was called, Colman admitted, Im very shaky, sorry, and told the crowd she could not read her notes, before adding she thanked all the producers, obvs. Addressing the other winners from The Favourite, she said: We are having an amazing night arent we? We are going to get so pissed later. Rachel Weisz was named best supporting actress (Jonathan Brady/PA) Speaking about her co-stars Weisz and Stone, Colman said: As far as Im concerned all three of us are the same and should be the leads and its weird we cant do that. This is for all three of us. Its got my name on it but we can scratch on some other ones. (PA Graphics) The film also received accolades for its costume design, production design, make-up and hair, as well as for its original screenplay. Rami Malek scooped the leading actor category for his turn as Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody, while Mahershala Ali was named best supporting actor for Green Book, beating British favourite Richard E Grant in Can You Ever Forgive Me? Rami Malek (Jonathan Brady/PA) There was also success for British actress and Black Panther star Letitia Wright, who won the EE Rising Star award, the only Bafta voted for by the public. Appearing overwhelmed as she collected her gong, she said: I identify myself as a child of God and I cant get up here without thanking God. Story continues Letitia Wright (Ian West/PA) A few years ago I saw myself in a deep state of depression and I wanted to quit acting. The only thing that pretty much pulled me out of that was God, my belief, my faith and my family and an email from Bafta saying they wanted me to be a part of the Bafta Breakthrough Brits and I was like let me try again. So this wasnt an overnight thing, it wasnt a click-of-a-finger success and Im still a work in progress. She continued: I want to encourage young people, actually you can be any age actually, I want to encourage you anyone who has lost their light, I want to encourage you. God made you and you are important I want to say God loves you and let your light shine. A Star Is Born won for its original music, with the films writer, director, star and composer Bradley Cooper collecting the prize. To view this content, you'll need to update your privacy settings. Please click here to do so. He thanked his co-star and fellow composer Lady Gaga and the other musicians who helped with the film soundtrack before saying: Most of all I have to thank Irina (Shayk, his partner) for putting up with me for all the music I was trying to make in our basement for a year. Bradley Cooper with his Best Original Music Bafta (Ian West/PA) The animation category was won by Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse, while Free Solo, a film about the first person to climb El Capitan in Yosemite National Park without ropes, was named best documentary. Film editor Thelma Schoonmaker, who has made 23 films with Martin Scorsese, received the Fellowship, the Academys highest honour, from the Duke of Cambridge at the end of the ceremony. Chimpanzees at the Belfast Zoo in Northern Ireland roamed freely after escaping their enclosure with the help of a large limb blown into the area by Storm Erik on Saturday. Families were shocked when they came across an escaped chimp. One mum Danielle Monaghan said she was "petrified" the animal might "attack or take the kids". Video posted to Facebook shows chimpanzees climbing a tree branch, which conveniently fell against the enclosure wall, before jumping and catching the lip of the concrete wall. A second clip shows one of the animals roaming freely near a internal road. Four animals made the escape, according to an eyewitness who spoke to the BBC. Alan Cairns, a zoo spokesperson, told media that the chimpanzees were only briefly out of their enclosures as zoo personnel were on hand to return them. Alan Cairns told BBC the animals returned to their enclosure on their own accord. The branch used by the escapees fell into the enclosure due to the high winds delivered by Storm Erik. Gust reached more than 70 miles per hour in Northern Ireland on February 8 due to the storm, the Met Office reported. Storm Erik19 During his state of union address, Donald Trump made the announcement of a second summit meeting with the Korean dictator Kim Jong-un in February this year. The announcement was expected but it surprised many that he made the announcement during an important address to Congress. The meeting with Kim will be held in Vietnam towards the end of this month. CNN earlier reported two Vietnamese cities -- Hanoi and Da Nang had emerged as top contenders for the summit's location with Hanoi now confirmed. Vietnam The choice of Vietnam is symbolic and shows that politics like a river is never still. Vietnam was at one time a strong ally of China but in 1983 China and Vietnam fought a civil war after which Vietnam became the Free Republic of Vietnam. Now there is a lot of friction between the two countries, this mainly because of China's unilateral announcement of control over the entire South China Sea. Trump will be hoping that China-Vietnam relations may open the eyes of Kim who if adequately supported may well do a Vietnam on China. Trump and Kim Trump has strong words of praise for Kim. MSN has reported that Trump had announced during his address that he had a good relationship with Kim and he would meet him on 27 - 28 February in Vietnam. These words came after a UN report mentioned that Kim had not completely taken steps to denuclearise. For decades the Korean leaders had been asking for a meeting with the US president but it was denied by all presidents. A meeting with the US President has been a top foreign policy goal of Pyongyang since Kim Jong Il invited Bill Clinton. One wonders whether it was the correct policy because in case a meeting had taken place earlier the situation would have been different. Trump a decisive man Trump has shown that he is a decisive man and one must give him credit for charting a new path with North Korea. He has indicated that North Korea will be an economic powerhouse in the future. He appears to have confidence in the North Korean leader, despite many negative reports emanating about the North Korean nuclear program. Trump takes strong decisions like on Afghanistan and troop reduction. He has helped break the ice with North Korea. One cannot deny him that credit. One is apt to agree with him when he says American hostages have come home, nuclear testing has stopped and there has not been a missile launch in more than 15 months. He went on to add that if he hadn't been elected the President of the United States, there could have been a major war in the region. Last word The eyes of the world are on the second Kim-Trump meeting and despite the apprehensions of many, its the best way forward. The Tyler Fire Marshal's Office completed its investigation into the deadly Feb. 8 house fire on North Grand Avenue that killed a child and tw Candid television shots of a real birth on Sevens Operation Live drew emotional reactions on social media last night. The birth of baby Elijah to Erine & James under the hand of obstetrician and gynaecologist Dr. Steven Tan at Mater Hospital drew much praise: wow what a wonderful and beautiful moment to witness praying for a gorgeous little boy ??? #OperationLiveAU Christian Gordon (@ChristianGordoc) February 10, 2019 This is amazing, the medical team are so amazing!! #operationliveau Shirley Bailey (@shirllbailey) February 10, 2019 Now I'm a crying mess because she's crying ?? #OperationLiveAU Ashleigh-Jay ? o (@NeverForTheFall) February 10, 2019 All I can say is OMG!!! #operationliveau Shirley Bailey (@shirllbailey) February 10, 2019 Great show, very interesting watching surgery. Does that make me strange? Probably #OperationLiveAU Greg (@ScienceNCoffee) February 10, 2019 Surgeons are the true unsung heroes of our country #OperationLiveAU Rachel Vella (@rachelvellaplz) February 10, 2019 But others were confused about whether it was happening Live to Air. It was not. Seven originally promoted the event as Live every step of the way in keeping with the UK production. But the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons strongly objected to a Live broadcast suggesting the show be pre-recorded and edited in case anything goes wrong or it distracts the surgical team. Last week Seven confirmed the second Live heart operation would be put on hold. Plans for a Live caesarean were also switched to pre-recorded. Yesterdays operation took place in the afternoon, with no Live stamp on screen. Instead viewers noticed a clock indicating 2:20pm. Should be called Operation delayed telecast #OperationLiveAU Apolo (@PK_APOSTOLI) February 10, 2019 operation live. why does the clock show 2.20 when its 9pm. what a crock of shit.#OperationLiveAU # liveisnow pic.twitter.com/mB4dIHrmwA glenn powell (@purplington23) February 10, 2019 And there's the massive clue that the show is NOT live as you can see the operator's watch says 2:00 #OperationLiveAU pic.twitter.com/ECtJYA79zk James Campton (@jcampton1) February 10, 2019 #OperationLiveAU if this is live can you explain the time on the clock? #changethebattery pic.twitter.com/JtqJ4p60Vt Chris Coombs (@Coombsie_77) February 10, 2019 #OperationLiveAU Live at 9pm So far theres been at least 2 different clocks reading ~2pm, covered windows with sunlight leaking out, and a suspicious audio glitch that conveniently mutes the doctor right when he reads out the time lol ok sure PotatoesBasket (@PotatoesBasket) February 10, 2019 I see the advertising is working. People think this is live. It's recorded and "real time". Not live, folks. #operationliveau James Turner (@jemesct) February 10, 2019 In 2015 National Geographic aired the first-ever Live brain surgery on Australian television. TV Tonight has contacted Seven over its claims the production would air Live to Air. Related Nine has won the final week of the summer non-ratings period, its third week in a row. The first dinner party for Married at First Sight was the top rating show of the week at 1.28m viewers. Its the first time in a number of years Nine heads into ratings season in the box seat. Network: Nine: 30.3 Seven: 28.8 ABC: 17.0 10: 16.8 SBS: 7.1 Primary channel: Nine: 22.3 Seven: 20.3 ABC: 12.3 10: 11.6 SBS: 4.9 Multichannels: 9GO!: 3.6 7WO: 3.2 10 Bold: 3.1 7mate: 2.9 ABC Kids Comedy: 2.7 9GEM: 2.3 9Life / 10 Peach: 2.1 7flix: 1.7 ABC News: 1.4 SBS VICELAND / SBS Food: 1.0 7food: 0.7 ABC ME: 0.5 NITV: 0.1 Nine won Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday & Saturday. Seven won Thursday and Friday. Both tied on Monday. ABC bettered 10 on Sunday, Monday and Saturday. SBS also bettered 10 on Saturday. Nine claimed victory in Sydney, Melbourne & Brisbane. Seven ruled Adelaide & Perth. Its now game on after the 2019 survey began yesterday. Related Upcoming 10 mystery series, My Life Is Murder, will commence filming in Melbourne today. It stars Lucy Lawless (Xena: Warrior Princess, Spartacus, The Code) as Alexa Crowe, a fearless homicide detective whose insights into the darker quirks of human nature allow her to prod, provoke and push every felons right and wrong buttons as she unravels the truth behind the most baffling and bizarre crimes. And as many a crim can attest, underestimate Alexa at your own peril. Lawless will be joined by Bernard Curry (Wentworth, Home and Away) and NIDA graduate Ebony Vagulans. Network 10s Head of Drama, Rick Maier, said: A star vehicle for Lucy. The best actors in the country guesting each week. And Bernie and Ebony completing the dream cast for this dream project. Should be a ton of fun. CJZs Head of Drama Development, Claire Tonkin, said: What a joy to be working with Lucy, Bernard and Ebony, a spectacular guest cast and a creative team of this calibre as we bring these characters and stories to life. My Life Is Murder is a CJZ production for Network 10. Principle production investment from Network 10 in association with Screen Australia. Financed with support from Film Victoria. International distribution will be handled by DCD Rights. Related 1. Yes. Its important for students to stay focused throughout the year. Its a plus. 2. Yes. It would fill the learning gaps caused by COVID and would help cut youth crime. 3. No. Students and teachers deserve a summer break. Year-round school wont work. 4. No. It wouldnt work with the militarys summer PCS schedule. Its a bad idea. 5. Unsure. Its hard to say without knowing how the school calendar would work. Vote View Results Authorities in Nha Trang, a resort city in the south-central Vietnamese province of Khanh Hoa, have inspected a local restaurant after a group of Malaysian tourists were charged VND500,000 (US$21.5) for a dish of stir-fried eggs, as well as exorbitant prices for other courses at the venue. A photo of the bill for the tourists meal has become viral on social media over the past few days as all of the dishes appear to cost far more than they should have. A dish of stir-fried eggs and tomatoes fetched VND500,000 (US$21.5), while a dish of boiled okras was charged VND300,000 ($13). The foreign diners were also charged VND200,000 (8.6) for each portion of cooked white rice. The information on the bill showed that the tourists had had their dinner at Hung Phat Restaurant at 86/5 Tran Phu Street. A representative of a local travel agent, which provided their tour for the Malaysian visitors, confirmed they had taken and posted the photo. They arrived at the eatery on the evening of February 7, the third day of the Lunar New Year, and were charged a total of VND9.2 million ($396) for the entire meal. According to Pham Van Huu, head of the provincial market management department, a delegation of inspectors has been sent to the restaurant to verify the case. The bill of the meal is seen in this Facebook photo. The venue, however, had been closed by the time they arrived, with its signboard being taken down, Huu stated. There was only one security guard, who said the owner had already returned to his hometown for the Lunar New Year holiday. We have not been able to contact the owner, but will continue our probe to further deal with the incident, Huu added. Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper reporters were able to reach Phung, the previous owner of the eatery. Phung said he had withdrawn all of his investment in the restaurant and handed over the venue to the new owner on February 2. After taking over the restaurant, the new owner returned to his home in northern Vietnam to celebrate Tet, Phung added. Nguyen Be, deputy director of the Khanh Hoa Department of Finance, advised the travel agent to keep the bill and report the incident in writing to the department for further solutions. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Rach Mieu Bridge, which lies along a major route connecting Ho Chi Minh City and provinces in Vietnams Mekong Delta, was heavily congested on Saturday afternoon as people started returning to the southern metropolis at the end of the Lunar New Year (Tet) holiday. Located along National Highway 60, Rach Mieu stretches 2.86 kilometers long over the Tien (Front) River to connect My Tho City in Tien Giang Province and Chau Thanh District in Ben Tre Province. Traffic police divisions in Ben Tre and Tieng Giang Provinces foresaw the situation and had their officers stationed at traffic hotspots, but their efforts appeared to be fruitless as congestion was still serious as of 3:00 pm. They tried their best to control the traffic flow and later had to temporarily shut down all six gates of the toll station at the bridge to alleviate the gridlock. A large number of vehicles on the Rach Mieu Bridge. Photo: Mau Truong / Tuoi Tre The bottleneck is expected to continue along the route on Sunday and is likely to be worse as the traditional holiday officially ends, with most people resuming work on Monday. The Lunar New Year began on February 5 this year but preparation and celebration often take place a week before and after the date. The majority of salaried workers were given days off from February 2 to 10, during which they would leave big cities and return to their hometowns to enjoy the holiday with their families. Vehicles travel at a snail's pace along the route. Photo: Mau Truong / Tuoi Tre A large number of vehicles on the Rach Mieu Bridge. Photo: Mau Truong / Tuoi Tre The Rach Mieu Bridge is pictured from above on February 9, 2019. Photo: Mau Truong / Tuoi Tre The Rach Mieu Bridge is pictured from above on February 9, 2019. Photo: Mau Truong / Tuoi Tre Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Here are todays leading news stories: Society -- Rach Mieu Bridge, which lies along a major route connecting Ho Chi Minh City and provinces in Vietnams Mekong Delta, was heavily congested on Saturday afternoon as people started returning to the southern metropolis at the end of the Lunar New Year (Tet) holiday. -- An average of 20 people was killed in traffic crashes every day from February 2 to 9, decreasing by eight people compared to the same period of last year, according to the National Committee for Traffic Safety. -- Authorities in the north-central province of Nghe An have worked with a car driver after he slammed his vehicle into the boom barrier of a tollgate at Ben Thuy 2 Bridge on Saturday afternoon. -- A local travel agent has recently uploaded a viral post on social media after their group of Malaysian tourists were charged VND500,000 (US$21.5) for a dish of stir-fried eggs and tomatoes at a restaurant in Nha Trang, a famous beach city in south-central Khanh Hoa Province, on February 7, the third day of the Lunar New Year fest. Local authorities have inspected the venue following the incident. -- Tran Van Tuan, 36, a resident in the southern province of Dong Nai, on Saturday arrived at the home of 21-year-old Nguyen Thi Thuy Tien to express his apology after he had slapped Tien following a minor traffic accident earlier this week. Footage of Tuans violent act had previously become viral on social media since February 6 and sparked outrage among viewers. -- A 45-year-old man has allegedly murdered his wife and another woman before attempting to kill himself by jumping off a bridge in the Mekong Delta province of Ben Tre. -- Police in the Central Highlands province of Gia Lai confirmed on Saturday they had received multiple reports of passenger buses being stoned along a local street on Friday night. -- A resident at an apartment complex in District 7, Ho Chi Minh City has reported having a smartphone and laptop worth nearly VND100 million ($4,300) stolen by her maid on Friday. The victim said she hired the suspect to substitute her regular housekeeper who had returned home for the Lunar New Year holiday. Lifestyle -- Many visitors to Da Lat, located in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong, had to set up tents along the iconic Xuan Huong Lake on Friday night as local hotels were fully booked due to high demand during Tet. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Many visitors to Da Lat, a popular tourist city in Vietnams Central Highlands, had to set up tents along a local lake on Friday night as hotels were fully booked due to high demand during the Lunar New Year (Tet) holiday. Located 1,500 meters high on a plateau in Lam Dong Province, Da Lat is blessed with a year-round cool climate and is a highly preferred destination for holiday trips in the Southeast Asian country. The city welcomed an even higher number of visitors during the Lunar New Year holiday. Since February 7, or the third day of the 2019 Lunar Year, the provincial Peoples Committee has banned automobiles with 16 seats and above from entering the Prenn Pass, which lies at the southern entrance of Da Lat, in a bid to prevent tourist overcrowding and severe congestion during the festive days. A woman and her child look for a hotel room in Da Lat on the night of February 8, 2019. Photo: Khac Tuan / Tuoi Tre A lot of visitors, however, were still able to reach Da Lat with their personal cars and motorbikes, resulting in traffic jams along major routes in the city, namely 3 Thang 4, Hung Vuong, Ho Tung Mau, and streets near the iconic Xuan Huong Lake. About 1,400 hotels and hostels across the tourist hub have ran out of rooms over the past days. According to the observation of Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper as of 9:30 pm on Friday, visitors were still struggling to find a place to stay. A group of tourists are unable to catch a taxi in Da Lat. Photo: Khac Tuan / Tuoi Tre Many of them decided to set up tents at the Xuan Huong Lake despite the temperature of 15 degrees Celsius. It was also very difficult to catch a taxi in downtown areas. A double room cost about VND1.2 million (US$52) to VND3.6 million ($155) per night, a threefold increase compared to regular days. At popular eateries, customers had to wait hours for their turn. Heavy congestion occurs along a street in Da Lat. Photo: Khac Tuan / Tuoi Tre Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! HINDSIGHT - WRITE SOMETHING WORTH READING ABOUT OR DO SOMETHING WORTH WRITING ABOUT OPINION: "The fact that he kept this small black book for almost nine decades suggests he may have wanted us to learn more about him, even after he was gone," writes Amy Hirshberg Lederman. Our latest contributor, Edward Thompson III, argues that Trump has used two essential American myths to rise to power. "Americans elected Trump to lead the worlds most powerful nation. Accordingly, his egregious policies are our policies," Thompson III says. A woman's body found in Apache Junction Saturday is apparently connected to a murder-suicide from Friday night, the Pinal County Sheriff's Office says. At 10:30 p.m. Friday, Apache Junction police officers were dispatched to help locate Stuart Milne, 30, believed to be suicidal and armed near Ironwood and Baseline Avenue in the city. He also made concerning statements to police about his girlfriend, Natasha Arredondo, a Pinal County Sheriff's Office news release said. Milne pulled his car over when police found him but did not respond to commands to show his right hand as officers approached, the news release said. A gunshot was heard inside the car where Milne was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. During the incident, police were investigating a missing person report from family members of Arredondo after her son was found home alone. About 8:34 a.m. Saturday, a citizen reported a body found in an industrial park near Houston and Delaware roads. It was later determined to be Arredondo, who had been shot multiple times. Detectives believe Arredondo was shot and killed before Milne was found by officers. Anyone with information about the case is asked to call the Pinal County Sheriff's Office at (520) 866-5111. Contact Star reporter Shaq Davis at 573-4218 or sdavis@tucson.com On Twitter: @ShaqDavis1 Sign up for our Crime & Courts newsletter Get the latest in local public safety news with this weekly email. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Clinco, a registered nurse who founded the home-care agency in 1981 when her mother needed support to remain in her home, said, Families have not had discussions about what is needed now and in the future for their parents, and where it will be provided as they age. Discussions about costs and what families can afford also must take place, she said. In many families, adult children usually take care of their aging parents. But there are families who cannot because of their jobs or they live out of state or they need help because of their parents declining health. Then there are seniors who never had children or married. Thats where the home-care worker comes to fill those needs. Their work is vital to senior citizens who want to remain in their homes as long as possible. As the home-care industry, communities and government officials grapple with these facts, they also have to face the fact that the turnover rate of employees in the industry is high and must be remedied as Americans live longer and 10,000 baby boomers will be turning 65 each day until 2030. Among the main reasons home-care workers leave their jobs is low pay, part-time hours, shifting schedules and lack of benefits, industry experts say. Born to be a caregiver The recovery effort for the 82-year-old hiker who got lost while hiking in Madera Canyon last week was suspended Monday evening, officials said. Joe Smallwood called around 4 p.m. on Feb. 5 and reported he was lost. Shortly after, the Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office sent out a search-and-rescue team. After a week of searching, Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Lieutenant Gerardo Castillo said search crews, who came from all over the state, needed to recover and regroup before planing future recovery efforts. Castillo said as many as 120 people from 17 or 18 different organizations helped in the search, including agencies from Pima, Santa Cruz, Cochise, Pinal, Maricopa, Gila, Yuma, Yavapai and Coconino counties, as well as personnel from Fort Huachuca and with U.S. Border Patrol and volunteers with the Southern Arizona Rescue Association. (Un)making tourism Our apathy towards the environment is harming tourism The Goldwater Institute says that having ICWA in place leaves Native American children vulnerable because there are not enough ICWA-compliant foster and adoptive homes. One case involves four Arizona families and is part of a petition for review recently filed with the U.S. Supreme Court by Goldwater. The non-Native couples were able to adopt their Native American foster children, but only after what Goldwater argues was an unreasonable wait and high cost due to ICWA. Under ICWA, Goldwater argues, tribal children and teens are subjected to a separate, less-protective set of laws solely because of their race. Phoenix attorney April Erin Olson counters Goldwaters claim, saying being Native American is about tribal membership, not race. She said many ICWA cases she worked on are being appealed because the tribal court was never notified. I shudder to think about how many cases over the last 40 years of ICWA should have been ICWA but no one provided notice to a tribe or raised the issue, she said. In those cases, the childs connection to their tribe and culture may be lost. Its a different experience than playing a concerto with an orchestra, where I fly in, rehearse my one big piece with the orchestra and perform, Bell, 51, said during a teleconference with West Coast journalists in mid-December. Playing a big concerto is thrilling, too. Youve got a lot of people on stage. Its louder. ... But with a solo recital ... its two hours of more intensity from beginning to end. But what I like is I get to offer sort of a tasting menu from classical music. Something from different periods. I get to show different aspects of classical music, different ways the violin can express itself. Its more intimate. I can talk to the audience between pieces. A leading Hispanic grocer in the Phoenix area is planning to enter the Tucson market. Los Altos Ranch Market, which features extensive butcher, cheese and produce offerings, will occupy the former Frys store in the Placita del Rio shopping center, on the northeast corner of Irvington Road and Interstate 19. That intersection has long been on the grocery chains radar. They had a pin on the map at this corner for when they would expand into Tucson, said Duff Hearon, with Ashland Group, owners of the placitas shop space and part of an investment group that bought the vacant Frys store. It is really exciting for that neighborhood. When the Frys closed in 2017, tenants in the shopping center wanted to hold out for another grocery store rather than bring a different user into the space, Hearon said. Trying to drive traffic to the placita after the stores closing, food drives, music events and car shows were held in the empty space while developers negotiated with different grocers. Several users approached the owners about taking over the space, such as a Goodwill warehouse, an indoor storage facility and a trampoline park, said Scott Soelter, broker with NAI Horizon. Craters of the Moon is made of more than 60 lava flows that erupted between 15,000 and 2,100 years ago. The lava field covers more than 600 square miles. Eight different eruption episodes are known, and each episode lasted hundreds to perhaps thousands of years. An interesting feature of Craters of the Moon is that about the same volume of lava was erupted during each episode; therefore it is considered to be volume-predictable. Volcanologists therefore expect the next eruption to produce 1-1.5 square miles of lava. Volcanic eruptions at Craters of the Moon occur along fissures in the northwest-to-southeast trending Great Rift volcanic rift zone, which is aligned parallel to active faults adjacent to the Snake River Plain. Because of their young age, the volcanic rocks at Craters of the Moon preserve many volcanic features, including domes, cinder cones, shields and lava flows with characteristic structures (like pahoehoe ropes), lava tubes, spatter ramparts and pressure ridges. The fissure eruptions at Craters of the Moon were probably very similar to modern fissure eruptions at Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii, which exhibit the same features. Studying eruptions at Kilauea may therefore help scientists and emergency managers understand what to expect the next time Craters of the Moon erupts. While organizing my home office a few weeks ago, I came across a letter my grandfather wrote back in 1924. He wrote that eloquent letter to his best friends wife, consoling her on the loss of her mother. His cursive handwriting was artful perfect penmanship. He wrote the letter when he was 21. Since he died at 34, when my father was only 3, it is among the most cherished items I have from a grandfather I never got to meet. Such is the power of the handwritten letter, an art that has died along with the art of cursive handwriting. You see, many American schools have phased out lessons in cursive. There is a waning need for it in the modern era, some argue, and the classes take too much time. Cursive originated centuries ago. Its the result of technological innovations such as inkwells and quill pens made from goose feathers. Because ink dripped when the quill was lifted from the paper, it made sense to connect letters in words together in one flowing line and the art of cursive writing began. Cursive became less necessary with the invention of the ballpoint pen, which does not leak and, technically, does not require cursive writing. CHEYENNE -- In a Legislature as jam-packed as Wyoming's, it's hard for things to go unnoticed. Controversial bills steal headlines, large personalities vie for influence, influential lobbyists dash from hearing to hearing and travelers flock to the Capitol from around the state in hopes of swinging major votes for their towns. Behind it all -- the big debates, the major battles -- is a group of the Legislature's most powerful members known as the Management Council. Made up mostly of the floor leadership for both chambers, the Management Council dictates the flow of debate in the Legislature, one designed to empower even the lowest of the rank-and-file members. This is the group that decides when and where meetings are held, the pace and workflow of the Legislature, even the rules of decorum that all members must follow while in session. In short, the Management Council sets the rules for the lawmakers, influencing the way Wyoming does government. It affects legislators day-to-day lives in ways they dont understand, said Sen. Chris Rothfuss, D-Laramie, the Senate Minority Leader and a member of the council. The Republican Party this session has made moves to seize a greater portion of that power. Sponsored by 19 Republican senators, Senate File 161 would remove a set quota for members of the minority party to be elected to Management Council. Passed by the Senate 25-4 in what was a rubber-stamped vote from the start, the bill would further undercut the already dwindling influence of Democrats in both the House and Senate, according to the measure's opponents. It's one of multiple steps taken by Republicans to consolidate power in Wyoming, even as they already dominate the state's political landscape. Behind the scenes and on the floor of the Legislature, lobbyists and representatives from the state's GOP have flexed their muscles on certain pieces of legislation, such as an effort to pass an employment nondiscrimination bill, which was killed after intense Republican pressure. Meanwhile the party -- which observers say has grown increasingly conservative in the past decade -- has pursued aspirations of greater purity by pushing to close its primaries and ban crossover voting. That effort has resulted in stoking fears that Democratic-led interference has forced the party to elect more moderate candidates -- like Gov. Mark Gordon, who won a tough, contested 2018 primary against several hardline conservatives -- rather than candidates who toe the party line. Some, however, believe these efforts will backfire. In several interviews with the Star-Tribune, moderate Republican lawmakers and political insiders describe a party infrastructure that -- while at the height of its powers -- is becoming increasingly narrow in scope. The party could be on the cusp of alienating broad swaths of voters, they say, through its increasing overreach into the structure of state government -- enough so that it might threaten the supermajority the party has amassed over the past several decades. Theres a lot to this," said Sen. Cale Case, a Lander Republican. "Are we becoming redder just because other areas of the country are becoming bluer? It feels a little bit like that. There is a rural divide. But there is a big group in the middle that is more fragile than Republicans realize. And when you go to the conventions or the precinct committees, its always the same people making the same appointments. Theres a universe of people turned off of it who are registered Republican or vote Republican, but I cant say that rank and file is the same as (Chairman of the state Republican Party Frank) Eathorne. "I dont think they have much in common. And I think thats going to show up one day. There will be a reaction down the road," he said. Growing power Around Cheyenne, many would say that Wyomings Republican Party is more powerful than its ever been. Across the state, two out of every five people of voting age are registered Republicans, a number that has been growing annually. In the Legislature this year, the party has wielded its power like an iron mace, killing bills pushing for a nondiscrimination law -- a stance originating from a line in the partys platform opposing the creation of new protected classes" -- and successfully advancing a bill to ban crossover voting despite numerous defeats. Members of the party also succeeded in passing through the House of Representatives two bills it supported on abortion, both by large margins, and narrowly missed passing a measure in the same body that would have required a state or federally issued photo ID at the ballot box. Another policy goal for Republicans this year, Eathorne said, was changing the makeup of the Management Council, a goal in the partys crosshairs since its November central committee meeting in Sheridan. We were looking at the proportion of Democrats to Republicans on the Management Council, and we thought it presented a disproportional number compared to the number of Republicans in the Legislature, Eathorne said. We looked at legislative wins the party has worked on that we thought best represent the values of the residents of Wyoming, and when you look at the supermajority in both chambers, the partys sentiment has been that the Management Council should represent that balance as closely as possible. In 2019, the state GOP seems at peak form. In conversations around the capitol this session, even Democrats are quick to admit that many of the states elections are decided in the primaries -- usually on the Republican side - and in the Republican Party itself, the level of engagement seems to have grown. The democratic process is really active in the Republican Party. We have layers of voices that are in the smallest political subdivisions up through the state party and on to the elected, Eathorne said. Im pleased to say the activity level and engagement level is higher than Ive seen it, with more grassroots activity than Ive ever seen on these issues. Thats why were seeing the successes in the Legislature and in the national party. Those silent voices have risen up, and were listening to them now. We know that when Republican values win, Wyoming wins, he added. And were seeing quite a bit of that this session. Influence and control A six-year member of the Management Council, Rothfuss understands well the mathematics facing a minority member among the Legislatures elite. Wyoming's Democrats were once a formidable group. In 1965, the then-23 person House of Representatives elected 17 Democrats to the House and, in the five years following the Watergate scandal and the resignation of President Richard Nixon, dozens of Democrats were elected to their first terms in the Legislature, according to a review of legislative membership numbers maintained by the state archives. In the years since, that membership has slipped. Today, just three Democrats sit on the 30-person Senate. Only nine are serving in the 60-person House of Representatives. Existing in a legislature where a single party has had veto override powers (more than two-thirds majority representation) for the better part of half a century, the 13-member Management Council is designed to give the Legislatures minority voices an amplified voice. Though Democrats are outnumbered in the Legislature, it only takes them two flipped votes to change the course of a vote in the Management Council. Rothfuss remembers one occasion where the council discussed a shortage in availability of staff in the Legislative Service Office -- which crafts bills, conducts research and provides back-end support -- and whether the council should restrict access to them to only committee chairmen and party leadership. If passed, Rothfuss said, the flow of power in the Legislature would have fallen to the whims of a select few, and the ability for lower-ranking members voices to be heard would have been severely limited. It would have further concentrated power to the majority leadership and marginalized the opposition voices within the majority party, he added. Thats a place where having a strong minority voice isnt just for the minority, its for the rank-and-file members of the chamber, to speak up for them in the conversations nobody is even aware are happening. In a Legislature long controlled by Republicans, any change in the dynamic of the Management Council could close the door on dissent, he argued, and further marginalize the voices of Democrats not just in the Legislature but around the state. Rothfuss noted that many lawmakers have constituencies with their fair shares of Democrats and, while the Management Council could be representative of the Legislature itself, doing so would not represent the makeup of the state theyre meant to represent. The Management Council is very leadership focused, said freshman Rep. Mike Yin, a Democrat from Teton County. Even the other floor members who are Republican cant necessarily get their voices heard when the leadership makes all the decisions there. But beyond the effects for legislators, Democrats fear that consolidation of power in the council could, one day, have broader implications for all of the state and further accelerate a descent toward a de facto single-party system of government in Wyoming. As one party consolidates control more and more and more, it makes it difficult for anyone else to get elected, Case, the Lander Republican, said in a speech Wednesday on the Senate floor. And that eats at people inside. And over time, you get a shift. And its a surprising one. I actually think this bill is probably good for the minority party. It really is. Because in years to come, if the majority party continues to consolidate and runs things in the state, people will get tired of that. Its a natural, human tendency. "Its also a tendency for people in power to let it go to their heads. Having balance, and allowing people to pursue that balance, is a good thing. A shrunken, shrinking minority Wyomings Democrats -- by nature -- are tough, state chairman Joe Barbuto said. They have to be, as they are outnumbered in the Legislature and in voter registration. As such, Democrats arent always losers in legislation, and this year they have managed to win a number of small victories, including winning bipartisan support to get a nondiscrimination bill to the floor of the House, making significant headway with legislation to improve wage conditions in Wyoming (though most of the five bills related to that subject eventually died) and getting a ranked-choice voting bill to the Senate floor, where it was also voted down. Most of the bills that died, as observers will note, never had a chance. But they were, at least, debated -- a victory, particularly for a party facing such steep opposition. Numbers matter, however. Legislative leadership and committee chairmanships are not necessarily granted by a meritocracy of ones adherence to party virtues, but ones values -- and how they align with the values of the party in power -- do play a role. I havent viewed the party as having much influence on the leadership, Case said. It is true with (Republican lawmaker) Michael Von Flatern -- he was in line for leadership, didnt get it, clearly because he wasnt fiscally conservative enough." Rothfuss says that effort is more transparent than Republicans are willing to say and that they have been actively working to marginalize the opposition. We know the GOP itself has been pushing for more party purity and party loyalty and shrinking the tent in a way that isolates and alienates members of our chamber who may belong to that party, he said. That does lead to serious concerns among members of both parties in our chamber, but not enough. Senate President Drew Perkins, R-Casper, see the shifts in power as an inevitability in a system where groups like the Management Council are intended not to be representative of the people, but of the body they control. Ultimately, when the Legislature as a whole only has 15 percent of the seats in the legislature as the minority but have 40 percent representation in the Management Council every Democrat in the Senate is on the Management Council," he said. "All the other 27 (Republican) members only have four. Its just so out of proportion. Whether its fair or not, he added, is a separate question. I remember when we had a senator and a congressman who were Democrats, the governor was a Democrat, and it wasnt so long ago the Senate was split down the middle, Perkins said. Things change. The majority party ought to be careful, because the majority party might not always be the majority party. Blind, loyal partisanship Partisanship is a learned mechanism of political systems the world over, a concept wrestled and wrangled with throughout American history. Though the concept earned no mention in the United States Constitution and was, in fact, explicitly opposed by founding fathers like Alexander Hamilton and James Madison, the necessity of one faction joining to oppose another was justified as a necessary vehicle of debate. However, early proponents of the system argued that balance was required. Thomas Jefferson was once quoted as saying it would not benefit the public good to maintain a party majority in Congress greater than two to one, hailing an effective minoritys purpose as censors for the worst impulses of their opposing party. The ability to maintain an open mind within ones party, Jefferson later said, was also important to remember. Such an addiction (to partisanship) is the last degradation of a free and moral agent, he said. If I could not go to heaven but with a party, I would not go there at all. However, a single-party mindset has begun to pervade statehouses around the country. After the 2018 elections, just one state in the country -- Minnesota -- had a different party controlling separate chambers of its legislature. In states that have seen single-party control for an extended period -- like Oklahoma -- parties have begun to tear themselves apart from the inside out, with dissent to the party platform enough of a qualification to become a target. As we move toward this desire of a one-party system, you have less and less a diversity of ideas, and the majority party becomes more and more capable of controlling the outcome, the message," Rothfuss said. "And things in this instance become more conservative in a detrimental way. If you think the problem the state of Wyoming has at this point is there are too many Democrats in the Legislature, then I dont think youre analyzing the history of the state correctly, he added. Obviously, the problem isnt a lack of GOP -- the problem is not a lot of ideas being brought to the table that can solve this problem. A stronger minority voice will strengthen that much more so than more of the majority voice. That creates an echo chamber once it grows large enough. Some have seen symptoms of something similar in Wyomings GOP, with the arrival of a hyper-partisan line in the sand that has enjoyed growing success in some areas of the state. While good for the brand of some legislators, Case said, it hurts others. If Republicans keep putting polarizing people out there, the Democrats will gain ground, said Case, a self-described libertarian who is fiscally conservative but offers a stark contrast to the state GOP on social issues. It can happen in the Legislature, too. I dont know if its all a result of the party meddling, but it does seem to be more difficult for moderate Republicans these days, he added. And that will have consequences over time. Whiplash and dissent Representatives of the Republican Party have referred to the primary system as a mechanism of their right to exercise political speech. With a principled, conservative platform, many have felt the party's moderates are not representative of the platform. Allegations that Democrats are purposefully switching parties to elect more moderates have galvanized those conservatives, who have pursued tighter restrictions on party primaries this session in an effort to ensure that the Republican Party remains as conservative as the party believes it has a voter-granted mandate to maintain. On the other hand, some have expressed fears that moving to a closed primary system -- while practiced in other states like New York -- will have one of two consequences: It will either lead to single-party rule in Wyoming or create a GOP litmus test so strict it will lead to an exodus of Republicans from the party. Republicans, in their arguments, have maintained such a practice is within their right, and they have made the case that a closed primary could actually lead to a stronger Democratic Party, helping to restore the states long-neglected two-party system. I think thats a little difficult to predict, but I would say the argument for a more robust Democratic Party certainly exists, said Eathorne, the GOP party chairman. "And I think thats needed. The differentiation between the ideals of the parties nationally is growing further and further apart. Wyoming, we are smaller, a group of friends and neighbors with different political ideologies -- we work together -- but to respectfully discuss differences, I think, gets muted in the system we have. I think whatever risk there is lies with whether or not the electorate sees it as worth it -- lets give it a try, he added. However, in conversations on the House floor, skeptics like Case have speculated such a strategy could actually backfire. Some have hinted that the state party leadership -- despite managing an impressive and enthusiastic ground game -- could be sitting on a throne of air that will begin to deflate as it moves further right, alienating not just moderate Republicans but the jaded Democrats who joined the party just to have a say in an election that mattered. According to an analysis of data from the Secretary of States office compiled by longtime Republican and former legislative candidate Gail Symons, this possibility is quite real, supported by figures implying the current state GOP strategy is not representative of its entire membership. While most of the state's voters may participate in Republican elections, they often don't make their voice heard in elections relating to the party, meaning that a small faction of party officials with tightly-aligned views end up setting the political strategy for a massive, diverse group with different objectives and interests. Symons, who now lobbies in Cheyenne for a civic education organization she recently founded, has been a regular at meetings regarding crossover voting, sharing data that shows its not mischevious voting that is the issue in the states elections: Its participation. The narrative to the contrary, however, is actually a symptom of the bottom-up structure of the central Republican committee, she said, which sets the platform for the entire state. Out of nearly 14,000 registered voters in her home of Sheridan County, just under 60 percent of all registered Republicans participated in the 2018 primary elections, state elections data shows. However, of the 60 percent of people in Sheridan County who actually voted in that election, just under 40 percent of that group voted for the 45 candidates there running to become Republican precinctmen and women: the people who set those policies from the bottom up. To put that number in perspective, with 29 precincts in Sheridan County accounting for 84 openings for the state committee, just over half of those positions had candidates ready to go. The seats they dont fill are filled by appointments of the members of the local party, according to party bylaws, meaning nearly half of the Republican leadership in that county could, hypothetically, be appointees. Theres just not participation in the precincts, Symons said. And yet the precincts are the people determining the county policy, and the counties are determining the state partys platform, and the state GOP is lobbying and sending information out. The point I was trying to make when I was testifying on this is that were focusing on the wrong thing; we need to focus on why it is that people who say they are Republicans dont participate. The second thing we need to think about is whether or not were reflecting their voice. Lets be clear, she added. The Republican Party is going to die out because we are not bringing in the young. Most who I know in the 20 to 30 age either dont care or arent in line with the social platforms of the current Republican Party, and in doing so, they are being shut out of the party. Thats not the way to ensure its long-term viability. The Democrats, meanwhile, smell blood. Republicans across the state, Barbuto noted, faced several tough races in 2018, with Democratic candidates managing to flip Republican-controlled seats in places like Fremont County and managing to come within 100 votes of defeating Republicans in others, like Lorraine Saulino-Klein's Albany County race. Speaking as a citizen of Wyoming, I would hope that (the Republicans) goal would be to seek out a variety of ideas and to have conversations about these important topics," Barbuto said, "to make sure the direction of the Legislature is one Wyoming wants to go in and is representative of our values, not our party affiliations." Follow politics reporter Nick Reynolds on Twitter @IAmNickReynolds Love 1 Funny 1 Wow 1 Sad 1 Angry 17 Get Government & Politics updates in your inbox! Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Currently, districts for Congress and the state Legislature are drawn every 10 years by the six-member commission in Idaho answerable only to the courts. The majority and minority party leaders in each legislative chamber select one person to serve on the commission; the state chairs of the Republican and Democratic parties also each select a commissioner. Commissioners cannot be government officials or lobbyists. At least two-thirds of the commissioners must approve a redistricting map. The legislation put forward by Rep. Steve Harris calls for a seventh commissioner to be selected by the governor, lieutenant governor, state controller, state treasurer and superintendent of public instruction. He said the change is needed after problems and lawsuits arose during the last redistricting, which finished in 2012. If the proposed legislation passes by a two-thirds majority in the GOP-dominated Senate and House, the plan would then go to the voters for approval. Harris declined to be interviewed after the House State Affairs Committee he chairs and House adjourned, but did respond to an email from The Associated Press. "I don't know that a seventh member would reduce the number of lawsuits," he said. "One can sue for just about anything. Hopefully, a smoother process will result in less contention, especially once the new process settles down." She will remain free in the meantime and must attend periodic court hearings. Her agreement with prosecutors also prevents her from speaking with media. Police have not found Berreths body but have said evidence suggests she was killed at her home in Woodland Park, a mountain town near Colorado Springs. Berreth, who worked as a flight instructor, was last seen on surveillance footage at a grocery store near her home on Nov. 22, which was Thanksgiving Day. It shows Berreth entering the store toting a baby carrier holding her 1-year-old daughter. Frazee told police he and Berreth met later that day to exchange their daughter; the couple did not live together. Police said several text messages were sent from Berreths phone in the days following Thanksgiving, including a message sent to her employer asking for a week off of work. Location data suggested that by Nov. 25 the phone was near Gooding, Idaho, nearly 800 miles from Berreths house and about 40 miles from where Kenney lived. Police didnt start searching for Berreth until Dec. 2, when her mother became concerned after several days without hearing from her daughter. Berreths mother called police from her home in Idaho to request that someone check on her daughter. Tikapur Municipality sans Muslim graveyard Muslims in Tikapur Municipality, Kailali, have been facing difficulties in performing their death rituals as the municipality does not have a Muslim graveyard. CHEYENNE (WNE) A Cheyenne man was sentenced last Monday to serve 40 years in federal prison for shooting and killing a 19-year-old man. Armando Ramirez-Serna, 22, pleaded guilty in October to killing Justin Robinson in November 2017. After the shooting, Ramirez-Serna took 4 ounces of marijuana and $200 from Robinson. Investigators believe Ramirez-Serna then drove Robinsons body to a reservoir east of town and set fire to Robinsons mothers Lincoln MKX. Ramirez-Serna pleaded guilty to interfering with commerce by robbery, and using a firearm and causing murder during the robbery. As part of the plea agreement, he will not be able to appeal his conviction or sentence. Ramirez-Serna was also ordered to pay more than $19,000 in restitution to the victims family and to the Wyoming Division of Victims Assistance. The prosecution of this case represents a successful collaboration between local and federal law enforcement agencies to combat violent crime in our communities, U.S. Attorney Mark Klaassen said in a news release. The case was investigated by the Laramie County Sheriffs Department and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 1 Sad 0 Angry 0 CODY (WNE) A Cody man has been sentenced to 3-5 years in prison for his role in a major meth dealing operation. Kevin McElmury, 36, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute meth Tuesday in District Court. A trip McElmury allegedly took to Casper with Kristen Kenney and her infant child in late October 2016 first cast light onto McElmury and his alleged drug dealing. Near the hotel the three were staying at in Casper, police became engaged in a car chase with Colorado resident Joel Rodriguez. Once apprehended, inside Rodriguezs vehicle authorities found 442 grams or nearly a pound of 94-100 percent pure meth. What they also found inside Rodriguezs cell phone were McElmurys and Kenneys phone numbers, listed under coded names. Conversations between Rodriguez and Kenney allegedly alluded to a planned purchase between the parties the night Rodriguez was apprehended. McElmury later admitted to investigators he suspected Rodriguez would be bringing meth with him to the meet-up, but denied any direct involvement in purchasing meth. Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 1 Sad 0 Angry 0 State lawmakers have spent months alternating between Casper and Buffalo as the best potential site for a state-run nursing home for veterans. The competition has understandably led to tension between the two cities but it appears to have also caused strife within the Buffalo community. There has been quite a divide in Buffalo over the nursing facility, Johnson County Commissioner Bob Perry said. The hospital and Agape Manor (nursing home) are both opposed to it because they feel that it will be in competition with them for healthcare providers. The Wyoming Legislature is trying to find the best location in the state to build a nursing home for veterans that will be partially funded by the federal department of Veteran Affairs. Perry said he is very disappointed that some community members arent supportive of hosting the home in Buffalo. Its one of the few opportunities weve had recently to provide more employment in the area, he said. A public meeting was held Monday to help bridge the divide, Perry said. The Johnson County Commissioners and the Buffalo City Council met with the leaders of the Johnson County Healthcare Center. The center operates a hospital, clinic, hospice program and nursing home in Buffalo. A deal between Serbia and Kosovo is possible this year but cannot include border changes, Kosovo's premier Ramush Haradinaj told AFP in an interview, warning that territory swaps could revive old demons in the war-scarred Balkans. The idea that Serbia and Kosovo -- a former southern province that broke away in a guerrilla war might end their long-running dispute through a land swap generated buzz last year after their two presidents suggested a trade could be on the table. But the proposal was shot down by a firestorm of criticism from rights groups as well as Prime Minister Haradinaj, who is fiercely against ceding any ground to Serbia. Since then, the EU-brokered talks between the two presidents have come to a halt. Speaking to AFP from his office in Pristina, Haradinaj said he believed a deal was still within reach, "possible even this year", but that he would not budge on the land swap issue. "To open the discussion on territories and borders is to open up the past, and the past was tragic," said Haradinaj, a former guerrilla commander in Kosovo's independence war. Borders "were the subject of the past wars", he added, referring in part to the 1998-99 separatist conflict that effectively split Kosovo, an ethnic Albanian majority province, away from Serbia. More than 13,000 were killed in the war, overwhelmingly ethnic Albanians. Border between Kosovo and Serbia / AFP/File Altering borders again would be "dangerous" and "does not bring us close to an agreement, it takes us away from it", he added. Haradinaj's strong opposition to border changes publicly pits him against President Hashim Thaci, who is taking part in the EU-led talks with his Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vucic. Though neither president fully explained the proposal, local media and analysts assumed it would see a Serb-dominated part of northern Kosovo exchanged for a mainly ethnic Albanian sliver of Serbia. The prospect of further redrawing of the region along ethnic lines -- one outcome of the 1990s wars -- ignited strong criticism from rights groups. However Western diplomats, particularly the US, appeared far more open to the proposal than in the past, when redrawing Balkan borders was considered taboo after Yugoslavia's bloody collapse. - Tariff and talks - Haradinaj says he is eager for talks to start again. But another key obstacle is the 100 percent tariff his government slapped on Serbian goods in November, sending relations into a nosedive. On Friday the US reiterated its demand that the tariff be lifted immediately. Haradinaj told AFP the tariff was a response to the "arrogance" of Serbian officials who he accuses of sabotaging Pristina's attempts to join the global police organisation Interpol last year. Kosovo's Serb minority have protested against the customs tax and remain loyal to Belgrade / AFP/File Belgrade has long campaigned to shut Kosovo out of international organisations, including the UN. While Haradinaj initially said the tariff would not be lifted until Belgrade recognised Kosovo, he has since softened his position, saying he would remove it if efforts were made in good faith to restart the dialogue. If the talks "become serious ... if there is a conference ... where everything is prepared to get somewhere, we will give a chance to the process", he told AFP. But if Serbia says it will never recognise Kosovo, "my answer is 'we will never remove'" the tariff, he added. That will come as unwelcome news to the 120,000 Serb minority in Kosovo, who have protested against the customs tax and remain loyal to Belgrade, unwilling to accept Pristina's authority. In response to their resistance, Haradinaj said: "we do not force them, we have time". "They are Serbs and they live as Serbs, and their values are respected," he added. Huge progress has been made regarding equal opportunities for women and men. Though the case is far from clear cut. Taina Bofferding, the Minister of Equality between Women and Men, and Etienne Schneider brought it to the point. The board of directors for public institutions are currently made up of 40% women representatives. Compared to 4 years ago, women only made up 30%. Taina Bofferding sees this as a big success. When looking at the board of director for public institutions as a whole, 34,96% more women are involved in the decision-making. Companies can boast a similar evolution, as 30% of the representatives of the government are women. 2014 the previous government had vouched to actively work on equal opportunities an equal representation of women in decision-making areas. The goal they wanted to reach was 40%. According to the Minister of Equality, the women's quota can be effective but by far not a miracle solution. Still it helps to break traditions. Despite the success the government does not want to stop here, and decided to further push the agenda. Even in the private sector progress needs to be, especially in higher positions. This news comes, despite a recent report from Eurostat that finds Luxembourg is significantly behind in terms of female managerial roles, read that article here. Public Statement Gender Equality on Boards: Government welcomes successful goal of 40% Statement by: Ministry of Equality between Women and Men / Ministry of Economy On Friday 8. February, the Minister for Equality between Women and Men, Taina Bofferding, and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Economy, Etienne Schneider, presented the results of the recent interim review of the government's efforts to gender equality in decision-making bodies. "It's a notable success. For the first time, the bar of 40% of women representing the state in the boards of directors of public institutions has been crossed," said the ministers. The previous government had committed in the fall of 2014 to intervene systematically to promote better representation of the underrepresented sex in decision-making bodies. And this, in public institutions and societies in which the state is represented. The clear, quantifiable and measurable goal has been set at 40% mandates for the under-represented sex by 2019. In concrete terms, the recent interim review shows that: The rate of women representing the State in decision-making bodies of public establishments is now 40.19% (against 30.34% in January 2015) The total rate of women on the boards of public institutions, including those representing other partners, reached 34.69% (compared to 27.41% in January 2015) "This 40% goal reinforced the discussion on the profile of directors. It is an effective way to change mentalities. Admittedly, quotas are not a quick fix, but they can help to overcome the weight of tradition, "said the Minister of Equality between Women and Men. For companies, the balance sheet shows an increase of six percentage points to settle at a rate of 30.58% of women representing the state. As the ministers explained, vacancies are not only determined by the government but also by other actors such as representatives of municipalities, regional unions or social partners. Ministers Taina Bofferding and Etienne Schneider have reiterated the will to continue efforts. They invite all actors to work together to achieve a better balance. "Clap Your Hands If You Believe in Fairies!" I was like, Whats happening? McKnight said. But when she looked at the data, she found that only some of the students were performing well and some were not. And the ones who were not people didnt think it was a priority, she said. So she began to work with the staff to make them understand a few things, she said. First, there needed to be a culture in which students felt that they were really cared for. And we also wanted to make sure that parents knew we were committed to making sure their children received the education that they expected in that classroom, she said. As she worked through the issues with her staff, she began to understand the importance of not only supporting teachers in their growth, but the importance of valuing their hard work and acknowledging they do it. Teaching is not easy, she said. And Ill tell you, the needs have shifted for our students and our families. And our students bring a lot of things into the school and the classroom that we really didnt have to worry about as much 20 years ago. When teachers are valued, they invest more than they are asked to, she said. He stipulated that Lotts term many end after three years upon the recommendation of probation officers. Torre Avonte Webb, 25, of 694 Green St., Orangeburg, pleaded guilty to hit and run resulting in minor injury. Dickson sentenced him to one year in prison, suspended to five years of probation. He credited Webb for having already served 21 days at the OCDC. He also ordered him to pay restitution. William Burgess Hutto Jr., 30, of 104 Megan Road, Neeses, pleaded guilty to malicious injury to personal property valued between $2,000 and $10,000. Dickson sentenced him to three years in prison, suspended to five years of probation. He also ordered Hutto to pay restitution with a co-defendant. Javenta Raeqwon Murphy, 22, of 153 Puppy Lane, Holly Hill, pleaded guilty to petty larceny and non-violent second-degree burglary. Dickson sentenced him to five years in prison, suspended to nine months of probation. He also credited Murphy for the time hes served at OCDC since Oct. 19, 2018. Revving up Its time to bid adieu to the internal combustion engine COLUMBIA -- A new exhibit featuring hundreds of items from the University of South Carolinas special collections tells the story of the states fundamental role in the national Civil Rights Movement. Justice for All: South Carolina and the American Civil Rights Movement uses oral history recordings, film clips, photographs, postcards, diaries and manuscripts to highlight largely overlooked chapters in the history of the movement. The exhibit opened Thursday. Justice for All is the work of the Center for Civil Rights History and Research at the University of South Carolina, in partnership with the University of South Carolina Libraries and the College of Arts and Sciences, with grant funding from South Carolina Humanities. Students and visitors to the exhibit will be able to see how individuals and institutions in the state pushed for the movement for equal rights that brought about change in South Carolina and across the country, said Dr. Bobby Donaldson, professor of history and the Director of the Center for Civil Rights History and Research. Daniel Augustus Straker was a lawyer and a political figure in Orangeburg during the Reconstruction years. He was born in Bridgetown, Barbados, where he became a successful teacher and principal at St. Marys Public School. He moved to Louisville, Kentucky, and taught at a freedmans school for a year. In 1869, he entered Howard University, graduating in two years with a degree in law. He returned to Kentucky but was unable to find work as a lawyer, so he took a position as a postal clerk. He married Annie M. Carey. Straker also was connected with Frederick Douglass New National Era newspaper, which gained him national recognition. Straker moved to Charleston in 1875, taking a position as an inspector in the custom house. In 1876, he joined the law firm of Elliott and Stewart and moved to Orangeburg. At that time, Robert Elliott and T. McCants Stewart were considered the best black lawyers in South Carolina. In April 1876, Straker and A.B. Knowlton were hired by the Orangeburg County Commissioners (County Council today) to take care the interest of the county in a $2,000 suit by Maj. T.B. Whaley. COLUMBIA -- TransformSC, an education initiative of the South Carolina Council on Competitiveness, will hold its 2019 annual conference on Monday, March 11, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center in downtown Columbia. Tom Vander Ark, author and CEO of the learning design firm "Getting Smart," will set the tone for the day with an opening address that will offer insight into the newest information behind project-based learning. He will be sharing trends and case studies from schools across the U.S. and lead a Q&A session with two TransformSC co-chairs: Mike Brenan, S.C. state president of BB&T, and Pamela Lackey, recently retired president of AT&T. Following Vander Arks address, breakout sessions will be held throughout the day. Sessions include design workshops from New Tech Network, a national non-profit organization that is driving transformation in schools nationwide; Suzie Boss, an author and education consultant out of Portland, Oregon; and Stephanie DisTasio from the South Carolina Department of Educations Office of Personalized Learning. Bates Middle School, Monarch Elementary and Carolina High will also hold breakout sessions that will include panel discussions with school representatives and Q&A with the audience. The Dialysis Access Institute at the Regional Medical Center is the first hospital in the state and one of only a handful in the country to of Outdoors: Life, and encounters with death, at the feeder The line between life and death in the natural world is razor thin. Granted, some businesses operate on a thin margin. But, the retail license breaks down to $41.67 per month or $1.37 per day. The individual license costs $5.00 per month, 17 cents per day. Its a stretch to consider those fees would break the bank. The law, which will go into effect in six months, will affect about 2,400 dealers. If a person wants to make an argument that the additional layer of regulation is unnecessary, Ill listen. You might make the case that obtaining licensing from the state will do little to curtail gun violence, Im all ears. But, the new law hardly seems an assault on the Second Amendment. OUTDOORS COLUMN: Shutdown's effects range far and wide Watching the national news is rarely an uplifting experience. Reiterating: nothing in the legislation is aimed at prohibiting particular weapons. Nothing in the legislation would restrict types of weapons and accessories that can be bought and sold. The law also calls for tighter inventory control, employee training and more video monitoring. None of that seems unreasonable. Some area legislators said the law is unfair without elaborating as to how or why. Two "dark money" groups are stepping up to separately promote and attack the new governor's agenda. "Think Big Illinois," a brand new 501(c)(4) organization which doesn't have to disclose its donors, will support Gov. J.B. Pritzker, whose 2018 campaign slogans included "Think big." The organization will be headed by Quentin Fulks, who served as Pritzker's deputy campaign manager. "A $15 minimum wage is the first in a series of progressive policies Think Big Illinois will advocate for in the coming months," a press release says. The group appears to be the likely conduit for Pritzker and others to fund a public push for the progressive income tax if it makes it onto the 2020 ballot. Both legislative chambers first have to approve the proposal with three-fifths majorities, and then voters get a crack at it. Neither step is guaranteed. Defeating that progressive income tax proposal at the ballot box is now the main goal of another dark money not-for-profit group which has been around for years. The Coalition for Jobs, Growth and Prosperity launched a new website last week called "Ideas for Illinois." The website is fairly innocuous so far, but the people who run it say their ultimate goal is to become the prime conduit for opposition to the governor's progressive income tax if and/or when it reaches the ballot. Some logos we cant draw on, so we have to use a stencil. We can put edible images on cookies, but we like to try to do everything by hand when possible, said Rollinson. The custom cookie portfolio at Cristaudos is vast, and there have been many memorable orders throughout the years, showing the intricate work involved. Recently, bakers used artwork provided by Carbondale Tourism to create cookies with the businesss logo for a recent event. The white background with its fan of colors in the shape of a C was a beautifully detailed rendition of the logo. One lucky little boy in Southern Illinois has served custom cookies at his solar system themed birthday parties for the last three years. The planet cookies, which include a very intricate planet Earth, richly colored Mars in red, Jupiter with its orange and white bands, and the moon complete with shimmering sprinkles, are works of art and a testament to Cristaudos mission of designing a delicious cookie for any occasion. Popular for parties with a Parisian theme are Eiffel Tower cookies, which encapsulate the romance of the city on a round cookie, with the dark gray structure drawn by hand onto a subtle pink background. The United Media Guild honored its top activists and celebrated great journalism at its annual awards banquet Thursday, Feb. 7 at Lombardos Trattoria inside the Drury Inn Union Station in St. Louis. The Southern Illinoisan Unit Chair Shawn Anglin was honored as the 2018 Guilder of the Year, the guild's highest award for activism. I am truly honored to receive this award, Anglin said. This is something I will always cherish and I couldnt have done this without the support of my colleagues. The entire newsroom staff of The Southern was presented with the Solidarity Award. This award is given annually to a unit that shows togetherness and a drive to make a collective difference. The Southerns newsroom received the honor for their unanimous vote to form a Union on May 17, 2018. Vice Chair Todd Hefferman and Recording Secretary Marilyn Halstead attended the ceremony with Anglin to accept the awards. Its truly a blessing to share these awards with our colleagues as we strive to produce quality local journalism together, Anglin added. The Southern Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Egyptian Electric Cooperative will select local students for the 2019 Youth Day in Springfield and Youth to Washington. Sophomores, juniors and seniors attending a public or private high school within the Egyptian Electric service territorial footprint, or otherwise a member of the cooperative, can apply. At least eight students will be chosen to attend Youth Day in Springfield on April 3. During the day, these students and their Illinois counterparts will meet their elected senators and representatives on the floor at the Capitol to learn first-hand about the workings of state government and electric cooperatives. Additionally, the top two students will be selected to represent Egyptian Electric Cooperative and our state by attending the Youth to Washington trip June 14-21. The two winners, chaperones and about 60 Illinois students will travel by bus from Mount Vernon to Washington, D.C., to join more than 1,500 high school students from around the country on one of the most recognized youth programs. Applications have been made available to local high school guidance counselors, and can be found on our website, www.eeca.coop/content/youth-washington, and in our office. All applications must be received by March 8. A place to exercise ideas before writing about them with greater discipline. Prolonged prohibitory order hits normal life in Rukumkot Normal life in Rukumkot has been affected due to the prolonged prohibitory order imposed by the District Administration Office (DAO) last week. Ad Resource Stock Digest 1,072 Interested This Week Could This Be the Biggest US Gold Discovery in Years? See how this tiny, unknown gold company secured a prime land package right next door to the worlds two largest gold producers in Nevadas famed Carlin Trend where 84 Million gold ounces have already been extracted. Best of all, investors can still get in well below US$0.50 per share. Hormel Foods Corporation produces and markets various meat and food products to retail, foodservice, deli, and commercial customers in the United States and internationally. The company operates through four segments: Grocery Products, Refrigerated Foods, Jennie-O Turkey Store, and International & Other. It offers various perishable meat products, including fresh meats, frozen items, refrigerated meal solutions, sausages, hams, guacamoles, and bacons; and shelf-stable products, such as canned luncheon meats, peanut butters, chilies, shelf-stable microwaveable meals, hashes, stews, meat spreads, flour and corn tortillas, salsas, tortilla chips, and other products. The company also provides turkey products; nutritional food products and supplements; dessert and drink mixes; and industrial gelatin products. It sells its products under the SKIPPY, SPAM, Hormel, Natural Choice, Applegate, Justin's, Jennie-O, CafA H, Herdez, Black Label, Sadler's, Columbus, etc. brand names through sales personnel, as well as through independent brokers and distributors. The company was formerly known as Geo. A. Hormel & Company and changed its name to Hormel Foods Corporation in January 1995. Hormel Foods Corporation was founded in 1891 and is headquartered in Austin, Minnesota. Read More Police to launch app aimed at making night buses safer In a bid to make night buses that come in and out of the Valley safer, Nepal Police is launching an application, on Sunday, that will check if drivers are being changed during the course of the journey so as to ensure the buses are being driven by alert, attentive drivers. American Consumer News, LLC dba MarketBeat 2010-2021. All rights reserved. 326 E 8th St #105, Sioux Falls, SD 57103 | U.S. Based Support Team at [email protected] | (844) 978-6257 MarketBeat does not provide personalized financial advice and does not issue recommendations or offers to buy stock or sell any security. Our Accessibility Statement | Terms of Service | Do Not Sell My Information 2021 Market data provided is at least 10-minutes delayed and hosted by Barchart Solutions. Information is provided 'as-is' and solely for informational purposes, not for trading purposes or advice, and is delayed. To see all exchange delays and terms of use please see disclaimer. Fundamental company data provided by Zacks Investment Research. To Any American Who Owns a Cell Phone (Ad) If you own a cell phone, then mobile service providers hope you never get to see this video that could soon go viral. His experiment could strike a bad chord with mobile phone companies. But youve got to see what this man discovered and what it means for phone users in the weeks ahead. Click here to see this video before it's removed Police arrest one with counterfeit currency Police have arrested a person with a huge cache of counterfeit currency from Capital on Sunday. 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. Grows apples at Snake River The orchard operations, including a massive packing house, are centered near Prescott, along Fishhook Park Road on the Walla Walla County side of the Snake River. Jim Hazen, a former Broetje Orchards executive, was named president and chief executive of the new company. In January, Hazen told AgriInvestor it would continue to invest in producing quality apples and investing in its people. Hazen pledged to make the transition seamless for Broetje employees. The success of the company over the years has been due in large part to the dedication of our employees. Our future success also depends on them. We are working to avoid disrupting any services or programs for our employees or our customers, he said in a statement. Cheryl and Ralph Broetje established the orchard business in the late 1960s, infusing it with their faith. The couple are known for their substantial philanthropic contributions to the community. Teacher fund likes food investments The Ontario Teachers Pension Plan, with about $194 billion Canadian dollars under management or US $146 billion, invests in a variety of asset classes, including real estate, farmland and food production. Pappu scam pegs back construction of central banks Baluwatar office When the construction of a new building of the Nepal Rastra Bank at Thapathali, Kathmandu began in the third week of September, the National Reconstruction Authority was preparing to award the contract of constructing another building of the central bank at Baluwatar, Kathmandu. There are four options when city regulations are stifling, she said. Change the law, temporarily suspend the law, do it anyway and pay the fine, or encourage community ninjas. If a property owner wont clean up her business, ninjas can sweep the sidewalks and wash the windows when no one is looking. If a fence is barren, ninjas should drape a painted parachute cloth over it. If a vacant building has empty windows, ninjas can tape old movie posters to the outside. What is the owner going to do? Be mad at them for putting flowers in window boxes? she asked. Ninjas can do good things, even without permission. Longview Councilwoman MaryAlice Wallis, who is the council liaison for the Longview Downtowners business group, said the city can be more open to new ideas and opportunities. We need to be brave and open to change. We need to be the town of can do instead of cant do. Theres a different feel when you give people permission to be themselves and be authentic, Wallis said. McCray has reinforced the need for small, incremental and sometimes temporary efforts that can improve the quality of place in all the downtowns, Cowlitz Economic Development Council Community Engagement Director Lindsey Cope said Thursday. We get so caught up in the big projects and the idea of permanence that it stops us from even trying something new. Were towns that were founded on trying something new, Cope said. Doing nothing is getting us nowhere. Sometimes an outside perspective is the kick in the pants you need to get you started. Love 9 Funny 12 Wow 0 Sad 1 Angry 11 The agency denied a new but similar permit in the spring last year, saying imidacloprid has little known direct risk on the health of humans, fish, birds and marine mammals, but has significant, adverse, and unavoidable impacts to both sediment quality and invertebrates living in the sediments and (the) water column. The chemical could harm juvenile worms and crustaceans, which could disrupt the food chain, according to Ecology. The science around imidacloprid is rapidly evolving and we cant ignore it. New findings make it clear that this pesticide is simply too risky and harmful to be used in Washingtons waters and estuaries, Ecology Director Maia Bellon said at the time. Ecology spokeswoman Colleen Keltz on Friday declined to discuss the specifics of the bills, which are both still in committee, but said we stand behind our science-based decision from 2018. For that reason, we would oppose the bill. Takko said Ecologys decision was a reaction against a Seattle Times article and the resulting public pressure. Ecologys policy is run more by politics than it is by science, he said. But Blake says the proposed legislation is about more than imidacloprid and Ecologys decision. Instead, the goal is investigating many solutions to the problem, he said. July 17, 1949 Jan. 12, 2019 Dennis Richard Johnson passed away peacefully at the Hospice Care Center. He was born July 17, 1949, in Olympia, to Arthur and Wilma (Harmer) Johnson. Denny graduated in 1967 from Tenino High School. He joined the Army in 1969, serving in Korea and the states before being discharged in 1971. He returned to work for Weyerhaeuser retiring from the Woods Maintenance Department in 2004. He was known as Swede to his work buddies. Denny started Quality Gear Inc., in 1982. Through his business he met many people who remained a part of his life. The business will still operate thanks to two very loyal and honest employees, Brent and Jim. Denny loved to travel, sometimes more than his wife, Paulette. They went on many cruises with Denny making arrangements for the next cruise before he got off the ship or as soon as he got home. He enjoyed the sunshine in Palm Springs and traveled there with friends. He could not pick a favorite trip as he loved them all. The Standardbred Breeders and Owners Association of New Jersey has issued a notice regarding the SBOANJ 2019 rebate program. The SBOANJ 2019 rebate programs will be determined once the Governor has signed into law the $10 million annual five-year appropriation bill. Once the funding is approved an announcement will be made with all the information on our website. Please make sure you file all the necessary paperwork for the current programs to remain eligible. Any questions please call 732-462-2357. (SBOANJ) Veteran horse racing executive Mark Loewe has been named Vice President of Racing for the Meadows Casino, Racetrack and Hotel, subject to customary regulatory licensing requirements. Loewe has over forty years of experience in the horse racing industry, working both on the backstretch and in the boardroom at many varied locations. A New York City native and graduate of St. Johns University, Loewe rose in the racing ranks from groom to successful trainer in the 1980s and 1990s and then made a seamless transition to the management side at Pompano Park in 1991 where he worked until 2014. Loewe joined Penn National Gaming, Inc. (PNGI) in February 2008 as General Manager of the Sanford Orlando Kennel Club in Longwood, Florida and since then has assumed racing leadership roles at five other PNGI horse racing facilities (Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course, Beulah Park, Raceway Park, Hollywood Gaming at Dayton Raceway and Hollywood Gaming at Mahoning Valley Race Course.) Loewe was actively involved in the development of the overall racing facilities at Dayton Raceway and Mahoning Valley Race Course and since late 2014 has served as Vice President of Ohio Racing Operations for PNGI. Loewe will retain his oversight of the Mahoning Valley Race Course racing operations as part of his new assignment. Im excited by the opportunity and challenges presented by the Meadows racing operation. I was already familiar with many of the employees and horsemen at the facility and Im looking forward to positively impacting the racing operations, Loewe said. I have the utmost confidence in Mark and his abilities and look forward to his active involvement in the Meadows racing program. He has a proven track record at multiple operations and we are excited to add the Meadows to our stable of 13 owned or managed pari-mutuel racetracks, added Chris McErlean, Vice President of Racing for PNGI. Le Collectif Cheikh Yassine a organise un certain nombre dactivites et de festivites pour les enfants de Gaza sous le theme La joie des enfants de Gaza pour lAid . Ces activites ont commence le premier jour de lAid et continue jusquau 4eme jour de lAid dans la bande de Gaza. Plusieurs activites, ont ete organisees parmi lesquelles : des competitions recompensees par des prix, des jeux, des animations et des chants presentes par un groupe ainsi que des distributions de cadeaux et daides financieres. The gravity of the existential threat we face from Islamic Jihad is truly of epic proportions. It is essentially a battle pitting free-civilized man against a totalitarian barbarian. What is at stake is the struggle for our very soul - namely who we are and what we represent. The lives that were sacrificed for individual rights and freedoms that we've come to cherish are being chiseled away from right under our noses by the stealth jihadists. And many of us are in denial and totally clueless. The left's appeasement and pandering to evil is nothing new. What makes their utopian delusions so infuriating and unpardonable is that it is not only they who will have to pay the consequences, and deservedly, so, they are thwarting and undermining our best efforts at resistance and are thus dragging us down in the process as well. By Peter Lancz,, the head of the Raoul Wallenberg World Campaign Against Racism. Maternal mortality reduction target hard to meet for Nepal: Officials Nepals commitment to reducing, and limiting, maternal mortality to 125 per 100,000 births by 2020 is impossible, according to officials who stress the need for postnatal care. Robert Gilpin, R.I.P. - The Washington Post : His greatest book was written in 1981, but the main theory in it is perhaps more trenchant now... President Donald Trump scoffed at criticism of how he spends his work days after a leak of his schedules showed how big chunks of his days are devoted to unstructured Executive Time, saying the media once again got the story wrong. His extensive use of Executive Time should have been reported as a positive, not a negative, Trump wrote. When that term is used, I am generally working, not relaxing, Trump wrote, before adding, I probably work more hours than almost any past President. Advertisement The media was able to get my work schedule, something very easy to do, but it should have been reported as a positive, not negative. When the term Executive Time is used, I am generally working, not relaxing. In fact, I probably work more hours than almost any past President..... Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 10, 2019 Advertisement Advertisement The president then went on to claim he had no choice but to work very long hours because when he moved into the White House our Country was a mess. Advertisement ....The fact is, when I took over as President, our Country was a mess. Depleted Military, Endless Wars, a potential War with North Korea, V.A., High Taxes & too many Regulations, Border, Immigration & HealthCare problems, & much more. I had no choice but to work very long hours! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 10, 2019 Last week, Axios published almost all the presidents daily work schedules since the midterms showing that around 60 percent of Trumps time had been blocked off for Executive Time. Trump seemed to dismiss the importance of the leak, saying that obtaining his daily schedules was something very easy to do. Acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney also pushed that same message on NBC, dismissing the leak as really not that interesting. Thats probably the closest thing to a public schedule that we put out, Mulvaney said. Its not very sensitive. I think 400 people get that schedule. So it wasnt that valuable of information. Even as the administration tries to dismiss the importance of the leak, Politico reports the White House has launched an aggressive investigation to find out who was responsible for sharing the schedules. Gov. Ralph Northam started going on a bit of a media tour to defend his decision not to step down after he was engulfed in controversy following the revelation of a racist photo in his medical school yearbook page and his admission that he wore blackface. But in his second high-profile interview, Northam made news for all the wrong reasons again and made it even more difficult for people to believe his contention that he really is the right man to lead Virginia. In his first televised interview since he was engulfed in scandal, Northam referred to slaves as indentured servants. Advertisement Well it has been a difficult week, Northam said. And you know if you look at Virginias history we are now at the 400 year anniversary, just 90 miles from here in 1619. The first indentured servants from Africa landed on our shores in Old Point Comfort what we call now Fort Monroe and while At that point CBS Gayle King interrupted him: Also known as slavery. Northam quickly answers yes and keeps going with his point. Advertisement Advertisement Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam: "We are now at the 400-year anniversary just 90 miles from here in 1619. The first indentured servants from Africa landed on our shores in Old Point Comfort, what we call now Fort Monroe, and while"@GayleKing: "Also known as slavery" pic.twitter.com/AiX96MU1rJ CBS This Morning (@CBSThisMorning) February 10, 2019 Advertisement Northams sit-down with CBS came out shortly after the Washington Post published its own interview with the governor in which he said he wanted to work toward healing that pain of racial inequality. But his interview on CBS seemed to illustrate why he may not be the best man for that job. Northams choice of words were immediately seen as an example of how little he understands about American history and the history of African-Americans in his state and the country in general. Virginia deserves a governor that knows the folks who were stolen from their land & brought to present day Virginia on cargo ships in 1619 were not indentured servants they were mothers, fathers, daughters, sons, leaders, warriors, elders who were captured & enslaved. SIGH, wrote Symone Sanders on Twitter. The Washington Posts Dave Weigel points out that this is a classic old white Virginia guy thing to believe and really gets back to whether he is the best person to lead racial healing. Advertisement Virginia deserves a governor that knows the folks who were stolen from their land & brought to present day Virginia on cargo ships in 1619 were not "indentured servants" they were mothers, fathers, daughters, sons, leaders, warriors, elders who were captured & enslaved. SIGH Symone D. Sanders (@SymoneDSanders) February 10, 2019 Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax is staying put. Fairfax made clear over the weekend that he has no plans to resign, insisting that sexual encounters with the women who have accused him of sexual assault were consensual. To bolster his claim that the has nothing to hide, Fairfax called on the FBI to investigate the allegations. This has been a devastating week for my family. It has been an especially devastating time for the great Commonwealth of Virginia, Fairfax said in a statement. I say again without reservation: I did not sexually assault or rape Meredith Watson, Vanessa Tyson or anyone else. Our American values dont just work when its convenient they must be applied at the most difficult of times. Advertisement The statement issued Saturday night marked the first time that Fairfax acknowledged he did have an encounter with Watson, who alleges Fairfax raped her when they were both students at Duke University. The lieutenant governor insisted though that the interactions with both Watson and Tyson, who first accused Fairfax of sexually assaulting her at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, were consensual and he called on the public not to jump to conclusions. I am asking that no one rush to judgment and I am asking for there to be space in this moment for due process, Fairfax added. Advertisement Advertisement Democratic Del. Patrick Hope has said he will seek to introduce articles of impeachment against Fairfax if he doesnt resign by Monday. For now it doesnt seem like the threat is too imminent considering Hope is not a powerful figure in the House and theres little sign theres a broad appetite for impeachment with lawmakers set to finish this years legislative session by the end of the month, notes the Associated Press. But both Watson and Tyson said they are willing to testify if an impeachment hearing does take place. Advertisement Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, who is engulfed in his own scandal after admitting to wearing blackface, said he supports an investigation into the allegations against Fairfax but didnt call on him to resign. I can only imagine that it must take tremendous courage for women to step forward and and talk about these things that are just- are just so hurtful. And these accusations are very, very serious. They need to be taken seriously. As you know, Governor Fairfax has called for an investigation. I really think where we are now, we need to get to the truth, Northam said on CBS. Sen. Elizabeth Warren had largely avoided directly attacking President Donald Trump when she was testing the waters of her presidential run. But after formally launching her presidential candidacy Saturday, the senator from Massachusetts came out with guns blazing in Iowa, saying Trump may not even be in the White House by the time voters go to the ballot box. Heres what bothers me, Warren said during a campaign event in eastern Iowa. By the time we get to 2020, Donald Trump may not even be president. In fact, he may not even be a free person. Advertisement Warren made the comment as she tried to argue why the campaign for president shouldnt be dominated by the commander in chiefs attacks and what he writes on Twitter. Every day there is a racist tweet, a hateful tweet something really dark and ugly, she said. What are we as candidates, as activists, as the press, going to do about it? Were going to chase after those every day? Advertisement Advertisement Elizabeth Warren in first minutes of Iowa speech---> "Heres what bothers me, by the time we get to 2020, Donald Trump may not even be president. In fact, he may not even be a free person. But heres how I see it Donald Trump is not the only problem weve got." pic.twitter.com/WtUa6jw7Qz Vaughn Hillyard (@VaughnHillyard) February 10, 2019 Advertisement The senator made the comment shortly after Trump sparked outrage by appearing to mock the Trail of Tears in a tweet about Warren officially announcing her run for president. Today Elizabeth Warren, sometimes referred to by me as Pocahontas, joined the race for President, Trump wrote on Twitter. Will she run as our first Native American presidential candidate, or has she decided that after 32 years, this is not playing so well anymore? See you on the campaign TRAIL, Liz! Today Elizabeth Warren, sometimes referred to by me as Pocahontas, joined the race for President. Will she run as our first Native American presidential candidate, or has she decided that after 32 years, this is not playing so well anymore? See you on the campaign TRAIL, Liz! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 9, 2019 Advertisement Many interpreted the presidents use of all caps in the word trail as a nod to the Trail of Tears, which refers to the forcible relocation of Native Americas from their homes in the 1800s that killed thousands. There is little doubt here that he uses TRAIL to evoke the genocidal Trail of Tears, and does so to land a political jab, tweeted writer Jamil Smith. Warren has taken justifiable heat on this issuebut he used the murders of Indigenous people as a punchline. I try to never dignify this mans tweets, but there is little doubt here that he uses TRAIL to evoke the genocidal Trail of Tears, and does so to land a political jab. Warren has taken justifiable heat on this issuebut he used the murders of Indigenous people as a punchline. https://t.co/LiyK2iruDF Jamil Smith (@JamilSmith) February 9, 2019 Advertisement Others, however, defended the president, saying his ignorance of American history means critics were reading too much into a simple tweet. Yes, because Trump is noted for his knowledge of 19th century American history vis a vis the native population. Jeez, Fox News Brit Hume wrote on Twitter. Advertisement Yes, because Trump is noted for his knowledge of 19th century American history vis a vis the native population. Jeez. https://t.co/WYmvB1jg1O Brit Hume (@brithume) February 10, 2019 Advertisement Yet his own son appeared to agree that the worst interpretation of his fathers tweet was the correct one. Donald Trump Jr. posted a screen grab of his fathers tweet on Instagram with a reply that read: The Native American genocide continues with another murder by the president. Trump Jr. commented: Savage!!! Love my President. The Washington Posts Dave Weigel put forward what he described as a cynical theory to explain why Warren appears ready to attack the president more directly now. If Warren is doomed to have a fake Indian news cycle every few weeks, shed rather it be a fight w Trump than a round against the press, Weigel writes. Looks like were back at impasse as new questions are emerging over whether congressional negotiators will be able to seal a deal to prevent another government shutdown by the Friday deadline. There was optimism that negotiations on border security would make progress over the weekend to finalize a deal by Monday so lawmakers could vote and prevent yet another government shutdown. But Democrats and Republicans appear to be at an impasse and now aides on both sides are debating whether they need to be considering backstop alternatives to at least temporarily avert a shutdown. Senate Appropriations Chairman Richard Shelby didnt sound too optimistic Sunday as he acknowledged talks had stalled. Ill say 50/50 well get a deal, Shelby said on Fox News Sunday. Shelby said that while were hoping we can get there, he was not confident a deal could be reached through the weekend. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Senator Richard Shelby (R-AL) on getting a deal for a wall #FNS pic.twitter.com/QkLsspfqMS FoxNewsSunday (@FoxNewsSunday) February 10, 2019 Shelby pointed the finger at Democrats for the stalled talks, saying they wanted to put a cap on the number of beds at immigration detention centers. Although negotiators appear to have come close to agreeing on the amount of funding for a border wall, Democrats are reportedly saying they will only agree to more money for the barrier if there is a cap on beds, which Republicans are resisting. Time is ticking away but we got some problems with the Democrats dealing with ICE, he said, referring to Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Advertisement Jon Tester (D-MT) on border negotiations coming to an end soon pic.twitter.com/C3SQomB2W0 FoxNewsSunday (@FoxNewsSunday) February 10, 2019 Sen. Jon Tester, a Democrat who is one of the key negotiators, sounded a bit more optimistic, saying that while a deal cant be announced yet, negotiations are still going on. Tester told Fox News Sunday that he has confidence that hopefully we will get something done very soon. Meanwhile, White House acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney made sure to emphasize that a shutdown was still most definitely a possibility. The government shutdown is technically still on the table, Mulvaney said on Fox News Sunday. We do not want it to come to that but that option is still open to the president and will remain so. Speaking on NBCs Meet the Press, Mulvaney said President Donald Trump may not have a choice. Lets say the hardcore, left wing of the Democrat Party prevails in this negotiation and they put a bill on the presidents desk with, say, zero money for the wall, or $800 million, an absurdly low number. How does he sign that? Mulvaney said. Advertisement Advertisement WATCH: Acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney tells @chucktodd he "absolutely cannot" rule out the possibility of another government shutdown over border security negotiations. #MTP pic.twitter.com/SeuRfVThtr Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) February 10, 2019 President Donald Trump weighed in on the stalled negotiations Sunday, sending out a pair of tweets in which he unsurprisingly pointed the finger at Democrats, who are offering very little money for the wall. Trump blamed the Democratic leadership, saying that they were making it difficult for negotiators to make a deal. The president speculated that Democrats may want to shut down the government to take attention away from other issues. It was a very bad week for the Democrats, with the GREAT economic numbers, The Virginia disaster and the State of the Union address Trump wrote. Now, with the terrible offers being made by them to the Border Committee, I actually believe they want a Shutdown. They want a new subject! Advertisement I dont think the Dems on the Border Committee are being allowed by their leaders to make a deal. They are offering very little money for the desperately needed Border Wall & now, out of the blue, want a cap on convicted violent felons to be held in detention! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 10, 2019 On Saturday, President Donald Trump welcomed Sen. Elizabeth Warren to the 2020 presidential race by taking his racist taunts to an entirely new level: Today Elizabeth Warren, sometimes referred to by me as Pocahontas, joined the race for President. Will she run as our first Native American presidential candidate, or has she decided that after 32 years, this is not playing so well anymore? See you on the campaign TRAIL, Liz! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 9, 2019 Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Yeah, that seems to be a joke about the Trail of Tears from the man who heads the government that perpetrated it. In an effort to explain why this is not a horrible thing for a president to have said, Trump defenders have been reduced to the position, put forward by Brit Hume, that Donald Trump is too stupid to have been that heartless or racist: Yes, because Trump is noted for his knowledge of 19th century American history vis a vis the native population. Jeez. https://t.co/WYmvB1jg1O Brit Hume (@brithume) February 10, 2019 Advertisement The problem with this defense is that, as HuffPosts Ashley Feinberg noticed, Donald Trump Jr.who has never been described as Donald Trump, but smarter seems to have gotten the joke just fine. When writer Michael Malice upped the genocide humor ante, he got an Instagram shout-out from Don Jr.: We are no doubt in for a grueling news cycle about who gets to tell which jokes and when, so it might be useful to clarify exactly what this joke was about. For many people, the phrase trail of tears evokes the famous Robert Lindneux painting of a wagon train of Native Americans headed west, and not much else. Lindneux doesnt make the march look like a lot of fun, but the mood of The Trail of Tearspainted in 1942, more than a century lateris elegiac and mournful, and touches on myths of the American West in ways that undersell the cruelty, greed, stupidity, and brutality that characterized Native American relocation. So as a partial corrective, here is the account of Rev. Evan Jones, as reprinted in the Georgia Historical Quarterly in 1989. Advertisement Jones was a Baptist missionary to the Cherokee Nation who was present in the summer of 1838 during Gen. Winfield Scotts roundup of the remaining Cherokee, and his account strikes several notes Lindneux missed. First of all, Jones makes it very clear that this was about simple theft, not some vague notion of Manifest Destiny: racism as an economic system. Second, Jones story about the Cherokee attempt to avoid traveling during the sickly season will be familiar to anyone who has been following ICEs Oops! Theyre already gone! deportation strategy. But most of all, what Jones gets right is the sense of an authoritarian government as an unstoppable bureaucratic juggernaut, paying careful attention to legal nicetiesoffering money for horses stolen at gunpoint!while grinding people into dust. Advertisement Advertisement Everything Jones is writing about here took place before the march to Oklahoma. Matthew Dessem June 16, 1838: Camp Hetzel. The Cherokees are nearly all prisoners. They have been dragged from their houses and camped at the forts and military posts all over the Nation. In Georgia, especially, the most unfeeling and insulting treatment has been experienced by them, in a general way. Multitudes were not allowed time to take anything with them but the clothes they had on. Well-furnished houses were left a prey to plunderers, who, like hungry wolves, follow the progress of the captors and in many cases accompany them. These wretches rifle the houses and strip the helpless, unoffending owners of all they have on earth. Females who have been habituated to comforts and comparative affluence are driven on foot before the bayonets of brutal men. Their feelings are mortified by the blasphemous vociferations of these heartless creatures. Advertisement It is a painful sight. The property of many has been taken and sold before their eyes for almost nothing; the sellers and buyers being in many cases combined to cheat the poor Indian. Private purchases, or at least the sham of purchases, have in many instances been made at the instant of arrest and consternation: the soldiers standing with guns and bayonets, impatient to go on with their work, could give but little time to transact business. The poor captive in a state of distressing agitation, his weeping wife almost frantic with terror, surrounded by one group of crying, terrified children, without a friend to speak one consoling word, is in a very unfavorable condition to make advantageous disposition of his property even were suitable and honest purchasers on the spot, but more especially so when the only purchasers present are harpies, not second in deeds of villainy to the wretches who plunder the shipwrecks of voyagers on the seacoast. The truth is the Cherokees are deprived of their liberty and stripped of their entire property in one blow. Many who a few days ago were in comfortable circumstances are now the victims of abject poverty. Many who have been allowed to return to their homes under passport to inquire after their property, have found their houses, cattle, hogs, ploughs, hoes, harness, tables, chairs, earthen ware, all gone. And this is not a description of extreme cases. It is altogether a faint and feeble representation of the work of barbarity which has been perpetrated on the unoffending, unarmed, and unresisting Cherokees. I say nothing yet of several cold-blooded murders and other personal cruelties, for I would most conscientiously avoid making the slightest erroneous impression on any persons, being not in possession of precise and authentic information concerning all the facts in these cases of barbarity. It is due justice to say that at this station (and I learn the same is true of some others) the officer in command treats his prisoners with great respect and indulgence. But fault rests somewhere. They are prisoners and their families are prisoners without a crime to justify the fact. The principal Cherokees have sent a petition to General Scott begging most earnestly that they may not be sent off to the West until the sickly season is over. They have not received any answer yet. The Agent is shipping them off by multitudes from Rosss Landing. It will be a miracle of mercy if one-fourth escape the exposure to that sickly climate at this most unfavorable season. A most piteous petition was presented by the prisoners at Rosss Landing to the Commanding officer at that place, but to no purpose. Nine hundred in one detachment and seven hundred in another were driven into the boats like culprits to the place of execution. They were exceedingly depressed, almost in the agonies of despair. Most of their faces, I fear, we shall not see again till the great day when the oppressor and the oppressed shall appear before the tribunal of the righteous judge. I have no language to express the emotions which rend our hearts to witness their season of cruel and unnecessary oppression. For if it be determined to take their land and reduce them to absolute poverty, it would seem to be mere wanton cruelty to take their lives also. Advertisement Advertisement July 10, 1838: The overthrow of the Cherokee nation is complete. The whole population are made prisoners. The work of war in time of peace was commenced in the Georgia part of the Nation and was executed in most cases in unfeeling and brutal manner, no regard being paid to the orders of the commanding General in regard to humane treatment of the Indians and abstaining from insulting conduct. In that state, in many cases, the Indians were not allowed to gather up their clothes, not even to take away a little money they might have. All was left to the spoiler. I have only heard of one officer in Georgia (I hope there were more) who manifested anything like humanity in the treatment of the persecuted people. They were driven before the soldiers, through mud and water, with whooping and hallowing like drives of cattle. No regard was paid to the condition of helpless females. Several infants were born on the open road under the most revolting circumstances. This of course was in direct violation of the Generals orders, but was no less afflictive to the poor sufferers on this account. Advertisement At Rosss Landing, the place to which most of the Georgia Indians were brought, the scenes of distress defy all description. In many instances they were dragged from their homes without change of clothing and marched one hundred and twenty or thirty miles through heat and dust and rain and mud, in many cases bare-footed, lodged on the hard ground, destitute of shelter from dews and rains. They had of course become very dirty and on that account they have been reproached as degraded wretches. Upon arriving at the Depot, they were required to give up their horses and ponies, which they had brought along. Refusing to do so, men, women, and children and horse were driven promiscuously into one large pen made for the purpose. The horses were there taken by force and cried off to the highest bidder and sold for almost nothing. They were then urged to take money from the commissioners of the Treaty, but they, with one consent, refused. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement At the time of sailing, an effort was made to get their consent to go into the boats, but not an individual would agree. The agent then struck a line through the camp, the soldiers rushed in and drove the devoted victims into those loathsome receptacles of disease and death. It is said by eye witnesses that the scene of this distress was agonizing in the extreme. The dread which pervaded the community at being sent off at this season was intense. Several memorials to Genl Scott were prepared and signed, praying for some relaxation in the course of capturing the Nation and of delay in transporting them to the West on the ground of moral certainty that the great body of those sent off at this season would die. (The two principal ones were sent to him at Valley Towns by express.) Before an answer to these memorials was received, the whole Nation was in captivity, the property of the Indians, either stolen by plunderers or sold by commissioners appointed for that purpose. The Commissioners often took the property before the eyes of the owners and against their consent and protestations. In some cases the Indians drove their cattle into the possessions of some friend to save them from being sacrificed by these men who are said to act under a system of responsibility. The responsibility, however, is of little advantage to the poor Indian who is beggared by their protection. Advertisement Advertisement The work of capture being completed, and about three thousand of the captives sent off, the general agreed to suspend the further transportation of the captives till the 1st of September. This arrangement, though but a small favor, diffused universal joy through the camps of the prisoners. Just at this moment, the Agent started off one thousand and forty in a company to go part of the way by land and part by water. The Cherokees supposed that this company was included in the arrangement and that they were to be stopped to participate in the indulgence (if such it can be called) granted to the rest of the nation. But on inquiry, was found that he had no intention to delay their transportation a moment. A petition on their behalf couched in the most earnest and respectful and submissive terms was presented to him, but to no purpose. This refusal was viewed and felt by the Cherokees to be a cruel and wanton disregard not only of the feelings and comfort, but also of the lives, of their people. Get More Working Slate Plus members get extended, ad-free versions of our podcastsand much more. Sign up today. Join Slate Plus Subscribe to Working Copy this link and add it in your podcast app. copy link copied! For detailed instructions, see our Slate Plus podcasts page. Listen to Working via Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play. The first episode of Workings brand new season takes you back in time and to Lyndhurst, New Jersey. This season, Jordan will be talking to the various employees of Medieval Times, the popular dinner theater experience that appeals to kids and adults alike. Even if youve never been yourself, you probably have some idea of what the show entails: jousting, fighting, royalty, and horses. And as a knight, Ivan Guevara is one of the stars of the show. Ivan tells Jordan all about how he got into the knight business, the extensive training it entailsand how when people think he really wants to kill someone, he knows hes doing his job right. You can email us at working@slate.com. Podcast production by Jessamine Molli. Another wall has a display of trains, including a map of the old train route from Emerson to Hubbard to Sioux City. Kramper once walked the abandoned railroad bed that stretched from Emerson to Hubbard. A pantry allows guests to store whatever foods they bring and wish to prepare. There is no dishwasher and that's by design. Kramper wishes that guests wash and dry their dishes and silverware the old-fashioned way as they stand gazing out upon the bluffs of Dixon County. Kramper stares at the land, gazing eastward beyond the 10 acres he owns and says, "Who wouldn't want to do dishes right here?" That's the aim of this massive retreat: A return to simplicity, the chance to slow down and listen for what really matters. Not that everything here is stark and devoid of modern-day touches. Kramper laughs at his own excess as he passes from the pantry area down the hall to a phone booth that came from the Sioux City Stockyards. Closing the door to the booth activates a light over the pay phone. Across the hall there's a collections room that one day will feature more than 400 of Kramper's piggy banks and hundreds more of his M&M candy figures. He has amassed more than a few John Wayne pieces of memorabilia that people may examine. A proposal under consideration in the Legislature to change the system used for the selection of judges in Iowa is a solution in search of a problem. We know of no great groundswell of dissatisfaction about the present system among citizens. No, this idea smacks of nothing more than a desire by majority Republicans to exercise more say in the process. The result would be unwise additional politicization of the courts in our state. Under today's system, approved as an amendment to the state Constitution by Iowa voters in 1962, a state commission and individual district commissions make recommendations for justices and judges to the governor. Half of these commission members are lawyers elected by attorneys licensed to practice in the state and half are non-lawyers appointed by the governor. For Supreme Court justices and Court of Appeals judges, a state commission nominates three individuals for consideration; for district court judges, district commissions nominate two individuals. We find nothing wrong with this process, through which we believe Iowans have been well served. In our view, this effective, balanced system minimizes politics and protects judicial independence. Looking for a home The onus equally lies on the governments of Nepal and Bhutan to repatriate Bhutanese refugees The lowest form of insult is to call someone a racist and it is spewed with impunity. It is the insult used when one is not winning an argument on the merits of the case. I believe the illegal immigration debate falls into this category. This is a complicated issue, but it is also just common sense. One need only ask Do you lock your doors at home? The answer is, yes, of course. We lock our doors to keep uninvited people from entering without permission and to protect our families and possessions. Walls/barriers protect citizens from invasions by non-citizens. Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi voted for the barrier/wall in the recent past. So when did it become immoral? President Trump displayed the most compassion for government workers and willingness to negotiate, while the Democrats showed their colors - they want open borders. The Pelosi standoff was about defeating President Trump, not about protecting Americans. The barrier works to prevent illegal immigration everywhere it is built. CNN reporter Jim Acosta proved that fact when he walked along the wall in McAllen, Texas, and saw no one attempting to scale the wall/fence. The border crisis is real. The Trump we saw Tuesday night is the president we should be seeing every day, not just once a year. He reached across the aisle, appealed to persuadable voters in the center and asked them to consider his reasonable proposals. He made the case for controversial policies in a way designed to win over open-minded skeptics. It worked. A CBS News instant poll found that 76 percent of viewers approved of what they heard in Trump's address, including 72 percent who said they approved of his ideas for immigration. In short, Trump did something he rarely does: work to expand his base. It's a good start, but wooing persuadable voters takes more than one good speech. It requires discipline and sustained effort. It's not too late. Trump's approval rating is 40 percent (up slightly from 37 percent during the government shutdown). Before his third-year State of the Union address, Ronald Reagan's approval was just 35 percent -- and he won a second term in a landslide. Democrats are giving Trump an opening by embracing socialist policies that most Americans know will bankrupt the country. They may go so far left that they will make themselves unelectable in 2020. But Trump cannot count on Democrats to self-destruct. He must actively court the voters they are alienating with their far-left tilt and win over millions of Americans who are benefiting from his policies but still don't support his presidency. In his address, Trump declared that "America will never be a socialist country." Whether he is right depends on what he does in the weeks and months ahead. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Vermillion, S.D. Entrepreneur and agribusiness executive, Larry Shipley, 62, of Vermillion, died suddenly at his South Dakota home on Nov. 4, 2018. Shipley was the president of IBP Enterprises (1997-2001) and chief financial officer, IBP Inc. (1994-2001). Headquartered in facilities that Shipley designed and constructed in Dakota Dunes, S.D., IBP was a $17 billion Fortune 120 company known worldwide as the premier producer of fresh beef and pork. A reception and celebration of life will be 3 to 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 15, at the Red Steakhouse, One East Main Street, in Vermillion. Condolences may be sent online to HansenFuneralHome.com. Shipley was born Fred L. Shipley Jr., in 1956 in St. Louis, Mo., the third of four sons to Fred Larimore and Virginia Lee (Daly) Shipley. He grew up in suburban St. Louis, where he attended Our Lady of the Pillar elementary school and graduated from DeSmet Jesuit High School in 1974. He earned a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering with an electrical engineering minor from Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind. in 1977 and graduated with a master of science in marketing (MBA) from Purdue's Krannert Graduate School in 1982. NORTH SIOUX CITY -- The public will be invited when the North Sioux City Community Library hosts a silent auction to purchase art or commission art at 6 p.m. Friday at 601 River Drive. The auction is part of a unique art exhibit titled "Arts of North Sioux City Youth," which will be on display at the library until Feb. 23. Several aspiring local youth artists have collaborated to create a show to promote their skills, talents and techniques. In addition, the artists also learned how to display and present their works for public viewing. The auction will be a chance for the public to meet young artists with the proceeds going to fund activities that will enhance artistic talent. For people interested in purchasing a display piece, email nscyouthartists@yahoo.com. Copyright 2019 The Sioux City Journal. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. LOS ANGELES On one of her breaks from filming Roswell, New Mexico, actress Lily Cowles decided to take a road trip to the real place. She felt the towns eerie vibe. It was so open, she says. Talk about sky. In Santa Fe, youre at the base of mountains, so you actually have something to frame the enormity of the universe around you. When you drive out to Roswell, you feel like, Im on a planet in the middle of the universe and theres nothing around here. It absolutely made me feel like, This is a spooky place where crazy things went down. If aliens were to land, they would land right here in Roswell. Producers chose to shoot the new CW series in New Mexico to give it a lush, original look. You point a camera toward the sun and two people kiss and youre Steven Spielberg, says executive producer (and director) Julie Plec. You can put your camera anywhere and you can shoot a vista that you would get in like Lawrence of Arabia. The scope of the production value is just incredible. FILE PHOTO: Fighters from Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are seen after arresting a wounded man during their fighting with Islamic State in the northern area of Deir al-Zor, Syria September 24, 2017. REUTERS/ Rodi Said/File Photo By Rodi Said QAMISHLI, Syria (Reuters) - The U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) began an assault against the final Islamic State enclave in eastern Syria on Saturday, aiming to wipe out the last vestige of the jihadist group's "caliphate" in the SDF's area of operations. President Donald Trump, who is planning to pull U.S. forces out of Syria, said on Wednesday he expected an announcement as early as next week that the U.S.-led coalition operating in support of the SDF had reclaimed all the territory previously held by the jihadist group. The enclave, close to the Iraqi border, comprises two villages. Islamic State also still has territory in the part of Syria that is mostly under the control of the Russian- and Iranian-backed Syrian government. Mustafa Bali, the head of the SDF media office, told Reuters the aim of the assault was to "eliminate the last remnants of the terrorist organisation" and called it the "last battle". He later wrote on Twitter that the battle had started. Bali told Reuters in the last 10 days SDF fighters had handled the battle "patiently" as more than 20,000 civilians were evacuated from the besieged enclave. The SDF, spearheaded by the Kurdish YPG militia, has driven Islamic State out of a swathe of territory in northern and eastern Syria over the last four years. Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared the group's "caliphate" in 2014 in territory stretching across Iraq and Syria. But the group lost its two main prizes - the Syrian city of Raqqa and Iraq's Mosul - in 2017. After capturing Raqqa, the SDF advanced southwards into Deir al-Zor province, attacking the jihadists in territory on the eastern bank of the Euphrates River. The remaining Islamic State territory in Syria is west of the Euphrates. Trump announced in December he was pulling all 2,000 U.S. troops out of Syria, saying the battle against Islamic State there was almost won. Story continues But a top U.S. general said on Tuesday the group would pose an enduring threat following the U.S. withdrawal, as it retained leaders, fighters, facilitators and resources that would fuel a menacing insurgency. The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that the U.S. military was preparing to withdraw from Syria by the end of April. A U.S. official confirmed that target date to Reuters, saying the withdrawal included a pull-out from the U.S. military base at Tanf, near the Syrian border with Iraq and Jordan. GRAPHIC: https://graphics.reuters.com/MIDEAST-CRISIS-SYRIA/010081ST38B/MIDEAST-CRISIS-SYRIA.jpg (Reporting by Rodi Said in Syria; Writing by Tom Perry in Beirut; Editing by Alexander Smith and John Stonestreet) Local representatives fail to serve peoples aspirations The local federal units of Province 2 got peoples representatives last year after a gap of two decades. President Donald Trump's choice to lead the World Bank is a firebrand critic of the world's largest anti-poverty lender -- an institution he has called wasteful, corrupt and overly generous to China. Those complaints are similar to those voiced by others in the development community. But that does not mean they have found a new ally in David Malpass, the senior US Treasury official who has pledged to reform the bank. Nancy Pelosi, the newly reinstalled Democratic speaker of the US House of Representatives, says Trump's choice threatens to "undermine the institution's mission." And Liberia's former minister of public works W. Gyude Moore tweeted that "an incorrigible arsonist will now be our fire chief." Malpass' many criticisms of the Washington-based lender certainly echo familiar refrains. Many activists have long called for reforms at the World Bank, citing a litany of alleged human rights failures and scandals, and saying projects all too often left the world's poorest even worse off, harmed the environment or entrenched the power of oligarchies and despots. Those critics might well have nodded their heads in accord in 2017 when Malpass said international financial institutions such as the World Bank "spend a lot of money" but are "not very efficient." "They are often corrupt in their lending practices and they don't get the benefit to the actual people in the countries," he said in congressional testimony. When pressed for examples, he cited situations in Venezuela and South Africa, countries that do not have programs with the World Bank. Internal audits and outside reports have, however, tied World Bank funds to forced labor in Uzbekistan, death squads in Honduras and a Chadian oil pipeline that enriched the undemocratic local government all while child mortality rose, to name just a few examples. So is Malpass a kindred spirit? Analysts and activists say probably not. - 'Fundamentally opposed'? - David Pred, head of Inclusive Development International, which has accused the World Bank of back-door financing for coal-fired energy in Asia that is likely to spur global warming, strongly questioned Trump's choice. "While some of Malpass' past critiques of the World Bank may be valid, the former chief economist of a financial institution whose recklessness helped blow up the global economy in 2008 is one of the last people we can count on to make the bank more accountable," he told AFP. Malpass served as chief economist at the former investment bank Bear Stearns, whose collapse marked the start of the global financial crisis. To be sure, Malpass' nomination has delighted some observers, including the World Bank's conservative critics. A Wall Street Journal editorial called Malpass, himself a long-time contributor, "the best man to run" an institution whose operations he well understands. With a long career in development economics, Malpass has worked to "wean" the increasingly wealthy and ambitious China off World Bank financing as it pursued its ambitious "Belt and Road" infrastructure initiative across multiple continents, the newspaper said. The Economist likewise said US allies could be "relieved" that Trump had chosen one of his administration's "few remaining grown-ups" to be its next president, calling his reform efforts "mostly unobjectionable and reassuringly unoriginal." But elsewhere Malpass is not viewed simply as a critic. Moore, the former Liberian minister, told AFP that Malpass' opposition to lending to China could be incompatible with the bank's very business model. Returns from those loans provide helps to fund for assistance to low-income countries, many of which are now concentrated in Africa, he said. "He's never put forth an alternative about how the bank is going to grow its reserves," Moore said. "To have a person who is fundamentally opposed to the way the bank does business raises questions for me and is alarming." - 'Drop in the bucket' - The bank did not respond to Malpass' criticism in 2017, but it touts the precipitous drop in extreme global poverty -- which it says fell to 10 percent from 36 percent between 1990 and 2015 -- as evidence of its success. The global lender also routinely blacklists corrupt companies and says it scrutinizes projects for corruption risk. Malpass told reporters last week that the bank had changed since his 2017 testimony. "There were criticisms that I had that were addressed in the reform package" of 2018, he said, adding that he wanted to focus on the bank's "core mission" of poverty eradication. Yet Elana Berger, executive director of the Bank Information Center, which scrutinizes World Bank lending and shares some of Malpass' concerns, remains dubious. "I agree that the World Bank frequently falls short of achieving its mission because its projects are very often not well targeted" towards the goal of poverty reduction, she told AFP. But she said it was unclear whether Malpass shares the bank's goals. For instance, in accepting Trump's nomination last week, Malpass hailed the bank's new Saudi-supported Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative, spearheaded by the president's daughter and advisor Ivanka Trump. Berger said that $1 billion fund represented "a drop in the bucket" compared to the billions the bank spends in a given year. The bank's board will accept nominations through mid-March, but under an unwritten rule Washington has anointed the World Bank's president since its creation following World War II -- a custom that faces mounting opposition. [Update: Added Feb 10 statement by Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore] Singapores foreign ministry sent out a strongly-worded statement on Sunday asking Malaysia to remove its vessels off waters that Singapore recognizes as theirs. The statement comes one day after Malaysian vessel Polaris collided with Greece-flagged vessel Pireas in what Singapore recognizes as its own territorial waters off the port of Tuas. These are waters that Malaysia has claimed are theirs in a war of words and map lines that has been going on between both countries for months. Singapore reiterates its call for Malaysia to withdraw its vessels from the area, as the persistent presence of its vessels clearly poses a threat to safety of navigation in the area, said a spokesperson from Singapores Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement. As we have said previously, Malaysia will be responsible for any untoward situations on the ground that arise from continued deployment of its vessels into this area, the spokesperson added. In the collision incident which happened on Saturday afternoon, the Greece vessel was on its way from Singapore to its next port of call at Tanjung Pelepas in Malaysia when it collided with the Malaysian vessel, according to a statement by Singapores Marine and Port Authority (MPA). MPA is deeply concerned that the presence of the unauthorized vessels in our port limits can cause confusion for the international shipping community and threaten navigational safety in our waters, said an MPA spokesperson in a statement on Saturday. In a follow-up statement on Sunday, MPA said that the Greece vessel Pireas was trying to make a maneuver to get out of the waters when it collided with Polaris. No injuries or oil leakage were reported and the collision was not considered as a very serious marine casualty incident under the International Maritime Organization Marine Casualty Investigation Code, hence Pireas was allowed to continue on its journey to Tanjung Pelepas, MPA added. Story continues MPA is continuing investigations on the matter. In a statement released earlier, Malaysias foreign ministry said: Malaysia is committed to take appropriate measures to safeguard its territorial integrity, interests and safe navigation of vessels. According to Malaysias foreign ministry, the boats communicated before the accident, and the Greek carrier had said it would steer clear of the Malaysian boat. The incident is the latest in a string of back-and-forth remarks that have been traded between Singapore and Malaysian authorities over airspace and maritime disputes, which have led to incursions such as a Malaysian chief minister entering the disputed waters and discussions derailed over a joint development project between both countries. Both countries are disputing a water boundary off the Tuas region after Singapore politician Khaw Boon Wan told Malaysian vessels to back off and stop trespassing Singapore territorial waters. Malaysia also protested Singapores decision to implement new landing procedures at Singapores Seletar Airport, calling it an intrusion of Malaysias sovereign airspace as planes would be flying over southern Johor. Both countries foreign diplomats have resolved to settle the matter through bilateral talks. The neighbors have had testy relations since Malaysia evicted the island from the Malaysian Federation in 1965, ending a brief and stormy union of the former British colonies. Ties have gone up and down over the years but have been shaky since Malaysias Mahathir Mohamad who has long had a prickly relationship with Singapore returned to the premiership with a shock election victory last year. Additional reporting by AFP This article, Singapore foreign ministry asks Malaysia to remove vessels from local waters one day after Greece-Malaysia ship collision, originally appeared on Coconuts, Asia's leading alternative media company. Want more Coconuts? Sign up for our newsletters! Riyadh does not know the location of dissident Jamal Khashoggi's body, despite having detained the Saudi team that murdered him, a high-ranking foreign affairs official in the kingdom said in an interview broadcast Sunday. The dissident journalist was dismembered after his murder October 2 in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul but his remains have yet to be found. Adel al-Jubeir, Saudi minister of state for foreign affairs, said the murder was carried out by Saudi officials "acting outside their scope of authority" and that 11 people have been charged with the crime. But asked where Khashoggi's body is, he told CBS's "Face the Nation," "We don't know." Jubeir said the public prosecutor responsible for the case had sought evidence from Turkey but had received no response. Questioned why those in custody couldn't tell them where the body was, Jubeir responded: "We are still investigating." "We have now a number of possibilities and we're asking them what they did with the body, and I think this investigation is ongoing, and I would expect that eventually we will find the truth," he said. Jubeir was interviewed Friday, the same day President Donald Trump ignored a congressional deadline for reporting on who assassinated Khashoggi, a columnist for The Washington Post who had been openly critical of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The CIA has concluded the Saudi operation was likely directed by the powerful crown prince, but the White House has sidestepped that finding amid strenuous denials by Riyadh, a key US ally. On Friday, The New York Times said the CIA had intercepted communications of the crown prince telling a top aide in 2017 that he would go after Khashoggi "with a bullet" if the journalist did not return to Saudi Arabia. "I'm not going to comment on reports based on anonymous sources," Jubeir said. "The crown prince, we know, did not order this. This was not a government-sanctioned operation." Fleeing the political, economic and humanitarian crisis in their country, Venezuelans have arrived in Spain in their thousands, some of them penniless, others so rich they are buying sumptuous flats. Fran Leal, 36, came to Spain from Maracay in northern Venezuela two months ago with his wife and two children. "Do you have a small suitcase? I'm going to Toledo, I've found a job," he asks as he enters the Casa Venezuela, an association that helps struggling Venezuelans in Madrid. An electrician, he is going to the city south of Madrid to work illegally for six months. "I don't have a choice as I don't yet have ID papers and I have no more savings," he says, as the crisis in Venezuela deepens with opposition leader Juan Guaido's self-proclamation as interim president. Unlike Leal, Juan Leonardo Lopez has not found a job since he arrived three months ago. "Before the crisis, I wasn't a millionaire but I lived fine, I had a great car and everything I needed," he says at a Venezuelan opposition protest in Madrid. He says he saw children die of dehydration in the hospital in Maracay where he worked. - Asylum-seekers - Spain's statistics agency says some 255,000 Venezuelans have settled in the country. But that figure is likely to be closer to 300,000 if illegal immigrants are taken into account, according to Tomas Paez, head of the Venezuelan Diaspora Observatory. Venezuelan asylum requests have nearly doubled in Spain over the year, with close to 20,000 in 2018, according to the interior ministry. But only 29 were successful last year, the ministry says, as it is hard for those who migrate for economic reasons to get asylum. As a result, Madrid has started giving some Venezuelans humanitarian visas. At the other end of the scale, many rich Venezuelans have also emigrated to Spain over the past year to escape the crisis and insecurity. Cesar, a 42-year-old businessman who declined to give his surname, arrived in Madrid in 2014 with his wife and daughter after an armed group tried to kidnap his brother. "We lived permanently with bodyguards, we would move around in armoured cars. We couldn't go out in the evenings," he says. "Here, we're enjoying what we no longer had in Venezuela: going out, eating out," says the head of a consultancy in Madrid, which still has an office in Caracas. Unlike those who are struggling, he was able to get an express residency permit after getting a "golden visa" for which one must invest at least one million euros ($880,000) in Spanish companies or 500,000 euros in real estate. - 'Little Caracas' - Cesar bought three flats in the district of Salamanca in Madrid for 800,000 euros. Such has been the affluence of Venezuelans in this upmarket area that it has been named "Little Caracas" by Spanish media. Controversial due to the difficulty in verifying the origin of the funds used, the "golden visa" is very popular among rich Venezuelans. Last year, 249 such visas were given to Venezuelans in Spain, nearly 20 percent more than in 2017, according to the foreign ministry. Angel Garcia Loriente, a real estate agent who specialises in luxury purchases, says he sealed five deals with Venezuelans in 2018 for a total of 9.7 million euros. They are clients who want flats "in elegant buildings," he says. According to Juan Carlos Gutierrez, the Madrid-based lawyer of Venezuelan opposition figure Leopoldo Lopez who also has wealthy Venezuelan clients, they have fled "insecurity." They also "want to enjoy their money as it is impossible to run a successful business in Venezuela in the current conditions." The incident involving the Malaysian vessel Polaris and Greek carrier Piraeus took place at 2.28pm within Singapore Port Limits off Tuas, said the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore. (PHOTO: Singapore Police Force) A Malaysian government vessel collided with a Greece-registered bulk carrier in Singapore waters on Saturday (9 February) afternoon. The incident involving the Malaysian vessel Polaris and Greek carrier Piraeus took place at 2.28pm within Singapore Port Limits off Tuas, said the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) in a statement. At the time, the Piraeus was on its way from Singapore to its next port of call at Tanjung Pelepas. MPA is deeply concerned that the presence of the unauthorised vessels in our port limits can cause confusion for the international shipping community and threaten navigational safety in our waters, said the authority, adding that it is investigating the incident. MFA responds In response to media queries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) noted that the collision took place in an area that goes beyond Malaysias territorial claim of 1979, which Singapore has never recognised. Singapore reiterates its call for Malaysia to withdraw its vessels from the area, as the persistent presence of its vessels clearly poses a threat to safety of navigation in the area, said the ministry. As we have said previously, Malaysia will be responsible for any untoward situations on the ground that arise from continued deployment of its vessels into this area. According to a Straits Times report, the Polaris is a Malaysian Maritime Department vessel and was allegedly anchored at the time of the collision. No injuries were reported and both vessels were cleared of each other within minutes of the incident. Currently moored at the port of Tanjung Pelepas, the Piraeus and its crew have also been detained by Malaysian authorities for questioning. Related stories: Singapore-Malaysia working group had constructive discussions on maritime issues Singapore postpones annual meeting with Malaysia after Johor Menteri Besar visits vessel in Tuas waters Singapore and Malaysia take immediate suspension steps over Seletar Airport and Pasir Gudang Singapore rejects Malaysias cease and desist proposal on disputed maritime area A Malaysian government vessel has collided with a ship in waters disputed by Singapore and Malaysia, sparking a fresh flare-up of maritime tensions on Sunday between the neighbours. Malaysian authorities impounded the Greek-flagged bulk carrier, the Pireas, and detained its crew after the collision Saturday with the Malaysian boat Polaris. The neighbours have had testy relations since Malaysia evicted the island from the Malaysian Federation in 1965, ending a brief and stormy union of the former British colonies. Ties have gone up and down over the years but have been shaky since Malaysia's Mahathir Mohamad -- who has long had a prickly relationship with Singapore -- returned to the premiership with a shock election victory last year. Maritime tensions began rising late last year when Singapore accused Malaysia of extending its claims in the strait that separates the neighbours into what had long been accepted as the city-state's territorial waters. The city-state, one of the world's busiest cargo ports, said Malaysian vessels were repeatedly encroaching into its waters -- an accusation denied by Malaysia. Both sides claimed that Saturday's collision off Tuas, in western Singapore, had happened in their own waters. The accident did not cause any injuries or lead to an oil spill. "The collision between MV Pireas and Malaysian government vessel Polaris took place in Singapore territorial waters," a Singapore foreign ministry statement said. "Singapore reiterates its call for Malaysia to withdraw its vessels from the area, as the persistent presence of its vessels clearly poses a threat to safety of navigation in the area," the statement said, adding Malaysia would be responsible for any "untoward situations" that arise. In a statement released earlier, Malaysia's foreign ministry said: "Malaysia is committed to take appropriate measures to safeguard its territorial integrity, interests and safe navigation of vessels". Singapore maritime authorities said the incident happened as the Greek vessel was headed to a port in southern Malaysia, and it was allowed to continue its journey as the accident was not serious. According to Malaysia's foreign ministry, the boats communicated before the accident, and the Greek carrier had said it would steer clear of the Malaysian boat. Tensions eased briefly last month when foreign ministers from both countries agreed during a meeting in Singapore to take steps to calm the maritime row, and a separate dispute over airspace. sr/je POLARIS INDUSTRIES A man covered in an Israeli flag lights a candle at a memorial for a 19-year-old Israeli woman found dead two days ago in a forest on the outskirts of Jerusalem, in Jerusalem February 9, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli security forces arrested a Palestinian man on Saturday suspected of killing an Israeli woman found dead two days ago in a forest on the outskirts of Jerusalem, police said. The Israeli Shin Bet internal security service and police said in a statement that the 29-year-old Palestinian suspect was seized over the killing of the 19-year-old woman during a raid in the Palestinian city of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank. Shin Bet said the suspect left his home in the Palestinian city of Hebron carrying a knife, saw the victim in the forest and killed her. It was still investigating the motive. Palestinian authorities did not immediately comment. Israel's Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan said he viewed it as a terrorist attack. "We're talking about a wide phenomenon of terrorism we're dealing with here," he told Reshet TV. Peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians broke down in 2014 and a bid by U.S. President Donald Trump to restart negotiations has so far shown little progress. (Reporting by Maayan Lubell; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne) Hong Kong legislators who also sit on district councils could get a 10 per cent pay rise next year amounting to HK$12,000 (US$1,540) per month with the government set to scrap a deduction in place since colonial times. The change takes into account the higher public expectations faced by politicians, who complain they may have to sacrifice their careers to serve constituents, though some argue the deduction makes sense as lawmakers wearing two hats are less committed to their local council. The discount to their [district council] honorarium belittled their efforts, the Home Affairs Bureau said in a paper submitted to the Legislative Council in January, adding that it gave the impression the politicians were not fully committed to their jobs. The monthly pay for lawmakers and district councillors is HK$98,540 (US$12,560) and HK$32,150, respectively. Under the deduction mechanism, politicians who are members of both Legco and a district council have their pay from the latter cut by one-third, so instead of earning a combined HK$130,690 a month, they make about HK$120,000. The government has proposed scrapping the deduction and increasing all district councillors pay by 5.6 per cent next year. It means those with dual roles will make HK$132,490 a month up 10.4 per cent while district councillors will get HK$33,950. The government also suggested increasing district councillors monthly operating expenses reimbursement by 8.5 per cent to HK$44,816. The changes will take effect at the start of next year, should Legco approve them. Of the 69 sitting legislators, 24 are also district councillors. A third of these are pan-democrats while the rest are from the pro-establishment camp. Many are expected to seek re-election in November during a citywide poll to elect more than 400 district representatives. Lawmakers scrutinise bills and the governments funding applications, while the 18 district councils tackle more localised issues, coordinate community initiatives and serve as an important leg-up for parties to grab Legco seats. Story continues Some lawmakers welcomed the proposal and hoped it would help make district council roles more attractive to good candidates. They urged the government to further increase the cap for expenses to support their district work. And while others said the government should not encourage politicians to hold multiple posts, one councillor both district and legislative defended the system. In the past, the rationale for the deduction was probably based on lawmakers usually committing less time to district councils, said Edward Lau Kwok-fan, lawmaker and North District Council member. But a district councillors performance is not necessarily judged by the time committed, but by achievements. Lau, who represents district councillors in Legco, supported scrapping the deduction and increasing the pay to attract more young people. His colleague Horace Cheung Kwok-kwan, also of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, said it was reasonable to scrap the deductions. Cheung serves on a district council, Legco, and the Executive Council, which advises the citys leader. A lawyer by profession, Cheung said councillors with dual or triple memberships had to work hard, and some even sacrificed their own career to fulfil their duties. In colonial times, such seats were held by tycoons who spent little time in meetings, he said. Now circumstances have changed a lot, with high public expectations on different levels of the councils. He and rural leader Kenneth Lau Ip-keung are the only politicians who sit on the three councils. In colonial times, such seats were held by tycoons who spent little time in meetings Horace Cheung, lawmaker, district councillor and Exco member Under the mechanism, the pair get HK$83,050 each for their Exco role, while their pay from the district and legislative councils are both cut by one-third. As a result, Cheung and Lau get HK$170,177 a month similar to directorate-rank civil servants. However, lawmaker Jonathan Ho Kai-ming, of the Federation of Trade Unions, who also sits on Kwun Tong District Council, said the deduction made sense. The deduction is reasonable as I spend less time in the constituency, he said, while making clear he would not pocket the extra HK$12,000 if re-elected, but would use it to hire an assistant serving the district. Despite being a Southern district councillor, lawmaker Au Nok-hin said the government should not allow politicians to hold multiple positions. Having multiple roles spreads the time too thinly, the pro-democracy lawmaker said. In countries such as Japan, Au said, it was common for politicians to resign from a district-level position after being elected to a higher body. All the lawmakers agreed that district councillors salaries and expenses reimbursements should rise, but that the proposed increase was too meagre. Ho, whose office is in a car park building owned by Link Reit, said the rent had surged from HK$5,000 to HK$9,000 when he was re-elected in 2015. Expecting the rent to rise further, Ho said the 8.5 per cent increase for operating expenses was inadequate. Lau said rents varied, with some offices in private developments costing up to HK$10,000 a month and eating up a quarter of councillors operating expenses, while those in public housing estates were only a few thousand dollars. He said many district councillors had to pay various expenses out of their own pocket, including for hiring assistants and attending constituents weddings and funerals. This article Hong Kong lawmakers who also sit on district councils set to get HK$12,000-a-month pay rise if colonial-era deduction is axed first appeared on South China Morning Post For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2019. International medical assistance company used lies to threaten the government, private rescue agencies and hospitals in Nepal A month-long investigation by the Post shows that Traveller Assist does not represent any of the insurance firms it claims to, and has been using the fraudulent rescues probe by the government to market itself as the only operator for all helicopter rescues and insurance claims in the country. England wing Jonny May said it was "awesome and very special" scoring three tries at Twickenham as he did in the 44-8 mauling of France in their Six Nations clash on Sunday. The 28-year-old -- whose three tries came in the first-half of a one-sided contest taking his Test tally to 22 -- said he and his team-mates had wanted to improve on their performance from the 32-20 defeat of champions Ireland last weekend. "Trying to raise the bar after last week was the challenge, but we came out and definitely played some good rugby today," he told ITV. "The brand of rugby we want to play, we want to put teams under pressure. "I'm just doing my job, we are all working hard and putting some good performances together. "We have learnt a lot and worked incredibly hard, and it's paid off in the end. "To score a hat trick at Twickenham is awesome and very special, I'm very lucky." England -- who are bidding for their second Grand Slam under Eddie Jones -- head to a potential title decider with Wales in Cardiff on February 23 with Warren Gatland's side also having won their opening two games. 3 Reasons Your Startup Should Hire an Intern Growing a small business can be an arduous endeavor. Not only do business owners need to create, market and sell their product, they need to bring on the right people to their team in order to achieve their long-term goals. At the same time, money can be tight when startups are just getting off the ground. For this reason, hiring interns can be an attractive prospect for employers seeking to build a relatively inexpensive team. Here, we examine when it makes sense for startups and other small businesses to bring on interns and when they might be better off pursuing alternative options. Valuable New Perspectives & Technology Savvy Like any organisation, startups can always benefit from adding talented new employees to their teams. In Singapore, these hires can bring not only new ways of looking at business problems, but phenomenal educational backgrounds. Given the highly educated labor force in Singapore, startups have a great chance of finding bright students to join their teams as interns. For example, these interns may bring coveted skills in fields such as software engineering or data analytics, allowing them to make significant contribution for their companies. Educational Attainment by Country Affordable Labor The first thing that cash strapped startups might think of when considering hiring an intern is the low cost generally associated with these employees. The average wage for interns in Singapore tends to be much lower than the average wage in Singapore. For example, most estimates suggest that interns in Singapore earn about S$800 to S$1,000 per month, while the median wage in Singapore is S$3,800. This suggests that interns give businesses to hire relatively affordable, temporary workers to help with a variety of tasks. With that said, some interns earn as much as S$10,000 per month working at major international banks in Singapore according the the Straits Times. Ultimately, it is important to pay all of your employees a fair wage in order to ensure solid job performance and limit turnover. A good way to estimate the potential cost of an intern for your business is to search online job postings to see what other companies pay for work similar to that of your team's. Story continues Median Gross Monthly Income From Work of Employed Residents Excellent Recruiting Opportunity Regardless of how much you decide you need to pay your intern, it is crucial that you make sure their time is not only valuable to your business, but also to their own professional development. This is because an internship may end up being a great recruiting mechanism for your company. Your intern will be more likely to consider a full-time offer someday if you have given them the chance to grow with your business. Additionally, the intern will be more valuable to your team in a full-time role if you've given them the chance to learn the ropes and contribute meaningfully for your team. Finally, hiring an intern is less risky than a full-time employee, given that you will likely invest less time hiring and training an intern and will face a comparatively smaller setback if your intern does work well for your organisation. Signs You Shouldn't Hire an Intern While the idea of hiring an intern may sound great, there are a few reasons you might not be in a good place to bring on this type of employee. You Are Too Busy If you are interested in adding a new team member in the form of an intern because you are up to your neck in work, you may want to think twice about the logistics of this hire. Unlike an experienced professional, interns require a significant amount of time invested in their training in order to make them valuable to your organisation. Not only that, interns often expect formal training in order to make their experience worthwhile. If you are too busy devout a few hours a week to training your new employee, hiring an intern may not be a good fit. You Really Need Full-Time Help Similarly, you do not want to hire an intern just for the potential cost savings. If you truly need an experienced professional to make your business grow, you may risk the quality and overall potential of your work by choosing a less qualified individual. You Startup is Not Financially Strong Enough to Take on Additional Employees Finally, if you business is not earning enough revenue to cover the cost of an intern, you may not be ready to hire additional workers. That said, if you desperately need more employees but do not have the funds to make it happen, you could consider raising more funds via equity or business loan. There are many offerings available to startups and SMEs in Singapore, which is very helpful for businesses with shorter track records as they often are denied from receiving bank loans. On the other hand, if you believe that you have enough business to justify hiring a new employee, but currently have a tight cash-flow situation you may want to consider a working capital loan in order to finance the day to day operations of your business. The article 3 Reasons Your Startup Should Hire an Intern originally appeared on ValueChampion. ValueChampion helps you find the most relevant information to optimise your personal finances. Like us on our Facebook page to keep up to date with our latest news and articles. More From ValueChampion: CNN premiering new film "American Jail" | Main | Notable Sixth Circuit panel reverses as procedurally unreasonable big upward variance in cocaine sentence based on opioid overdoses July 1, 2018 With Justice Kennedy retiring, overturning Harmelin should become a focal point for criminal justice reformers There are lots of important Supreme Court precedents that lots of people will be discussing in the wake of Justice Anthony Kennedy's announced retirement from the Court. Decisions like Roe v. Wade and Obergefell v. Hodges are, obviously, of great concern to a great many. But for criminal justice reformers, there is one particular precedent, Harmelin v. Michigan, 501 U.S. 957 (1991), that I think should become a focal point for aggressive advocacy seeking to overrule a lousy Eighth Amendment precedent. Harmelin, as many know, was the Supreme Court's 1991 fractured decision that rejected an Eighth Amendment challenge to Michigan's imposition of a (1) mandatory (2) life without parole sentence for (3) mere possession of 672 grams of cocaine. I have numerically labeled the three potent essentials of Harmelin, because each part has worked in modern times to functionally preclude any successful constitutional challenges to just about (1) any mandatory sentencing statutes or (2) any life without parole sentences or (3) any drug possession sentences. (Thanks to the recent Graham and Miller rulings, some juvenile offenders have some (small) protection against some extreme sentences, but those Eighth Amendment rulings have not been of any help to older offenders.) As discussed here a few months ago, in a terrific recent First Circuit opinion while denying rehearing en banc in United States v. Rivera-Ruperto, No. 12-2364 (1st Cir. Feb 27, 2018) (available here), Judge David Barron lamented how judges "have no choice but to approve mandatory 'forever' sentences ... so long as they can hypothesize a rational reason for the legislature to have thought that the underlying criminal conduct was as serious as the large quantity drug possession at issue in Harmelin." In so doing, Judge Barron highlighted not only questionable elements of the Harmelin ruling, but also stressed the possible impact of "two lines of Supreme Court precedent that have developed since Harmelin was decided" (referring to Alleyne and Graham/Miller). Though not quite calling for Harmelin to be overruled, Judge Barron, writing on behalf of the entire First Circuit, makes clear that he is urging SCOTUS to reconsider the "three-decades old, three-Justice concurrence in Harmelin." The author of the key "three-Justice concurrence in Harmelin" was, of course, Justice Anthony Kennedy, and no other member of the current Court was serving when Harmelin was decided. So, once Justice Kennedy's replacement is seated, it will be a whole new Court available to reconsider Harmelin without any existing member eager to make the case that Harmelin was right. Moreover, as the retired Justice Stevens noted in this interesting 2010 speech about Harmelin, Chief Justice Roberts' concurrence in Graham could be read as an indication he might be open to a return to the more defendant-friendly Eighth Amendment approach as set forth in Solem. And, as noted in this prior post, the newest Justice, Neil Gorsuch, is seemingly more often voting in favor of federal criminal defendants in contested cases than against them. We know Justice Thomas does not like the Harmelin precedent, but that is because he does not think the Eighth Amendment limits the length of prison sentences at all. And Justice Alito seems unlikely to want to expand the reach of the Eighth Amendment (though I have long believed he nearly signed on to Chief Justice Roberts' Graham concurrence). We do not know who will be replacing Justice Kennedy, so we cannot yet make informed speculations about how he or she might vote on this issue. But if Prez Trump picks someone in the mold of Justice Gorsuch, that could mean yet another Justice with an open mind on these kinds of issues. Notably, the Justices have already decided to take up a case concerning the Eighth Amendment for next Term, Timbs v. Indiana. Though that case only technically concerns "whether the Eighth Amendment's excessive fines clause is incorporated against the states under the Fourteenth Amendment," perhaps Justices engaged already by the topic of possibly excessive financial sanctions might want to give some more thought to possibly excessive prison punishments. More to my main point, I sincerely think criminal defense lawyers and advocates should be trying regularly and persistently to "litigate against" each of the three potent essentials of Harmelin by arguing against the constitutionality of (1) extreme applications of mandatory sentences and/or (2) extreme applications of life without parole sentences and/or (3) extreme applications of drug possession sentences. Shrewd arguments for those facing extreme sentences ought to include a claim of unconstitutionality even applying Harmelin, but also be sure to preserve a claim that Harmelin is no longer good law. I am not confident the Court will be eager to reconsider Harmelin anytime soon, but very slim chances may have gone up just a little with Justice Kennedy's retirement. And the best and really only chance to get Harmelin before the Court is to keep asking and asking and seeking and seeking and knocking and knocking. July 1, 2018 at 07:21 PM | Permalink Comments The first case that should be overruled is Zavydas v. Davis. Posted by: federalist | Jul 1, 2018 7:51:16 PM federalist: Wasn't Kennedy in the dissent in that one? Seems like his retirement does not change the math, though perhaps you think some new rulings or developments do. Posted by: Doug B | Jul 1, 2018 7:56:42 PM As a member of the criminal defense bar, I would certainly welcome overturning Harmelin, which now very much seems to be a product of 80s/90s anti-drug hysteria (as was Employment Division v. Smith, though it involved a totally different area of law). As it stands now, under Harmelin, the Eighth Amendment is essentially a dead letter when it comes to challenging any term of imprisonment, no matter how draconian or disproportionate it may seem to the offense. Posted by: Anon AFPD | Jul 1, 2018 8:08:30 PM Yeah, I can't remember the last Eighth Amendment challenge I raised because I don't handle juvenile or capital cases. I realize the cases that should be reversed are few and far between, but it's not even worth making the argument in those cases. That being said, I don't think the Supreme Court likes opening up broad and ill-defined areas of litigation that have to be handled on a case by case basis. Posted by: Erik M | Jul 2, 2018 11:57:36 AM Post a comment Prez Obama issues clemency to 273 more individuals (209 commutation and 64 pardons) and Chelsea Manning among those getting a commuted sentence | Main | "Dear President Trump: Heres How to get Right on Crime, Part 1" January 17, 2017 Extended dissent laments First Circuit panel's rejection of Eighth Amendment attack on 160-year sentence for stash house participant I just notices a lengthy and blog-worthy opinion issued by the First Circuit late last week in US v. Rivera-Ruperto, No. 12-2364 (1st Cir. Jan 13, 2017) (available here). The start and final substantive paragraphs of the majority opinion provides the factual background for the Eighth Amendment claim and its formal fate: This case arises out of a now-familiar, large-scale FBI investigation known as "Operation Guard Shack," in which the FBI, in an effort to root out police corruption throughout Puerto Rico, orchestrated a series of staged drug deals over the course of several years. For his participation in six of these Operation Guard Shack drug deals, Defendant- Appellant Wendell Rivera-Ruperto stood two trials and was found guilty of various federal drug and firearms-related crimes. The convictions resulted in Rivera-Ruperto receiving a combined sentence of 161-years and 10-months' imprisonment..... At oral argument, counsel for Rivera-Ruperto argued that we should be swayed by the fact that, in this case, the crime involved fake drug deals. A near two life-term punishment where no real drugs and no real drug dealers were involved, he contended, is a punishment that is grossly disproportionate on its face. But in coming to this sentence, the judge below was guided by and correctly employed a sentencing scheme that is written into statute -- a statute that makes no distinction between cases involving real versus sham cocaine. At each of the six stings, in fact, Rivera-Ruperto repeatedly and voluntarily showed up armed and provided security services for what he believed to be illegal transactions between real cocaine dealers. The crime of possessing a firearm in furtherance of such a drug trafficking offense is a grave one, and Congress has made a legislative determination that it requires harsh punishment. Given the weight of the case law, we see no Eighth Amendment route for second-guessing that legislative judgment. We thus cannot conclude that Rivera-Ruperto has established that his sentence, which is largely due to his consecutive sentences under 924(c), is grossly disproportionate to the crime, so as to trigger Eighth Amendment protections. The start and end of Judge Torruella's 35+-page dissent provides a much fuller primer on the Eighth Amendment and one judge's concerns about its application in this case: The majority today affirms a sentence of 160 years and one month without the possibility of parole for Rivera-Ruperto. The transgression for which Rivera-Ruperto was punished in such an extreme manner was his participation as a security guard in several fake transactions, while the FBI duped Rivera-Ruperto into believing that the composite was actually illegal drugs. The FBI ensured that more than five kilograms of composite moved from one agent's hands to another at each transaction; the FBI also made sure that the rigged script included Rivera-Ruperto's possession of a pistol at each transaction. This combination -- more than five kilograms of composite, a pistol, and separate transactions -- triggered the mandatory consecutive minimums of 18 U.S.C. 924(c), which make up 130 years of Rivera-Ruperto's sentence. In a real drug transaction, all participants would be guilty of a crime. And, in general, the greater their knowledge of the crime would be, the harsher the law would punish them. In the fictitious transaction we are faced with today, however, only the duped participants, who had no knowledge of what truly transpired, are punished. The other participants are not only excused, but indeed rewarded for a job well done. If Rivera-Ruperto had instead knowingly committed several real rapes, second-degree murders, and/or kidnappings, he would have received a much lower sentence; even if Rivera-Ruperto had taken a much more active role in, and brought a gun to, two much larger real drug deals, he would still have received a much lower sentence. For these and many other crimes Rivera-Ruperto would have received sentences that would see him released from prison during the natural term of his life. For the fictitious transgressions concocted by the authorities, however, Rivera- Ruperto will spend his entire life behind bars -- a sentence given to first-degree murderers, 18 U.S.C. 1111, or those who cause death by wrecking a train carrying high-level nuclear waste. 18 U.S.C. 1992. From the majority's approval of the draconian sentence imposed in this case, I respectfully dissent. Rivera-Ruperto's sentence is grossly disproportionate to his offense, and therefore violates the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution. While some seemingly excessively harsh sentences have withstood Eighth Amendment challenges, such harsh sentences have been sanctioned only in the context of recidivists or those who otherwise dedicated themselves to a life of crime -- a context that explained the severity of the sentences. But Rivera-Ruperto has no criminal record, nor has he dedicated himself to a life of crime. Not even under the infamous 924(c) has a first-time offender like Rivera-Ruperto ever been condemned to spend his entire life in jail.... Never before has a first-time offender who has not dedicated his life to crime been condemned to spend his entire life in prison for a transgression such as Rivera-Ruperto's, not even in cases in which the transgression was real -- and Rivera's-Ruperto's transgression is fictitious. The Government has effectively asked this court to pronounce the Eighth Amendment dead for sentences for a term of years. I respectfully refuse to join in this pronouncement. "Unless we are to abandon the moral commitment embodied in the Eighth Amendment, proportionality review must never become effectively obsolete." Graham, 560 U.S. at 85 (Stevens, Ginsburg, Sotomayor, JJ., concurring). January 17, 2017 at 06:01 PM | Permalink Comments another case crying out for supreme court reversal and presidential pardon or commutation. Any and all sentences that are factually declared at beyond natural life should automatically be set aside, and judges forced to justify a whole life sentence against the test of "the worst of the worst". Those that sit in ivory towers need to revisit the human concepts of humility and mercy. Posted by: peter | Jan 18, 2017 5:04:28 AM My friend Sholam Weiss is serving a sentence of 835 years for white collar crimes that did not involve either drugs or guns. Many of us are praying that he will receive a Commutation before President Obama leaves office. Notably, the Chancellor of Austria (from which Mr. Wiss was extradited, based upon assurances from the DOJ and the State Department that have not been fulfilled) has personally asked President Obama to grant the commutation. Posted by: Jim Gormley | Jan 18, 2017 11:41:09 AM 160 years let's see. "At oral argument, counsel for Rivera-Ruperto argued that we should be swayed by the fact that, in this case, the crime involved fake drug deals. A near two life-term punishment where no real drugs and no real drug dealers were involved, he contended, is a punishment that is grossly disproportionate on its face." Now that is truly frivolous defense argument. X murders 5 people and gets 160 years. Y pretends to murder 5 people. Of course Y should get the same sentence as X. Obvious is it not. That the defense counsel had the temerity to argue otherwise is quite unbelievable. Posted by: anon | Jan 19, 2017 10:58:20 PM Post a comment Fascinating Fourth Circuit split over how federal sentencing problems should inform guideline interpretation | Main | "The Injustice of Marijuana Arrests" July 28, 2014 US District Judge Gleeson prods prosecutors to undo stacked gun counts and then praises effort to do justice Regular readers are likely familiar with the remarkable series of opinions issued by US District Judge John Gleeson in which he has forcefully expressed deep concerns with how federal prosecutors sometimes exercise their charging and bargaining powers in the application of mandatory minimum sentencing provisions. But, as reported in this New York Times piece, headlined "Citing Fairness, U.S. Judge Acts to Undo a Sentence He Was Forced to Impose," Judge Gleeson's latest opinion discusses how federal prosecutors ultimately aided his efforts to undo an extreme mandatory minimum sentence. Here are the basics: Francois Holloway has spent nearly two decades of a 57-year sentence in a federal prison, for serious crimes that no one disputes he committed. There were armed carjackings, and his participation in an illegal chop shop, where stolen cars would be dismantled and sold for parts. But the fairness of the mandatory sentence has been a matter of dispute, not only for Mr. Holloway, but also for a surprising and most effective advocate: the trial judge, John Gleeson. As Mr. Holloway filed one motion after another trying to get his sentence and his case re-evaluated, Judge Gleeson, of Federal District Court in Brooklyn, began to speak out against those mandatory sentences that he believed were unduly harsh. Mr. Holloways 57-year term was more than twice the average sentence in the district for murder in 1996, the year he was sentenced. More recently, Judge Gleeson began his own campaign on Mr. Holloways behalf, writing to Loretta E. Lynch, who is the United States attorney for the Eastern District of New York, to request that she vacate two of Mr. Holloways convictions. The payoff from Judge Gleesons efforts will be apparent on Tuesday in a highly unusual hearing, when the judge is expected to resentence Mr. Holloway, who is 57, to time served. Prosecutors also use their power to remedy injustices, Judge Gleeson wrote in a memorandum released on Monday. Even people who are indisputably guilty of violent crimes deserve justice, and now Holloway will get it.... Mr. Holloway was charged in 1995 with three counts of carjacking and using a gun during a violent crime (even though it was an accomplice, and not Mr. Holloway, who carried the gun), along with participating in the chop shop. The government offered him a plea deal of about 11 years. He turned it down after his lawyer assured him he could win at trial. Mr. Holloway did not win. For the first conviction on the gun count, the law required Mr. Holloway to receive five years. But for the second and third convictions, the law required 20 years for each one, served consecutively, a requirement known as stacking, which some judges and lawyers argue sounds like a recidivism provision, although it can be applied for crimes, like Mr. Holloways, committed hours apart that are part of the same trial. None of Mr. Holloways co-defendants, who all pleaded guilty, received more than six years. At Mr. Holloways sentencing in 1996, Judge Gleeson said that by stripping me of discretion, the stacked gun charges require the imposition of a sentence that is, in essence, a life sentence. (The remainder of the 57 years was the 12 years required for the three carjackings.)... At a hearing on the Holloway case this month, an assistant United States attorney, Sam Nitze, said that this is both a unique case and a unique defendant, citing his extraordinary disciplinary record and his work in prison. Also, he said, three of Mr. Holloways carjacking victims have said that the 20 years that Mr. Holloway had served in prison was an awfully long time, and people deserve another chance. Mr. Nitze agreed to vacate the two convictions, while emphasizing that this should not be taken as indicative of Ms. Lynchs view on the stacking provision in other cases. In his opinion issued last week, Judge Gleeson said that Mr. Holloways sentence illustrated a trial penalty, where those willing to risk trial could be hit with mandatory minimum sentences that would be laughable if only there werent real people on the receiving end of them. Judge Gleeson's full 11-page opinion in Holloway v. US, No. 01-CV-1017 (E.D.N.Y. July 28, 2014)(available for download below), is a must-read for lots of reasons. The opinion is not be easily summarized, but this part of its conclusion provide a flavor of what comes before: It is easy to be a tough prosecutor. Prosecutors are almost never criticized for being aggressive, or for fighting hard to obtain the maximum sentence, or for saying theres nothing we can do about an excessive sentence after all avenues of judicial relief have been exhausted. Doing justice can be much harder. It takes time and involves work, including careful consideration of the circumstances of particular crimes, defendants, and victims and often the relevant events occurred in the distant past. It requires a willingness to make hard decisions, including some that will be criticized. This case is a perfect example. Holloway was convicted of three armed robberies. He deserved serious punishment. The judgment of conviction in his case was affirmed on direct review by the Supreme Court, and his collateral attack on that judgment failed long ago. His sentence was far more severe than necessary to reflect the seriousness of his crimes and to adequately protect the community from him, but no one would criticize the United States Attorney if she allowed it to stand by doing nothing. By contrast, the decision she has made required considerable work. Assistant United States Attorney Nitze had to retrieve and examine a very old case file. He had to track down and interview the victims of Holloways crimes, which were committed 20 years ago. His office no doubt considered the racial disparity in the use of 924(c), and especially in the stacking of 924(c) counts. He requested and obtained an adjournment so his office could have the time necessary to make an extremely important decision.... This is a significant case, and not just for Francois Holloway. It demonstrates the difference between a Department of Prosecutions and a Department of Justice. It shows how the Department of Justice, as the governments representative in every federal criminal case, has the power to walk into courtrooms and ask judges to remedy injustices.... A prosecutor who says nothing can be done about an unjust sentence because all appeals and collateral challenges have been exhausted is actually choosing to do nothing about the unjust sentence. Some will make a different choice, as Ms. Lynch did here. Numerous lawyers have been joining pro bono movements to prepare clemency petitions for federal prisoners, and indeed the Department of Justice has encouraged the bar to locate and try to help deserving inmates. Those lawyers will find many inmates even more deserving of belated justice than Holloway. Some will satisfy the criteria for Department of Justice support, while others will not. In any event, theres no good reason why all of them must end up in the clemency bottleneck. Some inmates will ask United States Attorneys for the kind of justice made possible in this case, that is, justice administered not by the President but by a judge, on the consent of the Department of Justice, in the same courtroom in which the inmate was sentenced. Whatever the outcome of those requests, I respectfully suggest that they should get the same careful consideration that Ms. Lynch and her assistants gave to Francois Holloway. Download Holloway Memo FILED 7-28-14 July 28, 2014 at 10:50 PM | Permalink TrackBack TrackBack URL for this entry: https://www.typepad.com/services/trackback/6a00d83451574769e201a511eb7345970c Listed below are links to weblogs that reference US District Judge Gleeson prods prosecutors to undo stacked gun counts and then praises effort to do justice: Comments I read Judge Gleeson's order which resulted in the Government's acquiescence. It is a breathtaking example of bullying. The threat is clear: agree to allow the Court to vacate now (the easy way), or the Court will vacate after forcing the Government to bust their hump with litigation and appeals. The suggestion that other judges adopt similar strategies is unconscionable. Posted by: Wayne-O | Jul 28, 2014 11:50:05 PM Wayne-O What is unconscionable about it? It seems to me exactly correct...everyone else got six years and he got 57, for what? For going to trial, that's what. The real bullies here are the prosecutors who don't like being bullied back. Who can dish it out but can't take it. Posted by: Daniel | Jul 29, 2014 1:20:33 AM Good on the Prosecution here. There's no doubt a significant sentence is appropriate, but the mandatory time just pushes it into the absurd. I know a case recently where a man sent solicitous (presumably obscene) texts to a 14 or 15 year old. Over a period of one night, he racked up something like 30 texts. He pled guilty to eight. The problem is there's a mandatory 5 years. In fairness to the law, the Judge could have ran them concurrently. However, he did not and sentenced the defendant to 40 years mandatory. The same Judge then encountered a man who hired someone to commit a murder and sentenced that man to 25 years. Posted by: Erik M | Jul 29, 2014 6:46:55 AM Holloway's lawyer admitted that Holloway committed the violent crime of carjacking. Nonetheless, Holloway rolled the dice at trial to try to be found not guilty of the crime THAT HE COMMITTED, and was made aware of the consequences. He lost his gamble, and felt the full brunt of his true acts and we are to have sympathy and compassion for this and give him the benefit of a lower sentence that he could have received for just admitting THE CRIME THAT HE COMMITTED from the beginning? Posted by: Kelly | Jul 29, 2014 12:23:43 PM "give him the benefit of a lower sentence that he could have received for just admitting THE CRIME THAT HE COMMITTED from the beginning?" Yes. Why is that such a shocking proposition? The burden of proof is supposed to be on the prosecution not on the defendant. If a person has right to the trial that right is inherently undermined when there is a penalty for exercising that right. Posted by: Daniel | Jul 29, 2014 12:45:55 PM Wayne-O, I don't think you read the order. If you did, you would have seen that Holloway's appeal was over (conviction and sentence affirmed by the Second Circuit and the Supreme Court), his post-conviction habeas (2255) motion was DENIED by Judge Gleeson, and the Second Circuit refused to allow that denial to be appealed. (page 11). The case was over. If the Government had done nothing, Holloway would have simply done his 57 years. There would not have been any further litigation and appeals to "bust a hump" over. Judge Gleeson did not have the power to vacate, or to do anything. Except ask. (Not bully, not threaten, just ask.) The whole point made throughout his order is that when he did ask, the prosecutor--who didn't have to do anything-- undertook the effort to re-examine the case and do the right thing. Posted by: Def. Atty | Jul 29, 2014 4:06:56 PM So, Kelly, your position on charge stacking, absurdly punitive MMs and draconian trial penalties is what...rules are rules? You think these spectacularly coercive techniques are only applied to those who clearly committed the crimes as charged? (of course we don't know if they are or not because all but a scant few defendants end up caving under the onslaught...regardless of whether they are guilty, wrongly accused or innocent) Posted by: John K | Jul 29, 2014 5:26:39 PM Def. Atty: Of course I read it. Carefully. From page 5: "In the absence of a government agreement to reopen the sentencing, I will address the pending application to reopen Holloways collateral challenge to his conviction. The extraordinary trial penalty in this case may warrant further briefing on the constitutional issues raised by such a use of prosecutorial power. In addition, though I long ago rejected a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel based on trial counsels admission in his opening statement that Holloway in fact robbed the three victims of their cars, I may direct a closer inspection of that issue as well. " I can respect that you may have a different characterization of this language. I stick by mine. Posted by: Wayne-O | Jul 29, 2014 7:44:52 PM John K. I wouldn't even consider this classic charge stacking as I understand that the sentence resulted from charging multiple discrete offenses, not numerous violations stemming from a single act. The only real injustice I see is that his cohorts got such short terms, not that Holloway got 57 years. Posted by: Soronel Haetir | Jul 30, 2014 12:46:19 AM Soronel. Maybe that's right. Maybe it is an injustice that the others got such short sentences. But you cannot be blind to the reasons why that happened. The people who got short sentences were people who played ball with the prosecutor and the person who got the long sentence was the one who exercised their constitutional right to a trial. Doesn't that bother you at all? It seems to me that not only must a just result be achieved it must be achieved by a just process. Otherwise it all collapses into the ends justify the means and then all rules and laws are just a trick and a sham on the powerful on the powerless. Posted by: Daniel | Jul 30, 2014 2:30:03 AM Daniel, Given that I have repeatedly stated I believe that execution is generally the appropriate outcome for crimes like theft of $250 and that execution would only bother me for thefts in the low tens of dollars I am not at all bothered by the guy who chose to go to trial getting a significantly longer term. By the time you are talking about armed robbery as compared with simple theft society should be able to protect itself by expelling the guilty. To me, all of them are so worthy of execution that the difference in actual sentences is of only mild curiosity. Posted by: Soronel Haetir | Jul 30, 2014 10:57:33 AM What's the opposite of a great humanitarian? Setting aside the notions of mercy and compassion (which should be easy for Soronel since he apparently has none of either) how about the question of competence. The significant number of innocence-project exonerations of death-row inmates suggests at the very least the system simply isn't to be trusted to kill the right people. Or does that not matter either? Posted by: JohnK | Jul 31, 2014 12:14:46 PM I wish somebody who actually values liberty and loves his own life would explain to me how 11 years in prison is a light sentence? Before reacting too quickly, keep in mind Holloway wasn't the one carrying the gun. In fact it appears Holloway was actually crushed by the system for committing two police-state crimes not mentioned publicly or included in the charging documents: 1. being the guy who wasn't among the first to take a plea deal and 2. putting the state to the annoyance of a trial. Posted by: JohnK | Jul 31, 2014 12:29:01 PM Wayne-O, You found and read that earlier order with more care than I read the first sentence of your post. We're talking about different orders. I assumed you were speaking of the order linked with this blog post, which doesn't contain the language you cite. With further digging, I found and read the earlier order you've quoted. I agree that we disagree on characterization. But now at least I see the order of which you spoke, and the point you were making. I take back my first sentence and its tone. Posted by: Def. Atty | Jul 31, 2014 12:41:36 PM Post a comment Government, recruiting agencies differ on possible modality for labour migration to Japan While the negotiations for sending Nepali workers to Japan are still at the preliminary stage, recruiting agencies have started claiming that the labour migration to Japan will happen via them. Shirley Contreras lives in Orcutt and writes for the Santa Maria Valley Historical Society. She can be contacted at 623-8193 or at shirleycontreras2@yahoo.com. Her book, The Good Years, a selection of stories shes written for the Santa Maria Times since 1991, is on sale at the Santa Maria Valley Historical Society, 616 S. Broadway. Russia and China may be the first to come to mind in reference to violating sanctions against North Korea, but the list is actually a bit longer, and fairly more complicatedand the end of the day, our out-of-control vanity has led to a boom in fake eyelashes that have been helping to prop up the North Korean government. In late January, California-based cosmetics company ELF agreed to pay a nearly US$1m fine to settle civil liabilities for importing fake eyelashes containing materials from North Korea in breach of sanctions. The U.S. Treasury Department said that between 2012 and 2017, the company imported 156 shipments of false eyelash kits, valued at $4.43 million from two suppliers located in the Peoples Republic of China that contained materials sourced by North Korean suppliers. ELF (eyes, lips, face), with annual revenues of $295 million, faced more than $40 million in penalties, but the treasury took mitigating circumstances into account; namely, the small amount involved and the fact that the company itself reported the sanctions violation after a self-audit of third-party suppliers. This enforcement action highlights the risks for companies that do not conduct full-spectrum supply chain due diligence when sourcing products from overseas, particularly in a region in which North Korea as well as other comprehensively sanctioned countries or regions, is known to export goods, the Treasury said. Until January 2017, ELFs compliance program and its supplier audits failed to discover that approximately 80 percent of the false eyelash kits supplied by two of ELFs China-based suppliers contained materials from the DPRK, it added. Related: Will Chinese New Year Bring Out The Bulls? On top of that, the companys stock has lost 51 percent of its value since it was first floated in September 2016. Based on its latest results, sales are down 11 percent compared to the same period last year. Beyond eyelashes, North Korea has proven quite resources at evading sanctions, with indications that its mastered smuggling. A recent UN report notes that sanctions against North Korea were ineffective, with authorities there still able to acquire illegal shipments of oil products, sell banned coal and violate the arms embargo. The report also said that despite the imposed sanctions, North Korean financial institutions continue to operate in at least five countries, while the countrys diplomats help their country evade sanctions by controlling bank accounts in multiple countries. The UN experts who compiled the report detailed violations across several countries, including Bulgaria, China, Germany, India, Myanmar, Poland, Russia, Singapore, Tanzania and Uganda. On the lower level of sanctions-busting, other luxury goods that have made it to North Korea including sparkling wine and spirits from Germany, wine and vermouth from Italy, and perfume and cosmetics from Bulgaria. A Singapore-based company has been stocking department stores in Pyongyang, the capital, with luxury items from Japan and Europe. Last year, the US government published guidance for US companies to detect certain of North Koreas deceptive practices in avoiding U.S. sanctions. Related: Softbank's 25 Trillion Yen Riddle While the sanctions are enforced by the prosecution or sanctioning companies that do business with North Korea, outsourcing the production and supply chains can be hard to spotas with ELFs fake eyelashes. A Wall Street Journal report from December last year explains that many U.S. banks and companies are unwillingly participating in a network in which North Korea uses proxies with hidden government ties across the globe to facilitate payments and transactions. U.S. companies outsource production to Asian companies, but even they exploit low labor and material costs in jurisdictions like North Korea where manufacturers can save up to 75 percent. The Trump administration has led the drive at the United Nations to impose a series of tough economic sanctions on North Korea in response to its nuclear tests and missile launches in 2017. By Jan Bauer for Safehaven.com More Top Reads From Safehaven.com: I was really surprised to see that you printed a letter calling for the armed overthrow of a duly elected government in the United States in your Feb. 3, edition. John Robinson, who is a former Ravalli County Attorney wrote: An armed force should march on the White House and rid the country of this disease that has taken over the White House." In U.S. law to be charged with sedition it has to involve two or more persons. John and the Ravalli Republic is two or more so maybe 18 U.S. Code 2384 should be enforced. I wonder if the Montana Militia would have written such a letter if you would have printed it? Robinson is from Chicago and maybe that has affected his thinking that guns are the answer and gang action is the solution and he apparently believes that is Constitutional. As the Ravalli Republic has taken a hard left, consistent with all Lee Newspapers and other fake news, it is not surprising that they allow such materials to be printed that reflects the extreme left views. It seems the Ravalli Republic has a goal of influencing the very conservative base of Ravalli County towards acceptance of the same left wing doctrine that is so popular in Missoula and other liberal areas of Montana and the U.S. Community thank you from the USDA Forest Service following the government shutdown I would like to personally thank the USDA Forest Service Northern Regions surrounding communities as well as our many partners for the outpouring of support shown during the recent partial government shutdown. Because we live, work and play in the communities we serve, being unable to fully carry out our valuable mission of public land stewardship had a tremendous impact on our employees and their families. It also had a profound effect on many partners, volunteers, permittees, and contractors. Not only was our mission affected, but several individuals and their families endured personal financial hardships as a result of being furloughed for over a month without pay. This is where our local communities shined in helping ease that burden. Americans have a long history of helping one another when disaster strikes. This should inspire every state to support the current difficulties facing the border states. When south eastern states devastated by hurricanes reached out for help, Montana sent volunteers to answer the call. During Californias recent fires, Montana sent fire fighters and first responders eager to help. Throughout our rich history, there have been many examples of Montana stepping up to the plate in order to come to the aid of another state. Its what we do as Montanans, as Americans. So whats the problem? Why the hesitation to support the southern border? America annually welcomes over one million new citizens, ranking first in legal immigration. But all of us had better realize that the thousands coming in caravans across Mexico are not going to settle only in the states along the border. Members of these caravans will be infiltrating all 50 states. Every state government will be forced to deal with the burdens they create. Demands on our schools, medical services, the job market and housing will all be affected. Critics, who ignore the border crises or think it isnt their problem, had better wake up. All these issues cross state lines. In the ensuing statute, the legislature agreed that a parents constitutional rights should yield to the best interest of their childs when the parents conduct was contrary to a parent and child relationship, Goheen said. While the Montana Supreme Court upheld the statute that said a parent didnt have to be proven unfit, it also ruled last year that since there was already a law on the books that pertained to grandparents, the state needed to follow those rules whenever grandparents were involved. That ambiguity has created challenges for grandparents already faced with difficult decisions. Parents with addictions can cycle in and out of rehab and then relapse, Goheen said. Right now, grandparents have to prove their children are unfit. They are not allowed to proceed under that other statute. Goheen said this legislation isnt about a casual situation where a grandparent wants more contact with their grandchildren. Munsey said made enough for 40 people and does not use recipes. I never use a recipe to cook because I grew up learning to cook by looking and tasting, she said. Everyone was invited to the meal and fortune cookie dessert. Bitterroot College Director Victoria Clark played Anni Boreland (Asian name Misun Gu) in the traditional game of Go where the goal is to place your disks on the lines to completely surround your opponent. James Borland explained that there are strategies which include starting more than one conflict to distract your opponent. It looks amazingly simple, and it is simple to play, but once you know how to play the strategy becomes very subtle, he said. You try to trick your opponent that youre going to try something. Oceana Munsey is a homeschooled student in eighth grade who came to participate in the event. She also dressed in a Hanbok, Korean custom clothing that has been inspired by nature. It even has round sleeves like the sky and universe, Delvo said. You feel more freedom even though there are seven layers. She explained that the traditional outfits focus on elegance, beauty and attitude not the shape of the body. Heres our response: So? Voting laws should be crafted to accommodate and protect voters, not politicians. And we certainly shouldnt be worrying about politicians who may or may not know if they really want to run for office. Pennington County Auditor-elect Cindy Mohler said county auditors across the state widely oppose this bill. Fourteen days is simply not enough time to mail out an absentee ballot, have the voter fill it out and return it, and be processed by the auditors office. Thats a tight window to get a ballot to someone in Arizona, much less someone stationed in the Middle East. And thats the group of people were most worried about: our active-duty deployed military members. How does this bill factor in the federal Uniformed and Overseas Absentee Voting Act, which mandates 45 days for deployed military absentee voting? Are our legislators unaware of that, or do they simply expect our county auditors to abide by multiple deadlines? Another group of people this will hit: farmers and ranchers. As one of our readers astutely pointed out, it can be difficult for farmers and ranchers to get away. Broken fences, sick livestock and malfunctioning equipment dont care if its Election Day. Doppelganger It is another winters morning, standing at the bus stop, waiting for the local bus to Kalanki. Vacantly gazing at the open road, I hear a fragile namaste from behind me. As I turn, I come face-to-face with a familiar soul. Its my dear friend Ramsaran Devkota, so I greet him with a smile. The Regional Health team said changing that practice has been a priority. "Nursing shortages are a nationwide issue," Dr. Michael Statz, chief of staff for Rapid City Hospital and general surgeon at Rapid City Medical Center. Statz said diversions have gotten better after Regional Health hired 40 nurses from the Philippines late last year. Once construction is completed on the new emergency department connected to Rapid City Hospital, Statz said 20 to 30 more beds should be available, and the practice should become even less frequent. Statz also said Regional Health is working to recruit more doctors from a variety of disciplines so patients don't need to go to Denver or Sioux Falls for procedures. He gave the Regional Health Heart and Vascular Institute as a prime example, and said the goal is for that facility to become like the heart hospital in Sioux Falls. Rapid City Council President Jason Salamun said he could feel a "momentum change," coming from the meeting and Regional Health, which he described as encouraging. Salamun encouraged Regional and the Rapid City community to partner to recruit caregivers to the region. According to the plaintiffs motion for final approval of the settlement, the $1.73 million to be split among the class members will cover all of their actual losses, plus 10 percent interest per year since the date of the loss, plus another additional 25 percent. The payout check will be mailed to the class members without them having to do anything, the plaintiffs motion says. The settlement terms prohibit the parties from disparaging each other. The terms do not include any admission by the credit union or the insurance company that the plaintiffs claims were valid, or that the credit union or life insurance company violated any laws. In response to an inquiry from the Journal, Black Hills Federal Credit Union sent a written statement about the settlement from Vice President of Marketing Carol Brown. "Black Hills Federal Credit Union denies any wrongdoing; however, the parties agreed to settle because of the uncertainty, expense, and inconvenience associated with continued litigation," the statement said. "We believe the settlement is in the best interest of BHFCU and our members. Were moving on and focusing our attention on the future and our mission to improve lives." A spokeswoman for CMFG Life Insurance Company sent the Journal the following written statement. The plan for the Retained Area is the latest chapter in the nearly eight-decade-long story of the bombing range. The range was established by the federal government in 1942 on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, where some Native Americans who resided within the range boundaries were forced to sell or otherwise relinquish their land and leave. Support Local Journalism Your membership makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} The range comprised a rectangular area of 534 square miles, and it was used for bombing and gunnery practice by military planes during World War II. That activity left the ground littered with debris and some "unexploded ordnance," which is the term applied to bombs and shells that fail to detonate but remain a danger because of the explosives they contain. Between 1948 and 1977, all but one 4-square-mile parcel of the bombing range was transferred out of the Defense Department's ownership. Some of that transferred land is now included in the South Unit of Badlands National Park, some is held in trust by the federal government for the Oglala Sioux Tribe, and some was sold back into private ownership. The transferred land has been subjected to government-funded cleanups, and all of it is open to at least some use, including grazing. MINOT, N.D. | He started the club with the lengthy name, has stayed the course for several years, and has inspired countless other dedicated volunteers to do the same. Percy Ottmar of Minot is one of the founders of the Souris River Basin Longbeards, an organization affiliated with the National Turkey Federation. Under his leadership the group has become one of the leading outdoor organizations in the Minot area. "I've been with it since the beginning. I'm thinking 17 years or so," Ottmar said. "There (were) four of us in 2001 or 2002. I'm the only one left." Ottmar's persistence through the years has energized others to volunteer for club activities, many of whom have done so almost as long as Ottmar. Today the SRBL are involved in a number of worthwhile causes that get a nod of approval from the outdoor community. Admittedly, says Ottmar, he took a few chances in taking on new projects during those early years. Now though, it has made the club stronger than ever. "I guess I stuck with it the longest and got more things going than we probably should have gotten into," said Ottmar during this winter's annual ice fishing derby sponsored by SRBL. "This fishing derby wasn't on the agenda when we started. We kind of fell into it by mistake. We helped some people out and wound up taking it over and we're still doing it." BISMARCK, N.D. | The North Dakota Public Service Commission has approved a wind farm project that would bring up to 123 turbines to the southern part of the state. NextEra Energy Resources plans to build the Emmons-Logan Wind Energy Center on about 28,000 acres (11,300 hectares) northeast of Linton, The Bismarck Tribune reported. The wind farm will have a capacity of nearly 300 megawatts. North Dakota currently has about 3,150 megawatts of wind capacity. Community members and landowners in the area support the project, Commissioner Julie Fedorchak said. "Many locals attended the hearing and spoke in favor of this wind farm," she said in a statement. The project meets siting criteria, such as local zoning approval, which was a "key component" to approving the proposal, said Commission Chairman Brian Kroshus. The project is expected to cost about $415 million, including the addition of access roads, underground electrical collection systems, collection substations, operations and maintenance building and meteorological evaluation towers. A nearly 7-mile (11-kilometer) transmission line will be built in Emmons County to connect to the Heskett-Wishek transmission line. The cost of the line is an estimated $20 million. The above organizations are recognized by Queens Crap as being beneficial to the city as a whole, by fighting to preserve the history and character of our neighborhoods. They are not connected to this website and the opinions presented here do not necessarily represent the positions of these organizations.The comments left by posters to this site do not necessarily represent the views of the blogger or webmaster.Street or satellite shots used here are from Google Maps or Windows Live Local On behalf of the Transportation Security Administration officers at the Quad City International Airport, I would like to publicly acknowledge the amazing outpouring of support by individuals, businesses, organizations and the traveling public during the partial government shutdown. Throughout this challenging time, we received verbal encouragement and tangible help from multiple sources. The donations of numerous lunches, store gift cards and non-perishable food items affirmed our officers efforts and lifted their spirits as they diligently reported to duty each day. We are proud to serve a community of such caring and generous people. John Hursey Federal Security Director TSA Downstate Illinois Love 2 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 St. Ambrose University is pleased to partner with the Quad-City Times and the Quad Cities Chamber of Commerce to create and host "Leading the Nation Iowa 2020," a series of Q&A forums which will invite St. Ambrose students and members of the community at large to engage in the 2020 Iowa Caucuses process. This initiative will encourage presidential candidates to meet with SAU student journalists and reporters from the Quad-City Times in a format where they will face questions pertinent to Iowa, the nation and young people, in particular. The last half of these one-hour sessions will allow candidates to freely share their campaign message. As president of St. Ambrose University, I am often called upon to speak on behalf of the university and its many constituencies, but the university does not endorse any political party, its platform or its candidates. Rather, the university is a place where civil and respectful debate about the issues before us can take place. Such open debate can be useful to all citizens of good will. Illinois lawmakers are moving swiftly on legislation that would raise the states minimum wage to $15 an hour. The bill passed the Senate on Thursday, and if it is signed into law, it would be a dramatic increase over the current $8.25 minimum. Right now, it doesnt look like theres a way of stopping the legislation. But for the Quad-Cities sake, we hope the House and Gov. J.B. Pritzker will take into account the upheaval it will cause in border areas like ours if this proposal passes. The Senate bill calls for a six-year phase-in period for the new wage. The current minimum of $8.25 would rise to $9.25 next Jan. 1. After that, it would increase to $10 an hour on July 1, 2020. After that, $1 would be added to the minimum wage every Jan. 1 until it hits $15 an hour on Jan. 1, 2025. Let's be clear: We believe workers need a pay raise. Income stagnation across the United States and in the Quad-Cities is real. But we think the state needs to be smart and take into account how costs vary across Illinois. What seems reasonable in Chicago whether its the cost of housing or what a business can charge its customers is far different than in Moline and Rock Island. Already, representatives for Quad-City businesses are sounding the alarm. On Searles' calendar, he notes that opossums begin the first of two Midwest breeding seasons around Feb. 11 and that bobcats and raccoons begin denning around the 12th, for example. I love thinking about how all the while we humans are buzzing about our important business of going to work, making meals, paying bills, all according to a clock, little animals all around us also are going about their business, quietly and usually unseen, responding to the rhythms of the natural world. WHAT GOES AROUND: In reporting on what to expect at this weekend's Home Show, Robert Meyer, of Grand Appliances, mentioned the return of brass handles. Shiny brass was all the rage in the 1980s, a time I associate with wallpaper borders and the colors hunter green and burgundy. Now it seems to be coming back, although the look is more brushed and satin than shiny. ABOUT EATING FLOUR: In regard to my question last week about why bags of flour carry a warning label advising people not to eat raw flour, I received an answer from the AnswerLine of Iowa State University, Ames. The warning refers to eating dough containing raw flour, not necessarily the flour all by itself. Cane farmers victorious after sugar mills agree to provide floor price Sugar mills at Kanchanpur have agreed to increase the sugarcane price after farmers announced their protest programme. With the agreement in place, the two mills operating in the district are ready to provide the floor price fixed by the government to cane farmers. When a representative from the Trykes group gave a presentation to the Rotary some time ago, the group responded so enthusiastically that Ashcraft wanted to make it a club initiative. Ashcraft, president of the Handicapped Development Center, said the center was the perfect place for the vehicles to be assembled. Additionally, the North Scott Rotary has a long history of working with children with disabilities," he said. About 15 more children are on a waiting list for the trikes, said Katie Powers, of the Trykes group. North Scott Rotary donated about $20,000, which covered the 19 bikes given away Saturday plus eight more, she said. Angela and Drew Beard, along with their son, Kaden, 5, watched their daughter, Aurora, 2, being fitted and then driving her trike through the halls of the center. Shes very excited that she can move around with (Kaden), Angela Beard said. Shes just excited to be able to move in another way. It will give her more independence, and let her be more similar to kids her age. Karla Sanchez said Rebels bike is extra small because shes super-tiny. The little girl clapped with delight while she rode off. We are going to have a hard time getting her off it." Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. A Davenport man has been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison on a charge of receiving child pornography. Kevin Dean Green, 35, was sentenced in the case Thursday during a hearing in U.S. District Court, Davenport. U.S. District Court Judge John Jarvey also sentenced Green to serve five years on supervised release once he has completed his prison sentence. Green is also ordered to pay nine victims $3,000 each in restitution. Green was arrested in connection with the case Oct. 31, 2017. He pleaded guilty to one count of receiving child pornography on Sept. 19 during a hearing U.S. District Court, Davenport. Green was implicated in having child pornography based upon an FBI investigation into a Florida man who is a registered child sex offender. According to the criminal complaint filed by a local special agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, an undercover agent in the Washington, D.C., FBI field office on June 29, 2017, identified a user of the Kik instant messaging app as kidluvrl during undercover activity as a trader and possessor of child pornography as well as a possible contact offender. Many of Illinois' problems can be traced to well-intended actions that failed to take into account their unintended consequences. Among them is the huge and crippling public pension hole Illinois leaders created by increasing pensions while siphoning millions of dollars from the pool of money needed to pay for them. The resulting mess is the most costly and vexing problem facing our state. Now, present-day Illinois leaders are on a fast track to make a similar mistake with an aggressive plan to hike the state's minimum wage from $8.25 to $15 per hour by 2025. Yes, minimum-wage workers need and deserve a raise. But this one-size-fits-all approach will send businesses fleeing the state and deter others from coming here, resulting in fewer jobs available for the very Illinoisans this bill is designed to help. It's time to slow this runaway train and make the changes necessary to ensure this minimum-wage hike does what it is intended to do. Illinois Senate Majority Leader Kimberly Lightford, D-Maywood, the bill's sponsor, has said the goal is to have the bill on Gov. J.B. Pritzker's desk so he can sign it before he delivers his first budget address on Feb. 20. We don't blame Democrats and Pritzker for wanting a quick win. But if this bill becomes law, it will come at a significant cost. Friday is the day of reckoning. President Donald Trump has declared that he will shut down the government on that date if he does not have a deal on his wall. You can waste a lot of time in speculation and argument on how we have come to such a ridiculous -- and dangerous -- moment, but one hopes that Congress finds a solution this week which makes sense of what has become a needlessly tangled situation. The simple solution, as I have written previously, is for Republicans and Democrats to revive their December agreement, pass it, and send it to the president. If he vetoes it, override the veto. Of course, that overlooks political reality. Our president would not react graciously to a defeat. His whole persona centers on a conviction that he must always "win." If not in reality, at least in his own imagination. His fragile nature cannot handle such a public rejection. The Republicans are stuck. If they oppose Trump, they run a very real risk of losing to primary opponents. If the government shuts down again, they may survive primaries, but are likely to lose the general election. They know the argument for a border wall is specious and wasteful, but Trump is fixated on his base-pleasing fantasy. What to do? While many employers in the city of Chicago may be able to accommodate a $13 or even $15 per hour minimum wage, that simply isn't the case for many communities in southern and central Illinois or those along our border. Furthermore, the city of Chicago began increasing its minimum wage in 2010. If a state law increasing the minimum wage to $15 within six years were passed, employers within the city would have had 11 years to phase in a new minimum wage. The situation is completely different for communities outside the city that would see their wages increased to $15 in six short years. That's a 10.5 percent annual increase in an employer's largest expense item. Without the benefits Chicago enjoys, many employers may find it nearly impossible to absorb these additional labor costs, especially in such a short time frame. Illinois businesses do not operate in a vacuum, and additional costs from an increase in the minimum wage are far from the only expenses employers must take into account each year. From property tax increases to sales tax hikes, employers in all industries have other cost pressures they must address. It warns, Our adversaries and strategic competitors probably already are looking at the 2020 U.S. elections as an opportunity to advance their interests. In addition to social media efforts to influence elections, Adversaries and strategic competitors also may seek to use cyber means to directly manipulate or disrupt elections systems -- such as by tampering with voter registration or disrupting the vote tallying process -- either to alter data or to call into question our voting process. The report notes, Russia in 2016 and unidentified actors as recently as 2018 have already conducted cyber activity that has targeted U.S. election infrastructure, but we do not have any intelligence reporting to indicate any compromise of our nations election infrastructure that would have prevented voting, changed vote counts, or disrupted the ability to tally votes. That does not mean, however, that future efforts of this sort will not be successful. Thats a scary thought. The greatest threat to our national security might not be illegal immigration or the spread of nuclear weapons -- both problems that need to be addressed. The greatest threat might be our vulnerability to cyber attack. It is urgent that greater efforts be made to protect us from this threat. Daniel E. Lee is the Marian Taft Cannon Professor in the Humanities at Augustana College; danlee@augustana.edu. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Today is Sunday, Feb. 10, the 41st day of 2019. There are 324 days left in the year. 1919 100 years ago: An orphan girl, 17 years old, who had lost all love for her soldier husband in France, sat before magistrate Gustafson in Moline police court this morning and admitted that she is guilty of bigamy. A boy, also 17 years old, sat at her side. They were married in Clinton, Iowa, a week ago today. The war brides story was merely repetition of the old story of a hasty, reckless marriage, repentance, and the discovery, too late, of another love. The first marriage, she said, was all a mistake. The marriage was also, she claimed, illegal. I was only 15 when I married him, she declared. I dont love him and he doesnt care for me any more. He has never sent me a cent of money and hasnt made any allotments. 1944 75 years ago: Directed verdict finding the defendant not guilty on a charge of possession and operation of a gambling device was return in county court by the jury at 11 this morning in the case of Frank Skafidas, alleged owner of the Best Ever Cafe, 300 Twentieth Street, Rock Island, in Rock Island County court. Judge Junius P. Califf ordered the directed verdict. The Americans With Disabilities Act ensures that people with disabilities have the right to be accompanied by service animals pretty much anywhere. Maybe this was a legit service dog, maybe not. We don't have the right to invade anyone's privacy by asking about their disability or requiring the animal's certification. All you can legally do is ask whether or not the dog is a service animal and what specific tasks it performs. That's all the officer asked before this guy went ballistic. It became evident REAL quick that he was less interested in a drink than a grand self-righteous confrontation. Eventually the officer walked back to my half of the bar. The crusading customer decided to follow. "ARE YOU LOOKING UP THE LAWS? DO YOU REALLY WANT TO GO THERE? LET'S GO THERE. I DARE YOU TO GO THERE!" What followed was 10 minutes of the most unwarranted verbal abuse I've ever heard anyone take, let alone a cop. He called the officer every name in the book. He called him a few names that weren't even IN the book. Backup had to be called, but that just fueled the guy's indignancy even more. I had no idea what tasks his service dog performed, but I started hoping I'd find out if one of them was picking his owner's teeth off the floor. 3 Indians arrested along with 360 kg of hashish Police have arrested three Indian nationals along with 360 kg hashish from Gajuri, Dhading, on Sunday. About Me Scott Because prophetic scriptures are found throughout the bible, it is obvious that a comprehensive, systematic approach would be useful, if not necessary, for the understanding of prophecy. Past prophecies have been fulfilled in a literal manner, as confirmed by the dating of these writings and historical records of confirmation. These past prophecies also serve as a model of how to interpret future prophecies. A literal view of prophecy clearly indicates a certain sequence of events will occur within a single generation, concluding with the Tribulation and Second Advent and these events will be obvious. The prophetic signs appear to be present in this generation and we believe these signs are revealed in the news from around the world. View my complete profile 12 hours ago | June 23rd | 2021 5:00 AM You Quit Your Job Good for You! But How Does that Impact Your Investments? As companies make plans to return employees back to the office, millions of workers have made a decision not to go back at all. In fact, the number of people who quit their jobs increased to four million in April and increased 2.7%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The largest increases in employees leaving their jobs occurred in retail trade and professional and business services. American Red Cross Smoke Alarm Give Away The American Red Cross has a smoke alarm program and they will install the complementary alarms at no cost. If you cannot afford to purchase smoke alarms or are physically unable to install a smoke alarm, the Red Cross may be able to help. Sometimes youve got to crack some eggs, Whitehead said. From a friends eyes Whitehead describes himself as independent, trusting in his instincts, resisting authority and tenacious. His friend of 50 years, Ares Nitsos, describes Whitehead as the most intelligent person he ever met. Ive met a lot of people and worked with many doctors, but Travis has a superior intellect, he said in a phone interview on Wednesday. Hes my oldest and dearest friend, he is closer to me than anybody in my family. Nitsos, who was the best man at Whiteheads wedding and is godfather to their oldest son, shares several stories about their relationship that began in the high school cafeteria when Whitehead asked if he could sit at his table. One tale that Nitsos said he loves to share happened during their freshman year in college just before Thanksgiving break. Whitehead was at RPI and Nitsos was at Upsala College in New Jersey. RPI got out a few days before us and Travis asked if I minded if he came to spend time with me at school, he said. I had chemistry class and Travis came with me. The professor gave a pop quiz. Travis takes it. FORT EDWARD Fort Edward School District received a susceptible to fiscal stress score in Comptroller Thomas DiNapolis fiscal stress report this year, mainly due to a $1.8 million settlement with General Electric last school year. GE filed the suit, arguing the tax assessment on the dewatering plant was too high. The school district had money for the settlement in their reserves, but since it was not part of the budget, it put the school district into a 13 percent deficit for the school year, according to Fort Edward Superintendent Daniel Ward. Fort Edward school district to pay $1.85M to GE FORT EDWARD The school district will have to pay back $1.855 million to General Electric, We had the money saved in a reserve and were always planning around having to pay it, Ward said. The rating and everything all points at a piece of property down the hill. The deficit for the school year was around $1.6 million, meaning they would have stayed in the positive without the settlement payment. The report looks at factors such as budget deficits, the amount of reserve cash a district has on hand, the year end fund balance and other factors to determine if a school is in trouble financially. The susceptible rating is the lowest stress score a district can receive. "Billy Mitchell said, 'I will try and launch airplanes off a ship and go bomb other things," Becker said. "H.G. Wells and others were talking about that, but it took someone like Billy Mitchell to try it. It was the thing that won World War II." On Feb. 2, 1948, Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, the Army Chief of Staff, flew into the Norfolk Naval Air Station to address the third class of student officers and faculty at the nearby Armed Forces Staff College. When Eisenhower first stood, the auditorium rocked with applause, and he grinned broadly while waiting to begin his talk. In his lengthy address, Eisenhower stressed the importance of unity between the various branches of the nation's armed forces and urged the student officers to forget their preconceived notions of separate branches , remembering that "only unity can win in war." Besides the basics of food and shelter, the Rev. Tim Hazlett is usually there for spiritual guidance. And other Oaklette volunteers provide companionship, reading material, cards, puzzles and Bibles. Support has come from the Coast Guard, Chesapeake Sheriff's Office, and Virginia Wesleyan University students. The Tidewater Council, one of the oldest Boy Scout councils in the U.S., recognized volunteers who have generously given their time and talents in support of the Scouting program in Portsmouth, Chesapeake, Norfolk, Virginia Beach, and seven northeastern North Carolina counties. Tika R Pradhan is a senior political correspondent for the Post, covering politics, parliament, judiciary and social affairs. Pradhan joined the Post in 2016 after working at The Himalayan Times for more than a decade. Meredith Watson, who accused Fairfax of raping her in 2000 while the two were students at Duke University, is willing to testify at an impeachment hearing and would provide two other people she told of the alleged assault the day after it occurred, said attorney Nancy Erika Smith in a statement late Saturday night. Since a controversial photograph surfaced on Gov. Ralph S. Northam's EVMS yearbook page from that year, the Norfolk medical school has been thrust into the spotlight, with questions raised about its campus culture then and now. Reports followed that the image, which showed a person in blackface and another in a Ku Klux Klan robe, wasn't the only racist picture in the publication. And Dr. Richard V. Homan, president and provost of the school, said yearbooks were discontinued after he learned photos of students in Confederate clothing appeared in an edition as recent as 2013. Fortified, we headed back outdoors. The sun came and went, gray clouds scudding across the sky, but that didn't dampen our enthusiasm for this destination, a new one for me. Just 46 miles from Charlottesville in North Central Virginia (and 175 miles from Norfolk), it was clear Culpeper would need to be at the top of our list next time we visited this part of the state. We had allowed just an afternoon here, but you could spend two or three days in this area and still not do everything. I'd found that out the hard way after perusing the vast array of brochures at the visitor center in the vintage train depot, still used by Amtrak. "I had a specific recipe that we worked out to feed the pigs. If we gave them too many peanuts, the hams were soft and flabby," said Edwards, who sent a shipment of peanuts to the Midwest along with detailed instructions. "But the farmer just started driving across the pasture with these peanuts. I was thinking, 'How'd he measure out 30 percent?' He didn't." Then, move over to the nearby Portsmouth Colored Community Library Museum, 904 Elm Ave. to meet author Mae Breckenridge-Haywood, president of the African American Historical Society of Portsmouth. She will have signed copies of "Portsmouth, Virginia," one of the books in the "Black America Series" published by Arcadia Publishing that she co-wrote with Cassandra Newby-Alexander, and her most recent book, "For You, Dear Norcom." Once he got into college, first at Texas State University and then the Rhode Island School of Design, his work delved into social issues like human trafficking and immigration. As with Mesoamerican art, Menchaca started using animals to represent people and messages. He uses a cat to symbolize immigrants seeking a new life in America. Menchaca got the idea from growing up in a mobile home community where a lot of stray cats lived. Some people, like his mother, fed them, and the cats kept coming back. Others in the community refused to feed them to prevent them from having kittens and wanting to stay. CRRC, the world's largest train maker, is not the only industrial behemoth to emerge from China It was fear of being dominated by a Chinese behemoth that sparked an attempt by large French and German rail companies to join forces to create an European industrial champion. The merger by Alstom and Siemens was vetoed by the EU on Thursday, but concerns about the overwhelming power of vast, often state-backed Chinese companies is not limited to the rail industry. Here are some of areas in which Chinese companies control a large piece of the global market. Rail China's state-backed CRRC is the world's largest train manufacturer, with locomotives and wagons ordered across the globe from Boston to Philadelphia, Cambodia to Colombia, and customers including the iconic London Underground and Germany's Deutsche Bahn. Its annual revenues of 26 billion euros (29 billion dollars) alone outweigh the three Western heavyweights Bombardier, Siemens and Alstom, each of which brings in around nine billion a year. Agrichemicals The state-owned ChemChina became one of the world's seeds and pesticide producers when it acquired Swiss pesticide giant Syngenta for $43 billion in 2017, putting it in competition with Monsanto and DowDupont. It was the biggest overseas acquisition by a Chinese firm yet, ahead of the $15.1 billion purchase of Canada's Nexen Energy by China's state oil firm CNOOC in 2013. ChemChina also controls Italian tyremaker Pirelli and German machinery firm KraussMaffei. Energy The state-run China National Nuclear Corp (CNNC) launched its locally developed Hualong One nuclear reactor in 2015 to compete with French and US models, selling to Argentina and Pakistan. Chinese solar panel manufacturers Jinko, Trina and Solar dominate the global market. And Chinese oil companiesCNOOC, CNPC and Sinopecare investing heavily even as their global rivals cut spending. Aviation China's state-owned plane-maker Comac expects to deliver its first home-made passenger jet to a customer in 2021, as it seeks to challenge the dominance of Boeing and Airbus. Nuclear giant CNNC is giving French and US companies a run for their money in developing energy markets like Argentina and Pakistan The company says it has received a thousand orders for its 168-seater C919 plane. Food The state-owned food giant COFCO is playing an increasing role in world grain trading after purchasing the agricultural arm of Singaporean commodities trader Noble as well as Dutch Nidera. China's WH Group became the world's largest pork producer in 2013, when it purchased major US pork and hot dog producer Smithfield Foods Inc. Drones Founded by a Chinese university student in 2006, DJI has become the world's top civilian drone maker with 70 percent of the market, outpacing its French rival Parrot. Smartphones Chinese smartphone makers are taking a larger slice of the global market, with Huawei at 15 percent, Xiaomi 8.7 percent and Oppo 8.1 percent. Phone sales by Huawei and Oppo surged by 30 percent last year, defying a downward trend that hit rivals Apple and Samsung. Home appliances China's Haier Group is the world's leading manufacturer of home appliances with around 10 percent of the market, ahead of rivals Whirlpool and Electrolux. Haier even purchased the appliances arm of US giant General Electric in 2016. Batteries Chinese firm CATL, which supplies batteries for car titans Volkswagen, Ford and Daimler, is battling with Japan's Panasonic for the world's lithium electric car battery top spot. Its production capacity will increase fivefold by 2020 due to a mammoth new factory in China, and the firm has announced a huge factory in Germany to supply European customers. Freight The state-owned Cosco Group is the world's third biggest shipping company with 50 container ports across the globe, including Greece's Piraeus and Spain's Bilbao. 2019 AFP Increasing resistance by the US and other governments to Chinese hi-tech companies, such as Huawei Technologies and Hikvision, is providing opportunities for suppliers from other countries to win business from their lower-cost competitors. In Australia, Chinese security camera makers Hikvision and Dahua have faced increased scrutiny after a report by Australian Broadcasting Corporation cited concerns raised by experts about the potential for these networks to be used for espionage. The two companies supply most of the surveillance cameras installed in Australia, according to the report. A Hikvision spokesman was quoted in the report as saying that the company has never conducted, nor will conduct, any espionage-related activities for any government in the world". Hikvisions meteoric rise coincides with surveillance boom Certis Group, a Singapore-based integrated security services company, is offering customers in Australia the choice of using surveillance cameras made by South Korean companies instead of Chinese equipment, according to Certis chief executive Paul Chong. So today, because of the resistance to Chinese companies, we also have Korean OEMs for our cameras, Chong said in an interview in Singapore last month. We have always kept warm with various vendors but now, because of our presence in Australia, we have to be quite sensitive and so we use Korean products more. But those who want rock-bottom prices, then Chinese products are still the choice. Weve always positioned ourselves as being vendor-independent, so if price is of a big consideration for you then sure the Chinese companies are some of the cheaper ones around, Chong said. But if you decide not to use a Chinese company, we have other products too. Whether in smartphones or surveillance cameras or cars, Chinas companies have been able to achieve economies of scale from having a vast domestic market, a comparatively low-cost labour force and established global manufacturing supply chains. In some areas, like electric cars, vast state subsidies meant companies have a helping hand in expensive research and development to improve their technology. Ruthless competition in the domestic market also means that those Chinese companies that expand overseas have typically succeeded in first out-competing dozens if not hundreds of rivals at home. Story continues Huawei founder sees limited impact from 5G resistance Huawei had a 28 per cent share of the global telecommunications equipment market as of the third quarter last year, placing it in first place globally and ahead of Nokia, Ericsson, Cisco Systems and fellow Shenzhen-based rival ZTE, according to data from DellOro Group, an industry research group. DJI, the drone maker that is also based in Shenzhen, has an estimated 74 per cent of the global market, while Hikvision had a leading 21.4 per cent for the global closed-circuit television and video surveillance equipment market in 2017, according to industry research reports. Concerns over the increasing market dominance of Chinas technology giants in areas from telecoms network equipment to drones and surveillance cameras have simmered over the years, but temperatures have risen sharply after the US banned Chinese companies from supplying government agencies with telecommunications network and surveillance equipment. The US Army banned the use of DJI drones last year over security concerns. The 28-member European Union is considering a plan to strengthen procurement rules or change the legal definition of critical infrastructure, that if enacted would effectively exclude Chinese telecom providers from the development of European high-speed information networks. Canada may join countries including the US, Australia and New Zealand that have either blocked or limited the use of Huawei equipment. Washington is continuing to urge its allies not to sign contracts with certain Chinese suppliers, a US State Department official was quoted by Bloomberg as saying. The US official said he and his colleagues have met with and are expected to meet with officials in European capitals in the coming weeks, including representatives from the European Commission and Nato allies. How DJI went from dorm project to worlds biggest drone company US officials are also increasing the size of their delegation to the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this month with the aim of dissuading other nations from buying from Huawei. The US team plans to stump for other providers, such as Cisco, Ericsson and Nokia, according to one of the officials, according to a separate Bloomberg report. Huawei founder Ren Zhengfei said in an interview with Chinas state broadcaster last month that the companys wireless and 5G solutions are world class and will solve issues many Western countries face in 5G development, especially in sparsely populated rural areas. They are foolish and will lose money if they do not buy [our products], Ren told a China Central Television reporter who asked for his view on the bans some countries have slapped on Huawei equipment. This article US-led backlash against Chinas Huawei, Hikvision seen giving higher-cost rivals an opening to win contracts first appeared on South China Morning Post For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2019. More from South China Morning Post: IT IS tempting to place the blame for the measles outbreak on Persida Acosta, chief of the Public Attorneys Office (PAO), who led the much-publicized investigation on the purchase of Dengvaxia by former IT IS tempting to place the blame for the measles outbreak on Persida Acosta, chief of the Public Attorneys Office (PAO), who led the much-publicized investigation on the purchase of Dengvaxia by former President Benigno Aquinos administration. Last Friday, Sen. Risa Hontiveros called for Acostas resignation, saying that her lies and hysterics contributed directly to the erosion of public trust in our vaccination programs. Acosta and her defenders in Malacanang insist she was just doing her job and pursuing an impassioned advocacy in helping families who blamed their childrens deaths on the new vaccine. In an interview last week with ABS-CBN, the PAO chief also asked whether the Department of Health (DOH) had done as much to promote the measles vaccine, as it had Dengvaxia. Unfortunatelynot just for Acosta, but for all of usthere is evidence that fewer Filipinos trust vaccines now than they did before the Dengvaxia controversy erupted. And that will continue to have serious implications on public health, unless we support efforts to restore trust in vaccines. In October 2018, a study by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) found that the percentage of Filipino respondents who strongly agreed that vaccines were important dropped from 93 percent in 2015 to 32 percent in 2018. Out of 1,500 participants, those who believed vaccines were effective dropped from 82 percent in 2015 to only 22 percent last year. The Vaccine Confidence Project also found out that Filipinos who strongly agreed that vaccines were safe dropped from 82 percent in 2015 to only 21 percent in 2018. How did so many slip back into ignorance so fast? In November 2017, Sanofi Pasteur said it would not recommend that Dengvaxia be given to those who had not previously fallen ill with dengue fever. That was 19 months after the Department of Health (DOH) had launched its dengue immunization program. While some countries proceeded with adjusting guidance accordingly, the Philippines reacted with outrage and political turmoil, with naming and shaming of government officials involved in purchasing the vaccine, as well as scientists involved in the vaccine trials and assessment, the LSHTM research team led by Heide Larson wrote in their studys abstract. The result was broken public trust around the dengue vaccine as well as heightened anxiety around vaccines in general. Story continues Vaccine resistance is one reason measles is rising again in the Philippines, nearly six decades after an effective and safe vaccine for this viral disease was made available. The DOH has declared an outbreak in five regions, including Central Visayas, where the number of measles cases rose from only two in January last year to 71 as of Jan. 26 this year. Acosta has said in one interview that measles is rising worldwide, and she is right. The World Health Organization (WHO) reported last month that it had documented a 30 percent increase in measles cases globally. It also said, though, that while not all of these cases can be traced to vaccine resistance or hesitancy, this refusal to vaccinate despite available supplies is one of the top 10 public health threats for 2019. Theres been plenty of colorful language on social media thrown Acostas way, but its short-sighted to think shes the only one responsible. So, too, were some politicians, journalists and social media propagandists who let her rail about Dengvaxia without challenging her claims or reminding their communities that vaccines, overall, remained safe and effective. Ignorance, in this context, isnt bliss. We can only hope some form of herd immunity to it remains possible. Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je is expected to go to the United States in mid-March, joining a wave of political hopefuls planning trips to the US in their quest for Washingtons support in the islands 2020 presidential race. Ko, an independent whose pro-Beijing views have raised concerns in the US, will visit Washington, New York, Boston and Atlanta on a nine-day trip from March 16, according to his office. Analysts said the popular politician was expected to brief US officials on his cross-strait policy and how it would affect American interests, an essential step for any presidential aspirant from Taiwan. At a closely watched cross-strait meeting in December, Ko underlined his policy of engagement with mainland China, saying that relations between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait are like those of a family. That direction goes against the tide in Washington, which has shifted from a policy of engagement towards Beijing to one of confrontation under US President Donald Trumps America first approach. Fan Shih-ping, a professor at the Graduate Institute of Political Science at National Taiwan Normal University, said any Taiwanese presidential candidate would have to reassure Washington about their intentions. It is a must for any political bigwig from Taiwan to submit their test papers to the United States if they want to climb to the top position because Washington needs to make sure that his or her cross-strait policy is on the right track with what the Americans want. He said it remained to be seen whether Ko could convince the Americans that his cross-strait policy would not violate US interests, especially with President Tsai Ing-wen, of the independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party, leaning towards the US. Tsai has looked to Washington for support since Beijing suspended official exchanges with Taipei, staged war games near Taiwan to intimidate the island and poached five of Taiwans allies. Story continues Beijings action was in response to Tsais refusal to accept the one-China principle since her election in 2016. Beijing considers the one-China principle a foundation for any cross-strait dialogue. It also considers Taiwan a breakaway province that must be reunified, by force if necessary. Ko said he would look for opportunities for cooperation on his US trip, visiting biotech businesses, academic institutions, and think tanks in the four cities. Washington is the nations capital and the location of both the Senate and House [of Representatives], so I will visit to say hello, he said. Asked if the visit was linked to the 2020 race, Ko said: Why you media have to keep talking about 2020? It seems like everybody is forcing me to run for president. Ko is not the only politician who might want to run against Tsai but he is the most likely winner if the election were to take place now, according to various opinion polls. A survey in early January by National Chengchi Universitys Election Study Centre on behalf of US-based Duke University suggested that Ko was well ahead of other possible contenders, including Tsai, and Eric Chu, a former New Taipei mayor from the mainland-friendly Kuomintang. In that poll, 38 per cent of respondents preferred Ko as president, followed by Chu on 21 per cent and Tsai on 15 per cent. The results are similar to the roughly 40 per cent level of support for Ko in a survey by cable news network TVBS in late January. This means regardless of whether Ko wants to run, he will be highly influential in the race and will give a strong boost to any candidate who gets his support, said a KMT official who declined to be named. The official said other potential presidential aspirants from the KMT included party chairman Wu Den-yih and former legislative speaker Wang Jin-pyng. Former president Ma Ying-jeou might also want to run again. Chu has already made a plan to visit US west coast later this month and may visit the east coast including Washington either in May or June following the KMT primaries, the official said, adding that Wu and Wang also had plans to go to the US in the coming months. Washington is keen to learn about their cross-strait policies and position towards the US, the official said. Asked if Han Kuo-yu, the KMT politician who won the mayors race in the pro-independence stronghold of Kaohsiung in November, might want to run for president, the official said some younger KMT politicians were backing him because they saw him as the partys most popular figure. It is hard to say whether he would join in the presidential race. After all, he was just elected mayor and had no government administration experience before, the official said. Han said he had an invitation to speak at Harvard University in Boston and planned to go to the US in April or May. This article Popular Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je goes to Washington as Taiwans presidential hopefuls mull 2020 run first appeared on South China Morning Post For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2019. With the Chinese economy slowing, concern has increased among Chinese policymakers about the outlook for employment, since ensuring a sufficient number of new jobs is seen as a necessary ingredient in maintaining social stability in the country. Employment was the top priority the Politburo set last July when it shifted its economic policy focus to stabilising growth, leading the government to enact a series of policies to counter rising joblessness. This series will explore the employment challenges faced by different segments of the Chinese economy. The first instalment examines the issues confronting small to medium-sized enterprises. Chinese President Xi Jinping warned on January 21 that the Communist Party needed to pay particular attention to the risks to social stability from rising economic problems, as evidence increasingly suggests that the nations employment situation is deteriorating rapidly, particularly among small and medium-sized businesses. Whether Beijing will take the steps needed to end the trade war with the United States and stabilise growth this year remains to be seen, but Xis warning is borne out by the experience of business owner Guo Fengcen in southern Guangdong province, one of Chinas export manufacturing hubs. When deciding whether to borrow money to expand his business two years ago, Guo, who runs a group of small cake shops in the city of Dongguan, had not expected that the ups and downs of Chinas economy would change so fast that they could upend his dream. In February 2017, Guo and his family began their ambitious venture to expand a few small shops into a chain throughout the city, at the time when there was a common belief throughout the nation that every sector would continue to boom. The outlook for all aspects of the economy, including consumer purchasing power, private investment, personal income, property prices, and the countrys technological advances, was bright. Infused with this optimism, Guo and his family borrowed 2.3 million yuan (US$341,000) to supplement their savings, rented a one-floor factory for their new baking equipment, opened and decorated 24 new shops and hired about 150 new staff. Story continues But the growth engine that had supported the dream suddenly sputtered last year due to the effects of the escalating trade war with the United States. And despite upgrading to the fixtures and fittings in the shops and improving the quality of the cakes and pastries, Guos business was worse off than before the investment, as the nations confidence rapidly declined, forcing Chinas middle class to cut their spending, and small and middle-sized firms to cut their investment and employment levels in expectation of a cold winter ahead. Employment has also fallen at firms in once-booming sectors, including the internet, hi-tech and online game start-ups, and even at those with famous domestic brands, according to industry insiders. Beware black swan and grey rhino threats to stability, Xi warns cadres Small businesses are increasingly struggling with shrinking foreign orders due to US tariffs, tight cash flows, a depreciating yuan that raises the cost of imported materials and soaring domestic costs for energy, taxes, rent and labour, causing the entire venture capital community to become very cautious about investing. Guo had to cut his losses quickly by closing the factory, selling equipment at a low price and cutting the number of shops from 24 to nine and the workforce from 150 to about 35 in less than two years. I found I had not taken into account a fatal factor. Thats the trend spreading and increasing in Dongguan that factories there have been downsizing their workforce, he said. But most of our cake shops were located in industrial townships in Dongguan. The size of staff at these factories is actually the most practical index for my business. The Suyin electronics factory in Qingxi township has also downsized from 10,000 to currently about 2,000 workers. These workers were my clients. They bought cakes every day for breakfast, birthday parties and various occasions. After 20 years of running a garment factory in Guangzhou, Chinas manufacturing hub, 42-year-old Leo Liis also shrinking his workforce, as profits in the countrys manufacturing sector are locked in a downward spiral. His factory focuses on manufacturing mens underwear for the mainland middle-class market and once employed 600 workers at its peak in late 2000s, with that number now cut to just 100. The mood in China changed very quickly last year from a rapid expansion of consumer spending to a cautious consumption downgrade for fear of the economic outlook, Li said, noting that as profits drop so does the workforce. I have kept on only the senior skilled workers. According to what I know from many of my friends and their friends, all private manufacturers are doing the same because there arent enough orders to sustain so many workers. he said. The size of staff at these factories is actually the most practical index for my business. Guo Fengcen, entrepreneur We can hire temporary workers if new orders come. The added benefit of temporary workers is that firms do not have to pay social security contributions, reducing one of the largest operating costs, as they are generally paid less and receive fewer benefits than full-time workers. Internet and gaming companies in China have been going through a cold winter, with the likes of online travel app Qunar, consumer website Meituan Dianping and question-and-answer website Zhihu reporting job cuts. Liu Yue, a veteran infrastructure engineer, was laid off in August by a Beijing-based online gaming company, which cut its staff from some 500 to 350. He said many gaming companies in Beijing, Shanghai, Wuhan, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, had cut employment by up to half since early last year after regulators vowed to cap the number of new game releases and limit the time children spend playing games under Xis call to address eyesight issues among minors. The sector was booming in 2015 and 2016. Even private farms, businesses selling wedding dresses or mine operators were investing in gaming workshops to develop new games that they bet would become bestsellers, said Joseph Ma, who works for a Guangzhou-based mobile gaming distributor. A young computer gaming programmer or designer could earn more than 30,000 yuan a month (US$4,448) at that time. Now its another story entirely. How Chinas worsening economic woes are shattering the dreams of its top graduate students In the hi-tech sector, more than 200 new graduates from top universities across the country had their contract offers withdrawn by Shenzhen-listed Mindray Bio-Medical Electronics in December due to a change in the companys recruitment plans. Chinas largest medical equipment manufacturer later reinstated the job offers citing corporate social responsibility having initially sparked a public outcry. Chinas official unemployment rate has been poorly reported as does not take into account nearly 300 million migrant workers, according to Liu Kaiming, head of the Shenzhen-based Institute of Contemporary Observation, which monitors working conditions at hundreds of Chinese contract manufacturers. Concern will increase among investors about whether to invest or whether they should close factories and move out of China. This would definitely hurt the job market. Liu Kaiming, Institute of Contemporary Observation So far the unemployment level is under control in China. On the one hand, Chinas labour force is shrinking. On the other hand, the services industry has become much bigger than it was during the financial crisis in 2008 and has been able to absorb a large proportion of laid-off workers in a short period of time, Liu said. We have to see if the US-China trade war and tensions in the relationship ease this year or worsen. If they get worse, concern will increase among investors about whether to invest or whether they should close factories and move out of China. This would definitely hurt the job market. Ernan Cui, an analyst from research firm Gavekal, argued that China would face a difficult job market regardless of whether Beijing could reach a deal with Washington to end the tariff war. China looked to be headed for a more broad-based slowdown in consumer spending in at least the first half of 2019, since the employment components of the purchasing managers surveys, both for the manufacturing and non-manufacturing sectors, started to deteriorate sharply in September, Cui said. He said these were good leading indicators of household income growth, so a further slowdown in income and consumption in the next several quarters was almost guaranteed. Other signals from Chinese industry echo the worries about the outlook for Chinas job market. Chinas industrial robot productions, including output by foreign companies in China, has declined in each of the four months from September to December last year, including a drop of 12.1 per cent in December compared to a year earlier. This is a sharp reversal of the average monthly growth rate of 30 per cent per month in the first five months of last year. China accounts for 70 per cent of the worlds electronic production capacity, and the trade war is weighing on manufacturers decisions on whether to invest in industrial robotics. Chinas robotics industry is showing weakness from the impact of the trade war on the electronics industry, which is one of the most important customers for robot makers, accounting for one-third of its sales, Nikkie Lu, an analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence said. The second instalment examines the issues faced by Chinese students returning from studying overseas as well as foreign workers. This article Chinas small businesses forced to cut back on staff just to survive as economic mood sours amid trade war first appeared on South China Morning Post For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2019. More from South China Morning Post: As aircraft design helps planes fly further and passengers spend more time in the sky, airlines are looking at how to cash in by expanding their health and wellness offerings. Cathay Pacific Airways is no exception and has joined a list of high-end carriers that provide yoga and meditation, as part of a wider focus on customers well-being. For Rupert Hogg, the carriers CEO, the company is merely responding to passenger demand. You can see where were going with this, and there is big customer demand, but its very early days, he said, speaking to the Post on the sidelines of a Oneworld airline alliance event in London. From fitness on the ground to food in the air, premium airlines have been rethinking what they offer as more fliers take journeys of longer than 14 hours. Qantas kick-started the yoga trend by offering classes and meditation, complete with an instructor, to business-class passengers using the airlines Perth-London route, a flight that lasts 17 hours and 25 minutes. The Australian airline, which has been pushing for aircraft to fly up to 20 hours, also teamed up with experts to produce a food menu that was better for long-haul travellers. Singapore Airlines, which runs the worlds longest non-stop flight, to New York in 18 hours, used similar techniques to offer a more long-distance-friendly food menu. Cathay meanwhile has teamed up with high-end fitness company Pure Group to launch a new service, alongside the massage treatments it already offers first-class customers. The partnership includes an arrangement for the airlines frequent fliers to have access to Pures gym and yoga facilities in Hong Kong. The Hong Kong carrier is also opening a yoga room for premium passengers but instructed by a teacher on a television screen. Safa Al-Sairafi, a yoga instructor from Bahrain, was among the first customers who stopped by to do some exercise at the new facility in the business-class lounge. Story continues To come here and stretch is so important because youre up in the air and so dehydrated, she said, as she waited for her onward flight, having arrived from Perth. Her only suggestion for improving the service was to add a qualified yoga instructor. When it comes to doing stretches, people think theyre doing exactly that, she said. But alignments can be wrong, which can cause injuries, and that is where you need a proper instructor. Matthias Zakrzewski, a regular traveller who works for a German bike manufacturer, welcomed the health zone as the first step, and hoped the airline would go further. A gym would be really awesome, he said. Being a frequent traveller means youre spending a lot of time in the lounge. Doing some exercise during your trips would be a really good balance for your health. A sauna with a nice view over the airfield would be amazing. Not ruling anything out, Hogg said: Well, who knows, its early days in a space that is very good. Lets see where we go next. This article Cathay Pacific eyes passenger health and wellness as potential new revenue stream first appeared on South China Morning Post For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2019. THE National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) has removed over 650,000 campaign materials all over Metro Manila.NCRPO Director Major General Guillermo Eleazar urged the candidates to also do their I WONDER what made the British government change its mind. Maybe it realized that issuing the travel advisory against the south of Cebu was a knee-jerk reaction to the cathedral bombing in Jolo, Sulu. Maybe someone in the Foreign Office looked at a map and realized that the distance between Jolo and Cebu was comparable to the distance between London, England and Copenhagen, Denmark. Maybe the guy in charge of issuing travel advisories had a Cebuana nanny and has a penchant for adobo and pansit. Maybe the nanny gave him an earful for issuing the advisory without careful assessment of the actual situation in the areas in question. Maybe she has a bed and breakfast in Oslob, which she built with her hard-earned money wiping the bottoms of British babies, which was the reason she called and berated him. Maybe. Maybe someone in the British government has a Cebuana or Cebuano friend who, once in a while, shows off a private part on Skype for 50 quid or so. Maybe it realized there werent enough British tourists visiting this part of the world so issuing the travel advisory was an exercise in futility. Maybe it heard US President Donald Trumps latest State of the Union Address and decided the world needed to be a better place and isolating one poverty-stricken country albeit with a population that automatically smile when they see a camera was downright rude. Maybe someone had made a mistake. That southern Cebu should never have been included in the advisory. That, unlike some Filipino politicians, who, when caught with their pants down, still insist that theyre wearing one, rectifying the mistake was the natural thing to do. Maybe one of Queen Elizabeths dog handlers is from Malabuyoc and put in a good word for the old country. You know, maybe she approached Lilibet and discreetly whispered in the nonagenarians ear, Maam Queen, my prabins is reely, reely nice and bery pispul, so why dat trabel adbisory, ha? Maybe. Maybe it heard about Sibongas water woes and realized that Sibonga was also in the south of Cebu and it didnt want to add to the Municipal Governments worries. After all, the Municipal Government is fighting an uphill battle against the water cooperative that it wants to take over. Because, and I quote Siwasscos website, the water project must be turned over to the association, organization or cooperative and this must be owned, managed, maintained and organized by household beneficiaries. Story continues I know its farfetched, but heck. Maybe. Maybe the British government realized that we have a lot on our plate, considering that the mastermind behind the ambush on the Reluya couple is still out there, probably never missing an episode of Ang Probinsyano. Maybe Presidential Assistant for the Visayas Michael Dino does know British Prime Minister Theresa May and, aside from being Facebook friends, they also read each others tweets and theyre text buddies. Maybe Dino sent May a text message. First inquiring about her family, then discussing the weather a bit because thats what British people apparently do in their spare time, before getting to the crux of things that Cebu and Sulu are worlds apart. Maybe. From Greg Swank, 12-4-2 You are about to read a list of 45 goals that found their way down the halls of our great Capitol back in 1963. As... In a move that should not surprise energy pundits nor even those that follow geopolitical news in Europe, on Thursday Russian gas giant Gazprom said its looking to gain an even larger gas market share in Europe following record-high 2018 exports, as it expects a decline in Europes gas output combined with rising demand. Last year Gazprom sold more than 200 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas to Europe, including Turkey, while its gas market share in the region rose to more than a third, Reuters said in a report on the matter. Elena Burmistrova, in charge of the Gazproms exports, said the company would be able to offset a production decline in the EU, mainly at the Netherlands Groningen, once Europes largest natural gas field. North Sea production is also gradually declining ... So, the space for Russian gas is being freed up, she said on the sidelines of the European Gas conference in Vienna. Future gas wars Gazproms statement comes as EU gas production is projected to spiral downward over the next 12 years. Regardless of possible development of non-traditional gas resources, production will decline by 43% against the 2013 level, Russias National Energy Security Fund (NESF) said recently. Moreover, the Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA) forecasts that EU gas production will halve by 2040. This dwindling production also comes as a number of EU states are poised to break away from over-reliance on both nuclear and coal needed for power generation, leaving opportunities for renewables, particularly solar and wind power, as well as liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports. However, all of these sources will take more time and funding to develop before they can add a more significant percentage of the bloc's energy mix going forward. Moreover, competing for more gas market share in Europe will see both geopolitical and energy stakes increase, pitting Russian piped gas exports, but also more LNG, as the country develops its LNG sector, against higher priced U.S. and Qatari LNG. Meanwhile, Qatar (the global LNG export leader and the U.S. which will soon be the third largest LNG exporter) could agree to tie-ups in LNG, both for economic and geopolitical motivations in the mid to long term. Qatar is already investing heavily in the U.S. LNG sector as a pure diversification play as U.S. production begins to take off, competing for both European and Asian market share. The Asia-Pacific region accounts for 72 percent of global LNG demand, with that amount projected to increase to 75 percent amid rampant Chinese LNG demand. Related: Oil Prices Drop After Touching 2019 High Russia has held a decades old gas supply monopoly, dating back to the end of World War II, in Europe, putting it at a distinct geopolitical advantage over EU members, particularly Poland and the Baltic states. Moscow has also cut off gas supply during the middle of winter to make political statements in the past, upping the ante up for EU states dependent on Russian gas supply. German naivety However, more EU member states are seeking to pivot away from Moscows gas supply grip by turning to more LNG, particularly U.S. sourced LNG. Other major EU players, particularly Germany, the EUs largest economy, however, seems uncharacteristically naive about the dangers of over-reliance on Russian gas. Berlin has approved and pushed ahead, amid heated backlash from Washington, the controversial Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. Nord Stream 2 is a 759 mile (1,222 km) natural gas pipeline running on the bed of the Baltic Sea from Russian gas fields to Germany, bypassing existing land routes over Ukraine, Poland and Belarus. It would double the existing Nord Stream pipelines current annual capacity of 55 bcm. However, the U.S. has long maintained that it posed a threat to European security, while the U.S. is a large part of safeguarding that security. On January 29, German news agency DW reported, citing one of the projects engineers, that the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline should be operational by November. By Tim Daiss for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: One of the promising hotspots for oil and gas exploration drilling this yearSouth Africas offshorehas just yielded a massive natural gas and condensate find that could open a new exploration province for oil majors and change the energy fortunes of South Africa. Frances major Total said this week that it had made a significant discovery on the Brulpadda prospects off the southern coast of South Africa. With this discovery, Total has opened a new world-class gas and oil play and is well positioned to test several follow-on prospects on the same block, said Kevin McLachlan, Senior Vice President Exploration at Total. According to Totals chief executive Patrick Pouyanne, the discovery could hold 1 billion barrels of oil equivalent of gas and condensate resources. The operator of the license, Total, and its partners Qatar Petroleum, CNR International, and South African consortium Main Street, now plan to acquire 3D seismic data this year, followed by up to four exploration wells on the license. It is exciting for our country that this discovery has been made. It is potentially a major boost for the economy, and we welcome it as we continue to seek investment to grow our economy, South Africas Mineral Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe said, commenting on the major gas discovery. The African Energy Chamber (AEC) also hailed the first major deepwater discovery off South Africa, saying, This is a great first step for the country which still relies on imports of oil and gas despite the great reserves believed to be in its soil and waters. According to AEC, the discovery could change the course of South Africas economy and help to reduce the countrys dependence on oil and natural gas imports. Related: Trade Deal Uncertainty Weighs On Oil Prices The oil industry hopes this will be a catalyst and encouragement for all policy makers to work on an enabling business environment for exploration and drilling activities in South Africa, NJ Ayuk, Executive Chairman at the Chamber, said. South Africa is currently working on new legislation that would separate the conditions for exploring and exploiting oil and gas resources from those for traditional minerals. Commenting on Totals discovery, Andrew Latham, vice president, global exploration at natural resources consultancy Wood Mackenzie, said: Even though the well isnt an oil discovery, if Brulpadda proves to be anywhere near as big as the estimates of up to 1 billion barrels of oil equivalent resources, it will still be a game-changer for South Africa. Although the difficult deepwater environment could pose a challenge, the difficulties may be similar to those present in the West of Shetland in the UK North Seaa region that Total knows well and in which it has experience, Latham noted. In terms of the discoverys potential to meet South Africas gas demand, WoodMacs Akif Chaudhry, principal analyst, commodity analytics, said: While a strong case can be made for the development of the gas economy, long-term growth requires a clear plan from government. Related: Oil Rig Count Rises As Oil Prices Stabilize While South Africa is currently drafting new legislation on oil and gas resource development, the offshore regions around the whole African continent has recently seen growing interest from oil and gas majors willing to explore what they believe is the next exploration hotspot in the world. BP and Shell are expanding their African presence, while ExxonMobil is focusing on western and southern Africa, amassing stakes in prospects in Ghana, Mauritania, Namibia, and South Africa, hoping to strike a discovery containing no less than a billion barrels of crude, also known as an elephant. South Africa was one of the hotspots of promising exploration drilling that WoodMac had identified for this year, alongside Guyana, Brazil, Mexico, the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, Cyprus, and the Barents Sea in Norway. Totals major deepwater discovery offshore South Africa is now opening a potential new wave of majors drilling in the area, hoping to find the next billion-barrel discovery. By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Why does she look like a grandmother? Reply Thread Link to be fair, it's not as bad as the grandma look she had going on in those first pics with Hiddles on the beach Reply Parent Thread Link I'm still mad they wore oxford shoes on the beach. Such impractical shoes for that area. Reply Parent Thread Link Cause white people age like pumpkins. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Cause of the babushka-esque scarf. Only grannies can pull that off! Reply Parent Thread Link lmao she is werking my grandma's "just came from the beauty parlor & it's raining" look Reply Parent Thread Link He's literally smiling in the pic below.... They look cute, I'm glad she's happy. They should get married and have kids and maybe she'll start making better music than Reputation. Reply Thread Link Thats the kind of smile I make when a grandparent pinches my tushie too. Reply Parent Thread Link Maybe she pinched his tushie awwwwwww Reply Parent Thread Link I read that as "Republicans" Reply Parent Thread Expand Link I still need to decide if I'm going to go for a long weekend in May, by myself. I want to try the eurostar. Reply Thread Link Is her new era 1950's style? Grandma chic? I want her to come back with bops because 1989 was great but her life seems boring AF. Reply Thread Link Shes the only one I could see pulling off that look successfully. She already wears red lips and a cat eye all the time. Reply Parent Thread Link serving babushka Reply Thread Link Haha that was my first thought Reply Parent Thread Link ASAP Rocky, ha impacT Reply Parent Thread Link bahahaha Reply Parent Thread Link Cultural appropriation! Reply Parent Thread Link LMAO mte. Wtf is this look?! Reply Parent Thread Link Babushka in her youthful Cold Case flashbacks, before ~someone~ had to die Reply Parent Thread Link Omg Reply Parent Thread Link lollllll Reply Parent Thread Link Are we going to have a pre-telecast post? The categories they announce during the pre-telecast usually give away who will win the main ones. Also it has a lot of awkward silence and better performances that the main show lol Reply Thread Link Yep, I remember during the 25/Lemonade year they moved Urban Contemporary Album to the telecast so Beyonce would win one live. I assume the Red Carpet post will double as a pre-telecast post. Lol so much awkward silence though, so many people don't show up and it feels like all the winners that go are seated as far away from the stage as possible. Reply Parent Thread Link Yeah. I think everyone knows thats how it works thats why Beyonces speech felt like an AOTY speech. I also love all the random hyperactive winners for Best Classical Arangement or Best Choral Opera Performance having long ass speeches and cracking jokes with the audience Reply Parent Thread Expand Link For some reason, I don't like him, and I can't figure out why. Maybe it was that comment he made about not playing Harriet Tubman. Or his face. Or the fact that he doesn't trim the hair behind his neck? What is it?!?!?!!?! Reply Thread Link I watched an interview of his where he talked about his new film and he was SO BORING. Like, even more boring than you expected him to be when he looks so boring in the first place as well. Reply Parent Thread Link I just looked one up, and he is a lot more attractive in motion, but you're right about the boring part. Reply Parent Thread Link yeah i expected him to be charismatic at least, but i tried to watch an interview and he was insanely boring, no presence at ALL, i had to turn it off because he's almost draining to watch lol. i'm sure he's better onscreen though. Reply Parent Thread Link the knowledge that he's going to be ~the next biggest thing purely because of her and we'll have to look at this bland face for the next decade? Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Give me that babushka chic Tay! Reply Thread Link You're not gonna clown her for appropriation? Come on! Reply Parent Thread Link I dont know her truth! Reply Parent Thread Link This relationship feels so long. Reply Thread Link They got together in fall of 2016 so theyre going on three years now. It is definitely her longest public relationship Reply Parent Thread Link LOL not wanting to talk about your relationship in magazines mean you cant go to a bar? What is that article? Reply Thread Link Edited at 2019-02-10 06:32 pm (UTC) haha, who knows, I think Taylor makes sure they're photographed when she wants them to be, but he definitely doesn't look like he enjoys it. She needs to train him: Reply Parent Thread Link Does he have a temporary tattoo on his arm? Sad! Reply Parent Thread Link lol this mess. Reply Parent Thread Link God, this shit was amazing. Reply Parent Thread Link oh my god the fucking heart with the T inside, i never saw that one before. i can't even watch this poor guy in anything lol Reply Parent Thread Link Is he helping her milk the cows. Reply Thread Link This is a good look on her. Fits well. Reply Thread Link Ugh i wish i was born into wealth. Life is so unfair. Reply Thread Link It would be nice to have financial security but i wouldn't want to be a rich kid. Reply Parent Thread Link idt the user you're replying to is implying frances is complaining Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Did Kurt leave everything to her and it was held in a trust, cuz i'm highkey surprised his money wasn't squandered away after his death. Reply Thread Link pretty sure it was held in trust. and that she has the rights to his image or something? Reply Parent Thread Link courtney did squander it. she had to sell off part of nirvana/kurts liscensing and i think thats where the bulk of the money comes from now Reply Parent Thread Link "So, it's almost like this big giant loan that I'll never get rid of," Reply Thread Link Omg this girl lol if you want to know what loans feel like lets switch places. Id gladly take the break from them. Reply Parent Thread Link Og blue ivy would be Chaz then Chasity Bono. Why not compare her also to her mom in musical talent. I'm glad she seems happy and healthy. Reply Thread Link Learn more about LiveJournal Ratings in Hello! Your entry got to top-25 of the most popular entries in LiveJournal!Learn more about LiveJournal Ratings in FAQ Reply Thread Link i just watched the unsolved mysteries ep about kurt's death Reply Thread Link the private eye turned courtney did it guy is a trip Reply Parent Thread Link og blue ivy? she looks so much like courtney Reply Thread Link to me she looks like one of those images where you shift it left and right it looks either like courtney or kurt Reply Parent Thread Link omg yes! like the old woman/lady in a hat Reply Parent Thread Link ia. It depends what angle you look at her. She's gorgeous. Reply Parent Thread Link when she was little she was all kurt, now she looks more like courtney but ia with your comment too Reply Parent Thread Link Her plastic surgery is amazing work. I think she looks a lot like Kurt too. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link I remember reading that Michael and Whitney had really strict clauses. In Michael's case, the kids would get their part of their inheritance in parts (at different age milestones). I think the full amount was going to be granted way in the future. Their schooling would be covered. He also had something about how the money his mom received to take care of his kids, couldn't be used on anyone else or she'd forfeit her rights over the money. It's such a necessary thing to have your finances in order if you have kids. Reply Thread Link Damn. That was REALLY smart. Reply Parent Thread Link I don't know why I thought she was so much older. Reply Thread Link I bet her brief marriage to that dbag was a pretty good lesson in finances too. Reply Thread Link Did she ever get that guitar(?) back from him? Reply Parent Thread Link After a certain level of wealth, you do. You can basically live off interest if you're smart. It's also super easy to give 20k here 50k there to family members who want to start a business or have a medical emergency, but if you tie it all up in investments you don't have the option to squander because you feel bad for people. Reply Parent Thread Link Yup, I always joke about living off my lottery interest when I hit big (its a joke because I dont buy lottery tickets) Reply Parent Thread Link Idk, having a good financial planner is really helpful, especially with the amount of money shes dealing with. Reply Parent Thread Link You need someone to manage your finances if you have money on her level honestly. The trick is to find a good one who won't bleed you dry. Reply Parent Thread Link girl if you feel guilty being rich, give it away. there are people starving and sleeping on the streets all around you and millions of people who can't afford bare necessities let alone an education. not even all of it -- you could donate half to worthwhile causes while still never wanting for anything in your life. you can't be "authentic" with 100 million dollars but okay. Reply Thread Link Love her <3 Reply Thread Link Edited at 2019-02-10 02:17 pm (UTC) Reply Thread Link Multimedia Reporter Staff writer Harry Funk, a professional journalist for three-plus decades, has been on the staff of The Almanac since 2015. He has a bachelors degree in journalism and master of business administration, both from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. These two cards came from a punch-out set that sold for 29 cents. They were passed out to the class in the 1960s. Marijuana stocks are soaring because of recent changes to how hemp is regulated in the United States. That's got everyone asking: What are the top marijuana stocks to buy in 2019? In order to understand the impact from hemp deregulation on marijuana companies, it's useful to understand how marijuana and hemp are different. Same but different Marijuana is the dried flower of the female cannabis plant, and it can come from either the cannabis indica or cannabis sativa species. Hemp is only a member of the cannabis sativa family. A hemp leaf and seeds on a table. IMAGE SOURCE: GETTY IMAGES. Although marijuana and hemp can both come from the cannabis sativa family, they're distinctly different. Marijuana is bushier with broader leaves, while hemp is leaner with shinier leaves. It's differences in their chemical composition that really set them apart, though. More than 100 chemical cannabinoids are found in cannabis, but the amount of these cannabinoids differs dramatically between hemp and marijuana. Marijuana's most common cannabinoid is tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) -- the chemical cannabinoid associated with the plant's psychoactive effect. In marijuana, THC levels can reach 30%, depending on the strain, but THC levels in hemp are less than 0.3%. The low levels of THC in hemp mean that, unlike marijuana, it has historically been used for industrial purposes. Hemp's rapid growth and strong fibers made it ideal for crafting durable rope, clothing, sail, and paper. Although hemp won't get you high, it does contain significant amounts of another cannabinoid, cannabidiol (CBD), which is also found in marijuana. CBD is a nonpsychoactive cannabinoid, and its interaction with receptors in the central nervous system and immune system can offer medicinal benefits, making hemp-CBD concentrates popular ingredients. An infographic showing the many uses of hemp. IMAGE SOURCE: GETTY IMAGES. Why it matters Medical and recreational marijuana use is legal nationwide in Canada, so it's home to the largest publicly traded cannabis companies. Story continues In the past, those companies were unable to do business in the U.S. because of restrictions placed upon them by the major stock exchanges. In order to maintain their listing, they can't conduct business in countries where the sale of marijuana is prohibited at the federal level. In 1970, the Controlled Substances Act classified all cannabis, including hemp, as a schedule 1 drug. As a result, hemp cultivation was tightly controlled and limited for industrial and research purposes. That's no longer true. The U.S. Farm Bill that passed in December contains language distinguishing hemp from marijuana for the first time. It allows states and the U.S. Department of Agriculture to create a licensing program supporting the widespread cultivation of hemp with THC levels below 0.3%. The shift in federal classification of hemp has already led to Canada's biggest cannabis company, Canopy Growth (NYSE: CGC), announcing plans to enter the U.S. market. After receiving a license to process hemp in New York state, Canopy Growth plans to invest up to $150 million there on a hemp-focused industrial park where it can develop products containing hemp-derived CBD. Will hemp move the revenue needle for marijuana stocks? Including black-market sales, the Canadian marijuana market is worth about $6 billion annually, according to Statistics Canada. Canada's recreational market only opened last October, so it's too early to know exactly how much of those black-market sales will migrate to legal shops selling products made by Canopy Growth and its competitors. Nevertheless, the size of Canada's marijuana market dwarfs the current size of the CBD products market in America. Spending on CBD products in the U.S. only totals in the hundreds of millions of dollars per year. The U.S. CBD market could grow significantly, though, if companies create increasingly valuable consumer products that they're allowed to distribute widely. The potential associated with CBD edibles, beverages, and other products has some industry experts thinking CBD-product sales could total exceed $20 billion someday. That's a heady forecast, but even if the CBD market only grows to a few billion dollars annually, it would still be a big tailwind for marijuana stocks, including Canopy Growth. After all, Canopy Growth's sales over the past 12 months totaled just $73 million. Given the size of the potential opportunity relative to sales today, it's little wonder that hemp's potential has investors excited about pot stocks. More From The Motley Fool Todd Campbell has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. His clients may have positions in the companies mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. And if that wasn't awesome enough, Nicktoons UK & Ireland will be hosting the "Loud Your Family" competition this half-term, in which one lucky fan will be able to win a cool picture of their family, just like the Loud House! For a chance to win, upload a photo of your family to nicktoons.co.uk ! More information about Nickelodeon's "Loud Your Family" will be unveiled during Nicktoons'Half-Term Premiere Week!Enter the "Loud Your Family" competition now at http://www.nicktoons.co.uk/microsite/loud-your-family/732iut Hoping to win a song-writing contest, Luna contemplates whether she should go with a song that's true to her sound or try to make something that the whole world will love. (30 minute special)After witnessing an excess of lying in the family, Lisa invents lie-detecting glasses to try and curb the fibs.Lincoln asks to borrow Clyde's new gaming system, but Clyde struggles to trust that it's safe with him.Torn between her work friends and her school friends, Leni tries to bring everyone together.The kids worry that Leni is too weak and try to teach her how to be more aggressive.Faced with spending Thanksgiving apart, Lori and Bobby try to bring their crazy families together for the first time. (30 minute special)Want to win tickets to Nickelodeon's 2019 Kids' Choice Awards in L.A.? Find out how HERE Win a trip to the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards in LA! You + 3 friends could be jetting off to LA! Please note: Australia -have teamed up with Nickelodeon Australia & New Zealand to send one lucky GF to the Nickelodeon Kid's Choice Awards 2019 in LA!One (1) super lucky GF + three (3) friends will win the trip of a lifetime toin Los Angeles in March 2019, consisting of:- 4 x return economy airfares from the winners nearest Australian capital city to Los Angeles, USA;- 5 nights accommodation;- 4 x tickets to the Nickelodeon 2019 Annual Kids Choice Awards to be held in LA, in March + money cant buy experiences;- return transfers from Los Angeles Airport to the Hotel for 4 people; and- tour of Universal Studios and related activities.- Worth up to $16,000!!Voting for theopens very soon, so make sure you keep your eyes on nick.com.au/KCA to check out who the nominees are.The big show is on Saturday, March 23, 2019, and you don't want to miss a second!is being held LIVE on Saturday, March 23 on Nick USA, and will premiere on Nickelodeon Australia & New Zealand on Monday 25th March 2019. It's going to be out of this world, so make sure you tune-in!To entermagazine's exclusive competition, simply tell them in a 60 seconds or less video, your answer to Why shouldsend you to be their special reporter at the? Enter your original submission by providing either a link to your video on Instagram (public profile) or a YouTube/Vimeo URL of your answer using the form online at https://www.girlfriend.com.au/win-a-trip-to-la-to-the-nickelodeon-kids-choice-awards The competition is open NOW to Aussie NickHeads and closes on Wednesday 6th March 2019. Good luck! :)- Competition open to Australian residents only.- The competition commences on 01/02/19 at 12:00 AEDT and closes on 06/03/19 at 15:00 AEDT.- Winners will be judged at the Promoters premises on 06/03/19 from 15:00 AEDT.- The winner notified via email & published online at www.girlfriend.com.au on 07/03/19.- All entrants under the age of 18 must obtain the prior permission of their legal parent or guardian over the age of 18 to enter.- Total prize value is (up to) $16,000. The Promoter is Pacific Magazines Pty Ltd, 8 Central Ave, Eveleigh NSW 2015 (ABN 16 097 410 896).- Visit www.girlfriend.com.au for full terms and conditions. By Alison Bevege SYDNEY (Reuters) - Strong winds on Sunday are expected to fan forest fires that have been burning for a week through New Zealand's South Island, forcing thousands of people from their homes, with more residents expected to flee, officials said. The Pigeon Valley fire covers 2,300 ha (5,700 acres) with a 25 km (15 mile) perimeter, NZ Civil Defence said in a statement on its website. No deaths have been reported and only one home destroyed. "There is some concern about predicted high winds this afternoon, which are expected to test the control lines," the agency said. Early on Sunday, 155 firefighters were battling the blaze on the ground with air support from 23 helicopters and 3 fixed wing planes, the agency said, making it the largest aerial firefight on record in New Zealand. Up to 3,000 people have been forced to leave the Wakefield and Pigeon Valley areas, NZ Civil Defence Controller Roger Ball told a Saturday news conference on Saturday. More people were likely to be forced from their homes on Sunday. New Zealand Red Cross Communications Manager Ellie van Baaren said evacuees were tired and frustrated. "When you have to leave your home and in some cases your livestock and animals and you don't know what's become of them, and you're staying with friends and family, then it's an uncertain situation for everybody," she told Reuters by telephone. Much of the affected area south of Nelson was used for forestry but it also has many small farms. Some livestock has also been moved to safety. Fires started on Monday and Tuesday and quickly spread. On Wednesday, authorities declared a state of emergency. Hundreds of volunteer and professional firefighters, police, civil defense and military personnel are battling the fires. (Reporting by Alison Bevege; Editing by Robert Birsel) DUBAI (Reuters) - Conjoined twin boys born in Yemen who were in urgent need of treatment abroad died on Saturday, the health ministry in Houthi-controlled Yemen said overnight. Doctors treating two-week-old Abd al-Khaleq and Abd al-Rahim in the capital Sanaa had said the boys could not survive within Yemen's war-ravaged health system and needed to be taken abroad. But the airport in Houthi-controlled Sanaa has been closed to civilian flights since 2015 because the Saudi-led coalition has control over Yemeni airspace. Only U.N. planes can land there currently and re-opening the airport is a key aim of U.N.-led peace talks which began with negotiations in Stockholm in December. A Saudi organisation, the King Salman Center for Relief and Humanitarian Works, had been looking into how to get the boys abroad for treatment, Saudi state news agency SPA said on Wednesday. The tiny boys had separate heads but a shared torso. In a statement carried by the Houthi-run Saba news, the health ministry said the deaths reflect the health and humanitarian situation Yemen's children are living through as a result of the war. Yemen's almost four-year war pits the Iran-aligned Houthi movement against a Saudi-backed coalition trying to restore the government of Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi after it was ousted from power in Sanaa by the Houthis in 2014. The conflict has killed tens of thousands of people, collapsed the economy and brought millions of people to the brink of famine. (Writing by Lisa Barrington; Editing by Elaine Hardcastle) Sanaa (AFP) - Newborn Yemeni conjoined twins whose plight sparked a plea for urgent medical treatment overseas died in Sanaa Saturday, rebels in the blockaded capital said. Abdelkhaleq and Abdelrahim were born outside Sanaa around two weeks ago and shared a kidney and a pair of legs but had separate hearts and lungs. The head of paediatrics at Sanaa's Al-Thawra hospital, Dr Faisal al-Babili, said his department lacked the facilities to treat or separate the newborn boys and appealed on Wednesday for help from abroad. Huthi rebels, who have been fighting the Saudi-backed government since 2014, blamed a Riyadh-led military coalition for the deaths after "refusing to open Sanaa airport to allow them to get treatment", according to the rebels' media statement on Saturday. Late on Wednesday, the head of Saudi Arabia's King Salman Aid and Relief Centre, Abdullah al-Rabeeah, said he had a team that was prepared to treat them. Rebel-held areas of Yemen have been under blockade by a Saudi-led military coalition since it intervened in support of the beleaguered government in March 2015. Health services have collapsed as the conflict has ground on and most hospitals are not equipped to provide specialist treatment for rare conditions. Bringing patients out for treatment poses enormous logistical challenges. Mediators are pushing for the reopening of Sanaa international airport. The government accuses the rebels of smuggling arms through the airport and Hodeida -- a rebel-held port city vital to the delivery of humanitarian aid. The Saudi-led coalition has severely restricted flights to and from Sanaa and shipments through Hodeida. Since 2015, some 10,000 people have been killed and more than 60,000 wounded in the conflict, most of them civilians, according to the World Health Organization. Human rights groups say the real figure could be five times as high. Labastide-Rouairoux (France) (AFP) - After years of waiting for his son to come home from Syria, Jacques Le Brun is cautiously hoping that day may be nearing -- along with the chance to meet three grandchildren who have never seen France. "He'll certainly go to prison, and he knows that. He probably even deserves it a little," Le Brun says at the family home in Labastide-Rouairoux, a village tucked in a forested valley of southern France. The important thing, he says, is that Quentin makes it home alive after taking his wife and infant daughter in 2014 to join the Islamic State group in Syria -- where he later appeared in a chilling IS propaganda video burning his passport. About six weeks ago Le Brun learned that his son, now 30, was stranded near the Euphrates river in the last pocket of IS-held territory, besieged by Kurdish forces and targeted by coalition airstrikes. Then last month reporters from the magazine Paris Match found Quentin and his family as they were surrendering, raising the possibility they could be among the roughly 130 French nationals who may soon be repatriated to France from Kurd-controlled prison camps in northern Syria. The government is weighing the move after President Donald Trump announced in December that he would withdraw US troops from the war-torn country. That prompted fears of a security vacuum in the north of Syria, in particular if Kurdish forces abandoned their surveillance of the captured fighters to defend against a potential assault by Turkey, which considers the Kurds a terrorist threat. For Quentin's family, along with dozens of others across France, it's a chance to be reunited after years of anxiety over his fate. "Our life has changed," said his sister, asking not to be identified by name. "Before we woke up each morning wondering if they were alive. It was hell." - 'Glimmer in the night' - French government sources say 70 to 80 children are among the citizens being held by Kurdish forces, and around 15 women -- half of whom are considered "dangerous". Story continues An additional 250 men, as well as accompanying wives and children, are thought to be elsewhere in Syria. An estimated 300 French jihadists are thought to have been killed during the years-long coalition fight to eradicate IS's self-proclaimed caliphate. France had long insisted that captured French fighters must be tried locally, either in Syria or Iraq, a hard-line stance which nodded to fears that returned fighters could stage attacks on French soil upon their release from prison. "We, their families, just want them to be able to return to France and be judged fairly, sentenced only for what each of them has done -- and not have to pay for all the IS crimes," said the mother of a 30-year-old woman now in Syria with her four children, aged 10 months to nine years old. While calling their potential return "a glimmer in the night," she worries they could be killed before any decision is made to bring them back. "We've heard of at least four French women killed in the past few months, along with their husbands and 18 children in total" during the coalition bombings, the woman said. Like several family members who spoke with AFP, she asked that her name be withheld, fearing harassment or ostracisation in a country deeply scarred by the wave of deadly jihadist attacks since the Charlie Hebdo and Bataclan massacres of 2015. - 'Get them away from all that' - Despite reports that repatriations could begin in the coming days, Jacques Le Brun says he has had "no information, no official contact" from French authorities. The 58-year-old retired truck driver says he is still trying to understand how his son, who later took the name Abou Osama Al-Faransi, became caught up in extremist Islamic ideology. Quentin began attending a local mosque before falling in with the "Artigat" network, named for a village near the southwestern city of Toulouse. The village was the home Olivier Corel, a Syrian-born Salafist imam suspected of mentoring several jihadists including Mohamed Merah, who was shot dead by police after he murdered seven people, among them a rabbi and three Jewish children, in Toulouse in a 2012 killing spree. Albert Chennouf-Meyer, father of one of Merah's seven victims, has called on President Emmanuel Macron to keep the jihadists out. "Mr President, you will in the coming weeks (...) bring back 130 French jihadists, some of whom have the blood of our children on their hands," he said in an open letter seen by AFP on Saturday. "I intend to use all my strength against this criminal decision," he added. Le Brun wants to believe his son wasn't involved in any violence or killings, but the release of the IS propaganda video has been a heavy burden on his family. Quentin's mother finds it hard to hold down a job, and his youngest brother has been hounded by high school classmates. Many in the village make no secret of their hostility to Quentin's return. "It's not necessarily a good idea to bring back these jihadists, they might start again," said Laurent Montagon, a 53-year-old pizzeria owner in Labastide-Rouairoux. "They'll scare people if they come back here." Jacques Le Brun knows the suspicions will be hard to bear, but he is determined to recover his grandchildren and "get them away from all that". Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax appeared headed on a political collision course Sunday with a little-known state delegate from his own party who pledged to introduce articles of impeachment Monday if the 39-year-old Democrat refused to resign. Fairfax is one of three top Virginia political leaders engulfed in a firestorm of scandal. Gov. Ralph Northam and Attorney General Mark Herring, also Democrats, admitted wearing blackface at parties in the 1980s, and Fairfax faced accusations of sexual assault he repeatedly has denied. Del. Patrick Hope said the state constitution "states very clearly that impeachment should be for high crimes and misdemeanors. There is no question that violent sexual assault clearly qualifies as high crime." University of Richmond law professor Carl Tobias said the House could impeach Fairfax given that the GOP seems to "perceive little downside" to it. "If Fairfax is impeached, it remains unclear whether the Senate would convict," Tobias told USA TODAY. "A two-thirds vote is needed, and that may depend on the evidence offered." Fairfax reaffirmed his innocence Saturday and his intention to remain in office. He called for space in this moment for due process" and for an FBI investigation. The FBI declined to comment. Virginia Lt. Governor Justin Fairfax presides over the Senate at the Virginia State Capitol, February 7, 2019 in Richmond, Virginia. Virginia state politics are in a state of upheaval. Fairfax's statement came hours after the state Democratic Party joined the chorus of calls for his resignation. Chair Susan Swecker said that in light of the "credible nature" of the latest claims against Fairfax, "it has become clear that he can no longer fulfill the duties and responsibilities of his post." The Virginia Legislative Black Caucus also has called for Fairfax to step down. Fairfax, who would succeed Northam if the governor resigned, was accused last week of sexual assault by a former colleague at the Democratic National Convention in Boston in 2004. Fairfax strongly denied the charges made by Vanessa Tyson, a political science professor at Scripps College in California. Story continues Lawyers for Fairfax's second accuser, Meredith Watson, released a statement days later saying Fairfax raped her while they were students at Duke University in 2000. Watson said she would be willing to testify at an impeachment hearing. Despite the calls for his resignation, only Hope has pledged to seek impeachment. Hope is a fifth-term delegate from Arlington, among the most liberal districts in the state. Hope, a health care lawyer and a married father of three, said, "As the father of three young girls, I cannot stand by silently." There are only two weeks left in the legislative session and the governor is also battling to keep his job, so it was not clear how far Hope's impeachment push would go. The accusations against Fairfax came to light days after a photo surfaced from Northam's page in a 1984 medical school yearbook showing a man in blackface standing by a man dressed in a Ku Klux Klan outfit. Northam at first admitted he was in the photo, then denied it but acknowledged using blackface in impersonating Michael Jackson in a dance contest that same year. Northam has refused widespread calls for his resignation. A poll by The Washington Post and the Schar School at George Mason University suggested that 47 percent of Virginians want Northam to resign, and 47 percent say he should remain in office. In his first interview since the scandal erupted, Northam told The Post on Saturday that he had "overreacted" by putting out a statement taking blame for the picture. He said Eastern Virginia Medical School is doing an independent investigation into the picture. Northam said he wanted to focus the rest of his term on racial equality. 'Horrific week in Virginia': Gov. Ralph Northam takes on blackface scandal in first interview "This has been a real, I think, an awakening for Virginia," he told The Post. "It has really raised the level of awareness for racial issues in Virginia. And so were ready to learn from our mistakes. Shortly after the first accusation against Fairfax, Attorney General Mark Herring, 57, a Democrat, volunteered that he had appeared in blackface at a party at the University of Virginia in the 1980s. Contributing: Doug Stanglin; Christal Hayes This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax could face articles of impeachment Monday Videos Sorry, there are no recent results for popular videos. Three powerful political groups in Virginia black lawmakers, House Democrats and the U.S. Congressional delegation have stepped up pressure on Gov. Ralph Northam to resign over a blackface controversy, but stopped short of demanding the immediate ouster of the lieutenant governor and attorney general in concurrent scandals that have embroiled the state. The measured approach could slow the sobering prospects for Democrats that the top three executive positions might be vacated, opening the way for the House speaker, a Republican, to take over the top job. The political crisis engulfing the state began last week with the report that Northam's page on his 1984 medical school yearbook featured a photo of a man in blackface standing next to another man wearing a Ku Klux Klan robe and hood. Protestors carry a fake coffin, to symbolize what they call the death of the Democratic Party, toward the Virginia State Capitol, February 7, 2019 in Richmond, Virginia. Virginia state politics are in a state of upheaval, with Governor Ralph Northam and State Attorney General Mark Herring both admitting to past uses of blackface and Lt. Governor Justin Fairfax accused of sexual misconduct. After initially suggesting that he was in the picture, he backtracked the next day and denied it, rejecting growing calls that he step down. Northam did, however, admit donning blackface for a Michael Jackson dance party more than 30 years ago. The governor has not appeared publicly since a weekend news conference in which he shifted gears and made it clear he would not resign. The 59-year-old Democrat has hired a crisis communications firm, used underground tunnels at the Capitol to stay out of sight and unveiled no strategy for how he might govern effectively over the next three years, the Associated Press reports. Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, who would succeed Northam in the event over a vacancy in the top job, quickly found himself the subject of accusations of sexual assault by a former colleague at the Democratic National Convention in Boston in 2004. Fairfax strongly denied the charges made by Vanessa Tyson, a political science professor at Scripps College in California. "What began as consensual kissing quickly turned into sexual assault," she said in the statement issued by her lawyers Wednesday. She said he physically forced her to perform oral sex. Story continues Rev. Al Sharpton delivers the keynote speech at the Reflections on Faith, Community and Racial Reconciliation in the Commonwealth ceremony hosted by Virginia Union University Feb. 7, 2019, in Richmond, Va. Sharpton said that Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam and Attorney General Mark Herring must step down over their blackface admissions, and the sexual allegations against Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax should be investigated thoroughly. Tyson said she decided to step forward following the reports that Fairfax might be ascending to the governorship. Fairfax said the accusations against him are false and that the entire encounter was consensual. Adding to Virginia's firestorm, Attorney General Mark Herring, third in line for the governorship, admitted that he had worn blackface in college in the 1980s. The Virginia Legislative Black Caucus weighed in on Thursday night with a statement reiterating its call that Northam step down, but stopping short of demanding the ouster of the next two officials. The group said the sexual assault allegation against Fairfax, who is African American, should be "thoroughly investigated," but did not demand he step down. As for Herring, the black caucus said it appreciated the attorney general's honesty in volunteering that he had worn blackface in college, but said it is waiting for him to act further to "reassure" the state that he is fit to lead. More: Ralph Northam was far from alone: Why blackface keeps coming up At a gathering of black leaders Thursday at Virginian Union, the state's oldest historically black college, Rev. Al Sharpton, a civil rights activist and television pundit, demanded that both Northam and Herring resign, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported. If you sin, you must pay for the sin, Sharpton said. Blackface represents a deeper problem where people felt they could dehumanize and humiliate people based on their inferiority." When were reacting to blackface, were not reacting to the act. Were reacting to what the act represents, Sharpton added. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Virginia House Democrats echoed the appeals by the black lawmakers, calling for Northam's ouster but not for Fairfax or Herring to step down. They said they wanted to listen to their constituents over the weekend before taking further action. "Much of the discussion has, rightfully, centered around who we are as Democrats as we continue to stand against racism and against sexual assault. We respect all survivors and believe they should be fully heard," the House Democrats' statement said. "However, this is not a partisan problem, but a problem for all Virginians and all Americans." One rare exception among Virginia Democrats was State Sen. Chap Petersen, who issued a statement Friday saying he would not call for the governor's resignation following a week of discussions with voters on the issue. In other responses, the Democratic members of Virginia's Congressional delegation called for an investigation into the allegations against Fairfax. They also said they were "shocked and saddened" to learn that Herring wore blackface in college, but noted that he had expressed "deep remorse." They stressed that he must continue to have "in-depth discussions" if he is to regain the public's trust. The delegation took no joint position on the governor, but noted, "We have each publicly called for Governor Northam to resign." The statement was released by U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine and U.S. representatives Bobby Scott, Gerry Connolly, Don Beyer, Donald McEachin, Elaine Luria, Abigail Spanberger and Jennifer Wexton. The measured response by all three groups appeared to reflect the real-world impact of a triple resignation by the top three executives, all Democrats, in a state that has only recently moved from red to blue politically. Larry Sabato, head of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia, said Thursday that he does not expect all three Democrats to walk away from their jobs. "Speculation that all 3 statewide VA Dem officeholders will resign is overwrought," Sabato said on Twitter. "One or more will survive. VA Dems won in an anti-Trump landslide in 2017. Theyre not going to turn government over to a pro-Trump GOP House Speaker." Adding to the toxic political stew, Tommy Norment, state Senate majority leader, a Republican, was drawn into the swirling controversies. A 1968 Virginia Military Institute yearbook overseen by Norment features a host of racist photos and slurs, including blackface, the Virginian-Pilot reported. More: NAACP president: Dehumanizing African-Americans with blackface has real consequences Norment declined to comment on the yearbook to the newspaper but later released a statement through his spokesman that said: The use of blackface is abhorrent in our society and I emphatically condemn it. As one of seven working on a 359-page yearbook, I cannot endorse or associate myself with every photo, entry or word on each page. However, I am not in any of the photos referenced on pages 82 or 122, nor did I take any of the photos in question. As my comment on Page 236 notes, I supported the integration of VMI. And in 1997, I led the effort to have my alma mater include women for the first time. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Virginia's black caucus, House Dems, in go-slow move, call for Ralph Northam's ouster. But governor stays silent Valerie Reyes feared "someone is going to murder me" the night before she went missing. "She was very scared, very frightened," her mother, Norma Sanchez, said during an interview at her home in New Rochelle. "She didn't mention anything or no one specific. She just said, 'I'm scared. I'm paranoid, mommy. I'm getting anxiety attacks. She was having a hard time talking. "I asked her, 'Why do you feel this way? Was there someone at your house?' I asked about her ex-boyfriend. And she said, 'No,'" Sanchez said, of her conversation with her daughter on Jan. 28. Feb. 5: Woman found dead, bound in suitcase, on side of Connecticut road Feb. 7: Woman found dead in suitcase identified as missing New York resident Valerie Reyes "I'm afraid someone is going to murder me," Reyes told her mother that evening. "We wonder, 'Who made her feel this way?'" said Sanchez. Reyes, 24, who lived in an apartment in New Rochelle, broke up with her boyfriend on Jan. 24, according to Sanchez. Reyes was identified Thursday as the body found two days earlier stuffed into a red suitcase, bound at the wrists and ankles and dumped on the side of a road in Greenwich, Connecticut. Valerie Reyes' mother, Norma Sanchez of New Rochelle, hugs a visitor at her New Rochelle home Feb. 7, 2019. Reyes dead body was found in Greenwich, Conn. Feb, 5. Reyes was reported missing to New Rochelle police on Jan. 30. Sanchez said the family hired a private investigator the next day, who tracked Reyes to Manhattan, where ATM surveillance cameras captured her image around 2 a.m. Reyes' bank card also was used that morning in the city at a different ATM, though it's unclear if she or someone else used the card, Sanchez said. During a Thursday evening vigil in Glen Island Park, a few hundred people held candles in Reyes' honor while praying and singing in Spanish. Vigil for Valerie Reyes at Glen Island Park in New Rochelle Feb. 7, 2019. Reyes body was found in Greenwich, Conn. Feb, 5. Greenwich and New Rochelle police are investigating Reyes' disappearance and death. Anyone with any information is asked to call the Greenwich police at 203-622-3333 or email tips@greenwchct.org. Story continues "There needs to be justice for my precious daughter," Sanchez said. "The people who did this need to pay." Follow Christopher J. Eberhart on Twitter: @ChrisEberhart2 This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Valerie Reyes feared 'someone is going to murder me' the night before she went missing Seoul (AFP) - The United States and North Korea will hold further talks next week to prepare for a second summit between President Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un later this month, Seoul said Sunday. The news comes a day after Stephen Biegun, the US Special Representative for North Korea, said more dialogue was needed ahead of the summit scheduled in Vietnam. "North Korea and the US have agreed to continue negotiations in a third country in Asia during the week of February 17," Seoul's presidential spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom told reporters. He did not provide further details. Biegun travelled to Pyongyang earlier this month for three days of preparatory meetings with North Korean officials, with the State Department saying the talks focused on Trump and Kim's "commitments of complete denuclearisation, transforming US-DPRK relations and building a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula". Trump and Kim are due to meet in Hanoi from February 27 to 28 following their landmark first summit in Singapore last June. That meeting -- the first-ever between the leaders of the US and North Korea -- produced a vaguely-worded document in which Kim pledged to work towards "the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula". But progress has since stalled with the two sides disagreeing over what that means and analysts say tangible progress on denuclearisation will be needed for the second summit if it is to avoid being dismissed as "reality TV". Trump's own intelligence chief, Dan Coats, have expressed scepticism over the North's denuclearisation, and told the Senate Intelligence Committee that Pyongyang was "unlikely to completely give up its nuclear weapons". Washington (AFP) - A senior US diplomat is set to lead a large delegation on a six-nation tour, including Afghanistan, to boost that country's peace process and bring "all Afghan parties together in an intra-Afghan dialogue," the State Department said Sunday. The statement said Zalmay Khalilzad, a former ambassador to Afghanistan who has undertaken extensive recent talks with the Taliban, would head an interagency delegation from February 10 to 28. It was unclear whether the group had already left at the time of the statement. The itinerary will take the US delegation to Belgium, Germany, Turkey, Qatar, Afghanistan and Pakistan, the statement said, adding that Khalilzad would "consult with the Afghan government throughout the trip." The emphasis on bringing "all Afghan parties together" appeared crucial. US-Taliban peace talks have not included the Afghan government, which the Taliban considers US-backed puppets, and Khalilzad said recently that intra-Afghan negotiations were essential. The US envoy has in recent months met several times with Taliban officials in Qatar, where the group's leaders have an office in the capital Doha. Khalilzad said Friday that he hoped to see a peace deal in place before Afghanistan's July presidential elections. President Donald Trump has been pushing to end US involvement in Afghanistan, where 14,000 American troops are still deployed. But Khalilzad emphasized that any troop withdrawal would depend on conditions on the ground. Afghanistan has suffered nearly constant conflict since the Soviet invasion of 1979, which was followed by civil war, the Taliban regime, and a US invasion following the September 11, 2001 terror attacks. LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Theresa May can reach a deal with the European Union to alter parts of the Brexit agreement relating to the Northern Irish border, Treasury minister Liz Truss told Sky News on Sunday. "I believe Theresa May can get that deal," Truss said. She also rejected the idea of a UK-EU customs union - something the main opposition Labour Party supports and that the EU has said it is interested in pursuing, but May staunchly opposes. (Reporting by William James; Editing by Gareth Jones) By Jeff Mason WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. negotiators are preparing to press China next week on longstanding demands that it reform how it treats American companies' intellectual property in order to seal a trade deal that could prevent tariffs from rising on Chinese imports. A new round of trade talks begins in Beijing on Monday, after the most recent set of negotiations concluded in Washington last week without a deal and with the top U.S. negotiator declaring that a lot more work needed to be done. A White House official said on Friday that preparations were under way and the talks would continue to focus on pressing Beijing to make structural reforms. The White House announced a timeframe for the Beijing talks in a statement. It said lower-level officials will kick off the meetings on Monday, led on the American side by Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Jeffrey Gerrish. Higher principal-level talks will take place Thursday and Friday with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. Lighthizer, named by Trump to spearhead the process after agreeing a 90-day truce in the trade war with Beijing, has been a strong proponent of pushing China to make such reforms and end what the United States views as unfair trade practices including stealing intellectual property and forcing U.S. companies to share their technology with Chinese firms. China has denied it engages in such practices. "The United States is a great producer of technology, and innovation, and know-how, and trade secrets. And we have to operate in an environment where those things are protected," Lighthizer said last week after talks at the White House. "I'm by no means predicting success; there is a lot of work that has to be done," he said. The two sides are trying to hammer out a deal ahead of the March 1 deadline when U.S. tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese imports are scheduled to increase to 25 percent from 10 percent. China's Commerce Ministry said in a statement on Saturday that the two countries would have a "further deep discussion on issues of mutual concern" on the basis of what they talked about at the last round of talks in Washington. It gave no details. China's ambassador to the United States, Cui Tiankai, said in Michigan on Friday that a "zero-sum game" mindset was destructive to China-U.S. ties, the state-run news agency Xinhua reported. Chinese and U.S. companies should compete as well as cooperate with each other, Cui said. "The real story in business is not that black and white," the report quoted him as saying. Trump said on Thursday he did not plan to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping before that deadline, dampening hopes that a trade pact could be reached quickly. "We are hearing the list of issues the two presidents will ultimately have to make decisions on is being narrowed, so that's an indication that things are being addressed. But we're also hearing that there's a lot of work to be done," said Erin Ennis, senior vice president of the US-China Business Council, who says she has spoken with officials in both the United States and China. "I dont think either side is expecting a draft of something next week." Another source who had been briefed on the talks said a lot of work also needed to be done on an enforcement mechanism for a potential deal. "If there's some indication that they're making progress on subsidies, forced tech transfer and the constellation of issues there and an enforcement mechanism, that would be interesting. The word coming out of this last round was that there was very limited, measly progress on those issues," the source said. Escalating tensions between the United States and China have cost both countries billions of dollars and roiled global financial markets. If the negotiations do not progress sufficiently, the U.S. officials said increased tariffs will take effect. Washington could agree to extend the deadline without a deal if talks are progressing. Trump said last week he did not think the deadline would need to be extended, though he said a deal might not be on paper by then. (Reporting by Jeff Mason; additional reporting by Chris Prentice and David Lawder in Washington and Ben Blanchard in Beijing; editing by David Gregorio/Sonya Hepinstall/Alexander Smith) Tunis (AFP) - A Tunisian court was holding final hearings Friday in two trials over jihadist attacks in 2015 on a museum and a tourist resort that left dozens dead, lawyers told AFP. Twenty-one defendants, including two women, appeared in the Tunis courtroom for a closed hearing on the March 18, 2015 shooting at the Bardo museum in Tunis, which killed 21 foreign tourists and a Tunisian security guard. "Only three defendants still have to give their pleas, and the verdict will be announced this evening," lawyer Monia Bousalmi told AFP. Victims' family members in France and Belgium watched the hearing via a live video feed. Bousalmi said a verdict was also expected Friday evening on 44 suspects in a separate trial on the June 26, 2015 shooting rampage in the Sousse tourist resort, which killed 38 people, most of them British tourists. The court has heard that the two attacks, both claimed by the Islamic State group, were closely linked. Several defendants pointed to the fugitive Chamseddine Sandi as mastermind of both. According to Tunisian media, Sandi was killed in a US air strike in neighbouring Libya in February 2016, although there has been no confirmation. Defendants in the two trials could be sentenced to death if found guilty, although Tunisia has had a freeze on capital punishment since 1991. Four French nationals, four Italians, three Japanese and two Spaniards were among those killed in the Bardo attack, before the two gunmen themselves, armed with Kalashnikov assault rifles, were shot dead. One suspect questioned in court, Tunis labourer Mahmoud Kechouri, said he had helped plan the attack, including preparing mobile phones for Sandi, a neighbour and longtime friend. Other defendants accused of helping prepare the attack said they had only discussed ideas with friends. Several alleged they were tortured in detention. Since a 2011 uprising that toppled dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, jihadist attacks in Tunisia have killed dozens of members of the security forces. The Bardo and Sousse attacks dealt a heavy blow to the vital tourism sector in Tunisia, already suffering high unemployment. Donald Trump says he believes Democrats want a new government shutdown in order to divert attention from the controversies swirling in Virginia, and strong jobs numbers released last week. The president's comments came just as his acting White House chief of staff said another shutdown is not off the table, and after news from Capitol Hill indicated negotiators had reached an impasse over Mr Trump's demands for border wall funding. The short-term funding deal announced last month after the longest shutdown in US history is set to expire on Friday. "It was a very bad week for the Democrats, with the GREAT economic numbers, The Virginia disaster and the State of the Union address. Now, with the terrible offers being made by them to the Border Committee, I actually believe they want a Shutdown. They want a new subject!" Mr Trump tweeted on Sunday, referring to ongoing scandals plaguing Democrats in Virginia where blackface photos and sexual assault claims have led to calls for the governor and lietenant governor to resign. Politicians in Washington have just under six days until temporary funding for a portion of the federal government is set to expire on Friday. The funding was agreed to last month after Mr Trump capitulated to Democrat demands to end a 35 day shutdown that left federal workers without paychecks last month. But, bipartisan efforts to resolve the border wall dispute in the weeks since have so far proved fruitless, and individuals taking part in the negotiations have come to a standstill. While Mr Trump has insisted he get $5.7b to build his border wall, negotiators have sought to find a figure between $1.3b and $2b that could satisfy the needs of an administration hungry to prove it takes the presidents signature campaign promise seriously while allowing democrats to claim a win of their own by not budging much to Mr Trumps demands. "You cannot take a shutdown off the table and you cannot take $5.7b off the table," Mick Mulvaney, the acting White House chief of staff, said on Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press". Story continues Mr Mulvaney continued to blame the uncertainty over whether a new deal can be reached on the "hardcore, left wing" wing of the Demcoratic Party. "Let's say the hardcore, left wing of the Democrat Party prevails in this negotiation and they put a bill on the president's desk wtih, say, zero money for the wall, or $800m, an absurdly low number," Mr Mulvaney said. "How does he sign that?" The effort by Republicans to secure border wall funding for the president comes alongside a democrat push to limit the number of beds that the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency has access to, which they hope can curb the detention rates that been seen during the Trump administration. Democrats say that, contrary to Mr Mulvaney's assertions, it is the Republican administration that is keeping talks tied up. "Talks have broken down because Senate Republicans are refusing to compromise on limits to the Trump administration's cruel immigration policies," a senior Democratic aide told Fox News on Sunday. "A deal that includes new physical barriers must also include limits on the number of ICE detention beds. If Senate Republicans won't compromise with us on both, we can't reach a deal". Should the two sides fail to make a deal, that would me that a large swath of the US government that is currently operating on short term funding agreed to last month could be in jeopardy. That includes funding for the Department of Homeland Security, as well as funding for agencies with over 700,000 federal employees who were furloughed or told to work without pay during the recent 35-day shutdown. During that shutdown, Mr Trump attempted to force Democrats to yield to his demands only to find a united opposition who refused to budge. After his State of the Union invitation was revoked and as government services including air traffic control began to show major signs of strain Mr Trump announced that he had agreed to the three week deal. Donald Trump ordered the Justice Department to justify his firing of FBI director James Comey in 2017, according to a new book by Mr Comeys former deputy. In the upcoming memoir, former FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe details deputy attorney general Rod Rosensteins upset at allegedly being asked by the White House to draft a now notorious memo in which he advised Mr Comeys removal. Mr McCabe writes how, in a private meeting with Mr Rosenstein after the firing in May 2017, the 54-year-old appeared glassy-eyed and emotional. He said it wasnt his idea. The president had ordered him to write the memo justifying the firing, writes Mr McCabe, who added Mr Rosenstein was having trouble sleeping after concluding he had been scapegoated by the White House. Theres no one here that I can trust, he quotes the deputy attorney general as saying. The book, The Threat: How the FBI Protects America in the Age of Terror and Trump, of which an advance copy was obtained by The Guardian, is due on sale later this month. Publicly, Mr Rosenstein has defended the memo, which criticised Mr Comeys handling of an FBI investigation into former presidential candidate Hillary Clintons use of a personal email account. In testimony to congress last year, Mr Rosenstein sided with the White Houses version of events, when he said of the memo: I wrote it. I believe it. I stand by it. But when it was used as justification by Mr Trump to fire Mr Comey, Mr Rosenstein reportedly threatened to quit. The president would later refer to the Russia thing as a reason for forcing out Mr Comey, who was overseeing the FBI when it was investigating potential links between the Trump campaign and Russia. Days after Mr Comeys dismissal, Mr Rosenstein would appoint Robert Mueller, the special counsel, to take over the FBIs investigation a decision that publicly infuriated Mr Trump. Elsewhere in his book, Mr McCabe accuses Mr Trump of unleashing a strain of insanity into public life, and of having acted like a mobster when he allegedly offered to support Mr McCabe in return for loyalty. Story continues The president and his men were trying to work me the way a criminal brigade would operate, Mr McCabe writes of his brief period as acting FBI director, according to The Guardian. Mr McCabe would later be fired just 26 hours before he was scheduled to retire by then-attorney general Jeff Sessions, who alleged Mr McCabe made an unauthorized disclosure to the news media and lacked candor. Andrew McCabe FIRED, a great day for the hard working men and women of the FBI A great day for Democracy, Mr Trump tweeted about the sacking last year. Sen. Elizabeth Warren formally announced her candidacy for the White House on Saturday, and hours later President Donald Trump weighed in on his newest 2020 campaign opponent with a line that many critics interpreted as a joke about the Trail of Tears. "Today Elizabeth Warren, sometimes referred to by me as Pocahontas, joined the race for President," he wrote on Twitter. Will she run as our first Native American presidential candidate, or has she decided that after 32 years, this is not playing so well anymore? See you on the campaign TRAIL, Liz!" The president's use of the word "trail" in all caps was widely interpreted as a reference to the Trail of Tears in which Native Americans were forcibly relocated from their homes in the southeastern U.S. to reservations in Oklahoma in the 1800s. Thousands of them died from disease, starvation and exposure along the way. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Some Trump supporters defended the president, arguing he did not intend to refer to the Trail of Tears. Fox News' Brit Hume argued that Trump was too ignorant of American history to have intended such a reference. "Yes, because Trump is noted for his knowledge of 19th century American history vis a vis the native population. Jeez," Hume replied sarcastically to a tweet accusing the president of using "the murders of Indigenous people as a punchline." This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Trump has often mocked Warren's claims of Cherokee heritage with jibes that some have found offensive, including his "Pocahontas" nickname and a tweet that referenced the 1890 Wounded Knee massacre in which U.S. troops killed hundreds of Sioux, many of them women and children. Trump has said he is "a fan" of former President Andrew Jackson, who signed the Indian Removal Act into law in 1830. He also picked a portrait of Jackson to hang in the Oval Office in 2017. In January, after Warren announced she was forming a presidential exploratory committee, Trump tweeted: Story continues "If Elizabeth Warren, often referred to by me as Pocahontas, did this commercial from Bighorn or Wounded Knee instead of her kitchen, with her husband dressed in full Indian garb, it would have been a smash!" Warren apologized on Wednesday for "not having been more sensitive about tribal citizenship" after The Washington Post published a 1986 Texas bar registration card where she listed her race as "American Indian." It was at least the third time in a week that Warren has apologized for her past self-identification. Follow Dalvin Brown on Twitter: @Dalvin_Brown More: 'This is the fight of our lives': Elizabeth Warren officially announces 2020 bid More: Sen. Elizabeth Warren sorry for identifying as Native American This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump appears to mock Trail of Tears in tweet about Senator Warren's campaign announcement KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) The Pentagon's top official made an unannounced visit to Afghanistan on Monday to meet with U.S. commanders and Afghan leaders amid a push for peace with the Taliban. Pat Shanahan, the recently installed acting secretary of defense, said he has no orders to reduce the U.S. troop presence, although officials say that is at the top of the Taliban's list of demands in exploratory peace negotiations. Shanahan said he is encouraged that President Donald Trump's administration is exploring all possibilities for ending a 17-year war, the longest in American history. But he stressed that peace terms are for the Afghans to decide. KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak is hardly lying low ahead of his corruption trial on charges related to the multibillion-dollar looting of the 1MDB state investment fund. He's crooned about slander in an R&B video and vilified the current government in daily social media posts to counter portrayals of him as corrupt and out of touch. The trial set to begin Tuesday comes nine months after Najib's spectacular election defeat, which was spurred by voters' furor over the 1MDB scandal that is being investigated in the U.S. and other countries. He is charged with 42 counts of criminal breach of trust, graft, abuse of power and money laundering in one of Malaysia's biggest criminal trials. SEOUL, South Korea (AP) When President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un first met in Singapore last year, there was pomp, there was circumstance, but there wasn't much substance. Before they meet again in Vietnam on Feb. 27-28, there's growing pressure that they forge a deal that puts them closer to ending the North Korean nuclear weapons threat. But what could that look like? Kim may be willing to dismantle his main nuclear complex. The U.S. may be willing to cough up concessions, maybe remove some sanctions. The question, however, is whether what's on offer will be enough for the other side. Story continues CANBERRA, Australia (AP) Australia's prime minister has cast his government as stronger on national security than the opposition after signing an agreement with the French government to deliver a fleet of submarines and ahead of federal elections expected to be held in May. Prime Minister Scott Morrison used a speech to Australia's National Press Club on Monday on the eve of Parliament's first sitting day of the year to detail his conservative coalition's record on a range of security issues including military spending, terrorism, asylum seekers, criminals using encrypted communications and domestic violence. Earlier, Morrison and French Defense Minister Florence Parly signed an agreement of deliver the first of a fleet of 12 submarines to Australia in the early 2030s. WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) About 3,000 people who fled as a wildfire threatened a New Zealand town were allowed to return home Monday as firefighting conditions improved. Another 400 residents living in valleys near the fire aren't yet able to return, although officials hope they will be able to soon. Firefighters say they've gained the upper hand over the blaze thanks to favorable weather conditions. The forest fire began nearly a week ago on the South Island and burned 2,300 hectares (5,700 acres). It burned down one house and prompted evacuations beginning Friday. "It's a large fire, and the fact that we're able to get residents back into Wakefield this afternoon is extremely positive news," said Civil Defence Minister Kris Faafoi. BEIJING (AP) 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: ___ EDITOR'S NOTE: This is a weekly look at the latest developments in the South China Sea, the location of several territorial conflicts that have raised tensions in the region. ___ CHINA RESPONDS TO PHILIPPINE DEVELOPMENT ON THITU ISLAND Ships from the Chinese navy and coast guard along with fishing boats from its maritime militia have been deployed to keep watch on Philippine development work on the island of Thitu. BEIJING (AP) The U.S. Embassy in Beijing says it is following the case of a Chinese-born Kazakh man who had been fighting attempts by Beijing to return him to China from neighboring Uzbekistan and whose current whereabouts are unknown. In an emailed response to a question from The Associated Press, a spokesman said Monday that the embassy was aware of Halemubieke Xiaheman's situation and was in close touch with the United Nations High Commission for Refugees and "relevant governments" on his case. Halemubieke had filmed a video from inside the transit zone at the airport in Uzbekistan's capital, pleading for help, saying the Chinese Embassy there wanted him sent back to China. SEOUL, South Korea (AP) South Korea and the United States struck a new deal Sunday that increases Seoul's contribution for the cost of the American military presence on its soil, overcoming previous failed negotiations that caused worries about their decades-long alliance. The development comes as President Donald Trump is set to hold his second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vietnam in late February. South Korea last year provided about $830 million, covering roughly 40 percent of the cost of the deployment of 28,500 U.S. soldiers whose presence is meant to deter aggression from North Korea. Trump has pushed for South Korea to pay more. WASHINGTON (AP) U.S. fears about China and Russia's growing influence in Central Europe will top Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's agenda as he heads to the region this week, Trump administration officials say. Pompeo leaves Sunday on a five-nation tour of Europe that will begin in Hungary and Slovakia where he will raise those concerns and the importance of promoting democracy and the rule of law to counter Beijing and Moscow's efforts to pull the countries away from the West and sow divisions in the European Union and NATO. The centerpiece of the trip will be a conference on the future of the Middle East in Poland on Wednesday and Thursday that is expected to focus on Iran and will also be attended by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Vice President Mike Pence and President Donald Trump's Mideast peace team of senior adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner and special envoy for international negotiations Jason Greenblatt. ISTANBUL (AP) Turkey has called China's treatment of its minority Uighurs "a great cause of shame for humanity." In a statement Saturday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy said it's "no longer a secret" that China has arbitrarily detained more than a million Uighurs in "concentration camps." He said the Turkic Muslim population faced pressure and "systematic assimilation" in western China. Aksoy said Turkey has shared with China its position on "all levels" and urged authorities to close the detention facilities and respect human rights. The minister said Turkey had also learned of the death in prison of famed Uighur musician and poet Abdurehim Heyit, who had been sentenced to eight years over one of his songs. Juba (AFP) - An Ethiopian military helicopter crashed inside a United Nations compound in the disputed Abyei region between Sudan and South Sudan, killing three crew members and injuring 10 passengers, the UN said in a statement Sunday. The statement said the helicopter was carrying 23 passengers when it crashed on Saturday inside the compound of the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA), "killing three of its crew members." "Ten passengers were injured with three in critical condition," it said. The MI-8 helicopter was carrying Ethiopian troops from Kadugli in Sudan to Abyei, which has been contested since South Sudan gained independence in 2011. "We are investigating the incident," said UNISFA's acting Head of Mission and Force Commander Major General Gebre Adhana Woldezgu. The remains of the Ethiopian peacekeepers were repatriated to Addis Ababa on Sunday at a ceremony attended by hundreds of UNISFA personnel, the force said in a separate statement. Gebre "paid last respects to (the) fallen peacekeepers by laying wreaths and recognising the heroic service of the peacekeepers in the United Nations." Ethiopia is the sole troop contributing country to UNISFA, with some 4,500 soldiers on the ground. The UN Security Council has warned that the situation in Abyei and along the Sudan-South Sudan border "continues to constitute a serious threat to international peace," and called on the two countries to show concrete progress on border demarcation and monitoring. A city council member from Texas has been forced to apologise after calling Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez a bimbo in a now-deleted tweet directed at the congresswoman. Richardson City Councilman Scott Dunn replied to Ms Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter with the offending remarks, according to screenshots of the tweet that circulated online last week. The embarrassment is to have bimbos like you with nothing between your ear, Mr Dunn wrote. It's unclear to which of the congresswoman's tweets he was responding. As of Saturday morning, Mr Dunn's Twitter account was deactivated. Mr Dunn later said he was trying to defend Donald Trump after the State of the Union address, according to the Dallas Morning News. The day after the speech, Ms Ocasio-Cortez called the event an embarrassment after some criticised her for not applauding Trump and looking sullen in the audience. In a Facebook post on Friday, Mr Dunn apologised for his Twitter reply to Ms Ocasio-Cortez, according to the New York Daily News. The post was no longer publicly visible as of Saturday morning. The words I used were offensive, Mr Dunn reportedly wrote. I am responsible for my own words and actions. I apologise to anyone who finds what I said offensive. Mr Dunn did not immediately respond to a request from the Washington Post for comment on Saturday. Even after Mr Dunn's Twitter account was deactivated, screenshots of his tweet were circulated on social media, prompting a few calls for him to resign. Mauri Long, a candidate for Richardson City Council, said she found the tweet inappropriate, demeaning and divisive. As one of only two women running for City Council, I find this sort of locker room talk disturbing and personally offensive, Ms Long wrote in a post on her campaign's Facebook page. This type of caustic rhetoric by an elected representative of our great city is not reflective of our own values. Amir Omar, a former Richardson City Council member, also condemned Mr Dunn's remarks as unbecoming of an elected official. Story continues I really don't care what political team you root for and whether you like one representative or another, Mr Omar wrote. I don't even care that although you are representing a city in a non-partisan role, you can't hold your tongue out of basic decorum. "What I do care about is that you are so tone deaf that you don't realise that using sexist terms like this one reflects badly on our city. On Friday, Richardson Mayor Paul Voelker said he was extremely disappointed and embarrassed by Mr Dunn's comments and had since talked to the council member. While I certainly respect councilman Dunn's, or any citizen's, right to freely express his or her opinion on any issue of public concern, I also believe that Richardson's values are best upheld when we engage in civic discourse that is civil in tone, respectful of others and designed to produce constructive outcomes for the betterment of our community, Mr Voelker said in a statement. Even when we disagree about important political and social issues, we shouldn't resort to name-calling, the mayor added. Ms Ocasio-Cortez upset long-time congressman Joseph Crowley in their Democratic primary race last year, and quickly became a popular target of the right even before she took office. Republican lawmakers and pundits have mocked everything from Ms Ocasio-Cortez's appearance to her background. There are new examples all the time. Republicans Ed Rollins and Rush Limbaugh recently dismissed Ms Ocasio-Cortez as a little girl and some young uppity. The Washington Examiner's Eddie Scarry tweeted a photo of her in November and wrote that she doesn't look like a girl who struggles. The Daily Caller promoted what it described as a possible nude selfie of her last week before walking back its headline. In return, Ms Ocasio-Cortez has frequently clapped back at her critics online and in interviews. She did not, however, appear to respond to Mr Dunn's bimbos tweet. Mr Dunn has served on the city council in Richardson, a Dallas suburb, since 2011, according to his bio. Washington Post By John Revill ZURICH (Reuters) - Swisscom, Sunrise and Salt have paid a relatively modest 380 million Swiss francs ($379 million) for fifth-generation wireless frequencies that will tighten their grip on the Swiss mobile market. The three were able to secure an attractively priced deal after a fourth company, London-based newcomer Dense Air, dropped out of the process, auction results showed on Friday. The exit of Dense Air -- part of the Airspan Group that hosts 4G and 5G mobile phone networks in Europe, Australia and New Zealand -- also removes a potential rival for the three companies in the already crowded Swiss mobile market. The outcome in Switzerland contrasts with neighbouring Germany, where three big mobile operators face competition from a fourth operator in bidding for a slice of 5G spectrum. And the amount raised in the Swiss auction is also much smaller than Italy's 6.5 billion euros ($7.37 billion) 5G sale last year, while Germany could raise 4 billion to 5 billion euros in its 5G auction, according to a report in Handelsblatt. Telecoms operators are keen for 5G frequencies to gain an edge in new digital services such as powering the Internet of Things - everyday objects which can communicate via the Internet - industrial automation and autonomous vehicles. "It was positive for the companies involved that the prices they paid were pretty low - less than half of the previous auction in 2012 for 4G," said Andreas Mueller, an analyst at Zuercher Kantonalbank. Mueller said the timing of the auction favored Swisscom, which could invest quickly to roll out 5G technology. Swisscom has already successfully tested 5G applications and has test networks in Lausanne, Geneva, Zurich, Bern, Davos and Lucerne. "It was good news for all the companies that no fourth player entered the market because this means less price pressure on them," Mueller said. Analysts at Jefferies said: "The result is a relief on two fronts: there is no new entrant and the prices remained modest despite a fourth bidder." Story continues DIVIDENDS SAFE Sunrise shares rose 1 percent and Swisscom 0.5 percent by 1100 GMT. The bidding, which covered blocks of frequencies within the 700 MHz, 1400 MHz, 2.6 GHz and 3.5 GHz ranges, had been expected to raise at least 220 million Swiss francs, with the proceeds going to the Swiss treasury as extraordinary revenue. Swisscom offered 195.5 million francs; Salt 94.5 million francs and Sunrise 89.2 million francs for parts of the frequencies, which will be assigned for 15 years. Privately held Salt said it was "extremely satisfied" with the outcome of the auction. Its acquisition will allow it to provide deeper indoor high-speed coverage and speed up mobile broadband access. State-controlled Swisscom said it bought 46 percent of the frequencies sold and considered the price to be a long-term investment in the future of the mobile market. It said its 196 million franc bid was not included in 2019's projected capital investments of around 2.3 billion francs. Both Swisscom and Sunrise said their bids would have no impact on dividend policy, a key consideration for investors in telecoms companies. Dense Air was not immediately available for comment. Four companies have applied to take part in Germany's auction of 5G licences. Deutsche Telekom , Vodafone , Telefonica Deutschland and 1&1 Drillisch , a unit of United Internet , are expected to bid in the second-half of March. ($1 = 1.0017 Swiss francs) ($1 = 0.8821 euros) (Reporting by John Revill; Editing by Michael Shields/Kirsten Donovan/Jane Merriman) By Hyonhee Shin and Josh Smith SEOUL (Reuters) - Officials signed a short-term agreement on Sunday to boost South Korea's contribution toward the upkeep of U.S. troops on the peninsula, after a previous deal lapsed amid U.S. President Donald Trump's call for the South to pay more. About 28,500 U.S. troops are stationed in South Korea, where the United States has maintained a military presence since the 1950-53 Korean War. The new deal must still be approved by South Korea's parliament, but it would boost its contribution to 1.03 trillion won ($890 million) from 960 billion won in 2018. Unlike past agreements, which lasted for five years, this one is scheduled to expire in a year, potentially forcing both sides back to the bargaining table within months. "It has been a very long process, but ultimately a very successful process," South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said at a meeting before another official from the foreign ministry initialled the agreement. While acknowledging lingering domestic criticism of the new deal and the need for parliamentary approval, Kang said the response had "been positive so far". The U.S. State Department senior adviser for security negotiations and agreements, Timothy Betts, met Kang before signing the agreement on behalf of the United States, and told her the money represented a small but important part of South Korea's support for the alliance. "The United States government realises that South Korea does a lot for our alliance and for peace and stability in this region," he said. The allies had struggled to reach a breakthrough despite 10 rounds of talks since March, amid Trump's repeated calls for a sharp increase in South Korea's contribution. South Korean officials have said they had sought to limit its burden to $1 trillion won and make the accord valid for at least three years. A senior South Korean ruling party legislator said last month that negotiations were deadlocked after the United States made a "sudden, unacceptable" demand that Seoul pay more than 1.4 trillion won per year. Story continues But both sides worked to hammer out an agreement to minimise the impact on South Koreans working on U.S. military bases, and focus on nuclear talks ahead of a second U.S.-North Korea summit, Seoul officials said. The disagreement had raised the prospect that Trump could decide to withdraw at least some troops from South Korea, as he has in other countries like Syria. But on Sunday, South Koreas foreign ministry said in a statement that the United States had affirmed it would not be changing the scale of its troop presence. Trump said in his annual State of the Union address to the U.S. Congress on Tuesday that he would meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Feb. 27-28 in Vietnam, following their unprecedented meeting in June in Singapore. Kim Eui-kyeom, spokesman of South Koreas presidential Blue House, said on Sunday that President Moon Jae-in would discuss the upcoming summit with Trump soon and that U.S. and North Korean officials would be meeting in an unspecified Asian country next week. After the June meeting, Trump announced a halt to joint military exercises with South Korea, saying they were expensive and paid for mostly by the United States. Major joint exercises have been suspended, but some small-scale drills have continued, earning rebukes from North Korea's state media in recent months. About 70 percent of South Korea's contribution covers the salaries of some 8,700 South Korean employees who provide administrative, technical and other services for the U.S. military. Late last year, the U.S. military had warned Korean workers on its bases they might be put on leave from mid-April if no deal was agreed. (Additional reporting by Do-gyun Kim; editing by Neil Fullick and Jason Neely) A California widow and mother of five died last week after running into her burning house to rescue four of her children. The kids sustained minor to moderate injuries but survived the blaze. Kristina Stratton, 38, had been outside her two-story home in Bakersfield with one of her daughters on Thursday when the building caught fire, CNN reported. The mom rushed into the house to rescue her four other children, ages 7 to 18, who were trapped upstairs. The children managed to escape the blaze by breaking a window and jumping to safety, according to KFSN-TV. They suffered from smoke inhalation and some other minor injuries and were treated at a local hospital, the Kern County Fire Department said. When firefighters arrived at the scene, they attempted to rescue Stratton from the fire but found her dead inside the home. The fire department said they were still investigating the cause of the blaze. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Strattons sister, Sarah Parks, characterized the late mom as a hero. My sister just did what any mom would do, protecting her children. Shes my hero. I hope I could be half the woman she is, she told BakersfieldNow.com. Parks said she and her husband intend on becoming the legal guardians of Strattons five children. Parks said her sister had been raising the kids on her own since Strattons husband the father of three of her children died of cancer four years ago. The father of Strattons two other children lives in a different state, Parks said. Strattons death has been met with an outpouring of grief and empathy from strangers and neighbors alike. A GoFundMe campaign to help the family has already raised thousands of dollars and North Bakersfield Toyota announced it was hosting a donation drop-off. She had a lot of people who loved her, pastor Angelo Frazier, a family friend of Strattons, told CNN. She loved her kids, her family, God. She loved life. She was just that kind of person. David Witt, the interim chief of the Kern County Fire Department, lamented Strattons death in a Friday statement and urged members of the public to have a fire escape plan for themselves and their family. Story continues I never want to wake up in the middle of the night to hear about someone dying because of a fire, Witt wrote. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today. This article originally appeared on HuffPost. SEOUL, South Korea (AP) The United States and North Korea will meet again this month in an unidentified Asian country ahead of their leaders' planned second summit in Vietnam in late February, South Korean officials said Sunday. The U.S. special representative for North Korea, Stephen Biegun, visited Pyongyang last week to work out details of the Feb. 27-28 summit in Hanoi between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. After being briefed by Biegun about his discussions in North Korea, South Korea's presidential office said that the U.S. and North Korea used Biegun's trip as a chance to explain what concrete steps they want from each other. South Korea's national security adviser Chung Eui-yong, who met Biegun, reported that U.S.-North Korea diplomacy "is working well," presidential spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom said. He said a follow-up U.S.-North Korea meeting ahead of the summit will take place in a third country in Asia in the week that begins Feb. 17. In Pyongyang, Biegun and Kim Hyok Chol, North Korea's special representative for U.S. affairs, discussed "advancing Trump and Kim's Singapore summit commitments of complete denuclearization, transforming U.S.-(North Korea) relations, and building a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula," the U.S. State Department said in a statement. Trump and Kim met for their first summit in Singapore last June, during which Kim pledged to work toward the "complete denuclearization" of the Korean Peninsula, without providing a clear timetable or roadmap. U.S.-led diplomacy aimed at getting North Korea to abandon its nuclear program in return for outside concessions has since made little headway. While announcing the specific location for his second summit with Kim, Trump on Friday tweeted that North Korea would someday become "a great Economic Powerhouse" under Kim's leadership. Thank you for reading! Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading. Hold on to your warm, woolen hats, Seattle: You are not out of the icebox yet. After a weekend snowstorm pummeled the normally mild Northwestern city making this month the city's snowiest February since 1949, according to AccuWeather another one-two punch is expected this week. The next snowstorm is forecast to hit Sunday night, bringing 1-2 inches of snow, AccuWeather said, and another would pile on 3-6 inches Monday afternoon into Tuesday. The snow will ride a wave of record cold: High temperatures were expected in the upper 20s to low 30s, with wind chills from 17 to 22 degrees. The brutal weather has already wreaked havoc on a city more accustomed to rain than snow. Seattle normally averages only 0.7 inch of snow each February. "This February in Seattle is going to be remembered for brutal winter weather for many folks not used to it," Weather.us meteorologist Ryan Maue said. The first weekend storm, which brought 6-10 inches of snow to the area, emptied grocery story shelves, shuttered schools and made travel treacherous. Portland, Oregon, was also hit with 4 inches of snow. More: 'Brutal winter weather': Snowstorm to paste Seattle for second time this week About 400 flights were canceled at Seattle-Tacoma and Portland international airports over the weekend. A 20-mile stretch of Interstate 90 in central Washington was shut down because of snowdrifts amid blizzard conditions. About 50,000 people lost power. The new storms would not just be limited to Seattle, AccuWeather forecasters said, but would also target Portland, Bend and Pendleton, Oregon; and Yakima and Spokane, Washington. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Washington Gov. Jay Inslee declared a state of emergency in advance of the fierce weather on Friday. He joined local officials encouraging people to stay off the roads and to check on the elderly and vulnerable. A man, 59, who may have been homeless was found dead from exposure Thursday near a train platform at a light rail station, the Seattle Times reported. Emergency shelters prepped more beds and outreach workers targeted the city's hundreds of unsanctioned tent camps, the paper said. Story continues More: Storm slams central US, bringing blizzard conditions, ice, floods, thunderstorms The unusual weather was not all doom and gloom for some in the Pacific Northwest. During a break between storms, some Seattle residents flocked to neighborhood hills with skis, sleds, laundry baskets and even a kayak. Its just a wonderful community getting out here together in the snow. Great that we live by the school here with the hill, Tony Muhlenkamp told KOMO-TV on Saturday. Meanwhile, a winter storm battering Hawaii led to severe surf conditions, high-elevation snow and brisk winds, including 40 mph gusts. The National Weather Service warned residents on the islands' north shores to be prepared for coastal flooding. Contributing: Doyle Rice, USA TODAY; the Associated Press This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Seattle is having its snowiest February in 70 years and more is on the way Washington (AFP) - Riyadh does not know the location of dissident Jamal Khashoggi's body, despite having detained the Saudi team that murdered him, a high-ranking foreign affairs official in the kingdom said in an interview broadcast Sunday. The dissident journalist was dismembered after his murder October 2 in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul but his remains have yet to be found. Adel al-Jubeir, Saudi minister of state for foreign affairs, said the murder was carried out by Saudi officials "acting outside their scope of authority" and that 11 people have been charged with the crime. But asked where Khashoggi's body is, he told CBS's "Face the Nation," "We don't know." Jubeir said the public prosecutor responsible for the case had sought evidence from Turkey but had received no response. Questioned why those in custody couldn't tell them where the body was, Jubeir responded: "We are still investigating." "We have now a number of possibilities and we're asking them what they did with the body, and I think this investigation is ongoing, and I would expect that eventually we will find the truth," he said. Jubeir was interviewed Friday, the same day President Donald Trump ignored a congressional deadline for reporting on who assassinated Khashoggi, a columnist for The Washington Post who had been openly critical of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Video: Saudi Arabia Issues Veiled Threat to U.S. Over Khashoggi This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. The CIA has concluded the Saudi operation was likely directed by the powerful crown prince, but the White House has sidestepped that finding amid strenuous denials by Riyadh, a key US ally. On Friday, The New York Times said the CIA had intercepted communications of the crown prince telling a top aide in 2017 that he would go after Khashoggi "with a bullet" if the journalist did not return to Saudi Arabia. "I'm not going to comment on reports based on anonymous sources," Jubeir said. "The crown prince, we know, did not order this. This was not a government-sanctioned operation." A record investment package being prepared by Saudi Arabia for Pakistan will likely provide welcome relief for its cash-strapped Muslim ally, while also addressing regional geopolitical challenges, analysts say. At the heart of the investment is a reported $10 billion refinery and oil complex in the strategic Gwadar Port on the Arabian Sea, the ultimate destination for the massive multi-billion dollar China Pakistan Economic Corridor, which lies not far from the Indo-Iranian port of Chabahar. Two Saudi sources have confirmed to AFP that heir apparent to the Gulf kingdom's throne, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, will visit Islamabad shortly, without giving a date. And a number of major investment deals are expected to be signed during a visit, officials from both countries have told AFP. Riyadh and Islamabad, decades-old allies, have been involved for months in talks to hammer out details of the deals in time for the high-profile visit. "The outcome of the talks so far has been very positive and this is going to be one of the biggest-ever Saudi investments in Pakistan," a Pakistani senior finance ministry official told AFP. "We hope that an agreement to this effect will be signed during the upcoming visit of the Saudi crown prince to Pakistan," said the official, requesting anonymity. The Wall Street Journal reported last month that both Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, Islamabad's biggest trading partner in the Middle East, have offered Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan some $30 billion in investment and loans. - Saudi lifeline - Riyadh investments are expected to provide a lifeline for Pakistan's slumping economy which was downgraded in early February by S&P ratings agency from a B to a B-, Saudi economist Fadhl al-Bouenain said. "Saudi investment to Pakistan comes within an economic aid package aimed at relieving the stress of external debt and a shortage of foreign currency, besides boosting the sluggish economy," Bouenain told AFP. Story continues The OPEC heavyweight also aims to achieve strategic and commercial goals with investments in infrastructure and refinery projects, he said. Saudi Arabia and its Gulf partner, the UAE, have already deposited $3 billion each in Pakistan's central bank to help resolve a balance of payments crisis and shore up its declining rupee. They have also reportedly deferred some $6 billion in oil imports payments as Islamabad has so far failed to secure fresh loans from the International Monetary Fund. Khan has already visited Riyadh twice since taking office in July and in October attended a prestigious investment conference widely boycotted by other political and economic figures after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Khan also visited Saudi rivals Qatar and Turkey, as well as China seeking investments. "One of the goals for Saudi Arabia expanding investments in refining worldwide is to secure market share and sustainable exports in the face of international competition," Bouenain said. Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih visited Gwadar in January and inspected the site for the proposed oil refinery at the deep sea port, just 70 kilometres (45 miles) away from its Iranian competitor, Chabahar. He was quoted by local media as saying the kingdom was studying plans to construct a $10 billion refinery and petrochemicals complex in Gwadar. - Cutting supply times - Like most oil suppliers, the world's top crude exporter has been investing heavily in refinery and petrochemicals projects across the globe to secure long-term buyers of its oil. A pipeline from Gwadar to China would cut the supply time from the current 40 days to just seven, experts say. Developed as part of China's Belt and Road Initiative with investments worth some $60 billion, Gwadar is being billed as a regional industrial hub of the future, easily accessible for Central Asia, Afghanistan, the Middle East and Africa. "Pakistan needs a rich partner to enter as a third party besides China, capable of injecting needed cash," Bouenain said. But so far China has rejected other partners for the corridor that seeks to connect its western province Xinjiang with Gwadar, including Saudi Arabia and UAE, said James M. Dorsey, a senior fellow at Singapore's S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies. This is despite calls by Khan "for the Chinese investments to be restructured to include agriculture and job-creation sectors and not only in infrastructure", Dorsey told AFP. Any Saudi investment in Gwadar will also have geopolitical dimensions, Dorsey said. Iran late last year inaugurated Chabahar which provides a key supply route to landlocked Afghanistan and allows India to bypass its historic enemy Pakistan. India has seen Chabahar as a key way both to send supplies to Afghanistan and to step up trade with Central Asia as well as Africa. But Riyadh is not expected to get involved in any Indo-Pakistani rivalry and the kingdom also has major strategic energy deals with New Delhi, where demand for oil is growing fast. Indeed in April, the Saudis signed a $44 billion deal to build a huge refinery and petrochemicals complex in western India. This is going to be the New Deal, the Great Society, the moon shot, the civil-rights movement of our generation, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D., N.Y.) says about her so-called Green New Deal. The marketing material published in support of the concept and thats all the Green New Deal is: an advertising campaign without a product offers what passes for soaring rhetoric anno Domini 2019, calling for a new national, social, industrial, and economic mobilization on a scale not seen since World War II. This is Sandys War. In my forthcoming book, The Smallest Minority: Independent Thinking in the Age of Mob Politics, I consider an observation from Erich Fromm, the Marxist-Freudian social critic whose Escape from Freedom was required reading only a generation ago. (It remains worth reading.) Fromm believed that the disruption of the medieval social order by the early stirrings of what we would come to call capitalism left Europeans of all classes uncertain and anxious about their status: social, political, economic, and religious. He connected this to the rise of Protestantism and also to the genesis of something much more relevant to our own disruption-convulsed culture of social-media obsession: This underlying insecurity resulting from the position of an isolated individual in a hostile world tends to explain the genesis of a character trait which was . . . characteristic of the individual of the Renaissance and not present, at least in the same intensity, in the member of the medieval social structure: his passionate craving for fame. If the meaning of life has become doubtful, if ones relations to others and to oneself do not offer security, then fame is one means to silence ones doubts. It has a function to be compared with that of the Egyptian pyramids or the Christian faith in immortality: it elevates ones individual life from its limitations and instability to the plane of indestructibility; if ones name is known to ones contemporaries and if one can hope that it will last for centuries, then ones life has meaning and significance by this very reflection of it in the judgments of others. Story continues One of the more amusing psychotic delusions of our time is that reputation is quantifiable, and that this quantum represents a mathematical identity with ones human value in toto. Talk-radio hosts boast about their audience size or their podcast downloads as a stand-in for credibility; Donald Trump brags (and, often enough, lies) about the size of the crowds he draws or the ratings of broadcasts with which he is associated in a way that very much calls to mind simpler male boasts involving ordinary rulers, and at the same time he mocks the failing New York Times which is not actually failing at all as though the truth or falsehood of its reports were reflected in its circulation numbers. Similar jibes were pointed at the much-missed Weekly Standard, even as people of no particular account believe themselves to be figures of some consequence because they have as many Twitter followers as a B-list film actor. Representative Ocasio-Cortezs admirers and more than a few of her critics note approvingly that she is a capable user of Twitter, as though this somehow liberated her from such quotidian congressional concerns as knowing how a bill becomes a law or what it is the House of Representatives in fact does. Max Boot, whiling noting her deficiencies, admiringly describes her as a social-media blackbelt. These people are unknowing followers of Bishop Berkeley, who insisted: To be is to be seen. The vice associated with that appears in exaggerated form in the manners of Millennials who cannot drink a cocktail or eat a dessert without photographing it, publishing the photograph, and anxiously minding the tally of how many people and people of what status engage with it. Appropriate word, engage it is one part business and one part romance: a prior engagement can mean two very different things. (That is true of many words in these weird times: Architectural Digest used to write about such-and-such an architect or designer and the space he shares with his partner, Bill and it was never clear whether they were in business together or in bed together. Thank goodness for gay marriage.) The disastrously unsuccessful social experiment of the early 21st century has been attempting to substitute hundreds or thousands of superficial and transitory instant relationships for genuine community and family, which require time and a different kind of effort to cultivate. Like Fromms medieval burghers, they live in a time of uncertainty and status anxiety, and so they seek big, important things to which to attach themselves: big crowds on social media, big crises in politics. Which is to say, the passionate and fanatical denunciation of climate deniers or billionaires or Mike Pences wife is only the Instagram photo of the braised beef cheeks at Hunky Dory in political disguise: consumption that literally could not be more conspicuous. Eric Hoffer, author of The True Believer, offered observations similar to those of Fromm, linking what would become the two most powerful forces in our community life today: glory and hatred: Passionate hatred can give meaning and purpose to an empty life. Thus people haunted by the purposelessness of their lives try to find a new content not only by dedicating themselves to a holy cause but also by nursing a fanatical grievance. A mass movement offers them unlimited opportunities for both. Related and, again, the application to the contemporary mode of social intercourse associated with social media is obvious Hoffer writes: Glory is largely a theatrical concept. There is no striving for glory without a vivid awareness of an audience. . . . The desire to escape or camouflage their unsatisfactory selves develops in the frustrated a facility for pretending for making a show and also a readiness to identify themselves wholly with an imposing spectacle. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is, at 16 syllables, a mouthful. The day before yesterday, she was Sandy, a pleasant-seeming young woman who liked to dance, worked in a bar, worried about her family, and chafed that her advantages and elite education (Boston University shares Case Westerns academic ranking and is significantly more expensive than Princeton: Is there a more appropriate preparation for life in Washington?) left her struggling, obscure, and unsatisfied. And so she set after glory and personal significance in politics, to which she is relatively new the hatreds and grievances she dotes on are obvious enough and familiar enough that one assumes she has been in possession of those for some time. They are not newly acquired. If you spend enough time around politics and/or media, you have seen this figure before. Years ago, a young woman beginning what would turn out to be a successful turn on the Washington cursus honorum asked me, earnestly: Is it wrong to want to be famous? I asked her what she intended to do with the celebrity she sought for what purpose did she want it? Why? The question obviously had never occurred to her. I might as well have asked her why she wanted two eyes rather than one. She has a lot of Twitter followers now. War is the most ancient avenue of glory, but it isnt for everyone: Many of our progressive friends believe that American military might is a force for evil in the world, and that the military itself is malevolent, backward, and hateful. But there are war substitutes and war analogues to be had. My friend and colleague Jonah Goldberg is the poet laureate of meow the Moral Equivalent of War and its baleful effects on our political thinking and discourse. The concept, he writes, has been the central idea of American liberalism for over 100 years: from John Deweys social benefits of war, to Woodrow Wilsons war socialism, to FDRs explicit embrace of martial organization to fight the Great Depression, to the New Frontier and the War on Poverty, straight up to Barack Obamas call for America to be more like Seal Team Six. Instead, I just asserted it in a single sentence. The idea can simply be understood as the progressive version of nationalism, minus the word nationalism. When you say, Were all in it together or, Ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country, youre making a nationalist argument, even if you think, as so many liberals do, that the word itself is icky. While many causes associated with the moral equivalent of war are well-intentioned and honorable in spirit (fighting poverty, conservation, etc.), the problem with the idea itself is that it is totalitarian in a psychological, if not always in a political, sense. Meow has many cynical political uses: If every political opponent is the moral equivalent of Adolf Hitler, if every political initiative tantamount to D-Day, then there is much that can be excused in the way of underhandedness, rhetorical excess, demagoguery, and the like. As Goldberg reminds us, war and war alone has been the great champion of socialism, because it provides an emergency pretext for the authoritarian project of reorganizing an organic society in accordance with the necessarily synthetic model decocted from ideology, bias, bigotry, eccentricity, and the self-interest, always unavoidable, of the planners empowered with drawing up the blueprints of this or that brave new world or utopia. And, hence, the Green New Deal: Our war, requiring a new national, social, industrial, and economic mobilization on a scale not seen since World War II. Under whose command? That of Field Marshal Sandy, of course. About the details of the Green New Deal, such as they are, there is not really much to say. On Friday, I spoke with one of the worlds leading authorities on North American building practices and asked him about the plan to retrofit these structures in the service of a net-zero energy agenda. Neither scathing nor derisive quite captures his response. He has been involved in a number of net-zero retrofits and understands how complex and expensive they are and how they can destroy a building when done poorly. Ask a farmer, an aerospace engineer, the manager of an electric utility, or a truck-driver about these highfalutin schemes and sentiments and you will get another superfluous proof of Robert Conquests maxim Everyone is conservative about what he knows best and Williamsons First Law: Everything is simple if you dont know a f*****g thing about it. But the call for a World War IIlevel national deployment in the service of an old, tired, hackneyed, shopworn Democrat-socialist wish-list is not about reversing the trend of climate change (China and India operate independent of American policy) or even about redistributing wealth or aggrandizing the power of petty politicians, as attractive as those things are to the low-minded and meretricious class of people who can hypnotize others and very often themselves with shiny objects found in any gutter. Field Marshal Sandy needs a great cause to which to attach herself, lest she return to being only Sandy, obscure and unhappy and of no consequence or at least no consequence obvious enough for someone with her crippled understanding of what life is for. In times of war and crisis, or other instances of high drama, life is dominated by public affairs, and it is in public life that one seeks glory and meaning. But ours are not times of that kind, however much we insist on trying to convince ourselves that they are. These are times of relative peace and plenty. In times such as these, the ordinary thing would be for Cincinnatus to return to his plow, and domestic affairs would take their rightful place at the center of life, including at the center of a community life of which politics is only a minor part. But private life has been much diminished by the decline of marriage and family, and by the abandonment of institutions ranging from churches to social clubs. Private life also has been colonized: partly by the social-media culture that treats every afternoon latte or trip to the beach as subject matter for a running documentary of limited interest, and also by an expansive and metastatic form of politics that insists that the personal really is the political, to the extent that there is no sphere of genuinely private life at all: If you happen to be the parent of a kid who was standing near another kid who had an expression on his face that somebody didnt like, then there very well may be an organized political campaign to ruin you economically, as in the matter of the children from Covington Catholic visiting Washington a few weeks ago. Domestic life is not happy, satisfactory, or even safe. And so we have the grand game of make-believe and moral dress-up, in which Field Marshal Sandy rallies her troops on Twitter in the service of a half-organized bouquet of slogans and prejudices that no mentally normal adult and there are still a few of those around takes quite seriously. The purported goal of the great national deployment isnt the point the deployment itself is. It is an excuse for a great deal of noise and running in circles and excitation and displays of Very High Moral Seriousness that is its own reason for being. Sandys war is not a struggle over the future of Earth it is only a struggle over the future of Sandy, and all the other Sandys out there in the great vast wilds of America, waiting tables at TGI Fridays or grinding away in the obscurity of some masters program in womens studies, sure that however things were supposed to turn out, they werent supposed to turn out like this, a mess of loneliness and pointlessness, all dressed up for battle with nowhere to go and no comfort but Netflix and Facebook and Twitter, little fixes of dopamine just strong enough and frequent enough to keep the addicts upright and sedated enough that they do not begin asking the really difficult questions and demanding answers. More from National Review Mark Episkopos Security, Middle East We might find out: S-300 surface-to-air missile systems are now active in Syria, according to images captured by an Israeli Eros-B satellite. Russia's S-300 vs. Israel's Deadly Air Force: Who Wins? S-300 surface-to-air missile systems are now active in Syria, according to images captured by an Israeli Eros-B satellite. Three erected s-300 launchers observed by the ISI (ImageSat International) for the first time since arriving from Russia and deploying in Masyaf (October 2018). Out of a total of four, one launcher is covered by a camouflage net, reads a caption accompanying the image. The caption adds, due to the current regional tension, and the detected erection of the launchers, it is possible that the mentioned activity indicates increase of the operational level and alertness. It is worth noting that the fourth, camouflaged S-300 cannot be clearly made out from the provided image. This development is hardly a surprise, as the Kremlin quite publicly transferred these S-300s to Syria in response to Israels involvement in the downing of a Russian reconnaissance plane last year. However, it does beg two questions of timing: why did Russia take so long to deploy these systems, and why now? The easiest, most immediate answer is that Syrian forces had to be trained in how to operate the S-300. However, a more profound factor may be at play: Moscows strategic caution. Russias S-300 transfer to Syria was, first and foremost, a deconfliction measure; as Russia Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu put it, "We are convinced that these measures will cool down the 'hot heads' and keep them from ill-conceived actions threatening our troops." Russian strategic command may have hoped to deter further Israeli air strikes with the threat of inactive S-300s being stockpiled in Syria, without having to take the added escalatory risk of deploying them. Any such hopes were dashed with the most recent wave of Israeli bombing runs against Iranian targets at Damascus International Airport, which may well have been the final straw pushing the Kremlin to deploy the S-300s only a few weeks later. Further compounding Russias military predicament, Israeli damage reports indicate that Russian-made Pantsir S1 and Buk-M2E air defense systems underperformed in fending off Israeli F-16s; the Israelis even released several clips of Pantsir S1s being allegedly struck during IDF (Israeli Defense Force) airstrikes. Story continues The S-300 PMU-2, which can track up to thirty-six aerial targets and engage six at a range of two-hundred kilometers, is vastly more formidable than its Pantsir and Buk counterparts. The PMU-2 is an export-oriented deep modernization of the original S-300, capable of intercepting a wider range of projectiles including MRBMs (medium-range ballistic missiles). Given how much trouble the S-300s predecessor, the S-200, has given the Israeli air force in the recent past , operational S-300 batteries should pose a serious potential threat to IDF aircraft operating within western Syrian airspace where the Assad regimes government forces are heavily concentrated. Russia has already deployed two even more advanced S-400 systems in Northwest Syria, but these are domestic (not export) models stationed for the sole purpose of protecting Russian assets. By comparison, these S-300s pose a much greater tactical threat to the IDF because they will be operated directly by the Syrian Army. Whereas the Russians have expressed a desire to work with Israel in managing the Syrian crisis, Russian Ambassador to Israel Anatoly Viktorov tells Russian state news the Israelis are concerned that the Syrian army will not prove nearly as restrained in their use of the S-300: Most of all, the Israelis are worried about the prospect of handing over control over the systems to the Syrian military. The recent S-300 deployments may prove to be a source of Russian leverage against Israel in Syrian deconfliction negotiations, to be held in Moscow later this month. Mark Episkopos is a frequent contributor toThe National Interest and serves as research assistant at the Center for the National Interest. Mark is also a PhD student in History at American University. Read full article Baghdad (AFP) - A group of 27 Russian children whose mothers are being held in Iraq for belonging to the Islamic State group arrived home in Russia Sunday. The children landed at Ramenskoye airport, near Moscow, on Sunday evening, said a spokesman for the Ministry of Emergency Situations, quoted by TASS agency. "Twenty-seven Russian children have been repatriated from Baghdad," a Russian foreign ministry official said earlier. Thirty other children had been sent back to Moscow in late December. The fathers of the children were killed during three years of fighting between the jihadists and Iraqi troops, the official said. Anna Kuznetsova, Russia's envoy for the rights of children, confirmed the report, according to the TASS state news agency. She said the 27 children were aged from four to 13 and were from 10 different regions in Russia. IS seized large swathes of Iraq in a lightning 2014 offensive, before the government dislodged the jihadists from urban centres and eventually declared victory in December 2017. The Kremlin announced in early January that 115 Russian children aged under ten -- along with eight aged between 11 and 17 -- were still in Iraq. Iraqi law allows detainees to be held with their offspring until the age of three, but older children have to live with relatives. In November, Kheda Saratova -- an adviser to Chechnya's authoritarian leader Ramzan Kadyrov -- estimated "around 2,000" widows and children of Russian IS fighters were still in Iraq and neighbouring Syria. Around one hundred women and children -- mostly from Caucasus republics -- have returned to Russia so far. Nearly 4,500 Russian citizens went abroad to fight "on the side of terrorists", Russia's FSB domestic intelligence agency said last year. More than 300 people, including around 100 foreign women, have been sentenced to death in Iraq for belonging to the Islamic State, while others have been sentenced to life in prison. Most of those convicted are Turks or originate from former republics of the Soviet Union. Virginians are deadlocked over whether Governor Ralph Northam should step down after the emergence of a racist photo from the Democrats 1984 medical school yearbook, according to a Washington Post-Schar School poll. Following the release of the image last week, which shows a man in blackface next to another in a Ku Klux Klan outfit, there have been demands for Mr Northam to resign. But the poll, conducted from Wednesday-Friday, finds residents split over Mr Northam's fate, with 47 per cent wanting him to step down and 47 per cent saying he should stay on. Mr Northam counts higher support among black residents who say he should remain in office by a margin of 58 per cent to 37 per cent than among whites, who are more evenly divided. On the scandals buffeting the state's other top elected officials, the poll finds that about a third of Virginians think Attorney General Mark Herring should resign after he admitted wearing blackface at a party when he was an undergraduate at the University of Virginia. A 60 per cent majority say he should stay in office. Most remain undecided about a woman's allegation that Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax sexually assaulted her in 2004, with 65 per cent saying they didn't know enough to judge Mr Fairfax's denial of the accusation. Respondents were not asked about a second sexual assault accusation against Mr Fairfax by a Maryland woman on Friday, after the poll began. The Post-Schar poll also finds that 11 per cent of residents have either worn blackface or personally know someone who has. The survey offers a snapshot of the competing and sometimes conflicting emotions that grip Virginia one week after the state government was plunged into chaos by the publication of Mr Northam's yearbook photo on a conservative website. Since then the capital has been in a near-constant state of crisis. On Thursday the scandals spread across party lines, as state Senate Majority Leader Thomas Norment, acknowledged he was among several editors of the 1968 Virginia Military Institute yearbook, which contained racist photos and slurs. Mr Norment said he was not responsible for the material. Story continues Nearly three-quarters of Virginians report reading or hearing a lot about Mr Northam's yearbook photo. Among those who paid attention to the story, 55 per cent say the photo offended them. But befitting a state with a complicated 400-year history of racial divisions, Virginians show deep ambivalence over what should result from the revelations. Their conflicted views point to a substantial gap between the worlds of politics and social media which have showcased a near-unanimous consensus among elected officials, advocacy groups and the occasional celebrity that Mr Northam has lost the public trust and must resign and public opinion. The data here are so at odds with what party leaders have led us to believe that the governor has no support to govern effectively anymore, Schar School Dean Mark Rozell said. Still, the governor's image has taken a hit. Mr Northam's 43 per cent approval rating is the lowest any Virginia governor has held in a Washington Post poll since 1997, and contrasts with more positive polling results for Northam last year. The fallout from a news conference he held on 2 Feburary appears to have been particularly damaging. At that event, Mr Northam backtracked on his admission just a day earlier to appearing in the photo. The governor said he had realised he was not one of the costumed figures and speculated that the photo had been placed on the page without his knowledge. He simultaneously admitted that he had put shoe polish on his face to impersonate Michael Jackson during a 1984 dance contest. At one surreal moment during the live national press conference, Mr Northam appeared ready to demonstrate the moonwalk, but was dissuaded by his wife, Pam. More than 7 in 10 Virginians say Mr Northam's assertion that he did not appear in the photo was not believable after his earlier statement. Initially I could have forgiven him, and I think he could have gotten past it. It was something that was 35 years ago, said David Hughes, a Newport News sheriff's deputy. What really bothered me was the change in story. Hughes, who is 54 and African-American, said that his career in law enforcement has taught him to look sceptically at reversals of the kind Mr Northam made. Typically, if a person changes their story, it's not because they remember more, he said. It's because they're being deceptive. Mr Hughes voted for Northam in both the primary and general elections. Now he thinks the governor should resign. I'm torn, because I do think he's a good governor, he said. But I think once he changed his story, as far as I'm concerned, I don't see moral leadership there. Despite their incredulity at his explanation of the yearbook page, a slim 53 per cent majority of Virginians say they accept Mr Northam's apology for the photo. Some 50 per cent of residents say he could be an effective governor for the remaining three years of his term, while 46 per cent say he could not. Louise Butler, 76, is African-American and grew up in Richmond, where she still lives. In her youth the city was segregated, and Ms Butler can still vividly recall an argument she had as a teenager with a white woman over where she was allowed to sit on a bus. Ms Butler, who attended Mr Northam's inauguration, said she was shocked and disappointed by Mr Northam's yearbook photo. She said the Klansman costume, in particular, brought back memories of the terrorism and discrimination experienced by African-Americans in the South before and during the civil rights movement. But she said that whatever views Mr Northam held in 1984, she was confident that he was now committed to advancing racial equity. He's been a good governor, and he's been good, as far as I know, to black people, Ms Butler said. While Democratic leaders at the state and national level have called for Mr Northam's resignation, the governor still commands support among many of his party's voters, the poll shows. Some 57 per cent of Democrats say he should remain in office. Independents split more evenly, with 47 per cent saying Mr Northam should resign and 43 per cent saying he should not. Republicans say he should step down by a margin of 56 per cent to 42 per cent. Within the Democratic party, Mr Northam has greater support from African-Americans than whites. A 57 per cent majority of black residents who identify or lean Democratic say he should continue to lead the state, compared to 49 per cent of whites who identify or lean Democratic. Some 47 per cent of African-Americans overall say Mr Northam has accomplished a great deal or good amount as governor, compared with 30 per cent of whites. Kevin Shank, a 57-year-old white Republican who runs a woodworking business in Augusta County, said he was not personally offended by the photograph in Northam's yearbook. He said he had never worn or seen anyone wear blackface, but that based on the revelations of the past week he surmised it must have been a common occurrence. I think they was going to parties and it was something they did, Mr Shank said. Seems like there was a lot of it going on. The Post-Schar poll finds that Virginians, by a margin of 53 per cent to 38 per cent, think their leaders have not adequately addressed the state's history of racial discrimination, which began with the arrival of the first enslaved Africans on Virginia soil in 1619. Nearly 8 in 10 black Virginians say state leaders have not done enough. The Post-Schar School poll was conducted by telephone from 6-8 February 2019 among a random sample of 706 adults in the Commonwealth of Virginia, including 62 per cent reached on cell phones and 38 per cent on landlines. Overall results have a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 4.5 percentage points; the error margin is plus or minus 10 points among the sample of 132 African-American residents and 5.5 points among the sample of 459 white residents. Washington Post Mexico City (AFP) - A Mexican radio journalist was shot dead Saturday in a restaurant in Tabasco state, east of the capital, the latest victim in what has become one of the world's deadliest countries for the press. Jesus Ramos Rodriguez was killed in the town of Emiliano Zapata, an official from the local prosecutor's office told AFP. According to local media, Ramos had hosted a news bulletin for the 99.9 FM radio station for more than two decades. The El Universal daily quoted witnesses as saying his assailant got out of a car and headed straight towards him, shooting him more than eight times at point blank range. Also weeks after a community radio station director was murdered in the northern state of Baja California Sur, in the first such case of 2019. Rafael Murua, who had received death threats for his work, was found dead in a ditch on January 20, after being reported missing. Murua, 34, had been under the Mexican government's protection program for journalists and rights activists. Racked by violent crime linked to the country's drug war and fueled by political corruption, Mexico has registered more than 100 journalist murders since 2000, with 10 killed last year alone. In December 2018, watchdog group Reporters Without Borders ranked Mexico the third-most-dangerous country for reporters after war-torn Afghanistan and Syria. The vast majority of cases have gone unpunished -- as do more than 90 percent of violent crimes in Mexico. Richmond (United States) (AFP) - Can a politician be forgiven for racist behavior from the past? What if that behavior evoked the darkest chapters of American history, from slavery to segregation? That's a question the state of Virginia has been grappling with since last week when its governor, Ralph Northam, was caught up in a row over blackface: the crude caricaturing of African Americans as a means of entertaining white people since the minstrel shows of the 1830s. The 59-year-old Democrat is refusing to resign over a yearbook photograph showing a person in blackface and another wearing Ku Klux Klan robes -- denying either was him. The scandal exploded into a full-blown crisis for Virginia's Democrats after two women came forward to accuse Northam's deputy Justin Fairfax of sexual assault, while the next in line for the top job, Attorney General Mark Herring, admitted to engaging in blackface in college, too. With no resolution in sight, Republicans have been rubbing their hands at the prospect of gains in the key swing state. "African Americans are very angry at the double standard on full display in Virginia!" President Donald Trump tweeted Sunday, with barely concealed glee. But most crucially for James "JJ" Minor, president of the Richmond chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the episode has forced a new reckoning with the state's painful legacy. "Black face is dehumanizing, it's evil," Minor, who is black, told AFP in an interview at the state capital's railway station in the Shockoe Bottom district, once home to a booming slave auction industry that featured in the film "12 Years a Slave." The Northam episode, he said, has shown "that Sweet Old Dixie is still around" -- a nickname for the Southern states of the Confederate era. - 'Old Dixie' - Sometimes known as the "Cradle of America," Virginia was home to four of the country's first five presidents. Story continues But it was also one of the most significant regions for the Atlantic slave trade, the main battleground of the mid-19th century Civil War that was fought over slavery, and later one of the states most resistant to the civil rights movement that brought an end to segregation. That troubled legacy still arouses fierce passions: in 2017, a white supremacist rally in the Virginia city of Charlottesville -- held to protest the removal of a Confederate statue -- turned violent, leaving one counter-protester dead. "The legacy of slavery, racism and the Jim Crow era remains an albatross around the necks of African Americans," said a statement from the state assembly's powerful Black Caucus, which like the NAACP has urged Northam to stand down. "We can no longer hide behind a facade of unity, we must fiercely and intentionally combat the hatred of the past that still lives today." A Washington Post-Schar School poll, however, showed Virginians deadlocked, with equal numbers for and against Northam's resignation -- and support for him staying in office higher among African Americans than among whites. Some, like Reverend Dwayne Whitehead, the African American pastor of Richmond's World Overcomers Church, argue forcefully against punishing Northam for decades-old wrongdoings. "I'm not as devastated by blackface and neither will I hold a person accountable for what they did 35 years ago, when this election for him as governor was not based upon who he was 35 years ago," the grey-suited 52-year-old told AFP. - 'Not going anywhere' - Northam was roundly attacked for his reaction to the yearbook revelation: a confused sequence that saw him first admit, then deny, appearing in the photo, only to apologize instead for wearing blackface on another occasion while imitating the late Michael Jackson. For Whitehead, though, the impulse to oust him stems from a bandwagon mentality, and weakens Democrats at a time of rising racial violence -- linked by critics to incendiary rhetoric by Trump. "I know that sometimes," he said, "it's a case of 'I'm supposed to respond like this,' and 'this is what's expected of me.'" Whitehead points in the governor's defense to initiatives like a dialogue about racial justice -- announced before the blackface row. Northam now says he plans to dedicate the rest of his term to helping Virginia "heal" -- telling CBS in an interview Sunday, "I'm not going anywhere." Yet Jasmine Leeward, of the New Virginia Majority progressive advocacy group, is unconvinced. She says Herring's open admission of a "one time incident" -- he preemptively revealed he wore brown makeup and a wig to imitate a rapper while in college -- left room for forgiveness. "He has been a very articulate champion of some of the issues," the 25-year-old black woman said, citing work fighting for Muslim migrants hit by Trump's travel ban. But Northam, she says, has to go. Some residents of Laurel Plaza said they have problems with rats and bed bugs, and when voicing their complaints have been met with disdain and/or threats from management. Warsaw (AFP) - Poland said Sunday it will buy mobile rocket launchers worth $414 million (365 million euros) from the United States, as Warsaw seeks closer ties with Washington amid concerns over a resurgent Russia. The deal, due to be signed Wednesday, will "significantly increase the Polish army's capacities," Defence Minister Mariusz Blaszczak told journalists Sunday, adding that delivery was expected by 2023. Made by US weapons giant Lockheed Martin, the HIMARS system can launch six guided rockets with a range of 70 kilometres (37 miles), or a single missile with a 300-kilometre range. It is already being used by 19 countries and has been deployed in Iraq and Syria against the Islamic State group, allowing US troops a precision attack ability even in poor weather when air attacks are hindered. In March last year, Warsaw already signed a $4.75 billion contract to purchase a US-made Patriot anti-missile system. Poland's rightwing government has been pushing for the United States to open a permanent military base on its soil, where American troops are already stationed on a rotational basis as part of NATO operations. However, the head of the US Army said in September 2018 that Poland might not be ready for a permanent military base because of an apparent lack of space to fulfil the training requirements for American soldiers. Two years ago, NATO opened a counter-espionage hub in Poland aimed at expanding the alliance's intelligence-gathering capabilities following tensions with Russia over its 2014 annexation of Crimea. The US-led alliance has also bolstered its forces in eastern Europe with four international battalions acting as tripwires against possible Russian adventurism in the region. Poland this week is set to host US Vice-President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for a two-day conference on security issues in the Middle East. Jared Kushner and Jason Greenblatt, close advisors to US President Donald Trump, are also expected to attend the event starting Tuesday, along with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. By Chayut Setboonsarng BANGKOK (Reuters) - The Thai political party that nominated a princess as its candidate for prime minister could be banned from a general election in March after an activist said on Sunday he would file a petition seeking its dissolution. Thailand's Election Commission is to meet on Monday to consider the candidacy of Princess Ubolratana Rajakanya Sirivadhana Barnavadi, 67, who stunned the nation on Friday when she said she would be the prime ministerial candidate for a populist party loyal to ousted ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra. Her announcement drew a swift rebuke from King Maha Vajiralongkorn, the princess's younger brother, who issued a statement hours later saying it was "inappropriate" for members of the royal family to enter politics. The March 24 election is the first since a military coup in 2014 toppled an elected pro-Thaksin government. The current junta leader, Prayuth Chan-ocha, is also contesting the race for prime minister, as the candidate of a pro-military party. The nomination of the king's elder sister, who has starred in soap operas and an action movie and gave up her royal titles after marrying an American, was a shocking move by forces loyal to Thaksin, who face an uphill battle in the election. The Election Commission has until Friday to rule on the princess's candidacy. It is unlikely its members would disregard the wishes of the king, who while a constitutional monarch, is considered semi-divine in Thai society. On Sunday, an activist said he would file a petition to disqualify the Thai Raksa Chart party, which nominated the princess. "The royal announcement made it clear that the party violated electoral law," Srisuwan Janya, secretary-general of the Association for the Protection of the Constitution, told Reuters. Srisuwan said his complaint to the Election Commission would ask it to recommend that a Constitutional Court dissolve the party. Thai Raksa Chart's executive chairman Chaturon Chaisaeng declined to comment on the request to disband it. The party said it would accept the king's message and "move forward into the election arena to solve problems for the country". The royal family has a long-standing tradition of staying out of politics, and electoral law forbids parties from using the monarchy in campaigns. Parties loyal to former telecommunications tycoon Thaksin have defeated pro-establishment parties to win every election since 2001, but since 2006 each of their governments have been removed by court rulings or coups. The gambit to nominate a member of the royal family could backfire on Thai Raksa Chart, said Titipol Phakdeewanich, dean of the faculty of political science at Ubon Ratchathani University. "Things are now more unpredictable," Titipol told Reuters. If the party is dissolved, it could give more seats to anti-Thaksin affiliated parties like the pro-junta, Phalang Pracharat and progressive Future Forward party, he said. Thaksin, who was ousted in a 2006 coup, lives in self-imposed exile after being convicted of corruption in absentia. He responded to the events on Twitter late on Saturday telling supporters to "keep moving forward" and "learn from past experiences but live for today and the future". (The story corrects paragraph 12 to show that every pro-Thaksin government since 2006 has been toppled, not since 2001.) (Additional reporting by Panu Wongcha-um and Panarat Thepgumpanat; Editing by Kay Johnson and Robert Birsel) Want to participate in a short research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! We often see insiders buying up shares in companies that perform well over the long term. On the other hand, wed be remiss not to mention that insider sales have been known to precede tough periods for a business. So before you buy or sell Onward Technologies Limited (NSE:ONWARDTEC), you may well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling. Do Insider Transactions Matter? Its quite normal to see company insiders, such as board members, trading in company stock, from time to time. However, rules govern insider transactions, and certain disclosures are required. We dont think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions. But logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares. For example, a Columbia University study found that insiders are more likely to engage in open market purchases of their own companys stock when the firm is about to reveal new agreements with customers and suppliers. View our latest analysis for Onward Technologies The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Onward Technologies MD & Director Jigar Mehta made the biggest insider purchase in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for 5.7m worth of shares at a price of 77.51 each. That means that an insider was happy to buy shares at above the current price. Its very possible they regret the purchase, but its more likely they are bullish about the company. We generally consider it a positive if insiders have been buying on market, even above the current price. Happily, we note that in the last year insiders bought 406.62k shares for a total of 31m. In total, Onward Technologies insiders bought more than they sold over the last year. They paid about 75.92 on average. These transactions suggest that insiders have considered the current price of 60.35 attractive. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by individuals) over the last 12 months, below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date! Story continues NSEI:ONWARDTEC Insider Trading February 10th 19 Onward Technologies is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket. Insiders at Onward Technologies Have Bought Stock Recently We saw some Onward Technologies insider buying shares in the last three months. Yogesh Desai shelled out 1.6m for shares in that time. Its good to see the insider buying, as well as the lack of recent sellers. But the amount invested in the last three months isnt enough for us too put much weight on it, as a single factor. Insider Ownership Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. From our data, it seems that Onward Technologies insiders own 14% of the company, worth about 133m. But they may have an indirect interest through a corporate structure that we havent picked up on. Overall, this level of ownership isnt that impressive, but its certainly better than nothing! So What Do The Onward Technologies Insider Transactions Indicate? Its certainly positive to see the recent insider purchase. And the longer term insider transactions also give us confidence. Along with the high insider ownership, this analysis suggests that insiders are quite bullish about Onward Technologies. Looks promising! Along with insider transactions, I recommend checking if Onward Technologies is growing revenue. This free chart of historic revenue and earnings should make that easy. If you would prefer to check out another company one with potentially superior financials then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt. To help readers see past the short term volatility of the financial market, we aim to bring you a long-term focused research analysis purely driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis does not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements. The author is an independent contributor and at the time of publication had no position in the stocks mentioned. For errors that warrant correction please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. Lyon (AFP) - A woman and a child were killed in a fire in the eastern city of Lyon believed to have been sparked by a gas blast in a bakery, authorities said. The fire comes days after 10 people were killed in a blaze at a Paris apartment building and a month after a massive gas explosion in the centre of the capital that left four dead in a building that also housed a bakery. The Lyon fire broke out Saturday night after the blast in the bakery on the ground floor of the two-storey building. "Two bodies were found, that of a woman and a child," Lyon's public prosecutor Nicolas Jacquet said, adding that police were investigating the cause of the blaze. Witnesses told AFP that a man who suffered minor injuries after jumping from the second floor told the fire service that his pregnant wife and child were still inside. Three passersby were also slightly hurt. "Blue flames several metres high rose up from the bakery and engulfed the upper floors," Chahine Reghi, a man living across the street, told AFP. Tuesday's inferno in Paris was started by a resident with psychological problems, investigators said. The suspect, who is in her 40s, has been charged over the fire, which was the deadliest in the city in over a decade. Acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney (Photo: Alex Wong via Getty Images) Another partial government shutdown later this week absolutely cannot be ruled out, acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney said Sunday. Mulvaney, who also serves as director of the Office of Management and Budget, said on NBCs Meet the Press that congressional talks to keep the government open are all over the map, and I think its all over the map because of the Democrats. Beginning in late December, several key government agencies closed for a record 35 days because of the ongoing dispute over President Donald Trumps insistence that Congress approve more than $5 billion to pay for a wall on the U.S. southern border. The affected government offices reopened in late January with temporary funding through Feb. 15. Democratic and Republican lawmakers seeking a long-term funding agreement last week expressed optimism about reaching a deal, but that confidence appears to have dissipated. I think the talks are stalled right now. Im hoping we can get off the dime later today or in the morning because times ticking away, Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) said on Fox News Sunday. Along with the continuing disagreement about how much money to devote to border security and such measures should include an actual wall rather than different types of barriers, theres a dispute over the number of beds the government should fund to detain unauthorized migrants. The Trump administration has called on Congress to appropriate funds for 52,000 additional detention beds as part of its new migrant detention policy. Migrant detention camps have swelled in some towns on the border with Mexico and many of the facilities are full of children detained as part of Trumps controversial family separation policy last year. While lawmakers technically have until Friday to avert a shutdown, they face a more immediate deadline because of Senate procedures that stymie quick passage of legislation. In order to get a bill out of Congress and onto Trumps desk by Feb. 15, work on a funding bill needs to start within the next 24 hours. As a result, there could be a push for another short-term funding bill while efforts continue to reach a final deal. Story continues Im not confident were going to get there, Shelby said, estimating the current odds of a deal at 50-50. Even then, it remains unclear whether Trump will accept whatever solution comes out of Congress. He has been threatening for months to declare a national emergency and divert money from other programs to build hundreds of miles of wall along the Mexican border if Congress does not appropriate $5.7 billion for the project. The White House has not taken the threat off the table despite substantial opposition to the national emergency idea from many Republicans in Congress. A persistent GOP criticism of former President Barack Obama was that he exceeded his authority by ignoring Congress and enacting policies through executive orders. Mulvaney on Sunday broached the prospect of Trump moving ahead with wall construction without resorting to the national emergency route. There are pots of money where presidents, all presidents, have access to without a national emergency declaration, he said. Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today. This article originally appeared on HuffPost. Mexico City (AFP) - Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said Friday he would soon announce a rescue plan for troubled state oil company Pemex, suggesting it would be worth around $1.5 billion. Pemex is struggling under the weight of more than $100 billion in debt and years of declining production, and was recently downgraded by ratings company Fitch. Trying to shore up the firm, Lopez Obrador's government has announced a series of tax breaks for Pemex -- and will now announce further measures next week, the leftist leader said. "The decision has already been made. We are going to strengthen Pemex, to rescue Pemex, to make it solvent," he told a press conference. He said the plan would include further reducing the company's fiscal burden, and did not rule out a cash injection. As of Thursday, the total amount of rescue money under discussion was "around $1.5 billion," he added. In its downgrade note, Fitch estimated Pemex needed an additional $9 billion to $14 billion annually to get back on its feet. "Because of bad management by previous governments, which took away all its revenues with high taxes, Pemex was left in the situation it's in," said Lopez Obrador, who took office in December after running an anti-establishment campaign. Lopez Obrador had previously announced an increase of $3.7 billion in Pemex's budget. The recently announced tax breaks are meanwhile estimated to be worth around $3.5 billion by 2024. Fitch, however, said that did not go far enough. Lopez Obrador, a leftist and energy nationalist, talks of restoring Pemex to its glory days in the last century, when Mexico was a top oil producer. The company's production has plummeted for years, from a peak of 3.4 million barrels per day in 2004 to half that in December 2018. Lopez Obrador has vowed to increase Pemex's production to 2.4 million barrels a day by the end of his term, in 2024. Bamako (AFP) - Mali's chief Muslim leaders on Sunday called for the resignation of Prime Minister Soumeylou Boubeye Maiga at a mass rally, accusing his government of failing to halt jihadist attacks and allowing "moral depravity". Huge crowds packed out a 60,000-seat stadium in the capital Bamako, with many veiled women sitting in stands separated from the male attendees, according to an AFP reporter. "Muslims can't let things go to waste. From now on, they will be vigilant and mobilise for their country, their religion and their dignity," influential imam Mahmoud Dicko, who presides over the Islamic High Council (IHC), told his supporters. "Mali needs a complete overhaul," said the ultraconservative leader who organised Sunday's event with Bouye Haidara, another leading Muslim. Over the past decade, Dicko has emerged as one of Mali's most prominent public figures, playing a key role in negotiations between the government and Islamist extremists. He is also a proponent of Wahhabism which he studied extensively in Saudi Arabia, the cradle of this strict Sunni doctrine. "We must fight corruption.... We must fight moral depravity. We are the guardians of morality," added Issa Coulibaly, Dicko's spokesman, speaking on the sidelines of the gathering. In 2015, Dicko stirred controversy when he called jihadist attacks "divine punishment" for Mali adopting more liberal Western traditions. "Our guide, our leader, is Mahmoud Dicko," said minibus driver Moussa Dicko (no relation), adding that he had taken the day off to join the gathering at the stadium. Last year, Prime Minister Maiga sparked outrage for supporting a plan to introduce sex education school books promoting a more tolerant view of homosexuality. Homosexuality is not illegal but remains taboo in the Muslim-majority country. Members of the LGBT community often face discrimination and even physical punishment, according to civil society groups. Story continues Dicko and his followers had slammed the Dutch-financed proposal for "wanting to teach homosexuality to school children". The government eventually bowed to the pressure and dropped the project in December. "Our country is faced with a governance problem. This rally wants to draw attention to that. People need to talk to each other," Dicko told AFP ahead of the event. The imam's political profile was boosted when he became a key mediator between the government and militants who took control of large swathes of the country's north in 2012. Despite French military intervention and a 2015 peace deal, jihadist attacks have continued and vast stretches of the landlocked Sahel nation remain out of state control, with violence also spilling into neighbouring Burkina Faso and Nigeria. Dicko, 64, has repeatedly pushed for dialogue to help solve the security crisis plaguing Mali, one of the world's poorest countries. In Sunday's speech, he denounced the "terrorist attacks", saying jihadism "has no place in Mali". Wellington (AFP) - A passenger plane flying from Auckland to Shanghai was forced to turn back after some five hours in the air because it did not have permission to land, officials said Sunday. Passengers said the captain informed them mid-flight the Air New Zealand plane was not allowed to land in China and would have to go back. "Midway through our flight, the pilot informs us that Chinese authorities had not given this plane permission to land, so we needed to turn around. A permitting issue, supposedly," one passenger, Eric Hundman, told the New Zealand Herald. "I would be stunned if Air NZ had allowed a plane full of passengers to take off without being quite sure they would be able to land it in Shanghai," the assistant professor at New York University Shanghai added. The airline said in a statement that "a technicality meant the particular aircraft operating this service did not have Chinese regulatory authority to land in China". After returning to Auckland, the airline texted passengers to say the flight had been rescheduled and would depart Sunday night. Qamishli (Syria) (AFP) - Kurdish-led forces in eastern Syria prepared Friday for a push on the last remaining speck of the Islamic State group's "caliphate" where diehard jihadists and their families are holed up. US President Donald Trump predicted that the once-sprawling proto-state's official defeat could be proclaimed as early as next week but operations have been paused for days on the main front line. Four years ago, IS controlled territory the size of Britain and administered millions of people, but the US-led coalition fighting the group says "99.5 percent" of it has been clawed back in successive offensives. The coalition has been training and providing air support to the Syrian Democratic Forces, which launched an offensive on the last pocket of jihadist territory in September 2018. Two months later, they took Hajin, which was the last town of note still under IS control and left the jihadists fighting over a few scattered hamlets in the Euphrates Valley. Thousands of suspected IS fighters have attempted to blend in with civilians fleeing the jihadists' last bastion, including a large number of foreigners. "They are attempting to escape through intermixing with the innocent women and children attempting to flee the fighting," coalition deputy commander Christopher Ghika said on Thursday. - 'Remnants' - The SDF have set up screening centres to process the droves of haggard people streaming out of IS-held territory, often famished and covered in dust. British, French, US and other forces are actively looking for wanted IS operatives among those fleeing the combat zone with civilians. After weeks of advancing steadily, the SDF halted their ground assault on IS's tiny remaining enclave. "There hasn't been any big advance or change on our side over the past five days," an SDF spokesman told AFP on Friday. "Currently, the SDF is advancing very cautiously to ensure the safety of civilians that IS is using as human shields." Story continues The Kurds, who have de facto autonomy in northeastern Syria, are also engaged in behind-the-scenes diplomatic talks over the fate of the region. Trump in December ordered a complete troop withdrawal from Syria, a shock announcement that left the Kurds scrambling for new allies. "We are seeking a political solution in Syria, which requires an agreement with the government in Damascus," senior Kurdish official Badran Jia Kurdi told AFP. "We have chosen a political agreement with Damascus because we don't want secession from Syria." Speaking at the State Department on Wednesday, Trump said that US-led troops and their Kurdish allies should formally announce the end of the "caliphate" some time next week. "Remnants -- that's all they have, remnants -- but remnants can be very dangerous," Trump said. His words were echoed Friday by France's defence minister during a visit to neighbouring Iraq. "The territorial caliphate, which has not yet been wiped out, is being defeated," minister Florence Parly said in Baghdad. But "the work is not over", she warned, adding the jihadists were "probably in the process of reorganising underground and spreading out". As IS has been pinned back its surviving fighters have reverted to guerrilla warfare and remain a potent force. The jihadists maintain sleeper cells along the border with Iraq, as well as in cities they once ruled, and have carried out periodic hit-and-run attacks. The SDF said it arrested 63 suspected militants in IS's former Syrian capital Raqa on Thursday during an operation against sleeper cells. At least 48 suspected IS members were among them, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The Observatory says IS sleeper cells are suspected of assassinating at least 50 civilians and 135 SDF fighters in Kurdish-held territory since August. - Fate of jihadists - More than 37,000 people, mostly wives and children of jihadist fighters, have fled IS territory since the SDF, backed by the US-led coalition, intensified its offensive in December, according to the Observatory. The Britain-based war monitor has said that figure includes some 3,200 suspected jihadists. Kurdish authorities say they have in their custody hundreds of foreign male IS members. Suspected jihadists captured by the SDF are usually eager to be sent home, something the Kurdish administration also wants. Governments in the jihadists' countries of origin are often reluctant, although France -- which has one of the largest contingents -- recently said it would consider limited repatriations. But Kurdish officials told AFP on Friday there had been no progress on reaching a deal with Paris. "No French authorities have reached out to us about handing over French nationals," said Abdulkarim Omar, who heads the Kurdish administration's foreign relations commission. Human Rights Watch has warned that any transfers of suspected foreign jihadists and their relatives out of Syria should be transparent. This item is available in full to subscribers. Attention subscribers We have recently launched a new and improved website. To continue reading, you will need to either log into your subscriber account, or purchase a new subscription. If you are a digital subscriber with an active subscription, then you already have an account here. Just reset your password if you've not yet logged in to your account on this new site. If you are a current print subscriber, you can set up a free website account by clicking here. Otherwise, click here to view your options for subscribing. CINCINNATI (AP) She kept her eyes on the dapper, wavy haired man who smiled, winked and exuded self-confidence as the courtroom proceedings moved along. "I don't know what it is he has, but he's fascinating," the teenage spectator explained to me at the time. "He's impressive. He just has a kind of magnetism." It was that beguiling magnetism that investigators said helped make the object of her interest Ted Bundy one of the nation's most prolific serial killers, with at least 30 women and girls' deaths linked to him in a multiple-state spree that spanned the late 1970s. I reported the teenager's comments for The Associated Press' coverage of Bundy's 1979 murder trial in Miami, the first of two murder trials he would have in Florida. She was just one example of a regular courtroom backdrop of spellbound female spectators who were "attractive, young and single," as I wrote at the time, just like the women Bundy was on trial for bludgeoning and sexually assaulting. "I haven't lost any sleep about the verdict," a relaxed, self-assured Bundy told me in a jail-cell interview a few days after the jury swiftly convicted him of murdering two Florida State University sorority sisters and assaulting three other young women in Tallahassee. Nearly 40 years after that trial, and 30 years after his death in Florida's electric chair, Bundy's deadly charm continues to captivate and perplex. Some reactions to a new Netflix documentary series, "Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes," prompted a Twitter appeal to viewers asking them to chill out about his "alleged hotness," adding there are many other attractive men featured on the streaming service who aren't convicted serial killers. Nearly simultaneously, a movie starring heartthrob Zac Efron as Bundy recently made its debut at the Sundance Film Festival with some criticisms that the film, shot last year in the Cincinnati area, glamorizes the killer. A Vanity Fair reviewer wrote that "at its worse, the movie feels almost sympathetic to Bundy." Story continues Filmmaker Joe Berlinger, who is the director for both projects, acknowledged in a Salt Lake Tribune interview he had tackled "a very polarizing subject" with Bundy, but insisted there's no glorification. His movie hasn't yet been scheduled for wider release. Efron, by the way, isn't the first hunky actor to play Bundy Mark Harmon starred in the 1986 TV miniseries "The Deliberate Stranger." The July 1979 trial I helped cover was for Bundy's rampage on Jan. 15, 1978 in Tallahassee, Florida. Armed with an oak limb, Bundy left two Chi Omega sorority sisters dead and three other women injured. Less than a month later, on Feb. 9, he abducted, sexually assaulted and killed a 12-year-old girl in Lake City, Florida. She was Bundy's final victim in a gruesome spree that claimed the lives of dozens of women in states from Washington to Florida. During the trial, I interviewed other young women in Miami who talked about Bundy's handsome looks and expressive eyes, and also the chilling testimony about his crimes. A University of Washington psychiatry professor talked in a telephone interview about him giving women "Dracula shivers." Jurors deliberated less than seven hours on July 24, 1979, before convicting Bundy, then 32, of the Chi Omega murders. Three days later, I was assigned to go to Dade County Jail and find out what I could about what he was doing, who was visiting him and whether he was causing problems for jailers as he had at times during the trial. A sergeant noticed I had been waiting for a while and asked who I was there to see. "Ted Bundy," I replied quickly. He took me to a visiting cell where Bundy was meeting with one of his attorneys. The cell door closed behind me. I introduced myself, and it was clear by his grin that Bundy was amused by my audacity. Despite the attorney's uneasiness about an unplanned interview, I sat while Bundy, unshaved and dressed in jail grays left open at the top, leaned back on his elbows on a bench, and went to work on me. He told me he was innocent, of course. Repeatedly. So innocent, he explained with that same grin spreading across his face, he wasn't losing any sleep. "I'm not trying to sound callous. ... I'm very confident we have a good appeal." He professed to be surprised and disappointed by the jury's relatively quick verdict after a five-week trial with complicated forensic evidence. He told me it would take a mind like "William S. Burroughs" to explain it. Not a fan of the Beat generation author he referenced, I didn't get what he meant, other than to show he was well-read. Bundy expected the death penalty but said he'd be "kind of stupid" to predict what Judge Edward Cowart would decide. He then imitated the judge's drawl: "Ah can only hope that the judge will look at mah case with an open mind." Bundy had me smiling, and he left me wondering about the contrast between this personable, engaging man across from me and the ruthless killer the jury found him to be. The next week, Judge Cowart sentenced Bundy to die for "extremely wicked, shockingly evil and vile" crimes a quote that became the title of the new movie. Yet, as he had throughout the trial, Cowart showed judicial firmness mixed with some homespun warmth toward the former law school student who sometimes insisted on questioning witnesses, raising objections, and disrupting his defense team. Cowart called him "a bright young man" who could have been a good lawyer, one he would "have loved" to have practice before him. "But you went another way, partner," Cowart said. As deputies prepared to take Bundy away, Cowart added softly: "Take care of yourself," and Bundy thanked him. Eight years later, I would write an obituary for Cowart, a former police officer turned judge who died at 62. A series of attorneys filed appeal after appeal for Bundy. One blamed the "Bundy mystique" for making it impossible for him to get a fair trial. Several argued he was insane. Al Carlisle, a Utah State Prison psychologist who had interviewed Bundy extensively, understood the difficulty people had believing that the Bundy they saw could be such a calculating, remorseless killer. The courts ruled Bundy was competent. He knew what he was doing, Carlisle explained to me years ago. Charm was one of his weapons. "He believes he's smarter than everybody else and that he's going to play the pieces right, and win the chess game," Carlisle said. It ended Jan. 24, 1989, in Florida's electric chair after he had ended his denials with sometimes-emotional confessions in his final days. Hundreds of people, women and men, were thronged outside the prison. But this time, most were there to cheer his death. ___ Sewell, now The AP's Cincinnati correspondent, wrote often in Florida about Bundy in the decade from the Chi Omega murders to the execution. ___ Follow Dan Sewell at https://twitter.com/dansewell Algiers (AFP) - Algeria's ailing President Abdelaziz Bouteflika is to seek a fifth term in April elections, state media announced Sunday, despite health issues that have kept him largely out of the public eye for years. The 81-year-old head of state, in power since 1999, declared his widely expected candidacy in a message to the nation that Algeria's official APS news agency said it would release later the same day. The president said he would set up an "inclusive national conference" to address "political, economic and social" issues and "propose an enrichment of the constitution", APS reported. Bouteflika, who uses a wheelchair and has rarely been seen in public since suffering a stroke in 2013, had remained quiet about whether he would be a candidate in the lead up to the April 18 poll. The country's ruling coalition -- which includes the president's National Liberation Front -- lent its backing to Bouteflika earlier this month. Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia has said Bouteflika's health was not "an obstacle" to performing presidential duties. Retired general Ali Ghediri, 64, was the first to announce his candidacy after the presidency set the election date. Algeria's main Islamist party, the Movement for the Society of Peace, will also take part, backing its candidate Abderrazak Makri. It has said Bouteflika would be unable to handle the demands of another term in office because of ill health. The country's oldest opposition party, the Front of Socialist Forces, announced on January 25 that it would not field a candidate and called for an "active, intensive and peaceful boycott". Want to participate in a short research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! One of the best investments we can make is in our own knowledge and skill set. With that in mind, this article will work through how we can use Return On Equity (ROE) to better understand a business. By way of learning-by-doing, well look at ROE to gain a better understanding of Belvoir Lettings plc (LON:BLV). Over the last twelve months Belvoir Lettings has recorded a ROE of 19%. That means that for every 1 worth of shareholders equity, it generated 0.19 in profit. See our latest analysis for Belvoir Lettings How Do I Calculate ROE? The formula for return on equity is: Return on Equity = Net Profit Shareholders Equity Or for Belvoir Lettings: 19% = 3.988 UK21m (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2018.) Most readers would understand what net profit is, but its worth explaining the concept of shareholders equity. It is the capital paid in by shareholders, plus any retained earnings. You can calculate shareholders equity by subtracting the companys total liabilities from its total assets. What Does ROE Mean? ROE looks at the amount a company earns relative to the money it has kept within the business. The return is the profit over the last twelve months. A higher profit will lead to a higher ROE. So, as a general rule, a high ROE is a good thing. That means it can be interesting to compare the ROE of different companies. Does Belvoir Lettings Have A Good Return On Equity? Arguably the easiest way to assess companys ROE is to compare it with the average in its industry. However, this method is only useful as a rough check, because companies do differ quite a bit within the same industry classification. Pleasingly, Belvoir Lettings has a superior ROE than the average (11%) company in the Real Estate industry. AIM:BLV Last Perf February 10th 19 That is a good sign. In my book, a high ROE almost always warrants a closer look. One data point to check is if insiders have bought shares recently. Story continues How Does Debt Impact ROE? Virtually all companies need money to invest in the business, to grow profits. That cash can come from retained earnings, issuing new shares (equity), or debt. In the first and second cases, the ROE will reflect this use of cash for investment in the business. In the latter case, the use of debt will improve the returns, but will not change the equity. In this manner the use of debt will boost ROE, even though the core economics of the business stay the same. Combining Belvoir Lettingss Debt And Its 19% Return On Equity Although Belvoir Lettings does use debt, its debt to equity ratio of 0.30 is still low. Its very respectable ROE, combined with only modest debt, suggests the business is in good shape. Judicious use of debt to improve returns can certainly be a good thing, although it does elevate risk slightly and reduce future optionality. But Its Just One Metric Return on equity is one way we can compare the business quality of different companies. In my book the highest quality companies have high return on equity, despite low debt. If two companies have the same ROE, then I would generally prefer the one with less debt. But when a business is high quality, the market often bids it up to a price that reflects this. The rate at which profits are likely to grow, relative to the expectations of profit growth reflected in the current price, must be considered, too. So you might want to check this FREE visualization of analyst forecasts for the company. But note: Belvoir Lettings may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with high ROE and low debt. To help readers see past the short term volatility of the financial market, we aim to bring you a long-term focused research analysis purely driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis does not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements. The author is an independent contributor and at the time of publication had no position in the stocks mentioned. For errors that warrant correction please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. Seattle was blanketed with snow on February 8 as Washington Governor Jay Inslee declared a state of emergency, calling the storm unlike one weve seen in many years. This footage, shot in the early morning of February 9, shows a glimpse of the snow covering the roads of the Belltown district. According to CNN, Seattle-Tacoma International Airport saw 6.4 inches of snow on February 8, the second most snow recorded in the region since 1991. Credit: Ashley Hoffman via Storyful Bellevue, Washington, was blanketed with snow on February 8 as Washington Governor Jay Inslee declared a state of emergency, calling Fridays storm unlike one weve seen in many years. This footage, uploaded by Joseph Dahan, shows a first-person rider view of the snowmageddon that hit the city. As of early morning on February 9, Bellevue saw six to ten inches of snow covering the ground. Credit: Joseph Dahan via Storyful Lagos (AFP) - Gigantic billboards advertising beer now dominate the skyline of Nigeria's megacity, Lagos, signalling the escalating battle between multinational brewers for drinkers in Africa's most populous country. So far it's a largely untapped market, with Nigerians consuming on average just nine litres (around 16 British pints) of beer a year, well below South Africans' 57 litres, according to market research firm Euromonitor. But with more than half of Nigeria's 190 million people aged under 30 -- and the population expected to grow to 410 million by 2050 -- the world's biggest beer companies are looking to elbow in. For years, Nigerian Breweries has dominated the sector with brands including Gulder, Star and top-of-the-range Heineken. However its iron grip on the market is under threat from mega-brewer Anheuser-Busch InBev. It recently opened a new factory outside Lagos and launched Budweiser to face off against Heineken, in a fierce contest for millennial drinkers being played out across Africa. Promotions have become an arms race among the beer companies as they host concerts, fashion weeks and boat parties to win over customers. Restaurant and club owners say they are being courted by the beer companies with unprecedented amounts of cash. "The big guys started noticing there was a new sheriff in town," AB InBev plant manager Tony Agah told AFP. "It's the beer wars." - 'Regulatory onslaught' - Agah walks through AB InBev's new factory, the largest in West Africa, located in a lush plot of land in Ogun state earmarked for industrial development. Green bottles of Trophy and brown bottles of Budweiser whizz by on automated production lines in a labyrinth of gleaming stainless steel. When AFP visited it was humid -- the air conditioning had yet to be installed -- with a smell like sweet breakfast cereal, a side-effect of fermentation. AB InBev built the factory to overcome significant logistical hurdles in Nigeria from potholed roads to spasmodic electricity and reach the neighbouring Lagos market. Story continues Outside, six generators produce 12 megawatts of electricity. "In a normal world I make beer but here I make beer and power," quipped Agah. Yet the biggest constraint in the eyes of executives isn't infrastructure but erratic government policy. Two years ago, there was a severe dollar shortage after the price of oil tanked and Nigeria tipped into a recession. At the height of the crisis, the government decided to introduce a currency peg, making matters worse for multinationals who have to import many raw materials. Add to that arbitrary rule changes and a tangle of red tape and you have what Nigerian financial journalist Ugo Obi-Chukwu described as a "regulatory onslaught". In November, for example, the National Lottery Regulatory Commission sealed the offices of Nigerian Breweries for running illegal lottery operations as part of a marketing promotion. - 'Comfortable in any battle' - But for all the headaches, the promise of Nigeria is too great to pass up. "The thing about the Nigerian market is that, long term, there are huge opportunities," said Nigerian Breweries marketing director Emmanuel Oriakhi. "There is a massive home brew category with people making all sorts of alcohol in their backyard, beer is an opportunity to premiumise their experience." Oriakhi is sanguine about AB InBev's investment in Nigeria. "We're very comfortable in any battle," he said with the confidence of having around 60 percent of the market share. "They're welcome and it makes the market interesting," he said with a smile. The Daily Beast Screenshot/YouTubeA massive country music festival in Kentucky this past weekend started off on rocky footing: Police found meth, marijuana, and an open bottle of alcohol in the first vehicle they stopped at a traffic checkpoint. One of the people in the car had two active warrants out for their arrest.We were like, Well, this doesnt bode well for the weekend, Edmonson County Sheriff Shane Doyle told the Lexington Herald-Leader.By the end of the five-day bash, dubbed the Redneck Rave, one PHOENIX When Arizonans buy a license plate displaying the words "In God We Trust," they are told the money promotes the motto, First Amendment rights "and the heritage of this state and nation." What they may not know is the money supports Alliance Defending Freedom, a controversial group based in Scottsdale whose mission statement is "to keep the doors open for the Gospel by advocating for religious liberty, the sanctity of life, and marriage and family." Because of that affiliation, one Democratic lawmaker now is proposing to get rid of the "In God We Trust" specialty license plates. ADF is designated as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center because of its anti-LGBT views and claims that a "homosexual agenda" will destroy society. ADF defended its mission and responded to the call to get rid of the Arizona license plate in a written statement. Jeremy Tedesco is senior legal counsel with Scottsdale-based "Its disappointing to see elected officials become uncritical pawns in the Southern Poverty Law Centers ugly propaganda campaigns," said Jeremy Tedesco, Alliance Defending Freedom senior counsel and vice president of U.S. Advocacy. Tedesco said Southern Poverty Law Center mischaracterizes his group's work. "Alliance Defending Freedom advocates for the freedom of all Americans to peacefully live in accordance with their beliefs, including those with no belief," Tedesco said. "We represent people from all walks of life and diverse backgrounds." ADF has been involved in a host of culture-war court cases: a challenge to the Obama administration directive that public schools allow transgender students to use bathrooms of their choice; the Hobby Lobby case regarding businesses' right not to provide contraception coverage to their employees for religious reasons; and Arizona's law defining marriage as between only a man and a woman. Most recently, it has been involved in the state Supreme Court case challenging Phoenix's anti-discrimination ordinance for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people. Story continues The Southern Poverty Law Center, an anti-hate advocacy group based in Montgomery, Alabama, named the ADF a hate group in 2016 because of its "demonization of LGBT people" and "support of criminalization of gay sex in the U.S. and abroad." The center has written extensively about ADF and states that it "does not name groups to its anti-LGBT hate list simply for having biblical objections to homosexuality or for opposing same-sex marriage." How the plates fund ADF The specialty "In God We Trust" license plates are among many in Arizona offered to drivers through the Department of Transportation. Like the others, the plates offer $17 of the $25 purchase price to particular causes. Secular Coalition for Arizona, a group that opposes religion in government, requested that Democratic state Sen. Juan Mendez obtain data regarding exactly where the money from the "In God We Trust" plates has been directed. Juan Mendez is a state senator from Tempe. ADOT only says on its website that money from the specialty plate promotes the national motto In God We Trust, First Amendment rights, "and the heritage of this state and nation." A few other plates, among dozens offered by the state through ADOT, don't include explicit statements about what organization gets the money, though the recipient is noted in statute. ADOT records that Alliance Defending Freedom has received more than $900,000 from the specialty plates since 2014. "We were appalled by it," said Tory Roberg, the director of government affairs for the Secular Coalition for Arizona. "People really need to know where their money is going." She said she did not know anyone who has the plate on their vehicle. Secular Coalition for Arizona did not obtain, and ADOT could immediately provide, earlier records dating back to the plate's inception in 2008. A spreadsheet from ADOT indicates 53,205 sales or renewals of the plate since 2014. ADF reported income of nearly $56 million in 2017, so the Arizona plates are a small part of its budget. The plates were approved by the Legislature in 2008 following a floor amendment from former Republican Sen. Ron Gould, Roberg said. The state law that resulted from Gould's amendment does not specify ADF as the recipient of the money. It says only that the money will go to the Arizona non-profit that gives ADOT $32,000 to implement the plate. Other plates, such as those supporting amateur radio, the environment and the military, were created with statutes that name specifically where the money goes in addition to the state highway fund. ADOT spokesman Doug Nick confirmed Tuesday that group receiving the money from the "In God We Trust" plate is ADF. Bills target license plates Mendez has introduced one bill to require ADOT to more fully disclose where the money from specialty plates goes and another to eliminate the ADF plate. Hopefully in the future we can put in place some commonsense guidelines that would bar hate groups from earning money through Arizona license plates, Mendez said in a press release. State dollars should not be funding an organization that works to strip residents of our state of their human rights and human dignity. Its appalling that weve already sent over a million dollars to this extremist hate group. Tedesco, from ADF, said the plates are appropriate. "Arizona is well within its rights to offer its citizens an opportunity to voluntarily purchase license plates affirming the First Amendment and contributing to ADF's work on behalf of the freedom of all Americans to live and work according to their beliefs," he said. Secular Coalition for Arizona is planning a petition and billboard campaign regarding the ADF license plate and is recruiting like-minded churches and groups to the cause. What do people not understand about the inappropriateness of this kind of fundamentalist-inspired, state-sanctioned discrimination? said David Felten, a pastor at the Fountains, a United Methodist Church in Fountain Hills, in a press release from the coalition. This is not just an abstract violation of church-state separation. Its a very real rejection of Arizonas LGBTQ people by the very government that is supposed to impartially support and protect all of its citizens. More: Kansas recalls some license plates after complaints they contained ethnic slurs This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona's 'In God We Trust' license plates fund anti-LGBT group; lawmaker wants to put a stop to it White House acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney said Sunday that, whatever Congress may or may not propose in a border security compromise, President Donald Trump will get his wall on the U.S.-Mexico border. "The president is going to build the wall," Mulvaney said on "Fox News Sunday." "This is going to get built with or without Congress." Mulvaney's words come as another potential government shutdown looms. Lawmakers have until Friday to craft a deal that the president would sign on to. The negotiations hit a roadblock Sunday when Democrats pushed to limit the number of migrants that the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency can detain at one time. Many Democrats have criticized ICE for going too far in detaining immigrants who lack proper documentation but are otherwise lawful and some have advocated getting rid of the agency altogether. Republicans have called the push to abolish ICE evidence that Democrats are for "open borders" and do not really wish to stop illegal immigration. They say ICE is essential in enforcing current U.S. immigration law. "I dont think the Dems on the Border Committee are being allowed by their leaders to make a deal," Trump tweeted Sunday in response to the Democratic proposal to limit the number of ICE detainees. "They are offering very little money for the desperately needed Border Wall & now, out of the blue, want a cap on convicted violent felons to be held in detention!" Caravans: Here's what happened to the migrant caravan that arrived in Tijuana last year More: Trump, Beto to face off Monday in El Paso in dueling rallies near the border This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Democrats say they proposed their cap to force ICE to concentrate its internal enforcement efforts on dangerous immigrants. Democrats have proposed reducing the current number of beds ICE uses to detain immigrants here illegally from 40,520 to 35,520. But within that limit, they want most of the beds used for people detained at the border and proposed limiting the number of beds for immigrants here illegally who are caught within the U.S. to 16,500. Story continues "I promise you this. Donald Trump is not going to sign any bill that reduces the number of bed spaces available to hold violent offenders who come across our border. He can't do that. He won't do that," Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said on Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures." Graham said such a move "incentivizes more violent people to come to the United States" and "at the end of the day, they're making it impossible for the president to work with them if they're reducing bed spaces for violent offenders." Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., was not optimistic about the chances of reaching an agreement ahead of Friday's deadline. "I think talks are stalled right now," Shelby told "Fox News Sunday" host Chris Wallace. "Im not confident were going to get there." On the other side of the aisle, Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., told Wallace on Sunday that, "We are not to the point where we can announce a deal." If lawmakers fail to find common ground and the president is not presented with a bill that he finds acceptable, Trump is prepared to reject it and risk another shutdown, Mulvaney said. "The government shutdown is technically still on the table," he said. "We do not want it to come to that, but that option is still open to the president and will remain so." When asked if Trump who wants $5.7 billion for a border wall would sign a funding bill that only appropriated between $1.3 and $2 billion for construction, Mulvaney said, "Well take as much money as you can give us and then we will go off and find the money someplace else legally." Congressional Democrats have steadfastly refused to approve the $5.7 billion requested by Trump for the wall, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has insisted the wall won't be built. In December, the impasse led to a record 35-day government shutdown. Mulvaney said Trump could get some of the money without Congressional approval and with declaring a national emergency through "reprogramming," which would permit the president to move around previously allocated defense funds. Border wall: How congressional Democrats could fight a national emergency declaration A number of Republican lawmakers, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., oppose the idea of declaring a national emergency to get the money because they say it would subvert congressional authority and establish a bad precedent. Despite that opposition, Mulvaney said such a move is "absolutely on the table." "Yes, there's a lot of Republicans who don't want to do it. Face it, the president doesn't really want to do it. That's why we had to go through the shutdown," Mulvaney said. "He would prefer legislation because it's the right way to go and is the proper way to spend money in this country. "But if that doesn't happen, the president proceeds. His number one priority is national security. He will then look at the National Emergencies Act as a way to do his job," he added. Contributing: The Associated Press State of the Union: Politically wounded from the shutdown, Trump faces a tough time with his agenda More: After fleeing violence at home, migrants wait patiently at Texas border to enter U.S. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Border wall negotiations hit hurdle as Democrats push for cap on number of ICE detainees By Nathan Layne NEW YORK (Reuters) - The owner of U.S. tabloid newspaper the National Enquirer pushed back on Friday against accusations of "extortion and blackmail" from Amazon.com Inc Chief Executive Jeff Bezos, saying its reporting on an extramarital relationship involving the world's richest man was lawful and it would investigate his claims. Bezos on Thursday accused American Media Inc (AMI) of trying to blackmail him with the threat of publishing "intimate photos" he allegedly sent to his girlfriend unless he said in public that the American supermarket tabloid's reporting on him was not politically motivated. The U.S. attorney's office in Manhattan is reviewing whether the alleged extortion violated a non-prosecution agreement, a person familiar with the matter said, confirming an earlier report by Bloomberg News. AMI signed the agreement with federal prosecutors last year in connection with a $150,000 hush-money payment to a former Playboy model who claims she had an affair with U.S. President Donald Trump. Trump denies the affair. The agreement can be voided if AMI commits any crimes. If the agreement is nullified, AMI or its executives could face prosecution for the hush payment and its conduct with Bezos, legal experts said. AMI and its CEO David Pecker have had close links to Trump, who has attacked Bezos, Amazon and the newspaper he owns privately, the Washington Post, on Twitter. "American Media believes fervently that it acted lawfully in the reporting of the story of Mr. Bezos," the company said in a statement. Bezos and his wife announced last month that they were divorcing after 25 years of marriage. That same day, the National Enquirer touted it was publishing alleged intimate text messages between Bezos and Lauren Sanchez, a former television anchor whom he was said to be dating. Bezos opened an investigation into how the messages could have ended up in the hands of the tabloid, led by longtime security consultant Gavin de Becker. De Becker told media that the leak was politically motivated. Story continues 'POLITICALLY MOTIVATED' In a blog post on Thursday, Bezos cited an email from AMI deputy general counsel, Jon Fine, to a lawyer representing de Becker. In it, AMI proposed a public acknowledgment from Bezos and de Becker that "they have no knowledge or basis for suggesting that (AMI's) coverage was politically motivated or influenced by political forces." In return for such an acknowledgment, according to the email, AMI offered "not to publish, distribute, share, or describe unpublished texts and photos," Bezos said. Bezos said the statement AMI was proposing was false and described the offer as an "extortionate proposal." Bezos, Fine, and de Becker were not immediately available for comment. Amazon declined to comment. Shares of the world's largest online retailer were down 1.8 percent at $1,584.74. Extortion typically involves an effort to obtain property, services, money or some other benefit by threatening violence, reputational harm or other injury, although definitions can vary across state and federal laws. In Florida, where American Media is based, extortion includes maliciously threatening targets with disgrace, or to expose their secrets. In Washington state, where Amazon is based, it includes threatening to expose secrets that may subject targets to hatred, contempt or ridicule, or reveal information that the targets wanted to conceal. Federal law defines extortion as someone seeking or actually obtaining "property" through the "wrongful use" of actual or threatened force, violence or fear. "Property" can be something of value not limited to a tangible object or money. Elie Honig, a former prosecutor, argued in a column on CNN that the actions alleged by Bezos amounted to extortion because the act of stopping Bezos' investigation was of value to AMI and AMI's threat of exposing lurid photos met the "wrongful" test. But criminal defence lawyer Page Pate said what AMI sought to gain from Bezos was "too fuzzy" and would not be enough to put them in violation of the non-prosecution deal. "I don't think there is a clear enough hook to show that what they wanted from Bezos was a thing of value," Pate said. On Friday, AMI said that at the time of Bezos' allegations it was "in good faith negotiations to resolve all matters with him." "In light of the nature of the allegations published by Mr. Bezos, the Board has convened and determined that it should promptly and thoroughly investigate the claims. Upon completion of that investigation, the Board will take whatever appropriate action is necessary," it added. (Reporting by Chris Sanders, Hilary Russ, Jonathan Stempel and Nathan Layne; Writing by Mohammad Zargham and Nick Zieminski; Editing by Tim Ahmann and Susan Thomas) Alyssa Milano arrives at the InStyle and Warner Bros. Golden Globes after party at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Jan. 6, 2019, in Beverly Hills, Calif. PASADENA, Calif. Alyssa Milano isn't giving up an inch of the progress women in Hollywood have made since the #MeToo era began. The actress, who helped spread the hashtag in the wake of sexual harassment and assault allegations against film mogul Harvey Weinstein, spoke Sunday to reporters at the Television Critics Association along with other female Lifetime actors, producers and directors, about the state of the industry. When asked what happens when men accused of misconduct re-enter the workplace, Milano wasn't concerned. "Thats going to happen," she said, when a reporter asked about reports that ousted CBS chairman Leslie Moonves has set up a new production company. "We cant expect that not to happen. We cant put all these men on an island and expect them to eat themselves. Theyre going to get jobs again. We have to figure out (what) re-entering into the workplace looks like. ... We have to set policies." What to expect from your favorite TV shows this season Milano advocated for strong contracts and internal resources to curb the power of these men. "I also think thats contractual as well," she said. "If youre funding Les Moonves or working with him, I think you need have an ironclad contract." She also suggested using human-resources experts that are "maybe external not internal. ... I think if anything we have proved if you speak up you can hold people accountable for their abuses of power." Milano isn't worried that progress made since #MeToo began will be undone. "I wont allow anyone to go back." This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Alyssa Milano on accused sexual harassers: 'We can't put all these men on an island' By Lamine Chikhi ALGIERS (Reuters) - Algeria's President Abdelaziz Bouteflika said on Sunday he would seek a fifth term in a presidential election set for April 18, the state news agency APS reported on Sunday, putting an end to months of uncertainty caused by his poor health. Bouteflika, 81, who has been in office since 1999 but has been seen in public only rarely since suffering a stroke in 2013 that confined him to a wheelchair, is likely to win a fifth term as the Algerian opposition remains weak and fragmented. APS said Bouteflika wanted to amend the constitution if re-elected. It did not say which specific amendments he would seek but a source familiar with the matter said he would likely propose the creation of new post of vice-president to help him govern the large, energy-rich north African nation. Among names cited by Algerian media as a possible future vice-president are veteran former U.N. diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi and Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia. Bouteflika's announcement came a day after the ruling FLN party picked him as its official presidential candidate. Several political parties, trade unions and business organisations have already said they would support his re-election bid. His re-election would provide short-term stability for the FLN, the army and business tycoons, and postpone a potentially difficult succession. Algeria is a key gas supplier to Europe and an ally of the United States in the fight against Islamist militants in the Sahel region of North Africa. Bouteflika remains popular with many Algerians, who credit him with ending the country's long civil war by offering an amnesty to former Islamist fighters. (Reporting By Lamine Chikhi; Editing by Gareth Jones) The requested page is currently unavailable on this server. Back to [RTHK News Homepage] 21:44 IndiGo has cancelled scores of flights in two days and will not be operating around 32 flights on Monday following shortage of pilots, a source said. The country's largest airline has cancelled flights from IndiGo's fromn Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad, the source in the aviation industry said. Many flights have been cancelled by the airline since Saturday. The carrier cancelled around 15 flights on Saturday and around seven on Sunday, officials at the Delhi airport said. "The airline has been facing problems in crew management. Therefore, these flights -- which had to depart from Delhi yesterday and today were cancelled," one of the airport officials said. In a statement, IndiGo said that due to a severe hailstorm in North India on February 7, 11 IndiGo flights were diverted and that disrupted operations across our network the following day. "As part of recovering our schedule, positioning of the crew and aircraft had to be readjusted. As a result, a number of flights were cancelled. We regret the inconvenience caused to our customers," IndiGo said. Officials at Bengaluru airport officials said that around 16 flights of the airline were cancelled on Sunday. "The airline is facing shortage of commanders and pilots and this is forcing the airline to cancel flights from across stations," the source told PTI. "As of now 32 flights from across the network have been cancelled for Monday by the carrier," the source said. A second query sent to IndiGo seeking its response on the cancellation of 32 flights for Monday due to pilots shortage did not elicit any immediate response. Operations at the Delhi airport saw massive disruption on February 7 as a total of 36 flights were diverted due to severe rain and hailstorm in the national capital. -- PTI Posted by Mark Williams | March 13, 2016 GM, maker of the oldest commercial vans on the market, will put the new, torque-biased four-cylinder Duramax diesel engine into both the E-Series Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana for the 2017 model year. According to Automotive News, the lightly modified global diesel engine currently used in the Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon midsize pickup trucks will be offered as an option in the long- and short-wheelbase 2500 and 3500 2017 full-size GM vans. Some might argue this was not a difficult decision for GM because the midsize pickups and large work vans are built at the same Missouri plant near St. Louis. Ordering more diesel engines for the same location should be simple, assuming that demand for the diesel engines doesn't outpace production capabilities given that it offers as much as 31 mpg highway when optioned in the midsize pickup. The diesel is likely to be paired with GM's new eight-speed transmission used in Chevy and GMC half-ton V-8 pickups. The Express and Savana are the oldest commercial vans sold in the U.S. They haven't been significantly redesigned in almost 20 years, yet they sell in strong numbers: more than 100,000 in 2014 and 85,000 in 2015. Despite the proliferation of new, Euro-styled vans such as the full-size Ram ProMaster and Ford Transit, and smaller Ford Transit Connect, Nissan NV200 and Mercedes-Benz Metro, GM is finding unique ways to keep its old-school vans alive and generate customer interest. GM's high-tech 2.8-liter turbo-diesel uses a cast-iron block and aluminum cylinder heads along with a dual overhead cam 16-valve setup that produces 181 horsepower at 3,400 rpm and 369 pounds-feet of torque at 2,000 rpms in the midsize pickups. It's possible, for the sake of greater longevity, that GM could decide to "de-rate" the engine since it will be put into a vehicle with a heavier curb weight, higher gross vehicle weight rating, and more payload and towing capacity. Given the EPA fuel-economy numbers for the midsize pickup with the small diesel 22/31/25 mpg city/highway/combined and that GM's most-popular engine for full-size vans is the 6.0-liter V-8 (11/16/13 mpg), it's possible that ownership cost savings based on fuel consumption alone could mean the higher price of the little Duramax could be one of those rare instances where the vehicle could pay for the engine upgrade in the first year of operation. Model-year 2017 vans will be available for ordering through select dealerships later this fall. Manufacturer image Russias first private cosmodrome for suborbital space tourism flights might be built either in the country's Republic of Tatarstan or the Nizhny Novgorod Region, a source in the aerospace industry told Sputnik, adding that talks on the project with the heads of the regions were underway. "The negotiations on allotting a platform for suborbital tourism are now in their final stage with the two regions. The documents are being prepared for being signed. The platform will be set up on the territory of the region which would be the first to reach the deal," the source said. The spaceport would be created by the Kosmokurs company, the source continued. The company itself denied commenting on the issue. Kosmokurs received a license for carrying out its space projects from Roscosmos back in 2017. The company is currently working on a rocket and a spacecraft for carrying out flights to an altitude of 200 kilometres (124 miles). The first flight is expected to be held in 2025. The company will offer tourists a 15-minute flight within a group of six people. The tourists will be able to stay in zero gravity for five to six minutes, moving freely inside a cabin. Kosmokurs told Sputnik in 2017 that a ticket for a space flight aboard Russia's first reusable suborbital commercial system would cost around $200,000-250,000. Razminfo: Azerbaijan deploys Bayraktars in Nakhchivan (PHOTOS) Armenia doctor Armen Charchyan's attorney submits urgent motion to Prosecutor General European Party of Armenia leader to Nikol Pashinyan: We need to think of strengthening our national potential Political party leader to Armenia acting PM: There are opposition forces with which we cannot imagine any step Armenia acting PM meets with Tigran Arzakantsyan Armenia doctor Armen Charchyan transferred to hospital with cardiac distress 'Armenia' bloc issues statement strictly condemning arrest of doctor Armen Charchyan Defense Minister: Turkey will not send additional troops to Afghanistan Armenian judge who ruled to remand doctor Armen Charchyan is wife of top police officer Armenian doctor Armen Charchyan's attorney says he will appeal court's decision on arrest Armenia Central Electoral Commission: Civil Contract Party's and two opposition blocs' votes increase after recount Armenia Izmirlian Medical Center Director Armen Charchyan to be held in custody for a month North Korea doesn't consider possibility of any contact with US Azerbaijani army conducting command staff military exercises at level of brigade Switzerland relaxes COVID-19 restrictions Turkey removes over 5,500 cubic meters of sea slime from Sea of Marmara Karabakh President convenes session of Board of Trustees of Shushi University of Technology France, Germany propose EU summit with Russia's Putin Armenia acting MOD, High-Tech Industry Ministry's Hayk Chobanyan discuss issues related to arms industry Rescuers remove body of man from gorge located near St. Sargis Church in Yerevan with great difficulty Armenia President: Constitution needs to be amended, our country understands presidential governance better EU intends to pay Turkey EUR 3.5 billion for refugees Putin, Aliyev discuss factors for implementation of Russia-Armenia-Azerbaijan agreements on Nagorno-Karabakh Russia FM to discuss Karabakh situation with UN High Commissioner for Refugees PACE affirms Azerbaijan's refusal to resolve problem of political prisoners Votes are being recounted in Armenia, Baku is ready to 'work with Yerevan on a big peace agreement, Jun. 23 digest Armenia acting Deputy PM on his political career in the future Armenia President: A nation with a history of genocide with Turkey needs to be very careful and have a friend Armenian NGO president: Elections in Armenia only satisfied Baku and Ankara Ambassador: UAE will carry out charity program for women in Armenia's Shirak Province Armenias Sarkissian to pay state visit to Italy Tokayev to Sarkissian: Continuing our constructive dialogue will contribute to expansion of Armenian-Kazakh cooperation Aliyev: Armenia refuses to give us maps of minefields One dollar falls below AMD 513 in Armenia Armenia acting Deputy PM on dismissals of officials due to their political views Armenian peacekeeping brigade takes part in military exercise at US military base in Germany Azerbaijan Deputy PM: Trilateral group will continue its work after Armenia's new Cabinet is formed Acting deputy PM on Armenian captives return: We have opportunity to reach mutual agreements 'Armenia' bloc member: We garnered 258 votes at polling station in Kapan, but there were no entries Bayramov: Azerbaijan is ready to work with Armenia on a big peace agreement Person suspected of firing gunshot at car of Armenian politician detained Two boys suffer electric shock in Yerevan, one dies in hospital Head of Armenia's Odzun village: I was beaten by ten people, including the governor of Lori Province ost of sea freight hits record price due to China Patriarch of All Russia to Armenia President: You conscientiously fulfill duties entrusted to you Armenia I Have Honor bloc candidate for PM says their attitude towards acting PM Pashinyan will be "mirror" Lavrov, Bayramov discuss implementation of agreements reached between Russia, Armenia, Azerbaijan Armenia I Have Honor bloc candidate for PM on Artsakh issue: Right of peoples to self-determination is inalienable Artsakh government to provide one-time monetary assistance to war wounded, outpatients Armenia state-funded Public Television makes around $829,000 purchase from one person I Have Honor bloc candidate for PM: We can return Armenian captives in Azerbaijan in 2-3 days if we have power China says world chaos caused by one power Armenia I Have Honor bloc candidate for PM: I will go to parliament if decision is made that the bloc goes Judicial farce against Armenian captives continues in Azerbaijan Armenia acting premier appoints 2 new deputy governors to Ararat Province Xi Jinping attaches great importance to development of China-Armenia relations Armenia delegation member to PACE: Azerbaijan media are at forefront of spreading hatred, enmity towards Armenians 100 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia Putin calls Russia contribution "decisive" in Karabakh conflict settlement process Head of Ukraine parliament friendship group with Armenia congratulates Pashinyan Armenias Pashinyan congratulates Luxembourg PM on national holiday US authorities to allocate $ 8 billion to restore airports operation after pandemic Artsakh State Minister clarifies what happened during Stepanakert rally World oil prices going up Biden administration revives plans to build new space station Newspaper: Armenia troops to be taken out from front line Newspaper: Pashinyan is PM of actually just 26.49% of Armenia voters Tarasov: Azerbaijan, Turkey cant resolve matter of road via Armenia without Armenians participation Lawyer: Armenia court on Wednesday will announce decision on motion to arrest physician Armenia Security Council Secretary: Authorities will be guided by 'remedial secession' principle to solve Karabakh issue Armenia 2nd President: Government views Hayastan All-Armenian Fund as additional source of funding Karabakh President: My visit to Armenia's Civil Contract Party office on day of elections was misinterpreted Number of 'Armenia' bloc's votes grows by 10 times after recount in Vanadzor Rally participant: Karabakh President leading confidential negotiations with head of Azerbaijan state security service Head of Armenia's Odzun village submits report to police, case to be forwarded to Special Investigation Service Gagik Tsarukyan: Prosperous Armenia Party won't be in parliament, but will still be involved in politics Belarus President congratulates Armenia's Pashinyan Opposition National-Democratic Axis Party declines offer to meet with Armenia acting PM Armenia Administrative Court renders decision on ex-deputy chief of army's General Staff French MFA: France hopes elections will provide Armenia with opportunity to solve several issues Leader of 5165 Movement Party rejects offer to meet with Armenia acting PM Armenia acting high-tech industry minister introduces Industrial City Plan to US Ambassador Armenia Central Electoral Commission: There will be vote recounting at more than 70 polling stations Armenia ex-FM on Security Council Secretary's statement on torpedoing issue of POWs' return Armenia Security Council Secretary: Exchange of mine maps and POWs may be ongoing Armenia Security Council Secretary blames ex-FM for 'torpedoing' issue of return of POWs Armenia Security Council Secretary: Negotiations over deployment of Russian border guards in Gegharkunik underway Head of Armenia's Odzun village beaten in building of regional governor's office Armenia Security Council Secretary reminds Levon Ter-Petrosyan about 1996 presidential elections More Russian peacekeepers to be deployed in Armenia, Aliyev speaks on Shushi, Jun 22 digest Armenia Security Council Secretary says former authorities are the capitulators Armen Sarkissian holds phone talks with 'Armenia' bloc's leader Robert Kocharyan Christian-Democratic Party leader to Armenia acting PM: We will support the government 2 Stepanakert residents declare hunger strike at main square of Artsakh capital Citizen's Decision Party leader to Armenia acting PM: Results of elections show that political field is not competitive Principal of school in Armenia's Metsamor and her husband are charged Robert Kocharyan: 'Armenia' bloc is the one calling the shots Holy Etchmiadzin: Acting PMs proposal for dialogue to spiritual leaders is welcome Citizen's Decision Party: No agreement reached with Armenia acting PM Iran MFA congratulates successful holding of snap parliamentary elections in Armenia Congress has attempted to pass several auto-CR mechanisms since the early 1980s, though only one short-term auto-CR for national defense was ever enacted. There are some potential positives to having an auto-CR. But there are just as many downsides. First of all, auto-CRs could cause Congress to relinquish more of its power of the purse. Over two-thirds of the federal budget is already made up of spending that is not subject to the annual appropriations process. The remaining third of the budget is determined by Congress, though some control over that portion has already been given up to federal bureaucrats through unauthorized appropriations. Having an auto-CR in place would mean that, at least for some period of time, Congress gives up control over the last piece of spending it manages from year to year. Second, auto-CRs could actually create more dysfunction in the spending process. Under current law, Congress is supposed to pass all spending bills individually and before Oct. 1 each year. That hasnt happened in 25 years. Knowing that the government wont shut down if bills arent passed could give Congress even less incentive to enact spending bills, prioritize resources, and provide oversight over how money is being spent. "One's education is not complete without a study of comparative religion or the history of religion and its relationship to the advancement of civilization," wrote Justice Tom Clark for an 8-1 majority. "It certainly may be said that the Bible is worthy of study for its literary and historic qualities. Nothing we have said here indicates that such study of the Bible or of religion, when presented objectively as part of a secular program of education, may not be effected consistently with the First Amendment." The decision highlighted the line between Bible study and study of the Bible. Bible study is an examination of scripture to glean spiritual and moral truths. Given the various ways that various faith traditions interpret and emphasize the chapters and verses, it's best fit for a church setting. Study of the Bible is an interrogation of the accounts to glean cultural insights. Given the skeptical rigor of academic inquiry, it's well suited for a classroom setting. Problem is, the advocates behind these biblical-literacy bills championed by Trump, are openly trying to blur that line. There is a real racial undercurrent in our state in attitudes toward public assistance, said Burnett, who is white. Public assistance is maligned by white conservative policymakers the same way it is nationallythat it serves as a disincentive, that people are too lazy, that people dont deserve itthis whole set of descriptors that functions as code language in Mississippi to basically mean black people. Valorie Ladner, a white mother in Waveland Mississippi, said shes had to brush aside the judgment of extended family members and seek government help to feed her four children. She receives about $750 a month in food stamps, a fact she used to try to hide from strangers at the grocery store by quickly swiping her EBT card. Im not going to let my kids go without because of my pride, said Ladner, 36, whose husband, who is in construction and plumbing, is out of work. Ladner recently got a temporary $1,200-a-month job as a janitor at her daughters school. Ladner said she was also set to apply for subsidized housing but her father, a retired fireman, allowed her family to live in his house rent-free. If it werent for him, I wouldnt have a roof over my head, Ladner said. Im lucky to have help from my family. Not everybody has that safety net. Listening to the conversation about her son, Drinda broke down and left the room. She sat in the lobby, shaky and crying. Her daughter knelt in her skirt to hold her mothers hand. A Rand Corp. study published in April showed that, while VA mental-health care is generally as good or better than care delivered by private health plans, there is high variation across facilities. There are some VAs that are out of date. They are depressing, said Craig Bryan, a former Air Force psychologist and a University of Utah professor who studies veteran suicides, referring to problems with short staffing and resources. Others are stunning and new, and if you walk into one thats awe-inspiring, it gives you hope. The Murfreesboro VA hospital, where Toombs took his life, was ranked among the worst in the nation for mental health, according to the agencys 2016 internal ratings. It has since improved to two out of a possible five stars. The program, while nurturing in some ways, also has strict rules for picking up medications on time and attending group therapy, said Rosalinde Burch, a nurse who worked closely with Toombs in the VA program. She believes she was transferred and later fired from the program for being outspoken that his death was totally preventable. Alesha Romero, who staffed the table and is married to the owner, said she was surprised to see beer drinkers of all ages. There was even a baby in the room. The barbecue shop often teams up with St. Clair Brown Brewery & Winery for events and has made its sauce with their Syrah wine. The event is a great opportunity to get some good beer and food, and walk it off, she said. Breweries in Napa are starting to gain momentum, Romero said. Both the beer and wine scenes are flourishing. Jaclyn Pease and Brett Sanchez of Sacramento sipped their beers near the brewery room. The couple was visiting Napa for the weekend and picked the Beer Mile over wine tasting. Pease said shes a fan of visiting craft breweries and thought the walk would be something different from what they typically do. Back in line for brews, friends Mike Carino, a stout and porter fan, and Ross Vedder, an IPA fan, from Solano County said they love the friendly, fun brew scene. The two planned to hit each brewery on the map. I want that hat, Carino said. Veterans who served in Vietnam are presumed by the Department of Veterans Affairs to have been exposed to an herbicide referred to as Agent Orange, which was used to eliminate forest cover and crops for North Vietnamese and Viet Cong troops. The U.S. program, code-named Operation Ranch Hand, sprayed more than 20 million gallons of various herbicides over Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos from 1961 to 1971. Agent Orange, which contained the deadly chemical dioxin, was the most commonly used herbicide. There are exceptions. Vets who can show that they were assigned to duties at the perimeter of certain Royal Air Bases in Thailand, or were assigned to units at the demilitarized zone (DMZ) in Korea may qualify, as well as vets who flew on or worked with C-123 aircraft. These exceptions can be complicated. Current VA regulations (38 Code of Federal Regulations) limit the presumption of exposure to veterans who served boots on the ground in the Republic of Vietnam, or who were on vessels that can be shown to have traveled on the inland waters of Vietnam or that were tied up to a pier in Vietnam during the period starting January 9, 1962, and ending on May 7, 1975. Vets who served on ships that operated off the coast of Vietnam were specifically excluded by the VA, and their claims for Agent Orange benefits were denied. We can compete with the west ... By Walter Suza Adjunct Assistant Professor of Agronomy, Iowa State University. As a child, I remember feeling hungry most of the time. Growing up in rural Tanzania, I walked to school barefoot and most of the time had one meal a day. After school, I helped my mother with various farming chores, including feeding the animals, weeding, harvesting and planting. I often heard my mother express concerns about the lack of ways to protect our crops from drought, pests and diseases. I wanted to help my mother but was too young to understand what the solution might be. In my undergraduate genetics class, I completed a term paper on the domestication of maize. I was surprised to discover that ancestral maize did not produce the type of kernels we consume today. It took humans thousands of years of deliberate selection to breed a maize plant capable of producing edible seeds. Subsequently, more work by plant breeders helped improve the genetics of maize for higher yield and tolerance to environmental stresses. This was fascinating to me, because when plant breeders interbreed plants, large sections of parental genetic material pass on to new varieties, but the function of many genes that end up in the crops we grow and consume remain unknown. I am a plant physiologist at Iowa State University and director of the Plant Breeding Education in Africa Program. I believe that Africa deserves cutting-edge technologies, including genetic engineering to develop stress-tolerant crop varieties and more nutritious staple crops to improve human health. However, the anti-GMO news and campaign across the globe make me wonder whether improved crop varieties would ever reach small stakeholder farmers like my mother. Humanitarian work in Africa When I was working for UNICEF in Zimbabwe from 1999-2000, I met a young single mother with several children. Her village was in an area of the country that was facing a devastating drought and many families needed food. The purpose of my meeting with the woman was to assess her food security situation and whether she qualified for food aid. Near the conclusion of my visit, I saw her little girl, probably 3 or 4 years old, sitting on the ground, eating porridge, probably the only meal she would have that day. The little girl did not appear too bothered by my presence, nor the flies that swarmed her plate. I was surprised she seemed happy. It was overwhelming for me to think that there were thousands of children in the area facing a similar situation. That day I dedicated my life to fight hunger and poverty. Graduate education and research My doctoral training helped me understand the scientific process and biotechnology techniques for inserting new genes more precisely into plants. My research on plant insect defense genes involved gene cloning and creation of genetically modified plants. During my time in the laboratory, I often thought of my mother and the crop production challenges she faced. I felt that genetic engineering crops to increase resistance to insects could benefit small stakeholder farmers. I was hopeful that my research could benefit Africa. Scientific research suggests that climate change will have a negative effect on yields, especially in Africa. In addition, millions in Africa rely on starchy crops as their staple foods and are more prone to mineral and protein deficiencies. Scientists debunk GMO myths In my opinion, scientists need to share more of the scientific facts about GMOs and debunk the myths. In many African countries, the root cause for resistance to GMO crops is lack of public awareness of the scientific principles and benefits of biotechnology. To help increase awareness, my team analyzed dozens of research articles on risk assessment of transgenic maize containing the Bt insect resistance gene. Bt maize is a transgenic crop that contains the Bt gene from the soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis. The Bt gene helps maize fight off insect pests such as the fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda. This work, recently published in Global Food Security, compared the risk assessment process for Bt maize with risk assessment in other fields such medicine and engineering. Risk can be defined as the likelihood of harm that happens from a set of specific conditions. Risk assessment uses fact-based information to define the effect of exposure to such harm on a given population. My team hopes that policymakers and leaders would read this articleto help them appreciate that risk assessment for GM crops is similar to the other kinds of risk assessments. For instance, the maintenance of bridges uses risk assessment studies. Potential hazards with bridges include natural hazards, errors in design and traffic overload. These regular risks assessments determine the probability of bridge collapse to ensure public safety. Risk assessments are also done to quantify the dangers of exposure to radon, a known carcinogen and significant health hazard recognized by many international environmental and health organizations. Radon gas is naturally present in homes and risk assessment studies have enabled recommendations on safe levels of radon above which mitigation efforts might be required. Subsequently, in the United States, during sales of new homes, the seller is obliged to divulge their homes radon value to the buyer. For both the bridge and radon examples, the public is willing to trust the analysis by experts in these fields. But when the same kind of analysis is done for GM crops like Bt maize these expert risk assessments are considered less trustworthy than those for radon or bridges. Educating future hunger fighters Through the analysis of numerous research articles, my team agrees with experts in risk assessment that no significant impacts on human health or the environment have been found with Bt maize. However, not using Bt maize to block the rapid spread of fall armyworm, which has destroyed maize and other crops across Africa, poses a risk to human health if other control measures such as pesticides are used in large quantities. Looking to the future, I believe there needs to be more investment in education and outreach concerning biotechnology and its applications in agriculture. Importantly, sustainable use of biotechnology in African agriculture depends on educating the youth. Educational programs such as Plant Breeding E-Learning in Africa are an excellent platform to deliver educational biotechnology content to the next generation of African scientists. My travels back to Africa from Ames, Iowa, bring back many memories. During daytime flights out of African cities, I look through the window to see the beautiful blue sea or vegetation, and hundreds of brown corrugated iron rooftops. The sheer density of tiny homes with rusty rooftops reminds me of the challenges ahead the urgent need for agricultural revolution in the face of a population explosion in Africa. With the little girl I met during work with UNICEF and my mother in mind, I listen to a whisper in my ears all people at all times have the right to sufficient and nutritious food for a happy, productive and active life. This is an important reminder to continue spreading knowledge and awareness to improve food security in Africa. Now read: Skyscrapers made of wood making a comeback The governments oversight committee on higher education has endorsed a funding plan for students which would focus on technological skills and reduce state funding for humanities students, the City Press reports. Following a recent fact-finding mission to Russia, the committee recommended that the higher education and training department focus on increasing the number of graduates in science and technology fields. The government plans to accomplish this by partnering with the private sector to secure funding for students in various technology and science-related fields, funding spaces at universities across South Africa. While this would improve funding for those wishing to study technology-related subjects, it could mean a major decrease in government funding for students wishing to study humanities subjects. The committee also recommended that a patriotic culture be instilled in graduates in an effort to retain skilled labour in local markets. The committees report will now go to the National Assembly for ratification, after which it it will be forwarded to the higher education and training department for implementation. Easy pass The move follows the government recently deciding to make it easier for high school students to obtain an NSC Bachelors pass. This decision was criticised by experts, who said it would result in an increased number of university applications and would mislead students into thinking they could complete a degree course. Stellenbosch University professor Jonathan Jansen has labelled the matric results a disgraceful freak show, arguing that most students who obtained this reviewed Bachelors pass would drop out of university due to the weak demands of the NSC examination. Last week the governor gave an address in which he outlined his plan to tax and spend on the backs of working Montana families. He would like to cushion his state checkbook to the tune of $300 million by taking $150 million from Montanans' checking accounts and putting it into his state checking account. Montanans clearly spoke last November at the ballot box, when they voted down a tax increase on tobacco products. Yet, this Governor has come to the Legislature a short two months after this idea was rejected to propose the same tax. Along those same lines the Governor is out of step again with the majority of Montanans when he refuses to discuss any sort of work requirements for Medicaid expansion participants. A recent poll by MTN-MSU showed that 76% of Montanans agreed that some form of work requirement was appropriate for those in public funded Medicaid. His proposal does not include reforms such as work requirements or a sunset date for re-evaluation, but does include an increase in taxes. Yes, we all can see from the yeomans work put forth by BP/Arco and BSB that they have heard most of our message but not the central part, the most important part. The Butte community wants mine wastes removed (which the responsible parties say they will do), and a restored Silver Bow Creek beginning at Texas Avenue and traversing through the center of Butte to its confluence with Blacktail Creek. Just west of Butte (but not in Butte), Silver Bow Creek is beautifully restored for 26 miles all the way to the Warm Springs ponds. Even the Milltown dam area near Missoula is fully remediated and restored. Many argue that cleaning up and restoring those areas before dealing with Buttes upper Silver Bow Creek didnt make sense. However, now is the time to complete the final (actually the 1st) mile of Silver Bow Creek here in Butte. And it should be done the right way the way that Butte needs and deserves in order to have a cleanup that this community can look at with pride. Asked whether this change was connected to Wrights performance or the schools financial situation, Blackketter said, We want to use people's talents in the areas that theyre best at. And so reassigning some duties with the finance to Carleen made sense for us. While administrators defend the changes as part of a long-term and comprehensive process, critics such as Ray Rogers, who has advocated in particular for keeping the slated-to-be-eliminated Health Care Informatics and Professional and Technical Communications departments, argue that its the longer-term problems and bigger picture that are at the heart of the issue. One of the big questions thats been really nagging at me is, for the last several years, theres obviously been signals in their data around declining enrollments that shouldve been raising flags over the last number of years, and I havent seen anything that has indicated that here has been attempts to address any of those issues, said Rogers, the chief executive officer of the Butte-based National Center for Health Care Informatics and the former director of college relations and marketing at Montana Tech. For example, if enrollments in fact were declining in the (Healthcare) Informatics program, why wasnt the administration putting strategies in places to either increase marketing and recruitment or evaluating other issues in the program that are problematic? Why were they not addressing the warning signs? It is heartbreaking that Montanas wildlife managers still allow Northern Rockies fishers to be trapped. Their dwindling population could be on the brink of extinction, but fisher were denied federal protections because authorities do not have an accurate count of these creatures. If wildlife managers do not know how many fishers remain in our state, how can they continue to allow them to be killed via trapping? The small, isolated population straddling the Montana-Idaho border will not survive if the Montana Fish and Wildlife Commission does not ban this cruel practice soon. According to reports, 186 fishers were killed in traps set for other animals in Montana and Idaho between 2002 and 2016. If that many are being killed unintentionally, why would any state allow intentional trapping of this species known to be at risk? Idaho does not allow the intentional trapping of fishers; but sadly, Montana does. We are falling behind our neighbor in using proven methods to preserve declining fisher populations. The Center for Biological Diversity has petitioned the Montana Fish and Wildlife Commission to ban fisher trapping in the state. I support this petition. Without a ban, these important little predators may disappear from Montana forever. Michele Dieterich, Hamilton You must be logged in to react. Click any reaction to login. Love 5 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Because of a vacuous campaign promise made by Commissioner Strohmaier these two commissioners want to pursue an in-place rehab of Maclay Bridge, which has been studied and rejected multiple times as a solution to the problems with the bridge. In the process of pursuing their desired result, these commissioners are making the county responsible for the approximately $1.4 million that has been spent by the Montana Department of Transportation on studies related to a South Avenue Bridge and also will make county taxpayers responsible for the $12-plus million needed for his desired rehab. That number does not include the cost of condemning five residences near Maclay Bridge that his rehab would require. Of course this is money the county does not have and would have to tax county taxpayers for. Prediction: The reactionary fascism of Donald Trump's administration stymied two years of resistance in the streets, and will now institutionalize programmatic fascism. It gave cover and recruitment potential to white ethnic statists (American Renaissance), alt-right extremists (Jason Kessler, David Duke and Richard Spencer's Charlottesville), right-wing militarist movements (skinheads and neo-Nazis), alienated xenophobes and misogynists of the economy (among rust belt unemployed), and the court system (Kavanaughites and Federalist Society members). It enthroned authoritarian evangelicals (Mike Pence, the Huckabees) to criminalize freedoms of choice. Hack appointees to cabinet positions turned our democratic bureaucracies against their service missions, rewarding corruption for personal gain, until re-staffed after inserting new cultures of discrimination against: blacks, Jews in the news business, global environmentalism, and Muslim and Spanish-surnamed immigrants seeking political asylum. This sidelined Congress via GOP take-over. Such racist opportunism, however, never represented most American voters, just schemers. Yet these programs are all lumped together under the same regulatory system that was created by the 2004 Legislature thanks to a bill written and sponsored by owners of the very programs that would be regulated by the new system after these businesses spent $34,000 lobbying legislators. This system, still in place today, tasks a Private Alternative Adolescent Resident or Outdoor Program (PAARP) board with overseeing inspections, complaints and licensing. The board operates under the Montana Department of Labor and Industry, rather than a state agency that deals with child care or education. Three of the boards five members run the same programs they are charged with regulating. And programs claiming a religious affiliation are exempted even from these generous requirements. Given these realities, it comes as little surprise that inspections take place rarely or that schools are given a weeks notice beforehand. Whats more surprising is that the PAARP board has no transparency and no teeth when it comes to handling complaints. It has received some 58 complaints in the past dozen years, but according to PAARP rules, these complaints are not released to the public unless the board takes disciplinary action and it has never taken such action. The board is severely limited in its ability to require programs to follow best practices, let alone adhere to basic standards. More than 30 asbestos-related employee claims had been filed against the University of Montana as of Friday over concerns about contamination discovered since December at McGill Hall. The 32 claims could include faculty, staff or student workers. "We have not made a determination yet in regards to contacting prior employees," said Michele Wheeler, workers compensation manager at UM, in an email. "Because we have been told by experts that there is no current airborne hazard in McGill and there is no definitive data to indicate that there ever was an airborne hazard, these discussions are still underway." The number of claims filed in recent fiscal years was not immediately available. In the last two weeks, UM closed two child care facilities. Neither had asbestos in tests of the air, but the McGill Hall center had concentrations of asbestos fibers on surfaces as much as 80 times higher than the federal threshold for cleanup. The Craighead Child Care facility just south of campus had much lower levels of asbestos in surface tests but was closed to be thoroughly cleaned, UM officials said. The university also evacuated the rest of McGill Hall, affecting some 70 faculty, staff, plus students. I just got a Lady Slipper which is a little harder to grow, Voll said, pointing to an example of the species on the judging table. Do you know that they have wild ones here in Montana? Bridget Van Vorus asked Voll. They grow up by my house because I live up near Evaro, Van Vorus said. Theyre on the ground and you can see them if you look at wildflowers and when you get close, theyre Lady Slippers. The ones around my house are white. Bridget Van Vorus and her husband David Van Vorus are both members of the Five Valleys Orchid Society. The two attend orchid shows around the area in Bozeman, Spokane and Helena, in addition to Orchid Society meetings. Bridget said she picks out the species she likes and David learns how to grow them. Its so hard for me to choose my favorite, Bridget said. I like the Cattleyas, theyre really beautiful because theyre big and they smell but I also like the ones that are different and unique. David said they have between 40 to 50 orchids at home. One of their cattleyas with light purple flowers won first place in its category in the show Saturday. David said the purple cattleya is 10 years old and one of the only orchids that survived when they moved from Bozeman to Missoula during the winter. Missoula County is considering buying a Russell Street office building for about $1.9 million to house its election offices, with plans for an addition that could add another $400,000 to $450,000 to the final cost. On Thursday, county staff met with representatives from Western Montana Mental Health Center to look at purchasing one of its buildings at 140 N. Russell St., near the Wyoming Street intersection. The 7,700-square-foot, two-story facility with a daylight basement would provide office space for five full-time employees and a staff that can grow to 50 to 60 intermittent election aides during the days and weeks surrounding a primary or general election, and another 150 to 175 people on those election days. A possible 3,000- to 4,000-square-foot one-story addition also is under consideration on the property. That space could be used for the Office of Emergency Management, the sheriffs department, and some staff training. Its intended to be open space that could be used for a variety of functions, said Andrew Czorny, the countys chief financial officer whos working on the purchase. A family of four who is recently housed after a long period of homelessness is in need of furniture and household goods. Beds, bedding, towels, sofa, chairs, pots and pans and kitchenware would be greatly appreciated. Contact Sue Ellerman, Housing Retention Specialist at the Poverello Center, 406-529-4860 or sellerman@thepoverellocenter.org. *** A single mom needs a twin bed frame with drawers underneath. It would be very appreciated if it is able to be delivered. If interested in donating, please contact Rachel at Winds of Change at 406-541-4673 Ext. 255. *** A high school student needs a twin bed frame and mattress and a dresser. If you can help, call Michelle Manning, FIT Coordinator/FACS Teacher, Sentinel High School, 728-2400 Ext. 7507. *** A disabled male, on a fixed income, is struggling to meet basic needs. He is seeking someone to donate a small pick up truck so that he can haul scrap metal and do outside yard work and snow shoveling for extra income. If anyone in the Missoula area is able to help this individual, please contact Corinne at 406-203-9948; or email clynn@sunburstfoundation.org. You must be logged in to react. Click any reaction to login. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 "Blackfeet John L. Cutapuis Clarke and the Silent Call of Glacier National Park: America's Wood Sculptor," by Dr. Larry Len Peterson Raised at the edge of what would become Glacier National Park on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation and robbed of his hearing by scarlet fever at age 2, John L. Clarke overcame many hardships to become a celebrated and widely collected artist. He rose to fame by applying his passions for the Glacier Country, its wildlife, and Native Americans to the arts of wood carving, sculpture, sketching and painting. Author Larry Len Peterson accompanies the tale of this Blackfeet icon with photographs, printed materials and full-color images of his artworks. "The Cassandra: A Novel," by Sharma Shields Mildred Groves is an unusual young woman. Gifted and cursed with the ability to see the future, Mildred runs away from home to take a secretary position at the Hanford Research Center in the early 1940s. Hanford, a massive construction camp on the banks of the Columbia River in remote South Central Washington, exists to test and manufacture a mysterious product that will aid the war effort. Only the top generals and scientists know that this product is processed plutonium, for use in the first atomic bombs. In this Nov. 15, 2018 photo, students participate in a Youth Aware of Mental Health session at Uplift Hampton Preparatory School in Dallas. University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center offers the program to schools to help educate students about mental health and suicide prevention. Part of the program includes the students participating in role-playing sessions to help them understand the issues being discussed. (AP Photo/Benny Snyder) In a scenario playing out in more and more classrooms around the world, a Dallas teenager recently asked her classmate if anything was wrong, noting that she hadn't been acting like herself. The brusque reply: "Just leave me alone." The ninth-graders at the Uplift Hampton Preparatory school were role-playing as part of a program that aims to teach teens how to spot the signs of depression in themselves and others. Suicide is the second leading cause of death among Americans ages 10 to 18, according to government health statistics, and experts hope the lessons will get help to depressed teens more quickly. "It's kind of like 'Mental Health 101.' So they talk about depression and anxiety and just common mental health issues, and then I think the most important thing is they talk about what to do if you feel that way," said Tony Walker, senior director of student support services at Uplift Education, which offers the program to all ninth-graders at its network of Dallas-area public charter schools, including Uplift Hampton. The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center is administering the program, which is called Youth Aware of Mental Health, or YAM, and was developed by researchers at Karolinska Institute in Stockholm and Columbia University in New York. In this Nov. 15, 2018 photo, students participate in a Youth Aware of Mental Health session at Uplift Hampton Preparatory School in Dallas. University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center offers the program to schools to help educate students about mental health and suicide prevention. Part of the program includes the students participating in role-playing sessions to help them understand the issues being discussed. (AP Photo/Benny Snyder) UT Southwestern researcher Marshall Motsenbocker, who led the program's five 45-minute sessions at Uplift Hampton, said role-playing helps teens talk through difficult issues. When the two girls finished their recent scene, he asked the class what signs of depression they recognized and what might be causing it. He said teens are sometimes too quick to act, and these discussions help them pause to think about what might have motivated someone to behave a certain way. Destinie Medina, who participated in the sessions at Uplift Hampton, said it's important to know how to help someone who has depression or suicidal thoughts. She said she also learned "what might cause depression, like what's the difference between depression and sadness." Classmate Jose Perales said he learned that sometimes helping means "you just have to listen to what they have to say and how they feel." Research on the program has shown encouraging results. A study published in the medical journal Lancet in 2015 found that it reduced the number of suicide attempts and severe suicidal thoughts of those who went through it. In this Nov. 15, 2018 photo, the board in a classroom is shown with key words during a Youth Aware of Mental Health session at Uplift Hampton Preparatory School in Dallas. University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center offers the program to schools to help educate students about mental health and suicide prevention. Part of the program includes the students participating in role-playing sessions to help them understand the issues being discussed. (AP Photo/Benny Snyder) Interest in the program has increased since then, with some schools in Sweden, Australia, India, England and the U.S. now offering it, said Camilla Wasserman, a Karolinska Institute researcher who helped create the program. She said one of its strengths is that it encourages discussion. "We don't really believe in right or wrong answers and we explore all types of situations," Wasserman said. This is the third year UT Southwestern has offered the program. It's reached more than 18,000 students in that time and is currently in more than 30 Dallas-area schools. Dr. Madhukar Trivedi, who oversees the program and conducts research on depression at the university, said assessments of students before and after completing the program shows they improve their knowledge of what to do when someone needs help and that their own symptoms of depression and anxiety decrease. In this Nov. 15, 2018 photo, students participate in a Youth Aware of Mental Health session at Uplift Hampton Preparatory School in Dallas. University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center offers the program to schools to help educate students about mental health and suicide prevention. Part of the program includes the students participating in role-playing sessions to help them understand the issues being discussed. (AP Photo/Benny Snyder) Trivedi said that to allay any concerns that parents might have, including the "unfortunate misperception" that talking to teens about depression might make them depressed, parents are invited to an informational session. One area school district turned to the program two years ago after a string of suicides. "Our counselors have reported that they see a lot more students who come in concerned about their own health or someone else as a result of this program," said Jana Hancock, director of guidance and family education services for the Plano Independent School District. She noted that the program is designed for everyonenot just those who might be experiencing issues. Youth Aware of Mental Health is just one of the programs used to teach teens about mental health. The National Alliance on Mental Illness created a 50-minute program called Ending the Silence that teaches students the warning signs of mental health problems. It has reached almost 450,000 kids in 41 states since the organization started offering it nationally in 2014, said Jennifer Rothman, the group's senior manager for youth and young adult initiatives. In this Nov. 15, 2018 photo, Marshall Motsenbocker, standing right, a researcher at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, leads a Youth Aware of Mental Health session at Uplift Hampton Preparatory School in Dallas. UT Southwestern offers the program to schools to help educate students about mental health and suicide prevention. Part of the program includes the students participating in role-playing sessions to help them understand the issues being discussed. Motsenbocker is a mental health facilitator in the school outreach effort. (AP Photo/Benny Snyder) New York and Virginia, meanwhile, recently passed laws requiring such lessons. "It was an idea, frankly, whose time had come," said Glenn Liebman, CEO of the Mental Health Association in New York State, Inc., a mental health advocacy group that spent several years pushing for the legislation before it passed. In this Nov. 15, 2018 photo, students participate in a Youth Aware of Mental Health session at Uplift Hampton Preparatory School in Dallas. University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center offers the program to schools to help educate students about mental health and suicide prevention. Part of the program includes the students participating in role-playing sessions to help them understand the issues being discussed. (AP Photo/Benny Snyder) In this Nov. 15, 2018 photo, students participate in a Youth Aware of Mental Health session at Uplift Hampton Preparatory School in Dallas. University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center offers the program to schools to help educate students about mental health and suicide prevention. Part of the program includes the students participating in role-playing sessions to help them understand the issues being discussed. (AP Photo/Benny Snyder) Explore further UAlberta program found to lessen depression, anxiety and suicidal thoughts in youth 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. Opinion: There is a disturbing notion being promulgated in some corners of the far right, which is today ascendant in Idaho. The idea is that freedom of speech means freedom from criticism. Kenneth H. Brown July 18, 1924 February 2, 2019 Kenneth H. Brown, 94, of Jerome, Idaho passed away February 2, 2019. Growing up, Kens family called him Bud. He was born in Broken Arrow, OK on July 18, 1924 to Josiah Harlan Brown and Clare August Weare Brown. The Brown family moved to Kansas and worked in mining, building and farming. Kens fathers education is documented as having only completed the third grade, whereas he finished the 7th; but his God-given wisdom and self-gained knowledge far exceeded those years of formal education. Ken joined the Navy in 1949 and served as a Navy Diver on the U.S.S. Hissem DE/DER400. His service included both WWII and Korean wars. Ken was married to Muriel J Brown for 39 years until her passing of Alzheimers Disease in December 2006. Together they devotedly raised five children and were the proud grandparents of nine. Ken took pride in providing for his family by working in building and farming. They started their family in CA and moved to UT, MT and then ID in 1980. He was known for being able to fix just about anything and creating new things out of old. He worked several years on remodeling the Twin Falls Hospital. BOISE The sixth week of the legislative session wrapped up Friday. Here are a few of the highlights of the week: TWIN FALLS An AARP Smart Driver Class, hosted by College of Southern Idaho Community Education and Matt Stokes Insurance, will be held from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Feb. 27 at the CSI Taylor Building, Room 247, Twin Falls. The class is designed to help older drivers compensate for the normal physiological changes which may tend to make driving more difficult. There are no graded or driving tests. Class size is limited and preregistration is required. The fee is $20 per person and AARP members receive a $5 discount. To register or for more information, call Bernie Jansen at 208-733-1168. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Whether affirmative action should help address racial disparities remained an open question for Hagedorn at the time of his writings. He wrote that institutional racism should not be ignored, but that the conservative goal of a colorblind society is the correct one. Republican affiliation Hagedorn, whose father, Sam, is the chairman of the Milwaukee County Republican Party, made clear he identified with the GOP. Were close, very close to a complete Republican takeover of government, he wrote. We have not been able to pass our agenda in part because we do not have enough power. But in several posts he made clear he wasnt afraid to drift from the party line, writing if I ever find myself always agreeing with the Republican Party powers that be, then I have probably stopped thinking for myself. Even as some national and state Republicans have attempted to limit early voting and have described making Election Day a national holiday as a power grab, Hagedorn on his blog had a different take. Voting is so important and ought to be so much a part of our civic culture, that a holiday may make the most sense, Hagedorn blogged. Knowing a words language of origin is important for spellers, Jadhav said. Different languages spell individual sounds differently, which can help contestants guess the spellings of unknown words. If I get a word I dont know, I can break it down into little parts I do know, Jadhav said. Jadhav said she also spends time practicing for the spelling bees. She studies from lists, learns origin languages and reads a lot. The Mitby Theater stage didnt make Jadhav as nervous as it might have made other spellers, she said. After all, last year she competed at the Scripps spelling bee, which was broadcast live on national television. When it was just her and Bautista left on stage, Jadhav said she started getting nervous, mostly because the words got harder. I was a little nervous because I didnt know the words anymore, Jadhav said. She had expected to face off against Bautista as the final two, Jadhav said. Bautista said she expected the same. I was expecting for her to win, Bautista said of Jadhav. Shes a smart girl. Improvements slated for the final phase of the project include fixing the ceiling, updating a catering kitchen and adding second-floor bathrooms and an elevator. Opening early Krahenbuhl believes opening the opera house to some early functions will generate excitement from residents and businesses and that could lead to an increase in donations. That is key because no public funds are going to the project. Although city officials are supportive and applied for the DNR grant, no city funds have been given to the project, he said. When you put in a center like that, it brings in enough people to really boost your bars, restaurants, your hotels, whatever, he said. So as long as we make it safe, were grandfathered in to use it the way it was. We will be doing stuff as the weather allows us to do it because its not heated, its not air conditioned and theres no restrooms on the second floor yet. Krahenbuhl has no doubts that the opera house will be busy once it officially opens. He based his expectations on the success of a opera house in Elkader, Iowa. Located just southwest of Prairie du Chien, it has a population of 1,200 people and is plagued by flooding problems because the Turkey River splits the village. You will not discover much about John N. Maclean in his new and graceful and compelling book, Home Waters: A Chronicle of Family and a River (Custom House) and that was his intention. There is some of me in there, of course, he told me on the telephone from his home in Washington D.C. But I do not consider this a memoir. But it is filled with memories. Maclean and his family lived to two ... This is the time for citizens to step up, thank Risser and Taylor for their bills, and urge legislators to cosponsor the measures, pass the bills through committee, and then vote on the floor in their favor. So far, no Republican legislators have signed on to support Rissers bill. Nine Democrats are co-sponsors. Take a few minutes to contact the people listed in the action alert below. Madison's radio station WORT recently interviewed Camilla Fox of Project Coyote about the impacts that these killing contests have on the environment and on social, sensitive animals very much like our pet dogs. Join Project Coyotes coalition to end these contests here. Moondog Madness held their annual killing spree in Wisconsin over three recent weekends, and killed a record 155 coyotes. Citizens can scroll down on the group's Facebook page to see the carnage, gloating, and total disrespect for the lives of our wildlife. Most are thrown in dumpsters or dumped on public lands. Killing contests expose the folly of the myth of fair chase. These events are not even monitored by the Department of Natural Resources. Mayor of Madison is a great job, but it is frequently challenging. I am the only candidate in this race with the necessary combination of experience, vision, expertise in managing a complex municipality, and passion for social justice and improving lives that we need to keep Madison moving forward. This is a critical time for our city. Madisons robust economy helps the city fund equity and social justice initiatives that are either nonexistent, or are underfunded, at the state or federal levels. We cant afford to go backward when it comes to Madisons fiscal health. Under my leadership we have built an economy that outpaces Wisconsin in job growth and economic opportunity. We need to continue innovative programs like our JOBS TIF that ties TIF money to wages, benefits and worker training. Of the nations largest 100 cities, Madison is one of only 11 to achieve gains in employment and median wages, and poverty declines, across all racial and ethnic groups since 2010. While we are seeing results from some of the equity programs I have spearheaded, we need to make further and greater progress. The rambling State of the Union address that Donald Trump delivered Tuesday was a chaotic mess that reflected the incoherence and desperation of his failed presidency. All that will be remembered of it is his attempt to bully the Congress into abandoning its constitutionally mandated oversight duties with a threatening rant about how ridiculous partisan investigations would prevent the work of the nation from getting done. Too much attention to this tragic president might suggest that government must be dysfunctional. But the truth is that visionary political figures are already pointing the way forward. Georgias Stacey Abrams, the Madison-born legislative leader and author who mounted a groundbreaking gubernatorial campaign last year, presented that alternative in the official Democratic response to the presidents desultory remarks. And what Abrams had to say was complemented by Wisconsin Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, who delivered a response on behalf of the Working Families Party, with which he and other progressive leaders have long been associated. Barnes was sharp in his criticism of the president, saying, What we heard from Trump tonight wont help solve the real crises Americans are facing. We heard rhetorical gestures at unity tonight, just like he did a year ago but that was a lie then, and its a lie now, and it wont change who Trump is or how he governs. Um blog sobre Macau Antigo! A blog about Old Macau ! remaining of SUPPORT LOCAL JOURNALISM! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading. ST. LOUIS Icy roads and sidewalks Sunday have caused accidents and forced some local businesses to close. Anything that wasnt treated is basically a sheet of ice, Jayson Gosselin, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Weldon Spring, said Sunday morning. The Missouri Department of Transportation was reporting icy conditions on interstates. Interstate 270 was closed in several places Sunday morning. Many car accidents were being reported as well. We've had a few moderate-injury crashes, nothing life threatening so far," said Juston Wheetley, spokesman for Missouri Highway Patrol Troop C, which covers the St. Louis area. By 10 a.m. Sunday, Troop C received 201 calls for service, including 43 stranded motorists, 84 crashes and six injuries. Emergency workers and first responders weren't immune to the slippery conditions. A St. Charles County police officer and his police dog were involved in a rollover accident, officials said. Two other officers from the department slid into ditches in separate incidents. The officers weren't injured. St. Louis Cardinals First Baseman Joe Cunningham was discussing Bible verses with a friend shortly after 2 a.m. on Feb. 10, 1959 when he heard a roar. It's not recorded, but he may have gone from talking about the Bible to praying. Quick action prevented him from being struck by a falling ceiling. If he had, he might have become one of nearly two dozen people to die in the third most deadly tornado in the history of St. Louis. Altogether, 21 people died and 345 were injured in the tornado that baby boomers recognize as the twister that downed the KTVI-2 television tower near Hampton and Oakland avenues and tore a large section of roof from The Arena. As the twister moved through the area in the middle of the night, there was little chance of warning sleeping St. Louisans of the impending horror. On its southwest-to-northwest path, the storm caused major damage in the area around Boyle Avenue and Olive Street near where Cunningham lived. Some say the reconstruction that followed there helped lead that area to national prominence as Gaslight Square. Cunningham wasn't thinking about the future of the area early the morning of Feb. 10, 1959. "The room began to dance," he said in an article in the next day's edition of the St. Louis Globe-Democrat. "I jumped from my chair and ran into the next room and just then the ceiling caved in where I had been sitting." The two waited until they could make their way to the street. "The police and rescue workers arrived with remarkable speed and did a wonderful job," said Cunningham, who played for the Cardinals from 1954 to 1961 in a career that lasted from 1954 to 1966. His roommate, Cardinals second baseman Don Blassingame, was out of town at the time. Others weren't as lucky in a tornado that followed a night of torrential rains, flash-flooding, hail and winds of up to 65 miles an hour. Eight people, including five small children, suffocated in the rubble of a building demolished by the twister. The tornado also killed a 2-year-old, who was pulled from his home and thrown across an alley. The tornado first touched down near Manchester Road and Woodlawn Avenue in Kirkwood, tracked east to the area of the Arena and the KTVI tower and swept through Forest Park. It passed through the area of Boyle and Olive and Page and Grand boulevards before sweeping over the Mississippi. Gertrude Watson and her six children, 7 months to 12 years old, were among those who avoided death. Four of her youngsters were injured when part of their home caved in on them. Later, they found warmth and food in a Red Cross shelter in the Bricklayers Hall at 4020 Page. "It's a blessing from God," Watson said. "They're doing the best they can and they're very nice to us. But anybody would rather be in her own home." Apparently, those at the U.S. Weather Bureau may not have been doing the best they could. The bureau didn't put out a special alert until 3:30 a.m., 75 minutes after the storm struck. Many times you might have found the multiple casinos available in the online market but when you are going to... Ronald Reagan The value of a man should be seen in what he gives and not in what he is able to receive. Albert Einstein If you have an important point to make, don't try to be subtle or clever. Use a pile driver. Hit the point once. Then come back and hit it again. Then hit it a third time - a tremendous whack. Winston Churchill It isnt so much that liberals are ignorant. Its just that they know so many things that arent so. With integrity nothing else counts; Without integrity nothing else counts. Winston Churchill Never be bullied into silence. Never allow yourself to be made a victim. Accept no one's definition of your life, but define yourself. Harvey S. Firestone It is inaccurate to say that I hate everything. I am strongly in favor of common sense, common honesty, and common decency. This makes me forever ineligible for public office. H. L. Menken Referenda insure all have a voice in land use decisions. U.S. Supreme Court Listen carefully to first criticism of your work. Note just what it is about your work the critics don't like - then cultivate it. That's the only part of your work that's individual and worth keeping. Jean Cocteau We're sorry, but Newspapers.com doesn't work properly without JavaScript enabled. You will need to enable Javascript by changing your browser settings. Learn how to enable it. Building the Future Today is a column by the Lompoc Economic Development Committee. The column runs on the first and third Sundays of each month. To contact the committee, please email j_mcginty@ci.lompoc.ca.us. Area fire officials are sounding the alarm about the extreme heat and dry conditions as the Fourth of July approaches. I think they teach us more than we teach them sometimes, said Paulsen, It might be more of a benefit to us to host this. We love all of those kids. Paulsen and Nemeth dont handle Kids of the Kingdom all on their own, usually they have 10 adult volunteers helping them organize, feed and teach the children. Paulsen said they are always in need of more volunteers and anyone can visit the church for more information. Recently 6th grade students have started volunteering their time with Kids of the Kingdom. Paulsen said they have been an, awesome help this year. When asked about the importance of cultivating the youth in church, Paulsen said, The more we teach young people about Jesus love, the more they will pass it on. Pastor Doug Gahn of the Cozad United Methodist Church had said earlier it was amazing having people like Paulsen and Nemeth in the church. This isnt just our church group, it is a community event. When asked how they felt about receiving the Community Service Award, Paulsen said, It was a huge honor, and very unexpected. We feel though this award is for the kids, they are the true blessing to the community. Nemeth added, We are just lucky to be here with them. We want to thank Pastor Doug Gahn, all of volunteers and the parents, who allow their kids to come here and bless us with this opportunity, Paulsen said. In March, United States officials will move forward with plans to sell leases for oil and gas exploration in two states: New Mexico and Oklahoma. The leases include land near the Chaco Culture National Historical Park and other areas that Native American tribes consider holy. The sale comes against the wishes of tribal leaders, environmentalists and Democratic Party lawmakers. All three groups have criticized the U.S. Bureau of Land Management for pushing ahead with drilling permit inspections and preparations for energy leases. The bureau had few people working when the federal government was partially closed for five weeks in December and January. Critics have said that they were barred from the process because the government failed to release any information about the sale. Critics also questioned if the bureau would be able to effectively examine the land available for leasing and whether it would consider objections to the plans. Tom Udall is a U.S. Senator and Democrat from New Mexico. He told The Associated Press in an email that he is concerned about the latest attempt to lease culturally important land without a more complete plan. Udall said it was a mistake for the agency to move forward with such an unclear process since critical government services were closed for 35 days. An agency representative said officials decided to delay the sale by a few weeks to provide time for a public protest period that was delayed during the government shutdown. It confirmed on its website that it would take comments starting February 11, and that the sale was set for March 28. Depending on the result of the protests, it is possible for the agency to delay or withdraw nine pieces of land that lie within 16 kilometers of Chaco. The park is a world heritage site -- a place chosen by the United Nations as having cultural, historical, scientific or other importance. Chaco has massive stone structures as well as kivas centuries-old rooms that native Pueblo people have used for spiritual ceremonies and political meetings. For tribes, the fight centers on protecting what remains of a ceremonial and economic center that goes back hundreds of years. In all, more than 50 pieces of land in New Mexico and Oklahoma will be up for lease. Kurt Riley is a former governor of the Acoma Pueblo. Last week, during a congressional gathering, he spoke of protesting the bureaus support for oil and gas development over other interests. Riley and others said the government shutdown worsened the already worrisome situation of oil and gas expansion in northwestern New Mexico. In recent years, U.S. land officials have rejected oil and gas exploration on land near Chaco, creating a kind of unofficial protective barrier. In early 2018, for example, Ryan Zinke stopped a lease sale because of cultural concerns after hundreds of people protested. At the time, Zinke was heading the Department of the Interior. The battle over energy development around Chaco has been around for years. Chaco is bordered by the Navajo Nation and a number of state and federal lands. In 2015, government officials visited the area in hopes of making an agreement between the tribes and energy companies. The Bureau of Land Management and the Bureau of Indian Affairs began working together to improve the resource management plan for the San Juan Basin. It covers a large part of northwestern New Mexico and parts of southern Colorado. The partnership aimed to ensure tribes would be part of the decision making, and that scientific and archaeological studies would be done to ensure cultural sensitivity. The nine pieces of land are on the outer edge of the informal barrier area near the park. Critics have warned that park visitors might see drilling equipment in some places if those areas were leased. Whether the sound of the equipment could be heard would depend on wind direction. There are also concerns about light pollution affecting Chacos night sky. Paul Reed is with Archaeology Southwest, a research group. He said many communities within the 16 kilometer area need a greater level of protection. Im Alice Bryant. And I'm Jonathan Evans. Susan Montoya Bryan reported this story for the Associated Press. Alice Bryant adapted it for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor. _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story lease n. a legal agreement that lets someone use a car, house, etc., for a period of time in return for payment drill v. to make a hole in something using a tool or equipment critical adj. extremely important site n. the place where something is, was or will be located basin b. the area of land around a large river and the small rivers that flow into it archaeological adj. relating to a science that deals with past human activities by studying the bones, tools and other objects The United States Army has developed a new physical fitness test that aims to prepare soldiers for real-life combat situations. The Army's current physical fitness test covers three main activities: sit-ups, push-ups and a 3.2-kilometer run. It has to be completed in two hours. The new test will include six events to complete in 50 minutes. The exam adds more difficult and complex exercises, including a strength dead lift, standing power throw and drag and carry. The new test comes after many Army commanders expressed concerns in recent years that new soldiers are not physically fit. A public opinion study last year looked into the situation. It found almost half of commanders questioned said that newly arriving soldiers could not meet the physical demands of combat. Army officials have also said about 12 percent of soldiers at any one time cannot deploy to combat areas because of injuries. General Stephen Townsend is head of U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command. He told the Associated Press that many top officials have long thought that the existing fitness test does not effectively measure the physical qualities needed for battle. Townsend said the new test may be harder, but it is necessary. For many, meeting the new fitness levels will be difficult. The old test rated soldiers differently based on their age and gender. The new one will be far more physically demanding and will not consider age or sex. Townsend said the new test was designed based on scientific research that attempts to link exercises to actual combat activities. Such things could include running away from fire, carrying a wounded soldier or carrying heavy equipment. The scoring is divided into three levels that require soldiers with more physically demanding jobs to score higher. Sergeant Major Harold Sampson told the AP he does not have a physically demanding job. As a military intelligence specialist stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, he spends a lot of time sitting inside an office. He expressed concerns about being fit enough to pass the new test. After attending a preparation exercise two days before he was to take the test, Sampson said he felt prepared to be embarrassed. Army Major General Malcolm Frost is commander of the Armys Center for Initial Military Training. He was in charge of developing the new fitness test. We needed to change the culture of fitness in the United States Army, Frost said. The goal is about having a more combat-ready army, he added. Frost said a major problem has been that about one-third of soldiers entering the service leave before their third year. Many do so because of muscular or skeletal injuries. The new test, he said, will help identify those who are less physically fit or lack the necessary mental discipline. The new test will clearly add difficulty for officers like Harold Sampson and others with non-physical jobs. It breaks the mindset of I am an intel soldier, Sampson said. It changes it to I am a soldier, because bullets on the battlefield dont discriminate. Im Bryan Lynn. The Associated Press reported on this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the report for VOA Learning English, with additional information from online sources. Caty Weaver was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story combat n. a fight, especially in war drag v. pull someone or something across the ground embarrassed adj. feeling or showing shame or awkwardness discipline n. the control of people's behaviour using rules and punishments discriminate v. to notice a difference between two things Earths north magnetic pole is moving, researchers say. It has moved so much, so quickly that a group of scientists hurried to change a model that helps guide shipping, airplanes and submarines in the Arctic Ocean. Last week, the scientists released new information on the north magnetic pole sooner than they had planned. Compass needles point toward the pole. As a child, you might have received a simple compass as a gift. It has a magnetized pointer which shows the direction of magnetic north. Liquid metal at the center of our planet produces the magnetic field. Unpredictable movements in the liquid mean the field and the location of magnetic north are always changing. The World Magnetic Model records those changes. The model is a joint product of the British Geological Survey and the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The two agencies were planning to report changes in the magnetic north pole, as they do every five years, at the end of 2019. But the pole has moved so quickly they had to release the information much sooner. Scientists have found that the magnetic north pole is moving at a speed of about 55 kilometers every year. One hundred years ago, the pole was located near the coast of northern Canada. It crossed the International Date Line, the imaginary line running through the Pacific Ocean from the North Pole to the South Pole, in 2017. Now, the magnetic north pole is in the middle of the Arctic Ocean and moving towards Russia. Arnaud Chulliat is a scientist at the University of Colorado in Boulder, Colorado. He is also the lead researcher for the newly updated World Magnetic Model. Chulliat told the Associated Press the continuous movement of magnetic north is a problem for compasses in smartphones and other electronic devices. Importance to navigation systems Airplanes and boats mainly use Global Positioning System (GPS) instruments for navigation. GPS is not affected by the movements of the pole because it is satellite-based. But airplanes and boats do depend on magnetic north in emergencies, Chulliat noted. The U.S. military needs to know the location of magnetic north for navigation and parachute drops. The American space agency NASA, the Federal Aviation Administration and U.S. Forest Service also use it. Names for some airport landing areas are based on their direction toward magnetic north, and the names change when the pole moves. For example, an airport in Fairbanks, Alaska, renamed landing area 1L-19R to 2L-20R in 2009. The fact that the pole is going fast makes this region more prone to large errors, Chulliat told Nature magazine. Ciaran Beggan is with the British Geological Survey. He told the Reuters news agency the magnetic North Pole didnt move much between 1900 and 1980, but its really accelerated in the past 40 years. Since 1831, when the pole was first measured in the Canadian Arctic, it has moved about 2,300 kilometers toward Siberia. The speed of its movement has increased from about 15 kilometers a year to 55 kilometers per year since 2000. The reason is movements in Earths liquid outer core, said University of Maryland geophysicist Daniel Lathrop. He was not part of the research team. There is a hot liquid ocean of iron and nickel in the planets core, where the movement produces an electric field. Lathrop said the changes in movement of the liquid are similar to changes in the weather. Possible reversal of Earths North and South Poles Earths magnetic South Pole is moving far slower than the north. In general, Earths magnetic field is getting weaker, leading scientists to say that it will eventually cause the north and south poles to change positions. Such a change has happened several times before, but not in the last 780,000 years. Its not a question of if its going to reverse, the question is when its going to reverse, Lathrop said. The reversal will take 1,000 years or more to come into effect, experts said. But Lathrop sees a reversal coming sooner, not later, because of the weakened magnetic field. An area over the South Atlantic has already reversed beneath Earths surface. That could cause problems for birds that use magnetic fields to navigate. And a general weakening of the magnetic field is not good for people, especially astronauts. The magnetic field protects Earth from dangerous radiation, Lathrop noted. Ciaran Beggan said the recent movements of the north magnetic pole would be unnoticed by most people outside the Arctic. Navigation systems in cars or phones depend on radio waves from satellites high above the Earth to identify their position on the ground. It wouldnt really affect anyone driving a car, Beggan added. Im Pete Musto. And Im Anna Matteo. Pete Musto adapted this story for VOA Learning English. His information was based on reports from the Associated Press and the Reuters news service. George Grow was the editor. We want to hear from you. What effects do you think the movement of the magnetic north pole will have? Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page. _____________________________________________________________ Quiz - Magnetic North Pole Moving Faster Than Scientists Expected Start the Quiz to find out Start Quiz _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story pole n. either end of the imaginary line around which something, such as the earth, turns compass n. a device that is used to find direction by means of a needle that always points north location n. a place or position navigation n. the act, activity, or process of finding the way to get to a place when you are traveling in a ship, airplane or car region n. a part of a country or of the world that is different or separate from other parts in some way prone adj. likely to do, have, or suffer from something accelerate(d) v. to gain speed core n. the central part of something reverse v. to change something to an opposite state or condition Laurence Fischer of France is a three-time world karate champion. Fischer has fought against strong opponents. But today she is fighting a different battle. This opponent cannot be seen and is hard to defeat. It is the trauma -- the emotional harm -- that comes from sexual violence. Just outside Paris, Fischer teaches karate at La Maison des Femmes, or The Womens Home. It is a special center for women who have lived through sexual violence. The center offers medical treatment and training for the mind but also therapeutic classes, like karate. Fischer hopes she can help her students heal through the sport. "Karate is a way to reconnect ourself to ourself. Because of the trauma, there's a kind of disassociation ... because of the suffering, they are not connected." Fischer began teaching karate to women after she retired from competition more than 10 years ago. Her work in the DRC Since 2014, she has traveled every year to the Democratic Republic of Congo. There, sexual violence is so common that it is sometimes called the rape capital of the world. Two years ago, Fischer set up a non-governmental organization called Fight for Dignity. She says karate not only helps women to heal, but to regain the ability to believe in ones self. It's incredible how it can impact, also, their relations with their children, with their boyfriend, with the way to find job after, the relations with the others. It's more than just practicing because we are not only brain, we are also body. And when the both are connected, it's very powerful." A year ago, Fischer met Mbamoussa Soumare at The Women's Home. At the age of 12, Soumare was raped by a relative in her native Mali. Her family forced her to marry the man. She had four children, while he continued to beat her. Finally, last year, she was able to escape to France with help from a sister living there. Ghada Hatem is a gynecologist and the founder of The Womens Home. "Some of them are victims of violence, others of incest. All kinds of violence in fact. We try to help them," she says. Hatem believes Fischers work with the women is important. "I think that karate is a very good sport for these womenand it's very important for our patients to work on their own body through these trauma[s]." Drinking tea after karate class Fischer and her students gather together and drink tea after every class. It is a time to make friends. Thirty-year-old Aissata Djiakite has been going to The Women's Home for more than a year. She says that when a woman is sexually assaulted, she feels weak. She says Fischer helps the women leave behind their pain and gives them back reasons to live. "When you're sexually attacked, you feel weak but with Karate you really want to live... Laurence gave us back our smiles," she says. Fischer plans to return to the Democratic Republic of Congo. She wants to help some of her female students there to start karate classes in their villages so they can help other women fight against sexual assault. Im Susan Shand. Lisa Bryant reported this story for VOANews.com. Susan Shand adapted her story for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page. _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story karate n. a form of fighting that was developed in Japan in which your feet and hands are used to kick and hit an opponent trauma n. a very difficult or unpleasant experience that causes someone to have mental or emotional problems usually for a long time assault n. a violent physical attack therapeutic adj. producing good effects on your body or mind dignity n. the quality of being worthy of honor or respect confidence n. a feeling or belief that you can do something well or succeed at something gynecologist n. medicine that deals with the diseases and routine physical care of the reproductive system of women incest n. sexual intercourse between people who are very closely related Friday, February 8, 2019 When Acreage Holdings last year announced that former Speaker of the US House of Representatives John Boehner was now on its board of advisors, I was unsure whether Boehner was really interested in being a serious advocate for marijuana reform or was mostly to be a high-profile figurehead in this space. But in November, as noted here, Boehner penned a Wall Street Journal commentary headlined "Washington Needs to Legalize Cannabis." And today comes news that John Boehner is to be the Chair of a new industry lobbying ground calling itself the National Cannabis Roundtable. This new local press piece and this National Cannabis Roundtable website is all I can find about this new group right now, but the press piece provides a flavor of the group's commitments: The former lawmaker will also serve as an advisor, not a registered lobbyist, for the roundtable, Boehner said during a phone call with reporters Friday. Boehner said the roundtable will promote changes to federal law that make it easier to research cannabis and for regulated cannabis businesses to operate. Federally, marijuana is an illegal Schedule 1 controlled substance, alongside heroin and LSD, is not a top priority for the group.... But Boehner said removing cannabis from Schedule I of the U.S. Controlled Substances Act is not the group's top priority. "It would clearly be a big goal, but I think there are other steps that need to be taken along the way before we get to that," he said.... Boehner said the roundtable's members represent every aspect of the cannabis supply chain, including growers, processors, retailers, wellness centers, investors, entrepreneurs, and publicly traded companies. The National Cannabis Roundtable website has the following sentences under the heading "Our Mission" The legal cannabis boom promises to contribute billions of dollars to the US economy over the next decade - creating jobs, advancing new health science and adding momentum to criminal justice reform. The National Cannabis Roundtable promotes common sense federal regulation, tax equality and financial services reform and supports changing federal law to acknowledge states rights to regulate and manage cannabis policy. I like the reference to "adding momentum to criminal justice reform" in the first sentence, though the second sentence and other factors leads me to suspect that National Cannabis Roundtable will not have criminal justice reform as a focal point of its work. Prior related posts: https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/marijuana_law/2019/02/notable-new-lobbying-group-national-cannabis-roundtable-to-be-chaired-by-former-us-house-speaker-joh.html In this post last month, I blogged this interesting new paper, titled ""How and why have attitudes about cannabis legalization changed so much?", which was recently published in Social Science Research and was authored by Jacob Felson, Amy Adamczyk and Christopher Thomas. I am not pleased to see that the authors of this research have this new piece at The Conversation under the headline "Why do so many Americans now support legalizing marijuana?". Here are excerpts (with links from the original) from this reader-friendly account of their interesting research: American views on marijuana have shifted incredibly rapidly. Thirty years ago, marijuana legalization seemed like a lost cause. In 1988, only 24 percent of Americans supported legalization. But steadily, the nation began to liberalize. By 2018, 66 percent of U.S. residents offered their approval, transforming marijuana legalization from a libertarian fantasy into a mainstream cause. Many state laws have changed as well. Over the last quarter-century, 10 states have legalized recreational marijuana, while 22 states have legalized medical marijuana. So why has public opinion changed dramatically in favor of legalization? In a study published this February, we examined a range of possible reasons, finding that the media likely had the greatest influence.... What has likely made the biggest difference is how the media has portrayed marijuana. Support for legalization began to increase shortly after the news media began to frame marijuana as a medical issue.... In the 1980s, the vast majority of New York Times stories about marijuana were about drug trafficking and abuse or other Schedule I drugs. At that time, The New York Times was more likely to lump marijuana together in a kind of unholy trinity with cocaine and heroin in discussions about drug smuggling, drug dealers and the like. During the 1990s, stories discussing marijuana in criminal terms became less prevalent. Meanwhile, the number of articles discussing the medical uses of marijuana slowly increased. By the late 1990s, marijuana was rarely discussed in the context of drug trafficking and drug abuse. And marijuana had lost its association with other Schedule I drugs like cocaine and heroin in the New York Times. Gradually, the stereotypical persona of the marijuana user shifted from the stoned slacker wanting to get high to the aging boomer seeking pain relief.... As Americans became more supportive of marijuana legalization, they also increasingly told survey researchers that the criminal justice system was too harsh. In the late 1980s, the war on drugs and sentencing reform laws put a large number of young men, often black and Latino, behind bars for lengthy periods of time. As Americans started to feel the full social and economic effects of tough-on-crime initiatives, they reconsidered the problems with criminalizing marijuana. Because support for the legalization of marijuana and concerns about the harshness of the criminal justice system changed at about the same time, its difficult to know what came first. Did concern about the harshness of the criminal justice system affect support for legalization or vice versa? By contrast, the cause and effect is clearer with respect to the media framing of marijuana. The news medias portrayal of marijuana began to change shortly before the public did, suggesting that the media influenced support for the legalization of marijuana. As reported in this post last month, Washington Govornor Jay Inslee started 2019 by making much of his plans to pardon thousands of people convicted of marijuana possession charges. But this new local article, headlined "Inslee pardons 13 marijuana convictions, as lawmakers consider expunging hundreds of thousands more," reports on just a trickle rather than a wave of pardon grants. Here are the interesting details: In the month since Gov. Jay Inslee offered pardons to thousands of people convicted of misdemeanor marijuana offenses, just 13 have received the official act of forgiveness. But a more sweeping proposal in the state Legislature may be gaining momentum, offering the potential clearing of criminal records for hundreds of thousands of others. Inslee, a second-term Democrat who is publicly mulling a presidential run, announced his Marijuana Justice Initiative to fanfare in early January at a cannabis-industry conference, citing the disproportionate impact of drug-law convictions on people of color and lingering harm to employment and housing prospects. His pardon offer was limited to people with otherwise clean records who had a misdemeanor marijuana conviction between 1998 and Dec. 5, 2012, the effective date of the voter-approved marijuana legalization Initiative 502. About 3,500 people are estimated to be eligible for pardons under Inslees plan. As of Wednesday, 160 had applied, but the vast majority did not meet the eligibility conditions, said Tip Wonhoff, the governors deputy general counsel. After an initial rush of interest in the pardons, its been a little slower than I thought, he said. For those who have qualified, however, the pardons have come as welcome relief. Taneesa Dunham, of Walla Walla, leapt at the chance to reverse her marijuana conviction from 2005.... Last month, Dunhams mother saw a newspaper article about Inslees pardon offer and called to read the article to her. I was jumping up and down with joy the entire time she was reading it. I immediately went to the website and filled [the application] out, she said. A pardon signed by Inslee soon arrived in the mail. Although Dunhams conviction remains in court records, the pardon is listed, too. Dunham said her criminal record, while minor, had made it difficult for her to get a job as shed had to report it on employment applications, and she worried her daughters school would exclude her from field trips. A recreational marijuana user in her 20s, she says she now uses cannabis medicinally for help with a back injury that has left her on disability. I am just really glad it is legal now so nobody has to go through what I had to go through, and the courts and the cops can go after the real drug dealers and leave the potheads alone, she said. Chris Tilzer, of Covington, also was pardoned by Inslee for a pot-possession conviction in 2006 after Bellevue police cited him for smoking in a park. He served one day in jail, according to court records. I was working and it could have caused me problems if they would have found out about it, he said, adding that the blemish on his record has since complicated some international travel plans. Tilzer now works in the cannabis industry and said he appreciates Inslees effort, but the state should do much more. The amount of people who meet the qualifications is not going to really help anybody not that many people, he said. Such relief could be on the way. Sponsors of legislation that would allow hundreds of thousands of people with minor marijuana convictions to expunge their records say the proposal could have a better chance this year than in the past. Rep. Joe Fitzgibbon, D-Burien, has introduced a similar bill every year since 2013 without success, but says this years version, House Bill 1500, could break through. It just seems like there is a lot more momentum this year than any of the past times I have taken a run at it, he said, noting support from Inslee, the states cannabis industry and organized labor. HB 1500 would allow anyone with prior convictions for adult misdemeanor marijuana possession to apply to courts for a vacation of those convictions. The courts would be required to grant the requests. The Washington State Patrol has estimated 226,027 misdemeanor marijuana convictions would qualify for vacation under the proposal. Fitzgibbon noted the number of people eligible might be less than that as some have multiple convictions. The proposal has drawn criticism from the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs, whose policy director, James McMahan, testified against it during a public hearing Tuesday before the House Public Safety Committee. It is a relevant and influential point with us that at the time these convictions were imposed it was illegal. It was against our law. And we as a government and as a society said this is not OK, McMahan said, noting that some of the misdemeanor convictions had been pleaded down from felonies. But Sen. Joe Nguyen, D-White Center, the prime sponsor of an identical companion measure, Senate Bill 5605, said the Legislature needs to repair damage done by decades of marijuana arrests that disproportionately affected minority communities. Before legalization, black people were 2.8 times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than whites, despite being no more likely to use marijuana, according to a report by the American Civil Liberties Union. Friday, February 8, 2019 The on-going discussion and debate over marijuana legalization in the Empire State is worth watching closely for numerous reasons, particularly because there is good reason to expect that just about every state in the Northeast would follow New York's lead on any big reforms. It has also been interesting to see how many valuable reports and other materials have been coming from various governmental players as the discussion moves forward. I have linked below some prior posts to some prior documents, and this post highlights this new short report from the New York State Association of Counties (NYSAC) titled simply "Making Marijuana Legal In New York State." The report's introduction includes these paragraphs: New York State lawmakers are debating whether to legalize the most widely used illegal drug in the United States, marijuana,and how to do so responsibly. According to the 2015 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 44 percent of the population over age 12 (nearly 118 million people) have tried marijuana in their lifetime. Twenty-two million used marijuana in the past month.... This report is not a discussion on whether marijuana should be legalized.Rather, it is a review of the challenges and opportunities that may be presented to counties if state lawmakers decide on legalization. Moving marijuana out of the unregulated black market will impact public health,public safety, criminal justice, the economy, and the environment in New York States counties. What follows is a usefully straight-forward and reader-friendly account of many of the most important issues to consider in the debate over legalization. Folks very familiar with debates over marijuana reform will likely not find anything too surprising in this document, but I was still pleased and impressed to see NYSAC, given its stated mission to "represent, educate and advocate for New York's counties and the thousands of elected and appointed county officials who serve the public," doing such a nice job in this space. Some prior related posts: https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/marijuana_law/2019/02/an-effective-reader-friendly-primer-on-making-marijuana-legal-in-new-york-state.html As reported in this local article, "Baltimore States Attorney Marilyn Mosby announced Tuesday her office would cease prosecuting people for possessing marijuana regardless of quantity or criminal history." Here is more: Calling the move monumental for justice in Baltimore, Mosby also requested the courts vacate convictions in nearly 5,000 cases of marijuana possession. When I ask myself: Is the enforcement and prosecution of marijuana possession making us safer as a city? Mosby said, the answer is emphatically no. Mosby follows district attorneys in Manhattan and Philadelphia who have scaled back or outright ended marijuana prosecutions. Maryland lawmakers decriminalized possession of up to 10 grams of marijuana in 2014. But she also stood alone, politically: No police and no other city officials joined her at the announcement. Hours later, Mayor Catherine Pugh announced her support for Mosbys plan. Mosby aims to formalize marijuana policies already in practice. A report released Tuesday by her office shows city prosecutors dropped 88 percent of marijuana possession cases in Baltimore District Court since 2014 1,001 cases. [This report is available at this link.] Still, convictions have saddled thousands in Baltimore with criminal records and frustrated their job searches, Mosby said. The marijuana arrests have disproportionately affected minority neighborhoods in Baltimore. Nationwide, African-Americans are four times more likely than whites to be arrested for possessing marijuana. The ratio jumps to six times more likely in Baltimore, prosecutors wrote in the report. Such arrests squander scarce police resources, Mosby said, noting 343 people were killed in Baltimore in 2017. Police closed nearly one-third of those cases. Last year, 309 people were killed and police closed closer to one-quarter. No one, Mosby said, thinks spending resources to jail people for marijuana is a good use of our limited time and resources. But it remains unclear how the policy will play out in the streets. Mosby made her announcement at the nonprofit Center for Urban Families in West Baltimore while surrounded by her staff, marijuana advocates and neighborhood activists. Police leaders werent there.... The department is run by a former agent of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Gary Tuggle; he is interim commissioner. He said his officers wouldnt quit arresting people for possessing marijuana. Baltimore Police will continue to make arrests for illegal marijuana possession unless and until the state legislature changes the law regarding marijuana possession, he said in a statement.... Police leaders have long said they are focused on violent crime and marijuana arrests arent a priority. But officers routinely use marijuana as reason to search the pockets or car of someone suspected in more serious crimes.... Mosby has pledged to continue to prosecute anyone suspected of selling marijuana. She said her office would take cases to court when police find evidence of drug sales, such as baggies and scales.... In nearby Baltimore County, States Attorney Scott Shellenberger said he had no plans to quit prosecuting marijuana cases. Most first-time offenders are placed in a treatment program in the county, he said. Mosby also urged state legislators to support a bill that would empower her office to vacate criminal convictions in everything from corrupt cop cases to marijuana prosecutions. The current procedures require action from both prosecutors and defense attorneys to vacate a conviction. On Tuesday, prosecutors filed papers for marijuana cases dating back to 2011 to be vacated about 1,000 in Circuit Court and nearly 3,800 in District Court. Judges would rule on the requests. Spike Lee Boycotts Gucci, Prada for Blackface Items Prada Bag MILAN (AP) Director Spike Lee said Friday he will no longer wear Gucci or Prada until the brands hire some black designers following a pair of blackface fashion fails from the major Italian fashion houses. ADVERTISEMENT Lee said on Instagram that Its Obvious To Da Peoples That They Dont Have A Clue When It Comes To Racist, Blackface Hateful Imagery. WAKE UP. Spike said the brands needed to have black designers To Be In Da Room When It Happen. His personal boycott in the midst of movie awards season was a powerful message to luxury fashion houses that are already suffering backlashes for designs evoking racist images. Lee donned Gucci on the Venice Film Festival red carpet last September, following up with a stop by the Prada womenswear preview show in Milan later in the month decked out in a black Prada suit. Gucci this week apologized for a high-neck black wool sweater that featured bright red lips when pulled over the face, while Prada apologized for a monkey bag charm resembling blackface in December. Both brands withdrew the offending pieces from sale on both websites and stores. Prada said it abhors all forms of racism, while Gucci called it a powerful learning moment for the Gucci team and beyond. The blackface images have particular resonance in the United States at a time when the governor of Virginia and his attorney general have been caught up in a scandal over blackface incidents from their college days in the 1980s. The offensive depictions are reminiscent of traveling minstrels from the 19th century, who would paint their faces black to portray African characters in a ridiculous and mocking fashion. Blackface hasnt been the only fashion faux pas in recent memory. Dolce & Gabbana faced a boycott in China the luxury worlds number one market by a long shot after one of its designers insulted Chinese people in a private chat over promotional videos featuring a Chinese model struggling to eat Italian food with chopsticks, which was seen as culturally insensitive. ADVERTISEMENT Commenting on the controversies during New York Fashion Week, model Cipriana Quann said the offending designs suggested a lack of diversity within the companies, not just in the design studios but also the board rooms and on the runways. When the company is not diverse, so theyre not inclusive, the model said. So, the more diverse your company, the more youll be able to catch those cultural appropriation screw ups. So, you need to see it across the map. So not only in the boardroom. On the runway, even in street-style photography, not photographing women that are only homogenous in looks, you need diversity as well. In every aspect, she said. While design houses have creative directors whose put their faces on the collections Alessandro Michele at Gucci and Miuccia Prada at her brand they work with considerable design teams behind the scenes. Also in New York, Japanese-American designer Tadashi Shoji said that the brands appeared to be lacking in cultural sensitivity. What are they thinking as a designer in the business? That is what puzzles me. If you think about this simple, simple stuff, offending these customers, I think its not good for business, Shoji said Thursday night. Valentine's Day will always hold a special place in my heart. In 2016, on that day, a Sunday, we launched this magazine as a weekly bonus for subscribing to LNP. It's still that today albeit in a different form -- digital weekly and print monthly. But its core mission still rings true. We are a magazine built "For People Who Love Lancaster County." Today we revisit the same question we've asked on our anniversary for the last couple of years. Why do you love Lancaster County right now? I'm eager to hear your responses. Please email them to me with your full name and hometown via Sunday@LNPnews.com. We'll gather as many of your thoughts as we can and share them with our readers next week. Until next Sunday, enjoy this one! TED SICKLER, EDITOR In this edition: REASONS TO LOVE LANCASTER COUNTY: What did our readers say were the best things about living here in 2017 and 2018? Take a look and then send us you're own best reason for 2019! UNUSUAL BIRD: I've never seen an Iceland gull, but one lucky duck did down at the Susquehanna River. Take a look for yourself. RAW EGGS TO THE RESCUE: While there are many items of note in this week's Lancaster That Was, don't miss the news of how raw eggs saved a young boy's life. IN THE SPOTLIGHT: We often read or hear about people making a difference in their neighborhoods and communities. Here's a chance to meet an individual who is making it a priority in Lancaster for city government. VIEWFINDER: Have you driven across the river bridge lately and spotted all of the ice build up? LNP photographer Andy Blackburn did and took a great shot of it all. And we have a collection of haiku and a special Valentine's Day puzzle to share. THE ISSUE Gov. Tom Wolf unveiled his $34.1 billion state budget plan Tuesday. The proposed budget calls for increased funding for basic education, early childhood education and workforce development programs. The aim of his budget, Wolf said, is to increase opportunity for every Pennsylvanian at every stage of life from birth to retirement. Wolf also announced the formation of the Keystone Economic Development and Workforce Command Center. The departments of Community and Economic Development, Labor & Industry, State and others will partner with leaders of organizations such as the PA Chamber and the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO to find solutions for strengthening the states workforce. The budget did not include any tax increases. Like the members of Lancaster Countys legislative delegation, we are cheered by Wolfs focus on workforce development and education. It is sensible and necessary. As Wolf noted, Across the commonwealth, we have workers aging out of our workforce, and too often the next generation of worker is not there or doesnt have the skills to replace them. If we cant strengthen our workforce, we will fall behind. That is the truth, plainly stated. And it resonated with state Rep. Bryan Cutler, the Peach Bottom Republican who, as LNPs Sam Janesch noted, will play a significant role in budget negotiations this year as House majority leader. Gov. Wolfs budget sets forth a series of ideas that I believe that the House Republicans can find agreement on, Cutler said. The Stevens question Thats good news. Pennsylvania has had its fill of budget-related drama in recent years. We dont need a reprise. Were among those who are befuddled, however, by Wolfs failure for the third straight year to propose a funding increase for Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology. The state-owned institution in Lancaster trains its students for the very jobs that Pennsylvania employers badly need in such technologies as welding, plumbing and electronic engineering. More than 95 percent of its graduates find jobs; their median base starting salary is $42,500. And they accrue student debt thats far below the national average. Stevens offers a reliable path to the realization of the American dream right here in the commonwealth the schools website says 97 percent of its graduates live and work in Pennsylvania. And yet Wolf didnt propose a cent in increased funding for the two-year college. Stevens President William Griscom had requested an additional $4 million more. Visiting High Steel Industries in East Lampeter Township on Thursday, Wolf defended his proposal to keep funding for Stevens flat. The governor said his administration has provided $20 million for the 60,000-square-foot Greiner Center that Stevens opened last year. And he said the college could apply for competitive PAsmart workforce development grants. Griscom was at High Industries with Wolf. Graciously thanking the governor for the Greiner Center capital funding, Griscom said the center with its added space for several of the colleges key programs will have a significant and long-term impact on this regions economy. But, in an interview, Griscom told LNPs Janesch that the college would still be requesting a $4 million increase to its $14.7 million basic subsidy in order to expand programs that would benefit an additional 1,450 students. Griscom is scheduled to testify in a Senate Appropriations Committee meeting later this month. Both of Lancaster Countys senators Scott Martin and Ryan Aument are on that committee. We have faith theyll work to secure more funding for Stevens. Educating our children We have advocated repeatedly for a greater investment in high-quality early childhood education. Everyone whos studied this issue from military leaders to criminal justice officials to educators will tell you that high-quality pre-kindergarten is essential for children from low-income families, whose vocabularies and experiences dont match those of their classmates. Once children fall behind, they need more expensive remedial instruction and special education services. Often, they never catch up. Wolfs budget calls for an additional $50 million for early childhood education. His proposed new funding would allow nearly 5,500 additional children to enroll in the states high-quality early learning programs. Its a sound investment. According to the Pre-K for PA website, longitudinal research studies indicate that as much as $17 is returned on every $1 invested in high-quality early learning programs. Wolf also wants the state Legislature to provide $6.5 billion in basic education funding for Pennsylvanias 500 school districts. As LNPs Alex Geli noted, thats $200 million, or 3.3 percent, more than last years appropriation and it would mean an additional $4.79 million for Lancaster County schools. Nearly $705 million of that $6.5 billion would be distributed through the basic education funding formula enacted in 2016. Currently, $539 million, or 8.8 percent, flows through the formula, which considers factors such as poverty, English language learners and charter school enrollment when funding schools, Geli noted. That bipartisan formula is supposed to make school funding more equitable, but its being applied only to new funding. As we wrote last month, applying it only to annual increases in state funding hasnt been enough to narrow the chasm between Pennsylvanias neediest and most affluent schools. We want to see the formula implemented fully at a quicker pace. The districts being deprived of money they should be getting under the fair funding formula have waited long enough. An analysis by the state House Appropriations Committee last year found that Conestoga Valley and Manheim Township are this countys most underfunded districts. Were glad to see that they both fare well in Wolfs budget plan. As Geli reported, Conestoga Valley would see a 6.3 percent increase in funding, from $4.85 million to $5.15 million. Manheim Township would see a 4.3 percent increase, from $6.33 million to $6.59 million. Unfortunately, another of this countys underfunded districts the School District of Lancaster would get the lowest percent basic education funding increase under Wolfs budget: just 1.9 percent, from $64.93 million to $66.15 million. As she's done repeatedly, Lancaster Superintendent Damaris Rau called on lawmakers to fund our schools fully and in an equitable way. Districts like ours, she said, with large numbers of students living in poverty, need significant resources to close opportunity gaps for our students. We would echo her call. Despite a few disappointments in his proposed budget, we believe Wolf has his priorities straight. Education and workforce development are essential to Pennsylvanias present and future prosperity. Heres hoping for a drama-free budget process this year. The National Weather Service is calling for up to 6 inches of snow mixed with ice for Lancaster and surrounding counties through Tuesday. It issued a winter weather advisory from 7 p.m. Sunday to 7 a.m. Monday for Lancaster, Dauphin, Lebanon and York counties, followed by a winter storm watch for the same counties from noon Monday to noon Tuesday. The weather service called for light snow Sunday night with an accumulation of about 2 inches by sunrise Monday. It said total snow accumulations of 3 to 6 inches and ice accumulation of one-tenth of an inch were possible by Tuesday. A winter storm will affect Central PA Monday afternoon through Tuesday evening. Precipitation will start as snow for all and then transition to a wintry mix of sleet and freezing rain. Hazardous travel expected Monday PM and Tuesday AM/PM. Latest: https://t.co/D46poxbBDq #PAwx pic.twitter.com/rTFdvYErZk NWS State College (@NWSStateCollege) February 11, 2019 It will be the heavier precipitation which will occur from midday Monday into Tuesday which will cause more significant problems, it said, adding people should plan on difficult travel conditions during the evening commute Monday and morning commute Tuesday. Millersville University meteorologist Eric Horst tweeted Sunday afternoon that snow would redevelop Monday afternoon with a second storm dropping up to 4 inches before the precipitation changes to sleet and freezing rain overnight. Horst tweeted the second storm has loads of Gulf moisture ready to attack the Arctic high pressure parked to our North. This is a classic wintry mix set up for Lanco. (1 of 2) Another wild & crazy forecast (read "challenging") for the next 60 hours. Tonight's system is weak and moisture-starved, so I expect just few hours of light snow, sometime btwn 9pm-3am. Coating to 2 inches. The second storm is... E. Horst, MU WIC (@MUweather) February 10, 2019 (2 of 2) ...has loads of Gulf moisture ready to attack the Arctic high pressure parked to our North. This is a classic "wintry mix" set up for Lanco. Snow redevelops Monday afternoon with 1 - 4" likely before change to sleet & freezing rain overnight. Temps will hold... E. Horst, MU WIC (@MUweather) February 10, 2019 The heaviest snow from the first storm was expected to fall between 10 p.m. Sunday and 3 a.m. Monday, according to AccuWeather, which also called for the chance of patchy freezing drizzle later Sunday night. Sunday's high was slated to reach 38 degrees, with sunny conditions for most of the day, followed by increasing cloud coverage until Sunday night, forecasts AccuWeather. A snowy, icy, slushy mess is in our near future as a two-part winter storm unfolds across the region this evening thru Tuesday evening, Horst tweeted Sunday morning. LNP/LancasterOnline periodically curates readers' letters to the editor on a variety of issues facing the county -- and beyond. Last week, we asked you to write us, and let us know whether you were in favor, or not in favor, of legalizing marijuana, be it for medical or recreational use. We received quite a few letters. The results? Inconclusive. This is a matter that continues to have equally polarizing responses. Here are a few readers' responses. Note: Letters may be cut down for the sake of space, but the link will redirect you to their entire letter. Legalize it "Legalizing recreational cannabis is really the only thing that makes sense (Into the weeds, Feb. 3 Sunday LNP). We have how many citizens sitting in jail for nonviolent cannabis crimes? Cannabis is rarely addictive and proven to be medicinal. We need to explore its medicinal properties with studies that cant be achieved until the laws change. Studies show adolescent use does not increase with legalization. Some of the older generations may feel differently, but history has shown us that the older citizens in society are often reluctant to accept change." - Rachael Charnock, Manheim Township. "I dont think the prohibition against its recreational use is effective like other vices that were illegal in the past (alcohol and gambling) that were eventually legalized because fighting their use was unsustainable, expensive or subject to a vote of the citizens. Marijuana is here and being consumed and the government is powerless to stop it. Instead, we make criminals out of users who otherwise would be law-abiding citizens. A waste of taxpayers money, I say." - Joseph Manning, Warwick Township "Cannabis taxes have allowed other states to grow socioeconomic and environmental programs, both of which Pennsylvania badly needs. Cannabis should be available to adults over 21. I worry less about youths consuming cannabis than tobacco and alcohol products, though. I would prefer full legalization in Pennsylvania. I believe we should support small and medium businesses and work to become a green hub. I think our rich farming history and geographic location would make Pennsylvania (and especially Lancaster) prosperous. Black markets would suffer. If we just decriminalize marijuana, we lose any of the potential upside to the community, but do remove the downsides." - Kyle Wagner, Upper Leacock Township Do not legalize it "I oppose such legalization and agree with state Sen. Scott Martin (Risks of legalization far outweigh benefits) that this approach for recreational marijuana has troubling implications. Most troubling is the financial incentive expressed by our state Auditor General Eugene DePasquale to legalize marijuana (States approach to marijuana must evolve). Reducing the cost of criminal incarceration and implementing a 35 percent tax on marijuana so we dont miss out on $581 million in revenue to the state would be an expected position to be taken by a fiscal specialist. DePasquale states that more than half of the 2,200 people who were sentenced to prison for marijuana possession in 2018 had only a small amounts of the drug. Thats a number hardly putting a strain on our law enforcement and prison systems. Incarceration is a nonissue in this conversation. Why is it that money, while it can be the root of all evil, can also be considered the holy grail to solve a problem? Lets be honest: The motivation for legalization is revenue ($581 million) for the state, not concern for helping the user to resist smoking pot and kick a habit." - Gerry Ganse, Manheim Township "There is already huge pain and death caused by substances taking over peoples minds and bodies. Adding marijuana will not be good socially or spiritually. This is especially true for young people, who are just developing maturity in decisions. I am in favor of encouraging ways to build up those in Lancaster County, not hurt them." - Jean Groff, Mount Joy "Marijuana is known to be harmful and causes people to do things irresponsibly. Is it the fix to stopping heroin addiction? Maybe, maybe not. But itll get more people under the influence. Its used as a medicine in altered forms and by smoking it. Why? Because it alters your senses. Telling yourself you can control yourself in that state, youre not honest. We know its addictive; thats why officials want to place limits on usage by teens if legalized. They tried the same with alcohol. The state makes a bundle, but how did the rules to keep kids away work out? Did the same with gambling theres a phone number to call if you think you have a problem. Hows that working out? Thinking this is the miracle to solving the states money issues is ridiculous. States that also thought that now are reducing their tax rates on it because they found more people are using it, but not buying it through the state-regulated system. No kidding; if you can buy anything cheaper somewhere else, what are you going to do? Its time Harrisburg finds ways to reduce spending and eliminate programs that cost us with little or no return and learn how to budget." - Ralph Brightbill, North Cornwall Township Where do you stand on the issue? Leave a comment and let us know. Forty years after the worst nuclear plant accident in U.S. history, the fight to save that facility and potentially Pennsylvanias entire nuclear future is about to pick up steam in the state Capitol. Three Mile Island, still infamous for its partial meltdown in March 1979, is scheduled to begin shutting down in September. Beaver Valley Nuclear Power Station in Beaver County is planned to close in 2021. And in an electric market that pits aging and expensive nuclear plants against cheaper and less labor-intense natural gas, some say Pennsylvanias three other nuclear plants wont be far behind. The timeline for lawmakers to intervene preventing what advocates say would be a devastating loss for the environment, grid reliability and the economy is unforgiving. To save TMI, legislation needs to be introduced, vetted, passed through both chambers and signed by the governor by the end of May, said state Sen. Ryan Aument, who has led the Nuclear Energy Caucus for the last two years. His group quietly announced its official proposed fix last week, stating in memos that upcoming legislation will include nuclear energy in the states Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards. That would essentially force consumers to pick up part of the tab in compensating plants for their zero carbon-emissions impact. Gov. Tom Wolf, who recently announced his ambitious greenhouse gas reduction plan, said in an interview last week he hasnt considered the legislation yet because it hasnt been fully formulated. But he said he is personally focused on what happens to the plant workers and communities around them. The legislation will be finalized in the coming weeks, and then the aggressive timeline really kicks in, said Aument, a Lancaster County Republican whose district borders TMI. The issue is sort of the worst when it comes to legislative issues that Ive experienced in Harrisburg, he said. Its urgent. Its expensive. Its complicated. And its irreversible once this process begins to prematurely shut these plants down. Nuclear energy in PA Impacted businesses, employees and the union leaders who represent them are expected to lobby frequently in the coming months for an industry that has a wide-reaching footprint and history in Pennsylvania. Representing 42 percent of Pennsylvanias energy output, nuclear is the single biggest energy generator in the state and puts the Keystone State behind only Illinois in nuclear production. It plays a role in providing about 4,700 full-time jobs directly and about 11,200 other indirect jobs including 675 full-time jobs at risk this year if TMI closes, according to a 2016 study from the The Brattle Group, a Boston-based economic consultant that is referred to frequently in the Nuclear Energy Caucus report. So when those jobs looked like they were about to vanish a couple years ago after TMI lost $800 million in five years and Exelon, its owner, couldnt sell the plants energy at the grid-operator PJM Interconnection auctions Aument and others decided to step in. Aument, along with the sponsor of his bill in the House, Rep. Thomas Mahaffie, warned in the legislative memos they circulated last week that if all five Pennsylvania plants housing nine reactors would be decommissioned, it could mean a $4.6 billion hit based on increased electricity costs, lost gross domestic product and associated pollution costs caused by new carbon emissions. Alternative energy Established in 2004, Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards the Nuclear Energy Caucus preferred solution requires electricity distributors and suppliers to ensure that 18 percent of all electricity they buy in 2021 is from alternative energy resources like solar and wind. The standards break sources into two tiers. In 2017, the most frequent renewables in Tier 1 were wind, wood and wood waste solids, and landfill gas electricity generation, according to the latest standards report. In Tier 2, waste, coal and hydro-pumped storage make up almost all of it. Nuclear would be incorporated as a new third tier. Heres how it would work: Distributors would be directed to buy a certain amount of their energy from nuclear (the specific amount is still being discussed), and the cost increase would get passed down to customers. Lawmakers have also discussed the possibility of including additional forms of renewables, possibly in the new third tier with nuclear. Rep. Greg Vitali, the ranking Democrat on the House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee and one of the General Assemblys fiercest environmental advocates, said he agrees with the approach if its done in a reasonable way. At the end of the day, this is going to result in transferring a huge amount of our constituents money to a very wealthy corporation Exelon so we have to make sure that we get the best deal for the people of Pennsylvania, and that may involve legislation including more renewables, Vitali said. That huge amount is the all-important question moving forward. The bills sponsors say the move, under the details theyre still drafting, could cost every energy customer in the state about $2 more every month. But the total price tag is still a mystery. A fiscal analysis, possibly by a firm outside the Legislature, will be necessary after the bill is formally introduced, Aument said. Aument likens it to one of the largest and most debated initiatives the General Assembly tackled in recent years the $2.3 billion infrastructure bill in 2014. That cost was passed down right to consumers through gas tax hikes and various other fees. If we fail to make this investment now, Aument said, the solution is going to be far more costly, far more expensive in the future with I think devastating consequences on our environment and economy, similar to the consequences we would have felt had we done nothing on transportation, in terms of crumbling infrastructure and bridges and highways. Right solution? Proponents of the plan say its necessary to keep around a form of clean energy, but also because consumers will otherwise be increasingly exposed as gas companies build a near-monopoly in the market. Dr. Gregory Reed, director of the University of Pittsburghs Center for Energy and Energy Grid Institute, said the proposed standards would definitely be an effective solution in the short term and, hopefully, the long term. The program has been successful (even if its successful at a minimum level, in his opinion), so the incentives would give a boost to the plants, he said. In terms of grid resiliency and reliability, some argue that Pennsylvanias status as an energy exporter shows theres enough electricity production to keep the state and regional 13-state grid reliable without TMI and Beaver Valley. Reeds concern, he said, is if there is a domino effect with the states three other nuclear plants closing in the coming years and he thinks there would be the question becomes where that replacement generation would come from. We could probably absorb the impact of maybe one or two (closures), but you start to get beyond 20 percent (of the total generation) and then you start to see the impact of what thats going to mean in the carbon emission component and the grid stability, Reed said. Climate change Another one of those looming questions is how Wolfs latest environmental policy agenda will play a role in the outcome. Last month he signed an executive order establishing new greenhouse gas emissions goals a reduction of 26 percent by 2025, based on 2005 levels, and of 80 percent by 2050. Nuclear proponents say those thresholds will not only be impossible to reach without nuclear energy, but that losing nuclear would almost immediately wipe out previous gains made by investing in renewables in the last 15 years. The existing plants account for 93 percent of Pennsylvanias clean energy output. Wolf, when asked if he can meet his carbon goals without nuclear, told The Caucus that a lot of it depends on how fast we move toward solar and wind in the future, and what actually is in the portfolio standards moving forward. On the other side, he may be faced with environmental advocates and others still concerned about nuclears effects. Eric Epstein, whose watchdog group Three Mile Island Alert launched in 1977, indicated in a joint letter to senators last week that his group believes the zero-emissions aspect of nuclear is mythology when all aspects of the industry are taken into account. Aument, meanwhile, acknowledged hes come to a kind of evolution on the issue as hes learned about the public health detriments of climate change, such as the effects of poor air quality. He said his party hasnt yet caught up on that end. From a political perspective, I think Republicans are going to have problems, rightfully so, with some key constituencies in the suburban areas of the state, and particularly among younger voters, if we cant speak intelligently about climate change, if we dont recognize this as an issue and cant begin to talk about solutions, Aument said. Winners and losers Other opposition will come in the form of a reluctance to interfere in the competitive energy market that was deregulated two decades ago. Citizens Against Nuclear Bailouts whose members include familiar names such as the Marcellus Shale Coalition, Americans for Prosperity Pennsylvania, NFIB Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania Manufacturers Association point out that nuclear power plants made more than $600 million in profits in 2018, according to the PJM Market Monitoring Plan, and only TMI reported being in the red. When asked if Exelon supports the plan to move nuclear into the alternative energy standards, company spokesman Paul Adams said in a statement that its an important next step toward valuing the carbon-free energy that nuclear provides Pennsylvania. Moving quickly With the tight time frame in a General Assembly that, as Aument says, doesnt have a great track record of moving quickly on issues, he and others know its going to be a heavy lift. One potential element Aument might have going for him right off the bat is a few close allies in the neighboring chamber. House Majority Leader Bryan Cutler hasnt yet committed to a solution, but his personal friendship with Aument dates back to elementary school in southern Lancaster County. Cutler has not said explicitly what he will support but said at a recent Pennsylvania Press Club lunch he had some questions about what a less-diverse energy portfolio would mean for consumers if and when gas prices go up. Aument, for now, isnt making any promises. Im optimistic but Im not kidding myself. I know its a challenge, a significant challenge, he said. Nearly four years after it banned staff from advocating for climate change-related policies, the state Board of Commissioners of Public Lands unanimously voted to lift what it called a gag order. The board, made up of the states three constitutional officers, had passed the order banning public lands staff from climate change advocacy in April 2015. The ban was proposed after commissioners learned then-executive secretary Tia Nelson who is the daughter of Earth Day founder Gaylord Nelson had served on a task force on global warming. At that time, two of the three commissioners were Republicans Brad Schimel, then-state attorney general, and Matt Adamczyk, then-state treasurer. Both voted for the ban while Democrat Doug La Follette, secretary of state, cast the opposing vote. In defense of the ban, Adamczyk said at the time that climate change is unrelated to the boards mission of managing lands and trust funds. Now, with all three positions held by Democrats La Follette, who is still secretary of state, Attorney General Josh Kaul and Treasurer Sarah Godlewski the ban was repealed. Not taking climate change into consideration is completely reckless, Godlewski, who is also the board chairwoman, said Friday. But Public Service Commission staff have questioned the economics, prompting concerns from consumer advocates. The Citizens Utility Board, which represents residential and small-business customers, says staff raised valid concerns about the benefits and whether future policy decisions could leave customers having to fund additional investments. All of the decisions are being made now about what costs customers are going to shoulder, said CUB executive director Tom Content. Our risk is all up front, but our payoff could be questionable down the road. It will be up to the three-member PSC to determine whether purchasing the solar farms will impair the utilities efficiency, exceed their future needs or increase the cost of service without also increasing the value or quality of service. The commission is separately considering private developers plans to build the two solar farms, which have generated some opposition from neighbors. Cost-effective By most measures, utility-scale solar is now one of the least expensive sources of new electricity generation. There is growing concern in the scientific and public health community that chronic wasting disease, which is killing deer in Minnesota, Wisconsin and elsewhere, could jump to people someday. That unsettling news surfaced at a hearing Thursday at the Minnesota Capitol, where a number of experts from the University of Minnesota pressed upon lawmakers that the disease should be treated as a public health issue a major expansion of its current scope as mostly a wildlife and hunting concern. The issue is especially pressing for Minnesota, where wildlife officials are tracking the states largest outbreak of CWD yet in deer in the southeast portion of the state, including Winona County. No person is known to have gotten sick from eating or handling a CWD-infected deer. But scientists have always been wary of it because the disease is spread via extremely hardy protein molecules, known as prions, making it similar to mad cow disease, which did jump from cows to people. Mad cow disease is also fatal and without a cure. Michael Osterholm, director for the University of Minnesotas Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy who sat on a panel of experts tracking the emergence of mad cow disease, or BSE, decades ago, told lawmakers this: Lisa Hartig, president, said shes impressed by the soldiers dedication. Theyre so upset if they cant get that tooth fixed and be deployed, she said. Its our job to take care of these men and women who protect us. Complete Mobile Dentistry is one of several dental care providers for the military. For the National Guard work, the company partners with La Crosse-based Logistics Health Inc. The DeForest company has 23 sets of dental exam equipment and nine sets of dental treatment equipment, which it ships around the country from its warehouse. We ship out everything; were not even allowed to use the militarys paper, Ken Hartig said. The equipment might come back from Connecticut on a Tuesday and it needs to be in Colorado on a Thursday. The company is adding seven employees at its headquarters, for a total staff there of 23. It is also increasing its staff of dental hygienists and dental assistants from the equivalent of 48 full-time positions to 222; those people are spread out around the country. Dentists and oral surgeons work at the National Guard and Army clinics as independent contractors. The negotiations ended after La Crosse insisted on including the regional service fee in the agreement and La Crescent refused, saying theres no methodology to collect that fee or pay it to La Crosse without state intervention. Its not that were trying to be difficult or anything like that. Ive just never been told in negotiations that I had to agree to something before we could go any further, La Crescent Mayor Mike Poellinger said. You cant negotiate if you wont talk, and in our position, we were following what we were allowed to do in Minnesota. La Crescent has agreements with La Crosse for mutual aid for fire and police, as well as sewer and the La Crosse Municipal Transit Utility. We dont ask for anything for nothing. We want to pay for that. But all of those fees need to go to the state of Minnesota and be approved by the governor, Poellinger said. La Crescent cant commingle those agreements and funds, he said, due to state restrictions, and it would be difficult to wade into state politics and change that. We only wanted to update the map and not get into changing the whole contract, Poellinger said. Support Local Journalism Your membership makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} An hour later, Christian was getting warm at the hospital, flanked by his grandma, brother and brothers girlfriend. My brother was crying, Christian said. My grandma was pissed. Christian recounts this story, in vivid and sometimes vulgar detail, a few feet from the school coordinator, Dorothy Hart. Hart hates when he swears, when he talks about drug use, but she can see far enough into Christian, into his past, to accept who he is. She knows that he bounced between his mom in California and his dad in La Crosse, as both parents grappled with substance abuse. She knows that, as a boy, he worked long hours so his family could afford groceries, and that his dad sometimes withheld food as a way to punish him. She knows that he has long struggled with his mental health, once trying to shoot himself with a .22 he had gotten for Christmas, only for the gun to jam. And she knows that he has dealt with many more trying circumstances and toxic influences dealt with them, and risen above them. Area business leaders will discuss how they use data to boost sales and make key decisions during the Economics Indicators breakfast at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse on Feb. 28. Taggert Brooks, an economics professor at UW-L, will provide an update on the economy in the 7 Rivers Region before a panel of local business people share how data is changing the way they operate. The event is sponsored by State Bank Financial, the UW-L College of Business Administration and the La Crosse Tribune. Were living in a unique time where were awash in data but dont have the time or bandwidth to handle the analysis of it, Brooks said. Say youre a grocery store or Kwik Trip, and you have loyalty cards. Every time someone scans their card, you get all this data about the customer and frequency of purchase. You can do a lot of things with that data. The next step is figuring out how to use that data to improve your business and improve your market share. Anne Hlavacka, director of the Wisconsin Small Business Development Center at UW-L, said the influx of data is similar to the social media movement of five or 10 years ago. Feb. 28 will be the last day for the Royal Indian Cuisine restaurant at 235 Sand Lake Road, in the Center 90 shopping center in Onalaska. My lease is up, said Gerrard Perera, who has owned the business for the past 3 years. And Im expecting to be deployed soon, said Perera, who is in the Air Force Reserve. For the last month (of business), were not running buffets, Perera told me last week, adding that customers can order from the restaurants menu. The restaurant features Indian cuisine and was opened by a previous owner in February 2015. Royal Indian Cuisine is open for lunch from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. every day except Tuesday, and is open for dinner from 5 to 10 p.m. daily. For more information, call the restaurant at 608-519-3033 or visit www.indiancuisineonalaskawi.com or its Facebook page. Prestige Furniture opened Feb. 1 in its new location, the former Jeris Hallmark store across from Gloria Jeans Gourmet Coffees in Valley View Mall. The Blair company sells lefse under its own Countryside Lefse and Hungry Troll labels. It also makes lefse for a few other companies that is sold under their labels. There are several lefse-making businesses in Minnesota, Olson said, but he knows of no others in Wisconsin. There might be a small one somewhere that he doesnt know about, he said. There used to be a few small ones here and there in Wisconsin. Countryside Lefse employs more than 20 people throughout the year, and as many as 30 during the busy fall season. Olsons parents started the business in 1967 in the basement of their Countryside Drive-in in Blair. They needed to have a product in the off-season because it got so quiet in the fall at the drive-in, he said. The lefse business moved in the late 1960s to a former meat locker in downtown Blair. An electrical fire destroyed that building on Jan. 23, 2003. After that, Countryside Lefse operated temporarily in the former Gopher Glove building in Independence until its new Blair plant opened in October 2003 at 1101 E. Broadway St. Its in an industrial park on the communitys east side. The plant is larger and has a better layout than the previous Blair location. A recent commentary in the Journal Times charged that Senators Feinstein and Harris erred in asking whether a judge with Catholic faith could faithfully uphold U.S. laws. Article VI of the Constitution maintains that no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States. Hence, religious faith or lack thereof does not, by itself, bar persons from public office. However, a voter may consider the faith of a candidate when casting a vote. The issue is complicated. Do judges owe primary allegiance to their religious faith or to their public oath of office if an issue arises wherein the two come into conflict? In a 1998 Law Review article, Amy Barrett, Professor of Law at Notre Dame and recently nominated for a lifetime seat on a Federal Appeals Court, asserted: We believe that Catholic judges (if they are faithful to the teachings of their church) are morally precluded from enforcing the death penalty. Hence faith, at times, should trump U.S. law. Could this principle also apply to Catholic Supreme Court justices in cases involving abortion? Should such judges recuse themselves in such cases? The samples, collected by UW-Parkside students and tested at the University of Wisconsin Laboratory of Hygiene, showed unsafe levels of boron, arsenic, copper, lead, manganese and more metals. The CPC published the test results on its website on Feb. 7. Three sites were chosen because they were close to the plant and were publicly accessible: a stream along the bike path west of the power plant, another along County Line Road and a culvert south of the power plant. Samples were collected on June 14 (the summer test results) and Nov. 16 (winter test results) and were sent to the Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene in Madison for testing for heavy metals. The samples collected in the summer had levels of boron, aluminum and manganese higher than the public health standard for drinking water. The winter samples contained high levels of those metals plus arsenic, cadmium, chromium, cobalt, copper, lead, nickel and vanadium. During the second round of testing, the coalition also collected samples from a creek at the Eco-Justice Center, 7133 Michna Road, and another creek at Seven Mile Road, both in Caledonia. CPC representative Miranda Ehrlich said nothing concerning was found at those locations. Caveats and unclear connection to power plant RACINE All five groups of young Racine Unified musicians that performed Saturday for Wisconsin School Music Association judges received top marks. I think it went pretty well considering all of us were pretty nervous, said Horlick senior and bassoon player Caroline Konen. The Horlick symphonic band was last to play at Park High School, 1901 12th St. on Saturday morning. Parks concert band kicked things off at that morning, followed by three groups from Gifford School, the grades seven and eight string orchestras and the concert band and finally Horlick High Schools symphonic band. Fired up about music The Horlick symphonic band played a piece familiar to pop culture aficionados, Carmina Burana by Carl Orff. The first act O Fortuna has been featured in numerous films, film trailers, television shows and video games. Most recently, it was featured in American Horror Story: Apocalypse. You cannot go wrong with that piece, said judge Paul Hefner, who is band director at the Music Institute of Chicago. Fantastic piece used in so many movies and they did an outstanding job. RACINE At 2:18 a.m. on Dec. 30, the Racine County Dispatch Center received a 911 phone call from a local man as a tragic series of events began to unfold. The caller said his girlfriend, 40-year-old Valencia Days, was suicidal and had driven her vehicle into Lake Michigan. The caller said Days told him her green SUV was floating somewhere along the citys shore, naming the oasis or North Beach as potential locations. He then gave dispatchers her phone number, urging them to call her. What happened and didnt happen in the hour after that call came in has been closely scrutinized and debated, including the fact that the Racine Fire Department left the lakeshore before the county dive team responded and did not put its rescue boat in the water that night. The Fire Department has since announced it is pulling out of the Racine County Water Response Team, also known as the county dive team, and some officials, including the sheriff, are saying the Fire Department should have done more when it responded to the call. Filling with water Less than a minute after receiving the call from the boyfriend, dispatchers called Days. As her car filled with water, she was audibly panicked as she told dispatch she was near Pershing Park and said she feared rescue crews would not get to her in time. Then the call disconnected. At 2:24 a.m., the Racine Police Department, Fire Department and Racine County Sheriffs deputies were dispatched to Pershing Park to search for Days and her vehicle. At 2:27 a.m., the entire county dive team was called. According to Racine County dispatch records, at 2:25, the RFD responded to the call. Between 2:28 and 2:31 a.m., RFD personnel arrived at Pershing Park, records show. RFD: We are on scene at Pershing Park here and we are not seeing anything. Do you have anything further? Dispatch: Negative at this time. Her phone died. We are trying to ping the phone at this time. At 2:34 a.m., a RFD unit with the departments boat reports that it is en route. That unit arrives at 2:38 a.m. Six minutes later, the RFD asks for a location update. None is available from dispatch. Fire crews, as well as squads from the Racine Police Department and Sheriffs Office search various locations along the lakefront for Days vehicle. Then, at 2:51 a.m., the first RFD unit informs dispatch it is returning to quarters. At 2:53 a.m., records show that the on-duty Fire Department battalion chief calls for all RFD units to return to quarters. By 3:04 a.m., all RFD units had returned to their respective stations somewhere between 33 and 36 minutes after initially responding to the call. I can say without hesitation and with supreme confidence, if our rescue divers had a general area where the vehicle may have gone into the water, they would have deployed immediately to attempt a rescue, said Racine Fire Chief Steve Hansen, noting his personnel could find not any physical evidence that indicated where a vehicle may have entered the water. At 3:33 a.m., county dive team members, one of whom was coming from Burlington, had picked up a boat and were en route to Pershing Park. At 3:50 a.m., other dive team members arrived on scene, and deployed a dive boat with sonar equipment to look for the submerged vehicle. At about 6:49 a.m., Days vehicle was found in about 8 feet of water at the Fifth Street Boat Launch. As the sun rose that Sunday morning, the body of Days was brought to the lakes surface. The Golden Hour Racine County Sheriffs Office Captain Bradley Friend, co-captain of the dive team, was there when Days was pulled out of the water. Friend, who used a sonar machine on a boat to find Days and her vehicle, said the RFDs actions on Dec. 30 were unacceptable. The Racine Fire Department elected to leave the scene and return to quarters after 36 minutes of land-based searching and did not wait to confer with any incoming Racine County Dive Team units, Friend said. If someone had spotted the submerged vehicle within this Golden Hour, the Racine Fire Department would have had to be re-dispatched, wasting precious time that may have affected a rescue rather than a recovery. The Golden Hour refers to the time immediately following a traumatic injury or incident in which medical intervention may save a person. Friend and other officials, including Racine County Sheriff Christopher Schmaling, Kansasville Fire and Rescue Chief Scott Remer and South Shore Fire Department Chief Bob Stedman, argue that the RFD did not spend enough time searching and left prematurely without utilizing their resources. Im angered and disappointed with the Racine Fire and Rescues decision to abort after just 34 minutes when it was abundantly clear a life was at stake, Schmaling said. This is completely unacceptable. The Days family and all citizens of Racine County expect and deserve better! Questions raised The incident has left many questions for Friend, and others in the first-responder community. Why did they not launch their boat and deploy sonar assets to search for the vehicle? asked Friend. If they had taken the same information we did and acted on it, there is a chance that they too would have found the vehicle within the Golden Hour of potential rescue. Instead, they chose to not utilize a vital piece of equipment they possessed. Hansen reiterated that the RFD was not given an exact location to search, making it difficult to determine where Days vehicle entered the water. He also noted that it was dark, and said his department looked at the water and shoreline for signs of where a vehicle may have entered the water and checked to see if they could see a vehicle in the water before leaving the scene. It is exceptionally easy in hindsight based on where the vehicle was actually found to say we should have started in the Fifth Street Boat ramp, Hansen said. Even when the sheriffs boat started searching with their sonar, they did not immediately find the vehicle. Hansen also said that the safety of his department personnel was also a factor to consider in the incident. In a risk management scenario, after a certain period of time, as public safety officials, we must weigh the value of risking the lives of the living (firefighters, paramedics and divers) for a tragically deceased individual with no known location at night on a dark lakefront and in zero-visibility water, Hansen said. Dispatch issues On Tuesday, The Journal Times received a copy of an email from South Shore Fire Chief Robert Stedman addressed to Hansen. The email, which Stedman admits he wrote but did not provide to the newspaper, mentions the RFD withdrawing from the Racine County dive team as of July 1. The email implies that the events of Dec. 30 may have been a motivating factor. Many local fire chiefs, as well as Racine County Executive Jonathan Delagrave, are copied on Stedmans email, which alleges that Hansen blamed the recovery of Days on dispatchers and the county dive team. ...instead of blasting dispatch and the RCWRRT (dive team), and even more importantly, dividing the paid departments from the volunteer fire departments, take some ownership from what the RFD did or did not do that night of the drowning, Stedman writes in the email. Make it a learning experience, as we all have and need them! Hansen argues that while he did question dispatch officials as to why the call came in as a life-support call and not a drowning, he denies blaming the incident on dispatch. While the RFD and Racine County Communications Center dont always agree, he says, they have a professional and appropriate relationship. Dispatch records do not indicate any argument between RFD officials and dispatch during the night in question. It should be stated emphatically that the Racine County Communications Center did an outstanding job under the most trying of conditions to help facilitate a rescue, Hansen said. This was a highly emotional situation the calls takers and dispatchers were under and their skill and training during the incident is a reflection of their exceptional professionalism. Friend says he was present during a January post-incident meeting and said that Hansen was critical of dispatch during that meeting. Dive team withdrawal The Racine Fire Department has been a member of the Racine County Dive Team since 2004, but that partnership will soon end. Hansen announced the withdrawal in a Jan. 30 letter to Remer, who co-chairs the county dive team with Friend. Unfortunately, we have reached a point in time where there are significant operational and philosophical differences between our agency and the RCWRRT (Racine County Water Response Team), the letter states. Friend and Remer both say that Hansen and the RFD have never fully participated in the dive team. We dont work as a one-man band, we work as a team. He (Hansen) criticizes, ridicules and constantly tries to change things, Remer said. Friend said the RFD does not take part in the Racine County dive team Board of Directors, monthly meetings and training exercises nor does it take interest in the dive teams planning or policy-making. Chief Hansens team operates in isolation, unwilling to work as a unified team or admit that there may be a time that they do not have the personnel, training to equipment to conduct an operation, Friend said. In his letter, Hansen lays out differences with the dive team. Hansen takes issue with the fact that joint dispatch puts out a call for the entire dive team for all water-related emergencies in the county, something he views as unnecessary. The fire chief or incident commander in the jurisdiction where the water-related incident was occurring was, and is, in the best position to determine what additional resources, other than the Sheriffs Office, should be called, Hansen said. Mutual aid Secondly, Hansen believes the Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS), which allows first responders to call for assistance from other departments when they have exhausted all their own resources or are in need of specialized equipment or personnel, should be used when dealing with water-related emergencies. MABAS is a multi-state mutual-aid system used in nearly every county in Wisconsin. Without using the MABAS system, Hansen said, the city is liable for injuries of outside personnel who respond to assist on a call. One of my ongoing concerns as fire chief is the liability exposure for the city by responding to or receiving help from other fire departments without a formal intergovernmental agreement (like MABAS) in place. Friend contends that the Dive Team is a part of MABAS Division 102, which encompasses Racine County, and says that the teams bylaws protect each jurisdictions liability. Chief Hansen feels his team can handle any incidents in his local jurisdiction and feels that additional support from incoming agencies who are part of the Racine County Dive Team are unmanageable and a waste of resources, Friend said. This call on Dec. 30 proved his justification wrong. After they withdraw, Hansen said the RFD would still respond to water calls throughout the county when requested. The Racine Fire Department, with all its significant water rescue response resources and 28-plus certified open water, ice rescue and swift water certified divers are more than happy and willing to continue responding to any community in the county and on any inter-divisional response at the MABAS Box Alarm level or greater (standardized-tiered response), Hansen said. Inter-divisional refers to responses from outside the county. Remer, Friend and Schmaling said that the rest of the dive team will continue to work well together, even after the RFD withdraws. As commander of the Sheriffs Office Dive Team of 15 very competent individuals, I am reliant on the professionalism, skills and equipment of other agencies that make up our county-wide Dive Team, Friend said. We train as a team, we function as a team and we respond as a team. I can say without hesitation and with supreme confidence, if our rescue divers had a general area where the vehicle may have gone into the water, they would have deployed immediately to attempt a rescue. Racine Fire Chief Steve Hansen Im angered and disappointed with the Racine Fire and Rescues decision to abort after just 34 minutes when it was abundantly clear a life was at stake. Racine County Sheriff Christopher Schmaling Love 2 Funny 0 Wow 3 Sad 2 Angry 9 Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. The nabobs of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science planning the Oscar awards telecast werent thinking clearly when they were trying to decide on an emcee for this years show. They should have come to Racine and recruited John Van Thiel, the Elvis impersonator. As I see it, an Elvis impersonator running the show would bring back many people who have been boycotting the awards shows in recent years. And to introduce the various award presenters, the academy committee should have contracted Scott Walker, former Wisconsin governor, and Paul Ryan, former speaker of the House of Representatives, who arent doing anything. Because the envelopes bearing the winners names are sealed, the nominees would be wise to have Racine Ald. Sandy Weidner, who knows a thing or two about sealed public records, in the area to make sure every sealed envelope is properly opened. One reason I dont watch the Oscars shows is that I am not a movie goer. The nominations mean little. My movie watching is mostly old westerns on TV. Well, I did take in The Post. It was about the Washington Post and the Pentagon Papers. But my hearing has gone south and I couldnt press a closed caption button as I do with a TV remove control so I didnt hear the dialogue. The university has graduated a prime minister, three Nobel laureates and five Cabinet secretaries. Several senators, governors and members of Congress received degrees from the University of Nebraska, as have many influential academic, business, media and scientific leaders. Olympic gold medalists, Super Bowl champions, World Series winners and other world-class athletes competed on campus before earning international glory. Countless Nebraskans who never reached that level of renown used the education they attained from the university to better themselves, their families and communities. These success stories close to home represent why every $1 invested in the NU system returns $6 in benefits to the state. Thats why NUs impact has reached so far in its first 150 years and will only continue to grow going forward. To quote UNL Chancellor Ronnie Green from last months State of the University address: "Just as we stand on the shoulders of those who came before, they will stand on ours. What an awesome responsibility and opportunity." It certainly is. Everything you see today on campuses in Lincoln, Omaha, Kearney and Curtis is built upon this humble history and bold vision shared by some of Nebraskas earliest leaders. The same is also true of NUs future. Whatever the next 150 years and beyond hold for the University of Nebraska, its foundation is rooted in those origins and the unimaginable triumph of the foresight realized a century and a half ago. Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 7 Sad 0 Angry 1 The president touted his increased military buildup and budget, but spent much of his 16 minutes defending his planned troop withdrawals from Syria and Afghanistan. His remarks were obviously directed at keeping a promise to his base. They also were aimed at the hefty number of GOP senators in the chamber, led by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who voted last week to rebuke the president on those troop withdrawals. "Great nations do not fight endless wars," the president said, citing "almost 19 years" fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq. (Someone should tell him that Afghanistan is in Central Asia). He repeated his intent to withdraw 2,000 special forces from Syria. And on Afghanistan, he said "the hour has come to at least try for peace. And the other side (the Taliban) would like to do the same thing." What the president didn't say is that he never informed the top U.S. commander in the Mideast, Gen. Joseph Votel, before abruptly announcing the U.S. withdrawal on Twitter. Nor did he say that such a withdrawal will aid Iranian and Russian efforts to deepen their hold on Syria -- and put our Kurdish allies at dire risk. Or that a total withdrawal of 14,000 U.S. troops from Afghanistan is likely to lead to a Taliban takeover and, once again, to the crushing of Afghan women. But there's another way to explain the shift, and I think there's more evidence for it: Trump wasn't serious about either position. Trump did almost nothing to win support for the legal-immigration cuts. When 14 Republican senators joined almost all Democrats to vote against those cuts, he didn't even tweet about it. He hasn't returned to the topic of cutting legal immigration since then. We are used to presidents who have legislative priorities, stick to them and make deals with congressmen to advance them. President Trump is either unwilling or unable to do much of this work, even on his signature issue of immigration control. His copious day-to-day commentary is often disconnected from that work. A few days after losing the immigration vote, for example, he told a group of lawmakers that he favored taking guns away from the mentally ill before going to court, raising the age for buying rifles and taking on the National Rifle Association. He never followed through on any of it. Nobody really expected anything else: His own aides largely ignored his comments. Opinion UAE always comes to the aid of refugees When it comes to refugees, their condition can be summed up in these terms: homeless, helpless and hopeless. Take the plight of Syrian refugees for instance. There are thousands of Syrian refugees in Lebanon and Turkey among other countries. The point of ballot initiatives is to exert influence on the lawmaking process directly, but if legislatures undermine that process, it could ring hollow their purpose, she said. Jonathan Schleifer, executive director of The Fairness Project, which helped finance the Medicaid expansion initiatives last year, called the action by Utah and Idaho lawmakers outrageous. We were not surprised by it, but we are disappointed, Schleifer said. This shows how out of touch these legislators are with their constituents, and they are disrespecting families and the principles of basic democracy. The Fairness Project is funded by the Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West, a California union. Republican lawmakers say they want to meet the will of voters but are trying to control state spending at the same time. We need to put some sideboards on the expansion, said John Vander Woude, Idaho House majority caucus leader. He said the public did not know the true cost of the Medicaid expansion when it voted for it last fall. Both Eswar and Singh have had other accomplishments this school year. The Ramamurthy twins represented Lux in the state science bowl last weekend at Wayne State College, with Sankar as team captain, and they will go to Washington, D.C., in April for nationals. Singh won the Scott National Geographic BEE in December, and will take a written exam to compete for nationals in D.C. in March. Eswar said his win this year was "like a dream." "I was, like, 'What if I win three times?'" he said. "It was so great to have it become a reality." The Ramamurthy twins have been involved in spelling bees since the first grade, having gone to nationals for the North South Foundation, an East Indian-American association. Since the fifth grade, the two have been involved in the LPS competition. "We realized, 'Wow, I think I kind of like doing this,'" Eswar said. "And we were really good at spelling at school, and so we were, like, 'Maybe this is something we can pursue and do something with.'" Being on stage is their "comfort zone," said their mom, Bhuvana Gopal. "They love being in a setting where they can spell and show off their hard work," she said. Sen. Adam Morfeld of Lincoln is pushing for an early launch of the expanded Medicaid coverage in Nebraska directed by voters last November, but he recognizes that it might not occur until early next year. "I would like to see earlier implementation than that, but I understand there are a lot of moving pieces and I'm willing to work to assure that it's effectively accomplished," he said during an interview. The Department of Health and Human Services is looking at a start time early in 2020, Morfeld said. "People are asking when does it start, when can I sign up," the Lincoln senator said. "That helps define the sense of urgency that is felt by people who fall within the (health care) coverage gap. For them, it is an emergency." Morfeld headed the initiative petition drive that was spearheaded last year by Nebraska Appleseed. In the November general election, Nebraska voters approved expansion of Medicaid coverage to an estimated 90,000 Nebraskans, with Lincoln and Omaha voters providing the margin of victory along with voters in Sarpy County. "Thousands of old heritage hawkers -- proud, loud, humble, authentic -- are marching toward a cliff," said Seetoh, who has been keeping a running tab on his Facebook page of the latest dining destinations to close. "They're going to go down and into the sunset. Behind them are perhaps 10 new hawkers to replace them." Without them, Singapore wouldn't have its frenetic dining scene where unpretentious food reigns and the instinct to eat elbow-to-elbow with strangers forms the basis of community. Hawkers typically specialize in one thing, like a Hainanese chicken rice or bak kut teh, a pork rib soup, and rarely charge more than $4 a portion. Their artisan's way of cooking set standards high, making it hard to find a bad meal in this island nation. "We have professors coming from the U.S., and they go to our canteen here and they say, 'This is restaurant-type food and you pay two U.S. dollars. You guys are spoiled,' " said Malone-Lee Lai Choo, an expert on urban development at the National University of Singapore. Hawkers are the descendants of itinerant street food vendors who predate Singapore's founding in 1965. After nationhood, they were licensed and housed in pavilions located in or near public housing, where 80 percent of Singaporeans live today. 1. Comments must not be racist, misogynistic, homophobic, or otherwise bigoted. 2. Comments must not involve little more than name-calling and insulting remarks. 3. Comments must not be made by "anonymous" or "unknown". 4. Comments must not try to sneak in some free advertising for themselves (like spam). I invite anyone who wishes to comment on this blog to do so. I enjoy the comments, whether you agree with what I have said or not. But some people want to abuse the right to comment, and since this is my blog, I have decided to lay down the following rules. If your comment violates these rules, it will not be published. About Me William Kelly I am a freelance writer, journalist and historian whose major interests are music and history, with a special emphasis on the assassination of President Kennedy. View my complete profile Blog Archive Introduction In just 50 years, almost a million Jews, whose communities stretch back up to 3,000 years, have been 'ethnically cleansed' from 10 Arab countries. These refugees outnumber the Palestinian refugees two to one, but their narrative has all but been ignored. Unlike Palestinian refugees, they fled not war, but systematic persecution. Seen in this light, Israel, where some 50 percent of the Jewish population descend from these refugees and are now full citizens, is the legitimate expression of the self-determination of an oppressed indigenous, Middle Eastern people. This website is dedicated to preserving the memory of the near-extinct Jewish communities, which can never return to what and where they once were - even if they wanted to. It will attempt to pass on the stories of the Jewish refugees and their current struggle for recognition and restitution. Awareness of the injustice done to these Jews can only advance the cause of peace and reconciliation. (Iran: once an ally of Israel, the Islamic Republic of Iran is now an implacable enemy and numbers of Iranian Jews have fallen drastically from 80,000 to 20,000 since the 1979 Islamic revolution. Their plight - and that of all other communities threatened by Islamism - does therefore fall within the scope of this blog.) However, what he has notably not said that it is virtually impossible for the Iranian Regime to behave normally because the very foundation of the Regime is based on opposition to the West and no one is allowed to take any sort of political power in Iran if they oppose the ideology of the Supreme Leader. Of course, the US likely knows this, which is why Donald Trump and many of his foreign policy advisers have hinted at the goal of regime change. But the West is concerned that advocating for regime change, which is the true wish of the Iranian people, will lead to a nasty military entanglement, like in the case of Iraq. This is unwarranted though, as Iranian Resistance leader Maryam Rajavi has long said that the West can help ensure a free and democratic Iran through a combination of political advocacy, economic sanctions and diplomatic pressure; much of which are being applied in some form by many Western countries already. The Iranian Resistance believes change should be brought by and for the Iranian people; a message that has only grown stronger over the course of the past year as domestic anti-regime protests rocked the country. The Regime cracked down violently on these protests, but the US called international attention to them, even referencing the Iranian people as the longest-suffering victims of the Iranian Regime during a speech at the UN. This was a good first step, but the US needs to go further. It needs to build a consensus on Iran policy into order to usher along regime change by the people of Iran. Pompeo wants to use the Warsaw conference to build a coalition of opposition to Iranian efforts and many US allies seem like they will come on board. Even Europe may come around, considering the Iranian-backed terror threats theyve seen on their shores in the past year and Irans continued testing of a ballistic missile in spite of a UN Security Council resolution. Professor Ivan Sascha Sheehan, the executive director of the School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Baltimore, wrote: To chart a truly new course for Iran policy, the United States will have to persuade its allies to line up behind a new vision for Iran, specifically the vision of a free, democratic and modern society that rejects dictatorship. And that is the vision of Maryam Rajavi and the Iranian Resistance. The rally was widely covered by international news outlets. Fox news: PARIS Several thousand supporters of an exiled Iranian opposition group marched through Paris on Friday, calling for an end to Irans clerical regime 40 years after the Islamic revolution toppled Irans monarchy. The Mujahedeen-e-Khalq, widely referred to in the West as the MEK, were joined at the rally by an array of speakers before the march, from former and current French politicians to a one-time Algerian prime minister and a Syrian opposition figure. Crowds waved posters of group leader Maryam Rajavi and founder Massoud Rajavi not seen since 2003 in Iraq, where the MEK once had a camp and waged war against Iran before being disarmed by invading U.S. troops. The group bases its headquarters outside Paris with several thousand members in Albania, extracted in a U.N.-brokered effort from Iraq. Supporters are scattered elsewhere in the West as part of the Iranian diaspora. Security was tight during the rally and march through Paris Left Bank. The groups annual rally last year was the target of an alleged bomb plot, which was thwarted by arrests. An Austrian-based Iranian diplomat is being held in Belgium, where police found bomb material in the car of a couple of Iranian origin. As long as were dealing with the main state sponsor of terrorism, there is a concern But that will never stop us, MEK spokesman Shahin Gobadi said. The MEK hones to U.S. President Donald Trumps hard line on Iran, and supports U.S. sanctions on Iran. One speaker, former French Sen. Jean-Pierre Michel, said in an interview that Im not a fanatic of Mr. Trump but I think the United States is right about Iran. He chastised Europeans for what he views as their softer approach to Tehran. Euro News Paris: The Iranian diaspora reunited for a free Iran On the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution, a major demonstration took place in Paris in support of the uprising of the Iranian people this Friday. The Iranian diaspora has come together to demand a free Iran, for the defense of human rights and against the Iranian regimes terrorism. Sunday Express: Thousands of Iranians rallied and marched in Paris yesterday to mark the 40th anniversary of the Iran uprising which toppled the countrys monarchy. The powerful march swept through the streets of Paris, with the rhythms of the drums echoing as demonstrators chanted powerful slogans against the Iran regime. Protesters called on the global community to act now and end atrocities in Tehran but it was Europe which was most heavily condemned as the demonstrators stood behind US President Donald Trump for his tough stance on the regime. One speaker at the rally, former French Senator Jean-Pierre Michel, said in an interview: Im not a fanatic of Mr Trump but I think the United States is right about Iran. In a scathing attack, he also chastised Europes leaders for what he views as their softer approach to Tehran. He added: Open your eyes and ears. Retake the dignity that the status of Europe brings upon you, take back the dignity of the Europeans. Support the Iranian Resistance. Dr Alejo Vidal-Quadras, a former Spanish Member of the European Parliament, said: I call on the EU to take a hard line with this theocratic and terrorist regime which has no future. The EU must stop its appeasement policies and support the Iranian opposition instead of the mullahs. Appeasement only encourages the mullahs to commit more crimes in Iran and more terrorism in Europe. The EU has to put the entire Iranian Intelligence Ministry and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on its terrorism blacklist. The Washington Post: Several thousand supporters of an exiled Iranian opposition group marched through Paris on Friday, calling for an end to Irans clerical regime 40 years after the Islamic revolution toppled Irans monarchy. The Mujahedeen-e-Khalq, widely referred to in the West as the MEK, were joined at the rally by an array of speakers before the march, from former and current French politicians to a one-time Algerian prime minister and a Syrian opposition figure. Getty Images (AFP): RANCE-IRAN-POLITICS People hold pictures of Maryam Rajavi, leader of the Peoples Mujahedin of Iran, and former Iranian flags during a demonstration of the exiled Iranian opposition to protest against the celebration in Iran of the 40th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution, on February 8, 2019 in Paris. Getty Images (AFP): FRANCE-IRAN-POLITICS People walk on portraits of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani (bottom) and Irans Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (up) during a demonstration of the exiled Iranian opposition to protest against the celebration in Iran of the 40th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution, on February 8, 2019 in Paris. Getty Images (AFP): FRANCE-IRAN-POLITICS People walk on portraits of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani (bottom) and Irans Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (up) during a demonstration of the exiled Iranian opposition to protest against the celebration in Iran of the 40th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution, on February 8, 2019 in Paris. (Photo by / AFP) (Photo credit should read -/AFP/Getty Images) France3 TV Channel, 8 Feb 2019 Demonstration since the early afternoon, in Denfert Rochereau in Paris by the Iranian opposition on the 40th anniversary of the revolution that overthrow the Shah of Iran. The demonstrators supported the people of Iran who demand the end of this regime. The Peoples Mojahedin (MEK) reside at Auvers-sur-Oise in the Val dOise. Pune: NCP president Sharad Pawar said on Saturday that he was "worried" about Union minister Nitin Gadkari as he is being projected as a possible alternative to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a program in Solapur's Sangola on Saturday, Pawar said "Some people in BJP are putting forth Nitin Gadkari's name as the Prime Ministerial candidate. I am happy for him. Gadkari is a good friend. We have been friends since he was at the Legislative assembly with us. But now that his name is coming up for PM, I am getting worried for him," NCP leader Sharad Pawar has said. Gadkari, a senior BJP leader, was recently in the news when he was seen as taking swipes at Pawar's party's' top leadership after the Assembly poll losses in three states. The NCP president's remarks came hours after Amit Shah targeted Pawar for the corruption in Maharashtra, and challenged Pawar on his home turf of Baramati. Amit Shah had called for 'Mission Baramati', wherein he directed his booth workers to win Baramati Lok Sabha seat. Baramati is the Pawars' home turf for over three decades, an NCP stronghold. When asked about Amit Shah's comments, Pawar said there was no ban on dreaming in this country. He also took a jibe at the BJP saying he wondered why the BJP wanted only 45 of the 48 Lok Sabha seats. Talking about alliances in the state for Lok Sabha polls, Pawar said his party was not engaged in any talks for a tie-up with Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS). "Raj Thackeray has a great deal of support from the youth. But we have not had any talks regarding any agreement pertaining to elections with his party," said Pawar. The veteran leader also chanced upon the opportunity to respond to cabinet minister Chandrakantdada Patil's 'advice' to stay away from fighting the Lok Sabha polls. "I am glad that he is worried for my health. I hope he is equally worried for leaders like Advaniji from his own party. There are older leaders of the BJP who are still in the House," Pawar said. For the last few days, Gadkari's comments have been construed as advice to PM Modi. His remarks are considered as adverse comments on the current disposition. He is also being talked of as the alternate PM candidate. The Shiv Sena recently added oil to the fire by saying that it will support the BJP if Gadkari is declared the PM candidate. On that background, Pawar's statement assumes greater significance. FILE PHOTO: Fighters from Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are seen after arresting a wounded man during their fighting with Islamic State in the northern area of Deir al-Zor, Syria September 24, 2017. REUTERS/ Rodi Said/File Photo By Rodi Said QAMISHLI, Syria (Reuters) - The U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) began an assault against the final Islamic State enclave in eastern Syria on Saturday, aiming to wipe out the last vestige of the jihadist group's "caliphate" in the SDF's area of operations. President Donald Trump, who is planning to pull U.S. forces out of Syria, said on Wednesday he expected an announcement as early as next week that the U.S.-led coalition operating in support of the SDF had reclaimed all the territory previously held by the jihadist group. The enclave is close to the Iraqi border and comprises two villages, though Islamic State (IS) also still has territory in the part of Syria that is mostly under the control of the Russian- and Iranian-backed Syrian government. SDF official Mustafa Bali, speaking to Reuters, described the assault as "the last battle". He later wrote on Twitter that the attack had started and the enclave would "be cleared soon". The SDF had handled the last 10 days "patiently" as more than 20,000 civilians were evacuated from the besieged IS enclave, Bali said. Senior SDF official Redur Xelil told Reuters the force hoped to capture the area by the end of February, but cautioned that IS would continue to pose "great and serious" security threats even after that. Islamic State redrew the map of the Middle East in 2014 when it declared a caliphate across large areas of Syria and Iraq. But the group steadily lost ground and its two main prizes - the Syrian city of Raqqa and Iraq's Mosul - fell in 2017. SDF ADVANCE Two U.S. security sources said the U.S. governments top experts strongly believe IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is still alive and possibly hiding in Iraq. Spearheaded by the Kurdish YPG militia, the SDF has been the main U.S. partner in Syria and has driven Islamic State out of a swathe of the north and east over the last four years. Story continues After capturing Raqqa, the SDF advanced southwards into Deir al-Zor province, attacking the jihadists in territory on the eastern bank of the Euphrates River. The remaining Islamic State territory in Syria is west of the Euphrates. Trump said in December he was pulling all 2,000 U.S. troops out of Syria, saying the battle against Islamic State there was almost won. But a top U.S. general said on Tuesday the group would pose an enduring threat following the U.S. withdrawal, as it retained leaders, fighters, facilitators and resources that would fuel a menacing insurgency. The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that the U.S. military was preparing to withdraw from Syria by the end of April. A U.S. official confirmed that target date to Reuters, saying the withdrawal included a pull-out from the U.S. military base at Tanf, near the Syrian border with Iraq and Jordan. The U.S.-led coalition has said it is not discussing the timeline of the U.S. withdrawal from Syria. (Additional reporting by Mark Hosenball in London Writing by Tom Perry in Beirut; Editing by John Stonestreet and David Holmes) BJP leader Mukul Roy was among four people booked on Sunday, 10 February, in connection with the killing of Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA Satyajit Biswas in West Bengal's Nadia district on Saturday, police said. Roy, a former TMC general secretary who joined the BJP last year following differences with party supremo Mamata Banerjee, denied the allegation, saying the decision to name him in the FIR was "politically motivated". A West Bengal Police officer told PTI that two of the four people named in the FIR have been arrested on Sunday. The two arrested persons Kartik Mondal and Sujit Mondal were remanded in 14-days' police custody by the acting additional chief judicial magistrate. Also Read: BJP Office Vandalised in Kolkata, Party Blames TMC Goons Firearms Recovered From the Spot According to news agency PTI, the incident occurred when Biswas, who is the legislator from Krishnaganj constituency, was present at a Saraswati puja at Phoolbari under Hanskhali police station area. He was immediately taken to a local hospital where doctors declared that hed been brought dead. Police force has been deployed in the area after the incident and the matter is being investigated, reported The Indian Express. Teams of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) have also reached the spot. Investigators suspect that the attack was premeditated and well planned out. According to local reports, a firearm was recovered from the spot. Locals who were present at the scene also said that there were multiple instances of power outages during the event and that the MLAs designated security detail was on leave as well. They added that an assailant was seen fleeing from the spot. Speaking to the Indian Express, TMC District President Gouri Sankar Dutta blamed the BJP for the murder. However BJP State President Dilip Ghosh has denied the allegations and has demanded a CBI probe into the matter. Ghosh has also blamed factional fights in the TMC, reported News18. Story continues An FIR has been lodged against BJP leader Mukul Roy and five others by local Trinamool workers. Two people mentioned in the FIR - Sujit Mondal and Kartik Mondal - have been arrested by the police. The Officer-in-Charge of the local police station as well as the Biswas security officer have been suspended. An enquiry has been initiated against them. TMC leaders like Partha Chatterjee, Anubrata Mondal and Abhishek Banerjee are expected to visit Hanskhali. (With inputs from ANI, PTI , News18 and The Indian Express) . Read more on Politics by The Quint.RSS & BJPs Nehru-Netaji Cosplay: Irony Dies a Thousand DeathsBAFTA 2019: The Favourite Wins Prize for Best British Film . Read more on Politics by The Quint. Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached Hubli in Karnataka on Sunday, 10 February, to address a public rally. On his campaign trail, Modi is visiting the three southern states of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. The prime minister laid the foundation stone of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) and Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) - Dharwad . He also witnessed the e-Griha Pravesh of 2,350 houses constructed under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana at Dharwad. Speaking at a rally after the inauguration, Modi said, Projects worth Rs. 5000 crores have been inaugurated few moments ago which gives an impetus to the vision of development for all. Taking a jibe at the states Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy, Modi said, Karnatakas CM appears to be a punching bag for all. Everyone is challenging him and its difficult to figure out whos the in charge of the state. They want to impose the same Majboor model on the entire country. Earlier on Sunday, he addressed rallies in Guntur in Andhra Pradesh and Tiruppur in Tamil Nadu. After Andhra Pradesh, PM Modi Reaches Tamil Nadu After addressing a rally in Guntur in Andhra Pradesh, Modi flew down to Coimbatore where he was received by Deputy Speaker M Thambidurai. The prime minister then took a chopper to Tiruppur. Meanwhile, MDMK Chief Vaiko has been detained in Tiruppur for black flag protests against PM Narendra Modi. Earlier, in Andhra Pradesh, TDP supporters also showed black flags to the prime minister. Speaking at the rally, Modi said, A few days ago, the nation saw with utter disgust a story of how top UPA minister kept pushing a narrative that our Army will do a coup. Every Indian knows that our Army can do no such thing but look at the Congress attitude. Congress never leaves an opportunity to belittle our army. Those who got the opportunity to rule the nation for years did not bother about our defence sector. For them it was just a sector of deals and supporting their own friends, he added. Story continues NDA government is for each and every Indian. We have been working for a good future for the country. We will link every corner of this country with the scheme Bharat Mata, he also said. Earlier, in the presence of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami and Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam and Governor Banwarilal Purohit, Modi flagged off Chennai Metro's passenger services. The Prime Minister also laid a foundation stone for modernisation of Chennai International Airport, (Phase-II), a new integrated terminal building at Trichy airport, and a 100-bedded ESI hospital. After the completion of the integrated building at Trichy airport which was inaugurated few moments ago, 3,000 passengers be facilitated at this airport in the peak hours, Modi said while addressing the rally. Hitting out at the opposition, he said, For every question, their answer is Modi. If you ask their opinions on agriculture, they said Modi. Their political tactics is just around Modi. But you need peoples support for winning elections. He said the opposition is good only at creating panic. Modi also accused the opposition of misleading the poor and farmers ahead of election. When we announced the PM Kisan Nidhi in budget, the opposition benches were sad. If the farmers do not stay poor, whom will they mislead? This alliance is a club of rich people trying to promote dynasty. They neither understand poverty not how to resolve poverty, he said referring to the Mahagathbandhan. In an apparent reference to the Gandhi family, Modi said, You would've seen family packages for ice cream and mobile recharge. Here you are seeing entire family going to the court for corruption cases. Modi also dedicated BPCL Ennore Coastal installation-- state-of-the-art and fully automated oil storage and distribution facilities, with a project cost of Rs 393 crore and a crude oil pipline from Chennai Port to Chennai Petroleum Corporation Limted's Manali refinery. Prime Minister Modi is addressing rallies in three states Guntur in Andhra Pradesh, Tiruppur in Tamil Nadu and Hubballi in Karnataka on Sunday, 10 February. You Take Credit in Renaming Modis Policies: PM to Chandrababu Naidu Speaking at a rally in Guntur in Andhra Pradesh on Sunday, 10 February, PM Modi slammed Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu by saying, The leader of TDP who should have worked for Congress-free India is now supporting the Congress party. He also accused Naidu of renaming BJP governments policies as his own and said, Naidu is an expert in losing one election after the other. PM Modi also declared that the Central government has chosen Amaravati as Heritage City under the National Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY). Taking a swipe at Naidu, Modi said he had only replicated the Centres development programmes instead of his assurance of initiating new schemes for the poor in the state. He said Naidu had claimed he was his senior but instead was "a senior in switching sides and ditching his father-in-law, NT Rama Rao, the former chief minister. " Naidu is fixated with the rise of his own son N Lokesh, Modi charged. The chief minister promised the redevelopment of Amaravati but is now engaged in his own development, the prime minister alleged. TDP Supporters Protest Modis Visit TDP workers staged protests against Modi as he arrived on Sunday on his first visit to the state after the ruling Telugu Desam Party severed ties with NDA, PTI reported. TDP organised protests in various cities and towns in the state in protest against Modi's visit. At Vijayawada and Guntur, TDP workers donned black shirts and took out rallies demanding, "Modi go back". In his daily teleconference with the party leaders, the chief minister dubbed Modi as the "modati drohi" (first betrayer) of Andhra Pradesh. "Modi is coming for a war on AP. They have done injustice to the state, destroyed the systems and ruined the country. Modi is facing protests wherever he is going in the country. He has come to AP to mock at us," Naidu said. PM Modi however took a dig at those showing him black flags. In Indian culture, there is tradition where the elder people of the house put up "Kala Tika" to ward off evil eyes. I would like to say thanks to Chandrababu & his party workers who greeted us with black balloons today that will do the same for us, he said. (With inputs from PTI) . Read more on Politics by The Quint.RSS & BJPs Nehru-Netaji Cosplay: Irony Dies a Thousand DeathsHooch Tragedy: UP Govt Forms SIT, Death Toll Rises to 72 . Read more on Politics by The Quint. IceViking strongly condemns physical attacks and harassment directed towards them. They are also often victims of the Islamic idea. This is true when it comes to the cruel and tragic treatment of Muslim women and children when it is in accord with the Koran, the example of Mohammed and Islamic law, Sharia, which may be applied regardless of where a Muslim male may find himself in the world, whether in a Muslim or non-Muslim country. However, in no way, shape or form should one judge all Muslim men because of what is in Islamic scripture and what constitutes the Islamic law, Sharia. "Race", ethnicity or basically anything that you are "merely" born with should never be a basis for bigotry and discrimination. Apostates from Islam have been executed for 1400 years in accord with the Koran and the words and actions of the Islamic prophet Mohammed and Islamic law, Sharia. They should be lovingly helped. Furthermore, approximately as many as 11,000,000 Muslims may have been killed by other Muslims since 1948. To quote the website The Religion of Peace (TROP), edited by Glen Roberts: While it may be safe to say that a true Muslim would not intentionally kill another true Muslim ( 4:92-93 ), the Quran places no such value on the life of a Muslim who is not true. Consider verse 9:73 : Strive hard against the disbelievers and the hypocrites, and be harsh against them, their abode is Hell. The Arabic for strive hard uses the same root as Jihad - and the context in this sura is holy war (see v. 86 and 91). Thus, there are two distinct classes of people that a true Muslim is to target with harshness: disbelievers and hypocrites. A disbeliever obviously refers to a non-Muslim, so a "hypocrite" must be a Muslim of some sort. In fact, hypocrites are those who say they believe, but do not act as they should. In other words, they are "Muslims", but not true Muslims. They will go to hell just as unbelievers do, and so, according to the verse, their lives matter for naught. The same sura says that a hypocrite can be recognized not just by lack of piety (reluctance to follow Sharia), but by fear of death ( 9:56 ), reluctance to fight ( 9:44-45 ) and even friendliness toward non-believers ( 9:67 ). A true Muslim would thus be a pious person who relishes martyrdom, is eager to fight, and shuns non-believers. Even the Quranic passage that warns against killing "believers" ( 4:88-94 ) is more complicated than it first appears. It never says that a true Muslim is incapable of killing another Muslim, just that it should not be done. In fact, it makes exceptions for the unintentional killing of "believers" in war and mandates the killing of "hypocrites." Verse 17:33 says, "Do not kill anyone which Allah has forbidden, except for a just cause" . The greatest cause of all is that Islam be superior ( 9:33 ), which is exactly what Islamic terrorists say is their goal. Thus believing Muslims are allowed to be collateral damage in the war on unbelievers. There is sadly a phenomena that I`ve noticed in Sweden and elsewhere of people using true facts about Islamic doctrine and history as a cover for all sorts of irrational targeting of Muslims, ranging from xenophobia and racism to verbal abuse and physical attacks. This is strongly condemned by this website and does not in any way serve serious criticism of orthodox Islam and other important work. It`s also important that one tries to express oneself in a civilized way. Words matter. In this bloggers humble opinion the root cause of the problem is the ancient doctrine of orthodox Islam. In simple terms a non-Muslim is a Kafir. " The Koran defines the kafir and kafir is not a neutral word. A kafir is not merely someone who does not agree with Islam, but a kafir is evil, disgusting, the lowest form of life." An exact quote, as stated in the writings of Dr. Bill Warner in the article "Kafir" at http://www.politicalislam.com/kafir . In the perfect Koran (Allah`s direct and literal word as revealed to Mohammed through the angel Jibril), Muslims are told 89 times to emulate Mohammed in all ways (see Koran 33:21 for instance). Mohammed`s example, the Sunna, is found in the Hadith (stories of what Mohammed said and did) and the Sira (biographies of Mohammed). Islamic law, Sharia , is directly derived from these unchanging scriptures. It is based on the Koran`s numerous commands to obey Allah and obey the Messenger, that is Mohammed (see Koran 4:59 for instance). Islam is Sharia. Sharia is Islam. It is a capital crime for Muslims to deny Sharia in any way. A Muslim is someone who submits to Islam and submitting to Islam means obeying the Sharia of Allah. Sharia law includes pronouncements for both Muslims and non-Muslims (Kafirs). Islam is a "complete way of life", a "complete code of life", a "complete system of life". Islam is not just a religion but also a comprehensive ideology. Islam is a supremacist ideology. Islam is a totalitarian and imperialistic ideology akin to Communism and Nazism. Islam is a civilization. Islamic law, Sharia, is a manual for a civilization. Islamic law, Sharia, governs every aspect of life. It has a say about every conceivable human act . Non-Muslims are morally and legally inferior in Islam. Women are morally and legally inferior in Islam. The History of Jihad: From Muhammad to ISIS by Robert Spencer is the first one-volume history of jihad in the English language and a great book on the topic. Allah guarantees Paradise to those who "kill and are killed" for him (Koran 9:111). A hadith depicts a Muslim asking Muhammad: "Instruct me as to such a deed as equals Jihad (in reward)." Muhammad replied, "I do not find such a deed." (Bukhari 4.52.44) Muhammad himself said: I have been commanded to fight against people so long as they do not declare that there is no god but Allah, and he who professed it was guaranteed the protection of his property and life on my behalf except for the right affairs rest with Allah. (Sahih Muslim 30) Freedom of speech, human rights, democracy, science and human lives are all at stake in the fight against the Islamic Jihad. CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) It might not occur to many men and women who sign up to be firefighters that they could have to rescue a horse, a pig or a cow in addition to dousing flames. But occasionally, first responders have to round up livestock from semi wrecks on interstates or lead animals from burning barns. And the Illinois Fire Service Institute in Champaign, based at the University of Illinois, wants them to have the skills to succeed and to know who to contact for help in emergencies involving livestock. On Saturday, IFSI offered its first-ever hands-on training in large-animal rescue for 17 firefighters from around the state who are in Champaign this weekend for the institute's winter fire school. "It's one of those low-frequency, high-risk events. Like grain bin rescues, they don't happen often, but they are a big deal," said Dave Newcomb, an instructor in IFSI's agriculture program for about 20 years. He worked full time as an Urbana firefighter for 30 years before retiring in 2011. Joining Newcomb in teaching the inaugural course were fellow IFSI instructors Deke Carls of Hillsdale and Bill Fulton of Salem, both of whom are also longtime volunteer firefighters in their hometowns. Watching proudly from the stands of the toasty UI Stock Pavilion on a cold, grey, snowy January day was IFSI Director Royal Mortenson, who said he wanted to be sure there was enough demand for such training before he invested the money. The interest, he learned, came from all over the state and was "pretty consistent" among rural and urban, full-time and volunteer fire departments. One of 16 classes being taught over the weekend to 410 firefighters from about 50 departments, the large-animal rescue class was indeed "kind of a big deal" because it's been in the making about seven years. The institute has offered online and classroom "awareness" sessions for several years but Saturday's was the first "operations" class, the next level of training. Carls, who graduated from the UI College of Veterinary Medicine and has been a veterinarian for 10 years, led the students in the basics of how to approach and halter the sheep, horses and cows. "You gotta watch that animal. He's going to tell you what he's thinking," Carls said. As the class got under way, only two of the firefighter students said they had "zero experience" with large animals. Carls and Fulton began by letting five sheep, on loan from the vet school, out of a pen. About five firefighters at a time practiced getting them back in by forming a human chain to gently corral the animals. They had earlier seen a video that may have made the assignment appear simple. "Nice, calm, methodical movement," Carls counseled in a practiced, soothing voice. "You want to keep them calm." Fulton instructed the firefighters how to turn or advance their bodies to keep "pressure" on the animals, to get them to go where the trainees wanted. Sometimes it worked great. Other times, not so great. Hence, the need for training. Fulton, a 23-year volunteer firefighter in Salem, owns his own small farm where he raises sheep and cattle. Because there are livestock marketing facilities in his area, he knows first responders need to be trained in the rescue of animals involved in accidents. "I'm learning a lot," said Allen Cameron, a captain in Urbana's Carroll Fire Department. "I grew up on the north side of Chicago. All I really saw was trail horses in the suburbs. They are used to humans and are really forgiving." Maureen Hethmon of Anchor just joined her hometown fire department in McLean County a few months ago. She grew up with a horse and a pony so she wasn't intimidated by putting a halter on a horse. But she said barn fires, trailer accidents, hurricanes or floods can happen anywhere, and she wants to be prepared to help animals as well as humans. Ray Palczynski, another IFSI instructor from the Quad Cities area, said he "hatched" the idea for the large-animal rescue class about seven years ago after several fire departments in northern Illinois and the collar counties around Chicago told him they were worried about the millions of dollars' worth of horses headed for racetracks that criss-crossed their jurisdictions. "I'm glad we're finally here," he said of the training, which, as a firefighter, he has actually used. So has Newcomb. But only once. In September 2017, Newcomb was one of dozens of area firefighters who rescued a horse that got sucked into a rain-swollen pond south of Savoy. "We had a horse that got out of her corral after a micro burst came through, and she ran down a path and into an old retention pond full of silt. It was just like quicksand. When all was said and done, we had to take down two sections of corral fence, cut down 10 trees and dig down a berm nine feet. "Seven hours later, we walked her out of the hole," Newcomb said of the exhaustive efforts that included the use of trench equipment, a high-lift forklift and a backhoe. "I now have a better understanding of how to wrestle a 1,200-pound greased pig," he joked. That includes knowing the best equipment you need for the job and how to borrow it fast. Saturday, Newcomb was among those listening and learning from Carls. From previous classes he has taken, Newcomb said he's learned a lot about how to recognize animal behavior. "The animals will display if they are agitated or calm. The students' actions and behaviors can influence that," he said. He's learned that a stall is a safe haven for a horse, and the animal is in no hurry to leave it. "It doesn't matter that it's burning down around them," he said of the need to cover their eyes to remove them from burning buildings. Another tidbit he's memorized: "Knowing that a horse can run 54 feet a second tells you never to wrap your hand in the rope because you won't keep up. Guess who I'm betting on?" The training was to continue today with a mannequin horse on loan from the UI vet school. Newcomb said the students would get practice using equipment to properly lift and drag the horse while protecting it and themselves. In a real-life rescue, the animal being helped would be sedated. That was not part of this weekend's training, he said. ___ ___ Information from: The News-Gazette, http://www.news-gazette.com Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 DECATUR Wherever you're heading this morning, plan on it taking longer than usual to get there. The National Weather Service at Lincoln has issued a winter weather advisory until noon for much of the region, including Decatur, and freezing rain is likely this morning. It follows a predicted overnight frigid cocktail of minor snowfall and freezing rain and, even with ice accumulations not expected to top one-tenth of an inch, the weather service said it would be enough to make driving treacherous in places. The Monday morning commute is what were focusing on right now, weather service meteorologist James Auten said. And even though any icing or any glaze will be less than a 10th of an inch, that could be enough for untreated surfaces to get slick and create an issue. The weather service issued a Hazardous Weather Outlook warning covering the weather pattern which also alerted to a a final wave of wintry precipitation due to hit Central Illinois from Monday night into Tuesday. This wave will include rain Monday night and then switches to a mix of rain and snow for Tuesday; snowfall accumulations are pegged at an inch or less. Auten said precipitation drains away after Tuesday but is back by Thursday with rain and a high of 47 before temperatures begin another plunge towards the weekend. A mix of rain and snow is likely Friday, with a high of 41, and then snow likely again Friday night as the mercury takes a steep drop to a low of about 17. Snow is forecast as being likely for Friday night but Auten, speaking Sunday night, said he could not say how much might be in the forecast. Its too far out to tell right now, he said. Support Local Journalism Your membership makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} Sundays brush with snow and freezing rain saw both State Police and county police responding to several accidents linked to drivers losing control in the slippery conditions. A semitruck driver who skidded and rear-ended another vehicle on Interstate 70 in Fayette County on Sunday morning was ticketed for driving too fast for conditions, according to state police. A Decatur accident that occurred during a time of slick roads Sunday evening was still being investigated Sunday night to determine its exact cause, said Sgt. Erik Ethell with Decatur Police. Ethell said a vehicle crashed into a light pole around 5:14 p.m. in the 900 block of West Main Street and the male driver sustained injuries and was taken to Decatur Memorial Hospital. Lt. Jamie Belcher with the Macon County Sheriffs Office said the Sunday day shift had dealt with four accidents attributed to weather: two on Interstate 72, one on U.S. 36 near Harristown and on U.S. 51 near Macon. Belcher echoed the warnings about Mondays commute and urged drivers to be wary. Give yourself extra time and take it slow, he said. Reasons we can't wait for spring and summer in Decatur Contact Tony Reid at (217) 421-7977. Follow him on Twitter: @TonyJReid Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. CHARLESTON Record yields. Soybean tariffs. A federal shutdown. Key moments in the 2018-19 season continue to make for an exciting year for agriculture, albeit not always positive, and the industry's most recent hurdle is proving more problematic as time passes. Outside of leaving government employees without paychecks and having parks with overflowing trash cans, the partial federal government shutdown -- at least temporarily stopped by a three-week agreement announced Jan. 25 -- also made for a touchy grain market, which, in turn, has made decisions on selling and planting grain more challenging for local producers connected to the price of soybeans and corn. Among other duties, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is relied upon to release supply and demand data for grain, specifically soybeans and corn, for local farmers and local commodities traders. As of late January, many were working off information released over a month ago. A newer report was slated to be released Jan. 11, yet the date has come and gone and still the newest World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates report released so far came out a month before. While juggernauts in the commodities market have been able to wade through it all with better market analytics, the overall markets, and therefore farmers who sell in those markets, have been flying blind on when to sell and what to plant, said Josh Green, Tate and Lyle Coles Station grain elevator manager. "The market is in limbo," Green said, as people waited for an end to the federal shutdown. The country's farmers and traders are wading into uncharted waters, said Paul Daily, Mattoon farmer. "Everyone is kind of on pins and needles," he said before the three-week agreement was reached. And that is reflected in recent market shifts. He said the commodities market has shifted rapidly in relation to even the smallest bits of news. "It doesn't take much to move these markets now," Mattoon farmer Paul Daily said. "Markets are really jittery because we just don't have any information. There is just not a lot of news. We are not getting anything out of Washington." Daily pointed to one example where one Brazilian analyst said the soybean crop in that country was not as hurt, and that news hit soybean prices relatively quickly. The numbers were wrong, though, and there was a production cut in Brazil, shifting the prices back. The markets are latching on to any discernible metric for where the international supply and demand is and how that impacts U.S. soybeans and corn. There is a sense, or more specifically a need, for consistency and stability the market has been waiting for. That need is represented in the jumps and dives those paying attention to the markets have noticed, Daily explained. Support Local Journalism Your membership makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} Daily said for himself and other local farmers, they plant 50/50 corn and soybeans, leaving the gambling on market out of their crop. "Some farmers, this year, went heavier on the soybeans," he noted. Soybeans looked like the profitable crop with countries like China pulling in more and more soybeans. That dropped off when tariffs were instated on U.S. soybeans after similar tariffs were made on Chinese exports. Daily said these shifts, although frequent, are also small in comparison to, say, the stock market. He said there is usually a 50-cent range as it fluctuates. "It usually stays within a channel," he said. Coupled with the shutdown, those in the agricultural community are still cautiously watching what impacts the tariffs on U.S. soybeans will have for the next growing season, which Green said could strike an imbalance in what is planted for the upcoming season. Green said there is concern from some that too many farmers will pull back from soybeans in reaction to the tariffs, that the equilibrium between corn and soybean supply might see an asymmetry. Even still, Daily is optimistic that demand is there for grain and the prices to come back when a trade deal is made. "I think the demand is excellent out there," he said. Last harvest, farmers were saved by record yields that overcame dropping soybean prices, Daily said. He noted, though, that farmers can't rely on impressively high yields each year like they received this last season to get them to break even. "The only thing that is keeping us above water is our good yields this year," he said. Both the federal shutdown and the trade dispute have no visible signs of permanently ending anytime soon. This already was the longest shutdown in United States history and lawmakers and the president seemed uninterested in budging until a temporary, three-week compromise was announced Jan. 25. Just before that, lawmakers failed to pass two conflicting bills to temporary restart the government. As to what might happen if this shutdown resumes after the three-week period, Daily and Green both did not have an answer. So far the impact was slight, relatively speaking, outside of unknowns in the market, but that is not to say things won't become a problem in the near future. Green said this has not happened before, so there is nothing on which to base predictions. "It could be a rough time," Daily said. "If the tariffs go on and the shutdowns go on -- it could be a hard time for farmers. Can we count on the rains like we did last year? If we lower prices or even trend line yields? If we back off just to trend line yields with these prices, then you are looking at a negative cash flow." Daily is still hopeful, though, that the issues surrounding the shutdown will resolve themselves sooner rather than later. Should they not, the Mattoon farmer added other bigger issues will rear their heads if it continues, at least for farmers, pointing to crop insurance in particular. The government subsidizes crop insurance to make the insurance prices more affordable for farmers. "The shutdown for the Midwestern farmer is not critical yet, but it is going to be critical," Daily said just before Jan. 25. "Another 30 days, we will be setting price. We will be wanting to get our crop insurance... if they are not being administered, that could adversely affect the farmer." Contact Jarad Jarmon at (217) 238-6839. Follow him on Twitter: @JJarmonReporter Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 DECATUR Sheriff Tony Brown remembers his roots -- and what brought him to this moment. I'm just a kid who grew up in the 800 block of East Johns Street, Brown said at the annual Black Heritage Breakfast on Saturday. I've never forgotten where I came from. The breakfast at Main Street Church was sponsored by the NAACP Decatur branch. Mildred Bond served as emcee and reminded those in attendance that much of what the NAACP does is behind the scenes. The real work is things you don't see, Bond said. Most of what we do is confidential. Would you want us to publicize what you have come to us to help you with? Her pastor, the Rev. James C. Hendricks, recently installed at Trinity Christian Methodist Episcopal Church, opened the event with prayer and later led the participants in Down by the Riverside, after joking that Bond had asked him to sing last minute. I've learned never to say 'no' to Mrs. Bond, he said. The keynote came from Brown, who was elected by one vote in a close and contentious election last year. His opponent, Jim Root, was originally declared the winner, until the provisional and mail-in ballots were counted, which included 99 more votes for Brown. Root is now legally challenging the results. Brown began his talk with his own history, which he said it was important to understand to know what motivates him. Adopted as an infant along with his older sister, Brown said his father, Thomas, died when he was only a year old, leaving his mother to raise the siblings alone. Living in the hood, as he called it, with a single mom, could have made him a statistic, if not for the firm foundation of faith and discipline his mother, Joyce, instilled. He quoted Proverbs 13:24: Whoever spares the rod hates their children, but the one who loves their children is careful to discipline them. I'm not talking about beating your kids, Brown said. Think about a shepherd. The rod is used to corral the sheep and make sure they're going where they're supposed to go. That sounds like good parenting to me. Support Local Journalism Your membership makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} His mother equipped him, he said, with the tools for a successful life and the first and most important one was his faith. After she died in May 1992, he found a mentor in Roger Walker Jr., former sheriff of Macon County and the first black sheriff elected in Illinois. When Brown first encountered Walker, when Brown was a boy, Walker was already known for his community outreach and good relationships with people. I knew that was what I wanted to do and who I wanted to be, Brown said. Walker took him under his wing when Brown joined the sheriff's department in 1990 as a correctional officer, and mentored him when he became a deputy in 1991, he said. He reconnected with his birth family and was able to meet with his biological mother and thank her for having the courage to place him and his sister for adoption, he said. People, we have to forgive, he said, quoting from Matthew 6, where Jesus introduces the Lord's Prayer and explains that believers must forgive others if they expect God to forgive them. We need to begin to let things go, Brown added. None of us are without sin and we do not judge others simply because they sin different than we do. That got a round of applause and amens from the listeners. The annual breakfast drew well over 100 attendees, including featured musical performer Theodore Fisher, a junior at MacArthur High School, who performed Marvin Gaye's What's Going On on the alto sax and received a standing ovation. Fisher didn't begin playing saxophone until seventh grade, and his music teacher at Garfield Montessori School told him that it was too late to begin, but he was determined, he said. He plans to minor in music and major in architectural engineering in college. I give glory to God for this, Theodore said. Without him, I'd be nowhere. This (music) is my life. This is going to get me a scholarship. This is going to get me everywhere. Playing for these people is very humbling and I appreciate it. I'm giving back. The Bible says, 'As much as is given to you, you have to give back,' so I'm just giving back and using my talent. Amaury Cook of Decatur was attending the annual breakfast for the first time. (I'm here) to establish some type of connection with people around you and give myself a basis of what's going on, who's doing what and what direction things are going, he said. Nearby was Jim Taylor, who with Bill Oliver helped get the name of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard changed from Broadway in the 1990s. That effort took about 10 years, he said. A lifelong member of the NAACP, he's never missed an event. Whatever they have, I'm there, he said. Contact Valerie Wells at (217) 421-7982. Follow her on Twitter: @modgirlreporter Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. DECATUR Looking at Giannah Wilkins now, you'd never know what a shaky start she had. The 15-month-old Decatur girl has big brown eyes and is learning to walk, happily toddling across the rug to her 16-year-old sister's waiting arms. It's a long road from her beginnings, along a path that's taken her and those who love her through many emotional ups and downs and taught an important lesson about being an organ donor. It's an important story this American Heart Month. WELLS: Millikin student's musical will come to life at Dennis School. Here's what they're learning. DECATUR Professional actors have a table read of a new script to get a feel for it before beginning rehearsals, and so do the students at De When she was still weeks from being born, her mother, Katrina Gramigna, received devastating news: Giannah's heart was failing, and she was unlikely to survive. The hospital even gave Gramigna a teddy bear that holds a recording of the baby's heartbeat, so she could have that to remember her by. When we found out while she was pregnant, they sent us to Springfield, but while we were on our way, they called and told us to go to" St. Louis Children's Hospital, said Jenai Thompson, Gramigna's mother. The only option at that point was to give Gramigna medication for congestive heart failure, in the hopes that it would penetrate the placenta and help Giannah, without harming her mom, whose heart is perfectly healthy. It worked, and Giannah was born at 39 weeks. We had to go to the hospital for tests every week, Thompson said. It helped (Giannah) enough to keep her going. Once she was separate from my daughter, we didn't know what was going to happen. Two weeks before she was born, we had to relocate to St. Louis so we would be there in case anything happened before they delivered her. Livestock and zoo animals weather the Central Illinois freeze but pets need to come inside DECATUR Brutal temperatures Wednesday sent animal control wardens out to check on pets who could have been in danger, and one man was arrest She had to be intubated soon after birth to help her breathe, and received medication for her heart. She was placed on the transplant list, but a donor heart for such a small patient is rare. She received one at 7 weeks of age, on Dec. 17, 2017. Whether to contact a recipient family is up to the donor family, and Gramigna said she has not had any communication from them, and respects their wish to remain anonymous. Donors are told the age and sex of recipients, but further contact is at their discretion. I wanted to see if they wanted to reach out, she said. I will probably sit down and write to them. I'm just so thankful to them, said Neveah Carter, 16, Gramigna's eldest child. She knows that her sister's transplant means another family lost their baby and that makes her sad, she added, but she's grateful that they turned their tragedy into a blessing for Giannah. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network, U.S. doctors performed more than 3,100 heart transplants last year as of December. One of the most well-known figures to receive a heart transplant in years was United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz, who in 2016 underwent surgery following a series of cardiac problems. In December, he and other recipients talked about their experiences at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, which had the most heart transplants ever at an Illinois hospital in one year. "Three years ago, around Christmas, I was here and I was given a gift of, in essence, life," he said, adding later, "I don't think I'll ever ever get tired of telling this story and, more importantly, I'll never get tired of thanking folks." In Illinois, 215 people were waiting for heart transplants as of December. Illinois has about 6 million people registered on the state Organ/Tissue Donor Registry, according to the Secretary of State's Office. About 4,700 people are on the waiting list. On an average day, 22 people around the country die while waiting for a transplant, and the only way to change that is to increase the supply of donated organs, said Jeff Orlowski, president and CEO of LifeShare Oklahoma, a nonprofit. Relatively few people can be organ donors. "Some of it's technical, and some of it's people," he said. Gramigna said her family's message is to show appreciation for those who give the ultimate gift. We just want people to know how important organ donation is, she said. Giannah will have to take anti-rejection drugs for the rest of her life, and will most likely need another transplant by the time she's 20, Gramigna said. Her heart will grow with her, but with her compromised immune system due to the drugs, this heart won't last forever. She can't attend day care, either, so Thompson watches her while Gramigna works, and Giannah's siblings which includes Antonio Carter, 14; Jaxson Carter, 7; and Nico Wilkins, 5 have to be very careful about keeping current on vaccinations and flu shots. Giannah came down with RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) last year and had to spend some time in the hospital. That can be a serious illness, but even a cold is a threat to her, so if a family member gets sick, he or she needs to keep their distance from her until they're well. She is fed through a tube in her stomach because her gag reflex is oversensitive, but Gramigna said she will eventually be able to eat and drink normally. She should also be able to attend school when she's old enough. The family was told that she might experience developmental delays, but so far, that hasn't been the case. She's learning to walk and is trying to talk and is otherwise learning just as other children her age do, Thompson said. If it weren't for organ donation," Gramigna said, "my daughter wouldn't be here. The Chicago Tribune and The Oklahoman contributed to this report. Contact Valerie Wells at (217) 421-7982. Follow her on Twitter: @modgirlreporter Love 3 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Build your health & fitness knowledge Sign up here to get the latest health & fitness updates in your inbox every week! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Caterpillar is growing its digital team as the company works to embed technology deeper into its operations and earth-moving equipment, and it opened a new Chicago office to accommodate the expansion. The Deerfield-based company, which has a manufacturing plant in Decatur, moved its digital team into the office in the West Loop Gate neighborhood in September, almost two years after opening its first downtown office in the city's de facto tech hub, Merchandise Mart. That first office, opened as an innovation-focused space, was meant to attract tech talent. The tactic worked and now, as Caterpillar focuses more on tech, it's critical to keep attracting that talent, said Ogi Redzic, vice president of Caterpillar's 600-person Digital Enabled Solutions Division. Caterpillar swings to 4Q profit, but still falls short amid China slowdown Caterpillar fell well short of fourth-quarter profit expectations and the machine maker said that sales have begun to slow in China. "The things we're building right now are foundational for the future of Caterpillar," Redzic said. "Customer expectations are changing. ... He is expecting the same tools he (uses) for his daily life to be as good and better in the equipment that he gets." Roughly 90 employees work out of the new office, the majority of whom are digital team members. Redzic declined to share hiring plans, but said the office provides room to grow. The heavy equipment maker isn't alone in its quest to use a downtown outpost to lure highly sought-after data scientists and other tech workers. Companies in industries from fast food to insurance have opened offices in the heart of the city, where tech employees want to work. The hip office spaces have proved worth the extra cost for suburban companies, who often end up competing for talent with behemoths like Facebook or Google. Companies that aren't traditionally thought of as being part of the tech industry can face an extra challenge winning over potential recruits that might not be aware of their digital work. "Before I joined, I really did not know the scope and breadth of Cat's products," said Redzic, who has a background in connected vehicles and other digital services. "I was quite surprised actually myself, thinking, 'I'm joining a company that does excavation and mining,' to learn about all the other things Cat is doing globally." The types of digital talent on Redzic's team is vast, from software developers and data analysts to telecommunication experts and computer engineers. They work on Caterpillar's ecommerce operations, through which customers buy parts for their machines. They develop apps for internal and external use. Last month, the company rolled out an app that lets equipment owners monitor their machines' maintenance schedules and operation times. The team also gathers and analyzes data from Caterpillar machinery, in order to make the equipment more efficient for customers. Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Unseasonably warm temperatures and a severe lack of snow in the weeks leading up to the race had many of the organizers scrambling to prepare a plan B. But several recent snowstorms and a severe drop in temperatures arrived just in time. Mother Nature did decide to cooperate with us after all, chuckled Pam Beckstrom, race secretary and wife to Jack Beckstrom. There are very good trail conditions. The cold weather has helped set them up nicely. The notoriously challenging race has gone through several distance changes over the years but now features three different competitions. There is the 300-mile race, the 100-mile junior continuous race, and the 100-mile adult continuous race. The route goes west over Huckleberry Pass to Kleinschmidt Flats and the first checkpoint at the Whitetail Ranch, then through back roads to the outskirts of Seeley Lake, where the 100-mile teams finish at the Morrell Creek trailhead. The 300-mile racers stop over at the Seeley Lake Community Hall on Highway 83, then turn north another 50 miles to the turnaround point at the Owl Creek checkpoint just south of Holland Lake. This race is not for the faint of heart, said Jewett. Its a hard race to run with a lot of mixed terrain and the mushers have to be in as good of shape as their dogs. Please log in to keep reading. Enjoy unlimited articles at one of our lowest prices ever. Lewis and Clark County public health officials are warning of the "likely chance" measles could end up here. While Montana has not had a confirmed case of measles since 1990, recent outbreaks in New York and Washington have caused health officials concern. The disease was declared eradicated in the United States in 2000 due to vaccination efforts, according to a county press release. Vaccines for measles have been proven to be 97 percent effective, said Shelly Maag, Lewis and Clark County's public health nurse supervisor. "Measles are serious and they spread very easily." Three percent of Lewis and Clark County schoolchildren are not fully vaccinated because of either medical issues or religious exemption. Measles are caused by a respiratory virus that spreads through the air when a sick person coughs or sneezes. The disease is incredibly contagious being in the same room as someone can spread the virus. According to Lewis and Clark County Public Health, symptoms begin with a high fever, cough, runny nose and red eyes. Then a rash of tiny, red spots breaks out, starting at the head and spreading to the rest of the body. The disease can cause complications like pneumonia, swelling of the brain and even death. Kevin VanNice, vice principal and former counselor at East Valley Middle School, said he already had his eye on many of the students identified. But Ive also gotten a lot of names that werent on my list. Kids who dont speak up much, VanNice said. Flatow said he has been incredibly impressed with how students have responded to the training and reported concerning behavior to adults. It helps us adults do what we are meant to do, which is to wrap support around students, he said. Hogan said he hasnt seen much apprehension from students in the three years he has implemented SOS. Instead, he reported that students are typically very engaged during the lesson and aware of their options moving forward. Hogan believes the training helps dispel the myth that only experts can help prevent suicide by showing ways that everyone can help. Anderson has also seen little apprehension. She reported, like the other counselors, that most students who opt out are ones that have recently been impacted by suicide or otherwise are sensitive to the subject. One thing she teaches students is the school wants them to be trained to help their friends, while also educating them that they are not the only ones who can help. The three-day conference to help small businesses in Montana broaden their horizons and work with the government and native tribes begins this week. Put on by the Governor's Office of Indian Affairs and the Montana Department of Transportation, this is an opportunity for all Montana small businesses to learn about everything from business branding to marketing and from cyber security to human resources. The Tribal Relations Training and Small Business Summit begins Feb. 12 and runs through Feb. 14 in Helena at the Best Western - Great Northern Hotel. Participants can attend one or all three days. The fee for the tribal relations seminar on Feb. 12 is $75. The fee for the two days of small business seminars is $75. The Montana Department of Transportation certifies small businesses, women- and minority-owned businesses throughout the state. The process and certification allows for these businesses to go after federal grants and contracts. It also enables businesses to be considered for bigger opportunities. You dont have to be certified to attend, said Shannon Hahn, small business specialist with the Montana Department of Transportation. Were trying to help small businesses compete no matter the size of the playing field. 1. Fill in your name or an alias. Do not leave blank or use the name 'guest' or 'anonymous'. 2. No Nivul Peh. Profanity will be deleted. For a guy whod supposedly gave up making art to play chess, Marcel Duchamp made an awful lot of art. Maybe making a readymade edition of a chessboard for a chess-themed fundaiser group show somehow didnt count. It definitely sounds like it didnt sell. Asked in 1965 to help raise money for the American Chess Foundation, Duchamp organized Hommage a Caissa, after the fictional patron wood nymph of chess, which opened at the Cordier & Eckstrom Gallery in New York in February 1966. [A year earlier, Cordier & Eckstrom had staged the largest Duchamp exhibition to date, a 90-object show, most from a single collection, that toured 16 cities in four countries over four years.] More than any other artist of his generation, Francis Naumann wrote, Duchamp was aware that his signature carried the magical power to transform an object of relatively little value into a work of art. He was constantly dodging or finessing people at openings who approached him with things to signincluding the non-deluxe editions of his exhibition catalogues. For the chess show, Duchamp created a readymade chessboard in an edition of 30. Ive seen it called just Chessboard, but mostly its titled Hommage a Caissa, which is what Duchamp wrote on the frame. On the frame of at least one. Though an edition of 30 was designated, Arturo Schwarz says fewer than 10 were actually issued. Only two turn up online: one, 3/30, was Schwarzs, and it went to the Israel Museum. The other is 2/30, which has a dedication to Maria. Could that be Maria Martins, Duchamps mistress, and the body model for Etant donnes? Who else would get a lower edition number than the artists most important dealer? Anyway, its coming to auction for the second time in a decade. Presumably there was a 1/30, too, and 3 is less than 10, so Schwarz isnt wrong. But either way, it doesnt sound like Duchamps magical powers to transform chessboards into art transformed any into money. For Chess. But if two dealer flips in seven years can take this piece from EUR 42,000 to EUR 200,000, I guess well know where the real magic lies. 26 Feb 2019, Lot 47, Marcel Duchamp, Hommage a Caissa, est. 180-250,000 GBP [sothebys] Previously, kind of related: Chip of Fools, or How Many Fountains Are There? And Another One. And Another One. And Grand Old Partisan salutes Abner Harding, born in Connecticut this day of 1807. He passed the New York bar after graduating from Hamilton College. The ambitious attorney relocated to Illinois in 1838, broadening his career to farming and banking. Harding participated in the 1848 constitutional convention. That year, he won a state house term. He was delegate to the 1856 Republican National Convention. During the Civil War, Harding commanded the 83rd Illinois Infantry. His troops fought off rebel attacks against Fort Donelson until Union reinforcements arrived. President Lincoln promoted him to brigadier general. In 1864, he won the first of two terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. Congressman Harding voted for the GOP's 1866 Civil Rights Act as well as its 13th and 14th Amendments. Later years were devoted to building railroads. Here is a Video Version of this article on YouTube: https://youtu.be/4S-KhmWiyUE Michael Zak is author of Back to Basics for the Republican Party, a history of GOP civil rights achievement. Each day, his grandoldpartisan YouTube channel and Grand Old Partisan blog celebrate more than sixteen decades of Republican heritage. And, see Speech Raves for audience feedback from his presentations in thirty-one states so far. He also wrote the 2005 Republican Freedom Calendar. Clarence Thomas cited Back to Basics for the Republican Party in a Supreme Court decision. Buy the book at Amazon See www.youtube.com/q?v=IzxKCiXc5Qc for a brief video of a Texas Republican praising Back to Basics for the Republican Party. "This is the most amazing book about politics that I have ever read. The Overview should be required reading for anyone with even a minor interest in government. The remainder is an enthralling history lesson that I will never forget. For years, we have all been misled about the true nature of the GOP. This is the real deal! Read it and be proud!" "Michael Zak wrote the definitive history of the GOP." "Back to Basics for the Republican Party is the most significant contribution to the Republican Party in the last twenty years apart from Ronald Reagan." "Back to Basics for the Republican Party is more important to our party now than ever before." and "one of the best books I ever read" Re: How can this be solved by picking nos rather than conventi [ #permalink harikris wrote: Hi Guys, Doubt :How can the below Q be solved by picking nos rather than conventional approach Thanks, harikris Bob bikes to school every day at a steady rate of x miles per hour. On a particular day, Bob had a flat tire exactly halfway to school. He immediately started walking to school at a steady pace of y miles per hour. He arrived at school exactly t hours after leaving his home. How many miles is it from the school to Bob's home? A. (x + y) / tB. 2(x + t) / xyC. 2xyt / (x + y)D. 2(x + y + t) / xyE. x(y + t) + y(x + t)Say the distance to school is 10 miles, x=5 miles per hour and y=1 miles per hour, then:Time Bob spent biking would be 5/5=1 hour, and time he spent walking would be 5/1=5 hours, so t=1+5=6 hours.Now, plug x=5, y=1, and t=6 into the answer choices to see which one yields the distance of 10 miles. Only answer choice C fits.Answer: C.Note that for plug-in method it might happen that for some particular number(s) more than one option may give "correct" answer. In this case just pick some other numbers and check again these "correct" options only.Hope it helps._________________ NEW ORLEANS, La., Feb. 09, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC (KSF) and KSF partner, former Attorney General of Louisiana, Charles C. Foti, Jr., remind investors that they have until April 9, 2019 to file lead plaintiff applications in a securities class action lawsuit against Wirecard AG (OTC: WCAGY, WRCDF), if they purchased the Companys securities between April 7, 2016 and February 1, 2019 (the Class Period). This action is pending in the United States District Court for the Central District of California. What You May Do If you purchased securities of Wirecard and would like to discuss your legal rights and how this case might affect you and your right to recover for your economic loss, you may, without obligation or cost to you, contact KSF Managing Partner Lewis Kahn toll-free at 1-877-515-1850 or via email (lewis.kahn@ksfcounsel.com), or visit https://www.ksfcounsel.com/cases/otc-wcagy/ to learn more. If you wish to serve as a lead plaintiff in this class action, you must petition the Court by April 9, 2019. About the Lawsuit Wirecard and certain of its executives are charged with failing to disclose material information during the Class Period, violating federal securities laws. On February 1, 2019, news media sources reported that an external law firm retained by the Company to investigate activities in its Singapore office had discovered evidence of serious offences of forgery and/or of falsification of accounts. Further, there are reasons to suspect that they may have been carried out to conceal other misdeeds, such as cheating, criminal breach of trust, corruption and/or money laundering. On this news, the price of Arlos shares plummeted. The case is Dalpoggetto v. Wirecard AG et al, 19-cv-986. About Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC KSF, whose partners include the former Louisiana Attorney General Charles C. Foti, Jr., is a law firm focused on securities, antitrust and consumer class actions, along with merger & acquisition and breach of fiduciary litigation against publicly traded companies on behalf of shareholders. The firm has offices in New York, California and Louisiana. To learn more about KSF, you may visit www.ksfcounsel.com . Contact: Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC English French NEWS RELEASE REGULATED INFORMATION HERSTAL, BELGIUM and IRVINE, CA - February 9, 2019 - MDxHealth SA (Euronext Brussels: MDXH) ("MDxHealth" or the "Company"), announced that it received on February 7, 2019 the following notification of significant shareholdings in accordance with the Belgian Act of May 2, 2007 on the disclosure of important participations in issuers of which shares are admitted to trading on a regulated market and regarding miscellaneous provisions (the "Belgian Transparency Act"). Capfi Delen Asset Management NV (acting as a person that notifies alone) notified MDxHealth of the acquisition or disposal of voting securities or voting rights in MDxHealth, as a result of which, as at January 28, 2019, its participation in MDxHealth decreased below the threshold of 3% of the outstanding shares and voting rights of MDxHealth. It follows from the notification that Capfi Delen Asset Management NV as at January 28, 2019 owns 1,780,286 shares of MDxHealth, representing 2.97% of the 59,939,289 currently outstanding shares and voting rights of MDxHealth. Previously, Capfi Delen Asset Management NV had notified that it owned 2,987,836 shares of MDxHealth. The notification specifies that Capfi Delen Asset Management NV benefits from the exemption of Article 11 of the Belgian Transparancy Act, and that it is ultimately controlled by Stichting Aministratiekantoor "Het Torentje". The full chain of undertakings controlling Capfi Delen Asset Management NV is set out in an annex to the transparency notification, available on the website of MDxHealth. For further information, reference is made to the information published on MDxHealth's website (http://www.mdxhealth.com/investors/shareholder-information). About MDxHealth MDxHealth is a multinational healthcare company that provides actionable molecular diagnostic information to personalize the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. The Company's tests are based on proprietary genetic, epigenetic (methylation) and other molecular technologies and assist physicians with the diagnosis of urologic cancers, prognosis of recurrence risk, and prediction of response to a specific therapy. The Company's European headquarters are in Herstal, Belgium, with laboratory operations in Nijmegen, The Netherlands, and US headquarters and laboratory operations based in Irvine, California. For more information, visit mdxhealth.com and follow us on social media at: twitter.com/mdxhealth, facebook.com/mdxhealth and linkedin.com/company/mdxhealth. For more information: MDxHealth Dr. Jan Groen, CEO US: +1 949 812 6979 BE: +32 4 257 70 21 info@mdxhealth.com Consilium Strategic Communications David Daley, Chris Welsh, Jonathan Birt UK: +44 20 3709 5701 mdxhealth@consilium-comms.com NOTE: The MDxHealth logo, MDxHealth, ConfirmMDx, SelectMDx, AssureMDx, PredictMDx and UrNCollect are trademarks or registered trademarks of MDxHealth SA. All other trademarks and service marks are the property of their respective owners. In office since 2006, Colorado Springs U.S. Rep Doug Lamborn is finally getting the kind of position that federal lawmakers spend their career waiting for: a top post on a powerful subcommittee that controls a mind-boggling amount of money. Lamborn served his time as a back-bencher on the House Armed Services Committee, but moved up this year to the top Republican post on the panels subcommittee on readiness. The House was radically reshaped by voters last fall, but Lamborn says the committee assignment as ranking minority member remains a big deal for the Pikes Peak region. It is almost $250 billion that flows through this subcommittee, Lamborn told The Gazette last week. Its one-third of the defense budget and one-sixth of the countrys discretionary spending. As the subcommittees ranking Republican, he will be responsible for wrapping up GOPs votes on decisions, and that could bring big dollars to local bases. Lamborn was slightly more subtle in describing the new power his committee post brings. While looking out for national security I can also look to the needs of the local installations, he said. The readiness panel oversees the readiness of troops, policy issues, logistics, and military construction. Im very excited about the opportunity to make sure our brave men and women have some of the best training and equipping in the world, Lamborn said. He should be. It has been a long climb for the congressman to reach the heights of the House committee structure. The House, even more than the Senate, ranks members on seniority to move through the various positions on the way to becoming a subcommittee chair or ranking member. But getting the position also takes a modicum of political wherewithal. Lamborn is a favorite of the GOP leadership. Hes been repeatedly named the most conservative lawmaker on the Hill, and he has done the bidding of his caucus, even when it meant joining Team Trump after backing Texas GOP Sen. Ted Cruz in the 2016 presidential primary. To get the military job, Lamborn had to give up his first top subcommittee post. From 2017-18, Lamborn served as the chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee panel on energy and minerals. That put him in charge of regulation of oil drilling and mining, a lesser post, but one that still had cachet on Capitol Hill. The Natural Resources budget, split from many federal pots, remains minuscule compared to the countrys defense funding. Lamborn said while mining and oil are important for Colorado, his new post is important for my district. Lamborn represents one of the nations most military-heavy districts. It has five bases, 40,000 active-duty troops. Top missions include running the militarys constellation of satellites, controlling the nations missile defense and defending the continent from attack. Lamborn will have a big job to maintain planned growth in defense spending. The Trump administration is seeking a $750 billion defense budget, but that could fall victim to automatic budget cuts that are back in force for 2020. Those cuts, approved under an Obama-era deficit-cutting plan, would carve more than $50 billion from defense. Hes also looking at a fight with the White House. He says the military presence here, and the price the Pikes Peak region has paid in blood, is why hes split from President Donald Trump over the administrations plans for a rapid withdrawal from wars in Afghanistan and Syria. Lamborn said hes all for peace, but he wants U.S. troops on the ground until Americas enemies are dealt with. We dont want that sacrifice to have been made in vain, he said. The readiness post will also put Lamborn in a key position to decide the future of Trumps proposed Space Force. Trump wants a new service branch to oversee space because he says the Pentagon has lost focus on the growing capabilities of rival powers. Lamborn wants a Space Force, too. But he wants it to stay in Colorado Springs, where the military has managed its space operations since the 1980s. Trump has ordered the creation of U.S. Space Command, a headquarters that will oversee space missions for all armed services. I will be pushing for U.S. Space Command to be in the Pikes Peak region, Lamborn pledged. How well Lamborn can leverage his new position will depend heavily on the new majority on the other side of the aisle. Democrats have flexed their House muscle by refusing to back Trumps call for a border wall even during a lengthy partial government shutdown. Lamborn, while hes a tried and true Republican, said he can get along with the Democrats. Armed Services is one of the most bipartisan committees, Lamborn said. Not that we dont have philosophical arguments. The committee is a comparative bipartisan paradise, according to Lamborn, who is working with the new Democratic chairman, U.S. Rep. Adam Smith, who represents the Seattle suburbs. The unity is more due to the threats America faces than some novel political shift. Lamborn said every member of the committee is keeping a wary eye on China and Russia. The emphasis is beginning to shift to a near-peer competition, Lamborn said. Russia and China they have very capable and well-funded national defenses. Contact Tom Roeder: 636-0240 Twitter: @xroederx A handful of legislative Democrats are out of sorts with Gov. Jared Polis, just a month into his inaugural honeymoon. Their complaint: The gov Colorado Springs, CO (80903) Today Mainly cloudy. A few peeks of sunshine possible. High 89F. Winds WSW at 10 to 15 mph.. Tonight Cloudy skies. Low 66F. Winds NW at 10 to 15 mph. Lt. Col. ML Cavanaugh, PhD, is a non-resident fellow with the Modern War Institute at West Point. This essay is an unofficial expression of opinion; the views expressed are those of the author and not necessarily those of West Point, the Department of the Army, the Department of Defense, or any agency of the U.S. government. City Editor Tom Roeder is the Gazette's City Editor. In Colorado Springs since 2003, Tom has covered the military at home and overseas and has cover statehouses in Denver and Olympia, Wash. His main job, though, is being dad to two great kids. FOX ISLAND, Alaska A torrential downpour lulled me to sleep the night before my all-day kayaking expedition in the waters around Fox Island off Alaskas Kenai Peninsula. Through the cracked windows of my log cabin, I watched the waves slap the slate beach as rain pounded the roof. When I awoke, the storm had stopped. In its place, low fog clung moodily to the peaks on surrounding islands. All around, I saw shades of green and gray, and though the forecast was dubious, I packed my sunglasses. It was August, and Im an optimist. A day kayaking under crystal-clear Alaskan skies had been a lifelong dream. I had come to southwestern Alaska with three friends to cap off the summer with an ocean adventure. We signed up for a multiday tour with Pursuit, an adventure travel company, and arrived in Anchorage with the storm clouds. At first (naively), I was surprised. Despite Alaskas location in the verdant Pacific Northwest and its massive temperate rain forest, I somehow expected visibility and smooth sailing. I blame picture-perfect marketing and my glass-half-full attitude. Nevertheless, I learned an important lesson. When headed to Alaska, especially the coast, pack a durable raincoat, no matter what time of year you go. But the rain didnt limit our experience. From Anchorage, we boarded the Alaska Railroad to Seward, a 4-hour, 114-mile journey on the Coastal Classic. We sat in the double-decker GoldStar Dome car and had a full-service breakfast. It was the first time Id enjoyed caribou sausage while traveling through old-growth forests and past glaciers. I hope its not the last. In Seward, we spent a night at the Windsong Lodge before boarding a boat for the 12-mile ride across Resurrection Bay to mountainous Fox Island, named for the fox-fur farming practiced around the turn of the 20th century. The farmers let the canines run free during the day and corralled them at night. I first learned of Fox Island when I came across Wilderness: A Journal of Quiet Adventure in Alaska by Rockwell Kent, an artist who retreated to the island in 1918 with his 9-year-old son. The book chronicles how artistic success had eluded Kent, who hoped to find inspiration by surviving an Alaskan island winter. The respite, though challenging Kent and his son weatherproofed a goat shack and learned to forage proved fruitful. Upon a return to New York, Kents career took off and he became known as a premier American graphic artist, printmaker and illustrator. Todays Fox Island is more hospitable. Staff met us at the dock with umbrellas and shepherded us to the main lodge for a hearty lunch of stew and fresh bread. Afterward, my friends and I hiked through the thick, wet forest. A single path leads to a high point, and after a slippery few hours, we emerged breathless and soaked onto a ridge that probably affords stunning views when the air is not thick with rain clouds. But we each had a cozy waterfront cabin (the wilderness lodge has eight overnight accommodations) with piping hot water. Then we convened before the wood-burning stove in the intimate guesthouse and savored a glass of wine while scanning for sea otters through the floor-to-ceiling windows. The Kenai Fjords Wilderness Lodge is a refuge where the pace is deliciously slow. No WiFi or phone service is available to guests, though there is a phone in case of emergencies. All overnight guests dine together on meals prepared by chef Landon Schoenefeld, a former star restaurateur who left his hard-charging life in the Twin Cities culinary scene after acknowledging depression and unhealthy habits. Minnesotas loss is Alaskas gain. After our first evening meal of fresh salmon, pureed turnips and a savory creative twist on fiddleheads and roasted asparagus, the simple elegance of the lodge made itself evident. The next morning, it was time to kayak. As the clouds threatened to open once more, I asked our guide, Danny: What would we do in case of rain? He laughed. As it turns out, Alaskans dont take rain days. If they did, they would spend a lot of time waiting. Anyhow, he said, its preferable to kayak when its overcast or raining. Blue skies tend to bring high winds, a potentially problematic complication when you are your boats motor. And paddle we did, across Resurrection Bay toward an inlet called Humpy Cove. Danny promised us our destination would be scenic. The journey certainly was. We followed him past puffins and seals, bald eagles and rocky beaches, all made more dramatic by the ever-changing sky. Up the cove we went, spruce-lined slopes dropping into aquamarine water. We reached a narrow beach that sidled up to a weeping wall covered in vegetation. He pulled our kayaks ashore, and we excavated ourselves from the plastic hulls to admire the scenery. Around the corner of that wet wall was a massive waterfall. At least we outsiders found it so. To Alaskans, this cascade didnt even warrant a name. Nameless or not, it was significant to the dozens of enormous salmon struggling upstream to spawn. On the coves banks, river otters piled on top of one another, quick, curious and cute. Then, as if to reward us, the clouds parted and a glimmer of sunlight slipped through. I wore my sunglasses on the paddle back to the lodge. The weather held, and the next day dawned cloudless for our boat tour of Kenai Fjords National Park. Nothing could have prepared me for the sensory stimulation of this six-hour adventure. Almost 40 glaciers flow from the Harding Icefield into the Kenai Fjord, and the best way to see them is from the sea. Humpback whales, orcas, sea lions, seals, otters, puffins and more thrive here, and as we navigated the ocean to Aialik Bay, wildlife viewings were abundant. I sat on the bow with several hearty travelers, the bracing wind at our faces, the crisp air keeping seasickness at bay. As we approached the Aialik Glacier, the captain slowed the boat to a crawl. Chunks of ice scattered throughout the sea, and we heard thunderous cracks as parts of the glacier broke off and dropped into the water, a natural process called calving. Established in 1980, Kenai Fjords National Park covers nearly 1,050 square miles in a stunning combination of jagged peaks, dense forests and receding and melting glaciers. Scientific studies have documented the impact of climate change on these glaciers. The melting rate has increased in recent decades, contributing to a rise in sea level. According to the National Park Service, from the mid-1990s to the early 2000s, the rate of glacial thinning in Alaska tripled compared with the period from the mid-1950s to the mid-1970s. The captain shared his encyclopedic knowledge of glaciology, climate change, wildlife and more, but so all-encompassing was the experience of witnessing the gigantic glacier up close that I left determined to do more research on my own. In my experience, this is typical of a trip to Alaska, a land so remote and wild, so different from most peoples everyday lives, that you leave inspired by what youve experienced and by what you want to learn more about. Thats what happened to Rockwell Kent. Unlike him, I didnt spend seven harsh months in this remote, beautiful area. My duration lasted only five days, but his experience more than resonated, particularly with this passage from Wilderness. America offers nothing to the tourist but the wonders of its natural scenery. ... The night is beautiful beyond thought. All the bay is flooded with moonlight and in that pale glow the snowy mountains appear whiter than snow itself. ... Fox island will soon become in our memories like a dream or vision, a remote experience too wonderful ... to be remembered or believed in as a real experience in life. It was for us life as it should be, serene and wholesome. The Colorado Democratic Party is gearing up for its annual Obama Dinner. This years keynote speaker will be newly elected U.S. Rep. Deb Haaland of New Mexico, one of the first Native American women to serve in Congress the other, U.S. Rep. Sharice Davis of Kansas, was elected the same night and tickets are going fast, party officials say. The fundraiser, set for March 9 at the Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel, typically draws upward of 1,000 donors for a night of speeches and awards, and lately it has included a silent and a live auction. The dinner has been a tradition for decades, though a few years back, the party dropped its longtime name, the Jefferson-Jackson Dinner, amid concern that presidential namesakes Thomas Jefferson and Andrew Jackson, considered the founders of the Democratic Party, no longer represented the partys ideals. Both owned slaves, and Jackson forced Native Americans from their lands. The Democrats called the fundraiser the Annual Dinner for a couple of years and then settled last year on naming it after former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama. Fifty-six years ago, Colorado Democrats heard a recorded message from President John F. Kennedy at the dinner, which was held at the same hotel where Democrats will be gathering this year, though it has been through a couple of name changes and some extensive remodeling. (The same day the Colorado Democrats held their fundraising dinner, Kennedy was in Chicago to dedicate Chicago-OHare International Airport.) On March 23, 1963, in the grand ballroom of what was then the Hilton Hotel in Denver, Colorado Democrats convened in the wake of a thumping at the polls in the 1962 election a virtual mirror image of the success the party enjoyed in last years election, when Democrats swept every statewide office and took control of both chambers of the Legislature. That year, voters ousted Democratic Gov. Stephen McNichols and U.S. Sen. John Carroll and moved control of both legislative chambers from the Democrats to the Republicans. But aside from a few particulars and the stately, almost formal language some passages sound nothing so much as Kennedyesque portions of the presidents remarks would sound at home in a contemporary speech delivered to a ballroom full of Democrats. And theres a bittersweet note about Kennedys plans to campaign for re-election in Colorado in 1964. I have been in Denver many times and I wish I were there with you tonight, Kennedy said. You can count on seeing me in Colorado next year. While Kennedy vigorously contested Colorado in 1960 he held a September fundraiser at the Hilton after filling Denvers Civic Center for a rally earlier the same day he lost the state to Republican Richard Nixon by about 10 percentage points. Kennedy never had the chance to see whether he could carry the state in the next election, because eight months to the day after he recorded the message, Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas. But his successor, Lyndon Johnson, won Colorados electoral votes in 1964 with 61 percent of the vote to Republican nominee Arizona Sen. Barry Goldwaters 38 percent. It would be the last time a Democratic presidential candidate won Colorado until 1992, when Bill Clinton prevailed in a three-way race against incumbent Republican George H.W. Bush and Ross Perot. Between now and then, we will have a lot of work to do, Kennedy continued. Colorado has a great Democrat tradition exemplified by such names as (former U.S. Sen.) John Carroll, (former Gov.) Steve McNichols, (Lt. Gov.) Bob Knous, (U.S. Rep.) Byron Rogers, (U.S. Rep.) Wayne Aspinall, (former Gov. and U.S. Sen.) Ed Johnson and many others. A script for the speech, purportedly written by presidential speechwriter Theodore Sorensen with Kennedys handwritten revisions, is on file in the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and includes a note on pronouncing the lieutenant governors name: pronounced Nouse as in mouse. Those are the kind of men who get things done for Colorado and our country, Kennedy said. They are the kind of men who speak for the best interests of Colorado. And with the help of all these men, and your new state party leadership, Colorado can and should return to the Democratic column in 1964. Notably, the state Democratic Partys luminaries were men, a distinctly different situation from todays party, which counts a record number of Democratic women in the Legislature, though Colorado has yet to elect a woman as governor or to the U.S. Senate. The JFK librarys folder devoted to the speech also contains a letter from Fred M. Betz Sr., the state Democratic chairman, to White House aide Mike Manatos requesting a taped message from the president for the occasion. Betz asked that Kennedy thank the dignitaries the president mentioned, as well as several state party officers and the fundraising dinners chairman. The letter is typed on stationary that includes the slogan Lets Back Jack Lets Make a Clean Sweep in 62. I think it will make a good start for us in the drive for us to put Colorado in the Kennedy column for 1964, Betz wrote. Kennedy noted that Indiana Sen. Birch Bayh a true representative of the kind of energetic vigor and immense talent which keeps the Democratic party supplied with top leadership was the dinners keynoter. He knows what it means to run an uphill race, to rebuild a party organization, and to put personal and factional disputes aside in the interests of a Democratic victory, Kennedy said. Of course, in our efforts to carry Colorado for the Democrats, we will be greatly helped by our Republican friends. They are already talking about cutting back reclamation, halting power development, curbing the (Rural Electrification Act), and ignoring the needs of our ranchers and farmers, opposing all the efforts of Wayne Aspinall and Byron Rogers to work for the people of Colorado. According to Sorensens draft, Kennedy cut a line that accused the Republicans of trying to divert public attention away from their negative record of opposition by stirring up needless fears about our national security and solvency. Kennedy concluded by listing the problems he said Democrats would tackle and a patriotic summons. But I do not believe that the people of Colorado and the other 49 states will want to return to the past, the president said. They are concerned about the very real problems confronting this country boys and girls dropping out of school, overcrowded mental hospitals, a high unemployment rate among young people, a shortage of physicians and dentists and nurses, a lack of college facilities in the 60s and the 70s, the inability of our older citizens to finance their hospital care, and the repressive effects of a wartime tax rate, which must be reduced to give us more growth, instead of the kind of recessions we had in 1958 and 1960. They want a strong and vigorous nation, leading a strong free world. They want the United States to be identified with the great cause of human freedom here in our country and around the globe. The program of the administration is addressed to these problems, to this kind of America and I believe the people will support this program. Until recently, most service-sector and professional jobs were shielded from automation by humans cognitive monopoly. Amelia and other white-collar robots are changing that. Jim Flynn is with the Colorado Springs firm of Flynn & Wright LLC. Contact him at moneylaw@jtflynn.com. "Best of Jim Flynn's Money & the Law" is now available at amazon.com paperback or e-book. LifeHouse (formerly Care Corps and Low Income Ministries) has received a grant for more than $2.8 million that it will use to create 15 low income rental units in Fremont by 2021. The local agency received notification of approval for $2,874,115 in Housing Trust Fund dollars from the Department of Economic Development's (DED) Nebraska Affordable Housing Grant program after applying for up-to $4 million in grant money back in Oct. 2018. The $2.8 million will be used by LifeHouse for the rehabilitation and/or new construction of 15 family rental units in the Fremont community. These Housing Trust Funds will provide, safe, efficient, and affordable housing for 15 families in Fremont," Tera Kucera, LifeHouse's Chief Executive Officer told the Tribune. This opportunity will provide a path to stability, allowing families to work with a housing stability case manager to overcome barriers and, ultimately, begin their journey of self- sufficiency." Kucera said that the housing units will be known as the LifeHouse Apartments when it is completed, and the project is part of the organization's Journey Program. Opinion What its like to go to a music festival during the pandemic They were just so determined to make this happen, no matter what, explained a staffer as I bowled past security, catching sight of the first festival stages Ive seen in nearly two years. Near the main stage was a pretty lake and on some hay bales, cocktail makers Missouri University of Science and Technology Missouri University of Science and Technology has announced the names of students who made the honor list for the fall 2018 semester. To be included on the honor list, students must have carried a minimum of 12 hours and had grade point averages of 3.2 or above out of a possible 4.0. During the last 20 years, Mark Harman has focused on developing strong relationships with the students who have come through his classroom at FINEST KIND CLINIC AND FISHMARKET.... Discussing medicine, culture, and the joys of cooking Pansit. RICHMOND, Va. (AP) Virginia lawmakers on Monday will reluctantly face the unprecedented prospect of impeaching the state's second most powerful leader as they struggle to address revelations of past racist behavior and allegations of sexual assault roiling its highest levels of office. At least one lawmaker said he will try to pursue impeachment of Democratic Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax after two women accused Fairfax of sexual assault in the 2000s, a move that experts believe would be a first in Virginia. Fairfax has vehemently denied the claims and called for authorities, including the FBI, to investigate. There's little sign of broad appetite for impeachment, with lawmakers set to finish this year's session by the month's end. But the Legislature is swirling with questions about lines of succession and the political fallout for Democrats should the governor, lieutenant governor or attorney general leave office, willingly or not. Gov. Ralph Northam and Attorney General Mark Herring, both Democrats, are embroiled in their own scandal after acknowledging they wore blackface in the 1980s . Northam, a pediatric neurologist, said Sunday that he considered resigning but that he's "not going anywhere" because the state "needs someone that can heal" it. Northam said on CBS' "Face the Nation" that it's been a difficult week since a racist photo in his 1984 medical school yearbook surfaced, showing a person wearing blackface next to another person in a Ku Klux Klan hood and robe. Northam initially said he was in the photo, then denied it the next day, while acknowledging that he did wear blackface to a dance party that same year. "Virginia needs someone that can heal. There's no better person to do that than a doctor," Northam said. "Virginia also needs someone who is strong, who has empathy, who has courage and who has a moral compass. And that's why I'm not going anywhere." Story continues The scandals have become a full-blown crisis for Virginia Democrats. Although the party has taken an almost zero-tolerance approach to sexual misconduct in the #MeToo era, a housecleaning in Virginia could be costly: If all three Democrats resigned, Republican state House Speaker Kirk Cox would become governor. Political considerations will be key to what comes next. Virginia is among a handful of states electing lawmakers this year, and Democrats had hoped to flip the Republican-controlled General Assembly. Democratic Del. Patrick Hope said he wants to introduce articles of impeachment Monday against Fairfax, who is black. Meredith Watson and Vanessa Tyson have accused him of sexual assault and offered to testify at any impeachment hearing. The Associated Press generally does not name people who say they are victims of sexual assault, but both women have come forward voluntarily. Watson alleges Fairfax raped her while they were students at Duke University in 2000, her attorney said in a statement. Tyson, a California college professor, accused Fairfax of forcing her to perform oral sex on him at a Boston hotel in 2004. The lieutenant governor issued a statement Saturday again denying he ever sexually assaulted anyone and making clear he does not intend to immediately step down. Instead, he urged authorities to investigate. "Frankly, we really want any entity with comprehensive investigative power to thoroughly look into these accusations," Fairfax spokeswoman Lauren Burke said. "There needs to be verification of basic facts about these allegations. It feels like something bigger is going on here." Some political observers said it's possible impeachment would move forward in the House of Delegates even if the threshold to start the process is remarkably high. However, lawmakers are set to leave town before February ends and may lack the time and resources to immediately take on the complicated issue. "A clear sign of the depth of LG Fairfax's political crisis is the near-absence of voices in Virginia politics this weekend publicly urging him to remain in office," University of Mary Washington political science professor Stephen Farnsworth said in an email. If the Legislature is in session, the House would need a simple majority to vote to impeach Fairfax, said A.E. Dick Howard, a University of Virginia law professor. The Senate would then review evidence and hear testimony. That chamber would need a two-thirds vote to convict among senators who are present. Another possibility: Fairfax simply hangs on as he disputes the allegations. "Before Donald Trump, I would say with this kind of stuff, it's impossible for a person to just hang on, put their head down and ignore it," said Quentin Kidd, a political science professor at Christopher Newport University. "Post-Donald Trump, I think what elected officials are willing to do has changed in some ways. So can he hang on? Certainly he can hang on." If Fairfax were to leave, it's unclear who could replace him. Northam may try to appoint a Democrat, while Republicans could mount a legal challenge with the goal of getting Senate Pro Tem Steve Newman to serve as both a voting senator and temporary lieutenant governor. Meanwhile, the attorney general's future is unknown. Herring, who acknowledged wearing blackface at a party in 1980, would become governor if both Northam and Fairfax left office. Herring has apologized but has not indicated he would resign, despite his initial forceful call for the governor to step down. Asked Sunday for his opinion on his subordinates, Northam told CBS that it's up to them to decide whether they want to stay in office. He said he supports Fairfax's call for an investigation into the sexual assault allegations. Of Herring, he said that "just like me, he has grown." Northam's pledge Sunday to work on healing Virginia's racial divide was his second in as many days. In his first interview since the scandal erupted, he told The Washington Post on Saturday that the uproar has pushed him to confront the state's deep and lingering divisions, as well as his own insensitivity. But he said that reflection has convinced him that, by remaining in office, he can work to resolve them. "It's obvious from what happened this week that we still have a lot of work to do," Northam said. "There are still some very deep wounds in Virginia, and especially in the area of equity." ___ Associated Press reporters Steve Helber in Chilhowie, Virginia; Ben Finley in Norfolk, Virginia; David McFadden in Baltimore; Julie Pace and Michael Biesecker in Washington; Jonathan Drew in Durham, North Carolina; Michael Kunzelman in College Park, Maryland; Alanna Durkin Richer in Boston; and Thomas Beaumont in Mason City, Iowa, contributed to this report. Virginia Governor Ralph Northam, in his first interview since a racist photo in his medical school yearbook emerged over a week ago, said hell finish his four-year term in office and use the time to pursue an agenda of racial reconciliation and equity. Northam spoke to reporters from the Washington Post for 30 minutes on Saturday in the formal front parlor of the 1813 Executive Mansion in Richmond, Virginia. Separately, Northams deputy, Virginia Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax, is under increasing pressure to resign over allegations of sexual assault. Northam said hes asked his cabinet secretaries to come up with specific proposals to begin addressing issues of inequality, such as expanding access to health care, housing and transportation, and to begin reporting those suggestions on Monday. Its obvious from what happened this week that we still have a lot of work to do, he said. There are still some very deep wounds in Virginia, and especially in the area of equity. It has really raised the level of awareness for racial issues in Virginia. And so were ready to learn from our mistakes, Northam said. Assault Allegations Northam, 59, told his staff Friday he wont resign. He maintains that hes not in the yearbook photograph of one person in blackface and another in Ku Klux Klan robes. The governor couldnt explain why he initially took responsibility for the photo on Feb. 1 only to reverse himself within a day other than to say that he was shocked when he first saw it on an iPhone. Meanwhile, Fairfax faced two allegations as of Friday from women who came forward in recent weeks to accuse him of sexually assaulting them in 2000 and 2004, respectively. Fairfax has denied the allegations. Republicans, including President Donald Trump, have predicted the scandal plaguing Virginias top Democratic officials will give them the opportunity to make political gains in a state thats increasingly voted for Democrats in recent elections. Democratic U.S. House members from Virginia have called on Fairfax to resign, as have Democratic senators Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and Cory Booker of New Jersey both 2020 presidential contenders. One Virginia state legislator, Democrat Patrick Hope, said hes planning to introduce articles of impeachment against Fairfax if he doesnt resign. On Friday, the Democratic Lieutenant Governors Association removed Fairfax from its leadership ranks, naming officials from Delaware and Washington state in his place. (Adds comment from University of California) By Brendan Pierson Feb 8 (Reuters) - The University of California will soon be granted a potentially valuable patent on the revolutionary gene-editing technology known as CRISPR, according to a document filed by the U.S. patent office on Friday. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office decision to grant the patent could further fuel a long-running rivalry between the university and the Broad Institute, a biological and genomic research center affiliated with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard University that also holds patents on CRISPR. Patent rights to CRISPR could eventually be worth billions of dollars, because the technology could revolutionize the treatment of diseases, crop engineering and other areas. The so-called notice of allowance from the Patent and Trademark Office means the patent will likely be issued within eight weeks. Once issued, it could still face challenges in administrative or court proceedings. "The issued patent will encompass the use of CRISPR-Cas9 technology in any cellular or non-cellular environment", Eldora Ellison, lead patent strategist on CRISPR matters for the University of California, said in an online statement. CRISPR works as a molecular scissors that can trim away unwanted pieces of genetic material and replace them with new ones. Easier to use than older techniques, it has quickly become a preferred method of gene editing in research labs. The patent being approved stems from an application filed by microbiologists Jennifer Doudna of the University of California at Berkeley and Emmanuelle Charpentier of the University of Vienna in 2012. The scientists filed the application, the first ever for a CRISPR-related patent, after they discovered how CRISPR could be used to edit genomes in simple pieces of DNA called plasmids. A team at the Broad Institute led by bioengineer Feng Zhang applied for their own patent months later, but paid for a fast-track review process, which landed them the first CRISPR patent in 2014. The Broad's patents covered CRISPR's use in so-called eukaryotic cells, which include animal and human cells. Story continues The new patent decision "does not affect the CRISPR patent estate held by Broad, MIT, and Harvard in any way," Broad Institute spokesman David Cameron said in statement. In April 2015, the University of California filed a petition with the Patent and Trademark Office challenging the Broad Institute's patents, claiming they covered the same thing as the university's earlier application. However, the board rejected that petition, allowing both the University of California's application and the Broad Institute patents to stand. Its decision was upheld by a federal appeals court last year. Both institutions have licensed their CRISPR intellectual property to biotech companies. (Reporting by Brendan Pierson in New York, additional reporting by Saumya Sibi Joseph in Bengaluru; editing by Bill Berkrot, Rosalba O'Brien and Jonathan Oatis) Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) has gone against House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and other fellow Democrats, saying President Donald Trumps $5.7 billion border wall isnt an issue of morality, but one of efficacy. Reiterating what he said on Fox News Sunday weeks ago, Coons called the proposed wall a piece of infrastructure Friday on CNBCs Squawk Box, adding that hundreds of miles of barriers already in place along the U.S.-Mexico border have made a difference in reducing illegal immigration. But Trumps border wall plan just isnt a good one, he says. The larger question is how should we most efficiently and effectively spend billions of dollars more, Coons said, noting that Democrats have voted to spend billions on border security in the past. As for reaching an agreement with Republicans to avoid another partial government shutdown, Coons said a deal has to happen soon. We frankly really need one, Coons said. Its got to happen this weekend. It is in the countrys best interest. As the February 15 deadline to fund the government inches closer, Trump has made no concessions to Democrats in his push for border wall funding. Simply put, walls work, and walls save lives, Trump said in his State of the Union address Tuesday night. So, lets work together, compromise and reach a deal that will truly make America safe. Trump has previously suggested that he might declare a national emergency at the U.S. border to secure the $5.7 billion in funding to build the wall, his biggest campaign promise. I have the absolute right to declare a national emergency, Trump told reporters outside of the White House in January. I havent done it yet. I may do it. If this doesnt work out, probably I will do it. I would almost say definitely. While Pelosi has insisted there would be no new money going to Trumps proposed wall, she said there was no chance of the government shutting down again. There will not be another shutdown, Pelosi told Politico on Thursday. No, its not going to happen. Right now, all hope for averting another shutdown lies in the hands of a bipartisan negotiating committee. Congressional negotiators on both sides said last week that they are close to reaching a deal on border security. On Friday, Rep. Chuck Fleischmann (R-Tenn.) called the chance of another shutdown nil, or next to nil and suggested that there would be money put toward border protection as part of a bipartisan agreement. (Adds quotes, details) WASHINGTON, Feb 8 (Reuters) - A top Saudi official on Friday reiterated his government's position that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman did not order the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, and he declined to comment specifically on a newspaper report that the crown prince in 2017 said he would use "a bullet" on the journalist. On Thursday, the New York Times reported that a year before Khashoggi was killed, the crown prince told an aide he would use "a bullet" on the journalist if he did not return home and end his criticism of the government. Those comments were made in 2017, well before Khashoggi was killed last October in a Saudi consulate in Istanbul, the Times said, citing current and former U.S. and foreign officials knowledgeable about intelligence reports. Asked about the report, Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir told reporters: "I can't comment on reports based on anonymous sources. We have seen in the past that many so-called reports based on intelligence sources have not panned out." Asked if he rejected the idea that the crown prince had used the phrase in a conversation, al-Jubeir replied: "It's not about reject or not reject. We know that the crown prince did not order this. We know that this was a rogue operation." Separately on Thursday, a United Nations-led inquiry into Khashoggi's murder said that evidence pointed to a brutal crime "planned and perpetrated" by Saudi officials. Khashoggi's killing by a team of Saudi operatives on Oct. 2 provoked widespread revulsion and tarnished the image of the crown prince, who had been admired in the West for pushing deep changes including tax reform, infrastructure projects and allowing women to drive. (Reporting by Arshad Mohammed; Writing by Lisa Lambert; Editing by David Gregorio, Phil Berlowitz and Dan Grebler) NEW YORK, Feb. 10, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C. is investigating potential claims against Wirecard AG (Other OTC: WRCDF, WCAGY). Our investigation concerns whether Wirecard has violated the federal securities laws and/or engaged in other unlawful business practices. Click here to participate in the action. On January 30, 2019, The Financial Times reported that a senior executive at the company was suspected of using forged contracts in connection with several suspicious transactions. The article cited [a]n internal presentation [that] described potentially fraudulent money flows at Wirecard, relating to transactions [that] were ordered by Edo Kurniawan, who is responsible for the payment groups accounting in the Asia-Pacific region. On this news, Wirecards share price fell by more than 14%, closing at $161.90 on January 30, 2019. On February 8, 2019, Singapore police raided the premises of Wirecard in connection with the fraud allegations. On this news, Wirecards share price has fallen a further 17% per share. If you purchased or otherwise acquired American Depository Shares (ADSs) of Wirecard, have information, would like to learn more about these claims, or have any questions concerning this announcement or your rights or interests with respect to these matters, please contact Brandon Walker or Melissa Fortunato by email at investigations@bespc.com , or telephone at (212) 355-4648, or by filling out this contact form . There is no cost or obligation to you. Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C. is a New York-based law firm concentrating in commercial and securities litigation. For additional information concerning our investigation into Wirecard please go to https://bespc.com/wrcdf/ . For additional information about Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C. please go to www.bespc.com . Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes. FILE PHOTO: Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan speaks at the opening ceremony for the first China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai, China November 5, 2018. REUTERS/Aly Song/Pool/File Photo By James Mackenzie ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - International Monetary Fund head Christine Lagarde used a meeting on Sunday with Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan to reiterate calls for reforms to its struggling economy, but there was no sign of agreement on a bailout package. Pakistan is seeking what would be its 13th IMF bailout since the late 1980s, but the deal has been held up by differences over demands Khan's government fears may harm growth. While those talks have continued, Pakistan has raised more than $10 billion in loans and credit arrangements from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and China to ease strain on its dwindling foreign currency reserves. Lagarde said her meeting with Khan at the sidelines of the World Government Summit in Dubai had been "good and constructive" and she reiterated IMF willingness to help. "I also highlighted that decisive policies and a strong package of economic reforms would enable Pakistan to restore the resilience of its economy and lay the foundations for strong and inclusive growth," she said in a statement. Pakistan's growth is set to slow from 5.2 percent this year to around 4 percent in 2019, with a budget deficit close to 7 percent of gross domestic product and a looming balance of payments crisis. In a speech at the summit on Sunday, Khan said the government faced a massive fiscal deficit when it took office last year and was making efforts to cut it, though international investors were already showing confidence. "We are seeing optimism, investors are going to the country, we feel Pakistan is about to take off," he said. Pakistan's finance ministry said the government and IMF would work together on policy priorities and reforms aimed at reducing imbalances and sustaining jobs. "In this regard, deliberations between Pakistani authorities and IMF staff will continue to finalise an agreement on the contours of a program," it said in a statement. The IMF is calling for structural reforms to the Pakistani economy, which has struggled to build up its manufacturing sector and strengthen exports, despite a sharp fall in its currency over the past year. Story continues It has long struggled to increase tax revenues and has seen foreign borrowing balloon on the back of a surge in capital investment as part of the massive infrastructure projects begun under the China Pakistan Economic Corridor. Pakistani officials have said they are worried that strict IMF conditions could constrain growth prospects. (Reporting by James Mackenzie, Additional reporting by Alexander Cornwell in Dubai; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne) Investing.com - Trade wars, slowing global growth and uncertainty over how quickly Venezuelan sanctions will bite are all coming together to hobble oil's rebound. New York-traded West Texas Intermediate crude settled modestly higher on Friday but lost almost 5% on the week. London's Brent oil also rose on the day and fell on the week as the U.S. and China missed an opportunity to hold a summit to settle their trade war before a March 1 deadline. Struggling euro zone economies, the slow-burn crisis in Venezuela and a volatile U.S. rig count were other factors that dented the outlook for oil. WTI settled up 8 cents, or 0.2%, on the day at $52.72 per barrel. For the week, it fell 4.6%, its steepest weekly decline year-to-date, despite scaling November highs of $55.75 earlier in the week. Brent, the global oil benchmark, was up 40 cents, or 0.7, at $62.03 per barrel by 3:25 PM ET (20:35 GMT). For the week, it was down 1.2%, after scaling 2019 highs of $63.63 earlier in the week. The weekly reading on the U.S. oil rig count published by industry firm Baker Hughes showed a rise of 7 units to 854. Last week, the rig count dropped by 14, taking the count to a nine-month low of 847. Analysts said rig additions could quickly multiply if WTI prices stayed not far from $55 a barrel. Crude prices came under renewed pressure this week after U.S. President Donald Trump said there would be no talks between him and Chinese President Xi Jinping before the deadline for a trade deal on March 1, raising new concerns about trade tensions between the worlds two biggest economies. Last week, Trump suggested that he would sit with Xi in late February, but on Thursday he ruled out such a meeting. Lower growth forecasts by the European Union from earlier this week had heightened fears of a global economic slowdown. In Venezuela's case, two weeks after opposition leader Juan Guaido declared himself interim president in defiance of sitting leader Nicolas Maduro, the standoff between the two has settled into a kind of stasis. While dozens of countries have recognized Guaido, Maduro continues to control the Venezuelan state apparatus, including the military. Story continues "For now, the competing presidents appear to be mustering allies and trying to determine their next moves, and a prolonged stalemate is likely," New York-based consultancy Energy Intelligence said in its weekly note. The stalemate also means the sanctions imposed by the Trump administration on the Maduro-controlled PDVSA oil company have had limited impact on crude prices so far. Trump is counting on Saudi Arabias help to fill any oil supply gap caused by the sanctions on PDVSA while trying to prevent Saudi-controlled Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries from formalizing a pact with Russia that would lift crude prices. A bipartisan group of U.S. senators have put together a bill for the Justice Department to sue members of OPEC for antitrust violations if the cartel tries to formalize its oil cooperation pact with Russia. At the same time, refiners on the U.S. Gulf Coast, squeezed by the absence of Venezuelan oil, have been told by White House officials not to expect any crude release from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Citing an administration source, energy reporting service Platts reported Thursday that officials are "certain" the Saudis will boost crude exports to the U.S. in coming weeks. What makes the U.S. position remarkable, Platts pointed out, is that Saudi officials have indicated no plans of making up for any shortfall in Venezuelan supply, as the OPEC cartel under their control has been busily cutting output to boost prices. Related Articles Oil rises on hopes for U.S.-China trade spat breakthrough U.S. Gulf Coast crude prices rise on falling imports, rising Cushing supply Explainer: How can South Africa's state power firm turn the lights back on? The National Enquirer's parent company insists it did not try to extort and blackmail Jeff Bezos with compromising pictures (AFP Photo/TIMOTHY A. CLARY) New York (AFP) - A lawyer denied Sunday allegations by Jeff Bezos that the National Enquirer tabloid had tried to extort and blackmail him, insisting that embarrassing photographs were obtained from a "reliable" source. "It absolutely is not extortion and not blackmail," Elkan Abramowitz, who represents National Enquirer parent company American Media Inc (AMI)'s chief executive David Pecker, told ABC television's "This Week." "What happened was the story was given to the National Enquirer by a reliable source that had been given information to the National Enquirer for seven years prior to the story. It was a source that was well known to both Mr Bezos and Miss (Lauren) Sanchez." Last month, the supermarket tabloid reported that Bezos, 55, had an extramarital affair with a former news anchor, publishing a trove of private text messages. The report appeared days after Bezos and his wife MacKenzie announced their divorce. When asked if the Enquirer's source was Sanchez's brother Michael, as reported by some media outlets, Abramowitz declined to confirm. "It was a person that was known to both Bezos and Ms Sanchez," he said. "I can tell you it's not Saudi Arabia, it's not President Trump, it's not Roger Stone. But I cannot tell you who the source is." The attorney was responding to Bezos's stunning claims published on online platform Medium on Thursday. Bezos hinted he may have been targeted by pro-Trump forces in part because of coverage by The Washington Post, which he owns, of the murder of its contributor Jamal Khashoggi, strangled and dismembered by Saudi agents in the kingdom's Istanbul consulate in October. But Abramowitz insisted that the Enquirer's exchanges with Bezos, which the billionaire released in his online post, were simply journalistic negotiating practices rather than extortion. "The story was already published... it was part of a legitimate negotiation," the lawyer said. "I think both Bezos and AMI had interests in resolving their differences. Bezos didn't want another story written about him or those pictures published, AMI did not want to have the libel against them that this was inspired by the White House, inspired by Saudi Arabia or inspired by The Washington Post." Although the government shutdown has come to an end, long-term damage has already been done to affordable housing programs in the form of distrust. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is responsible for funding project-based assistance programs, voucher programs, and other affordable housing programs throughout the U.S. During the shutdown, HUD was unable to renew contracts with private landlords in project-based rental assistance programs, known as Section 8, which pays landlords the difference between the amount of rent a household can afford to pay and the rent for a housing unit. A total of 1.4 million households use Section 8, with an additional 2.2 million using portable rental vouchers. And even though the funding for these contracts resumed, individuals who use these housing programs may suffer negative consequences going forward. Im very concerned about the longer-term damage to the reputation of [Section 8 housing] and other HUD programs that depend on private market participation to function, Diane Yentel, director of the National Low Income Housing Coalition, told Yahoo Finance. Despite the shutdown coming to an end, if landlords or property owners see federal funding as unreliable and volatile, theyll be less willing to participate in these crucial programs, she said, which will do long-lasting harm to low-income renters in need of these programs. U.S. President Donald Trump listens to remarks by Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Ben Carson at the White House on Dec. 12, 2018. (Photo: REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst) Theres no legal protection for voucher holders Exacerbating the issue, it is legal in most cities for landlords to discriminate against people using government programs for housing. There are some states localities that have laws in place prohibiting discrimination against voucher holders, but were talking about in the dozens around the country, Rice said. In the vast majority of communities, theres no legal protection for voucher holders except ones that are really limited. In a case of properties that receive other kinds of federal subsidies, such as low-income housing tax credits, those properties are prohibited from discriminating against voucher holders. Story continues These pieces of anti-discrimination legislation are known as source of income laws. States that enforce these include Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Utah, Vermont, Washington, and the District of Columbia. There are also various counties and cities across the country that have these laws. Families need certainty. Property owners need certainty. Lenders need certainty. And the only thing theyre getting from Washington right now is uncertainty, Habitat for Humanity Internationals Vice President for Government Relations and Advocacy Chris Vincent told Yahoo Finance in a statement. Funding interruptions seed doubt that hurt those who use USDA loans to purchase homes in rural areas, families who get rental assistance from HUD, and builders that use community development dollars to build affordable housing. Vincent further called on Congress and the White House to implement policies that provide more stability and address our nations affordable housing shortage. The Alfred E. Smith Houses, a public housing development built and maintained by the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), stand in in the Lower East Side of Manhattan, April 26, 2018 in New York City. (Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images) The shutdown really put a damper [These partnerships] only function if the government is considered to be a reliable partner, and a big part of that and part of what attracts owners to these programs is the possibility of receiving reliable monthly subsidy payments from the federal government, or in the case of the voucher program, the state housing authorities that administer it, Rice said. A study conducted by the Urban Institute indicated that finding housing with a voucher is extremely difficult, from identifying an available unit and reaching landlords to finding landlords willing to accept vouchers to meeting with landlords to view available housing. The search required sifting through numerous advertisements, making several calls, and facing frequent rejection. The system could obviously use some work. Theres a conversation going on about how to partner with landlords better, because they play a really important role in the tenant-based voucher system, Martha Galvez, principal research associate at the Urban Institute, told Yahoo Finance. [The shutdown] really put a damper on that and raised a level of distrust or concern that housing authorities arent a good partner, that HUD wont always pay its bills, or that its risky to take part in the program and to accept voucher holders. As for who is to blame, Galvez said its a mix of things. Its folks who dont really understand the program well, and its markets that are really hard to navigate right now, she said. Theres a combination of not enough affordable housing and landlords who are distrustful of voucher holders that are making it harder to use this important resource. A burgeoning problem The distrust is not new, Douglas Rice, senior policy analyst at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, said. This has been sort of a burgeoning problem in recent years, Rice told Yahoo Finance. The funding disruptions weve had in recent years just kind of added to it. I wouldnt expect anything unprecedented because of the shutdown, mostly because in fact the voucher program payments werent disrupted. Landlords havent seen much of an impact on the ground, he said, because HUD was able to get money to them through February before the shutdown began. HUD did not respond to request for comment. Thats less true than the project-based rental assistance side of things, though, Rice said. HUD was unable to renew hundreds of these rental assistance contracts that expired in December and then in January because of the shutdown. But thats a relatively small number of units were talking about. And frankly, its not unusual for HUD to be several days or weeks behind schedule and miss the expiration of contracts, but they typically take care of it within a couple of weeks. Adriana is an associate editor for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter @adrianambells. READ MORE: Follow Yahoo Finance on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Flipboard, LinkedIn, YouTube, and reddit. In an exclusive conversation with CNBC, Google's head of security and privacy says businesses have more to learn about their own insecurity from the history of cybersecurity than from frightening headlines or scary pitch decks drom vendors. Heather Adkins has served in a top privacy and security spot at Google for 16 years. There are a lot of scary cybersecurity headlines, and many shiny new solutions from vendors that promise to address those threats. Ignore them and look at history instead. That's the advice of Google GOOGL 's Heather Adkins, who has served for 16 years as the head of information security and privacy at the tech giant. Adkins has witnessed many landmark cyber events from the front lines. She says the attacks, methods, motivations, tools and even criminals themselves are the same as they've been since the 1980s. History is a better teacher for businesses than a frightening pitch deck from a vendor, she says. U.S. government-backed research papers from as early as the 1960s started to outline the problems we would see today, she told CNBC. Government workers back then spoke of new threats they saw as the government went from single-use, big mainframe computers to shared environments. Here are a few examples of how things have evolved -- and how they haven't. Nation states attacking weak links. One landmark for Adkins was Clifford Stoll's 1989 book, " The Cuckoo's Egg ". Stoll, a computer lab worker at U.C. Berkeley, discovered that hackers from East Germany were systematically trying to break into university computers to capture military secrets. "What happens today is still very similar," she said, "especially when we are thinking about the root causes of attacks, including things like the Equifax hack." In other words, nation-state hackers target companies like Equifax, banks or universities to get important secrets, rather than wasting all of their resources on the more heavily fortified government agencies themselves. Story continues Old methods of attack keep resurfacing. The methods for distributing malware and viruses have grown and become easier, but they haven't changed that much on a technical level. Take for example the Morris Worm, one of the first internet worms distributed widely over the web. A computer worm is a piece of malicious software that can replicate itself, sometimes very rapidly, distributing itself across connected computers. Worm attacks largely fell out of practice, but then came back in style in 2017 when criminals attached worms to ransomware -- which shuts down a user's computer until a ransom is paid -- in attacks like WannaCry and NotPetya. These worm-style attacks spread globally in very rapid fashion, causing havoc at companies like FedEx and Maersk. The vehicles for transmitting hostile software may be roughly the same, but their availability and ease-of-use has exploded, Adkins said. "At the time of the Morris worm, the people exploiting [computers] were mostly just curious people. But today, it's different. There's an extraordinary amount of knowledge available -- you don't have to know very much. You can go out and for $20, buy a spying kit, and use that for your own purposes," she said. In another example, email schemes have become far more sophisticated than the "Nigerian prince" schemes of 15 or 20 years ago. But attacks convincing people to wire money or enter their bank credentials are still going strong, and the basic idea remains the same: A scammer sends a fake email that tries to trick a recipient into providing information they shouldn't. This slow evolution provides an advantage for the back-end machine learning tools Gmail uses to identify them. The company has gotten better about catching the these attacks and providing more information about them, like whether the fraudulent message was sent by a nation-state. The old rules are the best rules. Adkins said sometimes the marketplace suffers from a "proliferation of cybersecurity professionals" offering conflicting advice on passwords, antivirus software, safety practices and so on. But the best rules for individuals looking to secure their personal information are the classics, Adkins said. Keep your software up to date, and don't re-use the same password. Criminals rely on simple hacks that exploit old software problems, and when a company is breached, data stolen frequently includes passwords and usernames. If you use those same terms elsewhere, criminals can easily break into your other accounts. Here are some more of Google's up-to-date email security rules to consider as well. "Things have grown and changed so much, but really so much of what we do has stayed the same or is based on these very well used concepts," said Adkins. "Doing these well-known basics can still go a long way in being more secure." More From CNBC finland universal basic income free money Universal basic income experiments and other plans that seek to distribute free money seem wonderful considering so many people struggle to make ends meet because of their limited incomes. In the U.S., many legislators have called for federal and or/state governments to trial these economic policies. One recent proposal actually calls for people to receive money from the government even if they are unwilling to work! As lawmakers and supporters champion such ideas, it would behoove them to look beyond the U.S. border to countries who have already taken a stab at basic income. Finland took up the effort, and the results have many Finns acknowledging that the idea wasnt a good one. Read the full story on CCN.com. Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker arrives to testify during a House Judiciary Committee hearing Friday. Credit: Diego M. Radzinschi / NLJ Matthew Whitaker likely never imagined himself in this positionelevated from relative anonymity to temporarily lead the U.S. Justice Department, staring down newly empowered Democrats from the hot seat in a congressional hearing room and fielding questions about his fraught oversight of the special counsel's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. But there he was on Friday, filling in as the leader of the Justice Department and making an appearance, under the klieg lights of the U.S. House Judiciary Committee, that had been in question just 24 hours earlier. Whitaker at one point took it upon himself to enforce the committees time limits. When Nadler asked whether Whitaker had ever been asked to approve any request or action to be taken by the special counsel, Whitakers reply produced gasps and laughs inside the hearing room. Mr. Chairman, I see your five minutes is up, he said. Im here voluntarily. I agreed to five-minute rounds. Whitaker, testifying at at oversight hearing, said he was looking forward to discussing some of the accomplishments and priorities of the Department of Justice. After the opening questions, he said he was a little surprised that the discussion hadnt yet turned to the Justice Departments efforts on violent crime, the opioid crisis, religious liberty and free speech on college campuses. There should have been no surprise, of course. Weeks in advance of the hearing, House Democrats had sent Whitaker a list of questions concerning any conversations he had with President Donald Trump and White House officials about his leadership of the Justice Department. Democrats didnt want to hear Whitaker demur out of a desire to preserve the presidents ability to claim that communications were shielded by executive privilege. The idea was to give Whitaker time to consult with the White House and arrive at the House Judiciary Committee prepared to clearly assert privilege or answer questions. Whitaker had earlier undergone what some media reports described as "significant prep" for Friday's hearing, where he testified that he hadnt interfered with the special counsels investigation or shared information about it with the White House. Whitaker was thrust into the national spotlight only months ago when then-U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions was forced out by President Donald Trump. Trump constantlyand very publiclyberated his attorney general, humiliating him on Twitter and in public remarks. Whitaker, a former U.S. attorney in Iowa, at the time had been serving as chief of staff to Sessions. It was not exactly a position that makes you accustomed to the spotlight. In the hearing room Friday, Whitaker gave halting responses at times, resisting yes-or-no questions before ultimately ceding an answer. U.S. Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-New York, and the committees chairman, would accuse him of filibustering, stalling and wasting members time. Another Democrat, U.S. Rep. David Cicilline of Rhode Island, opened a round of questioning telling Whitaker there was no need to thank him for a question. Nadler, referencing a press conference in which Whitaker briefly addressed the special counsels investigation, asked whether hed been briefed on the probe. Mr. Chairman, thank you for that question. As you know I cannot talk about ongoing investigations, Whitaker told Nadler. You can say whether youve been briefed or not, Nadler replied. As you commented about my recent press conference, as it relates to the special counsels investigation, I have been briefed on it, Whitaker said. So the answers yes, thank you, Nadler sad. Had Whitaker been briefed on the investigation while serving as Sessions' chief of staff? Chairman, I know youre very interested in the special counsels investigation, and so I want to be very clear about this. Because General Sessions was recused from the special counsels investigation, I had no involvement in the special counsels investigation, Whitaker responded. So the answers no. So the answers no, Nadler said. Thank you. Whitaker was more eager to answer questions, largely from Republicans, about efforts to combat violent crime and opioid use, along with the growing caseloads of immigration judges tasked with reviewing claims for asylum. Whitaker called attention to his and Sessions efforts to expedite the adjudication of asylum claims. Quite frankly, the number of immigration judges we have has been overwhelmed by the number of asylum seekers, Whitaker said. Meanwhile most of these folks, he added, are not part of the detained docket. They are part of the released docket. Those cases take longerthe ones that are not detained, the non-detained docket. And they have caused, since 2008, that number to go dramatically up. Story continues House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Doug Collins (R-GA), right, and Chairman Jerrod Nadler (D-NY), left, listen Friday at the Whitaker hearing. Credit: Diego M. Radzinschi / NLJ The top Republican on the committee, U.S. Rep. Doug Collins, R-Georgia, asked about the indictment and arrest of Roger Stone, with a focus on how CNN knew to stake out the longtime Republican political operatives Fort Lauderdale, Florida, home in time for his early-morning arrest. Whitaker said, Tt was deeply concerning to me as to how CNN found out about that. Whitaker, appearing in a congressional hearing for the first time, would not offer a yes-or-no answer even on the question of whether he had been confirmed by the Senate. When U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, asked that question, Whitaker answered not with a no but with an explanation that hed been appointed acting attorney general under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act, a statute the Trump administration has invoked to temporarily fill several top government posts. Whitaker kept his eye on the clock during the hearing. Just before 1 p.m., as the committee took a five-minute recess, Whitaker could be heard asking, We get five minutes for lunch? in apparent disbelief. At another point, Jackson Lee asked to reclaim some of the five minutes allotted for her initial round of questioning. As Jackson Lee returned to her question, Whitaker asked whether she had, in fact, received a portion of her time back. An unamused Jackson Lee shot back, Mr. Attorney General, were not joking here. And your humor is not acceptable. falcon-embed src="embed_1" It wasn't clear less than 24 hours before the start of the hearing whether Whitaker would even show up. The House Judiciary Committee readied to subpoena Whitaker in the event he refused to answer questions. The committee voted along party lines to approve the subpoena. The vote triggered a day-long standoff, with Whitaker saying he would appear only if the committee promised not to subpoena him. Not until late Thursday night was it confirmed that Whitaker would appear. Nadler signaled that the House Judiciary Committee would seek in coming weeks to depose Whitaker. The public appearance before the committee Friday was likely Whitakers lastat least as the leader of the Justice Department. The U.S. Senate this week advanced the nomination of Kirkland & Ellis counsel William Barr as the permanent attorney general. Barr, a former U.S. attorney general during the George H. W. Bush administration, has testified many times on Capitol Hill. Read more: Roger Stone's Lawyers Already Want a New Judge in Mueller Case William Barr Wont Commit to Recusing From Russia Investigation From 'Honest Man' to 'Scared Stiff': All of Trump's Tweets Dishing on Jeff Sessions READ: Jeff Sessions's Resignation Letter By Corina Pons and Marianna Parraga CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela's state-run oil company PDVSA [PDVSA.UL] is telling customers of its joint ventures to deposit oil sales proceeds in an account recently opened at Russia's Gazprombank AO (GZPRI.MM), according to sources and an internal document seen by Reuters on Saturday. PDVSA's move comes after the United States imposed tough, new financial sanctions on Jan. 28 aimed at blocking Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro's access to the country's oil revenue. Supporters of Venezuelan opposition leader and self-proclaimed interim president Juan Guaido said recently that a fund would be established to accept proceeds from sales of Venezuelan oil. The United States and dozens of other countries have recognized Guaido as the nation's legitimate head of state. Maduro has denounced Guaido as a U.S. puppet seeking to foment a coup. PDVSA also has begun pressing its foreign partners holding stakes in joint ventures in its key Orinoco Belt producing area to formally decide whether they will continue with the projects, according to two sources with knowledge of the talks. The joint venture partners include Norway's Equinor ASA (EQNR.OL), U.S.-based Chevron Corp (CVX.N) and France's Total SA (TOTF.PA). "We would like to make formal your knowledge of new banking instructions to make payments in U.S. dollars or euros," wrote PDVSA's finance vice president, Fernando De Quintal, in a letter dated Feb. 8 to the PDVSA unit that supervises its joint ventures. Even after a first round of financial sanctions in 2017, PDVSA's joint ventures managed to maintain bank accounts in the United States and Europe to receive proceeds from oil sales. They also used correspondent banks in the United States and Europe to shift money to PDVSA's accounts in China. State-run PDVSA several weeks ago informed customers of the new banking instructions and has begun moving the accounts of its joint ventures, which can export crude separately. The decision was made amid tension with some of its partners, which have withdrawn staff from Caracas since U.S. sanctions were imposed in January. Story continues The sanctions gave U.S. oil companies working in Venezuela, including Chevron and oil service firms Halliburton Co (HAL.N), General Electric Co's Baker Hughes (BHGE.N) and Schlumberger NV (SLB.N), a deadline to halt all operations in the South American country. The European Union has encouraged member countries to recognize a new temporary government led by Guaido until new elections can be held. Europe also has said it could impose financial sanctions to bar Maduro from having access to oil revenue coming from the region. Maduro has overseen an economic collapse in the oil-rich OPEC country that has left many Venezuelans malnourished and struggling to find medicine, sparking the exodus of an estimated 3 million Venezuelans. Sanctions designed to deprive Maduro of oil revenue have left an armada of loaded oil tankers off Venezuela's coasts that have not been discharged by PDVSA's customers due to payment issues. The bottleneck has caused problems for PDVSA to continue producing and refining oil without imported diluents and components. PDVSA also ordered its Petrocedeno joint venture with Equinor and Total to halt extra-heavy oil output and upgrading due to a lack of naphtha needed to make the production exportable, as the sanctions prohibit U.S. suppliers of the fuel from exporting to Venezuela. (Reporting by Marianna Parraga in Mexico City and Corina Pons in Caracas; editing by Jonathan Oatis and G Crosse) February 7, 2019: We are delighted to announce that Greece's national consortium for academic and research institutions, HEAL-Link, has signed a consortium membership agreement with ORCID, starting on January 1, 2019. All 52 HEAL-Link members will participate in the consortium and will benefit from premium-level ORCID membership. HEAL-Link (Hellenic Academic Libraries Link) will act as consortium lead, helping its members to coordinate their ORCID researcher engagement and system integration activities and to build shared tools and resources that can be used across the consortium. They will provide basic technical and implementation support -- backed up by the ORCID team -- as HEAL-Link members integrate ORCID at their organizations. HEAL-Link joins a community of ORCID consortia active in 20 countries around the world. Its members span across all disciplines and research and scholarly activities and include Greek universities, research institutes, foundations, the National Library, and the General Secretariat of Research and Technology of the Ministry of Education. HEAL-Link provides a suite of services to its members, including authentication and authorization infrastructure, to support open research objectives. Leonidas Pispiringas, Network Technologies and Infrastructure Manager - Software Developer for HEAL-Link noted that: "We are excited and eagerly looking forward to collaborating with ORCID in order for HEAL-Link members to embrace ORCID Premium services. Subsequently this collaboration will aid to the identification of the researchers of HEAL-Link members and to the connection with their affiliations and activities accordingly." Laure Haak, Executive Director of ORCID, welcomed the HEAL-Link agreement: "We are excited to be partnering with HEAL-Link and its members to support the adoption of ORCID in Greece as part of our shared open research infrastructure goals." ### About HEAL-Link HEAL-Link , the Greek Consortium for the Academic & Research Institutions in Greece, is actively involved to projects, initiatives, developments to the scientific publication landscape and its goal is to act in a way that is beneficial to its members and to the scientific community in Greece. Colaboration with ORCID would be of great benefit for all the researchers in Greece as identification of a researcher (name ambiguity problem, etc.) is an enduring issue over the years. Contact: Leonidas Pispiringas About ORCID ORCID's vision is a world where all who participate in research and innovation, from imagining to building and managing, are uniquely identified and connected to their contributions across disciplines, and borders, and time. ORCID provides an identifier for individuals to use with their name as they engage in research and innovation activities. We provide open tools that enable transparent and trustworthy connections between researchers, their contributions, and affiliations. We provide this service to help people find information and to simplify reporting and analysis. Contact: Laure Haak, Executive Director Lightning was the main electromagnetic presence in the Earth's atmosphere long before the invention of electricity. There are some 2,000 thunderstorms active at any given time, so humans and other organisms have been bathed in extremely low frequency (ELF) electromagnetic fields for billions of years. These electromagnetic fields -- the result of global lightning activity known as Schumann Resonances -- are weak and difficult to detect. Scientists never suspected that they had any tangible impact on life on Earth. But a new Tel Aviv University study finds that these fields may have protective properties for organisms living under stress conditions. Research for the study was led by Prof. Colin Price of TAU's Porter School of the Environment and Earth Sciences and conducted by his doctoral student Gal Elhalel in collaboration with Profs. Asher Shainberg and Dror Fixler of Bar Ilan University. It was published in Nature Scientific Reports on February 7. "We found that under controlled conditions, the Schumann Resonance fields certainly had an effect on living tissues," Prof. Price says. "The most important effect was that the atmospheric ELF fields actually protected cells under stress conditions. In other words, when biological cells are under stress -- due to lack of oxygen, for example -- the atmospheric fields from lightning appear to protect them from damage. This may be related to the evolutionary role these fields have played on living organisms." In the course of numerous laboratory experiments, in which the scientists induced fields similar to those in the atmosphere, they witnessed significant effects on living heart cells of rats within 30-40 minutes. Extremely weak magnetic fields in the 7.6-8Hz frequency range induced a number of effects when applied to rat cardiac cells, including reductions in spontaneous contractions, calcium transients and the release of Creatine Kinase (CK). (The release of CK into the liquid medium around the cardiac cells is a measure of damage to cardiac cells, which also occurs during heart attacks.) The scientists found that the effects were temporary, as the induced cell changes reversed when the fields were turned off. "It is the first study that demonstrates a link between global lighting activity and the Schumann Resonances and the activity of living cells," Prof. Price says. "It may explain why all living organisms have electrical activity in the same ELF spectral range, and it is the first time such a connection has been shown. This may have some therapeutic implications down the line, since these ELF fields appear to protect cells from damage, but this requires further research." Prof. Price and his team are expanding their research to other types of biological cells to see if there is a similar effect of these electromagnetic fields on other cell types. ### American Friends of Tel Aviv University supports Israel's most influential, comprehensive and sought-after center of higher learning, Tel Aviv University (TAU). TAU is recognized and celebrated internationally for creating an innovative, entrepreneurial culture on campus that generates inventions, startups and economic development in Israel. TAU is ranked ninth in the world, and first in Israel, for producing start-up founders of billion-dollar companies, an achievement that surpassed several Ivy League universities. To date, 2,500 US patents have been filed by Tel Aviv University researchers -- ranking TAU #1 in Israel, #10 outside of the US and #43 in the world. New Delhi: Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Saturday announced to rename Baloki Forest Reserve after Baba Guru Nanak and expressed his desire to establish a university in his name. During the launch ceremony of the Spring Tree Plantation 2019 drive at Balloki in Nankana Sahib on Saturday Pakistan PM made t made the announcement. Incidentally, Gopal Singh Chawla a senior leader of Pakistan Sikh Gurudwara Prabhandak Committee (PSGPC) was also invited to the event. Singh is the general secretary of the PSGPC and is known as a pro-Khalistan stance. Now Hindi will be the third official language of Abu Dhabi While Addressing to the PM also said that Pakistan belongs to all citizens equally and his government will ensure that Sikh pilgrims are facilitated for the 550th anniversary of Guru Nanak. TMC MLA Satyajit Biswas shot dead in Bengals Phulbari Meanwhile, former Jammu and Kashmir CM Mehbooba Mufti praised the Imran Khan for this grand gesture and slammed the BJP. She took to Twitter and wrote, How times change. Centres top priority is seemingly renaming historic cities & building Ram Mandir. On the other hand , heartening to see that Pak PM has initiated steps to name Baloki forest reserve after Guru Nanak ji & create a university under his name. Guntur (Andhra Pradesh): In a blistering attack on Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said he was having sleepless nights as the Centre was seeking an accounting of every rupee given to the state. Addressing a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) rally here amid protests across the state, he targeted the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief accusing him of corruption. "The 'Chowkidar' (watchman) is giving him sleepless nights because we insist on seeking account for every rupee given to Andhra Pradesh for its development," he said. Modi said that Naidu had ignored the state's development and had joined the competition by the 'Maha Milawat' in abusing him. He said the opposition alliance comprised people facing allegations of cheating the poor and the country and remarked that the law was catching up with them. "He is using every abusive word from dictionary against me. He is insulting the great culture of Andhra," said the prime minister adding that he was responding for the first time after listening to these abuses for months. Modi said Naidu had promised to turn around the infrastructure of Andhra Pradesh but instead he took a U-turn. "He wanted to make Andhra a sun-rise state but is busy in son-rise by promoting his son. He promised new schemes for poor but pasted his own stickers on Modi's schemes," said Modi, who was on his first visit to Andhra after the TDP pulled out of his government last year, accusing the Prime Minister of not fulfilling the promises of Special Category Status and other commitments made in the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act 2014. On Naidu's claim that he is senior to Modi, the prime minister said there was no dispute about it and that was why he always gave him full respect. "You are senior in changing parties, in entering alliance with new parties, you are senior in backstabbing your own father-in-law, losing election after election, and you are senior in shattering the dreams of Andhra Pradesh." Modi wondered why Naidu bowed before the Congress which insulted the leaders of Andhra Pradesh which led to N T Rama Rao forming the TDP. The Prime Minister said Naidu forgot the principles of his own party as he did not want to face the truth. He said Naidu never won successive elections and was afraid of miserably losing the coming elections. Modi alleged that from Amaravati to Polavaram all the efforts of Naidu were to create wealth for himself. "That's why he is afraid of 'Chowkidar'. My government calls for account of every rupee of the taxpayer's money. He never had to give these accounts to Delhi in the past." On the TDP leader's proposed protest in Delhi on Monday, Modi alleged that Naidu is going to Delhi for the 'photo session' and for sounding the bugle of his party along with many others by spending public money. "The people of Andhra should wake up and demand account for their money," he said. On the TDP's protest with the slogan 'Modi go back', Modi said he was confident that the people of the country would fulfil this wish of TDP by bringing him back to power in the coming elections. Modi claimed that his government extended all possible help to Andhra for its development during last 5 years but alleged that these funds were not used properly by the state government. He said the government by announcing a new special assistance package for Andhra ensured that the state got the same financial help which it would have received under the Special Category Status. He recalled that Naidu had accepted and hailed the package but failed to make use of it and took a U-turn. Modi said under this package various central ministries approved projects worth about Rs 3 lakh crore for Andhra Pradesh. He claimed that 10 out of the 11 institutions of higher learning approved for the state had started while six out of eight big infrastructure projects were grounded. He assured the people that his government remained committed to work for the development of the state. New Delhi: BSP chief Mayawati, who the Supreme Court has said should reimburse to the public exchequer the money spent on putting up statues of herself, her mentor Kanshi Ram and of elephants - the party symbol - in Lucknow and Noida, holds properties in Lutyens's Delhi worth several crores of rupees. She also has an official residence-cum-office in the national capital. Mayawati, who rose from the grass-roots to national prominence and is counted among the richest politicians in country, is a four-term chief minister of Uttar Pradesh. According to the declaration made by her at the time of filing her nomination papers for the 2012 Rajya Sabha elections, her immovable properties, both residential and commercial in Lucknow and Delhi, cash in banks and jewellery, stood at over Rs 111 crore. She resigned from the Rajya Sabha in 2017. In 2010, when she was elected to the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council, Mayawati's total assets were valued at around Rs 88 crore and in 2007 they were estimated at around Rs 52.27 crore. Much of her wealth is in real estate and she has residential buildings in posh areas of Delhi and Lucknow. Mayawati was allotted three adjacent government bungalows during the Congress-led UPA government in 2013 on Gurudwara Rakabganj Road in the heart of national capital. The bungalows - Nos. 12, 14 and 16 - were amalgamated into a super-bungalow and now serve as her residence-cum-office in Delhi. She holds her press conferences and other important party meetings here. The amalgamated single unit has been allotted in the name of Bahujan Prerna Trust. Rules do not allow any modification in government bungalows in New Delhi's Lutyens Bungalow Zone but the rules have been violated. Mayawati also has a government bungalow in her name at 4, Gurudwara Rakab Ganj Road, which is separate from these three. Such bungalows are meant for Ministers and Secretaries with a plot size of 8,250 square feet and front and back lawns. They have a plinth area of 1,970 square feet and include eight bedrooms, four servants quarters and two garages. The Bahujan Samaj Party supremo's immovable properties in Delhi include two commercial buildings in Connaught Place in Delhi (B-34 ground floor and B-34 1st floor with areas of 3,628.02 and 4,535.02 square ft respectively) whose approximate market value was estimated at Rs 9.39 crore and Rs 9.45 crore respectively in 2012, when she filed her nomination for the Rajya Sabha elections. In 2009, Mayawati bought a property - 23, 24 Sardar Patel Marg in New Delhi's diplomatic enclave, whose total area is about 43,000 square ft. It was valued at over Rs 61 crore in 2012. She owns a residential building in Lucknow at 9, Mall Avenue, measuring 71,282.96 square ft with a built-up area of 53,767.29 square ft. It was purchased on November 3, 2010 and its value was estimated at Rs 16 crore in 2012. The Supreme Court on Friday observed that Mayawati should reimburse the public exchequer the money spent on putting up elephant statues in Lucknow and Noida. With her rivals attacking her in the wake of apex court observations, Mayawati said parks and memorials were built in Uttar Pradesh during her regime to honour great men from among oppressed Dalit and OBCs. These have become tourist spots, generating revenue for the government, she added. She said the media should not distort the oral observation of the court. "Sure to get justice in this matter also. Media and BJP leaders, please stop kite flying," she said in on Twitter. The case will be next heard in April. Bengaluru: The first four CH-47F (I) Chinooks for the Indian Air Force (IAF) have arrived at the Mundra Port in Gujarat on Sunday. Its makers Boeing said the CH-47F (I) Chinooks will be now ferried to Chandigarh, where it will be formally inducted in the IAF later this year. Boeing says the Chinooks have been delivered ahead of schedule, and its commitment to help modernise Indias defence forces intact. Air Force Station Chandigarh will be the base for the IAF Chinooks and these heavy lift choppers will be now part of the No 126 Helicopter Flight also known as the Featherweights. The squadron currently operates the last of four Russian Mil Mi-26s. Chinooks will be a huge boost for the IAF's operations. The IAF has placed a total order of 15 Chinook helicopters with the Boeing. The CH-47F (I) Chinook is an advanced multi-mission helicopter that will provide the Indian armed forces with unmatched strategic airlift capability across the full spectrum of combat and humanitarian missions. Through its current partnerships with the IAF and Indian Navy, Boeing has ensured high rate of mission readiness and increased operational capabilities, says a Boeing statement. The handing over ceremony of the first Chinook was held at Philadelphia in the US early this month. The current deliveries are expected to be completed by 2023. India had signed a government-to-government deal with the US in September, 2015, for 15 Chinooks, with an additional option of seven more platforms. Boost to inter-valley ops Veteran aviator Air Marshal Anil Chopra (Retd) tells Onmanorama that the arrival of Chinooks will be a huge boost for the IAFs operations. Till now, we were depending on the Mi-26s in for all our heavy-lift requirements. The numbers are very few and also the serviceability of these Russian platforms has been relatively very low, Air Marshal Chopra (Retd) said. According to him, the Chinooks have great operational experience of many decades. Chinooks coming in larger numbers is a good sign for IAF and what we are getting is the latest version. It will be a big capability boost for IAF to carry loads in Ladak and Kashmir regions. The efficiency will now increase by many folds and it will be a great leap for inner-valley transfer of equipment during peace time and in operation, he said. He further added that the north-east regions too will be a great beneficiary with Chinooks coming in. We all know about the poor road connectivity in N-E regions and the efforts are now on to better it. However, Chinooks will play a major role in this regional as well as more numbers come in, he said. With its multirole capabilities Chinooks are expected to play a life-saving role during HADR (humanitarian assistance and disaster relief) missions, for which the IAF fleets are often pressed into services. With India facing many natural calamities, a helicopter with such heavy-lift roles will increase the probabilities at which we can approach a disaster. There will be a huge shift in the HADR planning with the Chinooks landing in India, says an IAF official. Kolkata (WB): BJP leader Mukul Roy was among four people booked on Sunday in connection with the killing of Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA Satyajit Biswas in West Bengal's Nadia district, police said. Roy, a former TMC general secretary who joined the BJP last year following differences with party supremo Mamata Banerjee, denied the allegation, saying the decision to name him in the FIR was "politically motivated". A West Bengal Police officer told PTI that two of the four people named in the FIR were arrested on Sunday. The two arrested persons -- Kartik Mondal and Sujit Mondal -- were remanded in 14 days' police custody by the acting additional chief judicial magistrate, Ranaghat court. Amid allegations that there was no security cover despite the MLA and a minister being present at the Saraswati Puja celebrations venue where the incident occurred on Saturday, the officer in-charge of local Hanskhali police station and the personal security officer of Biswas were suspended. A departmental inquiry has also been initiated against the OC and the PSO, who was reportedly on leave on Saturday, police said. Speaking on the progress in the investigation, the police officer said, "So far, we have arrested two persons and detained three others. A country-made revolver used to shoot the MLA has also been recovered. "As per our primary findings, it seems that the victim was shot at from behind and the act was the result of a well-planned plot," he said. Asked about the chances of the assailants fleeing to the neighbouring country, the officer said the state police has been put on a high alert. "Nadia shares border with Bangladesh and there could be a possibility of them (assailants) trying to escape to the neighbouring country. Police have been put on high alert to check the movements along the border," he said. The country-made revolver was recovered from a ground near the place of the incident. The Krishnaganj MLA was shot from a point blank range by unidentified assailants Saturday evening inside a Saraswati puja marquee at Phoolbari village, about 15 km from the Bangladesh border. He was immediately taken to a local hospital where doctors announced him "brought dead". His body was brought home from the hospital Sunday morning for last rites, amid a blame-game between the ruling party and opposition BJP leaders over who was responsible for the death. A large crowd gathered to pay last respects to the deceased MLA at his residence, a few metres away from the Saraswati Puja marquee where he was shot at. Roy, one of the four persons against whom the FIR has been lodged in connection with the killing of Biswas, said the legislator's killing could be a result of infighting within the TMC. "Naming me in the FIR is absolutely a politically motivated move. I am sorry about Satyajit's death, but the manner in which they (TMC leaders) are trying to hold the BJP responsible is nothing but a dirty conspiracy," Roy, a former Railway minister, told PTI. TMC secretary general Partha Chatterjee, however, alleged that goons who killed Biswas belonged to the saffron party. Along with party's Nadia district observer Anubrata Mondal, who asserted that the "none of the perpetrators will be spared", Chatterjee accompanied the MLA's hearse to his residence from the hospital. Stating that the chief minister was shocked to learn about the incident, Chatterjee said, "Those who think that they will gain by eliminating Satyajit, are living in a fool's paradise." Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee spoke to the family members of the deceased MLA and assured them all assistance, TMC sources said. Chatterjee, also the state Education minister, alleged attempts are being made to create a divide among the Hindus and also within the Matua community. Biswas belonged to the Matua community - deemed vital as a support base in Bengal. The Matuas are a scheduled caste community with a sizeable population in some districts of the state, including North 24 Parganas and Nadia. Urban Development minister Firhad Hakim alleged that "BJP is importing the politics of violence and murder in West Bengal from Gujarat. "They think that they will win the seat if they eliminate him (Biswas)," he said. Hakim squarely blamed the BJP for the killing of Biswas. "The prime minister came to woo the Matua community in Thakurnagar last week. Now the local BJP leaders are resorting to criminal activities to gain political turf," he alleged. TMC Nadia district president Gouri Shankar Datta also accused Roy of being involved in the incident. "Roy is the mastermind behind this killing. We demand his immediate arrest," Datta told PTI. Denying allegations of the BJP's involvement, the party's state president Dilip Ghosh demanded a CBI investigation into the killing. An independent probe will reveal the truth, he said. Ghosh echoed Roy's sentiments saying Biswas was a victim of internal feud within the ruling party. "If an MLA gets killed like this, how can the common man feel safe?" he asked. CPI(M) state secretary Surjyakanta Mishra said that this incident shows that nobody is safe under the TMC rule. He demanded an impartial probe to reveal the truth. Kottayam: Union minister Alphons Kannanthanam has blamed the Kerala government for not utilising funds allotted for development of infrastructure at Sabarimala. Though Rs 20 crore was allocated by the central tourism department towards building infrastructure at Sabarimala two years ago, not even a rupee has been spent, Kannanthanam stated on Saturday. Kerala received the largest financial aid - Rs 550 crore - in the country for tourism development initiatives, the Union minister of State for Culture and Tourism claimed. Rs 99.99 crore was allocated for Sabarimala and Erumeli by the Centre. Malanad Tourism project got Rs 80.37 crore. It is up to the state government to implement these projects, he stressed. During his 10th budget presentation on January 31, Finance minister Thomas Isaac had earmarked Rs 739 crore for Sabarimala, the pilgrim centre which witnessed unprecedented protests after the Supreme Court allowed women of all age groups to enter the hill shrine last year. Isaac said that the government, which had suffered backlash over the row, did not even take a single rupee from the Sabarimala revenue. Other central allocations According to Kannanthanam, other central allocations include Rs 76.44 crore for the Gavi-Vagamon tourism project, Rs 46 crore for the Sri Padmanabhaswamy Temple-Aranmula-Sabarimala circuit project and Rs 46 crore for a Guruvayur Temple project. The next major project to be launched is a multi-faith religious circuit which will be inaugurated by Mizoram Governor Kummanam Rajasekharan on February 16 in Pathanamthitta. The Rs 76.55 crore Vagamon-Gavi-Thekkady tourism project will be inaugurated on February 17. Meanwhile, artists from 10 states will be performing at the Festival of India in Kerala event aimed at attracting tourists to the state which is slowly emerging from the impact of last year's flood. The event will be held at the Thekkinkad Maidanam in Thrissur on February 23 and at the Amal Jyothi College of Engineering in Kanjirappally the very next day. Read more: Latest Kerala news Munnar: Devikulam sub-collector Renu Raj refuses to buck down under political pressure in her fight against unauthorised construction in Munnar. The officer has promised to submit a report before the Kerala High Court against the local legislator and other leaders who prevented a revenue department team from discharging their duty. The revenue team led by a tehsildar had gone to the old Munnar area to stop the construction of a women's industrial center by the Muthirappuzhayar River. The construction of the center, using panchyat funds, is alleged to be on encroached land. The district collector has not put his stamp of approval on the project, as required by a High Court order in 2010. The revenue team, however, was met with stiff resistance from a group led by S Rajendran, the Devikulam MLA. He is even accused of publicly making disparaging remarks about Renu Raj. CPM district secretary KK Jayachadran has said that they would seek an explanation from Rajenderan over the issue. Congress Kerala president Mullappally Ramachandran dared the CPM to make its stand clear on its legislator's insulting of a woman officer. He asked if the state government would be ready to probe the allegations of land grab against Rajendran. Devikulam had hogged headlines in 2017 after the then sub-collector Sriram Venkitaraman took strong stand against encroachers on government land at the hill station of Munnar. He had gained media attention when he brought down a 30-feet metal cross at Pappathichola in Munnar, as part of an official anti-encroachment drive. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had expressed strong displeasure over the act. Sriram was shifted by the state government in July, 2017. Read more: Latest Kerala news A book discussion was held at the Government Law College, Ernakulam. More than 50 students participated in the discussion over 'Premalekhanam' written by Vaikom Muhammad Basheer. Students unanimously chose this book because in the era of digital relationships and self-concern, it is vital to regain the passion of love in its real essence. This book is a classic of Malayalam Literature. The students could relive their own experiences they had while reading from the work of the Beypore Sultan. Participants in the discussion offered their own unadulterated opinions on the popular book, a humorous love story. Rahul, the editor of the college magazine, said he was inspired to organise the event after seeing a graffiti at a tea shop near the High Court of Kerala. One of the few quotes written on the wall included, "Chayayodoppam alpam sahityam," which means "a little bit of literature with tea." Since then Rahul had been trying to find out a way to present the students an opportunity to discuss freely their views on various books. Professional college students tend to confine themselves to academics alone and they lose the humane touch at some point of life, Rahul explained the benefit of book discussions. Students' Union has a duty to ensure that literature does not fade away from their minds, he added. The model chosen by the Students' Union to promote reading habit can be adopted by other professional colleges as the courses tend to tire the students with vast syllabi, projects and practicals. They forget to live and soon get entangled in the demands of employment. Book discussions can expand the horizons of our thoughts, improve our communication skills and for those with writing aspirations, the activity is helpful to gain novel ideas. The University Union Councillor Arun Sebastian, Literary Club Secretary Akhil Alphonse and other students spoke at the function held on January 22 at the college canteen. The Magazine Committee, the organiser of the event, said it will hold such discussions frequently. Hope every professional college ensures that students do not forget to read, dream, write and fly, because literature is the most significant expression of humanity. The recent Supreme Court ruling in the case of V Surendra Mohan Vs the Union of India, is perhaps one of the darkest moments of Indias disability rights movement. The ruling in question, which was given by a two-member bench while hearing an appeal from a petitioner, upheld the 50% disability limit in hearing and vision disability for the post of a judicial officer. The petitioner was initially held ineligible for the post of a civil judge because of a 70% disability. The judgment stated that "A judicial officer in a State has to possess reasonable limit of the faculties of hearing, sight and speech in order to hear cases and write judgments and, therefore, stipulating a limit of 50% disability in hearing impairment or visual impairment as a condition to be eligible for the post is a legitimate restriction i.e. fair, logical and reasonable." Members of the disability community have spoken up against judgment, deemed as grossly unfair and discriminatory by them. Several disability rights activists are ready to challenge it, demanding a larger bench to reverse the judgment. Rahul Bajaj, a Rhodes Scholar and postgraduate law student at the University of Oxford, who is one among the disability rights activists planning to protest the judgment, calls it An institutional display of pure and simple discrimination dressed up as legal reasoning." He further wrote in a blog article that the order is "emblematic of the lack of awareness about the capabilities of the disabilities that is prevalent in our society, is based on unfounded assumptions and stereotypes and has the potential of undoing the significant gains that our disability rights jurisprudence has yielded in recent years." In this article, I would like to make a case for why people who are visually impaired and hearing impaired have the right to be judges, and deserve not to be discriminated against by the courts themselves. Firstly, in the above-mentioned case, the judges seem to have ignored all the examples of successful judges around the world who are visually impaired or hearing impaired. From former South African Constitutional Court judge Zak Yacoob, who has repudiated the notion that one needs to be sighted to assess a witnesss demeanour as being nonsensical, to U.S. Court of Appeals DC Circuit judge David S. Tatel, who thinks that it is neither fair nor accurate to impose low expectations on what blind lawyers can do. There is also former San Diego County Court judge David Szumowski, who has described the view that a blind person lacks the wherewithal to become a judge as an unfair characterisation, and Yousaf Saleem who, last year, became Pakistans first blind civil judge. Secondly, in delivering this judgment, the court has merely proved its ignorance about the capabilities of persons who are disabled. However, ignorance simply cannot be an excuse in 2019. It is simply unacceptable to condemn disabled legal professionals, possessing the intellectual wherewithal to be a judge, to the status of outcasts only because the judges delivering the judgment in this case appear simply not to have bothered to notice the competence of the millions of disabled people who inhabit this world. As Judge Szumowski asks Indian judges, "if you went blind while on the bench, and were able to efficiently discharge your responsibility before this, how would you feel if told that you can no longer continue as a judge, even if you are able to perform your functions with some amount of retraining and adaptive tech?" Thirdly, the Supreme Court, in delivering this judgment, seem to have completely ignored reasonable accommodations, which law mandates to be provided to persons with disabilities. The court itself has, on several occasions, ruled in favour of persons with disability in the case of reasonable accommodations being denied them. Does that same court have the right to deny reasonable accommodations when it is its own accessibility that is in question? How can we say that we are truly committed to ensuring that the constitutional promise of equality is fully realised, if we lack the ability to even pay the price of making reasonable accommodations? Fourthly, how, some contend, can a visually impaired or hearing impaired person be reasonably expected to thrive as a judge without being excessively dependent and inefficient? However, as the Supreme Court itself noted in 2017, "A lawyer can be just as effective in a wheelchair, as long as she has access to the courtroom and the legal library, as well as to whatever other places and material or equipment that are necessary for her to do her job well." Thus, the court ruling is against the tenets of its own former judgments. In fact, the judicial system has previously taken a progressive stand on several issues. This judgment is not merely of academic interest to me. On my path to where I stand today, a postgraduate student, I have faced several instances where naysayers have cynically told me about how certain activities would be too difficult for me as a visually impaired person. If I had listened to all those cynical voices, I am certain I would not have become who I am now. I have come too far and achieved many things, to be held back by other peoples assessment of my abilities or lack thereof. That is exactly what the supreme court is attempting to do, dictate who persons who are visually impaired can become, without recognizing our abilities or those of the judges who stand before them as examples. No, I neither have the wish, nor the training, to become a part of our judiciary. However, when my Supreme Court tells me that my blindness makes me intrinsically incapable of becoming a judicial officer, when it takes upon itself the power to stamp a badge of incompetence on thousands like me about whom it knows nothing, its declaration cuts to the core of my confidence about the fairness and robustness of our judicial system. No, I may not want to be a judge, but I do earnestly believe that how we choose to respond to this institutional display of pure and simple discrimination dressed up as legal reasoning will be reflective of what kind of a society we hope to be. The SC bench consisted of Justice Ashok Bhushan and Justice K M Joseph. Malappuram: The Congress is willing to form an electoral understanding with the CPM even in Kerala to defeat the BJP, party's state president Mullappally Ramachandran said. The Congress leader said that the party could talk to the CPM if the ruling party laid down arms. The Congress is ready to work with any secular democratic party at the national level against the BJP and the RSS, Mullappally told reporters when he reached Manjeri as part of the party's 'Janamahayatra' road show on Saturday. He said that the party could cooperate with the CPM in Kerala even though the CPM was not clear on its strategy to counter the BJP at the national level. Mullappally's comments follow a meeting of state Congress chiefs and parliamentary party leaders in Delhi on Saturday which decided to ally with the CPM in Bengal. Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan and CPM state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan did not rule out an alliance with the Congress in Kerala. Mullappally, however, could not resist taking a snipe at Pinarayi and Kodiyeri. He said that the CPM leaders were yet to point fingers at the BJP in the Rafael corruption scandal. He alleged that Pinarayi was going soft on the BJP because he did not want any more trouble in the SNC-Lavalin case. He also said that the BJP and the CPM were working together in the state. On ally Muslim League's demand for a third Lok Sabha seat to contest, Mullappally said that the Muslim League was well aware of the demands of national politics. He said that he had complete trust in the Muslim League leadership and expected them to take a favourable decision. He trained guns on CPM legislator S Rajendran for insulting Devikulam sub-collector Renu Raj who ordered a halt to unauthorised construction around Munnar. Read more: Lok Sabha Elections KYODO NEWS - Feb 10, 2019 - 17:29 | All, World Nearly half of cities and towns across Japan are concerned about how to provide appropriate treatment to foreign workers as they prepare for an influx after this spring with the government's new policy on addressing a chronic labor shortage, a survey conducted by Kyodo News showed Sunday. But the survey, covering all of Japan's more than 1,700 municipalities, also found 47 percent of them are in favor of having more workers from abroad, as many companies continue to struggle with insufficient workforces amid the country's aging population and falling birthrate. Japan will introduce a new visa system in April as part of efforts to attract more foreign workers for the country's labor-hungry sectors, including nursing care, construction, farming and restaurant businesses. Of the municipalities surveyed, 12 percent said they are concerned about whether they can ensure that employers treat foreign workers properly, such as providing necessary livelihood support and salaries on a par with their Japanese colleagues, and 35 percent said they generally think so too. Combining the two figures, 47 percent of them are worried about how to coexist with foreign workers, with some citing the government's lack of specific measures as a major reason for their anxieties. Among other opinions, the city of Odate in Akita Prefecture said that "many companies have no know-how about accepting foreigners" and called for support from the central and local governments. Some of the municipalities that are not so positive about accepting more workers from other countries said they think higher priority should be given to efforts to secure jobs for elderly Japanese people and women. The nationwide survey was conducted between November and January. It covered all of Japan's 1,788 municipalities, of which 99 percent or 1,768 responded. Under the new visa system, Japan plans to accept up to around 345,000 foreign workers over the next five years. They are mainly expected to come from nine Asian countries, including China, Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam. With the policy to grant new visa statuses, Japan will formally open its doors to foreign blue-collar workers for the first time. In the past, the country has granted working visas only to people with high skills and professional knowledge such as doctors, lawyers and teachers. Former New Jersey governor Chris Christie suggested during HBOs Real Time with Bill Maher that the former vice president of the US Joe Biden would have the best chance at beating Donald Trump in the 2020 election, Trend reports citing Sputnik. Christie was asked during a show segment devoted to discussing possible Democratic Party nominees if there were any Democrats who have his signature in-your-face approach to dealing with the opposition, to which the former governor responded with thank God no. I think Bernie has a little bit of that. You know, Bernie doesnt back down to anybody and when Bernies got a point of view, hes gonna say it and he doesnt really sugarcoat anything. So I think Sanders is one of those people, he said. Yet when asked about who would be the Democrats best choice to run in 2020, Christie replied that it is Obama-era Vice president Biden who Trump should be most concerned about. I think the one that the President would be most afraid of if he can stay in his lane is Biden. And the reason why is Biden could go to Ohio and Pennsylvania and Wisconsin and Michigan and appeal to white working-class voters. And if he does that, he only has to peel off 7,000-10,000 votes in each one of those states, and he only has to win two of them, he said. According to a poll surveying 689 Democratic and independent voters conducted by USA Today and Suffolk University, Biden, 76, is now the most popular option to be the next presidential candidate for the Democrats, as fifty-three percent of voters said they felt excited about Biden running, while only seven percent expressed the same enthusiasm for Hillary Clinton. Among Republicans, US President Donald Trump has the support of 72 percent in the latest GOP primary survey, according to McLaughlin & Associates statistics. President Donald Trump said on Friday that US diplomats had a very productive meeting with North Korean officials, and he announced his summit later this month with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un would be held in Vietnams capital, Hanoi, Trend reports citing Reuters. My representatives have just left North Korea after a very productive meeting and an agreed upon time and date for the second Summit with Kim Jong Un. It will take place in Hanoi, Vietnam, on February 27 & 28, Trump said on Twitter. I look forward to seeing Chairman Kim & advancing the cause of peace! he said. Earlier this week, Trump announced the dates for the second summit with Kim and said it would be held in Vietnam, but the city had not been disclosed. Stephen Biegun, the US special representative for North Korea, held three days of talks in Pyongyang to prepare for the summit, the State Department said on Friday. It said Biegun had agreed with his counterpart Kim Hyok Chol to meet again ahead of the summit. In their talks in Pyongyang, from Wednesday to Friday, Biegun and Kim Hyok Chol discussed advancing President Trump and Chairman Kims Singapore summit commitments of complete denuclearization, transforming US-DPRK relations, and building a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula, the State Department said.Its statement, which referred to North Korea by the acronym for its official name, the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea, gave no indication of any progress in the talks. Just weeks ahead of the planned summit to follow on from an unprecedented first meeting between the leaders in Singapore last June, the two sides have appeared far from narrowing differences over US demands for North Korea to give up a nuclear weapons program that threatens the United States. Biegun said last week his Pyongyang talks would be aimed at seeking progress on commitments made in Singapore and mapping out a set of concrete deliverables for the second summit. He said Washington was willing to discuss many actions to improve ties and entice Pyongyang to give up its nuclear weapons and that Trump was ready to end the 1950-53 Korean War, which concluded with an armistice, not a peace treaty. The International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde in her meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Sunday that economic reforms would enable Pakistan to restore the resilience of its economy and lay the foundations for stronger and more inclusive growth, Trend reported citing Geo.tv. Prime Minister Imran Khan on Sunday met with Christine Lagarde on the sidelines of the World Government Summit in Dubai. In a statement issued by Lagarde it said that I had a good and constructive meeting with Prime Minister Khan, during which we discussed recent economic developments and prospects for Pakistan in the context of ongoing discussions toward an IMF-supported program. I reiterated that the IMF stands ready to support Pakistan. I also highlighted that decisive policies and a strong package of economic reforms would enable Pakistan to restore the resilience of its economy and lay the foundations for stronger and more inclusive growth. As emphasized in the new governments policy agenda, protecting the poor and strengthening governance are key priorities to improve peoples living standards in a sustainable manner. Pakistan is seeking its 13th bailout since the late 1980s to deal with a current account deficit that threatens to trigger a balance of payments crisis, but talks have been delayed by difficulties in reconciling IMF reform demands with Islamabads fears the push is too drastic and could hurt economic growth. India has received the first batch of Chinook transport helicopter from USA. Four heavy-lift Chinook helicopters meant for Indian Air Force arrived at the Mundra port in Gujarat, Trend reported citing OpIndia. The helicopters are part of a $3.1 billion deal for purchase of 15 CH-47F(I) Chinook heavy-lift helicopters and 22 AH-64E Apache attack helicopters from American aviation giant Boeing. In December 2015, the government of India had signed the contract with Boeing and a Letter of Agreement with the USA government for purchase of the helicopters. On February 1, the first Chinook helicopter was officially delivered to India by Boeing in the presence of Indian ambassador to US Harsh Shringla at the India-Chinook Transfer Ceremony held at Boeing facility in Philadelphia, US. The Chinook helicopter is a multi-mission, heavy-lift transport helicopter used to move troops, artillery, ammunition, barrier materials, supplies and equipment on the battlefield. This helicopter can be used in non-combat situations also, like medical evacuation, disaster relief, search and rescue, aircraft recovery, firefighting, and civil development. Last year, the Chinook and Apache helicopters built for India had completed their inaugural flights in the USA. Pilots and engineers of Indian Air Force have also undergone training to operate the Chinook helicopter in Delaware, USA. The delivery of Apache attack helicopters will commence in July this year, and delivery of both the helicopters will be completed by March 2020. The complete fuselage of the Apache helicopter has been made by Tata Boeing Aerospace in Hyderabad in India. While another Indian company Dynamatic Technologies is manufacturing several critical components for the Chinook helicopter. The United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday identified peace and security as well as climate change as the two major challenges the African continent presently faces, Trend reports citing Xinhua. The UN chief made the remarks while addressing the opening session of the 32nd African Union (AU) assembly summit, which is underway from Feb. 10 to 11 at the headquarters of the AU in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa. "On peace and security, strong winds of hope are blowing across the African continent," Guterres said. According to Guterres, the AU's efforts to "silence the guns" by 2020 are gaining ground. He also stressed that the UN's surge in diplomacy for peace is producing results. "The fruits of our strategic partnerships are making a difference. Ethiopia and Eritrea have signed a historic peace accord," Guterres said, as he described some of the strategic cooperation areas among the UN and AU. Noting UN's growing support to peace operations in Africa, the UN chief also reiterated that the recently launched Action for Peacekeeping initiative would "enable our missions to be more effective, better equipped, safer and more robust." Guterres also stressed that durable peace and security cannot be achieved without sustainable development. "All our gains in peace and security need to be consolidated by addressing the root causes of conflict," Guterres said, adding "The UN is strongly committed to supporting the AU's Agenda 2063 and the 2030 Agenda," Guterres said. "The global community is falling behind in addressing two key challenges: meeting the Sustainable Development Goals and tackling climate change," he added. "The world is not moving far enough, or fast enough, to translate the promise of the SDGs into reality," Guterres said, adding that "At present trends, we will only get half the job done." The UN Secretary-General, who dubbed climate change as the "mighty challenge before us," said that the challenge is still moving much faster than our efforts to slow it." "Just this past week, the World Meteorological Organization confirmed that the last four years have been the hottest since records began, emphasizing the urgency of accelerated climate action," he said. Guterres also indicated that climate change's existential threat is in particular higher in Africa, as it shoulders some of the heaviest burden despite its least responsibility for the crisis. According to Guterres, global emission has continued to rise and the essential target of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees "becomes ever more elusive." "We need more ambition - ambition on adaptation, ambition on mitigation, ambition on finance and ambition on innovation," he stressed. The UN chief also acknowledged some of the progresses in Africa and the rest of the world with regard to climate change, peace and security as well as sustainable development. "Great challenges remain, but winds of hope are blowing throughout our shared agenda," Guterres said. "Africa is on the move and there are real reasons for optimism. The United Nations will continue to work together with you for a peaceful and prosperous future for all Africans," he added. Up to 10 militants Taliban militants and seven Afghan security personnel have been killed, following a fierce clash in the country's northern Sari Pul province, army spokesman in the region Abdul Hadi Jamal said Sunday, Trend reports citing Xinhua. The clash broke out late on Saturday night on the outskirts of Sayad district of the province where a group of insurgents attacked government forces checkpoints, resulting in the death of ten fighters and seven local policemen personnel, the official said. Five more militants and five police personnel including Abdul Basir Sayadi, the district police chief, have been injured, according to the official who said the security forces will continue to pursue the militants. The Taliban have not commented on the report yet. The US State Department approved the sale of 20 High Mobilityar Artillery Rocket System Launchers (HIMARS) and associated support equipment to Poland last week, with the deal worth an estimated $414 million, Trend reports citing Sputnik. Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and Defence Minister Mariusz Blaszczak have made a joint formal announcement on Warsaw's intent to buy the US weapons system on Sunday afternoon, the Polish Defence Ministry announced on its official website. Speaking at a ceremony in Warsaw, Defence Minister Blaszczak said that the purchase of the US-made system will be formalised on Wednesday, with the "modern equipment" helping to "guarantee" Poland's security. The ceremony comes following Washington's decision to approve the sale of the multiple rocket launcher system to Poland late last year. "This is an extremely important component in the implementation of the modernisation program of the Polish Armed Forces. Together with rocket launchers, Poland will receive munitions, as well as a package of logistics and training," the Defence Ministry said in a statement. Produced by Lockheed Martin and BAE Systems, the M142 HIMARs is capable of launching both rocket artillery and tactical ballistic missiles, and has an estimated operational range of 480 km. Poland is one of just a handful of countries to be approved the system. Along with the US Army and Marine Corps, HIMARS are presently operated by the United Arab Emirates, Jordan and Singapore. Tensions between neighbours Poland and Russia have escalated in recent years over the crisis in Ukraine, NATO's expansion and the US deployment of components of its missile defence shield on Polish territory. The Western alliance has considerably expanded its presence in Poland and the Baltic states along Russia's borders while accusing Moscow of aggressively maneuvering its forces inside Russian territory. Last year, Warsaw announced that it would lobby for the creation of a US military base on Polish territory, dubbing the proposed base 'Fort Trump'. The City of Paris is suing Airbnb for publishing 1,000 illegal rentals adverts, which could cost the American rental website more than 12.5 million euros ($14 million), the mayor of Paris told a newspaper in an interview, Trend reports citing Reuters. Under French law, home owners in Paris can rent out their places on short-term rental platforms for up to 120 days in a year. Advertisements must include a registration number to help ensure properties are not rented out for longer. France passed a law in 2018 which makes companies such as Airbnb punishable by fines of 12,500 euros per illegal posting, a new provision Paris will use to challenge Airbnb in court, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo told the Journal du Dimanche newspaper. The goal is to send a shot across the bows to get it over with unauthorized rentals that spoil some Parisian neighborhoods, Hidalgo said in the interview. Several cities around the world have expressed concerns that platforms such as Airbnb stand as unfair competitors to hotels and can turn some neighborhoods into sterile, tourist-only zones. A spokeswoman for Airbnb said it had implemented measures to help Paris users of its website comply with European rules, but added that the rules in Paris were inefficient, disproportionate and in contravention of European rules. France is Airbnbs second-largest market after the United States. Paris, one of the most visited cities in the world, is its biggest single market, with around 65,000 homes listed. Founded in 2008 in San Francisco, Airbnb matches people wishing to rent out all or part of their homes to temporary guests, via a website. Iran is not seeking permission from anyone to enhance its defensive capabilities and defend the interests of the country and the nation, said the Chief of Staff of Armed Forces Major-General Mohammad-Hossein Baqeri on Sunday, Trend reported citing IRNA. General Baqeri made the remarks speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a visit to an exhibition in Tehran where the 40-year achievements of the Islamic Revolution were put on display. The Europeans owe a big debt to the Iranian nation, the general said, adding that Iran has honored all its commitments under the 2015 nuclear deal while the other parties to the deal that were expected to lift all the banking and economic restrictions on Tehran, failed to remain committed to their pledges. The United States withdrew from the accord and the other parties are hesitating to implement their commitments, Baqeri said. Noting that Irans defensive capability, including missile power, is not negotiable, he said that now the Europeans have to implement part of their commitments with resolving the issue of banking and economic exchanges with Iran. Referring to Irans advisory presence in Iraq and Syria, Baqeri said, We will continue with our presence as long as these countries want so and any time they no longer want (us to be present in their countries) we will leave there. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 10 By Elnur Baghishov Trend: Irans northern Semnan province exported animal and livestock products worth over $8.5 million this Iranian year (started on March 21, 2018), Director General of the Veterinary Organization in Semnan Province Mohammed Saidi, said. Chicken, eggs, ostriches, veterinary medicines, animal and livestock products are exported from the province, he added. Animal and livestock products are exported to Germany, the UK and Italy, neighboring countries such as Afghanistan, Iraq and Turkmenistan, and South-East Asian countries, he said. Semnan did not play any role in the export of animal and livestock products in 2012. The export value of animal and livestock products in Semnan province last Iranian year (started on March 21, 2017) was $11.8 million. Despite sanctions and economic programs, the same value has been predicted for this year, Saidi said. He added that presently, 40 percent of Iran's veterinary medicines is produced in Semnan province. Ten projects were implemented in Semnan province through the Main Veterinary Organizations funds worth 77.5 billion rials (about $1.84 million) in connection with the 40th anniversary of the Revolution in Iran. There are 150 breeding farms and 511 poultry farms in Semnan province. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 10 By Rashid Shirinov Trend: The volume of funds received in Kazakhstan from abroad through money transfer systems in 2018 amounted to 362 billion tenge, which is 18.2 percent (55.9 billion tenge) more than in 2017, Trend reports via Ranking.kz. More than half of the transfers were sent through the KoronaPay system: 193.5 billion tenge, 21.6 percent up year-on-year. Its share among all the money transfer systems rose from 52 to 53.5 percent. Western Union ranks second: 77 billion tenge, 25.8 percent up year-on-year. The share increased from 20 to 21.3 percent. MoneyGram is third: 31.9 billion tenge, an increase of 2.3 times. The share of the system rose from 4.5 to 8.8 percent. It should be noted that KoronaPay works with 7 largest banks in Kazakhstan, Western Union with 6, and MoneyGram cooperates only with Halyk Bank. Half of the funds received from abroad through money transfer systems in 2018 were sent from Russia (181.3 billion tenge), followed by South Korea (56.8 billion tenge) and Kyrgyzstan (30.3 billion tenge). (378.73 KZT = 1 USD on Feb. 9) --- Follow the author on Twitter: @ShirinovRashid Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb.10 By Leman Zeynalova Trend: Serbia sees Azerbaijan as a potential cost-effective source of gas imports, Trend reports referring to a document from Energy Agency of the Republic of Serbia. The document argues that apart from Russian gas imported by Gazprom as the dominant supplier of natural gas to the countries of South East Europe, a "potentially cost-effective source of natural gas in the Republic of Serbia, as well as in the region of South-East Europe, is natural gas from Romania", as well as from Azerbaijan. Furthermore, LNG from Greece and Turkey are listed as potential sources, and gas from Iraq, Iran and the Mediterranean Sea are identified as hypothetical alternative sources. Moreover, AERS maintains that the construction of an entry point into the Hungarian transmission system from Serbia will enable importing of natural gas from various sources which would have a positive effect on competition on the Hungarian natural gas market. Azerbaijan is currently implementing the Southern Gas Corridor project, which will be able to transport gas to South-East Europe and Balkan region via interconnectors. The Southern Gas Corridor is one of the priority projects for the EU and envisages the transportation of 10 billion cubic meters of Azerbaijani gas from the Caspian region through Georgia and Turkey to Europe. The launching ceremony of the first stage of the Southern Gas Corridor was held in Baku on May 29, 2018, while opening ceremony of TANAP was held on June 12, 2018 in the Turkish city of Eskisehir. The gas from the Azerbaijani Shah Deniz field has already gone through the first segment of the Southern Gas Corridor - from the Sangachal terminal to the expanded South Caucasus Pipeline. Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) and Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) have been recently connected on the Turkish-Greek border. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @Lyaman_Zeyn Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 10 By Matanat Nasibova - Trend: An Azerbaijani wine-making company Aspi Agro LLC, operating in the country's Gabala district, plans to expand its export geography, the company told Trend. The company plans to export its products to neighboring Turkey. "We plan to export "Savalan" wines to the new market. This brand is very popular in Azerbaijan, and is in great demand. Today we export alcoholic products to the Russian market, and in the future we are going to increase the volumes of these supplies," the company said. The company has a Certificate of Conformity issued by the State Committee for Standardization, Metrology and Patents, as well as a hygiene certificate issued by the Center for Hygiene and Epidemiology of the Azerbaijani Healthcare Ministry. The company operates modern equipment made in Italy. Aspi Agro LLC was established in 2007. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @MatanatNasibova Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 10 By Matanat Nasibova Trend: A joint project being implemented by the National Confederation of Entrepreneurs (Employers) Organizations of Azerbaijan (ASK) and the German government in the field of vocational education has been extended in Azerbaijan, Trend reports with reference to a source in the ASK. The project has been extended for another three years, according to the source. "The aim of the project is to strengthen cooperation between employers and the system of vocational education to ensure youth employment in Azerbaijan," the source noted. "The second phase of the project was started. The first phase was launched last December." The project is funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development of Germany (BMZ) and the German Economic Development Fund (SEQUA GmbH), and the projects cost is 20,000 euros, the source added. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 10 By Elnur Baghishov Trend: In 2018, Iran moved ahead of Turkey in exports to Iraq, Hamid Hosseini, the secretary-general of the Iran-Iraq Joint Chamber of Commerce, told the Fars News Agency, Trend reports. Iranian exports to Iraq in 2018 amounted to $8.75 billion. Hosseini added that Iranian exports to Iraq failed to reach a satisfactory level during the 10th month of the Iranian calendar (started 21 March 2018). "There were two reasons for this. The first one was the holidays during the month of January, and the second was the return of foreign currency acquired through exports," he said, adding that the exports declined by $510 million in the 10th month. "However, during some months of the current year (started March 21, 2018), Iran's exports to Iraq had also reached $900 million," he said. Hosseini said that Iran has exported about $750 million worth of goods to Iraq on average per month, and remarked that Turkish exports stood at $8.3 billion in 2017 and $7.35 billion in 2018. Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, Feb. 10 By Huseyn Hasanov Trend: By the end of January 2019, the growth of the gross domestic product (GDP) of Turkmenistan was 6.2 percent, the Turkmen government said in a statement, Trend reports. In general, the volume of production and the retail trade turnover grew by 4.9 and 19 percent compared to the same period last year, respectively. The plan for the production of various types of food products has been fulfilled by 155.1 percent. The report detailing the aforementioned figures was presented at a meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers of Turkmenistan. It was noted in particular that the plan for the extraction of oil and gas condensate was fulfilled by 103.2 percent, natural and associated gas by 107.9 percent, processing of hydrocarbon raw materials by 113.3 percent, gasoline production by 101.3 percent, diesel fuel by 108.8 percent, lubricating oils by 100.9 percent, liquefied gas by 110.6 percent, and investment management by 113.5 percent. Turkmenistan, according to a report by British Petroleum (BP), ranks fourth in the world in terms of natural gas reserves and currently exports it to China and Iran. The country set a course for diversifying the local economy. The textile and petroleum industries have developed, and the oil, gas, chemical, and building material industries are actively developing. Baku, Azerbaijan, February 10 Trend: Uzbek President instructed the Central Bank to create a Development Bank with a capital of $500 million, Trend reports via Uzbek media. "The banks activities will cover pre-export lending, post-credit services, export subsidies, and logistics. Preparation has been going on for a long time and the work is just beginning," said Central Bank Chairman Mamariso Nurmuratov at the International Press Club session. Deputy Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade, Executive Director of the Fund for Reconstruction and Development of Uzbekistan Shukhrat Vafayev acknowledged that it is necessary to use aggressive models of financial support for exports. "We must support exports and our support must be aggressive. We have big tasks and assignments. We are tasked with the Central Bank, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Economy and Industry to develop a comprehensive export support system. Our doors are always open if the applicant has any problems," he said. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 10 By Elnur Baghishov Trend: Fifty percent of 300,000 tons of products produced in greenhouses of Irans Isfahan province is exported to neighbouring countries, head of the department of Agriculture Organization of Isfahan province Ahmedreza Reisizadeh said. Sweet peppers, eggplants, tomatoes, cucumbers and greens grown in the province are exported to the Persian Gulf countries, Russia, Central Asia and the Caucasus, Reisizadeh added, Trend reports referring to IRNA. There are 3,500 production facilities in the province while greenhouses cover an area of more than 1,700 hectares, he said. Greens and vegetables are grown in a 1,500 hectare-territory, flowers and decorative flowers - in a 200 hectare-territory, Reisizadeh added. Besides vegetables, more than 100 million flowers and decorative flowers are grown and sold in the local and foreign markets, he said. Reisizadeh added that over 17,000 people are working in this area. About 3.25 million tons of agricultural products are grown in the province. Hajigabul, Azerbaijan, Feb. 10 By Jeyhun Alakbarov Trend: Russia regards the GAZ automobile assembly plant in Azerbaijans Hajigabul Industrial Park as a base for exporting to neighboring countries, Oleg Markov, GAZ Group LCV Division's Marketing and Sales Director, told reporters, Trend reports. "This is a very significant event for us. We have always considered Azerbaijan as the key market in the South Caucasus," he said. Markov said that there are prospects for the development of this enterprise in order to make it as accessible for customers as possible, and for the products to be as adapted to the needs and requirements of the market as possible. "We hope that the existence of factories here will not only facilitate the opening of additional workplaces, but also strengthen the economy overall, help localize the products here, through the production of special equipment," said the director. According to Markov, the meeting discussed issues of comprehensive cooperation between Russia and Azerbaijan. The groundbreaking ceremony of assembly plant for GAZ cars was held in Azerbaijan's Hajigabul industrial area on Feb. 9. The volume of investments in the enterprise will be 14 million manats. At the initial stage, 100 people will be employed at the plant. The enterprise will assemble GAZel NEXT and GAZel BUSINESS light commercial vehicles, as well as GAZon NEXT medium trucks. AzEurocar, a AzerMash subsidiary, will deal with the distribution and maintenance of GAZ vehicles in Azerbaijan. Baku, Azerbaijan, February 10 Trend: Uzbekistan has become the first member of Global Green Growth Institute among CIS countries, Trend reports with reference to Uzbek Ministry of Foreign Affairs. "Profile ministries and departments of our country also intend to use the advanced experience and scientific potential of GGGI in developing programs to combat climate change, improve water and environmental security and introduce green technologies into the country's economy, conduct joint thematic round tables and conferences," Uzbek Foreign Ministry noted. Currently, it is planned to organize a visit by experts of GGGI in March to Uzbekistan to discuss practical cooperation and develop a joint strategy for interaction with donor organizations. During the visit, the Institute's experts will visit the Aral Sea region to familiarize themselves with the ongoing large-scale landscaping measures for the dried bottom of the Aral Sea, as well as the activities of the Multi-Partner Trust Fund for Human Security for the Aral Sea region under the auspices of the UN. Moreover, it is planned to open a GGGI representative office in Tashkent with accreditation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The South Korean company Evergreen Motors Group expressed its willingness to provide an office for the GGGI in Uzbekistan in the planned building of the Uzbek-Korean business center on Seoul Street in Tashkent. Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) is an international intergovernmental organization established in 2012 and headquartered in Seoul with the goal of supporting and promoting inclusive and sustainable economic growth in developing and emerging market countries through the development of green economy in a changing climate. Currently, GGGI is implementing 54 projects in more than 30 countries. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 10 Trend: Director of the Institute of History of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences (ANAS), MP, Academician Yagub Mahmudov plays an important role in raising highly qualified historians in Azerbaijan. According to the Institute of History, February 10 marks the 80th anniversary of Yagub Mahmudov. He was born in 1939, in the village of Bash Goynuk, Shaki district. He graduated with distinction from the Faculty of History of the Azerbaijan State University (nowadays Baku State University) in 1962. He defended his thesis for a Candidates degree entitled "Mutual relations between the Aghgoyunlu state and the Republic of Venice (60-70s of the 15th century)" in 1966 and his doctoral thesis on "Mutual relations of Aghgoyunlu and Safavid states with the Western European countries (2nd half of 15th early 17th centuries) at the Scientific Council of the Moscow State University after M.V. Lomonosov in 1989. Yagub Mahmudov worked as a scientific editor, senior scientific editor, head of editorial desk, deputy editor-in-chief on scientific affairs at the Azerbaijan Encyclopedia in 1966-1975, as senior lecturer and Associate Professor at the Azerbaijan State Pedagogical Institute (now ASPU) in 1968-1981, and as an Associate Professor, head of chair, assistant dean and dean at the History Department of Baku State University in 1981-2004. Yagub Mahmudov was dean of the History Department in 1986-1990 and 1994-2004. During his tenure as a dean, the department passed a decision to restore the historical name from the Azerbaijan State University of the Order of Red Banner of Labor named after S.M.Kirov to Baku State University (BSU). Since then, the university has been operating under its own historical name. It was exactly then, when Yaqub Mahmudov resigned from his position as dean in 1990, preventing the dismissal of a group of students from the History Department which was one of the centers of national liberation movement. Yagub Mahmudov has been serving as head of the Ancient World and Medieval History Chair of the History Department of BSU since 1991. The formation of the chair is connected with his name. Yagub Mahmudov led the expert working group, which developed the first Education Law of the Republic of Azerbaijan in 1991-1992. In accordance with the draft law which was submitted by him and adopted by Milli Majlis, the country embarked on a modern education system. He is the author of the "History of Azerbaijan" and "History of the Middle Ages", the first manuals of the countrys independence period. Yagub Mahmudov worked as the Deputy Chairman of the Supreme Attestation Commission of the Republic of Azerbaijan in 1992-1993 and Director General of the Polygraphic Union of Publishing House of Azerbaijan Encyclopedia. Yagub Mahmudov is the Director of the Institute of History of ANAS since 2004. He was elected as a corresponding member of ANAS in 2007, and its full member in 2017. He is the author of more than 1000 scientific works. He is heading the scientific schools he established in the field of history of diplomacy, the lost lands, and the history of genocides, as well as the History of Azerbaijan in the primary sources project. His works have been published in a number of foreign countries (Moscow, London, Washington, New York, Ankara, Istanbul, Rome, Cairo, Seoul, Mexico, Islamabad, Los Angeles, etc.). A school of historians, including 65 PhDs and Doctors of Sciences has been formed under his direct scientific supervision. Yagub Mahmudov was awarded the Shohrat Order (1999), "Sharaf" Order (2009), "Ataman Anton Golovaty" Order (2013), 100th Anniversary of the Azerbaijani Police (1918-2018) a jubilee medal of the Republic of Azerbaijan (2018), and the Parliament medal of Milli Majlis of the Azerbaijan Republic (2018). He is a laureate of "Yusif Mammadaliyev", "Rasul Rza", "Qizil qilinc", "Qizil qalam", "Samir Asgarkhanov", "Humay", "Friend of youth" awards. Yagub Mahmudov is an Honored Scientist and State Prize laureate of the Republic of Azerbaijan, an honored scientist of the Republic of Dagestan of the Russian Federation and a full member of the International Academy of Modern Sciences named after Lotfi Zadeh. Yagub Mahmudov worthily represents Azerbaijans science of history on a global scale. He was honored with the title of "The Name in Science", "The Best Chief Manager" and International Award after Queen Victoria. He was included in the list of famous scientists of the 21st century. In 2016, Yagub Mahmudov was conferred upon Abbasgulu Agha Bakhikhanov award for his contributions to researching the history of the statehood of Azerbaijan and discovering historical truths against the Armenian falsifications. In 2019, he received the The Friend of Youth Award established by the Institute of History for his role and services in raising young people as scientists. Yagub Mahmudov is a member of the Political Council of the New Azerbaijan Party, and a member of Milli Mejlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan since 2000. He was the great leader Heydar Aliyevs and then Ilham Aliyevs advocate in the presidential elections, and accompanied them during several official state visits. National leader Heydar Aliyev praised Yagub Mahmudov's scientific activity and called him a "great scientist" and a "great historian" of Azerbaijan. Yagub Mahmudov is married. He has a son (Turkhan), two daughters (Aynur and Gulnur) and five grandchildren (Naila, Khagan, Sarah Khatun, Alp Arslan and Yaqub). Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 10 Trend: Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has congratulated Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. On my own behalf and on behalf of the people of Azerbaijan, I extend my sincerest congratulations to you and all the people of your country on the occasion of the national day of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Victory of the Islamic Revolution, President Aliyev said. Relations between the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Islamic Republic of Iran stem from the will of our two peoples, who have historically lived in an atmosphere of friendship and good neighbourliness, the president added. I am confident that our bilateral relations, mutually beneficial cooperation, which covers various areas, will continue developing and expanding. On this festive day, I wish you the best of health, success in your endeavours, and the friendly and brotherly people of Iran everlasting peace and prosperity, he said. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 8 Trend: Military units of the armed forces of Armenia violated ceasefire 30 times throughout the day, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said Feb. 10, Trend reports. Armenian armed forces, located in Voskevan village and on nameless hills in Noyemberyan region, on nameless hills in Ijevan and Krasnoselsk regions subjected to fire the positions of the Azerbaijan Army located in Gushchu Ayrim, Ashaghy Eskipara villages and on nameless hills in Gazakh region, in Goyali, Zamanly villages of Gadabay region. The positions of Azerbaijan Army were also fired from positions of Armenian military units located near the occupied Chilaburt village of Terter region, Bash Garvand, Yusifjanly villages of Aghdam region, Garvand and Horadiz villages of Fuzuli region, as well as from positions located on nameless hills in Goranboy, Terter, Aghdam and Fuzuli regions. 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 U.S. ambassador to Germany says the European mechanism designed to facilitate trade with Iran and avoid U.S. sanctions is "disrespectful" to Washingtons policies. Ambassador Richard Grenell said in an interview published on February 10 in the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung that the financial mechanism, called Instex, is counterproductive to President Donald Trump's efforts to force Tehran back to the negotiating table over its nuclear program and other matters. Grenell labeled U.S. policy as the "Trump Doctrine," explaining that "we use the strongest possible sanctions, while at the same time offering talks to see if that changes the behavior of certain states." Germany, France, and Britain on January 31 launched a mechanism to allow financial flows to be sent to Iran that would not violate U.S. sanctions in an attempt to keep alive the landmark 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran. The special-purpose financial vehicle will allow European firms with legitimate business interests to use barter techniques to conduct business in Iran. The plan focuses on areas not targeted by U.S. sanctions and in the beginning centers on the sectors most essential to the Iranian population such as pharmaceutical, medical devices and agrifood goods, foreign ministers from the three countries said. Germany, France, and Britain -- which signed the nuclear deal along with the United States, Russia, and China -- have been working hard to keep the accord alive after Trump announced in May he would withdraw from the deal and reimpose sanctions on Tehran. Based on reporting by Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung, dpa, and Tiroler Tageszeitung. Iranian Parliament's Research Center says no money will be added to the National Development Fund in the next budget year due to the massive decline in Iran's oil revenues, hit by U.S. sanctions, while the fund's reserves are being spent for military and other purposes. The report released recently warns that the National Development Fund may cease to exist altogether if no new money is added and existing funds spent. Based on Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's order, the government recently withdrew another 1.5 billion dollars from the fund's reserves for military expenditures, as well as 4.8 billion dollars last year nearly half of it for the military. According to the charter of the National Development Fund, 34 percent of oil revenues next year should be saved in the fund, which was previously called the Foreign Currency Reserve, and was tasked to save part of the country's oil revenue to be spent on the welfare of next generations. However, according to the budget bill for the next Iranian year, which starts on March 21, only 20 percent of oil revenues is planned to be saved in the fund. Based on the forecast of exporting only one million barrels of oil and gas products per day, the budget projection is to save $4.6 billion in the National Development Fund during March 21, 2019 to March 20, 2020. But this forecast might not materialize. Iran's oil exports have declined from over two million barrels per day to just over 1,000,000 barrels as a result of the U.S. sanctions re-imposed on Tehran following the United States' withdrawal from the nuclear deal, also called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). This amount of oil exports might even drop further, as the U.S. phases out waivers it has given to friendly countries for limited purchase of Iranian oil. This might be the reason parliament's research center is warning that it may not be possible to save anything for the fund. The initial forecast after the re-imposition of sanctions was that Iran's oil output next year will be half of the figure for the current year. Nevertheless, one of the articles of the new budget bill allows the government to withdraw up to 400,000 billion rials or roughly $4 billion from the National Development Fund, half of which is to cover Iran's military expenses. Mahmoud Negahban Salami, a member of the parliament's budget committee told reporters on 4 February that Khamenei has approved the withdrawal of 1.5 billion dollars from the fund to "strengthen Iran's defensive power." Last year, Khamenei ordered the government to withdraw 4.8 billion dollars from the National development Fund and spend 2.5 billion dollars of it to cover military expenses. To withdraw money from the National Development Fund is against the Fund's charter that stipulates its objectives as "turning part of the oil and natural gas revenues into sustainable wealth as well as productive and regenerating capitals in order to preserve the next generations' share of the country's oil and gas products resources." The report by the parliament's research center added that Iran's High Council of Economic Coordination approved in July 2018 to allocate 12 out of the 32 percent oil revenues saved in the fund to be kept in a "special account to cover the country's essential needs in emergencies and undesirable situations." The center, however, did not elaborate on the phrase "essential needs in emergencies and undesirable situations," which could mean a state of war or an undesirable economic situation possibly as a result of sanctions. The High Council of Economic Coordination, is a new body that has been established following the U.S. withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran and re-imposition of U.S. sanctions on Tehran. The Council's membership is restricted to the heads of the legislative, executive and judiciary bodies, as well a select number of other state officials. So far, one of the functions of the council has been suggesting withdrawals from the National Development Fund's foreign currency reserves to cope with budget shortfalls. The Friday Prayer Imam of Tehran, Ahmad Khatami who is an influential conservative cleric has said that Iran has the formula for building a nuclear bomb. IRNA reports that in a mourning ceremony in Mashhad on February 9 Khatami has announced, Iran never had the intention to build an atomic bomb. Of course we have the formula but we do not want to use weapons of mass destruction. Iranian officials have always denied any move toward building nuclear weapons. On this occasion, Khatami did not provide further information about having the formula. Khatami is seen in Iran as a staunch supporter of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who usually repeats or echos his hardline positions. Three years ago, the International Atomic Energy Agency head Yukiya Amano reported that prior to 2003 and until 2009 Iran did engage in activities toward developing the know-how for nuclear explosions. Iran has been able to enrich uranium to 20 percent, which is relatively easy to enrich further to more than the 90 percent needed for a nuclear bomb. On Sunday, Khatami continued to speak about nuclear and military power, saying that the U.S. was able to contain the development of Irans nuclear power and now ballistic missiles are the only thing left for Iran. Khatami also admitted that U.S. sanctions have led to hardship for the people and tried to argue that Khameneis initiatives to deal with the economic crisis has helped prevent a much worse outcome. ELKO Snow closed a portion of Interstate 80 in the Sierra and three other western Nevada highways overnight before dropping snow in northeastern Nevada. Light snowfall lingered over the Elko area for several hours Sunday morning in the wake of a cold front that brought winds gusting locally more than 35 miles per hour. Support Local Journalism Your membership makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} Three to five inches of snow were expected by afternoon, according to the National Weather Service. Adverse driving conditions were reported on most of the regions highways. Chains or snow tires were required on the Tuscarora Highway and on Interstate 80 over Emigrant Summit and between Carlin and Battle Mountain. No major accidents were reported in the local area by the Nevada Highway Patrol, but a road hazard on State Route 305 near Battle Mountain could cause travel delays. After a short break Monday night and Tuesday, snow is likely to return on Wednesday and into next weekend. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 1 ELKO Communities In Schools of Northeastern Nevada received a donation of $1,000 for the 2018-19 school year, and will receive a donation of the same amount for the 2019-20 school year, from The Lamoille Womens Club for basic needs items like school supplies and support services for local students. The Lamoille Womens Club has been a generous partner and supporter of CIS of Northeastern Nevadas mission of surrounding students with a network of support and empowering them to achieve in school. In the past year they have donated school supplies, books, clothing and almost 50 pies for Thanksgiving meals for families in need. The organization would like to give a special thank you to Lamoille Womens Club members Pam Osmonson, Myrna Hecht, Ida McBride and President Joyce Kay for their outreach and coordination support. For more information on CIS of Northeastern Nevada, visit www.cisnevada.org. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 This blog may be a labor of love for me, but it takes a lot of effort, time and money. For over 14 years and 30,000 articles I have been providing accurate, original news that would have remained unnoticed. I've written hundreds of scoops and sometimes my reporting ends up making a real difference. I appreciate any donations you can give to keep this blog going. Thai Raksa Chart party leader Preechapol Pongpanich, holds up application of candidate for Prime Minister, Thailand's Princess Ubolratana Rajakanya Sirivadhana Barnavadi, at the election commission office in Bangkok, Thailand February 8, 2019. Photo by Reuters/Athit Perawongmetha The Thai political party that nominated a princess as its candidate for prime minister could be banned from a general election in March. An activist said on Sunday he would file a petition seeking its dissolution. Thailands Election Commission is to meet on Monday to consider the candidacy of Princess Ubolratana Rajakanya Sirivadhana Barnavadi, 67, who stunned the nation on Friday when she said she would be the prime ministerial candidate for a populist party loyal to ousted ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra. Her announcement drew a swift rebuke from King Maha Vajiralongkorn, the princesss younger brother, who issued a statement hours later saying it was "inappropriate" for members of the royal family to enter politics. The March 24 election is the first since a military coup in 2014 toppled an elected pro-Thaksin government. The current junta leader, Prayuth Chan-ocha, is also contesting the race for prime minister, as the candidate of a pro-military party. The nomination of the kings elder sister, who has starred in soap operas and an action movie and gave up her royal titles after marrying an American, was a shocking move by forces loyal to Thaksin, who face an uphill battle in the election. The Election Commission has until Friday to rule on the princesss candidacy. It is unlikely its members would disregard the wishes of the king, who while a constitutional monarch, is considered semi-divine in Thai society. On Sunday, an activist said he would file a petition to disqualify the Thai Raksa Chart party, which nominated the princess. "The royal announcement made it clear that the party violated electoral law," Srisuwan Janya, secretary-general of the Association for the Protection of the Constitution, told Reuters. Srisuwan said his complaint to the Election Commission would ask it to recommend that a Constitutional Court dissolve the party. Thai Raksa Charts executive chairman Chaturon Chaisaeng declined to comment on the request to disband it. The party said it would accept the kings message and "move forward into the election arena to solve problems for the country". The royal family has a long-standing tradition of staying out of politics, and electoral law forbids parties from using the monarchy in campaigns. Parties loyal to former telecommunications tycoon Thaksin have defeated pro-establishment parties to win every election since 2001, but since 2006 each of their governments have been removed by court rulings or coups. The gambit to nominate a member of the royal family could backfire on Thai Raksa Chart, said Titipol Phakdeewanich, dean of the faculty of political science at Ubon Ratchathani University. "Things are now more unpredictable," Titipol told Reuters. If the party is dissolved, it could give more seats to anti-Thaksin affiliated parties like the pro-junta, Phalang Pracharat and progressive Future Forward party, he said. Thaksin, who was ousted in a 2006 coup, lives in self-imposed exile after being convicted of corruption in absentia. He responded to the events on Twitter late on Saturday telling supporters to "keep moving forward" and "learn from past experiences but live for today and the future". King Le Hy Tong placed the Buddha on his own back to repent his mistreatment of Buddhism. The Hoe Nhai Pagoda is located at 19 Hang Than Street in Hanoi's Ba Dinh District. Several documents suggest that the pagoda was built during the Ly Dynasty (1010 - 1225) reign. One of the largest pagodas in the ancient capital of Thang Long, Hoa Nhai is famous for many idols, including one which has the Buddha statue sitting on the back of kowtowing king. This idol is also known as the King of Penance. It is said to date back to the time of King Le Hy Tong (1663-1716), the 10th king of the Le Trung Hung (the Later Le Restoration 1533 - 1789). In 1678, the king issued a decree to expel all monks and nuns to the forest and for those who stayed to be executed. Zen Master Chan Dung Tong Dien then offered a Box of Jewels to the king, which actually contained a document detailing the benefits of Buddhism for the society. It attributed the prosperity and progress of Ly and Tran dynasties to the appreciation for Buddhism, which it likened to the "jewel of the nation, educating people on how to eat and drink properly, how to manage anger, and why not to kill and rob." Legend has it that after the reading it, the king immediately invited the monks to the palace, kowtowed to them in apology, and revoked the decree banning Buddhism. King Le Hy Tong promised Monk Tong Dien that he would redeem himself and place the statue of Buddha on the king's back in Hoe Nhai Pagoda. This is a unique statue in Buddhist monuments the world over. Located on a 3,000 square meter plot, the Hoe Nhai Pagoda has three towers, one of which is the An Quang Tower built in 1963 to commemorate the day Thich Quang Duc immolated himself to protest the oppression of Buddhists by the US-installed Ngo Dinh Diem regime in the south. The six levels of Buddha statues in the main prayer hall. The system of Buddha statues here is recognized by archaeologists to have a variety of materials such as precious wood, red clay and heated copper. In addition to the famous double statue, the pagoda has many other unique ancient statues such as the statue of Baby Buddha. The pagoda has 28 epitaphs, of which the oldest is a stele dating back to 1703. The stele refers to the location of Hoe Nhai Pagoda in the past, helping archaeologists determine the location where the Tran Dynasty (1225-1400) beat the Mongol army in the battle to "liberate" the capital. After 16 years of tears, woman gets back daughter trafficked to China During Tet, the Lunar New Year holiday, the makeshift home of Khoi in Hai Phong City, 121 km east of Hanoi, is overflowing with joy. She brings out photos and the identity card of Lan, her daughter, who went missing 16 years ago, and starts to lovingly go through them, tears rolling down her cheek. She says, choking: "I never imagined she would come back to me. It is a miracle." In 2002, Khoi sold everything she owned, cycled hundreds of kilometers to the Chinese border looking for her 15-year-old daughter. The old mother narrates the story of how she found her daughter, a victim of human trafficking, after 16 years. Khois husband died young in 2001, leaving their three children and his mother in her care. When Khoi finished working in the rice field, she would do any other work villagers needed to support her family. Lan is her second daughter. Khoi has one older son while her youngest child was 14 months old when Lan went missing at the age of 15. The son was working in a brick manufacturing facility to support the family, while Lan stayed at home looking after the infant and doing housework. Neither of the older children got proper schooling. On the evening of September 9, 2002, Khoi was working late and Lan asked her for permission to hang out with her friends to catch fireflies. Khoi recalls: "She would usually come home at 9 p.m, but I kept waiting and waiting and there was no sign of her. I feared something bad." Khoi went all around the village looking for her daughter, but everyone shook their heads, saying they did not know where she was. Fearful she might have fallen into a pond, she got her brothers and relatives to help search using bamboo poles. She hired a man with a motorbike for a small sum money to search for her daughter, but to no avail. "My mother-in-law was too old and bedridden, I had to leave my youngest child with my neighbor. I was looking for Lan for nine days not even bothering to drink or eat anything. I lost a lot of weight. I neglected my work in the field." She reported to the police, but there was no response from them. Over the next several years she went all over northern Vietnam hoping to find Lan. "I sold every gram of rice, every cooking vessel, family meal tray, bicycled hundreds of kilometers..." she recalls tearfully. Fearful that Lan had been tricked and sold, she cycled all the way to border gates in Quang Ninh, Lang Son and Lao Cai provinces hundreds of kilometers away. A few years ago a relative said he dreamed of Lan coming back in white clothes, implying she was a ghost in his dream. The despairing mother thought Lan was dead and paid ritual respect to her every year, burning incense and votive gold. Sixteen years passed by in despair and she ran out of tears, Khoi said. Her son got married, her other daughter got through the university entrance examination but had to drop out since they could not afford her education. Khoi still ached thinking about Lan. On November 16 last year she received news about a girl rescued by the Lang Son border gate police who resembled her daughter. Khoi borrowed some money, caught a taxi and reached Lang Son, 220km to the north, at 3 a.m. the next day. The minute the skinny woman saw Khoi, she burst into tears and called out, "Mom." Lan had changed a lot, but Khoi recognized her instantly. On the first day she took her daughter for breakfast Lan ate two bowls of pho noodles, saying, "I didnt get to eat breakfast for 16 years." Lan told the police a couple had asked her to sell clothes in Quang Ninh Province but sold her to a brothel in China. For 16 years she was forced to be a sex worker. If she refused, she would be starved, beaten and locked up in a dark room. She tried to escape three times but did not succeed. Every time her escape was foiled, they would torment her physically and mentally. They also gave her drugs to ensure she followed orders and served visitors. In early November last year the Chinese police raided brothels and took Lan and some other Vietnamese women for medical examination and treatment. She fled from the medical treatment center, reached the Lang Son border and was rescued by Vietnamese authorities. During Tet her entire family gathered and spoke to Lan to help her gradually recover her memory. She was treated for knee injuries which had been caused by a hammer. Khois familys biggest desire now is that the evil couple who had tricked Lan is punished. The An Lao District police chief said authorities had detained a suspect allegedly related to child trafficking. Human trafficking is a huge global industry worth $150 billion that coerces over 40 million women, children and men into forced labor and sexually exploits them. People in the Asia Pacific are twice as likely to be enslaved as those in a developed country, according to the International Labor Organization. Vietnam is a major source of cross-border sex and labor trafficking. However, according to the Pacific Links Foundation, 60 percent of all traffickers arrested in Vietnam are former victims themselves. According to Mimi Vu of the foundation, a Vietnamese woman is likely to be fetch over VND1 million ($45) in China. *The victim's name has been changed. A flight to Dalat City seen in early morning. Photo by Shutterstock/Moon Le A Hanoi-HCMC Jetstar flight returned to the bay from the runway on Saturday after a passenger fell sick. As flight BL771 moved to the runway and readied for takeoff late Saturday afternoon, a female passenger pressed the call button and asked to leave the aircraft, saying she was feeling sick. Then, after resting for a few minutes, she said she was feeling better and wanted to stay on the aircraft and go to Ho Chi Minh City. As the aircraft readied for takeoff once again, her arms and legs turned stiff, and the crew decided to return to the bay, or the apron, where the aircraft parks, after asking ground staff to prepare an ambulance for the passenger. The passenger, about whom no further information has been released, was taken to the Bac Thang Long Hospital near the airport for emergency treatment. After a thorough examination, the doctor is reported to have said that the passenger was suffering from fatigue due to lack of sleep and overdrinking coffee. She also had just undergone an unspecified surgery. She has recovered after being treated. Further information about this incident has not been revealed. Other incidents that have delayed flights in Vietnam of late include one that took place last November, when a Vietjet Air flight made an emergency landing in HCMC after receiving fake warning signals of technical problem. On October 30, a Vietjet Air plane heading to Busan, South Korea, from Hanoi had to make emergency landing in Hong Kong to check technical issues. Vietnam has five carriers, namely Vietnam Airlines, Vietjet Air, Jetstar Pacific, VASCO, and Bamboo Airway. The country's aviation industry has experienced rapid growth in recent years. The country served 106 million air passengers last year, up 13 percent from a year ago, according to the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam. Report all errors to DonSurber@GMail.com Oh, and if you see me driving my red 2010 Mustang GT convertible, please wave. Hi, I am a retired newspaperman. I wrote 3 books on Trump and the media . I live in Poca, WV, with my wife of 43 years, Lou Ann. I grew up in Cleveland. Three kids. Grandfather. As he did last year, Santelli points to an interesting trend: The nominated best albums don't include what you would call a traditional rock 'n' roll recording. He notes that the Grammy Awards are meant to reflect the previous year in music, and "clearly the pop music of today is hip-hop and country music." To his point, the only full-on rock band nominated in any of the major categories is Greta Van Fleet, the Led Zeppelin acolytes, competing for the always-iffy best new artist Grammy. (Fun fact about the best new artist Grammy Award: Led Zeppelin itself was nominated in the category in 1970 and lost, to Crosby, Stills & Nash. In fact, you could fill a wing of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with acts that have lost the best new artist Grammy. To be fair, that says something about the vagaries of the music business, and the sheer number of artists who are turning out excellent music; some of them win Grammys, while others never get the big break.) Govt Removes 34 From Death Row To Life Imprisonment As Death Sentence Phases Out Government has shown its commitment towards abolishing the death penalty in line with international human rights obligations after it commuted sentences of 34 inmates on death row to life terms, a Cabinet minister has said. There are 81 prisoners on death row while the total number now serving life terms is now 127. The process of commuting the remainder on death row to life terms is now ongoing. The moratorium on execution will pave way for the total abolition of the death penalty, according to a paper presented on behalf of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi by a senior ministry official, Mr Charles Manhiri, at the Zimbabwe Staff College yesterday. Government is in the process of implementing strategies and policies aimed at abolishing the death penalty. Minister Ziyambi said his ministry was waiting for Cabinet to approve its recommendations on the death penalty. Should Cabinet approve the ministrys recommendation to abolish the death penalty, the constitutional provision which permits the imposition of the death penalty will be subsequently amended, said Minister Ziyambi. He said Government has not executed inmates on death row for over a decade now. The last execution was carried out in July 2005. Executed then were notorious armed robbers Steven Chidumo and Edmund Masendeke. Minister Ziyambi said his ministry on several occasions requested Cabinet to consider the granting of clemency on those sentenced to death. This has seen the sentences being commuted to life imprisonment. As Government we are mindful of the fact that the rights to life and dignity are the most important of all human rights and the source of all other personal rights contained in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHRs), he said. Minister Ziyambi said the death sentence was cruel and degrading punishment as it destroyed life and annihilated human dignity. Criminological researches have revealed that the death penalty does not deter the commission of crimes, but rather compounds it, he said. Minister Ziyambi said the possibility of the sentence being imposed on innocent people could not be ruled out and once executed, sentence is irrevocable. | Report an error, an omission, a typo; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece, a comment; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: deathpenaltynews@gmail.com Opposed to Capital Punishment? Help us keep this blog up and running! DONATE! "One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed, but by the punishments that the good have inflicted." -- Oscar Wilde zimeye.net, February 9, 2019 A Christian woman acquitted of blasphemy after spending eight years on death row in Pakistan has been transferred from a secret location near the capital to another in Karachi, but is still unable to leave the country to join her daughters in Canada, a friend said Saturday. Aman Ullah, who spoke to Aasia Bibi by telephone Friday, said the 54-year-old Bibi is being held in a room in the southern port city. He said Bibi, who faces death threats by radical Islamists, is frustrated and frightened, uncertain of when she will be able to leave Pakistan. "She has no indication of when she will leave ... they are not telling her why she cannot leave," said Ullah, who fled the country Friday after receiving threats from extremists angered by his assistance to Bibi, which began while she was on death row. Ullah has been a liaison between Bibi and European diplomats, who have sought to assist her. The Associated Press spoke to Bibi by telephone with Ullah's assistance following her October acquittal, which was upheld last month. Bibi's ordeal began in 2009 when two fellow farmworkers refused to drink from the same container as a Christian woman. There was a quarrel and the two Muslim women later accused Bibi of blasphemy. The Supreme Court judges said there were widespread inconsistencies in the testimony against Bibi, who has steadfastly maintained her innocence. The acquittal should have given Bibi her freedom, but Ullah said diplomats were told that her departure from Pakistan, where she feels her life would be in danger, would come not in the short term, but "in the medium term." He said Bibi told him she is locked in one room of a house. "The door opens at food time only," said Ullah, and she is allowed to make phone calls in the morning and again at night. He said she usually calls her daughters. Bibi's husband is with her, he said. "She is living with her family and given requisite security for safety," Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said in an email. He said the government was responsible for taking "all possible measures" to protect her and her family, adding that "she is a free citizen after her release from jail and can move anywhere in Pakistan or abroad." Bibi told Ullah the security detail assigned to her refuses to explain why she is still confined. Bibi's case has brought international attention to Pakistan's blasphemy law, which carries an automatic death sentence for a conviction of insulting Islam. There have been widespread complaints that the law is used to settle scores and intimidate religious minorities, including Shiite Muslims. The mere suggestion of blasphemy can incite mobs to kill. After Bibi's October acquittal the radical Tehreek-e-Labbaik party called its followers onto the streets, where they protested for three days demanding Bibi's immediate execution as well as the death of the judges who acquitted her. The party leadership also advocated overthrowing Prime Minister Imran Khan's government and incited the military against the army chief. Since then the party's leadership has been arrested along with dozens of their supporters for inciting violence. Ullah, a rights activist, first began aiding those falsely charged with blasphemy when his wife was wrongly accused and has since helped several people gain their freedom. Bibi's case brought him to the attention of religious radicals. In recent months, he has been physically assaulted, and religious radicals have attacked and shot at his home. Ullah said he fears being attacked again or charged with blasphemy. Bibi is hoping to join her daughters in Canada, where they have been granted asylum. | Report an error, an omission, a typo; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece, a comment; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: deathpenaltynews@gmail.com Opposed to Capital Punishment? Help us keep this blog up and running! DONATE! "One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed, but by the punishments that the good have inflicted." -- Oscar Wilde The Associated Press, February 9, 2019 A Tunisian court was holding final hearings on Friday in 2 trials over jihadist attacks in 2015 on a museum and a tourist resort that left dozens dead, lawyers told AFP. 21 defendants, including 2 women, appeared in the Tunis courtroom for a closed hearing on the March 18, 2015 shooting at the Bardo museum in Tunis, which killed 21 foreign tourists and a Tunisian security guard. "Only 3 defendants still have to give their pleas, and the verdict will be announced this evening," lawyer Monia Bousalmi told AFP. Victims' family members in France and Belgium watched the hearing via a live video feed. Bousalmi said a verdict was also expected Friday evening on 44 suspects in a separate trial on the June 26, 2015 shooting rampage in the Sousse tourist resort, which killed 38 people, most of them British tourists. The court has heard that the 2 attacks, both claimed by the Islamic State group, were closely linked. Several defendants pointed to the fugitive Chamseddine Sandi as mastermind of both. According to Tunisian media, Sandi was killed in a US air strike in neighbouring Libya in February 2016, although there has been no confirmation. Defendants in the 2 trials could be sentenced to death if found guilty, although Tunisia has had a freeze on capital punishment since 1991. 4 French nationals, 4 Italians, 3 Japanese and 2 Spaniards were among those killed in the Bardo attack, before the 2 gunmen themselves, armed with Kalashnikov assault rifles, were shot dead. One suspect questioned in court, Tunis labourer Mahmoud Kechouri, said he had helped plan the attack, including preparing mobile phones for Sandi, a neighbour and longtime friend. Other defendants accused of helping prepare the attack said they had only discussed ideas with friends. Several alleged they were tortured in detention. Since a 2011 uprising that toppled dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, jihadist attacks in Tunisia have killed dozens of members of the security forces. The Bardo and Sousse attacks dealt a heavy blow to the vital tourism sector in Tunisia, already suffering high unemployment. | Report an error, an omission, a typo; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece, a comment; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: deathpenaltynews@gmail.com Opposed to Capital Punishment? Help us keep this blog up and running! DONATE! "One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed, but by the punishments that the good have inflicted." -- Oscar Wilde news24.com, February 9, 2019 Top government ministers are demanding that the courts finally invoke Israel's underutilized death penalty. What's got the whole nation in a uproar is the savage murder last Thursday in Jerusalem of a teenage Jewish girl by a knife-wielding Palestinian man. Ori Ansbacher, 19, was taking a stroll in a wooded area just a few hundred yards from Jerusalem's Biblical Zoo when she was set upon by 29-year-old Arafat Irfayia, a Palestinian from Hebron. Details of the attack are under a strict gag order, but local media and government officials have described Ansbacher's slaying as "grisly" and "brutal." It is also clear that the act of violence, if not the choice of victim, was premeditated. After being arrested in an IDF raid on the Palestinian Authority's de facto capital of Ramallah, Irfayia admitted to Israeli authorities to having set off from Hebron early Thursday morning armed with a knife and intent on killing a Jew. DNA evidence that he left at the scene led to Irfayia's swift capture. And Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked is insisting that he just as swiftly be condemned to death, lest Israel further sacrifice its deterrence against such violence. "The military prosecution needs to ask for the death penalty," Shaked told Channel 13 news. "We should not hide the truth. He killed Ori because she was a Jewish girl." The last and only time Israel sentenced someone to death was at the trial of captured Nazi SS officer Adolf Eichmann, architect of the Holocaust, in 1962. Last year, the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tried to advance legislation that would have resulted in more frequent use of the death penalty, particularly in response to deadly terrorist attacks. Israel's primary response to such attacks is the demolition of the terrorists' homes, but that has clearly not had the desired effect, largely owing to the fact that the Palestinian Authority rewards the families of terrorists with large financial aid packages, enabling them to simply rebuild. Many Israelis insist something more must be done. As Education Minister Naftali Bennett said in a statement following Ansbacher's killing, "The terrorists are no longer afraid. At this moment they are preparing the next terrible murder of Jews." Netanyahu himself was in favor of the death penalty bill, but it was eventually shelved amid political wrangling. Opponents of the bill latched on to testimony by top security officials, including the head of the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet), Nadav Argaman, who suggested that the use of capital punishment was "unhelpful." | Report an error, an omission, a typo; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece, a comment; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: deathpenaltynews@gmail.com Opposed to Capital Punishment? Help us keep this blog up and running! DONATE! "One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed, but by the punishments that the good have inflicted." -- Oscar Wilde WASHINGTON - Pivotal votes cast by U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts in abortion and death penalty cases have underscored his new standing as the Supreme Courts ideological center and the outsize role he may play in major rulings for years to come. Roberts, a genial 64-year-old conservative appointed in 2005 by Republican President George W. Bush, sided with the nine-member courts four liberals on Thursday night in blocking a restrictive Louisiana abortion law from taking effect. He also sided on Thursday night with the four other conservative justices in allowing the execution of a Muslim convicted murderer in Alabama. His vote in the abortion case was particularly noteworthy because it represented a turnaround from his vote in a 2016 abortion case in which he had joined two other conservatives in dissent when the Supreme Court ruled 5-3 to strike down similar regulations targeting abortion doctors in Texas. The role of Supreme Court swing vote had been filled by Justice Anthony Kennedy, who sided with its liberal bloc on divisive issues including abortion and gay rights before retiring last July. Following Republican President Donald Trumps appointment in the past two years of Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who replaced Kennedy, and Justice Neil Gorsuch, Roberts now appears to be the most centrist of the five conservative justices who make up the courts majority. Hes now the center, and the center has moved to the right, American Civil Liberties Union lawyer Jennifer Dalven said. Most court-watchers expect Roberts to side with his fellow conservatives on a wide range of issues, including business disputes, challenges to Trumps actions and divisive social issues beyond abortion. Roberts takes his institutional role seriously and is a defender of the federal judiciary at a time when Trump often criticizes judges and accuses the courts of political motives. As chief justice, he presides over oral arguments in cases before the court and leads private meetings among the justices. The court on Thursday granted an emergency application by abortion provider Hope Medical Group for Women to stop Louisianas law from taking effect. The justices did not rule on the merits of the case. The Supreme Court is now likely to take up the clinics appeal of a lower court ruling allowing the law, with a decision on the merits possible in 2020, just months before the presidential election. Whether Roberts will oppose the Louisiana abortion restrictions as well as others pursued in conservative-leaning states remains an open question. Trump, seeking re-election next year, has seized on the abortion issue, which appeals to his conservative base. In his State of the Union address on Tuesday, Trump urged lawmakers to pass legislation banning late-term abortions. The court will decide soon whether to hear Indianas bid to revive a state ban on abortions performed due to the sex or race of the fetus or evidence of disability. Indiana last week asked the Supreme Court to hear another abortion case concerning a law to require fetal ultrasounds before abortions take place. Those cases do not turn on the 2016 precedent, meaning Roberts may feel less inclined to side with the liberals. I think its still quite likely that he will be voting and casting a fifth and decisive vote to uphold a variety of abortion regulations that fall short of outright prohibitions, Cornell law professor Michael Dorf said. The court has a handful of major cases during its current term that will test to what extent Roberts differs from Kennedy on key issues. The court on Feb. 27 will hear arguments in a religious rights dispute about a towering cross on public land in Maryland. Kennedy and Roberts likely would not differ on that issue. In 2010, both were in the majority when the court ruled that a cross on federal land in the Mojave National Preserve in California could remain, upholding the governments decision to transfer the land into private ownership. The courts action on the death penalty case was an example of Roberts siding with his fellow conservatives in allowing Alabama to execute death row inmate Domineque Ray , who said that as a Muslim his constitutional religious rights were violated by the states refusal to let him have an imam present. The state allows inmates to be accompanied by a Christian chaplain but not clergy representing any other religion. | Report an error, an omission, a typo; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece, a comment; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: deathpenaltynews@gmail.com Opposed to Capital Punishment? Help us keep this blog up and running! DONATE! "One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed, but by the punishments that the good have inflicted." -- Oscar Wilde Reuters, February 10, 2019 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. 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 was inducted into the Philadelphia Public Relations Hall of Fame. He received the E. A. "Wally" Richter Leadership Award from the National Association of Bar Executives' Communications Section. The Award is the Section's highest honor. 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. 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 and one of the most widely honored public relations professionals in his field. He's also a public relations consultant to numerous organizations and individuals and the host of The Advocates on RVN-TV. Question: Regarding my posts about the terrible perversion of Torah and halacha that Rav Shmuel Kaminetsky has engineered with his prod... Important!! email - yadmoshe@gmail.com Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the development works at Tripura during his visit. The development projects inaugurated were: A 23.32-km railway track in southern Tripura. This 23 Km Garjee-Belonia section is built at a cost of Rs 400 crore and is part of the Rs 3,407-crore Agartala-Sabroom (115 km) national railway project aiming to link southern Tripuras last border town (Sabroom). This new railway line would facilitate the carriage of goods and passengers from the northeastern states on the Bangladeshi railway network. New complex of Tripura Institute of Technology (TIT) at Narsingarh. The new complex was built at a cost of Rs 103 crore. The cost was shared by the state and the Central government. Unveiled a statue of Tripuras last ruler, Maharaja Bir Bikram Kishore Manikya at the Agartala airport. Maharaja Bir Bikram Kishore Manikya Maharaja Bir Bikram Kishore Manikya (reigned 1923-47) is considered as the father of modern architecture in Tripura, as the entire planning of present-day Tripura was initiated during his rule including planning of the capital city of Tripura, Agartala. In 1939, the Maharaja reserved land for the local Tripura tribals, which was later instrumental in the creation of the Tripura autonomous district council. He is also credited for the construction of the first airport at Agartala in Tripura, which is today the second busiest airport in the entire northeast. The statue of the Maharaja Bir Bikram Kishore Manikya is designed and built by the faculty and students of Tripura governments Art and Craft College at a cost of Rs 5 lakh. The statue was unveiled as part of the efforts of the union government policy of honouring the unsung heroes of India, who have contributed greatly to nation-building. Knoll is taking a different approach with his mens hair product, Simple Hair. Hes working toward selling on Amazon.com because thats where many consumers search for personal care products. An owners choice of advertising channels depends on their target customers, says Ramon Ray, a small business consultant who often speaks publicly about marketing. Its ultra-important to clearly understand who you are selling to, Ray says. Armed with that information, an owner can decide if social media is best or if they should try methods like email marketing, sending brochures through the mail or making networking calls, Ray says. Simon Trask has had four companies including an advertising agency, two online stores and a consulting business. With his background in advertising, Ive seen hundreds of companies and theyre all case by case unique, depending on what products they sell and what kind of companies they are, Trask says. Robert Anderson, 41, of Carlisle, faces the possibility of a death sentence after being accused of walking into the Haines Stackfield American Legion in June 2016 and shooting 30-year-old Daniel Harris multiple times. However, in an interview with police a few months after the shooting, Anderson described himself as a peacekeeper not a murderer. I aint no gun-toter, Anderson told police in 2016. I dont want to be no tough guy. The final two hours of a roughly three-hour interview he did with Carlisle Police was played in open court Saturday during the trial against Anderson. He is charged with first- and second-degree murder, two counts of criminal homicide, felony possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and misdemeanor reckless endangerment, according to court records. If convicted of first-degree murder, Anderson could face the death penalty. These guys know who shot who, but they aint going to step and say, lets stop this,Anderson told police. ... I hate the state of the black community. FBI Special Agent Matthew Wilde testified that Andersons cellphone connected to a tower near the American Legion around the time of the shooting. Support Local Journalism Your membership makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} This is the first evidence presented placing Anderson near the American Legion at the time of Harriss death. Several witnesses who were inside the American Legion also testified Friday that a black man walked into the bar and shot Harris. However, none could identify who the shooter was. Anderson had been shot in January 2016. During his interview with police he told them about the shooting and said he was told it was Harris who had shot him. He went on to tell police that he had made amends with Harris prior to Harriss death. While Fridays testimony was not interrupted by technical issues that abruptly ended proceedings a day earlier, the day was not without its controversy. Defense attorney Jacob Jividen, who is representing Andersons son Sadeek Anderson in unrelated charges, took the stand first thing Friday morning to testify about a conversation he had with Senior Assistant District Attorney Kimberly Metzger after Thursdays testimony. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp LinkedIn Email Telegram New York, February 8, 2019Russian authorities should immediately drop a criminal investigation launched against reporter Svetlana Prokopyeva and return her personal possessions seized during a raid of her apartment by armed police on February 6, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Prokopyeva, a Pskov-based stringer for the U.S. Congress-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Libertys Russian service and the liberal Echo of Moscow news radio station, is being investigated for comments critical of Russian authorities in relation to a suicide bombing last year, according to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and the journalist, who spoke to CPJ. RFE/RL reported that Russias federal media regulator, Roskomnadzor, said those comments, made during a broadcast on the Pskov affiliate of Echo of Moscow, amounted to justifying terrorism. By equating reporting on a terrorist attack with justifying terrorism, Russian authorities have once again demonstrated their hostility toward critical journalism, said Gulnoza Said, CPJs Europe and Central Asia program coordinator. The criminal investigation against Svetlana Prokopeyeva should be dropped immediately and authorities should return her possessions so that she can continue her important reporting. On February 6, armed special forces police raided Prokopyevas home and seized two cell phones and three laptop computers, as well as many documents relating to her work, Prokopyeva told CPJ. She said police took her to a local station, where she was interrogated before being released. Prokopyevas lawyer was present during the search and interrogation, according to the Russian office of Human Rights Watch. On the same day, local police conducted a crime scene examination of Echo of Moscow, the rights group said. Prokopyeva told CPJ that she was interrogated by police again yesterday and that police forced her and her lawyer to sign an agreement stating that they would not disclose sensitive information about the investigation. Pskov police could not be reached by phone for comment. An email request went unanswered. The investigation into Prokopyeva stems from comments she made while hosting a show on the Pskov affiliate of Echo of Moscow on November 7, 2018, during which she discussed a suicide bombing attack in Arkhangelsk in October, when a 17-year-old detonated a homemade bomb inside a local Federal Security Service building, Prokopyeva told CPJ. Prokopyeva said on-air that the bomber was a teenager who grew up under Putins rule and that a ruthless state had raised someone who saw violence as the only path, according to a summary of her remarks by Human Rights Watch. A transcript of the broadcast was published on Echo of Moscows website and by local news portal Pskov Newsfeed, according to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. In December 2018, Roskomnadzor issued a warning to both outlets and both removed the transcripts, according to RFE/RL. Later that month, Roskomnadzor fined the radio station 150,000 rubles (approximately US$2,280) and Pskov Newsfeed 200,000 rubles (approximately US$3,040) for carrying her comments, according to Human Rights Watch. Prokopyeva has not been indicted but could face charges under Article 205.2(2) of the Russian criminal code, which penalizes the public justification of terrorism; if found guilty, she could face up to seven years in prison, the BBCs Russian service reported. 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. The Eau Claire Police Department is investigating the 2018 assault allegation against one of the men, according to a court filing. That mans lawyer has said that if called as a witness in the trial, the man will invoke his right to remain silent and refuse to answer questions. Nelson said Wednesday he wants the trial to be about what happened on March 22, 2018, and argued McCandless sexual trauma from the past isnt relevant unless its between her and Woodworth. McCandless sexual history and prior sexual assaults are not relevant to whether she intended to kill Woodworth, or if she did, whether she was acting in self-defense, Nelson said. Also at the March 8 hearing, Peterson will decide if expert testimony surrounding McCandless injuries will be allowed into the trial. Nelson is challenging several doctors the prosecution has called to testify. McCandless had several injuries, including marks on her neck and cuts on her stomach, forearm, palm, inner and outer thigh and genital area, Nelson said. The prosecution isnt stating which doctors examined McCandless and what they found; Nelson said, We dont have the notice of what their expert opinion is even going to be. Updates throughout the day at http://calevbenyefuneh. blogspot.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. . ..10 February '19..Once again the Arab League met and offered platitudes of support for Palestinians.The Secretary General of the Executive Committee of the PLO, Saeb Erekat, spoke there and railed against the normalization of relations between Arab nations and Israel.Erekat said that the prerequisites for any relations with Israel are "when Israel withdraws from the occupied Arab territories and ends its occupation, including East Jerusalem, the occupied Arab Golan, the rest of Lebanese territory and solves the refugee issue."Which is pretty much full Israeli surrender. Neutrality means that humanitarian aid must not favor any side in an armed conflict or other dispute. Impartiality means that humanitarian aid must be provided solely on the basis of need, without discrimination. Independence means the autonomy of humanitarian objectives from political, economic, military or other objectives. Prof. Hillel Frisch is a professor of political studies and Middle East studies at Bar-Ilan University and a senior research associate at the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies. Updates throughout the day at http://calevbenyefuneh. blogspot.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. . ..BESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,087..10 February '19..The European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations Unit (ECPHAO), the humanitarian arm of the European Commission of the European Union, is one of the largest funding sources of aid in the world. According to the organization, one billion euros on average have been disbursed since 1992 in 110 countries around the world, with over 110 million beneficiaries annually.The organization states its mandate in crisp, unambiguous language:When the ECPHAO dispenses aid, it transgresses all three of these principles.Lets begin with the principle of impartiality: the provision of aid solely on the basis of need. A chart ( see below ) plotting the organizations 2019 budget shows that the Middle East is the overwhelming beneficiary of EU humanitarian aid nearly 1 billion of just over 1.4 billion euros (174 million is earmarked for reserves and bureaucratic costs). The bulk of the funds go towards meeting the costs of assistance to Syrian refugees, followed by smaller sums to Iraq, Yemen, Palestine, and North Africa.Sub-Saharan Africa, by contrast, receives less than one-third of that amount.The problem with such allocations is that the overwhelming majority of people living in dire poverty reside in sub-Saharan Africa, India, and Bangladesh, according to a map ( below ) drawn up by a group of concerned economists based at Oxford University. These countries have the highest percentage of populations with a household consumption of less than $2 a day. Only one country in the Middle East fits this sorry bill: Yemen. According to the map and the principle of impartiality, the bulk of EU aid should be going to these countries, yet they receive only a small percentage.To get a clear picture of the reality of ECPHAO impartiality, one need only compare the amount Palestinians receive to the amount received by the poorest 20% of the world. According to the World Bank, 732 million people live in lower income countries. The 4.8 million Palestinians, by contrast, are classified as lower middle class that is to say, in the quintile above them. Yet those 4.8 million Palestinians will receive 36 million euros, while 490 million will be disbursed for the benefit of 680 million people living in 32 other countries (not including Syria and Yemen, which are funded separately). The Palestinians, who are richer on average than those living in the poorest states of the world, will thus receive over six euros per capita, while the populations of the poorest states will receive around 0.70 euro per capita less than one-eighth that amount.No one has explained why Ethiopia, which has a GDP per capita one-third that of Gaza and one-fifth that of the West Bank, should receive one-eighth the amount of aid Palestinians receive on a per capita basis. This is particularly remarkable as the ECPHAO has itself acknowledged Ethiopias greater plight including a massive emergency refugee problem stemming from the 37-year-old Somali crisis.Discrimination in favor of the Palestinians even extends to Yemen, where a true humanitarian disaster exists. According to the EU, 79 million euros have been expended annually on average since the onset of the Yemeni crisis, compared to 36 million for the Palestinians. That is slightly more than double. Yet there are 4.8 million Palestinians, while the population of Yemen is estimated at over 28 million (of whom 22.5 million are in dire straits, according to the Commission). Yemenis thus receive less than half of what the already richer Palestinians receive.Even less defensible is the EUs claim to political neutrality. Its favoritism towards the Palestinians on this score is visible as soon as one enters terms into the general search function on the Commissions internet site. Enter Palestine and you get 20,737 results. Enter Ethiopia and you get almost the same figure, despite massive differences in a) population size (100 million versus fewer than 5 million), b) geographic expanse (Ethiopia is fifty times the size of Palestine), and c) degree of sheer suffering. The Syrian crisis, which is said to have led to the loss of half a million lives (though that figure is probably exaggerated), merits not many more site results than Palestine just over 27,000.More damning is the content of the available material on the Palestinians. The mere titles of the reports are sufficient to reveal their obvious bias. Consider these examples: Palestine: What if your school is demolished tomorrow? Access denied: Newborn separated from her mother in Gaza , and Gaza: Life among the ruins. One of the foci of these reports is the plight of 35,000 Bedouin whom the EU assists, often in clear violation of the law, in Area C the part of the West Bank under exclusive Israeli control. The hundreds of thousands of Bedouin in Sinai, however, the plight of whom is readily acknowledged even by Egyptian officials, gets no mention, even though Egypt is a recipient of EU aid. There are over thirty blog reports on Palestine compared to two for Egypt.The third criterion independence of economic, military, and political considerations is belied by the fact that Syrian refugees get at least ten times the aid Yemenis receive. Syrian refugees in Syria and surrounding areas will receive 860 billion euros in 2019. Yemen, which is burdened with no fewer internal refugees, will have to share a meagre 88 million with the Palestinians and Iraqis. Yet a reading of their relative plight, as described in the Commissions fact sheets, suggests that at the very least, equal treatment is required to meet the challenges of the Yemeni tragedy. Unlike the Yemeni refugees, many Syrian refugees have found refuge in the relatively developed states of Turkey, Lebanon, and Jordan.Clearly, the Commissions approach to aid allocation has nothing to do with impartiality, true social welfare needs, or humanitarian considerations.It has to do with political and economic considerations.To put it bluntly, the EU favors allocations to Syrian refugees above Yemeni refugees because of the higher probability that Syrian refugees will find their way to Europe.Ironically, the greater danger Syrian refugees pose to Europe stems in part from the fact that many of the Syrians have the economic wherewithal to make an attempt to reach Europe, in contrast to the poverty-stricken Yemenis. The land route is also easier and cheaper. Indeed, over a million Syrian refugees have made their way to Europe since the outbreak of the Syrian crisis, which is why the EU is so keen to stem the flow.The recipients of European largesse who are next in line, in relative terms, are the Palestinians. Stemming Palestinian immigration is certainly a small part of the explanation, but it can be attributed primarily to the EUs hostility towards Israel, its rightful historical claims, and its security needs.The EU is neither impartial nor neutral, and it utterly fails to keep its aid decisions independent of economic, political, and military considerations. CUCUTA, Colombia (AP) The Latest on the political crisis in Venezuela (all times local): 9:30 p.m. China says peaceful dialogue and political means are the "only way" toward enduring peace in Venezuela and says it backs multinational efforts toward that end. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying's statement comes in response to a question about a meeting Thursday of an "International Contact Group" led by Uruguayan President Tabare Vazquez and attended by leaders of 14 countries, including Spain, Italy, Portugal and Sweden. China is a close ally of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, to whom it has lent billions to help shore up his embattled regime. Hua said China "believes that Venezuela's affairs should be resolved by the Venezuelan people under the framework of its constitution and laws and through peaceful dialogue and political means. This is the only way toward enduring peace in the country." ___ 1:40 p.m. Former Venezuelan diplomat Isaias Medina, who broke with President Nicolas Maduro in July 2017, says he strongly supports the courage of opposition leader Juan Guaido and wants the Trump administration to keep the military option on the table. Medina told a news conference at U.N. headquarters in New York: "I think we need the strength of the U.S., Brazil, Colombia." He said Venezuela is now experiencing the worst situation of any country in Latin America, with thousands dead and dying due to a lack of food and medicine. "The main objective here is to bring humanitarian assistance and if it must be done by military support, so be it," he said. "It's not military intervention it's international humanitarian intervention," Medina added, noting that his grandfather was president of Venezuela during World War II and opposed the Nazis. "I am not only saying that Maduro is a threat to the maintenance of peace of the region," he said. "He is a clear and present danger and a risk to the national security of the United States. This is a very anti-Western, anti-democratic, anti-American regime." Story continues Medina previously served as a legal adviser at Venezuela's U.N. Mission. ___ 1:25 p.m. A Venezuelan Supreme Court justice says the constitution does not include language for forming a transitional government as opposition lawmaker Juan Guaido claims. Justice Juan Mendoza read a statement Friday on state TV saying that steps Guaido has taken are therefore null. Guaido in late January declared that he had a constitutional right to assume the presidency, vowing to oust President Nicolas Maduro and restore democracy. Justice Mendoza says Guaido is usurping presidential powers. The pro-Maduro Supreme Court has already barred Guaido from leaving the country and frozen his bank accounts while prosecutors investigate what they call his anti-government activities. ___ 11:45 a.m. U.S. humanitarian aid destined for Venezuela is now sitting in a warehouse on the Colombian border. The goods stored at the border city of Cucuta, which is just across the river from Venezuela, consist of corn, flour, lentils and cans of tuna. Volunteers hustled about as they filled up white sacks with the food and other items from boxes marked with the words USAID. Venezuela's opposition is vowing to deliver the aid to the South American country, but no timeline has been released. The border bridge near where the aid is being stored has been blocked by the Venezuelan military. President Nicolas Maduro has said Venezuela isn't a nation of "beggars" and won't accept the U.S. humanitarian assistance. ___ 6:15 a.m. An international group of parliamentarians is urging Venezuela's government to stop the "ongoing harassment" of opposition lawmakers and denouncing "intimidation" of 60 parliamentarians including 40 who have allegedly faced physical attacks. The Geneva-based Inter-Parliamentary Union, which counts 178 parliaments as members, says it's also monitoring the impact of a Venezuelan Supreme Court decision "ordering a blanket investigation into possible criminal conduct by members of the National Assembly." Rogier Huizenga, secretary of the IPU's human rights committee, expressed concern the opposition-controlled Assembly is "being ill-treated." Opposition leader Juan Guaido has declared himself interim president in Venezuela, a move recognized by several dozen countries, but Preside11:15 nt Nicolas Maduro is refusing to relinquish power. Huizenga said Friday that the committee has asked to send a mission to Venezuela, and has seen informal signs that this might be agreed. ___ 5:50 a.m. Romania's president has officially recognized Juan Guaido as Venezuela's interim president almost a week after other European Union countries recognized him. President Klaus Iohannis said Friday that Romania had decided to join other EU countries and allies in recognizing Guaido partly because Bucharest currently holds the EU's rotating presidency. Iohannis, in charge of the country's foreign policy, said Romania needed to have "quick, fundamental and firm reactions" to international developments. Several EU countries, including Spain, Germany, Britain and France, had given Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's government an eight-day deadline to call a new presidential election. The deadline expired Sunday and they recognized Guaido as interim president. Guaido, who heads the opposition-led National Assembly, declared himself Venezuela's legitimate ruler on Jan. 23. He has the support of Washington and most South American nations. A convoy of more than 100 trucks will assemble Sunday in northern Alberta, in what's being billed as the first Indigenous-led rally for energy resources. The event organized by the Region One Aboriginal Business Association wants to highlight that Alberta's northern Indigenous communities support for pipelines and oppose Bill C-69, federal legislation that will overhaul the way energy projects are approved. ROABA promotes Indigenous-owned businesses in northern Alberta and facilitates networking opportunities between businesses and industry. "We can't get anything to market. We are limited to one client which is the Americans," ROABA president Shawn McDonald said. "We need more. We are gridlock." The rally will begin with an elder's prayer and blessing and then a bannock and soup lunch before the convoy travels 80 kilometres around the Lac La Biche's namesake lake, passing communities in Owl River and Plamondon. The rally will feature a range of speakers including four First Nation and Metis leaders, the MP for the area, David Yurdiga and MLAs and other municipal leaders. Black Scorpion Contracting Ltd./ Submitted Canada Action, a non-partisan pro-oil and gas activist group, has partnered with ROABA to organize the rally. "It is powerful. I think it is representative that most First Nations support the pipeline," said Cody Battershill, the founder and CEO of Canada Action. "This is an important conversation." The rally starts Sunday at noon at the Bold Center in Lac La Biche, Alta. Connect with David Thurton, CBC's Fort McMurray correspondent, on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn or email him at david.thurton@cbc.ca A joint US and Australian team in January seized more than 1.7 tonnes of methamphetamine in California, the largest such domestic seizure in US history, Australian Federal Police reported on February 8. Australian police arrested a number of people in Victoria and New South Wales on February 7 and February 8 allegedly connected to the ice smuggling operation. The haul was equal to 17 million drug deals and had an estimated street value of $1.29 billion, police said. Cocaine and heroin were also discovered. The drugs were seized in California on January 9 after they were discovered in an Australian-bound shipment of audio equipment. The footage shows police opening the concealed drugs. Hundreds of thousands in cash was found as well as 6.5 kg of ice. Credit: Australian Federal Police via Storyful BERLIN (Reuters) - French director Francois Ozon described the struggles he experienced breaking the silence surrounding pedophile abuse scandals in the Catholic Church when making "By the Grace of God", about three victims who faced down the hierarchy. The film explores the impact of the protagonists' decision to act on long-dormant memories of abuse on scouting excursions and summer camps, bringing upheaval into their relationships with parents, children and friends. Revelations of decades of abuse suffered by children at the hands of the priests to whose care they were entrusted have convulsed the Catholic Church globally. But even now some prefer to draw a veil over the past. Ozon said he had hesitated even to seek financial backers in "ultra-Catholic" Lyon, the city in which priest Bernard Preynat allegedly groomed and abused young boys, even as successive cardinal archbishops allegedly turned a blind eye. "All the church interior scenes were shot in Belgium and Luxembourg," Ozon told reporters on Friday after the screening of the film, one of 17 competing for a Golden Bear award at the Berlin Film Festival. "Lyon is extremely Catholic," he said, describing how exterior scenes in Lyon were deliberately shot in a low-profile way. "We wanted to be free and not censored." Producer Eric Altmayer said: "It wasn't easy to finance the film, given its topic." Preynat is due to go on trial for child abuse in Lyon later this year. He denies the charges against him. The film shows three alleged victims - successful banker Alexandre (played by Melvil Poupaud), the volatile and creative Francois (Denis Menochet) and the deeply troubled Emmanuel (Swann Arlaud) as they press prosecutors to charge first Preynat and then Philippe Barbarin, archbishop of Lyon, for allegedly turning a blind eye to the allegations. Barbarin has admitted errors in his handling of the Preynat affair. But he denies the charges against him. Arlaud, who in the film plays the most outwardly troubled of Preynat's alleged victims, described the challenge of portraying the "damaged virility" of a man given to both volcano-like bursts of physical violence and sudden nervous collapse. But by banding together with other victims, the three make headway in bringing their cause before prosecutors and forcing the church hierarchy to listen. "Good luck to you if you want to get Barbarin," says a prosecutor at one point in the film. Last month, Barbarin's trial on charges of having failed to report sexual abuse allegations opened in Lyon. (Reporting by Thomas Escritt; Editing by Hugh Lawson) News / National by Staff reporter The Dutch Reformed Church has warned the opposition and rights groups against adopting a hostile stance towards President Emmerson Mnangagwa and his government, warning that doing so could inflame emotions and cause great damage to the country.In a paper on the current political tensions in the country, two of the church's senior officials also urged opposition leader Nelson Chamisa to "abandon traditional politics" - which has seen opposition parties in the region sometimes threatening to send senior government officials to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague.The church's Braam Hanekom and Llewellyn MacMaster of South Africa were recently in Zimbabwe on a fact-finding mission, where they met various interest groups, including lawyers, civil society leaders, academics, politicians and local clergymen."Assurance that the International Criminal Court (ICC) will not strike out at senior government officials is important ... Otherwise a fight to the end' scenario is definitely on the table. Traditional opposition politics will not function now."Pressure alone, however, won't work, because you are dealing with a military situation that actually only knows one form of action."What is urgently required is influence by people who do not necessarily want to overthrow a government, but are level-headed and looking to create a win-win situation," the duo warned.Their warning follows threats by South Africa's largest opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA), which has said that it wants the ICC to probe Mnangagwa and securocrats over the recent savage crackdown on civilians by the country's security forces.The ICC is an international tribunal that sits in The Hague, in the Netherlands. It has powers to prosecute individuals fingered in serious crimes related to wanton killings, genocide, crimes against humanity and war transgressions."The ICC's Office of the Prosecutor is empowered by the Rome Statute to determine whether there is sufficient evidence of crimes of sufficient gravity falling within the ICC's jurisdiction, whether there are genuine national proceedings, and whether opening an investigation would serve the interests of justice and of the victims."The DA strongly believes that the human rights crisis currently obtaining in Zimbabwe is of sufficient gravity to warrant an ICC investigation. President (Cyril) Ramaphosa and his government seem intent on sitting on their hands over the Zimbabwe crisis in much the same manner as Thabo Mbeki's failed diplomacy."In 2008, people were attacked and murdered with impunity in another State-sanctioned military clampdown targeting innocent civilians after a disputed election," the DA's shadow minister for International Relations, Stevens Mokgalapa, warned Ramaphosa in a recent letter.Last month, police and soldiers were engaged in running battles with protesters who flooded the streets of Harare, Bulawayo and other towns - to demonstrate against the steep fuel price hikes which were announced by Mnangagwa ahead of his tour of Eastern Europe.Property worth millions of dollars was also destroyed and looted in the mayhem which ensued, after thousands of workers heeded a three-day strike call by the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU).At the same time, security forces unleashed a brutal crackdown against the protesters, the opposition and civil society leaders - in a move which received wide condemnation in the country and around the world.Rights groups continue reporting human rights abuses by security forces - including galling allegations that soldiers had raped women and girls during their much-condemned crackdown against civilians.After Zimbabwe attracted unwanted global interest in the wake of the trail of terror left by the country's security forces, Mnangagwa has tasked the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission (NPRC) to spearhead national dialogue to resolve the deepening political and economic crises in the country.Incidentally, the warning by the Dutch Reformed Church comes as local churches are complementing the NPRC in its endeavours to bring Mnangagwa and Chamisa to the negotiating table.On Wednesday, they lashed the two leaders for dithering around the much-awaited national dialogue which is seen as the best way of resolving the country's long-running political and economic crises.The distinguished members of the clergy who gathered in Harare for a high profile meeting on the planned national talks said this was the more surprising as both men had played leading roles in discussions which led to the formation of the nation-saving government of national unity (GNU) in 2009.Then, ousted former president Robert Mugabe and the late Morgan Tsvangirai agreed to bury their deep political differences before signing their historic global political agreement (GPA) - following the hotly-disputed 2008 presidential election which the nonagenarian lost hands down to his then nemesis, before embarking on a murderous campaign against MDC supporters ahead of a sham run-off.The GPA led to the formation of the short-lived, but stability-inducing GNU which ended controversially in July 2013, and to the detriment of the country.Cleric Simba Mutandwa said both Mnangagwa and Chamisa needed to chose peace over hostilities, despite their serious differences."Though not perfect, among Zimbabweans, we have in the past produced recognisable peace, unity, justice and prosperity dividends. The Lancaster House negotiations that gave us independence, the talks during the Gukurahundi gave us the Unity Accord in 1987, the dialogue led by churches gave us the national vision document, the Zimbabwe We Want' in 2006."The dialogue after the elections gave us the government of national unity in 2009 and the broad national unity among Zimbabweans culminated in the birth of a home-grown Constitution of 2013," Mutandwa said.Renowned bishop and founder of Zaoga Ministries, Ezekiel Guti, also implored Mnangagwa and Chamisa to "let go certain interests" to find common ground for talks, which he said were important in rebuilding the country."I pray that by grace God enters your hearts so that we forgive each other and move together," he said."People must come together, humble themselves and repent from that culture that they must have imported from other places," Zion Christian Church (ZCC) leader Nehemiah Mutendi - a key ally of Mnangagwa - chipped in, while also giving as an example how the late Father Zimbabwe, Joshua Nkomo, and Mugabe had subordinated their anger to talk to each other."We also have people like Tsvangirai ... he did not call it humiliation to meet his opposition for the sake of peace," he added, referring to the GPA and the subsequent consummation of the GNU. News / National by Staff reporter Buhera South legislator Joseph Chinotimba has disowned several social media accounts, including on Twitter and Facebook, under his name that are being used to post offensive messages.Chinotimba said he did not use social media to communicate with his constituency and attributed the social media accounts to his enemies. Some of the messages posted on those accounts attacked the Zanu-PF leadership, which is not consistent with loyal party cadres.In an interview on Wednesday, Chinotimba said: "I want the whole nation to know that I am not on Twitter and other social media platforms that are using my name. There are four accounts on Twitter that are using my name to insult people and I want the nation to know that I do not use social media to communicate."In any case, I do not even know how to use that Twitter thing. I am an ambassador of happiness and I do not insult people. If I have issues with other politicians, I raise them in Parliament and not on social media."I am urging the Minister of ICT (Kazembe Kazembe) to expedite the ICT Bill so that the abuse of social media is dealt with once and for all. I take this as abuse of my name by my enemies."Several politicians have fallen victim to the abuse of social media where their names are used to communicate messages that do not emanate from them. News / National by newzimbabwe DEPUTY Information Minister Energy Mutodi has hinted President Emmerson Mnangagwa could have deliberately ignored Thursday's invitation to a churches dialogue prayer meeting in retaliation to MDC leader Nelson Chamisa's snubbing of his own invitation to State House Wednesday.The meeting, hosted by the Zimbabwe Council of Churches, was a church initiative to ease tensions among the country's feuding political actors while laying the groundwork for greater national dialogue.But speaking in an interview with NewZimbabwe.com Thursday, Mutodi took time to rebuke the opposition leader saying his party was better off without a dialogue process which was being demanded by MDC."How can the President come when Chamisa also did not come to State House for the brainstorming of the negotiations," he said."We cannot always be the ones to come to the negotiation table when others do not. We cannot always come to the negotiation table on the terms and dictates of other people."We have set up the platform for negotiation. We have called all political parties to State House. The State House belongs to government. So everyone was supposed to come."Mutodi said it was the opposition that has been clamouring for the same dialogue that it was turning its back on."We do not need that dialogue. We had not called for that dialogue in the first place."The opposition MDC is the one that has been petitioning the President to call all political parties and itself for dialogue and this is the call that the president has now replied."Now if the President then responds to that call and you absent yourself from the negotiations, what do you want him to do?"However, speaking to journalists at State House on Wednesday, Mnangagwa tried to play down Chamisa's absence from the event, saying it was his young opponent's democratic right not to attend.Chamisa and his party have adamantly refused to recognise Mnangagwa as the country's legitimately elected leader and has slammed his rival's choice of state house as venue for neutral talks."We cannot use the State House where one party which is an actor to the dispute chooses the time, the day, the venue, the agenda, the participants."That is not dialoguing; it's unacceptable. It is arrogance. It is actually having phantom dialoguewe want genuine dialogue not public relations," he said. News / National by newzimbabwe THE International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) has launched a global campaign seeking to pressure the Zimbabwean government to stop its clampdown on trade union rights in the troubled country.This comes after the Zanu-PF led administration has arrested and charged with subversion, leaders of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) accused of calling for last month's violent anti-government protests over rising poverty in the country.The arrests, together with those of many Zimbabweans accused of taking part in the protests, have invited global condemnation while spotlighting on the country's failure to break from former President Robert Mugabe's bygone oppressive rule.ITUC, on its part, has piled on the pressure, calling on its affiliate groups worldwide to voice their displeasure at how the Emmerson Mnangagwa led government was treating its colleagues in Zimbabwe."In coordination with ITUC Africa, Southern Africa Trade Union Coordination Council and the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions, we are calling on affiliates and all friendly organisations to send a protest letter to the Government of Zimbabwe, send letters to your government to exert pressure on the government of Zimbabwe, organise solidarity actions from 1 February," said the labour organisation in a statement.Workers in member states were also urged to request meetings with Zimbabwean ambassadors in their respective countries and to publish articles, blog posts on their input.They were also urged to publish articles on the situation in Zimbabwe with a focus on the repression and trade union demands. News / National by The East African Kenya has joined the list of African states calling on Western powers to lift crippling sanctions on the post-Robert Mugabe's Zimbabwe.President Uhuru Kenyatta on Wednesday pledged to support the economically-struggling southern African nation's bid to have the sanctions imposed by the US and the 28-member European Union (EU) lifted."Imposing sanction is like tying somebody's hands and feet, they cannot move. We will give our support to bring back Zimbabwe to the global platform," said Kenyatta in a statement.The President, the statement said, spoke during a meeting with his Zimbabwean counterpart Emmerson Mnangagwa's special envoy Perence Shiri at State House in Nairobi.President Mnangagwa has made scrapping of the sanction a key plank of his diplomatic engagement with the African continent since he romped to power following last year's acrimonious elections.The West had imposed the sanctions during the long rule of Mugabe.South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said on January 22 that he planned to meet Mnangagwa at a later date to work on a plan to pull Zimbabwe out of the sanctions, which have plunged the country into economic doldrums.Alleged human rights abuses and flawed elections prompted many Western countries to isolate Zimbabwe in the early 2000s in the wake of a forced takeover of white-owned farms.Shiri was in Nairobi to seek Kenya's support in the campaign against the sanctions. This comes two days after Britain's minister for Africa Harriett Baldwin reportedly said former Zimbabwe's colonial master supports calls for the EU to extend the sanctions.Baldwin further said her country would not back Zimbabwe's plans to return to the 53-member Commonwealth after Mugabe withdrew membership in 2003.The EU is due to meet later this month to review the bloc's sanctions on Zimbabwe."Specifically with regard to sanctionsI think that since the recent developments there might be a case for widening it to include further individuals," she was quoted as saying."We have been aware that the president has said that heads will roll. We haven't seen any specific heads rolling."The US extended sanctions on Zimbabwe in March last year. News / National by Staff reporter AN ad hoc meeting of last year's presidential candidates, which President Emmerson Mnangagwa hastily convened on Wednesday in an effort to lay the groundwork for national dialogue, ended in futility after sharp divisions emerged over its agenda and purpose, the Zimbabwe Independent reported.Mnangagwa called the meeting to "confront the national question" by engaging those who contested the presidential election. His biggest challenger, MDC leader Nelson Chamisa, snubbed the event which he said was improperly convened.Some of the candidates who attended the meeting said upon entering the magnificently furnished boardroom at State House, venue of the meeting, they felt intimidated and belittled as Mnangagwa and senior officials from his party who included secretary for administration Obert Mpofu, legal secretary Patrick Chinamasa and politburo member Sydney Sekeramayi had already occupied high table seats facing the rest of the room.One participant described it as "more of a civil hearing" than a meeting of equals.The meeting began with Mnangagwa giving a speech in the presence of the press, in which he told the losing candidates to forget about the general elections, recognise him as the legitimate president and join his call for the removal of sanctions.Mnangagwa then immediately asked for submissions from the participants without giving them a written agenda for the meeting.United Democratic Alliance president Daniel Shumba was the first to speak."Shumba was very frank in his submissions. He said that he was disturbed by the way the army and police brutalised people during the protests last month and urged Mnangagwa and Zanu-PF to start showing respect for the rule of law if unity was to be achieved in the country. He also said there was no doubt that there is urgent need for dialogue to solve the problems facing the country but, for it to succeed, all the players must be on an equal standing," one presidential candidate who attended the meeting told the Independent."APA (Alliance for People's Agenda) leader Nkosana Moyo, who spoke after Shumba, echoed pretty much the same sentiments as Shumba, although he placed particular emphasis on the need for truly inclusive dialogue which involved political players and the civil society. He also spoke against army and police brutality."Build Zimbabwe Alliance leader Noah Manyika was next to speak after Moyo, electing to read an open letter he had written to Mnangagwa a few days earlier."Manyika further said contrary to what Zanu-PF and government said, it was actually Zanu-PF members who are the worst in terms of abusing social media. He concluded his submissions by saying that he totally respected the MDC's decision to boycott the event and supported its notion that charges against its senior officials implicated in last month's violence needed to be dropped as a precondition for any talks," detailed notes provided by one of the candidates show.After the presentations by Shumba, Moyo and Manyika, MDC-T leader Thokozani Khupe stood up and said her party supported the idea of dialogue and said the meeting was the right platform to kick-start the process. Fighting in her corner were National Constitutional Assembly leader Lovemore Madhuku, Coalition of Democrats candidateElton Mangoma, United Democracy Movement (UDM) leader Violet Mariyacha, independent candidate Brian Mteki and Tendai Munyanduri of the New Patriotic Front who were of the idea that there was nothing wrong with Mnangagwa convening the meeting."They also agreed that the elections were behind us and that they recognised Mnangagwa as the legitimate leader of the country. They also generally agreed that what was critical for the country was now to unite and work together to solve the problems we are facing, as well as engage the international community and court investors," one of the candidates said.Former army chief Ambrose Mutinhiri, who had been quiet throughout the meeting and was the last person to take the floor, reportedly stunned everyone when he said he could not speak as president of any party because his outfit - the National Patriotic Front which was formed weeks before the general elections with former president Robert Mugabe's blessing - had been disbanded."Mutinhiri surprised us all when he said he was not going to make any submissions because his party had been disbanded and went on to say his president had already spoken and there was no need for him to say anything else. Basically, he said he had rejoined Zanu-PF and now subscribed to its ideas," one source said.The meeting, sources said, ended on a rather chaotic note and without any agreement or resolution on any of the issues, with Moyo and Shumba objecting to a Khupe resolution that dialogue should continue."There was an attempt by Khupe to pass a resolution that dialogue should continue, but it was really unclear what exactly that meant. Shumba and Moyo objected because it was unclear what that meant. In the end, nothing concrete was passed beyond expressions of the importance of dialogue," another candidate said.Interestingly, Chamisa attended yesterday's dialogue meeting convened by church leaders, which Mnangagwa boycotted. News / National by Staff reporter PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa's quest to re-engage the international community suffered a severe blow this week after his key Western backer Britain expressed support for additional European sanctions on Harare and revoked a pledge to assist Zimbabwe's efforts to re-join the Commonwealth, as condemnation of a brutal military crackdown on civilians gathered momentum.Mnangagwa, who won a disputed presidential election last year that was marred by the killing of six protestors, has been on a charm offensive to convince the international community that Zimbabwe has embraced a reformist agenda, after decades of repressive rule under Robert Mugabe.This comes as the British ambassador to Zimbabwe, Melanie Robinson, opened up on the stormy situation in the country.In a post on Twitter yesterday, Robinson said she had engaged government over the state of affairs in Harare and expressed Britain's disappointment with the slow pace of political and economic reforms to Finance minister Mthuli Ncube."I paid an introductory call on Finance minister Mthuli Ncube yesterday. Frank and constructive exchange on the economic and political reforms Zimbabwe urgently needs if it is to get back on track with re-engagement," Robinson said.Her comments confirm Britain's view that Zimbabwe's re-engagement project is going off the rails. Britain's minister for Africa, Harriett Baldwin, this week told British parliamentarians that Zimbabwe's former colonial master would support an extension of European Union sanctions against the troubled country and will not back Harare's plan to return to the Commonwealth."Specifically with regard to sanctions . . . I think that since the recent developments there might be a case for widening it to include further individuals," Baldwin said.She expressed dissatisfaction with Mnangagwa's failure to act on badly needed political and economic reforms. In the aftermath of last month's bloody military crackdown, the President said any soldier found to have committed crimes would be brought to book."We have been aware that the President has said that heads will roll. We haven't seen any specific heads rolling," she said.On a financial bailout, Baldwin said: "We are a long way from that and we have gone further away as a result of use of violence by the security forces."Baldwin last year promised to support Harare's return to the Commonwealth. Mugabe withdrew Zimbabwe from the club of mostly former British colonies in 2003 after the bloc condemned the callous killings of white farmers at the height of land reforms and presidential polls marred by violence."As of today, the UK would not be able to support this application because we don't believe that the kinds of human rights violations that we are seeing from security forces in Zimbabwe are the kind of behaviour that you would expect to see from a Commonwealth country," she told the committee.Britain this week threatened more punitive measures, including adding more names on the sanctions list, saying until soldiers who killed civilians are brought to book, no financial assistance would be rendered to Zimbabwe.Behind the scenes, the UK has been campaigning for Zimbabwe's debt clearance plan and mediating with international financial institutions to support a bailout for Zimbabwe.The UK last year teamed up with Standard Chartered Bank and advanced a US$100 million facility to Zimbabwean companies, the first such direct commercial loan to the southern African nation's private sector in more than 20 years. The loan was seen as the biggest gesture of cordial diplomatic relations after UK-Zimbabwe relationship soured in the early 2000s.Mnangagwa, who took over from Mugabe in November 2017 after a military coup, has been under pressure to institute a raft of political and economic reforms.Apart from the US$100 million support from the UK government, a London-based emerging market fund - Gemcorp Group - extended a US$250 million loan to Zimbabwe to help the country import essential supplies like fuel and medicine. The facility went a long way in easing fuel shortages in the country.Prior to the army killings of protestors, Britain was also a critical ally in the crafting of the country's debt clearance plan presented by Ncube in Bali Indonesia last year.The arrears clearance programme was widely endorsed by international financial institutions (IFIs).Reports of rape and savage killings of unarmed civilians by the army have strained the diplomatic ties between the two countries.These developments also come amid information that the EU, a major market for Zimbabwean agricultural products and potential source of investment, is also considering fresh sanctions on Harare. Without the support of Britain, Zimbabwe's efforts to reposition itself on the international stage are facing a major reversal. The latest killing of at least 12 protestors has been met with condemnation in the international community.Government stands accused of dragging its feet in investigating the murder of protestors. But the EU ambassador to Harare, Timo Olkkonen, told the Independent yesterday the bloc was yet to deliberate on the Zimbabwean situation. Gruesome human rights violations during the chaotic land reform programme at the turn of the millennium saw the bloc team up with other powers to impose sanctions on Zimbabwe."Recent events coupled with slow pace of reforms are likely to result in declining investor confidence in the country," said Olkkonen."The implementation of much-needed political and economic reforms remains crucial. Zimbabwe's efforts to promote investment and to deepen international partnerships can only be successful if these essential requirements are fulfilled. The European Union has committed itself to support the Zimbabwean government in this endeavour.However, this requires sincere commitment and active steps towards the implementation, not only positive policy statements and documents. We expect government to make this a priority going forward," he added.Olkkonen also urged Mnangagwa's administration to thoroughly investigate reports of human rights violations and implement recommendations made by the commission of inquiry into the August 1 2018 killings."We also expect the government to conduct a thorough investigation into the deaths and abuses over the last days. In this context, the recommendations made recently by the commission of inquiry on post-election violence are particularly relevant and require urgent implementation," Olkkonen said.In response to the Independent's enquiries this week, University of London professor of world politics Stephen Chan, who earlier this week presented expert evidence to British legislators alongside Baldwin and the head of Department for International Development (DFID) Zimbabwe, Annabel Gerry, said government's debt clearance plan had not proposed new policies to warrant fresh engagement with the IMF, World Bank and other multilateral lenders."As for clearance of debt arrears internationally, there would seem to be unanimous international agreement that Zimbabwe must re-engage fully with the IMF, meaning the Lima Programme of debt repayment and debt management. I believe even the Chinese, behind the scenes, agree to this. However, the government of Zimbabwe has proposed no new policies or measures whereby it might re-engage with the IMF under the Lima schedule. Basically, for the past 18 years, Zimbabwe has financed itself by borrowing. Now no one will lend Zimbabwe any more substantial funds," Chan told the Independent this week.University of Zimbabwe political science lecturer Lawrence Mhandara said Britain remains a key factor in Zimbabwe's foreign policy."After the events of 1 August 2018 and January 2019, the UK has been hesitant to embrace Mnangagwa's government, hence the poignant conclusion that it would not back the readmission of Zimbabwe into the Commonwealth nor its debt clearance plan. The implication is simple: Britain has once again set the agenda for the international community's terms of engagement with Zimbabwe," Mhandara said."The doors of re-engagement with the West are shut because Britain has changed its attitude. Its opinion on Zimbabwe matters and the rest in the Western hemisphere will be cajoled to act in solidarity with the former colonial master."A grouping of human rights organisations coalescing under the banner of the Human Rights NGO Forum released its own findings this week, suggesting that more people were killed by the military in protests than officially acknowledged.The report, which follows investigations by the forum, says up to 17 people were shot dead instead of the initial figures of 12 the state gave. "To date, the violations include at least 17 extra-judicial killings, 17 cases of rape or other violations of a sexual nature, 26 abductions, 61 displacements, 81 assaults consistent with gunshot attacks, at least 586 assaults and torture, inhuman and degrading treatment including dog bites, 954 arrests and detention (including dragnet arrests), among other violations," the report reads. News / National by Staff reporter ZIMBABWE has been plunged into yet another health crisis as hospital fees have sharply risen, well beyond the affordability of most citizens, with most private health institutions now demanding payment in United States dollars or the parallel market equivalent in bond notes or RTGS payments.A snap survey by the Zimbabwe Independent also revealed that patients on medical aid are bearing the brunt of the spike in medical fees as they are saddled with huge shortfalls.This comes as private practice doctors and specialists have also proposed US dollar charges for their services amid critical drug shortages.Unlike government officials who seek medical treatment outside the country, most Zimbabweans have to do with government hospitals.The survey showed that admission deposits at private hospitals range from US$150 to more than $1 000 bond.Some are even charging US$100 for a day's treatment.Charges exclude doctors and specialist services.Expectant mothers are now faced with limited options for maternal healthcare and are now relying on the ill-equipped government facilities and municipal clinics, as private maternal homes are now charging astronomical fees for regular ante-natal care and delivery.One of Harare's top private hospitals, the Avenues Clinic, is now charging $945 bond, plus US$50 and an additional $50 for booking fees for normal delivery without medical aid cover.Delivery through caesarian operation requires $2 078, plus US$250 and $50 booking fee. Patients on medical aid have to pay $498 plus US$50 and the $50 booking fee.Thyroidectomy, an operation that involves the surgical removal of all or part of the thyroid gland, attracts a $3 040 fee plus US$350 for a three-day stay at the clinic. Appendectomy, the surgical removal of the appendix, requires a $2 078 deposit plus US$350.An inquiry at Baines Hospital in Harare indicated that the institution is charging $600 plus US$100 for a normal baby delivery while a caesarian section costs$1 500 and an additional US$250 deposit.Borrowdale Private Hospital is charging $1 650 plus US$200 for medicines on patients without medical aid cover for three nights.Patients on medical aid will have to part with $400 plus US$200 for medicines.At Healthpoint medical facility, consultation is $60 during the day and $90 after hours, while observation costs $118. Admission costs range from $200 to US$30.At Corporate 24 Hospital, a deposit of US$150 is required upfront for a bed in a general ward.Medical aid societies told the Independent that they have been trying to meet with doctors' representatives to solve the impasse, but the physicians have not honoured several promises for meetings."A National Tariff Liaison Committee meeting which was scheduled for February 1 was cancelled as the Zimbabwe Medical Association (Zima) representatives were said to be unavailable. Zima office promised that they will propose another date for the liaison meeting," Association of Health Funders of Zimbabwe chief executive Shylet Sanyanga said."Generally, hospitals and doctors are still accepting the medical aid card though some are charging shortfalls in US dollars whilst some are charging shortfalls in RTGS, but market forces will soon come into play.RTGS transactions are valid. Health funders are working with service providers who are cooperative. Not all service providers require foreign currency to run their day-to-day operations."Initial consultation fees were pegged at US$35 (or equivalent) and subsequent visits cost US$30. A visit to the dentist, if the tariffs are approved, would be pegged at US$30, while paediatricians would charge a consultation fee of US$100 and US$70 for reviews.Consulting a gynaecologist would cost US$50, while orthopaedics and general surgeons would charge US$80. News / National by Staff reporter NEWLY-appointed prosecutor-general (PG) Kumbirai Hodzi got a taste of the complexities of his job when President Emmerson Mnangagwa gave him a stern warning to steer clear of corruption and to toe the line if he is to last in office during a briefing soon after he was sworn in at State House in Harare recently.According to senior government officials who attended the closed-door briefing, Mnangagwa warned Hodzi in no uncertain terms that he did not want him to think that the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) operates independent of the head of state.Hodzi was controversially appointed PG following public interviews which were held by the Judicial Service Commission in November last year despite coming fifth out of the 10 candidates for the top job.Mnangagwa had rejected the three front runners, Calvin Mantsebo, Tinomudaishe Chinyoka and Misheck Hogwe and requested the JSC to submit three fresh names.The sources said, Mnangagwa categorically reminded Hodzi that he was assuming a difficult job, which a string of his predecessors left because of the problems associated with it.Hodzi replaced Ray Goba, who resigned last year.At the time of his resignation, Goba was facing charges of failing to prosecute high-profile corruption cases forwarded to his office by investigating agencies, sneaking out of the country without cabinet authority, entering Namibia despite being a prohibited immigrant in that country and using abusive language, as well as insulting lawyers. His suspension followed recommendations made by the JSC to the President to set up a tribunal to investigate him for the alleged misconduct.Goba had replaced Johannes Tomana, whom former president Robert Mugabe sacked at the recommendation of a tribunal which had been instituted to investigate allegations of misconduct, incompetence and obstruction of justice.However, in February last year, the High Court acquitted Tomana of all criminal charges he was facing.Tomana's precedessor, Sobusa Gula-Ndebele, was also fired after a tribunal found him guilty of "conduct inconsistent with public office" in 2008."This new prosecutor-general, the President had a tough talk with him soon after his swearing in," a senior government official.The source told the Zimbabwe Independent Mnangagwa said to Hodzi that: "Now that I have sworn you in, you have to look back at the history of the office you are moving into. None of your predecessors left office on account of retirement. Don't add to that statistic. They all left because they had issues there. It is a constitutional office; we will see how you handle it. Many will come inviting you to go to Victoria Falls, to Haiti, and even to the moon. Learn to say no."Mnangagwa is also said to have strongly warned Hodzi against touting the independence of the NPA. This is despite the fact that the constitution provides for such independence."We know it is an independent office, but you should not wave the independence flag and say you are in an independent office. I want you to know the difference between the aspirational and what is termed realpolitik. Independence is an aspiration, it's not a reality refined anywhere in the world," the source said quoting Mnangagwa verbatim"Anyway, let me clarify things for you, my dear. We have three pillars of the state, namely the judiciary, the legislature and the executive. I am the face of the executive and don't get influenced by me as the head of the executive or by the chief justice as the head of the judiciary or by speaker of the national assembly as the head of the legislature. But then, do you also know that I am the head of state and that when I operate at that level, all these three pillars are below me? So if you see yourself disregarding that saying you are independent and not come to seek advice from me as the head of state, then there is a problem," the source quoted Mnangagwa as having said.As he concluded the briefing, Mnangagwa is said to have asked for Hodzi's family members who were milling around the State House premises to be called into the meeting, saying to them as soon as they settled down: "Hama dzacho muripapi? Mukaona chikomana ichi chave kufarisa, munochibatsira. (Where are his relatives? When you see him going astray, you should help him)."Efforts to get a comment from Hodzi were fruitless as he was unreachable on mobile phone. News / National by Staff reporter DISCORD between Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) governor John Mangudya and Finance minister Mthuli Ncube over policy issues around currency reforms has delayed the presentation of the monetary policy statement (MPS) after the central bank chief was ordered to go back to the drawing board, Zimbabwe Independent can report.Statutorily, Mangudya was supposed to present the much-awaited policy document at the end of January.On Monday, Mangudya told this paper that he was certain he would present his policy on Thursday (yesterday) as he was awaiting the President's approval.However, highly-placed sources told the Independent that Mangudya wanted to present the MPS on time, but he had not consulted any of the key stakeholders in open display of lack of congruency between Ncube and the RBZ. It is understood that Ncube was not in agreement with some of the policy issues in the MPS, especially those around currency reforms with Mangudya pushing through his 1:1 parity between the bond note and the US unit, a move Ncube feels is no longer sustainable.Sources say Ncube believes the country cannot remain in denial on the real value of the bond note.According to the same sources, government wants to ensure his policy pronouncements do not cause political mayhem as seen in the past few weeks characterised by massive demonstrations.The protests were triggered by government's decision to increase fuel prices by 150% in line with the parallel forex market rates."Mangudya wanted to present the monetary policy without consultations and given the recent upheaval that resulted in deaths of innocent civilians people were no longer sure what he would present and what the response would be. Anyway that was beside the point, the real issue is there appears to be lack of rapport between the RBZ and Ministry of Finance. Even as a governor consultation is key with stakeholders," the source said.Mangudya, among other things, fears that the exchange losses stemming from devaluation would be devastating.The huge exposures that the RBZ has will certainly backfire if the country goes the devaluation way."He has been borrowing in principle. The money would come and get dished out. The borrowed money needs to be repaid. Once he introduces an exchange rate, the exposure would go up in line with the rate. That is why he has been insisting on the 1:1 song," the source said.Mangudya only started consultations with the key stakeholders last week and a number of sources have confirmed that they had received notice to submit their input towards the MPS.Mangudya told a meeting of tobacco growers on February 5, 2019 that the economy would not be re-dollarised. He said increased local demand for full US dollar settlements of wages and investments would not be supported.Mangudya told the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) that the MPS would be presented by mid-month, adding it will spell out how much forex the farmers would receive from the tobacco auction proceeds."Yesterday, Tuesday February 5, 2019 growers associations and the TIMB met with the RBZ Governor. We prepared and presented, on behalf of all farmers, a Position Paper on a proposed settlement of farmers' proceeds for the 2019 marketing season. In response the Governor stated that there will be NO re dollarisation of the economy.Increased local demands for full US dollar settlements of wages, investments, etc by various sectors will not be supported, Export Incentive was no longer attractive and other options will be explored . . . a monetary statement will be announced by the middle of the month and it will contain the settlement of tobacco farmers' sales proceeds," noted TIMB.Another source said the headache was over currency reforms, adding Mangudya could no longer afford to remain silent on the issue."The issue of exposures of the Reserve Bank speaks to the delay. The headache is over currency reforms, I think he can no longer defer the currency issue anymore. He has to say something whether it's devaluation or re dollarisation. Frankly, the only option is devaluation, the status quo no longer works. That is what upset the market the other time and continued denial will further destroy. Reading between the lines, he has acceded to devaluation," a source said.Finance Ministry permanent secretary George Guvamatanga said he would not comment on the issue as all issues to do with monetary policy are the governor's responsibility. "It would not be fair for me or even the minister to comment on the MPS, as all issues to do with it are the mandate of the governor in terms of the law. I cannot say anything," he said. News / National by Staff reporter MASVINGO High Court judge Justice Joseph Mafusire on Wednesday granted MDC organising secretary, Amos Chibaya $1 000 bail in a case in which the opposition legislator is accused of attempting to overthrow government.Chibaya is facing charges of attempting to subvert a constitutionally-elected government after he allegedly urged opposition members to march to State House to remove President Emmerson Mnangagwa. He is denying the charges.Chibaya's lawyer, Reginald Chidawanyika, yesterday confirmed the granting of bail and said the order (bail) was yet to be stamped by Gweru provincial magistrate, Charity Maphosa."He was granted $1 000 bail at the Masvingo High Court by Justice Mafusire and also ordered to report once every month at Gweru Central Police Station,"said Chidawanyika."We are waiting for the High Court order to be stamped by the magistrate (Maphosa) so that we can deposit the bail at the clerk of court and facilitate his release from custody."On January 29, Chibaya was granted $500 bail on allegations of inciting violence, but was immediately rearrested on fresh charges of plotting to overthrow the government. News / National by Staff reporter THE MDC Veterans' Association (VA) has called on all victims of recent army brutalities to come forward and receive medical treatment to avoid long-term health complications.Remarks by the association's national administrator, Godfrey Mubatsa, follow reports that most victims were not reporting and receiving medical treatment, as they feared soldiers could come after them again.In an interview with NewsDay this week, Mubatsa said there was also need to record all victims for the purposes of compensation by government."I am urging you to come and receive treatment with our help. I am told that there are some relatives who are stopping their children from getting medical treatment as they fear to be assaulted again by soldiers. We are not happy about that at all," he said."These relatives are not doing justice to their families because in the long term, they are going to be affected badly if they do not receive treatment. I feel sorry for young men who were assaulted, as some of them will have health challenges going forward."The MDC Veterans' Associations is mainly made up of founding members of the opposition party.Human rights groups have said at least 17 people were killed, while hundreds were injured last month during a military crackdown against people suspected to have taken part in protests against fuel price hikes. News / National by Staff reporter THE suspension of Zanu-PF secretary for youth affairs Pupurai Togarepi, his deputy Lewis Matutu and three others could open floodgates of purging for under-performing officials as the ruling party seeks to re-energise its structures in the face of a deteriorating political situation.The youth national executive passed the decision on Wednesday and the matter was referred to the party's national disciplinary committee to handle it. Other members include Tendai Chirau, who is the secretary for administration, Admire Mahachi and Mercy Mugomo.Although Togarepi told NewsDay yesterday that he had not yet been served with the papers, hence he was still carrying out his duties, sources said his leadership style was not desirable to many at the Zanu-PF headquarters who felt the youth league was not being as vibrant as expected."Personally, I haven't seen the letter. I am one of the people mentioned and I didn't get a copy, for me to comment it will be premature. I am doing my job," Togarepi said while refusing to be drawn into commenting any further.Matutu also refused to comment on the matter. Zanu-PF secretary for administration Obert Mpofu said internal processes have to go on before he comments on the matter."I cannot discuss issues involving internal processes until the matter was processed in a normal way. As it is, it will be difficult for me to comment," Mpofu said.However NewsDay was reliably informed that a section of party leaders at Zanu-PF was unhappy with the direction the party is moving. Sources said the axe might fall on many others in the main wing."We cannot say this was a result of factionalism, but honestly, there are some under-performers who have been under the protection of the highest leadership," the source said."With the way things are going in the country right now, it seems like the party has not deployed its best brains in certain areas. As for the youth, the party was looking for a more vibrant leadership which will stand as the vanguard of the party, especially during the provocation by the opposition."At the top, the leadership was simply demanding more." News / National by Staff reporter United Family International Church (UFIC) leader Emmanuel Makandiwa's wife, Ruth, through her humanitarian organisation Agape Family Care, has donated a container, sanitary pads and groceries worth $8 000 to Childline Zimbabwe.Speaking during the presentation of the donation on Tuesday, Childline Zimbabwe director Stella Motsi said the organisation receives an average of 50 000 calls of distress every week."We cannot stand here and lie to you that we are coping when we are not. It's overwhelming and we need everyone. We are glad the prophetess (Ruth Makandiwa) has come on board. She has held our hand and we are happy to walk with her through the journey of assisting young people," Motsi said.Agape Family Care official, Belinda Kwaramba, who represented Makandiwa, said a brighter future for the nation lies in children."Girls nowadays are more vulnerable than they were before, so we need to protect these children so that we can realise a better Zimbabwe," Kwaramba said.According to Childline Zimbabwe, the container will be used as a drop-in-centre in Gutu and will be made child-friendly so that people can come and report cases of abuse.Many girls miss school because of failure to procure sanitary pads which remain out of reach for many underprivileged children. Agape Family Care is an arm of UFIC whose main aim is to assist widows, orphans, charity organisations, families, hospitals, people with medical needs and others.Childline Zimbabwe offers counselling to abused children and was formed in 1997 by a group of women after they had seen an increase in the number of children on the streets. News / National by Staff reporter Deputy Defence minister, Victor Matemadanda, yesterday said no armoury was broken into during the recent violent protests, contradicting Zimbabwe Defence Forces Chief of Staff Major-General Douglas Nyikayaramba, who claimed that thugs had stolen uniforms and arms.Nyikayaramba's statement on Wednesday follows reports of rampant abuse of civilians by armed soldiers, including rape, torture and the killing of at least 16 people during the January 14 to 16 demonstrations against the high cost of living in the country."We have heard allegations that the army armoury was raided and uniforms taken, and that is scary for us as a people. We want the minister to tell us the magnitude of what happened and where it happened so that we know as a nation that our armoury is in safe hands because at the end we do not want a situation such as that in Somalia where everyone has a gun," MDC Alliance Masvingo Senator Tichinani Mavetera asked Matemadanda in Senate yesterday.In response, Matemadanda said: "I do not have information of an armoury having been broken into. The senator must put his question in writing so that we investigate and see whether any armoury was broken into because armoury is not situated at any special cantonment area."Bulawayo Metropolitan Senator Siphiwe Ncube (MDC Alliance) then asked him to explain if the people that raped, tortured and killed civilians were thugs and not soldiers as reported by State media?"Unfortunately, I do not take information to run my ministry from newspapers. I am not the minister of newspapers or Information, and your question can best be responded to by people from Information (ministry) because they are the one that published it. As Ministry of Defence, we do not work with newspapers, we work using standard procedures," Matemadanda said.Mashonaland East Senator Jane Chifamba also asked Matemadanda to explain why soldiers were deployed at school gates this week, as a result scaring away children."Unlike the initial Lancaster House Constitution, which was written by people who represented political opinion, the Constitution we have now was written by people.It says if police fail to control the security situation in the country, then they can request aid from soldiers. So soldiers do not deploy themselves, they are deployed by the police at schools to remove thugs troubling school children where the police feel they cannot contain the situation," Matemadanda said.He was also asked to explain why the law enforcement agents were failing to arrest the alleged thugs, and why soldiers continued to be deployed when the riotous situation in the country had normalised?"Unfortunately, the soldiers deployed cannot be commanded from Senate. They work under command and not public opinion. To make a decision that the situation has now normalised is done by experts in that field and not ordinary people. That soldiers were deployed at schools is what you read in papers because I have no official communication about that issue and our ministry is not run through newspapers," Matemadanda said.Manicaland Senator Douglas Mwonzora (MDC Alliance) asked Matemadanda to explain why procedure was not followed in the deployment of soldiers in terms of section 214 of the Constitution, which compels the President to come and explain to Parliament the reasons for that deployment?"In the same Constitution on section 213, it talks about deployment of soldiers and the conditions are that it is done by the President. As to whether the Executive is going to address this issue, that remains the prerogative of the President, and Senate can find means and ways to call the President to explain," Matemadanda said.On a question by Midlands Senator Lillian Timveos (MDC Alliance) on what the Defence ministry was going to do to curb the rapes, beatings and torture by rogue soldiers, Matemadanda said if senators can identify the culprits, then they must report them so that they are arrested. News / National by Staff reporter BITTER political rivals, President Emmerson Mnangagwa and MDC's Nelson Chamisa, again failed to meet face to face at a strategic national dialogue meeting convened by the Zimbabwe Council of Churches in Harare yesterday as the two leaders adopted hardline positions to talks.Zimbabwe churches are seeking to broker talks between Mnangagwa and the MDC leader which would lay the basis for the recovery of an economy struggling from shortages of cash, fuel, medicine and some basic commodities including bread.Disputed elections last year deepened the economic malaise, while a security crackdown on post-election protests in August and another ruthless suppression of demonstrations against fuel price increases of 150% last month drew comparisons with the dark days of former President Robert Mugabe's regime.Mnangagwa skipped yesterday's prayer meeting after initially indicating that he would attend. He was instead represented by Defence minister Oppah Muchinguri.Chamisa, who snubbed a meeting called by Mnangagwa at State House on Wednesday to discuss an agenda for talks aimed at tackling Zimbabwe's crisis, attended and told the gathering that any talks without the MDC Alliance, would not solve the political crisis, which he said was at the centre of the current economic meltdown."I can assure you that there can be dialogue by any other party, but that dialogue will not resolve our issues because it's a matter of what is the dispute. The dispute is a matter of the electoral result that was disputed. That electoral result that was disputed was not disputed by some of the political parties that are in agreement with President Mnangagwa. I disagreed with President Mnangagwa," Chamisa said.He told church leaders that he snubbed Wednesday's talks because the convenor was not independent."Some would say, but Chamisa why didn't you go to State House yesterday (Wednesday)? For a good reason, if we have to dialogue, we need an independent, respected and credible mediator between us. The church in this case is an appropriate convener," Chamisa said to applause.The MDC has maintained that unity and political stability will not be resolved unless the issue of Mnangagwa's legitimacy is resolved. Chamisa's dispute of the July 30 2018 electoral results has been backed by the European Union and Commonwealth elections observer reports which said the results were not traceable or verifiable."It should not be difficult for me to sit and meet with President Mnangagwa, and I am saying President not because our dispute has been resolved. He is president of his organisation, I am president of my organisation, so until that issue is resolved it becomes difficult for us to move things forward," Chamisa said."I would have wanted him to be here. I have been ready yesterday, last year, I am ready today, tomorrow, the next hour if there is a room even at this hotel to meet with President Mnangagwa to resolve the issues affecting the people of Zimbabwe, because any minute longer is a life wasted, it's time wasted."He added: "The bishops have acknowledged the source of the problem. The fundamental problem is that we need healing, we need peace, we need unity. We need to have a coming together of people and for that to happen, there has to be President Mnangagwa and myself."Mnangagwa, who was supposed to attend the prayer meeting, was represented by Muchinguri, who delivered a speech on his behalf.The Zanu-PF leader did not acknowledge the role of the church in leading the dialogue, but instead said the church should pray for peace and leadership in the country. Mnangagwa, in his speech, said the turbulence "was only temporary"."Therefore, the starting point and exception is that we must love ourselves, and our God-given country as a united people with a common destiny, government further perceives the church as the light that never wants, that guides our nation towards hope, optimism and a positive expectation," he said.Both Mnangagwa and Chamisa quoted from the same scripture as they concluded their speeches, calling on each other to repent from their wickedness."The healing of our nation rests in the prayers and supplications of the church for 2 Chronicles 2 verse 14 says: 'if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land'," Mnangagwa's speech read.Speaking after the meeting, Information deputy minister Energy Mutodi said Zanu-PF and Mnangagwa did not need the current talks because they won the elections, but had only convened dialogue at the behest of Chamisa and his party."We don't need that dialogue, we have not called for that dialogue in the first place, the opposition MDC is the one that has been petitioning the President to call all political parties for dialogue and this is the call that the President has replied," he said.Zion Christian Church leader Nehemiah Mutendi called on Chamisa and Mnangagwa to put aside their egos and put the nation forward.He said they should take a leaf from Mugabe and the late MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai who despite massive differences met and found a solution following a disputed 2008 poll, culminating in the formation of a unity government.Meanwhile, political leaders who attended Wednesday's meeting of presidential candidates who ran in the July 30 harmonised elections last year reportedly left the preparatory meeting more confused than they arrived with no binding decisions having been made.Political leaders including Daniel Shumba, Divine Mhambi Hove of National Alliance of Patriotic and Democratic Republicans said the meeting was a shambles, did not have an agenda and left more questions unanswered and with a way forward generally unclear.Shumba, a former Mnangagwa close ally and ex-Zanu-PF parliamentarian, had no kind words for the meeting, saying he had no confidence in what had appeared to be a door into closing political instability in the country."A disappointingly unstructured discussion, which had no agenda nor outline. The moderator, Retired Justice Selo Nare (National Healing and Reconciliation Commission chairperson) was out of his depth as he failed to grasp issues and was not in control," Shumba said."I have never seen so many cheerleaders with the exception of Nkosana Moyo, Noah Manyika and myself who spoke to the issues well, the issues which include human rights violations, the role of the military in civilian life and the electoral process. In short, I have no confidence in the process."Hove said the meeting was a platform for opposition leaders who cheered on the government with the exception of Shumba and Moyo."I must say Thokozani Khupe, Lovemore Madhuku were the first speakers on the panel and they came in with a tone of really forging forward with dialogue," he said."Then came Shumba with strong words, talking about dissatisfaction and how people had to be genuine if talks are to work and how the army is ravaging the community."In the back and forth that characterised the meeting, Hove said there was agreement for need to dialogue, but the objectives and targets of what needed to be discussed remained elusive.Build Zimbabwe Alliance leader Noah Manyika said the meeting was successful only in the sense that he was able to tell Mnangagwa directly what he thinks.Mutodi said the talks were mainly to discuss the economic fortunes of the country, how sanctions can be dealt with and how Zimbabwe can get back on its feet.He added that the Zanu-PF government will not tolerate any talks about the legitimacy of Mnangagwa's victory nor would they seek to revisit an issue closed by the ruling of the Constitutional Court."We are not going to have negotiations to determine the outcome of the elections. We are not going to have negotiations to determine who is legitimate and who is not legitimate, the issue of legitimacy has been solved by the people through the ballot," he said. News / National by Staff reporter A 20-year-old Zaka man allegedly fatally struck his village head and uncle with an axe for summoning him to his traditional court to censure him for attempting to rape his brother's wife. The brother was away in South Africa.Maxwell Manyiwa of Chidembo Village, under Chief Nhema allegedly attacked Naison Chidembo (65) of the same village twice on the head with an axe on Tuesday and he died on the spot.Manyiwa also threatened to strike the village head's younger brother. He appeared before Zaka magistrate Mrs Gladys Nago yesterday on murder charges. He was not asked to plead and was remanded in custody to February 9 for indictment to trial at the High Court.For the State, Mr Innocent Mudzingwa alleged that Manyiwa struck Chidembo with an axe on the head, killing him instantly. Manyiwa was accused by Chidembo of trying to rape his brother's wife the previous day."On Tuesday at around 9am, Manyiwa who lives with an unnamed brother's wife was brought before a traditional court, presided over by the now deceased Chidembo, to answer charges of attempted rape," said Mr Mudzingwa.The court heard that Chidembo had called Manyiwa, who is also his nephew, and his brother's wife, to counsel them following the allegations of attempted rape.Mr Mudzingwa told the court that Manyiwa, who seemed not interested in discussing the matter, could have been incensed by Chidembo's efforts to reprimand him. News / National by Staff reporter Finance and Economic Development Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube yesterday held "very open" conversations with a team from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which is in the country to discuss a range of issues including the country's debt and arrears clearance plan.Prof Ncube said this in interview on the sidelines of his presentation to students of the National Defence Course, Intake 7 of 2018, at the Zimbabwe National Defence University in Mazowe.The IMF had its $107,9 million arrears paid in full in October 2016, but the pari-passu principle dictates that one should manage two or more assets, securities, creditors or obligations equally without preference. Pari-passu is a Latin phrase that means "equal footing".This means despite being paid in full, the IMF remains an interested party until all other creditors have been paid, hence the visit to Harare. Prof Ncube said the IMF team is visiting Zimbabwe this week for engagements.". . . the arrears clearance road map involves closer working relationships with the IMF, World Bank and the African Development Bank," said Prof Ncube."As I speak, I just met them (IMF officials) before I came to speak here at the Defence College and we have been very open, very transparent, very constructive in our conversations about our reform agenda (and) where the economy is headed."All that is part of the arrears clearance road map, you cannot get to the road map without talking to the three institutions, so arrears clearance, is part of the road map."Prof Ncube said Zimbabwe is working closely with the World Bank, IMF and the AfDB. A team from the World Bank has already visited Harare for engagements relating to the arrears clearance plan and AfDB officials are expected in March, as government deepens the re-engagement process.Zimbabwe's arrears to the AfDB are $610 million, over $1,16 billion to the World Bank and $212 million to the European Investment Bank. But Prof Ncube believes the country is "on course" in terms of clearing its arrears. Government plans to clear the arrears though a "bridging finance" which is set to be obtained from the creditors.Talks between Government and the creditors regarding the bridging finance are already in motion and are expected to be concluded in a year."We just need to work harder to make sure that we access the bridging resources for that."In terms of the bridging resources themselves, of course we are having conversations with the creditors themselves because that is where we can get the cheapest funding. "The cheapest funding you can ever get is from themselves (the World Bank, IMF and African Development Bank) and there are mechanisms through which this can be done and we are working on that; we are having a conversation on that," said Prof Ncube.Zimbabwe is battling to clear the arrears as it is a condition precedent to unlocking fresh funds to recapitalise and provide working capital to productive sectors. The productive sectors of the economy are choking due to failure to obtain cheap funds in almost two decades.Prof Ncube said creditors wanted to see credible economic reforms before listening to Harare's arrears clearance plan. Government has since launched an economic blueprint, the Transitional Stabilisation Programme (TSP), which speaks to a number of plans the country has put in place to transform the economy.Local businesspeople and experts, together with international lenders, have described the TSP as a "credible document". Prof Ncube said focus was now on implementing it, which is being done "through the Budget" and "resource allocation". The upper house of Parliament passed the Budget on January 2019 and reportedly awaits presidential assent. News / National by Staff reporter MDCAlliance leader Mr Nelson Chamisa yesterday tacitly confessed to causing the suffering of the people in the country at present, during a prayer meeting in Harare.Mr Chamisa was part of political, church, civil society leaders who attended the National Leaders Breakfast Prayer Meeting held at a city hotel.The meeting was organised by the Zimbabwe Council of Churches. Mr Chamisa said the challenges facing the country could not be solved without repentance."There is no reconciliation and dialogue which can ever take place if there is no confession," he said."I realise that President Mnangagwa is not here, I would have wanted to say what I want to say while he is around, but I will say my piece," he said.Mr Chamisa wanted President Mnagagwa to attend yesterday's meeting, yet he snubbed his invitation to State House on Wednesday for a dialogue.About 21 presidential candidates in last year's harmonised elections accepted President Mnagagwa's invitation.Mr Chamisa, who saluted President Mnangagwa, said the meeting yesterday was an important platform to speak his mind."We, the politicians are the source of agonies in our country," he said. "I am ready right now to meet President Mnangagwa so that we can dialogue and solve the crisis this country is facing."There can never be a confession without revelation, and there can never be revelation without humility, so I must confess that as politicians we are the source of the agonies of our land." Mr Chamisa said as political leaders there was need for them to repent from their wicked ways."As a people we have not reached the stage of humility. It should not be difficult for me to see (President) Mnangagwa and we dialogue."MDC-Alliance and its affiliate non-governmental organisations were to blame for the recent violent protests that saw the destruction of property, looting of shops, arson and barricading of roads.Several people were killed including a police officer. Analysts said protests had a hidden political agenda yet their organisers were hiding behind fuel hikes and genuine labour issues which were being pursued by civil servants. News / National by Staff reporter Painful shocks from ongoing economic reforms will substantially subside after six months, as the period prior coincides with the implementation of most interventions Government is instituting to stabilise the economy, Finance and Economic Development Minister Mthuli Ncube has said.Government has been criticised over some of its painful but necessary economic reforms, part of which are austerity measures being implemented through the 2019 National Budget.Minister Ncube yesterday said that Zimbabwe would inevitably experience significant economic turbulence, as the Government rolls out interventions to stabilise the economy.Addressing students of the National Defence Course-Intake 7 of 2018 at the Zimbabwe National Defence University in Mazowe, Minister Ncube said there will be increased turbulence from ongoing reforms over the next six to eight months."Reforms are continuing, but what happens is that over the next six months we are carrying out more reforms and will achieve quite a bit, so obviously after six months then we have less reforms and towards end of year, even less reforms."So we are doing more now and less as we go forward, but it does not mean reforms are finished we will still carry out more, for instance privatisation takes a while so it always carries on, but certainly on the macro-economic front, we should have made quite a bit of progress," he said.However, Minister Ncube said that some of Government's interventions had started bearing fruit given that the State's finances were now "clearly in a better position".Since November 2018, Government has consistently achieved surpluses on its income and expenditure accounts while Treasury is beginning to see surpluses on the current account.Government received a lot of stick from critics who labelled it insensitive to the plight of hard- pressed citizens when it introduced the intermediated money transfer tax to capture the informal sector, which had not been paying taxes.Recently, the opposition MDC Alliance and its sympathisers - the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) and civic society, - coalesced around high fuel prices after Government adjusted the prices to stem arbitrage opportunities, staging a violent and bloody mass stayaway.A directive by the Reserve Bank last year for banks to separate Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) accounts and foreign currency accounts (FCA) was also misinterpreted by the market, resulting in exchange rate spikes on the black market.Illegal currency trading then ignited a series of price spirals, with prices of goods and services now tracking parallel market exchange rates for foreign currency, especially the US dollar.Minister Ncube said this country may not be able to achieve prosperity without paying the price through hard and painful measures, but necessary economic interventions to be implemented come over the next few months to a year. He said that reform interventions will be guided by Transitional Stabilisation Programme (October 2018-December 2020) launched in October 2018, which provides an initial stepping stone towards realising Vision 2030.President Mnangagwa has pronounced his Vision 2030, which entails transforming Zimbabwe into an upper middle income economy with a per capita income of US$3 500 per year.The TSP is a precursor to two upcoming Five-Year National Development Plans, covering the periods 2021-2025 and 2026-2030 respectively.The overarching policy thrust of the TSP is to stabilise the macro-economy and the financial sector through policy and institutional reforms, geared towards laying a foundation for Triple S Growth - Strong, Sustained and Shared. Minister Ncube said the 2019 National Budget, which he themed "Austerity for Prosperity" provided the initial macro-fiscal financial framework for the implementation of the TSP..The 2019 Budget projected a 3,1 percent growth this year, slightly slower than last year's projected 4 percent. Economic growth this year is expected to be negatively affected by the late onset of the rains.Specific interventions in the 2019 Budget centre around dealing with fiscal indiscipline, removal of pricing and policy distortions, improving foreign currency generation and establishing efficient market- based mechanisms for allocation.Further, the Budget entails jobs creation, particularly for the youth, promotion of productivity, efficient public service delivery, parastatal reforms, re-engagement and investment promotion, promotion of good governance; and fighting corruption, among others. News / National by Staff reporter Zimbabwe is on course to clear obligations to international financial institutions (IFIs), with the Government already in talks with creditors over bridging finance to settle the debts, Finance and Economic Development Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube has said.Prof Ncube said this in an interview on the sidelines of his presentation to students of Defence Course Intake 7 of 2018, at the Zimbabwe National Defence University in Mazowe.He said the arrears clearance plan was tied to economic reforms, which are anchoring President Mnangagwa's administration as he seeks to lead Zimbabwe towards attaining Upper Middle Income status by 2030."We just need to work harder to make sure that we access the bridging resources for that," said Prof Ncube."In terms of the bridging resources themselves, of course we are having conversations with the creditors themselves because that is where we can get the cheapest funding."The cheapest funding you can ever get is from themselves (the World Bank, IMF and African Development Bank) and there are mechanisms through which this can be done and we are working on that; we are having a conversation on that."Talks for bridging finance can take up to a year, said Prof Ncube, which requires that in the interim, the country should stick to other means of survival. Zimbabwe's arrears to the African Development Bank (AfDB) are $610 million, over $1,16 billion to the World Bank and $212 million to the European Investment Bank.The arrears have to be settled with all the multilateral financial institutions for Zimbabwe to start accessing funds from them. Prof Ncube said the first step to solving the arrears issue was economic reforms, which started off with the crafting and launching of the Transitional Stabilisation Programme (TSP).The TSP has been widely accepted by the creditors and foreign governments as a "credible document".Prof Ncube said the issue now was the implementation of the TSP, "and the first test is really through the Budget, that is your implementation instrument and also resource allocation"."The Budget was passed by Senate on the 29th (of January) so that process is complete. We are now going into the implementation phase for the next few months and that's when we will show the track record in walking the talk on our economic reform agenda."I must say that from where we sit as Government (and) as Treasury, the path is still clear, we are carrying on with the reform agenda because if you think about it, what's beginning to happen is that we are beginning to really experience some of the pain without completing the reform agenda."So it is important to complete (the reforms) so that the pain is then worth the investment."Prof Ncube said they were working closer with the World Bank, IMF and the AfDB. A team from the World Bank has already visited Harare while an IMF team is currently in the country. Officials from the AfDB are expected in March to speak about the arrears clearance plan.". . . in terms of interacting with the institutions, the arrears clearance road map involves closer working relationships with the IMF, World Bank and the African Development Bank."As I speak, this week they (IMF team) are visiting Zimbabwe, I just met them before I came to speak here, at the (National) Defence College (University) and we have been very open, very transparent, very constructive in our conversations about our reform agenda (and) where the economy is headed."All that is part of the arrears clearance road map, you cannot get to the road map without talking to the three institutions, so arrears clearance, is part of the road map." Phase three of the arrears clearance will see conversations being deepened with the multilateral lenders.Said Prof Ncube: "So my view is that we are on track. Of course, it doesn't mean that any turbulence we face in the country, does not tamper with our plan."When you are piloting an aircraft, when you are going through turbulence you must work harder to keep on course because sometimes it feels like, but you need to keep focus on the destination, and they (creditors) are very supportive of us, in getting to that destination."Equally, those that we owe money are equally supportive, so we are on course." He emphasised that it was imperative that Government stayed on course regards the reform agenda as it was a "package", together with the arrears clearance plan.Zimbabwe has failed to access a lot of credit lines because of failure to settle its arrears with the World Bank. Prof Ncube said each time local banks try to borrow; they fail to get money directly unless they got a Government guarantee.Local bank's inability to obtain lines of credit directly limits the quantum of funds to support the productive sector. News / National by Staff reporter UNITED Kingdom-based Zimbabwean socialite, Olinda Chapel has blasted Acie Lumumba for not shaving his privates and demanded that he stops trolling her.Olinda took to her Instagram and Facebook pages slamming the former Zanu-PF youth leader for being unkempt, and disclosing that that was why she could not have a romantic relationship with him.This comes after William Mutumanje, better known as Acie Lumumba, mocked her body structure saying her stomach looked like she had swallowed husband, Tytan."Can someone please tell ACIE LUMUMBA kuti sha it's not my fault I wasn't into you."Ndoda varume vanotamba ne Veet hair remover," she fumed.According to Olinda, Lumumba has been trolling her since she turned down his love proposal years ago in a clear sign that he was bitter over the rejection."Two years later you are still trolling me. Clearly you don't do well with rejection."You now sound like those Nigerian guys vanoti vakakunyenga and you say no, they call you a useless goat."STOP TROLLING ME for my attention. Respect your wife!"Fans of the socialite added fuel to the fire, tagging Lumumba on Olinda's post to which he responded with a round of applause emojis.After divorcing hip-hop rapper, Stunner in 2017, Olinda got married to yet another artiste, Tytan.The couple is expecting their first child together. News / National by Mandla Ndlovu George Charamba has aligned himself with the hawks in ZANU PF, so you know. President Emmerson Mnangagwa is largely isolated right now within the party, which sadly, also has its claws deep within the 2nd and 3rd tier of command within the armed forces. Here's how it is developing: Mnangagwa's push to reposition of ZANU PF (engagement with the West, opening of democratic space etc) is now supported only by Chiwenga, surprisingly. The hawks have ringleaders: Chinamasa, Obert Mpofu. Their narrative is that nothing has changed, the West still wants ZANU PF out of power (regime change), any ground given by Mnagagwa, according to the hawks, will be seen as a retreat by the West. They'll keep pushing ZANU back until it falls off the cliff. Chiwenga's reason for silence in all this is for the following reason: he believes the hawks have ZANU PF firmly in their claws. He intends to take over from Mnagagwa and be next President of Zimbabwe. He will need the hawks in ZANU to elect him president of the party first. Charamba's hawkishness is actually deeply ideological. He subscribes to the Mugabe school of thought: sovereignty, anti-west etc. The Old Guard hawks at ZANU HQ, though have a different objection: Their objection is because they're convinced reforms by any ZANU PF government will be used to topple it and obliterate ZANU PF, what Prof Jonathan Moyo referred to as "legislating ourselves out of power." ED was told at Politburo yesterday "you could be Zimbabwe's Gorbachev". Charamba is a serious hawk. He has joined the ranks that say no moves have been made by the West in response to what ED has done so far (observers at elections and other reforms), which strengthens their case that the West wants to use ED to destroy ZANU PF. It's what stalling action on the military guys ED wants to punish. But, it appears after Politburo yesterday, ED decided to go for broke: you will see some action being taken before the end of this month, which will throw all of us, opposition and ZANU off balance for a while. Whistleblower Prisca Mutema has alleged that President Emmerson Mnangagwa has been isolated by his colleagues in the Politiburo due to his reformist stance. She claims that a strong group of hardliners including Patrick Chinamasa, Obert Mpofu and George Charamba are resistance to change because they believe that the West is still on a regime change agenda.Mutema further President Mnangagwa has plans up his sleeve to deal with the military renegades who committed atrocities against citizens.Read her full statement below: The tragedy at Hoerskool Driehoek left South Africa shaken, and many students and teachers mourn the loss of young lives along with their families. Mbhureni primary school observed a moment of silence in honour of the learners, and it was a beautiful thing to witness. PAY ATTENTION: Click See First under the Following tab to see Briefly.co.za News on your News Feed! Mbhureni primary school in Limpopo has nothing to do with Hoerskool Driehoek, but that did not stop the teachers and learners from observing a moment of silence for the lives that were lost just over a week ago. A walkway collapsed and claimed 4 young lives, as well as injuring about 21 learners. It was a moment that shook South Africa. This touching act by Mbhureni primary showed us that South Africans are awesome and that Ubuntu is still very real and in our blood. PAY ATTENTION: Save mobile data with FreeBasics: Briefly is now available on the app Hennie Miller, a Facebook user fond of sharing positive news on social media, shared the story: This is Mbhureni primary school in Limpopo, in Giyani,in the Man'ombe circuit, this morning, during the morning assembly, the principal Mrs Rikhotso SM, led the school to observe a moment of silence, in the honor of the Driehoek learners, who died when the walkway collapsed, The school has sent a message to those black racists that we are a Rain Bow nation, One South Africa for all.The pain and the misfortune of my neighbors are also my concern. Briefly.co.za gathered that the South Africans who saw the social media responded by saying the school's moment of silence made them see the beautiful in South Africa again: Chrystal Pixel - Thank you for your thoughtfulness Jae Fredericks - This gives me hope that we truly are the Rainbow nation! Jenny Mees - What a wonderful gesture that teaches all the learners a lovely life lesson to feel empathy for others. Elsie Cook - Thank you mam.... it is our actions that teach our children love and respect for one another .... Monique Cilliers - Your kindness will not go unnoticed - may you are yours be blesses. Thank you Iris Allen - This proves my point that most South Africans are nice people. So we must give the unpleasant extremists less attention. Vanessa Gillespie Wortmann - Dear Principal Mam. You should be our minister of education. READ ALSO: Video reveals how Prophet Bushiri heals woman: It's a miracle! Mbhureni primary school (Image Source: Facebook/Positive Relationships in SA) Source: Facebook Enjoyed reading our story? Download BRIEFLY's news app on Google Play now and stay up-to-date with major South African news! Source: Briefly.co.za Living Gospel Equality Now: Loving in the Heart of God: Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests . , , , , . 30 , , . , . , " " 23- "... So Canada is stepping up. During the worst of the Syrian refugee crisis, President Barack Obama admitted just 12,000 Syrians and provoked a furious backlash, including Trumps Muslim ban. Canada accepted 40,000 Syrians, with Trudeau appearing at the airport to hand out winter coats to these new Canadians. All around the world, doors to refugees were clanging shut. But Canadians were so eager to sponsor Syrians that organizations were clamoring for more of them. Trump gets headlines with his periodic threats to invade Venezuela to topple President Nicolas Maduro, but Canada has been quietly working since 2017 to help organize the Lima Group of 14 nations pushing for democracy in Venezuela. When Canada recognized the opposition leader Juan Guaido as interim president, he won credibility because nobody sees Ottawa as an imperialist conspirator. Canada has spoken up about the mass detention of about 1 million Muslims in the Xinjiang region of China even as Muslim countries have mostly kept mum, and it detained a Chinese executive at the request of the American government. China retaliated by arresting Canadians and sentencing one to death, but Canada is sticking to its guns even as Trump undercut Canada by suggesting that the case against the executive might be dropped for political reasons. Wednesday, DiLorenzo said having more people participating in the nominations helps with the hiring process to find the right person for the deans position. The provost said his office has already received a lot of nominations. DiLorenzo is also pushing self-nominations for the role. We should all be asking ourselves How can I help? What can I do?, he said, noting that even if faculty and staff arent interested in being dean there are other ways for them to help the law school thrive. People inside and outside the law school expressed mixed feelings about the external search concluding. Logan Caldwell, a first-year law student, said there are pros and cons to having an external search. If you do a national search, the idea is you bring in somebody with a different kind of viewpoint and somebody that has done things a different way in a different part of the country, he said. There are benefits to an internal search, especially in a smaller state like North Dakota, which only has one law school that produces most of the states lawyers, Caldwell said. Just because they are from the school doesnt mean that they dont know other ways to do things, he said. Concerns UND Student Body President Erik Hanson said he wants schools across the state to be open to any sort of speech. Universities really are laboratories where we get to hear mixed viewpoints, and thats really what I think coming to a university is all about, he said. However, Hanson said the UND Student Senate is concerned with how some of the language in the bill would play out in practice. He said UND hasnt been in a situation other campuses across the country have had when it comes to controversial speakers on campus. Regardless of which side its on, regardless of what theyre saying, we want to make sure that anybody who wants to speak and is brought here by a student organization can find a place to do it, he said. But we want to do it in a safe setting, too. We want to make sure all students feel included on campus. Schools would not be able to restrict students free speech to a particular area of campus -- areas that are sometimes known as free speech zones under the law. The bill also would bar an institution from denying student activity fee funding to a student organization based on the viewpoints the organization advocates. More legwork The path looked promising, but Drees journey wasnt quite over. He wanted to get in touch with Carol to confirm she was, in fact, his mother. Through some more research, Drees found out Carol had a younger sister, Anita. He couldnt find a working phone number for Anita, but he tried the next best thing: Facebook. In his message, Drees told Anita he was doing some genealogy research and had some questions. The next day, she responded and asked what those questions were. Drees asked Anita what her father did for a living in the 60s. Anita said her father managed the meat department for SuperValu in Bismarck. I thought, well, I know I have the right person, said Drees. So he asked Anita if she could give him contact information for Carol. Anitas first response was no. There was brief pause in their communication after that, and Drees worried he had given too much information or scared her off. Finally, Anita responded and gave Drees a cell phone number for Carol. He called the number to no avail. He even tried to send a text and received no response. In the case of a concentrated animal feeding operation, or CAFO, a North Dakota pollution discharge elimination system permit is required, while an animal feeding operation, or AFO, does not need one, said Randal Coon, who testified against the bill and has a farm near Buffalo in rural Cass County where a large swine factory farm has been proposed. 'Equal playing field' Once an animal feeding operation is given a permit, it has up to five years to build the factory farm, under a timeline provided by the bill. Our department fully supports this bill but recognize that this may not go far enough to provide our agriculture producers an equal playing field with our neighboring states, Deputy Agriculture Commissioner Tom Bodine said. The bill creates a certainty for those applying to the Health Department to permit an animal feeding operation that the zoning rules in place at the time of the permit submission will not be allowed to change once the process has started, he said. Dave Glatt, chief of the states environmental health section, also supports the bill, which he said in written testimony will provide greater clarity. Children younger than 10 need a kind of accountability different than the criminal justice system, said Larson, who was a youth worker for 23 years in the Bismarck Police Youth Bureau until 2013. "When we're talking about some legal consequences, especially with kids that end up going to juvenile court over it, it does seem to me that 10 is going to be a much more logical number to use for that age of accountability than 7," Larson said. Rep. Kim Koppelman, R-West Fargo, chairs the House Judiciary Committee which first heard the bill. "We're trying to make sure we strike the right balance when it comes to consequences for actions and when it comes to the opportunity for one to turn his or her life around," Koppelman said. Larson, who helped author the National Conference of State Legislatures 2018 report on "Principles of Effective Juvenile Justice Policy," said national practices are good to consider, but not in all circumstances. "We are not New York or San Francisco," Larson said. "We're not the way some other communities are, and we can maintain our own Midwest integrity in that process. It's instructive to see what's going on nationally, but it's also good to keep remembering who we are." Emotional issue Treason is an ugly word. But it's being used, on occasion, in response to actions and comments from members of this administration. Fresh out of the longest shutdown in history, the president is dangling the possibility of yet another if he doesn't get his way on a "wall." I think the Senate has had about enough and may decide to override if he refuses to sign whatever the bipartisan committee presents to him. He ordered his treasury secretary to lift sanctions on a Russian oligarch, and the Senate lost the ability to stop him by just two votes. Just a day after the annual intelligence briefing in the Senate an event that was televised he sat in the Oval Office telling bald-faced lies to reporters regarding the public testimony of his top intelligence chiefs. We all heard what they had to say regarding North Korea, Iran and Isis. Yet he insisted that he had "spoken to them, and they said their testimony was taken out of context and misreported and was fake news! He insists that he is right (this from a man who can't pay attention long enough to sit through intelligence briefings) and they are wrong. This gaslighting is just the latest thing in this wannabe dictator's history of untrue statements and bad policy decisions. The mean, cruel, ill-begotten, judgmental stance to penalize our most needy Montanans by requiring drug testing and employment for people to get insurance should not be a part of much-needed health care coverage. Sen. Scott Sales' chauvinistic statement, get a good job and buy insurance begs the question: Who is going to do the full-time jobs required to keep our communities running that do not pay enough? How can people get jobs paying $75,000 or more without a high level of education which many cannot afford? Repeating and supporting this arrogant, narrow-minded attitude is out of touch with reality. It is easy to be judgmental. Walk a mile in someone elses shoes. Montanans who suffer from PTSD or are physically handicapped and cannot work are among those who should not be punished as they seek medical care. People may be using medical marijuana to control their pain, but they will not be able to work or pass a drug test. People who have been injured and are trying to get back to work comprise another group which will be penalized by this irresponsible, punitive legislation. Legislators are elected not to figure out who they can hurt, but who they can help be productive. Punitive legislation is a form of intolerance and hate. Please encourage legislators to keep Medicaid requirements as they are. There seems to be some double-standard thinking going on, mainly among liberal Democrats, when it comes to border walls. President Donald Trump's proposed wall is horrible, according to Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer and most of their fans. But where is their consternation when it comes to Israel's wall? Now there probably are a few liberal Dems somewhere who have criticized Israel's wall. In general, though, that border wall is fine with them. Let Israelis build a wall to keep out Arabs, but for America to build a wall to keep out Hispanics is just so horribly racist. The agency charged with ensuring justice now will not talk about how justice has been taken away from most alleged victims. The agency will tell you it's silenced by federal rules about pending cases. And yet it refuses to talk about the past cases or whether they're related to the current one. It refuses to acknowledge that by not completing its job, it helped ensure Jensen could not be prosecuted by state authorities because of the statute of limitations. Justice demands accountability and the FBI is failing. It is equally vexing that the state had the opportunity to do the same. At least the Montana Department of Justice can confirm that it, too, was investigating Jensen, presumably because of some of his conduct. Victims said they were visited by state and federal investigators, a fact that The Gazette has corroborated. However, a letter obtained through a public documents request shows that assistant attorney general John P. Connor, Jr., told criminal investigator Gary Hatfield to close the file on the state's case because there wasn't enough evidence. The Gazette followed up with the Montana Department of Justice to ask what had changed; we asked: Why wasn't there enough evidence in 2003, but suddenly there is enough in 2019? The department declined to answer those questions. Even though it was not on the agenda, the weather and road conditions certainly were topics of discussion when the Faribault County Commissioners met for their regular meeting on Feb. 5. Cold temperatures and windy conditions have combined to make it difficult to remove the ice from the road, according to Mark Daly, the public works director. Daly explained the road salt is only effective when the temperature stays above 15 degrees. He also explained windy conditions have blown the sand the county applies off the road. Sunshine and some sustained warmer temperatures would help more than anything to clear the ice off the roads, Daly added. Moving on from the road discussion, the board took up the task of making a decision on which brand of skid-steer loader to purchase for the public works department. Two different models are in the final running. One is a CAT 289D and the other is a Bobcat T650. Daly mentioned the public works employees strongly favor the CAT model because of the experience they have had with a CAT skid-steer loader already owned by the county. The service that CAT provides is outstanding, Daly said. The Bobcat model is approximately $8,000 less than the CAT model. No action was taken by the board but they requested some public works employees attend the next meeting on Feb. 19 so the commissioners can hear their input before making a decision. Chairman Bill Groskreutz reported on the money which the Minnesota Valley Action Council (MVAC) spent in Faribault County last year. There were 19 homes which were weatherized at a cost of $72,590. Under the energy assistance program, 851 households received energy assistance which totaled $546,162. In addition, there were 584 households receiving crisis payments totaling $203,981. Finally, 46 households received repairs which cost $64,100 making the total amount of money distributed through the energy assistance program $814,243. Dawn Fellows, central services director, presented a resolution to the board which would increase the Faribault County Attorney rate to Faribault/Martin County Human Services to $100 per hour for child support matters, data practices requests, maltreatment determination appeals, estate recovery or other matters deemed necessary. Although the rates can vary around the state, Fellows explained the $100 figure would bring the county more in line with the amount which most counties use. Fellows also reported the last of the union contracts has been signed. The final contract to be finished, which was with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), was signed on Jan. 28 retroactive to Jan. 1. Jenna Schmidtke, the veterans services officer, updated the board on two potential upcoming purchases. The veterans services office is in need of a different copier and would like to explore the option of purchasing rather than leasing a machine. Because of security issues, many documents need to be faxed instead of being sent over the Internet, so a machine which has fax capabilities is important. After reviewing some of the figures associated with both options (purchasing vs. leasing), the board directed Schmidtke to pursue the purchase option. The subject of the transport vehicle for veterans also was addressed. Schmidtke related the current vehicle is old and has become unreliable and difficult to fix because of the Mercedes engine in the vehicle. Schmidtke has done some preliminary work investigating possible replacement vehicles and the board gave their blessing for her to continue to research possible alternatives. In other business: The board approved the request of Barbara Shimmon, an accountant in the public works department, to attend a 1-day advanced Microsoft Excel class in Mankato. A request for Darren Esser, an accountant for the county, to attend a 2-day Minnesota Association of County Auditor, Treasurers and Finance Officers regional meeting in Morton was approved by the board. The board also approved a request by Andrew Noll, who is a jailer for the county, to attend a 4-day Use of Force Instructor training in Andover. The couple, who live in Three Forks, came to Billings after Gabbard had a stroke on Jan. 3 and was flown to town. After her month-long hospital stay, she was transferred to hospice care two weeks ago. Wiese and Gabbard met in 1984, when they both lived in Belgrade. Theyve been together ever since, spending the past 25 years in Three Forks. Carolyn Gabbard is the mother of three sets of twins, plus one other child, and David Wiese has four children of his own. Before the ceremony, Wiese, his hand resting on her shoulder, said from the start, I loved her looks, her kindness. I should have done this 35 years ago, but its better late than never, he said, smiling. Gabbard, asked her reaction when Wiese popped the question, she said she was surprised. About time, she quipped, and everybody listening laughed. Shes the best thing that ever happened to me, and shes made me what I am today, and I thank her for that, Wiese said. I love her dearly. He said he loves waiting on her and bringing her coffee in the morning. Over the last three years as Gabbard experienced health issues, Wiese said it had been his pleasure to take care of her. Dennis Cook , broker/owner at Crown Realty, was recently sworn in to the board of the Montana Association of Realtors as a state director for a three-year term. Cook has served as president on the Billings Association of Realtors and the Montana Association of Realtors. He was recently appointed to the National Association of Realtors Taxation Committee and was appointed to serve on a 15-member working group for taxation to find ways to enhance home ownership. Cook also serves on the Billings City/County Planning Board and is treasurer of the Billings Association of Realtors. Whiskey on ice in a cut glass: Above. photo by Stan Deatherage Click image to expand. In truth, it's well past time lawmakers take substantive steps toward rewriting or eliminating much of the arcane laws governing alcohol, painfully documented in N.C. General Statute 18b.It runs nearly 150 pages and almost 70,000 words. So, let's open that cracked and weathered book.This column will have, to put things mildly, its detractors, some of whom have valid concerns and make salient points.But continuing to follow laws created just after cutting the lights on the great mistake that was Prohibition is not only nonsensical but also grinds against our inherent spirit of progress and innovation so proudly touted by the people who govern us.North Carolina is a great place to work, live, do business. To worship, to study, and to raise a family. For myriad reasons, chief among them an indelible spirit to create and to prosper.Unless, in the minds of some, that spirit of innovation and invention is touched by alcohol, especially distilled spirits. A mere mention of making the state's broken alcohol control system more friendly to producers and consumers alike leads some lawmakers to scowl and others to turn and all but scurry for shelter.They have their reasons. Politics play no small role, of course. North Carolina has 168 local alcohol-control boards, and county commissioners and town leaders will resist relinquishing their power to appoint members, and they will throw a collective fit over the possibility of losing money generated by liquor sales, to which they've become so accustomed to collecting and distributing.Then there's the primal aspect of control, an old and frayed belief a state monopoly over spirits effectively inhibits over-consumption and dangerous consequences.And, to be fair, some small distillers have learned to use the state-controlled system to their advantage and have prospered, in part at least, because of it. They'll resist change, too.Yet not all lawmakers are running from the issue. Rather, they, like me, have - despite the many obstacles they'll be sure to face - too have said, Enough is truly enough.Look around, they'll say. Virginia recently reformed its laws to better help local distillers, as well as tourists. Kentucky, as Carolina Journal reported this week, has, through legislation, become a hotspot for tourists thirsty for bourbon."Kentucky bourbon now pours $8.6 billion each year into the state's economy, generates more than 20,100 good-paying jobs with an annual payroll topping $1 billion, provides $235 million in local and state tax revenue, and is in the middle of a $2.3 billion building boom," a news release from the Kentucky Distillers Association.In 2005, North Carolina had one distillery. Now it has almost 60. This, despite the archaic rules.For the past 10 years or so the John Locke Foundation has worked to reform the state's 80-year-old rules. And it will continue to do so.My friend and colleague Jon Sanders offers a clear and consistent take on the issue, and his research is vital in guiding lawmakers - and North Carolina consumers - through a morass of state alcohol rules, codes, and statutes.An argument over the evils of alcohol, though sometimes valid, shouldn't serve as one point of debate on what is a complex issue transcending the idea of whether people should buy liquor - whether to drink it or to collect it.The argument, rather, is about getting government out of people's way. It's about giving entrepreneurs the freedom to honor tradition, to work on perfecting their crafts, to identify markets and to prosper from them. To give consumers more freedom to choose where to buy, and giving them more choice regarding what to buy.Again, the debate among lawmakers over reforming the N.C. Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission is and will be composed of many points. Whether government should continue playing a role in deciding if consenting adults should even consume alcohol shouldn't be among them. These arguments are virtual red herrings, which crowd out more moderate voices and eventually derail pragmatic discussion.It's not wrong to voice religious objections, or to refer to experience as a reason to oppose the sale and consumption of distilled spirits. But, and I'll say it again, this isn't a debate about alcohol.It's about North Carolina, which, in regard to the way it stubbornly maintains a stranglehold on liquor, is quickly losing touch with its neighbors, who apparently better see the value in promoting tourism and in helping ensure their small businesses are given the means to prosper and to grow.Yes, let's focus on programs and ways to help people who have problems with alcohol. Let's educate people about the dangers of binge drinking. And, of course, let's protect our children from the dangers of underage drinking.Thing is, Prohibition - which created far more problems than it solved - ended in North Carolina some 80 years ago. We must stop trying to bring it back, and we should cut loose a system of control that's steeped in politics and, by its very nature, tainted by hypocrisy. (Photo Credit: from YouTube - "A Happy Day in Hell - the new New York abortion law") The wicked place known as New York City, is once again at the center of controversy.- First, its strict gun-control law (no guns, even those lawfully-owned, obtained, and registered, are allowed out of the owner's home, unless on those rare occasions he or she is traveling to and from one of 7 shooting ranges) has been challenged as violating the Second Amendment. The Supreme Court has agreed to hear the case in its fall session (New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. City of New York).- Second, the state legislature passed, and Governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law on the 46th anniversary of Roe. v. Wade (January 22, 2019), a late-term abortion bill that is would permit a woman to kill her unborn child up until the time of its birth for essentially any reason at all.- And now, a New York City ordinance that was adopted last year which regulates how therapists can counsel patients who have unwanted same-sex attractions or have gender identity issues (you won't believe which approach they are forcing therapists to take!) is being challenged in court. The Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), the same legal advocacy group who represented Christian baker Jack Phillips in his case against the state of Colorado for punishing him and shutting down his cake-design business because he declined to design a cake for a same-sex couple on genuinely and strongly-held religious grounds, has agreed to take the case against New York City.Yes, folks, we're not in Kansas anymore !!! (A metaphor, of course, because New York has never been Kansas). I'm wondering if New York City can even be recognizable anymore as being part of this free nation called The United States of America. How can one part of the country deny citizens so many traditional, and constitutionally recognized rights?The government doesn't belong in a person's bedroom, it doesn't belong in the conversation between parent and child, it doesn't belong in one's head as one forms the conscience he or she hopes to live by, it doesn't belong by the jewelry box where an individual decides whether to wear a cross necklace to school or to work, it doesn't belong in a hospital forcing a doctor who believes in the sanctity of life to perform an abortion, it doesn't belong in the decisions of a business owner forcing him or her to design and create messages that offend his or her sincerely and firmly-held religious beliefs, it doesn't belong in the abortion clinic preventing a doctor from giving his patient as much information and access to information as possible to help her chose life instead of the death of her unborn, and it doesn't belong in a therapist's office.But a new New York City ordinance puts the government squarely in that position, censoring what therapists are free to say as they work with their patients. The New York City Council adopted this ordinance in 2018 making it illegal, under threat of substantial fines, for any person to provide paid services that help people work through unwanted same-sex attractions or confusion over gender identity. Under this law, a counselor is free to help a patient explore, develop, or gain comfort with same-sex attractions and to do the same with almost any gender identity imaginable. But, the law prohibits a counselor from assisting patients who wish to reduce same-sex attraction or achieve comfort in the gender identity that matches their physical body. The fines include $1,000 for the first violation, $5,000 for the second, and $10,000 for any violations after that.This new ordinance is an incredibly, and frustratingly, one-sided law.The disturbing truth is that many states have already adopted similar laws censoring what therapists can say when working with minors. Such a law is termed "Law Banning Conversion Therapy." Specially, such a law imposes upon a therapist or psychotherapist, a complete ban on any therapy efforts intended or designed to counsel a patient against changing their sexual orientation or their gender or expression of gender. They can only counsel such a patient into changing their sexual orientation or their gender or going forward with a particular expression of gender (whatever that means). Again, up until this point, all the states that have passed such a ban on conversion therapy have done so specifically when the patient is a minor. These states include: New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont, California, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, New Mexico, Illinois, Hawaii, and the District of Columbia. Certain counties in Florida, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania have adopted such bans, and one county in Arizona has done so.All of the bans mentioned above, again, are limited to such therapy for minors. But New York City's ban, adopted in 2018, extends to adults as well.New York City's new ordinance is, by far, the most far-reaching and intrusive of conversion therapy bans, as it reaches in to censor what can be said in an intensely private and voluntary counseling conversation between two adults. It harms therapists because it chills their right of free speech and the right to provide their patients an objective course of treatment. And it harms patients by taking away from them options that are consistent with their religious beliefs. Often patients will seek out particular therapists because they want guidance that is consistent with those beliefs. For example, Christians may seek out Christian therapists.New York City's law dares to substitute the government's preferred course of treatment with that of the trained professional. It is government coercion.For these very reasons, Dr. Dovid Schwartz, a licensed psychotherapist and member of the Lubavitcher Orthodox Jewish Community in Brooklyn, has decided to challenge this ordinance. Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) has filed a lawsuit on his behalf.That discussion is exactly what Dr. Schwartz offers his patients. In his psychotherapeutic services, Dr. Schwartz simply listens to his patients, talks with them, and offers suggestions. And as a result of Dr. Schwartz's services, a number of patients have been able to work through their issues and have gone on happily to pursue and achieve their personal goals.The people of New York City may want their overpopulated, bustling metropolitan city to become a freak show and a modern-day Sodom and Gomorrah, but government has no right to prefer it or to encourage or facilitate it.Sarah Kramer, "New York City is Censuring Conversations Between Psychologists and Their Patients," Alliance Defending Freedom, January 24, 2019. Referenced at: https://adflegal.org/detailspages/blog-details/allianceedge/2019/01/24/how-new-york-city-is-censoring-conversations-between-psychologists-and-their-patients?sourcecode=10003253&id=3Rev. V. Gene Robinson, "Homosexuality in Sodom and Gomorrah," On Faith, December 8, 2010. Referenced at: https://www.onfaith.co/onfaith/2010/12/08/homosexuality-in-sodom-and-gomorrah/9051New York Reproductive Health Act of 2019, full text - https://www.news10.com/news/local-news/full-text-read-the-full-text-of-the-reproductive-heath-act/1718439748Mark Joseph Stern, "The Supreme Court is Preparing to Make Every State's Gun Laws Look Like Texas'," SLATE, January 22, 2019. Referenced at: https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2019/01/supreme-court-new-york-gun-case-heller.htmlNew York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. City of New York, Opinion of the Appeals Court for the 2nd District (2018) - https://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-2nd-circuit/1890169.htmlNew York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. City of New York, Opinion of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York (2015) - https://cases.justia.com/federal/district-courts/new-york/nysdce/1:2013cv02115/409843/56/0.pdf?ts=1423217864Adam Liptak, "Supreme Court Will Review New York City Gun Law," New York Times, Jan. 22, 2019. Referenced at: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/22/us/politics/supreme-court-guns-nyc-license.htmlPhoto Credit: from YouTube - "A Happy Day in Hell - the new New York abortion law" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjN1_NTCDpY Before he became a household name in one of the most significant Supreme Court victories for public employees' First Amendment rights in decades, Mark Janus was warned by his worried mother about taking on powerful union forces.Janus recalls his mother telling him. Hoffa was the feared Teamsters Union boss who vanished in 1975 after a suspected organized labor hit.But Janus said he didn't receive any direct threats before his 5-4 win last June at the U.S. Supreme Court. The landmark Janus v. AFSCME ruling said nonunion government workers cannot be compelled to pay public sector union dues.In overturning 40 years of Supreme Court precedent, the justices agreed with Janus that paying forced union dues violated First Amendment rights to association and free speech. The decision meant workers could no longer be required to pay for union activities, political campaigns, and political messaging with which they did not agree."The Constitution is a contract with the people of this country," Janus said of the First Amendment arguments in his case. "It's not a suggestion."Janus, a former Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services employee, now works for the Chicago-based Liberty Justice Center. He said his case gave more than 5 million public-sector union members a voice in deciding whether they want union representation. He's helping support litigation in other states that are ignoring the ruling bearing his name.Janus discussed his case Monday in a sit-down interview with Carolina Journal, and during a public event at Campbell University School of Law sponsored by the John Locke Foundation and The Federalist Society. Brian Kelsey, senior attorney at the Liberty Justice Center, joined Janus in the Campbell presentation.Janus said it's unacceptable that public employee unions amass billions of dollars nationwide including forced collections, yet lack transparency about how the money is spent. He objects to the corrupting influence of union leaders using dues to fund election campaigns for government officials with whom they will negotiate their own contracts."My case has never been about ending collective bargaining, ending unions," Janus said of the arguments made to the Supreme Court. Instead, the lawsuit targeted dues collected without employees' consent by public-sector unions, which he called inherently political. "It's giving workers the choice to make their own decisions."Kelsey, who did his undergraduate work at UNC-Chapel Hill, said government unions are among the nation's most overtly political organizations.He praised Janus for having the courage to stand up to the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees, which in Illinois has 35,000 government union members.Despite the Janus victory, Liberty Justice Center must continue defending it in a number of states trying to skirt that ruling.Some states use gimmicks. One imposes a narrow time frame letting an employee ask to opt out of the forced payments. If the request isn't received in time, the employee must wait another year for that window to reopen. Some employees have filed the paperwork, only to see it mysteriously returned and then told they can't refile because they missed the deadline.Some states now pay the dues - euphemistically called agency fees or fair-share payments - directly to unions instead of deducting them from employee paychecks. But they payments are still considered part of the employees' salary. In some cases, unions are trying to settle out of court for back dues with government workers who filed lawsuits for noncompliance. Unions don't want to risk another court decision against them, Kelsey said.Government unions have said they should be able to collect agency fees, which allegedly cover only operating costs and can be separated from money funding political activity. Justice Samuel Alito, writing for the Janus majority, conceded the point. But he said protecting employees' First Amendment rights was more important than keeping government unions solvent.The Janus decision applied to 22 states, mostly in the Northeast, in the upper Midwest, and on the West Coast, Kelsey said. North Carolina is a right-to-work state and doesn't allow collective bargaining by public employees. It should be unaffected by the Janus decision. But there are indirect implications. He cited the teacher walkout at the beginning of this school year, calling it a strike even though public-employee strikes are illegal in North Carolina.Kelsey said he was willing to bet union members from other states, paid with money raised by tax-funded dues, were transported to North Carolina to participate in the protests.Janus said the state deducted about $60 a month from his paycheck to fund a union he didn't want to join. Besides that, the union promoted positions with which he disagreed. Political activity comprised about 80 percent of the union's actions.He said legally the union was supposed to give him a statement annually explaining how dues were spent. He received only one, and it was so confusing he couldn't determine what activities were funded.When he filed his lawsuit he didn't expect it to become a milestone First Amendment victory."Quite frankly, it's humbling, it's at times intimidating, and at times overwhelming because you see your name in the papers almost on a daily basis," Janus said. "Yeah, my name is on the case, but I really didn't do it for me. I did it for all these other people, and that is why I say it's humbling." In a previous Update, I criticized a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit upholding the absurd restrictions that New York City imposes on licensed gun owners who to transport their weapons from one place to another. The case is New York State Rifle & Pistol Association Inc. v. City of New York . Here's the Second Circuit's statement of the case:As I noted, had this been a regulation imposing a similarly unreasonable restriction on any other constitutionally guaranteed right, the court would have struck it down in a heartbeat. Instead, after portentously weighing the burden imposed on the gun owners against the city's need to protect public safety, the court concluded:Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari in the case, which means it will review the Second Circuit's decision and determine whether New York's regulatory scheme violates the Second Amendment. Court watchers on both sides of the gun control debate seem to expect the court to decide that it does.columnist Amy Davidson Sorkin is alarmed:Volokh Conspiracy member David Kopel, on the other hand, is optimistic:I agree with Kopel. The Second Amendment states,If, as the Supreme Court held in Heller and McDonald, that statement guarantees an individual right to keep arms, it logically follows that it must guarantee an individual right to bear arms as well. Like many other federal appellate courts, the Second Circuit has been willfully ignoring that logical conclusion. A good decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, perhaps written by Justice Kavanaugh or Justice Thomas, would put the lower courts on notice that such defiance must end. Attacks by academics and the media on the University of North Carolina system's Board of Governors have become a major part of the state's political landscape in recent years, and such attacks may be intensifying. The board is described at times as inept, divisive,and mean-spirited; unless they areNorth Carolina's public university system will suffer a great loss of prestige, deny academic freedom, and become the tool of oafish politicians.But that is mere political rhetoric. Despite the negative impression its opponents try to present, the current members of the UNC Board of Governors tend to be more engaged, more willing to address difficult issues, and more understanding of their proper positions atop the system than their predecessors. If there is more conflict than previously, it is because prior boards abdicated their role to exercise oversight of the system and campus administrators. And because the current board's predecessors ignored problems and left behind a system in need of change.For most of the UNC system's history, Democratic legislators appointed a large majority of Democratic board members who hired Democratic system presidents to oversee liberal academics; naturally, there was little conflict. All the gears meshed as in a well-oiled machine: Board members universally rubberstamped the wishes of administrators and board meetings seem more like friendly social gatherings than events where important decisions were to be made.Not so today. And some powerful interests wish the public to believe that the board is causing problems rather than attempting to solve them. The first salvo of the New Year against the board came from Stephen Leonard, a former chair of the UNC system Faculty Senate and frequent board critic. In an opinion article titledthat appeared in various newspapers around the state, Leonard clearly placed the blame for UNC's fractured politics on the board's shoulders.In an over-the-top metaphor, Leonard equated the governors' activities with those of King George III in 1776, complaining ofBut then he also described the board's actions as "eight years of petty affronts," which does not sound like cause for revolution. It does, however, date his problem with the board to when Republicans assumed control of the legislature rather than to any specific policy or board personnel changes.Then the Raleigh News and Observer's editorial board followed with a "fixer-upper" of its own calledForemost among the N&O's complaints was that respected leaders such as former Chapel Hill chancellor Carol Folt and former UNC system presidents Margaret Spellings and Tom Ross, with all their illustrious credentials, have been driven out of the system's leadership by a know-nothing board.But shiny credentials do not always equal fitness for the job. Those former leaders represent a perspective that no longer serves North Carolina's public universities well; under the rule of the academic establishment to which they belong, wide swaths of the academy become politicized and inhospitable to alternate points of view.The N&O op-ed expressed concern that the board seeking administrators more in accord with their own values-which is to be expected-will hurt UNC's reputation. But the real issue is whose values the university system wishes to advance.The paper's editors fail to see that the board is protecting the university's reputation among the general public and their elected representatives. The only reputational losses that UNC may suffer because of the board's actions will be in academia, the establishment media, and liberal enclaves. And there is probably nothing a Republican board could do to please those constituencies, except, perhaps, relinquish its rightful authority. Among the portion of the population that is neither employed in academia nor politically far to the left, UNC's reputation is more threatened by its inability to get its politicization under control than because of a contentious board. Two examples of this dynamic are the University of Missouri and Evergreen State College in Washington, both of which suffered substantial enrollment drops when their failures to get a handle on campus radicals were exposed.Several other complaints made by Leonard were that the board had to "rein in errant members" and that board members should no longer participate in chancellor searches. The latter complaint was likely prompted by a recent incident in which the board rejected Spellings's choice for the chancellorship of Western Carolina University after board member Tom Fetzer performed additional due diligence on Spellings's recommended candidate. While the public will likely never know the particulars of the case, Fetzer's intuition was apparently correct, for the investigation must have uncovered something negative that the accepted procedures did not.Although Fetzer deviated slightly from standard procedures-for which he was roundly attacked-he took it upon himself to save the system from a poor choice for chancellor; should that not be reason to question the procedures that failed to perform the proper diligence and not Fetzer's actions? The legislature gave the board the final say on all chancellorships for a reason, and in this case, the precaution worked. Just because some don't like the board's current make-up is no reason to end a necessary final review for filling such an important position as chancellor.And board members should feel free to speak out-to exercise their academic freedom in matters of public concern-as much as faculty and staff. Board meetings should be noisy and contentious at times. The state should celebrate that the current board is no longer a mere rubberstamp committee for the administration but is much more actively engaged than were previous boards.Another ongoing criticism of the current governors is that they havethe system's governance. This is a specious claim; almost all of academia has been highly politicized since the 1960s. Indeed, the political left has staked out academia as its private sanctuary and launching pad, and that includes the UNC system. Academia's leftward drift is almost total: in a recent study conducted by the Econ Journal Watch, the ratio of Democrats to Republicans in the economics, history, psychology, journalism, and communications departments and the law school is 23 to one. In a 2014 Martin Center study of UNC system English departments, the ratio for tenured or tenure track faculty was 19 to one; at Chapel Hill, it was 28 to one.Some members of the board are merely, in rather limited measure, reintroducing the beliefs and values of a majority of the public. Furthermore, the governing board is exactly the place in the system where political discussions should occur, since the board is where the system's mission, direction, and strategies are decided. The campuses are for education and research; they should not become political battlefields (as has been the case at Chapel Hill in the past year).Furthermore, the governing board is exactly the place in the system where political discussions should occur, since the board is where the system's mission, direction, and strategies are decided.Current board chair Harry Smith is right to suggest that the board's critics are not unbiased observers but have a political agenda. When it comes to actual governance, the governors have not deviated all that much from the policies of their predecessors. As Smith points out, they have focused largely on increasing access, efficiency, and providing better information, all longstanding goals.One policy change that enraged entrenched campus interests is the elimination or limitation of academic centers that were overtly political. But even then, the board's touch was relatively light. Three centers were closed in 2015-but that was out of hundreds throughout the system. And just because a center is funded initially does not mean that it must be funded in perpetuity. Additionally, in 2017, the Chapel Hill School of Law's Center for Civil Rights was prohibited by the board from litigating to prevent the potential for one state agency to sue another-an absurd and counterproductive practice.A couple of recommendations by Leonard and the N&O are sensible. One is to reduce the board from 28 members to 24. (The legislature already reduced it from 32 to 28.) Another is for the state governor to make at least four appointments to the board instead of letting the two houses of the legislature completely control the board's make-up. But where were those recommendations a decade ago when the Democrats were in control?And neither of those policies would impact governance greatly. There are things the board should do to open up things more, such as letting the full board or even committee members elect committee chairs instead of letting them be determined by the main chair.But by and large, the board is performing the job they were selected to do relatively well. Given the breadth of their job and the intense microscope they are placed under, they can hardly be expected to be perfect or to please everybody. Certainly, they make decisions that disappoint conservatives at times and liberals at others. The critics' real objection is that the board now contains influential members with a different philosophy of life and education and that the university system may no longer be their private soapbox from which to spread their ideas.And that is why they are so quick to attack and make it seem as if it is universally accepted that the board is somehow "broken." Too often, Republican leadership cowers and submits when the media wolves close in. The current Board of Governors would be better off rejecting that defeatist posture and pressing on, for the good of the state and the good of the UNC system. Tom Schuerman started making musical instruments after his wife, Becky, bought him a book for Christmas in 2013. I think it was kind of an impulsive buy, but it has worked out well, said Schuerman. There were plans in there for the wash tub base or gut bucket. There were percussion instruments and cigar and bedpan guitars. When I started studying them, I realized that I could make that. I make the neck and fretboard from unique or interesting woods." Some of the wood used in his products dates back decades. Ive used barn wood that my dad had when we tore down a barn in 1987 when I was home from leave from the Navy," Schuerman said. "He was going to throw it on a burn pile, but I saved it thinking I might use it someday." He has also has used black walnut from a tree that was knocked over in the tornado in Hallam in 2004 and wood from a pear tree. We were having a bonfire and had a bunch of Chinese Elm that I was burning," he said. "Its kind of a junk wood. One piece was a little green and when I used the saw to cut it, I could see how beautiful the wood was and saved it. I made a few kazoos with it so far." Make your birthday special - by brewing a beer originally made on that date. For a mere 25 euros, I'll create a bespoke recipe for any day of the year you like. As well as the recipe, there's a few hundred words of text describing the beer and its historical context and an image of the original brewing record. Just click on the button below. Have a story idea or tip about something happening in the East Village? Or maybe a photo? Or several photos? Or video! We'd love to hear about it. Or see it. Or something. Please go here to submit a tip. By the way Here, you'll find things that you may or may not be interested in about the East Village and other parts of New York City. Appreciating what's here while it's still here. Remembering what's no longer here. Wishing some things weren't here that are here. A recent headline of a letter to the editor read: Democrats need to negotiate in good faith. The question is, negotiate with whom: Ann Coulter, Rush Limbaugh or Fox News anchors? They are the puppet masters who pull the president's strings. They are the ones who influence his policies. Sadly, the president is not his own man, and even if he were, how can anyone have a rational, intelligent debate with an individual who had the delusional notion that Mexico would pay for his wall? In addition, if negotiating in good faith means negotiating in a trustworthy, honest manner, with a trustworthy and honest partner, there is nobody in the Oval Office to negotiate with. MARGRIT NOVACK Flagstaff Love 4 Funny 2 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 4 Meanwhile, there was nothing reported about the Arizona Democratic Party elections the same weekend, including the election of three Coconino County leaders. Pat Carr was elected Chair of the Veterans Caucus! Don Howard was elected as Vice Chair of the Rural Caucus! Christa Sadler was elected 2d Vice Chair of the Environmental Caucus! A total of 35 State Committee Members from Coconino County attended the meeting in Phoenix and participated in elections and planning for the 2019-2020 Election cycle. At the top leadership level, State Committee Members re-elected our very effective and respected Chair Felecia Rotellini. We elected Pat Burns, who has been active with the party since he was in college, as Senior Vice Chair. Other officers are blend of a lot of new people such as Mohave Countys Mary McCord Robinson as First Vice Chair and Sierra Yamanaka of Pinal County as our new DNC member. We were proud to support and elect Missa Foy-Jentoft of Navajo County as one of the six Vice Chairs. Missa was active in organizing for Save Our Schools No on Prop 305 campaign and we look forward to her joining the leadership of the Arizona Democratic Party. Taken together, the new leadership at ADP reflects the diversity and youth of the State. The latest government shutdown should teach us all a lesson. We need our federal government and the essential services that it provides. Shutting the government down is a threat to national security. As just one example, we were days away from a collapse of the air transportation system until a stopgap spending bill was passed. Now we are faced with another impasse and another possible shutdown in a couple of weeks. What we need is legislation to prevent another government shutdown. I would propose that if Congress and the administration cannot agree on a budget, then the government needs to be able to continue operating at current funding levels. Secondly, pay should be suspended for Congress and the administration until they pass a budget. We should not allow the American people and federal workers to be held hostage because politicians can't agree on a budget. We depend on the federal government for a wide variety of services. Those who say that "we need to make government small enough to drown in a bathtub" are just plain wrong. We need to keep the government open and serving the American people. JEFF GOULDEN Flagstaff Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 There was a stark juxtaposition of lead articles in the Daily Sun last week. Jan. 29ths story, NAU Student wage petition gains support, reported on a petition to raise the minimum wage for NAU student employees to above $8.50/hr. The following days headline, Student wages to be reduced? reported on a move in the opposite direction; the introduction of a state bill permitting businesses to pay part-time student employees, under 23 years, the $7.25 federal minimum wage. The second article highlighted the enthusiastic support of the Greater Flagstaff Chamber of Commerce, quoting a spokesperson saying, we think it is great for students and young people. According to the Chamber, minimum wage laws have made it more difficult for students to find work, and the bill would make young people more competitive How raising the minimum wage reduces job opportunities for students is puzzling, but the full statement reveals why the Chamber supports the bill. If it were to become law, students would certainly be more competitive with non-students. Businesses would let go of their $12 an hour-workers, replacing them with those they can pay $7.25. TAMPA, Fla. President Donald Trump can pound his chest for not only scrapping Americas participation in the Paris Climate Accord but also for killing the electric car. The administration that favors further damage to the global ecosystem with its unbridled support for fossil fuels in their solid, liquid and gaseous forms saw Tesla buyers as the first to lose their $7,500 federal tax credit in January. Tesla tried to make up for the financial body blow by reducing the price of its vehicles by $2,000, but for many potential Tesla customers, this years tax credit of $3,750 credit was the defining moment in the decision to buy a Tesla. With no tax credit offered next year, many potential Tesla buyers will find the well-known electric vehicle far too costly to purchase never mind their ideological commitment. The elimination of the federal electric vehicle tax credit represents another body blow to the clean and smart energy sector in the U.S. and a huge gift for the climate-damaging fossil fuel industry. Even the might of General Motors, Teslas partner in manufacturing zero-emission vehicles, was not enough to fend off the fossil fuel interests who seem to have the Trump Administration in a vise grip. Inmate development specialist Crystal Luna attempts to bring any self-development and educational opportunities to the inmates. Luna believes it is exposure to the arts through the Literacy Center, as well as the substance abuse classes, parenting classes and meditation classes that the jail offers, that ultimately leads to changes in the incarcerated, which then lead to a safer and healthier community when they are released. The [Literacy Center] has positively increased the participants in reading, art, personal writing, storytelling and poetry, Luna said. It allows individuals to learn different ways of expressing themselves and offers a moment to step outside of incarceration for two hours a week. David Richardson, a retired teacher and attorney who has been volunteering with the Literacy Center since its 2012 inception, said there is a pressing need for more of what they do at the jail. The inmates that we deal with are uniformly grateful for our time and efforts," Richardson said. "They often let us know that we are one of the few outsiders who seem to care at all about them in any measure and in any way. Richardson and Parsons agreed they have never felt unsafe around the inmates and said they have learned much from them. Following an enthusiastically received program of contemporary Broadway hits last month, the Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra returns to a more customary program Friday, Feb. 15, at 7:30 p.m. in Ardrey Auditorium. Fridays lineup of 20th-century orchestral works includes transcriptions of two pieces originally written for keyboard and an infrequently heard "Concerto for Saxophone" by Alexander Glazunov. It concludes with what was originally a ballet score written in the 1940s by the important 20th-century composer Paul Hindemith. One of the more significant English composers of the 20th century, Edward Elgar often transcribed or arranged the organ works of Johann Sebastian Bach during his tenure as organist at St. Georges Church in Worcester. An agreement with his contemporary Richard Strauss in 1920 to orchestrate Bachs "Fantasia & Fugue in C minor" was never honored by the Austrian composer, and Elgar went on to complete the transcription in 1921. Elgar said he wanted to show how gorgeous and great and brilliant Bach would have made it sound if he had our means (a typically 19th-century approach to music of an earlier era). Fridays fundraiser will help Northland keep a variety of services available to people in need no matter their financial situation. From palliative care, spiritual counseling, support groups and more, the nonprofit assisted the people of Flagstaff for the past 36 years. I think the whole thing with all this is community, CEO Kathy Simmons said. We are a community. None of us can do this on our own. This art makes people think about it, and all these services are there to support people, whatever level of need they have. Or they may need all of it. But at least there are resources. While Baron, 73, found her purpose early in life as an English teacher and taught full-time for more than four decades before her current part-time status at Flagstaff High School, she knew it wasnt something she could do forever. She began taking classes at Coconino Community College to learn how to paint when she was in her 50s, following in the footprints of her late mother. I thought, what happens when I dont have words anymore? she said. When I lose words, I still have images, so Ill paint images and Ill do that until my arm doesnt work anymore. Whenever Bill Waltons on a broadcast, there are probably going to be some shenanigans, but they dont usually involve eating fire. Thats what Walton did on ESPNs broadcast of the Washington-Arizona State game Saturday night, though. Walton and broadcast partner Dave (Dave?) Pasch both wound up with lit cupcakes, and Pasch told Walton take a bite out of it while its lit. Walton did just that. Heres video from Joe Wright: The best part of this may be Paschs reaction. Hes seen and heard a lot of weird things during his time working with Walton, and yet, this is so far beyond the norm. I was kidding! I cant believe it! Neither can we, Dave, neither can we. Update: Walton later broke down this and other highlights of himself: Bill Walton analyzing highlights of Bill Walton doing weird things is the pinnacle of Bill Walton pic.twitter.com/B6HtVEDi0C CJ Fogler #BlackLivesMatter (@cjzero) February 10, 2019 [Joe Wright on Clippit] Kathmandu, February 10 Police on Sunday afternoon detained over 20 government doctors from their protest programme at the Ministry of Health in Kathmandu. The doctors had launched the protest against some provisions of the new government staff adjustment law. They had organised a sit-in in front of the Ministry today. The detainees including the President of Government Doctors Association Nepal (GoDAN) Dr Dipendra Pandey have been kept at Nepal Police Club in Bhrikutimandap now. It has been learned that the security personnel used force after the demonstrators headed towards the offices of the Health Minister and the Health Secretary. GoDAN General Secretary Dr Rabin Khadka says his organisation launched the protest after the government did not implement an agreement it signed with the doctors over staff adjustment earlier. The mission at Auburn Community Hospital is to provide the best outcome for every patient, every time. We do this by providing compassionate quality care with a goal of improving the health of our community and every patient that comes through our doors. Recently the media has reported on allegations made by physicians who no longer work at Auburn Community Hospital and who have sued the hospital in employment actions. We believe that these assertions are unproven allegations made by former employees and further, that the hospital denies any allegations of quality of care issues or wrongdoing. We can comment on a resolved matter. A complaint was filed with the state Department of Health last summer related to policies and procedures associated with management oversight of employees at Auburn Community Hospital. The Department of Health responded to the complaint and conducted a thorough inquiry in late August. The inspectors interviewed numerous nurses and doctors and staff of the hospital including doctors who are mentioned in the media reports. The Department of Health inspectors found certain deficiencies related to a lack of oversight and formal documentation when addressing personnel issues. However, there was no finding that the quality of care was compromised. BRANFORD, Fla. Dawn Marie (Bergerstock) Hurst, 55, of Branford, Fla., passed away on Jan. 15, 2019 after a courageous battle with ALS. Dawn graduated from Moravia Central High School and lived most of her life in Moravia, N.Y. She was employed by D & D One Stop in Locke, N.Y., and was a cook who delighted many with her great food and quick wit. Dawn was also employed by Lowes in Auburn, N.Y., and in her spare time kept books for C.A. Bossard Backhoe & Dozer in Moravia, N.Y. Dawn was a loving, giving person who enjoyed cooking and spending time with her family, especially her granddaughter and sidekick, Aliya. Dawn was predeceased by her grandparents, Leroy H. and Elizabeth C. Bergerstock, and Fredrick R. and Bernice M. Denman. Dawn is survived by her loving husband and soulmate, James R. Hurst; the loves of her life, her daughter, Amanda A. St. Pierre, and granddaughter, Aliya M. St. Pierre, of Moravia, N.Y.; parents, Charles and Patricia (Denman) Bergerstock, of Moravia, N.Y.; brother, Charles (Crystal) Bergerstock, of Locke, N.Y.; sisters, Teresa (Tim) Wilson, of Chicago, Ill., and Brenda (Ron) Spain, of Camillus, N.Y.; as well as several nieces and nephews, great-nieces and nephews, and great-great-niece. There will be no services. A celebration of life will be announced at a later date. Auburn Community Hospital denies allegations of wrongdoing brought up in lawsuits filed by former doctors and says a recent state/federal deficiency report has nothing to do with the quality of care it provides. Hospital CEO Scott Berlucchi has provided a detailed public statement on the issues that came to light over the past two weeks, the first substantive comments hospital officials have provided. News media coverage on the issues started with the emergence of a report from the state Department of Health on behalf of the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that faulted the hospital for failing to properly respond to numerous complaints regarding a staff physician, including reports of "near misses" with patients. Feds: Auburn Community Hospital mishandled complaints about doctor Auburn Community Hospital failed to take appropriate action regarding a doctor who was accus That was followed by the news that a pair of former doctors have filed lawsuits against the hospital, claiming they were retaliated against for trying to bring quality of care complaints forward. One of the doctors has said more lawsuits are likely coming from additional ex-hospital physicians. We believe that no one should be dehumanized through acts of exclusion, oppression or violence because of their beliefs or identities. In public debates on immigration justice, LGBTQ equality, Black Lives Matter, standing up against acts of fear and hate and more, we Side With Love, calling for respect for all, inclusion for all and compassion for all. As Unitarians, we believe that if individuals or groups are being discriminated against, bullied or marginalized, we should take a moment to stand up for them and with them. We believe in giving support, encouragement and love that others need and taking the time to educate the person or people doing the marginalizing. It will only take a little of our time and effort to make this a better world for all of us. For example, just taking some time to smile at a hurried cashier, listen to someone who needs to vent, stand up to someone marginalizing another, or give smiles and hugs freely could make a difference in their lives and yours. In February, most Unitarian Universalist societies take time to reflect on this and work for love, justice and support for all people. We are having a special service honoring Side with Love at 10:30 a.m. Sunday, Feb. 17. If this is something that is of interest to you, please come and visit us and contribute to a community and a world that is in dire need of love and support. Kathy Haendle is president of the Auburn Unitarian Universalist Society, which was founded in 1833 and is located at 607 N. Seward Ave., Auburn. Services are held at 10:30 a.m. Sundays. All men, women and children of every race, religious creed, political conviction and sexual orientation are welcome. Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 One reason Walsh supports the community grid is the potential economic benefits of the project. If a grid replaces the elevated highway, more properties could be added to the city's tax rolls. But that's not the only perk. Walsh highlighted transportation trends, including fewer people relying on their own vehicles, cities being dense and mixed incomes. "When you look at the options through those lenses, the community grid option not only supports those trends but it also happens to be the most cost-effective and the one in which the data to date supports is the best option," he said. There are environmental considerations, too. With I-81 passing through the heart of the city, Walsh explained that it poses air quality issues. Critics of the community grid say it would create traffic jams because more vehicles would be on city streets. Walsh disputed that claim. He said vehicles are already being "dumped" into the city because of the existing "bottle-necked transportation network" that leads to idling, traffic jams and reduced air quality. "By incorporating a community grid, it allows for that traffic to distribute more effectively and equitably through the city in a way that reduces air quality concerns," he said. The Farmworkers Fair Labor Practices Act isn't a new bill, but with Democrats controlling both houses of the state Legislature there's a greater likelihood it will become law this year. The legislation would grant farmworkers with employment rights available to workers in other industries, such as collective bargaining and the ability to unionize. The measure would establish an eight-hour workday for farmworkers, require farms to pay overtime and laborers would receive at least one day off each week. Other major reforms are in the bill, including making farm employees eligible for workers' compensation benefits. State Sen. Jessica Ramos, one of the bill's sponsors, described farm laborers' exclusion from protections available to other workers as a "remnant of the Jim Crow era." "It's important that we recognize the dignity in work and I certainly believe that farmworkers have been some of the most overworked and underpaid in the state," Ramos, D-Queens, said in an interview with The Citizen. Ramos is the latest state senator to reintroduce the bill. Other Democrats have carried the bill over the years, but it hasn't advanced in the state Senate. Republicans controlled the chamber until this year. Fleeing the political, economic and humanitarian crisis in their country, Venezuelans have arrived in Spain in their thousands, some of them penniless, others so rich they are buying sumptuous flats. Fran Leal, 36, came to Spain from Maracay in northern Venezuela two months ago with his wife and two children. "Do you have a small suitcase? I'm going to Toledo, I've found a job," he asks as he enters the Casa Venezuela, an association that helps struggling Venezuelans in Madrid. An electrician, he is going to the city south of Madrid to work illegally for six months. "I don't have a choice as I don't yet have ID papers and I have no more savings," he says, as the crisis in Venezuela deepens with opposition leader Juan Guaido's self-proclamation as interim president. Unlike Leal, Juan Leonardo Lopez has not found a job since he arrived three months ago. "Before the crisis, I wasn't a millionaire but I lived fine, I had a great car and everything I needed," he says at a Venezuelan opposition protest in Madrid. He says he saw children die of dehydration in the hospital in Maracay where he worked. - Asylum-seekers - Spain's statistics agency says some 255,000 Venezuelans have settled in the country. But that figure is likely to be closer to 300,000 if illegal immigrants are taken into account, according to Tomas Paez, head of the Venezuelan Diaspora Observatory. Venezuelan asylum requests have nearly doubled in Spain over the year, with close to 20,000 in 2018, according to the interior ministry. But only 29 were successful last year, the ministry says, as it is hard for those who migrate for economic reasons to get asylum. As a result, Madrid has started giving some Venezuelans humanitarian visas. At the other end of the scale, many rich Venezuelans have also emigrated to Spain over the past year to escape the crisis and insecurity. Cesar, a 42-year-old businessman who declined to give his surname, arrived in Madrid in 2014 with his wife and daughter after an armed group tried to kidnap his brother. "We lived permanently with bodyguards, we would move around in armoured cars. We couldn't go out in the evenings," he says. "Here, we're enjoying what we no longer had in Venezuela: going out, eating out," says the head of a consultancy in Madrid, which still has an office in Caracas. Unlike those who are struggling, he was able to get an express residency permit after getting a "golden visa" for which one must invest at least one million euros ($880,000) in Spanish companies or 500,000 euros in real estate. - 'Little Caracas' - Cesar bought three flats in the district of Salamanca in Madrid for 800,000 euros. Such has been the affluence of Venezuelans in this upmarket area that it has been named "Little Caracas" by Spanish media. Controversial due to the difficulty in verifying the origin of the funds used, the "golden visa" is very popular among rich Venezuelans. Last year, 249 such visas were given to Venezuelans in Spain, nearly 20 percent more than in 2017, according to the foreign ministry. Angel Garcia Loriente, a real estate agent who specialises in luxury purchases, says he sealed five deals with Venezuelans in 2018 for a total of 9.7 million euros. They are clients who want flats "in elegant buildings," he says. According to Juan Carlos Gutierrez, the Madrid-based lawyer of Venezuelan opposition figure Leopoldo Lopez who also has wealthy Venezuelan clients, they have fled "insecurity." They also "want to enjoy their money as it is impossible to run a successful business in Venezuela in the current conditions." Venezuelan citizens living in Madrid called a protest rally against President Nicolas Maduro Fleeing the political, economic and humanitarian crisis in their country, Venezuelans have arrived in Spain in their thousands A high-end New Zealand restaurant slammed over a racist receipt has blamed a new waiter in the wake of a social media outcry. After stopping in at Falls Restaurant & Cafe in West Auckland for a Sunday afternoon coffee, a group of customers who say they were born and raised in New Zealand were stunned to discover the word Asians printed at the top of their receipt. This has never happened to me, and Ive been a regular at that restaurant for more than seven years, one woman told Stuff. When I saw it, I said out loud whats up with this? and I know the waiters heard me but no one acknowledged the situation or apologised they were totally avoiding us. The customer said she was upset given she had been born and raised in New Zealand. Source: Facebook/Falls Restaurant & Cafe in West Auckland She said that given they were all born in New Zealand, they were truly shocked at the restaurant for their incredibly racist service. Falls Restaurant manager Arvind Kumar told Stuff that they were only made aware of the note after it started gaining traction on social media. He said a new waiter had typed in Asians on the customer receipt as her way of helping identify the group during a busy day of service. It was a mistake by the waiter, shes new and she should not have done that. We never do this and we will never do that again, Mr Kumar explained. The restaurant said a new waiter was responsible for the note but insisted it would not happen again. Source: Google Maps While many social media users expressed their disappointment at the restaurant, others rushed to their defence, accusing people of being too precious. Shame on you for the racist docket man up and we wont be visiting there again, one man wrote. It comes down to her intent It would appear her intent was to identify a group of customers easily in a busy restaurant, not to offend anyone good grief, another responded. Do you have a story tip? Email: y7newsroom@yahoo7.com.au. You can also follow us on Facebook and Twitter and stay up to date with the latest news with Yahoo7s daily newsletter. Sign up here. Kathmandu, February 10 It has been one and half months since the government formally decided to operate as many as 300 electric buses in the country from the New Year of Bikram Sambat calendar (mid-April) in its bid to promote green energy. However, no progress has been made in past weeks except obtaining the approval from the Cabinet; and the decision has been pushed into limbo. Sources at the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport say the Ministry is yet to make any decision on specifications of the bus. Therefore, they say the decision cannot be implemented from the New Year. Spokesperson of the Ministry, Shiva Hari Sapkota, however, says discussions are underway about the issue and the government is eager to launch the operation soon. We are discussing about the specifications, he informs, We will also study appropriate models for Nepali roads. The Ministry had planned to form a technical committee to deal with technical aspects of the purchase. However, it is not certain when it will form the committee and when it will submit its report. After finalising the procurement process, it will take at least three more months to call for tenders and select the seller. The only way that can allow the government to buy the buses early is making a government-to-government deal with a country. However, officials have not made any preparation for it. Further, there is not any charging station in the capital city and other places of the country. Lawyers for French carmaker Renault have criticised their Japanese alliance partner Nissan for its handling of an internal probe into the Carlos Ghosn scandal, a Sunday newspaper has reported. In a letter to Nissan dated January 19, the lawyers said they had "serious concerns about the methods used" by the company and its legal team, including the way they treated some Renault employees, according to France's Le Journal du Dimanche. Former head of the alliance Ghosn is being held in Japan on charges he under-reported millions of dollars in pay as head of Nissan. "Renault has gathered sufficient evidence to understand and regret the methods used by Nissan and its lawyers to seek interviews with Renault employees through the Japanese public prosecutor's office," they said. Nissan was seeking "evidence to support allegations against Carlos Ghosn after his arrest" and failed to consult its French partner, according to the newspaper. The firm also tried to search Ghosn's apartments in Brazil, Lebanon and the Netherlands without informing Renault, the letter added. A Nissan spokesman told AFP on Sunday that the letter which they received weeks ago has "already been reviewed and fully addressed in a series of verbal and written responses from Nissan's external attorneys." "The communications in question do not reflect the current state of discussions with Renault and its lawyers," said Nissan spokesman Nicholas Maxfield. "Nissan... has always welcomed an open and direct dialogue with its partners to help uncover relevant facts", he added. The executive's arrest in November has exposed rifts between Renault and Nissan, which some analysts say was bristling at Ghosn's efforts to bring the two automakers' operations even closer together. Ghosn was the linchpin of the three-way alliance, which also included Mitsubishi Motors, earning industry plaudits for driving together a sometimes fractious threesome with headquarters 10,000 kilometres apart. Much of the tension between the partners stems from a complex ownership structure that gives Renault 43 percent of Nissan, whereas Nissan owns just 15 percent stake in the French company -- and no voting rights. Former Renault-Nissan chairman and CEO Carlos Ghosn is being held in Japan on charges he under-reported millions of dollars in pay as head of Nissan Can a politician be forgiven for racist behavior from the past? What if that behavior evoked the darkest chapters of American history, from slavery to segregation? That's a question the state of Virginia has been grappling with since last week when its governor, Ralph Northam, was caught up in a row over blackface: the crude caricaturing of African Americans as a means of entertaining white people since the minstrel shows of the 1830s. The 59-year-old Democrat is refusing to resign over a yearbook photograph showing a person in blackface and another wearing Ku Klux Klan robes -- denying either was him. The scandal exploded into a full-blown crisis for Virginia's Democrats after two women came forward to accuse Northam's deputy Justin Fairfax of sexual assault, while the next in line for the top job, Attorney General Mark Herring, admitted to engaging in blackface in college, too. With no resolution in sight, Republicans have been rubbing their hands at the prospect of gains in the key swing state. "African Americans are very angry at the double standard on full display in Virginia!" President Donald Trump tweeted Sunday, with barely concealed glee. But most crucially for James "JJ" Minor, president of the Richmond chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the episode has forced a new reckoning with the state's painful legacy. "Black face is dehumanizing, it's evil," Minor, who is black, told AFP in an interview at the state capital's railway station in the Shockoe Bottom district, once home to a booming slave auction industry that featured in the film "12 Years a Slave." The Northam episode, he said, has shown "that Sweet Old Dixie is still around" -- a nickname for the Southern states of the Confederate era. - 'Old Dixie' - Sometimes known as the "Cradle of America," Virginia was home to four of the country's first five presidents. But it was also one of the most significant regions for the Atlantic slave trade, the main battleground of the mid-19th century Civil War that was fought over slavery, and later one of the states most resistant to the civil rights movement that brought an end to segregation. That troubled legacy still arouses fierce passions: in 2017, a white supremacist rally in the Virginia city of Charlottesville -- held to protest the removal of a Confederate statue -- turned violent, leaving one counter-protester dead. "The legacy of slavery, racism and the Jim Crow era remains an albatross around the necks of African Americans," said a statement from the state assembly's powerful Black Caucus, which like the NAACP has urged Northam to stand down. "We can no longer hide behind a facade of unity, we must fiercely and intentionally combat the hatred of the past that still lives today." A Washington Post-Schar School poll, however, showed Virginians deadlocked, with equal numbers for and against Northam's resignation -- and support for him staying in office higher among African Americans than among whites. Some, like Reverend Dwayne Whitehead, the African American pastor of Richmond's World Overcomers Church, argue forcefully against punishing Northam for decades-old wrongdoings. "I'm not as devastated by blackface and neither will I hold a person accountable for what they did 35 years ago, when this election for him as governor was not based upon who he was 35 years ago," the grey-suited 52-year-old told AFP. - 'Not going anywhere' - Northam was roundly attacked for his reaction to the yearbook revelation: a confused sequence that saw him first admit, then deny, appearing in the photo, only to apologize instead for wearing blackface on another occasion while imitating the late Michael Jackson. For Whitehead, though, the impulse to oust him stems from a bandwagon mentality, and weakens Democrats at a time of rising racial violence -- linked by critics to incendiary rhetoric by Trump. "I know that sometimes," he said, "it's a case of 'I'm supposed to respond like this,' and 'this is what's expected of me.'" Whitehead points in the governor's defense to initiatives like a dialogue about racial justice -- announced before the blackface row. Northam now says he plans to dedicate the rest of his term to helping Virginia "heal" -- telling CBS in an interview Sunday, "I'm not going anywhere." Yet Jasmine Leeward, of the New Virginia Majority progressive advocacy group, is unconvinced. She says Herring's open admission of a "one time incident" -- he preemptively revealed he wore brown makeup and a wig to imitate a rapper while in college -- left room for forgiveness. "He has been a very articulate champion of some of the issues," the 25-year-old black woman said, citing work fighting for Muslim migrants hit by Trump's travel ban. But Northam, she says, has to go. Virginia's Governor Ralph Northam, pictured in 2017, has been caught up in a row over blackface: the caricaturing of African Americans by crude methods of skin darkening as a means of entertaining white people since the minstrel shows of the 1830s James "JJ" Minor, president of the Richmond chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) A television satellite truck sits parked outside the Governor's Mansion near the Virginia State Capitol in Richmond, Virginia A view of the Virginia State Capitol in Richmond Residents of Sydneys Bondi have been left horrified after dozens of swastikas were graffitied on beachside murals overnight. About 30 swastikas appeared along the beachfront, painted over the beachs iconic paintings which line the walled pedestrian area behind the beach. Local resident Michael Dunbar told Yahoo7 News the act was disgraceful in this day and age. There were about 30 swastikas left on the murals and paintings. Source: Australian Jewish Association This shouldnt be happening anywhere. Not in Bondi, not in Australia, not anywhere. It really is a shameful act. Bondi and its surrounding suburbs have a strong Jewish community, with several synagogues in the area. Federal Member for Wentworth Kerryn Phillips spoke out over the anti-Semitic markings on Sunday, saying there was no place for such behaviour in the community. The local community has been left horrified. Source: Australian Jewish Association The Wentworth community is united in outrage by the news that thirty swastikas were graffitied on the murals around Bondi Beach overnight, she wrote on Twitter. There is no place for anti-Semitism in Australia. Liberal Wentworth candidate Dave Sharma also took to Twitter to slam the vandalism on Sunday. What an abominable, intolerant and shameful act. Anti-semitism, racism, and hatred in all its forms has no place in our community, he wrote. Council workers have begun to remove the graffiti. Source: Australian Jewish Association A Waverley Council crew has since begun removing the graffiti from the artwork. NSW Police, who are investigating the incident, believe the symbols were spray painted onto the walls on Saturday night and are appealing to anyone with information to come forward. The incident comes just a week after a rabbi was verbally attacked by another motorist with anti-Semitic slurs following a disagreement on a Melbourne road. Anti Defamation Commission chairman Dvir Abramovich said at the time there had been a rise in such incidents across the nation and anti-Semitic behaviour had become deeply concerning. Anyone with information is encouraged to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000. Do you have a story tip? Email: y7newsroom@yahoo7.com.au. You can also follow us on Facebook and Twitter and stay up to date with the latest news with Yahoo7s daily newsletter. Sign up here. Several non-governmental organisations in Mozambique on Saturday called on Credit Suisse to write off debt their government contracted with the Swiss bank as part of a massive "hidden debt" scandal. In a letter addressed to Credit Suisse CEO Tidjane Thiam seen by AFP, 21 civil society groups said the scandal over allegedly illegal loans totalling $2 billion was "a direct result of fraudulent illegal collusion between Credit Suisse, contractors and Mozambican government officials". The letter was co-signed by Graca Machel, a humanitarian activist and widow of Nelson Mandela. "Having considered all available information in our possession, we demand that Credit Suisse publicly declares that the Mozambican people should not pay a single cent of these debts, and that recovery of any money should come from the companies and individuals who, instead, have benefited from this chaos," the letter said. The call came only days after Mozambique President Filipe Nyusi sacked deputy finance minister Isaltina Lucas who has been implicated in the widening scandal. AS national treasury director she signed guarantees in 2013 and 2014 for the loans to three state-owned security companies. An independent audit has found that $500 million of the loans, which were deliberately hidden from the country's parliament as well as international donors, was diverted and remains unaccounted for. When the hidden debt was revealed, Mozambique -- which relies on donor aid and is one of the world's poorest countries -- was plunged into the worst financial crisis in its history. The US alleges that at least $200 million was spent on bribes and kickbacks, including $12 million for former finance minister Manuel Chang, who also signed off on the debt guarantees. Chang was arrested in South Africa in December on a US extradition request for his alleged involvement in the loans. The US has alleged that Chang received the $12 million to agree to sign loan deals for supposed financing for a tuna-fishing fleet and a maritime surveillance project. Chang is facing extradition requests from both US and Mozambican authorities on suspicion of financial misconduct. Court hearings are to resume in South Africa on February 26. Seven suspects including Mozambicans and ex-Credit Suisse bankers are accused by the US of fraud, conspiracy to financial security fraud, conspiracy to launder money. Mozambique, one of the world's poorest countries, is grappling with a $2 billion 'hidden debt' scandal A passenger plane flying from Auckland to Shanghai was forced to turn back after some five hours in the air because it did not have permission to land, officials said Sunday. Passengers said the captain informed them mid-flight the Air New Zealand plane was not allowed to land in China and would have to go back. "Midway through our flight, the pilot informs us that Chinese authorities had not given this plane permission to land, so we needed to turn around. A permitting issue, supposedly," one passenger, Eric Hundman, told the New Zealand Herald. "I would be stunned if Air NZ had allowed a plane full of passengers to take off without being quite sure they would be able to land it in Shanghai," the assistant professor at New York University Shanghai added. The airline said in a statement that "a technicality meant the particular aircraft operating this service did not have Chinese regulatory authority to land in China". After returning to Auckland, the airline texted passengers to say the flight had been rescheduled and would depart Sunday night. The captain informed passengers mid-flight the plane was not allowed to land in China and would have to turn back The Defence Force has cited safety concerns in its decision not to fly tonnes of hay to flood-ravaged communities in western Queensland. Farmers, graziers and agricultural bodies say the delayed fodder delivery has cost the lives of thousands upon thousands of cattle. There is no doubt this is the greatest livestock disaster that Australia has ever seen, grazier Roger Jefferies said. A temporary station set up for helicopters to transport aid. Source: 7News An island amid flood waters on Cowan Downs Station at Julia Creek has seen the community come together to save itself. Before Sunday, most aid and assistance was from fellow farmers sharing their own supplies via helicopter. [These are] great wonderful cattle people that are just virtually walking around in a state of shock and having trouble getting over it having trouble even talking, Mr Jefferies said. Distressing images from several days ago shows the extent of the drought. Source: Facebook/ Rae Stretton Helicopters have been trying to reach the affected farmers.Source: 7News A temporary fodder depot has been set up near Winton for trucks to drop off and helicopters to pick up. Its coming from all over the place from very kind donations from graziers all around the country, AgForces Michael Guerin said. There have been 146 locations with a total of 120,000 cattle which have requested aid in a crisis zone now spanning some 20 million hectares of farmland. The conditions are still are extreme for many. Source: 7News But they needed fodder days ago. Several Defence Force aircraft have been made available by the Defence Force for supply runs. AgForce revealed a Globemaster C17 was ready to take off on Tuesday from Amberly loaded with hay. But it never left the tarmac. Fuel has been delivered by the ADF for the aircraft delivering fodder to rural farmers. Source: 7News There was an initial problem in terms of fodder drops happening outside of the local disaster management committee, Deputy Premier Jackie Trad said. Industry had advised exactly where to drop the hay. We had the hay available Tuesday and had it wrapped as the Airforce asked us to do. Yet the Defence Force has said it does not carry or transport hay in aircraft as it is a fire and safety hazard. A spokesperson instead said the priority for farmers and the communities was aviation fuel. On Sunday, one of the C17s finally got on its way touching down in Mt Isa carrying over 10,000 litres of aviation fuel. Story continues From there, local pilots will be able to fill up and continue the life saving supply drops. Do you have a story tip? Email: y7newsroom@yahoo7.com.au. You can also follow us on Facebook and Twitter and stay up to date with the latest news with Yahoo7s daily newsletter. Sign up here. Seoul said Sunday it agreed to hike its payment for maintaining American troops on its soil, settling a dispute with its longtime ally ahead of a second summit between the US and North Korea. The two countries have been in a security alliance since the 1950-53 Korean war, which ended with an armistice rather than a peace treaty -- with more than 28,000 US troops stationed in the South to guard against threats from Pyongyang. But US President Donald Trump has repeatedly complained about the expense of keeping American forces on the peninsula, with Washington reportedly asking Seoul to double its contribution toward costs. The negotiations ended with South Korea's foreign ministry saying Seoul will pay about 1.04 trillion won (US$924 million) in 2019, 8.2 percent more than what it offered under a previous five-year pact which expired at the end of last year. The ministry said that although the US had demanded a "huge increase" in payment, they were able to reach an agreement that reflects "the security situation of the Korean peninsula". "The two countries reaffirmed... the importance of a strong South Korea-US alliance and the need for a stable stationing of the US troops," it said in a statement issued after a signing ceremony. The row had raised concern that Trump may use it as an excuse for US withdrawal. The US president and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un are expected to discuss an official declaration to end the decades-old war -- a prelude to a peace treaty -- at their second summit in Hanoi later this month. At their first meeting in Singapore last year, the notoriously unpredictable US president had made a shock decision to suspend US-South Korea military drills. But Trump told US broadcaster CBS last week that he had "no plans" to remove US troops from South Korea as part of a deal at the upcoming summit, although he admitted "maybe someday" he would withdraw them, adding: "It's very expensive to keep troops there." Since the deal is only valid for one year, the two sides may soon have to return to the negotiating table. Seoul contributed around 960 billion won last year -- more than 40 percent of the total bill -- financing the construction of American military facilities and paying South Korean civilians working on US bases. The deal will officially go into effect after it receives parliamentary approval in South Korea, which is expected to take place in April, according to Yonhap news agency. More than 28,000 US troops are stationed in the South to guard against threats from Pyongyang. Liverpool defender Andrew Robertson has laughed off suggestions that manager Jurgen Klopp is feeling the strain after the wobble that allowed Manchester City to return to the Premier League summit. Back-to-back 1-1 draws against Leicester and West Ham enabled City to edge ahead on goal difference before Liverpool reclaimed top spot with a 3-0 win over Bournemouth on Saturday as they chase a first top-flight title since 1990. But, Robertson said, the German manager is unflustered, despite seeing their lead disappear. "He has been calm and the backroom staff have been a different class," said the Scotland captain. "They are the team behind the team and they are the ones who keep us going and positive. "When people say he is nervous or we are nervous it couldn't be further from the truth. He's probably been more 'smiley'. He is just trying to get us going and it's obviously worked. "In terms of the players, we've not seen any difference in any of the staff and that feeds into the players and we've not changed. Whether we draw, win or lose it doesn't change." The performance against Bournemouth, who have now lost nine away matches in succession and have suffered 13 defeats in the past 18 matches in all competitions, showed a return to the high-energy pressing game and clinical counter-attacking that has been so successful for Liverpool. Sadio Mane scored in a fourth successive Premier League match for the first time and there were also goals for Georginio Wijnaldum and Mohamed Salah. Liverpool fly to Marbella on Monday for warm-weather training with their season firmly back on track. "I don't think it's a message to any other team or anything," said 24-year-old Robertson. "It's maybe a message to our fans and everyone connected to the club that we're here. "We fought for everything and got the result that we needed." Liverpool defender Andrew Robertson says Jurgen Klopp is staying calm despite the pressure International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde on Sunday met Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan and assured him that IMF stands ready to support his country. The meeting took place on the sidelines of the World Government Summit in Dubai, hosted by the United Arab Emirates, both IMF and prime minister Imran Khan's office said. "I reiterated that the IMF stands ready to support Pakistan," Lagarde said in a statement following meeting Khan. A team from the International Monetary Fund visited Pakistan in November to discuss a possible bailout with officials, though the talks ended without agreement, but since then the government official said talks were still ongoing on a possible bailout. Pakistan -- which has gone to the IMF repeatedly since the late 1980s -- is facing a balance of payments crisis. "I also highlighted that decisive policies and a strong package of economic reforms would enable Pakistan to restore the resilience of its economy and lay the foundations for stronger and more inclusive growth," said Lagarde, calling the meeting "good and constructive". Pakistan -- a regular borrower from the IMF since the 1980s -- last received an IMF bailout in 2013 to the tune of $6.6 billion. Forecasts by the IMF and World Bank suggest the Pakistani economy is likely to grow between 4.0 and 4.5 percent for the fiscal year ending June 2019, compared to 5.8 percent growth in the last fiscal year. Addressing the World Government Summit, prime minister Khan said his government has started a reform programme and was trying to improve its economic policies. "Reforms are painful but it is essential if we have to get out of our current problems," Khan told the summit and said his government was making efforts to cut down the fiscal and current account deficit. Khan hoped that the time has come that "Pakistan will take off". Khan has launched a highly publicised austerity drive since being sworn in, including auctioning off government-owned luxury vehicles and buffaloes, in addition to seeking loans from "friendly countries" and making overtures to the IMF. The United Arab Emirates, Pakistan's largest trading partner in the Middle East and a major investment sources, recently offered $3 billion to support Pakistan's battered economy. Islamabad also secured $6 billion in funding from Saudi Arabia and struck a 12-month deal for a cash lifeline during Khan's visit to the kingdom in October. It has also received billions of dollars in Chinese loans to finance ambitious infrastructure projects. Despite the pledges, the ministry of finance said Pakistan would still seek broader IMF support for the government's long-term economic planning. In January, Pakistan launched a new investment certificate for overseas citizens, aimed at easing the country's balance of payments crisis. Christine Lagarde met Imran Khan on the sidelines of the World Government Summit in Dubai Disgraced former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak has been out campaigning in recent weeks as if for an election, trying to shed the image of a wealthy, elite politician and elicit public sympathy before his corruption trial begins Tuesday. Najib has pleaded not guilty to charges of criminal breach of trust, abuse of power and money laundering, in what is set to be the first of many trials over suspected multibillion-dollar fraud at state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). The trial starts nine months after Malaysians voted Najib out of office in a general election dominated by public disgust over allegations about $4.5 billion was stolen from 1MDB, and about a quarter of it went into his personal bank accounts. Police found nearly $300 million worth of goods and cash at properties linked to Najib soon after the May 2018 election. Change of Image But as the trial date nears, Najib, who maintains his innocence, has sought a radical change of image, painting himself as a victim of a vindictive government led by Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad. The 65-year-old son of Malaysia's second prime minister is also trying to build an image as a folksy voice of working people, especially members of the ethnic Malay majority. Najib, in a viral video last month, crooned a Malay-language version of the 1970s hit "Kiss and Say Goodbye," surrounded by a chorus of somber young singers, criticizing Mahathir's coalition for failing to live up to election promises. "On May 9, 2018, I was ousted. All this time, I have been fighting with my life for the people I love. But what can I do?" an earnest Najib says of his "saddest day" in the introduction to the song. Najib has also been hitting out online. His jibes against ruling party politicians on Facebook and Twitter have some social media users referring to him as "King of Trolls." Desperately needed aid being stockpiled at Venezuela's door is at the heart of a political duel between the two men fighting to lead the oil-rich nation: Juan Guaido and Nicolas Maduro. Guaido, recognized as Venezuela's interim president by around 50 countries, has pressed the all-critical military to allow the mostly American humanitarian aid to reach the most vulnerable population, or around 300,000 people. Maduro insists the shortages plaguing the country are caused by Washington's punitive sections, and he has vowed to stop the "spectacle of fake humanitarian aid." The aid "is at the heart of the struggle between two pillars of power," political scientist Luis Salamanca told AFP. "This struggle is playing out as concerns the future of the armed forces. Guaido is trying to get the military on his side, while Maduro tries to keep it behind him." Using a tanker truck, two container trucks and barriers, the army has been blocking the Tienditas border bridge since Thursday. Several hundred meters (yards) from there on the Colombia side are the hangars where the emergency aid is being stockpiled. For John Magdaleno of the Polity consultancy, the confrontation between the two men is a "major event" that "is inevitably leading toward an escalation" between the government and the opposition, as well as between Maduro and the countries supporting his adversary. "In the end, it's in the hand of the United States. They are the ones who can use force," Magdaleno said. President Donald Trump's administration, which has insisted that "all options are on the table" -- has frozen the accounts of Venezuelan leaders and unveiled fresh sanctions to bar Maduro from accessing revenues from oil his country sells in the US. Before possibly resorting to force, Washington is exploring "all other options" first, Magdeleno said, adding that "this chapter on humanitarian aid foreshadows a far more significant escalation that could trigger a military intervention." However, Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs Kimberly Breier has insisted that the US has no intention of entering Venezuelan territory by force to distribute food and medicine. - Politicized aid - The United Nations said it's ready to send emergency aid to Venezuela, but only if Caracas agrees. "Humanitarian aid should never be used as a political pawn," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Thursday. Venezuela has faced a major political and economic crisis in recent years. Expropriations have hurt industry and oil production, which finances 96 percent of the national budget, thus reducing imports of basic goods. More than 80 percent of medicine and medical equipment are missing in a country that has the world's largest proven oil reserves, according to the pharmaceutical federation. There are constant cuts of basic services such as water and electricity. Maduro accuses the United States of setting up an "international coalition... to intervene militarily in Venezuela under the pretext of a non-existing humanitarian crisis." For the National Assembly's former president and opposition lawmaker Henry Ramos Allup, the government's refusal to allow humanitarian aid to enter the country "reveals once more to the world the regime's human rights violations." The anti-Maduro camp has also denounced the regime's decision -- while Venezuela grapples with such a dire situation -- to send 100 tonnes of humanitarian aid to Cuba to assist the communist island in the wake of a recent hurricane. The government faces a "strategic dilemma" because "regardless of its decision, it loses," Magdaleno said. If Maduro relents and allows the aid in, this means he finally acknowledges that there is, in fact a humanitarian crisis. "Maduro is going to put his foot down. It doesn't matter much anymore to him. He is playing a game that seems to be entering its last phase," which threatens his hold on power, said Salamanca. Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido's envoy Lester Toledo (C) speaks to the press as US humanitarian aid arrived in Cucuta, Colombia The Venezuelan army has been blocking the Tienditas border bridge, while several hundred meters (yards) away on the Colombia side are hangars where emergency aid is being stockpiled Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro insists the shortages plaguing the country are caused by Washington's punitive sections, and he has vowed to stop the "spectacle of fake humanitarian aid" Juan Guaido, recognized as Venezuela's interim president by around 50 countries, has pressed the all-critical military to allow the mostly American humanitarian aid to reach the most vulnerable population, or around 300,000 people Incredible images have revealed the stunning $55k off-grid tiny home of two British ex-pats in Australia. The couple shared numerous pictures online as they got to work building their very own tiny home last year and the progress inside as the interior took shape. Other photographs show the final product, with a wood burner the main feature of the living area, a dining table on the porch for al fresco dining and a modern kitchen. There is also a cosy bedroom overlooking the rest of the interior. Jan, 51, and Kevin, 52, originally from Littlehampton, West Sussex, UK, immigrated to Australia in 2007 with their three kids: Laura, 30, Sarah, 28, and Callum, 22. The family decided to downsize and started building their tiny home in January 2018 before moving in last September. A wood burner is a main feature of the living area in the off-grid tiny home. Source: Australscope We researched into downsizing and freeing up finances and came across the Tiny House movement, Jan said. Off-grid means that there are no bills moving forward and we are able to live away from the usual services and so more within nature. Jan said the minimalist lifestyle is very liberating. Source: @whytinyhouse/ Instagram Its only been a short while but we love it already, its very peaceful in the woods and we love being surrounded by nature. The minimalist lifestyle is very liberating, weve cleared out even more since we moved in and now only own things which we really need or love. The ex-pats decided to downsize and started building their tiny home in January 2018 before moving in last September. Source: Australscope The home is designed to be completely off the grid and doesnt require any connection to services. Solar panels on the roof and a sizeable battery storage system provides the home with an abundance of energy, while a large water tank efficiently collects rain-water for the home. Even though the house is on wheels we only plan to move it when we change locations probably every few years, Jan said. We have only been living here five months and so only just beginning to plan trips. We are off to New Zealand this month and then Thailand in April. Jan and Kevin, originally from Littlehampton, West Sussex, UK, immigrated to Australia in 2007 with their three kids. Source: Australscope Its a very individual choice to make and not for everyone. But if you think its a lifestyle you could live then go for it 100% as its not something you can do part time. Story continues The down scale has to be in every aspect of your life but no regrets here. More information can be found on the couples Instagram page. Australscope A camper is lucky to be alive after a midnight swim in South Australia came close to tragedy. Sam Eagle, 20, spent hours disoriented in the water by the Murray Mouth, in the Coorong, and says his desperate attempts to flag down a rescue chopper were in vain. One hundred per cent I dont know how Im still here, shouldnt be here, Mr Eagle said. His mates raised the alarm at midnight when he disappeared from their Coorong campsite. Sams friends raised the alarm at midnight when the 20-year-old disappeared from the campsite. Source: 7News He had gone for a dip, but was swept away by a treacherous tide. What followed was hours of trying to keep himself alive in pitch black water trying to get the attention of a barge. Remarkably Mr Eagle ended up crossing to the other side, coming to shore at Hindmarsh Island. The 20-year-old spent hours disoriented in the water but remarkably found land and was able to flag down a police car. Source: 7 News Sam ended up crossing to the other side and coming to shore at Hindmarsh Island. Source: 7News Didnt think I was going to come out but I just kind of kept moving, hoping to find some land nothing, nothing, then all of a sudden I found it, Mr Eagle said. But on land his attempts to signal the rescue chopper sent to find him failed. I had my watch turned up full and I was waving it and flashing it a bit but it didnt do much, obviously couldnt see me, he recalled. Sam Eagle explains he turned his watch up and was waving it to try to get the attention of the rescue helicopter. Source: 7News The 20-year-old slept there until the morning, before flagging down a police car that had been part of the search party. He could not wait to head home to Aldinga Beach. See my parents tell them I love them, he said. But the young man says the drama has not deterred him from camping at the Coorong again. Algeria's ailing President Abdelaziz Bouteflika is to seek a fifth term in April elections, state media announced Sunday, despite health issues that have kept him largely out of the public eye for years. The 81-year-old head of state, in power since 1999, declared his widely expected candidacy in a message to the nation that Algeria's official APS news agency said it would release later the same day. The president said he would set up an "inclusive national conference" to address "political, economic and social" issues and "propose an enrichment of the constitution", APS reported. Bouteflika, who uses a wheelchair and has rarely been seen in public since suffering a stroke in 2013, had remained quiet about whether he would be a candidate in the lead up to the April 18 poll. The country's ruling coalition -- which includes the president's National Liberation Front -- lent its backing to Bouteflika earlier this month. Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia has said Bouteflika's health was not "an obstacle" to performing presidential duties. Retired general Ali Ghediri, 64, was the first to announce his candidacy after the presidency set the election date. Algeria's main Islamist party, the Movement for the Society of Peace, will also take part, backing its candidate Abderrazak Makri. It has said Bouteflika would be unable to handle the demands of another term in office because of ill health. The country's oldest opposition party, the Front of Socialist Forces, announced on January 25 that it would not field a candidate and called for an "active, intensive and peaceful boycott". In power since 1999, 81-year-old Bouteflika uses a wheelchair and has rarely been seen in public since a stroke in 2013 Two of Bollywood's biggest stars have premiered "Gully Boy", a still rare female-directed blockbuster that pokes at enduring taboos, at the Berlin film festival. Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt threw their sizeable industry clout behind the tale, unveiled Saturday, of a couple yearning to break out of their Mumbai slum and traditional Muslim families to realise their dreams. "It's got commentary on the class divide, it's got commentary on choices young people make -- whether they want to be stuck in something that gives them no fulfilment versus pursuing their passion," said Singh, whose character Murad has a meteoric rise after posting his first rap video online. "I think it's got a whole variety of stuff embedded between the lines that may just have a positive social impact." Bhatt's character Safeena wears a traditional Muslim headscarf but resists her family's attempts to arrange her marriage and wants to become a surgeon. Murad and Safeena have loved each other since childhood but have to keep their relationship secret from their parents so they meet for illicit trysts. "You can't really be so sure about who may get offended or who may not," Bhatt said of the film's touchier subjects. "My character Safeena, I don't think that she has a problem wearing her hijab and I don't think she has a problem with her culture. What she does have a problem with though is not being able to be honest with her parents." - 'Flammable and volatile' - Singh, who does the rapping in the film inspired in part by Mumbai hip-hop stars Divine and Naezy, said it took nine months before he felt camera-ready. "I've been into rap and hip-hop since I was a little kid," he said. "I started out listening to MC Hammer and Vanilla Ice and Will Smith and graduated to a little bit harder gangsta rap like Tupac and Wu-Tang Clan and NWA then Eminem." The film sees Murad honing his talent and turning the squalor and tension of his home life into poetry until a popular local rapper convinces him to try hip-hop. But soon Murad and his mother get kicked out of their home by his violent father, who forbids him to perform and has taken a much younger second wife. In a stunning scene, Murad's father tells his mother that she is useless in bed and she shouts back: "You have never learned to touch a woman properly." "To me, him getting married the second time is not as flammable and volatile to me as the fact that his first wife cannot afford to leave," director Zoya Akhtar told AFP. "Because she's not fiscally empowered to leave and there's nowhere to go. That to me is the bigger problem. "The fact is, they shouldn't be taboo subjects because they exist and it happens." Akhtar, who recently made an episode of the Netflix series "Lust Stories" exploring female sexuality, said she was a "huge fan of hip-hop" as a music of liberation. "When I was editing my last film, my editor showed me a video of a 21-year-old kid called Naezy and he had recorded this track on a phone and it was put up on YouTube and he was singing about his life, his socio-economic space, his family and he had an insane flow, an incredible writing style and it was legit," she said. "I just realised there's an entire movement called Gully Rap -- gully meaning street, lane. This urban youth is not represented in the mainstream at all and they're telling stories." "Gully Boy" culminates in a rap battle to be the opening act in Mumbai for US rapper Nas, who served as an executive producer on the film. - 'A revolution' - Akhtar and her stars hailed a growing generation of female filmmakers in India. They also welcomed the gradual arrival in Bollywood of the #MeToo movement against sexual misconduct as well as the "Time's Up" campaign against industry sexism. "It's nothing short of a revolution and I think it's amazing. It really exploded and in that explosion there was some collateral damage," Singh said. "But I think it's a very significant point in history especially for a culture that has been patriarchal for eons." Bhatt agreed but said she feared a chilling effect in the industry. "Maybe now a man will think not twice, maybe 15 times before even suggesting inappropriate conversations or inappropriate gestures," she said. "(But) I hope now people don't start looking at this as an excuse to not work with a woman or not give a woman a position." Akhtar said the debate, which has recently seen major names in the industry face accusations, was a "conversation that had to happen". "I think that the women that came out and spoke were very brave. They did suffer a backlash but they shifted the consciousness and I thank them for that." Indian Bolywood actor Ranveer Singh (L) and British actress Alia Bhatt play a couple yearning to break out of their Mumbai slum Bhatt's character Safeena wears a traditional Muslim headscarf but resists her family's attempts to arrange her marriage and wants to become a surgeon Gigantic billboards advertising beer now dominate the skyline of Nigeria's megacity, Lagos, signalling the escalating battle between multinational brewers for drinkers in Africa's most populous country. So far it's a largely untapped market, with Nigerians consuming on average just nine litres (around 16 British pints) of beer a year, well below South Africans' 57 litres, according to market research firm Euromonitor. But with more than half of Nigeria's 190 million people aged under 30 -- and the population expected to grow to 410 million by 2050 -- the world's biggest beer companies are looking to elbow in. For years, Nigerian Breweries has dominated the sector with brands including Gulder, Star and top-of-the-range Heineken. However its iron grip on the market is under threat from mega-brewer Anheuser-Busch InBev. It recently opened a new factory outside Lagos and launched Budweiser to face off against Heineken, in a fierce contest for millennial drinkers being played out across Africa. Promotions have become an arms race among the beer companies as they host concerts, fashion weeks and boat parties to win over customers. Restaurant and club owners say they are being courted by the beer companies with unprecedented amounts of cash. "The big guys started noticing there was a new sheriff in town," AB InBev plant manager Tony Agah told AFP. "It's the beer wars." - 'Regulatory onslaught' - Agah walks through AB InBev's new factory, the largest in West Africa, located in a lush plot of land in Ogun state earmarked for industrial development. Green bottles of Trophy and brown bottles of Budweiser whizz by on automated production lines in a labyrinth of gleaming stainless steel. When AFP visited it was humid -- the air conditioning had yet to be installed -- with a smell like sweet breakfast cereal, a side-effect of fermentation. AB InBev built the factory to overcome significant logistical hurdles in Nigeria from potholed roads to spasmodic electricity and reach the neighbouring Lagos market. Outside, six generators produce 12 megawatts of electricity. "In a normal world I make beer but here I make beer and power," quipped Agah. Yet the biggest constraint in the eyes of executives isn't infrastructure but erratic government policy. Two years ago, there was a severe dollar shortage after the price of oil tanked and Nigeria tipped into a recession. At the height of the crisis, the government decided to introduce a currency peg, making matters worse for multinationals who have to import many raw materials. Add to that arbitrary rule changes and a tangle of red tape and you have what Nigerian financial journalist Ugo Obi-Chukwu described as a "regulatory onslaught". In November, for example, the National Lottery Regulatory Commission sealed the offices of Nigerian Breweries for running illegal lottery operations as part of a marketing promotion. - 'Comfortable in any battle' - But for all the headaches, the promise of Nigeria is too great to pass up. "The thing about the Nigerian market is that, long term, there are huge opportunities," said Nigerian Breweries marketing director Emmanuel Oriakhi. "There is a massive home brew category with people making all sorts of alcohol in their backyard, beer is an opportunity to premiumise their experience." Oriakhi is sanguine about AB InBev's investment in Nigeria. "We're very comfortable in any battle," he said with the confidence of having around 60 percent of the market share. "They're welcome and it makes the market interesting," he said with a smile. The AB InBev beer factory in Ogun State, outside Lagos AB InBev plant manager Tony Agah hopes to triumph in what he calls 'the beer wars' Nigerians currently consume an average of nine litres of beer a year, well below South Africans' 57 litres Australia's most populous state said Sunday it would embark on the "biggest overhaul of building laws" in its history, months after residents were evacuated from a recently completed Sydney high-rise apartment that made "cracking noises". There have been question marks hanging over New South Wales' building and construction industry after some 300 people in the 38-storey Opal Tower in the Sydney Olympic Park were evacuated on Christmas Eve after the cracking reports. Some residents have yet to return to their homes, while an initial investigation found there were a number of "design and construction issues" that could have led to the damage. The building moved "one to two millimetres" during the incident and authorities had said they found a crack on the 10th floor. The new regulations will require that designers, engineers and architects are registered, qualified, and held responsible for their work, in contrast to the earlier building code which only held builders accountable for any lapses. A building commissioner will be appointed to audit their work, and changes to property plans in the construction stage will not be allowed unless further approval is given. The new rules were drawn from recommendations from an independent report commissioned last year before the cracking crisis, but are seen as an effort to restore confidence in the sector after the public outcry. "They (the report's authors) found that there are national problems in the construction industry," NSW Minister for Better Regulation Matt Kean said in a statement. "We're making tough new laws to ensure buildings meet Australian standards, and to guarantee that people who build and design buildings have the proper qualifications to do so." Master Builders Association NSW's executive director Brian Seidler told The Sydney Morning Herald the changes were "very important" and a "very good set of reforms". The 392-unit Opal Tower opened last year and is near the site of the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Some 300 people in the 38-storey Opal Tower were evacuated on Christmas Eve after the cracking reports An Afghan asylum seeker allegedly inappropriately touched two female nurses after being rushed from Nauru to Australia for medical treatment. The 38-year-old man was being treated at Sydneys Royal North Shore Hospital last month when the alleged incident occurred. He also allegedly threatened to physically assault both the nurses after he found out they had complained to security. Police were called and charged the man with common assault, touching a person without consent, stalking and intimidating intending to cause harm. He will face a Sydney court today. Its likely this case will be used as ammunition by the government as it tries to block Wentworth MP Kerryn Phelps medivac bill, which would allow asylum seekers to be transferred to Australia on the advice of two doctors. Watch the full story above. Opponents of the Shinawatra political clan campaigned triumphantly in the Thai capital on Sunday, after a weekend of high political drama when a Thai princess' bid to be premier provoked a rare royal rebuke. Thai Princess Ubolratana's unprecedented attempt to become prime minister of Thailand was scuttled after her party agreed to comply with a command from her brother King Maha Vajiralongkorn on Friday, opposing her move to contest the upcoming election. The Thai Raksa Chart party, affiliated with the powerful Shinawatra political clan, had announced the princess as their candidate Friday morning -- a move which rattled the status quo and threatened the ambitions of the generals in power. The much-anticipated election is set for March 24 and will be the first since a 2014 coup. Members of the Phalang Pracharat party -- which is aligned with the military -- were jubilant following the weekend's upheaval and its party leaders took to the streets, campaigning in a 60-vehicle convoy, to tout their tradition-abiding credentials. "We won't work with a party that is not like us: respecting the laws... traditions and Thai customs -- something that Thai people are very strict about," party leader Uttama Savanayana told reporters Sunday, in a reference to the Thai Raksa Chart party. Perched on top of a truck driving in central Bangkok, Phalang Pracharat party leaders waved and yelled into mostly empty streets, peppered by occasional shop vendors. "We take this seriously! This isn't a play!" said Buddhipongse Punnakanta, a party member who recently left his position as spokesman for junta leader Prayut Chan-O-Cha. Prayut announced his interest in staying on as prime minister on Friday, submitting his candidacy under Phalang Pracharat -- but the move was overshadowed by Thai Raksa Chart's unorthodox candidate pick. The Election Commission will meet on Monday morning and is expected to discuss the future of Thai Raksa Chart, following the strong condemnation from the king. The Association for the Protection of the Constitution plans to file a petition to the commission to "investigate if Thai Raksa Chart Party's nomination of Princess Ubolratana is lawful and constitutional", said chairman Srisuwan Janya. "If (the commission) finds it to be unconstitutional, they should submit a case to the constitutional court to dissolve the party," he told AFP. A day after the party's swift response saying it "complies with the royal command" to retract the princess' candidacy, Thai Raksa Chart issued a statement Sunday saying their party policies remain unchanged. "We will keep moving forward in the election so that we can solve the problems for the people and country," the party said in a statement posted on Facebook. Opponents of the powerful Shinawatra political clan protested in Bangkok After sparking a scandal by recalling a racist episode from his distant past, actor Liam Neeson is now battling to save his career -- a task experts predict will be difficult but not impossible. More than 40 years ago, Neeson recently told The Independent of London, he was enraged to learn of a friend's rape by a man she said was black. In a candid interview he recounted how he spent days roaming city streets, a bludgeon in hand, looking for a "black bastard" he could "kill." His unvarnished words sent shockwaves across the media landscape, and while he went on to apologize -- insisting he was "not racist" -- far from everyone was satisfied. For the black director Ava DuVernay, whose films "Selma" and "13th" explored episodes in America's racially fraught history, Neeson symbolizes a sort of "white privilege" that will tolerate actions that would not be accepted from a black man. "Imagine if this was Will Smith," she tweeted. In the flareup of reaction on social media, some posters demanded that Neeson's scenes in the upcoming film "Men in Black: International" be reshot with another actor. "Don't be surprised if someone doesn't want to work with you," actress Regina King told The Independent. - 'Bad actions' - "Bad actions tend to be more damaging than bad words," said Joseph Cabosky, a University of North Carolina professor who specializes in public relations. "Neeson's is a bit of a unique case because it wasn't just what he said, i.e. an offensive opinion, but that what he said was attached to an actual behavior: his sharing of a time when he thought of actual violent behavior toward a black male." But several crisis management specialists said the television interview Neeson gave the day after the controversy erupted was, at least, a good start. "In a world where media is instant, you need to move quicker than ever before. Today's world where social media is omnipresent, you have to be very, very, very hyper-conscious," said Ronn Torossian, founder of the 5W PR agency. "He needs to continue to apologize and outright say that he made a mistake, rather than trying to defend his words or bring in more context. That's the only way to save his image," Torossian said. "Actions speak louder than words," said Steve Jaffe of Jaffe & Company, adding that Neeson needed to "be an active participant" in dialogue about racism. But that strategy, he and other experts caution, can work only if it is perceived as sincere and not opportunistic. "It's easier to hear an apology from a good person than it is from somebody who's just trying to save their job," said Jaffe, who has worked with Bill Clinton. - Others who came back - For now, none of Neeson's current projects appears threatened by the scandal. Several actors and directors have come to his defense, including black actress Whoopi Goldberg, who said on ABC's "The View," "You can't be surprised that somebody whose loved one is attacked is angry and wants to go out and attack." For Mark Hass, professor of strategic communication at Arizona State University, celebrities generally enjoy a special tolerance from the public. "I assume there will be a brief media storm that will pass as quickly as it arrived. That's how I predict the Liam Neeson situation will play out," Hass said. Beyond the world of cinema, musicians and politicians often enjoy relative impunity for their remarks, experts say. "Just look at the example of Donald Trump," said Hass, while noting that the situation is very different in the corporate world. "The difference is that CEOs usually have a board of directors who can fire them. Celebrities like Liam Neeson, Mel Gibson and Kanye West do not," Hass said. Actor and director Mel Gibson is cited by many as the ultimate example of a resurrection. Gibson, who has made homophobic, racist and anti-Semitic remarks and was accused of domestic violence, was in 2006 considered persona non grata in Hollywood. But after almost a decade in the desert, he returned with a flourish in 2016 and is again accepted as part of the Hollywood family. Actor Gary Oldman and rapper Kanye West have also seen their share of controversy but remained part of the scene. Cabosky cited the case of Kevin Hart, who late last year withdrew as host of the upcoming Oscar ceremony after being caught up in controversy over earlier homophobic remarks. "His film 'The Upside' came out a few weeks later and massively overperformed," Cabosky said. "Assessing actual damage to a star can be complicated and complex." Actor Liam Neeson, pictured in 2013, sparked a scandal by recalling a racist episode from his past Actor and director Mel Gibson, pictured in 2012, is cited by many as the ultimate example of a resurrection Actor Kevin Hart, seen here at the February 3, 2019 Super Bowl in Atlanta, saw huge success in a recent movie despite controversy over his past remarks This watchdog blog, by journalist Norman Oder, concerns the $6B project to build the Barclays Center arena & 15-16 towers at a crucial site in Brooklyn. Dubbed Atlantic Yards by developer Forest City Ratner in 2003, it was rebranded Pacific Park Brooklyn in 2014 after the Chinese government-owned Greenland USA bought a 70% stake going forward. In 2018, once the arena & four towers were built, Greenland bought out most of Forest City's stake, then sold three leases to other companies. The country has a strong and consistent record in supporting decolonisation efforts around the world through multilateral forums such as the UN and it was the first Pacific Island state to join the non-aligned movement, signalling its independence from global power struggles. Its commitment to self-determination is not limited to West Papua. Since independence, Vanuatu leaders have affirmed support for an independent New Caledonia, advocated the creation of a Palestinian state and were influential in the creation of the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) as a vehicle to support decolonisation in Melanesia and denuclearisation in the Pacific. Vanuatus staunch support for West Papuan independence is based on core principles of self-determination and non-alignment. These have been consistent values guiding Vanuatus conduct of its foreign relations since independence. PORT MORESBY - Recently, in Vanuatus lobbying efforts at the United Nations, foreign affairs minister Ralph Regenvanu reaffirmed his countrys support for West Papua. So what is the basis of Vanuatus position? Patrick Kaiku - ni-Vanuatu citizens are very sensitive to the plight of Melanesians in West Papua Throughout the 1980s, an impartial Vanuatu was flexible in reaching out to pariah states such as Cuba or Libya. As a non-aligned country, it has had more diplomatic space in its support of states subject to interference by the big powers. To best understand this level of consistency in Vanuatus diplomatic outreach, one must understand its history as first and foremost a Melanesian state whose traumatic experience under foreign rule was the basis for its anti-colonial struggle and support for self-determination in the global community. Vanuatus efforts in decolonisation are not limited to supporting self-determination. It also promotes Melanesian values and takes a critical approach to Western-oriented notions of development. For example, it promotes non-monetary indicators as authentic measures of development in the Melanesian context. It also upholds the use of indigenous knowledge in confronting emerging issues such as climate change and food security. Vanuatus steadfast commitment to principles of non-alignment and self-determination can be traced to its colonial past, the influence of its founding leaders and the uncertainties surrounding its transition towards independence. What this demonstrates is the ability of small states to punch above their weight on important global issues. Vanuatu must be taken seriously in the conduct of its diplomatic relations because it speaks from a collective national experience of being subservient to some of the worst forms of foreign control. This situation is not unique to Vanuatu. States and territories in the Pacific Islands that were subjected to exploitative forms of colonial rule and nuclear experimentation, such as the Marshall Islands, French Polynesia and Palau, speak with a moral voice on regional and global matters. Foreign policy in these countries is consistently guided by moral undertones. The New Hebrides (as Vanuatu was then called) attained Independence on 31 July 1980. Prior to formal colonial rule in 1906, the Queensland colony in Australia needed manpower for its sugar and cotton plantations. Vanuatu was one of the major sources of cheap labour giving rise to the unscrupulous practice of black-birding. Of the 62,000 Pacific Islanders kidnapped to work on plantations in Queensland in the late 1800s, the majority were ni-Vanuatu islanders. This drained Vanuatu of capable young men and was a source of cultural dislocation. The legacy of this period can still be seen through the efforts of South Sea Islander communities in Australia now reconnecting with their long-lost relatives in Vanuatu. After 1906, the New Hebrides was administered conjointly by two colonial powers Great Britain and France, a condominium as it is called. Patrol reports from the Anglo-Franco period demonstrate the utter confusion of ni-Vanuatu people. Walter Lini, the leader who saw Vanuatu to independence, in his autobiography would later refer to the condominium as a pandemonium. Even though Great Britain and France had joint jurisdiction over the New Hebrides, in practice this involved the maintenance of separate institutions in the colony. Because Vanuatu was administered by two European powers, local courts in the southern parts of Vanuatu administered cases using French law and in the French language. In the northern islands of Vanuatu, village courts were administered in the English language under the English legal system. There were separate police forces, laws, courts, education and health systems which were run in parallel. For the most part, ni-Vanuatu people were neither subjects of Great Britain nor France. The British and the French were there only to protect their own citizens. It was not until the 1960s that indigenous ni-Vanuatu were included in official colonial policies of the two European powers. Land speculation was another major sticking point in Vanuatus experience with colonial rule. ni-Vanuatu people were tricked into selling their land to foreign business interests. In 1971, an estimated 36% of the New Hebrides was controlled by foreign missionaries, planters and traders. The Nagriamel movement in southern Vanuatu had to petition the United Nations to directly intervene to stop further land sales to non-indigenous peoples. In the immediate rush to independence, the Santo rebellion challenged the unity of Vanuatu. Instigated by French planters and business interests, the leader of the Santo province, Jimmy Stevens sought to break from the Republic of Vanuatu. An expedition force from the PNG Defence Force quelled the rebellion and ushered in the newly independent Vanuatu. Vanuatus position in relation to West Papua is not ad hoc or reactionary posturing. It is not an attention-seeking state. It has a proven track record in its diplomatic relations and speaks from experience when it asserts fundamental principles of self-determination. Identity politics matters in the conduct of its foreign policy and Vanuatu is first and foremost a Melanesian society. Its founding leaders were ardent Melanesianists who promoted the idea of Melanesian solidarity in confronting external influence and support the underdog in the international system. Walter Lini had terrible relations with France, accusing it of instigating the secessionist movement in the province of Espritu Santo in 1980 and on three occasions expelling the French ambassador. Standing up to big powers is not a novel phenomenon to Vanuatu. In 2010, following a petition from ni-Vanuatu citizens, the Vanuatu parliament, in the words of Ron May, passed a motion, with bipartisan support calling for an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice on the legality of the 1962 agreement between Indonesia and the Netherlands on the status of West Papua and the legality of the 1969 Act of Free Choice. There is indeed consciousness amongst ni-Vanuatu citizens of the plight of Melanesians in West Papua and in the region. Given its history, it is unsurprising how Vanuatu conducts its foreign relations and promotes issues of self-determination in the global arena. Patrick Kaiku teaches in the Political Science Strand at the University of Papua New Guinea These festivals are increasingly recognised in PNG for their contribution to the growth of communities,. They revitalise the communication and celebration of indigenous culture, tradition and rituals. He said a policy submission to fund major cultural events will be out in parliament soon for debate and endorsement. PORT MORESBY - At the official opening of the Goroka Cultural Show last year, Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Emil Tammur told showgoers that Papua New Guineas major cultural events countrywide will now be funded directly from the national budget. Additionally, indigenous cultural festivals are often used as a drawcard to attract tourists and contribute to the development of the country. Local communities and the PNG government know that these festivals also facilitate the development of the countrys emerging tourism and event industry. Tourism has had little influence on the festivals, which are a relatively unspoiled resource. However, as tourism gains momentum, a key issue will be the extent to which it adopts the principles of sustainability. The safety of visitors is not the only issue associated with tourism. There are poor and unreliable support services like police and ambulance, various health risks, limited resources and infrastructure to support the cultural events, unreliable access to technology such as internet and expensive domestic travel costs. Australias official Smart Traveller website repeatedly mentions of the need to exercise caution while travelling in PNG, to maintain awareness of personal safety and to continuously monitor local media for warnings on new safety and security risks. In general, tourism development in PNG has failed to keep pace with the rest of the world. In the South Pacific, tourism represents a avenue for small island nations to increase their economic base, expand foreign exchange earnings and enhance standards of living for their people. PNGs share of the South Pacific regional market is tiny at only 5% of total arrivals and less than 2% of the holiday market. This indicates the low level of development compared to neighbouring countries. It also indicates the importance of the business market to PNG. This can be attributed to a lack of support for the tourism industry by the PNG government over the years. For example, the Mt Hagen Cultural Show has limited accommodation facilities that are booked out in advance so additional visitors arriving at the festival cannot find accommodation. Peter Kinjap is a freelance journalist, email pekinjap@gmail.com PLEASE NOTE! Due to the March 23, 2020 NM DOH Public Health Order, These Event Listings Are Not Accurate! All non-essential businesses are closed, public gatherings are prohibited! (One day some of these events will be rescheduled or will resume, but they are not happening now!) In 2019, the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine will conduct four military exercises with combat shooting from the Buk-M1, S-125, and S-300P / PT / V1 anti-aircraft missile systems. It is reported by the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. "The divisions will be called up to the area of combat training tasks suddenly, with standard armament and military equipment. Of course, the situation will look more than realistic. And that is the main task, "said the head of the anti-aircraft missile forces of the Air Force Command Colonel Yuriy Stavsky. The first combat shooting of anti-aircraft missile systems will take place as early as this month at the Yahorlyk training ground in the Kherson region near the occupied Crimea. In addition, anti-aircraft missile specialists will take part in the testing of new missile weapons and will carry out research launches of anti-aircraft guided missiles as part of research projects. After the search, the man was taken to Simferopol, where law enforcers copied all contacts from the phone and conducted an interrogation On February 8, Russian security forces searched pro-Ukrainian activist Oleg Prykhodko in the village of Orekhovo, Saksky district of Crimea. Prykhodko himself revealed the details to Krym. Realii. "They conducted a search on February 8. There was a whole crowd of security officials with weapons. They took away my computers and my cell phone, Ukrainian symbols, flags. They also took German automatic rifles models. They explained the search by the fact that the graves of the Soviet pilots were broken in Saky, a swastika was drawn. And for some reason they decided to come to me, Prykhodko said. Earlier the FSB of Russia came and searched Jehovah's Witnesses in annexed Crimea, as journalist Anton Naumlyuk reported on Facebook. The FSB officers hold the large-scale operation in Crimea: the searches and detentions take place at a few dozens of addresses of the suspected in the participation at Jehovah's Witnesses religious organization in Dzhankoy. Head of the local regional group of the Witnesses Syvash Serhy Filatov was detained, the message said. The criminal proceeding is opened against Filatov and all these people, possibly, connected somehow with the Ukrainian special services, at least, they were coordinated from Kharkiv center of Jehovah's Witnesses. However, the Ukrainian administrative center of the Witnesses was situated and still can be found in Briukhovychi, Lviv region. On November 8, Russian law enforcers held the search at the house of Khalil Ablyamitov, in the urban-type settlement of Azovske, Dzhankoy district of the Russian-occupied Crimea. After the search of at the apartment of the son of the house owner, Ablyalim Ablyamitov and his wife Aidzhan were taken to an unknown destination by the law enforcers. Czech Defense Minister Lubomir Metnar Open source Czech Defense Minister Lubomir Metnar said that if the U.S. decides to withdraw its troops from Afghanistan, the Czech Republic will do the same. It is reported by Novinky. If negotiations with the Taliban are successful and lead to internal political stability in Afghanistan, then security should improve. If it comes to reducing the number or complete withdrawal of American troops, then we will respond to it adequately. That is, if the Americans leave Afghanistan, we will also leave, the minister said. According to the minister, the Czech Republic is closely monitoring the progress of negotiations in Afghanistan, analyzing the development of the situation in this country and, on this basis, it is ready for the further actions. But so far no decision has been made. Representatives of the U.S. Congress have now stated that if Afghanistan remains under the same strong Islamist pressure, they will be against the withdrawal of troops. The command of the American army has a similar opinion, said Metnar. Open source The UN helicopter Mi-8 carrying Ethiopian troops crashed In Africa. This is reported by the Gulf Times. According to the news agency, the crash of an Ethiopian military helicopter took place on the territory of the United Nations complex in Abyei (UNISFA), between Sudan and South Sudan. There were 23 people aboard the helicopter. As a result of the crash, 3 crew members died, another 10 passengers were injured. Three people are in critical condition. Also, the agency claims that these troops flew from Kadugli. Investigative actions Upon the crash have already begun. The cause of the crash is still unknown. Earlier, in Spain in the province of Catalonia, two passenger trains collided. One person died and approximately 60 persons got different injuries. The crash happened between Manresa and Castellgali on February 8. After a frontal collision, one of the trains went off the rails and overturned. The movement on the rails was stopped. As a result of the crash, 26-six-years-old driver of the train died. Besides, 15 people were in critical condition, 15 were moderately injured, and 37 got minor injuries. Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra Open source The special services of Russia tried to destabilize the religious situation in Ukraine. They offered money to people who could set fire to the church buildings of the Moscow Patriarchate. Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has reported it on Facebook. The Security Service has managed to establish that the Russian special services are looking for people who can set fire to the church buildings of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP). They offered $ 2,000 for the arson, which they promised to transfer to a card account opened in one of the Ukrainian banks. The Russian special services promised to send money only after they see the video. The police issued orders to release previously detained far-right attackers, who came to disrupt the meeting of Yulia Tymoshenko under the guise of "public activism." Masi Nayyem, the lawyer, brother of MP Mustafa Nayem, reported about the release on his Facebook. The police officers issued orders to release previously detained activists under Article 208 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine and the possible violation of part 4 of Article 296 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The reason was the absence of enough pieces of evidence that could prove those people committed a crime, so thats why the activists were not recognized as suspects nor would be during the time they had been detained," Masi Nayyem said. It is emphasized that many investigation actions should be undertaken, but it is impossible to finish the investigation for 24 hours. The State Investigation Bureau (SIB) opened criminal proceedings after numerous accusations against the police in beating the far right near the office in Kyiv. The law enforcement officers detained people who stormed the police department in Kyiv and fought with the police, the Kyiv police reported on Facebook. The law enforcement officers saw a group of people with covered faces and chevrons of far-right C14 organization, included in the American terrorist base, on Kontraktova Square, Kyiv downtown, where the meeting of president's candidate Yulia Tymoshenko was taking place. They brought rubber-bullet handguns, Teren 4 pepper spray (carrying of which requires special permission), and knives. The police detained them and took them to the police station. Far right National Corps officially states that "C14 is filling the order from the pro-government structure of the president and Ukraine'sSecurity Service; in particular, skillfully taking advantage of the opportunity, at the moment the action by Katya Handzyuk. Yulia [Tymoshenko] has enlisted the support of [MIA head] Avakov and the Ministry of Internal Affairs." The politicians and publicity claimed this was not very brilliant idea One of the watercolors, entitled Ortschaft an Vorgebirgssee, depicts a village near a mountain lake CNN Several paintings, likely by Adolf Hitler, were put on sale in the auction in the German city of Nuremberg, CNN reports this. The five paintings and a wicker chair emblazoned with a swastika symbol that was also believed to have been owned by the dictator were among the items on sale at the Weidler auction house, the report said. One of the paintings was a watercolor depicting a mountain lake, which had a starting price of $51,000. The auction house was also forced to remove 26 artworks from sale over authenticity concerns. The police launched the investigation into certain persons "on suspicion falsifying documents and fraudulence." Public displays of Nazi symbols is illegal in Germany (except in certain educational or historical contexts). So, the auction house was obliged to blur out Nazi insignia and symbols in their brochure to comply with the German law. The Weidler auction house has sold a number of alleged pictures by Hitler in recent years, the most expensive one cost $147,000 in 2014. The United States should not rule out the possibility of the Russian military involvement in Venezuela, - the new head of U.S. Southern Command Craig Faller, Navy Admiral and the new head of U.S. Southern Command Voice of America Craig Faller, Navy Admiral and the new head of U.S. Southern Command, claimed that Russia reminded him a wounded, weakened bear thats just lashing out against democratic interests in the region. The voice of America reports this. I think with Russia, anythings possible, he said. Weve seen what theyve done (in Syria), and I think we have to be prepared for what might happen in the future. Besides, in some countries that are not democracies, like Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua the influence of Russia and China is rather vivid. That is why the department to the secretarys office to the National Security Council pays much attention to working on a strategic plan in order to achieve goals. The Admiral did not answer directly to the questions, whether there is a need for the peacekeeping mission to Venezuela. As we reported earlier, Ukraine has recognized the leader of Venezuelan opposition Juan Guaido as the head of the only democratically chosen body of the power of Venezuela, the National Assembly and the leader of the democratic opposition. On January 23, opposition leader Juan Guaido declared himself interim president. He was supported by many countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg called on the NATO countries, and in particular Germany, not to abandon the programs on the deployment of US nuclear weapons in Europe. He stated this to the Berliner Morgenpost. "This nuclear participation is important for NATO. And I urge as many Alliance partners as possible to participate in this nuclear integration, including Germany," said Stoltenberg. At present, there are about 20 B-61 nuclear bombs in Germany, each of which is three to four times as powerful as the bomb dropped on Hiroshima. They are located at the Air Force Base in Buchel, in Rheinland-Pfalz land. The exact number of nuclear weapons is unknown, and even the fact of the deployment of the nuclear bombs on the territory of the bases has not been officially confirmed. The enemy uses the Minsk-banned weaponry over and over again On February, 9, Russian militants attacked the Armed Forces of Ukraine 10 times; as a result, three Ukrainian servicemen were wounded in Donbas conflict zone. The Joint Forces Operation (JFO) HQ reported this on Facebook. In the East operational group action zone, the enemy fired with the 120 mm mortar near Pisky village, 82 mm mortar near Avdiivka town, automatic grenade launchers near Starohnativka settlement, easel anti-tank grenade launchers and small arms near Pavlopil village, heavy machine guns and small arms near Chermalyk village. In the North group area, the enemy attacked our positions twice with 120 and 80 mm mortar, infantry fighting vehicles BMP-1, automatic grenade launchers, heavy machine guns and small arms near Novotoshkivske village; with 82 mm mortar, automatic grenade launchers, easel and heavy machine guns near Krymske settlement; with grenade launchers of various systems and small arms near Travneve village, the report said. Three Ukrainian servicemen were wounded during the attack. According to surveillance, two Russian militants were killed and two more were wounded on February, 9. Also, according to the updated data, on February, 8, our defenders destroyed one enemys infantry fighting vehicle. Since February, 10, no attacks have been spotted. The illegal armed groups have three times violated the ceasefire in Donbas on February 10. This is reported by the press center of the Joint Forces Operation (JFO) headquarters on Facebook. Thus, in the area of East operational group action zone, the occupants fired at positions of our military with mortars of 82 mm caliber near Hnutove; used small arms near the Krasnohorivka settlement. In the area of North operational group action zone, mercenaries attacked Ukrainian positions with heavy machine-guns and small arms near the Svitlodarsk settlement. As a result of the hostile shellings, none of the Ukrainian soldiers was injured. In 2019, the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine will conduct four military exercises with combat shooting from the Buk-M1, S-125, and S-300P / PT / V1 anti-aircraft missile systems. It is reported by the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. "The divisions will be called up to the area of combat training tasks suddenly, with standard armament and military equipment. Of course, the situation will look more than realistic. And that is the main task," said the head of the anti-aircraft missile forces of the Air Force Command Colonel Yuriy Stavsky. The first combat shooting of anti-aircraft missile systems would take place as early as this month at the Yahorlyk training ground in the Kherson region near occupied Crimea. In addition, anti-aircraft missile specialists would take part in the testing of new missile weapons and would carry out research launches of anti-aircraft guided missiles. Afacerist din Reghiu, acuzat de o evaziune fiscala de sute de mii de lei Agentia Nationala de Administrare Fiscala are pretentii de sute de mii de lei de la un afacerist din Reghiu, dupa ce acesta in anii din urma ar fi eludat bugetul de stat. Barbatul in varsta de 41 de ani, care este cunoscut ca recidivist, a fost trimis acum [citeste mai departe] Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-11 05:32:08|Editor: yan Video Player Close WASHINGTON, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Special Representative for Afghan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad will lead an interagency delegation to Belgium, Germany, Turkey, Qatar, Afghanistan and Pakistan from Feb. 10 to 28, U.S. State Department said on Sunday. Khalilzad's upcoming trip is part of an overall effort to facilitate a peace process that brings all Afghan parties together in an intra-Afghan dialogue, according to a statement issued by the State Department. The statement noted that Khalilzad will consult with the Afghan government during the trip. At an event in Washington on Feb. 8, Khalilzad told an audience that he expected a final deal could be reached before Afghanistan's presidential election in July. Khalilzad, the former U.S. ambassador to Kabul, had a six-day consultation with Afghan Taliban last month in Qatar. The U.S. envoy said significant progress on vital issues was made during the meetings. However, he pointed out "a number of issues left to work out," saying that an agreement "must include an intra-Afghan dialogue and comprehensive ceasefire." Although the progress in Qatar was hopeful, analysts believed that reaching a final agreement is far from guaranteed, saying the Taliban still refuses to negotiate a political settlement with the Afghan government. There are about 14,000 U.S. troops currently deployed in Afghanistan, and the U.S. administration reportedly planned to bring half of them home. The death toll of U.S. service members in Afghanistan has surpassed 2,400 since the United States invaded the country in 2001. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-11 03:56:53|Editor: yan Video Player Close JERUSALEM, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that some of the money transferred by Israel to the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) will be frozen. Israel collects customs duties on goods exported to the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip via Israeli ports and then transfers the funds to the PNA. The levies amount to some 127 million U.S. dollars per month. Last year, the Knesset (parliament) passed a law under which the government could partially withhold these funds. The law was approved in response to payments that the PNA transfers to families of prisoners jailed in Israel for attacks of Israelis. "By the end of the week, the staff-work necessary for implementing the law on deducting terrorists' salaries will be completed," Netanyahu said at the start of the weekly cabinet meeting. "Next Sunday I will convene the security cabinet and we will approve the necessary decision to deduct the funds. Let nobody doubt, the funds will be deducted, at the start of next week," he said. Netanyahu's statement comes amid calls by right-wing leaders to withhold Palestinian funds in the wake of last week's killing of an Israeli young woman by a Palestinian man. The move also comes amid pre-elections period in Israel, as Netanyahu and other ministers are seeking to be re-elected in the April 9. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-11 03:51:52|Editor: yan Video Player Close AMMAN, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Jordan on Sunday warned against the impasse in efforts to resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, the state-run Petra news agency reported. In a meeting with visiting Saeb Erekat, secretary general of the Palestinian Liberation Organization, Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi underlined the need for action to create a new political horizon to resolve the conflict. The solution, he said, should be based on the two-state solution that ensures the rights of the Palestinians and leads to create an independent Palestinian state at the borders of 1967 with East Jerusalem as its capital. The two sides called for launching "serious and effective" international efforts to end the conflict in line with the international legitimacy resolutions and the 2002 Arab Peace initiative as the sole method for attaining lasting peace in the Middle East. Safadi said Jordan will continue to place all its capabilities and efforts to resolve the conflict to end the occupation and ensure that the Palestinians obtain their rights in living in freedom and dignity. Erekat voiced appreciation for Jordan's continued efforts to support the Palestinians. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-11 02:41:37|Editor: yan Video Player Close KAMPALA, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- At least four people were killed and seven others injured on Sunday when a commuter passenger taxi in which they were traveling plunged into a river in the eastern Ugandan district of Ngora, a police spokesperson in the region said. East Kyoga regional police spokesperson, Michael Odongo, told Xinhua by telephone that the tragedy occurred after a taxi traveling from the eastern district of Pallisa to Serere plunged into River Agu Bridge, along Ngora-Serere Highway. "We have recovered three bodies. Our police and local rescue teams are searching for a body of a nine-month-old baby who is missing," said Odongo. "The taxi driver was attempting to overtake another car in a corner approaching to the bridge. In the process he lost control, knocked the pavement and plunged into the river," he said. The spokesperson said the Chinese engineers of China Geo Engineering Corporation, constructing the Agu water treatment plant, used their excavator to pull out the commuter taxi and its occupants. He said the bodies of the deceased and the injured people were taken to Ngora Freda Carr hospital for postmortem and medical care respectively. "The accident was caused as a result of careless and reckless driving," said Odongo. Uganda registers about 20,000 road accidents each year, with some 2,000 deaths, making it one of the countries with the highest traffic death rates, according to police statistics. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 23:31:03|Editor: yan Video Player Close ADDIS ABABA, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Peter Sands, Executive Director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria on Sunday hailed the organization's health cooperation with China. Speaking to Xinhua in an exclusive interview on the sidelines of the 32nd African Union summit, Sands said the fund has been working with the Chinese government in the treatment and prevention of AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. The Global Fund is involved in the treatment and prevention of the three diseases in Asia, Middle East and Africa, and Africa takes up around 80 percent of the fund's 4 billion U.S. dollars annual expenditure in the health sector. "China does valuable contributions in the health area. China not only has the resources but also the technical expertise including the production of pharmaceutical drugs," said Sands. The fund sources medicines from Chinese pharmaceutical firms, he said, applauding Chinese success in fighting malaria, which serves as an example to Africa. He said the fund plans to showcase China's successful experience in fighting malaria to African countries struggling with malaria outbreaks. "Malaria is a good example of how China's strength can be leveraged even more effectively in African countries," said the Global Fund chief. The fund is also working with pharmaceutical manufacturers to make AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria medicines as well as diagnostic tools and bed nets more affordable to people in need. With the Global Fund also active in helping refugees and Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), Sands was keen to emphasize his organization wants to work with China to help the most vulnerable sections of the society. "Refugees and IDPs are vulnerable to infectious diseases, as they have reduced access to health services, live in confined situations and are under enormous stress," he said. The Fund is working with partners including government, UN agencies and international organizations to ensure treatment and prevention activities are given to vulnerable populations who are at risk of contracting infectious diseases," said the Global Fund chief. Sands said the organization believes the health partnership with China especially to help vulnerable populations in Africa is just beginning and has many promising initiatives to come. The fund's experience and network in the fight against malaria, tuberculosis and AIDS, combined with China's skills and expertise in the health sector, can further improve the health of people in Africa and beyond, said Sands. Founded in 2002, the fund is a partnership between governments, civil society, the private sector and people affected by the diseases. The fund raises and invests nearly 4 billion U.S. dollars a year to support programs run by local experts in countries and communities most in need, according to its website. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 22:50:53|Editor: yan Video Player Close BEIJING, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Criminal cases involving illegally taking public deposits or fund-raising have been increasing in China from 2016 to 2018, according to the Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP). Prosecutors charged 17,264 people for illegally taking public deposits or fund-raising fraud across the country in 2018. The number was higher than the 17,144 in 2017 and 16,406 in 2016, figures from an SPP report show. Procuratorates across China intensified the crackdown on such crimes in recent years because an increasing number of cases of illegal fund-raising involving extremely large sums of money had been reported. The crimes are being committed in more deceptive and complicated ways, such as in the disguise of so-called financial innovation, and online illegal fund-raising has also become common, according to the SPP. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 22:40:51|Editor: yan Video Player Close LAGOS, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, will on Feb. 16 vote to elect the president that will man the affairs of the nation for the next four years. According to the electoral body, more than 84 million Nigerians, representing about 42 percent of the country's 198 million population, have registered to vote in the general elections. The current figure is also about 15.2 million more than the total of 68.8 million Nigerians who voted in the 2015 general elections. The electoral body has green-lighted more than 70 presidential candidates to run for the presidency against incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari. However, according to Chris Ubani, an associate lecturer and political analyst based in Lagos, the 2019 presidential elections will be a two-horse race between two leading contenders - the incumbent President Buhari representing the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC), and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, the candidate of Nigeria's biggest opposition, the People's Democratic Party (PDP). Muhammadu Buhari (All Progressive Congress) Buhari launched in November 2018 his re-election campaign manifesto under the slogan of "Next Level 2019", in which he promises to build an even stronger nation for Nigerians. Buhari reveals five key campaign promises, including job creation, infrastructure development, ease of doing business, human capital enhancement and political inclusion. Buhari, a former military ruler, came to power in 2015 after defeating former President Goodluck Jonathan, becoming the first Nigerian opposition candidate to defeat an incumbent president in an election. Besides the incumbency factor to rely on, Buhari also has a fanatical follower-ship in his northwest base which transcends to the northeast including Adamawa where Atiku hails from. Apart from that he is seen as having done much to rid the region from the scourge of terrorists whose activities has become worrisome to the people of the area. He will also be helped by the fact that most of the states in the region like Borno, Yobe, Adamawa and Bauchi are all under the control of his Party. His pairing with Yemi Osinbajo who is from the Bola Tinubu political camp also gives him an advantage in the southwest. While campaigning, Buhari asked Nigerians to re-elect him in 2019, primarily to keep fighting the corruption war his administration started in 2015. He also stated that his commitment to the provision of infrastructure, reviving the economy and sustaining the anti-insurgency war would be re-doubled if given a second opportunity. Buhari was born to a Fulani family on December 17, 1942, in Daura, the northern state of Katsina. He is the twenty-third child of his father. Buhari enrolled at age 19 in a military training college, beginning his long military career which witnessed his promotion as the military took over power several times after Nigeria's independence. In 1983, he became head of state after a coup against the elected government of Shehu Shagari. Buhari justified the military's seizure of power by describing the civilian government as hopelessly corrupt and the need to correct economic decline in Nigeria. In August 1985, Buhari was overthrown in a coup led by Ibrahim Babangida and other members of the then ruling Supreme Military Council. He was then detained in Benin City until 1988. After his release in December 1988, Buhari returned to a civilian life. He unsuccessfully ran for the office of president of Nigeria in the 2003, 2007, and 2011 general elections. The 2015 election victory was aided by the fact that he contested on a party that was made a truly national platform through mergers and defection of some PDP governors. The projects and appointments allocated to the southeast geopolitical zones in the country by his administration like the commencement of construction work on the second Niger bridge will also give him an advantage in the southeast. Buhari will however have a hard time in some states in the northcentral zone due to the lingering issue of herdsmen-farmers clashes. Other states like Kwara, Kogi and Nasarawa are not strongly rooted in the APC. There's also much work for the APC to do in the South-South to win the votes there as this is the region the former President Goodluck Jonathan hails from. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 22:10:47|Editor: mmm Video Player Close Qiu Huifang, a world champion of Tai Chi competition, performs Tai Chi during a Spring Festival tour by Chinese arts troupes in San Francisco Bay Area, the United States, on Feb. 9, 2019. The Chinese Arts Troupes Spring Festival Tour in America started here Saturday. (Xinhua/Dong Xudong) SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- More than 1,000 overseas Chinese in Silicon Valley enjoyed their three-hour, laughter-filling time so much that they didn't leave their seats even after a Chinese arts troupe presented their closing performance on Saturday's Spring Festival gala. The star-studded party, a non-profit event to celebrate China's Spring Festival for overseas Chinese in Northern California, featured many Chinese golden oldies, a fashion show of the red Cheongsam (body-hugging one-piece Chinese dresses), comic skits, Xiangsheng (aka Crosstalk Comedy), and Chinese Kung Fu. Led by Chen Zhenglei, a key champion of the national intangible cultural heritage in China, five Tai Chi masters made a special appearance at Saturday's event as they were in San Francisco on their first stop of the China Tai Chi Culture World Tour. They made a demonstration show of both Chen-style and Yang-style Tai Chi -- two of the five traditional family styles of the 400-year-old martial arts, which drew a round of thunderous applause for their perfect performance of the Chinese Kung Fu. Wang Donghua, Consul General of China in San Francisco, said that Spring Festival is the most celebrated event of China, also a time for family reunions and the assemblage of friends. "The gala tonight is a really primary time of reunion that brought together the overseas Chinese in the Bay Area, particularly from the Silicon Valley, which is a special welcome created by the Chinese arts troupe," he said. "Culture, as a key part of the China-U.S. relations, plays an important role in enhancing mutual understanding and trust between the two countries and peoples," he said, adding that the gala is a significant step that helps to bring the two cultures closer in the new year of 2019. Many of the yesteryear songs triggered a bout of homesickness, said Yan He, one of the organizers of Silicon Valley Root-Seeking Camp, a non-profit group dedicated to help the younger generations of the U.S. overseas Chinese explore their home country. "The performance rekindles a familiar feeling deep in my heart, and many of the second generation of overseas Chinese, mostly born in the United States, have only a limited knowledge about China and Chinese culture," she said. "The event like Saturday's gala can have a subtle but invisible, persistent impact on the second-generation Chinese Americans in developing a sense of identity about the Chinese background rooted in the culture of the home country of their parents," Yan explained. Yan Zhao, a newly-elected Chinese American council member of Saratoga city in Santa Clara County of Northern California, said she has lived in the United States for more than 30 years, but that it was still exciting to watch the high-quality performance by the Chinese artists. "Culture is the best bridge to increase understanding and communication between peoples while it decreases hostility... For both China and the United States, culture matters in their communication," she said. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 21:35:42|Editor: mmm Video Player Close Tourists visit Pingyao, a tourist attraction in north China's Shanxi Province, Feb. 10, 2019. China's domestic tourism revenue gained 513.9 billion yuan (about 76.21 billion U.S. dollars) during the week-long Spring Festival holiday that ends Sunday, an annual increase of 8.2 percent, according to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. A total of 415 million trips were made across the country during the holiday, rising by 7.6 percent year on year, according to the ministry. Traditional culture was one of the travelers' favorites during the holiday, as a survey by an institution under the ministry showed that about 40 percent of the travelers had visited museums on their trips. During the Spring Festival holiday last year, 386 million trips were made domestically, contributing to an increase of 475 billion yuan in China's travel revenue. (Xinhua/Liang Shengren) BEIJING, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- China's domestic tourism revenue gained 513.9 billion yuan (about 76.21 billion U.S. dollars) during the week-long Spring Festival holiday that ends Sunday, an annual increase of 8.2 percent, according to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. A total of 415 million trips were made across the country during the holiday, rising by 7.6 percent year on year, according to the ministry. Traditional culture was one of the travelers' favorites during the holiday, as a survey by an institution under the ministry showed that about 40 percent of the travelers had visited museums on their trips. During the Spring Festival holiday last year, 386 million trips were made domestically, contributing to an increase of 475 billion yuan in China's travel revenue. Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya speaks to the United Nations Security Council meeting on the situation in Venezuela, January 26, 2019 at the United Nations in New York. (AFP PHOTO) MOSCOW, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- The dismantling of an arms control system by the United States might result in unpredictable consequences, Russian Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya has said. "Look what is going on in the disarmament field. The Americans tend to totally dismantle the arms control system which will evolve into an absolutely unpredictable scenario," Nebenzya was quoted by Tass news agency as saying in an interview with Russian TV Channel One on Saturday. He said that Washington is working on "an uncontrolled buildup of their weapons," which ratchets up the threat of an unexpected conflict. "It is extremely incomprehensible how this will end up," Nebenzya said. The diplomat noted that the world still faces disagreements stemming from the Cold War era, and that is one of the main reasons the West is disappointed that Russia has started to implement an independent foreign policy. "They cannot, like back in the 1990s, come to the Kremlin through the backdoor and dictate how we must behave and what we must do," Nebenzya said. On Feb. 1, the U.S. administration announced that the United States is withdrawing from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty with Russia within six months, starting from Feb. 2. Following the U.S. decision, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced on Feb. 2 that Russia will also suspend its participation in the INF Treaty. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 21:20:39|Editor: Xiaoxia Video Player Close KABUL, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Afghan security forces have stepped up pressure on Taliban outfit in the northern provinces as 10 militants have been killed and 12 others captured in a single day on Sunday, officials said. In crackdown on militants, the government forces attacked Taliban positions in Sayad district of the northern Sari Pul province early Sunday, killing 10 militants and injuring five others, provincial government spokesman Zabihullah Amani has confirmed. Amani has also confirmed that the fighting had left seven security personnel dead and five others sustained injuries. The Taliban militants, the official asserted have fled the area. Similarly, the government forces in operations against Taliban fighters in Khawja Sabzposh district of the northern Faryab province have captured 10 armed insurgents including two local commanders Mullah Azatullah and Mullah Gul Ahmad, said a statement of National Directorate for Security or the country's spy agency. Two more Taliban militants who were in charge of target killing in the northern Kunduz province were arrested in the provincial capital Kunduz city on Sunday, deputy to provincial police chief Safiullah Mahzon told Xinhua. Afghan forces, according to the security officials, would continue to keep on pressure on anti-government militants in the chilly winter to reduce the military capabilities of the militant groups before spring which is known as fighting season in Afghanistan. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 21:05:36|Editor: mmm Video Player Close KATHMANDU, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Escape from congestion, cold and crowd, celebrate your new year in Nepal where summer is cool and winter is warm. It is the message that Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) conveyed to the Chinese people during the ongoing holiday of Chinese Lunar New Year, or Spring Festival. As China has emerged as second largest source market for Nepal's tourism sector in the recent years after India, the Himalayan country is making every effort to bring in Chinese visitors. "Many activities are being organized on the occasion of Chinese New Year in Nepal in cities like capital Kathmandu and western tourism city Pokhara," Deepak Raj Joshi, chief executive officer of NTB told Xinhua last week. Chinese Spring Festival began on Feb. 5 and the Chinese people travel to different destinations during the week-long holiday as a large number of people choose Nepal. Kathmandu, Pokhara and Chitwan are common destinations for most of the Chinese tourists visiting Nepal during the Spring Festival. Chinese airlines have reported almost full occupancy while Nepal's travel trade sector has also reported a surge in Chinese visitors during the Spring Festival. Rashika Shrestha, sales and reservation supervisor at China Eastern Airlines Office in Kathmandu, told Xinhua on Sunday that the China Eastern has occupancy remained almost full in the recent days. During the festival season, Nepali travel sector has a busy schedule managing the Chinese tourists. Kishor Raj Pandey, chairman of Saathi Travel, has been organizing trips for seven groups of Chinese tourists, each consisting of around 15 people. "We organize trips for maximum 3-4 groups in normal days in a week. We are now dealing with seven groups this week as more Chinese visitors came to Nepal during the New Year holidays," Pandey told Xinhua. Saathi is a pioneer travel agency in bringing in Chinese tourists since early years of this century. Similar is the experience of Shuang Qi Tour Pvt. Ltd, a tour agency dealing with Chinese tourists in Nepal. "Normally, we deal with 400-500 Chinese visitors in a month. We are organizing trips for around 500 visitors in a week-long holiday of this Spring Festival," Bishwesh Shrestha, managing director of Shuang Qi Tour, told Xinhua last week. SNT Holidays, another travel agency, has also witnessed upswing in Chinese visitors for the New Year. "More Chinese tourists have come to Nepal this Spring Festival. We are seeing surge in arrivals of individual visitors compared to those who come in a group this time around," said Sri Ram Thapa, managing director of the company. Nepal's travel trade sector has been organizing the welcome ceremonies and handing out greeting cards and gifts for the Chinese visitors coming to Nepal during the New Year. Hotel Annapurna, a five-star hotel in Kathmandu, has also prepared special menu targeting the Spring Festival. According to hotel officials, around five percent of the rooms have been occupied by Chinese tourists currently. "Although occupancy from Chinese visitors is not so high, they are all high-end visitors," Atma Khanal, sales executive at the Hotel. Although arrivals of Chinese tourists have grown during the Spring Festival, Nepali travel trade sector believes that number could grow even higher if the airfare for Chinese visitors coming to Nepal becomes cheaper. "Chinese tourists complain about high airfare although travel package within Nepal is relatively cheap," said Thapa. Therefore, Nepali travel industry officials insisted that there should be more competition among the airlines connecting Nepal and Chinese cities. As Nepal celebrated arrivals of over 1 million foreign tourists in a year for the first time in 2018, a record 153,602 Chinese tourists visited the country in that year, a rise of 46.8 percent compared to 2017. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 20:50:33|Editor: mmm Video Player Close BRUSSELS, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese Embassy in Belgium on Sunday dismissed recent local media report about alleged Chinese espionage in Brussels as an outright fabrication. Responding to the news report by some local media alleging that "there are about 250 Chinese spies active in Brussels," a spokesperson of the Chinese Embassy in Belgium said the report "is an outright fabrication without any evidence." "China and Belgium now enjoy a steadily growing relationship and fruitful cooperation across all fields. China is committed to developing sound relations and cooperation with Belgium and all other countries on the basis of mutual respect, equality and mutual benefits," the spokesperson said in a statement. "Some specific irresponsible remarks aimed to maliciously discredit China, mislead and deceive the public, impair and disrupt China's relations with Belgium and Europe will never succeed," said the spokesperson. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 20:50:33|Editor: mmm Video Player Close BEIJING, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Border inspection agencies across China have seen more than 12.5 million entry and exit trips made during the week-long Spring Festival holiday that started Monday, an increase of nearly 11 percent than that of last year, the National Immigration Administration (NIA) said Sunday. Inbound trips exceeded 6.22 million, rising by about 9.5 percent than the figure of 2018, while outbound trips increased by nearly 12.5 percent to over 6.31 million, according to the NIA. Over 7.22 million entry and exit trips during the holiday were made by mainland residents for personal purposes, including traveling and visiting family members, growing by nearly 16 percent year on year. Destinations visited most included Thailand, Japan, Vietnam, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, Malaysia and the United States, as well as Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, the NIA said. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 20:20:28|Editor: Xiaoxia Video Player Close QALA-E-NAW, Afghanistan, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- A total of 12 people including 11 militants and one government soldier have been confirmed dead as clash erupted in Ab Kamari district of the western Badghis province on Sunday, provincial government spokesman Jamshid Shahabi said. The clash, according to the official, broke out in Mubarak Shah area early Sunday and lasted until 06:00 a.m. local time and the militants retreated after leaving 11 bodies behind. One soldier has also been killed in the firefight, the official admitted. Fifteen more militants and three security personnel have been injured in the fighting, said Shahabi. Shahabi also added that the government forces would continue to target the militants elsewhere in Badghis province. Taliban militants haven't commented. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 20:15:27|Editor: Xiaoxia Video Player Close ADDIS ABABA, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday identified peace and security as well as climate change as the two major challenges the African continent presently faces. The UN chief made the remarks while addressing the opening session of the 32nd African Union (AU) assembly summit, which is underway from Feb. 10 to 11 at the headquarters of the AU in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa. "On peace and security, strong winds of hope are blowing across the African continent," Guterres said. According to Guterres, the AU's efforts to "silence the guns" by 2020 are gaining ground. He also stressed that the UN's surge in diplomacy for peace is producing results. "The fruits of our strategic partnerships are making a difference. Ethiopia and Eritrea have signed a historic peace accord," Guterres said, as he described some of the strategic cooperation areas among the UN and AU. Noting UN's growing support to peace operations in Africa, the UN chief also reiterated that the recently launched Action for Peacekeeping initiative would "enable our missions to be more effective, better equipped, safer and more robust." Guterres also stressed that durable peace and security cannot be achieved without sustainable development. "All our gains in peace and security need to be consolidated by addressing the root causes of conflict," Guterres said, adding "The UN is strongly committed to supporting the AU's Agenda 2063 and the 2030 Agenda," Guterres said. "The global community is falling behind in addressing two key challenges: meeting the Sustainable Development Goals and tackling climate change," he added. "The world is not moving far enough, or fast enough, to translate the promise of the SDGs into reality," Guterres said, adding that "At present trends, we will only get half the job done." The UN Secretary-General, who dubbed climate change as the "mighty challenge before us," said that the challenge is still moving much faster than our efforts to slow it." "Just this past week, the World Meteorological Organization confirmed that the last four years have been the hottest since records began, emphasizing the urgency of accelerated climate action," he said. Guterres also indicated that climate change's existential threat is in particular higher in Africa, as it shoulders some of the heaviest burden despite its least responsibility for the crisis. According to Guterres, global emission has continued to rise and the essential target of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees "becomes ever more elusive." "We need more ambition - ambition on adaptation, ambition on mitigation, ambition on finance and ambition on innovation," he stressed. The UN chief also acknowledged some of the progresses in Africa and the rest of the world with regard to climate change, peace and security as well as sustainable development. "Great challenges remain, but winds of hope are blowing throughout our shared agenda," Guterres said. "Africa is on the move and there are real reasons for optimism. The United Nations will continue to work together with you for a peaceful and prosperous future for all Africans," he added. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 20:15:27|Editor: mmm Video Player Close BEIJING, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Sunday sent a congratulatory message on the holding of the 32nd African Union (AU) summit in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa. Calling the AU a banner of unity and strength, Xi said that since last year, under the leadership of AU, African integration process has made significant progress, African countries have continued to speak in one voice on major international and regional issues and Africa's global influence has increasingly grown. "I warmly congratulate the AU on the progress and sincerely wish that it will continue to unite and lead African countries towards new and greater achievements," Xi said. Xi stressed that in September last year, the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) was a huge success, during which he joined hands with leaders of the African countries and the AU to draw a blueprint for the development of China-Africa relations. China is willing to work with Africa to implement the FOCAC Beijing Summit outcomes, promoting the alignment of the joint construction of the Belt and Road with the implementation of the AU Agenda 2063, the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda as well as other development strategies of African countries, Xi said. By doing so, the two sides will build a closer China-Africa community to contribute more to the building of a community with a shared future for mankind, Xi added. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 20:10:26|Editor: Xiaoxia Video Player Close ADDIS ABABA, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday called for concerted efforts towards uniting the Libyan people to advance the political process and reconciliation among the various factions in the North African nation. "The ceasefire in and around Tripoli brokered by the United Nations is still holding," the UN chief told African leaders who have gathered at the headquarters of the AU in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa for the 32nd African Union (AU) assembly summit from Feb. 10 to 11. "It is the time to help unite the Libyan people to advance the political process through a National Conference paving the way for reconciliation and future elections," Guterres said, urging African leaders to step up efforts under the umbrella of the AU. "Our efforts have helped stabilize the currency, brought some measure of economic relief and enabled a realistic prospect for security reform," Guterres added, as he outlined some of the positive developments in Libya. "All this represents remarkable progress in conflict resolution in Africa. A similar story is unfolding with respect to prevention," he said. He also commended the sacrifices of the African soldiers in AU's mission in Somalia (AMISOM), the G5-Sahel Joint Force, and the Multinational Joint Task Force in the Lake Chad Basin. According to Guterres, African peace operations require robust mandates from the UN Security Council together with predictable and sustainable financing, including assessed contributions. "You can count on my continued full support," the UN chief said. Guterres also welcomed the recently signed peace agreement in the Central African Republic (CAR), the first peaceful transition of power in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) since the country's independence in 1960, as well as the successful presidential elections in Mali and Madagascar. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 20:05:25|Editor: Xiang Bo Video Player Close WASHINGTON, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- A new challenge which involves throwing boiling water into supercold air and watching it instantly freeze in mid-air has gone viral on social media, but at a price. Hashtagged "Boiling Water Challenge", this popular "winter experiment" which has dominated Twitter and Instagram in the past few weeks as the polar vortex gripped large parts of the United States, is also sending people to emergency wards. So far eight people have been hospitalized at the burn center of Chicago's Loyola University Medical Center because of having "thrown caution to the wind," center spokeswoman Chris Vicik said. They had frostbite injuries to their "feet, arms, hands, face, with varying degrees of burns" she said. The spectacular frosty mist, as shown in tweets by successful challengers, is tempting to try, but don't get tricked. Looking good does not mean it is "safe" to perform since "factors such as wind, gravity, the force of throwing are all at play," doctors warned. Nor does it mean bystanders are safe. A toss of hot water can easily end up back in your face or in others' faces, whether by accident or simply out of pranks. And even if they don't get scalded, people could also risk suffering a frostbite with sprayed water rapidly freezing on their exposed skin, doctors added. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 20:00:25|Editor: Xiaoxia Video Player Close ADDIS ABABA, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- The world has drawn constant inspiration from Africa's leadership and vision towards finding lasting solutions to forced displacement, the United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Sunday. "In the search for durable solutions to forced displacement, the world and, indeed, I personally have drawn constant inspiration from African leadership, African vision and African compassion," Guterres told the opening session of the 32nd Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union (AU), slated for Sunday and Monday at the headquarters of the AU in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa. Noting that the African continent presently hosts nearly a third of the world's refugees and internally displaced persons, Guterres said that "despite the continent's own social, economic and security challenges, Africa's governments and people have kept borders, doors and hearts open to millions in need." "Africa has set the gold standard for solidarity," Guterres said, as he singled out AU's continental 1969 OAU Refugee Convention, which he said "goes beyond even the landmark 1951 Refugee Convention by expanding the definition of a refugee." According to the UN Refugee Agency, UNHCR, Sub-Saharan Africa currently hosts more than 26 percent of the world's refugee population, while the number has soared in recent years, partly due to ongoing crises in the Central African Republic (CAR), Nigeria, South Sudan, as well as new conflicts that have erupted in Burundi and Yemen. The UN chief also commended African leaders for their adoption of the 2009 Kampala Convention on Internally Displaced Persons as "the first and only regional convention of its kind." According to Guterres, Africa's leadership to secure the adoption of two pivotal global compacts last year on refugees and on safe, orderly and regular migration was vital. "Over many years, it has become clear to me: Africa's generosity to those seeking havens from war and persecution is unmatched," the UN chief said, indicating that welcoming refugees and displaced people has not been the same case elsewhere. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 19:45:22|Editor: mym Video Player Close United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres delivers a speech at the 32nd African Union (AU) summit of heads of state and government in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Feb. 10, 2019. The 32nd African Union (AU) summit of heads of state and government opened on Sunday at the AU headquarters in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa. The two-day session is held under the theme of the year 2019, "Refugees, Returnees, and Internally Displaced Persons: Towards Durable Solutions to Forced Displacement in Africa." Issues related to forced displacement and refugees in Africa as well as the ongoing reform of the Union, peace and security are among the top agendas of the summit. (Xinhua/Li Yan) ADDIS ABABA, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- The 32nd African Union (AU) summit of heads of state and government opened on Sunday at the AU headquarters in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa. The two-day session is held under the theme of the year 2019, "Refugees, Returnees, and Internally Displaced Persons: Towards Durable Solutions to Forced Displacement in Africa." Issues related to forced displacement and refugees in Africa as well as the ongoing reform of the Union, peace and security are among the top agendas of the summit. In his opening remarks, the Chairperson of the AU Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, has urged redoubled efforts to build on the progress achieved in different areas, including continental free trade areas, peace and security, the institutional and financial reform of the Union. At the opening of the summit, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi takes over the rotating chair of AU from President Paul Kagame of Rwanda. The leaders in attendance of the summit have witnessed the inauguration of a commemorative statue of former Emperor Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia in recognition of his contribution to Africa's liberation and unity leading up to the founding of the then Organization of African Unity (OAU), now AU, in 1963. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 19:40:20|Editor: Xiaoxia Video Player Close MOGADISHU, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Somali National Armed Forces killed 30 al-Shabab militants in a joint operation in Jamame in Somalia's southern region of Lower Jubba, officials said on Saturday evening. Said Jogsade, Jubaland's operational spokesman told journalists that Somali National Armed Forces backed by Jubba land forces and U.S. Africa Command killed 30 al-Shabab extremists in an operation in Jamame town in Lower Jubba. "The joint forces conducted offensives in Jamame killing 30 al-Shabab fighters. We will intensify the operations to root out the terrorists from our region," Jogsade said. Residents in nearby towns said they heard the sound of heavy weapons. "We heard blasts in Jamame and learnt that al-Shabab fighters in the town were attacked by government forces," Jibril Adam, a resident told Xinhua. Government forces have been on major operations to flush out al-Shabab militants from central and southern regions. The remarks came hours after the U.S. military said it has carried out a new air strike against al-Shabab to reduce the threat against its partners in Somalia and prevent al-Shabab from plotting terror attacks across the country. The U.S. Africa Command said in a statement on Saturday that Friday's strike hit near Kobon, not far from the port city of Kismayo in southern region. Even though the U.S. army did not give the number of casualties in the Friday strike, independent sources said at least eight insurgents were killed. According to Africom, Kobon has been used to stage attacks against Somali forces. Somali National Armed Forces backed by African Union Mission in Somalia ousted al-Shabab from the capital Mogadishu in August 2011, but the terror group is still in control of several areas in southern Somalia and capable of conducting attacks. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 19:26:38|Editor: mmm Video Player Close A girl is dressed in traditional Chinese costumes at a fair inside CHQ (Custom House Quay), a landmark building in downtown Dublin, Ireland, Feb. 9, 2019. A two-day fair to celebrate the Spring Festival or the Chinese Lunar New Year kicked off here on Saturday. (Xinhua) Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 18:55:14|Editor: Xiaoxia Video Player Close Photo taken on Feb. 9, 2019 shows the damaged speedboat (L) at sea area near the Phuket Island, Thailand. A total of 11 Chinese tourists and two crew members were injured after a tourist speedboat crashed with an oil barge near Thailand's southern Phuket Island on Saturday afternoon, the Chinese Consulate-General in the southern province of Songkhla confirmed on Sunday. (Xinhua) BANGKOK, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- A total of 11 Chinese tourists and two crew members were injured after a tourist speedboat crashed with an oil barge near Thailand's southern Phuket Island on Saturday afternoon, the Chinese Consulate-General in the southern province of Songkhla confirmed on Sunday. The 11 tourists are two families from China's eastern city Hang Zhou, six of whom having already left hospital while the remaining five still being treated. The speedboat carrying Chinese tourists was on the way back from a day trip to Koh Phi Phi island to Phuket when it hit the oil barge at about 2:50 p.m. local time. An official of the Phuket Consular Office of the Chinese Consulate-General in Songkhla visited the injured tourists at the hospital in time and called on local authority to treat them and investigate into the accident. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 18:30:10|Editor: Xiaoxia Video Player Close SARI PUL, Afghanistan, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Up to 10 militants Taliban militants and seven Afghan security personnel have been killed, following a fierce clash in the country's northern Sari Pul province, army spokesman in the region Abdul Hadi Jamal said Sunday. The clash broke out late on Saturday night on the outskirts of Sayad district of the province where a group of insurgents attacked government forces checkpoints, resulting in the death of ten fighters and seven local policemen personnel, the official said. Five more militants and five police personnel including Abdul Basir Sayadi, the district police chief, have been injured, according to the official who said the security forces will continue to pursue the militants. The Taliban have not commented on the report yet. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 17:30:00|Editor: Xiang Bo Video Player Close BEIJING, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- At about 500 meters away from the gate of the Forbidden City in central Beijing, Zhang Lin saw the scrolling captions on a digital display: "All tickets to the Palace Museum during the Spring Festival holiday have been sold out." "I didn't expect a museum ticket to be as popular as a train ticket back home during the Spring Festival," said Zhang, a college teacher from northeast China's Liaoning Province. "It's a pity I hadn't book the tickets earlier. My family missed the chance to have a royal taste of the Spring Festival," he said. Zhang is spending his first week-long Spring Festival holiday in the Chinese capital, together with his wife, father and mother-in-law and his four-year-old son. The former palace, which allows 80,000 visitors per day, became more attractive this year in the otherwise freezing off-season because of an ongoing New Year exhibition, the museum's largest with 885 relics. The exhibition aims to provide an immersive royal experience for visitors with the entire Forbidden City adorned with newly-restored ancient royal lanterns and spring couplets, including a rare collection of the Chinese character "Fu," meaning happiness and good luck, written by five Qing Dynasty emperors. "Luckily, we've got a plan B," said Zhang, pointing to the adjacent National Museum of China (NMC). The NMC is staging a series of exhibitions attracting a record of more than 300,000 visitors during the five days from Tuesday to Saturday. Among them was an exhibition to commemorate the 40th anniversary of China's reform and opening-up, which was launched in November, and a display of the Bronze Tiger Ying, a looted Chinese bronze vessel recently brought home. "'Spending the Spring Festival in museums' has evolved from a slogan for promotion to a common way for the public to mark this traditional holiday," said Shan Jixiang, curator of the Palace Museum. Apart from those in the nation's capital, museums nationwide also witnessed a rising number of visitors. People queued in long lines in front of the Shanghai Museum even before the gate was opened. In central China, the Henan Museum received about 8,000 visits on Feb. 6, the second day of the Chinese New Year, two times the figure of a regular weekend day. Many museums are staging exhibitions featuring pigs, the Chinese Zodiac animal of the new year. A pig-shaped bronze vessel, which dates back to more than 3,000 years ago, is on display for the first time in the Shanghai Museum. "There has been a marked increase in museum visitors during the Spring Festival since 2015," said Guan Jun, who has been a museum volunteer for six years. Guan attributed the increase to both an improvement in curating innovation, promotion and service of the museums and stronger public recognition of good traditional Chinese culture. China's 5,136 museums saw nearly one billion visits in 2018, figures from the National Cultural Heritage Administration show. Shan Jixiang said he hopes more Chinese could put museum tours on their must-do Spring Festival list alongside the Lunar New Year Eve family reunion dinner, annual TV gala and watching films. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 16:29:52|Editor: Xiaoxia Video Player Close A man buys liquor at a shop in New Delhi, India, on Feb. 10, 2019. As death toll mounted in two northern Indian states of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, police have launched a massive crackdown on the illegal dens of spurious liquor manufacturing places, officials said Sunday. Over 200 people have been detained and cases registered against the persons for manufacturing and selling liquor without authorization. Officials confirmed the death toll has mounted to 72, however, local media reports suggested the tragedy has claimed over 100 lives. (Xinhua/Zhang Naijie) NEW DELHI, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- As death toll mounts in two northern Indian states of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, police have launched a massive crackdown on the illegal dens of spurious liquor manufacturing places, officials said Sunday. Over 200 people have been detained and cases registered against the persons for manufacturing and selling liquor without authorization. Officials confirmed the death toll has mounted to 72, however, local media reports suggest the tragedy has claimed over 100 lives. "We can't give you the exact death toll as post-mortems are awaited in many cases," a senior official in Uttar Pradesh told Xinhua. "We have confirmed 46 deaths in Saharanpur district but the post-mortem report of only 36 cases suggest they have died due to consumption of alcohol. In the remaining 10 cases viscera report is still awaited." Officials said in Kushinagar district of Uttar Pradesh eight deaths have been reported because of the consumption of hooch. Reports said police teams during the crackdown have seized 9,269 liters of hooch in Uttar Pradesh and detained over 150 people for questioning. The action has been taken following instructions from Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. "This is preliminary stage of investigation and people are being brought for questioning but it will be decided later as to against whom the cases will be registered," a senior police official said. "We have detained many people and guilty would be dealt as per the law of land." In Rorkee of Haridwar district in Uttarakhand 28 people have died because of the consumption of hooch. "The viscera examination on more bodies is yet to be conducted to find out if these too were alcohol-related deaths," an official said. The authorities have suspended 13 excise department personnel and four policemen in Uttarakhand. Around 1,066 liters of hooch have been seized during the raid and over 50 people detained in state, reports said. "The entire matter is being investigated and guilty would not be spared," an excise department official said. According to health officials around 150 others were being treated for severe side effects from the hooch in the twin states. Officials suspected the death toll is likely to go up in wake of many people admitted in hospitals. In December 2011, hooch tragedy killed 172 people in West Bengal. Spurious alcohol deaths are often reported in India, where people often drink cheap country made bootleg liquor. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 16:14:49|Editor: Xiang Bo Video Player Close Workers unload boxes of butter from the 7220190 refrigerator train at the Lhasa West Railway Station in Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, Jan. 27, 2019. (Xinhua/Wu Tao) GUANGZHOU, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Nyidron stirs the butter until it completely melts in the pot and then puts the dough inside to fry. She takes out the dough when it turns golden and crispy and sprinkles sugar over it. The final product is a delicious treat called Kasai, a traditional Tibetan pastry for the New Year. A local resident in Lhasa, Tibet, Nyidron makes the delicious food for her family every year, but the difference is that the butter she used this year was produced in Shenzhen, a city thousands of kilometers away on the southern coast of China. As a daily necessity for Tibetans, butter is used to make tea and various types of food. It is especially in high demand on the eve of the Tibetan New Year, which coincides with the Spring Festival this year on Feb. 5. A freight train with five refrigerator carriages loaded with 184 tonnes of butter traveled 5,154 km from the southern Guangdong Province to Tibet, enriching the holiday market in the region. During winter months, the high-altitude region of Tibet is usually covered with snow, and its oxygen content drops. Winter supplies including rice, vegetables and frozen dumplings have been transported to the region from other places in the country. SPECIAL TRIP On Jan. 19, Yang Yulei and Wang Gang boarded the butter-carrying train. Different from other trains disembarking from Shenzhen that are filled to the brim with passengers traveling for the New Year, Wang and Yang are among a few passengers on the train. It is a long and arduous journey. The entire trip takes days to complete, with the train climbing as high as 5,000 meters above sea level up the snowy mountains of Tibet. Tibet-bound refrigerator train service was started in September 2015 by the Guangzhou branch of China Railway Special Cargo Services Co, Ltd. Each time the company would lock its refrigerator carriages to freight trains heading to Tibet. At the end of 2018, a total of 57,358 tonnes of cargoes have been sent to Tibet. For captain Yang who has been working at the refrigerator carriages since 2015, the greatest challenges he encounters on the train are the freezing temperatures and low oxygen environment. Besides feeling sick due to the lack of oxygen, it is also hard to cook meals well as the boiling point is lower on the plateau, he explained. "We also have to check the facilities about every half an hour in case of any breakdowns," he said. ENRICHED MARKET On Jan. 27, the freight train arrived at its destination in Lhasa with 184 tonnes of fresh butter. Wang Cong is the local agent for Shenzhen Jinli vegetable butter. The newly arrived butter is the fourth batch of goods he received since the beginning of January. "We sold out 3,200 tonnes of butter in 2018, and the sales volume is expected to grow 10 percent this year," he said, adding that the butter is being sold to places including Lhasa, Nagchu, Ngari and Shigatse. Lhaba Cering, deputy head of Tibet cooking association, said butter from outside the region has been an important supplement to the local butter market. CONNECTION MAKES CONVENIENCE The inflow of supplies is made possible by the rapidly developing transportation infrastructure of Tibet. As of the end of 2018, the total length of roads in the region exceeded 90,000 km. The Qinghai-Tibet Railway, spanning 1,956 km from Xining in the neighboring province of Qinghai to Lhasa, was opened in 2006, linking Tibet and the rest of the country. More than 48.4 million tonnes of goods have been sent through this route to Tibet. Southseas Oils & Fats Industrial (Chiwan) Limited has been exploring the Tibetan butter market since 1998. Before the building of the railway, the company relied on trucks for transport. Zhang Wei, a transportation staff with the company, said that compared to trucks, rail transportation is lower in cost, higher in loading capacity and is much safer. "The refrigerator train could help save 200 yuan (about 30 U. S. dollars) to 300 yuan per tonne compared to trucks," he said. More convenience is expected in the future. The railway connecting Tibet with Sichuan province is under construction. The country is also planning to build a railway between Tibet and Yunnan province. More advanced refrigerator train carriages with intelligent remote temperature controls will be put into use in the near future, according to China Railway Special Cargo Services Co, Ltd. Yang Yulei is looking forward to that change. "Our carriages can reach any place as long as there is a railway." Undoubtedly revolutions are turning points in history, and their magnitude is usually measured by the impact they have on world affairs decades if not centuries later. However, the French Revolution (1789-1799) that employed the noble slogan of liberty, equality and fraternity did not in fact see these qualities instituted in France. What took place were several years labelled as the reign of terror following the execution of the former French king Louis XVI and his wife Marie Antoinette. These years were characterised by violence and chaos, tearing apart the French state until the rise of the emperor Napoleon Bonaparte. Fortunately, two centuries later the noble values of the French Revolution have found their way in the world through political and social activism, becoming a standard of the new world order. The same thing cannot be said of the Islamic Revolution in Iran. Taking place in January 1979, this is now marking its 40th anniversary and with it 40 years of negative impacts on the Middle East region and the world as a whole. There are no positive sides to the Iranian Revolution. Instead, there has simply been misery, violence and mass murder. Under chauvinistic mottos such as neither East nor West, only the Islamic Republic, a reference to the US and Soviet camps in the Cold War, Irans mullahs forced their way to absolute power in the country, leaving trails of blood behind them. Ironically, the revolution started as a secular revolution against the former shah Reza Pahlavi led by liberals and leftists, but it was soon hijacked by the extremist mullah Ayatollah Khomeini, who executed all his opponents on his ascent to power. The Islamists in Iran executed over 200 former regime members in their first two months in power, including politicians and army generals. Moreover, in 1988 Khomeini issued a fatwa, or religious ruling, that resulted in the brutal execution of up to 30,000 political prisoners in five months, according to the recently published memoirs of grand Ayatollah Hussein Ali Montazeri, one of the founders of the Islamic regime who was later placed under house arrest. These horrific acts of barbarity did not spare children as young as 13, making them one of the darkest chapters in the modern history of the Middle East. Supporting militant and terrorist organisations to destabilise neighbouring nations and fight proxy wars became the hobby of the Iranian regime after it grabbed power in 1979. Driven by enormous oil wealth and military experience gathered before the revolution, the Iranian mullahs have financed the likes of Hizbullah in Lebanon, the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, Hamas in Gaza and the Houthi militants in Yemen. They have used these proxies to infiltrate these countries and to throw oil on fires already raging in these countries and others. According to US estimates in 2018, Hizbullah receives about $700 million from Iran annually. Group leader Hassan Nasrallah still brags about the groups relationship with Iran and is content to be Irans loyal agent within the Lebanese state. For decades, the terrorist Muslim Brotherhood group leaders have been frequently visiting Tehran to meet the leaders of the Iranian regime and to receive their political and financial support. Former Brotherhood international relations coordinator Kamal Al-Hilbawi and Swiss-based Brotherhood financier Youssef Nada have orchestrated many of these meetings between the Iranian mullahs and the Brotherhood over the years. Former Brotherhood supreme guide Mahdi Akef was also open to Iranian expansion in the region. In 2013, during the one-year rule of Brotherhood member Mohamed Morsi in Egypt, a visit to Egypt took place from the then Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad that was the first of its kind in 34 years since ties were severed between the two countries after the Islamic Revolution. Iran still acts as a catalyst in many of the current conflicts in the Middle East by supporting terrorist groups such as Hamas in Gaza against the legitimate Palestinian Authority (PA) government. The same thing is true of Irans support for the Houthi militias in Yemen, which receive direct military and financial support from Tehran, fuelling their coup detat against Yemeni President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi and takeover of parts of the country in 2014. The civil war in Yemen, which has seen the involvement of many Middle Eastern countries, is still ongoing today. The Iranian Revolution is a despicable example of how religion can be exploited as a tool of warmongering and persecuting civilians at all levels. Iran has a horrific record on civil rights, especially in its use of barbaric mediaeval methods of public execution and corporal punishment against any dissidence or acts of civil disobedience. The Iranian regime has tried to export its revolution to neighbouring Middle Eastern states, opening a chapter of confrontation with the regime that is still extant today. The Iranian state, once wealthy and active in the Middle East, became a pariah in the region as a result, and this eventually also became true on a global level. Irans nuclear programme exacerbates the danger that such a regime represents to the region and the rest of the world should it indeed manage to possess nuclear capabilities. The regimes leaders make incessant threats to the countrys neighbours about launching attacks. They also brag about their control of Arab capitals such as Baghdad, Sanaa, Damascus and Beirut, while seeking to extend their influence further. The threats of the Iranian mullahs during Friday prayers to all those who oppose them have become the norm since 1979. Furthermore, while the rise of Political Islam was synonymous with the establishment of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt in 1928, it only saw real growth as a global threat of terrorism and intimidation after the Iranian Revolution in 1979. News of plane hijackings, bombings and the formation of jihadist groups became the norm after 1979, and it was paralleled by the rise of Wahhabism and Salafism across the globe. Though the Iranian Revolution was labelled as a Shia phenomenon, radical Sunni groups who oppose the Shia nevertheless became fascinated with the Iranian mullah model of taking power by force. Terrorist groups from Morocco to Iraq and passing through Egypt have rallied their efforts and resources to attain this goal, but fortunately they have failed to achieve it. However, this has come at a price for the countries concerned, including Egypt, which have found themselves battling generations of radical jihadists. These groups have included the Muslim Brotherhood, the Islamic Jihad, the Islamic Group, Hasm, the Liwa Al-Thawra and Al-Qaeda and Islamic State (IS) affiliates in Northern Sinai. They may utilise different strategies, but their goal of establishing a caliphate run by an upper echelon of clerics remains similar to the Iranian model of mullahs applying strict Sharia Law. The Iranian Revolution was one of the bloodiest chapters of the post-World War II world. It has been ongoing for the past four decades in Iran, with its poison spewing across the Middle East region. The Iranian mullahs have bragged for decades about how they managed to topple the bloody regime of the former shah, but Khomeinis reign of terror that followed the disposal of the shah can only be matched by Stalins Soviet Union, Saddam Husseins Iraq or Pol Pots Cambodia. The sad news is that while the latter regimes have been consigned to the dustbin of history where they belong, the four decades of aggression of the Iranian regime continue. The Iranian regime still has the power to spread mayhem in the region, squandering the oil wealth of a historic nation, destabilising other countries and oppressing its own people through tyranny and persecution. *This article was first published in Al-Ahram Weekly Search Keywords: Short link: Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 15:59:47|Editor: mmm Video Player Close by Xinhua writers Liu Xin, Wang Xiaojie and Gai Boming BEIJING, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Would you enjoy a truly unique hotpot experience? If so, you could be warmly served by robots. A famous hotpot chain has gained even more popularity since it opened its intelligent restaurant in downtown Beijing in October 2018. Patrons eager to visit the establishment often have to wait an average of two hours to get a seat. There are 18 automatic "machine arms" that constantly work in an intelligent dish sorting room that is between zero and four degrees Celsius. They are capable of processing up to 8,000 dishes each day. Windows allow guests across the 93-table dining hall to see the operation from start to finish. The flavor of the hotpot is one of the most important factors. Customers can choose from six levels of spiciness, and flavor consultants help advise when patrons face the dilemma of choosing between moderately spicy and eye-watering extremely spicy hotpot. Once the decision is made, the broth is seasoned by the automatic flavoring machine. Within 10 minutes after customers place their orders on iPads, six dish dispatching robots carry the meats and vegetables to the dining tables by tag location technology. Each dish dispatching robot can operate for an entire day after being charged for one night. "The operation of our restaurant is helped by two intelligent systems," said Zhang Jinshan, technical trainer of the restaurant. "One accurately copes with customers' canceled, added and urgent orders, analyzes the data of the restaurant, monitors the operation condition of the equipment, provides maintenance of the software and checks the food inventory and expiry date." The other is an energy management system which calculates and analyzes the energy consumption including water, electricity and fuel gas of the restaurant, Zhang added. The intelligent hotpot restaurant is not alone. China's e-commerce giant JD.com opened its smart Xcafe restaurant in November 2018 at Tianjin. The 400-square-meter dining hall can hold 100 people. Ordering, assembling, cooking, dispatching, dining and checking out are all facilitated by robots and artificial intelligent (AI) system. In the kitchen, one person operates five robots. As of now, there are a total 40 courses available at the restaurant. JD.com is transforming and upgrading traditional industries using AI, robots and big data, said its Vice President Xiao Jun. The intelligent restaurant is their attempt to combine catering with intelligent technology. He expects that "unmanned technology" will have broader applications. China's catering industry posted a record high of 4.27 trillion yuan (about 628 billion U.S. dollars) in revenue in 2018, coupled with encouraging trends. The figure marked a rise of 9.5 percent from the previous year, accounting for 11.2 percent of the country's total retail sales of consumer goods, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. The huge catering market means diversified flavoring demands across the country. Thus, intelligent catering has to improve the capability of automatic machines and prepare a wide range of dishes, said Tang Siyu, director of the Xcafe restaurant project. Intelligent restaurants are expected to solve the problem of rising human costs in the catering industry, and JD.com hopes to make the robot technology applied in practice, said Tang. Tang admits that intelligent restaurants are still in their early stages. He predicts that the intelligent catering industry will attract more merchants in the following three to five years. But not everyone is so keen on the idea. "Chinese cuisine is extensive and profound," said Zhang Yi, chief executive officer of iiMedia Research. "Take noodles as an example, we have various kinds of noodles from north to south and from west to east," he said. "I believe hand-made sliced noodles taste much better than those made from machine hands." Feng Jun, a member of the fast food professional committee of China Cuisine Association, acknowledged that jobs in the catering industry could be divided into three categories: physical labor, skilled labor and emotional expression. "The fast-food industry can make full automation happen, while high-end restaurants require more considerate service by people," Feng said. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 15:44:46|Editor: mmm Video Player Close BEIJING, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Fewer Chinese people plan to return and settle in their hometowns as obtaining housing in big cities become easier, a report showed. About 52.7 percent of the respondents have plans for settling in their hometowns, down from 58.7 percent in last year's survey, according to a report by online marketplace 58.com and housing information platform anjuke.com. The report attributed the dip to the preferential policies rolled out by big cities to lure and retain talents as well as the development of the housing rental market. Compared with a year ago, new house prices for 2018 in four first-tier cities -- Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Guangzhou -- edged up 0.5 percent on average, shrinking from the 10.1-percent rise during the same period a year earlier, official data showed. The growth of resold house prices also saw a significant slowdown. About 42.8 percent of those who consider going back made that choice out of career development plans, more than double the share in the previous survey. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 15:34:45|Editor: Xiaoxia Video Player Close SEOUL, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in will consult with U.S. President Donald Trump in the near future on the second summit between the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and the United States, South Korea's presidential Blue House said Sunday. Kim Eui-keum, Blue House spokesman, told a press briefing that the leaders of South Korea and the United States will make a discussion on the second DPRK-U.S. summit in the near future, saying the exact schedule will be unveiled as soon as preparations are made. Moon and Trump would reportedly have a phone conversation in the foreseeable future. The Moon-Trump dialogue would come after top DPRK leader Kim Jong Un and Trump agreed to meet again later this month in Hanoi, Vietnam. Kim and Trump held their first summit in Singapore in June last year. Stephen Biegun, U.S. special representative for DPRK affairs, visited Pyongyang earlier this week to consult with his DPRK counterparts on the planned second Kim-Trump summit. The Blue House spokesman said he heard that Pyongyang and Washington had agreed to continue negotiations at a third country in Asia in the week beginning Feb. 17. South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will have talks in the near future, while Chung Eui-yong, top Blue House national security advisor, will closely exchange information with White House National Security Advisor John Bolton, the spokesman added. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 15:29:44|Editor: mmm Video Player Close GABORONE, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- Botswana's Finance and Economic Development Minister Kenneth Matambo said on Saturday that the southern African country will pursue external funding instruments especially those in China. Further fending off accusations that China is setting a debt trap for developing countries in Africa, including Botswana, which they cannot repay during a press conference in Francistown, Botswana's second largest city, Matambo said Botswana does not have a problem with China. "We do not have a problem with China at all," said the minister. "We have dealt with China before and we know what we are doing as a government." Botswana and China have strong bilateral relations and there is no way the world's second largest economy will set a debt trap for Botswana, Matambo added. Dumelang Saleshando, leader of Botswana's main opposition political party, Botswana Congress Party (BCP), suggested earlier that the President Mokgweetsi Masisi administration should exhaust local capital space before pursuing external funding instruments from China and international financial institutions. According to Matambo, Botswana takes all the necessary precautionary measures before embarking on external resources. China agreed to extend a loan to Botswana for rail and road infrastructure on the sidelines of 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) last September. The loan is expected to construct road connectivity in the northern part of the country so as to better promote the development of tourist attraction areas. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 14:59:40|Editor: Yang Yi Video Player Close BEIJING, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- The National Museum of China is staging a series of exhibitions during the Spring Festival, or lunar Chinese New Year, attracting more than 60,000 visitors a day on average, figures from the museum show. Launched in November, the exhibition to commemorate the 40th anniversary of China's reform and opening-up remains open during the seven-day Spring Festival holiday. Its total number of visitors has exceeded 3.4 million. The Bronze Tiger Ying, a looted Chinese bronze vessel, is also on display. The vessel that dates back to the Western Zhou period (1046 BC-771 BC) was auctioned in April 2018 by Britain's Canterbury Auction Galleries and was later shipped back to China in November and added to the museum's collections in December. Drifting abroad for 158 years, the vessel finally managed to enjoy its Spring Festival at home, said Wang Chunfa, curator of the museum. A calligraphy and painting exhibition was jointly launched by the museum and the Chinese Calligraphers' Association, with famous calligraphers on site to create Spring couplets for the audience. Several international exhibitions that China jointly launched with Japan and France are open to the public to show that civilizations can learn from each other through different perspectives, according to Wang. Meanwhile, a series of creative products, such as calendars customized by the museum and lollipops featuring colored porcelain from the Ming and Qing dynasties, are available to the public. All public education activities at the National Museum of China are free of charge during the Spring Festival holiday. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 14:49:39|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close Chang Won-sam (R) and Timothy Betts, top negotiators from South Korea and the United States, sign a deal to share defense costs for U.S. forces stationed in South Korea at the South Korean foreign ministry's headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, on Feb. 10, 2019. South Korea and the United States on Sunday signed a deal to share defense costs for U.S. forces stationed in South Korea, according to local media reports. Under the revised Special Measures Agreement (SMA) that stipulates a cost-sharing between Seoul and Washington for the U.S. Forces Korea (USFK), South Korea will pay 1.04 trillion won (925 million U.S. dollars) this year. (Xinhua/South Korean Foreign Ministry) SEOUL, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- South Korea and the United States on Sunday signed a deal to share defense costs for U.S. forces stationed in South Korea, according to local media reports. The signing ceremony was held at the South Korean foreign ministry's headquarters in Seoul, with Chang Won-sam and Timothy Betts, top negotiators from both sides, in attendance. Under the revised Special Measures Agreement (SMA) that stipulates a cost-sharing between Seoul and Washington for the U.S. Forces Korea (USFK), South Korea will pay 1.04 trillion won (925 million U.S. dollars) this year. It was an 8.2 percent increase from the previous year. South Korea paid 960 billion won (854 million U.S. dollars) in 2018 for the USFK stationing. Washington had reportedly demanded Seoul make a financial contribution of at least 1 billion U.S. dollars. Instead of the U.S. concession in the amount, the revised SMA will be effective for only one year. The previous deals were signed for the five-year commitment. The latest SMA expired at the end of last year. Because of the one-year deal, the two allies were forecast to launch negotiations for a new SMA in the second half of this year. About 28,500 U.S. troops are stationed here as a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean War that ended with armistice. The South Korean contribution is used to pay wages for South Korean civilian workers who are employed by the USFK, construction costs for U.S. bases and logistics support expenses. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 14:49:38|Editor: Chengcheng Video Player Close CANBERRA, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced a 662 million Australian dollars (469.6 million U.S. dollars) funding boost for the nation's aged care sector. The package, unveiled by Morrison on Sunday, will see an extra 10,000 elderly Australians receiving care in their own homes rather than being forced to move into residential facilities. Approximately 320 million Australian dollars will be spent on improving services for those already in residential facilities by mid-2019, the equivalent of 1,800 Australian dollars per resident. The initiative was announced ahead of the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety beginning hearing in Adelaide on Monday. "Older Australians have worked hard all their life, paid taxes and done their fair share, and they deserve our support," Morrison said in a statement. The Council on the Ageing (COTA), Australia's peak body representing the elderly, was broadly supportive of the announcement but said the money should be tied to aged care facilities increasing the number of staff and improving their training. "It is disappointing there are no conditions attached," COTA Chief Executive Ian Yates told Australian Associated Press (AAP). "I expect many of the issues and unsatisfactory practices that will be raised during the Aged-Care Royal Commission, which begins its first hearings tomorrow, will be attributed to inadequate staff numbers and poor staff training and development." Morrison has announced more than 1 billion Australian dollars in funding for aged care since establishing the royal commission in October 2018, having promised 550 million Australian dollars for new home-care packaged in December. The announcements are part of the governing Liberal-National party coalition (LNP)'s plan to shore-up support among the elderly, traditionally among the party's strongest supporters, ahead of the May general election. The opposition Australian Labor Party (ALP) has announced it will undertake an ambitious tax-and-spend agenda if elected in May, including abolishing cash refunds for franking credits associated with dividend imputations. Under the current system, introduced by the ALP in the 1980s, shareholders in companies that make a profit do not pay tax on those dividends, instead receiving a handout in the form of a franking credit that entitles them to a reduction of their tax liability. However, changes made by the LNP in 2000 made it so that retirees who do not have a tax liability can trade their franking credits in for a cash handout for the government. According to the ALP, abolishing those changes will increase tax revenue by more than 55 billion Australian dollars. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 14:34:35|Editor: zh Video Player Close HEFEI, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Five people were killed and four others were injured after 23 vehicles piled up on an expressway in eastern China's Anhui Province early Sunday morning. The pileup occurred at around 5:12 a.m. on the Anqing section of the Yuexi-Wuhan Expressway linking the southwest part of Anhui province with Wuhan, capital of central China's Hubei Province, according to the traffic police from the city of Anqing. Four people were killed on the spot while one died at the hospital. The four injured people are in stable condition. The traffic on the expressway has resumed. An investigation into the cause of the accident is underway. The province has witnessed snowy and rainy weather on Saturday. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 14:14:32|Editor: Chengcheng Video Player Close LASHKAR GAH, Afghanistan, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Units of Afghan army stormed a Taliban detention center in Washir district of the southern Helmand province on Saturday night and set free seven detainees, said an army statement on Sunday. All the rescued detainees were civilians abducted by the armed militants, the statement said, adding the detention center was destroyed. During the operations, a Taliban militant was killed and a vehicle destroyed, the statement added. It was the second crackdown on Taliban detention center over the past week. In the previous attack, the security forces overrun a Taliban detention center in Chahar Dara district of the northern Kunduz province Thursday night, releasing five persons. Taliban outfit has yet to make comment. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 14:09:32|Editor: Chengcheng Video Player Close KABUL, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Afghan security forces have destroyed four heroin manufacturing labs following a joint operation in eastern province of Nangarhar, in a latest effort to fight illegal drugs, Ministry of Interior Affairs reported on Sunday. "The Counter-Narcotics Police of Afghanistan (CNPA) backed by Afghan Air Force conducted a special operation in Nakor Khil village, Khogyani district of Nangarhar Friday night," the ministry said in a statement. The joint forces also arrested two suspected drug-traffickers besides destroying a drug cache containing more than 6,000 tons of narcotics, the statement added. The restive province has been the scene of heavy clashes between security forces, Taliban militants and Islamic State (IS) fighters over the past years. The raid was a heavy blow for Taliban insurgents and anti-government militants as they have been using profits from the illegal drugs to fund insurgency, the statement said. Much of the world's opium poppy is cultivated in the militancy-hit country. In 2018, some 6,400 tons of poppy opium has been produced in Afghan provinces, compared with 9,000 tons in 2017, according to Afghan officials. The decrease in opium production can be attributed to the reduction in poppy cultivation, poppy fields destruction by security forces and a severe drought which hit northern and western parts of the country, officials said. Egypt will assume the presidency of the African Union in February 2019. This comes as a culmination of extensive diplomatic efforts to revive Egypts Africa role since Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi assumed power in 2014. Under Mubarak, and especially since the assassination attempt on his life in Addis Ababa in 1995, Egyptian-African relations witnessed a significant deterioration which was reflected in worsening relations with Nile Basin countries, including with Sudan and Ethiopia. However, the current administration has made relations with Africa a priority issue and has sought to revive Egypts role as a leading African nation by playing a more active political, military and economic role in Africa. Since assuming power, Al-Sisi has regularly attended the annual AU summits and has undertaken approximately 20 visits to African nations, including three visits to Ethiopia and four to Sudan. According to the Egyptian State Information Service, visits to African countries have constituted 30 per cent of the presidents overall international visits. Moreover, Egypt has undertaken a number of important initiatives in the hope of restoring its leading role in Africa. These include the training of African peacekeepers and military personnel, and increasing security cooperation and intelligence sharing with African countries. On the economic front, Egypt has undertaken a number of new initiatives which have included convening three economic conferences in Sharm El-Sheikh to encourage greater inter-African economic and business cooperation, and the creation of the Egyptian Agency for Partnership for Development, a fund for guaranteeing investment in Africa, and an investment fund for building technological infrastructure in Africa. Finally, Egypt has significantly increased the number of scholarships extended to African students while African youth have been invited to participate in the youth conferences convened annually in Sharm El-Sheikh. Egypt has a number of vital interests in the African continent, foremost among these is the issue of water security and the issue of peace and stability in Africa. Finally, the issue of social and economic development. On the water issue, in spite of relentless diplomatic efforts to sway Ethiopia and the Sudan and other Nile Basin countries away from undertaking projects that might affect Egypts overall share of the Nile water, Egypt has yet to make a break through on this one. Many analysts have argued that Nile Basin countries believe that Egypt has historically and unfairly received a disproportionate share of Nile water and that their own development projects now depend on their ability to harness the power of the Nile to produce energy. Thus, Egypts approach should focus less on trying to convince and/or pressure Nile Basin countries not to build new dams and more on envisioning joint alternative development schemes that fulfil their energy and development needs such as exporting electricity and natural gas to these countries at favourable rates or by investing in agricultural projects in these countries to benefit from their development schemes while also addressing Egypts chronic dependence on food imports. On the question of peace and security, the situation in Libya, and the activities of terrorist organisations in sub-Saharan Africa, and the security of the eastern Red Sea Coast constitute priority issues. Egypt has played an active role on all three fronts and has managed to make breakthroughs in some of these areas, especially the area of the security of Red Sea passageways and hence the security of the Suez Canal. However, the conflict in Libya and the activities of terrorist organisations in sub-Saharan Africa remain important challenges and Egypt continues to play an active political and security role in both of these areas. The final issue is the question of economic and social development in Africa. Egypt has come to appreciate the importance of mutual support and cooperation between African countries, especially in the areas of infrastructure development, energy, agriculture and food security, and has undertaken a number of initiatives to encourage greater economic cooperation with African countries. In recent years, Egypt has begun to push for a greater role for the Egyptian private and public sectors in African development. However, Egypt confronts a number of important challenges in its efforts to foster greater peace and economic cooperation in Africa. Foremost among these is growing competition between international and regional actors over influence in Africa, often in ways that could undermine Egypts interests in the African continent. Unlike in the 1960s when Egypt was uniquely situated to lead the African continent in light of Nassers charisma and unique standing in the Third World, today Egypt is competing for a leadership role in the African continent with a number of regional contenders, including South Africa, Ethiopia, Nigeria and Algeria. In regional and international forums these regional powers often compete with rather than support one another, which leads to weakening the negotiating power of the African continent. A multilateral rather than a unilateral conception of leadership is more likely to succeed in modern day Africa. Rather than trying to lead Africa, Egypt could situate itself as a facilitator and consensus builder encouraging various regional powers to adopt a common agenda or perspective on regional and international issues. In addition to growing competition between African powers, the continent has also witnessed a substantial increase in competition between external powers over the resources of the continent. External actors vying for influence in Africa include the US, Russia, China, France, Italy, Israel, and more recently Turkey, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the Emirates. While this growing interest has provided African countries with greater resources for growth and development, it has also intensified competition for resources in the region and has undermined the political and financial autonomy of numerous African countries. More importantly, this race for influence in Africa undermines and limits Egypts own ambitions to play a more active role in the continent. Egypt is also limited by its own economic and political troubles at home which have undermined its ability to project greater influence in the African continent. Egypt lacks the extensive financial resources available to some of the other countries competing for influence in Africa, and in fact Egypt, like most other African countries, is more often than not the recipient of foreign grants and investment rather than a grantor or investor in its own right. A final weakness of Egypts position has to do with the lack of an integrated Africa strategy. While Egypt has initiated a number of important discrete initiatives over the last few years, these initiatives do not amount to an integrated policy or strategy vis-a-vis the African continent. Hence, it would be useful if the various Egyptian organisations working on Africa came together to draft a comprehensive and integrated strategy vis-a-vis Africa, tying in the various component parts, and setting clear short, medium and long-term goals to be achieved. That being said, Egypt nonetheless possesses many important assets that it could use to its advantage in the African continent. In terms of hard power, Egypt possesses extensive military, security and intelligence resources that it could put to greater use in fostering greater peace and security in the African continent, both through the African Union and through its bilateral and multilateral relations with African nations. In terms of economic resources, Egypt has extensive expertise and resources in the areas of energy and infrastructure development that could compliment the needs of African countries in these areas. Moreover, if a coordinated strategy is put in place, the Egyptian private sector could potentially act as an important source of investment in the agricultural, industrial and energy sectors in Africa. Also, Egyptian professionals and skilled labourers can provide important training and capacity building in Africa. Finally, Egypt can as in the days of Nasser project greater soft power by using its extensive cultural and civil society resources in the African continent. Scholarships, collaborations on cultural projects, exchange programmes for Egyptian teachers and students, extending the role of Egyptian universities, Al-Azhar and the Coptic Church in African countries can all help consolidate Egypts role as a leading African nation. *This article was first published in Al-Ahram Weekly Search Keywords: Short link: Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 13:44:28|Editor: Chengcheng Video Player Close JAKARTA, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Three people were killed and three others injured as flash floods struck West Java province in western Indonesia on Saturday night, disaster agency official said Sunday. Torrential rains caused a dam to burst and the water swiftly submerged Jati Endah village in Bandung district at 10:00 p.m. local time Saturday, destroying 12 houses, spokesman of national disaster management agency Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said. The disaster management agency will undertake a further risk assessment by combing all the affected areas, he told Xinhua in a text message. The provincial meteorology and geophysics agency had earlier issued a warning of unfavorable weather condition, saying rains with intensity from moderate to high would occur along with thunders, according to him. Indonesia has been frequently stricken by flash floods and landslide during heavy downpours. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 13:09:23|Editor: zh Video Player Close NEW YORK, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- A mini concert featuring the collaboration of two traditional Chinese string instruments was held on Saturday in New York City's Metropolitan Museum of Art (the Met) as part of a whole-day celebration of the Chinese Lunar New Year. Over 200 museum goers were attracted by the enchanting melodies of guqin and guzheng when they passed by the Robert Lehman Wing on the ground floor of the Met, where Wu Na and Chang Jing, two master performers from China, sat side-by-side playing Chinese musical classics such as "A Night of Flowers and Moonlight by the Spring River" and "Invisible Mountain," adding a vibe of tranquility to the crowded museum. Two impromptus were also presented at the beginning and the end of the concert respectively, making spectators marvel at the brilliant cooperation between the two masters. "This is just beautiful," said a spectator who identified himself only as Carlos. "I've never heard something like this before." Chang Jing, who performed a guzheng solo at the opening ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, told Xinhua that she hoped the concert could deliver the happiness of Lunar New Year and help more people better understand contemporary Chinese musicians. "We played those Chinese classics to make people experience the essence of traditional Chinese culture, and the impromptus were modern interpretations of this ancient art," she said. Jointly sponsored by the Met and the Beijing Contemporary Art Foundation, the concert was one of dozens of activities taking place on the same day at the museum to ring in the Year of the Pig, together with lion dancing, hand-pulled noodle demonstration, and guided tours in Chinese painting galleries. Founded in 1872, the Met is the largest art museum in the United States. It is among the top three most visited art museums in the world with some 7 million visitors from across the globe per year. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 12:59:22|Editor: Yang Yi Video Player Close HOUSTON, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- A series of Spring Festival activities took place here at Asia Society Texas Center on Saturday afternoon, with local Americans and Chinese joining each other to celebrate the Chinese Lunar New Year. The celebrations featured a rich variety of Chinese art and craft, including Chinese calligraphy, handkerchief and umbrella dance, paper cutting and pig-mask making, which were enjoyed by children and their families. Local art group Huaxing presented a collection of Chinese music and dance, ranging from modern ballet and classic folk dances to Chinese Kung Fu and sand painting. "I love it. It's so fascinating," said Maria Sanchez, who brought her granddaughter to volunteer in the activities, part of a series of China-themed programs at Asia Society Texas Center. "It's really marvelous. Like every culture, it's important to know about what Chinese culture is, just to be familiar with all the beautiful things that are there," she told Xinhua. Founded in 1956, Asia Society is a nonpartisan, nonprofit institution with major centers and public buildings around the world. It is an educational organization dedicated to promoting mutual understanding and strengthening partnerships among peoples, leaders and institutions of Asia and the United States in a global context. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 10:44:09|Editor: zh Video Player Close URUMQI, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Rizguli Haliq, a 42-year-old woman donning a brown bob and a big smile, is the star of her neighborhood. The mother of three daughters leads what she calls a "performance team" of 20 women in Ershilidian, a small village near Urumqi, capital of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The ladies meet two to three times a week to rehearse songs and dances. In a Spring Festival gig for the villagers, the ladies sang pop songs and presented the traditional Meshrep. "I've always loved singing and dancing, but my mother died when I was very young, and I never got the chance to learn music or dancing," she said. Rizguli Haliq has lived in the village since she was young. Ninety percent of the total 1,300 residents are of Uygur ethnicity. "Most of the women in my village were simply housewives," she said. Rizguli Haliq has found new confidence as she sings melodious tunes to an appreciating audience and helps fellow female villagers manage stage fright. "What I get the most from the performance team is confidence. You see, as long as I set my mind on doing something, I can do it well," she said. Rizguli's change is a result of a local program to ensure that the Uygur women are included, connected and empowered. She was encouraged by cadres from the Fujian Province in the east coast, who were sent as part of the "pairing assistance" program. China held the First National Meeting on Pairing Assistance To Xinjiang in March 2010. According to the directive, 19 provinces and municipalities need to render support to 82 counties (cities) in 12 prefectures in Xinjiang and 12 divisions of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC). The assistance involves funds, bringing in factories to create jobs and helping with the cultural and social development in the economic backwater. Qiu Zhiyu, 40, is one of the cadres from Fujian. Having worked as a grassroots cultural official, he arrived in Xinjiang in 2017. Qiu started to set up a performance team in May last year. "I did not hold much hope in the beginning. Many people did not speak Mandarin and did not understand me well. Fewer than five people showed up," he said. Qiu found teachers to help them choreograph performances. "They made a lot of progress in just a few months," he said. Now the team performs regularly for the public, local enterprises and tourists. When Rizguli needs to go to rehearsals, her husband Mahmut Shadil helps her manage a grocery shop in the village -- their new family investment. Earnings from the shop help the couple take care of their second daughter who is on medication for her mental health. Over recent years, assistance to impoverished villages in Xinjiang has been focused on creating jobs and developing cultural programs. Qiu said last year Fujian province invested seven million yuan (about one million dollars) to renovate 29 streets in the village and improve logistical infrastructure. Cadres founded a farming cooperative to produce and sell naan, a staple food, and helped locals open hotels to cater to tourists from Urumqi. Many women have found jobs in these businesses and are encouraged to set up their own businesses as Rizguli did. Kindergartens are set up near where these mothers work so that they can still find time to take care of their family. Starting from last year, the Xinjiang regional women's federation launched a program to fund a barbershop in all villages in Hotan and Kashgar. They have given out 10,000 yuan-worth of equipment for free and provided necessary training to men and women in 2,000 villages. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 10:44:09|Editor: Yang Yi Video Player Close CARACAS, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez on Saturday called on opposition leader and self-proclaimed "interim president" Juan Guaido to reconsider his course of action and stop "the madness of calling for an invasion." "Reflect and place yourself on the right side of history," Rodriguez said, a day after Guaido said he would not rule out authorizing the United States to launch a military intervention to oust President Nicolas Maduro. The vice president made the statements amid a government-backed signature drive to show that most Venezuelans do not support foreign intervention in their country, as the opposition claims. In Caracas' central Bolivar Square, Rodriguez signed the petition, which appeals to U.S. President Donald Trump to respect Venezuelan sovereignty and lift the crippling economic sanctions. Rodriguez also criticized the country's opposition-controlled National Assembly for debating whether to "authorize" a foreign military incursion in Venezuela. "There is no country in the world where the supposed parliament advocates foreign military intervention in the country," said Rodriguez. "It's outrageous." "The Venezuelan people have given very clear signals of what they want: they want peace, they want tranquility (and) to continue to be governed by the Bolivarian Revolution," said Rodriguez, referring to the ruling socialist party's reform movement. Political tensions in Venezuela between the government and opposition groups came to a head after Maduro was sworn in to a new term on Jan. 10. The opposition, which largely boycotted the presidential elections in May, refuses to recognize Maduro's reelection win and has been demanding a new round of voting. With Washington's collaboration, the opposition has arranged for U.S. humanitarian aid to be delivered to the border, but Venezuelan officials have blocked the move, suspecting "it is a pretext to invade Venezuela," said Rodriguez. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 09:08:53|Editor: zh Video Player Close Dancers stage a performance celebrating Chinese New Year at Brookfield Place in Lower Manhattan of New York City, the United States, on Feb. 9, 2019. Around 2,000 people watched a performance celebrating Chinese New Year on Saturday at Brookfield Place, an indoor commercial area in Lower Manhattan of New York City. Arts Brookfield, an initiative of real estate corporation Brookfield, staged around 10 programs lasting more than one hour, in partnership with non-profit New York Chinese Cultural Center (NYCCC). The performance is one of scores of activities in February in New York City to celebrate the Year of the Pig. Lion dance, Sichuan opera face-changing, martial arts, and traditional Chinese music and dance drew applause from spectators. (Xinhua/Liu Yanan) NEW YORK, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- Around 2,000 people watched a performance celebrating Chinese New Year on Saturday at Brookfield Place, an indoor commercial area in Lower Manhattan of New York City. Arts Brookfield, an initiative of real estate corporation Brookfield, staged around 10 programs lasting more than one hour, in partnership with non-profit New York Chinese Cultural Center (NYCCC). The performance is one of scores of activities in February in New York City to celebrate the Year of the Pig. Lion dance, Sichuan opera face-changing, martial arts, and traditional Chinese music and dance drew applause from spectators. Arts Brookfield is thrilled to team up with the NYCCC to present this vibrant and colorful event for all to enjoy, said Elysa Marden, vice president of Arts and Events at Arts Brookfield. "The performance is a long-time favorite for our visitors and their families, and we are delighted to provide a community gathering place to celebrate beloved traditions," said Marden. As a cultural and educational institution dedicated to promoting the understanding and appreciation of Chinese arts in local and global communities since its founding in 1974, NYCCC has held similar activities in cooperation with Arts Brookfield over past few years. Saturday's celebrations were held in the presence of local government officials, city council members and officials from the Consulate General of China in New York. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 08:48:50|Editor: zh Video Player Close CHONGQING, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Authorities in the southwestern municipality of Chongqing plan to transform rural houses and toilets to boost development in the countryside. A total of 30,000 dangerous houses will be renovated in 2019, in addition to 375,000 toilets. Authorities also plan to build 24,000 km of new roads. According to the local government, polluted water in the countryside will be properly treated, and agricultural waste will be utilized effectively. The authorities will also strengthen protection for rural culture and traditions. A series of projects will be implemented to help with the supply-side reform in Chongqing. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 08:43:49|Editor: Chengcheng Video Player Close NEW DELHI, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- A lawmaker from the ruling party of India's West Bengal has been shot dead by unidentified gunmen, officials said. Thirty-eight-year-old Satyajit Biswas from Trinamool Congress (TMC) party was shot dead "from a point-blank range" on Saturday at a village in Nadia district, about 122 km north of Kolkata, the capital city of West Bengal. "Though he was immediately removed to the nearest hospital but doctors there declared him brought dead," a police official said. Biswas was attacked during the Saraswati Puja, a religious ceremony celebration in the area. "He had come down from the stage where a cultural programme was taking place," the official said. Following the killing, the assailants fled from the spot. District TMC president Gourishankar Dutta blamed Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for Biswas's murder, an allegation strongly rejected by BJP. "Whenever such attacks take place these people blame BJP but until now not a single activist or leader of BJP was found responsible for such acts," BJP state president Dilip Ghosh told an Indian TV channel News18. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 08:43:49|Editor: mym Video Player Close BERLIN, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- Dortmund were held to a 3-3 draw by Hoffenheim after squandering a three-goal lead to share the spoils in the 21st round in Bundesliga on Saturday. The "BVB" were in complete control of the proceedings after having established a three-goal lead within 67 minutes but Hoffenheim bounced back and scored three goals within 12 minutes to flabbergast the Bundesliga leaders. Dortmund thought they had opened the scoring through Jadon Sancho with 11 minutes played but the midfielder's goal was ruled offside. It was nonetheless Jadon Sancho who grabbed the deserved opener for the dominant hosts after slotting home from sharp angle in the 32nd minute. Lucien Favre's men had everything under control against uninspired Hoffenheim and doubled the lead in the 43rd minute when Mario Goetze benefitted on a parried shot on target to tap home from very close range. After the restart, Hoffenheim came out highly motivated but it were still the hosts who continued scoring as Raphael Guerreiro made the most of Goetze's assist to triple the lead in the 67th minute. Hoffenheim remained unimpressed and pressed forward meanwhile Dortmund missed the chance to seal the deal as Sancho rattled only the left post in the 75th minute. Just seconds later Hoffenheim reduced the arrears after Pavel Kaderabek's delivery into the box found Ishak Belfodil, who poked home to make it 3-1 on the scoreboards. Julian Nagelmann's men gained momentum and pressed for another goal. Their efforts were rewarded eight minutes later as Pavel Kaderabek headed home Dennis Geiger's cross into the box. Hoffenheim continued frenetically and their efforts paid off as Ishak Belfodil wrapped up his brace after nodding home the 3-3 from inside the box to upset Dortmund. With the result, Dortmund drop points but stay atop the standings meanwhile Hoffenheim slipped to the 9th spot. Elsewhere, runner up Borussia Monchengladbach suffered a setback as Hertha Berlin snatched a 3-0 away victory on the goals from Salomon Kalou, Ondrej Duda and Davie Selke. Ten-men Nuremberg lost the bottom clash 2-0 to Hannover as Nicolai Mueller was on target twice. Leipzig and Eintracht Frankfurt played out a goalless stalemate and Luca Waldschmidt's late equalizer secured Freiburg a 3-3 draw with Wolfsburg. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 08:18:43|Editor: mym Video Player Close PARIS, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- Japanese judokas snatched four of seven gold medals on offer as the two-day 2019 International Judo Federation (IJF) Paris Grand Slam curtained up here on Saturday. World champion Ai Shishime beat Natsumi Tsunoda in an all-Japanese women's -52kg final. Other three crowned judokas from Japan were Ami Kondo in women's -48kg, Naohisa Takato in men's -60kg and Soichi Hashimoto in men's -73kg. The best result that Chinese judokas registered on Saturday came from Liu Ting in women's -48kg. Liu crashed out from quarterfinals against Ganbaatar Narantsetseg of Mongolia, before losing the repechage to Frenchwomen Melodie Vaugarny for a tied seventh place. Vaugarny's compatriot Clarisse Agbegnenou ended the day of competition in a victorious manner for the hosts. The three-time world champion snatched a waza-ari score after three minutes of golden score against defending Olympic gold medalist Tina Trstenjak of Slovenia for the win. Canadian judokas managed a one-two finish in women's -57kg category, where Christa Deguchi overcame Jessica Klimkait in the final. Moldova had many reasons to celebrate their first ever Grand Slam title by Denis Vieru, who beat Vazha Margvelashvili of Georgia in men's -66kg final. Th 2019 IJF Paris Grand Slam, featuring 572 competitors from 97 countries and regions, will see the winners of remaining seven categories come out on Sunday. It was 2005 when US Embassy in Cairo last participated in the Cairo International Book Fair. This makes its return to one of the most prestigious and celebrated cultural events in Egypt for that events golden jubilee an occasion to celebrate. Without explaining the 14-year absence Dorothy Shea, the Deputy Chief of the US Mission in Cairo, says the important message is that we are back. And we are happy to be here again. The US Embassy booth at the fair showcases some of the most recent and the most significant titles of one of its oldest initiatives, The Cairo Arabic Book Program, which aims to publish a verity of American books in Arabic in cooperation with Egyptian publishing houses. In this small booth we have some of the best selling books in the US together with some of my favourite books in my childhood in Arabic, Shea explains. We hope there is a little bit of something for everybody. It is very hard in one booth to have everything but hopefully it will peak everyones interest and then they start looking for some more books. To mark Black History Month, Shea highlights The Essential Writings and Speeches of Martin Luther King Jr, which is available in Arabic among other books about inspiring African-American role models: Martin Luther King is so dear to Americans, and we are so proud of the legacy that he left behind. We love to share that with the Egyptian audience. I would say culture is one of the pillars of the strong and deep partnership between US and Egypt. The fact that we are here is a testament of the importance that we attach to culture as one of the really foundational elements of our relationship. Generally speaking, as good as we do we can do better, and as hard as we work we can work harder. According to John Ragheb, the Manager of the Cairo Arabic Book Program, thousands of books are translated under the umbrella of this programme in the fields of literature, politics, business, self-help and so on: In collaboration with selected local publishing houses, we support the translation, obtain the copyrights, support and supervise the publishing of the books, then we buy 1,000 out of 3,000 copies of each book to be distributed locally to the libraries and academic institutions and regionally to other embassies in the Middle East. The Cairo International book fair is a unique opportunity to promote the programme to the Egyptian audience and offer the books at reasonable prices: We have many books which are concerned with American culture, but there are also books that are more attractive to local readers such as those on business, literature, entrepreneurship, in addition to childrens books. We try to strike a balance between the interests of Egyptian readers and the need to representAmerican history and culture in one place. US Embassy Spokesperson Sam Werberg describes the programme as a unique initiative that serves the entire region: Those publications are also showcased in the local market through their publishing houses, so they are not only distributed by the embassy but are available in the bookshops and in the other booths of the publishing housed in the book fair. It is still always good to have them all in one place like the US Embassy booth. Although we have only books this time, for future rounds of the book fair there will be a full programme of cultural activities. According to Ruth Anne Stevens-Klitz, the US Cultural Attache in Cairo, the original plan of the US Embassys return to the book fair was to organise different cultural activities parallel to showcasing the productions of the Arabic Book Program, but because of the US government shutdown which ended four days after the opening of the fair, the only part of the programme that could be implemented was showcasing the books. A lot of the things wed planned to do were cancelled. But we already had our booth out there so it was easy to come back as soon as the government was open again. Establishing a presence out here is a big priority for me since I arrived in Egypt and we have the support of the embassy to make it happen. The programme is especially important, she says, for the quality of the books: There are a lot of American books on the Egyptian market, especially novels, and that is great. But we also want to make sure that there are books that tell more of the American story. It is not necessarily something that the commercial publisher will choose to translate and publish. But it is an important part of our story that we want to make sure the Egyptian audience know about. This is part of a wider initiative aimed at mutual understanding and intercultural dialogue Through cultural diplomacy which serves both Americans and Egyptians, we want to make sure American citizens have a well developed picture of Egypt and the Egyptian audience has good access to American culture as well. The fair this year is huge and it is also the biggest cultural event of the year for the Egyptians. It is amazing that the biggest cultural event of the year in Egypt is about books and reading. Highlights of the Cairo Arabic Book Program include Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity and Power by the Turkish-American MIT economist Daron Acemoglu and the Harvard political scientist James Robinson, the contemporary classic Democracy in America by Alexis Tocqueville, Jonathan Ive: The Genius Behind Apples Greatest Products by bestselling tech author Leander Kahney (published in Arabic by Al-Karama), Thinking, Fast and Slow by psychologist-economist Daniel Kahneman (published by Kalimat Arabia), Babbitt, the 1922 satire of industrial city life that was won Sinclair Lewis a Nobel Prize (published by Dar Al-Tanwir) and the science fiction classic Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury (published by Dar El Sherouk). * A version of this article appears in print in the 7 February 2019 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly under the headline: America in Arabic Short link: Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 05:28:20|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close DRUSKININKAI, Lithuania, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese New Year was celebrated on Saturday at the famous Lithuanian spa town of Druskininkai, with exhibitions, music, tea ceremony and Kung Fu show. The Chinese New Year, or Spring Festival, fell on Feb. 5 this year. In China, celebrations begin about a week in advance and end with the Lantern Festival on the 15th day of the new year. It is an occasion for family members to reunite, bid farewell to the past year and celebrate the advent of a new spring, with its promise of renewal and hope. At this Lithuanian spa town, one of the exhibitions was photography titled "Impressions from China". It features 24 images taken by famous Lithuanian photographer Vytautas Daraskevicius during his eight trips to China from 2004 to 2015. Fascinated by China's diverse and exotic wildlife as well as the rich historical and cultural heritage, Daraskevicius told Xinhua what impressed him most during his stay in China was always the Chinese people and their daily life. Apart from the exhibitions, visitors were also served with Chinese tea ceremony, performance of Chinese instrument Guzheng, Kung Fu show, and introductions of Chinese New Year customs in Lithuanian. The event culminated in people rushing to the city square to fly the red Chinese lantern lights, wishing for good luck in the Year of the Pig. "Lithuanians know well about the Chinese calendar and all the zodiac animals, and this year is the golden pig year, which I think will bring big success, so wish this year will have more tourists from China," said Druskininkai mayor Ricardas Malinauskas. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 05:18:19|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close ADDIS ABABA, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- Delegates at a high-profile health-themed conference held in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa on Saturday called for more investments to ensure universal health coverage in Africa. The event, titled "The Africa Leadership Meeting: Investing in Health," was hailed as the first of its kind on the continent during the 32nd African Union (AU) Summit. Speaking at the conference, Rwandan President Paul Kagame, who is also the rotating chair of the AU, said African governments should increase domestic expenditure in health sector to achieve national and international health-related goals, including the AU Agenda 2063 and the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals(SDGs). Kagame called on African governments to encourage the private sector to invest more in health-related services. Africa will get better results if it encourages the private sector to invest more in the health sector and to allow governments to focus on giving health services to vulnerable populations, said Kagame. PRIVATE FORCE Ethiopian President Sahle-Work Zewde said Africa needs to have targeted and smart investments in the health sector to provide high quality and people-centered health services. Zewde emphasized that, with around 100 million people globally being driven to poverty annually due to high healthcare services cost, the focus on health services investment should be a national priority. "That is unacceptable. Health is a fundamental human right,"she said. Zewde cited Ethiopia's robust health services investment as a reason, stressing that the east African country has been showing strong economic growth in recent years, creating a direct economic incentive to invest in health services. Ethiopia created a robust health system that helped women and children to get access to health services, Zewde said, adding that the country also doubled government health spending, resulting in an increase of the average lifespan of Ethiopians from 52 to 65 years in about two decades. However, Zewde pointed out that Africa still accounts for some 24 percent of the world's disease burden and around a quarter of new tuberculosis infections globally, showing the extent of health challenge on the continent. EXPAND FISCAL SPACE UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres echoed both Kagame and Zewde in his speech. "Good health is at the center of our vision of a more sustainable, inclusive, peaceful and prosperous future. It is both an outcome and driver of progress, themes the September conference will focus," said the UN chief. Investment in health and the continent's human capital are among the best steps we can take to ensure the success of the AU's 2063 Agenda and the SDGs, said Guterres. However, Guterres warned that Africa's countries need to further boost health expenditure and donors should avoid fragmented donation to achieve health targets in Africa. "We need to expand fiscal space for health and reduce fiscal fragmentation in donor support. I call on all partners to ensure successful replenishment of the multilateral global health financing mechanisms," said Guterres. Saturday's event attracted heads of state and government, AU Commission senior leadership and key private sector leaders. AU Commission Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat and Co-Chair of Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Bill Gates were also present. VISIBLE RESULTS, TARGET TO MEET A document released at the event said African countries are gradually increasing domestic investments in health with 35 out of 55 AU members having lifted the percentage of their Gross Domestic Product invested in health over the previous financial year, citing the 2018 WHO Global Health Expenditure Database. It said these increased investments have seen visible results in communities across Africa with shining examples of strengthened sub-national and national health systems. However, it pointed out, while African countries have made huge strides in increasing domestic investments in health, only two out of the 55 AU members meet Africa's target of dedicating at least 15 percent of the government budget to health. For the world's most youthful continent, future growth and prosperity depends on developing and nurturing human capital, according to the release, which added that more than half of Africa's population currently lacks access to essential health services, and millions die every year from commonly preventable diseases. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 03:12:58|Editor: Chengcheng Video Player Close People participate in a march to mark the launch of the national week of handicrafts in Marrakech, Morocco, on Feb. 9, 2019. The fifth edition of Morocco's national week of handicrafts opened on Saturday in the city of Marrakech. (Xinhua) RABAT, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- The fifth edition of Morocco's national week of handicrafts opened on Saturday in the city of Marrakech. About 1,200 craftsmen from across the country will show their handicrafts in exhibition until Feb. 17, covering an area of over 35,000 square meters. The exhibition portrays engravings on wood, copper and silver, textiles, wool weaving, carpets, embroidery, ceramic art and jewellery. The exhibition aims to save the cultural heritage, boost the handicraft sector and give it more visibility. Mohamed Sajid, the Moroccan Minister of Tourism, Air Transport, Handicraft and Social Economy, said handicraft is an important strategic sector for economic growth, job creation and tourism in Morocco. He noted that it represents 7 percent of the kingdom's GDP and offer jobs for 2.3 million people. Exports of Morocco's handicraft products increased by 30 percent in 2018 compared to 2017, the minister added. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 00:32:37|Editor: Chengcheng Video Player Close ADDIS ABABA, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- The implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is expected to raise intra-African trade by 15 percent, an African Development Bank (AfDB) official said on Saturday. The implementation of AfCFTA would result in a net gain of 2.8 billion U.S. dollars in real income for Africans, Hanan Morsy, director of the AfDB's macroeconomic policy department, told Xinhua in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. African countries can help in the implementation of AfCFTA through domestic legislations that eliminate bilateral trade tariffs, by removing non-trade barriers on goods and services, opening their skies to African airlines and allowing free movement of people across borders. On Thursday, the African Union said six more member states are expected to deposit ratifications of the AfCFTA, bringing the number of ratifications to 17. The AU said a total of 22 ratifications are needed for AfCFTA to come into force, helping establish the largest free trade area in the world in recent years. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 00:22:34|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close ADDIS ABABA, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Saturday said the African continent has become an example in resolving problems and conflicts in a peaceful manner. The UN chief made the remarks at a press conference on the sidelines of the 32nd ordinary session of the Assembly of the African Union (AU). The gathering, which started on Thursday in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, will last through Monday. "I believe Africa is becoming example where it is possible to solve problems and prevent conflicts," Guterres said. "I believe that this window of hope will be extended to other parts of the world." "We have seen the reconciliation between Ethiopia and Eritrea. We have seen peace agreement established in South Sudan," he said. The UN chief had previously commended the rapprochement between Ethiopia and Eritrea late last year, which ended two decades of bitter armed standoff. The two Horn of Africa countries fought a bloody border war in 1998-2000, killing an estimated 70,000 people from both sides. Guterres also highlighted the strategic cooperation between the UN and the AU in the prevention and resolution of conflicts in Africa. He also praised African countries for hosting fellow African refugees despite limited domestic resources. The AU said recently that the African continent is now home to more than one third of the world's displaced people. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-10 00:02:32|Editor: Chengcheng Video Player Close LAGOS, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari said Saturday in Lagos his administration's economic policies are making the desired impact, evidenced by steady growth in the economy in the last three years. The Nigerian leader told a town hall meeting that he had kept his promise to boost the economy, through blocking leakages in government finances, increasing capital expenditure and inflows, and implementing the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan, among others. Buhari said he is a strong believer in the importance of investing in infrastructure to promote development. He also highlighted completed and ongoing projects in the transport and aviation sector, expressing delight that the rail projects are generating excitement across the country because it would help local businesses to grow. On future plans to sustain the positive economic outlook, Buhari said the government would raise more revenue to boost the economic fundamentals and increase the level and quality of government services in support of the private sector. He told members of the private sector that his administration has also stimulated growth in the economy by adopting and implementing new strategies to deal with the security situation in the country and tackle rampant corruption. The administration's view on improving the economy, Buhari said, focused on a bottom-to-top approach. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-09 22:32:12|Editor: Chengcheng Video Player Close BERLIN, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said she wanted to work very hard to preserve and develop multilateral structures at the Munich Security Conference next week. In a podcast published on Saturday, Merkel said as multilateralism is now being debated, she wanted to use the Munich Security Conference to promote the idea. "At the moment we have a whole lot of important topics. For me the foremost is the question: how do we work together? The multilateralism, that is the conviction that we win more together than if we work against each other is up for debate," said Merkel. "And I am very committed to ensuring that the multilateral structures to be developed and preserved," she added. As a key politics and security forum in the world, the Munich Security Conference is to convene from Feb. 15 to 17, with about 35 heads of state and government, as well as 80 ministerial-level officials to attend. "The Munich Security Conference has a long tradition and is very well respected internationally," said Merkel, who will join the conference after missing it last year due to the lack of a government after the 2017 federal elections. Merkel added that facing new conflicts and new challenges, such as terrorism, today's interaction is at least as important as it was during the Cold War. In addition, the conference no longer deals only with the classic security issues, but also with the topic of climate change or economic development. "Especially with regard to our neighboring continent, in Africa, this is of particular importance," said the chancellor. File Photo: Juan Guaido (C), head of the opposition-controlled National Assembly, delivers a speech at the Francisco de Miranda avenue, in Caracas, Venezuela, on Jan. 23, 2019. (Xinhua/Boris Vergara) WASHINGTON, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- The United States on Thursday continued its diplomatic maneuver around Venezuela amid mixed international opinions over the legitimacy of Venezuela's self-claimed interim president Juan Guaido, who is the South American country's opposition leader. In a statement issued by Robert Palladino, the State Department's deputy spokesperson, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will, during his upcoming trip to Brussels, meet with European Union (EU) High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Federica Mogherini, to discuss U.S.-EU cooperation on a range of key issues including support for Guaido. Several separate statements issued by Palladino showed that U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John Sullivan on Thursday met with Spanish Vice Foreign Minister Fernando Venezuela at the State Department. During the meeting, Sullivan emphasized the U.S. support for Guaido in the political crisis in Venezuela. On Wednesday, Sullivan talked with Peruvian Vice Foreign Minister Hugo de Zela in Washington D.C. over a key role for Peru to play in the Lima Group in supporting the Venezuelan opposition and Guaido, as well as to address the flow of Venezuelan refugees and migrants. The Lima Group is a multilateral body established in August 2017 to focus on Venezuela's situation. As its diplomatic efforts stepped up on the Venezuelan crisis, Washington on Thursday said it is imposing a ban on the travel of the Venezuelan National Constituent Assembly's members to the United States, as part of its campaign to press Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to cede power and leave Venezuela. Earlier on the same day, Craig Faller, head of the U.S. Southern Command, told a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing that the U.S. military is ready to protect U.S. personnel and diplomatic facilities in Venezuela if necessary. The international response to the aggressive interventionism by the United States regarding Venezuela and Guaido's legitimacy has been mixed. On Thursday, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said it is still waiting for consensus among its member countries on whether to recognize Guaido's legitimacy. IMF spokesperson Gerry Rice told a press briefing that official recognition is needed before the institution's any financing program for Venezuela could be designed. "We're following the situation in Venezuela closely and as in all such cases the international community guides official recognition, and we will be guided by that," he said. "Before any other action could be taken by the IMF that step would need to be taken." "There was a question about ... possible design of a program or assistance," he added. "It would be premature to begin to talk about any specifics because again, we are following the guidance of the international community and that would need to be established." U.S. President Donald Trump on Jan. 23 announced the U.S. recognition of Guaido's claim as Venezuela's interim president, which came 10 days after Maduro was inaugurated as president. Maduro was re-elected in 2018. His first term of presidency began in April 2013. In response to Washington's support for Guaido, Maduro announced he was severing "diplomatic and political" ties with the United States, ordering all the U.S. diplomatic and consular personnel to leave Venezuela in 72 hours. For years, the United States has imposed diplomatic pressure and economic sanctions against Venezuela. Right before Maduro's inauguration in January, the U.S. Treasury Department imposed sanctions on seven Venezuelan individuals and 23 entities, accusing them of involvement in a corruption scheme. Source: Xinhua| 2019-02-05 02:18:07|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close Lithuanian Prime Minister Saulius Skvernelis (2nd L), Latvian Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins (2nd R) and Estonian Ambassador to Latvia Arti Hilpus (1st R) attend a press conference in Riga, Latvia, Feb. 4, 2019. Regional projects, the European Union's (EU) next budget and the UK's withdrawal from the EU were the main topics on the agenda of the Baltic Council of Ministers meeting, which the Latvian capital city Riga hosted on Monday. (Xinhua/Janis) RIGA, Feb. 4 (Xinhua) -- Regional projects, the European Union's (EU) next budget and the UK's withdrawal from the EU were the main topics on the agenda of the Baltic Council of Ministers meeting, which the Latvian capital city Riga hosted on Monday. Although the top-level meeting was supposed to bring together all three Baltic heads of government, Estonian Prime Minister Juri Rattas was unable to attend as adverse weather conditions prevented his aircraft from landing at the Riga Airport. Estonian Ambassador to Latvia Arti Hilpus stood in for him at the meeting. Speaking to the press after the three-way talks at the Art Museum Riga Bourse, Latvian Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins stressed the unity of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia on matters concerning geopolitics and security, the EU budget after 2020, transatlantic ties and the UK's forthcoming exit from the EU, among others. "After the meeting I have concluded that Baltic unity is not only alive but also as close as it has ever been," Karins said. Lithuanian Prime Minister Saulius Skvernelis agreed, saying that in negotiations on the EU's budget, for instance, all three Baltic states are united in their demand to stop discriminatory treatment of farmers in some of the bloc's new member states and to provide adequate cohesion funding also in the EU's next budget. The funding provided by the EU as part of its Cohesion Policy is especially important for large regional projects as Rail Baltica European-gauge railway, which the three Baltic states are going to build to connect their railway networks with Western Europe, as well as the synchronization of the Baltic power grids with the rest of Europe, Estonian Ambassador Hilpus pointed out. He also suggested coordinating the Baltic states' relations with the United States and stepping up security and defense cooperation. The Baltic leaders also voiced skepticism about reopening the EU-UK talks on the Brexit agreement. The prime ministers denied rumors that UK representatives had asked the Baltic states' assistance to persuade the EU to continue negotiations with the UK in a bid to achieve a better deal and avert a no-deal Brexit. Latvian Prime Minister Karins said that the UK had not approached Latvia on this issue and that he did not think a new agreement could be achieved on Brexit, given the short period of time remaining until the UK's departure from the bloc. "There will be no new talks. It is necessary to implement those decisions that have been taken," said Lithuanian Prime Minister Skvernelis. Commenting on the progress on the Rail Baltica project, which featured high on the meeting's agenda, the Baltic leaders welcomed Finland's decision to join the project. Noting that funding is one of the project's challenges, Karins said that Finland's participation would make it easier to secure the financing necessary for the project in the EU's multiannual budget. "With Finland joining the project, we will have one more voice interested in defending this project," the Latvian premier said. The Lithuanian prime minister added that Finland's involvement might also increase Poland's interest in the regional railway project. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - The Alzheimer's project teamed up with the Florida State college of medicine on Saturday, to hold the 34th annual Disease Education and training conference. The community took advantage of the free event where caregivers and people with dementia had the chance to learn about everything from available care options to improving behavior and communication. One Tallahassee caregiver, Margie Marcil, said not only is this conference an opportunity to learn about local resources but also to talk about challenges and coping strategies with fellow caregivers. In addition to helping family caregivers, the conference offered Continuing Education Credits to healthcare professionals provided by Big Bend Hospice. For over 40 years, Al-Arabi Publishing and Distributing has exhibited at the Cairo International Book Fair (CIBF), with titles mainly in politics and mass media. For the past decade, however, it is translated titles, mostly fiction, that have attracted readers to this particular publishing house. According to Al-Arabi publisher Sherif Bakr, this was a good year, with book fair visitors showing a true interest in learning more about the world. We did well; our new titles of translated novels and books in general were very well received with people being very happy to go through piles of books that bring to them ideas from Finland, Serbia, Austria, Zimbabwe and many other countries, Bakr said. One of this years newly translated titles for Al-Arabi is the Arabic version of Bryony Rheams This September Sun, the gratifying novel that came out in late 2009, examining layers of the lives of the settlers of Rhodesia that continue to haunt Zimbabwes grandchildren. This is the first Africa-centred novel translation for Al-Arabi that has otherwise, over the past four decades, brought to its readers a wide range of political readings on Africa, including the Arabic translation of Wolfgang Bauers Stolen Girls: Survivors of Boko Haram tell their story, which came out in 2017. Meanwhile, Bakr is hoping to bring out a translation of Thirteen Cents, a novel that approaches the shadowy side of life in Cape Town. I am hoping it will come out this year but it might have to be for the book fair next year, because translation does take a long time to be done properly, Bakr said. Bakr affirmed that he would like to bring more writers from Africa. The trouble there is that African writers are either very well known (and those are usually the writers whose work is published in European countries that once colonised Africa) or are very difficult to trace. We are usually looking to get our readers acquainted with the less known rather than the well-known, he said. I was, for example, very lucky to have met the author of This September Sun at the Frankfurt book fair, so I learned about the book. I keep looking for African writers or otherwise for books written about Africa, Bakr said. But yes, when we look at the map we have in the office, where we pin the countries that we had brought books from, we do feel that we still have so much to do on Africa, he said. Meanwhile, Bakr is happy to have seen the attention this year's book fair brought to Al-Arabis translation of Purge, a Finnish novel by Sofi Oksanen that looks at the political and social impact of the occupation of Estonia by the Soviet Union during World War II. The novel has been translated into near 40 languages. We translated from the English version, as we have been doing with a considerable number of titles, because usually it is easier to find literature translators who work from English into Arabic, and also because usually the English translation is a very good one, Bakr said. When he started off his translation section a little under 10 years ago, Bakr created a small team that was essentially translating and editing from English. Today, the team has expended and it is now working on translations from several European languages. Translation is usually a very taxing job, especially translation of literature. But we have a rule at Al-Arabi: we are making a translation that has to be an easy and enjoyable read, so we are not held captive to the exact, literal translation. I think this has been essential to our success in getting our readers acquainted with literature from all the continents, he said. This year, for CIBF, Al-Arabi issued 24 literary translations that they have been working on for over two years. Sometimes one thinks it would be easy, but things become slow. Like this year, we have a translation of an Armenian novel and we thought it should be an easy going process, given the large Egyptian Armenian community. But it took quite a bit of time to put the translation on the right path, Bakr said. According to Bakr, Purge is one of this years best selling for Al-Arabi. Another very well received book is the Arabic translation of The Devils Workshop of Czech novelist Jachym Topol, that examines the history of concentration camps in Belarus. With this book we had to spend over a year on the translation and editing, and inevitably we needed to invite the author for the revision of the final version of the book. It sometimes has to be this way. But it does not matter how long time it takes, so long as we come up with a good translation, Bakr said. Al-Arabi focuses on translating fiction. I think of the books we translate, we do roughly 80 percent fiction and 20 percent non-fiction, Bakr said. I guess people are more interested in reading fiction. Actually, our readers are mostly young and are more into fiction generally, he added. Al-Arabi, Bakr said, is continually seeking titles that would attract younger readers. Currently, he added, Al-Arabi is working on the Arabic translation of an Australian novel, Life on the Refrigerator, that tells the story of a mother and daughter who end up communicating through sticky notes put on a fridge. Bakr expects that this will be one of the novels to attract the "young adult" constituency of readers, which he says constitute a big audience for literature. Al-Arabi is also behind three Arabic fiction titles for this year: Tamar by May Khaled; Frames of Emptiness (Otor min Faragh) by Amr Afiyah and The Prisoner of Muscat (Sagine Mascat) by Al-Sherbiny Ashour. One should never underestimate the impact of literature on peoples lives. It induces them to think of things and feel things that might be life-changing, literally and not metaphorically, Bakr said. Short link: University inclusion team welcomes young people for day of job tips and training This article is old - Published: Sunday, Feb 10th, 2019 A group of young people who are being supported to find work recently visited Wrexham Glyndwr Universitys inclusion team for a day of tips and training. The visitors were eight Project Search Interns from Ysbyty Gwynedd in Bangor, accompanied by Programme Leader Gwyn Llewellyn Hughes and Assistant Nia Jones from Coleg Menai. Project Search, supported by the charity Engage to Change, supports young people aged between 18-25 with a learning disability and/or autism into work placements lasting 10-12 weeks. Each Intern completes two work placements in different hospital departments across the Ysbyty Gwynedd site, with the aim of helping young people with significant disabilities successfully find a job. The group were welcomed to the university at the invitation of the Inclusion Services Manager, Sarah Roberts and Assessor, Carol Lewis-Roylance. Inclusion Services have supported Project Search Interns since the project began at Ysbyty Gwynedd in Bangor in September 2017. Carol is a member of the Project Search Business Liaison Group. She said: We were delighted to welcome the group to Wrexham. Weve already worked with them on-site in Bangor, but being able to show them some of the opportunities our Inclusion Services Team can offer on-site really makes a difference. Personal support like that is at the centre of the work we do. That support included assistive technology training showing Interns how to use software which reads text aloud, allowing them to work independently on job searches and job applications. The team at Glyndwr have already helped provided the Project Search group with computer equipment and the assistive technology software they learnt about during their visit. This equipment was donated by Wyvern Business Systems Ltd., with software donated by Claro Software and Inspiration Software. As well as the training, which was delivered in the Assessment Centre by Jordan Moss and Carol Lewis-Roylance, the interns also met with Job Centre Employment Adviser Mark Williams, who gave a talk on how to access Job Centre services, with tips on interview techniques. The day finished with a visit to Techniquest, including the Stardome. Project Search Programme Leader, Gwyn Llewellyn added: The Interns had a great time and are still talking about the experience today. Everything was relevant and so important to their professional development. Graves County Jail Inmate Arrested on Drug Charges By West Kentucky Star Staff MAYFIELD - Police charged an inmate at the Graves County Jail with drug offenses on Friday.The Mayfield Police Department says an officer responded Friday morning to a report of contraband being found on an inmate at the jail. The on-duty supervisor told officers 31-year-old Gregory Morris of Mayfield was acting strangely in his cell. Jail staff reportedly found baggies of meth and other illegal drugs on Morris during a search.Morris was charged with first-degree promoting contraband. Four Arrested on Warrants, Other Charges By West Kentucky Star Staff BARDWELL - Four people are facing charges in Carlisle County after two separate investigations.According to the Carlisle County Sheriff's Department, a drug investigation that began in January led to arrest warrants being issued for 23-year-old Thomas Bishop. While at his Bardwell home, execution of a search warrant led to discovery of illegal narcotics and drug paraphernalia. Bishop was arrested for possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia, possession of a controlled substance 2nd degree, two counts of possession of a controlled substance 1st degree, and possession of a controlled substance not in the proper container. He was also served with a summons for criminal mischief related to a December incident at Huck's store in Bardwell, where he allegedly unplugged a cooler and caused food inventory to spoil.Another man in the home, William Bobo, was served with a summons for possession of drug paraphernalia, related to the search of a home during an investigation in January.In a separate case, deputies were attempting to serve a bench warrant for 41-year-old Patricia Brown at a home on Cheatham Street, and say they saw someone run from the living room to an adjoining bedroom. Deputies say 22-year-old Austin Turner answered the door and said Brown wasn't home, and he was watching her kids. When asked about the person deputies saw run from the room, he reportedly denied any knowledge of it, and wouldn't allow deputies inside the home. However, when deputies learned that Turner was wanted on a Graves County arrest warrant for failure to appear in court, he was arrested.When she heard that Turner was being arrested, Brown came out of the next room and surrendered to deputies. She was arrested on the warrant for failure to pay.Turner was additionally charged with hindering prosecution. WKCTC's 'Truth & Trust in Media' Panel Tonight By WestKyStar & Clemens Fine Arts Center Staff The discussion will explore the trend of indifference towards the truth in modern media and how that may undermine the fundamental principle of trust in society, and how ever-changing and growing technology may also significantly and continually alter the world's relationship with media. "We live in the real world and truth is about how things are and what reality is like," said Todd Birdsong, Clemens Fine Arts Center director. "This panel discussion addresses the idea that if you don't know what the truth is, you are ignorant of reality. Our Exposure Series focuses on enabling audiences and artists to explore ideas about our world with an interdisciplinary and more education-based approach." Expert panelists for the discussion will be Murray State University's Department of Journalism and Mass Communication faculty Kevin Qualls, Dr. Tim Vance, and Robert Valentine. Dr. Bob McGaughey, MSU professor and chairman emeritus of the MSU's Department of Journalism and Mass Communication will also be on the evening's panel. For more information, visit artsinfocus.org or contact Todd Birdsong at todd.birdsong@kctcs.edu or 270-534-3213. View Online at the link below. PADUCAH - WKCTC's Clemens Fine Arts Center will host its Exposure Series to address "Truth and Trust in Modern Media" this evening.The panel discussion will be held at 6 pm on the second floor of WKCTC's Paducah School of Art and Design's 2D and Graphic Design Building at 905 Harrison St. in Lowertown. The event is free and open to the public.On the Net: The UKs Minister of State for Security Ben Wallace has commended the Egyptian governments efforts on combating terrorism in Sinai during a meeting with the Egypts Ambassador to the UK Tarek Adel on Saturday. Adel discussed with the British minister means of boosting Egypt-UK relations in various fields, especially security cooperation and coordination, the Egyptian foreign ministry said in a statement. Wallace underscored the importance of Egypt as a strategic partner for Britain in light of the joint security challenges facing the two countries, topped by terrorism and extremism. In November, an Egyptian parliamentary delegation met with Wallace in London to discuss issues of mutual interest to the two countries. The MPs meeting with Wallace and other British officials focused on Britain's continued ban on UK airlines flying to Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm El-Sheikh, which was imposed after the crash of a Russian airliner which took off from Sharm El-Sheikh, killing all 224 passengers and crew. Brookport Bridge Back Open after Ice Melts By West Kentucky Star Staff PADUCAH - The US 45 "Brookport" Bridge is back open after officials closed it early Sunday morning due to icing on the bridge deck.The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet says the bridge was closed Sunday shortly after 6 a.m. at the request of the McCracken County Sheriff's Department due to reports of icing.The bridge was opened back up to traffic at around 9 a.m. Govt Launches New Educational Initiative The Department of Education has said it has been rolling out a key teaching and learning initiative in both upper and lower primary schools. This initiative started as a pilot programme at St Bernards Middle School three years ago. Since then it has been introduced at Governors Meadow, St Marys First, St Josephs First, Notre Dame, St Pauls, St Bernards First, Hebrew Primary, St Bernards Middle, St Josephs Middle and St Martins. The initiative will be introduced at St Annes and Bishop Fitzgerald during this academic year, and at Bayside, Westside and the Gibraltar College during the 2019/2020 academic year. 'The initiative supports our teachers as they continue to work to develop essential skills and attitudes in all our learners. To succeed now and in the future, our learners need to be knowledgable, caring, balanced, reflective, resilient and creative. In an ever changing world where digital technologies surround our learners, the Department of Education feels that it is crucial for technology to be one of the many tools used by both teachers and students to develop these essential skills. It is also important that students understand what it means to be a responsible digital citizen.' The Department of Education said it has engaged a leading Professional Learning Specialist to support the introduction and implementation of the initiative, through an ongoing programme of continuous professional development. 'Sessions have been tailor-made for our teachers, senior leaders in schools and the Department of Education. These sessions explore the use of digital technologies as a key teaching and learning tool.' 'We are already seeing how thoughtful use of the mobile technology is enabling teachers to offer additional meaningful learning experiences. The devices have frequently been used during school visits to our local beaches, the museum, our places of worships and other outdoor areas in and around Gibraltar. This anytime, anywhere learning extends the classroom beyond the school building, allowing students and teachers to explore, and learn from, their local environment. Students can can use the digital resources collected on their field trip to continue their learning back in the classroom. As a part of this initiative, the Department of Education confirmed it is embarking on a review of the curriculum delivered in its primary schools. The initial stages of this work will focus on Early Years and Key Stage One with other Key Stages following suit at a later stage. The Department of Education hopes to integrate some of the ideas and philosophies experienced in their visit to Finland into the primary sector. 'The aim of this review is to provide schools with a curriculum framework that will empower our teachers in developing our young learners in a local context. It is envisaged that the new curriculum framework developed as part of this review will better support the learning opportunities that digital technologies can offer, whilst allowing our teachers to build on the excellent project-based learning experiences offered in our schools.' The review will also allow the Department of Education to formalise the Gibraltar Studies curriculum, continue to promote bilingualism from an early age and develop its computational thinking and coding curriculum. To ensure that the academic learning is built on a solid foundation of emotional and mental well-being, the curriculum review will specifically look at supporting young learners in the development of tools and strategies. The aim is to ensure that they develop into confident and happy individuals, with the resilience and problem-solving skills to work through the complexities of life. This review will also see outdoor learning opportunities around Gibraltar integrated into the curriculum, opportunities which are now more accessible due to the innovative use of digital technologies as a learning tool. The aim of this particular area of the review is to equip learners with love and respect for the outdoors, nurture self esteem, develop teamwork skills, provide real life opportunities to create independent learning and develop healthier bodies. To support this area of the curriculum, the Department of Education is already in the advanced stages of planning for the introduction of outdoor learning forest zones in those primary schools with the adequate space. Additionally, the Department will be reaching out to agencies who already support our schools to see how our learners can continue to tap into the rich and diverse learning environment that Gibraltar provides. Minister for Education John Cortes commented. When I said some time ago that we were undergoing an Education Revolution in Gibraltar, I wasnt referring just to buildings. Its a change in the way we do things. We are responding to changing times and widening of resources available to teachers and learners, and maximising the richly active and environmentally diverse community to which we belong. Being in school in Gibraltar whether teaching or learning is going to become even more productive and much more fun! Taneesa Dunham, seen with her puppy Joon in her Walla Walla apartment after a recent surgery, is one of 13 people in Washington who have received pardons from Gov. Jay Inslee for prior pot convictions. Register for a FREE account to keep reading! Register now for a FREE account to keep reading. No cost and no credit card required! Access up to 5 articles per month when you register, or get unlimited access to all of our content online starting at $1.99 now! Already registered? Click the log in link below Adel Adham, who passed away 9 February 1996, cant be viewed as an actor who only succeeded in playing the villain in Egyptian cinema. The man was endowed with a special style of performing these kind of roles that distinguished him from those who made such roles their specialty to the extent that he became the founder of an acting technique emulated by others. Adel Adham, who was dubbed The Prince, was born in Alexandria on 8 March 1928 to a father who was a government employee and a mother of Turkish origin. Being fluent in a number of languages helped him in getting along with members of foreign communities, who were widespread in the coastal city, especially after he began to work in business since he was 17. While strolling on an Alexandrian beach, he was spotted by director Abdel-Fattah Hassan during the shooting of a film and offered an acting job. The handsome youth liked the idea and appeared in several movies taking small parts, starting in 1949 and including Gawaher (Mohamed Abdel-Gawad) and The Big House (Ahmed Kamel Morsi). Adham was waiting for the opportunities Abdel-Fattah Hassan had promised him to materialise. Unfortunately, the director died before presenting his new discovery to the cinema. Adham went to the actor and director Anwar Wagdi who was curt, stressing that he wasnt suitable for acting except in front of a mirror. The handsome youth, who was an athlete, decided to move into dancing through his lifetime friend Ali Reda, co-founder of the Reda Folkloric Dancing Troupe, at the same time as working in the Cotton Stock Exchange in Alexandria. He continued to do both jobs until Egypt nationalised the cotton trade and closed the Cotton Stock Exchange at the end of the 1950s. At this point, Adham decided to immigrate to Europe, but another coincidence changed his life completely. He met director Ahmed Diaa-Eldin, who was about to shoot A Queer Girl and Am I Mad? (both 1964) and decided to cast Adham in the two films since he believed in his talent. At last, Adhams wish was granted almost 14 years after Anwar Wagdi killed it in the cradle. In that year, Niazi Mostafa also cast him along with the most famous actor at the time, Farid Shawqi, in The Spy. Thus, this strong beginning made for a significant push in Adhams cinematic career. But the most important point was that Adham began to know the screen persona that suits him most: the light-hearted villain. Many times he performed using this screen persona, benefitting from his acting skills, such as facial expressions, as well as a capability to act in action films if required. However, his trademark feature was his gravelly voice which he could manipulate and change in tone from hissing to roaring. During the 1960s, Adel Adham acted in a number of important films. The most prominent are: The Technical Director (1965, Fateen Abdel-Wahab), Unfaithful (1965, Kamal El-Sheikh), The Most Dangerous Man in the World (1967, Niazi Mostafa) and The Quail and Autumn (1967, Hossam Eddine Mostafa) based on a novel by Nobel Laureate Naguib Mahfouz. Through acting a number of different characters, Adham became sure-footed and by the beginning of the 1970s, the biggest name in villain roles. This was manifested in a number of films such as Adrift on the Nile (1971, Hussein Kamal), based on a novel by Naguib Mahfouz, The Sad Night Bird (1977, Yehia El-Alami), Masters and Slaves (1978, Ali Reda) and Stronger than Days (1979, Nader Galal). However, his most memorable performance was in Barefoot on a Golden Bridge (1976, Atef Salem) where he played King Farouk, king of Egypt, under the character name of Aziz. It was the life story of the screen siren Camelia in the 1940s. Throughout the 1980s and beyond, Adham continued to play the villain in his own style while putting in mind his becoming older. His roles were almost always in the Egyptian low class milieu where he used to portray strong men such as in The Devil Preaches (1981, Ashraf Fahmi), The Slaughterhouse (1982, Ahmed El-Sabawy), The Oven (1984, Ibrahim Afifi) and The Belly Dancer and The Drummer (1984, Ashraf Fahmi). In the mid-70s, the Open Door policy embraced by the Egyptian government resulted in the emergence of opportunistic capitalism, which was usually represented on the silver screen by Adham. In addition to the above, it is noteworthy to focus on two truly significant performances. The first was in The Woman who has Beaten the Devil (1973, Yehia El-Alamy), adapted from a short story by the renowned author Tawfiq Al-Hakim. The films significance is derived from the fact that Adham transcended evil roles by portraying the symbol of evil itself, namely Satan. It was a very rare experience in Egyptian film history. Only two actors preceded Adham in playing the same role, Youssef Wahbi, the star and director of Hells Ambassador (1945), and Mahmoud El-Meligy in An Appointment with Satan (1955, Kamel El-Telmissany). However, both performances were traditional: theatrical in the case of Wahbi, and stereotypical in the case of El-Meligy. With Adham, it was totally different. His rendering ranged between smoothness when he was insinuating to ferocity when his rage is at full throttle. The second experience was his role in The Unknown (1984, Ashraf Fahmi), adapted from the play The Misunderstanding by Albert Camus, when he played a deaf mute who throws the corpses of his mistresss victims in the lake. This was Adhams opportunity to present a superb performance relying solely on body language and facial expression, through which he won several awards. In his final years, Adham tried to break the villain or strongman mould by playing human and benevolent roles, perhaps the most prominent of which in A Man for this Age (1986, Nader Galal) and The Ladys Driver (1994, Hassan Ibrahim) before making his swansong in Suspicious Relationships (1996, Adel El-Asser). 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 Short link: Tiruppur, Feb 10 (UNI) Accusing the Opposition parties of misleading the farmers, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said it was the BJP-led NDA government which has announced a Rs 6,000 assistance to farmers who have less than five acres of land per year in this year's budget. Addressing a public meeting here, he said, the opposition parties were spreading panic on the issue. Stating that the Opposition used to talk of farm loan waiver only during the elections, he said on the contrary, the BJP-led NDA government for the first time in the country brought various steps with permanent solution to the farmers by doubling their income. In this year's budget, the government also announced Rs.6,000 assistance to farmers, who were having less than five acres of land, every year. This assistance will be given to the farmers besides all other benefits, he said. Pointing out that the previous government has brought a temporary solution to the farmers by waiving off the farmers loans to the tune of Rs.50,000 crore, Mr Modi said the NDA government has planned to spend Rs.7.50 lakh crore to the farmers in the next ten years by providing them Rs 6,000 a year. 'For the first time in Indian history, the government spoke about doubling the income of farmers, besides Rs 6,000 per year as support, in addition to a range of other scheme for farmers', he added. 'When we announced the scheme, the opposition benches were shocked', he added. Mr Modi said in the Union interim-budget a separate department for fisheries has been announced for the well-being of fishermen and fisherwomen. 'This will bring the government to their doorstep', Mr Modi said and asked whey the previous Congress-led UPA government did not think of this. UNI KS-GV CS 1841 New Delhi, Feb 10 (UNI) The work for the much awaited Delhi-Mumbai Expressway is going on in full swing and once completed the car travel between two metropolis will be only about 12 hours. There would be multiple benefits from the project as it would also open job avenues in the tribal sectors in the partner states and there is also additional land to be used for Bullet train projects. "This road would have a width of 120 metres and the Ministry of Surface Transport has offered some land for use by the Railways. If they are interested for land to run Bullet Trains, we may offer them some land," a key source said here. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to dedicate the project in next 15 days or so, sources said. Official sources said the 'transparent manner' of functioning in land acquisition and work allotment to the contractors have helped the exchequer make a clear saving of Rs 16,000 crore. Sources said the work wise allocation made in each partner states involve 240 KM work allotment in Madhya Pradesh, 400 km in Rajasthan, 250 km in Gujarat and 250 km in Maharashtra. For Vadodara-Mumbai section, already a sanction of Rs 44,000 crore has been made, the source said. The issues pertaining to this project figured prominently during Question Time in Lok Sabha and answering to queries from members, Surface Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari said that the adjoining areas along the ambitious project would have logistic parking and scopes for industrial units. "This will open job avenues in tribal sectors," he has said. Answering questions on Bharatmala Pariyojana, the Minister said the umbrella programme comprises of about 65,000 km of highways. "Out of the total length under Bharatmala Pariyojana, 24,800 km Highways - that is economic corridors, inter corridors, feeder roads and border roads along with 10,000 km residual stretches have been envisaged for construction for a period of five years from 2017-18 to 2021-22," the Minister told the lawmakers in the House of the People. He also said a total sum of Rs 5,35,000 crores have been earmarked for the same. UNI DEVN RSA 0859 Estonia delegation calls TSCHE Vice-Chairman Hyderabad, Feb 8 (UNI) A delegation of Estonian Universities on Friday called on the Telangana State Council of Higher Education (TSCHE) Vice Chairman Prof V Venkata Ramana, an official statement said. The delegation consisted of the representatives of University of Tartu, University of Taltech and Armides Foundation. According to the statement, the delegation had detailed discussions with Prof Venkata Ramana explained to the delegation about Telangana which is fast developing as an educational hub and the initiatives being taken by the Telangana government under the leadership of K Chandrasekhar Rao. Radisson Hotel Group has announced the signing of two new hotels in Saudi Arabia: the Radisson Hotel, Makkah Al Rahma and the Park Inn by Radisson Hotel, Makkah Al Rahma. The new agreement extends an existing partnership with renowned Saudi real estate developer and investor Sulaiman Abdulaziz Al-Rajhi and his real estate development company, Al-Rajhi Investments. The agreement increases Radisson Hotel Groups portfolio in Saudi Arabia to 43 hotels and more than 10,000 rooms in operation and under development. Both the Radisson Hotel, Makkah Al Rahma and the Park Inn by Radisson, Makkah Al Rahma are scheduled to open in Q2, 2021. Elie Younes, executive vice president and chief development officer, Radisson Hotel Group, said: Were pleased to strengthen our relationship with our esteemed partner Al-Rajhi Investments with the addition of two new hotels in Makkah. Through Vision 2030, Saudi Arabia continues to make significant investments in mega projects to enhance its infrastructure and accessibility. The country remains a focus market for our growth which we are committed to deliver with our local partners Khalid Saud Abu Haimed, chief executive officer of Al-Rajhi Investments, said: We are pleased to grow our relationship with Radisson Hotel Group, one of the worlds largest hotel groups. The growth of religious tourism is a key pillar of our countrys Vision 2030 plan and we are committed to supporting this goal. We are privileged to be playing a leading role in the evolution of the tourism sector and look forward to continuing our journey with Radisson Hotel Group. Both hotels will be located in the Mahbas Al-Jin district of Makkah and situated just 2km from the Haram. The King Abdul Aziz Road Tunnel provides direct access by road to the Haram, while the nearest railway station is just 2km away from the hotels. Jamaraat Bridge is also within convenient reach of the hotels. Radisson Hotel, Makkah Al Rahma will feature 190 rooms and an all-day-dining restaurant that will serve both local and international cuisine, buffet-style. The hotel will have one meeting room, male and female gyms as well as individual male and female prayer rooms. Park Inn by Radisson Hotel, Makkah Al Rahma, will feature 150 Standard rooms. The upper midscale hotel will feature an all-day-dining restaurant and will also include one meeting room, male and female gyms as well as individual male and female prayer rooms. - TradeArabia News Service Tamkeen, Bahrain's labour development fund, is currently in the midst of revamping its Enterprise Development Program and Training and Wage Support programs, according to its chief executive. This change is in line with Tamkeen's efforts to enhance the sustainability of the impact of the support and maximising their benefits as per market requirements, Dr Ebrahim Mohammed Janahi said a statement. With regard to the Training and Wage Support Program, Dr Janahi said in a statement that when receiving applications will be resumed, applications concerning the hires made during the application suspension period while the program was being revamped will be evaluated in accordance with the new terms and conditions which aim to broaden the opportunities for a wide range of individuals and enterprises. The retroactive evaluation of the applications of the individuals employed during the application suspension period will ensure that Bahrainis continue to benefit from the programme. Qusay Al Arayed, chief executive for customer support and operations at Tamkeen, noted that the revamped Training and Wage Support Program will contribute to supporting the employment of Bahrainis in the labour market by incorporating a broader segment of individuals to enhance their employment opportunities. Al Arayed added that in line with the efforts to achieve the objectives of enhancing the impact of the support programs for a broader segment of enterprises and individuals and in line with best global practices in this regard, the support, the categories of support for the Training and Wage Support Program will be expanded from two to four categories. The four categories include: 1) New employees under the age of 30 with no previous work experience); 2) Employees aged 18 to 24 years with 24 months of work experience who are non-bachelors degree holders; 3) Employees under the age of 30 with 24 months of experience, and 4) Employees under the age of 35 with 24 months to 60 months of work experience. Ali Hasan, operational performance senior manager, said that the new support categories will allow Tamkeen to expand the support to a broader segment to meet the needs of both individuals and enterprises, as well as ensure the delivery of the very highest levels of support for their continued growth and development. Hasan further noted that the revamped programme will focus on enhancing employment opportunities for recent graduates and new hires, adding that Tamkeen's support for this category will reach up to 70% of the wage during their first year on the job. TradeArabia News Service DHL Express, a leading global express and logistics provider, has appointed Ali Aryan as the new general manager of its Middle East and Africa distribution hub and gateway facility, headquartered in Bahrain. Celebrating 31 years with DHL, Aryan is the first Bahraini to hold this important position, and brings with him a wealth of industry knowledge and business-related experience, said a statement from the company. Aryan joined DHL in 1988 as a courier, and since then has held various positions within the company, including customer service and telesales in the Bahrain Country Office. He later moved to DHLs Bahrain Hub where he took up a variety of posts across different departments, rising through the ranks to eventually take on the role of general manager of DHLs Bahrain Hub and Gateway, which is the companys main Hub in the region. As general manager, Aryan is responsible for supervising the hubs operations and ensuring efficiency and superior quality of service for its customer base, it said. Bachi Spiga, vice president of operations at DHL Express Middle East and North Africa (Mena), said: We are very proud of Aryan, he is a success story for DHL and a true testament to how the company values and invests in its people. We believe in organic growth and promoting talent from within, motivating dedicated, hard-working employees to climb the corporate ladder and to in turn inspire others around them. Hiring local talent is very important to our company since they know the market best; our strategy across the network is to empower them, building local experts with global industry knowledge, he added. Aryan said: It goes without saying that this is a significant milestone in my career, and a very proud moment for me as the first Bahraini to occupy this position. I have been working with DHL for over three decades, and proof that perseverance, loyalty and dedication can lead to excellent results. DHLs Bahrain Hub facility, the first to be set up by the company in the Mena region 42 years ago, the hub and country office boasts over 80 per cent Bahrainisation rate, and is home to nearly 400 trained certified international specialists, it stated. TradeArabia News Service Brazil exported goods worth $11.48 billion to the Arab World in 2018, which is indicative of its robust trade relations with the region, a media report said. Brazilian exports to the UAE, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait were recorded at $2 billion, $2.13 billion, $2.1 billion, and $227 million respectively, reported state news agency Wam, citing the Arab-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce (ABCC). Iron ores and concentrates including roasted iron pyrites; maize; meat of bovine animals; artificial Corundum, aluminium oxide and aluminium hydroxide; cane or beet sugar and chemically pure sucrose in solid form; meat and edible offal of both fresh and frozen poultry; and motor cars and other passenger transport vehicles are among the most exported Brazilian items to Arab countries in 2018. Rubens Han nun, president, Arab-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, said: "The trade figures for the year 2018 once again reflect healthy trade relations shared by Brazil and the Arab World. With more and more Brazilian companies looking to diversify and explore global markets, coupled with the regions strong demand for our products, these figures are set to go up further in 2019." The Saudi Jordanian Investment Fund (SJIF) said it has signed a deal with Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority (Aseza) to develop a rail network at an investment of JD500 million ($705.2 million) that will connect Aqabas seaports to a dry port in the Maan area of the kingdom, thus forming the first phase of Jordans national railway network. The SJIF is a Jordanian limited public shareholding company set up in 2017 as a joint venture between the Saudi wealth fund Public Investment Fund (with 90 per cent stake) and 16 conventional and Islamic Jordanian banks (with the remaining 10 per cent) . As SJIFs first major investment in Jordan, the Aqaba-Maan railway and the Maan dry port project is planned to enhance Jordans transportation sector and its capabilities in logistics services. The MoU outlines the form of co-operation between SJIF and Aseza to advance the railway and dry port project, which includes completing thorough technical and feasibility studies, said the statement from the joint Saudi Jordan fund . Upon completion of the studies, SJIF and Aseza would commence project development. The scope of work includes construction of a new railway line inside the city of Aqaba connecting the southern seaport and container terminal with the existing line, renovation of the existing railway line connecting the city of Aqaba to Maan besides procurement of new rolling stock, wagons, and other equipment, and constructing a dry port in Maan on 4 million sq m of land. Upon completion, the railway will operate along a 195-km rail track, transporting cargo containers from and to Aqaba as well as phosphate from the mines in Shidiya to Aqaba for export, said the statement. The project is a major public-private partnership (PPP) aimed at enhancing Jordans logistics offering through providing more efficient transportation solutions and supporting growth and job creation in the local communities in Aqaba and Maan, it added. SJIF chairman Hisham Attar said: "As our first major investment in Jordan, we are pleased to sign this MoU aimed at establishing this major infrastructure project. The Fund continues to be committed to pursuing investment opportunities that create value for Jordan and its citizens." "We are confident that our partnership with Aseza will serve as a model for effective cooperation between the public and private sectors a model we hope will demonstrate Jordans investment potential, encourage future investments in Jordan, and improve Jordans competitiveness, in addition to fostering further cooperation between Saudi Arabia and Jordan," he stated. Fund CEO Omar Alwir said its investment strategy revolves around building a diversified portfolio along three key tracks: investing in large infrastructure projects; pursuing investments in key economic sectors, such as healthcare, information technology, and tourism; and participating in the growth acceleration of established Jordanian companies by providing growth capital. Aseza Chief Commissioner Nasser Shraideh said: "We are proud to partner with the SJIF to develop a key transportation project that promises to strengthen Jordans logistics offering and drive economic growth." "The Aqaba-Maan railway and Maan dry port would reduce transportation costs and spur the development of the logistics ecosystem in southern Jordan and could be the first step in the development of a national railway network," he added.-TradeArabia News Service Idom, the leading multi-disciplinary engineering consultancy, said it has been shortlisted in the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) Bahrain Project of the Year Awards, for its proposal to fulfil the kingdoms long-term goal of delivering a reliable public transport system. The ICE is the leading professional engineering association, which helps channel engineering expertise into solving some of the worlds most pressing problems ranging from population pressures and growing urbanisation, to climate change, energy and water shortages, natural and human disasters. Bahrains transport infrastructure is one of the key pillars of the countrys investment plan to improve infrastructure, create jobs and enhance the regions economic and commercial competitiveness. The new transport network is designed to reduce car reliance, traffic congestion and air pollution within the city, making it a more sustainable location in which to live and work. With this, Bahrain will join other GCC countries in building a metro, following the footsteps of Dubai and Saudi Arabia. According to experts, Bahrain faces significant challenges with traffic congestion - with a limited bus-based public transport network and a rapidly growing urban population. Currently there are 3.8 million trips daily across the city by all modes of transport; by 2055 this figure is expected to exceed 9 million, they pointed out. The city is in absolute need of a sustainable public transport solution, boosting connectivity across the city and allowing free movement of people for business, commerce and leisure, they added. On the achievement, Alex Sinclair, the director of engineering at Idom, said: "Being shortlisted for the ICE awards is a huge honour, especially given the high level of competition. It is a great recognition of the work of the whole team involved in the project." "Idom's team of engineers has extensively researched population movement, travel habits and key transit corridors and devised a solution to meet the citys economic, environmental and social objectives, by developing Bahrains first mass urban transit network," he noted. At the core of this system will be a metro-based solution integrated with a comprehensive bus transit system, he added. "The delivery of this project is important to the development of Bahrain and its economic future," remarked Sinclair. "From an engineering perspective this project is a complex one as it entails designing an elevated metro system through an existing built-up city in which there are already competing demands on space - but it is completely achievable with the will and participation of all stakeholders, and the end result will transform the way of life for the population of Bahrain," he noted. "To ensure that this project is a success, our team has worked closely with stakeholders to make certain that we are capturing all the data necessary to help build a complete picture; this also includes accommodating future plans for highways, housing and commercial developments," stated Sinclair. "We have a defined scope of work, which includes a specific set of deliverables, covering the study stage through to the preliminary design phase to advance this project for procurement and construction," he added.-TradeArabia News Service With the help of the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), the Central Bank of Egypt has completed phase one of a project to establish an export risk guarantee company meant to boost economic ties between Egypt and other African countries. The company will also act to increase Egyptian exports to the continent, CBE advisor Naglaa Nozhi told MENA on Sunday. A feasibility study has already been outlined with three scenarios for implementation, Nozhi said. The project reflects keenness of the CBE to create a favourable climate for Egyptian businessmen to invest in Africa, and to ease trade exchange between Egypt and African countries, she added. The CBE will continue to act to enhance trade exchange with Africa and the Egyptian presence in the continent, Nozhi noted. Search Keywords: Short link: Dubai South, the 145-sq-km urban city development emerging in the emirate, said one of its units, South Energy, has signed a MoU with Singapore-based SP Group as part of its efforts to boost its district cooling capabilities by exploring key opportunities with the company. The agreement seeks to explore key opportunities through joint venture initiatives set to further enhance district cooling services in the region, said a statement from the energy solutions arm of Dubai South. South Energy operates six central cooling plants in Dubai South which currently serves the VIP Terminal, Residential District, The Business Park and Sakany in Dubais flagship urban project, tapping advanced cooling solutions through its strategic partnership with service providers in the sector. District cooling has been the preferred temperature control technology in the Middle East due to its highly energy-efficient model of providing cooling solutions to buildings, airports and other large-scale complexes. The agreement with SP Group represents the Emirati group's strong interest to further engage in enhancing its technical capacity as well as knowledge and skills in the energy sector, remarked Khalifa Al Zaffin, the executive chairman of Dubai Aviation City Corporation and Dubai South, after inking the deal with Ismail Al Marzooqi, the chief executive of South Energy at the Dubai South Headquarters in the presence of top officials from both companies. The top executives from SP Group who witnessed the signing of agreement include Wong Chit Sieng, the chief corporate officer; Jimmy Khoo, the managing director, Singapore District Cooling; Lim Howe Run, the head of strategic investments; Lim Soon Heng, Director, Corporate Strategy; Mak Ye Chyn, Director, Strategic Investments. Al Zaffin said: "In line with Dubai Souths long-term vision to become a leading investment destination in the region under the Dubai Plan 2021, Dubai South has always kept its doors open for collaboration and in establishing mutual support to key partners in order to achieve common goals." "We are confident that improving our capabilities through this partnership is another major step forward towards building Dubai South as an ideal community to work and live in," he added. The MoU explores key potential projects within Dubai South such as collaboration activities for the new district cooling plant located within the Emirates Flight Training Academy area of Dubai Souths Mohammed Bin Rashid Aerospace Hub (formerly known as Aviation District). It also seeks to build partnership on various initiatives aimed at expanding Dubai Souths capacity to serve the future needs of the city. Kim Yin said SP Group was pleased to collaborate with South Energy to provide advanced district cooling expertise and technology in the Middle East region thus helping customers enjoy a high quality, fully sustainable urban lifestyle. "The strategic new partnership is further bolstered by our experience in running the worlds largest underground district cooling network in Singapores financial and leisure hub and the operations we are currently setting up in China," he noted. "We are proud to be part of a global-scale project that has been designed to help achieve Dubais vision to truly become a world-class city. This is a major step towards more collaborations in the future, enabling us to meet the citys needs in the run-up to the Dubai Expo 2020," he added.-TradeArabia News Service Sunna Design, a leader in solar energy management for autonomous and connected applications, has partnered with Masdar City, in Abu Dhabi, for a 12-month pilot scheme to undergo weather endurance monitoring. This announcement come following their win last year, at the Zayed Sustainability Prizes 10th annual awards ceremony (formerly Zayed Future Energy Prize). Based in France, Sunna Design in the last week of January, had installed eight solar streetlights near Masdar Citys Eco-Villa development. The monitoring period is intended to further demonstrate confidence in their long-term performance and durability, said the company in a statement. The WiFi connectivity within each streetlight will enable the data and performance of each unit to be monitored remotely, from the companys head office in Blanchefort, France. The model was a key factor in the company receiving the 2018 Prize and, after the conclusion of this pilot project, the aim will be to have further demonstrated the effectiveness and longevity of this solar-powered lighting solution to more countries and regions that endure extreme heat, it stated. Commenting on the project, Chairman and Founder Thomas Samuel, said: "Sunna Design is extremely proud to partner with Masdar City for this pilot project, showcasing our best-in-class solar street lights in the GCCs leading, purpose-built, low carbon community." "The iSSL Maxi 4 is our best-selling road lighting product and with our latest battery and electronics patented technology is designed to operate for 10 years without technical maintenance," he stated. "The 12-month pilot project is part of Sunna Designs commitment to ongoing research and development and a desire to always be improving our technologies and products for our customers," he noted. Sunna pointed out that it had implemented several projects with private sector and government stakeholders, across the GCC, and that momentum had only accelerated after winning the Prize, in 2018. In turn, Dr Lamya Fawwaz, the director of the Zayed Sustainability Prize, said: "As a previous winner of the Prize, we are delighted to be supporting Sunna Design and its partnership with Abu Dhabis flagship low-carbon community, Masdar City, as they conduct tests on one of its novel solar-powered streetlights." "The partnership reflects the commitment these organisations, and the Prize, share for expanding clean energy access," noted Dr Fawwaz. Yousef Baselaib, the executive director of Masdar City, said: "Around a third of Masdar Citys electricity needs are provided by solar power and, from a smart city perspective, we recognise that data collection enables a greater understanding of how best to integrate renewable energy solutions into infrastructure and community developments." Following the evolution of the Zayed Future Energy Prize into the Zayed Sustainability Prize, in 2018, the recent annual awards ceremony, in January, now includes categories in Health, Food, Energy, Water, and Global High Schools, stated Dr Fawwaz. This broadening recognition of sustainability solutions, alongside energy, demonstrates the Prizes now closer alignment with the UN Sustainable Development Goals as well as supporting the UAEs governments National Agenda 2021. Submissions for the 2020 Zayed Sustainability Prize are now open and will run from January 30 to May 30.-TradeArabia News Service Business activities have played a major role in leading the UAE regionally and globally in more than 10 sub-indicators in the doing business report and being a regional hub for more than 24 per cent of the world's 500 largest companies, a top official said. In an exclusive interview with the Emirates News Agency, WAM, Hamid Mohammed bin Salem, Secretary-General of Federation of UAE Chambers of Commerce and Industry, said that the activities carried out by the General Secretariat of the Federation have contributed to providing job opportunities, increasing exports, and growing of productive and service sectors in the national economy during the past years. "For over 42 years, the General Secretariat has pursued the policy of developing the Federation to enable it to fulfil its ambitions and aspirations through a series of initiatives," he said, stressing that the General Secretariat achievements in 2018 are in total worthy of appreciation. The annual report of the General Secretariat included a detailed presentation on its activities and achievements in developing various economic sectors such as trade, industry, tourism, real estate, and capital markets. It also covered other topics that dealt with the Federation's support to member chambers, the government sector, and the development of the investment climate in the country. The report indicated that the number of meetings held by the General Secretariat from the beginning of January until the end of December 2018 reached 17 meetings, during which the Secretariat examined the challenges facing the private sector and commercial sectors. The General Secretariat has witnessed a distinguished external activity in promoting the investment climate of the country in various forums and regional and international meetings such as the Secretariat's participation in official visits to Egypt, Romania, Kazakhstan, and Algeria. Also, the formation of UAE trade delegations to Nepal, Poland, Uganda, Kenya, Malaysia, Singapore, Russia, and other countries. The Federation's General Secretariat in coordination with chambers of commerce and related bodies organised more than 134 activities which included symposiums, forums, conferences, workshops, and panel discussions on economic issues of interest to the private sector. On the role of women in entrepreneurship, statistics revealed a tangible presence of women as businesswomen. The number of businesswomen registered with the Chamber increased to more than 25,000 in 2018 compared with 21,000 in 2017, and with more than 50,000 trade licenses were issued to women entrepreneurs. The number of Emirati businesswomen reached nearly 12,000, representing about 48 per cent of the number of businesswomen in the country. They have 28,000 commercial licenses with investments of Dh30 billion ($8.16 billion). As for the economic sectors where Emirati businesswomen are active, the report said that women presence varies from sector to sector based on available statistics. The general trade sector, especially the clothing, fashion, personal and household goods topped it, with more than 20,000 registered business records. The approximate proportion of private sector board chairwomen in 2018 was 4 per cent, compared to 2 per cent in 2013, and the ratio of female board members in the private sector was between 9 -14 per cent. In 2018, the UAE Chambers of Commerce and Industry held more than 26 events attended by over 789 local and international delegates, resulting positively on the country's business sector. The Chamber was able to increase its members in 2018 by 5 per cent compared to last year while retaining the membership of 95 per cent of former members, the report concluded. What's Included With a Digital Only subscription, you'll receive unlimited access to our website and e-edition. Our digital products are available 24/7 and are accessible anywhere, anytime. If you have any questions or need further assistance, please call our customer service team at 570-724-2287 or email slapoint@tiogapublishing.com. You have permission to edit this article. Edit Close MBABANE The countrys legislators are at it again! Having been accused in past of only looking out for themselves at the expense of the ordinary citizenry, especially when it comes to financial matters, the legislators are again reported to have used taxpayers money for their benefit. The Times SUNDAY has learnt that the members of both Houses of Parliament (Senate and Assembly) allegedly spent public funds to buy cattle as gifts for His Majesty the King and Her Majesty the Queen Mother and passed them off as their gift to Their Majesties. Nine of the cattle have been bought for the King while six are for the Indlovukazi. It is understood by this publication that there was a heated debate on Monday during a caucus by members of both Houses when the presiding officers told the legislators that cattle had been bought as a present for Their Majesties from them (legislators). The presiding officers are Senate President Lindiwe Dlamini and Speaker in the House of Assembly Petros Mavimbela. A senior MP told this publication that they did not take kindly to what the presiding officers told them because of a number of reasons. We asked them where the money to buy the cattle had come from because no one among the legislators had been asked for contributions. As MPs we would have been able to fork out money from our own pockets to buy the cattle, said the experienced legislator. He said they were told by the presiding officers that money had been taken from public funds to purchase the cattle for the kings gift. As you know, the country does not have money, so they had no right to take public money to buy the cattle, he continued. He said they clarified to the presiding officers that they were not against buying the cattle as a gift for Their Majesties, but were against using public funds and then pretend as if it was the legislators cash that was spent. However, some legislators were reportedly in support of using public funds to buy the cattle for Their Majesties. These legislators are said to have that this has been the practice in the past years so they saw no need why it should change now. I see nothing wrong MP One such legislator is outspoken Motshane MP Robert Magongo who confirmed to this publication that indeed he saw nothing wrong with using public funds to buy cattle for Their Majesties. Magongo was first asked how much he had contributed towards purchasing of the cattle and his response was that he did not know. Why is this matter a problem to you? he asked and when told that it was the role of the media to monitor how public money was spent, he said there were individuals who had contributed a cow each towards the gift. However, he failed to provide the names of the individuals when asked to do so and pointed to the Speaker for such information. It was then brought to his attention that the Times SUNDAY knew that the matter was discussed during Mondays caucus and he had supported using public funds to buy the cattle. He responded: Yes, thats what has been previously happening and we never queried it. House of Assembly Chief Whip Musa Kunene, who is Gege MP, said the cattle were a gift from all the legislators. We tasked the Parliament administration to handle the task because it involved the entire Parliament staff. The cattle have been bought by Parliament, he said. When asked if he was saying they took money belonging to Parliament and bought the cattle, MP Kunene said that was not what he meant. On Monday we discussed and agreed on how we will carry out this task. I suggest you call the (Senate) President instead of me commenting on this. Yes we did discuss this and the choosing of which lihiya (kanga) to wear, he said. The Chief Whip also wondered why it was an issue that Parliament had bought gifts for Their Majesties because this was the norm. Every year when the king opens Parliament, Parliamentarians buys him a gift and also buys food that is consumed on the day, he said. When told that the problem was that the country did not have money so they were not supposed to use the little available on buying gifts, Kunene said the presiding officers should be the one to respond to this. However, the responses that were obtained from the Speaker and Senate President complicated matters because they contradicted each other. presiding officers confusion The Senate President was sent text and WhatsApp messages after she did not answer her phone when called and her response was brief but hard. You are out of order. Respect yourself, she responded, but did not elaborate when follow up questions were asked how this reporter was out of order. She then contacted Times of Swaziland Managing Editor Martin Dlamini whom she told that the cattle had been donated by chiefs. The Managing Editor told her that she should send this reporter that information as her response but she did not. This reporter, after having spoken to the Managing Editor, sent her another ext message asking if the information he had told to Dlamini could be used as her official comment but she never responded. However, her claim that the cattle were donated by chiefs appeared not to hold any water because Senator Chief Ndlaluhlaza Ndwandwe said he knew nothing about it. The chief, who succeeded the Senate President as Minister for Public Works and Transport, said as far as he knew the gift for His Majesty was a task for MPs, and presiding officers had asked legislators to contribute in any way possible. There was no specific mention of chiefs. I only know that the cattle are gifts from the legislators, not chiefs, the chief said. Also casting doubts on the Senate Presidents claim was her colleague the Speaker who gave a totally different version to hers. The Speaker first said Parliament had set aside a budget for the purchasing of the gift. He said those that were saying public funds were uased to buy the catthe were just talking without any base. He too wondered why this was an issue and when told of the fact that MPs should have been asked to contribute from their own pockets because the country had no money, he then asked not to comment. I hear what you are saying, but I request not to comment. I have no problem that this matter touches directly on me, but I have no comment, he said. He was then asked if what the president said about chiefs donating the cattle was true, the Speaker asked this reporter to make time so that the matter could be explained clearly. He said he had no idea what happened at Senate, but only aware of what transpired in the House of Assembly. Asked if they did not handle the issue of the gift jointly, the Speaker said: Thats why I dont want to comment because this matter involves Their Majesties so it would not be proper to be seen talking about it in the newspapers. He ended the interview by continuously insisting in the no comment statement. Deputy Speaker Phila Buthelezi said the Speaker was the one who could respond whether MPs contributed money towards buying the cattle. This is for the one that is above me, he said. Asked if he, personally, had contributed any amount, he said: As an individual MP, I ask not to comment. Some MPs that were spoken to regarding the purchasing of the cattle also opted not to comment. They were asked whether they had contributed in any way towards purchasing of the cattle. Please may I not respond to your question? I am still new in Parliament and still afraid of responding to some of these things. Please forgive me. One day when I have familiarised myself with things, I will respond to your questions, said Siphocosini MP Mduduzi Matsebula. Nhlambeni MP Manzi Zwane also referred the matter to the Speaker and said the matter was above his capacity. While at first he said he had contributed a certain amount of money to the purchasing of the cattle, he then changed tune when told that reports were that public funds were used to purchase the cattle. Okay, just say that cattle from members of Parliament were presented to Their Majesties. Just handle it that way. But I see no problem if MPs agree on buying a gift for the King. What I know is that both Houses bought 15 cattle for Their Majesties, MP Zwane said. MBABANE Making clean water available to the rural population appears to be of a lesser concern to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Energy. Instead, focusing on the construction of an oil reserve facility seems to be the priority. The Times SUNDAY has seen documents in which Principal Secretary Winnie Stewart sought to have E15 million allocated for the rural water supply project diverted towards the fuel reserve project at Phuzumoya. However, this diversion was blocked by Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Economic Planning and Development Bertram Stewart. In a memorandum dated August 8, 2018, Winnie asked Bertram to facilitate the diversion. The ministry kindly requests to re-allocate funds from Project X501/99 Rural Water Supply to Project F02686 Strategic Fuel Reserve Depot for the purpose of reviewing the designs for the Strategic Oil Reserve Facility. The preliminary designs were developed from a feasibility study of 2005 hence the need to be updated to reflect current economic conditions, Winnie wrote. She said her ministry had obtained Cabinet approval to re-allocate the funds. However, PS Bertram, in a responding memorandum over a month later on September 14, 2018, called for proof of the Cabinet approval. We note that Cabinet approved (CM 4637) to revive project for the purpose of making funds available for the re-allocation was sought, however the decision has not been attached for ease of reference, he wrote. The PS said the request (by Winnie) cannot be approved and gave her four reasons for this decision. The first one was that a transfer of E10 million for the financial year 2017/2018 to Swaziland Water Services Corporation already committed is still pending with Treasury due to cash availability constraints. Secondly, Bertram said the two projects (rural water supply and oil reserve facility) are not related and a re-allocation cannot be made. Thirdly, the PS referred his colleague to Section 31 of the Public Finance Management Act of 2017, which he said does not allow for re-allocation from different sources of funds. Section 31 reads: Government shall not reallocate funds between heads of expenditure without prior authorization by Parliament through a supplementary budget. PS Bertram brought it to Winnies attention that the rural water project was financed under source 99 while the oil reserve project was funded from source 86. The fourth reason, according to Bertram, was that the Act also does not allow for re-allocation of more than five per cent of current allocation of budget. Bertram then requested a half year progress report on the oil reserve facility project which he said would assist in the planning and budgeting for future requirements. We would appreciate further discussions on the preparations and financing modalities for the project, Bertram added. Partnership with Taiwan Before this responding memorandum from Bertram, Winnies ministry had written another one to him on September 5, 2018. In it, Bertram was informed that the Kingdom of Eswatini and the Republic of China (Taiwan) had entered into an Economic Partnership Agreement in June 2018, which had a provision of energy issues. Bertram was told that the Strategic Oil Reserve Facility development had been identified as a priority project under the cooperation. It was stated that through the cooperation, the Republic of China (Taiwan) had agreed to assist Eswatini in the development of the facility through their national oil company CPC Corporation and other companies with relevant expertise. The ministry told Bertram that a company from the Republic of China (Taiwan), called CTCI, was already in Eswatini to discuss issues related to the construction of the Strategic Oil Reserve Facility. CTCI is the company that will be contracted by the government to review the designs for the Strategic Oil Reserve Facility. CTCI will also provide the EPC works for the construction of the Strategic Oil Reserve Facility project, Bertram was informed. It was stated that the mission was scheduled from September 10 to 14, 2018 and the ministry requested Bertrams participation in discussing taxes and finance issues related to the project. Bertram was further informed of at least four issues relating to financing of the project that had to be discussed during the meeting with CTCI. Australias prime minister and top colleagues campaigned over the weekend to block a bid to allow asylum seekers in offshore camps to come to Australia for medical treatment, saying tough rules on migrants should not be eased. Under Australias immigration policy, asylum seekers intercepted at sea are sent to camps in Papua New Guinea (PNG) and Nauru, and they cannot set foot in Australia, even if they are found to be refugees. Opponents of the policy have introduced a bill to amend the Migration Act to enable the temporary transfer of transitory persons from PNG or Nauru to Australia for medical assessment. The Australian Medical Association (AMA) has voiced its support for the bill, but the government fears it would open a loophole that asylum-seekers could exploit. We cannot have Australias borders determined by panels of medical professionals, Prime Minister Scott Morrison told a news conference on Saturday. Defence Minister Christopher Pyne and Immigration Minister David Coleman also voiced their opposition to the bill. Pyne said the government would be forced to reopen a detention center on remote Christmas Island, at a cost of A$1.4 billion ($992.32 million), if the bill passed as almost all the 1,000 asylum-seekers in PNG and Nauru would come to Australia for medical assessment. Theyll be coming to Australia one way or the other saying that they have a need to because of ill-health, Pyne said in an ABC television interview on Sunday. Coleman said the change would bring a return of the days when thousands of asylum-seekers traveled to Indonesia and then paid smugglers to take them on to Australia by boat. Many drowned when their boats ran into trouble. We are talking about a catastrophic failure under the previous government where 1,200 people drowned at sea, where 50,000 people arrived and 8,000 children were forcibly placed into detention, he said in a Sky News interview. AMA President Tony Bartone said in an emailed statement to Reuters the government should set up appropriate mechanisms to allow the temporary transfer to Australia for those in need of urgent care. Parliament could vote on the amendment when it resumes on Tuesday. The ruling coalition could lose the vote as it is clinging to power with the support of seven independents. The government is battling to improve its popularity ahead of a general election that must be held by May. Short link: MBABANE - The more closely you read His Majesty King Mswati IIIs Speech from the Throne regarding the economy, the more plausible it becomes that he admits the country is in big trouble. And he wants government and every liSwati to contribute to its recovery. Suggesting he admits that the country is in an economic crisis, the speech is dominated by the usage of words and phrases which paint a bleak picture. Some of the words and phrases used by the king to signify that he is cognisant of the countrys dire economic state include, but not limited to: we are faced with challenges; economic activity is weak; economic decline; dampened growth; faced with daunting fiscal and economic challenges; volatile SACU receipts; increased depletion of reserves; constrained economic growth; economic downturn; slight improvement; decreasing SACU revenue; domestic revenue would be insufficient; fail; we require stiff measures; we need hard decisions; unconventional methods; we need to fight; punitive; and strain. Analysing the above stated phrases and words points to one thing something went wrong and needs to be fixed as soon as possible. To show that the Head of State understands that the countrys economy is in the abyss, he mentioned the word challenge(s) more than 10 times in his speech. More strikingly, he used challenge or challenges more than he used opportunities. Domestic economic activity The words weak, declined, and dampened are contained in this paragraph: Domestic economic activity remains weak and is estimated to have declined by 0.4 per cent in 2018, triggered by the current fiscal challenges and the frail external expectation which dampened growth for the countrys exports. The countrys economic growth in the medium term is expected to gradually pick-up, but remains below 2.0 per cent, driven by anticipated improvements in the agriculture and manufacturing sectors. Growth is forecasted at 1.8 per cent in 2019. Also notably featured in the Kings speech was that the Kingdom of Eswatini continued to face daunting fiscal and economic challenges. He said government revenues and expenditures were continuously moving in opposite directions, driven by volatile receipts from the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) and ballooning government expenditure. He also mentioned that the expansionary fiscal position had surpassed sustainable levels, resulting in the accumulation of arrears, increased depletion of reserves and constrained economic growth. Even more striking is that the King is worried about the continued decline of the SACU revenue. SACU slight improvement He noted the slight improvement in SACU receipts by E500 million, but to show his grave concern, he said: We need to find out what is the cause of this decline because it affects our national development plans. This calls for a proper analysis of the sharing of SACU receipts by member states. But he did not mention that the South African Government was also pushing for a bigger slice of the revenue generated by SACU. Restructuring the revenue-sharing formula, which sees the lions share of revenue going to South Africas neighbours, could release badly needed funds to meet the countrys dire fiscal challenges. In September last year, SAs former Minister of Finance Nhlanhla Nene said he wanted Parliaments support to push for a change in the revenue-sharing formula and to resist attempts to fundamentally restructure the tariff-setting mechanism. The King made an observation that despite an expected increase in domestic revenue collections by Eswatini Revenue Authority in the financial year 2019/20, these will not be sufficient to offset the arrears accumulated over the years. It will also fail to meet governments domestic financing requirements for the fiscal year, he said. fully financed budget In this regard, the King said it was imperative that government presented a fully financed budget to help contain the situation. He said the allocations should be informed by the funds that we have in the purse. To see this happen, he said it would require very stiff measures and a concerted effort to curtail expenditure, whilst vigorously exploring avenues through which government revenue could be enhanced. In coming up with a fully-financed budget, hard decisions will have to be taken, sacrifices need to be made and unconventional methods of reducing expenditure need to be pursued, he said. Again, what the king did not say was what stiff measures would be taken by government to curtail expenditure, and what were the avenues through which government revenue could be enhanced? Interestingly, our sister publication Times of Swaziland, reported that the PM, Ambrose Mandvulo Dlamini-led government was considering the implementation of the Early Voluntary Enhanced Retirement Scheme (EVERS), which was abandoned in 2011. EVERS was considered after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had recommended that government cut the number of civil servants by 7 000. By then, that was about 20 per cent of the total number of civil servants. This was aimed at cutting the wage bill which currently stands at E8.8 million per month and is the second largest in Sub-Saharan Africa as a percentage of GDP. introducing tax policies In enhancing revenue, one of the solutions could be introducing new tax policies. The IMF said government should minimise the negative impact on growth by focusing on consumption, including VAT base, fuel levy, excises and property taxation, and reducing tax incentives and exemptions (eg, under income taxes). EZULWINI It was a rollercoaster of emotions as family members and friends celebrated the life of John Philip Carmichael. Tears and bouts of laughter were the order of the day yesterday at the memorial service of the late Carmichael, which was held at the International Church in Ezulwini. The event saw the coming together of representatives from the Royal Court, Government of Eswatini officials, the ambassador of the Russian Federation, family and friends. It was a sombre mood when Ambassador of the Russian Federation Alexander Surikov comforted the audience. BRILLIANT STATESMAN He was brilliant Statesman, a successful businessman and above all a devoted family man who always wanted to do more not only for his loved ones, but also for his country and for His Majesty the King of Eswatini. Together with his charming wife, they created and managed several efficient enterprises, said Surikov. He further highlighted that they were proud as the Russian Federation to witness the energy and effort he exerted in improving the relations between Eswatini and the federation. He said these were actions which Russia would always be thankful for and never forget. The ambassador pointed out that these were not only his words, but also the message from the government. Surikov said Carmichael was a wise and courageous man with deep sense of compassion and portrayed benevolent sincerity and respect for tradition. He said he left parts of his spirit in so many people, places and things. The ambassador added that the late Carmichael knew every person he ever met and was one of those who did not fall to circumstances, but always changed them to live better. While he said this, tears filled the eyes of his wife Madge Carmichael and close family and friends. The ambassador stated that both him and Carmichael would discuss so many possible approaches together. How many things done and so many not reached. He, however, assured the sombre audience that they as the Russian Federation would do on his behalf. FINEST QUALITIES, VALUES By recalling some of his finest qualities and values, they must incorporate them into their own lives. He said John would be missed by his wife, who was so familiar to Russia would stay alive as long as they all continued his legacy by aiming and working hard for a fruitful future of their countries. He finally extended sincere condolences to the family, friends and people of Eswatini. Myself and the alphabet P have a history, one would swear. After tackling potential and its several facets last Sunday, today I intended to talk about pride. Then boom. A certain gentleman from Malawi happened. This lad is one Shepherd Bushiri. His followers call him Prophet Bushiri. Otherwise some of his stunt-followers refer to him as Major I. Whatever that means is a subject for another day. And I must declare that his alleged holiness or lack thereof is none of my business. It is a matter between him and his saviour. Now readers of The Times will vividly recall that in the very first sermon, I did state openly that I feel very strongly, particularly against the clutter that call themselves men of God when in fact their actions dictate that they should be called men of shame for that is what they represent and stand for. I further decried the fact that these clowns waste our precious moments in time. They do not end there, they go on to steal. Actually, they rob gullible congregants of their hard-earned monies. obliged to offer This lot is always armed with portions of scriptures which they aim at the poor congregants who then feel obliged to offer. And this is against Gods will. The God we serve loves a cheerful giver according to the Bible. However, these robbers in sheepskins instil fear with certain scriptures and compel the petrified saints to give and enrich these hyenas. Now get me clear. In that very first edition, I mentioned that there are awe-inspiring men of God who are following the example of our precious Lord Jesus Christ. These are the pastors that sincerely ask for alms without threatening the brethren. Those are the pastors who know that what they collect is for catering for the needs of the destitute, not only in the church but in the communities they live in. How Bushiri happened? It was the morning of the first day of the month of love, which is February 1, 2019. The scene was in the Republic of South Africa and the protagonist was a son of Malawi, one Shepherd Bushiri. The antagonist in the set was the Hawks, a body that is responsible for the investigation of serious crimes. The location is the North West Province, Rustenburg to be precise, at a certain hotel whose address and name I do not care about. The Hawks pounced on and arrested Bushiri together with his wife, Mary. They were charged with Fraud and Money Laundering. To give the reader a bit of background, the alleged man of God was arrested and charged with the same offences in the year of the Lord 2018 in the month of April. Back then it was alleged that he was clandestinely siphoning about R15 million per month to his home country. And spare a moment for Bushiri. He could be forgiven there for not forgetting his roots. He remembered that while the sun shone, he should make hay and store it in barns back home. A sensible individual, is he not? On the morning of the February 1, 2019, when he was arrested, Bushiri had just been cleared of any wrongdoing in the stampede that occurred in his church, the Enlightened Christian Gathering (ECG). The said stampede was in December 2018, and three women lost their lives. Bushiri was cleared by the Commission for Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural Religious Linguistic Communities (CRL).On the day, I am certain some of his loyalists were bragging and telling all who cared to listen that they knew their prophet was innocent. And he would come out unscathed. I can hear them quoting Exodus 14: 14 where the scripture states that God will fight for his children. Little did they know that the Hawks had wiped their lenses and everything was not only perfectly visible but magnified in their eyes? crucify Shepherd Bushiri However, mine is not to crucify Shepherd Bushiri. Only the courts have the space and latitude to traverse that path. But my gripe is the gullibility of the flock that Bushiri is leading. According to the eNews Channel Africa (eNCA), the church members decried the fact that all the accusations against their man of God were an act of malice. According to eNCA, the members of the ECG believe the Hawks were intent on denting the image of their pastor. They reasoned that it was all because the attempts to wash off Bushiri and drag his name through the mud in the stampede episode did not materialise, hence the second arrest for the same crimes. The allegations of possible abuse of peoples beliefs did not hold any water for the loyal congregants. Phew! As the vows in marriage, Bushiris crowd stands with him through thick and thin. For better or worse, the congregants will still be firmly holding Bushiris hands to ensure that he crosses safely even in crocodile infested rivers. Now closer home, I am wondering if we have a body that is similar to the Hawks - an institution that is paid by the taxpayer to investigate people who are intent on emulating the Malawian lad. In our own Eswatini the sad part is that once someone mentions or touches religion, we literally fall into a trance. We are hypnotised and our response to stimuli is eroded hence by the time we attain the First World Status every corner will be having a tent where worshippers are conned the fruits of their toil in the name of the Lord. And no one will come to their defence. It is sad. It is pathetic. It is painful. Disheartening is mild. People are haemorrhaging money that they have laboured for in severe conditions. Somebody has to stand up for the defenceless. Before we wake up to news that a certain randy man of God has disappeared with millions of Emalangeni, we need to seriously consider the issue of regulation and affiliation of the mushrooming synagogues. best interests of citizens Those who have been calling for the regulation of the church are not satanic or demon possessed. They have the best interests of the citizens of this country at heart. They know and understand that while religion touches the heart and soul, it is not a licence that should enable theses scumbags to take advantage of emaSwati. While the issue of legislation is being pondered upon, something needs to be done. For the record, I am a born again Christian who is striving to do better than yesterday each morning, lest I be labelled an agent of some forces by some naive egocentric beings. Ngiyabonga. Gazas ruling Hamas said Saturday that Israeli undercover forces had attempted to install equipment to monitor the Islamic terror groups landline communications network during a botched mission in November. The findings of a lengthy investigation were announced by the Hamas military wing, known as the Qassam Brigades, in a pre-recorded TV statement. Hamas presented surveillance footage, as well as photos of drills, chain saws and two pistols with silencers, to back up its claims. Hamas thwarted an attempt to plant spying devices in the Gaza Strip, a Qassam spokesman, identified only as Abu Obeida, said in the statement. Israels military has not released details about the operation which went awry Nov. 11, leading to the heaviest round of cross-border fire, including Hamas rockets and Israeli airstrikes, since a 2014 war between the two sides. The Hamas statement described an Israeli mission that allegedly spanned close to a year. Abu Obeida said Israel brought equipment and vehicles into Gaza through a commercial crossing point between January and October. Fifteen members of the unit entered Gaza on a foggy night through the perimeter fence a few days before Nov. 11, the spokesman said. A woman working with the Israeli unit entered Gaza several times, disguised as an employee of a humanitarian organization, the spokesman said. Members of the unit used forged IDs of local Gazans and the documents of a charity group, he added. On Nov. 11, the unit was detected by Hamas fighters as it drove near the town of Abassan in southern Gaza. The discovery sparked a firefight, in which a member of the undercover unit and two Hamas gunmen, including a local commander, were killed. Five other militants were killed in airstrikes as Israeli aircrafts provided cover to airlift the force, including the dead officer. In the televised statement, Hamas showed low-resolution surveillance camera footage purportedly showing two vehicles being used by the undercover squad. The footage showed some faces of the occupants of the vehicles and what Hamas said was the moment its gunmen searched the van. According to the investigation, which confirmed previous reports, the firefight began when a local Hamas commander, Nour Baraka, ordered the detention of the occupants of the van who then shot him with silencer pistols. In the exchange of fire, a member of the Israeli force and another Hamas gunman were also killed before the van sped away. Hamas said the slain Israeli commander of the group was an Arab with the rank of lieutenant colonel. (AP) Recover your password. A password will be e-mailed to you. remaining of Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading. A winter storm will produce heavy snow in Montreal starting Tuesday afternoon through Wednesday morning. Current indications are that 25 to 35 cm (10 to 14 inches) of snow may fall in the St. Lawrence Valley. Strong winds will accompany the snow, greatly reducing visibility. Travel will become extremely challenging across the entire region. Adjust your plans if possible. (AccuWeather Photo) THE SHORTHORN Is seeking work study student assistants for our reception desk for summer and fall.Prompt, cheerful, students with professional attitudes are encouraged to apply to answer office phones and greet guests from behind a plexiglass COVID barrier.Preference is given to students available to work some mornings. This in-office job offers flexible hours and plenty of time to study.Apply through Handshake for job #4723423 or call 817-272-3188 for more information. Salem, MO (65560) Today A few passing clouds. Low 67F. Winds S at 10 to 20 mph.. Tonight A few passing clouds. Low 67F. Winds S at 10 to 20 mph. US-backed forces were locked in fierce fighting Sunday as they pressed the battle against the last shred of the Islamic State group's "caliphate" in eastern Syria. The jihadists overran large parts of the country and neighbouring Iraq in 2014, but various military offensives have since reduced that territory to a patch on the Iraqi border. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), supported by a US-led coalition, announced a final push to retake the jihadist pocket late Saturday, after a pause of more than a week to allow civilians to flee. SDF spokesman Mustafa Bali on Sunday afternoon said his fighters had battled their way forwards against the jihadists, capturing 41 positions from them. "Our forces are relying on direct combat with light weapons," he told AFP. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor group said the SDF had advanced across farming land, backed by coalition air strikes and artillery fire. Earlier, an SDF field commander reported "heavy clashes" as his fighters gained ground. The SDF launched an offensive to expel IS group from the oil-rich eastern province of Deir Ezzor in September. The Kurdish-led alliance has since whittled down jihadist-held territory to a scrap of just four square kilometres (one square mile) between the Euphrates and the Iraqi border. Up to 600 jihadists could still remain inside, most of them foreigners, Bali said. Hundreds of civilians are also believed to be inside, he said. Baghdadi 'Not in Syria' But Bali added the extremist group's elusive leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was likely not in the last pocket. "We do not think he is in Syria," Bali said, without adding further details about the whereabouts of the man who declared a cross-border IS group "caliphate" in 2014. On the Iraqi side of the border, French members of the coalition on Saturday stood ready to pour fury on any jihadists trying to escape. Dozens of 155-mm shells were lined up ready to be loaded onto three green-and-black Caesar gun-howitzers with a range of 40 kilometres (25 miles). Coalition deputy commander Christopher Ghika last week said Iraqi forces had sealed their border with Syria. Since September, more than 1,270 IS militants, more than 670 SDF fighters, and around 400 civilians have been killed in the fighting, the Observatory says. At the height of their rule, the jihadists imposed their brutal interpretation of Islamic law on a territory roughly the size of Britain. But military offensives in both countries, including by the SDF, have since retaken the vast bulk of that "caliphate". On Saturday, Bali said he expected the battle for the last patch of IS group territory to be over in days. The jihadists however retain a presence in Syria's vast Badia desert, and have claimed a series of deadly attacks in SDF-held areas. Since December, more than 37,000 people, mostly wives and children of jihadist fighters, have fled out into SDF-held areas, the Observatory says. That figure includes some 3,400 suspected jihadists detained by the SDF, according to the monitor, which relies on sources inside Syria for its information. US Withdrawal The SDF holds hundreds of foreigners accused of belonging to the extremist group in its custody, as well as members of their families. They have urged Western governments to repatriate their nationals, but politicians abroad have been reluctant. Relatives at home fear alleged foreign jihadists may end up facing tough justice in Iraq, where Human Rights Watch warned they could face "torture and unfair trials". On Sunday, a Russian diplomatic source says Russia was repatriating 27 children who mothers are being held in Iraq for belonging to IS group. The issue of jihadist repatriation from Syria has come into sharper focus since the United States in December announced its military withdrawal from Syria. That announcement has seen the Kurds warn they may struggle to keep jihadists in jail, and pushed them to seek a new ally in the Damascus regime to prevent a long threatened Turkish offensive. While the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) have been a key US ally in the fight against IS group, Ankara views them as "terrorists". Syria's Kurds have largely stayed out of the country's civil war, instead building semi-autonomous institutions in northern and northeastern regions they control. The conflict has killed more than 360,000 people and displaced millions since starting in 2011 with a brutal crackdown on anti-government protests. The regime has made a military comeback with Russian military support since 2015, and now holds almost two-thirds of Syria. Short link: Elizabethtown, KY (42701) Today Mainly clear skies. Low 59F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight Mainly clear skies. Low 59F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. Michael Campanella/Getty Images Four members of the Swedish royal family gathered at a restaurant in Stockholm on Thursday to mark the 20th anniversary of one of Queen Silvias most important initiatives: the World Childhood Foundation. Michael Campanella/Getty Images Silvia founded Childhood in 1999, with the goal of providing support to and protection for children who had experienced sexual abuse. Childhood now supports programs in 17 countries and has sister foundations in the United States, Brazil, and Silvias native Germany. Michael Campanella/Getty Images For the big anniversary celebration dinner, Silvia wore an intriguing pair of earrings. Michael Campanella/Getty Images The pair appears to feature a gem-set stud with a clear gem drop. The drops of the earrings look like they may be drilled. Michael Campanella/Getty Images We also caught a glimpse of Silvias rings as she arrived at the restaurant. Michael Campanella/Getty Images Princess Madeleine and Prince Carl Philip were also on hand to support and celebrate their mothers initiative. Michael Campanella/Getty Images Madeleine, who has done work with Childhood as part of her own charitable program, wore a glittering dress and dramatic earrings for the event. Michael Campanella/Getty Images The bezel-set diamond and pearl drop earrings neatly echoed both the silvery sparkles of her gown and the white fur of her jacket. Michael Campanella/Getty Images A close-up view also shows us that Madeleine wore a pearly ring on her right hand and the signature colorful beaded bracelet of the World Childhood Foundation on her right wrist. Algerias President Abdelaziz Bouteflika said on Sunday he would seek a fifth term in a presidential election set for April 18, the state news agency APS reported on Sunday, putting an end to months of uncertainty caused by his poor health. Bouteflika, 81, who has been in office since 1999 but has been seen in public only rarely since suffering a stroke in 2013 that confined him to a wheelchair, is likely to win a fifth term as the Algerian opposition remains weak and fragmented. APS said Bouteflika wanted to amend the constitution if re-elected. It did not say which specific amendments he would seek but a source familiar with the matter said he would likely propose the creation of new post of vice-president to help him govern the large, energy-rich north African nation. Among names cited by Algerian media as a possible future vice-president are veteran former UN diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi and Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia. Bouteflikas announcement came a day after the ruling FLN party picked him as its official presidential candidate. Several political parties, trade unions and business organizations have already said they would support his re-election bid. His re-election would provide short-term stability for the FLN, the army and business tycoons, and postpone a potentially difficult succession. Algeria is a key gas supplier to Europe and an ally of the United States in the fight against Islamist militants in the Sahel region of North Africa. Bouteflika remains popular with many Algerians, who credit him with ending the countrys long civil war by offering an amnesty to former Islamist fighters. Short link: Unlimited website access 24/7 Unlimited e-Edition access 24/7 The best local, regional and national news in sports, politics, business and more! With a Digital Only subscription, you'll receive unlimited access to our website and e-edition. Our digital products are available 24/7 and are accessible anywhere, anytime. The African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights signed on Sunday a memorandum of understanding with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) to promote cooperation in the field of protecting human rights. President of the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights Sylvain Ore signed the memo with United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet on the fringe of the African Summit, which opened earlier Sunday in Addis Ababa. In a statement, Ore said the court and the UN commission share many points of view on human rights preservation and protection. The UN commissioner said the court is a key mechanism for promoting human rights in Africa. Short link: * Username This is the name that will be displayed next to your photo for comments, blog posts, and more. Choose wisely! Thank you for Reading! Please log in, or sign up for a new account and Purchase a Subscription to continue reading. Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Letter to the Editor The efforts been renewed to bond for a new school. . Let me state the problem Everybody, including me, wants a new school, nobody wants to ... SWCD to show farmers ways to profit from nature The Knox County Soil and Water Conservation District's wildlife committee is looking to encourage local farmers to do their part in creating attractive spaces for waterfowl during the winter months. What can you do with a grain field that is otherwise not doing anything during the winter months except waiting to be planted? SWCD technician Clevie Bennett asked rhetorically. Well, there are actually a lot of things you can do. Members of the district's wildlife committee and a handful of local conservation specialists will gather at 4 p.m. on Feb. 20 at the Decker Chapel Community Center, 3548 W. Decker Chapel Road, to host the free event. All area farmers are welcome, Bennett said. Speakers include Bennett himself as well as Tom Held with the state's Natural Resources Conservation Service. Others are local attorneys Michael Edwards and Dave Deem as well as Shane Cooper, a conservation officer with the state Department of Natural Resources, and Ray McCormick, a local farmer and recognized conservationist. The event will also include a field visit, Bennett said, to a nearby wildlife viewing area so farmers can get a first-hand account of these kinds of waterfowl habitats. Among the methods to be discussed, Bennett said, are small things like planting food plots of corn, beans, wheat or even clover and native grasses in areas of empty winter fields or (even easier) leaving a few rows of corn or beans behind at harvest time. When you've got 5,000 acres, a couple of rows here and there won't be a big loss to you, Bennett said. Yet it can provide a lot of food for wildlife during the winter months. Another quite simple way of providing vital wildlife habitats is leaving a dead tree behind along the edge of a field instead of removing it. For woodpeckers and birds to feed and nest on, Bennett said. There are a lot of very small things just like that you can do to better manage the land for wildlife. But there are also ways, Bennett said, farmers can actually profit from extending a caring hand to local wildlife. Low-lying ground areas prone to flooding can be designated as protected conservation land, Bennett said. There are programs through the SWCD by which farmers can collect a subsidy from the Farm Service Agency. And once a thriving wildlife habitat is formed, farmers can lease temporary rights to their land to local hunters. If they want to do it, choose to do it, they can make a little money that way, Bennett said. There is also equipment that can be purchased by farmers and property owners to manage the water levels in low-lying fields, thereby encouraging the most attractive waterfowl habitat possible. A little grain left over underneath, Bennett said, makes a great winter home for ducks, for instance. With low-lying fields, the topography is just right to where you can put a water control structure in there that helps you manage water, he said. A little bit of earth work, drop (this) structure in there, and it lets you regulate the amount of water standing in your field. There are states just to the south, Bennett said, whose farmers collectively enjoy millions of dollars in leasing rights because the waterfowl populations are so great in the winter months. The same, he said, could be said of Knox County if local farmers get on board. There's no reason it couldn't be given all the resources we have here, he said. The event is expected to last until about 6:30 p.m. Registration is required by Tuesday and can be made by contacting the SWCD office at 812-882-8210, ext. 3. A meal of soups, sandwiches, chips, drinks and dessert will be served during the panel discussion. Would raise $3.5 million yearly for next 8 years for teacher salaries, mental healthcare for students Franklin schools are asking residents to agree to a property tax increase to support teacher raises, hire mental health counselors and provide a reserve as the district continues fighting a looming deficit. The request before taxpayers of Franklin Community Schools this spring comes as a last resort after the school district has faced years of property tax caps, stagnant student enrollment, changing state formulas for how schools are funded and a high debt payment to pay off the high school and middle school projects, Superintendent David Clendening and Executive Director of Finance Jeff Mercer said. The school board will decide on Monday to ask voters to approve a tax increase of 23 cents per $100 of assessed valuation for the next eight years. The owners of a $128,500 home would pay $118 more per year, and the school district would bring in an additional $3.5 million per year. That money would be split among teacher and support staff raises, hiring mental health counselors and setting back a reserve. The salary increases could potentially bring Franklin to the mid-point in the ranking of pay of central Indiana school districts and other districts around the state that are similar to Franklin. A starting teacher in Franklin schools makes $37,500. By comparison, Indianapolis Public Schools and Clark-Pleasant both pay $40,000, and Wayne, Warren, Plainfield, Decatur and Perry schools all pay $41,000-$43,500. "I need great adults to help us grow our kids," Clendening said. Class size has grown from 19 to 25 students at Franklin elementary schools in recent years. Twenty teachers were laid off in 2009. The school district is facing the ever-increasing prospect of losing experienced teachers who are invested in Franklin students and programs to other school districts in central Indiana who can pay higher wages and offer better benefits, because Franklin is at a disadvantage in the complex state formula that gives schools money per student. Schools that get the most money are those that are the most diverse, have an increased percentage of low income students and have a growing student population. While 42 percent of Franklin students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, Franklin schools gets $200 per student less than the state average in state funding. Property tax caps added to the Indiana Constitution after the high school was built and the middle school remodeled also means that the school district has been unable to collect more than $24 million in property taxes over the course of 10 years that district leaders would have anticipated when planning those building projects. Every year, the school district has to take $1.3 million from its general operating fund to help make the debt payment. At the same time, all school districts are facing a mental health crisis among students that could result in threats or danger at schools. While services are provided for students who meet poverty guidelines, estimates show another 300 Franklin students are in need of mental health services that the school district has no resources to provide. Of the $3.5 million generated per year if taxpayers agree to the tax increase, about $1 million will go to increase teacher salaries. Support staff wages will cost an estimated $610,000, and adding mental health services will cost $750,000. The remaining money, about $1 million, would be set aside for the districts reserves. Detailed projections of the districts finances for the next years show that its reserves will drop to zero by 2022 and result in a massive deficit over eight years. If the school board approves of the measure on Monday, voters of the school district that includes all of Union, Franklin and Needham townships will be asked to vote on May 7 when the city and town primary is conducted. The school district has applied Six Sigma processes to all areas of operation, gotten creative by giving one school a part-time principal, partnered with Johnson Memorial Health to save money in nursing costs and received money from the city of Franklin for Chromebooks, among dozens of other steps, to try to put off asking the taxpayers for more money. But it can be avoided no longer, Clendening said. "Thats our big question," Clendening said. "Will you partner with us?" "I want to make sure we keep those teachers." The current base teaching salary of $37,500 is lower than that of the Center Grove, Clark-Pleasant and Greenwood districts, and is nearly $9,000 less than the base salary at Speedway schools. If the referendum passes, starting salaries at Franklin would rise to $40,000, matching the current figure at Beech Grove, Clark-Pleasant and Indianapolis public schools. The school districts 292 teachers would each get a $2,500 raise. "Our teachers deserve this," Clendening said, thanking them for working with him and his leadership team while they have scrimped and saved for a decade. Franklin schools has already created an educational environment that makes it a strong competitor with other schools for teachers, Mercer said. For example, the school district gives teachers grants to allow them to take trips for professional development and bring the lessons back to the classroom, sometimes as a virtual trip for students. The pay increase will lessen the growing gap in wages, as teachers consider jobs in other districts. Ultimately, salaries that are competitive with other districts in central Indiana are necessary to keep quality teachers at Franklin, Clendening said, giving an example of a teacher who left to teach at Speedway schools for a $21,000 raise. Locally, Greenwood starting salaries, which trailed Franklin by nearly $3,000 during the 2014-15 school year, now lead Franklin by $2,419. Theres a $6,000 difference between Franklin (community schools) and Plainfield, (where) in five years, you can pay off your college debt. For us, youre running in place. If we get to $40,000 the difference wont be so great because of the things we can provide. Out of 36 school districts that are comparable to Franklin or close enough geographically to attract its teachers, Franklin was 30th in starting salary. A base increase of $2,500 would place it somewhere in the middle of the list, enabling the district to remain competitive. The district would also increase the salaries of the 275 support staff employees by 10 to 12 percent, Mercer said. The goal isnt to be the highest-paying, Clendening and Mercer said. The goal is to provide a salary that is more reasonable, they said. Franklin students go on to attend the best colleges and engineering students at Purdue University report that Franklin AP courses, for example, prepared them well. "I want to make sure we keep those teachers," Clendening said. The referendum comes at a time when Franklin schools have the 26th greatest amount of debt of 288 Indiana public school districts. From 2010 to 2018, the Franklin district lost $24 million in revenue due to circuit breaker tax caps on property and commercial taxes. The districts debt service currently totals $14.9 million, 78 percent of which is going to pay off the new high school and the remodeling project which produced the middle school. The Franklin district, which covers 112 square miles, felt the effects property tax caps more heavily than a district such as Greenwood, which covers eight square miles and has less property to tax. Additionally, the Franklin school district loses more money to TIF districts than 88 percent of districts in the state, Clendening said. A lack of growth in student population has also cost the district, as funding for schools is largely based on number of students enrolled. While Center Grove grew its student body by 150 this year, Franklin lost 51 students. "At this point, we just dont have any other choice," Clendening said. Its about people helping people. If taxpayers approve the referendum, about $750,000 per year will be spent on providing mental health services, and that money will go almost exclusively to putting professional service providers in the schools. The school district has added school resource officers through a partnership with the city, and Adult and Child Health provide mental health services for 200 students. But more needs to be done to have a proactive program for an estimated 300 children already in need, Clendening said. After three students committed suicide in less than two years, the district formed a mental health committee to brainstorm ways to address deficiencies in mental health services. The committee distributed a survey to teachers of all grades and to students from both the middle and high school, and found that 80 percent of students saw stress and/or anxiety in themselves or their peers. Teachers responded to the survey saying that while they often saw mental health issues in their students, they did not have the training needed to help the students and did not know who to refer students to. "Its about people helping people," Clendening said. Mental health counselors will form relationships with students and parents and help students cope with the stress and anxiety they experience, said Tina Gross, the school districts incoming chief financial officer. AT A GLANCE By the numbers How much more will you pay? For a home with $100,000 assessed value, a homeowner would pay $75 per year, or $6.28 per month. For the median-priced home in the area, valued at $128,500, a homeowner would pay $118 per year, or $9.83 per month. The referendum would raise $3.5 million each year for eight years. Heres how the money would be spent: $1,068,000 would be spent on salary increases for teachers $610,000 would go towards salary increase for support staff $750,000 for mental health services, including hiring mental health counselors. The rest of the money would go towards academics and educationally-related programs, along with reserve funding. At issue If the school board decides to put the referendum on the May ballot, there would be two possible outcomes. If it passes, the district would start to benefit from increased funding starting in the summer of 2020. If it fails, the district would have to wait 700 days to put a similar measure on a ballot. Voters will be asked to vote on the following question: "For the eight (8) calendar years immediately following the holding of the referendum, shall the Franklin Community Schools impose a property tax rate that does not exceed twenty-three cents ($0.23) on each one hundred dollars ($100) of assessed valuation and that it is in addition to all other taxes imposed by the school corporation for the purpose of funding academic and educationally-related programs, managing class sizes, school safety initiatives, student mental health support, and attracting and retaining teachers?" SOUTH BEND At the corner of Eddy and Cedar streets, during a lull in the dismal weather last week, 23-year-old Bradley Tener pointed up at a small white contraption strapped to the overhanging traffic signal pole. "That's our newest model," Tener said, explaining the capabilities of the infrared camera that can measure road temperature, air temperature, dew point and humidity. Originally from the Lake Tahoe area at the northern California- Nevada border, where snow is often measured in feet rather than inches, Tener knows severe winter weather well. And using a series of infrared cameras at intersections throughout South Bend, he's hoping to collect data that will help save the city money on de-icing and save lives by improving road treatment during the winter months. It was during his time as an engineering undergraduate at the University of Notre Dame that Tener realized how much of an impact sensors can have on road treatment and de-icing during the winter. "The big thing with road temperatures is that if road temps drop, your salt starts to become less effective," Tener said. "But cities really don't have a handle on road temperatures because units are way too expensive." Tener said current prices for a Road Weather Information System, or RWIS, can exceed $20,000 per unit, and in a city the size of South Bend, he estimated that the ideal number of sensors would be around 30. The infrared cameras are focused on a roughly one-foot circle of pavement immediately below traffic signals, and send information on the street's temperature to applications that city employees and Tener can view on computers and smartphones. Those high prices have prevented small and mid-sized cities from incorporating road temperature measurement into their winter treatment processes. "The only time you see units that measure road temperature are on highways and at airports," Tener said. "And so cities have always been a little bit in the blind on that aspect." But the recent Notre Dame graduate's startup, Frost Control Systems, hopes to change that with sensors that are thousands of dollars cheaper. Beginning in 2017, Tener installed six sensors in South Bend at no cost to the city, in a trial to gauge their effectiveness. At first, Tener assembled the housings for the infrared camera sensors in his basement. Last month, Tener's startup received $20,000 from the entrepreneurship nonprofit Elevate Ventures, as part of its "High Potential Startup" grant program, and Tener is it the midst of a $250,000 round of fundraising from local investors. Frost Control Systems has trials ongoing not just in South Bend but also in Lincoln, Nebraska, Battle Creek, Michigan, and Wyoming, Michigan, with plans to expand to Grand Rapids and add more sensors to existing cities in the future. Public Works Director Eric Horvath said the new sensors have made a difference for road crews, helping during the late fall to determine when roads needed brine or when the ground temperature was warm enough to melt off snowfall, and aiding in pre-application for colder temperatures when city street crews apply differing combinations of brine and BEET HEET, a beet-based de-icing product. "Our street crews are looking at the temperature of the roads, and that's how they make decisions on what the mix is going to be when we'd send out," Horvath said. In temperatures above 30 degrees, city crews typically apply a brine solution. But the lower the temperature, the higher percentage of BEET HEET is mixed with the brine, to combat refreezing. Before Tener installed the sensors, street crews relied on air temperature readings to determine pre-treatment and post-freeze de-icing, Horvath said. But often the road temperature can vary significantly from the air temperatures, depending on sunshine, temperature in previous days and precipitation. During the extreme cold last month, data from the sensors showed that the road temperature was significantly warmer than the air temperature. At 8 a.m. on Jan. 30, when the air temperature was 16 degrees below, the road temperature was 7 below. By noon, sunshine caused the road temperature to increase to 14 degrees, while the air temperature was still 12 below. Now, the network of sensors allows the city to "get a better impact of how those treatments impact the roads and how we can better apply based on that." "It's not merely about saving staff and salt costs," Horvath said, "it's also about saving lives and reducing accidents." As far as future plans, Tener said he hopes to see full systems implemented in multiple cities, providing increased data points and insights for municipal street crews. The city plans to continue evaluations of the sensor system, but hasn't made specific determinations on if additional sensors are needed yet. As far as his company's future, Tener plans to keep it located here. "We're based out of South Bend," Tener said, "and we plan to stay here." The ongoing measles outbreak in the Pacific Northwest might feel like a world away, but county health officer Dr. Alan Stewart is warning residents here that the potential for one is much closer than they think. We live in a world of international travel, Stewart said. Our children will want to go overseas, even to underdeveloped countries. And people are also coming into the U.S. all the time. It can happen here, he said. It's just that it hasn't yet. And I think right now is a really good time to make that point. At least 44 people in Washington and Oregon have fallen ill in recent weeks with the extraordinarily contagious virus, which was eradicated in the U.S. in 2000 as a result of immunization but arrives periodically with overseas travelers. Of the confirmed cases, 37 are people were not immunized. And most of the confirmed cases have been children under 10. The outbreak has lawmakers in Washington state revisiting non-medical exemptions that allow children to attend school without vaccinations if their parents or guardians express a personal objection. Oregon and Washington have some of the nations highest statewide vaccine exemption rates, driven in part by low vaccination levels in scattered communities and at some private and alternative schools. In Indiana, up-to-date vaccinations are required to attend any public school. In fact, all 50 states have legislation requiring specified vaccines for students, although several have exemptions for religious beliefs, and Indiana is one of them. Locally, 81 percent of youngsters in Knox County have been been given the MMR vaccine, Stewart said, which protects against measles, mumps and rubella. It's one of the highest percentages in Indiana, he said. Our county is pretty highly-vaccinated, Stewart said, but we can always do better. Members of the Knox County Health Board this year have been looking at ways to more efficiently vaccinate children. They've even given thought to working with the schools to host on-site clinics. Immunizations are getting done, local health officials say, but the process is not without its challenges. Parents often wait until the last minute like when they're told by school administrators their child can't return to school without them or they don't show up for appointments, thereby making management of the immunization clinic more difficult. Numerous studies have shown vaccines do not cause autism a common reason cited by anti-vaxxers, as they are so often called, who dont want their kids immunized. But the theories that began the anti-vaxx movement, Stewart said, were debunked long ago. The Centers for Disease Control, according to its website, said data shows the current U.S. vaccine supply the safest in history. And while anti-vaxxers are a minority here, Stewart still feels compelled to make sure all parents understand just how important vaccines really are. Parents who feel theyre protecting their children by not immunizing them are really doing them a disservice, he said. They're setting them up for serious, potentially fatal, illness. The measles vaccine was created in 1960. Before that, there were an average of 400-500 deaths per year from measles, many of them children under the age of 5. The emersion of the vaccine, however, cut that rate by 90 percent, and in developed countries there is no endemic of measles. News of measles outbreaks have made headlines for the last several years, including an outbreak in Indiana in 2012 that was traced back to two people who went to Super Bowl Village in Indianapolis that year. Last year, there were 17 outbreaks and about 350 cases. The current outbreak in Washington and Oregon has now been linked to cases in 18 states. Fortunately, Indiana is not yet one of them, Stewart said. Measles, Stewart said, can be fatal, especially in young children. They can develop a serious complication called measles pneumonia, he explained, as well as SSPE, which is an infection of the brain. That, he said, is frequently fatal and almost always leaves permanent neurological damage. In his long career as a physician, Stewart has only seen two cases of the measles, one here in an adult and another in a child while in medical school. Both, he said, were years ago. And he hopes to never see another. If you expect your child to grow up and travel and do interesting things, if you don't vaccinate them, you're setting them up for something very dangerous, he said. Early symptoms of measles include a fever, runny nose and malaise, followed by a rash that starts around the head and moves down the body. Patients are contagious four days before and four days after getting the rash. The Associated Press contributed to this report. The secretary-general of Egypt's parliament Ahmed Saadeddin announced Sunday that plenary meetings will be held on Wednesday morning to take a provisional vote on a report prepared by the general assembly on proposed constitutional amendments. The amendments aim to increase the length of presidential term from four to six years, appoint a vice president, amend regulations on the judiciary and recreate a second upper house by the name of the Senate. "The provisional vote has been scheduled for 17 February, but parliament speaker Abdel-Aal decided that it would be held on Wednesday morning at 10am," said Saadeddin. If approved in principle, the 26-page report on the amendments will be referred to the constitutional and legislative affairs committee to be discussed in detail in hearing sessions. Most political forces have declared their support for the amendments, which were proposed by 155 MPS affiliated with the Support Egypt majority bloc. A report by parliament's general committee recommended that the proposed amendments be approved in principle. Search Keywords: Short link: Several would help finance building, but it could be run by private company Henry County isnt the only place struggling with an overcrowded jail. But it could be one of the first to solve the problem in a new way. Henry County officials reached out to neighboring counties to see who might be interested in talking about a regional jail. They found like-minded leaders in Madison County. The idea of a regional jail is that several counties would help finance such a facility, but it could be run by private company. This would shift the direct employee and upkeep costs away from county taxpayers. State Rep. Tom Saunders, R-Lewisville, said Indiana lawmakers created language for a regional jail concept in 2018, but no one has taken advantage of it yet. There are no regional jails in Indiana, Saunders said. If it happens here, itll be a first. Saunders said Henry and Madison County representatives approached him about the idea. The group also talked with the Indiana Sheriffs' Association and the Association of Indiana Counties. Any counties considering a regional jail need to have the support of their sheriffs and county councils, Saunders said. Saunders was particularly impressed the Henry County and Madison County Sheriffs and lawmakers were willing to talk about a regional solution. He appreciated seeing the cooperation beyond county lines. The two counties are looking outside the box to try to solve the problem, Saunders said. Saunders wanted to make sure people on the ground were at least in favor of a regional jail before he started pushing the idea through the legal process at the Statehouse. We were trying to do our due diligence up front, Saunders said. While a regional jail could be part of the solution for housing convicted inmates, Saunders does not think itd be the right place for people who havent been to trial yet. As of Thursday, 85 of the 110 inmates at Henry County Jail had not been sentenced. They were simply waiting for their court date. Saunders said people waiting for trial should probably stay in their local county jails, which are usually located close to the courts they will appear in. This will keep transportation costs down. By moving sentenced inmates to a regional facility, county jails might also find more room to implement treatment programs for pre-trial inmates. Most of the cities are located in the South and the West, along with several in Michigan. Detroit was the only large city, described as a shadow of its former self. If you are in a position of power and you hate people, and you want to cause suffering to them you go through the trouble, you spend your career trying to cause suffering. What do you think is going to happen? Page said. Kids are going to be abused, and theyre going to kill themselves. And people are going to be beaten on the street. I have traveled the world and I have met the most marginalized people you can meet. I am lucky to have this time and this privilege to say this. This needs to fing stop. The video shows the man walking the woman outside with his arms wrapped around her neck and forcing her inside the car. Our thoughts remain with the family of Capt. Robert Hopkins at this difficult time, Conquest Airs spokesman said in an emailed statement. This is a tremendous loss for our company; Capt. Hopkins selfless leadership was and will always remain an example for us all. Winner of 11 Tony Awards, the show about Founding Father Alexander Hamilton started making headlines even before it debuted off-Broadway in February 2015. Thats because Lin-Manuel Miranda, the musicals creator, was still composing the score when he gave theater fans a sneak peek in May 2009 during a White House Poetry Jam, performing what would become the musicals opening number to a transfixed Barack and Michelle Obama. At the time, Miranda, who also created the rap-infused score for In the Heights, thought the project might be a hip-hop mixtape. Cut to six months after its off-Broadway debut when the sung-through musical, with very little dialogue, went on to break box-office records when it moved to Broadway. The Alonso Menendez is not your average cigar. It is a Brazilian puro made from the highly aromatic Mata Fina tobacco (unlike the Honduran-made CAO Brazilia, which employs a Brazilian wrapper around Nicaraguan binder and filler). While Stogie Guys readers may be familiar with Alonso Menendez, it is unlikely many American cigar smokers have heard of the cigar, which is from a lesser-known line by the Menendez Amerino Company that also makes the still relatively unknown Dona Flor line. The cigars are top sellers in Brazil, but are only now making their way into the American market. This thick robusto (five inches by 52 ring gauge) has a dark brown wrapper that is considerably looser than most premium cigars. But the attention to detail in the construction such as the Cuban-style triple cap suggests this characteristic is not a oversight, but a conscious choice. Pre-light this cigar gives off a rich aroma with sweet chocolate notes. It lights easily and the smooth, easy draw becomes immediately apparent. The smoke is not at all hot or harsh despite the quick burn. Coffee and milk chocolate notes abound, but as the cigar progresses a slight peppery spice develops. Hints of clove were noticed when smoked through the nose. The stogie is very balanced on the palate and falls somewhere between a medium and full bodied cigar. It has a sturdy white ash, although the burn was bit uneven a problem that developed in multiple cigars. Thankfully, this flaw was never a problem that interfered with the cigars complex, rich flavors. Overall, this robusto had a strong showing. It wont be everyones favorite, but it is well worth trying to see if a Brazilian puro is just what youve been looking forThat is, if you can find it! (You may have to ask your local store to help you locate the cigar.) Rich balanced tastes and a unique flavor profile earn the Alonso Menendez Robusto an impressive four out of five stogies. Note: The cigar pictured has a classic white band. We like the look, but weve been told that it will be changing. You may find this cigar as Alonso Menendez by Dona Flor with a gold Dona Flor band. Fortunately, the cigar itself will remain the same. [To read more StogieGuys.com cigar reviews, please click here.] Patrick S We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on! Go to form An Egyptian parliamentary delegation led by House Speaker Ali Abdel-Aal arrived in Cyprus Sunday in a visit aimed at reinforcing relations between Egypt and Cyprus, according to a statement. A meeting between the speakers of parliaments of Egypt, Greece and Cyprus will be held in Nicosia on Monday. "This is the first meeting to comprise the speakers of parliaments of the three countries," said the statement. Political relations between the three Mediterranean countries have grown steadily since Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi came to office in 2014 and after Egypt has recovered stability after five years of political upheaval. The leaders of the three countries have held around five summits to reinforce relations. The discovery of huge quantities of natural gas in the Mediterranean waters of Egypt and Cyprus and the demarcation of maritime borders between them have strengthened relations between the two countries. Tensions between Egypt and Turkey have also made relations with Greece stronger. The two countries have conducted several joint military exercises in the Mediterranean. Speaker Abdel-Aal said that the meeting tomorrow will focus on discussing economic, parliamentary, political and legislative relations between the three countries to reinforce strategic partnership. Search Keywords: Short link: Ashtabula, OH (44004) Today Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 58F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 58F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph. by Rajan Philips It is both ironic and insulting that the Rajapaksa camp and the UNP alliance have become identified with the two political systems contending for primacy in Sri Lanka. The Rajapaksas are identified with and are the champions of the executive presidential system. This is ironic given their so called roots in the SLFP, and it is insulting to the legacy of JR Jayewardene the acknowledged father of the presidential system in Sri Lanka. The UNP, on the other hand, is now identified with the restoration of parliamentary system, which is ironic given that JR Jayewardene crafted the executive presidency to become a permanent governing apparatus for the UNP. It is also an insult insofar as it was the UNP government between 1977 and 1994 that destroyed every aspect of the parliamentary system that had until then taken root in Sri Lankas political soil. The Rajapaksas earned their notoriety by enacting the 18th Amendment to give them unlimited terms in office, and if their plan had worked would have given them a 99-year lease over Sri Lanka. But people thwarted the Rajapaksa plan in January 2015, and the UNP and Ranil Wickremesinghe became the dubious beneficiaries. Now they are the targets of national political ridicule over their constitutional contraption called the National Government with a comical circularity: its sordid purpose is to create more ministers out of MPs and its crass survival depends on an enlarged cabinet. The power to make ministers out of MPs at will is not a feature of the parliamentary system, nor is it a feature of any presidential system in constitutional democracies. It is an unusual presidential power that JR Jayewardene created for himself as a mechanism for manipulating parliament. The biggest user and beneficiary of this mechanism was of course Mahinda Rajapaksa. The tragic-comic travesty now is that the incumbent President has no support in parliament, and the government in parliament is desperate to expand its cabinet size but has no support for it from the President. The myth of stability The farce of forming national governments to increase the cabinet size is also the perfect fodder for the critics of the 19th Amendment. The critics always pick on the many imperfections of 19A but severely ignore the principal purpose it has served that of rescinding the 18th Amendment and removing the Presidents arbitrary power to dissolve parliament practically at any time of her or his choosing. In fact, those who are vociferous in their criticisms of 19A did not have anything critical to say about 18A. And those who shed tears for democracy because of the removal of the Presidents power to dissolve parliament and hold elections either surprisingly forget or they are unsurprisingly ignorant of JR Jayewardenes cardinal reason for implementing the presidential system: STABILITY. And JRJs main evidence for political instability in Sri Lanka until 1978: too many elections, too many cross-overs and too many government turnovers! As for that small segment of pundits who are both critics of 19A as well of JRJ, we can only wish them well in sorting out their own contradictions, if not confusions. Not that JRJ was correct in his evidence or convincing in his argument. NM Perera contemporaneously dismissed it as JRJs "lame contention that the present (parliamentary) system of Government makes for instability and lack of continuity scarcely bear examination." What JRJ offered as examples of instability, NM applauded as instances that "neatly reinforce the power of democracy" and "prove that the present Parliamentary system has been tested and found not wanting." It is the Presidential system that has been found wanting, and never more so than under the current incumbent. Lankas current problem is that the same old problems have been passed over from the hands of the sublime to the hands of the ridiculous. That is how we came upon the obnoxious 18th Amendment, and after getting rid of it we are stuck with the imperfections of the 19th Amendment. And the debate between the two sides has become the proverbial tale of the pot and the kettle calling each other black. It is not only in regard to the constitution, but also in regard to acts and allegations of corruption and instances of abuse of power. When both sides have immoral equivalences, neither side can claim a high moral ground over the other. Any allegation by one side against the other provokes the retort what about your side? End of discussion. Moral equivalence was the notion that was made popular in America by President Reagans UN Ambassador, Jeane Kirkpatrick, a young socialist, life-long Democrat, and a Republican hawk after her fifties. Kirkpatrick was a defender of American power overseas, arguing that there was no moral equivalence between America, the chosen land of democracy and freedom, on the one hand, and the Soviet Union, a totalitarian communist state without freedom or democracy. The Soviets responded with the argument of whataboutery - that is, what about the state of affairs in the US? The Soviets picked on the difference between real freedoms (in the USSR) and the formal freedoms (in the US), and plights of the African Americans and the American poor. A peoples candidate In todays politics moral equivalence and whataboutery are arguments over corruption within countries. When the main political parties are all corrupt whataboutery becomes the argument of everybody. There is also no moral equivalence, false or otherwise. There are only immoral equivalences, and plenty of whataboutery, as there are now in Sri Lanka. When political choice is narrowed to choosing between immoral equivalences, the only way to positively move forward is to break out of the logjam of immoral equivalences and limited choices, and to positively expand the peoples choices. Put another way, when no political party can nominate a presidential candidate with clean hands and honest intentions, isnt it time for the people to clean out the whole bunch? It is that simple as an idea, and it is that difficult to execute. But it is neither inevitable nor impossible. Political change cannot be brought about by chanting prayers, chasing planets, or breaking coconuts. Nor does Sri Lanka need a violent revolution. Simple elections are good enough to effect big enough changes. That has been the experience from 1931 to 2015, even though the outcomes have been mostly mixed and often short-lived. Who would have thought that in January 2015, an obscure common opposition candidate would get the better of a governing juggernaut that too had stolen the national limelight after starting in obscurity and was hell bent on taking out Lanka on a 99-year lease? The people made it happen in January 2015. They can make it happen again. But they need a candidate who can best represent the most of what they want. The country needs a peoples candidate as opposed to party and family candidates. The idea of a peoples candidate sits well with the recent initiative for peoples constitution- following the consensus reached by 46 peoples organizations at a meeting in Colombo convened by the Punarudaya Movement on Saturday, January 19, 2018,to launch a Movement for Making a Peoples Constitution based on a "grand alliance" of peoples organizations. The gathering of 46 organizations and the launching of a broader movement for a peoples constitution, demonstrates two political facts. One, the dissatisfaction with the existing constitutional system and the desire to overhaul it might be more deep seated and widespread than what most constitutional experts and political commentators might be willing to concede. And, two, the new movement demonstrates the determination to take the task of constitution making out of the hands of politicians in parliament and hand it over to a genuinely participatory constituent assembly. The real question is what will the Punarudaya Movement and others associated with it do to advance their project in this year of elections, 2019? It should be obvious to them that what happens in the upcoming presidential, parliamentary, not to mention provincial elections, will undoubtedly have serious implications for the constitutional project. The project itself is an extension of the single-issue movement for abolishing the executive presidency launched by the late Sobitha Thero in 2014. The project is also the result of the peoples frustration with what has transpired after the January 2015 election victory that was a direct outcome of Sobitha Theros movement. It is incumbent on everyone who did the political legwork in 2015 to make sure that the expectations of 2015 are not further stalled or totally reversed by the upcoming elections in 2019 and 2020. We can expect only stalling and backpedaling from the candidacy and the presidency of Ranil Wickremesinghe. Gotabhaya Rajapaksas mission is to reverse the verdict of January 2015 and take the country back to the 18th Amendment and unlimited presidential powers and terms for the Rajapaksas. Maithripala Sirisena has made so many false starts in his first term no one is going to trust him for another term. Speaker KaruJayasuriya began the New Year (2019) determined to abolish the executive presidency. There is no time left for him to accomplish that task before the next presidential election. But he presents an intriguing prospect to become a peoples (not the UNPs) candidate in the next presidential election, one who might even win the election on the promise to end the presidency and fulfill that promise. Unlike Sirisena! Addis Ababa, February 10, 2019 (SPS) - The African Mechanism on Western Sahara holds on Saturday, in the Ethiopian capital, its constitutive meeting to address the conflict in Western Sahara and to set up an efficient approach to enable the United Nations to reach a solution to this lingering conflict. The African Union (AU) has decided to hold, on Saturday, the first meeting of the African Mechanism on Western Sahara. This Mechanism, politically known as "the African Troika" has been created in accordance with the decision of the 31st Ordinary Session of the African Union, held in Nouakchott, announced Friday the source. Through this mechanism, the AU aims at "contributing to reaching a peaceful, fair and permanent solution to enable the Sahrawi people to exercise their right to self-determination. AU plans to activate the Troika as "culmination of the UN efforts to achieve an immediate solution," AU sources said. The mechanism is intended to activate the role of the African envoy Joachim Chissano to Western Sahara, alternatively with the efforts made by the UN envoy, Horst Kohler, the same source added. (SPS) 062/SPS/APS Russia 'repatriates' 27 IS children from Iraq Baghdad, Feb 10 (AFP) Feb 10, 2019 A group of 27 Russian children whose mothers are being held in Iraq for belonging to the Islamic State group arrived home in Russia Sunday. The children landed at Ramenskoye airport, near Moscow, on Sunday evening, said a spokesman for the Ministry of Emergency Situations, quoted by TASS agency. "Twenty-seven Russian children have been repatriated from Baghdad," a Russian foreign ministry official said earlier. Thirty other children had been sent back to Moscow in late December. The fathers of the children were killed during three years of fighting between the jihadists and Iraqi troops, the official said. Anna Kuznetsova, Russia's envoy for the rights of children, confirmed the report, according to the TASS state news agency. She said the 27 children were aged from four to 13 and were from 10 different regions in Russia. IS seized large swathes of Iraq in a lightning 2014 offensive, before the government dislodged the jihadists from urban centres and eventually declared victory in December 2017. The Kremlin announced in early January that 115 Russian children aged under ten -- along with eight aged between 11 and 17 -- were still in Iraq. Iraqi law allows detainees to be held with their offspring until the age of three, but older children have to live with relatives. In November, Kheda Saratova -- an adviser to Chechnya's authoritarian leader Ramzan Kadyrov -- estimated "around 2,000" widows and children of Russian IS fighters were still in Iraq and neighbouring Syria. Around one hundred women and children -- mostly from Caucasus republics -- have returned to Russia so far. Nearly 4,500 Russian citizens went abroad to fight "on the side of terrorists", Russia's FSB domestic intelligence agency said last year. More than 300 people, including around 100 foreign women, have been sentenced to death in Iraq for belonging to the Islamic State, while others have been sentenced to life in prison. Most of those convicted are Turks or originate from former republics of the Soviet Union. Russia 'repatriates' 27 IS children from Iraq Baghdad, Feb 10 (AFP) Feb 10, 2019 A Russian official said Sunday that Moscow had repatriated a fresh batch of children whose mothers are being held in Iraq for belonging to the Islamic State group. "Twenty-seven Russian children have been repatriated from Baghdad", a Russian foreign ministry official said. Thirty other children were sent back to Moscow in late December. The fathers of the children were killed during three years of fighting between the jihadists and Iraqi troops, the official said. IS seized large swathes of Iraq in a lightning 2014 offensive, before the government dislodged the jihadists from urban centres and eventually declared victory in December 2017. The Kremlin announced in early January that 115 Russian children aged below ten -- along with eight aged between 11 and 17 -- were still in Iraq. Iraqi law allows detainees to be held with their offspring until the age of three, but older children have to live with relatives. In November, Kheda Saratova -- an adviser to Chechnya's authoritarian leader Ramzan Kadyrov -- estimated "around 2,000" widows and children of Russian IS fighters were still in Iraq and neighbouring Syria. Around one hundred women and children -- mostly from Caucasus republics -- have returned to Russia so far. Nearly 4,500 Russian citizens had gone abroad to fight "on the side of terrorists", Russia's FSB domestic intelligence agency said last year. More than 300 people, including around 100 foreign women, have been sentenced to death in Iraq for belonging to the Islamic State, while others have been sentenced to life in prison. Most of those convicted are Turks or originate from former republics of the Soviet Union. US, N. Korea to continue summit talks next week: Seoul Seoul, Feb 10 (AFP) Feb 10, 2019 The United States and North Korea will hold further talks next week to prepare for a second summit between President Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un later this month, Seoul said Sunday. The news comes a day after Stephen Biegun, the US Special Representative for North Korea, said more dialogue was needed ahead of the summit scheduled in Vietnam. "North Korea and the US have agreed to continue negotiations in a third country in Asia during the week of February 17," Seoul's presidential spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom told reporters. He did not provide further details. Biegun travelled to Pyongyang earlier this month for three days of preparatory meetings with North Korean officials, with the State Department saying the talks focused on Trump and Kim's "commitments of complete denuclearisation, transforming US-DPRK relations and building a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula". Trump and Kim are due to meet in Hanoi from February 27 to 28 following their landmark first summit in Singapore last June. That meeting -- the first-ever between the leaders of the US and North Korea -- produced a vaguely-worded document in which Kim pledged to work towards "the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula". But progress has since stalled with the two sides disagreeing over what that means and analysts say tangible progress on denuclearisation will be needed for the second summit if it is to avoid being dismissed as "reality TV". Trump's own intelligence chief, Dan Coats, have expressed scepticism over the North's denuclearisation, and told the Senate Intelligence Committee that Pyongyang was "unlikely to completely give up its nuclear weapons". Bezos case exposes billionaires' vulnerability to hackers New York, Feb 10 (AFP) Feb 10, 2019 The stunning revelation that a tabloid obtained below-the-belt selfies of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos -- the world's richest man -- suggests that even billionaires are not out of the reach of hackers. Bezos came out fighting this week, accusing the National Enquirer of blackmailing him with lurid pictures of him and his mistress, and pre-empting the threat to publish by releasing details of the images himself. But for Mark Johnson, CEO of Sovereign Intelligence, the incident makes clear that "no one is beyond the reach of cyber exploitation." "It's a curious irony that billionaires demonstrate astounding acumen related to their own industries, and yet seemingly ignore the minutiae of common-place security measures." Johnson sees billionaires and top executives as especially vulnerable because their personal information is a gold mine for criminals, intelligence agencies and competitors. "Obtaining their personal data is like having keys to the kingdom," said Johnson, potentially providing priceless insight into the thinking and strategies of the world's most powerful business leaders. Ian Bremmer, the founder of the Eurasia Group think tank, put it more bluntly. "If the National Enquirer has @JeffBezos dick pics, don't tell me China doesn't have @Amazon IP and strategy," he tweeted. - Increase in calls - Since the revelations about Bezos, whose fortune is estimated at more than $130 billion, computer security experts interviewed by AFP report an increase in calls from wealthy clients asking them to verify that their computer systems and devices were not hacked. "Today's threats however are not necessarily trying to breach the walls of the castle -- they are already inside, residing on personal devices," said Kris Coleman, the founder of Red Five Security. "Experience has shown that the typical breach is not discovered for eight months." In this ever-more connected age, more and more personal data is stored online -- from social security numbers to bank details, driver's license numbers and personal addresses. As a result the focus of security measures for the ultra-wealthy has shifted from bodyguards and sophisticated alarms towards risk management to protect their assets, their image and their "legacy." The super-wealthy will typically have their own computer security service and also call on external companies for regular evaluation of their devices because a large number of hacks are detected by third parties, according to observers. Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook's CEO, spent $7.3 million on his security in 2017, up from $4.2 million in 2015 -- astronomical sums that the social network deemed justified due to his prominence. Last July, Facebook said it would give him $10 million more per year to strengthen his security. "Protection from colluding insiders working from positions of trust; or, against an intelligence agency trying to attack from the outside is going to require a large investment, a lot of experience, and vigilance," said Coleman. - Entourage - For Johnson, "no one's data is that well protected. Think of all the third-party platforms that have your social security number, or banking information, or that hold your personal pictures." Just days before Bezos disclosed that a tabloid had obtained his intimate selfies, a fellow billionaire -- Joe Ricketts, the founder of the broker TD Ameritrade Holding Corporation -- was ensnared in scandal following the release of private messages. The American news site Splinter published a series of racist emails from Ricketts, without saying how it obtained them. The exchanges, some of which date back to 2009, show the 77-year-old sharing and apparently endorsing racist jokes and conspiracy theories. He has since apologized. Back in August 2015, a cyber attack on the Ashley-Madison extramarital dating site revealed that American billionaire Dan Loeb had an account there. Bezos did not say how the National Enquirer obtained his pictures, but experts say the most common method is for a hacker to usurp the identity of a member of a person's entourage. "The adversary would send a message to the target asking them to click on a link in a text or email," Coleman explained. "The sender's real identity is hidden but the target trusts the message from their 'friend' and clicks the link unlocking malware or another type of attack on that device." lo/wd/ec NESTLE Facebook SOTHEBY'S Egypts State Information Service (SIS) launched on Sunday a new website in six languages -- Arabic, English, French, Swahili and Hausa -- to communicate with Africa in light of Egypt's presidency to the African Union (AU) in 2019. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi took over the chairmanship of the AU on Sunday from Rwandan President Paul Kagame. The head of the SIS Diaa Rashwan said that the website is the largest serious attempt to communicate with other Africans in their local languages and in European languages commonly spoken in Africa. Rashwan said that the website (africa.sis.gov.eg) is part of a range of media activities carried out by the SIS to strengthen Egypt's relations with the peoples of Africa, especially in light of President El-Sisi's chairmanship of the AU. Rashwan said that the new website has 10 categories that will be updated daily, the most important of which is the 'Egypt' category, which provides information about the country's language, population, currency, national holidays, flag, national anthem, capital, major cities and major tourist attractions. The category also provides an overview of Egypt's history and political system, as well as daily news about the country in all areas. Other categories include 'Africa Today,' which contains the most important news in Africa, and 'Press Review,' which displays daily headlines from newspapers in different African countries as well as the most important articles and reports. Another category titled 'Egypt and Africa' deals with Egypt's relations with African countries and daily news on the topic. Search Keywords: Short link: RTHK: Elizabeth Warren throws hat in the ring for 2020 Democrat Elizabeth Warren on Saturday officially kicked off her 2020 White House run with a full-throated pledge to defend working Americans, unbowed by a row over her Native American ancestry that has threatened to nip her campaign in the bud. "This is the fight of our lives," she told cheering supporters in gritty Lawrence, Massachusetts, against "a rigged system that props up the rich and powerful and kicks dirt on everyone else." "Millions of families can barely breathe," Warren said, in a feisty speech that sounded a series of aggressively populist and unapologetically left-leaning themes. "It is not right." The Massachusetts senator -- who had announced her intention to run on New Year's Eve -- is among the highest-profile of the growing pool of Democrats hoping to unseat President Donald Trump in 2020. Her past battles with Wall Street have brought her a large following, and she is considered to have one of the best campaign organizations of any Democrat. Hoping to ride the momentum of her speech, she heads next to early-voting Iowa and New Hampshire, as well as five other states. But it remained unclear how badly damaged Warren is by a stubborn controversy over her claim to Native American roots -- a claim Trump has seized upon to belittle her, mocking her as "Pocahontas." Hoping to put the controversy to rest, Warren released DNA tests in October -- but this backfired when they showed her to have only negligible amounts of Native blood, dating back generations. Warren ultimately apologized to the Cherokee Nation. The matter reared its head again this week when The Washington Post published what it said was an official 1980s document in which Warren listed her race as "American Indian." Trump's re-election campaign issued a dismissive statement ahead of Warren's announcement, saying she had "been exposed as a fraud by the Native Americans she impersonated and disrespected to advance her professional career." It said her "socialist ideas" would hurt workers. "This is a story that she did not want in this launch," said John Cluverius, a political science professor at the University of Massachusetts-Lowell. But he also cautioned that "it's still very, very early" to speculate on "how it harms her, or doesn't harm her." Lawrence, the scene of Warren's announcement, is a former mill town where a group of women workers, including many immigrants, in 1912 launched a strike that spread across the region and came to be seen as a historic victory for women and for labor, with improved wages and working conditions. The site was carefully chosen by the 69-year-old senator, who has made the protection of middle-class rights the central pillar of her political message. Lawrence, once part of a bustling US textile industry, has for years fallen on hard times, with the loss of thousands of factory jobs. But Warren showed nothing but pride in Lawrence's pro-worker history. "I will never give up on you," she said. "I am in this fight all the way." She called for "big, structural change" in America that would reach beyond a change in leadership -- though she called the Trump administration "the most corrupt" in memory. She pointed to her own rise from humble origins -- the daughter of a janitor, she started her schooling in a US$50-a-semester community college and ended up teaching law at Harvard -- arguing that she can help bring a revival of the American Dream. She called for steeper taxes on the rich, strong anti-corruption legislation, curbs on lobbyists and a defense of the climate. She also supports universal health care. Warren tried to appeal to a broad ethnic coalition, saying, "We must not allow those with power to weaponize hatred and bigotry to divide us." Cluverius says Warren will need strong Hispanic support since two popular African Americans -- Democratic senators Kamala Harris and Cory Booker -- are also in the crowded field. She will also need to win over female voters, which might explain the highly unusual -- and somewhat risky -- decision to include a story about potty-training her baby daughter. Warren recounted her decision to go to law school when Amelia was not quite two years old, but that the only day care she could find -- with five days to go -- would only take her if potty-trained. A determined Warren accomplished the task, she told a laughing crowd, "courtesy of three bags of M&Ms." "Since that day, I've never let anyone tell me that anything is 'too hard,'" she quipped. (AFP) This story has been published on: 2019-02-10. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.